Chapter 13: Confrontation

Shoutouts to this week's Patreons @Ryan Bagan, @Andrew Sully, and @shabbybook! Your support is extremely appreciated.

I don't really have much to say to everyone since it's been a pretty quiet week, so I'll see you guys at the bottom of the chapter!

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Date: December 18, 2007

Location: Central Gotham City, New Jersey, Upper West Side

Time: 11:23 P.M.

"Wildcard to Penny-One. Please inform the GCPD to arrive at my location for a pickup."

"Acknowledged sir."

Satisfied with the response received, Ben turned his attention to the small group gathered around him.

Standing directly beside him was a scantily clad woman shivering violently, the oversized luxury fur coat draped over her shoulders failing to provide her with the warmth she craved.

Seated up in front of them with hands in cable zip ties were a group of four burly men dressed up in biker jackets and jeans, their shouts and possible curses being muffled by the cloth strips securely tied around their mouths.

Ben even had them sitting back to back in order to cover the ridiculous group logo stitched up there.

It was a regular round cracker… but dressed up as a clown.

Under the image, in Scripted bold font, the words "Clown Crackers" was printed.

…He couldn't even begin to describe how he felt about the idea.

"If you ran into any of Joker's followers, you'd be lucky if they left you cracked in just a few places. They'd usually prefer to leave you feeling… crumby."

The men paused their struggles to escape in order to stare up at Ben with wide eyes.

Even the woman standing next to him paused in her attempts to warm herself while giving him a strange glance.

ESAMAL cringed audibly in his mind too.

-Stay clear from the jokes please.-

'Fine. I was only trying it out.'

Ignoring the men as they resumed their bout of muffled curses and shouts, Ben nodded his head towards the woman. "You no longer have to worry, the GCPD will be here soon to sort this out before taking you home. Would you like me to stay with you just in case?"

He watched as the woman looked at the men hesitantly for a moment before her gaze settled back to him with an entirely changed demeanor.

"No, I think I'll be better on my own. You can probably save someone else with the amount of time you would've spent here instead."

Ben was surprised to witness the sudden green light surging within the woman, showcasing a level of bravery he never would've expected from her a moment ago.

"You have a kind and thoughtful heart, something rare and wonderful here in Gotham. I hope you can keep it lit as a beacon for those around you." he eventually stated.

He noted how his words startled her out of whatever state she managed to enter, her earlier trembling coming back to her as she meekly agreed with him.

'Interesting. I should study that later.'

The focus she held in that moment gave him an idea to play around with regarding an aspect of his powers he never thought of before.

Before she could respond to his words, he took out a grappling hook and aimed it above his head as he started gliding towards the rooftops.

It's been a few weeks since the Wayne Family's Thanksgiving Dinner, and the effects of that evening have been proven to be more positive to Ben than he had previously thought.

Alfred was shocked when Bruce came back into the dining room and sat down with everyone, willingly allowing himself to participate in giving thanks.

The butler was practically gleaming in joy to his senses for the remainder of the day.

Now though, it's close to Christmas, another important time when crime seems to rise to a high.

You'd think that people would be dissuaded to cause trouble, but some robbers and thugs think they know better and try to take advantage of the usual laziness that accompanies most during this season.

In fact, Ben was functioning in 4 degrees Fahrenheit-

'3.76.'

-weather, out on his lonesome to monitor the Upper West Side (also dubbed Lower Gotham Proper).

For today's patrols, he was assigned to scouring the entire downtown Gotham on his own, everywhere else having been mostly quiet it's been mostly except for here.

Meanwhile, Bruce took Dick with him tonight while patrolling all of Uptown and Midtown Gotham using the Batmobile.

That way they would be able to cover more ground while also having a speedy transport on hand in case of any possible emergency.

-Let's hope they don't end up being the emergency. I'd love to see their faces when you can't reach them for support.-

'Quiet.'

Ben had initially planned on exchanging placements with the duo, wanting to scout Uptown and Midtown instead, before having to give up when he was met with his father's extreme refusal, a hard edge in his tone.

He only figured out the reason behind the man's vehement disagreement upon later thought.

Uptown Gotham also includes Crime Alley, and the man wasn't able to stomach the idea of either him or Dick being anywhere near there alone at night.

-Cut him some slack. He's cares about you guys.-

'I didn't say anything against that. I just want him to understand that we care just as much.'

While conversing with ESAMAL, Ben was leaping aimlessly from building to building, waiting for the next cry for help.

He suddenly felt some sort of premonition while in midair, having his grapple gun quickly pull him to the side from his current landing site.

*BOOOOOOM!*

A huge explosion occurred while he was still close to the blast zone, the force sending him twisting and turning.

He quickly righted himself with his impeccable balance as he took out a Traveler's card, a translucent bubble surrounding him as he bounced off the walls, eventually landing on the ground safely.

Examining his surroundings while the bubble popped, he attempted to identify the situation.

He landed inside a wide alleyway with his back at a dead-end, the only exit directly in front of him.

'Was that bomb meant for me? Or was it planted in an attempt to target someone else?'

He couldn't think any further, leaping towards the side suddenly.

*BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!*

Bullets hit his previous position before he had to start ducking and weaving in practiced motions when they began to follow him, forcing him to constantly evade the rapid fire catching up.

He soon had to resort to feints as well when his attacker wasn't being thrown off as easily as expected.

After a couple of more minutes of dodging, a man jumped off from the roof, Ben noticing his identity almost instantly.

'This just got a lot more serious.'

-You said it buddy.-

The man stood there in a lackadaisical manner, keeping his guns trained on Ben the whole time.

"You seem to understand what my presence here means. You're much more skilled than I anticipated."

Slade Wilson more commonly known as Deathstroke, "The Terminator" nodded his head in approval, practically reading Ben's mind.

'He's dangerous.'

Only an untrained eye would mistake the man's laid back appearance to stem from arrogance or confidence.

Ben thought differently, watching how the man's feet were ever so slightly shifting in minute movements, pointing towards random directions every second, keeping him ready to react to anything that could possibly be thrown at him.

