Chapter 153: Diabolical Brilliance

The following day, Arias was already settled on his island getaway with Diana and the others, ready to turn his focus elsewhere—establishing a strong presence in the criminal scene. His approach didn't involve unplanned chaos or trafficking of meta-humans. Arias's vision was grander and more deliberate. It all began that evening as he sat in his estate's office, his attention fixed on a single monitor on his desk.

After a brief moment, the monitor flashed on, revealing a video call setup with multiple split screens.

The first screen displayed Vandal Savage himself, followed by the other members of the Light.

"Good, we're all here," Vandal Savage began. "I've called for this brief meeting to formally introduce our newest member, Arias Markovic, someone I'm sure you've all at least heard of."

Arias didn't speak immediately. He scanned the figures of the other members, knowing enough about each through the knowledge he had extracted from Lex.

The screen after Vandal Savage showed a smirking Queen Bee—the only member he had actually encountered face-to-face. Following her was Ocean Master, donned in a purple suit of armor with a cape. His armor included spaulders protecting his shoulders, fingerless gauntlets, and greaves covering his forearms and shins. A helmet concealed his face, leaving only his mouth visible, and his eyes were covered by opaque red lenses.

Ocean Master nodded briefly toward Arias, acknowledging his presence without a word.

Then came Klarion. He had the appearance of a scraggy nine-year-old boy with long, thin limbs, a thin neck, and an angular face. His black hair was styled in a mop-top with V-shaped bangs and devil horns rising above his ears to points slightly higher than the top of his head. He wore formal clothes—predominantly black, with a white shirt featuring a stiff collar, a black skinny tie, and a distinctive jacket.

Klarion eyed Arias with curiosity, his expression mischievous, before bursting into laughter. "He doesn't look like much if you ask me! Oh well, just don't go dying before we get to have some fun!" he impulsively declared.

Arias found Klarion's erratic personality more intense than expected, but given that Klarion was the embodiment of chaos, it didn't surprise him too much. "I'll keep that in mind," Arias replied distantly, shifting his attention to the next person.

Ra's al Ghul, the man behind the recent attempts on Arias's life, was a daunting figure with green eyes and black hair streaked with gray. He wore a regal outfit, with most of his clothes concealed by a high-collared green cloak adorned with large gold buttons.

He glanced at Arias with an unreadable expression and muttered, "A pleasure. So, this is the man who humiliated my subordinates." His tone, however, lacked any hint of anger, coming across as almost impressed.

Klarion erupted into laughter again, adding, "Haha! You're unfair! Even trying to kill the new members before I get a chance!"

Ra's ignored Klarion's childish outburst and maintained his calm demeanor, addressing Arias. "I won't apologize for my actions. A contract is a contract. But now that your contract has been called off, I hope we can proceed on better terms in the future. As a show of good faith, I'll send you a gift."

Klarion, still feeling ignored, grew angry—childishly so. "Don't ignore me! Why didn't I get a gift when I joined? Are you playing favorites, old man?"

Arias raised an eyebrow but nodded at Ra's. He wasn't one to forgive and forget, but he always put the bigger picture first. For now, he showed no hostility. "Then I'll accept it, and your show of good will with open arms."

The last member to appear was perhaps the most unusual. Brain, a literal disembodied brain, was kept alive in a mechanical dome attached to a robot body. Beside him stood his sidekick, Monsieur Mallah, a gorilla wearing a red beret and possessing roughly human intelligence.

"So, this is the man who bested the arrogant Monsieur Luthor. I welcome you," Brain said, his thick French accent adding an odd flavor to his speech.

Arias moved his gaze around as Vandal Savage began providing brief introductions, though the real focus soon shifted to more pressing matters.

"With introductions out of the way, let's turn to more urgent concerns," Savage said. "There's been a massive increase in the gathering and trafficking of meta-human children by forces unaffiliated with us. This can't continue—it's affecting the quality of those we receive."

Queen Bee was the first to contribute. "What about that children's hospital in Markovia? Can't we create our own meta-humans there?"

Savage shook his head. "We can, but the mortality rate is atrocious, and most of the successful subjects don't exhibit useful traits. It's inefficient in the long run. As it stands, our newest member here has more meta-human talents in his academies than all of us combined, though I'm unsure of what his plans are for them."

As Savage spoke, he turned his attention to Arias, clearly asking him to reveal his intentions. Arias smirked briefly before responding.

"The world is weaponizing meta-human and alien children, molding them into loyal soldiers. Rather than wait to become a victim, I decided to gather my own little following. As for what I have planned for them, that's for me to know."

He made it clear he wasn't going to be anyone's lackey.

Before Savage could comment, Arias continued. "If these organizations and foreign governments are becoming a problem, my team and I will handle it—my way."

Savage's curiosity got the better of him. "What way is that? I hope you're aware that the newly formed Justice League is proving to be quite the nuisance. If we become a global problem, we'll have too many enemies to handle, and too many assets would be lost."

Arias maintained his smile. "That's only true if we allow the Light to be seen as the villain. What do you think would happen if, instead, we appeared as the heroes—doing what the Justice League fails to do? Rescuing the children and leaving them in the care of the Markovian government, a peaceful nation that was also a victim of meta-human trafficking."

It didn't take much thinking for Vandal Savage to grasp where Arias was going. Baron Bedlam, who was in charge of operations in Markovia, could manage the children under the guise of safety.

"The children would naturally feel loyalty toward us," Arias continued. "We may have to return some to their families, but what if, after that, they were offered a place at Ark Academies, built by the man who rescued them?"

A brief silence followed as the other members weighed the pros and cons. The level of psychological manipulation involved was impressive. It wasn't hard to see why Arias was better as an ally than an enemy.

Seeing no objections, Savage asked, "What will you need to guarantee the success of this plan?"