XLIX
The Detective
Bruce never had the heart to tell Barbara that the WayneNet cloudware that ran the Gotham City Police servers secretly ghosted information into his Oracle account during routine 'maintenance'. He liked to keep abreast of their investigations and still seem like he wasn't stepping on Jim Gordon's toes… too much.
The world at large was now in full panic. America was desperate to find out who had attacked Washington. He had his best people on it. But for Bruce, there was another avenue he wanted to pursue… Nigma.
Nigma's last riddle had not made any sense, but it gnawed at him that this wasn't just simply revenge. HI-MEMS were also incredibly rare, but had initially been perfected by LexCorp for the U.S. military. That would seem to implicate Luthor, but the technology was available on the black market for the right price. What was most interesting was the application found on Nigma's cloudware.
It seemed to be a simple news-gatherer app, keyed to certain world events. Certain combinations were programmed to turn its light green and it had been specifically designed for Nigma four years ago. The app itself contained no instructions, but Wayne surmised that it was only there to green-light a preordained command.
And he remembered the last words Nigma had spoken to him before Raven had folded his consciousness into his unconsciousness…
"…the light was green…"
The app was almost untraceable. Wayne had to run a massive network-wide transaction sweep to cross-reference applications that had pulled the key words and exact phrases associated with Nigma's app. Luckily, he had free access to all U.S. government data warehouses as well. The GCPD wasn't the only department running WayneNet software with planned maintenance…
It had taken the Wayne network over an hour, but the resulting list read like a who's who of powerful politicians, business leaders, and ex-cons. By the process of elimination, these individuals seemed to possess similar 'green-light apps'. The most notable among them was David Cain buried under five aliases, with ties to the shadow cartel of death-dealers, The League of Assassins (…or so he had heard).
Cain traveled under a host of fictional identities but his DNA had been recorded at Gotham Airport only yesterday. More interesting was the two hundred million dollars that had been deposited into Cain's account an hour ago from an account in Kahndaq. Acidic bile rose in Bruce's throat. He wanted to vomit and then to scream. Was this retaliation by Kahndaq?!... He called Lucius Fox and Barbara on side-by-side wi-screens.
"Mr. Wayne," replied Lucius." Welcome back. I'm sorry it couldn't have been under more auspicious circumstances. Seems the whole world's falling apart. My condolences about Richard."
"Yes, thank you Lucius… I believe I've found our assassin. His name was David Cain. He arrived in Gotham yesterday, has over forty political kills attributed to him, and is two hundred million dollars richer. The money came from an account in Kahndaq…"
"Oh Holy Mother of ©&!$†!" exclaimed Lucius, placing a hand on his forehead and taking a deep breath. "This will mean war. People will want blood when they hear this."
"That doesn't make sense," chimed in Barbara. "Assassins are paid after a hit, but suicide bombers? Hold on… just bringing him up, now… This guy was already a multi-millionaire, Bruce. He has one daughter who's a bodyguard in Singapore... This wasn't an assassination… maybe it was a declaration of war. Kahndaq has been amazingly quiet lately."
"Agreed." Bruce thought for a second. "What were the explosives that Cain used, Lucius? I watched the explosion from the satellite feeds. I've never seen an immediate, perfect circle of destruction like that."
"Anti-matter, Mr. Wayne. Four ounces. Very close to a 5-megaton bomb in power. No debris, no radiation, a perfectly round crater. We're certain we know where it came from as well. Space agencies lost contact with the scientists aboard the CERN satellite twenty -eight minutes before the explosion. As of last inventory, the CERN satellite was storing four ounces of anti-matter."
"Waitaminute! Are you saying Cain flew into space, robbed the CERN satellite and then just jumped?!" asked an incredulous Barbara.
"After killing everyone on board… yes," replied Lucius as though it were common knowledge.
"That suit…" Bruce drummed his fingers on the desk. "That was a high-altitude/space hybrid suit. Looks like one we were working on. Kahndaq doesn't have a space program, but that doesn't mean they didn't have help... Lucius, what do you know of The League of Assassins?"
"Why do you ask, Mr. Wayne?"
"I had heard David Cain may have been a member of The League of Assassins."
"Mr. Wayne. I've been in the defense industry for 40 years. Of course, there's always been rumors, but I find it hard to believe that anyone could keep that kind of secret for that long in today's world."
"Stranger things have happened. I've been trying my best to tie Luthor to this, but with no luck. Bumping off the president is his style, but destroying the entire White House? I'm starting to think Luthor just got played. Lucius, I'll need a list of politicians left in Washington and who's now in charge."
"The Secretary of Defense O'Neil was hospitalized last night. From current accounts, he would now be the acting president. They're not letting anyone near him."
Let's hold onto what we've found so far. Something still doesn't seem right. Let's keep the investigation ongoing."
"I'll do what I can," replied Barbara, "but most people have gone home to be with their loved ones, Bruce. I'm doing my best just to keep WayneNet running…"
"Of course. Leave the investigation to me then. Hang in there, Barbara."
After the call, his mind was flooded with strange information and emotion. It was all he could do to remain standing.
Thoughts and feelings began to fill Bruce's heart and mind. Memories of a far-off land with idyllic Arabian towers. Hope and love coursed through him next, calling him to a distant shore. Had someone drugged the water? Was he being gassed? It wasn't until the crippling fear of what she might become that he realized what it all meant… Who was behind the broadcast of memories and emotions…
"…RAVEN!"