Chapter Text
Men are creatures of such great contrast. We believe ourselves to be oh so great, above Earth's other creatures and living beings. We are able to shape the land to fit our interests and needs and build great cities from nothingness and yet we are so insignificant, nothing but dust at the mercy of the winds of fate and whims of nature.
No man or woman can predict or tell when disaster or tragedy will strike nor can they prevent it. We can mitigate, we can even delay but we cannot escape or avoid it, not forever. And when disaster and tragedy strike... they never do so alone. They are always accompanied by sorrow, suffering, grief, struggle and pain.
Yet it is in those moments when The Storm has come and go when Humanity's best aspects reveal themselves in their purest forms. Some men and women lend a helping hand to those suffering and in need of help, giving their bodies, their possessions, their souls, their minds and even their very lives in the service of others.
Alas, just as disaster and tragedy bring forth the best of humanity. They also bring forth the worst of humanity, some see in the suffering of others an opportunity to wash off a stain. Something they have wished it would just disappear for good, leaving no trace it even existed. They have no need to stain their hands with the blood of the innocent. Sometimes silence is louder than a thousand storms. Sometimes doing nothing can spill more blood than a legion of armed soldiers.
What is any man or woman to do when the world has decided they, their families, their friends, their homes; everything you have ever known, everything you have ever loved should just vanished and be forgotten, wisked away by the merciless hands of time?
Most would have fallen to their knees and wept in dispair at the horrible fate that befell them, in heartbreaking acceptance and resignation, waiting for the end. But what of those who refuse to let history follow their natural course? What of those who rise despite the adversity? of those who rise because of the adversity? of those brave and strong enough to save that the world would rather see destory? who stand alone aginst the world with no fear only resolve?
This is the story of one such a man who would not let the city he loved with every fiber of his being, mind and soul be destroyed and forgotten. The Man who gave a dispairing people hope, a man who stood between the world and his homeland, a man who would transform a broken and ruined city into a small but powerful kingdom no one would dare to bring harm to.
This is the story of King Batman I, Night is Chosen One, Master of Shadows, Lord of Vengeance, Savior of The Innocent, Bringer of The Dark Light, The Redeemer of Lost Souls, The One Who Knows All Secrets, Protector Of All, Father Of All, Founder and First King of The Dark Kingdom of Gotham.
Extract of The Chronicles of Gotham by William Ashford
First Book. First Chapter. Page 1-3
The original book can be found in Gotham's royal library. Copies are sold in every bookstore in Gotham.
It is an obligatory lecture in every school in Gotham.
The whole series is an obligatory read in Gotham University of History