Chapter 120: All According To Plan Part 1

Like clockwork, Lex Luthor was indeed arrested around 10 in the morning at LexCorp Tower. Immediately after this, the place was flooded with reporters and news outlets. Arias could tell that these were arranged by Lex to help paint the picture he wanted to send across. 

So naturally, Arias paid off his own reporters and outlets to appear there, far more than the few thousands Lex was offering... along with some very real threats. This came very easy because no man had a clean past or record; dig deep enough, and you'd find many people had skeletons to hide. So to keep it that way, they were even willing to make Lex an enemy—it was almost comical.

Arias just watched all this in his office with a smirk on his face, waiting for Luthor to be brought out of LexCorp in cuffs. Once they did bring him out, the questions began to fly, drowning out the few reporters left under Luthor's payroll.

**[Mr. Luthor! Are the criminal charges true?]** one reporter asked, but Luthor remained smiling and shook his head.

"Of course not, I assure the people of—" But before he could get a word out, another reporter spoke up.

**[Then what of the incriminating evidence about your properties in Metropolis acting as trafficking hubs?]**

"That is preposterous, these are mere—" Lex still hadn't lost his composure, but the onslaught of questions wasn't ending.

**[Are you sure? Because as we speak, your warehouses by the Metropolis main harbor are being raided. Sources say that numerous containers have been found containing young children and illegal machinery.]**

For the first time through the entire ordeal, Lex looked worried. It was only for a split second, as he knew he had to keep his composure at this moment no matter what. He now wondered if what the reporter was saying was true or if they were just edging him. No matter; he needed to keep to his act.

"Like I've said before, this is all a mistake. You cannot—"

**[Is it also a mistake that evidence has been leaked to the public, showing indefinite proof of you paying off judges, government officials, and funding foreign parties classified as terrorist groups?]**

The more Lex heard, the more his mind began to churn. He could understand them trying to lie about the warehouses, but this allegation hit too well for them to be guessing. They had to have proof…

"Who is your source? These are all lies! I have done nothing but the best for—" Seeing the situation deteriorate, Lex wanted to lean on the card of all the good things he did to maintain a good reputation. But Arias's instructions were clear: he wanted them to make Lex sweat.

**[Several high-ranking figures have already confessed to aiding you in illicit dealings and have agreed to testify against you in court, the Metropolis mayor included. What do you make of this?]**

The more Lex heard, the more worried he became inside, even though he didn't show much emotion. Had he really been betrayed? No, it didn't make sense; he had far too much dirt on the people claiming they would testify against him. If he went down, so would they; it just didn't make any sense.

His mind began to buzz, and he no longer even tried to answer questions. It became very clear that they were meant to shake him, so the best he could do was just keep silent. Seeing as he wasn't speaking anymore, the officers who had apprehended him took him away.

'Testify against me? They're mad. But who's behind this? Arias? Maybe, but he has little to gain by doing this. Plus, it's too dull a plan with many loopholes to be his. This has to be Waller's doing; she's using me to save herself.'

Short on time, Lex only looked at the forefront evidence. Waller's convenient warning, her knowledge concerning his operations, the amount of dirt she had on government officials... it could only be her.

Unbeknownst to him, Arias had asked her for that particular favor just to increase her credibility as a top suspect. It was almost too easy when each side felt they were smarter than the other. But Waller was just as surprised hearing the news. Though since it had no mention of her, she didn't care or act. She simply saw it as Arias getting rid of Lex, something that benefited her, as he was much easier to control in her opinion.

Getting involved would only draw unnecessary attention to her, so she didn't pay Lex's case any mind. If he somehow got out, she could just deny knowing anything and claim innocence. She had no idea that he thought her to be the top suspect.

Unfortunately for them both, Arias accounted for Waller staying away. It was plainly obvious when she lied about the government wanting a deal, as Arias had already tried suggesting one around the time of the gathering at Congress. Secondly, she mentioned she wanted him to stand for President, but he lacked numerous qualifications for that, the most important being his age.

This told him that Amanda really thought she had the upper hand just because she had evidence concerning his past. So to strengthen this impression, he accepted the lies happily, which in her mind was the same as him submitting.

