Poison Ivy Is Born

If things proceeded normally and he did not want to exhaust himself, Jude could produce Ivy's gene-modification serum in seven days.

But the Court of Owls would never give him seven days. Three days was already the limit. He had to develop the gene serum within three days.

This was a custom version Jude had made based on her genes. Once stabilized, it would unleash extraordinary potential. Ivy's strength would definitely surpass any version from the comics or film and television adaptations, making her the most powerful Poison Ivy. He could not guarantee anything else, but running rampant through Gotham City should not be a problem.

Jude locked himself in the laboratory again and went two days and two nights without rest. At dawn on the third day, the lab doors opened, and Jude rushed out excitedly, clutching a vial of serum.

He ran all the way to Ivy's room and pounded hard on the door.

"Ivy, wake up!"

"Ivy, it's me. I succeeded. Get up, hurry."

Half a minute later, the door was yanked open with a bang. Ivy, wearing a revealing nightgown and with her hair in disarray, glared at him.

"Don't you know what time it is? It's four thirty in the morning. Everyone is asleep. Lack of sleep makes me very irritable, and when I'm irritable, I hit people. Do you understand?"

Jude ignored everything she was saying, shoved her onto the bed, and started pulling at her nightgown.

Ivy jumped in fright and pushed Jude away in a panic. Stammering, she said, "Y-you... what are you doing? Herbert, yes, we're good friends, but isn't this moving a little too fast? At least let me prepare myself mentally."

Jude gave her a baffled look. "What are you talking about? Hurry up and expose your shoulder. The serum is done. I'm giving you the injection now."

Ivy froze for a moment, then let out a huge whoop and sprang off the bed.

"Does this mean I won't have to turn into a plant and absorb poop and urine anymore?"

"Of course, unless you have some very strange tastes."

"Then hurry up. I can't wait."

As she spoke, Ivy slipped one side of her nightgown off, but in her excitement, she revealed a little more than she meant to.

Jude pointed there and asked, "Shouldn't you cover that up?"

"Oh! Come on! Why are you acting like such a girl? Hurry up, I want it now."

"Fine. Let the world welcome the birth of Poison Ivy."

As he spoke, Jude plunged the syringe into Ivy's shoulder. As the serum entered her body, Ivy quickly began to react.

First, the skin on her face began to return to its fair color. Then her neck, arms, and finally the rest of her body all returned to their original complexion, seeming even paler than before.

Looking at herself in the mirror, Ivy excitedly jumped up and hugged Jude, planting several loud kisses on him.

"I'm human again! This is wonderful!"

Ivy was slightly curvy, and the sudden impact nearly knocked Jude over. He could not help but acknowledge that she had quite the figure.

After calming the excited Ivy down, Jude said, "This is a serum I crafted with great care. If all it did was turn you back into a human, that would be seriously underestimating it. Try it on that cypress vine, just like when you controlled the lilies."

Ivy said hesitantly, "What if I lose control again like last time?"

"Of course you won't. Trust me."

Ivy focused her attention on the cypress vine. The previously quiet green plant suddenly exploded in growth, filling the entire room in an instant. Its pinky-thick vines swelled to the thickness of wrists, but unlike the man-eating lilies, the cypress vine remained stable and did not go berserk.

"OMG! You did it!" Firefly's astonished voice came from outside the door.

Jude turned to look at her. "Bridget, when did you get here?"

"More precisely, the day before yesterday, after you finished talking to Penguin on the phone. So, are we leaving?"

"That's right, but let's take care of your arm first."

An hour later, after a vial of serum was injected, Bridget's arm instantly returned to normal.

"It seems there are still many treasures inside you waiting to be unearthed. So, when are we leaving?"

"The sooner, the better. Preferably right now."

Ivy asked, "Do we need to notify Penguin?"

"No need. The moment we walk out of this company, he'll receive word. Those people from Arkham could catch up to us at any time. The enemy is hidden while we are exposed. It's best to leave Gotham first. Once we're out of their sphere of influence, everything will be easier."

"Then where are we going?"

"Central City."

Bridget shot him a glance. "Why Flash's turf?"

"Because he's the conscience of the Justice League, and the rogues in Central City are fairly decent people. At least they don't kill casually."

"The conscience of the Justice League? That's a new one. Fine, then we're going to Central City."

Central City was located in the southeastern United States, while Gotham City lay along the northeastern coast. There was still quite a distance between them, but trains, planes, and other forms of transportation were out of the question.

Not only were they all under the Court of Owls' control, but more importantly, Ivy and Bridget had no identification. They could not use them even if they wanted to. Driving themselves was the only viable option.

Fortunately, the remaining payment from the money they had extorted had arrived. Ninety thousand dollars was enough to cover expenses for the three of them.

Once they had packed up, the three left Cobblepot Technology Company under the security guards' watchful eyes.

They hailed a taxi and headed straight for a used-car market.

Without browsing around or even letting the dealership owner give his sales pitch, Jude directly picked out a used Jeep Wrangler.

The owner claimed the vehicle had only been driven for five years and asked for twenty-five thousand dollars. Jude did not believe his nonsense, but he had no time to argue. He readily threw down twenty thousand dollars, took the car, and left.

Though Gotham was a world-famous metropolis, traffic was not heavy this early in the morning. Americans were not particularly enthusiastic about morning exercise, and it was not yet time for office workers to wake up.

The Jeep Wrangler accelerated and headed smoothly out of the city without obstruction.

Ivy looked back and said somewhat wistfully, "This is my first time leaving Gotham. My first time ever."

Firefly teased, "Then you really are a poor little thing. But I have a feeling we won't stay in Central City for long. Little by little, you'll get to see the sights across the United States and the whole world."

Suddenly, a blinding light flared ahead, stabbing pain into Jude's eyes. Alarm bells went off in his mind. He shouted, "Hold on!" and immediately jerked the steering wheel.

The Jeep Wrangler carved clear tire marks across the road and slammed into the guardrail with a crash, but it narrowly avoided the impact of the large truck.

Shaking his dazed head, Jude quickly asked, "Are you two okay?"

"We're fine!"

The two women answered in unison. Their modified bodies were far sturdier than Jude's ordinary limbs.

Pushing open the doors, the three looked toward the truck, only for it to suddenly make a U-turn and charge at them again.

"Damn it, it really is coming for us!"

If anyone has any good suggestions or feedback, feel free to say so. Please leave lots of comments. (⊙o⊙) Wow.