Chương 37: Futurestate vs Gotham Knights
Batman hid behind a pillar in the darkness. Several shots collided with it, breaking off pieces of cement with each blow.
"Come on out, Bats. We promise that we'll go easy on you."
"Yeah. The boss wants you back alive. Just hold still so we don't have to rough you up too bad."
Batman held his hand over the gunshot wound in his gut as he took several deep breaths. In his free hand, he had 3 batarangs out and ready to take out their targets.
'3. 2. Go!'
Batman rushed out from behind the pillar to see the three men that were chasing him had been downed. Batgirl was standing over them, looking down at their bodies with a grim expression.
Seeing his savior, Batman didn't feel relieved. Instead, he ignored Barbara as he walked past her.
"Don't ignore me, Batman. I just saved your life. You could at least say thanks."
Batman turned to look at her. Or the cybermodem that was showing on her arm.
"You have his tech. You are one of them now."
"Don't be that way, Batman. This tech is spreading. If we don't keep up with it, we will be left behind. The same reason why some random goons have you in as bad a position as Deadshot is able to put you in.
It's also the same reason I was able to take them all down as well. These Neuralware Processors turn us partially into computers. That means we can hack them and shut them down without ever raising a fist as long as their software is weak enough."
"And what if you're weaker than them? What if they are able to hack you?!?!" Bruce questioned her but Barbara didn't back down
"Then the same thing that would happen if someone hacks the Batcomputer. Or the Justice League's files. Or any other private network," Barbara argued back. "Batman. This is not about right or wrong anymore. He won that battle. The entire game has changed. You need to keep up with it."
Barbara pulled out her grappling hook and shot it into the distance.
"Wait!"
But just like how she started her career as Batgirl and everything she did afterward, Barbara didn't need his permission or take commands from him. Within a moment, she was gone.
Batman was left standing alone. Both his body and pride were wounded.
'Could I be wrong? Am I wrong?'
But he shook his head. Batman had been in the game for too long. He knew that if he questioned his resolve there, it would mean that he would question everything he had done so far.
About the Joker. About his code. About his mission.
And he couldn't afford to question those things for they made him Batman.
So Bruce did what Bruce does best: he shoved down those thoughts and repressed them before calling the Batmobile and returning to the Batcave.
As he was driving through Gotham, Batman looked out the window as he saw all the changes the city had gone through. Due to the Edgerunners' main base being located in Gotham Harbor, there was a huge influx of residents and tourists, each wanting to be part of Jason's world.
And with the influx of residents and the new technology they were given, the already high crime rate in Gotham increased even further. The city was pretty much a warzone all the time. Yet it did not seem to deter anyone. More and more people poured in.
And as much as he hated to admit it, Bruce had lost the initial war. He and the GCPD were only able to keep control of the New Gotham district. Each of the other 4 major districts in Gotham had been taken over by either criminals or the Edgerunners.
Both were the same in Bruce's eyes.
Bruce pulled into the Batcave to see that the others were already there. He got out the car and walked over to the Batcomputer where the others had gathered.
Due to the increase in chaos, there were also many that wanted to bring order. And so several new heroes rose up and joined the Batfamily ranks.
Nightwing had returned to the family and took on the name Batwing. As much as he wanted to be a part of The Team, he knew he was needed in Gotham more. Tim was also still a member of the family and continued with the mantle of Robin.
Besides them, Batman's cousin Kate took up the role of Batwoman, Huntress returned and decided to help her former lover Nightwing, and the last member of their group was Harper Row who took up the name Bluebird. She was the second youngest of the group, being only 14 years old but Batman saw the desire to fight for what was right in her and brought her into his cause.
Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce's trusted butler, oldest friend, and the last line of defense for the Batcave, walked over to Batman when he saw how injured the man was. He pulled him over to the infirmary and forced the man onto the bed.
"My goodness, Master Bruce. Who did you fight, that Grundy fellow?"
Bruce grunted as Alfred easily removed the bullet from him.
"No. Some thugs going after a bounty on me."
Bruce grunted again when Alfred pressed a rag soaked in rubbing alcohol into his wound.
"Sarcasm, Master Bruce. Last I check, that big fellow doesn't use guns. Especially ones with such small caliber."
Once he was done cleaning up Bruce's wound, Alfred bandaged them before pointing to a set of crutches and a wheelchair.
"Which one do you prefer?"
"Neither, Alfred. I need to..."
"You NEED to choose or I will drug all of your food and keep you in bed for at least 3 weeks as a normal person should after getting shot. So it is your choice. Either of those for 3 days or 3 weeks of bed rest."
When Bruce returned to the main room in the Batcave, he was being pushed in by Alfred as he sat in the wheelchair.
"What happened to you?" Dick asked
"Thugs, Master Dick. Thugs with 9mm handguns."
"Shi..." Harper started but a glare from Alfred made the teen stop before she said the final letter. "I meant to ask how you got away with that injury."
"That is better, Miss Harper. From his scowl, he most like had help from Batgirl."
Bruce grunted at Alfred but the Butler ignored him.
"So what did you call us here for, Alfred?" Kate asked
Alfred nodded before he walked over to the cases that had all of Batman and Batwing's old suits in them. The floor beneath the suits opened and the suits were slowly lowered into them before new suits emerged from the holes.
What emerged were new versions of each of the heroes' costumes. They looked very similar but the material seemed different. Almost as if it was a hybrid of metal and fabric. They each had a helmet/mask that came with them that resembled a knight's helmet.
"These are your new suits. I was hoping they would arrive before the next one of you got shot but too little we can do about that now. These are made with more than just common fabric and can take a few shots from a rifle so smaller arms are less of a worry for you. This city is in need of saving. It no longer needs a Batfamily. Instead, what it needs are knights," Alfred said in the most British way possible
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