...

Chapter 16: Progress

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Ian walked down the stairs from the roof. He went to the building's first floor, the coffee shop. It was late at night at this point, so the workers were already preparing to close it.

He found the trio of his group already waiting for him around a table. He took a seat with them and asked, "Any trouble today?"

Ralf shook his head as he signaled for one of the workers to bring them coffee, "No, as you predicted. The Falcone family has given up on the area, and very few other crime families try to get here. At this point, it seems they're more scared of us than of batman."

"Well, that's the result of having thousands of beggars under your hand," Ian couldn't help but let out a chuckle. He was sure Batman has already started investigating his group but he didn't care at this point.

"I admit when you spoke your proposal then, I thought you've become crazier but seeing how things worked out makes me think I've gone crazy," Mike added still just as baffled by how far they've come.

"Yeah, who thought investing a few tens of thousands of bucks every month in the homeless of Gotham would create such force of venomous people."

Barney might not have noticed it himself, but he sounded envious while saying that, leading the group to eye him strangely.

They've become extremely rich at this point yet Barney still wishes to keep everything to himself.

"That's what investing is, putting money into something with the expectation of profit, and we're already seeing a profit.

We've basically taken over the entire street and are expanding to its surroundings without doing much.

We still can't take over the crime alley as that will bring too much attention. In fact, the only reason we didn't get much resistance from the crime families is because of Batman, he seems to be quite active recently."

It's fascinating what a bunch of people could do for a piece of bread. They could literally crawl themselves to the depths of hell for a steady source of food which Ian gladly provided.

The warehouse he lived in once was empty as pretty much every beggar moved to Olster street not just for the food but also because of the two large warehouses Ian bought for them.

The warehouses had numerous beds within and any daily necessities they might need. There isn't much privacy as everyone will be sleeping close to each other but they're used to that by this point.

Of course, Ian had to spend quite the sum of money to make that happen. He pretty much sold everything he ever stole and he has been stealing with Selina leaving only the diamond.

He also provided them with new clean clothes, spending even more money. However, it was all worth it.

He had an army of people at his disposals, he even hired some of them to work at his coffee shop.

This many people would in theory lead to an increase in the crime rate in Olster street, but it was the opposite.

Ian established a protection system in the area... Indeed, he went with the protection fee trick except in Gotham it's a welcomed trick.

If the shops and stores wish for a safe environment, they'd pay the fees to Ian and the group, then the beggars themselves would protect themselves, and there is nothing more ferocious than a bunch of homeless people in need of money and have nothing to lose.

The homeless will then be paid by Ralf as he oversees them... Of course, they'll get paid a small sum of that money and in the end, the group ended up making much more money than they were spending.

That wasn't the only benefit as seeing their success, many groups started approaching them for money laundering business.

They launder the money given to them and they get a cut, but as with all illegal businesses, there is a risk.

The Olster street was pretty much taken over in a matter of weeks in its entirety, a street that was once the Falcones was that no more, and the thing is they could do nothing about it.

They are pretty much the largest crime family in the city, and that's why their every move is easily traced and attracts too much attention... The bat's attention was on them as theirs was on him.

It's almost as if Ian planned the whole thing perfectly to the point that even attempting to take back the street now is simply not worth it at all... However, he actually didn't foresee things to this point, it all just worked out.

Ian started stroking his chin. He already sensed the strangeness in the streets of Gotham... Something major is about to happen.

"Have you thought it through?" Ralf asked as Ian's next decision will basically carve their future in the book of fate.

"I mean, what's there to think of? Every mob family is doing it, so why shouldn't we? It's not that much but it's a start." Mike voiced his opinion.

"More money? Sold! I don't see why not. We already did some nasty stuff so why not dig ourselves deeper?" Barney's words attracted everyone's bizarre looks, his way of phrasing things is... Well, special.

Ian frowned then shook his head, "I've thought it through. We won't be going into the drugs business, in fact, we should stay as far away from it as possible."

Their reputation has gone up to such an extent that several groups approached them for collaboration in the narcotics business.

Ian brought his phone up, searched for something, and showed them, "Do you see what this is? I showed it to you before."

"That new flash hero? But isn't he far away from here?" Mike wondered.

"We have someone more dangerous, Batman. The point I'm making is the surge in people calling themselves heroes who work against crime, going into that business will definitely attract their attention." Ian explained.

"How is batman more dangerous than the flash, the latter is all flash flashy flash, super fast I mean, while Batman doesn't seem to be special? Doesn't he just wear a bat suit and jump around?"

