AN: Well despite quarantine, I had a busy two weeks but at last, after so many reworked ideas, it's finally here.

Honestly, I want to thank everyone who left reviews and encouraged me to continue. I really appreciate it guys and I hope I can keep you all entertained as I continue to write more.

By the way, in case you guys didn't pick up on it from the last chapter, I've been inserting some obscure character cameos here and there from past SNK games. See if you can recognize some of them ;)

CHAPTER 04: A King's Ransom

"Distinguished guests, welcome to the Iceberg Grande and welcome to this Pre-Fight Party for this year's King of Fighters Tournament! Hosted for the first time here in Gotham!"

There were cheers and clapping among the crowd surrounding the stage, camera flashes appeared here and there like blinking fireflies. The stage lights and TV cameras focused on the portly host of the evening as he gave his speech.

"Hardcore fans have been eagerly anticipating this event and now the wait is almost over." Cobblepot said. "A new history is about to unfold and you can feel the intensity in the air as the hopes, dreams and hearts of this incredible cast of warriors are about to be put to the ultimate test of skill."*

Bruce stood at the back corner of the crowd with his arms crossed as he listened. He knew this speech was obviously written by someone else and Cobblepot was doing his best to sell it as his own but it mostly came off as awkward.

The scripted nature of it became obvious as Cobblepot heaved a sigh and gave a sad expression.

"Of course, not every fighter could be present today and...there's one man whom I wish his absence was under less tragic circumstances. I am of course speaking of Andy Bogard who's life was taken just a few days ago. We have lost not only a great martial artist but an inspirational great man and I wish to take this time to express my heartfelt condolences to his brother, Terry Bogard and his friends in their time of grief."

As Cobblepot said this, the spot light and video cameras focused on the Terry, Joe and Rock without warning as some from the crowd clapped politely.

Joe and Rock stood still not knowing what do or say with this sudden attention. Terry internally frowned, knowing full well that these 'condolences' were far from genuine. The Legendary Hungry Wolf was not one to hide his feelings, despite how bad it would look, but surprisingly he decided to begrudgingly play along and nod.

Mai, who was standing behind the trio, didn't seem to react.

The focus of the lights and cameras returned to Cobblepot as he resumed his speech.

"I would also like to take this time to announce that I plan on honoring Andy Bogard's memory by initiating the 'Andy Bogard Scholarship Fund' to help aspiring Martial Artists, courtesy of Cobblepot Ventures."

There was another round of applause and this time, there was a clear reaction from Joe and Rock; it was one of disdain.

"I don't recall him running that by us." Rock said with a narrowed eyes.

"That bastard!" Joe growled. "He's just using Andy's death to glorify himself!"

The crowd didn't notice his anger over their applause and Joe was about to march up to the stage to give their so-called benefactor a piece of his mind when Terry stopped him with a grip of his shoulder.

"Don't make a scene, Joe." Terry said.

Joe looked back at Terry, eyes widened with disbelief before he roughly tore his shoulder away as he spun towards him.

"Oh, come on, Terry! You of all people-"

"Not yet. Not until we hear back from Mary."

This made Joe clam up and he realized what was on Terry's mind; Both Terry and Mary suspected that Cobblepot might have had something to do with Andy's death considering the timing of the whole thing and Mary promised that if she found a connection, she'd let them know.

Terry probably figured it would be better to confront him then than now.

"Now, on a lighter note, I'd like to go over the rules of this year's tournament." Cobblepot shifted his speech as he made a 'three-sign' with his pudgy fingers.

"We will be using the three-on-three system employed by the late Rugal Bernstein so fighters will be grouped in teams of three. Some of you have already formed your teams, others have not yet but not to worry, there is still one week's time before registration ends so use this event as a chance to get to know each other and choose your partners well."

Among the crowd a young blond woman in a slit purple dress smirked with smug confidence.

"Oh, I think we're all set on that front." said Janet Behrn before turning to her new teammates.

"Am I right, Ladies? How does it feel to be honorary Lillien Knights?"

One of the two she addressed was an older woman with short red hair wearing a white sleeveless button blouse with a red tie, black gloves and dark brown pants with suspenders. The other was a young blonde girl with hoop earrings, a burgundy colored bandanna over her head and decked in matching colored street wear. Their names are Vanessa and Malin respectively.

"Whatever. As long as I get paid." Malin grunted.

Elsewhere in the crowd was the Korean Team, Kim Kaphwan's group.

"It's too bad Chang couldn't make it this time." said Choi Bounge with a sad sigh.

Choi was a short man with dark glasses who bares a resemblance to Freddy Krueger, with glove-knives and all. He along with Chang Koehan were the most feared criminals of their country. That was until Kim took them both under his custody to undergo his "Rehabilitation Project", to give up evil and use their skill "for Justice".

Whether Kim was successful or not was often up for debate.

"But what we have here is a golden opportunity." Kim said.

The Taekwondo master looked up with an ambitious smile.

"I'm glad I came here to Gotham. The Batman may be on the right path but his methods are flawed! I will use this week to seek out the criminal element in this city and make them change their evil ways. I will show them the Kaphwan way of justice!"

A hand landed on Kim's shoulder, it belonged to a well built man with long platinum blonde hair. His name was Jhun Hoon, a long time rival of Kim's.

"Fine by me but you do realize that you already have a third member on your team, right?" Jhun asked.

Cobblepot continued his speech at this point.

"Of course for veterans and fans, this is standard fare. so this is how we're going to change things up a bit: firstly, all matches will take place in this hotel. The two arenas here will host two matches from separate brackets simultaneously."

