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

Reader mode
Mr Zoat said:
10th September 2012
18:37 GMT

Following Guy's desires back is simple, though I'm careful to

leave enough of a gap that I'm not immediately caught up in the melee. Ships… Yes, they're not too far away now. Close enough that they could get closer and join in the fight if Malvolio wanted them to. I'd guess that he doesn't think they're powerful enough to do much against a Green Lantern of Guy's power.
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Yeah, at this level of Lantern combat, anything without Spectrum technology would be an annoyance at best. At worst, they're ammunition. As in, something to be grabbed and thrown at the opponent... And I suspect Malvolio has a bit of ego playing part, wanting to be seen defending his territory...

Guy fire a construct-American football at Malvolio's momentarily exposed head as Apros explodes spatial charges all around him. Malvolio catches the ball without looking and using the connection to Guy's ring to pull him closer. Guy tries to strengthen the link and toss him aside, but with a small grimace realises that he can't. A shotgun construct appears next to him and shoots the green link connecting him to the ball, the crumbler round severing the link and allowing him to evade Malvolio's volley. Apros makes more mine constructs and does something to cause them to shrink before sending them in Malvolio's direction of travel.
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:confused: ...A football? What was that intended to do, Guy? Explode? Impressive idea by the jellyfish, but I don't think Malvolio's likely to even notice them going off...

Where are the other t-? Oh. Mohawk-ponytail is collecting bits of treeman, who glows as he tries to reassemble himself. Okay, no one dead yet, I've got a chance.

"Illustres to closest blond Green Lantern."
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There's a rare sight. A Green Lantern who uses healing on themself? True, it's probably possible because of his arboreal nature, but still...

"Lan-." His face appears above my ring, clearly somewhat distracted by the ally he's shielding while he reassembles his torso. "You. Did you get Priest?"

"I spoke to Priest, and he's not impressed about this. He wants to stay here and for you to leave."
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Not quite 'quit making noise and get off my lawn', but the sentiment was probably in there...

"Why?"

"Because he thinks he can turn Malvolio into a better Sector Lantern, and because he doesn't think that his imprisonment is worth killing over."
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Probably the first real peace and quiet he's had in years, after all...

I transition over to them, block an instinctual energy bolt and play a purple ray over the treeman's injury. It responds reasonably well, dead and dying wood coming back to live and growing back into the whole.

"Mind telling me your names?"
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You know, so he can make a note of it on the gravestones if you get in the middle of that furball.

"Green Lantern Avir. Sorry."

I glance at him. "What for?"
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No harm, no foul.

"Lantern Vinkent." Treeman Vinkent checks his torso for damage, but finds nothing. "Thank you, but I must return-."

I stick a construct harness around him.
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So you can get turned into woodchips? I don't think so, leafy.

"No. I healed you. If you get back into the fight then I've picked a side. You're sidelined."

Avir raises his ring.
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Time to quote Cap here: "Son... Just... Don't."

"That-."

"I wouldn't have been able to fight on."
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True. You were doing a passable impression of firewood there.

"You could have your ring sub someone in, but around here that would probably result in it either going to someone who would support Malvolio, or to someone in your home Sector who wouldn't know what was going on."

Avir considers for a moment, glancing back to where the two Honour Guard Lanterns are sheltering under a shared shield as Malvolio bombards them with construct cannons.
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Yeah, kid. Do you want to get in on that action? I doubt three Lanterns will do much more than two.

"Fine."

He flies back towards the fight, fishing something out of his equipment harness as he does so.
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Betting he's pulling some kind of mental disruptor or something. Seems like a likely option for fighting someone that powerful in the Spectrum...

"Right. Lantern Vinkent, please tell me exactly why you're here."

"To rescue former Lantern Priest and gain intelligence on Malvolio."

"And was that Guy's idea, or was he ordered to do it by the Guardians?"
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Yes, please do clear up, who's bright idea was this? If only so OL knows who to yell at first.

"The Guardians-. He said they were okay with it."

