"But that's just at the moment, we still don't know what Falcone has prepared for the Shadow Dancer Alliance, it could be a bio-bomb that takes all of Gotham as collateral damage."
Cindy raised the bottle to clink with him and sighed. If he's arresting Gordon for Batman, it's likely he plans to wipe out himself and everyone else along with it.
Ten years ago, Gotham was his city; ten years later, Gotham has become a city of lunatics. Falcone has every reason to go crazy; the mafia city he painstakingly managed for decades is gone.
He's already old, he doesn't have those decades to rebuild the dark order, so taking his city with him before he dies perfectly fits a lunatic's logic.
As for why drag the Assassin Alliance into this? That's because Leixiao Gu sees Gotham as the source of sin, and the Assassin Alliance has always wanted to destroy Gotham, only blocked by the Bat.
Now with the Bat not around, Falcone and Leixiao Gu both have their opportunity, but there's only one Gotham, who gets to destroy it?
Even though the goal is the same, their philosophies are completely different; one is a mafia emperor, the other a ninja master, fundamentally not on the same path.
The conflict between the two is thus inevitable.
Of course, there's no evidence supporting this speculation at present, and Cindy hasn't spoken these thoughts aloud, they remain as backup options in her mind.
"We can't go in before the ninjas, so the only way is to stake out nearby; once the ninjas go in, we follow, so we can react no matter the situation."
Su Ming also clinked glasses with her with a bitter smile; this is a non-plan plan.
"Hopefully, Talia is the one bringing the Shadow Dancer, she's the only one with some sanity; otherwise, even if we handle Falcone, we'll have to fight the Shadow Dancer."
Cindy gulped down a few mouthfuls, the golden liquid flowing down her snowy white neck, she wiped her mouth with satisfaction, tossed the bottle aside, and spoke her concerns.
Su Ming also shared similar thoughts; if the ninjas receive orders to eliminate all living things, they would wipe out the Indian Mountain wanderers, not to mention Gordon.
But who can predict the future? We can only take one step at a time; even if Talia does come, persuading her to change her mind will inevitably require a fight first.
Proving one's honor and determination through a duel with the leader is paramount for the Assassin Alliance; only then might she respect your will and consider changing her orders, otherwise endless assassinations will follow.
If facing that many assassins, it's best to have someone specifically protecting the computer expert.
"It'd be great to have a few reliable helpers, any mercenary friends you have in Gotham?" Su Ming asked her.
"Ha, what friends do mercenaries have? It's all business."
Cindy sneered disdainfully, she couldn't think of any familiar faces here to cooperate with in peace; just as she could stab others in the back for money, others could too.
Su Ming looked at her helplessly; this woman...
"Offending all your business partners, no wonder your business keeps shrinking, don't you know how to let out a long line to catch big fish?"
"Depends on the fish; even if they're caught, they're octopuses, and I don't like octopus." Cindy appeared indifferently, past matters aside; what could she do?
"Ah.. forget it; by the way, there's a mercenary rookie in Gotham, code name 'Silence', have you heard of her?"
Su Ming gave up arguing with her; everyone had their own thoughts; perhaps Cindy preferred doing business her way, he liked living freely, so he wouldn't interfere with her.
Instead, Su Ming recalled a newcomer from the comics, a black woman codenamed Silence, an assault expert, master of firearms, specializing in blasting.
The key was she, like Deathstroke, was very contract-oriented; as long as the pay was right, she wouldn't abandon the task.
Cindy thought for a moment, shook her head: "Either the person you mentioned doesn't exist, or she's too nameless. I don't know how you mixed on your side, but here on Earth, when mentioning mercenaries, people first think of me. Right, Barbara?"
Barbara sat in her wheelchair, hearing Cindy and Su Ming's conversation puzzled her: 'What are your side and our side? What this Earth?'
Suddenly hearing Cindy talking to her, Barbara was a bit dazed, but Cindy naturally took her silence as agreement, proudly puffing out her chest to Su Ming.
"Lady Siva." Su Ming didn't mind her behavior, just turned aside and mentioned the name.
This made Cindy a bit deflated; Siva is acknowledged as the world's strongest assassin. She originally wasn't called Siva; it's the name of a Hindu goddess. She was so strong that people used god-like abilities to describe her fighting techniques.
Su Ming had read DC's official TRPG rule book; Batman and Copper Tiger's fighting ability is 14, Deathstroke is 15, and Siva is 16 points.
16 points in the rule book means: Cosmic level superpower.
No one else could train fighting techniques to a cosmic level; although TRPG is just a game, it reflects something from the side.
"She's an assassin; we're killers; it's different..." Cindy found an excuse but turned away sheepishly.
Actually, she had a point; since Deathstroke's assassinations often made a big spectacle, waving blades or directly sweeping with machine guns, using various modern weapons.
Lady Siva, however, preferred bare-handed; she killed with a slap or a finger in silence.
"In this world's shadows, there are people as strong or stronger than Siva, like Aikido grandmaster Sa'ar, Siva's teacher Master Da You, Twelve Brothers in Silk's father Master Huang, and the Japanese old man codenamed 'Sensei', maybe others I don't know."
Su Ming sighed; the comic world was too deep; his current strength was probably similar to Deathstroke's but didn't provide much reliance.
These people were just martial arts grandmasters; superpower users weren't even counted.
He must find his own way to get stronger; mere fighting techniques and firearms were far from enough.
Cindy shared the same sentiments; aside from Master Da You, she hadn't even heard of the others. She now hoped these people didn't exist in their world.
However, in reality, these people were all supervillains, inevitably existing in the Dark Multiverse.
"Alright, it's just talk; these people mostly mix around Asia; be careful when you go there; we have serious matters to handle."
Su Ming freed himself from this silence; he just clarified his future goals; maybe he wasn't their match now, but later it would certainly be different.
Strong opponents only gave him more power, instead of discouraging him.
"Indeed, we have a little time before the Shadow Dancer Alliance arrives; we should absorb some energy and prepare for the upcoming battle." Cindy agreed with him too, sprouting a desire to get stronger.
Previously, only Lady Siva was apparent; now there's a bunch of fighting powerhouses secretly; how could she bear it as someone unwilling to admit defeat? She already decided if she survives, she'll find a quiet place to hone her fighting skills.
Even though using guns, she could still find work.
Falling short of finding helpers, it's better to eat first; it's going to be a long night.
Cindy left up the stairs, likely to raid Vayne Mansion inside, while Su Ming looked at the dazed Barbara, whispered to her:
"Use this system to help me locate Briss Vane and her butler Alfred."
Barbara immediately became alert; a mercenary finding Gotham's most famous billionaire, it wasn't a good sign.
"What are you up to?"
"Nothing, just planning to develop a new client; you heard earlier, Cindy's business isn't doing well lately."
"You're definitely planning something bad; I won't help you." As she spoke, the girl wheeled away, squeaking softly.
Su Ming laughed; indeed Gordon's daughter, even the stubborn attitude was the same; though she wheeled away, the system was still running, her laptop still connected.
Just like Gordon, if I don't see it, it doesn't exist.
Now she had some understanding of dark affairs; Briss was too wealthy; without pay, mercenaries wouldn't harm a super-rich.
Su Ming watched her back; maybe in seeing the darkness she would gradually get used to the powers within and fully mature.