Chapter 6: A Complete Reinvention of Character

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Spinning stories feels thrilling in the moment, but the aftermath can be a real nightmare. Bruce delighted in fabricating elaborate backstories before Thomas, but now, when it came time to fill in the gaps, he found the task agonizing. Fortunately, he had Clark.

Unlike Bruce, who severely lacked any artistic flair, Clark was a genuine literature enthusiast. Though he preferred nonfiction over fiction, his creativity far surpassed Bruce’s when it came to brainstorming. After enduring one rejection after another, Bruce finally managed to upload a rough script outline before his nightly patrol—a historic first step.

Oh, and he also successfully connected with other members of the Bat-family during that patrol, instantly doubling the number of users on their mental communication channel.

Although many actors remained out of reach due to identity constraints, Bruce was quite satisfied. Things on his end were finally on track, except for one major challenge—

Why were there so many members in the Bat-family?!

There was Penny, Alfred, Nightwing Dick, Red Hood Jason, Robin Tim, Oracle Barbara, Orphan Cassandra, Spoiler Stephanie...

Each night on patrol, Bruce would randomly be joined by at least two “birds,” who chattered incessantly around him while his mental channel buzzed with even more chatter. Exhausted in both body and mind, he began to suspect that the lonely Dark Knight he’d seen on TV as a child was a fabrication.

Of course, Bruce could barely tolerate all this. The most absurd part was that, according to his complete cast list, there was yet another Bat-family member stranded far away in the Middle East who hadn’t joined the main storyline.

Worse still, this member—future Damian Wayne—was Bruce’s own biological son.

Bruce: “...”

As a vibrant college student who had never even dated seriously, he suddenly found himself with a child in this alternate world! What was this? An early taste of parenthood meant to cement his lifelong resolve to remain unmarried and childfree? The pain was palpable.

But as the saying goes, when you feel unlucky, just look at someone else’s misfortune and you might feel less miserable.

Whenever Bruce felt weary, he would retreat to the Batcave and retrieve a video from the Batcomputer’s confidential files—his source of joy.

Every time he watched that red figure flipping through the clouds while screaming in terror, a genuine smile crept across his lips.

Yes, that video captured Clark’s failed first flight as Superman.

Except for his initial passive flight, Clark soon harnessed the power of his super brain and mastered his abilities, never making the same mistakes again.

Though he still couldn’t look down when flying at high altitudes without getting dizzy, at least he kept a composed face, so the rescuer didn’t look more terrified than the person being saved.

Technically, Bruce should never have known about this footage. But by coincidence, while gathering intelligence, he hacked into a military satellite and intercepted this precious source of happiness.

While helping Clark delete the video, Bruce swiftly clipped a segment and stashed it in the classified files, pulling it out whenever he needed a pick-me-up.

He only intended it for private amusement, but unexpectedly, a certain Barbara Gordon—an absurdly skilled hacker with most of the Batcomputer’s permissions—discovered the video.

She laughed at it herself, then, embracing the spirit of sharing joy, quickly uploaded it to the Bat-family’s shared channel.

And then... Clark found out.

“Fucking Bruce! I #!”

Even now, playing the symbol of light and hope as Superman, Clark had not lost his petty streak when sparring with his childhood friend.

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As payback for being unwillingly cast as the star of a comedy short, Clark spent several nights quietly hovering over Gotham, finally capturing rare footage of the rookie Batman’s awkward grappling hook missing its mark.

He laughed uproariously on the mental channel, generously sharing the clip with the entire Bat-family.

Amidst the chorus of laughter, Bruce gritted his teeth, clutching a Superman figurine as if squeezing a certain someone.

Deep breaths, stay calm, don’t argue with the guy forced into lonely old age!

Over Metropolis, Superman soared in a graceful pose before suddenly sneezing, briefly veering off course. Fortunately, he avoided all surveillance and slipped safely into his apartment.

Using super speed, he changed out of his costume and collapsed on the bed, wailing on the mental channel.

“Bruce, Bruce! When can I come visit you? I’m bored to death alone!”

