"If you're watching this, I'm dead. This is Code Black. This message was automatically triggered when the cave detected my life signs fade. We all know it won't take long for Gotham's criminals to realise that the Batman is gone. The GCPD will be overrun, they don't have the man-power to deal with the underworld. Gotham will need a protector more than ever. I'm leaving you the Cave and Belfry as bases of operations. While the Belfry might have out of date technology, it should suffice as an outpost within Gotham. You've always had my back when I needed you, and I know you'll keep Gotham Safe. Good Luck"

2 Months,  2 months since Bruce Wayne had passed away. At the age go 66, Bruce Wayne, Billionaire Playboy and Gotham's Elite suffered a heart attack en route to a Wayne Enterprises board meeting. Time of death 19:30, all of Gotham had felt his death, the billionaire had impacted them all, in more ways than they could possibly imagine. The man was a beacon of hope for all, a shining signal in Gotham, uses his fame and family fortune to better what he could. But one secret that only few in this world know, is that Bruce Wayne helped the city in an additional way.

Bruce Wayne, was The Batman.

Starting out in his early twenties, Bruce Wayne had did his best to defend his fair city from what criminals he could. Bruce always said that criminals are a superstitious cowardly lot, and they needed something to fear. So he gave something. The very creature that had tormented him as a boy was transformed into a sigil that all who dared break the law face.

Bruce did not act alone however, his legacy lives on in the form of his adopted son Y/N L/N. The vigilante had taken the boy in at a young age, and trained him in the form of every martial art that Bruce knew. Before long, Y/N had become his own hero, the Robin. A Dynamic Duo, working in tangent with one another, and Y/N in his early twenties had left Gotham, to become his own person away from the Robin persona.

But now, Y/N found himself back in Gotham, looking over a newly assembled suit that was on display in the Belfry. The Belfry was an old clock tower, it served as a miniature Batcave to an extent. Small training area, one of the first Batcomputer models was operational with many monitors displaying maps of the city.

Y/N waved a hand through his messy h/c hair, he looked at the makeshift Batsuit he had compelled together a few weeks ago. His previous vigilante identity wouldn't strike fear in the criminals at the Bat does, and they needed to be afraid. Fear is a weapon, the most powerful weapon the human race has ever conceived, and fear is a deterrence. Criminals wouldn't dare try and go out at night if they knew the Bat still stalked the night sky. Y/N wouldn't dare wear one of Bruce's suits, he wasn't worthy. He couldn't, even if he wanted to, his prime Batsuit was designed and scans the DNA of the wearer in an attempt, so if anyone would get their hands on it, it couldn't be used against the City.

Y/N stood at 6.1, a lean body, not the bulky look that Bruce had in his latter days, late twenties, taking in a deep breath as he looked over the displayed map of the city. And a dozen open case files that Bruce was working on. Ranging from small time gangs such as Roman Sionis to bigger fish like Sal Maroni. The one perp Bruce could never lay a finger on, Carmine Falcone. He and Maroni practically run 50% of the organised crime in Gotham, and the Roman's control has been diminishing for some time.

Maroni has always embraced what the media called the 'new wave of crime', Solomon Grundy, Mad Hatter, Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Crazy Quilt were all seen as these new, better criminals. Super-villain activity and metahuman related crimes had been been on the rise. And Falcone always saw them as second tier criminals. Maroni on the other hand, always used them to bolster his forces, power shifting between the two crime families for decades now.

Y/N took a deep breath through his nose, looking over the case files. His phone on the left of his desk, had several voice mails left behind by Tim. The whole family had gone dark since the news broke, Tim is doing his best to hole down the fort with the Titans, but really, they're doing their best to keep him together. Barbara had pretty much thrown herself into her work, doing her best to get her little Birds of Prey group back together. We all need something to keep us busy. Jason, he's gone dark. No ones heard from him in 3 weeks, last Tim heard Jason had gone off the deep end dealing with what remains of the League of Assassins.

