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

Discussion in 'Creative Writing' started by Mr Zoat, Jan 27, 2019.

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  1. Irked

    Irked Experienced.

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    And now they're focused on the bodies and will probably forget to Dr Mist for an infection first, sounds like there's still some memory tweaking still going on.
     
  2. Chojin Patriarch

    Chojin Patriarch Veteran Lurker

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    And I can just imagine the visuals of this would be insane, if this could be animated. I'm picturing multiple layers of every distinct organic and arcane system in OL's body, each separated out like a layered overlay, but in four dimensions instead of two...

    "Please stop poking the energy flows, it could prove... Detrimental."

    Or in OL's case, something looking a bit more like a heart? Not that it's actually a heart, just the spiritual synergy, as evidenced by the occasional Ba-Bum we see.

    :confused: ...Good 'Ah' or bad 'Ah'? Come on, doc, this is no time for ambiguity.

    Oooh, that's a nasty little puff. I'm betting Anti-life or similar.

    ...Like a tracer for a stronger dose of Anti-life to lock onto? The leader for an actual lightning strike?

    Definitely Anti-life-related, then. Which just raises important questions about who set it up and what 'Father Bruno' has to do with it. I'm guessing that faint moment of Nothing during transit is where it got slipped in.

    Yeah, OL would be very familiar with the feel of that.

    ...Huh. Like a soap bubble when the surface tension grows too low from being touched. Self-destruct mechanism, or just a measure of how weak it is without the structure of a soul to stick to?

    Pity you can't do that to other people, but... I doubt they'd agree to be effectively spiritually vivisected like this.

    And that clearly took considerably careful attunement, given the delay.

    Not going to do much if it's already inside, either.

    Eat too many 'stones' like that, and... Well, ever seen the Diet coke and Mentos trick?

    "Hey, Hinon, this weird little glob of... Stuff was stuck to my soul for a bit. But it went up in smoke when we tried to poke it. Any ideas?"

    So, now for the metaphysical equivalent of putting his pants back on. :p

    Give yourself a shake, make sure all the bits went into the right place, yeah?

    Come on, OL. How are you being this dense? Think for a bit on your knowledge of DC History...

    Oooh, right. because when a soap bubble pops...

    :confused: ...The fluids don't just vanish.

    Then again, if it dissolved at the touch of Life, how the hell would it survive in an ocean of it?

    Investigate first, yes, but still prepare for trouble.

    He's playing a long game, rather than the short-term payoffs most Apokaliptian allies seem to favour. Clever... And nasty.

    Not all of them, though, if it was only just being unveiled... Maybe find out who underwent the testing drills, and check them over? Discreetly.

    Not likely to find anything, especially if it attached to the soul. And it was well-hidden enough to go unnoticed then. What are the chances of spotting any trace now?

    Due diligence, I guess. The joy of a blind mystery like this, with so few clues to be found.

    Well, at least they have some eye-witness evidence of something odd going on, not just weird moments of 'I can't remember'. So one small step closer to finding out what's happening. Maybe if they can check Alan, they can preserve the sample this time. And if 'Father Bruno' is planning to move as slow as they seem to think he is, they've got some time before every user of the teleporter gets tagged with that stuff.
     
  3. Karmic Acumen

    Karmic Acumen The long-suffering one

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    The fact that neither of them ever thinks 'Anti-Life' is really implausible for Paul's particular brand of genre-savviness.
     
  4. Ngamer11

    Ngamer11 Experienced.

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    In his defense, he has dealt with so much weird stuff that, unless it is a bit more blatant, it is believable that Anti-Life isn't his first guess on what this is.
     
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  5. moralrelativity

    moralrelativity Recovering pendant.

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    Surely they need to check Alan before they check the bodies?
     
  6. Mr Zoat

    Mr Zoat Dedicated ragequitter

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    Thank you, corrected.
    No, he paused.
     
  7. Prince Charon

    Prince Charon Just zis guy, you know?

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    Also, it's possible that his mind is still being interfered with by the indirect results of his experiences (e.g. his trip to the Silver City).
     
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  8. NightmareWarden

    NightmareWarden Versed in the lewd.

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    I mean… Dr Mist has experienced Anti-Life during one of Paul’s previous adventures in Earth, he knows what it smells like. This doesn’t act like anti-life and he doesn’t necessarily know it is flexible enough to empower a planet’s pantheon of gods with distinct abilities. Paul just had an Anti-Life adventure with Constantine!Fate, y’know.

