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Chapter 394: Nuking Gotham
Batcave.
Rumble...
The tremors were as violent as an earthquake. The ancient Wayne Manor was being torn to shreds by monsters from outer space. Led by Parademons, the monsters sniffed out the scent of the living, dug through the surface, and advanced rapidly into the depths below.
The cave was breached. A colossal monster dropped from the ceiling of the Batcave, startling the bats in the darkness into flying out in swarms.
A giant war hound burst through the cavern and entered. It was a synthetic monster, a fusion of metal and biology, clad in gold and silver Apokolips armor. It was about five meters long. A Parademon rode on its back, holding an energy rifle and shouting something unintelligible.
More Parademons followed close behind, pouring out of the hole like a tide.
Helena repeatedly pulled the trigger, her crossbow firing a continuous stream of arrows. The simple-minded Parademons seemed to judge the attack as no threat, not even bothering to dodge. But as each arrow landed on them, the red indicator light on its tip blinked twice, immediately followed by thunderous explosions.
“Wayne Tech?” Thomas glanced at Helena.
The technology used in her arrowheads was very similar to the explosive Batarangs used by the previous Batman, compressing an explosive mechanism to the size of an arrowhead or Batarang, yet capable of astonishing destructive power.
Thomas Wayne flicked his hand, and several small metal spheres flew out. Another series of bangs and explosions sent the foremost Parademons reeling.
“New technology from after you were gone,” Thomas said as he leaped forward and felled the lead Parademon with a flying kick. “Wayne Tech hasn't been idle.”
The Parademon on the war hound's back pointed, and the giant hound let out a strange cry and charged. Seeing it rush toward the Old Bat, Helena couldn't help but cry out, "Watch out!"
But Thomas, old but vigorous, seemed to have already grasped its movements. Without even looking back, he tapped his toes and floated lightly off the ground, executing a magnificent backflip and landing steadily on the war hound's back.
The Parademon riding the war hound roared in anger, raising its gun to fire. But Thomas struck the firearm away with a backhanded chop, then grabbed the Parademon's throat with one hand, yanked it up with a surge of strength, and hurled it from the hound's back, knocking over a large swath of the Parademon horde.
The war hound beneath him grew enraged, leaping into the air to try and throw him off. But Batman slid down its neck to its head and started punching. His black-gloved fists were like iron hammers, and a furious barrage hammered the giant hound until its skin split open. It whimpered in pain and fell to the ground, motionless.
Helena was still a little startled by his superhuman strength. She threw a Parademon aside with a shoulder throw and gave him a strange look. "Is that also the effect of the miracle serum? It looks like I could use some of that."
"No." Batman kicked away an oncoming Parademon. "I'm already old, with nothing left to look forward to. But you're still young. You can't let this stuff ruin the rest of your life."
"The rest of my life? Are you kidding me?"
Helena fired a high-voltage electric net from her crossbow, blocking several more Parademons, and shouted, "We're all about to be finished, this planet is about to be finished, so what future is there?"
"No. I won't allow you to die, and neither will this planet," Thomas said in a low voice.
By now, more and more holes had been torn into the Batcave. More Parademons, Apokoliptian hounds, and all sorts of monsters kept pouring in like a tide. The two of them were huddled on a high platform, their backs to the wall with no path of retreat.
"I was just waiting for more of these damn bugs to get in. It's about time." Thomas narrowed his eyes. "Batcave, initiate the Azrael Protocol!"
Azrael was the angel of death who held the book of life and death, which gave Helena an ominous premonition about this protocol.
"What are you planning to do?"
"What needs to be done. Send them to the afterlife." Batman held a dying Parademon upside down in his hand, wielding it like a weapon. "The Batcave will become a super bomb, an explosion with a thirty-mile radius. Thanks to these bastards already leveling Gotham, it's impossible to harm any innocents around here anymore."
At that moment, the Batcave's countdown began: "Azrael Protocol. Countdown: ten seconds..."
Helena blew away a few more Parademons with an explosive arrow, exclaiming in shock, "Are you crazy? You want us to be buried along with this place?"
"Of course not, Helena," Thomas said seriously. "I don't matter anymore, but you? You're my whole world. Even if Earth is dragged into Hell, I will never lose you again."
"Then you...?" Helena was confused.
A tide of Parademons was pouring in, and their numbers were still growing.
