REVIEWS AND POWERSTONES PLSSS!!!!!
Chapter 141: A Soul Worth Saving
"Adrian Toomes, you've been used."
Batman had bound Shocker Schultz and Scorpion Mac securely to the Empire State Building's antenna tower. Now he turned to address Vulture Toomes, who stood stripped of his green flight suit.
"Schultz only exploited your technical skills and your dreams, dragging you down into the criminal underworld."
Batman hadn't knocked Toomes unconscious. Instead, he'd allowed the man to stand nearby and witness the entire interrogation of Schultz and Mac, never subjecting Toomes himself to any intimidation tactics.
Toomes had participated in Schultz's prison break, true enough. But the whole operation had originated from Shocker Schultz's vendetta against Batman, combined with Toomes' own technical genius and his dream of flight.
"Schultz told me I was already in the same camp as him," Toomes said, hugging himself against the brutal wind at four hundred meters altitude. His voice trembled from the cold. "He said you'd come for me eventually. I just didn't expect it to be this soon."
Without his flight suit, he was just an ordinary man past fifty, nothing more.
Batman regarded Toomes with a look of disapproval. Before tonight's operation began, he'd already analyzed the motivations behind the partnership between Toomes and Schultz.
At his core, Adrian Toomes was simply a man who yearned to soar freely through the sky.
Batman hadn't subjected Toomes to harsh intimidation or brutal interrogation. Here was a man with no prior criminal record, someone who'd designed his flight suit without installing any weapons. Even during the confrontation in the house, Toomes had only splashed holy water—harmless to Batman anyway.
Walking through darkness, Batman held himself to impossibly strict standards. But he never denied others a second chance.
From a legal standpoint, Toomes had committed a crime by participating in the prison break. He had to accept the consequences.
But examining his motives, Toomes had been manipulated by Shocker Schultz. His initial purpose in creating the flight suit had simply been to realize his dream.
From a practical perspective, Toomes' talents were both dangerous and valuable. They needed proper guidance. Toomes wasn't a psychotic super-villain. He was an inventor who'd taken a wrong turn.
Batman could distinguish the difference. His ultimate goal wasn't simply punishment—it was preventing crime, protecting the world, and saving every soul that could still be saved.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Batman accessed the portable computer built into his Arkham armor, pulling up files on the prisoners who'd escaped from Rykers.
Murder. Arson. Drug trafficking. Armed robbery.
Like Kingpin and Scorpion Mac, every criminal locked up in Rykers had earned their place there. Nearly every one carried a heavy rap sheet of serious offenses.
Batman displayed these criminal records before Toomes' eyes.
"According to my investigation, you have family and friends. If any of the criminals you helped escape harm them, whose fault would that be?"
"Please, Batman," Toomes said, his tongue feeling numb, a bitter taste in his mouth. "I just believed what Schultz told me. I thought after helping him build equipment, you'd never let me go anyway."
"I just wanted to achieve my dream so badly."
Batman's expression remained unchanged, his voice devoid of inflection.
"Dreams aren't an excuse for crime, Toomes."
"Building a flight suit isn't wrong. Using it to facilitate a prison break absolutely is."
Toomes didn't know how to respond.
Batman didn't continue lecturing. Instead, he grabbed both Schultz and Mac with one hand, held Toomes with the other, and headed toward the Queens Police precinct.
Deep into the night, the Queens precinct remained brightly lit.
A week had passed since Martin Li's death. Most members of his FEAST shelter remained in custody as suspects, awaiting either exoneration or conviction.
THUD! THUD!
Two heavy impacts sounded at the precinct entrance, followed by piercing screams.
Officers working late rushed outside to find Shocker Schultz and Scorpion Mac writhing on the ground in agony.
After quickly verifying they weren't human bombs and confirming both men were former members of Kingpin's organization, the Queens officers snapped handcuffs on them and hauled them into the cells.
Across the street on an apartment building rooftop, Vulture Toomes stood in shadow, watching Batman, waiting to learn his fate.
Batman studied Toomes in return. Aiding a prison break was a serious felony. Batman wouldn't erase that crime just because Toomes' motives were pure or no one had been directly harmed.
But neither would he simply throw Toomes into prison. Batman would guide him toward the right path, not allow him to sink deeper into criminality.
"I'm still taking you to the police station. You'll face legal judgment."
Toomes' expression fell, his head dropping slightly. Nobody wanted to go to prison. He was no exception.
Batman continued speaking.
"When your sentence is complete, if you still want to realize your dream of flying, come find me."
"I'll help you use your abilities for something better."
The light that had died in Toomes' eyes suddenly blazed back to life. His head snapped up, staring at Batman.
"Two choices. Accept legal judgment and walk the right path, or reject this offer and waste your genius rotting in a cell. Which do you choose?" Batman's voice remained low and steady.
Adrian Toomes still possessed a conscience. Batman was willing to give him one chance.
"I choose the first option," Toomes said.
Batman nodded slightly, gesturing toward the external stairwell of the apartment building they currently occupied, indicating Toomes should turn himself in.
Batman didn't trust Toomes based on a few words, even though the man's expression, speech patterns, heartbeat, and breathing showed no signs of deception.
Letting Toomes descend on his own and walk into that police station was Batman's final test.
Several minutes later, standing on the rooftop, Batman watched silently as Toomes pushed open the precinct doors, confessed his crimes, and allowed the officers to handcuff him.
Batman disappeared into the darkness.
Next, Batman would provide anonymous testimony to the police, supplying every piece of evidence favorable to Toomes—manipulation by others, lack of malicious intent, no direct harm caused, actively cooperating—pushing the case toward a plea agreement, reduced sentence, or probation.
When Toomes completed his sentence, Batman hoped to see either a scientist applying his talents properly, or a superhero still yearning to fly.