• The site has now migrated to Xenforo 2. If you see any issues with the forum operation, please post them in the feedback thread.
  • Due to issues with external spam filters, QQ is currently unable to send any mail to Microsoft E-mail addresses. This includes any account at live.com, hotmail.com or msn.com. Signing up to the forum with one of these addresses will result in your verification E-mail never arriving. For best results, please use a different E-mail provider for your QQ address.
  • For prospective new members, a word of warning: don't use common names like Dennis, Simon, or Kenny if you decide to create an account. Spammers have used them all before you and gotten those names flagged in the anti-spam databases. Your account registration will be rejected because of it.
  • Since it has happened MULTIPLE times now, I want to be very clear about this. You do not get to abandon an account and create a new one. You do not get to pass an account to someone else and create a new one. If you do so anyway, you will be banned for creating sockpuppets.
  • Due to the actions of particularly persistent spammers and trolls, we will be banning disposable email addresses from today onward.
  • The rules regarding NSFW links have been updated. See here for details.

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

True, I wasn't saying they couldn't. But they are also Puritans. 'Go forth and be fruitful' and all that. And I think we'd better leave the discussion at that before someone gets cheesed off...

Good point.

Although we've seen his sister, and she wasn't all that old. I doubt the Columbians age that much differently to humans proper...

Though they are descendant from Melmoth, someone who may be immortal, or at least very long lived, so they may have a longer lifespan compared to a human.
 
Last edited:
Taking random bits of biblical passages for names was an actual historical practice in certain communities, very appropriate for the hard-core puritans.
Yeah. Praise-God Barebone is a sort-of famous example (at least enough that he had a parliament named for him), but there were probably a lot of names like God-Loves-You Smith or Suffer-Not-A-Witch-To-Live Jones (the latter isn't likely to be a name used in Columbia, though).
 
Yeah. Praise-God Barebone is a sort-of famous example (at least enough that he had a parliament named for him), but there were probably a lot of names like God-Loves-You Smith or Suffer-Not-A-Witch-To-Live Jones (the latter isn't likely to be a name used in Columbia, though).

However, Suffer-Not-A-Warlock-To-Live (insert name here) may be used by some people.
 
He might have accomplished it after years, or even decades, of work and after he did he altered his physical form to resemble that of a child, like how Mordru made himself look younger, because he thought it was better if someone that looked like a child caused all that chaos.


Murdering his parents was among his many crimes and his sister was one of the Witch hunters that came after him.

That places a very hard limit on Klarions age.

His sister appears to be a young adult, thus Klarion cannot be more than a decade plus a few years older than her at most, and it its entirely possible for him to actually be around the same age or younger than her.
 
Murdering his parents was among his many crimes and his sister was one of the Witch hunters that came after him.

That places a very hard limit on Klarions age.

His sister appears to be a young adult, thus Klarion cannot be more than a decade plus a few years older than her at most, and it its entirely possible for him to actually be around the same age or younger than her.

If the Columbians live longer than ordinary humans due to their Sheeda genes then that could explain him taking decades to become a Lord of Chaos and his parents still being alive for him to kill.

Though I'll agree that it's more likely that he became a Lord when he was young, either because someone helped him somehow, like another Lord of Chaos, or maybe he was just prodigy in magic and figured out a method himself.
 
I am getting worried about Best Snek ongoing absence. I mean shouldn't his favorite host drop in for occasional social call? And not even being found in the Honden? And why is only one other person even thinking about it in the comments? :(
 
I am getting worried about Best Snek ongoing absence. I mean shouldn't his favorite host drop in for occasional social call? And not even being found in the Honden? And why is only one other person even thinking about it in the comments? :(
Good question. Either she can't go to that planet for some reason, or something has happened and Paul is going to have to help the Ophidian in his next episode. If it is the latter, I am hoping Paul can flex more of his expertise in front of his Corps.
 
I am getting worried about Best Snek ongoing absence. I mean shouldn't his favorite host drop in for occasional social call? And not even being found in the Honden? And why is only one other person even thinking about it in the comments? :(

Good question. Either she can't go to that planet for some reason, or something has happened and Paul is going to have to help the Ophidian in his next episode. If it is the latter, I am hoping Paul can flex more of his expertise in front of his Corps.

