Bruce Wayne

## Early Life (1972-1984)

Bruce Wayne was born to a wealthy family, the son of Thomas Wayne and Martha Wayne. Young Bruce would often watch the television adventures of the Gray Ghost with his father and took many ideas from this show later. Bruce also developed a close relationship with the butler of the Wayne Estate, Alfred Pennyworth and his father’s best friend, Leslie Thompkins.

When Bruce entered kindergarten in 1978, he met and befriended Tommy Elliot and the two continued to be the best friends for nearly a decade afterwards. Through Tommy, Bruce met Rachel Dawes, a witty and artistic girl who quickly became the apple of Bruce’s eye. Though many of the girls at his school developed crushes on him, he developed one on Rachel.

Bruce and his younger cousin, Kate, Bette and Ellie were not very close, though they still would play together and got along quite well. The Waynes expected to give Bruce a sibling when Bruce was five, but just weeks before the child's due date, Thomas and Martha went on a social event at the Empire Hotel and left Bruce in the care of Alfred. After eating something that did not agree with her at the banquet, Thomas urged Martha to go to the hospital. to ensure the child was fine. As they exited the hotel, a drunk driver struck the Waynes shortly after they entered their vehicle. Thomas Wayne, Jr. was delivered early but did not survive the night.

On June 26th, 1981, Thomas, Martha and eight year old Bruce were walking back to their car after an evening showing of El Mask of El Zorro, though during that time there had been an anarchist uprising against the Gotham Elites due to the way they controlled the society. As they took a shortcut through an alleyway in Park Row during the comnmotion, the family was held at gunpoint by a petty criminal, Joe Chill.

When the clasp of Martha’s pearl necklace got stuck and Thomas abruptly moved to help his wife, the mugger got spooked and shot Thomas. When a scream followed, Joe fired a second shot, killing Martha instantly. Horrified but what he had done, Chill then fled, leaving the orphaned Bruce spattered in blood and standing among the scattered pearls.

After the heinous act, Bruce was raised by Alfred. At school, Bruce became isolated, only talking to Tommy and Rachel. Bruce began to learn self-defense, and was also taught several moves by Alfred and began to learn some things about forensics and medicine from Rachel. Consumed by justice, Bruce found little comfort when his parent’s killer was apprehended by Detective Jim Gordon in 1984. Bruce later left Gotham at the age of 14 to study abroad to study laws in hope he could end crime in Gotham.

## Adulthood

Bruce later traveled to France in 1988 to study forensics under Willie Doggett and other nobel laureates, where he met Giovanni Zatara, a sorcerer moonlighting as a magician. Bruce stayed with Zatara and his daughter Zatanna, who developed a crush on the man. Zatara helped Bruce learn to escape several traps and other tricks and illusions, such as using smoke to disappear. Zatanna gathered up the courage to ask Bruce on a date and the two had a brief romantic encounter on top of the Eiffel Tower. The two had to part ways the next day, forcing their romance to remain brief.

December of 1991, Bruce returned to the U.S. to put his affairs in order. He met Andrea Beaumont when the two hit it off at a high society Christmas party. The two entered a whirlwind romance and he considered giving up his crusade in favor of his life with Andrea. Unbeknownst to Bruce, Andrea’s father was a high ranking member of the mob. On the eve of Bruce’s proposal in April of 1992, Andrea was forced to flee the country due to her father's scheming of the mob.

During this time, Bruce found out Chill had been paroled for testifying against Falcone, while he attempted to kill him, Rachel Dawes prevented him from doing so, saying that his father would be ashamed, despite this, Bruce realized that he wouldnt get justice through conventional means. While attempting to meet Falcone to question him, he gained no info, but Falcone told Bruce words that marked him...that true power came from being feared.

Bruce once again departed the U.S. to train in Japan, where he became enemies with fellow student Kyodai Ken when the latter was kicked out for trying to steal Yoru's sword. The two would meet again years later, as well as traveling to the Himalayas to train under the headmonk. While leaving, he met a man named Henri Ducard,who recruited him to the League of Shadows led by Ra's al Ghul.

After completing his training in ninja methods and purging his fears, Bruce learned the League intends to destroy Gotham, believing the city is beyond saving. Bruce rejected the League and its edict that killing is necessary, burning down their temple during his escape. Ra was believed to have been killed by falling debris, while Bruce saved the unconscious Ducard, he would latern learn, that the one that perished was a decoy.

## Batman Begginings

At the age of 21, Bruce returned to Gotham City after his years training abroad. While going in disguise on a surveillance mission in the seedy East End he ended up in a brawl and was almost arrested, but he managed to break free from handcuffs and escape from the police car. After reaching Wayne Manor, he sat before his father’s bust, requesting guidance in his war on crime. After a bat crashed on the window, he got inspired by his childhood fear while remembering Falcone words.

While meeting Lucius Fox, a friend of his father and company activist of Wayne Enterpises, he was allowed a prototype defense technologies, including a protective bodysuit and a heavily armored vehicle, the Tumbler. Bruce decided to pose publicly as a shallow playboy, while setting up a base in the caves beneath Wayne Manor and taking up the vigilante identity of "Batman", targeting criminals and even a corrupt detective named Arnold Flass.

Batman later interrupted a dinner party attended by many of Gotham´s corrupt elites. While Comissioner Loeb ordered his capture, Batman managed to escape and went after Falcone, managing to humilliate the mobster. He would also gain allies besides Lucius Fox on the district attorney office on Harvey Dent and Rachel Dawes, and on the police department on Sarah Essen or Comissioner Gordon.

Due to Gordon starting to keep trail on him, Falcone sent his nephew Johnny Viti to hold his family hostage, but Bruce would later chase him on a motorcycle, rescuing Gordon´s family. Loeb would later be forced to resign due to scandals of corruption coming to light thanks to a redeemed Flass, leading to Gordon becoming the comissioner of Gotham City.

New problems would arise when rumors of a man in a scarecrow costume started spraying citizens with a fear-inducing hallucinogen, Bruce included. After being given an antidote developed by Lucius Fox, Bruce donned his Batman costume and pursued the mysterious "Scarecrow", finding him in the District Attorney Office, subduing the man who revealed his identity to be "Jonathan Crane", claiming to be working for "Ra´s Al Ghul".

At Bruce's birthday party, Ducard returned revealing himself to be the real Ra's al Ghul, having stolen a powerful microwave emitter from Wayne Enterprises and intending to render Crane's fear drug airborne. Crane set the mansion ablaze, but Bruce was rescued by Alfred. Confronting Ra's on the monorail, as Gordon uses the Tumbler's cannons to destroy a section of the track, Batman refuses to kill Ra's but choosed not to save him, gliding from the train as it crashes, apparently finishing Ra's.

(Credit to Earth 27 for Early Life and parts of Adulthood)