With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)

Darko · Sep 6, 2020

transhumansage said:
could you not do that. its jarring to read. also why did you shift your writing to be so brief. there used to be more exposition in earlier arcs. not all of us have an encyclopedic knowledge of dc.

While I will admit that it's a bit jarring to read I can understand that he felt it necessary to show how his character thinks during such situations.

TotalAbsolutism · Sep 6, 2020

Darko said:
s this the your inner voice of reason, reaching out to you from whatever inner pit of stupidity you've buried it into, trying to tell you to actually grow as a person, but you're trying to use its advice to insult me?

My jumped up elemental I think you have some serious issues.

This might actually be in your favor, since if you really have some kind of disorder people might actually pity you.

On the other hand you might not have a disorder and are just an asshole, in which case, Fuck You, you little pathetic piece of shit.

This is well beyond the bounds of the kind of conduct we allow here on QQ. If you can't talk to other people in a thread nicely then I will very nicely make you leave.

Darko · Sep 6, 2020

TotalAbsolutism said:
This is well beyond the bounds of the kind of conduct we allow here on QQ. If you can't talk to other people in a thread nicely then I will very nicely make you leave.

My apologies.

Mr Zoat · Sep 7, 2020

4th May
20:03 GMT -5

"The doorway is blocked."

I grimace faintly as I use very strong railgun shots to knock the worms back, keeping them off my barrier as we near the exit. When we headed down I could scan reasonably freely, but now it looks like Melmoth's flipped all of the switches. I can't even scan the next room with a default scan, and alternate sensors aren't returning completely reliable results.

"By a door or by the earth?"

"Neither? It looks like… Lichen? Dark grey?"

I feel through the construct holding him as Anarawd twitches in shock.

"If you know something-?"

"I have underestimated the Dark King."

"Not a capital offence. Care to narrow it down?"

"Orange Lantern!" I switch my attention from our Sheeda prisoner to Mr. Yao. "I should be able to sing open a hole, but for us to clear the distance-."

"I'll shield us and move us."

I move closer to the exit, the six of us clustering together. Something else for the slate: an alchemically-enhanced base to go with the alchemically-enhanced acid. Sure, in a situation like this it would cause a colossal explosion, but it would probably be a mostly-conventional explosion and I'm good at surviving those.

There's no countdown. Mr. Yao opens his mouth and I've already wrapped everyone in a rune-inlayed construct barrier, dropping the barrier to our rear. The worms have lost a degree of their focus and aren't quite as quick to go after us as they were when they first emerged, but-.

Mr. Yao pronounces the-. Yeah, great, now my ears are bleeding. The grey organic stuff covering the entrance is torn apart, the soil behind it blasted aside… For a moment.

I seal the construct and then shoot us forward, spinning construct drill pushing the subsiding soil aside and pulling us through for a few seconds until we're back out over the desolate plain.

I stop, turn, and turn the construct drill into a construct platform.

What little is still visible of the tower is rapidly sinking into a highly acidic bog, though that might be due to the empty chambers below the tower falling in on themselves. The worms are… Breaching the surface in a dozen or so places, though they aren't trying to attack us. I don't see any eyes, so perhaps they can't see us?

The grey lichen-like material is visible in patches all across the wasteland, and… I can see it slowly growing. It doesn't appear to be affected by the worms' acid. Our mounts are gone. The worms might have taken them, or they might have fled. There aren't any flying Sheeda creatures that I can see-.

I add a dome shield around the platform we're standing on.

"Anarawd, I would appreciate it if you would expand upon your answer."

"It-."

"Orange Lantern." Mr. Yao fixes me with a steady glare. "His leg."

"Right." I move Anarawd into a standing position and attach filaments to the acid-burned parts. "You might experience a few moments of discomfort."

Unlike with the creatures below, when he's not wearing armour Anarawd is perfectly simple to scan. Reconstituting his leg using my own revulsion at physical imperfection and desire to hear what he has to say is a simple matter.

When I'm done he stares at his new lower leg in nearly as much discomfort as he showed when he lost it.

