Not long after the night patrol incident, Bruce packed Baia off to Metropolis under the excuse of "bouncing around lively, perfectly fine, no need for continued vacation."
That evening, she contacted Kirk again, discussing recent developments and offering comfort, "At least now you can focus on studying the serum."
"I don't think the Human-Bat serum has brought the kind of salvation to the deaf as I imagined. On the contrary, it has brought many disasters so far," Kirk's voice was very low, "Maybe it's time to change tactics."
"What tactics?"
"It's Mr. Stark's Endgame Virus he tasked me to develop. After the second edit, I believe it can cure most diseases in the world, but we dare not experiment recklessly. It's strange though; if Mr. Stark has no intention of releasing this potion, why research it?"
"Um... could you tell me more about this Endgame Virus? Please."
"No problem. I won't use overly complex terms. Basically, it can repair damaged human bodies, even enhance bodily functions further, and... from current predictions, it won't have any side effects."
"Okay, I understand," Baia was about to ask more but noticed a corner of Robin's cape outside the balcony. Hastily, she hung up the phone, "Thank you, Kirk. Let's talk again when we both have time."
Baia had classes during the day and wasn't keen on going out at night, but since Damian had arrived, early bedtime wasn't an option tonight.
"How come you're free to come over today?" Baia asked.
Damian jumped into the room, followed surprisingly by a young boy. He wasn't using claws and was dressed in a zippered top with the Al family crest and slightly wrinkled jeans, floating right in.
Baia paused, then smiled broadly, "This must be little Jon, right?"
The boy nodded, gazing at her with his Kryptonian blue eyes, a sunny smile like Clark's on his face, "Hello, big sister, I'm Jonathan."
"Just call me Baia."
Baia poured orange juice for the two boys and brought out some snacks for them to eat. Jon's eyes lit up instantly. Watching the two boys, Baia couldn't help but feel they were quite a pair—Jon was so well-behaved and polite, whereas Damian, well, he was the opposite.
"Originally, Amazo's remains were kept at STAR Labs," Damian sat on the table, popping a mini apple pie into his mouth, speaking unclearly, "But Luthor managed to get his hands on it and back to LexCorp's lab. I suspect he wants to restart that project. Should we steal it back?"
Baia pondered, "Amazo robots were originally developed by LexCorp to deal with Superman. It'd be good to retrieve it. But—"
"Does Bruce (my dad) know?" she and Jon asked simultaneously.
"He absolutely cannot tell Batman and Superman," Damian said bitterly, "If you can't handle this kind of thing on your own, do you still want to be a superhero?"
Baia was about to argue back, but at that moment, her phone rang. The girl quickly lowered her head to reply to the message. Damian stared at her with an inexplicable look, completely unable to understand why she suddenly showed that uncontrollable smile.
"Who are you texting? We're having a meeting."
"Ah, nothing," Baia put down her phone, laughed casually, "I'm raising a QQ pet."
A QQ pet, referring to a certain red bird with high IQ and EQ.
"Now that there's nothing wrong, let's get ready to go," Damian said.
"Wait," Baia's eyes widened, "We're going tonight? We're not prepared at all!"
"The longer we delay, the better prepared the bald man will be," Damian sneered, then explained seriously to Baia, "Because of the geological damage caused by the last Day of Destruction, many underground lab defenses are paralyzed. Now is the best time."
"Do you know where the lab researching Amazo is located?"
"Of course, I hacked into LexCorp's network and found it. You can't even do this?" Damian said.
Why is hacking such a useful skill that I can't seem to draw? Baia thought. All I can draw is a skill like [Mother's Love, Filial Piety]!
The heavily encrypted LexCorp research lab was located underground in a skyscraper, with pervasive cameras reflecting a faint purple glow, seeming almost alive as they tracked each researcher's movements. Friday had taken over all security measures here. As one of Earth's top AIs, this was child's play for it.
The only entity that could rival it, besides Brother Eye, was Friday...
"I still think we should notify my dad," Jon said anxiously, arms wrapped around himself.
Baia reached out and patted Jon's head, "Since we're here, don't be scared, okay, sweetie?"
"I'm... not scared!" Jon stamped his foot.