Paul did speculate in one of the previous chapters that she may be finding it interesting viewing the desires of other ring wielders, so she may be busy doing that.

Another explanation for her absence may be due to the place and time they are in right now.

If Melmoth took the Puritans sometime in the future then it is possible that the Ophidian could have died somehow, or just stopped being in the Honden for some reason.

If they're in the past then it's possible that she's still in the Light Fountain in Larfleezes possession

If they're in another universe altogether then it's possible something like the Ophidian never came to exist there, but the Honden, or its equivalent, did come into existence.

But yeah I hope we have an episode where Paul and his Corps go on a mission and he shows off his expertise.
 
Taking random bits of biblical passages for names was an actual historical practice in certain communities, very appropriate for the hard-core puritans.

It's also something Omnians do in Discworld, albeit with it's own silly discworld spin on it.
Hence Constable Visit-the-Infidel-with-Explanatory-Pamphlets, of the Ankh-Morpork city watch
 
Waaaaaait a moment.

Did Zoat make Ophidian 'unavailable' now just to finally shut down any talks of Paul "mantling" her?
[:V]
I believe Zoat is coming to realize that he reached the point where he needs to nerf Paul to make conflict in the story still be interesting.
 
Hmmm, Ophi-chan is missing? is someone abducting the Emotional Avatar Beasts, perhaps?...

Now I find myself wondering if Paul is going to replace the Ophidian.
 
I'm still utterely confused about Klarion. Klarion is dead, isn't he? This is the same universe and time that his sister came from to hunt him down. So if his sister came back to this time, then in this time period he's already became a Lord of Chaos and left. Hence the Hunt for him. Mission accomplished.

The only ways I can see Klarion still alive is if a PAST version of himself either came back, or his people made a mistake going after a future version. Rather than, say, the one still in this period.

Perhaps it's not Klarion he's seeing at all, Paul is just making a comment "Oh, that's like Klarions desires"?
 
I'm still utterely confused about Klarion. Klarion is dead, isn't he? This is the same universe and time that his sister came from to hunt him down. So if his sister came back to this time, then in this time period he's already became a Lord of Chaos and left. Hence the Hunt for him. Mission accomplished.

The only ways I can see Klarion still alive is if a PAST version of himself either came back, or his people made a mistake going after a future version. Rather than, say, the one still in this period.

Perhaps it's not Klarion he's seeing at all, Paul is just making a comment "Oh, that's like Klarions desires"?
The Honden serves as a record of the universe's desires, not just present observation. He can see everything anyone has ever desired since the universe began supporting souls connected to the Orange Light.
 
It's just two lines but I'm already rooting for the secret gay Columbian lovers; maybe there'll be a more permanent connection set up between Witch World and Earth-16 and they and the warlocks can set up in some part of Earth.
 
Faed Away (part 20)
5th May
At Some Point


Melmoth's eyes widen fractionally as I appear in what looks like-

Entropic rays orientate on me and fire, the modifications I made to my armour to enable it to better resist them performing well enough to keep me in one piece long enough for my railguns to retaliate.

-the control room of some sort of.. facility..? Multiple control panels show that it was designed to be operated by a larger number of people than the one who currently occupies it. Illusion projectors show a variety of scenes from Columbia and other places, and a large window to the exterior shows… A red coloured rocky desert. No, yellow-brown, it's the dim light from above that's red.

"Now-."

As the last ray projector slumps in its ball mount I reach out for Melmoth with orange strands and brand.

He grits his teeth, and I can feel him resisting. The images I saw suggested that he had a similar upbringing to Larfleeze: starving and scrabbling for every crumb. But while Larfleeze learned absolutely nothing from the experience, Melmoth learned discipline. Mental strength and focus. Even as he tries to suppress his own desires to zen-like calm the witch-signs he'll use to fight me are forming around his fingers.

But I didn't use every trick when I taught the Green Lanterns to resist me.

Enkindle Need.

Because while assimilation works best on people with little self-control, there's a difference between control and mastery. Melmoth could probably go centuries without hurting anyone if he had to without any adverse psychological consequences. But he could never let go of that desire and as his eyes glow orange and he tilts his head back with a gasp he abandons his effort at control in favour of lunging at me, rationality overwhelmed by his burning need to hurt something.