"How long does it last?"

"I don't know. How long do Low Born Sheeda usually last?"

"The discomfort. It feels physically normal, but it does not share my soul."

"I'm afraid that I can't really help you there. If you come back with us to Earth, I can ask a biomancy specialist to take a look. Now about that lichen-stuff."

"The Earth of the Land of Summer's End is not like your Earth. The light of the vampire sun weakens and kills; it does not nurture and strengthen as your sun does, nor the suns of this world."

"Yes?"

"But the rest of the world is altered as well. Our creatures may borrow some parts of their form from the creatures of your era, but they are altered; larger, fiercer, enhanced by magic and possessing something of Sheeda biology."

"So.. I've already noted."

"Our buildings are the same. Our great vessels as well. Each is in part alive; a creature as those Core Worms are or as the Spider Mounts are. Our buildings are the same, and the Earth itself, that is enveloped by it the… Lichen? That is what you call it?"

"Until I can analyse it properly, yes."

"Our entire world is alive in some form or another. But our world is sustained by the Harrowing."

While… Melmoth's… "You think he's transforming this world?"

"I am not High Born. I do not understand the magics which allow us to raid the past. But if Melmoth feared that no more Harrowings were possible, or if he intended to cause this one to fail to spite the Queen-."

"We'd remember you, and never let ourselves become you. You'd need somewhere to come from, like a planet full of people with Sheeda DNA who used Sheeda-style magic."

"The pathways to future and past bring us from our world to yours. I always assumed that they were the same world; that we were your future. But if Dark Melmoth sought to secure us a new past… This…"

I take another look at the grey-coated worm-ridden landscape.

"This is how it would start."

"You do not understand. Everything we know about ourselves-."

"No, I just don't care. Will the people who live here be able to survive if the world is Sheeda-formed?"

"I-. Yes, certainly. Not so easily as we, but the beasts are controllable and for the most part work at their intended function without distraction."

Abednego nods. "'T'would mean the end of Columbia."

Peter hands me the purple ray back. "We must warn the town. Mayhap we can stay ahead of the beasts."

"How does that lichen interact with other plants?"

"It grows best on rock, but it will throttle any living thing not born of the Sheeda, given time."

"Does it have weaknesses? Some way to stop it? To kill it?"

"There are creatures which feed upon it, but never to the point of eradicating it."

"Orange Lantern." I look at Mr. Yao. "Get in contact with Lantern Stewart. I need to consult with Wonder Woman."

Lazurman · Sep 7, 2020

Time for some localized burninating, I hope.

This Lichen stuff feels just a bit like the hellish ecosystem of Henders Island.

This is not a comforting comparison.

Vaermina · Sep 7, 2020

Lazurman said:
Time for some localized burninating, I hope.

This Lichen stuff feels just a bit like the hellish ecosystem of Henders Island.

This is not a comforting comparison.

Doubt that will do anything.

Melmoth has been setting this up for hundreds of years, by now the stuff should be burrowed so deep into the planet that the only way to eradicate everything would be to destroy the planet itself.

BlueMangoAdea · Sep 7, 2020

Vaermina said:
Doubt that will do anything.

Melmoth has been setting this up for hundreds of years, by now the stuff should be burrowed so deep into the planet that the only way to eradicate everything would be to destroy the planet itself.

Evacuate the sentient population of the planet, and glass/destroy the planet?

Handlewithcare · Sep 7, 2020

So a Grey Lichen Goo scenario?

And here we see the usual causality bending results of messing with the past.

The Sheeda seem the result of another stable time loop.

Though if and how Paul fits into that is anyone's guess.

Vaermina · Sep 7, 2020

BlueMangoAdea said:
Evacuate the sentient population of the planet, and glass/destroy the planet?

Evacuate the planet, maybe.

But I doubt Paul has the ability to actually destroy it, even assuming he could muster up the necessary "want" to do so. Which I rather doubt he will be able to since Melmoth isn't some sort of existential threat to him or the people he considers his.

Queshire · Sep 7, 2020

Makes me think of Zerg creep.

