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

Chojin Patriarch · May 1, 2024

Mr Zoat said:
25th June 2015
08:36 GMT

I smile as a gaggle of convention-goers gawp at me, waving cheerfully as I stride past them in search of my wandering companion. Kevin the Human Cowboy has come a long way since I began working my Apokoliptian-sufficiently-advanced-technology on his mildly demon-gnawed brain, but he still has a worrisome tendency to get a little distracted. This is supposed to be a working event for him, after all.

...That would be the minotaur fellow. I'm guessing he also got refused and the Renegade picked him up to take him under his wing. At least neither of them will stand out all that much at a comic-book convention, what with the cosplayers.

Once that nonsense with the government's abortive attempt to put together a superhero team blew over, there was still quite a bit of interest from various parties in trying to work out how be to utilise those who came down with a sudden dose of superpowers. Being a Booth Dude for the Leeds Animated Festival and Anime Convention is at the low risk low reward end of the spectrum, but given the difficulty Kevin's physical alterations make holding down a normal job I felt that this was the way to go.

Even if the best they can get is something like 'big strong guy' or 'shoot medium-calibre mind bullets', that's still a decent level of power. As for Kevin, it was probably this or playing a minotaur on TV or something.

"Um, excuse me?"

I look down at the young woman who worked up the courage to speak to me, wearing… Looks like something from Avatar: the Last Airbender. I'm wearing a costume myself, but unlike the fanciful designs rendered in cloth and plastic worn by the convention-goers I'm dress in an extremely functional Keldon outfit which shows off my impressive musculature and inhuman nature to best advantage.

Probably earning him no shortage of appreciative looks from the ladies... And more than a few gents too.

"Yes? How can I help you?"

"Are you.. a superhero?"

With that physique, what else could he be? Seriously, I know it's an energetic hobby, but unless your superpower involves fat in some way, any cape is going to be chiselled right quick...

"Not at the moment. I applied for that government team, but…" I shrug. "I was unsuccessful. I knew that putting Batman down as a reference was a mistake." I pause. "He never liked me."

The joke appears to fail.

To be fair, it'd be a bit hard for them to call him up and ask 'So, any insight into this Grayven fellow?'

"But you have superpowers? Like the Mole Man?"

With superpowers being a bit more… Strange here than back on Earth 16, some real… 'Odd' characters have managed to rise to an unusual degree of prominence. Including a man who's power allows him to burrow through the ground at surprising speed and who really has it in for people who don't pick up their dog's excrement.

Still, it's better than being the marvel Mole Man, who's unpowered but impressively unattractive.

"No, I have useful powers. Here." I slide a steel bar out of my costume and hold it out to her. "Test it."

She takes it and has a quick go at bending it before passing it back.

I question why he'd have steel bars just tucked into his... Pants? Belt? ... But given what he's going to do...

"Okay, so-."

I grip one end with my right hand and use my left to wrap it around my right fist, the metal screeching in protest the whole way. Her eyes widen.

Go on, give it to her as a souvenir.

"My colleague and I are doing a demonstration just after lunch today, if you're interested. He's the minotaur? I don't suppose you've seen him around, have-?"

"Oi, Gravy-mate!"

"You…"

Let me guess, a bit of wrestling, some posing, some weight-lifting stuff... General strong-man things.

I'm undone as much of the damage from his traumatic brain injury and negligent intuitive magic use as possible, but the man was born north of Watford. There are some things I just can't change. That said, Kevin… He's turning out okay. Despite his huge size -he's just about the only semi-conventionally organic intelligent creature on the planet who's larger than me- and at best average intelligence, he's never been violent. No criminal record at all, beyond a couple of incidents of accidental damage. And for some reason, despite me pointing out all of the disadvantages, he still wants to try and become a superhero.

So, he's a bit of a chav, but a good bloke regardless. (For you yanks, think a redneck...)

And unfortunately, I think he's going to get his chance well before he's ready.

"Kevin!"

Well, at least you didn't have to look too hard for him if he's coming to you.

I smile and saunter across the hotel lobby to greet him. The shape of his mouth doesn't really allow him to smile, but I can generally tell when he's in good cheer. Like today.

"Smelt summat weird out of ma window, mate."

Wonder if his senses are altered in that form in general. Like, a sharper sense for blood, or dimmer eyesight. He'd certainly have a wider field of vision if nothing else.

"Something weird?" His lexicon is improving by leaps and bounds as well, but… It's a muscle that he isn't used to exercising. I'm not exactly certain how 'super' his sense of smell is, but I've rather got the impression that he's not entirely limited to airborne chemicals. "Can you narrow it down?"

"Like fire, and cleanin' stuff and petrol and that." His happiness vanishes and he looks concerned. "Think it's a crash or summat? Think we should go help?"

Well, that's not worrying at all.

The closest thing we've done to superheroing to date is helping the emergency services when they need some unusually resilient muscle. Pulling apart a wrecked car to free those trapped within is something which someone with super strength can do without too much training. But in central Leeds, I'm sure that the police will be on top of things. Still…

"Can't hurt to have a look. Let's have a quick…"

Given that them punching someone would do a fair amount of damage, I'm not surprised the Renegade encourages restraint.

