"Tell me what's happening right now, Peter." Shiller, standing in front of the screen, pressed his headset and said, "It sounds like things aren't safe where you are."
Of course, he knew the place where Peter was isn't safe, because there isn't a Gotham in this world that's safe. Yet, he didn't know whether the Gotham of the Arkham Knight Universe was going through the most dangerous twenty-four hours.
"I think I came at the right time, Doctor. A super villain called Scarecrow is spreading fear gas in Gotham City, causing many people to suffer. Batman is investigating it with the help of an agent named Prophet, and I intend to assist him."
Shiller slightly composed himself and said, "This is bound to be a long night, are you sure you're ready?"
"Of course, Doctor. I am always preparing for this." Peter lowered his eyes and said, "The peaceful times at the university and in the laboratory won't forever be my whole life, isn't it?"
"Regrettably, it's true, Peter, we human beings possess a small boat that can allow us a peaceful sleep, but remember we are still sailing in the storm. If you wake up earlier than others, there will come a day when you will have to throw all your weight against the storm."
"That's what I'm planning to do, and meanwhile, I am also saving myself, or else my Spider sense is about to explode my brain."
"Stay safe, Peter." Shiller propped up his hand on the table, staring at the screen and said, "If you have any problems, contact me immediately, that's immediately, do you understand?"
"I will, Doctor. Goodbye."
Shiller slowly took his hand off the headset, Nick, who stood at the last end of the room leaning against the wall, folded his arms and asked, "How dangerous is the situation he is facing?"
"So dangerous that it's non-Batmanable." Shiller gently shook his head and said, "The Batman of this universe is already quite strong, but for him, it's also a tough night."
"And Peter is barely a rookie." Nick looked at Shiller said, "There's no earth-shattering battle for him to fight here, thanks to you."
"So he only has to go somewhere else to fight." Shiller turned his head back and said, "Now you come here and keep an eye on this, I have to make a call to death, to the death of two worlds."
Nick didn't say anything, just shook his head and came over.
Rainy night.
Rain always makes Gotham glow out of the darkness on such nights, when standing on the rooftop overlooking the whole city, wet reflections are everywhere.
The rain-soaked roads reflected the towering buildings, as if there were another city beneath the actual city, and the people running on the ground are but spirits floating in the air.
A dark figure landed on the rooftop, the cloak made a scream when it shattered the air, but what was even more piercing was the sound of police sirens, like the arias of tragedy coming from all directions.
A faint light blinked on the tracking device on his forearm guard, Batman glanced and quickly determined the direction.
One lamp-post light after another swayed, like the ripples caused by the dragonfly touching the water surface, a dark shadow leaped continuously, and only stopped when a commotion was heard by his ears.
Batman saw a group of rioters chasing a policeman in uniform until he had nowhere to go and fell at the entrance of a store.
There is a crossroad ahead, Batman already saw the tire tracks of the military vehicle, but he still leaped down without hesitation.
First, he strangled a rioter from behind and threw him far to one side of the street, then he kicked off a rioter who was dragging the officer on the ground.
Just as Batman wanted to make a move at the remaining two rioters, a camouflaged military off-road vehicle suddenly rushed out from one direction of the crossroad.
Batman quickly picked up the officer and jumped onto the rooftop, with no spare time to rest, he raised his hand towards the road below, and a glimmer of light flashed by, the Batmobile appeared by the road.
As soon as Batman sat in the Batmobile, he heard a vaguely familiar voice in his ear.
"What's the situation? Batman, I found this car you marked in the Eye's communication channel, now you are hearing my message from a few minutes ago."
"Please pay special attention, during the time period you were away, I did a test on the mysterious compound in your wound, it has a quite amazing trait — multi-absorption, continuous accumulation, until the explosion."
"I think you should understand what this means, if this is a premeditated disaster, all the clues you have discovered, may all be the bait they used to lure you into the trap."
"Right now, I am busy selecting materials to make special gas masks, it can be completed in the fastest an half-hour time, during this period please do not get close to anything that could potentially emit this kind of poisonous gas, including that car."
"We will contact later, goodbye."
Batman listened to this message while driving, he could hardly describe the surprise in his heart at the moment, but the emotion only stayed in his heart for an instant, then he immediately pressed the communication button.
"Listen, Peter, you don't need to reply, if you need a hand, please contact my Robin, if you think you can do it on your own, please contact me immediately after you make progress."
Batman still wanted to say something, but at this moment the off-road vehicle took a sharp turn and rushed into an alley.
Batman slammed on the gas, and bumped into the off-road vehicle with a bang before the turn.
The violent impact made him lean on the steering wheel, after making a low noise, Batman didn't spare a breath to rest, but immediately pushed the door open and rushed towards the overturned off-road vehicle.
Indeed there were two sneaky figures crawling out of the window, Batman once again strangled his neck, pulled him out of the window, and then punched him in the right face.
