[Integrated/Crossover DC/Marvel] Why Did the World End Again? - Chapter 14

Chapter 14: The Secret of the Bat

“So he left Gotham?”

Alice fell silent. Honestly, she couldn’t imagine it. If she were in his position, what would she do? To watch the pursuit of one’s entire life crumble so easily…

Clark only shook his head upon hearing this. No one believed in Bruce more than he did. He knew his dearest friend could never truly give up. No matter what frost or hardship awaited him, the Bat never retreated.

Just like the young Bruce who vowed to climb that mountain. Even when his hands were worn to raw flesh, he remained obsessed with scaling the legend that everyone said could not be conquered.

He had ignited the brightest fire deep within his soul and walked into the world’s darkest forbidden zones to become a miracle. So how could he give up?

The Bat never gives up.

“He wouldn’t leave. He could never abandon this land…”

Hearing the words from Superman’s mouth, Lisol Wayne only lowered her head.

Since then, Batman had vanished. Some said he couldn’t accept the reality and left Gotham forever. Red Robin didn’t believe it, so he packed his bags and traveled to distant lands, searching for the final trace of the Bat.

Red Hood also left this place of sorrow forever; it was said he headed to an unknown small town to spend the rest of his days. In the end, this place that was once full of laughter and voices was left with only Lisol Wayne. She became the final spark of the Waynes.

Clark’s eyes remained fixed on her.

“You’ve worked hard.”

At those words, Lisol Wayne smiled. She seemed to be trying very hard to control the upward curve of her lips, but eventually, she just covered her face.

“He’s getting closer and closer to me…”

Hearing such a cryptic sentence, Alice pricked up her ears.

“What? Who?”

“As soon as I close my eyes, I can hear his laughter. He is everywhere…”

Seeing her strange state, Clark immediately sensed something was wrong. He quickly shielded Alice behind him. The horror of the Joker Virus was more severe than he had imagined.

“Lisol, stay calm. Don’t forget everything B taught you. Don’t forget why you became a hero.”

Superman’s words were like a 3D loop, circling around Lisol Wayne’s ears. Countless images flashed through her mind: Alfred’s death, the next Christmas Dick had promised, Tim leaving home and disappearing without a word…

“Why? Why? WHY!!!”

She clutched her head, kneeling on the ground and screaming manically. The piercing sound didn’t frighten Alice; she only felt an inexplicable sense of desolation. Does “fate” really exist in this world? If there are gods, why let heroes walk toward such an end? Perhaps all of this was just some dark, inexplicable game system.

But in this moment, Alice felt utterly sorrowful. Perhaps in her world, the superheroes continued to protect the earth and everyone lived happily. But if one day all of this collapsed like a torrential downpour, where would they go? What kind of end would they face?

A small light suddenly rose in Alice’s heart. If she treated all of this as a “game” or a “mission,” could they help these people achieve the best possible ending?

Just like the games she used to play—no matter how difficult, there was always a “Happy Ending.” It might be extremely hard to get, but if possible, could she do it? Could she give everyone a good ending?

Clark pulled Lisol Wayne up. Her state was very poor; he had to find a way to stabilize her first.

“We need to go to Wayne…”

“Fine.”

The moment Superman pulled her up, Lisol seemed like a different person. She looked remarkably calm, as if the woman who was just screaming had nothing to do with her. This sudden shift startled Alice and Clark, but they said nothing.

Because there was a more important task ahead.

Clark had to go to Wayne Manor. He needed the equipment in the Batcave and needed to see what Batman had left behind. Batman always had a “Plan B” this was a fact known to everyone in the Justice League. Therefore, regarding Batman’s disappearance and Gotham’s chaos, Batman must have had a contingency plan. They needed to find it.

