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

Reader mode
Cue everyone in the thread having their own ideas for what Paul should do to play a supevillain. That said...
Mr Zoat said:
"Challenger Mountain's on the market. How do you feel about Denver?"
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Sounds like a certainly elderly hero who's alive in Grayven's continuity isn't so in Paul's, now.
 
I'm going to assume that Paul will end up pretending to be effectively Grayven 16: personally powerful warlord with a reasonably potent armada at his command is a surprisingly common threat in this universe.

And the parallel is too delicious to ignore.
 
Oh, so OL actually gets to play at being a supervillain.

I wonder how he'll approach it. He kinda has the whole "acts like a supervillain but is heroic" thing going on, would be cool if he reversed it. Be a villain that speaks, walks, and talks like a superhero.

And it would be funny if the team came away from it all wondering "Did.. did Paul just explain something he's actually planning to do?"
 
Mr Zoat said:
Roy glances my way as he falls in next to his newly armoured colleague.

"If this keeps going we're going to need a bigger mountain."

"Challenger Mountain's on the market. How do you feel about Denver?"
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Ah, I assume Dr Robbins passed away, then. Another point of difference in the timelines.

I'd been ignoring the problem, but Roy brought it up nicely. While the newer team members do need formal instruction, those of us who've been here a while… We don't need it. We're not a training squad for low risk busywork any longer-. If we ever really were. We need field experience, sure, but I can't help but think that an overhaul of the system might be required.

Like finding a city that is a bit of a mess and building a giant tower in the shape of a 'T' on a nearby island.

Or something.
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The giant T-shaped tower might be a little much for this universe. But the senior (in tenure, not age) members of the team might benefit from their own group.

And… Roy hasn't said anything to me, but… There isn't really much difference between him and the version of him on the League. Other than the fact that he's much better armed. Skillwise they're pretty much identical. And yet he's down here on the 'teaching' squad and William is on the 'graduated' League.

So what's the plan? I don't think there's any sort of structure by which we get promoted. Richard and Wallace will want to go college and.. maybe they can't commit to spending the time or lack the neurological stability due to being teenagers. But Kaldur or Canis? What's the bar there?

Alright, with Canis-.
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He definitely isn't League material, is he?

"Recognized, Batman, Zero Two."

I find myself not.. snapping to attention in the way that I used to as Batman strides into prime lecturing position. It's not that I don't respect him. No, it's that I don't fear his disapproval. I'm confident that (in my sphere) I know more about the job than he does. Or maybe actually getting to know the man has cured me of my lingering devotion to the Infallible Bat-God. Still, he has actually waded through reams of intelligence and crime reports to find something at our level -whatever that is- so there's no need to be rude.
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Having seen the man behind the 'dressed as a bat' myth, he's less impressive to OL.

"I have four tasks for the team. It will be up to you to decide where to focus your efforts."

Squads of five each, with a few left over. I'm a little surprised that the newest three are being included, but I suppose that they're not exactly 'new'. Arisia grew up around Lanterns in a spacefaring civilisation where knowledge of Lanterns was commonplace. Ghia'ta… Could be literally any age, and the Noriel part of Supergirl is thousands of years old.
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But all three of them are rookies in this field. Definitely worth ensuring each is sorted onto a unit with more experienced teammates. Also, give everyone the 'Never Split The Party' lecture.

"Federal police in Pakistan have requested assistance in dealing with several settlements they believe have been infiltrated by Kobra sympathisers."

A map flashes up on the holographic display, but I'm already frowning. Kobra are Hindu heretics. Pakistan is virtually entirely Muslim. Okay, there's some spill over in the border regions but Partition didn't happen because the two religions get on super well. So there isn't going to be significant native support for their ideology there… Or maybe that's the point? Marginalised communities being driven to adopt an extreme version of their religion due to external pressure?
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So, Discreet observation from a distance.

"The team's task will be to gather evidence of Kobra activity and -if appropriate- to take action against any Kobra operatives in the area."

