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

[Mr Zoat]

21st July 2013
12:59 GMT

"Paul." Adam Blake smiles as he shakes my right hand. "I wasn't sure that you'd be coming back."

I frown mildly. "You weren't? I thought.. you were always sure about things."

"Not always." He steps back and gestures towards the interior of the Tamaran royal palace. I nod and follow him inside. "Between my telepathy, telekinesis and… Reasoning, I can usually tell how people will respond to things. But between your resistance to telepathy and the influence of the Ophidian, as well as the fact that I don't know you particularly well, it's more difficult."

"Are you in good health? No lingering effects from your imprisonment?"

"Several, but don't worry. Between the technology of the Crown Imperium and my knowledge of my physiology, it wasn't anything that we couldn't fix."

"Since your abilities are a natural part of your body… A stem cell solution would fix it, wouldn't it?"

He smiles. "I forget how far human science has advanced since I left Earth. But it wasn't quite that simple. The parts of my brain affected are the centres of my brain responsible for my telekinesis. And due to the damage, other parts of my brain had started adapting to the change in load stress. It was a fascinating problem."

"Phantom limb syndrome, except the limb is your brain."

"More like another limb. So what brings you back? Is there a problem on Earth?"

I… Hesitate, and he looks at me with an expression of concern.

"A big problem?"

"Have you ever heard of the Anti-Life?"

He nods. "Komand'r shared her ring's database while she was trying to seduce me. It sounds implausible, but I haven't investigated it for myself."

"Oh, it exists. Six months ago, Earth got hit by a mass broadcast. It was essentially weaponised clinical depression with a touch of mind control."

He blinks. "How long did it last?"

"About a month. We haven't quite had to rebuild civilisation from scratch, but… It's basically just a few dozen superheroes and quite a lot of gold currency keeping a lot of places functioning."

"Do you want my help?"

"Can Vega spare you?"

He wiggles his right hand dismissively. "I completed my reconstruction plan before we bombarded the psion world. I'm here to maintain morale and support King Myand'r more than anything practical."

"Not too bored, I hope?"

He considers the idea, then shrugs. "I've… Grown accustomed to slow periods. When I was younger, something like this would drive me up the wall. Now, I honestly find it a bit of a relief."

"I can give you almost complete data on Earth's logistics systems, industries and political structures. It's all a bit much for me, but Batman and Mister Atom have been going over it since we got rid of the Anti-Life."

"Who is this 'Mister Atom'?"

"An artificial intelligence in a robotic body. Very strong, very tough, very intelligent. Feeds on radiation. He's good at handling large quantities of data. Not so good with people, but he's willing to take advice."

"If they've managed the Earth's economy for five months, why are you asking for my help now?"

"Because I'm concerned about Batman's methods, and what they suggest about how his character is changing for the worse. I can't see a better alternative, but I know that you're a lot more intelligent than I am, so… If you can't see a better way, then I can take that as read and move on to damage mitigation."

"His methods.. being centralization of power in his hands, legislative change to keep it there, the creation of a private army answerable to him and… His own mind control system possibly derived from the Anti-Life?"

"From the Anti-Life broadcasters, yes. We're reasonably sure that he doesn't have access to an Anti-Life fragment. They're… Not subtle. And what we did to get rid of it should be flawless."

"And the other points?" I nod. "Has his behavior changed since the Anti-Life broadcast happened?"

"I'm.. not sure exactly when, but he became significantly friendlier and nicer. And.. I needed someone to use a yellow power ring, so I forcibly altered his mind." Adam's face hardens. "I know, I'm not proud of myself, but it was the best way I could see to remove the Anti-Life from Earth. Our civilisation was dying, and I.. thought I could undo it afterwards."

"And you couldn't?"

I shake my head. "I thought I did. He seemed alright. Angry with me, sure, but basically himself. And then… He started changing. I don't know it's because of me, but I'm the most obvious cause. I'll include a full report in the data."

He.. nods, his expression softening slightly. I suppose that as a telepath in a world of non-telepaths, he'd.. probably have been tempted to give people a bit of a mental nudge now and again. Particularly when they all seemed too slow to grasp ideas that he found simple. The fact that there's no record of him doing so indicates the strength of his morals… On the other hand, I imagine that the psions would have preferred it to what he did to them. And I don't think he ever ran into a situation like the Anti-Life.

"And… Thank you. I don't like having to ask people to help clear up my messes, but there are-."

"The Earth is at stake. And that's more important than pride or shame." I nod. "That's… Almost surprisingly human of you."

"No it isn't. I desire things more strongly than momentary ego-gratification. All the work I put into Earth-. I'm not having it wasted because an evil god wanted to study what happened when he treads on us. My guilt doesn't matter. My goal matters."

"Still surprisingly human. Will you wait while I perform an initial analysis, or do you need to return to Earth?"

"I.. can probably wait. I'm not much of an investigator, and I won't really know what the next step is until you give me your opinion."

He regards me curiously. "That's interesting. I've seen how both Komand'r and Koriand'r behave when they channel the orange light. How it changes them. Less in Komand'r case, but there's a noticeable shift in how both of them prioritise things."

"I'm enlightened. I'm at one with my desires. If you want to take a closer look, I can take a moment to undo my anti-telepathy defences. But I'll warn you, it's a bit… Odd."

"Is it dangerous?"

"Only if your intent is hostile. My friend M'gann's communicated with me telepathically hundreds of times."

"I think I'll take you up on that, just not right now."

I nod. "And I noticed that about Koriand'r too. I think she'd be better suited to a blue ring, but I don't.. have any spare."

"I thought you gave Alan Scott-."

"Yes, but the guy who made it won't make another one unless I kill Lantern Sinestro, and I can't.. do that…" Huh. "Alright, I don't have a major philosophical reason not to do that any longer, but I do have practical ones. There's a Guardian who knows how to make them, but I'm trying not to get him into trouble." He nods. "Alright, if you show me your office I'll stick the files onto your computer, then clear off-. Unless you've got something you'd like me to do here?"

"Because you'd rather repay me right away rather than owe me."

"Partially. Not because I think you'd ask for anything particularly outrageous-."

He smiles. "You just don't like the feeling of an unfulfilled obligation. I understand. Honestly, I'm not sure there's any singular task that requires someone as powerful as you, but… The southern continent was deliberately infected with engineered diseases and vermin. The princesses and I have taken a look, but it might be helpful if you checked our work."

I clench my right fist, calling up their reports… I nod.

