Ascension Code: Reborn in the DC Universe - Chapter 113

Jade woke up dizzy, as if the whole world had been plunged into a thick, sticky fog. A piercing pain started right at the back of her head, radiating forward in pulsating waves that seemed to hammer every inch of her skull. She blinked slowly, trying to force her eyes to focus, but her vision still danced, blurred at the edges. Her whole body felt heavy, disconnected, as if it had been switched off and on imperfectly. She didn’t quite understand what was happening—the last few minutes (or were they hours?) were a blur of movement, pain, and an explosion of power that still echoed inside her like a gale trapped in her ribcage.

Slowly, she raised her gaze to the ceiling. The surrounding environment was bathed in a softer, almost subdued light, as if someone had deliberately adjusted the brightness to create a gentler, more comfortable atmosphere for the eyes. The recessed wall lights emitted a soft amber hue, leaving the medical room immersed in welcoming shadows instead of the harsh, clinical whiteness she had expected. The air had a faint scent of antiseptic mixed with something metallic and fresh—perhaps ozone from operating equipment.

Jade sat slowly on the raised bed, feeling the cold fabric of the mattress against her skin. She looked around, trying to map the space. It was a high-tech medical room, undoubtedly part of Erick’s private complex. Holographic monitors floated in the air, dark glass panels reflected her own image, and in the background, silent machines blinked with soft lights. Her body was still clad in the tight black training suit—the same one that molded every curve, now slightly damp with dried sweat.

Ahead of her, a young man in a white tank top and flexible shorts stood with his back to her, focused on a constellation of holograms swirling in the air. He was about five feet six inches tall, his even green skin glowing softly in the low light. Jade immediately recognized the silhouette. It was Erick. But something in her recent memory made her frown.

She knew anatomical structures well—in the League of Assassins, she had opened many bodies, dissecting organs with surgical precision to extract information or simply to ensure the target never rose again. The main hologram floating before him showed a kidney… or something that looked like a kidney. Except it wasn’t. The structure danced with almost obscene perfection, intricate veins and tubules pulsing with simulated life, integrated into something resembling a dance on the edge with cancer—protective layers, extra glands, a design that went far beyond ordinary human biology. It was as if someone had taken nature and rewritten its rules.

Still dizzy, Jade tried to regain full consciousness. Her eyes fell on the digital clock on the opposite wall. One hour. It had only been an hour since the confrontation in the training ring. The memory came in a flash: Erick suddenly growing, becoming a tower of muscle and controlled fury, his height changing in the blink of an eye. In her memory, he was six feet three inches. Now, from behind, he seemed to be only five feet six inches. Was fear distorting his image? No. She was an assassin trained by the best in the world. She knew when her mind was playing tricks on her and when reality was simply… wrong.

She stood slowly, feeling her body light—the same lightness she had experienced right after merging with the air elemental. Her bare feet touched the cold floor and she took silent steps toward the young man with green skin. She stopped beside him, close enough to feel the subtle warmth radiating from his body.

“What are you working on?” she asked, her voice still hoarse from forced sleep.

Erick gave a calm smile and turned to her. His eyes met hers with that familiar, calculated intensity.

“I’ve already worked, Jade. I’m just checking to see if there were any complications.”

Jade raised an inquisitive eyebrow, trying to understand exactly what he meant. Before she could formulate her next question, a calm, mature voice echoed through the room from the speakers hidden in the walls—the voice of an older man, professional, almost robotic in its precision.

“No anomalies, sir. Everything appears to be perfectly integrated.”

Erick nodded, his smile widening.

“Excellent.”

Jade, still trying to fully regain her train of thought, looked directly at him and asked bluntly:

“Weren’t you taller?”

She remembered it with crystal clarity: at the start of the fight in the ring, he was exactly the same height as he was now—one meter and sixty-six centimeters. But when Erick really attacked, he had grown in the blink of an eye, becoming an imposing figure of one meter and ninety-five centimeters. The change had been so abrupt that Jade had even questioned her own sanity for a second.

