CHAPTER 118 — THE BATCAVE
The Batcave was deep beneath the earth, hidden below layers of stone and steel. It was quiet in a way few places ever were. Not peaceful, but controlled. Water dripped from the cave ceiling in slow, steady beats. Each drop echoed faintly before fading into the low hum of machines.
Soft blue and white lights washed across the cave. Screens lined the walls, each displaying different areas of Gotham, numbers and data shifting every few seconds. Cables ran along the floor and climbed the rock walls, neat and orderly. Everything here served a purpose.
One side of the cave was filled with scientific equipment. The table in it, sat the cube, surrounded by various instruments analyzing the Mother Box.
The cube seated in the surface of the Table, glowing with a soft, steady light. Symbols moved across its surface. It did not make a sound, but it felt present, like something watching without eyes.
Tony Stark stood a few steps away from it, arms loosely at his sides. His posture was relaxed, almost casual, but his eyes were sharp. He studied the box the way a mechanic studied an engine, looking for patterns, weak points, and answers.
Batman stood beside him, taller in the shadows. His cape fell straight down his back, unmoving. His arms were crossed, his stance firm. He was not looking at the Mother Box alone. His attention moved between the cube and Tony, watching both with equal care.
There was no small talk. No jokes. No greetings.
Only focus.
Tony finally broke the silence. He raised one hand and gestured toward the cube.
"This thing," he said simply, "is a supercomputer."
Batman did not respond. Thin red laser lines swept from his gauntlet, scanning the Mother Box inch by inch. Numbers flickered across a nearby screen, appearing and vanishing in seconds. A three-dimensional model formed beside them, but it showed only the outer shell. The interior remained unreadable.
Tony continued, keeping his voice calm and clear.
"It controls energy," he said. "Not just power like electricity. Deeper than that. Heat, force, movement. It shapes it."
He took a slow step closer, careful not to touch it.
"It can change matter too. Take something broken and rebuild it. Take raw material and turn it into something else."
Batman's eyes stayed on his scans.
"It can talk to technology," Tony added. "At a level we don't have words for yet. It doesn't hack. It doesn't break in. It just… tells machines what they are now."
Batman finally spoke, his voice low and steady.
"How do you know this?"
Tony shrugged lightly.
"I have my ways."
Tony didn't want to reveal the ability granted to them by the Multiversal Chat: Identification.
Batman paused his scan for half a second.
"You've had this for less than a day," he said. "No one on this planet understands alien tech like you do."
Bruce was uneasy. They had only obtained the Mother Box today, yet the information they were sharing went far beyond what he had uncovered at S.T.A.R. Labs. There, the box had been labeled only as dangerous. Silas Stone had called it volatile and The chance of unlocking Unlimited energy through it.
Now these strangers, who had possessed it for less than a day, were speaking with certainty about its capabilities.
Tony smiled, but it wasn't smug. It was honest.
"True," he said.
Batman resumed scanning. He didn't argue. He didn't accept it either. He stored the information away, filing it for later.
Tony glanced around the cave, his eyes moving over the machines, the suits on display, the tools laid out with care.
"Your tech is good," Tony said. "Really good."
Batman said nothing.
"For this world," Tony added. "It's the best I've seen."
Batman's hands moved faster, adjusting settings.
"But," Tony continued, holding up a finger, "this thing? It's way past what Earth tech can handle right now."
He looked back at the Mother Box.
"Not your fault," he said. "If this were twenty years later, maybe. But right now? Even your systems are working blind."
The technology in the Batcave was impressive, far beyond anything Tony had seen in his own world, but it was broad and generalized. Compared to his personal equipment, it was still less refined and precise. That made sense: after all, he was Tony Stark, and this world was 2015, while his own timeline was 2012. The slight gap in technological development explained why, even here, his own tech still outmatched much of what Batman had built.
Batman stopped again. This time, he looked at Tony directly.
"You're saying my tools aren't enough."
Tony nodded once.
"I'm saying they're impressive," he replied. "But mine's just better. No need to be sad, that's normal. After all, I am Tony Stark."
Batman turned back to his work. He didn't say a word, merely continuing to study the Mother Box. But in his mind, he was already thinking about upgrading his equipment once all of this was over.
Time passed.
The lights in the cave shifted as hours passed. Some screens went dark, while others flickered to life with new data. A cup of coffee, given to Bruce earlier by Alfred, sat untouched on a nearby metal table, its steam long gone.
Finally, Batman spoke again.
"Your friends are Already settled in my mansion," he said.
Tony didn't look up.
"Good," he replied. "I think Alfred will entertain them."
Tony said this, knowing Alfred well enough, after all, they had been greeted by him when they arrived at Wayne Manor. Curious about Batman's identity, Tony had done a little investigating. With their arrival at the manor, it didn't take long for him to figure out who Batman really was.
