DC has announced new twelve-issue comic book series by Dan Watters and Hayden Sherman, Batman: Dark Patterns, focused on a new cycle of crimes for the World’s Greatest Detective to crack. Set during the early years of Batman’s career, Batman: Dark Patterns delves into four mysterious cases as he attempts to cement his place as Gotham City’s protector while the city itself fights back against him. This is the Dark Knight Detective at his most stripped-down core, a man relying on his wits, his skills, and little else as he tackles some of the most twisted mysteries Gotham City and its protector have ever encountered.

Batman: Dark Patterns will be told as a series of four self-contained, street level, evergreen Batman mysteries exploring the early days of Batman’s place within Gotham City and his healing presence within its streets.

The first case and story arc, “We Are Wounded,” involves a series of sickeningly gruesome murders sending shock waves through Gotham City. Are these the random works of a serial killer, or is there something more sinister at play? Across these first three issues of Batman: Dark Patterns, Batman attempts to get to the bottom of the mystery before any more victims are claimed.

Batman: Dark Patterns #1, written by Watters, art by Sherman, color by Tríona Farrell and lettering by Frank Cvetkovic, will publish on December 11 with covers by Sherman and a variant cover by Stevan Subic.