Chapter 7: Chapter 7
Henry was suddenly awoken by the sound of his alarm blaring, causing him to nearly fall out of his bed in his panic.
He sluggishly rolled out of his bed, undressed and had a quick shower, needing to get to work as fast as possible… since, if he's late? His manager, Karen will probably take it out of his paycheck.
He briefly thought about giving himself a quick shave to get rid of his slight stubble, but simply just didn't have the time for it… he'll do it later.
With his shower done, he quickly got dressed in his Bat Burger uniform… which others would call a "Shitty Nightwing Cosplay" that really accentuated his ass, before going to his fridge to see what he had… which wasn't much, only a few cans of beans and spaghetti, some frozen hot dogs, half of a loaf of bread, some cheap instant coffee, a box of cereal, and a couple of cartons of milk.
He hadn't been able to afford a lot of food, but his paycheck was coming today, so he'd be able to restock later today.
So, he ended up making himself a simple bowl of cereal for breakfast, along with a mug of the blackest coffee he could afford.
He needed the damn caffeine in his system, to even think about doing anything today.
But the second he took a sip of his coffee, his eyes widened, as he remembered something crucial.
…He died last night. Well, not him, but another universe's version of him…
And he gained this other version of himself's skills. Something that hadn't happened before… as he hadn't died before.
Mentally, Henry began to catalog the skills gained from this other version of himself, as he ate his breakfast.
Firstly, he didn't gain anything new with his other powers… as this other version of himself, simply absorbed the properties of mainly metals and woods. Not even shaping his limbs into tools. So there was nothing to gain from this aspect of himself.
Secondly, he gained quite a bit of information on brawling, as this other version of himself knew a bit about both boxing and wrestling… not enough to fight competitively, hell he was barely even a beginner at either, but it was enough to take down a few thugs with relative ease.
Then there were the other skills, such as how to properly aim and fire various small arms, some knowledge on anatomy so he could target his opponent's weaknesses, how to use his larger than average frame to intimidate most people, how to spot someone who would be easily intimidated… along with tips on how to dispose of bodies, the basics of… piano, of all things, and a lot of knowledge on how to make love to a woman taller and physically stronger than himself… along with Sofia Falcone's likes and dislikes… both in life, and in bed.
And his physicality changed slightly, as he felt slightly stronger and faster than he previously was… it wasn't much, but it was a noticeable difference. Along with the inch he gained… in both height, and… length.
Heh, nice…
With his mental catalog finished, Henry quickly finished his breakfast, and made his way out of the door.
He decided that he was going to walk today, instead of taking his car as… he just couldn't deal with the traffic today. Too much shit happened last night for him to even want to deal with the stresses of morning Gotham traffic.
So, Henry walked to Bat Burger, not giving a damn if anyone attempted to accost him on the way.
One guy tried, but Henry simply kept walking… and it surprisingly worked, as the man went to accost some other guy.
So, Henry had gotten to Bat Burger within ten minutes, instead of the usual hour that it would have taken, had he taken the car instead.
…Fucking Gotham traffic.
He walked into the doors of the establishment, to see Mitchell and Arnold already hard at work, while Ross and Dan worked at the drive through portion of the restaurant.
He could see that Bob and Marley were just standing intimidatingly in the corner of the fairly busy building, they seemed to be talking to each other about something.
They were both in their 40s to 50s, having lived in Gotham City for a damn long time…
Bob was an Asian man with a shaved head and small soul patch, he was also a fucking massive guy, despite his relatively average height. Looked like he exclusively ate protein and gains for breakfast. Though, he was a relatively decent guy, when you got to know him.
Then there was Marley, he was a dark-skinned man with dreadlocks that went down to his shoulders, he was fairly muscular, but not to the level of Bob. He was honestly a fun guy to hang around though, usually telling stories about the dumb things that he and Bob got to, 'back in the day'.
They both wore fairly cheap and tacky Batman masks, but it didn't really… take away from their intimidation factor.
The two of them had gotten some flack from assholes for being an openly gay couple in the "rough" part of Gotham… but they were honestly good people, were fully willing to beat the shit out of any homophobic asshole with a big mouth, and even taught the poorer kids how to read and write on weekends. Just genuinely good guys.
Then there was John McClean, the janitor. He was a middle-aged caucasian man with a freshly shaved head, he was relatively muscular, indicative of a man who kept himself in shape, but nothing really beyond that, he wore the janitor's uniform which was just a blue jumpsuit, and was mopping up a mess that some customer made. Henry didn't really know much about him, other than the fact that he was in the marines or something like that when he was a younger man, and had tragically lost his family due to some sort of accident… at least from what he's heard from the rumor mill.
