When Lex and Cobblepot met and locked eyes, they had a sudden premonition - that they might be very much alike.
This resemblance did not refer to their historical background or the resources they controlled but rather, a similarity in spirit and personality — in other words, they were both born psychopaths.
In individuals with antisocial personality disorder, there are many similarities—their indifference, cruelty, and volatility can not be hidden by any facade. When two homicidal maniacs meet, they can always find resonance in each other's souls almost instantly.
In a sense, these people can be described as the antithesis of "innate goodness." Many of them do not become psychopaths due to childhood trauma or mental scars; they were born this way and are irredeemable.
Cobblepot had been doing fairly well recently. He had become the right-hand man of Alberto, and his standing in the Twelve Families had been continually rising. It was predictable that when Alberto truly became the next Godfather, Cobblepot's surname would be engraved amongst the Twelve Families.
In terms of emotional connection, he got along well with the crowd from the vocational school and had recruited all the children of Gotham, satisfying his lust for power. Simultaneously, he had been learning from Victor, who tutored him like a father, continuously guiding and educating him.
Despite this, as previously mentioned, the improvements in Cobblepot's life, the possession of a mentor and friends, and a foreseeable promising future did not transform him into a lively, vibrant individual. He remained gloomy, indifferent, devoid of sympathy towards others, and derived pleasure from violence and control over others.
This personality remained unchanged despite changes in the external environment. In any city outside Gotham, his best home would be a mental hospital. However, in Gotham, not only his condition is untreatable, it doesn't need to be treated. Pure antisocial personality already makes one an exemplary patient.
After the two men briefly froze, they both turned away, not continuing to look at each other. At this moment, Victor came out from another room. Seeing the two men standing still, he first took the stack of documents from Cobblepot's hand, and then patted Lex's shoulder.
Lex followed him into the room, and Cobblepot continued to prepare the experimental supplies outside. He occasionally turned his head to look at the room door; through the frosted glass, he could see Victor and Lex sitting face to face. Victor seemed to be asking Lex some questions, and Lex's answers were flowing smoothly.
When the two men came out, Victor seemed in a good mood. He introduced Lex to Cobblepot, saying, "This is Lex Luther. He'll also be an assistant in the laboratory. After 5 p.m., he'll need to use the laboratory for his independent experiments, so remember not to lock the door."
Cobblepot surprisingly did not turn his head to look at Victor but just nodded while busying with his tasks.
He quickly finished sorting out the utensils, then walked out of the door to leave. Victor followed him out and put his arm around his shoulder, saying, "Don't be upset, Cobblepot. I'm not allowing you to conduct independent experiments because you're still too young, even younger than him."
"I don't know what's going on with you kids, planning to conduct such dangerous experiments in your teens. When I was your age, all I knew was to read science magazines or burn my dad's tires with fire."
"Don't be in a hurry, kid. You should go to school, get into high school and then apply for university. Once you're in university, there'll be plenty of time for experiments."
"Just like it takes time for water to freeze into ice, it takes the same for a person to grow up."
Cobblepot pursed his lips and said, "No, I'm not jealous of him...it's just..."
Cobblepot shook his head, not knowing how to explain his intuition to Victor. He always found it hard to talk about his past to Victor, such as that he was once a hitman for the Godfather, that he had killed many, and that he was still killing.
Whenever he tried to fit into a normal life, Cobblepot would feel repulsed by his pathological desires that laid at the periphery of society. Yet, he couldn't resist the pleasure he derived from persecuting and controlling others.
He couldn't tell Victor that due to his nature, he could acutely sense that Lex was similar. There was no way he could reveal his dark past as evidence to caution Victor.
Inhaling deeply, he finally just shook his head and remained silent, slowly walking away along the corridor.
As it got darker, after Victor finished his work, he thanked Lex, who was sorting out data at the experimentation table. "Thank you for your help. It's now your free time. the supplies you need have been prepared, make sure you stay safe. I'll get going."
"Thank you." Lex smiled at Victor, who only slightly shakes his head in response before turning to leave.
After Victor left and dusk fell, Lex was totally absorbed in his experiment. He was developing a chemical substance to disperse the rain clouds by dispersing it into the sky.
He first had to prepare the shells, then the cannon. Therefore, he was currently conducting a chemical experiment, with the mechanical manufacturing to be done in another lab.
Compounding a chemical solution needs intense concentration. He must constantly observe the reaction and not get distracted for a moment. Lex stared intently at the reaction within the test tube. The cold light from the lab shone through the glass on to his face, leaving a radiant scar.