That team's going to need a magic user and.. probably M'gann? And those of us who've participated in anti-Kobra operations before should probably not take part. That area doesn't have the best communications infrastructure but if Kobra recruiters actually are active in the area I'm sure they'll have our pictures. Of course, none of us could really… Blend in with the locals, and it's not exactly a holiday hotspot. I wonder if Vasi's available?
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A chance to get the local hero involved with the team perhaps.

"Secondly." The screen showing that part of Pakistan floats off to the side and another showing a snow-covered wasteland. "STAR Labs have requested that we help locate a team they dispatched to Nepal. They were studying the monastery which was briefly used as a refuge by surviving members of the League of Shadows last year. The team leader -a man named Anderson Gaines- reported that they had located metal samples of non-terrestrial origin before losing contact. We have their itinerary and last known position, but neither the Watchtower's sensors nor local rescue teams are able to locate them."
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As long as it doesn't turn out like 'The Thing', it'll be fine. Extra-terrestrial metal, though...

No Prometheus in this setting, as far as I have been able to tell. I suppose that he'd be quite young now, and I don't remember his real name. Would he kill a STAR Labs team? If someone was paying him, yes, but on his own recognisance he only targeted law enforcers. And I can't really see him being so attached to the place that he would attack them just for going there. So probably not him, and if it is then he's the Batman sort. Without preparation time he'd struggle to cope with a squad from the team and isn't that an awkward way to phrase it.
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Was Prometheus' name ever even revealed? At any rate, he's not active yet...

"Thirdly." Ah, this is a little closer to home. "The town of Kennedy in Oregon has the highest rate of suicide among teenagers in the north western United States, without any of the usual external triggers for suicidal tendencies."

Well, that's one way to get team numbers down to something manageable. I suppose that as team empath I should take that one, though that's a bit harsh considering how difficult my colleagues will find travelling to and from the other two.

"The team will attempt to discover why, or at least find a way to reduce it temporarily."
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Two of the teams will have Lanterns, though. Give them a quick lesson on group FTL-Transtitioning, or let them fly people at speed in a giant bubble. Not recognising the Kennedy scenario though...

"Lastly, we've heard rumours of a metahuman fighting tournament being held in Madagascar. While prize fighting is not necessarily illegal, I'm concerned that wanted criminals may use it to generate revenue and advertise their services. The team will attempt to locate the event, observe it and plant monitoring devices."

Ah, the trainee mission. Madagascar has a large enough tourist population that any of us could fit in and it concerns a crime where the individuals involved want to keep things at least a little bit quiet. Or try and brazen things out if discovered rather than go out in a blaze of villainy. No obvious reason for me to go there. In fact, my public profile means that I'm a bad fit for it.
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High probability of miss Roulette (Daughter of the original Mister Terriffic) being involved. Likelyhood of things going tits-up also high.

"I will expect to see your mission plans within the hour. Dismissed." Oh, the meeting room is going to get crowded. Maybe I should knock through a wall-. "Orange Lantern, stay behind."

A few of my colleagues glance back as they head down the corridor. I just give them a small shrug before giving Batman my full attention. If he wants to talk about yesterday…
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...He can go jump, you did everything within reasonable limits.

"What can I do for you, sir?"

"I have a particular assignment for you." He fully dismisses the holoscreens. "I agree with the assessment you made that one of the key roles for the Justice League is to be prepared to take on the worst that the universe can throw at the Earth. As part of the League's ongoing training process I want you to act as our opposing force in a war game we will be conducting next week."

"You want me to take on the role of a supervillain?"
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And I'm imaging a huge grin trying to creep onto his face, only to be countered by his Rings.

"Yes."

In.. tresting. "Do.. ing.. what?"
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Correction: 'In...teresting.' unless natural speech rules apply.

"That will be up to you. You have performed analyses of supervillain activity second only to my own. You know the sort of things that the League's enemies may attempt, and your knowledge of galactic politics means you are also aware of what extra terrestrial threats may exist. Submit your plan to me no later than Thursday."

"Sir." Oh… Man. So many things I could do with this. Of course, I'll have to make sure that my 'targets' and 'victims' are willing to play along… "I'm sure that I'll come up with something."
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That's putting the fox in the henhouse. The hard part will be keeping it reasonable...