And finally, was his manager, Karen Lynch, who looked both happy and relieved when he walked through the door. She was in her early twenties, had dyed red hair styled in a short bob cut with a leftward bang, freckles dotted over her face, along with a pair of square-rimmed glasses, wearing a very form fitting Batgirl costume that seemed to accentuate her curves. She was the daughter of the creator of Bat Burger, but she was honestly a decent boss, and usually only got annoyed when people were slacking off or late.
Also, weirdly enough she never really seemed to have a problem with Henry, though he doesn't know exactly why… she'd act fairly awkwardly around him as well, stuttering and acting really nervous around him for some reason… he didn't get it, though. He didn't think he was intimidating… but maybe she did?
"Ah, Henry! Thank God you're here. Can you go and man the register?" Karen asked with a sweet smile, as she quickly gave a customer their order in a patented Bat Burger Bag.
"Yeah, sure" Henry said, as he quickly got behind the counter, and started taking orders.
Idly, he noticed Mitchell and Arnold cooking up the orders in the kitchen, talking to each other about something that he couldn't really hear, over the sounds of the busy restaurant.
But he didn't have to think about that, as one of the very regular customers had come up.
It was the same man from the other day, who had ordered the truly massive meal.
Now that Henry got a better look at him, he saw that the man had short brown hair, cauliflower ears, a fairly busted up and rough face, and missing a few teeth. He was wearing a simple green shirt, brown cargo pants, and boots.
"Hello there, sir. What would you like to order today?" Henry asked, as he braced himself for the gigantic meal that was inevitably going to be ordered.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mitchell cursing upon seeing the man, knowing that he was going to have to cook up everything he wanted.
"Hmm… some Jokerized Flash Fries to start with, three boxes of six-piece Robin Nuggets, three sets of Bat-Fries, five Bat-Sodas, one diet Bat-Soda, a Polka Dot Pizza, a uh… Bat-Mite Meal, some Bane Breadsticks, and can you Break the Bat on them? Thanks. Two bags of Killer Croc Cookies, one KGBLT, one Red Hood Roll, some Wonder Wings, two Two-Face Sweet & Sour Grilled Chickens, two Power Pastas, a Penguin Pancake, some King Shark Fish & Chips, some Swamp Soup, one Martian Meatloaf, a Killer Moth Kebab, two Freeze Pops, and… oh, one of the new Signal Shakes" The man ordered with a crooked grin, showing off his yellowed teeth, some of which were missing.
"Alright, that'll be… $59.99, sir'' Henry said, as he looked at the register, "Just wait for a bit and your order will be right up… but I do hope you don't mind me asking, sir. But, why do you keep coming back here every few hours for orders of similar sizes?"
"Ah, that's because it's not all for me… You see, I've got some friends I need to keep fed, and this place has decent food at a damn cheap price. Ah, where are my manners? Name's Knute Brody" The man, Knute Brody said with a softer smile, as he shook Henry's hand.
"Fair enough. I'm Henry Hardman, nice to meet you" Henry said, shaking the man's hand, before having to get back to work.
Around half an hour later, Knute got his frankly monstrous meal and had left Bat Burger with a smile on his face.
The hours flew by, as Henry greeted customers and took their orders, some were rude, others were polite… but most of them? He barely remembered, purely because they were unimportant to him, if someone put a gun to his head and told him to describe one of those random customers? They'd better just shoot him, because he'd simply be unable to.
At least, until a gigantic man in a trench coat, fedora and sunglasses walked into Bat Burger, his head held low as if fearing someone would recognize him.
For a moment, Henry nearly pissed himself in fear, thinking that it was Darkseid again…
But, the green scales and sharp teeth told a different story.
'Oh thank God, it's just Killer Croc' Henry thought to himself, sighing in relief… before thinking that it was honestly funny that he was happy with 'Just Killer Croc', when anyone else would be terrified.
…Guess meeting Darkseid face to face put things like that into perspective.
But he wasn't scared of Killer Croc anyway… he was a regular, after all.
"Hey Waylon. Guess you want some more Killer Croc Cookies?" Henry asked, as the reptilian man walked up to the register, the other customers backing away in fear as he did so.
"Yeah, and can I get some Red Tornado Ribs and Deadshot Drumsticks?" Waylon Jones, The Killer Croc himself asked with a sharp-toothed grin, extending his hand out.
"Of course man" Henry said, as he high fived the supervillain, he may be a villain… but he was a decent enough guy, and more importantly a good tipper, "That'll be $9.99"
"Here you go" Waylon said, as he rummaged around his pocket, pulling out a $50, before handing it to him, "Keep the change"
Waylon certainly knew how to make him eager to please when it came to service.
So, after around ten minutes, Killer Croc's order was done, and he sat outside the building to eat his lunch.
Surprisingly enough, the sight of Killer Croc eating ribs, drumsticks and… cookies, had actually driven more traffic to the restaurant, with people wanting to try what the villain was eating.
Meaning that he was going to be swamped with even more work.
