Metropolis Lostbelt (13) Prove Your Qualifications...
Barbara's hands were steady as she typed. Dick could tell that, despite having worked intensely for several days and having just decided to take a break, she instantly returned to her post the moment the unexpected happened.
She is an indispensable Batwoman in Gotham, and an eternal pillar of support for the Resistance.
"The surveillance cameras in the new district and Crime Alley have all been destroyed?" Barbara stared at the few black surveillance frames on the screen and took a deep breath. A feeling of suffocation, like drowning, pulled her heart downward.
She had a very bad feeling, which made her hesitate for a second when she saw the surveillance camera still working, but she needed to know the situation and she had no choice.
Pressing the Enter key, the screen flickered black, and light poured down from the monitor, revealing the naked reality of Gotham to the two people present.
It was a desolate and chaotic ruin.
The leaning wreckage of the building, the exposed steel bars broken in half, and a dusty hand clinging desperately to the bricks.
That's the only thing Gotham's surveillance cameras show.
No further words are needed; a brief, deathly silence suffices to describe everything.
Dick felt that Barbara had never looked at him like that before, her eyes filled with pain, confusion, and bewilderment as she stared at him without blinking.
It was more painful than losing her own legs.
"Why?" Barbara squeezed out three words from her dry throat, even though they had just rescued Batman, just rekindled the flame of hope, and just begun to look forward to the future.
Why did it turn out like this?
And by what right did it become like this?
Dick tried to place his hand on her dull red hair, but the cold soul simply passed right through the strands, leaving only air.
He hesitated for a moment, then took two steps back. "Don't stop the surveillance. Check the broadcasts and news, then contact headquarters immediately."
The current situation could only be the work of a bunch of lunatics in the regime.
If the anger stems from Batman's escape, then Ritsuka and his allies, as the main forces involved, will face even more severe attacks. If the reason is something else, the regime will certainly hold a press conference to demonstrate its legitimacy.
Before the words were even finished, Superman, with his sanctimonious demeanor, stared at the camera in the news footage, saying, "...Remaining terrorists have been discovered, threatening the city's security...Starting today, control measures will be implemented over Metropolis and Gotham City; no one is allowed to enter or leave..."
This was a silent massacre.
The message was quickly relayed through special channels to the rebel headquarters and then to Chaldea.
And so, the newly assembled rebels went their separate ways again. Everyone knew that this massacre was not only to purge the rebels, but also to lure out the remaining superheroes.
But no one chose to stay in Atlantis to wait. They quickly divided into groups to support the two cities. But before Neptune left, Debit, who had just finished receiving a communication from Chaldea, suddenly stopped him and pointed to his army.
After a few words, Aquaman patted Debit on the shoulder forcefully, as if he had everything under control.
The moonlight cast a pale halo over the Hudson River Bridge, and the horns blared amidst the jammed traffic, creating a deafening noise that only exacerbated the irritability.
But no one complained; everyone was scrambling to escape Metropolis and Gotham.
If we can just leave those two cities, and cross this bridge, we'll survive. God! Please bless us!
Suddenly, the steel structure of the bridge trembled slightly, and the restless crowd fell silent—a red and blue figure stood far away on the shore, his red cloak fluttering in the wind.
But no one regarded him as a symbol of hope anymore.
The next second, the horn blared even louder, and some people even pushed open their car doors and ran wildly towards the other side of the bridge.
But it was all too late.
The thermal vision swept calmly across the bridge and its surface, the instantly congested traffic resembling a giant python severed into several sections. Those who abandoned their cars and fled found their feet sinking into the void, futilely reaching upwards to grab onto something.
In the end, they simply plunged into the river in despair and were quickly swallowed by the swift current.
This is what Atlantean soldiers saw when they arrived: they were diving to the bottom of the river, relaying drowning people from car to car and transporting them to a safe area away from Metropolis and Gotham.
"Hey, how did Wang know Superman would attack the bridge? We're here, but what about Wang? Won't he just go straight for him...!"
"How could that be! The King has gone to the Metropolis!"
Across the bridge in Gotham, leaden clouds hung so low they seemed to weigh down the spires of Gothic buildings, and the metal boots of the super soldiers clattered dully on the ruins.
Tanks cleared a path through the road, randomly shelling surrounding buildings, while super soldiers' ability rifles continuously fired blue beams, blasting any stragglers to smithereens.
Barbara held her breath, lowered her body, and tried to blend into the ruins around her. But suddenly a soldier stopped near her.
The blue light from the muzzle flashed, instantly pointing at Barbara's chest. Her heart sank. She knew all too well the power of the energy rifle, but now it was too late for her to move.
Just as the energy was about to burst from the muzzle, a whooshing sound came hurtling through the air. With a soft "whoosh," the batarang struck his wrist, the metal blade shattering. The force was so great that his arm involuntarily rose upwards.
