In The DC World With Marvel Chat Group Chapter 101: Bat in a Jar

"The Days of Being a Spiritual Mentor in Meiman"

February 23, 1987, Chicago, night.

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

The moonlight came in from the window, those beautiful blue eyes were shrouded in the shadow of the arch of the eyebrows, Tina was fascinated by the handsome profile, the man turned around, it was Bruce Wayne.

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

The mornings in Gotham are never sunny, but early mornings can always bring Schiller special inspiration. When he had breakfast with Falcone and his son, the professor got some inspiration again, and in his mind quickly perfected.

"What do you think about 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 was hopeless, but now I want to say that this city does not need anyone to save it." , he is like this, and will continue to be like this..."

"Do you think Gotham needs a new order?"

"A lot of people have asked me this question, but all I can say is that any effort to make this city better will eventually come to naught, no matter how impassioned it starts, it will eventually come to nothing. Nothing."

"Why?"

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

The godfather lit a cigar, and the smoke slowly drifted away. He said: "In the past 40 years, it's not that I haven't seen a staunch revolutionist, or a savior with a moral realm like a saint. There are so many people out there, and there's no shortage of one or two good guys or heroes, determined to save the city."

"They came to Gotham with this idea in mind, and you have to admit that even though you knew they wouldn't succeed, you were still deeply shocked by that determination."

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

"But it is precisely because I have seen these, and I have personally experienced that era, that I know that good people can't save Gotham, and neither can heroes."

"So now, where did these people go?"

"Most of them died, and some of them escaped here by fate. People who don't belong to Gotham will definitely leave Gotham in the end. If there is anyone left, then he must belong to Gotham originally. people."

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

The godfather seemed to be lost in memory. After a while, he crossed himself on his chest and said, "I swore to the Lord to keep this secret for him."

He didn't give Schiller a definitive answer, but Schiller already knew who he was referring to.

The next day, Bruce was called into the office by Schiller, who almost never took the initiative to call him over, so Bruce was very curious about Schiller's business.

They sat down on opposite sides of the desk, as they did 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 realize the essence of this city very clearly."

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 doesn't need to be saved, and it can't 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 if you are Batman or not, I just want to know if you really want to save Gotham?"

"Is there any difference between the two?"

"Are you sure you want to be Batman to save Gotham?"

Bruce fell silent.

"Let me change the question. If there is a possibility to bring a new order to Gotham, are you willing to make some efforts for it?"

"Although I have this kind of speculation now, I still can't be sure, what is the essence of this city? Why did it become like this? Is it really impossible to be saved?"

"Falcone once told me that there are many people who tried to save this city, but they didn't succeed. Most of them are buried here, but some people stayed and integrated into this place. , became a part of Gotham."

"Who is he?"

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

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

But he is also very interested in Gotham's past stories. There are too many mysteries in this city that he can explore.

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

And now, he has relearned Gotham again, and he found that this city seems to be irreparable.

As Schiller said, Gotham is like a book that can never be read. 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 seemed to be over seventy years old. To be honest, there are very few ordinary people in Gotham who can live to such an old age. .

Nobody in Gotham teaches kids to help old people across the street, because there's no one to teach kids or old people here.

In front of the pulpit, the priest smiled and took Bruce's arm and said, "I've heard of Mr. Wayne's name for a long time. Of course, I'm sorry I don't have anything better to receive you. Too old, as old as me."

"Look, these tables and chairs are falling apart. I don't know if there is any kind-hearted person who can replace the pulpit for the Lord..."

Bruce is very familiar with this kind of words. He drew a sign of the cross on his chest and said: "I am not the Lord's mercy on me. The Wayne construction team will carry out a complete renovation of the interior of the church, allowing His The kingdom of God is as clean as new, and everything belongs to the Lord..."

The old priest seemed to be very satisfied with this, and when Bruce chatted with him about the past, he didn't mean to hide it, but spoke bluntly 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 town on the east coast, but I heard that Gotham is not bad, so I came here."

"You may think it's unbelievable, but in fact, Gotham was not bad at that time. Because of the existence of the pier, it was still prosperous, with many people and good living conditions. By the way, the gangsters at that time were all starting stage, there are not many people in total."

"At that time, there were still some ordinary people here with dreams. They wanted to establish order here and grow together with this city. Of course, I thought so too at that time."

Then, the priest's voice became 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. Follow these tunnels and go back to that era.

"At that time, there were many such people. They were ambitious and felt that this was a Gold Coast and a new Jinshan. Although there was some confusion at that time, everyone felt that it was just an ordinary pain relief in the urban development stage. That's all."

"The young missionary set foot on this land with the fleet with a Bible in his arms. Many people are interested in me."

"Of course, I am here to spread the faith, help everyone as much as possible, and mediate some gangsters' conflicts and disputes that are too intense. Almost everyone is willing to sell me."

Bruce heard this, and he looked at the priest with admiration. This old man who was a contemporary of Falcone seemed to have occupied a place in Gotham.

In this city ruled by gangsters, you can eat recklessly, but you can’t talk recklessly.

No one would dare to make up such a story, claiming that all gangsters want to sell him. As far as Bruce knows, only Falcone has this ability. cow, his body would be thrown into the sea the next day.

But the old priest seemed to be talking about something insignificant. Bruce could hear the humility in his tone. He thought, maybe this old man who was a contemporary of Falcone once had the same reputation as His Excellency the Godfather .