    I’m more inclined to think that piece came from one of the Endless. We’ll see who else has some though.


    exit: Guys, Dr Mist was WITH Paul during the Constantine mission. He’s had plenty of Anti-Life exposure, the characters are not being dumb.
     
    Last edited: Oct 8, 2022
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  9. iamnuff

    iamnuff Connoisseur.

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    "It deletes itself when exposed to life energy, I wonder what it could be."

    >Internal screaming.

    It's antilife, it's definitely antilife.
     
  10. Someguy Somewhere

    Someguy Somewhere The Critical Fumbler

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    hmm....am I the only one that was kinda hoping Dr Mist would find the 'can't say my name' lock out while poking around Paul's being that closely?

    I mean, the controller had some idea of why he ended up like he did with the lock out on 'the ring' vs 'my ring' because she was behind it. She examined him along with the experts at the OLC before, but they didn't have anything to say about that because she'd already removed that lock out.

    I'd don't know if Dr Mist could figure out his age from the examination easily because well...the body and soul are 'local' considering that he's had to remake/clone the meat side, and construct the mystical side. The only old thing is his mind, and thats harder to gauge unless he's actively going over the internal memory clock.
     
  11. PDV

    PDV Revelation That Uncertainty Is Itself An Answer

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    Just "check", I think.
     
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  12. Darko

    Darko Connoisseur.

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    To be fair they haven't dealt with it all too much aside from a handful of times, so their first thought may not jump to that.

    Plus it didn't try to destroy his mind like Anti-Life does, so that may have also played a part.

    You're not.

    When I first saw that thing about memories, I thought he was talking about the name think.
     
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  13. Coda

    Coda Versed in the lewd.

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    False correction, actually. Despite being written with a vowel at the beginning, the first sound of "ewe" is a consonant y -- it's "a ewe", not "an ewe".

    thet
     
  14. Mr Zoat

    Mr Zoat Dedicated ragequitter

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    Thank you, corrected.
     
  15. Ngamer11

    Ngamer11 Experienced.

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    Mr Zoat, I forget what Grayven is the New God of. I don't mean the Renegade, but the actual Grayven. Or was that never actually stated?

    Edit:Never mind, I was able to remember that it is Conquest. New question though, if Tangseid were to visit the Paragon timeline, could he have Godspeech and use the God-Name Benevolent Tyranny? If yes, I want to see Scott Free, Barda, and Canis Minor react to it.
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2022
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  16. Bramble Thorn

    Bramble Thorn Verified Silhouette

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    We know there were tiny dots black thanks to Gromweld (thanks, Grom)

    OL doesn't read the story thread, he has empathic abilities.

    That is how he can detect Black Speech. Also, by the words being said coming off as extra edgy. But, this isn't influencing thought processes yet. Nor have any 'usual suspects' from Apokolips shown up to make him wary on account of Anti-Life often being involved when Darkseid sticks his fingers in the pie.
     
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  17. BR549

    BR549 This is filth! FILTH!!

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    Aside from Darkseid himself, the other main Apokaliptian-aligned personage we know will happily long-game things for the greater payoff is none other than Glorious Godfrey.

    When does G. Gordon start his show, anyway...
     
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  18. Threadmarks: Pete Tong (part 9)
    Mr Zoat

    Mr Zoat Dedicated ragequitter

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    31st December 2012
    13:34 GMT -5


    "…for New Year."

    Mazikeen schools the visible half of her expression as she studies me in a way that I've long become accustomed to. I call it the 'is this fool actually serious' glare, and it never works on me because I always am.

    "You're going to keep doing this until I say 'yes', aren't you?"

    "I assume that you'll die eventually, and at that point I'll stop. The universe does have a finite lifespan."

    "Of all the.. pacts-. This is the deal you wish to make. I appear in New York, partake in a meal with you, remain as the year changes and then I am free to depart."

    "There will be other people there. And you don't need to treat it like some great task you're being bound to perform. I want to get to know you."

    "And you want nothing else."

    "Ah…"

    She actually smiles.

    "It's not conditional. I do genuinely want to get to know you as my larger half's daughter. However, I recently encountered a strange magical influence that… You know I've got a pretty good set of contacts, yes?"

    "Do you want me to unpick a curse for you, 'father'?"

    "No, I could handle a curse myself. Even the clever ones. I was just wondering if, given your long and varied experience, you might recognise whatever this is. I don't even need you to do anything about it, just tell us if you recognise it and give us a hint if you do."

    "And what do you offer in exchange?"

    "I'll take you to Maltus and introduce you to my better half. And explain to her what you are and how that relationship usually works. I don't know how she'll react to that, but it occurred to me that you might be interested."