Erick gave an amused, almost playful smile.

“It’s a new trick.”

Jade raised an eyebrow in doubt. His eyes returned to the floating holograms before him. Several images of the same organ slowly rotated—a structure resembling a human kidney, but profoundly altered. While it seemed familiar, it pulsed like a heart, with extra chambers and veins branching out in impossible ways. It was beautiful and terrifying in equal measure.

“What is that?” she asked, pointing with her chin.

Erick looked at the hologram, then back at her.

“This? It’s a project.”

Jade, seeing that he had remained silent, insisted:

“The project of?”

Erick, who had been admiring his own creation with an almost reverent glint in his eyes, took a step back. He raised his arms and clenched his fists tightly. Jade’s eyes widened as his body began to change.

It wasn’t a simple stretch. Erick began to inflate—though “inflate” wasn’t the right word. He rose. He grew. His muscles expanded with a low, moist sound of fibers stretching and thickening. His shoulders broadened, his chest swelled, his legs lengthened and thickened, his arms gained brutal volume and definition. The white tank top stretched to its limit, revealing every groove and every bulging vein. In a matter of seconds, he stopped exactly six feet three inches tall—a tower of green, dense, and perfectly proportioned muscles. His hands clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked audibly, a dry, powerful sound that echoed through the room.

Erick looked at her, the smile still on his face, now much higher and more imposing.

“What do you think?”

Jade swallowed hard, her voice coming out low:

“Impressive. But what exactly am I seeing?”

Erick smiled contentedly and turned his gaze back to the hologram. Jade followed his movement, her eyes fixed on the pulsating organ that floated in the air.

“I created it,” he said, his voice thick with restrained pride. “A new type of organ.”

Jade was confused for a moment.

“What do you mean by a new organ?”

Erick placed his hand in front of the hologram and began to interact with it. He zoomed in with a gesture, rotated the three-dimensional model, highlighted specific veins and glands while explaining:

“Basically, I created an organ that can produce Venom’s venom — the same venom I gave you on our last risky mission.”

Jade realized exactly what he had done. It was a biological impossibility, something that defied all the limits of genetic engineering and conventional medicine. To produce Venom’s venom within one’s own body, in a controlled and integrated way… it was impressive and, at the same time, terrifying. She questioned, her voice filled with genuine disbelief:

“But how?”

Erick turned completely to face her, his smile wide and confident.

“With magic and technology. Because it’s produced by my own body, the venom it produces is much more, let’s say, compatible with my body, drastically reducing any kind of damage it could cause me. In addition to, of course, a complete and total lack of addiction.”

He gave her a final smile, as if he were sharing an intimate secret.

“What do you think?”

Jade was completely speechless. She knew Erick was a genius—she had entrusted him with healing her own mother, something no other human being on the planet could have accomplished with such speed and perfection. But this… this was on another level. Altering an existing organ was one thing—surgeries, cancer treatments, cybernetic implants… all that existed. But creating a completely new organ, with functions distinct from any other in the human body, perfectly integrated into its biology? That was beyond genius. It was almost divine.

She felt a shiver run up her skin, from the nape of her neck to the base of her spine. The tight-fitting jumpsuit suddenly felt too tight against her body. Her eyes scanned Erick’s imposing figure—now back to his full height, his green muscles taut, his gaze gleaming with that cold, calculated ambition she had learned to recognize. Who was this man? A reincarnated being who had arrived in the DC universe as a helpless baby and, in just a few years, was already rewriting the laws of biology, magic, and technology to become something… inhuman. Something that neither the Justice League nor the League of Shadows could have foreseen.

Jade took a deep breath, trying to organize her thoughts. The headache had lessened, but now it was replaced by a different feeling—a mixture of admiration, attraction, and a slight dread. She was an assassin. She had killed without hesitation, infiltrated impossible places, survived situations that would destroy most people. But there, standing beside Erick as he manipulated holograms from an organ he himself had invented, she felt small. Not from physical fear—the air elemental within her guaranteed that—but from perception. He was building something bigger. An empire of absolute power. And she, Jade, had become part of it. First follower. First to receive the gift… and the burden.

