Things were going quite well for Maximus. FriendLink was at its highest usage point yet, his investments were making a fortune and things with Izzy seemed to be going well. Plus he hadn't heard from his father for sometime, which meant either his father was giving him more reign, or he'd finally died and Maximus could claim that massive empire. Either way things were boding well for Maximus. However there was one small issue that needed fixing. While Gang was solid, they were lacking a Ten. Maximus had been coming various databases trying to find the right combination of skills, usefulness and ability to be manipulated. Then he'd settled on her, she often went by Batroc and would even answer to the name Jackrabbit. WHile that would be useful for a Jack should Floyd outlive his usefulness, right now she would work better as his Ten of Hearts. Yes, Henri Batroc would be a perfect combination. He'd seen some of her medical reports, which were quite easy to obtain when you knew where to look, and he knew he could remedy some of her medical issues quite easily as well as making her stronger. The only tricky part, tracking the woman down.

Eventually he'd discovered a quaint little bar frequented by low to middle class villains. A step above general thieves but lacking what they needed to get to his level. He had some time to himself, which was something each member of the gang occasionally obtained. Izzy had her friends like Mel and her occasional Gotham villainy. Stane was running a major company, of course Max knew he'd eventually screw it up like the rest of his family had. Floyd meanwhile, well Max didn't really ask what he did. He didn't care either as long as he did his current jobs.

The bar was rather quiet, some annoying badly tuned song was playing on the jukebox, the people in the bar were drunk or on their way. A quick hush went over the crowd as the door opened and the King of Hearts stood in the doorway, his sword at his hip, his nails shining in the light. The people in the bar then went back to their conversations or sad mumblings. The King walked up to the bar.

"Red wine."

The bartender stared at him with a blank expression and Max sighed.

"Very well then. Bourbon and..."

'Well, well well. King Jerkwad.'

Said a large man coming up to him. He was easily over 7 feet tall, pure muscle and his skin was the color of dusty metal.

"Ah Girder, or whatever unimaginative name you're going by now. Still angry I turned you down."

'I would be the perfect Ace and you know it. Come crawling back to offer me a spot huh? You realize Ramrod is a better choice than that Ironman knock off.'

Maximus nearly spit the bourbon out, and not just because it was bath water swill.

"Ramrod? Did you lose a bet?"

'Nothing, not even your little toothpick can pierce my skin.'

Maximus nodded his head calmly before suddenly snapping his jaws at the man. He looked almost confused before realizing a big chunk of his throat was gone. He gasped before falling backwards in a heap. Maximus swished some of the bourbon around his mouth before spitting on the man's body. He wiped the blood from his chin and sighed.

"I'm looking for Batroc."

Henri usually had more than the occasional drink as she was quite fond of the taste, and the forgetting everything for a night side effects that came with it. She only came to this bar because people here left her alone. They knew better than to bother her, after she had phased through a man's chest to grab his heart when he just wouldn't take a hint. There was no competition here. And best of all, no one really thought to look for her here unless they were really looking for her without going through proper channels. So she sat in the corner, nursing her bottle of bourbon, watching people come and go, get into little scuffles here and there. But they gave her her space.

And she, like everyone else who had good survival instincts, looked to the door when it was thrown open. Even from way back in her small, dark little corner, she could see who it was. And while she was curious as to why he was "lowering himself" to co-mingle with "common riff raff", she stayed where she was. That little curiosity, she knew, would satisfy itself in a few minutes as he wouldn't be here without a purpose. She went back to drinking her bourbon.

She did not, however, take her eyes off the King of the Royal Flush Gang. And she was not disappointed. She was, in fact, treated to a show. Of course killing the idiot had been unnecessary, at least while inside the bar. Now they all had to deal with a body. But if the people in here were good at one thing, it was getting bloodstains out. And then, Maximus got to the real reason why he was here. Her. Now her curiosity was piqued. What could he ever want with her? Any job she could possibly do, he could do on his own. She teleported silently to the seat next to him, holding her bottle.

"You know, it's not very nice to leave a mess to clean up, especially one that big. Least you could have done is kill him outside." She kicked the dead man with her foot for a moment's contact, disappearing and reappearing a few feet above a dumpster leaving him to drop as she ported back inside. "Now, what do you want? You have until I finish this bottle," she held up the mostly empty container. "to make it interesting enough for me to keep listening."

