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

This just occured to me, but does Krypton have an Uncle Sam equivalent? I mean, is there like a personification of Krypton out there somewhere?
I vaguely recall some stories where Kal-el effectively became the personification of Krypton after it exploded, or after he came to Earth, but the memory is vague enough that I'm not sure if it was in the comics, or a story or stories, or from ideas for stories.
 
Worms (part 18) New
12th October 2013
17:51 GMT -5


The three of us put our right hand on an unresisting worm.

"Ekat su ot erehw eht doolb swolf."

The jail around us flickers, and then-.

Yeah, there's the tree. Kal-El takes it in for a moment, his eyes switching between various states. "This is.. strange. I can smell the blood, but the soil isn't really… Soil."

I walk towards the shed. "Yep. Welcome to magic demi-planes, or whatever the proper term is."

Zatanna looks at me. "Realms."

I nod in acknowledgement. Push the shed door open, and… It's bigger on the inside, amazing. Pictures… And small collection vessels. The pictures match the faces of the politicians… And a few more. Ring, record.

Compliance.

"Uncle Sam!"

I ignore Kal-El as he shouts, and make sure that I've got everything-

"Y'know, fellah."

-recorded. I turn to see Uncle Sam sitting at a potting bench, one large pot, one small pot with a seedling apple tree, and a bag of compost.

"A man's shed is supposed to be a private space." He starts scooping compost out of the bag and putting it into the large pot. "Somewhere he can go to busy his hands and let his mind work over his problems."

"Ideally, yes. But I'm afraid that we have to question you regarding the subversion of the American government."

He makes a very small smile, the large pot mostly filled. "You got a warrant?"

"This is not a home or a place of business. If anything, I would describe it as a public or religious space. And Superman smelled blood before I came in."

"So?"

"The blood is probable cause. I can't arrest you, and I don't intend to pick a fight. But we're here to give you the chance to explain yourself, because… Jokes aside, I don't really see you as an enemy."

"That right?" He makes a hole in the compost and carefully tips the apple seedling into his hand before putting it into the larger pot. "I seem to remember that the people present at my own birth might have felt rather differently."

"Jokes aside, sir."

He picks up a small watering can and-. Just water this time, waters the apple seedling.

"You'd have some sort of existence even if you'd remained a British colony. The ideas your founders had concerning personal liberty were not in contradiction with what most people in Britain believed, and your earliest citizens considered themselves British."

"Hm." He stands, putting down the watering can and picking up the larger pot. "Alright, lead the way."

Uugh, that probably has some American ritual significance that I'm too British to understand. But alright, this is supposed to be a polite meeting. So rather than escorting him out while keeping him in my field of view the entire time, I do actually turn around and walk out.

"Found him."

My colleagues look around. Kal-El looks like he was pacing, while Zatanna's doing something with one of the roots.

"Uncle Sam?" Kal-El steps forward as Uncle Sam walks out behind me. "What's going on?"

"I hope you're familiar with the Christian concept of repentance."

Kal-El nods cautiously. "I was raised a Methodist."

"Well, after you managed to dispense with the Anti-Life by filling the hearts of the afflicted with life, they had cause to reflect upon what they'd done. Both, under the influence and prior. And they did not feel that they had lived the lives that they should have been. But since their desire to do better was genuine, I decided that I would hear their confessions."

"Papist."

"Paul." Kal-El looks at me for a moment. "Not now."

I raise my hands in surrender.

Uncle Sam walks closer to the tree. "I had a powerful need for blood, of traitors and patriots both. So, we reached an accord. They would feed the worms I sent to them, and I would use their blood to restore the Tree."

Zatanna frowns. "I thought you hated the worms."

"I don't respect them, if that's your meaning. I would be quite content to learn that they had stopped existing. But so long as you've got 'em where you can see 'em, you can make 'em do a good day's work. They weren't feeding The Brass because they thought it was wise; they did it because Johnny told 'em to."

Kal-El frowns. "The people feeding the worms weren't acting like themselves."

"They were half-crazed with guilt. Of course they weren't acting like they were back when they were lying rattlesnakes."

Zatanna frowns. "Are you..? Sure..? The worms weren't making it worse?"

"Nope."

She blinks. "Huh?"

Uncle Sam gives her a mildly irritated glare. "Girl, do you know where you are?"

"Yes, you-."

