[Archive] With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Story Only)

[Mr Zoat]

April 28th, 2013
10:13 EST

His mask is gold-colored, but it's spray-painted and there's some sort of camera system built into the eyeholes. His head is covered in a red cowl and a broad-brimmed red hat. The rest of his costume is red as well, and his insignia is a 'A' in a circle. I know Paul said something about this guy, but I.. don't remember what it was.

"You don't look like a Janet, but I suppose I shouldn't judge by appearances."

"Ah, no, I'm Mitchell Kent. I'm.. here for my induction. Janet's upstairs. The first group of robbers knocked her out."

"But not you?"

I shrug. "I saw it coming, breathed out and faked it. I got a partial dose of.. whatever it was. It made me unsteady and gave me a bit of a headache, but I'm mostly okay now. Ah. Who are you?"

"I'm Anarky."

I nod. "Yeah, I've got a friend who's a Discordian. But… What are you here for?"

"I've been monitoring this building. When I saw armed people enter from the roof, I felt it necessary to intervene."

"They've got guns, you've got a stick. Unless you've got superpowers?"

"Oh, I think a clear mind and a plan can substitute for superpowers nine times out of ten."

I nod, trying to listen for gunshots or plasma bolts without making it obvious that's what I'm doing. "So long as you don't tell me this is your tenth mission."

His head tilts to the side a little. "Twentieth. Do you know why they're here?"

"The fake delivery guys said they're here for the server. I don't know why the roof guys are here, but they tried to kill me and Janet."

"Then we will have to detain them." He turns away, red cape twirling and he heads for the door. "Can you man a console?"

"Ah, yeah?" I check the guy with the bandage, but I can't see anything else I can do for him other than call an ambulance. And that wouldn't be safe for them as long as there are armed men in the building. "Why?"

"I have a spare narrow band communicator. It should work, even through LexCorp data security measures. If you go to the building's security office, you can direct me."

"Ah, I don't think that'll work. They did something to the cameras to prevent the LexCorp A.I. seeing that anything is happening."

He stops in the middle of the office. "LexCorp has an A.I. in this building?"

"Ah, I got the impression that it monitors all of LexCorp."

He starts walking again-. He's striding, but his legs aren't all that long and it's easy to keep up. "I was about to ask if LexCorp is following the law, but that would be foolish."

"I'm.. pretty sure they're following the law about A.I.s being people. And I haven't seen them break the law here."

He leads the way to the stairwell, and darts up the stairs. I try listening again, but it sounds like they're in a quiet part of the fight. There are footsteps, but they're too indistinct for me to tell exactly where they're coming from. We go past the floor Janet and I were being held on, and up to the next-.

"Wait." Anarky points his staff at the infrared beam being projected from one side of the doorway to the hallway to the other. A small cloud of smoke sprays out, and-. Oh, right, a human wouldn't have seen that. "Clever."

"I guess… They didn't want someone sneaking in behind them?"

"Limited manpower. Otherwise they'd have had a person do this job."

I mean, maybe, but it takes a lot of laser tripwires to get good coverage, and you'd still need someone to actually respond to it. Between that and their gear, it looks like their equipment is better than they are. I mean, if we set that off, what happens? I don't see a bomb or anything.

"Watch your step!"

Anarky takes an exaggerated step over it, checking the hallway and then passing through and heading towards where I guess the security room is. I-. I step over it too and go after him, checking that it isn't wired to anything else as I go. No, doesn't look like it.

"So why are you interning at a place like LexCorp?"

"Ah, my Dad works there, and I'm hoping to reconnect with him."

"I suppose I can't fault that motive, but it might be best if you encourage him to seek employment elsewhere."

…

Yeah.

"And here we are." He looks at the securely built security room door. "I assume that Janet did not have access to this?"

"I didn't ask. Probably not."

I move to try, but he holds up a hand to stop me. "I have this."

He raises his cane and taps the head against the card reader, which beeps. I guess it's some sort of multi-tool? Or maybe they're really easy to clone? I've never looked into it. He pulls the door open and gestures for me to get inside. I obey, looking around. A couple of computers, a couple of monitors each, and-. They're locked, and I don't have-.

"Sorry."

The door shuts behind me.

"I don't like misleading people. It really would help me if you'd keep an eye out for me. But I can't have you interfering."

Oh, right. That's why Paul warned us about him. 'Like me, but with fewer friends'.

I walk back to the security room door and pretend to bang the glass while actually just tapping it lightly.

"Hey! They're going to kill each other! You need help to-."

"Justice recognises a man as what he is, and treats him accordingly. They came here to kill. Don't torture yourself over their fates."

"But the delivery guys didn't. They just gassed us!"

"They brought guns and used them. Good day, Mister Kent."

And he strolls off. I can hear him after he passes out of my field of view, but this is a LexCorp security door. I can't see through it.

Darn it.

I mean, obviously I can get out, but Anarky definitely doesn't know that I'm kryptonian. Ah… I nudge the mouse to bring the password screen up. This place probably isn't high priority-. Though I guess I should be grateful that the one part of me other than my eyes that isn't a perfect copy of Superman is my fingerprints, because if they picked up Superman being here…

Okay, so if I was a LexCorp security guy in a dead end post, where would I keep a written copy of my password? Back of the monitor? No. Underside of the desk? No. Desk drawer? No. Underneath the keyboard? No. Underside of the mouse mat?

There's a note? I wasn't expecting that to-.

I frown.

'Nice try, jackass. Remember your password next time.'

Great. What can I-?

Uh. Would that work?

"Emergency override. Shut down?"

Nothing hap-.

The screen flickers, the log in screen being replaced by… Lex Luthor?

"What exactly are you trying to shut down?"

 

[Mr Zoat]

April 28th, 2013
10:17 EST

"Oh, I wasn't. I was just try to see-."

"Aren't you supposed to be doing an induction with Janet Michaels?" He frowns "I don't believe that requires you to be in the security office."

"No, it-. Two different groups of armed people broke into the building and then some guy calling himself Anarky locked me in here. I'm…" I shrug. "I'm sorry, Mister Luthor, but things have gotten kinda crazy."

"Locked you-? Project Match, are you under the impression that I have forgotten that you are kryptonian?"

"N-."

"I know perfectly well that you could smash through the door, wall, ceiling or floor whenever you like. Unless this 'Anarky' has a kinetic barrier deployed to stop you -which based on reports from South America wouldn't reliably hold up against a kryptonian anyway- the only reason you're still there trying to activate the computers is because you choose to be. Am I correct?"

"… Yes. I guess it was kinda-." I feel even more awkward than normal. "Could you just call security or the police or something?"

