It was about 4 AM when Bruce Wayne pulled into the private parking lot of the WayneTech Research and Development laboratories complex. He slowed his cherry red 1966 Jaguar near the front and he took mental notes of the type damage caused by whatever vehicle was used to break in. The way the bushes were completely ripped out and a chunk of a security barrier missing meant it was definitely something heavy, but not quite a Sherman tank. The Police Forensic Technicians were lifting samples and snapping photos.

He got out of the Jag and pulled his long gray coat against his black turtleneck. It was July, but near the cryogenics department it was always cool. Yellow Police tape rippled in the wind. It surrounded the massive hole where a large armored vehicle had punched itself through the wall. The uniforms guarding the door immediately recognized the famous Bruce Wayne from TV and let him through without question.

"Good morning, Mister Wayne," Lucius Fox said.

"Morning Lucius. What did they take?" Bruce wasn't interested in pleasantries this morning. He wanted to know what this break in was really about and how it might link to the Riddler. It was a little too convenient that the lab was broken into at the same time the police were tied up with the Mad Hatter.

"Experimental cryogenic technology prototypes. A whole lot of them," Lucius said.

"Refrigeration equipment?"

"You know it's far more than just that, Mister Wayne."

As they walked further into the facility they came upon a man and woman wearing white lab coats. She was pale skinned with golden blonde hair. He was tall and thin, he was balding and had white at his temples.

"This is doctor Nora Fries. She's the supervisor of the cryogenics division," Lucius said. "And this is her husband, Victor, lead project developer."

"Hello, Mister Wayne," Victor said. "Thank you for coming by."

"Hello, Doctors," Bruce said. They shook hands. "I'm glad no one was hurt. Were you two here when they broke in?"

Nora was pacing back and forth behind Victor. She didn't even look at her two bosses.

"No. We just passed them as they were running away and we were pulling in for the day. We called the police right away."

"Doctors, can you tell me specifically what was stolen?"

"Cryo Plasma Emitters," Victor said. "Prototypes."

"Come again?"

"Refrigeration equipment, basically," Victor said.

Bruce nodded.

"Basically our life's work," Nora shouted. She continued to pace.

"Please, Nora," Victor said. "It will be okay. We can rebuild them."

Nora stormed away to a nearby office and shut the door.

"I apologize, Mister Wayne," Victor said. "Our work here is very important to my wife."

"And it's important to me too," Bruce said. "So what exactly are these cryo-um?"

"Cryo Plasma Emitters. It's a device that can create a cold environment anywhere, anytime, anyplace, regardless of the conditions around it. It can even create ice crystals with only the air molecules around it."

"A portable ice maker," Bruce said.

"That's one way to put it."

"You said they stole a lot of them."

"Yes, we had 5000 of them created. Our plan was to disperse them to starving countries for means of cold food storage in parts where it may be difficult to keep food long. We have missions in Afghanistan, Haiti, Nigeria, and Yemen ready to receive them. And they took all of them. They were all stored in this equipment vault. We keep it locked at all times."

"Why would someone wanna steal these?"

"I honestly wish I knew," Victor said.

"Doctor Fries, I need you to be very frank with me," Bruce said. "Is there any way these things can be…i don't know…dangerous. weaponized?"

Victor smirked. "Ah. Trying to get ahead of a lawsuit, Mister Wayne?"

Bruce smiled.

"I mean," Victor said. "If you got creative enough with the design, I guess it could be possible. But you'd have to have someone familiar enough with the design formula."

"And who all would know how to tamper with such devices?"

"No one, Mister Wayne. Nora and I invented this technology. Scientists in Russia and Japan have done similar research, but nothing like ours. Our notes are scattered around the lab so anyone in the building could have seen them, but even our interns have trouble deciphering any of it."

"Well, Thank you, Doctor. I'm sorry this happened. We're going to get your equipment transferred to another lab facility and we're going to get your work back on its feet. If you or Nora need anything at all, just let Lucius know and we'll take care of it."

"Thank you, Mister Wayne," Victor said. "I'll tell Nora. She'll be very happy to hear that."

They said their goodbyes and Bruce and Lucius walked back to the parking lot. As he walked, Bruce eyed the open storage area. Victor said they keep it locked at all times, but the door didn't appear damaged. Inside were just bare walls. That's where the emitters were taken from.

"Any chance the burglars took the wrong stuff?" Lucius asked.

"Not likely. The break-in is efficient and deliberate. They knew just where to hit this lab and where to find what they wanted."

"Well, why steal a bunch of refrigeration equipment if you don't even know how to use it properly?" Lucius said. "You heard the Doctor, only the two of them know how to use the stuff."

"Or," Bruce wondered. "Is there someone smart enough in town to understand their research?"