Chapter 94: Setting Off Again on a New Timeline
The helicopter hovered above the rooftop.
Everyone looked up, uncertain about the newcomers' intentions.
Friend or foe? No one dared to jump to conclusions.
"X Task Force, here to assist."
The next second, Harley Quinn leaped from the helicopter, landing alongside a team of operatives.
Allen and the others watched as the X Task Force members landed one by one, each striking a dramatic pose. The atmosphere instantly turned awkward.
The crisis was already over.
The support from A.R.G.U.S. was embarrassingly late.
"Well, well, isn't this Gotham's infamous Clown Prince of Crime?"
As soon as Harley Quinn spotted her old flame's familiar makeup, she sneered. "What's with the raccoon eyes? Trying to be Robin now?"
"It's been a while, Harley."
Arthur's expression was filled with awkwardness.
They were once the infamous criminal couple of Gotham. But during one of their escapes from Batman, Arthur had decisively betrayed Harley to save himself, creating a lasting grudge.
"Hold him down for me—I'll blow his brains out first."
Harley motioned to her teammates, ready to settle old scores.
"Stop! The crisis is over. You can leave now."
Bruce stepped between them.
During the vampire invasion, he had requested assistance from both S.H.I.E.L.D. and A.R.G.U.S. S.H.I.E.L.D. had responded first, sending Erik. Amanda from A.R.G.U.S. had readily agreed but never showed up—until now.
"Over!?"
The X Task Force members looked visibly disappointed.
They had arrived fully armed, prepared for an all-out battle. But it was over before they could even get started.
More importantly, they had wasted their time. No battle meant no sentence reductions. Otherwise, why would a bunch of criminals be so enthusiastic about a mission?
Of course, if it weren't for the micro-bombs implanted in their heads, they might have scattered the moment they left prison.
"Are you guys trying to imitate the X-Men?"
Allen glanced at the team, his gaze settling on a familiar figure.
"And what gives you the right to say that? Aren't you just copying Batman?" Harley shot back.
"I am the Knight of Justice Bateman, the People's Whip-Wielding Hero, and the comedic relief of this story—The Comedic Bat!"
Allen dramatically pulled his cape over his face before tearing off his mask with a flourish.
"Come to me, baby—my little pet."
He spread his arms wide, signaling for a hug.
"Who's your little pet?!"
Harley took it as a challenge, gripping her baseball bat, ready to swing.
Before she could act, a dark shadow suddenly charged forward, tackling Allen to the ground.
"Master! Nanaue missed you so much!"
"Oof—Stop shoving your nose into my eye!"
"Nanaue didn't mean to! Nanaue is just too happy!"
"Can you get off me first?!"
Allen's eye was already swelling from the affectionate headbutt, while King Shark flailed joyfully.
Harley awkwardly lowered her bat. So, he wasn't calling her "little pet"—she had read too much into it.
"Aren't you supposed to be with S.H.I.E.L.D.? How'd you end up with A.R.G.U.S.? You really know how to hop between agencies."
Allen patted Nanaue's soft belly, enjoying its mattress-like comfort.
"Nanaue fell in love with a pink dolphin. I went to find her at night, and then I got caught."
Nanaue looked deeply confused, his face full of innocence.
"Did you, by any chance, break into an aquarium?" Allen blinked at him.
"What's an aquarium? Nanaue doesn't know."
Given Nanaue's intelligence, it wasn't surprising if he mistook an aquarium for the pink dolphin's home.
In reality, that's exactly what happened—Nanaue had broken into an aquarium in the middle of the night, shattered the viewing glass, and attempted to "rescue" the dolphin, carrying it several blocks before being surrounded and subdued by A.R.G.U.S. agents.
"From now on, stay with me. I'll find you a pink dolphin and build you a giant swimming pool with lots and lots of dolphins."
Allen gently patted Nanaue's snout, reassuring him.
"Yay! Being with Master is the best!"
Nanaue beamed with joy.
"From today onward, you are my Shark Robin."
Allen and Nanaue had reached an agreement, but someone was unwilling to accept it.
Nanaue was a powerhouse in the X Task Force—losing him wasn't an option.
Rick Flag, acting team leader, stepped forward. "You can't take Nanaue. He still has time left on his sentence."
"Amanda, I know you're watching through the micro-cameras. Effective immediately, Nanaue is transferred to Arkham Asylum to serve his sentence."
Allen wasn't unreasonable. He didn't demand Nanaue's outright freedom—he was already being generous by offering a compromise.
The X Task Force members weren't convinced.
They had micro-bombs implanted in their brains. A single button press could end their lives.
But Allen had seen the movies—he knew how the control mechanisms worked.
Placing a hand on Nanaue's ear, he activated a magnetic extraction function.
His bat suit had been modified with various useful and not-so-useful features.
Meanwhile, at A.R.G.U.S. headquarters, Amanda watched as the bomb's signal light went dark.
Moments later, the monitors displayed Allen extracting a small metal capsule from Nanaue's ear.
Just like that, their mission was a complete failure.
Not only did they miss the battle, but they also inexplicably lost a valuable team member.
As tensions rose—
A golden lightning bolt streaked through the sky.
"Hey, guys! Am I late? I took a detour through Gotham and didn't see any vampires."
The Flash, Barry Allen, arrived, casually tossing a bound and gagged Deathstroke onto the rooftop. Smirking, he added, "Ran into this guy on the way, so I brought him along."
Deathstroke was seething.
He had been preparing to escape Gotham by speedboat, only to be instantly teleported back to the rooftop.
"Damn it, Fast Boy! I just let him go—why'd you bring him back?!"
Allen rushed forward to untie Deathstroke, urging him, "Go now! I'll hold him off for you!"
Without hesitation, Deathstroke leaped off the rooftop.
Barry was about to give chase when Bruce placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "Let him go."
"Who even is he?" Barry frowned. "Why should I listen to you?"
"He saved Gotham."
"…Oh."
With things settled, everyone went their separate ways.
The X Task Force boarded their helicopter and left.
Bruce offered the group a place to rest.
Allen returned to Arkham with his comedic crew.
Before leaving, he reminded Bruce, "Bats, don't forget to send Ivy back to Arkham."
Allen's favoritism toward Nanaue made even the three Robins jealous. He granted Arkham's AI system Unita secondary authority over the asylum—his Robins had access, but if they tried to take anything beyond their clearance, the AI would activate the defense system.
—
Arkham Asylum
Nanaue lay comfortably on his bed, flipping through a marine life magazine, engrossed in the section on dolphin species.
Allen sprawled atop his belly, using him as a makeshift waterbed, already fast asleep.
After days of constant action, exhaustion had finally caught up with him.
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