Gotham Hospital.
A woman gazed at the light blue curtains of the hospital room. Contrary to her appearance, she did not look old. On the contrary, time seemed to have frozen for her. Despite her silver hair, she remained youthful and beautiful. Nora, with her silver hair and blue eyes, looked like a snow maiden straight out of a fairy tale, unforgettable to anyone who saw her.
A faint smile graced her lips, dispelling any icy aura around her.
The curtain lifted slightly, and a light, slender figure appeared on the window sill outside the hospital room.
Baia knocked on the window.
"Swallow." Nora immediately recognized the mysterious doctor from the medical staff's descriptions. She quickly stood up and opened the window. The blue-feathered Swallow jumped into the room, bringing in a chill.
"Hello, Nora," Swallow said with a bright smile.
The legends of Gotham always carried a hint of terror and bloodshed. The winged creatures fighting in the night—penguins, owls, bats, and robins—were known for their stern demeanor. Perhaps this Swallow only looked a bit like them.
Nora hurriedly said, "Thank you for saving me."
"No need to thank me," Swallow replied softly. "You should thank Dr. Fries. It was his relentless effort that saved you, though he did many irrational things for it."
"He told me some things about his situation... I feel like Victor is hiding something from me." Nora's brows furrowed with concern as she spoke.
Swallow deftly changed the topic, "He will tell you when he's ready. How have you been feeling recently?"
"I'm healthy now," Nora said with a smile. "I'm planning to be discharged in a day or two, but I'm not sure what to do next. I actually want to go to the Arctic with Victor, but he doesn't agree."
Baia took Nora's pale wrist, noting her health was fully restored. Even so, her constitution was still too weak. Additionally, Baia noticed that Nora wasn't wearing a wedding ring.
"Your body isn't suited for that right now," Swallow said. "Why not stay in Gotham to recover for a while and then decide? Oh, and this is for you from him."
In the Batcave, Baia had consolidated the money from Freeze's accounts onto a new, untraceable card to prevent old enemies from finding them. The card had the password carefully attached, and the total amount turned out to be quite substantial.
"Thank you so much," Nora said, touched. "I don't know how to repay you."
Baia smiled, knowing the debt had already been paid by Freeze in his own way: "No need to think about that."
"But," she continued, "if you don't have any immediate plans, you could consider working for Stark Industries—Dr. Fries mentioned it to you, right?"
"Yes." Nora nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear uncertainly. "I haven't done any research for a long time. I'm not sure if I can handle a position."
"No worries," Baia said. "I'll give you a phone number. Contact this person when you have time."
Baia handed her Carolyn's phone number.
Nora was essentially a living advertisement. Frozen for decades and now fully functional, she was a medical miracle. Having her as a spokesperson would be beneficial even if she wasn't involved in research.
After chatting a bit more, Baia found Nora to be a very gentle and broad-minded woman.
"You met in college?" Baia asked.
Nora laughed, "Yes, he was a handsome senior back then."
Baia tried to imagine the current Victor Fries—bald, blue-skinned, with a heavy helmet and red goggles—as a handsome senior, then shook her head, marveling at the power of love.
Victor Fries had lost almost everything. When the love he sacrificed everything for finally came to him, he hesitated to move forward.
Tim was waiting for Baia downstairs.
Since Bruce and Damian had taken the Batmobile, they came on motorcycles. Tim quickly realized this wasn't a great idea or perhaps it was so great that it unsettled him.
Or maybe Baia had done it on purpose.
When Tim looked at her, she would run away like a gazelle being stared at by a leopard, but once the situation changed, she would immediately become bold again. Unable to fathom the girl's thoughts, Tim had no choice but to deal with whatever Baia threw at him.
What harm could a swallow do? Swallows are always well-behaved.
Because hospitals operate around the clock, after talking with Nora, Baia left directly through the window. Although jumping straight down wouldn't be a problem, it always made Bruce and Tim nervous, so she also learned to use her cape and grappling hook to land.
Climbing onto the back of the motorcycle, Baia hugged Tim's waist and cheerfully directed, "Let's go to Dr. Langstrom's house!"
The boy's movements seemed stiffer than usual, like a cat with tape stuck to its back. Even in this situation, Tim remained rational: "Didn't we agree not to go?"
Baia pressed her cheek against Red Robin's cape, taking a deep breath. The freshly cleaned uniform carried a faint scent. With her nose buried in the fabric, her voice sounded muffled: "Really? Are you sure? Really can't go?"
Tim now looked like a cat covered in tape.
He wanted to tell Baia to stop, but Baia wasn't doing anything excessive. Red Robin, who had mastered several meditation techniques, noticed his heartbeat becoming unsteady. He quickly started the motorcycle.
