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Chapter 66: The Mystery Of Ian Rose I

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In a very discreet location, an underground location, one could hear the yells of people. The place was extremely secure, with hundreds of guards surrounding the area.

The underground banker was also quite tough, almost like a vault. This amount of protection was necessary due to the recent circumstances.

"What do you mean by we can't take the territory now?!" One of the men seated around the round table spoke with a bit of sternness.

"Is it so hard to understand? We won't take the risk until we find out what's happening." Taking the leading seat of the room was Carmine as he spoke with an even more stern tone.

"Why?! Is it because of that rat? What can he do?" Another questioned though this time, someone else other than Carmine responded.

"I think it's because of Dragos, right? If so, then I agree. We have to find out how he died before we do anything."

Carmine nodded, appreciating the man's understanding, "Indeed. The reason is the Ibanescu massacre. I was already cautious of what the Roses might be planning, and what happened recently mad..."

"The Ibanescus are a bunch of trash anyway. You wouldn't think that it'd be so easy to exterminate us right?"

A crime lord pointed out, and another shook his head, adding, "I don't think you understood what he was insinuating. You people stop being so childish and remember why we started the attack against the Roses."

Carmine continued on his behalf, "We started it because we received information about Ian's collaboration with Batman, and his betrayal by starting the war between the Russians and the Cartels... It all makes sense as Batman and his children interfered at the right moment to bring down the two families."

Carmine frowned, having a headache, not a rare thing since Batman's appearance.

"Now, have you all wondered who delivered the information to us? Who? Why? How? These are all questions we have yet to answer. There must be some kind of ploy to bring us all down... Someone is definitely using us to destroy the Roses, and who knows, they might even target us after."

The crime lords remained silent for a while, finding themselves in a predicament. The entire east end of the Gotham is right there for taking, a large tasty pie, yet they can't take even a single bit from it.

"So the east end is a trap... I still don't understand. What's the point? Just why?"

Carmine shook his head while messaging his head, "I don't get it either, but I will certainly not risk my life to find out. If any of you is willing to take the risk then you're welcome to try though it's better if we remain united."

A depressing atmosphere overwhelmed the room as everyone remained silent, each with their worries. The crime lords, the people who rule the underground of the city, and the darkness of the slums found themselves in such a confusing mess of a dilemma.

They all shared one thing, and that was depression, rising their hatred of its source... Batman. Indeed, it might be unintentional, but Ian threw all the hatred on Batman. It didn't occur to them that maybe Ian was the one to initiate the collaboration as that doesn't make sense to them.

Then again, Batman was on their back for years, making their life worse by the day, and driving them nuts. The most Ian can be is batman's dog in their eyes. After all, how could the latter allow a criminal to run wild? He must be controlling him somehow to bring them down.

Ian must be his dog, right? Well, he begs the difference, "This should be wild... I am very much looking forward to how this will look on camera, perhaps a storytime for my future kids? Hahaha,"

Ian let out a chuckle before looking down at the city. Indeed, he was on a helicopter acquired through charity, and beneath him was Gotham. From such a height, it looks peaceful but dark in many areas.

At some point, the government stopped funding Gotham's light infrastructure, specifically the lamps in the streets. They get destroyed in no time anyway, so what's the point?

Ian had a parachute pack on his back. He was seated at the very edge of the helicopter with the door open, quite the dangerous thing despite his preparations.

He was unnaturally calm as he brought out his phone and remarked, "Yeah, this should be perfect. If not, then I'll have to use the parachute earlier than expected I guess?"

Ian turned his head to the nervous pilot and spoke, "It's perfect right here. Don't move until it's time and remember what IIII TOooold youuuu..." He jumped.

Or he allowed gravity to call him forth as he screamed in his excitement, "Let's Goooo! I missed this soo much!" He's quite the adventurous type, so this was naturally not his first time skydiving though it's his first time in a long time, a year to be specific.

He fell through the air like a maniac, screaming and moving around to the best of his ability. The helicopter was quite high up, so he had plenty of time before he face any barrier that can stop gravity's call.

"Trigon! I am finally gonna use you! Aren't you happyyy?" This was among the nonsense he was blurting out while appreciating the view. He always found such experiences to be strangely exciting yet peaceful at the same time.

It was too noisy for him to even hear his own voice due to the driving speed, yet he felt unrestrained, like all of his nonexistent worries ceased to exist, like his nonexistent fears disappeared, such a wonderful paradox he was... He made no sense.

'Now, let's focus.' Ian knows when to mess around and when to focus... Sometimes, and this is one of those times as he used his experience in skydiving to control his destination.

