- Location
- Milky Way, Orion Arm, 3rd rock from the sun
- Pronouns
- He/Him
No i was ask you if they worship the book of crime i don't think that has any thing to do with the new gods. It ok if you don't tell us I understand.
Lex Sedet In Vertice: A Supervillain in the DCU CK2 quest
- Thread starter King crimson
- Start date
- Superhero
No i was ask you if they worship the book of crime i don't think that has any thing to do with the new gods. It ok if you don't tell us I understand.
King crimson
Confusion Will Be My Epitaph
- Location
- Los Angeles
It is unclear in the comics whether or not the Crime Bible is Apokalyptian in nature. However given that both of the people who used it (Mannheim and Libra) were agents of Darkseid while using it I am making the assumption that there is a connection between the two. As such they would not yet worship the Crime Bible. They will have a few suprises though which is why I'm being very careful with how I answer things.
Or, we just create our own division and work in tandem with the police. There's gotta be a logical progression, and place for us.
T1 Regular criminals - regular police.
T2 Regular criminals with mcguffins / tinkertech - Police with Lextech / Lexcorp's S.W.A.T
T3 Powered Individuals - Project CADMUS / Belle Reve / Lexcorp Elite Intervention (Mercenaries from us)
T4 Alien Invasion - Government / League intervention
For T1 criminals, they're not worth our time. We can help bankroll the cops, and provide equipment, but at the end of the day, crime will always be around. Sure we can have plants, moles, etc. on the police force, but focusing on this as a priority takes away from more important things.
T2 criminals / heroes are our bread and butter. Having our own elite version of SWAT to step in when things are too hard for the police is the best bet. We have the money, equipment, and space to train our own private team to deal with this kind of threat. In addition, we snag someone in Intergang with Apokoliptian weapons / tech, we score. We get the alien & super science tech without any pesky red tape, and can use our own skunkworks to reverse engineer / implement / innovate this stuff. This is the KGBeast, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot tier. Individuals that police are not equipped or trained to fight, nor should they be. We look good assisting the police, get the goods, fame, and power. It's also a good recruiting pool of individuals for future plans / actions.
T3 criminals / heroes is where we need to put the most effort into. People at this tier can easily cause massive damage and death, and no regular police force can possibly be prepared for it. Expect high casualties and collateral damage for ordinary civilians, and moderate risk for elite troops. Here is the playground Superman generally intervenes in, and where we need to be able to respond publicly. This is the Livewire, Atomic Skull, General Zod tier. We need the ability to direct significant effort in a short amount of time. Rapid response team of teleporting units nearby with specialized equipment loadout would be the ideal situation, but Speedsters or Helicarriers with jump troops also work.
T4 criminals / heroes is our operating goal. Thanigarian Invasion, Atlantean Invasion. War World, God Tier Amazo, massive planetary events tier. This is where the Justice League / Legion of Doom is required to step into events to prevent or encourage specific outcomes. This is where we want to be our playground to be, and will require multiple powered individuals acting in concert, or us reaching the level of being able to interact with the Source Wall. This is where we beat Superman. If we want to truly hurt Superman, this is how. We make him useless, because humanity can stand on it's own without the need for an alien.
T1 Regular criminals - regular police.
T2 Regular criminals with mcguffins / tinkertech - Police with Lextech / Lexcorp's S.W.A.T
T3 Powered Individuals - Project CADMUS / Belle Reve / Lexcorp Elite Intervention (Mercenaries from us)
T4 Alien Invasion - Government / League intervention
For T1 criminals, they're not worth our time. We can help bankroll the cops, and provide equipment, but at the end of the day, crime will always be around. Sure we can have plants, moles, etc. on the police force, but focusing on this as a priority takes away from more important things.
T2 criminals / heroes are our bread and butter. Having our own elite version of SWAT to step in when things are too hard for the police is the best bet. We have the money, equipment, and space to train our own private team to deal with this kind of threat. In addition, we snag someone in Intergang with Apokoliptian weapons / tech, we score. We get the alien & super science tech without any pesky red tape, and can use our own skunkworks to reverse engineer / implement / innovate this stuff. This is the KGBeast, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot tier. Individuals that police are not equipped or trained to fight, nor should they be. We look good assisting the police, get the goods, fame, and power. It's also a good recruiting pool of individuals for future plans / actions.
T3 criminals / heroes is where we need to put the most effort into. People at this tier can easily cause massive damage and death, and no regular police force can possibly be prepared for it. Expect high casualties and collateral damage for ordinary civilians, and moderate risk for elite troops. Here is the playground Superman generally intervenes in, and where we need to be able to respond publicly. This is the Livewire, Atomic Skull, General Zod tier. We need the ability to direct significant effort in a short amount of time. Rapid response team of teleporting units nearby with specialized equipment loadout would be the ideal situation, but Speedsters or Helicarriers with jump troops also work.
T4 criminals / heroes is our operating goal. Thanigarian Invasion, Atlantean Invasion. War World, God Tier Amazo, massive planetary events tier. This is where the Justice League / Legion of Doom is required to step into events to prevent or encourage specific outcomes. This is where we want to be our playground to be, and will require multiple powered individuals acting in concert, or us reaching the level of being able to interact with the Source Wall. This is where we beat Superman. If we want to truly hurt Superman, this is how. We make him useless, because humanity can stand on it's own without the need for an alien.
- Location
- The United States
@King crimson
Would a write in establishing a private military company be viable?
Edit. Something like [] While the security forces of LexCorp are top of the line, they offer very little in terms of power projection. Found a private military company to create a legitimate military outfit that can be used directly by the company or auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Would a write in establishing a private military company be viable?
Edit. Something like [] While the security forces of LexCorp are top of the line, they offer very little in terms of power projection. Found a private military company to create a legitimate military outfit that can be used directly by the company or auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Last edited:
King crimson
Confusion Will Be My Epitaph
- Location
- Los Angeles
Yes I'll count it as an accepted write-in. I was sure I had something similar in my action vote but I couldn't find it. As such take your 100 exp since it caught a mistake I unintentionally made
King crimson
Confusion Will Be My Epitaph
- Location
- Los Angeles
So heads up guys the vote will close at 10:00 pm PST like always. The update contains four separate subvotes for you to take part in as well as four different viewpoint characters for the interlude. Let me know if it works or not since I'm experimenting a bit with interludes now.
So I think we should take over crime so we can start building a reputation within what in a few years will become the supervillain community. While it is true that we want a good reputation with the public eventually organizations like the legion of doom will be formed and I want to ensure that Lex has a good seat at the table.
Kkutlord
Prince of Breath
- Location
- Indianapolis, Indiana
Lex currently isn't a supervillain though. Sure he has done illegal stuff, but so far he's more "visionary who only crimes for benefit". He doesn't seem the type to seriously run any criminal enterprise, since he's already extremely successful as a legitimate business man.
Like, the ICBMs are for protection reasons whereas the LexCo Communication Network lets him learn about important stuff the world over. What need does he have for illegally supplying criminals or actively drawing in clientele for drug selling?
If he takes over crime, then it'll be overhauled either to specifically benefit him or to make it less harmful to his city of Metropolis. Seriously, Lex just made serious bank inventing the Smartphone. What criminal business would make him more money than the legitimate LexCorp?
Like, the ICBMs are for protection reasons whereas the LexCo Communication Network lets him learn about important stuff the world over. What need does he have for illegally supplying criminals or actively drawing in clientele for drug selling?
