Multiverse: Deathstroke

Chapter 17: Ch.16 Arrival At The Scene

The journey this time was longer, as Cindy had to take the northern ring road due to the flooding in the underground tunnel. By the time they arrived at the previously located spot, it was already past 1 a.m.

Under the pitch-black night sky, everything was covered in water, with the line between the ground and the sky blurred. However, they could still see Commissioner Gordon's brown sedan parked by the roadside not far ahead, its taillights still glowing.

Su Ming and Cindy prepared to get out and investigate the scene. As for the two reporters, even if they tried to send Vika away, she wouldn't leave. She was still waiting for more juicy material and the "action-packed footage" Su Ming had promised her.

Peter, being Vika's sidekick, certainly didn't have the guts to walk through three gang territories alone in the dead of night.

"Can I get out and film a crime scene documentary or something?" Vika hurriedly started putting on her coat, looking eagerly at Su Ming.

Su Ming didn't mind. Having some recorded footage might come in handy. "Sure, but don't film both Deathstrokes at the same time, and don't film Barbara. No live streaming. If you try any tricks, I'll make sure you wish you were dead."

Cindy didn't object either. After all, it didn't matter which one of them did the thinking—both were capable. In fact, she felt an unexpected sense of comfort, as if she were with an old friend, like Holly.

Barbara also wanted to go down, but due to her limited mobility, she had to stay in the van.

The cold air washed over Su Ming again, pushing away all distractions. He quickly approached Gordon's car, opened the door, and started examining the scene.

The car smelled of tobacco and coffee but not blood. Gordon's phone sat neatly on the dashboard, showing several missed calls from Barbara, confirming that it was indeed his phone.

The car keys were still in the ignition, and the engine was in neutral, suggesting that Gordon had only planned to leave the car for a short time, but something unexpected had happened.

The fuel tank was half full, the battery was charged, and there were no signs of tampering with the hood or the trunk, ruling out vehicle malfunction.

So, what caused him to leave his car and fall into the black-clad attackers' trap?

"Su, there's a body in the water over here."

Cindy, who had been checking the surveillance cameras, jumped down from a nearby utility pole, splashing water everywhere. There was indeed a device like a music player attached to the surveillance camera. She collected the equipment, planning to study it later.

As she walked toward Su Ming, she noticed a faint white shape under the dirty water not far from the car. Her experience told her it was a corpse.

Su Ming immediately understood that this body was likely what drew Gordon from his car. As a police officer, finding a body would ensure that he'd stop and investigate, no matter the time.

This meant the attackers wanted Gordon alive, not dead, which was good news.

Cindy used her foot to pull the corpse from the water. It had already started to deform from soaking, and the rain had accelerated the breakdown of fat, making the skin look loose and saggy.

They quickly identified the cause of death—massive blood loss from external injuries. Right there, they started an impromptu autopsy.

As assassins, understanding human anatomy was a basic skill. When necessary, playing the role of a coroner wasn't a problem. Cindy examined the internal organs, while Su Ming checked the limbs and head.

"Viewers, what we are seeing now is the scene of Commissioner Gordon's disappearance. Behind me is..."

From a distance, Vika's voice could be heard as she recorded her show. True to her word, she didn't try to film both Deathstrokes, knowing it would be crossing a line that could result in dire consequences.

The two assassins were not distracted by her and swiftly completed their examination, working with precision, their four hands performing identical tasks.

After about thirty seconds, they confirmed there was nothing they missed. In the pouring rain, this was the most information they could gather.

"Who goes first?" Su Ming asked with a smile. "I don't want to play the 'say-the-same-thing-at-the-same-time' game again."

"I'll go first." Cindy stood up, scanning their surroundings, though the only thing around was more rain. "The internal organs show signs of bruising from blunt trauma, apart from the knife wound. She was beaten before she died."

"Her cardiovascular system is well-developed, indicating she was either a laborer or an athlete. There's no food in her stomach; she's probably been starving for two or three days. I think she was executed in some secret prison. She was a prisoner."

Su Ming nodded, stood up, and surveyed the area. He added, "My findings match yours. She didn't walk here on her own; her feet are too well-preserved for that. This body was dumped here."

"Her knuckles are large, with noticeable calluses and wear on the first three fingers of both hands. Her muscles are evenly developed, suggesting she was either a fighter or a swimmer. Her forearms have defensive wounds, meaning she fought before she died. Both her wrists and ankles show signs of being bound."

"She was tortured before being killed."

They stood silently, contemplating. The only sound between them was the rain for several seconds.

"No obvious signs of torture," Cindy said, glancing toward Vika, who was still performing her cheerful broadcast in front of the camera as if nothing had happened.

"Maybe waterboarding. There's a technique where you cover the face with paper and pour water over it, leaving signs of suffocation during an autopsy," Su Ming mused.

"Where did you hear that?"

Cindy had never seen such a method. Their usual tactics involved shoving people's heads into toilets or other unsanitary places, but that would leave water in the lungs, showing signs of drowning during the autopsy.

"Oh, ancient civilizations all had similar methods. You should look into it when you get the chance."

In reality, Su Ming had picked it up from TV shows during his time as a security guard, though he suspected this particular technique originated in China.

Cindy sighed, shaking her head. "What you're thinking is the same thing I'm thinking. This situation just got more complicated."

Su Ming understood as well. A body in such physical condition was no ordinary person.

"The League of Shadows," they said simultaneously.

This time, though, they simply stood silently over the corpse, saying nothing more.

A League of Shadows assassin had died here. No matter who was responsible, the assassins would avenge her. That was their ancient tradition.

If the ones who kidnapped Gordon were responsible, the League wouldn't care to differentiate. They would kill everyone as a warning, and Gordon's life would be in danger.

"How far is Nanda Parbat from Gotham?" Su Ming asked, needing to calculate time.

"You don't know? How long does it take in your world?" Cindy was curious. She knew Su Ming had access to things her world didn't—maybe faster travel methods?

Nanda Parbat, the League of Shadows' headquarters, wasn't actually in the south but rather in a frozen, mysterious place that no technology could detect.

Like Themyscira, Atlantis, and the House of Mystery, it was shielded by some unknown force or existed outside the material world.

From what Su Ming could gather from shows like *Arrow* and the *Dark Knight* trilogy, it was probably somewhere around Iceland or Greenland.

"About seven hours?" Su Ming estimated, calculating Gotham's location relative to a flight.

"Too slow! Here, it only takes four hours. You'd find assassins swarming Gotham by then."

What? Faster than a plane? Did they have some secret travel method?

"This isn't exactly a competition. We're short on time!" Su Ming interrupted, annoyed. Why was she so proud of even the assassins' travel speed?

"Fine. Those black-clad guys are probably hiding in the nearby buildings. Let's check for any clues." Cindy sighed.

"Alright, I'll go that way."

Su Ming turned to leave. Time was running out. Cindy shrugged in the rain. She just wanted to show off her strength—Amazon women were like that—but it seemed Su wasn't impressed.

She kicked open the door of the nearest building and began questioning the residents, seemingly venting her frustration by hacking at anything in sight.

As soon as they left, Vika and Peter approached the body, recording everything. Suddenly, Vika felt something under her foot and noticed a wound on the corpse's waist, making a discovery that brought a smile to her face.