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

Reader mode
Mr Zoat said:
I raise my hands, pointing at the ships heading in my direction. My palms glow with orange light as I compass their ending. I reach out, orange hands forming around the two uppermost cruisers and squeezing, their shields bucking and failing moments before their hulls do the same. I move my hands down-.

The next one on the left is frantically signally its surrender. I nod and move past it, crushing the next two ships. I move the hands again-.

Signals of surrender from all remaining ships.
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Against a god-lantern literally capable of crushing your ship, surrender quickly becomes the rational choice.
 
Mr Zoat said:
20th August 2012
15:26 GMT

Due to their focus on speed and manoeuvrability, Alignment warships tend to skimp on armour. They're not fragile per se, as their generators are more than powerful enough to maintain a strong shield bubble as well as power their drives and weapons. However, their doctrine calls for a strategic withdraw before their shields get anywhere near the point of collapse. Our neighbours are attempting to do that even now, but battleship-fast isn't fast in any absolute sense.
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And positively glacial compared to a Lantern's manoeuvrability. This is quite the uneven match-up, and I have no doubt the commanders of each vessel are seriously rethinking their decisions to stick with the government right now...

Which means that when our main guns turn starboard, target amidships and fire, the side of the closest battleship melts.

External kibble evaporates, metal and ceramic plates vaporise and capacitors explode as the ship sags and shifts sideways. Hurriedly refocused sensor arrays on our ship show systems on the opposite side of the wound from the main generators start losing power, and the bubble shield won't re-engage without the emitters that are now either molten or without power. Local generators are designed to power thrusters and point defences, so a lot of that ship is now mission killed.
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Though still crawling with a lot of rather panicked sailors, I bet...

Fire is coming back at us, but our shield is easily strong enough to cope with it. The main guns from the other battleships are the only things out there that can hurt us quickly, and Lantern Xor is targeting them individually. The main threat to us is already on this ship, in the form of the crew who are probably a bit curious about why we're shooting at an ally.

A Warhound marine detail comes through the portal next, their leader nodding to me as they split up and prepare to assault the rest of the ship. There…
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An attack the crew probably aren't expecting... I foresee them deciding discretion is the better part of valour...

I scan. Yes, that makes sense.

I send a crew summary to their personal computers. No Warhounds, just normal soldiers occupying the Warhound berths. The standard weapons for soldiers expecting to fight Warhounds is a one point eight metre long high pressure plasma beam projector that's completely impractical for shipboard operations but is just about the only thing that isn't another Warhound they've got that can hurt them. With main internal communications under our control and the element of surprise, this isn't going to be a difficult fight.
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Heh. When your opposition is tougher than a tank, of course you bring anti-tank weaponry to fight them... Too bad they don't have any.

"You have the bridge."

The new captain nods as the capacitors for the ship's main guns finish recharging and the guns fire again. The wound in our neighbour has now cleaved to the centre line, its primary weapons dead. I
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Along with rather a large chunk of its crew, I suspect. Whether from direct injuries, heat dispersal or energetic emissions.

step out

and appear on the bridge of the battleship on the port side. They were targeted by the port side weapons, but the aim there was to take the main guns off line rather than break the hull in half.
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Planning something else for this ship, eh?

"Lock-!"

Another barrage of orange kills the bridge crew, a moment of resistance from the internal shields being the only impediment. Alignment internal shields are designed to help marines fight off attackers, but they're not designed to fight off the sort of overwhelming power I can bring to bear. And the layout doesn't appear to be intended to help with teleport attacks.
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:V So, you're saying the place has it's own pop-up chest-high walls? Good thing you're from a completely different genre.

Another portal out of subspace, and another Warhound detachment emerge.

"Sorry, they locked it all down." Filaments connect me to the bridge computer systems as I work to bypass the electronic aspect of the lockout. "The crew will be-"
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Upside, thanks to OL, the onboard defence systems won't be fighting them...

The central bridge doors slam open and a group of marines stomp into the room, raising their guns and getting orange pulses through their faceplates for their trouble.

"-alert and active."
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Downside is, they'll have to fight tooth and nail for every room...

The leader nods.

"Understood." She hefts her gun, the other Warhounds forming up on her. "We'll clear the ship manually. There is no point trying to self-destruct if they're alert."
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Looks like that won't be a problem, though. I bet her squad is looking forwards to some action...

"Best wishes."

I

step out, returning to
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Ah, the joy of dealing with a teleporting foe. Bet the Alignment forces are getting really confused about the number of Lanterns they're facing...

normal space inside the bridge of the battle cruiser. Another volley of shots and another dead crew. The lockdown warning might have been transmitted on fleetwide communications, and trying to take ships that don't have shields is a bit of a risk. I raise my left arm, a great coruscating pillar of orange leaping upwards and punching through the ceiling, through the deck above that and the deck above that until it finally exits the hull. Then I slowly move my arm anticlockwise, cutting through the ship.
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Going the old 'rip and tear' route, eh? I see the Alignment are sensible enough not to put their bridges anywhere near the outside of the hull, though... A lesson some races could probably learn.

