Batman/Rorschach [DEFENDERS OF EARTH BOOK II]

7- Benefit of Mankind

Batman and Rorschach climbed up the ladder and round themselves in a greenly lit corridor. Batman turned on predator vision and looked around.
"A lot of people around- standard security guards, too." He observed. He then deactivated it.
"You said you knew which building we were in." Rorschach commented. "Do tell."
Batman pointed to the wall behind Rorschach. He turned around, and on big letters on the wall was the company's logo.
"LexCorp." He read out loud. "Luthor has buildings in Gotham?"
"Just the one." Batman answered. "He managed to sneak a miniature tower close to the border of New Gotham."
"So that lab, Kasady... it was Luthor." Rorschach realised. "Explains the money, the need to keep his identity secret. Is he here?"
"Perhaps. His main tower is in Metropolis, but he could be here."
"Even if he isn't, possibility of evidence to use against him, perhaps in his office."
"Let's move, then. I doubt Kasady was all he had in store for us." Batman finished. He opened the door to a room on his right, and walked in. There, just in front of him, was a window- exactly what he was looking for. He looked out of the window- ground floor, just as he thought. He jumped out, and Rorschach followed. He looked up to the top of the tower- approximately 40 feet.
"I hope your friend designed that grapnel with heights like this in mind." Batman remarked, once again taking out his grapple gun.
"I've gone up higher heights, Bat." Rorschach responded, taking his out too. The duo both fired them at the same time, and zipped upwards. The countless one-way windows blurred past them as the went up. Batman once again deactivated predator vision- one man, alone, on the top floor.
"Top floor!" Batman shouted to the vigilante. He nodded, and the rooftop came closer and closer. As they reached the top floor, they both clicked the buttons which removed the hook from whatever it had connected to and back into the gun. They both gripped the railings and pulled themselves up and onto the top floor. The bald-headed man stood with his back to them, wearing a white lab-coat and green trousers.
"It's over, Luthor!" Rorschach started before Batman could talk. "Tell us how to get the creature off Kasady, and maybe you'll still have an eye left." The man laughed.
"Aren't you both supposed to be two of the greatest detectives in the world?" The man said. Both Batman and Rorschach recognised the voice.
"You're not..." Batman began, and the man turned around, the vigilante's faces being reflected in the circular lenses of the man's glasses. His smile was broad.
"Lex Luthor." He finished for him. "I am not. I'll admit, acting isn't one of my strongest suits. And yet you were both led onto a trail I hoped you would get lost on. I also hoped that Cletus Kasady would rip you into pieces down in that chamber. I will surely not that mistake next time."
"There won't be a next time, Strange." Batman said, glaring at him.
"Strange? Professor Strange? The man who created the 'hypnosis machine'?" Rorschach asked, tilting his head.
"The same, Rorschach." Hugo Strange smiled. "Kasady might as well not exist anymore, however."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Batman questioned him.
"The symbiotic residue, made partially by Oscorp, by the way, has bonded to a host. There is no possible way to disconnect the two. I made sure of it."
"You're out of your mind, Strange."
"Nothing you can say will make me regret what I have done for humanity. Oh, and a side note. I'm sure you've noticed this, Batman. I based the appearance and certain... powers, you can say, on New York's 'Spider-Man'. The only proper Metahuman on this planet- and oh, did I search."
Batman squinted his eyes. "You said you did it for humanity. What was the point in this, Strange?!"
"We both know there's something coming, Batman. The 'Parademons' which came from the sky are nothing compared to what's in store for Earth in the near future. I searched everywhere for a good candidate- and Cletus Kasady stood out amongst the rest. Breaking him out was simple, as was tricking him into thinking we were going to increase his strength and brainpower to work for us. Kasady is the first in a line of Advanced Metahumans, beings all prepared to defend Earth against what's to come. I am saving this planet, Batman."
"You tortured a man and turned him into a monster!"
"All for the benefit of mankind, Batman. Trying to stop me is both futile and foolish."
Rorschach turned his head towards the balcony they had come in from. He could've sworn he heard something. He turned his attention back to Batman and Strange. Batman grabbed Strange by the collar and threw him into the desk, which smashed in half on impact. Strange sprawled against the floor.
"It's finished." Batman turned to Rorschach. Rorschach was now walking to the railing. "What is it?"
