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

DeathReaperZ · 2025-06-26T15:16:12+0100

Mr Zoat said:
Conner was right about super-hearing. And Kara was way wrong. Hearing thousands of sounds in a city makes it easier to filter all of it out. It's just white noise. Background. At least it is for me. But once you learn what a guy getting a boner sounds like… The way the heart rate changes, the shape of the pulse changes, and the sound of skin slowly sliding across cloth... You can't not hear it. Even if you wish you could.

Perhaps it works in a more logical way for her. You usually can't isolate sounds like that in a concert or a party or even just a conversation between a large group of people.

Mr Zoat said:
She stares at me for a moment, then shakes her head. "You truly..? You befriend her other Underlords without causing friction, you obey her laws and praise their wisdom, your greatest concern is for a world where you have taken her code of law and expended upon it, you deal with 'inconveniences' for her without leaving a trace of your presence and ask for nothing in return. Bastet knows that you love her."

Damn he has it bad.

Mr Zoat said:
Her smile broadens for a moment, so I think that was supposed to be a joke. But I don't get it. I've worn this shirt dozens of times at least, and Conner's got a wardrobe that's basically just identical copies of the same stuff. If it wasn't for M'gann, that would be his whole wardrobe.

She tried making a rich person joke.

Mr Zoat said:
"Yeah, a lot of the time. But there's actually a big problem in some places with fertilizer run-off getting into rivers and lakes. See, it basically supercharges the algae, which sounds okay, until they die and start rotting. That supercharges the bacteria, which breed like crazy and use up all the oxygen in the lake. And that kills everything that needs oxygen, which is just about everything. A few of the strains we're growing now are designed specifically to flourish without fertilizer."

Yay, eutrophication. I don't know why she's telling Mitchell this. Even without the Genomorph programming, the average high schooler should know this.

Mr Zoat said:
The SUV's engine dies and the robot accelerates hard.

There we go. Nothing can ever stay calm for long.

Mr Zoat said:
"No. Escaping Mom's enemies."

I'm not entirely sure how much training would help considering the fact that most of Wonder Woman's enemies tend to be gods themselves.

Mr Zoat said:
I guess I could… Come out and swear her to secrecy, but while I want to help my father, I'm not dumb enough to actually trust him.

Thank the elementals above he's not naive enough to do that.

Mr Zoat said:
Her hands are on my arm, and I feel her squeeze my bicep.

Getting a bit frisky with the intern are we?

Mr Zoat said:
"It hit you with a circular saw! Those things aren't sterile!"

I think the sterility of the saw is less important than being hit with said saw.

Mr Zoat said:
She smiles, and waves her right hand. "Assume that I do desire you."

This might work out well.

Mr Zoat said:
I stop, and she… Giggles? Huy is still glaring, but Tey decides with one glance at her goddess that her current level of restraint is unnecessary.

This might work out very well.

Mr Zoat said:
She shrugs, then gestures to a richly upholstered chair under a desk off to the side of the room. I pull it over and sit down, then… Then implant the modified Mammon clone into myself without connecting myself to it. Then I flop back, using a ring connection to make him wiggle out of my mouth for a moment before pulling him back inside.

I'm confused, did he summon the Mammon clone inside his body and then pull it out of his mouth? I might be being an idiot, but that was the alien snake and not the host occupied by said snake? Because if it was the host body, that would be a lot more difficult.

Mr Zoat said:
"I wish for you to sire a child on me." She considers for a moment. "And a brood of prim'ta, afterwards, while I am still feeling maternal. I will appoint you as my regent while I convalesce. That will accustom my other Underlords to your authority."

This has gone very well

Mr Zoat said:
"Anyway, here-" She pulls out a laminated card. "-is my papers."

are

Mr Zoat said:
"What were you looking for Conner for?"

Sounds a bit odd with the two "for"s so close to each other. "Why were you looking for Conner?" might be better? I'd understand if Johanna said it like that, but why Mitchell?

Mr Zoat said:
"And, y'know, basic fetching and carrying and things like that. I'm kind of like her P.A.!"

"Pet-like Assistant" might be a more valid definition for that abbreviation then.

Mr Zoat said:
"Well, Atlantean portals bypass the intervening space, so they're great for logistics. But there's this British chocolate company that's pretty much covered the market there, so we're looking at other ways to move things around, just, better. Come on, I'll show you the physical space planning room!"

Ah, Paul's company is still shitting on the competition it seems.

Mr Zoat said:
She smiles as she puts the coffee down, and I can tell from the smell that she forgot the cream and sugar. If this is all it usually takes, I'm starting to get a little worried about how lonely male metahumans must be.

Remove "metahumans" from that sentence, and it'll still work. With an "s" at the end of course.

Mr Zoat said:
"She-ee's a killah queeeeen!"

Darn, that phone is going to explode soon I take it?

Mr Zoat said:
"Yeah, but you wouldn't have gotten this far if you hadn't passed vetting. And it's not like we don't know who you are. Wonder Woman suddenly having two sons was kind of a big deal. I mean, who are we gunna mistake you for, Clark Kent?"

Ah. "Who's that?"

Perhaps the sunglasses work better than expected.

Mr Zoat said:
"Actually, you do look kinda like Clark Kent." Her eyes widen. "Oh God, is he your Dad?"

I let myself look as awkward as I feel. "Ah, he'd have been in high school, and Mom was still on Themyscira. You know, with no contact with the outside world and no men. I mean, if he was really good at swimming I guess it wouldn't be completely impossible, but, ah… No."

It took her a surprisingly short time to figure it out, all things considered.

