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Batman: Eternal: Season 3, Episode 7 - Revelations

by Mockingchu

Mockingchu Tim finds out secrets about Bruce's time in the Phantom Zone.
Bruce sat solitarily, picking through every available security tape all throughout Gotham. He searched for a sign- any sign- of Deathstroke or his employer, the Riddle-Person.

Tim had taken Damian out to see a movie a few hours ago. The brand new movie starring Basil Karlo opposite James Franco. A movie critics had been raving about. Batman. A simple tale of one of Batman’s first clashes with the Joker. Basil Karlo, the sturdy-jawed stud, played an unnamed character, who moonlighted as the Batman. James Franco starred as a young Joker. Tye Sheridan played Robin, while Lucas Till played the lesser-known villain, Kite-Man.

The next movie in the “Heroes of Today” shared universe, as it was already called online, had been announced a week after Batman had opened to stellar reviews. The next one would be all about Nightwing battling Black Mask. Something he had never actually done. Danny Shepherd would play Nightwing, while Willem Dafoe helmed Black Mask. It was an interesting prospect.

“Still down here?” Tim called down the massive stone staircase leading into the Batcave.

“Of course I am,” Bruce said, rubbing his eyes, “How was the movie?”

“Batman didn’t look too much like Bruce Wayne,” Tim said, “So that’s a good sign.”

“A simple movie isn’t going to cast suspicion on to me,” Bruce assured.

“There are already plenty of crackpot theories pinning you as the Batman,” Tim pointed out, “We don’t need anymore.”

Bruce nodded quietly in agreement.

“Go get some sleep,” Tim suggested, “I’ll look for the wannabe Cluemaster.”

“If he’s got Deathstroke on his side, he’s no wannabe,” Bruce said, standing up, “But you’re right. I haven’t slept ever since Slade broke in.”

“Bruce!” Tim exclaimed, “That was three days ago! Get your ass in bed!”

Bruce patted Tim on the shoulder, “You’re a good kid.”
Tim tried to keep his stern face, but lost to a small grin. Bruce trudged up the stairs. He had a date tomorrow. Selina Kyle. The woman that Damian had some sort of grudge against. ‘Bad vibes.’

Tim sat down at the computer, continued searching through security footage. After a few hours of nothing, Tim minimized the windows with the tapes. He went to open Chrome to start browsing his numerous social media pages when he noticed something was off. His mouse wasn’t flowing like usual. There was a small lag. Strange, as the Batcomputer was top off the line. A model that hadn’t even been released by Wayne Enterprises. So why the hell was it lagging.

Tim viewed all the files on the computer. Bruce had probably given into primal impulses in the three sleepless days. They probably had a lot of adult movies, with ten times more viruses.

Instead of videos, Tim found a massive, brand new folder. It was labeled ‘Donuts’. Obviously, it was not about donuts. Tim opened it immediately. Inside were several buggy schematics. Stolen schematics, it seemed. They definitely didn’t originate from the Batcomputer, but Tim couldn’t ID where they came from. They all seemed to pose no functions. However, each blueprint shared one item. They each contained a superconductors lining a silver core. He overlaid the images, basing them around the silver core. After a few rotations, the images lined up perfectly, creating a contraption Tim had seen before. The Phantom Zone Projector. There was only one file remaining in the folder, called ‘Notes’. It was encrypted, requiring a passcode to open it. There were fifteen characters in the passcode.

Tim minimized the ‘Donuts’ folder, and opened one of his own. It had a program that could run one decillion combinations of letters and numbers in a matter of milliseconds. However, with the Batcomputer’s security system, that might not be enough time. Within those milliseconds, the file could lock, and possibly delete itself. Tim had to pray that his program would get the passcode early. There were only 1.6 sextillion combinations, while his program was ready to try one decillion. Who knew how fast the Batcomputer would fight it?

Tim readied the program against the ‘Notes’ file, and activated it. He squeezed his eyes shut. When they reopened, a document was waiting on screen. Tim breathed a sigh of relief, and shut down his program.

The document was exactly as it was titled. Notes.

It wasn’t starry. It wasn’t bright. Somehow, I could still see him. And her. As if our living bodies were the only things radiating light. Evil emits its own light, I suppose. I forget more and more. That’s why you (or I) am writing this. You need to remember. For Tim. And Tam.

Tim pushed away from the Batcomputer for a moment. Why did the Phantom Zone Projector have anything to do with-

Tim slapped a hand over his mouth as his eyes widened. The revelations slammed into him. He felt them like a train, crushing against his ribs. The notes continued.

She was there. She is there. In the Phantom Zone, that is. Find her. Find her. Find her. She is alive.

