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

Chojin Patriarch · Aug 8, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
15th February 2013
18:32 GMT -5

A brief application of orange light gave Tuppence a military uniform, and she's got dower down without any added training. I've duplicated the dress and face of a researcher from the Gotham branch of S.T.A.R. Labs named Doctor Alistair for myself , and I can duplicate their knowledge base reasonably well through the use of my power rings database. None of it will pass detailed examination if S.T.A.R. Philadelphia can check a central database, but… Someone with a key card already inside the building and dressed correctly? It's unlikely that anyone would check in detail under normal circumstances. If they do and I can't talk my way out of it? Then it goes from a stealth mission to a combat mission.

True, the Anti-Life tends to make those under its effects more trusting that you have the authority to be where you are, and the dullness to not question the unusual unless it's extremely so. And got to love how casually you alter your face just to make the disguise more effective...

"Cain't y'all jus' wipe their computers?"

"Not the usual easy way with my ring. I could build an electromagnetic pulse generator and activate it to fry every circuit for miles around… And leave it in active mode so that they couldn't just connect to an external database to double check."

Of course, that would be a gigantic red flag that someone's been poking around.

"Raight. That."

"Except an E.M.P. going off just before we turn up is a really obvious sign that we're up to something, and S.T.A.R. Labs may well be shielded against electromagnetic radiation at levels that won't melt people too."

Because the human nervous system isn't much more resistant to the effects of an EMP than most circuitry.

She frowns-.

"Oh, you'd be fine. You're tough enough and heal fast enough that you could take it. But my general feeling is that if we have to kill a million people then it would probably be better to just back off and have a rethink."

"Uh… Huh."

Yeah, that sounds like the super-villain route. One that would be facing a death penalty if convicted. And that's a bad idea, especially if you're trying to be a good guy.

Okay, rings in my pocket, put the car in gear and pull out of the car park. I don't drive a lot and my car has a slightly different control setup but I can just about remember how these things work. Indicate, turn, ignore the instinctual feeling that I'm on the wrong side of the road and accelerate. The buses appear to be driving within normal safety parameters, so I do the same. It's interesting to have to look at my surroundings rather than using ring mapping. No other traffic around, but given the more limited number of traffic cameras in Philadelphia compared to London I don't think I need to worry about them checking my precise point of origin.

Ah, the old-fashioned way of getting around. It's been a while since we've seen OL use any other method than Transition or flight, hasn't it?

A few minutes of safe driving and we're pulling into the car park of S.T.A.R. Labs Philadelphia. We passed a few guards in the street but there doesn't appear to be anyone on duty here.

Presumably all the defences are inside. Because under these conditions, it's practically a fortress.

Tuppence goes to open her door and then hesitates, looking at me for guidance. I give a very shallow nod because there are cameras on the front of the building, and she exits the car before coming around and opening my door. I step out of the car and begin walking towards the front door of S.T.A.R. Labs Philadelphia without looking back, trying to emulate the odd facial expression of people who accept the Anti-Life. It's… Mostly blank, but there's a slight hint of both happiness and ferocity that… Doesn't naturally occur in sane people. People who don't particularly have anything going on in their heads but will happily throw themselves at anything that they're told to.

Now, the hard part. Trying to act like you know what you're doing, like you belong, and like you're as mind-whammied as everyone else.

There's a 'clunk' behind me as Tuppence closes then door, and then she walks after me. Her pace is slightly faster than mine so that she'll catch up, but not fast enough to draw attention. I guess she's learned something since she got out of Belle Reve. Or she's just been watching spy films, I suppose.

The card reader is mounted on the side of the door, and there doesn't appear to be any other mechanism to check my identity. The card should be enough, and there's no reason for the person I'm pretending to be to put his other hand in his pocket, but this is a potential point of failure.

With any luck, it'll work first time...

I swipe the card and push at the door.

The magnetic lock doesn't disengage and I reach up to swipe my card again-.

...Dammit. What's Plan B?

There's a buzz and a light changes from red to green as it opens.

Back to calm, I push it fully open as I stride inside, Tuppence following behind-.

Okay. Must have been lag in their network. Hopefully.

"Halt."

A.. robot that puts me in mind of the ones Bialya…

Ah, yes... The first place the team encountered Apokoliptian weaponry on Earth...

It wasn't Bialya. It was Mannheim. That's why Queen Bee agreed to see-. Getting rid of competition? Or just.. trying to concentrate power in Adom? I'm not sure.. why-. Not relevant right now.

The robot is pointing some sort of Apokoliptian weapon at us. I could easily evade with my rings and Tuppence could either dodge it or tank it, but it makes more sense for our characters to comply.

I can't believe he never made the connection before now. Ah well, she's dead, no need to worry about it now.

"Present identification."

I hold up my card, face forward. I hear a slight rustle of fabric as Tuppence gets hers out and does the same. The robot deploys a sensor to scan each of them before returning it to its housing.

Fingers crossed it works...

"Personnel authorised. Explain presence."

"I was ordered to come here."

Playing dumb. Probably not enough to do the job, though.

"Inadequate."

"I do not ask questions. Mannheim is."

There we go.I expect getting just the right amount of dead-head blankness into your voice is the tricky part.

"Acceptable. State purpose."

"S.T.A.R. Philadelphia holds materials relevant to the Demonic Metamorphosis Nectar research program. I was dispatched to confirm its location and transfer it to S.T.A.R. Gotham."

Ah, the Devil Jizz stuff. I could see that being of interest to Mannheim, if only out of curiosity.

"Logged. Continue your assigned task. All is one in Mannheim."

"All glory to Mannheim."

Phew. Diplomacy and Bluff checks passed. Let's hope your luck holds out, OL.

The robot doesn't retreat or lower its guns, but why would it? It's in the best place to do its job. Right, main storage is that way, but that's one of the places where other people are likely to be, and the more people we run into the higher than chance of getting identified. The research laboratories are next to it, and have the same problem. Even if I can just open the door with this key card.

