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Chapter 385: Batman?
Author: Rowing Without Oars 233
Chapter 385: Batman?
A World Army base.
Area A03, a clearly designated restricted zone within the base. The narrow corridor could only fit two people walking side-by-side. Several bright lights hung on the walls of the passage, illuminating the metal walls. The metal plates paving the ground reflected a cold, hard light.
Several World Army soldiers were holding guns, walking down this long, narrow corridor. To one of their sides was a long row of closed doors, each with a white label. Behind every door was one of the most dangerous collections in the world.
At the end of the corridor was an iron door, concealing the secret sealed in the deepest part of this base. The heavy, sturdy door was fitted with a complex reinforced structure, impossible to breach even with a rocket launcher.
Several soldiers passed through the corridor and reached the end. Suspicious readings from a motion sensor in the restricted zone had made them suspect an intruder, but after this team was dispatched to investigate, they found nothing.
"Reporting. It might be a false alarm."
A soldier said, pressing his headset.
"No anomalies detected."
The captain was reporting the results. From what they could see, it was most likely an equipment malfunction. After the report was filed, an engineer would come to inspect and calibrate the sensor in a day, but that would no longer be their concern.
Things should have ended just like that. But midway through the report, a team member idly glanced over and was surprised to see what seemed to be a silhouette lurking in a shadow in the corner of the ceiling on one side of the corridor.
The team member froze for a moment.
Before he could be sure if it was an illusion, a "clack" sounded by his feet. A cylindrical object was thrown to the ground, rolling to their feet.
With a soft hiss, a large amount of dark red mist suddenly spewed out from it. The corridor was instantly filled with smoke, and the few World Army soldiers were shocked.
"Intrusion Alert! Intruder—"
"It's gas! Respirators, we need to put on—"
"No," the captain shouted hastily. "Don't lower your weapons. Stay alert."
He glanced over, stunned to see the shadow that had emerged from the churning red mist.
Like a demon of the night, a pair of scarlet eyes, like two will-o'-the-wisps, rapidly approached from within the blood-red mist, closing in with an invisible pressure.
"Fire! Fire now!"
The captain was the first to react, and only he had time to pull the trigger. But his gunfire seemed to be swallowed by the smokescreen; the bullet tore through the dense fog and vanished on the other side, like a stone sinking into the sea without a trace.
A powerful hand suddenly snatched the firearm from his grasp, followed by a heavy front kick, a blow so powerful it was nearly suffocating. The captain's body arched back; he felt his ribs nearly break as his vision went black, and he collapsed into the smokescreen, losing consciousness.
"Captain!"
The remaining soldiers were terrified. The fallen captain was instantly swallowed by the fog, his figure vanishing. By now, the "demon" was upon them, rushing into their formation.
A black cape, a vision like a vampire. The pointed-eared helmet had red eyes, and on his chest was a blood-red bat.
At that moment, a soldier's mouth fell open in shock.
"Bat... Batman!?"
In the deepest part of the corridor, behind the door to the restricted zone.
"Team Three? Please respond. If you can hear me, respond."
Major Sato, stationed in the restricted zone, had already realized something was wrong. She tried calling several times through the intercom, but only static answered her.
Communication was cut off.
"We can't get in touch with the Central Control Room either," a soldier next to her said. "The alarm systems are all down and unresponsive! The Central Control Room probably doesn't even know we have a problem here!"
"Keep the door shut no matter what. Don't let the intruder in," Major Sato gritted her teeth.
She looked around. The room was filled with various giant cylindrical glass jars, like petri dishes. Each jar was filled with a violet liquid, and through it, one could faintly see a humanoid form in each, though it was impossible to distinguish them from the outside.
This was the secret hidden beneath this base, classified information even within the World Army. Major Sato was responsible for guarding this place, ensuring that none of the people in these jars fell into the wrong hands.
"Unlock the security verification for me," Major Sato said, her face cold. "Give me the detonator."
"Major!" someone exclaimed in alarm.
"This is security protocol. If necessary, I have the authority to blow this entire room to smithereens, including everyone in these jars." Major Sato gritted her teeth. "We can't risk the enemy getting their hands on this place... not a single one of these jars."