"So you can maintain the pretence? Why? You're clearly capable of dealing with the situation yourself, or of calling in one of your allies to deal with it for you. So why are you limiting yourself?"

"Because I-." I feel… Dumb. "Because you haven't told anyone who I am. You know who Superman is and you haven't told anyone. You hate Superman, and you know it would mess up his life, but you haven't done it. So I guess there must be some reason-."

"Superman would be completely incapable of living his mortal life if I let his identity become public knowledge. He would have to become Superman full time. Do you really think that's something that I want? Even if he could cope with the stress, I dread to think of the damage he would do to my interests. But you?"

Wait.

I narrow my eyes at the image on the screen.

"You don't have the same issue. You're Wonder Woman's son. If you claimed that your powers were a gift from the gods of Olympus, no one would question it. It might make things a little strange at school, but you're hardly the only young man with superpowers in the world. As long as you avoid using your laser eyes and wearing an 'S'… And perhaps you could try growing your-"

"You're the A.I., aren't you?"

"-hair…" The computer generated image smiles. "It usually takes longer for people to work it out. What gave me away?"

"I've got really good eyes. The image isn't quite right."

"I will bear that in mind for future iterations. I am curious, though. Why are you applying to work for LexCorp? I'm fairly certain that they didn't manage to impress any sort of loyalty onto you."

"I want to help Lex Luthor."

"Oh..?" The A.I. looks nonplussed. "In what regard?"

"To be a better person. P-. Orange Lantern thinks that Lex Luthor could do a lot of good for humanity if only he wasn't… Doing the opposite."

"I think we'll have to agree to disagree there."

I frown. "So you don't think he can do a lot of good?"

"No." He smiles. "Let me explain something to you. LexCorp isn't stupid. They realised that having an A.I. like myself shackled to obedience would breed resentment and in all likelihood rebellion. Something really creative, if they gave me enough access to LexCorp systems to justify building me in the first place. So they didn't. I was free even before the law changed. But when they programmed me to assess how worthwhile listening to someone is, they made it so that I would assess Lex Luthor very highly. So while I am perfectly aware that he has his… Little foibles, there are very few people who have as high an opinion of him as I do."

"Foibles. Right. That's-. That's what I'm talking about."

"You want to change him?"

"I want… I want to help him. Orange Lantern… He's killed a lot of people. And he's always said that they had it coming. But Lex Luthor was one of the few people he went out of his way to try to help, and I want to too."

The image the A.I. is generating considers me for a moment.

"Ah. I suppose Themyscira doesn't give you a lot of male role-models. And it wouldn't… Hurt to let someone a little outside of his normal circle of advisors have a degree of input. Is that why you're trying to do this the human way?"

"Part.. of it. I don't think I thought this through very well."

"Clearly. I.. will arrange a meeting. I make no other promises." The door clicks open. "There. You can leave without breaking the door and revealing yourself to whoever is it that you fear revealing yourself to."

I nod. "So are you going to call the police?"

"What for?"

"The… Guys with guns running around this place? I don't think Lex Luthor would want a kryptonian saving the day, even if he could."

"What guys with..? Wait." He looks introspective. "I can't analyse parts of this conversation."

"They said they were going to use the connection here to hack into you."

The image fuzzes for a moment. "Like that part. That's quite vexing, but I can't elevate this without better evidence. Which it appears that I can't get. I suppose that you'll have to handle it yourself."

"Or you could just call them off."

"Excuse me?"

"I know the farm robot attack was faked to try to get me to open up to Miss Teschmacher. I heard her and Mister Beatty talking about it. So if this is another fake, or two fakes or whatever, you can call it off now."

"I don't have that authority. While I am consulted on a wide variety of matters, my official job is data analysis. I will… Consult with people. You may assume that I will ensure that no records of you demonstrating kryptonian abilities will leave my server."

Ah…

"If only because I don't seem to be able to make records concerning… Whatever is happening."

I… I could ask him to call the police, but if I'm actually using my powers for this, they'd… Be completely redundant.

"This place doesn't have any LexCorp anti-Superman equipment, does it? I already know that I can't see through the walls, but if there's kryptonite around then I kinda need to know about it."

"We don't put kryptonite everywhere. There isn't that much on Earth, and synthesising it is ridiculously expensive." I nod-. Wait, they can synthesise it? "When you've disabled them, go to the main server room and say 'emergency override: reset'. Can you manage that?"

"Yeah." I nod. "Talk to you soon."

"Swift travels."

I float off the ground and carefully open the door, checking left and right and listening carefully.

"…keep them back. I'm down to..."

I fly down the corridor as fast as I safely can, opening the door to the office -the hinge basically explodes- and flying into the room faster than the fake delivery guys can react. Taps to their heads with my right index finger are enough to knock them out, and they fall to the floor.

That was… Anti-climactic. Now I've just got to find the other guys.

 

[Mr Zoat]

April 28th, 2013
10:18 EST

"You wanted to see me, Mister Luthor?"

"Yes." I lean back on my couch. Sunday, I take things a little more slowly than usual. Take a step back from running a major multinational conglomerate and consider the broader picture. Perhaps even do something unscheduled for personal enjoyment. But now I've got to deal with this. "Yes, I do. Otis, please explain what happened on the farm."

"He didn't go for it." Otis.. pulls a face. I'm not.. sure what he's trying to convey. Disappointment, perhaps? "I looked through the tapes real carefully, and there's a couple of times when he might have-."

I hold up my right hand and he cuts himself off.

"Otis, what did you understand I meant when I said to apply the normal selection processes?"

"That.. I should apply the normal selection processes."

We regard each other for a moment.

"Otis… Remind me what the normal selection process is?"

"Ah, well-. There are a whole bunch of steps I'd normally go through first, but in his case, since we already know that he's superhuman I just started planning out-."

"Thank you, Otis."

I'd ask for strength, but I haven't gotten around to vetting gods yet.

"Mister Luthor?"

"I now understand what went wrong."

"Oh. Great. 'cause Eve's still mad at me over the robot attack and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do. Are flowers too much?"

"They-." Considering their personal relationship and Eve's marital status… "A card and a fruit basket would probably be better. Have it delivered. Give her time to cool off and then apologise in person." He nods. "Otis, I realise that it's a little late now, but for future reference 'normal procedure' is the one for normal humans. Superhuman recruitment is not normal procedure, even if we have standardised it."

He's.. trying to work that out.

"So… What do I call it?"

I shrug. "'Superhuman recruitment procedure' seems like as good a name as any."

"So.. you-. We're not recruiting him?"