Silence stretched for a few seconds in the softly lit medical room. The holograms continued to spin, the new organ pulsing like a living, artificial heart, ready to be implanted. Erick watched her reaction attentively, his green eyes—the same color as his skin—waiting, analyzing.

Jade finally found the voice, low and almost reverent:

“You… you actually created this. From scratch.”

Erick simply smiled, saying nothing. He didn’t need to. The project spoke for itself.

And in that moment, Jade understood something profound: no matter how dangerous the world around her was—the League of Injustice, the League of Assassins, the Wolf, or any other cosmic threat—Erick wasn’t just surviving. He was becoming the danger. And she, by her own choice, had bound herself to him body, soul, and power.

The shiver returned, stronger than before. But this time, it wasn’t just fear. It was something warmer. Denser. More dangerous.

She was so focused, so immersed in this impressive internal drama, that she didn’t even register the first time Erick called her name. His voice sounded distant, like an echo coming from another room. Only on the second call did the sound penetrate the fog of her thoughts.

“Exit?”

She blinked, returning to the reality of the softly lit medical room. Her green eyes focused on his face—now imposing at his full height of one meter and ninety-five centimeters, his dense, defined green muscles beneath the stretched white tank top.

“What was it?” she replied, her voice still a little hoarse, heavy with the intensity of the moment.

Erick turned completely to face her, the hologram of the new organ slowly rotating beside him like a silent trophy. His blue eyes met hers with that calculated coldness she had learned to recognize—the same coldness that concealed layers upon layers of ruthless planning.

“I have a new mission for you.”

Jade felt her heart race slightly. A new mission. Right after the ritual, after merging with the air elemental, after witnessing that display of biological power. She straightened her posture, the black jumpsuit clinging to her body, highlighting every curve, as she crossed her arms beneath her breasts, subtly lifting them.

“Speak. Just speak.”

Erick smiled at her—a slow, almost predatory smile that made the air between them seem thicker.

“Well, there are places where it’s difficult to get information. After all, they’re places without networks, without any kind of camera, and without any kind of internet access. I know you know these places, and I want you to look something up for me.”

Jade tilted her head, already eager to discover what could possibly interest a man like Erick so blatantly—something only she, with her experience as an assassin infiltrated in the darkest corners of the underworld, could achieve. What could be so valuable that he would entrust her with this task right now?

Erick turned back to the hologram and moved it with a precise hand gesture. The image of the pulsating organ faded for a second, the holographic screen going black. Then it lit up again, revealing a new three-dimensional model: an ore, a type of silvery metal with iridescent veins that seemed to pulse with their own light, almost alive. The texture was metallic, but with an alien quality—smooth surfaces that reflected light in a strange way, as if absorbing and returning energy at the same time.

“That’s what I want,” said Erick, his voice low and full of intensity.

Jade took a step closer, her eyes narrowing as she analyzed the hologram. The metal floated slowly, rotating to show all angles. She recognized the appearance immediately.

“The Nth Metal. I’ve heard of it. It’s of extraterrestrial origin, if I’m not mistaken.”

Erick nodded, without taking his eyes off the projection.

“Try.”

She continued, her voice taking on a professional, almost respectful tone:

“It’s extremely rare. It must be extremely expensive, too.”

“Don’t worry about the price,” Erick replied calmly. “I just want you to find it.”

Jade looked up at him, assessing the implications. Items like that didn’t appear in ordinary auctions or superficial black markets. They lived in the deepest layer of the underworld—places where normal rules didn’t exist, where traitors were slowly dismembered, and information cost more than lives.

“Difficult. Items like that are usually found in the deepest layers of the underworld.”

Erick turned to her, a smile returning to his lips with absolute confidence.