Vaermina said:
Doubt that will do anything.

Melmoth has been setting this up for hundreds of years, by now the stuff should be burrowed so deep into the planet that the only way to eradicate everything would be to destroy the planet itself.

Not the hardest thing to do.

Ciber · Sep 7, 2020

Lazurman said:
Time for some localized burninating, I hope.

This Lichen stuff feels just a bit like the hellish ecosystem of Henders Island.

This is not a comforting comparison.

Oh man I forgot that book. I think my dog ate it?

BlueMangoAdea · Sep 7, 2020

Vaermina said:
Evacuate the planet, maybe.

But I doubt Paul has the ability to actually destroy it, even assuming he could muster up the necessary "want" to do so. Which I rather doubt he will be able to since Melmoth isn't some sort of existential threat to him or the people he considers his.

Didn't Paul use singularity weapons, before? At any rate, if he can't destroy the planet by himself, I'm pretty sure he can bring allies who can.

Coda · Sep 7, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
plan legal action is a-go."

a go, or possibly a 'go.'

Mr Zoat said:
if I get a orange personal lantern out of it."

an orange

Mr Zoat said:
I turn of the purple ray.

off

Mr Zoat said:
the acid looses all momentum

loses

Mr Zoat said:
his illusion project fades away

projection, I think?

⸺⸺⸺ said:
Also, doxxing, like most bullying, is not illegal.

On the contrary, there are specific laws about finding someone's identifying information and using it to incite third parties.

Chojin Patriarch · Sep 7, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
4th May
20:03 GMT -5

"The doorway is blocked."

I grimace faintly as I use very strong railgun shots to knock the worms back, keeping them off my barrier as we near the exit. When we headed down I could scan reasonably freely, but now it looks like Melmoth's flipped all of the switches. I can't even scan the next room with a default scan, and alternate sensors aren't returning completely reliable results.

Yeah, swirly-cheeks' earning a lot of payback from this. When's the last time OL was this hampered by his enemy's ability to block ring scans?

"By a door or by the earth?"

"Neither? It looks like… Lichen? Dark grey?"

Crud. Let's hope the Rot isn't involved somehow. At least, the Rot of Earth. Anyway, that doesn't sound good at all.

I feel through the construct holding him as Anarawd twitches in shock.

"If you know something-?"

I'm betting this is something from home. Something knife-ears never expected to see here.

"I have underestimated the Dark King."

"Not a capital offence. Care to narrow it down?"

Talk fast, buddy. Time is of the essence in this situation. And that's a helluva lot of Fear.

"Orange Lantern!" I switch my attention from our Sheeda prisoner to Mr. Yao. "I should be able to sing open a hole, but for us to clear the distance-."

"I'll shield us and move us."

Great to see such tactical coordination. Not what you usually get from most superheroes.

I move closer to the exit, the six of us clustering together. Something else for the slate: an alchemically-enhanced base to go with the alchemically-enhanced acid. Sure, it a situation like this it would cause a colossal explosion, but it would probably be a mostly-conventional explosion and I'm good at surviving those.

True, conventional booms may be impressive, but they're not gonna beat a well reinforced Environmental Shield, much less a full construct. And this situation can't get any worse...

There's no countdown. Mr. Yao opens his mouth and I've already wrapped everyone in a rune-inlayed construct barrier, dropping the barrier to our rear. The worms have lost a degree of their focus and aren't quite as quick to go after us as they were when they first emerged, but-.

Wonder why they're getting sluggish? leaving their effective control radius? Or simply running out of energy.

Mr. Yao pronounced the-. Yeah, great, now my ears are bleeding. The grey organic stuff covering the entrance is torn apart, the soil behind it blasted aside… For a moment.

I seal the construct and then shoot us forward, spinning construct drill pushing the subsiding soil aside and pulling us through for a few seconds until we're back out over the desolate plain.

Now to see how much damage has actually been caused by that little set-to in the dungeons.

I stop, turn, and turn the construct drill into a construct platform.