"Shouldn't be a problem. I'll head there next."

 

[Mr Zoat]

21st July 2013
13:37 GMT

…and again I see the clear shape of a psion's malicious desires, to harm and kill to see if things bleed and die.

I raise my right hand to my ear. "I've found another patch. Not completely sure what it's supposed to do. Do you want me to store it or just destroy it?"

"While I'm loath to turn down an intellectual challenge, we intend to begin resettling that continent later this year. And I don't believe that psion biotechnology is the sort of thing Tamaran needs."

I nod, then make a construct to scoop the offending earth out of the ground. It's not.. particularly deep, but I've really got no idea if this was left here by a landing party, loaded into a shell and shot down here, or flat out teleported. I can't scan it properly so I can't entirely predict its behaviour-

I look towards Liot'r and accelerate, bending space around me.

-but I've yet to see a microbe that can survive the interior of a sun. I am however careful to keep it contained within the soil I took out with it because I am aware of psion technology that interacts with constructs.

And release, and

step out, using my own desire to help as a

path back to where I came from.

Anything else?

I'm not sure whether the Tamaraneans would consider the ruins their forebears were forced to abandon inspiring or depressing. They're not really in any fit state to be repaired… Adam didn't mention removing them, so I suppose that they can stay. They could be a source of building materials if nothing else. Looks like either Adam or the princesses removed the weapon fragments. They didn't remove the chemical residues or impact craters, but maybe they've got plans for those.

"I can't see anything else in the same class. Do you want me to do any landscaping, or ploughing, or any other work?"

"No, you've done more than enough."

"It doesn't feel like it."

"Paul, if I'd made you aware of the problem without you owing me anything, what would you have done?"

"Fixed it. That's what I do."

"Without expecting anything in return?"

"What I get in return is a better functioning universe. I'd.. hope that Tamaran might be more receptive to offers of cooperation later, but it wouldn't be a quid pro quo."

"I do care about what happens to Earth. And without you, we wouldn't have found the psions' trap. It would have triggered when that area was settled. Even if it doesn't seem like much to you… Even if it wasn't much work for you, you've done the people of this world a great deal of good."

"I suppose you're right. So there's nothing more for me to do here?"

"There is one thing I think you should take a look at. Do you see the mountains near the desert?"

I orientate myself… South, I suppose it would be? "Yes."

"Do you see the two-peaked one? Fly towards the valley between them."

"Alright."

I could just transition there, but he said 'fly'. I generate thruster constructs and power across the landscape, taking the time to look around as I do so. Over the ocean I can just about make out the city of Yeebata, and the tiny flecks of transport aircraft. That makes me smile; to see that they've rebuilt to maintain that sort of industry. And that they've got something worth transporting. The greenery of this continent… Some of it's pleasant to look at, the forests which the gordanians didn't have the patience to bombard completely flat have been busy recovering, and the long-standing trees tower proudly over the more recent growth.

"How did it go with you and Queen Hera?"

"She is good company, but… Understandably, she wanted more time than I could afford to spend on Earth. Perhaps once my project here is complete we could try again."

But away from that… I can see the contours of the craters, the areas where the energy released by the strikes burned the land too badly for any new growth to have taken place.

And just for a moment I look to the sky, towards the planet where I put the survivors from amongst the people who did it.

No. No.

And then I thrust upwards, rising over the mountain-. I can see where an orbital strike liquefied one face, the glitter of crystallised minerals making it stand out. It looks a little like ice, but it's the wrong climate for that. It actually makes me think of the episode of Andromeda where the crew laughed at the idea of a giant monster attacking a planet… Right up to the point where they arrived in orbit and saw the bite marks.

Above me, a little to the left of where I was looking, I can see the lights of a Tamaranean defence squadron. I haven't really-. I haven't at all kept up with their military reconstruction. I mean, since there isn't anything left in Vega with a fleet that isn't allied to them, it's a bit superfluous-.

I glance down at the craters again.

No, it isn't.

And… The mountain's beneath me.

"Alright, I'm here. What am I looking for?"

"Do you see the valley between the peaks?"

I drop down a little. "Yes."

"Go to the highest part of the valley. Look for an artificial structure."

I frown, but follow his instruction. I suppose that for Tamaraneans, getting up a mountain wouldn't be hard… "I don't see-. Oh."

A few paths, stone benches, and…

"I'm afraid all the plants are dead."

I land, looking around. This area wouldn't get much rain, if any. And with the Tamaraneans captured, dead or fled, there wasn't anyone to provide them with water.

"I know. The garden was created by a woman named Saray'n. The local town used it to train the children how to fly; they'd get a bucket each and get told to take it up there."

"Do you want me to clean it up? I could build a water transmutation-."

"No."

"I'll warn you now, I'm not good at implicit lessons."

"The Tamaraneans could have supplied it before the plants died. It would involve a two-day journey and it would need to be done constantly, but that garden is semi-famous on Tamaran."

"While the gordanians were shooting at them? It-." Ah. "It wouldn't be worth it."

"It wasn't. So that part of their history passes into history, because it wasn't worth the blood and sweat to maintain. The community that built it doesn't exist any more, and I doubt that whoever settles the area will have the same attachment to it. I have a plan for you where you save as much as you can, and my best analysis of Batman's action. But I also have one where you don't save Earth's civilisation. And I think that in the long run that one may be better."

"I will leave the decision up to you."

 

[Mr Zoat]

Common Sense (part 16)

2nd October 2010
09:07 GMT -5

"You don't like it?"

It's…

I'm not good at reading social signals. I know that perfectly well. When I was in university one of my female dorm mates came to my room to play Halo, played it for a bit and then went to sleep and I'm still not sure if I missed something or not.

She wasn't very good at it.

So the fact that I thought for a moment that Paula was going to suggest getting married as a way of bypassing potential visa issues… Alright, I didn't think it was likely, but that was the first thing that came into my head. So I'm confident that whatever I'm reading into this is probably a mistake as well.

Which is a problem because I need to understand it. Is this 'potential husband buying a family home', or is it 'helping a friend find a letterbox'? Am I buying somewhere just for me, or is this supposed to be somewhere for us? And then there's the class issue. I have effectively unlimited funds. Paula was born in rural Vietnam, spent several years living out of a go-bag as an international supervillain, then went to prison and then moved to Gotham. She isn't used to opulence, and I… Don't want to seem… Showy.

So the safety… 'Bunt', is to get somewhere I can live in in the short term, don't get too attached to it, and then address the issue again in a few months.

