"Dr. Octavius went on a rampage in the Brooklyn sewers. NYPD is now fully mobilized to apprehend the once-respected, world-class nuclear physicist."
"Though there's no direct proof he committed the murders on Oscorp's Sublevel B3, he's clearly become an even greater threat than that killer."
"We've interviewed several officers who were on the scene when Octavius escaped. Let's hear what they said."
Batman's cowl-mounted micro radio hummed with the broadcast as he moved in silence, vaulting between Manhattan's towers toward Oscorp.
"Octavius burst up from underground like a monster in a movie!"
"Those four arms can hoist and hurl multi-ton vehicles with ease—I think he could take down a building."
"Instead of 'Dr. Octavius,' call him 'Dr. Squid'—though we just arrested a Squid-Man…"
"Maybe 'Doctor Octopus' fits better."
On a rooftop opposite Oscorp, Batman used night vision and thermal imaging to map the police coverage around the tower: main entrance, side doors, underground garage, service alleys—every access point had officers posted.
That much he expected. What he hadn't planned on was the prickle of Spider-Sense he'd been training: someone was approaching from afar—headed for Oscorp.
The figure was more than two kilometers out—too far to see a face even with Peter Parker's eyes in the dark—but motion and carriage were clear under his heightened senses.
"Based on movement and posture: female; likely some professional training. She hasn't spotted me—even now, on the roof next to mine."
At under 200 meters, every gesture was as clear as daylight.
Black Cat.
Thwit.
A whisper from the nitrogen spring; a strand of black webbing merged with the night and latched to her waist. Batman snapped his arm back to yank her off balance and reel her in.
He meant to drag her close and ask why she'd come.
Thump!
Apparently flailing, she unfurled in midair, tapped his hand with a toe, flipped, and landed lightly.
The instant she set her heels, Batman vanished from before her, reappearing behind to clap a palm over her mouth.
Crap!
She tensed to break free—but Peter Parker's twenty-five-ton potential in Batman's grip made it impossible. She jabbed back toward his eyes; his gloved hand caught hers.
"Black Cat. It's me."
The familiar voice came from behind; his hand eased away. Felicia turned to the partner she barely knew.
The black, the sharp ears, the voice—she exhaled. "Batman? You almost scared me to death."
She patted her chest to steady herself.
"What are you doing here?" His tone was flat.
"I want in." She pointed at the police-sealed Oscorp Tower. "I think last night's murders may be tied to Kingpin."
Tied to Kingpin?
Under the mask, Batman's brow creased. "On what basis?"
"Word is, Kingpin executed a share transaction today," she said.
Batman didn't so much as twitch—not even his visible jaw. She wilted a little.
"Kingpin moved stock and you're not upset?" she pressed. "We just lost our shot at suing him."
"I have a Plan B," he said, cold as stone.
"Ooh—bad news then. Your Plan B just tanked. Kingpin didn't dump shares or launder clean. He threatened a shareholder named Valentin and forced a buy-in."
"Buying, not selling?"
A flicker of puzzlement crossed his face—gone in an instant.
"I understand."
"Understand what?" she asked.
He stepped to the roof's edge. "As you said—he's 'investing.' He means to use the crisis to become Oscorp's largest shareholder—trade 'underworld emperor' for 'legitimate businessman.'"
She moved beside him. "Then we need to nail down hard evidence—fast."
She looked at him, then hopped up, coiling herself around him like an octopus—arms around his neck, legs clamped to his waist. "You've got a way in already, don't you?"
He said nothing and stepped off the edge.
With the Bat-Claw and glider, even carrying a passenger he crossed to Oscorp's roof in moments. Officers were posted here too; the stairwell was a nonstarter.
Felicia slipped down and nodded toward the cops. "Want me to knock them out?"
He shook his head, bent, and pressed a switch at the base of his boot.
"…So, and then?" she whispered, watching him motionless at their hide.
"We wait," he said, glancing at the Cat squeezed in beside him.
"For what?"
He didn't answer—just counted silently.
One… two…
Thirty seconds later, a fluttering cascade erupted above the roof: a swarm of bats, whipping circles through the air. "Is he even human?" Felicia muttered, staring up—and at the officers whose attention was suddenly skyward.
Her eyes were off him for two seconds. When she looked back, he was gone; all she saw was the sharp-eared cowl vanish into a vent.
No time to think. She sprang after him, sliding into the ducts on Batman's heels.
~~~
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