Azrael: Michael Lane Washington
Batman was once tormented by dreams of three Batmen. He believed that these Batmen would appear if he ever cheated on his war on crime. The first Batman is a man who uses guns and has expert marksmanship. The second is a Batman that uses Bane's Venom. The third Batman was a vicious man Bruce believed sold his soul to Satan. In reality these three Batmen were part of secret GCPD program to create a Batman alternative. They believed that great tragedy would make a Batman. Michael Lane has experienced tragedy. Michael Lane was raised in a Christian family and he is still a dedicated Christian but he's admittedly broken every one of the Ten Commandments. Michael is bipolar and has suffered issues with his rage since he was a kid. He was a gifted football player and went to college on a full ride. However, he was forced out when he attacked his football coach in a fit of rage. Afterwards he went to join the Marines and serve two tours of duty in the Iraq war. This began contributing to his PTSD.
When he returned home he became a police officer. Shortly after he met and fell in love with Chante Coles. The two had a son they named Henry. At age three Henry was hit and killed by a drunk driver. Chante committed suicide shortly after. Michael's big brother Marion and big sister Gwendyln were captured then sacrificed by a satanic cult. That was all Michael could take and he finally had a mental breakdown.
Michael was selected as one of the participants in GCPDs program to create a new Batman. The program was lead by Dr. Hunt. These experiments also had negative effects on Michael's mind. Lane was given the name of Bat-Ghost. After Batman beats Bat-Bane and Bat-Cop. It was time for Bat-Ghost to make his appearance.
He fills the GCPD headquarters with sleeping gas. When Gordon confronts him, he simply shows his badge. He then takes Gordon to the rooftop and forces him to turn on the Batsignal. When Batman arrives he gets shot in the chest with a bullet that was coated in a chemical that would give him a heart attack. He also suffers from flashbacks of moments in life that haunt him.
When Batman is woken up he's strapped to a chair in a jail cell. Michael then tortures Batman with a drill. Batman remembers participating in an experiment by GCPD that would test what made him become Batman. He deduces that that program inspired them to create the Batman knockoffs. He figures out that they came to the conclusion of trauma making him into Batman. He then somehow comes to the conclusion that Bat-Ghost didn't sell his soul to the devil but is actually Michael Lane, a police officer that had a mental breakdown.
Michael is surprised by this. Batman takes the opportunity to escape and knock out Michael. Batman goes on to be beaten by Bat-Bane until Gordon shows up and shoots Bat-Bane in the head. Michael takes the opportunity to escape. Batman manages to track down Michael who had also tracked them. Michal looks at Batman and tells him he's done. Then he vanishes.
Michael later worked for Dr. Hunt again, this time as security. Black Glove had been attempting to kill Bruce Wayne. When it failed Dr. Hunt tried to escape. Michael was the pilot of the getaway helicopter. Their helicopter was taken down by Batman and crashed into the river with a deadly explosion. Batman assumed that Michael was dead but he never could find a body.
Lane survives and goes to confession. There he confesses that he helped kill Batman. Father Day is actually a member of the Order of St. Dumas. A secret organization that was a splinter of the Templars during the crusades. The group was also a sworn enemy of Ra's Al Ghoul. All of this is explained to Michael and he's given the Suit of Sorrows, Sword of Salvation and Sword of Sin. The Order was attacked by Talia Al Ghoul who wanted to reclaim the Suit of Sorrows for her father.
Michael and Talia come to a stalemate and Talia allows him to keep the suit since it drives people insane anyway. Jokes on her, Michael is still very much insane. He's fighting bipolar disorder, PTSD and rage attacks with nothing but religion. Meanwhile Lane is shown on camera killing police officers. He finds out and breaks into the Batcave. There he's challenged to a sword fight by Nightwing. Eventually he explains everything and Nightwing Understands.
It's revealed all of this was arranged by The Order who was being manipulated by Ra's Al Ghoul. Or Ra's thought they were being manipulated by them. The Order wanted to know if Michael would serve them or Ra's. Michael asks why he shouldn't just kill them all. They leave him with a mansion and an unnamed amount of money. Michael considers this yet another sin he has to answer for in death. Michael takes up a spot as a vigilante alongside the likes of Batman. While he doesn't kill, he's much more violent. On his first outing he cuts off the legs of a man for kicking an old man to death.
The next time Michael encounters Dick Grayson he's acting as Batman. The two team up to capture a murderer named Amon. The Question also becomes involved as he's been tracking the cult that Amon belongs to. When the group finally faces off with Amon, Michael leaves behind a group of children in order to catch Amon. Batman attempts to lecture Michal but he responds with "Only God can judge me," then he vanishes.
Azrael learns about a serial killer that is hunting down priest. Eventually he learns that the priest being killed were actually child molesters who covered up numerous cases. When Michael confirmed this he just let the killer go and told him to cover his tracks better. I can't blame him. At this time a friend of Michael's from Iraq also becomes a serial killer around this time. He targets Iraqi-Americans. Michael is the only one willing to step in and stop him, the deadly way. Michael also starts to believe that The Order is planning to kill him. The Order believes that they suit is starting to drive Michael insane.