Or I could just ask her.

"Paula, what are we doing here?"

She gives me a sidelong look. "It's for sale. You need somewhere to live."

"Alright, I'll be blunt. Are you looking for somewhere for us to live, or-" She looks slightly surprised. "-somewhere for me to live, because honestly I think Alan likes the company."

"Us-? Do you mean..?"

"I'm not an expert on relationships, but I understand that's how things usually go. I'm not sure whether you're not directly addressing it because you're concerned that -as a long term bachelor- I might get scared off or something. Buying somewhere that would work for you to move into with me makes sense, but equally I don't want to scare you off if you're not ready to think about something like that. So in the interest of clear communication and in view of the fact-" I smile at her. "-that we don't live in a situation comedy, I thought I'd just ask."

She controls her response, and her eyes move to the side as she thinks how she should respond. I give her the time, looking around… I mean, it's not a bad place, but I'm not used to living in a flat… Or a city. And I don't know how much sound-proofing I'd really need… Obviously the time and expense to fix it up to my standards would be basically nothing, but unless I can talk Jordan into sharing home improvement technology with me… Which I probably can't, I'll be limited to mundane technology and there are distinct limits as to what can be achieved. And then there's the armour I'll need, because: Gotham.

"Do you want to move in together?"

I turn back to her. "I've got no idea what the best time for doing that is." I step closer, gently wrapping my arms around her waist as I look down at her face. "But I'm certainly not averse to the idea of seeing more of you."

She stays straight-faced for a moment, then smiles awkwardly. "I was trying to trying to find out what your intentions were by suggesting places that would work for… Different plans."

I look around again at the well appointed but single bedroom flat. It's in a good location, if you take into account recent crime data rather than historic crime data, and if I was here then I'd probably fix that as well.

"This is nice enough for one person, but let's try somewhere larger."

"We.. should probably talk to Artemis about that."

"I wasn't planning on buying today-" In the corner of my eye I see our estate agent wilt slightly. "-but yes, we'll need her to take a look at it."

"The next place on the list is larger than we will need. We should skip it. After that-."

"How big is too big?"

"Ah, four bedrooms."

"Well, let's take a look. There's no sense rejecting it if it's really nice."

"I don't think that Jade will move in, Paul."

I shake my head. "That wasn't what I was thinking about. And… Arresting her would be awkward. I-."

She slumps slightly, dipping her head. "Paul, I am forty-eight. I.. don't think-."

"Only by the calendar."

"I know that I look younger, but that does not affect everything."

Huh? Oh! I nod. "You think I half-arsed it, right! Paula, I reset your telomeres. Biologically, you're your biological age. Which is about… Ah, twenty, or something? I didn't create new eggs, but you've still got thousands so it's not really an issue."

Her face is looking up, but her eyes are sort of staring into space as she takes that in.

"Incidentally, you should probably mention that to your doctor. I don't think they'll.. check, but spontaneous telomere regeneration can be a sign of cancer."

"Oh." She leans into me slight as she takes a deep breath. "So, we could have children."

"Yes."

She lightly rests her hands on my stomach. "That… Changes things."

I nod. "I'm sorry, I didn't realise that you.. didn't realise."

She masters herself once more, then pulls away and walks over to the estate agent, who is trying not to look like she's eavesdropping. "We will be looking at homes with four bedrooms."

I shrug. "Or more."

She glances back at me, a small smile on her lips. "You can have more than two when you carry them yourself."

I nod. "Understood." I lift up my left hand slightly, showing my sigil. "You know I can actually do that, right?"

From the looks of things she didn't-. And now the estate agent is staring at me.

"What, you've never seen Junior?"

"Oh God, you're-. Are you-?" The estate agent's eyes boggle. "You're the guy who killed the Joker!"

"Ah." Public relations training, don't fail me now. "Yes, I am. Orange Lantern Two Eight One Four at your service." I smile with deliberate awkwardness. "Metaphorically. I'm currently house shopping."

"I watched that video, like, nine times!"

Paula frowns. "Video?"

I frown too. "Did the Justice League release the recording?"

"No, some guy-" She pulls out her mobile phone and brings up a video hosting site. "-called WienerDog posted it, and it's kinda gone everywhere."

Paula looks at me in concern.

Ah.

Diana hasn't telephoned me, so I assume that the League isn't exploding. This… Ah, definitely established that the League weren't the ones who did it.

"I did give a recording to someone, but I thought they just wanted it for personal closure."

"Um. If you're interested, I know a girl at G.B.C.? They'd really like to talk to you."

Huh. It's not like I want attention or publicity, but making it clear that it wasn't the League would be useful. And I honestly think that I should be willing to defend my position in public. And that's Alan's old station.

"Alright. I can… Be free this afternoon?"

2nd October 2010
14:36 GMT -5

Across the booth Leslie Willis grins at me.

"So what did it feel like to finally kill those fuckos?!"

 

[Mr Zoat]

21st July 2013
11:15 GMT -5

"Ah."

Richard glances up from the computer terminal, smiling. "Surprised to see me?"

"I assumed that you'd be assisting Batwoman. Or doing homework."

"I was, then the Batcomputer noticed a whole lot of Batman-related files were being accessed." I think he's raising his eyebrows, but the mask makes it hard to tell. "Anything you wanna tell me?"

"I.. think it might put you in an awkward position if I did."

He turns back to his screen, his smile turning into a smirk. "Too late. Roy already squealed."

I shift my eyes in the direction of Roy, who looks mildly awkward for a moment before shrugging. "What? He can help. He's a better investigator than… Any of us."

I sigh quietly to myself. But the set of his shoulders suggests that Richard heard.

"Alright then. I take it that you've wiped the alert flags?"

"Yeah, obviously. Not that that will stop Batman getting them if he set his ring to report them."

"No, we should be alright there. The servers are warded, so unless he had a hard line connection he shouldn't be able to remote scan them."

"So because the League hardened their servers against you, it's also hardened against him."

"Against his ring. He could have another way to access it."

"I'm sure he has other ways to access it. But most of them mean he'd have to have someone staring at a screen the whole time to be sure they'd pick it up."

Donna raises her eyebrows interrogatively. "Did you get what you wanted from Captain Comet?"

I nod. "A complete plan, which a surface reading suggests is perfectly actionable. And another plan, where we let large chunks of the world collapse into barbarism."

Her brows morph into a frown. "Wouldn't that kill millions of people?"

"Yes, but unless there's a nuclear exchange that's it, and…"

She nods. "Right."

