 " Metamorphosis " chronicles Machin 's narrow survival of an explosion and use of the confusion in its aftermath to fake his death . Several months later , he is now stated to be fifteen @-@ years old and has begun a new plan to liberate the world of government . As Anarky , he attempts to create a device which will emit beams of light on frequencies which will trigger the human brain of all who see it . The people will then be " de @-@ brainwashed " of all the social constraints which society has placed on the individual . Utilizing a makeshift teleportation device capable of summoning a boom tube , he begins a quest to capture the power sources his invention will need : the madness of Etrigan , the evil of Darkseid , and the goodness of Batman . Desiring to tempt Batman into confronting him , Anarky successfully lures Batman 's attention by hiring Legs and other homeless men to monitor Batman 's movements . During the confrontation between Anarky and Batman , the device is damaged . Thus , when Machin activates it , it only affects himself . The vision that follows reveals what may have happened if he had succeeded , with nightmarish consequences . In the hallucination , the slightest infraction against a smooth @-@ running society is met with banishment to a prison @-@ city . The effects of his machine eventually wear off , and the most dangerous elements of the prison escape , causing havoc . The conclusion Anarky draws from this is that if society is to change , individuals must accept that change voluntarily . When Batman turns off the machine , Anarky awakens and promptly escapes , vowing to continue his mission , " until they all learn to choose for themselves ... " 
