I let out a sigh as I took in the sight of the warehouse, a possible target for Gotham's premier arsonist.
The less than glamorous parts of being a cape, the waiting.
Intel stated that Firefly was on the move, he held a grudge against Wayne-Tech for aiding the fire department to combat his man made pyromancy.
"So this what you and your brood do." An amused voice said, and acting on instincts, I lurched a dulled throwing knife.
The woman managed to block it with a vine tendril before willing it down but I could tell her amusement simmered and she was ready for me to go on the attack.
"Oh, shit." I flexed my hand and noticeably relaxed, "Sorry Doc."
"Can I assume that our uneasy truce is still at play?" Poison Ivy asked with a huff.
"Uneasy truce? We don't have a truce," She tensed for a moment but I continued on else I had to fight the plant based villain, "I'm never been after you, or considered you my enemy."
"Ok." She drawled with a slight confused tone, as if she wasn't sure how to respond, "I just wanted to check, cause I spotted you skulking around here."
Oh yeah, we are near her base of ops slash her home.
"I'm really not here spy on you." I thumbed back the warehouse, "Firefly is on the loose and I'm scoping a possible target."
She let out a snort and took a seat on the ledge next to me, she rested a leg against the slab and took in the sight of the street below, "And you're telling me because…"
"Why not?" I shrugged my shoulders, "No honour among thieves and all that shit."
"Not a thief." She pointed out with a wry smile, as she jabbed her thumbs towards herself.
"Not an arsonist." I shot back, though, when villains appeared explosions and fire tended to be close, "Plus aren't you a bit of a loner?"
She cocked an eyebrow, but instead of huffing or getting angry, she inclined her head, "I suppose. In this biz, my goals don't line up with the crackpots that keep you and your mentor busy."
I shrugged my shoulders and took a glance at the street below, "I mean you've kept the Old-man busy before."
She let out a snort, "Yeah, but not for the same reasons."
"I'll give you that. You don't go around killing people for shits and giggles."
She went silent as she stared off at the skyline, "Not a lot of people do." She shook her thoughts off, "Even still, I'm not a boy scout like you." Boy scout? "I've killed. Not because I'm some unfeeling monster, but not because I'm misguided either."
Ah that's what she's angling at.
"There's misguided. There's lost." I let out a hiss as I winced, trying to find the right words, "Then there's broken."
"Harley is not…" She trailed off as I gave her an unimpressed look, which she managed to read even behind my mask, "Okay she's broken. But she's my…" She trailed off.
"You love her."
Poison Ivy let out a withering sigh and then leaned against the palm of her hand, "Yeah I have feelings for her, but I wouldn't class it as love, I'm not some sap who falls in love because she glanced my way. And I sure as hell ain't stepping into that mess while Joker has got his claws in her."
"Don't want to be a rebound?"
She let out a groan, before her face scrunched up, "What the hell is happening? Are we gossiping or are you becoming my therapist?"
I let out a chuckle, "Nah I'm too messed up to be a therapist."
A teasing smirk wormed its way on her face, "Yet you're still in a position where you protect people."
I clutched my heart with a mock hurt look despite her not being able to see my face, "Scathing."
'Freak.' Batman's voice chimed in my comms, and I would be lying if I say I didn't flinch in place.
"Batman?"
'I've spotted Firefly. Moving to intercept him now. Go on patrol but keep you comms active in case.'
"Got it boss. Good luck." I let out the withheld sigh that I was holding and turned to the green skinned woman.
"Yeah, yeah, crime to fight, criminals to unlawfully arrest."
"Unlawfully?"
"You capes, are glorified vigilantes. At the flip of a dime of the government will turn on you, but I'm pretty sure all the Bats will continue even if you're all up against the 'law.'" She said with such conviction as she finger quoted the word law, and I was almost tempted to stay and debate it with her, but I knew when I was pushing my luck, and if Bruce investigated my delay to go on patrol, well, I'm not sure how'd he react to my semi-pleasant conversation I've had with Gotham's plant villain.
Mazikeen POV
She was bored, no two ways about it, boredom and immortality came hand in hand. Though when it came to her kind, boredom usually meant something would happen to humanity, usually murder, rape, or just simply fucking over the pitiful monkeys.
Though if she really thought about it, and begrudgingly admitted to it, she hasn't done anything 'Demonic' in a good while, not since she and ole' Luci got here. The supposed supreme evil alleviating his cursed monotony with playing human.
Her boredom is why she agreed to give a part of her essence to the assassin's, who was pretty forth coming in what she wanted to do with it. It brought a smile to her face at the prospect, a hybrid, human and demon. The havoc it would encroach.
Demons are soulless creatures. Their base emotions reduce heavily nerfed so they could act on their base instincts without qualms.
Humans are ruled by emotions, they're governed by their morality. Sure, there are exceptions, but it would be hard press to find a human more sinister than an average demon from a lesser echelon.