"The competition is probably going to be fierce. We'd better get some serious training done, girls." Goro Daimon said to his pupils.

Ryoko and Sonia could only gulp with dread.

"Second and lastly, every team that registers are contractually obligated to not leave the hotel premises until the tournament's conclusion."

This caused a huge commotion in the crowd with many of the fighters yelling in outrage.

"I know everyone has their qualms so let me explain." Cobblepot said, trying to calm them down.

"The televised event will take a different approach this year and showcase our fighters off the ring as well as on it. The public wants a personal view into who these warriors really are and we want to give them a glimpse. Think of it as reality TV. Privacy within their staying rooms will be maintained of course."

Bruce frowned at this. He didn't know what the entirety of what the Penguin was planning but the fact was that this Tournament would allow him to have some of the strongest fighters on earth under one roof and they would basically be his prisoner.

"And now with that out of the way..." Oswald began to wrap up with a grin. "Let's get the festivities started with none other than KoF Superstar and popular idol, Miss Athena Asamiya!"

With that declaration, the party's host exited the stage sideways with a presenting hand gesture as multiple colored spotlights danced and then focused on the stage while music burst through the speakers.

The crowd cheered as the stage's backdrop slid open and out trotted Athena in a performance getup.

"Min'na, konbanwa~!" she greeted cheerfully with a mic.

"Kyaaah! Athenaaaaaa!" Jhun squealed loudly like a fangirl.

Kim and Choi's ears ached from Jhun's antics. Much to their discomfort, the well built thirty year old was rabid J-pop and idol fan, particularly of Athena.

While Athena's singing sounded throughout the nightclub, Bruce kept a close eye on Cobblepot and was about to follow him when he was suddenly intercepted by a friendly face.

"Bruce, you sonovagun! How are ya?" Robert greeted cheerfully, shaking and slapping against Bruce's arm.

"Still kicking." Bruce grinned back. He was internally a little miffed but decided to be sociable. After all, Robert was a friend.

"It's good to see you again, Robert. Everything good at home? How's the folks doing?"

Robert made a face at the question.

"Ergh, Please Bruce, I told you the subject of my parents are banned as far as casual conversation goes."

Bruce chuckled, he was aware that Robert has an awkward relationship with his parents. Bruce met the Garcia family during a business trip to Italy and took an instant liking to Robert, the man was down to earth and had a surprising proficiency to Martial Arts. It allowed them to become fast friends.

Robert then noticed Ryo standing behind him and shifted out of the way to allow them to meet.

"Oh, let me introduce you to a dear friend of mine. Ryo, Bruce Wayne. Bruce, this is Ryo Sakazaki, I told you about him, remember?"

Bruce and Ryo shook hands.

"Takuma Sakazaki's son. I'm honored. I never met your father but I've heard about him during my travels in my youth."

"Thanks." said Ryo. "Though I gotta say, I'm surprised. I didn't think a wealthy big shot like you in Gotham would be well versed in the Martial Arts world."

Robert scoffed at this.

"Yeesh, what am I? Chopped liver? There happen to be a lot of affluent people in the KoF circles like Nikaido and Kagura. Hell, maybe we should start a club for bored rich fighters or something."

Ryo ignored him and looked towards Bruce with serious eyes.

"I also heard from Robert that you're pretty skilled too, the way you beat him when you sparred."

"I wouldn't say I'm that skilled. I was just fooling around back then and got lucky. Nothing more." Bruce dismissed with a shrug.

This made Ryo frown.

"Nobody gets 'lucky' with Kyokugen Karate."

And then out of the Blue, Ryo actually got into a fighting stance.

"I'd like to spar with you right now so I can assess your strength for myself." he said.

"Ryo, dude, this isn't the time and place!" Robert scolded before turning to Bruce. "Excuse him, Bruce. He can be a little intense sometimes."

Robert then got behind the two men and dropped his palms on their shoulders.

"But anyway, how about a round of drinks you guys?"

"No, that's okay." Bruce said.

"C'mon, I insist! It'll be my treat."

With his hands subtly pushing them along, Robert urged both Bruce and Ryo towards the bar table where he found, to his surprise, two familiar people having a conversation. One of them was Yuri while the other...

"Ryo!?" King gasped in surprise.

This prompted Yuri to turn around to see them.

"King. And Yuri's also here, Have you two been catching up?" asked Robert.

"Uh huh, King's now working for Mister Cobblepot so she won't be participating this year." Yuri replied.

"Well, that's a shame." Ryo said with a disappointed nod. "I was looking forward to a bout with you, those kicking techniques are force to be reckoned with."

King glanced downwards as she absentmindedly ran a finger over the short strands of hair above her ear while her cheeks tinged a little.

"Um, yeah. Too bad, right?" she muttered awkwardly.

"Erm, who's he?" Yuri asked, pointing towards Bruce.

Bruce's lips slanted in a smile and his blue eyes twinkled with his playboy charms in full effect.

"Bruce, Bruce Wayne." he introduced himself as he gently shook her hand.

The name drew King's attention towards him, surprised that she didn't notice him. Since coming to Gotham, she had only casual knowledge about him and she recalled the magazine cover that Benimaru showed her.

Now that she saw him in the flesh, she internally concluded that the magazine did NOT do him justice; the guy was a lot handsomer than she first thought.

And from what she saw, quite suave too. She could already see Yuri practically melting inside.

But to her, he was no Ryo and all these actions did was reaffirm his reputation as an aloof man-slut.

