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Description
SYNOPSIS:
Gotham City has a new Batman.
For years, the citizens and criminals alike had no idea that the man who stalked the shadowns was none-other then its finest citizen, Bruce Wayne. But after a "Crisis" arrives, Wayne finds himself unable to focus the attention that Gotham deserves, and must pass down the mantle that he created over 10 years ago at the tender after of 18. The list of men who are worthy of the title is short, and after deep consideration, the choice has become obvious.
Dick Grayson was always destined to be Batman.
The first Robin. The first Nightwing. The first man, outside Alfred Pennyworth, to know that Bruce Wayne was Batman.
Dick Grayson was indeed always destined to be the Batman. But the question was: could he be Batman...

ORIGINS:
Bruce was was only 8 years old when he saw his loving parents murdered by a common thug in an alley way in Gotham City. The police report said that two people died that day, but in truth, it was three. Bruce Wayne ceased to exist that day, and something else took over his body. Something driven by rage, and fury, and revenge, and fear. Something that Bruce would one day dub 'Batman'.
Spending the next decade of his life training, Bruce disappeared from Gotham orphanage and began searching the world, training himself mind and body to become the living war machine against crime. He learned to blend into the shadows by age 10, working with the League of Shadows. By 11, he was already a master martial artist in Japan, working side by side with the Lady Shiva. He learned boxing from JSA member Wildcat, grappling from the heart of Mexico, magic from Zatarra the Great, and developed a technical genius along the way.
At 18 years old, after proving the world wrong years ago that Bruce Wayne is dead (in the process, inheriting the sole CEOship of Wayne Enterprises), Bruce returned to Gotham and returned to his mansion, once again finding a close friend and mentor in his butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Bruce dedicated the open cave hidden under Wayne Manor to his cause, turning it into a crime fighting base, filled with the tech, training equipment, and anything else he would need in the war. All that remained was an identity.
Without warning, a single bat flew past Bruce, leading to his inspiration. He would become the Batman. Thus, Batman was born.
Five years later, lightning would strike twice...
Dick Grayson was anything but a billionaire. In fact, the live of a circus boy was pretty much poverty. Still, Dick was happy to be 1/3rd of the "Flying Graysons", an acrobat team that toured and entertained the world. The excitement and thrill was all Dick ever needed. But little did Dick know that his father was a man running out of time. John Grayson was being threatened by a local hustler, Tony Zucco, offering 'protection' for money. Being a man of princible, John turned Tony down, telling him that he 'didn't make deals with criminals'. Zucco threated John, saying that it he had made 'a mistake'.
John kept the threat a secret from his family, too stubborn to imagine that Zucco would give in to the threats. That night, the Flying Graysons were ready for a show. A show that Bruce Wayne would personally be in attendence for. But little did or his wife, Mary, know that before the show started, Zucco slit the ropes that they would be working with. Being a child, the rope didn't snap when Dick swung across on them, but when John and Mary swung by for the trick (a trick trademarked for not using a net), the rope snapped, killed the Graysons on the fall down. Dick could only look on in horror as he watched his family die.
With no family left, Dick was to be sent to Gotham's foster care, but with an open heart to those who have had their family taken from them, Bruce offered to become Dick's guardian. Day by day, Dick opened up to Bruce, the two soon becoming close. But when GCPD came to Dick and told him that evidence pointed to the ropes his parents used being slit, and Tony Zucco being their number one suspect, Dick had pure rage in his eyes.
A rage Bruce knew all too well.
Bruce knew that it was time to let Dick in on the greatest secret of them all.
Dick was shocked when he learned that his foster father was the legendary Batman, and wanted nothing more then to be his partner. After pledging himself to justice and the mission to stop crime, it was time for Dick to re-invent himself. Altering his circus uniform and taking on the identity that his mother lovingly called him as a pet name, Dick Grayson was reborn as Robin.
Together, side by side, Batman and Robin brough Tony Zucco to justice, where he still rots in Arkham Asylum to this day. But it simply was not enough. Robin still saw the darkness in the city, growing day by day. He wanted to help Batman stop the forces of evil, so he stayed as his partner.
A new problem eventually arrived. Dick was getting older.
With college coming up, and a few years as being one half of 'Batman and', Dick felt it would do more good if he became his own hero, as opposed to being a simple sidekick. At 18 years old, with Bruce's blessing, Dick Grayson retired the Robin costume and moved to Gotham's sister city, Bludhaven, taking on a new, darker identity: Nightwing. In the process, Bruce found a new partner and a new Robin in teenage runaway Jason Todd, but Jason is another story...
Dick pledged himself as Nightwing and defended his city for as long as he could, even going as far as to join the Bludhaven Police Force, fighting crime as both Dick Grayson and Nightwing.
Then...Bludhaven fell.
The 'Crisis' started with alien conquerer, Darkseid, coming to Earth, unleashing the forces of his home planet, Apokolips, on Earth. Bludhaven was the randomly selected spot where the invasion would begin, and in an act of violence, the entire city was wiped out in an instance. Nightwing was just barely rescued from the city by Batman and the JLA, but he didn't want to leave. He felt that he could have saved the city, a concept that he still feels responsible for in his heart, viewing it as his single biggest mistake in his life.
Still, though the Crisis, Nightwing stood tall, helping the heroes of the world fight back against Darkseid and his human avatar, Maxwell Lord, along with his CHECKMATE organization and his army of OMACS.
When the battle was won, the President of the United States said that it was time for the superheroes of the world to have a little bit of organization, officially rebranding Lord's CHECKMATE as a metahuman task force, essentially being the surpreme power all heroes answer to. Bruce Wayne (who the government has secretly known was Batman for years) was personally selected by the President to act as the new 'White King' of CHECKMATE, essentially making him not only one of the most powerful people in the world, but also the 'boss' of the superhuman community.
Bruce selected, but he understood that with his new title, he could no longer carry on the identity of Batman. Privately, he gave Dick his blessing to become the new Batman under three conditions: Dick is to primarely work in Gotham, remain as a member of Bruce's newly formed Justice League of America, and Dick is to take on Bruce's recently discovered son, Damien, as the new Robin. Dick happily accepted and took on the mantle of Batman.
But can a man who has never stuck to the shadows represent the night? Can a man who usually used wisecracks and insult take advantage of superstition and cowardace? Can the Robin become the Batrman?
Dick Grayson is about to find out.