As Y/N prepared to open a case file named 'Gaslight', he saw it, out of the corner of his eyes. The one thing that signalled, he was needed, that Batman was needed. The Batsignal shined bright in the sky, a warning that the Bat was to play. Stepping towards his suit in the glass, Y/N looked at the cowl, preparing to see how he could be useful tonight.

On top of the Belfry, the Batman watched over the city. After all, tonight was Halloween, perfect time of year for masks:

Journeying to the GCPD, Batman saw that Commissioner James Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent, both standing in front of one another. Jim lit up a pipe, smoke erupting from it, slightly surprising Harvey.

"Thought you quit?" the District Attorney asked.

"I have" was all Jim said back, eyes slightly narrowed.

"Don't worry, I won't tell Barbara" Harvey assured. This little secret would stay between them.

Batman leaped downwards, slightly, not gaining the attention of either of the men. His cape blew in the wind as he stood up fully. "Gentlemen"  he greeted, gaining their attention.

"Ah good" Jim said, knowing that this trinity of justice was together once again.

"Boys said you were rocking a new look, why the change?" Dent asked, stepping closer to inspect how Y/N's suit was much different to Bruce's. Armour was more visible, and any descent sniper would be able to see the gaps between the padding. 

"You need a reason?" Batman replied, his voice emotionless as Y/N did his best to keep this persona up. Dent shrugged his shoulders, Jim stepping forward reaching into the inner pocket of his trench coat. "What's happened?" Batman asked.

Jim held up a plastic bag containing a revolver, and something on the muzzle, seemingly acting like a silencer. "Johnny Viti was murdered tonight" he answered.

Harvey closed his eyes tightly, anger and frustration clear on his face. "Damn it!" he cursed looking downwards gritting his teeth.

Jim handed Batman the bag, with the vigilante asking. "The Roman's nephew?"

"He has a name!" Dent said, cutting Batman off. "It's Carmine Falcone, not the 'Roman'-" before Harvey could go on a rant he was cut off.

"Harvey calm down" Jim said.

"Where were your men Jim?" Harvey asked, still quite angry. "I've been working on Vitti for months! Nobody on your team thought he'd be vulnerable the night he's gonna turn state's evidence?" shouted, storming off to the side.

Batman looked over the gun for a moment, taking in every small detail of it. The scratches, muzzle, tape around the handle, every detail had to be taken in. "22 caliber, taped handle, serial number scratched off" he said out loud, bringing it closer to his face.

"Baby bottle nipple for a silencer" Gordon remarked. "Odd, but effective. And untraceable. Hard to tell if we're dealing with a professional" Jim added, handing Batman a photo of the crime scene. Body in a bathtub, overflowing with a mixture of water and blood, strangely a jack o lantern was in the corner of the room.

"Of course it was professional, this was Falcone!" Harvey spat out. "He found out Viti was gonna betray the family, so he took him off the board!" he continued his small rant.

"Maybe" Batman remarked, looking up from the photo to Jim and Harvey.

Harvey sighed out loud, rubbing his eyes in frustration. "We were so close, we were so close Jim. He was ready to sing" he said, looking towards the Commissioner. "And not just about Carmine, the whole family was going away. We had a real opportunity to change thing".

"We still do, just a setback. We'll find another way to take down Falcone, together" Jim said, removing the pipe from his mouth.

As the two men of the law talked, Batman studied the photo. There was still one thing that just didn't make sense for a simple mob hit. "Where's the jack o lantern?" he asked, Jim slightly surprised and Harvey not amused.

"Excuse me?" the Commissioner asked. Batman held out the photo, to which Dent took it to inspect the lead. "You think it's important?" Jim added.