So they didn't specifically order it, but given Guy I can't tell whether 'okay' means that they didn't protest or that they strongly advised it. Guy's not going to answer me while he's-
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'Strongly Advised' being political speak for 'We can't say this outright, but we trust you'll pick up on it.' Gah, REMFs at play...

I'm mildly touched as I see that he's taken a leaf out of my book and switched to railguns with iron slugs.

-busy shooting his target. Who can tell me more? Whichever Guardian gave him his original orders and is presumably monitoring him a little more closely than they do most Green Lanterns, but I don't know which of them that is. No way to learn more, then. Who can tell Guy to knock it off? Illustres Chaselon, whoever the other Illustres is, Clarissi Salaak and any of the Guardians.
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The trick will be convincing them that this is a bad idea and they should call it off right now. Because, well, Green Light stubbornness...

Who might actually take my call?

"Ring, contact Illustres Chaselon."
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Since going to Salaak would probably get the connection refused with a stern 'Please don't interrupt me, I'm busy...'

"Compliance."

I hadn't bothered with sorting out an official Corps to Corps point of contact because I know that any of the Earth Green Lanterns would answer me and two of them are Honour Guard Lanterns. But between him and Salaak-.
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Admittedly, neither of those Honour Guard Lanterns are likely to be on your side on this. Hooray for bad first impressions...

Chaselon's eyes appear above my ring. He doesn't say anything.

"Guy Gardner, Apros and Avir are presently fighting Lord Malvolio, ruler of Sector One Six Three Four. Are they supposed to be?"
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Well, that's direct. I suppose Chaselon is the sort to appreciate it, though. His time is likely valuable.

"Why are you asking?"

"Because I'd like them to stop and discuss their differences and not actually fight unless they were irreconcilable."
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Especially since at this point, anything in their way is likely to get broken. Like, say, a planet.

"What is your stake in who wins?"

"Ah, Guy's a friend of mine, and Malvolio has peacefully unified a Sector that had been at war with itself. Malvolio also has some non-standard ideas about what power rings can do that I'd like to study more myself."
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At least Chaselon is likely to have read the files on all involved. And not just the short version, the full files. So he'll likely be aware of Malvolio and Priest's connections...

He rotates away to look at something off-camera for a moment.

"Honour Guard Lantern Gardner's order to research esoteric Green Lantern abilities comes from the Guardians. I can't countermand it."
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...Not sure how this relates to researching 'esoteric Lantern abilities'... Unless Guy was looking to talk to Priest...

"Guardians or a Guardian?"

"I don't have access to that information. If the Guardians have disagreements, they resolve them in private."
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One big happy family, huh? at least, where anyone might see.

"But if he hasn't specifically been ordered to fight or kill Malvolio?"

"Then he could be ordered to stop. But if a Guardian declines to make such an order, the rest will probably follow their lead and leave Lantern Gardner to it."
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Argh, damn Maltusian habit of not getting in each other's business...

"I don't suppose you know which Guardian originally ordered Malvolio's death, do you?"

"No."
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And depending on when the order was given, that Guardian may not even be alive anymore...

Ugh. Okay, it sounds like Chaselon is prepared to put me through to a Guardian. But that Guardian might want Malvolio dead or locked up. Or they might consider it to not be part of their range of responsibilities. That's why I'm not asking to be referred right to Apa Ali Apsa, who would probably find this Sector to be an interesting case study. Ganthet's usually Earth's go-to Guardian, but I know for a fact that he was also the one who backed Jordan's decision to remove Sinestro from office. Sayd, maybe? I don't have good records on the rest of the Guardians-.
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And really, how many others do you know the names of anyway? Enough to recognise their character, anyway...

"Ring, second channel. Message to Hinon. Needs to stop Green Lantern fighting someone with weird green light powers before someone dies. Which Guardian do I ask? Send."

"Message sent. Response received. 'Guardian Broome Bon Baris'."
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Well, that was quick. Let's hope this gamble pays off...

…

I suppose that you can't vivisect someone if they're dead…
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Hopefully, they at least acknowledge that Malvolio might have objections to such invasive study...

"Chaselon, could you put me through to Guardian Broome Bon Baris? I'll try and get her to call Guy off."

