February 23, 1987, Chicago, night.
At the Chicago Theater, Miss Tina, who had finished the gorgeous and lively dance, gently touched her fur shawl. 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 young lady's waist, and Tina said: "Our dance has just begun, right? Mr. Bruce?"
The moonlight outside the window came in, and those beautiful blue eyes were shrouded in the shadow of the eyebrows. Tina was fascinated by the handsome profile. The man turned around, and it was Bruce Wayne.
On an ordinary afternoon on February 20, 1987, Schiller woke up in bed at the Falcone Manor. He did not forget that before traveling to Marvel, he rested in the guest room of the Godfather Manor.
Mornings in Gotham are never sunny, but early mornings always bring special inspiration to Schiller. When enjoying breakfast with the Falcone father and son, the professor once again got some inspiration and quickly perfected it in his mind.
.
"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 is hopeless, but now I want to say that this city does not need anyone to save it. He is
This will continue 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 impassioned it starts, it will end up in nothingness."
"why is that?"
"You asked the key, but I don't know the answer."
The godfather lit a cigar, and the smoke slowly dispersed. He said: "In the past 40 years, I have not seen staunch revolutionaries, nor have I seen saviors with moral realms as saints. There are so many in this world.
Many people, including one or two good people or heroes, are 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 really the case, 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 personally that I know that good people cannot save Gotham, and neither can heroes."
"So now, where have these people gone?"
"Most of them are dead and managed to escape from here. Those who do not belong to Gotham will eventually leave Gotham. If there are any left, they must be people who originally belonged to Gotham."
"Is there such a person? Where is he?"
The godfather seemed to be lost in memories. 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 clear answer, but Schiller already knew who he was referring to.
The next day, Bruce was called into the office by Schiller. Schiller almost never took the initiative to call him over, so Bruce was curious about what happened to Schiller.
They sat down on opposite sides of the desk, just as they had for the first time, and Schiller asked him:
"Did you ever think for a second that you wanted to completely save this city?"
"Of course I..."
"I mean, after you have a clear understanding of the nature of this city."
Bruce opened his mouth, and Schiller took off his glasses. He looked directly at Bruce and said, "I think you should have seen that this city does not need to be saved, and it cannot be saved at all."
"So, are you trying to persuade me not to do this again? Not to be Batman again?"
"Of course not, I don't care if you are Batman or not, I just want to know do you really want to save Gotham?"
"What's the difference between the two?"
"Are you sure you became Batman to save Gotham?"
Bruce was silent.
"Let me change the question. If there is a possibility to bring a new order to Gotham, would you be willing to make some efforts for it?"
"Although I have this 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 save?"
"Falcone once told me that there were many people who worked hard to save this city, but they all failed. Most of them are buried here, but some people stayed, integrated here, and became
Be part of Gotham."
"who is he?"
"The only priest in Gotham Cathedral, I think you can go meet him and then come back and give me the answer."
Bruce shook his head. He felt that Schiller was a little confused.
But he is actually also very interested in the past stories of Gotham. This city has too many mysteries for him to explore.
At first his purpose was simple, he wanted to avenge 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
This city doesn't need to be saved.
But now, he has learned Gotham again, and he finds that this city seems to be impossible to save.
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 very few ordinary people in Gotham who could live to such an old age.
No one in Gotham teaches children to help old people cross the street, because there is no one to teach children and there are no 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 is 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, "If the Lord does not give 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 pretty 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,
There aren’t many people either.”
"At that time, there were still some ordinary people here who had dreams. They wanted to establish order here and grow with the 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 of coming 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 sell 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 Gotham.
In this city ruled by gangsters, you can eat randomly, but you can't talk randomly.
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 knows, the only one who really has this ability is Falcone. If anyone else dares to brag like this, first
His body will be thrown into the sea the next day.
But the old priest seemed to be talking about 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 they could survive 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 make people's hearts calm. 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, I spend almost every afternoon like this."
"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 twelve 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 thought. 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."
"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 this place."
"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. Even though it is a violent order, it is 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 ruled the city, it began to become a real crime capital. Spreading out from the twelve gangs, it was 120
One gangster, 1,200 gangsters, 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 live a good life."
The priest said: "You don't understand. Not only have I witnessed how sin has infected this city little by little, but I have also been deeply involved in it."
He crossed himself on his chest, prayed a few words in a low voice, 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 is 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 heard these historical stories about his hometown, Bruce couldn'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 he thought it was 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 particles in a leisurely manner, just like a patient fisherman making his bait.
Bruce, who had 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. The goal of revenge against criminals that he once had may never be completed, and Gotham will never be completely saved, because the salt shaker above Gotham will never be empty.
The salt grains are crystal clear and flow with the wind, just like the fine lines of rain that never stop in Gotham City.
But this did not make Batman feel defeated, but gave him an ambition earlier.
Batman has no desire to keep flying around these salt particles that are scattered like charity, like a stupid fish circling around the bait, hoping that the water will wash out some residue to fill its stomach.
What he wants to do is to crush the salt shaker directly, or, in other words, just like what he once did to Louis - appear like a bat behind him, letting a shadow cover the smug person holding the salt shaker.
Man, let him tremble with fear of bats.
Then, get this salt shaker and all the salt grains in it.
If this world is destined to have a salt shaker for all criminals, then this salt shaker had better belong to Batman.
It must also belong to Batman.
This chapter has been completed!