What little is still visible of the tower is rapidly sinking into a highly acidic bog, though that might be due to the empty chambers below the tower falling in on themselves. The worms are… Breaching the surface in a dozen or so places, though they aren't trying to attack us. I don't see any eyes, so perhaps they can't see us?

And well out of range of most of their attacks, so he could rip them up remotely. Good.

The grey lichen-like material is visible in patches all across the wasteland, and… I can see it slowly growing. It doesn't appear to be affected by the worm's acid. Our mounts have gone. The worms might have taken them, or they might have fled. There aren't any flying Sheeda creatures that I can see-.

I add a dome shield around the platform we're standing on.

Just in case. Never good to assume the enemy have no air support, it has a bad habit of dropping out of nowhere on you.

"Anarawd, I would appreciate it if you would expand upon your answer."

"It-."

"Orange Lantern." Mr. Yao fixes me with a steady glare. "His leg."

Eh? Did he get hurt? Never even noticed. Price of him begin an arsehole, I suppose.

"Right." I move Anarawd into a standing position and attach filaments to the acid-burned parts. "You might experience a few moments of discomfort."

Unlike with the creatures below, when he's not wearing armour Anarawd is perfectly simple to scan. Reconstituting his leg using my own revulsion at physical imperfection and desire to hear what he has to say is a simple matter.

...Huh, How'd I miss that happening. At least OL gives enough of a damn to fix it.

When I'm done he stares at his new lower leg is nearly as much discomfort as he showed when he lost it.

"How long does it last?"

...That's an odd reaction. Then again, how many times has OL regrown an entire limb for someone?

"I don't know. How long to Low Born Sheeda usually last?"

"The discomfort. It feels physically normal, but it does not share my soul."

And how many of those times did he do it to someone with strong metaphysical senses...

Fascinating.

"I'm afraid that I can't really help you there. If you come back with us to Earth, I can ask a biomancy specialist to take a look. Now about that lichen-stuff."

"The Earth of the Land of Summer's End is not like your Earth. The light of the vampire sun weakens and kills; it does not nurture and strengthen as your sun does, nor the suns of this world."

I'm not seeing a connection. Though it explains why they drag fresh blood back from the past...

"Yes?"

"But the rest of the world is altered as well. Our creatures may borrow some parts of their form from the creatures of your era, but they are altered; larger, fiercer, enhanced by magic and possessing something of Sheeda biology."

This is not really news. We saw the flies, and the armour. Even the computer consoles...

"So.. I've already noted."

"Our buildings are the same. Our great vessels as well. Each is in part alive; a creature as those Core Worms are or as the Spider Mounts are. Our buildings are the same, and the Earth itself, that is enveloped by it the… Lichen? That is what you call it?"

...Oh. Well, shit. They're basically living in the aftermath of a biological grey goo scenario, are they? That would explain so much about their altered biology.

"Until I can analyse it properly, yes."

"Our entire world is alive in some form or another. But our world is sustained by the Harrowing."

Feeding on the lifeforce of their harvested victims. Not a new concept. But does that mean.. everything around them is trying to do the same to them?

While… Melmoth's… "You think he's transforming this world?"

"I am not High Born. I do not understand the magics while allow us to raid the past. But if Melmoth feared that no more Harrowings were possible, or if he intended to cause this one to fail to spite the Queen-."

Which he probably would do, just to be an ass about it. Like I said, he'll flip the table if he thinks he's losing...

"We'd remember you, and never let ourselves become you. You'd need somewhere to come from, like a planet full of people with Sheeda DNA who used Sheeda-style magic."

"The pathways to future and past bring us from our world to yours. I always assumed that they were the same world; that we were your future. But if Dark Melmoth sought to secure us a new past… This…"

So... Melmoth's plan is to.. Sheeda-form this planet, and Columbia with it? And in effect, create the very world he and his were born into.

I take another look at the grey-coated worm-ridden landscape.

"This is how it would start."

Like a mass of kudzu. The red algae from War of the Worlds. Or, as Queshire put it, Zerg Creep from Starcraft. And it won't stop until all else is consumed...

