It was raining, perfectly describing the mood of the current situation. He was supposed to meet his client in the same alleyway he was currently standing in. He couldn't help but pace around as the time ticked by. 'Five more minutes and I'll leave' he told himself. He had no business being here, especially doing what he was doing.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity, a hooded man entered the alleyway. "Hey man, sorry I'm late. I just had to do a couple of things. You know how it is." His costumer seemed paranoid, but who wouldn't when they were doing what they were doing.

He motioned for the man to come closer to him, pulling out a bag of cocaine from his own jacket. His eyes darted around everywhere as he did such, glancing at every shadow he could. His hooded customer took the product swiftly, handing him $150.

The dealer nodded, quietly shooing his customer off. The man didn't need much assistance, making his way out of the alley as quickly as he could. The dealer looked around once more before following his customer out of the alley.

Or at least, he would have if he wasn't stopped by a man dressed in a red dress suit. A smile painted the man's face, causing the dealer to feel even more anxious.

"Surely you know the rules," the man spoke, his voice akin to one you'd hear in some sort of commercial. "Non-Cindercorp deals have a 25% tax. I'll kindly ask for you to pay up."

"I... I thought you guys only sold guns!" The dealer stuttered. The red suited man's smile didn't drop at all.

"Cindercorp specializes in all things illegal and some things not," the man spoke as if he were reciting a slogan. He probably was. The man extended his open hand forward, gesturing for the dealer to pay him.

The man patted his pockets in an attempt to seem like he was looking for his money before making a break out of the alley. He didn't get very far, as a gunshot was the last thing he heard before he'd left the land of the living.

The smile on the red suited man's face dropped and he shook his head, looting the body for everything worth value. "You'd think they'd learn eventually." He said to nobody in particular. It's not like he cared anyways. The best part of the patrols were the fact that he got to keep everything he found. He'd actually preferred it this way.

He deposited all the money he could find into his pockets, his hands following them soon after. The man made his way out of the alleyway, whistling a tune as he did so.

/0/

It was getting worse, she decided. Philadelphia was never some crime-free zone or anything, but in the past few months something had happened that made it much worse than it had been before. The south was still relatively safe, but everywhere else had seen an increase in crimes akin to that of Gotham. Thankfully, nobody had taken to terrorism which seemed so common in Gotham, but she had to wonder how long that was going to be true.

She had to do something.

The idea sprouted in her mind just a few weeks ago. Her friend, Chris, had gotten mugged for everything he owned. The only reason he left with his life was because the criminal who did it was in a 'good mood'. That made her sick.

She'd known she had her abilities for years now, and not once had she taken it upon herself to use them for anything useful. That was going to change now, though.

She stared down at the suit in front of her. A dark blue full body latex bodysuit with purple sides stared back at her. The mask that'd cover her entire face matched the same color scheme as the bodysuit. It wasn't anything special at all, but it'd work for now. She had to pull more than a few favors from her friends to get it made her. So what if she had superpowers? Yeah she could run just as fast as a car and lift ten times her weight. So what? She wasn't bulletproof! She bled like everyone else!

She shook her head, quickly giving herself a few slaps to get her mind back in the right place. Now wasn't the time for doubts, now was the time for action. She'd known what she could do since she was a kid, and now she'd finally found a reason to use them. She wouldn't let anyone else she knew get hurt. She wouldn't let anyone she loved die while she had the power to prevent it.

She pulled the costume onto herself, the mask swiftly following. Another deep breath came, this time filled with even more fear. She shook her head once again. It was now or never. The more time she wasted meant the more people got hurt.

She climbed from her window, landing softly in her backyard grass. 'It's now or never' she kept repeating to herself. She made her way into the city, suppressing all of her doubts. Now wasn't the time to be Courtney Mitchell. Now was the time to be Lazuli.

/0/

Riley sat counting the money in front of him, the beautiful overview of the city sitting pretty behind him. He smiled, a penthouse being his first purchase seemed to be the right choice.

It'd been six months since he'd arrived in Philadelphia, and his life had only changed for the better since. He looked at the date on his phone, today marking May 13th. His birthday was in 3 day, and he was sure to do something big. In the past he'd never celebrated his birthday, but that was only because he never had the resourced to celebrate his birthday. Of course the first one he'd celebrate would be his 18th, it only made sense based on his last year or so of life.

He chuckled. To think he'd accomplished all he had and he still wasn't legally an adult. He'd spend as much as he could for his coming of age party. He felt he deserved as such.

He looked back at the past. Shortly after his peace deal with Illonka Chandler, he'd bought out a tech company close to bankruptcy. It'd taken a while and it bit at his funds, but he was able to get them back on their feet. Now, Cindercorp was an actual company, which was as much protection he could ask for.

