"Am I an asshole for this...?" I wondered aloud as I stood on a rooftop, gazing at the creepy circus and observing the two figures stealthily making their way inside.
True to my word, I had no intention of dealing with the whacky Professor Pyg and his menagerie of super freaks, personally. I informed Nightwing and was more than happy to leave it to him.
However, I realized that I now had the chance to resolve one of the concerns keeping me up at night, and I couldn't help but jump at the opportunity, much to my shame.
I'd already let go of my optimism that Cassandra would eventually run into the Bat Family on her own, as my mere presence made that uncertain.
Barbra Gordon was still up and kicking, and the way things were going, she might not even become Oracle, and Cassandra never rub shoulders with her and eventually become the new Batgirl.
I couldn't resist the urge to give Cassandra the push she needed to meet the Bat Family through Nightwing, as I told her about Professor Pyg, his circus, and the danger they represented.
My actions were undoubtedly manipulative, and I could only compare them to what Lady Shiva did, but in the end, it was the best thing to do for Cassandra's sake.
I was sure Cassandra knew I had an ulterior motive in sending her to the Circus Of The Strange, and the way she agreed without hesitation made me feel that much more guilt and doubt myself even harder.
But as I've said, the deed had to be done, and if I had to feel like an asshole for manipulating the young girl for her own sake, then so be it. It wasn't the first time I was a jack-ass, and I imagine it won't be the last.
...
Circus Of Strange
As she inspected the area, standing behind one of the circus' many tents, Cassandra couldn't help but frown at the eerie atmosphere and its dark, empty facade.
It was her first time visiting a circus, and what a disappointment it turned out to be. Despite Cassandra's harsh upbringing, she'd seen what real circuses looked like after she fled her former home.
The young girl had no childhood to speak of, so Cassandra had an understandable measure of expectations that these eerie, seemingly abandoned tents have promptly shattered.
Still, she wasn't here for merry-making and knew not to lose focus as David Cain had thoroughly beaten the consequences of such carelessness into her mind, body, and soul.
Cassandra's vigilance was not in vain as she immediately noticed the person trying to sneak up on her as the latter made a mistake and breathed a bit too loudly.
She sharply turned her body, throwing a high kick at the face of the person behind her. The man immediately reacted, jumping backward to dodge her attack and landing in a well-lit area, revealing his grotesque appearance.
Looking at the man's dark green face and the many pumps all over his face as he licked his lips with an elongated tongue, Cassandra froze for a second before she gathered her bearings.
"And what do we have here? A little bug that wandered into Mr. Toad's pond..." the man said, hideously grinning as he lowered his posture, putting his webbed, green hands on the floor akin to a toad, ready to lunge on a fly.
Noticing Cassandra's lack of reply, Mr. Toad chuckled, causing his protruding gut to jiggle as he pushed himself off the ground, leaping towards Cassandra like a speeding bullet.
Cassandra saw it coming and quickly stepped aside, turning to face the frog-human-hybrid as he flew past her. However, she was surprised to see a long, purple tongue full of pimples flying toward her.
It was too late to dodge, so she raised her hand in front of her face to block the attack, and the tongue connected with her forearm, wrapping around it.
She followed the tongue back to its owner, noticing he was clinging to a tent like a lizard and preparing to make another lunge, but not before pulling Cassandra towards him with the elongated appendage to make her lose balance.
Cassandra staggered two steps forward as Mr. Toad pulled her towards him and lunged, but she was quick enough to regain her balance and dodge in time.
Cassandra turned to face the man again as he flew past her and was ready for the purple tongue to fly towards her face this time. She stepped aside, allowing the strangely long appendage to shoot past her.
The young girl caught Mr. Toad's tongue and gave him a taste of his own medicine as she pulled him towards her, slamming his speech organ into the ground and stomping it as he staggered.
Quickly capitalizing on her advantage, Cassandra closed the distance and knocked out the toad-human-hybrid with a kick to the side of the latter's head.
Cassandra let out a drawn breath, relieved as she inspected the area in search of other attackers. She found not one but three bald men in acrobat outfits, seemingly tied together at the waist as each faced a different direction.
The one facing Cassandra grinned as he noticed her looking in their direction, and the three men stepped in her direction, clearly prepared to fight.
Cassandra prepared herself for the fight, but it proved unnecessary as a figure came flying over the three bald men, followed by a giant meatball that rolled over them, immediately putting them out of commission.
Confused, Cassandra lowered her hand as she looked at the giant meatball that seemed to sprout four tiny, bloated limbs and the bearded face of a woman.
She slowly turned to the figure that flew over the now-unconscious three acrobats' heads and immediately recognized him as one of the city's vigilantes, to which her confusion only grew.
However, the superhumanly obese bearded woman and the vigilante weren't the only ones to arrive as a man covered in flame came running behind the former.
"They took out Kushti and Mr. Toad. It's just you and me now, Rex ..." the bearded woman said as she looked at the flaming man before gesturing towards the three acrobats and the toad-human hybrid.
"You took out Kushti with your fat ass. They had nothing to do with it..." Phosphorous Rex said, rolling his eyes at the bearded woman as he clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"No matter... we just have to stop them here... you know how the professor gets when someone interrupts his work..." the flaming man added, grinning as he raised a hand, extending it forward as it ignited in flames.
"I don't know who you are, kid. But you better get out of here while I keep those two busy..." Nightwing said as he gave the flaming man an appraising look before turning to Cassandra.
She only shook her head in response, and Nightwing didn't need the ability to read body language to understand there was no changing her mind, solely based on her expression.
"Right..." Nightwing remarked, sighing as he quickly analyzed the situation. He immediately noticed the unconscious toad man and deduced that Cassandra knew how to fight at least.
"Then you take care of the bearded meatball over there while I take care of the match stick here..." Nightwing instructed as he realized the flaming man was the more dangerous foe out of the two.
He did not wait for Cassandra to reply before retrieving several Wing-Dings, his own customized version of the Batarang, and throwing them at the flaming man.
The flaming man raised his hand and engulfed the projectiles in a wall of flame that killed their momentum before releasing even more fire towards Nightwing.
