Chapter 34: Human Capabilities Have Their Limits

Blüdhaven Police Department

"His name is Mark Desmond. He’s a chemist with no prior criminal record," Nightwing said, sliding a file toward Roland. "This is his old photograph. He was quite thin back then."

"…I’m telling you, that’s not him." Roland stared at the intellectual professor in the photo, unable to reconcile the image with the bald, hulking brute he had encountered.

"I agree, but the fingerprints and iris scans confirm they are the same person," Nightwing noted. "I’m curious—how exactly did he end up like that?"

"I’m curious myself," Roland nodded. "Could it be steroids?"

"Is that some kind of fitness-world inside joke?" Nightwing chuckled. "But what I’m actually wondering is how you, a priest, managed to take him down so easily. You don’t really have some divine power, do you?"

"Me? I’m just naturally strong," Roland said, rolling his eyes. "Besides, he had been in a car accident earlier and was already seriously injured. If I hadn’t stepped in, he probably would have collapsed on his own soon enough."

"Is that so?" Nightwing looked at Roland with a meaningful gaze. "And I suppose you were the one who hit him with your car earlier, too?"

"How could that be…"

"I happen to have the street surveillance footage. Would you like to see it?"

"Well, it’s like this: I didn’t notice anyone at the time. I thought it was a speed bump, so I just drove over it," Roland explained. "When I stopped and realized he was fine, I didn't think much of it and just left."

"Is that so?" Nightwing didn't press the issue, shifting his focus instead. "Looking at your license plate, you came from Gotham City, didn't you?"

"Yes," Roland nodded.

"And your purpose for coming here is…?"

"I bought a shipment of cheap furs and came here to sell them."

"Oh… aren’t your prices a bit too low for that?"

"The economy is bad these days. Business is tough."

"The rear tire of your truck was blown out before you arrived. It was shot by a rifle, wasn't it? Care to tell me what that’s about?"

"It’s Gotham, after all. It’s chaotic, and things like that are normal." Roland felt a bit guilty under Nightwing’s questioning and decided to go on the offensive. "You should know that, right? Didn’t you come from Gotham City yourself?"

Nightwing paused, taken aback. Ever since he came to Blüdhaven to strike out on his own, he hadn't revealed his identity as Robin. How did this priest know?

"I’m friends with Bruce, so of course I know," Roland said, leveraging Batman’s reputation. "You’re Dick Grayson, the former circus acrobat who was adopted by Bruce and became the first Robin. Am I right?"

"He even told you that?" Nightwing now believed Roland had a deep connection with Batman; otherwise, he wouldn't know these secrets. Thinking about how Batman had indeed wanted to assemble a team to handle potential crises, perhaps this priest was part of that group?

"Indeed, we are friends through thick and thin," Roland nodded.

"Then your purpose for coming to Blüdhaven can't be as simple as it seems, right?" Nightwing began to ponder, though he couldn't fathom Roland's true intent. Surely, he wasn't really here to offload a shipment of illicit goods at a discount?

"That’s a secret," Roland said, feigning mystery.

"Well, I’ll find out eventually," Nightwing replied with a confident smile. "After all, this is Blüdhaven."

"Perhaps," Roland shrugged, thinking to himself that it would be a miracle if he guessed it. A friend of Bruce running to the city next to Gotham to fence stolen goods? Who could possibly imagine that?

Nightwing noticed Roland’s skepticism, but it didn't matter. He knew Roland would leave traces during his time in Blüdhaven, and he was confident he could discern the priest's intentions from them.

"By the way, can I go now?" Roland asked.

"Sure, I'll see you out." Nightwing stood up and opened the door for him.

"It seems you have a pretty good relationship with the police here," Roland said as they exited the station. He hadn't needed to go through any formal procedures, and none of the officers had blocked his departure. "That’s quite different from Bruce."

"We don’t have that level of corruption here, and I have established a certain degree of cooperation with the Blüdhaven Police Department," Nightwing explained. "Come on, I’ll walk you out."

"Sure." Roland and Nightwing headed to the garage, chatting for a while before parting ways.

Roland started the truck and waved at Nightwing before driving off.

"Wait, I feel like I’ve forgotten something," Roland muttered, lighting a cigarette as he drove. The smoke rings he exhaled suddenly distorted. "Damn it, that kid Jason isn't in the truck!"

Half an hour later:

"You’ve got to be kidding me…" Jason, bruised and battered, stood at the entrance of the police station, looking at Roland with resentment as he pulled up to pick him up. "I’m a grown man, and you didn't even notice I wasn't in the car?"

"Cough… I got caught up in conversation," Roland said, feeling awkward, and changed the subject. "What happened to you? Did someone beat you up?"

"No, I tripped."

"Did you trip and land your face on someone’s fist?" Roland glanced at Jason.

"It was Nightwing."

"How did you two end up fighting?" Roland asked, confused. "He doesn't seem like the type to bully kids."

"You said he was tough, so I wanted to test him…"

"You’ve got a thick skull, don't you?" Roland laughed. "So, are you convinced now?"

"Tsk… I’ll train harder when we get back."

"Good luck, but it’ll take a long time to reach Nightwing’s level," Roland said. "He’s basically at the peak of human potential. I’ve learned one thing in my short life: human ability has its limits, unless you transcend humanity."

"What exactly are you trying to say?" Jason asked. "…Are you telling me to stop being human?"

"Transcending humanity comes down to either technology or mutation," Roland said. "Look at Mark Desmond, the guy I took down today. He likely used some kind of drug to become like that."

"His physical strength was certainly terrifying," Jason nodded. "But his intelligence… it didn't seem much better than a moron's."

"There are ways to get stronger without side effects, but we can't get our hands on them right now," Roland mused. "Then there’s technology, like Batman’s amazing gadgets. Even if you were ten times stronger than him in hand-to-hand combat, you might still lose a fight against Batman."

"Other than that, there’s relying on powerful patrons. Take Poison Ivy, for example; she’s an avatar for some mysterious natural force, which is how she gets her superpowers."

"Are you like her, then?" Jason asked. "You seem to pop out with stronger abilities every now and then."

"Something like that," Roland shrugged. "I work for God."