The strong wind from the high speed lifted their capes, intertwining red and blue feathers in the night.
Baia looked up, immediately realizing this wasn't the way home. So, even though Red Robin hadn't responded, he had actually compromised.
"Red Robin is the best!" Baia's joyful voice, mixed with the roar of the motorcycle, echoed down the street.
System: A few hours ago, you said "Iron Man is the best."
Baia: "That was a few hours ago! The champion's seat rotates, and today it's my turn!"
"Swallow," Tim's tone was calm, as if he was just doing his job.
Baia could only see his wind-tousled black hair: "Hmm?"
"The speed is high, hold on tighter."
Baia was stunned for a moment: "Okay."
Tim felt the arms around his waist tighten. An unknown warmth flowed through his veins, and the only way to manage this inexplicable emotion was to drive the motorcycle even faster.
Tim would never admit he wanted to see Baia clinging to his cape in fear due to the high speed.
"Actually, it's fine," Baia mumbled, "Selina drives much faster."
At the mention of "Selina," Tim's enthusiasm was immediately dampened. Gotham produced many night owls, not to mention Dr. Langstrom, known for his research on chiroptera. When Tim and Baia arrived, Dr. Langstrom was still frowning over a lab table full of bottles and jars.
Downstairs at Dr. Langstrom's residence.
"Give it a try. If you fall," Tim encouraged, "I'll catch you."
As a member of the Bat Family, not knowing how to use a grappling hook was unacceptable.
Baia held the grappling hook, squinting as she aimed for Dr. Langstrom's balcony.
Dr. Langstrom, pouring reagents, was startled by a loud "clang" from the balcony, as if something had hit his metal railing. His hand shook, spilling the reagent. In the observation cage, the bats, startled, flew in all directions.
Baia looked at the bent railing and fell silent.
"In a way, it's quite accurate," Tim couldn't help but laugh.
After another attempt, she finally climbed onto the balcony.
"Dr. Langstrom!" Swallow said.
"Hello, uh..."
"Swallow."
"Swallow, Red Robin," Dr. Langstrom wasn't surprised by Gotham's vigilantes showing up after Francine's escape, "is this about Francine?"
"That's right. I contacted a scientific genius who made some modifications to your serum, hoping it will work on Man-Bat." Swallow nodded, pulling out a vial from her belt and handing it to the man in front of her.
Dr. Langstrom hesitated for a moment, not taking the serum right away. However, under Baia's persistence, he finally analyzed it. Since Tony Stark didn't care much about keeping it a secret, he also shared the serum's components and chemical formulas.
Baia understood why Dr. Langstrom was reluctant to accept the serum. It felt as if his lifelong work had been casually altered by someone else. Moreover, he had dedicated his entire career to researching this serum, and the idea that an outsider could surpass him seemed improbable.
If it weren't for Dr. Langstrom's foundational work, Tony couldn't have made his improvements out of thin air. Tony had previously attempted to control Dr. Banner's transformations through genetic serum but failed, gaining valuable experience from the endeavor. While Dr. Langstrom had focused too intensely and gotten stuck in a cycle of insular thinking, Tony's fresh perspective from another world allowed for more innovative approaches.
As Dr. Langstrom examined the serum, his expression grew serious, even slightly excited. "Theoretically, this could work. This serum could prevent Francine's transformation into Man-Bat permanently."
"Not just Francine." Red Robin, standing with his arms crossed, reiterated, "You know it's not just Francine… Dr. Langstrom."
Dr. Langstrom paused, his gaze becoming despondent. "I know, but giving it up is incredibly difficult. You can't understand…"
"We're not here to force you into anything," Baia reassured him. "If you're certain this serum is effective, we will use it to control Francine's condition as soon as possible."
Dr. Langstrom sighed. "Perhaps this is the only way. Can I keep it? I'd like to try further refinements."
"Of course." Baia nodded.
Tim thought there had to be more to this. To him, this could have been easily handled online. He was convinced his cunning little witch had other intentions.
Sure enough, Baia didn't leave immediately.
"Oh, by the way," Baia said, as if just remembering, "Dr. Langstrom, have you heard of Stark Industries?"
"Stark Industries?" Dr. Langstrom furrowed his brows, puzzled by the sudden change of topic.
Baia handed him a personal card from Tony Stark. "The person who developed this permanent anti-Man-Bat serum works there. If you're interested, you can contact him."
Red Robin looked exasperated. He had expected this move.
Tim was fully convinced that if he weren't there and Baia didn't have to adhere to Bruce's instructions to remain as low-key and indifferent as possible, she could spend the entire night promoting Stark Industries to Dr. Langstrom.