Big Top, the bearded woman, took that as her cue as she retracted her head and limbs back into her body and started rolling towards Cassandra, intent on crushing her to death.
...
"Talk about a freak show..." I muttered as I viewed the footage my pigeon drone transmitted directly into my brain. The circus had an unsurprising lack of cameras and other surveillance devices, so I had to fall back on the old reliable drone.
"It seems to be going smoothly for now at least..." I remarked as I watched Nightwing and Cassandra dancing around the bearded woman and the flaming man, seemingly in control.
"Still... Pyg hasn't shown up. Neither did his dolls..." I muttered, freezing when I finished my sentence as realization hit me.
"Shit... I just jinxed it, didn't I...?"
...
Cassandra couldn't help but grit her teeth as she cartwheeled to the side, letting the bearded woman roll past her as she looked at Nightwing throwing spherical capsules at the flaming man.
The capsules would explode once they hit the flaming man, releasing a blue foam that would wrap the latter and extinguish his flames before he'd shrug them off.
Nightwing still took advantage of the momentary distraction and hit the flaming man with Wing-Dings as the fire surrounding the latter's body made direct physical confrontation impossible.
However, they did almost no damage as the flaming man would push the projectiles away with his power, softening their momentum before they hit him, putting them in a deadlock.
Cassandra wasn't doing much better as she could do nothing but dodge the rolling bearded woman since the latter's fat absorbed her attacks like the world's softest mattress.
She deduced her only chance was to attack the bearded woman's pressure points to put her out of commission, but the latter's fat got in the way, covering and protecting her nerves.
Left with no other choice, Cassandra firmed her resolve and retrieved the jade pin in her hair, undoing her pun and causing her black mane to fall to her shoulders, gently swaying with the air.
Cassandra did not like hurting others. She hated using the pin, which her father gave her, even more as it was the weapon she used to take her first life. However, she kept it for a reason.
Despite her kindness and almost blind optimism, she knew there would come a time when circumstances would force her to compromise and use what she learned from her father, even if it meant causing severe harm.
Cassandra frowned in concentration as the Big Top turned and started rolling towards her, stepping aside to dodge as the bearded woman approached.
She quickly turned to the side and stabbed the pin into the bearded woman's side, causing her to scream as she immediately stopped behind Cassandra.
Cassandra quickly threw the pin at the bearded woman's back to stop her from retracting into a ball again as she closed the distance. She mounted the latter's shoulders with a leap and buried two fingers in her neck.
She hit the bearded woman's pressure point to knock her out. However, the latter's fat armor still protected her from losing consciousness despite being immobilized temporarily.
Cassandra did not realize this and heaved a sigh of relief as she turned to Nightwing to see how he was doing, only to smile as she watched him standing over the flaming man, having engulfed him in the blue foam, robbing him of his power.
However, Cassandra's smile instantly turned into a grimace as many people started crawling out of the shadows, and her expression worsened even more as she noticed their faces and outfits.
Each and every one of them, old, young, male, female, had the same face, that of an ugly doll straight out of a horror movie, dressed in frilly shirts and skirts as they quietly moved towards an unwitting Nightwing.
Cassandra tried to dismount off Bit Top's shoulder to help Nightwing as she was incapable of warning him, only for the bearded woman to regain her mobility and take advantage of her distraction.
"Got you, you brat!" Big Top exclaimed, happily grinning as she caught Cassandra's foot and slammed her into the ground before throwing her towards the dolls, who promptly gripped her limbs and restricted her movement.
Alarmed by the commotion, Nightwing turned to the source and quickly realized the situation. He took out his Wing-Dings, and prepared to use them on the dolls to free Cassandra.
However, one doll quickly reached the flaming man and freed him from the foam with a knife, and the latter attacked Nightwing, catching him off guard.
Nightwing tried to resist, but the flaming man gave him no chance as the dolls converged around him, and he was soon in the same situation as Cassandra.
Cassandra and Nightwing resisted and kept attempting to break free. But they only received a beating for their effort as the dolls surrounded the duo, keeping them in place and beating them into behaving before trying them up.
The beating stopped as loud footsteps echoed in the area, and the dolls parted, revealing a man in a pig mask, slowly walking towards Cassandra and Nightwing.
"Two new darlings... in pain..." Professor Pyg said, tilting his head as he stopped before Cassandra and Nightwing, alternating his gaze between the two.
"No worries. Pyg make it better, make you perfect..." The Professor said with a demented laugh akin to a pig squealing in excitement more than anything else.
"There will be more pain, but that's just the body's way of saying thank you to Pyg..." The Demented Professor added with a snort of excitement as he slowly reached toward Cassandra.
"Let's see how thankful you'll be once I'm done with you then..." came an exclamation as a figure materialized behind the Professor before he flew away with a sickening crunch of breaking bones.
"Get him, my darlings! Make him one of us...! F-fix- him..." Professor Pyg, who'd miraculously clung to his consciousness, instructed the dolls before his body went limb and he was out cold.
The numerous dolls, the flaming man, and the bearded woman needed no further convincing as they all lunged at the newcomer in an attempt to overwhelm him with numbers.
The first to arrive was the bearded woman as she rolled towards Gray with a speed that no one her size hand any right to, but he was prepared for her, having spectated the fight.
Gray held his ground and stopped the bearded woman in her tracks, lifting her overhead with a grunt of effort before throwing her at the flaming man who was right behind her.
The dolls were unfazed by Gray's show of strength and lunged at him, and he did not spend much effort on them as he dodged their attacks, jabbing the occasional pressure point to knock them out without harming them.
Quickly taking care of the closest dolls, Gary retrieved several knives, which he threw at Nightwing and Cassandra, cutting their restraints and freeing them.
"These... things..." Gray remarked while looking at the Dollotrons. "They were regular people before Pyg changed them somehow..." he added as he turned to Cassandra and Nightwing.
"I don't know if they can be changed back, but don't hurt them unless you have to..." he added, turning away to face the flaming who'd already recovered and was preparing to charge.
...