"Sacrifice, girl. What sort of witch does not understand sacrifice? It is natural and normal and essential for a people that they value the collective of which they are apart above their own wellbeing. Those people subverted the American government, spat upon their oaths of office -and I choose my words with care there- and all told made a mockery of everything I am. So if they come to me and tell me that they wish to make amends, then amends they shall make, whether they pay in blood or reason. And you have all benefited from their sacrifice."

Kal-El exhales slowly, thinking it over. "I understand what you were trying to do, but the worms were influencing them while they were supposed to be serving in public office."

"They were serving in public office, by God! For the first time in their lives! Look at their recent records and tell me that they have not!"

"Ah, what..?" Zatanna looks nervous. "What happens if they stop?"

"What happens?" Uncle Sam still looks angry, though his temper is more under control. "What happens is that the Tree of Liberty takes longer to get back to full strength. Every American is just a little more vulnerable to otherworldly and un-American influences for just a little longer. And they'll have been denied the chance to purge their guilt."

"But the Tree won't die?"

"Can't see why it would. The fundamentals are still strong."

"Then… Superman? Why don't we just kill all the worms and put the cultists under observation?" She shrugs. "They can't have their old jobs back-."

Uncle Sam frowns. "And why the Hell would you do that? Now they're actually doing them, you've no cause to take them away."

"Uncle Sam… What exactly is it that you want out of this?"

He glares at Kal-El, pointing his right forefinger at his chest. "I want you."
 
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Uugh, that probably has some American ritual significance that I'm too British to understand

Johnny Appleseed probably asked him to take care of his plants.

. But so long as you've got 'em where you can see 'em, you can make 'em do a good day's work

That's pretty similar to Paul's thing.

Uncle Sam… What exactly is it that you want out of this?"

He glare at Kal-El, pointing his right forefinger at his chest. "I want you

Welp, looks like Paul is going to fight a possessed Superman one more time.
 
This... is pretty interesting.

Corrupt politicians doing penance for their corruption for a conceptual America?

Um... that... sounds pretty good?

And a Superman empowered by conceptual America doesn't sound bad either. Truth, Justice, and the American Way and all. Him becoming a American symbol seems relatively appropriate.

I'm hoping there isn't going to be a surprise twist that makes them fight the literal American spirit.
 
"You can't have people who might be subverted by corruption-elemental based mind-control serving in public office, retard."
Not sure why he's struggling to understand this.

They can still donate blood to the tree, I guess.
Being willing to water the tree of liberty with your own blood is any man's personal choice. Not something that 'authority' can tell you that you can't do.
But you can't serve in office while actively possessed by the embodiment of political corruption.
 
Kal-El: "As much as I would be honored to serve in about any role. I am not a natural-born citizen and honestly I don't know how the legality of my adoption stands."
Depending upon the specific version of Superman, he could be, technically, a natural-born citizen...

A few versions essentially have the escape pod/ship thing sent to earth actually having him gestating in it, in which case he was born on US soil there.

Also while his actual adoption might be iffy on legal grounds, an infant or young child who can't list their origins that is found without parents or guardian becomes a de facto citizen, which doesn't actually change if a true heritage isn't revealed shortly after it
 
12th October 2013
17:51 GMT -5


The three of us put our right hand on an unresisting worm.

"Ekat su ot erehw eht doolb swolf."
All right, time to see if the theories are correct. Which they probably will be, given the evidence provided in-story and what can be guessed using what the audience knows.

The jail around us flickers, and then-.

Yeah, there's the tree. Kal-El takes it in for a moment, his eyes switching between various states. "This is.. strange. I can smell the blood, but the soil isn't really… Soil."
More like magical energy in the shape of soil. Which probably makes its molecular structure quite unlike what he knows.

I walk towards the shed. "Yep. Welcome to magic demi-planes, or whatever the proper term is."

Zatanna looks at me. "Realms."
As good a name as any, really.

I nod in acknowledgement. Push the shed door open, and… It's bigger on the inside, amazing. Pictures… And small collection vessels. The pictures match the faces of the politicians… And a few more. Ring, record.

Compliance.
As good as confirmed that Sam is behind this, then.

"Uncle Sam!"

I ignore Kal-El as he shouts, and make sure that I've got everything-
I would expect that Sam knows they're here, even if he's not present. It's likely that he's keeping a keen eye on the Heartlands right now.

"Y'know, fellah."

-recorded. I turn to see Uncle Sam sitting at a potting bench, one large pot, one small pot with a seedling apple tree, and a bag of compost.
Moving it to a larger bed, I suppose. Everything outgrows its original place eventually.

