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

So last we got to see LePaul hadn't figured out creating a proper power ring (not a construct in the shape of a power ring). The only time we saw him do anything like that was retrieving Larfleeze's ring from the Honden after it was destroyed.

He can make lanterns, though, that's a good first step.

Both Alan and Larfleeze made their own rings once they got a lantern in the comics.

Not that you'd know that in this fic since Zoat apparently really loves the "Alan is using a broken GLC" thing that is true in YJ according to Word of God.

Alan's ring, in the comics, is a
balan-scottbppalan-scott-is-the-oldest-character-on-this-lis_b86u.1080.jpg
As in a green lantern on a ring.
 
20th January 2013
12:56 GMT


"Thank you."

So, either the local version of Harold Jordan, or… I mean, Qward's had access to parallel universes for decades at least. He could have come from just about anywhere-.
But why go to that much effort when they have a simple Earth close at hand? Especially for a test subject. Hell, if they were feeling particularly sassy, it could well be a clone, with the setup an attempt to forge a soul out of pure Fear.

Jade makes a small jerking motion with her head, and I take my hand off the intercom.

"Am I supposed to pretend that I don't know who Harold Jordan is, or can we have a sensible conversation?"
Because of course she knows. It's not like the League of Shadows wouldn't have found out the League's secret identities even before the whole New Year's mind control thing. :rolleyes:

"It's probably best that you pretend when you're back on Earth."

"Neither of us detected any spaceships anywhere on this planet, or any residue from one flying in."
It's probably not something they needed to constantly monitor, I guess? I mean, if the bio-monitor suit he's wearing includes an intravenous nutrient feed... He'd probably feel terrible not having eaten or drunk anything for however long, but he wouldn't die from it.

"There's no interdiction system up. If they knew the area, there's no reason why they couldn't fly right up to the atmosphere."

"Or a yellow power ring."
Or a long-range teleporter. To put it simply, there's too much planet to search, I suppose.

She's right. All this yellow light, there's a good chance that I wouldn't be able to distinguish between the planet and a ring's output.

"Yes. But this doesn't feel like Sinestro. He's intelligent, but he's not an expert scientist. He was an archaeologist before he joined the Green Lantern Corps, and he certainly didn't have time for getting a second doctorate afterwards."
And Ring Learning isn't nearly as effective as learning it the old-fashioned way, of course.

"He could have gone back to school after he left."

"Yes, but this is Qwardian equipment. They sell weapons, not the tools to make weapons."
Why let their customers make their own? That'd undercut their business, after all...

"Varnathon was happy selling to aliens. And Sinestro was the reason why his Kalmin lost his job."

"You think they were in touch beforehand?"
Besides for the original commission, you mean?

"Sinestro wants a Lantern Corps… Or at least some minions with power rings. Kalmin hasn't made another yellow ring since the one he made Sinestro."

"Varnathon could barely make qwa-matter."
...That's what under-graduates are for. :rolleyes: Just good business, you know.

"He had all of Kalmin's records and Kalmin's apprentices. He wouldn't need to make the rings himself. And we haven't seen any evidence that Sinestro has extra power rings yet. He might just be trying to learn to make them himself."

And the knowledge that I can make power rings is relatively common amongst N.E.M.O. personnel. Not sure how many people know in N.E.M.O.-affiliated space, but I doubt that it would be hard for Sinestro to find out. Or maybe he decided that he could do it after watching Kalmin. Here-.
Not that your rings are much good. If that Lantern you made way back when was any indicator, at least...

He and Arin married after he joined the Green Lantern Corps, when he was well into his middle years. And given that Green Lantern medical aid isn't anything like as good as you might expect, I imagine that he's feeling his old injuries. Korugari tend to live a little longer than humans, but not by much. Sinestro's an old man. Learning a new trick that big..?

"Maybe, but I.. don't think it's likely."
It's not the years that gets you, after all. It's the mileage. And Sinestro's got a lot of miles on his clock...

