Chapter Text
Stress level: 45%^
The environment was new; it didn’t seem like Detroit.
Stress level: 69%^
It wasn’t rainy, yet just as dreary. It was new, and that was chilling.
Stress level: 77%^
Connor takes a mental step back. ‘There is no need to panic; just figure out where you are.’
New objective: Connect to Cyberlife satellite
---> Identify surroundings
---> Find shelter
Primary objective: Protect Lt. Hank Anderson
Connor tried to connect to the closest satellite he could find. While he was always a little scared to show his android qualities after the revolution, he couldn’t say that being an android didn’t come in handy sometimes.
Unable to find and connect to the local Cyberlife satellite. Connect to the next closest satellite.
‘Okay, panic.’ Connor, panicking even more now than when he was first brought to this… city, quickly accepted the change in satellites.
Connection successful.
With a quick blink of his eye, Connor had gone through everything he needed too. His location, the year, major events in this city—everything.
As it turns out, Connor wasn’t in Detroit, Michigan. In fact, he wasn’t even in 2038. He thought back to a reference Hank had brought up once or twice before. ‘Todo, I don’t think we are in Kansas anymore.’
At the time, Connor didn’t know what the quote was or where it was from. Of course, once he mentioned this to Hank, he was forced to watch a Wizard of Oz re-run on some old channel.
Stress level: 64%v
The year was currently 2018, and there was no record of anyone named Elijah Kamski, nothing of the first androids, and nothing of Cyberlife at all.
This wasn’t Connor's world at all.
---
After Connor's initial panic, he quickly got to work. Still in the alleyway he appeared in, he made his way through a mental checklist. Get shelter, food, a job, and an identity. One might say that it would be easier said than done, but Connor had actually made his way through things with relative ease.
He had first had to find a rich billionaire that, by his calculations, wouldn’t miss the few thousand Connor would take. Luckily, Connor found a billionaire, Bruce Wayne, who very often donated to charities, easily letting Connor sneak the stolen money under a charity cover.
It made Connor feel a bit bad; the guilt would probably be on his conscience for a while. Though Connor also needed to survive, and from what he had read about Gotham, he really needed shelter so as not to be found out.
‘Though maybe people would be more accepting of androids with aliens roaming the earth.’
After a few quick calculations, 24-year-old Connor Anderson was an official Gotham resident.
---
“Hello, I’m here to look at apartments. Are you Sara?”
The woman who was standing in the apartment complex's front lobby turned to look at Connor, startled. “You got here early. Yes, I am Sara.”
“It is nice to meet you, Sara; my name is Connor. Cash is an acceptable payment method for you, correct?” Connor asked, pulling out the cash he had gotten after making a quick stop at the local bank.
“Yes, that shouldn’t be an issue.” Sara said hesitantly.
"Great, and how much was an apartment listed for? 1,300? Plus anything else that needs to be paid up front, of course.”
“Are you trying to pay right now? You haven’t even looked at the place.”
Connor froze, blinking. “Yes ma’am. I really need the apartment. I do not mind what it looks like or the state of it.”
“You’re not a goon or something, are you?”
“Apologies, goon?”
“Oh boy, you aren’t from Gotham, are you?”
“Is that obvious?”
"Very.” Sara sighed. "Look, kid, I’ll let you buy the apartment, no questions asked, as long as you have all the cash you need for it.”
“I have all that should be required, ma’am.” Connor said, flashing the cash he had been counting before quickly looking around the room to see if anyone else had seen that.
No one but Sara and Connor were in the lobby; even the receptionist desk was empty.
'Flashing money in areas like this is never a good idea, kid.’ Hank's past advice was solid, even if he wasn’t talking about Gotham.
Sara sighed. “Don’t make me regret this.”
Connor smirked. “Of course, ma’am.”
“And stop calling me ma'am; I’m not that old.”
---
Today felt off. Dick Grayson knew this feeling; it was a feeling that came with being a vigilante. Or maybe it was from training with the greatest detective in the world. Either way, it was a feeling Dick was familiar with.
The whole city felt as if it were holding its breath, and maybe Dick was holding his breath too. But this was Bludhaven, and while it wasn’t great by any means, things were more likely to happen in Gotham.
But Dick just shook his head, trying to lift the feeling from his shoulders. Maybe he was just tired. It’s not like this hasn't happened before. Because being a bat means you sacrifice some of your sanity for paranoia. More often than not, however, Dick's instincts are right, and something major is happening.
“Hey O." Dick called into his coms after he connected to the Gotham line.
“Yes, Nightwing?” He heard with a sigh.
“Is everything okay over there? In Gotham?”
“Other than some of Poison Ivy’s chaos, everything is normal here.”
“Alright. Thanks.” He reached up to switch off the line.
“Wait Nightwing. Why do you ask?”
“I just… I feel like something is going to happen. That’s all”
The line stayed silent. The only thing Dick was able to hear was his breath, which has been slowly getting faster throughout the conversation.
“I’ll make sure to keep an extra eye out.” Dick sighed openly.
“Thank you.”
“Of course. I’ll keep you posted.”
“I really appreciate this Oracle.”
“Stay safe, Nightwing.”
“You know I will.”
---
Connor settled into the new apartment quickly, as he had nothing to unpack to really settle into. The apartment itself wasn’t as nice as it was described in the ad, but Connor didn’t mind. Sure, he felt things like any other human, such as the temperature and the grim on the floors, but it wasn’t something that he couldn’t necessarily live with. Because he could ignore it. He didn’t need to stay warm or keep food cold. And he could live without heat for now, even if it did bother him. He just needed to complete his objectives.
Objective: Connect to Cyberlife satellite
---> Identify surroundings
---> Find shelter
Primary objective: Protect Lt. Hank Anderson
The only thing that Connor necessarily needed right now was a job. He had considered Gotham City's police department, but after his 2 seconds of research, he found that it was way too corrupt for him. His second thought was some random tech job, maybe IT. That idea was quickly thrown out when he remembered that he was not actually good with this year's technology. As he was still stuck in 2018.
So Connor’s next best was Wayne Enterprises. Obviously.
He had quickly applied to a secretary position, which he thought would be easy enough. Of course, with his fake credentials, he got an interview the next day. Or maybe they were just desperate for a new secretary.
Surely this would all work out. Surely, Connor was doing the right thing. He would try to figure out a way home soon, a way back to Hank and Sumo. For now though, he just needed to get settled. Everything would be fine for Connor. At least he hoped so.