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

[Stsword]

Some people will do horrible, evil things even if they make no sense.

Heck, it wouldn't be the first time the Confederacy had done that.

During the Civil War, General Lee would make any captured black Union soldiers into slaves.

During negotiations the Union offered to release Confederate prisoners if Lee released said black soldiers, but Lee refused, even though he needed the men.

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The Confederacy was founded on doing evil things that make no sense.

The idea that the Confederacy was fighting a defensive war is bad fanfic made up by lying assholes.

The Confederate slavers knew their slavery system was unsustainable so rather than do anything even remotely intelligent like stop cosplaying as British aristocracy, they decided the solution was to spread slavery.

They already had plans to invade Mexico and Brazil while the Union was kicking their asses.

The Confederacy was a freaking slavery pyramid scheme.

So in all those popular "What if the Confederacy survived?" alt-histories, the actual but boring result would have actually been the dumb fucks would have been destroyed in another war of conquest they started because that was the entire point of the Confederacy.

 

[Mr Zoat]

The Confederacy was founded on doing evil things that make no sense.

The idea that the Confederacy was fighting a defensive war is bad fanfic made up by lying assholes.

The Confederate slavers knew their slavery system was unsustainable so rather than do anything even remotely intelligent like stop cosplaying as British aristocracy, they decided the solution was to spread slavery.

They already had plans to invade Mexico and Brazil while the Union was kicking their asses.

The Confederacy was a freaking slavery pyramid scheme.

So in all those popular "What if the Confederacy survived?" alt-histories, the actual but boring result would have actually been the dumb fucks would have been destroyed in another war of conquest they started because that was the entire point of the Confederacy.

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In-universe, the United States lost because the Confederacy's initial push was successful enough that Britain leaned on them to accept what looked like a fait accompli. That created the enmity between the US and Britain, and led to the US allying with Germany. The Confederacy actually had good relations with Mexico, buying the northern parts after supporting the Emperor in a war. I forget who with. They also picked up Cuba somewhere along the line.

 

[NightmareWarden]

So in all those popular "What if the Confederacy survived?" alt-histories, the actual but boring result would have actually been the dumb fucks would have been destroyed in another war of conquest they started because that was the entire point of the Confederacy.

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Successfully getting a hand on the wheel when it comes to international relations, as portrayed in these chapters, is invaluable when it comes to stabilizing the present and building a foundation for the future. And the politicians of the Confederacy were extremely motivated to keep their country's heart beating via foreign money, not simply trade deals that the public learned about. Heck, a leader could use their own bribes to placate their one or two of their biggest critics with bribes, if they don't want to give an inch when it comes to policy.

 

[Mr Zoat]

12th August 2013
13:59 GMT

Lar-On sits up on his medical bed, staring at me with his eyes wide.

"You-you said it couldn't happen again!"

"That isn't exactly wh-."

"Great Krypton, who did I hurt this time!"

His transformation back into a bloke took most of the black paint with it, but not all. Medically, he checks out fine, and having put the extra effort to scan every single cell in his body for anomalous behaviour or energies… I think he's cured.

But I thought that last time.

We weren't stupid about it. We checked him with Earth's moon in isolated locations on Earth with gold kryptonite available in case something went wrong. He didn't change. We didn't test re-exposure… I vaguely remember that in the comics red kryptonite only altered a single individual once, but that was from an older comic and it got given a lot of other characteristics after that. In this timeline, Superman has made a point of destroying any sample he encounters once he's recovered from the initial exposure so I don't have good data.

"Scrapes and bruises only, and minimal structural damage to the Xenon base."

"I-!" He frowns, eyes dropping. "Xenon? But that's tiny."

"And you were inside it, which meant that you couldn't see a moon-shaped object. Which means that the issue is more conceptual."

"So… So I can just go to Tartarath, and I'll be fine?"

"I don't know."

"What?"

"I mean, I don't know. I mean, I can't think of any reason why you wouldn't be, but if your transformation has some sort of conceptual element, it… Could be."

"W-what do you mean? How many places did you move kryptonian moons to?"

