Chapter 20: Chapter 20: is he Damian?
Damian? He actually brings Bruce kid back? Dane's expression turns strange—good grief.
As good man, Dane is going to help. After all, he and Jason have always had a good friend.
"No problem," he types back. "I'll design a suit for him right away. He's not against... you know, taking care of things, right?"
Jason's reply is prompt: "Don't worry, Damian is mature."
Dane chuckles, his grin widening into something almost mischievous. "Hehe, mature, you say. Sure thing."
"You said it, not me."
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At night, a massive bat shadow lights up the sky.
Criminals freeze in terror, as they shout to one another, "He's coming!" And they're right—Batman is came.
On the rooftop of the Gotham Police Department, next to the glowing Bat-Signal, Commissioner Gordon paces restlessly.
"You're looking for me," comes Batman's deep, gravelly voice from the shadows behind him.
Gordon spins around, surprised but relieved. "Thank goodness you're finally here! Where have you been all this time?"
"I saw Scarecrow's manifesto. How bad is it?"
Batman, cloaked in his cape, looms like a giant shadowy figure. Gordon's glasses fog up in the cold night air, but he doesn't bother wiping them.
"Worse than you can imagine," Gordon says, his voice heavy. "The city's already lost nearly half its population.
If this continues, not only the economy, but also the basic urban functions will be unsustainable."
He takes a breath before continuing. "An hour ago, the Coast Guard tried to land at Gotham Harbor. The gangsters wiped out the entire formation."
"Who's responsible?" Batman's voice is steady, but sharp.
"The Penguin, Two-Face, maybe Black Mask. I'm not sure. But they're working together now—those bastards are united!" Gordon shakes his head in frustration. "Batman, this feels different. This feels… premeditated."
"They've always been premeditated," Batman replies, his voice a quiet growl.
"Not like this!" Gordon shoots back. "The consequences have never been this catastrophic! If you don't act now, Gotham is finished. Or maybe it already is!"
Batman stands silent for a moment, then changes the subject. "How's the evacuation going?"
Gordon adjusts his glasses and steadies himself. "The last bus has left. At least… at least my daughter's safe. She's gone."
Batman's expression tightens under the cowl. He knows the truth—Barbara hasn't left Gotham. She's still here, helping him from behind the scenes. Guilt flickers across his face, but he quickly hides it.
"Do you have any news on Scarecrow?" he asks, redirecting the conversation.
"There's a piece of news, but I don't know if it's true," Gordon says, his voice tense. "Someone saw an unknown military vehicle entering the slums."
"We tried to track it down… but we lost it. It's the only lead we have."
Batman nods. "Leave this to me."
He takes charge of the situation, ready to move on. But before he leaves, Gordon stops him, his expression filled with conflict.
"Do you think Scarecrow will really release deadly chemical gas across the city?"
Gordon can't fully believe it. Part of him holds onto a sliver of hope. What could Scarecrow gain from such madness, other than an empty city with no survivors? He can't be as insane as the Joker, right? One madman is enough.
Batman doesn't answer directly. "James, I'm not going to let that happen."
Gordon about to respond, but at that moment, his walkie-talkie crackles to life.
"Attention all units, we have an emergency in Area 2. The patrol car is missing, and officers from Unit 2-47 are suspected to have been shot!"
Gordon turns to Batman, but finds only the empty rooftop. Batman is already gone.
Gordon sighs in frustration. "Every time… just."
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On the other side, Jason and Damian arrive in Gotham.
If you're wondering how they managed to get here so quickly, the answer is simple: Dane's teleportation magic.
He had given Jason a magical bracelet before he left, one that could teleport him directly to Dane if necessary.
This time, however, it's not just Jason who comes—it's also Damian.
"Magic? Cool." Damian glances at the bracelet on Jason's wrist with a curious expression, as though he's pondering some mischievous idea.
"You're Damian?" Dane raises an eyebrow, intrigued.
Damian doesn't flinch. "And what are you, a circus magician?"
Dane smiles, unfazed. Damian, though young, clearly has the confidence of someone who's been trained in the harshest environments.
The boy's pride in his title as the youngest Master Assassin in the history of the League of Assassins is apparent in the way he stands. He has no fear of anyone.
At moment Dane recalls how Doctor Strange handled Loki in Thor: Ragnarok, and he gets an idea. With a snap of his fingers, a circular ring suddenly appears beneath Damian's feet.
The boy's reflexes kick in, and he quickly spreads his legs, attempting to grab the edge of the ring with his feet.
But Dane won't let him succeed. He expands the ring just enough so that Damian's legs can't catch it, forcing him to fall right into it.
When Damien fells, as Dane closes his palm. The ring shrinks and disappeared without a trace.
"Let's see how you behave like that," Dane mutters, knowing the kid has a strong physique. He'll survive a little flight over Mount Everest.
Dane ignores the struggling boy and turns his attention back to Jason.
Jason's stronger, taller. And most importantly, there's a cold murderous gleam in his eyes.
The way he carries himself, his size and demeanor, remind Dane almost perfectly of the Arkham Knight. All that effort to create that suit wasn't wasted.
"You already know current situation at Gotham, right?" Jason nods.
"Alright, then I'll give you a copy of the information from Barbara's computer."
"If my prediction is correct, Batman will act based on this intelligence. You can decide what you want to do with it."
"Thank you, Mr. Dane."
"You're welcome. Just remember, no matter what you do, get rid of the problem."
"Yes!" Jason's excitement is clear. This is exactly what he wanted.
Dane claps his hands, and They arrive at umbrella building. Inside the arsenal, it's just the two of them.
Dane walks over to the transparent glass case and points to the suit inside. The design is similar to the Arkham Knight's, but with a more advanced technological.
Dane has outfitted the suit with nanomaterials. This means Jason can assemble any weapon he desires, as long as there are enough nono-materials to fuel it and the only limit is the energy supply.
On the wrist of the suit, Dane has installed a spider-silk launcher.
This fires black, high-strength nanowires—barely three millimeters in diameter. In the dark, they're almost invisible, but incredibly strong. They can lift a crane with ease.
On the wrist of the suit, Dane also has something like a spiderman launcher installed. It can eject high-strength nanowires, no more than three millimeters in diameter, which is inconspicuous.
These nanowire are degradable, so once they're no longer in use, they degrade after some time, making them incredibly convenient.
Not to mention the bat family's grapple gun, it's not easy to use, and Batman has struggled with his at times. After all, the hook needs to latch onto something.
If there's nothing suitable to grab, you're left to rely on the hook to carve a hole in the structure itself, which... isn't exactly the best way, is it?
"Alright, I've explained the basics to you," Dane says. "The rest can be figured out in the field. This suit also comes with Cortana's child AI, so you can learn what it does as you use it. Now, go ahead and put it on."
As soon as Dane finishes speaking, the glass cover opens automatically. The suit collapses into fine sand before it slides across the ground, almost as if it's alive, "crawling" toward Jason.
Jason relaxes his body, stretching naturally, and the suit assembles around him with fluid motion.
Arkham Knight is officially born. Jason clenches his fists and adjusts his joints, feeling the suit move with him—smooth and seamless. It's like he's barely wearing anything at all, and the satisfaction is clear on his face.
"Thank you so much, Mr. Dane," he says, genuinely grateful.
Dane waves his hand, and a door appears next to him.
"Go and announce your return to Gotham."