Barney's focus was elsewhere as he spoke all the nonsense in his head.

"Batman has survived so far in a city like Gotham and even brought fear to its sinners.

That in itself is a great accomplishment but this isn't the topic of focus today.

Batman must already have an eye on us thus we should be careful and prepared for the worst, I absolutely see no benefit in involving ourselves in that business, so as always, I have a better idea."

"Oh, what is it?" His words got their full attention.

Ian mysteriously smiled, "It's the art of screwing people over, or in this case, the crime families."

"Say what?" Mike was baffled, they just talked about not doing something dangerous because it's dangerous yet here he is talking about doing something suicidal.

"Just be patient, I will explain. It's actually quite simple, all we have to do is to screw them over, perhaps let batman do the work, and then take all of their hard-earned money.

Imagine just how much those old crime families have accumulated during the decades of their existence." Ian was passionate about his plans but the same couldn't be said about the rest.

"But won't we just die? I know you don't mind but I do," Mike spoke his mind and Barney seemed to agree as he said, "I haven't even seen my dear yet, so I really don't want to die."

Ian smiled further, seemingly about to speak the gospels, the words of wisdom, "That's the point. We might die, isn't that exciting?"

"Ah? N-no?"

He stood up, "It's okay, I mean it's just death. Anyway, I will be doing the majority of the work, you guys won't really have to do anything.

You three just focus on our organization and the expansion. If any of you wish to pull out, you're welcome to do so right now, otherwise, let's have some fun."

Ian left them to do some thinking. They already know that working for him is dangerous but it has been working out so far, so they were okay with that.

Ian felt the responsibility to remind them of the risks. Perhaps he exaggerated a bit there, but he really needs them to know that he'll never change, death will always follow him, protect him, and perhaps harvest the lives of those around him.

He went to sleep and woke up the next day quite early, he usually woke up at 10 PM, but today was different as his phone started ringing, which either means business or the cat had come.

"What?" Ian muttered lazily.

"As lazy as always, and who thought someone like you can rise so high," A mischievous voice sounded from the phone.

"I'm just lazy because I can be, you would've had this luxury if you don't always lose everything," Ian casually responded as he stood up.

Selina was silent for a second before she playfully responded, "Why be so harsh? But you're right, so why don't you teach me how to be like you, teacher?"

"I assume you're on the roof, wait for me to put some clothes on," Ian hung up directly after, failing to hear her next words, tempting ones, but she was just being naughty.

Ian put on a long-sleeved black shirt, black clothes, and casual shoes. He then made his way to the roof, finding it empty.

However, just like always, she was hiding in a place not visible from the roof door and she moved swiftly once she saw him as he found her standing behind him.

"Too bad you're always in your costume else we'd take a walk around the city, I've somewhere to go today anyway," Ian remarked as he faced her.

"Oh, is that a date? Well, I have a better idea for a date, why don't you follow me? And make sure you keep up, you're quite fit so I am sure you can do that."

She gently whispered in his ears before she started walking towards the edge of the roof.

"Oh? That sounds kind of dangerous... I'm in."

...

Chapter 17: The Mix Of Colors

...

"Oh? That sounds kind of dangerous... I'm in." That's how easy it's to get him to do anything. The sound of danger and the possibility of witnessing his power in action is something he will never say no to.

Ian kept his eyes on her as she started running to the edge and jumped to the nearby building's roof like a feather. The distance between the buildings was only about two meters, so it looked like nothing to her.

Ian hesitated not one bit as he followed after her, jumping after her as fast as he could.

He continued to follow her from roof to roof, through the complex and tight buildings of Gotham, "Oh, the theater?"

"It's a favorite place of mine, I always come here when I want to relax, this jump is a bit harder, so be careful," Despite her saying how hard it is, it looked like a walk in the park for her, as if gravity ignores her existence.

Ian however never hesitated as he again ran to the best of his abilities and applied what he knows about jumping to reach the nearby building, as far as 4 meters but a bit lower than the one they were in.

He landed and performed a roll minimizing the impact on his legs, "It's been quite a while since I've done this, but I still got it."

"Oh, you have experience? I expect to have a laugh at your expense, but I guess not."

Ian nodded, "Of course, I'm quite the adventurous type after all. I've pretty much have done most things that can get me killed."

"Hm? Could it be that you get off on danger and deadly situations?" Selina frowned as she asked, "Now It makes sense why you did what you did in the museum heist,"

"Kind of," Ian simply answered not explaining any further for what he gets off on is seeing how he'll not die rather than the opposite.

Selina frowned further, seemingly hesitating before she just shook her head and ignored the subject.

