Chapter 57: Completely Shattered Will
As the last trace of sunset disappeared below the horizon, the Green Goblin's heart sank with a thud—as if one second he was still in New York, this prosperous metropolis, and the next he'd fallen straight into hell.
He'd been half-guided, half-herded by Batman to Queens' western riverbank. Ten meters ahead lay the East River, facing Roosevelt Island in the middle.
Only Roosevelt Island was pitch black and lightless—from afar, it resembled a slumbering massive monster.
The Goblin withdrew his gaze, surveying his surroundings. He stood in an open area surrounded by bushes and trees.
Batman had long since vanished, but the Goblin's enhanced senses could clearly perceive a cold gaze locked onto him.
Rustle, rustle...
Evening wind blew through. Those low, tangled bushes produced continuous subtle sounds.
"Come out!"
The Goblin shouted. He stared fixedly at the bushes. In a trance, he seemed to see a pair of sharply raised ears in the foliage.
He reached back, pulling out the green blade concealed in his suit.
The green Goblin suit had been hacked by Batman and couldn't be reactivated. This blade could no longer conduct electricity. But it remained an extremely sharp alloy blade.
Gripping the handle with both hands, the Goblin cautiously approached the bushes, then suddenly thrust the blade forward!
One strike down—the blade encountered no resistance. Batman wasn't hiding here.
The Goblin looked carefully. What he'd mistakenly taken for pointed ears in his daze was just two clusters of leaves.
He breathed easier. But suddenly a "splash" came from the pitch-black East River.
The sudden disturbance made the Goblin unhesitatingly turn his blade toward the East River. Yet the water surface had already regained calm—as if it had merely been a fish or frog falling into water.
"Come out, Batman!" The Goblin held his blade upright before him, eyes constantly scanning around.
Trees, bushes, weeds...
Everything utterly ordinary under sunlight now seemed transformed into unspeakable monsters in the Goblin's eyes.
The Goblin could clearly feel cold sweat slowly sliding down his spine. He couldn't help swallowing.
Batman still didn't appear. But that gaze examining prey made the Goblin's back crawl—he didn't dare relax for a moment.
"Stop hiding, I've found you!" The Goblin's voice was already trembling slightly.
He'd rather Batman appear for a three-hundred-round battle than continue enduring this tremendous pressure.
His super soldier serum-enhanced keen senses could detect Batman nearby, but he couldn't lock onto his specific location.
From the moment the Goblin entered this area, an inaudible low-frequency sound wave had continuously rang out, disrupting the Goblin's super senses while making him somewhat restless and anxious.
The sky darkened another shade. Distant high-rises and bridges blazed with lights, but the Goblin hazily felt all of that was abnormally far from himself.
"Norman Osborn."
Just as the Goblin stood with blade ready, Batman's low voice suddenly rang out.
"You collaborated with General Ross, secretly capturing fifty homeless people for human experimentation."
"Shut up! Come out! Fight me!" The Goblin's facial features twisted as he shouted.
"To develop super soldier serum, you halted almost all of Oscorp's experimental research, forcing Dr. Octavius to seek other methods. Thirty-one officers he killed in Brooklyn's sewers."
"Dr. Octavius has spent these days in remorse. You, as the root cause, remain at large."
Batman's voice seemed to come from all directions. The Goblin spun in place but couldn't locate the source.
"You killed eight research personnel on Oscorp's sublevel three."
The Goblin began wildly slashing around. He vaguely sensed Batman drawing closer—this inhuman monster had bared its fangs, ready to tear out his throat at any moment.
"You killed the Smythe family."
Batman's voice held no emotional fluctuation—as if the Goblin's manic appearance hadn't swayed his emotions one bit.
"You could have become a respected entrepreneur, a father Harry Osborn took pride in."
"But you chose the wrong path. Became the target of police warrants. The murderer everyone despises in newspapers."
"Your son Harry Osborn will live forever in the shadow of 'father as villain,' repenting for everything you did for the rest of his life."
Batman's speech was slow. He deliberately used words to attack the Goblin's taut nerves.
"Stop! Say no more! Don't tell Harry any of this!"
Clatter—the Goblin dropped his blade, both hands removing his helmet, gripping his hair and screaming.
WHOOSH!
Accompanied by the sound of flapping wings, countless bats descended from above, circling the Goblin. Cold, damp air also drifted from the East River.
The Goblin's psyche completely collapsed. He fell to his knees with a thud, body constantly convulsing.
After a long moment he raised his head. The Goblin's characteristic madness and sinister expression vanished completely, replaced by Norman Osborn's face full of pain and regret.
"Take me away," Norman's face bore tracks of tears. "Please, Batman."
Among the sky-full of flying bats, Batman's figure had appeared beside the Goblin at some point. He looked down at Norman Osborn, prostrate on the ground, filled with remorse.
WHOOSH!
The instant Batman appeared, Norman grabbed the fallen green blade and thrust forward.
Pretend to beg for mercy and reform, then launch a sneak attack when Batman appears!
The Goblin's mouth curled up again, as if already seeing Batman's legs severed, rolling on the ground in agony.
His blade struck home.
RIP!
The blade slashed Batman's cape. The inferior secondary Bat-cape couldn't block the sharp alloy blade's slash.
But the next second, the wide, soft cape seemed to gain sentience on Batman's body. As Batman twisted, the cape covered the Goblin's vision like a dark cloud.
Just as the Goblin was about to convert his slash into a thrust, Batman had already swiftly grasped his wrist.
Then irresistible force transmitted from Batman's hand. The Goblin's entire body was swung in a circle through the air before being heavily smashed to the ground.
"Your madness, your strength, your schemes—all are worthless in my eyes."
Batman placed one foot on the Goblin's chest—like an entire mountain pinning him immobile.
Strength, methods, schemes—in every way, the Goblin had been utterly defeated by Batman.
The Goblin wanted to struggle, but Batman's final words completely shattered his will:
"You're not even as good as the Joker."
Not even as good as a circus clown... The Green Goblin completely disappeared. Norman Osborn only felt bitterness in his mouth. About to say something, his vision suddenly went black—Batman knocked him unconscious with one strike.
Hours later, the unconscious Norman was imprisoned in the new precinct where George Stacy served as captain. The iron cage specially built to hold Squid-Man now found its use.
"Batman... Batman!"
George Stacy looked at a batarang embedded in Norman's suit, trying his best to imagine what kind of terrifying existence this was.
Batman now wore a flannel shirt, holding a bouquet of flowers as he knocked on a row house door in Queens' Forest Hills community.
Creak.
The person inside seemed to have been waiting a long time. After a few knocks, the door opened swiftly.
Batman looked at the elderly woman who unconditionally doted on him, speaking in Peter's characteristic youthful tone:
"Aunt May."