The Greedy Frog
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DC: The Enchanter Chapter 36
🕑 Added 2023-07-23 18:01:59 +0000 UTCChapter 36: Kitty Fight
[Tin Roof Club]
"Woooooow!!!!!"
Till this date, I had never seen a man flying out of the ring from a punch.
Yeah, straight out of the ring.
And that too by a woman whose name I had never even heard.
"The winner is Thorn!"
Thorn, a well built woman with auburn hair and green eyes.
She didn't seem to possess any superpower, but she sure did have amazing physical prowess and martial arts skill.
"She is good, isn't she?"
That voice that came straight above of me drew my attention.
I was sitting right next to the bar counter, with a leather coat on as it was quite cold. To be honest, I was in all black –as black is said to be a warm color.
From my jacket to my boots, everything was black.
And so were the clothes of the woman that stood right next to me, drawing my attention towards her beautiful green eyes.
I knew who she was.
I am certain about it.
"Jasper, I presume?" she asked.
"That I am,"
She was in a very pretty one piece dress which was of a design that made her stand out from the rest. Deeply tanned skin, silky black hair topped with a dash of black lipstick.
She was pretty, she was fearless.
"It isn't everyday that someone is called out by Selina Kyle," I said with a smile, "Or do you want me to call you Catwoman?"
She flicked her hand, "Selina is fine. When I started working here, I gave up keeping my identity hidden. Well, most people still don't know my identity but I don't actively hide my name anymore."
"So, did you give up on your life of crime?" I asked.
She shook her head, "This place isn't exactly legal, you know?" She laughed, "But I don't actively go out and steal like I used to."
"May I ask why is that?"
"AND THERE GOES ANOTHER CONTENDER!"
We saw another man flying out of the ring, all because of a certain woman without superpowers.
"She is strong," She said before looking at me again, "But well, I mostly run this place now. It generates enough money to go by."
That wasn't wrong, she was quite smart to open a place where villains can enjoy without any worry. And that definitely gave her an edge over other businesses.
And since she provided a safe haven for the villains, they respect it by not harming anyone in the pub or by fighting.
Even the fights that were taking place were more of an exhibition, a way to increase her revenue.
"But that's enough about me," She said, leaning onto the counter, "There is barely anything interesting about me. Tell me about yourself. I have been out of Gotham for a while, but ever since I got back –I have only been hearing about you."
She had a curious smile on her pretty face as she stared into my eyes.
"I wouldn't dare say your life isn't interesting," I meant what I said, "Being one of the original villains of Gotham, someone that gave even Batman a run for his money, a genius businesswoman and someone that most villains respect. You are one of the big personalities of Gotham."
"That was quite a while back," She said, "Now it's the time for others to shine."
Despite her sounding like an old lady, she was barely in her late twenties or possibly in her early thirties.
And with her beauty, it would be stupid to call her anything but gorgeous.
She gave me a mischievous smile, "Like you. Defeating Scarecrow, Zsasz, even the Young Justice… That's not a small feat."
"Nothing you haven't achieved before," I said, "But yeah, I am Jasper."
I finally got off my seat, "Jasper Hughes."
She smiled and pushed her hand out, allowing me to take it in mine, "Selina Kyle."
"A pleasure," I said.
"Since you took care of Zsasz who had been a nuisance for a while," She smiled, "Today's service is on me. You can have any drink, no matter how expensive and it will be on the house."
Free is a word that I loved.
Nothing was better than something that you didn't have to pay for.
"Then I will gladly take you up on that offer."
And color me impressed, she happened to order the most expensive wine that they had to offer.
"Do you mind if I join you?" She asked, possibly entranced by the sweet smell of the wine.
I laughed hearing her, "It's all yours. You don't have to ask me."
With a smile, she accompanied me while enjoying the fight.
"I didn't ask, but what exactly is your speciality?" She asked, curious like everybody else.
"I can do a little bit of everything. Not much, just a little," I answered, "So, you can consider it something to be like magic."
"That's impressive," She said, "We don't exactly have many strong magicians in Gotham."
"I have met a few fairly strong magicians," I said, "But yeah, they don't happen to be from Gotham."
"I apologize for prying so much into your life, but I do get curious about people," She smiled, "If you don't mind answering, how old are you?"
"Twenty three," I answered honestly, or according to what was in my ID.
This made her surprised, "So young!"
