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

Ngamer11 · Feb 19, 2022

Mr Zoat, are we still going to see the follow up on Earth 10 after this business with Crimson Avenger II is finished?

Mr Zoat · Feb 19, 2022

Ngamer11 said:
Mr Zoat, are we still going to see the follow up on Earth 10 after this business with Crimson Avenger II is finished?

Probably.

Ardy · Feb 20, 2022

Zoat, I want you to know your story has completely killed my ability to be scared by supernatural horror films.

Whenever the monster does something scary I just keep flashing back to Dr. Mr. Gotham being this terrifying creature that devours souls and Paul nonchalantly de powering him before reading him his rights and carrying him off to prison.

Do you know hard it is to take a demon-monster stalking someone through a cemetery seriously when you keep imagining an overweight cop hopping out from behind a bush and tazing them repeatedly while shouting "STOP RESISTING" and then hitting them with a nightstick?

It's really hard.

deimos16 · Feb 20, 2022

Cuchulin said:
I am reminded of that one fan explanation of why she uses bracers instead of just standing there like Superman, bullets make her boobs jiggle and that causes gunmen to target them to see them bounce instead of trying to kill her.

The QQ logical explanation for combat distractions.

Mr Zoat · Feb 20, 2022

20th October 2012
15:14 GMT -5

The image of Alan jerks and then fragments-.

"Alan?"

"Call you-. Back."

The image disappears, and I scan for-

"Drop me off somewhere."

-Alan's location.

"Can't do that. We don't know the range of her teleportation, and she can selectively phase. I don't have anywhere safe to put you. Alan's a perfectly capable Lantern and Diana's right there."

Alan's just outside the embassy. He was talking to the police, but now he's evading bullets while trying to lead her away from other people. In New York in the middle of the afternoon. And he's trying to talk to her.

Stop looking, stop looking.

"Ring, anyone else shot by these bullets recently?"

Oh. Ah.

The problem with her using handguns that have been in circulation for about a hundred years is that there aren't exactly a small number of them in wider circulation. And there are… Quite a lot of gun-related deaths in the US each year-.

Half were people killing themselves?

"What? What's happening?"

"Did you know that half of gun deaths in the US last year were people killing themselves?"

"Ah… No? What's that got to do with Al?"

"I'm trying to see who else Miss Carlyle might have killed, but it's a common firearm… I mean, I can try limiting it to people of more than human normal toughness or where the bullet passed through something solid…"

"Try looking to see if there was a change in the death rate after she disappeared."

"Okay. Arranging my demographic… Do you know anyone who did know Crimson Avenger?"

"The Seven Soldiers of Victory, but I think they're all dead. Ah… Victor Leong? I never met him, but he was-. Oh, I… Guess he'd be about my age. Last I heard he was a restaurant manager, but he's probably retired."

"Victor Leong, Victor Leong… Yes, still alive and yes, retired. What was their relationship?"

"Victor was Vigilante's old sidekick. Greg Saunders?"

"Yes, Alan mentioned him." And of course I met Desperado. Definitely didn't see a sidekick with him, and he was far too young... "I'll phone him."

I raise my left hand to my ear, a ringing tone sounding a moment later.

"Hey."

"Good afternoon, Mister L-."

"I've already got a subscription to the Tribune."

"Good for you. A well-informed population is a requirement for a functioning democracy."

"Oh. So you're not trying to get me to buy the Times?"

"Not particularly. I'm Orange Lantern."

"Orange..? Oh! The cake guy!"

Behind me, Ted snorts. At least he didn't mention the eyes or the spider-.

"Yes. Yes, I am. So anyway, I was hoping that you'd be able to help me with an investigation-."

"I'm a little old for that sort of thing these days. I haven't been able to do a split kick for about thirty years. But if you're desperate, I'll go get my walker-."

"Someone's using Crimson Avenger's guns."

"Oh."

"And you're just-."

"The only one of the old gang still going, I know. His guns… Ain't exactly normal."

"Yes, I worked that out from how they shot through my constructs and armour. Blue Lantern's fighting her now, so a succinct explanation would be appreciated."

"There's some kind of spirit in them. He said they talked to him, sometimes."

"They talked to him sometimes, or they talked to him all the time and he didn't want to scare you?"

"Coulda been either. He only really talked about it once, when the guns told him something about a case he couldn't have found out just by his detective skills. They showed him pictures of what the victims went through."

