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

Old Knife · Aug 17, 2022

Quick question. Can you charge a power ring on the allspark?

Katillno · Aug 17, 2022

Ok I really hope we get part three of this to see the results of prayer also logic fu nice

mastermenthe · Aug 17, 2022

Old Knife said:
Quick question. Can you charge a power ring on the allspark?

Can you charge an Orange Lantern using the White Light Entity?

That's what you just asked.

Vanbers · Aug 17, 2022

I realise what he says makes sense, but also I can't help but imagine him treating it using those old "Oh gosh I'll pray for you" platitudes.

"But how can I heal myself? The technology has been lost, the techniques no longer exist!"

"I'll pray for you fam."

Also quite liked using the contradiction to talk his way out.

"I have thought about it and made the calculations, and my cold, ruthless,and logical mindset is more valuable to my cause."

"Cool, cool. And the brain you used to determine that your mind is more valuable this way, is that the same brain that was literally reprogrammed by your enemies?"

"..."

"So, what you're saying is, is that you think the high council programmed you to be good at fighting the high council?"

"...Fuck."

Mr Zoat · Aug 17, 2022

Vanbers said:
I realise what he says makes sense, but also I can't help but imagine him treating it using those old "Oh gosh I'll pray for you" platitudes.

"But how can I heal myself? The technology has been lost, the techniques no longer exist!"

"I'll pray for you fam."

Also quite liked using the contradiction to talk his way out.

"I have thought about it and made the calculations, and my cold, ruthless,and logical mindset is more valuable to my cause."

"Cool, cool. And the brain you used to determine that your mind is more valuable this way, is that the same brain that was literally reprogrammed by your enemies?"

"..."

"So, what you're saying is, is that you think the high council programmed you to be good at fighting the high council?"

"...Fuck."

Cybertron is literally the recumbent body of their creator-god. That makes it a little different, culturally speaking.

Darko said:
Is this Shockwave asking?

No. If it were Shockwave, they wouldn't be aiming over his head and they would have fired.

Chojin Patriarch · Aug 17, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
16th October 2013
Probably A Few Hours Later

"At least we don't have to worry about traps scratching your decals."

Slipstream looks around at the blasted hole that was once Shockwave's roof. Whatever the Autobots did to repair Cybertron has had next to no effect on the heavily damaged workshop that was once home to the greatest mind in the Decepticon cause. She'd assumed that when he turned up on Earth it was because he'd finished whatever he was doing on Cybertron and had decided that it was time to put his work to use. The fact that the Decepticons started using Predacons a little while later gave credence to the idea.

That seemed more a result of opportunity and resources. Energon and materials would have been in short supply on the ruined Cybertron, after all. Shockwave may well have planned to forge a whole army of Cybertronian animals, but circumstances prevented it...

That he gave up on Cybertron because someone wrecked his workshop just never occurred.

"We might find something in storage."

The path of science has ever been plagued by explosive mishaps...

Well, if you're doing it right, anyway.

"Don't worry too much." Her partner pats her control panel, though he doesn't touch the controls because it's no time for that. "We've found plenty of useful technical data. Finding a workable method for bio-transference was always a pie in the sky thing anyway."

She thought that was the whole point of coming here; either getting the materials he needed to cyberise more of his body or getting her the materials for a techno-organic avatar. Since they're probably not going to get that, isn't this a waste of time?

At this rate, though, short of divine intervention, transplanting his brain into a Minicon or acquiring a Master-brace, it's a pipe dream...

"You're not disappointed?"

"I got to see a magnificently desolate alien world in the company of a local guide whom I adore. We downloaded data which we can not merely sell for our own enrichment, but hold over potential enemies so that they daren't attack us for fear it will end up in the hands of their enemies. To say nothing of the repairs it will let us make to the cybertronian technology left on Earth. Sure, we didn't get some of the things that would have been nice to have, but it's not that big a deal."

Aw, you sweet-talker. Pull, you know just the right thing to say to brighten a femme's mood...

"You sounded so hopeful when we talked about it. I don't want you to be disappointed and not tell me."

"If I worried about what I didn't have the whole time, I'd never spend any time appreciating what I have. What we have. I hope we'll never run out of things to strive for, but life's pretty good. Isn't it?"

