บท 82: Unlikely Allies
He reached out his hand and grabbed the Batwing's left wing, throwing it off balance.
The turbines whirred dangerously, almost catching fire, and the jet engines sputtered.
"Batman."
This time, Clark's tone carried a warning.
Inside the cockpit, Batman shot him an angry glare.
He pressed a button on the control panel, and two large sonic disruptors popped up from the Batwing, blasting powerful ultrasonic waves at Superman.
Clark winced but endured the attack.
The high-frequency sound waves didn't hurt him, but his patience was running out.
Already feeling frustrated, Clark was now at the edge of his temper.
As soon as the sonic blast paused, he tilted his head, locking eyes with Batman.
In a flash, he crushed the two sonic devices like they were nothing.
Hovering above the Batwing, his red cape billowing like flames, the Man of Steel spoke sincerely, "If something's going on, please tell me. I think I can help, Batman."
For the first time, Batman actually looked at him.
"Superman."
When Batman said the name, his voice was rough, heavy with caution and alertness.
It carried the weight of deep memories buried at the bottom of a lake, along with trust and promise that was about to emerge.
He brought Superman into his line of sight, as if he were a lion on the plains allowing a lone wolf from a different pack to enter his territory.
It was as though he already knew that the person before him would one day become his lifelong brother-in-arms, ally, and friend.
...
New York.
Midtown Manhattan.
The blond-haired boy, Soren, retrieved the electronic pass with high-level access to Stark Tower from his home.
Without any issues, he entered the top floor of the tower.
His expression was cold, a stark contrast to the boy who once smiled brightly at everyone he met.
Several employees who saw him paused, surprised by his unfamiliar demeanor.
Fortunately, the president of Stark Industries was absent today, so Soren moved freely, taking the elevator to the highest level of the tower.
—At the top of Stark Tower was also a billion-dollar supercomputer, currently running.
He entered the server room, and the building's AI greeted him, "Good afternoon, Mr. Hargreaves. The weather is quite nice today. If you feel like visiting the park, I believe you'd enjoy a pleasant break."
He didn't answer, his face cold.
He quickly moved toward the control panel and immediately began searching through the data.
A massive stream of information started to process, lines of data flashing across the screen.
Soren stayed completely focused on operating the supercomputer, tuning out the AI's polite greetings in its British accent.
As the minutes ticked by, more and more data was processed, gradually narrowing in on his target.
His fingers moved swiftly over the keyboard, inputting commands that pushed the data calculations forward.
After over an hour, the supercomputer finally finished its computations, and the answer he was looking for appeared on the screen.
A string of numbers glowed on the screen, reflected in his eyes.
...
On the other side of New York.
Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.
Batman's Batwing landed on the lawn just before Superman's red cape touched the ground.
Batman jumped out of the Batwing, with Superman close behind, still asking questions, "But why couldn't I hear his heartbeat? Where could he have gone?"
The Dark Knight strode toward the school, replying, "A creature without blood doesn't need a heartbeat."
Clark was shocked, "You mean Angemon has no heart? Then how are we supposed to find him? How does he stay alive? It's so strange. He's not like me who can absorb the energy from the yellow sun, or like Iron Man who was powered by a reactor in his chest… You said he's an alien, but could he come from the same galaxy as I do?"
The Dark Knight pressed his lips together in silence, offering no response.
They walked into the hallways of the old building, where Professor X who had been already informed of Batman's arrival, sat in his wheelchair and waited for them at the end of the corridor.
Professor X's calm, blue, opal-like eyes glanced at the man in the red cape who was standing behind Batman.
Suddenly, he raised a hand to his forehead.
"Charles?" Hank who stood behind Professor X, noticed something was wrong and quickly bent down to check on him.
A deep furrow formed on Professor X's brow.
He blinked hard, trying to push back the dull pain invading his mind, but it felt like every neuron in his brain was pulsing, overwhelmed by a crushing pressure that nearly left him blank for a moment.
"What's wrong?"
Batman quickly stepped forward, placing a hand on Professor X's shoulder.
Clark followed closely behind Batman, watching the scene with curiosity.
Professor X gripped the armrests of his wheelchair tightly, his chest rising and falling quickly as he gasped for air.
When he lifted his head again, a few drops of cold sweat had formed on his forehead.
Hank that was concerned, asked, "Professor, are you alright?"
Professor X shook his head, his face a bit pale, "I'm fine, Hank. I think I just didn't sleep well last night."
He wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve, then turned his eyes toward Clark, his blue gaze full of curiosity.
"…Hello, a visitor from Metropolis."
Clark extended his hand, "Hello, Professor X. I've seen your picture on TV. You look younger in person."
Professor X gave a faint smile and shook Clark's hand, "It's an honor to meet you in person, Superman."
Batman watched them coolly from the side.
Once their polite exchange was over, he spoke, "The tracker."
Professor X sighed a little and gave Batman a knowing look.
He moved his hands from the armrests to his knees and said slowly, "I remember you telling me that you wouldn't use it unless absolutely necessary. You also promised me it could stay here for safekeeping. So now, can you tell me what's going on?"
His eyes searched Batman's for answers.
From the day they met, Batman had been cautious around him.
He quickly added a device to his cowl to block telepathy, and since then, he had never taken it off.
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