But I can check the lists of objects in storage from anywhere inside that same section, including the hot desking office. It's probably in use; nothing I've seen suggests that the Anti-Lifed people don't value record keeping. But people won't be anything like as alert there.

And it's a logical first stop for your pretend mission, if only to check that what you're looking for is here.

So I lead the way away from the reception area as if I was heading for main storage, then take a turning just before I reach it and head toward the office block. A few people pass us by, but they only give us a dead-eyed glance before continuing with their own tasks.

I keep looking blank. Tuppence is giving them suspicious looks, but that works for her character.

Ah, the old clipboard trick. Look like you belong, be confident and people will assume you do. Much easier to manage with the cognitive penalties of the Anti-Life in effect, though.

Another swipe of the card, and we're in to the office. Let's see. Need a desk that's not immediately in anyone's direct view, but doesn't look like I'm trying to hide. And a view of the door, because if we're spotted they probably won't escalate to destroying the entire building before trying a squad of soldiers and a couple of robots first.

That one, that will do.

Pity it's deep enough inside the building that there's no big picture windows to leap through to get out.

I sit down, slide my key card into the slot and then touch my ring to get access to Doctor Alistair's log-in details. Give it a moment… And I'm in. I can navigate the records easily enough because I've used this system when logging objects recovered from supervillains. They don't appear to have made any changes, but I wouldn't necessarily know if they've set up something to notify someone if anyone accesses a particular record. Would the Apokoliptians care about the Medusa Mask? I wouldn't have thought so, but I can't be certain.

Try not to overthink it, OL. Second-guessing the behaviour of the affected will only have you doubting yourself.

So I check for objects that relate to my stated purpose first. No demonic tissue in storage at all. Drugs… Yes, quite a lot, and they're experimenting with more in a way that I'm sure is going to cause more problems later. Venom, Blockbuster, Fever, Tar, Smilex, Danner Formula, and a few things I'm not immediately familiar with.

Nothing relating to Devil Jizz, which is a mercy.

Best to make a note to check back on that later, after the Anti-Life is gone. Make sure no-one's pulling any illicit super-soldier programs.

Now I switch to the relic archive. Medusa Mask… Listed as missing. As of… The date of the Anti-Life broadcaster activation.

But… Missing. They wouldn't list it as missing if they'd taken it themselves. Would they? That wouldn't make sense. Can I call up security footage from here? That would help cover the stuff that Agent Carlyle didn't-.

...Hmm. Concerning. But who might have taken it?

The door opens, and I navigate away from that page as a guard walks in. For a moment I think it might just be a patrol, but then he walks towards me with purpose.

"Doctor Alistair."

Uh-oh. Have you been made or not? Best not to panic yet.

"Yes."

"The boss will to speak with you. Follow me."

Presumably that's the local city boss, not the facility's director. Perhaps you'll find a lead on the mask from them.

Okay, not time to bust out the emergency plans yet. But this is... Out of the ordinary. Could just be the local 'master' getting curious as to why he's here, could be that he's been spotted but someone's got their own agenda. Let's just hope wherever they take him, it won't be too hard to get out of. Especially with a somewhat less mobile partner in tow...

...and she's got dower down without any added training.

...and she's got dour down without any added training.

...be better to just back off and have a rethink."

Double Space.

There's a 'clunk' behind me as Tuppence closes then door...

There's a 'clunk' behind me as Tuppence closes the door...

Citizen · Aug 8, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
she's got dower down without any added training

"dour" I think.

Edit; ninja'd

Chaoswind · Aug 8, 2023

Lord Ernest said:
Can someone remind me what is this about? I have a faint memory of the attack on Kahndaq, which then resulted in some kind of meeting with Queen Bee and her death by Adom.

But I can't recall robots in Bialya, except for maybe a silly one that had a copter-hat, and I thought The Light already had contacts with Apokolips by themselves, not through Mannheim and Intergang, so I can't see where the Illustres found the connection.

Shortly after Adom told Intergang to fuck themselves after the whole thing with the woman that eventually becomes Isis and her brother that becomes Osiris (they were slaves of Intergang), an army of robots from Apocalypse attacked Kandaq and burned a few of its cities.

Queen bee got blamed, she meet Adom to clear herself and place the blame on Intergang the true culprits, but Adom intimidated her; that fear response activated her meta powers and then Adom killed her for using her powers on him (something she couldn't stop when she is truly afraid).

Intergang got to punish Adom for taking their slaves and showing them no respect while also killing one of their chief rivals as another power supplied by Apocalypse.

Ironic considering Queen Bee supplier was a middle manager of middling influence while Intergang made deals with Dessad, so many people at the time complained that the attack couldn't have been queen bee because the weapons were too advanced for the things she had been demonstrated to have and Adom was called an R word at the time, quite rightfully so.

Vaermina · Aug 8, 2023

Chojin Patriarch said:
...Hmm. Concerning. But who might have taken it?

I will laugh if it turns out to be Truggs.

Duke Long · Aug 8, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
Right, main storage is that way, but that's one of the places where other people are likely to be, and the more people we run into the higher than chance of getting identified.

'the chance'

Mr Zoat · Aug 8, 2023

Darko said:
"will speak"

Ngamer11 said:
That should say 'changes'.

Chojin Patriarch said:
...and she's got dour down without any added training.
Double Space.
There's a 'clunk' behind me as Tuppence closes the door...

Duke Long said:
'the chance'

Thank you, corrected.

Chojin Patriarch said:
And got to love how casually you alter your fact just to make the disguise more effective...

face

Coda · Aug 8, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
As Robert Peel said

I can't help but think "D'ye ken Bob Peel?" here.