If he takes over crime, then it'll be overhauled either to specifically benefit him or to make it less harmful to his city of Metropolis. Seriously, Lex just made serious bank inventing the Smartphone. What criminal business would make him more money than the legitimate LexCorp?
- Location
- The United States
I would like to put my exp towards Lex's learning.
King crimson
Confusion Will Be My Epitaph
- Location
- Los Angeles
I've added it in to the character sheet
- Location
- Brazil
Let me explain what you are fundamentaly getting wrong.
This isn't about money, we don't care about money, Lex doesn't care about money, the quest doesn't track money and if you think earning money is a primary reason for anything at any point you are wrong and should stop
The reasons to take over the criminal empire are twofold. POWER and CONTROL.
Need something smugled ? Done.
Someone being dificult ? Acidents happen.
Need test subjects ? Grab a couple undesirables.
The criminal element are deniable assets to act our will and that is POWER.
Now see you can't end crime, there will always be a dark side of of the city, things happening in the shadows. You can't end it.
But if we own crime we know when things happen, we decide what happens and nothing happens whitout our knowledge or say-so.
And so we CONTROL the night just as we aim to control the day , to make ALL of Metropolis ours.
Kkutlord
Prince of Breath
- Location
- Indianapolis, Indiana
I see no point for Lex to jeopardize his incredible success by embracing crime. In just a few years Superheroes are practically going to be everywhere, so making ourselves too huge of a Criminal Kingpin is just asking for Superheroes to regularly ruin our operations.
Criminal Activity should only be reserved for important things, like the ICBMs to keep LexCorp safe and the Communication Network so we can learn about important stuff. Even then, given the DCAU Watchtower was a functional weapon, what Lex has done so far can be defended to everyone who finds out.
But actively abducting people for inhumane experiments, or assassinating our enemies? There's no justification we could give to get the Superheroes to leave us alone.
Sure we could kill or frame Superheroes... But why? They're more useful being pointed elsewhere, and that's before big crisis events like Invasions or Supervillain Terror Attacks become a thing.
Most criminals would be beneath Lex, and having a world metaphorically burn is extremely unproductive to achieving success & power. Though there will always be some idiot who loves committing crime...
It is silly to think you can't crush it into something less. The only successful criminals are the intelligent, the strong, and the well-connected. Thus... Supervillains, and most Supervillains are not cooperative.
So once the Villains start crawling out, they'll be an active problem for "Criminal Kingpin" Lex. Since Villains are more likely to kill, cripple, and torture people... That means having to deal with a lot of LexCorp families over their dead/crippled/psychologically damaged loved ones.
Frankly "Criminal Kingpin" Lex means getting targeted by Superheroes obsessed with Justice and other villains obsessed with Power themselves. I for one don't want regular disruption from Supers that we can't possibly reason with.
If we're gonna exploit crime, then being the Kingpin draws too much attention. By keeping ourselves as clean as possible, Superheroes would actively help us against Villains and criminals. Thus, free security we don't have to pay, and maybe even willing partners for LexCo projects.
Criminal Activity should only be reserved for important things, like the ICBMs to keep LexCorp safe and the Communication Network so we can learn about important stuff. Even then, given the DCAU Watchtower was a functional weapon, what Lex has done so far can be defended to everyone who finds out.
But actively abducting people for inhumane experiments, or assassinating our enemies? There's no justification we could give to get the Superheroes to leave us alone.
Sure we could kill or frame Superheroes... But why? They're more useful being pointed elsewhere, and that's before big crisis events like Invasions or Supervillain Terror Attacks become a thing.
Most criminals would be beneath Lex, and having a world metaphorically burn is extremely unproductive to achieving success & power. Though there will always be some idiot who loves committing crime...
It is silly to think you can't crush it into something less. The only successful criminals are the intelligent, the strong, and the well-connected. Thus... Supervillains, and most Supervillains are not cooperative.
So once the Villains start crawling out, they'll be an active problem for "Criminal Kingpin" Lex. Since Villains are more likely to kill, cripple, and torture people... That means having to deal with a lot of LexCorp families over their dead/crippled/psychologically damaged loved ones.
Frankly "Criminal Kingpin" Lex means getting targeted by Superheroes obsessed with Justice and other villains obsessed with Power themselves. I for one don't want regular disruption from Supers that we can't possibly reason with.
If we're gonna exploit crime, then being the Kingpin draws too much attention. By keeping ourselves as clean as possible, Superheroes would actively help us against Villains and criminals. Thus, free security we don't have to pay, and maybe even willing partners for LexCo projects.
That's the kind of small thinking that turns us into a mob boss, rather than a megalomaniac.
Having an international business that exports products to every country? That's smuggling, and deniability.
Someone being difficult? We have enough money to buy whatever votes we're needing, or hell, even the company that's causing problems (See our option to purchase the Daily Planet). Even forgetting the fact that we can rig their brand new phone to be both a recording device for blackmail purposes, as well as a built in GPS to track them. If you want to go the dark way, you don't skimp on cheap labor. Why get a mob hit man who might botch the job, when you can pay for the League of Shadows, Deadshot, Deathstroke, etc.
Need test subjects? There's plenty of people out there who would sell themselves for a chance at a better life for either them or their family, or even hot food and a warm bed.
Taking over a criminal empire is silly. You open yourself up to being exposed for less than reliable methods. There are vigilantes who will beat the information out of someone to open up a case, law be damned. (Batman / Question) There are people out there who can read minds (Martian Manhunter / Miss Martian) and strip out the information of our organization, much less infiltrate at such a low level. There are people who can raise and talk to the dead (Constantine, Faust, Dr. Fate).
Sure you get a modicum of power by gaining low level criminals, and can strongarm neighborhoods, but once you hit the city scale, you've got countless heroes on your tail looking to make a name or being out for revenge. We get more power by keeping on the up and up.
Batman tries to control Gotham through fear, but then you have the crazies who just don't care. Poison Ivy does so through pheremones, Queen Bee does it through persuasion with the assist from Psimon. There's no level of control that either isn't countered by heroes, freedom fighters, or pure insanity. The harder you squeeze, the more that slips through your fingers.
Micromanaging the criminal element to that degree is a waste of our time. Oh no, a bank was robbed. We're insured, and somehow the criminal disappears to never be seen again. A message is delivered, and our banks are less likely to be robbed.
Edit <Ninja'd>
Having an international business that exports products to every country? That's smuggling, and deniability.
Someone being difficult? We have enough money to buy whatever votes we're needing, or hell, even the company that's causing problems (See our option to purchase the Daily Planet). Even forgetting the fact that we can rig their brand new phone to be both a recording device for blackmail purposes, as well as a built in GPS to track them. If you want to go the dark way, you don't skimp on cheap labor. Why get a mob hit man who might botch the job, when you can pay for the League of Shadows, Deadshot, Deathstroke, etc.
Need test subjects? There's plenty of people out there who would sell themselves for a chance at a better life for either them or their family, or even hot food and a warm bed.
Taking over a criminal empire is silly. You open yourself up to being exposed for less than reliable methods. There are vigilantes who will beat the information out of someone to open up a case, law be damned. (Batman / Question) There are people out there who can read minds (Martian Manhunter / Miss Martian) and strip out the information of our organization, much less infiltrate at such a low level. There are people who can raise and talk to the dead (Constantine, Faust, Dr. Fate).
Sure you get a modicum of power by gaining low level criminals, and can strongarm neighborhoods, but once you hit the city scale, you've got countless heroes on your tail looking to make a name or being out for revenge. We get more power by keeping on the up and up.