I quickly switched to the bulletproof equipment into a fire-proof outfit as Rex sent a searing wave of flames toward me to shield Cassandra and Nightwing, who was still behind me.
"Shit..." I cursed as I felt the heat bypass my fire-proof outfit and sear my skin as I hadn't perfected it. However, my healing factor quickly kicked in, and I was as good as new in seconds.
I've been working on it in my spare time to avoid getting in the same situation as when I fought Whisper and Abbot on the docks, and I ended up creating several prototypes.
I created several suits that were fire-proof, acid-proof, shock-proof, and cold-proof to prepare myself for any future elemental-themed enemies, but they were, as I've stated, nothing but prototypes and needed more work.
"I'll take care of the two circus freaks... you two stay out of my way," I said as I took off my fire-proof suit since it would only get in the way, tattered as it was already.
Nightwing looked like he had something to say, but I ignored him, keeping an eye on the flaming man as I absorbed the residual heat energy lingering in my body.
Phosphorous Rex unleashed another wave of flame, and I quickly retrieved my wire and swung away to dodge as the Cassandra and Nightwing were ready to move out of danger on their own.
I put away the wire mid-air as the flaming man began rapidly firing fiery bullets at me, spinning myself to dodge. Big Top observed my movement and started rolling towards where she thought I'd land to crush me.
I didn't bother to adjust my course and merely stepped on her and leaped away, causing the flaming man's attack to hit her instead, causing her to lose control and crash into a tent, immobilizing herself.
'Let's try this...' I mused as I retrieved Ebony and channeled my energy and the residual heat in my system into it while the flaming man kept shooting fiery bullets at me.
I charged Ebony halfway before releasing a big, red energy projectile that absorbed the flaming man's fiery bullets in its way, growing larger with each until it became the same size as Phosphorous Rex before hitting him.
...
'For a guy who doesn't want to kill, I sure do like using untested shit on other people...' I mused, my eyes twitching as I kneeled next to the flaming man to examine his vitals.
I sighed in relief as I discovered he was merely unconscious, even if his appearance suggested he was dead, what with his irises rolling back, showing the whites of his eyes as he lay motionless.
"That's that..." I remarked, shrugging as I got up and made my way to the Squirming bearded woman, who was still feeling the burn for the lack of a better expression
She noticed me and tried to get up, but I quickly closed the distance and knocked her out with a blow to the head since I didn't feel like jabbing my finger into her fat, sweaty neck.
"What about him? Aren't you going to check on him?" Nightwing asked after watching me knock out Big Top as he gestured toward the unconscious Professor Pyg.
"There's no need," I replied, shaking my head. "There are people even I'm not selfish enough to overlook," I added, sighing as I walked towards one of Pyg's Dollotrons.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Nightwing asked, his expression turning severe as he ran towards Professor Pyg to see how he was doing, alarmed by my words.
"It means what it means," I blankly replied as I took a knee next to the Dollotron to examine it, starting with its creepy doll face. "Shit..." I cursed, grimacing as I realized it wasn't a mask but an actual fleshy face.
The demented piece of shit permanently changed those people's faces somehow, and I'm not even sure anyone can revert the process, not to mention their broken minds.
"He's alive...?" Nightwing remarked, his tone puzzled as he got up and turned to me, regarding me with a questioning look he and Cassandra shared.
"Define alive," I said as I got to my feet. "Breathing? Yes. Capable of independent thought? Yes..." I added as I gave the unconscious Pyg a cold glance.
"The other stuff... not so much..." I concluded as I looked away from the demented professor and went to examine the other victims, only to realize they suffered the same treatment.
It might come as a surprise, but even I had a (cripple on sight, or kill if not possible) list of several villains, and Professor Pyg was on top of it. Selfish as I might be, there were still people who were so evil that even I couldn't ignore and leave be.
There were also those who were too powerful, unpredictable, and fucking extreme to leave alive after getting the unfortunate displeasure of making their acquaintance like that time-traveling bitch in Central City.
Imagine waking up one day to find one of your balls missing, only for some mother fucker in yellow spandex pajamas to show up and say, "It was me, Gray. I went back in time and stole one of your testicles..."
Hell fucking no. I'm not dealing with that kind of bullshit, not today, not tomorrow, never, ever.
Still, Nightwing frowned at my words, seemingly conflicted, but he looked at the Dollotrons and swallowed whatever words he was about to say, merely sighing as he shook his head.
"These people... I don't think they can be changed back..." I blankly said as I turned to leave. "The right thing to do is to put them out of their misery..." I added as I started walking away.
"Either way... they're all yours..." I concluded, activating my phantom belt and disappearing from Cassandra and Nightwing's sight, leaving them to share an uncomfortable expression as they looked at the Pyg's victims.
...
Gotham
The Diamond District
Nightshade sighed, torn with hesitance as she leaned on a wall, observing a supposedly abandoned theatre full of people, going in and out, doing all kinds of chores around the place.
Though a hero, she still learned a thing or two from the various villains she worked with in the suicide squad. Nightshade knew who to ask to find someone and was willing to pay good money for the info. Unfortunately, all information brokers she found had any idea about Gray's whereabouts.
She had yet to find any leads toward Gray and started investigating everywhere he's been sighted, leading her to the theatre, hoping to find a clue to his current location or base of operation.
Nightshade had already investigated the docks and every place Gray was seen. The theatre was her last hope of finding him. However, she did not expect to find it occupied by this many people.
She did not know if those people were connected to Gray or if they'd simply decided to occupy the place because it was empty. Nightshade was at a loss at what to do, as she did not wish to give the wrong impression.
However, she did not get to overthink the subject as a woman in heavy clothing, covering her face with a hood, approached her while looking directly at the heroine.
"Excuse me, miss..." The hooded woman said as she raised her head and looked into Nightshade's eyes. "Would you happen to know the directions to the nearest supermarket?" the woman asked as a car passed by, shedding light on her, revealing her serpentine features and emerald green eyes.
Nightshade's body stiffened as she realized the danger and prepared to teleport away. However, it was too late as the serpentine woman retrieved a cylindrical spray can, which she raised to the heroine's face.