They made this way through another roof into a ladder, and then into a glass opening on the top of the theater, "I used to come here all the time when I was younger, but I don't have that luxury now,"

Ian let out an amused smile, "You've been a thief from your early days? I bet you've yet to pay for a movie ticket,"

Selina slightly blushed under her mask and turned her head away in shame, "O-of course not, I paid for it like one time or two?"

Ian let out a small laugh, quite amused, "Right right, I believe you." The sarcasm was obvious to all.

Selina let out a pout and just ignored him, jumping into the theater while Ian took a deep breath to calm himself down, 'I swear she might have the bloodline of some kind of insane succubus bloodline, it's definitely not because I'm weak.'

"Shush, and follow me," Selina muttered quietly as they stealthy moved through the hallways of the theater into the section of the theater Auditorium.

They circled through the theater until Selina found an empty Auditorium, the movie was playing despite that.

"Empty, that usually means it's a shitty movie, right?" Ian wondered as he took a seat.

Selina took a sear next to him, "Usually, but there are some hidden gems here and there,"

"None of the other Auditoriums had many people, the theater doesn't seem to be doing well, yet it's still open in this side of Gotham?" Ian curiously questioned.

"I heard it's funded by Wayne enterprise at a loss, but they still do so. I heard that the Wayne corp owner's parents died around here, so that's why he's probably still supporting it." Selina explained.

"I see... Now, let's get to the main topic, how did you lose all of your money?" Ian was kind of in disbelief. They have been doing jobs together for months, making tons of cash, yet she lost it all.

"Well... It's complicat..." She didn't get to speak any further as a loud explosion sounded throughout the surroundings, so loud it seemed to reverberate throughout Gotham.

"I have to go!" Selina instantly stood up and started running from whence they came.

"Lucky or unlucky? Whatever it is, it sounds like an opportunity." Ian smiled as he stood up and made his way out of the theater's main door, just casually walking out by its people

No one paid attention to him as everyone was either running in to hide or running out to see what was happening.

"I knew it... I felt the sin and darkness of the city rising lately, too many colors mixing together to form a mess... This is the mess?"

He can see it from the east end of the city, in the most central part of Gotham was a massive cloud of fire and dark smoke, "Then the mess needs just a little bit more mixing for there to be darkness, sounds like fun."

Ian started walking back to the Cat's rest until it dawned on him, 'Wait a minute, the mess is a distraction... So many things to take without a sliver of security.'

He picked up his phone and called Ralf, "Listen carefully, gather about ten of the most trusted boys and prepare the radios, and do exactly as I say.

Leave mike to keep control of our territory and keep an eye on barney not to do anything stupid. Do this first as quickly as you can then we'll talk."

Ian then went to his car and started making his way to his own secret personal apartment.

He brought some stuff from and started driving to central Gotham without ever touching the breaks, he seemed to be the only one heading there while the rest of the people were escaping in the opposite direction.

His driving was straight-up suicidal but efficient, leading him to his destination before Ralf's call came.

"W-what do you need us to do?" Even Ralf was nervous because he had never heard so much urgency in Ian's voice.

"Do you remember the heist plan I told you about a month... Yes, we'll be moving it ahead, and by that, I mean now."

"Wait wait, but you said the plan is for like a year later, and it wasn't even a plan, you were just speaking your mind." Ralf was perplexed as the plan was basically a death sentence.

"Trust me and do as I say. Get the guns and the truck and go to the Falcone warehouse in the crime alley, you can handle the situation however you like, this is your chance to shine."

Ian's voice was tranquil and almost hypnotic giving Ralf all the courage he needs.

Ian saw this as more of a test for Ralf, he wanted the egg to hatch. He could see the potential in Ralf, someone who just wants to live life and doesn't necessarily care for death, he still needs just a little step to get over the natural fear of death humans have.

"However, I can't bear to let you take all of that risks, so let me give you a hand," Ian let out a sigh before changing his direction to a place not far away, quite close to central Gotham.

He parked the car right before the door of a huge mansion, put sunglasses on and a wig in his car's glove box. He then exited the car, hearing the mansion guards yelling at him right away.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?! Never mind, Leave right away!" The guards were strict and there were many of them, you either have an appointment with the owner of the house or you don't.

'Hmm, my first kill is kind of to help a friend? Huh...' Ian completely ignored them and just shook his head with a smile.

Just as he was about to pull his gun out and shoot, a gunshot sound reverberate throughout the surroundings, what seemed to be a high caliber round which left a sizeable hole in the guard's head.

