191 Karma #191

'Well, shit...' I mused as I watched Nightshade calmly walk out of the dark portal and slowly look around, searching for the mystery guest, who happened to be me.

Our eyes met, and the frown on her face told me the impression I'd left the last time we met was still fresh in her mind. "Hello, Nightshade," I greeted, thickening my skin as I cleared my throat.

"Grayson Whitlock..." Nightshade said, narrowing her eyes at me. "Did you change your mind? Are you here to turn me in?" she asked through gritted teeth.

I could feel her caution and hostility rising as she put her hand behind her back, preparing to create a portal. Luckily The Penguin interjected from the side, causing her to stop.

"Oh...? You two know each other...?" The mob boss asked, alternating his gaze between us, to which Nightshade put on a hesitant expression before stopping whatever she was trying to do.

"You can say that... but we kind of started on the wrong foot..." I replied, putting on a disarming expression as I turned to Nightshade. "I'm here to fix that, hopefully..." I added, uncrossing my arms and letting them relax on my sides.

"And how do you intend to do that, exactly...?" Nightshade asked as she gave me a blank look, to which the Penguin chuckled, likely feeling like a third wheel in his office.

"I hate to interrupt, but why don't you kids take this somewhere else?" The mob boss asked, raising an eyebrow as he turned away from the heroine and toward me.

"I don't know what happened between you, and I don't really care..." The Penguin said, shaking his head. "But I don't find the sight of two brats speaking in code in front of me to be particularly amusing..." he added, crossing his arms as he stared us down.

"Fair enough..." I said, nodding at the mob boss. "Nightshade...?" I added as I turned to the heroine, and she hesitated for a second before she copied my gesture to show her agreement.

"Fine..." The heroine said, her expression lighting up in hope for a second before she hid as she gestured with her hand, creating a dark portal in the middle of The Penguin's office.

Nightshade turned to me and gestured to the portal invitingly, and I had the urge to curse. "Ladies first..." I said, shrugging my shoulders as I stepped back from the rift and copied her gesture.

Typically, I'd never walk into a portal without knowing where it would lead, as that would be beyond idiotic. However, I had to squash my paranoia and show some faith, considering how my last meeting with Nightshade went.

Either way, I wouldn't walk into it first because it might lead to a volcano or some shit, and that's all the faith I was willing to show, which Nightshade seemed to understand as she stepped in first.

"Thanks..." I said as I turned to The Penguin after watching Nightshade go into her portal, to which he merely dismissively waved his hand and resumed working.

I nodded at the mob boss in acknowledgment before taking a deep breath and walking into the portal.

...

Somewhere in Gotham

Inside a room full of wriggling plants

"I'm starting to lose patience, Nigma..." Poison Ivy said as she sat on her green throne, watching The Riddler leisurely and care-freely, reading a book of children's riddles without

"Have a little faith, will you, Ivy..." The Riddler replied with a shrug of his shoulders as he slammed the riddle book shut and turned to the botanist with a grin.

"Threatening me won't speed things up, and you don't need to remind me of my place..." He added with an amused chuckle, shaking his head as he reached for the collar of his green shirt.

"I can't forget it even if I wanted to..." he added, lowering the collar and revealing the wiggling vine embedded into his neck under the skin close to his carotid arteries.

"As long as that crazy woman stays with you, he will come on his own accord..." He went on, unbothered by the botanist's silence nor the look full of contempt she sent him.

"As a great man once said... every action had an opposite reaction..." he continued with a laugh, showing an expression that suggested he knew everything, much to Ivy's Chagrin.

"I'd say Waller's recent actions would warrant quite the volatile reaction, wouldn't you agree...?" He asked, letting out a maniacal fit of laughter. "I can't wait..." He added through peals of laughter, which promptly stopped as the vine in his neck tightened around his throat.

"You talk too much. It's irritating..." Ivy said in an icy tone, her expression darkening as she watched The Riddler's antics. "You better hope you're right, or you'll wish you'd died back then..." she added, turning away from The Riddler as she got off her throne of plants.

"You're walking a thin line, Nigma. Don't forget it..." The botanist calmly concluded as she summoned a giant flower from the ground, which she climbed into and disappeared from the room.

"A thin line indeed..." The Riddler said, rubbing his neck as the vine's grip on his throat relaxed. "What fun..." he remarked as he resumed laughing, a giant grin splitting his face.

...

Exiting the portal as it disappeared behind me, I inspected the area and raised an eyebrow upon recognizing the venue as the empty warehouse I used to interrogate Nightshade.

"Interesting choice, but fair enough, I suppose..." I remarked as I turned to Nightshade, who stood in front of a strangely familiar metallic chair in the middle of the warehouse.

I understood the heroine's intentions and the understandably petty motives behind them. Still, I decided to humor the heroine and sat on the chair without hesitation, gesturing for her to get on with it.

"Why did you ask to meet me...?" Nightshade asked, seemingly satisfied with my willingness to play along as she nodded at me and uncrossed her arms.

"I want you to testify against Waller..." I replied as I kept my reply brief and simple to the point to avoid wasting any time, intent on getting this meeting over with as soon as possible as I still had errands to run.

"I thought you didn't need my testimony to seal the deal..." Nightshade said as she re-crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes, staring daggers at me, which didn't bother me one bit.

"I don't, but as I've said the last time we were here, it would hasten the inevitable..." I replied, shrugging my shoulders. "And I've had it with Amanda Waller's shit," I concluded, explaining my reasons without waiting for the heroine to ask.

"So you're willing to help me save my brother...?" Nightwing asked, trailing at the end of her sentence. I could tell she was trying her hardest to hide the faint hope she had, which I could see without even using my empathy or body language analysis.

I replied with a simple nod.

"And what do you want in exchange other than my testimony...?" The heroine asked. "You made it very clear that wasn't nearly enough the last time..." she added, her expression bitter as she likely recalled our last encounter and my less-than-kind choice of words.

"It's not enough. No. But I don't care anymore. If I have to make a losing bargain to get rid of Waller..." I replied, my expression darkening as I shook my head with a grimace.

"Then I'll do it gladly..." I firmly concluded, causing Nightshade to still at my words. Still, she remained quiet as she seemed to contemplate my words, to which I continued.

"Look... I know what I did wasn't fair to you..." I said as I scratched my head with a sigh. "And I'm not making excuses, but I had a lot of shit on my plate when you suddenly showed up with a king-size serving..." I added, joking out of reflex, which was pretty insensitive now that I thought about it.

"Please forget I said that..." I went, resisting the urge to face-palm in frustration. "What I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry..." I concluded, letting out another sigh at my dumb choice of words, which the heroine luckily chose to ignore.

"Then tell me this," Nightshade asked as she let out a sigh and relaxed her arms. "Would you have apologized and offered to help if you didn't suddenly need me...?" She asked, looking directly into my eyes.

"No..." I replied, shaking my head. "I'd apologize for my actions, but I wouldn't help you fight an interdimensional demon unless I needed something from you..." I added with a shrug, much to the heroine's shock, as she widened her eyes.

...

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