Sorcerer in DC Chapter 7: SD7

Sorry for the late upload. There was a death in the family.

Chapter Seven

The large man grabbed at surprisingly fast, but I slipped back, barely avoiding him.

I swung, my bat covered in Cursed Energy Reinforcent. It slid just past the large man's approaching fist but connected to his jaw, stunning him. I resisted the urge to use Inverse and potentially complicate the fight. He bowled over and let out a triumphant roar as he grabbed by the neck and hoisted up.

My back was on fire, and my airway was rapidly shutting down, but I still had the presence of mind to send the bat away and nail the son of a bitch in his hurt face with an enhanced fist to the eye.

He dropped and started swinging, and precise activation of Inverse kept the worst of the injuries at bay. More blows ca, but I threw more of my own, dishing out as much as I received until suddenly, he was off . His neck jerked back, and a knife opened his throat with gusto, bathing and part of the alley in red.

I scrambled back, trembling and wet, distancing myself from this new enemy. My Cursed energy bucked against , but I found my groove eventually. I squared up, ready for a fight.

A surge of Cursed energy hit a second later as I leveled up, healing my injuries and clearing up my puffed-up eyes enough to spot the face of my new murderous benefactor.

It was the drunk man. He stood over the body of the giant with a chilling smile on his face.

"You're not half bad," he said as he ripped open his sleeve and cut three straight lines into a small patch of his forearm. It was the only part of his arm that wasn't covered in those tally scars. More marks were visible on his skin through the tears in his suit and shirt.

It dawned on pretty quickly after that. I was standing in front of a serial killer.

He threw the knife straight at , and I caught it instinctively.

"Next ti, you might want to keep one of those handy when you show up to a street fight."

I gulped. "You're...Victor Szasz"

"In the flesh." He gave a small bow.

"The infamous serial killer."

Wasn't he locked up in Arkham like four years ago?

"That's what Batman and Gotham PD want you to think," he smirked. "Most of my work was actually rcenary."

"Why are you telling all this?" I said shakily, and his smile grew only wider.

"Well, you asked and because I recognize a kindred spirit when I see one. Taking down two Black Mask's top enforcers and disappearing their bodies?" he whistled. "Not bad for a squirt."

Shit. "Does everybody know?"

He shrugged. "Just heard it when I was in the bar. Interesting stuff. If you don't get yourself killed, you might actually get the big man's attention."

"I'm not a killer," I insisted, and he looked straight at . It took everything in not to wince at his stare.

"Might be better if you are," he said. "It'll keep the rabble away at least."

Szasz pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and started wiping off what little of the blood he could. It did not help much. His suit was drenched in the stuff.

Just as he was about to leave, I called out to him, and he turned around slowly. I pulled my phone from my pocket and showed him a picture of Sasha and Ed.

"Did you see her on the inside?" I asked, but his eyes were glued on Ed.

"The friend who's missing," he humd. "I take it he's dead?"

I gave a grim nod, and he flashed a pointy smile. "Didn't see her, but if I had to bet money, she's probably dead too or just about. There's a bounty out on you, and she never reached out. You do the math."

"No!" I growled, my Cursed Energy flaring. Victor's eyes widened slightly, and his lips curled into a nastier grin. Did he sense that?

He grabbed by the shoulder.

"Yes! Get angry, and stay angry. It'll make what you have to do that much easier."

My breathing grew harsh and ragged as I looked away.

Did anger make killing easy the first ti around? Yes. But did it drive to kill Mark and Gabe? Partly. Killing them was my only way out that night, and I'd have shanked the bruiser that was on a few minutes ago if I had a knife in my inventory.

I had no idea what this ant for my future. But one thing was clear: I was hurtling towards a crossroads, and I had to decide the type of man I wanted to be before soone else made that choice for .

I clutched the knife hard and t eyes once more with Szasz. Then I slid over to the next picture, which was of Tim.

"A friend told he has her. Did you see him in there?"

Szasz gave a small nod as if he had approved before answering. "No, but I can find out."

--

Szasz returned from the bar with an eager look and a fresh suit. He tossed a sweatshirt, which I accepted with so confusion before he began to speak.

"Turns out, your friend Tim broke the cardinal rule. Never bite the hands that feeds."

"What did he do?" I asked.

"He's been undercutting his Kilos. Practically selling Sugar and baking powder to Vinnie's regulars. Went under the radar until sobody from a posh side of town tasted his cut."

"Oh shit," I muttered. It was not all that surprising. Sounded like sothing Tim would do.

"He's not at his place," Szasz humd. "It's been ransacked and emptied out. Penguin wants his head on a spike."

"And be probably figures he can get out of the hole he dug by offering up," I said slowly, assessing his motivations.

"Would be my next move," Szasz smirked, then stuck his hand in his coat pocket and handed the gun that asshole had shot with. He was dead also, a victim of Szasz's psychotic rampage. Even standing so close to him seed like a risk, but I felt I understood Szasz, at least partly.

There was a thod to his madness, and I was in his good graces for now.

"Just in case," he winked and turned away. "Good luck hunting."

I spent nearly two hours combing through all of Tim's usual haunts: bars, Restaurants, and liquor stores. I even checked out his apartnt.

Near midnight, I talked towards the last place I'd ever expected Tim to go—my building. But the more I thought about it, the more sense it made.

Maybe he'd not choose my apartnt exactly, but so apartnts hadn't been rented out in weeks. My apartnt must've been torn apart and overanalyzed by this point, and no one was coming here looking for …at least not until today.

Hiding in plain site was stupid enough that it might just work.

I found a fat man posted on the sidewalk opposite my building and went up the fire escape instead. No doubt one of Black Mask's n or another idiot trying his luck.

On the third floor, I saw movent before sothing shattered the window. Inverse activated just before the hamr slamd into . I desperately clung to the fire escape ladder and looked inside after blinking the glass from my eyes.

The apartnt was mostly dark, and a silhouette stared at . There was terror in his eyes.