Indeed, that's what gives life meaning...

Huh.

"It is. It really is." She increases resolution on her sensors, improving her view of Shockwave's laboratory. "Still worth going in?"

Girl, just imagine all the loot laying around.

"If you can't detect any weapons. It won't break my heart if we don't get it, but I'd still like it."

"Alright."

That's the spirit! Loot, pillage and plunder!

She reduces power to her anti-gravity and shifts her thrusters, performing a shallow dive which takes them through the hole in the roof. She tenses as they enter the room, but no turrets deploy from the walls and no voices shout in alarm. Feeling a little mischievous, she pops her canopy and transformers, tossing her partner into the air and catching him in her right hand as she lands on her feet. She smiles at the way his normally calm and confident expression is suddenly discombobulated, not sure which way's up and what's going on, because that's how he makes her feel a lot of the time and this is the best she can to do pay him back.

At least he wasn't inside when she started transforming. That's especially disconcerting, when every panel around you stars moving. Including the seat.

He rests his arms on her forefinger. He regains his calm almost immediately, but she can feel the tremor as his chest pump pounds to increase the flow of fuel to his servos.

"I've changed my mind. We'll find a way to transfer me into a titan, just so I can do that to you."

And that's no idle joke. Titans are big. Big enough to use combiners as action figures.

"Sure." She puts him down on what used to be a computer console. "A titan. I'm sure we can find-."

Ptchung!

...I mean, Metroplex is probably still laying around on the surface somewhere...

The burst of purple energy hits Slipstream directly in the chest, sending her hurtling backwards, her cockpit and the surrounding armour melted to slag!

Ptchung!

...Slag.

Someone else had the same idea about raiding Shockwave's lab, it seems.

The second shot hits her right shoulder as she stumbles, bursting the joint apart and sending the arm pinwheeling across the chamber, guns halfway deployed as liquid fuel leaks from the wound!

Chm. Chm.

Ouch. That's no small wound, either, especially out here in the wastelands.

At first, all he can see is a glowing red eye.

Chm. Chm.

Then the huge bulk of Shockwave marches into view, gun arm pointed at Slipstream who is struggling to remain animate.

...Double Slag. Indulging in a bit of home defence, I see.

"Slipstream. And.. pet."

He raises his gun arm, pointing it at Slipstream's head as she tried to lever herself up on her remaining arm. She freezes, optics locked on glow of the gun's interior.

Yeah, not the best sight to go dark on.

"I do not know how you found me, but I find the fact that I have the opportunity to remove you as a distraction… Satisfying."

Her eyes dart to her-.

He could kill her before she could send the trigger impulse to her guns... But hasn't. Interesting...

"Senator Shockwave." The tiny human spreads out his arms in a gesture of appeal that Shockwave almost certainly doesn't recognise. Senator? Was that what he was before the Great War? "What possible good is there in killing us?"

"Ordinarily I would interrogate you for information. But I do not have the resources to spare."

Ah, yes. That's right. Shockwave wasn't always an amoral scientist... He used to be part of the Council, before someone got his chassis censured.

His gun chimes as he charges-.

"I believe that this course of action is illogical."

Ooh, appealing to Shockwave's logic? There's a professional challenge.

His gun doesn't move, but his head swivels to glare at the human.

"Slipstream has betrayed the Decepticon cause. Killing her will permanently remove her as a threat. Killing you will permanently remove you as an information leak."

...Bot's got a point. All over, in fact, but in this case, he's technically right.

"What is the Decepticon cause?"

"The destruction of the Autobots."

Wrong! That's a goal, not the cause.

"And that's it?"

"Explain."

Oh, he plans to.

"I remember, Senator, that you have a rather different answer prior to your…" he points to his face. "Empurata and mnemosurgery."

"A different age."

And a nastier one, yes.

"But you remember it. The aim of a Decepticon is not just to be a Decepticon; that's a circular definition. It is to achieve freedom for all the transformers the old High Council oppressed. To cast them down and ensure that their kind can never regain power. Isn't it?"

"It was. But that definition is no longer relevant."

Oh?

What high council are you fighting now? Where are they based? Who are it's members? Wouldn't they be prime targets for assassination?

"Oh, I think it is. What are the High Council doing right now?"

