The next morning, Batman arrived at the police department to find the place in an uproar. The cops had been notified of their new "management" and, needless to say, they weren't very happy about it. Once they caught sight of him though, they went silent.

"Listen to me," began Batman, making eye contact with each and every one of them. "I know that many of you have some misgivings about working with me. I understand why that would upset you, but I assure you that this is a step in the right direction. Gotham is being reborn, but it's not out of the woods yet, not by a long shot. Nearly every super criminal has been eliminated, but Gotham is still full people who refuse to see reason, as you are all well aware. You do not have to help me purge this city of the evil that plagues it, but I urge you to do so."

"Batman, could we talk outside for a moment," said Commissioner Gordon, looking very displeased.

Batman followed him outside the building, bracing himself for what was to come. He thought a lot of Jim Gordon, and he knew that he would not like what the man had to say.

"Why are you doing this?" Jim asked once he had made sure they were alone.

"You know why. It's the only way to stop these people," replied Batman.

"You know full well it is not the only way. Murder is the coward's way out. I mean, what happened to you? I used to look up to you and trust you, but now, I wouldn't even spit in your direction."

Batman flinched at his harsh words. "I am not a coward, Jim. This is the only way to deal with these people and you know it, you're just too narrow-minded to see it. You think I wanted to murder those people? Do you think I enjoy it? No, I do it because no one else will. Why do you think no one has tried to stop me? They used to, but now that things are finally looking up they're all for it. They understand that this must be done, why can't you?"

"It's not just about ridding the city of criminals, it's far more than that. Batman is more than a protector, he's a symbol of hope, that there is good in the world. By not giving into those monster's demands, by not sinking to their level, we showed people that good can triumph over evil. But not just for the people, for the law-breakers too, that they would see that good does exist, and that they had been playing for the wrong side and give up crime. But now that you've sunk down to their level, what do people have to believe in anymore? You're no better than the rest of us, but people still looked up to you. Who will inspire hope and the will to do good in them now? All they'll see is a man who became so desperate to conquer his enemies that he lowered himself to their level, only to become no better than his foes. You may make Gotham safer than ever before, but at what cost? You've taken away the people's hope."

"They are more hopeful than they have ever been before," countered Batman

"What you see isn't hope, it's relief. They're glad to be rid of these criminals, but now that their hero has allowed himself to become compromised, they have nothing to believe in. Batman, when you forsake your morals, the things you believe in, what do you have left? You lose yourself, and it can be nearly impossible to find yourself again."

"You have more reason than anyone to side with me. Think of what the Joker did to your daughter. Think of how he murdered your wife. Those things alone should be enough to convince you that we need to take a stand."

"I see Barbara and Sarah every time I see a victim wounded, or killed. They are always at the back of my mind, but I cannot allow my pain to cloud my judgment. I don't know what it was that made you become the Batman, but I do know that you have allowed it and other circumstances in your life to take control of you. If you quit now, you may be able to save yourself."

"I am in control. For so long I thought I was doing the right thing, but I now realize that I was wrong. Do you know what that's like? To suddenly realize that everything you once believed in was a lie? It's terrible and scary at first, but after a while you learn to move on. I've chosen to leave my mistakes in the past, and to learn from them. It's time you did too."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. I can't stop you from doing this, but I will not be a part of it. You can consider this my resignation."

"It's a shame. You're a good man Jim, we could really use you out there. I hope you change your mind."

Jim turned away and said, "Same to you, old friend."

xxxx

Twenty-four hours later, Batman was in the Batcave, reviewing case files of wanted criminals as he ate breakfast.

Fortunately, Jim had been the only cop to refuse to assist him. Every other cop either wanted to join the Bat in his crusade, or they had hungry mouths to feed at home, or both. It didn't matter to him why they chose to stay, as long as they were willing to do the job and were capable of doing it right.

A flashing light appeared on the screen then, alerting him that Oracle was attempting to call. With a sigh, he answered her.

"Why haven't you been answering my calls?" she demanded the second he had pressed the button.

"I've been busy," he replied lamely.

"I can't believe you took over the police department, it's taking things a bit far, don't you think?"

"I know it's extreme, but it was necessary."

"And you're going to kill every criminal you come across? That's outrageous! This is wrong!"

"I don't need you to tell me what's right and what's wrong, Oracle."

"Look, I know how you feel. When the Joker took my legs, all I could think about was revenge. Not just because of what he did to me, but that was the main reason. I wanted him dead, but I learned to put aside my anger and to not let it take over. When you killed him, I admit I was happy about it. I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't stop myself from taking pleasure in his death. But this can't continue, you're taking this way too far. I can't help you if you're going to take the law in your hands like this, not in good conscious. I'm sorry.

"I expected as much. Goodbye Oracle."

"Wait don't-" she tried to say, but he turned off the computer before she could finish.

xxxx

Nightwing was in the middle of interrogating a drug dealer when he got the call.