A member of hotel staff briefly tries to intercept a group of convention-goers who are intent on leaving the hotel, and is swiftly bypassed by the mass.

"Look. Come on."

A crowd fleeing from something. That's got to be setting off the Renegade's superhero instincts, all right.

I stroll over to the tail end of the early-riser crowd as the hotelier trudges back to the front desk.

"Excuse me, what's.. that about?"

Is there a celebrity about, or did someone announce a cosplay parade, maybe?

She looks around and up, a slight intake of breath as Kevin and I fill her vision. I smile in a way which I hope is disarming, and Kevin-.

"Mooooo."

...Yeah, bit hard to be afraid of someone that moos at you. Even if he is like eight feet tall and has a bull's head.

…

Yes. I guess it's not offensive if a minotaur does it.

Especially if he's got a northern accent and sounds like he's all of nineteen?

"Ah, there's some sort of police emergency; they're shutting down the whole city centre."

I look out through the front doors at the mob of convention-goers ambling across the car park.

...And I'm guessing people rushing out of the building is not good.

This…

I arm up, Apokoliptian armour I haven't touched for months replacing the Keldon leathers covering my body, daiklave appearing on my back and goggles appearing over my oh dear.

'Months'? Boy, he really has been taking the semi-retired thing seriously, hasn't he? Used to be you couldn't pry it off him.

I'm half-way to the exit before I'm consciously aware of it and I accelerate, the doors exploding outwards from the force of my shoulder-barge. Being security glass they don't shatter, but being made of mundane materials they're still torn from their hinges.

"Kevin! Hero time!"

Ah, the inevitable superhero incident insurance issue...

"Fookin' hell fire!"

The mage-knights on their monster steeds are barely visible at the far end of the road but the wave of magic hits us, clawing at our minds and senses. I'm fine, Kevin just snorts and one of the locals appears to go into a trance but everyone else collapses and I feel magic…

Worrying. Especially if magic is as big a cognito-hazard as the info makes it sound.

The cameras are targeting people-.

I get a dome shield in place just in time to block the transmutation rays coming from the CCTV cameras. What the fuck are they-? No.

Looks like someone wants to change the world, literally.

"Kevin, get people back inside the hotel."

He's looking down the road at the… Unicorn riders?

...It's the fair folk, isn't it?

"… The fook 're they?"

"Supervillains, and we'll be dealing with them presently but right now I need you to rescue people."

All you really need to worry about is that they're hurting people, and are in need of punching.

Righteously so.

"Right, cap'n!"

He grabs recumbent cosplayers with his right hand and loads them into the crook of his left before dashing back into cover. The knights… Yes, they've seen me and they're accelerating into a charge. I.. was not prepared for this.

But that's okay. Days like this are why the Source invented beam singularity projectors.

Ah, super-science versus the arcane. Bet that'll get some folks interested.

So, I assume these are some manner of Elves, out for a hunt for prospective slaves. Or something like that. And naturally the Renegade is in just the right place at the right time to make a difference... Somehow, I can't help but picture him comparing them to the Sheeda and finding them coming up short.

ForeverShogo · May 1, 2024

Yes.

And the camera thing is Scorpion Stare. The basically reverse engineered what basilisks and medusae do, then created a technological version. They put reprogrammable chips in the entire CCTV network that lets them turn any of the cameras into a weapon. It turns carbon into silicon, with the process being a bit violently unstable. So for an outside observer it just looks like people are turning into exploding statues.

From what I recall, the targeting software wasn't sophisticated enough to distinguish between the actual Elven invaders and the people dressed up in cosplay.

PDV · May 1, 2024

ForeverShogo said:
From what I recall, the targeting software wasn't sophisticated enough to distinguish between the actual Elven invaders and the people dressed up in cosplay.

It was plenty sophisticated, but unfortunately their training run to get a baseline for what humans look like was a nice beachside walk for a number of young women and Agent First of Spies and Liars, daughter of the elf All-Highest.

So the targeting ML was very, very confused.

Vaermina · May 1, 2024

So is there going to be any actual coherent story anymore? Or are we at the part where it's just jumping from random alternate to random alternate with no real rhyme or reason?

Old Knife · May 1, 2024

Vaermina said:
So is there going to be any actual coherent story anymore? Or are we at the part where it's just jumping from random alternate to random alternate with no real rhyme or reason?

I vote for the granny Azula one!

Chaoswind · May 1, 2024

Stargate for me

Zhen_Electric · May 1, 2024

[X] Stargate story continuation please and thank you

Chaoswind · May 1, 2024

Vaermina the April fools thing is usually longer than a month of madness, this time it feels different because there is not a direct obvious connection to the current SI/Grayven.

crazygrox · May 1, 2024

Mr Zoat said:
one of the locals appears to go into a trance but everyone else collapses

I feel that this trance'd local is probably a laundry agent assigned with watching Grayven.
A lot is still unclear, like what happened with the superhero team, whether events turned out the same way as cannon, and how much Grayven actually knows about what's going on in this universe.

Mr Zoat · May 1, 2024

crazygrox said:
I feel that this trance'd local is probably a laundry agent assigned with watching Grayven.