Slade focused a bit on his suit's design, lingering on his helmet.

"Nice costume. Seems like we have similar tastes." he remarked.

Ben just ignored it.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of you being here?"

He already signaled his father for backup through Alfred just in case and was trying to figure out the man's end game at the moment.

He didn't think too hard on who hired the man since it was obvious enough, even if the move was a little later than expected.

'He's probably being hired by whoever contacted Deadshot previously, which so far means the League of Assassins. Why are they so fixated on me?'

'The fact that he hasn't gone for any lethal points earlier testifies to the fact that they want me alive, but for what?'

Slade was paying extremely close attention to him and suddenly began to chuckle.

"As you've no doubt noticed, I was sent here with orders to capture you. My employer's made it rather obvious how much he misses you."

-Is this guy a mind-reader?-

Ben was entirely focused on what he was just told, the last sentence giving him a ton of information just waiting to be unraveled.

"But, I don't think I want to do that anymore."

Slade shrugged his shoulders, casually waving off his earlier objective.

"You see, I've been looking for an apprentice, a successor if you will, for a long time now. To my luck, you just happen to be exactly all I need in one."

"You're young, yet you already have this dangerous feeling to you that's not any less than me, the Bat, or any professional really. It's a testament to your potential. You have so much time to learn, improve, and grow equal to us."

"No… greater than us!" he exclaimed passionately.

Ben had to double check if there was something wrong with his ears.

"You think the League of Assassins will allow you to do as you please and go against their beloved orders?" .

Slade became statuesque, his earlier random movements coming to a halt momentarily.

"Deadshot. Damn blabbermouth."

He quickly started moving again while he shrugged his shoulders. "Consequences are for the weak, unprepared, and undisciplined to worry about. Since you're none of the above, taking you will be completely worth it."

"And you think I'll just roll over and comply to your every whim like a good little doggy?"

"We'll find out soon enough."

The man brandished his pistols once again and began firing.

Time seemed to slow down in Ben's vision, his mind having a clear lock on each bullet's trajectory and impact point.

He spent a few accelerated seconds looking at his foe and studying his every movement.

'Account for each limb, measure breathing patterns…'

Thankfully it was easy to keep track of the man's singular eye.

With lightning speed, Ben pulled out his two brand new modified Colt 1911 pistols for easier rapid fire and started shooting as well, knocking every bullet down from the air.

Slade paused at that, holstering his gun's and taking out one of his katana's instead.

"Great job. But show me more."

Ben had to jump back from the man's insanely fast lunge, firing a few green energy bullets.

The mercenary didn't even pause as he kept moving, either swiftly deflecting the bullets or dodging them all together.

Ben kept backpedaling, aiming more at the assassin's head, sparks and smoke beginning to build up in front of Slade's singular eye as more and more bullets poured down onto him.

'Wait for it. Wait for it.'

Ben suddenly leaped further backwards as he fired off a red energy bullet, taking out two cards and throwing them in opposite directions.

Slade was already in motion to cut the bullet before he suddenly jumped back as quickly as possible.

*BOOOOOOOM*

An explosion went off, flinging the man backwards as he righted himself in the air and hit the ground on one knee with his katana imbedded into the ground to prevent him from sliding backwards.

The mercenary hastily sensed his surrounding before he tilted his head, Ben's fist sliding harmlessly near the side of his head from behind.

He retaliated with a spinning backwards sword strike, Ben lowering himself under the blade's edge.

Slade used the remaining momentum from the turn to deliver an easy shin kick at the now perfectly aligned head, Ben forced to cross his arms to block the hit.

As Ben skidded away, a pause took over the field.

'Every aspect of him is enhanced just like me. The speed he's been moving at has so far been clocking out at around 80 MPH-'

'83.26 MPH.'

-but it seems like he can still go much faster. He's holding back heavily.'

Although also enhanced, Ben didn't have as much time as Slade to bring his speed up to such a level.

His current fastest speed was at 90 MPH, but only with extreme focus and effort. His normal level was around 70 instead.

As he's been reminded time and again through constant explanations and extensive observations, the laws of this universe were much more different than his last one, with the human body's potential being much higher than normal.

In his last universe, he remembered powers regarding normal human characteristics to be organized into three different categories.

Normal, Enhanced, and Superhuman/Supernatural.

Of the three, there's a fine line between normal and enhanced, some being unable to tell the difference.

The easiest example Ben could come up with would involve pushing a car.

Normal would be any one individual or small group of people who could push it, but while it's on neutral.

Enhanced would mean you could shove it a couple of feet with some amount of force even while it's parked.

Superhuman would mean lifting the vehicle up over your head with one hand and walking usually without any form of fatigue.

Most people believe that peak humans fall under the Enhanced category.

Unfortunately, they'd be incorrect.

Peak humans are the one's pushing the boundaries between normal and enhanced, constantly setting the bar over and over again in order to define the term "normal".

Scientists assumed that a peak human should be capable of running at a maximum of 40 MPH without the body suffering any negative effects.

Although the assumption was present in both universes, it wasn't proven in Ben's last one.

This is due to the fact that although the human body should be capable of such a feat, it's not through stomping your foot off the ground with brute force alone.

The hypothesis works under the condition that the body's able to withstand rapid contractions performed by the muscle fibers, allowing them to pump the necessary force through the limbs.

You'd first need to reach the 40 MPH limit before you could test if you could go further.

Disregarding the fact that no one had accomplished such a level and assuming for a moment that they did, not many would test the hypothesis with such a dangerous risk attached.

But in this place, some risks are worth taking.

He's witnessed heroes like his brother Dick sprint at anywhere between 30-60 MPH, faster than the world record holder Olympic athlete is even capable off, leaving a record of around 27 MPH.

'27.33 MPH.'

Just like with almost everything, results can vary due to age, experience, and body mastery through training the arts of combat.

Although still young, Dick showed just how ridiculous the difference between universes was, currently being considered mildly slower by superhero standards.

His top speed reached around 32 MPH, even slower than Will who's around 4 MPH faster than him because, while still a clone, he was indeed genetically older.