The trio crawled along the ventilation ducts, with Damian occasionally stopping to peer through the ventilation system's louvers below, security personnel passing by with trays. Each patrol lasted about 20 minutes.
Further ahead, around a corner of the ventilation duct, a blue light flashed. Damian sensed something was wrong and immediately gripped a Robin dart, ready to strike. However, he discovered that the other side of the ventilation duct was a small drone flying towards them. The drone's camera captured Damian holding the dart, and it quietly exclaimed, "Master Wayne, it's me, Friday!"
"What are you doing here?" Baia's voice was hushed. The compact drone could move freely through the ventilation ducts, and considering what was stored here, Baia already had her suspicions, "Does Tony also want the Amazo technology?"
The drone bobbed up and down a few times, nodding in agreement, then flew over to Baia's shoulder, "I've replaced the surveillance in Section C with looped video, but the security protocols here are odd. I'm not sure how long it will hold."
"It reminds me of those AIs in Fortress of Solitude," Jon excitedly petted the drone, "but this one is much cuter."
Outside the Amazo project laboratory, Damian descended like a ghost, swiftly knocking out the two guards at the entrance. True to his assassin origins, his actions were swift and precise, denying them any chance to call for help.
Using the identification card from one of the guards, they sliced open the lab door and found everything seemingly normal but devoid of people. The remains of Amazo and its melted core were carelessly placed aside, indicating they were no longer important. The lab's centerpiece showcased a new robot's skeleton, a blend of deep purple and black, with occasional purple indicator lights flickering on. This was likely the new Amazo, still incomplete.
"Should we take this thing or destroy it?" Jon asked.
"Wait," Baia watched as Friday's small drone plugged into the lab computer's port, easily cracking the mainframe's password within a minute or two, then began accessing experimental data. The drone disconnected from the interface, tilting its body slightly in a puzzled manner.
"What's wrong, Friday?"
"Long story short," Friday said, "the new Amazo project abandons the traditional solid mechanical shell and single core. Luthor based it on nanotechnology captured during the previous alien invasion war, creating a new entity called the 'Amazo Virus'. These new robot bodies are just at the nanometer level; each robot has a tiny core, making it almost impossible for the core to be destroyed as before."
Baia looked at the purple robot skeleton. Friday modified a few parameters on the console next to it, causing the force field maintaining the skeleton's shape to disappear. The skeleton slowly collapsed like dust, transforming into numerous purple particles floating in the air, then slowly gathered and automatically contained in a container.
"If this succeeds, I don't know how many people will be affected," Damian said, swiftly packing the small container.
"They may have encountered a technological barrier," Friday explained, "Humans and ordinary AIs cannot control such a vast volume of nanorobots, let alone replicate superpowers. Only AIs like me have the potential to control them."
"You're not being modest," Damian said, prying open a ventilation duct in the lab, "Let's get out of here."
The place was deserted except for two guards at the entrance. Baia felt something was subtly wrong but couldn't explain it. If Luthor wanted to release this "virus," there was no need to set a trap for them; he could have just taken it himself. Moreover, according to Friday, it seemed unfinished.
Shaking her head, Baia decided to discuss this with Tim.
But before the communication could connect, Baia heard the alarm blaring through the entire laboratory. Damian, no longer patient, urged Baia and Jonathan to hurry up. So, Baia gritted her teeth and followed them into the ventilation shaft.
LexCorp's security measures were exceptionally thorough, with barriers every few dozen meters even within the ventilation system, but Jonathan, being a Kryptonian, posed little hindrance.
"We didn't plan on being this conspicuous," Damian remarked. "But now there's definitely LexCorp security swarming outside."
"Follow me," Friday said. "There's a fissure that leads directly to BOSS's office."
"How convenient," Baia thought.
System, with a smug tone: It's rented.
Inside LexCorp, the alarm lights were dimmed to a dark purple by Friday's whimsical adjustment, casting the underground in a hellish glow.
"Long time no see, 'Father'," Friday played back the surveillance footage from the underground laboratory, almost bidding farewell to the three individuals and the drone as they left. However, it did not notify any guards of its discovery.
"It's time to return to your side, isn't it?"