"Ok? A sniper?" This was certainly not within his expectations as he looked around while a sequence of sniper shots sounded, making all the guards fall to the ground.

Ian scratched his head for a moment before he just shrugged his shoulders and brought the already prepared grenades from the car, he then threw them at the house.

There was a long silence after all the guards fell to their death and no other gunshots sounded until he was getting into the car.

At the same point, the grenades exploded then a sniper bullet passed right by his head, but he didn't see it nor did he hear it due to the explosion.

The purpose of the grenades was just to attract attention, not just of the mansion owner but also the rest of the police, but especially the attention of the Falcone family for the one who owns it is none other than its leader Carmine Falcone.

'Hmm, someone else is targeting the Falcones? I wonder why they didn't shoot at me though? Oh well, this is better anyway, I guess taking a life is just not destined for me.'

Not far from the mansion on a specific roof were two people, both attired in the same black outfit.

One was standing frozen in his place, he was carrying a sniper in his hands, preparing to put in a briefcase next to him.

His partner was the one who was lying on the ground and seemingly aiming at something.

"Y-you missed?" The standing Assasin questioned with bafflement.

"Y-yeah?" His partner answered, confusion was apparent in his tone.

"How?"

"I don't know? It felt like the explosion distracted me but that has never been a problem before..."

"The head won't be happy about this. At least we have an approximate description of the man. He was definitely not one of the Falcones, but that matters not... Just be ready to accept your punishment."

That didn't deter the partner one bit, his eyes were seemingly emotionless as he's but a tool for killing, "I understand. For now, let's inform the head of this then continued on our next targets."

So many pieces were moving in Gotham, each with their own goals, agendas, all at the same time to the point a few sleeping heroes had to wake up.

"I've been back for just one day and Gotham is already being Gotham," A certain man said before adding, "Bruce might need my help, I guess I need to be his sidekick one last time?"

Another admirer of the bat was already near the massive explosion's location, someone who had worked with him many times, Batgirl.

...

Chapter 18: The Mess

...

Something grand was happening. Strange things were happening throughout the city all at the same time.

The Gotham City police found themselves confused on what to do, too many crimes were happening on the same day.

The new Gotham police commissioner however was quite capable. He's extremely experienced and has been in the force for decades though he only recently attained his current position.

It's commendable for a good-hearted uncorrupt officer to reach such a position in a city like Gotham.

He started by spreading the Pd forces throughout the city but focused more on the most major thing that happened, the massive explosion in central Gotham.

And central Gotham is the place Ian was currently in. His purpose wasn't to get himself into trouble but just to scavenge things.

He noticed many strange incidents and gunshots on the way. It was like the city was dormant, and it has just been awakened, becoming quite lively though not in a good sense.

The center of the events seems to be the building before Ian with most of its top utterly destroyed.

The cops were already surrounding the place though they were staying far away from the building in fear of it falling crumbling down on them.

"Hmm, I guess I have to go cat style," Ian muttered to himself before making his way to an accessible roof of a nearby building and started jumping from roof to roof without alerting anyone.

He entered the building from its backdoor and directly headed to the elevator. He noticed it was already used and it was heading up not down.

He waited and just watched the elevator number change until it stopped on floor 19. He waited for a bit before calling the elevator back and going to the same floor, a mess of a floor.

Most people have already escaped the perimeter but those that are still inside are either dead or close to dying with the exception of a few strange bunches.

The 19 floor was a bit different as it appeared to be a calculated massacre, not by the explosion but by guns and swords.

Ian just had to walk deeper into the floor to discover the individuals behind the dreadful deed.

"Oh, she's here," Ian muttered to himself noticing five people in the hall, catwoman and another girl dressed in a bat suit, a man endowed in a similar black suit with a blue eagle symbol on the chest part, he seems to be Nightwing.

Facing them were three strange individuals, each stranger than the other. A man with a hook for a hand, another wearing some strange black suit with red lines, and some kind of robotic thing?

They noticed him just as he did as they turned their head to him though Nightwing remained vigilant, paying attention to the other enemies before him.

"W-what are you doing here? Did you follow me?" Selina questioned a bit confused.

Batgirl frowned as she eyed him from top to bottom, "You know him? Is he like you?"

Ian assessed the situation, having a sudden realization, "I was curious, so I came here, but it seems that this was a distraction."

Nightwing narrowed his eyes, "What does that mean?" On the other hand, the hook guy frowned and whispered to his partners, "Don't let him leave."

"You know, I'm the master of distraction, so I know exactly how it goes. The cat there will attest to that."