It was as simple as moving his arms and legs to control where he wants to move, all due to the air friction. He kept his body arched and slightly moved his arms or legs to either move forwards, backward, or turn sideways until he saw his destination approximately below him.

He accelerated his speed by pointing his head to the ground and streamlining everything else, making him dive at a remarkable speed until he reached a distance he deemed appropriate, then he slowed down.

He didn't open his parachute yet despite approaching the ground quickly. Instead, he muttered as a scroll appeared in his hand, "Devil's Breath."

Ian opened the scroll quickly lest the air friction pushes it out of his hands, and opening it was all it took to declare all the laws of the universe around invalid.

There was no air friction anymore. In fact, he stopped entirely in the middle of the air, seemingly frozen in time. However, a wide smile surfaced on his face as the scene below him reflected on his gorgeous pale brown eyes.

A scene to be remembered by the people of Gotham and even the world for years to come. An incident that shall be called the breath of salvation, a stark contrast to what Ian named it.

Who thought two names of opposite significance would be given to the same spectacle. Whereas Ian saw it as the Devil's breath, others saw it as the breath of salvation for a very simple reason... it evaporated the crime lords from existence down to their very molecule level.

From the darkness of the night spurted a small sparkle, a fire that shone brightly. It was the symbol of initiating as a stream of flames followed after it, bursting into a magnificence of fireworks.

It was almost like someone blew a breath on the crimson fire, a breath of gorgeous flames that lit up the entire night sky of the city. A light never seen before nor expected in a city such as Gotham.

Even within light, there was darkness. This rule held true for the breath of salvation as one can clearly glimpse what looks like dark specks of corruption in its every part, mending together to form lines of beauty... Ah, how light and dark came together to form such stunning scenery.

"So lovely..." Ian muttered under his breath as the breath of salvation came crashing down upon the infrastructure far below him, traveling a distance of more than three hundred meters to swallow his target.

The breath of salvation didn't stop as it dived into the depths of the ground, devouring the banker that lies beneath as well as the hundreds of lives around, all of the crime families.

Ian got his wits back quickly and closed the scroll, using as much force as he could. Only he knows how hard it is to control the scroll. It's a fucking menace though it does seem to obey him quite a bit.

He noted how the scroll dimmed quite a bit, but it was within his expectation. It wasn't the first time he used it after all, or more like, it was activated on its own once all the scroll pieces were assembled in one place.

He teleported the scroll to his ring, and just as he started falling down again, he opened the parachute and started adjusting it to fly to his destination, and while doing so, he pulled out his phone and sent a message.

What happened next, however, was not within his expectation as a gunshot sounded...

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Chapter 67: The Mystery Of Ian Rose II

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What happened next, however, was not within his expectation as a gunshot sounded. Ian could swear he felt the bullet pass right by his air, and it even gently brushed his skin before going through the parachute wing.

'Wahh, I am gonna fall... Was someone waiting for me? It's more likely that they were targeting the crime lords, but I interfered though it's commendable for someone to target me despite seeing the spectacle I just made... What a heretic.

Ian shrugged his shoulds as he tried to take back control of the parachute. A single bullet wasn't enough to bring down the wing, and the attacker seemed to know that as he continued to fire.

His target wasn't the wings, but Ian, yet each of his bullets missed, and instead went through the wings, all due to Ian messing around with the parachute controls.

"Hahaha," Ian couldn't help but let out a small laugh as his falling speed increased, "Well, this is gonna be fun!" Whereas others would've been frightened by the unexpected, Ian embraced it and pushed it even further as he randomly pulled and moved the control strings of the parachute.

At one point in time, his surroundings became a blur, all he saw is the constantly changing scenery before it all came to halt. Ian felt an enormous push on his abdomen.

The sudden halt caused him a bit of pain as he found himself dangling from what looked like a high lamp. The parachute wing was stuck on the lamp while he was hanging in the air.

"Agh, you win some you lose some I guess..." Ian mumbled as he got his bearing. He was a bit dizzy due to the chaotic movement before, so it took him a few seconds to regain his clear thoughtfulness.

He looked around, specifically beneath it him then around him. He found the destruction left behind by the devil's breath right beside him. A very large hole, seemingly the aftereffect of a fallen meteor.

"Wow, I should do this more often... No, I should get better things," Ian was hooked, and there is no saving him just like there is no saving those better things from his grasp.

"Anyway..." Ian mumbled as he reached out to the parachute belt and unhooked it, allowing him to fall to the ground. It was only a distance of a few meters, so nothing too dangerous.

