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

[Darko]

Actually in DC it should be Vext, God of Mishaps and Misfortune.

Son of the Goddess of Emasculating Shrews and God of The Perpetually Cuckolded.

On and off boyfriend of the Goddess of Romantic Relationships Gone Hellishly Wrong.

Happened to be around in the Garden of Eden when they decided to eat a certain fruit and when a ship sank that got a major motion picture by James Cameron.

Lives in Delta City, the city protected by the Heckler, who annoys the hell out of crime, having Seinfeildian non adventures like learning how to drive (and encounter a gamma irradiated road rage mutant car monster) or eating a hamburger (and eating a colony of sapient bacteria out to conquer the world!) for the first time.

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...

I don't know how to respond to this.

The fact that it exists is both somewhat surprising and yet makes a ton of sense.

 

[CTrees]

It could just be Paul's influence accelerating things. He's worked on various uplift projects, accelerating human technology, which may accelerate the emergence of the tech god. He's shown people that pagan religions are valid in-universe, and that angels and the silver city definitely exist, both of which are bound to increase global belief and worship of various gods, possibly making it easier for a new one to emerge. Also, Boss Smiley may have been working to suppress the god of technology, so if Paul's actions are distracting/countering that...

 

[moralrelativity]

It he available?

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It -> Is

Also, Boss Smiley may have been working to suppress the god of technology, so if Paul's actions are distracting/countering that.

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Good point... I keep forgetting about Boss Smiley.

 

[earlyriser]

Honestly, if this is the Light I hope it is Brain. He's appeared so rarely in the story I sometimes forget he is part of the organizaton.

 

[Mr Zoat]

It -> Is

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Thank you, corrected.

Honestly, if this is the Light I hope it is Brain. He's appeared so rarely in the story I sometimes forget he is part of the organizaton.

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When you're a disembodied brain... Fieldwork is not for you.

 

[Pez]

Can someone explain the difference between a 'new god' and titan? Is it just a 'god' vs 'priomordial' distinction? I'm aware that, relatively speaking, the titans were bad, but why would a new one be bad?

 

[Mr Zoat]

Can someone explain the difference between a 'new god' and titan? Is it just a 'god' vs 'priomordial' distinction? I'm aware that, relatively speaking, the titans were bad, but why would a new one be bad?

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Gods are specific, generally have a humanish mindset, and are orders of magnitude weaker.

 

[Lord Ernest]

From what I understood of Vulcan's explanation, Titans can embody and represent so much of an aspect of the world (usually primordial) that they become like a pillar or anchor of the Thaumosphere. As such they end up being super powerful and significant. I imagine the planet's Thaumosphere drastically changes if a Titan was born due to their mystical weight or some such, whole concepts of magic would have to be studied, or relearned, spells and enchantments may go crazy, shutdown or explode.

It would be as significant as if, in physics, a new fundamental force just appeared out of nowhere! (I think?)

 

[Darko]

Can someone explain the difference between a 'new god' and titan? Is it just a 'god' vs 'priomordial' distinction? I'm aware that, relatively speaking, the titans were bad, but why would a new one be bad?

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A New God, as in the case of Darkseid, Izaya etc., are basically super powerful demi gods connected to the Source.

Gods, as in the case of Zeus, Odin, Hades, etc., are beings that came out of the Dreaming either directly or were spawned from something that did come out of there.

The Titans are basically the same as the gods, only much more powerful.

Vulcan also explained why a new Titan would be bad.

Apparently the last time one of them emerged from the Dreaming, people and gods had massive nightmares and were driven to insanity due to it.

The Titans also apparently destroyed the previous magic order.

If a new Titan emerges then insanity and chaos may follow.

 

[Doccer]

My primary concern right now would be that if this thing is getting used or being awakened early then I'd best find a use for it to fulfill first before it's used for something I don't want.

 

[ForeverShogo]

Not sure why people like to treat the Titans as though they are so much more powerful. They got their asses kicked by their kids. The entire point of the Titanomachy is that the Gods were stronger.

And even then Titan is basically just an indicator of, essentially, generation.