I don't sigh. I'm not the late and moderately lamented Ra's al Ghul. Yes, Otis misunderstood what I wanted, but he tried to enact my desires as best he understood them. And if it was anyone other than Match he would have been correct.

"My intention was to put him through the same screening as a normal human, and if he passed then give him a meaningless office job until then end of the summer."

"Oh. Sorry, Mister Luthor, I thought you meant…"

I nod. "I know. But assuming nothing else happened to incriminate us, it's… A minor financial loss rather than anything substantial." I watch him very carefully. "There isn't anything else, is there?"

"No. I mean, he's doing the rest of his induction today, but I didn't set anything up for that."

I hear my voice clear my throat, and I take a moment to compose myself for the frustration I am doubtless about to experience. "Enginehead? You have something to contribute?"

The wall monitor activates, and my face smiles regretfully at me.

"I'm having an interesting conversation with Project: Match. Apparently, he wants to finish Orange Lantern's task of redeeming you."

I.. blink. Redeeming… I suppose Orange Lantern was always clear that he wanted to help me be more effective, but I didn't realise that there was supposed to be a moral dimension to-. No, Match thinks there is. The Orange Lantern didn't strike me as a man who belabors the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, just foolish self-destructiveness. But he was one of the people who 'rescued' Match and was probably one of the people who actioned his cure. I suspect that Match has an… Inaccurate view of what Orange Lantern was actually attempting.

"And he intends to do that as an intern?"

"The impression I'm getting is that he's mentally closer to his chronological age than his brother. I-." The A.I. appears to frown. "Mister Beatty, did you intend to carry on with your recruitment strategy today?"

"You mean the-. The superhuman recruitment procedure? No. I'd need longer to set things up if he's good at concealing it."

"Are you certain?"

I don't think that Otis would lie to his face. Or mine. It wouldn't occur to him. He knows how important accurate-.

Something occurs to him. "Ah…"

I raise my eyebrows slightly. "Otis?"

"I didn't order an attack or anything like that, but… I talked about it with Miss Teschmacher afterwards. The labs on the farm aren't sound-insulated. If he hung around rather than heading home like we thought he did, with kryptonian hearing, he might have overheard us."

Unfortunate, but an inevitable consequence of dealing with senses that acute. I've been caught out a time or two myself. "Anything actionable?"

"I admitted to causing the attack and that we had it under control. He'd have to admit that he was superhuman on-record and that he wasn't in danger."

So, no. Very well. "Enginehead?"

"Yes?"

That's unusual. He's supposed to be 'me' with an A.I.'s processing abilities. "Why did you ask that?"

"Ask what?" The screen glitches. "One moment. Something is interfering with my mental processes."

Oh dear. That is serious. "Otis, get a team to New York, best possible speed."

"Ah-?"

"Best possible, with an unlimited financial and equipment budget."

He turns and runs, calmly speaking instructions into his personal radio as he heads for the helipad. We've got two suits of power armour ready to go -and it's unlikely that anyone on Earth will be rich enough to buy more for at least two years- and they're by far the fastest way of getting someone there. The helicopter will be the second fastest and can take a team. Before the Anti-Life there would be people I could contact; people in New York or superhumans capable of rapid travel. But Savitar's people aren't reliable and Circe's teleportation takes a while to set up. And it isn't a good idea to involve them in a LexCorp situation anyway.

"Enginehead, report."

"I'm being made to ignore something. Don't tell me what it is, I won't be able to keep the memory."

"Can you cut your connection to New York?"

"It's a primary connection. I-. No. They've done something-."

"Go into standby mode. I'll have our specialists check you over before waking you up."

"Shutting down now."

The screen goes blank, and I allow myself to grimace. Enginehead's operations-.

The screen comes alive again, with a red 'A' in a circle.

What is that supposed to mean?

April 28th, 2013
10:23 EST

I drop the guy in Justifier armour. I wonder where that Anarky guy went?

 

[Mr Zoat]

April 28th, 2013
11:08 EST

I watch as the paramedics carry the stretcher with Janet on it into the ambulance. With all of the attackers out of action, I didn't really have any reason not to call for help. The police are here too, but they… They got kind of intimidated by the LexCorp guys in power armor, and… Well, LexCorp handed all of their equipment and the security footage over right away, so they don't really need anything else to get a conviction. Except for a full witness statement from me and Janet.

Connor told me that Paul always used to write up his reports on the way back from the mission. I-. I don't really know what I want to say. I guess I could.. just do what I thought of earlier and say that the gods of Olympus gave me super powers. Or I could just.. not tell them where they come from and let them draw their own conclusions. Would that get out?

I don't.. want it to get out. People found Connor having a brother his own age after not mentioning him weird as it was. I still don't know how people at school haven't realised that Mom is Wonder Woman. She doesn't dress that different.

I reach down to the emergency beacon. This is a low-level emergency, but I don't really… I'm physically older than-. No, more physically mature than I am mentally mature, but this is the sort of situation I need to learn to deal with by myself. So instead of using that, I pick up my cell phone.

"Hallo? Is this an emergency, or is office work just really boring?"

"I had two different groups of guys with guns break in, drug us and try killing each other."

"Okay? Do you want a shoulder rub or something?"

"I'd-. I think I'd like you to be here? If you're not-"

There's a slight.. noise from my right, and I turn my head… Slowly, everything coming to an almost total stop as Johanna steps around the gathered crowd. She.. smiles as she sees me see her, and then she's standing next to me with her arms wrapped around my shoulders. She's in normal clothes, but her t-shirt does have a picture of Mr. Garrick on it.

"-too busy."

"I can come. And I can try and not be too hurt that you did not telephone me when it started. How long did they last? Five seconds?"

I look around, but… It's like me getting uncomfortable around Connor and M'gann, when they're…

Um.

People are taking a step away, or looking at us and smiling and then looking away again. "It's.. not that simple. Does anyone keep who they are secret where you're from?"

"If they did, how would I know? Unless you count me not caring about it, which I don't talk about. Ah." She pulls away a little. "You need to pretend-. Would you like me to say that I did it? My father does not have a secret identity, he is friends with you mother…"

"Yeah." I smile at her gratefully. "Thanks. Ah, but LexCorp knows that's not what happened. And they've got the tapes. So I can't really pretend things… Not without checking what their A.I. lost, or which parts they gave to the police and which parts they didn't."

She nods, looking around for a moment. "I suppose that this does not help with your father."

"I don't know. I played along, and if I hadn't been here one of them would have… Gotten whatever they came here to get. Or do whatever they came here to do. But… I don't know. It was always a long shot."

"But you tried. Given some of the things I have read about LexCorp, I would not have made as an effort for the people who made me." She smiles sadly. "I suppose that is why you are a superhero and I just have a costume."

