radicalducati Chapter 508 So, what is the price for Rune?
Chapter 508 So, what is the price for Rune?
Chapter 508 So, what is the price for Rune?
Rune gave his levitation cloak to Barbara to prevent her from attempting suicide while changing clothes. Generally speaking, women are more emotional than men, and Rune was unwilling to let the team member he wanted to recruit die so easily.
A moment later, Barbara finally emerged from the room, having changed her clothes and calmed herself. This superhero felt guilty towards Bruce Wayne; she didn't have the courage to let him oversee her new job, so she decided to do it herself.
Why did you invite me?
"Because you have a clean record, and you happen to be skilled in an ability that I desperately need but am not good at." Before Barbara could guess, Rune revealed the ability directly, "To be honest, I'm interested in your hacking skills."
Rune has many things to do now, including researching the Dream Stone, studying magic, and learning close combat skills—but advanced technology is not among them.
This is a completely new system, and it is completely incompatible with Rune's skill tree. Regardless of whether Rune has time to learn this new technology, even if he does learn it, the mental inertia generated during the learning process will affect his research on magic.
Learning hacking techniques requires boundless curiosity and a thirst for exploration, as well as a rigorous yet unconventional way of thinking. After all, hackers need to be proficient in computer technology and able to solve problems through attack paths that are not pre-designed by the designers.
Such thinking is of no benefit whatsoever to Rune's study of magic, a field of emotion.
However, this ability is actually quite important. In the previous Boys universe, if there had been a powerful hacker like Barbara, defeating Brainiac might not have been so difficult.
Moreover, those Terminators have clearly used prosthetics from the Cyberpunk 2077 universe, and advanced technology will only become more and more important, so Rune needs Barbara.
In fact, the Marvel Universe—even within the group that Rune saved—has quite a few people with strong hacking abilities, such as Iron Man, Black Widow, and even Nick Fury, if necessary.
But as Rune said, their origins were not innocent.
Iron Man's father was the founder of S.H.I.E.L.D., and Tony himself preferred to be under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s command. As for people like Black Widow and Nick Fury—
Needless to say, they would definitely be more loyal to their own organizations, especially after the merger of the two major intelligence agencies, S.H.I.E.L.D. and S.H.I.E.L.D. The members who originally belonged to their respective organizations would certainly be fighting among themselves for their respective positions in the short term.
Whichever one Rune chooses will affect the final outcome of the struggle among these intelligence chiefs. After Rune created Compound V for Dr. Banner and others to study, the balance of victory was already tilted in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s favor.
Fortunately, Rune realized this and quickly shared Compound V with S.H.I.E.L.D., thus preventing S.H.I.E.L.D. from becoming the sole dominant force in the new organization.
The DC Universe also features superheroes with hacking abilities, but Blue Beetle II's overly energetic personality led to him forming a comedic duo with Vanguard Gold—a goofy character from the future. Rocket Raccoon, a hero who should have possessed strong hacking skills, was similarly eliminated.
Cyborg has become a member of the Justice League; his existence is far too important.
As for the villains, even if they dared to apply, Rune was unwilling to hire those guys who mostly had skills like bullying the weak and fearing the strong, being cunning and deceitful, and being proficient in backstabbing.
Even if Bane changed Rune's perception of villains, how many villains in the DC Universe possess Bane's will?
Therefore, all things considered, Barbara is a very suitable candidate. She comes from the Bat family in the main universe, and her fighting skills, intelligence, and ability to adapt to changing situations are all at the top level in the DC Universe.
Although she is currently unwilling to meet with Batman out of guilt, she will definitely pass on the information she wants Batman to know in the future.
Moreover, Barbara now needs a long-term mission to alleviate her guilt, and Rune happens to need an excellent teammate with hacking skills.
Barbara took a deep breath. She didn't know Rune's reasons, but this job—she really wanted to do it. Think about it, a whole new universe, a brand new beginning—
"So, what are our job responsibilities?"
Rune frankly told Barbara, "It's very simple: save other universes from certain beings, and incidentally prepare for a future catastrophe. But the rest—I can't tell you unless you participate."
"—" Barbara paused for a moment, then took out the bottle of blue liquid. "What is this?"
"Compound No. 5." Rune snapped his fingers, and the small bottle in Barbara's hand shattered into powder. The blue liquid inside flowed out, but instead of falling to the ground, it seemed to have entered space, lost all gravity, and turned into a perfectly round sphere.
"This is a special product from another universe, and speaking of which, that universe has some connection with you—" Rune smiled. The superpowered individuals in the Boys were more pleasure-seeking and had deeper desires. "But it doesn't matter, it can give you some superpowers."
Before Barbara could ask, Rune continued, "Yes, the original version had some side effects, such as enlarging the heart and being addictive—but now it has been improved by several—scientists."
"While it only grants you a few limited abilities besides basic physical enhancements, such as laser eyes and super defense—but all its side effects have been eliminated. I think that's enough, isn't it?"
Compound Five flew to Rune's side, and through the blue sphere, Barbara saw Rune's distorted yet handsome face. His words were like the devil's seduction.
It has to be said that Barbara was tempted. But don't get me wrong, she wasn't tempted by Compound V; she just wanted to atone for her betrayal.
In fact, influenced by Batman, Barbara relies more on her own skills, technological equipment, and unwavering will. She understands that power comes in many forms, and physical strength and superpowers are not the only, or even the most important, options.
"I accept, but—I need some time," Barbara said after a long silence. "I need to talk to my father and—"
She hesitated for a moment, then finally pursed her lips and said in a tearful voice, "Goodbye to the friends I consider my friends."
Rune nodded. That made sense. She needed to inform Batman while she went to say goodbye to her friends. If he took Batman's beloved apprentice away without warning, given Batman's petty nature—
Tsk tsk tsk —