168 No Buts #168

Author's note: it might seem like the power-ups Gray received are somewhat OP or that I made a mistake, but that's not the case.

Gray was already able to tank missiles before the power-ups, and according to DC power scaling, that was the next step. And they aren't random, either.

Don't forget that Gray was exposed to many cosmic forces and alien powers, like the Omega Force, Speed Force, red and green Emotional Spectrum Force, and plasma.

He absorbed some of these forces through his energy conductor perk and unconsciously used them to heal his body, which caused the changes.

Something similar happened when he used Richard's training method, destroyed his muscles, and rebuilt them with pure energy.

...

"Somewhat crude... but it'll have to do for now..." I muttered as I looked at my boots, my gaze lingering on the thin slit in the soles I created to house the Aero Discs.

By Aero Discs, I mean the funny-looking transparent plates that the Intergang's people and aliens used to fly around, which I took for myself back then.

They are used by standing on them and steering them around, but I went out of my way to insert them into my boots because I wanted the extra stability. No sudden shock wave is about to knock me off my flying device and back into peasantry. Thank you very much.

Now that I think about it, I think I'm ripping off some hero, who had flying boots, but who cares, anyway? Still, I had to crack open my wall climbing boots and make adjustments to make space, and I was surprised by how minimalistic the technology in the interior was.

It wasn't much trouble, and all I had to do was equip the aero discs from my inventory, and they'd pop right in place into the improvised slit, enabling me to fly.

I wanted to adjust the discs to make them retractable and incorporate them into the boots, but it would have taken too much time. And I had shit to do.

However, the Aero Discs weren't that fast or efficient as means of travel or maneuvering compared to other transportation devices as they averaged a measly 250 miles per hour.

Also, they could only levitate several hundred feet above the ground, making them a temporary fix for my limited mobility until I find or come up with something better.

They'd still allow me to fight people like Bromstone without rapidly hopping around like a frog on steroids with predictable trajectories, and that's all I could ask for now.

Then there was the energy whip Whisper used. You know, the one that could melt the asphalt and almost split my ass in half. After a bit of tinkering, I got the bright idea to combine it with my steel wire and it worked, but only after I almost destroyed it by accident.

And no, I'm not talking about the steel wire. It's the energy whip that almost got destroyed.

After dismantling the energy whip and scanning it, I discovered it worked by increasing the density of the heat in the air to a flexible, malleable plasmic whip capable of melting people's faces.

How or why that worked, I had no idea because I wasn't at that level yet, but inspiration instantly hit, and I wanted to combine it with the steel wire to create a plasma whip that I could control telepathically. Because, after all, why not?

I didn't have high hopes, so I started experimenting safely and used the whip on the tip of the steel wire. I'm sure you can imagine my surprise when the steel wire didn't have a single scratch.

I don't know what dumb fuck named it a steel wire because it is definitely not made of steel since plasma would melt that shit faster than you can blink.

The next step was to incorporate a tiny computer chip into the whip to replace the steel wire's need for direct connection to my nervous system, as I'd be able to use my personal computer power to control it instead.

I did just that, then attached the steel wire to the energy whip's handle, and that's when it happened. The wire perceived the plasma coating as an attack and sprouted spikes that turned the handle into a pin cushion.

Luckily, the most advanced components of the whip were relatively unscathed, and I only needed to do very little to fix them. Still, I couldn't fix them back into 100% shape, which weakened the potency of the produced plasma and ironically fixed the problem.

Ultimately, I salvaged what I could and had to abandon the handle, incorporating the components into my glove, which was better considering it would remain hidden.

Finally, I had to work on the energy rod. It was similar to the one Big Barda used. And let me tell you, that thing was a double-edged sword in more ways than one.

The Mega-Rod could project a wide-arcing blast of concussive force powerful enough to tear through the hull of a heavily armored spaceship, which wasn't that impressive if you asked me.

