Batman Rips [SPOILER]'s Head Right Off His Body

09/27/2017 02:29 pm EDT

It was a rough week for much of the DC Universe, but no one suffered a more brutal fate than Cyborg.

Spoilers incoming for Batman: The Murder Machine #1, so if you haven't read the issue yet, you've been warned.

Batman: The Murder Machine is the latest in a series of one-shots that reveal the origins of each Nightmare Batman. As you can probably assume by the name, the Murder Machine is the Cyborg Batman, but you might be surprised at how he gets there.

It all starts when Batman's confidant and friend Alfred is captured by a slew of Batman villains, including Killer Croc, Harley Quinn, Bane, and more. They want to know about Bruce Wayne and Batman, and the interrogation ends with Alfred being broken by Bane.

After Alfred's death, Batman goes to Cyborg for help. It turns out Batman had taken a brain scan of Alfred to build what he calls the Alfred Protocol. In case Alfred ever passed on, this artificial intelligence would carry on in his absence.

Sounds like a bad idea right? Well, you're smarter than the Justice League. They finish the program, but it goes a bit crazy with its goal to protect Bruce and kills villains left and right. It then wants to merge with Bruce, but Cyborg convinces Bruce not to let it in.

Flash forward a bit, and the League is attempting to fight off Batman's replicants. Cyborg is the last one standing against this new Batman, pleading with him to let the programming go and become Bruce Wayne again.

Bruce quickly rejects the offer and tells Cyborg everyone but his father, Alfred, is a weakness. He then takes Cyborg by the throat and rips his head off his body, carrying Cyborg's spine with it. It's a move Sub-Zero would be proud of, and puts the exclamation point on his death spree.

Eventually, the Murder Machine faces our universe's Cyborg, but you'll have to read the issue to find out if he suffers a similar fate.

You can view the spoiler image in the gallery. Batman: The Murder Machine #1 is in stores now.

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