[Third Person POV]
A few weeks ago…
Location: GCPD Holding Cell
Date: March 10
Time: 1: 09 AM
"I wish Batman… never existed in the first place!" the Penguin declared, his short, stocky frame trembling with excitement as he spread his arms wide, his face twisting into a grotesque grin. His teeth gleamed in the dim light.
Desiree's eyes glimmered, their glow unnatural, casting an eerie radiance across her pale features. She tilted her head, lips curling into a knowing smile as she slowly raised her arms. Her long, elegant fingers twirled with ribbons of ethereal green energy, tendrils of smoke-like magic dancing between them.
"If you so desire…" she whispered, her voice carrying a strange weight, almost like a hymn. "Then so it shall be."
She pressed her hands together, the glowing strands of energy wrapping around her wrists before she clapped her palms with a sound that cracked the very air. The sound wasn't merely a clap—it was a thunderous ripple that echoed through the streets, rattling windows and sending invisible shockwaves outward. The world itself seemed to shudder in acknowledgment.
The Penguin blinked, his triumphant grin faltering. His vision blurred for a moment—then snapped back into clarity as he suddenly found himself hurled into a cold, damp alleyway.
"UUGH!!" he grunted, the air driven from his lungs as a fist slammed into his stomach. His small, round body lurched forward, only to receive a savage punch to the face. He tumbled to the ground, coughing blood before a boot came down hard across his ribs. Shadows loomed above him, silhouettes of sneering men surrounding him.
"W-What is this?!" Penguin croaked, wheezing as he tried to scramble away. "What's happening?! Why are you attacking me?! Do you fools know who I am?!"
The men laughed cruelly. One of them, a scar-faced brute, spat at his feet. "Of course we know you, you tub of lard! You're Falcone's pathetic little lapdog! His pet project! And we've been sent with a message—from Maroni!"
A heavy kick smashed into his jaw, rattling his teeth.
"WHAT?!" Penguin roared in disbelief, spitting blood across the alley floor. "Falcone?! Maroni?!"
And then it struck him. His mind raced, his fury twisting into panic. 'Damn it! That's right! Without Batman to put Falcone and Maroni behind bars… I never had the chance to rise. My empire, my name—it means nothing!'
His thoughts were cut short as another rain of fists and boots fell upon him. Blood poured from his nose, his lip split, his arm snapped under the weight of a stomp. He gagged, retching up bile as the mobsters laughed and mocked him.
"Don't kill him," one of them sneered. "He still needs to deliver Maroni's message." They jeered in agreement before one gave him a final, merciless kick to the face, breaking his nose with a crunch.
"Hahaha! Man, I wish I had a camera right now to capture that stupid look on his face!" another joked, grinning at the others.
"If you so desire…" a hauntingly sweet voice echoed above them, "then so it shall be."
A camera shimmered into existence in the thug's hands. He stumbled, nearly dropping it in shock. "W-What the hell…?" he stammered, staring at the device.
The men looked up, eyes wide, and beheld her—Desiree. Yet something was different. Instead of her usual voluptuous and seductive form, she appeared smaller, almost childlike, her gaze mischievous but strained.
"What the…?" one thug muttered, rubbing his eyes.
"Davy just wished for something," another whispered, "and it came true!"
Their faces lit up with greedy excitement.
"Let me try!" one shouted. "I wish my dick was bigger!!"
"JOEY! Shut the hell up!" another barked. "What if we only get limited wishes?! You dumbass!"
Desiree flushed red, her voice cracking nervously. "I… If you so desire… then so it shall be."
Joey yelped as his pants suddenly tightened, his eyes widening with glee. "Hahaha! Look at this hog!" he shouted, waving his hands.
"Dude!" one of his friends groaned, covering his face.
"Ugh, man, nobody wants to see that!"
"Me next! Me next! Make mine big too!" another demanded, laughing.
Something inside Desiree snapped. Her face twisted in rage, her dainty hand clenched into a fist—and that fist grew impossibly large, oversized. With a roar, she swung.
The man who had spoken didn't even have time to scream. His body burst apart on impact, exploding like a sack of meat and bone. Gore splattered the alley walls, painting the thugs in crimson.
For a heartbeat, silence reigned. Then they screamed.
Their blood ran cold as they stared at the floating childlike figure, her glowing eyes blazing with fury.
"STOP making me grant your disgusting, perverted wishes, you animals!" Desiree shrieked, her chest heaving.
"AAAAAAHHHHH!!" The remaining thugs scattered, tripping over each other as the blood of their friend dripped down their faces.
"Ughhh…" the Penguin groaned from the ground, spitting blood. "I wish they would just shut up already…"
Desiree exhaled sharply, then flicked her hands. "Agreed. If you so desire… then so it shall be."
The screams choked off mid-cry. The men clawed at their throats, gasping soundlessly.
"Keh… kehkehkeh…" Penguin wheezed, his laugh wet and cruel, his eyes glinting through the blood. "I wish they all died. Violent. Gruesome. Deaths."
Desiree's expression twisted into a sadistic grin. "If you so desire… then so it shall be."
The alley became a nightmare.
One man's body began to swell, his arms and legs ballooning grotesquely before his head puffed up like an overinflated balloon. With a sickening pop, his entire body burst, showering the cobblestones with entrails and bone fragments.
Another thug screamed silently as his flesh liquefied, dripping off his body like melted wax. His muscles sloughed away, his bones softened and collapsed, until nothing remained but a bubbling pool of human sludge.
