Well guys, it has been months since I updated this fic, which has been painful. This right here is the story I've wanted to write since I thought of it. NHA was awesome and fun, but I am much more knowledgeable about DC, so I'm stoked to be back working on this.
For some of you who find one of my favorite DC crackships in this fic to be a little similar to another writer's named Pootamis, it's because I loved his story so much that it turned into a headcanon for me in regards to the pairing. His story is amazing, and it's fucking adorable to boot. Don't worry, I brought this up to him before I published this, and he gave me his blessing.
ALSO, THERE ARE DARK THEMES IN THIS CHAPTER. VERY DARK. SEX TRAFFICKING, DRUG ADDICTION OF MINORS ARE SOME OF MANY. THESE HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO BE TRAUMATIC PSYCHOLOGICAL TRIGGERS FOR SOME OF YOU. PLEASE SKIP THE PASSAGES RELATED TO THESE. I WILL MAKE IT VERY CLEAR WHERE THEY STOP AND END.
Most chapters will not be this dark, but I upped the rating to M because of this chapter.
Chapter 2: Or Just Fantasy?
It had been roughly 2 months since the Monitor had basically thrown Ben into Gotham City. It was weird interacting with people who supposedly had known you their whole life, especially when the person in question didn't exist in the universe until 2 months ago.
"Man, magic sure is weird. You agree with me though, right, Mr. Generic Goon?" Let it be said that Ben enjoyed beating the crap out of the lowlifes of Gotham City infinitely more than he did trying to explain chemistry to a bunch of snot nosed brats. Other than Derek and Ernie, the class was filled with insufferable brats. Though, he had finally managed to meet Ms. Spivot as Ben Reilly rather than Arachnid. Small miracles, which Ben had learned to take when and where he could get them. But he was getting sidetracked, which was pointed out by a goon almost breaking a beer bottle on his face. Almost.
See, Ben had ended up tracking down some joke of a drug dealer named the Ventriloquist. The guy was holed up in some dive bar in downtown Gotham, and that's where Ben was currently performing goon facial reconstruction at. The bar itself was super old, probably from around the 1940s or 50s. Dust and grime coated the walls, and lighting was sparse in the room Ben was currently in. The brown floorboards were creaky and sounded like they could break at any moment. The walls had tattered bits of old wallpaper still hanging from when the place had been new. Whatever stories they might have held, they were now witness to lowest of the low of humanity now. The Ventriloquist was some C-Lister trying to go big, trying to do so by pushing a drug called Fever onto kids at Gotham High. Stuff was bad news. It was like the lovechild of speed and ecstasy, and definitely shouldn't be taken by anyone, let alone kids. Now, Ben hated drug dealers a lot, even by super hero standards. Sure, he joked to his chem students about teaching them to make drugs. But there's a difference between a joke and trying to turn kids into addicts. So Ben wasn't quite sure how much would be left of the scumbag after he had a chat with him. Given the state of the goons Ben had beaten so far, the Ventriloquist would be lucky if he could eat through a straw afterwards. Ben was about to throw a guy out a window for shock value when he heard a gunshot, but strangely, didn't activate his spider-sense. The shot rang out through the decrepit building they were in. Ben didn't see the shot directly, but it was dark enough that the flash from the gun illuminated the room when it was fired.
"You're welcome." Came a raspy filtered voice from behind him, causing Ben to turn around. Standing behind him was a 6 foot tall guy decked in a combination of body armor, a sleek gray leather jacket, red hoodie, and high tech helmet that looked like it cost more than Ben would make in 3 lifetimes. The guy had two nasty looking modified .45 cal handguns, along with a few grenades and combat knives scattered across his person. However, that was the least concerning thing about this gentlemen. No, Ben was focused on the Red Batman like symbol on the guys chest, meaning he had ties to Batman...Though, that was odd, since Bats had a no kill policy, and that guy just turned the wall behind that goon into a Jackson Pollock painting. "I don't recognize you, but given the trail you left, I'd say you found out the Ventriloquist was dealing to kids just like I did. Glad to see we have similar opinions on his business model."
The guy's tone was dark and sarcastic. Which wasn't unusual, given the circumstances that had brought them both here. Ben eyed the guy warily, which the red masked guy seemed to notice. He held his hands up in mock surrender.