"Try. Yes."
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...Well, then... Time to diplomance the shit out of this Guardian, OL...

Okay. Well, this could go swimmingly well. Or backfire hard. Any dealing with the Guardians tends to be a coin-flip, really. And this one in particular? ...Well, anyone who picked Sinestro as a good candidate... Oh, boy. Yeah, this is going to rely a lot on OL's ability to bullshit. I guess we'll see how the dice roll tomorrow.
 
Mr Zoat said:
"Ring, second channel. Message to Hinon. Needs to stop Green Lantern fighting someone with weird green light powers before someone dies. Which Guardian do I ask? Send."

"Message sent. Response received. 'Guardian Broome Bon Baris'."

…

I suppose that you can't vivisect someone if they're dead…

"Chaselon, could you put me through to Guardian Broome Bon Baris? I'll try and get her to call Guy off."

"Try. Yes."
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Never heard of him. Sounds daunting.
 
Handlewithcare said:
Typical green stubborness on all sides.

Also, that Paul or Dox have set up no official channels is a pretty big oversight. Don't their Lanterns claim the same sectors?
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Sort of. Aside from a couple of cases, the entire Orange Lantern Corps is active around Reach space where Green Lanterns are largely irrelevant. Both the SI and Xalitan have contact with their local Green Lanterns and that's the entire overlap covered.
Bud-E said:
Is this Guardian the one who wanted to dissect Paul when he first spoke to The Guardians?
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That was the impressionm he got, yes.
 
Mr Zoat said:
catches the ball without looking and using the connection to Guy's ring to pull him closer.
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using -> uses (I think this should match the conjugation of the earlier "catches") [Is conjugation the right word here?? I know what sounds right in my head but I'm hazy on the details of grammar.]
 
Mr Zoat said:
Both the SI and Xalitan have contact with their local Green Lanterns and that's the entire overlap covered.
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What about the sector that has the planet with the culture that used to blind all their women? My understanding was that one of the two Orange Lanterns from there stayed behind to deal with stuff.
 
moralrelativity said:
using -> uses (I think this should match the conjugation of the earlier "catches") [Is conjugation the right word here?? I know what sounds right in my head but I'm hazy on the details of grammar.]
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Thank you, corrected.
Rafin said:
What about the sector that has the planet with the culture that used to blind all their women? My understanding was that one of the two Orange Lanterns from there stayed behind to deal with stuff.
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No, both are operating out of Maltus.
 
Handlewithcare said:
Also, that Paul or Dox have set up no official channels is a pretty big oversight. Don't their Lanterns claim the same sectors?
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The problem is the Guardians run the GLC, and they don't really "do" official channels with peer powers. They'd respond to a fellow Maltusian, but they wouldn't internalize that Paul is, in fact, someone who founded the Orange Lantern Corps, took down Larfleeze without a fight, and is Ophidian's favorite person ever, and thus someone worthy of being treated like a peer when it comes to diplomatic/political relations.

As usual, the Maltusians have a massive arrogance problem that does them (and everyone else) no favors. Hell, the fact that the Guardians still refuse to reproduce even as their numbers gradually dwindle to nothing (while the GLC remains unable to uphold its mission even as it is) shows that, for all of their brilliance, their general aloofness to the reality around them is their fatal flaw. Still, there is an understandable element at play: the OLC is almost totally focused on the Reach, which is mostly beyond the focus of the GLC, so there isn't much interaction going on (yet). But given Paul's numerous interactions with the GLC so far, this isn't much of an excuse.

The bigger problem is that Guy is unwilling to just...y'know, accept a call for a temporary cease-fire so that Paul can even make an attempt at diplomacy.

I strongly suspect that at this point, Guy's continued stubbornness is more about really wanting to test himself against such a great opponent rather than a refusal against a diplomatic solution on principle. Of course, since they're all Green Lanterns (and not Orange, Violet, or Pink), they can just do this kind of fight as a friendly spar without worrying about not being able to test their strength because they can't muster the proper emotion for a mere spar.

