WARNING: The following contains spoilers for the story "An Unquiet Knight" from Batman: Black & White #3 by Tim Seeley, Kelley Jones & Rob Leigh, sale now
Batman has pulled plenty of death-defying acts over the years. But it only makes sense that eventually, something would get the better of him and finally bring down the Dark Knight. But it turns out, even death isn't enough to keep Batman from stalking the streets of Gotham.
Batman: Black & White #3 reveals that after Batman dies, his spirit lives on and haunts Gotham, until his fellow Justice League veteran Zatanna is able to soothe his spirit, at least for a time.
"An Unquiet Knight" initially appears to be a regular night in Gotham City, with Batman chasing down two men into a cemetery. but before Batman can strike at the men, the three are shocked by a sudden burst of hellfire caused by Etrigan the Demon and the mysterious Raven Rose, a new student of Zatanna. The heroic witch also arrives on the scene, with her presence calming Batman. The Dark Knight confronts her over letting the men escape his grasp in the chaos of Etrigan's arrival, but Zatanna reveals those men aren't criminals anymore. They haven't worked for Black Mask in 17 years, during which time the villain has been imprisoned. Zatanna explains that Bruce is actually dead, and has been for a while. In reality, she's talking with Batman's restless spirit, who has not yet accepted what happened to him.
Although she doesn't reveal fully what happened to him, Zatanna does admit he died "the best" death possible. She even hints that all the various Robins -- even Damian and Jason -- ended up making something of themselves in their later lives and that they would have made Bruce proud. Zatanna reveals she's come to finally soothe his spirit and help it pass on, which she does by allowing Bruce's spirit to find the path to his parents. It's a bittersweet moment for the heroes, with Zatanna and Etrigan even suggesting this isn't the first time they've had to do this, as the spirit of Batman never fully escapes Gotham. It's telling that Zatanna is able to reach through to Bruce as a person and not as Batman, and that this is the key to helping his spirit rest for a time at least.
Batman's mission has always been about protecting Gotham and the people who live there from suffering the pain he knew all too well. Bruce's pain turned him into Batman, so it makes sense that the only way to temper that rage and dedication are to reach out and help soothe that pain. It also suggests that even after he dies, Batman will live on in some form in Gotham, both as a symbol taken up by new generations of heroes as well as a literal specter hanging over the city. It's also a sweet decision to make it Zatanna's responsibility to reach out to Batman's spirit whenever he rises from the grave. The two have long been friends and allies, with Zatanna even referencing their former romance in their conversation.
Thanks to her mystical attributes, Zatanna has been teased to enjoy a supernaturally extended life that allows her to be the perfect person to live on and help the Dark Knight briefly lay down his crusade. Death comes for everyone in some form or another, but at least Batman has a friendly face come to help him move past his death and stop him from fully haunting the city he once tried to protect.