[Integrated/Crossover DC/Marvel] Why Did the World End Again? - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The High Tower by the Sea

Alice fell silent, contemplating what kind of vehicle could possibly exist in this place. A moment later, she watched as Lycoris Wayne pulled out a small pink electric scooter. Alice was rendered speechless. If the game was going to leech off the fame of the richest man in the world, couldn’t it be more thorough? Why only steal the name—couldn’t it steal some of the money too?

Alice declared that she personally did not like pink scooters at all. She truly disliked this bizarre thing. Yet, in the end, “Little Mary” hopped onto the back of the pink scooter anyway, letting the other girl drive her to the general store as a new branch of the plot began.

“To be honest, your arrival here truly strikes me as odd,” Lycoris said. “This place is essentially abandoned. We usually survive by growing our own vegetables. If we need to buy anything, we go to the next town over.”

“Then why don’t you leave?” Alice asked blankly.

She saw the other girl’s expression flicker for an instant before Lycoris gave an inexplicable smile. “Leave? Why leave? Once you leave, it’s very hard to come back.”

“Come back?”

“Don’t ask too many questions, Mary. You’ll understand once you’ve lived here for a while. By the way, I assume you’ve visited the others? Let me give you a brief rundown. On the second floor is my sister, Anna. She likes tinkering with machinery and doing what she calls ‘scientific research.’ She rarely leaves her room—a total shut-in with a peculiar temperament. I’d suggest staying away from her.”

“As for the two gentlemen living together on the fourth floor… don’t look at me like that, they aren’t a couple, just family or friends. But it’s best to keep your distance from them too. Narcissus and Medusa on the fifth floor seem very friendly; they love little girls like you. If you want to be friends with them, you can, but naturally, I hope you’ll stay away from them as well.”

Alice listened to her, falling into a stunned silence. Fine, so that’s how we’re playing? According to Lycoris, shouldn’t she just stay away from literally everyone?

“What about you, Lycoris?”

Lycoris Wayne smiled. “Stay away from me too, of course. Truthfully, you shouldn’t have come here. It’s so dull. Though, it is good to have fresh blood in this town. We all know each other too well; communicating and playing together has lost its spark…”

Alice swore that as these words appeared on the screen, she felt a chill run down her spine. It felt as if a prey had just wandered into a web. But she didn’t have much time to dwell on it, as her character panel had finally refreshed. After scrolling to the bottom and finding nothing else to do, she flopped back onto her bed.

As night fell in a corner no one cared about, the computer screen quietly flickered to life. On Lycoris Wayne’s character card, the first chapter of her lore unlocked:

“The Death of Todd.”

Alice drifted into sleep again, but this time she wasn’t so lucky. She felt herself stuffed into a burlap sack. Something was dragging her along; her struggles were futile. Then, she was dumped out like cargo. Alice could only register one thing: it was dark. Why was it so dark?

Then came a sharp click—the sound of a door being locked. Using the sliver of moonlight filtering through a high window, Alice began to observe her surroundings.

She was wearing familiar clothes… a floral shirt and green shorts. It was the “randomized” outfit she had assigned to her character, “Super Little Mary.” When creating the character, Alice hadn’t put any heart into it; everything was random, and the name was just “Mary.” She figured she’d never bother looking in a game mirror anyway. Now, karma had struck. She was stuck with this face and these clothes, looking like the brightest “ugly duckling” in the night sky.

While grumbling to herself, Alice surveyed the room. It looked like a narrow chamber—not a basement, but something like a high tower or a lighthouse. Suddenly, she heard the sound of clinking chains and an axe. From the adjacent room came faint sobbing and screams.

Terrified, Alice scrambled backward, her head throbbing. What kind of gruesome murder scene was this? How was she supposed to escape? Just then, a tapping came from the other side of the wall. Alice, huddled in the corner, was nearly scared out of her skin, but she eventually crept closer. A woman’s voice drifted through:

“Are you the new one from today?”

For Jason, today had been an ordinary day. Not too many firefights, and the turf wars had gone smoothly. He had returned to his safehouse early, tended to his wounds, and fallen asleep to recharge for tomorrow’s battles.

