Axel finished speaking and slowly released Bruce, then patted his shoulder once, lightly, almost mockingly.
"Listen, the more you understand, the more you'll see why I'm doing this. Gotham was always mine, and I sure as hell won't have anyone in this city growling at me like some damn alley cat. Your roar? Nothing but nostalgia, clinging to memories of a fight you never won. I don't see you as an opponent. I see you as a friend, Buddy. And if you're wondering who my real enemy is, it's only Barbatos."
He chuckled, shrugged, and flung his shredded trench coat far away. Rolling up his sleeves like he was getting ready for a bloody chore, Axel continued, eyes on the thoughtful Batman.
"Don't worry about that name for now. It's knowledge you aren't equipped to handle yet. If Diana's a god, then even gods are Barbatos' playthings. But here's the kicker — even if he can toy with 99.99% of life in this universe, to me, he's still nothing more than a busted toy. So remember your roar today. Someday in the future, you'll thank me for existing."
He laughed, turned, and walked toward the next numbered Sky Rail support pylon.
Watching Axel's retreating back, Bruce took a deep breath and called after him.
"Can I really trust you, Axel?"
Axel slowed, smirked over his shoulder, and shouted back without hesitation.
"What the hell does it matter if you trust me? You're nowhere near it yet. If you think you can stop me, come try! Haha!"
Then, with a slow, deliberate middle finger raised high, Axel vanished without a trace. The ground where he'd been standing shuddered violently and cracked like lightning had struck it.
But as Bruce adjusted to the quake, Axel wasn't gone.
He appeared right beside him.
Bruce blinked, startled. Axel casually threw his arm over Bruce's shoulder and, with that irritating grin of his, asked suddenly:
"You know, I don't think I ever told you my plan, did I? Hell, only two or three of my crew even know what I'm actually doing the next few days. So how the hell did you find out?"
Axel's eyes burned with mock intensity.
Bruce turned his head away reflexively. God, why do I have human eyes? An owl's head would've been perfect right now. This was ridiculously awkward. Secondhand embarrassment was hitting new records.
"I overheard your conversation with Falcone," Bruce said. "That's how I knew. Actually before some of your own people."
Axel nodded slowly, then — without warning — slapped Bruce hard across the back of his head.
Thwack!
Cracks spidered over Bruce's carbon‑fiber helmet.
Bruce stumbled, momentarily dizzy, as Axel continued grumbling like he was annoyed rather than powerful.
"So you're proud of that huh? Eavesdropping? Figures. There's no secrets in this damn bird city. Now tell me, what the hell did you do with my nuclear bomb?"
Bruce groaned, squeezed his head, then answered sluggishly as clarity returned.
"I changed the detonation code."
"You son of a bitch!"
Axel cursed, grabbed Bruce's shoulder, and looked ready to toss him aside like trash — but before that could happen, something exploded in golden light.
A strike hit Axel, sending him flying backward!
Even though Diana didn't hear as well as Clark or Axel, she had enough time to zero in on Axel's location. She seized him by the throat, slammed him across the distance, and then casually cast Batman aside as if he weighed nothing.
"Don't interfere."
She said it coldly, voice like ice sliding over steel.
Axel didn't even flinch. One hand gripped Diana's wrist around his throat, the other remained free as if he was simply stretching.
"Sorry, Diana. I still can't have a fun fight with you today. You're not my target."
He smiled. A strange, apologetic little smile.
Diana narrowed her eyes — that instinctive warning sign you get when something's about to go wrong — just before Axel turned into a column of flame and vanished.
Boom!!!
Before anyone could blink, Axel was already at the next support pylon. With a single, brutal punch, he shattered the structure that stood dozens of meters high.
Batman, hearing the explosion and watching the Sky Rail tremble, ground his teeth.
"No one can stop his objective. But I prepared for this."
He rushed to the street, slipping into a nearby alley.
The first version of the Batmobile, all black with a simple, sturdy design, roared out from the shadows.
As Diana chased Axel, Bruce drove and spoke rapidly into the comms connected to Alfred and Lucius.
"You heard Axel, right? Whether we know what Barbatos truly is or not, his determination to destroy this Sky Rail line is absolute. That means we must prepare for the worst. Activate Plan Delta.
"Lucius, I made you CEO of Wayne Enterprises last night. You need to take full control of the company and, through it, influence Gotham City Hall to issue an immediate city‑wide disaster alert. Contact every commercial hotel in Metropolis within thirty minutes. Prepare them to house Gotham civilians.
"Alfred, as Wayne Family representative, you're authorized to coordinate directly with Metropolis City Hall. Every evacuation route to Metropolis must be opened and kept clear. We must do everything we can to protect as many lives as possible.
"And as for me, I'll buy time. I'll delay Axel long enough to complete rescue operations before this Sky Rail collapses entirely.
"We also need to force the Gotham Police Department into action. Even if we haven't fully taken control, we can make them participate. They must help. Lives are at stake.
"And since our guest Diana Prince can't stop Axel by force alone, then we'll just have to protect the city ourselves. Because in the end… only we can be trusted."
He hung up and floored the Batmobile toward the chaos ahead.
Meanwhile, Diana's blade was coming at Axel faster than human eyes could track, but Axel didn't blink. His eyes chilled and he lifted a fist to meet the strike.
Pfft!
The punch connected — not to block the sword, but straight into thin air — and Axel looked at the blade sticking out of his forearm with a twisted grin.
"Did I scare you? Think I actually caught your sword?"
He taunted, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth.
"It doesn't matter if I actually caught it. I just want to beat you up."
Diana growled and pulled — trying to yank her sword free — only to find Axel's fingers wrapped tight around the hilt with only three of them.
Before she could react, Axel's other fist rocketed up and smashed into Diana's face.
Boom!!!
Bones in his own hand shattered, but Diana's head snapped back, stunned.
Diana took a breath, exhaled, and kicked Axel hard. He flew back — then vanished mid‑air — and instantly reappeared in front of her again.
Then Axel kissed her neck.
Mwah~
He sniffed the air like he hadn't smelled anything that good in years.
"Tsk tsk, this scent… years of chaos and sweat. Smells real nice."
Diana shrieked — fury pure and brutal.
"You damn bastard, die!"
She swung her blade in a deadly arc and decapitated Axel.
But at the same instant, Axel reappeared before the third pylon support with a punch that pulverized it.
The track above began to buckle and rumble.
Less than a kilometer from the collapse, a speeding Sky Rail car braked hard, sparks flying everywhere.
"Ahh! Help! Gun fire! Mom!"
Passengers screamed in panic, terrified and trapped.
The Sky Rail reversed — no, it changed its entire direction — trying desperately to escape the destruction.
But it didn't matter. There were dozens of cars on the line and more support pylons would fall.
The total collapse of Sky Rail was imminent.
Axel stood before the cracked support beam and shouted to Diana from afar.
"Hey, Diana. Instead of swinging that sword around, how about you start helping people? I'm a villain, right? But you're a hero. Villains get to destroy, heroes save lives. So tell me — what's more important: fighting evil, or saving lives?"
He waved casually.
Before Diana could even step forward, Axel was already at the fourth support pylon — punching it into dust.
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