"Something... sound. Loud. Too loud for my likings." He answered, and got thrown backwards by a crimson tendril, and hit into the far wall. Kasady jumped over the railing, laughing heavily.
"ROUND... TWO!" He screeched, snaring a tendril out of his wrist. It wrapped itself around Batman's wrist, who pulled out a shock Batarang and cut it off. The monster snarled, running over to the Bat and slicing at him with his claws. Batman dodged them with ease, and then proceeded to block them with his gauntlet blades. He head-butted Cletus, and then ducked as Rorschach threw a vase at Kasady's head. It smashed on impact, and Batman punched him in the stomach. He stepped back a few spaces, but almost instantly regained his footing. He snarled once more, now lunging at the two in anger. He punched Batman across the face, but Rorschach blocked the strike meant for him with his arm. He performed a right cross of his own, closely followed by him picking up a shard of vase and slashing Kasady across the face with it.
Rorschach attempted to go for another slash at him, but Cletus grabbed his wrist and flung him backwards. He rolled along the ground, and instantly got to his feet. He noticed something, however. He was standing on a part of the floor which was meant to come off- curious, he prised it open, revealing the electricity generator to LexCorp's Gotham Tower. He looked up, seeing Batman fend off the beast as it lay down strike after strike upon him, Batman retreating backwards, attempting to get the odd strike in. Rorschach took his grapple gun out, and fired the hook across the room, the hook failing to grab onto anything. He instead pulled the wire off from the hook and the gun completely. He noticed that there were controls for diverting power, and a main power socket for that console. He opened up the main power socket, and carefully, he placed the wire into the socket and closed the cap trapping part of the wire in the main power socket. He looked up- Kasady had dealt with the Bat, who was trying to get to his feet from across the room, and turned his head to him. He snarled, and slowly walked towards Rorschach, slowly getting faster as he got closer.
"HOPE YOU'RE READY, FREAK." He barked. Rorschach straightened up.
"When you are.", and Kasady ran over to him. Grabbing the wire, Rorschach ran at him too, strafing to the left at the last second, wrapping the wire around his neck. It took Kasady quite a few seconds to realise what was happening, and that's all Rorschach needed. Once he wrapped the entire length of wire around his neck, he pulled on it, causing him to shriek.
Line isn't that strong, Kasady with enhanced strength- will break line in seconds. He thought, running over to the generator. Must act quick.
He flicked the switch to divert all power to that generator, the lights went out, and Kasady was lit up with a fantastic display of electricity. The sound from Kasady was incredibly loud, slowly turning from the monster screech into a more human scream. The symbiote slowly began burning off, and Cletus fell to his knees. The symbiote completely gone. The backup power came online, relighting the room up.
Batman stood up, and walked over to Rorschach and Kasady with a slight limp.
"Electricity overload- nice thinking." He congratulated. "Only made sense- small amount sends symbiote into small hibernation, large amount burns it out completely."
"Don't thank me yet." Rorschach said grimly. Cletus moaned, shaking his head,
"Where the hell..." was all he managed to say before Rorschach turned around and stabbed a shard of vase through his neck.
"NO!" Batman shouted, lunging towards him. Rorschach kicked his injured leg, causing Batman to fall to the ground, Rorschach standing over him.
"You just don't get it..." Rorschach said, reaching into his pocket and taking something out of it. "Kasady was a serial killer, a waste of space, air and our time."
"You won't get away... with this!" Batman managed, getting up on one knee. Rorschach didn't move.
"I will. You'll let me get away with it. Whether you really want to or not." Rorschach ended, dropping a flash-bang on the ground, turning Batman's vision white. Rorschach took Batman's grapple gun from his utility belt, and he heard the sound of it firing a hook.
A few moments later, his vision finally came back. He was on his knees, shaking his head. He looked at the empty flash-bang canister in front of him- it was one of the ones held by the mercenaries down in the lab. He stood up, and pressed the com-link in his cowl.
"Jim, it's me..." He said. "I'm in the LexCorp tower, top office. One unconscious suspect, Hugo Strange, and one deceased suspect, Cletus Kassidy. There is also a small lab beneath the tower, building blueprints may show you. Multiple dead and unconscious suspects down there, as well as an explanation." He didn't wait for a reply before cutting the line. He didn't need to turn on predator vision to know that Rorschach was long gone.