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

4th November, 1999
11:31 GMT

I'm in the Republic of Ireland without passing through a border checkpoint, but that's okay. We're both still part of the European Union, UKIP's respectable showing in the European Parliament election earlier this year notwithstanding, so there's no need to show a passport. Before coming here I didn't go to other European countries often enough to know if I'm supposed to go through a border point anyway just so they know I'm here or if it's alright to just turn up, but I'm pretty sure that owning a strategic weapon given to me by non-human sophonts would be a bigger deal if it ever came to court. Or maybe not. I think it was in 1984 where one of the characters advised obeying all of the small and everyday rules so that no one would think that you were disobeying the large ones.

I walk up to the… Well, the stone that Percival gave me is glowing, so there must be some sort of ley line focus here. But the standing stones aren't exactly in good repair, and from the arrangement it looks like someone decided to repurpose them for public meetings.

But who am I to argue with a glowing stone?

Construct armour firmly attached, no construct weapons, satchel with appropriate gifts and absolutely no electronic devices. All check. I step into the still just visible circle, hold the stone up and wait.

I should have asked Percival how long-.

The stone shimmers white and… Pink? And light strobes out towards the circle's circumference. The intensity builds for a few moments and then there's a flash-.

And… I'm somewhere else. In a rocky tunnel lined with conveniently glowing crystals. Normally I'd scan something like that and try to work out how that worked. But I'm on best behaviour.

Ah…

I was sort of assuming that someone would have heard that, but it doesn't look like anyone's running to see what that lightshow was about.

Alright, just… Politely walk forwards and… Ah, not ask if anyone's home… Glow more brightly?

Huh. The tunnel is quite short, and opens into… A sort of underground garden. Strange plants bearing stranger fruits grow from a central area and from large pots around the walls. A large crystal growing in the ceiling appears to be providing the light-.

"Niamh, would you mind giving me a hand over here?"

A pink-haired banshee in a plain white robe is doing.. something to one of the plants. Gathering nectar, I think? Or possibly sap?

I.. walk towards her, looking around as I go. There doesn't appear to be anyone else here, though I can see other tunnels leading away from this cavern.

"What's the matter, been tasting yer own-" She glances up for a second before returning her attention to her work. "-fruit-."

Her head comes back up and she stands in a hurry, pitcher containing nectar falling-.

I extend a construct hawk, flying it across the room to catch the pitcher and set it on the ground. That action is enough to set her off, hair rising and hands glowing as she musters whatever energy it is banshees use for their attacks. Pitcher safely landed I dismiss the hawk and raise my hands in surrender, weakly glowing stone turned so that the rune carved into its surface is clearly visible.

"What-? Who are you? What on Earth are you doing here?"

I move my right hand to my chin and wiggle it left and right, then rotate it so that my thumb is pointing towards my chest and slide it backwards and forth.

She looks down at it and then back up at my face.

"Is that supposed to mean something?"

Yes, I suppose it would have been a bit much to hope for, every member of an isolationist community knowing British sign language.

I nod.

"Well clearly it doesn't. Where did you get that stone from?"

Two fists, thumbs pointed inw-.

"Stop doing that." Her hands are still up but the glow has faded and her hair's nearly back to normal. "Can you no' talk?"

I shrug, and reach into my satchel for pen and paper. Pulling them out, I flick through to the basic words part and hold up 'No'. Then I flick through to the 'greetings' section and hold up 'Hello, I am the Green Knight'.

"The… Oh. I didn't think you were real."

'Banshee'.

"Of course I'm real. And that doesn't explain where you got that-."

"Sh'rain!" Pink hair glances over to the cave entry where the voice came from. "Who are you talking to?"

A banshee with faded purple hair walks in, then stops dead as she sees me. One quick look at the stone-.

"Put yer hands down, girl. This one's allowed here."

The pink haired banshee -Sh'rain, apparently- does as she's told, though she still looks at me suspiciously.

"Why?"

"He's a friend t' Queen Mab. Though he hasn't-" Purple hair regards me curiously. "-been back here fer a while."

I flick through the book to an empty page and write, 'Please take me to the queen'.

