- I am a practical man. I do not believe in gods, or devils, or souls. But if perchance there is a Devil... tonight he had his fingers burned.
- — Batman
Underworld Unleashed: Batman - Devil's Asylum #1 is a one-shot with a cover date of December, 1995.
Synopsis for "Arkham: Devil's Asylum"
At Arkham Asylum, a patient named Kryppen sits in his cell talking to a wall. Jeremiah Arkham monitors the man, but doesn't hear anyone speaking back to him. Kryppen however, hears the ethereal voice of the demon Neron. The patient offers Neron his soul in exchange for power. Neron however, needs Kryppen to carry out a few tasks first.
A short time later, a fight breaks out in the hospital recreation room between the Riddler and a patient who believes he is Julius Caesar. Other patients get involved in the fight, and one man, Bradbury, makes a dash for the window. He scales the side of the hospital in a middle of a thunderstorm and a bolt of lightning strikes Bradbury dead as he is clinging to a weather vane. The resulting energy surge causes a blackout throughout the entire hospital. Jeremiah Arkham begins to grow worried, notably since the back-up generators he ordered had not arrived yet.
The guards begin performing random spot checks, ushering patients back to their cells. Kryppen escapes from his, head-butting Jeremiah Arkham in the nose. As the other patients erupt into a riotous frenzy, Kryppen sneaks past the guards and goes to the kitchen. He begins using his knowledge of poisons to whip up a quick cocktail that he uses to taint the hospital's cooking supplies. When it comes time to serve dinner, all of the patients begin falling over with uncontrollable spasms. Arkham himself eats a tainted cookie and falls to the floor of his office.
Before long, Batman arrives at Arkham Asylum to stop Kryppen. Kryppen tells him that he will surrender the cure so long as Batman willingly murders at least one patient. Batman of course, refuses. Through the course of conversation, Kryppen reveals that corrupting the Batman's moral code was the task that Neron instructed him to fulfill. Batman swings after Kryppen and forces him to eat a sample of his own poison. As fear overtakes him, Kryppen relents and takes him to where he has cure secreted away. Batman administers the cure to the rest of the patients, but Kryppen's soul is still damned for Hell.
Appearing in "Arkham: Devil's Asylum"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Arkham Asylum inmates
- Amygdala
- Cornelius Stirk
- Mister Zsasz
- Poison Ivy (Cameo)
- Riddler
- Two-Face (Harvey Dent)
- Julius Caesar
- Kryppen
- Neron (Voice Only)
Other Characters:
- Bradbury (a patient)
- Dayton (an Arkham guard)
- Loomis (an Arkham guard)
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Notes
- This issue is an Underworld Unleashed one-shot special crossover.
- This issue is told from the perspective of Jeremiah Arkham.
- Neron appears as a disembodied voice only in this issue.
Trivia
- Arkham Asylum was once known as Mercey Mansion.
- Normally, the Joker would be seen gathered amongst the various patients at Arkham Asylum, but at this time, he is with Abra Kadabra, Lex Luthor, Doctor Polaris and Circe in Neron's underworld.
See Also
Recommended Reading
Links and References