Mr Zoat said:
"Hey, have a little class, man. He's sixteen."

Would you look at that, morals.

Mr Zoat said:
"Basically, they stop the A.I. seeing us out of the corner of its eye. It can still see us, but it doesn't think anything of us. We're wallpaper. Carpet. A wave in an ocean of waves."

"That's poetic, man. Beautiful."

"Oh, fuck you. You want a full explanation, do three years of college computer science so you can understand it."

Ah, the shading technique.

Mr Zoat said:
But… If a teenaged intern actually beat off a group of thieves… It wouldn't be strange for the company chairman to pay them a visit. Right? I mean, he knows who I am, but this isn't going to stay a secret, even if they are plants. And even if he doesn't, they'd have to give me the internship, right? And I should be able to beat them.

Oh you poor summer child.

Mr Zoat said:
A ray of what I hope is infrared light melts a hole in the meeting room window, hits the interior of the plasma gun's barrel and melts a hole in it.

As opposed to what? Gamma or X-ray?

Mr Zoat said:
Let's see if I can do drunken kung fu without being drunk or knowing kung fu.

Just drink an entire distillery's worth of alcohol, and you'll have the first part down.

Mr Zoat said:
Open eye a little, squint and fire a short burst.

Using heat vision on a regular gun… It work pretty well, but it's really obvious and… You can mess up the person holding the gun if you're not really careful. If it's a revolver you can usually heat the grip without cooking off the bullets, but if it's got a magazine then you can't. It's not a matter of control; the conduction of the metal is just too efficient. And there's no clever detection system if you warp the barrel. Superman and Angelika both said that they'd had people get injured because the gun they melted a little misfired.

So what did he end up doing here? Just heating the gun up to cause a relatively safe misfire? Or did he melt a critical component?

Mr Zoat said:
Zero. First guy wrenches the door open and then gets both hands back on his gun, but I'm up and barrelling forwards with a theatrical stumble, slapping the gun out of his grip in a way that I hope looks natural. Then I smile like the drunk women on the one Dionysia I went to, grabbing the armour of the guy I just disarmed and pulling him into the line of sight of his colleague.

Someone cue the flute music.

Mr Zoat said:
I walk around and pick up all three handguns. Then I head over to the closest window, open it and throw the magazines outside. That should be safe. And then I drop the guns on the floor, because I'm not going to use them. The plasma guns won't fire unless someone does a lot of work on them, so I can leave them where they are. Then… Check the bodies-. Ah, unconscious people. If I can find some handcuffs or zip ties-.

I'm not entirely sure if it would be necessary, but he probably should've checked the chamber for bullets and emptied them if necessary. Unless he did that already and didn't think much of it.

Mr Zoat said:
"Wait." Anarky points his staff at the infrared beam being projected from one side of the doorway to the hallway to the other. A small cloud of smoke sprays out, and-. Oh, right, a human wouldn't have seen that. "Clever."

Apparently this would either create a slight glimmer for normal humans and wouldn't actually reveal the beam, unless you had IR goggles already.

Mr Zoat said:
Oh, right. That's why Paul warned us about him. 'Like me, but with fewer friends'.

That makes him rather dangerous then.

Mr Zoat said:
'Nice try, jackass. Remember your password next time.'

Thank you for avoiding a cliche.

Mr Zoat said:
"I've got really good eyes. The image isn't quite right."

Interesting that Enginehead generates an image rather than simply using existing images and then doing a deepfake for speech and stuff. I suppose that would be rather flawed too.

Mr Zoat said:
"We don't put kryptonite everywhere. There isn't that much on Earth, and synthesising it is ridiculously expensive." I nod-. Wait, they can synthesise it? "When you've disabled them, go to the main server room and say 'emergency override: reset'. Can you manage that?"

Wait till you learn about all the other colours of kryptonite, kid.

Mr Zoat said:
I.. blink. Redeeming… I suppose Orange Lantern was always clear that he wanted to help me be more effective, but I didn't realise that there was supposed to be a moral dimension to-. No, Match thinks there is. The Orange Lantern didn't strike me as a man who belabors the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, just foolish self-destructiveness. But he was one of the people who 'rescued' Match and was probably one of the people who actioned his cure. I suspect that Match has an… Inaccurate view of what Orange Lantern was actually attempting.

Probably, despite probably being smarter than Paul, he's far less rational and wise.

Mr Zoat said:
I don't.. want it to get out. People found Connor having a brother his own age after not mentioning him weird as it was. I still don't know how people at school haven't realised that Mom is Wonder Woman. She doesn't dress that different.

Must be sunglasses. Alongside a baseball cap. That always does the trick. They probably have figured it out but don't want to bring her wrath down upon themselves for isolating her children.

Mr Zoat said:
-Johanna sits.. on my lap. Sideways, legs pointed towards the door and one arm around my back for balance. I guess she was.. serious about the grabbing? Mr. Beatty doesn't react. I guess for all he knows we're actually dating.

Guess Nazis don't care about the age of consent either.

Mr Zoat said:
We walk down a side street, then turn in the direction of the main road towards the inner city. Usually the only people awake at this time of the morning are the fisherwomen and the guards… And late-night party-goers who've just come back through the portal, but they're trying to be a bit quieter about it these days. Paul said that was because while most people here don't mind contact with the rest of the world, pregnancy is still a contentious issue. Apparently, him letting the Amazons make each other pregnant is a lot different to them suddenly having unrestricted access to men for the first time in three thousand years.

I imagine they've been getting quite a lot of game recently.

Mr Zoat said:
But this whole situation is disappointing. Dolmen Gates are the second biggest improvement I've made to the world. Right after preserving Cadburys' chocolate.

