[Save]

Diana, or Wonder Woman, was taken out the same way as last time, by that I meant Bruce took care of it with his Magic string. Some sort of rope that shows her hallucinations of victory. Master Tinkertech if you ask me.

The only difference was that the other bat person, Nightwing, took her in immediately instead of having to wait for Bruce to finish his fight.

—

Our solution for the Flash was simple, last time I had to be captured but this time I had Batgirl with me. She helped me come up with a better plan.

She had access to a type of glue made specifically to stick to 'speedsters' as she called it.

Combine the glue with my wind tags and I had the perfect trap. I added the trigger mechanism that I had managed to isolate for taking down Stormtiger and Cricket's trap onto the wind trap seals I had, made it unstable so that it went off for anyone who stepped on it with enough force and threw it on the street I knew the flash would run on.

I think we didn't even need the glue because when he came running through the street as we expected, he stepped on one of them and he went flying.

—

Arthur, or Aquaman, was taken down by Bruce in the same way. The anti-moisturizer or whatever it was called.

—

Now Superman was the hardest to defeat. Talking to Barbara, I learned about his strengths and weaknesses.

Thank God that the mind-controlled superheroes were predictable due to their unchanging desire to cause as much harm to Batman as possible because after hearing of some of the things these guys were able to do, I wanted nothing to do with them.

All our planning beyond the stage of our agreement had to be done via text. Supposedly, Diana and Superman had senses good enough and accurate enough to pick up what we were talking about from cities away.

In Superman's case, his was good enough to pick it up from planets away. I don't know if I believed it but we couldn't risk that he won't be listening in on us after the fight started for any contingencies Bruce had planned.

The bad news continued piling up. Because the only reason she could find behind my trick working last time was because of my best skill—my insecurity. My heartbeat told him that I wasn't a threat, I was practically ready to die and that I wasn't part of Bruce's plan, that's why he didn't dodge me when I dropped on top of him. And him not dodging was probably the reason Bruce thought I was suicidal.

It wasn't all gloom though because learning more about him bought me to a revelation. His biggest weakness wasn't Kryptonite, red sun radiation, hostages or people he cared about. No the villains and heroes of this world had it all wrong.

His biggest weakness was his self-assurance that nothing could hurt him. It manifested the same in his regular self and his now mind-controlled self. He would simply stand there with his chest puffed no matter what the world threw at him. I think I hated him the most among every hero I had met after I came here. More than the guy who was complicit in drugging me and locking me up for the sin of helping. I couldn't describe why.

Our solution for him was simultaneously more elaborate and simpler than mine during my last confrontation. More complex as in that neither I nor Batgirl would confront him and simpler as in he won't even get to speak his villain monologue.

I saw him hovering over the theatre to make an entrance and we executed the plan. And right as we planned, Superman was captured.

—

"How?" Asked Batman to Batgirl who had the captured superhero in a scroll.

"Precog help. We knew that he would smash the theatre top to make an entrance, so we planted a scroll where we knew he would smash through. She activated it at the right time and that was all it took. Didn't even have to hide it." The braggart said with a smug look.

The red sunlight emitters were already illuminating the room in red. Batman used the lights to a great effect, making him look more menacing. I had to take notes, the entire 'Batfamily', according to Batgirl, was good at managing their image.

"You are Agent Fox? Good Job." He told me.

"However—" I didn't let him continue.

"No. I won't, My scroll won't. I know you have means to contain him in that suit of yours. If you insist then I will simply let him out. And trust me it's not an idle threat."

I was ready to follow through. I won't be played like a pawn again. And I think he saw that in my eyes so he nods.

He typed something into a screen he had on his wrist and a box drops from the suit. Then I fully internalized that this was a suit made to take on his colleagues and friends, who he had presumably known for years. Asking this man to give me a tiny modicum of respect might have been a doomed attempt all along.

I place the scroll within the suit and ask for confirmation, once he nods, I bring out superman who was already unconscious due to the concentrated red sun radiation. He then opened the box and gave me my scroll.

—

Batman will work on finding a cure for the virus. I will ignore it for as long as I can. Batgirl was reluctant to leave Batman's side once she learned about the possibility of a Virus outbreak. I remained silent, I needed her for our promise. I reminded her of the seal. I didn't enjoy doing it but I had to get to the bottom of this. I kept on telling myself that this was a doomed run.

She definitely hated having to do this but she had to follow through because of the tags.

Batgirl had a motorcycle that drove itself. It came to pick us up like a mechanical horse. She removed her batgirl cape, put on a jacket and a helmet. Suddenly she was just a random motorcyclist.

That was so cool, I wanted a motorcycle.

