Risk It All: Cards on the Table (ch. 30) (Patreon)

It was some serious bullshit that I got stuck with dealing with Kid Flash while my other self went off to meet up with Zatanna. And there was only one way that was going to go. But, it was what it was. There was no jealousy in my heart or anything -- the Ren going off to hook up with Zatanna even though her dad was going to absolutely murder me when he found out was every bit me as I was.

There wasn't a division of personalities. I was just myself, only I had two bodies that acted independently of each other. It was incredibly convenient. Even if it did mean that sometimes I had to give myself the short end of the stick and deal with tasks I'd rather not deal with at all.

But, I had to do it. For all the problems I had with Robin and Kid Flash, things never got physical. In the end, we were on the same team. We were both heroes. We were supposed to fight bad guys, and instead, we just about started taking swings at each other. A line had been crossed and we needed to find a way to uncross it because, otherwise… there was no point. If we couldn't trust each other at all, then we couldn't rely on each other. And, as this mission proved, sometimes we were going to be stuck in situations when teamwork could be the difference between life and death.

If not for us, then for someone else. A civilian. Someone relying on us to save their lives.

I flashed stepped through Chinatown, using double jump to get onto the roofs of buildings and leaping the gaps between them. The entire street had been closed down to deal with the Yakuza. Even if the police hadn't closed off the road, the wall of reporters would have. They were like a swarm of locusts that were all trying to feast on the same story, pressing everyone that they could for an exclusive detail or interview. A quick look at my Prestige total showed that it was rapidly going up.

It gave me an idea as I spotted Kid Flash standing on the top of a roof, his arms crossed as he waited for me to show up. I needed this talk to go well. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that my future hinged on it -- at the very least, my place on the team did. So, I used the extra points to invest into Charisma, then I bought a skill.

Diplomacy

T3R1

The pen is mightier than the sword, and the spoken word can make nations rise or fall. Diplomacy is the art of using the right words, tones, and gestures to get what you want.

That honestly sounded more combative than some of my skills, but I'll take it. Dumping another ten thousand into Charisma made the stat skyrocket -- I passed by a number of milestones, each one slightly increasing the next twenty-five stat points, but with the amount I invested, I was seated at nine hundred Charisma.

Between being nine times the peak human charisma and Diplomacy, I was feeling better about my chances. I felt the changes too -- Diplomacy made me more aware of my body language while I could feel the effects of the increased Charisma dump. When I landed on the rooftop with a flash step, Kid Flash's eyes snapped to me like they were being drawn by a magnet.

We met eyes for a moment, neither of us speaking, at least until Diplomacy prompted me to take the lead in the conversation. "I'm sorry," I said, even though I kinda really wasn't. But, being seen as remorseful would help him come around to my point of view. "I was pissed off, and I lashed out at you. That wasn't okay. Regardless of what we think of each other, I shouldn't have done that, especially not on a mission." Admitting fault to a shortcoming took the advantage away from him so he couldn't use it against me.

I think Diplomacy just became my scariest skill. Nearly instantly, I could see my apology having the intended effect on Kid Flash. I stole the initiative from him, I undercut one of his talking points, and I set the tone of the conversation. It didn't meant that it would stay that way, but if the talk didn't break down, then it wouldn't be because of me. I had the high ground in the conversation.

Kid Flash's lips thinned, opening his mouth to say something, but swallowing his words a second later. He had prepared for a verbal fight, but he was caught off guard. Instead of pressing the advantage, I let him gather himself and his thoughts. Completely dominating the conversation would work against me. Eventually, he spoke, "Why did you cripple Black Mask?" he asked me, and while the question did catch me off guard, I recovered almost instantly.

I could feel the difference in my thought process when I spoke. There was my normal answer of 'why do you want to know' then there was the response the skill Diplomacy crafted. Naturally, it was one that I used, "I spent about a week hunting him down, doing surveillance to pinpoint his location. I knew about him before, but I didn't really know him. I mean, he nearly killed me because I was Asian enough to dump on the Triad's doorstep, then tried to kill me again to stop me from talking to the cops… but that's normal gangster stuff."

Kid Flash's lips thinned at the reminder that Black Mask had tried to kill me twice. "I learned a lot about him after I started going out. I learned that his hobby is torture. As in, it's his actual hobby -- he'll just kidnap one of his enemies and torture them. Not even for information, but just because. When I was chasing him down, he was really into Spanish Inquisition stuff."

"Dude, I get it, the guy was a psycho, but-" Kid Flash started, but I interjected smoothly.

