"You're right," Lex said evenly. "Standing around worrying won't change anything."
Selina tilted her head slightly. "Oh? You've got a better idea?"
"I do," he replied. "But I'm not sure you'll like it."
She stepped closer as if humoring him.
"What method?"
Instead of answering, she moved first.
Both palms slammed into his chest.
"Thump."
Lex's back hit the corridor wall hard enough to knock the breath from his lungs.
The vines lining the stone—vines that had appeared brittle and lifeless—jerked violently to life. They lashed outward in a frenzy, coiling around his arms, waist, and legs like constricting serpents.
Selina stepped back, lips curving.
"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to get involved with dangerous women?"
Lex strained against the tightening tendrils and sighed.
"You just reminded me of a story."
"Oh?" she said lightly. "Which one?"
"The farmer and the snake."
Her brow lifted with genuine curiosity.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Come closer," he said calmly. "I'll explain."
She hesitated only a second before stepping within arm's reach.
A flash of cold steel cut the air.
The katana appeared in Lex's hand with seamless fluidity—drawn from his inventory in a motion too fast to track. The blade sliced cleanly through the vines binding him.
Before Selina could react—
His hand shot out, grabbed her collar, and pivoted.
Role reversal.
She hit the wall.
The vines, triggered by sudden movement, coiled instinctively—around her.
Within seconds she was the one pinned, wrists bound above her shoulders, ankles trapped.
Lex stepped back, brushing loose plant matter from his jacket.
She stared at the blade in his hand.
"Where did you get that katana?"
He spun it once, casually.
"Magic."
Then he leaned closer, voice lowering.
"Didn't your father ever tell you not to betray the man who saved your life?"
Her mouth opened—
A vine snapped across it, gagging her mid-retort.
The floor beneath them trembled.
Suddenly the vines tightened around Selina's body and yanked her downward.
She hit the ground and was dragged rapidly down the corridor, deeper into Arkham's bowels.
Lex followed immediately, blade carving through snapping tendrils that lunged at him from both walls.
Selina had been right about one thing.
Ivy was weakened.
The vines attacked reactively, not strategically. They weren't coordinating—just lashing out.
"Still want to hear the farmer story?" Lex called after her calmly as he ran. "Farmer saves a frozen snake. Snake wakes up and bites him anyway."
"Mmmph!" she protested furiously through the gag.
"If we're assigning roles," he continued, slicing another vine in midair, "you're not exactly the farmer."
They descended into the sub-basement.
The air grew warmer.
Denser.
Heavy with damp earth and something faintly sweet.
The dragging stopped abruptly.
They entered a large underground chamber.
Barbara.
John.
Both suspended in midair, cocooned in thick vines like grotesque mummies. Their chests rose faintly—still alive.
At the center of the room sat a makeshift throne fashioned from intertwined roots and broken furniture.
On it lounged a red-haired woman in a simple green tank top, one leg crossed elegantly over the other. A wine glass rested loosely between her fingers.
Poison Ivy
She laughed when she saw Selina.
"Selina," she purred. "It's been too long."
Selina could only roll her eyes furiously around the gag.
Lex surveyed the chamber once, then smirked faintly.
"Well," he said lightly, "your shortcut worked. Found Barbara. Found John. Found the boss."
Selina thrashed against the vines, clearly promising murder.
Ivy's gaze shifted to Lex.
"You're interesting," she said, studying him. "Escaping my vines isn't easy."
"Jack Lee," he replied smoothly.
She tilted her head.
"Do you think I'm beautiful, Jack?"
Her fingers traced slowly along her thigh.
Even in this corrupted state, she radiated hypnotic allure. Her face was flawless. Her figure sculpted with impossible symmetry. The air itself seemed thicker around her.
Lex swallowed visibly.
"Yes."
A faint smile curved her lips.
"Do you want to kiss me?"
She leaned forward slightly, tongue brushing across crimson lips.
The pheromones were unmistakable now—heavy, intoxicating. Even John, partially conscious, strained weakly against his restraints. Barbara writhed, fighting the effect.
"Think," Lex muttered hoarsely, stepping forward.
"Then put your weapons down," Ivy whispered. "And come here."
The katana clattered to the ground.
The Glock followed.
Lex walked toward her, movements slow, eyes unfocused.
Selina's muffled protests intensified violently.
John's body strained uselessly against the vines.
Barbara twisted and shouted hoarsely, "Don't! Her lips are poison!"
Lex kept walking.
Ivy opened her arms as he reached her.
She wrapped them around his neck, fingers sliding behind his collar.
"Good," she murmured. "That's right."
She glanced toward Selina with a deliberately taunting smile.
"Don't worry. I'll take care of him."
Then she lifted her chin toward Lex.
"Kiss me."
Instead—
There was a sharp, wet sound.
Not lips meeting.
Steel entering flesh.
Ivy's eyes widened.
She looked down slowly.
A dagger protruded from her chest—buried to the hilt.
Lex had driven it in with brutal precision, angling upward toward the heart.
He stepped back instantly, rolling away as vines snapped violently toward him in reflex.
He hit the ground, snatched up his Glock and katana in one fluid motion, and came up aiming.
Ivy stared at him in shock.
"You—"
His eyes were no longer glazed.
They were cold.
Focused.
"You should've led with the toxins," he said calmly. "The pheromones were obvious."
The vines convulsed violently around the chamber.
John and Barbara were yanked higher as the root mass spasmed.
Ivy clutched the dagger's handle, fury replacing surprise.
"Do you think… that will stop me?"
Blackened veins pulsed beneath her skin.
The wound bled—but not normally.
Dark, sap-like fluid seeped around the blade.
Lex tightened his grip on the katana.
"No," he replied evenly.
"I think it'll make you angry."
The chamber shook.
And then the real battle began.