I laughed, "You don't seem much older than me."
"Well, I am nearly a decade older than you." She said before freezing, "A decade…"
It seemed like she was going through an existential crisis.
"You are thirty?" I smiled, "I thought you would be at best twenty six, hence the previous statement."
She raised an eyebrow, "I know those tricks very well, Jasper. They won't work on me."
I shrugged, "I still gotta shoot my shot though."
This made her chuckle a little, "You are an interesting guy. I can see why people like Ivy and Penguin seem interested in you."
"I just try to be cheerful wherever I can."
"THAT'S THE FINAL GUY FOR TODAY'S EXHIBITION MATCH!"
We heard the host announcing, causing everyone to break out in applauses.
"She seems good," Selina said, "Not many can fight like that without powers."
Well, I would like to differ. I had already seen too many people do that.
Cheshire and Lady Shiva being two of the prime examples.
But just as I was about to agree with her, I heard something that irked me.
"Is there no man capable of defeating a woman with no superpowers?" The red haired girl said from the ring, "That without using their power that cannot even withstand a single punch from me?"
This irked me a lot as I looked at Selina, "She is playing with fire. There are a lot of villains out here, this might get ugly."
Surprisingly, she didn't seem to mind.
"Well, it isn't wrong though. There hasn't been anyone that has been able to defeat her," She smiled.
And as I saw a lot of villains getting up at her words, I saw the woman continue.
"Is there no one that can defeat me WITHOUT their superpower."
I see what she was doing, she was trying to draw out a few people while also trying to gain popularity.
More like notoriety.
But to be perfectly honest, I did not like her tone.
She was cocky, a little too much.
But I also had a rough guess why this was happening.
So, I finally calmed down and looked at the pretty lady sitting next to me.
"If you wanted to see me in action," I smiled at Selina, "You could have just asked me."
Her expression hardened as I said that, proving my suspicion.
She was the one that organized the fight and she was the one that possibly made Thorn say those words.
I already guessed it was to test someone, but I just wasn't able to put my finger on who.
But now I know.
I was me all along.
"But where did you hear that I fight without my powers?" I asked, honestly amused at that.
I have always used my powers in front of everyone, and not even once did I display my fighting skills without the use of my other abilities.
But when she answered, it made a lot of sense.
She chuckled, "You are sharp. She told me you were sharp."
She?
"But when I heard that Penguin assigned a newbie to assure her safety, I was surprised. But seeing your analytical skills and from what I heard of your abilities… it makes sense."
Oh.
That's what it was.
That's WHO it was.
Now, it makes a lot of sense.
"I won't ask how you know Carol Ferris," I smiled, "Because I know you will answer once I show you my fighting ability."
Carol had seen me fight Cheshire with my fists, so it makes sense that she knows about my skill.
But it is interesting to see her prying into my life, especially through Selina.
I didn't even know that they knew each other.
But for now, let's do this.
"If I may," I walked forward, drawing everyone's attention, "I would like to have a little match with this lovely lady."
And even before I knew it, the crowd burst into cheers.
…
…
Jasper was good at analyzing others.
However, during this moment he had greatly underestimated something.
He had been undermining his influence and fame for a while now. So, when he saw people cheering for him the moment he walked up –he was a little taken aback.
"You?" Thorn raised an eyebrow, "You are a magic user. I asked for people to fight me without using their superpower."
"I know," Jasper kept a charming smile, "And I am not going to use my powers."
That was a lie.
What he meant was that he wasn't going to 'show' his usage of his power.
He wasn't going to do something explosive or showy.
'I am just going to teach her a lesson,' He mused, 'Nothing grand.'
"You will regret that decision," Thorn said, as unlike Selina who had at least a little information on him, Thorn didn't.
"We will see."
Saying that, he walked inside the ring.
"SHOW HER JASPER!"
He heard a shout that he was quite familiar with and when he turned, he saw his former reptilian teammate grinning at him.
Giving Killer Croc a thumbs up, he looked at Thorn.
And considering it was Jasper, who was known for his massive ego, he gave Thorn a ridiculous offer.
"How about we make this a little more fun?" He said, drawing everyone's attention.
"I won't fall for petty tricks," Thorn said, which made Jasper laugh.
"Oh, it is no trick," He said, "It is just me giving you an advantage?"