The serpentine woman squeezed the top, releasing a green gas, which immediately slithered into Nightshade's lungs, taken by surprise with her guard down as she was.
"Who...? Wha-" That was all Nightshade could say as her vision darkened and her consciousness slipped away. Her body went limp, and she fell, but the serpentine woman caught her body and hit the ground.
The serpentine woman smiled as she dragged the unconscious heroine to the closest alley and stopped to look around. "Abbot?" the woman called, and a man in a heavy trench coat stepped out of the shadows.
"It seems we have our piece offering..." Abbot blankly said as he stopped before Whisper, his gaze alternating between her and the unconscious heroine.
"Let's just hope it's enough..." he added as he kneeled next to the heroine, retrieving a metallic black collar that he attached to Nightshade's neck to inhibit her power.
"I'd say an enemy soldier lurking around his people is more than enough to get Wraith's attention at least..." Whisper interjected as she removed the hood, letting her red, smooth hair loose.
"Indeed. Now we only need to make our presence known..." Abbot said, giving Whisper a meaningful look before turning to the theatre, to which the latter chuckled.
"That's where you come in, big guy," Whisper said as she walked toward Abbot, stopping beside him as she playfully smacked his shoulder. "If he doesn't like our gift... well... you might be able to take a punch or two. I can't," she concluded with a shrug.
Hearing those words, Abbot could do nothing but sigh as he picked up Nightshade, put her on his shoulder, and started walking towards the theatre in resignation.
...
Gray's hideout
As I sat on my couch, blankly staring into the ceiling while patting Little Soot's head, I forced myself to contemplate the issue of whether to accept Martian Manhunter's offer.
I didn't want anyone inside my mind. Whether the person offering was trustworthy and genuinely wanted to help with no ulterior motives in mind did not matter. It was one of those things you'd have a natural aversion to, despite lacking prior experience. You know, like pineapple pizza.
You hear so many people say it's good, and you might even believe them, but in the end, it was still fucking pineapple on fucking pizza, and it sounds fucking horrid, so you never try it.
On the other hand, I didn't want to keep having sudden fits of psychotic rage because it almost fucking ruined me once already when I went ballistic on Virtuoso.
'Fuck... what the hell am I supposed to do...?' I mused, feeling the urge to punch something in my frustration as I squeezed my mind for an answer and found none.
"Now what...?" I wondered, snapping out of my musings as I received an alert and activated my personal computer power to see what was happening and where.
"Gimme a break, man... the fucking furry piece of shit is back..." I groaned in annoyance as I put Little Soot in my lab aside and stood up, much to the black feline's displeasure.
...
Gotham
The Diamond District
The theatre's back entrance
"You have a death wish or something?" Abbot's body stiffened as he heard a cold remark behind him. He put the unconscious body on the ground, slowly turning around as he raised his hand.
Abbot was not surprised to see Grayson standing behind him as he had approached the theatre's back entrance, fully intent on luring him out to have a word.
"I'm only here to talk..." Abbot blankly said, regarding Grayson with a calm look as he maintained his posture, keeping his hands in the air as a sign of surrender.
"Be quick. Don't test my patience. Don't try anything funny," Grayson replied, frowning as he alternated his gaze between Abbot and the unconscious body on the ground.
"May I...?" Abbot asked as he noticed Grayson's gaze lingering on the body at his feet. He gestured towards it with his chin as he didn't want to push his luck.
Gray wordlessly copied his gesture in approval, and Abbot slowly kneeled next to the body, removing the black bag over its head and revealing Nightshade's face.
"We found her lurking around the theatre-" Abbot said, prepared to explain the situation. However, Grayson quickly cut him off, causing him to swallow his words.
"We...?" Gray remarked, his frown becoming more pronounced as he activated his personal computer power to inspect the area and quickly found Abbot's partner.
"Stay," he added, quickly disappearing and leaving Abbot to stare at the air as he sighed at his verbal fuck up. However, he did not have to wait long before Grayson came back, walking behind an annoyed-looking Whisper.
"Keep talking," Gray blankly instructed as he watched the bemused Whisper slowly walk towards Abbot and stop beside him, giving the latter a displeased glare.
"As I've said, we found this one lurking around the theatre and thought you might not appreciate that..." Abbot said, gesturing towards Nightshade, unmindful of the increasingly bemused stare Whisper gave him.
"And you're right... I don't appreciate it one bit. But you don't expect me to believe you were passing by when you caught her, do you..?" Gray said, gazing at Nightshade, then slowly moving his gaze back to Whisper and Abbot.
"The way I see it, you two were 'lurking' here first. Mind telling me why the fuck that is?" He asked, his already frigid tone growing several degrees colder, urging the duo to choose their words wisely.
"We were indeed lurking; I won't lie..." Abbot replied. Gray's expression immediately worsened, seemingly on the verge of violence, to which the werewolf quickly went on.
"You are not an easy man to reach... and we had no other way to get your attention..." Abbot explained, quickly raising his hands. "Please understand that we did not have any other option..." he added, sighing as he noticed Grayson's expression easing up.
"You have my attention, but I'll need to deal with this one first..." Grayson said after a second of silent contemplation as he gestured towards Nightshade, prompting Whisper and Abbot to step back from her.
Grayson quickly walked towards the unconscious heroine, picked her up, and turned to Abbot. "I'll be in touch," he concluded, conjuring a cheap phone in his hand from nowhere, and throwing it to the werewolf before leaving.
"Well... you're in one piece... I'm in one piece, and we have a line of communication with Wraith, albeit one-sided..." Abbot said as he turned to Whisper, noticing the murderous glare she was sending his way.
"I'd say things went well..." he added with a shrug as he walked away, causing the serpentine woman to sigh in resignation as she followed suit, muttering in annoyance.
"Fucking fur-for-brains..."
...
East End
An abandoned factory
I sighed as I sat on a rusty metallic stool, looking at Nightshade, who I'd tied into an equally old metal chair, wondering how to deal with the troublesome heroine.