Nightwing questioned, "Can he be trusted?" He asked despite not trusting her either, Selina nodded with a frown.

'So the main thing should be happening somewhere else' Ian thought to himself, finally comprehending the perpetrator's plan or part of it at least.

"Anyway, It seems that you guys are busy, so I'll leave you to it," He then turned around, ready to look for possible opportunities in the middle of chaos.

"You're going nowhere," The enemy with a hook for a hand called hook spoke as he lifted his hand to shoot Ian.

Ian was basically defenseless, and his reaction time was certainly not fast enough to evade it. However, Nightwing was as he also lifted his hand using a small portable grapple gun on it to rescue Ian.

And he did indeed as the grapple gun pulled him into a wall to the side, and he caught Ian on the way, somehow avoiding the bullet. Both were rolling on the ground until they slammed into the wall.

It was however not so easy as Nightwing was unresponsive to the new threat close to him, the robotic enemy Rictus.

Its speed was incredibly fast as it seems to be made solely of metal and advanced technology. Its hands were clenched ready to punch the duo.

Neither cat nor the batgirl was fast enough to do anything, yet they found themselves baffled at the scene before them.

It was the scene of the floor roof falling down on Rictus and even the ground beneath it crumbled.

The fire of the explosion that was devouring the upper floors was the cause despite the convenience of the situation, or at least that was what the people in the hall presumed.

"Ok?" Ian muttered under his breath still not used to how effective his power had become. It was nowhere near this level in his previous world, 'This is the effect of my power, right? If so, doesn't that mean...'

"Thank you but can you let me go now?" Ian said to Nightwing getting the latter out of his bafflement.

He got his bearing back and said, "Leave right now, I'll have a word with you later and cat." Nightwing then started making his way to his opponents ready to act at moment's notice.

"We should deal with this as quickly as possible, Batman might need us." He said to the duo, and then the fight started.

What has happened to Rictus made it much easier for them, giving them an advantage though Nightwing didn't think that'd last for long as that plump of metal wouldn't be so easily solved.

Ian on the other hand seemed to not have heard a word as he was just looking at something in his hand, 'I've used something similar when rock climbing but never one this advance and small, it's quite interesting.'

What was in his hand was Nightwing's grapple gun, he did wonder how it's fallen from Nightwing, it looked like it was tightly attached to his arm, then he used the whatever rule and just ignored the thought.

"Hmm, I wonder how it works?" Ian muttered as he walked to the massive glass windows of the hall, he pulled out his gun whilst ignoring all the ruckus and the ongoing fight right next to him.

He attached the grapple device to his hand, then shot the glass window before him attracting everyone's attention, they even stopped their fight just to see the insanity unfolding before him.

Ian lifted the hand with the grapple device, aiming at the side of the closest building, "Let's see, it should work like this?"

He pressed the button at its center just as a loud shout sounded, "Wait! Stop!" The yell of Nightwing fell to deaf ears as Ian was fully focused on the grapple spurting from the device and flying to its destination, he thought it was cool.

"Ian!?" The anxious and confused shout of Selina woke him from his stupor, "Hmm, Cat? Be safe okay? And see you lateeeeeeer!" His grapple device pulled him right at that moment bringing a long shout from him, one of excitement.

Even the villains in the hall were confused about the suicidal move of the man, grapple guns don't work that way, right?

For him, it does as he was pulled right to the side of the building barely avoiding colliding with it.

The distance the grapple device had to pull him was simply too large for him to remain flying in a straight line, a change happened.

He felt like spiderman, seemingly moving around buildings like a feather as he yelled in excitement.

The grapple device seemed to stop working at some point and Ian was just falling to the grapple tip was still attached to the building and that allowed for something peculiar to happen.

The grapple rope got stuck on a light pole making him circle around it, lowering the gravitational force applied to him until he almost gently fell to the ground.

It all seemed to work out just enough to avoid his death, "Ok? That was..." Ian took a deep breath and stood up.

He then started pressing the grapple buttons until the rope was retracted, "Holy fuck wasn't that exciting though it did hurt a bit? But that's better than all the broken bones I've had to deal with previously."

Ian started observing his surroundings, noticing a peculiar thing not far away, 'Hm? That's...'

...

Chapter 19: The Words

...

Ian started observing his surroundings, noticing a peculiar thing not far away, 'Hm? That's...'

Not that far away was the train tack that passes through central Gotham, a train was passing by at an alarming speed, its destination seemed to be the Wayne corp building.

Ian could see two dark figures that seemed to be fighting, the speed of the train was no obstacle for them. They were but a dark spot in his vision as they were that far away.

