[CENTER][IMG]https://i.imgur.com/9PGM5Xe.png [/IMG][/CENTER] [quote=@AndyC]Heading back to the ground and setting the drone down, I tell Batman what I've found. [color=RoyalBlue][b]"Otisburg,"[/b][/color] I say. [color=RoyalBlue][b]"Stagg Enterprises has a server farm there, looks like it's mostly automated, completely empty at this time of night. The building has a large transmitter tower on top, and I'm seeing pretty large spikes of electricity being diverted from the city's power grid to feed into a single room on one of the building's sub-levels. Thick lead shields around the room itself, so I can't see if the Toyman's actually there. But I'd bet good money that's where we'll find him."[/b][/color] That steel-bending determination in Lois's eyes must have rubbed off on me with that kiss. Now, suddenly, getting myself airborne isn't a struggle at all. I take to the sky, and then turn back to the vigilante in black. [color=RoyalBlue][b]"Are you coming, or what?"[/b][/color] [/quote] My brow furrows beneath the cowl at the mention of Stagg Enterprises. It's a name I've heard mentioned only in passing by most, given that it's CEO doesn't exactly run in the same circles that Gotham's elite crowds tend to frequent. But the every word was enough to arise suspicion and lend credence to rumors that either Simon Stagg or one of his high-level employees had been dealing under the table with select members of the Five Families for access to advanced non-lethal technologies, including enhancements to body armor and personal vehicles that would make them more formidable against warring factions. Nothing concrete's turned up on the streets as of yet, and I haven't ran into such obstacles when taking on lieutenants for Falcone's Syndicate or Capo Italiana, but the idea that Stagg could be harboring a dangerous lunatic like this 'Toyman' lines up too well with the word-of-mouth. If I'm able to convince the board of directors at Waynetech to bring Bruce Wayne into the fold, investigating Stagg will need to become one of my first priorities as one of their direct competitors. Superman flies ahead as I produce my grapple gun and fire towards the scaffolding building to his left. As the line becomes taut, I look out and notice the familiar sight of the Lincoln Continental peeling onto a street corner that's only a few blocks away. Alfred got here faster than I would've even thought. Indicating the car directly as he expertly weaves in and out among the traffic sitting about a yard away from Grant Park, I leave Lane to care for Dr. Irons in the meantime. Hopefully Alfred will have remembered to wear a disguise, as I instructed in the message. It'll be damning enough to be taking them to a Waynetech site. Don't need to incriminate myself any further. [b][color=#656565]"There's your ride. The occupant will take you both to a nearby facility until Superman and I have shut Toyman's operation down. He'll give Irons a patch-up and get you anything that you need, within reason. I'll give the location to Superman once everything's secure."[/color][/b] As I ascend into the air, I glance back at Lane as her eyes remain squarely focused on the man in the sky. I don't think either Dr. Irons or I remained oblivious to the moment that the two shared earlier. Lane and this Superman are... an item, it would seem. I wouldn't say that it really matters or is any of my business, but it makes a certain amount of sense. Lane was the first to break the story of his arrival, suggesting a pre-existing intimacy. And given that journalists are notorious workaholics, I would doubt that this sprang up out of nowhere or became something outside of the newsroom. Makes me wonder if there are any Clarks employed at The Daily Planet... Focusing ahead, I join Superman in the air as we both push forward, heading for the Stagg Enterprises tower in the distance. There's a sort of awkward silence that hangs in the air as we leave Grant Park in the distance, with neither of us really willing to say anything about the words we exchanged to the other in the heat of the moment. He may have been influenced by an electrical trauma, but I could tell that some of what he said came from a place of truth. And there were certainly no minced words whenever it came to anything that I imparted. It wasn't until I was face-to-face with the man himself that I allowed the frustration of finding myself incapable of dealing with the growing number of metahuman adversaries to dictate my anger. Perhaps it's because Superman is largely considered the first of them. Barely anything is known about him at this point, and it was alarming for me to discover that he even possessed the capability to see through solid material, much less detect radio frequencies. And yet despite all of that power, this was also a man that just sheepishly apologized to me for how he had behaved. This is a man that has managed to find love, and potentially even work at a blue collar job whenever he's not trying to save lives. I speculated earlier that Superman had assimilated into our civilization as one of us in an effort to hide what he truly was, but perhaps that was an inaccurate assessment. Maybe it's the other way around, and the true part of him is the one that had the decency to own up to his mistake. I may never know for sure, and I don't have much of an interest to find out. But it leaves me feeling as though I can at least focus on the task at hand, rather than try and keep my distance in the event that he'll go berserk again. [b][color=#656565]"For what it's worth... your apology is noted."[/color][/b] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/CC0SRlq.png[/IMG] [b][color=#656565]"If anything, I'm more annoyed that you had to go and ruin my uniform."[/color][/b] I don't know whether that was my crude attempt to diffuse the tension or a genuine complaint, but I try and keep myself from seeing how he reacts as we head closer to Otisburg. The sooner that he and his friends leave Gotham behind, the better. I've got enough to deal with as it is. [b][color=#656565]"Anything we should be wary of? If Toyman was willing to send drones and manned vehicles after your friends, it's almost certain that he won't be willing to go quietly."[/color][/b]