Though I suppose there's an easy way to find out. I activate the intercom once more.

"Can you tell me who put you in there?"
Certainly easier than conjecturing all the live-long-day...

Mr. Harrolds is sitting up a little. He's still clearly not happy with his situation, but that suggests that we're going to get a more helpful answer this time.

"BaldChick. Big… Robot eyes, like a bug."
Lysis, most likely, then. She did the job for the Renegade in that timeline, after all. Makes sense that she'd have been working from known principles here.

Qwardian, but that doesn't exactly narrow it down.

"Did she give you a name?"
"I don't talk to test subjects. It contaminates the data."

"H-human test meat."

Um. "I meant, did she tell you her name?"
I doubt she'd leave a business card.

"No. No."

"Are you from Earth?"
Since, you know, so many aliens resemble humans to some degree...

"Yeah. W-why?"

"Well, we need some information from you, but afterwards we're happy to take you back."
...Though I suspect he wouldn't be able to quote which Earth. Then again, it's a matter of scanning vibrational frequencies, right?

"H-happy?"

"Um. Well, I do feel mildly uplifted when I help someone do something they couldn't have done for themselves, so-."
It probably has been a while since Joey here has felt happy, I suppose...

"Why?"

I'm.. puzzled by the sheer bewilderment in his-. Oh. It's one of those negative Earths.
'Cui Bono?' He's probably confused why you aren't asking for payment up-front for helping him, or something like that.

"Troop instinct. Most people get positive feedback from being around other happy people."

"You're..? You mean, you're Human?"
As hard as it is to believe, yes...

Right, Jade and I are both wearing all-encompassing armour. He can't see our faces.

"Yes, from a parallel universe. This is ar-. Mour."
Still, the protection probably outweighs the social penalties of looking like Robby the Robot's orange-flavoured cousin...

Wait.

I take a hologram projector out of subspace, and use it to project an image of Kalmin's female students.
Oooh, good idea. You have no idea how long ago he was shoved in here, right? Not like there's a clock in there for him.

"Was it one of these?"

"Ah..?"
...Not being racist, but most Quardians do look alike from a distance...

His eyes jump from the image to me, back and forth. Why-?

He's trying to work out the 'right' answer.
Because he's not sure what the wrong answer will result in, of course.

"The right answer is an accurate answer. It's either one of them or it isn't, and I need to know either way."

" No." He braces himself for my wrath, but I don't respond. After a moment he collects himself. "They look similar. I guess they're the same species. It's the same… Same technology."
Okay. Most likely Lysis, then.

I send the projector back into subspace.

"Did the woman who put you here use a ring at any point?"
To be fair, this universe likely hasn't got a Lantern Corps of any colour (Sinestro's work notwithstanding...)

"Use..? What?"

"A ring. A small glowing ring."
...So he's probably never heard of a Power Ring.

"Ah… No. I didn't.. see one."

"Did she say what she was doing with you in here?"
Even if it was only in a gloating monologue? Do feel free to leave out any maniacal laughter.

"Something about… Learning to control absolute fear. I'm… I'm feeling better… Now."

"Yes, I turned off the machine."
About what they expected, then.

"She… She said not to do that."

"Did she way why?" He shakes his head. "Then I won't worry until something catches fire. Let me just break you out."
...Oh, dear. Best be quick, then. I get the feeling this was something of a safety valve...

Turning the machine off is bad, eh? :confused: I have to wonder if there's a good reason why, or if it was a psychological thing to make him want to stay in there and unwilling to stop the 'treatment'... And there's still the question of whether 'she' is aware of their interference in her little experiment. Assuming she's even still alive, given the recent difficulties Qward has undergone...
 
So last we got to see LePaul hadn't figured out creating a proper power ring (not a construct in the shape of a power ring). The only time we saw him do anything like that was retrieving Larfleeze's ring from the Honden after it was destroyed.
Yea... There's a lot of stuff off in this chapter...
 