"They are dead."

And no-one ever replaced them, did they?

"And do the Autobots use cold construction? Do they have slaves? Castes?"

"They do not. This discussion is irrelevant."

Mostly because there's no easy way to produce new cybertronians. Sure, Cold Construction could work, if you had the materials... But brains are complex.

"No, it isn't. Because you've recognised the contradiction. Killing us might help the organisation that calls itself 'The Decepticons' in the sense that it gives the group a tactical advantage, but it doesn't do anything to advance the cause that is supposed to define the organisation. Can you be a Decepticon without doing Decepticon things? Without fulfilling the function that defines them?"

"That-." Shockwave's optical unit spins, and his gun lowers as he devotes more time to considering the subject.

I know what you meant, but now I'm picturing his optical orb literally rotating in place.

"I'm curious. Even after you had the opportunity to reverse what they did to you, you never took it. Why?"

"The capacity for logical thought was more useful to the cause than empathy."

And what about afterwards? Would you have reversed the software maiming you suffered, when the Decepticons finally accomplished their goals?

"You concluded that logically, weighing up the alternatives?"

"Yes."

Just one problem with that...

"And you did that after your enemies fiddled around with your mind? How do you know that it was a logical decision, when the thing you were using to decide whether or not it was logical was the thing they altered? How do you know you haven't been following High Council programming ever since?"

Shockwave staggers, his gun arm hanging loose. Paul checks Slipstream. She.. doesn't look good, and she's definitely feeling pain, but she doesn't look like she's in danger of bleeding out.

Pull uses Logic Bomb! It's super-effective! Shockwave is Confused!

"I-. If.. the objective of the Decepticon organisation have been achieved-. We… Won. The War would be… Over. Anyone who stands against the caste system… Is a Decepticon. But… That includes all current generation Autobots. Why-? Why didn't I see it before?"

"Because the High Counsel programmed you not to. To think in tactical, act utilitarian terms and ignore long term strategic issues. They didn't want a reasonable, compassionate Senator working against them from inside government and rallying the population to force them to reform. But a cold, hard killer would work fine as a threat to scare the population who were worried about what Megatron was doing in Kaon."

In other words, Shockwave... You've been doing exactly what the Council wanted you to do all along. No rebellion here, merely orders so deep-seated you didn't even know they were there...

"That… Is… Logical. Then-. There is no reason to.. kill. And even if you are mistaken about what the High Counsel did to me, there is no overriding reason to maintain this mindset. In fact, my prior way of thinking is more likely to be useful as Optimus Prime forges a new government."

He lowers his gun, deliberately this time.

Well done, Pull.

Captain James Tiberius Kirk would applaud your skill.

"No individuals with the required skills to reverse mnemosurgery survive into the modern era."

"There may be a way around that. If you give Slipstream the medical attention that she needs."

...Wow, that'll be awkward. Patching up the very wound you caused...

"What is that?"

"Prayer."

<Knocks on ground> Hey, Primus, you got a second?

16th October 2013
Once Slipstream Is Up And Taking Light Refreshment

The guns are pointing over his head as he strides out of the ground bridge and into the Autobot command centre.

"Hello, Optimus. I need to borrow the Matrix really quickly. Don't worry, I'll bring it back."

Optimus: ...Give me a moment, I need to reboot my audio sensors.

Well, that's one way to seek out a skilled practitioner of the ancient art of mind-fucking. Man, the Autobots are going to plotz when they hear what happened, and who Pull needs that information for. I suspect Ratchet will be very interested in this if he hears of it, and I suspect the Autobots would call him in on something like this.

mastermenthe · Aug 17, 2022

Chojin Patriarch said:
<Knocks on ground> Hey, Primus, you got a second?

Chojin Patriarch said:
Well, that's one way to seek out a skilled practitioner of the ancient art of mind-fucking.

I find both of these statements funny, because if this is the continuity I think it is, then both statements are true, considering the final resting place of Rung.

Chojin Patriarch said:
At this rate, though, short of divine intervention or transplanting his brain into a Minicon or acquire a Master-brace, it's a pipe dream...

Could holomatter avatars count for Slipstream's purposes?

