Chapter 279: Saving Gotham
Batman felt uncomfortable. Extremely uncomfortable.
In Gotham, accidents often meant super-villain births—whether already-terrible lives completely crushed by terrible days, or fulfilled lives shattered into pieces. These turned victims into perpetrators.
But in New York, Dr. Octavius willingly embraced his dreams for redemption. Professor Connors—even transforming into lizard—never forgot saving people. Plus Morbius and others...
Now adding Max Dillon—clearly another individual possessing power yet not abusing it.
Batman currently felt one impulse. He desperately wanted placing New York and Gotham together for careful research—observing precisely where problems existed.
Were New Yorkers generally kinder? Therefore possessing lower crime-path probabilities? Even after making mistakes, they'd return from wrong paths?
Or did New York's social structures, judicial systems, even power-breeding soil differ?
Batman knew beneath Gotham existed Hell's exit. Massive evil curses existed. Old Gods' corpses were buried.
But these things wouldn't become Batman's excuses. He'd continuously strived wanting saving Gotham. He knew those external factors only represented one reason making Gotham citizens more easily becoming criminals.
But though New York's police department earned more popular support, judicial systems hadn't rotted to Gotham's degrees—this international metropolis's bottom-level populations weren't much happier than Gotham people.
Batman had crossed over two months. He knew New York's various problems weren't fewer than Gotham's. Beggars, drug addiction, race, immigration, poverty...
But capability-acquiring individuals' criminal probabilities were far lower than Gotham's.
"Survivorship bias? Or have these individuals thus far been higher-education scientists and engineers?" Batman asked himself internally.
This question temporarily couldn't obtain answers. Batman observed Max Dillon's cheerfully-smiling face. He knew Gotham could hardly experience Max Dillon-like cases.
But precisely because of this, Batman must spare no costs—struggling returning to Gotham, saving that place.
Batman consistently believed Gotham deserved saving.
"Batman?" Tony Stark's voice sounded. "Did I discourage you?"
Max Dillon's fingertips released wispy golden electrical glows:
"His appearance just now resembled sleep-deprived distraction. I can control micro-currents giving you one refreshing awakening."
Tony nodded:
"I've tried it. Effects are good."
Speaking, Tony Stark tilted his head over, allowing Max Dillon electrifying him once.
ZAP!
Electric light flashed. Tony Stark immediately grimaced while jumping aside:
"Hiss~ See? I told you effects were good."
Batman didn't acknowledge Tony Stark. He re-collected his thoughts, asking Max Dillon:
"Don't know whether you'd conveniently allow me visiting your home."
"Always welcome." Max Dillon smiled.
"Then I must wear Mark IV." Tony said. "Don't forget I've consistently contacted your family as Iron Man identity."
Max Dillon welcomed all comers, cheerfully observing floor splitting, armor-donning platform rotating upward from underground. Mechanical arm tips carried Mark IV armor—piece-by-piece assembling onto Tony's body.
---
"Before marriage, my personality was actually extremely irritable. This related to Father abandoning Mother when I was eight."
Inside Max Dillon's home sofa, he sat centrally. Left side—his wife. Right side—one little girl.
Opposite their family was one table. Behind the table—another sofa. Batman and Tony Stark occupied left-right halves.
They quietly listened to Max Dillon's narration:
"Though mother and son were abandoned, Mother—to compensate my lost paternal love—showed me abnormal affection. Looking back now, that even counted as spoiling."
"From childhood, I fought countless times—fighting until bloody."
(omg these Chinese people, won't even spare white people with there racism, lol)
"If my temper had been better, many fights couldn't have started. But I didn't think so then. I only wanted thoroughly venting my emotions."
As Max Dillon narrated himself, his wife consistently observed him tenderly. His daughter also hugged Max Dillon's arm playing with one barely-perceptible-numbness electrical glow.
Max Dillon gently stroked his daughter's head while simultaneously observing his wife:
"This situation continued until I encountered my wife Norma. That moment I suddenly realized—my violent fists and rage never existed for harming others. I was merely screaming at the world: 'Look at me!'"
"And Norma, you're the first person not requiring my screaming yet genuinely seeing me. What you saw wasn't that thorn-covered Max Dillon, but beneath thorns—that eight-year-old boy fearing re-abandonment."
"And rescued me from those thorns."
Norma smiled shyly, resting her head on Max Dillon's shoulder.
Batman shifted his gaze from Max Dillon, looking toward Tony Stark.
Wearing Mark IV, Tony Stark naturally couldn't show any expression through metal masks. But currently Tony also looked toward Batman:
"Batman, appears we must rapidly departing here. The couple seemingly has something requiring doing."
Batman could imagine beneath metal masks, Tony squeezed his eyes toward himself.
Both parties simultaneously stood, bidding farewell to Max Dillon.
---
Several minutes later. Empire State Building rooftop edge. Batman and Mark-IV-wearing Tony Stark stood side-by-side.
"Speak then. Start from when you first contacted Max Dillon." Batman said.
"Jarvis, retrieve footage from my first Max Dillon encounter. Five-times-speed playback." Tony Stark said.
"As you wish, sir." Jarvis AI said.
Words barely finished—one blue projection transmitted from Tony Stark's metal mask right eye.
Batman silently observed complete processes. Until footage froze at third-perspective Tony and Max Dillon confronting at Stark Tower—only then stopping.
Then Tony had already removed armor. Footage obviously was captured by Stark Tower's internal surveillance equipment. Therefore wasn't initial first-perspective.
"Finished watching? What do you want asking?" Tony asked.
WHOOSH!
Venom Robin—at almost Empire-State-Building-vertical angles—suddenly emerged from below, sitting beside Batman's feet.
Robin hadn't visited Max Dillon's home. He'd continuously guarded outside until now—only now chasing Batman arriving at Empire State Building.
"Individual cases cannot provide me references." Batman shook his head, not explaining why he'd requested seeing this footage.
Venom Robin tilted his head. Tony Stark didn't know. But Robin—possessing partial Batman memories—knew clearly.
Batman wanted attempting finding methods completely saving Gotham from Max Dillon not becoming super-villain processes.
But very obviously, Batman hadn't found them.
After remaining silent briefly—atop Empire State Building rooftop's whistling wind sounds—Batman said:
"Tony, I need borrowing Max Dillon from you for one period."
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