Then there's other notable examples like Green Arrow, Black Canary, and his father.

Although amazing in close combat, Green Arrow still excels mostly with the bow and spends a lot of time polishing his skills with it.

This keeps his body from reaching its absolute limit, currently putting him at speeds between 42-46 MPH.

Black Canary trained for years with her main focus being placed on her body and powers, making her even more exceptional at close combat than Green Arrow.

She's faster than him even if by a slight margin with speeds recorded between 45-53 MPH.

Finally, there's his father.

He was a different beast altogether due to reasons circling back.

Age and time.

While Green Arrow and Black Canary were certainly incredible, their training was a more recent thing for them, having begun much later in their lives compared to Bruce who started honing his body from a young age.

He's managed to attain enough control over his body and mind to mitigate any possible backlash, going above and beyond the implied human limits to reach speeds between 50-60 MPH.

He was what kept blurring the difference between normal and enhanced.

'I feel like his achievements are taken for granted.'

-That's nice and all, but why don't you focus and work on gaining the achievement in front of you? Getting out in one piece!-

Ben turned his gaze back to the approaching Slade.

'He goes any harder and I'll need to start using some more magic.' he decided.

As the two began circling each other, Slade used the opportunity to pan his gaze over him.

"CCQ, unarmed combat, gun fighting, situational awareness, analyzation, all up to par so far." he started listing off on his fingers.

"I'm tested enough at school thank you very much."

"How about just one more? I'd love to see what you can do with a sword. Here, I'll even give you one of mine." he offered lightheartedly.

"There's a lot of big talk coming from a senior who decided to take out his frustration on a little guy like me. Did you finally realize that Batman was too much for you?" Ben taunted.

"Everyone seems to have a mouth on them these days." Slade sighed as sheathed his katana and began moving forward.

"Just another thing I'll have to rectify later. Playtime's over."

The man dashed towards Ben faster than before, proving his earlier thoughts.

Blows were exchanged at high speed, the pair forgoing any kicks and joint strikes in favor of wielding their bare fists, changing gears by going between both the most complicated and simplest forms.

Karate, Boxing, MMA, Muay-Thai…

They constantly met one another in the middle with an equal intensity that caused their bones to rattle simultaneously.

Not once did they make a peep or show any pain on their faces.

Unfortunately, the tempo had to change at some point, Ben having to quickly sidestep the flying knee strike aimed for his chest, delivering a 360 degree kick in return.

Slade caught the attack with his right hand, his left blurring out of vision for a moment as Ben felt a series of taps that he couldn't anticipate being performed on different points of his limb.

He suddenly lost feeling throughout his leg the next moment, Slade dropping it as he stumbled backwards with only his right leg carrying his body weight, his eyes lighting up gold orange behind his mask at what just occurred.

'Did he just…?'

-Yes he did. I can't tell if you're lucky or in serious doodoo right now.- ESAMAL exclaimed as well.

The reason behind the two's shock was due to the kind of move performed by the man just now.

Dim Mak. An ancient form of martial arts that allows you to strike the vital points of an opponents body, causing them either paralysis, intense prolonged pain, or death.

It was one of the hardest martial arts to master due to the precision required.

Ben only found out recently that Bruce was a master of the art, his father using it against him in their more recent spars sparingly in order to prevent him from plundering it with his photographic reflexes.

Once he did that, he would be making the style mute, unable to be leverage in their next spars like usual.

It was a huge bummer for him since he could only copy or learn Dim Mak by meeting a master of it one-on-one in person.

No one would just record it post it on the internet like other mainstream martial arts. He'd know cause he tried searching for it.

'I need to stall longer to record his moves for later perusal.' Ben resolved to himself instantly, eyes light blue.

-Are you out of your mind?! Who's to say whether or not you can escape after being captured? You also can't count on whether Bruce will save you in time.- ESAMAL vetoed.

Ben regarded his words for a moment, before reigning in his impulsiveness.

'You're right. Guess I'll just use this as an excuse to have father properly teach it to me in order to be better prepared for later.' he conceded as his mind still tried to form the best possible way he could profit from the situation.

"What's wrong kid? Cat got your tongue? Where'd all the spunk from earlier go?" Slade ridiculed as he slowly moved forward with Ben doing the opposite.

*CLICK*

The air rapidly stilled, Slade making no further moves in response to the warm barrel pressed to the back of his head.

The Ben in front of him suddenly dispersed into mist, the remnants fading with the wind.

"I acknowledge your sharp mind, but unless focused on your other senses, you can't plan ahead for what you can't see directly. Why don't you answer my questions and then I'll allow you to leave here freely?" spoke Ben.

He took the chance when he was backing away to use a simple afterimage spell stored in one of the Traveler's cards, quietly circling around the man when he was none the wiser.

-UNO Reverse mate!- ESAMAL cheered.

Slade tried to subtly glance back before giving up on the idea as the gun was shoved harder into his head.

"I didn't know you used magic." the man implied, not even trying to hide his attempt at stalling.

Ben was doing the same though, making use of the time to further analyze the man while also giving his leg the chance to return to normal.

His enhanced regeneration wasn't boosted as much as his other bodily aspects, but his body control allowed him to play around a bit more with the different kinds of cells needed to speed things up.

-You noticed it too, right?-

'Yeah.'

Slade was a Metahuman.

Inside the files on the Batcomputer, it was reported that the man had gone through some sort of program that ended with him being injected with a serum that gave him all of his abilities.

Ben was beginning to believe that the serum only worked for Slade because it interacted with the man's Metagene and gave him his current powerset.

It elevated everything about him to enhanced levels, with his healing and durability shooting through the roof to the superhuman heights.

It was reported that the assassin even managed to recover from bullets to both his brain and heart.

Another possible addition to the assassin's skill set was also highlighted in the files, one which caused doubts to have come up to Ben's mind multiple times throughout their fight as he tried to ascertain the accuracy of the guess.

It was also believed that the one-eyed pirate had a precognitive ability.

