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

14th February 2013
16:47 GMT

Ms. Mallor winces as she looks at the content of what I've started to think of as the Book of Shadows, occasionally glancing down at the array that surrounds the device that reformatted Lantern Peldak's ring. Nothing from Ub'x yet, though I suspect that my message got through.

"This is… It doesn't make sense."

"In what way?"

"Ritual sacrifice hasn't ever been part of what we do here. There-. There were religions that made sacrifices to the Father of Shadows, but that was before Shadow Champions existed as an institution."

"How did the sacrifices end?"

She gives me a slightly awkward look. "People were being murdered. It only kept going as long as most people in those cultures thought they needed to. Usually, the moment those cultures had contact with a culture that didn't, it either stopped, or… Or it didn't, and there was a revolution that overthrew their priests and kings and sacrificed them."

"Reminds me a little of the Aztecs. I assume that the people doing the sacrifices were immune from being volunteered?"

"I.. don't know." She turns a page. "I wouldn't be surprised. Aztecs?"

"Culture from my homeworld. As far as I remember, they're the most recent one to practice human sacrifice. They demanded victims from their tributaries. When people from the next continent over where they didn't practice human sacrifice turned up and picked a fight with them, every single tributary rose up in revolt. The foreign invaders ended up trying to stop their allies wiping the Aztecs out."

She nods.

"Do you understand any of what she wrote?"

"Some of it. We have studied the Shadowlands as much as we dared. I hadn't.. thought about it, but it makes sense that our studying accelerated after the Father of Shadows departed. Lyssa Drak would have been a natural choice to lead those studies." She turns the page again, frowning. "I am concerned about what will happen if it becomes known that our powers can be replicated through murder."

"Does the book say how the book was made?"

"It's mostly a research journal. I assume that when I study it fully, I will understand the process."

"Or that's something that she learned from elsewhere."

"Does Sinestro know anything about magic?"

"He was a xenoarchaeologist. It's possible that he ran into something somewhere. And his sister supposedly used magic, though since literally no other Korugaran has ever shown any affinity for it I'm not sure that there wasn't something else going on. And he used to have access to the Green Lantern Corps' full database on magic and thaumically active locations, so…"

"He could employ someone easily."

"Yes. But… Unless there's something written in that book, we don't have any proof that Sinestro had anything to do with this."

"You said that the ring said his name."

"Sinestro's existence and history aren't secret either."

And Abin Sur knew his name and counted him as a friend when he founded the Indigo Lantern Corps… Unless things are completely different from the comics. He might well have put Sinestro's name in the system as a back-up First Lantern.

"Do you need any other resources here, or are you okay to keep working?"

"I'll probably need a physicist eventually, but I can find one for myself."

I nod. "And… To the best of your knowledge, is there anything that I need to worry about?"

"About what you did to get a feel for the Shadowlands?" I nod. "Richard Swift doesn't seem to have any trouble in using or controlling his power. But unless he comes here and agrees to be studied, I can't tell you anything about how your species connects to the Shadowlands."

"Fair enough. Either a Controller or a Qwardian will be along later to have a look at the machine. Best of luck with the reunion."

I step out, orientating on the giant glow that is the Orange Central Power Battery. Ms. Mallor is perfectly capable of handling that investigation on her own, and she has even more legal authority to do so than the local Green Lanterns. The Shadowlands probably aren't either a threat or an opportunity, but transferring her doesn't really cost anything and it might prove to be useful.

I

appear outside of Kalmin's laboratory.

I wait a moment, then press the bell.

And then I wait another moment, because I strongly suspect that Kalmin isn't in the best frame of mind at the-.

The door opens, and one of his acolytes is standing on the other side. He realises who I am, then winces.

"Sorry. But he's the only one-."

He steps aside, putting the gun he was carrying back into the doorside rack.

"He will see you. He is…" He looks me in the face for a moment. "About as happy as you might surmise."

"I'd have brought something, but I don't know what Qwardians give in situations like this."

"The last known location of our enemies. That way."

He points towards Kalmin's forge, and I'm a little surprised that I can't hear anything. Kalmin is usually quite happy to rant about why he's unhappy, but I suppose that he doesn't see the point if there's no audience?

I walk slowly in the direction indicated, to give him plenty of time to express his unwillingness to see me if that's how he feels.

"Weaponer Kalmin?"

"Illustres, come here."

I walk into his inner sanctum, where the yellow ring is held in a vice while Kalmin's equipment interfaces with it. Kalmin doesn't look around, instead remaining focused on his readouts.

"What news?"

"It's a hideous hack job, but it would work. Barely."

"'Barely' meaning..?"

"A ring needs to be acclimatised to the mind state of the user. It's less of a concern with green rings, as the user is supposed to be completely focused on whatever they're doing at that moment. With other colours, it's more significant. This was not configured for Lyssa Drak."

"No, I think we interrupted her before she could finish."

"The concept was sound, though. The ring will function. Though it was a good deal more subtle a way of gathering fear than I would bother using. Slower, too."