"I don't know yet" Batman admitted. 'Pathetic' Y/N thought to himself at the back of his mind. 'Bruce would know, he'd have a lead. You have nothing. You'll never be half the Batman he was'

"Look, Harvey's right" Jim said, gaining Batman's attention back to reality. "This city's finally got a chance, and it's the three men standing here, right now" he continued. "The Falcone crime family has to be taken down, so I'm putting you two together. District attorney Dent will work in the light-" he turned to Batman. "And you.........will work the other side" he couldn't bring himself to say it. "Bend the rules, but never break them. And I'll do everything I can to protect you both" Jim finished. Cementing what this alliance would be built upon, a mutual goal of brining down the Roman.

Batman stepped towards the edge of the building, in deep thought. Bruce trusted Jim, he trusted Harvey, but Dent has a small history of trying to come for the Bat Family. Y/N knew this was the best option.

"He needs to hear you say it Bats" Harvey called out.

"Two heads are better than one" Batman looked over the city, sirens could be heard in the distance, there was also something happening in Gotham. Y/N could use some of Bruce's old case files to try and find some of Falcone's stashes. Wouldn't be hard to find a safe house and deal with whatever security was present. "Leads come my way pretty fast, keep your ears open".

"Then I guess we're up and-" Gordon and Harvey looked to see that Batman had vanished. "-Running, he does that a lot, I think-" Jim turned to see that Harvey had left as well, the door downstairs shutting and the flip of a coin being heard. "And I'm talking to myself" he said out loud.

While this meeting had concluded, another was beginning just across the city. Carmine Falcone had called an emergency meeting of his family that was within Gotham, all of his underbosses and consiglieres all gathered in one place to discuss to the recent tragedy that had befell their family.

"Carmine, no disrespect but why are we sitting on our hands here huh" one man named Antoni asked, sitting across on the other end of the table. "He put two in Johnny's head!" he angrily stated.

"Who did?" Carmine inquired.

"Salvatore Maroni! Who else?" Antoni responded. "Ever since he took over that family, he's been gunning for us. Sending those freaks, rolling into our turf. And tonight he found a target, it's a warning for Christ Sakes".

"Perhaps" Carmine stated calmly. "But let bus be clear, the man who pulled the trigger did not load the gun. Maroni's ambition was in check, until the law put a target on my back. Now, it's open season. If anyone is responsible for my nephew's death, it's that son of a bitch in the DA's office. Dent".

This got pretty much all of the men in the room to begin murmuring in agreement and nods.

Antoni stood up from his seat. "Hell Yes! You just say the word Carmine and I'll do Dent myself!" he stated with pride.

Although this statement didn't seem to strike with Carmine at all, "Settle Antoi. At the right time, we'll hit back. Until then-".

"The right time is now Carmine! Now!" Antoni spat back. "Any delay is only gonna make you look even weaker!" he said, at that, an ire silence cropped over the room. The faces of many mobsters hardened with hatred, and a large muscly man standing next to Carmine began to move over to Antoli.

"Thank you, for your concern Antoni" Carmine said as his enforcer drew closer and closer.

Antoni sat down in his chair, looking scared and defeated, the enforcer right behind him practically breathing down his neck. "No-no disrespect Carmine" he stuttered over himself.

The enforcer grabbed Antoni by both of his shoulders lifted him out of his seat, the enforcer moved in closer mouth close to his ear. "It's Godfather" he whispered.

Antoni was dragged out the room, to a nearby staircase all the while he pleaded for his life. "No, I didn't mean-" he was lifted up, dangling over the staircase. "Please" he begged, then the enforcer let go. Antoni fell a hundred floors, his body splattering against the ground, not that anyone heard him at all. And everything in the room, went right back to normal.

"We have other business to discuss" Carmine said, looking over to his shocked son. "Alberto" he called out. "Alberto" he repeated getting his sons attention. "Business Time. Take your crosswords for a walk" he joked at the newspaper he son was holding.

"They're.......logic puzzles" he tried to argue but his voice fell flat. Standing from his seat and moving to the door.

