"Just then, my fiancée Belennera called me. She was crying uncontrollably on the other end, sounding extremely sad and panic-stricken. She said that someone was threatening her with emails and notes, promising to kill her..."
Cobblepot, who had been silent so far, said: "Belennera? I think I know her, she's a student at the School of Environmental Science. Indeed, she hasn't been in the lab for a few days. Originally, the project she oversaw often required use of this lab, but I haven't seen her in days."
"That's why I've come to find her here!" Thomas roared, "I know she was conducting experiments here. She left her bag at my place containing a key to this place, specialized gloves, and protective clothing, which I recognized as gear specific to the Cryogenic Lab..."
"So, that's how you managed to open the door to this lab?" Cobblepot looked at Thomas' hand, which indeed was clad in a glove. It was not easy to notice because, being a super thin glove made to very tightly fit the hand, it was hardly noticeable.
"She must have gone missing!" Thomas's emotions grew increasingly unstable, he argued: "She may even have been harmed. I must find her!"
With Thomas' emotions growing more erratic, his grip on Lex tightened. It was so tight that Lex struggled to catch his breath, his face turning a shade of red, his lips even turning slightly purple.
No matter how you looked at it, Lex's physical constitution was truly poor, and he couldn't fight back against the physically imposing Thomas. Even a frail Cobblepot, armed with a weapon, could force him back step by step.
Even a genius brain wouldn't be able to convert intellect into physical strength under such circumstances; his genius brain, starved of oxygen, was already on the verge of fainting.
Batman seemed to have observed the situation and advanced two steps forward to put pressure on Thomas, but Thomas did not retreat, because he knew that behind him was the window; retreat was not an option. He needed to adjust his stance and give himself more room to dodge an impending attack from Batman.
So, he withdrew to his left and rear, placing more distance between himself, Batman, and Cobblepot.
In this direction was the open interior of the lab. Batman advanced step by step, while Thomas backed step by step, retreating in this direction until he backed against the biggest machine at the center of the room.
As mentioned before, it is a huge cylindrical machine that spanned two floors. Apart from surrounding control panels and fixed devices, its interior contained a cylindrical arrangement for storing liquids: the materials Victor used to create Super Ice.
Due to some material characteristics, it can't be stored as a solid and can only exist as a liquid in a special containment chamber. It requires constant stirring and a particular chemical agent to maintain its stability.
At this moment, the blue liquid inside the cylindrical storage device Thomas was leaning against was churning like beautiful waves or an unpredictable nebula. Its cold light lit up his back, yet because of the well-sealed containment, no icy chill emanated from it.
Experience showed that necessary stimuli could increase a person's vigilance towards potentially hazardous objects - just like how one instinctively pulls their hand away upon coming in contact with a boiling kettle. But now, since Thomas did not feel anything unusual from what he leaned against, he did not realize the extreme danger he was in.
Batman's attention was entirely focused on Lex, or rather, no matter who Thomas was holding hostage, Batman's primary objective was always to rescue the hostage.
At this point, the pressure from Batman had become too overwhelming for Thomas and he appeared to be on the verge of a meltdown. He tightened his grip around Lex's neck, ranting, "You're all the same! You bunch of... ha, geniuses? Geniuses? Do you think you're geniuses?!"
"Why are you born superior? Why can't I be?! Answer me! Is this fair?!"
"Bruce Wayne!" Thomas suddenly raised his voice, "Do you think I don't know who you are? Batman! I've been investigating since the moment Batman appeared, I started investigating..."
"I've seen through your tricks! You are not any kind of a superhero lurking in the night! You damned hypocrite! You are just using your exceptional talents and wealth, now, I want to have it all too..."
However, the scene Thomas had anticipated, Batman being shocked due to his identity being revealed, did not take place, he didn't even react to it.
But this isn't surprising, given the current timeline, in the plot altered by Shiller, almost everyone knows Batman's real identity, Shiller knows, Gordon knows, Victor knows, Constantine knows, and Hal knows.
Whenever they met privately, regardless if Bruce wore casual hoodies and jeans or the cold bat suit, these guys would call him "Bruce".
Despite Bruce repeatedly emphasizing to call him Batman when he was in bat suit, these people seemed to treat it like a form of child's play, accommodating him when they were in a good mood, forgetting when they had to deal with more serious matters.
So in the circle of Gotham's eccentrics, Batman was known by his real name, and after some time, he stopped correcting them, if they wanted to call him Bruce, then so be it. Forcing them to correct their terminology not only made him a laughingstock, but also yielded no results, they were free to do as they pleased, the desensitization therapy seemed to be successful.
Seeing Batman's lack of reaction, Thomas grew more hysterical, his grip stronger, and at that moment, Batman knew he had to act or Lex would be in danger.
But just then, a figure moved faster than him. The small and thin Cobblepot darted towards Thomas at an incredible speed, raising his sharp knife, prompting Thomas to dodge to the side.
Then, "Whoosh, Whoosh," two sounds rang out and a pair of Batman darts flew past Thomas's neck.
To avoid the pincer attack, Thomas had to seek a cover, the control panel was a good choice. However, if he wanted to dodge, he could not hold onto Lex, he was a hindrance.
Thomas flung Lex to the side and rolled behind the control panel. However, the two darts that Batman had thrown didn't stop, they hit the glass of the liquid storage device.
Batman, anticipating possible damage to the objects behind Thomas, threw lightly, as the darts made a soft impact against the glass, then dropped, seemingly causing no damage.
But then, a faint crack began to appear from where the darts had landed, and in an instant, Batman and Cobblepot quickly retreated, just as the liquid storage device exploded with a "Bang".
Having taken cover on the other side of the room, Batman and Cobblepot were not affected, but they felt a chilling cold. Yet, Thomas, hidden behind the control panel and Lex, who Thomas had tossed aside, were completely engulfed by the erupted blue liquid.
Then, Batman saw a stream of bubbles appearing in the dreamy blue waves.
Immediately after, a pale, thin hand emerged from the liquid. At the same time, the resurrected madman stood once again as Gotham's eternal nightmare—
"Hahahahaha!!!"