mtl008 Chapter 4394 Project Farstar (2)
Chapter 4394 Project Farstar (2)
Chapter 4394 Project Far Star (Part Twelve)
The fireplace in Wayne Manor was still burning warmly. The cold wind outside couldn't penetrate it at all, but when Bruce Wayne sat there, it was as if all the darkness in the world had descended upon him, and he alone was like a snowy night in an entire city.
Schiller walked in through the door, took off his scarf, shook off the snow, handed his chilly coat to Alfred, exhaled the last breath of cold air, walked to the sofa, and sat down opposite Bruce.
"What do you want?"
"There's a job that needs your help."
"Don't joke around. I'm not an agent, I don't love going to work that much." Schiller looked away.
“This is a great job for you to be the mastermind behind the scenes,” Bruce said calmly. “The head of SkyEye, one of the job responsibilities is to manipulate the positions of superheroes.”
Schiller squinted at him. Bruce said, “You love doing this kind of thing, don’t you? Getting people’s attention, manipulating their emotions, watching them play like fish on a hook. Amanda’s position is practically made for you.”
“You want to provoke me? Why? What good will it do you?” Schiller asked.
“No, I’m complimenting you,” Bruce said. “You and Amanda are completely different. She hates superheroes, she hates all superpowered people. But you’re different, you love them.”
Bruce leaned forward to pick up a glass from the table and said, "You have a higher, more inexplicable fondness for them. Have you heard their legends, or seen some superhero from a certain universe appear in some work of art, and are you a big fan?"
Schiller's hand paused slightly. He looked at Bruce, but the gray-haired man's expression remained unchanged.
This is the first elderly Batman Schiller has encountered. Currently, whether it's the main universe Batman, the Grand Adventure Batman, or the Arkham Batman, they are all around forty years old, some even under forty. But the Batman in front of him is already fifty.
Ten years—that's a long enough period for Batman to transform into a different being. If that's not clear enough, perhaps we can compare Batman at twenty and thirty. At twenty, Batman was just starting out, still fighting gangsters; at thirty, he had already landed on Apokolips.
The same applies to forty and fifty years old. When Schiller first met the main universe Batman, he was already incredibly powerful. Yet, in just a few short years, the main universe Batman has transformed from a Gotham superhero into a leader of the multiverse. Give him another ten years, and nobody knows how much he'll grow.
Even though Bruce in front of him had never been exposed to the Battle Realm, nor had he had the multiverse to accelerate his growth, his ten years of experience were still not to be underestimated. He was the first person to see through Schiller's "high-dimensional perspective."
Of course, it has been discovered before that Schiller has some knowledge about superheroes that is outside the scope of his understanding, and some heroes know that Schiller is not a local, but comes from a very far place.
However, no one has ever said that his understanding of superheroes is not like that of a living person in the real world; much of the information is more like a description of a character.
Although Schiller tried his best not to force information from his own mind onto real people, certain "God's-eye view" perspectives and the judgments that come with them were unavoidable. His first encounter with them from comic books was through this God's-eye view.
If that's all there is to it, it's really nothing. Perhaps Batman in the main universe also noticed, but he just didn't say anything. Because Schiller is already abnormal enough, is your God-like perspective on others any more bizarre than psychoanalysis? Since it's not, there's no need to single it out for discussion.
However, the older Batman realized the most crucial point—Schiller loved these characters.
It's safe to say that no Batman could guarantee this. First, they're not interested in the inner world of the mentally ill; second, Schiller doesn't seem like a friendly mental patient; and finally, some of Schiller's crazy actions seem more like pure hatred than love turned to hate, and he hates everyone equally.
The personality trait that Batman in the main universe understands best is arrogance, which is why he is particularly hesitant to judge it. Any emotion that drives arrogance to do something is more reasonable than love.
"Are you waiting for me to praise your intelligence?" Schiller asked Bruce with a smile. "Unfortunately, I'm just one of many personality traits; that only represents one side of me..."
“You are the most special one,” Bruce continued. “You are the driving force.”
Schiller wasn't surprised that Bruce knew about his form of existence. The idea of an isomorph might fool others, but it wouldn't fool Batman. They have their own intelligence network; every personality trait that has ever appeared should be listed. Perhaps they even have a research group dedicated to studying the differences between these personality traits and when they can be used; otherwise, it's hard to explain why Batman would want to hire agents.
“How did you know?” Schiller asked. “If I loved them, why would I think of manipulating and deceiving them?”
“Because you’re a psychopath with a personality disorder,” Bruce said calmly. “At least when you first learned about superheroes, you weren’t quite able to perfectly hide your mental problems. So, you would fantasize about how you would treat them in a morbid way. Even now that you’re acting like a normal person, these thoughts still pop up from time to time, just like those more dangerous and crazy personality traits occasionally appear.”