However, another gunshot sound. The bullet traveled through the air with its target being Ian's head. An opposite force took effect, it was called gravity as it pulled Ian down to the ground, making the bullet gently brush his hair and miss.

"Oh? Ok?" Ian looked around in confusion, "Well, now I am curious about who could be so bad."

He didn't have to look for long as the attacker started making his way to him, making Ian raise his brows in understanding, 'I see, so he's so good that his every bullet would've been an instant kill. My power had to take effect.'

His attacker was wearing what looked like an advanced battle suit. The mesh suit was mostly black with a few parts painted in orange. The most prominent of which was his mask, half of it was painted in dull orange.

He had a sniper rifle in his hands, and on his back were two dark swords. Lastly, he had two handguns on his belt.

"Why are you coming close?" Ian asked, genuinely confused. Why not keep the distance advantage and snipe him from afar?

"Deathstroke." His opponent spoke but didn't seem to have any intention of expanding upon that or saying anything else. Instead, he threw his sniper to the side and pulled out his two swords.

"I see... You're ashamed because of how bad you are. I can't relate, but I shall grant you the duel you desire." Ian turned the situation into a show as he elegantly bowed before straightening his stance.

That simple bow made Ian miss something he shouldn't have... The voidness of logic as Deathstroke's mask twitched. Indeed, his face twitched to such a degree that it messed up the dimensions of his mask.

Ian let out a long breath as he also started approaching Deathstroke. He gently lifted his hands as he spoke, "This should be fun, so I will give you a chance... Unless of course you quickly knock me out. In which case, I am fucked, Hahahahaha... Anyway."

If what happened before wasn't enough to startle Deathstroke, then this did as a long silver sword materialized in Ian's right hand, and in his left hand appeared a handgun.

Ian clenched the handle of the Kryptonian sword. It was a bit too bulky for a long sword, and it had a hole-like slit on one of its edges.

He really wanted to test his fighting style. He wanted to since long ago, but he couldn't since it was too dangerous, not for him but for his opponents.

He took a very deep breath and entered a state of deep focus in remembrance of all the lessons he learned from Richard Dragon, and there wasn't a day where he missed training.

Ian focused on the most brutal and dealy of fighting styles and combined them to form a primary version of his fighting style.

It happened in almost an instant. They found their swords clashing, both were made of formidable materials, so not a dent was left on either.

While Ian has yet to step on the peak human level, he wasn't far off, largely due to his peculiarity as when he transfers his life force to Selina, he somehow finds himself more energetic, and his body began developing at an abnormal rate.

The monster before him however was something else as Ian felt his hand going numb by the impact though that didn't stop him from pulling the trigger of his gun only for Deathstroke to jump aside at an astonishing speed.

Ian had to be ready for the impact as Deathstroke performed a full-circle turn and used all the accumulated force on the attack forcing Ian to guard with his sword though he didn't try to face the impact head-on but allowed it to send him back, and he even jumped with the force before stabilizing himself a few meters back.

"Weaker than I anticipated," Deathstroke remarked. The first clash was no more than a test to see through his opponent.

'He surpasses me in speed by far, and also in power, endurance also perhaps? And I bet he's a better fighter than me by far. How am I out to defeat such a monster?'

Ian let out a chuckle as he started unloading his gun on him, just to prove a hypothesis of his. Indeed, Deathstroke just started approaching him while avoiding some of the bullets and letting others hit his armor.

'Well well well, what do we have here, even his armor is bulletproof,' Ian's expression, however, showed his fearlessness, or perhaps he had nothing to be afraid of as he threw the gun into the dark Rose and held the sword with both hands.

Ian's clothes on the other hand had an armor rating of Zero. Simple black sweater and tight black pants, allowing him to move freely. He wore light combat boots and a crimson mask.

He took a deep breath before leaping at Deathstroke while swinging the Kryptonian sword. His opponent took a gentle step back while guiding one of his swords alongside Ian's to change its destination.

His other sword was coming down on Ian with enormous force and speed... This is where things started to get weird. Ian allowed his sword to be guided aside and used that force to swing around, bringing his sharp sword towards Deathstroke's neck.

Of course, the sword didn't have enough time to reach its destination as Deathstroke's was almost at Ian's head, and the latter gladly situated his head in its way, just to make sure it can instantly kill him.

"Hmm?" Deathstroke was confused as he stopped his attack mere inches from Ian's head, and tried to pull back his swords to block Ian's blade while leaping backward, and he succeeded to a certain extent as all the damage he received was a deep cut on his armor.

A gentle smile surfaced on Ian's face as he traced his fingers along his silver sword, "Hmm, you're serving me well though I am still not used to your weight."