No, as far as I remember they had some exposure to magic beforehand and so reacted differently. Grayven is in the middle of a canon event, but I don't have the book here with me to check.

The Laundry doesn't have anything like the number of spies to do something like that. They're not American.

A lot is still unclear, like what happened with the superhero team, whether events turned out the same way as cannon, and how much Grayven actually knows about what's going on in this universe.

Grayven had no impact on those event, so you'll have to read the relevant book.

crazygrox · May 1, 2024

Mr Zoat said:
Grayven had no impact on those event, so you'll have to read the relevant book.

I actually went ahead and did after the first chapter of this. I'd tried reading the laundry files before but I don't think I'd gotten much further than the first book. Starting in the middle was actually more engaging.

I'm saying I'm kind of surprised that a guy walking in to interview and kill a lizardman with no further elaboration to the interviewers, then apparently not at all being involved in the rest of the plot of that book which they could have easily derailed, is surprising.
I guess I might as well read the one with the invading elves as well.

hance1986 · May 1, 2024

So are we finished with the Justice Segue thing? I kind of liked Grayven in the DCEU. Loved the Paul in the Power Rangers arc but this Laundry Files thing isn't hooking me.

Vaermina · May 2, 2024

Chaoswind said:
Vaermina the April fools thing is usually longer than a month of madness, this time it feels different because there is not a direct obvious connection to the current SI/Grayven.

The April Fools stuff has at least been linear.

This is just jumping from random random universe from random universe with no real linearity to it.

crazygrox · May 2, 2024

hance1986 said:
So are we finished with the Justice Segue thing? I kind of liked Grayven in the DCEU. Loved the Paul in the Power Rangers arc but this Laundry Files thing isn't hooking me.

It hooked me.

boo600 · May 2, 2024

…I am kind of eager to see the rebuilding of society, the attempts to aid mental health, the world's reaction to "Darkseid Is" a thing, the Team's knowledge of and reaction to Paul Smilex-ing Batman, the Team's current state of mind and personal dynamics, more of Paul and Alan interacting, the JL's take on the situation and Paul… there's a lot of current stuff.

And long term… I want to see more of the team. I want to see more of John Constantine, of the mages (Zatanna, Kaldur, and Rob's growth, Dr. Balewa's explanations, Mr. Zatara's reactions, Angelica's current state and take on the situation, Zeruel preaching compassion and his understanding of morality), of what Ted Kord and Luthor are up to… there's a lot, and the other universes (while interesting) are kind of keeping me on the edge of my seat.

Which is supposed to be good writing, so… yay?

But aaagh. I can understand Mr. Zoat wanting to branch out a bit, seeing how he's been writing this every day for years… but there's such a large interesting world I want to see more of!

This is how mainstream comics got to the state they're in, isn't it? One author isn't enough, so they start mixing in a few more…

