American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

298. The Dionesium.

"You, who exactly are you?"

The man's gaze was filled with surprise. He could swear that when he had regained consciousness, this person hadn't been there. It was as if he had appeared out of thin air, without any prior indication or anyone noticing. In the blink of an eye, he was just standing there at the entrance of the alley.

Ignoring the man's shock, the eerie figure in black simply gestured silently, beckoning the man to come over.

The man hesitated for a moment, uncertainty filling his heart. He didn't know who this person was or where he was, but his instincts told him that the unknown often meant danger, and this man in black clearly wasn't ordinary.

The atmosphere grew tense. In the dark alley, only the two of them remained, locked in a silent standoff. After that initial gesture, the figure in the bird-beaked mask made no further movements.

The man stood still for a long time, but eventually, he couldn't hold back anymore.

Even if there was danger, it didn't matter. He just wanted to regain his memory. He didn't know what had happened to him, but the figure opposite him seemed to know something, or he wouldn't have appeared here.

Taking slow steps forward, the man walked closer, stopping about two meters away.

"Who are you?" the man asked first.

This time, the mysterious figure responded.

"My name is Alex."

The man was startled. Alex's voice wasn't as terrifying as he had imagined; instead, it carried a sense of calm. But none of that mattered anymore. As long as the figure could communicate, it wasn't as frightening. The man now only wanted to know about himself.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked, his tone eager.

"I do," Alex replied.

A flicker of joy appeared on the man's face, and he quickly asked again.

"Then do you know how I got here? I seem to have lost some memories. I feel like those memories are very important, but I can't recall anything. I need to—"

Just as he was about to pour out his troubles, Alex raised a hand to interrupt him.

"Stand under the umbrella," Alex said.

The man hesitated, looking at Alex with confusion. Though he didn't understand why, standing in the rain had become uncomfortable. He nodded slightly and moved to Alex's side, stepping under the large black umbrella.

The umbrella was enormous, with intricate mechanical structures inside. Curious, the man studied the umbrella's framework, momentarily distracted by its fascinating design. Before he could fully process it, the black umbrella started to move. The man shifted his gaze and saw that Alex had begun walking out of the alley. Seeing this, the man quickly followed.

"Hey, sir, you still haven't told me who I am," the man called out.

"The answer to that is something you'll have to discover for yourself," Alex replied quietly as he continued walking forward. "I'm just here to guide you toward what you seek."

"Huh?" The man scratched his head, puzzled.

If Alex knew his identity, why wouldn't he just say it? The man found this strange. But for now, he had no other options. Since Alex claimed to be helping him, the man didn't overthink it and followed Alex out of the dim alley.

Once outside, the man curiously surveyed the street, glancing back to take a look at the alley. In the next instant, he let out a startled cry.

"Hey! The alley, the alley is gone?!"

Staring at the solid wall where the alley had been, the man's mouth hung open as he looked in shock at Alex beside him.

"No, the alley hasn't disappeared. It's just no longer needed," Alex said.

He had also noticed the wall. After scrutinizing it, he realized that even he couldn't see through its structure. Or rather, it had no structure at all.

"What's going on?" The man couldn't resist reaching out to touch the wall.

But in the next moment, his hand was grabbed by a shadow. As it reached the edge of the umbrella's protection, it could go no further.

"Don't touch the raindrops," Alex reminded softly.

Hearing this, the man quickly retracted his hand. He wasn't sure why he couldn't touch the raindrops, but since Alex had warned him, he decided to comply.

"Is there something wrong with this rain? It just looks like a normal rain to me."

"It's not rain," Alex sighed lightly, then pointed to the puddle on the ground.

Curious, the man leaned over to get a closer look at the small puddle, which was no larger than a handprint.

It looked like a typical water puddle. Such pools of water were common after rainfall, especially in low spots. The man didn't see anything unusual about it, so he crouched down, moving closer to examine it.

As the puddle reflected his image, the man saw his own reflection: a young man, thin-faced and fit—someone who, out in the world, would undoubtedly attract many admirers.

While admiring his somewhat unfamiliar yet familiar face, something strange happened to his reflection.

The eyes of the man in the puddle slowly filled with darkness, and two streams of black, inky tears began to flow down his face. Alarmed, the man reached up to touch his own face, but found that there was nothing there. Suddenly, his reflection stopped mimicking his actions. Instead, it flashed a grotesque, sinister smile.

The man jumped up in shock, fearfully stomping on the puddle, sending water splashing out in all directions. He quickly moved closer to Alex, still shaken. He couldn't help but ask, "What… what was that? Is this really rain?!"

"Of course not. Strictly speaking, it's metal." While the man had been studying the puddle, Alex had been observing the 'raindrops,' which seemed to be growing larger.

"Metal? You've got to be kidding. This is clearly water. How could it be metal?"

"Liquid metal, to be precise. It's a very strange substance. It can't be detected by any means until it fully materializes, and even then, only parts of its true nature can be observed."

Alex's gaze grew deep beneath his glasses as he spread his magical energy.

The Dionesium—one of the most extraordinary metal in the DC Multiverse, and a legendary creation from Earth's mythology. It was said to have granted immortality to villains like Ra's al Ghul and bestowed Earth with the ability to heal itself.

According to legends, anyone who controlled the Dionesium was virtually immortal. No matter the injury, they would recover fully, and even death couldn't stop them—they would rise again.

The Lazarus Pit, also known for its resurrection capabilities, was essentially a lower-grade version of the Dionesium. This was the first time Alex had personally observed the Dionesium in action. Although it was a degraded version, its energy still amazed him.

'Can this energy source be analyzed? It could potentially be used to charge the time controller, right?'

(It's possible, but breaking down this energy won't be easy. It's a formless, chaotic substance, and the time controller's filter might discard most of its usefulness, leaving very little behind.)

Unnoticed by the man, Alex was quietly conversing with Ms. Minutes.

'I see.'

(Master, wouldn't it be a waste? This energy is clearly valuable.)

'I don't think so. This little bit of degraded Dionesium… what use could it really have?'

Alex chuckled helplessly. The Dionesium inside Dick wasn't much, and even if he extracted all of it, it wouldn't be enough to achieve resurrection.

At most, this Dionesium could heal some wounds or repair something—but Alex could do that with magic anyway, so it wasn't very impressive.

'Forget it. Log it and upload it to the records. Since it can't charge the device, I'll think of another way. Maybe I can find a way to absorb this energy instead.'

.....

📢30 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
299. The Way to Recover a Name.
300. The Great Devourer Approaches.
301. Rescuing Nightwing.
302. A Warm Family - Raven and Trigon.
303. Facing Trigon.