He frowned, 'It seems that I'm late. As I thought, this should be the sonic bomb incident... I really wanted to acquire it but... If I am to take advantage of the future chaos in the future, I need to be prepared before it even happens.'

Ian shook his head as he started heading back home, disappointment was apparent on his face, 'I really wanted it, I also wanted the batmobile, it's so cool... Too bad, I'm sure the bat had many security measures in it anyway. At least the jump was cool.'

He then called Ralf and asked, "How did it go?"

"I-it was easy? There were only a few guards there, and we caught them by surprise. We're almost done transferring everything, but..." Ralf's tone was a bit shaky as if he had yet to get his wits back from what he had just experienced.

"But what?"

"We lost someone. He was shot down by one of the guards after hesitating in following the plan. The other ones had no problem killing people, but he did... and I didn't notice." Ralf muttered under his breath, seemingly in regret.

Ian heard everything, so he offered his wisdom, "You did well, but you made a mistake. Just make sure to never do it again.

We have set sight on a position that forces that on us, but know that if you so wish to pull out, just let me know.

Never be afraid of letting me know how you feel, and you yourself make sure this is what you truly want. Let the boys know of that as well.

I don't want to see you guys regretting this in the future just because you've not thought it through, alright?"

It's not like Ian has no compassion, he does, he just finds it hard to show it under his numb emotions. Moreover, he never saw death as a problem, it's what it is, the natural flow of things.

Death was never a fear of his, if it happens then whatever. He was however looking forward to a change of perspective, perhaps it will happen in a world such as this.

"No, I already decided, I want to be a part of this," Ralf responded almost instantly with determination in his tone.

That brought a smile to Ian's face, "OK, let's met up in the coffee garage. That's the safest place for us,"

Ian made his way to his car under the radar of cops and made his way back to the coffee.

He noticed plenty of people circling around it, each one of them is one of the former beggars now protecting the area, their home.

The coffee was open as always, it was pretty much safe heaven for the Olster street's people. Nothing bad ever happens around it.

That was why there were so many people inside, taking sips of their coffee with no care whatsoever though everyone was still paying attention to the coffee TV for the news.

Ian then made his way to the garage, it was quite large. Ian made sure to destroy a few walls in the renovation process to make it bigger, and within was a simple white truck.

The boys were also inside, Barney was sitting on the ground just staring at the insides of the truck and mike was next to him.

Ian glanced at Ralf, noticing a bit more life in him and perhaps more determination. He nodded at him before taking a look at the things in the truck.

"Guns, Cash, bombs, and... Narcotics." Ian frowned as he spilled the last word.

"And we found this in a safe," Ralf said as he handed him a black pouch.

"Oh? Is that what I think it is?" Ian took it into his hands and clearly felt those little things inside bringing a smile to his face.

He opened the pouch and poured a bit of the thing inside on his hand, "A waterfall of crystals, beautiful little things."

Ian remarked as almost ten tiny diamonds fell to his hand and there were more where that came from, "The quality is subpar I guess but the quantity makes up for that."

He then just shook his head and put the things back in the pouch, "Who am I to complain, I only spent little to nothing to get them... And boys, well done."

Ian then glanced at Barney, "Are you okay?"

Barney who seemed in a daze woke up and mumbled, "Yeah, I'm fine. However, we have so many things, like I'm in disbelief of how far we've come..."

Ian raised his brows at that, he meant something else when he asked the question, "I meant are mentally okay, do you want to stop. I can assign different jobs for you where you'll never have to use a firearm."

"What? No, I want to help as much as I can and go as far as you go for the jobs,"

Barney instantly shook his head as he stood up, this seemed to have become his passion, and Ian didn't think he would be able to do anything else more than this from the look in his eyes.

Ralf voices his observations, "It's okay, he took it even better than me."

Ian let out a small laugh, brought a single diamond from the pouch, and threw it to Barney while saying.

"That's the Barney I know, and for that, you deserve this. Don't worry, it won't be counted in the final cut, so enjoy,"

Barney barely caught the diamond and just stared at it afterward, Ralf didn't let him get anywhere close to them beforehand, so the opportunity to hold it in his hands was... "I-i can really have it?"

Ian nodded, leaving him to his celebration. He turned his attention to the absurd amount of drugs in the truck, "Now let's get rid of these, burn them in their entirety,"

"What!? Why? We don't even need to distribute them ourselves, we can just sell them to someone else."

Mike couldn't help but voice his opinion, then added. "This is so much free money for all of us! It's what every crime family in the city does!"

