Chapter 101: The Bat in the Jar

Chapter 101: The Bat in the Jar On February 23, 1987, in Chicago, at night. Miss Tina, who had just finished a splendid and lively ball, lightly touched her fur cape and got into a luxurious car with the help of her driver. When she returned to her luxury apartment, a handsome man with blue eyes embraced her waist. Tina said, "Our ball has just begun, right, Mr. Bruce?" Moonlight shone through the window, and those beautiful blue eyes were shrouded in the shadow of the eyebrows. The handsome profile of Bruce Wayne fascinated Tina. The man turned around, and it was Bruce Wayne. On an ordinary afternoon of February 20, 1987, Schiller woke up in bed at Falcone Mansion. He remembered that before crossing over to the Marvel Universe, he had rested in a guest room at the Godfather's estate. The mornings in Gotham were never sunny, but the early morning always brought special inspiration to Schiller. When he had breakfast with the Falcone father and son, the professor gained some inspiration again and quickly improved it in his mind. "How do you see the future of Gotham?" Schiller asked Falcone. Falcone shook his head and said, "If you had asked me this question 40 years ago, I would have told you that this city is doomed, but now I want to say that this city does not need anyone to save it. It is what it is and will always be like this..." "Do you think Gotham needs a new order?" "Many people have asked me this question, but I can only say that any effort to make this city better will ultimately come to nothing, no matter how generous and passionate its beginning is. It will all end up in nothingness." "Why is that?" "You've hit the key, but I don't know the answer." The Godfather lit a cigar, and the smoke slowly drifted away. He said, "During these 40 years, I have seen resolute revolutionaries and saviors with moral standards like saints. There are so many people in this world, not lacking in one or two good people or heroes who are determined to save this city." "They come to Gotham with this idea, and you have to admit that even if you know they will not succeed, you are still deeply shaken by that determination." "Perhaps you may find it ridiculous, but I have indeed been changed by these people. Many people may wonder, if that's the case, how did I become the Godfather of Gotham? How did I become the biggest gangster in this gang city?" "But it is precisely because I have seen these things, I have personally experienced that era, that I know that good people cannot save Gotham, and neither can heroes." "So where are these people now?" "Most of them are dead, and some lucky ones have escaped from here. People who do not belong to Gotham will eventually leave Gotham. If there are any left, he must be someone who originally belonged to Gotham." "Are there such people? Where are they?" The Godfather seemed to be lost in memory. After a while, he made a cross on his chest and said, "I once swore to the Lord to keep this secret for him." He didn't give Schiller a clear answer, but Schiller already knew who he was referring to. The next day, Bruce was called to Schiller's office. Schiller rarely called him over, so Bruce was curious about what was going on. They sat on opposite sides of the desk, just like when they first met. Schiller asked him, "Have you ever had a second where you thought about saving this city completely?" "Of course..." "I mean, after you realized what the essence of this city really is." Bruce opened his mouth, and Schiller took off his glasses. He looked straight at Bruce and said, "I think you should have realized that this city doesn't need to be saved, and it can't be saved." "So, are you telling me not to do it anymore? Not to be Batman?" "Of course not. I don't care if you're Batman or not. I just want to know if you really want to save Gotham." "What's the difference?" "Are you sure you're being Batman to save Gotham?" Bruce fell silent. "I'll ask you another question. If there is a possibility of bringing a new order to Gotham, would you be willing to make some effort for it?" "Although I have this guess now, I still can't be sure what the essence of this city is. Why did it become like this? And is it really impossible to save it?" "Falcone once told me that many people have tried to save this city, but they have all failed. Most of them perished here, but some stayed and became part of Gotham." "Who is he?" "The main legacy they left to this city was the estate district and this big church. Under my persuasion, they collectively contributed to building this place, and I became the only Father in this church." "So what happened after that? What happened next?" "When the upper layer that maintained a stable order suddenly left, the ones who filled in the upper structure became the ones with the most guns and bullets. Falcone and his Twelve Families were those people. They had some trouble at first, but then they took over." "Once, Falcone and I were very good partners because I knew that he was different from other gangs. He wanted to create a new order here, even if it was a violent one, it was better than no order." "I did everything I could to help him. I thought that gangs were just a temporary replacement for the upper-class blocks that had been emptied. I believed that someday, Gotham