Sea King arrived a step too late.
Just as Batman had planned, he first went underwater to deal with some lingering issues, especially the strange structure discovered earlier, which filled him with questions.
After adjusting the ocean currents, he returned to Atlantis City for a peek, since that was his home after all.
Mera managed the kingdom well, as if his absence made no difference.
Then he left, missing Barry's upcoming amusement park construction, and decided to consult Poseidon about the underwater matters.
The mysterious building beneath the sea was evidently a product of Atlantis and Amazon style convergence, a history only the longevity of the Gods might understand.
Poseidon, much like his brother Zeus, habitually shirked responsibilities.
Zeus chased romance, while Poseidon merely pursued the life of mortals.
Both had walked the path of transcendence, seeking unmatched power, even surpassing the Creator God.
However, after thousands of years, they've made little progress and eventually fell into decadence.
With no hope left, why not give up?
They stopped chasing transcendence, indulging in pleasure and family drama.
Regardless of the Divine System, it's always family ethics dramas, though Olympus was the liveliest of all.
But transcendence is a road of no return, and the burning lighthouse told Arthur exactly that.
Poseidon no longer wished to surpass others; he sought ordinary life.
However, successors wouldn't let him block the path; he would be surpassed.
Arthur charged into the blaze; the lighthouse was completely engulfed in flames.
Unlike Mera, he couldn't control seawater to extinguish the fire, not to mention there were no big fish around the fishing port to command.
Still, he relied on his own strength, rushing inside to search for clues or anything else.
Almost nothing was there, aside from a pool of blood on the floor; even Poseidon's remains were nowhere to be seen.
Smog filled the lighthouse, large burning debris occasionally falling from above, Arthur felt his skin quickly dehydrating; he was uncomfortable.
However, he found something valuable, a small ship in a glass bottle, hidden behind the corner of a table.
Arthur proudly raised an eyebrow, his insight considerably heightened from his time learning with Batman in the Justice League.
This seemingly ordinary "ship in a bottle" ornament was actually a compass, which Poseidon had told him about, pointing to Atlantis's greatest hero, Aryan's final secret.
And nearby, in a discreet place, a string of small letters written in blood appeared to be Poseidon's last words.
'Follow the ship.'
Is this a hint? Arthur stroked his beard; was this meant for him to use the ship in the bottle to locate something?
"Is this a game?" Arthur dashed out of the lighthouse as his hair was about to catch fire, he took the bottle and jumped into the sea to cool off.
He knew the Gods would reincarnate after they died, so he didn't realize the severity of the situation immediately.
But Atlantis's great hero Aryan... the legend says he protected Atlantis from aliens, yet the details...
Arthur knew of this person, reputedly great, but his glorious deeds were only vaguely known to him.
Is it his fault?
He was a mixed blood, spent all his youth on land, even after inheriting the throne of Atlantis, who has the time to check ancient records?
Now he could go and check, but would undoubtedly need to access the Royal Palace's archives, sure to be discovered by the guards, and then Mera would come to argue with him...
He didn't want to quarrel with his wife; he couldn't out-argue her, which is why he currently lived in the Hall of Justice, avoiding his marital issues.
He looked at the ship in the bottle, deciding to follow it; since it's a compass, he'd uncover the mystery upon arrival.
But he needed a mode of transportation.
..............
He returned to the town, phoning Batman, after which the Hall of Justice's teleportation device brought him back to Washington, yet the ship's bow still pointed south.
He needed transportation, following this direction straight ahead.
"Is Diana around?" He walked into the command hall soaking wet, leaving a trail of dark footprints.
Batman remained seated before the computer, as Sea King entered, he saw him remotely operating equipment, performing surgery on someone.
Arthur raised an eyebrow without saying much.
This person seemed to be called Star Hero? Before nightfall, he suddenly fell through a temporal portal into the Hall of Justice, claiming three members of the Justice League would die this time before fainting.
Now it seemed Batman was dissecting his brain...
Arthur could scarcely understand Bat's ways, nor wished to interfere, he knew Batman wouldn't kill, he trusted Batman.
So now he only wanted to find Diana, hitch a plane for his own matters.
Superman is not here, Ron is not here, Steel Bone is not here, and all the ones who can fly are gone, only Diana is left.
Batman remained unfazed as he continued with his actions because Mr. Zhuoyue had run away and hadn't returned yet. Batman had to step in and perform the surgery himself.