"Relax. If I was going to shoot you, I'd have already tried. I say try, because I saw you dodge those goons 9mils like it was nothing." The hooded vigilante chuckled to himself. "While I'm sure my chances are better than theirs, I'm on your side. They call me the Red Hood." The newly introduced Red Hood stuck a hand out, which Ben shook tentatively.
"They call me Arachnid. And by 'they', I mostly mean myself and anyone who us still conscious when I'm finished introducing their face to the side of my foot." This got a laugh out of Red Hood, though Ben pressed on with a question. "So I see you have a Batfamily logo. I thought Bats didn't kill?" This got a darker chuckle from the vigilante.
"You could say I'm a bit of a black sheep with the family." Whatever else he was going to say was cut off when one of the thugs on the ground pulled tried to pull a gun on him. Ben was about to react when Red Hood threw a knife that had been on his right forearm. It caught the thug in the shoulder, which which made the guy both drop the guy and bleed profusely.
"Alright. So let's make a few things clear here, dirtbag. I am not Batman. I could set you on fire with napalm and I wouldn't lose an ounce of sleep over it. So consider that before trying to lie to me." He tweaked the knife a little bit causing the guy to scream in pain. "I think I've made my point. Now, where is the Ventriloquist?"
The thug was terrified of Red Hood, meaning he was not some obscure hero, if the dark stain in the other guys pants was any indication. "H-He's at the pier! He's hosting a party their to lure in teenage girls so he can sell em! He wants to break into sex trade!"
Ben bristled at that, and apparently, so did the Hood.
"He's what?" Ben grabbed the thug intentionally by the wounded arm, causing him to scream. "You have five seconds to spill everything you know about this asshole's plan before the Hood and I play rock-paper-scissors to decide which one of us gets to end you in creative and violent ways."
"He planted some invite at a that highschool in midtown Gotham! He figured he make em addicts to make em easier to control, and the best way to do that was throw a party as a cover! Please, put me down!" If Ben wasn't livid, he sure as hell was now. He threw the thug against the wall to the side, breaking part of the ancient walls. Red Hood whistled in appreciation before he walked over to
"Jack Werner, convicted on two counts of rape, 3 counts of murder, 6 cases of attempted rape. Hate to say it pal, but you earned the bullet I'm about to give. But before you go, fun fact: I only shoot to kill criminals with rapes and murders under their belt. Now, normally, I'd make an example of you. But considering we're in a hurry. So cheers." The Hood shot the thug in the head, causing him to stop moving. Ben and Hood caught each other's gaze, and nodded. They both jumped out of a window and swung back up to the roof. They settled down across from each other, and while there was an air of tension, it was broken when Red Hood reached up and took off his helmet, showing a guy barely in his twenties. He had black hair with a spot of white in middle of his bangs. He had piercing blue eyes, and was handsome in a roguish way. He was about to say something when he was tackled to the ground by a blue of blue and red.
"JASON PETER TODD. YOU TOLD ME YOU WOULD CALL ME BEFORE YOU WENT OUT ON PATROL!" Came a rather enraged female voice. Currently, a blonde woman a few years older than the Red Hood was on top of him. Her eyes had a red glow to them, and she looked super angry.
"Oh come on, doll-" At her growl, he changed his words "Kara, I told you it was just some low level thugs. Nothing to be worried about." Came Jason's smooth reply. He'd moved a hand up to her face and brushed a hand against her cheek. Instantly, her anger faded and she seemed really vulnerable. Honestly, Ben felt awkward as hell for intruding on this moment, albeit unintentionally.
"I heard a whisper that the Joker was back in Gotham and I panicked. I can't lose you. Not again." Her hands gripped his body armor like it wasn't made of rigid bullet proof materials.
"Kara, not even hell could keep me from you. I may have come back from death once, but I'm not going to leave you again. I promise." He then pulled her down into a kiss, which she seemed to melt into. She then dug her hands into his hair but before it go further Ben coughed as loudly as he could."
"Look, I don't know why you think I and by extension anyone else looking at this particular rooftop want to see you two go at it, but I'm in a hurry." The blonde locked eyes onto him, glowing red and shifting into a protective position on top of Jason.
"Babe, as hot as I think you are when you beat the fuck out of people, this guy is cool. And on our side."
Ben sighed, before reaching up to take his mask off, and pull down his costume's hood. He ran a hand through his hair, before speaking "Supergirl. Great. I suppose you're going to take me in for brutality?"