The Kryptonian sword is quite heavy and it took Ian a while to get used to it. It also didn't suit his style as he preferred light blades like Katanas, but one of Iron wouldn't have been to leave even a scratch on Deathstroke's armor.

"Why? Do you seek death?" Deathstroke found himself breaking his own code. He was speaking with who he assumed to be his target way too much, and he was okay with that.

Ian took his eyes off his sword and eyed the killing machine before him, "I can not die. I am just having fun, I am living thus I am alive, so how can I die? How can death welcome me in its embrace?

You must not understand the difference between the living dead, and the dead. The latter is not true death while the former are people you see every day that are dead.

They fear death, unaware that they're already dead, yet they wonder why I see death as nothing? People die long before their death, but I can not die because I am living, and the moment I stop living, I will gladly give my life away if I can."

Ian let out a breath, and spoke from the depths of his heart only to hear a kind of predictable response, "I see, you're insane..." Ian shook his head at that, "I am, but that doesn't make what I said any less true... You just don't understand."

Only Ian understood the meaning of those words, ones he believes and perhaps he sees himself experiencing, "Anyway..."

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Chapter 68: The Mystery Of Ian Rose III

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Only Ian understood the meaning of those words, ones he believes and perhaps he sees himself experiencing, "Anyway..."

Ian again leaped forwards while swinging his sword sideways. Deathstroke showed his exquisite fighting style as he turned one of his swords sideways, and let it block the incoming attack, using it as a barrier while attacking with his other sword.

His blocking sword was able to handle the impact as he was leaning on it. In fact, he even used the force of the impact to make his strike even stronger as his sword traveled through the air, almost reaching Ian's head, and the latter made sure it will kill him, again.

Yet just as the sword was a few inches away from his head, Deathstroke moved the sword aside, leaving but a tiny cut on Ian's cheek. The latter was deep in his own illusionary world, uncaring about his opponent's actions but using them against him at the same time.

The Kryptonian sword found itself slashing against Deathstroking's leg before the latter jumped away only for Ian to follow with a stab to his abdomen.

"Hesitation is defeat, but the opposite is death," Ian murmured under his breath. It's a rule that applies only to him. His uniqueness was making Deathstroke more confused by the second.

However, someone as experienced as him wouldn't let confusion get to him as he barely evaded Ian's stab. His quick mind allowed him to plan out his next few moves, and he even tried to predict Ian's next course of action.

Ian however is Ian, so as all things should be, he jumped toward Deathstroke's swords in sought of death while swinging his blade, his target being the opponent's abdomen.

Ian's exaggerated peculiar actions made Deathstroke even more paranoid, not knowing Ian's purpose with all of this though he did make a few assumptions.

He wasn't foreign to supernatural things. In fact, he was a supernatural human himself with plenty of abilities that helped him be who he is today. He wondered if Ian was the same, and if so, what will happen if he doesn't stop his deadly attacks? If he kills Ian?

He wasn't ready to find out as all his attack did was leave a mild wound on Ian's shoulder while the latter left a tiny cut on Deathstroke's stomach. Indeed, his attack was strong enough to go through the Assassin's armor.

"How long has it been..." Deathstroke murmured as he eyed the wound. It has certainly been a while since he was wounded, a small one but a wound nonetheless. He understood then and there that he can't stay so passive.

'What if I cripple him? Or perhaps knock him out?' He got to testing his theory right away as he went all out into an exquisite dance with Ian. The latter was mainly defending. In fact, it was as if he predicted Deathstroke's purpose, and got into a defensive stance.

The assassin's speed became way too fast, forcing Ian to be as efficient as possible, doing the least to get the most, so as Deathstroke leaped behind him with his swords slashing towards both of his arms, all Ian had to do was to make sure his head was in the way of the swords.

He did very little to evade the attacks and more to make them deadly, but he didn't allow himself to be incapacitated, else he will have to use an alternative way he doesn't want to use.

The clash ended up with another mild wound on Ian and another on Deathstroke. It happened again and again, and Deathstroke was having a headache about how to deal with him. It was obvious to him that the manic before him had trained to get himself killed to perfection.

How was one out to deal with an abomination such as Ian? It did occur to him that perhaps he was bluffing but who would be crazy enough to do such a thing?

There came a point, however, when Deathstroke found his patience running out. He felt and looked at Ian's blade slashing at his stomach in the place where the armor was already damaged, allowing his attack to go deep.

"Aghh," Ian leaped back before putting his right hand on his left arm, feeling blood slowly pour out of a deep wound, "Well, it hurts. I am still not used to resisting pain, but you..."

