Who Are You?
The Father.
Baron Battle.
Your name stirs the imagination.
Who are you?
We know you are a villain, but what kind?
Lex Luthor. The Kingpin. Are you a planner and mastermind like them?
Darkseid. Apocalypse. Are you a destroyer like them?
The Joker. Hannibal Lecter. Are you a madman like them?
Dr. Doom. Darth Vader. Are you the result of a tragedy, good twisted to evil like them?
Who are you?
We have seen only a picture of when you were younger.
How could those handsome features and boyish grin hide evil of any kind?
What happened?
Was it jealousy? Was it a horrible accident? Was it a fit of madness?
How could one surrounded by heroes become a villain?
We speculate…we imagine…we wonder.
What did you do?
Was it something deliberate? Did something go wrong and it became a disaster?
Were you penitent? Did you surrender willingly?
Did you rage and fight, having to be brought down like a wild animal?
We know you are in prison. We know you are in solitary.
How long have you been there already?
How much longer will it be?
"Quadruple life sentence. No chance of parole until his third life."
What does that mean?
Are you immortal? Do you die to be born again like the phoenix?
But there must be hope, for parole is offered.
What would you do when the time comes?
Would you walk out of the darkness and into the arms of your wife and son?
Would you hold them and promise never to leave them again?
Would you be free…only to be alone?
Would that enrage you, drive you to mad grief?
What would you do?
What did you do?
Why did you hurt them?
Your wife, did you truly love her?
Your son…how old was he when you left?
Were you even around for him at all?
Were you there when he was born…did you hold him as he took his first breath?
Did you ever hold him in your arms and comfort him?
Have you seen the man he is becoming?
What do you think of him?
Are you proud of him…of his strength and power?
Do you see him as a weapon to use against your enemies?
Do you see him as a legacy of light to the world to make up for your own sins?
What did you do?
We can only wonder…suspect…worry.
But no matter what you did, however heinous, we cannot hate you.
We may speculate about you. We may imagine about you. We may wonder about you.
We may even grow to fear you.
But we can never hate you.
For you are the father…you have given us our hero.
And we will always honor you for that.