"Seduction might be your go-to tactic, but it isn't ours."
Ant-Man laughed, cutting Black Widow off. "Rather than sleeping with him, I'd much rather catch him and dissect him to see his exact physiological makeup."
Inside the ventilation ducts, the patrol ants began to move once more. Batman and Venom Robin followed stealthily behind them, inching through the pipes toward other rooms within the building.
"What's his name?" Ant-Man asked Black Widow.
"Henry Cavill."
"Judging by the name, he sounds human."
"Of course he's human. What else would he be? I have no tolerance for slimy tentacle monsters entering my body."
"So, you did sleep with him?"
"Maybe. Who knows?"
Hank Pym, the Ant-Man, looked down at the toy dollhouse sitting on the table, the smile gradually fading from his face. "Maybe I should just dissect you first. I can extract Batman's DNA from your body and have Nick Fury track him down globally."
Black Widow fell silent once again.
"You've been lying this whole time, Natasha," Ant-Man continued. "From start to finish."
"It seems Janet was wrong—your head isn't filled only with experiments." Black Widow's voice regained its icy edge, though it was still laced with a hint of flirtatiousness.
"Now, let's talk about Nathan Garrett," Ant-Man said.
"I don't know any more than Nick Fury does. You should ask him," Black Widow replied.
BAM!
Ant-Man slammed his palm onto the table, the force making the dollhouse jump.
"Natasha! I'm finished with this pointless conversation!" Ant-Man roared at the tiny house.
"Tsk, tsk. Someone's angry," Black Widow teased.
"I am angry, Natasha." Ant-Man glared at the dollhouse. "What I actually want to do is see how Reed Richards managed to open a portal to another world and bring dinosaurs into this one—not get mixed up with Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. nonsense."
"Since Nick Fury assigned you to guard D-2, you're not escaping this web." Black Widow's tone was remarkably relaxed, showing no signs of distress at being a prisoner.
In short, no matter what Ant-Man asked, Black Widow's answers were always evasive, a mix of half-truths and lies.
Inside the ventilation ducts, Batman and Venom Robin had used the distraction of the argument to move quickly. They had infiltrated nearly every room they could access, searching for the Pym Particles.
Room after room, Batman and Venom Robin scoured almost every lab in the building, but they came up empty-handed.
"Can't find them," Venom Robin said, narrowing his eyes in a frustrated scowl (since he lacked eyebrows to furrow).
"Perhaps they aren't hidden in a lab, but somewhere else," Batman whispered. "Let's check the living quarters."
Venom Robin didn't object, following Batman back through the vents toward the residential area of the building.
The so-called "living quarters" occupied the second floor, consisting of a kitchen, bedrooms, a dining room, and other communal areas.
"If you were him, where would you hide the Pym Particles?" Batman asked Venom Robin.
Even while in stealth mode, Batman never missed an opportunity to teach.
"The bedroom, obviously," Venom Robin said as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
For most people, the best place to hide something was the bedroom. It was the most private, relaxing core of their domain. People felt they had absolute control over that environment, providing the highest sense of psychological security. Therefore, they subconsciously believed it was the best place to hide secrets.
Batman remained noncommittal, leading Venom Robin into the bedroom shared by Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne.
Unlike the rest of the facility—which was filled with either dissected dinosaurs or cold, clinical experimental equipment—this room was quite cozy. The color scheme was a soothing, warm yellow.
"It's gotta be here." Venom Robin rushed into the bedroom excitedly, turning every nook and cranny upside down.
A few minutes later, Venom Robin looked dejected. "Not here either."
"Of course not," Batman said.
"You're being a total Monday morning quarterback, Old Bats," Venom Robin grumbled.
"No," Batman replied. "The reason my first choice was the labs rather than the living quarters was because I was putting myself in Ant-Man's shoes."
While speaking, the two left the bedroom and searched the gym, the dining room, and the private theater. Finally, they arrived in the kitchen and dining area.
"I don't know exactly what form the Pym Particles take, but they likely require low temperatures or a specific environment for preservation. That made the labs the primary target," Batman explained. "Furthermore, based on what we've seen, Ant-Man is quite dependent on them."
"Keeping them in the lab would make them easy to use and study at a moment's notice."
"But we didn't find them," Venom Robin countered.
"True. That suggests I lacked a complete understanding of Ant-Man's personality." Batman was not afraid to admit his judgment had been flawed. "He might have hidden the Pym Particles in the living quarters, but it definitely wouldn't be the bedroom."
"Why?" Venom Robin pressed.
"Because no scientist spends all day running back and forth to their bedroom," Batman said.
"That's it? I thought you were going to drop some deep philosophy on me," Venom Robin whispered. "Also, it just occurred to me—since you got to this world, you haven't even had a bedroom of your own."
Venom Robin expected Batman to ignore the second half of his comment, but surprisingly, Batman spoke up.
"Actually, I do."
"Where?" Robin asked curiously.
"Number 20, Forest Hills. Aunt May prepared a bedroom for me," Batman said, his voice low.
Venom Robin looked at Batman's cowl. His own memories contained fragments of Aunt May as well. "I love Aunt May," he said.
"I do too," Batman replied.
Down on the first floor, after realizing he wouldn't get any useful information from Black Widow, Ant-Man sighed. He donned his silver metal helmet once more and pressed a button on his glove.
He grew to giant size again, scooped up the dollhouse, and carried it to the seventh floor. A giant ant there took it from him, tucking it safely beneath its body.
"Janet, how does pan-seared dinosaur meat sound for dinner?"
Having finished his task, Ant-Man returned to normal size and spoke to the Wasp, Janet van Dyne. "The boys in the kitchen are already working on it."
"To be honest, I'm not that interested in dinosaur meat," the Wasp said, curling her lip, though she still followed Ant-Man toward the dining room.
At that moment, Batman and Venom Robin had just discovered the Pym Particles inside a refrigerator in the dining area. As they took one of the vials in hand, they were separated from the approaching Ant-Man and Wasp by only a single wall.
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