The simplest solution was to hand her over to the authorities and get it over with, but I was honestly curious as to why she'd come looking for me after breaking out of Stryker's island.
I brought Nightshade here because I didn't know if she had any tracking devices. I might be willing to hear Whisper and Abbot out, but I didn't trust them.
After carrying out a clean and professional inspection, I found no tracking devices. However, what I discovered intrigued me greatly. The collar on Nightshade's neck was a device to inhibit meta genes.
Luckily, my Mechanics and Computers skills were high enough to let me scan the collar and attain its design, even if I lacked the proper tools to create something similar for now.
Again, that would come in time, and it would help me immensely, but enough of that. I had a heroine turned convict I needed to question, and I didn't have all day.
I approached Nightshade, jabbing my finger into her neck, hitting a nerve to wake her up through pain forcefully, and awaken she did, screaming in agony through gritted teeth.
I sat back and waited for Nightshade to gather her bearings, which didn't take long, much to the heroine's credit, and she quickly noticed my presence and her current predicament.
"Eve Eden, senator Warren Eden's daughter, an infamous party girl by day, and Waller's loyal hound and an alleged hero by night..." I blankly stated, leaning on my knees as I crossed my fingers.
"Though that's all in the past... you're just a wanted criminal now..." I added, raising an eyebrow at the heroine, to which she only listened in silence.
"Nothing to say? Fine by me. I do enjoy the sound of my own voice, you know?" I remarked, chuckling after waiting for several seconds and getting no rebuttal.
"See, I'm a nice guy, as nice as circumstances allow me to be, at least, but..." I said with a sigh as I straightened my posture, trailing at the end of my sentence.
"You lurking around my people doesn't exactly appeal to the nicer side of me..." I added, narrowing my eyes at the heroine. "So now would be a good time to start talking before I completely lose any inclination to be nice..." I concluded.
"You didn't ask any questions..." Nightshade calmly replied, unfazed by my threats, and her reply honestly took me by surprise, causing me to chuckle.
"Fair enough..." I replied, nodding my head. "Then let's start with how you broke out of Stryker's Island...? They should have matching collars to the one you're wearing right now..." I asked as I gestured towards the meta inhibition device.
"I had help..." Nightshade replied, and I only gave her a 'no shit, sherlock' look as I crossed my arms, prompting her to sigh as she continued to elaborate.
"It wasn't Waller or anyone from the task force. I can't tell you who, but they weren't any of your enemies..." The heroine quickly added, shaking her head to emphasize her point.
"Let's say I believe you, that someone with no grudge against me freed you... if that's the case, then why the fuck are you here?" I asked, scowling at Nightshade's flimsy answer and contradiction in her words.
"Because you're the only one who can help me-" she replied, seemingly ready to explain, but I quickly cut her off with a loud burst of laughter, stunning her into speechlessness.
"Help you? Me? You'd be lucky to get back to Stryker's Island with all your bones intact..." I mockingly replied after a second to calm myself, shaking my head in exasperation.
"I'm not asking for a handout... I- I can help you..." The heroine quickly immediately replied, piquing my interest, so I gestured for her to keep talking, and she was happy to oblige.
"If you help me, I will testify against Waller..." Nightshade added. "I don't know what kind of evidence you have, but it wouldn't hurt to have a testimony from someone who voluntarily worked for Waller backing it," she concluded.
"It won't, but you're barking up the wrong tree, lady. Try talking to the DA if you wanna snitch your way into a lighter sentence," I replied with a light laugh, shaking my head.
"I don't care about my sentence... I did a lot of bad things. I deserve to rot in a cell, but my brother... he... he's different..." Nightshade replied, her tone growing helpless as she looked away from me.
"I'd gladly spend the rest of my life in Stryker's if you'd just help me free him... you're the only one who can..."
...
"Go on then, let me hear your sob story..." I mockingly said, crossing my arms as I leaned back. I was willing to humor Nightshade out of curiosity more than anything else.
"It all started with my mother..." Nightshade replied, sighing as she began explaining her backstory; the origin of her mother Maureen, her enmity with The Incubus, and how he'd killed Maureen and taken the heroine's brother hostage in The Land Of Nightshades.
"I see," I said, showing zero sympathy in my tone as I had none to give after hearing the heroine's story. Her story was tragic, alright, but I couldn't really care.
There were as many villains and heroes with equally if not more tragic backstories as there was shit in the sewers. After she conjured a fucking giant shark that tried to bite my head off, hearing her backstory didn't inspire any sympathy within me.
"Cool story, but I still don't understand why you'd come to me of all people with it," I added, shaking my head as I waited for her to get over the shock over my blatant disregard for her blight.
"You can kill demons... I know you can; the person who released me said so!" Nightshade said, gritting her teeth as she raised her tone gradually through her sentence.
I stilled at her reply. I, of course, didn't forget about the antique rifle, The Ace of Winchester's, gathering dust in my inventory, nor its ability to slay demons, but how the hell did the person who freed her know about it?
'Oh wait...! shit!' I internally cursed as realization dawned on me.
"The person who freed you... did he happen to have green skin and a deep hypnotic speaking voice?" I asked, my eyes twitching in annoyance, and Nightshade stiffening at my words was all the answer I needed.
"Not cool, man. Not fucking cool," I remarked, barely resisting the urge to raise my middle finger as I looked up, where I was sure a certain green martian was watching.
Not many people knew about The Ace Of Winchester, those who knew it was with me were even, and only one person knew all of that and had the ability to break Nightshade out of Stryker's Island.
"In any case, there's nothing you can do or say to convince me to go into another dimension to fight some world-conquering demon," I decisively stated, waving the very notion away as I gestured to the side dismissively.
"So much can go wrong with that shit; it ain't even funny," I added with a shrug. "However, since Martian Manhunter freed you, I'm willing to let you go or take you to the authorities and vouch you surrendered yourself willingly," I added.
"We can make it look like your escape for Stryker's was a freak accident with your powers acting due to stress or something..." I explained. "It's up to you whether you wanna take your chances and find someone else or let me hand you over," I went on.