Mr Zoat · May 2, 2024

25th June 2015
08:40 GMT
Reinforce.
Nitrogen degrades to plasma on the far side of my construct barrier as Kevin lumbers back to my side.
Reinforce.
"Fook is gawin' on, mate?"
Reinforce.
"Enemy wizards, Kevin."
Reinforce.
"Throwin' fireballs an' that?"
Reinforce.
"Throwing heat. It's a wee bit hotter than a fireball out there."
Reinforce.
Frustratingly, they wised up rather quickly once I sliced a line through their front rank. The unicorn-riding knights-. The ones who survived, anyway, spread out and fell back, correctly guessing that I didn't particularly want to destroy the entire centre of Liverpool. Some of them tried doubling down on their concealment spells and spreading out to attack me from multiple angles. Once I gunned them down, they decided to call in artillery.
Reinforce.
They don't have aircraft but they do have a few of some sort of flying wyrm creature. Sadly, they were intelligent enough to realise that if I could see their cavalry then I would certainly be able to spot their fliers. So they called forward some mages and… Here I am.
Reinforce.
"So we 'avin' a go at the fookin' bastards or wot?"
Reinforce.
"Kevin, what is the most important responsibility of a superhero?"
Reinforce.
"Protectin' folk. An' the only way t' do thaht is t' get the bastards wot're gettin' lairy, you tole me."
Reinforce.
"Generally, yes, and a degree of collateral damage is acceptable in order to prevent something worse happening because the malefactors were left to run riot. In this case, I appear to have their full attention. Which is good because..?"
Reinforce.
"'cos you're dead hard and you can tekkit."
Reinforce.
"Good lad."
Reinforce.
"So if they think they can get you, they keep shootin' you. But if they know they ain't gunna, they could run away or sommat."
Reinforce.
"Not as young as I was, Kevin."
Reinforce.
"So we get 'em together, right?"
Reinforce.
His ability to smile is somewhat impeded, but he sounds positively giddy with excitement at the prospect.
Reinforce.
"Kevin, I wanted to bring you into this whole 'superheroism' thing slowly. Train you, make sure that I knew your limits, start you off with something small and work upwards. But I'm afraid that events have rather gotten away from me."
Reinforce.
"So we gonna go fook 'em up. Yeah?"
Reinforce.
"So if we went out there right now, you'd probably die."
Reinforce.
"You said that wuz just something that happened!"
Reinforce.
"Sometimes people doing the job die, yes. But if you die because you didn't prepare properly then you're an idiot. Are you an idiot?"
Reinforce.
"Um. No?"
Reinforce.
"Am I?"
Reinforce.
"No, Gravy-mate."
Reinforce.
"So I've got some gear for you." I notice that the arcane force hitting my construct shield is falling off, though it's still air-to-plasma hot out there. "Armour, weapons, equipment like my goggles. I was going to give it to you when we started doing this sort of thing properly, but as I said-"
Reinforce.
"Gotta 'av it now."
Reinforce.
You know, I know that he's only this biddable because he's a bit dim, but in crunch situations like this it's really convenient.
Reinforce.
"Come a little closer."
Reinforce.
He obediently comes closer, the mostly shielded tarmac sagging noticeably under his weight. I reach out and place my left hand on his forehead, between his horns.
Reinforce.
"Awaken." Awaken!
Reinforce.
The local form of magic appears to revolve around feeding parasitic lifeforms from nearby parallel universes energy or information in various ways, and using them to produce useful effects. That's true both for magicians and people like Kevin with innate magical abilities. With the Awakening his parasites are merged with his metaphysique and overcharged, massively increasing the quantities of power they covert into useful work. And entirely neutralising the host-eating aspect. Kevin swells from his current large size to… Kalibak size. Perhaps a little taller. His muscles grow only a little, but with all the added demonic strength he'll be far stronger and tougher. Can't judge exactly how much…
Reinforce.
Naturally, his loincloth and decorative leather straps fail to keep up with his growth, but the belt I gift him with immediately deploys. I patterned it after Barda's deployable armour, and one tap on the buckle causes plates of New God armour to expand across Kevin's body. And a weapon… I was originally going to give him an axe, as that has legitimate civilian uses as a tool. But with no weapon training… A mace and a shield fall onto the tarmac next to him. And lastly, the goggles that will actually let him see his target.
Reinforce.
"There."
Reinforce.
He looks himself over, picking up the shield and mace and getting a feel for them.
Reinforce.
"Corkin'."
Reinforce.
"Simple plan. I go first, because I'm used to this sort of thing. I'll be shielding us as best as I can. The goggles will show you where they are, but their magic might well confuse your other senses. We're going to be moving at a run and aiming for their wizards. If anyone else gets in your way, smack 'em, but don't stop, don't slow down, don't bother checking them. We can run faster than their horses can, especially in an urban environment. When you get to their wizards, smack 'em until-"
Reinforce.
The air on the far side of my barrier has mostly cooled from plasma back into gas. Still too hot for a unaugmented human to walk through without cooking themselves, let alone breathe. The knights are cautiously approaching again, and… Yes, along with a few of their artillery wizard palanquins.
Reinforce.
"-they're mush, then find another target and charge them. Think you got that?"
Reinforce.
"Lamp anybastard looks at me funny. Like a regular Saturday night."
Reinforce.
"The ground on the other side of my barrier will be unstable, so I'll be covering it with a construct. You'll be able to run faster than you're used to, so take that into account. Ready?"
Reinforce.
He chuckles. "Fooking hell, mate, I ain't got a fooking clue."
Reinforce.
Fair enough, I suppose. "Got a target?"
Reinforce.
He nods, raising his shield and mace. I take my daiklave into my right hand.
Reinforce.
"Three, two, one, go!"

I drop my barrier and we charge across my construct bridge which now covers the ravaged ground. There's a brief delay, then I feel the scrabbling of.. some sort of spell tries to form a connection to our metaphysiques. I can feel them failing, fizzling, not being able to connect with us as… They most likely did everyone these invaders have passed by so far. Lesser blasts of heat come a moment later, my armour's tron lines flaring as I try and draw fire from my sidekick. Nothing critical yet, and we're covering the ground fast enough-.

I swing my sword, slashing through a charging knight and its-. Not a unicorn, though it looks a little like one.

Then the heat dims and they try and stop us in earnest as we bound through them. I don't even swing, just pressing off a little harder with my right leg and smashing though the second knight's full plate and barding and splattering his corpse against a partially-melted wall. Kevin leaps over, his mace swinging and pulping heads and chests. I try snapping off a singularity beam but the protective spells around the distant palanquin turn the beam upwards.
DIE!
I abandon the projector and draw a blaster, letting an arcane-enhanced lance clip my construct armour in order to take a magic-piercing shot at a knight in fancier armour. The shot hits, staggering them. The second kills and then we're passed them, my sword artlessly slashing and parting horse and alien flesh alike. Kevin's.. managing, from the looks of things, and there's the first palanquin and the protective spells erupt as I cleave through them!

Darko · May 2, 2024

Mr Zoat said:
He look himself over

"looks"

Mr Zoat said:
No, Gravy-mate."

Now I want renegade to be known for his gravy.

Ngamer11 · May 2, 2024

Mr Zoat said:
"Simple plan. I go first, because I'm used to his sort of thing. I'll be shielding us as best as I can. The goggles will show you where they are, but their magic might well confuse your other senses. We're going to be moving at a run and aiming for their wizards. If anyone else gets in your way, smack 'em, but don't stop, don't slow down, don't bother checking them. We can run faster than their horses can, especially in an urban environment. When you get to their wizards, smack 'em until-"

That should say 'this'.