As Henri appeared next to him he glanced briefly out of the corner of his eye. Her teleporting had a faint smell, something he'd memorize for later. All teleporting seemed to give off an aroma. Her's however was just more like burning flowers. As she mentioned how he could have killed him outside Maximus simply shrugged.

"WHat can I say? Instincts took over and a lesser male challenged me."

She watched her teleport him away and nodded his head. Yes, very useful indeed. He would need to ensure that he got her on his side. She didn't play well with others, which was fine. He was used to dealing with those kinda of people. People who don't handle working with others. Of course he either wins their loyalty one way or another so it's rarely an issue.

"Time challenge, interesting. Very well. I'm looking for a Ten. You can help me and I can help you. Aside from offering far superior paydays and a legit alibi at all times I can also help you with your spinal issues. I have access to superior metals, energy sources and doctors who may or may not be of this Earth. I can't have my Ten hobbling around so I will take care of them for you, in return for your allegiance."

Manipulating people was a skill he'd learned years ago. Some of your most loyal people will think they're working for you because you owe them.

"Most hauls are divided up among the rest of the Gang, I only like a challenge."

He said before taking a swig of the 'bourbon'. He was still fairly certain it was watered down kerosene and some sort of whiskey from a plastic bottle.

"Or if you're not interested in Ten perhaps we can discuss the role of Jack, with you as my protege. I'm always up for a good negotiation. Although if you're content being nothing more than a...mercenary, doing crap jobs for crap pay by all means, go ahead. I have had my eye on a few Rogues in Keystone. Maybe the new Weather Wizard would be a better fit. You know, someone who wants to go somewhere."

He sipped his bourbon again before grabbing his cigar from inside his costume. With a few words and flick of his finger he used an energy blast to light it. He exhaled a smoke ring and sighed.

"So what will it be Batroc?"

He said calmly as he examined the cigar while sipping his bourbon.

"Oddly the taste of kerosene grows on you."

She had of course come into this conversation intending to just blow him off. Batroc didn't like playing with others, and she liked the simple arrangement of her getting paid to get stuff. Henri had heard of him, of his llittle gang, and she was just going to use this time to finish off her botttle. Of course then he started talking about helping her with her little teleporting malfunction and she stopped drinking to look at him. Firstly, that was not widely known information, but she let it slide. For now. But he had piqued her interest, at least on that front. Secondly, having an alibi at all times would be quite handy.

Of course he had to spoil it with the word "allegence." She went back to drinking her bottle as he talked about the role of Jack, trying to get a rise out of her by calling her work crap. And her pay crap. She was a very expensive date, and if he knew about her implants, he would know about her prices as well. But she just looked at him, as the last little bit of of her bottle dribbled out. His technique would have worked, had she been a child. Still though, she was intrigued about fixing her little problem. She was just curious what came with this "allegence". She was wary to swear anything to any man besides her father.

Henri let out a small laugh. "Oh, I want to go many places. And I do. Completely unfettered by impractical alliances. So trying to compare me to an untrained child is a bit much, even for you. But still, you have my interest. Just...not my attention. It has been my experience that swearing anyting to anybody does not end well. And while that is a very enticing offer to 'fix me', this allegence you speak of, does sour me a bit. I would need more details." She popped behind the bar, grabbing a bottle from a secret stash and two glasses, holding them up.

"Come, as you Americans say, 'make me an offer I can't refuse'."

He laughed at her response to his baiting. He couldn't help but smirk at her. It wasn't often people outside of Izzy actually called him on his crap. He would actually admit it that most of what he said was crap. But only a select few would actually hear those words.

"You'd be surprised how often that line works. Perhaps I underestimated you Batroc. But I can respect someone being hesitant to swear allegiance to anyone."

Sure there was Zeke who quickly swore allegiance to him and Maximus practically owned him. Hell he oven owned a solid chunk of the company. He'd end up getting rid of it when the company flopped, which it would eventually. But in the mean time it made him some decent money. As she made her offer he nodded his head.

"For starters no one in America actually says that, and Io sono in realtà da Roma."

He said with a wink. He had no intention of drinking from that bottle, just in case. Sure if it were poisoned he could possibly detonate himself and heal, but the odds weren't ideal.

"Perhaps we can go somewhere quieter to discuss this further. The last thing we need is someone else here getting jealous. Then we have to slaughter the entire bar and that can be cumbersome. Plus I've found murder tends to put a damper on business negotiations."

