The Current Situation in Gotham

The Starling City duo was truly unaccustomed to this behavior of shooting at aircraft for no reason. The locals here were definitely more fierce than those in Starling City. Thea had patrolled her own city for three nights and hadn't seen anything as dangerous weapons as a rocket launcher.

She quickly instructed the experienced pilot Selina to ascend to a higher altitude and turned to Felicity, saying, "See if you can find a place to land in Gotham, like the police station, government buildings, or perhaps the private residences of a few wealthy individuals might do."

Felicity, amidst the whirring of the helicopter's rotor blades, concentrated on gathering intelligence for their first strike on Gotham.

"Oh, it seems we can't go to City Hall. Look what I've found? This person doesn't seem to be a government employee," she said, turning the tablet towards Thea. On the screen was a bald, muscular man about two meters tall, with a metal breathing mask covering his face, bare-chested, and with bulging muscles. Just one of his arms was as thick as Thea's waist.

Thea shook her head. "This guy doesn't look like a friend of justice. Any government hiring this kind of person is on the brink of collapse." This must be Bane, right? Comparing their body sizes, strengths, and resilience against attacks, he should be the final boss, right? Perhaps.

Why perhaps? Because Thea, after gathering information from various sources and clues provided by Selina, came to a conclusion that could be interpreted as either good or bad news.

The actual situation here, just like the beginning of the movie, started with Bane defeating Batman, but then the plot took a sharp downturn.

Bane had seized control of the television station, broadcasting live alongside his henchmen, as part of his plan to sow fear and chaos by threatening to detonate a nuclear reactor. But after waiting for two days, he found the city surprisingly calm. People were going about their daily lives as usual, with no scenes of citizens hiding under tables and shouting for divine intervention as he had imagined.

Ordering his men to check the network signal, they found no issues. The live broadcast had definitely been sent out, so why was there no attention or donations?

What was going on? Bane, refusing to relent, menacingly approached an elderly passerby. His voice, deep and menacing, echoed from behind his mask. "Fear," he spoke, his words heavy with threat, "is not a choice; it's inevitable. Can you feel it? The dread as you realize your city's fate lies in my hands?" His cold, unwavering gaze bore into the old man's eyes. "I am more than just a man; I am your worst nightmare. Tell me, do you fear me now?"

The old man remained calm and replied, "Son, while I appreciate your sincerity, surviving in Gotham requires more than just honesty. It's essential to look beyond surface appearances and consider what lies within. Take me, for instance. At seventy-six years old, I've maintained a clean record for over six decades. Shouldn't that count for something? However, I must confess that hidden in my basement is a dirty bomb, and my fridge contains two bottles of sarin gas. And in this basket here, I've recently purchased two pounds of radioactive material. Seeing how tough you have it, how about I sell it to you for cheap?"

Bane, his countenance twisted in disbelief, strode purposefully towards several citizens for interrogation, only to be met with an unsettling revelation: the denizens of Gotham exhibited no trace of fear. The formidable tactics he deemed effective proved futile against the hardened populace.

In other cities, claiming 'I'm not scared' might be seen as mere posturing, a question asked for effect. Yet in Gotham, it's simply the reality. 'Indeed, we are not afraid,' is a straightforward declaration here.

The people of Gotham had been tested time and time again, each possessing strong nerves and unwavering willpower. In other cities, using fear tactics would cause chaos, but in Gotham, one would only see flashing golden letters on the screen saying "Immune."

In gaming terms, choosing Gotham as the birthplace for a new character would naturally give a 50% resistance to dark magic. When Bane realized that his usual tactics were completely ineffective, he had no choice but to turn to his accomplice for help, Talia al Ghul, the daughter of Ra's al Ghul, one of Batman's ambiguous love interests, and also the mother of Batman's son, Damian Wayne.

Talia, who had been meticulously trained by Ra's al Ghul for many years, truly proved her worth. She taught Bane an ancient strategy, called "using barbarians to control barbarians," which here meant using Gothamites to scare other Gothamites.

Bane opened the gates of Blackgate Penitentiary, unleashing chaos with the freed convicts. But that was just the beginning. He also released the crazed inmates of Arkham Asylum, flooding the streets with madness and fear.

The reality proved the viciousness of this strategy. All the talk of "we are all Gothamites" and "Gothamites don't fight their own today" was nonsense; it's the very own who strike the hardest.

For a time, there was a massacre, bodies strewn everywhere, blood flowing into river. Though the outcome pleased him, Bane soon found himself at a loss for further action. He had already dismantled the nuclear reactor himself, which had been left unattended for several days. He grew uneasy upon witnessing the spirit of the Gothamites, fearing that some lunatic would go there to light a fire or something.

Capable as he was in combat, the threat of a nuclear bomb left him powerless.

Now, he languished in idleness. The notion of leadership and dominance had waned, replaced by a void. 

Just yesterday, a guy known as the Penguin had sought to align with him, groveling like a sycophant. However, the moment Bane was distracted, he absconded with a truckload of weapons along with some of his henchmen.

There was also someone called the Scarecrow, who wore glasses and looked sophisticated. Unexpectedly, despite his appearance, he kept his men awake all night with chilling tales, scaring three to death and leaving two mentally disturbed. After fully embodying the definition of 'the city that knows how to play,' he too disappeared.

Now, the live broadcast footage from Felicity showed this once-intended final boss now reduced to a solitary figure, sitting alone at the entrance of City Hall.

Seeing him enjoying himself, Thea decided to ignore him for now!

She then scouted several other places, whether it was the police station, the hospital, or the central square, all were in a state of disrepair. The police station's exterior showed clear signs of gunfire, and bodies were messily placed to one side. It was evident that the villains had suffered heavy losses, but there were also a few police officers' bodies scattered nearby.

The situation was much worse than imagined, and Thea had no good solution. She could only ask Selina, "Have you agreed on a meeting place with Robin and the others?"

"Yes, but when we passed by that place just now, I found it was engulfed in flames. At the moment, I can't contact them."

With Selina's unhelpful response, Thea could only turn back to her own teammate for discussion.

"Use facial recognition satellite positioning to find out where Commissioner Gordon is." He has a distinctive face, and he has dedicated thirty years of his life to Gotham. His photos are everywhere on the streets. Compared to Batman and Robin, who wear masks, he's the easiest to find.

Felicity busied herself for a minute. "Their satellite security is hard to crack; I need more time."