"Heh."

Right after undoing global warming. Useful magical artefacts that can just slot into the world, reducing pollution, getting Atlanteans interacting with the surface, cutting travel times to next to nothing… And the longer it stayed there the more useful it made itself.

This is why you should always leave easy portals for late-game. They're so incredibly useful that unless the organisations handling them are incompetent, or the world is irrational or the technology is very flawed in some way, it'll always be overpowered.

Mr Zoat said:
I mostly check the value of my theoretical investment in medallions rather than pounds sterling these days…

Speaking of which, what kinda denominations they got? I hope it's powers of 10 or 5 or 2. Not something like 17 silver medallions equals 1 golden medallion.

Mr Zoat said:
I raise my right forefinger to my forehead and

Just a finger this time? Interesting.

Mr Zoat said:
"Hal is showing me more advanced techniques!" She smiles as she-. Oh dear. Note to self, have a word with Lantern Jordan about-.

I consider Zatanna.

About talking to someone else about how to gently let someone know that you're not interested. Actually, Batman is probably a good person to go to with that.

Good, he recognises his own hypocrisy and deals with it correctly.

Mr Zoat said:
Neither. Mister van Wyck isn't used to getting positive reactions from people.

That bad huh?

Mr Zoat said:
Works fine for me. Anyone else?

Huh, that is pretty adorable

Mr Zoat said:
No, that's correct. The bangings are causing him pain.

Ah, bit of an odd way to write it, but oh well.

Mr Zoat said:
She's saying it into the squad's communication network. They're taking it in turns to bait the scarab into focusing on them by deliberately revealing their position and then hiding.

I assume the "Weasel" is the bait while the "Wild" ones hide?

Mr Zoat said:
No, not studying the sacred text is fine as long as you don't then use the sacred text as if it supports you actions. That just annoys people who actually did read it.

Ah, my mistake

Mr Zoat said:
It's capitalised. I suppose you're supposed to shout it?

Or perhaps put some emphasis into it.

Mr Zoat said:
No, there's nothing like enough heat to glass anything, and it's only their leadership plus a large section of their army. Maybe a thousand or two out of a nation of maybe a hundred thousand.

Good enough to take over.

Mr Zoat said:
I think it's okay.

Sure.

Mr Zoat said:
As far as anyone knows, Hippolyta is Ares' only daughter amongst the Amazons.

Considering what pantheon they're from, it's wise to record the number of children any non-celibate, and sometimes celibate, deity has as "N+1", where "N" is the number of confirmed existing children.

Mr Zoat said:
Still works for me.

That link didn't work either, I'm starting to think it's a me problem.

Mr Zoat said:
*Considers the Guess Who board of countries.*

So... Not Chile?

Close, you're on the right planet at least.

Mr Zoat said:
They eventually went out into the universe and did their own thing. Several tried to remake humans and in doing so created beastmen. A few tried other things. Several got hunted down by Mumm-Ra.

I don't suppose they'll be showing up anytime soon.

Mr Zoat said:
Nothing, but Jevek appreciated his position and fronted him a few things.

Nothing to help him make a difference in that world I imagine.

Mr Zoat said:
I shall be a wise and merciful telekinetic god-king.

Hail the Zoat.

Mr Zoat said:
Because his meditation left him a bit fixated. He probably could see more if he learned the skill.

Edit: Wait, those images work fine while I'm editing this, but don't display when I save it? What?

Okay, sorry, I've got no idea why that isn't displaying properly or how to fix it.

Thanks for the explanation, I don't mind the image errors too much, but if it's happening for others too, that might be a problem.

CrazyNoVa said:
Which is pretty odd, because considering how power-hungry Tangseid is, you'd expect him to have at least tried to contact the Ophidian to gain more power.

He probably didn't. I imagine he doesn't want to lose his independence considering that's a big part of his whole persona.

Mr Zoat said:
I'm giving this a like in advance of reading it, because I'm sure there's at least one correct correction in there somewhere.

Thanks, I know these are really long, but correcting one post at a time is a pain in the ass and I'd much rather do a full episode together. I can of course, stop or split these in half for convenience.

Mr Zoat said:
IGNORE THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN!

What the hell happened?

PS: Do you have backlogs or do you write a thousand words everyday following the previous episode with a vague plotline written somewhere? Do you have an allocated time for writing or do you just do it when the muse strikes?

Mr Zoat · 2025-06-26T15:36:59+0100

DeathReaperZ said:
PS: Do you have backlogs or do you write a thousand words everyday following the previous episode with a vague plotline written somewhere? Do you have an allocated time for writing or do you just do it when the muse strikes?

1000 word Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Evening after work.
2000 Saturday and Sunday. Afternoon and evening.

I'll look at the rest this evening.

Shotiegun11 said:
All this does is annoy me. And make me wish the SI had zapped Batman back to normal AND taken the Yellow Ring back at that time. So that we aren't dealing with this same stuff years later.

Honestly, it was a requirement to save humanity and the Earth.

For all this stupid stuff, take the yellow ring, have a Controller factory reset his yellow light exposure to normal batman levels, mind wipe him back to the right post White Light stuff.

Then ask that Batman what he thinks about what he was currently doing.

Yes, he could mind control a well-regarded superhero vital to the fragil world he's supposed to be helping, but that's generally not well-regarded behaviour.

NightmareWarden · 2025-06-26T18:11:24+0100

Shotiegun11 said:
All this does is annoy me. And make me wish the SI had zapped Batman back to normal AND taken the Yellow Ring back at that time. So that we aren't dealing with this same stuff years later.

