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

[Mr Zoat]

15th August 2000
10:08 GMT

I appear, wincing as a brilliant beam of white light lances out from the cyclops's upper eye towards-. Senior Agent Blaze, who is focusing of frantic evasive flight. Construct palisade shield, construct armour… Huh, that feels familiar. And scan. Where is-?

Sh'rain's being dragged south by her bodyguard, clearly unhappy about leaving her friend behind to fight the giant robot. Objectively the correct decision. Nearest Alliance aircraft are back at headquarters, and they're not supersonic so there's no chance that they could get here in a tactically useful timeframe. We can probably call on the British military for support, but I'm a little worried about what the lower eye-.

The cyclops's head swivels towards me and-

Reinforce!

-pulse-fires with its lower eye directly at me, which fortunately involves shooting at the strongest part of the shield construct. Senior Agent Blaze charges up her hands with a gout of… I think it's plasma? Which she throws at the cyclops's neck, doing… No measurable damage.

And the thing about banshees is that despite their ability to chuck plasma around at will they're not really any stronger or tougher than humans, and she's not even wearing her lightly armoured field uniform because this was supposed to be a diplomatic mission-.

"Sir, get behind the giant glowing shield!"

She glances in my direction for an instant, ducks under another giant beam from the cyclops and then rockets in my direction, taking one last shot at its lower eye as she flies past. It doesn't seem to be particularly good at tracking small objects and certainly doesn't try to turn away to protect its eye… Because it didn't need to. She didn't damage it.

Banshee blasts are pretty nasty if you're an unarmoured human, but even an unarmoured vampire can take a hit or two and keep moving.

She's nearly to me when its head locks onto her, and-. She's not going to-.

I dart forwards, interposing the shield-. The lower eye fires-. She ducks around the edge of the shield, but it isn't as thick there and while the first hit gets blocked the second hits the weakened construct-

It's not weak, it's fine, it's immutable.

-and punches through!

"Ah-!"

Lower the shield!

I get the thicker part of the shield in the way again, replacing the failed parts with something thicker. Then I put a platform under Senior-.

"Oi'm fine!"

I glance down to confirm-. "You got shot, sir."

She rises up besides me, knife cutting away the material of her skirt so that it doesn't.. stick to the burn. "Oi've had worse."

Field trauma training suggests that it's not immediately crippling, though it's going to hurt once the adrenaline wares off. I reach into subspace and pull out an antiseptic spray. Those are safe for banshees, though painkillers… Nothing strong enough to immediately stop that hurting is safe for either banshees or combat zones.

"Here."

She takes it with a nod, pulls the remains of her skirt aside and sprays the burn, her face creasing up in pain as she does so.

The cyclops doesn't fire again, its head rotating back to its direction of travel as it continues its march north west.

"Sir, what happened? What set it off?"

"It didnae loik the look o' me." She checks her injury once more, then passes the bottle back. I subspace it. "Learn anythin' from Mab?"

"Yes… Ah, to be clear, it didn't have a negative reaction to Sh'rain?"

"No?"

"Bit of an odd question, sir, but how closely do you resemble your mother?"

She frowns at me. "What's that got t'do with anything?"

"She and Sir Percival were the ones who stuck it in the stone circle. It may well have pre-registered both of us as active enemies."

"Oh." She shakes her head. "Oi don't remember her that well."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Then maybe just the fact that it remembers being hit by a banshee-."

"No, it didn't attack Sh'rain. It did single me out." She sighs as she watches its back. "Oi hope y' don't think I can stick it back in thur."

"Might have been nice. My best bet is ducking under its crotch, grabbing it with a construct from outside of its arc of fire, and then flying it into space."

"What's wrong wi' that?"

"I don't know the effective range of its main weapon. If I put it into low orbit, it would have line of sight to about a fifth of the world. If it's programmed to destroy the shadoen before preserving humans -and given what happened to Atlantis, I'd guess it is- that would be a significant risk."

"Alright. We'll just have t' follow it, then."

I reduce the size of my shield and head after the giant robot, Senior Agent Blaze following me under her own power.

"What did Director Logan say?"

"He's contactin' the British government. Oi don't know what their planes can do against it…" She looks down at her own clenched fists. "But oi'm comin' up a wee bit short."

"We could ask if Dorn could spare a spaceship?"

She clenches her fists. "Or we could not. What's the hardest you can hit somethin'?"

"I haven't focused on combat with heavily armoured targets. As I said, I could try lifting it. Just hitting it… Pretty hard? The problem is that if I focus on hitting it as hard as I can I'm not going to be thinking about evasion."

"Oi-." Her head jerks, and I get a beep in my ear as I'm included. "Director?"

"Not yet, but in the future, who knows?" I can hear the smile in Senior Agent Fitzpatrick voice. He's found his role… Somewhat reduced since the Alliance embraced openness and transparency. He took a promotion when just about all surviving Alliance agents got one due to the sudden influx of new personnel, but the organisation just doesn't need a creative and quick-witted professional liar at the moment. "So what's this I hear about a giant robot?"

"Sir, a titani cyclops is currently walking from Northern Ireland to Scotland in order to pick a fight with a shadoen we're pretty sure died thousands of years ago. We're not sure how much of a threat it is to anyone, but we do know that it doesn't like Senior Agent Blaze and I."

"What, did you tell it your name was 'Nobody'? Because that's racially insensitive."

"Sir Percival and her mother are the ones who shut it down before."

"Huh. Okay, do you know what the shadoen it's looking for looks like?"

Senior Agent Blaze shrugs. "I don't but I suspect that Sir Percival does."

"Okay. Okay. Then I think I got a plan."

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
11:02 GMT

I stride through the shallow stream, finally getting close to the caves where K'Zandr lives. This part of New Genesis appears to disrupt ring scans, and… Surprising an elder New God is probably a bad idea. Especially when the inhabitants of Supertown come here from time to time. It would be rather bad luck for Orion to be here seeking spiritual guidance at an inopportune moment. This way, if she's any good at that whole oracular business she can shoo him out before I get-

Clickclick.

-there.

Yes, I heard that, but I don't want to go around this garden world just shooting up the place. There are plenty of animals who have learned to be cautious around New Gods, and I look similar enough that-.

A green blur explodes from the bush! I use my armour's flight system to lunge backwards, narrowly avoiding-. The green shape uncurls, a muscular insectoid revealing himself, mandibles-

Clickclick.

-clicking at me.

"Hello? Can I help-?"

He leaps at me again, curling midair like… Sonic the Hedgehog, but slower. I sidestep again, but this time just as he passes me he uncurls, handsprings and then redirect himself towards my new position in such a display of athleticism that for a moment I feel like I should clap.

Instead, I just move around him.

"Can I help you?"

He stands in a combat crouch, glowering at me. "You can die!"

"Yes, that's true. Done it twice. Second time was better. Perhaps I should have asked, 'why are you attacking me'."

He clicks twice, and since I'm not getting a translation I assume that's either a nervous tick or… Punctuation?

"Disease. The poison of the gods! Spread to my people!"

"Oh. Right, yes, no, easy mistake to make. I'm not a New God. I'm human. We look similar, but metaphysically we're far weaker, and we don't have the same connection to the Source."

He clicks twice again, studying me carefully.

"Look the same. Can't smell. Strange powers."

Ah… I guess that a bug wouldn't know what Lanterns are.

"Okay, just a-" I subspace my helmet. "-moment."

"Still look like New God."

"Thank you." And environmental shield off. Huh. Colder than I thought it would be. "How do I smell now?"

Two clicks, his head tilting slightly to the left. "Like salt and liquid waste. Not like New God."

"Yeah, my species sweat dilute urea. It's-."

He clicks twice, recoiling slightly.

"It's perfectly normal for us. Do New Gods smell like that?"

"No." He makes a sort of rasping noise which again doesn't translate… So it's a throat clearing… Or perhaps a roar? "So I will keep hunting."

"Why? What's happened?"

"Disease. Foragers sicken. Cannot forage. Warriors endure. Disease comes from New Gods."

"No, the Primitives on the planet's surface are suffering too. I just finished treating their symptoms before coming here."

He clicks twice, looking around. "New God is here."

"A wise New God, who can hopefully give us some ideas on how to cure the disease."

"I do not trust the New God."

I shrug, putting my helmet back on. "I don't either, but I don't have any better ideas on how to cure them. Do you?"

He clicks quietly to himself for a few moments. Though… Do the bugs have the same sort of link to the Source that the New Gods do? Because if they don't, then I might be able to remove the disease… Possibly?

And why does this guy look like a giant insect? I remember the Foragers from the comics. The first one was an adopted New God and the second was a pink-skinned human with antennae. Is this..? Like the zeta tubes..? So much since then has lined up with what I remember that the differences catch me out.

"I am Mantis. Warrior. Hunter. Killer. Not healer."

"Where I come from, we do say 'specialisation is for insects'."

Two clicks. "Yes. I am specialised."

"I'm not. So why not take my lead? Come with me, and you'll learn anything that I do." He clicks uncertainly. "You can always kill me later."

Two clicks. "Yes. Accept."

I smile. "Good show."

His head tilts further to the side. "Show?"

"Ah… In context, 'the outcome was beneficial'."

"Not beneficial yet. Lead. I follow."

Alright, he's not that dangerous to me anyway… I finish wading across the.. stream-.

"Are you suffering the symptoms yourself?"

Two clicks. "Not yet."

"If you do, let me know."

And there's the cave. Maybe it's my adopted Themysciran heritage, but I feel a bit off doing this with my rings and full armour. This seems like something where I should ritually disarm myself. Going fully armed into a Hellenist temple that wasn't in your own city-state would be a dodgy one in Ancient Greece, and a hermitage even more so. On the other hand, there are monsters and insectoids around here and I doubt that a seer who couldn't defend herself would last this long.

"K'Zandr?! I seek your wisdom!"

No response, but in the Hellenistic tradition there wouldn't be either. You have to brave the cave to prove that you're worthy of their wisdom. And it's only a cave but it's only a New God cave. There could be all sorts of things in here.

I smile.

I really am never going to have to worry about my life being boring, am I?

I stride down the slope into the cave, Mantis just behind me.

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
11:09 GMT

"I had thought-" The voice emerges from a cavern at the end of the tunnel. The tunnel is just too short to walk upright, while not short enough to force me to crawl. It's also made of something which resists phasing. "-that you were told last time that you shouldn't just walk!"

It's her home, I suppose. I scan -a small chamber with one old woman in it- and then attach a filament to Mantis before transitioning us both forwards-

"I-."

-just in time for her staff to hit me on the top of my helmet.
Rebuke of Wisdom
"Ow."

I reach up to rub my head as she turns away from me to stare at Mantis-. I'm still wearing my helmet. Which doesn't appear to have been damaged. And my environmental shield and inertia shield are still active. And while New Gods are uniformly stronger than their muscles suggest that they should be, those muscles are an approximate guide to how much their strength is a part of their divine nature. Someone built like a pipe cleaner in the way that she is wouldn't be strong enough-.
Rebuke of Wisdom
"Ow."

Oh, it's New God magic bullshit. That makes perfect sense.

"Hades already told you that you shouldn't keep people waiting just because you think you should walk."

I frown. "How did you see that? You shouldn't be able to see me."

She swivels around from Mantis and golly gosh she has not aged gracefully at all. "I can't. But I know everything around you. I can see the waves you make."

"Hm." Hard to do, but certainly plausible. I wonder if there's a way-.
Rebuke of Wisdom
"Ow."

"You came here for a reason, human. A cure for the disease."

Two clicks from Mantis. "Yes. A cure. For the disease. What is it?"

"First, I need to explain why your peoples are afflicted." She cranes her neck towards me, staring into my eyes. "To understand your role in this."

Ah. "Is it because I messed with Orion? I know that red rings can be spiritually corrupting, but I don't see how the knock on effect would be a disease epidemic."

Mantis glares at me, clicking. "You caused the disease?"

"I didn't think that I did, but if Mistress K'Zandr is about to tell me otherwise then I may be mistaken."

She hobbles back towards the room's central pool, leaning on the staff held in her right hand and waving her left hand at me-.

"I get enough of that from Controller Hinon. Just tell me."

She scowls at me. "I live on my own in a cave and I get a visitor once a century. Let me have some fun."

"Hang on. You're a New God. This isn't a false personality like Hinon uses to let us short lived species communicate with her. This is the real you."

"Yes, I get to live honestly. And if you want to skip the ceremony-."

"You want to skip the ceremony. You told me that I shouldn't walk for the sake of reverence. So this is irreverence."

She turns back, regarding me for a moment. "Fine. Watch."
Traumatic Revelation
"What w-?"

The world vanishes, and a-. Ugh, that-. Anti-Life. How it felt from inside the network. But this time I'm.. outside, watching it, looking at the nodes which I know to be broadcasters… And the smaller ones representing the City Bosses and… All the people who resonated and were taken in by it. And… The world itself, drifting towards ruination and union with the soul of Darkseid.

I look for myself, because I should be visible, but I can't see-.

Then the light comes, radiating out from a point in the network-. Washington, I recognise the positioning of the broadcasters. And the light is rushing out through the network and purifying-.

Wait. Why did-?

The background sort of… Wobbled? Feedback of some sort? I suppose that I shouldn't be entirely surprised, given the amount of power we threw around to make that happen, and…. Given what happened, it would have been prohibitively difficult for any Earth-based magician to detect it beyond 'yes, a lot of stuff happened'.

The wobble… Stops-. No, weakens as it spreads out-.

Aaaaaah. What did that do? I try to pull back from whatever this vision is, but it.. doesn't work and I don't want to force it. Okay, so-.

The point of view changes, and I get to watch as it moves through the universe, and… That's Apokolips, and it doesn't appear to make the worst place in the universe any worse, and that's New Genesis where it… Parts of the place… Wobble? And some wobble harder than others, and some of them sort of.. vibrate…

"Fine. Fine. Something happened here as a result of-."

And the wobbles are… Gone? No, wait, something-.

Eyes open-.

And I'm back in the room, Mantis making menacing scraping noises at me.

"Something happened here because we removed the Anti-Life from Earth. Fine, I'll cop to that. But that didn't show me what it was, or how it relates to a disease that can infect New Gods and insectoids."

"Weren't you paying attention. The eyes."

"Yes, they were very ominous. They also aren't a disease."

She makes a quiet grunting noise in the back of her throat. "Do you know what an Old God is?"

"It's what Canis calls the second most powerful class of arcane lifeforms which arose from my world's thaumosphere. Powerful, and with human-like intelligence."

She shakes her head. "Those aren't Old Gods, though I see why an Apokoliptian would make that mistake. Do you understand what makes us New Gods?"

"You're physical beings with extremely powerful metaphysiques keyed to a particular concept."

"Yes. A material equivalent to the beings your species worships. An Old God is similar, though more like the primordials who sired them."

"They exist as flesh?"

"More or less. And in almost all cases they should be referred to in the past tense."

"And I woke one up."

"No. Not fully, or all reality would know about it. But he stirs, and even that has effects."

…

"I can't analyse the disease because it's not a disease. It's part of his body. Alright, so I need to either kill him or send him fully back to sleep. How do I do that?"

She rolls her eyes. "If I knew that, do you think I'd bother talking to you about it?"

…

"No. I suppose not."

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
11:31 GMT

Aarden looks disconcerted as Mantis and I walk into the Primitives' settlement. "Is.. that a bug?"

"Yes. His people are suffering from the same disease. Given the physiological differences between your two peoples that should be impossible, but it turns out that it might not be a disease organism in the strict sense."

He actually looks relieved. "Clearly, the oracle has given you a powerful vision. If-."

I nod. "Instead of just telling me, yes. I've got an idea for a cure, but it'll be slow going and uncomfortable."

He nods. "We will endure. What need do you have for me?"

I nod to a stone bench. "Sit down."

He chuckles, shaking his head. "I am steady as a mountain. I do not need-"

"You've been infected by a solution of an Old God's body tissues."

"-a-." He looks at my face to determine whether or not I'm playing some sort of joke. "An..?" Realising that I'm not joking, he makes a clenching motion with his right hand.
Support Me
The ground behind him buckles, extruding a seat of stone. He sits down heavily, gazing sightlessly ahead of himself. "An Old God."

"I haven't seen it directly myself, but that was what Ms. K'Zandr said."

"Such a thing could corrupt our connection to the Source…" He nods. "And that is making us ill."

"Something like that." I generate a construct dialysis machine. "So what I'm going to try and do is assimilate the cells without assimilating the rest of you."

"What is 'assimilate' in that context?"

"That's where I turn things into constructs."

"For how long?"

"About a hundred trillion years, give or take."

"So it's permanent."

"Well, we won't know for certain for a hundred trillion years, but probably. Now, if I start assimilating you by mistake, that's not a problem. I-."

He looks disconcerted. "It is a problem."

"I can just stop it. You don't become a construct until the process is fully complete."

"And if it is completed?"

"That's… Bad. So far I've only seen one person assimilated where I wouldn't have killed them if assimilation wasn't an option. He acts like himself for the most part, but I'm not sure if that's because he's still alive in a sense or if the ring's just best guessing how he'd behave and making the construct do that. But if this is a viable treatment, then I can remove the contamination matter from the bodies of everyone here, and then Mantis's colony, and then go looking for the source of the infection."

"What if we become reinfected?"

"Well, it should be possible for me to check your food sources. I already know that it's not in the air, so a few scans of your farms or hunting grounds should let me find it."

"And the Old God?"

"Hopefully, it'll go back to sleep. Failing that, some sort of telepathic sleep-inducer?" I nod to the machine. "Ready?"

"Yes."

Two x-ionised cannulae pierce his arm, a small amount of cloned blood being added to the mix as blood flows out of his artery and through my filter. Detect the right particle… And… assimilate.

Identity theft in progress. One percent complete.

"Have you begun?"

"Yes. Ring, announce progress."

Identity theft in progress. Two percent complete.

"Are you feeling anything?"

Aarden frowns. "A pinch, but nothing else."

"Okay, good, let me know if you feel anything else."

Two clicks from Mantis. "I will go next."

Ah…. I give him a quick scan, and there's appreciably less resistance than from Aarden. Shouldn't be any harder. "Alright, I think I can manage that. Though I can't completely guarantee that it will work in exactly the same way. Particularly given that your metaphysique is weaker than a New God's, so you'll be less able to resist if something goes wrong."

Identity theft in progress. Three percent complete.

Aarden looks curious. "Do the bugs have a connection to the Source?"

"I have no idea. Mantis has a stronger metaphysique than the average human, but anything else is outside of my area of expertise. If you need to know, I could call in an expert?"

"No, that won't be necessary. I had assumed-." He looks awkwardly at Mantis, who is quietly clicking to himself as he watches the blood purification process. "No, I suppose that was unfair."

"What's unfair? I knew that the New Gods of Supertown don't like them, but I don't remember hearing why."

"Their forebears come from Apokolips. They were sent here as living weapons. For a long time our hunting parties worked together with warriors from Supertown to destroy them. But if one of them can stand here and not lash out at everyone then they must have gained some degree of restraint."

"Mantis?"

Three clicks this time. "I am not hungry."

"That wasn't-." My ring flashes. "Excuse me." I hold my left hand up to my ear. "Orange Lantern, go ahead."