Mr Zoat · Aug 9, 2023

15th February 2013
18:42 GMT -5

We're not heading towards the Chief Administrator's office, or the Head of Research's office. If I remember the interior layout correctly we're heading toward… Aquatic research? Yes, that sign confirms it. I can't ask who the city boss is, because there's a good chance that that's something that I would instinctively know if I was who I'm pretending to be. I assume that the reason for an escort is… Because I wouldn't automatically know where they are? Or the layout of the building?

Can I ask the guard questions? No, no, that's probably not a good idea.

So what can I do? Both empathic vision and power ring scans are bad ideas in close proximity to Anti-Life sources, even if I could probably walk it off. Any reaction from me would be an outward sign that something was off with me.

"Cards."

We each scan our cards as we enter the aquatic research centre. The main pool which they use for depth testing is just down the corridor, and the cheap floor carpet has been replaced by water resistant floor tiles. The front desk isn't manned, and the guard leads us directly past it and towards the pool area.

I try listening for some sort of clue, but I can't hear-. No, there's a faint splashing sound. There's something in the water, but I can't tell what. Can't see in the door windows yet-.

"Wait here."

The guard doesn't point to anywhere in particular so I just stop where I'm standing. Tuppence does the same as he walks through the doors into the pool area, the awkward angle not giving us a good look inside before the doors close behind him.

Hm. Artificial lights make everything look a little orange. I'll take a small risk.

I reach into my pocket with my left hand, touching one of my rings while being careful to desire the absolute minimum of environmental shield. Then I send a filament into the floor looking for a computer cable. There should be-. Yes, there it is. Spoof a terminal, enter log-in details, request surveillance records for the period of the initial take-over… Available, good. Download.

Compliance.

Have to go through that later.

The doors open again, the guard coming as close as he needs to in order to trigger the mechanism.

"Come."

I walk forward obediently, entering the pool…

Room.

That's not Nanaue Sha'ark. The proportions are slightly out and his head's a little too large. And there's a faint striped pattern across the scales on his back, and… He's appreciably larger.

And I've never seen Nanaue bite someone's left leg off.

The poor woman he's holding in his right hand doesn't really react as her blood pours out of the wound. This shark-man doesn't chew… Most likely because he can't, but he gives the leg he just bit off several chomps to… Make it a little more digestible, I suppose?

Then he stops, meat hanging from his mouth as he stares up at her. She appears to have lost consciousness-.

**Bah.**

A ray of brilliant white energy erupts from his forehead, striking the bleeding stump of her thigh and cauterising it. Then he tosses her onto the poolside, where a couple of laboratory technicians await his direction

And now I know who this is. The Shark. Karshon, for the sake of avoiding being confused with the dozen or so villains who named themselves after sharks. And the entire city-state of Nanaue. Fought Lantern Jordan several times, mostly out of a desire to become the deadliest thing around.

**What's the point if they can't feel fear? It's like feeding on carrion.**

He mashes his teeth together a few more times, then raises his right hand to his mouth to push the remaining meat in as he swallows. The woman… Should survive. She lost consciousness from loss of blood, but the bleeding has now stopped. Except… Anti-Life exposure can increase the rate of shock fatalities, as the injured party doesn't have any motivation to keep living. And… It probably disrupts background magics as well.

Karshon isn't a particularly good telepath. He can project emotion well, but none of Jordan's reports made any mention of him using subtlety. I probably don't have to worry about him rooting around in my mind. But I keep my left hand near my power ring anyway.

**You.** He twists in the water, looking down at me and raising his right hand to wash the worst of the blood away from his mouth. **Do you have something for me?**

Wait a.. second. He doesn't feel Anti-Lifed.

"Lord?"

**Do you want to fight me?**

Yes. "No."

**Then address me as Karshon. You are human krill. Being acknowledged by you insults me.**

"Karshon. I was not ordered to bring anything to you."

I could ask what he was expecting, but that seems like a degree of initiative beyond what someone who is Anti-Lifed should show.

His mouth opens slightly, and I can see the blood and flesh that still coat his multi-rowed teeth. But with him, the bite isn't the most dangerous part. It's the telepathy, followed by the speed and strength. He's actually more likely to throw a punch in a fight than waste time biting, and he's more likely to force alien thoughts into your mind than either.

**Your potions are the only reason why I let any of you live, and they sent you here without one? I should kill you and then go to Gotham to eat your boss-krill.**

My instinct is to defend myself. If this were a normal criminal organisation, that's what Dr. Alistair would do. But we're supposed to have been Anti-Lifed. I wouldn't have the sense of self-preservation to do that.

"Yes, Karshon. We live for Mannheim, we-."

**Silence.**

Sharks don't have facial expression, so I don't get any feedback in that regard. He's not human and has no human ancestors, so I can't rely on any sort of body language analysis. Given how close he is, I'm… Not sure that I could raise an environmental shield strong enough to block his first attack. If he attacked physically.

He wants to fight strong and brave people and break their will. Fill them with fear. That was why he kept throwing himself at Jordan for as long as he did. As I'm presenting, he has no interest in me at all. As I actually am, he'd be very interested in fighting me, but I'm trained to turn telepathic probes aside and he hasn't had any formal training at all. Jordan's descriptions made him sound relatively clumsy, only having an advantage because green power rings are unusually susceptible to that sort of attack.

**You have nothing.**

I do actually have a small sample of Devil Jizz from a raid I carried out last year. I've got no idea what it would do to him, but if it gets me out of his presence…

I tap my ring and move the sample vial out of subspace and into my pocket. He doesn't appear to notice the brief glow, but I don't suppose that sharks have particularly good colour vision. I then take the vial out and hold it up to him.

"This was something that I was studying. But if you have need of it then it is yours, Karshon."

There's a grey blur and he's out of the pool and snatching it out of my hand, knocking me away painfully. Ow. I don't think anything's broken, and it wouldn't be in character for me to respond anyway.

**Better.** He turns away and gets back in his pool. **Go back to whatever you were doing.**

"Yes, Karshon."