Honestly, it was a requirement to save humanity and the Earth.

For all this stupid stuff, take the yellow ring, have a Controller factory reset his yellow light exposure to normal batman levels, mind wipe him back to the right post White Light stuff.

Then ask that Batman what he thinks about what he was currently doing.

The room to negate Orange light for Larfleeze was blue. If the color matters, the color to negate Fear would be blue, indigo or violet. Though the green-centric comics show that Green could be a factor. The guardians would probably have an easier time making a facility for Batman than anyone else.

Wait. Paul has only taken Alan, of the justice league, to see what his Orange lanterns are up to. That biased, underinformed perspec5ve plus Paul's own reports on the Corps… Yeah, Batman isn't just worried about Paul or villains. He's worried about hell, the Orange corps, darkstars infiltration, alternate universes, timeline changes… He needs a break from this prison of a universe's many dangers. He lacks hope that it can become safe without his fear-based Final Solution.

Steelplaza · 2025-06-26T19:49:45+0100

I think the Controllers would be highly interested in ~~Batman~~ the supersoldiers capable of mauling Kryptonians that Batman creating using Apokolyptian technology, a power ring, and a dash of Earth mad science.

"Can he make more for us? Seems more stable than your pet Weaponeer, tbh."

crazygrox · 2025-06-26T20:16:10+0100

Steelplaza said:
I think the Controllers would be highly interested in ~~Batman~~ the supersoldiers capable of mauling Kryptonians that Batman creating using Apokolyptian technology, a power ring, and a dash of Earth mad science.

"Can he make more for us? Seems more stable than your pet Weaponeer, tbh."

Yeah, that seems like either a Controller or a Dox response to this situation.

Darko · 2025-06-26T20:46:27+0100

Steelplaza said:
I think the Controllers would be highly interested in ~~Batman~~ the supersoldiers capable of mauling Kryptonians that Batman creating using Apokolyptian technology, a power ring, and a dash of Earth mad science.

"Can he make more for us? Seems more stable than your pet Weaponeer, tbh."

They already have the Effigy soldiers.

Jevek said that they have the power to annihilate a planet, and that was before they got the Viltrumite upgrade.

Mr Zoat · 2025-06-26T22:41:40+0100

DeathReaperZ said:
I'm confused, did he summon the Mammon clone inside his body and then pull it out of his mouth?

Yes.

are

I think I put it like that because her English isn't perfect, but upon reflection I don't think that's a mistake she'd make.

Sounds a bit odd with the two "for"s so close to each other. "Why were you looking for Conner?" might be better? I'd understand if Johanna said it like that, but why Mitchell?

Because he's three years old.

So what did he end up doing here? Just heating the gun up to cause a relatively safe misfire? Or did he melt a critical component?

I don't exactly remember. Probably.

Guess Nazis don't care about the age of consent either.

If that's the issue, M'gann should probably get arrested in canon for paedophilia as well as terrorism.

Speaking of which, what kinda denominations they got? I hope it's powers of 10 or 5 or 2. Not something like 17 silver medallions equals 1 golden medallion.

Shillings and crowns, colonial!

Ardy · 2025-06-26T23:09:53+0100

Mr Zoat said:
If that's the issue, M'gann should probably get arrested in canon for paedophilia as well as terrorism.

Wait, when did she commit terrorism? I'm only familiar with season 1

Mr Zoat · 2025-06-27T06:06:29+0100

Ardy said:
Wait, when did she commit terrorism? I'm only familiar with season 1

Towards the end of series three. As part of Batman's stupid 'Justice League Black' plan, she started attacking LexCorp facilities while in the form of supervillains.

Mr Zoat · 2025-06-27T06:10:41+0100

1st October 2010
18:26 GMT -5

My ring shimmers and I generate a construct telephone.

"General Lane, thank you for picking up."

After Kaldur and I spoke directly with the U.S. Ambassador regarding the Bialya situation, I suggested that it might be a good idea if we had a point of contact in the U.S. Government who could coordinate with us during extreme situations. I'm not sure exactly what General Lane's main job is, but he's always been courteous when we've spoken before and finding out what help might be available during a worldwide giant poison vine attack seems like a good reason to contact him.

"I imagine you're pretty busy. What do you need?"

"The source of the attack is the Louisiana Bayou. If I act as a guidance system, how quickly can you level an area approximately a square quarter of a mile?"

"Using any kind of military force on U.S. soil would need to go to the President. I call the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, they tell him, and he makes a decision. And they should be in the room with him right now, so that won't take long. I'm not Horne's biggest fan, but I can't see him saying 'no'. Then the order comes down and the planes get prepped-."

"Not missiles?"

"I'm not a navy man. Barksdale Air Force Base is a lot closer than… I think it would be Mayport Naval Station? Anyway, they have to load the planes with whatever loadout they think they need, fuel 'em up and crew them… I'd say they'd be over the target in an hour. And that's too damn long."

I nod. "Alright. Does the U.S. Government have a problem with me using heavy ordnance on U.S. soil?"

"It's a swamp with no people in it… So I can't speak for the whole government, but the U.S. Army sure doesn't. Wipe those bastards out."

"Understood. Thank you."

I dismiss the construct, and sigh. I really hoped that it wouldn't come to this… Not this early in my career, anyway.

But there's no sense denying the reality of ten thousand bodies. Or what I signed up for when I decided to keep this ring.

I take a moment to centre myself, then fly out of the kitchen and into the hanger. I see Richard checking Wallace's ear protectors while M'gann turns down the device Kaldur is offering her in favour of shapeshifting her ears into a Vertigo-proof shape. Since the man was kind enough to announce his presence to the entire world, it would be extremely foolish not to prepare.