"And when I caught him, he laughed in my face," I said, making him go quiet. "He mocked me. He said it didn't matter if I brought him in because he would be out in an hour. He was right. Black Mask had been brought in by Batman before and the charges didn't stick. He was going to get out. And that scared me, because that murderous psychopath that got off on mindless torture had my family in his crosshairs." I said, driving the point home. "If I knew about my family's history, then maybe I would have done things differently. But I didn't. I only found out after. I thought the only thing protecting my parents was me."

It was different. The words were the truth, but each one felt framed to get a certain kind of reaction from Kid Flash -- pity. I hated pity. Normally, I would just say that Black Mask was a piece of human garbage that had it coming. But I was being led in a different direction. Even if I wasn't sure I liked it.

Kid Flash nodded to himself, "I… didn't really get that. Look, when I first met you, I was like… this guy is a psycho. If what had been done to Black Mask had been done to me, I would hope that someone would just pull the plug on me." he said, before going quiet for a moment, opening his mouth and closing it, searching for words. "And what I saw was that you didn't regret it. Like, at all. And I didn't get how you could do that to another person and not regret it."

"It would have been fine, I guess, if that had been all, but then you were on the team. The Justice League gave you tons of special attention and it was like you could do no wrong, and that felt really… wrong to me," Kid Flash said, and I swallowed my retort that half of the League hated me. "Then Batman took the fall for you, and that really upset Robin, and he's my best friend, so… I just… didn't get it."

I tilted my head, "And now?" I prompted, letting him continue. He was giving an apology without ever saying that he was sorry. It sounded like he was making his way there, though.

"Gotham's really fucked up," he said, taking a seat on the ledge of the building. "Like, the Yakuza gunning for your family? That stuff doesn't happen in Star City. I mean, there are the rogues, but they keep things above the belt. In Gotham, it's like the only shots anyone takes are below the belt. You know what I mean?" he asked, looking up, seemingly realizing that his explanation was clumsy but he was doing his best.

I walked over and took a seat next to him, something that was unlike me, but it was a gesture to show him that I was here and listening. He seemed to appreciate it. "So, I guess what I'm trying to say is that… I never really looked at things from your perspective. I didn't care why you crippled Black Mask, I just cared that you did. And it looked like you were being rewarded for it. Praised for it. So, when Robin didn't like you, it made it really easy to just hate on you too."

"I understand," I said, and I sorta did. "The Justice League isn't really my biggest fan, though. The reason I'm on the team at all is because they're worried that I'll go villain or something. So, that special attention isn't because they like me." I said, bringing up an earlier point that still rankled me.

"Oh," Kid Flash uttered, scratching at his red hair. He seemed to mull that over for a long second.

"I'm not," I clarified. "But with my power… they're worried about what I could become in the future. I'm not on the team because the entire League thinks I deserve to be on it." I told him, undercutting another of his preconceived notions about me. "The whole thing with Batman -- that was him putting me in a position so I could convince the League that I do deserve to be a hero."

Kid Flash shifted, looking away. "No one told me that," he admitted. "I respected you a bit when you tried to escape, but… well, I still had more reasons to not like you, so…" then he let out a sigh, "Your power is also something that pisses me off. I mean… it's like every time I see you, you have another power. So, I guess I'm... kinda jealous? A little bit? I mean, how long will it be until you're faster than me?"

Honestly, it may not be very long. My fame was going up, which would increase my rank, and then my options for abilities would open up. How long would it be before I had access to something like teleportation? It was petty jealousy, even Kid Flash could admit that much, but it wasn't unfounded either.

"And you're with Zatanna. Robin likes her, you know," he pointed out, seemingly angry on his friend's behalf.

I nodded, "I know."

"That's not cool," Kid Flash pointed out, his tone lacking any real heat.

"Robin isn't my friend," I refuted. "I'm glad things aren't still like what they were between us, but we aren't friends. I like Zatanna, and she likes me. That's something that Robin has to deal with. Just like I would have to deal with it if we break up and she ends up with Robin, or you, or Superboy," I said, and I could see Kid Flash was having a silent war with himself. He knew I wasn't wrong about that. Just because you liked a girl didn't mean no one could date her.

But, on the other hand, I was saying that about his best friend. Kid Flash was pretty obnoxious, but I would give him that he was a loyal friend.

He was silent for a few moments before he looked away, "Did you mean it?"

I had no clue what he meant. "Mean what?"

"What you said earlier," he said, and… yeah, I did mean it.

