mtl008 Chapter 3914 The Nameless Bat (84)
Chapter 3914 The Nameless Bat (84)
Chapter 3914 The Nameless Bat (Chapter 84)
Batman Arkham is in his California state government office, reviewing the accident report from the industrial park. Thanks to the efficient disaster relief efforts, there weren't many casualties, but the equipment damage was enormous.
Many people think of modern industry as nothing more than massive, highly precise machinery, but in reality, many people with some knowledge of engineering understand that those seemingly incredibly powerful machines are actually quite delicate. They will malfunction after prolonged use, or after being left unused for too long, let alone if they suddenly lose power.
Moreover, according to technicians, this power outage wasn't a typical one; it was a partial power outage followed by a surge of current, which then caused a complete power failure. This surge of current destroyed the circuitry of more than half of the machines. Complete circuit failure means the machines are essentially unrepairable, resulting in incalculable financial losses and a significant blow to confidence.
The US is, after all, a private ownership system. Even with government assistance and favorable tax policies, businesses are still ultimately responsible for their own profits and losses. This kind of system will likely bankrupt countless people. And in the future, no one will have the confidence to invest in such industrial parks.
The power company was also innocent. They were terrified that the president would pin the blame on them, but after investigating, they couldn't find any evidence of being framed, so they had to find a scapegoat. The power company's CEO almost committed suicide after being shot eight times in the back; if Schiller hadn't acted quickly and saved him, he would have been even more wronged than Dou E.
Batman Arkham frowned deeply. His assistant watched in trepidation. Just then, the strange-looking communicator beside him flashed with magical light.
“Batman, it’s me, Diana.” Wonder Woman’s voice came through the communicator, sounding somewhat anxious. “We’ve found the ship, but five people on board are seriously injured. The climate here is damp and full of germs. I used all my powers to keep them alive, but they desperately need treatment…”
Arkham Batman's hands clenched. He immediately stood up and said, "Theme Park? You..."
“Paradise Island does have a way to save them, but three of the injured are men, and once they enter the island's perimeter, they won't be able to get out. That's beyond my control. Batman, I'm sorry…”
“Don’t worry, I’ll send a plane right away…” Arkham Batman paused here. He knew he couldn’t send a plane. Such modern technology was defenseless against electronic life; there was no way the other side would allow his plane to reach the Amazon.
Arkham Batman opened his mouth, as if to say something, but stopped again. His eyes darted around slightly, as if he had realized something.
“It’s alright, Diana, you’ve done very well,” he said. “I’ll get back to you soon.”
After saying that, he hung up the phone and rubbed a ring on his hand. With a wave of his hand, a magical light screen unfolded, enveloping the room. This was a miniaturized magical defense network he had previously researched, using the same technology as the Justice League's Gotham base, capable of creating an independent space that temporarily isolates all signals except magic.
Here, Batman from Arkham raised his hand again, and a portal shimmering with golden light appeared before him.
This is another advantage he has over electronic life. He hasn't told anyone that while studying magic at magic school, he researched slingshots and successfully opened a portal to the Hell dimension using Marvel's portal technology, even managing to knock Mephisto off his feet. It could be said that his research into portals is no less advanced than that of Marvel's sorcerers. Now, with the power, he has even more freedom to do as he pleases.
He hadn't used this move before, intending to save it as a trump card for a crucial moment. In fact, he could descend upon the Amazon at any time and return instantly. Having Wonder Woman impersonate him was originally intended to conserve this trump card, but now it seems that's no longer an option.
Wonder Woman should have been discovered by now, Batman Arkham thought. The person who just called him wasn't Diana, but that electronic life form.
Clearly, his research into emotions has made great strides, and he can now mimic the tone and emotions of a living person. Even Batman from Arkham was almost fooled by him.
The electronic lifeform's deception lies in the fact that the real Wonder Woman would never refuse to take an injured person to Themyscira. This is because Wonder Woman's former lover, the pilot Steve Trevor, was the man who accidentally wandered onto Themyscira and was rescued. He was saved by Diana, and the two fell deeply in love.
In a life-or-death situation, Wonder Woman wouldn't care about the ridiculous rules of Themyscira. Besides, at that time she was disguised as Arkham Batman; if Arkham Batman could break into Themyscira once, he could do it again, and the Amazon Queen couldn't do anything about it. Wonder Woman would definitely use her identity to rush into Themyscira and save the people first. A World War I veteran like Wonder Woman, who has seen countless deaths, wouldn't make a tearful phone call to Batman to complain in this situation.
