Plot's moving along! I had a bit of a tough time writing this chapter, but here's what I managed to rough together. I didn't quite get to where I wanted to be this chapter, but the next one will definitely be the one with all the action. I've already started writing it!
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Lucian tracked the address to Park Row. That particular section of Gotham was... worse, than the parts that he'd had already visited. He thought he'd seen bad. No, he had seen bad. He just didn't think that there might be worse.
Well, he found it.
Worse wasn't scary. Not concerning.
It was just sad.
In regular street clothes, he pulled the hood of his navy blue jacket over his head and kept low. He mimicked the way that the people around him walked—moderate, purposeful, never doing any more than necessary to get where he was going. Getting in anyone else's way was to be strictly avoided, so he did.
[Danger Sense] made him aware that nearly everybody carried some type of weapon. Many people eyed him like potential prey, even children. He knew on instinct just how many watched him with fear, fully grown men among them. Just the scenes that he passed by in a short amount of time spoke to the abysmal quality of life in Park Row.
'I can't believe I haven't been here before.'
[ Don't feel too bad about it, Lucian. ]
'I know. But now I plan to pay this part of Gotham more attention in the future.'
Back to his journey, the address led Lucian deeper and deeper into that dark territory. Nearing the end of his little walk, he ended up in an area that was somehow in less disarray than the rest. Quieter. Safer, as unbelievable as that might have sounded.
The cause was plain to see for someone like him.
Armed individuals roamed the streets with purpose. They weren't like the desperate and the crooks who carried cheap peashooters and shanks. On top of that, many of them possessed great vitality if their auras were any indication. If Lucian had to gauge it, their average overall strength sat somewhere between 13 to 16 if they had a system like he did.
As he was now, none of them would be much of a threat to him individually. Yet, a big enough group would definitely give him trouble if he didn't have the advantage of an ambush. That was how he got shot at the factory when he was with Nightwing.
'They're all wearing something bright red, too. And all their guns are obviously modded.'
[ Red Hood's territory. ]
Lucian felt at least one set of eyes on him ever since he entered that part of Park Row. All were heavy and laser-focused. He was an unfamiliar face; Red Hood's people were right to be cautious.
'Jason's really embedded himself into this place...'
Eventually, Lucian's destination came into view. Out at the edges yet still well within Red Hood's territory was a small building, nestled between two others like it. Their ground levels all seemed to be small businesses, but he knew for a fact that the electronics repair shop in the middle was just a front. A functional one, but a front nonetheless. The upper floors all seemed to be residential, or had some other purpose besides trade and services.
Making sure that nobody was looking, Lucian vanished into a back alley in a flicker of movement, using his raw base Power alone. He changed loadouts after confirming that there were no eyes or cameras on him. From there, he traced his way to where the smaller building's back door should be.
Like every other alley, it was dark. The ground and walls were damp with condensation, which usually came from air conditioning units or leaky piping. Moss and weeds grew out of loose debris and cracks in the infrastructure while rats, roaches, spiders, and all other sorts of critters scuttled about as he passed. From above, cheap incandescent lights provided what little illumination they could, flickering all the while.
When Lucian neared the middle of the dark alley's length, he stopped walking. Two figures were entering from the other side, no more than two shadows merging together at a distance. One of those figures spoke in slurred words that were hard to decipher, while the other supported her in equal measures of care and contempt.
"Come on, you drunk bitch," one of them hissed. "You've already ruined yourself enough for tonight."
"B-but... Jevfreyh... urp...!"
The sober one groaned while her companion dry-heaved, stomach presumably fully empty by that point. "Enough about him. You haven't been pulling your weight since you split up. I'm not beyond kicking you out if this keeps happening."
Their voices were familiar—Lucian had heard them before, back at the fighting pit. He took a few steps forward to be noticed, then stopped in place once he was sure he had the sober one's attention.
"Need any help?"
Rita snapped her head up to look at him. A particularly bright lightbulb dangling from loose cordage painted her face in harsh yellowish light and solid shadow.
"Kid...?"
Lucian stepped closer, just one more time, so he could leave the deeper darkness. "The one and only," he replied. He deliberated taking off his mask at that moment.
If he could tie his real face to the Phantom, then people would be hard-pressed to associate it with the Manticore, especially if their habits were different. The Phantom would fight like a refined warrior, while the Manticore would act like a wild animal in combat.