"You must be Yuri Sakazaki. I have to give props to Robert, he's lucky to have such a charming and cute lady." Bruce grinned with a wink.

Yuri giggled bashfully and then slid next to Robert to nudge him playfully with her elbow.

"You're friend's a real charmer, Robbie-boy! You should learn a thing or two from him." she teased him.

"And you are...?" Bruce asked King with a hand out.

"Totally immune." King responded icely with crossed arms.

This caused Robert to chuckle at his friend's expense as Bruce slowly withdrew his hand.

"Hey, that's not very nice, King." said Yuri.

"King's a friend of ours, Bruce." Robert explained. "We go way back! When we first met her, she was starting out as a bouncer."

Bruce's brows jumped as he made a sound of intrigue.

"A bouncer? That IS interesting. Please don't throw me out, though." he joked innocently.

"I'll think about it." King muttered.

At this point, Athena's song ended and the accompanying music reached its climax, eliciting loud cheers from the audience.

"Oh look, Athena's done. Come on guys, let's go say hi!" Yuri gestured for Ryo and Robert to follow.

"What now? But us guys were about to have some drinks." Robert whined.

Yuri leaned forward with her fists at her hips with a crossed expression.

"Oh, no you don't! The last thing I need is you two getting smashed!"

"Hey, don't lump me with him! I don't 'get smashed'!" protested Ryo.

"It's alright, Robert. You guys go ahead, we can always catch up later." Bruce urged with a chuckle.

"Ok, thanks, Bruce."

The three of them then bade him farewell. While King was attending another patron, Bruce swept his eyes across the nightclub before sitting at the bar table with his back turned.

"Barbara, you read?" Bruce asked, tapping on his earpiece.

"Loud and clear." her voice responded.

"I lost sight of Cobblepot but I did notice some security cameras, he must've installed them all over the place. We could use them as our eyes here. Can you pull up the building schematics?"

"On it but I'll need to find the original contractor, give me a minute."

"Ahem. Are you just going to sit there and mumble to yourself or are you ordering a drink?" came a voice behind him.

Bruce turned with mild surprise to see King sporting a look of impatience as she leaned over with one hand on her hip and her other on the counter top.

Now that it was just the two of them, Bruce found himself taking in her appearance, particularly the way the blue and red hues of the nightclub lights seemed to compliment her. Her boyish haircut did nothing diminish her overall femininity; in fact, Bruce found that it made her all the more cuter. She was still wearing her bartender uniform with her vine colored vest but it seemed that she decided to touch herself up for the evening with two long crystal earrings and light red lipstick.

She was a real classy lady. Classy in sexy way.

"Oh, Sorry." Bruce said while clearing his throat and scratched hair. "I...errm, just have a lot on my mind."

"Uh huh." King responded with a doubtful and unimpressed tone. "If you're expecting this to be the part where I listen to your problems like a typical bartender, then I'm sorry to disappoint you. I'm more interested in making my quota tonight."

With his own elbow over the counter, Bruce's lips stretch into smirk.

"Really now?"

He then pushed himself up enough where his face hovered just below hers.

"How close are you?" he asked softly.

This action caught King off guard and she stepped back in surprise as her cheeks reddened.

"What?" she blurted out.

"Your Quota." Bruce said. "Are you close to making it?"

King frowned, realizing that he was just messing with her and crossed her arms.

"Can. I. Get you anything?...Mister Wayne?" she asked, stressing each word.

Bruce sat back down and gave his order.

"Water."

The former bouncer looked off to the side with an incredulous chuckle but then glanced back towards him to see that his expression didn't change, causing her own to falter.

"You're serious?" she asked.

He just gave an innocent shrug. The whole idea was strange to King, she always assumed he was some kind of party animal.

"I have a hard time believing that a guy like you would try to stay sober. You're not one of those New-age health nuts, are you?"

"New age health-nut?"

"You know? The type obsessed with power yoga and diets that would make a normal person puke. All to find some kind of inner zen."

"Trust me, Miss King, I'm far from finding any kind of zen." he chuckled. "Why don't you just surprise me."

King rolled her eyes but decided to comply with his request and grabbed a bottle of gin. Bruce watched seemingly fascinated as she mixed his drink with his head resting on his propped fist.

When she was done, she served him a cocktail glass with clear liquid, pick and an appropriate skewered fruit. It was a typical drink, yet a classic.

"Dry Martini, huh?" he commented.

"Figured that be something you'd go for."

"That's kind of stereotypical, isn't it?"

"Well you tell me. What does your run of the mill billionaire playboy usually drink?"

"Doesn't really matter." Bruce said as he took a sip. "The truth is that alcohol does nothing for me. Sure, I can appreciate the taste and all but I only drink to be social. I honestly don't feel anything from it."

The lady bartender raised a brow at this.

"Now that doesn't sound right. What do you do for pleasure then?"

"Having good company...like yours." he said with a knowing smile.

"Okay, let me stop you right there." King said with an outstretched palm. "Look Wayne, I admit that you're good looking and a smooth talker but I'm not interested in some one-percenter who thinks the world and its women are his oyster."

"Of course." said Bruce nonchalantly as he took another sip. "You more interested in Sakazaki, right?"

"W-WHA!? Ryo!?" King sputtered as her face flushed red. "What does he have to do with anything?"

"For one thing, you automatically assumed the Sakazaki I was talking about was Ryo, I could've been taking about Yuri."

She grunted in annoyance, knowing that he had her there.