But now they are very different. Falcone has become the Godfather admired by everyone in Gotham, but this old priest is guarding a dilapidated church, and no believer may come to pray for several days.

Bruce has always had a lot of curiosity about that era that was a bit faded like a faded photo, just like people always dream about the glory of their fathers.

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

But now, in this empty cathedral, what the old priest revealed to him seems to be another look of the city at that time.

"When I came to the city of Gotham, the war was far from over. Here, isolationism prevailed, but more low-level civilians were afraid of war. They didn't understand that at the far end of the earth , Why did it suddenly become a pot of porridge."

"I started to spread teachings here. I believe that faith can bring peace to people's hearts. I did a good job at the beginning. You know, there were still many British people who did not evacuate here at that time. They would invite me Go to their estate and listen to my sermons, which is how I spend almost every afternoon.”

"In the beginning, some small gangsters were just wandering around the pier, and even few of them could go to the inner street. At that time, I knew Falcone, but there was no Falcone at that time. With the Twelve Families, maybe the entire Gotham cannot find twelve decent gangsters.”

"At that time, it was basically a colonial economy. Because of an accident, I started to deal with gangsters. They saw that I had channels from rich people in Britain. They hoped that I could be a middleman and strengthen themselves for them. power."

"I don't want to participate in these vortexes, but I have no choice. If I have to, I will choose the most promising one, which is Falcone."

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

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

"So what happened after that? What happened after that?"

"When the upper layers that maintain a stable order suddenly leave, those who fill these upper layers become the people with the most bullets in their guns. Falcone and his twelve families are such people, and they have a quarrel time, and then it took over here.”

"I used to be a good partner with Falcone, because I know that he is different from other gangsters. He wants to create a new order here. Although it is a violent order, it is better than nothing. Order is better.”

"I did my best to help him. I thought that the gangsters were just a short-term replacement for the upper building blocks that were evacuated. One day, Gotham will return to normal."

"But I didn't expect that everything was out of control. After Falcone and his gangster family ruled the city, it began to become a real crime capital, sprawling from the twelve gangsters. , 120 gangsters, 1200 gangsters, and finally, this is a city where everyone is a gangster and a criminal.”

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

Finally, the priest looked up and looked around the church. He said: "There are actually not many buildings left from that era. I thank them for leaving me such a place, so that I can have a shelter. "

"Then why don't you leave? Even if you can't go back to your hometown, at least you can go to the church in the metropolis. There are quite a lot of priests there, and life is not bad."

The priest said: "You don't understand, I have not only witnessed how evil has infected this city little by little, but I have also been deeply involved in it for a long time."

He made a sign of the cross on his chest, prayed a few words in a low voice, and then said: "The biggest truth I learned during this process is that this city will only accept people who belong here, and those who really want to be here." The heroes who are going to save this place 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 my choice back then was right. Falcone is the same as me. We are all defenders of this city, not destroyers."

"In your opinion, the godfather may be a winner, he ruled Gotham underground for 40 years, but I know, me and Falcone both know that we are nothing but losers, only in the abyss of evil Lilo weaves a precarious order to protect itself.”

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

As the sun gradually set, the shadows of the tables and chairs in the church were dragged longer and longer, and the light from the stained glass began to flow onto Bruce.

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

"Falcone and I were the only ones left in that group. We are all old. Maybe when we all go to meet our Lord, the only order left in this city will be gone. no longer exists."

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

"Countless people have worked hard for this, but they all failed. Falcone succeeded in a small part, but it was only delayed for a while, and perhaps no one can delay it for longer."

Accompanied by the sigh of the old priest, Bruce fell into deep thought again.

Whenever he heard these historical stories about his hometown, Bruce couldn't help feeling nostalgic about it 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 have experienced that era can't tell clearly.

During this mysterious journey of exploring Gotham's history, the parts of the time machine are always stuck in some foggy fragments. Whenever Bruce wants to fix this dilapidated old-fashioned projector and explore it When the truth is revealed, there are always various forces stopping him.

Bruce, who walked out of the church, began to think about the question that Schiller asked him. The answer the priest gave him was that this city might not have any chance of having a new order~IndoMTL.com~The old generation is dead After that, the place will be completely plunged into darkness.

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

All the crimes in the city of Gotham, and all the criminals who live here, are like salt grains sprinkled in a salt shaker.

This is a salt jar that will never be empty. The person holding this salt jar pours out some crystal salt grains without haste, just like a patient fisherman making his bait.

Bruce, who has just grown up, learned a fact earlier from his professor, Falcone, and the old priest.

Gotham will become what it is today. It is not a simple natural evolution. His goal of revenge against criminals may never be accomplished, 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 in Gotham City that will never stop.

But this didn't make Batman feel frustrated, but made him have an earlier ambition.

Batman has no desire to fly around these grains of salt that are thrown like alms, like a stupid fish circling around a bait, hoping the current will flush out some scraps to fill its belly.

What he wanted to do was to just crush the salt shaker, or rather, as he once did to Louis—appearing behind him like a bat, and shadowing the salt-holding Can smug people make him tremble with fear of bats.

Then, get this salt shaker, and all the salt grains in there.

If the world is destined to have a salt shaker for all criminals, it better belong to Batman.

Must belong to Batman too.