79 A NEW CASE
[Reformed Slum Area] [Willford Hospital] [Crime scene] [Time: 10:00 PM]
Alice and her team were already at the crime scene. The GCPD has already started the investigation, but they have yet to find any leads. They questioned the staff and nurses who had last visited the patient and also pulled out the CCTV footage. The thing is, the 45-year-old man was still alive when the nurses left the room, but when the doctor went in to administer the next dosage, he found him dead.
His body was severed into multiple pieces and was sewed with threads like a rag doll. Then that lunatic, who killed him, hanged the body to the ceiling like a freaking puppet. The cops are baffled. They have never seen anything like this before.
"You alright, rookie?" Alice patted Sam on the back. She was looking pale and a little sick.
"Yeah, just a little overwhelmed. It's my first time seeing a case like this."
"Don't worry. You will get used to it," Alice smiled, trying to reassure her. "Although the crime rate is very low... But when a crime occurs, it's always something that haunts your mind and stays with you for a long time."
Sam nodded, "Yeah. It's too gruesome and cruel. How could anyone do something like this?"
"That's what we are going to find out."
Batman entered the room through the open window. The door was closed. The police were yet to touch the body. 'So, she waited for me, huh?' he thought.
'Now, who are you?" He scanned the victim's face and ran his image through the directories.
[Carson Williams]> The name appeared on his visor. He frowned. He had heard of him. Carson was a businessman who owned a couple of nightclubs and casinos in Gotham City. He was a pure businessman who stayed away from illegal activities. He was known for his philanthropic work and often donated to charities.
Last week, he had a heart attack and was admitted to the hospital. But his condition was stable until someone decided to slice and dice him up and hang him like a damn puppet. He quickly scanned the entire room and collected data. Thanks to his improved AI visor, it barely took a few seconds.
He pulled out the threads and inspected them. 'Piano wires.' His eyes narrowed. He then checked the sewed parts and noticed something else. The cuts were clean and precise. Not something done by an amateur. This person knew what he was doing. He ran the marks through Jarvis and waited for the results.
Jarvis beeped, "Sir, I have analyzed the marks. They are made by surgical saws used to amputate limbs."
"Whoever did this, had proper medical knowledge."
"Yes, sir."
Beep! Beep! "Huh?!" He heard a beeping noise coming from the victim's shoes. He checked them, "Fuck! 10 seconds!" It's an old model, and can't be hacked in any way. He threw two energy shield dome devices at the wall on both sides and dashed out of the room, surprising Alice and the other GCPD members, "Duck!" He quickly manipulated the nanoparticles to create a shield over them and the body.
"What's happening? What's going on?" Alice asked.
Booom! Booom! Booom! Three explosions rocked the hospital. The shield held. Batman, the people around the room, and the cops were safe. He slowly deactivated the shields. Smoke, debris, and fire were everywhere. The room was in shambles.
"My God!" Alice exclaimed.
"We need to evacuate everyone now," Batman said, turning to her. Alice quickly ordered her team to transfer the patients to the nearby hospital. Then he asked, "You didn't notice the explosive in his shoes?"
She shook her head, "No. I checked the body from head to toe... There wasn't any explosive device on him and he wasn't wearing any shoes! What are you talking about?"
"Who else went in that room other than you?"
"Just the cops and the nurses. But, I was here all this time. No one touched the body or the crime scene. I was waiting for you!" She narrowed her eyes, trying hard to think of anyone else going in that room after she had examined the scene.
"Think hard. Someone entered that room, planted explosives, and went out of that door. You must have seen them. A doctor, any staff members, or maybe someone from your team?"
She shook her head, "No. No one went in that room. I swear!"
"Jarvis, find any fingerprints on his shoes or that explosive?" Batman asked.
"I'm sorry, sir. I didn't detect any prints. However, after reviewing the scans, I have detected some traces of unknown chemicals. A serum of some sort. But I need to analyze it further to identify it."
"Alright, analyze it. Send me the results as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir."
Batman turned to Alice, "Interrogate the surgeons. You might just find out some info on the killer. He used the surgical saw to cut that guy up in pieces. And used piano strings... Considering the amount... Look around the local shops. You don't often see people buying brand new piano wires in bulk."
"Right. Got it." She nodded. "What about you?"
"Found some weird chemicals in that room. Need to analyze it. Keep me posted," He turned and jumped out of the destroyed room.
"Wait!" she shouted, but he was already gone. "What a strange man..." she sighed.
---[Underground Base]---
"So, found anything?" Selina asked as he walked in.
She and Diana wanted to go with him, but since he thought it was a small matter, he decided to go alone.
"The victim was a businessman named Carson Williams. He was admitted to the hospital due to a heart attack. The killer, however, used surgical saws to cut him up and sewed him with piano strings like a ragdoll. Oh, and also blew him up."
"Wow! That sounds insane," She gasped.
"Yes. He also found a chemical substance that needed to be analyzed. Jarvis is working on it."
"Chemicals?" Pamela raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. Something new..." He replied as his eyes went toward Diana who was sitting in the middle of the training area, still thinking about the fight she lost a few hours ago.
"Yeah, she is sitting like that for almost 2 hours," Selina sighed. "She just needs time. She will be fine."
"I shouldn't have gone hard on her," He sighed feeling bad about destroying her pride as a warrior, "But, she needs to learn her weaknesses and overcome them. That's the only way she will become better."
"True. I agree," She replied.
Pamela sat in front of the computer and began her own research on that unknown serum. She knew a lot of chemicals and poisons, so she thought she might be able to help find the source.
Bruce slowly approached Diana and sat beside her, "You okay?"
"I am not hurt," She replied, avoiding eye contact.
"I know. That's not what I am asking."
She sighed, "I am ashamed. I gave in to my rage and rushed in overestimating my own abilities. It was foolish of me."
He nodded, "Your first loss against a man?" He asked.
"Yes. As hard as it is to accept the fact that there is someone out there who is better than me... I can't sit here and complain about it," She spoke as if she was speaking to herself, reminding her own failures and hard work. "I need to train harder." She glanced toward him, "I will win next time."
"I know you will," He stood up. "That's why, I will redesign my armor to meet your might. Let's get stronger together," He extended his arm toward her.
A smile curled her lips as she grabbed his arm, "Together."
He pulled her up.
After approx. 30 minutes later, Jarvis finished analyzing the unknown chemicals and sent the results to his master. Bruce's eyes widened as he saw the results, "Are you sure this is correct?"
"Yes, sir," Jarvis responded.
Pamela also finished her analysis. She called Bruce to check her findings, "Bruce, you need to see this. You're not going to believe what I have uncovered about that mysterious liquid."
They huddled around the computer and checked the files, comparing her findings with Jarvis's data. Surprisingly, both their findings matched. The chemical they found at the crime scene is a hallucination-inducing serum.
"This is crazy!" Pamela exclaimed. "It can change a person's entire perception. Someone who got a tiny amount of this stuff will live the rest of their life hallucinating about different things. And with a little tweak, one can easily manipulate the victims..."
"Like hypnosis?" Diana asked.
"Yes. It sounds a lot like it," She responded.
"How dangerous is this stuff?" Bruce wondered.
"Oh, very! If someone accidentally breathes it in or touches it, that's it unless you have the antidote," she explained.
"Well, damn! The killer could have used it to manipulate different people to commit crimes on his behalf. It's going to be a mess," He sighed in frustration. He had some plans this week, but it seems he will have to cancel those. He was looking forward to going to the beach with Selina, Pamela, and Diana, but it looked like a total bust.
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