Batman nods. "Concerning your activity in Gotham City yesterday. While you were correct to say that you do not work for Batwoman, and have no obligation to obey my orders outside of team missions, I ask that in the future you try to avoid deliberately antagonising her."

"I'm sure that I can manage that."
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No promises are made, though?

"That aside, you are to be congratulated on your success. Whoever 'Mister Gotham' is, he and his cult represented a significant threat to the city."

"You should probably thank Selina about that, too. If she hadn't been there I doubt that I'd have found the place."
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Seriously, they would have kept on with their little abduction/sacrifice ring for a while if not for Catwoman...

He nods. "Which mission will you take part in?"

"Ultimately, that's Kaldur decision, but I was thinking Kennedy. Understanding people's motivations is what I'm best at."

He regards me for a moment and nods, then turns away and heads for the zeta tube.
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And so a classic Justice League trope begins - splitting the team into managable groups for easier challenge and showing off of powers.

This will be interesting indeed. And we still have the meaning of the episode title to puzzle out. My guess about the Maltusian Leprechauns is still on the table...
 
Mr Zoat said:
Batman nods. "Concerning your activity in Gotham City yesterday. While you were correct to say that you do not work for Batwoman, and have no obligation to obey my orders outside of team missions, I ask that in the future you try to avoid deliberately antagonising her."

"I'm sure that I can manage that."
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I see that he didn't actually say that he'd stop antagonising her. It'd be childish of him to continue now, really, but he does have that loophole if he wants.
 
I have such a shit-eating grin right now.

Paul should go full-fucking-ham. A mad scientist who builds spaceships and cancer-curing guns and uses them for robbing Fort Knox while giving his plans away through rhymes and obscure references! Orbital bombardment coupled with raptor-cyborgs and intelligent gorilla mercenaries!

This will be glorious!
 
SemiAnarchist said:
I see that he didn't actually say that he'd stop antagonising her. It'd be childish of him to continue now, really, but he does have that loophole if he wants.
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Eh. Barring actual truth-telling compulsions if OL was enough of a dick to use that kind of loophole he'd be perfectly willing to just break his promise.
 
Sceptic said:
Or a certain elderly hero's caregiver is selling her mountain to pay for the old people's home she's slowly dying in.
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I mean... this is probably the same sort of "available" as it was for Grayven - she's not dying, but no one is using the base, and she would be amenable to sell it to a group of superheroes.

Edit: Might make a good "supervillain" base for Paul, since it doesn't have an official map, and can be easily defended. As for evil plan, he could try going for as many evil plans at a time as he can come up with - so that he has backups. Also, might be a good idea to recruit some actual former supervillains for this - like the Sivanas, Melinoe, and maybe the Shade. The other possible plan - going with what people previously said about acting heroic while being villainous - is to try and take down Lexcorp, so the heroes have to protect Lex Luthor.
 
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Ardy said:
I have such a shit-eating grin right now.

Paul should go full-fucking-ham. A mad scientist who builds spaceships and cancer-curing guns and uses them for robbing Fort Knox while giving his plans away through rhymes and obscure references! Orbital bombardment coupled with raptor-cyborgs and intelligent gorilla mercenaries!

This will be glorious!
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I'm thinking a musical number wouldn't be out of place, honestly. Both paragon and renegade have shown certain predilections for singing...

How about:
 
Slayer Anderson said:
I'm thinking a musical number wouldn't be out of place, honestly. Both paragon and renegade have shown certain predilections for singing...

How about:
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YES GOD YES! HIS MINIONS ALL DANCE TO THE TUNE AND HE HAS A GIANT ORBITAL CANNON THAT JUST MAKES THE ENTIRE AREA A DISCO-LIGHT DANCE FLOOR!

He'll have a hat and a cane and sing this song while the justice league are tied up instead of executing them and it will be AMAZING!

edit: And he'll have a snake theme and hiss all his S's like Cobra Commander!
 