"Excuse me for just a second," said Nightwing to the punk he had shoved against the wall of an alley as he checked his cell phone to see who was calling. When he saw it was Oracle, he knew she wouldn't call in the middle of the night when she knew he was working unless she had a very urgent reason. He knocked the man out and answered his phone.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Can you talk? It's important," she replied, her tone full of anxiety.

"Sure, what about?"

"It's about Batman. Have you seen the news lately? He's started this purge of the city, wiping out criminals, he's even recruited the police to help him. He won't listen to me, and I don't know what to do."

"I haven't heard much, but is it really that bad?"

"It is. Do you think you could come to Gotham and talk to him? Maybe you could make him see reason."

"I will as soon as I can. I've got my hands tied right now, but I'll try to get over there within the next few days or so."

"Good. I can't believe it's come to this. I mean, who would have imagined that Batman would become this? I'm worried, Nightwing."

"Don't worry, I'll knock some sense into him. Everything will be fine. I promise."

xxxx

"I hope you're not in any pain. The doctors said you probably don't feel anything, but I've always been reluctant to believe doctors."

Batman was sitting Selina Kyle's hospital room. He had considered not going as Batman, but had quickly dismissed the idea. He had to keep reminding himself that his old self was dead, and dressing in street clothes wouldn't make the transition any easier.

"I don't know if you can hear me, so I feel kind of silly doing this, but you're the only one I can talk to," said Batman as he held her hand. She had so many tubes hooked up to her, it was hard to see her face. Her hair had been shaved off to treat her wound, and even though she looked horrible, to him she was just as beautiful as ever. "Nearly everyone in Gotham has rallied behind me, but all the people whose opinions matter to me are against me. I feel like you're all I have left anymore." He felt his eyes water as he said, "I can't tell you how sorry I am that I let that madman hurt you. If I had only killed him sooner, this never would have happened. I wish you would wake up, you don't know how much I miss you, how much I love you."

"You really care about her, don't you?" asked the nurse attending Selina, her face obscured by a surgical mask.

He blinked the tears away and regained his composure. There could be no weakness in Batman, he had to be strong for his people. "I'm leaving, let me know if her condition changes."

"Oh, I'm afraid her condition is about to change pretty drastically," said the woman as she ripped off her mask, revealing herself to be Harley Quinn. Before Batman could stop her, she pulled out a gun and pointed it at Selina. If she had been pointing the gun at him, he would have taken the risk and tried to take it from her, but he couldn't risk Selina's life like that.

"I know Mistah J already did the whole fake nurse thing, but it seemed the best way to go," said Harley as she grinned devilishly. "Did ya hear the news? I was released from Arkham a couple weeks ago. Turns out I can fake sanity pretty well, I was a psychiatrist after all, and who could fake sanity better than an ex-doctor? I convinced 'em I had moved on from Mistah J and that I had forgiven you for your unforgiveable crime. I was gonna just shoot ya, but the punishment's gotta fit the crime, ya know? Since you took the thing that I loved most, I'm gonna take what you love most. But you're a hard man to figure out, and I wasn't sure if Catwoman is really who you love most, but I figure she's close enough. Now of course there's no way you could possibly love her as much as I loved my Puddin', so there's no way this can make you hurt like I hurt, but I can at least give you a taste of my pain before I kill you."

"Harley, listen to me," pleaded Batman. "You have a chance at a normal life. Leave now and I'll let you live, but do this, and I will kill you."

"You know what's funny? I tried to live a "normal" life, just to see if I could do it. I rented an apartment, got a job as a waitress, and even got asked out by some loser. And you know what? I couldn't take it. I can't have a "normal" life. But I can't be a villainess anymore, either. A few nights ago I broke into the Gotham museum and stole the Harlequin diamond to try to cheer myself up. I escaped the cops and brought it home, but it just wasn't the same without my Puddin' there to have fun with me. My life is pointless and humorless without him and I can't go on like this, but before I die, I have one last job to do for Mistah J. I swore I would kill you or die trying. Only one of us will come out of this alive, and I couldn't care less who lives and who dies!"

Harley fired the gun at the machine keeping Selina alive, and she immediately flat-lined.

"No!" yelled Batman as he ran at Harley and took the gun from her. He pointed it at her, but before he could pull the trigger, she threw herself at him, knocking him off balance and sending them both through the window. As they fell from the third floor, Harley pulled out a knife and drove the blade into his chest, laughing hysterically as she did so.

"See you in Hell, Bat-brain," giggled Harley just before they made impact with the pavement.

Batman's body exploded with pain, he couldn't breathe, couldn't think. He felt himself dying and willed himself to live, but he was powerless to do anything. Ironic really, the Caped Crusader had saved so many lives, yet he could not save himself. The pain in his body seemed to slowly fade away as he was swallowed up by the darkness.