Chapter 14: Chapter 14: Gotham’s Big Story Part 1
The following day, Arias had already begun organizing the paperwork and data he had obtained from Craig and Gregor.
He was adding a few files and documents to an empty flash drive while sitting at the one workstation in his flat. He was also modifying some of the contents.
When he was finished, he sighed and stretched his arms, but as he did so, the coffee cup that was sitting on the edge of the bed started to float.
When he rapidly stood up after being surprised by this unexpected situation, it fell and broke.
[It appears that your innate power is now activated.]
Arias was immediately reminded of who he was by Infinity's low, sweet voice.
He sighed and turned to face the broken mug. With just a thought, the broken parts started to come together, and the mug once more rose into the air before falling into the trash bin in the corner.
Given that it was a success, he tried to explore what else he could do by reaching out his palm to the coffee stain.
The droplets started to gently rise a short while later, but they were unable to travel very high before they started to fall once more.
'I guess that's the limit for now, a form of telekinetic power, or is that just the ability from my meta gene?' Arias paused before removing the flash drive from the laptop and snapping it shut.
[ The process of becoming a true vessel will be slow, given the sheer amount of power your body has to hold. Your body will go through another rebuild each time you approach a milestone, making it a stronger and more capable vessel. Since no such thing occurred here, then it is correct to say this is your own ability. ]
"I see, well any edge is of help. I don't plan on making myself anyone's open enemy at the time so I should be okay with just this amount of power."
[ A wise choice Arias. But with your ally gone, who will bear the consequences of your coming actions? ]
"That title will belong to a bright and upcoming journalist, from what I've seen she's not afraid to criticize even the Batman and the deadly criminals he fights, she won't be able to resist the information I have. She's got a hunger to succeed as well."
Arias grinned as he started to change out of his business-casual attire and into some matching sweatpants, a hoodie, and trainers. A simple face mask was the finishing touch.
He was merely trying to avoid being immediately recognized by police officers as he moved around during the day, so it was far from the ideal disguise.
When he realized it was almost noon, he left his house and caught a cab to one of Gotham City's busiest business districts.
The Gotham Gazette, the largest and most well-known journalistic organization established in Gotham, was located on the particular street he visited.
Arias was dropped off by the cab not too far away, at a little quiet cafe right around the corner.
Casually entering the cafe, Arias chose a booth for himself. The cafe was mainly vacant and hadn't yet experienced the influx of lunchtime customers.
After taking a seat, Arias pulled out his smartphone and connected to the free local WiFi they were providing; one of his main motivations was to avoid being identified.
He wasn't going to become blind to the dangers he was taking to achieve his objectives just because he had gained some power.
On the same smart phone, he typed a message that read…
[ I've read a few of your articles and I think you're the best person suited to brining to light the real happenings of Gotham. Don't you think the people should know the many wrongs the politicians they adore have committed or the dealings of the biggest families in Gotham? Come to the Pickett cafe right around the block if you're interested; if not, I'll just have to find another columnist. I'll only be here until 2pm. ]
He finished the email and sent it using a disposable email address that was untraceable.
As for the recipient, it read…
[Vicki Vale, columnist for the Gotham Gazette.]
Arias unwinded and appreciated the setup he had made after the message was sent. In actuality, he was aware of the dangers he was undertaking.
In case of emergency, even his booth was close to the cafe's back entrance.
…
A woman with brilliant ginger hair who appeared to be in her early to mid-twenties was seated at a desk on the 30th story of the Gotham Gazette tower. She was dressed in a tight office suit that highlighted her slim, curvy form.
She typed into her computer with a dejected expression on her face, occasionally sighing and erasing everything she had written.
"Argh, dammit no!"
A young man with a cap who was the only other person in the office with her observed her wrath and asked.
"What's wrong miss Vale? Trouble writing a story?" He questioned as he connected a camera to his computer and edited pictures.
At his query, Vicki sighed even louder.
"I wish it was trouble but there is no story! Dammit, all the other newspapers are reporting on the formation of the justice league, it's too late for us to climb that train. Other companies know this as well so they're focusing on their city's local heroes but ours…"
She objected and inquired, and Joey smiled. "Not a fan of Batman? I heard he was a big help stopping that alien invasion, I'm just it was minor and secluded to one city."
Before speaking, Vicki stood up and put her hands on her hips, causing her breasts to slightly giggle.
"Metropolis has Superman, Washington has Wonder Woman, Coast City has Green Lantern, Central City? The Flash, Amnesty Bay has got Aquaman, even Denver and Detroit have that damn Martian man hunter. As for us? We have the flying rodent Batman, how am I supposed to compete with other publications like this?"
Joey laughed nervously since he was unsure of how to respond to the woman's outburst. Her rant continued before he could finish his sentence.
"I mean come on, these other guys can fly, lift buildings, run faster than jets and have interesting characters or backgrounds that make people want to know more. This Friday is the official formation of the justice league and our company has been invited. If we don't get a huge story then we'll be a laughing stock. I can already hear that damn Lois boasting about her city's hero. Fuck."
*bing!*
A ring from her computer caught her eye as she was about to scream in frustration and she quickly checked it before grinning widely.
"Joey, tell the boss I went to have my lunch early."
The young man was confused when she abruptly corrected her makeup and hurried out of the office.
"Uh, okay?"
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