The inquisition of the tech company wasn't just for insurance, though. They were hard at work trying to reverse engineer the alien guns he'd received what felt like an eternity ago. He was sad he never actually got to use the weapons in a fight, but they'd be putting even more money in his pockets sooner or later.

He'd expanded in the months since his deal as well. As he agreed on, he left Illonka's territories in the east alone, instead expanding westward. Now, he controlled all of south and west Philadelphia. It was safe to say that he was making more than enough money.

In only a year his life had turned upside down. From a grunt working for any change he could get his hands on to a multimillionaire business owner. He'd even been able to avoid any arrests throughout the whole time as well, which was just as impressive.

It wasn't all smiles and giggles, though. He had to admit, being on top was starting to get boring. It'd been months since he'd done anything besides count money and party. As much as he loved both of those activities, even they were starting to bore him. He missed the old days when he was actually out doing things. He hadn't used his powers in so long that he'd be surprise if his efficiency hadn't diminished.

It was in times like these that he understood villains like The Joker. He wasn't interested in any of the terrorism the clown usually participated in whenever he was free from Arkham Asylum, but he did understand the thrill in having a rival.

He didn't have an arch-nemesis. There weren't any heroes in Philadelphia to begin with! Maybe he'd stop by Gotham soon and see what Stephanie was up to. He had promised to be her arch-nemesis oh so long ago.

A smile returned to his face. Yes, that was exactly what he was going to do. He could do whatever he wanted, and right now he wanted to see his favorite vigilante. He sat the money he'd been counting back into its designed briefcase, making a note on his phone that he'd been at $1.5 million before he left.

He donned the newly improved Cinder attire. The dark red compression shirt had been replaced by dark red armor akin to something Batman and his crew wore. The black combat pants had been replaced with the same material. He didn't wear a mask anymore. He was sure every hero that cared knew what he looked like, so there wasn't any point in hiding anymore.

He walked to his closet, retrieving a box filled with handguns. He didn't plan on using them during this trip, but better safe than sorry, especially in a place like Gotham.

After a minute long elevator ride, he found what was probably his favorite purchase. He always felt proud whenever he saw the red motorcycle in front of it. On the back it sported a booster that'd allow him to go faster than he'd ever gone before. A protective bulletproof glass covered where he'd be sitting, and two retracted turrets hid on the sides of the vehicles.

He hopped onto the vehicle, revving the engine a few times before exiting the garage. He was halfway into his list of things to do in Gotham when he was cut off by a heat signature approaching him, fast. He turned his body inside the protective bubble only for a blur to smash into the motorcycle, it flipping in the air multiple times before coming to a halt in the street.

Riley held his head as he exited the vehicle, his head throbbing. Staring back at him was a figure wearing blue and purple. The mask they donned told him all he needed to know about his attacker. 'Well, it was bound to happen eventually'.

"Your reign of crime has come to an end, Cinder!" The figure shouted. Riley took the time to compose himself before responding.

"What is this, Power Rangers? You're not supposed to talk to your enemy while you're fighting," to punctuate his point, Riley threw a handgun that soon exploded into the face of his attacker. He was surprised to see that they were stunned, but relatively unharmed.

He cursed his luck. 'Of course it's a superhero who was actually super'. He didn't wait for his opponent to recover, instead throwing two more exploding guns at them. He didn't want to test his luck against anyone who wasn't even phased by his mini-grenades, so he righted his motorcycle and made his escape as quickly as possible.

'Thank god this thing was reinforced. That hit probably would've totaled a regular one'. His thoughts were interrupted by the familiar heat signature chasing after it. The fact that they were making progress on his motorcycle caused him to shiver a bit. 'Hopefully I haven't ensued the wrath of some Superman level hero'.

The booster on the back of the motorcycle flared to life, causing the world outside of the vehicle to blur. The heat signature quickly fell out of his range, and he thanked every god he could think of that the new hero wasn't that fast.

'Guess I should've been careful what I asked for. I'll have to get back into fighting shape now'. That was for later, however. He had a trip to Gotham that he was still excited about.

/0/

Mr. Copper cursed to himself as he readjusted his dark red suit. Becoming the second-in-command of Cindercorp had been something he'd taken pride in. He had about as much freedom as one could ask for within the organization, and the authority over everyone except the company's creator himself. It gave him power and control, something he longed for for quite some time.

Now, however, it felt as if his power and control had been stripped and taken from him. Cinder suddenly leaving for Gotham should have been a good thing. It'd mean that the day-to-day activities of the leader would be passed on to him in his absence. There would be nobody above him, even if it were only for a short amount of time.

That wasn't the case currently. There was a new superhero in town and they were tearing through their ranks, fast. Everyone in the underworld of Philadelphia had become quickly aware of the self-dubbed 'Lazuli', and they were causing much more trouble than expected.

The city was scared, and not the productive fear that Cindercorp spread throughout the city, but actual fear. Lazuli was like a train. They were fast and they hit hard as well. They were able to shrug off any attacks that were thrown at them and redistributed them back tenfold. The only upside was the fact that the new hero didn't seem to kill any of the criminals they defeated, instead waiting with them until the police arrived.

Normally the appearance of such an entity wouldn't effect much or anything. Superheroes and vigilantes had become all but normal since they first sprouted up decades ago. A new hero most likely trying their hardest to impress the League wouldn't be unheard of in the slightest, especially in the state Philadelphia was currently in.

Even with all that information, Mr. Copper still couldn't stop himself from feeling anger towards the situation. He'd known a hero was bound to sprout up sooner or later, and he was sure that everyone in the Underworld knew as well. The fact that it took as long as it did should've been the most surprising part of the heroes debut. So why, just why had the appearance of this 'Lazuli' scared off a good portion of their costumers? Numbers where decreasing by the day. Adding the fact that they were losing members and warehouses made Mr. Copper want to hurt something, badly.

He wasn't a very violent person. He didn't feel joy in killing people like some of his criminal coworkers. That didn't mean he wouldn't kill, but he wasn't thrilled to do as such. He'd prided himself of his ability to keep calm in whatever situation he found himself in. Whether it were dealers selling without taxes or a mini-war against a small street gang, he always made the best decisions he could. He was always calm and collected, which meant that everything he was involved with tended to go well. He wouldn't have become the second-in-command if it weren't for his efficiency.

That was why he was growing to feel hatred towards Lazuli. They were making him angry, which was a feeling he sealed away as best as he could when he was on the job. They were ruining his reputation, and they were ruining the business he'd spent so much time towards building up alongside Cinder. They were making it seem like everything he'd done in the past few months was useless, and that was a feeling he hated more than everything. He would never feel useless ever again.

So, that meant he'd have to deal with this 'Lazuli'. He wasn't sure how long Cinder would be in Gotham, but that didn't matter. Even if the crime-boss returned before he'd gotten his hands on the new vigilante he would remain focused. Although they hadn't known it yet, Lazuli had struck at the one thing Mr. Copper had valued the most, which meant that it was Mr. Copper's job to deal with them.

He wasn't stupid, though. As he was now he'd stand no chance against the hero. That was fine for him. It just meant he'd have to spend time evening the odds. Luckily for him, time was his most abundant asset.

/0/

Gotham had changed quite a bit since he'd last been here. It was no Metropolis, but in his absence the heroes had been able to cut down on the crime in the city severely. It made sense, with Black Mask dead and Cinder disappearing into nothing the capes had much less left on their plate to deal with. That didn't mean Gotham was free of crime or anything, he was sure something like that was impossible, but it was the best it had been in quite a while.

Riley couldn't help but smile. Cindercorp would have thrived with the state of Gotham currently. That was all left in the past, though. Batman would be on him the second he tried to set up shop, which made Gotham off limits. Maybe he'd create a separate branch just for Gotham. Leaving the city out of his plans completely was just throwing away money.

Riley's motorcycle slowed down as he felt a heat signature on a rooftop near him. He wasn't at the level to where he could differentiate between signatures, so he'd have to cross his fingers and hope he ran into anyone but Batman.

He exited the motorcycle, parking it in a dark alley before making his way up the fire escape of one of the buildings. It didn't take long for him to run into the signature. What surprised him was that it was someone he'd never seen before. Staring directly at him was a man in a completely red mask. He wore a bronze colored jacket on top of his black armored shirt. His legs and feet sported the same armor that all of Gotham's protectors wore. This man wasn't one of Gotham's protectors, though. He could tell by the sniper rifle peeking from behind him.

"Ah, and here I was thinking I'd never see your face again." The man spoke. Riley raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"What are you a former customer or something?" Riley looked towards the sniper behind him. They weren't his expertise, but he'd sold a few while he was in Gotham. "My bad for disappearing without telling you guys. Something caused me to set up shop elsewhere. I'm not doing business in Gotham anytime soon, but I can take an order for when I get back. It might take a while to get to you, though." Perhaps his expansion back into Gotham would arrive quicker than he'd thought.

