Chapter Text
“Wake up! Everybody, wake up! Wake up!” Dutch's voice echoed against the walls as he rushed to shake everyone awake. “Come on, Arthur! Arthur, Arthur! Wake up!”
“What? Why? What’s happening?” Arthur asked, still half-asleep.
“I don’t know, but we have to get off this boat! Come on!” Dutch's voice rose in panic. “Hurry up, you sleepy bastards!”
Arthur was the last one to get up. As he tried to escape through the narrow corridors, a large wooden plank suddenly fell in front of him, blocking his way to safety. He and Dutch both pushed against it, but it wouldn’t budge.
“This thing isn’t moving!” Dutch exclaimed, frustration creeping into his voice.
Arthur felt a wave of panic rising inside him. He waved Dutch away. “I’ll find another way!”
Arthur took a longer route, feeling the ship sway dangerously beneath his feet. Flames flickered in the ship’s interior, and he saw some people who had been caught in the chaos get thrown into the water. He looked around frantically, but his allies were nowhere in sight.
In the distance, he spotted Dutch in an escape boat, far too far for Arthur to reach.
“...Arthur! Arthur!” he heard Dutch call out. It sounded like one of the others might be with him, but Arthur didn’t have time to worry about that.
“DUUUUUUUUTCH!!” he yelled at the top of his lungs, but his voice was lost in the chaos.
Around him, people were jumping into the water, and he realized he had no choice but to follow. He stepped onto a post and leaped forward, plunging into the dark, deep water below.
After that, everything went black. Miraculously, when Arthur regained consciousness, he found that he hadn’t drowned. He clung desperately to a piece of broken ship debris, fighting to stay afloat.
●●●
A large ship cruised quietly over the ocean, its bright lights illuminating the dark water. A crew member stood at the edge of the deck, scanning the surface with a sharp eye. Suddenly, he spotted something floating in the distance.
“What’s that?” he murmured to himself, narrowing his eyes. He grabbed the spotlight and directed the beam toward the object. As the light landed on it, he could see a man clinging to what appeared to be a piece of metal.
“It’s a person!” he shouted, his heart racing. Without wasting a second, he dashed toward the captain. “Captain! There’s a man in the water! We need to rescue him!”
The captain quickly gathered the crew, and they rushed to prepare a rescue boat. The crew worked together, lowering the boat into the water while keeping their eyes on the struggling man.
“Hold on!” the captain yelled as they approached Arthur. “We’re coming for you!”
They reached Arthur just in time. The crew members extended their hands, helping him onto the boat. Arthur, exhausted and shivering, looked up at them with gratitude.
“Thanks,” he whispered, his voice barely audible as they pulled him to safety. The crew wrapped him in blankets, and they headed back to the ship, relieved to have saved a life that night.
●●●
A few days had passed, and Arthur still couldn't wrap his head around what had happened to him. After the boat crashed, he had been rescued, fed, and given new clothes: a sand-colored jacket, a faded pair of jeans, and a black pair of boots. To top it all off, it seemed he had somehow ended up in the future—2008. Un-fucking-believable.
He rarely used profanity, but this was surely one of those times. Fuck.
Arthur had no idea if the rest of the gang had ended up in the same situation as him, but deep down, he doubted it.
Sitting alone in the bustling diner, he picked at a plate of food, the taste foreign to his tongue. The smell of coffee and fried foods filled the air, mingling with the chatter of patrons. He was lost in thought when he noticed a man in a light brown jacket standing nearby, holding a steaming bowl of soup. The man scanned the room, searching for a place to sit, and his eyes landed on the empty seat in front of Arthur.
"Hey there. Do you mind if I sit here?" the man asked, his voice tinged with a heavy accent—something Slavic, Arthur thought.
"Go ahead," Arthur shrugged, gesturing for him to take a seat. "Arthur. Arthur Morgan."
The man settled down across from Arthur and looked up, his dark eyes sharp and observant. "Niko Bellic," he replied, offering a nod.
As Niko dug into his soup, Arthur studied him for a moment. He could tell this man was no stranger to hardship. The lines on his face told stories of struggle and survival, much like Arthur's own. They shared a moment of silence, each lost in his own thoughts, yet something intangible sparked between them—a sense of understanding, perhaps.
●●●
"Daddy's back, you bitches... Daddy's back, you bitches!" The muffled voice of a man echoed through the thin walls of his cabin, the sound punctuated by the crack of a whip. A woman’s laughter followed.
Niko sighed and knocked on the door again, his voice steady but tinged with annoyance. "Dave, come on. Come on, Dave."
Arthur, who had been wandering the narrow, dimly lit hallway, paused when he saw Niko at the door. "Niko? Ain't ya comin'?" he asked, a hint of curiosity in his tone.
"Dave is not coming," Niko replied, gesturing at the door with a mixture of frustration and resignation.
Arthur chuckled, shaking his head. "Is he doin' that strange thing again? Whatever, just ignore him." He waved dismissively, recalling the awkward encounter he had had when he accidentally stumbled into Dave's room, only to find him engaged in some bizarre and risqué activity. Best not to dwell on that, he thought.
Niko shrugged, rolling his eyes as he followed Arthur down the corridor. They made their way to a ladder leading to a higher deck, the sound of their boots echoing against the metal as they climbed. Once outside, Arthur pulled out a cigarette, the familiar ritual calming his nerves. He lit it and offered one to Niko, who politely declined, opting instead to take in the fresh air.
"Looks like we’re gettin' close... Liberty City," Arthur remarked, exhaling a plume of smoke into the night sky. "Your cousin's comin' to pick ya up, ain't he?"
Niko nodded, his expression thoughtful. "Yeah. What about you? Have you got any plans yet?" The question lingered in the air, an unspoken concern evident in his tone.
"Nah." Arthur shook his head, the simplicity of his answer belied by the weight of uncertainty that hung over him.
"Well... I could ask my cousin to let you stay with us until you got something figured out." Niko offered, his voice sincere. Since their first meeting, the two had developed a camaraderie, sharing drinks and stories, and finding common ground in their tumultuous pasts.
"I dunno, partner. You think he'd be alright with that?" Arthur raised an eyebrow, skepticism creeping in.
"I guess we'll just have to ask him," Niko shrugged, his confidence unwavering.
"Alright then. I reckon I’ll take ya up on that offer," Arthur replied, a small smile breaking through his usually stoic demeanor. The thought of having a place to land, even temporarily, eased some of the tension coiling in his gut.