The difference between a Titan and a God is basically the difference between a Boomer and a Millenial.

 

[Coda]

Not sure why people like to treat the Titans as though they are so much more powerful. They got their asses kicked by their kids. The entire point of the Titanomachy is that the Gods were stronger.

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Stronger in the sense that there were more of them, and they planned and cooperated towards a common end. Not stronger in the sense of having more innate power. The problem with primordial powers like Titans is a lack of flexibility; gods -- as we've directly observed -- may have comparatively narrower and shallower domains of mystical power, but they're capable of novel invention.

 

[Mr Zoat]

Not sure why people like to treat the Titans as though they are so much more powerful. They got their asses kicked by their kids. The entire point of the Titanomachy is that the Gods were stronger.

And even then Titan is basically just an indicator of, essentially, generation.

The difference between a Titan and a God is basically the difference between a Boomer and a Millenial.

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Source?

 

[Darko]

Not sure why people like to treat the Titans as though they are so much more powerful. They got their asses kicked by their kids. The entire point of the Titanomachy is that the Gods were stronger.

And even then Titan is basically just an indicator of, essentially, generation.

The difference between a Titan and a God is basically the difference between a Boomer and a Millenial.

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I think the gods won because they outsmarted the Titans.

Also remember that some of the Titans helped the Olympians in the war, like Helios. And the blessing he gave Kon has the potential to do planetary level damage, so we know Titans are extremely powerful.

Also it's possible the Titans were overconfident due to their power and that bit them in the ass at the end.

 

[BlueMangoAdea]

Source?

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I mean, that's the case in Greek Mythology. I have no idea how it is in DC Comics. Or in your fic.

 

[Someguy Somewhere]

I'm just a bit worried about the fact that the magical construct of Mr Nelson is referring to John as 'Master'. With the Guess that this is Golden Boy John, anything that even hints at creepy or megalomaniac starts to stand out. While Paul can see now that it's not a true self aware spirit, it was a bit more lively and personable during his 'eviscerated by chaos spears' visit to the tower the first time. This John might have dialed it down and upped it's compulsions to serve a bit from back then.

As for a God of Technology...

Spoiler: Praise the Omnissiah!

 

[Maxx Crowley]

Not sure why people like to treat the Titans as though they are so much more powerful. They got their asses kicked by their kids. The entire point of the Titanomachy is that the Gods were stronger.

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I was going to say it, but you beat me to it.

I've been puzzled by this ever since Oceanius stomped Poseidon. Like, once Zeus got Chronos to vomit up his siblings, shit was on.

Yeah, the war took 10 years, but a 10 year war between Divine creatures is nothing. In the end, the Gods threw down the Titans and imprisoned the ones they didn't kill. Prometheus was at Zeus' mercy, Atlas was helpless as well.

Nothing I ever read suggested that the Titans were more powerful than their offspring.

Now the Giants, which Gaia created to get revenge for the Titans, were inferred to be more powerful than the Gods. Hence why Zeus needed to sire a half-human Hero (Which ended up being Herakles) to turn the tide.

Of course, it's Zoat's fic and thus his rules really, and Hell, I can totally see DC putting the titans above the Gods to have a "Bigger" bad for someone like Wonder Woman.

I mean Typhon, probably the biggest, baddest Titan/Monster of all of them, Got his ass kicked by Zeus something terrible. Only managing a stalemate when he (A Kaiju sized creature) managed to finally get a hold of Zeus and cut/rip his "Sinews" out. Then he was so fucked up, he had to go and recover. Only to get tricked into giving up the Sinews to string an instrument, which once Zeus "Refitted" them, Led to him kicking the fuck out of Typhon. Who to run cowering from Zeus' thunderbolts, only to have the King of the Gods slam a mountain down on his ass. Which is supposedly some Volcano somewhere near Greece (I don't know the name, sorry.) Which it is said, when it erupts, is Typhon screaming.

I honestly just look at it as that weird thing Fantasy fiction tends to do. The older it is, the more powerful it is. Ugh...Naruto flashbacks.