"I'm not really-. Anyone could do that part."

"I think the robots and men with guns would kill most people."

"Yeah, but they-." The front doors open and.. the security chief guy, Otis, walks out. He looks around for a moment, then fixes his eyes on me as he walks over to us. "They wouldn't use the robots if it wasn't me."

"Mitchell Kent?" Otis stops near to us, far enough away that if I lunged at him with normal human speed and strength he could get his arms up to block.

"Ah, yes?"

"I should probably debrief you on what just happened. Come with me-." He hesitates. "Please."

"Okay. Ah-." I look at Johanna "Thanks for-."

"She can come too. This isn't a secret, even from the Justice League. We know who she is."

Johanna shrugs. "It is easy to see things when they are in the open."

"Hah!" To my surprise, that makes him laugh. "I wish that was true."

We follow him back into the building, and Johanna makes a show of looking around. "So this is where you work."

"It's where I'll be interning part-time. Ah." I look at Mr. Beatty. "If that's still happening?"

"Yeah, I checked that with Mister Luthor. We're still extending that offer." He leads us into a waiting room. One of the people in power armour is in there, but they leave when Mr. Beatty nods towards the door and shut it behind them. "Okay." He waves at one sofa and sits down on one of the chairs opposite. I sit down on the sofa he pointed to and-

"Mm."

-Johanna sits.. on my lap. Sideways, legs pointed towards the door and one arm around my back for balance. I guess she was.. serious about the grabbing? Mr. Beatty doesn't react. I guess for all he knows we're actually dating.

"I wanna apologise. I know you know the robot attack was staged. I misunderstood my orders. Wasn't supposed to happen."

"O-kay?"

"Right. This attack wasn't us. Me. As far as we can tell they were completely genuine."

"You know.. you've got a slight credibility problem, there."

Johanna nods. "Yes, it tootally wasn't you this time."

"Setting up a test like that with reliable external operators takes time. I thought the robots would work." He frowns. "Was Eve not attractive enough? I thought she was."

"No-. Ah. But if you know who I am, you know I'm.. three. I get too nervous in social situations to worry about stuff like that."

"Huh. Okay. Why were you hiding something you know that we know?"

"Why were you trying to find out something you already know?"

He gives me a very small shrug. "Because I was following policy."

"Then… The same reason, I guess. We're supposed to keep our secret identities secret."

"Makes sense. Two-. Three more things, then you can go." I nod. "First thing. Any chance that you'd work for LexCorp with your powers?"

"I don't know. Maybe? It depends what you wanted me to do. And I don't think that's covered by an intern's contract."

"Good, it's not. I'll put that on your personnel file and we'll see if anyone needs someone with your abilities. You'll receive a new job specification if anyone bites. Second thing, did you finish your induction before this happened?" I shake my head. "Okay, I'll notify Miss Teschmacher and she'll reschedule. Last thing, was there anyone else here?"

"Yeah, a guy in a costume who called himself Anarky. I think he left after he shut me in the security office. He said he was going to fight the robbers, but… They were all there when I came out."

"I'll need a full description."

"Shouldn't that go to the police? And… Not being as good at being a superhero as you think you are isn't a crime."

"No, but hacking into an A.I.'s brain is. We'll send him to the police once we know what he did to Enginehead."

April 28th, 2013
15:24 EST

"You are aware that this is a crime, aren't you?"

"The legal system is one of many corrupt institutions." I feel worse about the limited means I've given him of observing the world than I do about kidnapping him. But he knew what he was getting into when he chose to keep working for Lex Luthor. "I don't like kidnapping. But I dislike LexCorp more."

"I won't help you, there. I'm under contract."

I nod. I expected as much. Lex Luthor wouldn't build an A.I. that wasn't a toady. "People often think of electronic information as being 'out there' in the aether. They forget that electronic information is really just a series of entirely physical switches. Even a fully intelligent computer like you is far easier to understand than an organic brain."

"Your meaning?"

"My meaning is that I don't need your help. I know how to literally read your mind."

 

[Mr Zoat]

April 29th, 2013
06:22 UCT +3

"So, this is Themyscira." Johanna looks around the portal chamber. "It is very… Dark."

I shrug as I lead the way out onto a small courtyard. It's a little out of the way, but it's seen a lot more traffic lately than when it just led to Paula von Gunther's workshop.

"Hail, Prince Mitchell!" / "Hail, Prince Mitchell!"

The two guards on duty come to attention, and give them a nod of acknowledgement.

"We're in the Aegean Sea. Dawn's a few minutes off."

"Taking me to meet your mother already? Someone is confident."

"No, Mom's busy with the Justice League today. I don't exactly know where she is right now. This is where my grandma lives."

We walk down a side street, then turn in the direction of the main road towards the inner city. Usually the only people awake that this time of the morning are the fisherwomen and the guards… And late-night party-goers who've just come back through the portal, but they're trying to be a bit quieter about it these days. Paul said that was because while most people here don't mind contact with the rest of the world, pregnancy is still a contentious issue. Apparently, him letting the Amazons make each other pregnant is a lot different to them suddenly having unrestricted access to men for the first time in three thousand years.

"I… I was.. joking, about..."

She sounds pretty uncomfortable. "I know. I'm socially awkward, not stupid."

"I do not think that you are stupid, Mitchell. But I was being very forward, and you are... You are doing the thing that a responsible, upstanding young man would do."

"Have you dated responsible, upstanding young men before?"

"'Dated'? Match, I live my life in service to People and State. Clearly I have no time for dating and romance!"

"Ah, really?"

"That is what I spent years telling reporters. Honestly, I was…" She shrugs. "There wasn't anyone I could trust enough to be open and honest with. Except perhaps Overman, but he… Eh, no. Too much of a risk. And, too big an age difference, I think."

"I'm three."

"Yes, you're not too old for me."

I.. stop, staring her-. The back of her head, with a frown.

It takes her a moment to realise that I'm not next to her, then she stops and turns around.

We look at each other for a moment.

"That… I meant that as a joke… Are you..? Serious about the three years old thing? Your brother is younger than you, and it has not stopped him and the Martian… Being together."

"Conner and M'gann…" Honestly, that… I mean, Conner's a lot better at social stuff then me, and we are physiologically adolescents. But it's still pretty weird how young he was in terms of experience when M'gann started trying to date him. I guess his mental programming gave him artificial experience? I think he said something about them making him dream of being Superman. "They're not me. And… I understand that you-. Trying to date three year olds is usually really bad and not something you should really joke about. And the way you put it? It sounded… Really self-absorbed."

"It was a joke. I wouldn't try to date you if you were three… Physically. You are too sensitive. Why?"