"...Yes."
The subordinate didn't dare say more and turned to carry out the order. But before he could take more than a few steps, there was a sudden buzz in the room, and all the lights went out simultaneously. The operating system also went black without warning.
A dark figure took this opportunity to leap down from somewhere on the ceiling.
"Intruder!"
Major Sato immediately drew her gun, but the darkness made it difficult for her to aim.
In the pitch-black darkness where one couldn't see their hand in front of their face, there were continuous sounds of shouting and fighting. The thud of fists and feet hitting flesh, a series of muffled grunts, and the "crack" of bones breaking.
This made it impossible for Major Sato to believe the intruder was the one taking a beating.
Her only light source was her World Army communication watch, but its communication function was jammed, so now it could only serve as a low-end flashlight. Holding her gun in one hand and illuminating the area with her watch in the other, she glanced around a few times. Suddenly, she felt a chill behind her. Whirling around, the fluorescent light suddenly illuminated a cold-faced Batman, startling her so much she almost screamed.
She was half a second too late pulling the trigger; her handgun had already been knocked away by a sharp chop. Major Sato immediately threw a punch, but her opponent smoothly caught her fist and, in a single move, twisted her arm behind her back, subduing her.
"Bat...man? You're alive?" Major Sato gritted her teeth in pain. "But we were allies once. Why are you...?"
He didn't reply, coldly striking the nape of her neck with a chop. Major Sato's vision went black, and she collapsed.
The entire room of guards had been taken down. Batman silently walked to the control console and rebooted the system. The disabled computer came back online, and the light from the screen illuminated, stretching his silhouette into a demon-like image projected onto the wall behind him.
However, on that wall, besides his own silhouette, there was another shadow.
A figure, hidden in the dark, had locked onto Batman's back from the shadows.
*Swish.*
The sound of an arrow cutting through the air.
As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Batman tilted his upper body to the side without even turning, and the arrow missed.
He calmly turned around, only to see Huntress firing a crossbow bolt as cover, followed by a somersault into a flying kick that came right at him.
"I don't care who you are, but I'm going to rip that emblem off you!"
(end of chapter)
Author: Rowing Without Oars 233
Chapter 385: Batman?
A World Army base.
Area A03, a clearly designated restricted zone within the base. The narrow corridor could only fit two people walking side-by-side. Several bright lights hung on the walls of the passage, illuminating the metal walls. The metal plates paving the ground reflected a cold, hard light.
Several World Army soldiers were holding guns, walking down this long, narrow corridor. To one of their sides was a long row of closed doors, each with a white label. Behind every door was one of the most dangerous collections in the world.
At the end of the corridor was an iron door, concealing the secret sealed in the deepest part of this base. The heavy, sturdy door was fitted with a complex reinforced structure, impossible to breach even with a rocket launcher.
Several soldiers passed through the corridor and reached the end. Suspicious readings from a motion sensor in the restricted zone had made them suspect an intruder, but after this team was dispatched to investigate, they found nothing.
"Reporting. It might be a false alarm."
A soldier said, pressing his headset.
"No anomalies detected."
The captain was reporting the results. From what they could see, it was most likely an equipment malfunction. After the report was filed, an engineer would come to inspect and calibrate the sensor in a day, but that would no longer be their concern.
Things should have ended just like that. But midway through the report, a team member idly glanced over and was surprised to see what seemed to be a silhouette lurking in a shadow in the corner of the ceiling on one side of the corridor.
The team member froze for a moment.
Before he could be sure if it was an illusion, a "clack" sounded by his feet. A cylindrical object was thrown to the ground, rolling to their feet.
With a soft hiss, a large amount of dark red mist suddenly spewed out from it. The corridor was instantly filled with smoke, and the few World Army soldiers were shocked.
"Intrusion Alert! Intruder—"
"It's gas! Respirators, we need to put on—"
"No," the captain shouted hastily. "Don't lower your weapons. Stay alert."
He glanced over, stunned to see the shadow that had emerged from the churning red mist.
Like a demon of the night, a pair of scarlet eyes, like two will-o'-the-wisps, rapidly approached from within the blood-red mist, closing in with an invisible pressure.
"Fire! Fire now!"
