Part 3

Mark stood there lifeless covered in burns, cuts, and blood. Mark's suit had been completely destroyed in the explosion. His cowl had been half destroyed on his face. It looked as if Gotham's last hope had fallen. Jeff had also been on the ground, his suit had almost been completely destroyed as well only he had more blood and scars covered on him than Mark did. Just then, a mysterious shadow had been hovering over Mark and Jeff's bodies, this shadow had been Bane. The brute picked up both their bodies and handed them to his men, telling them to throw them in the River. They threw both bodies into the River, thinking they would never come back. The bodies had floated up the stream until there were two different directions to go, both bodies separated with Mark going down the right stream and Jeff on the left stream, eventually Mark reached a waterfall that was coincidentally behind Wayne Manor. Mark floated under the waterfall and into a cave, to which he was swept up to land. Mark lay there for what looked to be hours until a strange shadow appeared over Mark, the shadow had gone closer and closer toward him.

Mark had now been in what looked to be an infirmary. He'd been covered head to toe in bandages all throughout his stomach, chest, arms, and legs. He'd been unconscious for quite a while, eventually waking up in shock. Mark looked around and saw his bandages, he tried to remember what had happened to him, until he remembered getting shot by Bane and falling off the building. Mark looked at where the wounds were and found that he had 4 pads over his chest indicating that he was shot. Mark tried to get up, but he had been weak since he woke up. When he attempted to move off the bed, a familiar voice entered the room. "No grandson of mine is going to be leaving anywhere until he is fully healed." Mark was in shock when he realized who that was, none other than Alfred.

Bane's crew had been taking crates out of a warehouse for an unknown reason. Bane looked at a crate and read the words on the front, Pena Duro Penitentiary. From reading those simple words he began to have his memories come back to him. He remembered a muscular man doing pushups in a cell while reading war and peace at the same time. The man continued to do push-ups until a number of guards told him that he was being summoned, they cuffed him and moved him through the cell room. Eventually, the guards took him to what looked to be a lab with an audience, there have been scientists and military forces in the audience watching. The guards uncuffed the man and strapped him to a testing table, they proceeded to stick many tubes throughout his body. The scientist next to the man was about to pull a lever, before he did the scientist told the audience that this will be the future of war and proceeded to pull the lever. The man began to scream in pain as the tubes began to pump a green clear liquid into his system. As the man had been screaming, his muscles began to exponentially grow a massive size, which broke the straps he used to be restrained in. The man proceeded to destroy the lab and kill almost everybody inside, he even went to the audience and killed everybody there as well. The man let all the prisoners out of their cells and told them that he has found a way to give power and that they are free if they assist him with his goal. The man then agreed that he needed a name to strike fear if he were to take Gotham, he then remembered what the guard used to call him, "A Bane of existence." Bane smashed the box with his fist and took out small green canisters, smiling at them underneath his mask as he read the label of the canister. "Venom."

Mark was confused, he had thought Alfred left Gotham since he was nowhere to be seen. Mark asked Alfred where he was, and Alfred responded by saying that he was doing some errands. Mark told Alfred he knows Bruce was Batman and that he is sorry he did all this without his permission. Instead of getting mad, Alfred smiles and says not to come down there again since he is sorry. This of course makes Mark confused. He then asks what he meant by Mark being sorry. Alfred then smiled again, he then proceeded to tell Mark a story. "One often apologizes when they are afraid, clearly the Batcave is too much for you to handle," Alfred said. Mark agrees with Alfred until he thinks back to Bruce saying that he was never afraid. "Oh, Bruce was afraid. Every time he wore that mask he knew he would risk his identity, his family, and his own life." Mark then asked why he did it, even though those things are the most important parts of a human being. "Because he knew every time he wore that mask that he would be making a difference. He would give them hope to look up to when there is none to begin with, much like the night he saved you." Mark then remembered the night his father was paralyzed, now realizing that Bruce had saved him that night. "When Bruce was 8 years old, he lost his parents right in front of him. That day in his life transformed his view on society and made him into the man he became from then on." Mark realized why Bruce saved him all those years ago, not because he was a citizen in trouble, but because he almost lost his parent as he did. Mark looked back on the night his Dad lost his legs and he left Gotham, only for Bruce to leave. Mark then began to cry at the thought of all of this. "You and Bruce's story may not have started well, but it is the rest of your story that makes you who you are today." Mark then looked back at the moment he first arrived in Gotham again after years, meeting brother eye, meeting Jeff, becoming Batman, fighting Deadshot, taking down drug dealings, being called a hero by the news, losing to Deathstroke, reconciling with the fact that he is afraid, defeating Deathstroke, and hugging his father after the news of him staying in Gotham for good. Mark got up on his legs and clenched his fist, "Tell me, who are you?" Mark made an angry face. "I AM VENGEANCE! I AM THE NIGHT! I AM THE LIGHT THAT SHINES ON GOTHAM AFTER IT HAS BEEN COVERED IN DARKNESS! I AM BATMAN!" Alfred smiles, knowing that a new Batman has risen from Bruce's ashes he left behind.

