When Two Universes Meet (Marvel x DC Crossover)

Chapter 8: Some Research (JL)

"Anything on the investigation?" Clark asked.

Bruce grumbled, ruffling through his thick pile of files. The Justice League, after the Warehouse Incident (as they call it) were suddenly obsessed with the Avengers. They wanted to know everything regarding the team; their appearances, how the public feel about them, and most importantly, their identities.

Bruce, after watching Stephanie suffer through medication, felt his blood boil every time he thought of the Avengers' backup team. How dare they hurt his family like that. All the times that a member of the Bat family got hurt, whether it's a mild injury or a serious one, he still went all Batman on whoever did it to them.

It's just that sort of parental anger. It's common for parents to feel that way. After all, their children are their flesh and blood. 

That's why when Clark suggested him to be researching the Avengers, he was immediately agreed. He wanted to know who hurt Steph. Then whoever they are, he'll break the bones in their bodies. Every. Single. One. He didn't care if they throw a lawsuit at him. He'll make sure he'd taken a way of taking revenge for his kid without killing that guy.

Bruce cleared his throat. "After a few days of searching, I found out more about this so-called 'Avengers'," he began, as he ignored the crunching sounds from Barry eating popcorn (he claimed to have not eaten anything when he arrived for the meeting and used popcorn as a substitute for breakfast instead). "There may be six founding members, but their numbers are growing. A lot of superheroes had joined them the past few years. There's a lot, so I won't go into detail."

"The six founding members are these," Bruce gestured his hand towards the screen. "The first is Captain America--"

"Hold on," Clark interrupted. "You're saying I fought the Captain America? I thought it's just a superhero who look just like him!" Clark let out a puff of air. "I can't believe it. I fought my hero. The guy who inspired me to become a superhero, to save others from those who would destroy the world." He then screeched like a fangirl. "I was fighting my hero!!"

Bruce glared at him. "--yes, that is the Captain America, real name Steve Rogers. But I'm pretty sure everyone know how his story goes."

Everyone nodded.

"Then there's Iron Man--"

"Wait," Clark interrupted again, his fangirl over Captain America now over. "Why is he called Iron Man? I mean, iron is heavy. And expensive. Why not Copper Man? It's cheaper and lighter, and it doesn't react with water--"

"--why someone named himself Iron Man is none of your concern," Bruce growled. "What you should know is that he appeared five years ago in New York, fighting someone named Obadiah Stane. He was a high-ranking employee in Stark Industries."

Bruce was surprised when he found out this piece of information, after hours of typing and clicking on the Batcomputer. He wondered if Tony knew about Iron Man; after all, that vigilante had fought his evil ex-worker.

"Next," Bruce held up a photo of the archer. "This is Hawkeye. Using a facial recognition app, I deduced his identity as Clint Barton. His mother was a petty thief who'd enlisted him from a young age to follow her in her crimes. He dropped off high school halfway, and was said to be an excellent marksman who never missed a shot."

"Another member is the Hulk. His real identity, thanks to facial recognition, is Bruce Banner, renowned biochemist who studies radiation. After his cells absorbed large amounts of gamma radiation, he can turn in this green monstrosity--" Bruce shows the picture of the raging roaring metahuman. "--whenever he feels rage."

"This man," Bruce continued to flip a picture of man. He kept a mop of luscious shoulder-length blonde hair, goatee, and cold, blue eyes. "is called Thor. I can't find anything on him, unfortunately. No records, birth certificate, files, or anything. All we know is that he wields a hammer called Mjolnir, and like the Norse god of lightning, he can summon flashes of thunder."

"Finally, we have her," Bruce flipped the last picture: a short-haired auburn-haired woman with brown eyes, sharp features, and fatal glare. "She is known as Black Widow, real name as Natasha Romanoff. But her past and records are vague. I can't find more about her, except for a restricted file I can't hack into."

"What about the backup team?" Clark said. "Dick told me of another team outside, didn't they?"

"All their records are inside a file while I was researching," Bruce said. "They're called the Teen Avengers, and has eight members: leader as Morbid, Enchantress, Spider-Man, Elementer, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Hawkeye, and Fataleye. Before I could get further access, my server was nearly destroyed. Turns out the file had a hidden virus that could contaminate any computer who enters it. Whoever thought of this idea to protect their identities is smarter than we imagined."

"What do we do, then?" Diana asked. "They can prove to be dangerous if they're on the other side of the law. But if they are superheroes like they said, we need them to prove it. That they truly are who they claim to be."

"How?" Oliver spoke up. "There's no way to find them. Who knows, maybe they left Gotham. It won't be an easy task to track them down."

"There is a way," Victor suggested. "Remember that guy you fought, Bruce? Who was he again--Iron Man?"

Bruce's eyebrows scrunched for a moment, then he widened his eyes in realization. He was catching up on Victor's idea now. "You mean I track this Iron Man's arc reactor signals?"

Victor nodded. "That thing looks like his power generator. If we could just track anything from it--electricity signals, heat transmits, or whatnot--maybe, just maybe, we can figure out where, even who, he is. Then we accost him, make him tell all his other teammates' locations. Then blam, you get your proof, Diana."

"This seems easy," Barry piped up.

"It's not," Oliver countered. "We need to use satellites, trackers, all kind of high-tech stuff. But this thing can be slow if we're literally scouring every place in the States, up to a few weeks or even months."

"As long as we have the will to hold on," Diana said, "then the whole process will be worth it once we have what we need."

~~

Again, a shorter chapter than expected, but hope u guys like it :). Maybe this should be considered a mini chapter where the JL make their own research. And pls vote this story. Your support means a lot to me. :D