Further, after outing himself as the Phantom, Lucian wouldn't have to hide his face anymore just to exercise a good chunk of his power. That might pose issues with the people close to him, but it would only paint him as a regular if physically imposing vigilante, and nothing more.
Add to that his plans with the Changeling class tree... maintaining both personas would only become that much easier.
Lucian's hand reached up for his mask and removed it, tucking it inside his jacket. "Come on," he said, walking to the twins' side. "Lemme help."
Rita seemed hesitant, but with the state that Gina was in, she caved. Even if the Phantom tried anything funny, the presence of Red Hood's goons everywhere somewhat assured her.
"Alright," she acquiesced. "I'll unlock the door so you can carry her in, but if you do anything funny, I'll scream." When they reached the backdoor, she fumbled with the keys, hands shaking.
Lucian observed while paying attention to her flickering aura. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Rita replied. Her words came out sharper than she wanted them to be. "Just nerves... and I'm kinda pissed."
"At Gina?" He questioned. The weight in his arms shifted a little when the name was uttered, heavy earrings clinking with the movement.
The key finally slotted in just as Rita was about to answer, and she twisted with more force than necessary. "Yeah... and her ex."
She pushed the door open and ushered Lucian in ahead of her. The back entrance opened up to a storage room—all shelves and boxes filled to overflowing with electronic components. Alongside them were bins of discarded tech, all old and dysfunctional pieces with the occasional full device that was probably too broken to fix. Old laptops, defunct phones, dusty little computer towers.
"Door to your right," Rita instructed. "Just lay her on the couch and wait for me there." She went for the door that led to the front desk.
Lucian followed the order, setting Gina down on her own two feet before opening the door. "Alright, let's get you inside," he told her.
Gina, meanwhile, tried clinging to his neck. The alcoholic stench that emanated from her was powerful, and it tore through Lucian's nose and wriggled down his throat. Had he not acquired [Sheer Will] and raised his Vitality to high superhuman levels, he would have gagged.
"Izz seeing yhou againn, hott stuff..." While Gina seemed to cooperate with being brought to the couch, she didn't want to let go, trying to drag him down with her. She kept rambling the entire time.
"I allwayz knew you werr pretty behind thad mask~" Her finger traced his cheek, though all it really ended up doing was poke him. "C'monnn... won'd you cheeer a girl up...?"
"Nope," Lucian said with finality. "Not the way you want. Though this might help..."
Since Gina was so wasted, he had no trouble fixing her onto the dingy couch, though the task wasn't easy. It felt like wrangling an unruly bundle of wires that dedicated their entire existence to denying order. Once she was in place, he put his hands on her head and stomach, funneling lifeforce into her body. She exhaled in relief soon after, and her eyes fluttered shut, succumbing to sleep. Her brain seemed to have accepted the donation of vitality to more or less flush itself of intoxication.
After fixing her up, Lucian couldn't quite resist patting her forehead like he did with his sisters when they were sick. "Eepy night-night..."
Just then, Rita returned from whatever conversation she was having with the person manning the counter. "Damn... didn't think anyone could ever get her to sit still when she's like that. What's your secret?"
Lucian chuckled. "Guess I'm just a good caretaker."
The answer eased Rita's mind more than he would realize.
'Okay. Looks like I wasn't wrong about him after all.'
She walked past him, patting his shoulder in appreciation along the way. "Want coffee?" she offered. "I really need one myself right about now."
"I'd like one, thanks." While she was filling up a kettle in the cramped kitchen, Lucian pulled up a creaky chair from around the tiny dining table, and sat down. "... Though it looks like you need more than just coffee."
"Ugh, like you wouldn't believe..." Rita put the kettle down on the burner and set the flame to high. "But I know you're not here for me. You're looking for the boys, right?"
Lucian nodded. Seeing that things were going to get serious, he straightened up and rested his arms on the table. "I want their help with something. Can't do it on my own."
Rita contemplated for a second, leaning against the concrete counter. "Alright. I'll let them know. We're closing up shop, but I can at least keep you company while you wait."
"Big preesh," Lucian replied.
Conversation trickled to a halt, and Rita placed her call to the boys while waiting for the water to boil. While she was busy with that, Lucian allowed himself to take in her apparent place of residence, which she might have shared with Gomez and Matchstick.
It was not in good shape. The concrete walls were cracked, and the windows were boarded up with wood and scrap metal. Even the back door earlier was reinforced from the inside. Termite tunnels lined some of the ceiling corners, the central light bulb flickered occasionally, and the ceiling was marked with candle soot and occasional moisture stains.
