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

20th October 2012
21:42 GMT -5

Kara stares at me in what I'm increasingly coming to realise isn't mock offence but is in fact real offence.

"But they're dangerous supervillains!"

"Mister Morillo and Mister Tell are violent thieves, but the damage they usually do is nothing compared to the average week in some places. The fact that they put on a-"

I glance at the two where they glower up at us, in Mr. Tell's case through the hood of a nanotube-reinforced straitjacket in order to prevent him… Firing his… Skin cards.

Ew.

Technically, neither of them have 'costumes'. Mr. Morillo has fairly functional schizo tech body armour while Mr. Tell just has a pair of jeans so that he can reach the skin cards which cover his torso, though I suppose that the cards themselves could count.

"-n exotic appearance doesn't somehow 'prove' that they're worse."

She frowns. "Tell me where's worse, then!"

"Tijuana still has the highest murder rate-."

There's a roar of displaced air and she's gone, and I silently mouth 'thank you, Eris' to myself.

Then I turn to the unexpectedly expanded Garrick family.

"Sorry about that."

"That vas a accurate assessment. Did you have that one saved up for long?"

"She means well, but she's... Ah…"

Jay nods. "Easily distracted and a bit headstrong."

Blitzen nods. "If her head can survive an impact mit concrete like that, it must be strong. She is your Overgirl?"

"No, 'headstrong'. Impulsive and determined in following through on those impulses. And she's certainly someone's Overgirl."

"Ah." She nods. "I see. That is not a problem that Angelika has. She is always very deliberate."

"Where is she, anyway?"

"Taking my place in the Neu Reichsmen vhile I am here. She and Overman are planning somethink, but I just vant them to spent a little time together. He does not like to show it, but he vas very scared vhen she disappeared."

I look from her to Jay and back again.

"A… Nd..?"

"For a Nazi, she's not too bad."

Blitzen grins.

"Danke schön, vater. For a degenerate whose culture is based on that of the two vorts I am not meant to say, you are not too bad either."

"You can say 'Jew'. It's not considered pejorative."

"Okay, but that vas not the vort I vas going to use."

Jay takes a moment. "Was it like this for you, working with Angelika like this?"

I shake my head. "No, Angelika was far less self-confident. And she still doesn't accept the name 'Nazi'."

"I try to avoid self-deception. I know vhat ve are."

"But… I rather got the impression that Nazis were better at mental conditioning than this. You're being surprisingly flippant."

"Ah." She shrugs. "As the degenerates say, 'fick the man'. The Nazis have very strange mixed messages for actual superhumans."

"Angelika had a… Issue-."

"Jah, jah, she's sterile. How many children do you think any of us have?"

"I'd-. Assumed some? I mean, the whole traditional family role-."

"It doesn't mesh with superhumans. Ve're supposed to be… Ah… Elevated, jah? Above petty concerns and slave morality. Ve don't get normal lives. The vomen are supposed to conform to voman social ideas unt also not, because we are above that. And if you are a madman in command of a project that can produce superhumans, then you vere always right and everything you did to make them was right. They didn't even give me a name other than 'Blitzen'."

"Huh?"

"Jah, that vas very funny. 'Hallo everyone, here is Blitzen, our latest ubermensch, unbound by personal identification but rather a pure expression of an ideal'. 'Jah, but you can call me Johanna Garrick.'" She grins. "I thought they vere going to shit themselves!"

I frown and glance at Jay-.

"I've already had this talk. I'm not surprised that Nazis aren't even nice to other Nazis."

"It's the 'survival of the fittest' part of the philosophy. They let madmen do mad things, and if it doesn't vork out? Kill them. The idea was that superhumans naturally vould conform to the higher morality and so to Nazi ideals, because of course that makes sense."

Jay shakes his head. "I still don't understand how they rationalized that."

"I said mad scientist, jah? The people who kept going vith superhuman cloning research vhen Overman banned them from vorking on his body. They dream a mad dream and do not understand vhy no one else alzo dreams it."

"So how are you finding this degenerate world?"

She looks around, then shrugs. "It is okay? On a political level, I do not believe that refusing to ask a question is better than getting the answer wrong. There are many things that your civilisation has that are vorse than mine. Is deliberate murder vorse than a dereliction of duty vhich leads to even more deaths?"

Jay nods. "Yes. Much worse. You had worldwide death camps!"

"And ve did not have the communists. Our civilisation is stronk, vhereas yours could not come together even during an invasion of your whole vorld. The Other Flash feels zo terrible for killing their queen vhen he should be exalted as a hero."

I smile. "Jay, why don't you take the rest of the evening off? I can ride herd on Blitzen, and I think I've got a job for her that fits her skills perfectly."

Jay looks at me, clearly working out how to phrase his scepticism.

"Paul, I'm not sure that's exactly a safe option."

"It's a Justice League mission. I'm working under their rules of engagement, and I just need… Miss Garrick-"

"Hah!"

"-to go to a meeting or two and report back. She'll get to meet a colourful cross-section of the American population and learn about how a society's responses to crises don't have to come from a government entity."

"I…" He thinks for a moment. "Justice League rules?"

"Justice League rules."

"That should be alright. Jo?"

"As a proud daughter of the vaterland, I am eager to start!"

 

21st year of the reign of King Randor I
Season of Chill
307th day, 16th bell

Talk or fight?

Fighting in here isn't optimal. Eternians can't fly but the athletic ones can be bloody quick on their feet. And the fight would definitely damage the crystal chamber. I don't know how big a deal that is; Teela Na didn’t seem especially concerned about the damage Zodak's fight caused, but it wasn't that much. I have no idea what weapons are integrated into that armour, and then there's the sword…

On the other hand, while I'm not as proficient as some of the other mes I met briefly after we got grabbed by Krona, I am still a Lantern. Or.. power ring user, anyway. Eternians are tough, but they're hardly invulnerable to levels of force I can generate. This fight should be winnable.

