Chapter 103 Ceiling as a Makeshift Filler
"How did you come to this conclusion?" Alfred questioned. "In fact, I see absolutely no connection to young Thomas."
“The Joker’s sudden attack may not be his fault, but there are very few people who can bypass Wayne Enterprises’ defenses and shut down all the alarms without leaving a trace, especially since he practically has ‘I’m going to cause trouble right after Christmas’ written all over his face,” Batman continued, trying to speed things up. “You can go check it out now, Penny One. If he’s really in bed, wake him up for me and let him see if he can locate the Joker and the tracking device he took.”
The situation is urgent; both stopping the Joker and rescuing the victims one by one will take a lot of time... Hopefully, Thomas's almost pathological paranoia will allow him to install a signal transmitter in the locator beforehand.
"Next is the location of the hostages the Joker released. Obviously, it's not very useful for determining the bomb's location," Batman said, pulling up the map. "Computer, plan the route that takes the least amount of time."
“Why would the Joker tell you the hostage’s location?” Robin asked skeptically. “Could it be a trap?”
“It’s definitely a trap. He probably hopes to buy time this way, but we can’t not go.” Batman turned on Gotham TV. The TV signal had been hijacked by the Joker gang, and now the TV was constantly showing the hostages’ tragic condition. “Fortunately, Batgirl is also helping.”
“I can also rescue the hostages,” Robin said eagerly, sitting behind Batman. “I think we’d be more efficient if we split up.”
“Be careful. I’m going to deal with that bomb. According to my calculations, it could destroy at least the entire Gotham City. We can’t let that kind of weapon fall into that madman’s hands,” Batman opened the cockpit and asked Alfred again, “Penny, where’s Thomas?”
silence.
"A penny?" Batman frowned. Based on the timeline, Alfred should have already returned to the Batcave. "Is Thomas Wayne still there?"
“No,” Alfred said in a rather somber voice. “The television shows he was taken to the Joker, and Mr. Thomas and Mrs. Martha already know about it and want to leave Wayne Manor. I just managed to persuade them to stay.”
"...Also, your identity was accidentally discovered by young master Jason."
The communicator not only carried Alfred's calm and steady voice, but also a faint sob.
Batman tried to banish the crying from his mind.
“This isn’t the time to think about that,” Batman said through gritted teeth, trying to remain calm. “Can we pinpoint the Joker’s location?”
“Yes, Master Bruce,” Alfred replied, “he has publicly stated that he wants to ‘talk’ to you.”
-
"So you really are Thomas Wayne?" The Penguin was hiding on the ceiling, with Thomas Wayne playing Claw beside him. "And who's that guy tied up next to the Joker?"
“It’s Thomas, of course,” Thomas Jr. replied, “except his last name is Elliott.”
Since Batman forbids him from slashing that face with a knife, it's perfectly fine for Thomas to use him as bait.
“Now I remember, I even gave you a little help when I sent you to prison,” the Penguin grumbled under his breath. “What a coincidence, it seems like all we’re missing now is Kane.”
“If you really want to gather some so-called Gotham Four/Families here, Cobblepot, you can treat me as half Kane, I don’t care about that,” Thomas said absentmindedly, glancing down at Batman. “Although I don’t think the title of Four/Families has any real value whatsoever.”
Once Batman arrives at this underground factory, they will be able to assemble a complete Kane and a complete Wayne.
But his words precisely hit the penguin's sore spot.
Currently, many Gotham residents view Cobblestone as a down-on-his-luck individual like Elliott, and when mentioning the city's long-established and prestigious families, they only think of the then-rising star Wayne and the renowned Kane...
The Penguin glared at Thomas. If it weren't for the fact that Thomas still had the umbrella with its abundant weapons, and that stopping the bomb depended on this madman, he would have kicked this damn half-Wayne, half-Kane hybrid bastard to the ground.
"Are you angry?" Thomas turned his head slightly, his gaze quickly sweeping across his face. "Fine, whatever."
Thomas could easily tell that the Penguin was very unhappy with what he said, but he had no need to appease the Penguin now. The Penguin's only remaining role in the whole plan was to exaggerate and spread the doubts about Thomas.
So he ignored the penguin's emotions, simply shifting to a slightly more comfortable position, adding fuel to the penguin's fire.
But the penguin calmed down and kept telling himself that he could settle the score one by one after the matter was over, and that he had to be patient for now.
"So when are you planning to go down and stop him?" The Penguin barely contained his anger. "After that clown completely detonates the bomb and blows us all to smithereens?"
“First, the quantum explosion would only vaporize our bodies instantly, and people like you and me can’t ascend to heaven; second, I’m waiting for Batman,” Thomas replied. “Don’t worry, everything is normal now.”
"What are we waiting for Batman for! Why do we have to wait for him! You may be a madman, but you're not one of those madmen from Arkham!" the Penguin roared angrily at Thomas, "What, you don't want to have a... ugh!"
Thomas Jr. accurately and swiftly covered the Penguin's mouth.
“Now everyone’s here.” Thomas Jr., with the help of night-vision glasses, watched Batman stalking in the corner.
He quickly adjusted the equipment he had taken (especially the Penguin's multi-functional umbrella) and jumped off without hesitation.
-
"Where are you?" Martha's voice trembled with a sob. "Have you seen Tommy?"
“I’m deep underground in Wayne Tower,” Batman replied as calmly as possible, trying not to upset Martha. “I haven’t seen the target yet; I’m about to infiltrate…”
He activated his detective mode, carefully advancing through the darkness, avoiding the sophisticated equipment and haphazardly piled materials, gradually approaching the room containing the most living beings.
Just as Batman was about to open the door, a blinding beam of light shone on him.
"Welcome, welcome, bat!"
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Author's note: Another 2,000 words ( ) Updated on Sunday to make up for the word count.
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