Bruce observed in prior encounters how the man was able to tell when something would happen ahead of time and swiftly react to it beforehand.

'It seems father was wrong. His mental faculties are just powerful enough for him to predict his opponent's next move with frightening accuracy. He's playing a high-speed game of chess where he can remain twelve steps ahead.' Ben surmised briefly.

His current line of though had him bring up another problem.

'What am I supposed to do with him? Should I just let him go?'

Due to how much his intelligence was boosted as well as his body, Deathstroke was a well known master of many skills that didn't just include combat.

Stealth, espionage, intimidation, hunting, investigation…

The list went on.

If he tried sending Slade to the authorities, history has already shown that the man will be right out of custody the next day due to the fact that he has dirt on so many people, making him untouchable.

Not to mention his skill in escapology…

Bruce testified once to witnessing the man nonchalantly slip out from an entire prison using just a paperclip.

As Ben pondered what to do, Slade seemed to have already finished mapping out his own plan of action.

"We both know you won't pull the trigger. It'll go against everything the Bat must've taught you."

'...That's the greatest lightbulb anyone's ever given me.'

*BANG!*

Ben pulled the trigger.

Incredulous, Slade was knocked to the ground into a daze, his entire head ringing in a strangely high and low manner.

"Wha… dru.. do… meh…"

He kept trying and failing to speak over his shaking vision, his words coming out slurred and slowed, until Ben interrupted him.

"Tell me, who hired you to come and get me?"

As a result of his question Slade felt an uncontrollable urge suddenly come over him.

The man's mind suddenly cleared without notice, causing him to smile as his mouth began to move without consent.

"Lady Shiva was one of the people who hired me."

'Of course he found the loophole quick. His regeneration is also problematic.'

Ben came up with the idea of using the Orange Light Bullets in order to mimic the effect of Wonder Woman's Truth Lasso.

The Orange Light worked off desire, avarice, and greed, so by tampering with those feelings in someone else through the bullet, Ben was essentially 'compelling' them to tell the truth when asked.

Basically, like a Jedi Mind Touch.

One loophole was that unlike with the Lasso of Truth, the compelling feeling wasn't yet strong enough to prevent someone from dodging the question asked by answering with a 'technical' truth.

The slurring from earlier was meant to keep that from happening, the effect having originated from a component of the bullet meant to keep the mind more muddled, leaving the person susceptible to answering in a more honest and direct way due to the semi-subconscious state it leaves them under.

Slade's regeneration quickly negated that aspect, his body constantly healing his mind back to it's former "normal" state.

Thankfully, there was a simple solution to minimizing the problem presented before him…

"What about the rest of those who hired you? Give me real names and identities." Ben continued to press.

He just needed to use more pointed questions.

As Slade's mouth began to part once more and respond, the two of them were disrupted by the sound of whistling wind.

*CRACK!*

Ben retreated from the dust-cloud that picked up ahead of him, trying to identify the source of it.

A man now stood before him, looming over the back of Slade's head with the heel of his foot dug in, the mercenary underneath knocked out cold.

As the man's eyes fell onto him, he rapidly got into stance.

"It seems that the Great One was correct in sending us."

Ben halted for a moment at that, scanning his surroundings in response to what was basically an announcement meant for two.

He was proven right a second later when he snuck a peak at the nearby roof's ledge.

'This is making less and less sense by the minute.'

Peering over the edge was Malcolm Merlyn, the Dark Archer, a recurring foe of Green Arrow.

Once more, time seemed to slow down in his vision as he first took the chance to look over at the man standing a few paces before him.

'Always observe an entirely unfamiliar face first.' his father's voice echoed inside his mind.

The man was entirely silent in his mannerisms, like a viper ready just moments before they strike at their prey.

His eyes were entirely white, forming a contrast with his brownish black skin.

The sword strapped to his back alongside his body shape showcased his favored form of combat, something meant to be a perfect blend between speed and power.

"That was a very dangerous trick you pulled there boy. Luckily, the Great One with his all seeing vision knew better than to fully trust this man."

Ben had only half of his mind focused on his surroundings, barely needing any attention to listen to the man's words as he came to the obvious implications.

'There's only one person who's addressed as the Great One…'

-It can't be that simple. No matter how sleazy he is, Deathstroke's admittance of having more than one person hire him needs to be taken into consideration.- ESAMAL advised.

Although Floyd and Slade can both be considered terrible witnesses, Merlyn's presence here was nothing short of an undeniable direct link.

Years ago, Merlyn was hired by the League of Assassins to take out his father and Green Arrow in their respective cities.

After both failures, a falling out with the League started then ended fast with a kill-on-sight order being placed on the man's head for the organization's followers.

There was also a sweet bounty attached, meant to be a bonus for any freelancers and those unassociated from them.

'Why would they hire him? Is he no longer wanted?'

-He was most likely promised to have the bounty removed in exchange for his current assistance.- ESAMAL supplied.

Ben agreed with that as he glanced at the second man present.

'No recollection. You got anything on him?'

-Nope.-

Ben put that thought away for later as he continued analyzing the info provided.

As he was looking through his empathic vision, he came to another startling realization.

'He's a metahuman.' he thought, noticing the unique emotional wavelength the white-eyed man gave off.

If before he had to treat him cautiously, then now he needed to be at 300% of his game.

Though let's be honest, that's how everyone in the bat family is supposed to treat their enemies.

'Why are Metahumans popping up like cabbages all of a sudden?'

"Sir Wildcard Batman and Robin are enrou-"

Alfred's voice came and went in a similar manner, quickly and without warning.

"Ishmael! Stop wasting time and nab the boy. Our assassins can only stall the Bat and his other sidekick for so long." Meryl shouted.

"You are correct. However, I shall take this boy's power before handing him over. It shall be much more useful in the hands of one such as I, willing to carry out the Head's vision."

Ben actually froze.

'Dammit! This guy takes powers? Parasite was enough of a potential threat as it is. You're telling me there's another one like him out here? One genderbent Rogue was enough!'