Without much expression-.

"Karshon, do you want us to remove the woman?"

Tuppence's face isn't as blank as mine, but she's doing a respectable job, under the circumstances. Speaking up was a risk, but to be honest he doesn't seem all that concerned with exactly how we behave.

**Yes. Get that waste of time out of my sight.**

I give Tuppence a tiny smile and a tiny nod of approval as she walks around the edge of the pool to recover his victim. I can replace her leg just before we leave, but now we need to get somewhere out of sight and go over the video logs.

Darko · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
mouth as push the remaining

"as he pushes"

crazygrox · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
"Karshon, do you want us to remove the woman?"

Tuppence's face isn't as blank as mine, but she's doing a respectable job, under the circumstances. Speaking up was a risk, but to be honest he doesn't seem all that concerned with exactly how we behave.

**Yes. Get that waste of time out of my sight.**

I give Tuppence a tiny smile and a tiny nod of approval as she walks around the edge of the pool to recover his victim.

This seems like very much a rebuttal of her worry/near acceptance that she was only a weapon. Good on her. Especially because the more I see of it the more I dislike the idea of the antilife getting to succeed at convincing anyone of anything.

Wonder why Karshon isn't being affected much.

Chojin Patriarch · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
15th February 2013
18:42 GMT -5

We're not heading towards the Chief Administrator's office, or the Head of Research's office. If I remember the interior layout correctly we're heading toward… Aquatic research? Yes, that sign confirms it. I can't ask who the city boss is, because there's a good chance that that's something that I would instinctively know if I was who I'm pretending to be. I assume that the reason for an escort is… Because I wouldn't automatically know where they are? Or the layout of the building?

Or you've been made and the escort is bait to lead you into a trap. Won't know until you get to wherever he's leading you, and by then it might be too late. So let's hope it's a legit meeting and not a trap...

Can I ask the guard questions? No, no, that's probably not a good idea.

So what can I do? Both empathic vision and power ring scans are bad ideas in close proximity to Anti-Life sources, even if I could probably walk it off. Any reaction from me would be an outward sign that something was off with me.

And that would be true even before you got infected. I don't doubt that little chunk Mannheim tossed at you is still there, merely biding its time.

"Cards."

We each scan our cards as we enter the aquatic research centre. The main pool which they use for depth testing is just down the corridor, and the cheap floor carpet has been replaced by water resistant floor tiles. The front desk isn't manned, and the guard leads us directly passed it and towards the pool area.

...Something in the water? What aquatic villains are there that can't leave the water?

I try listening for some sort of clue, but I can't hear-. No, there's a faint splashing sound. There's something in the water, but I can't tell what. Can't see in the door windows yet-.

"Wait here."

Maybe the boss is eating? Which raises the question of what they eat. Or maybe who.

The guard doesn't point to anywhere in particular so I just stop where I'm standing. Tuppence does the same as he walks through the doors into the pool area, the awkward angle not giving us a good look inside before the doors close behind him.

Hm. Artificial lights make everything look a little orange. I'll take a small risk.

...Let's hope you're not next on the menu.

I reach into my pocket with my left hand, touching one of my rings while being careful to desire the absolute minimum of environmental shield. Then I send a filament into the floor looking for a computer cable. There should be-. Yes, there it is. Spoof a terminal, enter log-in details, request surveillance records for the period of the initial take-over… Available, good. Download.

Compliance.

Sneaky sneaky. Pity you didn't think to do that sooner, but I suppose you hardly had time.

Have to go through that later.

The doors open again, the guard coming as close as he needs to in order to trigger the mechanism.

Well, at least you've got a visual record now. Hopefully it caught whoever got the Mask on screen.

"Come."

I walk forward obediently, entering the pool…

Room.

Let's hope it's not an Aboleth or something...

That's not Nanaue Sha'ark. The proportions are slightly out and his head's a little too large. And there's a faint striped pattern across the scales on his back, and… He's appreciably larger.

And I've ever seen Nanaue bite someone's left leg off.

Well, not in this universe, anyway.

The poor woman he's holding in his right hand doesn't really react as her blood pours out of the wound. This shark-man doesn't chew… Most likely because he can't, but he gives the leg he just bit off several chomps to… Make it a little more digestible, I suppose?

Then he stops, meat hanging from his mouth as he stares up at her. She appears to have lost consciousness-.

True, sharks don't really have a swallowing mechanism. Beyond 'bite, pull, swim'...

**Bah.**

A ray of brilliant white energy erupts from his forehead, striking the bleeding stump of her thigh and cauterising it. Then he tosses her onto the poolside, where a couple of laboratory technicians await his direction

Because a giant humanoid shark wasn't scary enough without psychic powers...

And now I know who this is. The Shark. Karshon, for the sake of avoiding being confused with the dozen or so villains who named themselves after sharks. And the entire city-state of Nanaue. Fought Lantern Jordan several times, mostly out of a desire to become the deadliest thing around.

**What's the point if they can't feel fear? It's like feeding on carrion.**

I suppose he considers the fear to be a pleasant garnish, eh?

He mashes his teeth together a few more times, then raises his right hand to his mouth as push the remaining meat in as he swallows. The woman… Should survive. She lost consciousness from loss of blood, but the bleeding has now stopped. Except… Anti-Life exposure can increase the rate of shock fatalities, as the injured party doesn't have any motivation to keep living. And… It probably disrupts background magics as well.

And pulling out a Purple Ray right now would be suicidally stupid...

Karshon isn't a particularly good telepath. He can project emotion well, but none of Jordan's reports made any mention of him using subtlety. I probably don't have to worry about him rooting around in my mind. But I keep my left hand near my power ring anyway.

**You.** He twists in the water, looking down at me and raising his right hand to wash the worst of the blood away from his mouth. **Do you have something for me?**

Uh-oh. Does he have you confused with someone else he was expecting? That's... Less than optimal.