"Paul, we have a problem."

"Hello Lantern Rrab. Is it a disease outbreak? Because I'm working on that."

"No, there is no disease. But the people here are going crazy! They're picking fights with each other over every little thing and they're laughing about it!"

"Apparently, an Old God is stirring in its sleep. Down here that's having a knock on effect on people's physical health. Perhaps it's affecting their minds up in Supertown?"

"That.. is possible. But how do I stop it?"

"Have you tried a telepathy jammer, just in case?"

"Yes. It didn't work."

"Then, try to stop them doing anything permanent, and when I deal with the Old God it should subside. I can-."

Identity theft in progress. Four percent complete.

The ground around us begins to shake!

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
11:36 GMT

Construct seismograph says… It started to the south, towards the sea. I could try and get another bearing to narrow down the exact location of the hypocenter, but I'm… Filtering a man's blood here.

Identity theft in progress. Five percent complete.

"Lantern Rrab, we just had an earthquake and I'm a little tied up. Could you please come to the surface for a moment and find out where it started?"

"Should I bring Troia with me?"

"Use your judgement. There shouldn't be anyone who can easily hurt her up there-. And the blessing of Metis is custom designed to undo mental alterations."

"Right!" Her face vanishes.

I-.

Her face reappears. "I forgot! Arisia out!"

And she vanishes again. Because Jordan's been trying to teach her communication discipline, even if it's a little obsoleted by power rings.

Identity theft in progress. Six percent complete.

I turn to Aarden. "Do you get a lot of earthquakes around here?"

"No. None. New Genesis is a garden world."

I nod. "Yes?"

"I mean, it was cultivated by our forebears to be as pleasant a place to live as possible. Its ecology and structure are artificial. It has next to no seismic activity. That shaking is more likely to have been an Apokoliptian attack than anything natural."

I suppose that Apokolips didn't just go on hold because we fought them off…

"I assume that Supertown will deal with it if it was."

"Normally, yes, but if they are… If something is twisting their minds, they may not do so."

My ring flickers as Arisia sends the first bearing. It's from the west of here.

"What sort of weapons do you have?"

"Our innate powers. Beyond that, simple bows and spears."

"Are Apokoliptian raids a regular thing?"

"Not large ones. I can kill dog soldiers well enough, and we know these forests well enough that those who cannot fight can disappear."

"But, ultimately, you're dependant on Supertown."

His eyes narrow slightly. "You… Don't like the way we live, do you?"

"I can see the disadvantages. But I'm not the one who has to live with them."

Identity theft in progress. Eight percent complete.

"How is it on your world?"

"We have all forms of life from remote hunter-gatherers even more primitive than you to post-industrial megalopolises. We don't have any true arcologies yet and it'll be a while before we can colonise other planetoids, but…" I raise my left ring slightly. "My masters have experience with literally every form of society that's ever existed, and trialled most of them themselves."

Arisia sends another bearing, this time from the east. Triangulating the times and intensity puts the most probable location… Right along the wall of the continental shelf. Based on the speed of the waves through the ground…

Whatever caused the quake happened exactly when.. I started-

I construct-grab everyone as another shake rocks the settlement.

-assimilating the cells inside Aarden's bloodstream.

"Okay, we might have a problem."

Aarden and Mantis both give me a funny look.

"Another problem. The earthquake started when I started assimilating, which means that the Old God might possibly-."

"Stop at once."

"Yeah." I dismiss the construct. "I thought you might say that. Ah. Okay, I'm going to go and check-." K'Zandr lives in a cave. "Check on K'Zandr, and then check on where that earthquake came from. I'm still not entirely sure what I'm going to do about the Old God, but I'll come up with something when I get there."

Aarden looks concerned. "That does not sound wise."

"'Something' might be 'hand the whole matter over to Highfather', so it's basically what you'd do. Don't worry: I don't intend to engage a high-end arcane life form unless absolutely essential, and so far a being in that class has only killed me once."

"You.. look well for a dead man."

"Thank you. You don't look bad for a terminally ill man." I pick up my purple healing ray. "Mantis."

He clicks… Once.

"I can give you this." I offer him the ray. "If you use it on members of your hive who are ill, it should fix their symptoms. Alternately, you can come with me so that you can report back what I've found."

"I will do both. Others have followed my pheromone trail. I will give the ray to them. Then I will go with you."

"Alright. We'll also be picking up a colleague of mine." I reach out, putting my right hand on his left shoulder and transition us to the edge of the Primitive's clearing. "Alright, how-?"

Mantis click-hisses, and a mound of earth bulges up in the ground. Mantis tosses the healing ray to it, and a green limb reaches out and grabs it. Mantis clicks twice. "Healing tool of the gods. Take to All-Widow."

The other insectoid waves, then the arm vanishes in a spray of earth.

Right, next thing. I transition us to K'Zandr's cave. "K'Zandr! Are you alright?!"

"Neither these stones nor these bones break easily. Get on with it!"

I nod, and transition Mantis and I to a cliff top overlooking the sea closest to where the earthquake originated.

"Orange Lantern to Arsenal. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, and I got some good news. Looks like I won't need you to build me a ship."

"Oh? Are you planning on staying?"

"No, I found one. Looks like it was made on Earth, too."

I study the water for a moment, but while it appears choppy it doesn't appear to be getting more choppy. In that case…

"I'll be with you in a moment."

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
18:40 GMT -7

I look up at the cup of arcane force that's been placed over my head for a moment, and then look down at my captor.

"Your Highness! How can I help?"

Shining Armour trots a few paces closer, his guards forming a perimeter around us. "You can tell me what you said to my sister."

"Your highly strung, highly neurotic sister."

"Yes."

There are a lot of things I could say, like he must know her well enough to know that this is just something she does from time to time. Like the time she set up a closed temporal loop because she set up a closed temporal loop.

Boom boom.

"I pointed out that she never technically graduated."

He winces. "Oh no."

I raise my forehooves. "Look, I know that threw her into a loop, but she was already talking about setting up her own school when I got there so the crazy juices had clearly already started flowing."

He looks puzzled. "A.. school?"

"Teaching friendship. So perhaps 'seminary' is a better descriptor?" I reach out with my right forehoof and tap the barrier. "Would you mind?"

He regards me levelly. "My sister has been teleporting cross-country non-stop since she spoke to you."

I nod. "Have you considered ketamine? I have drones preloaded with it."

"I'm not drugging my sister. She'll calm down. We just need to give her some space."

"R.. ight, but teleporting while exhausted sounds like something that could go very wrong, so maybe we should dart her for her own good?"

He looks down as he considers it. "Is the dosage safe?"

"She's an alicorn, so it's hard to know what the correct dose is, but by default it's enough to rapidly knock out a regular pony. We can increase it if that doesn't work."

"And it's not addictive?"

"None of the other ponies I've darted have come back for more, so I think we're okay with a single dose." I regard him curiously. "This can't be the first time she's done something like this."

He looks mulish for a moment, then shakes his head. "It's not, but it is the first time she's done this since she became an alicorn."

I nod. "And got earth pony endurance and an increase in her mana reserves, right. She isn't going to wear herself out."

"Not quickly." His horn glows as he dismisses the bubble around me. "Okay, send your.. drones."

Update target priorities.

Done, Lantern Grayven. I'll let you know when she's recumbent.

Thank you, Sinestro.

I nod to Shining Armour, who sighs. "Thanks. Why are you in the Crystal Empire?"

"Did you meet Starlight Glimmer when you were in Canterlot?"

"No…" He frowns thoughtfully. "Wait, isn't she the pony who thinks that special talents are evil?"

"It's a little more complicated than that, but basically yes. Well, she's having a bit of trouble with her research and wants to hire an assistant and it turns out that one of her old friends is living up here. Apparently, that's the dynamic they used to have in the town where they grew up. I offered to go with her, she wanted some space…"

I shrug.

"Thought I'd go for a walk while the two of them caught up." I look around. "Nice place you've got here. Very… Shiny. Suits you."

That gets an eye roll, but he's a little less tense than he was.

"I didn't ever thank you for dealing with Queen Chrysalis. Cadence and I have both been sleeping easier knowing that she's never going to threaten us again."

"Not a problem. Happy to help. What do you think about the changes in the guard training regimen?"

"You mean, the way Tempest Shadow threw out everything I ever did and completely replaced it?"

"Yes." I nod. "That."

"Ah… Well, she has a point about Equestria not having fought a conventional war for centuries. I mostly oversaw guards being trained for what they actually do, and we didn't have a weapon development department. Having seen what she's been able to do, and… Having read the reports the other officers wrote after the Changeling Invasion… I.. probably should have looked for someone like her to help us improve the moment I got promoted to 'Captain'."

I nod. "It would have been a start."

"Hey, don't sugar coat it for me."

"No, I don't-. The Invasion would have been an inciting incident. If you'd stayed on as captain then you'd probably have started fixing the problems I identified. I can't blame you for not having my experience of warfare, and I'm sure that your efforts here have been better."

He nods. "Mine, and the mercenaries I hired. The yetis like the weather, and the Dream Valley ponies are fitting in surprisingly well."

I nod. I'd say that he'd do as a mid-level officer. If it came to a war I'd back Tempest Shadow over him for command authority, but he seems to be a good deal more competent than the fools who replaced him. "How's Cadence doing?"

"She's taking it easy. We just found out that she's expecting."

Ah… Might be a problem if the foal isn't an alicorn… Plus, I doubt that Equestrian obstetrics are much more advanced than their general level of technology…

"Want me to take a look? I've got access to medical technology centuries ahead of anything on Equestria, and it'll be good practice for me."

"Practice? Oh, are you and Princess Luna trying for a foal?"

"Not yet, but we will once we're married. And while I'm familiar with human pregnancy, there are probably a lot of issues specific to equines that I have no experience with. And…"

Ah, I shouldn't-.

"And-?" He understand the implication. "They might be an alicorn."

"Or they might not be. It's an issue either way. Of course, they might be a pegasus pony like their mother started as, or a unicorn like you."

He nods solemnly. "I guess it's better to know."

I nod. "Mother Box, hush tube to the palace, please."

Ping.

The aperture opens with barely a whisper, and I trot on through. Shining Armour follows a moment later, then stands aside to count his escort back home before dismissing them.

"Okay, lead the way-."

Poof!

"SHININGINEEDACHARACTERREF-."

Psh!

The stealth drone delivers its load directly into her neck. The dart hits home, then glows for a moment as she pulls it out.

"Huh. That's interest-."

Psh.

The second one hits her in the torso, and her eyes roll back into her head as she falls to the floor.

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
18:46 GMT -7

"…and honestly, after Sunset disproved the whole 'Friendship is Magic' thing-"

I feel a slight dampness on the back of my neck, and realise that Twilight is drug-induced coma-chewing my mane.

"-I'd have thought that she'd take the opportunity to re-evaluate."

Shining Armour glances awkwardly at me as we head towards Cadence's office. "Are you sure you're alright carrying her?"

"Oh, pish. I'm partially responsible for introducing her to existential dread and recreational narcotics. The least I can-"

"What?"

"-do is carry her around for a bit. Oh, yeah, I… Heh, so did you hear about the talk I did where most of the audience panicked and fled the auditorium and I had to have them darted so that they couldn't injure themselves in their panic?"

"I…" He squints slightly as he tries to remember. "Think.. Twilight mentioned it…"

"And then there was the thing where she didn't realise that the Pinkie Pie clones had an internal life, and the thing where the Cutie Mark Crusaders became alicorns… What was the fallout from that?"

"A whole lot of parents started nagging Sunset Shimmer to do the same to their foals, and Tempest Shadow had to double the guard when they refused to believe that she had a good reason not to."

Hah! "Well that's got to be just about the most ironic thing ever."

He chuckles quietly. "I know. I'm glad that Cadence and Sunset are getting along now, but when we started dating Cadence told me a whole lot about the things Sunset used to do…"

"I honestly haven't heard that part of things. I mean, I know that she was rude and abrasive, and I understand why she was like that even if Cadence obviously didn't deserve it. But no one's told me about anything else she did. Was there more to it?"

He nods slowly. "She once teleported into her room while Cadence was out, moved all her stuff into travel suitcases and then teleported the suitcases to the front gate."

"Ah."

"And added red dye to her shampoo. And replaced her feather grooming oil with glue."

I frown. "Huh. That.. sounds like something that would have triggered Celestia to intervene."

"She did." He sighs. "But she treated it like a misjudged joke, rather than what it actually was. It did make Sunset ease up… Well, more pretend that Cadence didn't exist."

I nod. "And given that Cadence had been uprooted and brought across the country to Canterlot, that sort of rejection would have been all the more damaging. I appreciate that it doesn't justify anything, but do you understand why Sunset did it?"

"Jealously and envy. She saw Cadence of 'stealing' Princess Celestia from her, on top of her being an alicorn when Sunset wasn't."

"And what sort of person would be afraid of something like that from someone as agreeable as Cadence?"

"Someone really insecure."

"Yeah. See, you're thinking those are characteristics she used to have that she's grown out of."

"Actually, I was giving you the credit."

"Well, thank you, but that's not it." I snort through my pony-nose. "Honestly, it's like Celestia went through a list of things not to do with a vulnerable foal and tried to tick them all off. All I had to do was get her away from the palace."

He frowns. "That.. can't be right. The Princess wouldn't-."

"How many foals has she brought up? Until Luna returned, how many equals did she have? How many friends-?" Oh no. I've just realised that I may well be Celestia's closest friend, and I don't even like her. "Does she have? She took an attention-starved filly into the palace for being good at magic, and then got confused when said filly became completely fixated on doing the thing that got her the attention she'd been denied for her whole life."

"I.. suppose I.. could see it happening." He blinks and shakes his head before knocking lightly on the door before us. "Okay, just let me explain that you're here first."

I nod. "Don't want to drive her to premature labour. Oh, quick question. How old is she?"

"Ah…" He frowns distractedly. "Actually, I-."

"Come in!"

He shakes his head and pushes the door open just wide enough for him to enter.

Sinestro, do you have any experience with obstetrics?

I have a full medical database for every species the qwardians ever dissected, in addition to what I acquired from human data networks. I also worked with Lantern Brin on several occasions.

I was just wondering… You've never said anything about wanting to visit Korugar, either in your universe or this one.

What would be the point? They rejected me. I can better achieve my objectives by working with you wherever you go.

What about sentiment?

What about it?

I suppose. A moment later Shining Armour pushes open the door and beckons me inside. I trot in, smiling politely at the expectant mother. "Cadence! You're looking gravid today!"

Because she really does. She's almost as round as a normal pony.

"Grayven." She waddles closer, pregnancy bulge wobbling. "I didn't realise that you were a doctor."

"I'm not. I cheat. Sinestro?"

"Scan complete, Lantern Grayven. What would you like to know?"

Cadence and Shining Armour exchange a glance, and he's the one who replies. "Are they healthy?"

"I don't have a baseline-" A construct image of a late stage foal foetus appears, and I note the horn and wings at once. "-for an alicorn foal, but I can detect no deformities or distress."

Shining Armour blinks. "An..? Alicorn?"

I nod. "Looks like. I imagine the idea of an alicorn just being born would be a bigger deal if Sunset hadn't already decoded ascension. Though if that's how it usually goes, it is going to create an interesting demographic issue as more and more ponies ascend." Hm. "Shining Armour, given that your wife and daughter are alicorns, is there any chance that you've reconsidered your position?"

"I…" He glances at Cadence, who stares at him pointedly. "I guess?"

"Neat. I'll get her to pencil you in. Unless you'd rather have Twilight-" I twist my neck around to glance back at where Twilight is sleeping off her medically induced coma on my neck. "-do it?"

He considers her current disposition for a moment.

"No, that's… Fine."

Cadence stares at the construct for a moment, and then at her own swollen abdomen. "Do you have any advice?"

"Focus your magic training on earth pony magic for improved endurance and magic resistance. Oh, and get a hermitage built."

She frowns in puzzlement. "What..? For..?"

"Your foal's nursery." She gives me a mild frown. "Normal foal surges are bad enough, but you're having an alicorn. They'll have massively increased raw power and arcane stamina and none of the control you already had when you ascended. It won't be safe for them to be around other ponies for years, and magic nullification strong enough to contain them might cause them permanent harm."

Her frown deepens. "Still…"

I throw up my wings in exasperation. "Alright, but if your foal blows up your capital and vaporises half of its population, don't come crying to me."

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
11:42 GMT

Mantis rasps disgruntledly as we appear in front of Roy and the serpentine New God, crouching behind a patch of shrubbery. Roy nods and points towards… A camouflage net.

Why a.. net?

A hologram would be a better disguise… If it was going to be viewed from one direction, and the user was confident that no one with precision electromagnetic sensors was around because holograms can be detected. Magic-. We're on New Genesis. The world's thaumically active, so while magic would work, the use of it would almost certainly get picked up by someone. So they.. go low-tech, and that covers it from casual observation.

Why didn't Supertown detect it? Who owns it? Why did they come here?

"What makes you think it came from Earth?"

"I recognize the camo netting. It's NATO-standard."

The ship has landed on a patch on bare rock at the bottom of a cliff, next to the trees it's using as cover. A thin ribbon of water is flowing over the cliff nearby and flowing in a thin stream next to the ship. I can't see any defences or defenders.

Odd.

"You want it?"

Roy lifts his right arm a little, then stops. "I mean, it's a starship, so, yeah."

Construct armour, heavy armour and scan in detail… I throw out orange filaments which punch through the outer cases of the dozen sensors scattered around the clearing and subvert them. And… That looks like it's it. Genetic traces in the area… A lot of New God animals. No tracks.

Ah…

"Is there a problem?" Roy looks mildly concerned. "You're the toughest guy-."

"Just me being over cautious." I fly at a moderate pace towards the vessel. "Ahoy the ship! Orange Lantern here!" Something moves under the camo netting. "Anyone-?"

Brilliant yellow bolts blast out from the hull! They have no difficultly at all in tracking me, but… Construct armour seems to be holding. I could attack the ship, but I am fairly intimidating and I don't want to overreact.

Instead I just fly closer. Construct armour getting mildly abraded, but not to the point where I'd actually be worried.

"Anyone home? This is jolly unfriendly!"

The guns stop firing, the camo netting having partly burned off to reveal parts of the hull. It's gold, and I think that's a figurehead on the prow. Okay, that-.

The turrets are glowing-.

Construct thrusters throw me to the side as beams of golden energy roar past me, cutting through the trees behind me and slicing a swath through the forest!

Not progress, then!

The turrets start charging again as construct scissors slice through the remains of the netting, revealing the art deco ship, a sort of strange cross between a galleon and a submarine. The turrets… An effort's been made to make them fit in with the style of the rest of the ship, but they clearly don't. A later addition to an unarmed ship? So I could destroy them without feeling too bad about it-. Except that if they're a later addition they might have skipped surge protectors, or there might be an explosion in the capacitors and I don't know for certain whether there's anyone on board or not.

Entry hatch seems to be on the top-.

I dart up, another volley of high powered shots shooting past me. Not designed for anti-attack craft work then. Or anti-Lantern fire. The dorsal turrets take a shot when they have one, but a simple thruster construct pushes me aside and then there's the hatch. Construct grapple, twist-. Locked. Electronic, or-? No, manual. Lock pick construct-.