She tilted her head in confusion. "Why would I do that? In case you haven't noticed, my fiance here tends to leave a trail of bodies whenever he goes on crusade."
"In my defense, 100% of the people I kill actually deserve it. And you can get off me anytime, gorgeous. Unless I'm that comfortable?"
Kara glanced at Jason briefly, before her eye twitched, and she flicked him on the nose. Fine. I'm going back to Metropolis to finish my work and then I'll be back at the apartment. Please don't blow anything up tonight, Jason." Jason, for his part, just whistled innocently, a wolfish grin on his face the entire time. Kara shook her head, before flying off into the sky. Jason watched her go, fondness visible in his expression.
Ben coughed to get his attention, "So yeah. Name's Ben Reilly, since we're sharing. And since my students are probably going to end up at this party, we need to move. NOW!"
Ben was irritated, though not at Jason. He pulled out his phone and pulled up the contact labeled 'DEREK JAMES', before hitting the call button. It rang a few times before the line went open, but was flooded with loud bass thumps and dance music.
"Hello?!" came a teenagers annoyed shout from the other line.
"Derek, you need to listen to me, and you need to listen now. You need to get Ernie out. You stop whatever you're doing, and you do that. Don't ask how I know where you are, but you get into a secluded place and rift out of there NOW."
"Okay okay! Going! Hey Ernie come here!" There was some scuffling, followed by muttered curses and a ZZZZZZt sound that meant Derek had rifted them out of the club. "Okay, we're saf-OW!"
"YOU KNOW I HATE IT WHEN YOU RIFT US YOU MOTHER- MMPH" The sound of Ernie's angry voice blared through the phone before it was cut off by the sound her muffled yells before she hummed in contentment.
"If you kids are done kissing, please stay where you are. Or I will fail you on your last test. Or worse, make you tutor one of the jocks." Both teens shuddered and made noises of horror. "Yeah, thought so. Don't test me. I will web you to a ceiling. Gotta go. Will explain later." Ben ended the call just as his students were about to ask for information. He then turned to Jason, who was fitting his mask back on his face. Ben followed suit, before turning back to Jason.
"So we meet there?" Ben asked curiously, unsure if they were going to keep working together. Jason nodded, before he tapped the side of his helmet, and jumped off the roof. Ben looked over the ledge, and saw Jason's fall slowed by his jacket, which appeared to have a built in parachute like system, and he landed next to a sleek red and black motorcycle. It looked like something out of a science fiction movie. Jason climbed on, and then shot off towards the pier across town. Ben shook his head, and jumped off the roof and began webswinging in the same direction.
Xxxxxxxxxxxx
Jason landed on the roof a few minutes after Ben did. They nodded in greeting, but quickly focused on the task at hand: Finding and ending the Ventriloquist. Whether that meant his businesses or the guy himself was up in the air at the moment. Whatever they decided, the guy was going to be in a lot of pain. Despite the tense air between them, from the apprehension of what they were going to find, Ben couldn't stop himself from asking the question on his mind.
"So you and Supergirl? That's pretty cool." Ben asked, then stated nonchalantly.
"Huh? Oh, yeah. She and I became close when I was Robin. We met when Batman and Superman teamed up to fight Luthor and the Joker who'd enacted some plan in Metropolis. We stopped them, and we became friends as result." His gruff filtered voice took on a tone of fondness that seemed somehow foreign. "We had these little nightly phone calls where we'd talk about what we did that day."
Ben was quiet, as he wasn't used to relationships that had such a quality of innocence to them. Most relationships these days were superficial or centered around sex. It was honestly...sweet. Jason chuckled before he continued.
"One time we actually played hooky and went to some dingy old theater in downtown Gotham. It was one I used to go to with my mom when I was little. I don't even remember what we saw that day, because all we did was make fun of the movie the whole time. We actually got thrown out near the end too, but I'll always remember the smile on her face. I was going ask her out then, but I got called away by Bats before I could." His face darkened then. "I didn't get chance to do it before I died. I rectified that when I came back."
"You said you died..." Ben started awkwardly, but was cut off by Jason.
"Yes. I did. And I'd prefer not to talk about it. Maybe sometime in the future." Jason's tone left no room for argument.
"Fair enough. If it makes you feel better, I've died before too. Not fun." That made Jason look at Ben, who nodded at him.
"Maybe we'll trade stories sometime."
"Maybe so."