Jeff wakes up in the stream, he is extremely damaged and almost dead, looking around and wondering where he was until he saw a sign, 'Freeland', making him freak out that he wasn't in Gotham. Jeff thought that he had to get back to Gotham his own way since he presumed Mark was unconscious or even dead, but first he needed a way to heal himself since he could barely walk. Jeff had no ideas at first, until he realized one gadget Mark told him about. He proceeded to press a button and became unconscious. Jeff woke up and realized he was in the Batcave, he noticed Alfred and wondered who he was and what he was doing there. Alfred explained the entire situation and Jeff did the same, telling Alfred that he was rescued by Superman. Jeff then asked where Mark is and if he was dead, Alfred told Jeff that he was alive and that he is training. Mark was doing pushups, pulling a tire with a rope, lifting weights, fighting a manikin, and getting ready for Bane while reminding himself that Batman isn't dead.

Bane was on his desk with one of his crew members behind a camera in front of him, he had thought more about his life and what led him to this moment, remembering that it all started with a break.

3 Years Ago

Commissioner Gordon stands next to a spotlight with a Bat logo on the front of it, he waits for something to happen. As Gordon waits, Batman stands behind him and waits for himself until he mutters. "I'm here." Gordon turns around in surprise and then laughs, he acknowledges that he should have expected that. Gordon gives Batman details about an escaped convict who was sentenced to life in prison as a baby. This was done because the corrupt courts wanted him to carry out his father's life sentence since he died. The convict was in prison near Mexico, but he had recently escaped after years in captivity. Coincidently he was recently seen in Gotham on a security Camera near a harbor. Batman said he would check it out, without reading the files on this man. Batman grappled down in the harbor and looked around for anything suspicious, only to hear noises in the nearby warehouse. As Batman walked in he heard laughing inside, coming from someone behind the boxes. Batman looked around until he realized that the man was behind him ready to kill. Batman had the upper hand at first and was completely beating him, even going as far as to restrain him. Just when Batman had thought that he had completed his mission, the criminal's muscles began to exponentially grow and grow, breaking the restraints he had that were made of metal. Batman attempted to fight him, but to no avail, the criminal completely crushed Batman in combat and beat him down extremely badly. Batman had been so weak that he couldn't even stand anymore, the criminal took this opportunity and lifted batman above his head. As Batman lay in his arms lifeless, the criminal uttered something he would never forget. "I came to Gotham to conquer fear and now I have. Today I do not just break fear, I break the Bat." The criminal slams Batman's back on his knee, with nothing heard but loud cracking noise, and a scream in terror that had never been heard by anyone in Gotham before. The criminal dropped Batman's lifeless body, felt his pulse, and told his men that had also been there to throw him into the ocean, but first rip his mask off and put it on a stick for the day Gotham needs to know what happened to him.

Present Day

Bane took out the stick with the cowl on it, and smiled at it, instantly remembering that he was the symbol of fear. Bane told the crew members to begin filming a camera, with Bane's broadcast going over the news. Bane began with a speech, "Years ago, a boy was wronged because of something he didn't do, and for that, he was punished. Locked away. Forced to pay for someone else's doings. Well, if the justice system believes that a boy is not important to you, that boy took those mean things you did to him and turned it into power. He took the one thing that everybody believes in and broke it like a popsicle stick." Bane holds out the Batman cowl on a stick. Mark is in shock to find out that it was him and begins to train harder with his anger. "Look at what we can accomplish together." Bane said, intimidating the audience watching. "Anyways, tonight, I am going to give the citizens the power they deserve! The power that was used to break Batman. Today! WE TAKE BACK OUR CITY!!!!!" All of Bane's men cheered for him as the camera stopped rolling, and panned on a bunch of drug dealers giving cans out to thugs off the street. Mark, Alfred, and Jeff then realized what he was doing and were shocked beyond belief. Bane was selling his super steroid to every criminal in Gotham to take over the city.