Alternately, I could try to convince her that I'm a minor functionary while I feel her out. Find out what -if anything- she remembers of Eternia. What Hordak's been doing with her. I can turn the staff into a broom-.

Evelyn's half way to Adora already.

"Hail, friend. I am Evil-Lyn, a warrior in the service of Skeletor." Adora levels her sword at Evelyn, who stops walking closer and affects an expression of mild offence. "Is that any way to greet an ally?"

Thaaat works, I suppose. I send the staff into subspace before hesitantly following Evelyn, holding my body in a submissive posture.

"Skeletor." Probably-Adora doesn't sound entirely convinced. I suppose that Keldor isn't exactly a constant presence in… Wherever Hordak spends his time. He might just not have mentioned him to her. "This is… Eternia."

"Ah, you do know of it. I hadn't realised that Hordak was trying to send his warriors here."

"Where are we?"

"An abandoned castle I was exploring. The crystals possess a strong magic."

Adora's helmeted face turns towards me, and I make a point of dropping my eyes submissively. She discounts me immediately, not even bothering to look at the Basophil Amulet on my chest. Now, Hordak shouldn't know that King D'Vann's power outlasted him. Keldor only found out about the power of Grayskull recently, and he wasn't in regular contact with his nominal superior. But if he were here, then he'd find out fairly swiftly.

Adora raises her sword slightly, looking at the blue stone in the ricasso. "They're the same."

Evelyn shrugs. "Perhaps. The same colour, certainly." She extends her right hand. "If you'll hand it over I can check for-?"

Adora glares at her. "I'm keeping my sword."

"As you wish." Evelyn withdraws her hand. "And.. who, exactly, are you? From your armour I assume that you work for Hordak..?"

"I am Despara, a Force Captain in the Horde."

"Despara?" From the sound of her voice I don't think that Evelyn is impressed by the try-hard name. Evil Lyn isn't impressed by the try-hard name. I carefully school my expression and don't comment on dubious wisdom of projectile geology in silicate-based domiciles. "I don't believe that I've heard of you."

"My elevation is recent; long after Hordak's last contact with Eternia."

"Where is Hordak these days? He was supposedly banished to Despondos, but if he has living followers that seems unlikely."

"Hordak's great horde is in the process of subjugating the world of Etheria. There is some… Magic to the place that makes it more accessible from Despondos. Hordak can walk among us for brief spans, and his presence and voice are always with us."

Etheria… I guess that's where She-Ra happens? And I don't remember anything about Hordak having trouble interacting with the world. He was just sort of there, commanding his army and occasionally getting involved in active combat with the… She-Ra's team, whatever they were called.

"Fascinating. But how did you come here? I remember the last time that Hordak sent soldiers here, and the preparations were extensive."

"Last time?"

"Mmmmm. Fifteen or so years ago."

'Despara' doesn't move for a moment. Her eyepieces mean that I can't tell whether she's staring at Evelyn or staring into space. And while I could do some sort of ring scan, she might be able to detect it and it would be much better if we could resolve this without fighting.

"What did they do here?"

It's hard to notice, but there was a slight hesitation between the first few words of her question.

"They kidnapped the infant daughter of one of the local rulers. They never said why, but they returned through the portal back to 'Etheria' and never returned."

"What-? Was her name? What did she look like?"

"She looked like a small, crying child." Evelyn shrugs. "Archivist?"

Who-? Oh, me. "Blonde hair, blue eyes, your eminence. Her name was Ador-."

"Adora."

I bow my head. "Yes, your eminence. Have you met the young lady? Actually knowing what Hordak intends would make it far easier for us to enact his will."

"Adora. She came from here."

"Well… A city a short distance from here."

"Have its people been enslaved and tasked to labour for the Horde?"

I shake my head. "No. Skeletor has been more focused on increasing his personal power rather than conquering and holding inhabited territory. He nominally 'rules' half the world, but in fact his writ runs shallow outside of Snake Mountain."

"You are impudent to speak so of the one Hordak has placed over you."

"I try to keep a realistic view of the abilities of those around me. For example, I don't see any sign that you are a magician."

"I am not. I am a warrior."

"Your armour appears…" Evelyn runs her eyes over Despara's armour. "Sophisticated, but I see nothing that could open a portal to this… 'Etheria'."

"Shadow Weaver wished to study my interaction with this sword. Usually I arm myself with two short swords. Shadow Weaver is Hordak's greatest sorceress, and she believed that this sword would react to me in some way. I held it aloft, then… Here I was."

"That's it? No flash of light? No glow?"

"Not that I noticed." She hesitates, her attention moving to the sword. "Though most of my attention was focused on Shadow Weaver. If it was a subtle sign, I may not have noticed."

"Then what are your intentions? Do you wish to return as swiftly as possible? Or do you have other orders you wish to complete first?"

"I should return. But the ability of this sword to open portals could be an asset to the Horde, and none of my usual responsibilities are anything that another Force Captain could not complete nearly as well."

"Then studying the sword is what we will do. Archivist." I perk up attentively. "Fetch my staff and some refreshments and then meet up in the castle library."

I bow my head to hide my smile. And of course I can't refuse now, or the mummery comes to an end and we're back to fighting. Evelyn could have just told Adora that she needs help, so I don’t think that she intends to betray me. Of course, that doesn't mean that she isn't trying to find out whether or not Hordak would give her a better deal if she did. Fortunately, I can monitor her while I'm away to make sure that she doesn't do that the moment my back is turned, but I just got put on the back foot something fierce there.

"At once, Evil-Lyn. I will meet you there."