"If I didn't know beforehand that this was the Batcave, I would have definitely thought I'd ended up back in that primitive world," Professor Lizard remarked with a sigh as he pulled his gaze back.
"What's the matter? Scared?" Dr. Banner chuckled mischievously.
When the rest of them had entered the Batcave for the first time, their reactions had been roughly the same as Professor Lizard's—standing frozen in place for a solid dozen seconds or so.
Part of it was due to the innate air of mystery surrounding Batman, and part of it was that they couldn't fathom how Batman had managed to transform the underground space of Bat Island into what it was now in the span of just a few short months.
However, none of them intended to take the initiative to ask. Based on what these scientists knew about Batman, they would only ever get one kind of response.
"Not enough to be scared. You're forgetting I killed this Tyrannosaurus Rex with my own hands," Professor Lizard let out a couple of heh-hehs, giving Dr. Banner a smug look. "Though I heard Hulk had to expend quite a bit of effort just to kill a single Frost Giant. I take it you can't claim credit for these Frost Giant weapons?"
"Here they go again..." Dr. Otto slapped his forehead from the side.
"Alright. Doctor, follow me," Batman urged, his mind set solely on getting Dr. Otto examined.
Dr. Otto nodded and followed Batman through the Batcave into a medical bay.
A week ago, when Dr. Strange had met with his accident and Batman was temporarily tied up, Strange had also been laid up in this exact room.
"Connors, Hulk—I might need your help," Batman called back to the transformed Incredible Hulk and Professor Lizard.
The two hulking figures glared fiercely at each other, then shifted back into their human forms at the same time and jogged over one after the other.
Professor Morbius was the most well-behaved, staying by Batman's side from start to finish.
The medical bay area inside the Batcave was terrifyingly massive, practically equivalent to a small-scale hospital fully equipped with all kinds of medical apparatus.
A few minutes later, Dr. Otto lay down next to a massive piece of equipment that looked completely different from ordinary brainwave scanners found in the outside world, closing his eyes.
At the same time, a holographic projection of a brain structure appeared alongside it for Batman and the others to observe.
Dr. Banner put on his glasses, adjusting them as he inspected Dr. Otto's brain with a frown, blurting out:
"...Is this a human brain?"
Although the overall shape of the holographic projection was still that of a human brain, the neural distribution, density, and brainwave activity levels were entirely different from those of a normal human.
It was a completely brand-new and complex neural network.
"Doctor, do you feel anything unusual right now?" Professor Connors asked with concern.
"I feel great. Never felt better," Dr. Otto replied with his eyes closed.
"Look at your brain. I originally thought you were the only completely normal human among our group, but now it seems that's not the case," Professor Connors said.
Dr. Otto's heart skipped a beat. He opened his eyes and turned his head to look at Batman: "What's wrong with my brain?"
Batman remained silent in thought, seemingly pondering the situation.
"It seems it isn't a bad change. Just like I said before, it's benign... Wait," Dr. Otto said, his anxiety easing by half when he saw that Batman looked to be in a state of "pondering" rather than "grim."
However, mid-sentence, a sudden thought struck him: "Could someone fetch my mechanical tentacles for me? Let's see if there's any difference in my brain when the mechanical arms are attached to my body."
Dr. Banner nodded, taking off his glasses and turning around to leave. Professor Morbius hurriedly stopped him: "I'll do it."
Dr. Banner didn't argue, letting Professor Morbius spread his membrane wings and fly off. But a few seconds later, Morbius came flying back at top speed:
"Banner, you'd better go after all. I can't open the mechanism from Parker Manor to the underground."
"Hahaha," Professor Connors couldn't help letting out a laugh. "By my estimate, Batman's stomp on that mechanism required at least thirty tons of force or more. Of course you can't open it."
Professor Morbius shrugged: "You're all Hercules. I'm not competing with you in raw strength."
He had long since accepted the fact that his physical strength was inferior to these monsters.
Dr. Banner gave a light laugh as well, patting Morbius on the shoulder before heading off toward the elevator.
A few minutes later, the Incredible Hulk stepped out of the elevator holding the mechanical tentacles, tossing them casually through the air. The sight startled Professor Connors into instantly transforming into his Lizard form, catching them with one hand—narrowly saving Dr. Otto from being crushed to death on the spot.
"Have you lost your mind, you stupid toad?!" Professor Lizard cursed.
"Hmph," the Incredible Hulk grunted triumphantly.
"After putting on the mechanical tentacles, Dr. Otto's brain underwent yet another new change," Professor Lizard said with a frown after helping Dr. Otto equip the tentacles, switching back into human form as he felt too lazy to argue with Hulk right now.
Batman also observed the brain hologram of Dr. Otto and spoke:
"Although the mechanical tentacles didn't grow out from Otto's body, and aren't even physically wired into his brain—relying purely on reading body electrical signals for control—"
"From the current readings, his brain has already defaulted those four mechanical tentacles to be new organs extending from his body, even redistributing his neural network to accommodate them."
"Not only that, the changes in Dr. Otto's brain have also brought about a few implicit alterations... I need to consult an expert."
As Batman spoke, he raised his arm, transferring the holographic brain scan of Dr. Otto into the onboard computer housed inside his Gargoyle suit.
"An expert?" Dr. Otto stood up and straightened his clothes. "Tell me his name. Maybe Professor Morbius knows him."
Professor Morbius nodded without denying it. After all, besides being a top-tier scientist in gene chemistry, he was also a top-tier medical doctor.
"Wolverine," Batman didn't hide it from them.
"...If it involves cutting open my head, maybe we don't need to bother him," Dr. Otto said, his scalp tingling at the thought.
"Don't worry, it has nothing to do with that," the corner of Batman's mouth twitched slightly as he reassured him. "Doctor, you can leave the island as normal to visit Dr. Strange. Your changes aren't a major issue."
Your brain isn't even human anymore, and that's not a major issue... Professor Connors couldn't help muttering internally, though he refrained from saying it out loud in front of Dr. Otto and Batman.
"Alright, I trust your judgment. If even you guys were to get it wrong, everyone else in this world would be no different," Dr. Otto said with a smile.
"That's right," Dr. Banner nodded, not disagreeing with the sentiment.
Having confirmed that the changes in Dr. Otto were leaning in a positive direction, the group did not linger inside the Batcave for long.
Dr. Otto went off to visit Strange, while Banner, Connors, and Morbius returned to South Brother Island to work on their respective experiments.
Batman, on the other hand, shed his Gargoyle suit and, an hour later, tracked down Wolverine—Logan—inside a bar.
"I want to talk to you about mutants, Logan." Batman ordered a ginger ale, taking a seat beside Wolverine as they both looked toward the exotic dancers performing on stage.
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