would return to the right path." "But I didn't expect that everything would get out of control. After Falcone and his gang family took over the city, it became a real city of crime. From the twelve gangs that sprouted, there were 120 gangs, 1,200 gangs, and finally, a city where everyone was a gangster or a criminal." "Evil spread here, but I was helpless. I knew that Falcone might be the same. Many people thought he was the culprit for Gotham's decline, but I knew that wasn't the truth." Finally, Father looked up and surveyed the church. He said, "There aren't many buildings left from that era. I'm grateful that they left me a place like this where I can find shelter." "Why don't you leave then? Even if you can't go back to your hometown, you can at least go to the church in Metropolis. There are still quite a few clergymen there, and they live well." Father said, "You don't understand. I not only witnessed how evil gradually infected this city, but I was also deeply trapped in it a long time ago." He drew a cross on his chest, prayed softly for a few moments, and then said, "The biggest truth I learned in this process is that this city will only accept those who belong here. Those heroes who truly want to save this place will eventually leave because they don't belong here." "So what is all of this for?" "I don't know, but I always believe that my choice back then was not wrong. Falcone and I, like him, are guardians of this city, not destroyers." "In your eyes, The Godfather may be a success because he ruled the Gotham underworld for 40 years, but I know, and Falcone knows, that we are all losers. We can only weave an unstable order in the abyss of sin to preserve ourselves." Father shook his head and said, "But unfortunately, I'm just an ordinary person who has lived longer than others. What I know is even less than Falcone. Or maybe Falcone doesn't know the real answer either." As the sun gradually set, the shadows of the tables and chairs inside the Church grew longer, and the light from the colorful stained glass spread over Bruce. Finally, old Father said, "I can only stay here, guarding a piece of His kingdom, and after I die, this pure land will also dissipate, just like the countless hopes that have dissipated in Gotham." "Of the group of people back then, only Falcone and I are left. We are both old. Perhaps when we go to meet our Lord, the remaining order in this city will no longer exist." "Do you think there is a possibility of establishing a new order?" "Countless people have tried for it, but they all failed. Falcone succeeded in a small part, but it only delayed it for a while. Maybe no one can delay it any longer." With a sigh in his voice, old Father's words made Bruce fall into contemplation. Whenever he heard these stories about the history of his hometown, Bruce couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia like a returning wanderer. Because the story of Gotham was filled with absurdity and despair from beginning to end, everything that happened here had no cause and no result, and even those who experienced that era couldn't explain it clearly. In this mysterious journey of exploring Gotham's history, the parts of the time machine were always stuck by some fragments shrouded in mist. Whenever Bruce tried to fix this old-fashioned projector and uncover the truth within, various forces always tried to stop him. Bruce walked out of the Church and began to ponder the question Schiller asked him. Father's answer to him was that this city probably wouldn't have a chance to have a new order, and after the older generation died out, it would fall into darkness completely. He suddenly came up with a strange analogy, "Gotham and all the evils generated in this city, and all the criminals living here, are like grains of salt sprinkled from a salt shaker." This is a Salt shaker that will never be empty. The person holding this Salt shaker calmly pours out some crystal-clear salt grains, just like a patient angler crafting his bait. Just-turned-adult Bruce had learned a fact from his professors, Falcone, and his old Father, that the reason why Gotham had become what it is today was not a simple natural evolution. The goals he once held of seeking revenge on criminals may never be achieved, and he may never be able to save Gotham completely, because the Salt shaker above Gotham would never be empty. The crystal-clear salt grains, full of guilt, would continue to come and go with the wind, just like the never-ending fine rain in Gotham city. But this didn't make Batman feel defeated, instead, it made him more ambitious. Batman didn't want to keep chasing after these salt grains, which were scattered as if someone was giving them away, like a stupid fish swimming around the bait, waiting for the water to wash up some residue to fill its stomach. What he wanted to do was to directly crush this Salt shaker, or, just like what he did to Luis, appear behind him like a bat, enveloping this person who was smugly holding the Salt shaker in shadows, making him tremble with fear of the bat. Then, he would get this Salt shaker and all the salt grains inside. If there was destined to be a Salt shaker that accommodated all criminals in this world, it would be best for this Salt shaker to belong to Batman. And it must belong to Batman.