STATUS QUO:
While Dick Grayson has been Robin and Nightwing for years, the story picks up immediatly after he suits up as Batman for the first time. Essentially, this is Dick Grayson's "Batman Begins". Everything is relatively new to him. Driving the Batmobile, fighting with a Cape and Cowel, and coming to depend on a utility belt again are all things that he has to get used to all over again.
Dick also has Bruce Wayne's angry, short tempered, and advanced beyond his years son, Damien Wayne, as the new Robin. Damien really doesn't like Dick, and certainly doesn't respect him. Damien feels that he should actually be Batman himself at the tender age of 12, but that's another story.
Dick also has an on-again/off-again relationship with Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl, the current leader of the Birds of Prey. The BoP used to share Dick's home turf of Bludhaven, but after the city's destruction, they relocated to Metropolis.
Batman is also in the 'Justice League of America', a team consisting of Dick's old friends from his Robin days in the 'Junior Justice League' Donna Troy (Wonder Woman), Wally West (Flash) and Victor Stone (Cyborg). The team also consists of Superman, as well as original League founders Green Lantern, Aquaman, and the Martian Manhunter in the somewhat 'older mentor' roles.

AUTHOR NOTES:
"DC has sorta become something of 'cock-teases' when it comes to new heroes taking the role from established vetrans, just to have them give the roles back. Dick Grayson. Donna Troy. Kyle Rayner. Wally West. It sorta makes you wonder why they even bother in the first place. I was happy as hell when Dick Grayson took on the title of Batman, and then for him simply to return as Nightwing is a slap in the face. Bruce Wayne's Batman, IMO, is the perfect man, and the only problem with the perfect man as the hero is that the stories eventually become boring because you not only know that he's going to win, but you also know how. I like the idea of Dick having to learn through example of how to be Batman, and I think its an option that the reboot should really explore further."