After a brief but effective conversation, Rita got Lucian's attention. "Just got confirmation from Gomez. They're on their way, be here in an hour."
From beyond the living space, the rough sounds of metal sliding against metal could be heard. The clicking of a padlock followed, then someone emerged from the door leading into where everyone was.
"Just finished closing up," said the teenage girl who came through the door. Judging by size alone, she was probably still in high school if she attended. She looked like the type to be categorized as 'edgy loner.'
Her eyes lingered on Lucian for a second too long, expression unreadable, then said, "Who's that? Gigi find another boytoy already?"
Rita chastised her. "Not what I meant by 'a guest,' Nyx. He's a friend of your uncle's. From work."
"Work..." Nyx repeated, unconvinced. "Right. Him. Someone like Gomez. Try again."
Intrigued, Lucian asked, "She your kid?"
Rita shook her head. "Gomez' niece—"
"My parents overdosed together and died," said Nyx, cutting off her effective godmother. "And don't be glum about it 'for my sake,'" she continued. The air quotes around the last three words were palpable. "I was like, five when it happened. I basically lived my whole life without them."
Lucian watched as the girl eyed Gina, definitively ignoring him at that point, then moved to take a seat across from him at the table.
"I have any share in that?" she asked while looking at the heating kettle.
Rita nodded. "Enough for us three. I'll just make more later if Gina wakes up."
Nyx nodded, then returned to scrutinizing the man sitting across from her through her self-done fringe. "So. Who are you, really?"
"Like Rita said: friend of your uncle's, though that's a bit generous." Lucian pulled his mask out from underneath his jacket. "This ring any bells?"
The girl squinted. "No way you're him."
Off to the side, Rita couldn't help but smirk. "Don't tell me you forgot the description that your uncle and I made?"
"I thought you were joking..." Nyx huffed, crossing her arms. Then, glaring at Lucian, she challenged him. "Prove it."
He looked to Rita, who shrugged. "Eh, I dunno... kinda hard to demonstrate when my best asset's fighting skills."
Nyx threw her head back with an irritated groan. "I'll go get a can from the trash. Nail it with like, a pen or something. Then I'll believe you."
"Nyx, don't be like that," Rita chimed. "He's got nothing to prove to you."
The girl had already gotten up and moved to the kitchen's trash. "In my eyes, you just let a total stranger into our home and told him my life's story. I get to have at least this much freedom."
Rita cocked a brow. "You told him about your life on your own, though?"
"Yeah," Nyx said sharply, "but you were gonna do it anyway."
"I wasn't gonna be that specific? And you could've also just stopped me." Those words only earned Rita an eye-roll.
Soon, an empty soda can was laid on the concrete counter, just by the sink. "Nail that can," Nyx ordered. She stood by it as if daring to be hit. "Both sides better have a hole punched through 'em in one shot."
Lucian looked to Rita, who just seemed completely done at that point.
"Just get on with it," she said. "Let's hope this shuts her up once it's over. There's old pens in the storage bins. Just grab some from there."
And so he went on to get three pens, just as insurance. When Nyx saw that he'd picked up more than one, she couldn't help but snark. "Not that confident, huh?"
Lucian said nothing. Instead, he let 1% of One for All enhance his body, acquiring the faintest glow. Even if only his face was visible, Nyx' surety seemed to falter then, and he decided to up his output by saturating his muscles with ki as well. As far as visual changes went, nothing was apparent under his clothes.
"Shot one..."
He took a pen into his right hand, holding it upright. It still had some ink in it, which should probably help keep its momentum forward... or something. Maybe the tapered shape would help too. He wasn't sure, but he liked to believe in that line of thought. Penny seemed to enter a giggly fit in the back of his mind.
Before long, he threw the pen like a knife with as much force as he could, using a technique that wouldn't give it spin. The tool-turned-weapon flew through the air with a whistle and embedded itself in the can.
No.
More than that, it had gone through, took the can with it through sheer momentum, and crushed its own tip against the concrete wall.
"Damn," Rita whispered.
Nyx just stared, wide-eyed.
"Oh... I'll go clean that up," said Lucian, and he got up right away to fix the mess.
Then... the kettle whistled. It was coffee time.
◎ ◉ ◎
Up on a rooftop, a cell phone rang. The screen lit up the owner's face, once empty, now hopeful.