Even if she was deadly, Ben would've preferred a cute girl like that to lay her fingers on him than this guy or that slimeball in Metropolis.

-Don't worry. If he does try it, he'll be in for a nasty surprise.- ESAMAL assured.

Unable to understand as to why that would be the case, Ben calmed down regardless and regained control from his slight slipup.

'Should I just take your word for it and let him touch me then?'

-Better not to think like that. Although I'm confident, nothing's infallible.'

'Fine. Means I just can't be touched in any way.'

In a burst of speed faster than even Deathstroke had earlier performed, Ishmael was already in front of him with his fist outstretched for a full powered punch.

Ben rolled under it in the direction of Slade's body, nabbing the katana he was using earlier in order to slash the overhead arrow sailing towards him in twine.

He took the chance while Ishmael was charging back to him to also back away from the broken pieces.

He's learned that you can't trust archers in this universe unless you pay extreme attention.

Oliver and Speedy usually go for something like boxing arrows or non-lethal options.

Don't know what kind of gadgets or added effects the arrows of a willing killer could have.

Proving his judgement right the next moment, the arrow exploded after he put some distance.

'A small magnitude controlled yield. Can there really be multiple parties hiring Slade without having opposing objectives? I feel like I'm just lucky enough to keep meeting the one's who want me alive rather than dead.'

-Maybe… but they clearly don't mind if you're busted up a bit.-

'Not now.'

Ben brought up his katana to block Ishmael's own, the steel of their blades clashing moments before Ben went skidding through the ground, back impacting the surface of the alleyway's wall hard, causing cracks to form around his figure.

'Lower end of superhuman strength.'

-You're being allowed to sample the full package all in one day. Lucky you!-

Ignoring the aches emanating from his back, Ben brought out a couple of Traveler cards and one of his guns, taking pot shots at Merlin and forcing him to avoid them while throwing a card towards the approaching Ishmael.

A bright light shines within the alleyway, granting him a chance to drop one card to the ground in front of Ishmael and throw another towards Merlin's feet, the last one attached to the wall behind him.

Holstering the gun, he took out a collapsible reinforced staff from his belt, and twirled it with one hand as his other took out one more card.

As the two assassins got their bearings he beckoned for Ishmael to bring it on.

-Ben used Taunt. It was super-effective!-

'Not. Now.'

Although annoying, ESAMAL was correct as the man seemed to become riled up at his provocation.

"Change of plans Merlyn Just kill him. If the Master deems him important enough, then he may have a chance to be brought back to life again in eternal servitude."

-...I can't believe you were right in a way.-

'NOT. NOW.' Ben tried to focus.

As Ishmael took a step forward with his right leg to firm his charging stance, his foot landed right on the card Ben placed in that position earlier.

Just as calculated.

Immediately, the man locked up for a moment, as Ben threw the Traveler card in his hand towards him.

"Tonitrua!" (Thunder Blast)

Thunder more powerful and longer lasting than what he had used on Deadshot months before traveled up the man's foot, causing Ishmael's body to lock up while he began to seize and shake hard.

'Super strength most likely means super durability and stamina, or more. Too many of them go hand in hand.' Ben kept in mind.

Merlyn ignored his struggling partner as he shifted his stance to aim at Ben, his foot's placement causing his entire body to stumble into the ground as a dark hole opened up under him.

With the help of gravity and his unbalanced state, he fell into it and out the one formed on the wall behind Ben, right into his waiting electrical staff as it clobbered him over the head, a crack ringing out as the man fell into a heap.

-He's going to have one nasty concussion later.-

Taking that as a sign of the man's unconscious state, he turned back to find Ishmael still down on the floor seizing, but not as much as previously.

'And there's the super regeneration.' Ben noted, the man recovering faster than he anticipated.

He pulled out his pistol with his now card free hand and fired two energy bullets colored orange and light orange respectively into the man's head.

"Altum somnum." (Deep Sleep)

Immediately, Ishmael was out like a light.

The light orange bullet was meant to make him more lazy and lethargic, while orange would have the man fall prey to his own desires and fall asleep as a result of giving in to that sudden urge of tiredness.

Taking a moment to calmly examine his surroundings for any more danger, he focused once more on the lying body of Deathstroke.

"Are you planning on joining them to their destination?" Ben calmly questioned.

Slade smoothly picked himself off the ground in a feet first flip as he started cracking his body in a few places.

Ben poke Ishmael in the side a bit as he confirmed his emotions to have turned dull.

'At least this guy's regeneration isn't as monstrous.'

Although the battle was intense, it was no longer than 3 minutes, plenty of time for the domino masked mercenary's own super regeneration to fix him up in the meantime.

"No thanks, maybe another day. If I stay in a cell with those guys, it'll be my head on the chopping block. Even if it's a part of the business, betrayal's never taken well." Slade casually remarked as he picked up his katana from the floor and smoothly sheathed it.

"We were interrupted earlier. How about you finish answering my questions before you skedaddle?" Ben interrupted the man as he began making his way out of the alleyway.

Slade paused in his steps before letting out a deep laugh.

"You're one scary kid, you know that? I see why the League wants you so bad." he deflected.

Ben started to take out his gun again right as smoke started to fill the surroundings, dispersing a few moments later...

Deathstroke... nowhere to be seen any longer.

Ben's gaze lingered on the entrance a bit longer before he turned towards the other two unconscious assassins.

'Is this what's become of my life?'

-Be honest with yourself. You wouldn't have it any other way.-

------------------

Date: December 18, 2007

Location: Central Gotham City, New Jersey, Upper West Side

Time: 11:44 P.M.

A black blur passed down the street, the wind picking up in response as the few stray people out at this time looked on in amazement at what could be considered a rare and legendary sight.

The Batmobile.

Batman was seated behind the wheel with Robin beside him, a tense mood lingering among them as the younger boy hissed softly once in a while, right hand over his left shoulder.

They were patrolling Gotham in their usual manner, the night having been relatively quiet.

They only had to deal with the usual cases of muggings alongside some drug exchanges here or there.

Of course they had to be interrupted with an emergency signal going off at Ben's location.