"Victims..?"

"Murder victims. He didn't say anything about any other kind. He wasn't big on shooting people-. Not fatally, anyway. But… That one case? It was like the guns wanted to kill the perp and he had to force them not to."

"Do you know where the guns went after he died?"

"I don't have the slightest idea. I was Greg's sidekick, not Avenger's. Wing was already dead… I don't really know who else would know anything."

"Thank you for your help, Mister Leong. I've got your number if there's anything else."

"If the spirits in those guns are controlling this guy, you can help them, right? Avenger would hate it if someone innocent got hurt."

"Where evil spirits are concerned, there's no such thing as innocence, only what they can get away with. I won't kill her if there's a reasonable alternative. Good day."

I lower my left hand.

"Ted… I hate to ask, and believe me I'm the last person to get on his moral high horse-."

"I didn't murder anyone. Not ever."

"Evil spirits, Ted. It's not the same as the definition of murder used by the American legal system. Did you ever cause someone to die without direct and immediate need or cause?"

"Did you?"

"Lots of times. So many I'll never know all of their names or faces and I probably won't know if it was actually justified or not. But you joined the Society after the war. And… Besides, if they were having horrific visions of the people I killed, they'd never have time for anything else."

"Ah. Damn." He looks at me with a good deal of disquiet. "Al told me-."

"If you want the full breakdown and justification, you can have it after we've saved Miss Carlyle."

"Well then, I… Pushing the definition a whole long way…" He nods slowly, once. "Yeah. I kinda did."

Darko · Feb 20, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
The image of Alan jerks and then fragments-.

"Alan?"

Ohh, shit, so Alan was the one that got shot.

Mr Zoat said:
"Orange..? Oh! The cake guy!"

Behind me, Ted snorts

Ha!

You will ne er live that down.

Mr Zoat said:
At least he didn't mention the eyes or the spider-.

I don't think the spider fucking is that widely known outside of Vega.

doug89 · Feb 20, 2022

I don't know what it is, but something about how Paul just calls up people really amuses and entertains me.

It's somehow so mundane in such a fantastical setting. I can't imagine other heroes doing it.

theaceoffire · Feb 20, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
Besides, if they were having horrific visions of the people I killed, they'd never have time for anything else.

...This is a surprisingly good defensive option, if not a moral or easily established one.

Chojin Patriarch · Feb 20, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
20th October 2012
15:14 GMT -5

The image of Alan jerks and then fragments-.

Ah. It wasn't OL getting shot at that time. I'm guessing the Guns either have him pegged for something (probably from wartime) or they've decided any ally of their target is as culpable as the target themself. Either way, this isn't great.

"Alan?"

"Call you-. Back."

Unlike you, OL, he can't easily divide his concentration between talking and fighting...

The image disappears, and I scan for-

"Drop me off somewhere."

Bad idea, kitty-kat. That'd just give Avenger a free shot at you. And you haven't got nearly the defences a Lantern does.

-Alan's location.

"Can't do that. We don't know the range of her teleportation, and she can selectively phase. I don't have anywhere safe to put you. Alan's a perfectly capable Lantern and Diana's right there."

Not to mention god knows how many Amazons and cops. Good grief, the Guns have a target-rich environment...

Alan's just outside the embassy. He was talking to the police, but now he's evading bullets while trying to lead her away from other people. In New York in the middle of the afternoon. And he's trying to talk to her.

Stop looking, stop looking.

Trust him, he's lasted this long without AI. With an AI, he's practically unbeatable, because nothing's stronger than Hope. Especially when it's touched by his Will.

"Ring, anyone else shot by these bullets recently?"

Oh. Ah.

Ugh. I bet he's got millions of hits. Like a Google search for one word. Might wanna try narrowing it down?

The problem with her using handguns that have been in circulation for about a hundred years is that there aren't exactly a small number of them in wider circulation. And there are… Quite a lot of gun-related deaths in the US each year-.

Half were people killing themselves?

Huh. The things you learn when you make a random search...

But this is no time for a wiki-walk, OL!

"What? What's happening?"

"Did you know that half of gun deaths in the US last year were people killing themselves?"

And that will seem like a total non-sequitor to Ted. Not helping your reputation as 'scatter-brained', OL.

"Ah… No? What's that got to do with Al?"