Batman tries to control Gotham through fear, but then you have the crazies who just don't care. Poison Ivy does so through pheremones, Queen Bee does it through persuasion with the assist from Psimon. There's no level of control that either isn't countered by heroes, freedom fighters, or pure insanity. The harder you squeeze, the more that slips through your fingers.
Micromanaging the criminal element to that degree is a waste of our time. Oh no, a bank was robbed. We're insured, and somehow the criminal disappears to never be seen again. A message is delivered, and our banks are less likely to be robbed.
Edit <Ninja'd>
Kkutlord
Prince of Breath
- Location
- Indianapolis, Indiana
Another reason "Criminal Kingpin" isn't that great: We already revolutionized the world by inventing Smartphones, and it did so well we made Wayne Enterprises look like complete idiots. That was with just three months.
Imagine all the other things we could achieve with this level of potential. Mean Lex didn't make that much progress with Computers, and his L-Phones still became an obsessed over status symbol.
Let's make ourselves so beloved, that not even Superman could steal our thunder. Besides, having enemies everywhere is terrible for... Well anything. Lex has more important things to do than deal with delusional heroes and arrogant villains.
Imagine all the other things we could achieve with this level of potential. Mean Lex didn't make that much progress with Computers, and his L-Phones still became an obsessed over status symbol.
Let's make ourselves so beloved, that not even Superman could steal our thunder. Besides, having enemies everywhere is terrible for... Well anything. Lex has more important things to do than deal with delusional heroes and arrogant villains.
- Location
- U.S.
make so ANY action AGAINST Lex would be seen as a action against HUMANITY. Cure cancer, cure world hunger, reduce poverty, stamp out human traficking (and recruit the victims!)
Interlude: Out of the Shadows and into the Light
King crimson
Confusion Will Be My Epitaph
- Location
- Los Angeles
So the vote is now closed. The winning options are Pamela Isley and Anthony Ives
Remember how you became a public figure and revolutionized the world? Now other groups are going to start targeting you in order to get something. You can choose not to get involved in any fights but other people may just drag you into them. Right now everything worked out alright but things might not always go this well in the future.
Before I begin the interlude I would like to make a small disclaimer. All of the narrators of the interlude are unreliable to different extents and some of these people are genuinely unpleasant. Nothing these characters say or think reflects my own opinions thoughts or beliefs. I hope you all enjoy the interlude and find the subvotes interesting. I will not be regularly writing interludes but if this proves popular I will experiment with the format more.
Interlude: Out of the Dark and into the Light
Lucy Lane
Being the younger of the two Lane sisters was always a little frustrating. No matter how hard she tried she could never escape her big sister's shadow. Her teachers and peers and even her mother always wanted her to be more like Lois when they were growing up. Everyone except dear old daddy, who honestly was more disappointed that he didn't have any boys than he was disappointed in Lucy specifically, preferred Lois to her.
Honestly it was enough to breed a little resentment in a girl. Don't get her wrong Lucy still loved her sister she just wished that she could be known as something other than "Lois Lane's younger more disappointing sister". The worst part was that even after they grew older she still couldn't escape Lois' shadow.
Take recently for example. Lucy had managed to pass the bar exam and find work in an excellent firm (Siegel and Shuster were the premier business law firm in Metropolis) and was hoping to make a name for herself. The firm had recently been acquired by Mr. Luthor and there were bound to be monumental cases in any endeavor he was involved in. She was on the ground floor of something incredible. Sure Lois disliked the man but Lucy never really got that and honestly neither did the average person on the street. But of course Lois had to go and make things harder for Lucy again.
Lois had gone to Santa Prisca to investigate the crimes going on in that dictatorship. With the information she had gained during her investigation Lois had gone on to write a pulitzer prize winning article about the horrific crimes being committed by the regime there including but not limited to human experimentation and locking up babies in prisons for adults for the crimes of their parents.
Lucy was of course horrified at what had happened in the small country but she wondered why Lois couldn't have kept things secret and reported her findings to dad. Sure dad was a bit of a jerk but he would take care of human rights violations and solve the problem. Instead Lois had to go and blab the truth to the whole world and now Sant Prisca had locked down and the regime had grown harsher. The whole country went silent and Lucy wouldn't be surprised if the country was gearing up to fight a defensive war.
Yet while Lucy could see the flaws in Lois' approach and how it might have made conditions worse, everyone else had nothing but heaps of praise for Lois about how brave she was and how exposing the truth was the right thing to do. And now with her credibility at an all time high Lois was most likely going to try and investigate Luthor to find what was wrong with him. Lucy was not going to let Lois pull the rug out from under her. Luthor was her chance to be something more than Lois' inferior little sister and if Lois was inadvertently going to ruin Lucy's chances of being viewed as her own person the Lucy was going to take steps to stop her.
Pamela Isley
Pamela was a little out of her depth here. She had applied to LexCorp not really expecting to get the job. While the company had some patents on genetically modified plants the company under Lex Luthor had taken far more of a focus on the technological side of things. She was a botanist fresh out of earning her PhD. from Gotham university not some supergenius engineer like many of those who had probably applied for the same position she had ultimately gotten. Walking through the densely packed lobby Pamela couldn't help but dwell on her insecurities. Why had she of all people been hired? Was it because of how she looked? She wasn't sure how she felt about that. On the one hand she got the job. Working at LexCorp was a dream job since as an industry leader whatever standards they set for how mother Earth should be treated other companies would follow. It was a position of great power and influence and it might allow her to save the earth in a way she could only dream of doing as a lowly grad student. On the other hand, what if she had only gotten hired for her looks? Pamela knew she was an attractive woman but she was sick and tired of having her brain overlooked because of her body. Even brilliant men like Professor Woodrue where uninterested in listening to her ideas on how they could help save the environment if they didn't think it would help get them into her pants. Pamela didn't think she could work in an environment where she would be sexually harassed by her boss. It was already bad enough with someone like Professor Woodrue if Lex Luthor started to solicit and coerce her in the same way her ex did then Pamela was going to lose it.
With these worries coursing through her mind she made her way across the lobby and saw a rather harsh looking woman and an odd man with a disgusting face that looked like it was covered in odd growths and burns.
"You the other brainiac Lex hired?" The woman bluntly asked.
Pamela took a second to respond as the directness of the question caught her off guard. Still maybe it was a good thing that employees where this direct? The woman clearly felt comfortable using Mr. Luthor's first name and while her question was a bit rude it wasn't actively insulting.
"Erhmm... yeah? I think I am?" Pamela hesitantly replied. The disfigured man let out a disdainful snort and Pamela couldn't help but feel a wave of anger burn through her at being so quickly dismissed. How dare that man look down on her! Still the woman seemed entirely unphased by Pamela's slight faux pas.
"Alright get in the elevator eggheads, Lex wants to discuss with you some ideas on how to improve LexCorp" The woman blithely responds. A spacious elevator opens up and Pamela enters standing as far away from the disfigured man. Still things are much better than she expected them to be. Lex Luthor actually wants to discuss ideas with her. If you told her that a major player in the world of business was going to invite her into his office to discuss what she thought could make things better a week ago and she would have laughed at the absurdity of it. Yet here she was heading up in an elevator with only two other people to see Lex Luthor. Pamela was not going to let this opportunity pass her by.
"Um, miss…" Pamela began as she quickly realized she didn't even know the name of the woman who was taking her to see Lex Luthor.
"It's Mercy." The woman dryly replied.