The brand finishes forming a moment before his face slams into my chest plate.

I reset his desires to their baselines as he stands and takes a closer look. Yes, he's… Flaking a little, but he's healing faster than it can take hold.

Normally I'd speak instructions at this point, because this brand is a temporary thing and whoever I've done it to is going to have to be rehabilitated at some point. But in this case… I think he's.. if not a lost cause then at least one I'm not inclined to look for.

Instead I reach into his soul, search out the atrophied drives for cooperation and camaraderie and empower them while I turn down his selfishness and cruelty.

"Melmoth, stop the attack."

"Ah-? Yes. Well, I… Can't." He hurries over to a control panel. "I set up the trigger before I left. I can release the counteragent-" He pulls a lever. "-but that won't stop any attackers who are already 'triggered' from carrying out their instinctive behaviour. And I should shut down the mass mutation device I left on the great southern island."

"Is there anything else you can do to help them?"

"Certainly!" He presses a few more buttons, and the… Some sort of ornament in the middle of the floor spurts a green fluid from… Oh, it's a fountain, from the top and the liquid flows beneath the keys as Melmoth presses them. "We'll be there in a moment."

"Where are we now?"

"We're over what used to be the Atlantic Ocean. Before it dried up." He smiles as the scenery outside the window shimmers and vanishes. "The one place no Sheeda would look: the miserable period before the first Harrowing."

"We're in the future?"

"No, the past! I won't be born for centuries!"

He hurries between the consoles, pulling levers, pressing buttons and briefly creating small witch-signs to manipulate the machinery.

"My future?"

"The future of humanity; the death of the world and the succession of the Sheeda. But put it from your mind! We have a people to aid!"

"What were you planning to do with them?"

"I imagine that you've deduced most of it. I wanted to create a reserve of people with whom I could colonise the Earth after the Harrowing."

"But they all hate you."

"Yes, but the moment they decreed that certain things were forbidden they created an opening for my return. Hating me is part of their official creed, which naturally means that anyone they define as being outside of that creed suddenly doesn't feel the same need for animosity. With sufficient time I would easily have talked the warlocks and warlock-breed around. Once I offered them my aid in improving their skills… Once I repaired their pupae forms into true Sheeda, and once I led them to victory against the Columbians, then they would accept me as their leader."

He blinks, giving his head a small shake.

"Not that that matters now. What a horrid waste of time."

The churning kaleidoscope of textures on the other side of the window fades away, being replaced by the stars I recognise from the skies over Witchworld.

Immediately, Melmoth moves over to another control station.

"I can use the integrated weapons to cull the horde a little. You should be able to speak to your allies now."

"Orange Lantern to Justice League. Mission success. I have Melmoth and-"

I scan the structure we're standing in. It's a huge cylindrical vehicle which floats unsupported in the air.

"-his base of operations."

"Is Melmoth under control?"

"Effectively. He's being very helpful. He's shutting down the attackers as much as he can and taking shots at the rest. You should be able to see-."

"The ship, yes. I see it now. Remain with him to ensure that your controls remain in place."

"Yes sir. Have.. you any plans on what we're doing with him once the immediate crisis is over?"

"Not yet. That will be… Difficult."

Telling me…

"I'll meet you on the ship once the fighting is over. Wonder Woman out."

I nod as Melmoth continues to treat Central Columbia as a shooting arcade.

I just went to the far future. I… Don't think that's something I… Can do at-will. Time travel. I certainly… I'm not usually one to turn down power but that would sort of make me responsible for everything and I'd… Rather not be.

"Melmoth, do you have any idea how I reached you in the future?"

"The water, probably." He points to the… Place where the water was flowing through the central console. "A small amount I temporarily stabilised from the fountain at the core of the Castle Revolving's time displacement system. It flows through time, which means that it escapes constantly. It wouldn't surprise me if it made the usual separation of eras somewhat less of an issue."

"And the Queen has the Castle?"

"Unless she lost it somehow. I think that's fairly unlikely, but that was how I was overthrown." He glances at the central console. "I'm afraid that if you want to do it again then you'll need more of the water."

I nod, torn between disappointment and relief.

"Keep up the good work. I'll stay out of your way."
 
Last edited:

Maybe 'in what'


'by the stars'


'Witchworld' , seeing as when you're pronouncing a worlds name the first letter is typically in bold.