Still…

I land next to Kaldur. "What's your..?" I point to my right ear with my right hand. "Um..?"

"It is an Atlantean enchanted device. Some Atlanteans become… Surface sick, due to the differences in pressure. It has not caused me any difficulty, but-."

Wallace glances our way. "His mom got it for him."

I nod. "Sagacious of her. Just to.. double check? You are, legally, an Atlantean military officer, aren't you?"

He nods, the brief moment of levity gone in an instant. "Mine is a unique position, but in essence, yes."

"And it's not like in the British army where a soldier can enlist at sixteen but can't fight on the front line until they're eighteen? You're just a soldier."

"I do not believe that the Atlantean military makes such a distinction. I myself certainly do not."

"In that case, can I borrow you for a moment? There's something-."

"Hey! Is this about us not being adults?" Wallace pulls on his lightning bolts, trying to get them to lie flat over his ear filter. "I thought you were over that."

I make momentary eye contact with Artemis in the back of the bioship. She turns away with a shudder that I hope is theatrical. "I'm mostly over that, but there's an awful lot of bodies on the ground out there. So I'd like to speak to Kaldur for a moment."

Kaldur frowns slightly, but nods. "I would like to depart as quickly-."

"I can make the bioship move faster than light."

Richard looks at Wallace. Wallace sags and trudges into the bioship.

Kaldur nods. "Then.. I suppose that it is of little consequence. What do you wish to discuss?"

I look pointedly at Richard. He holds my gaze, makes an exaggerated shrug and joins M'gann in boarding the bioship.

Open hangar.

Kaldur glances at the door and frowns mildly, then returns his attention to me. "I understand that you are uncomfortable with our younger colleagues being exposed to so much death, but I am afraid to say that it will not be the first time-"

I reach forward, lay my right hand on his shoulder and then transition us to the air high above Louisiana.

1st October 2010
17:29 GMT -6

"-that they have seen the.. dead." I generate a construct platform and then let go. "You… Intend for us to complete the mission without them?"

"No, I just need a witness." I look down and targeting reticles over the strange vine structure in the swamp far below. "Funny story: did you realise that the Taiwanese government never asked for their missiles back? I think they thought that I destroyed them to stop them or something."

Missiles.

Three Taiwanese Brave Wind anti-ship missiles appear in the air in front of me.

"Had them in subspace the whole time."

Access guidance systems and lock target.

"Surely the Injustice League will detect them?"

"They don't have any chaff or anti-air and they don't have a radar system. Adam could punch the missiles and Wotan has probably had enough preparation time to create a decent magic-based force field, but from here all the missiles need is their manoeuvring fins. They won't give off a heat signature, they don't emit light and they're so small that they're difficult to see. This platform is actually easier to see, and if they saw it then Adam would be up here already."

I turn away from the missiles and towards him.

"As I see it, all I have to do is keep Black Adam occupied for a minute. Then they'll hit, and that's the source taken care of."

"What of Wotan?"

"I doubt that they'll send two people out to deal with one attacker. And I doubt that they brought Wotan onboard to stand around looking ugly. I'm sure he has something to do with the operation of the vines, so I doubt that they'll move him from that without a good reason."

"And if they do?"

I shrug. "Then he won't be in position to shield the vine nexus. It's a minute to the ground here. I could probably manage that long by getting their attention and running away."

"Is this what you discussed with General Lane?"

I smile weakly. "It came up. Will you serve as my witness-?"

"Why do you need one?"

"Lazarus Pits exist. I don't intend to leave any recoverable body parts, so I need someone to visually confirm it when I kill them."

Darko · 2025-06-27T06:18:37+0100

Guess Adom isn't going to be brought back here.

Granted, if Theodore's dies here then there's a chance that Adom can go to his gods and they can resurrect him.

I was honestly expecting that the alternate version we'd be seeing would still be the Gate one.

GigaVanguard · 2025-06-27T06:21:04+0100

Common Sense Paul didn't get nabbed during the Crisis on Infinite Pauls, right?

Ngamer11 · 2025-06-27T06:32:20+0100

GigaVanguard said:
Common Sense Paul didn't get nabbed during the Crisis on Infinite Pauls, right?

He was. He was the one who realized Krona couldn't be overpowered and had to be outmaneuvered.

néocorvinus · 2025-06-27T07:01:48+0100

Common Sense chapters are always fun.

Chojin Patriarch · 2025-06-27T07:09:59+0100

Mr Zoat said:
1st October 2010
18:26 GMT -5

My ring shimmers and I generate a construct telephone.

"General Lane, thank you for picking up."

Interesting. Taking quite a step back, to the day of the Injustice League action? Common Sense OL's got quite the backlog of incidents to rationally and calmly sort through, of course...Incidents that get settled a lot more wisely than most alternates...

After Kaldur and I spoke directly with the U.S. Ambassador regarding the Bialya situation, I suggested that it might be a good idea if we had a point of contact in the U.S. Government who could coordinate with us during extreme situations. I'm not sure exactly what General Lane's main job is, but he's always been courteous when we've spoken before and finding out what help might be available during a worldwide giant poison vine attack seems like a good reason to contact him.

And given that the US is right in the firing line of the attacks, they're definitely going to be listening.

"I imagine you're pretty busy. What do you need?"

"The source of the attack is the Louisiana Bayou. If I act as a guidance system, how quickly can you level an area approximately a square quarter of a mile?"

Pity it's too far from shore for naval bombardment. I doubt there's any ships in cruise missile range either.