"I'm trying to see who else Ms. Carlyle might have killed, but it's a common firearm… I mean, I can try limiting it to people of more than human normal toughness or where the bullet passed through something solid…"

Except most of her targets wouldn't fit either of those cases. Regular people can get up to some pretty bad things.

"Try looking to see if there was a change in the death rate after she disappeared."

"Okay. Arranging my demographic… Do you know anyone who did know Crimson Avenger?"

Ah, the wisdom of age. Good luck finding anyone from that era, though.

"The Seven Soldiers of Victory, but I think they're all dead. Ah… Victor Leong? I never met him, but he was-. Oh, I… Guess he'd be about my age. Last I heard he was a restaurant manager, but he's probably retired."

"Victor Leong, Victor Leong… Yes, still alive and yes, retired. What was their relationship?"

The 1940's and -50's, folks!

Cas-u-al rac-is-um!

"Victor was Vigilante's old sidekick. Greg Saunders?"

"Yes, Alan mentioned him." And of course I met Desperado. Definitely didn't see a sidekick with him, and he was far too young... "I'll phone him."

Not ringing a bell. But I can assume they're a legacy hero...

I raise my left hand to my ear, a ringing tone sounding a moment later.

"Hey."

So, what comic misunderstanding will this be?

"Good afternoon, Mister L-."

"I've already got a subscription to the Tribune."

Ah, the 'poorly-timed telemarketer cold call.' A classic.

"Good for you. A well-informed population is a requirement for a functioning democracy."

"Oh. So you're not trying to get me to buy the Times?"

Man, how many times must he have had that call... Today?

"Not particularly. I'm Orange Lantern."

"Orange..? Oh! The cake guy!"

...Yes, sure, the 'Cake Guy.' I assume you enjoyed your slice.

Behind me, Ted snorts. At least he didn't mention the eyes or the spider-.

"Yes. Yes, I am. So anyway, I was hoping that you'd be able to help me with an investigation-."

Never living it down, OL. Get used to it. I'm amazed the Legionnaires didn't greet you as 'The Cake man'... But they did come from a different timeline. Bet he'll get that reaction from their local counterparts if they ever turn up.

"I'm a little old for that sort of thing these days. I haven't been able to do a split kick for about thirty years. But if you're desperate, I'll go get my walker-."

"Someone's using Crimson Avenger's guns."

"Oh."

Yes, rather 'Oh'. Good to see he can guess just how bad this could be.

"And you're just-."

"The only one of the old gang still going, I know. His guns… Ain't exactly normal."

<ShockedNickCage.jpeg> No, really? We'd never have guessed!

"Yes, I worked that out from how they shot through my constructs and armour. Blue Lantern's fighting her now, so a succinct explanation would be appreciated."

"There's some kind of spirit in them. He said they talked to him, sometimes."

Hey, at least it isn't a cursed motorcycle gas-tank cap. And yes, that is the 90's Ghost Rider's origin. Still better than Ghost Rider 2099...

"They talked to him sometimes, or they talked to him all the time and he didn't want to scare you?"

"Coulda been either. He only really talked about it once, when the guns told him something about a case he couldn't have found out just by his detective skills. They showed him pictures of what the victims went through."

More than that, but he can be excused for Mister Travis not being entirely truthful.

"Victims..?"

"Murder victims. He didn't say anything about any other kind. He wasn't big on shooting people-. Not fatally, anyway. But… That one case? It was like the guns wanted to kill the perp and he had to force them not to."

I'm betting that's why he invented the gas-gun he would later use. Sort of a Sandman-lite.

"Do you know where the guns went after he died?"

"I don't have the slightest idea. I was Greg's sidekick, not Avenger's. Wing was already dead… I don't really know who else would know anything."

And yes, those costumes are terrible. Presumably done after Batman caught on big.

"Thank you for your help, Mister Leong. I've got your number if there's anything else."

"If the spirits in those guns are controlling this guy, you can help them, right? Avenger would hate it if someone innocent got hurt."

Well, he can but try.

"Where evil spirits are concerned, there's no such thing as innocence, only what they can get away with. I won't kill her if there's a reasonable alternative. Good day."

I lower my left hand.

More likely it'll be the Guns that end up destroyed. Or at least separated from their host and contained.

"Ted… I hate to ask, and believe me I'm the last person to get on his moral high horse-."