Then, without further ado, they leaped off the roof into the air and towards the party where the Ventriloquist was about to make his move.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Arnold Wesker, AKA the Ventriloquist, was not so much in control of himself as his puppet's Persona 'Scarface' was. He himself was a balding older man who was very plain in most areas. He didn't standout and was usually mild mannered. But Scarface was everything that Wesker wasn't. The puppet allowed him to express his years of pent up anger and rage at the indignities he had suffered. But he would show them. He would show them all that the Ventriloquist was someone to be feared. What better way to do that than by becoming a crime lord? His thoughts were interrupted by one of his henchmen coming up to him, gun in hand.
"Boss, we finished moving the drugged up chicks to the storage room, and we kicked out the others. Though, some of the younger guys were wondering if they could...sample the goods."
'Savages.' Arnold thought to himself. Ruled by their baser instincts. Sure, he was enabling them, but these girls were an acceptable sacrifice in his journey towards crimelord status. He scoffed, before turning his puppet towards the man. "Fine, but don't do any permanent damage." The puppet's mouth moved, its face appearing menacing. The minion nodded, before going back to tell his friends the good news.
The Ventriloquist didn't know it then, but his aspirations and his life, were about to be cut drastically short.
Xxxxxxxxxxx
"Hood, you in position?" Ben whispered into his coms. His suit's onboard AI was hacking into the various cell phones inside the building, and forcing them to emit low frequency noises to essentially function as sonars to reconstruct the layouts and positions of people inside. So far, he counted a total of 20 guys inside, not including the Ventriloquist himself who was separate from the others. 'Probably too self-important for grunt work,' Ben mused to himself.
"Yeah, I just finished having a chat with the last of the external guards. They won't be hurting anyone anymore." Jason's voice replied through the coms in Ben's suit. "How many are inside?"
"20. But if you'll let me, I can use bluetooth to transfer this file I made that turns phones into sonar field generators. You can use it to reconstruct roughly every 3 seconds provided there's a phone to emit a signal." Ben offered his new 'partner'.
"Do it. I've been looking for an alternative to using signal dart cartridges from my pistol. They're too finicky."
"It'll only take a second." With a few taps on his wrist's keyboard, the program was sent. "There, it should have installed on your helmet's HUD."
"Got it. Thanks." There was a pause, presumably so Jason could analyze what he was seeing "You take the group near the back. I don't like the way it looks or how they're crowded. If that means what I think it does, then you need to move immediately."
"I'm assuming that means you'll be handing the other 10 generic henchmen?" There was a sickening snap on the other line, and some gurgling.
"9, actually. Happy hunting."
With their plan set, Ben then moved on the rooftop towards a duct and entered the building through the AC pathways. Working his way through the tight and dirty airducts, he quickly found himself above the a group of 9 goons. They were standing around a door, and they were playing rock-paper-scissors. He climbed out and observed on the ceiling for a moment.
WARNING POTENTIAL PSYCHOLOGICAL TRIGGER WARNINGS SKIP TO NEXT SECTION IF YOU AREN'T COMFORTABLE
"Man, I can't believe we let Vance go first." One said to another.
"Yeah, lucky bastard. That girl was so fucking strung out." His friend answered
"Don't worry, you'll get your turn." A third told them.
Ben chose this moment to blow the power in the building using a remote charge Jason had planted. The lights shut off. He chose this moment to speak out in the darkness.
"Actually, none of you are leaving here alive. I was going to just break or maim you guys. But when I found out you were going to gang rape a bunch of fifteen year old girls strung out on your drugs?" Ben took this moment to webline a guy to the ceiling, before breaking his neck, cutting off his screams prematurely. "Now, I'm going to enjoy killing you, and it will not be painless."
This set the punks into a terrified frenzy.
"WHERE THE FUCK IS HE?!"
"IS IT THE BAT!?"
"OF COURSE NOT MORON, IT'S THE FUCKING RED HOOD! BATS DOESN'T KILL!"
"OH FUCK OH FUC-YAAAAAAAH" A thug was grabbed in the darkness and his gun went off causing strobe effects when the flashing lights, which made the atmosphere even more terrifying. Ben broke the guys jaw, before thrown against a wall, shattering his spine.
"7 more to go...Tell me, what do you guys have in common with my brothers?" A web shot from the darkness on a guys face, and shot him over a rafter, before his neck was broken and he hung there lifelessly. "You're all dead."
