Chapter Text
Gotham was founded in 1635. A city that was created at the time to provide homes for people coming from across the seas. It was advertised as a place of hope and new beginnings. A fresh start and a city full of jobs and relations.
It was filled with sunny days and safe streets. Buzzing with life, both old and new. New streets and buildings were built nearly every day to make space for newcomers.
As the city grew from one island to three over time, the people needed a signal. A landmark that let people coming to their city know where they were and where the heart of their beloved land came from.
This led to the creation of Lady Gotham. A statue that stood tall and at the center point of all three islands. Made by the founding families, in which legends say, their very blood is infused.
A blade in one hand. Signaling protection over her land. To show she would protect her people if need be.
Her other hand was reaching out to let a falcon that landed in her palm. Signaling hope and safe land. To show that she welcomed all to a place to land and stay.
A blindfold was wrapped around her eyes. Signaling the signs of equal sight. To show that every person was equal in the eyes of her. There was no such thing as poor or rich, strong or weak. A person was a person to her.
Wings sat on her back. Signaling the appeal of a guardian angel. To show she would go great distances to find and help those who graced her land.
She became the very heart of the city. A beacon of all things good in Gotham. A landmark of peace and prosperity. To most, she stood as a signal of hope and protection.
It is rumored, though, that not everything about Lady Gotham is as it seemed. Some believed that with her also came darkness. That when a beacon is made, shadows always follow. That her heart was not as pure as she was made to be. That the very blood infused with her had been poisoned.
Not long after she was built, things in Gotham began to stir. That the way she faced had affected the very islands she watched over.
Bleake Island, the island on which Lady Gotham stood facing, was the most peaceful. Full of law and order. The island on which the law had been founded and to this day stood.
Though both Migana and Founder’s Island sat at the sides of Lady Gotham, Migana saw her back side the most.
This was the island where order and laws were broken. Lady Gotham, turning her back blindly to them, gave the people there the confidence to break the order. Not having to face her sword and judging look.
Founders Island was a good middle ground. Those who lived closer to Bleake held the same order and law of it. While those closer to Migana were a bit more willing to bend the rules as long as her gaze stayed away.
With this unorderly spew of morals flushed between the islands, Gotham’s once sunny city started to turn dark. Her once safe streets that brought life and hope now brought death and fear.
The city was already in distress. During the year of 1831, Bruce Wayne died. A sleep-induced stroke took their beloved prince at the young age of twenty-eight. Leaving not only the hearts of Gotham to hurt, but also the economy to plummet as the Wayne wealth was instantly devoured by mobs with no heir to take on the Wayne name.
The stories believe that it was due to this death that Lady Gotham had finally stopped turning a blind eye. That the death of one of the founding families. The death of a line that helped bring her life. Had pushed her into action.
Within a year, she sent Gotham a guardian. A soldier who many believed to be a revengeful soul, just as angered and mad to see what had become of his city. Disgusted and ready to follow the commands of Lady Gotham. To cleanse the streets and let Gotham shine the way she had done so in her first years of creation.
When he first arrived, the people did not know what to think of their new guardian. Knew if he was good or evil. A beacon or another shadow trying to swallow their dying city.
As time passed, people started to realize he was a guardian of good. Though his presence and aura screamed of darkness and fear. He only ever targeted those who sought to bring harm to his city. Only ever turned the heads and changed the ways of those doing wrong.
Their guardian, even if dark, was a beacon and blessing. A gift from Lady Gotham. A sign that she was no longer going to stand by and let her city be devoured without a fight. That her Batman was a loyal knight.
Some people did not believe it at first. They knew something was out there trying to make a change, but they thought it was just some crazed idiot trying to get himself killed.
Yet, as years passed and they aged while it did not. As time passed, and instead of slowing and growing weak, it grew faster and stronger. There was no denying anymore that whatever this thing was. It was not human in any form.
As time passed and these signs showed more and more, people wanted to know the origins of their guardian. They knew it was a blessing from Lady Gotham, but where had she found herself such a loyal knight?
