It was early morning somewhere in the Atlantic. There, Arias's yacht still sailed the waters slowly in a certain pattern, never straying too far from land.
Inside, he was within a sort of lounge at the lower cabins of the ship. Having spent most of the night lost in thought, he hadn't even bothered to sleep.
With him was Cheshire, who rarely stayed away for long and was always nearby.
Alongside these two was also Ivy, who sat by an area where her body could be bathed in that early morning light.
"What are you planning now? Otherwise, you wouldn't be down here." Ivy was quick to assume that something was being planned since Arias rarely spent time with others these days.
The only exception perhaps being Cheshire, who chose to stay close but also mostly in silence.
"Oh, nothing too serious. Just a simple heist of sorts. You see, there are some materials vital to our group that we need to get ahold of."
Ivy found this revelation a bit confusing and strange, but Arias was hard to understand in the first place, so she didn't really think much of it. "If it's simple, you would've done it yourself. There's a catch somewhere, and I know it."
Arias showed a small smile and shrugged his shoulders.
"Does it matter? It's not like you can refuse," he taunted, receiving a frown from her as she clicked her tongue and crossed her arms, saying nothing more.
"Right, if you're done complaining, here's everything you'll need to know…"
Arias gave a light tap to the table before him, and a holographic presentation rose up before the trio, showcasing a city.
"So, the target of this little grab is S.T.A.R Labs in Central City. Not long ago, it began research into a rising new topic: magic. And as of now, it's the foremost scientific laboratory in the studies and collection of ancient artifacts, texts, and objects of arcane nature."
"What I want is entry not only into their databases but possession of the artifacts with actual magical evidence. They'll be of great use in the near future."
As Arias explained the plan, Ivy's doubts of a catch began to fade, as it did sound like something Arias would take an interest in. As for why? She could only associate it with the two odd beings now on board the yacht.
And this was precisely the chain of thought Arias wanted to lead her down.
"Sounds easy enough. But while we're there, I want to grab something of my own." Ivy showed a mischievous smile as she said this, but Arias wasn't at all worried.
"You can get it. As for whether you'll keep it, that can be decided after the task, no?"
Ivy's smile returned to a frown as she understood the meaning behind those words. But they were better than an outright no, so she didn't bother to say anything to oppose him. "Right, of course…"
"Good. Take this as a chance to prove your skill. You'll be taking point along with Dr. June, or shall I say, Enchantress. While you do this, Cheshire and I will cause a little distraction within Metropolis to divert the hero populace."
Hearing that she would be performing this task with the odd entity that had recently joined them in the form of a shaky woman, Ivy couldn't help but inwardly groan.
However, a part of her was happy with this decision. After all, to her, it meant a chance to get away from Arias and an opportunity to sink her fangs into the naive Dr. June.
"Consider it done." Her confident response was more than enough to tell Arias that she was planning something, but he wasn't overly concerned.
"I am. Try not to change that. You can go bathe in the sun now. A chopper will pick you two up at 6 p.m. I'll give the finer details before you set off."
Ivy could only huff at the treatment she was getting before standing from her chair and walking away.
"It's so fun seeing her angry." Cheshire, who had been silent the entire time, finally chimed into the conversation with a grin on her face.
"I had almost thought you left, given how peaceful it was in here." Arias turned to look at her and teased, but she was more than happy to match his energy as she crawled over the couch and leaned in close.
"Oh? A shadow doesn't leave its owner; it's all his to control. Doesn't that sound fun?"
Arias raised a slight brow at her. "I suppose I'll need to make time and find out for myself."
"Is that so?"
At that moment, Dr. June walked into the lounge and, seeing this, immediately looked flushed.
"Oh, uh, sorry to interrupt… I just, uh... I should go? Yeah."
But before she could turn on her heels, Arias called out to her.
"No need. I was just about to come and see you."
"Oh, you were coming? I mean, on your way? I mean, what for? If… I may ask…?"
Seeing that Arias's mind had gone elsewhere, Cheshire swiftly leaned away and continued to just lie on the side while observing the conversation.
"Something that might be of interest to you."
…
At the same time, within Gotham City, Slade was in his suite in one of Gotham's most luxurious penthouse apartments.
Wearing a bright purple robe, a top hat to match, and smoking a cigar while twirling a cane, he stood on his balcony and looked down at the city.
This seemingly tranquil moment was ruined a moment later when two half-naked women came outside, one with a ringing phone and another with a strong shot of whiskey.
Seeing the two, Slade sighed, took a final pull of his cigar, and handed it over to the girl before picking up the phone.
"It's 8 in the morning. I thought I told you to move all my meetings to the afternoon."
[ I did, Mr. Wilson, but candidate Hughes has been constantly running your name through the mud for days, and it's beginning to affect some of our support and— ]
"Yeah, yeah, I hear you. Hughes, huh? What did he say?"
[ In his most trending interview, most viewers agreed with his comment that, and I quote, 'Slade Wilson is an angry child in a man's body and is unfit to hold the reins of the government. He is friends with a meta-terrorist that's got people fooled into thinking he's some good guy. Come on, folks, wake up.' ]
"Oh? Is that how he wants to play it? Fine. I want you to track down his day-to-day schedule and give it to me. Where we see an opening, you're going to have him invited to the Markovian Convention for Meta-Rights. He won't refuse unless he wants to look anti-meta."
[ What is the goal of this, sir? ]
"You'll see. Just prepare a speech for me around the point that candidate Hughes is a chronic gay pedophile and global predator. Oh, and give me his wife's line."
[ … alright, sir. ]
"His daughter's too."
[ She's not of age, sir… ]
"So?"