"Oh, aye. I'll take y' to her a'right."

Flick to one of the first pages. 'Thank you'.

"What's so special about him?" Pink hair looks at me curiously, now that her fear has been allayed. "There is a man under there, isn't there?"

"Aye, there is. Not one we've seen fer a while." She draws herself up slightly as she looks at me. "Come along, then."

I nod politely at Sh'rain, then march towards Purple Hair. She looks a little older, but I see what Percival meant about them not really showing their age. Scanning her telomeres wouldn't tell me anything as they wouldn't decay at human rates, and I doubt that radio carbon dating would tell me very much either. Once I get closer she turns away, apparently without concern about the glowing green man behind her, and leads me down another tunnel.

"Y've been away a while."

I nod, holding up the 'yes' page. But she doesn't turn around.

"I also don't remember y' bein' so sensitive aboot yer height."

Ah. Starting to get worried that this stone was for Percival's personal use only. New page, and I write 'I'm not P-.'

Ooh, that's a big Cavern. I actually can't see the far side, and that's not just because of the giant petrified tree in the centre. And a little way around to the right is… Okay, I don't know enough about Irish history to argue Percival's description of their monarchies, but that looks like an impressive throne dais. A group of banshees -and I think that one's Mab- emerge from various passageways or fly down from other parts. My escort slows down to allow her queen to properly ensconce herself on the throne before bringing me into her presence.

Mab looks down on me from a great height as I bow low.

"You have been away for a long time. I had been getting worried that you no longer wanted anything t'do with us."

The tone makes it clear that she means 'you disappeared one day and I'm still pissed off about it'. I'm not sure what Percival did, as he seemed to think that they were still friendly. Though I suppose for a maltusian it might not have been all that long.

I reach into my construct satchel and pull out a book filled with the latest in deep space images and artistic impressions of the wider universe, as well as a smaller bag. With a smaller bow I hold them out, and purple hair takes them from me before walking up the steps to the throne and handing them over. The book is briefly opened and a few pages examined, causing Queen Mab to briefly smile before forcing her face back to its resting position. She opens the pouch next, reaching in with her right hand and pulling out one of the many vampire teeth I put inside.

"I see you've not lost yower strength. Was it a private audience you were wanting?"

I nod.

"I can do that. For an old friend." She rises, keeping a grip on the pouch and book. "You'd best have something worth listening to."

 

4th November 1999
11:36 GMT

A smaller grove, and the flowers here seem more decorative than arable, and the crystals on the wall arranged for their decorative properties rather than purely to provide light. There's no… Bed, or desk, or any other sign that this is a work space, so I'm going to assume that this is some sort of banshee drawing room. Purple hair and the other banshee who followed us stay outside the entryway, with the crystals growing across it to seal the room at a wave of Queen Mab's right hand.

Right, then how to-?

"You are not Percival."

She sounds irritated, facing away from me as she shakes the teeth out on a workbench.

"He could make his armour larger than his body, but you have the proportions wrong. Are you a siren, perhaps?"

Um. Okay, maintaining any sort of pretence around someone who actually knows Percival. Or.. knew Percival. I can just write a description of my relationship with Percival down on paper and she can check it herself. But…

"No. I'm a human sworn to his service."

She holds out her left hand and the runic stone glows briefly before floating through the air to land in her palm. She looks at it for a moment, then nods.

"He gave this to you of his own free will, at least." She puts it down next to the pile of teeth and turns around, eyeing me suspiciously. "But it has been a long time since I have spoken to him."

"A long time for a human, a banshee, a maltusian… They aren't the same." I dismiss my construct helmet. "I'm halfway convinced that Percival predates this star system."

She studies me with renewed intensity, but doesn't appear to find anything objectionable. "You were hiding your face, but you're showing it to me. Why?"

"I can't sleep with my eyes open. The fewer people who know who I am, the better. But… You're friends with Percival-."

"Is that what he calls it?"

"Ah… If you.. want me to take him a message, I can certainly do that?"

"Aye, I will."

"You, ah, know Percival, and as far as he knows aren't allied to anyone. Your only interest is the good of the banshees on Earth, and since I don’t intend to threaten your people in any way, there's no reason for you to share any information I give you about me."

