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The President of the United States is in Gotham City giving a speech as part of his campaign for re-election. Batman is at the event to provide extra security for the President.

As the President begins his speech, Lex Luthor calls Batman and informs him that he has abducted Alfred, Robin, and Batgirl. Luthor provides footage of his friends trapped inside a cage made of indestructable metal...much like adamantium. The cage is dangling from a rope over the caldera of an active volcano somewhere in the world. Luthor informs Batman that he will lower the cage into the pool of lava below if Batman does not kill the President during this speech.

With the speech already underway, Batman does not have time to search for his friends. Luthor wants Batman to perform a brutal public slaying of the President. He wants Batman's reputation ruined...and he wants Batman to become a hunted criminal for the assassination of the President.

This is Batman's dilemma. Does he kill the President to spare his friends....or does Batman allow his friends to die in order to spare his reputation as a hero? Of course...aferwards....Batman will hunt Luthor down for revenge.

Based on what we know of Batman's integrity...and personality...what do you think he will do in this situation?

If there is ABSOLUTELY no way to save his friends, then Batman would be forced to do one of two things:

1) Use some sort of nerve strike on the president that appears to kill him.

2) Let his friends die.

Now, the first option probably wouldn't work because (as you said) Lex would want something brutal. More 'Leopard Fist' than nerve pinch, and Lex is obviously bright enough to know Bruce may opt for a non-lethal strike.

Thus it would be the second. Bruce wouldn't kill the president, and his friends would die. He would not kill an innocent life to save the lives of people who knew what they were getting themselves into when they became part of his life (and he of theirs). More or less the same way whereby the death of a brave fireman in a fiery blaze is sad, but not as sad as that of a schoolkid who dies in the same blaze (because the fireman died in his duty ...not that it makes it any less of a death, but because the fireman died a hero doing his job).

And also consider that Bruce would inherently believe that Lex would kill his friends ANYWAYS .....the moment the president had been killed the cage holding his pals would be headed into the magma pit.

So, Bruce decides to do nothing ....president stays alive ....his friends die.

And then Lex Luthor spends the rest of his life, and all his money, trying to stay one step ahead of a vengeful Batman. That would be a fate worse than death.

bump

Originally posted by spetznaz
If there is ABSOLUTELY no way to save his friends, then Batman would be forced to do one of two things:

1) Use some sort of nerve strike on the president that appears to kill him.

2) Let his friends die.

Now, the first option probably wouldn't work because (as you said) Lex would want something brutal. More 'Leopard Fist' than nerve pinch, and Lex is obviously bright enough to know Bruce may opt for a non-lethal strike.

Thus it would be the second. Bruce wouldn't kill the president, and his friends would die. He would not kill an innocent life to save the lives of people who knew what they were getting themselves into when they became part of his life (and he of theirs). More or less the same way whereby the death of a brave fireman in a fiery blaze is sad, but not as sad as that of a schoolkid who dies in the same blaze (because the fireman died in his duty ...not that it makes it any less of a death, but because the fireman died a hero doing his job).

And also consider that Bruce would inherently believe that Lex would kill his friends ANYWAYS .....the moment the president had been killed the cage holding his pals would be headed into the magma pit.

So, Bruce decides to do nothing ....president stays alive ....his friends die.

And then Lex Luthor spends the rest of his life, and all his money, trying to stay one step ahead of a vengeful Batman. That would be a fate worse than death. He knows such moves and will always save his family.

he could contact the JLA, the JSA, the outsiders, flash can search the earth in like a minute, superman can do that in five, so a i can see how luthor do to hide them from those 3 groups. The gonna save them a bats is gonna teke luthor down.