"A man's shed is supposed to be a private space." He starts scooping compost out of the bag and putting it into the large pot. "Somewhere he can go to busy his hands and let his mind work over his problems."

"Ideally, yes. But I'm afraid that we have to question you regarding the subversion of the American government."
That's almost what Hub City is to OL, really, isn't it? A little pet project to occupy him when nothing bigger's going on...

He makes a very small smile, the large pot mostly filled. "You got a warrant?"

"This is not a home or a place of business. If anything, I would describe it as a public or religious space. And Superman smelled blood before I came in."
Kind of tenuous, OL, but I doubt it'll go to court anyway.

"So?"

"The blood is probable cause. I can't arrest you, and I don't intend to pick a fight. But we're here to give you the chance to explain yourself, because… Jokes aside, I don't really see you as an enemy."
At least partly because Uncle Sam's raw power varies at any given time. Sometimes he's just super-soldier levels of strong and tough, other times he's like Superman-tier.

"That right?" He makes a hole in the compost and carefully tips the apple seedling into his hand before putting it into the larger pot. "I seem to remember that the people present at my own birth might have felt rather differently."

"Jokes aside, sir."
It is still amusing to see a former Englishman admonishing the spirit of America.

He picks up a small watering can and-. Just water this time, waters the apple seedling.

"You'd have some sort of existence even if you'd remained a British colony. The ideas your founders had concerning personal liberty were not in contradiction with what most people in Britain believed, and your earliest citizens considered themselves British."
Wouldn't be surprised if such a thing would have become like a local version of John Bull, with a uniquely American flair. Younger and slimmer, for instance.

"Hm." He stands, putting down the watering can and picking up the larger pot. "Alright, lead the way."

Uugh, that probably has some American ritual significance that I'm too British to understand. But alright, this is supposed to be a polite meeting. So rather than escorting him out while keeping him in my field of view the entire time, I do actually turn around and walk out.
Entirely reasonable about the whole thing.

"Found him."

My colleagues look around. Kal-El looks like he was pacing, while Zatanna's doing something with one of the roots.
Probably diagnostic magic, seeing if there's any trace of the implicated politicians about the Tree.

"Uncle Sam?" Kal-El steps forward as Uncle Sam walks out behind me. "What's going on?"

"I hope you're familiar with the Christian concept of repentance."

Kal-El nods cautiously. "I was raised a Methodist."
Makes sense, as Kansas is probably has a large Methodist representation, under the umbrella of Protestantism...

"Well, after you managed to dispense with the Anti-Life by filling the hearts of the afflicted with life, they had cause to reflect upon what they'd done. Both, under the influence and prior. And they did not feel that they had lived the lives that they should have been. But since their desire to do better was genuine, I decided that I would hear their confessions."
Bit of a cultural and religious mishmash there. But given the nature of America, he's probably familiar with practically every religion in its borders.

"Papist."

"Paul." Kal-El looks at me for a moment. "Not now."

I raise my hands in surrender.
Read the room, OL.

Uncle Sam walks closer to the tree. "I had a powerful need for blood, of traitors and patriots both. So, we reached an accord. They would feed the worms I sent to them, and I would use their blood to restore the Tree."

Zatanna frowns. "I thought you hated the worms."
As I thought. With no major conflicts right now... Of course he's got a shortage of the blood of patriots.

"I don't respect them, if that's your meaning. I would be quite content to learn that they had stopped existing. But so long as you've got 'em where you can see 'em, you can make 'em do a good day's work. They weren't feeding The Brass because they thought it was wise; they did it because Johnny told 'em to."
Johnny Reb, you mean, since he was sticking his oar in from the Badlands.

Kal-El frowns. "The people feeding the worms weren't acting like themselves."

"They were half-crazed with guilt. Of course they weren't acting like they were back when they were lying rattlesnakes."
...Huh, he might have a point, I guess?

Zatanna frowns. "Are you..? Sure..? The worms weren't making it worse."

"Nope."
I suppose they were able to leech away any corruption to sustain themselves?

She blinks. "Huh?"

Uncle Sam gives her a mildly irritated glare. "Girl, do you know where you are?"

"Yes, you-."
Wait a second, Zee. See where he's going with this.