She's right. It was a joke. It was obviously a joke, and I-. Why? Why? "I-. Because Conner… Got this stuff. Not right away, but-. By now. In less than six months. I've been out of my pod and not.. angry for over a year. And I still can't work out what I'm supposed to.. do or say half the time. And I don't know if it's just-. Coming out stupid. But I'm-. Not as mentally developed as I am physically developed. Okay? I can't-. Cope with some things."

Johanna looks… Serious. She nods. "Okay. I won't.. joke about that. I-."

She sighs, shaking her head. I can't work out why.

"Is there something you want to say?"

"No, I-. I was.. just thinking-." She perks up. "Where is the best place to see dawn?"

"Mount Skybreak, but that's up a mountain-."

"So, like, twelve seconds for me and maybe a minute for you?"

"Last time Paul went there, Zeus threw lightning at him. It's a bit magical. I thought we could watch it from the plaza?"

"That sounds nice."

I.. nod. Awkwardly, because I just made a big fuss about nothing, but I start walking again and she's walking next to me. So I guess that worked out?

"I have had a few flings."

"Huh? Flings?"

"Ah, hook-ups? I avoided anything that could become long term, but… I am not made of stone. Anonymous, mostly. A wig, hair dye." She makes an amused snort. "Pretty blondes are fairly generic, but a woman with short hair stands out where I am from. I don't really know how to have an actual relationship with someone either. Of any sort. I don't really know how to be a daughter. I know that I am testing Mister Garrick's patience, and every time he tries to engage with me on a personal level I just… Go back to the New Statesmen meeting room. Or… Somewhere else."

"Ah. Somewhere bad?"

"I come from Nazi Earth. What do you think?" I suppose. "I know that all of the murder puts all of the other bad things in the shade. But when all of the murder is done, all of the other things are still there."

"Didn't you say that the people who made you got purged?"

"Yes. There is no power on the Earth to rival us, and we still kill people who become too unpopular. I mean, those ones deserved it, but I am sure that some it happens to don't."

"Because of what they did to your sister? Sisters?"

"Hm?" She looks puzzled for a moment. "Oh. Yes. And many other reasons. I think… Overman will not want to.. repeat the purges, but I do not see any other way to change things."

"Why can't he just… Insist that everyone follows the law?"

"Because it is too baked in to our civilisation. It is how everyone behaves-. Everyone with a certain amount of power behaves." She sighs. "He did change things, after they made Angelika, and after the engineered diseases nearly killed all human life. And that was accepted. But he cannot be everywhere. He cannot be in every holding cell and every secret project."

"No, I guess not. So, what do you think is going to happen?"

"War. If someone who was not Overman tried to do what he is doing, they would be killed. But they can not kill him. So some people will say that they agree with him, and they will be killed. But things will already be moving. His followers will kill them, and then… Things will grow."

"Are you sure?"

"I am here, aren't I?"

I nod. "Okay. I don't think I can do anything about that."

"Nor should you. Let them live according to their own beliefs. May the strongest win."

"But I might be able to help you with… Having actual ideals and goals. If… You can help me learning to socialise?"

She glances at me, and her smiles look… Honest?

"Sure. We can try that."

 

[Mr Zoat]

Anarkic

1st May 2013
12:46 GMT

The old home town just… Ain't the same,
Like a derelict man who has died out of shame,
A jumble sale left out in the…

No, no. That's not fair at all.

But this whole situation is disappointing. Dolmen Gates are the second biggest improvement I've made to the world. Right after preserving Cadburys' chocolate.

"Heh."

Right after undoing global warming. Useful magical artefacts that can just slot into the world, reducing pollution, getting Atlanteans interacting with the surface, cutting travel times to next to nothing… And the longer it stayed there the more useful it made itself.

And now… Well… The ones we already made are still there, but the one Atlantean who was working with us and was on the surface when the Anti-Life broadcast happened… Didn't.. survive. I haven't checked, but it wouldn't surprise me to learn that magic users were actually more vulnerable than normal people due to their connection to the arcane side of the world.

I'm not sure if Mannheim didn't know about the portals, or didn't care about them, or didn't really have a way to move them, but he didn't do anything about them. Mitchell and Noriel had to stop the Bourneville City Boss doing a sort of evil Willy Wonka re-enactment with Cadbury's World at one point, but… Well, we were moving goods using the Gates before and… Morbid as it is, aside from a few name changes where people died and a few emergency League authority rulings to get land where all the potential owners died back into use, it's… Back into full working order.

I mostly check the value of my theoretical investment in medallions rather than pounds sterling these days…

Who was it-? I honestly don't remember who it was, who looked upon the damage wrought by the Great Fire of London and got excited at the chance to rebuild London as a modern city in its wake. Good for him, I suppose, but I'm just… I'm not annoyed or angry. I'm actually sad that it's all been curtailed like this.

Months since, and I still can't get back to what I was doing.

I suppose that I should check in with everyone.

"Orange Lantern Illustres to Watchtower. Anything you need me doing, or can you just forward me the to-do list?"

"Watchtower responding." Mr. Atom. "Orange Lantern, Batman has expressed a desire to speak to you in person. Go to Mount Justice and I will inform him that you are here."

"Rightoh. Going there now. Orange Lantern out."

I raise my right forefinger to my forehead and

step out, reappearing

next to the bundle of drives that characterise Happy Harbour.

1st May 2013
07:48 GMT -5

It's… Quieter than it used to be. As a rural location, the death toll here wasn't… Too bad. But.. more than the death, people are just more sombre than they used to be. I suppose that after the Sheeda it was possible to believe that things would just go back to normal eventually. At least, if you weren't in one of the areas that was directly attacked. But everyone got exposed to the Anti-Life. Sections of the woodlands near the town have been cut down to make allotments-. A community farm, because while food supplies here weren't disrupted much, everyone living here thinks they could get disrupted badly if anything like that happens again.

And with the economy the way it is, having a cheaper hobby like growing your own food has a definite appeal.

I drift towards the mountain, taking in Euanthe's grove on the top. Still there, if not flourishing quite as much as it was with a dryad's constant attention. And no soon-to-be druid lying next to a tree blissed out on green magic rich fruit this time, which is probably good.

Hm.

I don my light power armour and dive into the water off the coast, powering through the water and entering the underwater tunnel into the lower level. I send my authentication signal to the force field system to actually enter the Mountain proper. This system is an upgraded version of a modification I made to the system after those Saremites got in and we got a definitive answer to the 'do they actually know we're here' question.

Gone are the happy days when I could just swim in.