Wait a.. second. He doesn't feel Anti-Lifed.

"Lord?"

His brain is probably too primal to feel its effects, too animalistic to be concerned with existential questions.

**Do you want to fight me.**

Yes. "No"

A pity you've got more important business right now. But you can always come back later and kill him then.

**Then address me as Karshon. You are human krill. Being acknowledged by you insults me.**

"Karshon. I was not ordered to bring anything to you."

Got to wonder how much attention Mannheim even pays city bosses who bend the knee to him.

I could ask what he was expecting, but that seems like a degree of initiative beyond what someone who is Anti-Lifed should show.

His mouth opens slightly, and I can see the blood and flesh that still coat his multi-rowed teeth. But with him, the bite isn't the most dangerous part. It's the telepathy, followed by the speed and strength. He's actually more likely to throw a punch in a fight than waste time biting, and he's more likely to force alien thoughts into your mind than either.

No subtlety. Much like a shark attack: Rip, tear and eat. Except in his case, he does it to the mind as well as the flesh...

**Your potions are the only reason why I let any of you live, and they sent you here without one? I should kill you and then go to Gotham to eat your boss-krill.**

My instinct is to defend myself. If this were a normal criminal organisation, that's what Dr. Alistair would do. But we're supposed to have been Anti-Lifed. I wouldn't have the sense of self-preservation to do that.

Potions, eh? Wonder what that means? He's using some kind of serum for... Something? I doubt he needs to sustain radiation exposure to keep humanoid form. Biology usually doesn't work that way, even in comic books...

"Yes, Karshon. We live for Mannheim, we-."

**Silence.**

He probably gets sick of hearing that day in day out from the Justified...

Sharks don't have facial expression, so I don't get any feedback in that regard. He's not human and has no human ancestors, so I can't rely on any sort of body language analysis. Given how close he is, I'm… Not sure that I could raise an environmental shield strong enough to block his first attack. If he attacked physically.

...So not the silver-age look, then. Seriously, that is goofy as...

He wants to fight strong and brave people and break their will. Fill them with fear. That was why he kept throwing himself at Jordan for as long as he did. As I'm presenting, he has no interest in me at all. As I actually am, he'd be very interested in fighting me, but I'm trained to turn telepathic probes aside and he hasn't had any formal training at all. Jordan's descriptions made him sound relatively clumsy, only having an advantage because green power rings are unusually susceptible to that sort of attack.

To be fair, I doubt he was disposed to using much in the way of sneaky tricks anyway.

**You have nothing.**

I do actually have a small sample of Devil Jizz from a raid I carried out last year. I've got no idea what it would do to him, but if it gets me out of his presence…

Oh, yes. Give the irradiated man-shark a dose of possession-enabling super-drugs. That will end so well.

I tap my ring and move the sample vial out of subspace and into my pocket. He doesn't appear to notice the brief glow, but I don't suppose that sharks have particularly good colour vision. I then take the vial out and hold it up to him.

"This was something that I was studying. But if you have need of it then it is yours, Karshon."

And outside of his psychic powers, he doesn't seem the sharpest tool in the shed, if you catch my drift.

There's a grey blur and he's out of the pool and snatching it out of my hand, knocking me away painfully. Ow. I don't think anything's broken, and it wouldn't be in character for me to respond anyway.

**Better.** He turns away and gets back in his pool. **Go back to whatever you were doing.**

Heh. Distracted by a new shiny. Let's hope he doesn't get addicted to it.

"Yes, Karshon."

Without much expression-.

Okay, quickly and quietly. Back to the office, or possibly the car...

"Karshon, do you want us to remove the woman?"

Tuppence's face isn't as blank as mine, but she's doing a respectable job, under the circumstances. Speaking up was a risk, but to be honest he doesn't seem all that concerned with exactly how we behave.

Good idea. He probably doesn't want her corpse stinking up his quarters, dripping stale blood in the water...

**Yes. Get that waste of time out of my sight.**

I give Tuppence a tiny smile and a tiny nod of approval as she walks around the edge of the pool to recover his victim. I can replace her leg just before we leave, but now we need to get somewhere out of sight and go over the video logs.

...And hopefully a change of clothes, since no matter how Tuppence carries the poor lady, she's going to get messy

Okay, so far so good. Thank goodness the local boss is something of an idiot. Or at least too inattentive to notice how unusual they were. Plus the good karma of rescuing his lunch. Too much to hope for that she's in any way significant, but I'm sure they'll find that out in a bit. Once they're safely away from the shark's lair and all his Justified henchmen...

Ngamer11 · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
And I've ever seen Nanaue bite someone's left leg off.

I think that should say 'never'.

Mr Zoat said:
"Karshon, do you want us to remove the woman?"

Tuppence's face isn't as blank as mine, but she's doing a respectable job, under the circumstances. Speaking up was a risk, but to be honest he doesn't seem all that concerned with exactly how we behave.

**Yes. Get that waste of time out of my sight.**

I give Tuppence a tiny smile and a tiny nod of approval as she walks around the edge of the pool to recover his victim. I can replace her leg just before we leave, but now we need to get somewhere out of sight and go over the video logs.

It's great that Tuppence is showing some initiative in doing good now.

Signaller · Aug 9, 2023

What are the chances that this is a test, and restoring the victim will trip an alert?

Vaermina · Aug 9, 2023

It looks like LePaul has finally found someone with a part of the Life Equation.

Now the question is whether he will realize it or not.

Mr Zoat · Aug 9, 2023

Darko said:
"as he pushes"

'to push', actually.

Ngamer11 said:
I think that should say 'never'.

Me said:
**Do you want to fight me.**

Thank you, corrected.

DeathReaperZ · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
"Ahri'ahn expands his magic to the entire world and turns everyone into willing thralls convinced of the supremacy of Atlantis and Atlantean culture. Sufficient to say, we're not wearing kid gloves on this one."