One thug was backing up into a corner trying to find a way out. He bumped into Ben, who's lenses pick that moment to illuminate glowing red. The guy pissed himself before Ben roundhouse kicked him into a wall. If the force of the kick hadn't killed him, the impact of the wall had.
"You know guys, I tend be make jokes when I fight baddies like you. Call it a trait fro m my dear old dad." Ben started causally, his head looking around for the next target to neutralize. His tone turned dark. "But see, if there's one thing I hate more than anything, it's a rapist. And what did you guys try to do?" Ben tapped a thug on the shoulder, before grabbed the guys gun from his hands, and moved it under his chin, before forcing the guy to pull the trigger. His spider sense went off, and he move to the side just in time to dodge a hail of gunfire from a different thug. He rushed the guy, punched him in the shoulder, shattering his clavicle like it was made of glass. He screamed before he was grabbed by the face, silencing him. Ben threw him towards one of his friends, who shot him in panic. 5 more to go.
"FUCK MAN YOU SHOT PHIL!" One of the guys shouted. They were now all huddled in fear, panic overriding their senses. They were jumping at shadows now, and they honestly knew they were going to die here. One guy fell to his knees, and began to pray.
"Hail Mary, full of Grace-URK!"
Ben cut that off immediately. He pulled the scumbag close to his face, and whispered to him.
"No. You don't get a last prayer or redemption." He then slammed the guy face first into the ground. Ben then jumped in between the last three, and back out, causing two of them to shoot each other in the confusion and surprise. Ben the webyanked the last guy towards him.
"See, you get to be the designated survivor. You tell people what happens to rapists in Gotham, and what happens to anyone who targets kids. Am I clear?" Before he released him, Ben took a hypodermic needle, and jabbed in the guy's neck. "That was me injecting you with a tracker, and small explosive charge. See, you get to live with the knowledge that I can retract my mercy with the touch of a button should I find reason to. So get the fuck out of my sight." With that Ben released the guy, who ran off reeking of piss and shame.
Ben shook his head. He shouldn't have lost his cool like that. He was trying to be better. To be a real hero. Killing a bunch of would be rapists like this wouldn't help his reputation as Arachnid. At best, he'd be lumped into the same category as Vigilante, Red Hood, or Huntress. Whatever. He needed to deal with the last guy. He moved to the room where the girls were, and kicked it off the hinges. He casually dodged a pistol round from the now terrified last thug, who was holding a pistol and one of the girls hostage. She was still strung out really bad, and trying to kiss the guy Clearly she was still being effected by the drug's inhibition suppression.
"So you have two options, Oswald. You can release the girl and surrender, meaning I kill you quickly. Or you can struggle and try to kill her, which you'll fail, and then I inject you with this nasty poison I stole from that Kobra lady. Either way, you're going to die."
This made the thug shake uncontrollably. He tried to move the gun to the girl's head, but Ben was way too quick. He shot a web-line at the gun, and yanked it away, before he shit a second behind the guy, and shot forward with a haymaker to the guy's jaw. The girl dropped the floor with a whine, before she passed out.
"Oh, you really should not have done that." Ben pulled another hypodermic needle from his belt, and then jammed it in the guys crotch. "See, I was curious what kind of poison this actually was. Mostly, if it was a neurotoxin or if it was necrotic in nature. Meaning your dick is going to rot off. Either way, have fun dying."
POTENTIAL UPSETTING CONTENT OVER. PLEASE RESUME.
He threw the guy into a pile of boxes, and began to dial 911 on his wrist pad using an number scrambler. It rang once before the line opened.
"911. What is your emergency?" The dispatcher seemed somewhat bored.
"Hello, I'm the friendly neighborhood Arachnid. Red Hood and I just killed a bunch of rapists and drug dealers at the pier where you probably had a few noise complaints. Inside, there are a bunch of teenage girls they were planning to turn into drugged up sex slaves. So naturally, send officers with strong stomachs, because we were not gentle on these scumbags."
"Excuse me? Is this a prank?"
"Lady, if you don't send EMTs, a clinical psychologist with addictions experience, a coroner, and some cops down here, I may visit you myself for negligence of duty. You don't want that." He heard her gulp through the phone.
"Units are en-route to your location, sir. Have a nice evening." Ben scoffed at her.