And dodge.

If there was someone on board they'd be taking off or calling for help about now.

Click.

Open the hatch and inside-

Bztzap!

-and I take one last shot to the face from the interior turret, which… Visible power cable. Snip that, and use a construct to siphon power just in case-.

That's cosmic energy. I thought the shots looked familiar. The owner's using Doctor Theodore Knight's technology. Which is notoriously safe, and… One of the few competitors that my Bleed torsion generator has as far as modern electrical generation goes. Definitely from Earth, then, because there are no records of that form of power generation from anywhere else that I've got records for.

And… He wouldn't have built in a self-destruct, but if the turrets were added…

The interior looks a little like a first class train carriage from a century ago. The furniture is carved wood and richly upholstered, but the sleeping area and galley are tiny. The control computer is…

Is that a Mother Box?

Ping.

"Ah. Well, good. Do you mind me taking control of the compu-"

Theodore Knight appears in front of me and swings at me with his right fist!

"-ter?"

It-. Goes through me, because it's a hologram. Why-?

Distraction. I shove filaments through the outer casing of the ship's control system and grab…

What the heck is this? Half of it's some sort of Babbage engine, and-. Okay, that's the modern bit, take that. And… Reset the user permissions…

The Theodore Knight hologram flickers, then appears to relax, theatrically mopping his brow. "Thanks. I thought I was going to be stuck like that."

I peer at him. "You're not Doctor Knight. He died years ago."

"Ah." The hologram nods. "I didn't know that, but I guess it's been long enough that I shouldn't be surprised. I'm a computer program designed to think and act like him."

"Pleased to meet you. What are you doing here?"

"Here? Couldn't tell you. But I've been stuck flying Vandal Savage around ever since he brought this ship out of mothballs and I'm sick of it."

I sigh. "He's not dead, then?"

"He's immortal."

"Yes, but sometimes that doesn't stop them being killed if you're really thorough." I sigh again. "Do you know who I am?"

"You said 'Orange Lantern'. Is that anything like Green Lantern?"

I nod. "Alan Scott is one of my mentors, and a good friend."

"Do you know what my son Jack's doing now?"

"He retired from being Starman to look after his children. Aside from an emergency six months ago he mostly just runs his shop. Okay, how about you tell me what you're doing here, and I'll fill you in on everything else?"

 

[Mr Zoat]

15th August 2000
12:37 GMT

There's a pained expression on my face as I look up from my work and towards Senior Agent Blaze.

"Sir, I don't have as much experience as you do with Senior Agent Fitzpatrick's plans. Um."

We both look around at the… Frame we're building.

"Is this..? Typical?"

Senior Agent Blaze sighs. "Oi can't say I've paid him much attention before."

"I'm hurt, Sh'lainn." Senior Agent Fitzpatrick walks closer at ground level as the last… Parts, are unloaded from Alliance biohazard transportation caskets. He takes a look inside one of them and checks it off on his clipboard. "At least I get an 'I can't believe that actually worked' from Nick."

Senior Agent Blaze huffs. "It hasn't worked yet."

He looks up, grinning. "Okay, but remember: when it does, it's 'I can't believe that actually worked'."

She rolls her eyes while I consider said plan. "Sir…" I'm not even sure how to address this. "Isn't this a waste of shadoen body parts? We can't have recovered that many?"

"Eh, the lab's already done what it can with these-" He sticks his pencil in one container and pulls out… I think that might be brain matter? "-bits and pieces." He takes a sniff, grimaces, and drops it back. "The whole ones were too valuable to lose, but this stuff's basically useless for anything else."

"And the cyclops can't tell the difference between living tissue and dead tissue?"

"No-." He taps his nose with his pencil, then drops it as he scrabbles for a tissue to wipe off the shadoen possibly-brain goo his just got on himself. "No nose. And they aren't all that clever. It got visual scans, heat scans and it might have a D.N.A. scanner, but it can't smell decay."

I suppose I didn't see an opening for an airborne chemical analyser.

He gestures up to the Frankensteinian crime against nature that Senior Agent Blaze and I have been working on.

"So if we make this look kind of like a big shadoen..?"

I nod as I stitch together some of the new parts. "Then we can control where it goes. But we still need a way to destroy it, or put it back into stasis."

"Why?"

I frown, briefly glancing at Senior Agent Blaze who looks just as puzzled as I feel.

"Because it's a giant war robot?"

"Right!" He finishes cleaning off his nose and then crouches down to carefully wipe down his pencil before picking it up. "So what's it here for?"

"To destroy its target..?"

"Right! And once that's happened, what do you think it's programmed to do?"

Ah..? "Wait for a new target?"

"Right! And since we got all the shadoen on Earth, it should just stand there and wait."

"Um. Right. Just one problem, sir?"

"Yeah?"

"If it's got a D.N.A. scanner, what stops it detecting the shadoen corpses at Alliance headquarters?"

"About six feet of TEMPEST shielding and a really big ocean." He shrugs. "I mean, honestly, if it tries walking to the U.S. from here I think that's job done."

Senior Agent Blaze and I look at each other with more concern.

"Y' didnae bring Nema along, did yeh?"

Senior Agent Fitzpatrick sags slightly. "Nah. She got promoted, then the new boss stuck her on V.I.P. escort. She's taking some guys from the D.o.D. 'round an Intracom factory right now."

"Sir, did-?"

Alert!

I look up in the direction the cyclops is coming from. "Sir, I'm afraid that we're out of time."

"Okay." He turns around to the team of technicians and engineers we've been working with. "Pack it up, people! Leave the shadoen goo here, clear out everything else!"

And he promptly clears out himself, leaving final preparations to myself and Senior Agent Blaze.

"You'd best clear off as well, sir. If it's registered you as an enemy, it might decide to pursue you even after its primary target is destroyed."

She nods, looking me over carefully. "'re yew sure you can handle this?"

"There are no certainties in life, sir, but I've got the best chance." Check distance. "Sir, it should be in range in-."

"Two seconds!"

"Yes, it-."

Eyes white, hair wild, shove and get in the meat suit!

"One second!"

Grab onto the support struts, keeping the glow concealed as much as possible, manipulate the forearms into grabbing the shadoen plasma cannon and leap!

The brilliant ray of energy flashes past me and bores into the hillside I was standing on, throwing up-. A rain of baked clay and carbonized plant matter. I raise the plasma cannon to fire while doing my best to replicate the scrabbling motion of the shadoen. Since they never landed we only had recordings of two examples of them walking, but-. I'm getting it.

My earpiece buzzes.

"Y-?"

"One second!"

I leap again, the cyclops's second shot missing as the beam slashes across where it thought I'd be running. My own shots take longer to hit, and-. Upper torso and head, no visible damage. But that's fine, I don't want to destroy it, just make the fight realistic and then get out.

"One-"

Leap and a slight redirect by using the ring's flight ability-

"-second!"

-and the beam slashes through where I would have been if my leap had matched the previous two.

I scurry towards a copse of trees for concealment, deciding not to shoot. It's not distracted by me shooting it so there's no point until I've got a better shot.

"I definitely have its attention, sir."

I change my vector and a beam impacts in the centre of the copse, throwing chunks of burned tree in all directions.

"I believe that unless something major changes, I can complete the mission."

I hear a male sigh. Senior Agent Fitzsimmons?

"You had to-"

The hillside to my left explodes, as-. A second cyclops pulls itself free of the rock.

"-say it, didn't you?"

 

[Mr Zoat]

15th August 2000
12:41 GMT

"Sirs?"

"Guess.. that's Benandonner then. Well, okay, guess you can just-"

"One-"

Small leap, let the shot go past me now that I'm on level ground.

"-second!"

And it does but from behind as the new cyclops takes a shot!

"-get outta there."

Wait. The shadoen were happy using biotechnology, but they didn't just use biotechnology. Their ships were recognisable, if more advanced than anything Earth had seen before. That second cyclops… It's… Patched up with shadoen technology.

"Not sure I can, sir."

I make my meat container scrabble away from both of the giant robots as fast as I can. It could be a problem if the pure titani cyclops stops to consider why a cyclops rebuilt by the shadoen would shoot at a shadoen, but if they'd just start shooting at each other-.

The shadoen model raises its hands, burning red beams blasting from each of them and… Hitting first cyclops directly in the chest.

"Okay, that was underground for thousands of years." Senior Agent Fitzsimmons sounds puzzled. "How come they didn't destroy each other back then?"

"The myth don't say one killed the other. In some versions, Fionn mac Cumhaill tricked Benandonner int' runnin' awey instead."

Cyclops 1 takes a shot at me, but aborts it rather than swinging the beam at me. It then gives the other cyclops its full attention and starts marching closer.

"Sirs? What do you want me doing?"

"He's your sidekick, Sh'lainn."

"Oi'm t'inkin' about it."

A beam from Cyclops 1 hits Cyclops 2 in the shoulder, causing it to stumble back slightly. Cyclops 2 then returns fire with its undamaged arm, hitting Cyclops 1 in the chest. I can see the armour melt and crack where it hit.

"Sir, might I suggest that I wait for one to win and then finish them off? Perhaps keep things balanced?"

Cyclops 1 takes a shot again, hitting the same arm as the first shot. The armour is visibly molten now, the material making up its muscles increasingly visible beneath. Cyclops 2 charges its other hand to fire again, only for the lower eye of Cyclops 1 to shoot the charging aperture and cause a misfire. Electricity arcs around that arm, Cyclops 2's head dipping down for a moment to examine itself.

And then it looks up and charges!

The first two steps are awkward, clumsy, almost like it's falling. But once it gets some momentum it stabilises, bounding-

Cyclops 1 tries to shoot it in the leg it's balanced on but misses with its upper eye. The lower eye hits and makes it stagger, but Cyclops 2 recovers as its second leg goes down-.

Its armour is regenerating, techno-organic plates sliding into place over the wounds.

I take aim, a green target reticle appearing in my field of view. Targeting the weakened part of Cyclops 2's arm I fire. A hit, and the arm parts company with the torso and falls to the ground.

"If they're jus' here t' fight each other, why don't y' use yer ring?"

That's… Not a terrible point. But…

"Because they might be sending reports back to a central computer, and I don't want titani artefacts in general to register me as an enemy."

Cyclops 2's torso undulates, plates of something that looks like shadoen carapace extruding through the outer armour around the torso. It pulls its remaining arm back, letting the new armour soak the incoming eye blast.

"What titani artefacts?"

"Whatever artefacts there are that we don't know about."

"Yer Master fought it alongside my mother."

"I'm a little taller than him. Sir, if you're trying to give me an order-."

"No skin off my back if y'don't use it."

"Sir, your senior rank isn't just an official permission to give me orders. It's an outward sign of your experience and proven judgement. If it is your view that I should use the ring, then I will do so. This isn't an ego contest. I trust your judgement, and will take no umbrage."

But in the meantime, I aim at the first cyclops, right on the chest where the second one hit it. I need to move position to get an angle, but I think-.

The first cyclops ceases its advance and takes a step to the side as the crab-shelled shadoen model enters melee ranges and slashes with its claw! The first awkwardly raises its hands but it clearly wasn't programmed with close combat in mind. The claw sinks into the torso, cutting through the armour and into the interior mechanisms, the light in its lower eye fading immediately as.. some sort of interior liquid begins dripping out of the wound. The claw appears to be stuck however, and Cyclops 2's efforts to remove it are met with failure as Cyclops 1 charges its remaining eye.

At the last moment Cyclops 2 tries to twist out of the way, throwing its whole body into the action. It turns a point blank shot into a partial hit, the beam burning through the side of Cyclops 2's head and out the back!

Alright, target the breach in Cyclops 1's armour and fire. Hit! And Cyclops 1's eye flickers as it tries to line up a second shot, something in its internal mechanisms failing. Good. And now run across the landscape, trying to draw a bead on the gap in Cyclops 2's head. It'll take a few moments to get into position, but as long as it doesn't-.

Explosions erupt from the robots! I stumble to a halt, trying to work out where they-. Overhead. Three F-14s, each with an empty wing hardpoint where an air-to-ground missile used to be. There's a second flight incoming from the south, this one comprised of Harriers. The first three are showing American markings while the second are British. I see the moment the British planes release their missiles, all hitting Cyclops 2 in the side of its torso a moment later.

"Sirs? Did we request assistance from the military?"

"No." Senior Agent Fitzsimmons sounds just as confused as I feel. "We told the British and Irish governments what was happening. Guess they decided to join in. Without telling us. Ah, is it working?"

Examining their structures…

"A bit? I-."

Cyclops 2 points its remaining arm at the departing Harriers-.

Aim and fire!

My plasma bolt hits him just as it's about to fire, breaking its containment field at the optimal moment and causing a blowback which wrecks the forearm! Now aim at Cyclops 1's chest wound, which.. does appear to have been made worse by the missile impacts-.

Cyclops 1 manages to get enough power to its weapon capacitors to fire another shot into Cyclops 2's cranial cavity. Cyclops 2 goes limp almost immediately, collapsing to the ground. And then I fire, my plasma beam boring into Cyclops 1's chest and knocking it to the ground.

I wait for a moment, but there's no further activity-.

Then the planes hit it with missiles again.

I wince inside my shadoen-meat-covered frame. "Sir, this feels like it's about to become an inter-agency mess."

"Sure does! But don't worry. I'm proud to say that out of the thirty seven inter-agency sausage-measuring contests I've caused, I've come out ahead in twenty three! You just head back to the starting line and hand that thing over to the bio-containment team and leave this mess-" He points his right thumb at his chest. "-to me!"

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
11:51 GMT

Damn it.

"So Vandal Savage has been using this ship to pootle around the universe, but this time it's just a team of fishmen."

The holographic projections blinks. "'Pootle'?"

"'Move in a leisurely manner on a trivial journey'."

The hologram nods. "I'm not exactly sure about that. He's had my main computer locked out of just about everything it wasn't hardwired into. Once I stopped talking to him he didn't seem so worried about it."

Roy turns away from his examination of the ship to look at him. "So are you a copy of Theodore Knight, or just a very intelligent system, or what?"

"And there's a slight disconnect between the decoration and any computer system advanced enough for 'hardwired' to have meaning. What's going on with that?"

The hologram looks thoughtful. "I'm not exactly sure how intelligent I am. I was supposed to be a natural language interface, but Vandal Savage integrated a Mother Box into the ship's control systems-"

Which explains how they got here.

"-and I think… I've gotten more mentally complex since then."

"Right. We're gunna need to-" Roy glances at me. "-check that?"

Dr. Knight looks puzzled. "What for?"

"America passed a fairly large pro-A.I. rights Bill a few years ago. Anything that looks like treating a mentally sophisticated A.I. as a slave is very illegal."

"Treating a mentally sophisticated human as a slave is pretty darn illegal too."

"Yes, but it's easier to get away with doing it to something that looks like a mainframe. That's why enforcement is enthusiastic."

"I guess that makes sense. As for the ship, well, most of it was designed and built by a fellow named Herman Moll back in Eighteen Ninety Nine."

I boggle, blinking rapidly. "Eighteen-?"

"I was impressed when The Shade showed it to me."

"Wait. You-you, or the original Theodore Knight."

"Heh." He nods. "The original. He added a cosmic converter, and a few other systems once the space program started up. It flies like a dream."

"I'm glad to hear it. Do you know what the fishmen are here for?"

The hologram shakes his head. "I'm sorry, but until just now I could only see what happened inside the hull, and they didn't talk much while they were in here."

"Can you send them a distress signal?"

"I might be able to use the ship's Mother Box to 'ping' their communicators, but that doesn't guarantee that they'll come back here. They might just make a boom tube and walk away."

"Wouldn't that annoy Savage?"

Roy grins. "Hah!"

"Something funny?"

"Yeah, we were-" Roy nods. "-talking about whether or not you need a ship if you've got a way to travel faster than light without one."

I smile faintly. "I suppose that Savage likes travelling in style. Chance that the fishmen are something to do with the earthquake that started off the coast?"

Roy shakes his head. "No bet. Should we call in Arisia and Donna?"

I shrug, looking at the hologram. "Did the fishmen show any sort of superhuman abilities?"

"One had wings, which is pretty unusual for a fish. They looked strong, but other than that I couldn't tell. Oh, and one had a surfboard."

"A fish with a surfboard." He nods. "I'm… Going to go out on a limb and suggest that Savage isn't sending his best. I'll send the others a message, but I think we can handle this."

"Is this armor watertight?"

"Oh, yes, completely."

"And the flight system-."

"Works fine underwater, yes. Your positron ray will as well."

"But plasma and laser won't. Well, how about we try luring them out, then follow them underwater if they…" He grins. "Don't take the bait." I don't grin. "What?"

"I'm being oversensitive. It's just… I just feel a bit uncomfortable about making fish puns with fishmen."

"Will said that you jumped to your feet every time the British anthem came on that time him and Artemis rigged up the Mountain's speaker system."

"I did, and that's fine, I can make jokes about myself. But… I know plenty of Atlanteans, and-."

"Okay. Okay, I get it."

"I mean, if you're fine with it then I can make jokes about you..?"

"The bow, the armor or the red hair?"

"Your choice."

"Surprise me."

I nod. "Will do. Doctor Knight, please send the alert. Arsenal, please take Mantis and the serpent fellow-"

"Sserpa."

"-to-. Really?" Roy nods. "Well, if he can make fun of it, maybe it is alright. Take them into a concealed position on the side of the ship away from the sea. I'll be in the air. We give them… Half an hour? And if they haven't-"

"Taken the-."

"-turned up, we'll go looking for them."

"Got it. Hey, Doc? You know where Savage has been hiding out?"

"Sorry. Like I said, I only had awareness of the inside of the ship. I couldn't see out."

"And… Would you be okay working with me once this is over? I've always wanted a spaceship."

"I dunno. What's in it for me?"

"Everyone knows that you're the first ever human spaceship? You get to be a superhero again? And I can build some sort of module if you want to move around outside."

"Who can make a module?"

"That sounds like something I could live with. Now go get ready, and I'll send the signal."

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
20:23 GMT -7

Sunburst, as it turns out, is a yellow-pelted stallion with a white stripe down his nose, an orange mane, tail and… What do you even call that? Chin strip? Long thin weird beard thing. He's wearing glasses and -unusually- a blue cape speckled with turquoise stars.

He keeps looking at me nervously, but… That's to be expected. I am pretty intimidating.

Starlight on the other hand is besides herself with joy. She's actually prancing ahead of us as we head towards her laboratory.

I smile at the small stallion. "I don't think I've ever seen Starlight this excited before."

"Ah… Yeah. Me neither."

"I thought the two of you went back a long way."

"Oh, we do, but we haven't spoken since I.. went to Princess Celestia's school. I.. wrote a few times…" His eyes flick to me for an instant before averting themselves. "I kinda just thought she'd moved away or something."

"As.. I understand it, you going to the School while she had to stay behind caused her to develop a lifelong hatred of the whole special talent system which she's been constantly working to unmake ever since."

"Oh! Um. Whaw."

"She didn't mention that?"

"No. No, we were just.. catching up. She said she was doing revolutionary work and.. wanted me involved, so…" He risks looking at me again for a moment. "The… Whole.. special talent system?"