“I have to admit that your understanding is correct. But you are not like most people, who avoid pathology at all costs.”
"Everyone has a pathological side. If you think that only you can openly admit and face it, then you are too arrogant."
"You mean you can too?"
“Not only that,” Bruce said, shaking his head slightly. “Just as you would use your morbidity, so would I; just as you would use the morbidity of others, so would I. That’s why I’m coming to you now.”
"What do you want to use me for?" Schiller asked.
“Do what you do best,” Bruce said. “I need a Justice League that unites around me.”
"This means they must break away from and resist the society they live in in order to join the society you are building."
“That would make us seem heartless,” Bruce said, shaking his head. “I would rather call it showing them the truth about the society they live in and then letting them make their own choices.”
"The truth? What is the truth? Is it the homeless people struggling to survive in the tent area, or the happy family in the big house?"
“That’s all the truth,” Bruce admitted without hesitation, “but what they’ve often seen is the latter.”
"You want to show them the former, to make them think that the society they live in is too cold and heartless, so that they will take the initiative to break away and come into your arms."
But Bruce shook his head and said, "I don't want to use the plight of the underprivileged to provoke them. When they see the plight of the underprivileged, they will also see their courage and love, their kindness and the brilliance of their humanity. That is the reason why they must go out and save these people, because they are heroes."
Schiller took a sip of coffee and said, “That is indeed very clever. Sympathy for the victims and resentment towards the perpetrators are not enough to build a firm belief. Only by truly recognizing that the strength and character of those who struggle to survive in the abyss deserve a better life can one build a great cause to fight for throughout one’s life.”
“Unfortunately, neither you nor I are heroes. So, on this journey, we're both the ones who pour cold water on things.” Bruce leaned back in his chair and said, “Lead the Sky Eye to drag them out of their warm houses and throw them into the snow. Only then will they start building new shelters. They'll realize how difficult it is, and then they'll try to join me.”
"Don't you ever think about what might happen if they actually build a new shelter and completely abandon you..."
“Then I can really retire.” Bruce crossed his legs and put his hands on his knees. “I thought you wouldn’t daydream like that.”
Schiller fell silent, for he knew this was indeed wishful thinking. As things stood, it was impossible for the Justice League members in this universe to do without Batman. Not because they weren't strong enough, but because Batman was simply too cunning and calculating.
A Batman who sees through Schiller's pathology and wants to actively exploit it—the word "cunning" doesn't even begin to describe him. Keep in mind, after being in this universe for so long, those classic Gotham villains haven't made a sound, they're as quiet as if they're dead, which is even more terrifying than if they were actually dead.
“Very good, I find this very interesting.” Schiller laughed. “Getting them to find you isn’t difficult, but getting them to unite around you is not easy. The Justice League members in your universe are exceptionally independent.”
Schiller had already noticed that the characters in the cinematic universe were indeed very different from those in the comics, especially in this universe. Perhaps Batman's golden age just happened to fall out of their reach, so they didn't seem to realize how powerful Batman was, nor did they have any sense of dependence on him; when something happened, they only thought about solving it themselves.
Although entering the Battle Realm gave them a vague sense that Batman was not some aging second-tier hero, but rather a figurehead in the multiverse, it was only hearsay. Without actual experience, it would be difficult for them to believe it.
“Didn’t you already do it?” Bruce said.
Schiller thought for a moment, then understood. Bruce was referring to what he had done to Superman.
To reiterate, to create a god, you can elevate the god, but the most efficient way is to dig three feet into the ground, which makes the god appear taller.
Schiller did exactly that when he created a god for Superman. Using the mysterious "Serpent of Phryne" from ancient Egypt, he dragged in the British Royal Family, the federal government, the military, Superman, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, Lois Lane, and many others, turning the whole situation into chaos. When things got out of control, Superman naturally had to step in and make the final decision.
Batman, who wants to transform himself from a long-retired, aging, and obscure Gotham superhero into the absolute core of the superpowered organization Justice League, also needs to use the same method of creating a god.
As long as he can find a way to make the situation so that no one but him can solve it, then the whole place will be his stage.
"The plan is good, but you need someone to invite you onto the stage. Who do you think will be the first to give up?"
"Diana".
"why?"
"She's under the most pressure. Besides protecting Metropolis, she also has to protect the Amazon. She knows the most, is the first to recognize the enemy's strength and feel the pressure. She also knows the most about Batman, having heard of their name in the fighting world and knowing how powerful they are. She's also mature enough to have participated in wars and know that calling for reinforcements is not shameful..."
“Of course, that’s not the main reason.” Bruce paused for a moment, then continued, “It has to be her, it can only be her, because I need the Golden Apple.”
The Batman in the movie is silly, completely inconsistent with Ben Affleck's character. Such a gloomy and imposing Batman should be a ruthless old fox, mainly ruthless.