“Well, I think you can handle it.”

Jade held his gaze for a long second. Then, a sensual smile slowly curved her lips, her green eyes gaining a provocative and dangerous glint. The tight jumpsuit seemed to press even closer to her body as she subtly tilted her hips, making her silhouette even more evident.

“Consider it done.”

Erick returned the smile, pleased.

“Great. When you get back with the information, you can make a request.”

Jade looked directly at him, her voice low and full of intent:

“I already know what I want to ask for.”

Erick raised an eyebrow curiously, the smile never leaving his face.

“And what would that be?”

She slowly raised her hand and pointed her index finger directly at his chest—exactly where the new organ he had created and implanted now pulsed beneath the green skin and dense muscles. The touch was light but deliberate, her finger pressing against the fabric of his tank top, feeling the warmth of his body radiate through the material.

“That’s what an organ like that is.”

Erick looked at her finger resting on his chest. Then he raised his eyes to her face, now that she was at her full height of one meter and ninety-five centimeters, dominating the space around her. His smile deepened, filled with approval and something more primal.

“That’s fine. But I expect a higher standard in this mission.”

Jade smiled even more sensually, her lips slightly parted, revealing a glimpse of white teeth. She slowly withdrew her finger, letting the tip glide across his chest for a second longer than necessary.

“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.”

The silence that followed was heavy. The medical room, with its soft lighting and the holograms still spinning in the background, seemed smaller now, more intimate. Jade felt the familiar shiver run down her spine again—that dangerous mix of admiration, desire, and the awareness that she was increasingly surrendering to his project. Erick wasn’t just powerful. He was becoming something more. And she, by accepting this mission, by pointing to the organ in his chest as a reward, was sealing a pact that went far beyond loyalty. It was possessive. It was intimate. It was the beginning of something she knew she could no longer completely control.

Erick watched her for a few more moments, his eyes scanning her body in the tight black jumpsuit, noticing how her breathing had quickened slightly, how her breasts rose and fell against the stretchy fabric. He knew exactly what that request meant. Jade didn’t just want power. She wanted to be a part of him more deeply—she wanted the same biological upgrade he had created for himself. And that perfectly fueled his larger project: transforming allies into extensions of his own power, creating a harem of loyal and increasingly inhuman forces, capable of overcoming the barriers that still limited him.

He gave one last nod, his voice low and authoritative:

“So get ready. The faster you bring us the location or sample of the Nth Metal, the sooner we can take the next step.”

Jade nodded, a sensual smile still on her lips as she took a step back, already feeling the elemental air within her react to the anticipation of the mission—a whisper of invisible wind gently stirring her hair. She knew the underworld was dangerous. She knew that places without cameras, without networks, without internet were lairs of monsters worse than metahumans. But she also knew that if she could deliver what Erick wanted, she would gain not only the organ, but a position even closer to him. A position that would make her indispensable.

As she turned to leave the medical room, Jade felt his gaze burning into her back—intense, calculating, possessive. And inside, a cold, satisfied voice echoed: “He’s building an empire. And I’m going to be one of his queens.”

The door closed behind her with a soft sound, leaving Erick alone with the holograms. He looked once more at the floating Nth Metal model, his thoughts already racing—calculating how that rare material would integrate into his larger project, how it would help break through the technological, biological, and magical barriers that still held him back. The Light, the League of Assassins, the League of Injustice… they were all threats. But with Jade evolving, with the new organ functioning perfectly, and now with the possibility of Nth Metal in his hands, the dead end was beginning to show signs of life.

He smiled to himself, his fists clenching tightly.

“Come with what I need, Jade… and I’ll give you what you want. And much more.”

The room fell silent, only the faint hum of the equipment echoing. The next step of the project was underway. And Erick felt, deep in his reincarnated soul, that the DC universe—dangerous, chaotic, and full of gods—was about to discover just how ruthless a reincarnated baby could become when determined to transcend all limitations.

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