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Gordon's consciousness finally returned to his body. He could feel the light, feel the warmth of the fireplace.

But his heart was like winter. Everything had been frozen over—there was no sunlight, no hope.

Falcone gently patted his shoulder, comforting him like an elder. "Gordon, my good Gordon, it's all over. Everything will get better. You lost two wives and your own child for this city. You're just a little tired."

"Tired... yes, I'm tired." Gordon lowered his head, trembling slightly.

"No, Gordon, it's not time for you to rest yet. New Gotham has not been built. You still can't rest. Only you can save it. You promised me."

Falcone embraced him forcefully. The gaunt old man nearly lifted him off the sofa.

Gordon stared at Falcone in confusion. He could no longer remember what he had promised him. His mind felt as though it were boiling over, his thoughts chaotic, as if they had lost all connection to one another.

"I... yes, I promised you..." he answered blankly.

"Yes, you did. A better Gotham—a Gotham where everyone can live happily. This is our city. We all want it to become better."

"My child... my child!" Gordon clutched his head again in agony.

Falcone soothed him once more, patting his back. "It's all over, it's all over. You'll have a new wife. Once New Gotham is rebuilt, I'll preside over your wedding to Sofia. Then I'll hand the Falcone Family over to you two, and leave amid applause. You'll have new children, a new city, and live happily ever after."

As he spoke, he looked hopefully at Sofia, as if seeking her opinion.

"Yes, Father. Everything is as you decide."

She still wore that false smile, like the polite expression a medieval noblewoman put on to deal with others. She answered in the voice of an obedient daughter, as though she had never changed.

"Come, Gordon. Kiss my ring and accept my promise. From now on, we are family. For a better Gotham!"

Falcone smiled and extended his right hand to Gordon. On his ring finger was an exquisite gold ring engraved with the Falcone Family's rose crest.

Yet even in his muddled state, Gordon still turned his head away and refused to look at the ring, just as he had more than ten years ago.

On the outskirts of Indian Hill, Su Ming and the others had been lying in wait in a television station's broadcast van for an hour. It was already past four, yet the only sounds around them were wind and rain.

Endless rain poured from the sky, twisted by the gale into watery dragons that seemed able to slip into their van from impossible angles, stealing warmth from their bodies through the tiniest cracks.

The van was pitch-black. He and Cindy sat in the dark cab, each holding a bottle of beer they had just swiped, monitoring the activity outside.

Earlier, in the small supermarket, Su Ming had told Cindy everything about the multiverse. He had also told her about Black Hand's plan, along with some of his other speculations.

He had done so because she was the only person here Su Ming could trust. Before leaving this place, he felt he should leave behind enough intelligence for Cindy to survive as well.

He did not know whether this decision was right, nor whether it would cause a Butterfly Effect or even worse consequences. But he had only done what a partner should do.

Though they had known each other for only six hours and were merely a temporary team, their similarities and seamless cooperation made it feel as if they had known each other for a long time.

It had indeed been a long time. Su Ming had only been in this world for six and a half hours, and those six hours were nearly his entire new life.

In those six hours, he had experienced things he had never imagined before and made changes he had never considered. He had become inseparable from the world that had brought all this about.

Cindy's reaction, however, had been rather calm. Learning of Black Hand's scheme was like receiving ordinary intelligence. After Su Ming finished telling her, she merely said, "Oh," though he had no idea what she was thinking.

The two returned to the van in silence, drove here, then killed the engine and waited in the darkness.

In the distance, scattered firelight flickered through the junkyard. Homeless nomads had lit the fires while sheltering from the rain inside wrecked cars. Some less fortunate fires were extinguished by the downpour, and curses or crying occasionally drifted over from somewhere.

This weather was not suited for small animals, but Su Ming was certain he had seen mice darting in and out of the wrecked cars, seemingly moving the food stores from their nests to higher ground.

The wind shifted slightly, and the rain began lashing them from another direction. But the target they were waiting for still had not arrived.

"Damn it. Did the League of Assassins run into a flash flood or something? Why aren't they here yet?"

Cindy lay across the steering wheel. She had waited so long that her body had gone stiff.

"Something seems wrong. Batwoman's surveillance system still hasn't detected any ninjas entering Gotham. Something went off track."

Su Ming looked into the distant darkness. He could only do his best to identify the direction of the underground laboratory's entrance and hope it was in the same location as in the television series.

Barbara was still using her laptop to connect to the Bat-Computer in the Batcave. Images constantly switched across the screen, but the system had not identified any League of Assassins members.

"What do we do?" Cindy turned her head to look at him.

Su Ming thought for a moment, then suddenly wondered whether the League of Assassins had another plan.

Cindy had only found footprints from ninja footwear on the rooftop. The Shadow Dancer scouts might very well never have gone downstairs to inspect the bodies.

She only needed to know that members of the organization had died. She did not need to investigate how they had died like Su Ming and the others.

In any case, it was all Gotham's fault. With Batwoman out of the city, wouldn't destroying Gotham avenge them just the same?

Ra's al Ghul might already be gathering forces at Nanda Parbat. That would require League members to return from all over the world, naturally taking more time.

When the Shadow Dancers came again, they would surely launch a major operation to destroy Gotham. Why bother determining who the killer was? Too much trouble. Gothamites had done it anyway.

Set off a few nuclear bombs in the city and send every gangster and resident flying into the sky. The murder of their members would naturally be avenged, and Ra's al Ghul's long-cherished wish would be fulfilled.

Two birds with one stone.

"We attack. We can't wait any longer. No matter what's inside, we have to move." Su Ming put on his helmet, fastened the clasp, and checked his weapons.

"Certain? We still can't be sure where The Roman plans to deal with them." Though Cindy said this with a smile, her hands did not slow in the slightest as she prepared for battle as well.

Su Ming only looked at her, then at the others in the van, before jumping down.

"I can only be certain that as time passes, a greater danger is drawing nearer."

He meant the renewed war between the Amazons and Atlantis, as well as the assassination Bliss might launch. They did not have time to wait here any longer. They had to rescue Gordon quickly and find Batman.