"Miss Mercy," Pamela began again a bit less hesitantly now that she could put a name to the face. "Do you really think Mr. Luthor will listen to my ideas?"
Pamela could see the disfigured man rolling his eyes from the other side of the room. Pamela really hated how dismissive that man was of her and hoped she wouldn't be forced to work with him. Mercy simply ignored the disfigured man and calmly responded to Pamela's question.
"Look Red I'm going to level with you." Mercy replied. "Do you really want Lex to listen to your ideas?"
Pamela eagerly began nodding her head. She would do absolutely anything to ensure that mother earth was protected.
"Then relax and loosen up a bit If your ideas are good then clearly articulate them to Lex and he will listen. The man is a supergenius, if your ideas are good he will be glad to agree to them."
A wide smile grew across Pamela's face. Deciding to work at LexCorp was the right decision to make. A man as smart as Lex Luthor would clearly see the need to protect mother earth and how that would benefit him. Pamela was grinning throughout the rest of the elevator ride into Luthor's office. She was going to change the world.
Anthony Ives
Dr. Ives was not surprised at all when he was hired by Lex Luthor as new scientist. The man clearly had a brain rattling around in his skull and the fact that he was capable of recognizing Dr. Ives' brilliance was another point in favor of the mogul's ability to make money not being a fluke or just dumb luck. Dr. Ives hoped that this was a good sign of things to come.
Dr. Ives had been diagnosed with a terminal illness in the past ten years. In order to save himself Dr. Ives had devoted himself whole-heartedly to his AMAZO project which would build him a new better body he could transfer his mind into. The fools at his previous workplace had not understood and had fired him for "devoting too much time into a personal project". Idiots! Could they not see the vast benefits his work would have? Well no matter. Dr. Ives had found a new employer with far more resources. Hopefully this one would have the ability to comprehend Dr. Ives' genius and not interfere with his work.
Dr. Ives confidently strode into LexCorp tower. He ignored all the mindless peons that buzzed around the building, although it infuriated him how many stopped to gawk at his disfigured body as though he were some kind of attraction at a freakshow. Some corporate lackey of Luthor's asked Dr.Ives to wait with her in the lobby until the other scientist Luthor had hired arrived. Dr. Ives continued his introspection when a voluptuous twit masquerading as a scientist appeared and they all headed into the elevator. Throughout the whole elevator ride the twit kept asking the lackey all sorts of insipid questions and when the lackey reassured the twit that she would be listened to by Luthor (as though getting a man to listen to you was a privilege not something you were owed as a brilliant mind) a dopey stupefied grin broke across the twits face. Dr. Ives internally scoffed. If Luthor wanted to hire attractive excuses for scientists to coddle and handhold through the process of discovery then that was fine by Dr. Ives. After all it was Luthor's money and resources that were being wasted. But if the decisions Luthor made with his second head in any way interfered with Dr. Ives' project then he would be utterly furious at being so flagrantly insulted.
The elevator dinged as they reached the floor in which Luthor's private office was. Dr. Ives and the twit stepped forward and entered the room in which Luthor would receive them. While the lackey warned them not to overstep their boundaries and go snooping in Luthor's private quarters. Luthor received them in an immaculately decorated room with a wide range of books and few novel art pieces. A large dark wooden desk dominated the center of the room and Luthor had them sit in a few smaller chairs while the lackey stood at the door, her fingers briefly tapping at her holstered gun every so often. Honestly Dr. Ives found it rather droll. Luthor was trying so hard to project an image of power and authority when the whole thing was wasted on the twit (because she was a simpleton) and Dr. Ives (because he simply did not care).
Luthor asked the pair of them what they fought they could bring to the table to help improve his company. The twit launched into this whole long spiel about how she wanted to "save mother earth" and make LexCorp go green and how her expertise in botany (Dr.Ives knew she wasn't a really scientist) would be useful for helping the company break into the food and medicine fields and dominate those. Throughout the whole rant Luthor was smiling and nodding his head along. Dr. Ives wondered how long he was going to string her along. He gave it three years tops before Luthor moved on to indulging some other bimbo. When the twit finally ran out of steam Luthor revealed to her that she was going to be given her own private lab to work on products that might benefit LexCorp. The twit looked completely dumbfounded as the lackey led her out of the room. Luthor then turned his attention onto Dr. Ives and asked him what he could do for the company.
"You know what I can do for your company," Dr.Ives retorted. Honestly the man was just wasting his time.
"Don't waste my time and just give me my lab and I'll create something so revolutionary the whole world will be amazed."
The genial smile on Luthor's face vanished and he quickly revealed his true face as a cold calculating businessman. Good. Dr. Ives could work with that. Luthor swiftly acquiesced to Dr. Ives' request before asking if there was anything else he could do for Dr. Ives. Dr. Ives had an idea. Anthony Ives was dying of a terminal disease that couldn't be cured but the AMAZO project was designed to make him a whole new person. Thus he would symbolically killed off Dr. Ives and adopted the new identity of Professor Anthony Ivo. It was a new day and Professor Ivo had great things to accomplish.
Mercy Graves
For a bunch of eggheads the new hires weren't too bad. Okay scratch that Anthony Ives or as he had pretentiously renamed himself "Professor Ivo" (Mercy was pretty sure the man did not have the credentials to be a professor but she wasn't going to anger the fussy self-important man by pointing out his bullshit) was incredibly rude and dismissive and had less charisma then an angry crab (he also looked hideous which didn't help improve his pleasant disposition) but the man had ignored here and solely focused on Lex. Let Lex deal with the prick. Lex could manage the tempramental scientist, Mercy would like to keep her hands clear of that mess thank you very much and it wasn't like she could comprehend the technobabble the scientist types liked to spew out. Lex could though. Lex was absolutely brilliant like that. Worst came to worst and she could deal with the man. She had worked with Lionel Luthor and so far no one had surpassed that man in rampant dickishness.
The other new hire, Dr. Pamela Isley, was much more pleasant. Sure she was a bit of a weird hippie nerd stuck in the body of a supermodel who hated being dismissed and had a weirdly intense desire to "save mother earth" (Mercy had never heard anyone say that phrase as seriously and as intensely as Pamela did. Honestly, it was like the lady had stepped out of a cult or something), but when she wasn't going off about the planet and had relaxed a bit she was a genuinely good conversationalist and didn't take offense to every little thing that came out of Mercy's mouth like the more pretentious sort did but she also wasn't spineless and didn't let Mercy walk all over her. Mercy could honestly see both herself and Luthor growing fond of the redhead later on.
Mercy chatted with Pamela for a bit as the doctor got settled in her lab but soon had to go back to work. No rest for the wicked after all. As Mercy went to check on the security footage she noticed something strange (Mercy Intrigue 16+surveillance system bonus of 74+18 from roll>??? Intrigue stat of 72 (for all of ??? at once)+ 21 from roll. 24 League of Shadows Assassins discovered). A bunch of weirdos dressed up as ninjas had infiltrated the building. Furthermore a few of them were in fairly accurate disguises as LexCorp employees. It was time to remove the infestation from the building. Mercy swiftly locked down the areas of the building where the ninjas had entered and where isolated in (Mercy Martial score 19+104 fortified tower score+76 from roll> League of Shadows Assassins Martial Score 48(for all assassins at once)+98 from roll). They were quickly dispatched by the electrified floors and knockout gas in the room. The other assassins all panicked when 14 of their comrades screamed across their communications network and then went silent. 3 of the assassins ran for the door but were quickly gunned down by the LexCorp security forces that were already there. 5 of them attempted to take hostages to secure their escape from the building. However the five hostage takers were swiftly dispatched by the variety of hidden turrets in the building since they couldn't protect themselves from all angles. Mercy sighed. It looked like Luthor was right again. The extra security and surveillance had come in handy far sooner then she had expected. That could practically be the companies motto "Lex Luthor is always right. If you think he is wrong, you just haven't accounted for enough variables because you aren't a supergenius like him". Admittedly it was a bit wordy but Mercy's job wasn't to come up with company slogans. Maybe Lex could think of something better Mercy idly mused. Honestly at this point the mans ridiculous competence at everything could hardly surprise her.