Mr Zoat · May 2, 2024

Darko said:
"looks"

Ngamer11 said:
That should say 'this'.

Thank you, corrected.

Lazurman · May 2, 2024

You know? I like Kevin. He seems like a good egg.

~~And there's absolutely a dedicated fanclub for himbo minotaurs.~~

Chojin Patriarch · May 2, 2024

Mr Zoat said:
25th June 2015
08:40 GMT
Reinforce.
Nitrogen degrades to plasma on the far side of my construct barrier as Kevin lumbers back to my side.
Reinforce.
"Fook is gawin' on, mate?"

Goodness, that's a lot of godspeech, but it's mostly the Renegade going 'Reinforce'. And not surprised given the state of things out there. These gits aren't doing things by half, are they? Pity they've not run into proper Superheroes before...

Reinforce.
"Enemy wizards, Kevin."
Reinforce.
"Throwin' fireballs an' that?"

Well, this pretty much is the early days of TTRPG streaming. So I'm not surprised he might have heard of things like Fireball spells. Though I suspect the gameplay videos are carefully edited to minimise chances of unintended magic.

Reinforce.
"Throwing heat. It's a wee bit hotter than a fireball out there."
Reinforce.
Frustratingly, they wised up rather quickly once I sliced a line through their front rank. The unicorn-riding knights-. The ones who survived, anyway, spread out and fell back, correctly guessing that I didn't particularly want to destroy the entire centre of Liverpool. Some of them tried doubling down on their concealment spells and spreading out to attack me from multiple angles. Once I gunned them down, they decided to call in artillery.

Damn, halfway intelligent enemies. Still facing way more they bargained for, though.

Reinforce.
They don't have aircraft but they do have a few of some sort of flying wyrm creature. Sadly, they were intelligent enough to realise that if I could see their cavalry then I would certainly be able to spot their fliers. So they called forward some mages and… Here I am.
Reinforce.
"So we 'avin' a go at the fookin' bastards or wot?"

Well, ideally they're battle wizards, not loaded up with the usual high-level 'save or die' spells. Without resistance to stuff like that, anyone not divinely empowered is going to be dead very fast.

Reinforce.
"Kevin, what is the most important responsibility of a superhero?"
Reinforce.
"Protectin' folk. An' the only way t' do thaht is t' get the bastards wot're gettin' lairy, you tole me."

Good head on his shoulders, this lad. Mostly correct.

Reinforce.
"Generally, yes, and a degree of collateral damage is acceptable in order to prevent something worse happening because the malefactors were left to run riot. In this case, I appear to have their full attention. Which is good because..?"
Reinforce.
"'cos you're dead hard and you can tekkit."

Though fortunately, he tries not to tank nukes with his face any more.

Reinforce.
"Good lad."
Reinforce.
"So if they think they can get you, they keep shootin' you. But if they know they ain't gunna, they could run away or sommat."

The trick is keeping them on the hook and wriggling until their trick runs dry and you can charge in.

Reinforce.
"Not as young as I was, Kevin."
Reinforce.
"So we get 'em together, right?"

Come on, Renegade, you're still a sprightly thousand or so years old, right? Prime of a New God's lifespan!

Reinforce.
His ability to smile is somewhat impeded, but he sounds positively giddy with excitement at the prospect.
Reinforce.
"Kevin, I wanted to bring you into this whole 'superheroism' thing slowly. Train you, make sure that I knew your limits, start you off with something small and work upwards. But I'm afraid that events have rather gotten away from me."

Fortunately, he's well equipped to give someone everything they need to survive being thrown in at the deep end.

Reinforce.
"So we gonna go fook 'em up. Yeah?"
Reinforce.
"So if we went out there right now, you'd probably die."

And then so would everyone currently under the Renegade's protection. So no pressure anything, mate.

Reinforce.
"You said that wuz just something that happened!"
Reinforce.
"Sometimes people doing the job die, yes. But if you die because you didn't prepare properly then you're an idiot. Are you an idiot?"

At the very least some way to resist or be immune to fire, or heat, or whatever they're dumping on you.

Reinforce.
"Um. No?"
Reinforce.
"Am I?"

...A case could be made either way, Renegade.

Reinforce.
"No, Gravy-mate."
Reinforce.
"So I've got some gear for you." I notice that the arcane force hitting my construct shield is falling off, though it's still air-to-plasma hot out there. "Armour, weapons, equipment like my goggles. I was going to give it to you when we started doing this sort of thing properly, but as I said-"

...Needs must, or Leeds is bust. Let's hope the kid proves himself worthy of the upgrades.

Reinforce.
"Gotta 'av it now."
Reinforce.
You know, I know that he's only this biddable because he's a bit dim, but in crunch situations like this it's really convenient.

No good sense to think about the situation, just react. Team him up with someone who can think these things through, and they'll be right heroic.

Reinforce.
"Come a little closer."
Reinforce.
He obediently comes closer, the mostly shielded tarmac sagging noticeably under his weight. I reach out and place my left hand on his forehead, between his horns.

I hope you know what you're doing, Renegade. Who knows how the local metaphysical structures will react to your methods?

Reinforce.
"Awaken." Awaken!
Reinforce.