"Yes sir. Have.. you any plans on what we're doing with him once the immediate crisis is over?"

"Not yet. That will be… Difficult."

Extract any information about the Sheeda you can from him and then hand him over to the Columbians, seeing as he's currently done the most harm to them they're the ones that deserve to have his fate in their hands.

That or overthrow the Queen and install him as the ruler and reform the Sheeda into something not evil, but I guess you could also just kill Melmoth and alter the Queen.
 
5th May
At Some Point
This chapter isn't getting a like, because it doesn't deserve it.

You built up what for once was an interesting and challenging Villain that could have kept the story interesting for years to come. And then you had Paul pull multiple new powers out of his ass to beat him in the most pathetic way possible.

This is quite simply bad writing on par with the sort of thing you would see from Perfect Lionheart and the like.
 
This chapter isn't getting a like, because it doesn't deserve it.

You built up what for once was an interesting and challenging Villain that could have kept the story interesting for years to come. And then you had Paul pull multiple new powers out of his ass to beat him in the most pathetic way possible.

This is quite simply bad writing on par with the sort of thing you would see from Perfect Lionheart and the like.

Jesus. Christ.

One, this Melmoth arc has gone on long enough and I'm fine with an actual conclusion with the villain being definitively stopped, not escaping in the last comic panel to come back 20 issues down the line. Two, this story has been going on for years. Variety is the spice of this story. SI in the DC Universe, not constantly sparring with one Dark Eldar type scumbag.

Plus we still have to see the Renegade side of this with the Sheeda attack on modern Renegade Earth and Sivana messing with time.
 
This chapter isn't getting a like, because it doesn't deserve it.

You built up what for once was an interesting and challenging Villain that could have kept the story interesting for years to come. And then you had Paul pull multiple new powers out of his ass to beat him in the most pathetic way possible.

This is quite simply bad writing on par with the sort of thing you would see from Perfect Lionheart and the like.
If I remember correctly, Paul has used Enkindle Need before. Just never while simultaneously Branding someone. Doing both at the same time actually makes a lot of sense, as well as why he doesn't exactly tell people that he can do that.
 
Jesus. Christ.

One, this Melmoth arc has gone on long enough and I'm fine with an actual conclusion with the villain being definitively stopped, not escaping in the last comic panel to come back 20 issues down the line. Two, this story has been going on for years. Variety is the spice of this story. SI in the DC Universe, not constantly sparring with one Dark Eldar type scumbag.

Plus we still have to see the Renegade side of this with the Sheeds attack on modern Renegade Earth and Sivana messing with time.

If I remember correctly, Paul has used Enkindle Need before. Just never while simultaneously Branding someone. Doing both at the same time actually makes a lot of sense, as well as why he doesn't exactly tell people that he can do that.

Don't bother trying to make Vaermina see your point, it's an impossible task that will just leave you annoyed.
 
5th May
At Some Point


Melmoth's eyes widen fractionally as I appear on what looks like-

Entropic rays orientate on me and fire, the modifications I made to my armour to enable it to better resist them performing well enough to keep me in one piece long enough for my railguns to retaliate.
Too slow, Swirly-cheeks. And now you belong to OL.

-the control room of some sort of.. facility..? Multiple control panels show that it was designed to be operated by a larger number of people than the one who currently occupies it. Illusion projectors show a variety of scenes from Columbia and other places, and a large window to the exterior shows… A red coloured rocky desert. No, yellow-brown, it's the dim light from above that's red.
Honestly, you're making it sound slightly like a TARDIS... At least with the 'operated by less than the optimum number of people. I bet there's some limited similarity in its' ability to travel, too.

"Now-."

As the last ray projector slumps in its ball mount I reach out for Melmoth with orange strands and brand.
Ah, a moment well worth the wait. This will be sooo satisfying.

He grits his teeth, and I can feel him resisting. The images I saw suggested that he had a similar upbringing to Larfleeze; starving and scrabbling for every crumb. But while Larfleeze learned absolutely nothing from the experience, Melmoth learned discipline. Mental strength and focus. Even as he tries to suppress his own desires to zen-like calm the witch-signs he'll use to fight me are forming around his fingers.