Mercy's attention returned to the screens with which the intruders to the tower could be observed. 1 particularly clever ninja had broken into an elevator shaft and had begun to climb up towards Lex's floor. In any other building that might have actually been a rather clever way to get around security measures. Not at LexCorp though. With a few keystrokes at the security terminal Mercy simply dropped an elevator on the innovative assassin. The last remaining living assassin had not shed his disguise. He simply calmly walked into an elevator with other employees. He managed to bypass the retinal scanners by never actually opening anything himself. Mercy would bet that this guy was the best out of all of the assassins. There was no way to kill him in plain view of the other employees without causing a panic. Ugh, maintaining a good image was such a hassle but Lex would skin Mercy alive if she ended his current run of good publicity by being too brutal too quickly.
Over the intercom system in the building Mercy made up a call to have the fake employee head on up to the security room. Seeing an opportunity to get closer to his end goal or perhaps believing he had fooled her the man enters the elevator. Mercy had the elevator go up a few floors and then abruptly stop.
"Solid assassination attempt but not quite good enough when going up against Lex Luthor. Were you up against anyone else you might have succeeded unfortunately you went up against LexCorp." Mercy smugly told the man over the intercom. To the assassin's credit he still didn't break his cover immediately but his eyes began to dart around the elevator looking for a way out.
"Wh-what are you talking about?" the disguised assassin believably stuttered. "What assassination attempt are you talking about? I just wanted to get paid and go home today"
Mery just chuckled. The whole "bewildered employee act" was kind of cute. Maybe if she pushed him far enough the assassin would launch some sob story about how he was trying to make ends meet and how he was trying to save his sick child. Make a whole telenovela out of his attempt to assassinate her boss. Still as much as Mercy would like to wind up the idiot business had to come before pleasure.
"You know that would be a lot more convincing if you actually had used the retinal scanners and you weren't currently still desperately searching for a way out of the elevator" Mercy dryly stated. "But hey, you are in the safest place in the whole building, any method I have of killing you in the elevator is too expensive to be worthwhile."
For some reason that comment really gets under the assassin's skin. His whole face twists into a rictus of rage.
"Your decadence shall be your undoing, the League of Shadows shall cleanse filth like your master from the world and remake it into a garden of eden". The man snarls realizing that his masquerade is pointless. He begins to start winding up for a rant but before he can do so Mercy interrupts him.
"Okay let's clear things up. Lex isn't my "master" he's my boss, are you not familiar with the concept of having a job and thus tried to take out your anger at being unemployed out on someone who actually is successful or do you have a "master" who sent you to die like a well trained dog?" Mercy mocks. The man's face turns purple from sheer rage at having his cause mocked and Mercy idly wonders if the man is going to have a stroke. It would certainly be a little ironic to watch this super-secret ninja assassin die from a stroke rather any of the buildings defenses.
"Ra's Al Ghul would never waste the lives of his men. The League of Shadows is dedicated to his mission. We are all loyal to his vision of a future in which the earth is safe from the greed of mankind" The assassin yells out in anger. Clearly insulting his cause touched a nerve with the man. His bluster and anger is honestly a little annoying and his premise that killing capitalists would make the world safe from exploitation is so naive and underdeveloped that it's almost painful to listen to. It's like someone took all the worst parts of Pamela and sent them to try and kill Lex on a half-baked plan that a 12 year old could have pointed out the flaws in. Mercy was just done with this.
"Good to know" Mercy sarcastically stated "Remember that whole bit about how it was too expensive to kill you in this elevator?"
The man looks around in confusion before slowly comprehension dawns on his face. He realizes that he just got played by Mercy to reveal more information about who sent him and what they are about. He begins to desperately look for a way out when Mercy states what they have both realized.
"I lied"
The assassin dies in the elevator choking on poison gas. Mercy doesn't bother to watch his life fade. She has work to get done and and whoever or whatever this League of Shadows and Ra's Al Ghul is the 14 assassins who were knocked out rather than killed will be far more useful than the one dead one in the elevator. Whoever they are they'll regret taking on Lex Luthor (to be continued in the League of Shadows subvote).
League of Shadows Subvote
You need to deal with the captured assassins. Please vote for up to 2 options. Luthor or Mercy can be assigned to one of these tasks in exchange for not being assigned to an action next turn
[ ] [LoS] Interrogate the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Turn in the captured assassins to the authorities
[ ] [LoS] Execute the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Experiment on the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Attempt to sway the captured assassins to your side
[ ] [LoS] Plant a tracking device on the captured assassins and let them escape
[ ] [LoS] Make an example of the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Write-in (all write-ins subject to QM approval)
Queen Party Subvote
You have been invited to an exclusive party by Oliver Queen. This is an excellent chance to gauge rivals competitors and people of interest. However you are also out in the open after the failed assassination attempt and all of your rivals will be looking for any weakness they can find. Please vote for one option only. Any votes with two or more options from this subvote selected will be discounted. Selecting to attend the party is mutually exclusive with choosing to be interviewed by Lois Lane.
[ ] [Party] Attend the party
[ ] [Party] Attempt to kidnap a party guest
[ ] [Party] Skip the party
An Interview with Lois Lane subvote
Lois Lane, one of your biggest critics has asked to interview you. She has gone through all of the official channels and if you deny her the chance to interview you she is going to suspect you have something to hide and attempt to investigate you further. If you do agree to the interview, then it is likely she will twist your every word in an attempt to make you look bad. With her pulitzer prize winning article people might begin to believe what Lois says as the truth. It almost feels like you have to defuse a bomb with how this reporter is interfering with your goals. Please vote for one option only. Any vote with two or more options selected from this subvote will be discounted. Selecting to be interviewed by Lois Lane is mutually exclusive with choosing to attend Oliver Queen's party.
[ ] [Interview] Attend the interview
[ ] [Interview] Attempt to kidnap Lois Lane
[ ] [Interview] Skip the interview
Name the phone model subvote
A fun out of character vote for the quest. Vote for your favorite names for the new phone Luthor has created. The option with the most votes is the one that will be victorious. Vote for as many names as you would like. I will reject names if I think they are completely immersion breaking (naming the phone "Mary-Kate and Ashley" or "Purple" is an example of this). All votes for immersion shattering options will be discounted. The format votes should take is this
[ ] [Phone] Write-in for phone name
Let me know if you liked this interlude and if there is a character from whose perspective you want to see things. If there are any questions about characterization or the subvote options please let me know and I will answer them to the best of my ability.
Remember how you became a public figure and revolutionized the world? Now other groups are going to start targeting you in order to get something. You can choose not to get involved in any fights but other people may just drag you into them. Right now everything worked out alright but things might not always go this well in the future.
Before I begin the interlude I would like to make a small disclaimer. All of the narrators of the interlude are unreliable to different extents and some of these people are genuinely unpleasant. Nothing these characters say or think reflects my own opinions thoughts or beliefs. I hope you all enjoy the interlude and find the subvotes interesting. I will not be regularly writing interludes but if this proves popular I will experiment with the format more.
