"Sorry," Dick said quietly.
"It's okay, I would do the same thing if someone was stalking my girlfriend."
"But Barbara is not my girlfriend. So, I don't have such an excuse. I just... You know, it was unexpected. I was wondering how I would react if I suddenly found out that she chose someone else. Did I do the wrong thing?"
"I don't know what to tell you. Now you've cooled down and started thinking with a cool head. Maybe you'll find an answer."
"I won't interfere with you," Nightwing sighed. "Who knows, even if something worked out between Barbara and me, I don't think this relationship would have lasted long."
Well, he was right about that. Their relationship had been extremely volatile in DC history.
They'd be together, then they'd be apart again. And sometimes, the reasons were mind-bogglingly ridiculous.
"Hey, Alex, I watched the video of your first appearance at Wayne Manor. You said you were going to have multiple wives. Were you kidding?"
"Well, how can I put it…"
"Tell it like it is."
"No, I wasn't kidding."
"So you want to have so many mistresses, and you think none of them will find out? Including Barbara?"
"You're wrong about that. I'm not going to hide anything from them."
"What?" Grayson said, shocked. "How are you not going to hide anything? If they find out about your escapades, no one will want to be with you."
I turned my head to look at the incredulous young man. "Sorry, trade secret."
"Well, to hell with you. But if by some miracle you manage to do it, I won't leave you alone until I get this secret out of you," Dick said, holding out his hand to me. I grabbed it and slowly started to get up.
Oh God, my whole body aches. I think I'll have to lie at home for a couple of days. Fortunately, our Nightwing is a real professional. Despite the fact that there's not a single living place left on me, no hidden internal injuries were found. And I won't die from a sudden hemorrhage, which is good news.
"Dick, I hope our differences have been settled. I wouldn't want to fight with you."
"Likewise. True friendship always begins with a fistfight, right?"
"Perhaps, but I wouldn't want to make a friend that way again."
"I see you're finished?" the monotonous voice of the Dark Knight distracted us.
"That's what you wanted, wasn't it, Bruce?" Dick asked, looking at his mentor.
"It's best to deal with a problem when it's still in its infancy. After all, if you let it go, it could lead to a disaster in the future," explained the heir of the Wayne family. "I wouldn't want blind love to bring discord. In the end, everything turned out even better than I expected. Although, I would have watched Alex's beating again. Fortunately, the cameras recorded the entire process."
The monitors began to show our recent battle. "Bethany, turn on a constant replay from 37 seconds to 39 seconds," Bruce said, with a sadistic expression on his face.
The screen reproduced my stupid expression when I fell on the stone floor, over and over again. "Oh, I could watch it forever," the defender of Gotham said with a slight smile.
Smiled? No, seriously, I saw his smile for the first time. Did I really bother him so much that my suffering makes him happy? I hope I didn't break anything in him. Batman started to change under my influence, that's a good sign.
After all, he closes himself off from everyone in his little cave, and doesn't give anyone a break. But it seems his glacier has started to melt. And who knows, maybe we can still bring joy back to his soul.
"Would you be so kind as to turn off this funny rerun?" I uttered a small request with the "kindest" smile on my face.
"Of course, of course," the recording was interrupted. "Okay, just one more time."
Damn, is he trolling me? Well, I'll get him yet! Okay, all this reminded me of the question,which I kept putting off.
"Listen, Bruce, could you tell me more about Bethany?"
"Are you interested in artificial intelligence technology?"
"Of course I am! I'm a programmer, and besides, who wouldn't want to have such an assistant."
"Artificial intelligence is one of the highest technological achievements of my company. It is not for general access, at least not now," said Bats.
"But you know that Stark's company has already developed its own analogue of AI."
"Yes, Anthony Edward Stark is the head of Stark Industries. Despite all his eccentric behavior, he is a worthy successor to his father. He can rightfully be called one of the smartest people on the planet."
"To which you consider yourself one, right?" I asked a provocative question.
"Of course," followed by an immediate answer.
"The fact that he was able to create AI is not such a secret. Without it, he would not have been able to fully control his battle suit."
"Iron Man... But if you think about it, you have quite a lot in common. Both Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark are orphans who inherited a huge fortune after their parents died. Both are geniuses, billionaires, philanthropists, and crime fighters. The only difference is that he revealed his identity to the public, and you still wear a mask. Although, I'm more on your side here."
"The fact that he revealed his identity to the world was one of his stupidest actions. And unlike him, my eccentric behavior as a rich heir is just a cover."
"As you say. I'm more interested in your opinion about his iron outfit."
"His suit is not as unique as many people think. What's most surprising is the miniature nuclear reactor located on his chest and powering the suit. This is a new leap in technological achievements. Wayne Enterprises has developed something similar, but not as powerful."
"But he assembled a mini reactor while sitting in a pit, from scrap metal. Amazing, isn't it?" I asked a rhetorical question.
"It's most likely all about adrenaline. His life was hanging by a thread, and in order to save himself, he forced his brain to go beyond its limits, but yeah, his genius plays alot of role in that." Bruce gave out his theory of what happened. "And returning to the topic of artificial intelligence. Our AIs differ only in various digital processors. This is necessary to avoid patent restrictions. Otherwise, they are quite identical."
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