Remaining silent while experiencing pain was hard to do, but he got his bearing back very quickly. Deathstroke on the other hand didn't speak a word. Instead, he just eyed his wound before staring at Ian with a cruel cold look.

His leg muscles contracted as he lowered his stance, and Ian was barely able to slash his sword downwards at the assassin. It was all like an exquisite dance as Deathstroke swiftly maneuvered to the side.

The handle of his left sword found itself hitting Ian's sword, trying to break his balance while his other sword was already near Ian's neck. A few inches was the distance from his decapitation, and it was but a split second away.

He was truly going for the kill. His eyes gazed at his blade already imagining Ian's head flying in the air. Just when he was starting to believe that Ian was bluffing, he felt a sudden force pushing him down, a weight falling on him with such a force it put him to the ground.

Deathstroke was confused, but he still reacted quickly and tried to push it off and leap back. The lamp was what fell on him, and before he can avoid it, Ian's sword found itself nailed to his waist as he tried to push it deeper.

That got Deathstroke's Ire. He didn't lose his calm but used one of the swords in his hands to his advantage without letting the pain get over his head.

Ian was forced to jump back to evade the sword strikes aiming at his arms though what followed is the sword following him with surprising force and leaving a massive injury on his left arm. It would've been worse if he didn't evade.

"I see..." Deathstroke muttered as he stood up, blood was flowing down like a river from his stomach. He should be unconscious or even dead by now, yet here he is, standing strong. In fact, he looked more intimidating than ever.

Ian was about to face hell as his fighting style and reaction time were being tested to the limit, yet despite his best efforts, he still found himself filled with small wounds.

However, he preserved until an opportunity was within sight. Just as his left arm was wounded, minimizing his fighting abilities, Deathstroke was also wounded more severely though it didn't hinder him as much, but that allowed Ian to deliver a few blows.

Finally, Ian got his desire. He aligned Deathstroke's attack with his head, making it dealy while stabbing towards the latter's stomach again.

Unexpectedly, Deathstroke allowed Ian to stab him as the force of the stab stopped him from killing Ian. What happened before certainly made it clear that deadly attacks aren't an option, so all he wanted was to knock Ian out.

He was close enough to hit Ian in the head with the sword handle, and he cared not for the horrifying spectacle that is his abdomen.

"It's either Death Or Defeat. You chose the latter, but what is the difference really." Ian muttered as he tapped the button on the Kryptonian sword, making Deathstroke's eyes go wide.

The slit at the edge of the sword lit up. The sword was not just a sword but also a cannon, and this was only the second time Ian used it due to the unavailability of Kryptonian ammo.

From within the slit spurted a bright light, an orange laser that expanded, almost erasing Deathstroke's entire waist from existence... "Wha?"

Deathstroke didn't respond. He just fell to the ground, completely motionless.

Ian fell to his knees, barely able to hold himself up with ragged breaths. He looked like a mess with blood dripping from every part of his body. He felt weak, and pain finally caught up to him.

"That was entertaining... So much fun. However, I have to leave." Ian stood up and started stumbling his steps to the vehicle he already prepared not far away.

He could already hear the sirens of the police, but it didn't matter much to him. He was still far behind schedule, but he can't exactly predict everything, but he had enough reaction time to react to the sound of electricity behind him as he leaped forward.

"It's definitely you again... Just what have you done?" It was Nightwing. He already had his batons in his hands, and he seemed to have learned from his past mistakes as he directly attacked Ian again. His purpose was to knock him out, then he can ask questions later.

"God no," Ian shook his head, exhaustion was apparent on his face. He might've wanted to test himself against him in different circumstances, but the current ones don't allow it.

Nightwing however was unlucky as he found himself sent away like a ball until he collided with a building not far away and passed out.

Ian eyed the things responsible for the feat, massive green vines. Their next target was Ian as they gently approached him. He just let out a gentle smile and rested himself on them, "Thank you, sweetheart. I will go to sleep now, alright?" And that he did...

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Chapter 69: The Mystery Of Ian Rose IV

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"Just what are you? Why do I..." Those were questions Ivy often wondered about. She has slowly come to understand her feelings and perhaps obsession.

It all started long ago, She was a botanist, a genius in the field. She was born in Washington, the only child of a wealthy family. She attended college in Seattle, where she studied botany.

Pamela Isely was her name. She fell in love with Marc Legrand, one of her teachers and they started a relationship.

Eventually, Pamela stole some special herbs from a local museum to help Legrand with some experiments, but he betrayed and poisoned her using the same herbs she had stolen for him.

Pamela survived the poisoning and as a result, she became invulnerable to all poisons. Not just that, she gained plenty of nature-related abilities.

