AN: Interlude chapters are not the continuation, but the events that took place during the time skip when Bruce was trying to save Mr. Freeze's wife and developing the Pym particles.
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Bruce kept the promise that he made with Floyd. He took him to see his daughter. But to make sure it went smoothly, Bruce and Elana made sure that there weren't any Waller's agents sniffing around the house and had Jarvis close down all spy drones and cams around the block, including spy devices that were placed around the block. It was a necessary step to make sure nothing went wrong.
"Do you think you can make it to my graduation day?" Zoe's voice pulled Floyd back to reality. He had his eyes on her but couldn't focus on anything else besides how happy she looked. The entire time she's talked, all he could feel was guilt eating away inside. His fingers shook as he struggled not to show her a trembling hand. Floyd feared that this moment might not last unless Waller was down. Sooner or later, Waller might come for her. And if Zoe somehow got hurt, it would be all his fault. And because of that fear, Floyd didn't even reply right away.
"So?" Zoe asked, waiting for him to confirm.
"Zoe, you know how difficult it was for your dad to visit you today, right?" Michelle Torres, Floyd's wife, cut in.
"Yes," said Zoe, looking like she wanted to add something, but not.
Floyd looked at Bruce, who was standing on the balcony. Bruce looked back at him, letting out a small nod.
"Yeah, I think I can make it," said Floyd with a warm smile.
The smile on Zoe's face made all the troubles of the day worth it. Floyd would die in a heartbeat to get this smile back on Zoe's face every morning. He looked at his wife and noticed her smile despite the sad look in her eyes, and suddenly his heart broke.
Floyd didn't deserve this, to have such a beautiful and loving wife like her. She didn't deserve to suffer like this because of the monster he turned himself into. But right now, he's trying so hard to turn to a new leaf. For his family. For his loved ones. He had a chance, a second chance, thanks to Wayne. And by hook or by crook, he would make it back here to watch Zoe walk up on stage and collect her diploma. Soon after dealing with Waller and some of his loose ends, he won't have to worry about his family.
"Thanks, Dad," Zoe's voice beamed with happiness.
Bruce Wayne observed the smile on both Floyd and his daughter. He turned and headed towards the living room, leaving father and daughter to spend some time together. Bruce decided to look around and walked downstairs toward the small lounge that was inside the main building. Elana was sitting comfortably on the sofa, as Bruce joined her.
"He got a sweet family," Elana commented as Bruce sat and stretched his arms.
"Yup," said Bruce as he laid his back. "I want to deal with Waller, but with the ongoing Cryo experiments and all... It's gonna take a few more months at least. I guess all we can do is hope for the best right now."
"Don't worry, my team is always around them. Even if it's a metahuman, they won't be able to sneak past us," She comforted.
After a few hours, Floyd was finally ready to say goodbye for now. Michelle kissed him goodbye. It pained him to see that she too felt scared about the future. That all her smiles were hollow, even the one she kept on her face for Zoe. If the problem was really solved, Floyd believed that she would be relieved to the bone. Zoe hugged him again, wishing her Dad safe and hoping he'd soon return back home.
"I'll see you later. And Zoe, listen to your mom, alright?" Floyd reminded, letting go of the hug.
"Will do," she nodded.
"Floyd, stay safe," Michelle said with a slightly strained face, as she bid farewell.
"Always," said Floyd, with a small, strained smile of his own before walking out. He went into the car in front of the house.
"Stop worrying about him or yourselves. Nothing's going to happen to anyone," Bruce reassured them with a warm smile, "And Zoe, I'm going to borrow your dad for a few months, then he'll be back home. So, don't worry."
"Thank you, Mr. Wayne," Michelle responded gratefully. "You don't have any idea how helpful you've been."
"It's no biggie, Michelle," he returned.
Elana also said her goodbyes to both Zoe and Michelle and joined the boys to go back to Gotham. On the way back home, Floyd opened his mouth and said,
"For the record, I really want to go there for her graduation."
"We'll be there," Bruce affirmed, as did Elana.
"Good, good," Floyd said.
"Tough guy finally has a smile," Elana joked.