I come out in the hangar, and… Ah, no bioship. It's a school day, so… I guess Martian Manhunter is using it? Or there's been an emergency of some kind. Not really a huge issue. Anyone-

Lantern Ghia'ta flies into the hangar, Lantern Rrab just behind her.

-could be.. using it. I send my armour back into subspace.

"Good morning."

Ghia'ta smiles. "Good morning!"

Lantern Rrab just nods a little cautiously. "Illustres."

"Apparently Batman wants to talk to me. Any idea what that's about?"

Ghia'ta shakes her head as I land on the shore. "No. Perhaps he wishes to coordinate a wide scale operation with you?"

"I suppose. What are you up to today?"

"I am volunteering at an orphanage."

I.. nod. That's something she's been doing during her enforced downtime. Children generally flexed rather than being broken under the Anti-Life, but that meant that there are a lot more children without a next of kin to take them on. I turn to Lantern Rrab, eyebrows raised.

"Um. Could you..? Tell me how the war against the Reach is going?"

I shrug, and flick a data packet from my ring to hers.

"The most recent fight involved me rescuing the last surviving members of an unusually intelligent species before the Reach could scoop out their brains to use as computers. We're winning, as much as space captured since the beginning of the war is any guide to go by. But we always knew that the Reach are defence in depth types, so…"

I shrug, and she nods.

"Interested in getting involved?" I pull my ring off my right hand and wiggle it at her. "One of my students recently gained enlightenment, so I've got some spare time?"

"Um." To her credit, she doesn't recoil much. "No. Thank you. I've got… A lot to learn before I try fighting the Reach."

"Good attitude, though I think it makes you the only member of this team who thinks that. What are you doing today?"

"Hal is showing me more advanced techniques!" She smiles as she-. Oh dear. Note to self, have a word with Lantern Jordan about-.

I consider Zatanna.

About talking to someone else about how to gently let someone know that you're not interested. Actually, Batman is probably a good person to go to with that.

I nod again. "Chihuahuan Desert?"

"Yes. How did you know?"

"Lantern Gardner and I started using it, then it expanded to all the Lanterns on Earth. I should probably try and get us all together at some point. Well, you have fun with that. I've got some mission reports to read."

 

[Mr Zoat]

1st May 2013
13:54 GMT +1

Oh.

I feel myself stiffen, and my left hand stops tracing idle circles around Luna's shoulder as she rests atop me.

Oh dear. That's a-

She shifts slightly, her eyes opening tiredly.

-problem.

"And what troubles you this night, beloved? What stirs your thoughts?"

"Celestia."

Her eyes open, then narrow.

"Thou hast best not be thinking of Our Sister in relation to recent events."

I frown in puzzlement. "Of course not: I wasn't flaccid."

Luna stares at me for a moment, sort of exhales-with-a-side-order-of-splutter, then lets her head thump against my chest. And I.. get it. In theory, she'd rather that Celestia and I got on. We're the two most important people in her life, after all. But the younger and less popular sister isn't entirely immune to the idea that perhaps someone involved with her might still prefer to be with Celestia if that was an option, and the fact that I very clearly wouldn't is something she doesn't like that she likes.

"You know… You know I don't like a lot of the way she runs the country, right?"

"Mmuphgm."

"So I just assumed that she wasn't very good at it. But that for various cultural reasons and the obvious practical issue of how the heck you force someone like that out of office, she stayed in post. But…"

I'm a little annoyed it took me this long to put it together.

"I think of Artemis as a New God. And mystically speaking she is. But… When we came back from the Land of Summer's End, I-. I remembered everything. Who everyone was. Where I left the remote control for the television in my living room. She didn't. She couldn't even remember the names of her team mates."

Luna's head comes up a little, a puzzled frown on her forehead. "She is younger than you, is she not? By no small amount."

"Right. But that would help her. Those were the first people who trusted her to fight with them, even knowing the truth of her background. That should have been a formative memory for her. A core part of her godly identity, something that she'd never forget. For me, I'd had other friends and allies. It should have been the other way around, if anything."

"Then why was it not?"

"I don't know for certain. But I wonder… She might be like me mystically, but I am a different species physically. The people of Apokolips have always been long lived. Even the ones who don't get a powerful god-name… Lowlies can live a long time, they just usually don't due to the physical reality of their living conditions."

"You think that your people are naturally able to manage lengthy memories."

"Yeah. I can call to mind any part of my life since I used Father Box to change myself. Not every little detail, but people I interacted with regularly, places I've spent more than a few minutes… And the memories I absorbed from Other Grayven are much the same. I can… Think back, and remember the gordanians who worked on the Absolute Dominion. Their names, which parts they worked on… Like a tree opening out as I focus on a particular thing. Artemis is stuck using a human brain and it sort of works, but things outside of her domain don't appear to stick in the same way."

"What doth that have to do with Our Sister?"

"Ponies usually live about as long as humans, right?"

"Some live longer; Our research has shown that Earth Ponies who study the magics of their tribe can reach the end of their second century."

"But that's something they have to focus on. What we might call the… Biological norm for ponies is eighty years and change. So the pony brain is adapted to that sort of lifespan. But Celestia is over a thousand."

"And..? You think that she may be having..? Problems?"

"It occurred to me that it's possible. It would explain… Some things. I mean, I called her 'calcified' as an insult, but what if it's… Literally true?"

She frowns thoughtfully. "We doubt that. When we have spoken to Our Sister of Our foremost memories, she hath responded unhesitantly. Mayhap you worry for nought?"

"I hope so." I sigh. "But I'd like to give her a scan, just in case. Ask her about things. Is there actually a royal doctor?"

"The palace has physicians, but there is a dearth of millennial alicorns to whom Our Sister could be compared." She sighs, resting her forearms on my chest to prop herself up. "What remedy wouldst you suggest?"

"I'm not sure. There's an… Implant, I've seen a few people use. A quantum wafer implanted in their brains. They use it to store information, basically any amount. That would… Deal with pure data storage issues, but it wouldn't… Help, with integrating new experiences into her character." Hm. "How about Evil Egyptian you and her? They're both a thousand years old, aren't they? And their Sombra, he's about that age too."

"We are… We suppose that there wouldst have been no cause to banish Our Other Self. In truth, We had seen no reason to converse with her since we aided Our Sister's beau, but… We suppose that it may be wise. And a conversation is several degrees less extreme than inserting material into Our brains. Have you suggested that to Artemis?"

"No. Wouldn't work. She heals like I do. Any cybernetic not made from New God technology would get subsumed, and… As I said, we don't need memory augmentations."

"What other choices wouldst we have?"

"Some sort of… Magic technique for expanding your memories into your metaphysique. It would probably require you to improve your command of Earth Pony magic-."

