Batman x Arc Reactor

Ch: 118 [Leap of faith]

The daggers bounced off Bruce's body without doing him any harm. But, Talia didn't back down. She spun around and pulled something invisible again. Those are the threads that are specially made for assassination, completely invisible to human eyes. The threads clenched around his body, constricting him from all around, and one passed around his throat. They were extremely tough and durable and wouldn't have problems killing someone by cutting through their throats.

"Sigh... Not that too," Bruce whined and simply stood there, letting her unload her entire arsenal of weapons and techniques. The nanites hardened his skin, preventing all damage. He was literally immovable.

Talia rushed in. She picked up two daggers and stabbed Bruce's chest, but a loud metallic clang filled the room when the blades struck his skin. "Just what are you?" She snarled in anger, even as a sliver of fear, formed in her chest, and tightened the pit of her stomach.

Bruce grabbed her arms and pushed her to the wall. He pressed his body against her. They could feel each other's heartbeat and their breaths as he clasped one of his hands around her throat. His face was next to hers. She struggled, and fought, but to no avail. Her movements slowed. Her breathing became shallow.

Fear!

Desperation!

These feelings and emotions overwhelmed her. Even as the fear grew stronger, so did her confidence in her own ability. After all, she's a successor to the League and even with her weakness, she has a perfect amount of potential strength, training, and experience to challenge a member of the League, especially the Elders.

Bruce just stared into her eyes, "Do you love the view from where you stand? Maybe a kiss before death will be better?" he chuckled.

"Kuh... Just try, if you can," Talia replied through ragged breaths and looked straight into his eyes.

"Heh, bold aren't we?" Bruce responded. He leaned in, his lips brushed hers. Talia instantly bites his lips, causing Bruce to smirk. However, she felt as if her teeth were about to break and let go. "You like it rough, huh?" He squeezed her throat a bit tighter and his thumb and index finger pressed deep into her neck.

"You aren't a human, that I can tell. Just what are you, Bruce Wayne? A metahuman?" She coughed, as her arms struggled uselessly trying to get free.

"That's a good question. But, I doubt you are in any position to ask that. Whatever it is, it doesn't matter. Not anymore, for you anyway," Bruce muttered, almost carelessly, and let her go.

"Cough! Cough!" Talia fell to her knees, coughing incessantly. She sat back and tried to calm her ragged breaths. She wiped off the tears. "Heh... heh..."

"Now, what should I do with the favorite daughter of Ra's Al Ghul, I wonder. Maybe let you loose or just end your life right here and now? I could always hand you over to your sister Nyssa, I'm sure she will jump on the chance to get rid of you and take your place next to him."

"H-how? Why do you know all these?"

"Hahaha! How? Why? For those questions, you're going to have to defeat me. What's that your daddy always says, 'To Manipulate The Fears Of Others, You Must First Master Your Own.' Tell me, Talia, have you mastered your fears?" He sat down in front of her, his feet inches away from her. "Oh, what's that look? Are you thinking I didn't see through you earlier, is that it? You are afraid. Not of me or death, but you are afraid you have disappointed your daddy, aren't you? He's proud of you, you know that, he really is. But..."

She narrowed her eyes and waited to hear his response. The most infuriating thing was that she couldn't say a word against him. He was just speaking the truth.

"Maybe you've killed some people, maybe you have completed many missions set by your dad. But somewhere in your heart, you fear that your sister will become stronger than you and take your place... You fear that your daddy, who loved you the most, will abandon you for her. You hate her guts for everything. So, you trained and killed and continued that cycle like a machine without its own will... The more you trained, the more your fear increased. Did your father ever know how broken you were? Does Nyssa even know? Of course, they know, that's why you are easy to manipulate," Bruce said as he stretched his arms.

"You know nothing-" Before Talia could finish her words, Bruce interrupted...

"Oh, I know everything. And when I say everything, I mean, EVERYTHING. Now, let's come to the matter at hand. I'll kill Ra's Al Ghul and take over the league. What will you do? Help me lead the League in a better direction, or live your remaining life as your father's disposable pawn?" Bruce stood up.