She was already fascinated by plants, and her powers made it even more so. In fact, her fascination with plants entered the realm of obsession.

"I saw it all, how humans defiled and tainted the purity of nature. They're demons on earth... Except for him." Hatred of all humans erupted within her, especially of men.

As much as she'd like to think that she's an entirely different person from who she once was, she still has Pamela within her, she still remembers that man's betrayal.

Since she became like this, she never once saw what she was doing now as a possibility. She didn't imagine even something close happening at all.

She was seated on her knees in the middle of what looked like a flower constructed by soft vines.

Her attire was the same as usual, consisting of a dark green corseted top, a light green pair of tights, and matching green gloves and boots.

Her enchanting red hair was in stark contrast to her green clothes as it fell right to her waist, silky, soft, and pure like nature.

She made sure it was all cozy for the person sleeping peacefully on her thighs. His head was resting on her soft plump thighs, and the rest of his body was also comfortably situated though the only thing he was wearing was his underwear.

She was caressing his hair, his cheeks, and trailing her fingers along his face with surprising gentleness. Her lips were trembling as she gazed at his wounds though surprisingly, they were healing at an alarming rate.

"How did it come down to this? Just what am I doing?" Ivy wondered as hesitation was apparent all over her. She discovered that touching him somehow accelerates his healing rate which didn't make sense to her as she absorbs his life force when doing so.

"What should I do? He must have something like infinite life force, else he wouldn't have been able to survive till now, but I'm not sure..."

She gazed at the numerous wounds all over his body and simply couldn't bear it, so she willed her clothes to retreat, leaving her naked.

She gulped before lying next to him, "This is just returning the favor, nothing more... And I need your power, that's it." She convinced herself as she came closer to him and made as much skin contact as possible, sticking to him like a koala.

"This is not the first time anyway..." Indeed, her obsession started for the first time, an obsession even deeper than that of her obsession with nature, or perhaps it's related to that. Perhaps she perceived him to be something else than a human, a higher being.

He was a mystery that stumbled into her life. She had just been going on with her pure plans of exterminating the entirety of humanity through some kind of Toxin.

She had been experimenting with a bunch of botanists under her mind control when one of her tests went awry, destroying the entire facility, and she received the most backlash as she was closest to it.

She remembers the shock she was in when she opened her eyes again as before her was a handsome man. The fact that she found him handsome and as pretty as her favorite type of Roses was alarming.

The Victor Hugo Rose, a gorgeous type of Rose that blooms from spring through fall. It's known for its captivating deep red color. She however still did not understand how the word 'Pretty' synchronized with him in her mind, but she will come to understand it in the future.

She remembered how long she took to process what was happening, and the fact that she felt no disgust from her close contact with him. She was naked and basically lying in his embrace.

Her natural instinct was to kill, yet her power failed her. It was as if it saw him as the Christ of nature, refusing to hurt him in any way.

She understood why soon after when she sensed his life force flowing into the depths of her soul and rejuvenating it, even strengthening it.

It was the purest and most beautiful thing she ever felt. It was comforting and magnificent beyond the scope of mere humans. Just basking in his overwhelming life force for such a short time made her connection with nature so much closer.

That night, she slept like a bay after staring at his face for a long time. It was her most peaceful night by far, but she still left in the morning, and never contacted him again... Until this time.

"Hahh, why did I let my curiosity control me? I could've just ignored his existence but I couldn't..."

She trailed her fingers along his chest as she murmured some ominous words, "I wanted to take you all for myself, to live in my garden with the purity of nature. I wanted you to live in the embrace of nature among the comfort of trees and beauty of Roses... Forever."

A frown surfaced on her face, one she couldn't keep for long as she felt his comforting life force slip into her soul, bringing a tranquil smile to her gorgeous pale face.

"Alas, nature simply refuses to obey my orders when it comes to you... Nature loves you more than it loves me.

I still fail to understand, however, why does mother nature allow you to remain among the filth of humans... Especially that bitch, touching you with her dirty hands and swooning all over you."

She knew way too much, almost as if she's been monitoring him since their first meeting... Stalking would be a better word for it.

"You... You definitely shouldn't be living with the dirt that is humans. Look what they have done to you, I'm sorry I was late else I wouldn't let that bug even lay a finger on you... I was working on the future, on how to make the world pure."

She lifted her head from his chest and looked at his face. She started gently brushing his cheek with a flushed face, she was starting to overdose.

"Can you imagine a pure world? All that's within would be nature, and gorgeous greenery. I was creating the solution to the dirt, and don't worry, I am close. I just need more energy... Your life force."