"From what I gathered, he doesn't know how you feel so why don't you just tell him? He seems available and you're a beautiful and smart woman. He's a damn fool if he doesn't see that."

King didn't want to believe it but he actually sounded sincere. Nonetheless, she leaned on her hand against the table and shot him a disbelieving look.

"Look at you, handing out relationship advice like an expert. Maybe you should be behind this table."

"Okay, maybe I'm not the right person to advise about stuff like this. So consider me as an expert on what NOT to do. It's best you be honest about your feelings and not bottle them up."

To King's surprise, Bruce's eyes all of a sudden drifted down towards the cocktail glass and his expression turned somber.

"Secrets can be very...damaging." he said.

"Bruce? You there? I found what we need." came Barbara's voice through the earpiece.

And like nothing had happened, Bruce expression returned to its playful nature as he gulped down the rest of glass.

"And THAT...was enough to nudge my bladder over the edge. You have a bathroom around here?" he asked innocently.

King furrowed her brow and was a little confused but anyway answered him by pointing towards the restroom.

"Thanks. I hope you meet your quota tonight." he left with a friendly smile and wave.

The lady bartender watched as he disappeared in the crowd when a voice spoke up behind her.

"He's hot! You should totally hit that."

It was none other than a certain silver haired busty Latina sitting on her haunches with her back to her. King had no idea how she got here without anyone noticing but she wasn't too surprised; since she started working here, the former NESTS mercenary refused to leave her alone and would turn up suddenly in places where she went just to annoy her.

"You can have him." King scoffed.

"I would nya~" Angel said while licking her lips. "But he's not really my type. I like my guys wild, rough and dangerous."

Angel then gestured towards King's rump like it was a sight to behold.

" 'Sides, it's like he said: if Karate boy can't appreciate this fine ass then you might as well get with someone who can."

SMACK!

King's face comically contorted with a flinch as her body recoiled from the hard, and embarrassingly loud, slap to her rear.

"Hey! What's the big-!?" she spun around and hissed as her whole face reddened.

But before she round on her, Angel had already disappeared.

"Dammit! How does she do that?" she wondered.

With a tired sigh she half-way turned herself back around when she noticed Bruce a distance away within the crowd heading towards the nightclub exit, moving very shifty manner and definitely NOT towards the restroom.

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Is that right, Chizuru-san!?" asked Shingo in shock. "You can sense Orochi's power!? Here in Gotham!?"

After Cobblepot's speech, Kyo's team and Chizuru relocated to one of the booth surrounding the stage. She had contacted them earlier saying that she had something to discuss with them and this revelation was certainly a big deal.

"To be honest, I'm not quite sure." Chizuru said. "It doesn't quite feel the same, it feels fainter, incomplete...almost unnatural."

"So it's like Orochi but also not Orochi?" asked Kyo.

Chizuru shook her head with a worried look.

"Perhaps a part of it remained after we sealed it two years ago but whatever it is, its presence is all over the city."

It seemed almost too appropriate that Orochi's presence would be made at that same place where the tournament was held.

Describing itself as 'Chikyuu Ishi', Orochi is a powerful being with loyal followers called the Hakkesshu. 1800 years ago, they waged a war on humanity and almost wiped them out had they not been sealed away by three mystical treasures from the Kusanagi, Yasakani and Yata Clans. Kyo and Chizuru were both descendants of those clans and were entrusted with one of the mystical treasures.

History repeated two years ago during the then KoF tournament where they defeated it after it took one of its followers as a host.

"This tournament, Andy's murder and now this. Something definitely stinks." Benimaru murmured in in an uncharacteristic serious tone.

"In any case, we must be prepared for anything. I will be returning to Japan soon to watch over the Yata Mirror." Chizuru said.

"Aw, You're leaving?" bleated Shingo with disappointment.

"You really know how to break a man's heart, Miss Kagura." Benimaru sighed.

Despite her strong sense of duty Chizuru also felt remorseful about the idea of leaving and as much as she didn't want to admit it, she knew that it had something to do with her growing feelings towards a certain billionaire CEO. The more she spent time with him and understood him, the more she felt herself being drawn towards him. It was unknown and scary territory for her but these feelings that been buzzing in her mind all day.

On the bright side, there was still time before leaving Gotham and Bruce had already invited her to his manor for dinner. She was very much looking forward to that.

"There's one more important thing I need to talk to you about, Kyo." Chizuru began with a serious tone. "Have you seen Iori?"

Kyo stiffened at that name and frowned. Iori Yagami and Kyo Kusanagi have shared a long and complicated rivalry over the years. He was a descendant of the Yasakani clan and held one of the mystical treasures used to seal Orochi but unlike the Yata and Kusanagi clans, the Yasakani clan have a more troubled history.

Seeds of discord sowed by the Hakkesshu had caused a bitter feud between the Yasakani clan and the Kusanagi clan and to gain more power over the other, the Yasakani clan forged a blood pact with Orochi and with that, changed their family name to Yagami. Like those of Orochi's bloodline, this causes a phenomenon called the 'Riot of Blood'; a state of berserker madness that also enhances their strength. It also comes with a curse where each heir die young and each mother die at childbirth.

As time went on, the rivalry between Kyo and Iori became far from straight forward. They were hated enemies one minute, uneasy allies the next and sometimes something akin to "buddies".

"It's not like I keep in touch with him of anything." Kyo said begrudgingly.

"But don't you think it's strange?" Benimaru suddenly spoke up.

"What do you mean, Benni-san?" asked Shingo.

"Iori would never pass up a chance to fight Kyo. These two, Iori and Kyo, are a part of each other. Yin and yang, Like two sides of the same coin, like destined lovers who can't be apart!"