 

[Baladar]

Best case scenario, Primus.

Worst case scenario, The Broken God.

 

[Doccer]

Now the Giants, which Gaia created to get revenge for the Titans, were inferred to be more powerful than the Gods. Hence why Zeus needed to sire a half-human Hero (Which ended up being Herakles) to turn the tide.

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Never heard of them. Do you have any links to these Giants?

 

[Osserumb]

Never heard of them. Do you have any links to these Giants?

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giants_(Greek_mythology)

Here you are.

 

[Chaoswind]

The issue with Greek mythology and the war between the gods and the Titans is that it has been written and rewritten to the point of all of it being fanfiction of fanfiction.

When it comes to DC, Zoats interpretation that the gods won because they were more numerous than the titans and had the book of destiny on their side (one of the endless) is more than plausible.

 

[Sockmonkey]

I would think it was the Olympians ability to plan and strategize VS titans being all HULK SMASH!

 

[Prince Charon]

Believe me, Shintoism is very much alive and well in Japan. If Shinto gods are the type to draw power form their worshippers, then like the Hindu gods, the shinto gods of today would be stronger then they'd ever been before. The Abrahamic religions might have taken a crowbar to the native faiths of Europe, Americas and large parts of Africa, but they had significantly less success across much of Asia and the native faiths are still very much existent and culturally active and relevant.

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Ah. OK, then it was just a 1990s comicbook writer making Western assumptions about an Eastern culture, and the '90s comicbook editors not knowing to correct him. I either hadn't known that, or had forgotten.

 

[Mr Zoat]

28th August 2010
12:03GMT -2

I wave the ring, undoing in an instant the damage Black Manta and Company made when they broke into the Poseidonis Science Center and stole...

"I'm sorry, Minister Vulko, what exactly did they take?"

He looks up from where he's discussing something with another researcher.

"They didn't take anything. Black Manta attempted to steal an ancient creature frozen in arctic ice, but when Kaldur'ahm and Garth stopped him all he could do was destroy it."

"When you say 'ancient', how old do you mean?"

"It's hard to say. Before the Sinking, certainly. As I hope you can appreciate, we have excellent records of aquatic life in the Atlantic Ocean after that."

"So… Was it an aquatic dinosaur?"

"Almost certainly not. It appeared to be some form of echinoderm, but I'm afraid that we weren't able to really begin our analysis before the attack."

"Like a sea urchin?"

"More like a giant star fish."

My environmental shield wavers. DC, giant starfish. That says Starro to me, though… I suppose that there might be other giant starfish around the place. I was never an expert on extinct aquatic species.

"Roughly how big?"

"Roughly… Eight metres, arm tip to arm tip?"

"And it was completely destroyed?"

"No, not completely. A small amount of tissue was left over." He sighs as he swims upwards towards me to carry on our conversation. "We're sending it to the surface. King Orin feels that S.T.A.R. labs are better situated to contain samples in the face of criminal attack." He looks at my face, then gives me a mild frown. "Is there a problem?"

Explaining what I think it could be might risk someone questioning how I-.

Oh, of course. The Green Lantern Corps must have records of Starro. Even if the local Green Lanterns haven't ever bothered looking it up. And while Jordan and Stewart regularly talk to each other, neither of them talk to Gardner if they can possibly help it. I've talked to all three of them, and unlike me they don't have perfect recall. They also don't know that I have perfect recall. If questioned I can just say 'I think you mentioned it one time', and if, say, Jordan says that he doesn't remember I can just shrug and say it might have been Gardner. He won't be sure that it wasn't him and he certainly won't contact Gardner to check.

"It… Might be nothing, but I've been training with Green Lantern Two Eight One Four A, and… He mentioned a species of giant alien starfish. It might not be the same species, but it… Might be worth checking."

"I hardly think it's likely that an alien starfish made its way to Earth. We didn't find any wreckage or remains that could have been a ship…"

"The species in question flew in space using massively strong telekinetic fields. I don't know how familiar you are with the phenomenon..?"

