"It's different here from the last time I came."
Raven said this to Donna as they stood atop Wayne Tower in Gotham City of the Main Universe.
Yes, many things were still the same as before: gunshots ringing out in the middle of the night, acid rain falling almost every day, and the Bat-Signal shining above the clouds.
But one tiny difference made this city seem utterly changed from what it had been.
That difference was the curfew.
Gotham had once been a city of dazzling lights and endless revelry. Whenever night fell, exciting entertainment sprang up everywhere.
As long as you had money, you could go to Black Mask's nightclub or Penguin's Iceberg Lounge and enjoy the finest service in the world. The food, drinks, and entertainment were beyond anything ordinary people could imagine.
And if you had no money, that was no problem either. You could take advantage of the night to get some.
Former President Jefferson of the United States had once said, "If an apple from my neighbor's tree falls into my yard, it belongs to me." Gothamites were probably Jefferson's greatest admirers in all of America. They put that famous saying into practice in every aspect of life.
What if the "apple" stayed "on the tree" and refused to fall? Just strike that "tree" in the soft spots or across the nose.
In short, in this city, if Batwoman had not been around to make trouble, the rich and the powerful had originally lived quite happily. Perhaps they had once imagined how wonderful life would be without Batwoman.
Now their wish had come true.
But there were probably even more people regretting it. Gotham no longer even had prosperity. The city was pitch-black and deathly silent, like a ghost town.
Donna rubbed her arm. The