Roy looks up again. "Right?"

"You already gave away one secret today, I don't feel like trusting you-."

Richard looks up again. "The League's got a plan to destroy every nuclear warhead in the world if there's ever a nuclear war."

I sigh again. "Trusting you with another one."

"Does..? Ollie know about that?"

Donna looks at me. I bend slightly towards her, bowing my head and holding out both of my hands palms up.

She turns to Roy. "I.. don't actually know? I only ever saw people who could catch up with missiles or bombers on their own. And Batman."

He looks at me for a moment. "Jordan sends tracking updates to my ring each month. Other than the people who were there when I got read in on it, I don't know who else knows. Except Richard, obviously."

Roy smiles faintly. "So he probably doesn't know."

"I imagine he could intuit that the League has a plan-. I think we're getting off-topic." I look around. "What are Wallace and Artemis up to?"

Richard looks mildly pensive. "Batman's… Smart. But he's not a technological genius, especially not with alien tech. That.. throne thing you said he built? I couldn't work out how he could have built it. Unless Mannheim had it in D.C. the whole time and we just didn't see it."

"No, I… See where you're coming from. So… Do you think Sinestro found him someone?"

"Not my first guess, but it's possible. Artemis and Kid are talking to the people running the warehouses that are supposed to be holding the New God tech. And they've got magic and mental intrusion detectors, just in case."

I nod. "Good idea."

Justice League members and associates get scanned whenever they use a zeta tube, but contractors don't work under conditions anything like as restrictive. Our manpower needs have massively outstripped our facility for monitoring them. We can do background checks, initial screening and on-site security, but that's about it. Given that our initial screening includes telepathic screening, we could be fairly certain that they were on-mission and faithful at the start of their employment… I mean, everyone on Earth got a month long lesson on how malignant New God technology is. But that doesn't mean that they couldn't get subverted later. Or be given legitimate orders to do something that wasn't covered by their initial orders.

"How far have you got with everything else?"

Roy calls up… The League's file on Adam Blake. "I was looking into the guy you were going to see. I was… I was surprised that he had the psions bombarded into extinction. I still think it's out of character."

"Realpolitik-." Uh. "I'm sorry, but did you finish High School?"

"I know what Realpolitik is. You mean the Crown Imperium was gunna insist, so all he could really do was organize it." I nod, but keep looking at him-. "And… No, but I got a G.E.D.. Didn't really want to explain the clone thing."

I nod. High school isn't really set up to deal with things like that. He only missed… A year? But technically William only had a year, so that would force him to redo it if he wanted to graduate. And if they were just going to ask Batman to finagle the records for a qualification they weren't going to use… Why bother?

"And… I guess the psions didn't have anyone from the Crown Imperium, so they didn't see any reason to hold off once their fleet was available."

"And they didn't have a team that could reliably reach the surface, liberate prisoners and then evacuate. Even the Citadel was able to bring Mister Blake down eventually. The psions were far more clever."

I look over to Donna. "And you?"

"Checking up on known associates. Seeing if he's spending time with anyone different."

"Find anything?"

Richard winces. "Yeah, but… It's mostly because the people who used to do those jobs… Didn't make it."

"Ah." I nod. "Any of them stand out?"

"Maybe." He brings up a file of… I frown. Simon Leas? "You remember this guy?"

I nod. "Mister J'aarkn's lawyer. Dare I ask?"

"He's moved to WayneTech's entertainment division. I don't know much about what his actual job is, but I can't think why he'd need to meet Bruce Wayne… At all, really."

I nod. "Okay. I didn't really… Talk to him much the one time we met. But I can go and talk to Mister J'aarkn about him if that helps?"

Richard nods. "I'll get into WayneTech's servers and see if I can find out more about his job. It's probably nothing."

I nod back. "But it might not be."

 

[Mr Zoat]

Common Sense (part 17)

2nd October 2010
14:37 GMT -5

Maybe I… Should have asked Alan to make a few phone calls before agreeing to this.

I smile awkwardly. "I'm sorry that it's not very exciting, but it was mostly mild satisfaction at a job done well tinged with nervousness about the legal consequences."

"That's all?" She looks astonished, and mildly disgusted. "Really?"

"I didn't get into this because I like killing people, even ones who objectively have it coming, like… All of them did. I want to make the world a better place. It's just that sometimes that means showing people the door, so to speak."

"You kill anyone before?"

"No, I'm afraid not. This was the first time I've ever been in a situation with anyone quite that murderous."

She squints. "But you've been in fights before, right?"

"Oh yes. The bloodiest one was a fight between two South American drug cartels. They'd already been fighting for some time before I arrived, and there were… Quite a few bodies on the floor. The thing about being a superhero… I realise this sounds immodest-"

She rolls her eyes and makes a 'get on with it' hand motion.

"-is that I'm really powerful. If I'm in a fight with, say, a dozen men with AKs, they won't be able to hurt me, and I'll only cause them lasting harm-. Only if I'm distracted by something, because disarming, stunning and cuffing them is really easy for me."

"But the Injustice League weren't a couple of guys with AKs."

I nod. "Which meant that I couldn't afford to. However I felt about killing them. Quite aside from the risk to myself, they were actively killing innocent people… Rather than another drug gang."

"Because who cares about them?"

I huff with amusement. "If they're selling cocaine, most of Washington, I should think."

She splutters, suddenly looking at me with decidedly more interest. "Oh yeah? Something you know anything about?"

"I'm not saying that… At diplomatic parties I've been to as Ambassador Diana's escort, I've detected… Certain residues in certain bathrooms, but I would like to advertise that if the people of America ever want to mandate compulsory drug testing for their elected representatives, I can become available at very short notice."

"Are you saying you're dating..? Wonder Woman?"

"Oh, good heavens, no. She's one of my tutors, and she thought that it might be good training for me. Plus, when she had me there… I could run interference if required."

"Wonder Woman can bench a semi. What does she need you running interference for, her amazing double life as a cook at Taco Whiz?"

"Apparently, some diplomats struggle with the idea that a demigoddess from the island of warrior lesbians might not be into balding, paunchy, fifty year old men. Back in the forties she'd just throw them out of a window, but she's trying to cut down on that sort of thing."

Her smirk grows. "You think the coke helps with that confidence?"

"It would numb the pain if she did throw them out of the window. But I suspect that power is an even headier drug than Bolivian marching powder. Unfortunately for them, Diana has… Ethics. And standards."