"Get on, we don't have any time to waste," She said.

"I don't have to change?" I asked.

"You don't stand out as a superhero." She immediately corrected. "Not a Gotham one, at least."

I cared about standing out. I didn't use to, but now it was near the top of my list on the things I cared about. I wanted to build a legacy as a cape and a regular person. Just like my accomplishments, my image was also part of it. So someone who was already a hero saying that I didn't stand out meant I had to reevaluate my approach.

But that was for later, once I got out of the dungeon. For now, I just followed her lead. She started the almost silent engine and started driving.

"Everyone in Gotham knows where the Penguin conducts his business. But the cops have nothing to pin on him so he walks free. However, his criminal empire has been running into one setback after another since four years ago."

I patiently listened to batgirl speak about the Penguin. She seemed very used to giving these monotonous expository speeches.

"Don't get me wrong he is far from weak or defenceless. He still controls a good portion of Gotham. Batman has this long plan to take him down because he wants to make sure that when the Penguin's gone, it doesn't bring in a rush of supervillains and start a gang war to occupy his portion of the city."

She continues as she looks me in the eye. "So remember 'Hero' who I was too fast to trust. No killing the crime boss, got it?"

I had to sigh. I think all the goodwill I created with her ran out when I refused to remove the pact we made when the virus became known.

"I won't kill him. Do you want to be done with him fast? I want to be too. So can we move this along?"

She gave me a mock salute and spoke.

"Yes ma'am, it's only a possible city-wide virus that I might be able to help with. I have no problem with wasting time on a three-year-old case, none at all."

"You promised, we made a pact," I said.

"I didn't know there was going to be an evil zombie virus.' Said Batgirl, pissed. "You knew, didn't you."

"But can we agree that I didn't obstruct any facts about your piece of the bargain? No extra heroes, No unexpected problems? It really isn't my fault that you didn't think about what came after." I said, with some of my anger boiling up. It wasn't helped by the heat in my chest, the heat that was building as Batgirl felt more and more betrayed.

"Isn't it the duty of a hero to tell—" Batgirl started speaking to be cut off by a scream of pain from me. I was not going to wear this again.

She pressed on the break, stopped and looked back at me. My seal was pulsing red.

"Oh, God. Are you ok? Did I do that?" She asked me, panicked.

I was catching my breath. I thought I was numb to pain, but this was an entirely new type of pain. Pulsing hot and constricting.

"Please let's just be done with it. This won't take long." I assured her.

She looked at me, looked at the seal, sighed and nodded.

—

Batgirl had a vantage point that she assured me Penguin didn't know about. We were standing there, observing.

"How do you plan to get in without alerting him?" She asked me.

"Does the room he is in have bodyguards?" I asked her.

"How would I know?"

"You know—with your thinker power. The one that you used on poor Amar."

"Thinker power? No, that was me hacking his social media and—other things."

Huh, so she was a tinker too? So the bat family was some sort of tinker collective?

"Ok. So can you hack the security cameras or something?"

"No, I don't have a connection to their network. He pays well to some meta or an expert to keep it all clean and secure it. Every time I manage to get something in, he erases it in a few days."

Interesting.

"So what kind of Tinker tech do you have?"

"Tinkertech?" She asked me.

"You know, what kind of tech do you have on you? Non-standard, hi-tech superhero stuff?" I elaborated.

"You have strange names in your dimension. But no, I am not going to disclose my loadout."

"Fine. Just tell me this. Do you have something that's small, silent, can be remotely controlled, and has wheels or wings? Or something in that ballpark?"

She turns to me, shoots a grin and says "Now you are talking my language" as she takes out several parts from below her bike's seat and starts assembling.

—

I was looking at a camera feed from her drone and I was in awe of her skill to navigate the drone. I bet, at least one of the bat people had stealth tech as their speciality. She wove through cameras and lookouts alike. The partially transparent drone made of some special alloy passed through metal detectors without a peep. Always remaining outside the field of vision. No way she wasn't a Thinker. She was so good that I didn't even understand half the decisions she made. We had to find the control room first. But it seemed like she knew already.

"They can change the network infrastructure every time I get in, they can't change the room layouts as fast." She said, smiling. It felt as if she was in her zone and doing what she was the best at.

"You are really good at this." I complimented her.

"Thanks, I try. " The drone went into the control room through the door that was left slightly open. There were two guys inside looking at monitors. It moved close enough so that we could listen to what they were talking.

"I am telling you, man, Batman took out half the justice league. We don't need those bozos."

"Nah, Nah man. They were holdin back. if superman wasn't, then phew—it's bat paste."

