A smile returned to Reid's face as he turned to look at the man who had just entered.
The newcor’s aging body had grown overweight, yet the heaviness in his eyes remained unmistakable. No amount of fat could cover the gloom behind that stare.
His military career, once full of promise, had been derailed by psychological issues, leaving him stuck at the rank of colonel for years.
William Stryker.
This was the man Reid had invited.
"Mr. Pennyworth, as far as I know, if LexCorp wants to collaborate with the military, you could’ve easily reached out to Lieutenant Colonel Rhodes. Though being granted access to your lab is certainly a great honor for , I must ask… why ?"
William, aside from his early experience in combat, had mostly carried out assignnts under senior officers. He was more of an operative, or perhaps even a researcher, than a true soldier.
Back during the Vietnam War, he had led an early Super Soldier program. But the project was eventually shut down, in large part due to growing concerns about his ntal state.
Around the sa ti, his wife and son died by suicide under mysterious circumstances. That event shattered him even more, leaving deep scars on his mind. Since then, William had remained bitter and unfulfilled, a man whose career had lost all montum.
Just when he thought he was going to quietly retire and slip into an uneventful old age, a letter arrived at his office—an invitation from LexCorp, signed by Reid Pennyworth himself.
There was no explanation given in the letter, no purpose stated. But William had a feeling. Sothing deep inside told him that eting the man might just help nd the damage within him.
"Hello, Colonel Stryker."
Reid greeted him with a polite smile and extended his hand. William accepted, but the very next second, a sharp sting shot through his palm.
"Ah!"
Startled, he looked down at his hand and saw that Reid had drawn a drop of blood and placed it into a strange-looking device.
"What is the aning of this, Mr. Pennyworth?"
If William had been a mutant, he would have instantly suspected Reid of trying to use his blood for so shady purpose. But the truth was, the governnt had conducted thorough dical checks long ago. William was a regular human being. No powers. No anomalies.
"The truth will be right in front of you soon, Colonel,” Reid said calmly. “If I rember correctly, you once had a wife and a son, didn’t you?"
At the ntion of his wife and son, William's expression darkened. He clearly didn't want to revisit that chapter of his life. But the question had been asked, and he could only nod.
“Over twenty years ago,” he muttered. “Jason and his mother…they took their lives. Drilled into their own skulls during a ntal breakdown. As for the details, Mr. Pennyworth, if you're that interested, you can dig them up yourself."
Reid nodded. He had already looked into everything thoroughly. If he wasn't absolutely sure, he would never have brought William here in the first place.
At the sa ti, he pulled out the test results he had just received.
"Colonel Stryker, what if I told you... your son isn’t actually dead?"
"What? That’s impossible..."
William was about to refute him when Reid handed him a docunt.
It was a DNA test report. As soone who had worked in military bio-research for years, William had seen countless similar reports. But the information in this one made him freeze.
"A paternity match? With who? This can’t be true!"
William knew very well that he had only ever had one wife. He had never been unfaithful, not even once. After his wife and son died, he beca completely alone. His parents had passed long ago. There should be no way such a report could exist.
"Could it be… soone in the world just happens to share extrely similar DNA with ?"
Hearing that, Reid smiled. A quiet, knowing smile.
That expression brought William back to reason. Deep down, he knew it too. That kind of coincidence was almost impossible. Sure, two strangers might look alike. But sharing DNA this close? That wasn’t sothing that happened by chance.
"Colonel Stryker, haven’t you ever wondered..."
As Reid spoke, he tapped a button on the nearby console. The floor of the lab began to rumble.
tal panels suddenly slid open, revealing a transparent glass cell beneath. Inside, locked behind the reinforced walls, was none other than the man Joker had captured in the underground Gotham base—the Great Illusionist, Jason.
His full na: Jason Stryker.
“This is my surprise for you,” Reid said quietly.
But William couldn't hear a word he was saying anymore. The mont he laid eyes on the grown-up Jason, his mind was flooded with mories—mories that had been buried, altered, erased—now roaring back to life.
……
It had been just an ordinary day. At least, for their family, it was supposed to be.
William had always known. He had known his son possessed a special ability. Sothing that could whisper directly into his and his wife’s minds. Sothing that could make them see things that weren’t real, illusions born from Jason’s thoughts.
He knew it was dangerous. And that his young son had no control over it. But what could he do? Abandon his own child? William wasn’t capable of sothing that cruel.
So, using his influence in the military, he found a special school. A place that claid to take in children with unusual abilities.
The school’s headmaster was even a PhD in both biology and psychology.
That gave William hope.
He contacted the school and, along with his wife, waited anxiously, desperate for soone to save them.
But the help they prayed for... never arrived.
He only rembered that the very next day, his son completely lost control. The illusions Jason created grew worse—more chaotic, more vivid. William, hardened by his past as a soldier, managed to hold on with sheer willpower.
But his wife... she couldn't.
He watched with his own eyes as she pulled a power drill from the toolbox and drove it into her own temple.
The living room was instantly splattered with red.
And then, everything went black.
……
“No… no, this isn’t real.”
William’s voice trembled.
As his mind sank into darkness, a soft light erged. Reid stepped out from the shadows and waved his hand, bringing color back to the world around them.
"This isn’t the limit of your mory, Colonel. Soone just didn’t want you to rember what ca after."
With a snap of his fingers, the mory resud.
……
After William’s wife died, he collapsed, crushed by the weight of the trauma. All he could do was lie there and watch as his son Jason trembled violently, his powers spiraling out of control.
Not long after, two n entered the house. One wore a tal helt. The other was bald.
The bald man approached Jason and gently passed his hand above the boy’s head.
"You did well, child," he said softly.
Then, he turned to William lying paralyzed on the floor. He pointed a finger at him without a word.
In an instant, William’s mind went completely dark.
The mory ended.
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