"I didn't murder anyone. Not ever."

Which is legally true. Now, falsifying evidence and possibly later lying about it in court? Not so innocent.

"Evil spirits, Ted. It's not the same as the definition of murder used by the American legal system. Did you ever cause someone to die without direct and immediate need or cause?"

"Did you?"

Come on, if he has to sit down and count, it'll take all day.

"Lots of times. So many I'll never know all of their names or faces and I probably won't know if it was actually justified or not. But you joined the Society after the war. And… Besides, if they were having horrific visions of the people I killed, they'd never have time for anything else."

"Ah. Damn." He looks at me with a good deal of disquiet. "Al told me-."

Yeah. Still not public knowledge that he wiped nearly an entire race from existence. They weren't nice people, but still...

"If you want the full breakdown and justification, you can have it after we've saved Miss Carlyle."

"Well then, I… Pushing the definition a whole long way…" He nods slowly, once. "Yeah. I kinda did."

As detailed here. For those who want to read ahead and aren't already familiar with the plotline.

I'm sure Wildcat will be giving us a full run-down tomorrow. Still, best make it quick, since the lady is still running amok with magic guns down there. Ironic, isn't it? The Guns have probably killed more people by missing than they ever have directly. Not that the spirit in them would care, I bet.

As long as they get their target, no-one else matters... Sloppy.

Bud-E · Feb 20, 2022

I could be wrong but didn't Grayven mention once that Alan and the JSA killed a villain that found out their secret identities?

Ngamer11 · Feb 20, 2022

Chojin Patriarch said:
Ah. It wasn't OL getting shot at that time. I'm guessing the Guns either have him pegged for something (probably from wartime) or they've decided any ally of their target is as culpable as the target themself. Either way, this isn't great.

In this timeline, the manner in which Golden Age Ragman died happened. As such, the guns may consider Alan a valid target.

Chojin Patriarch said:
Yeah. Still not public knowledge that he wiped an entire race from existence. They weren't nice people, but still...

If you're talking about the Citadelians, Paul didn't wipe them out. He left a sizable amount alive, partially so that the Tamaranean princesses can earn Vega's good will by hunting them down.

Rebu · Feb 20, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
"Did you know that half of gun deaths in the US last year were people killing themselves?"

That's interesting, because the last time I checked it was something like 2/3. Another third were murders, and a percentage or two for accidents.

I guess the Sheeda chaos and the aftermath might drastically increase the murder numbers and/or lower the suicides, if only because more people get killed before they can kill themselves.

Darko · Feb 20, 2022

Chojin Patriarch said:
Yeah. Still not public knowledge that he wiped nearly an entire race from existence

I think he told those video game developers, but it may not have spread to everyone else

Ngamer11 said:
If you're talking about the Citadelians, Paul didn't wipe them out. He left a sizable amount alive, partially so that the Tamaranean princesses can earn Vega's good will by hunting them down

Though now the only ones that are probably alive are the dozen that work for Amalak.

PrinceJonathan · Feb 20, 2022

Chojin Patriarch said:
The Guns have probably killed more people by missing than they ever have directly. Not that the spirit in them would care, I bet. As long as they get their target, no-one else matters... Sloppy.

I know. It's such a stupid gimmick. Maybe if the bullets only hurt the guilty and passed harmlessly through innocent bodies, or never missed and always hit their target? It's magic, ain't got to explain shit.

Fucking bargain bin bootleg Ghost Rider. She doesn't even have a flaming skull. How can you be possessed by a Spirit of Vengeance and not have a flaming skull?!!

Ngamer11 · Feb 20, 2022

Mr Zoat, I was rereading some of the old stuff you posted, and I was wondering if you still had plans for future crossover with Ame-Comi and Green Lantern: The Animated Series?

Mr Zoat · Feb 20, 2022

Ngamer11 said:
Mr Zoat, I was rereading some of the old stuff you posted, and I was wondering if you still had plans for future crossover with Ame-Comi and Green Lantern: The Animated Series?

Ame-Comi, no. GL:tAS, yes.

Ngamer11 · Feb 20, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
Ame-Comi, no. GL:tAS, yes.

So we will no longer see the version of Paul who ended up in the former? Pity, I was hoping to see him interact with Power Girl and Supergirl, with people mistaking their relationship due to him being good friends with the two. At least we'll see him in the latter. Though I wonder which ring he'd get there?