"Using any kind of military force on U.S. soil would need to go to the President. I call the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, they tell him, and he makes a decision. And they should be in the room with him right now, so that won't take long. I'm not Horne's biggest fan, but I can't see him saying 'no'. Then the order comes down and the planes get prepped-."

Hmm. It would be a feather in his cap if his 'cape contacts' got him a solution this quickly.

"Not missiles?"

"I'm not a navy man. Barksdale Air Force Base is a lot closer than… I think it would be Mayport Naval Station? Anyway, they have to load the planes with whatever loadout they think they need, fuel 'em up and crew them… I'd say they'd be over the target in an hour. And that's too damn long."

And while incendiary might seem a good option, nothing says 'fuck those general coordinates like big old bombs. Especially if the vines on-site are fire-resistant.

I nod. "Alright. Does the U.S. Government have a problem with me using heavy ordnance on U.S. soil?"

"It's a swamp with no people in it… So I can't speak for the whole government, but the U.S. Army sure doesn't. Wipe those bastards out."

Better to go now and ask for forgiveness than wait for permission, after all. And he's not in their chain of command, being a private civilian.

"Understood. Thank you."

I dismiss the construct, and sigh. I really hoped that it wouldn't come to this… Not this early in my career, anyway.

On the upside, you'll never forget your first deployment of heavy ordnance.

It's been a while since we've seen any interrupt, much less this marvellous one...

But there's no sense denying the reality of ten thousand bodies. Or what I signed up for when I decided to keep this ring.

I take a moment to centre myself, then fly out of the kitchen and into the hanger. I see Richard checking Wallace's ear protectors while M'gann turns down the device Kaldur is offering her in favour of shapeshifting her ears into a Vertigo-proof shape. Since the man was kind enough to announce his presence to the entire world, it would be extremely foolish not to prepare.

And naturally the Team has enough sense to have countermeasures available quickly.

Still…

I land next to Kaldur. "What's your..?" I point to my right ear with my right hand. "Um..?"

"It is an Atlantean enchanted device. Some Atlanteans become… Surface sick, due to the differences in pressure. It has not caused me any difficulty, but-."

Heh. I'm not surprised some have issues with that. Their bodies are adapted for crushing ocean-floor pressures, after all. I bet some folks get bloating as the tissues relax too.

Wallace glances our way. "His mom got it for him."

I nod. "Sagacious of her. Just to.. double check? You are, legally, an Atlantean military officer, aren't you?"

Ah, since it's quicker to get him on-site than dig around for an American officer. General Lane being needed to square things away with Command and all.

He nods, the brief moment of levity gone in an instant. "Mine is a unique position, but in essence, yes."

"And it's not like in the British army where a soldier can enlist at sixteen but can't fight on the front line until they're eighteen? You're just a soldier."

That's a thing? Interesting.

"I do not believe that the Atlantean military makes such a distinction. I myself certainly do not."

"In that case, can I borrow you for a moment. There's something-."

This should be amusing.

"Hey! Is this about us not being adults?" Wallace pulls on his lightning bolts, trying to get them to lie flat over his ear filter. "I thought you were over that."

I make momentary eye contact with Artemis in the back of the bioship. She turns away with a shudder that I hope is theatrical. "I'm mostly over that, but there's an awful lot of bodies on the ground out there. So I'd like to speak to Kaldur for a moment."

What, she feeling a little skeeved out about crushing on him or something?

He's sensible enough to not try anything either way.

Kaldur frowns slightly, but nods. "I would like to depart as quickly-."

"I can make the bioship move faster than light."

I guess it never came up before. Since presumably this is the first time he's actually needed to consider taking the Team into the field with him.

Richard looks at Wallace. Wallace sags and trudges into the bioship.

Kaldur nods. "Then.. I suppose that it is of little consequence. What do you wish to discuss?"

Let me guess, the younger guys realising he's probably going to sort this out without them ever setting foot on the ground?

I look pointedly at Richard. He holds my gaze, makes an exaggerated shrug and joins M'gann in boarding the bioship.

Open hangar.

Kaldur glances at the door and frowns mildly, then returns his attention to me. "I understand that you are uncomfortable with our younger colleagues being exposed to so much death, but I am afraid to say that it will not be the first time-"

There's a difference between a murder scene with a dead body or two, or a small firefight between gangs... And the kind of stuff going on at that moment.

I reach forward, lay my right hand on his shoulder and then transition us to the air high above Louisiana.

1st October 2010
17:29 GMT -6

"-that they have seen the.. dead." I generate a construct platform and then let go. "You… Intend for us to complete the mission without them?"

Hardly need them, unless they want to watch stuff blow up.

"No, I just need a witness." I look down and targeting reticles over the strange vine structure in the swamp far below. "Funny story: did you realise that the Taiwanese government never asked for their missiles back? I think they thought that I destroyed them to stop them or something."

Oh? ...Oh.

What would the average payload on one of those be, again? Several hundred kilograms of TNT-equivalent or so? That's a big bang by itself.

Missiles.

Three Taiwanese Brave Wind anti-ship missiles appear in the air in front of me.

Nice. Joker, Vertigo, Ivy and Wotan are going to cease to be noteworthy very soon. Adam... Adam may be tricky.

"Had them in subspace the whole time."

Access guidance systems and lock target.

"Surely the Injustice League will detect them?"

Did any of them have radar capabilities or even super-senses?

"They don't have any chaff or anti-air and they don't have a radar system. Adam could punch the missiles and Wotan has probably had enough preparation time to create a decent magic-based force field, but from here all the missiles need is their manoeuvring fins. They won't give off a heat signature, they don't emit light and they're so small that they're difficult to see. This platform is actually easier to see, and if they saw it then Adam would be up here already."