Any time they tried to communicate with him, they failed to get through.

Luckily, Alfred brought them up to speed.

Ben was facing off against Deathstroke.

After that incident with Deadshot, Dick had scoured through the Batcave's database with Ben as he had promised they would do, being briefed with him on each and every person of interest recorded.

He was forced to memorize their behaviors, skills, powers, known associates…

So he knew just how dangerous of a man his brother was going up against.

A world-renowned mercenary, equal to or even greater than that of Deadshot.

Someone who could go toe to toe with his mentor, or even 'punch above his weight class' as Ben had put it.

The man had taken on the entire Justice League, almost beat them to the ground, and managed to walk away.

That information had practically blown Dick's mind.

"It's more normal than you think. Battles aren't just about pure strength, but about the mind games and strategies behind the scenes. The one more prepared is the one who usually comes out victorious." Ben had explained, the reason for all their information and preparedness when it comes to gear and tactics being clear.

The same moment they received the alert, the pair were rushing to the Batmobile before an explosion had gone off behind them mid-grappling, sending them careening through the air until they managed to stabilize themselves on a nearby rooftop and identify the attackers.

Ninjas.

Dick still didn't know what his proper reaction should have been at the time.

"I'm both amazingly cool with this, yet also annoyed? Is that wrong?"

His mentor was less than enthused though, having took in the sights around him in his usual serious fashion.

"Focus. They're trying to prevent us from backing up Wildcard."

Dick tensed while Alfred added a moment later.

"You are correct in your assumptions. Sir Wildcard has managed to defeat Deathstroke."

"That's not the worst of it I'm afraid. From what I can tell, Malcolm Merlyn has arrived on scene with another unknown individual accompanying him."

Once again, he didn't know what his reaction should have been at the time he was rapidly hit with that information.

'…Now I know how Zatanna felt before.'

"How did Merlyn manage to sneak into Gotham under our noses?" Bruce had narrowed his eyes.

"I'm afraid I can't answer that sir."

"Never mind. The League of Assassins have their ways."

The two sprung into action, sparing no effort in taking down the ninjas within their sight through sheer efficiency.

He had to admit, Bruce could be scary when in his serious mode.

And he was always serious.

While the man was sparing no effort in his movements, Dick started becoming tired real quick due to his constant rolls and flips meant to help him dodge.

He soon faltered in focus for a moment when dealing with one assassin, causing another of his buddies to take the chance and cut into his shoulder deeply.

Thankfully, before it could travel any deeper, Bruce had intervened and captured the blade's edge in between the prongs of his vambrace, the sword shattering at a mere twist of his arm.

Much more sober now due to his close call with a chopped arm, Dick pushed through every ill feeling as he cranked things up, focusing himself more on fighting around his father and using the bigger shadow cast by the man in order to take down the rest present with surprise attacks.

The ninjas were disarmed, tied up, and left behind as they raced to Ben's location.

"Hopefully they'll still be there when the GCPD get here." Dick complained.

As they finally arrived before the entrance to the alleyway given to them by Alfred, they walked into a stunning sight.

Even though he heard it, seeing was still believing.

His brother was currently leaning on a wall with his arms folded as he watched over two men like a hawk, both being sat on their knees back to back with heavy duty handcuffs on them and a power suppression collar on the dude with white eyes.

"Status report." came Bruce's usual no nonsense tone.

"I was stopping a rape attempt when I was ambushed by Deathstroke as I was moving from the roofs."

"I ended up in this alleyway where I momentarily subdued and eventually questioned him, managing to get one meaningful piece of intel before being interrupted by these two."

"Both were trying to capture me, not minding if I was 'roughed up a bit'. Though, they changed their mind towards the end."

Dick noticed Bruce's fist clench slightly at the 'roughing up' part.

He didn't understand why until he thought about it a bit more, paling at the realization.

"Deathstroke?" Bruce implied.

Ben just shook his head.

Bruce's features took on a softer look for a moment. "Any injuries?"

"None."

"How did it feel taking down three big guns on your own?" asked Dick with a huge grin on his face as he walked up and slung his arm over Ben's shoulder.

He was obviously still in disbelief in the gap between the two of them, but decided not to say anything.

This was someone he had come to truly see as his older brother in their time together, someone he should be proud of.

"Not as challenging as what you dealt with I'm afraid." Ben spoke, glancing at the bandaged shoulder.

Dick slowly started stepping away as subtly as possible, feeling the apathetic gaze coming from under the mask.

"Extra training."

"Dammit!!!"

"You said earlier that you managed to obtain one piece of information. What was it?" Bruce pressed.

Dick clicked his tongue and grumbled at the man for ruining the moment.

"I'll tell you back at the cave." Ben assured. "Right now, I need a shower."

------------------

Date: December 18, 2007

Location: Upper Northeast Edge Outskirts of Gotham City, New Jersey, Wayne Manor, Batcave

Time: 2:42 A.M.

Bruce was not amused.

So many new problems have reared their heads recently, and he hasn't made any headway for either of them.

Earlier, they had taken the two assassins that Ben had captured and handed them in to the GCPD, informing Gordon ahead of time to call for more specialized support to deal with the man named Ishmael.

Ben called him an unknown face not listed on the Batcomputer's files, and while he knew he couldn't keep track of almost every SPB in existence, he didn't think he would miss a man so similar to Parasite.

He figured out the reason why, when he got a good look at the assassin's face, being reminded of an old memory through him.

The Ark Program. An initiative that had run under Ra's before in order to obtain super powered beings.

He had taken down that program personally, and he remembered Ishmael to be one of the people experimented on.

He had assumed the man to be dead since he wasn't far from it at the time.

'Ra's must've been willing to use a Lazarus Pit for him, becoming successful in obtaining his precious 'weapon'.'

Although, the term he should be using from now on would probably be Metahuman as Ben informed him of the man's status as one.

Apparently Deathstroke was one too, something he never expected.

If the discovery of the Metagene wasn't enough reason before, than the fact that a well known enemy of his possesses the gene should be enough to constitute further research into the Metagene and Metahumans in general.

