Beyond the Limit (DC)

After the eventful sequence of events that occurred with Catwoman, Joseph had been busy.

Joseph had been holed up in his apartment working on the finishing touches of his social media app and mobile games.

He released two games, RobLux, a free online game platform and game creation system, MyCraft, a $14 sandbox game, and released PikPok, a social media platform centered around short-form video content, all under the same name; Bell Studio.

During the four weeks since he'd taken Karoselle's money, he had slowly been depositing as much money as possible that wouldn't get him flagged by the bank. So far he had $12,000 in his bank account which was enough to pay for the initial online server costs. Nova had then taken care of the legal matters like Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, Intellectual Property, In-App Purchases and E-commerce, and data security. Then Nova analyzed, ran simulations, and bought ads and shared the apps through places where they'd attract as many people as possible.

Since he was done now, he decided to wander the city as a civilian instead of as Flux for once.

He left his apartment in what he usually wore, dark nondescript clothes with a black winter jacket over it. His apartment was on the edge of The East End, a gritty, industrial area with factories, docks, and warehouses. He decided to take a bus to downtown Gotham, the heart of the city, with towering skyscrapers, bustling businesses, and the Gotham Stock Exchange. Home to the Wayne Tower and many of Gotham's elite.

Suddenly, a kid about six years younger than him bumped into him.

"My bad," the kid muttered as he walked by before rounding a corner.

Joseph didn't need Nova to tell him the kid was a pickpocket. He let him go though. It was tough being in Gotham, so hopefully the hundred dollars that kid had stolen would help him for a while.

With millions in his possession, Joseph started feeling generous. He planned to investigate some orphanages and soup kitchens and leave them with some cash. Gotham winters were harsh.

Then Joseph heard sirens.

He was curious and bored, so he sneakily went in an alleyway, used Spider State to crawl to the roof, then followed the cop car racing through the streets for a couple of minutes as it reached its destination. Surrounding Gotham's First National Bank, there were half a dozen cop cars parked in front, blocking the exits and setting up a perimeter.

A moment later, the doors of the bank were suddenly thrown open, and a flood of people came running out.

Joseph's enhanced eyes narrowed. All of the people running out of the bank were dressed identically. They all wore masks of a smiling clown.

However, what was more eye-catching was what they wore over their clothing.

Suicide vests.

Joseph heard all of the people screaming for help as they ran towards the police. Police Commissioner Jim Gordon was calling out over a megaphone for them to stop where they were until they called a bomb squad.

Naturally, the small horde of people didn't listen and continued to rush to the police line.

Joseph couldn't ignore what he saw. Seeing innocent people die never sat right with him ever since he witnessed his mom die because Intergang wanted to steal from Star Labs.

He was a bit worried about the Joker, but better him than innocent people. He could take it.

'Nova, can you help get rid of the suicide bombs?'

//Yes, I can, sir.//

Joseph took removed his winter jacket and took out a black balaclava and black swimming goggles, which he'd started regularly bringing with him everywhere just in case, and sprung into action. He leaped off the building and used a light pole to swing over the small plaza. With a little flare, he landed in between the mob and police. That seemed to give them some pause because most of them slowed before Joseph held up his hands in a reassuring gesture.

"Alright, everyone, I know this is terrifying, but I need you to take a breath and stay calm," Joseph said to the stunned crowd in a steady and deeper voice, courtesy of Nova. The small mob stopped in their tracks, either because they listened to him or they were surprised by his sudden appearance. It didn't matter because it gave him the opening he needed.

Taking a deep breath, he took a step forward, "I'm going to get you out of those vests, alright?" He said in a voice that he hoped sounded reassuring. "But you need to hold still. I have to move fast, and I can't do that if you're running in every direction. Just trust me, okay?" he said as he took another step forward.

Normally, he would have thrown in a joke to lighten the mood, but these people were on the verge of a breakdown. Some of them were crying, begging for help, while others looked like it was taking all of their self-control to not rip at the vest to get it off. The rest looked like they were about to bolt.

Joseph couldn't see their faces, but a long moment passed, everyone holding their breath, and he took that as consent.

Kicking forward, Joseph approached the first victim.

'What do I need to do?' He asked.

//Remove them quickly from the victims. This may cause an explosion so make sure to separate yourself promptly.//

Joseph grabbed the two deadbolts.

'Nova.'

//Strength enhanced by 100%.//

He yanked them off with his superhuman strength. Reaching out, he attached his hand to the vest and slid it upwards, and once it was clear of the victim's head, he threw it upwards as high as he could.

Thankfully, Nova was right, and there wasn't an explosion, so nothing was holding him back from brushing past to the next victim with the speed of a bullet.

He moved through the crowd, moving as fast as he could, throwing the discarded vests near the entrance of the bank.

Once all of them were in the clear, Joseph noticed another person dressed in a purple suit sneaking off with a very large duffel bag on his back in a window of the bank.

Joseph glanced back at the stunned circle of police officers, "You handle the civilians. I'll go take care of the wannabe circus act," he said to Barbara's dad. Unlike his colleagues, the older man was pinning a soul-searching gaze on him that almost made him squirm.

Without another word, Joseph bounded towards the entrance door and launched himself at them. The door was knocked open with a powerful kick, slamming into the wall as Joseph sailed through and a loud bang echoed in the large lobby.

He landed on the front desk but didn't see anyone. They shut off the lights, leaving the sizable building pitch black. The only light source was the red and blue cop cars from outside, making the shadows dance, but Joseph could see in the dark.

'Nova, Night vision.'

//Okay, sir.// Nova intoned.

He saw a flicker of movement and heard the faint sounds of footsteps and a door closing.

Joseph bolted across the lobby and made his way to the back of the building, dodging the little surprises the clowns had left for him in the form of mines.

These guys definitely knew what they were doing, and he was willing to bet that they weren't just packing explosives.

He made his way to the back door and heard voices through the door. He ran forward and kicked the door down as he had done before.

His feet hit the push lock with enough force that the door was almost knocked off its hinges and sent one man flying.

Joseph skidded to a halt in between the remaining four, all of them looking at him with wide eyes beneath their masks. Joseph was looking right back at them, an insult on his tongue, but it died on his lips when he noticed something.

These guys were wearing suicide vests too.