Chapter 101: Bat in a Jar

February 23, 1987, Chicago, night.

In the Chicago Grand Theater, Miss Tina, who had finished the gorgeous and lively dance, gently stroked her fur cape. She held the driver's hand and got into a luxury car. When she returned to her luxury apartment, a handsome man with blue eyes put his arm around the lady's waist. Tina said, "Our dance has just begun, right? Mr. Bruce?"

The moonlight outside the window shone in, and the beautiful blue eyes were shrouded in the shadow of the brow arch. The handsome profile fascinated Tina. The man turned around. It was Bruce Wayne.

On an ordinary afternoon on February 20, 1987, Schiller woke up in the bed of Falcone Manor. He did not forget that he rested in the guest room of Godfather Manor before he traveled to Marvel.

The morning in Gotham was never sunny, but the early morning always brought Schiller special inspiration. When enjoying breakfast with Falcone and his son, the professor got some inspiration again and quickly perfected it in his mind.

"What do you think of the future of Gotham?" Schiller asked Falcone.

Falcone shook his head and said, "If you asked me this question 40 years ago, I would definitely tell you that this city is hopeless, but now I want to say that this city does not need anyone to save it. It is like this and will continue to 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 eventually come to nothing, no matter how passionate it is at the beginning, it will eventually return to nothingness."

"Why is this?"

"You asked the key, but I don't know the answer."

The Godfather lit up a cigar, and the smoke slowly dissipated. He said, "In the past 40 years, I have not seen determined revolutionaries, and I have not seen saviors with moral realms like saints. There are so many people in this world, and there are one or two good people or heroes who are determined to save this city."

"They came to Gotham with this idea, you have to Admit that even if you know they won't succeed, you are still deeply shocked by their determination. "

"Maybe you will find it ridiculous, but I have indeed been changed by these people. Many people may think, if this is true, how could I become the Godfather of Gotham? How could I become the biggest gangster in this gangster city?"

"But it is precisely because I have seen these and experienced that era that I know that good people can't save Gotham, and heroes are the same. "

"So now, where are these people going?"

"Most of them are dead, and some have escaped here. People who don't belong to Gotham will eventually leave Gotham. If there are those who stay, they must be those who originally belonged to Gotham. "

"Is there such a person? Where is he?"

The Godfather seemed to be lost in memory. After a while, he drew a cross on his chest and said, "I 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 almost never took the initiative to call him over, so Bruce was very curious about what Schiller wanted to do.

They sat down on both sides of the desk, just like when they first met, and Schiller asked him:

"Have you ever thought about saving this city completely for a second?"

"Of course I..."

"I mean, after you clearly realize what the essence of this city is."

Bruce opened his mouth, and Schiller took off his glasses. He looked directly at Bruce and said, "I think you should have seen the essence of this city that does not need to be saved and cannot be saved at all."

"So, are you trying to persuade me not to do this anymore? Don't be Batman anymore?"

"Of course not, I don't care whether you are Batman or not, I just want to know if you really want to save Gotham?"

"What's the difference between the two?"

"Are you sure you are Batman to save Gotham?"

Bruce was silent.

"Let me change the question. If there is a possibility of bringing a new order to Gotham now, are you willing to make some efforts 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? Is it really impossible to save it?"

"Falcone once told me that many people have tried to save this city, but they have not succeeded. Most of them are buried here, but some people have stayed and integrated here and become part of Gotham."

"Who is he?"

"The only priest in Gotham Cathedral, I think you can go meet him and then come back to give me the answer."

Bruce shook his head. He felt that Schiller was a little inexplicable.

But he was actually very interested in the stories of Gotham's past. This city has too many mysteries for him to explore.

At first, his purpose was very simple. He wanted to take revenge on all criminals, but when he learned part of Gotham, he felt that he should also save the city, but when he learned more about Gotham, he felt that the city did not need to be saved.

And now, he was learning Gotham again, and he found that the city seemed unable to be saved.

As Schiller said, Gotham is like a book that can never be finished. There are endless puzzles here. Every time you read it, you will have new insights.

When Bruce came to Gotham Cathedral, the priest received him warmly. The old priest looked to be over seventy years old. To be honest, there were few ordinary people in Gotham who could live to such an old age.

No one in Gotham teaches children to help an old man cross the street, because there is no one to teach children or old people here.

In front of the pulpit, the priest smiled and took Bruce's arm and said: "I have heard of Mr. Wayne's name a long time ago. Of course, I'm sorry that I don't have anything better to receive you. After all, this church is too old. , as old as me.”