Not all that much. Without the rest of the technology web, capturing a particular thing isn't all that useful. Similarly, the general state of ignorance in the Imperium means that capturing an individual might not be all that useful.
I was going to mention the jokaero, but... has anyone (in universe) hypothesized that P'ol's ring might be jokaero tech? Hyper-advanced, miniaturized, ring based technology... and he's even orange.

Apologies if this got brought up after, like, the first appearance of that alt. I did try searching the thread, and didn't see any results.
 
So last we got to see LePaul hadn't figured out creating a proper power ring (not a construct in the shape of a power ring). The only time we saw him do anything like that was retrieving Larfleeze's ring from the Honden after it was destroyed.
Didn't he think about making a new ring and realise it would take months at "maximum sustained avarice levels" according to the ring he woke up with? Or was that power batteries/lanterns?
 
Didn't he think about making a new ring and realise it would take months at "maximum sustained avarice levels" according to the ring he woke up with? Or was that power batteries/lanterns?

That was in episode 6, so long ago that there's no way Zoat remembers it. Here's the relevant quote:
One of the things the ring actually does have instructions on is how to make more rings. At the most intense level of desire I could generate under test conditions the ring tells me that it would take me five months' continuous effort to forge one. At my actual peak output it would be more like a week, but there's no way I could sustain that. Think I'll put that on the back burner.
 
Am I confusing the timelines? I thought OL and Renegade both spawned into DC with a ring they were cursed to call "this ring".
And then Hinon did a 'Proprietary Unlocked' in each timeline, giving them the ability to say 'my ring'.

Edit: Remember, she made the first ring and threw it into the Bleed, on the assumption it would go to someone and she would live to see it happen.
 
Thank you, corrected.
I was going to mention the jokaero, but... has anyone (in universe) hypothesized that P'ol's ring might be jokaero tech? Hyper-advanced, miniaturized, ring based technology... and he's even orange.

Apologies if this got brought up after, like, the first appearance of that alt. I did try searching the thread, and didn't see any results.
I'm not sure that the tau have encountered them. If they have, it wouldn't take long to work out that the power ring doesn't look like jokaero technology under an electron microscope.
 
Varnathon could barely make qwa-matter."

True, but that doesn't mean that he can't make other things.

Yes, but this is Qwardian equipment. They sell weapons, not the tools to make weapons."

"Varnathon was happy selling to aliens.

And some of those aliens could have figured out how the stuff works and Sinestro acquired the information.

BaldChick. Big… Robot eyes, like a bug."

Kalmin's apprentice was like that.

No." He braces himself for my wrath, but I don't respond. After a moment he collects himself. "They look similar. I guess they're the same species. It's the same… Same technology."

Hmm, I guess that spending potentially years on the planet without anyone else would have eroded some of his memory concerning her.

Not to mention all of that fear fucking with his mind.
 
But why go to that much effort when they have a simple Earth close at hand? Especially for a test subject

Well said Earth is protected by a Lantern that managed to defeat one if the most powerful and skilled Lanterns of all time, plus they potentially ran the risk of the Guardians retaliating.

Because of course she knows. It's not like the League of Shadows wouldn't have found out the League's secret identities even before the whole New Year's mind control thing. :rolleyes:

Don't be so sure about that.

Supervillains like Ras and the rest of the Light are incredibly arrogant, so they may not put it together unless they see it themselves.

Plus, Ras mostly fought Batman, so he may not have focused so much on the others.

Not being racist, but most Quardians do look alike from a distance...

If that's true then I wonder if it could be due to potential inbreeding.

They love destroying things, so a lot of them may die and their choice of partners becomes limited.

Because he's not sure what the wrong answer will result in, of course.

Heck, even the right answer can screw you up.

Assuming she's even still alive, given the recent difficulties Qward has undergone...

