Gotham's Cancer and the Hope Placed in Another

A cry for help? A request for reinforcements?

Batman did that kind of thing too?

Lynn felt like something was off with his understanding, but when he thought carefully about all those movies where superheroes teamed up to fight monsters...

"Hiss...!"

Lynn realized in surprise that old Master Batman seemed to be best at asking for backup!

Or, to put it in a more proper, official way: forming a team.

Superheroes usually stuck to their own little territories and stayed out of each other's business. Some even clashed ideologically, while others might have longstanding grudges against one another.

Under those circumstances, superheroes were a pile of crap when gathered together and stars scattered across the sky when apart.

Only Mr. Batman could mold them into one group.

Back then, Lynn had thought about why. Was it possible that the only reason superheroes could connect through Batman was because, under those circumstances, they found a common language and a common enemy?

Yeah... Batman.

It was a joke, sure, but all those anti-this armor and anti-that armor in Mr. Batman's warehouse hadn't been put together casually.

That book of his, those notes—every superhero's methods, traits, abilities, and so on were recorded inside. Lynn had even suspected that Batman had secretly dissected Superman.

Otherwise, how could he know so much so clearly?

Now, Lynn was certain that in the few months since he had gotten to know Batman, the old man had probably added several pages about Lynn to his notebook.

Most likely with specific notes about things like dismemberment and burning the body.

"This is rough... He's already like this, and I still have to help him."

Catwoman definitely had no idea how many twists and turns Lynn's thoughts took as he looked at that letter.

No matter what, her task was complete.

"Did Batman give you the letter, or did he specifically ask you to pass this thing on to me?"

That question was rather important.

Catwoman shook her head. "Neither. I was... well... appreciating the artwork in his house when I happened to find this letter.

Would it be more appropriate to call it a suicide note?"

"What the hell?!"

Lynn couldn't stay calm anymore. He first let out a shrill, almost broken cry, then spun around and leaped straight to the stairway.

Don't mess with me. This was Batman!

He had written a suicide note?!

It wasn't fucking Darkseid coming, was it?!

In any case, Lynn couldn't imagine what problem could drive Batman to the point of writing a suicide note.

Huh?

A sudden flash of inspiration struck him, and Lynn turned to Catwoman. "You read the letter?"

"Mm."

"Was the letter written by Batman, or..."

"It was written by someone else."

Oh ho, now this was interesting.

Lynn considered it. Could some old romantic debt have come knocking?

Bruce Wayne in his younger days... no, not even in his younger days. Even now, he kept his belt plenty loose.

If the League of Assassins master's daughter showed up with a child, Lynn had no interest in getting involved in that domestic dispute.

If that really was the case, he thought watching the show would be nice.

But judging by Catwoman's expression, it didn't seem like that.

Shaking his head, Lynn stopped thinking about it. He sat back down by the fire and opened the letter.

There were only two simple sheets of paper.

The first went on and on about the Wayne Family's destiny, some foundation, some empty house...

The second sheet had an owl drawn on it.

"Oh, I get it."

The moment Lynn saw the second sheet, he understood what the cryptic "last words" on the first sheet meant.

No wonder Catwoman had called it a suicide note. In a sense, it really was.

"You understand it?"

"Let's not talk about that yet."

Lynn folded the letter and put it away, then smiled at Catwoman. "Why did you think to hand this over to me? There have been plenty of rumors about me outside lately, right? Aren't you afraid of me?"

"...What rumors? Rumors, my ass..."

"Huh?"

"I know him fairly well. So I know a little about you too. You and him... you're friends.

He... doesn't have anyone he can trust. Two old men, one child, one woman. None of them can really help him.

But you can."

It didn't sound particularly pleasant, but Lynn understood.

"All right, then."

Lynn abruptly stood and headed upstairs.

"Hey! Aren't you going to help him? This letter was written several days ago. He's really gone missing."

"Of course I'm going to help him. Don't I need to change equipment first?"

"What does the letter mean? Who was it written for?"

"Heh, it wasn't for either of us, anyway."

"Hey! Hey—!"

Lynn left. The little cat also jumped from Catwoman's arms and ran upstairs after him.

Not long afterward, Catwoman heard an upstairs window being pushed open. She turned to look outside and saw a fully armed man wrapped in a quilt, holding a cat in his arms, riding atop a huge balloon as he drifted into the distance and quickly vanished into the night.

"He really just left like that? He threw me here?"

Catwoman felt slighted. Just because she couldn't rescue him didn't mean she couldn't help!

And besides, he had just up and left, abandoning her in his house. What kind of behavior was that?

"That really is the way a madman acts."

Catwoman sat back down on the log. She had wanted to wait here, but Lynn's house... if it had water and electricity, she could have stayed.

"Forget it. I'll go back to my own home. As expected, a big house isn't as comfortable as a small one.

This time, you owe me a favor~"

Climbing onto the windowsill, Catwoman jumped out the window and left, likewise disappearing into the night.

Using the door was for ordinary people. Superheroes never took the usual route. In any case, they didn't use doors.

Lynn didn't know much about Gotham. He had only learned of Falcone through some television show.

But he happened to know just a tiny bit about that drawing of an owl.

"The Court of Owls? Or what was it, the Owl's Natural Enemy? I forgot."

In any case, it was an enormous organization. It had entrenched itself in Gotham and was Gotham's true cancer.

The foundation and destiny Batman mentioned in the letter weren't nonsense either. It seemed that the struggle against the owls had begun several generations before the Wayne Family.

Even the deaths of Bruce Wayne's parents had countless connections to this organization.

No wonder old Batman had left behind that "suicide note." He must have believed he had found a way to solve Gotham's evil, as well as the key to ending the Wayne Family's curse and destiny: this owl organization.

"Old Batman really hasn't seen enough of the world... Don't tell me he's placed all that hope or whatever on me?!

No, after I bring him back this time, I need to find a way to broaden his horizons..."

Muttering to himself, Lynn rode the balloon toward downtown Gotham.