"But it could go undetected for a long time."

"If that was the goal. I knew Sinestro well. He could be patient, but once he had an aim in mind I doubt that he would be happy with such sloth. Or deliberate imperfection. I find it more likely that Lyssa Drak was trying to prove her worth to him, rather than that he was commanding her directly."

"You done with the ring?"

"I haven't destroyed it." I wait a moment. "Yes, I have nothing more to learn. Take it and be gone."

I walk over and pull it from the vice.

"Nar."

One more thing before I return to Earth.

 

14th February 2013
16:53 GMT

"Illustres." Diataria Lysis is keeping her face completely still as she looks at me from my ring projection. "What do you require?"

"A conversation with Thaal Sinestro would be nice. But failing that, how's my ring coming?"

"There… Has been a problem in the supply line. I am sorry, but I will need a little longer."

"These things happen. How's Ms. Drak doing?"

"It-? That was you."

"And some friends. Interesting approach. Kalmin wasn't completely contemptuous."

"How did you find out about that..?"

"It's a small universe. Do you have a personal lantern to go with it?"

"…yes. It will.. function. I had intended to fine tune it before notifying you-"

"Uh-huh."

"-that it was ready. I understand your scepticism, but Lantern Sinestro is quite insistent that we honour our agreements."

I nod. That does fit with his personality profile, assuming that he wasn't planning on attacking us immediately. But if she's about to suggest that I come to an isolated planetoid without an escort, I'm going to mock her.

"I suggest that I perform the handover on a planet-."

"Of my choice? Yes, what a good and completely reasonable idea. I'll bring a bodyguard, because I'm not an idiot."

"Ah. Yes. I take it that you have no objection to me doing the same?"

"As long as it's not Ms. Drak."

"No. Since you… Disrupted our operation on Talok, we don’t have a spare ring for her."

"In the interest of us not stepping on one another's toes again, might I suggest that she find a way to touch the Shadowlands that doesn't involve the ritual murder of another Lantern? I doubt that Sinestro wants to start a war before he's ready."

"I will pass that on. Do you have a location in mind?"

Needs to be somewhere that doesn't look like an obvious trap from her perspective, too. Sending her to Earth would be stupid. Asking to meet on Korugar… Well, they wouldn't send Sinestro. … Probably. Ungara? No, not with their environmental problems. Too much risk to them if it turns into a fight. Mars would look like a trap.

"Can you get to Dryanna? It's just outside the Vega Systems."

"Your ally Commodore Amalak's base of operations."

"My occasional business partner Amalak's base of operations. We don't have a formal written agreement. And the scenery is actually quite nice."

She… Appears to glance at something off-screen. "Acceptable. I assume that you want it as soon as possible."

"Yes please."

"I can be there…" Off-screen again. "In slightly over one Earth day. Is that acceptable?"

"Completely fine. One bodyguard. See you then."

She nods, and the image vanishes.

Hm. Between Amalak's fleet and sensor network I don't think that I have to worry about getting swarmed. Sinestro's the only person with enough experience to maybe beat me in a fight, so I'm not too worried about losing to a single specialist. I'll be in full armour the whole time.

But who to take with me? Komand'r and Koriand'r are closest, but riding herd on Vega is a full time job. Xor is technically my partner, but I'd rather not call him away from his current assignment. Same with Vran, plus there's the possibility that she might jump ship. Jump back to her old ship.

One possibility, then.

"Illustres to Lantern Natu."

I wait. If she's operating, then she's not going to respond immediately. Actually, I suppose that Kalmin would be a reasonable choice, as I'm sure that he'd like a few words with his former student about her construction methods. But I don't really want him meeting people, or not here to watch his students. Other possibilities-.

"Yes?"

Voice only.

"Are you available for deployment?"

"I-. Ah can be? Casualties?"

"No. We're going to meet the person who makes power rings for your father. I thought that you might have some things you'd like to get off your chest."

"Is he going to be there?"

"Not as far as I know."

"I just woke up. I-."

"Sorry, I didn't realise. This isn't actually an order; I can get someone else. I just thought that it might be helpful."

"You're the Illustres."

"Yes, but that doesn’t mean that I should just ride roughshod over-."

"Will this help me?"

"He's up to something. I don't know what, exactly. You've lived without his input for most of your life, so I doubt that your relationship is so significant a factor in your mind that it's routinely weakening you. If you don’t want to access the higher levels of power you could probably ignore it completely. The issue would be when Sinestro actually does something."

"Because I'd be distracted."

"Just so. It's usually best to deal with psychological issues before they manifest. But as I said, I can get someone else."

"Okay, yeah. Just… Give me twenty minutes."

"Certainly. Meet me at the Central Power Battery when you're ready."

"Lantern Natu out."

And the ring dims, and I begin flying in the direction of the Central Power Battery. Not really enough time to visit the training ground, and I don't really need to do any further preparation.

"Ring. Message to Darkstar Nguyen."