You have to tell Tim. He can help. His mind is still alive.

Your mind is dying. It was the radiation. The Phantom Radiation. Tell Tim. He can help. His mind is still alive.

Your mind is dying. It was the radiation. The Phantom Radiation. Tell Tim. He can help. His mind is still alive.


It was bad. Very bad. Tim raced up the stairs. Bruce was losing his mind. And Tam… Tam was still alive. Trapped in the Phantom Zone.


Tim became dizzy, struggling to grasp everything he had learned. He made it to the first floor, but still had a few more flights of stairs until he got to Bruce’s bedroom.

“Damian… Get… Your father,” Tim said.

Damian was nowhere to be seen.


- - -


“Tim.”

“Tim.”

“Tim, wake up.”

Tim was awake, but he couldn’t speak. His sight was a bright, blurry mess.

“Tim, are you okay?”

Tim reached up slowly, and grasped the man’s hand. His vision cleared, and darkened, revealing Bruce standing above him.

“Tim, I’m so sorry,” Bruce sighed, “I’ve got a lot to explain, I suppose.”

“Damn right,” Tim croaked, slowly coaxing his vocal chords to function properly.

“I wanted to tell you,” Bruce said, “You know I did. It’s in the notes.”

Bruce motioned the the Batcomputer, which still had the notes open. Damian was struggling to read them.

“But I hesitated. I wasn’t sure how you’d take it. I was right there. With her. And I couldn’t save her. By the time I was ready to tell you, I forgot.”

Tim closed his eyes, and sighed, “You’re forgiven. As long as we focus one hundred percent on Tam.”

“I promise,” Bruce nodded.

“You’ve promised before,” Tim said, “When she first disappeared. Then there was Scarecrow. Now Deathstroke and faux Cluemaster. I want you to be in on this all the way.”

“But Deathstroke’s presence threatens-”

“You promised,” Tim said, sharply, then uttered a more relaxed, “You already promised.”

“I- I guess I can’t keep that promise,” Bruce admitted. It wasn’t the first time he hadn’t been able to keep a promise. It definitely wouldn’t be the last.


- - -


14 YEARS AGO…

Bruce woke up slowly. He had no idea how long he had been out. He stood up, letting the dagger remain in his torso. If it came loose, the wound would bleed freely. He needed a dressing for the gash.

His memories of the previous events came rushing back to him. He and Ra’s had slaughtered the mayor’s family, before Bruce turned on his master.

He wandered the mayor’s house, checking every wound for at least a First Aid Kit. Finally, he found a medicine closet. Inside were several plastic boxes, full of everything from band-aids to a small surgical kit. He collapsed against the wall, and pulled down one of the boxes that contained the kit, some disinfectant, cotton swabs, bandages, and gauze. He slid the dagger out of his side slowly, and dabbed away some of the blood with disinfectant on the cotton swabs. He then mopped up the majority of the blood with gauze. Next, he stitched himself back up, and wrapped himself up with the bandages.

“Up you go,” Bruce said, instructing himself. He pulled himself off the floor, and stumbled out of the house.

Smoke was curling up from the skyscrapers in the distance. Gotham was in peril. Ra’s had begun his purge.

Bruce had a city to save. He limped back inside, and found a flip phone in the kitchen.

Bruce fumbled with the phone, jabbing in numbers.

“Come on. Come on,” Bruce hissed through gritted teeth.

“Who’s there?” a shaken British voice asked on the other end of the line.

“Alfred…” Bruce smiled, falling to his knees.

“Yes, this is he,” Alfred said, “Who is this?”

“It’s- it’s Bruce. I need you to come get me.”

“Bruce, but you-,” Alfred exclaimed.

“Alfred, I know what I did was horrendous,” Bruce admitted, “And I’ve got a lot to explain, but just come pick me up. I’m at Mayor Klass’s house.”

“You tried to kill her. Your own bloody girlfriend. You’re not my son,” Alfred growled.

“I didn’t try to kill her! I positioned the blade so- wait. Your… son?” Bruce asked, his eyes welling up.

“Of course, he was never my biological son,” Alfred said, “But after his parents died, he became my child. I loved that boy. And you had the nerve to murder his girlfriend under a disguise of him. Bastard.”

“You saw me as a son?”

There was a long pause.

“Is it really you?” Alfred asked, daring to hope.

Bruce leaned his head back against the wall, and took a deep breath.

“It’s really me. I’m back.”

Roughly a half an hour later, Alfred pulled up in front of the mayor’s house, his white dress shirt covered in bloodstains. He hopped out of his black sedan, and rushed inside the house. He nearly fainted when met with the grisly scene.