"You guys can suck it," he teased. "For the first time ever, I felt proud. Like I was just watching my family together and my wife not hating or screaming at me for being a killer for hire. You know, sometimes you realize that you'd take whatever shitty situations you're in, if you could relive the one good day you've had in so many years."
"Damn, you can say that," Elana consented. "But good for you, man."
"Now, you better focus on training Barry. With his dad out of prison, he should be able to focus more," said Bruce with an encouraging look.
"Okay, I'll see how fast his legs can run," said Floyd sarcastically.
*******
[Location: A.R.G.U.S.]
After Lex's death, Wallar took down H.I.V.E. and swallowed the entire organization. Now, she has full control over the two spaceships. Her team is working day and night, trying to figure out a way to open them. But no matter how hard they tried, no technology they had was sufficient for opening these enormous pieces of metal. All they managed to salvage was some barrier techs from the outer hull that were much more advanced than the ones they had.
"What do we have here?" Amanda stood outside the test room and watched the giant machines placed in the middle of the room. Many scientists were roaming around it while some were busy doing things on their holographic interfaces. "What the hell is that?" she asked.
"According to our research, that's a barrier technology, capable of withstanding the energy emitted by a photon bomb without receiving a single dent," one of the scientists replied as he was examining the device and explaining while moving. Waller ignored his tone as her eyes gleamed at the object in the middle.
"Can we replicate it?" Amanda asked without changing her expression.
"That's where it gets interesting," The scientist ran after her. "We actually can. All we have to do is reverse-engineer these babies. But with this small problem," he sounded nervous.
"Tell me!" Waller scowled.
"Well, all this requires us to find some suitable power source that can keep these things functioning nonstop. And these things are power-hungry beasts. Only if we find a suitable source, then maybe..."
"Maybe?" She queried.
"Err, um... Yeah," the scientist swallowed. "This thing here doesn't belong to Earth. All the codings, metals, and everything, belong to a different civilization... Alien if you may say. That's why we require time and resources to perform various tests before we can reverse engineer and extract the source code of the device."
"Well then, try harder, or there won't be a need for you anymore. As for the power supply, I'll take care of it," Waller turned her head and exited the room.
Her feet guided her across the floor and passed through several other labs and meeting halls. After a few minutes of walking, she stopped outside one of the labs. There's a biometric system keeping all the rooms inside sealed and secured. After scanning her face and palms, the heavy, black door hissed open, and she made her way to her destination.
Inside the lab, there was a blond girl, caged and chained in the corner. Her skin was pale and her body was thin. She looked weak and angry. As soon as she saw Waller, she rushed forward, trying to break free and strangle the woman before her, but the chains stopped her, followed by an electric shock that made the girl hiss in agony. Waller was quite calm and didn't even flinch to show her anger or fear. The look on her face was composed as she stared down at the girl.
"How long are you going to act like a child?" Waller scolded with the same unfazed look.
"Arrrghh!" the girl tried to break free again, and the cuff zapped her again, sending her crumbling to the floor. "You crazy bitch!!" The girl screamed, pressing her forehead to the floor.
"If you're going to curse like a petty child, at least make some sense with it," she shrugged. "Where are you from? Which planet? Which race? Are there more like you out there? Tell me everything and I promise, I'll end your pain."
"Hahahaha! End my pain, huh? You think you can keep me here forever? That's kinda funny, bitch. Sooner or later they are going to come to Earth and when that happens, there won't be anyone to stop them. With me powerless and weak like this, you humans will fall like flies and nothing will remain." She laughed maniacally while Waller frowned upon her attitude and approached the table near the door, taking a file. "They'll be here very soon. And no one is going to save you. Trust me, when I say this, Waller. You will die and I'll have the last laugh."
Waller walked out without looking back as the giant door hissed to seal the girl back into isolation. The blond girl watched Waller leave in silence. The walls between her and her powers were firmly kept shut. There wasn't a single trace of sunlight that reached this facility and with that, she wasn't able to absorb the energy from the Sun and regain her strength. No matter how much she struggles, nothing comes her way, only a severe pain that runs all over her body and makes her unable to walk or stand.
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Next, Ch: 121: Pym Particles
Ch: 122: Spaceships
Ch: 123: Preparation
Ch: 124: Human vs Kryptonian