Description
SYNOPSIS:
Gotham City has a new Batman.
For years, the citizens and criminals alike had no idea that the man who stalked the shadowns was none-other then its finest citizen, Bruce Wayne. But after a "Crisis" arrives, Wayne finds himself unable to focus the attention that Gotham deserves, and must pass down the mantle that he created over 10 years ago at the tender after of 18. The list of men who are worthy of the title is short, and after deep consideration, the choice has become obvious.
Dick Grayson was always destined to be Batman.
The first Robin. The first Nightwing. The first man, outside Alfred Pennyworth, to know that Bruce Wayne was Batman.
Dick Grayson was indeed always destined to be the Batman. But the question was: could he be Batman...

ORIGINS:
Bruce was was only 8 years old when he saw his loving parents murdered by a common thug in an alley way in Gotham City. The police report said that two people died that day, but in truth, it was three. Bruce Wayne ceased to exist that day, and something else took over his body. Something driven by rage, and fury, and revenge, and fear. Something that Bruce would one day dub 'Batman'.
Spending the next decade of his life training, Bruce disappeared from Gotham orphanage and began searching the world, training himself mind and body to become the living war machine against crime. He learned to blend into the shadows by age 10, working with the League of Shadows. By 11, he was already a master martial artist in Japan, working side by side with the Lady Shiva. He learned boxing from JSA member Wildcat, grappling from the heart of Mexico, magic from Zatarra the Great, and developed a technical genius along the way.
At 18 years old, after proving the world wrong years ago that Bruce Wayne is dead (in the process, inheriting the sole CEOship of Wayne Enterprises), Bruce returned to Gotham and returned to his mansion, once again finding a close friend and mentor in his butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Bruce dedicated the open cave hidden under Wayne Manor to his cause, turning it into a crime fighting base, filled with the tech, training equipment, and anything else he would need in the war. All that remained was an identity.
Without warning, a single bat flew past Bruce, leading to his inspiration. He would become the Batman. Thus, Batman was born.
Five years later, lightning would strike twice...
Dick Grayson was anything but a billionaire. In fact, the live of a circus boy was pretty much poverty. Still, Dick was happy to be 1/3rd of the "Flying Graysons", an acrobat team that toured and entertained the world. The excitement and thrill was all Dick ever needed. But little did Dick know that his father was a man running out of time. John Grayson was being threatened by a local hustler, Tony Zucco, offering 'protection' for money. Being a man of princible, John turned Tony down, telling him that he 'didn't make deals with criminals'. Zucco threated John, saying that it he had made 'a mistake'.
John kept the threat a secret from his family, too stubborn to imagine that Zucco would give in to the threats. That night, the Flying Graysons were ready for a show. A show that Bruce Wayne would personally be in attendence for. But little did or his wife, Mary, know that before the show started, Zucco slit the ropes that they would be working with. Being a child, the rope didn't snap when Dick swung across on them, but when John and Mary swung by for the trick (a trick trademarked for not using a net), the rope snapped, killed the Graysons on the fall down. Dick could only look on in horror as he watched his family die.
With no family left, Dick was to be sent to Gotham's foster care, but with an open heart to those who have had their family taken from them, Bruce offered to become Dick's guardian. Day by day, Dick opened up to Bruce, the two soon becoming close. But when GCPD came to Dick and told him that evidence pointed to the ropes his parents used being slit, and Tony Zucco being their number one suspect, Dick had pure rage in his eyes.
A rage Bruce knew all too well.
Bruce knew that it was time to let Dick in on the greatest secret of them all.
Dick was shocked when he learned that his foster father was the legendary Batman, and wanted nothing more then to be his partner. After pledging himself to justice and the mission to stop crime, it was time for Dick to re-invent himself. Altering his circus uniform and taking on the identity that his mother lovingly called him as a pet name, Dick Grayson was reborn as Robin.
Together, side by side, Batman and Robin brough Tony Zucco to justice, where he still rots in Arkham Asylum to this day. But it simply was not enough. Robin still saw the darkness in the city, growing day by day. He wanted to help Batman stop the forces of evil, so he stayed as his partner.
A new problem eventually arrived. Dick was getting older.
With college coming up, and a few years as being one half of 'Batman and', Dick felt it would do more good if he became his own hero, as opposed to being a simple sidekick. At 18 years old, with Bruce's blessing, Dick Grayson retired the Robin costume and moved to Gotham's sister city, Bludhaven, taking on a new, darker identity: Nightwing. In the process, Bruce found a new partner and a new Robin in teenage runaway Jason Todd, but Jason is another story...
Dick pledged himself as Nightwing and defended his city for as long as he could, even going as far as to join the Bludhaven Police Force, fighting crime as both Dick Grayson and Nightwing.
Then...Bludhaven fell.
The 'Crisis' started with alien conquerer, Darkseid, coming to Earth, unleashing the forces of his home planet, Apokolips, on Earth. Bludhaven was the randomly selected spot where the invasion would begin, and in an act of violence, the entire city was wiped out in an instance. Nightwing was just barely rescued from the city by Batman and the JLA, but he didn't want to leave. He felt that he could have saved the city, a concept that he still feels responsible for in his heart, viewing it as his single biggest mistake in his life.
Still, though the Crisis, Nightwing stood tall, helping the heroes of the world fight back against Darkseid and his human avatar, Maxwell Lord, along with his CHECKMATE organization and his army of OMACS.
When the battle was won, the President of the United States said that it was time for the superheroes of the world to have a little bit of organization, officially rebranding Lord's CHECKMATE as a metahuman task force, essentially being the surpreme power all heroes answer to. Bruce Wayne (who the government has secretly known was Batman for years) was personally selected by the President to act as the new 'White King' of CHECKMATE, essentially making him not only one of the most powerful people in the world, but also the 'boss' of the superhuman community.
Bruce selected, but he understood that with his new title, he could no longer carry on the identity of Batman. Privately, he gave Dick his blessing to become the new Batman under three conditions: Dick is to primarely work in Gotham, remain as a member of Bruce's newly formed Justice League of America, and Dick is to take on Bruce's recently discovered son, Damien, as the new Robin. Dick happily accepted and took on the mantle of Batman.
But can a man who has never stuck to the shadows represent the night? Can a man who usually used wisecracks and insult take advantage of superstition and cowardace? Can the Robin become the Batrman?
Dick Grayson is about to find out.