He discovered that half of Star Hero's brain had vanished, and he was investigating this matter.
On Deathstroke's side, Deathstroke handed the phone to Bo Bo, which meant complete disconnection now.
"Diana is still here, but I suggest you let her rest for a while," Batman calmly told Sea King as he looked at the perfect incision in Star Hero's cranial cavity, it looked like Luthor's signature.
This was Luthor's handiwork, very representative.
Since Batman thought Wonder Woman was out of time, Arthur just nodded. He wanted to ask if he could borrow the Bat Plane and get a pilot for it, like Nightwing or Kate Kane.
Just then, Diana walked into the command hall fully armed.
Her expression was very solemn, as if someone had massacred Paradise Island; she seemed ready to seek revenge.
"I don't need to rest, tell me, Arthur, where are you going? I'll join you," she said while drawing her sword and swinging it a few times, proving her physical fitness.
Arthur somewhat regretted it, why didn't he learn how to fly a plane? Now Diana's face seemed to say, "I'm very unhappy."
And Diana being angry was much scarier than when his wife got angry.
However, their previous conversation with Batman was clearly overheard by Diana; there was no way to bluff through it, so he had to talk about Poseidon's murder and took out the Ship in a Bottle for them to see.
Batman, upon hearing something involving Olympus, indicated that it was Diana's matter now; he had more important matters here.
While Diana felt overwhelmed inside, were there not already enough Olympus affairs?
Donna had returned and brought back Xiaozha for treatment.
Donna was the one who released Diana from the cell and told her what happened after she was imprisoned.
Hecate had vanished, erased from the world concept, and a strange concept replaced the former concept of magic, mages now paid a price for using power.
Moreover, she'd heard that Deathstroke had no intention of returning, flying off with Albella.
Batman had no answer to this, Deathstroke was out of contact, and the Female Mage protected by Hell Magic was beyond investigation.
It was all driving Diana restless.
Punching her twice unconscious, not mentioning soft detention once and imprisonment once, and finally not even visiting her, taking off with the Female Mage for fun?
She went fully armed just waiting for Deathstroke's return to engage in a serious fight with him.
And now Poseidon was involved too, would it ever end?
Instinctively, Diana didn't want to care, yet Sea King, the big brute, couldn't pilot a plane, seeing his challenging face, Diana nodded anyway.
After all, the Atlanteans relied on the sea for survival, Poseidon's death was significant for them, and Arthur's concern was logical.
In light of today's happenings, Batman contacted Firestorm, letting him accompany the two on their mission.
Arthur and Diana were both close-combat types, with nearly no long-range capabilities; bringing along Firestorm, the second line hero, would compensate for the shortfall in energy projection.
So as they set off, Arthur sat on the transparent plane, squatting in horse stance with Diana.
While Firestorm, finding the posture unattractive, chose to fly himself.
He was a living nuclear reactor, with a flight speed fast enough to keep up with top-tier superheroes, plus could emit energy like Lantern Hero or alter the atomic structure of items.
Of course, this was also a 'non-kill' superpower, and he could only alter non-living things.
It was hard to say if Batman dispatching this 'moral model' to accompany them also had a surveillance intent.
You should know, paired together, Diana and Arthur were ruthless, and having Firestorm join was like a safeguard.
If Batman detected Firestorm's radiation disappearing, it signified that Diana and Arthur turned rogue, killing everyone; he'd then take countermeasures to halt the rogue pair.
Of course, he wouldn't admit Diana's bad mood had his factors, as he had earlier taken out the projection device to deal with Diana.
Diana knew he possessed Kryptonite for dealing with Superman, even joking it was their wedding ring.
But Batman also took out measures against her, it didn't feel okay when it came down to herself.
She understood Batman's concern, also felt it was necessary to avoid being controlled like today.
But logic was one thing, emotions were another.
In short, Diana piloted the Stealth Plane herself, with Sea King with his head down, fiddling with the bottle, unsure of what to say to Diana.
Her face seemed to be covered in frost, her eyes filled with murder intent.
Arthur decided it would be best to shut up and be a quiet, handsome guy.
Finally, as they reached Antarctica, the small ship in the bottle started to react, like facing a storm, it began to sway up and down.
In Antarctica's season of polar night, they needed to descend, only then could they see what lay beneath the ice.