"Sacrifice, girl. What sort of witch does not understand sacrifice? It is natural and normal and essential for a people that they value the collective of which they are a part above their own wellbeing. Those people subverted the American government, spat upon their oaths of office -and I choose my words with care there- and all told made a mockery of everything I am. So if they come to me and tell me that they wish to make amends, then amends they shall make, whether they pay in blood or reason. And you have all benefited from their sacrifice."
So he chose the path where they're still useful, rather than seeing them driven mad with regret.

Kal-El exhales slowly, thinking it over. "I understand what you were trying to do, but the worms were influencing them while they were supposed to be serving in public office."

"They were serving in public office, by God! For the first time in their lives! Look at their recent records and tell me that they have not!"
That'll be something to check after they get home. I assume they'll find the implicated senators have been voting noticeably differently.

"Ah, what..?" Zatanna looks nervous. "What happens if they stop?"

"What happens?" Uncle Sam still looks angry, though his temper is more under control. "What happens is that the Tree of Liberty takes longer to get back to full strength. Every American is just a little more vulnerable to otherworldly and un-American influences for just a little longer. And they'll have been denied the chance to purge their guilt."
So in this case, feeding the Tree is the safer option?

"But the Tree won't die?"

"Can't see why it would. The fundamentals are still strong."
It'd just be a little starved, until the next big crisis sees fresh blood spilled.

"Then… Superman? Why don't we just kill all the worms and put the cultists under observation?" She shrugs. "They can't have their old jobs back-."

Uncle Sam frowns. "And why the Hell would you do that? Now they're actually doing them, you've no cause to take them away."
The implications of possible mental influence, for a start, Sam.

"Uncle Sam… What exactly is it that you want out of this?"

He glare at Kal-El, pointing his right forefinger at his chest. "I want you."
<Cue Captain America credit sequence.> Presumably in a capacity as a symbol of America.

Well, then. that's a pretty clear declaration. I assume he's making this offer because a lot of Americans see Superman as a prime example of the American Dream or similar. An immigrant kid doing his part to make the world a better place, that sort of thing. Wonder if Supes agreeing would cause a version of him to form here, an 'iconic' version of how people see him?
 
He glare at Kal-El, pointing his right forefinger at his chest. "I want you."
I'm actually a little surprised by this. I'm assuming he wants Kal as president, but I wouldn't expect Uncle Sam to be ok with someone so powerful as president. I guess it's ok if he's voted in?


"You can't have people who might be subverted by corruption-elemental based mind-control serving in public office, retard."
Not sure why he's struggling to understand this.

They can still donate blood to the tree, I guess.
Being willing to water the tree of liberty with your own blood is any man's personal choice. Not something that 'authority' can tell you that you can't do.
But you can't serve in office while actively possessed by the embodiment of political corruption.
I don't think they're possessed by corruption, I think the worms are just the mechanism to get their blood to the Dreamworld. Uncle Sam at least seems to think their extreme behavior is just heavy guilt, not mental influence.

"They were half-crazed with guilt. Of course they weren't acting like they were back when they were lying rattlesnakes."

Zatanna frowns. "Are you..? Sure..? The worms weren't making it worse."

"Nope."
They would feed the worms I sent to them, and I would use their blood to restore the Tree."
 
Kal-El: "As much as I would be honored to serve in about any role. I am not a natural-born citizen and honestly I don't know how the legality of my adoption stands."
Uncle Sam would probably say something about how not alot of American are born there either, they were all from elsewhere and they make America, America as a land accept people from outside of it
 
Uncle Sam would probably say something about how not alot of American are born there either, they were all from elsewhere and they make America, America as a land accept people from outside of it

Uncle Sam has been around since the early 19th century, he doesn't much care about little details like Clark being born elsewhere and the details of the adoption.
 
But since their desire to do better was genuine, I decided that I would hear their confessions."
...
That is not how I saw this going.
On the one hand, I'm glad this is legit.
On the other, off the cuff, I'm not sure what I'd do as 'the man on the spot'.
Leaving them in place feels like a 'failure to live up yo ideals'. Yes, effective, useful, practical, easy.
And it's probably that last that makes me mistrust it.

Sacrifice, girl. What sort of witch does not understand sacrifice? It is natural and normal and essential for a people that they value the collective of which they are apart above their own wellbeing.
Few truer words were ever spoken.
Any other conception is utopian - it works if, only if, and for exactly as long as, everyone buys in/plays along.

He glare at Kal-El, pointing his right forefinger at his chest. "I want you."
Genuinely got a laugh.
You (and Paul) really seem to get on with Uncle Sam.
 

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