"Countdown: five seconds... four... three..."
"Now," Thomas shouted in a low voice.
In an empty spot in the Batcave, a ripple of light appeared. A person in an all-black uniform and a golden mask materialized out of thin air, landing between the two of them.
The countdown continued: "Two..."
The Parademons and giant hounds had already stormed the platform, lunging at them.
"Let's go," Batman shouted, throwing down a ring of explosive charges.
The person didn't say much, simply grabbing Batman's and Huntress's arms, one on the left and one on the right.
The next moment, the three of them simultaneously phased, dissipating like phantoms.
"...one."
The countdown ended.
BOOM!!!
Flames swept through the cave. The computer was the first to be incinerated. Then the black fighter jet suspended in the cave, the various models of the Batmobile, the submarine, the giant coin representing Two-Face, the Riddler's green question mark, and the giant decorative dinosaur...
All the equipment Batman had ever used in Gotham, all the symbols and mementos—everything dissipated in the flames.
A pillar of fire shot into the sky. Wayne Manor was instantly engulfed by a fireball, and annihilated along with it were the swarms of Parademons filling the air. A colossal roar tore through Gotham's deathly silence, as if the very air had been ignited. A giant cloud of smoke from the explosion rose into the sky, dyeing it pitch black. Fragments and debris rained down like scorching hot drops. A shocking, giant pit, like a scar on the Earth, replaced what was once Gotham City.
Outside the giant pit, three figures flashed into existence. The man in black brought Batman and Huntress out of their intangible state, and they landed on the ground, staring wordlessly at the pit spewing black smoke.
This had once been the city where Helena was born, grew up, and fought for.
Now, nothing was left.
She turned her head to look at the man in black who had teleported them out, and asked Batman, "One of yours?"
"A friend," Thomas said calmly.
The man in black waved a hand at her in greeting.
"A pleasure to meet you, Miss Wayne. Oh, I hope you don't mind me using your name directly. Because... well, given the current situation, secret identities and all that don't really matter anymore."
Helena nodded, unconcerned about her identity being exposed. "Then who are you?"
"My name is Wesley Dodds. Or, you can call me Sandman."
(end of chapter)
Batcave.
Rumble...
The tremors were as violent as an earthquake. The ancient Wayne Manor was being torn to shreds by monsters from outer space. Led by Parademons, the monsters sniffed out the scent of the living, dug through the surface, and advanced rapidly into the depths below.
The cave was breached. A colossal monster dropped from the ceiling of the Batcave, startling the bats in the darkness into flying out in swarms.
A giant war hound burst through the cavern and entered. It was a synthetic monster, a fusion of metal and biology, clad in gold and silver Apokolips armor. It was about five meters long. A Parademon rode on its back, holding an energy rifle and shouting something unintelligible.
More Parademons followed close behind, pouring out of the hole like a tide.
Helena repeatedly pulled the trigger, her crossbow firing a continuous stream of arrows. The simple-minded Parademons seemed to judge the attack as no threat, not even bothering to dodge. But as each arrow landed on them, the red indicator light on its tip blinked twice, immediately followed by thunderous explosions.
“Wayne Tech?” Thomas glanced at Helena.
The technology used in her arrowheads was very similar to the explosive Batarangs used by the previous Batman, compressing an explosive mechanism to the size of an arrowhead or Batarang, yet capable of astonishing destructive power.
Thomas Wayne flicked his hand, and several small metal spheres flew out. Another series of bangs and explosions sent the foremost Parademons reeling.
“New technology from after you were gone,” Thomas said as he leaped forward and felled the lead Parademon with a flying kick. “Wayne Tech hasn't been idle.”
The Parademon on the war hound's back pointed, and the giant hound let out a strange cry and charged. Seeing it rush toward the Old Bat, Helena couldn't help but cry out, "Watch out!"
But Thomas, old but vigorous, seemed to have already grasped its movements. Without even looking back, he tapped his toes and floated lightly off the ground, executing a magnificent backflip and landing steadily on the war hound's back.
The Parademon riding the war hound roared in anger, raising its gun to fire. But Thomas struck the firearm away with a backhanded chop, then grabbed the Parademon's throat with one hand, yanked it up with a surge of strength, and hurled it from the hound's back, knocking over a large swath of the Parademon horde.
