"Good girl. Stand up on your own—don't make me help you." Thea's height advantage meant she towered over Livewire. She stroked the woman's hair like petting a cat.
Livewire's whole body tingled with numbness. She'd completely forgotten about proclaiming herself a god a minute ago. Like a quail, trembling slightly, she obediently stood up.
Thea waved her right hand. A simple water-drawing spell absorbed all the residual moisture from Livewire's skin.
Witnessing such an unnatural phenomenon up close, despite the electricity resuming its flow through her body, Leslie Willis didn't dare make any sudden moves.
"Good. Control your temper. What I'm telling you is this: you're not some deity—just a lucky person who got fortunate. Without my help, you'd still be in the morgue."
"I...?" As her head cleared, she finally remembered getting electrocuted. "Didn't Superman save me?"
Thea couldn't help but laugh. This was the typical Metropolis citizen mentality—constantly insulting Superman, yet expecting him to save them when trouble came. You people haven't paid him a dime, but you want him as your personal nanny? All of you have been spoiled by superheroes.
"Unfortunately, Superman didn't save you. Of course, healing isn't one of his abilities, and you'd already entered a state of suspended animation. He didn't notice."
Livewire surveyed the surroundings. No matter how she looked at it, the place seemed sinister. She asked hesitantly, "Can I leave now?"
Thea chuckled. "What do you think?"
Livewire's emotions flared up again. Large amounts of electricity gathered between her hands. "You can't stop me..."
Thea checked her watch. She still had dinner plans with Diana and really didn't have time to waste. Seeing Poison Ivy approaching, she gestured for her to handle things while heading for the exit herself.
"Don't leave!" A brilliant arc of electricity shot toward Thea's back.
The attack was loose and chaotic. Without even turning around, Thea erected a magical barrier behind her, effortlessly blocking the electrical discharge. A water-blue portal opened, and she stepped through, leaving the underground base.
"Where did she go?!" Livewire had only seen people vanish like that in novels. Was that a portal?
No one answered her question. A massive plant burst from the floor, wrapping around her in three tight layers.
"Ivy, you've damaged my floor again!" Deathstroke said wearily. The approaching Poison Ivy shrugged, completely unconcerned. "So this woman is our new partner? Quite the temper."
"She's yours now. I've got things to do." Deathstroke tossed her a ring. "Thea left this. Give it to her when the time's right."
Watching Deathstroke also leave, with only the green-skinned, red-haired woman remaining, Livewire felt disrespected.
"Nobody leave!" She tried to release the electricity around her body, intending to burn this strange plant to ash.
But she'd miscalculated. This plant wasn't from Earth—it came from a peaceful, high-tech planet. It had no special abilities except one: absorbing electrical energy. Anything related to electricity, it could absorb. Poison Ivy hadn't planned to use it in combat, just kept it out of curiosity. Now it was proving surprisingly useful, even to her.
"Ahh!"
"AHHH!"
"Let me go! If you dare, let me go!" No matter how hard Livewire discharged electricity, the plant in front of her maintained that half-dead appearance, as if it would turn to charcoal the next second. But ten minutes passed, and continuous discharge was taking a heavy toll on her body. She couldn't communicate with plants, but she could observe the plant undergoing subtle, indescribable changes.
Poison Ivy was delighted. The plant's joy was her joy. She even encouraged Livewire: "Keep going! Don't stop!"
Thea had left the volatile Livewire to the patient Poison Ivy for attitude adjustment. The woman needed to learn a lesson about her "I'm God's gift to the world" mindset. That kind of thinking was utterly unacceptable.
Metropolis's prosperity had fully returned. Citizens in every corner had resumed their daily lives. Leaving the underground base, Thea now found herself with Diana, engaged in a shopping spree through nearby stores.
Both women were extremely tall. With their height combined with excellent figures, they managed to make long dresses look like short skirts. Many clothes looked beautiful but didn't come in their sizes—a constant frustration for both of them.
Of course, Thea could make one phone call and have a hundred assistants buy clothes for her. But Diana genuinely enjoyed the shopping experience, so Thea had tagged along.
Elegant long-sleeved blouses, round-collar autumn-winter wool coats, casual professional slacks, slip dresses, mini skirts, boots, various heels—whether useful or not, the two had bought a huge haul.
"Oh? You're out shopping too?"
"What a coincidence..."
The two had bought mountains of clothing. The shop owner personally escorted them out, where they ran right into Clark Kent and Lois Lane. Diana reflexively greeted them.
Neither group had expected to meet on the street. After all, no one keeps their super-vision or super-hearing on 24/7. While Thea's appearance had subtle differences, the overall resemblance remained. Anyone who'd met her could recognize her. Publicly, she and Clark were acquainted, if not close.
But Diana shouldn't know Clark! Lois Lane looked at her boyfriend with some confusion, then at the heroically impressive Diana, her mind filling with questions.
"I'll explain later..." Superman gave an awkward smile.
Seeing Thea and Diana about to leave, he quickly stopped them. "Thank you for saving Jimmy. I'm buying—let's have dinner together?"
Lois seemed to realize something and said nothing.
The two women exchanged glances. They hadn't eaten dinner yet—might as well let someone else treat.
Clark Kent wasn't poor. His family had a farm, and he alone could do the work of ten thousand men. In Metropolis, the Daily Planet was no small-time newspaper. With all the exclusive Superman coverage and his first-hand reporting, Clark's bonuses often exceeded the editor-in-chief's salary. His status among media professionals was quite high.
Otherwise, why would Batman v Superman show Luthor introducing him to Bruce Wayne for a handshake? Heroic identity aside, not every random person qualified to shake hands with billionaires. There were even rumors he'd win this year's Pulitzer Prize.
Lois Lane was quietly well-off. The Lane name carried weight—some merchants would even wave off the bill rather than risk ending up on General Lane's bad side, whether that meant unwanted scrutiny, lost contracts, or just a lot of trouble. Add in years at the Planet, a relatively modest lifestyle, and a solid income, and it was only natural that she'd built up a small fortune.