This would probably be Grayven's version of a less harmful Anti-Life infection, no?

Thanks for the post.

DeathReaperZ · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
That's… Odd. I can't see Richard or-.

Interesting that Richard is the first thing he locks onto. Is it because of how powerful he is, or for some other reason?

Mr Zoat said:
"There's a way around that." Probably. Not like I tested it. "But it's going to be a little difficult, and a ring would have been more reliable."

Interesting, I wonder what he's up to.

Thanks for the post.

DeathReaperZ · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
"-reclaim the planet in reasonable condition. Alright, I'm dead on twenty eight latitude and thirty four longitude. I'm stealthed but you can probably hear me."

"Yes." I look up as he comes in to land next to me. "But it would be harder if you were phased."

"Is it safe to reveal myself?"

How'd he figure out where Paul was that fast?

Mr Zoat said:
but since I'm not a magician

Speaking of which, will Paul ever unlock magic?

Mr Zoat said:
"No. I've got six. We're going to have to fake the seventh using either magic or the Medusa Mask. Should still work, though obviously it's not ideal."

Ah so that's what he's planning.

Mr Zoat said:
"Themyscira has… Gone. We are not sure where, though Wonder Woman has said that she is sure that it was not destroyed."

I think for a moment. "Reformation Island had some sort of shielding spell on it when I left. Is it like that?"

Huh wonder how the hell that happened.

Mr Zoat said:
"No. There was a storm and it vanished, and the sea where it once was flowed over the hole it left."

That's-. That's annoying.

Don't you hate it when a whole ass island disappears?

Thanks for the post.

Duke Long · Aug 9, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
The front desk isn't manned, and the guard leads us directly passed it and towards the pool area.

'past'

Mr Zoat said:
Yes. "No"

Missing full stop.

Mr Zoat said:
Sharks don't have facial expression, so I don't get any feedback in that regard.

'expressions'

Mr Zoat said:
He doesn't appear to notice the brief glow, but I don't suppose that sharks have particularly good colour vision.

Interesting. According to Google, there is evidence that sharks might see in black and white.

Mr Zoat · Aug 9, 2023

Duke Long said:
'past'
Missing full stop.

Thank you, corrected.

'expressions'

No, as in 'the capacity for making facial expressions'.

DeathReaperZ said:
How'd he figure out where Paul was that fast?

Really good hearing.

Speaking of which, will Paul ever unlock magic?

He can't learn to use normal magic because his soul is the wrong shape. However, you'll note him making use of magic.

FreeGod · Aug 9, 2023

Signaller said:
What are the chances that this is a test, and restoring the victim will trip an alert?

There are far easier tests if they are feeling suspicious. They might notice the women being healed, but I don't think that was the intent of this situation.

Mr Zoat · Aug 10, 2023

15th February 2013
18:50 GMT -5

The closest office is.. actually the Chief Administrator's office. No one else is in the area, so I open the door with a brief application of power ring and stride inside as if I own the place. Tuppence carries the woman in after me and after a brief look around deposits her on a chair in the corner.

"We-?"

She closes the door and then goes around closing the blinds. Then she does a quick manual check for anything she might have missed.

"We safe?"

I touch my ring and take a sound deadening field generator out of subspace. I could take a enchanted stone, but… Someone around here knows their way around magic, and while a S.T.A.R. researcher might have something to isolate sound, they wouldn't have a custom produced Atlantean magic tool.

There's a camera in the room, but it doesn't record sound.

"As safe as we're likely to get inside enemy territory."

"Who the fuck was that?"

"He's a mutant shark. A psychic. He fought Green Lantern a few times. Don't know how he got here, but it's not a huge shock."

I log in once more as Doctor Alistair and bring up security camera footage from the day of the take-over.

"An' what the fuck did-? You was jus' gunna leave her to geht et."

"If necessary. But he was pretty clear that he wasn't going to eat her."

"Kin y'all… Geht 'er a new leg?"

"Yes. But if I do that here and now it'll be a bit obvious."

My eyes move from the recordings playing on the screen to Tuppence and she stares at me.

"What? Surprised?"

She nods.

"Tuppence, there are superheroes like Superman who are genuinely lovely people. People who always try to see the best in people, always pull their punches… Outside of a completely apocalyptic situation at least. I am a good deal more ruthless. I helped you and Thomas because, one, you're not that bad a person and two, I had the time and resources. Here, we're trying to save the planet. If that means that I have to watch a few people get eaten then that's what I'll do, because the world's more important. Do you want to watch this?"

She hesitates, and then walks around the desk.

"Oh, and… It was a risk, but good work getting her away from him."

She shrugs, shaking her head. "Ah ain't gonna let her get eaten. What we lookin' at, anyhow?"

I point. "This is where the Mask was being stored. They weren't doing any tests on it that day, but we should be able to track where it goes."

"How come you ain't usin' yer ring?"

"I am, but purely analysing this with my ring would make detecting me a little easier. I'll just use it to-" I increase the playback speed until the figures on the screen blur. "-speed things up… And…"

We reach the point where the Anti-Life broadcast started, and people react in line with what we've seen. Some collapse, some just sort of rock back and forth and others keep doing what they were doing before, only… Without the focus they had only a moment before. It's all silent, so I can't hear any moaning…

Wait.

Ring, find Agent Carlyle.

Compliance.

The recording jumps… Forward, showing… Showing him enter the building with the key card he gave me.

"Stop. Was he in the building at any time before that?"

The images jump… A couple of days before. He's talking to… A member of the aquatic research team. Rewinding… Yes, he's meeting them in their office, checking over the facilities…

No meeting with the Head of Research. Or Chief Administrator.

I mean, I can only check what the cameras saw. They don't have full coverage. And if they spoke on the telephone…

Tuppence is frowning too.

Okay, okay, where did he go after he entered the building?

