Detective Comics #36

Issue Details

Synopsis

TERMINAL 2 The Gotham International Airport is under quarantine, since a so-called ghost plane released a virus that breaks down organic matter and ages it. The man responsible - Magnus Magnuson - has a cure, and is withholding it. Batman is infected, and there are merely eight hours remaining before he and everyone else in the airport will succumb. With the knowledge that Magnuson is likely hiding out in Eastern Europe, Batman makes a call to Dick Grayson in Belarus to ask a favour. Even now, Dick can hear the age in Bruce's voice, and Bruce removes his cowl, and peering into a mirror realizes that his hair is greying.   Ed Boar, meanwhile, has the concourse cleared except for those who have had direct contact with the virus. He is interrupted in giving orders when the CDC hijacks his case, placing him in confinement to observe the progression of the virus' effects. Avoiding them, Batman sneaks into the Air Traffic Control tower and demands to be told everything they know about the ghost plane, its passenger list, and its itinerary.   Dick, meanwhile, shifts his interrogation's direction from questions about Plutonium to the whereabouts of Magnuson. At the risk of losing all of his teeth, his victim reveals that Magnuson is dating a woman in Minsk who runs a discotheque called "Club Hell".   Angrily, Ed insists that as the chief of the GIA police, this is his jurisdiction, but the CDC disagrees. A technician is given orders to perform tests on Ed, and to shoot him if he tries to escape. Fortunately, though, Batman knocks the man unconscious and shakes Ed awake. Batman explains that he thinks the coffin they found on board, containing the body of a soldier, might be the source of the outbreak. Ed, though, warns that he can't continue his investigation. His past in the Gulf War took a lot out of him and ruined his lungs with cancer. He's been fighting for a long time, and the virus is just making the fight harder. He asks Batman to take back his airport, and send him on a flight to Hawaii so he can die surrounded by white sand and hula girls.   The CDC's Agent Tusk calls the tower to learn about the plane, but learns that Batman is a step ahead of him. He learns of the body that was in the hold and grabs a man to investigate with him.   Dick works his way into Club Hell, and finds his woman in a back room upstairs. Rather than be helpful, she forces him to kiss her at knife-point. She is impressed by his chops, and with the promise of more, she offers that Magnuson is actually in the Gotham International Airport, and he is the vaccine. Having got what he wanted, Dick leaves her unsatisfied.  Agent Tusk and his companion discover the corpse in the coffin, and realize that this must have been patient zero. Suddenly, the other man removes his Hazmat suit to reveal that he is Magnuson, and tears off Tusk's protective mask, thrusting him into the coffin with the body, and shutting it on him. He realizes, though, that Batman is watching, and turns on him. Unfortunately for Batman, his premature aging has made him weak. Batman admits that he is old, but he can still use his gadgets. With is gauntlets, he sends a powerful electric shock coursing through Magnuson, and the man collapses. With Magnuson subdued, Batman takes a blood sample.   With the vaccine distributed and the airport out of lockdown, Bruce decides that he will take the brief vacation he'd planned to recover. Ed Boar, meanwhile, receives some mail from his hospital bed, and reacts with surprise when he finds a plane ticket to Hawaii in the envelope.