Interlude: Out of the Dark and into the Light
Lucy Lane
Being the younger of the two Lane sisters was always a little frustrating. No matter how hard she tried she could never escape her big sister's shadow. Her teachers and peers and even her mother always wanted her to be more like Lois when they were growing up. Everyone except dear old daddy, who honestly was more disappointed that he didn't have any boys than he was disappointed in Lucy specifically, preferred Lois to her.
Honestly it was enough to breed a little resentment in a girl. Don't get her wrong Lucy still loved her sister she just wished that she could be known as something other than "Lois Lane's younger more disappointing sister". The worst part was that even after they grew older she still couldn't escape Lois' shadow.
Take recently for example. Lucy had managed to pass the bar exam and find work in an excellent firm (Siegel and Shuster were the premier business law firm in Metropolis) and was hoping to make a name for herself. The firm had recently been acquired by Mr. Luthor and there were bound to be monumental cases in any endeavor he was involved in. She was on the ground floor of something incredible. Sure Lois disliked the man but Lucy never really got that and honestly neither did the average person on the street. But of course Lois had to go and make things harder for Lucy again.
Lois had gone to Santa Prisca to investigate the crimes going on in that dictatorship. With the information she had gained during her investigation Lois had gone on to write a pulitzer prize winning article about the horrific crimes being committed by the regime there including but not limited to human experimentation and locking up babies in prisons for adults for the crimes of their parents.
Lucy was of course horrified at what had happened in the small country but she wondered why Lois couldn't have kept things secret and reported her findings to dad. Sure dad was a bit of a jerk but he would take care of human rights violations and solve the problem. Instead Lois had to go and blab the truth to the whole world and now Sant Prisca had locked down and the regime had grown harsher. The whole country went silent and Lucy wouldn't be surprised if the country was gearing up to fight a defensive war.
Yet while Lucy could see the flaws in Lois' approach and how it might have made conditions worse, everyone else had nothing but heaps of praise for Lois about how brave she was and how exposing the truth was the right thing to do. And now with her credibility at an all time high Lois was most likely going to try and investigate Luthor to find what was wrong with him. Lucy was not going to let Lois pull the rug out from under her. Luthor was her chance to be something more than Lois' inferior little sister and if Lois was inadvertently going to ruin Lucy's chances of being viewed as her own person the Lucy was going to take steps to stop her.
Pamela Isley
Pamela was a little out of her depth here. She had applied to LexCorp not really expecting to get the job. While the company had some patents on genetically modified plants the company under Lex Luthor had taken far more of a focus on the technological side of things. She was a botanist fresh out of earning her PhD. from Gotham university not some supergenius engineer like many of those who had probably applied for the same position she had ultimately gotten. Walking through the densely packed lobby Pamela couldn't help but dwell on her insecurities. Why had she of all people been hired? Was it because of how she looked? She wasn't sure how she felt about that. On the one hand she got the job. Working at LexCorp was a dream job since as an industry leader whatever standards they set for how mother Earth should be treated other companies would follow. It was a position of great power and influence and it might allow her to save the earth in a way she could only dream of doing as a lowly grad student. On the other hand, what if she had only gotten hired for her looks? Pamela knew she was an attractive woman but she was sick and tired of having her brain overlooked because of her body. Even brilliant men like Professor Woodrue where uninterested in listening to her ideas on how they could help save the environment if they didn't think it would help get them into her pants. Pamela didn't think she could work in an environment where she would be sexually harassed by her boss. It was already bad enough with someone like Professor Woodrue if Lex Luthor started to solicit and coerce her in the same way her ex did then Pamela was going to lose it.
With these worries coursing through her mind she made her way across the lobby and saw a rather harsh looking woman and an odd man with a disgusting face that looked like it was covered in odd growths and burns.
"You the other brainiac Lex hired?" The woman bluntly asked.
Pamela took a second to respond as the directness of the question caught her off guard. Still maybe it was a good thing that employees where this direct? The woman clearly felt comfortable using Mr. Luthor's first name and while her question was a bit rude it wasn't actively insulting.
"Erhmm... yeah? I think I am?" Pamela hesitantly replied. The disfigured man let out a disdainful snort and Pamela couldn't help but feel a wave of anger burn through her at being so quickly dismissed. How dare that man look down on her! Still the woman seemed entirely unphased by Pamela's slight faux pas.
"Alright get in the elevator eggheads, Lex wants to discuss with you some ideas on how to improve LexCorp" The woman blithely responds. A spacious elevator opens up and Pamela enters standing as far away from the disfigured man. Still things are much better than she expected them to be. Lex Luthor actually wants to discuss ideas with her. If you told her that a major player in the world of business was going to invite her into his office to discuss what she thought could make things better a week ago and she would have laughed at the absurdity of it. Yet here she was heading up in an elevator with only two other people to see Lex Luthor. Pamela was not going to let this opportunity pass her by.
"Um, miss…" Pamela began as she quickly realized she didn't even know the name of the woman who was taking her to see Lex Luthor.
"It's Mercy." The woman dryly replied.
"Miss Mercy," Pamela began again a bit less hesitantly now that she could put a name to the face. "Do you really think Mr. Luthor will listen to my ideas?"
Pamela could see the disfigured man rolling his eyes from the other side of the room. Pamela really hated how dismissive that man was of her and hoped she wouldn't be forced to work with him. Mercy simply ignored the disfigured man and calmly responded to Pamela's question.
"Look Red I'm going to level with you." Mercy replied. "Do you really want Lex to listen to your ideas?"
Pamela eagerly began nodding her head. She would do absolutely anything to ensure that mother earth was protected.
"Then relax and loosen up a bit If your ideas are good then clearly articulate them to Lex and he will listen. The man is a supergenius, if your ideas are good he will be glad to agree to them."
A wide smile grew across Pamela's face. Deciding to work at LexCorp was the right decision to make. A man as smart as Lex Luthor would clearly see the need to protect mother earth and how that would benefit him. Pamela was grinning throughout the rest of the elevator ride into Luthor's office. She was going to change the world.
Anthony Ives
Dr. Ives was not surprised at all when he was hired by Lex Luthor as new scientist. The man clearly had a brain rattling around in his skull and the fact that he was capable of recognizing Dr. Ives' brilliance was another point in favor of the mogul's ability to make money not being a fluke or just dumb luck. Dr. Ives hoped that this was a good sign of things to come.
Dr. Ives had been diagnosed with a terminal illness in the past ten years. In order to save himself Dr. Ives had devoted himself whole-heartedly to his AMAZO project which would build him a new better body he could transfer his mind into. The fools at his previous workplace had not understood and had fired him for "devoting too much time into a personal project". Idiots! Could they not see the vast benefits his work would have? Well no matter. Dr. Ives had found a new employer with far more resources. Hopefully this one would have the ability to comprehend Dr. Ives' genius and not interfere with his work.
