The Iceberg Lounge, the most illustrious nightclub in Gotham City, is equal parts, a nightclub, casino, whorehouse, strip club and any other establishment. It had constantly expanded its parameters, building an ever wider cliental base and generating more than any other establishment in Gotham.
Yet, what made the Iceberg Lounge such a popular establishment, was not a large amount of entertainment it provided. No, what made it so popular was the fact it represented a neutral ground, the only true neutral ground in all of Gotham City.
Gotham was a dangerous place, every inch of the city and every elected official belonging to one crime lord or another in some way, shape or form. There was literally no unclaimed speck of dust that didn't belong to a crime lord and that made it a very dangerous place to do business in.
After all, business deals so difficult, especially in the past was finding a place in which two parties or more could meet on neutral ground and talk business. Yet, in a city with no unclaimed ground, where did one do business? That was a problem that had led to Gotham being such a turbulent and violent city, trust was impossible to build because no party could meet in a place that the other didn't own. Nor could they meet in a third party's territories without it being seen or twisted as an act of war.
That was until the Iceberg Lounge came along.
Once a former establishment belonging to Carmine Falcone that then broke away from his land under the leadership of its current owner. Someone who had worked hard to establish itself as the only place in Gotham where bosses from every walk of life, no matter how big or small could come and meet without fear of being ambushed by the other or a third party.
Its top of the line security was but the last line of defence.
Its greatest line of defence was its reputation as natural ground.
With the Batman running rampant throughout the city, especially in his early days, the bosses of Gotham had no choice but to come together set aside their differences and fight their common foe. The Iceberg Lounge was the only place they could all come together without the land being owned by one of the men at the table, which would have given them the leverage. Because of that, the Iceberg Lounge was also protected by the bosses of the city, each of them desiring the establishment for themselves, but knowing full well that they would come under assault from all their rivals/business partners the moment they made a move upon it.
So who ran this illustrious and highly sought after enterprise, a little known, but very powerful figure, the Penguin.
The very same man that now sat across from Jacob at this moment in time. A small, rotund man that very much looked like the bird he was named after. An ugly figure, with a large pointed nose and wrinkled face, yet Jacob knew better than to judge someone based on their appearance.
He, after all, despite looking like a well-built man, was in fact anything but.
The padded jacket hid his weak and frail body beneath.
"Mister Cobblepot, I thank you for your invitation." Jacob greeted, leaning back into the comfortable chair he was sitting upon, he would have to get one for his office.
Penguin smiled; an ugly sight. "Yes, well, I believed it was long overdue for the Brains behind the False Face Society to make an appearance here. You snubbed quite a number of powerful people, they all complained about it, even more so when you decided to spend your time conducting business deals abroad."
Jacob smiled, having known very well that his decision to go abroad first would not have made him many friends. But in Gotham, one never had friends and Jacob had no intention of tying himself to any more powerful people just yet, Bane was enough for now.
An unspoken rule in Gotham was that any new 'boss' that came up and survived the little 'initiation test' was to then reach out to nearby enterprises. They would then meet at the Iceberg Lounge and talk business, the smaller ones often being forced to pay an annual tribute to the bigger ones for 'protection.' It was an unspoken rule but one that Jacob had no intention of following, not when it would only put him at the disadvantage.
"Yes, well it was our understanding that one looked out for themselves first and foremost, the new Black Mask had no intention of giving the very same sharks that had wrongfully smelled blood in the water the entertainment they so sought." One thing had stood out to Jacob though in Penguin's response and that was referring to him as the 'Brain' behind the False Face Society.
It was not wrong, but it meant one of two things.
Either Penguin knew he was the real Black Mask, that David was just a puppet and he the puppet master. Or he was simply the brains that saw the brawn's ambitions fulfilled. Jacob had every intention of making the latter the thing Penguin believed by the end of this meeting, more so than anything else.
David was his precious shield, a broken one was useless.
"Our?" Penguin question, picking on the slight turn of phrase.
"Do not mistake me, you are right in referring me to the Brain behind the False Face Society, in fact, it is something I take pride in," Jacob replied earnestly. "However, I simply see to it that Black Masks ambitions are fulfilled to the best of my ability. I do not have the charisma nor the strength to rule or the desire to run a criminal enterprise." Certainly being known as the Brains was a risky thing, it would make it clear that he was crucial to the new Black Mask's success and without him, his criminal empire would crumble.
The current situation proved that.
Jacob needed to make it clear though that Black Mask was not incapable. That he was smart enough to run an empire without his help. "I admit, the current situation is not favourable to us, which is why I would like to get down to business quickly. But I am not the man who comes up with the ideas, I am simply the man with the logistical expertise to see them come to fruition." Jacob also knew that laying it on too thick would have the opposite effect so he left it there for now. "So, I would rather we get on with business sooner rather than later. What can we do for you and what are you offering in return for our help."
"Help?" Penguin asked amusedly. "Why would I need your help when you are so clearly struggling. You're barely staying afloat right now, thanks to the inability of Black Mask to actually think things through."