If I remember correctly she helped Kalmin with the Qward situation, so she may be alive.
 
Sounds to me like the apprentice was trying to brute force Fear mastery / enlightenment in this guy. Probably under the assumption that you'd need to be at least Enlightened to make Yellow Lanterns / Rings.
 
Fear Ourself (part 9)
20th January 2013
13:06 GMT


Mister Harrolds is taking the opportunity to walk around the empty village, apparently not at all interested in the buildings, just enjoying the fact that it's not his cage.

"You know this is a trick, right?"

I'm wearing heavy armour, so the withering look I flash her way passes unnoticed.

"No, Jade, I'm actually fairly stupid."

"No, but you're a superhero. I want to make sure we're on the same page."

"The question is, what sort of trick is it."

"He was genuinely afraid. Either that or he's the greatest actor on Earth."

"I saw yellow and little else, but that doesn't mean much here."

"Wouldn't you see it if he felt other emotions?"

"Maybe. But with this much yellow… The mind can adapt to it. It's not true avarice, or… Other things, but it looks a bit like it. He can function without avarice while still having a sort of motivation."

"The simplest trap is that the Qwardian who was experimenting on him is coming back."

"But he said there was just one. Weaponers aren't subtle people. If she had support, she'd have had them here."

"Maybe he helped her?"

"Possible. I can see someone from an anti-Earth volunteering for experimentation if the result was that they got more power. And the Qwardians are happy to augment people; that's where a lot of our Earth's Jordan's early supervillains came from."

"So why didn't he just tell us?"

"We've both got equipment. If he can keep us here, he still gets augmented and he gets to offer us to the Qwardian."

"It's a risk if she's on her own."

"Or we kill her and he gets her stuff. Worst case scenario, we take him back to Earth Negative Sixteen and he's got a location to sell to anyone with faster than light travel there."

"Or he started helping her, but it got too much for him and she didn't want to stop the experiment."

"Plausible, but he'll feel vengeful enough to put us in the loop once he's recovered."

"Or he was lying, and this was all Sinestro."

"Or he got a new deputy, and it's them. We don't have any way to know for sure. What happens if we just ask him directly?"

"He acts like he doesn't know what we're talking about."

"How about if we make it clear that we don't care, and we'll pay him for his help?"

"Why would he trust us?"

"We let him out in an act of altruism. Even if he's not altruistic himself, he'll make assumptions about our likely behaviour based on that."

"How bad is his Earth?"

"No idea."

I try feeling it from here, but the yellow light is obscuring even that.

"Shouldn't be hard to find out."

"Lead with that. Offer to take him back right away. See what he says."

"Armour on or off?"

"What's the chance of Sinestro blindsiding us?"

"There's no obvious reason for him to kill me, and he can't stop our backup coming here later and creating a clone for me to inhabit."

"How about me?"

"They could create a clone for you, too."

If they're fast enough and you haven't begun your ascension.

"Does he have a reason to kill me?"

"I… Don't know. I don't know how much contact he has with Earth supervillains."

"I didn't meet him while I was a Shadow."

"No, I was thinking that he might kill you as a favour to the Light, or someone like that. There are all sorts of useful things on Earth that he could trade a favour for."

"The League of Shadows doesn't exist anymore, and I'd be surprised if anyone else with anything to offer even knows my name. Besides, they're all either working for the Justice League or Mannheim. I'm just concerned that he'd think we knew what was going on and kill us just in case."

"Could happen." I walk towards the ex-lab rat. "But I think it'll be okay. Mister Harrolds!"

I switch back to my light armour as he turns around, seeing my face for the first time. There's a moment of focus as he takes in my features, but no recognition. I guess there isn't an alternate me on his Earth. Any longer, at least.

"Would you like to go home now? There isn't anything here except pack-hunting robot drones. We can drop you off anywhere on Earth. And if there's anyone you want us to contact, we can do that too."

"They're all dead, huh?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so. The Weaponer who did it was quite thorough."