However, the functional components of the Mega-Rod utilize the same technology used in the construction of Apokoliptian Boom Tubes. As such, it's not impossible to reverse-engineer a Mega-Rod's internal mechanisms and use them to create a transwarp drive, as in space travel faster than the speed of shit.

But why did I call it a double-edged sword, you might ask? Well, it's because the damned thing started podcasting Apokolyptan propaganda directly into my brain as soon as I touched it.

And I'm not talking about Fox News propaganda, no. It's the kind of shit that would make you buy a Darkseid body pillow and hug it to sleep every night while slowly turning into a Parademon.

Well, you could resist the brainwashing effect if you had a strong enough will, which I had, but holding it for merely five minutes was pure agony, so I'm not touching it with a ten-foot pole for now.

There were other trophies, like Mike Gun's bone shooting hand canon, but it was worthless compared to what I had. I might study it and copy a part of its design when I finally get to creating Richard's arm replacement, but that's about it.

Also, I didn't forget about Kgbeast's body in my inventory, which had a shit ton of cybernetic enhancements. I might learn a great deal about cybernetics from studying his remains, but it wasn't worth it.

I didn't need to learn about cybernetics that badly, and I'm sure I could find better, more ethical ways to do so if the need arose, so I might as well put the lousy excuse of a human to rest and give him a proper burial when I have the chance.

To put things in perspective, I had a fruitful, productive night and added two new toys to my arsenal, The Aero shoes and the Plasma Wire Gloves, and I still have an hour or two to burn before going to check on Harley and Lady Vic.

I frowned for a second, wondering how to pass the time before my deepest instincts took over my body, and my phone was in my hand before I knew it.

"Oh...! Cat videos...!"

...

Gotham

The Batcave

Alfred sighed as he stood behind Bruce, watching the latter furiously press the buttons of the supercomputer, rooted in his chair for the past twenty-four hours.

"You know, master Bruce, if you're so tired of living, there are easier ways than working yourself to death," The butler said, raising an eyebrow as he stared into his master's back figure.

"Take a break, eat something and for the love of all that's sacred, take a shower and get some sleep," Alfred said, grimacing as he shook his head, and his words caused Bruce to pause for a second before he resumed working.

"It wasn't your fault. You couldn't have known, master Bruce," The butler went on, heaving another heavy, tired sigh at Bruce's lack of interest in his words of advice.

"Exactly. I couldn't have known. And that is why I failed..." Bruce said as he stopped working and turned to face Alfred with an eerily calm and cold expression that the caped crusader rarely showed.

"It's why so many people died. Never again. Brother Eye will see to that, Alfred," Bruce went on after a second of silence, shaking his head in resignation.

The caped crusader was confident in his ability to defeat anyone, be they humans, monsters, demons, aliens, and gods. He would always find a way to take them down.

However, despite his intelligence and resourcefulness, Bruce Wayne was ultimately a mere human, a fact he had forgotten and slowly began to recall more and more as of late.

First, it was his inability to see through his colleagues toying with their enemies' minds, and then it was his latest failure, as he unintentionally caused Brimstone's revival.

He'd already tracked down Enchantress and Clayface. Through them, he learned what happened and his role, albeit unwitting, in unleashing the flaming giant upon Gotham, the city he swore to protect.

Such a revelation only strengthened his resolve to complete Brother Eye and bring it online as soon as possible. With its power, he would never repeat the same ignorant mistake.

"However, master Bru--" The butler interjected, clearly intent on arguing his master's reason, only for the latter to cut him off before he could complete his sentence.

"No. There are no howevers. There are no buts. I failed Alfred, and many people suffered because of it," Bruce replied, his tone firm and expression hard as he shook his head.

"I will turn myself in, but I have to make sure someone takes my place when I receive my retribution," Bruce went on as he turned away from the butler and resumed working.

"The Justice League is compromised and no longer reliable. Brother eye will replace it and myself..."

...

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