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Chapter 390: A New Origin
Earth-2, 1979, Park Row. Or rather, that was its name before it was renamed "Crime Alley."
That night, the Wayne family was passing through Park Row. A criminal named Joe Chill passed by and pulled out a handgun.
Two gunshots, two people fell, blood splattering everywhere, forever rewriting Bruce Wayne's life and the destiny of the entire city of Gotham.
In 1992, Bruce Wayne donned the cape for the first time, and the legend of Batman began to appear in Gotham.
In 1994, Joe Chill died, along with several other henchmen who worked for the then-crime kingpin, Falcone. Batman, who had already become the world's greatest detective, noticed this. He followed the trail to Falcone and, through interrogation, extracted the secrets of that year from the old man.
"Joe Chill? I only used him once. I hired him to kill Thomas Wayne!"
Falcone cursed and shouted during his interrogation by Batman.
"Why? Because Thomas Wayne was a damn traitor!"
Batman was inwardly startled but remained outwardly impassive. "You knew Thomas Wayne?"
"Of course. The guy saved my life."
This was a story Bruce had never heard, a story about the dark side of his family and father. Back then, Falcone was still young, not yet the Godfather who ruled the Gotham underworld with an iron fist. He had been shot in the street and would have died within minutes. But a professional doctor who happened to be passing by saved his life.
That was Thomas Wayne.
After that, they became the best of friends. Parties, celebrities, even drugs—a decadent life, but with the money and status, they both made a fortune. It was also during that period that Thomas met Martha, his future wife.
Until the birth of Bruce Wayne changed everything.
The birth of their child made the Waynes seriously consider what kind of example they should set. They wanted to draw a clear line with their past. But Thomas Wayne was already in too deep, and Falcone naturally wouldn't allow him to walk away clean.
And so, the night in Crime Alley came to be.
Now, his actions were beginning to have consequences. A mysterious assassin began to eliminate everyone connected to the Crime Alley case. Joe Chill was just the beginning, along with some of his cronies—all those suspected of being involved in planning the murder.
And upon further investigation, Batman was shocked to discover that the assassin was none other than his father, who was supposed to be dead: Thomas Wayne.
“...”
Now, in the present, deep beneath Gotham, inside the supposedly abandoned Batcave.
"So, I am your grandfather, child. The real deal," Thomas Wayne said with a sigh. "I didn't die back then. I just convinced a friend at the hospital to fake my death."
"Because I knew Falcone wouldn't let me go. As long as I was alive, he would send people to attack again, even if it meant harming my child..."
"No," Helena said, gritting her teeth. "My father never mentioned you to me. He told me my grandfather had died long ago."
"Perhaps because, in his heart, I truly was long dead," Thomas said sorrowfully. "After Falcone died, I changed my identity and tried to see him. But Bruce drove me away. He refused to accept me...
"You know, he has his mother's eyes, but he inherited his stubbornness from me."
Helena said nothing.
"I was there for every important moment of his life. I watched from a distance, never getting close," he said. "I watched him get married, watched you be born. I watched you grow up... even though I was never a part of your lives."
Helena was silent for a long time.
"Even at the very end, you didn't show up," she said coolly. "But now you're back, expecting me to believe that the grandfather I thought was long dead is actually alive."
"Yes, because I realized I've never been able to do anything for you in my entire life. Now, this is the only thing I have left to do... to carry on his work and make it greater."
Thomas Wayne picked up Batman's helmet, holding it face to face, as if he could see his son's reflection in it.
"I gained superhuman strength through injections of a drug called 'Miraclo.' It only lasts for an hour, but it allows me to step onto the battlefield as Batman. To take up my son's mantle and become a greater man than the Thomas Wayne of the past."
"A drug? So that's why you're ridiculously fast," Helena frowned. "But are there side effects?"