In other words, they have no idea hell is about to rain down on them.

I turn away from the missiles and towards him.

"As I see it, all I have to do is keep Black Adam occupied for a minute. Then they'll hit, and that's the source taken care of."

Heck, depending on how much attention Adam is paying, he may not even need that.

"What of Wotan?"

"I doubt that they'll send two people out to deal with one attacker. And I doubt that they brought Wotan onboard to stand around looking ugly. I'm sure he has something to do with the operation of the vines, so I doubt that they'll move him from that without a good reason."

Well though out. Given that Ivy's having to hijack the Green's interface, Wotan is probably handling the magical oomph to let her achieve that much over that far a distance.

"And if they do?"

I shrug. "Then he won't be in position to shield the vine nexus. It's a minute to the ground here. I could probably manage that long by getting their attention and running away."

And in the meantime, the bombs will likely still hit the squishier members of the group, especially if Adam dismisses them as insignificant. And he's that cocky right now...

"Is this what you discussed with General Lane?"

I smile weakly. "It came up. Will you serve as my witness-?"

If nothing else, you can tell the Team how big the boom was.

"Why do you need one?"

"Lazarus Pits exist. I don't intend to leave any recoverable body parts, so I need someone to visually confirm it when I kill them."

Nice, he's got all the angles covered. Surprised he hasn't dealt with the League of Shadows already, but he's probably not had reason too yet.

I bet the Light will be sitting grinding their teeth at his existence after this. Just by applying that incredibly rare talent, he's likely subverted or prevented many of their plans. Though I have to wonder what kind of fallout some of his butterflies might cause down the line, since not all the problems we've seen in the Paragon's timeline have been his fault.

B00ki5h · 2025-06-27T07:20:51+0100

Darko said:
Guess Adom isn't going to be brought back here.

Granted, if Theodore's dies here then there's a chance that Adom can go to his gods and they can resurrect him.

I was honestly expecting that the alternate version we'd be seeing would still be the Gate one.

Nah, he could likely tank the hit and the missiles don't likely have and in the area ordinance loaded. The downside to this plan is Poison Ivy finishes her elevation to a full elemental.

Darko · 2025-06-27T07:24:38+0100

Chojin Patriarch said:
On the upside, you'll never forget your first deployment of heavy ordnance.

Your first time is always so memorable.

Chojin Patriarch said:
What, she feeling a little skeeved out about crushing on him or something? He's sensible enough to not try anything either way.

This version is dating Artemis's mom.

Chojin Patriarch said:
Nice. Joker, Vertigo, Ivy and Wotan are going to cease to be noteworthy very soon

Don't forget Atomic Skull and Ultra Humanite.

Though Wotan may have some way to come back.

In the comics they were a reincarnation of a Stone Age woman that lived dozens of lives.

Chojin Patriarch said:
Adam... Adam may be tricky.

Yep.

Chojin Patriarch said:
Did any of them have radar capabilities or even super-senses?

Wotan and Adam may, but they may be just for magic things.

Chojin Patriarch said:
Nice, he's got all the angles covered. Surprised he hasn't dealt with the League of Shadows already, but he's probably not had reason too yet.

He may have done something like Paragon did and attacked Ras, but he later got mystic defenses.

Duke Long · 2025-06-27T08:15:15+0100

Mr Zoat said:
She stares at me for a moment, then shakes her head. "You truly..? You befriend her other Underlords without causing friction, you obey her laws and praise their wisdom, your greatest concern is for a world where you have taken her code of law and expended upon it, you deal with 'inconveniences' for her without leaving a trace of your presence and ask for nothing in return. Bastet knows that you love her."

'expanded'?

Nice to see another Common Sense. Is the one linked really the most recent one before this? Really been quite a bit.

CrazyNoVa · 2025-06-27T08:30:42+0100

I wonder what a common sense version of The Renegade or Blue Lantern Paul be like?

Maybe Common Sense Grayven would still be with The Team, but also end up becoming more insidious than the regular one, while Common Sense Blue Lantern would be smart and perceptive enough to avoid being roped into joining the Crime Syndicate, thus ensuring that he would end up joining the Justice Underground?

I also assume that Tangseid wouldn't have a common sense counterpart, because a Paul with common sense wouldn't do to themselves what he did to become more powerful. Black Lantern Paul and Anti-Green Lantern Paul probably wouldn't have a common sense counterpart either, now that I think about it. After all, Black Lantern Paul is basically already operating on emotionless logic, while Anti-Green Paul wouldn't have been able to act on his common sense anyway due to being enslaved by his ring.

Signaller · 2025-06-27T08:32:53+0100

Just wanted to say thanks, Zoat, for including the link to the prior chapter of the sub-story.

Mr Zoat · 2025-06-27T08:35:11+0100

Chojin Patriarch said:
What, she feeling a little skeeved out about crushing on him or something? He's sensible enough to not try anything either way.

Darko said:
This version is dating Artemis's mom.

It's not just the fact that he's dating her. It's the way he's spending time with her mother, the way her mother talks about him, the changes in the way her mother behaves... It's unnervinig, and she was brought up to consider things like that a threat.

Chojin Patriarch said:
Oh? ...Oh. What would the average payload on one of those be, again? Several hundred kilograms of TNT-equivalent or so? That's a big bang by itself.

'225 kg (500 lb) self-forging fragments', whatever that means.

Did any of them have radar capabilities or even super-senses?

Adom could spot them, if he thought to look.