Oglymogly · Aug 17, 2022

I'm loving these Transformers bits. This Paul has to go all in on talk-fu because he can't fight on the level of giant guerrilla robots; and that makes it a ton of fun to read.

Lord Ernest · Aug 17, 2022

Damn, if Pull can... pull this stunt, that's mad respectable (sorry).

It would essentially fix Shockwave and make him an ally, and a great ally at that. I've always loved his design, a scientist with a BFG, what's not to like?

Windona · Aug 17, 2022

Talk-fu is always fun. And it's certainly a way for Paul to get what he wants

BrotherofaStudio · Aug 17, 2022

This was... wow... Did not see this one coming. This Paul is amazing to be able to talk Shockwave into changing in such a way and from a certain point of view he is right, the Autobots are Decepticons since they wanted an end to the injustices of the old high council as well. I'm pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of elements of the IDW comics like Shockwave being a senator and having once been more compassionate but I feel I must point out that at this point Optimus absorbed the Allspark to keep it safe from Unicron and then returned it along with the matrix to the core while sacrificing himself to do it. So unless Paul found an alternate prison to hold Unicron's essence or container for the Allspark or any reason really to ensure that Optimus doesn't have to make this sacrifice it doesn't add up as Optimus would be in no position to use the Matrix to help Shockwave. Despite the inconsistencies, I really like this chapter and hope to see where this is going, maybe Paul and Slipstream agree to help bring word to the other Cybertronian colonies.

Tyrantviewer · Aug 17, 2022

Vanbers said:
I realise what he says makes sense, but also I can't help but imagine him treating it using those old "Oh gosh I'll pray for you" platitudes.

"So, what you're saying is, is that you think the high council programmed you to be good at fighting the high council?"

"...Fuck."

To be fair to Shockwave- he was good at fighting the high council, the programing didn't stop him from joining the cause to fight against them, indeed it made him more likely too by removing the empathy and long term thinking that had him oppose them in the senate. The High council didn't think that it would be logical to oppose them.

I like that angle, a villianous group modifying a being or creating one, that turns on them because the way they made them to think leads them to consider the villians that created them the enemy. Dominic Deegan had it in its backstory, a civilization created a magical being of law and order, whose first act was to depose their leader, because its creation involved sacrificing many of the leader's own citizens.

So the fact that Shockwave logically came to the conclusion to fight the council, even after what they did to him, was evidence against their alterations impairing his judgement, since stoping his opposition to them would have been the point. Its only after things have changed so much that looking back on his decisions compared to the overall goals, that the flaws in his thinking are clear enough, despite his mental alterations.

Coda · Aug 17, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
she pops her canopy and transformers,

Unless you're saying that "to transformer" describes what Cybertronians can do, "transforms".

Bud-E · Aug 17, 2022

Does anyone remember the Alt-Jade that got adopted by Alan? I can't find it anywhere.

Agumentic · Aug 17, 2022

Bud-E said:
Does anyone remember the Alt-Jade that got adopted by Alan? I can't find it anywhere.

https://forum.questionablequesting....stice-si-story-only.8961/page-63#post-2663074
The other two I remember can be found by searching the threadmarks with "Elsewhen".

Mr Zoat · Aug 17, 2022

BrotherofaStudio said:
I'm pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of elements of the IDW comics like Shockwave being a senator and having once been more compassionate but I feel I must point out that at this point Optimus absorbed the Allspark to keep it safe from Unicron and then returned it along with the matrix to the core while sacrificing himself to do it. So unless Paul found an alternate prison to hold Unicron's essence or container for the Allspark or any reason really to ensure that Optimus doesn't have to make this sacrifice it doesn't add up as Optimus would be in no position to use the Matrix to help Shockwave.

Darn it! Forgot that happened.

Assume that the next line is him saying 'Optimus not here? ... What?', because he's got no way to know that's what happened.

Despite the inconsistencies, I really like this chapter and hope to see where this is going, maybe Paul and Slipstream agree to help bring word to the other Cybertronian colonies.

I can't see them doing that. Honestly, they're more likely to try to persuade any transformer who can get their head around the idea that the Great War is over to come to Earth instead. There's still plenty of transformer stuff on Earth and it's not like Cyberton has good memories for most of them.

Coda said:
Unless you're saying that "to transformer" describes what Cybertronians can do, "transforms".