"Heh. Well, I'd love to throw dirt at the government all day, but that's not why you're here." I shrug. "But you really didn't feel… Like, anything?"

"While I appreciate that the people of Gotham have good reason to celebrate Joker's death… He didn't ever do anything to me personally, or to anyone-. Ah, any civilians I know. I did take part in a raid on one of Ultra-Humanite's laboratories once, but he'd already left by the time I got there." I hold out my left fist, ring glowing. "Power rings are empathic tools. You have to be feeling the right thing to use them properly. If I'd been angry… And as… Horrific as what they were doing was, at the time it was too abstract and… Big, for me to get that angry about, then my ability to fight would have been reduced."

"So what'd'ya need to feel to you're an orange ring?"

"Avarice. I had to want to live in a world without such people in it, because a world like that is better."

She shrugs. "Hey, I think the same thing. All a' Gotham thinks the same thing. Only question is, why doesn't Batman?"

"Because it's not his job. If a policeman arrests a shoplifter, a jury lets them go and they go and rob another shop, it's not the policeman's fault for not breaking their legs the first time. It's the jury's fault, or the judge's, or maybe the law's the problem. The policeman did his job."

"Didn't know the police were hiring furries."

"Batman's costume does not contain fur. And if that's the worst a Gotham policeman does in his off-hours then the city's gotten off lightly. I mean, you pick: a guy bought by the Falcones, an extortionist, or a guy who dresses up like a football mascot. Which is the most dangerous?"

"You try'n' to admit to something there?"

"No, but… We've got this thing in Britain called Morris Dancing, and the mascot of the troupe where I grew up was a guy with a wooden fox head…" She gives me a funny look. "Folk dancing doesn't do well outside of its cultural context. There's a reason we don't have cheerleaders in Britain."

"I don't think a bunch of hot girls shaking their pompoms is the same as a guy dressing up as a fox, but… You do you. But okay, it's not Batman's job. Whose job is it?"

"Ah… Murder is a state crime, so that would be your state Senate and House of Representatives in the case of Joker and Poison Ivy."

"They're both not guilty of anything 'cause they're crazy. Were crazy."

"No, I don't think so."

She looks baffled. "He murders people dressed like a clown, she murders people dressed like a plant. How is that not crazy?"

"No, it is crazy. I'm just not convinced that it meets the legal definition of 'insane'."

"Huh?"

"Let's say you've got a person who… Constantly hears a voice which he identifies as coming from a giant invisible rabbit called Reginald. Crazy, clearly. But not legally insane. Legal insanity requires that a person be unable to tell right from wrong. Reginald might have an opinion, but that doesn't stop the person hallucinating having their own morals."

"Ah… Still think the murder-clown's c-. Insane." I raise my eyebrows. "Didn't he fall in a vat of Smilex or something?"

"Sure, and that's a super-antidepressant that makes everything seem like a great idea. But that's… Everything, equally. If he was actually insane then… Sometimes he'd open a pop-up barber's shop or… Actually tell a funny joke, just at random, because the mood took him and the Smilex made him think it was a good idea. But he never did. He was all-evil, all the time. And if that's true, then it was a conscious choice. And if it's a conscious choice, then he knew the difference between right and wrong."

She nods slowly. "I get it. What about Ivy? Doesn't she hate humans for destroying plants?"

"In Britain, we used to have environmental protesters who would tear up fields of genetically modified crops in the belief that they were polluting the natural world. Using violence to further a political end doesn't make you incapable of distinguishing the difference between right and wrong. She just weighed things differently than most people. But the point is that she was weighing things. Plenty of people weigh things different to, say… Me. I don't think that makes them insane. But…"

I shrug, waving my right hand.

"That's the legal side of things. There's also the political side. Let's say that they are legally insane. For a… Stereotypical violent schizophrenic -and I should be clear that while people like that do exist, they represent a tiny proportion of the schizophrenic population- once they're in a straitjacket in a secure hospital, that's about it. There's very little they can do to hurt anyone. How contained was Poison Ivy?"

She shrugs languidly. "Didn't look very contained to me."

"Right. She wasn't. So even if she was insane… Maybe the voters want to consider whether or not they want to leave people that dangerous alive."

She smiles smugly. "Don't know about the rest of them, but I sure don't." She glances at her producer, who nods. "Okay, we're going to commercials right now, but we'll be back for the phone-in segment after these messages."

 

[Mr Zoat]

21st July 2013
16:22 GMT

**Hey there!** Mister J'aarkn is still using a green-skinned human-shaped body, making him stand out amongst the people who aren't quite crowding me only because their people do that with telepathy rather than physical contact. He flies through the air and then lands next to me. **Kinda surprised you're looking me up.**

**I'm afraid that this-** He twitches. **-isn't-. Are you alright?**

**Your mental voice…" He shudders, but this time it's theatrically. **Wooh!**

**Wooh?**

**Yeah yeah. 'cause you've got that snake plugged into you. Gives it kind of a… Treble thing? A resonance. I didn't really pick up on it before because I wasn't really concentrating on that, and…** He shrugs sheepishly. **I was out of practice. But when I listen harder it stands out real hard.** His smile shifts to libidinous. **If you know what I mean.**

**And it was nothing to do with your anthrophilia?**

**Eh-aaaaaaaahhh…**

**Don't worry, I'm not annoyed. It's entirely natural that you would unavoidably find yourself reacting to me.**

**Oh? Oh, okay. My place or-.**

**Action does not mechanically follow thought.**

**Playing hard to get.** He points both forefingers at me. **Like it. But seriously, what are you doing here?**

**Professional reasons. Firstly.** I take a binder out of subspace. **The United States has relaxed immigration requirements for skilled workers. This-**

**Gimmegimmegimme!**

**-is the paperwork you will need to complete if you wish to apply for a work visa. Other people can also apply, but they'll need to demonstrate a familiarity with American law and custom that I imagine they'll struggle with.**

**Heh, doubt it.**

**Oh? Why's that?**

**I'm something of an anthropologist.** I wince. **I mean, professionally. My memories of my time on Earth are hot commodities. Even the Martians who aren't interested in you the way I am find the whole thing fascinating, and I'm the leading expert. I've been teaching classes.**

**You've gone full circle.**

**No, people actually listen now. And it's mostly-** His grin returns. **-adult classes.**

**It's about your lawyer. Mister Leas?**

He wiggles the folder at me. **Can't really get his help with this from here. But I should have enough assets in the U.S. to cover his fee, so let him know that I'll be in touch… Sometime.**