"Look, these tables and chairs are falling apart. I wonder if there will be any kind-hearted person who can replace the Lord with a pulpit that does not require bricks to support the table legs..."

Bruce was very familiar with this kind of words. He crossed himself on his chest and said, "Unless the Lord gives me grace, the Wayne construction team will completely renovate the interior of the church to allow His kingdom of God to be restored." Clean as new, everything belongs to the Lord…”

The old priest seemed very satisfied with this. When Bruce chatted with him about the past, he had no intention of hiding it, but spoke frankly about his experience.

"I come from an ordinary family in the UK. I served in the church when I was young. In order to let more people listen to the gospel of the Lord, I came here."

"Originally, I just settled in a small city on the east coast, but I heard that Gotham is not bad, so I came here."

"You may find it a bit unbelievable, but in fact, Gotham was really good at that time. Because of the existence of the dock, it was quite prosperous, with many people and good living conditions. By the way, the gangs at that time were in their infancy. In total, Not many people."

"At that time, there were still some ordinary people here who had dreams. They wanted to establish order here and grow with this city. Of course, I thought the same way at that time."

Then, the priest's voice began to become deeper and deeper, echoing in the empty church. The colorful light from the stained glass at the top of the church windows was like a tunnel through time and space. The priest's voice seemed to follow these Tunnel, back to that era.

"There were many people like this at that time. They were ambitious and thought this was a golden coast and a new golden mountain. Although there was some chaos at that time, everyone felt that it was just an ordinary analgesia during the urban development stage."

"The young missionary, with a Bible in his arms, set foot on this land with the fleet. This story that came from thousands of miles away is actually not as grand as others imagined, but there are still many stories here. People are interested in me.”

"Of course, I'm here to spread my faith, help everyone as much as possible, and mediate some of the too intense conflicts and disputes between gangs. Almost everyone is willing to give me a favor."

When Bruce heard this, he was somewhat impressed by the priest. This old man who was the same generation as Falcone seemed to have occupied a place in the singing world.

In this city ruled by gangsters, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't talk nonsense.

No one would dare to make up such a story boldly, claiming that all gangsters would sell him out to save face. As far as Bruce knew, the only one who really had this ability was Falcone. If anyone else dared to brag like this, first His body would be thrown into the sea the next day.

But the old priest seemed to be saying something insignificant, and Bruce heard the humility in his tone. He thought that maybe this old man who was a contemporary of Falcone once had the same reputation as the Godfather.

But now they are very different. Falcone has become the godfather respected by everyone in Gotham, but the old priest guards a dilapidated church, and there may not be a single believer to pray for several days.

Bruce has always been curious about that era that was as dim as a faded photo, just like people always daydream about the glory of their fathers.

The story about the dock that Falcone once told him showed the rise of gangs in that turbulent era.

But now, in this empty cathedral, what the old priest revealed to him seemed to be a different look of the city in that era.

"When I came to the city of Gotham, the war was far from over. Isolationism was prevalent here, but more low-level civilians were afraid of war. They didn't understand how there could be so many people on the far side of the earth. Suddenly it turned into a pot of porridge."

"I started spreading teachings here. I believed that faith could bring peace to people's hearts. I did pretty well at first. You know, there were still many British people who had not evacuated here at that time. They would invite me to their Manor, listening to my sermons, that’s how I spend almost every afternoon.”

"In the beginning, some small gangs were just wandering around the docks, and few could even go to the inner streets. At that time, I knew Falcone, but at that time there were no Falcones and Twelve The family, and perhaps the entire Gotham combined, can’t find a dozen decent gangsters.”

“At that time, this was basically a colonial economy. Because of an accident, I started to deal with gangsters. They saw that I had access to wealthy people from the UK, and they hoped that I could be a middleman to expand their power for them. "

"I don't want to get involved in these whirlpools, but I have no choice. If I have to, I will choose the one with the most promise, which is Falcone."

"Later, many people began to discover that Gotham was not as good as they imagined. Rich people from the UK began to gradually withdraw from this place and gather in other places that were more prosperous and had more potential."

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"The main legacy they left to this city is the manor area and this cathedral. Under my lobbying, they collectively funded the construction of this place, and I became the only priest in this church."

"Then what happened after that? What happened after that?"

"When the upper echelons who maintain a stable order suddenly leave, the people who fill these upper structures become the people with the most bullets in their guns. Falcone and his Twelve Families are such people. They made trouble for a while, and then Just took over here.”