Belenus · Feb 20, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
"Did you know that half of gun deaths in the US last year were people killing themselves?"

"Must be a slow year."

Rebu said:
That's interesting, because the last time I checked it was something like 2/3. Another third were murders, and a percentage or two for accidents.

I guess the Sheeda chaos and the aftermath might drastically increase the murder numbers and/or lower the suicides, if only because more people get killed before they can kill themselves.

Plus DC is wildly more violent than RL, so more gun violence too.

Mr Zoat · Feb 20, 2022

Ngamer11 said:
So we will no longer see the version of Paul who ended up in the former?

You might if someone who's actually read Ame-Comi writes it.

Darko · Feb 20, 2022

Ngamer11 said:
So we will no longer see the version of Paul who ended up in the former? Pity, I was hoping to see him interact with Power Girl and Supergirl, with people mistaking their relationship due to him being good friends with the two. At least we'll see him in the latter. Though I wonder which ring he'd get there?

The one from GT may not he an original Paul, but just Future Paul.

I think Zoat once mentioned that we'd be seeing Razer and he'd get a different ring, so maybe Future Paul rill recruit him.

Doccer · Feb 20, 2022

Chojin Patriarch said:
Never living it down, OL. Get used to it. I'm amazed the Legionnaires didn't greet you as 'The Cake man'... But they did come from a different timeline. Bet he'll get that reaction from their

Oh how I wish the far future bondage elves just looked at OL and promised him that if he makes a very fine celebratory cake then they'll allow him to be the last to die. Completely dismissing him in every other category!

Chojin Patriarch said:
Ironic, isn't it? The Guns have probably killed more people by missing than they ever have directly. Not that the spirit in them would care, I bet. As long as they get their target, no-one else matters... Sloppy

Like to see Ghost Rider give those things the Penitence Stare.

Sordid Snake · Feb 20, 2022

PrinceJonathan said:
Fucking bargain bin bootleg Ghost Rider. She doesn't even have a flaming skull. How can you be possessed by a Spirit of Vengeance and not have a flaming skull?!!

It is true that spirits of vengeance tend to have something wrong with their head and I don't mean figuratively: Headless horseman, flaming skull, 'Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner' etc etc

PDV · Feb 20, 2022

theaceoffire said:
...This is a surprisingly good defensive option, if not a moral or easily established one.

Reminds me of settings where some people can project their emotions, and particularly one who is constantly near-suicidally depressed. He knows how to function with it. Anyone else he targets with it? Not so much.

Paul doesn't have to re-experience the emotion to do it, either, which makes it more usable.

Pinklestia · Feb 20, 2022

theaceoffire said:
...This is a surprisingly good defensive option, if not a moral or easily established one.

Probably the same some of the big monsters of DC have

Darko · Feb 20, 2022

PDV said:
Reminds me of settings where some people can project their emotions, and particularly one who is constantly near-suicidally depressed. He knows how to function with it. Anyone else he targets with it? Not so much

Now I'm reminded of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, where Marvin blasts all those people with the Point of View gun.

Coda · Feb 20, 2022

Rebu said:
That's interesting, because the last time I checked it was something like 2/3. Another third were murders, and a percentage or two for accidents.

To be clear, the statistic in question is firearm-inflicted deaths (not firearm-related injuries or incidents) in the US in the year 2011 on Earth 16.

I can't find the specific statistic for 2011, but in 2010 on Earth Prime it was 61% -- that is, more than the 1/2 cited by OL, but less than the 2/3 you're remembering. In either case, it's close enough that as a rough rounding it's not inaccurate for OL to have said that.

(It also seems plausible that Earth 16 might have a somewhat higher rate of firearm assaults than Earth Prime, or perhaps firearm incidents are more deadly when they happen, because 75% of firearm injuries in US Prime are related to assault even though less than 40% of the deaths are.)

Cuchulin · Feb 21, 2022

Darko said:
Now I'm reminded of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, where Marvin blasts all those people with the Point of View gun.

Or the time he plugged himself into the onboard computer of a police vehicle or the time he plugged himself into the opening circuit of brand new bridge that was meant to revitalize the economy of the planet of Sqornshellous Zeta.