But I didn't use every trick when I taught the Green Lanterns to resist me.
Of course not! Why would you show everything in your arsenal to the people stuck working for assholes. Gotta have something in reserve if they turn on you. Paranoia at its proper finest.

Enkindle Need.

Because while assimilation works best on people with little self-control, there's a difference between control and mastery. Melmoth could probably go centuries without hurting anyone if he had to without any adverse psychological consequences. But he could never let go of that desire and as his eyes glow orange and he tilts his head back with a gasp he abandons his effort at control in favour of lunging at me, rationality overwhelmed by his burning need to hurt something.
Big old chink in his metaphorical armour, isn't it? He just can't let go of that sadistic streak. And now it's biting him in the arse.

The brand finishes forming a moment before his face slams into my chest plate.

I reset his desires to their baselines as he stands and takes a closer look. Yes, he's… Flaking a little, but he's healing faster than it can take hold.
Bet he's regretting rendering himself immortal now, huh? Has he stopped smiling, at least? ;)

Normally I'd speak instructions at this point, because this brand is a temporary thing and whoever I've done it to is going to have to be rehabilitated at some point. But in this case… I think he's.. if not a lost cause then at least one I'm not inclined to look for.

Instead I reach into his soul, search out the atrophied drives for cooperation and camaraderie and empower them while I turn down his selfishness and cruelty.
Oh, that's even crueller than anything physical you could do. Especially since he'll remember how he was, and the difference will burn.

"Melmoth, stop the attack."

"Ah-? Yes. Well, I… Can't." He hurries over to a control panel. "I set up the trigger before I left. I can release the counteragent-" He pulls a lever. "-but that won't stop any attackers who are already 'triggered' from carrying out their instinctive behaviour. And I should shut down the mass mutation device I left on the great southern island."
...Oh, that would have been bad. Very, very bad. I shudder at the monstrosities it would have produced.

"Is there anything else you can do to help them?"

"Certainly!" He presses a few more buttons, and the… Some sort of ornament in the middle of the floor spurts a green fluid from… Oh, it's a fountain, from the top and the liquid flows beneath the keys as Melmoth presses them. "We'll be there in a moment."
Very.. stylish. Not lessening the comparison to a TARDIS any, either...

"Where are we now?"

"We're over what used to be the Atlantic Ocean. Before it dried up." He smiles as the scenery outside the window shimmers and vanishes. "The one place no Sheeda would look: the miserable period before the first Harrowing."
So, he fled into his own past. Setting up plots that would come out to play when he made his move in the future, I suppose. Timey-wimey stuff...

"We're in the future?"

"No, the past! I won't be born for centuries!"
At least that joviality isn't being directed at people suffering anymore. I can just imagine him chuckling to himself at the irony of his position, At least in the timestream. I doubt he's very happy about his current state, deep down.

He hurries between the consoles, pulling levers, pressing buttons and briefly creating small witch-signs to manipulate the machinery.

"My future?"

"The future of humanity; the death of the world and the succession of the Sheeda. But put it from your mind! We have a people to aid!"
Oh god, now he's acting like the Doctor. Stop him, please.

"What were you planning to do with them?"

"I imagine that you've deduced most of it. I wanted to create a reserve of people with whom I could colonise the Earth after the Harrowing."
Yes, well, that didn't go so well, did it? What with the whole 'rising up and trying to kill you' bit.

"But they all hate you."

"Yes, but the moment they decreed that certain things were forbidden they created an opening for my return. Hating me is part of their official creed, which naturally means that anyone they define as being outside of that creed suddenly doesn't feel the same need for animosity. With sufficient time I would easily have talked the warlocks and warlock-breed around. Once I offered them my aid in improving their skills… Once I repaired their pupae forms into true Sheeda, and once I led them to victory against the Columbians, then they would accept me as their leader."
Eh, I suspect he's overestimating his persuasiveness. Even now, the Warlock-breed hate him as much as the Columbians do. You're not likely to undo centuries of that much hate in a generation or two...

He blinks, giving his head a small shake.

"Not that that matters now. What a horrid waste of time."
On that, we can all agree. Though the sooner he's safely somewhere he can't mess with anyone again, the better. What do you think? Oan Sciencell or a Maltusian lockup of some kind?

The churning kaleidoscope of textures on the other side of the window fades away, being replaces my the stars I recognise from the skies over witchworld.