"Just here, but I suggested that they rename Tartarath 'New Krypton'. It has a moon. Does that count?"

"Does it?"

"I don't know. And even if I take you there now and show it to you, does that matter? Or would it only affect you once the name change is generally accepted?"

"Does it?"

"I-."

"You don't know. You don't know. W-what do I do?"

"There are a few experiments we can run. Otherwise, we build a bunker and you lock yourself in whenever there's a full moon at night. Alright?"

He nods hesitantly.

"Up you get, then. No time like the present!"

He nods, rising from his bed and standing on the floor. "What tests?"

"Firstly, we test to see whether or not the moon still affects you."

"I think we tested that already."

"There's a chance that it was a one-off, and we need to check. Then we need to check you after exposing you to this kryptonite sample-."

"Why?"

"Because this is hardly the only sample of red kryptonite which exists. We need to get some idea of what they can do."

"Why do you need me for that? Shouldn't you be doing something in a laboratory with tissue samples?"

"I tried that. Red kryptonite is weirdly pernickety about what it actually works on. And in your case I already know how to stop the effect."

"What did you spray me with?"

"Paint. With no light reaching your skin, the effect ended. But the paint went with your fur and you didn't immediately transform, so either there's a delay, or that's it."

"That's it?"

"I want to test it a few times, but it looks like it."

He considers it for a moment.

"Okay. Let's do it."

I turn off the radiation shields around the room. "Feel anything?" He shakes his head. "Okay, right this way." I open the door and wait outside. The Xenon facility isn't all that large, and it's pretty obvious where we are.

"We're..?"

"As I said, we're fairly sure that it wasn't a problem. Next step…"

"Ah-?"

I take out the tiny fragments of red kryptonite out of subspace and hold them out to him.

"Feel anything?"

"No." He shakes his head. "How long is it supposed to take?"

"The red kryptonite-induced changes I've studied have been instant. So it looks like you're good." I send them back into subspace. "My best guess is that the transformation 'used up' the last of the radiation in your body, but I admit that's based on my observations and not on any theoretical understanding of the underlying mechanisms. And now…"

I generate a zeta tube construct, and he's standing up a little straighter when he walks through. I

follow up, appearing

on Tartarath a moment later. We're on the side of the planet facing away from the sun, and the moon is just rising…

"Feeling anything?"

He looks nervously up at the sky. "No."

"I hereby christen this planet 'New Krypton'! How about now?"

"No. I… Fine?"

"I thought you would be. Unless you have an objection, I'll fly you over to where the new settlement is being set up."

"Yes, please. I think, even if it doesn't affect me, I'd rather be away from Xenon."

"I quite understand. I wish you all success in your future endeavours."

 

[GigaVanguard]

"I hereby christen this planet 'New Krypton'! How about now?"

Click to shrink...

"I didn't say it, I declared it."

 

[Duke Long]

"The red kryptonite induced changes I've studied have been instant. So it looks like you're good." I send them back into subspace. "My best guess is that the transformation 'used up' the last of the radiation in your body, but I admit that's based on my observations and not on any theoretical understanding of the underlying mechanisms. And now…"

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'kryptonite-induced'?

 

[CrazyNoVa]

I hereby christen this planet 'New Krypton'! How about now?"

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It's one small step for man, but one giant leap for Zoatkind!

 

[Chojin Patriarch]

12th August 2013
13:59 GMT

Lar-On sits up on his medical bed, staring at me with his eyes wide.

"You-you said it couldn't happen again!"

Click to shrink...

Well, OL does make pronouncements with vexing regularity that often get proved wrong. This was hardly the first time. The trick now is what measures he's taken to analyse and purge the Red K radiation, and investigated any mystical aspect to it.

Spoiler: Commentary spoilered for length

"That isn't exactly wh-."

"Great Krypton, who did I hurt this time!"

Click to shrink...

Fortunately, they were more than capable of handling you this time.

His transformation back into a bloke took most of the black paint with it, but not all. Medically, he checks out fine, and having put the extra effort to scan every single cell in his body for anomalous behaviour or energies… I think he's cured.