And I bet the more sensitive creatures of this universe just perked up as something different happened.

The local form of magic appears to revolve around feeding parasitic lifeforms from nearby parallel universes energy or information in various ways, and using them to produce useful effects. That's true both for magicians and people like Kevin with innate magical abilities. With the Awakening his parasites are merged with his metaphysique and overcharged, massively increasing the quantities of power they covert into useful work. And entirely neutralising the host-eating aspect. Kevin swells from his current large size to… Kalibak size. Perhaps a little taller. His muscles grow only a little, but with all the added demonic strength he'll be far stronger and tougher. Can't judge exactly how much…

Well, that's certainly convenient. And as you said, however strong he has become, it won't matter if he can't apply that strength properly.

Reinforce.
Naturally, his loincloth and decorative leather straps fail to keep up with his growth, but the belt I gift him with immediately deploys. I patterned it after Barda's deployable armour, and one tap on the buckle causes plates of New God armour to expand across Kevin's body. And a weapon… I was originally going to give him an axe, as that has legitimate civilian uses as a tool. But with no weapon training… A mace and a shield fall onto the tarmac next to him. And lastly, the goggles that will actually let him see his target.

Stylish. And definitely don't need him making a full-frontal assault on the public's sense of decency.

Reinforce.
"There."
Reinforce.
He looks himself over, picking up the shield and mace and getting a feel for them.

Savage minotaur evolved into... Minotaur Warrior!

Reinforce.
"Corkin'."
Reinforce.

Nice lad. Easy to please, and I suspect a club-type weapon will be a lot easier for him to enjoy handling.

"Simple plan. I go first, because I'm used to this sort of thing. I'll be shielding us as best as I can. The goggles will show you where they are, but their magic might well confuse your other senses. We're going to be moving at a run and aiming for their wizards. If anyone else gets in your way, smack 'em, but don't stop, don't slow down, don't bother checking them. We can run faster than their horses can, especially in an urban environment. When you get to their wizards, smack 'em until-"

True, most things react to a good punch in the face the same way: Falling down and screaming. But sometimes you'll be dealing with things like this, which can reduce you to ash long before you can reach them...

Reinforce.
The air on the far side of my barrier has mostly cooled from plasma back into gas. Still too hot for a unaugmented human to walk through without cooking themselves, let alone breathe. The knights are cautiously approaching again, and… Yes, along with a few of their artillery wizard palanquins.
Reinforce.

Excellent. Step closer, so you can be justly struck down by Minotaur and the Conqueror!

"-they're mush, then find another target and charge them. Think you got that?"
Reinforce.
"Lamp anybastard looks at me funny. Like a regular Saturday night."
Reinforce.

Quite simple strategy, really. Especially for two fast-moving, high-DPS fighters.

"The ground on the other side of my barrier will be unstable, so I'll be covering it with a construct. You'll be able to run faster than you're used to, so take that into account. Ready?"
Reinforce.
He chuckles. "Fooking hell, mate, I ain't got a fooking clue."

Well, stick to the plan, and you should come out the other side all right.

Reinforce.
Fair enough, I suppose. "Got a target?"
Reinforce.
He nods, raising his shield and mace. I take my daiklave into my right hand.
Reinforce.

Really, Renegade, you need to change up your layout. I half expect you've got a couple of dozen of those things tucked in your subspace arsenal.

"Three, two, one, go!"

I drop my barrier and we charge across my construct bridge which now covers the ravaged ground. There's a brief delay, then I feel the scrabbling of.. some sort of spell tries to form a connection to our metaphysiques. I can feel them failing, fizzling, not being able to connect with us as… They most likely did everyone these invaders have passed by so far. Lesser blasts of heat come a moment later, my armour's tron lines flaring as I try and draw fire from my sidekick. Nothing critical yet, and we're covering the ground fast enough-.

And trousers are no doubt being browned as they realise what they've stepped into.

I swing my sword, slashing through a charging knight and its-. Not a unicorn, though it looks a little like one.

Then the heat dims and they try and stop us in earnest as we bound through them. I don't even swing, just pressing off a little harder with my right leg and smashing though the second knight's full plate and barding and splattering his corpse against a partially-melted wall. Kevin leaps over, his mace swinging and pulping heads and chests. I try snapping off a singularity beam but the protective spells around the distant palanquin turn the beam upwards.

One upside of the daiklave design. Makes more quite the demoralising mess when you hit someone not tough enough to tank it.

DIE!
I abandon the projector and draw a blaster, letting an arcane-enhanced lance clip my construct armour in order to take a magic-piercing shot at a knight in fancier armour. The shot hits, staggering them. The second kills and then we're passed them, my sword artlessly slashing and parting horse and alien flesh alike. Kevin's.. managing, from the looks of things, and there's the first palanquin and the protective spells erupt as I cleave through them!

Time to make a real mess of them. The kind they'll need mops to clean up.

I'll bet these gits were not expecting any of what they're getting when they started this raid. And they can probably feel the intense divine energies falling off both fellows. Which might well add to the confusion if they've not encountered Source energy before in the form the Renegade is mainlining. Any powers watching are going to be very worried, methinks, about Gods stepping in...