Dr. Ives confidently strode into LexCorp tower. He ignored all the mindless peons that buzzed around the building, although it infuriated him how many stopped to gawk at his disfigured body as though he were some kind of attraction at a freakshow. Some corporate lackey of Luthor's asked Dr.Ives to wait with her in the lobby until the other scientist Luthor had hired arrived. Dr. Ives continued his introspection when a voluptuous twit masquerading as a scientist appeared and they all headed into the elevator. Throughout the whole elevator ride the twit kept asking the lackey all sorts of insipid questions and when the lackey reassured the twit that she would be listened to by Luthor (as though getting a man to listen to you was a privilege not something you were owed as a brilliant mind) a dopey stupefied grin broke across the twits face. Dr. Ives internally scoffed. If Luthor wanted to hire attractive excuses for scientists to coddle and handhold through the process of discovery then that was fine by Dr. Ives. After all it was Luthor's money and resources that were being wasted. But if the decisions Luthor made with his second head in any way interfered with Dr. Ives' project then he would be utterly furious at being so flagrantly insulted.
The elevator dinged as they reached the floor in which Luthor's private office was. Dr. Ives and the twit stepped forward and entered the room in which Luthor would receive them. While the lackey warned them not to overstep their boundaries and go snooping in Luthor's private quarters. Luthor received them in an immaculately decorated room with a wide range of books and few novel art pieces. A large dark wooden desk dominated the center of the room and Luthor had them sit in a few smaller chairs while the lackey stood at the door, her fingers briefly tapping at her holstered gun every so often. Honestly Dr. Ives found it rather droll. Luthor was trying so hard to project an image of power and authority when the whole thing was wasted on the twit (because she was a simpleton) and Dr. Ives (because he simply did not care).
Luthor asked the pair of them what they fought they could bring to the table to help improve his company. The twit launched into this whole long spiel about how she wanted to "save mother earth" and make LexCorp go green and how her expertise in botany (Dr.Ives knew she wasn't a really scientist) would be useful for helping the company break into the food and medicine fields and dominate those. Throughout the whole rant Luthor was smiling and nodding his head along. Dr. Ives wondered how long he was going to string her along. He gave it three years tops before Luthor moved on to indulging some other bimbo. When the twit finally ran out of steam Luthor revealed to her that she was going to be given her own private lab to work on products that might benefit LexCorp. The twit looked completely dumbfounded as the lackey led her out of the room. Luthor then turned his attention onto Dr. Ives and asked him what he could do for the company.
"You know what I can do for your company," Dr.Ives retorted. Honestly the man was just wasting his time.
"Don't waste my time and just give me my lab and I'll create something so revolutionary the whole world will be amazed."
The genial smile on Luthor's face vanished and he quickly revealed his true face as a cold calculating businessman. Good. Dr. Ives could work with that. Luthor swiftly acquiesced to Dr. Ives' request before asking if there was anything else he could do for Dr. Ives. Dr. Ives had an idea. Anthony Ives was dying of a terminal disease that couldn't be cured but the AMAZO project was designed to make him a whole new person. Thus he would symbolically killed off Dr. Ives and adopted the new identity of Professor Anthony Ivo. It was a new day and Professor Ivo had great things to accomplish.
Mercy Graves
For a bunch of eggheads the new hires weren't too bad. Okay scratch that Anthony Ives or as he had pretentiously renamed himself "Professor Ivo" (Mercy was pretty sure the man did not have the credentials to be a professor but she wasn't going to anger the fussy self-important man by pointing out his bullshit) was incredibly rude and dismissive and had less charisma then an angry crab (he also looked hideous which didn't help improve his pleasant disposition) but the man had ignored here and solely focused on Lex. Let Lex deal with the prick. Lex could manage the tempramental scientist, Mercy would like to keep her hands clear of that mess thank you very much and it wasn't like she could comprehend the technobabble the scientist types liked to spew out. Lex could though. Lex was absolutely brilliant like that. Worst came to worst and she could deal with the man. She had worked with Lionel Luthor and so far no one had surpassed that man in rampant dickishness.
The other new hire, Dr. Pamela Isley, was much more pleasant. Sure she was a bit of a weird hippie nerd stuck in the body of a supermodel who hated being dismissed and had a weirdly intense desire to "save mother earth" (Mercy had never heard anyone say that phrase as seriously and as intensely as Pamela did. Honestly, it was like the lady had stepped out of a cult or something), but when she wasn't going off about the planet and had relaxed a bit she was a genuinely good conversationalist and didn't take offense to every little thing that came out of Mercy's mouth like the more pretentious sort did but she also wasn't spineless and didn't let Mercy walk all over her. Mercy could honestly see both herself and Luthor growing fond of the redhead later on.
Mercy chatted with Pamela for a bit as the doctor got settled in her lab but soon had to go back to work. No rest for the wicked after all. As Mercy went to check on the security footage she noticed something strange (Mercy Intrigue 16+surveillance system bonus of 74+18 from roll>??? Intrigue stat of 72 (for all of ??? at once)+ 21 from roll. 24 League of Shadows Assassins discovered). A bunch of weirdos dressed up as ninjas had infiltrated the building. Furthermore a few of them were in fairly accurate disguises as LexCorp employees. It was time to remove the infestation from the building. Mercy swiftly locked down the areas of the building where the ninjas had entered and where isolated in (Mercy Martial score 19+104 fortified tower score+76 from roll> League of Shadows Assassins Martial Score 48(for all assassins at once)+98 from roll). They were quickly dispatched by the electrified floors and knockout gas in the room. The other assassins all panicked when 14 of their comrades screamed across their communications network and then went silent. 3 of the assassins ran for the door but were quickly gunned down by the LexCorp security forces that were already there. 5 of them attempted to take hostages to secure their escape from the building. However the five hostage takers were swiftly dispatched by the variety of hidden turrets in the building since they couldn't protect themselves from all angles. Mercy sighed. It looked like Luthor was right again. The extra security and surveillance had come in handy far sooner then she had expected. That could practically be the companies motto "Lex Luthor is always right. If you think he is wrong, you just haven't accounted for enough variables because you aren't a supergenius like him". Admittedly it was a bit wordy but Mercy's job wasn't to come up with company slogans. Maybe Lex could think of something better Mercy idly mused. Honestly at this point the mans ridiculous competence at everything could hardly surprise her.
Mercy's attention returned to the screens with which the intruders to the tower could be observed. 1 particularly clever ninja had broken into an elevator shaft and had begun to climb up towards Lex's floor. In any other building that might have actually been a rather clever way to get around security measures. Not at LexCorp though. With a few keystrokes at the security terminal Mercy simply dropped an elevator on the innovative assassin. The last remaining living assassin had not shed his disguise. He simply calmly walked into an elevator with other employees. He managed to bypass the retinal scanners by never actually opening anything himself. Mercy would bet that this guy was the best out of all of the assassins. There was no way to kill him in plain view of the other employees without causing a panic. Ugh, maintaining a good image was such a hassle but Lex would skin Mercy alive if she ended his current run of good publicity by being too brutal too quickly.
Over the intercom system in the building Mercy made up a call to have the fake employee head on up to the security room. Seeing an opportunity to get closer to his end goal or perhaps believing he had fooled her the man enters the elevator. Mercy had the elevator go up a few floors and then abruptly stop.
"Solid assassination attempt but not quite good enough when going up against Lex Luthor. Were you up against anyone else you might have succeeded unfortunately you went up against LexCorp." Mercy smugly told the man over the intercom. To the assassin's credit he still didn't break his cover immediately but his eyes began to dart around the elevator looking for a way out.
"Wh-what are you talking about?" the disguised assassin believably stuttered. "What assassination attempt are you talking about? I just wanted to get paid and go home today"
Mery just chuckled. The whole "bewildered employee act" was kind of cute. Maybe if she pushed him far enough the assassin would launch some sob story about how he was trying to make ends meet and how he was trying to save his sick child. Make a whole telenovela out of his attempt to assassinate her boss. Still as much as Mercy would like to wind up the idiot business had to come before pleasure.