Ring, internal communications.

Compliance.

"Illustres to Alignment crew. I am destroying this ship. Get to the escape pods and you will be detained for trial. Remain, and die. End."
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Or, to put it more crudely... Get. The. Fuck. Out. Now. :cool:

Compliance.

This ship lost its force field bubble, and as far as I can tell it doesn't have a separate environmental containment shield. Air is being sucked out of the widening hole in the hull as I keep cutting. Not particularly quickly -the pressure difference is only one atmosphere- but there's nothing quite like the stuff you breathe audibly vanishing when you're not wearing a space suit to motivate a person to move.
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Though I suspect more than a few Normal Suits are getting their waste receptacles filled, in the process...

The ship twists and screams as I reach the nine o'clock position. And of course being able to see the stars out of the giant hole in the wall does something similar. At least the crew have clamps on their boots.

Six o'clock and the lights flicker as the connection to the primary generators is severed across most of the ship. I keep going though, until ring scans show that the ship is going to keep tearing itself apart with its own momentum. Then I
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Neatly done. And that's going to be quite the sight from the outside for the rest of the fleet to think about...

step out and

reappear next to Lantern Xor.

"Everything going well?"
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I mean, Two Lanterns versus a small fleet without Anti-Lantern countermeasures? I doubt there's any difficulty, at least for the Lanterns... The Fleet, on the other hand, is probably feeling like they just rolled into 'Dark Souls'... Naked. :p

"The large ships-" He charges a shot as we fly towards where the cruisers are frantically backing away and trying to charge their faster than light drives. "-are defeated."

The closest cruiser is struck in the front of its shield bubble which fractures and fails, the shot carrying on and obliterating the front portion of the ship.
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Oof, right in the nose.

"Now all that remains is to complete the destruction."

"No, wait. I need the practice."
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Getting your eye in for Lantern-versus-Fleet tactics, eh? ;) Are you expecting to be fighting some Reach ships soon?

He frowns as I

step out, re-emerging

at the point at which they entered the system.
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Heh. Leave no escape routes. That'll unsettle more than a few commanders.

I can see their lights, shifting between fear and discipline as they try to make this a withdrawal rather than a flight. A little deeper and I can see their motives, mostly a mixture of peer pressure and self interest. Few psychopaths or other innately evil people. Much like I thought.

I raise my hands, pointing at the ships heading in my direction. My palms glow with orange light as I compass their ending. I reach out, orange hands forming around the two uppermost cruisers and squeezing, their shields bucking and failing moments before their hulls do the same. I move my hands down-.
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...Whoa. :eek: Once again, OL shows that subtlety is not one of his skills.

The next one on the left is frantically signally its surrender. I nod and move past it, crushing the next two ships. I move the hands again-.

Signals of surrender from all remaining ships.
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"We surrender, we surrender! Please don't squeeze us!"

"Lantern Xor, I believe that the day is won. What would you have me do?"

"Illustres, please intercept the shots made at the colony. We will need somewhere to put these prisoners."
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Nice. The fleet didn't accomplish a single one of the things it came to do today...

I nod, smiling faintly.

"On my way now."
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And every moment of that fight was probably recorded by both power rings, no doubt bound for broadcast on every channel on the Alignment's information networks...

Well... I bet that was fun. Like going to a low-level mission when you've hit the level cap. just watching enemies splatter against your defences like bugs on a windscreen... And it's pretty likely the outgoing government leaders are going to be sweating in their seats when they hear about this. With any luck, they accept the inevitable with some grace, not that they've shown any before...
However, their doctrine calls for a strategic withdraw before...
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However, their doctrine calls for a strategic withdrawal before
The next one on the left is frantically signally its surrender.
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The next one on the left is frantically signalling its surrender.
 
Chojin Patriarch said:
Though I suspect more than a few Normal Suits are getting their waste receptacles filled, in the process...
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While not covered in any depth in the comics, the few images we see show Alignment naval personnel in something that looks like a dress uniform while on ships, rather than space suits.
However, their doctrine calls for a strategic withdrawal before
The next one on the left is frantically signalling its surrender.
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Thank you, corrected.
moralrelativity said:
I think Mr Zoat is using "compass" to mean something like "direct" or "chart".
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Yes.
 
Are you sure you're not making OLs too overpowered? Because nothing that Paul can do is fundamentally unreachable for other OLs, especially if given a few decades. The only things OL has that makes him special is an orange infused soul (can be done with magitech), very quickly obtained orange enlightenment (which can be gotten over a normal amount of time with proper instruction) and an apparently strong drive to reach his end goals (but not unnaturally or impossibly strong for an OL).
 
Rafin said:
Are you sure you're not making OLs too overpowered? Because nothing that Paul can do is fundamentally unreachable for other OLs, especially if given a few decades. The only things OL has that makes him special is an orange infused soul (can be done with magitech), very quickly obtained orange enlightenment (which can be gotten over a normal amount of time with proper instruction) and an apparently strong drive to reach his end goals (but not unnaturally or impossibly strong for an OL).
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Experienced power ring users are OP, news at 11.
 