"But, I'm not fighting no goddamned inter-dimensional demon for you, your brother, or anyone else," I concluded as I got up and undid the ropes binding the heroine to the chair but not the collar on her neck.
I might have been willing to cut her some slack because of J'onn's involvement, but that didn't mean I'd give her the chance to use her power and fuck me over.
The collar would stay on until I was long gone if she decided to keep looking for someone to help her. If not, well, that would be the authorities' problem, not mine.
"There has to be something I can do to change your mind!" Nightshade said through gritted teeth, stubbornly unwilling to accept no for an answer, but it was all she'd get, regardless.
I internally sighed at the heroine's persistence. I wholeheartedly had no intention of getting myself involved with her inter-dimensional drama. So I needed to make it abundantly clear, or she'd find a way to drag me into it.
'Whelp... it's asshole Gray time...'
"Afraid not. Your testimony might hasten Waller's conviction, but that's it..." I replied with a shrug, fully intent on making her understand how fruitless asking for help really was.
"It would hasten the inevitable, but that's hardly an equal exchange with what you're asking..." I added as I got up and started pacing, out of boredom more than anything else.
"You could promise to owe me a favor, but there's nothing you can do that I can't with effort and time unless you're willing to do as I say for the rest of your life..." I blankly added, dangling a ray of hope before her that I would promptly crush.
"But that's impossible. You're a heroine turned criminal. That's bad PR..." I added, cutting her off before she even had the chance to start pledging her allegiance or some shit.
"Even if we managed to salvage your reputation, there's no guarantee you'll keep your word..." I added, grinning as the heroine froze. "Not to mention the backlash I'd face if word gets out..." I went on, regaining my blank expression.
"Then again, I'm a hormone-addled teenager, and you could offer sexual favors in exchange for my services..." I remarked, trailing off as I studied the heroine's expression and was surprised to see her considering it.
"Most men would give up everything they have for a chance to sleep with a hot superhero like you..." I added, pushing her even more in that direction as it would be the final nail.
If I'm not wrong, Nightshade probably joined Waller because she struck some bargain with the latter to save her brother. If the intense aura of guilt she radiated is anything to go by, I'd say she regrets what she did for the said deal.
I was pushing her into attempting to propose a similar bargain with me that was several degrees worse, as it had A bit of how's yer father in it. Turning it down before she could even suggest it in the heat of the moment would make her think twice before approaching me again.
I wanted her to think of all the bad things she did to save her brother and how low she was willing to stoop to accomplish it, as that would intensify her guilt and might even make her give up on the whole thing.
It was manipulative and fucking cruel, but I had to do it. I couldn't let Nightshade drag me into her mess, not now, not anytime soon, and hopefully never.
I'll take feeling like an asshole for a while over fighting a powerful dimensional entity anytime, thank you very much.
I waited for Nightshade to process my words and continued just when she gathered her bearings, a light of resolution flashing in her eyes as she prepared to give me a reply.
"Unfortunately, you're not my type, and I'm not so desperate, to begin with..." I remarked, grinning as I walked to the chair and sat. "You should understand now. You have nothing to bargain with," I concluded as I crossed my legs and straightened my posture.
"What's it going to be? Back to Stryker's or...?" I asked as I watched the heroine's shoulders slump, her eyes dimming that were shining in hope dimming as they lost their light.
"You... I understand. You won't help me, but I can't give up on Larry..." Nightshade said after a second as she gathered her bearings and took a deep breath.
"Have it your way. But remember, next time we meet, I'm taking you back to Stryker's whether you like it or not," I replied, nodding as I got off my chair and approached the heroine.
I stood before her and reached for the collar, throwing it in my inventory, much to the heroine's relief, which did not last as I jabbed my finger into the pressure point on her neck.
Nightshade's eyes widened as she gave me a shocked look before promptly losing consciousness, and I merely shrugged at her before turning to leave.
'Now I just have to deal with Abbot and Whisper, and I can get back to brooding in my hideout...' I mused as I walked away from the unconscious heroine, trying to think of what the duo could possibly want from me.
...
Diamond District
Inside a cheap motel room
"I fucking hate this..." Whisper said, clearly uncomfortable as she sat on an old, tattered couch, reluctantly taking a bite out of the cheap burger she bought for dinner.
Though a trained assassin and a vicious killer, Whisper had gotten used to the finer things in life after working as a manager for one of Manheim's front companies. Suffice it to say; she found her current accommodations less than satisfactory.
"Such are the consequences of failure in our line of work..." Abbot blankly said as he finished his burger and threw away the wrapper. "Hopefully, we can turn things around soon... we only need to wait for Wraith to call..." he added, and the phone rang as if waiting for those words exactly.
...
East End
Empty parking lot
"So? I'm here. What do you want?" I asked as I stood before Abbot, unmindful of Whisper's lack of presence as I knew she was hiding in the construction site overlooking the parking lot.
Though we were in a usually heavy traffic area, it was late at night, and the regular people who weren't part of the city's underbelly were hiding in the relative safety of their homes, leaving the area empty.
"Indeed you are..." Abbot said, nodding his head. "What we want is by no means complicated... a cooperation against a common enemy," he added, trailing off at the end of his sentence, and I had to fight off a chuckle at how he said; we.
The first time might have been a coincidence, but now I was sure the werewolf exposed Whisper's presence purposely, but it didn't really matter to me, so I didn't bother to comment on it.
"Oh? You two and Ugly got a bone to pick with Waller?" I asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion at the wolf man's words. It wouldn't be strange if they did, but I imagined people like them would be content to watch from the sidelines.
"Anyone with an excess of power should be wary of Amanda Waller... but she is not the enemy I speak of..." Abbot calmly replied, shaking his head, to which my confusion grew.
"The enemy I speak of is Bruno 'Ugly' Manheim himself," the werewolf added, giving me pause, and he quickly continued before I could even question it.
"He must be stopped before it's too late for us and everyone else..." he concluded, going quiet as he let me process his words, and it didn't take me long to do so.