"Idiot! Don't make it sound like there's something between us!" barked Kyo.

"My point is...here we are in this new tournament and yet he's nowhere to be found."

Benni's words hung over the group as they fell in an uncomfortable silence.

"Then...our situation grows ever so worrisome." Chizuru sighed.

"Alright Barbara, where am I going?" Bruce asked through his earpiece.

"Towards the lobby, past the casino, then make a left. You should then see a door to your right."

Bruce followed her directions and turned into a small corridor. Just as she said, there was door with a fixed sign that displayed a prominent red 'NO ENTRY' symbol and written below was 'AUTHORIZED STAFF ONLY'. He looked at the card slot next to the handle and then glanced around his surroundings before taking out a small device from his suit pocket.

The front half was like a card with a magnetic strip with the other half was like an ipod mini with a long LCD display. When he inserted the card portion, a line of character symbols on the LCD rapidly cycled until one by one stopping when the correct code spelled out. The light near the card slot flashed green and Bruce inconspicuously opened the door and let him self in.

Inside was the hotel's server room, a 10' by 20' size air-conditioned room with racks of NAT devices lined up like a book library and cables that snaked over the floor between them. Bruce looked around until he found what he was looking for at the corner of the room and then fished out another gadget from his suit which he inserted into one of the NAT's Ethernet ports.

"How's it looking?" Bruce asked.

Miles away, Barbara's multiple monitor screens flashed as many square boxes lined up on her display, each box containing ongoing video from the many security cameras in the hotel.

"Great! Got the best seats in the house." she said with a smile.

Barbara noticed one of the boxes that displayed Athena and Yuri talking to eachother cheerfully.

"Aw, why didn't you tell me Athena was going to be performing? A friend of mine is a big fan." Barbara pouted.

"Never mind that. Have you found Cobblepot?" Bruce's voice came through the Comm link.

She swept her gaze over the camera feeds and brought one of them to full screen. It displayed Oswald sitting in one of the booths, Tracy standing and leaning nearby. His was in a discussion with someone she didn't recognize; an overweight mustachioed man with round dark glasses and suspenders over his white shirt.

"Yeah. He's having a meeting with someone. Hold on..."

With the one of the other monitors, Barbara ran a facial recognition software and as a result, it displayed a news website that had his photo.

"Cheng Sinzan." she read.

"I've heard of him. Taiwanese businessman, was involved in one of the earlier tournaments when it was hosted in South Town."

She nodded as she slightly clasped her lower mouth in thought.

"Some of these fighters are actually from affluent families." she mused. "Elizabeth Blanctorche, Jenet Behrn, Benimaru Nikaido..."

"And Robert Garcia. He was right about there being rich people in the KoF circles." Bruce said.

It made the situation all the more worrying that these people were all under the Penguin's roof.

Barbara flicked her attention back towards the camera feed to see Tracy, with phone in her hand, whispering something to Cobblepot. The sudden shift in his expression spoke volumes as he suddenly got up from his seat, appeared to excuse himself to Sinzan and hurried out with Tracy following him.

"Whoa. Something's happening, Bruce."

She followed them by switching from one camera to another until she found them at a corridor on the first floor where Candy waited for them, nonchalantly leaning against the wall. Penguin marched up her angrily asking something and when she responded, he threw something akin to a tantrum; kicking the wall while cursing out loud.

"One of Ozzie's gals seemed to have broken some news to him and he doesn't seem too happy about it."

"Can you get audio?"

"No but I got the next best thing."

With that, Barbara booted another program that zoomed in on Cobblepot's face and had vector lines overlaying his lips and facial muscles. She was thankful for all those lip reading lessons she had taken recently, it went nicely with all her other skills.

"What do mean she couldn't make it?" she interpreted out loud. "I personally invited her, RSVP and all, I don't care if we have to drag her out of whatever country she in right now, the deal depends on her being here."

"Any idea who he's talking about?" Bruce asked.

"I'll check the guest list."

On cue, one of her other monitors had it up on display.

"There's one person absent. Caroline Stanzack." Barbara said.

Bruce furrowed his brow as he continued to listen through his earpiece. He felt he heard that name in the news somewhere.

"If I'm reading this right, she's a French Olympic Gymnast." Barbara said.

"Odd, what does he want with her?" Bruce wondered. "And what is this deal is he talking about?"

A voice sounded out behind him.

"What are you doing in here?"

Bruce whipped around with a start to see King, looking none too pleased, by the doorway.

"Bruce, is everything alright?"

Instead of responding, Bruce moved his hand to pretend to scratch his hair awkwardly while secretly tapping his ear piece to mute his end of the line.

"Oh hey, I was just..." Bruce slipped back into his aloof persona and pointed around his surroundings in an oblivious and perplexed manner.

"This isn't the bathroom? Heh, that martini must've pushed more than just my bladder." he chuckled innocently.

The blonde lady bartender narrowed her eyes dangerously and crossed her arms.

"Right, coming from the guy who said 'Alcohol does nothing to him'! I'll ask again, what are you doing in here!?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

King's lipstick laden lips pulled into a snarl as she marched up toward him, causing him back up against the corner wall and notice how close her perky breasts were to his own chest.

"I followed you and saw you using some doohickey to open the lock. You have ten seconds to tell me what you're up to or I'm kicking you out of this hotel myself!" she growled.

"Kinky. Who want's to know? The bouncer in you?" Bruce asked with a smirk.