    "No power ring?"

    "I realise that as a Lilim you're more anchored in the physical than a lot of Heaven South's residents, but would you..? Really want one? I mean, heck, I don't mind. Dox always wants more magicians for the Corps. I just assumed that ruling a circle of Hell was something you'd.. want to keep doing. I mean, with… Xalitan back in the Reach Periphery I do have an opening for a partner. It could be a good way for us to get to know each-."

    "Never mind. Yes, I will attend your festivity and yes, I will examine this new magic for you. Lucifer showed me many things that never made it into Creation and I wouldn't be surprised if one of them escaped their prison."

    I smile. "Great!"

    I reach forward with my right foot and use the sole of my boot to erase a segment of the magic circle.

    "Come on through."

    She looks down at the scuffed chalk mark, which completely breaks the confinement spell.

    "How are you still alive?"

    "I've died twice!"

    "Do you understand how insulting it is to imply that I am so weak that you don't need any sort of binding spell to restrict my actions on Earth?"

    For a moment I consider making it a joke. 'Is it more or less than walking into the circle and sticking a dummy in your mouth' or something similar. But that would only serve to alienate her further.

    "I don't think that you're weak. But I'm not some random magician. I have a reasonable track record against high end arcane life forms, and we're on good terms anyway."

    She makes a quiet growling noise and then stalks out of the chalk diagram. "If anyone asks, you offered me a dozen virgins."

    I raise my eyebrows as I see her relatively simple dress shift shape into something artful in gold and black, her small half-mask growing into something fit for a masquerade.

    "What species?"

    She ignores me.

    "Because depending on what counts, all fish-."

    "Where are we?"

    "You remember that business with the demon-possessed handguns?" She nods. "The human who was carrying them, Ms. Jill Carlyle, had a provision in her will that she wanted to donate her body to science. And that ended up being thaumatic science, because we still don't really know what the heck was going on with her."

    "After two months?"

    "Sadly, frustrating as it is for everyone involved, sometimes there just isn't any evidence. We can legally request access for any sort of arcane study-"

    She half-turns her head to look at me-.

    "-and when I say 'we', I mean Justice League members and allies, not the Noble Emissaries of the Loyal Opposition."

    I erase the chalk diagram behind us as we walk into the examination room where Dr. Balewa is getting ready. Ms. Carlyle's body is as… Intact as the bullets left it. The morticians tidied it up as much as they could, but when someone shoots themselves in the head from point blank range, there's… Only so much you can do. Jars containing other biological materials -blood, brain and bone fragments- are also stored here, but we're going to be trying this with the main body first. The rest of the brain was also removed, because with the giant hole in the skull it would just have… Plopped out, otherwise.

    Dr. Balewa looks at her. "Thank you for coming, Mazikeen."

    "I think that ignoring my father's request would be more trouble than going along with it."

    I nod. "Probably. Um. Do you want me to stick her skull back together? It's not that hard to work out what it should look like, based on the recovered fragments and her DNA."

    "No. Not for now."

    He extends his hands towards her corpse, faint white mist drifting from them to her chest.

    "I doubt that you'll feel anything but the most powerful influences after two months."

    "I used spells to isolate her from external influences. She is much as she was. Please, examine her yourself."

    Mazikeen walks closer, placing the long nails of her right hand in the middle of Ms. Carlyle's forehead. Then she curls her fingers, nails cutting a shallow furrow in the skin. Magically preserved blood oozes slowly from the wound, and Mazikeen scoops a small amount up and then brings her fingers up to her eyes for a closer examination.

    "'The darkness came'. I see what the demons in her guns meant."

    Dr. Balewa nods. "A grievous spiritual injury. But it is hardly unique."

    I reknit the corpse's skin and return the residual blood to the body.

    "Okay, but-."

    BOOM!

    A boom tube opens in the far corner of the room, and my armour appears around me!
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2022
  19. Mr Zoat

    Mr Zoat Dedicated ragequitter

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    I don't think he's a New God, so, no.
     
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  20. Prognostic Hannya

    Prognostic Hannya Knight of the Yuri Crusade

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    Wait how is Paul Mazdikeen's dad?
     
  21. PDV

    PDV Revelation That Uncertainty Is Itself An Answer

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    Yeah, I'm confused on that point, too. I thought he was implying the Ophidian was her parent at first but the tail end of the post disambiguated that.
     
  22. Z000

    Z000 If this is trash, then find me in the dumpster

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    at best he her step dad because he basically the giant snake head priest/champion
     
  23. Vaermina

    Vaermina Well worn.

