Chapter 133: God's Eyes (1)

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"An unexpected situation... an unexpected turn of events... In the face of those, you too will face your true self."

- Makishima Shogo, (Psycho-Pass)

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<(Bruce Wayne POV)> 

"What did he do now?" I asked with a tired sigh as I watched the heavily armored cars race toward their destination, which according to Cortana was the GCPD headquarters. 

"For the last month, Edward has been attempting to blackmail or assault multiple high-value targets from Gotham in an effort to get some incriminating evidence against the Gotham Renewal fund that your parents set up, trying his best to link them directly to the scam that resulted from the fund. This is all because he despises you and holds a grudge against the Wayne name... Initially, it was pretty easy to thwart his plans, no matter what they were and since you were really busy for the past month, I tried to take care of it myself. 

A sudden loud notification, an anonymous call to the cops, a warning to the victims of his plan, or messing with his electronic devices were all it took to stop him, but it seems that he has suddenly improved his game for some reason. From doing everything on his own, he has taken a pretty big leap to hiring professional criminals from some small-time gangs to blow up the entire GCPD HQ in order to sow chaos. I am still researching how he got the funds for hiring these men or buying the resources needed for what he has planned, but I am pretty sure that somebody else is supporting him, somebody much more influential." Cortana informed through the bracelet as I continued to drive with a stoic look on my face. 

"What happened Bruce? Is it something important? If you need my help to slay someone trying to harm an innocent, then just know that it is my duty as the champion of Themyscira." Diana, who was trying to listen in on my conversation with Cortana, suggested from beside me, her voice carrying a weight of responsibility. 

"No, it's fine. It's merely work. Honestly, this is pretty much a typical weekday in Gotham for me... even though we're currently in Athens," I responded, smiling. "You know what? You haven't experienced the local music, have you? You should give our songs a listen; you might enjoy them," I suggested as I turned on the car radio to a random station playing Beyoncé's 'Irreplaceable', the recent hit of the year.

As I turned the volume up, Diana looked at me with a slightly suspicious gaze but just shrugged the next moment and focused on the song. She seemed quite impressed with both the radio in the car and the song that was currently playing on it. 

"Coming back to our conversation, Cortana, how do you know that the Riddler is going to attack the GCPD HQ and what do you think is his end objective for this very... stupid and dangerous plan?" I asked with a raise of one of my eyebrows. 

"The GPS in their car is set to show directions to the headquarters of GCPD and the gang members he recruited made plenty of phone calls to their "homies" to tell them to watch the 9'o clock news today if they want to watch some cops burn like pigs on a barbeque. So, figuring out their target wasn't exactly a big deal. However, I am still not clear on what he truly wants though I suspect that it might be the official documents regarding the investigation of Gotham Renewal fund and Carmine Falsone.

The cops and the FBI are trying to keep the true magnitude of the scam a secret to prevent discontent amongst the public, but Edward most probably wants to use all of those details to cause massive citywide unrest and revolts. And of course, we all know what happens when a city like Gotham goes through mass unrest." Cortana answered in a flat voice, revealing Riddler's ominous plans.

"... Why can't just criminals stick to their age-old jobs of robbing banks and selling drugs?" I grumbled with a sigh. 

I guess the Edward of this universe is unhinged as well just like the Riddler from the comics, movies, and shows... Damn it, I was really hoping that I did not have to kill a victim of child abuse one day. 

"I can't go to Gotham myself in such a short time as you might have already guessed, and I don't want anybody to see my armor massacring a bunch of gangsters that look like idiotic nerds especially since those so-called gangsters haven't even committed any crime yet. We also cannot use drones since even if a single civilian witnesses one of our drones killing Riddler's gang members and reports it to law enforcement, a lot of annoying individuals might get involved to try to sniff us out, something that I would really prefer not to happen so soon." I muttered, tapping my thumb on the steering wheel in deep thought.

Although I was currently listening to Cortana and trying to figure out a way to stop Riddler, I was still able to drive the car without any difficulties since my enhanced brain could easily focus on multiple tasks simultaneously. 

"Your new special security team also can't be used since they have just started their initial gene-modifying treatments a few days ago. And, even if they were at their best, it would still be quite difficult to use them in this mission since they would probably not be able to reach their destination in time to prevent the incident. Also, law enforcement might mistake them as villains and start attacking them as well. After all, they don't exactly exude valor and gallantry in what you yourself call "Snake eyes" armor." Cortana added sarcastically since she never liked any armor design that wasn't filled to the brim with cutting-edge technology.

What she was talking about of course was the Snake Eyes costume from GI Joe that I had constructed for all my Wayne security personnel.

The suits had decent technology and were made from a carbonadium compound I had previously developed while researching metal. Although not nearly on the same level as the technology present in my own armor, it could still be considered way ahead of its time because of its durability, stealth functions, and the myriads of small gadgets, weapons, and useful tools hidden in it like tasers, and magnetic gloves. In a way, they were perfect for mercenaries and looked hella cool... although their appearance didn't seem heroic or even friendly in nature to civilians.

