A/N: Everything belongs to DC Comics.

"Alfred." I weakly call out, holding my wounds together from patrol earlier. Even with this disguise, no one seems to fear me. I got stabbed by a man. I have to get this wound checked out before I pass out. Hell, I got into a fight with a woman! A woman! I was out there trying to protect them, but I only did the opposite of what I wanted to do. What do I need to do to make people fear me?

"Listen to me!" A mysterious voice calls out.

"W-who are you?" I ask the attention grabbing voice.

"Just a persuader." The being responded while I look over to the bell that I use to call Alfred, if I ring this bell, then Alfred will address my wounds. However it starts running away from me. How am I supposed to call Alfred, when I don't have the bell in my possession? "Don't worry about the bell, Alfred won't come to your aid, anyways."

"What makes you say that?" I ask defiantly.

"I know he won't, he wants to you to suffer for trying to rid the streets clean of crime, and he wants you to learn this mistake."

No, that can't be true! Alfred has been there for since I was a boy, he won't turn his back on me, not now, not ever! I try to reach the bell but I'm unable to get off my chair and the table stretches out. "Leave me alone!" I shout in frustration.

"I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Why?"

"That would just go against my plans."

"Who the hell are you?" I demand.

"The most powerful being in the universe, of course!" I try looking for the voice but I can't find it. "All you have to do is give up and accept Anti-Life..." My eyes widen at his claim. Give up? I swore on my parents' graves that I would clean this city of crime and prevent anyone from reliving what I went through! "Don't worry, all the crime in the world will be stopped. Just, let go." The offer was so tempting.

I look my parents' portrait. What am I supposed to do? Help me! Don't just stand there, give me an answer, I need an answer! Anything! Give me a sign!

Sounds of screaming glass brings me back to my conversation with this mysterious being. Maybe it's a rock but the outline of broken glass rejects this idea. Then I hear tiny scratches and I look at the bat who's comfortably sitting on my father's headstone.

The bat expands its wings, tying to scare me off, but I do feel terrified in its presence. However, the bat looks at with strange aura. I stare into its dark shrouded eyes, what are you trying to tell me? The bat shows me visions of what I presumed to be the past. A prehistoric man wearing the skin of a giant bat, another of pirate, a detective with an outline of a bat on his chest, a beautiful woman in red, white, blue, and gold. A man who wears a blue bird on his chest takes this mantle of the bat, someone wearing a crimson mask, another sporting an almost all red attire, the last one, mixing an old uniform with black pants and hood; they're waving at me to come to them, from their lip movement I think they're saying "Welcome home, dad." Then the beautiful woman kisses my cheek. I look around more... My... My parents, they're, alive? H-how? Mom, dad!

I hug them tightly, not wanting to let them go. They hand me a letter with my name nicely written, "When you're ready, read this." I want to say something but I can't and they move back.

"I'm so proud of what you've done, Bruce." My mom tells me and tears fall off of my face. I've missed you two so much.

When I dried off my tears, I turn to see everyone who I saw here, standing in my presence...

I regain focus and I stare at the bat with a shocking revelation... I've never been alone in fighting crime and I will never be alone! The bell returns to me and I raised my hand to grab the bell and shake it. Alfred hurries to my aid...

*TT*

I awaken on a comfortable bed and I roll off of it. The cold floor wakes my dormant feet more. I'm in the Watchtower, that's for sure.

There's a disease that still needs to be cured and I'm the cure. I look ferocious for my Batsuit. It has to be here somewhere! I see a sign that says in bold letters, Batman, bingo! After taking about twenty minutes to put on my suit, I start walking towards the teleport room so I can fight crime, again. As I start typing in the coordinates to Old Gotham, I hear heels coming into contact with the floor along with panting. I turn around to see... to see my wife staring right back at me with wide eyes, shocked that I recovered so quickly. "Are you going to stop me?" I question curiously.

She shakes her head sideways, "No, I won't, but I think Richard's in trouble, though." She showed me a blinking Titans' communicator that showed the coordinates of Dick's location.

"What are we waiting for?" We enter the coordinates into the teleporter and we enter whatever situation that's going on...