"Bro, you are talking like a metro-cuck. Have some respect—"

Continued their conversation.

"They know that batman will bash their teeth in if he ever sees them right?" I asked. I had only known the guy for a few hours and even I knew how that would go.

"Inter-city dick measuring contest. Nothing new here," she said, as if she was used to it.

"We used to have those too. Will Armsmaster beat Chevalier? What kind of question is it? Everyone knows the answer already."

"Let me guess, it's whoever's your favourite?" She asked me, rolling her eyes.

"Sure, sure, roll your eyes."

"What else can I do? So who's Chevalier and Armsmaster? Never heard of them. Is Chevalier your world's Superman? Sometimes the names change world to world."

"Chevalier? No his power isn't even close. What did you mean by names change from world to world?" I asked her.

"Your world has a superman variant as the world's strongest hero, right? Maybe one of the first."

She looks at me away from her screen. I scrunch my eyebrows.

"No, Alexandria isn't Superman?" I half asked.

"What are her powers?" She asked in return.

"She can fly, is strong and fast."

"Is she the 'strongest hero in the world'?" She makes double quotes as she asks that.

"Yeah. Absolutely." I nodded. Some would say Eidolon, but they were wrong.

"There you go, she is a Superman variant. Your world's Superman's a girl. I should tell him when I meet him next. Hey, do you have a picture?"

"No, I don't I told you I don't carry a phone."

"What year are you from?"

"2011."

"How do you function?"

"I make do, alright." I didn't want to explain why I didn't have a phone.

There was silence as she went back to her screen.

"Can I go in?"

"Not yet. I want the second guy to go out and tell the lookout it's all good first. So you have enough time with the Penguin."

"Ok."

More silence. And this time she is the one that breaks it.

"I bet Superman can take Alexandria."

She was funny. I chortled.

—

Somehow the joke devolved into an argument.

"I am telling you she doesn't have any weaknesses, unlike superman who has ten weaknesses per power."

"There are no superheroes without weak—" she caught herself "Look it's your time."

"Wish me luck," I said.

"Would you need it?" She asked.

"No."

I teleported in.

—

Batgirl had taught me how to knock someone out safely. I wondered if this was something limited to this universe. The last one didn't have a technique for it. Maybe it's because they saw no reason to teach it since they were training assassins.

"Ok, so they are down what do I do next?" I asked.

"The Pendrive, it goes in the security system." done.

"Next?"

"Nothing left here. I now have complete control over the system." She replied making me raise my eyebrows.

"Damn you are good. I can see why they didn't want you in."

"Keep saying that. I like it."

"So where's Penguin's room?"

"I will guide you. Just follow my instructions, and you won't run into anyone"

—

"How many guards did you say were inside?"

"Four guards. All four corners, you have to take them down and subdue Penguin before any of them can raise the alarm, the alarm buttons for the goons are disabled—"

"Piece of cake"

"However." She emphasized "The Penguin's alarm is purely mechanical. still, if one of them shouts, this is done for, you think you can do it?"

I nodded in sight of the drone camera. I had one teleportation Kunai and four regular ones in hand as I knocked on the door.

"Come In." came the invitation as the door opened.

I threw the teleportation Kunai first as the door opened. And just at its zenith, I teleported in. Threw the four kunai with the handle up at the goons and then teleported to the kunai again as it reached Penguin's desk. Threw him away from his button. The crime boss hit the floor just as the goons fell to the floor. One by one, I heard three 'Thunks'.

Three? I had missed one. I should practice more.

One of them, the largest one was clutching at his head, still standing.

"Bitch." he shook his head and charged. Or tried to. I had a knife on his boss's throat in moments. I made a cutting motion and he got the idea.

We were at a standstill, If I let go of Penguin to take care of him the Penguin would scream. If I threw something at him, he will scream.

Then suddenly a Batarang came from nowhere and knocked him down.

I checked and it was from the drone. I gave it a thumbs up.

Now to talk to Penguin.

—

"I thought we had an agreement, Batman. You don't mess too much with my shit or else I go down burning and start a fuckin' war." was the first thing he said as I let go of his mouth.

"I am not with Batman." I said.

His face, which looked like what would happen if someone thought, 'what if penguin but hooman' morphed to look like he had realised something.

"One of his fucking kids that think they are better than being a bat? He got a new one?" His raspy voice asked me.

I pressed the knife closer

"I am not Batman's," I said, revolted. "It's stolen tech. Wanted a word with you, that's all. Just tell me what I want to hear and I will be gone." I thought I should make myself clear because I could hear the worry in Batgirl's silence from here.

"It's always a fuckin' word with you types." I just bought the Kunai closer, close enough to draw blood.