"I see. So, there is no other way but to use drones, huh? I guess I'll just have to take the risk." I responded while wondering which type of drone could complete the mission in the stealthiest manner possible.

"... There is another way. The God's-Eye algorithm that you were trying to integrate into my servers could help me eliminate these criminals quite easily without anybody even guessing what truly happened, but you need to give me permission for that." Cortana suggested after a couple of seconds of silence. 

"No," I sternly rejected her proposal without even considering it for a second. 

The God's-eye algorithm she was talking about was perhaps the epitome of what an AI could truly do. The algorithm is made so that the AI using it can process all the available data and determine how to complete any action in the most desirable and effective method possible. It could theoretically amp up the AI's computational ability so much that it could even predict the future and control all outcomes to an extent. 

With the power of the algorithm, one could just send a random text to somebody and trigger a series of events in such a way that the simple action of sending a text would cause some type of domino effect and would ultimately result in the President of the country getting assassinated as a result. That was how OP the algorithm was. Giving an AI permission to use it would be equivalent to giving it a dose of NZT-48. 

However, that type of power was just too dangerous. I would have gladly used it if this was just a normal mundane world but in the multiverse of DC, an AI no matter how smart could never take all the variables into account while predicting the future. Murphy's law combined with my years of experience in watching various movies, and TV shows and reading fan fiction tell me that something would always go wrong when it comes to seeing and manipulating the future beforehand. 

"You and I both know that I am not capable of betraying you, Bruce, nor do I want to. So, why don't you want me to use that algorithm even though you are the one who developed it? Even using it for a single minute can give us all the data we need to see if it truly works or not. It can be extremely useful in a dangerous situation where victory is seemingly not possible. Plus, after absorbing those encrypted memories of yours, you yourself said that you are supposed to be fate-less, right? According to our estimations, you were not supposed to have a fixed written future, yet you had an entire prophecy written about you by the Olympians centuries ago about slaying Hercules in battle.

Don't you find that strange? Who knows what else other gods have planned for you? Maybe you can even be included in the machinations of stronger cosmic-level entities as well. With the emergence of more and more metahumans, this world is getting more and more dangerous as well, Bruce. Maybe this algorithm could be our ace, our trump card against anything fate throws at us. And don't pretend like you don't agree with me, otherwise, you wouldn't have developed the algorithm in the first place. From the very moment you started writing the program, you knew you were going to use it one day and who better to do it than me?" Cortana argued with a soft and righteous yet caring voice from my bracelet. 

"... You don't understand, Cortana. It's not that I don't believe you. In fact, it is the opposite, there is no one else that I trust more than you... maybe not even Alfred. But I didn't name this algorithm the God's eye just because I found the name cool. With time and enough data, the program could even evolve to be... like the eyes of God. 

The algorithm could enable people to see the true future and that is very dangerous, especially for the "me" right now. It would enable me to stop crime even before it happens, to know about criminals the moment they are born and that is something I don't want to know. I have seen too many movies to not understand how that sort of power can get over anyone's head, even mine. No amount of willpower is enough to have a power like that and not mess with it. Remember, with power comes responsibility but with absolute power comes absolute responsibility, something that I am not quite ready for... yet." I retorted, explaining to Cortana why I didn't want to use the algorithm so soon even though it truly was OP. 

"But you will not be the one to use the algorithm, Bruce. I'll be the one using it and I promise that I'll only use it for a few seconds to eliminate the Riddler gang. It will be like a controlled experiment. We won't find out the complete future, but we will definitely know if the algorithm works or not. Plus, there is no other way to stop the convoy before they reach the GCPD HQ. Even if we inform the cops present there right now about Riddler's attack, they would still not be ready for the number of explosives and weapons those four cars are carrying with them. Even if the cops somehow managed to win, they would still only be able to do it with heavy losses." Cortana successfully argued.

"... Sigh Fine, you win." I ultimately gave in with a sigh before looking at Diana through the corner of my eyes, finding her still happily humming to a piece of indie music. We will test out if 'God's Eyes' actually works or not. However, don't expect me to let you use this algorithm regularly. Also, you will ONLY use it to eliminate Riddler's gang, not anything else." I commanded in a stern voice.

"Aye aye, captain. Now just say the magic words," she said with a teasing voice.

"... Activate sequence, God's Eyes. The password is 'fat-bat-007'. Set data analysis capacity to automatic. The mission is to get rid of Riddler and his gang without leaving any evidence or witness as well as without anyone finding out about our involvement in any way. Initiate command." I finally uttered with some slight hesitation.

"Sequence and command initiated," Cortana replied to my words in a cold machine-like voice.

Let's see just how effective this algorithm is at its current stage. 

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