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    He's not, he made up some story about the Ophidian being her father and she believed it for reasons of Author Ex Machina.
     
  24. Ngamer11

    Ngamer11 Experienced.

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    I really hope that this is someone from New Genesis. And if it is, Paul can stop them from immediately attacking everyone due to assuming whoever it was that drew their attention is aligned with Darkseid.

    This story has the Ophidian giving a bit of energy to Mazikeen's mother in the past, which resulted in Mazikeen's conception. As she can sense that Paul and the Ophidian are so tightly bound spiritually that they may as well be the same thing on some level, she refers to Paul as father.
     
  25. Handlewithcare

    Handlewithcare Versed in the lewd.

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    I guess they will get a very definitive answer soon.

    Would be amazing if it was RenePaul though
     
  26. Vaermina

    Vaermina Well worn.

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    We literally had someone tell us last chapter they weren't that tightly bound.
     
  27. Bloodalchemy

    Bloodalchemy Versed in the lewd.

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    I read the description last chapter as Paul being an of equivalent of Ophidian's Chosen One. Paul isn't her but he can stand in for her and sign checks in her name if needed.
     
  28. Bramble Thorn

    Bramble Thorn Verified Silhouette

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    When the player rolls a nat 1 on the investigation roll, but the GM wants to move the scripted plot along anyway.
     
  29. Joelseph14

    Joelseph14 Know what you're doing yet?

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    She was born from a fragment of the Ophidian I think and since Paul is bound to the Ophidian he considers himself part of the relationship
     
  30. Chojin Patriarch

    Chojin Patriarch Veteran Lurker

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    And it's a look he's seen often, of course. Usually when he's pulling exactly this sort of schtick, because OL. This will be an interesting moment, though. I assume he's calling her in to consult on the 'black mist' they found. But knowing OL, he's always got multiple angles.

    Worth noting that for anyone else, that would sound like a threat. But OL does intend to live forever. I assume he's easing her ability to communicate with others, remembering that since she's technically missing half her face, it's rather difficult to vocalise without a cheek.

    But for appearances, it has to be a demonic pact. I expect her rivals Below would find her doing something without demanding a price for it to be objectionable.

    Like I said, OL always has multiple angles in play. :rolleyes: When he's not being an oblivious dolt...

    Because this is something other than the initial request, after all, and worth more of her time. Of course she's going to haggle. :p

    Let's take things one step at a time. Besides, you have other obligations here in Hell.

    Ha, She folded fast in the face of spending far more time with OL than she'd ever want to. :V

    Boy, how cavalier. It's a good thing you're basically unkillable... :confused: No, wait, he's honestly pretty killable... A good thing he's basically very hard to keep dead, then. :p

    Any lesser demon, or just one with far less sense than she, would take that as a signal to pounce and kill their summoner then go hog wild Earthside...

    ...Not something to be proud of, OL.

    And she's not someone you want to tick off. Her revenge tends to be long-term, slow and terrific.

    She has a vile reputation to maintain, after all.

    Classy. If there's one thing the lady has in spades, it's a great sense of style.

    OL, just stop. You got what you want, no need to poke the demon king.

    Since, if i remember correctly, they tracked her down after pulling the 'suicide to escape' trick, and separated her from the Guns. And since they were the only thing keeping her dead body moving...

    Well, Doctor Mist can request it on your behalf.

    So no sneaking in a request for something, honey.

    ...Yech. Something you don't see on most forensic crime shows on conventional TV, because Network Standards and Practices tends to frown on graphically damaged corpses that still look reasonably human otherwise...

    She learns quick about how to deal with OL. :p

    She's likely seen far worse Below anyway. This is nothing.

    ...Or the most adhesive. And what they're looking for is more clingy than a misfolded sticky plaster.

    Because of course her nails are sharper than any scalpel. Magic!

    So, confirmed then that she was affected by the same glob of darkness that was stuck to OL's soul? I'm guessing it was a stronger link, allowing its maker to control her perception of intended targets.

    Since we all know OL doesn't like a mess. :p ...And the bits could still be useful.

    Hmm... Now who could this be, I wonder?

    So, the Frees come a-calling when they heard about 'darkness in men's souls' being weaponised, or an agent of New Genesis? Or perhaps a Sivana or Vril Dox (since we know he has a scratch-built prototype Boom-tube generator.) If it's the former, they may well be upset when they find out someone's been playing with Anti-life. So... Potential ally in the investigation into 'Father Bruno'...



    I erase the chalk diagram behind us...
     
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