"Kill Ra's Al Ghul? That's a nice dream... He is invincible. I might not have the experience of the old one, but still... It's too impossible," she sighed and stood up.

"Not if someone from inside... Umm... Let's say, tweaks with the Lazarus pit a bit?" Bruce stretched his body.

"You even know about the pit... You think it's that easy to access the pit?" Talia asked in a condescending tone.

"Actually, yes, that's exactly what I think. You will finish your mission, well, somewhat, but you will receive some life-threatening injuries that will kill you the moment you reach home. And I'm pretty sure, Ra's Al Ghul will use the Lazarus Pit on you. Why? Because you have the information that he requires," Bruce transformed his finger into a syringe and stabbed her neck.

"Kukk!?" She was stunned for a moment.

Bruce continued, "I've injected you with something that you don't need to know. Anyway, he will want to know what you saw inside the spaceship, and it's going to be the opportunity for you to 'win' his favor," Bruce sighed. "Anyway, are you going to cooperate? Or, just gonna get in my way. Because, trust me, even the League isn't prepared for what's coming to Earth. And, I would very much like to avoid unnecessary deaths on either side."

"A new change, you say?" Talia mumbled to herself as her expression changed. "You think after everything that happened... You are going to gain my trust and help within these what? 30 minutes? Who do you think I am, little girl?"

"No. A girl with a good brain," Bruce shook his head. "You know what's the right thing to do. Killing your dad who you have looked up to for years won't be easy. But you will do it either way. You see, Talia, there are certain things in life that you can do and you can't do. What you can do is, if you believe in true justice, I'll let you run the League your own way as long as you don't cross certain boundaries. Write your own rules, protect the balance of this world. And, as for what you can't do, well, you can't stop me from achieving my mission of killing your dad, neither can he..."

Talia knew he spoke the truth. There's not even an inkling of a lie in his speech. She looked into his eyes as he talked about the things that he planned for her future and felt strangely confident about it. A new era for the League without meaningless killings, manipulation, and mayhem. It seemed promising, better, more logical. She knew that her father used the League for many different reasons, and sometimes, she thought of questioning those actions, but she could never build the courage to face that. And, all these years, she did many immoral things, and whenever it crossed her mind, she buried the emotions somewhere deep inside and lived like a puppet.

Also, her sister grew further away from her. Nyssa hates her for being close to Ra's Al Ghul, while in reality, Talia worked that hard just so, she could keep her sister away from Ra's grasp. For that, she became a bane in her sister's life. She messed up her missions and even stole her targets. Nyssa never knew that Talia was just looking out for her in her own way. It pained her to do that to Nyssa, whom she loved with all her heart, but... Had she shown even a trace of compassion, Ra's would have taken advantage of that.

Now, she has a choice. As much as it sounds like madness, and it surely is madness, Talia wanted to take a leap of faith for the first time. "What makes you think I don't love my dad?" She asked, with a sigh. "And that too, to join hands with an outsider..."

"Love Ra's Al Ghul?! Hahahaha!" Bruce laughed as if it was the funniest thing he had ever heard. "Don't make me laugh. That fuck face zombie who comes back to life after death over and over again using his magic pool of water is no more than an existence, which should have died long ago. I doubt there's anyone alive who loves him."

The name 'fuck-face zombie' rendered Talia stunned, "Wha-?"

"So," He extended his hand toward Talia, "What is your decision?"

"Well, it's not like I have a lot of options, now do I?" Talia didn't smile as Bruce would have hoped, but she did accept his extended hand.

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AN: Ok, now, I think, it's better to write a few interlude chapters for Barry [His dad getting out of jail during the small time skip.] Deadshot [Meeting his daughter] & Waller [Aftermath after Lex's death]

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Next, Ch: 119: Interlude: Missing events

Ch: 120: Deadshot and Waller

Ch: 121: Pym Particles

Ch: 122: Spaceships