After several months, South Brother Island finally welcomed new members once again.
Following Dr. Otto the nuclear physicist, Professor Morbius the biochemist, and Dr. Banner with his seven PhDs, Professor Warren—a top scientist in the fields of genetics and cloning—had now arrived as well.
Furthermore, it wasn't just one Warren who came, but two: human Miles Warren and Jackal Warren.
When Batman led the two Warrens into the South Brother Island laboratory, even the well-traveled Dr. Banner ambled over out of curiosity, pacing around and sizing up the two Warrens for a long while.
Jackal Warren couldn't help baring his fangs in a show of hostility, but since Professor Morbius was an acquaintance of Professor Warren, he quickly stepped forward:
"Warren, this is Dr. Banner. His other identity is the Hulk."
Professor Morbius had originally been recommended to join the Osborn Corporation by Professor Warren back in the day, so he didn't want to see his old friend rendered too terrified to speak, just as he himself had been upon first setting foot on South Brother Island.
Sure enough, upon hearing Dr. Banner's name, Miles Warren immediately cast a respectful look in his direction. As for Jackal Warren, the instant he heard the name "Hulk," his ears drooped completely, and he stopped baring his fangs altogether.
During the Battle of Manhattan, the scene of the Hulk beating a Frost Giant to death with his bare hands had been caught directly on Eddie Brock's phone camera.
Although there was still a gap between his strength and Thor's—and it wasn't quite as jaw-dropping as lightning descending from the heavens to blast all eleven remaining Frost Giants deep underground—it was still more than enough to crush the other superheroes.
Without knowing Batman's true strength, the Jackal had dared to step up and test his luck; however, looking at the honest and mild-mannered Dr. Banner before him, he couldn't summon the slightest desire to resist.
"Relax, pal," Dr. Otto said, walking over with his lab coat draped across his shoulders. "Since Batman brought you here, it means there's still hope for your redemption."
"Warren," Professor Connors greeted with a smile, raising his left hand. "Otto is right. Relax. Morbius and I are both here; you have nothing to fear."
Jackal Warren's ears remained drooped, but Miles Warren took a step forward, looking at Professor Connors with a mixture of shock and joy:
"Connors! You've been hiding out here all this time?!"
However, when looking at Professor Morbius, Professor Warren wasn't quite as delighted. Instead, he took a step back in slight fear:
"Who are you?"
Back when General Ross deployed military forces to forcibly monitor the Osborn Corporation, Professor Miles Warren had turned to Peter Parker for help; the relationship between the two had always been far from ordinary.
Professor Morbius had also been on extremely good terms with Professor Warren, but because Morbius had consistently maintained his vampire form, Warren failed to recognize him entirely.
The current Professor Morbius referred to himself as "Doctor Michael Morbius," and his appearance differed greatly from his initial state; it was only natural that Professor Warren didn't recognize him at first glance.
"I am Morbius," Morbius said, standing in place with a bitter smile. "Miles, it's been a long time. Have your injuries healed?"
"Professor Morbius?" Professor Miles Warren froze for a moment, looking at the elegant vampire before him as his image gradually overlapped with the bloodthirsty, wildly mutating monster from his memory.
"I met a reliable young man named Peter..." Professor Warren caught himself halfway through and shut his mouth quickly, not daring to expose Peter Parker's full name to these guys. "He found me the best doctors and caregivers. My injuries have fully healed."
"You were about to say Peter Parker, right?" Professor Connors walked over, clapping Miles Warren on the shoulder. "Everyone here has received help from Peter Parker. Even though he doesn't visit often, he really is the star around here."
The professors gathered around Miles Warren to chat. With familiar acquaintances like Connors and Morbius present, their conversation flowed without the slightest barrier.
In contrast, Jackal Warren—who had initially been full of wild ambition—was left standing to the side in a thoroughly crestfallen mood, his ears drooping after being frightened by Dr. Banner.
It wasn't that he couldn't join the conversation; possessing all of Miles Warren's memories, he was fully capable of chiming into the topic discussed by Professor Connors and the others.
Yet it was blindingly obvious that the scientists on South Brother Island were welcoming Miles Warren—the human top scientist across the three fields of genetics, inheritance, and cloning.
They were not welcoming him—a creature who possessed all of Warren's knowledge, yet bore the form of a jackal.
"What is your purpose in bringing me here? If you want to put an end to cloning technology, you should have just killed me directly. After all, I'm just a cloned organism," Jackal Warren said, looking at Batman.
"Your birth was not your fault." Batman's very first sentence nearly broke Jackal Warren's composure. "And bringing you here was not meant to destroy you."
Hearing this, Professor Miles Warren turned his head to look at his clone and Batman.
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Professor Connors and the others didn't drag out the conversation either, turning their attention toward the Jackal and Batman as well.
"Everyone here has another side. Take Dr. Banner and Professor Connors, for instance—their other sides are hidden within their bodies."
"You are different, Warren."
Even when addressing the Jackal, Batman still used the human name:
"It's true that you are a clone of Professor Miles, but at the same time, you are also his other side—an independently existing individual. You are you, and Professor Warren is Professor Warren."
Jackal Warren threw up his hands.
"When we were at Miles Warren's home, you mentioned 'immortality,' didn't you?" Batman ignored the Jackal's reaction. "I am not entirely opposed to your cloning technology. In fact, I need this technology of yours to help me with something."
Jackal's blood-red eyes stared at Batman:
"With what?"
"Cloning and memory transfer technology can serve as a final insurance policy under extreme circumstances. I need you to clone me," Batman said, getting straight to the point.
"Wait, Batman," Professor Connors said, caring most about Batman's well-being as he stepped forward hurriedly to ask, "Are you sure the two of you won't end up fighting once the clone is created? Besides, if you clone yourself, do you have to clone a Robin as well?"
"No," Batman said. "As I stated, the cloned body will remain preserved in storage and will only be activated if I encounter extreme circumstances."
"I can handle this technology on my own," Miles Warren chimed in.
"Professor Warren, you have another task," Batman said. "You need to attempt to resolve several issues from a genetic level—and this can only be entrusted to you."
Professor Miles Warren was taken aback, while the other scientists experienced a sudden realization.
"Batman hasn't forgotten his previous promise to help us resolve our genetic mutations," Dr. Banner whispered in a low voice.
--
Support me & read more advance & fast update chapter on my pa-treon:
pat reon .c-om/windkaze
(Just remove the hyphen - and space, to access Pa-treon normally.)