I bet the Light will be sitting grinding their teeth at his existence after this. Just by applying that incredibly rare talent, he's likely subverted or prevented many of their plans. Though I have to wonder what kind of fallout some of his butterflies might cause down the line, since not all the problems we've seen in the Paragon's timeline have been his fault.

Not really. The only ones they use again are Vertigo and Wotan. Wotan is replaceable by any moderately talented evil magician, and the rest of the Light weren't exacctly enthusiastic about Plan Mass Child Murder anyway. Vertigo is a decent field leader, but again, quite replaceable.

Me said:
"In that case, can I borrow you for a moment.

Add a question mark.

Ngamer11 · 2025-06-27T08:40:53+0100

Mr Zoat said:
It's not just the fact that he's dating her. It's the way he's spending time with her mother, the way her mother talks about him, the changes in the way her mother behaves... It's unnervinig, and she was brought up to consider things like that a threat.

I thought she was just trying to forget that there is a distinct possibility that Paul will become her stepfather.

Adom could spot them, if he thought to look.

Good thing Common Sense Paul is dealing with Black Adam, isn't it?

Not really. The only ones they use again are Vertigo and Wotan. Wotan is replaceable by any moderately talented evil magician, and the rest of the Light weren't exacctly enthusiastic about Plan Mass Child Murder anyway. Vertigo is a decent field leader, but again, quite replaceable.

Is the Light able to better plan around Common Sense Paul compared to the Paragon?

CTrees · 2025-06-27T09:43:08+0100

Mr Zoat said:
"I'm not a navy man. Barksdale Air Force Base is a lot closer than… I think it would be Mayport Naval Station?

He is really not a Navy man if he forgot that there are quite a few Navy ships in the Gulf (if not New Orleans itself) at any given time. Tomahawk missiles have a considerable range. There's also a Naval Air Station in New Orleans, though Barksdale may still be closer.

Darko · 2025-06-27T10:13:11+0100

B00ki5h said:
The downside to this plan is Poison Ivy finishes her elevation to a full elemental.

Not necessarily.

Swamp Thing did not like her, so he may be able to throw her out of the Green.

WereDragon · 2025-06-27T10:20:51+0100

Mr Zoat said:
Common Sense (part 8)

He is far from the strongest. He is by no means the most intelligent. But he might very well be the most effective Paul in the local multiverse.

Darko said:
Guess Adom isn't going to be brought back here.

Pretty sure Black Adam can face tank anti-ship missiles. What he can't do is control the vines, so he isn't a primary objective.
It is possible that Common Sense Paul has also prepared the means to free Adom and will proceed to use it once the strategic bio-weapon is offline.

mastermenthe · 2025-06-27T10:22:00+0100

one of these days i would like to see a Paul who sets himself up a personal fortress apartment and zones out.

Mr Zoat · 2025-06-27T11:23:01+0100

Duke Long said:
'expanded'?

Thank you, corrected.

Nice to see another Common Sense. Is the one linked really the most recent one before this? Really been quite a bit.

I think it is, but I've been wrong before.

Signaller said:
Just wanted to say thanks, Zoat, for including the link to the prior chapter of the sub-story.

You're welcome.

CrazyNoVa said:
I wonder what a common sense version of The Renegade or Blue Lantern Paul be like?

Maybe Common Sense Grayven would still be with The Team, but also end up becoming more insidious than the regular one,

If you're going to be ruthless, be ruthless. Snatch and grab Alan's lantern and leave the Earth. It's not like he knows anyone there, and building up somewhere that isn't Earth is going to be easier.

while Common Sense Blue Lantern would be smart and perceptive enough to avoid being roped into joining the Crime Syndicate, thus ensuring that he would end up joining the Justice Underground?

No. Leave America. Go somewhere where the Crime Syndicate have shallower penetration and keep his head down.

I also assume that Tangseid wouldn't have a common sense counterpart, because a Paul with common sense wouldn't do to themselves what he did to become more powerful. Black Lantern Paul and Anti-Green Lantern Paul probably wouldn't have a common sense counterpart either, now that I think about it. After all, Black Lantern Paul is basically already operating on emotionless logic, while Anti-Green Paul wouldn't have been able to act on his common sense anyway due to being enslaved by his ring.

He would have point blank refused to repair that robot.

He really should have done that.

CTrees said:
He is really not a Navy man if he forgot that there are quite a few Navy ships in the Gulf

AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE CALLING IT.

(if not New Orleans itself) at any given time. Tomahawk missiles have a considerable range. There's also a Naval Air Station in New Orleans, though Barksdale may still be closer.

He is probably aware that there are ships there, but doesn't know exactly what they're armed with.

mastermenthe said:
one of these days i would like to see a Paul who sets himself up a personal fortress apartment and zones out.

How do you picture that going?

BR549 · 2025-06-27T11:27:48+0100

Chojin Patriarch said:
Oh? ...Oh. What would the average payload on one of those be, again? Several hundred kilograms of TNT-equivalent or so? That's a big bang by itself.

Mr Zoat said:
'225 kg (500 lb) self-forging fragments', whatever that means.

Ah, so they're Hsiung Feng III missiles.

A 'self-forging fragment' is another term for an explosively-formed penetrator. Basically, it's a type of shaped charge that, on detonation, deforms a metal plate into a slug that slams into the target. Not the best for anti-personnel use, although there's still plenty of ancillary bang. In this case it would have been better if he'd been able to grab some air-to-air missiles, since those have continuous-rod warheads, which basically create a circular garotte...

jasonh23761 · 2025-06-27T13:00:07+0100

Paul casting missile is right up there with Knockout casting fist in my favorite moments.

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

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