Slayer Anderson said:
I'm thinking a musical number wouldn't be out of place, honestly. Both paragon and renegade have shown certain predilections for singing...
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An 'evil for evil's sake' song? If OL's going to ham it up as a villain, I'd think some Five Iron Frenzy would be more appropriate than Voltaire.

Thinking on it, though... what if he recruits some of his contacts, like the law-abiding Sivanas?
 
Gforce1000 said:
I'm going to assume that Paul will end up pretending to be effectively Grayven 16: personally powerful warlord with a reasonably potent armada at his command is a surprisingly common threat in this universe.

And the parallel is too delicious to ignore.
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No no no: actual Grayven crossover! Everyone is expecting a hammy OL...and then Grayven shows up!

Ardy said:
I have such a shit-eating grin right now.

Paul should go full-fucking-ham. A mad scientist who builds spaceships and cancer-curing guns and uses them for robbing Fort Knox while giving his plans away through rhymes and obscure references! Orbital bombardment coupled with raptor-cyborgs and intelligent gorilla mercenaries!

This will be glorious!
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I want to say: or the opposite route, social engineering, infiltrating, politics, but that would leave long term damage.

Personally I vote for space invasion.

It's one of the things that pisses me off the most about both DC and Marvel: Earth faces threats from space all the frickin time, yet both 'verses don't have any sort of regular orbital defense infrastructure, planetary shields, orbital cannons, nothing!
 
I'll be kind of annoyed if he's swapped with greyven at the start of the war game, and people think it's all part of the show.

I wanna see OL's take on supervillany.
He's kinda known for his overachiving, so batman might regret this.
 
Gforce1000 said:
I'm going to assume that Paul will end up pretending to be effectively Grayven 16: personally powerful warlord with a reasonably potent armada at his command is a surprisingly common threat in this universe.

And the parallel is too delicious to ignore.
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The real question is if he's going to use his orange ring to build that armada to play-attack the Earth with, and then just happen to conveniently leave it behind for an international defense force to take possession of when he's done.

Buggy123 said:
Wait, did I miss something here? I thought Noriel was that fallen angel that got merged with that cultist?
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Yes, and that's Supergirl here. Kara not only doesn't want to be one of the cape-wearing set, but right now she's still detoxing from the gold Kryptonite poisoning that Batman gave her because apparently he thinks dressing up in a bat costume qualifies him as a medical doctor for a completely alien physiology.
 
Slayer Anderson said:
I'm thinking a musical number wouldn't be out of place, honestly. Both paragon and renegade have shown certain predilections for singing...

How about:
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Damn. I'd forgotten all about Richard. Thank you for the reminder. However, I hope he sings Slaughter Your World.


Hopefully while trying to pull this off he finds out that Ryan Sohmer is a person in this world, trying to get funding for his movie, and gives it to him.

After all, This Is War. Woah. Grayven did something about Darfur, but I don't think Paragon has yet.
Time to go on a killing spree? Time to go on a killing spree.
 
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Gforce1000 said:
I'm going to assume that Paul will end up pretending to be effectively Grayven 16: personally powerful warlord with a reasonably potent armada at his command is a surprisingly common threat in this universe.

And the parallel is too delicious to ignore.
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Joint Justice League/Maltus/NATO/Russia/China training exercise. The OLC, Dark Stars, and Maltusian regular army get to practice invading a planet, while the forces of Earth get to practice defending against an alien invasion.
 
OL will obviously be an entire villain team, and will move from place to place wearing different costumes for each role (he might go for robot stand-ins while he's not actually there; don't forget the Silver Age Superman robots).

Unfortunately, his Evil Alien Wizard persona will go a bit far in summoning an 'unstoppable extra-dimensional menace' and will cause Grayven to turn up. :)

High Jinks will ensue. :)
 
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Gforce1000 said:
I'm going to assume that Paul will end up pretending to be effectively Grayven 16: personally powerful warlord with a reasonably potent armada at his command is a surprisingly common threat in this universe.
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Or better yet, Paul and Grayven switch places.

Ardy said:
Paul should go full-fucking-ham.
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Can he even go full Ham? I swear his thought processes are so alien to me sometimes if he tried to go Ham, he'd probably hit Salami by mistake.
 
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