"You know that would be a lot more convincing if you actually had used the retinal scanners and you weren't currently still desperately searching for a way out of the elevator" Mercy dryly stated. "But hey, you are in the safest place in the whole building, any method I have of killing you in the elevator is too expensive to be worthwhile."
For some reason that comment really gets under the assassin's skin. His whole face twists into a rictus of rage.
"Your decadence shall be your undoing, the League of Shadows shall cleanse filth like your master from the world and remake it into a garden of eden". The man snarls realizing that his masquerade is pointless. He begins to start winding up for a rant but before he can do so Mercy interrupts him.
"Okay let's clear things up. Lex isn't my "master" he's my boss, are you not familiar with the concept of having a job and thus tried to take out your anger at being unemployed out on someone who actually is successful or do you have a "master" who sent you to die like a well trained dog?" Mercy mocks. The man's face turns purple from sheer rage at having his cause mocked and Mercy idly wonders if the man is going to have a stroke. It would certainly be a little ironic to watch this super-secret ninja assassin die from a stroke rather any of the buildings defenses.
"Ra's Al Ghul would never waste the lives of his men. The League of Shadows is dedicated to his mission. We are all loyal to his vision of a future in which the earth is safe from the greed of mankind" The assassin yells out in anger. Clearly insulting his cause touched a nerve with the man. His bluster and anger is honestly a little annoying and his premise that killing capitalists would make the world safe from exploitation is so naive and underdeveloped that it's almost painful to listen to. It's like someone took all the worst parts of Pamela and sent them to try and kill Lex on a half-baked plan that a 12 year old could have pointed out the flaws in. Mercy was just done with this.
"Good to know" Mercy sarcastically stated "Remember that whole bit about how it was too expensive to kill you in this elevator?"
The man looks around in confusion before slowly comprehension dawns on his face. He realizes that he just got played by Mercy to reveal more information about who sent him and what they are about. He begins to desperately look for a way out when Mercy states what they have both realized.
"I lied"
The assassin dies in the elevator choking on poison gas. Mercy doesn't bother to watch his life fade. She has work to get done and and whoever or whatever this League of Shadows and Ra's Al Ghul is the 14 assassins who were knocked out rather than killed will be far more useful than the one dead one in the elevator. Whoever they are they'll regret taking on Lex Luthor (to be continued in the League of Shadows subvote).
League of Shadows Subvote
You need to deal with the captured assassins. Please vote for up to 2 options. Luthor or Mercy can be assigned to one of these tasks in exchange for not being assigned to an action next turn
[ ] [LoS] Interrogate the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Turn in the captured assassins to the authorities
[ ] [LoS] Execute the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Experiment on the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Attempt to sway the captured assassins to your side
[ ] [LoS] Plant a tracking device on the captured assassins and let them escape
[ ] [LoS] Make an example of the captured assassins
[ ] [LoS] Write-in (all write-ins subject to QM approval)
Queen Party Subvote
You have been invited to an exclusive party by Oliver Queen. This is an excellent chance to gauge rivals competitors and people of interest. However you are also out in the open after the failed assassination attempt and all of your rivals will be looking for any weakness they can find. Please vote for one option only. Any votes with two or more options from this subvote selected will be discounted. Selecting to attend the party is mutually exclusive with choosing to be interviewed by Lois Lane.
[ ] [Party] Attend the party
[ ] [Party] Attempt to kidnap a party guest
[ ] [Party] Skip the party
An Interview with Lois Lane subvote
Lois Lane, one of your biggest critics has asked to interview you. She has gone through all of the official channels and if you deny her the chance to interview you she is going to suspect you have something to hide and attempt to investigate you further. If you do agree to the interview, then it is likely she will twist your every word in an attempt to make you look bad. With her pulitzer prize winning article people might begin to believe what Lois says as the truth. It almost feels like you have to defuse a bomb with how this reporter is interfering with your goals. Please vote for one option only. Any vote with two or more options selected from this subvote will be discounted. Selecting to be interviewed by Lois Lane is mutually exclusive with choosing to attend Oliver Queen's party.
[ ] [Interview] Attend the interview
[ ] [Interview] Attempt to kidnap Lois Lane
[ ] [Interview] Skip the interview
Name the phone model subvote
A fun out of character vote for the quest. Vote for your favorite names for the new phone Luthor has created. The option with the most votes is the one that will be victorious. Vote for as many names as you would like. I will reject names if I think they are completely immersion breaking (naming the phone "Mary-Kate and Ashley" or "Purple" is an example of this). All votes for immersion shattering options will be discounted. The format votes should take is this
[ ] [Phone] Write-in for phone name
Let me know if you liked this interlude and if there is a character from whose perspective you want to see things. If there are any questions about characterization or the subvote options please let me know and I will answer them to the best of my ability.
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- Location
- Puerto Rico
Um, a bit of grammar thing.
Could you post a space between the paragraphs?
It felt difficult to read since it was like a wall of text.
- Location
- U.S.
can we interrogate and experiment (at the same time) on the assasins and THEN let some of them loose with trackers in their teeth?
for the lois interview, can we stage our own kidnapping to get out of the interview and have our own security 'rescue' us in time for the party?
for the lois interview, can we stage our own kidnapping to get out of the interview and have our own security 'rescue' us in time for the party?
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- Location
- USA
[X] [LoS] Interrogate the captured assassins
[X] [Interview] Attend the interview
[X] [Party] Skip the party
[X] [Interview] Attend the interview
[X] [Party] Skip the party
By turning them in we can use the assassins in the interview to justify our fortifications and make Lois look foolish for her suspicion of us. Plus we could put a wrench in their plans by having the government catch wind of their secret society. I would like to go the party but fear we need to develop some equipment or higher some additional hero units as guards to boost our combat potential outside of the tower first.
Experimenting on them seems rather pointless without having a project ready for them to be tested for. Otherwise we're going to have to keep them fed, cleaned, and secure - and they are supposedly high level assassins. And I'm sure they would know to check for trackers afterwards.
Experimenting on them seems rather pointless without having a project ready for them to be tested for. Otherwise we're going to have to keep them fed, cleaned, and secure - and they are supposedly high level assassins. And I'm sure they would know to check for trackers afterwards.
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- Location
- Anchorage, Alaska
hmmm besides the phone which im calling it the Lex-Phone (we are a genius after all!)
anyway looks like we were right to get shit done, looks like league of shadows just got on out shit-list...time to start bunker-busters in the name of freedom...or stealth bomb the fuck out of the base and then proceed to insure it is properly set on fire, LOTS of fire...like phosphor and napalm level of fire.
as well as throwing in magnesium to really kick up the heat to levels it would boil rock.
edit:
[X] [LoS] Interrogate and then turn in the captured assassins to the authorities
[X] [Interview] Attend the interview
guys should i put my exp to martial capabilities?
anyway looks like we were right to get shit done, looks like league of shadows just got on out shit-list...time to start bunker-busters in the name of freedom...or stealth bomb the fuck out of the base and then proceed to insure it is properly set on fire, LOTS of fire...like phosphor and napalm level of fire.
as well as throwing in magnesium to really kick up the heat to levels it would boil rock.
edit:
[X] [LoS] Interrogate and then turn in the captured assassins to the authorities
[X] [Interview] Attend the interview
guys should i put my exp to martial capabilities?
King crimson
Confusion Will Be My Epitaph
- Location
- Los Angeles
Is it better now? I tried to format it so that it would be easier to read now.