"Yes. So, ah… Try to keep her focused on finding a way to share talents, rather than expunge them. She's a very clever pony, but sometimes she can get a bit… Off-kilter."

He glances at me again. "Ah, yeah. 'Off-kilter'."

"Sunburst, have I done something to intimidate you? I assure you, despite my size, I'm actually…" He stops, blinking at me in incomprehension. "Ah. Something on my face?"

"On.. your back."

"My b-?" I twist my head around. On my back, Twilight snores quietly. "Oh, my back! I'd honestly forgot that she was there."

"Is she okay?"

"She's sleeping off a panic attack, panic exhaustion and ketamine injection. She'll be fine."

"She's a.. princess. What could make her panic?"

"I… Pointed out that she technically never graduated, and she went on a bit of a tear about getting her diploma sorted out."

"Isn't that completely redundant when she's a national heroine who's also an alicorn?"

"Yeees, but she's rather highly strung and gets… Upset, when things aren't as she thinks they should to be."

"I…" He looks towards Starlight's workshop, where the mare has disappeared. "Think I know what you mean."

"Okay, look. If you don't think you'll be comfortable working here, you can just say that. I'm not trying to twist your… Uh… Tail?"

"If you're looking for a phrase meaning 'use threats or force to gain compliance' then 'bite your ears' is the way it's usually phrased. And it's really more… I wasn't expecting to see Starlight ever again. It was just a bit of a shock when she turned up out of the blue like that."

"Was she not being entirely honest about how you two used to work together?"

"No, no! We did. She.. struggled with the theory and I.. could barely hold the matrix together. I-. Uh. Look, Starlight-. I think she got the impression that because I went to the Royal School that I had it made." He shakes his head. "Getting a cutie mark didn't suddenly mean that practical ability matched my theoretical understanding. I-. I spent years wishing that Starlight had come with me, hoping that she'd get her mark and turn up a little later. And when she didn't, I-. I focused on the part of my studies that I could handle… There's not a lot of call for a thaumaturgist who can't even teach because he can't demonstrate the spells."

"It sounds like your wish has been answered. A little late, yes, but you shouldn't look a gift horse… In the mouth."

"Huh?"

Right. Earth-horses are a mindbender for another day. "You should not examine a gift too closely. You got it for free, it's a pure benefit to you and it's insulting to the person who gave it to you if you're fussy about it."

He blinks. "Ah, the closest equivalent Equestrian phrase… If I'm parsing what you said right, it has the opposite meaning. I mean, even if someone gave you a bridge for free you should still check it before trying to use it to cross a ravine."

"Not all trite phrases really stand up to rational analysis. The point is, it sounds like you're getting an opportunity that you really want. If I'm making you uncomfortable, don't worry, I'm hardly ever around."

"I just don't feel like a guy like me who basically dropped out after the Princess took a chance on me-."

"Whah?" Twilight twitches on my back. "Not drop out? N' magic kindergarten. 'm good. 'm study hard."

Sunburst stares up at the recumbent being he is culturally conditioned to see as a living goddess.

He keeps staring as she starts drooling again.

I half-turn so that she's partially obscured. "Have you had a chance to read up on Sunset Shimmers new thaumaturgical notation?"

"I ordered a copy of her primer the moment I heard it existed. That won't be a problem." His eyes widen slightly. "Is she here? I'm a huge fan."

"She drops in every so often, but she's not based here."

He exhales in relief. "Ooh. Okay. That should give me time to make some headway so I've actually got something to talk about before I meet her. I-."

Poof!

Starlight appears next to Sunburst in a puff of turquoise, grinning in a way which very nearly looks natural. "Come on! I want to show you the lab!"

"Ah-. Sure. Prince Grayven, thank you-" Starlight starts walking again, this time wrapping her thaumokinesis around Sunburst's hunches. "-for taking a chance on me. I won't disappoint you."

I nod, smiling fondly. "I'm sure that you won't."

Right. Mother Box, hush tube back to Twilight's home, and we can drop her off in her bed.

Ping.

I step through the portal into her entrance hall. Good. With any luck-.

"Um. Mister Grayven?" Fluttershy approaches cautiously, Spike in tow. "Can I speak to you for a moment? If that's not too much trouble."

"Certainly. How can I help?"

"Well… I'm a little worried about Discord. I haven't seen him for a while, and I don't know what's happened to him." She sags slightly. "Unless he's just decided that he doesn't want to talk to me any more. And you were the last person who saw him. Um. It was-."

"Yes, no, I remember. Ah…" I should really have said something, but I thought that he'd have resolved his issue by now. "I gave him an idea and he was fighting himself over what to do about it. I sort of assumed that he'd have finished by now."

She looks at me… Like she's trying to be stern. "I don't think we should leave Discord on his own like that. I need your help to find him." She droops slightly again. "If that's not too much trouble, I mean."

"No, no problem. Any idea where he might have gone?"

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:06 GMT

"…helped Highfather, but it's a lot weaker this far from Earth."

I nod, one eye on Donna's construct head and the other on the ship below me.

"Could you ask him if he knows anything about any fishmen that might be on New Genesis? One of whom has wings?"

She nods and vanishes from my ring, Arisia replacing her.

"Any luck with the blood samples?"

She shakes her head. "I can't make medical analysis constructs like that. I'm not good enough yet."

"Graxos Four is space-aged, isn't it?" She nods. "Then when you get a moment, see about picking up some equipment from home. If you're worried about subspace volume, consider wearing an equipment harness."

"I just feel like I should do it with my ring. You manage it."

"Yes, but it's way easier to do with an orange ring than with a green one. You would need to accurately picture every part of the analytical tool-." Hm. I remember the comics where a Sun Eater tried to eat Sol. As part of working out what was happening they send Kyle Rayner into the sun, having J'onn J'onnz telepathically communicate the design of a form of ultra heat resistant armour to him. "Or you could get a telepath to implant a macro in your mind which would cause the image to unfold when you triggered it. We'll have to-"

"Um."

"-talk to Miss Martian about it when we get back to Earth."

"I'll talk to Hal about it."

"Just point out how it would give him the edge over Lantern Gardner. That should be enough to convince him."

"Convince him, yes." She looks at me winsomely. "Can I just bring you a sample? Please?"

"You shouldn't leave while things are still crazy up there, and I can't come to Supertown. And if it's anything like is happening down here I'm not going to be able to do anything with it anyway."

She shakes her head. "Okay-." She glances aside, then her face disappears and is replaced by Donna's.

"New Genesis doesn't have fishmen, but Apokolips has a group called the Deep Six. There's six of them-" I snort. "-and one of them has wings."

"Sounds plausible. What do the rest-?"

One eye-.

I dodge, a… Laser beam? Slashing through the sky! A moment later an electrical discharge leaps along the ionised air molecules.

"Call you back."

That level of electricity wouldn't do much to my Faraday shielded power armour, but I raise non-conductive construct armour just in case.

"Lantern!"

"I'm fine, Arsenal. What happened?"

"Some kinda bug stuck its nose out of the ground and fired a laser out of it."

"Did you shoot it?"

"I was trying not to get eaten."

Scan… Disrupted. I can detect normal New Genesis animal life, but nothing nearby looks big enough to try eating Roy. Still, no-

I viff to the side as something green rushes past me.

-fishmen.

Classic Creature From The Blue Lagoon appearance, if the Creature had been hitting the gym religiously. Yellow gloves, boots and… I'm going to call that a tunic. And a rocket surfboard… Thing to fly with and a grey trident to try stabbing me with.

I'm underwhelmed.

"One contact." I could shoot him out of the sky relatively easily, but we need information. "Engaging."

The rocket board thing must have some sort of inertia nullification system, because he spins it on its axis with minimal loss of speed and blasts back towards me.

Too obvious. And I already know that something's interfering with my scans.

I dodge well before he reaches me, forming minigun constructs and peppering the skies around me with dashes of-

"Urg."

-orange. A hole is torn in the sky-. No, it's some sort of chameleon-skinned flying manta creature, bleeding from the hole I just shot in its body.

Dodge.

The winged fishman flies through his cover's body, slashing at me with his-

Dodge.

-wings as the laser creature takes another shot with the electrolaser. Rocket-boarder shoots past me, while Wings actually needs to slow to turn.

Railgun, track and fire.

Compliance.

Solid slugs hit, and his flying appears to be essentially normal resulting in him being pushed through the sky. He's too tough for that to hurt him, though, and he grins at me as he realises it.

"Two fliers, and trained animals."

"Guy with an axe and trained animals."

"Military order." I switch to crumbler rounds. "We only need one to question."

"Easier said than done."

Track and fire-.

It hit the board-. I think I do, anyway, but the world's sort of… Swimming, like a… High fever. Ring?

Working.

I'd like something a little more definite. Fine, bypass physical senses and work off optic scans.

The view from my suddenly-unreliable eyes is replaced by a true colour image from my rings-.

Dodge!

"Paul, you okay?"

"Not sure-."

Ugh!

I got rammed by the board, and my inertia system isn't working-.

OOF!

"Got you!"

My body twists-

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:10 GMT

-inside my armour, and for some reason I can't-. I can't stop it or change back-.

What's going on?

Ah. My… Head isn't level with my helmet any more so I can't see out. Ring scans… Work, more or less. My armour's flight system is still working-

SWOOSH!

-and-. Or it was until the flying surf-fish slashed it in half, which… Ah. Shouldn't be possible. Not with pure kinetic force at any rate. Okay, limb check-. Eight. Eight tentacles. Scan mys-.

I'm an octopus. And I don't appear to be able to stop myself being an octopus. My environmental shield is still working, and-. Yes, my ring's flight system still works so I can get out of my armour as it plummets towards the ground.

I'm a purple octopoof!

Flying fish's face looks a lot bigger now that I'm a raw ingredient for calamari.

"Hah! Excellent! And so easy too!"

It was, rather. My tattoos are still there, altered for my new form. Which means that it can't have been a transmutation spell used at range because it wouldn't be able to find me. There wasn't any sort of ray, my environmental shield was active which should protect me from mutagenic agents-. Ring, blood work?

Unable to analyse.

Flying fish squeezes me and… That feels weird, but I don't have bones at the moment and my body is so flexible that it doesn't exactly hurt.

Okay, ring, remove a small sample where he can't see it and analyse it as an external object.

Compliance.

A small cut is made in the base of my… Um, in my lips? And a tiny construct pipette sucks out a little to insert into a small construct analysis.. engine.

Ring, how am I thinking at the moment? There's no way a brain this size can support a human consciousness.

Partial transubstantiation. Your mind primarily exists as orange light.

Neat. … Power remaining?

One hundred and eighty one percent normal maximum charge remaining.

Good-

The sky wheels around me as flying fishman decides to showboat.

-to know. Analysis?

Anomalous biological agents matching those in New God Primitive blood found.

How? Since when?

No data available.

No, fine, I couldn't scan it properly anyway. So it can bypass environmental shields and physical armour… Which is a little less surprising if it could bypass New God resilience. I'm still going to need to send a message to Dox about this.

"I wonder if it will taste at all special."

Ring, based on my usual construct speed and intensity, have I become any weaker since being infected?

Yes. However, full analysis is impossible as full strength has not been used.

I really hate getting weak.

Confirmed.

Assimilate.

Tendrils lash out and.. brush against his skin. The flying fishman grins.

"Hah! Still got a little life in you, little Lantern?! Jaffar has increase our strength tenfold! Your tricks will not avail you against my impervious skin!"

X-ionised blade and stab.

"Ow! What-?"

Now assimilate.

Compliance. Identity theft in progress.

He swings his hand around, trying to throw me off. Unfortunately for him, my tentacles are tightly wrapped around his forearm.

Ten percent complete.

"Uh..?"

He looks extremely confused, then swings his other hand at the top of my head. I block it with a counterpunch from a crumbler ram construct-

"GaGH!"

-which doesn't actually crumble his hand, but does blacken the surface and cause him to pull it back just as it occurs to me that if I do assimilate him then I can find out what he's been doing with the Old God's prison.

Twenty percent complete.

That could be useful. I don't particularly want to be stuck as a squid-. Because I've seen this film and I doubt that Jade would find it funny if I-. Yeah, I should probably-.

Thirty percent complete.

"Guys, I've got a problem!"

Forty percent complete.

He spins and tries to peel me off with centripetal force. No luck. He swoops down to the level of the treetops and tries to bash me off. I use a construct shield to ignore it.

Fifty percent complete.

"He shouldn't-. How is-?"

Sixty percent complete.

"Slig, change him again!"

Seventy percent complete.

"Then get back here! I can't do it from that far away!"

Roy could be in trouble. And the other two.

Eighty percent complete.

Flying fishman looks down at his increasingly orange body with an expression of resigned acceptance. "Back to the spawning pits again."

"Identity Theft complete. Shaligo of Apokolips, you belong to the Orange Lantern Corps."

And into the power ring you go. What have you miserable lot been-?

…

Oh, that's a bad idea.

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:12 GMT

Apokolips picked up the… Ah, ripple, in the presence -hah- of the Source… Which of course they did, Apokolips is Anti-Life central. The… Prison? Of the Old God S'ivaa was disrupted a bit, allowing them to access it via boom tube and take samples of his skin. And if S'ivaa breaks out?

Not their problem.

Except it is their problem, because the metaphysical event that separated New Genesis and Apokolips means nothing to an Old God, and if he wrecks New Genesis he'll head to Apokolips next.

And then… I don't know. And I don't want to find out.

I disgorge Shaligo from my ring and send him after Slig, the git who turned me into an octopus. I don't much care if he turns him into a construct or just keeps him occupied.

"By Darkseid's taint!" Pyron loops around and speeds towards me. "What did you do to-?"

Railgun, x-ionised sabot around, fire. His looping evasive pattern and high speed make hitting him precisely impossible, but one glancing hit to his chest is enough to make his eyes widen in shock. I fire again and again, striking arm and face-. Good enough. He's discomported and distracted as he flies past me, his spear half swinging and half held back to defend. But since I'm a flying octopus it's easy for me to duck around it and latch onto his arm next to the cut my railgun round made.

X-ionised knife to widen the wound and sever his tendons, and assimilate.

"Uagh!"

Compliance. Identity theft in progress.

Shaligo's thoughts on the issue weren't entirely clear, but he appeared to believe that S'ivaa's skin would make them completely immune to the primary weapons of other New Gods. And constructs, naturally. So far it's only worked to protect their skin, but that's something that might make their next bust-up with New Genesis completely one-sided if they get back to Apokolips.

Twenty percent complete.

Oh, and apparently if we just kill them, new versions of them spawn back on Apokolips with their memories intact. We have to take them alive or make them deader than dead.

Forty percent complete.

Don't pull the plug out of the universe and expect mercy afterwards.

Sixty percent complete.

I don't even care that these two aren't the useful two. I want them under my control.

Eighty percent complete.

Pyron lifts his arm with me on it. "Can we talk about this?"

I bite him with my beak. It doesn't pierce his skin, but I think I've made my point.

"Identity Theft complete. Pyron of Apokolips, you belong to the Orange Lantern Corps."

I send him after Trok, and then fly back towards the ship as he swoops ahead of me.

Open comms to Arsenal.

Compliance.

Arsenal, I've been turned into an octopus. You?

"I got the electric-. What do you mean, you got turned into an-"

He looks up as I float into view.

"-octo-." … "What?"

One of them can transform people into sea animals. And I can't turn back because I'm infected with Old God eczema.

I look around the clearing, noting a dead… Beetle-worm thing partly sticking out of ground, and two smaller ground creatures which look like a cross between wolves and flying foxes.

"You're not stuck like that forever, are you?"

Don't know, hope not.

Sserpa hauls… What's left of Gole upright. Roy shot him in the abdomen, and the shot bored through his body and burned through his spine. His legs are barely hanging on by his obliques. He's still alive, but he's bleeding out. He reaches weakly for one of his knives, energy cracking around his fingers-.

I stab x-ionised knives through his tendons.

"Nrgh!"

"Hey…"

Arsenal looks at me…

Yeah. That might be a bit much.

I take carbon nanotube reinforced tungsten chains out of subspace and bind Gole.

Sserpa looks a bit confused. "Why bind him if he's dying?"

I take my healing ray out of subspace… Then manually send constructs into his abdominal cavity and push things back into roughly the right place before firing it.

Arsenal nods. "What are we doing with him?"

If Troia and Lantern Rrab are successful, Highfather can have him. Otherwise… A sciencell on Oa. They'll take an Apokoliptian-

"Agh!"

-warrior.

I would smile if I could as Shaligo finds Slig. Arsenal sprints towards the sound, and I float behind at a more leisurely pace.

"By Darkseid's puckered-!"

I enter the small clearing where Arsenal has shot Slig in the mouth with his foam launcher, Shaligo having shoved him to his knees with the razor edges of his wings held to Slig's neck.

"Okay, dude. Change the octopus back and we'll go easy on you."

Slig tries to growl, but it doesn't really work with his mouth blocked. And then he tries coughing but that doesn't work either and I start getting a little worried about what happens if he throws up in his mouth.

Oh, it… Comes out of his nose. That's unpleasant.

Roy sprays it with his solvent and then steps back.

"The octopus." Slig coughs out the remains of the foam along with his own vomit. "Change him back."

"I ouhouhouh-. I can't. Darkseid did not grant me that power." He smiles. "He is an octopus forever! Weak and puny! And you will-"

I clamp suppression chains on him.

"-become-"

Slig turns into a seal.

"WAAAAAAH AWAWAWA!"

I… I'm not seeing any desires that would be out of place on a normal seal. Um.

I guess he can go in the sciencell across from Gole.

Arsenal turns to look at me as I recover the chains and send them back into subspace.

"Ah. Sorry."

Don't worry. We've still got two more to find, and if it comes to it I can just transfer my consciousness to a clone.

I look around.

Where's Mantis?

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:16 GMT

"So how come I'm not infected?"

Leaving Sserpa behind to deal with the prisoners-. Prisoner and talkative seal, and I really hope that being turned into a seal doesn't count as 'death' for the purpose of them being reborn in the spawning pits, but neither of my construct lanterns know.

My best guess is that I got infected when I took off my helmet and turned off my environmental shield. It wasn't for long, but if the cells were airborne then they could have entered my body. And since they're immune to direct detection, they wouldn't have been purged when I reactivated it.

"Why did you turn off your environmental shield?"

Mantis wanted to smell me.

He stares at me. "O-kay?" He blinks, then shakes his head. "So, ah, always wear protection?"

I don't think it works like that. Wearing a helmet harms interpersonal interactions. In virtually all circumstances, an environmental shield is a perfectly effective form of protection.

"You're the one who said that the Orange Lantern Corps is a military organization first."

Yes, but the Justice League isn't, and I'm here doing League work. I agree, it would be nice not to be an octopus, but-

He snorts.

-I don't think this was a reasonably foreseeable event.

"Yeah, but you don't wear armour 'cause you know you're gunna get shot. You just know it could happen."

Huh.

I suppose that I could have prevented this problem by having a second conventional environmental shield on as well as the one my rings generate. My heavy armour includes that system, but you've seen what that looks like.

"Why are you so worried what it looks like?"

Because… Did you read the file on the Justice Society International?