"You do not understand. Everything we know about ourselves-."

"No, I just don't care. Will the people who live here be able to survive if the world is Sheeda-formed?"

"I-. Yes, certainly. Not so easily as we, but the beasts are controllable and for the most part work at their intended function without distraction."

So hard times ahead for the Columbians and warlock-breed. Either they remain, fight the growth and learn to adapt, or they flee to another world...

Abednego nods. "'T'would mean then end of Columbia."

Peter hands me the purple ray back. "We must warn the town. Mayhap we can stay ahead of the beasts."

Good point, there's a whole town of people unaware these worms are on the move.Not to mention any other villages around..

"How does that lichen interact with other plants?"

"It grows best on rock, but it will throttle any living thing not born of the Sheeda, given time."

Man... This is not an easy scenario to resolve...

"Does it have weaknesses? Some way to stop it? To kill it?"

"There are creatures which feed upon it, but never to the point of eradicating it."

"Orange Lantern." I look at Mr. Yao. "Get in contact with Lantern Stewart. I need to consult with Wonder Woman."

Let's hope he can do so. Who knows what effect the local environment will have on communications...

Hoo boy. The only way this could get worse is if the Harrowing Fleet Melmoth was worried about shows up. At which point this will basically turn into a Tyranid invasion. Methinks the Columbians and warlock-breed are going to have to make peace real fast if they want to survive.

Sure, it a situation like this...

Sure, in a situation like this...

Mr. Yao pronounced the-.

Tense feels off. 'Pronounces'?

...his new lower leg is nearly as much discomfort...

...his new lower leg in nearly as much discomfort...

How long to Low Born Sheeda usually last?

How long do Low Born Sheeda usually last?

I do not understand the magics while allow us to raid the past.

I do not understand the magics which allow us to raid the past

Vaermina · Sep 7, 2020

BlueMangoAdea said:
Didn't Paul use singularity weapons, before? At any rate, if he can't destroy the planet by himself, I'm pretty sure he can bring allies who can.

Yea, but those aren't going to destroy a planet unless he spends a couple years going at it.

And the only ally he has that might be able to is Mother Mercy, and they don't have a portal big enough to bring her.

Citizen · Sep 7, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
I do not understand the magics while allow us to raid the past.

I think this should probably be 'which'

Someguy Somewhere · Sep 7, 2020

Hmm.....

Solution, far as I'm concerned at this point is OL going full power, and Carving the chunk of land mass off the planet and ...NOT toss it into the sun, but do get it into space and away from the world before the critters can spread so far that it can't be done without rendering the planet hostile to life anyway.

This isn't an invasion, it's an INFECTION.....cut it out before it spreads.

OL can leave enough rock between him and the bugs so he's not directly effecting them. The things will eat what rock is left with them over time and then starve, assuming they can survive vacuum.

Mr Zoat · Sep 7, 2020

Coda said:
a go, or possibly a 'go.'
an orange
off
loses
projection, I think?

Thank you, corrected.

Chojin Patriarch said:
Crud. Let's hope the Rot isn't involved somehow. At least, the Rot of Earth. Anyway, that doesn't sound good at all.

I'm not using the Rot.

Sure, in a situation like this...
Tense feels off. 'Pronounces'?
...his new lower leg in nearly as much discomfort...
How long do Low Born Sheeda usually last?
I do not understand the magics which allow us to raid the past

Thank you, corrected.

BlueMangoAdea · Sep 7, 2020

Vaermina said:
Yea, but those aren't going to destroy a planet unless he spends a couple years going at it.

And the only ally he has that might be able to is Mother Mercy, and they don't have a portal big enough to bring her.

How about the Sivanas? They're certainly inclined to help fight Sheeda, and I'm pretty sure they could cook up a planet-buster if they wanted to.

Profipfreely · Sep 7, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
"The doorway is blocked."

Is it bad that I've watched SovietWomble video's so much that my next thought was "What's happening?" "The door is blocked!" "What's happening?"

Anyway, great chapter!