She noticed his wounds have already closed, and some of the smaller ones ceased to exist. His skin was starting to look flawless as if scars were never there.

It was a phenomenon Ian noticed a while ago in the middle of his sessions with Selina. His scars started disappearing as if giving away his life force healed him instead of the opposite.

She just stared at him with a worrying obsession for hours, her face getting more flushed by the second. Her breathing was rough yet she refused to move away. No, she wanted to stay like that for eternity. The only reason she hasn't passed out yet after so much time is because he's asleep, and he doesn't release much of his life force in such a state.

"Hahh..." Until he woke up, and she instantly jumped back as her usual seductive clothes reformed around her. Ian opened his eyes and slowly lifted himself up.

He eyed up his surroundings with a bit of confusion and dizziness though he soon got over sleepiness as he felt incredibly energetic, "What an adventure, so lovely."

He eyed his body first, checking up on why he felt so comfortable despite all the wounds he had amassed in the confrontation, "No scars huh... Too bad. No traces of my adventures remain. I guess my collection consists of traces of my adventure, so it doesn't really matter..."

Ian let out a breath, still feeling a bit disappointed all of his scars disappeared. From the small scars to the large ones, each had a meaning and a memory behind it. Relics of his past adventures.

He stroked a certain spot on his knee as he looked up... At the room's roof, "One of my first scars was here. In one of my first attempts at free climbing, my hands slipped and I fell down. I was still inexperienced, so didn't handle the situation perfectly and ended up hurting my knee, pretty badly."

He let out a chuckle as remembered the very details of the incident, "It was pretty bad. There was a hole on my knee to the point my bone showed itself to the world, God it was painful... Yeah, I have my memories, so it's going to be alright."

Ian finally paid attention to Ivy who was attentively listening to his little adventure whilst trying to keep her breathing in check so as to not allow him to see her state.

...

Chapter 70: The Mystery Of Ian Rose V

...

Ian finally paid attention to Ivy who was attentively listening to his little adventure whilst trying to keep her breathing in check so as to not allow him to see her state.

"Right, you helped me. Well, you have my thanks." Ian smiled and took another look around the room, a bizarre room it was. Everything was of nature, the furniture was just vines with a few flowers here and there to complement the scenery.

There were no windows or they were all hidden behind the cover of leaves on the walls. The place looked like a jungle in the middle of an apartment.

"You also helped me before, so we're even," Ivy responded with a casual tone, a stark contrast to her previous behavior. She for some reason want to hide her goals from him.

"Do you by any chance have any clothes for me?" He was wearing only his underwear, and he knows his previous clothes should be a mess with blood and cuts.

Ivy waved her hand, controlling a few vines to bring him a white shirt and white sweat pants, "I prepared these for you. Your shoes are in the other room. They're the only thing still intact among your clothes."

Ian nodded and put on the shirt and the pants, then stretched for a bit, "Why didn't you contact me? I really wanted to work together with you."

Ivy hesitated for a bit before responding, "I just didn't trust you, and I had a lot to do."

"I see. Well, either way, thanks for your help," Ian caressed his ring as he spoke. He was thankful he did a lot of thinking before summoning Neron.

One of the terms for the ring stated that only he can put on the ring, and nothing can take it out of his finger, the basis of such a term was also his life force, an infinite battery.

"How long was I asleep?" Ian questioned with a frown. He has a lot of things he has to attend to, so if he had slept for too long then that would be a problem.

"Almost twelve hours."

"Really?" Ian said in a confused tone, "That would mean you've done that for my wounds to heal so quickly?"

Ivy's face flinched but she tried to keep it expressionless, "Kind of..."

'What does that mean?' Ian wondered as he paid more attention to her state and contemplated all the possible scenarios.

"First, let me check something," Ian focused a bit as he spoke, then in his left hand appeared a phone which was previously in the ring.

He started reading through some messages while Ivy waited patiently. He then called Ralf, "Did you get all the documents and the books?"

"Boss? Yeah, but what happened? I mean I know what happened but what really happened?" No one had any idea of Ian's plans or his actions, all they received is a few encrypted messages, telling them what they do.

"It doesn't matter, rather, it's best if you don't know do for now, but do as I saw before it's too late... I sent you a list, kill them all in any way possible, but remain anonymous."

Ian then hang up and transferred his phone to the ring quite quickly, almost as if he was afraid of saying too much.

Ivy, on the other hand, just stared at him in surprise as he said that right in front of her, 'Is he just that defenseless? Why? I don't care about who will die but he doesn't know that... Or perhaps he knows something?'