"The parallel universe thing where the J.S.A. never broke up?"

Yes.

"Yeah, I read it. Kinda looks like Batman might be doing the same thing."

There's a logic to it. It's just… I don't really want to make a militarised system like that. Did you read up on Robert Peel?

"Yeah, 'cause you mentioned it. I don't think superheroes are exactly part of the public."

But we're not supposed to be an oppressive military force, either. NEMO is a military organisation, but the part of LEGION that's responsible for maintaining order on occupied planets doesn't dress like its marines and they include as many local people as they can once their brain scans come back clear.

"And that's why you don't like the OMACs. Because they're… Not part of the public. They don't even remember being part of the public."

Just because your costume is bright, that doesn't make you a superhero. And if I recognise that, Batman certainly should. Intimidation should be a sometimes tool.

And there the beach again. Only two members of the Deep Six left; Jaffar, who specialises in precise biological manipulation rather than 'now you're a fish' like Slig, and Trok, the axe-fighter who first attacked Roy. Jaffar stayed behind to continue their work, but I'm not sure what's Trok's planning.

I undulate as Shaligo returns to my ring, the impression of the platform where Jaffar's working, some sort of Apokoliptian machinery and… A crack in reality through which S'ivaa can be seen.

They destroyed my construct lantern. It's just the two of them.

"And any animals they created."

Jaffar is too focused on S'ivaa to make many of those. As far as Shaligo knows, all he's got is a couple of razor minnows.

"Will my armor stop them?"

It should, but they're mostly there to distract and harass rather than attack. The main threat comes from Trok and Jaffar.

"How fast can Jaffar work?"

Not particularly fast, and his ability is short ranged.

"You don't have to change a body much before it stops working."

You don't have to stab someone much before they stop working. Oh, and he can go invisible, so use your augmented visual modes.

"I always have those on. Sometimes when I'm on a mission I pretend I'm the predator."

Yautja.

"Huh?"

That's-. Never mind.

"You don't wanna turn back into a human before we attack them?"

When there's a chance of something that big getting out, I don't want to spend the hours carefully filtering my own blood that I'd need to in order to get my body back when I can fight well enough like this.

He nods. "Approach vector?"

Supercavitation drop. We'll get above them, then I'll fill the water with carbon dioxide bubbles and we can fall straight through it. It'll be more disorientating for them than us, unlike having me transition us there.

"And what do we do if S'ivaa gets out?"

Die.

"Oh. You don't… I don't know, the Ophidian..?"

I took eight months to work out how to reliably kill Nabu. I've had an hour to think about S'ivaa, a being about which I know nothing. Since modifying the Deep Six with his eczema made them immune to constructs, I'm going to assume that he's immune to at least that much, as well as being effectively invulnerable to kinetic energy at levels we can generate. I mean, sure, if he stirs, I'll throw everything I've got at him, but I'm not hopeful.

"Couldn't we just get away? If we can't hurt him, there's no sense getting killed."

If he gets completely free, that's the aim. The problem is, I don't know what the dividing line between 'getting out, but we can force him back if we're lucky' and 'he's out, kiss your arse goodbye' is. So I don't know when to give the 'flee' order.

And I do not remember S'ivaa from the comics, so no help there.

"Makes sense."

Right. Last thing. Ring, contact Lantern Rrab.

"Compliance."

An image of a somewhat distracted-looking Lantern Rrab appears over my ring. "We're bus-." She blinks. "Did he-? Lose his ring?"

No, he got turned into an octopus. We're heading in to confront the last remaining members of the Deep Six and try to keep S'ivaa in his pocket dimension. Send reinforcements once they're available.

"R-right. But I don't know when that will be."

Doesn't matter. Just do it once you can. End.

I turn to Roy as her face vanishes.

Shall we?

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:13 GMT

We float over the ocean, looking down. Down there is the edge of the continental shelf, which now I compare it to other planets on record is too deep. There's no reason in conventional geology for such a sharp drop-off in a place like this. And it's giving me a slightly worrying feeling about how tall S'ivaa is likely to be.

"Are you gunna send the construct lanterns down first?"

No, I'll deploy them when we get down there. They'll be more useful for shock value than as a distraction.

I try to sigh, but it turns out that octopuses can't do that.

Arsenal, Jaffar is trying to release-.

"Yeah, I get it. Stopping them takes absolute priority. Stop the giant evil god getting out, then worry about taking prisoners."

That's a relief. I don't want to try insisting that my friends and allies kill people, even if the balance of utility is clearly in that direction. But after experiencing the Anti-Life… I think they all get it. And… I didn't kill Mannheim, so… I guess we all grew a little.

"So what's going on right now?"

I generate a construct image, Trok kneeling before Jaffar, Jaffar laying one hand on his forehead as if in benediction while his other reaches out for a giant fingertip-.

We're going down. Two.

Abandoning subtlety, I manifest a column of orange light downwards, heedless of power consumption or stealth. In position, bubbles.

One.

The sea fizzes.

Drop.

I deactivate my ring's flight system and fall through the foam, Roy following half a second later.

Fuckfuckfuck. Are they actively trying to let S'ivaa out? That wasn't the aim as far as Shaligo knew, but perhaps the team's biomancer had other ideas? Or perhaps this is a desperation move, and they just weigh the whole 'letting out an Old God' differently to how I do? If Canis is anything to go by, Apokoliptians have a very high degree of faith in the power of Darkseid. They might well be assuming that he can deal with it if something goes wrong.

It could well be true-.

We hit the bottom, releasetheconstructlanternsandsendthematTrokconstructarmourandevade-.

A short distance from me, Roy viffs around any potential fire and aims his positron ray.

"I got this!"

He fires as Jaffar pulls back and Trok leaps upwards through the water, drawing his axe. Roy-.

His beam hits the Apokoliptian machine sitting on the flat stone area in front of-.

I see the fingertip, poking through a hole. But it's not a hole in the rock, it's like-. Like someone-.

Take two pictures drawn in different art styles. Tear a strip out of one and stick in over the front of the second. Except the one at the back is in three dimensions and has a finger sticking out. A big finger. Or-. No, it's more like many translucent images draw in different styles are stuck one on top of the other, and the finger reaches through all of them. The tip is about four feet fall and the finger nail is disconcertingly sharp, but worse, behind and above it I can just about make out the glowing, glowering yellow eyes of S'ivaa himself. The eyes are only open a crack, but…

He can see me.

He can see everything.

Wait, if I assume that's-.

The tear is the right size and shape to have been made by his nail, assuming that the fabric of reality can be persuaded to act like actual fabric.

So-.

Roy's shot hits the Apokoliptian machine. It doesn't do much damage, but the glowing tron lines around the point of impact flicker and die.

S'ivaa's eyes open very slightly wider, and his grimace a little more eager.

Stop shooting that-! / "Are you mad-?!" / "No-!"

Roy fires again reflexively before letting go of the gun like it burned his hands, and I order my construct lanterns to stop mid-lunge.

I forgot I had that many.

Jaffar and I sort of look at each other as the area of the machine that isn't glowing grows.

Truce?

He nods sharply as he dives towards the machine. "You face S'ivaa, I'll repair the machine."
Cut Through
The space around the fingernail flickers, as if another layer has been peeled off. In the distance that isn't anything like far enough away, S'ivaa becomes a little more…

Real. A part of the material universe.

I jab his finger with a construct blade just to check, and it does nothing. Extruding an x-ionised blade… Does nothing, and the finger has come a few millimetres further into reality.

Crumbler rounds, nothing. Kahuuite rounds-.

An extra layer slews off S'ivaa.

Not using that.

"Make an effort, Lantern!"

Arsenal lands next to me. "What-?"

Not your fault, but please don't distract me.

I can't risk using a singularity beam in a situation like this, but maybe if I distort gravity manually..? I raise my tentacles and generate a space warping construct and… It doesn't make the situation worse, but it doesn't look like S'ivaa is being forced back at all.

Ring, transmit update to Lantern Rrab.

Compliance.

Alright, alright, there's clearly some sort of metaphysical structure here that I can't properly perceive. If I interface with it-. How do I interface with it?

The broken machine.

I jet towards it just as Jaffar takes part of a panel off, orange tendril reaching towards-

"What are you doing? Focus on the Old-"

-the inner workings and I reach out for the desires of whoever stuck S'ivaa in there in the first place and manifest.

"-God-. No, keep working!"

Parts of the machine light up orange and I don't really know if it's working but all I really need is an interface so I can feel whatever it is keeping it out of the world. And…

And I think I can feel something. I don't know exactly what it is, but if I link that to the desires I feel-.

The hole shrinks, just a little, and S'ivaa gives me his full attention.
CAST IN SHADOW

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:15 GMT

My connection to the machine vanishes at once, and the finger twitches in my direction.

Jaffar stares at me. "What happened? That was working!"

He did something, using the cells of his that are in my body. Can you-

I recreate the gravity field, but it isn't going to do much.

-get rid of them? Or turn me back into a human?

"I could turn you back, but it would take me hours."

Then get rid of the cells. He's using it to make a connection to me and stop me pushing him back.

"I could…"

I point all eight of my tentacles at the Old God looming above us, including the one which is my penis.

"You make-" Jaffar lays his right hand on my head, and I very carefully monitor the changes he's making in me. "-a very good point."

"Um." Roy is sort of standing there, looking a little awkward. A short distance away Trok appears to be in a similar position. "Do you need me to do anything?"

Jaffar beckons Trok. "Trok, help me with the machine."

Yes. Call Doctor Knight's ship. The integrated Mother Box might let us boom tube S'ivaa somewhere.

Jaffar scoffs as I detect something leaving my tiny cephalopod body. "It is far from that simple. The boom tube cannot open close enough to the Source Wall to prevent him simply tearing a hole in reality to wherever he wants to go."

Could it repair this machine?

"Not faster than I can remove this cell culture. There." He removes his hand and-. Yes! The machine glows orange once more. "Now we have progress."

Trok reaches the machine and pulls some sort of tool out of his belt. He then presses it to the damaged section, which… Shimmers in response.

Roy stands there awkwardly. "Ah-I'm sorry."

Don't worry. Not angry. Just focusing.

Though actually, with those cells removed and that small explosive cancer cell Jaffar tried adding to my brain excised…

No. For some reason I still can't make myself human.

S'ivaa's finger is slowly being forced back by the collective desires of everyone who put him down here, but I-.

Roy points. "Is that.. another hand?"

Ah heck.

Trok finishes one small part of the machine. "He has four."

Um. Right. I recall Pyron and Shaligo to my ring, and search for the desires inside them-. Yes, they didn't want S'ivaa breaking out either. Bring that to the fore and then shove them into the machine!

Jaffar's staring at the Old God. "I just wanted one finger! Why couldn't you leave us alone to work!"

Roy picks up the positron ray and aims it towards S'ivaa's face. "Looks like you're about to get nineteen more."

The other fingers are approaching, and while I try pushing back… There's too much… Difference between the different levels of his prison.

The rock plaform we're standing on cracks.

Who else..? Demon Nabu. It's degraded, but there's just a little of his old desire to keep the universe orderly in there. Reinforce it and shove him into the machine.

The finger begins receding a little faster but I don't think it's going to be enough. My other construct lanterns couldn't conceive of something like this.

Trok stands, abandoning his work as he considers fleeing. Jaffar gestures to the machine. "Get back to it! Every moment we live is new knowledge we take to Great Darkseid when we respawn."

"I do not believe that thing will let us respawn."

"Then our lord will simply grow a new Trok! What is the difference?"

Roy glances back at me. "Do I shoot, or..?"

Does he? I doubt that it would hurt, but the kaahuite shouldn't have hurt and it did anyway.

Don't bother with the positron ray. Try sonics. We just need him distracted.

He deploys his sonic cannon as Trok grudgingly returns to work, taking careful aim and firing. It doesn't appear to do anything, but there isn't much he can do in a situation like this.

I turn to Jaffar.

What was the plan for sealing this?

"Build more etheric destabilisers until the connection between S'ivaa and the material universe decayed completely. We don't have the parts or the time now."

The tips of the fingernails of the rest of the fingers sharing a hand with the one Jaffar has been studying begin to poke out into normal space, and high above us S'ivaa begines to smile.

Could I duplicate it with constructs? Not worth a damn. Alright, if he's getting out then I need to notify Hinon-.
Divine Mandate
There's a flare of white light from the centre of the platform, and-. Highfather Izaya appears, crook raised high!

"Back, Old God! Back into the dark!" "By the authority of the Source, I cast you back!"

S'ivaa's other arms are thrown back, and the one finger that's on our side flails around trying to find some purchase as it's pushed back too. I find myself sagging with relief -in as much as I can as an octopus- but just in case it doesn't work I maintain my focus on the machine. Jaffar and Trok on the other hand look like they're getting ready to run. I turn to Jaffar.

Be serious. Where would you go?

"I would rather try and fail than go peacefully to the slaughter."

And if you can make him kill you, then you'll respawn. I'll make you another deal. Surrender peacefully, and I won't turn you into a construct once S'ivaa is contained. If I turn you, then you won't respawn.

He looks like he's thinking hard about it.

You can't open a boom tube faster than I can grab you. You literally can't get away. Be realistic.

He and Trok look at each other as the finger finally leaves this reality and the hole snaps shut. I withdraw my power from their machine, glowing orange.

Decide quickly.

"Yes." Izaya turns towards them, hair wafting in the current but otherwise being entirely unaffected by the environment. "Decide swiftly."

Jaffar grunts, then kneels with his hands upturned. Trok follows suit a moment later, dropping his axe to the floor.

Then Izaya looks to me.

"Orange Lantern. We should talk."

 

[Mr Zoat]

15th August 2000
09:24 GMT -7

Aneta holds up the coffee pot as I walk into the Alliance headquarters break room. "You want one?"

I shake my head. "No, thank you. I don't drink coffee."

But… The fridge… Ah, good. None of the Americans have been brave enough to steal my unpasteurised milk. I take the bottle out and head towards the glasses cupboard.

"Oh, hitting the hard stuff." She pours a mug before putting the pot back under the spigot. "They didn't want you in the meeting?"

"My presence was not required." Glass, pour… And take a calming sip.

"They didn't want the Green Knight in the meeting?"

I shrug. "It doesn't concern the Conduit, banshees -and they've got Senior Agent Blaze if it did- or Maltus. And since it's unlikely that they'll need me to hit anything inside the meeting room, the Director told me to take five."

"M-m." She takes a seat, twisting her tail into what I assume is a more comfortable position. "I don't think they appreciate you."

"I don't care how much they respect me. I care-" I put the jug back into the fridge and sit down opposite her. "-how much they let me do the job. And there's no problem there." I frown as she takes another sip. "Is that..? Safe for you?"

"It is in low doses. I mostly drink it for the warmth."

I raise my left eyebrow. "In Nevada in August? You can just go outside."

She looks at me quizzically. "In the sun?"

"There's a.. covered area for the smokers."

She doesn't look entirely sure about my answer, but appears to shrug it off. "Yes, but there's no covered route from the exit to the smoking area. And besides, I don't like the smell."

I nod as I take another sip. That's fair. And even if she could get there safely, I doubt she'd be all that comfortable only a couple of metres from a zone of certain death.

She suddenly smiles. "You forgot, didn't you?"

"Ah… Yeah, it slipped my mind. Sorry."

She chuckles, staring at me. "No one will believe this. Do you know that you are the one my family have been asking about? They seem to think that Director Logan is using you to threaten us into meek obedience."

"Would you like me to talk to them?"

She-. I think that's a smile. The mouths of members of her species can't really move in the right way to smile properly. "I would like you to visit them. I want to watch their expressions when they realise who you are."

I nod. "Well, if I'm in the area…"

"You really have no conception of how afraid of you the families are."

"I wouldn't say no conception. It's more that I don't care."

"Dorn controls all of the families because of your threat, and it isn't the slightest concern to you."

"Yes. Dorn controls the families. It's not a privilege-. Not just a privilege. He knows that if one of the families acts up, I might well have some pointed questions for him."

Her eyes remain locked onto mine, which isn't exactly the same gesture in vampire body language as it is in human, but it's close.

"Speaking of 'acting up', I have some questions."

"Aneta, we're the same rank. Speaking to your supervising agent would be a better idea."

"But it might be something simple that I lack the perspective to understand. I would rather not look foolish when you are so agreeable."

That seems extremely unlikely, but alright. "Okay, go ahead."

"Taking humans as thralls is illegal, of course. But employing humans is allowed. Encouraged, even."

"Yes..?"

"So where is the cut-off?"

"Ah…" I shake my head in incomprehension.

"It has been suggested that feeding on humans is banned. But then I heard about a club where humans pretend to be mythological vampires and exchange blood. If humans can do that, surely we should be able to? I know that some of my male colleagues have received… Offers."

"Were they wearing a disguise at the time?"

"No. Humans can be such strange creatures."

"Well… Boxing matches don't count as criminal assault. I suppose that if whoever you're feeding on volunteers and doesn't suffer lasting harm, that should be alright. Check with local laws before indulging."

"Of course, that would involve-" She opens her mouth, which is a little disturbing because while they generally only open the front part of their mouths when talking the whole orifice actually goes quite a lot further back. "-biting."

"Not necessarily, but again, if they consent-."

"But what about venom?" She raises her right forefinger to her right fang just as a single drop of venom drips out. "Is that illegal?"

"I.. don't believe that using vampire venom recreationally is illegal anywhere. But.. wouldn't that always turn someone into a thrall?"

"Only with repeated doses. And we don't have to enslave them. We can just leave them to recover."

I give her a mild frown. "Isn't vampire venom addictive?"

"Not chemically. A small dose isn't any more mind-altering than-" She lifts her mug slightly. "-coffee."

"Alright, but what does someone get when they get bitten?"

She finally looks away, her body undulating. "That depends on how restrained the biter is being."

"That… Is probably legal, in most places, for now. But I would strongly suggest that you encourage everyone not to do it, because dosing someone with something that makes them more agreeable and then feeding on them looks really dodgy, even if they don't turn into vampoids, which they inevitably would. As I discussed with Dorn, having people sign contracts which involve them becoming vampoids and paying them isn't different enough to what you were doing for people to accept it as part of the families' reform process."

"But is it really fair for you to pass judgement without…" Her tongue flicks out. "Investigating it yourself?"

"No, that's something that the people actually passing the legislation would have to do." I glance at the clock on the wall. "I wonder how long the meeting's going to take."

She shifts her coils into a new position. "Why? Hot date?"

I nod. "Date, yes. Unless an emergency gets called I'm off duty in an hour, but I don't want to just disappear-."

She pulls herself up slightly, looking puzzled. "Who with? The banshee isn't building a harem, is she?"

"Dating my immediate superior would be unprofessional. No, one of the other banshee asked me out."

"You don't mind dating other species?"

"Not.. really?"

"Then-" She half-flops off her settee and looms in front of me. "-I would also like you to take me to dinner."

"Um. I… Suppose I could do that? As long as you don't bite me."

She smiles in a somewhat sinister way. "Not on the first date."

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:27 GMT

Lightray glares at me briefly before directing Jaffar, Trok, Slig and Gole onto a flying platform thing. They comply with a minimal amount of glaring. Donna and Arisia are taking in the sights of New Genesis's ground floor while Roy is shuffling awkwardly. I'll need to talk to him before we leave.