This led to the scenario where both she and Lex felt they were in control, but were simply dancing to the tune of Arias. But such a plan was fickle and not easy to execute. The evidence regarding the warehouse came from Roulette; the bribing and threatening of the reporters was done anonymously, and the blackmailing of government officials was dependent on one factor: that Lex couldn't expose them in court as he had a lot of dirt. So Arias made a gamble and openly threatened them with his identity, risking making many enemies in their eyes. They only accepted to play the role he asked on one condition… that Lex wouldn't make it to court and have a chance to reveal what he had on them.

…

Lex was kept on secure watch and not allowed to speak. Even the right to a lawyer was denied until he could be transported to Washington, D.C. There was just too much evidence, the most vexing being treason. With such charges, it was no surprise some of his rights were completely ignored.

His flight took off that evening. The airport he was supposed to land at already had countless reporters swarming the premises along with security. Right now, Lex's case was looking like it would become one of the most high-profile cases in the history of the country. But Arias had other plans.

…

Inside the cockpit of the plane transporting Lex, the pilot was sitting diligently, focused on the task at hand. Suddenly, he felt a breeze to his side, on the pathway between his chair and that of the co-pilot. He wanted to look over for just a second, but a hand suddenly gripped his face and smashed it into the controls.

The hand belonged to none other than Arias. Ignoring the laws of time, space, and gravity, reaching and entering the plane unnoticed came as simple as breathing to him. The pilot's head was pushed forward with so much force that a protruding lever breached his head and tore through his skull, splattering brain matter all over. The co-pilot was in shock and ready to scream, but Arias gripped him by the throat and crushed it.

The noise, though, was already enough to attract the attention of the guards. But Arias remained unfazed; there was nothing they could possibly do to stop him. Hearing their footsteps, Arias used his telekinesis to rip off the plane's windscreen, causing a vicious wind to start pulling on any and everything inside. He let go of the barely alive co-pilot's neck, and the body went flying out of the plane before being sucked into one of the engines.

It was utter chaos. Yet Arias began to casually walk forward as if ignorant of the events. Without control, the plane went into a downward trajectory. The guards were already sending out maydays, but even they didn't know what was happening. And if they did, it was too late.

With each step Arias took, he used his telekinesis to rip apart openings in the plane, sending the guards spiraling outward. The only reason Lex hadn't fallen to the same fate yet was simply because he had been strapped into a chair in another cabin, alone. Even the ever-calm Lex was worried he was about to die. Suddenly, though, the door to his cabin ripped open and caused him to feel like he was being pulled into a vortex.

He knew for a fact that once he got unstrapped, he'd be pulled out of the plane and likely into its engines. Fear and panic grew, only to be replaced by confusion as Arias walked in casually, not affected by the happenings at all. Even the attire he had on wasn't moving with the violent wind but remained calm.

Lex wanted to speak, but it was hard to breathe, let alone speak. And yet Arias's voice reached him perfectly clearly as he spoke. "Ironic, isn't it? To have your whole world collapse due to the very people you thought yourself smarter than."

Hearing those words, Lex began to piece together what really occurred, how Arias must've put all this together just to kill him. He wanted to speak, to negotiate, but he just couldn't bring out any words. Seeing him try was something Arias saw as amusing and even chuckled at.

"It's hopeless. I only came here personally to ensure all that knowledge you amassed over the years doesn't go to waste."

Without saying anything further, Arias's eyes gave a minor glow that also appeared in the eyes of Lex. Arias invaded his mind without caution and began to forcibly retrieve any and all information.

International secrets, banking codes, offshore accounts, dirt on others, unheard-of technology—Lex's mind was a treasure trove. Lex wanted to scream, but it felt like his voice couldn't escape his lungs. Blood dripped from his eyes and ears as he felt his life's work and accomplishments being taken from him.

He couldn't protest or even show his unwillingness. He was truly helpless in what felt like the first real defeat in his life, a shame it would also be his last. Unable to withstand the raw power, Lex's mind could no longer hold on. His brain finally collapsed under the strain, ending his life there and then.

Arias's figure vanished like a passing breeze, and he reappeared back in his office, casually sipping on a lone glass of whiskey with a satisfied smile on his face as he stared out into the noisy sights of Gotham.

"Good match, Lex. Very good," he mocked, raising his glass in a mock toast, as if he were celebrating his victory over his old adversary. The city lights glittered outside, and for a moment, everything seemed still, as if acknowledging the quiet triumph of one man's ambition over another's.

With Lex out of the way, the game had just begun anew. And Arias was ready to play.