ForeverShogo · May 2, 2024

I don't remember a whole lot about the not-unicorns beyond that they're carnivorous and similar to anglerfish in their sexual dimorphism. It's the females that look like horses. The males look like large land snails with long, pointy shells. They attach themselves to the female's forehead, fusing with her and surviving off their now shared circulatory system.

I think HP Lovecraft had a spooky encounter with one possessed by Shub-Niggurath.

Mquz · May 2, 2024

In case you're not aware since it's not part of the main books, unicorns are a thing in the laundry files. They're lewd tentacle monsters that traumatized Lovecraft as a child - part of a short story available on tor written after the second book.

https://reactormag.com/equoid/

It's more memorable than "down on the farm" written around the same time, though the Christmas special is somewhat fun too. Equoid won the 2014 short story Hugo I think?

But I think these are a different species of not-unicorns than those, since they come from a world with different parallel evolution, in the way the elves are not humans

Mr Zoat · May 2, 2024

Chojin Patriarch said:
Still facing way more they bargained for, though.

No. Actually, they're astonished that they haven't run into something like this already.

The trick is keeping them on the hook and wriggling until their trick runs dry and you can charge in.

They're vampire elf wizards, so they just feed them more slaves if they get low. Oh, and the next book in the series establishes that they're eunuch vampire elf wizards, apart from the one female one who's an autistic vampire elf wizard.

ForeverShogo said:
I think HP Lovecraft had a spooky encounter with one possessed by Shub-Niggurath.

Not exactly. 'Shub' is the intelligence they share that only emerges in the final stage of their life cycle, where they die to give birth. It's a highly capable magician and can control the younger unicorns, but is physically helpless.

Mquz said:
Equoid won the 3014 short story Hugo I think?

Time really is an illusion. But you'd think that the 31st century people would have better things to do with their time.

BartlettMagic · May 2, 2024

Mr Zoat said:
He chuckles. "Fooking hell, mate, I ain't got a fooking clue."

i lol'ed, thank you

Ngamer11 · May 2, 2024

Mr Zoat, I was rereading and found an error.

Mr Zoat said:
Myand'r nods. "My hope was that his dalliance with the them was the result of youthful exuberance, that would swiftly wear off when he discovered that the Citadel Empire did not collapse in response. It might have been possible to parlay that into something the Citadel would accept…" He looks at me. "That is not the case."

That word should be removed.

Mr Zoat · May 2, 2024

Ngamer11 said:
Mr Zoat, I was rereading and found an error.

That word should be removed.

Thank you, corrected.

Mr Zoat · May 3, 2024

170 After Genocide, Late winter, later that day

Air Temple Island is located off the coast of Republic City, while still being protected from stronger winds and ocean currents by Yue Bay. The inhabitants are Master -and former City Councillor- Tenzin and his family, Avatar Korra, various White Lotus security guards and a handful of Air Acolytes. Air Acolytes are sort of… Air Nomad substitutes, people of non-Nomad heritage who choose to study air bending philosophy and live… At least somewhat as the Air Nomads of old did.

For being from a people who are supposed to abstain from material attachments, Tenzin seems to be rather attached to Air Nomad artefacts. Makes me think of the Museum Fremen from the Dune sequels; aping dead traditions despite the need for them having long passed.

Anyway, the residences are private and off-limits, but it's perfectly possible for members of the public to visit if they get permission in advance. The Air Acolyte population isn't anything like large enough or genetically varied enough to sustain itself and new recruits have to come from somewhere. The 'permission' thing is more about making sure that someone is there to show the visitor around rather than limiting visitors, though obviously Master Tenzin himself has a lot of demands on his time.

"…and this is where we're rebuilding the air bending gates." The elderly Acolyte gestures to an area… A raised platform where there are… Sails? Panels mounted on poles which allow them to spin in the wind. I can see the area they are supposed to cover, and some were clearly damaged by fire while others have simply been removed. Or were destroyed. "We have had to study the ancient scrolls describing their construction in great detail to ensure that they are the same as what the Air Nomads of old used."

"What is it for?"

"Airbender training." He chuckles quietly. "Though I doubt that there's a single Air Acolyte who hasn't tried to complete a run once or twice. The trick it to feel the flow of the air around you and move before the panel hits you." He thinks for a moment, then leans towards me. "I doubt that there's a single Air Acolyte who hasn't got more than a few bruises from it, either."

"I suppose that a non-bender would need near-preternatural awareness of their surroundings to match.. what I assume is a fairly basic air bender technique."

He nods. "It's difficult, certainly, though by no means impossible."

"And… There really aren't any air benders outside of Master Tenzin and his children-? And the Avatar, of course."

"No?" He sounds puzzled by my question. "Sadly, the soldiers of Fire Lord Sozin were quite thorough."

"I'm sorry, I realise that this is… Insensitive, but I've never been able to understand… How none of the Air Nomads of old were able to escape. That every single member of a nomadic people was in place to be ambushed, how they didn't see the soldiers coming, and how they couldn't get away when they could fly and their attackers couldn't. Even with the comet…"

"Oh, some did. We have records of a young Air Nomad named Malu who escaped, and she is referenced in Earth Kingdom records as having lived for at least fifty years after Sozin's Comet." He sighs. "There are most likely dozens of others who survived, only to be hunted down later as the Fire Nation's armies spread across the Earth Kingdom. By the time that Fire Lord Ozai came to rule over them, 'hunting for the Avatar' was considered a fools errand, but early in the Great War it was not."

