Upon his father's death, college student jean-paul valley learns that he had been genetically altered and trained since birth by a secret society known as the order of st. dumas. They then activate his psychological conditioning, forcing him to become their most elite enforcer, azrael. While on a mission in gotham city, azrael crosses paths with batman and soon turns on the order to join with the dark knight. , , Later, when bruce wayne is paralyzed by bane, bruce asks jean-paul to become batman for some time. Jean-paul then launches a campaign of brutal justice against the criminals of gotham city and creates his own batsuit of armor.