"No, the 'You're trespassing with your sliding thing' in me!"

Bruce paused before responding.

"My sliding thing...in you?" he echoed her words slowly.

King's eyes grew as a blush came over her face when she realized what her last five words sounded like.

"You know damn well what I mean!" she snapped in a flustered state.

"And just FYI, your proximity isn't making this situation any less arousing." Bruce stated while noting that her breasts seemed to be a little closer to him.

It was enough for King to step back and spin around to leave.

"That's it! I'm calling security!"

But before she could, Bruce quickly grabbed her hand.

"Wait." he called out.

King spun back towards him and tried to roughly yank her hand out from his grip.

"Get your hands of m-WHAA!"

Unfortunately as she did, she back stepped into one of the laid cables on the floor and lost her footing. And to make matters worse, her attempt to yank her hand away caused Bruce to stumble forward and dragged to fall along with her.

Sure enough, with a thud and an 'oof', Bruce found himself lying on top of the blonde former bouncer. He had managed to land on his elbows and spare her his weight but despite their formal attire, he could feel those perky boobs pushed against him and her shapely long legs propped besides his hips and thighs. But the most dangerous thing about their position was her face, it was right next to his and he could feel her soft breaths caress his cheek and side of his hair as well as smell the full extent of her perfume.

"Wayne..." King groaned softly.

He pushed himself up slightly and shifted his gaze to her face. She looked surprised more that anything, with her short hair was little tousled, blue eyes fully open and lips slightly parted. As much as he did want it to be, their state was starting to accelerate his sexual urges and he hoped she wouldn't feel his erection where their pelvises met.

"I'll Tornado Kick you in the balls if you don't get off." she growled with narrowed eyes.

His hopes were dashed.

"I will." he promised. "But first, you wanted to know what I was doing here so at least let me answer the question. Then you can call security if you want."

She didn't drop her expression but it became less severe and thought she was silent, Bruce could feel her impatiently asked a "Well?".

"I'm trying to dig up dirt on Oswald Cobblepot." Bruce finally said.

Bruce knew it wasn't the most ideal story but he knew that if he was going to lie out of this situation, he'd have to come up with some kind of half-truth. After all, she saw way more than he'd like. Considering whatever information he gathered about her and what he knows about Robert, he had an idea how to appeal to her but of course this also meant he was taking a HUGE gamble on this woman.

All he could do was trust his judgment, as misguided as it may appear.

"So some kind of corporate espionage, huh?" King asked with a raised brow.

"If it involves exposing an obvious corrupt man, then yes. You could say that."

"Yeah right." she scoffed. "If you care so much then why don't you just go to the police or the press?"

"You know as well as I do about the kind of clout Cobblepot has right now. Just like you know that he's not really on the level."

"You don't know the first thing about me." she stated with a hardened voice.

This was the part where Bruce's gamble about the woman's loyalty would come into play.

"No, but I can see it in your eyes. You're not happy working here, are you? And it has nothing to do with job itself."

Seeing King's eyes widen and her body stiffen at those words prompted him to press on.

"Call it a hunch but I get the feeling you've been in this situation before..." he inched his face a little closer as he whispered the last part. "And it's eating you up inside."

His deep voice caused a shiver to run up her body and her cheeks tinged again. She knew what he referring to but at the moment, she just wasn't able to get her thoughts straight.

"Damn his sexy voice! Why am I feeling like this!? I'm supposed to like Ryo!" she thought.

The two of them remained still with their gazes on each other almost in anticipation. But for Bruce, the moment was lost when Barbara's voice suddenly sounded in his earpiece.

"Bruce, I don't know what going on your side but I'm letting you know that Penguin is on his way to his office, phone in hand. And there's no camera there."

Bruce went rigid and everything else on his mind was thrown out the window. His rationale was that Cobblepot was probably going to make an important phone call in private. He knew he didn't have time to pussy foot around and had to act quickly or he'd miss this chance. Consequences be damned.

"Excuse me." he said suddenly and quickly pushed himself up and strode out of the room.

"Hey! Get back here!" King called out angrily.

She bit her tongue realizing how she sounded and growled in frustration before getting up to chase after him.

"Barbara, I need a way to intercept him." Bruce requested hurriedly over the Comm-link.

"Up the stairs from the main lobby and turn right. He should be coming around the next corridor in three...two..."

Bruce followed her instructions and timed his pace just as he was approaching the corner. With Barbara's cue he rushed ahead and as he planned, bumped straight into Cobblepot. The impact was enough to knock the portly man to the floor while Candy and Tracey looked on with surprise and slight amusement.

Bruce himself pretended to stagger back and then looked shocked.

"Oh! I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there." Bruce acted apologetic as he moved to help him up.

"Imbecile!" Cobblepot snapped as he allowed Tracey to help him up instead. "Why don't you watch where you're-!"

But he stopped himself when he saw who it was.

"Wayne!? I mean, Bruce! What are you doing here?"

Bruce already had an answer in mind but before he could say it, the attention of all four them were drawn towards the clacking sounds of running heels following by sight panting as King finally caught up with him and saw whom he was with.

"Mister Cobblepot! I'm sorry, I tried to stop him but-"

Cobblepot seethed, his temper was already frayed due to the sudden change in plans and this was enough to push him over the edge.

"What the hell are you doing away from your station, King!?" he roared in a state of outrage. "Don't you know we have hundreds of patrons that you just left hanging dry!?"

King flinched on the spot, actually feeling some guilt about suddenly leaving the bar. Bruce on the other hand, frowned as he picked up Cobblepot's top hat which was knocked off.