If Paul felt the need to end the fight immediately, I suspect he'd summon Ophidian and just try to get in-between the combatants (while also putting a stop to any attempt at a breakout) so that he can start explaining to them that Priest doesn't actually want to leave and that this whole fight is completely unnecessary.
 
Mr Zoat said:
Needs to stop Green Lantern fighting someone with weird green light powers before someone dies.
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Unless there's some British idiom I'm not familiar with, "Need to stop" because it's implied to be "I need".

moralrelativity said:
using -> uses (I think this should match the conjugation of the earlier "catches") [Is conjugation the right word here?? I know what sounds right in my head but I'm hazy on the details of grammar.]
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Conjugation is valid there. You could have also referred to tense and been correct; the conjugation is how the word itself changes while the tense describes the meaning that the form of the word implies.
 
Mr Zoat said:
Is there a word for flame moving across a surface?
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Ryumancer said:
I don't think there's an explicit word for it, but 'flowing' or just 'spreading' tends to be the closest i've seen, more the latter than the former. It's not fancy, it's not elegant, but it's functional.
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Someguy Somewhere said:
Ignite or Enkindle.

I'd go with Ryumancer for terms describing movement more then the flames, 'Racing' 'Raging' or 'Dancing' are a good ones as well.
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CTrees said:
Cascade, coruscate, deflagrate, enkindle, surge
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Yeah, no specific word. Just break out some synonyms from the thesaurus.

unfold, unroll, expand, emit, diffuse, radiate, disperse, scatter, publish, circulate, promulgate, propagate, stretch, dilate, reach, compass.

I like promulgate or propagate myself.
 
A Waltz in Orange and Green (part 13)
  • Threadmarks
    • 10th September 2012
    18:40 GMT

    I glance up as Chaselon vanishes from my ring. Malvolio appears to have decided to focus on Apros exclusively, and is currently creating a giant flaming box construct to hem him in. Guy is trying to break it using a construct heat shield around a bundle of crumblers, but while that works, Malvolio's construct doesn't flat out fail. Instead, the edges of the breach burn more viciously, extending the construct back over the hole.

    "Illustres."

    I immediately give Guardian Broome my full attention. The image of her head above my ring is actually larger than it was from my perspective when I met the Guardians in person. She looks old, and not in the slightly saggy way Hinon does. She's shrivelled, the skin stretched over her face and wattles sagging beneath her jaw where it hasn't adjusted to the gradual wasting of the flesh beneath. Her eyes are completely focused on me, unblinking and clearly communicating that this better be important.

    "What is it?"

    Don't explain who people are. She has access to all Green Lantern Corps records… Maybe not with a thought. Maybe without one, just… Knowing everything all of the time.

    "Honour Guard Lanterns Gardner and Apros are fighting and losing to Lord Malvolio in an attempt to liberate former Lantern Priest. I would like you to order them to stop so that I can negotiate a peaceful settlement. Malvolio is the product of four centuries' exposure to the green light of will, and hence is an interesting case study into what might happen to Lantern Gardner. Or to Lantern Scott or myself. If he were unduly damaged, that opportunity would be lost. The deaths of the Green Lantern Corps members in system would be inconvenient if the fight did not go in their favour, especially as Gardner is the only living person to have bonded with Ion."

    "They are presently engaged in combat. Will Malvolio simply allow them to leave?"

    "I'm reasonably sure that I can create a temporary truce. Whether or not he will allow them to leave would probably depend on how the negotiations go. At worst, there'll be a brief pause in hostilities and the Corps will lose nothing."

    "I expect copies of every report, and I would like Lantern Gardner involved."

    "Not a problem."

    She regards me for a couple of seconds, then her face vanishes.

    "That's longer than I've spoken to a Guardian for since I joined the Corps."

    "To be fair, there isn't much reason for a Sector Lantern to speak to a Guardian. And they're not exactly good-"

    Lantern Apros is pushing hard against the box containing him and Lord Malvolio forces it smaller and smaller while fending off Guy with bolts of green light. Honestly, I'm a little surprised that he hasn't tried asking Ion for help yet, given the difficulty he's having.

    "Illustres to Lord Malvolio. I have negotiated a ceasefire-"

    Guy's ring shimmers as he weaves around Malvolio's shots, and he grimaces.