She looked at him from head to toe, "You? A magician giving me an advantage in a match of strength?"
She believed he was being ridiculous or was simply trying to play tricks.
Only that he wasn't.
"I will give you three free hits, and if you can make me move even an inch –I will surrender."
Gasps of horror and countless murmerings echoed throughout the place at his words.
She frowned, "Don't be ridiculous."
"I am not," Jasper grinned, "Or is three too little for you?"
Jasper was a master at drawing aggro, and that was exactly what he was doing.
"Then to make this even more interesting, I will use only a single punch as a counter." He added.
Again, the place was filled with chattering.
This made Thorn grit her teeth, "You will regret this."
"Oh, trust me," He said, "I won't."
"I-If–" The host said, stuttering at the heavy atmosphere, "that's what the challenger wants, then we shall proceed!"
The thing was, Thorn was under a contract to keep fighting so she couldn't set the conditions.
Even the condition of 'no superpower' was made by the guy acting as the host –who was asked by Selina.
So, she had no say in this.
But she did hate the cockiness of the guy in front of her.
And she was going to wipe the floor along with him.
"Fine," She said, walking forward, "I don't need three, just one is enough."
Jasper kept his smile, "Oh, we will see."
"On the count of three!" The host shouted.
"ONE!"
The crowd stared straight at the ring.
"TWO!"
Everyone was at the edge of their seats.
"THREE!"
And like a cat in front of a prey, she lunged at him with her fist.
Everyone was hoping that he would be able to handle the shock but they also knew that it was likely not possible.
As no man yet had been able to handle a single punch from her.
Everyone knew that it was a lost match for Jasper.
Everyone but one.
Everyone but Croc.
"He is a devil," Croc grinned as he saw the scene.
Because when everyone gave up, he saw Jasper put on a smile.
And he knew that the result of the match was already decided.
Which allowed Jasper to let Thorn land her hit.
"W-What!" Thorn was shaken both physically and mentally from connecting the punch.
The moment Thorn lunged at him, Jasper had enchanted his body to weigh twenty times his original weight and to harden his body to match the hardness of a diamond.
And that caused her knuckles to nearly crack, sending shivers of pain down her spine.
"That's one," Jasper announced, "You have two more chances."
That's when Thorn realized the reason for Jasper's confidence.
"GAHAHAHA!" They all turned to see Croc laughing at the back, "He is the devil, you don't bet against the devil!"
"Two more." Jasper reminded, causing her to frown.
"Very well then," Thorn gritted her teeth as she jumped up and interlocked her fingers –before coming down with a fully strengthened strike.
Which again, did connect.
"That's it?"
However, it didn't even scratch Jasper.
"And… you have only one chance left," He said, making her shudder.
She jumped back and tried to calm herself.
She realized that it wasn't going to work, however she had no choice.
So, she decided to give it up to her luck.
'Here goes everything!'
With that, she lunged at him, this time with another punch but one where she exerted all her strength –even if it would break her fist.
However, this time…
It hid not hurt.
It felt soft.
"And that's three."
This made the crowd burst out in cheers, as they were amazed by the display.
This time, Jasper didn't make his body the same as a diamond –instead, he divided his body into two elements.
Sodium which was soft, followed by titanium which was soft but far stronger.
He was considerate enough to not cause her fist to break, all while not moving from the spot.
"I-I… failed?" She was shocked, she didn't expect someone that wasn't specialized in physical skills to tank her attacks like they were nothing.
"Those were great attacks," He said, "I can see why you were able to defeat those men."
But he was still annoyed by her previous words, "But remember–" he said, extending his hand, "There is always someone else there, that is better than you."
And in the fraction of a second, she felt her feet lifting off of the ground before a horrifying pain originating over her gut started echoing through her entire body –all while she flew out of the ring.
A single one-inch punch, that's all Jasper used.
And that's all it took to make her eyes roll over as her world turned dark.
"I apologize, but I believe in true gender equality," He said, looking at the unconscious Thorn lying outside the ring, "Whether a man or a woman, both deserve an equal beating."
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[[A/N: Sorry about not being able to post 3 chapters, I have a bit of a headache which is also why I wasn't able to proof read this chapter of even the previous one.
This chapter is a little longer, hope that makes up for it
As for Thorn, I took her alter ego which does not have any superpowers. If you want to know more about her, you can easily find her info in the DC fandom.
]]