"I said it in a way that was meant to hurt you, but, yeah," I confirmed, not pulling that punch. "Miss Martian has a thing for Superboy, but even if she didn't, I would still have a problem with it. You would feel like shit if the girl you liked constantly flirted with other guys in front of you, even if you weren't dating. Miss Martian deserves better than a Playboy that flirts with everything that moves."

Kid Flash visibly swallowed a retort to that. "I was keeping my options open," he defended weakly and realized how pathetic that sounded. "We aren't dating, so I thought it would be fine. Maybe make her jealous or something, so she would ask me out?" he tried before letting out a heaving disappointed sigh. "I didn't know she liked Superboy."

I had no clue how, but I don't think I should be throwing stones considering that I hadn't known Zatanna liked me until Superboy told me. Kind of funny how that web of relationships worked, actually. "Yeah. For what it's worth, I am sorry for breaking it to you like that." I had just wanted to hurt him, and I snapped.

Kid Flash shrugged, "You were pissed off. So was I. And, I was just saying stuff when I accused you of purposely flashing everyone," he admitted. At the very least, we could both agree that we just said things when we were angry. Accusations that had no merit of any kind. Though, his seemed rooted in jealousy -- favoritism from the League, Zatanna liking me, my power.

I really couldn't do anything about that. Because I was only going to get stronger and develop new powers. Nor was I willing to slow down for his sake because as much as we were clearing the air, I still didn't like him. Maybe that would change if he changed his behavior, but my impression of Kid Flash was that he was incredibly obnoxious and self centered. I'm betting that he still didn't like me too even though he was getting some perspective behind my actions.

"Are we good?" Kid Flash asked me, looking towards me, his expression serious. As if his position on the team was in danger.

"I think we're good," I told him. We had cleared the air. The points of contention were undone. All signs pointed to us talking it out, like mature adults. Diplomacy was an incredible skill, but-

Purchased: 1 king-sized spring mattress.

I'm such a son of a bitch.

Continuing with my train of thought, I think that when issues arose, with Diplomacy, I could smooth them over. Hopefully. I stood up, prompting Kid Flash to do the same. "I'm glad we managed to talk this out," I told him with all honesty.

Kid Flash seemed a bit sheepish, but surprised. "I am too? I was really expecting to have to kick your ass or something, but I didn't think we could have a normal conversation." he neglected to mention that was on him, but Diplomacy was also the art of knowing when to shut the fuck up and not say the things that you really wanted to say, because they would make things way worse.

"Let's head back to the mountain then. I'm sure Batman will want our report," I said, stepping up onto the ledge before flinging myself off of it. So far, Diplomacy had worked with Kid Flash. I just had to hope that the skill would hold up.

…

It felt a bit like marching to my own execution when I entered the Mountain. Batman and Wonder Woman stood before a hologram that was displaying a number of news sites -- some catching glimpses of Superboy smashing into the building, though his figure was blurry, unnaturally so. All of them were fresh off the press, detailing the downfall of the Yakuza, the capture of Killer Croc, the busting of a major counterfeiting operation, and the injuries sustained to the Yakuza.

My name wasn't being mentioned, but there were a few drawing the connection between the 'Breaker' and my identity Koi.

"Kid Flash? Leave," Batman ordered, his tone flat and Kid Flash immediately spun on his heel without a word and left without so much as a second look. Right. This was going to be… fun.

After he left, I continued forward until I stopped directly in front of them, waiting for the chewing out to begin. I expect Batman to start, but Wonder Woman broke the silence. "Ren, when you fought your cousin, did she hint at anything they had planned?"

That would have caught me off guard, but I recognized the tactic for what it was. "No? Nothing beyond that she was there for me rather than for her given mission of securing the Android," I answered, making Wonder Woman frown.

A picture of Killer Croc being escorted out of the building with huge cuffs on his wrists was enlarged. "Preliminary evidence and the assessment from the rest of the team leads us to believe that Killer Croc was given the Blockbuster-venom," Batman informed, and that sinking suspicion I had was proven right. I had recognized the difference in power, but I discounted the venom on account that we had busted the shipment. I had hoped that would be the end of it. "Since then, I have learned that at least three samples have gone missing from Star Labs."

"Do you know your cousin's intentions?" Wonder Woman asked, wanting to know if I had any clue what the plan could be.