"Don't you two work for Manheim?- You know what, don't answer that I don't really care..." I remarked with a scoff. "Ugly is all the way in Metropolis, and I kicked his people out of Gotham myself," I added, gesturing to the side, giving Abbot an unimpressed look.
"We might not be best buddies, but I'm not worried about him right now," I replied, making my lack of interest in getting involved (the story of my life, which never had a happy ending) abundantly clear.
"You should be... you and everyone in this city..." Abbot calmly said, having waited for me to finish talking patiently, his tone seemingly self-assured, which wasn't a good sign.
"Do you know why Manheim sent us to Gotham?" The werewolf asked, and I remained silent. He took my silence as a sign to keep going, which he happily did.
"Manheim wanted us to establish a base of operation in the city with two purposes in mind..." Abbot explained as he raised a clenched fist in front of his face.
"To eventually take over Gotham..." the werewolf went on, raising a finger in the air. "And more importantly... to find the twice named daughter of Cain..." he concluded as he lifted a second.
"Daughter of Cain... you say...?" I remarked as an image of a young girl innocently smiling as she held a backpack full of snacks close to her chest flashed in my mind.
"What exactly does Manheim want with this... daughter of Cain...?" I blankly asked, narrowing my eyes as I stared directly into the wolfman's eyes, to which he stilled for a second.
"Manheim has found a copy of the Crime Bible... the central teaching for The Religion Of Crime... or The Dark Faith as some call it..." Abbot replied after a second, which he used to gather his bearings.
"There are four different versions of the book... the one in Manheim's hands depicts a prophecy... and a blasphemous rite to attain unimaginable power..." the wolf man explained.
"The rite requires the blood and soul of the twice named daughter of Cain, and the prophecy foretells her arrival where crime takes root, the city most corrupt of all..." he solemnly concluded, and I didn't need to be a genius to realize he was talking about Gotham.
"So you came here to look for the daughter of Cain to sacrifice her for some bloody ritual...? And now you have a disagreement with Ugly and come to me for help...?" I blankly asked, my tone eerily calm even to my own ears, and the werewolf seemed to have picked up on it as well.
"You must really wanna die..." I added, my anger rising as I retrieved the steel wire from my inventory and gripped it tightly, giving the wolf man a blank death stare.
"Attacking me now will not be in your best interest-" the wolf man hastily said, trying to diffuse the situation, but I quickly cut him off before he could finish.
"Why? Because the snake bitch is in that building recording us?" I interjected, cutting Abbot off mid-sentence as I gestured towards the construction site.
"How long do you think she'd last if I go after her first? Would it be enough time for you to escape?" I asked, smiling at the wolf man despite my anger, and he unconsciously took a step back.
I was seething, barely keeping my emotions in check. But I couldn't be overcome by it, not again, or I'd risk doing something stupid. Taunting the wolf man was my way of staying in control.
I also needed to know what cards they had before acting. I was using my impossible-to-hide urge to tear the wolf man apart to force him into revealing them post haste or risk turning into minced meat.
It had already happened twice before. Once at the hospital and once at the docks. I was counting on Abbot having common sense as it dictated he starts speaking immediately, and as it turned out, he did.
"Whisper is as you say in the other building... but she is merely there because she would not survive your wrath, not for any underhanded purposes..." Abbot replied, and I only scoffed at the ridiculous reasoning as I knew she had a recording device on her for a fact.
I wasn't dumb enough to come here without scouting the area to make sure the meeting wasn't an ambush, even if I was the one to choose the time and place. It pays to be paranoid sometimes, you know?
"Conflict with us would not be in your best interest because you don't understand how complicated the situation is... we do..." Abbot calmly added as he finally calmed himself and put on a blank expression, but I could still sense his fear with apathy.
"Manheim has enlisted a sect of The Dark Faith to help him..." The wolfman explained. "The Religion Of Crime is not a simple religion. It's a criminal organization as old as history itself..." he added.
"Unlike Intergang, they have rooted themselves in Gotham long ago, and you would not be able to find them without our help..." the wolf man went on, gaining more confidence as he went on.
"Even if you do... it will be too late. Manheim would have completed the ritual and brought ruin to Gotham and the daughter of Cain..." Abbot concluded, and I had to admit there was some sense in his words if they were true.
If this so-called Religion Of Crime did exist in Gotham, I wouldn't be able to find it any time soon because if it were easy, then I'd know about them already.
I knew about every criminal organization, corrupt politician, company, and shady individual in Gotham that incorporated electronics in their operation thanks to my Computers skill and a shit ton of digging.
The Religion Of Crime existing in Gotham without me knowing it means they never use electronics and likely rely on more traditional methods to communicate and store data.
In other words, they had no digital trace for me to follow, and I was ill-equipped to investigate these sorts of organizations.
"We've had our differences, but now that we've fallen out with Manheim, there is no reason for us to be enemies anymore..." Abbot quickly added as he noticed my expression gradually relax as I contemplated the situation and calmed myself with logic.
"It was nothing personal, to begin with..." he added, and I finally sighed as I forcefully suppressed my anger for now, at least. I needed more information, and lashing out right now would fuck everything up.
"I need proof of this so-called Dark Faith and its presence in Gotham..." I said as I closed my eyes briefly and opened them, letting out a drawn breath.
"If you can't give me that, then there's only one way this ends..." I matter-of-factly concluded, and the wolf man merely nodded in understanding.
...
Gray's hideout
"Mother fucker..." I remarked to no one in particular, rubbing the back of my neck as I sat on my couch, viewing the documents, pics, and videos Abbot and Whisper gave me.
Ultimately, I had to see reason and let go of my urge to tear them new to shreds, which I did not understand even now. I sympathized with Cassandra. I did.
However, I never thought I'd almost enter a fit of murderous rage if someone threatened her, not to mention I wasn't even sure she was the one Abbot meant.
Richard was my teacher. He found me at my lowest and lifted me to what I am now. I owed him too much to let some bitch with a violin threaten his well-being, even in passing, even if bursting out in anger at the time wasn't the way to go.
Cassandra? I wanted her to have her happy ending and cared for her in my own way, but not nearly enough to contemplate killing someone, especially not at such a critical time with so much on the line, or so I thought.