'Another time.'

But as he kept trying to focus once more on detailing the events involving the Ark Program, that stray thought suddenly expanded on it's lonesome, connecting the dots for him without any input.

'Did Ra's already know about the Metagene alongside those investors?'

Bruce realized the real question he should be asking, one he dreaded to find the answer for.

'How many more weapons has Ra's succeeded in making?'

"Master Bruce. I believe that you've been cooped up here long enough." Alfred's voice cut through his spiraling mind, causing him to turn towards the approaching butler and find Brutus tagging alongside him.

"He's been accompanying me much more often recently and refused to leave my side." Alfred uttered when he noticed the quick eyeball directed at the disguised canine.

"Now's not the time for rest Alfred. I have too much to get done right now." Bruce responded, not making any mention of his actions.

Alfred watched as the man continued typing away on the Batcomputer, heaving a sigh when there was he didn't pause a single time.

He had to do his best to take the man's attention away from work, as usual.

"Some rest would surely do you some good and allow you to better continue with your resea-"

*BAM!*

Alfred paused his words while Brutus jumped slightly as Bruce's fist loudly met with the metal console before him.

"My son was almost kidnapped today and I have almost no clue as to why. So forgive me if I find the idea of sleep unappealing right now."

The words were spoken as patiently as possible, the man obviously making an effort not to raise his voice or include any heat in it.

It wouldn't do any good if he ever took out his frustrations on Alfred or the boys.

Alfred remained standing behind Bruce's chair silently for a bit while Brutus lay down alongside both men's feet.

Bruce resumed typing away on the Batcomputer, Alfred following along with his continued perusal into different files, locations of interest, criminal sightings…

"Have you at least figured out the reason behind Ra's Al Ghul's supposed interest in Master Benjamin?" Alfred eventually broke the peace.

Bruce didn't once pause as he keyed in a few more commands that caused a separate window to pop up alongside his current search in recent worldwide assassinations.

"Ra's wouldn't have such an extensive focus on Ben unless he could benefit from him in some way or if he was related to him. I'm unable to figure out what he stands to gain so far." he interpreted.

"And the part regarding relation?" Alfred caught on.

Bruce was silenced.

"You've made known your recent doubts about Miss Mary very clear." Alfred insinuated.

"It's a dead end. I've searched through every database and paper trail left in Gotham, but I can't find anything concrete on her true heritage."

"She's labeled an orphan, but all the info I've found says otherwise. I'd need to leave Gotham in order to check out the other places she's been marked as having visited, but crime's been too rampant recently for me to do so." Bruce explained.

"A convenient excuse you've entertained me with before sir. But we both know that this time it is not the only reason why you refuse to confirm for yourself."

"...Talia is his only daughter and was too young at the time." Bruce started spelling out after a moment.

"Forgive me if I find that to be an incorrect assumption sir. Need I remind you how well in age the man is? He has surely sired a few children over the many… many years he's lingered on this Earth." Alfred denied the implied assumption before further expounding.

Bruce remained motionless.

"Do you not have the previous samples of Master Benjamin's blood in storage alongside some of Miss Talia's? Your doubts can be laid to rest with a simple ancestry test." Alfred proposed.

Unfortunately, his words suddenly caused Bruce to sigh in exhaustion.

"It's gone."

"...Pardon?"

"Ben's blood is gone. There is no trace. The containers are simply empty."

"That…How did this occur?"

"I don't know. No signs of tampering or infiltration. No residual energy readings, including that of magic. Absolutely nothing."

"It may have something to do with his powers, but I just don't have time to check it out with him now." Bruce clarified.

"So now you doubt the accuracy of the previous test results?" Alfred spoke with dread.

His words were met with silence.

"Master Bruce…"

"I have no way of knowing Alfred." Bruce shared. "But if we go under the assumption that there is a relation, then I question if she truly died due to extreme exhaustion, or if that was also fabricated."

Alfred looked over the man's visage, worried for his mental wellbeing as he realized just how deep the waters ran.

"Perhaps you can per-"

"Enough, Alfred."

"Surely you may se-"

"Enough. Alfred." Bruce enunciated word for word.

"I shall not be silenced!" the butler shouted, squeezing the words through his teeth and forcing Bruce to pause in his actions once more.

"The Young Master's have only been with us for a short while, but they have brought much improvement in all our lives nonetheless."

"I understand recent events have further deepened your mistrust towards the late Miss Mary's true identity, but I will not allow you to extend that feeling towards Master Benjamin in any way!"

"The Master Bruce I know would go out to confirm any of his doubts forthwith. He would not sit here stewing in his uncertainties in order to avoid finding out a possible truth he may or may not be able to acknowledge."

"Either you find a way to assuage all of your concerns immediately without affecting the wonderfully new dynamic that has only just begun to grow within this household, or I shall find someone myself who will!"

The butler signaled the rising Brutus to remain as he was while he turned on his heels to start making his way back to the manor.

He paused when he reached the foot of the cave's stairwell entrance.

"When you're ready to go out and begin doing something, dinner will be sitting at the table before your departure."

As the echo of the butler's own withdrawal resounded within the cavern's walls, Bruce continued to remain in his seat for a little while longer.

He silently got up to move towards the nearby exhibit containing Ben's Wildcard suit, checking over every little detail of it.

As he looked over the golden heart shaped sigil on the suit's pauldron, a sudden memory involving his teacher Matsuda suddenly came to his mind.

He was standing outside in frigid temperatures, the fir trees surrounding the man's home being covered in powdered snow.

The entire day, he was stuck facing the monk's warm jacket clothed back…

…while being almost completely naked himself.

"Your focus is laughable. What are you thinking of?"

His near nakedness was not without reason, having been given a goal by the man to learn how to warm himself up using nothing but his will and thoughts.

But his mind was too occupied for that, causing him to just stand in place shivering while clasping his arms over his shoulders and chest.

"I don't know… There's this girl…"

Matsuda had turned to face Bruce for the first time that day, eyes hidden through the shade cast by the glasses he wore.

