Chapter 110: Encrypted Channel
October 23, 2023 | Author: Rowing Without Oars 233
Gotham, Wayne Manor.
"Young Master Bruce? Young Master Bruce?"
Bruce Wayne slowly opened his eyes, realizing he had fallen asleep at the Batcomputer's desk at some point.
Alfred placed a silver food tray on the desk beside him.
"Looks like Batman pulled an all-nighter again? That's not good," Alfred said earnestly. "Batman may not have limits, but you do, Young Master Bruce.
I'm very glad you've taken my previous advice and started cooperating with Commissioner Gordon. But I think you could trust him a little more. Gotham won't suddenly disappear if it's without Batman for one night."
"Not yet. At least, not until I've caught this 'Scarecrow'," Bruce said. Within seconds of opening his eyes, he was back in top form, his fingers already clattering away on his keyboard.
"I already have a clue. 'Scarecrow' is likely Dr. Jonathan Crane. His fear toxin erodes a person's nerves to create terrifying illusions..."
"Yes, yes. A Scarecrow today, a Dog-Tail Man tomorrow," Alfred sighed softly.
After the Riddler was caught, Batman didn't rest, still spending all his days outsmarting and outfighting Gotham's criminals. A while ago, he took care of the crime boss Maroni, and he was currently cornering The Roman, Falcone. During that time, a mutant called Killer Croc emerged from the Sewers, and not long after dealing with him, some psycho calling himself "Professor Pyg" popped up.
It was strange, really. Back when The Roman was in charge, Gotham was actually quite orderly. It was nothing more than a rampant Underworld, drugs flooding the streets, and a cozy relationship between cops and robbers, with an average of only eight or ten people dying each day.
Ever since Batman appeared, the Underworld bosses had fallen and street crime rates had plummeted. However, lunatics dressed like they'd come from a circus began to pop up everywhere. The citizens of Gotham had spent decades finally crawling out of hell, only to unexpectedly run headfirst into an asylum.
Bruce's hands stopped typing on the keyboard. He frowned and said, "I think I had a dream. I dreamt of a certain wizard, in some kind of enormous palace... but I can't remember the specifics."
Alfred shrugged. "Everyone dreams."
"This one was different. It felt incredibly real," Bruce said.
Alfred shook his head. "Many people feel their dreams are very real. There's nothing strange about that."
"But this one *was* different," Bruce insisted, frowning. He instinctively felt something was off, but for the moment, he couldn't pinpoint what it was.
"...You're not going to say it was a 'Bat-Dream', are you, Young Master?"
"What?"
"Oh, it's nothing. It's just that I thought you liked to put 'Bat' in front of everything?" Alfred began to count on his fingers. "The Bat-Car, the Bat-Aircraft, the Bat-Grappling Hook... I also saw a piece of equipment in the Batcave called... Bat-Shark Repellent?
"Does Batman have plans for a seaside vacation?"
Bruce: "..."
While Batman was busy for several days holding meet-and-greets with his future fan club, business at Arkham was also booming. Orin Vale hadn't been idle these past few days either, having dragged Kara down to help him with his research and development.
Actually, Kara wasn't resistant to scientific research; after all, she had a scientist for a father. After Orin Vale organized the materials for her, she started by slowly tackling her own Kryptonian technology. As a native-born Kryptonian, now with the addition of a super-brain, her learning speed should theoretically be extremely fast.
After his first encounter with Trigon's Blood Cultists, Orin Vale scanned the scene and brought back a small stone that had caught his attention.
It was a small, dark stone carried by the leader of that small group, and it looked completely unremarkable. However, a deep scan revealed that it contained some kind of magical energy, which just needed the right method to be accessed.
Orin Vale took it to the Old Wizard, who was currently disgruntled about his lack of progress in finding a successor that day.
"The world is going to the dogs! Each generation is worse than the last!" the Old Wizard grumbled. "And that Batman is a real piece of work, too..."
Orin Vale casually asked, "So, have you met this person? His name is Billy Batson..."
"That little brat from the orphanage? The one who stole a patrolling police officer's sandwich?"
"Uh... so it seems you have met him?"
"Of course. Why do you ask? You don't actually think I'd entrust my divine power to a delusional, fantasy-filled teenage brat, do you? What if he takes my divine power and makes videos for YouTube just to show off?"
The Old Wizard bristled.
"Even if I'm on my last breath, even if I die out in the streets and take my divine power to the grave, I would absolutely never choose a snot-nosed brat to be my successor!"
Orin Vale: "..."
For some reason, he suddenly felt like he could smell the distinct aroma of someone about to eat their words.
Fine. Whatever makes you happy.
After finally placating the Old Wizard, Orin Vale handed him the newly acquired stone. The Old Wizard studied it for a moment, then quickly said, "Demon magic, designed specifically to ensnare believers. It allows believers under a demon's command to cross the barriers of space and communicate via a special dimension.
"Only the magic power of the corresponding demon can activate it. Any other incorrect method of activation will only cause it to self-destruct."
After that description, Orin Vale understood. It was basically a magic communicator exclusively for believers, right?
It could only be activated by the magic power bestowed by the demon they believed in, which was essentially a form of encryption. An encrypted channel that only insiders could access.
However, it was well-known that the Blood Cultists believed in Trigon. And as for Trigon's magic power...
As it happened, he did have a source for it.
So, the next day, when Raven came to learn from the Old Wizard as usual, Orin Vale immediately took out the stone for her to try. And it actually worked. Raven infused her magic power into it, and a purple-black magic power spread along the patterns on the magic stone's surface, like water filling an empty groove. The stone immediately entered an activated state.
Orin Vale took the stone back to the Laboratory to study it. He recorded the stone's state and the effects of Raven's magic power. After making some adjustments, he ensured that he could achieve the same effect next time by stimulating it with a specific frequency of light. This way, he wouldn't need Raven's help to activate it every time in the future.
Halfway through his research that night, the magic stone began to glow, emitting a specific kind of fluctuation.
Could it be... an incoming call?
With a thought, Orin Vale activated the stone using the method he had just discovered. His consciousness dove into it, and after a moment of disorientation, he seemed to land in some dark space.
It was pitch-black all around, making it impossible to see the specific scene. But he was surrounded by several black-robed figures, dressed just like the leader Orin Vale had taken out before.
It wasn't a physical form, but something like a mental space that allowed for long-distance communication between consciousnesses.
Looking down, he saw that he had the exact same attire. He was also in a black robe, which seemed to be the default appearance for this space.
"You're late."
The one in the center, who seemed to be the leader, spoke calmly.
"Were you held up by something?"
In the darkness, the gazes of the several black-robed figures turned toward him in unison.
Orin Vale's mind raced.
It seemed they didn't know yet that their believers here had been taken out. And considering this was Gotham...
"It was Batman," he said. "He's been on my tail recently. It took a bit of effort to shake him off."
"Hmm, well done. But still, be careful to keep a low profile. We don't want to attract unnecessary attention before the Lord arrives."
The black-robed figures responded one after another.
"Understood."
"Understood."
"..."
Seeing this, Orin Vale also added, "Understood."
After that, he fell silent, observing them secretly.
It seemed these were all high-ranking members of the Blood Cultists?
If he could infiltrate their ranks, he might be able to extract intelligence about this Organization, spy on Trigon's oracles and movements, and even have a chance to secretly interfere with Trigon's deployments in this dimension.
Even better, if he played his cards right, by the time Trigon wanted to open a gate to come here, he might have already worked his way into the Organization's upper echelons...
(end of chapter)