Chapter 637: Chapter 637: The Clash of Ideologies Between Iron Man and Batman
"Hmm? That easy?" Tony Stark blinked in surprise at the unconscious Joker and Lars, whose alien mask was forcibly removed by Morbius. Honestly, given the Joker's unique situation and discovering two Shadow Legion masks in Gotham, Tony Stark expected a tough fight. He had even programmed JARVIS to notify Robert and Clark immediately if anything went wrong in the battle.
In fact, Tony Stark came prepared this time with special equipment, including weapons specifically designed to counter Dark Dimension creatures.
Before the Dark Dimension appeared, neither the Avengers nor Robert had considered the possibility of having special forces to counter dimension creatures. Tony Stark was unsure if the creatures and powers of the Dark Dimension had any weaknesses, so he wanted to test it out...
But now it seemed he'd have to wait until they brought Lars and the Joker back to the Avengers base to try it out.
"..." Batman also fell silent at the quick end of the fight, knowing that the Joker and Lars were as powerful as he was. This meant that if Martian Manhunter or Morbius wanted to take him down, without any preparation or effective trump cards, his fate would be no different from the Joker and Lars.
"Is this the strength of the Avengers? They didn't have these two strong members before..." A thought flashed through Batman's mind. "Should I form a superhuman organization too? But the two strongest people I know seem to be partners of the Avengers..."
"This guy is strange..." As Batman was deep in thought, Martian Manhunter, looking at the unconscious Joker, frowned. He found that his psychic powers couldn't read the Joker's memories.
Yes, Martian Manhunter had started researching the Joker. The fact that the Joker possessed Dark Dimension powers without a Shadow Legion mask made him suspect that the Joker might be a human vessel for a powerful entity from the Dark Dimension.
However, the Joker's strength was too weak, not surpassing the power boost from a mask. If he were a powerful entity from the Dark Dimension, his strength shouldn't be so limited.
Therefore, Martian Manhunter tried to read the Joker's memories. Despite some resistance, he successfully invaded the Joker's consciousness, only to find it in utter chaos, as if the Joker had many different memories, all jumbled together, making it impossible for Martian Manhunter to discern which memory fragment was real.
More importantly, deep in the Joker's memories, there was a constant surge of madness, making his mental landscape more complex and preventing Martian Manhunter from finding any useful memory images.
"Even a thousand-year-old being shouldn't have such a chaotic memory. Memories should be compartmentalized. What's with this guy? It's like he has lived countless different lives, with many conflicting timelines," Martian Manhunter muttered to himself, looking at the unconscious Joker.
"Not a human vessel? That's good. But this imitation Joker is also mentally ill and severely crazy. Be careful not to mess up your mind!" Tony Stark flew to Martian Manhunter's side, cautioning him.
Tony Stark now knew how powerful Martian Manhunter's psychic abilities were. If this guy went off the rails, most people on Earth would have their brains explode, with the unlucky ones dying instantly and the lucky ones becoming vegetative. Thus, the threat of Martian Manhunter going wrong was second only to Robert and Clark...
"Alright, let's take them back and study them slowly!" Martian Manhunter nodded. The world was full of wonders. He had never read the mind of a mentally ill person before, so he didn't know if the Joker's situation was unique.
"Wait! Where are you taking them?" Just as the three were about to leave, Batman, who had been ignored by the Avengers, flew over to block them, asking while his eyes kept darting to the Joker and Lars.
"Naturally, to bring them back for judgment. Do you want to stop us, Mr. Bat in black?" Tony Stark raised an eyebrow in surprise at Batman's action and asked.
"You have no right to judge them! They should be judged by the law. By doing this, you undermine the authority of the law! If every superhuman and vigilante acted like you, freely judging and killing criminals, it would lead to chaos!" Batman said sternly upon hearing Tony Stark's nonchalant voice.
"Tony Stark, you have lost your fear of life. In your eyes, you can freely judge criminals, but you are trampling on the law and life!"
"Mr. Righteous Bat, we didn't talk much before because I considered you a fellow superhero who has done a lot of good in Gotham. But now, I need to reconsider if you should keep your Shadow Legion mask..." Tony Stark said, giving Batman a deep look.
"I know a bit about Gotham. I don't know if you have any ties to Wayne Enterprises, which is why Bruce allows you to mess around in Gotham. But you've forgotten something..."
"The Avengers are a mature organization, recognized by society and the authorities. Previously, because the Avengers weren't in Gotham, you acted as a vigilante to handle the superhuman and major crime incidents. But now that the Avengers are here, these matters will be handled by us!"
"All superhuman incidents can be fully managed by the Avengers. All major crime incidents can be judged by the Avengers without needing your so-called law. This is the authority the Avengers now have. Or rather, the Avengers hold the law and judgment power you speak of!"
