Martin Variety in American Comics.

Chapter 36 At least they won't unite (thanks for your support)
Somewhere in Gotham that's hidden from the public eye.

People in black robes walked in the darkness, took their seats on the circular stone platform, and then saluted around the huge stone statue of the bat god.

Their movements were too obscure to understand, more like the unconscious actions of a mentally ill person, and difficult to describe.

In short, after these men in black robes saluted the stone statue, they sat on the stone platform and began to communicate.

"The Court of Owls' operation has completely failed. All the talons sent out have been captured."

"When did such a powerful wizard come to Gotham? Not only did he sense the lost souls of the Claws, but he also easily changed the terrain of the Slaughter Swamp."

"What we should do now is to hide ourselves and wait for the chosen one to mature on his own."

"That wizard will never give up until he finds the soul of Sharp Claw. He will definitely continue to track us."

The men in black robes were talking to each other, discussing heatedly what had happened today.

They have controlled the dark side and magic side of Gotham for too long, so long that they are no longer accustomed to the feeling of being challenged or even threatened.

So even though the black-robed men were arguing more and more intensely, they were not able to find any common ground, and their differences were only growing larger.

hum!
The stone statue of the bat god created ripples in the air.

All the people in black robes shut their mouths instantly, and when the black ripples passed by them, they tilted their ears to listen, and then they heard the information hidden in the ripples.

"Hide ourselves and prevent the wizard from discovering us. We will not lose any amber gold, Dionysus factor, or the memories in our minds. We must find a way to suppress everything else."

A man in a black robe who looked like a patriarch spoke with a hoarse voice that only an old man could speak, suppressing all dissenting opinions.

"That wizard is not only powerful, but also very cunning. If we want to divert his attention from us, we have to create even greater chaos."

"The League of Assassins wants to destroy Gotham, so we'll help them. We'll do whatever it takes to turn Gotham into a sea of fire to hide our existence."

Different voices suddenly rang out among the black-robed people:
"The more powerful the wizard, the more ruthless he is. Even if Gotham really becomes a sea of fire, that wizard won't react at all."

"Our actions will also leave traces, and the other party will follow the clues to find us."

"What about Batman? If he dies, everything we've done will be for nothing."

They talked at once, and no one cared about destroying Gotham.

"enough!"

The Patriarch of the Bat God slammed the table and scolded sternly: "We have experienced all kinds of difficulties, and you are actually scared by an unknown wizard?"

The man in black robe became quiet, but stopped talking.

The Patriarch thought of the Massacre Swamp that had changed drastically, and finally relented: "Okay, our safety comes first. Let your followers do this."

"Batman is the chosen one, so he is not that fragile. There is no need to worry about whether the wizard will be fooled. Since he wants to rescue the trapped souls, he will not leave the living alone."

The man in black robes leaned forward to show that he would obey the Patriarch's orders, and then disappeared into the darkness.

……

Martin cast an acceleration spell on himself, running as fast as flying and quickly returning to the safe house.

"Martin, our satellites detected a large tremor in the Massacre Swamp. Are you okay?"

Barbara pushed the wheelchair quickly to the living room and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Martin opening the door and walking in, safe and sound.

"I'm fine!"

Martin raised his left hand, patted the muscles hidden by his robe, and gave a confident smile.

"The vibrations caused by the Massacre Swamp are due to my spell."

He began to measure the safe house with his footsteps, tapping the floor with his yew cane with each step.

Barbara swore she saw something happen to part of the house after Martin had struck his cane, but when she tried to see what it was, the walls and floor returned to normal, as if her eyes were hallucinating.

"Wait, you cleared the silted-up Massacre Swamp all by yourself? Isn't that absurd?"

Barbara finally reacted and stared at Martin with wide eyes.

"It's okay. Magic is an irrational skill."

Martin didn't stop.

Without being modest, he has been surrounded by such shocks and praises since he was born, and he has long been accustomed to it.

But these words came from Barbara, his new friend, and he couldn't help but smile proudly.

Barbara was very curious about magic and continued to ask, "What magic are you using on the safe house now?"

"I'm reinforcing the safe house's defenses to prevent the Court of Owls from using magic to attack here."

"The Court of Owls, the Court of Owls they sing about?"

"Yes, that Court of Owls."

Martin cast the most basic protective spell on the safe house and pushed Barbara to the sofa.

"Just like what is sung in the ballad, they have always existed in the shadows of Gotham, controlling everything in the dark world."

Barbara found this absurd: "But Bruce never mentioned anything about the courts."

"But they do exist, and over the past few hundred years, the Wayne family has been fighting against them, and many members of the Wayne family have died in the hands of the court."

Martin did not tell Barbatos about her existence, so that Barbara would not be targeted by that guy.

"My God!"

Barbara put her hands in her long red hair, pulled them back, and said distressedly, "The trouble with the Assassin's League hasn't been solved yet, and now the Court of Owls has emerged, and Bruce has been arrested."

Martin said optimistically, "The situation is indeed bad, but it has not reached its worst point yet. At least the Assassin's League and the Court of Owls have not joined forces. We still have a chance to defeat them one by one."

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of calling the police came from the safe house.

"This is a security system set up to monitor those lunatics in Arkham."

Barbara pushed her wheelchair into the room and Martin followed.

Several computer screens were filled with alarm symbols. Mr. Freeze, Firefly, Man-Bat, Scarecrow... all ran out into the streets and started wreaking havoc.

And by the time Barbara tried to locate them, they had all disappeared.

"damn it!"

Barbara slammed her fist on the table and gritted her teeth and said, "Our satellite has been hacked. It must be that bastard Arkham Knight."

Martin looked at the list of criminals on the computer screen and shook his head, "It seems someone doesn't want us to rest!"

He had a bad feeling but didn't say it.

"Barbara, you and Nightwing go find Batman. I'll deal with these bastards causing chaos on the street to buy you some time."

"it is good!"

Barbara knew that Martin didn't need her to worry, so she immediately got down to work.

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(End of this chapter)