He managed to regain his composure. He’d seen worse during his days serving in the British armed forces. But this was different. This time, Bruce was caught up in it all.

“Here,” Bruce groaned from the kitchen. Alfred ran over to Bruce, helped him to his feet, and dragged him to the car.

“Everything. Now.”

“Everything?” Bruce asked, “Because there’s a lot to explain.”

“We’ve got time,” Alfred said.

“No we don’t,” Bruce shot back, “Get me back to the manor as quick as you can. Gotham’s about the crumble. I have to do something about it.”

“In the meantime- fess up.”

“As soon as I stepped out of Gotham Academy for the last time, I was ready. I’d been planning for years. Ever since eighth grade, really. Sophomore year was when I knew it was for real.

“I was leaving Gotham. Getting away from the world that had taken my parents from me. I used Oswald’s connections to hitch a ride on a shady airline. Just one biplane that would take you anywhere, no questions asked. I forked over some cash, and the pilot flew me to Eastern Morocco. We landed in the rocky desert so he could refuel for the return flight. I was given some supplies and good luck.

“For the next several days, I trekked through the steep, sandy hills. It was hell. On day four or five- maybe six- I found a small town nestled between mountains. I was nearly out of water. I was supposed to have found a town days ago. There, I was told to find “Ajad”. In this town, I found a few families that were struggling to hold on. No Ajad. I did manage to find a small body of water that the town had survived off of. I refilled my water, and continued North.

“Finally, I came across a road, and followed it to Guenfouda.”

“Guenfouda?” Alfred asked.

“A city in Morocco. Not too big, not too small. There was a pilot who had come in from Yakutsk. Came for fruit. Oranges, I think. Clementines. Who knows?” Bruce shrugged.

“So you flew to Russia?” Alfred raised an eyebrow, “From Gotham to Morocco to Russia in no time.”

“I managed to slink inside a gang that operated within the city. Metel. Russian for Blizzard. Fitting for the weather.

“The gang used the cover of the constant ice storm to keep businesses and families under their thumb. They took a ‘tax’ of sorts. A protection fee, they called it.

“Protection from themselves. When I learned about a child who had been orphaned when her parents wouldn’t pay-”

“You had to intervene,” Alfred nodded, “Take the gang down.”

“Of course,” Bruce said, “I couldn’t let the gang keep tearing families apart.

“With only my knowledge from martial arts classes here in Gotham, I was definitely going in under-prepared. I also had a bit of experience with firearms. From when Oswald, Harvey, Tommy, and I would sneak off to the shooting range.”

“You did what?” Alfred exclaimed.

“Look, we took the necessary precautions!” Bruce countered, “We made everyone stand back. We took lessons in how to safely handle a gun. We were fine.

“Over the next few months, I worked at a nice little restaurant. When the Metel came to collect their dues, I voiced my wish to join them. My Russian, while initially rusty, had definitely improved. I passed as a normal guy, looking to make a few extra bucks on the side. Thank goodness.

“From there, I moved up the ranks at breakneck speed. I had no connections, so I wasn’t ashamed of my actions. Nothing held me back.

“Eventually, I was allowed to meet the Kristall. The leader.

“Obviously, I couldn’t just kill him. Then there’d just be another Kristall. I had to dismantle the Metel, so it couldn’t operate any longer.

“I began to arm the citizens of Yakutsk. Every once in a while, a pistol would go missing. A few dollars would be lost in the transfer. Those dollars may or may not have bought more firearms. More and more money was pooled. Within weeks, the townspeople had mounted a full scale rebellion.

“The Metel fought back. They fought dirty. Blowing hospitals and safehouses to smithereens. When the Kristall got his hands on Dmitry Mihailov, one of the leaders of this revolt, he gathered his family. Dmitry was forced to watch as the Kristall put a bullet through the heads of his two daughters and his wife.

“Dmitry was then left in the cold to die. I found him moments before his body shut down. He told me what had happened. That- it put me over the edge.

“I threw my plans to the wind. I didn’t give a shit about what happened next, as long as I killed the Kristall.”


Be sure to read the other Eternal stories to know what's up in this lil' universe.
Green Arrow: Eternal by @Eeveechu151
Red Hood and the Outlaws: Eternal by @HydreigonBorn37
Superman: Eternal by @Generation Sect
Hawkman and Hawkgirl: Eternal by @Ratbag the Coward
...and we've got an upcoming series by @Ry_Burst - no hints as to what it is! It should be ready by at least the end of this season. Very exciting!
Lastly, if anyone actually reads these, we're still looking for a writer to pen Wonder Woman: Eternal. This is your chance to join the Eternal Universe!
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