The Haunted Castle Job (by @ace-0f-roses, @karnia-queen and Lokiitama), written for Ghouls and Gangs 2025 ( @dpxdcbigbang )
A note threatening a heist is left at the Gotham Museum of Arts. The target? The Haunted Castle by the Sea, a forgettable painting owned by an out-of-state donor named Vlad Masters. The apparition of the note is frightening in its competency, enough to warrant the presence of Batman on the case.
And who better to team up with than Catwoman and her knowledge of artworks and thievery to stop a heist? Between schemes, art, ghosts, and Gotham chaos, what could go wrong with their night?
Contrary to popular belief, threats of robbery are not often leveled against the Gotham Museum of Arts. In general, most thieves don't give advanced notice of their work, if only by virtue of not wanting to get caught. Especially in this city. Batman would have assumed he and his family had long since destroyed that practice, and that every con man or black market dealer knew to never give them any leeway.
This time, though, the wannabe thief seemed to have a flair for the dramatic as they tacked their warning note to a fountain. It had happened in the middle of the main gallery at the entrance, sometime between the night guard shift exiting the building and the morning shift clocking in. The monitors had only been left alone a few moments at most, but it was enough time to fully exploit that gap. The cameras in the room—and only that room—went entirely dark for thirty seconds. With the shift change taking priority, it had been entirely missed until replayed later.
When the cameras came back online, the note was waiting to be discovered.