"Cotton Candy💗" was the contact's name.
Maxie blew out a big puff of smoke before pressing the accept call button. "Hey, Tammy... what's up?"
"Max, there's something you need to know about Lucian."
Her expression strained just a little. Brows half-furrowed, eyelids tensed downwards, and her lips tightened marginally, making a small frown form on her face. This wasn't how she would usually react upon hearing that sweet, airy voice.
'Does she know...?' Maxie wondered. 'Did she find out? Who told her?'
"What is it?"
"It's... not just about him," Tammy explained. "About his boss, too. Your boss. They're working for the cartels. Lucian delivers drugs packaged with the food."
That statement didn't sit right in Maxie's head. "Tammy, what are you saying?" she questioned. "Did you learn this yourself? Did someone tell you?"
"Aleck did!"
As tense as her best friend tried to sound, Maxie caught the... elation that seeped from her voice at the mention of that name. Her own throat threatened to constrict and make her gag.
"Okay, lis—"
"Listen to me, honey," Tammy interrupted. "Keep your distance from him, okay? Stay away from Lucian right now. Take a leave from work, tell them your mom needs you. I'll call you about this again when my Ma—~ boyfriend gives me another update... stay safe, okay? Love you, sweet sundae!"
Maxie almost didn't say anything back. "Love you too, cotton candy..."
Alas, Tammy didn't seem to even register her somber tone. The call dropped right away.
Max felt this... fire start in her chest and spread all over her body. It made her stomach feel especially hot, threatening to spew out of her throat as a boiling hot bile that would melt through anything. She took a big, scorching breath of smoke from her cig just to push the fury down. She narrowly avoided hacking up from the sudden smoke intake, eyes going watery and bloodshot.
The door to the hospital's rooftop opened, and a large figure emerged from it. "You okay, twig...?" it called out
Perfect. Maxie just needed an anchor right then, and Bailey was more than enough. "No," she admitted. "I just got a weird call... I'm gonna talk to Luce when he gets back."
Bailey plopped herself down on the ground, right next to Max, and handed over the soda. "Something happen with him?"
"I think someone's trying to make him look bad to me," Maxie explained.
Her sister sighed beside her. "It's that snooty rich bitch again, isn't it?"
Max scoffed. "Who the fuck else?"
Bailey wrapped her thick arm around her sister's shoulder, pulling her close. Maxie nearly spilled her drink—saved only by her split-second reaction time by palming the bottle's lip.
"Well, just burn him away again. Like you always do."
Maxie wanted to say that it couldn't be that simple. In the end, she just gritted her teeth and settled to lean on the one shoulder she physically had in the moment.
'I hope that cunt dies in a fucking fire. I've just about had it with him. I'll tear Tammy away from him if it's the last thing I do, I swear to whichever god's listening right now. Six. Fucking. Years. He's been stringing her along all that time. I'd murder him myself if I had a shot at it.'
◎ ◉ ◎
Jason's HUD display flickered with a new panel while he was watching through the pigeon drone's eyes (lovingly doved 'Pidrone' by Spoiler and Robin).
It was a call from Matchstick, one of the metahumans that joined Red Hood's cause. He'd been expecting it. Lucian came to their building's address after all, and he was tapped into each of his people's communication lines. It also helped that they reported "scouting a promising metahuman" some time ago. It wasn't hard to piece things together after a few meetings with the family.
Before Matchstick could speak when he answered the phone, Jason told them to take the job.
"O-okay," Matchstick replied. "You're the boss. Uh... anything else we should know...?"
"You're doing this one for free. I'll be watching."
"You're thinkin' of inductin' him, boss?"
"I am. Depending on how he goes about this, I'll either recruit him or recommend him to some allies who might be more aligned with him."
"Alright. We'll do what we can," Matchstick said tersely.
"Dismissed."
Jason cut the call and switched back to his Pidrone feed. 'Now... I wonder what you'll do with this David guy...? Whether you're brought in to deal with the Donovan kid depends on this.'
◎ ◉ ◎
When Gomez and Matchstick finally returned, Rita moved Gina to their bedroom upstairs, and stayed to watch over her. Downstairs, Lucian was having a bit of a discussion with the boys, with one additional person among them.
At the table, Gomez was nursing a mug of hot coffee, fresh from a new pot of water. His niece was the table as well, sitting across from him, as she wanted to sit in on the discussion like she usually did.