"Of course, one of those." He wasn't intimidated. All I got was an eyeroll of his terribly large eyes.

"And now you are thinking how to intimidate me. I know you are a meta, and I am sure you can devise a way eventually. Just tell me what you want. I am not above making deals with Metas, I thought I was."

"What's wrong with working with Metas?" I had to ask. If a meta was this world's equivalent of a parahuman, then—

"Thought I could run this with no help from you freaks, turns out you don't have anyone else to bother. I caved in and called the calculator or whatever he calls himself, last year after a bat kept messing with the systems."

He laughed he actually laughed with a knife at his throat.

"You all are nutty. That fucker wanted me to make everything tech. I had to fight tooth and nail to keep my bell not connected to three different interwebs or whatever it is. He made me change my peephole into a camera. Every single one of you is nutty."

This guy's thoroughly mind-broken.

"I don't want much, I just want to know about someone you killed three years ago."

He sighs, "You don't need my permission to continue."

"I looked as if you were about to say something."

"It's nothing. Just go on, tell me which one so that I can 'look it in my fucking database'." He said angry and annoyed.

"He doesn't have it in his database." Spoke batgirl from my earphone.

"Annette Hebert, Daniel Hebert and Taylor Hebert. Why did you have them killed? For the Cafe?"

"Thank God." He let out a sigh of relief and I half wanted to choke him at that moment. Batgirl be damned.

"What's to thank God for?" I asked instead.

"That it wasn't one of the ones I had done of course. What else do you think I will be happy for when an asshole with an obvious revenge fantasy is pointing a knife at my neck."

"Do you think I am an idiot? I know you pay for the cafe. You might be resigned to your fate but you were right, I have the tools to make you—"

"It was the Joker." He said with some anger in his voice, then he continued. "I loved her. I loved Annette. She was my second love after the green note. I would never kill her. Would have killed Danny and the runt, but never her. Her cafe was the only place I could go to—"

I wanted to teleport out. I wanted to drop my knife and cover my ears. I wanted to stab the guy as he described his boring, cliche, cringe, frankly sexist and one-sided love for a version of my Mother. All because she was nice to him at the place she worked. Instead, I covered his mouth.

"So you keep the cafe up because you loved her? You didn't kill the Heberts?" I asked letting him speak.

"I might have killed Danny's father when he kept showing up to the court to get the cafe. Annette's parents learned fast." He said with no ounce of regret in his voice. I never knew anyone either of my grandparents but the way he had admitted it just pissed me off. I kicked the guy.

It was strange. I didn't want to kill him. I thought I would. I didn't believe him when he said he had no hand in my alternate families' death, except for my grandfather who he killed.

But the Joker part? And loving my mother part? Yeah, he was telling the truth. I could tell from that glimpse of anger I felt.

I kicked the guy away and as he was clutching his stomach I spoke to my communicator.

"You think he is saying the truth?" I asked Batgirl.

"For his story, there are Joker-related crimes that go unreported because he likes making examples of reporters."

"He makes example of reporters for reporting his crimes?"

"No, he makes example of reporters who 'Taint his show by unfair reporting.' He has these psychotic details about his 'performances' that he wants to be reported correctly. So some reporters attribute his killings to accidents or such, and others don't report them at all." She sighs out loud on the communicator. "I can't believe I didn't look into it. I never thought the history of the location at which the breach would appear would matter. I only looked into the guy, in case I had to talk to him."

"So it all loops back to the Joker," I said out loud. I had never met the guy but I hated him. Enough to kill, perhaps.

I wasn't done with the Penguin. I looked at the seal that had the rest of my curse tags and looked up at him. I placed it on top of his chest. I didn't think what I was going to do next was very ethical but I had coerced a hero, a pretty decent one at that, to wear it. So the crime boss was an OK target.

"Repeat after me," I told him.

"I promise that I will sell the cafe at a reasonable price, today. And I will do it without any deceit." I wasn't a lawyer and there was a limit to how complex an agreement the seal could enforce, its potential was already full. The sympathetic connection thing I did with Batgirl needed a pair and I didn't want to pair up with this guy.

Before he could no doubt complain I thought of something else so I had to continue. "Also I will get Amar a new job I am not affiliated with and then I will leave him alone." I had to think a second, then I added "And I will do that today as well." I said as I bought up another seal and placed that on his chest too.

Contrary to my expectations he doesn't beg me to not do it or ask me what it was. He just looked at me strangely. I couldn't read him. He then continues to repeat everything I had told him, in better diction even.