When the cult that killed Michael's siblings shows up again he follows them to Paris. There he hunts down and kills the rest of the cult. While doing this he's still being tested by Ra's Al Ghoul who wants the Suit of Sorrows. Azrael is also given the name Ermine. Ermine means the black void of pure faith. While in Paris Michael also takes time to reconnect with his religion.
Michael next travels to London to stop the serial killer Crusader. The Crusader reveals that he actually works for the Vatican. They go to meat a man named Father Grieve. Father Grieve tells them that believing in the truth is more important than faith. They learn that the Shroud of Turin disproves the resurrection of Jesus Christ and it was actually Michael that died and rose three days later. Michale learns that this was a plot by Grieve to destroy secretly destroy The Vatican. Michael stabs Crusader with the Sword of Sin to show him that what he was doing was wrong. Crusader leaves and Michael kills Grieve.
When the Suit of Sorrow is repaired it's tampered with by Ra's Al Ghoul. The suit now forces Michael to hear the souls of all the people that have worn the suit before. Michael has another mental breakdown. He goes on a rampage killing criminals for minor things. Michael stabs Batman (Bruce) when he tries to stop him. He assumes that he killed Batman and he goes to church and commits suicide by crucifying himself. Michael wanders through purgatory being haunted by Grieve. Meanwhile Ra's has Michal's body stolen and tells people that he will rise after three days like Jesus Christ. Ra's has the suit modified so that it acts as a Lazarus Pit. Lane manages to escape Purgatory just as Ra's revives him with the new suit. Batman worries that Lane will come back as a Batman who sold his soul to the Devil. When he learns that Azrael has returned he asks Michael to join Batman Incorporated. He tells Batman that he doesn't fight crime, he fights sin. Then he stabs Batman with the Sword of Sin. This shows Batman that Azrael didn't sell his soul to Satan. Batman is finally content.
The new suit has given Michael new abilities. In the past it was simply armor. Now it allowed him to access the knowledge of anyone who had worn it as well as giving him increased levels of strength and agility. Michael agrees to help Batman Incorporated stop a Muslim terrorist group forcing a metahuman named Fireball to commit attacks. They believe that Fireball is the reincarnation of The Islamic Angel of Death, Malak al-Maut. Meanwhile the ghost of Father Grieve is still haunting Michael. Ra's appears again and tells him that he's using Fireball to destroy the world so he can create a new one. Michael leaves but the ghost of Grives convinces him to go join Ra's.
Michael is next seen with the Angels of Death, Crusader and Fireball in Gotham. He tells them that he will test their heroes. If their is one riotous one among their heroes the city won't be destroyed. The three heroes they test are Batman (Dick) Catwoman and Red Robin(Tim Drake). They kidnap Mayor Hady and task Red Robin with rescuing him by defeating various villains throughout the city. Tim fails the last test because he's an atheist. Catwoman believes in God but she refuses to sacrifice her sister to God. So she fails as well. When it's time for Dick to face his task he's simply shown all of his sins. He begins to crack but Catwoman arrives with Michael's sister and law and her kids. Michale turns the Sword of Sins on himself. He sees that Ra's has been manipulating him. Finally free from the ghost of Grieves Michael is back to himself. He single handedly stops the Angels of Death, Crusader, and Fireball. They all leave to repent for their sins.
Then New 52 happened and we haven't seen Michael since, but hey, it was a happy ending.
Abilities and Equipment
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When he returned home he became a police officer. Shortly after he met and fell in love with Chante Coles. The two had a son they named Henry. At age three Henry was hit and killed by a drunk driver. Chante committed suicide shortly after. Michael's big brother Marion and big sister Gwendyln were captured then sacrificed by a satanic cult. That was all Michael could take and he finally had a mental breakdown.
Michael was selected as one of the participants in GCPDs program to create a new Batman. The program was lead by Dr. Hunt. These experiments also had negative effects on Michael's mind. Lane was given the name of Bat-Ghost. After Batman beats Bat-Bane and Bat-Cop. It was time for Bat-Ghost to make his appearance.
He fills the GCPD headquarters with sleeping gas. When Gordon confronts him, he simply shows his badge. He then takes Gordon to the rooftop and forces him to turn on the Batsignal. When Batman arrives he gets shot in the chest with a bullet that was coated in a chemical that would give him a heart attack. He also suffers from flashbacks of moments in life that haunt him.
When Batman is woken up he's strapped to a chair in a jail cell. Michael then tortures Batman with a drill. Batman remembers participating in an experiment by GCPD that would test what made him become Batman. He deduces that that program inspired them to create the Batman knockoffs. He figures out that they came to the conclusion of trauma making him into Batman. He then somehow comes to the conclusion that Bat-Ghost didn't sell his soul to the devil but is actually Michael Lane, a police officer that had a mental breakdown.
Michael is surprised by this. Batman takes the opportunity to escape and knock out Michael. Batman goes on to be beaten by Bat-Bane until Gordon shows up and shoots Bat-Bane in the head. Michael takes the opportunity to escape. Batman manages to track down Michael who had also tracked them. Michal looks at Batman and tells him he's done. Then he vanishes.