The blue beam of light grazed the pile of ruins and shot into the sky, exploding into dazzling sparks in the clouds.
A black figure swooped down from the rooftop beside him, bending his knees slightly to cushion the impact, and Batman landed steadily in front of Barbara, his cape billowing up to completely shield her from the shadows.
The second batarang landed on the right side of the soldier's tactical mask, and the soldier fell to the ground with a thud the moment it exploded.
"Hey! Batman, need some help..." The Flash flashed to Batman's side in the blink of an eye. He was holding several survivors, but stopped mid-sentence when he saw the fallen figures.
“Take her to safety.” Unexpectedly, Batman said in a slightly pleading tone.
"Yes, I'll definitely bring it!"
In the distant metropolis, the skyline was distorted by the smoke of battle, and the armor of the Amazon warriors reflected a cold, hard light on the streets. They carried spears and shields, and each step they took caused a dull tremor in the ground.
Suddenly, a thunderous roar came from the distant coastline. The soldiers instinctively raised their shields, and a wall of water dozens of meters high swept in, firmly blocking the invading force.
Aquaman, trident in hand, stood before the curtain of water. "Diana, Metropolis is not a battlefield for your rage." His voice was steady and powerful, blending with the roar of the waves. "The ocean never yields to tyranny!"
Wonder Woman frowned, her gaze sweeping over the empty sea behind Aquaman, and she couldn't help but scoff. "What, aren't you going to call your army?" She took a step forward. "How ridiculous, you think you can stop me and my sisters all by yourself?"
The Amazon warriors roared in unison, their spears striking the ground with a synchronized sound.
Faced with such provocation, Aquaman suddenly burst into hearty laughter, a laugh devoid of any fear. "Alone? Who said I'm alone?"
He strode to the left, deliberately turning his body to the side, revealing the figure that had been hidden from view.
Debit leaned against the broken railing, his hands in his trench coat pockets, maintaining a calm and indifferent demeanor even amidst the tense standoff.
"...Ha, him?" Diana gave a sarcastic smile. Had Arthur been in the water for too long and his brain had gotten waterlogged?
"Yes, it's him." Arthur was extremely confident.
Meanwhile, Storm Border sailed into the Arctic, revealing a polar region completely different from any other in human history. Cold buildings stood on the ice, pure white and lifeless.
“Senior, that’s… the Imaginary Tree!” Mashu suddenly stood up, looking at the panoramic view displayed on the screen.
Fujimaru Ritsuka looked up and, unsurprisingly, saw the Imaginary Tree growing wildly in the sky. As Storm Border continued forward, it officially entered the area covered by the Imaginary Tree.
Before Chaldea could figure out how to enter Lonely Fortress, the gate opened from the inside out, and Kadoc, who was traveling to Gotham with the Justice League, also opened his communications at the same time.
"What did you say? The Lostbelt King personally participated in the massacre?!" Little Leonardo da Vinci asked Kadoc incredulously in the communication.
“Yes, this guy is in Gotham right now.” Kadoc’s voice was hoarse, clearly still recovering.
“In other words, apart from the Wodem, whom neither Debit nor Kadoc has seen, the number of guards in front of the Imaginary Tree is close to zero,” Sion said slowly.
Because of this massacre, they almost abandoned all plans, essentially storming into the enemy's stronghold. Chaldea was prepared for a tough battle, but this unexpected turn of events seems to have made things easier?
"There's no time like the present. It seems the regime is quite confident in Wodym's strength." Holmes raised an eyebrow. Plans are subject to change, and this is exactly what's best for Chaldea.
Kadoc continued, saying that thanks to Debit's single-handedly holding off the Amazon army, the Justice League had a surge of available members who rushed to provide support.
They will try their best to hold off the Lostbelt King, while Chaldea's mission is to cut down the Imaginary Tree as quickly as possible.
Thus, faced with the wide-open gates of this lonely fortress that seemed to be inviting them in, despite what appeared to be a trap, Gordolf decided that the on-site investigator, Fujimaru Ritsuka, would lead the Demi-Servant Mash and two other Servants inside immediately.
Objective: Defeat Kirshtalia Wodim and cut down the Imaginary Tree!
The group set off towards the Imaginary Tree, and arrived at the Imaginary Tree they had been longing for almost without any obstacles along the way.
The blond youth stood quietly under the tree. Hearing footsteps, he slowly turned around and smiled at Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mashu, "You really came."
It happened earlier than he expected, probably because of Superman's damn massacre.
To save the people of Lostbelt, they chose to storm the enemy's headquarters. Haha, that's really Chaldea's style.
Fujimaru Ritsuka gazed at Kirshtalia, and in that instant their eyes met, she understood the young man's choice: "We still want to fight, right?"
Kirshtalia tilted her chin slightly, scrutinizing Ritsuka and her group. "Of course, please prove it to me."
“You are qualified to pass me and come to this tree.”
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