Acyl · Feb 21, 2022

Chojin Patriarch said:
Ah. It wasn't OL getting shot at that time. I'm guessing the Guns either have him pegged for something

Bud-E said:
I could be wrong but didn't Grayven mention once that Alan and the JSA killed a villain that found out their secret identities?

Ngamer11 said:
In this timeline, the manner in which Golden Age Ragman died happened. As such, the guns may consider Alan a valid target.

The villain in question is Rag Doll, who was originally a Flash villain, one of Jay Garrick's rogues from the 1940s (both real-world publication history and in-universe time). He's patterned after a children's toy - think a kind of acrobat/contortionist Joker analogue with less humour and more criminal mastermind elements. Ragman is a different DC character, a superhero/vigilante with a magic costume made of patches and scraps of fabric, who first appeared in comics circa the 1970s.

In pre-52 comics canon, the original Rag Doll started... what amounted to a cult or mass violent movement in the 1980s (in-universe time, not real-world publication date). Rioting, crime sprees, et al. So the original JSA guys went after him. When they finally caught Rag Doll, he taunted the heroes, telling them that even if they put him in prison, he'd still be able to command his army from behind bars. And then he specifically threatened their families. At that point, in-universe, Ted Knight (Starman), Alan Scott (Green Lantern), and Jay Garrick (Flash) all attacked him. So the guy got energy-zapped twice and superspeed-whacked once, ending up very dead, and none of the JSA are clear who technically killed Rag Doll. Ted thinks he shot first, but Alan and Jay dispute this (and the way Alan and Jay see it, even if Ted's right, they all basically killed the guy).

In real-world publication history, the above was written by James Robinson for Starman #9 to #11 in 1995, which focused a lot on Ted's relationship with his son Jack, the titular Starman of the series. The trigger point for the Rag Doll backstory coming up was that... in the decade-plus since the Rag Doll riots, the image of Rag Doll's mask, red string hair, big smile, became an iconic thing in-universe. It was a design plastered on cheap t-shirts, like Che Guevara's face. Jack Knight didn't wear a costume when he was Starman, so initially one of the t-shirts he went out superheroing in was a Rag Doll shirt - visible for several issues even before the Rag Doll reveal, since the 1990s Starman comic was very good at seeding plot elements ahead of time. Which eventually prompted a conversation, because that wasn't just bad branding, it was personally traumatic for his father. Jack had no idea about the real story, of course, because the JSA kept the details quiet.

And, obviously, the original Rag Doll comes back from the dead many years later in the pages of Starman, because that comic was very good at seeding plot elements ahead of time. I'm not very fond of anything else by Robinson I've seen, but the 1990s-2000s Starman is one of the best superhero comics ever written, and it's worth looking up if you're not familiar with it.

In terms of relevance to this fanfic, Zoat's made some passing references to Ted Knight, but the main element from the Starman comics is the Shade. The characterisation of the Shade as an incredibly powerful immortal who eventually does a full heel-face-turn to become a hero is purely from the pages of Starman. The Shade was just a random golden age Flash rogue before that, and even relatively recent media like the DC Animated Universe shows still use the 1940s jobber version of the Shade (the Shade appears in Justice League, JLU from the 2000s, well after Starman's publication).

Mr Zoat · Feb 21, 2022

20th October 2012
15:18 GMT -5

"Huh. Perversely, I don't need any details, but I do need to know if you know of anyone else who might have made similar decisions to you."

"You ain't gunna ask me about it?"

"The sort of person who has evil spirits talking in her head, teleports into the Themysciran embassy and takes a shot at Diana and me isn't the sort who's going to be interesting in hearing a nuanced explanation on the practical realities of law enforcement. I mean, you could try telling her…"

I tilt my head back, sighing.

"Yeah, we should probably do that. If only to find out what the things pulling her strings are."

Ted nods. "Nineteen seventy seven. His name was Charlie Durham, and he killed his brother, his brother's wife and their kid. He got the chair for killing his own fiancée, and his brother was the one who killed her. The kid was only eight. D.A. didn't have squat on Charlie. He was gonna go free for killin' a whole family. So I moved some stuff around, made it look like he killed…"

He bows his head slightly, letting out a miserable chuckle.

"I can't even remember her name now."

Ring?

"Wendy Cunningham."

"Yeah." He nods. "Yeah, that was it. Only thing I could do to get Charlie off the streets. I wasn't even sure the jury would convict him, but… Yeah, technically, I sent him to the chair for a crime he didn't commit. I guess that's enough."