He shakes his head. "Not at all. The genetics that give rise to that class of mental abilities don't occur in Atlanteans. I think it may be something to do with the alterations made to us to adapt us to sub aquatic life. Or it might be that our forebears simply didn't have the genes. Since magic can serve virtually the same purpose there wouldn't have been any evolutionary incentive for the trait to arise. But these starfish could fly through interstellar space?"

I shrug. "I haven't seen it myself, but that was my understanding."

"Fascinating. I wonder if they're artificial, or-. No, no, that's not important. Are they dangerous?"

"They can mind control the populations of entire planets, so yes. Do you still have the remaining tissue here?"

"I… No. It's on its way to America. But it's almost certainly dead."

"Right, but are all of the others?"

"Others?"

"They usually send millions of little ones. I don't know exactly how their life cycle works." I look around the room. "So it was… Here, right?"

"Yes?"

"Ring, scan for genetic material in detail."

"Compliance."

Thick waves of orange light radiate outwards, repeatedly flowing over every surface.

"Eliminate samples from Atlanteans and known sea creatures."

"Compliance."

"And forward the rest to Lantern Two Eight One Four A and ask him to call me back once he's checked them against the Green Lantern Corps' database."

"Compliance."

"So were there any other starfish where you found this one?"

"The… Excavation is still ongoing."

"And… What happens if Black Manta goes there?"

"Go there-?" His eyes widen. "They have.. guards…"

I blink.

"More guards than the city of Poseidonis? Also, are those guards sufficiently skilled at defensive magic to prevent an alien starfish taking control of their minds?"

Also: what? Yes, S.T.A.R. labs usually have good security, but this is the capital city of Atlantis. Even with distraction attacks… That's like Pokolistan sending a commando team to raid the Natural History Museum and just flying away. On the surface they'd have to get past radar and sonar. Ships and aircraft would be redirected to intercept exactly like they are when the Russians decide to try it on. How the heck did Manta get into position to do this?

"No. No, you.. definitely have a point. I will suggest that King Orin-."

The ring blinks.

"Excuse me. Answer."

Jordan's concerned-looking face appears.

"Don't touch it and don't go near it. Where are you?"

"Poseidonis. The Atlanteans dug it out from…" I look at Vulko. "Somewhere?"

"The northern polar ice. It's an alien, then?"

"Where is it now?"

"What's left of it after Black Manta hit it with a missile is heading for S.T.A.R. Labs Gotham. Might I respectfully suggest incinerating it, sir?"

"There's no need to suggest the completely obvious. I'm heading to Gotham now. Isolate wherever you found it. I'll clear that up next. Green Lantern out."

His face vanishes, and I nod. That seems like an entirely proportional response to me. But I don't know why Black Manta is able to get in and out of Atlantean territory-.

Oh. Heh. Okay, yes, that would make more sense. Of course, it doesn't really help when I have a power ring that can track someone anywhere on the planet.

"You don't have a blood sample from Black Manta, do you?"

 

[Katillno]

I am deeply interested in reading more about this version of Paul more so than usual just something appealing about it

 

[Darko]

can just shrug and say if might have been Gardner. He won't be sure that it

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'it might'

"I hardly think it's likely that an alien starfish made its way to Earth

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Ahh, the ignorance people have when they don't know they live in a comic universe.

. I don't now how familiar

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'know how'

respectfully incinerating it, sir?"

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'incinerate'

"You don't have a blood sample from Black Manta, do you

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This may not work, sadly.

Manta probably has magic defences on his sub and bases in case Atlantis uses scrying.

 

[Handlewithcare]

"I suggest we take off and anti-matter the whole side from orbit, it's the only way to be sure"

"There's no need to suggest the completely obvious."

 

[moralrelativity]

... just something appealing about it

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Maybe because common sense is so,so rare inDC?

 

[Mr Zoat]

'it might'
'know how'
'incinerate'

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Thank you, corrected.

 

[Gantradies]

I actually wouldn't mind seeing an expended version of the Fallout-Alternate's story someday- I've allways loved the setting, and some of the people/factions from the mod it's set in sound fascinating...