**That's not what I meant.**

His face falls. **Something happen to him?**

**He had to get a new job, but otherwise, no, not as far as I know. I was just wondering how you met him.**

**Ah… Why?**

**Routine background check. His work brings him into frequent contact with a man called Bruce Wayne, whose wellbeing is judged vital to the continued functioning of human civilisation.**

**Huh?**

**What?**

**What d'you mean, 'vital to the continued…' Thing. Did something happen?**

**Yes. Are you aware of the Life Equation?**

**Huh? Ah, I'm not really religious, but I've heard of it, I know the idea.**

**It turns out that there's also an Anti-Life Equation, and someone hit us with part of it. It took a month for us to get rid of it, and we've spent five months trying to keep things running.**

**Anti-Life?** I nod. **Whoh. That's like you're telling me that Super Satan exists.**

**Both Lucifer and The First of the Fallen are real beings. I'm not sure what would qualify as 'super' in this context, and Satanus has been cast down. By me.**

**Uh. Huh. I don't know what to say about that.**

**When did you first meet Mister Leas?**

**Ah… Not… Sure exactly-. You could probably just subpoena his records.**

**To the best of your recollection.**

**I think it was seventy-nine? Before eighty-three for sure. You should be able to find his name in my old contracts.**

**There are few records that can't be fabricated.**

**And you think the memories of a guy living on a planet of telepaths is more reliable?**

**It's an extra source. Why 'before eighty-three for sure'?**

**That's when I became a full-time adult entertainer. He's the guy who negotiated my contract. I mean, I knew him before that, but I'm not completely sure when I started knowing him well enough to provide a reference. I think it was seventy-nine, 'cause that was when I started looking for a full-time contract lawyer, but it coulda been eighty or eighty-one.**

**What made you pick him?**

**I liked the way he dealt with the new human talent. Like… I get it's not a high-status job, and… Some of the people involved came from bad places or had addiction problems… The ones he worked with felt…** He taps his forehead. **Happier about things.**

**Oh?**

**I get.. not every human's cut out for it. I respect his screening process.**

**How did it go?**

**I had a thirty year career, so pretty good.**

**No, I mean, the screening process. How did he assess potential employees?**

**Oh, I don't know. I just saw the result.**

I nod, palming a New God sensor and a rune stone. **Please focus your mind on your professional interactions with Mister Leas.**

**Okay..?**

**[Vague images of a man in a suit, his face either serious or politely smiling, hands being shaken and paperwork read and completed.]**

Rune stone isn't showing anything, and at this sort of distance and time removed it would be strange if it was. But the sensor is weakly lighting up. And that's a… Big problem.

**Thank you, Mister J'aarkn. I'll be back in a week for your documentation.**

 

[Mr Zoat]

Common Sense (part 18)

2nd October 2010
14:53 GMT -5

"…very kind of you, Detective." I make an amused exhalation. "I'm not a big drinker -because if you've seen what someone drunk in charge of a car can do, imagine what someone drunk in charge of a power ring can do- but if I'm in the area I'll certainly take you up on that. Thank you."

"No, thank you."

There's a click as the caller hangs up. It's not really surprising that the Gotham Police Department are very happy with me right now, even if enthusiasm from their senior officers is considerably more muted. I don't think City Hall has released a statement yet, but I… Can't honestly say that I've been paying them much attention.

Leslie looks curious. "So what does happen if you get drunk?"

"Uuh. Well… Alright, power rings are empathic tools. You need to be thinking the right sort of thoughts to use them well. Green power rings require the person using them to concentrate on the shape they're trying to create. If their focus is good, it's stronger than steel. If they get distracted, it's as strong as jelly."

"So if they're drunk, they can't focus."

"Not.. usually. Not on anything complicated."

"So what's the difference between green and orange?"

"Rather than focusing on the object, I have to focus on… How much I want to achieve the thing I'm.. working towards. Last time I got drunk I mostly just wanted to crawl into bed, but there's a chance I could end up doing full-powered free-associating without any sense of restraint, and… That would be bad."

She frowns. "Can't you just take it off?"

"Sure. Would you?"

That hits her, causing her to sit back for a moment. She opens her mouth to answer, then closes it again with a frown. Then her eyes light up.

"You got a second one of those?"

"Ah… There are others. Unfortunately, they're on a planet called Okaara, and while that's not too far away from here as these things go, they're also guarded by an army of ghost Lanterns and the second most dangerous being in this galaxy. So it's… Not really practical."

"Ah, damn it!" She chuckles quietly. "Guess that's me out of luck."

"I had to borrow a charger just to keep using it. Tech support for power rings is terrible."

"Okay, that's my dreams of galactic domination crushed. Next caller is… Gretchen from Coventry. You're on, Gretchen."

"Hey, Orange Lantern?"

"Hello Gretchen. What do you want to know?"

"At the start… Ah, I watched the recording, and.. right at the start, you dropped some missiles?"

I nod. "Taiwanese Brave Wind anti-ship missiles."

"So they weren't… They weren't something you made with your ring? They were actual missiles?"

"While I could make missiles -actual physical missiles- with the ring, in this case I had them left over from a mission in Taiwan. Construct missiles are a bit pointless for me, because they don't have any actual explosives in them. It's all construct. For a Green Lantern, using a familiar shape like that makes it easier to focus, but I use either orange energy pulses because they're.. simple and easy, or a construct railgun which I use to shoot physical projectiles."

"Do you have a.. lot of missiles?"

"No, that's it. I'm completely out, and I'd like to thank the Taiwanese government for not asking where they went after that thing in September. Ah, is there something you're working up to asking me about them?"

"Sept-? Oh, the peace conference attack, right. Ah, sorry, yeah, I was wondering… How much missiles, and… Weapons in general do superheroes have?"

"Ah… Well, I've got a few thousand slugs for my railgun constructs; solid, incendiary, and… A few other things. Ah, I've got a couple of handguns as holdout weapons, they're pretty conventional. Most superheroes I know about don't have a huge arsenal, because… Not blowing my own trumpet here, but unless it's a tactical nuclear device or something, I'm almost always better off just using the ring. With the Injustice League I dropped missiles because they'd be harder to spot, but I could have done something very similar with a big rock. Even a neophyte Lantern like me could… Destroy, say, a city, in a few minutes with a little preparation. Other high-power superheroes are in a similar position; guns just aren't worth it, and larger ordnance is a distraction. So if you weren't worried about me having the ring, there's no point worrying about me having anything else."