"Thirty-two, going on thirteen" Carmine joked, causing many of the mobsters to snicker and laugh. "Sadly, currently Wayne Enterprises has a temporary new CEO, no at the moment he won't any large-scale strutting effort. So for now, the assets will have to be moved to a more secure facility" Carmine said, the door to his meeting shutting.

Out in the city of Gotham, Batman stalked an an alleyway from above. Five thugs, belonging to what remained of the Whisper Gang. Some Russians thought they could break off and form they're own faction within Gotham, let's just say the Russians don't take kindly to traitors. In a matter of months the Whisper Gang was crushed, and only a few holdouts remained. These five were only armed with basic weapons, machetes, butcher knives and even one with a baseball bat. What made this gang different was the they wore metal masks over their mouths. It was their signature look, and these guys seemed to wear it with pride.

Batman stalked them from the rooftop, crouching down and moving towards his utility belt looking for the perfect tool. Pulling out the grapple gun, Batman waited for the perfect opportunity, a moment of weakness. Acting quickly, Batman leaped onto a nearby lamp-post, until leaped towards, firing one grapple upwards onto the post and another towards one of the machete wielding thugs. He was instantly lifted upwards, dangling upside down and his four fellow thugs looked, turning their backs.

"It's da Bat!" the dual wielding butcher knives thug, brandishing his weapons and sharpening them against one another. Batman used his right gauntlet to block an incoming wooden Bat, bringing his left fist up, the thug was knocked back, and Batman leaped up, using his agility to kick the thug right in the chest, causing breath to be forced from the thug and knocked out.

(Image not owned by me, but used it cause it looks dope AF)

As Batman landed, he felt two thugs grab hold of his black cape, pulling him back and knocking him to the ground. The one machete thug and the dual butcher knife wielding thug did their best to hack and slash at Batman, doing their best to get through his armour and draw blood from the vigilante. Batman yelled out in pain, feeling one butcher knife rip through gap in the armour on hie left shoulder. Batman kicked the bloodied knife away, and hit an emergency switch on the belt. A bright flash was then triggered for a brief moment, blinding the remaining three thugs and allowing Batman that brief moment to escape and retaliate.

He would save the one who stabbed him for last, quickly grabbing the Batclaw. Batman fired it at one thug, puncturing through his shoulder drawing blood. With a quick press of the claw, the thug came flying towards Batman. With a strong right hook the thug was knocked out, the armour of the Batsuit cracking the cheap metal mask the thug was wearing.

Throwing at a Batarang, it clanged off the metal mask of another thug, disorientating him. And the thug was quickly dealt. The final thug, dived for the bloodied knife he had used to actually hurt the Bat.

"He" the thug chuckled to himself as Batman approached him. "I actually hurt the Bat" he whispered, before he was kneed in the chest and a blow into his shoulder knocking him down to the ground. Batman crouched over the thug, ripping off the metal mask and seeing the fear the thug had in his eyes. Batman proceeded to pummel the poor thug;

Blow after blow, hit after hit. The thug's face was soon bloodied, teeth smashed, blood coating the fist of Batman. And it was only when the thug spat in his face, did Y/N realise what he had actually done. He stepped back, taking in the sight of the bruised thug, and the pain that was ringing through his body from the knife wound.

Batman grabbed the knife coated in his blood, making sure to leave no DNA trace. As Batman returned to the Batcycle that was stationed not too far away, that voice began whispering the back of his head once again;

'Not as good as Bruce, you let them actually hit? Actually make you bleed? Batman doesn't bleed? Why would you be so agile? You were too agile. You'll never be as good as Batman as Bruce, why are you even trying?'

Authors Note
Hope You All Enjoyed
I'm sorry this had so much world building in the first chapter. Really wanted to lay out this universe I've been crafting for a while. One of the themes of Long Halloween is how the world of crime is changing, and I think like separating them into generations of criminals makes more sense especially in this context. So like Bruce, Joker, Carmine are all the older generation, while Y/N, Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Mad Hatter etc are like the new generation of crime.