Arthur woke up before the sun even rose, the first bluish traces of dawn barely hinting their arrival over Gotham's horizon, shrouded by heavy clouds. Silence dominated the apartment, broken only by the faint hum of one of the kitchen fans.
As soon as he got out of bed, Arthur left the bedroom and the first thing he noticed was that Selina wasn't there.
There was no sign of her, but he didn't worry.
He was certain she would come back since her three stray cats, which she had adopted the night before, still remained on the sofa, curled up like sleeping sphinxes.
After a quick shower, he went to the living room window and partially drew the curtain. Gotham stretched before him—a sea of shadows and faint lights. The city never slept... it just hid.
Then a mechanical voice, resonating with mathematical precision, sounded beside him:
[Report: No abnormalities or hostile presence detected during the night patrol.]
Arthur didn't even flinch. He only smiled softly as the small levitating unit approached. Its metallic exterior gleamed faintly under the streetlight.
"Good work, Pod 042," he replied with a respectful nod. "You've been helpful as always."
[Thank you accepted. Awaiting further orders, Arthur.]
"Ruby," he called, grabbing his phone from the table. "How about the city surveillance cameras? Any unusual activity? Tell me I don't have to worry about some giant robot or alien today."
His personal AI's voice responded immediately through the screen:
[No anomalies detected. Everything within Gotham's statistical average—which, considering this strange city's history, is still absurdly high. Do you really need this, Master?]
Arthur let out a soft, nasal chuckle.
"Let's just say… I prefer not to be caught off guard. And about that thing I asked you for yesterday—did you manage to finish it?"
[Yes, I hacked into the city's civil registry system and forged a plausible identity for you: Arthur Morgan, ex-military and private agent occasionally contracted by security foundations. Unfortunately, I can't generate physical documents at the moment.]
(Does Arthur really look like an ex-military guy?) he wondered, but still raised an eyebrow, impressed by Ruby's efficiency.
"Ruby, you've become more efficient since you merged with that Skynet AI… (This is starting to make me paranoid). But it's fine. I can handle the physical documents myself."
He stretched slowly, cracking his shoulders lightly, and began some light exercises to fully wake up.
After a few minutes, finished, he grabbed his phone again and typed a message, sending it to a specific recipient:
'It's me, Arthur. This is my number, so don't forget to save it. Call or message me if you need anything.'
Ruby responded with a hint of… jealousy?
[Master…]
Arthur sighed and leaned against the wall.
"Yes, Ruby. I know what you're going to say. But it's nothing. It's just Barbara. She's the police commissioner's daughter—could be a valuable ally."
[Do you really think I didn't notice how she looked at you yesterday? Her body language was miles away from neutral.]
Arthur froze for a moment, then murmured, clearly uncomfortable:
"...Okay, that was a little scary."
(I can't believe I got myself a yandere AI… this is going to end badly.) he thought, feeling a chill down his spine.
Before he could think any further, his phone vibrated with a notification.
It was a call—from Barbara.
He answered, somewhat surprised.
{Hey, Arthur! How are you?} — her voice was clear and lively, transmitted through the phone speakers, though a bit muffled.
---
At the same time, elsewhere in the city, Barbara Gordon was already on the move.
Wearing her tactical Batgirl suit, she skillfully maneuvered her motorcycle through Gotham's dark streets, tires squealing softly around corners as the wind whipped against her face.
{I'm good, how about you? Anything interesting happening?} Arthur's voice came through her helmet's headset.
"Hmm~ The Joker is up to no good again," she answered casually. "Oh, and in case you're not familiar… Joker is a completely unpredictable lunatic, Gotham's worst criminal. Avoid getting close to him. Gotham doesn't forgive amateurs."
{Don't worry about me. Just make sure you don't get distracted riding that bike at high speed. I'll call you later, okay? Bye.}
"Heh, see you later, Arthur."
With a slight smile beneath her visor, Barbara accelerated the bike and disappeared into the early morning fog, heading toward the conflict zone.
---
Back at the apartment, Arthur sighed deeply as he ended the call.
"Joker, huh? Damn, I hate clowns…" he muttered with a distant look, unconsciously recalling unpleasant memories involving clowns.
That hatred only worsened after Gwen forced him to marathon clown horror movies with her.
"Ruby, access the news. Look for any strange activity, ongoing crimes, anything related to the Joker. I want to get an idea of what's coming."
[Understood, Master. Connecting to urban surveillance networks, police databases, and news broadcasts.]
[Pod 042: Parallel query initiated. Optimizing response time for maximum efficiency.]
Arthur crossed his arms and stepped away from the window, eyes now fixed on the screen displaying real-time data. Gotham breathed.
(Why did those two idiots send me to Gotham...?) he muttered thoughtfully.
First of all, what had brought him to this universe?
Even being powerful and, as the system described, "special," the space gem alone shouldn't have enough power to send him to another universe.
Much less one that wasn't even connected to the Marvel Multiverse.
The only possibilities left were that duo, Bat-mite and Mr. Myxlplyx, one of the Endless, or perhaps even the Presence—the God of the Covenant, Creator of the Multiverses, and supreme entity of DC Comics—had brought him here through the space gem.
There was no way to know exactly how or why he was in this world.
"Ahh~~ Forget it, I'm not going to waste time thinking about what brought me here." Arthur sighed resignedly.
---
(End of chapter)
"Hmph. If you really want to be useful, then entertain me, try to throw those pathetic power stones at me. Let's see if even your insolence can amuse a king."