Michael later worked for Dr. Hunt again, this time as security. Black Glove had been attempting to kill Bruce Wayne. When it failed Dr. Hunt tried to escape. Michael was the pilot of the getaway helicopter. Their helicopter was taken down by Batman and crashed into the river with a deadly explosion. Batman assumed that Michael was dead but he never could find a body.
Lane survives and goes to confession. There he confesses that he helped kill Batman. Father Day is actually a member of the Order of St. Dumas. A secret organization that was a splinter of the Templars during the crusades. The group was also a sworn enemy of Ra's Al Ghoul. All of this is explained to Michael and he's given the Suit of Sorrows, Sword of Salvation and Sword of Sin. The Order was attacked by Talia Al Ghoul who wanted to reclaim the Suit of Sorrows for her father.
It's revealed all of this was arranged by The Order who was being manipulated by Ra's Al Ghoul. Or Ra's thought they were being manipulated by them. The Order wanted to know if Michael would serve them or Ra's. Michael asks why he shouldn't just kill them all. They leave him with a mansion and an unnamed amount of money. Michael considers this yet another sin he has to answer for in death. Michael takes up a spot as a vigilante alongside the likes of Batman. While he doesn't kill, he's much more violent. On his first outing he cuts off the legs of a man for kicking an old man to death.
The next time Michael encounters Dick Grayson he's acting as Batman. The two team up to capture a murderer named Amon. The Question also becomes involved as he's been tracking the cult that Amon belongs to. When the group finally faces off with Amon, Michael leaves behind a group of children in order to catch Amon. Batman attempts to lecture Michal but he responds with "Only God can judge me," then he vanishes.
Azrael learns about a serial killer that is hunting down priest. Eventually he learns that the priest being killed were actually child molesters who covered up numerous cases. When Michael confirmed this he just let the killer go and told him to cover his tracks better. I can't blame him. At this time a friend of Michael's from Iraq also becomes a serial killer around this time. He targets Iraqi-Americans. Michael is the only one willing to step in and stop him, the deadly way. Michael also starts to believe that The Order is planning to kill him. The Order believes that they suit is starting to drive Michael insane.
When the cult that killed Michael's siblings shows up again he follows them to Paris. There he hunts down and kills the rest of the cult. While doing this he's still being tested by Ra's Al Ghoul who wants the Suit of Sorrows. Azrael is also given the name Ermine. Ermine means the black void of pure faith. While in Paris Michael also takes time to reconnect with his religion.
Michael next travels to London to stop the serial killer Crusader. The Crusader reveals that he actually works for the Vatican. They go to meat a man named Father Grieve. Father Grieve tells them that believing in the truth is more important than faith. They learn that the Shroud of Turin disproves the resurrection of Jesus Christ and it was actually Michael that died and rose three days later. Michale learns that this was a plot by Grieve to destroy secretly destroy The Vatican. Michael stabs Crusader with the Sword of Sin to show him that what he was doing was wrong. Crusader leaves and Michael kills Grieve.
The new suit has given Michael new abilities. In the past it was simply armor. Now it allowed him to access the knowledge of anyone who had worn it as well as giving him increased levels of strength and agility. Michael agrees to help Batman Incorporated stop a Muslim terrorist group forcing a metahuman named Fireball to commit attacks. They believe that Fireball is the reincarnation of The Islamic Angel of Death, Malak al-Maut. Meanwhile the ghost of Father Grieve is still haunting Michael. Ra's appears again and tells him that he's using Fireball to destroy the world so he can create a new one. Michael leaves but the ghost of Grives convinces him to go join Ra's.
Michael is next seen with the Angels of Death, Crusader and Fireball in Gotham. He tells them that he will test their heroes. If their is one riotous one among their heroes the city won't be destroyed. The three heroes they test are Batman (Dick) Catwoman and Red Robin(Tim Drake). They kidnap Mayor Hady and task Red Robin with rescuing him by defeating various villains throughout the city. Tim fails the last test because he's an atheist. Catwoman believes in God but she refuses to sacrifice her sister to God. So she fails as well. When it's time for Dick to face his task he's simply shown all of his sins. He begins to crack but Catwoman arrives with Michael's sister and law and her kids. Michale turns the Sword of Sins on himself. He sees that Ra's has been manipulating him. Finally free from the ghost of Grieves Michael is back to himself. He single handedly stops the Angels of Death, Crusader, and Fireball. They all leave to repent for their sins.
Then New 52 happened and we haven't seen Michael since, but hey, it was a happy ending.
Abilities and Equipment
- Peak physical fitness
- Michael is at his peak even without the suit
- Trained Marine and Police Officer
- Michael is a pretty good detective and very good with firearms
- Hand to Hand Combat
- Already trained, suit now lets him access abilities of past users
- Suit of Sorrow (Upgraded)
- Enhanced Durability
- Enhanced Endurance
- Enhanced Strength
- Enhanced Durability
- Bulletproof
- Healing
- Sword of Sin
- Forces a person to relieve all of their sins or matters they feel guilt over
- Sword of Salvation
- Forces a person to tell the truth even if it's a subconscious truth
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