Alice nodded. Although she didn’t quite understand why they were going to Wayne Manor, she believed Superman was far more reliable than she was. As for Lisol’s unstable mental state and the difficulty in communicating, Alice had a thought she couldn’t quite voice. Strictly speaking, it wasn’t exactly “important,” but since the city had no superheroes and the government was run by ordinary people…

Then why was the Bat-Signal being lit to provoke Batman? If, according to Lisol, the Joker’s personality died in that accident, what was the meaning of the signal now?

Alice understood the “sick humor” of rivals, but honestly, if the act was meant as an insult, it also served to elevate the opponent to a different height. It’s well known that in any war, the winner takes all. The victor could have easily claimed Batman’s deeds as their own or spent their energy blackmailing him.

Alice smelled something different. She even had another thought: was it possible the opponent did this because they wanted more people to remember Batman?

But as soon as the thought appeared, Alice crushed it. She felt the idea was a bit too strange and shook her head.

Thinking of this, Alice felt a rare surge of nervousness. After all, this was only her second time in this game. If she failed, what would happen? Would she die, or would there be a chance to restart? Everything was an unknown. Moreover, Alice didn’t understand the “victory condition.”

In the last round, she had been pulled out for no apparent reason without having done much. What could she do in this round? What was the meaning of her existence? Was she just a useless transfer station?

New questions appeared one after another, giving Alice a headache. Soon, they arrived at Wayne Manor. Seeing the full scale of the estate, Alice was stunned. In the real world, she had heard stories about the “richest man,” but seeing such a massive manor, she couldn’t help but marvel at how much money that actually meant. However, it was clear the place had been abandoned for a long time, overgrown with weeds.

The gates were somewhat rusted, and they entered easily. As Clark approached the manor buildings, he felt a sense of melancholy. He never imagined a day when Wayne Manor would look like this.

Once inside, Alice wanted to marvel again it was beautiful, truly beautiful.

But then she remembered Lisol’s pink electric scooter in the game. For a moment, she was lost in thought; the development team really was “loyal” to that scooter. That being said, they soon arrived at Batman’s secret base. Lisol Wayne opened the Batcave with a fingerprint scan. Alice stood behind them, her face a giant question mark.

She looked back and forth between the two. She realized she had overlooked a most serious problem: throughout the entire story, no one had mentioned Batman’s secret identity. But when she saw Batman’s base was actually under the basement of Wayne Manor, and the daughter of the richest man was Batman’s assistant, then rounding it up…

Alice understood. The rumors online were true! Batman really was Bruce Wayne’s “roommate and lover”!

Thinking this way, Alice felt everything became logical. Batman was gone, and the richest man was missing. Why? Alice unlocked a second possibility: the two of them had eloped to leave Gotham forever and live a happy life. Thinking of this, Alice was almost moved.

“Bat-Bru is real.”

Most of the items in the Batcave were covered in dust, proving that Lisol’s words were true: Batman had indeed left this place. Clark turned on the long-dormant Batcomputer.

Folders were neatly arranged. Faced with numerous passwords, Clark didn’t look nervous at all. Alice watched him press many buttons followed by a mountain of text she couldn’t understand. Lisol and Alice could only watch as Superman operated. Soon, he seemed to find what he wanted and finished the decryption. When the contents inside were unlocked, Superman fell into a profound silence.

The story had moved toward the ending he hated most.

Batman indeed never gave up. He wouldn’t give up what he loved or what he stood for. He had never left this land. Lisol Wayne had lied to them or perhaps she had forgotten so much herself.

Thinking of this, Superman said nothing. He walked straight toward his intended destination. Alice didn’t know what was happening and could only follow. Lisol Wayne stood there numbly; she didn’t want to go over, or perhaps she was lying to herself.

Wayne Manor was truly huge, even larger than Alice had imagined. She didn’t know what Superman was doing and could only follow behind him, watching as he headed straight for one specific place. She wanted to say something, but then she covered her mouth. Because she saw the destination of this walk. She saw it… Alice finally saw it all.

In front of them was a dense field of graves.

Batman had never abandoned this city, nor had he ever chosen to run away. It was simply that he was already gone.

“Everyone is dead…”

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