However, when he opened his eyes, he found himself in a strange little town. He was still wearing his Red Hood combat gear, but it looked like an older version—definitely not the current generation he’d been using. His full helmet had also regressed into a simple mask. Despite his bizarre attire, the residents passing by didn’t look surprised at all; they treated him like a normal person.

While Jason was wondering what was going on, he overheard locals whispering that another girl in town had gone missing.

At the mention of this, people began to sigh. Jason didn’t know the context, but through observation, he realized one reality: he wasn’t in Gotham. He might not even be in America. This was a strange, isolated town.

Jason debated whether this was magic, a dream, or something else. He began an investigation and soon gathered a lead: for some reason, girls in this town were constantly disappearing.

“Missing girls?” Jason mentally circled that entry. It was an anomaly. From what he could see, this was a simple seaside town where people lived off the ocean. The folk seemed rustic; it didn’t look like a place for dark underground human trafficking.

He checked his person. Fortunately, while the gear was old, his basic weapons were still there. That was the only good news. The islanders were strangely friendly and kept trying to chat with him, which left Jason Todd feeling suspicious.

He didn’t have much time to think. The next day, news broke of another missing girl. When he walked to the town’s bulletin board, a large, glowing special symbol appeared, and text began to shimmer:

[Quest: Find the Missing Friend. For the sake of justice and to find your way home, you must save the girl who accidentally wandered into the forest. She carries the only map to leave this place. Alternatively, you may choose to stay here forever; after all, this is a rare place of peace—provided you can tolerate an eternal cycle…]

Jason scowled. He hated this kind of “dumbass” cryptic nonsense. If he ever found the mastermind, he’d punch them in the face and put a bullet in their head.

According to his observations, everyone acted like a game NPC; they only acknowledged him when he got close or triggered a keyword. Everyone spoke of one specific building—The High Tower—and one specific person of prestige: Lycoris Wayne.

Hearing that surname, Jason knew there was something rotten here. The name “Wayne” always gave him a headache. Everything pointed to one place: the Tower.

Then, more bad news arrived: just this morning, Lycoris Wayne herself had vanished. Even knowing it was a trap, he had to jump in.

For a Bat-family vigilante, gathering intel or scouting was child’s play. Jason began tracking clues as he moved toward the Tower.

His memory drifted back to a long, long time ago—to how Batman had trained him when he was Robin. Everything had been so good then. Batman and his sidekick soared freely over Gotham… until the disaster ruined everything. That video. That explosion. It destroyed everything.

He had clawed his way back from six feet under. He hated this world; he hated everything. He didn’t understand—he wanted to crack open Bruce’s head just to see what was inside. Why didn’t you kill the Joker? Why didn’t you change anything? He was the one who separated us between life and death—why didn’t you avenge me? Bruce…

But the only answer he ever got was silence. He knew about the tattered uniform kept in the Batcave. He had witnessed that “invincible” figure finally bend its back.

So what? Tears couldn’t extinguish the fire of revenge. A roaring flame burned in his heart; he wanted to incinerate all evil and end all the world’s inaction. An eye for an eye was the only choice. Those who take lives must offer their own as a sacrifice to vengeance to earn a moment of redemption.

Gotham has no law. Robin cannot kill. But Jason Todd could avenge himself.

Jason pressed on toward the High Tower until an old woman grabbed his arm. His reflex almost sent her flying, but he stopped, looking at this stranger, trying to parse her intent.

“Is it my Jay? You’re finally back! Mommy missed you so much. Why didn’t you come see me?”

Jason was lost. Memories of his mother had mostly faded, buried deep in his heart. He didn’t want to remember the explosion; he didn’t know what to do. Passing villagers quickly stepped in to restrain the woman.

“Fanny Hill, calm down! This isn’t your son. This is just a young man passing through.”

Despite the explanation, Jason felt the old woman’s grip remain firm.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered, her eyes clouded. “My eyes are failing me. You look so much like my son… His name is Jason Todd. He hasn’t been back in a long time. If you meet him out there, please tell him… no matter what happened, Mama will be here waiting for him, and I’ll be right by his side through it all.”

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