"There are a lot of things to do, so let's talk later, alright? You do have a phone, Right?" Ian spoke as he stood up and let out a small yawn, 'God, I feel good. What a day...'

"The thing about us working together, I like the Idea," Ivy suddenly spoke with a smile.

"Oh? You do? I wanted something different from you that time, a special toxin, but it's unnecessary now. What is the extent of your powers?"

Ivy hid her frown, secretly hoping he wouldn't notice anything or be too suspicious of her, 'This is all for your own good. If I tell you, you won't understand, but I am sure you'll thank me when it all happens. All I need is more force.'

She stilled herself, something strange for someone like her who had already committed plenty of atrocities, "I will be honest, I want your life force, it makes me stronger. In return, I'll work for you as long as you don't do something I don't like."

Ian narrowed his eyes, somehow filling a chill run down his spine, 'Hmm, it shouldn't be my imagination, perhaps my subconscious mind figured something out?'

He started stroking his chin in consideration of all the options, 'It's definitely better to keep her close, especially now that I have control over most of Gotham, but making her stronger...'

"How will we go about giving you my life force exactly?" First, he questioned.

"I want two hours of the usual process every day. In return, you have the power of every plant in Gotham in your hand and much more. Little beautiful spies no one pays attention to throughout this fil... City." She spoke as if she was holding a grudge.

"No, too much time waste, definitely not. How about twenty minutes after my se... Training session. I release more life force. That should be much more than two hours' worth of life force.

For that, you'll work with me, in fact, you could be quite useful for my future plans. Your power has potential if it works under certain circumstances. Well, Welcome to the team!"

The more he thought about it the better the deal sounded. In fact, he was planning something similar, creating a team for the most dangerous of adventures.

"First, I don't any plant life to be harmed under your hand or those you oversee. I also want you to support the plant life of Gotham and maintain the garden of Gotham. I'll assume you don't have a problem with that. Also, what team are you speaking of?"

"A specialized team of sorts. Its purpose is simply for the team members to support each other, forming a cycle of life as all things should be. I am of course its leader though the only ones in the team as of now are me and my girlfriend, and now you."

Ian responded replied then let out a chuckle. He didn't think the unit would start taking shape so soon, 'Perhaps soon I'll be able to collect a few valuable things... I wonder when can I acquire it... The solution to my doubts.'

Ivy frowned for some reason before nodding as a smile resurfaced on her face, "It's even better the..." She stopped as she noticed Ian looking at her strangely.

He approached her and lifted her chin with an amused glint in his eyes, "Nuclear bombs, a fascinating thing, aren't they? Capable of mass destruction, a tool of pure extermination of all life."

Ivy was confused as she looked into his brown eyes, not knowing what he was getting at.

"Can you imagine it? A bomb falling in the middle of nature, no even better, in the middle of some capital... If performed correctly, it shall be the start of the third world war, one where nothing survives, not even the tiniest of plants."

Ivy's expression slowly formed into understanding then into anger only for Ian to shush her out, "Shush, Am not done."

"I, unfortunately, don't have a nuclear bomb yet, but I have something that can be better and it will become better with so much destructive potential. You've probably seen what I've done in the incident location, it's something similar."

Ian let her chin go and made the distance from her, "What am getting at is that if you do anything I don't like, I swear on my name that I... Need I say more?"

"That... You've just recruited me and you're already threatening me. Don't do that again." Ivy calmed down her anger and spoke. She felt like she can't scream at him at all, as if there is a spellbinding her to his will.

Ian raised his brows in surprise as he eyed her even more strangely, but he didn't point out her strangeness, "Excuse my rudeness. I had to make sure. Also, where are we, the address I mean?"

He received the answer he wanted, then sent a message for someone to pick him up, and who's a better option than Selina.

He went ahead and put on his boots after getting Ivy's number, "I'll contact you later, alright? Our base was destroyed not long ago, so there is a lot to take care of."

Ivy frowned but didn't say anything. She just watched him leave the building, 'So ungrateful. Nature granted you its love, yet you dare to say that, but... it still loves you.'

Suddenly, a light of realization passed through her green eyes, "What if I can just turn him? Making him like me, make him believe... We can rule the world and turn it into whatever we desire together."

Her eyes gleamed with obsession. A new goal was formed in her mind. She just has to make him understand.

Her eyes however were soon attracted to something happening before her. The scene of Selina getting out of her car and jumping into Ian's embrace. She even went as far as wrapping her legs around his waist like a koala as the two started making out.

Ivy looked at all of this from the window of her apartment in shock before yelling, "That bitch!" In her mind, she didn't see the scene of the lovers showing their affection after being apart for a while, all she saw is Selina tainting Ian...