Chapter 43 :The Sewer

Helena led Jay around and around, and found a long-forgotten entrance to the sewage shaft in an uninhabited corner. The cast iron shaft cover was rusty, and the scratched pattern on it was almost unrecognizable. Maybe it It's over a hundred years old.

Jay followed her and climbed down the rusty escalator, and asked, "How did you find this old-fashioned entrance?"

"I have carefully studied all the structural drawings of the Federal Government Building that I can collect, including the pipeline system linked below it." Helena jumped down when there were still three escalators below, and said, " According to my observation, this is the only entrance. The Doomsday Invasion destroyed half of New York City and many things have been rebuilt, but this pipeline has always existed before that. It can lead us directly to that one. An absolutely prohibited area in the building. Although I don't know what we will encounter there, this is the only way."

"That's really reassuring." Jay said and jumped off. "Maybe there is a whole alien army from the war world waiting to take us to the alien arena."

Helena stopped, glanced back at him, and said seriously: "There is such a possibility."

"...I'm just kidding."

The two stopped talking temporarily, and began to move forward one after another. Helena took out a flashlight and explored the deep darkness ahead with a golden beam of light. It seems that at least the information about this pipe for a long time cannot be wrong. Its circular inner wall is wrapped with black plants, and the narrow channel where the two are standing is covered with moss. From time to time, the light of the torch would illuminate some black animals, but when they saw the light, they rushed into the darkness like a frightened rabbit.

Helena remained silent all the way, without saying a word. The darkness followed them forward like a shadow. Although it could not block Jay's sight, the strange atmosphere made him uneasy. Helena may be a very good partner, but at this time she is not a first-class companion. Her strange silence only sets off the dark depression of the environment.

But Jay knows Batman is the same, maybe she learned this from her dad-to minimize communication outside of necessity during the mission. Jay suddenly couldn't help thinking that every Superman in the comics seemed to be destined to have a Batman as his best partner, so would his best partner be a huntress?

His attention began to shift to Helena. Looking at her from the side, her face looked very delicate. The dark environment only highlighted her mature and confident aura. Although she doesn't have any superpowers, she undoubtedly has the keen investigative ability and problem-solving ability inherited from her father, and she feels at ease and reliable as a partner.

"You look distracted." Helena said abruptly. Jay was taken aback for a moment. He thought she had been turning her back to him, did she have eyes behind her?

"Ah no, I just...but you haven't spoken, it feels weird."

Helena continued walking without looking back, and said: "Minimizing unnecessary communication as much as possible can help us concentrate, which is good for the task."

"It sounds like Batman taught." Jay asked casually. "By the way, should we at least inform him?"

Helena paused for a while, and finally turned her head and gave him a blank glance.

"Unless you are scared, you can go by yourself." Helena said lightly, "I can continue by myself."

"Well, I know it's nothing to do with me, but I really think maybe you should try to repair your relationship." Jay said, "You said you didn't blame him for your mother's things, didn't you? No matter how much he is your father, you can't keep going like this."

Helena turned her back to him, without saying a word, and kept walking towards the darkness ahead. Jay regretted it as soon as he said it, he was really nosy. Regardless of whether Helena was right or wrong in handling the relationship with her father, it was her housework after all, and he might indeed not be familiar with her enough to interrupt her housework.

But unexpectedly, Helena was not angry. She was silent for a while, then suddenly said: "I have mentioned to you, did I find her after my mother's accident?"

"...No."

"When I found her among the ruins of the slum where the apocalypse-like demons evacuated, her skin was burned as high as 40%. If it were not for her torn uniform, I could hardly recognize her. But she was still there at the time. Staying stubbornly for the last breath. I remember her touching my face with her blood-stained hands, telling me how much she loves me, telling me not to blame my father, saying that she understands his father's choice for the overall situation, and that is also The reason she loves him."

She paused, and said in a low voice: "She was lying on my lap at the time, and I watched her life disappear little by little, and I couldn't do anything."

"I'm sorry," Jay said, "I don't know..."

"She told me not to blame my father, and I did my best to do that. I understand my father's choice. He is Batman. He must take care of the overall situation. I fully understand. I told him I will not blame him for my mother. I told myself this over and over again... but I guess I lied. Maybe deep down, I never forgive him... Maybe this is my choice to leave Gotham, so long The reason why time has come to keep a distance from him."

This topic made the already dark and depressive atmosphere even more serious, and the two of them did not speak for a while. They walked down this pipe to the end, and when they got down the iron ladder to another seemingly newer pipe, Jay couldn't help but speak: "Well, maybe this is your reason. But do you think about it? Yes, why has he kept his distance from you all the time?"

Helena was stunned, and then said: "He has kept a distance from the whole world. He shut himself in Gotham's small world, and became indifferent to everything except the Arkham lunatic."

"But you are different. You are his daughter, his only remaining blood relative." Jay said, "You lost your mother, but he also lost his beloved wife, even more. Could it be this time, Shouldn't he need you more?"

"...So why do you think?"

Jay shook his head: "I don't know, I can only... guess. I think it's possible, he just feels guilty about your mother's affairs. Maybe he will remember his own whenever he sees you At fault, maybe he is just punishing himself and feels that he deserves it. Maybe he just feels...that he can't face you."

Helena was silent. Her steps slowed down unconsciously with her thoughts, and the golden beam of the flashlight swayed up and down in the boundless darkness of the pipe.

"Let me say that he needs you just as you need him." Jay said to himself, "After all, you only have each other. What is more important than family?"

Helena meditated for a long time without saying a word, and then took a long sigh of relief, and changed to a relaxed and ridiculous tone: "Hey, the old bat's opinion of you is really correct, really naive and sunny. Are you Kryptonians Do you like to look at everything this simple?"

Jay smiled slightly: "I take this as a compliment."

"Really." Helena said, paused, and said, "But it's really weird to say, you have only seen Batman once, but you know him as if you have known him for many years. Could this be a super power? ?"

Jay secretly embarrassed, he hit haha: "Who knows? Pure intuition."