The captain was the first to react, and only he had time to pull the trigger. But his gunfire seemed to be swallowed by the smokescreen; the bullet tore through the dense fog and vanished on the other side, like a stone sinking into the sea without a trace.
A powerful hand suddenly snatched the firearm from his grasp, followed by a heavy front kick, a blow so powerful it was nearly suffocating. The captain's body arched back; he felt his ribs nearly break as his vision went black, and he collapsed into the smokescreen, losing consciousness.
"Captain!"
The remaining soldiers were terrified. The fallen captain was instantly swallowed by the fog, his figure vanishing. By now, the "demon" was upon them, rushing into their formation.
A black cape, a vision like a vampire. The pointed-eared helmet had red eyes, and on his chest was a blood-red bat.
At that moment, a soldier's mouth fell open in shock.
"Bat... Batman!?"
In the deepest part of the corridor, behind the door to the restricted zone.
"Team Three? Please respond. If you can hear me, respond."
Major Sato, stationed in the restricted zone, had already realized something was wrong. She tried calling several times through the intercom, but only static answered her.
Communication was cut off.
"We can't get in touch with the Central Control Room either," a soldier next to her said. "The alarm systems are all down and unresponsive! The Central Control Room probably doesn't even know we have a problem here!"
"Keep the door shut no matter what. Don't let the intruder in," Major Sato gritted her teeth.
She looked around. The room was filled with various giant cylindrical glass jars, like petri dishes. Each jar was filled with a violet liquid, and through it, one could faintly see a humanoid form in each, though it was impossible to distinguish them from the outside.
This was the secret hidden beneath this base, classified information even within the World Army. Major Sato was responsible for guarding this place, ensuring that none of the people in these jars fell into the wrong hands.
"Unlock the security verification for me," Major Sato said, her face cold. "Give me the detonator."
"Major!" someone exclaimed in alarm.
"This is security protocol. If necessary, I have the authority to blow this entire room to smithereens, including everyone in these jars." Major Sato gritted her teeth. "We can't risk the enemy getting their hands on this place... not a single one of these jars."
"...Yes."
The subordinate didn't dare say more and turned to carry out the order. But before he could take more than a few steps, there was a sudden buzz in the room, and all the lights went out simultaneously. The operating system also went black without warning.
A dark figure took this opportunity to leap down from somewhere on the ceiling.
"Intruder!"
Major Sato immediately drew her gun, but the darkness made it difficult for her to aim.
In the pitch-black darkness where one couldn't see their hand in front of their face, there were continuous sounds of shouting and fighting. The thud of fists and feet hitting flesh, a series of muffled grunts, and the "crack" of bones breaking.
This made it impossible for Major Sato to believe the intruder was the one taking a beating.
Her only light source was her World Army communication watch, but its communication function was jammed, so now it could only serve as a low-end flashlight. Holding her gun in one hand and illuminating the area with her watch in the other, she glanced around a few times. Suddenly, she felt a chill behind her. Whirling around, the fluorescent light suddenly illuminated a cold-faced Batman, startling her so much she almost screamed.
She was half a second too late pulling the trigger; her handgun had already been knocked away by a sharp chop. Major Sato immediately threw a punch, but her opponent smoothly caught her fist and, in a single move, twisted her arm behind her back, subduing her.
"Bat...man? You're alive?" Major Sato gritted her teeth in pain. "But we were allies once. Why are you...?"
He didn't reply, coldly striking the nape of her neck with a chop. Major Sato's vision went black, and she collapsed.
The entire room of guards had been taken down. Batman silently walked to the control console and rebooted the system. The disabled computer came back online, and the light from the screen illuminated, stretching his silhouette into a demon-like image projected onto the wall behind him.
However, on that wall, besides his own silhouette, there was another shadow.
A figure, hidden in the dark, had locked onto Batman's back from the shadows.
*Swish.*
The sound of an arrow cutting through the air.
As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Batman tilted his upper body to the side without even turning, and the arrow missed.
He calmly turned around, only to see Huntress firing a crossbow bolt as cover, followed by a somersault into a flying kick that came right at him.
"I don't care who you are, but I'm going to rip that emblem off you!"
(end of chapter)