"And they all… Died afraid."

"Most of them. The ones who died in the first attack might not have had time to feel afraid."

He shakes his head. "Imagine having that kind of power…"

I shake my head. "It's not about power. Honestly, the robots aren't that complicated, dropping rocks would work nearly as well as his orbital strikes did, and social manipulation… That's a matter of patience."

"If it's not power, what is it?"

"Intent. Will? The Weaponer decided that he needed a world to die in terror, so he made it so. I don't even think he cared much about these poor people one way or the other. There's a… Book, called Nineteen Eighty Four, where… The final torture they use to break prisoners is customised to their particular psychology. They expose them to something they can't withstand and then let them out only if they betray everything and everyone they care about rather than endure it. Of course, at that point anyone they put in there is so broken down by regular torture that it's not much of a gamble."

I look around at the homes of people who chose to die in their tombs rather than try and go on.

"There's nothing here that I couldn't find on Earth, or on a hundred other humanoid-inhabited worlds. Our fears aren't all that different to one another really."

"I fear… And they fear…"

I nod. "It really-."

"I understand."

His eyes glow yellow, his pupils turning into yellow sigils.

"No." His body glows with yellow light as he lifts off the ground. "We understand."
 
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I actually didn't see that coming. I thought the guy might have been an experiment, to try and make a Sinestro Corps member, by that lady apprentice of Kalmin (the one that allied with Grayven in the Renegade Timeline). Can't remember her name, but maybe Sinestro had the idea of recruiting her to start his corps.

That might still be a possibility, what with Sinestro making unknown moves. But how is Parallax here? Isn't it supposed to be in the Green Central Power Battery? Or did the frequent outside visits of Ion (to connect with Guy) weakened the bindings for it to escape? And if that is Parallax, could it have been an experiement to create an adequate avatar for the embodiment, to counter the Illustres and Guy? 'Cause thst would be smart if this deliberate, but still stupid because embodiments aren't easy to control.

Then again, Sinestro does manage to effectively manage and direct Parallax in the comics at one point. Not as avatar of it, but by giving it a host and pointing it at the enemy. And fair play on that one, I say.
 
Or enlightened and possessed by whatever remains of these people
I like this better than it being Parallax. This could be the weak ancestor god Paul mentioned. That would give it a good lead-up. Or you know how Paul's soul is orange because during its development huge orange light infusion. What if the experiment that Halord here went through made him grow a second nascent soul?
 
20th January 2013
13:06 GMT


Mister Harrolds is taking the opportunity to walk around the empty village, apparently not at all interested in the buildings, just enjoying the fact that it's not his cage.

"You know this is a trick, right?"
I doubt Joey there has any part to play in it besides bait, though. But who laid the trap? Weaponer Lysis, or whoever else it was? Sinestro, playing a long game? Or some other Spectrum-adjacent foe we haven't though of?

I'm wearing heavy armour, so the withering look I flash her way passes unnoticed.

"No, Jade, I'm actually fairly stupid."
Feh. There should be classes for that sort of thing: Obfuscated Body Language 101, or something. 'How to make people recognise your non-verbal communications, even in face-obscuring masks or all-concealing armour.' :p

"No, but you're a superhero. I want to make sure we're on the same page."

"The question is, what sort of trick is it."
That is a subtle reminder that OL has kind of gone native, you know. He didn't used to be this gullible... Although, their first meeting did involve her tricking him into kissing her while she wore mind-altering lipstick.

"He was genuinely afraid. Either that or he's the greatest actor on Earth."

"I saw yellow and little else, but that doesn't mean much here."
I mean, someone looking at you through Empathic Vision would see almost all orange...

"Wouldn't you see it if he felt other emotions?"

"Maybe. But with this much yellow… The mind can adapt to it. It's not true avarice, or… Other things, but it looks a bit like it. He can function without avarice while still having a sort of motivation."
It just takes a matter of framing the fear in a 'I'm afraid of not having this thing' way.