Izaya looks directly at me. "I believe that they are six in number?"

I nod, deploying the two Construct Lanterns.

I assimilated these two in combat. I-.

He raises his staff. "I grant you clemency."

And-. It glows for a moment, then the aura touches them… And I'm down two Construct Lanterns as they return to flesh.

I suppose that if Finality Man could do that, it only makes sense than he can. Shaligo flares his wings for a moment, then realises who it is pointing the crook at him and furls them again.

I understand. If it's not too much trouble, could you-?

He smiles faintly as he taps me on the head with his crook, and I have arms again!

"Thank you. I very much appreciate it."

He nods. "If only removing the influence of an Old God was so simple."

"The Primitives.. have some sort of disease-."

He nods. "Cultivated from S'ivaa's flesh. Now that he is once again cut off from the world, the symptoms should fade. I will visit them after you leave to aid in curing any residual affects."

"Thank you. Ah. There was a warrior bug by the name of 'Mantis'. According to him, their hive was infected as well."

"I will include them in my visit. Did he fall in battle?"

"I don't.. think so. I didn't see a body. I'm not sure where he's gone, and my scans aren't reliable on New Genesis."

He nods. "I will enquire as to his fate with our prisoners."

He turns and walks towards the cowed Deep Six. "What has become of the Orange Lantern's insectoid companion?"

They instinctively lean away from him, but none of them speak. Izaya raises his crook slightly. "Any mercy you might hope for me to grant is contingent upon your cooperation. It would be wise for you to speak." Bow to my Authority.

Jaffar twitches, then shrugs. "It hardly matters. We used our ship's boom tube to send him to Apokolips, out of your reach."

"Why would you do that? He was just one bug out of millions, and Apokolips has the gene-programs for creating more from their spawning pods."

"I hadn't completed my studies of S'ivaa's body tissues… But I didn't need to for our mission to be a success. I just had to return a sample to Darkseid. He was impressed by our work. He volunteered to be our vessel! To convey our discovery to Darkseid! Keep us in prison forever and it will not matter! HAHAHA!"

Izaya raises his crook, and the platform they're standing on rises up into the air, heading for Supertown. Lightray heads after it as an escort.

"That will be trouble. I will have to have our gene-smiths study how to bypass his resilience, should Darkseid use it to improve his parademons."

"Would it be possible to launch a strike against wherever they sent him? I can get the coordinates from the ship."

He considers for a moment, then nods slowly. "I should consider it at least. Get the information, and I will review it."

"Would you like us to help?"

"No. I thank you for the offer, but I think it would be best if Earth and the humans did nothing to further draw Darkseid's attention. This should be well within the abilities of warriors of New Genesis."

I nod. "Would you be willing to undo other assimilations? I know that one Guardian got assimilated by Larfleeze and I don't know if the others managed to fix him yet."

He regards me askance. "Do you frequently do this to people?"

"No. Since I have no way to undo it myself, I only use it when I believe that someone deserves to die but where killing them would be insufficient or otherwise dangerous. And I… Realise that it's unreasonable to expect you to drop everything when an Orange Lantern gets assimilation-happy, but there are one or two-."

He's already nodding. "One or two, I am willing to undo. More than that, and I will have to discover what led your people to treat that power so frivolously."

I nod. "That's perfectly reasonable. Thank you. Ah… I should say that according to K'Zandr, S'ivaa's prison was weakened by what we did to purge the Anti-Life from Earth, so if there are any similar prisons, it would be a good idea to check on them as well."

He smiles ruefully. "After this I will be checking everything very carefully."

"Let me know if there's anything I can do. Ah. The reason why we're here-."

"Troia informed me. You are concerned that forces not of Earth are collaborating with the Batman in using New God technology. I do not believe that any of my people are involved, other than my son and his wife, but I will make enquiries. If any are, I will make certain that their motives are pure."

"Pure good, right?"

He looks at me as if I'm a little slow. "Orange Lantern, this is New Genesis."

"Okay, then I'll take your word for it." I glance pointedly at Roy. "Well, ah, glad that we could help. We'll be heading back to Earth shortly."

He nods politely. "Farewell, Orange Lantern."

He raises his crook, and vanishes. And I turn to Donna and Arisia. "So what actually happened up there?"

Donna glances up towards the departing Lightray. "That guy. He'd taken over, and Highfather was in some sort of psychiatric cell."

"He didn't do the projection?"

She shakes her head. "Lightray. He thought fighting us would be a change of pace. It was Orion who told us what was actually happening."

Arisia nods. "Troia was able to heal Highfather's mind, but he couldn't help the others. Then… Something happened, and his power could reach them. I don't know what changed."

"Time?"

"Ah… Eight fifteen, Eastern Standard."

"That was… When S'ivaa did something to disrupt my ability to control the machine that was forcing him to stay outside of our reality."

Donna nods. "You got his full attention. So he couldn't keep driving them mad."

"I assume that Lightray apologised?"

"Yes." Donna nods. "To Highfather."

Heh. That tracks.

"Okay, Roy and I have a spaceship to bring up to specification, and I've got to pick up some alchemical reagents from the Primitives, but otherwise I think we're done here. You're free to go back to Earth-." Arisia squints at me. "What?"

"Flying back to Earth would take me months. And what spaceship?"

"Come right this way and I'll show you."

 

[Mr Zoat]

15th August 2000
18:36 GMT

I frown slightly as the excited-looking Bláthnaid stabs her wooden fork through her cod's batter and splits it open, a thin whiff of water vapour rising out.

"Are you sure.. this is alright?"

She looks around, taking in the sea, the wooden bench we're sitting at, the wood and wrought iron pier the fish and chip shop we ordered from is built into and, past it, the rest of the seafront.

"We're far enough away. And we don't get a lot a' fish in th' cavern."

I nod as I make vents in the batter around my huss. "Can you eat human food?"

"Just about everything we've tried. But we haven't had much variety recently." She spears a lump of fish and batter and brings it into her mouth. Then her eyes widen.

"Good? Very g-?"

"Hot!" She grabs her coke can and tries to twist the top off. "Too hot!"

Hands moving in a blur, I grab it from her and pull the ring pull. Carbonated sugar water bubbles out for a moment before she brings it to her mouth and takes a gulp. For a moment, she experiences relief.

"Pjcuh-cgh!"

Then the bubbles hit, and she cough-choke-sneezes!

"What the bluddy hell-" I pass her a tissue and she wipes her mouth and nose. "-was that?"

"Carbon dioxide dissolved in the drink. A lot of people enjoy the sensation."

She stares at me in incomprehension. "'re they daft?"

"You're not supposed to drink it quite that fast." I smile. "Or breathe it in."

"Oi'm not a plant. What do oi want wit' carbon dioxide?"

I reach over to my right, pick up my one pint milk bottle and hold it up. "I don't drink it. You're the one who wanted it."

She looks over to the other five drink cans I bought her. "'re they all loik this?"

"They're all carbonated, yes. Try drinking some when you're not burning your mouth."

She takes a moment to steady herself, then nods. "Alright, fine."

She takes a deep breathe, passes the damp tissue back to me, then cautiously raises the coke to her mouth before taking a extremely cautious sip. She looks a little awkward when the bubbles hit, but she doesn't seem to hate the experience.

"What's in it?"

I point to the can. "It's written on the back."

She turns it around and peers at it, frowning in concentration. "What's 'tartaric acid'?"

I shake my head. "I have no idea. I know it's safe for human consumption, if that's any help."

She takes another sip, and appears to decide that she doesn't hate it. "How'd it go wi' th' machine man?"

"I had to dress up in a suit made of shadoen flesh to attract its attention, then it turned out that the thing it was looking for was actually there. I could have done nothing and achieved more or less the same result. And then the military destroyed it, which is going to create a huge problem."

She frowns. "But you're no' keeping th' Alliance a secret."

"Yes, but whereas before the Alliance did whatever it wanted, now we've got to discuss how far our authority goes with every country on Earth. The British government decided to use military aircraft, and they didn't notify us before the strike happened. So now Director Logan has to sort out why they did it and who's pushing what agenda."

She shrugs. "Why's it mattur?"

"For you, it matters because at the moment the Alliance is responsible for liaising between human governments and nonhuman settlements. But there isn't really anything stopping a government from refusing to allow us to work in their territory, or the world's most powerful governments setting up their own agency and… Technically they can't force us to shut down, but they can refuse to acknowledge our credentials which would effectively do the same thing."

She stares at me in incomprehension. "What 're you talking about?"

"Ah…" What would be the equivalent..? "Imagine if the queens on the banshee homeworld found out that the vampires on Earth weren't really doing anything and ordered all the banshee on Earth to move to another planet."

Her eyes widen. "They can't do that!"

"You know them better than I do, but that's basically what's happening to the Alliance."

"Does that mattur t' th' banshee?"

"Not so long as you have a decent relationship with the Irish government. It's more a potential problem for species with conventional technology like the vampires."

"Oi don't much care what happens t' th' loiks o' them."

"If the major nations of the world start seizing examples of advanced technology and then fighting each other for more, it will start to become an issue. Vampires selling to everyone with the world unified against a potential shadoen return works out best because there's no competition." I sigh as I spear a sufficiently cooled chip. "I'm just glad that we could move the wrecks before the British government could seize them. If they even wanted to."

"Maybe they jus' wanted t' kill th' robots."

I shake my head. "They didn't check the situation on the ground. It's very bad practice to bomb a place without doing that."

She frowns. "Would that a' hurt you?"

"Unless it caught me completely by surprise, no. But they didn't know that."

She forks another piece of cod, and this time manages to eat it without burning herself. I eat a chip, taking a moment to consider… Her. Alright, I knew that banshees could function in society because that's what Senior Agent Blaze does every day. But it's a little odd to see one out here…

"I got the impression that you only agreed to this because I didn't back down."

"You're not bad comp'ny. And I would'nae have any idea where t'go."

"So is this going to become a regular thing, or were you just curious?"

She snorts. "Got competition, have oi?"

"I think one of the vampire agents was hitting on me." Her eyes widen. "Either that, or she was just hungry." Her face hardens. "I think she wants to increase her status by using me as a threat in being to other vampires."

"Don't you be spendin' time with the loiks a' her."

"I said 'no' to being fed on, thank you for your concern."

"Roit. I'm keepin' y', then."

I blink. "Um."

"Oi'm not lettin' m'-. You outta moi soit if'n some poisonous snake it jus' going t' snatch y' oop."

"I appreciate the thought, but she and I both work for the Alliance-."

"Foin!"

15th August 2000
14:06 GMT -7

"Here!"

Senior Agent Blaze looks up from her desk, frowning, as Bláthnaid slams her application paperwork down in front of her. She takes it from her, realises what it is and then turns to stare incredulously at me.

I smile politely. "Date went well, sir."

 

[Mr Zoat]

23rd July 2013
12:36 GMT

Donna looks the ship over, frowning at it. "Where did Vandal Savage even get a spaceship?"

"Opal City. A mad inventor-"

"There's a surprise."

"-built it in the nineteenth century, then various people upgraded it. Its main drive comes from Starman One, but it's also got a Mother Box so it can use boom tubes."

"So we can get home in a few minutes?"

"Yep." Hm. "I'd like to just give it to Arsenal, but we should.. probably check that no one owns it first."

"If Vandal Savage had it, and no one tried to claim it, do you really think that's likely?"

"If they were renting it to him, we might get a lead on him. And… There's a rather close similarity to the model of cosmic converter this ship uses as its main generator, and the model Stagg Enterprises is using for commercial power generation."

"Aren't they one of… Three..?" I nod. "Next generation power companies?"

"They are indeed. So at best they bought the rights to Starman One's work and finally commercially exploited it, and Savage got someone to build a generator to the same design… And at worst they're in cahoots."

"Are you surprised? Stagg wasn't exactly clean."

"Yes, but there's 'a bit shady' and then there's 'cooperates with the man behind mass child murder'."

"I guess you've got something to investigate, then."

"And we still don't know who's helping Batman. Did you see anything while you were up there?"

"Plenty, and Arisia recorded it. But… We couldn't see people who weren't there, and I don't have a Supertown census."

"Right." I sigh. "Well. Maybe Highfather will find them."

I glance over to where Roy is poking the corpse of the burrowing laser creature.

"Can you give us a minute?"

"Uh, sure? I can go talk to Doctor Knight." She smiles. "See if he's got any good stories about Diana."

I nod as she flies to the entrance, and then walk over to Roy.

"Is it dead?"

He gives it one last kick. "Yeah. It's dead."

"None of them had mind control powers. It was probably unique."

He nods. "Do we need to tell the Primitives that it's here?"

"No, I'm sure something will scavenge it before too long. And Sserpa saw it, so if they really need to know then he can tell them. It was when I met Mantis."

He looks at me, frowning slightly. "What was?"

"When I got infected. I took off my helmet so he could see my face and turned off my environmental shield so he could smell me. And if I hadn't done that and just worked around him he wouldn't be on Apokolips right now."

"And Sserpa and me would be dead because he's the one who picked up the ground shaking before that thing attacked."

"Did you see him go through the boom tube?"

He shakes his head. "No. I thought he was running after the guy in the forest. So that's something else I messed up."

"It was a reasonable decision."

"Not keeping track of Mantis?"

"Shooting the machine."

"It was keeping S'ivaa out of reality. If I hadn't shot it, we'd just have had to fight them and we'd have been done."

"Maybe."

"It-."

"Alright, probably. But there was no way to know that in advance, and it might have let them control what S'ivaa was doing. No one on Earth except Scott Free, Big Barda and.. Batman, understand New God technology well enough to spot what they do in advance, and usually blowing up a supervillain's equipment is a good idea."

"I-I guess… It's just-. I messed up the mission, then I had to just stand there while you and Highfather fixed it."

"I got turned into an octopus."

"And you still did more than me."

"Okay. So… Is that the issue? Because it's not like I knew what the machine did."

"It-. I guess-. They're both the issue."

"If you want more power and a priori knowledge of what things around you do, I suggest… Magic? You'd be starting a little late, but Hepheastaean could use a warrior. Or you can try using a power ring-."

"I don't-. I don't know if that's a good idea."

"Thanks."

"Huh-? No, I didn't mean it like that. I just don't know if I've got the right.. way of thinking to use it right."

"And Hepheastaean?"

"Maybe? It's-. I'll think about it."

"There may be other options. Because… It's always possible to get stronger, get more… Options, learn more… And still run into something you don't understand and can't beat. I'd have been just as stuck as you if Highfather hadn't turned up."

He snorts quietly. "I doubt it. But… Thanks for the pep talk."

"And even if I did do more, the mission's still a failure, so-."

He holds up his right hand. "Okay, you can stop."

I nod, smiling. "Alright, let's get out of here. And hope nothing's gone crazier on Earth while we were gone."

He nods, and we head towards the ship.

 

[Mr Zoat]

24th July 2013
09:44 GMT -5

Mr. Queen swivels on his heel with an arrow on his string pointing straight at me.

"Green Arrow. I apologise if I-." He lowers the arrow. "-caught you at a bad time."

"No, you're fine." He goes back to his vigil, overlooking Star City. "Thought you were Hal."

"Did you hear me?"

"No. Spotted your shadow. Lanterns glow, so it looks different to the other fliers." Finding nothing amiss in his city, he looks up at me. "So on a scale of zero to doomed..?"

"Oh, no. As far as I know, nothing special is going wrong in Star City. It's about Arsenal."

He snorts, smiling. "Hal never got me a spaceship."

"Um. If you want a spaceship, NEMO is capturing a lot of ships from deniable Reach assets that we don't need ourselves. I can probably get you one if you want it."

"Ah… Thanks, but I think I'll put off my midlife crisis for a few years." He frowns. "I thought Roy seemed kinda down for a guy who just got a new starship."

"It's not actually new. It had a recent refit, but the original hull is over a hundred years old."

"Ooh, one-" He nods. "-of those."

"Ah. The designer built it and then spent the rest of his life in an insane asylum. So I'm not sure if he was a classical modern mad scientist, or just an early rocketry pioneer."

"Alright. So what's Roy's problem?"

"I'll send you the full report and mission videos, but the short answer is that I got into a fight with an Old God and he couldn't contribute."

"Ah, no?" He frowns for a moment. "Wait, that's why he's bummed out?"

"He made what turned out to be a poor decision in combat, but it was perfectly justifiable. It just.. turned out to be incorrect."

He nods. "And then you had to deal with it while he just stood there. Yeah, that's a kick in the gut."

"So is it the sort of thing he'll just get over, or should I do something?"

"You told him it wasn't his fault, right?"

I nod. "Yes, of course. And I suggested several things he could do which might let him-" He winces. "-be less.. likely-. What?"

"Okay, look. If you said there were things he could do to get better, then he's probably beating himself up for not doing them already. And if the ideas come from you… Well…"

"I realise that a power ring's not for everyone."

"So let me guess… Super magical power armour?"

I nod. "That was one of my suggestions."

He holds up his right hand and beckons me down. I land just in front of him as he leans back against the railing around the edge of the roof.

"You remember the assessment you gave everyone on the League?"

"Yes, I don't think anyone will let me forget."

"I-." Something occurs to him. "Hey, have you done Mister Atom yet?"

"I.. tried, but it turns out that he's being maximally effective. And aside from one or two things which he struggles to understand due to being an A.I., there isn't much I can help him with because he's a lot more intelligent than me."

"Ah, shoot. Ah. Point is, I got kind hurt when I got a 'D'."

"That's not exactly what I was trying to communicate."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. But then I got thinking about it, and I ended up saying to myself: Ollie, you're a guy with a bow. What did you think you were going to get?"

"Well, everyone can improve."

He smiles ruefully. "You're not exactly the best advert for self-improvement, Paul."

"I have become far more effective than I was when I started. I have fewer vulnerabilities."

"Do you have a..? Life, outside the job?"

"How do you mean?"

"When was the last time you went on holiday?"

"I went on a tour with Jade… Last year? I-. We kept tripping over work to do."

"Any friends who aren't part of the community?"

"… One? Karon's dating Catwoman's… Ward?"

"No one completely outside of it?"

"Does Bleez count?"

"No."

"Then… No. Ah… So… What you're saying is..?"

"I've got my city. Obviously I don't know everyone in it, but I know a lot of people. And everyone knows me. If something happens I know who to talk to, what to do… I guess I'm a fish in a pond that fits my size, you know?" I nod tentatively. "And I read what you put in that 'big League' outline. I think I could handle wrangling a team."

"You're literally the first League member to talk to me about that."

"But I don't think I could stand spending all my spare time chasing more power, and then… Dealing with the consequences, and then going from place to place without… Settling down or seeing a familiar face. I don't think I wanna do the things I'd have to do to become you. Or even Hal."

"Lantern Jordan isn't-."

"Him flying all over the Sector is why him and Carol broke up. You see a lot of Jade?"

"Not as much as I was. But I don't want to.. be too far away from Earth for that.. long."

"Right."

"I could probably… I mean, the Watchtower has a fracture pulse transmitter, so it should be alright… It's not like we don't speak…"

"I'm getting déjà vu here. Look, maybe… Send me your mission report and I'll have a talk to Roy about his professional goals. Maybe drag William into it. But-. I know your heart's in the right place, but I don't think you're the guy to help with this. Okay?"