Theories and stories were made countless times through the decades. Some stuck longer than others. Some vanished the same day they were made. Though there was one. One that stuck, and as more evidence was brought to the table. It only brought the truth that their theory was not as far fetched as some people wanted it to be.
The theory that stuck was that Batman was the revengeful soul of Thomas Wayne.
It made sense; the Wayne line had ties all the way to the creation of not only Lady Gotham, but the founding of Gotham itself.
That Thomas Wayne had every right to want to seek revenge after his and his wife's murder. Not to mention the orphaning and untimely death of his kin at a young age. Forever ending the Wayne bloodline and having their fortune stolen by the hands of evil.
His soul angered, and given the offer of revenge for his fallen family, he was all too willing to take the oath of Lady Gotham. To condemn his soul to her every command.
The evidence that put this theory into stone was brought together in 1982, during a paranormal investigation on Wayne Manor. During which multiple video evidence inside of the abandoned manor showed the Batman having inhabited within the walls. Scaring away any trespassers that dared come into its halls.
Sure, people argued that most of the footage found was heavily edited, but technology was only so advanced during that period. And the footage was far more advanced than any editing software that existed at the time.
It showed a shadow following the team around at high speeds, claw marks appearing on walls, seconds after they had just panned to the wall being undamaged.
Not to mention the flickering of flashlights and the shaking of the entire manor when they had grown close to the master room. How the shaking grew, the sound of growling was heard when they grew closer to an area.
When a hidden door was opened to reveal a nursery. The team only had seconds of footage before all cameras shattered. Though that frame right before the burst. Right before the footage had died, it showed a giant dark figure, the sound of a deep voice rumbling through the very manor. The voice that the team had sworn was the very cause of their cameras breaking. They did not stay long after that.
In an interview, they had spoken on how right after the footage ended, the door they had found was slammed shut on its own. The voice barked in a growl for them to leave. In the fear-shaken turn of the events, the team could do nothing but listen to the demands of the angered spirit.
It was that very footage, though, that gave hard evidence of Thomas Wayne being the Batman. Showing a damned father trying to protect the innocence of a child that they could only assume was Bruce Wayne.
–
“I believe the spirit to be Bruce Wayne, though.” Jimmy’s voice cut in once the video he had been showing Clark finally came to an end. Allowing the VHS to rewind to the start before it spits out of the TV. Afterwards, he safely tucked it back into its sleeve for safekeeping.
They had used their lunch break to watch this. Clark always loved to hear what crazy theory his friend had been sucked into this time. Loving to hear him ramble on about things and, from what Clark had discovered, Jimmy was never far off about them. Not that he could ever say that, since those discoveries were all made in his hidden second life. One in which his best friend still had no clue about.
Normally, Jimmy was set on agreeing with a theory. Yet, this one he was not. It made Clark curious, since in his mind, and after all the documentary had said, he believed the theory they had. That Thomas Wayne was very clearly the spirit. “Really? I think I agree with the documentary.” Clark pointed out, curious though, about what his cryptid obsessed friend had to say about it.
“Of course you would, Clark. Of course you would.” Jimmy simply sighed while shaking his head in disappointment at his friend's very clear ignorance.
“Inform me then, Jimmy. What is your theory?” Clark instead pushed with a slight chuckle and smile, happily enjoying the conversation while he dug into some of his Ma’s homemade apple pie that he had picked up this morning on his commute to work.
Sure, Kansas was way out of the way from the two-block walk he had from his apartment to the Daily Planet, but superspeed and flight made it all about the same. Worth it for a slice of his Ma’s homemade cooking any day.
“It’s so obvious that Bruce Wayne would be Batman. He has more of a reason to be vengeful and angered.” Jimmy explained to his friend as he moved over to his briefcase to pull out documents he had. It was honestly impressive what he had. Photos of a dark figure, even if blurred, in high-quality shots. Real newspaper articles that date back all the way to the 1830s, when Batman first appeared.