I nod, noting that he didn't say what happened to Malu. If King Bumi survived to see Aang's escape from the ice, she could have lived that long as well. "They found every single one?"

He shrugs. "Perhaps some went to ground and forgot their heritage. Life in Earth Kingdom communities would not lend itself to the way of life compatible with air bending."

"Do you think it would be worth looking? I know that Avatar Aang said that all Air Nomads were air benders, but I have not been able to find any information on what happens when Air Nomads mixed their blood with other peoples. If some Air Nomads did escape and marry into other nations, it could be several generations before their line produced an air bender."

"I believe that the Order of the White Lotus has kept an eye out, but…" He shrugs. "The Order is not particularly large. Even as the Earth Kingdom industrialises, the vast majority of people still live away from the cities."

I nod, making a show of frowning thoughtfully.

"I'm not a bender myself, but my understanding of it is that the gestures involved in bending martial arts produce at least a little elemental output, even if the mind and soul aren't properly focused."

"Yes, a small flare of fire for instance."

"Then could you release a pamphlet, demonstrating the basic forms? Or perhaps send out Acolytes to the towns and villages around the Air Temples, and have them run demonstrations?" I shrug. "Perhaps nothing would come of it, but I don't see how it would hurt."

He thinks for a moment, then nods absent-mindedly. "It may be. It may be. I'll bring it up with Master Tenzin next time I see him."

"I would be happy to help." He looks at me curiously. "I'm an itinerant shaman. I've travelled the length and breadth of all four nations." I shake my head, smiling. "It's no effort to me to try to persuade people to join me for my morning exercises. And I think that the air bending style will be a little easier on my old bones than earth bending or fire bending styles."

His eyes widen. "Do you know the air bending style?"

I shake my head. "Not even a single kata. I was hoping that someone here might be willing to show me?"

"Certainly. They aren't a secret, after all. We hold demonstrations in the city parks several times a year." He hesitates for a moment. "I'm not sure if our younger instructors would be-."

I smile ruefully. "I understand and wholeheartedly agree."

He smiles back. "Perhaps if-." He looks past me. "Oh, ah…" I turn to-. "Master Tenzin."

"Senior Acolyte Ban. And Master Renkun, I hoped to see you during your visit." Master Tenzin doesn't exactly smile, but he does seem genuinely pleased to see me. "Lord Bao sent a message to the Order of the White Lotus asking for assistance, and another message tell us that it was no longer needed. I wanted to ask how you were able to persuade the spirit of the volcano to calm itself."

"Well, ah, with an angry spirit like that, the main trick is to avoid entering the spirit world."

He tilts his head slightly to the side. "'Avoid'?"

"Since I'm not a bender, I wouldn't lose my ability to bend by leaving my physical body, but a volcano spirit in its home environment can kill a man by proximity alone. They're rather warm." He nods, and I'm not sure he realised that was a witticism. "In my younger days I often came out of a trance to feel the pain of injuries inflicted on my spirit upon my actual body. Even bruises and burns would appear, despite the fact that I hadn't actually been struck or burned. It is far easier to avoid such things when you keep one foot in the material world."

"I see. I admit, I've always thought of the spirits as a source of wonder rather than as a threat. But I suppose that a storm doesn't have to want to destroy someone in order to sink their ship."

"Mentally sophisticated spirits at least share this much with humans: they have many different reasons for doing things. It is simply that their fundamental drives are different from ours. Why, only a few months ago I pacified a particularly violent reef spirit by engaging it in conversation while my disciple performed a ritual funeral for all of the sailors it had murdered. With their remains hallowed, it couldn't maintain its connection to the material world and I could drive it out."

And aside from that last part, that's what actually happened, too. Just in case he checks my references. And don't think I don't see that hunger in your eyes, Master Tenzin. You're interested in spirits? Alright, I can-.

"Master Tenzin?" Who had clearly forgotten that Acolyte Ban was there. "Master Renkun expressed an interest in learning the basics of airbending. He suggested that there might be distant descendents of Air Nomads who escaped the genocide who had never been exposed to air bending, and that as a wandering shaman he might be able to identify them if he knew how."

"I doubt it, after all this time. Still, if there was a chance…" He raises his right hand to stroke his beard, then makes a decision. "Master Renkun, if you have the time, I think I could show you the basics. And I am interested in hearing about your interactions with the spirits."

I smile. "I'm sure that I can remember a story or two."

Ardy · May 3, 2024

Oh right, Tenzin sucked at spirituality and spirit-related stuff despite dedicated his life to the spiritual pursuit of airbending.

No wonder he's hoping for some tips.

Z000 · May 3, 2024

Ardy said:
Oh right, Tenzin sucked at spirituality and spirit-related stuff despite dedicated his life to the spiritual pursuit of airbending.

No wonder he's hoping for some tips.

Aang was a great Avatar

suck at being a parent sadly, all 3 of his children have various degree of parental abandonment

then again, each Avatar suck at something

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

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