Sorrow · Sep 7, 2020

Lazurman said:
Time for some localized burninating, I hope.

This Lichen stuff feels just a bit like the hellish ecosystem of Henders Island.

This is not a comforting comparison.

Alright, I'm going to ask. What is Henders Island?

Stsword · Sep 7, 2020

Sorrow said:
Alright, I'm going to ask. What is Henders Island?

A quick google search later- Fragment.

Darko · Sep 7, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
worm's

'worms' without the '

Mr Zoat said:
mounts have gone

Maybe 'are gone'

Mr Zoat said:
then end of Columbia

Unless it's his archaic speech it should be 'the end'

I feel that I should point out that Eris may be cheating on Paul with the newest black lantern SI on SB, or at least that's what it felt like in the latest chapter.

The story is called It's an Unliving.

Vaermina said:
Evacuate the planet, maybe.

But I doubt Paul has the ability to actually destroy it, even assuming he could muster up the necessary "want" to do so. Which I rather doubt he will be able to since Melmoth isn't some sort of existential threat to him or the people he considers his.

Paul was able to muster up the desire to wipe out the Citadel, and the people he did it for weren't 'his' for a long time.

Melmoth is also a person Paul would greatly dislike.

Basically a sadistic monster that commits evil actions for no other reason than his own pleasure.

Vaermina said:
Yea, but those aren't going to destroy a planet unless he spends a couple years going at it.

And the only ally he has that might be able to is Mother Mercy, and they don't have a portal big enough to bring her.

He could just make his singularity cannons a whole lot bigger, as well as make a few hundred of them, and then go all out on the planet.

He didn't so this the previous times he used them because he wasn't trying to destroy planets.

His database also probably has a whole lot of planet killing weapons in it, aside from black hole weapons.

As for people that could help him there are the Controllers.

Renegade once mentioned that the Guardians could destroy planets using willpower, so chances are high that the Controller's van use desire to do something similar.

That or just call a bunch of other Lanterns to help him.

Or bond with the Ophidian again.

Darko · Sep 7, 2020

Chojin Patriarch said:
...That's an odd reaction. Then again, how many times has OL regrown an entire limb for someone?

Well he regrew Roy's arm after he was rescued.

He healed several Amazons after Sorrow and Circe attacked, and I think some of them may have lost limbs in some pretty nasty ways during that.

I'm talking about having their arms fused to stone after Sorrows little reality tearing.

He also probably healed those Tamaraneans he rescued from the Citadel.

And technically he helped Jade heal those Vietnamese people, several of which lacked limbs, and a whole lot of other things, when he gave her the ring.

Chojin Patriarch said:
And how many of those times did he do it to someone with strong metaphysical senses... Fascinating.

The new limb may still not be connected to his spiritual network in a sense.

I once saw this crime documentary where a man wanted to cut off his own leg even though there was nothing wrong with it.

A psychiatrist they interviewed said that there was a theory that there is a part of the brain where there is a map of the body and that the guy may have had that part damaged and thought his leg didn't belong there.

Mr Zoat · Sep 7, 2020

Darko said:
'worms' without the '
Maybe 'are gone'
Unless it's his archaic speech it should be 'the end'

Thank you, corrected.

The story is called It's an Unliving.

I can't find it. Do you have a link?

Darko · Sep 7, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
I can't find it. Do you have a link?

Here you go.

Gromweld said:
Challenge accepted.

Hope you like it.

Vaermina · Sep 7, 2020

BlueMangoAdea said:
How about the Sivanas? They're certainly inclined to help fight Sheeda, and I'm pretty sure they could cook up a planet-buster if they wanted to.

Not sure how much they would be able to help there, they usually work on a scale a lot smaller then "Zerg Infestation.".

Darko said:
Paul was able to muster up the desire to wipe out the Citadel, and the people he did it for weren't 'his' for a long time.

Melmoth is also a person Paul would greatly dislike.

Basically a sadistic monster that commits evil actions for no other reason than his own pleasure.

And he did it by colony drop, a feat he can't repeat here.