    "-with the Guardians. Once Guy receives it, please break off until negotiations are over."

    "What proof have I that they will break off when commanded?"

    "I'm going to stick a really big orange shield between the belligerent parties, and will start fighting anyone who breaks the ceasefire before negotiations comprehensively fail."

    Guy slows in space, his eyes going from his ring to Lord Malvolio and back again. Malvolio stares at Guy for a moment, then slowly dismisses the box around Apros. Avis darts in and appears to offer to assist, but Apros waves him away with a tentacle. Guy floats closer to the two of them so that he can more easily offer support.

    Right then.

    "Lantern Vinkent, please accompany me."

    "Yes."

    I fly towards the green-glowing Lanterns, Vinkent just behind me. I suppose that I don't really need to get closer, but it might help psychologically if the guarantor is right there.

    Malvolio's flaming aura shrinks a little as I approach, which I'm taking as a positive sign.

    "Gentlemen, thank you for-."

    "Y'went t' tha Guardians."

    Guy folds his arms across his chest and puts on his most mulish expression.

    "I went to the Guardians because you're being a belligerent idiot. I'd hoped you'd got over this-"

    "Oh this is not-"

    "-impulse, but if you-"

    "-tha same-"

    "-need someone smacking some-"

    "-thing at all, you-"

    "-sense into you, then I'd-"

    "-backstabbing, rank-pulling little sneak."

    "-rather it be me or a Guardian rather than Malvolio."

    Apros lays a tentacle on Guy's left shoulder while I turn to Lord Malvolio.

    "Thank you for giving them -and me- a chance."

    "I thought that you had betrayed me when you entered Priest's prison. I will have an explanation."

    "Priest has lived a very long time. He wasn't much freer during your imprisonment than you were. Without knowing what he wanted, I couldn't know what to suggest for a resolution."

    Apros moves his tentacles in a gesture indicating a polite request for attention.

    "What did former Lantern Priest tell you?"

    "In summary? Don't fight to free him, Malvolio's not that bad and being in prison for a while doesn't bother him."

    "An' we gotta take your word fer that? You've been acting real friendly with…"

    Guy nods at Malvolio.

    "Yes, because I prefer to gain knowledge by peaceful discussion rather than breaking and entering. If you're implying that he's controlling my actions, you can ask the Ophidian if you like. Priest said that anyone who uses the emotional spectrum inevitably influences those around them in accordance with that emotion, so he's probably had some influence on all of us, but at this point-"

    Of course.

    "-he's probably having a bigger impact on you than on me, which is why you're acting up, because you can't reconcile his focus with yours."

    "Huh? That's-." Guy frowns. "Yeah, that… Could happen. Gimme a sec."

    Guy closes his eyes and draws his legs into a cross-legged pose. I feel… Something… I don't think he's exactly communing with Ion, but he's doing something he wasn't doing before.

    "Right." He opens his eyes, and they're blank green orbs. "What're yah proposin'?"
     
    Last edited:
  • Threadmarks
    • Mr Zoat said:
    but while that works Malvolio's construct doesn't flat out fail.
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    'works, Malvolio's construct'

    Mr Zoat said:
    "I went to the Guardians because you're being a belligerent idiot. I'd hoped you'd got over this-"

    "Oh this is not-"

    "-impulse, but if you-"

    "-tha same-"

    "-need someone smacking some-"

    "-thing at all, you-"

    "-sense into you, then I'd-"

    "-backstabbing, rank-pulling little sneak."

    "-rather it be me or a Guardian rather than Malvolio
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    I really hate it when a conversation is written like this.

    Mr Zoat said:
    Thank you for given them -and me- a chance.
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    'for giving'

    Mr Zoat said:
    , so he's probably have some influence on all of us, but at this point-"
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    'had some'
     
    JamesEye said:
    Love it when lanterns just casually communicate with their light providers. Always just so cool to read.

    Also just reading light providers made me think of casually calling up your power company to talk about your houses lights haha.
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    My power company might as well be Mafia fir the fast one they pulled on me.
     
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