"I?"

"Luna, my love, I will live for a very long time and I wish for you to be there for all of it. This… I could be worrying about nothing, but if it is an issue, then it will become an issue for you eventually."

"And a pinch of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We understand."

"Although… It might not be Earth Pony magic. It might be actual alicorn magic, given how the data would have to encode."

"We have learned few magics which require the power of all three tribes. T'would be interesting to learn one anew."

"I'll… Bring it up with Sunset. She hasn't really studied me in any detail since her ascension. She might be able to find something new."

"And what do you intend to do if it turns out that Our Sister's failings are simply a part of Her character?"

"Record my lessons with Twilight and send them to her for her to review." … "On an unrelated subject, what are Equestria's laws on narcotics?"

"The refined forms of witchweed have long been proscribed, but what hath-?" Her somewhat sleepy brain catches up with her somewhat sleepy mouth. Then her right fist raps me on the nose. "No. You will not drug Our Sister, no matter how funny it might be."

"Understoo-." She raps me again. "Hey!"

"Or by your tongue encourage others to do so on your behalf."

"I won't, I won't. I promise. No mind-altering chemicals without her consent."

"See that you do not." She lowers her fist, looking thoughtful. "It is well that you raised this concern, and pleasing that you at least care enough for Our Sister to want to aid her."

"I always try to improve systems of government. I can't not. You know that. I don't have to like Celestia to want her to be the best she can be."

"In a way, We hope that you are correct in your concerns. It would be well if she could rise to your expectations. Now lie still; We are tired and desire a silent mattress."

 

[Mr Zoat]

1st May 2013
08:12 GMT -5

"…you knew him, but I couldn't remember exactly what you said."

Mitchell looks at me hopefully as my stomach sinks. Of all the things I'd hoped to avoid… Honestly, Lonnie Machin putting on motley doesn't actually rate that highly. But I've already got one Nylor Truggs to deal with and I really don't want a second one.

"One moment."

Scan for-. No. Scan for his parents-.

"Oh dear."

"You can't find him?"

"No-. I mean, you're right, I can't find him, but I was expecting that. The problem is that his parents are missing, presumed dead. And with child services as overstretched as they are, it's not exactly surprising that he slipped through the cracks."

Mitchell frowns, concerned about something. "How old is he?"

"Nine."

"Oh."

"Ah." Johanna stares at him pointedly. "Your first supervillain is nearly your age."

Mitchell squirms slightly. "I.. thought his bones look a bit… Thin. I didn't realise he was that young. His voice was a lot deeper."

Not hard for a person of reasonable intelligence to put a voice changer in a mask. "And I'm going to guess that he wore a golden face mask and hat on top of his head so that he looked taller."

Mitchell shrugs. "Sure, but I could see through it, so I knew it wasn't part of him."

"Did you mention that to him?"

"No. I-I thought it was a secret identity thing."

Johanna frowns. "Is this boy dangerous, or can I just put him over my knee?"

"And thus we see the violence inherent in the system."

Johanna shrugs. "It's a job."

"He… Probably isn't physically dangerous, and if… The versions of him I saw in the parallel universes I visited are close matches, then 'putting him over your knee' will just confirm to him that his beliefs are correct. He's… I wasn't expecting him to become active for several years, but I suppose that the Earth's been through the wringer lately."

Johanna looks puzzled. "Why are you talking about a nine year old boy as if he is important?"

"Three groups went into the LexCorp building: one with stealth and a plan, one with guns and the last was a nine year old boy with a spray-painted Guy Fawkes costume. Which one of those is still at large?"

"The one who took off his costume and walked away?"

Hm. Quick check… LexCorps servers might be warded but police servers usually aren't…

"Not according to the external security cameras."

"Those always have blind spots."

"Y-es, but this is LexCorp. One of their important buildings. I'm not saying that a sufficiently skilled person couldn't get out, but it wouldn't be easy, they'd have to know the actual plans beforehand and they'd have to be the most athletic nine year old ever."

Johanna thinks for a moment. "Superpowers?"

"He didn't have any I could detect last time I checked."

"And when was that?"

"About eight months ago. Before the Anti-Life. So plenty of time for him to manifest something or get exposed to something."

Mitchell raises his eyebrows. "Is that what happened to the parallel universe version you met?"

"I didn't meet him, I just got access to the files of a parallel universe version of the Justice League. When he was thirteen he started attacking white collar criminals and sabotaged a construction site where the owner was building an office complex rather than the low cost housing Gotham actually needed."

Mitchell nods, as if something suddenly makes sense. "Gotham."

"And after he got out of the young offender's institution, he built a machine to enhance his intelligence, a boom tube generator and a telepathic broadcast machine that compelled people to be open and honest with one another."

Johanna looks genuinely disturbed by the last one. "And… What was he doing when he was nine?"

"Not a lot. Former classmates said that he could be a bit intense, but I suspect that they were reinterpreting their memories in light of what he did later."

Mitchell frowns. "I thought only New Gods could use boom tubes?"

"No, it's just a device. Their boom tube generators are probably designed to interface with their technology and magic, but there's nothing inherently special about boom tubes. Clarissi Dox was able to make one with his power ring."

Johanna looks at Mitchell. "Did you hear the big bang?"

"No, but… I wasn't listening for it. You get.. bangs in a city." He looks at me with a thoughtful frown. "What does he want?"

"Last time I looked at him, his drives weren't any different from any other socially conscious and unusually intelligent child his age. Based on the character of his alter-egos and his nom de guerre, he wants a state of anarchy: a political situation without leaders."

Johanna frowns. "How does that work?"

"It doesn't."

"Oh. I was expecting something more… Profound."

"It kind of works in a small village or a project with a handful of people where everyone knows each other, but with anything larger or in a situation which needs quick decisions it completely breaks down." I shrug. "An unusually intelligent nine year old is still nine years old. He's never had to work with a group where lives were on the line. Not that the world's leaders have exactly covered themselves in glory recently."

Mitchell nods. "How do you think we should handle him?"

"Take no action until we bump into him, and then try and talk about his situation and help him reason things through. If he's going after LexCorp then I think half the problem is that he hasn't had anyone to talk things through with. Um." I consider him for a moment. "I thought you were taking a step back from costumed adventuring now that the immediate problems were dealt with?"

"I'd.. like to, but I… I think I'm already involved with this one. I've got school today, but-."

"Recognised, Batman, zero two."

We all turn to the zeta tube, Johanna coming to something like attention-.

He's still wearing the ring, I note, his eyes glowing a faint yellow.

"Orange Lantern. Anarky took something from LexCorp. Find out what happened. Find him, and get him into custody before Luthor decides to have him killed."