The man laughed. "Oh, I'm no customer. You see, I'm the reason Gotham has gotten as peaceful as it has recently," the man pulled a handgun from his waist, juggling it in his hands. "You can say I'm sort of a vigilante myself. The only difference is that I don't follow the same set of rules that Batman does. No, I do what's necessary to clean the streets of Gotham for good. Luckily for me, I've seemed to run into a way to make sure it stays clean after I've finished."

Sensing what was going on, Riley quickly channeled heat towards the handgun that was definitely going to fire at him. The man seemed to know this was going to happen, throwing his gun towards Riley. The gun exploded in the middle of the air and the man rushed towards him. Riley cursed his luck to run into another hero so soon and prepared for hand to hand combat with the man. He'd have to hope he didn't have the same level of strength as the last hero he encountered.

His fears were quickly diminished as the man punched him dead in the jaw, but another one sprouted. This man was good, very good. Almost as good as Batman, he'd say. The man ducked under his attempt at a counterattack before delivering a spinning kick to his side. Riley quickly grabbed the man's leg and started channeling heat, only to change objectives as another handgun was pulled from his waist. Riley changed the direction the heat was flowing in as fast as he could, exploding the weapon just before it could put a hole in his head.

The man quickly tossed the gun away before it exploded in his hand and used the second of distraction to deliver three quick strikes to Riley's head. The world around him seemed to spin as the man grabbed ahold of him, tossing him over his shoulder and onto the cold rooftop. Riley didn't have even a second to compose himself, rolling to the side to dodge the stomp aimed at his head. What he didn't see was the second foot that came careening into his side.

Riley only rolled for a few feet before the man was back on him, stomping down on his stomach. Riley quickly doubled over as he held his midsection. The man took this time to pull out yet another handgun. Riley cursed to himself. He didn't have the focus right now to explode the weapon. Was this really how he was going to die?

Luckily, the sound of the handgun firing never reached him, instead replaced by the sound of metal whirling through the air. "I've finally found you," a familiar voice spoke. "I won't let a repeat of the last time we crossed paths happen again." Riley turned his body to see the person he'd come to Gotham to see standing on a nearby rooftop. Spoiler quickly made her way to the rooftop the two had been fighting on, standing in between the man and the downed Riley.

"I let you off easy last time because you're fighting towards the same goal I am. Don't make me regret my decision, Spoiler." The man spat.

"Shut it, Red Hood. Save whatever you're going to say for your lawyer." The girl in purple quickly rushed towards the man in red, initiating combat. Riley didn't want to sit around and watch. Whenever they were finished, he was surely the next target for whoever the winner was.

Riley slowly rose to his feet, not even sparing a second glance at the conflict between the two vigilantes of Gotham. The injured teen pressed a button on his side, the sound of an engine coming to life on the street filling his ears. He made his way off of the rooftop as quickly as he could, disregarding his injuries until he was safely seated in his motorcycle.

The vehicle revved once more before taking off in no direction in particular. He couldn't go back to Philadelphia, not in the shape he was in now. The new hero would make slight work of him in his current condition. Not to say the protectors of Gotham wouldn't do the same thing, but he'd still have the mask of daytime to hide under here.

One thing the past day had taught him was that he was weaker than he thought he was. He didn't have the skill to fight with the big dogs, and he didn't have the strength or the speed to make up for his lack of skill. The only thing he had was his abilities, and now that seemingly everyone and their mother knew what he could do, they weren't much of an advantage either.

He'd gotten lucky so far. He'd been able to escape his run-ins with heroes in the past, but the more times he encountered them meant the more his hidden cards were revealed. He would've died tonight if Spoiler hadn't saved him. The next time he ran into the man she'd dubbed 'Red Hood' he was sure the same thing wouldn't happen again.

Just as he suspected, he'd gotten sloppy since he left Gotham. He wasn't anywhere close to beating the heroes of Gotham when he left, and his 6 months of near inactivity only made it worse. His previous encounter only opened his eyes more. Cindercorp was too big of a business and Cinder was too big of a name for the skillset he had currently. He wasn't some jobber that could duck away when things got too hot anymore. If he wanted to continue with the lifestyle he had currently he'd have to get better.

So that was exactly what he was going to do. He was going to get better, so much better that he'd never need saving ever again.


Character Update

Name: Johnathan Brooks

Alias: Mr. Copper

Age: 28 (Born February 18th)

Occupation: Criminal Businessman

Height: 6'1 (185 cm)

Appearance: Pale Skin Tone, Short Black Hair, Light Brown Eyes


Longest chapter so far! Let me know how you guys are liking the OCs so far.

Hope you enjoyed the read!

Sincerely, Six.