"If my cousin is behind it, which I kinda doubt -- she didn't strike me much of a planner," I started pushing my hood back and taking off my mask. I saw Wonder Woman's eye widen a fraction and Batman's narrow an equal amount. "But, if it is her then… my family wants the rebirth of Spirit Beasts. Our martial arts needs them to reach the heights that we had in the old days when we could punch mountains and kick oceans. It might be another test from them for me, to make me grow stronger."

Batman's lips thinned, "Then we must assume the worst and prepare for a wide spread disbursement of the venom. Any animalistic hero or villain will need to be warned." Though, how they were going to convince villains to not take a booster shot that makes you as strong as Superboy was anyone's guess.

"Do you believe there to be a connection between your family and the Yakuza?" Wonder Woman asked, and I offered a tentative shake of my head.

"I don't think so? My family is stupid old. I'm sure they have money, so I can't imagine why they would bother with a counterfeiting ring in America. I think it might just be coincidence that Killer Croc was there -- my family knows I patrol Gotham, so it would have been inevitable that I would fight him eventually if he went looking," I explained. I really needed to learn more about my family if the League was going to come to me for info on them.

It was then that Wonder Woman stepped forward and placed a hand on my shoulder, "We also understand that your family was being targeted," she said, her tone gentle.

"Not anymore," I answered, my tone even.

"You injured over thirty men," Batman began, meeting my gaze and Wonder Woman shot him a sharp look.

"All of us have gone too far when it comes to protecting those that we love. I've killed," Wonder Woman stated, reassuring me as much as she was telling Batman to shut the fuck up. I looked between them, easily picking up on the tension between them. "You've put men in body casts. There was a threat to his family and it was eliminated." There was an edge in her voice, daring Batman to press the topic.

He looked at me, "As Wonder Woman said -- we understand that your family was in danger, but we want you to understand that there were options beyond excessive violence."

"I didn't just do it for my family," I interjected. "They didn't target me because I was a hero. They targeted me because I stood up to them. What they were going to do to me and my family could have happened to anyone else. It would have happened to them too. The Yakuza are done in Gotham."

To that, Wonder Woman did give me a steady look. "I understand where you are coming from, Ren. But, it is that attitude that has some of the Justice League concerned. They feel you are too… willing to use violence when there are alternatives," she said. Good cop, bad cop. I saw it as clear as day. She put herself forth as being on my side, then she coached an opinion that the rest of the League had so I would be more willing to agree.

"I don't regret what I did to the Yakuza," I told them both, any hesitation in giving the opinion carefully hidden with help of Diplomacy. What I needed to be is direct. They needed to see why this happened again and that it would happen in the future if something wasn't done. "I don't. I know the life, I know some of them didn't have a choice, and that not all of them wished my family ill -- but that didn't mean they wouldn't torture me and my family, then murder us if they could."

"I won't tolerate anyone putting my family in danger. At all. Ever," I told them plainly, an unspoken promise about my willingness to remove those that wanted to harm my family from the board. They might not die from what I did to them but they would wish that they had. And I would do it with no mercy. "And I don't see anything wrong with making sure that they can't come after my family again."

Wonder Woman looked pensive, the conversation clearly not going to plan. I did think she was on my side. Batman too. But they were caught in the middle between me and the Justice League. "Ren, your safety and the safety of your family is the highest concern of the Justice League. It is for all members of the team. The point of this conversation is not to harp on you about what you did. It is for you to understand that you have other options -- you can rely on the Justice League. You can rely on Batman and you can rely on me."

Diplomacy told me to take the out I was being offered. To nod my head, agree, and that would be that. I would get through the confrontation intact and starting tomorrow, things would have a new normal that was hopefully better than the old normal. However, Diplomacy didn't control my actions and I had something to say.

"Can I?" I questioned, my tone doubtful. "The entire team has been a mess since the start-"

"We are aware," Batman interjected before I could get the ball rolling.

"Then why haven't you done anything?" I asked, because if they knew how dysfunctional the team was, then it didn't make sense for them to do nothing.

Batman's lips thinned, "I will be blunt -- None of you are normal teenagers. All of you are extensively trained, if some are lacking in experience compared to others, powerful, and you are the type of people that take action while others act as bystanders. When you put on a costume, you are taking responsibility for your life and the lives of others. It is for that reason that if you are unable to move past basic teenage drama, then not only should you be removed from the team, but you shouldn't be a hero at all. The same goes for Kid Flash, Robin, or Miss Martian."