'Uuugh… you may be a paying customer, but fuck you Waylon' Henry thought to himself, as he plastered his fake smile on, before going to serve more customers.
There were a few more belligerent assholes, some brats too… and even one middle-aged woman who pinched his ass… wait, wasn't she banned from the store the last time she did this exact stunt?
He then noticed Bob and Marley walking up to the woman, before grabbing her from behind and dragging her out of the store, not minding her words of 'suing them', since it was all hot air.
There were some adorable kids who asked for his autograph though, and he was happy to sign them, and even gave them some complimentary toys… it was company policy to do so for better PR.
The look of happiness on their adorable faces, reminded him of why he did this job, and even went the extra mile to actually dress up.
So, it was with a pep in his step, that he continued doing his job.
At least, until a tall man with pale, almost gray skin had walked into Bat Burger, a mean look on his face.
For half a second, Henry thought that it was Darkseid, but the man looked too… dumb to be the so-called God of Evil.
He walked directly to Henry, pushing past the other customers.
When one of the customers went to confront the man, he simply pulled out a pistol, and shot him in the arm with contemptuous ease, sending blood everywhere, and causing the other customers to rapidly leave the building.
He then continued walking towards Henry, pulling out a napkin, and wiping the blood off of his gun.
"Give me all your money" The man said, as he stared Henry directly in the eye, as he waved the gun around, "If you don't. I'll shoot you dead"
With the gun in his hand, neither of the security guards, Bob and Marley could do anything without risking themselves or the customers, so the two men stayed back, but Henry noticed that they were ready to pounce at any moment.
"...No" Henry said, as he stared at the man in the eye. He'd fought actual supervillains, after all… even if the sight of the blood pooling on the floor had disturbed him quite a bit.
"No? Alright then fucker, don't act like I didn't warn you" The man shouted, as he aimed his pistol at Henry, before a mop came crashing against the villain's head.
The man turned around, revealing John the janitor, now with half a mop, standing directly behind him.
"ALRIGHT! YOU DIE FIRST!" The man shouted, whirling his gun around, and both Bob and Marley went to quickly tackle him to the ground before he could cause any further harm, before out of nowhere, Killer Croc grabbed the grey skinned by the scruff of his neck.
"Buddy… I know you're dumb as a fucking rock. But you can't be stupid enough to know that you don't fuck with Bat Burger! ESPECIALLY WHEN I'M EATING A SUCCULENT MEAL!!!" Killer Croc roared, directly in the man's face, a wet spot forming in his pants.
"I- yes sir! Killer Croc s-sir, I'm sorry, i-if I knew this place was under your protection I would've never come here! Please don't eat me!" The man cried out in fear, as he quickly dropped the gun to the floor.
"You're not worth eating" Killer Croc snarled, towards the man as he threw him into one of the booths, knocking him out, and also… shattering the booth.
Bob and Marley quickly ran over and handcuffed him, before calling the police.
Killer Croc then looked to Henry, an apologetic look on his face.
"Sorry about that… I'll pay for the damages" Waylon said, as he looked at the damage he had just caused.
Mainly the shattered booth, but there was also slight damage done to the tiles underneath the booth which would be a bitch to fix.
"No, no… it's alright, that's what insurance's for. Oh! Hey, Karen, is it alright if we give Waylon a discount for the help?" Henry asked, getting a nod from her, as she walked up to the scaled supervillain.
"Yeah, it's alright. Waylon, you're getting a 20% discount now… and forever. Thanks for the help" Karen said with a smile, as she glanced at the now unconscious gunman, "If you weren't here… well, it would have probably been so much worse"
"Thanks…" Waylon said with a slight smile, as he looked around somewhat awkwardly, as police sirens were heard in the distance, "Anyway… I gotta go. Uh, stuff to do"
With that, Killer Croc had left the building, leaving before the police could arrive.
They quickly booked the gunman, and took everyone's statements.
…At least everyone got to go home early, and Henry even got his paycheck from Karen, with a slight bonus for his 'good work' in her opinion.
So, with his paycheck of $600, he also got a $100 bonus… meaning that he'd be able to get a few more things now, even if he already had some extra cash stashed away from his heroic escapades.
With that done, he then walked home, all in all… while it was a bit of a hectic day, it didn't compare to talking to Darkseid, so it was a decent day in his opinion.
So, Henry unlocked the door to his apartment building, and decided to have a quick nap, to get rid of his growing stress.
Strangely… for the first time ever… he didn't dream.
All he saw was darkness.
And it was… beautiful.
____
And that's Chapter 7. Hope you all enjoyed it.
So, some OC's have been introduced, and we even got to see Killer fucking Croc scare the shit out of a random asshole.
Also, if there's any obscure DC character or item you want to see, let me know and I'll try to find a way to work them into the story… eventually.
Also, if there's any spelling mistakes or anything, just let me know and I'll fix it.
— New chapter is coming soon — Write a review
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone