//------------------------------// // Chapter 29 // Story: I Just Walk Away // by madhat886 //------------------------------// In the same alleyway where he lost his parents, so many years ago. Batman stood facing a man who call himself Butcher who showed up out of nowhere. He always wore a full face gasmask to hide his identity, along with a dark green hooded military trench coat and matching pants, gloves and combat boots. Butcher has been going around Gotham killing off villains, starting off with the Joker. Now after weeks of tracking him, Batman finally corners him in the very alleyway where he was born. "Really now are you really that upset that, I have been killing off people who no matter what they keep on killing people?" Butcher ask Batman. "I don't kill," Batman said. "I went and killed the Madhatter on live tv and the girls he kidnapped thank me after, I killed him. Even giving them all the choice of letting him live or die. And they all said to do it. People are just fed up in the fact that the villains have more rights in allowing them to continue on in what they do," Butcher said. "I do things by the book, never taking justice in my own hands," Batman said. "That's all nice with normal people you throw in jail. But the Joker kept on killing just because he knows no matter what he'll never be put to death because of laws of this state. How many people have you murdered by always saving him when all you had to do was not always save the villain?" Butcher asked. "Oh wait you did keep count." "I did," Batman said. "You know with how much the police and you heroes have put in trying to catch me. It's really telling how much you people care about bringing me to justice when if a villain was doing it to civilians none of the manpower would have been used. This world puts more value on the people who break the laws and harm others then the people they're suppose to protect," Butcher said. "There are lines we can't cross," Batman said. "You need the villains don't you? You need to be able to beat up people and let out the rage inside of you. You need Gotham to remain as it is, just so you be able to do what you do. If you really wanted to stamp out crime, you would had given the cops a fleet of Batmobiles and the equipments that you have. No you need crime because of your self-righteous sadism streak you have," Butcher said. "It's not like that," Batman said. "Yes the problem is deeper then that. Arkham Asylum is a derelict piece of property renovated by the rich "gatekeepers" as a place to treat the mentally ill as prisoners rather than patients. The reason why there is a massive amount of wealthy families still living in Gotham despite the city being overrun with crime and poverty is because of the big real-estate scam going on. Rich developers like Pierce Chapman buy up marked-down properties from the city in areas where Batman fights crime, then quickly flip them for profit rather than demolish them and construct something new. Pierce also mentions being an investor in Arkham Asylum, bringing the problem full-circle," Butcher said. "But of course you only focus on the villains and not the ones who keep things as they are." The Butcher steps aside to reveal a man far down the alleyway looking around the corner of the alleyway looking at something. "Down there is a man who is about to mug at gunpoint," Butcher said as he pulls out a meat clever from his coat. "I can give myself up after I kill him to stop him or you stop me which ends up with us fighting." Batman didn't answer as he throws a batarang at Butcher hand knocking the clever out of his hand. Batman was about to throw another at the man down the alleyway when Butcher activated a device in his other hand. A forcefield of somekind appeared down the alleyway where the mugger was cutting off that part of the alley off. It looked like a tv screen thanks to the red forcefield in place. "I just lock down the portal so that nothing can enter it," Butcher said as he held up the portal device in his hand. "I have been using portals to go around and leaving you all trying to figure out how I keep evading all of you." "Portal?" Batman ask looking down the alleyway as he uses his bat version to have a closer look at the man on the other side of the portal. His eyes widen as he made out the face of the man. "No." "Yes that's right," Butcher said as he pointed to the camera drone that's been broadcasting everything live. "The portal is also a time one and right there is the man who killed your parents in front of you so many years ago and made you into what you are today. And you who so firmly believe in never killing that you prevented me from saving your own parents from being killed. They be so proud of you never allowing any villain to be killed even the one who killed them." The mugger darted around the corner and the sounds that played out in Batman's mind since that night were played out again. "You always blame yourself for their deaths because you wanted to leave early. Well you are to blame, just not the kid version of you that is," Butcher said leaving the broken man behind as he steps into a portal. ! At Moe's Tavern, Rick's HUB - "And that's how I broke Batman in the worse way ever," Butcher said as he sat at the table where Twilight and the others were sitting as they been listening to former villains stories. He had joined in after hearing the tale of the White Knight Joker who was more of a prankest then the monster clown he is in other universes. The entire tavern was quite as they had all listen to Butcher's tale. Of how one man got to the Batman of one universe in the worse way any of them had ever heard before. "Alright, I'm a devil but that's just going too far," a Rick said who was sitting at the bar section. "Tell me about it. I save that for punishments not when they're still alive," Satan said sitting next to him.