Chapter 204: Free Time #204
Old Gotham
"As expected of a real detective..." I muttered, scratching my chin as I turned away from the paper stack on the desk before me and turned to the man soundly asleep behind it.
I was currently inside the office of a company on the 30th floor of a high-rise building in Old Gotham. Specifically, I was inside the CEO's office, who happened to be a member of The Religion.
The guy was The Question and Batwoman's next target, and I was here to plant some extra evidence to hasten their pace and point them in Abbot's direction before they got here.
Getting here was as easy as activating my Phantom Belt and walking into the office with none the wiser. From there, I only needed to knock out Mr. CEO with some undetectable sleeping gas, and here I am.
Still, I was impressed by how much info I found on his desk alone, most of which I didn't have. It's honestly impressive how The Question could find someone so high up in the Religion's chain of command as quickly as he did.
I suppose it is a sign that real detective work wasn't my cup of tea. Not when the target had almost zero digital traces, at least.
Don't get me wrong. I could connect the dots and notice the tiniest details, which even someone like Batman might overlook due to my Crime skill and super-evolved brain.
However, I lacked the time and patience to follow clues like some RPG protagonist on a glorified fetch quest.
In any case, I'd already scanned the man's mind to squeeze every bit of info from his brain, which I sprinkled around the office for The Question and Batgirl alongside the information I originally had.
"Looks good..." I muttered, nodding in satisfaction as I compared one of Religion's original reports to the one I'd created, and they looked almost identical in style, handwriting, etc.
I chuckled as I turned to the man drooling all over the fancy desk before shaking my head as I walked to the window. "Well, you're in for a rude awakening..." I muttered as I looked down and noticed Victor Sage approaching the building's entrance in civilian clothes.
"Enjoy your nap, buddy," I said, giving the man one last sympathetic look as I opened the window and activated my Phantom belt before jumping out.
...
"Huh... so this what having free time feels like...?" I muttered, lazily stretching as I leaned into the couch.
I'd already visited Abbot and informed him of The Question's situation before I came back to the hideout to ensure there would be no hiccups during their eventual encounter.
Ivy had also contacted and told me that Enchantress was willing to testify and that she'd wait until after the trial to ask her about coming with us to fight whatever was waiting for us in The Land Of Nightshades.
I sent Ivy a script similar to the one I gave to Nightshade, meaning I didn't have any direct interactions with Enchantress, which was more than fine by me.
I still wasn't sure how I felt about Enchantress and her role in reviving Brimstone, so it was best to keep her as far away from me as possible.
I had nothing to do but wait for the trial. I still had many tasks, like setting up my company and working on Richard's arm, but there was nothing I could do other than waiting.
The company's paperwork was still being processed, and the metals I needed to start working on a design for Richard's arm were beyond my reach.
Manheim and his Intergang were all the way in Metropolis, and I needed to wait for Billy Batson (Captain Marvel) to come to me or somewhere near Gotham to approach him.
He was a kid, and I didn't want to show up unannounced at his house for obvious reasons since his uncle would probably freak out.
'Might as well work on some new toys...' I decided, nodding to no one in particular as I got off the couch and headed to my workstation across the hideout.
I quickly reached my workshop and stepped in front of the work table. Humming thoughtfully, I retrieved several items from my inventory and placed them on top.
The first one was the alien computer I'd stolen from Intergang, which I could use to start working on an AI to manage my hideout, among other tasks that were eating at my time.
The other one was the blueprint of the Batmobile, which I snagged before performing the sickest trick shot in human history if I do say so myself.
Finally, the experimental rifle (loaded with the last gravity bullet) I used to defeat Brimstone before he, who shall not be named for precautionary reasons, decided to interfere and fucked everything up.
Working on an artificial intelligence was the most urgent of the three tasks, but it was also the most time-consuming and dangerous. I'd need to devote all my focus to creating such an advanced program to ensure it doesn't turn rogue.
I didn't see myself finishing such a big project before the trial, and my attention was already split between multiple fronts, so the project was a no-go. For now, at least.
There was also the data storage device that Selina gave me, but that was from Batman, and I honestly have no idea what the hell he's up to, what with his latest disappearance.
It could be a virus or something, for all I knew. Either way, I didn't want to deal with it right now.
I'd always wanted to build a sick-ass ride. It was the easiest, safest, and the least time-consuming project out of the three. Then again, it was the least useful since I didn't really need it, since I could, you know, fly.
If I do decide to work on creating a personalized vehicle, then it will be for fun more than anything else.
Lastly, there was the experimental rifle, the kick-ass weapon capable of bending gravity and creating black-hole-like phenomena with a simple squeeze of its trigger.
There's so much I could do with the experimental rifle, the first of which is reverse engineer the gravity-bending mechanisms inside the bullet and the weapon itself.
It was already powerful enough as it was. But the ability to control gravity had so much potential. Such technology would open so many doors for me that I couldn't help but giggle like a kid whenever I thought about it.
The best part was that I didn't need to start working on it from scratch. It was already there, and I only needed to figure out how it worked, which was now entirely possible thanks to my latest power-up.
Like any bullshit comic book science, working on gravity manipulation technology carried certain cliched risks, and I wasn't sure I could finish it before the trial. But the pay-off was fucking HUGE.
"Yeah... I think I already know what I wanna work on..." I muttered with a chuckle as I threw the Batmobile blueprint and the alien computer into my inventory.
...
"How is she doing...?" Dick Grayson hurriedly stopped pacing anxiously and asked as he watched Selina step out of Barbara Gordon's room with a hard-to-read expression.
"She didn't have any more panic attacks..." Selina replied, trailing at the end of her sentence, and Dick's expression only grew more anxious as he sensed a "but" coming.
"But she's realized the extent of her injuries..." Selina added, her calm expression turning into a grimace. "And she isn't taking it well..." She went, shaking her head.
"The fact Bruce only called to check in on her without even showing his face isn't helping either..." The brunette concluded, her tone clearly upset as she frowned and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Goddamnit, Bruce...!" Dick spoke through gritted teeth in a suppressed tone, barely resisting the urge to bellow his frustrations as he punched at the wall.
"What the hell is Bruce doing anyway...? Why didn't he go after The Joker...?" Selina asked, sighing as she watched Nightwing take his arm back, leaving a bloody knuckle print on the wall.
"Better yet, why isn't he here with Barbara...?" She asked as she reached into her purse, retrieving a handkerchief, which she offered to Dick with an exasperated expression.
"Ask him yourself. I'm through with that paranoid bastard..." Dick replied with a scoff as he wiped his fist with his shirt and stormed off, ignoring Selina, to which she could only shake her head.
"You've dug yourself a pit this time, Bruce..." Selina muttered to none in particular as she watched Dick leave in a huff.
"I really hope whatever you're doing is worth it..."
Weekly Power Status
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