Jacob clenched his fist tightly, feigning outrage. "I admit that Black Masks' desire to test his lieutenants was a foolish one, but don't ever insult him in my presence again." Jacob spat out. "But I did not take you for a fool. We both know that a mole has been providing the Street Demonz inside information that has made dealing with them extremely difficult but also defending ourselves from the other bosses even more so."
Penguin chuckled. "So, Black Mask is fond of tests, is he?" He questioned. "Then let me give you one, to see if you really are as smart as you think you are. What makes you think I need your help?"
"Why else would you call us here?" Jacob scoffed. "You have no reason to interfere and you never have in the past. The only reason you would is if you had something to gain or something to lose. But the only way you would stand to gain something from my defeat would also mean the breaking of that neutral image you have worked so hard to craft for yourself. So that only leaves you stand to lose something if I also lose."
It was always something Jacob had expected when coming here, these little word and mind games. Gotham was fond of things like these, it was how the game went after all. He was just grateful for the opportunity to showcase that he was not only prepared but capable of playing the game just as well as everyone else.
Though it was also a double-edged sword.
He would put a target on his back, that much he knew.
But if he played it right, convinced Penguin that he had no desires for leadership and simply was a servant, a weapon with no wielder, then that would be another shield to protect him. Because rather than kill him, every other boss would want to recruit him. He needed to paint himself as a resource that they desperately wanted to own and in doing so, made him an unkillable target.
"From the very beginning, you have always done everything in your power to build your image of neutrality, bringing with it far more influence than ever picking a side could bring you. You are one of the few people in the world that has actually beaten the Batman, though you are perhaps the only one to have not done so in a way most would expect." That was something Jacob could admire and it was precisely what he wanted to do.
Bane had proved what happened to those who publically and physically beat the Dark Knight.
The Penguin, though his feat was unknown to practically everyone, when they looked at the facts, Penguin was the only one to absolutely beat him. Batman could not touch him because the moment he did, Batman would lose the greatest source of information he ever had. It was only thanks to the Iceberg Lounge that Batman knew precisely where and when crime lords and criminals formed alliances and business deals.
Penguin rose his brow in bemusement but said nothing. "But you have done far more than that, you have also attempted numerous times to build an organisation of mercenaries that would be hired by crime lords to wage their wars against one another in a way that would avoid mass violence on the streets, a Killing Inc if you will." Jacob continued. "Your first attempt was the Hammer, a group formed from ex-KGB, SAS, Navy Seals and other black ops and army veterans from all over the world. Led by the Commissar they became the single and only way that crime lords waged war between one another, hiring them ut to target high profile targets and locations and eliminating them, paying exuberant amounts of money to do so."
"That was until their leader, the man who now calls himself the Commissar broke away, taking with him the Hammer and now has become one of the most powerful and dangerous criminals in Gotham, though his reputation is known only in the underworld," Jacob explained, taking note of the inquisitive and curious look on Penguin's face.
That was good, he had the man's full attention upon him now.
"However, you were not willing to accept that loss and so started again and again. You used army veterans again and again, but each time they broke away and joined the Hammer, swept up in the Commissar's rise through Gotham's ranks. So you tried once more, this time with a group completely different to your past endeavours, using one of Gotham's oldest biker gangs, the Street Demonz." Jacob stated, finally reaching the whole point of his little information dump.
The reason he dragged it out was to show just how much research he had done, making it clear that just as Penguin had no doubt done research upon him, Jacob had done equal research upon him. Knowledge was power in Gotham and Jacob intended to show that he was powerful.
"Which is why the Street Demonz allying with Ventriloquist, someone with who you have had a troubling past with in the past is bad for you. He has already tried a few times to supplant you and he came very close once before. You don't fear for your life, but you would rather a weed be plucked before it has time to grow without being the one to dirty your hands personally. This is where we come in, someone who has been bloodied by the Street Demonz repeatedly and so taking them out would not only be unsurprising but expected. If we so happened to get rid of Ventriloquist while we're doing that would only be a stroke of good luck for you."
Penguin laughed. "Very well done, very well done indeed. But a task like this does not come without a cost, so here, allow me to provide you with a down payment." Reaching into the drawer of his desk, Penguin pulled out a small envelope. "I was approached by someone with a very interesting proposition a few weeks ago, around the time you left for your business trip. But you see, he thought it good sense to ally with the very person that wants me dead."
Jacob scoffed at the thought of that. "A fool then." Opening the envelope, Jacob pulled out the photo, one that showcased White Rabbit meeting with a man dressed in an all-white suit and white mask, an amusing contrast to Black Masks' own apparel.
"Indeed." Penguin agreed. "When this whole messy business is dealt with, come see me again and we can talk in more detail."
"No need," Jacob said calmly, placing the envelope down on the desk, behind the photo, a small file of information about the man in the picture, revealed itself. "Thanks to the information you've provided, Black Mask will be able to handle this in short order, he's nothing if not a creative when it comes to solutions like these. So, let us talk business."