"I used to be a good partner with Falcone, because I knew that he was different from other gangsters. He wanted to create a new order here. Even though it was a violent order, it was better than no order at all. "

"I tried my best to help him. I thought that the gang was just a temporary replacement for the upper-level building blocks that had been evacuated. One day, Gotham would return to normal."

"But I didn't expect that it all got out of control. After Falcone and his gangster family took over the city, it began to become a real crime capital. Spreading out from the twelve gangs, it was 120 One gang, 1,200 gangs, and in the end, it became a city where everyone was a gangster and a criminal."

"Evil is spreading here, but I can't do anything about it. I know that the same may be true for Falcone. Many people think that he is the culprit of Gotham's deterioration, but I know very well that this is not the truth."

Finally, the priest raised his head and looked around the church. He said: "There were not many buildings left from that era. I am grateful that they left a place like this for me so that I could have a place to stay."

"Then why don't you leave? Even if you can't go back to your hometown, you can at least go to the church in the metropolis. There are still quite a lot of clergy there, and they are living a good life."

The priest said: "You don't understand. Not only have I witnessed how sin has infected this city bit by bit, but I have also been deeply involved in it."

He crossed himself on his chest, whispered a few prayers, and then said: "The biggest thing I understand in this process is that this city will only accept people who should belong here, those who really want to save this place." The heroes will eventually leave because they don’t belong here.”

"So what's all this about?"

"I don't know, but I always firmly believe that I made the right choice back then. Falcone is the same as me. We are both defenders of this city, not destroyers."

"In your opinion, the Godfather may be a success. He has ruled Gotham's underground for 40 years, but I know, Falcone and I both know that we are just losers, we can only weave our lives in the abyss of sin. An order that is not stable to protect itself.”

The priest shook his head and said: "But unfortunately, I am just an ordinary person. I have only lived longer than others. What I know is not even as good as Falcone. Or maybe Falcone doesn't know the real answer either." ”

As the sun gradually set, the shadows of the tables and chairs in the church became longer and longer, and the light spread from the stained glass began to flow to Bruce's body.

Finally, the old priest said: "I can only guard a piece of His kingdom here, and when I die, this piece of pure land will also dissipate, just like countless hopes that once dissipated in Gotham."

"Of that group of people, Falcone and I are the only ones left. We are all old. Perhaps when we all go to see our Lord, the remaining order in this city will no longer exist. ”

"Do you think it's possible to establish a new order?"

"Countless people have worked hard for this, but they all failed. Falcone succeeded to a small extent, but it only delayed it for a while. Perhaps no one can delay it for longer."

With the old priest sighing, Bruce fell into deep thought again.

Whenever he hears these historical stories about his hometown, Bruce can't help but feel nostalgic like a wanderer returning home.

Because the story of Gotham reveals absurdity and despair from beginning to end. Everything that happens here has no cause and no result. Even people who experienced that era cannot explain it clearly.

In this mysterious journey of exploring the history of Gotham, the parts of the time machine are always stuck in some foggy fragments. Whenever Bruce wants to repair this dilapidated old projector and explore the truth , there are always various forces stopping him.

After Bruce walked out of the church, he began to think about the question Schiller asked him. The answer the priest gave him was that this city would probably have no chance of having a new order. After all the older generations died, the place would be completely destroyed. into darkness.

He suddenly came up with a strange metaphor, but it felt very vivid.

All the evil that occurs in the city of Gotham, and all the criminals who live 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 pours out some crystal salt grains slowly, just like a patient fisherman making his bait.

Bruce, who has just come of age, learned a fact earlier from his professor, from Falcone, and from the old priest.

Gotham has become what it is today, not simply a natural evolution. His goal of revenge against criminals may never be completed, and he will never be able to completely save Gotham, because the salt shaker above Gotham will never be empty. The sinful salt grains are crystal clear and come with the wind, just like the fine rain lines that will never stop in Gotham City.

But this did not make Batman feel frustrated, but made him have an ambition earlier.

Batman did not want to fly around these salt grains that were sprinkled like alms, like a stupid fish circling around the bait, hoping that the water would flush out some residue to fill his stomach.

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What he wanted to do was to crush the salt shaker, or, as he had done to Louis before, to appear behind him like a bat, to cast a shadow over the man who was smugly holding the salt shaker, and to make him tremble with fear for the bat.

Then, to get the salt shaker and all the salt grains in it.

If there is a salt shaker in this world that is destined to hold all criminals, then this salt shaker had better belong to Batman.

It must belong to Batman.