Darko said:
He could just make his singularity cannons a whole lot bigger, as well as make a few hundred of them, and then go all out on the planet.

No, he couldn't, because E=MC2.

Darko said:
His database also probably has a whole lot of planet killing weapons in it, aside from black hole weapons.

A singularity and black hole are different things.

Darko · Sep 7, 2020

Vaermina said:
Not sure how much they would be able to help there, they usually work on a scale a lot smaller then "Zerg Infestation.".

Oh please, as if the Sivanas wouldn't have some kind of way to deal with that.

What kind of self respecting mad scientist wouldn't have something to deal with that.

Vaermina said:
And he did it by colony drop, a feat he can't repeat here.

If he flies into space and gets a very big asteroid then he can, or just destabilize the suns in this universe.

Vaermina said:
No, he couldn't, because E=MC2.

The laws of physics as we know them tend to be more like polite suggestions in the DC universe.

Vaermina said:
A singularity and black hole are different things.

Didn't know that, but that doesn't change the fact that he most likely has a whole lot planet killers in his database.

Oh and one more person who could help him destroy this is Effigy.

The Controller that made him said that he could scour a planet of all life on it.

Xmaster3000 · Sep 7, 2020

Handlewithcare said:
So a Grey Lichen Goo scenario?

And here we see the usual causality bending results of messing with the past.

The Sheeda seem the result of another stable time loop.

Though if and how Paul fits into that is anyone's guess.

He doesn't. The thing is, Paul's outsider knowledge allows him to affect the timeline in the same way a time traveler would. The main difference is that Paul isn't from the future.

Mr Zoat · Sep 8, 2020

4th May
20:03 GMT -5

Much as this sucks, as planetary invasions go…

Sivana grins menacingly as he flips the switch on his hex-generator, and the sky ripples as the harvest-ship that has been eating its way through what's left of Detroit suddenly loses its wards and becomes visible. It had been a disturbing sight: factories and homes just vanishing without rhyme or reason, and unlike with the raiding bands it isn't just a matter of hunkering down until the invisibility spells lose power. I don't know what they can do Sheeda-side, but on a magically active planet like modern Earth the ships can keep it up indefinitely. Not just invisible to the electromagnetic spectrum but almost unthinkable.

The arcane engineers in the Queen's employ will realise what's happening at once, and they'll shout warnings. I can already see insect-riders rising from the stable-bays-.

"It would be so easy…"

Sivana's hands are twitching over the console which controls his other tools-.

I shake my head. "Doctor, the Queen isn't even here. I didn't like letting them destroy our shipyard in Kenya, but I did it because I knew it was necessary. If you can't control yourself-."

"I know. But to have-" A light comes on. "-them…" He recovers his smile. "There. They're calling for aid."

Jon and Sam agreed to pulling back US military assets once we discovered where the harvest ship was. They may not be real warships, but their beam weapons would shred pretty much anything that could be sent against it. The only avenue of attack is to take advantage of the fact that it has relatively low power reserves, and… You'd have to maintain a constant attack for days and take tremendous casualties to make that matter. China decided to ignore my advice and try that after their nuclear strike failed, and… It will work. After about a week and the deaths of half a million soldiers.

No. We need the Queen to deploy Castle Revolving somewhere we can get at it. And given how they really don't want to lose the harvesters…

BOOM! Kill.

Two blaster-equipped drone squadrons fly out of the boom tubes and fly at the Sheeda air cavalry. I learned the painful way that any attack that doesn't kill them lets them adapt their armour spells to nullify it, which forced me to bench my entire purple death ray force. Ah, yes, the Sheeda have spotted them-.

"They're calling again. Do it now!"

My eyes flick his way for a moment. "I'm choosing to interpret that as a request."

I raise my right arm, fusion cannon construct manifesting as I point it at the harvest ship. Which thanks to Circe hasn't spotted us yet, though that will soon change. This time the gun manifests differently, the ongoing terror of everyone left in the city and the fear of a world under assault meaning that I can afford to put a little more pressure on things.