"Uh. Uh. I… Uh, I guess that makes sense. Ah… Thanks."

There's another click as the call ends. Leslie frowns at me. "What was that about Taiwan?"

"Oh, I got called in to help with the security at a North Rhelasia/South Rhelasia peace conference. Some unpleasant people decided to disrupt it by stealing some Taiwanese missiles and firing them at the hotel. I caught them. It wasn't that big a deal."

"I don't know. I think after sixty years it'd be kind of embarrassing for them both to get blown up by someone else."

"Hah! Yeah, you're right. Ironic, certainly. Ah, as far as I could tell, the conference didn't really progress things, more… Reduce the level of mutual antagonism to the level it was a month before?"

"You think it woulda gone better if you'd let the missiles hit?"

"No, no. It's not two people causing a problem. It's two incompatible social systems with mutually exclusive goals. They can't reconcile, and with nuclear weapons and social fanaticism they can't conquer one another. Letting the missiles hit would have interfered with intergovernmental communication, and… The envoys they sent were probably the most reasonable people they had available, so the replacements would be worse. And, yes, we'll all be back there in a year or two, but that's a small price to pay for not having a nuclear war."

"I guess… Okay, next up is… Keith, from the Bowery. You're on, Keith."

"Orange Lantern? Ah, thank you for stopping the Injustice Assholes and… Like, doing it permanently."

"You're welcome."

"I was wondering..? Given how you stopped this attack basically single-handedly, do you think you'll be joining the Justice League?"

"While it's true that I fought the… 'Assholes' myself, finding them required a magic ritual that I couldn't have performed by myself. And the Justice League and dozens of unaffiliated superheroes and… Hundreds of police and medical personnel were all involved as well. Without them… And in the case of the doctors, their ongoing efforts, the death toll would have been much higher than it was."

"Yeah, I-. I didn't mean to insult… Them, but the actual fighting was you."

"Justice League membership is conferred by the unanimous vote of all current members. I think I'll be a good candidate eventually, but I've only been doing this a few months and I've got a lot to learn. So, not any time soon, but in the future… Maybe. Really, you'd have to ask every current Justice League member."

"Well, I totally think you should."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence."

Another click, then Leslie looks at me curiously. "And none of them will have a problem with you killing people?"

"It's not like it's a habit. And… Yes, some will. But Wonder Woman, Captain Atom, Hawkman and Hawkwoman have all killed people before, and I suspect that one of the Green Lanterns has. I doubt it will be an automatic black balling offence unless I start making a habit of it, which I don't intend to do."

"You're not? 'cause there's a lot of bad guys out there I wouldn't mind never seeing again."

"Then vote for an expansion of the death penalty. Write to your congressional representatives. Write to the president. Because the thing is… Not all supervillains are murderers. It doesn't make any sense to treat Catwoman or Captain Cold -both of whom have a body count of zero- in the same way as the Joker. This was a product of a very extreme type of attack and level of danger, and I doubt it will be repeated. If you think the law needs to change… Change it."

 

[Mr Zoat]

21st July 2013
09:57 GMT -7

I press the bell.

San Fernando Valley. Not the first time I've visited, but I… Can't say that it's grown on me. And I can't say that I was entirely surprised that Miss Sonic rapidly rose to become City Boss during the Anti-Life period. Or that -as far as I can tell from the post-cleansing interviews- it didn't seem to change her personality very much.

I press the bell again.

I haven't felt the need to interview all of Mr. Leas' clients, but Miss Sonic is something of a special case. Between her experience and powers, she'd have the best chance of picking up someone trying to use an unnatural mental influence type ability on her. Most of Mr. Leas' clients and associates whom I tested showed positive for New God influence, but… I've seen that detective program. It could just be one of his secretaries, and it could be an effect of Mannheim's that wasn't Anti-Life-like enough to get purged. And we might well interview Mr. Leas and find out that he spent a month stuck in another sphere…

Or on Miss Sonic's punishment rack, I suppose.

And gained the ability to interface with New God technology from that.

I press-.

"Who is it?"

I'll say one thing for her: she has learned to act. I can feel the weird emotional void marking her location inside her house, but the voice she uses doesn't sound like the one she uses on-camera or making conversation at industry events. Or like I imagine her original accent was.

"Orange Lantern. Here to speak to Miss Sonic."

"Oh? What about? Do I need to put my old costume on?"

I'm a little surprised that she still has it, though I suppose that she could easily have a copy made. With easy-tear Velcro strips.

"That won't be necessary. I just need five minutes of your time."

There's a beep, and the gate unlocks and opens on its own. Rather than actually walk up to her front door, I just transition there and-.

It's not locked. Hm. I suppose that it isn't as if a burglar would be a threat to her, and… If they happened to disappear, it's unlikely that they'd have told anyone where they'd were going.

I push open the door and…

"I'm in here!"

I'm briefly reminded of the scene in New Adventures of Superman where Cat Grant has Clark Kent back at her apartment. She considers what clothing will give her the best chance of seducing him, but goes past various skimpy outfits in favour of something more modest. Not because she is modest, but because she doesn't want to scare him off and realises that her best chance is to avoid coming on too strong.

Miss Sonic was naked but for her bikini bottoms, and while she hasn't bothered putting the top part of… Assuming that it has one… She's thrown on an opaque robe tied in a modest-ish manner, but the way she's sitting is artfully designed to draw attention to her form without being too overt. Best approach to use with an upstanding male superhero.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet me. Ah, do you prefer 'Miss Sonic' or 'Miss Smart'?"

"Depends what sort of conversation we're having."

"Professional. I'm performing an investigation-."

She smiles emptily. "Oh, I know this script!"

"To be blunt, I doubt there's any way I could start this that hasn't been in one of your scripts at some point."

She nods. "True."

Then… Something about the way she holds herself… Changes, and-. Like the scene in Avatar: the Last Airbender where you finally see Azula without makeup and you remember that she's canonically 14. I don't know exactly how old Sara Smart was when she stopped ageing, but I suspect that she looked like this.

Except the clothes. I doubt that she ever dressed like that when she was actually young.

And the eyes. She's trying to cover it without making it obvious that she's acting, but she's assessing my response more than she would have done.

Oh, just get this over with.

"A number of your colleagues show signs of exposure to New God technology not related to Mannheim's world conquest attempt. Would you mind if I scanned you?"

"You can scan me if you want to." Then she shift back to her usual mode. "But you're probably just going to pick up my exposure from Mannheim's… Thing."