STATUS QUO:
While Dick Grayson has been Robin and Nightwing for years, the story picks up immediatly after he suits up as Batman for the first time. Essentially, this is Dick Grayson's "Batman Begins". Everything is relatively new to him. Driving the Batmobile, fighting with a Cape and Cowel, and coming to depend on a utility belt again are all things that he has to get used to all over again.
Dick also has Bruce Wayne's angry, short tempered, and advanced beyond his years son, Damien Wayne, as the new Robin. Damien really doesn't like Dick, and certainly doesn't respect him. Damien feels that he should actually be Batman himself at the tender age of 12, but that's another story.
Dick also has an on-again/off-again relationship with Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl, the current leader of the Birds of Prey. The BoP used to share Dick's home turf of Bludhaven, but after the city's destruction, they relocated to Metropolis.
Batman is also in the 'Justice League of America', a team consisting of Dick's old friends from his Robin days in the 'Junior Justice League' Donna Troy (Wonder Woman), Wally West (Flash) and Victor Stone (Cyborg). The team also consists of Superman, as well as original League founders Green Lantern, Aquaman, and the Martian Manhunter in the somewhat 'older mentor' roles.

AUTHOR NOTES:
"DC has sorta become something of 'cock-teases' when it comes to new heroes taking the role from established vetrans, just to have them give the roles back. Dick Grayson. Donna Troy. Kyle Rayner. Wally West. It sorta makes you wonder why they even bother in the first place. I was happy as hell when Dick Grayson took on the title of Batman, and then for him simply to return as Nightwing is a slap in the face. Bruce Wayne's Batman, IMO, is the perfect man, and the only problem with the perfect man as the hero is that the stories eventually become boring because you not only know that he's going to win, but you also know how. I like the idea of Dick having to learn through example of how to be Batman, and I think its an option that the reboot should really explore further."