"Take it easy, Oswald." Bruce said as he moved to hand him his hat. "I requested Miss King to give me a small tour of the hotel and I kinda just wandered off. I didn't mean to cause an inconvenience."

The lady bartender glanced slightly towards the supposed playboy; he was lying and that wasn't the only thing obvious to her but she also assumed that he was feeding her a line. This left her with two choices: corroborate with him and lie to her boss or be a good employee and expose him.

Cobblepot roughly grabbed his hat from Bruce before placing it back on his head.

"A tour is it?" he asked.

He then marched towards King with a pointed finger.

"You know very well that NOW is NOT the time for that! I pay for you ONE job, King! ONE JOB!"

King's nerves were starting get worked up but at that point, she considered that getting in her boss's good books was the better way to secure her financial standing.

"Sir, the truth is that-"

But Cobblepot interrupted her.

"Or it that too hard for you!? Maybe if your brain would at least be more functional than your kid brother's legs, your business in South Town wouldn't be in rubble!"

Her voice died in her throat as her eyes widened, she stood there stunned like a bullet tore through her.

Both Candy and Tracey smirked at her.

"Ooh! That's some nasty burn. You have my sympathies, girl." Candy mockingly cooed.

"Too right! But taking the piss out of this poor slapper is a doddle, innit?" Tracey laughed.

Bruce looked on as the lady bartender's face hardened and her fists clinched tightly. He could tell that she desperately wanted to lash out at all of them but held herself back, the frustration was so evident on her eyes which he could see struggled to not moisten.

"Don't you think that's too harsh, Oswald?" Bruce asked with narrow eyes and a stern voice. "She told me over and over that she couldn't leave the bar, I was the one being insistent about it. So if you want to blame someone, blame me!"

Cobblepot blinked and seemed that he regained his composure. Bruce then noticed him darting his eyes around, probably to make sure nobody else was around and turn this into a PR nightmare for him.

"I...erm." the beak-nosed man began to speak and then coughed.

"I have some important business to attend to. King, would you please escort Mister Wayne back to the party?" he asked calmly.

King's remained tensely silent for a few seconds before she finally responded.

"Yes sir."

She then gestured Bruce to follow her and he did so obediently but not before glancing back and making sure the tiny listening device he planted in the Penguin's hat went unnoticed.

Bruce then shifted his gaze towards the former bouncer, noticing that she still looked upset. He felt guilty that he inadvertently caused her trouble and wanted to say sorry for what happened but he doubted she would receive it that well. Instead, he decided to approach her with a different sentiment.

"You have my thanks. I owe you one."

King turned her head towards him with a questioning look.

"For what?"

"For not telling Cobblepot about me."

She turn her gaze from him with a half chuckle.

"Don't get the wrong idea. I still don't trust you and if I find out that you're just as bad as him, I won't hesitate to snitch."

"Hm, 'snitch'." Bruce smirked. "You make it sound like we're partners in crime, King."

King's lips couldn't help but curl slightly. In a way she guessed the two of them were.

"I have my eye on you. That's all I'm saying." she said dismissively with a slight smile.

Bruce returned the smile.

"And I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Isn't that Mai Shiranui?"

"No way! Really!?"

"Poor girl, I heard that her finance died."

"Aw, I liked her better when she wore that skimpy red outfit! What? Does she think this party is for good boys and girls?"**

Those were the whispers of some of the party goers that observed a small gathering from a distance.

The woman at the center of the gathering was of course the main topic of their gossip but they also noticed three other female fighters with her: Kasumi Todoh, Li Xiangfei and Yuri Sakazaki.

All four of them happen to be former members of the well-known Women Fighters Team and that happen to the subject of their discussion.

"I feel bad for letting you guys down, really I do, but I'm just not interested." Mai said in a drained voice.

Xiangfei let out a frustrated groan as her upper body hung limp. With no other option left, she then reattempted to beseech Yuri."

"Yuri-chan, won't you reconsider? We're really desperate here."

Both Xiangfei and Kasumi had earlier approached Yuri while she was with Robert, Ryo and Athena in hopes that she would join their team. But when she turned them down, they then proceeded to drag her back to Mai so she could help them convince her instead.

Their eagerness was surprising to Yuri and she even noticed that Kasumi was acting unusually awkward in front of Ryo but she nevertheless decided to oblige them.

Unfortunately, it looked like the whole thing was a lost cause and she shook her head with a sad apologetic smile.

"Sorry but like I said, I promised Onii-san and Robert that I'd join up with them this year."

Kasumi sighed while Xiangfei stomped a foot like she was on the verge of a tantrum.

"This bites!" she snapped. "The Women Fighters Team just wouldn't be the same without at least one of you guys."

It was unusual for Yuri and Kasumi to see the normally childish waitress be this passionate about their team but they both knew that every member from every incarnation of Women Fighters Team had bonded in some way. Even Kasumi who still has some grievances with Yuri's brother, felt the same. They had also hoped that bond would help snap Mai out of her funk but of course, it didn't work.

"What about Hinako-chan? I believe I spotted her around here somewhere." Kasumi suggested with raised finger.

But Xiangfei dismissed it with a wave of her hand.

"Nah, I already spoke to her. Turns out she's joining an 'All-Wrestling Team' with Raiden and Ramon."

She then turned towards Mai.

"Besides, Mai, Yuri-chan and Miss King...you guys are icons! Especially you, Mai! You're like, the OLDEST VETERAN in our group!"