"He wuz lye'n."

"Yes indeed he was. But I don't know why."

I move the screen back to his point of entry, and then play at times five speed.

He walks in… Clearly knows where he's going, and isn't affected by the Anti-Life. That… Tracks. Unless-. No, no, if he were under the influence I'd have… Felt it.

I think.

But in any case I think I know where this is-.

He walks into storage with a trolley, and… The interior camera shows him loading stuff up. I see the Mask for half a second-. No, he's not just grabbing everything. He's going for specific things. He knows where things are.

So… Did he have this planned and was just waiting for an opportunity? Did he.. know in advance that it was going to happen-.

The shark. The first time Jordan fought him, he found a way to turn him back into a normal…

I enter the database, looking for records on aquatic creatures and… Mutagens. Jordan never found out exactly what it was that turned a normal tiger shark into Karshon, but-.

They had him. A tiger shark. He was here in normal animal mode.

Carlyle recovered the mutagen from the vault. He-.

The Head of Research appears to have regained some of his wits. He says something to Carlyle, who draws a gun and shoots him. Fatally.

"Asshole!"

"Depends why he did it. He's a baseline human: he can't just bulldoze past obstacles like we can."

It's a bad angle, but it looks like he's… Yes, that's Karshon, mutating from normal shark to his augmented form. He and Carlyle appear to have a short conversation. Which suggests that Karshon maintains his memories while in animal form.

And then Carlyle heads out of the building, shooting anyone who tries to stop him. I watch as Justifiers enter the building through the front doors. He spots them and recognises… Something about them, and he turns and runs. They pursue, but security cameras aren't good at getting the details in fights like this. He pulls out some sort of short staff and waves it and most of the Justifiers go down.

And then we lose them as he heads to the roof exit.

"He jus' robbed the place."

"Maybe. He didn't have that stuff on him when we met him. It's possible that someone else has it, but either way he's got some questions to answer. And we still need the Mask."

I log off the computer and stand up.

"Let's get out of-."

"'fussssssh'"

Ngamer11 · Aug 10, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
"He jus' robbed the place."

"Maybe. He didn't have that stuff on him when we met him. It's possible that someone else has it, but either way he's got some questions to answer. And we still need the Mask."

Hopefully this puts SHADE in Paul's sights.

Chojin Patriarch · Aug 10, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
15th February 2013
18:50 GMT -5

The closest office is.. actually the Chief Administrator's office. No one else is in the area, so I open the door with a brief application of power ring and stride inside as if I own the place. Tuppence carries the woman in after me and after a brief look around deposits her on a chair in the corner.

"We-?"

At least with no-one in sight, you can be a little freer with the Light. Still have to be careful, though. Just because the people are Anti-Lifed and kind of out of it, doesn't mean they're completely oblivious.

She closes the door and then goes around closing the blinds. Then she does a quick manual check for anything she might have missed.

"We safe?"

Good girl. Learning the basics of being sneaky. Soon you'll be a super-strong ninja!

I touch my ring and take a sound deadening field generator out of subspace. I could take a enchanted stone, but… Someone around here knows their way around magic, and while a S.T.A.R. researcher might have something to isolate sound, they wouldn't have a custom produced Atlantean magic tool.

There's a camera in the room, but it doesn't record sound.

And a discreet filament can take care of what it's seeing, too. So they're about as private as they'll get.

"As safe as we're likely to get inside enemy territory."

"Who the fuck was that?"

Ah, right. She doesn't have OL's encyclopaedic knowledge of local supervillains... And it's a safe bet she hasn't seen a lot of nasty man-sharks.

"He's a mutant shark. A psychic. He fought Green Lantern a few times. Don't know how he got here, but it's not a huge shock."

I log in once more as Doctor Alistair and bring up security camera footage from the day of the take-over.

Leaving a bit of a digital trail, but I doubt anyone's going to feel the need to look into it.

"An' what the fuck did-? You was jus' gunna leave her to geht et."

"If necessary. But he was pretty clear that he wasn't going to eat her."

After all, he didn't want to have to fight the psychic man-shark if he didn't need to.

"Kin y'all… Geht 'er a new leg?"

"Yes. But if I do that here and now it'll be a bit obvious."

Especially if she doesn't have a medical history of spontaneous regeneration.

My eyes move from the recordings playing on the screen to Tuppence and she stares at me.

"What? Surprised?"

She nods.

Not every hero is a bleeding heart who can't bear to see any suffering. Though to be honest, even people like Superman or the Flash have to perform some callous calculus sooner or later. Even they can't be everywhere at every moment, after all.

"Tuppence, there are superheroes like Superman who are genuinely lovely people. People who always try to see the best in people, always pull their punches… Outside of a completely apocalyptic situation at least. I am a good deal more ruthless. I helped you and Thomas because, one, you're not that bad a person and two, I had the time and resources. Here, we're trying to save the planet. If that means that I have to watch a few people get eaten then that's what I'll do, because the world's more important. Do you want to watch this?"

And there's that callous calculus in action. One life now, or billions later from the information you can gain.

She hesitates, and then walks around the desk.

"Oh, and… It was a risk, but good work getting her away from him."

True. Speaking up might have been suspicious, but Karshon is so inattentive, he probably took her offer as subservience.

She shrugs, shaking her head. "Ah ain't gonna let her get eaten. What we lookin' at, anyhow?"

I point. "This is where the Mask was being stored. They weren't doing any tests on it that day, but we should be able to track where it goes."

Just a matter of finding the right angles. Starting with cameras overlooking the storage vault it was in...

"How come you ain't usin' yer ring?"

"I am, but purely analysing this with my ring would make detecting me a little easier. I'll just use it to-" I increase the playback speed until the figures on the screen blur. "-speed things up… And…"

Because who wants to watch hours of footage from hundreds of cameras in real time?