Batman ignored the comment.
He turned, fully facing Tony now.
"Now tell me," he said. "Who are you?"
Tony straightened and met his gaze.
"Didn't I say?" Tony replied. "Defenders of humanity."
Batman let out a short, sharp scoff.
"That's not an answer."
He stepped closer. His voice dropped, not loud, but heavy.
"Tell me the truth," he said. "Who are you?"
Tony raised both hands slowly, palms open.
"No need to get angry," he said.
He reached into the air with his iron-clad hand, and with a flick, a USB appeared in his palm.
"This," Tony said, "is the truth."
Tony used the Parcel System of the Multiversal Chat to store items and supplies he might need, and that USB was one of them.
Batman took it, but did not plug it in. He scanned it first. Then scanned it again. He ran checks through isolated systems, looking for traps, hidden signals, anything that could turn against him.
Only after several long minutes did he connect it to a secondary screen.
The video began.
The Batcave filled with light.
The view showed a sky torn open by fire. Objects fell from above, burning bright as they cut through the air.
Drop pods.
They hit the ground with force that shook the camera. Dirt and debris flew in all directions.
The pods opened.
Giants stepped out.
They were armored, massive, moving with purpose. Their weapons roared, sending rounds that exploded on impact. Enemies fell in pieces, bodies torn apart by force far beyond normal guns.
Batman leaned closer to the screen.
This was not Earth.
The next image showed civilians. Thin. Scarred. Chained.
Slaves.
Their eyes were wide with fear. Machines were bolted into their bodies. Overseers shouted orders.
Then the giants moved again.
The overseers fell. One by one. Clean. Fast.
Chains shattered. The slaves fell to their knees, crying and trembling, their hands brushing the ground as if they couldn't believe it was real. Some made the imperial eagle sign toward the armored warriors. Their voices rose, raw and awed
"The Emperor's angels… salvation… deliverance…"
"Angels… Angels of Death…"
Batman's pupils narrowed at the sight of the humans, augmented and treated like slaves. He caught their words: "Emperor's angels…"
Emperor? The ruler there? Angels? Were they referring to the armored warriors?
The video shifted.
A new battlefield.
A wide metal platform stretched across open space. Endless creatures surged forward, screaming, clawing.
The armored warriors held them back on a high platform of dark, oil-stained metal that loomed over the battlefield.
Their fire never stopped. Blades flashed. Blood sprayed across the platform, dark and thick.
Batman watched closely. Their movements were clean. Disciplined. No wasted motion.
Then the camera shook.
As the armored warriors began to be overwhelmed.
Someone familiar appeared.
Gold armor.
Tall. Massive.
A Warhammer rested in his grip.
Gaius.
Then he roared, a sound so fierce it shook the Batcave speakers. Batman felt it reverberate in his chest.
The enemies they had been fighting dropped like flies. Those still on the ground fell as well.
Gaius charged forward.
The hammer slammed into the metal floor.
The shockwave obliterated everything still standing.
Silence.
The video ended.
The cave was quiet again.
Batman didn't move for a long time.
Finally, he spoke.
"Are you truly from another universe?"
Tony nodded.
"That battlefield isn't Earth," Batman continued. "That power isn't human. That army doesn't belong to this world., and those Aliens."
Tony smiled faintly.
"Told you."
Batman turned away, his mind racing.
Gaius could go toe-to-toe with Superman, at least judging from the video. The strength Gaius displayed suggested they were evenly matched. Superman's advantage lay in his speed, able to fly at incredible velocity and move with unmatched agility.
But Gaius wasn't alone.
They were trained. Organized. A full army.
Why this world?
How did they arrive?
His thoughts turned to Diana. The timing. The connection.
He showed none of it.
"Do your work," Batman said. As he walked, he added, "I have other things to study."
He disappeared into the shadows.
Tony watched him go and chuckled softly.
"Very on-brand," he muttered.
He looked around the cave.
"Definitely a bat."
He turned back to the Mother Box, fully focused on analyzing and studying it. Tony was particularly fascinated by its ability to control matter.
At the wreckage site of the Kryptonian ship, far from the Batcave, Lex Luthor stood inside the remains of the vessel.
Zod's body floated in a chamber filled with thick fluid. Tubes and wires connected to it.
Lex cut his hand. Blood dripped into the chamber.
The ship spoke, calm and cold.
"Foreign genetic material detected."
Lex winced in pain, tears welling in his eyes.
"Proceed."
The ship warned him. Spoke of forbidden acts.
Lex said softly.
"Where is the council?" he asked.
"Destroyed," the ship replied.
Then Lex said.
"Then proceed."
The chamber began to change.
The chrysalis formed.
~~~
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