"Okay. Ah, thank you. I'm… Going to go and visit Jade now."

He smiles. "You do that. See you around, Paul."

 

[Mr Zoat]

Cappare

25th July 2013
02:12 GMT

I take a moment to watch the workers employed by the reclamation part of… Well, it's technically part of the Darkstars, but is in effect a civilian agency under the control of the Controllers for building new worlds for refugees and rebuilding worlds recaptured from the Reach. That latter part has only really become one of its actual responsibilities recently with us actually reclaiming worlds, and it's required a massive increase in staffing. Fortunately, it's a good deal easier to convince people to join a civilian relief agency than an aggressive military.

And it's a good place to put Lanterns who are either verging on becoming stress casualties or are otherwise not good people to put in a combat zone. In theory, Lantern Coutara could take her place in the war zone. She's certainly demonstrated that she can kill when motivated. But when we tried having her spar with other Lanterns, she just… She can't muster the drive when there isn't an immediate and personal offence. But, she liked working to rebuild her home county after the purge, and when I made it clear that we had plenty of room for someone with desires like that, she was happy to join up.

And of course that puts Lantern Taranna and Lantern Yat under her supervision. Lantern Yat is far too young to be in combat without taking psychological damage. Lantern Taranna on the other hand has expressed an interest in moving to a combat role, which…

I understand where she's coming from, but her mother has been very clear that she's not happy about it, and… Taranna isn't a particularly violent person either. So Lantern Ratchet acknowledged her change in status and assigned her to picket duty on worlds that her mother and foster brother were working on.

"Illustres to Lantern Coutara."

The response is immediate, her face appearing over my ring. "Yes, Illustres?"

"No need to drop what you're doing, but when you have a moment I'm a few miles over the headquarters building."

She nods. "Of course. What is this about?"

"A possible new assignment. As I said, no hurry."

I end the communication. I-.

"Whow!" Lantern Yat flies closer, staring at me. "Illustres! How come you're here? Are we getting invaded?"

"Not as far as I know. And it would be a very sorry invader who tried taking us on, right?"

He nods. "And Taranna! She's really good at fighting too!"

I nod. "And Lantern Taranna. Speaking of who, shouldn't she be keeping an eye on you?"

"She is." He looks a little awkward. "But she can't spend all the time with me, and I've got stuff to do too!"

"I know, I get the reports."

He blinks in astonishment. "You read my reports?!"

"I read all the reports written by Lanterns I recruited."

Even if they're lacking in sentence structure, depth, and are in general about what I'd expect a child your age to write as a piece of 'what I did on my holiday' homework rather than a military after action report. The Corps is well past the point where I could read everyone's reports, but the handful of Lanterns I actually recruited don't eat up too much of my time.

"I wanted-. Ah."

I glance up as Lantern Taranna appears, eyes slightly wide.

"M-Illustres! What brings you here?"

"Ah, well, I'm here to offer the three of you a transfer."

"A.. transfer?"

I nod. "My homeworld suffered a rather unpleasant attack a little while ago, and I could use your help putting it back together. It's basically the same sort of work that you've been doing here, but my homeworld has an entirely accurate reputation for having all sorts of strange things happen on it and I know that you've wanted to get some combat experience. Most fighting that happens on Earth is well below the level that a Scarab Warrior can reach, but it will be practice against people actually trying to kill you."

"Your homeworld? Why didn't the whole Corps head over there? Or at least a few dozen Lanterns? I didn't even know you were under attack!"

"Memetic hazard. I couldn't risk the Corps getting infected with Anti-Life. And I didn't think it was worth pulling Lanterns away from the work we're doing here when my homeworld was pulling itself together without them. But we got rid of the memetic hazard -for now- and I checked the resettlement figures and… Well, you can be spared, if you're interested. I think I'd like to have a few more Orange Lanterns around."

"Will.. you.. be.. training us?"

"I can, and there are also other Lanterns or high-powered warriors who can help you upskill. Oh." I turn to Lantern-. I turn to Sodam. "As well as several kryptonians who can help you learn to use your natural abilities."

"Really!?"

"Really. Ak-Var has only started using them recently, so you'll have someone you can measure yourself against."

"Are there any kids my age?"

"On my entire planet? Yes. I-." Huh. Cassandra is almost… "Yes, one who has abilities like yours and is roughly your age. One I know, I mean, there are probably plenty of others."

He's practically vibrating with excitement. "That's great!"

Taranna looks at him sharply, and gives him a poke.

"What?"

"You were using too much. You know what happens."

He dips his head. "Sorry, Taranna. I'll be more careful."

"Good."

"Oh, and one other thing. Ah…" She looks at me curiously. "A friend of mine, a hero in good standing… Has expressed an interest in dating."

"Dating?"

"Courtship. I know that in your culture your betrothal would have been arranged by your father, and I don't know… What you were thinking about doing in regards to that."

"Are..?" She regards me cautiously. "You arranging one..? For me?"

"No! No. I'm arranging a meeting between two people who might get on and might not. Unless you're already seeing someone, in which case forget about it."

"Oh. No? I… Suppose I can meet him?"

"Glad to hear it. So, assuming that your mother-."

"No."

"No?"

"I'm not waiting on her approval. She won't give it anyway. Just tell her we're training and I'll meet him then."

"I-. Okay, I can do that. Assuming that no one invades, why don't you both-" I send them both the cultural and current affairs package. "-read up on that while I square things with her."

 

[Mr Zoat]

25th July 2013
07:43 GMT -5

"Mister Knight?"

Jack Knight makes a point of straightening up from the mid-run slump he was in, and trying not to look quite as knackered as I suspect he feels. Getting properly into shape in your forties while running a small business and raising two children is not easy, especially when his way of fighting crime doesn't actually involve much exercise.

"Paul, right?"

I nod as I land just in front of him, and hold out my right hand. After wiping his own on his sleeve he takes it.

"Thanks for finding Dad's ship. Arsenal came over after you came back from New Genesis."

"Ah, good. I was hoping you could fill me in on the ship's history."

He pulls out a water bottle and takes a swig. Then he squirts some over his face. It-.

"Allow me."

I extend my ring's environmental shield to him, bringing his temperature down and cleaning him up a bit.

He blinks at me incredulously. "Those things come with air-con?"

"They're designed to keep us alive in any environment, from a wasteland of frozen methane to a sun's corona. You thought they couldn't take a little sweat?"

He nods. "Should'a asked Dad to add that to the staff."

"You're getting back into it, then?"

"Well…" He pats his stomach. "I could use the exercise anyway. But with everything that happened… I think I kinda need to." He squints at me. "Okay, I gotta ask: do those guys with the Mohawks creep you out too?"

"Oh heck yes. And believe me, they don't-" I shake my head. "-get more reassuring when you learn more about them."

"Good. I was worried it was just me. So I guess my-" He shrugs. "-next question is: is the Justice League actually taking over the world, or are you just kinda bad at interviews?"

"I can't talk about the Justice League taking over the world."

He does a double take. "You seriously say that?"

I nod. "I seriously say that. On a completely unrelated matter, would you happen to know how Vandal Savage of all people got hold of your father's starship?"

"All Dad's-." He shakes his head, shrugging. "He was working on… You know, uses for his technology that didn't involve being a superhero. I wasn't much help with that side of things, so other than asking him how it was going every so often I didn't really have anything to do with it. After he died, it all went to the company he'd been talking to. And that's the last I heard of it."

"That would be… Stagg Enterprises?"

"No, it wasn't them. It-." He thinks for a moment. "I don't remember the name of the company. 'Applied…' 'Applied Futuristics…'? Something like that. First time I hear of 'Stagg Enterprises' was when they made the announcement. I'd pretty much given up on it. I was shocked when they finally brought out a power plant based on Dad's work. Happy, but…" He sighs. "I'm surprised it took so long. I don't know, I thought that scaling it up would be easier or that.. Dad would have focused on that."

"I'm pretty sure that they had it working for a while before they released it, and only released it when they did because I was going to destroy the energy market otherwise."

He considers that, then sags. "Yeah, that makes sense. But… Why? It's like inventing oil." He frowns at me. "Isn't it?"

"What do you know about the Dyson vacuum cleaner?"

"It's a whole lot easier to use than the old bag design."

"The inventor originally offered it to Hoover. They turned him down. After his company took off he met the executive who turned him down at a party and he said that if he'd known what was going to happen he'd have bought the rights and then sat on them."

"Huh?"

"They had the market working out exactly the way they liked it. Stopping someone disrupting that and forcing them to actually innovate would cost far less than actually making an effort. I imagine that if I looked into it I'd find that Stagg Enterprises were getting a payoff from… OPEC? The bastard children of Standard Oil?"

"Is that a..? Crime?"

"I'd have to check the contracts involved, but it's entirely conceivable that no crime was committed. I assume that the ship was included in your father's bequest?"

"I don't remember." He shrugs. "Probably. Is that a problem? Do you have to give it back?"

"We have some fairly expansive confiscation powers these days. Given that they didn't report it missing, I'm inclined to use them."

"You think they're working with Savage?"

"I doubt it's quite that direct. They'd be in a lot of trouble if that was the case. It would make far more sense for there to be enough cut outs that they could claim in court that they didn't know exactly who they were working with. Still, for something the size of a starship…"

"It can't just fall off the back of a truck."

"I would very much like to permanently deal with Vandal Savage. I just don't think it's worth wrecking a company like Stagg Enterprises right now to do it."

Mr. Knight looks less than impressed. "You wanna explain that one to me? 'cause I just found out that Vandal Savage got control of my Dad's life's work."

"Thanks to their involvement in the electrical supply sector, not only did Stagg Enterprises survive the Anti-Life fairly well, they've actually expanded. They've been taking shares in place of payment from companies that were barely functioning until they sorted themselves out."

"Is that legal?"

"Would it matter if it wasn't? They've kept quite large parts of America functioning. In a couple of years it hopefully won't matter, but at the moment the consequences of poking them would be rather severe."

He nods. "Unless the Justice League takes over the world."

"I can't talk about the Justice League taking over the world. Uh. But if a group were to take over the world, they'd still have to keep Stagg Enterprises operating, which would be difficult if the employees just walked away from their jobs or ignored that group's instructions. Brute force has some limits."

"What about Savage?"

"Compared to the collapse of the global economy and supply chains, one immortal caveman just isn't that big an issue. The Justice League has to focus on the things which are most important, otherwise people who have mostly gotten with the program but who have things to hide might go off-task. If we make it through to the next growing season without starving then we can revisit the issue. Of course, if someone else wanted to ask Stagg Enterprises a few friendly questions and happened to discover something interesting, that would be another matter."

He nods, stretching his calves. "Good thing I'm retired from heroing, huh? Otherwise that might have to be me."

 

[Mr Zoat]

26th July 2013
09:59 GMT -5

Lantern Coutara regards Hub City with mild curiosity. I suppose that she's seen a great many cities being rebuilt, but probably hasn't seen one with precisely these problems or this divergence of technologies.

"This is.. your city?"

"No."

She turns her head to look at me. "Then why are we here?"

"It's the city I'm rebuilding. I don't live here or own it."

"Does it have some spiritual significance?"

"In a sense, it's where the Anti-Life broadcast started. It was also in a pretty sorry state before that."

"Did you live here then?"

"Gosh no."

"Then I don't-" She shakes her head. "-understand why you're rebuilding this city. Or… Why you're taking so long about it. Your power is immense. This is something that I had thought you could do with a wave of your hand."

"Not quite that quickly, but-" I nod. "-within a few hours. Less if I had a clear plan to work from."

She goes back to examining the city, her eyes glowing as she scans it.

"I don't understand, Illustres."

"You don't understand… Why I don't do it all myself?" She nods. "Hm."

I stare blankly at the city myself. How to put it?

"I could fight the Reach on my own. I would have had to have started later, and assimilated millions of intelligent beings to use as construct lanterns before starting my attack, but I could do it. Goodness knows there are plenty of beings around the universe whom I wouldn't mind assimilating. Since I didn't know any of the people involved, I didn't have any particular attachment that would have made the delay unconscionable. But, I didn't. I built a Corps of living people, recruited Clarissi Dox to run things… In fact, despite the importance I place on the war I barely spend any time fighting it myself. Why do you think that is?"

"Illustres, I was there when the Clarissi complained that you were overshadowing him."

"Right, but I didn't tell him to just do better in future."

She nods thoughtfully. "No, you did not. Very well: why?"

"A number of factors, but primarily because the orange light is for everyone. Everyone wants things, and… Due to my enlightened state, I see those desires. I find their realisation beautiful. And fundamentally I don't think that I have unlimited license to override the desires of other people and force everyone to do things my way. Other people aren't my chattel, and I don't want them to be."

"So if people want to be free of the Reach, or to have a city, then they should either work for it or accept that they will not be free or have a city?"

"Yes. But it's also… What happens next?"

"The refugees will return to their home worlds."

"And the rest? What about the rest of Reach-controlled space?"

"The Controllers will resurrect the species that they can. Perhaps if Grayven of Apokolips will agree to a peace treaty he will take some of their core worlds."

"And then?"

"I do not know what you are trying to communicate."

"There's a quote from a famous book on Earth. 'That which is given has no value.' If I fought the Reach on my own and won, then a few worlds will be slightly grateful and most would ignore it. But if they're compelled by events to put effort in, then they'll care. Something like this is the sort of event that leaves a permanent mark on a civilisation. And not just the military alliance; consider how technology and raw materials are being traded within the alliance now."

"They will be bound together by blood. Are you..? Building an empire?"

"Depends what you mean by that. I have no desire to rule anyone, even as a figurehead. Nor do I have any idea to put Dox or anyone else in that position. I like to think that I'm building a federation of people who will be bound together by economic interests and shared experiences long after the war is over."

"Which requires them to all fight."

I nod. "And suffer and die." I bow my head and exhale through my nose. "Of course, one perfectly plausible result of me trying to do it all myself is that I'd die, lose control of the billions of construct lanterns and cause a galactic apocalypse. So it's not a purely philosophical and long term planning thing."

She nods slowly. "And you-. Apocalypse?"

"Yes."

"I have not taken a construct lantern, but is that possible? Would that happen?"

"It did happen. Look up the file on Abra Kadabra."

Her eyes glow for a moment, and then she frowns. "He travelled backwards in time. That is nonsense."

"Welcome to Earth."

"No-. But-. That is not-." She shakes her head. "I don't understand."

"The potential for time travel fits within the standard model of physics. And it's far easier in real physics. Something in the far future caused a tidal wave of orange constructs to consume a large part of the galaxy, then he travelled backwards in time to before it happened."

"But now it will not happen."

"It still might. You understand why I'm concerned about the possibility, because no one knows exactly what caused it."

"Is it inevitable, then?"

"No."

"But how did he see it if it is not inevitable?"

"The event did not accompany him back, just his own memories. Why should that compel our future actions?"

She appears to be struggling with the idea.

"Look, Lantern Coutara, you have to understand… This is Earth. It is a madhouse. And I don't just mean the people. All sorts of things that the rational mind says should be impossible happen here. Not all the time, but usually a few times a year. If something happens and you think it's impossible… Well, double check it, and then accept that your ideas about what's possible and impossible are just wrong."

"Yes, Illustres. Where will we be staying while we are here?"

"Unless you want to make your own arrangements, you can all stay with me. I've got plenty of room, and no neighbours to complain about the noise. Oh, and, ah… I wanted to introduce Taranna to a few people while she's here?"

"Ah." She nods. "I see."

"Okay, let's do a quick review and then I can introduce you to the people you'll be working with."

 

[Mr Zoat]

26th July 2013
10:12 GMT -5

I look around the factory, then frown curiously at Leonard. "I didn't think we were doing the factory next."

He shrugs. "Change of plan. Batman wanted to get started building at least some combine harvesters this year."

Coutara frowns, but I just shrug. "The scheme's the thing. If that's what he says will do most good, best get on with it."

"Heh." He smiles, shaking his head. "Still can't get used to it."

"Used to what?"

"Working with heroes. Any of the Rogues would throw a hissy fit at having someone mess with their plans like that."

"Even McCulloch? That sounds unprofessional."

"Oh, he'd keep it together in the middle of a fight, but the moment it was over… And his name's 'Evan'."

"Oh, har." I take a last look around the factory-. "No problem with staff?"

He shrugs. "Mayor sorted that out. I just built the place."

I nod. "Fair enough. Did Batman want you doing anything else, or are you back on the original plan?"

"We're behind schedule, obviously, but we're back on the original plan. Unless he changes it again."

"That's his job. People need to eat."

"Oh yeah, I saw your chocolate commercial. No dogs hurt, right?"

"Don't worry, they're trained to sit on command. Did you try them?"

"Yeah." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out… The American variety. He watches me, grinning, as he pulls the packet open and takes a bite. "Pretty good, actually."

"You're dead to me."

I look upwards and fly into the air, his laughter fading behind me.

A moment later Lantern Coutara catches up with me. "You didn't kill him."

"No, it was a joke. He delivers a small but surprisingly sophisticated insult, I feign overreacting…" She doesn't get it. "It might be a human thing. We're on good terms. Which is good because this project needs him."

"Why?"

"Controllers might be able to wave their hands and assemble starships by energy to matter conversion, but we humans can't. He's our leading expert on ultra-low temperature physics and the inventor of the thing that stops our nanoforges overheating."

"You have nanoforges?"

"Just a few. They're… Not precisely experimental but they are rare. So… Anyway, I was going to have you help Lantern Son of Great Mother with bringing farms into a functional state, but if we're already doing repairs and assemblies it would probably be better if you handled that."

"Who is 'Son of Great Mother? His name is strange."

"Ah…" Where is he..? Ah, there. "Follow me and I'll introduce you."

I don't transition. Lantern Coutara hasn't actually gotten the hang of that yet. For her usual job it isn't really required. Honestly, for her usual job being seen flying around may actually have a positive effect on morale that outweighs the inefficiency.

Lantern Son of Great Mother has long since finished preparing the farms in this state for rehabitation. He's not particularly fast, but he is focused and unceasing. Humanoid Lanterns can go without sleep for a few weeks if they used their rings to deal with the physiological affects of tiredness, but Great Mother servitors appear not to have sleep as something that they do. I wonder if they have a self-repair mode, or if they just get disposed of once they wear out?

Anyway, I've actually had him upgrading the local infrastructure. Not with jovium, alas, but American infrastructure's pretty old in a lot of places. Particularly the phone lines. I vaguely remember that there's been a de facto monopoly in a lot of rural areas which has lead to a failure to invest… Well, if we're trying to lure people to move from urban to rural areas then it will probably help if they can still use the internet without it feeling like it's the nineties.

He's flying along a minor road, the ground erupting in front of him and settling behind him. I've authorised the use of the best mundane human technology so that when the state… County? Government re-establishes itself they will actually be able to maintain it using mundane means.

And I can justify this because of the collapse of the relevant industries and government. And if I'm not being entirely consistent… Well, what's the line? 'I contain multitudes'.

Lantern Coutara appears a moment later, looking down at Lantern Son of Great Mother in confusion. "That is a Lantern?"