"The simplest trap is that the Qwardian who was experimenting on him is coming back."

"But he said there was just one. Weaponers aren't subtle people. If she had support, she'd have had them here."
So... Dead or inconvenienced. Didn't Lysius end up running things after Varnathon got iced by Kalmin? o_O So long ago...

"Maybe he helped her?"

"Possible. I can see someone from an anti-Earth volunteering for experimentation if the result was that they got more power. And the Qwardians are happy to augment people; that's where a lot of our Earth's Jordan's early supervillains came from."
Even if they didn't know they were dealing with the Qwardians, I suspect.

"So why didn't he just tell us?"

"We've both got equipment. If he can keep us here, he still gets augmented and he gets to offer us to the Qwardian."
And OL's heavy armour is just a little bit imposing.

"It's a risk if she's on her own."

"Or we kill her and he gets her stuff. Worst case scenario, we take him back to Earth Negative Sixteen and he's got a location to sell to anyone with faster than light travel there."
...Which may not be a good thing. Still, if it is the usual 'heroes are villainous and vice-versa'... How many heroes of Earth have FTL capabilities, discounting Lanterns?

"Or he started helping her, but it got too much for him and she didn't want to stop the experiment."

"Plausible, but he'll feel vengeful enough to put us in the loop once he's recovered."
Vindictiveness can be a powerful emotional vector, even marinated in fear as Joey is.

"Or he was lying, and this was all Sinestro."

"Or he got a new deputy, and it's them. We don't have any way to know for sure. What happens if we just ask him directly?"
The joy of incomplete information. So many mind-games about 'whodunnit'...

"He acts like he doesn't know what we're talking about."

"How about if we make it clear that we don't care, and we'll pay him for his help?"
I mean, it's not he's committed any crimes they would feel a need to prosecute.

"Why would he trust us?"

"We let him out in an act of altruism. Even if he's not altruistic himself, he'll make assumptions about our likely behaviour based on that."
Probably 'What a couple of gullible, bleeding-hearted maroons.'

"How bad is his Earth?"

"No idea."
Probably a typical Crime Syndicate Earth. Hopefully without an omnicidal Owlman.

I try feeling it from here, but the yellow light is obscuring even that.

"Shouldn't be hard to find out."
As long as you don't accidentally something vital.

"Lead with that. Offer to take him back right away. See what he says."

"Armour on or off?"
Certainly, being able to see a human face might help him accept any offer.

"What's the chance of Sinestro blindsiding us?"

"There's no obvious reason for him to kill me, and he can't stop our backup coming here later and creating a clone for me to inhabit."
Heck, OL's been doing things with his corner of the Spectrum Sinestro is probably very interested in replicating for Fear.

"How about me?"

"They could create a clone for you, too."

If they're fast enough and you haven't begun your ascension.
Still a bit worried about that, OL? ;)

"Does he have a reason to kill me?"

"I… Don't know. I don' t know how much contact he has with Earth supervillains."
I suspect Sinestro dismissed them as non-threats for the most part, outside of the particularly powerful.

"I didn't meet him while I was a Shadow."

"No, I was thinking that he might kill you as a favour to the Light, or someone like that. There are all sorts of useful things on Earth that he could trade a favour for."
True. Just look at how OL's been spreading Earth-originated tech. And how popular it's been.

"The League of Shadows doesn't exist anymore, and I'd be surprised if anyone else with anything to offer even knows my name. Besides, they're all either working for the Justice League or Mannheim. I'm just concerned that he'd think we knew what was going on and kill us just in case."

"Could happen." I walk towards the ex-lab rat. "But I think it'll be okay. Mister Harrolds!"
Welp, fingers crossed for luck...

I switch back to might light armour as he turns around, seeing my face for the first time. There's a moment of focus as he takes in my features, but no recognition. I guess there isn't an alternate me on his Earth. Any longer, at least.