Immediately, Melmoth moves over to another control station.
Presumably, OL is monitoring his actions. I doubt Melmoth could resist the compulsion to be helpful, but he could easily 'accidentally' be over-enthusiastic with some weapons fire...

"I can use the integrated weapons to cull the horde a little. You should be able to speak to your allies now."

"Orange Lantern to Justice League. Mission success. I have Melmoth and-"
Mission won't be completely successful until the Columbians are out of danger. But with their master working against them, the Sheeda-creatures will be somewhat easier to manage...

I scan the structure we're standing in. It's a huge cylindrical vehicle which floats unsupported in the air.

"-his base of operations."
Fricking magic, making a mockery of things like gravity. Is it hanging like a brick shouldn't?

"Is Melmoth under control?"

"Effectively. He's being very helpful. He's shutting down the attackers as much as he can and taking shots at the rest. You should be able to see-."

"The ship, yes. I see it now. Remain with him to ensure that your controls remain in place."
Yeah, can't trust he doesn't have some hidden countermeasures to undo the Orange Light tweaking. A backup memory that kicks in if he doesn't perform a certain action every so often, for example...

"Yes sir. Have.. you any plans on what we're doing with him once the immediate crisis is over?"

"Not yet. That will be… Difficult."
I See Wonder Woman is still a mistress of understatement. Difficult will not begin to describe it, methinks.

Telling me…

"I'll meet you on the ship once the fighting is over. Wonder Woman out."
:rolleyes: So, a few minutes, at the rate they're going.

I nod as Melmoth continues to treat Central Columbia as a shooting arcade.

I just went to the far future. I… Don't think that's something I… Can do at-will. Time travel. I certainly… I'm not usually one to turn down power but that would sort of make me responsible for everything and I'd… Rather not be.
It's quite a feat. And quite the moral challenge. One of those 'No one man should have all that power' things... :D

"Melmoth, do you have any idea how I reached you in the future?"

"The water, probably." He points to the… Place where the water was flowing through the central console. "A small amount I temporarily stabilised from the fountain at the core of the Castle Revolving's time displacement system. It flows through time, which means that it escapes constantly. It wouldn't surprise me if it made the usual separation of eras somewhat less of an issue."
So it's a liquid space-time wedgie. Is it wibbly-wobbly, too? I suppose it must be, or it would run out at some point otherwise.

"And the Queen has the Castle?"

"Unless she lost it somehow. I think that's fairly unlikely, but that was how I was overthrown." He glances at the central console. "I'm afraid that if you want to do it again then you'll need more of the water."
Oh, how ironic, given what happened in the Renegade's timeline.

I nod, torn between disappointment and relief.

"Keep up the good work. I'll stay out of your way."
You have some things to consider, eh? Do keep an eye on him, though...

Well... Scry-and-.. if not -Die, then -Dominate. Almost feels anti-climactic, but Melmoth probably wasn't prepared for this kind of thing. While he may have seen Lanterns before, they were probably of the Green variety, and Orange can pull off some bullshit. Joy of getting blind-sided by something unfamiliar, like an out-of-context problem, huh?
 
Enkindle avarice.

Orange light flashes through the metaphysiques of the assault team, almost immediately mirrored by equivalent blue. That should keep out the Anti-Life, though sadly we don't have other colours of Lantern trained in this technique. Zatanna is going nowhere near this, no one thought that calling Sinestro was a good idea and what sort of lunatic would make a red ring?

"Done."

Don't bother trying to make Vaermina see you point, it's an impossible task that will just leave you annoyed.
I just wanted to point out that it isn't a new power, in case anyone thinks it is. Also, I found the part of the story where he used it. He called it Enkindle Avarice. Mr Zoat, will either name work, or will you make one the official name?

Also, he used it in the peace talks in Vega to make the various factions create a treaty that made all sides profit. It is useful in both combat and diplomatic missions.
 
Last edited:
While he may have seen Lanterns before, they were probably of the Green variety, and Orange can pull off some bullshit. Joy of getting blind-sided by something unfamiliar, like an out-of-context problem, huh?
Green(and other colors) can probably pull off equivalent levels of bullshit, I think. It's just that the Guardians actively discouraged esoteric uses of the green light.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top