Thank you, corrected.

Twilight666 · Aug 17, 2022

ChestBurster said:
Can somebody please get rid of Vaermina. I keep hoping that they finally say something positive for once but it's all pointless barbs and shameless misleading drivel. Hate watching is not something you need in your life, grow up please.

Coda said:
Vaermina is contrarian to a fault, but he isn't breaking any rules. "Annoyance" isn't a bannable offense; that's why there's an ignore function.

According to this it's possible for Mr Zoat to ask him to be banned but:

Biigoh said:
Please note that OP/Thread Starters/Writers can request problematic posters to be banned from their thread.
Requests to do so do require a reason beyond "Because! Reeeee!", so please politely report a post in question and explain why you'd like such and such user removed from the thread.

So I don't know what level Vaermina has to reach for that to qualify.
Ironically since most people have him on ignore (including Mr Zoat) and don't respond to him, most of it is being limited to him doing his daily post basically heckling (and sometimes someone falling for it)
On top of that since Mr Zoat is the one who has to ask, and he has him on ignore for years, it's not like he has any examples to point to the mods without removing him from his ignore list and going through past posts... which would defeat the whole point of having him on his ignore list

Mr Zoat · Aug 17, 2022

Twilight666 said:
According to this it's possible for Mr Zoat to ask him to be banned but:

So I don't know what level Vaermina has to reach for that to qualify.
Ironically since most people have him on ignore (including Mr Zoat) and don't respond to him, most of it is being limited to him doing his daily post basically heckling (and sometimes someone falling for it)
On top of that since Mr Zoat is the one who has to ask, and he has him on ignore for years, it's not like he has any examples to point to the mods without removing him from his ignore list and going through past posts... which would defeat the whole point of having him on his ignore list

I really don't like the idea of banning people. But free speech is balanced by free listening, or in this case free ignoring.

Mr Zoat said:
Assume that the next line is him saying 'Optimus not here? ... What?', because he's got no way to know that's what happened.

Follow of course by 'We needed that!'

Coda · Aug 17, 2022

Twilight666 said:
So I don't know what level Vaermina has to reach for that to qualify.

In my own experience as a forum moderator, being ejected from a thread should be a punishment for being persistently disruptive. I don't believe Vae has risen to that level, as his posts and the discussions they generate are on-topic for the thread, and tempers aren't getting inflamed.

Vanbers · Aug 17, 2022

Tyrantviewer said:
To be fair to Shockwave- he was good at fighting the high council, the programing didn't stop him from joining the cause to fight against them, indeed it made him more likely too by removing the empathy and long term thinking that had him oppose them in the senate. The High council didn't think that it would be logical to oppose them.

True enough, it's not entirely a case of the High Council being geniuses, since they... really weren't.

Tyrantviewer said:
Dominic Deegan

Holy shit, now *there's* a blast from the past. I remember reading that waaaaay back when. I remember it being great, but that could just be nostalgia glasses.

NightmareWarden · Aug 17, 2022

Tyrantviewer said:
I like that angle, a villianous group modifying a being or creating one, that turns on them because the way they made them to think leads them to consider the villians that created them the enemy. Dominic Deegan had it in its backstory, a civilization created a magical being of law and order, whose first act was to depose their leader, because its creation involved sacrificing many of the leader's own citizens.

Now there's a series I haven't heard named in a while. Maybe I should catch up on the sequel. I really like Dominic Deegan, warts and all.

Mr Zoat · Aug 17, 2022

Does anyone remember an old Justice League comic where just about every villain ended up with a power ring? It was well before the modern War of Light thing, and contained the first ever appearance of a blue power ring.

Citizen · Aug 17, 2022

Could someone explain the relevance of what just happened? My Transformer lore is weak.

Stsword · Aug 17, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
Does anyone remember an old Justice League comic where just about every villain ended up with a power ring? It was well before the modern War of Light thing, and contained the first ever appearance of a blue power ring.

I do believe you are referencing Silver Age 80 page giant number 1, in which the villains steal a kryptonian crystal, the absorbascan, and the green lantern central power battery, and with the virtual omniscience of the absorbascan learn how to use the kryptonian crystal as a prism to give them all power rings.

