The car halted on the road in front of Gotham University. The screech of the tires scraping against the pavement was unsettling. Victor swiftly opened the car door and crawled out. At the sight of the well-lit Gotham University Dormitory, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"As I've said before, Gotham City is so vast that even if dozens of people fell, it would not be such a coincidence for them to land precisely in Gotham University." Harvey patted Victor's shoulder,
Victor inhaled deeply and, instead of easing up, continued to stride briskly towards the university. He warned, "No, we can't be certain yet. The lab is quite far from the dormitory buildings…"
Harvey shook his head helplessly but kept up with Victor. The two of them hurried through the architecture of the university, passing by academic buildings, administrative blocks, and dormitories, until they finally reached the laboratory on the east side.
At first glance, the laboratory was pitch dark since it was now the wee hours of the morning. There were neither students nor teachers who would stay up late for their experiments in Gotham University, hence, the laboratory was always quiet at night.
However, this only irritated Victor more, making him think of many unwelcome scenarios. Perhaps, he had played out such situations countless times in his head. The madness brought about by his paranoia was almost drowning him.
"Calm down, Victor... Victor! Come back!" Harvey yelled behind him, but Victor had already dashed into the laboratory.
Echoes of heavy footsteps resonated in the staircase. Victor rushed straight to the floor where the lab was situated. Just as he halted by the stairs, he saw a faint glow seeping out from a door in the hallway.
Like a moth drawn to the light, Victor walked straight towards that door. As he pushed it open, he saw a few children standing outside the freezing chamber, under the cold light it cast, looking up at his wife.
Hearing the noise, the kids turned around. Upon seeing Victor, they began to chatter excitedly and huddled around him. Victor was slightly bewildered. He recognized them as the newspaper boys who were always delivering papers to Gotham University.
"Professor Victor! You're finally here. If you didn't show up soon, we would have fallen asleep!"
"That's right, we arrived about ten minutes ago. We thought you wouldn't come. We were going to leave."
"What is going on? Why are you here? How did you get the lab keys?"
The group of newsboys started to explain all at once, causing Victor to feel a slight headache. He held onto one boy's head and said: "All of you, quiet down. You go first."
The boy lifted his head proudly, clearing his throat before saying, "Originally, we all lived in the guardhouse at the entrance of Gotham University. You know, the one at the east gate which is set aside for newsboys."
"About ten or fifteen minutes ago, we received a call from Boss Cobblepot. He told us to fetch the key hidden on top of the doorframe and then wait for you in the lab."
"That doorframe is so high. We had to pile ourselves up to barely reach and get the key down. He said if anyone invaded the lab, we should use the freeze gun next to us to freeze them."
"You haven't finished!" a little girl interjected in a high pitch, "Boss Cobblepot said that if all the lights in the lab went out and even flipping the switch didn't work, we should go to the next room and turn on the generator."
"That's right, he mentioned pushing some buttons."
"We've been waiting here for so long, with no intruders and no power outage. We were almost falling asleep…"
The kids were young, about seven or eight years old, and were all small. As they chattered, they were like sparrows chirping in the snow.
Victor looked down at them. When Victor fell silent, they all quieted down. Each child looked up at Victor with wide eyes.
Victor slowly squatted down and pulled the ring-leading boy into his arms. He patted the boy's head and said, "Thank you."
When Harvey walked in, he saw this scene. After sending the children off to bed, they returned to Victor's laboratory.
They stood in front of the floor-length window, gazing at the burning Gotham City. The fluctuating brightness from outside caused their shadows to appear and disappear. Harvey heard Victor say:
"Many people claim this place is beyond redemption. They say that the darkness here is hopeless and endless…"
"They say that Gothamites, the people of this city, are the ones who bring about the darkness. Chaos and madness are then their inevitable consequences. Do you think they are truly hopeless?"
Harvey turned his head, looking at the buildings in the city, he noted, "I have always held a belief that there is no place beyond redemption in this world. That is why I came here."
"The environment shapes people, and people shape the environment. I don't know what the origin of this darkness was, but I do know that when the darkest night comes, with no light left, the human race still creates fire and illuminates its civilization."
"Do you hear what those people are shouting?" Victor looked at the scene outside the window, "They are yelling about eliminating evil and maintaining peace. They say they want to save this place…"
Harvey shook his head and commented, "If it were that simple to save Gotham, I wouldn't be hidden here all this time, accomplishing nothing."