But I thought that last time.

Click to shrink...

And this time you're making quite sure you're actually correct? Due diligence, OL.

We weren't stupid about it. We checked him with Earth's moon in isolated locations on Earth with gold kryptonite available in case something went wrong. He didn't change. We didn't test re-exposure… I vaguely remember that in the comics red kryptonite only altered a single individual once, but that was from an older comic and it got given a lot of other characteristics after that. In this timeline, Superman has made a point of destroying any sample he encounters once he's recovered from the initial exposure so I don't have good data.

Click to shrink...

...But were they in the presence of a Phantom Zone portal? That's pretty much the only known new element to this.

"Scrapes and bruises only, and minimal structural damage to the Xenon base."

"I-!" He frowns, eyes dropping. "Xenon? But that's tiny."

Click to shrink...

Relatively speaking, anyway. Any facility seems huge from the inside. Just consider how big a house feels when you're inside compared to looking at the outside from a dozen metres away.

"And you were inside it, which meant that you couldn't see a moon-shaped object. Which means that the issue is more conceptual."

"So… So I can just go to Tartarath, and I'll be fine?"

Click to shrink...

That depends, Tartarath has moons, yes? Will they also trigger it?

"I don't know."

"What?"

Click to shrink...

I know, seems awful to hear, but sometimes, the first step to learning is admitting you don't know.

"I mean, I don't know. I mean, I can't think of any reason why you wouldn't be, but if your transformation has some sort of conceptual element, it… Could be."

"W-what do you mean? How many places did you move kryptonian moons to?"

Click to shrink...

Can't have been many. Not like it had a gas giant's moon system.

"Just here, but I suggested that they rename Tartarath 'New Krypton'. It has a moon. Does that count?"

"Does it?"

Click to shrink...

Oooh, nothing's ever gone wrong with an idea like that...

"I don't know. And even if I take you there now and show it to you, does that matter? Or would it only affect you once the name change is generally accepted?"

"Does it?"

Click to shrink...

Yeah, don't toy with him, OL. It's very clear how concerned he is about this.

"I-."

"You don't know. You don't know. W-what do I do?"

Click to shrink...

Sometimes, you just gotta dive in. Though it does help to check the pool is deep enough beforehand.

"There are a few experiments we can run. Otherwise, we build a bunker and you lock yourself in whenever there's a full moon at night. Alright?"

He nods hesitantly.

Click to shrink...

Not optimal, and that's a big old point of failure there. What if he can't get there in time? Or the bunker gets destroyed somehow?

"Up you get, then. No time like the present!"

He nods, rising from his bed and standing on the floor. "What tests?"

Click to shrink...

Presumably a second round of the ones they did before. Exposure to various lunar light reflections?

"Firstly, we test to see whether or not the moon still affects you."

"I think we tested that already."

Click to shrink...

Still, it's a good starting point.

"There's a chance that it was a one-off, and we need to check. Then we need to check you after exposing you to this kryptonite sample-."

"Why?"

Click to shrink...

Presumably the same chunks he pulled out of Lar-On earlier.

"Because this is hardly the only sample of red kryptonite which exists. We need to get some idea of what they can do."

"Why do you need me for that? Shouldn't you be doing something in a laboratory with tissue samples?"

Click to shrink...

You have prior exposure with a known result. That's an invaluable experimental foundation.

"I tried that. Red kryptonite is weirdly pernickety about what it actually works on. And in your case I already know how to stop the effect."

"What did you spray me with?"

"Paint. With no light reaching your skin, the effect ended. But the paint went with your fur and you didn't immediately transform, so either there's a delay, or that's it."

Click to shrink...

Another sign of it possibly being magical in nature. There's a big difference between human-like body hair and animal fur. Where did it come from, and where did it go? Where did you come from, Cotton-eye Joe?

"That's it?"

"I want to test it a few times, but it looks like it."

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Keeping in mind the supposed 'immunity' to subsequent exposures of the same fragment. Presumably something akin to an auto-immune reaction...

He considers it for a moment.