Eventually defeated by the justice league using the hero dial, becoming heroes with new powers and abilities so the villains' absorbascan knowledge couldn't allow them to act like an arcade gamer who can beat the game by memorizing all the patterns.

Mr Zoat · Aug 17, 2022

Citizen said:
Could someone explain the relevance of what just happened? My Transformer lore is weak.

Megatron deciding to stop fighting doesn't actually end the Great War. Shockwave, Starscream and probably others can rally Decepticons and keep fighting, particularly now synthetic energon can be created to fuel the war. This version of the SI took advantage of the fact that Shockwave is profoundly logical to convince him not to.

Stsword said:
I do believe you are referencing Silver Age 80 page giant number 1, in which the villains steal a kryptonian crystal, the absorbascan, and the green lantern central power battery, and with the virtual omniscience of the absorbascan learn how to use the kryptonian crystal as a prism to give them all power rings.

Eventually defeated by the justice league using the hero dial, becoming heroes with new powers and abilities so the villains' absorbascan knowledge couldn't act like an arcade gamer who can beat the game by memorizing all the patterns.

Thank you! That's the one.

BrotherofaStudio · Aug 18, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
Darn it! Forgot that happened.

Assume that the next line is him saying 'Optimus not here? ... What?', because he's got no way to know that's what happened.

He's going to have to figure out another way to help Shockwave, though Optimus does return in Robots In Disguise I assume you won't be doing that.

Mr Zoat said:
I can't see them doing that. Honestly, they're more likely to try to persuade any transformer who can get their head around the idea that the Great War is over to come to Earth instead. There's still plenty of transformer stuff on Earth and it's not like Cyberton has good memories for most of them.

Hmm, good point.

Mr Zoat · Aug 18, 2022

21st November 2012
10:14 GMT -5

I grin as I spot the latest addition to the room.

"Princess Koriand'r! Good to see you!"

Glowing green eyes and a slightly puzzled explanation confront me, her head wreathed in the gloriously frizzy eighties hair that I saw on the version of her on Earth with the Gold Lantern Corps.

"I am sorry, I do not think that we have met."

"Parallel universe." I hold up my left fist, knuckles and ring facing her. "When I founded the Orange Lantern Corps, our Koriand'r was one of the first wave of recruits."

I generate construct images of her and Komand'r. Koriand'r looks at her own image with curiosity, while-.

"You recruited Blackfire?"

While the local Starman regards me with incredulity.

"I encountered her before she went-" I dismiss the constructs. "-full evil. Our Vega's a much better place with certain people no longer in it."

Koriand'r smiles. "The Citadel is defeated?"

"I killed the First myself, and destroying the Citadel Complex and fleet was a team effort. The Spider Guild sept sued for peace after their leaders were killed, Karna now belongs to the Karnans and the Psion's Wombworld was scoured from orbit."

"Heh." The masked Atom Smasher nods approvingly. "Thorough."

"It's not very often you encounter a species with literally no redeeming moral characteristics. Vega was unlucky enough to have two. Past tense. I-."

Interceptor drops down next to me, having been talking to the platoon of cyborg soldiers on the other side of the room. Most of them are humanoid, but a few have more unusual shapes. Those ones appear to have… Clouded or suppressed emotional responses. Are they condemned criminals? Or do the people with weaker emotions just cope with it best?

"That's everyone. We're ready."

I nod, then turn back to Koriand'r. "No time right now, but if you're interested in a power ring, come and see me after the mission."

"Very… Well?"

I float over to the stage where Alan and Commander Scott are ready to begin. Just.. one addition.

Ring, call Green Two Eight One Four. Both of them.

Error. Only one connection available.

Ah, the old 'one-Lantern-and-however-many-deputies' system. I remember a comic where Jordan got knocked out slipping on a bar of soap and… Stewart? Got subbed in with no notice and little training. Terrible system.

He'll do.

Jordan's face appears. I suppose that not having to deal with Earth's nonsense means that he's a little likelier to live to an old age.

"Green Lantern Two Eight One Four. Commander Scott."

Commander Scott turns to the glowing face of the man he chased off Earth.

"Green Lantern, on this one occasion, I am inviting you to Earth. My location."

"Why? You hate me."

