Chapter 59 Bane's Siege
Lynn exhaled slowly.
Not visibly relieved—
But the slight reduction in tension across the shoulder muscles was enough for his enhanced perception to register internally.
Then Bruce Wayne spoke again.
This time—
His tone lowered slightly.
"But Lynn…"
"I'll continue observing you."
"Not because I consider you an enemy."
A brief pause.
"But because someone whose abilities evolve continuously, without a clearly defined upper limit, requires oversight."
"I'm honored."
Lynn extended his right hand calmly.
Bruce looked down at it briefly.
A handshake.
Under ordinary circumstances—
Meaningless.
Inside the Batcave—
After the conversation they had just finished—
The gesture represented something else entirely.
Temporary trust.
Mutual acknowledgment.
The beginning of a different relationship.
Bruce reached forward and shook his hand.
The instant their palms touched—
The Batcave alarm system activated.
Red warning lights exploded across the cavern walls.
Warning sirens echoed through the underground complex.
The Batcomputer switched automatically to Gotham emergency surveillance feeds.
Multiple windows opened simultaneously across the main display.
Gotham City.
Downtown.
An armored security vehicle overturned across Fifth Avenue.
The lower curtain wall of Wayne Tower had been blown apart.
The front pillars of Gotham Central Bank lay shattered across the street.
And standing among the debris—
A gigantic figure.
Over two and a half meters tall.
Massive muscles swollen grotesquely beneath the skin.
A breathing mask connected to thick venom tubes covered the lower half of the face.
Bane.
Behind him—
At least forty armed mercenaries wearing black tactical armor.
A skull entwined with octopus tentacles was embroidered across their chest rigs.
Hydra.
Bruce released Lynn's hand immediately and turned toward the Batsuit display platform.
"Looks like the conversation ends here."
The Batcomputer expanded the surveillance feeds further.
Within less than five minutes—
The situation downtown deteriorated rapidly.
A large breach had been blasted through Wayne Tower's lobby.
Glass and reinforced concrete covered nearly half the avenue.
The entrance of Gotham Central Bank had been rammed apart using an armored transport vehicle.
Bank alarms screamed continuously through the streets.
But Lynn immediately recognized the inconsistency.
The bank itself was irrelevant.
Bane wasn't attempting robbery.
Hydra's mercenary teams had divided into six tactical groups controlling surrounding intersections with military precision.
Heavy machine guns.
Anti-armor launchers.
Portable missile systems.
And—
Mass-produced exoskeleton combat suits.
Hydra-manufactured.
Inferior to Iron Man's armor by an enormous margin—
But more than sufficient against ordinary police or military forces.
"The GCPD perimeter already collapsed," Alfred Pennyworth said while switching police-band communications through the Batcomputer.
"A SWAT deployment suffered catastrophic losses."
"Commissioner Gordon is requesting immediate reinforcement."
Bruce was already halfway inside the suit.
Armor sections locked into place rapidly.
Shoulders.
Chest plating.
Gauntlets.
Leg armor.
"Contact Nightwing and Batgirl," Bruce ordered while securing the utility belt.
"Already attempted," Alfred replied.
"Nightwing remains in Blüdhaven."
"Estimated arrival time: minimum forty minutes."
"Batgirl is operating in South America and cannot provide immediate support."
Bruce didn't slow down.
The cowl sealed into position.
The moment the mask locked into place—
Bruce Wayne disappeared.
Batman stood there instead.
Meanwhile—
Lynn continued analyzing the surveillance feeds silently.
Analysis of All Things had already completed battlefield assessment.
Hydra's true objective wasn't financial theft.
Wayne Tower and Gotham Central Bank served only as attention anchors.
The real purpose—
Urban combat testing for the exoskeleton units.
And Bane represented the core experimental variable.
Venom dosage levels exceeded standard parameters drastically.
The muscle hypertrophy alone confirmed it.
Estimated venom concentration:
At least triple normal enhancement limits.
Result:
Higher strength.
Higher aggression.
Higher instability.
Batman fighting Bane plus twenty armored Hydra operators alone created extremely poor combat balance.
Bruce turned toward Lynn.
"You can stay here."
"The Batcave is one of the safest locations on Earth."
Lynn didn't answer immediately.
Instead—
A system notification appeared at the edge of his vision.
[Stage Mission Issued: Participate in a Superhero-Level Battle and Demonstrate Comprehensive Combat Capability!]
[Reward: Reputation +150]
[Reward: Forge Enhancement Attempt ×1]
[Note: Participation optional. Mission abandonment carries no Reputation penalty.]
One hundred fifty reputation points.
And—
A forge-enhancement attempt.
Lynn's mind completed the cost-benefit analysis in less than half a second.
Benefits:
Combat validation.
Reputation growth.
New system reward.
Further trust establishment with Batman.
Risks:
Additional exposure of combat capability.
But Bruce already understood most of the truth.
And after tonight's discussion, one thing had become clear:
Batman already accepted the reality that Lynn continuously evolved.
Under those circumstances—
Demonstrating further combat capability changed little strategically.
In fact—
Choosing to fight beside Batman at a critical moment would likely strengthen trust more than concealment would protect it.
And another calculation mattered too.
Bruce Wayne dying tonight would be disastrous.
Batman's resources, intelligence network, and influence held enormous long-term value.
The decision finalized instantly.
"Mr. Pennyworth," Lynn said calmly.
"I need less conspicuous clothing."
"And a mask."
"Anything sufficient to obscure facial identity."
Alfred glanced toward Batman briefly.
Batman studied Lynn in silence for approximately one second.
Then nodded once.
Alfred moved toward a storage compartment and retrieved:
A black hooded trench coat.
And a tactical half-mask from an older Batsuit prototype.
Lynn removed the white coat carefully.
The gold-rimmed glasses disappeared into the coat pocket.
When the mask settled into place—
The mild-mannered doctor vanished.
In the mirror's reflection—
Only an unidentified figure dressed in black remained.
"Let's go," Lynn said.
The Batmobile roared out of the Batcave moments later.
Seven minutes afterward—
The vehicle reached downtown Gotham.
Batman parked inside a narrow alley three blocks from Fifth Avenue.
The battlefield remained close enough to hear directly now.
Gunfire.
Explosions.
Police sirens.
Screaming civilians.
Before exiting the vehicle, Batman spoke once.
"Don't kill anyone."
"I'm a doctor," Lynn replied while stepping out of the Batmobile.
"Killing isn't part of my practice."
They separated immediately.
Batman moved upward across rooftops.
Lynn advanced from street level.
The reality on-site looked even worse than surveillance footage suggested.
Three GCPD patrol vehicles had been overturned.
Two burned actively.
Fragments of shattered riot shields and spent tear-gas canisters littered the roadway.
At least twenty police officers remained pinned behind damaged barricades.
Their gunfire achieved almost nothing against Hydra's exoskeleton armor.
And in the middle of the avenue—
Bane stood motionless.
More than 2.3 meters tall.
Muscles swollen grotesquely beneath the effects of Venom enhancement.
Six thick tubes connected directly into the mask apparatus.
Green Venom solution pulsed visibly through them.
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