The war hound beneath him grew enraged, leaping into the air to try and throw him off. But Batman slid down its neck to its head and started punching. His black-gloved fists were like iron hammers, and a furious barrage hammered the giant hound until its skin split open. It whimpered in pain and fell to the ground, motionless.
Helena was still a little startled by his superhuman strength. She threw a Parademon aside with a shoulder throw and gave him a strange look. "Is that also the effect of the miracle serum? It looks like I could use some of that."
"No." Batman kicked away an oncoming Parademon. "I'm already old, with nothing left to look forward to. But you're still young. You can't let this stuff ruin the rest of your life."
"The rest of my life? Are you kidding me?"
Helena fired a high-voltage electric net from her crossbow, blocking several more Parademons, and shouted, "We're all about to be finished, this planet is about to be finished, so what future is there?"
"No. I won't allow you to die, and neither will this planet," Thomas said in a low voice.
By now, more and more holes had been torn into the Batcave. More Parademons, Apokoliptian hounds, and all sorts of monsters kept pouring in like a tide. The two of them were huddled on a high platform, their backs to the wall with no path of retreat.
"I was just waiting for more of these damn bugs to get in. It's about time." Thomas narrowed his eyes. "Batcave, initiate the Azrael Protocol!"
Azrael was the angel of death who held the book of life and death, which gave Helena an ominous premonition about this protocol.
"What are you planning to do?"
"What needs to be done. Send them to the afterlife." Batman held a dying Parademon upside down in his hand, wielding it like a weapon. "The Batcave will become a super bomb, an explosion with a thirty-mile radius. Thanks to these bastards already leveling Gotham, it's impossible to harm any innocents around here anymore."
At that moment, the Batcave's countdown began: "Azrael Protocol. Countdown: ten seconds..."
Helena blew away a few more Parademons with an explosive arrow, exclaiming in shock, "Are you crazy? You want us to be buried along with this place?"
"Of course not, Helena," Thomas said seriously. "I don't matter anymore, but you? You're my whole world. Even if Earth is dragged into Hell, I will never lose you again."
"Then you...?" Helena was confused.
A tide of Parademons was pouring in, and their numbers were still growing.
"Countdown: five seconds... four... three..."
"Now," Thomas shouted in a low voice.
In an empty spot in the Batcave, a ripple of light appeared. A person in an all-black uniform and a golden mask materialized out of thin air, landing between the two of them.
The countdown continued: "Two..."
The Parademons and giant hounds had already stormed the platform, lunging at them.
"Let's go," Batman shouted, throwing down a ring of explosive charges.
The person didn't say much, simply grabbing Batman's and Huntress's arms, one on the left and one on the right.
The next moment, the three of them simultaneously phased, dissipating like phantoms.
"...one."
The countdown ended.
BOOM!!!
Flames swept through the cave. The computer was the first to be incinerated. Then the black fighter jet suspended in the cave, the various models of the Batmobile, the submarine, the giant coin representing Two-Face, the Riddler's green question mark, and the giant decorative dinosaur...
All the equipment Batman had ever used in Gotham, all the symbols and mementos—everything dissipated in the flames.
A pillar of fire shot into the sky. Wayne Manor was instantly engulfed by a fireball, and annihilated along with it were the swarms of Parademons filling the air. A colossal roar tore through Gotham's deathly silence, as if the very air had been ignited. A giant cloud of smoke from the explosion rose into the sky, dyeing it pitch black. Fragments and debris rained down like scorching hot drops. A shocking, giant pit, like a scar on the Earth, replaced what was once Gotham City.
Outside the giant pit, three figures flashed into existence. The man in black brought Batman and Huntress out of their intangible state, and they landed on the ground, staring wordlessly at the pit spewing black smoke.
This had once been the city where Helena was born, grew up, and fought for.
Now, nothing was left.
She turned her head to look at the man in black who had teleported them out, and asked Batman, "One of yours?"
"A friend," Thomas said calmly.
The man in black waved a hand at her in greeting.
"A pleasure to meet you, Miss Wayne. Oh, I hope you don't mind me using your name directly. Because... well, given the current situation, secret identities and all that don't really matter anymore."
Helena nodded, unconcerned about her identity being exposed. "Then who are you?"
"My name is Wesley Dodds. Or, you can call me Sandman."
(end of chapter)
