Chapter 7: The Age of Heroes Begins
The Videos Go Viral
In the women's dormitory at Stanford University, Linda Danvers suddenly heard a shriek.
"Linda! Come out, quick!"
Linda dried her hair, covering her beautiful body with a towel, and looked at her frantic roommate with a helpless expression.
"Melissa, don't tell me you have a new boyfriend again. I'm not interested in them."
"It's not a boyfriend."
Melissa pulled up a webpage with large text at the top:
What is a Hero?
Beneath the eye-catching title were two marked short videos. Linda watched only half of the first one, and her expression changed.
"Where did this video come from?"
"Who knows? Everyone's sharing it! Isn't it cool? That guy actually dragged an ocean liner with his bare hands! It's amazing! I really want to be his girlfriend."
Linda automatically ignored the last sentence, watching the video repeatedly. She wasn't interested in the one with the Batman cowl, but the other made her thoughtful.
Kal-El!
Is that you?
Melissa leaned in and breathed warmly into her friend's ear. "You're interested, sweetheart."
"I'm not interested. I just want to know where the video originated."
Melissa pouted. "Just pretending!"
"The video is on ShowMe. Check it yourself."
"ShowMe? What's that?"
"Don't tell me you don't even know ShowMe!" Melissa made an exaggerated face. "My poor Linda, you really should get a boyfriend and feel the beauty of love. If you're looking for love, start with ShowMe."
Melissa was true to her word. She opened the registration page and filled in her personal information. ShowMe was different from other social apps; it required using a real name. Linda was uncomfortable with this—she didn't want her name on a social network—but Melissa didn't care at all. She entered her name, email, and phone number, and the verification passed quickly.
"Go for it, sweetheart. Be proactive. You absolutely have to stop being single. You're twenty already!"
"Alright, alright!"
Linda impatiently waved her hand. After searching for the video, she used the link below to find the source. It was a user named Ghost Traveler. The space contained no other content, just the two short videos.
The videos were uploaded in the afternoon, and the view count had already surpassed three million.
Linda ignored the statistics. She added the Ghost Traveler to her contacts and sent him a message:
"Who are you? Why do you have a video of Superman? What is his name?"
Reactions Across the DC World
The videos exploded, skyrocketing in popularity. In just two hours, they climbed into the top fifty of the search rankings.
Reporters from major news agencies rushed to call their editors, reporting this monumental news that was worthy of a history book. NBC even broke into its programming for a live report.
Metahumans had always been hidden among ordinary people; this was the first time they had appeared before the world.
In a derelict warehouse in Central City, Barry Allen stared in shock at the black-clad hunter on the screen.
Batman? Superman?
What about me?
What should I be called?
...
At the Boston History Museum, Mindy Meyer hurriedly threw open the storage room door.
"Diana, you have to see this."
As the two videos played, Diana Prince set down her carving tool, a look of solemnity on her beautiful face.
"A demigod?"
...
At the Colorado State Police Department, John Jones watched the news broadcast quietly after finishing an interrogation. After a moment, he let out a sigh.
"How many secrets are hidden on this planet?"
...
In Metropolis, at the headquarters of the immensely wealthy LexCorp, the omnipotent Lex Luthor experienced what true power was for the first time as he watched the massive ocean liner sliding across the ice. He loved power, but he did not like power being in the hands of others.
"Wade, search for any information related to Superman. I want his complete file."
"As you command, Mr. Luthor."
...
On the outskirts of Gotham City, at Wayne Manor.
Alfred pushed open the bedroom door and addressed the handsome young man adjusting his appearance in the mirror.
"I have two pieces of news for you, one good and one bad. Which do you want to hear?"
Bruce calmly replied, "Alfred, the banquet is about to begin."
"You are always so urgent. Sometimes I really wish you'd stop and rest for a few days, and perhaps solve your marital status problem."
Alfred opened a laptop.
"Congratulations, Master Wayne. You've become famous nationwide. They even gave you a very fitting nickname—Batman. What do you think of the name?"
After several hours of fermentation, the video views had surpassed twenty million, with thousands of comments below—a chaotic mix of everything.
After watching the video, Bruce Wayne lowered his head in contemplation, looking confused.
"Is there a problem?"
"I saw this video in the surveillance center of the Ingel underground factory. I deleted it."
"Perhaps there was a backup."
"No, I checked carefully. There were no backup files," Bruce shook his head and then asked, "Where did the video come from?"
"A social media app called ShowMe. It's very hot right now."
"ShowMe?"
Alfred sighed. "Master, I support your idea of eradicating crime, but sometimes, you need to pay attention to the family business. Blair (the CEO of Wayne Enterprises) once offered ShowMe a $50 million acquisition plan, but it was rejected. They said they would talk again in three months."
"It seems we can't wait three months."
"I concur."
Alfred turned to leave. "I'll call them now!"
"No, wait a few days. I want to see the subsequent development of the situation."
"What about Superman?"
Bruce paused, then shook his head. "Ignore him for now."
The FBI Strikes Back
The first person to eat the crab often faces one of two outcomes: either they become an instant hit and take the biggest piece of the pie, or they crash and burn, becoming a stepping stone for latecomers.
With Batman and Superman leading the charge, ShowMe's popularity surged, leaving other social media apps far behind in just half a day. Naturally, trouble also followed.
The FBI, CIA, state governments, and the White House office all called, but Charlie deflected them all with the excuse that the boss was gravely ill. After several unsuccessful attempts, the officials lost patience and took direct action.
On the 13th floor of the ShowMe Headquarters Building, a thrilling hacker war was beginning. On one side were the ShowMe Technology Department's overweight programmers; on the other, a cyber investigation team led by the FBI and comprising several government employees.
The two sides fought fiercely using the host servers as their battlefield.
Luke commanded from his high seat. Although he hadn't slept all night, he was still excited. He wasn't the only one; everyone else was, too. Especially those who had a beef with the FBI, like Zacks, Dar, and Mike. They were pumped up, not only defending but also mounting attacks.
The two sides exchanged blows, and the battle intensified.
Charlie hurried in from outside.
"Boss, they're here again."
"Let the lawyers handle it."
"It's different this time." Charlie's voice betrayed his tension. "They have a White House-signed investigation order. The leader, Roger Consius, specifically demanded to see you. There's a real chance they could make arrests."
"Why are you panicking? It's just the FBI. They won't eat us alive."
Luke waved his hand. "Come on, let's go meet them."
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