The vessels soul and her demon essence should've clashed just like Trigon's spawn and produced an unhinged hybrid. It… he should've killed and gone on a rampage, teaching the assassin to never assume to be on the same level as a demon of her standing, the assassin should have learnt to never make a deal with her kind and expect anything good.
Perhaps the assassin did learn that lesson, but not in the way she expected.
The vessel proved to be a different breed, of human… and demon.
He was cautious. To say he wasn't ruled by emotions would be wrong, his humanity shined through, but his grasp on his darker urges were stronger than she ever expected, even coupled with the mess of the second conscious nestled in the vessels mind.
Something odd happened
She felt something, she never had in ages of living.
She felt pride, pride for another.
She shook off her blurry vision of her… son? The boy was easy to track, even in this city of super powered scum. The half demon was easy to feel.
Hell he even stood a cut above the pitiful humans he's attached himself to, with his garbs, and two toned mask.
Easy to track yes, but when she tried to sneak up on him, he quickly went on the defensive before she even touched him.
A grapple there, a wild elbow lashed out against her, and bam, he lurched his forehead against hers.
Her son, shook his head and muttered something about no one gains anything from a headbutt, and tried to strike her across the jaw, but she kept a firm hand around his neck.
"You fight like a human." I uttered in annoyance, he's a fighter, exceptionally skilled but he's constantly holding himself back, not knowing when to let loose.
I inched my lips close to his ear and whispered, "Your half me." I looked at his slightly fearful eyes, "Use it. Own it."
His chest heaved, and I felt a surge of something familiar run through him. "Hello gorgeous." A playful smirk tugged at my lips as I took in his demonic form, a form with strong resemblance to my own.
He jabbed me in the throat, and I actually had let go of him as I reeled back in something akin to pain.
Simultaneously we took a deep breath, and if he refused to see the similarities between us, I would force him to acknowledge it.
He raised a fist up, and I matched his demonic form, wispy knuckles met charred flesh. The sounds of bones cracking alongside a deafening boom omitted from the clash.
This continued for another minute, for every punch or kick he would throw to me, I met it with my own, mirroring his moves, with glee.
"You're good Ammon."
"Who the fuck is Ammon?" He huffed, his ass still clenched as he refused to go off guard for even a moment.
Good, his instincts are there and primed. "You are. You need a demonic name, not a tag as if you're a series of beings one after the other."
He let out scoff and was about to retort but I cut him off, "You're special Ammon, you're my son." I expected a sneer, as he seemed to want to latch onto the little humanity in him, but he couldn't mask the longing in his eyes, he wanted, no, he craved a familiar relationship.
It's why he latched onto the humans around him as he's done so far. "Fine, when you're ready." I slipped the blade into his hand, well more wrenched the blade into it, but still I walked away when his palm held the flat of the blade, "Find me when you need me."
My abilities hiding me from human eyes, but his demonic ones watched me intently as I left him alone on the rooftop of this accursed city.
Two/Ammon POV
Thankfully the rest of the patrol was relative mundane, not running into anyone of note on either sides, allowed me to internalise the shit show that happened tonight. Yeah the brief talk to Poison Ivy was pleasant, but that was nearly the last thing on my mind, when I realised who jumped me moments after.
The lights in the kitchen flickered on but I didn't react as I continued to stare out at nothing.
Alfred didn't say anything either as he filled the kettle and placed it on the stove, and some time must have passed as a pair of mugs appeared in front of me did, he utters a word.
"Would you like to speak about what's on your mind, young sir?"
My thoughts were a mile a minute, the Endless, Lucifer, Michael, the Presence. Literal gods. Literally God.
How fucked am I? How fucked is this world, and everyone in it? The people that I love, all human. Can I force my mind to take a breath and relish on the thoughts, that the beings that could blink away even the toughest of the Justice League, are mostly passive observers?
Nope.
Because while even the most powerful have stuck themselves to a role of non-interference, or they're simply bored and don't care, there are plenty of others, that have taken a stance that doesn't beg anything good for anyone, especially Earth-whatever.
I stopped chewing on my bottom chapped lip and took a small sip of the tea, "No thanks Alfred."
He let out a displeased sniff but nodded nonetheless, "Very well, but I'm here for you whenever you wish to, young-"
"I like the name Ammon, Alfred."
That got him to smile at the very least, "Very well, Master Ammon."
"Thank you Alfred." I said suddenly and the man knew I wasn't referring to the tea.
"For what young sir?"
"For caring."
He gave me a smile and I tried to ignore the underline sadness in his eyes as he regarded me, "Always."
Bruce, Alfred, Damian, Jason, Dick, Tim, Barbara, even you Stephanie. I love you all. And I'll beat every fucking god in the ground for you all.
A/N - 03/06/2022
Been a while because life has been a bit hectic as of late and hadn't had a chance to sit and enjoy some writing, hence why this is a bit shorter than usual.
Not really a spoiler or anything, but I should probably spell it out, he is not ever going to get close to the power levels, of the beings are scaring the ever living shit out of him. Hell even Mazikeen was simply toying with him.