We reach the point where the Anti-Life broadcast started, and people react in line with what we've seen. Some collapse, some just sort of rock back and forth and others keep doing what they were doing before, only… Without the focus they had only a moment before. It's all silent, so I can't hear any moaning…

Wait.

Oh-ho. Has he noticed something out of place? Someone not affected like they should be?

Ring, find Agent Carlyle.

Compliance.

...Or perhaps someone who wasn't where they said they'd been at the time?

The recording jumps… Forward, showing… Showing him enter the building with the key card he gave me.

"Stop. Was he in the building at any time before that?"

Not damning on its own. Who's to say he was inside at the moment it hit, after all?

The images jump… A couple of days before. He's talking to… A member of the aquatic research team. Rewinding… Yes, he's meeting them in their office, checking over the facilities…

No meeting with the Head of Research. Or Chief Administrator.

Suspicious. It sounds like he had somethign set up to avoid them...

I mean, I can only check what the cameras saw. They don't have full coverage. And if they spoke on the telephone…

Tuppence is frowning too.

And if she can see something hinky, then it's got to be obvious.

Okay, okay, where did he go after he entered the building?

"He wuz lye'n."

Like a snake in a wagon rut.

"Yes indeed he was. But I don't know why."

I move the screen back to his point of entry, and then play at times five speed.

Where's he going, then? Who's he talking to? Did he really go for the person he said he did?

He walks in… Clearly knows where he's going, and isn't affected by the Anti-Life. That… Tracks. Unless-. No, no, if he were under the influence I'd have… Felt it.

I think.

Or that 'personality regulator' is working overtime on him.

But in any case I think I know where this is-.

He walks into storage with a trolley, and… The interior camera shows him loading stuff up. I see the Mask for half a second-. No, he's not just grabbing everything. He's going for specific things. He knows where things are.

Quite the shopping trip. Presumably Father Time had him picking up a few useful things.

So… Did he have this planned and was just waiting for an opportunity? Did he.. know in advance that it was going to happen-.

The shark. The first time Jordan fought him, he found a way to turn him back into a normal…

...So what changed him back? Or rather, who...

I enter the database, looking for records on aquatic creatures and… Mutagens. Jordan never found out exactly what it was that turned a normal tiger shark into Karshon, but-.

They had him. A tiger shark. He was here in normal animal mode.

Presumably that was STAR Lab's job. After all, if they can repeat it with animals more friendly to human...

Carlyle recovered the mutagen from the vault. He-.

The Head of Research appears to have regained some of his wits. He says something to Carlyle, who draws a gun and shoots him. Fatally.

Add it to the list. Because he's going to be neck-deep in the shit already.

"Asshole!"

"Depends why he did it. He's a baseline human: he can't just bulldoze past obstacles like we can."

Good point. Maybe he could have used some sort of low-lethality weapon. A stun-gun or something. But I don't think he'd bother.

It's a bad angle, but it looks like he's… Yes, that's Karshon, mutating from normal shark to his augmented form. He and Carlyle appear to have a short conversation. Which suggests that Karshon maintains his memories while in animal form.

And then Carlyle heads out of the building, shooting anyone who tries to stop him. I watch as Justifiers enter the building through the front doors. He spots them and recognises… Something about them, and he turns and runs. They pursue, but security cameras aren't good at getting the details in fights like this. He pulls out some sort of short staff and waves it and most of the Justifiers go down.

So that's likely what Karshon thought OL was bringing him: More mutagen to keep him in humanoid form.

And then we lose them as he heads to the roof exit.

"He jus' robbed the place."

Sounds like he had a flyer pick up his shopping. But he got left behind, maybe on purpose.

"Maybe. He didn't have that stuff on him when we met him. It's possible that someone else has it, but either way he's got some questions to answer. And we still need the Mask."

I log off the computer and stand up.

So it's still in the building. That's one small mercy.

"Let's get out of-."

"'fussssssh'"

...Shit, grenade!

Oh, damn. Onomatopoeia. What a time for him to show up. But who's side is he on? Mannheim's? Father Time's? A third party, given last time we saw him, he was working with Klarion, right? Given the black text, he's fully Justified. So backup is likely on the way, possibly including another OL clone loaded with Anti-Life. So time to move fast, OL... Better hope Tuppence can keep up.

Vaermina · Aug 10, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
15th February 2013
18:50 GMT -5

You know, if I was Manheim l would have a Fatherbox hooked up to the network monitoring for anyone accessing anything with a power ring.

So it was kind of stupid that LePaul would risk it.

thebishop8 · Aug 10, 2023

I've wondered where Onomatopoeia ended up. He was supposed to be imprisoned in the Tower of Fate, but he wasn't with the other prisoners when Paul assaulted the place and got John Constantine back. Well Onomatopoeia seems anti-lifed here, and John Quinn was interested in Anti-Life, so I wonder how involved he was with Mannheim.

RoninSword · Aug 10, 2023

Ngamer11 said:
Hopefully this puts SHADE in Paul's sights.

SHADE could be a perfectly legitimate organization in this plane.

ZzzSlothzzZ · Aug 10, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
fussssssh

n' chups

why jizz the shark. you were basically home free. Spose its very on brand for OL though

Mr Zoat · Aug 10, 2023

ZzzSlothzzZ said:
n' chups

why jizz the shark. you were basically home free. Spose its very on brand for OL though

Because he thought that it was more important to maintain cover and believed that Karshon was asking because that's what Gotham S.T.A.R. people turned up for. And honestly, most formulations of Devil Jizz don't make a superhuman psychic shark all that much more dangerous.

Bramble Thorn · Aug 10, 2023

Mr Zoat said:
And honestly, most formulations of Devil Jizz don't make a superhuman psychic shark all that much more dangerous.

Remind me, is Demon Jizz a transitory infusion of demon magic powers, a persistent infusion, or a vector to allow Demons in Hell to possess addicts on Earth?

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