Positive result with the New God scanner, but she sort of has a point. "It wouldn't react to the Anti-Life, but since you took over the city it's possible that you were affected by his other abilities." Positive result for magic, but that's just her.

"Do you remember when you first met Mister Simon Leas?"

She shrugs. "Some time in the seventies. I'm a more niche performer than he usually deals with."

"In the seventies."

"Yeah?"

"So assuming he has a law degree, he'd have to be-."

"Oh yeah." She looks like I failed to live up to her expectations. "He sold his soul to someone to keep his good looks. His appearance has changed about as much as mine has."

"Is that common around here?"

She shrugs. "Why would I know? It's not like I need it."

"Alright, but is there a particular name associated with that idea?"

"I may not need their help, but I don't want that sort of trouble. I'm sure you can find them yourself."

That… Might warrant investigating at some point.

"Well, I… Think that's all I need. Thank you for your time."

She smiles, but again, the eyes are wrong. "Feel free to stop by whenever you like."

"Before I go… I'm sure I know what the answer will be, but just in case… The Evil Formula." Her face hardens. "While I haven't specifically studied it, it would probably be possible for me to come up with a way to undo it."

She snorts. "And turn me back into the sweet innocent girl I used to be? Don't be stupid. Even if you could, what do you think would happen if she suddenly had sixty years of memories of me?"

"That's what the waters of Lethe are for. It should be-."

"Orange Lantern, this may be hard for you to believe? But I like who I am. I like being strong enough to use my strength as I choose. I neither need nor want your help. Get out of here and I won't tell Simon that you're coming."

I raise my right hand to my forehead with a nod.

"Thank you for your time."

 

[Mr Zoat]

21st July 2013
10:06 GMT -7

"Alright, I'm in his old office."

"And you couldn't take five seconds to pick me up because..?"

Richard doesn't sound amused.

"Because if your father found out that I brought you to the office of a pornographic talent agency, he might come after me for reasons entirely unrelated to our current mission."

The note on the door said that they were closed, and gave a contact number. Unsurprisingly, the adult entertainment industry has taken something of a hit since the broadcast, and that particular talent agency shut up shop. Which might explain why Mr. Leas sought out alternate employment. There was a burglar alarm active, but it wasn't difficult to take control of it. I'm wearing my stealth model power armour anyway just in case, but I doubt that I'll run into anyone.

"I doubt they film scenes at the office, Oh El."

I look at… That table.

"My ring scans suggest otherwise."

"Oh? I kinda thought they just used a set."

"I guess sets are more expensive than renting an actual law office after closing time."

I can't stop myself cleaning it. That's got to be some sort of health and safety breach.

"Huh. See anything?"

Looking around… "Computers are gone. Filing cabinets are still here…" Quick scan, which is unobstructed. "Nothing interesting. Mostly brochures they might want to physically show people. Server… Gone too."

"They did say that the agency was closed. You gunna try and track down ex-employees?"

"No, I don't think that they'll know anything significant. I mean, Sally Sonic is a psychopath who enjoys making people suffer. If Mister Leas is a hostile New God then I don't see why he wouldn't have taken her into his confidence… Certainly before anyone else. She'd be his sort of person."

"So..?"

"So I'm speculating. Desaad was Mannheim's point of contact on Apokalips, but we never saw him after the broadcast happened. In fact, we never saw him working with any New Gods."

"Not apart from Finality Man."

"But this was all an experiment, right? To see what happened when Earth had Anti-Life broadcast over it. So was Darkseid aware of it through Mannheim? Or-?"

"Or was there someone watching that we just didn't see." He thinks that over while I wave a New God detector at Mr. Leas' desk. It shows positive, but… So what? "Or they could have had something built into the broadcasters."

"Which would mean that they're looking at Batman quite hard right now. And possibly the Operatives."

"That would be… Bad."

"Right now I'm looking for physical evidence. New God technology."

"We could just ask him. For all we know he's from New Genesis."

I tug at the wisps in the Honden, trying to feel if any part of them sticks to the physical structure of the building.

New God technology is sometimes easy to detect by power ring, and at other times completely impossible. I'm hoping that without the man himself here to control it, anything here will be inert and easy to find. I don't… Feel anything so far…

"Could he sense whatever you're doing?"

"Pass. Ask me another."

"You got no idea at all?"

"I think that he'd have to be interfaced with any device to feel me touching it. But he might have a remote connection. Do we have eyes on him?"

"No. Since we don't know exactly what he can do, I didn't want to confront him until we can get everyone together."

Makes sense. But…

"It doesn't look like there's anything here. Next step will be checking his former residence."

"Are you just being thorough, or are you looking for something in particular?"

I look around the room one last time. "If I can find a device that suggests he's up to something nefarious, I'll feel a lot better…"

My eyes alight on the nameplate on the door.

No.

"Robin, in your work in Gotham, have you ever found a criminal because they were using a really obvious pseudonym?"

"You mean, like 'Joe Kerr' or something? Just about all of them some time. Why?"

"Because I've just seen a sign which says 'S. Leas'."

"Yeah?"

"There's an Apokoliptian called 'Sleez'."

"And you knew that the whole time?"

"Y-yes, but he didn't look anything like the pictures I've seen, and… 'Leas' is an actual name."

"What should he look like?"

"Like a bald muscular dwarf with yellowy green skin."

"Can he shapeshift?"

"Not as far as I know. Though there's probably a technological way around that. He can do mind control, but I'm a hard target so I doubt that he was using a telepathic disguise."

"Has he ever..? You know, acted?"

"I.. hope not." Oh… No. "J'aarkn said that his agency's 'talent' had fewer psychological problems than talent from other places. Sleez can mind control people."

"Oh God. So… Supervillany Rape?"

I phase through the outer wall, then accelerate towards Sleez's former home. "And it sort of doesn't matter whether or not he's involved with the Global Peace Agency because that's definitely reason to arrest and interrogate him."

"I'll tell the rest of the squad. Do you know how tough he is?"

"Stronger and tougher than a baseline human, but I don't think he's got true super strength. In my estimation, he'll probably retreat if he can't maintain control, but if he can shapeshift somehow then if we lose contact we might never find him again."

Okay, that's his apartment-.

I can't scan anything untoward, but I can scan places where unusually thick power cables have been cut off and some sort of heavy machine has been dragged out. And, yeah, he might just have been into metallurgy-.

"Ah, Oh El? I can't reach Kid or Artemis."