A few minutes later, Briss and Barry returned. They had just taken Falcone and his daughter to Arkham. Most of the time was spent communicating with the Arkham Guards, going through procedures, and confirming that the two maniacs were securely locked up.
Arkham has its own power supply system, and it's still relatively safe.
"The GCPD is destroyed, and there is a massive power outage in the city. But the TV signal is still on, which means the TV station still has electricity. Gordon, you take Barbara and the two reporters to temporarily stay at the TV station, don't go home."
Briss walked out of the darkness, instructing Gordon without explaining why arrangements were made this way.
"But Lady Bat, I'd like to conduct an exclusive interview with you." Vico remained insatiable; her thirst for news was endless.
Briss just glanced at her without any expression.
Gordon had lost his gun somewhere. Now, he seemed to have picked up a submachine gun from one of the corpses, hanging it around his neck. Coupled with his long trench coat and felt hat, he looked more like a thug than a cop.
"Got it, but we need to drive the vehicle out." Gordon picked up Barbara's wheelchair and carried it onto the broadcast van.
"Don't worry, I have a plan." Briss nodded, signaling them to get in the vehicle quickly.
Su Ming watched them come back empty-handed. He stood up and walked into the rain.
"Where's the cat?"
Briss and Barry looked at him, puzzled. Could Deathstroke be a cat enthusiast? There were more pressing matters at hand; why ask about a cat?
"Cat?"
"You and Barry both heard it. There were three people and a cat in the room earlier, a white cat. Where did it go?" Su Ming frowned, adjusting and securing the buckle on his helmet.
"Is the cat really that important? I didn't see any cat just now." Barry looked at him, completely baffled.
"I just realized something's off. Quickly, take me to the research facility's lower levels. There's no time."
Su Ming had no time to explain. He immediately hooked Barry's neck. His headache prevented him from thinking about too many things at once. His earlier thoughts were focused on Barry and Briss, and only now did he realize the issue.
"But..."
"Talk later, hurry."
"Alright..."
Instantly, Barry and Su Ming vanished from the spot. Briss and Cindy exchanged a glance but quickly turned away from each other.
She had nothing to say to her.
Su Ming felt the sensation of Divine Speed coursing through him for the first time. It wasn't the imagined electricity or anything like that, but a special kind of energy. It had temperature, it had texture...it had will, like it was alive.
It wrapped them in a small pocket, isolated from the world, moving them as if in a paused moment of time, with raindrops suspended mid-air.
"Actually, for us now, time relative to the outside has been stretched. You could tell me what's wrong with that cat." Barry's legs were running fast enough to leave afterimages, yet he asked Su Ming calmly, without breaking a sweat.
"Because the timing is just too coincidental. Why are the Romans appearing in Gotham at this time? After being gone for ten years, he could plan his return a few days earlier or later. Why is it today? Today, Batman isn't here; today is the biggest rainstorm on record. Today is the day I arrived in this world. All coincidences?" Su Ming looked at the world, frozen in motion, and said calmly to Barry.
"Uh...from a logical perspective, a chain of coincidental events happening simultaneously is impossible."
"Yes, besides, there was the citywide blackout after I appeared on TV. Encountering the Owl Court's Talons upon arrival, Falcone's plan seemed to have been broken effortlessly... If it wasn't for me bringing Vico, a formidable weapon, there would have been much more significant challenges."
The Talon wasn't monitoring the Romans or Su Ming and others but was secretly the cat's bodyguard!
"Oh! Was that reporter Vico Vali earlier? I heard she's Batman's...you know." Barry smiled, curled his pinky finger, and gestured twice.
"Yes, in your Earth, that's the case. Besides, she's also your world's Domino. You could try buying a pony or a lottery ticket with her next time, you'll win for sure."
Su Ming sighed, offering a brief explanation. With someone like Barry, who had infinite time, getting him to be serious was genuinely challenging.
"Domino? What do you mean?" Barry looked utterly bewildered.
"Ahem, things next door, not to be discussed too detailedly... Just know she's incredibly lucky, like having a cosmic level of superpower, where many illogical and melodramatic things can happen around her." Su Ming cleared his throat as a summary before bringing the topic back: "So, Falcone and Sofia were merely controlled. The matter isn't so simple."
Barry raised his head, thought for a moment while looking at the ceiling: "All together, there were only three of them in the room. Director Gordon isn't a problem, and the Roman father and daughter are locked up now. Are you saying the cat was actually the mastermind controlling them?"
Su Ming sighed, touching his mask, enduring the headache while speaking to Barry. Everything outside flew past rapidly, forming patches of light spots:
"While I can't be certain, your understanding of Barbatos's Divine Power isn't comprehensive enough. He doesn't just command the forces of darkness and destruction. He's also skilled at imparting his will to creatures within dreams or infusing dark energy into beings with weaknesses in their minds to turn them into servants. I mean, any creature..."
"The cat is a Hawk Priest?! It's using magic to influence them!" Barry understood, this realization startling him. The Justice League was already struggling to prevent human threats; the thought of fending off all Earth's creatures was unimaginable.
"That's what I think. For instance, in other sections of the Multiverse, like Earth 26, all intelligent life there are various animals. The Superman counterpart in that world is a rabbit called Captain Carrot... On Earth 43, everyone's a Blood Race; on Earth 20, the world is full of zombies. Across these worlds, there are Hawk Priests. They can be any animal, zombie, Blood Race, or robot."
"Uh...thinking the cat is a Hawk Priest doesn't sound so crazy anymore." Barry scratched his head, feeling embarrassed. He had visited those worlds, and the Justice League had a good relationship with Earth 26.
Su Ming hadn't given much thought to Barry's psychological state: "Even on Earth -11, while Barbatos could entirely choose humans as Hawk Priests, it doesn't mean he lacks the ability to transform other life into darkness. Our enemy, better to be too cautious than less."
"Hope that isn't the case, and it really is just an ordinary cat." Barry quickened his pace a little.
"If it is a Hawk Priest, then you've placed it alongside a bunch of biological weapons. Now I just hope it can't read or understand instruction manuals." Su Ming felt around himself, bringing the gun to his hand.
Barry stuck his tongue out, feeling genuinely embarrassed. His first encounter and he had already blundered, making him feel a bit awkward:
"Um, can Barbatos turn insects into his minions, too? I'm somewhat sensitive to bugs..."
"The brain capacity of insects is too small to comprehend concepts like dreams, and they can't absorb much dark energy... But if he wants, he can achieve it." Su Ming shook his head, looking forward again, offering an answer Barry didn't want to hear: "That's divine power."