He knew their actions were likely being watched. The two of them were several steps above anyone else in the bar. Well he was also above her but still, everyone here was small time. Then again the only ones he didn't consider small time was the Joker and Julius.

Putting the glasses down, she popped back over to the other side of the bar, keeping her hand on the bottle. If he didn't want any, fine. She could have it all to herself. "Everyone always underestimates me. They usually end up dead. Except one man. Though he was a special case," she smiled fondly, if not entirely smug on the outcome of that little incident.

She unscrewed the cap on the bottle and took a drink. "Mmm, sorry, I don't speak much Italian beyond calling your mother some rather unspeakable things but I get the idea." She started to head for the door, keeping her and on the neck of the bottle as she walked. It wasn't a sure sense that they were being watched, just a feeling. A feeling she hated with a passion. So she decided to take his advice and head elsewhere. Perhaps outside they could figure out something more accommodating to their discussion.

"Ah yes, senseless violence usually puts a damper on anything productive. So come then, show a lady a good time." She laughed harshly, bowing before stepping outside.

"Well dear, if I knew my mother I'd be offended. Hard to defend someone when you don't know if the claims are accurate."

He said, calmly watching her teleport around. Yes, she could be extremely useful. He also needed a psychic but with her ability to steal information and Izzy's ability to have it handed to her he could project fake telepathy. People thinking he was telepathic was just as good. He quickly caught up with her as they left the bar, pulling a cigar out and using a small magical energy bolt to light it. Yes it was often used to intimidate or impress someone. However his usual tricks simply wouldn't work on her. At the same time, he didn't have a lighter.

"Darling if I showed you a good time I can think of one woman who would get quite angry. But I can show you an interesting time."

He said with a soft chuckle. He didn't know if Izzy got jealous at all. It seemed believable, but perhaps that was simply wishful thinking on his part. Either way she was looking for something to impress her into joining. Something that would convince her to throw her lot in with him. While not impossible it was also doable.

"How do you feel about breaking into an R&D facility? They have a chemical there that intrigues me. Supposed to be something from another planet. Either way getting in and out won't be boring."

"Ah c'est la vie," Henri shrugged, taking a small drink from the bottle in her hand. She watched him as she did it, lighting his cigar with his powers. Had he it done it earlier, she would have thought it was strictly for her benefit. But, she was fairly sure she was perfectly clear parlor tricks and sweet words were not things that would sway or intimidate her. She did, however, feel like a cigar of her own to go with the bottle of bourbon she had.

"An interesting time sounds just as appealing, I suppose." She walked along the sidewalk, the sharp click of her heels echoing with every step. She'd give him a chance, she supposed. If anything, it would make an interesting story to tell Papa.

She was taking another drink from the bottle when he mentioned breaking into and R&D facility. Slowly, she pulled the bottle from her lips and looked at him, intrigued. She did so love a good bit of larceny. She grinned at him as they continued to walk. "How do I feel? Hmm, let me see. I think I'm feeling very intrigued. Do you have floor plans and what have you or will this be a test?"

So he had her interested. That was all he cared about. She wasn't signed on yet, but this would do the trick. It would be rather simple actually. Sure the breaking and entering would be tricky, but nothing he couldn't complete. Of course she might get killed in the process, but that was fine with him. Was she his first choice? Perhaps. Was she his only choice? Of course not. But either way this would be a solid score. He could find a buyer rather quickly, even having one or two in mind.

"I've been there once. The lay out hasn't changed much. The chemical will be in the center of the lab, three floors down. Security will be tight and they're told to shoot first and ask questions later so they will go for the lethal shot. Which means we will likely need to kill first. I hope that won't be an issue."

The thing was if it was an issue they would need to part ways right now. Sure she'd make a good addition but this was a scenario where people were trying to kill them. It was kill or be killed. He used the chip in his crown to call his Card to him. It came over some of the buildings and landed beside him.

"It's a few miles from here. I trust you can keep up."

He said stepping onto his card and rising into the air. He knew she was fast enough to keep up with teleporting. But if she couldn't, oh well. He wasn't looking for someone's hand to hold and teach them. He wanted a smart efficient criminal who could hold their own, but also follow orders. He would also make sure to somewhat keep in sight as he took off, heading towards the facility.