"I, Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, hereby promised to return the Cafe and everything else he unjustly acquired from the Hebert family, that's the ' The Blessed Bean Brew Box' back to the legal authorities, in this case, it would be the united states government and furthermore I promise to not meddle in it in any unlawful or immoral ways. And I will get this done before the end of today. No matter what apocalypse befalls us." He said.

"I, Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, hereby also promise to let go of the employee that I had coerced to work for me, Mr Amar Goiaz, and as recompense would also get him a job at an establishment appropriate for his skill and never again bother him. And I will get this done before the end of today. No matter what apocalypse befalls us." He spoke the second promise.

Once he was done, before I fully activated it, I asked batgirl. "Did he leave any new loopholes? Was that the name of the cafe?"

"No Loopholes, I could tell. And that was the name of the cafe. He actually closed multiple loopholes you left in if your magic worked anything like a lawyer. You are sure it will burn away after it's done?"

"Pretty sure. He is too confident. I am not sure If I should be doing this."

I could hear the shrug from the other side of the line. So I sighed and activated the seals.

This was partially a test. I didn't know the nuances of how the seal worked, I just had a bunch of instincts that came with it. I wanted to see what happened.

I still had one more thing to talk to the penguin. So I leaned in with my most intimidating voice. "But, My friend, If you are lying. If it was your attempt at killing Danny that killed all of them and you are just trying to lead me by the nose, trying to use me against your enemies, then buddy—"

I placed my Fuinjutsu scroll on him and activated it, he was inside it for not more than a second, but when he came back he looked like he had seen a ghost. Affirming my conclusion that non-brutes won't survive in there. I wonder what kind of strength did superman have to have survived in there for so long with a light that constantly made him weaker?

I picked up my Kunai, the Batarang and the drone.

"—You won't die easily"

—

"Thanks. Couldn't have done it without you, miss tech wiz." I told Batgirl.

She folded her arms. "I am the best at everything I do. There is nothing surprising or praiseworthy about that." Though I could tell she was happy. About the praise or that this diversion was done, I didn't know. "Now, What are you going to do with the information?"

"Hunt down the Joker of course. He wants a zombie apocalypse, I want his head. Easy peasy. How much money is there on his kill order anyway? I wonder if there is a way to use your money in my world."

"You can't kill the Joker." She replied almost automatically.

"What? no, I can. I am perfectly capable of killing someone. I used to think I wasn't but after getting my powers, after all of that training jammed into my head. After experiencing and seeing so much death. After all that? Yeah, I think I can. If there is someone else making the choice, that is." I added.

I thought she would argue about killing the criminal. Give me a breakdown of what would happen if I kill him. Or be curious about me mentioning experiencing death. Or tense up when I mentioned seeing a lot of death. I wasn't expecting her to not respond at all. She looked like she was thinking. And thinking hard.

"'It's a hero's duty to uphold the kill order'. I know they don't mean independents or non-adults but in this case, it is fine, I hope."

She was still very silent. Not even a question about the quote I made up.

That's when I felt it, a skill in my repository was humming. The same one that hummed when meeting Batman for the first time.

"Are you looking at me strangely because he doesn't have a kill order yet? I am not going to go kill willy-nilly. I am a hero. I just said I am only ok with killing if someone told me to."

No response so I continued as I looked around for—someone or something doing this.

"I meant the government, I didn't say that because I thought that would sound authoritarian. But surely, there is no reason to keep the Joker alive? From everything I've read, seen and heard he just keeps causing misery and that's all he does. He actively wants it. Surely if there isn't a kill order yet, there will be one soon?"

The skill was growing hotter and hotter. More urgent than what happened with Batman. It wanted to be used. She was in a stupor, I looked at her and then I knew it was the [Skill]'s fault.

"Hey, I am going to use a power. It might not do anything or it might, OK?"

My skill felt—full and heavy. Like it was pouring out of me. So with great trepidation and some curiosity, I activated [Fatebreaker].

My bracelets became visible, they flew out of my hands and started circling Batgirl. The edges of bracelets grew sharp and the circling grew stronger. The world gained a new dimension. There were wires going here and there. Connecting things, connecting people. Batgirl had many. Most extend into Gotham. And one extending to her bike. There was also a small one between me and her.

What stood out was the golden chain made of rope, clearly different from the other ones, wrapped around her neck. It extended into the skies, to what felt like heaven. Chaining her to—something.

The bracelets stopped circling her head. They formed something that looked like a chainsaw and started cutting the wire. It wasn't easy. Each inch taken, taking away the essence of something from the bracelets—no the [Skill]. Dulling it. By the end, the chain only remained connected only by a desperate piece of thread, ready to be severed by the slightest pull. The bracelets returned and reality continued.

—