Rafin said:
Are you sure you're not making OLs too overpowered? Because nothing that Paul can do is fundamentally unreachable for other OLs, especially if given a few decades. The only things OL has that makes him special is an orange infused soul (can be done with magitech), very quickly obtained orange enlightenment (which can be gotten over a normal amount of time with proper instruction) and an apparently strong drive to reach his end goals (but not unnaturally or impossibly strong for an OL).
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I feel I should point out the time one of the Green Lanterns made a construct large enough to cover the entirety of Earth and was strong enough that Superman could use it to drag the planet into a new orbit. Or was it back into obit? Either way.
 
Rafin said:
Are you sure you're not making OLs too overpowered? Because nothing that Paul can do is fundamentally unreachable for other OLs, especially if given a few decades. The only things OL has that makes him special is an orange infused soul (can be done with magitech), very quickly obtained orange enlightenment (which can be gotten over a normal amount of time with proper instruction) and an apparently strong drive to reach his end goals (but not unnaturally or impossibly strong for an OL).
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The Alignment are a regional power with no super tech. Experienced Lanterns are supposed to be able to deal with them.
 
Lanterns are apex exotic offense/defense/utility. Especially for colours not governed by the Guardians (less malware on the rings). Galactic superpowers, who can make the Guardians sit up and take a bit of notice, can deal with them. Everybody else... (Of course, this does not include mad scientists and supervillains.)

Street gangs have no chance against national-level agencies, if I had to go for an IRL comparison.
 
Mors said:
Lanterns are apex exotic offense/defense/utility. Especially for colours not governed by the Guardians (less malware on the rings). Galactic superpowers, who can make the Guardians sit up and take a bit of notice, can deal with them. Everybody else... (Of course, this does not include mad scientists and supervillains.)

Street gangs have no chance against national-level agencies, if I had to go for an IRL comparison.
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To be fair, this is what guerilla tactics are for. While you're not entirely wrong, Lanterns and glow manipulation technology will always have drawbacks and weaknesses. If that wasn't true, Truggs would never have gotten ahold of Paul's ring at all. Opposition to overwhelming force is mostly a matter of creativity and how willing you are to part with your ethics.
 
Mr Zoat said:
External kibble evaporates
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Not strictly wrong, if you're analogizing it to dog food, but the typical term is "greeble."

Mr Zoat said:
another Warhound detachment emerge
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I don't think "detachment" is considered a mass noun in British English? So that would mean it should be "emerges".

CTrees said:
I'm honestly disappointed that OL didn't call out, "Bigby's Crushing Hand." I know it's not necessary, but the early days when he still called his attacks were endearing.
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But it's not Bigby's hand, it's Paul's.
 
rkyeun said:
In DnD lore, Bigby is the wizard responsible for making a bunch of force spells based on the shape of his hands performing actions.
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How? I thought D&D magic involved performing the random series of actions which trigger the Weave to cause an outcome. How does a person 'make' spells in that sort of system?
 
Mr Zoat said:
How? I thought D&D magic involved performing the random series of actions which trigger the Weave to cause an outcome. How does a person 'make' spells in that sort of system?
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Gold, time, spellcraft checks, saving throws, fetchquests for proper components and materials, bargains and divination from magical beings with better perception or knowledge of the Weave, and finally GM approval.
It's just as accurate to say that for every intended effect there exists some discoverable trigger which causes the Weave to enact it. Spellcraft research is the attempt to hone in on it, just as the spellcraft skill is to identify and perform it.
Which is why most research wizards end up with a theme. Once Bigby stumbles upon the random motion for "shaped like what my hand is doing right now but giant and made of force", he's got something workable to base a career off of.
 
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Mr Zoat said:
I can see their lights, shifting between fear and discipline as they try to make this a withdrawal rather than a flight. A little deeper and I can see their motives, mostly a mixture of peer pressure and self interest. Few psychopaths or other innately evil people. Much like I thought.

I raise my hands, pointing at the ships heading in my direction. My palms glow with orange light as I compass their ending. I reach out, orange hands forming around the two uppermost cruisers and squeezing, their shields bucking and failing moments before their hulls do the same. I move my hands down-.
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Were these ... connectionless Constructs?
Using his recent link to the desires of others in order to reach through from his desires, to their desires, to produce a construct or filament from the point where another person is feeling avarice?
 
Mr Zoat said:
How? I thought D&D magic involved performing the random series of actions which trigger the Weave to cause an outcome. How does a person 'make' spells in that sort of system?
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I think Bigby is from the Greyhawk series originally?

Also, only the forgotten realms has the weave, when the various standard spells work not just there, but also in settings like dragonlance, greyhawk, dark sun, etc. With the implication that the weave is a is basically a divine version of the chinese firewalling the internet to keep the populate from using it against the rulers.
 
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