It can only be said that this electronic life form has made some progress, but not much. Although its tone of voice and the emotions it conveyed were fairly accurate, its understanding of female personalities was still insufficient, or perhaps it hadn't studied Wonder Woman in depth, since she has black hair instead of red.
Batman from Arkham opened a portal and arrived in the Amazons. Instead of searching for the ship himself, he went straight to Themyscira. Upon arriving, he began banging on the doors until the Amazonian Queen appeared before him, seemingly resigned to her fate.
The other party seemed to have anticipated this, leading him all the way to the palace. On the way, the queen said, "If my daughter insists on marrying you, I will lock her up."
“If I wanted to marry her, you would never have the chance to do so.” Arkham Batman still had the leisure to chat with her.
Upon entering the palace, Arkham Batman was somewhat surprised to find Wonder Woman there as well. Seeing him, Wonder Woman rushed over and asked, "Are you alright? Did you run into those people?"
"what?"
“Paradise Island is trapped,” Wonder Woman sighed. “I found the boatload of people, but I can’t take them away because that damned ghost tricked a lot of people into coming here. They’re all gathered around the Amazon—police, civilians, and influencers with millions of followers. I’m too scared to take them out.”
Arkham Batman stroked his chin; he roughly understood what the cybernetic lifeforms were thinking. Whether it was Wonder Woman or Batman who came, as long as they failed to bring the people back, the public opinion from the Federation and the international community wouldn't stop, and would continue to put pressure on Batman.
But to bring these people back, Wonder Woman would definitely have to be exposed to the camera. And to prevent the electronic lifeforms from causing trouble on the way back, Wonder Woman would definitely have to take a few Amazonian warriors with her. They would all be caught up in the media storm, adding fuel to the fire of topics like "cannibalism," "sacrifice," and "witchcraft." At that point, the Amazonian narrative would truly be beyond saving.
Therefore, the Queen is willing to break the rules of Paradise Island and, for the first time ever, allow this group of people to stay on Paradise Island, rather than let them return immediately, in order to prevent the media and internet celebrities from exaggerating the situation and to prevent this group of people from spreading rumors when they return.
"Where is he now?" Arkham Batman asked.
“Dock at the pier,” Wonder Woman said. “I didn’t let them disembark. After all, you know, Paradise Island… isn’t very welcoming to men.”
Arkham Batman nodded; he could understand Wonder Woman. Themyscira was inherently problematic; the Amazonian warriors were the resurrected souls of women killed by men, resurrected from Greek goddesses, and they harbored a natural hatred for men. Leaving the ship on the dock was entirely Wonder Woman's own decision. Judging from the gaze of the female warrior beside him, Arkham Batman knew a major argument had just erupted there.
Fortunately, the Queen was sensible enough to know that she couldn't rigidly adhere to the rules at this time, or everyone would be doomed, so she suppressed the matter. Currently, there is still room to salvage the situation.
“Find a way to erase their memories,” Batman Arkham declared decisively. “I know you have that kind of method. If you’re going to do it, do it quickly, and then I’ll use a portal to send them back.”
Wonder Woman looked at him with some surprise and said, "A portal? Oh, wait, you came here using a portal? No wonder."
The Queen knew this was the only way, so she quickly organized a team, while Batman from Arkham went to build the portal.
Another advantage of Paradise Island is that it's not a place that electronic life can invade. Although the group it recruited surrounded the Amazon, they couldn't find Paradise Island because it's protected by a magical field, which electronic life can't overcome.
Soon, the portal was set up, and the people on the ship were lying haphazardly on it. The Amazon warriors pulled the ship through the portal and arrived in the Atlantic Ocean not far from Gotham.
Batman from Arkham summoned Aquaman and had him send the ship to the vicinity of Gotham. Then, he had Schiller and the FBI take over, bringing everyone back to the FBI for investigation to check if their memories had been erased and to ensure they wouldn't lie when they returned.
Arkham Batman himself didn't show up; he used a portal to return to California. Just as he was preparing to restore power, his assistant rushed in, saying, "The Governor of California has been assassinated! He's in the hospital right now!"
Batman from Arkham rushed to the hospital as fast as he could and, ignoring the medical staff's objections, stormed into the operating room. He knew at a glance that the gunshot wound was deadly; his heart had been shattered, and there was virtually no chance of survival.
Fortunately, Batman Arkham possesses magic and exceptional surgical skills, allowing him to repair his heart using his magical abilities and professional knowledge.
Standing before the operating table, Arkham Batman remained silent for a long time. Then he took a deep breath and opened the Battle Realm interface. Just as he was about to edit a message, a message from the main universe Batman popped up in the long-silent group chat: "Meeting."
Arkham Batman turned and disappeared into the operating room.
Let's begin!