Suddenly, a shadow obstructed part of the light. Lex abruptly dodged to the side as a blade grazed past his upper arm, causing blood to spatter.
The test tube was flung away, and the reagents inside spilled onto the floor. Upon contact, a fizzing sound was heard as smoke arose.
With a "snap", the entire laboratory plunged into darkness. Lex gnashed his teeth as he turned around, and a gloomy face emerged in the darkness. It was Cobblepot.
When he appeared during the day, he only seemed rather gloomy. But when the night fell, his dark and crazy temperament reached its peak. He was like a penguin leaping into the water from the surface of a glacier. Slowly turning swift; transitioning from prey to predator.
"Are you out of your mind? Cobblepot!!!" Lex yelled, "We just met today, there is no grievance between us!"
"It seems that you don't have a correct understanding of your mental state." Cobblepot replied in a hoarse voice, "But not long ago, I saw a psychiatrist who told me that I am a lunatic."
Cobblepot advanced towards Lex with a knife while Lex backed off slowly, staring at his gloomy, twisted face. Cobblepot continued,
"What's more, he told me that if one day I meet someone who is very similar to me, he must be a lunatic too."
"We are kindred spirits. Incurable born murderers. So, I must kill you."
Lex thought Cobblepot was outright unreasonable. He retorted, "On what grounds are you calling me a murderer? I've never even killed anyone!"
"One day you will." Although Cobblepot looked frail, the knife in his hand gleamed coldly. From his posture, it was clear that this was not his first time doing something like this. He knew how to use it to put pressure on his opponent.
Gnashing his teeth, Lex said, "Just as I thought, all Gothamites are lunatics! You people kill without any reason?!"
"I told you, because we are the same, I have to kill you."
Lex didn't know what to say. Perhaps, this is where the difference between Metropolis and Gotham lies.
In Metropolis, all the villains commit crimes for a reason. Either for their interests, or out of hatred, or in pursuit of love. However, they are still committing crimes based on normal human logic.
But it was different in Gotham. Crazies in Gotham might kill someone because they happened to enjoy their morning steak, or because of some crazy illusions and unfounded intuitions.
Many people might think that breaking laws and moral boundaries out of hatred is a manifestation of insanity, but that's not really the case. When a person's emotions and the driving force produced by those emotions, along with the actions stemmed from that driving force, can all be neatly linked, it shows that he still possesses logic and cannot be considered as insane.
The real lunatics, their actions are completely unrelated to their emotional drive, just like the difference between Lex and Cobblepot.
Lex, because of his disagreement with Clark's views, had developed hatred towards him and would often bother him. Perhaps, he might even commit a crime against Clark in the future.
His hatred towards Clark had produced a driving force, which in turn, led to his criminal actions.
However, it was different for Cobblepot when it came to Lex. He was completely stranger to Lex. He didn't know him or harbor any hatred against him. Yet, he would form intuition and conjectures about him, prompting him to want to kill Lex. There was no emotion, no driving force, and no continuous logic to be found. Only a fleeting illusion became the reason for his killing spree.
All the maniacs in Gotham were like this. Their actions lacked internal logic, so no one could guarantee that they wouldn't end up being their targets. This was the real terror of Gotham. Because one's life and safety couldn't possibly rely on whether some lunatic had a satisfying steak for breakfast or not.
Just as Cobblepot was about to raise his dagger, there was a "pop", the sound of shattering glass coming from outside the window.
Cobblepot turned around. In the instant that he did, Lex grabbed the test tube rack resting behind him on the lab table and threw it at Cobblepot.
The test tube rack hit Cobblepot's back along with the test tubes, shattering and slicing his skin. Blood flowed out. Cobblepot whirled around, his gloominess completely transforming into savagery and madness. Just as he was about to raise his dagger again, a deep voice filled with anger echoed from outside the room:
"Thomas! Stop! Cease your wicked actions!!!"
There was a loud "thump", the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground, followed by a few heavy footsteps. With a "bang", the door to the room where Lex and Cobblepot were, was kicked open and a man rushed in.
He froze as he entered, seemingly unprepared for others to be in the room. He knew that he didn't have much time to react before the pursuers outside would catch up, so out of necessity, he hesitated for less than a second, then he charged straight at Lex.
Lex tried to dodge to the side, but failed to evade. The tall man caught his arm and restricted him from the back. He held Lex hostage and turned around.
At that moment, the light from outside the room shone on the floor through the open doorway, forming a bright square. A black shadow with pointed ears stood in the square, like a dealt card.