That was rather blunt. He continued with, "You are not normal children. You cannot be treated as normal children. To do so would be a disservice and actively sabotage your development. The world will not always thank you for the sacrifices you make. There are those that will hate you for the sake of hating you. Those with power will sabotage your every effort and twist your good intentions. Comparatively, Kid Flash running his mouth is nothing. So long as it does not impact the efficiency of the team, every word is worthless."

I looked at him for a moment, processing that. That was a rather different way to say -- sticks and stones will break your bones, but words will never hurt you.

"Up until this point, you've done well. And had you not come in here with Kid Flash, we would be having a very different conversation. It would have proven that as the team is, you cannot handle the responsibilities entrusted to you. The most likely scenario would have been a division of the team and the separation of the problematic members.” Meaning me, Robin, and Kid Flash.

However, as much as I understood the philosophy and the point he was making -- a point I even agreed with, it missed my point and I wouldn’t let him distract me from it. “I had to deal with this myself, though. I get what you’re saying. I do. But that doesn’t change that I was hung out and left to dry with the entire situation with no clue what I should actually do.”

Batman nodded, “You didn’t ask for help.” he said, and that… really fucking completely undercut my entire argument. Because I hadn't asked for help. And that was the point he was making -- that was the point that had been made after one of our last missions, and it was the point he made again just a few minutes ago.

"We don't expect you to handle every problem yourself, or even internally. However, we do expect you to know when to turn to us, the League and your mentors, if you believe the problem is too much for you to handle. The most important lesson that we can teach you is when to ask for help. Do you understand?" Wonder Woman asked and I gave a shallow nod, my arguments drying up because there was no way to argue back against that.

I think I still had a point, though, and Batman sensed it.

"The purpose of your last mission was to help unify the team. A low risk mission that would allow you to work together while setting aside your personal issues in a low stakes environment. At least, that was our intention. Given the unexpected developments, the League will look for alternatives," Batman said, and he had his own version of the Diplomacy Skill because that was the last point that I could make. I had my answers. Some of them weren't particularly satisfying, but I could see the train of logic.

"You're right," I conceded. "What happens now?" I asked, earning a small smile from Wonder Woman.

"You go home and rest. The Justice League will look into the Buster-venom," she said, before pausing for a moment, then adding, "And if you must do something, then monitor the aftermath of tonight's mission. You understand the nature of Gotham better than me, but the fall of a premiere power leads to the rise of another."

That was it? I was expecting… more. An actual dressing down from the two. If not for what I did to the Yakuza, then for the outright attack on the Yakuza base. I looked between them for a moment and nodded in acceptance, not really minding getting off light. I wouldn't let my guard down just yet on the account that there could be consequences incoming, but for now, I decided to do what they said and turn in.

Giving the duo a glance over my shoulder, I headed to the Zeta Tube and teleported back home. Taking off my costume and tossing it to Gluttony, I-

Oh shit.

I completely forgot about the twenty pounds of black tar heroin I had Gluttony swallow for safe keeping. Scratching my head at that, I shrugged and decided that it should be fine to get rid of tomorrow. Going upstairs, I let out a yawn and headed to my bedroom. Depositing Guppy into his tank, I stepped into the bathroom to brush my teeth and flicked on the lights.

And my eyes immediately were drawn to my reflection like a magnet. I had underestimated what dumping ten thousand points into Charisma would do to me. I learned to expect subtle changes, like my hair having a healthy shine to it or being really soft, or not having to worry about breakouts.

But the person looking at me almost didn't look like me. It still clearly was, but… I…

I looked downright perfect. I didn't know how else to say it. The changes weren't even that extensive because I still resembled myself, but… I didn't look like me. It was as if I was looking through a filter that changed how everyone saw me to make me look as attractive as possible, to the point that I was near legitimately perfect in appearance. Reaching up, I rustled my hair to make it look like I had bed head, but instead of looking like an idiot, I looked like a sex icon.

I made a stupid face, and I still looked like I was sex on legs. I was so attractive that it was distracting, like it was actually difficult for me to not look at myself.

"Right…" I muttered, and now that I was actually listening to myself, hearing the echo of my own words reach my ears, it sounded smooth like butter.

"Let's not increase Charisma again for a little while."

...

This is where the drama arc officially ends. The air has been cleared and old grievances have been settled. I'm also hoping that this puts an end to the issue of dual identities people seem to have - Ren's copy is himself. Tien's copies in DBZ never betrayed him in any way. If, for some reason, one copy arranges for the other to die, then it's Ren deciding to sacrifice skills for a reason rather than his evil clone stabbing him in the back to become the new original. I usually don't spoil what I won't do but people had a real problem with Ren having a second identity.