"Would you like to go home now? There isn't anything here except pack-hunting robot drones. We can drop you off anywhere on Earth. And if there's anyone you want us to contact, we can do that too."
...Huh. I wonder... What if he wasn't looking at your face, OL...

"They're all dead, huh?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so. The Weaponer who did it was quite thorough."
Let's not mention the fact that you've been working with said Weaponer, of course.

"And they all… Died afraid."

"Most of them. The ones who died in the first attack might not have had time to feel afraid."
Bah. I have no doubt the first few shots Kalmin fired were placed for maximising terror. Enough casualties to draw attention, but not enough to reduce the net effect.

He shakes his head. "Imagine having that kind of power…"

I shake my head. "It's not about power. Honestly, the robots aren't that complicated, dropping rocks would work nearly as well as his orbital strikes did, and social manipulation… That's a matter of patience."

"If it's not power, what is it?"
Precision. Scientific experimentation. Casual disregard for life. Take your pick?

"Intent. Will? The Weaponer decided that he needed a world to die in terror, so he made it so. I don't even think he cared much about these poor people one way or the other. There's a… Book, called Nineteen Eighty Four, where… The final torture they use to break prisoners is customised to their particular psychology. They expose them to something they can't withstand and then let them out only if they betray everything and everyone they care about rather than endure it. Of course, at that point anyone they put in there is so broken down by regular torture that it's not much of a gamble."
...I wonder how that book would have gone on a inverted-morality Earth? So few writers give any thought to things like popular culture with a cultural variance like that.

I look around at the homes of people who chose to die in their tombs rather than try and go on.

"There's nothing here that I couldn't find on Earth, or on a hundred other humanoid-inhabited worlds. Our fears aren't all that different to one another really."
Just as their wants were, I suppose.

"I fear… And they fear…"

I nod. "It really-."
It's, like, they're all part of some cosmic spectrum, man... :p

"I understand."

His eyes glow yellow, his pupils turning into yellow sigils.

"No." His body glows with yellow light as he lifts off the ground. "We understand."
:eek: ...Fuck all kinds of duck...

...Crap. It's a good chance this is a merging with the local Parallax. Which makes me wonder if he did use a Power Ring before, but lost it, and went looking for another route to regaining that power... Argh, this feels like OL and Jade walked in on someone else's origin story. :confused: But unlike other times, this one ended with the main character of the tale getting even more powerful than canon.
 
I like this better than it being Parallax. This could be the weak ancestor god Paul mentioned. That would give it a good lead-up. Or you know how Paul's soul is orange because during its development huge orange light infusion. What if the experiment that Halord here went through made him grow a second nascent soul?

People don't grow second souls in Zoat's cosmology, if they aren't New Gods or something, their soul structures just have so much space and excess is wasted. New God souls grow bigger as they absorb more energy, hence older New Gods being more powerful in this story.

As Alan demonstrates infusing the soul with a specific kind of energy can result in someone becoming an elemental.

Perhaps that was the goal, turning Harold into their own pet Terror-Thing?

But considering the whole sigils thing, I believe even if that was the goal, the guess that Harold is playing Parallax host seems likely to be true.
 
People don't grow second souls in Zoat's cosmology, if they aren't New Gods or something, their soul structures just have so much space and excess is wasted. New God souls grow bigger as they absorb more energy, hence older New Gods being more powerful in this story.

As Alan demonstrates infusing the soul with a specific kind of energy can result in someone becoming an elemental.

Perhaps that was the goal, turning Harold into their own pet Terror-Thing?

But considering the whole sigils thing, I believe even if that was the goal, the guess that Harold is playing Parallax host seems likely to be true.
Opps your right my mistake. Also, the eye thing makes sense. I'll be a little disappointed if it is obvious and turns out to be Parallax. I know this s wrong because it wouldn't make sense, but I never imagined the anti-matter verses having their own Elementals.
 

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