Let's see. Don't want to knock the ship out completely…

There. Here I Stand.

I aim at a point just above and to the left of the primary harvesting array. And I fire, a blinding line connecting me to my target and punching through the far side. Face Me!

I step up onto the bonnet of an abandoned car and stride down the roofs of empty vehicles, Circe's ward evaporating around m-.

One of the harvest ship's underslung beam weapons orientates on me and fires, an entropic ray about a metre across hitting me on the upper right side of my chest. The crashed vehicles behind me decay in moments but I'm a New God. I am fuelled by the Source. And I did just shoot out about two thirds of the power relays to the lower platform. That probably helps.

I target the gun and fire again as I continue my advance, neatly shearing off the gun that shot me.

"Face me, Queen of the Sheeda!" WHERE IS YOUR NAME, THAT IS WRITTEN IN THE STARS?!

For a New God, that's throwing down the gauntlet. A demand that they confront the one shouting it, and a gamble from the one shouting it. Because if they demonstrate their nature and successfully slight yours, you get a very long term disadvantage using New God technology and God-powers against them. Of course, by making such a bold statement you get a boost and if you can make your claim of superiority stick then you keep it. To anyone else it's pretty much just an insult: strongly implying that since they're not one of us that they are ultimately unable to effect a change of any significance.

But it's still God-speech. A challenge shouted on a thaumically active planet. So when the Queen gets a request for help… If we're right, then she'll think of this as a personal insult and turn up to put me in my place. If not? Well, then I get a free harvest ship.

With the challenge issued and unanswered, my armour's ability to resist attacks by anyone working for the Queen is magnified… To a point. An unanswered attack will still weaken it, but only if the attack actually does something and is entirely unanswered. I don't have to spend the rest of eternity chasing down one guy who got a lucky hit in. But as the gunners on the back of the Sheeda flies try to find time to focus on the ground targets that they're designed for while the drivers duck and dive to try and avoid the blaster shots… They must recognise them by now. A couple who-. Ah, they're tanking shots, they've already acquired immunity. I could probably power through it using-

Red beams from their entropic rays hit my chest to very little effect.

-my God powers, but that would imply that they were significant enough to warrant it.

I raise both forearms in their direction, generate pulse plasma guns on both forearms and open fire. I do add a little of my own power to the shots to make my point, because there's nothing quite like a coup de grâce that misses to make a person look foolish.

What emerges from the guns are barely visible flickers of burning white, each existing only for moment before losing their heat to the surrounding environment. But in that moment they punch through Sheeda fly wings and harnesses, causing mutant insects and riders to tumble through the air and crash uncontrollably into the ravaged city.

Looks like Sheeda armour isn't very good at absorbing kinetic shocks. Worth remembering. I drop the construct on my left forearm and aim the one on the right at the fliers trying and failing to duel with the far more agile drones-.

And there's the castle. There's no transition; it doesn't shimmer or generate any kind of portal I can see, even with my goggles. One moment local airspace contains drones, insect riders and a harvest ship and the next there's a giant… 'Lump of radioactive coral' would be my best stab at describing it.

I don't know exactly what the glowing green bits do but it's somewhat irrelevant. By answering my challenge, Queen Gloriana Tenebrae has created a link between us. I might be able to exploit that unaided, but-

I twist the knob on Circe's amulet, which starts sparking.

-why have friends if you're not going to exploit them?

"Hush tube." Stand before me.

"Ping."

"Sivana-."

"Lex is already en-route."

"Good show. See you shortly."

Because while I can probably kill the Queen, stopping the ship is a dicier prospect. But what the heck? I dismiss my gun construct, fold my arms behind my back and walk through the hush tube in an utterly unhurried manner.

And I appear in front of the Queen's throne, Sheeda I assume to be the command crew at stations around the room and what must either be her bodyguards or her handmaidens crouched at her calves.

…

The bondage theme is strong in this one.

"Queen Gloriana Tenebrae?"

Guns and blades are drawn and I affect an air of being utterly unimpressed.

"I will now permit you to surrender."

With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)

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