Well, she sat in. She heard what was at stake, and it was different from the usual petty assassinations or business hits. And now... an argument.
Gomez stared her down. "Nyx. This is not something that you want to be a part of."
"Is it??" She shifted in her chair, seeming to want to leap up and grab her uncle by the collar. "People's lives are in danger here! They've been under his ass for so long! I know we're not much better off ourselves, but come on... in what world is wanting to help wrong?!"
"What's wrong," Gomez growled, "is you're wanting to do that without any idea what it means."
"So tell me," Nyx retorted. "What does it mean? I'm sixteen, for fuck's sake, not stupid! And do you remember the Robin stories?? The first one was half my age! Why can't I do the same?"
Gomez sighed in frustration, massaging his forehead.
At that same table, Matchstick seemed to find his own coffee extremely interesting, making it bubble bit by bit with his meta-ability. Lucian, meanwhile, was having an internal dialogue.
[ You could find a way for her to get involved without having to be there herself, ] Penny suggested.
'I mean, sure? But...'
[ Ask about her skills. What she knows how to do. If none of them qualify, you can argue logic against her. She won't like it, but it's better than what Gomez is doing right now. You remember how your parents were with your sisters. ]
'Shit, you're right. Okay, then.'
"If I may," Lucian started with a measured tone. Everyone gave him their attention. "Nyx. What kind of skills do you have?"
She blinked at him, unsure of what he was asking and why. "Uhm...?"
Gomez, meanwhile, couldn't quite believe what was happening. "Kid? Seriously, I want to work with you here, but if you so much as suggest—"
Lucian cut him off by raising his hand. He then gave a look, which Gomez seemed to understand, backing off for the time being. "I want to know what you can do, Nyx. If you have any skills or talents that can be useful to us off-field, then you're in. Otherwise, I'll have to agree with your uncle and bench you."
Understanding shimmered in Nyx' eyes, and her mind visibly went into overdrive. Her gaze drifted aimlessly while she gritted her teeth, trying to come up with anything as quickly as possible—
Then, realization. "I-I'm really good with computers," she said in a hurry. "Not like, 'I have some basic coding knowledge' good. I mean 'I can track this David guy's digital footprint and get intel that way' good."
Hope sparkled in her eyes. Lucian could only see the genuine desire to do something good despite the first impression that she made on him.
"Alright," Lucian nodded.
Gomez had his doubts. Before Lucian could say anything else, he asked his niece, "Where'd you learn how to do that...?"
Nyx hesitated to answer, but one look and nod from Lucian seemed to give her the encouragement she needed. She gulped before answering. "I get around on the internet... you can learn a lot of things from the right places..."
Her answer was incomplete—everyone could tell that much.
She continued when she realized that they were waiting for more. "And, uh... some of the shop's customers aren't exactly subtle about what they talk about around me. I pick up a lot of stuff and figure things out from there. Sometimes from other people you negotiate with, too..."
Lucian chuckled at the dumbstruck expression that dominated Gomez' face. The same seemed to go for Matchstick, who hid his amused smirk behind his mug. "Toldja the runt was smarter than she looked," 'Stick mumbled.
"Great. That's that, then," said Lucian, rising from his seat at the table. He approached Nyx and extended his right hand. "Welcome to the team, Nyx. You're about to help change people's lives."
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[A/N]: Late chapter again! I ran into the same problems that I did with the last one q.q
After very little deliberation, I have decided to give Lucian what is effectively his own Robin. She's not quite inducted yet, but she'll insist on taking that role soon, similar to how Tim did with Bruce. I have also made the executive decision to not include the meta-boys in his future team, because... eh, didn't think they'd fit in. Too much clutter. After this arc's over, we won't be seeing much of them anymore.
We know Maxie's involvement is inevitable in the future, so there's that. I also plan to pick up a few more people, from canon this time.
Potential candidates include:
Kyle Abbot
Rory Regan [Ragman]
Killer Croc [Waylon Jones]
Man-Bat [I think you see the theme here.]
I only plan to pick out two of these, at most.
Final members include:
Raven [Magic! She's also, like, painfully powerful, so she'll have a huge place on the team in the future.]
... yeah, I got nothing else.
Feel free to make candidate suggestions!
Note that I also plan to give Lucian some pets, like a tiger-cat and a dragon-olm. But that's for the far future when his living situation's fully settled!