"Oh yeah, lady. Sure." He cut the line, before moving to a the nearest wall that exited the building. He punched hole in the old building's wall, before taking a flare, and tossed it outside the hole, to get the help to the girls as quickly as possible. He then climbed back up to the roof, before he dialed Jason's frequency.
"You're lucky I'm finished having a chat with the Ventriloquist." There was a gunshot, and thud in the background. "What's up? Need help?"
Ben laughed. "With the thugs? No. Though suffice to say, I'll have a reputation like yours after tonight. What I do need, is a damn strong drink. On me?"
"After tonight? You better believe it." Jason's voice sounded as tired as Ben felt.
"Good, because I've already called the cops and threatened a dispatcher into sending EMT's and a coroner. So we should probably get the hell out of here."
"Sounds good."
xxxxxxxxx
Noonan's Bar was a dirty, dingy bar that was originally started by a former hitman named Noonan. However, it was also a place where you could go and be left alone to your own devices. So when Jason and Ben walked in, no one so much as glanced at them. Though, partially that probably stemmed from the fact besides the bar keep, the only other person in the bar was a blonde guy in a beige trench coat. The two of them were now in street clothes, and they took a seat next to the blond guy. Ben got the barkeeps attention with a wave of his hand in greeting.
"Three beers and three glasses of your strongest whiskey, man. It's been a shitty night." That got the blonde guy's attention.
"I would presume two of those are for me?" The guy spoke with a Liverpool accent. Odd, but Ben nodded. "Cheers, mate."
Once the drinks arrived, none of the guys were very talkative. But it was the blonde who broke the silence.
"So while I'm always game for free booze, I'm inclined to ask what prompted the generosity towards a stranger, Mr...?" The man spoke in a cool, calculating tone. Jason seemed to vaguely recognize the guy, but didn't say anything, still knocking back his beer bottle.
"Ben Reilly. And as for why, it's been a really shitty night, and misery loves company." Ben replied, in a way that didn't leave much room for detailed prying.
"I assume occupational stress then."
"Something like that." The blonde turned his attentive gaze towards Jason, who nodded his agreement with Ben's statement.
"I've been there. Seen some nasty things in my own work." He offered vaguely.
"And what would your job be, Mr...?" Ben inquired curiously.
"Constantine. John Constantine. An d I deal in...antiquities and odd jobs." John answered in a mysterious manner. This prompted a raised eyebrow from Ben, and grunt from Jason. "How about yourselves?"
"I'm a teacher at Gotham High. Specifically for AP Chemistry. I'm trying to get a job at Lex Corp in Genetics and cloning." Ben replied amicably to his new potential drinking buddy.
"I work for Wayne Enterprises as bodyguard for the CEO." Jason replied curtly. He was clearly in a bad mood, but his expression did brighten up at seeing a message on his phone from Kara.
"Interesting professions to be sure. Though, as I'm sure you both know, no one who comes to this bar is as they appear." Ben and Jason tensed a bit, but they relaxed when John made no further comment or actions in that line of questioning.
"Regardless, I came here for information related to a job I'm on searching for a rare antique, so I need to be off. Cheers for the drinks, mate. We should do this again sometime. Here. My Card." He handed Ben and Jason a card that read:
JOHN CONSTANTINE.
DEALER IN ANTIQUITIES AND MASTER OF THE DARK ARTS.
Ben looked up questioningly, but the mysterious blond man was already gone.
"So that was Constantine." Jason commented, not really sure how to take finally meeting the infamous magic using conman that was infamous for his cunning and guile.
"You know him?" Ben asked questioningly.
"Only what Bruce has told me. Before you ask why I'm friends with my boss, he's my...foster father, basically."
"He know you're a vigilante?"Jason laughed, but Ben wasn't really sure why.
"Yes, but as long as I don't go too overboard, he doesn't care too much. Before I went to work for him, we had a bit of...falling out, but we're patching things up."
"That's good to hear. It sounds like neither of us has lead exactly easy lives." Ben raised his beer bottle towards his new friend. "Here's to fighting the good fight and surviving."
Jason laughed, before clinking his bottle against Ben's.
"I'll drink to that."
To be continued...
So this is the long awaited second chapter of my latest fic. For those of you familiar with my first story, this is obviously a lot darker. Do not fret. I don't intend to make this some sort of broodfest. It'll be very similar to the comics of DC in that regard. There will be ups and downs, and some moments that touch on dark issues within our society. I hope you'll come along for the ride.
Raizen out.