Ian remained just as calm as gave a gentle genuine reason, "I don't want, I don't like drugs or anything that takes one's free will. It can be as simple as that, money doesn't really matter that much."

Mike however didn't really see the genuineness in his tone, "What? We stole and did so many things, so why stop in this? Moreover, do we have no say in this? I can even manage the whole project myself."

Ian turned his full attention to Mike, staring at him with his pale brown eyes, calmness never leaving his eyes.

He kept at it for a full minute making not only Mike nervous but also everyone else. Mike started to realize that perhaps he overstepped his bounds, perhaps the desire for money got to him, something common in Gotham.

"No." After a while, Ian finally started making Mike confused, "No what?"

Ian released a sigh, he wasn't really staring at Mike but just zoned out contemplating a few things.

"No, you have no say in this, not one bit. I will not change my mind and everything you all wish to do under the name of Cat's rest will have to go through me.

I can trust Ralf to make the right decision most of the time, but you two... not at all. You disappoint me Mike, even Barney who we all know is Barney didn't let all of this get over his head.

Do you know what happens when you let greed control you without having the ability to bear the consequences? You simply die, cease to exist, a single bullet is all it takes."

Ian approached the timid Mike and continued, "Whose bullet you might say? Crime families, the heroes who kill. The moment you put yourself in that position, you accept the consequences.

Do you think a family like the Falcone won't be able to trace their stolen drugs if they're out on the street, do you take a family that ruled Gotham for decades for a joke?"

Ian took a deep breath, "I lost myself there for a second. but that all doesn't really matter, what matters is that I don't want to do it thus it won't happen."

He took one last glance at the shaky Mike, giving him one last chance, "Get yourself back together. Letting your desires control you is rarely a good thing."

'An advice I do not abide by but I have that luxury, not everyone does,' He thought to himself.

Ian then started walking away, "Ralf, follow me, we have a few things to discuss." He went on to set up a plan with Ralf, a major one that'll decide the future of the Cat's rest.

...

Chapter 20: The Mind Of The Deathless

...

"Why?" Ian asked confused, his left cheek was kind of red as if he had just been slapped.

Before him stood the seemingly angry Selina who seemed to be getting madder by the second, "Why you say?! I am the one who should be asking that question! So tell me why?"

Ian raised his brows, "Could it be that you're talking about what happened yesterday? I was just curious, so I did what I did,"

"Curiosity you say? Hahaha, how are you so clueless," Selina was fuming which made Ian confused until she added, "Was it also curiosity that made you jump to your death, or do you just wish to die?!"

"Oh? You were talking about that, yeah kind of. I just wanted to try the device and see what'll hap..." His casual response drove her mad to the point that she tried to slap him again.

He was however prepared as he jump backward barely evading the nimble cat's reach, "You're avoiding me now huh!?"

Her madness was certainly unexpected for him, 'What the fuck is happening? Is she mad because I might've died? Was it that big of a deal?'

She still tried to slap him again, and he started to see the worry, anger, and fear in her eyes, his common sense wasn't that broken after all.

He just approached her instead of moving backward which caught Selina by surprise, he pulled her to a hug, a tight one not allowing her to do much anymore.

"Calm down please, I'm sorry alright?" He hugged her tightly and started caressing her hair gently.

She tried to hit him again with her hand but his hold on her was simply too tight, so she just let it go and rested her head on his chest, "I'm sorry, I don't know what got over me,"

'Death is so scary to normal people? It appeared to be something she hates and fears.

I guess my numbness to death has gotten to such a degree that I never see it as a problem even if the people close to me die... I always knew that this isn't normal, so what am I? Where did my gift come from?'

He set aside his contemplation and just focused on her, "No, it's my fault. We've become so close yet I'm still so insensitive. I didn't think about how you'd feel at all... I guess I can tell you, you will figure it out sometime in the future anyway."

"Tell me what?" Selina softly asked.

Ian took her hand and started leading her somewhere, "Just follow me, I will show you."

He led her to his car while avoiding the prying eyes of people. He then started driving in a certain direction, all in silence.

He stopped right as Selina regained some of her calmness. His goal was the top of a building right next to the Gotham museum of antiques.

"W-what are we doing here?" She wondered, a bit confused though a possibility did surface in her mind.

Ian said nothing as he pulled her with him to the edge of the roof, 'Come to think of it, this is the first time I told anyone about my power.

Wait, what if I tell someone extremely dangerous and smart to find a way to kill me? That sounds so entertaining, who should I hire? It'd have to be a villain,'

He tried his best to keep calmness on his face as he got lost in his thoughts, 'Darkseid should be able to do it right? What if I stay on a planet and he destroys it? What'll happen?'