"Where is Scarecrow?" Batman asked.
The person on the opposite side obviously wasn't a soldier, he whimpered, leaned against the off-road vehicle's tire, and spat out a mouthful of bloody water.
Just as Batman reached out his arm again to grab his collar, he saw the reflection on the back of his hand, so he changed his grab to a kick and kicked on his arm.
A shiny object flew out, when it landed on the ground, it splashed the water in the puddle, by the light reflection of the street lamp on the grounds, Batman saw clear, that was a syringe.
Indeed it was a trap.
With a crack, Batman ruthlessly broke the other man's arm. After a wail of pain, the man collapsed shivering on the ground, bleeding profusely from his mouth.
"You have three seconds to tell me where Scarecrow is. Your speech speed will determine how many ribs you get to keep."
His tone was cold as freezing rain. The man hadn't even had a chance to catch his breath and spit out a mouthful of bloody foam. A merciless boot came down on his chest. Crack. Two ribs on his left side were completely shattered.
"He's...he's in a building at 27 Chinatown...there's a loft...safehouse! It's his safehouse...!"
Batman didn't spare a second for the man's whimpers and screams. He picked up the syringe that had been kicked away, got back in the Batmobile and drove off.
Bzzz...
"I got the toxin you wanted, but I don't have the time to deliver it now." Batman drove the Batmobile a long way before stopping outside a store.
"It's in the counter at Doug's Deli. I'll have Robin deliver it to you. He will also handle towing the vehicle."
Batman paused a moment before adding, "But he has other duties to fulfill. If he lends you a hand, remind him not to neglect his duties."
"I will, Batman. Goodbye."
About twenty minutes later, Peter detected some movement in the corridor behind him. He looked up to see a man dressed in a red costume with a black cape stepping forward.
"Here's the toxin you requested." A syringe was placed down on the lab table. The man crossed his arms and said, "Welcome, new assistant. Can you tell me your codename?"
"You can just call me Peter Parker. I'm certain nobody on this world will know where I'm from."
"I like your confidence." Robin tilted his head and approached. "The vehicle is parked downstairs. But I don't get why you want it, it's just an old transportation device."
"Are you sure it hasn't been damaged?"
"Don't question my capabilities."
Peter walked past Robin. Robin turned to watch him leave, slightly puzzled. But Peter went straight downstairs to the slightly damaged vehicle.
Ignoring its exterior, he immediately opened the car door and started to take the dashboard apart with the tools from the toolbox in his hand.
"What are you doing? Need help?"
"Batman said you have work to do."
"It's all boring stuff. Can I stay and help you?"
"But you may not be able to help. Here, hold this for me." Peter handed the heavy steering wheel to Robin. Female Lydia slowly reclined and said, "Do you realize what a contradictory statement you just made?"
"I meant you won't be able to assist with what's coming next." Peter scanned the structure within the vehicle, and rapidly discovered something of interest. He quickly dismantled it and headed back.
He returned to the computer desk and after a few key strokes, a female voice filled the room.
"This is Prophet. I have returned to my base. For certain reasons, I will not leave from where I am. Any news, Batman?"
"It's Peter, Ms. Prophet. I need a reliable contact from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, someone who has a say in the management of superpower users."
There was an unusual silence on the other end of the line. When Barbara's voice came through again, she sounded genuinely puzzled.
"Tell me what you plan to do, Mr. Parker. You know it's impossible to obtain this contact through legitimate means."
"Then I'll use unofficial means, Ms, or I'll do it myself. Though that would likely result in harassment calls to various departments of the FBI, and we just don't have that sort of time."
"Tell me your objective and I'll connect your call."
"Please just connect the call for me, and you can listen in. I know you have other ways to contact Batman, so whether or not you agree with my plan, I believe he will."
"The call will be connected in ten seconds. You will be in contact with Amanda Waller. She is a tough, grizzled chief of the FBI's Criminal Division."
Beeep...Beeep...Beeep...
"Hello, FBI Major Crime Investigation Group. This is Amanda Waller... Wait, how come the number for the internal line is unknown? What are those idiots in Tech doing?"
"Hello, Ms. Waller. Clearly, this isn't an internal call, and this is the first time you've heard my voice. My name is Peter Parker and, regrettably, you won't find any information on me from this name."
"However, I am about to provide you with vital clues. For the next three minutes, please listen carefully as I am not going to repeat anything."
"Wait, you..."
"There is a major disturbance in Gotham City. A terrorist known as Scarecrow has released poison in the city, and over five hundred people have been injured or killed."
"Just now, we intercepted a vehicle belonging to the poisoners. It's sporting military camouflage, has two sensible surviving witnesses, a military-only signal identifier, and a unique military vehicle code."
"Ms, now I have two choices—I could hand it over to the military, or I could give it to you."
"Wait Mr. Parker!" Amanda suddenly gripped her phone and said, "Believe me, the military should never be your first choice. I think we should talk!"