In Gotham, a now more adept Batman danced through a hail of bullets with a heart-wrenching familiarity.

Hidden in the shadows, he threw punches with precision, felling dozens of henchmen within minutes.

Hearing Clark’s complaints, he sneered inwardly.

“Bored? Want to switch? I have a whole family here and nightly team-building. Gotham’s people are so warm, we play games every night. Want to try it?”

“...No thanks, I kind of like being alone.”

Clark genuinely felt healed.

But...

He rolled on the bed, sighing deeply.

Though a fan of the cloud, Clark knew Superman had his own family members, like Connor, born of a bald villain, and his official partner Lois and their son Jon.

Unfortunately, he lacked even the standard foster parents.

The root of the problem was Bruce’s offhand lies that became Superman’s official backstory in this world. Clark racked his brains and finally devised a plausible narrative: Superman was a true loner.

In Clark’s version, decades ago Superman arrived in a baby pod and was raised by the kind Kent couple. After growing up, he became active as Superman and coincidentally met a young Thomas Wayne.

But shortly after debuting, he faced an unprecedented foe and fell into a decades-long slumber in his Arctic Fortress to heal his nearly destroyed body.

When he finally awoke, everything had changed.

His foster parents and friends were gone, humanity had forgotten him, and he was utterly alone in this rapidly evolving era.

“This is basically Captain America’s story, just with a few decades less sleep,” Bruce quipped while reviewing the uploaded setting.

“Who else made me steal Cap’s backstory?” Clark grumbled, secretly relieved.

This narrative was clever, providing a legitimate reason for his solitude without needing to deal with locals or actors playing family members.

Even the world consciousness, always lurking in the background, logged in after the setting upload and gave it a thumbs-up.

During this time, Clark was much freer than Bruce, not needing to act constantly, merely practicing Superman’s gentle, righteous smile in the mirror before flying off to save people.

In those early days, Clark was genuinely happy, feeling unprecedented freedom.

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Think about it: he had Superman’s powers and was almost unrestrained—helping humans was his pleasure, and with his abilities, it wasn’t exhausting.

But...

*Sigh.*

Clark gazed at the moonlight streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows and sighed deeply.

Being alone all the time was just too lonely.

Thinking this way, Bruce at least had a crowd of actors to hang out with.

“Bruce, when will we finally ‘meet’?”

Hearing the usually optimistic childhood friend’s underlying loneliness, Bruce paused, swallowing back a sarcastic remark.

“Alright, alright.” After ending his patrol, Batman climbed into the Batmobile, and once Robin was settled, he started the engine.

His grip tightened on the steering wheel, awkwardly offering comfort to Clark despite their habitual banter.

“According to the script, once Lex Luthor makes his move, we’ll officially meet.”

“Luthor’s cautious; he won’t act without certainty. How much longer do I have to wait?”

Clark rolled over, knowing Bruce couldn’t see him, but still giving those unbeatable, pitiful puppy eyes.

“Can’t you just fly to Metropolis early and meet me? Or I could fly over out of curiosity about the vigilante next door?”

“No.”

Bruce was adamant about not breaking the script.

“Superman’s reappearance after decades is definitely worth Batman’s investigation, but Batman won’t fight battles he’s not sure about. Besides, Bruce has lingering resentment over his father and won’t seek you out without external reasons anytime soon.

“And you, per your character, should still be in a slump—no socializing just yet.”

“Come on, I heard there’s a big bat next door; which Superman could resist finding him?”

“No!”

Tim, sitting in the passenger seat, watched their back-and-forth on the public channel, expression gradually turning blank.

He had no idea when the public channel became Bruce and Clark’s private chat room—they exchanged tens of thousands of lines daily.

Heh.

Metropolis, LexCorp.

Moonlight gleamed starkly off the polished bald head.

Luthor examined all the intelligence gathered on Superman, a sinister smile curling on his face.

“I’ll show everyone how weak this alien false god really is.”

“Batman... may prove useful.”

At this moment, Luthor was fully prepared, confident in his script of Batman versus Superman.

About two weeks remained until the world’s greatest duo made their debut.