"Maybe, but I don't care," Thomas said. "I'm 65 years old. Without this drug, I can't do anything. But as long as it allows me to fight for even one more day, it's worth it. After all... there's no one left to be disappointed in me."
Helena pondered for a few seconds and was about to say more, but she was interrupted by a piercing alarm blaring through the Batcave.
"Intrusion alarm."
Thomas gritted his teeth, put on the helmet, and quickly sat down in front of the Batcomputer.
Helena had no choice but to temporarily drop the matter, moving up behind his chair. "Who is it?"
The radar quickly marked the heat sources—dense and overwhelming, they were swarming in.
"It's Parademons, the army of Apokolips."
Thomas shot up from his chair.
"...They've returned."
Geneva, inside the Fire Pit.
"The Green told me the war has begun again," Alan said. "The target is Gotham... but why? There's almost nothing left of Gotham..."
"There was a news report saying Batman is still alive," Orin Vale said lightly. "If I were Superman, I would immediately judge that to be a top-tier threat. And assuming Superman knows the exact location of the Batcave..."
"They're heading for the Batcave?" Alan was surprised. "Batman is alive?"
"Maybe, but not necessarily the same one," Orin Vale said. "But don't worry, it's not a big problem..."
Without any warning, a laser suddenly launched a sneak attack from an unknown location. An energy blast moving at the speed of light—under a surprise attack, even a Speedster would have trouble reacting in time.
But Orin Vale was always vigilant of his surroundings. He had already sensed the danger before the blast was even fired, and his figure flickered to the side with an electric arc, deftly dodging it.
Of course, the Green Lantern behind him wasn't so quick to react.
The laser hit him head-on, striking the green barrier on his chest and creating a shower of sparks. He was thrown backward, tumbling awkwardly a couple of times.
However, it wasn't a big deal. He was running a tank build; an attack of this level didn't even scratch his health.
Green Lantern: "..."
He suddenly wondered if he had some kind of built-in taunt attribute today. His teammate was supposed to be on point while he brought up the rear, so why was he tanking all the damage?
(end of chapter)
Earth-2, 1979, Park Row. Or rather, that was its name before it was renamed "Crime Alley."
That night, the Wayne family was passing through Park Row. A criminal named Joe Chill passed by and pulled out a handgun.
Two gunshots, two people fell, blood splattering everywhere, forever rewriting Bruce Wayne's life and the destiny of the entire city of Gotham.
In 1992, Bruce Wayne donned the cape for the first time, and the legend of Batman began to appear in Gotham.
In 1994, Joe Chill died, along with several other henchmen who worked for the then-crime kingpin, Falcone. Batman, who had already become the world's greatest detective, noticed this. He followed the trail to Falcone and, through interrogation, extracted the secrets of that year from the old man.
"Joe Chill? I only used him once. I hired him to kill Thomas Wayne!"
Falcone cursed and shouted during his interrogation by Batman.
"Why? Because Thomas Wayne was a damn traitor!"
Batman was inwardly startled but remained outwardly impassive. "You knew Thomas Wayne?"
"Of course. The guy saved my life."
This was a story Bruce had never heard, a story about the dark side of his family and father. Back then, Falcone was still young, not yet the Godfather who ruled the Gotham underworld with an iron fist. He had been shot in the street and would have died within minutes. But a professional doctor who happened to be passing by saved his life.
That was Thomas Wayne.
After that, they became the best of friends. Parties, celebrities, even drugs—a decadent life, but with the money and status, they both made a fortune. It was also during that period that Thomas met Martha, his future wife.
Until the birth of Bruce Wayne changed everything.
The birth of their child made the Waynes seriously consider what kind of example they should set. They wanted to draw a clear line with their past. But Thomas Wayne was already in too deep, and Falcone naturally wouldn't allow him to walk away clean.
And so, the night in Crime Alley came to be.
Now, his actions were beginning to have consequences. A mysterious assassin began to eliminate everyone connected to the Crime Alley case. Joe Chill was just the beginning, along with some of his cronies—all those suspected of being involved in planning the murder.
