DC Technomacner: Chapter 6

Walking into the Wayne Towers lobby Victor looked up at the luxurious crystal chandeliers dangling down from the high vaulted ceiling whose light reflected off of the polished marble floors. 

Approaching the front desk Victor plastered a smile on his face as the young female attendant met his eyes, “Welcome sir to Wayne Towers, have you booked a room in advance?” 

Victor nodded, “I believe so, it should be under the name Stone.” 

The woman nodded her piercing green eyes lingering on Victor for just a moment longer than necessary before looking away to search his name on her computer. Not that Victor could blame her, before his incident he had been a four star center with offers from all the division one schools. In simple terms Victor stood at six foot six and weighed almost four hundred pounds of mostly lean muscle. 

“Oh here you are Mr. Stone, we have you in one of our luxury suits is that correct?” The woman asked with a smile and a sparkle in her eyes. 

“Indeed it is.” 

“Perfect, then if you would just follow me I can show you to our room,” The attendant stepped out from behind the counter and Victor could help but follow her with his eyes. The first thing he noticed was the way her long curly hair bounced as she walked, shiny and smooth as silk. 

Then as he followed behind her Victor got a full glimpse of her body and for a moment his mind went blank. Even in her unflattering gray and black uniform all Victor could see were dips and curves.

Realizing he was staring a bit too hard Victor took a calming breath, ‘Damn teenage hormones.’ 

As they reached the elevators Victor stepped in first before the attendant joined him and pressed the button for the floor just below the penthouse, “Can I ask what you’re doing in gotham?” 

Startled by the question it took Victor a moment to respond, “Only if you tell me your name.” 

Even though he couldn’t see her face Victor could tell she was flustered, “My name’s Stella, Stella Luis Rivera.” 

“Well Ms. Rivera I’m in Gotham to make a name for myself as a businessman,” Victor replied. 

“Really?” Stella asked, shock clear in her voice. 

Victor chuckled, “Is that so unbelievable?” 

“It’s just that you’re so young!” Stella exclaimed. 

“Probably even younger than you expect, but I’ve been told I’m wise beyond my years.” Victor responded smoothly. 

“And you chose Gotham to start a business in?” 

Victor raised an eyebrow at Stella's sarcasm but he couldn’t help but smile, “Surely it can't be as bad as they say.”

“Maybe not up here in these ivory towers, with their own security teams.” Stella said sourly with a bitter edge to her voice, “But for the average joe it's a risk just walking down the street. Never know when the next deranged psycho is going to pop up and start killing people.” 

“You lived here all your life haven’t you?” Victor asked to which Stella nodded her head, “How could you tell?” 

“Call it my intuition,” Victor answered jokingly, eliciting a polite laugh from Stella, “My intuition is also telling me that you know your way around this city.” 

Stella shrugged, “I guess as much as anyone can learn from living twenty seven years in the same place.” 

“Then what would you say to having dinner with me tomorrow night,” Victor asked, making Stella turn around and stare up at him with her bright green eyes. 

“Dinner?” 

Victor grinned, “Is that a yes?” 

Stelle blinked through her long lashes as her tan skin flushed, “Alright then, it’s a date.”

---

Closing the door behind him after bidding Stella farewell, Victor let out a tired sigh as he reached up and undid his tie. 

[I did not expect you to invite that woman out to dinner]
[Are you driven by your main objective or do you simply wish for a companion?] 

‘Are you being objectively blunt or making fun of me,’ Victor asked as he took off his suit jacket and draped it over the back of a chair. 

[As humor is often contradictory and heavily dependant on cultural nuance I am incapable of replicating it]

Victor rolled his eyes, ‘Yeah I’m still not convinced. Any progress on the property search.’ 

[Very much so there is a decent selection for you to choose from, even with your strict requirements regarding privacy, access to water and policy activity.]

‘What’s the most expensive listing?’ 

[25,000 dollars but it is not the one I would advise you to build] 

Victor grunted, ‘Even so that’s a bit more than I expected, guess it’s time to initiate phase one. Are you ready for your grand debut Nex?’ 

[I have made the necessary preparations and I am confident in our success rate]

‘You just ruin everything don’t you.’ 

---

Victor looked out the window as the Taxi pulled over nearly a block away from his destination, “I can’t drive you any further. I’m not getting carjacked again.” 

Wordlessly Victor opened the door and stepped out onto the street crunching a shattered beer bottle underneath his steel toed boots in the process. Looking around Victor took in the slew of shattered windows, old dilapidated brick buildings covered in more graffiti than a trainyard, and the slight stink of sewage from the nearby processing plant. 

‘Reminds me of home,’ Victor thought to himself as he reached into his pockets and pulled out his money clip. Walking over to the passenger window Victor waited until the taxi driver rolled the glass down before offering his cash, “Here.” 

The taxi driver practically snatched the bills out of Victor’s hand with his greasy fingers, “Hey! You’re short a few!” 

Victor grunted, “So are you.” 

The man glared at Victor with his beady black eyes, “You mother fucker!” 

In a flash the man reached down underneath his seat and pulled out a snub nose revolver. While it might have seemed fast for Victor the taxi driver was moving in slow motion.