"Your judgment power is enforced by your overwhelming strength, which is still a desecration of the law. If everyone with power acted like the Avengers, the world would be in chaos!" Batman retorted, unyielding in the face of Tony Stark's forcefulness. He stared into the glowing eyes of Tony Stark's armor and spoke.
"Moreover, can you guarantee that there won't be someone stronger than you in the future, setting new rules? Can the Avengers really act impartially without any personal bias? Do you have internal oversight and auditing mechanisms?"
This was a clash of ideologies, a collision of beliefs. To Batman, the Avengers had already crossed the line, potentially leading to chaos and corruption.
He knew that power and authority were the easiest things to corrupt the human heart. While money was also tempting, Tony Stark already had plenty of that. The Avengers also had power and authority, and Batman didn't believe they could remain unchanged in such circumstances. It wasn't just because Batman inherently distrusted others, but he knew that human nature couldn't withstand such tests!
"That's an internal matter for the Avengers, and it doesn't concern you. To use your words, you don't have the qualifications to oversee us." Tony Stark sneered at Batman's questioning. "Moreover, the Avengers have resolved countless superhuman incidents and saved innumerable lives from suffering. But in your dark Gotham, not a single super criminal has died, even though their hands are stained with blood..."
"When you question the Avengers, first think about whether we've allowed criminals to re-offend. And how many super criminals you've captured have reformed? Think about the employees who died at the hands of the Joker today and the innocent civilians affected by this destructive event!"
"If I were Bruce, I'd have kicked you out of Gotham long ago... Wait, Bruce Wayne is also a softie. With his position in Gotham, how hard would it be to kill super criminals like the Joker? Just hire a few good lawyers, make the court trials strict, no parole, no recognizing their insanity defense, right?"
"For superheroes and vigilantes, you treat them strictly, not allowing them any room to cross the line. For super criminals, you want to uphold the authority of the law, knowing they'll exploit legal loopholes to escape death, knowing they'll cause more innocent casualties afterward, but you still refuse to make improvements..."
"Haha, someone who doesn't know might think you're playing heaven and hell, with demons wreaking havoc on Earth, causing suffering, angels defeating the demons to save people, bringing hope. In the end, people still die, demons remain free, and the number of believers in angels keeps increasing. Isn't this a joke?"
"You're wronging Bruce Wayne here..." Just as Tony Stark finished speaking, Lars, who had lost the mask's power and was captured by Morbius, spoke up weakly. "He's indeed a bit conflicted and rigid, but he truly hates evil. If not, why would he sacrifice his time and energy to become a knight in the dark, guarding this place?"
"Hmm?!" Tony Stark raised an eyebrow at Lars, suddenly looking at Batman and pointing at him. "So it's you! No wonder Wayne Enterprises turns a blind eye to Batman! It's you yourself! What? You saw me becoming a popular superhero and decided to mimic me, wanting to be a household name too?"
"I was already Batman before you put on that tin suit and became Tin Man!" Batman retorted coldly, facing Tony Stark's attempt to recruit him as a fan.
"Since you're Bruce, you have even less right to stop me. You know very well the authority the Avengers have now was hard-fought. We're no different from other official agencies, except some of them are hostile towards us..." Tony Stark's expression turned serious as he spoke to Batman. But then he realized something.
"Wait! The one using a suit to impersonate me was you?! The first-generation arc reactor isn't exclusive to me anymore, but it's not common either. Only top-tier big shots could have a piece of the action from the Ivan Vanko incident, and you, Bruce, qualify!"
"It's me..." Batman hesitated for a moment under Tony Stark's piercing gaze, with his mask lifted, before finally admitting.
"And you still say you're not my fan? You even collected my voice pack!" Tony Stark laughed, then his expression turned cold. "Your impersonation this time, JARVIS has already contacted Wayne Enterprises about it. You know my copyright and appearance fees. This doesn't even include the cost of me coming to
save the day. I hope you transfer the money soon, or I'll see you in court, Mr. Bruce Wayne the Batman..."
"Hope you find a good lawyer because I've recorded this video, including the part where your identity is revealed!"
"We're taking the Joker and this guy. In the future, change your ways. If you're willing to toughen up, even just make the laws you uphold stricter, Gotham wouldn't have so many scumbags, nor would so many people die needlessly..."
"Don't forget, a judge can interpret the law as they see fit in America. Why can't you use it to solve Gotham's plight?"
With that, Tony Stark signaled to Martian Manhunter and Morbius. Leaving behind the mask, the three left with the Joker and Lars, leaving Batman in silence. Ultimately, he didn't stop them, knowing he didn't have the strength to.
Moreover, Batman had many things to deal with next, whether it was the loss of Wayne Enterprises' personnel and property or his possibly exposed identity...
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