"Yes, and a jolly hard working one." I descend towards him, Lantern Coutara following just behind me. "Lantern Son of Great Mother, how goes the work?"

He doesn't stop, or look at me, or outwardly react to my presence. "It is mindless and repetitive. Some days it is as if I do not exist as a thinking being."

Lantern Coutara looks at me with concern. "Wait for it."

"So it proceeds very well. Earth is so much more decayed than Great Mother. I have calculated that a team of a thousand drones could engage in this work and never know a moment of peace as the infrastructure decayed behind them."

"Should I ask Great Mother to produce a thousand more drones for us?"

He doesn't stop, but there's a definite pause.

"…yes?"

"I imagine that she could do that fairly quickly."

"…yes. It would not be a large investment of resources."

"Would you like to have more of your brothers around?"

"It… Would increase the speed with which the task was performed."

"But how would you feel about it?"

He stops, and falls to the ground. Oh, that wasn't-.

He flashes orange and rises off the ground again, using his ring instead of his own flight ability. "I-. Would hate it. I desire that this task be mine alone. This is not right but I must not lie to you. Why am I malfunctioning?!"

"You're not. You're growing more in tune with your desires. That will make you a better Lantern." I float closer and lay my right hand on him in what I hope is a reassuring manner. "I assure you, there will always be work for you here. Good gods, will there always be work for you here."

He twitches, the orange glow dimming slightly. "Thank you, Illustres. Who is this?"

"This is Lantern Coutara. She will be handling goods transportation until the portals are complete."

"She will not be working on infrastructure?"

"No."

"Then I welcome her involvement. Now, I will return to work. I have many utility ducts to lay."

 

[Mr Zoat]

26th July 2013
08:13 GMT -7

"HAH!" Henry Hall points one arm -his right crab claw arm- at his brother. "You look like a furry who hasn't put his head piece on yet!"

Donald Hall sits on his hind legs and folds his forehooves across his chest. "And you look like a furry who had to mix and match his costume."

Hank clicks his claws together. "It's got no fur. Therefore, not a furry. G.E.D., dumbass!"

Donald looks like he's about to say something in return, but then thinks better of it. He gets back onto all four hooves and resumes his investigation of Discord's surprisingly normalish home.

I turn to Fluttershy. "And this place has postal deliveries?"

"Oh yes." She nods, smiling. "The Equestrian Postal Service is very hard-working."

I look out of the window at the P.G. version of the Warp that's swirling around out there, my eyes tracking the skateboarding banana that's peeling a walrus as it skates past.

Hm. Maybe I haven't cast the net wide enough looking for soldiers.

"Um, I didn't know that you knew any other draconequi." Fluttershy watches as Henry as he tries turning the settee over, only for it to rotate the entire floor panel and start spinning with him trapped in place. "I didn't even know there were any other draconequi."

"Henry is no more a draconequus than I am an alicorn. He's just sponsored by a Lord of Chaos, so when he comes through the mirror, that's now he ends up."

"Hey!" Henry shoots webbing out of his spinnerets, sticking the settee to the floor but also sticking himself to the settee. He struggles for a moment, then gives up and settles for turning his eyestalks in my direction. "It's Hawk, horse-face!"

I roll my eyes. "Thank you for your input, Hawk Horse-Face." And then deciding to take pity on him, I create a construct knife and cut him free.

"Uh, thanks." He clambers up, chicken leg and elephant leg not entirely under control yet. Most of the way up, something occurs to him. "Hey, pony-girl, that Discord guy's got tiny legs. How does he get around?"

"Oh, um. He mostly floats."

"Huh?"

Fluttershy nods. "He told me that he told gravity how he feels about laws, and it hasn't bothered him since."

"Huh." Henry blinks. "I.. guess that makes sense..?"

Donald looks up from Discord's dressing table, one of his hooves accidentally puncturing the surface and letting the air out. "That in fact does not make sense."

"No, no, it doesn't here. I always wondered why chaos magic just made me strong and not chaos-ey. So I can justwhow!"

And now he can fly float, marvellous.

I focus on the sensible half of the pair. "Any written records?"

"Getting to that." He picks up a small book from-

"Hfopuaberopitgslfyuhgaerujsdopuf-"

-the deflating dresser and opens it-

"-poigffhoayrejkhgsfpuhnkfdnposdrjllad-."

-before closing it again. Then he nods. "'What does the book say?'. I get it. The book can't stop talking because the words always say themselves."

Fluttershy trots towards Donald as Henry tries to control his floating. "Have you tried asking them nicely? I always find that.. usually works."

Donald hold the book out. "Okay, book? We're trying to find Discord so we can help him out with whatever he's going through."

Hawk Horse-Face looks around. "Or kick some sense into him." His eyes orientate on his own legs. "Can I kick with these?"

"So I'd really appreciate it if you could tell us anything about where he is." He cautiously lays his thumbs on the pages of the book before slowly opening it again. "Or what he's doing."

The book jerks out of his grip and just floats in the air. "Is Fluttershy there?" The sides of the pages open and close a little like a mouth. "I don't have any eyes on my cover."

Fluttershy nods. "Yes, I'm here."

"Great! Okay, Discord said that he was going to try completing Grayven's plan, but Discord also said that he was going to talk to the tree about it, and then he said, 'who are you, I don't have a diary'. Which was a bit hurtful, but I've survived worse."

"Um." Fluttershy tilts her head to the side. "Did he come back from doing Grayven's plan, or-?"

"No." I shake my head. "Discord split himself in a lot of ways, and at least three of them came back here."

"Oh." The book takes a moment to digest that. "That makes way more sense than Discord forgetting me. I mean, can you imagine? I'm his best friend!"

"Um."

"I bet he talks about me all the time, huh?"

"He never-. Ah." She turns and trots towards the boom tube aperture. "Thank you for your help, Mister Book, but we need to go and find Discord now!"

"Alright, you heard the lady!" Hawk Horse-Face sort of swims through space with an unsettling degree of ease. I'm impressed with how quickly he picked that up. Or perhaps its natural for his new shape? "Let's go!"

Donald give the book a quick smile- "Thank you." -and then briefly appears to consider giving his wings a flap before deciding that relying on his cloven hooves to convey him instead.

My plan and the tree. Not sure why those two came back here or what happens when we get them back together. Or if that's even desirable. But it would probably help Discord if he could talk things over with someone he trusts, and that's Fluttershy.

I walk through the boom tube and then shut it down.

"…tree he particularly likes?"

Fluttershy shakes her head at Donald. "No, I-I don't think so. I could ask the birds, if you think that would help?"

Perhaps we should just skip this part. "He's almost certainly gone to the Tree of Harmony."

Fluttershy looks as serious as she can. "Oh, I don't know if that's a good idea."

"It's not. On the other hand, if one Discord did it then the others probably wouldn't. Mother Box."

"Ping."

BOOM!

"Oof."

I turn my head to see that Hawk Horse-Face has fallen to the floor, while Donald is looking… Shiney? Makes sense I suppose. "Hawk Horse-Face, perhaps you should stay here."

"No way, dude. If Don's going, I'm going."

"No way boss, but, fine. Don't come crying to me if you're turned into a statue for a thousand years."

"I-." He frowns. "Wait, if I was a statue, how would I cry..?"

I stride through the boom tube and into the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters.

 

[Mr Zoat]

26th July 2013
16:29 GMT

Up ahead of us, I can see Kara training with… Eradicator units? I suppose they're… Reasonable for training in high-intensity combat, and… Yes, a lot of my combat training was with other Lanterns in the Chihuahuan Desert, so I can't really… Criticise her for practicing against beings who match her abilities. I wonder where she got-

"Hey!"

Lantern Yat rockets away from me, fists balled.

-them..?

Next to me Taranna blinks, then scans the area and armours herself. Is it a real attack? I said that she should always have someone-. Yes, there's Ak-Var, and if he's not involving himself then it is a practice-

Lantern Yat strikes a distracted Eradicator unit at full speed in the small of the back, causing it to double over as its skeleton and servos snap! Having learned the basics of super strength combat Yat doesn't stop accelerating, driving the Eradicator forwards and into a ice ridge!

-session.

Kara just blinks in surprise, and only just manages to dodge out of the way as the second Eradicator takes a swing at her. She dodges around it, fires a blast of heat vision into its left armpit before grabbing the arm and yanking, tearing it right off. The disarmed Eradicator twists, eyes glowing-.

"Pause! Ak! Pause-."

The Eradicator dims its eyes, switching back to standby mode as Kara flies towards the plume of snow marking Lantern Yat's landing zone. He pulls himself out of the snow a moment later, flying directly upwards and watching the snow carefully for any sign that his target is still moving.

Kara floats around to get a clearer look at him, sees the orange glow clearly and looks around-. I wave, and she raises her hand in greeting back before returning her attention to the tiny daxamite Lantern.

"Um. Hey? Who're you?"

Sodam narrows his eyes towards his target for a moment before reassuring himself that it's inert. Then he turns to Kara with a broad smile on his face. "I'm krypon-ite!"

Kara blinks, checking to make sure that he's not a radioactive crystal. "You… Are..?"

"Udh-!" Sodam cringes as he realises what he just said. "No! I mean, I'm from Daxam, which means I'm-. I'm like a kryptonian?"

"Oh, you're Sodam Yat! Paul told me about you."

"He did?"

Taranna and I drift closer, Ak-Var rising up to meet us.

"Where did the Eradicators come from?"

"Kal-El let us make them after Har-Zod gave us the designs. Mostly so that Kara can get some idea of what kryptonians fighting is like before someone shoves her through a building… Though… I need to learn that, too."

Taranna frowns slightly. "Ak-Var, this is Lantern Taranna. She'll be joining us on Earth to help with the reconstruction."

"Oh." Ak-Var gives her a polite nod. "Ah, nice to meet you."

Taranna nods back. "You're the same species as Sodam?"

"Mostly. We don't have any current records on Daxam, but if the ones we do have-. I mean, the ones I got taught in school growing-. Growing up fifty years ago, they're basically the same apart from a few genetic tweaks people who stayed on Krypton never got."

I see Lantern Yat smile as Kara rubs his head.

Ak-Var watches them too. "I guess his culture's… Nothing like Krypton's, is it?"

"No, and he's too young to have internalised most of it. It's not going to be a point of familiarity."

He dips his head slightly. "I didn't really think it would be. It's just-. Kind of nice to see a mostly-kryptonian child."

Taranna drifts slightly closer. "Have you been on Earth for long?"

"About a third of a local year."

"Are you a superhero?"

"I… Not really? I've been helping with reconstruction, but I don't really… Have the drive that Kal-El has and Kara's… Discovered. I've been trying to work out what I'm going to do once Earth's back to normal again and so far I'm coming up blank."

"As long as it's not petty theft-"

"It was a prank! We were going to give it back!"

"-then I'm happy with whatever you choose. And if you like having kryptonian children around there's a grand total of two kryptonian females-"

About a mile away, Kara's head comes up from her conversation with Lantern Yat and she looks curiously in our direction.

"-whom you-."

Ak-Var looks mildly distraught. "Paul, super hearing!"

"What?" Kara gives-. Me a sidelong glance before using her heat vision to make a picture in the snow for Lantern Yat. "You two aren't dating?"

"We're friends. And even if we were dating, we wouldn't be talking about children yet. I'm not old enough to be a dad!"

Taranna frowns. "Your species lives so long that you don't consider yourself old enough when you're over fifty?"

"I spent most of that in-. In suspended animation. I'm actually… Nineteen, in Earth years?"

"Traditionally, people from my culture got married at nineteen. My father would have arranged a marriage for me after my coming of.. age.. ceremony."

"I had a betrothal which our families arranged, but we wouldn't actually have married until we were both in our twenties."

"You could always throw yourself on a grenade and marry Other Kara."

"I.. don't really know her. But given the way Kara talks about her, I don't think it would work. Kara's great and all, and maybe in a few years something might happen, but right now I'm not even thinking about it."

Taranna grins at me. "Thank you! He's perfect!"

Ak-Var stares like a rabbit in headlights. "Huh?"

"This is an excellent way to stop my mother bothering me about getting married!"

"He.. wasn't actually the person I had in mind. I just.. wanted to introduce Lantern Yat."

"Oh. But you said that the other person was interested in a betrothal."

"Ah-. No, I think this is a cultural thing. They're interested in getting to know you to see if that's something you eventually want to do. There's no commitment at this stage."

Ak-Var looks confused. "What do you want me to do?"

"Pretend to my mother we are considering a betrothal. As I said, it's normal in our culture but like you I'd.. rather leave it for a few years."

"Just pretend?"

"Yes."

"I can.. do that."

"Would you mind if I introduced you to Roy first? I-."

"Warning! Interdiction system activated!"

 

[Mr Zoat]

26th July 2013
11:31 GMT -5

I catch sight of my reflection in the window, and…

Yeah, I can't pull this look off anymore.

And it's worse because of all the effort I put into getting back in shape. Pants, jacket, hell, even the t-shirt, all went on like it was yesterday I went out for the first time. Not being able to fit in any of it when the-. When the Anti-Life broadcast happened hit harder than I thought it would.

Heh. Midlife crisis, here I come.

So I'm glad it all fits. And Jayne doesn't really want me getting back into it full time, but we talked about it and she accepts that I kind of need to. Opal City needs a Starman, and after Kyle tried volunteering she couldn't say 'yes' fast enough.

But I look like I'm firmly in 'how do you do, fellow kids?' territory. Johnny Rotten showing up as a daytime T.V. host. I guess that's one advantage of having an actual costume rather than just wearing a signature outfit. Alan Scott's wearing the same stuff he did back in the thirties and it doesn't look weird, and he's the age Dad would be.

I could have done this with a phone call, but here I am, turning up in person, dressed like it's still the nineties and I'm still in my twenties. I tried telling myself that it's because this is a professional thing I'm going as Starman, but it's not.

It is cheaper than buying a convertible, though. Maybe I could try that line on Jayne?

The door to the waiting room the receptionist dumped me in opens and-.

Is that a caveman? Oh yeah, that was that thing… They managed to resurrect a frozen Neanderthal a few years ago. Didn't realise they gave him a job. He stares at me, and at the Cosmic Staff resting on the table. Then he sort of grunts at steps aside and-.

I just stare as Simon Stagg, C.E.O. of Stagg Enterprises, strolls into the room. One of the richest guys in America, up there with Bruce Wayne and Lex Luthor. And I know this is important, but I can't help but wonder… Why the Hell is he bothering to come see me personally?

"Jack Knight!" He smiles, walking over to me and offering me his hand. "Good to meet you!"

I'm so off balance that I stand up and take his hand on autopilot. When someone like this smiles at you, that means that you're being taken for a ride. But he could expense me taking a round the world taxi ride without even noticing. It's not worth ripping me off because he's making more money while we're having this meeting than I have in total assets.

"Mister Stagg-. I didn't think you'd come yourself."

The caveman sticks close to the door, where he'd be just out of sight of anyone who burst into the room. Doesn't think I'm a threat.

Thanks.

"Heh. Given how much money your dad's going to be making me, a personal appearance is the least I can do." He pulls out the chair opposite and plants himself in it. "Ah, sit down, sit down."

Get it together, Jack. If he's not overawed by the fact that you're a superhero, you can deal with the fact that he's rich.

I sit down-.

"Is this it?" He's staring at the Staff in a hungry sort of way, and I get a momentary impulse to snatch it back. "The staff your dad used to fly around with?"

"Not this one. He used an older version, and so did my brother. This one, he made for me."

"You know how it works?"

"Kind of. I mostly just know how to repair it, but Dad left me the full instructions."

His eyes flick to me-. And then he sits back, not even glancing at the Staff. "You'll have to excuse me. I see a wonderful piece of technology like that, all I can think about is what we could do with it. But that's not why you're here. I guess it's about your Dad's research?"

"Yeah. I was wondering how Stagg Enterprises ended up with it all."

He nods, then shrugs. "Honestly, I'm not all that sure myself."

"Huh?"

"Look, Stagg Enterprises is a big company. We do acquisitions and mergers all the time. I have to sign off on the all as C.E.O. but mostly I'm just reading a report summary and trusting that my people have done due diligence. And the report didn't say 'super advance technology developed by Doctor Theodore Knight', it was more…" He shakes his head. "I'm wracking my brain here, but it was years ago and I don't remember it all that clearly. Something like 'exotic energy research and prototype designs'… As far as I remember we bought the holding company because it was cheap and some of their stuff might go somewhere. I only bothered reading up on the details when we were ready to go to market. I've got people looking though our records to find the original report, but between the Anti-Life, normal staff turnover and a system upgrade we did six years ago it might just have gotten completely lost."

"You don't remember anything about the company you bought sticking out at all?"

"Not after a decade. Ah, something made me sign off on acquiring it in the first place, but I couldn't tell you exactly what it was. Like I said, we're looking, especially with Batman telling us to get him the information. The last thing I want is an army of his Mohawk-wearing zombies messing with my company."

That all sounds reasonable. So it's probably a lie, but if Batman's leaning on him then there's not a whole lot more I can add.

"How come it took so long to turn the cosmic converter into a generator? It obviously-" I hold out my hand and the Cosmic Staff rises off the table and flies into my open palm. "-works. Heck, I thought Dad had an actual design in the files he handed over."

"Oh, he did. What do you know about electricity grids?"

This is what I get for dropping science after High School. "Not much. Power comes from power plants along cables to where it's needed."

"Most power comes from steam turbines. You get heat from something -gas, coal, oil, nuclear, it doesn't matter- and you use it to make steam. Heh, it's basically a God damned eighteenth century steam engine, turning a magnet to create magnetic flux. Kord got that right. Solar panels don't work like that, and it turns out that if you try using them over a large area you get a massive increase in grid instability from their higher output ripple. It's not a problem on a small scale with a pocket calculator or whatever, but you try plugging it into the same grid and you get all sorts of trouble."

"And the cosmic converter had the same problem?"

"It's why I was looking at your staff like that. We didn't get the flight system. If we did, we could have made the turbine fly around and generate power indirectly. As it was, we had to spend years working out how to avoid causing a grid collapse the moment we attached our generator to it. And let me tell you, America's power infrastructure isn't any great shakes anyway. Except in New York, thanks to that Orange Lantern guy."

"And it took you over a decade to fix the problem?"

"Eh, we weren't exactly prioritising it. Lots of inventors over-promise and under-deliver, and we have to prioritise things we know how to make work. You dad kept things close to his chest -for obvious reasons- so it wasn't like there was anyone we could call in to go over his records who could just understand them from the start. A whole team had to learn about cosmic energy from scratch using his records and go from there. If I'd known in advance it would definitely work I'd have put the money in right away, but I didn't, so… I didn't."

"I guess that makes sense."

And it probably does, but I'll get someone with a bit more know-how than me check.

"Yeah, I was kicking myself when we finally got it working. Stagg Enterprises could have had the entire electrical market to ourselves for five years easy if we'd gone all in from the start. But them's the breaks, and a third of the market's better than nothing. Hey, while you're here, do you want to have a look around one of our generator rooms, see what it looks like in practice?"

I… Yeah, I would, actually. Even if Dad didn't live to see it, I'd like to see his work get used for something safe and useful.

"Yeah. Thanks."

"Don't sweat it." Stagg smiles. "It's the least I can do."