"Okay. Let's do it."

Click to shrink...

Nothing to lose, after all. They can stop you if you transform into Super-Wolfman again, and nearly any other induced transformation has to be better than that.

I turn off the radiation shields around the room. "Feel anything?" He shakes his head. "Okay, right this way." I open the door and wait outside. The Xenon facility isn't all that large, and it's pretty obvious where we are.

"We're..?"

Click to shrink...

Safest place to keep him, once everyone squishy cleared out. Even if he transformed, ran outside and jumped towards Earth, it would still take a while for him to arrive, if he can hold his breath that long.

"As I said, we're fairly sure that it wasn't a problem. Next step…"

"Ah-?"

I take out the tiny fragments of red kryptonite out of subspace and hold them out to him.

Click to shrink...

Surprised you didn't just fuse it into a single tiny fragment, given that they'd be dust-sized particles. Anything bigger would have been detected, surely.

"Feel anything?"

"No." He shakes his head. "How long is it supposed to take?"

Click to shrink...

Hmm... Could be temporary immunity to them, could just be not strong emissions enough in this arrangement.

"The red kryptonite induced changes I've studied have been instant. So it looks like you're good." I send them back into subspace. "My best guess is that the transformation 'used up' the last of the radiation in your body, but I admit that's based on my observations and not on any theoretical understanding of the underlying mechanisms. And now…"

Click to shrink...

Even with Kryptonian research into their own biology, this is hardly an exact science.

I generate a zeta tube construct, and he's standing up a little straighter when he walks through. I

follow up, appearing

on Tartarath a moment later. We're on the side of the planet facing away from the sun, and the moon is just rising…

Click to shrink...

Probably not full, unless they're very good timing.

"Feeling anything?"

He looks nervously up at the sky. "No."

Click to shrink...

Well, besides a large amount of both apprehension and relief, fighting like cats.

"I hereby christen this planet 'New Krypton'! How about now?"

"No. I… Fine?"

Click to shrink...

Could still have an issue if it needs a certain cultural weight behind it, but so far so good?

"I thought you would be. Unless you have an objection, I'll fly you over to where the new settlement is being set up."

"Yes, please. I think, even if it doesn't affect me, I'd rather be away from Xenon."

"I quite understand. I wish you all success in your future endeavours."

Click to shrink...

I assume some people are already on site, otherwise it could be a lonely however long.

I have a feeling we've not seen the last of the Super-Wolfman, but by and large, the colony should have resources to contain another outbreak. Hopefully things go better for him in future. Meanwhile, the matter of Zod and Ursa still hangs over the heroes' heads like a 10-ton weight, just waiting for the string holding it to snap...

 

[Cuchulin]

The Confederacy was founded on doing evil things that make no sense.

The idea that the Confederacy was fighting a defensive war is bad fanfic made up by lying assholes.

The Confederate slavers knew their slavery system was unsustainable so rather than do anything even remotely intelligent like stop cosplaying as British aristocracy, they decided the solution was to spread slavery.

They already had plans to invade Mexico and Brazil while the Union was kicking their asses.

The Confederacy was a freaking slavery pyramid scheme.

So in all those popular "What if the Confederacy survived?" alt-histories, the actual but boring result would have actually been the dumb fucks would have been destroyed in another war of conquest they started because that was the entire point of the Confederacy.

Click to shrink...

Two thing people tend to not learn or forget about American plantation slavery and the Confederacy, first is that Cotton was King and the Southern economy was based almost entirely on growing it as well as a couple other cash crops. Second is that VERY bad for soil fertility, so growing it in the same field over and over again means that how much you can grow will go down pretty quickly. Third because of the first two? That system DESPERATLY NEEDED to keep expanding which fueled things like West Ward expansion and the removal of Natives (As I recall that and Mexico being at least mildly Anti-Slavery was the main reason for the formation of the Republic of Texas) as well as leading to the oldest plantations becoming more like ranches that raised humans than farms by the 1860's.

 

[Mr Zoat]

'kryptonite-induced'?

Click to shrink...

Thank you, corrected.