"Perhaps I think that you have already seen enough to be a threat yourself?"

"No. If that was the case you'd have called in your guards and blasted me. You're annoyed with Percival, but from the sound of it you're annoyed because he's been an inconsiderate friend, rather than an enemy. And I.. do have some things to offer you."

"Such as?"

"I am more than happy to aid you in any way not detrimental to the interests of the law-abiding people of Earth. If the lycans or vampires are making nuisances of themselves, I'm happy to deal with the issue for you."

"We're perfectly capable of dealing with them on our own."

"The impression I got was that your population isn't that big. Every fight you take involves you risking people you can't replace. I'm not as powerful as Percival, but with his help I can fake it for a while. And I'm far easier for him to replace."

"And what about the Alliance?"

"I was going to ask you about that, actually. I briefly met a banshee Alliance agent-" She scowls. "-in London. I… Didn't think your people did that… Sort of thing."

"Sh'lainn Blaze. She left, and she'll not be coming back."

"Is she something we should be concerned about?"

"I don't… I don't think that she'll betray us. Beyond joining the Alliance in the first place. And she doesn't know about Percival; she was born after his last visit."

Um…

"The way you.. phrased that-."

"She's not his, if that's your meaning. No, Sh'lainn abandoning her own people to run around with the Alliance is not any sign that I want anything to do with them."

"Good show. Do you have any contact with other non-human sophonts on Earth?"

"Aye. Not often, but I do. Would you be wanting to get in touch with them?"

I nod. "Yes. My offer to you isn't exclusive. This… Secrecy thing, it shouldn't be necessary. It doesn't help you, it doesn't help us humans… I… Can't think of anyone it does help, not unless the Alliance board of directors are getting rich drip feeding alien technology into the market. Oh, sorry, that's-. Something else I want to offer. I can fly faster than light with passengers. If you decide-."

"You could help us run away."

"Humans have undergone an industrial revolution since you settled Earth. There aren't all that many places you can live comfortably anymore. I could help you return to a banshee world, or move you somewhere more primitive. If you wanted. Or on the other hand, I could act as an escort to banshees who… Ah. Wanted to explore the surface in safety."

Queen Mab's face relaxes a little.

"That may help. Sh'lainn's mother had the same adventurous spirit. But she and I grew up on the same world together. She lived our culture, and was loyal to me."

"And without either that personal bond or that cultural background…" I nod. "Sh'lainn grew up surrounded by things she wasn't allowed to touch."

"She could touch. But we're not a part of it."

"So would me offering to escort groups of banshees around be helpful… Or make the situation worse?"

"Staying as we are solves nothing. We can try it, and see what happens. Sh'rain will appreciate it, I'm sure." Queen Mab looks away for a moment. "I used to have talks like this with Percival."

I nod. "Sometimes an outsider's perspective is useful."

"True enough." She thinks for a moment. "What do you know about the Alliance?"

"Not a lot. They appear to be a paramilitary organisation tasked with preserving the secret of non-human sophont life on Earth, while simultaneously regulating it."

"'Regulating'?" She huffs.

"Ruthlessly repressing? I didn't want to draw a firm conclusion from the handful of actions I've seen."

"We had our first encounter with them about t'irty years ago. They haven't made us a priority, but they've been trying to find out where we come from. With Sh'lainn working for them, perhaps they'll realise that we don't want to fight them."

"If you want peace, prepare for war."

"And how would we do that?"

"Bypass the Alliance. Form an accord with peacefully inclined non-humans and then make contact with governments. In private, at first. Find out how connected to the governments of the world the Alliance actually is, because I heard a lot of American accents from their operatives."

"There are risks to that."

"There are. As I said, if it all falls apart I'm happy to evacuate you. But it'll be easier if you and any other civilised elements can present a united front."

She nods. "I can tell you where to go to speak with the leader of the Conduit. That's what they call themselves. And I'll write a letter for you to give to Percival. But before you head off to meet either of them, I want you to give a full report on what happened with you fighting the Alliance soldiers with Sh'lainn."

"Certainly, your majesty."