The last man barely had time to cry before Desiree stacked her fists together and turned them. His body twisted, contorting like a rag wrung dry. Bones snapped, muscles shredded, and blood sprayed outward in all directions as he was crushed into an unrecognizable mass.
The Penguin lay sprawled in the gore, his laughter echoing through the alley, raspy and triumphant.
"Now that is what I like to see…" Penguin rasped, his laughter still bubbling between coughs as he pushed himself onto his back. His beady eyes darted upward toward the night sky—or rather, toward Desiree, who hovered above him with faintly glowing hair and eyes. Her figure, however, was noticeably altered. She appeared diminished, shrunken down into the likeness of a child. Not weak exactly, but less.
"Now heal me up," he demanded, pointing a trembling finger at her.
Desiree tilted her head, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips. "I can't," she said in a sing-song tone, "not unless you say the magic words~."
"You're going to make me beg?!" Penguin spat in outrage, blood dribbling from the corner of his mouth. "The Penguin doesn't say 'please!'"
Desiree rolled her eyes. "What? No, you idiot. You're supposed to say 'I wish' after each request. Otherwise, I can't grant it. That's the rule." Her tone was sharp, as if she were explaining to a child.
"Oh… right. Of course I knew that," Penguin muttered, his face flushing with embarrassment.
"Mmhm," Desiree replied flatly, clearly unconvinced.
"I… I wish I was healed!" he barked, his words strained as another cough wracked his body.
Desiree raised her hands, her energy sparking. "If you so desire… then so it shall be." She swept her palms together, and the magic wrapped around Penguin like threads of light.
The change was immediate. Broken bones knit back together with a series of faint cracks, bruises faded, and torn flesh closed until his skin was whole again. His pain dulled, then disappeared entirely. With a grunt, Penguin rose to his feet, flexing his fingers and rolling his shoulders.
He sneered, brushing dirt and blood off his suit before snapping his fingers. "I wish I was clean."
The grime vanished in an instant, his coat once again pristine. Penguin adjusted his lapels and tipped his head back toward Desiree.
"Now then," he said slyly, "why are you a child? And why in the hell were you granting their wishes? You're my genie. The only person you should be listening to is me!"
Desiree narrowed her eyes, her lips curling downward. "This is the result of granting a wish beyond my current capabilities. I have no idea who this 'Batman' you spoke of is, but to erase his existence required power I simply did not have. So the backlash fell on me. It nearly unraveled my existence entirely." Her voice carried venom, her small fists clenching as she hovered. "This form is my punishment. My body was forced to shrink, and my powers were weakened as a substitute for the missing strength."
Penguin listened carefully, though his expression was somewhere between irritation and intrigue.
Desiree continued, her tone quickening as her annoyance deepened. "I grow stronger by granting wishes. Any wish I hear, I must grant, regardless of who says it. Each one builds me up little by little. The more wishes granted, the more my range expands. The larger my powers become. Erasing Batman demanded far more energy than I had—and so, this is the cost."
Her voice trembled slightly, betraying her frustration at being reduced to such a state. Once, she had been a figure of majesty and fear. Now, she was little more than a glowing child throwing sparks.
"I see…" Penguin murmured. His sneer returned slowly, curling upward into a grin. His eyes glittered with the kind of greed only he could possess. "So, in other words… your limits are temporary. And the more I feed you, the more you can give me. There's no ceiling, no cap. Just an endless staircase leading higher and higher…"
His laughter began low, then rose into a wet, nasally cackle.
"You're drooling," Desiree remarked coldly.
He ignored her. Instead, he spread his arms wide, his coat flaring like wings. "Then let's make something clear. I don't like the idea of sharing what belongs to me. Your power is mine and mine alone." He leaned forward, his sharp nose jutting like a bird's beak. "I wish the only wishes you could grant were the ones that come from my mouth!"
Desiree froze. Her pupils narrowed as the words sank in, her own mistake clawing at her pride. She had revealed too much. She should never have explained the rules. She hadn't been obligated to answer his questions, yet she had—distracted, agitated, weakened.
Her jaw tightened. But the words were binding, and he had spoken them.
"…If you so desire," she whispered through gritted teeth, "then so it shall be."
The spell wove itself around them both, tethering her power to his will.
Penguin laughed, clapping his hands together. "Hah! Perfect. Now, let's see just what heights we can reach together. I wish…"
---
The city trembled with light. In a secluded alley, flashes of green and white flared violently, then died as quickly as they came. Silence returned, save for the rhythmic tap… tap… tap… of wood striking pavement.
Out of the shadows emerged a figure. A tall, lean man, cloaked in a black suit laced with golden lines. A long cane clicked against the stone with each step, his gloved fingers curling around the handle. His face was hidden behind a mask, sleek and gleaming, painted with patterns that mimicked the markings of an emperor penguin.
He walked with calm authority, one hand in his pocket, the other tapping steadily as if the world itself should part before him.
Floating above him, unseen by mortal eyes, Desiree drifted. Her childlike face betrayed nothing but contempt.
'What an arrogant man,' she thought bitterly. 'He wasted a wish on changing his appearance and boosting his strength. He dreams of conquering Gotham with his own merit, without relying on me. Conceited fool. Typical of men.'
But her lips curved into a secret smile.
'Still… I can use him. If he believes I'm his ally, his loyal servant, I can guide his path. Not just to rule this city… but to invade the Ghost Zone as well. Let him think he is in control. Let him think he is the king.'
Her small hands clenched with ambition as her eyes gleamed.
'He will be my puppet. And I will be the one who truly rules. Two realms—this one and the next. I will be the strongest in both dimensions. All I need to do… is play my cards right.'
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