Both Yuri and Kasumi stiffened in dread and it took a moment before Xiangfei clapped a hand over her mouth, realizing what she said. Previously, anyone who dared call Mai 'old' was just asking for trouble. Saying such a thing would trigger her so much that she chase after the offender for hours in a fit of rage.

But this time, the busty kunoichi only looked at them in confusion.

"What?" she asked.

It made the three girls grimace and realize that Mai really wasn't same.

"Anyway, I should get going." Mai said and walked off without another word.

Yuri let out breath and placed hands on both Xiangfei and Kasumi's shoulders.

"Sorry guys. Thanks for trying anyway."

And with that, the Sakazaki sister left too. The remaining two girls were left silent not knowing what to say until Xiangfei growled in outrage.

"Aw, who needs them! Kasumi-san, I say we do this on our own!"

"What are you proposing?"

The Chinese girl grinned in smugly like she had the best idea ever.

"We'll form our own brand new Women Fighters Team! Think about it! You're familiar with Yuri-chan so you got a similar martial arts flair like her."

She then thumped her puffed chest with pride.

"While I have the style, grace and customer-serving-know-how like Miss King!"

Kasumi gave her a half-lidded glance, looking unimpressed and full of doubt. Xiangfei didn't have anything resembling style or grace that King has, the only similar thing about them was that they're both capable of kicking customers out of their establishments; and in the case of Xiangfei, it was for the wrong reasons.

"You do realize we are still lacking a third member, don't you?" asked Kasumi.

"Exactly! We just need another Mai. Someone who can bring out the sexiness in our team."

"Se-sexiness?"

And right on cue, the two of them heard a voice nearby.

"Ah! Coco, get back here!"

Xiangfei and Kasumi turned towards the voice and to their surprise, they saw something flutter across the room and startle some of the guests. It was a Toucan, An actual Toucan! Chasing after the large bird was a South American woman.

She had tanned skin and long dark hair that was tied in a high ponytail and held by a thick green bandana tied around her head but what caught Xiangfei and Kasumi's attention was her outfit. It had a tropical style to it and made her look like she was dressed for a dance contest; she wore hoop earrings and multiple Bangles, her sizable bust and bottom was held by a stylish green ring bikini set and over it was a sleeveless unzipped yellow jacket that matched a pair of 'pants' that were just four long strips of cloth held together at her thighs, making them loose and baggy.

Her name was Zarina, one of the newest contenders in the KoF tournament.

Zarina was finally able catch up to Coco and had him perched on her arm.

"Don't wander off like that. You need to make a good impression if we are going to convince Mister Cobblepot to save your home, I heard he has a soft spot for birds." she scolded.

Coco emitted an irritated rattling sound in response and Zarina reacted like she understood him.

"Aw, I get it. You're hungry!" she giggled.

The chirpy dancer girl quickly fished out a berry and was about to hold it out for him.

"Here, you can have thi-Whoops!"

Because she took it out a little too fast, the berry sprung from her grip and plopped straight into her cleavage!

Not wanting to loose its treat, Coco quickly latched itself on to her bikini top and stuck its large bill after it.

"Ack! Coco! S-stop that! That feels weird!" Zarina protested and blushed in embarrassment.

But Coco didn't listen and continued to dig for the lost berry with its bill sandwiched between her mounds.

Not knowing what to do, all Zarina could do was squirm around awkwardly with an uncomfortable expression and her elbows to her sides while her forearms were up.

Kasumi sweated and blushed at the somewhat lewd sight while Xiangfei grinned with a finger-gun to her chin as her eyes sparked.

"She'll do."

Not far from them, standing near a corner away from the crowds was Bruce with his finger to his earpiece. He strained his hearing as both he and Barbara listened to the audio being transmitted by the bug he planted.

"Look, I need her alive so make this a clean job. Bring her to Gotham and then contact me for further instructions...D-Double!?...You can't be seriou-!? Grrr! Fine! Just get it done!"

Bruce's brow furrowed even deeper. He had an idea whom Cobblepot was contacting and it was a worrisome development but he still needed to be sure, especially if HE was involved.

"Can you enhance the audio so we can hear who he's talking to, Barbara?" asked Bruce.

"It's pretty muffled and faint but I'll see what I can do. In the meantime I just got word from Nightwing that he's following a lead on where Andy Bogard was staying in Gotham."

"Roger. Let me know when he finds something. Over and out." Bruce nodded and signed off.

That was when his eyes caught a glimpse of her walking through the crowd almost aimlessly.

He wrenched his sight away before letting out a weary sigh as he pushed his hands into his jacket pockets. He had been well aware of her presence since he arrived here but had so far managed to avoid her...and truth be told, he had hoped to keep avoiding her the whole night but he knew that wasn't feasible.

Besides, it didn't look good for his public image. He should've at least introduced himself to Terry Bogard and offer his condolences, be more social. But he wasn't sure how she'd...

He frowned and gazed downwards. How many years has it been? It felt like a life time away, probably because it was a completely different life than what he has now.

He turned his eyes back towards the crowd and found her again. Her back was to him but he immediately picked up on her unmistakable long brown hair. He then recalled how despondent she looked.

He internally chided himself as he straightened up before slowly walking towards her. He figured that she was going to notice him eventually so it was best that he get it over with. Before he could change his mind, he found himself already right behind her.

"Hello, Mai." was all he could get out of his mouth.

The Shiranui heiress's eyes shot up with a jolt as her breath hitched.

TBC

AN:

*A blatant reference to CAPCOM vs SNK 2.

** I know I'm late with this reference but I don't care ;p