However, I stand corrected. It was honestly too confusing for me to even think about it, so I dropped the subject to focus on more important things, like the two fucking organizations trying to topple Gotham.
Abbot explained to me that the ritual (sacrificing the twice-named daughter of Cain) would cause the destruction of the city and unveil the source of unimaginable power that Gotham holds.
It was honestly terrifying how well the religion of crime was hidden so deep within the city with no one the wiser. Thieves, prostitutes, government officials, and even regular people were followers of the dark faith, and they all served the religion in their own ways.
Furthermore, their actions were so subtle and irrelevant to each other that no one would link them unless they knew what to look for, and no one did so far because no one had any fucking idea about their existence.
The fact they didn't leave any digital traces as they used handwritten messages and actual books to keep their records made them that much harder to find.
Still, now that I know what to look for, I'll be able to uncover their higher-ups with time and effort and stop their plans. Should I find myself too busy or unable to handle the matter, I'd only have to slide it over to Batman since actual criminal investigation was his forte.
Either way, I'd need to assess the situation before making the final judgment, and I'll do just that by monitoring as many of the religion's people as possible.
Though the organization had no digital trace, it was basically impossible for anyone to exist without one. I'll use that to monitor the ones I know belong to the religion until they lead me to their buddies and leadership.
"But first... I have a little demon I need attend to..." I muttered, chuckling as I looked at Soot sitting on the ground in front of the couch, glaring at the laptop in my lap as if it was his worst enemy.
...
Old Gotham
It was business as usual in Old Gotham, one of the busiest districts in the city. The streets were crawling with people hurriedly going to and fro, in a hurry to finish whatever business they had before the hour grew late.
Those with a keen eye and a tendency to look up might notice a brunette in a revealing dark green and golden outfit in the sky, but the woman's magic made sure no one would see her.
The woman stopped and levitated above a restaurant, surveying the area to ascertain her destination. She nodded to herself as she checked the address and landed in the alley next to the building.
The brunette adjusted her hair as she landed. "Enchantress," she quietly remarked after looking around and finding no one around, causing her flashy, revealing outfit to disappear, replaced by casual clothing.
The woman took one last look around before reaching for the restaurant's back entrance, promptly making her way inside. She nodded at the chefs and waiters she came across in greetings as she walked towards the basement fridge.
She entered the fridge and opened a secret entrance behind a shelf packed with frozen foods, which revealed a hidden elevator. The brunette went inside and pushed the only button, watching as the door closed.
The door soon opened as the elevator reached its destination, and the woman found herself staring into a gun barrel, prompting her to smile as she flashed the badge she'd already prepared in front of the man holding the gun.
The man looked at the badge and nodded. "Agent, Enchantress. We were expecting you," he said as he lowered his gun and started walking away, gesturing for her to follow, which she did.
"Director Waller said you'd be here quickly, but we didn't think you'd be this fast," the guard asked, turning to look at Enchantress over his shoulder as if to explain why he welcomed her with a gun to the face.
"It's ok. You were only doing your job," Enchantress carelessly, clearly unbothered by the unwarm welcome, and the man took her word for it, merely nodding as he kept walking.
The duo soon reached an isolated lab. The guard pushed a button on the door and stepped to the window to show his face. An elderly gentleman in a lab coat came to take a look. He hurriedly opened the door and exited when he noticed Enchatress' presence.
"Do you have it?" the elderly scientist questioned without even bothering to greet Enchantress or her escort, clearly impatient to get his hands on whatever the brunette was supposed to deliver.
"I do," Enchantress said, nodding as she reached forward with an open palm and a pulsating, bright red stone appeared in her hand, encased in what seemed to be a glass containment unit.
"Yes! Finally! The brimstone core...!" the elderly scientist said, quickly snatching the stone out of Enchantress' hand, raising it high in the air to admire it, almost losing his breath out of excitement.
"We have much to do..." the elderly scientist said after taking a deep breath to calm himself, though he could not hide his lingering giddiness from anyone.
"You will be called when your services are required, as Waller had instructed. Make yourself scarce until then," the elderly scientist concluded, unwilling to waste any more time on Enchantress and the guard as he quickly went back into the lab.
Looking at this scene, Enchantress had a look that was a mixture of confusion, annoyance, and amusement at the elderly scientist's brash attitude, but she didn't bother to comment on it.
"Eggheads, am I right?" the guard said, chuckling as he looked at the brunette, to which she could only shrug and sigh. "I'll escort you to your room... you are free to roam the facility as your clearance level allows," he added as he started walking away, with Enchantress following suit.
"Damned geezer nerds been jittery ever since they heard you were coming with whatever that thing was," the man said, lighting up a cigarette without stopping his steps.
"Oh? Is that curiosity I hear in your tone?" Enchantress asked, raising an eyebrow at the man's words, which she couldn't help but interpret as an attempt to gather information.
"Curiosity? Lady, I've been doing this for a long, and if there's one thing I learned, it's that knowing too much gets you killed," the man said with a chuckle as he inhaled a puff of smoke.
"So no, I'm not curious. Not one bit," the guard added with a chuckle as he exhaled the smoke. "But another thing I learned is that eggheads are not good company, so you'll excuse me if I try to make conversation," he concluded with a shrug.
"Good. But even if you were, you'd be barking up the wrong tree," The brunette said with a slight laugh. "I'm as clueless as you are," Enchantress carelessly added as she followed the man into a turn.
"I was only asked to deliver that thing here and stay put until they ask for my help," she explained as the man stopped before a door that had the number 23 on it.
"Is that so? Well, let's hope they take their sweet time, then. I'm getting tired of staring at old foggies in lab coats, and you're a sight for sore eyes," the guard said, grinning at the brunette.
"I'll give you an A for effort," Enchantress said, smiling as she turned to the door. "Is this my room?" She asked, changing the subject, and the guard nodded.
"It should have everything you need, but feel free to ask if anything is missing," the guard replied as he opened the door, gave the key to Enchantress, and turned to leave.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a punch of balding old farts I need to babysit for the next three hours."
...
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