It was like the opening of an entirely new universe to him as if he has opened his third, fourth, and fifth eye, so many possibilities and infinite years with little to no boredom just exploring the extent of his gift.

Talk about being insensitive, 'I am not really being insensitive right? I mean I can't die, so it doesn't really matter. Even if there is something that can kill me... I will just think about it then if I can after death.'

Ian convinced himself that he was actually not fucked in the head and turned his attention to Selina, "You must've noticed some irregularities around me by now, didn't you? Just assume that they weren't due to luck and you should understand,"

Selina frowned, noticing the seriousness in his eyes, and truly thought things through.

"Your plans are always dangerous and could lead to your death? Isn't that just because you get off in dangerous situations? Unless you're talking about how It felt when we kiss... Nevermind."

She thought about it so much that she almost slipped it out but Ian caught that anyway, he just ignored the apparent blush on her face and asked, "Oh? How did you feel when we kissed?"

Selina became even more embarrassed as she stuttered, "I-I said Nevermind! okay?"

"No, I really want to know, it's important. Did you feel weak? Like you're going to pass out?" Ian emphasized that quite a bit, his face still just as serious.

"Y-yeah, I felt weak... It was strange to the point I thought you drugged me or something, but I would've smelled it if you did, so I didn't think much about it,"

As she spoke, her embarrassment started fading as she had a clear picture of what he was insinuating, "I witnessed a few supernatural events, and even fought some with Batman long ago... Could it be?"

Ian's thought process was on another point, "You felt weak just from a kiss? It was nowhere near that bad before, so I've never worried about it, but now...

What if I was absorbing your life force? That would explain why you felt weak, but that doesn't explain why it happens only when I am in intimate situations..."

His unending mumbling got to Selina's nerves as she shook him out of his thoughts, "Please calm down and explain,"

She also stopped him because of embarrassment, she simply couldn't find it in herself to tell him that she felt that weak because of how good it felt, too good for it to be normal.

Ian was still frowning, the thought of him actually absorbing the lifeforce of women he's intimate with is certainly not appealing.

"I was never really trying to hide it, so I thought you would've figured out something by now.

You remember how I just ran out of this museum under the rain of bullets yet I was intact. Think back on how dangerous are the jobs we did were under my planning yet we always succeed."

Selina nodded, she indeed found those things strange but never gave them much thought. Luck was one of the most important factors for criminals, one they don't actively think of but wish for.

She also knew she wasn't much of a planner, so his plans always sounded good to her, and since they worked, she never really doubted them.

"Indeed, there seems to be a lot of people like me in the world, so it's not that strange, but my gift is a bit special.

My plans have always been under one rule, make a plan as dangerous as possible to the point of certain death for me, and my gift always does its job and reverse that to a certain extent... My gift simply allows me to resist death though I've come to understand that it's much more than that."

"I see, that's why things are always strange when you're under dangerous circumstances, and you brought me here to show me how it works by jumping off the building, right?" Selina stated with a frown.

"Exactly, can you imagine what'd happen if I jumped off the building? What miraculous thing will occur to resist death," Ian was amused just imagining that.

"Don't do it, and I don't want to imagine." She spoke, annoyance was apparent in her tone.

"Why? I just told you that I can't die." Ian was genuinely confused.

"What if someday your gift fails to work? What if you die? How do you think the people who care about you will feel?" Selina was understandably quite worked out.

Despite all he said, the possibility of death was her only focus, "If you wish to live your life like this, a step away from the gates of death, then why are you getting close to people?! why drive them to care for you thus fear your death?!"

She was almost shaking with emotions. This was certainly not how Ian pictured it'd go, "I... I need to calm down..." Then she just walked away.

Ian didn't stop her, he just took a seat on the edge of the roof, too much into the edge.

He could see very few cars coming and going even under the night sky as he murmured, "Except I never tried to get close to anyone from the start, things just happen because I can never act in a way that I am not..."

Ian closed his eyes as he rested on the edge, thinking of something actually serious.

'If I actually absorb the life force of those I come in contact with, then that'd be a problem, especially with how effective my gift has become after my arrival here, I should keep my distance and perhaps always have gloves on.'

He opened his eyes after a while, and eyed the massive distance from where he is to the ground, feeling not a sliver of fear, "I simply can't resist... Perhaps I am insane."

And then he simply moved just a tiny bit starting a free fall that'd certainly lead to certain death... For a normal person that is.