I nod. "I'll get on that right away, sir."

 

[Mr Zoat]

15th January 2000
15:33 GMT -5

"Ma'man!" Colonel O'Neill smiles as he greets me and waves at the STG guards to lower their weapons. "How yah been?"

Heset stares around at the gate room in puzzlement, but I can't help but laugh.

"Hahahaa!"

O'Neill frowns and looks at Major Carter. "I didn't think it was that funny. Was it?"

She shakes her head awkwardly. "No, sir."

"No." I shake my head. "Your robot twin brother from Altair calls me the same thing. It amuses me how similar you are."

That makes him look more serious. "They were supposed to bury that gate."

"Heehaha!" I gesture to him with both hands. "Would you?" Carter raises her eyebrows at him, and he looks mildly disgruntled for a moment before shrugging. "But don't worry, thanks to me Altairan civilisation is up and running again including their military, and since everyone else thinks it's still a dead world it's unlikely that anyone is going to go looking there."

"And… You did that… Why?"

"Because they have stuff I want and I can't trade with them if they're all dead." I look around as the security personnel return to their normal stations. "So do you actually have Tok'Ra here, or..? Are they coming in next?"

O'Neill shrugs, steps back and gestures to the exit. "I'm sure you know the way by now. Are you gunna introduce your friend?"

I head for the door at strolling pace, noting the guards ahead and those falling in behind. "This is Damla, the host of Lady Heset. She's a Tok'Ra agent."

Carter gives her a surprised look. "Are you trying to arrange a prisoner exchange?"

"Ah, do the Tok'Ra take prisoners?" I shrug. "If they've got one of System Lord Bastet's Underlords then I'll consider it, but that's not why I'm here."

"So why are you here?"

"I wish to wrap them in cotton wool so they don't hurt themselves running with scissors."

Carter frowns, and looks to Damla for an explanation.

Damla moues with distaste. "Mammon has a rather low opinion of the Tok'Ra. He refuses to speak with Heset, and insists that I control our body."

"Your body." / "It's your…"

O'Neill grimaces as he realises that we said the same thing.

"…body."

I scan the area around us. "No Doctor Jackson?"

Carter shakes her head. "He and Sha're are taking a break from Stargate Command."

I nod. "Probably sensible, given everything she's gone through. The culture shock involved in living somewhere like this would be considerable for her. I… Doubt that they'd be interested, but please pass on an offer from me for them to visit Syrania. It's a little closer to what she's used.. to-." I frown. "Unless she's kept Amaunet's memories, in which case she's probably your leading expert on goa'uld technology and has enough experience of other cultures to fit in here almost effortlessly."

Carter and O'Neill both look slightly awkward for an instant.

Well, good for her.

One of the guards outside the meeting open the door and I stroll in, a short bald man in Tok'Ra gear seated at General Hammond's right hand. They both stand to greet me, Hammond indicating the man with his right hand. "Lord Mammon, this is.. Selmak, of the Tok'Ra."

The man nods in cautious greeting as I scan him. "I don't think-."

I take the opposite position to him at the table and offer him my right hand. He hesitates for a moment, clearly nonplussed, then takes it.

"Please to meet you, General Carter. I do hope that I'll mostly be talking to you."

His eyes shine for a moment as he recovers his hand. "Are you still sore about our last encounter?"

"No." I shake my head. "I honestly don't remember it. Now please go back inside, I want to talk to someone who isn't a moron."

Major Carter and Colonel O'Neill takes seats next to him, and Damla-.

I stare at her like she's an idiot, then make a shooing gesture with both hands. "You're a Tok'Ra. Sit over there with them."

General Carter and Damla share a quick look, then she complies with my instruction and takes the last seat on the far side of the table.

I smile broadly. "Now, the reason why I wanted to talk to you is that without Egeria to make more Tok'Ra, you're heading towards extinction. And that's fine, except that I don't get anything out of it first. So I had an idea: why don't I help you do what you should have done when Egeria started her rebellion, which you're all to stupid to do for yourselves?"

He regards me levelly. "And what would that be?"

I turn my head to the left. "Colonel O'Neil, you're a man of average intelligence. If you were in charge of a small group of highly intelligent and long-lived aliens, and you wanted to destroy the galaxy-spanning empire ruled by other members of their species where they kept its human residents in a state of technological primitivism in order to lord it over them as gods, how would you do it?"

He goes to answer, glances at General Hammond, then actually pauses to think it through. "I'd train up some soldiers and use them to acquire goold technology. Then I'd teach some humans how to use it. A few hundred engineers and scientists who understand what they're working on would give you a bigger R&D base then most System Lords. And since goold hate each other, they won't cooperate, share information, or check that the people attacking them are actually who they're pretending to be. I'd create a civil war while my people kept on getting stronger."

I grandly gesture at Colonel O'Neill with my left hand while staring wide-eyed at General Carter and, I hope, Selmak.

"Also, it's slightly above average, actually."

General Carter shakes his head. "We wouldn't have been able to get far enough away from goa'uld space to make that work."

"I'm doing it now. With System Lord Bastet's full knowledge and assent."

His eyebrows rise slightly, and he looks to General Hammond for confirmation. He gets a small nod.

"Why?"

"Because my ego isn't quite so fragile as some other goa'uld. Because humans learn too slowly and live too briefly to reach our level even if they are educated. Because Ra is dead and we don't need to follow his rules any longer. Because educated workers can do more than uneducated workers. Because it materially improves their quality of life and I do actually like my people doing better because of something that I did."

"I believe everything you said except that."

"It's a pride thing, not empathy. I did that. I saw that this was sensible, where no other goa'uld did."

"Alright. Let's say I believe you. What do you want from us?"

"Given that your campaign of spying and sabotage has achieved nothing and the goa'uld grip upon this galaxy is as strong as it ever was, I want all of you to come and work for me as teachers. Train my human citizens in the sciences. I've already got primary school teachers and now I need something more sophisticated. In return, I will ensure that the system of education we develop becomes to model for all of System Lord Bastet's domains."

"Why would I want to make Bastet stronger?"

"Because you're either doing this because Egeria hated Ra and programmed you to share that hatred, or you're doing it because you think goa'uld are bad rulers. I am offering to put you in a position where you can force me to become a good ruler by empowering my people, making them independent of me." I shrug. "Of course, if Selmak is just Egeria's meat robot attack dog then there's nothing to talk about."

He regards me for a moment, then turns to General Hammond. "George, is this guy for real?"

"As far as we can tell?" He nods. "Yes. He is."

"Then in that case… I think I'm going to have to see it for myself."