#11

"Solomon Grundy..." God, that's creepy.

Why am I here? Because the other day I got bored and thought, hey, how about I improve Killer Croc and make him deadlier? So here I am, hunting that damn lizard for his blood so I know what to improve and what to take away... So why am I facing this undead with a cooler name than mine?

"So... Uhm, hey?" I said, not actually knowing what to do. Mind you, I'm a genius, but being a genius doesn't help when facing a zombie version of the Hulk that gets stronger every time it comes back to life.

"Born on a Monday..." He continued his lullaby, still approaching me.

Huh, now that I look at him and start analyzing his everything I must say, damn boy, you're really the luckiest unluckiest undead of all time. Look at these chemicals flowing in your veins, and your heart that's basically a biological automatic lab that's constantly pumping this concoction with little changes every pump. And his brain? Practically non-existent, but what is there somehow still does its job of keeping this entire thing working and giving it his, although limited, thought process.

"Can I call you Sol?" I asked, patting my body looking for anything to keep me alive. "Would you like a lollipop... No that's mine, let me see." I like strawberry, sue me.

Oh god, he's getting closer, uhhhh... "Here." I threw him a Chinese finger trap... Since when do I have this?

The thing hit his chest and onto his palm. He looked at the thing and somehow worked it out, trapping himself. He then sat down and continued playing silently. How cute... Wait no! How did this happen?

"Good that you like it friend, you can keep it." I said friendly, patting his back and getting a blood sample. "Till we meet again." I then ran like hell back to the surface.

I'm now at a random alleyway calling Evelyn, all the while trying to work out the concoction with only my brain, but there's only so much speculation can reach. Soon she arrived with our van, with me promptly entering and going for the lab area.

Inside, I immediately got to work, analyzing the blood sample. Evelyn kept watching the results I was writing down, not even asking what I was doing. Well geez, thanks Evelyn I'm fine, don't need to worry about me.

"Solomon Grundy's blood is fascinating," She said, like a damn npc. "It's like a stew of rare compounds, constantly evolving."

"There's something here that's unlike anything I've ever seen." I adjusted the microscope, bringing the sample into sharper focus. "See this? It's a compound similar to what's found in the Lazarus Pits used by Ra's al Ghul. But it's different, more... refined."

"Lazarus Pits? The thing that makes people immortal?" She clearly doubts me, why? Didn't we meet the old fart long ago?

"Exactly. This could be the key to understanding how Grundy regenerates and grows stronger each time he comes back to life." I pulled back from the microscope, my mind racing with possibilities. "But I think I can make it better by isolating the compound and enhancing its properties. Grundy's version is crude, unstable. I can refine it, create a version that we can control, one that doesn't come with the side effect of turning people into mindless hulks."

Evelyn smirked. "So what's the plan, Doctor?"

"We create a new version of the compound. Lazarus 2.0. It will have all the regenerative properties, but none of the drawbacks. Imagine soldiers who can heal from any wound, agents who can infiltrate any place without fear of being killed."

"Sounds ambitious."

"Ambitious is my middle name." I grabbed a set of vials and started the extraction process, isolating the compound from Grundy's blood. "This is going to take some time, but once it's done, we'll have a tool that could change everything."

Evelyn watched as I worked, not having much to do since her knowledge is limited. "And what about Joan? Will this compound be part of her upgrades?"

"Possibly. It depends on how well the refinement process goes. If I can stabilize it, she could be virtually indestructible."

As the night wore on, I continued to experiment, tweaking and refining the compound. Every so often, I'd glance at the clock, timing myself to see if I'm getting rusty.

Finally, after hours of meticulous work, I held up a vial containing a shimmering blue liquid. "Ready for a test run?" I asked Evelyn, holding up a syringe filled with the glowing blue liquid.

She shrugged, knowing I would do it anyway. "Who's the lucky subject?"

I grinned. "Why not start with the one who made this all possible?" I held up a vial of Solomon Grundy's blood. "Let's see what happens when we give our friend a dose of his own medicine, enhanced by our new compound."

We returned to the depths where I had found Grundy, syringe in hand. He was still there, playing with the finger trap, his simple mind occupied. He looks like a child, a very deadly child.

"Hey, Sol," I said softly. "Got something for you."

He looked up, his eyes empty yet curious. Without hesitation, I injected the syringe into his arm. The effect was immediate. Grundy convulsed, his body wracked with spasms as the compound took hold. His muscles bulged, his skin rippled, his veins became prominent. And then, as quickly as it had started, it was over.

Grundy stood up, taller and more imposing than ever, the Chinese trap easily destroyed. His eyes, once dull, now gleamed with a strange light.

"Solomon Grundy… feels good," he rumbled, his voice deeper, more resonant.

I smiled. This is just perfect.