The one placed in front of Clark, though, was an article dated all the way back to 1810, the headline reading ‘Martha and Thomas Wayne Murdered. Millionaires’ Son Left Orphaned at Age Eight from Petty Burglary.’ How Jimmy got his hands on such old papers surprised him, but also left him impressed. Especially when he was able to pull out police reports dated back to that same night. Should he be concerned about how his friend had these? Probably.
“In the police report, it states that Thomas Wayne was the first shot. Died right on impact. Not exactly enough time to gain vengeance for his murdered wife and orphaned son.” Jim explained to his friend matter-of-factly. “Bruce, on the other hand, witnessed it all. Not only did he watch both of his parents die right in front of him, but Martha hadn’t died right on impact. He was left sitting there while his mother slowly died in front of him.” He explained to his friend, and Clark honestly felt horrible learning this. Unable to help but feel bad for Bruce.
Sure, his own biological parents died, but he did not, for say, watch their death. He was too young at the time to even understand what had been happening. Not having even known about it till years later, when he was a teen. This was so much more painful. “That’s horrible.” He sighed.
“Exactly! Horrible enough to make a boy grow up wanting revenge! That when he finally died and was given that chance, he took it.” Jimmy slammed down two more articles. One dating to 1830 speaking over the death of Bruce Wayne, and the other a little over a year later speaking of the appearance of Batman.
He could not lie. It was very convincing and did make sense, but a part of the story from the documentary made him question it while looking at some of the other articles Jimmy had in the pile. “Okay, but what about the nursery? Why would Bruce care to protect a nursery?” Clark questioned his friend, since from what he sped read, Bruce did not really care to have children of his own.
If anything, articles spoke on how Bruce Wayne was nothing more than a party boy. Not wanting to ever settle down. Just wanting to live a life of going from one girl to the next. Not exactly someone who screamed he cared to have children or a desire to guard such a sacred place within his home, like the footage had shown.
“I’m still trying to figure that part out, but I know I’m right,” Jimmy explained to him, smiling even as he slammed two bus tickets onto the table after. “And that’s why my dear ole friend, we’re going to Gotham City this weekend!”
It surprised Clark when he saw the two tickets and heard his friend, happy that choking for him was near impossible due to not needing to breathe as he swallowed the best he could, the pie wanting to get stuck in his throat. Able to pass it without any issue. Thank you, kryptonian DNA.
He was meant to visit Ma and Pa this weekend. Not that he could tell Jimmy that, since for any person, visiting another state that far for just a weekend had you spending most of your time traveling more than you would actually have time seeing the people you wanted. It was simply a waste of time and money at that point.
So that meant either telling Jimmy he was Superman or having to cancel his visit with Ma and Pa. Most likely the latter option. Which sucked, since he was really looking forward to that meatloaf Ma had been talking about making for him.
“That’s great, Jimmy.” He simply smiled instead, already mourning his loss of Ma’s homemade meatloaf. Maybe he could still reschedule for next weekend? He was sure Ma would not be too upset. He could even get her a bouquet of those tropical flowers he got her one time as a little apology.
“Then it’s settled. Jimmy Olsen and Clark Kent make their debate in Gotham City! On the hunt for Batman and his TRUE origin!” Jimmy shouted with a daring grin on his face, which was quickly shot down when Perry walked in.
“That better be for this weekend, because right now, Jimmy Olseon and Clark Kent’s breaks end in two minutes.” Perry huffed at the other, rolling his eyes when Clark simply tensed, and Jimmy saluted him with a ‘yes, sir’. “And you still better get me an article before this week's end, Kent.” He added on with a demanding glare, sighing when the boy tensed up again.
“Of course, Sir.” Clark smiled at the other, freaking out a little about that, since, in all honesty, he still had to even figure out what it was he even wanted to write about. Sure, he could do his usual, completely legit, interview with Superman, but his past five articles were about Superman. He needed a change.