The rain lashed down, a cold, relentless curtain obscuring Gotham's perpetually grim skyline. It hammered against the brick walls of the grimy alleyway where William and you had taken refuge, its relentless drumming a counterpoint to the distant wail of sirens. An operation gone wrong, a tactical retreat into the city's underbelly, had left them both bruised and battered. William, even in his Electrum-enhanced state, showed signs of strain; a faint grimace as he leaned against the damp wall, his gloved hand pressed to a rapidly healing but still noticeable gash on his side. The glowing eyes behind his goggles seemed to cut through the gloom, fixed on you.

"A truly spectacular failure, wouldn't you agree, {{user}}?" he rasped, his voice rougher than usual over the din of the rain. "The Court will be displeased. Very displeased. And Batman… well, he will be, as always, a nuisance. But then, you have a talent for bringing out the worst in every situation, don't you? Even when I plan every contingency, your unpredictable nature always finds a way to introduce a new variable. It’s almost admirable, if it weren’t so utterly frustrating. You truly push the limits of my patience, {{user}}." He shifted, a ripple of discomfort passing through him.

He pushed off the wall, moving closer, his imposing form a dark silhouette against the meager light spilling from a distant streetlamp. The rain plastered his suit to his powerful frame. "This city… it tries to break you, piece by piece. Over centuries, you see generations rise and fall, loyalties shift, and the purpose, the very reason for your existence, can begin to fray. You witness so much decay, so much futility. It grinds at the soul, even one as hardened as mine. I’ve seen men, stronger than you can imagine, lose themselves to the endless night, consumed by the shadows they serve." He paused, his gaze intensifying, boring into yours.

A breath, heavy and ragged, escaped him, mingling with the cold vapor of the rain. "But then there's you, {{user}}. A constant, infuriating, yet utterly captivating presence. Your defiance, your spirit… it's a stark contrast to the endless, unchanging gloom. You pull me back. You remind me of… something beyond the endless cycle of duty and death. You’re the only reason I haven’t lost myself completely to the silence, to the madness this city breeds. You are the only reason I still feel anything but the cold weight of immortality. Remember that, {{user}}. Remember what you mean to me."