After defeating the Arkham Knight's militia and Scarecrow, Batman activated the "Knightfall" Protocol, supposedly destroying himself, along with his revealed identity of Bruce Wayne, Wayne Manor, and all of his technology. All of Gotham's criminals were locked up, and the city was finally safe. The citizens of Gotham were quietly moved back into the city, and Wayne Enterprises was taken over by the former CEO, Lucius Fox. One year later, Jim Gordon was elected mayor of Gotham, and the city of Gotham finally started rebuilding itself. But the chaos was just starting. With the Batman gone, criminals would start taking advantage of the city's false sense of security. The Scum and Villainy of Gotham would return to the streets, and begin to wreak havoc and cause chaos on the streets.

On one particular night, two criminals assaulted a couple and their child outside a movie theater. The first criminal beat father and threw him to the floor, unconscious, while the other criminal ripped the wife's pearl necklace off her neck. After the couple was dealt with, the two criminals noticed a dark, hooded figure standing on a rooftop above them. Upon seeing him, they chuckled. "Hey, idiot! Batman's dead!" One criminal shouted. "That look don't scare us no more!" after he said that, the figure above them began to warp, growing bigger and scarier. "What the hell?" Remarked the second criminal, before the figure suddenly exploded into a huge, demon-like bat shape, surrounded, by flames, hovering there for a second, before pouncing on its victims, and pulling them into the darkness.