And upon further investigation, Batman was shocked to discover that the assassin was none other than his father, who was supposed to be dead: Thomas Wayne.
“...”
Now, in the present, deep beneath Gotham, inside the supposedly abandoned Batcave.
"So, I am your grandfather, child. The real deal," Thomas Wayne said with a sigh. "I didn't die back then. I just convinced a friend at the hospital to fake my death."
"Because I knew Falcone wouldn't let me go. As long as I was alive, he would send people to attack again, even if it meant harming my child..."
"No," Helena said, gritting her teeth. "My father never mentioned you to me. He told me my grandfather had died long ago."
"Perhaps because, in his heart, I truly was long dead," Thomas said sorrowfully. "After Falcone died, I changed my identity and tried to see him. But Bruce drove me away. He refused to accept me...
"You know, he has his mother's eyes, but he inherited his stubbornness from me."
Helena said nothing.
"I was there for every important moment of his life. I watched from a distance, never getting close," he said. "I watched him get married, watched you be born. I watched you grow up... even though I was never a part of your lives."
Helena was silent for a long time.
"Even at the very end, you didn't show up," she said coolly. "But now you're back, expecting me to believe that the grandfather I thought was long dead is actually alive."
"Yes, because I realized I've never been able to do anything for you in my entire life. Now, this is the only thing I have left to do... to carry on his work and make it greater."
Thomas Wayne picked up Batman's helmet, holding it face to face, as if he could see his son's reflection in it.
"I gained superhuman strength through injections of a drug called 'Miraclo.' It only lasts for an hour, but it allows me to step onto the battlefield as Batman. To take up my son's mantle and become a greater man than the Thomas Wayne of the past."
"A drug? So that's why you're ridiculously fast," Helena frowned. "But are there side effects?"
"Maybe, but I don't care," Thomas said. "I'm 65 years old. Without this drug, I can't do anything. But as long as it allows me to fight for even one more day, it's worth it. After all... there's no one left to be disappointed in me."
Helena pondered for a few seconds and was about to say more, but she was interrupted by a piercing alarm blaring through the Batcave.
"Intrusion alarm."
Thomas gritted his teeth, put on the helmet, and quickly sat down in front of the Batcomputer.
Helena had no choice but to temporarily drop the matter, moving up behind his chair. "Who is it?"
The radar quickly marked the heat sources—dense and overwhelming, they were swarming in.
"It's Parademons, the army of Apokolips."
Thomas shot up from his chair.
"...They've returned."
Geneva, inside the Fire Pit.
"The Green told me the war has begun again," Alan said. "The target is Gotham... but why? There's almost nothing left of Gotham..."
"There was a news report saying Batman is still alive," Orin Vale said lightly. "If I were Superman, I would immediately judge that to be a top-tier threat. And assuming Superman knows the exact location of the Batcave..."
"They're heading for the Batcave?" Alan was surprised. "Batman is alive?"
"Maybe, but not necessarily the same one," Orin Vale said. "But don't worry, it's not a big problem..."
Without any warning, a laser suddenly launched a sneak attack from an unknown location. An energy blast moving at the speed of light—under a surprise attack, even a Speedster would have trouble reacting in time.
But Orin Vale was always vigilant of his surroundings. He had already sensed the danger before the blast was even fired, and his figure flickered to the side with an electric arc, deftly dodging it.
Of course, the Green Lantern behind him wasn't so quick to react.
The laser hit him head-on, striking the green barrier on his chest and creating a shower of sparks. He was thrown backward, tumbling awkwardly a couple of times.
However, it wasn't a big deal. He was running a tank build; an attack of this level didn't even scratch his health.
Green Lantern: "..."
He suddenly wondered if he had some kind of built-in taunt attribute today. His teammate was supposed to be on point while he brought up the rear, so why was he tanking all the damage?
(end of chapter)