"A girl?"

The very air surrounding the man turned dangerous as he merely repeated the same words spoken to him, his entire presence shifting in a way that forcefully kept Bruce's attention focused on him.

"To grasp after love is to fear being alone in the face of the unknown. But the unknown is every minute of every day."

Matsuda hunched forward slightly, Bruce unconsciously doing the same as he became entranced by what was visible of the man's stony look.

"To need others, Bruce-kun, is to fear life itself."

The constant shivering stopped at this point, the biting cold being ignored in favor of paying close attention to the finger pointed at his face.

"Your task is to NOT fear."

As Bruce looked up from the offending digit to look his master in the eyes…

…he was met with the sight of a mummified husk of skin sitting atop a body covered with splotches of blood and dirt.

As he stumbled away from the horrendous vision, multiple husky voices emerged from the mummy's clattering jaw.

"If you carry love, you carry weakness."

Bruce jolted from his daydream, finding himself standing before the glass panel exhibit once more.

At some point, his attention was now captured by his own reflection, Matsuda's last words for that day digging grooves within the chambers of his mind.

He remained like that for a while with tightly clenched fists before suddenly turning to the nearby Brutus.

"...Alfred's right as usual. Isn't he?"

The Cerberus looked up from his position on the floor with straightened ears as he looked into Bruce's eyes.

Most likely satisfied with what he saw, he then nodded his head in agreement.

Bruce didn't waste a single moment more as he returned to his seat in front of the Batcomputer and began typing away, various blocks and sections of data fluttering through the screen.

While doing that, he was also mentally piecing together the information he managed to gain in such a short time to reach his desired conclusion.

'I hope you don't come to regret your decision to teach me your beloved Memory Palace Technique at a later time, Ra's.' he mused.

Bruce's eyes danced across the screen, matching the pace at which he perused the information present.

'Possibility of false information being given under the assumption of ineffective magic…'

'Confirmed involvement of Ra's Al Ghul…'

'Unconfirmed involvement of members of the League of Assassins not including Lady Shiva, Ishmael, Malcolm Merlyn…'

'...highly probable chance of Talia Al Ghul being involved…'

As he continued reviewing the details on hand and cross-checked them with what was already on the Batcomputer's systems, he began to see the curtain before him start to uncover itself slowly yet surely.

But this moment of understanding and deduction only continued until around halfway, the metaphorical drapes suddenly becoming stuck in place, no longer willing to reveal for him the contents hidden behind.

'What am I missing? Is it due to the many unconfirmed assumptions? A detail I'm forgetting? Missing?'

He slowed down in his actions due to the block that appeared before him, taking the moment to focus more on some random news clippings of a couple of assassinations that stood out to him.

He looked over the reports for a little while before he resolved what was bugging him.

'It goes against the League's usual modus operandi, but it still seems familiar.'

A part of Alfred's words replayed inside his head.

'A wonderfully new dynamic…?'

*TAP TAP TAP TAP*

Brutus looked up at the sudden repetitive sound to find Bruce deep in his thoughts as he rhythmically tapped on the metal console.

As the cerberus just huffed in annoyance and laid back down with his paws placed over his ears, Bruce started to ascertain some more.

'Of the children, Ben's intelligence should make any deduction easier, but he doesn't have nearly enough encounters to conclude his answers confidently. To make up for that, he confirms his hypothesis by cross-checking any and all info that can be found on the systems here, using stories of own experiences.'

'Dick isn't yet completely as skilled and has the least exposure with such cases by far. He makes up for all of that by thinking outside of the box and making huge assumptions more presumptuous than either of us.'

'Outside of the box…past experiences… huge unconfirmed assumptions…'

As he chanted those words like a mantra, images came to mind of his previous run-ins with Deathstroke and Deadshot over the years in his vigilantism.

He slowly began to straighten himself up in his chair, seriously replaying every fight he had with the two while mapping out their every movement or muscle twitch inside his head frame by frame.

'I'll teach you a whole new language.' a familiar voice echoed in the forefront of his mind.

The fog hanging over him finally scattered.

Grabbing onto the rope thrown to him and refusing to let it go, he rapidly entered a few more passcodes into the console, a couple more files popping up again.

As he took in their contents, his mind began making bigger and bigger connections than usual, till he eventually reached a point where he was growling.

For what he decided to be the third and last time, Brutus looked up from his seat, enraged at being awoken and prepared to fight the one responsible for his lack of rest.

Except, he froze and quickly lay back down as he caught a glimpse of Bruce's current facial expression.

Blood was pouring down Bruce's palms due to the amount of force used in clenching them, the man currently using every ounce of discipline at his disposal to not blow a hole through his monitor screen.

The urge was resisted in favor of sagging in his chair, head held in his bloodied hands.

'Alfred. Even though I know it'll almost never be the case… I had really hoped you were wrong this time.'

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Things are quickly beginning to heat up.

As everyone noticed, I tried to use this chapter to better quantify certain aspects of powers in this world, like the difference between normal, enhanced, and superhuman.

Although normally every DC hero without powers has peak conditioning, it's just a term meant to showcase them as being way above normal human limits. The implications of what that means isn't actively shown in the comics unless you dive deeper and cross reference some things.

These people don't just magically become powerful! It takes time.

I forgot what issue it was, but there was one comic where Superman explained how he didn't even have full control of his powers until he was around 29.

There are some scientific studies that show our human limits in so many different aspects like punching strength, fastest speed, maximum weight capable of living in, and more.

However, this is all considered temporary as scientists further hypothesized that it will change after many generations.

Evolution man!

Anyways, for what Bruce managed to figure out at the end of the chapter... that's for you to find out in two weeks when we start the first story arc.

If you're too impatient too wait, you can currently read up to three chapters ahead on Patreon!

Make sure to remind yourself of how beautiful you are by following these three easy steps!

1) Leave your power stones.

2) Leave a comment behind.

3) Leave a review. (Reviews are just a more important comment, so you can skip the second step for this one if you're too lazy!)

I hope you all enjoy your week!

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