"What are we waiting for? Let's march toward our freedom!" The man raised his arm and was the first to charge forward.
"Charge!"
The tide of rioting refugees surged.
At some point, the man who had first raised his arm and shouted had disappeared without a trace.
The refugees overturned the fences and rushed inside.
They did not vandalize anything; they simply advanced as quickly as possible.
Until the wasps appeared before them.
This time, the wasps did not speak. They did not issue any warnings.
They opened fire on the refugees immediately.
"Oh, my God." Jessica, sitting in the Batcave, covered her mouth as she watched the scene unfold.
She had never imagined that the Western Nation would actually dare to go this far.
This was no longer just an expulsion.
This was a massacre!
Jessica hurriedly turned her gaze to another screen.
It displayed Bruce's current location.
The only relief for Jessica at that moment was that Bruce was already nearing California.
In Sacramento, California, the operators controlling the wasps were in a state of panic.
Because when they tried to stop the wasps from slaughtering the refugees, they realized—
They couldn't.
"Stop them!"
"They're killing those people!"
"Override failed, sir!"
"The wasps are unresponsive!"
"They aren't responding at all!"
"They're moving entirely on their own now!"
"Some kind of malfunction, sir!"
Monté clutched his head, desperately looking at Morrez, hoping he would do something.
"Do something, Morrez!"
"You were the ones who insisted on stopping 'them' from entering your new country at all costs." Morrez looked at the two of them with a smirk. "The wasps are merely carrying out your orders."
"Shut them down immediately!" Monté was furious at Morrez's expression, shouting at him, "Our country unites people through technology, not arrests!"
"Border control is one thing, but this—this is too much, Morrez!"
"This is a massacre!"
Morrez simply smiled at Monté and said, "Sorry, gentlemen, my job here is done. It's time for me to go."
And with that, he vanished from his chair.
No special effects, no flashy theatrics—he simply disappeared.
Monté, his face grim, turned to Stanford, the one who had brought Morrez in.
"Where did he go?"
Stanford replied despondently, "We're finished."
At that moment, on their monitors, they saw a wasp targeting a mother desperately clutching her child.
Unable to bear witnessing the hellish scene any longer, they turned their eyes away—
And that's when salvation arrived.
A jet roared over the wasps, passing directly above them.
The moment it did, every single wasp plummeted to the ground.
Sparks of electricity flickered across their bodies. Even those who knew little about these machines could tell—
They were no longer a threat.
The refugees looked up and saw only a sleek, black jet maneuvering through the sky, skillfully evading all incoming attacks from the wasps.
To the people around California, the sight of this jet was unfamiliar.
But in other places—especially in New York—its appearance filled them with excitement.
Because they knew exactly what that jet represented.
It was hope. It was safety.
And it was the nightmare of those damned bastards!
The TV station broadcasting the scene quickly turned its cameras to the sky.
They captured every movement of the jet with absolute clarity.
And more importantly—how it had taken down the wasps.
The anchor in the studio could hardly believe her eyes.
What was she seeing?
She hurriedly connected to the field reporter.
"Jim, is that who I think it is?"
"Shirley, the Guardian of New York, our anonymous vigilante Batman has arrived in the disputed territory of California!"
"And he's protecting the refugees!"
Watching the images on the television, President Howard was momentarily at a loss for words.
Among all those present here, perhaps no one had a deeper impression of that man than he did.
The first time he met Batman, it was in broad daylight, and the vigilante had broken his nose right then and there.
Clenching his fist, he wanted to say something.
But Batman was never one to follow orders.
Even when Carol had extended an invitation to him on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D., he had completely disregarded it.
Naturally, they had no way of controlling Batman's actions.
Yet, what happened next was even more unbelievable to President Howard.
Captain America appeared on screen!
And it wasn't just him—the entire Ultimate Alliance was there!
"What? Carol! I personally ordered him not to go!"
Batman's sudden appearance had already infuriated the president, but now, seeing Captain America on the battlefield pushed his anger to the brink.
He pointed furiously at the screen, roaring in frustration.
Carol hesitated slightly before responding to President Howard, her expression conflicted. "Mr. President, I have a message from the Captain."
When President Howard turned his gaze toward Carol, she reluctantly relayed the message.
"Uh… He… He has resigned from the position of Captain America, effective five minutes ago. He said he'll return the shield tomorrow."
"What?!" President Howard could hardly believe his ears.
No one had expected Captain America to so blatantly defy the President of the United States.
And yet, somehow, it made perfect sense.
"Tony! Can you patch that jet into our communications?!"
Captain America wasn't about to let someone who had beaten them to the scene and was rescuing refugees act outside their coordinated efforts.
But just as they were preparing to reach out, a voice suddenly came through their communication channel.
"No need, Captain America. I'm already in."
Bruce veered in midair, swiftly returning to the battlefield.
A swarm of mechanical wasps had already locked onto him, ready to attack.
Just then, a sudden energy blast wiped out the wasps in front of Bruce in an instant.
"Looks like you could use a hand!"
A red-and-gold Iron Man hovered beside the Batwing, offering Bruce a salute before diving back into the fight.
Bruce said nothing. He merely retracted the Batwing's weapons.
He had already pinpointed the source commanding the wasps.
With a burst of speed, the Batwing charged straight toward it.
Meanwhile, on television, the news anchor's excited voice rang out.
"A remarkable development! As soon as New York's Batman appeared on the battlefield, the Ultimate Alliance, led by Captain America, joined the fight! They are battling to protect the lives of American refugees!"
Citizens watching the events unfold could only pray silently for their heroes.
"May God protect them."
"I'm just glad to see someone stepping up to do something."
The screen shifted to various polling stations.
A young blonde girl held up her phone, live-streaming the event. The screen prominently displayed the mysterious Batwing.
"I think all of New York should vote for Batman. I have no idea if he can legally run for president, but I'm voting for him anyway."
"At least he was the first to arrive."
At another polling station, a middle-aged man enthusiastically gave a thumbs-up to the camera and told the reporter:
"Yes, that's right! I voted for Captain America! Did you see that move? That was incredible!"
Back in the studio, Shirley proudly placed her Batman-themed mug in the most visible spot on her desk.
"I believe we are witnessing an absolutely astonishing turn of events!"
(End of Chapter)
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