On Earth-9, Batman is breaking into the Core, the information hub for the entire planet. By knocking out the guards and using one of them on the retina scanner, he is able to gain access to the main console room. As he enters, he remembers talking to Spectre, Plastic Man and Green Lantern about the state of the world. Despite the obvious good to this world, the heroes want to bring down the government. And although Batman does not want to get involved in their struggle, his friends have been caught and are probably still kept alive by the Superman... for a time, anyway. Since they cannot convince him, Spectre makes an offhand remark about the Core - only for Batman to decide to go there.
- Writer: Dan Jurgens
- Artist: Matthew Clark
- Cover: Carlos Pacheco, Jesús Merino