"No, I just have no respect for the people you work for. You can quit at any time and come home without us charging you with anything. But this is an off-Earth operation-"

A few ears in the audience metaphorically prick up.

"-so you are actually relevant in your current role."

"Where?"

"Metropolis. My current location."

"Okay, but-. 'Off-world'? You're going to-!"

"Come or don't." His eyes dart to me, and I cut the connection. He nods, then walks over to the podium. "As I know you all just heard, we've just had an opportunity handed to us. Our parallel universe friends here both have power rings with all their functions unlocked. That means they can both fly faster than light with passengers."

He gives that a moment to sink in, then makes it clear in case anyone is a little slow.

"That means that we can finally hit the Dominion."

There's an excited exhalation, eyes opening wide with feverish desire. I've seen the same thing in the faces of thousands of people where the Reach are concerned. People from Earth 16 barely know that the Dominion exists, and that's from my reports. Here, they appear to be global hate figures.

"While the Justice Society International is primarily charged with protecting Earth…" He smiles. "I'd be lying if I said we didn't hope an opportunity like this would come along at some point."

"It's been fifteen years. There isn't much chance that the people they took are still alive. But the dominators who took them almost certainly are, and we could get lucky. Orange Lantern-" I raise my right hand and then lower it. "-and Blue Lantern-" Alan waves. "-will take our taskforce to a world on the border of Dominion space, then perform reconnaissance operations in an attempt to locate exactly where our people were taken and by whom. Once we have that information, we will be attacking in force with the aim of killing everyone involved in the attack on Earth."

Several nods.

"Orange Lantern has provided briefing documents on Dominion society." JSI staffers begin walking around the room, handing out binders to the attendees who aren't able to download them into their brains. "And it turns out that despite the impression they gave us, most of their population aren't involved in raiding other worlds for test subjects. Turns out that it's the exclusive purview of their rulers, the ones we all remember from their broadcasts with the big red circles on their foreheads. Those are all considered acceptable targets, as is anyone with a gun or any kind of super power. The rest are generally slightly less dangerous than humans are, and we are not going to punish them for the deeds of their overlords."

The nods to that comment are more sombre, but he chose well when he assembled this gathering. None of them are interested in taking it out on the entire population. I suppose that's what separates superheroes from...

Alright, even I thought 'me' there. But dominators aren't spiders or reacheans. Spiders consider it normal and pleasurable to drug their sophont victims awake as they eat them. Reacheans love lording it over alien slaves. Most dominators don't even have contact with aliens.

"Any humans we locate will be evacuated and put through a thorough decontamination session before being returned to Earth. In the event that we manage to kill all of our targets and complete the rescue, I will authorise infrastructure destruction missions as I deem appropriate. It probably won't be practical for us to take away their ability to wage interstellar war, but I'll feel much happier with them keeping what's left of their fleet home to ward off their neighbours."

The platoon commander of the cyborgs raises his hand and gets a nod.

"Could we capture their ships, sir?"

"While our new Lantern allies can read any spoken or written language, the rest of us don't have that ability. Learning how to fly Dominion ships isn't something we can do on the fly, and they have a completely different technology base to us. Time allowing, we might be able to capture examples of their equipment, but it's a low priority task."

The cyborg nods.

"Once that mission is completed, and everyone is fully recovered, we will plan our assault on the khundians."

I raise my right hand. "Commander?"

He glances back and nods.

"Khundian marriage law says that anyone who defeats a khundian man inherits his wife or wives. I'm happy to help with the mission, but I'm going to need someone who's single to punch me out afterwards."

The wave of laughter is punctuated by the figure in green appearing at the back of the room.

Darko · Aug 18, 2022

Mr Zoat said:
I nod, then turn back to Koriand'r. "No time right now, but if you're interested in a power ring, come and see me after the mission

You may want to try and get her a blue ring.

You may also want to get your Koriand'r a blue ring.

Mr Zoat said:
where out people were takes and by

"our people were taken"

PepeTheFrog · Aug 18, 2022

Paul making a joke before going to war with *another* species. To quote Paradox: "Levity and humor. Excellent. Get it out of your system now."

Zig · Aug 18, 2022

Darko said:
You may also want to get your Koriand'r a blue ring.

He's trying but the price is high

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

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