"If it's Mister Durham's spirit in those guns, certainly. If there's a demon or other spiteful spirit in there, yes again. I'm going to guess that whoever made them wasn't exactly an Archmage."

"Why?"

"Binding a spirit to a thing is relatively easy, but a lot of the decision making gets left in its hands. But from the sounds of it someone put a demon in there without changing its nature. Put a demon in charge of administering justice and how do you think it's going to act?"

"It'll send anyone it can to hell."

"And it'll prioritise killing people whose actions prevent people going to hell or who might redeem themselves, regardless of whether or not there are objectively more 'just' targets."

"But why's it going after Al?"

"You remember in nineteen seventy four? Rag Doll-."

"Oh."

"I wasn't sure if it was him, Mister Garrick or Doctor Knight. Guess… Unless there's someone else he escorted from this vale of tears, now we know."

"Or the Nazis."

"Hm?"

"We dunno what the guns think makes someone guilty, right? So what if some Nazi private put up his hands to surrender, but Al didn't see it in time? Or… Hell, if he wasn't somewhere where he could take someone prisoner?"

I nod.

"Could be. It's a problem, and it's why 'magical justice auras' or whatever are a terrible idea. Sometimes you need to break the rules and have actual people judge whether you were right or not."

"Blue Lantern to Orange Lantern."

I hold out my left hand as Alan's face appears, breathing a sigh of relief. "Orange Lantern here. Go ahead."

"Zatara chased her off. We're pulling bullets out of the walls now, trying to get a read off them."

"Is it safe for me to bring Mister Grant back?"

"To the embassy? Sure. Anywhere else, it's too early to say. We've got to find her before she goes after anyone else."

"Okay, we'll head back. I assume that Batman's running the investigation?"

"Yeah."

"He's probably already thought of it, but I suggest asking him if other superheroes have been targeted recently. If the bullets end up looking mundane it might not have been caught."

"Will do."

"See you shortly." I end the call and lower my left hand. "I'll be dropping you off. I suggest staying at the embassy until we get this sorted."

"A building full of Amazons. If I were forty years younger, that'd be quite a prospect."

Plot course.

"Two, one, and-"

The universe skips.

"-we're here."

Diana's outside, while Ms. Candy is liaising with the police. They can't enter an embassy uninvited, but this is an attack by a US citizen and the League is going to want police cooperation. Alan-

"You in one piece, Ted?"

-is floating just outside of the window I escaped through. Ted ambles over to him, taking in the damage as he goes.

"As much as I was. You?"

"Can't complain. Borrowed a trick from Paul's book and stuck paving stones in front of the bullets to go with my constructs."

I

step out and

return next to Mr. Zatara, pinging my recording of my conversation with Mr. Leong to Batman. Mr. Zatara is holding a bullet in his right hand, golden circles dancing around it.

I want to ask if he knows what it is, but I wait for him to finish. After a few moments the lights go out, and he slips the bullet into a small plastic bag.

"Is it a demon? I've wanted to take a swing at Arkannone ever since I heard it existed."

"I do not believe so. This feels more like a spirit, or spirits, bound to the gun and granting the projectiles and the user supernatural powers. But there's something… Else. Did you hear the woman speak at all?"

"No."

"That is unusual. Such spirits are driven to right the world in accordance with their nature. When they take hosts, they will make them shout their target's crimes to the world. But she did not speak."

"The gun's previous owner certainly remained able to talk."

He turns to me, Diana landing next to us.

"Perhaps you should tell me what you mean."

Ngamer11 · Feb 21, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
"You remember in nineteen seventy four? Ragdoll-."

"Oh."

"I wasn't sure if it was him, Mister Garrick or Doctor Knight. Guess… Unless there's someone else he escorted from this vale of tears, now we know."

I thought Wildcat didn't know about that? Or did he suspect and never say anything? Or perhaps he just put the pieces together after Paul mentioned it?

Also, I noticed you spelled the villain's name wrong. I found one other place where you misspelled it.

Mr Zoat said:
"Demons as a whole, yes. But we haven't actually seen any demons yet. Just people using magic. There are dozens of augmentation drugs that dwarf could have taken to murder that man. Heck, Ragdoll could have done it with a knife. It's not really special."

Those should say 'Rag Doll'.

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

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