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

So I have totally forgotten who this kid is or what arc he's from. I tried searching the "story only" archive for "Triskelle" as the most unique name but only this most recent post came up. Can anyone link me back to the appropriate arc?
 
So Grayven still can't say his SI name.

...Has anyone got any theories on that? Because it's killing me here.
 
So I have totally forgotten who this kid is or what arc he's from. I tried searching the "story only" archive for "Triskelle" as the most unique name but only this most recent post came up. Can anyone link me back to the appropriate arc?

oof, it's been a while, so i don't remember the exact details, but this was back when Gravy was building his little domestic situation in... Colorado? Challenger Mountain i think? anyway, he has a whole household of people we never hear about anymore. there's the god-enlightened speedster assassin that worships him, there's a fucking tiger-man, there's this group of vampire children he rescued from starvation and confinement somewhere and then adopted. i think the most recent mention or reference to any of them was when Luna visited the Mountain to meet his family.

Renegade has kinda gone off the rails with the whole 'pony' thing. i remember being super interested in the whole 'enlightened god family' thing but that got strangled out by the MLP stuff.
 
Thank you, corrected.
Amusingly, the correct way to do it involves missing a speech mark at the end of a paragraph if the next paragraph is the same person talking. But since I don't do that, I'll correct it.
That should say 'enthrall'.
Nope.
That should say 'effectively'.
Thank you, corrected.
It's scenes like this that make me wish Paul had kids of his own. Will he ever have kids, biological, adopted, or other, in this story?
Oh, I'm on course for full-on cat-daddy and honestly the idea is so depressing-.

Oh, you mean the SI! Ah, yes, but not until the last six month period.
'about it'?
'begun'?
'in total'
Should there be another reason in the second sentence? Because it says 'Between' and then only gives one reason.
'relieved'
Thank you, corrected.
Thank you, corrected.
So I have totally forgotten who this kid is or what arc he's from. I tried searching the "story only" archive for "Triskelle" as the most unique name but only this most recent post came up. Can anyone link me back to the appropriate arc?
Here.
 
It's been a while so I've actually forgotten, was there a reason why the SI(s) can't say their name 'Paul', or was it meant to be a jab at SI tropes? Since in Paragon the name is figured out relatively quickly.
 
Break Time (part 5)
17th February 2013
17:01 GMT


"Lantern?!" Zosime looks up in surprise after shoving what looks like a javelin through the arm of an Aztec… Fine, zombie. "Prince Kon?"

The Aztec woman has clearly had a rather bad time of it, but despite wounds to her abdomen, neck and head she's still clumsily trying to rise, to attack the one who defeated her.

"Hey." Kon nods, taking in the fallen woman. "Are we holding?"

"This is hardly the first time the dead have attacked Themyscira." She looks down with the stoicism of a three thousand year old veteran. "Our fallen sisters usually dress more decorously."

I look around. It looks like the attack by the dead in this part of the island is under control, with the Aztecs being netted or knocked down so that they can be pinned. I generate construct spike drivers and speed up the process, earning myself a few grateful nods.

"If your shade ever attacks me without a shirt on, I'll be sure to dress you before anyone else sees."

"Shirt? I have bought sports bras from New York. They provide far better support-."

"You just want an excuse to-" I raise my eyebrows sceptically. "-show off your skin."

She shrugs. "Delphine likes it. How did you get here?"

"Ah, long story short, you should probably avoid the west side of the island for now."

Zosime frowns while Kon shakes his head. "How did Themyscira get here?"

Zosime looks over to her pentekontarchos, who nods as she organises her detachment to chain up the zombies and cart them away.

"It was just after Oizys touched our minds. Reformation Island vanished, and I hoped that whatever magic moved it would affect the rest of us as well."

Kon looks concerned. "How did everyone..? Did everyone make it?"

"After two thousand years of isolation I doubt that any of us have not felt such misery at least once. Though had it gone on longer it would have been uncomfortable."

"So..?"

"We prayed for deliverance. Some of those who are skilled with magic attempted to alter the wards to block out whatever malevolent magic-." She frowns. "What was it?"

"It's called 'Anti-Life'. There's this evil alien god called 'Darkseid' who uses it to make everyone so depressed that they just give their souls to him."

She actually seems to brighten up a little. "And you are fighting it?"

"Yeah. It's not easy, but Paul found a way to get rid of it."

"He has a several stage plan and we're only about half way there at the moment. What happened next?"

"The gods moved us here. The priestesses say that Olympus and Skybreak are now one, or… Connected together. We are in the realm of the gods."

I look towards Skybreak, and… Yes, the topography is a little different to what I remember, and a little more like what I remember of Olympus.

"And the Aztecs?"

"Is that their name? They do not talk much."

"They probably call themselves 'Mexians'."

She nods. "Like the woman at the pastry shop."

"No, she-. Maybe, but she's probably Mexican. That's where the word comes from, but it's not the same thing. Their gods require human sacrifice to remain strong, and they like receiving their sacrifices heart-first."

She frowns, looking down at the impaled man beneath her. "These are sacrifices?"

"We're not exactly sure-" There's a loud thud of footsteps heading towards us. "-what's happening there."

Zosime looks west, hefting her spear as the other Amazons abandon prisoner detainment and begin to form up. "When you said to avoid the west side of-."

The towering form of Tlaltecuhtli walks around the side of the mountain, stomping on- Quick referral to my mental map of Themyscira. -some pasture fields that she probably isn't damaging by accident, being an earth goddess. Amazon eyes widen and they shift into a dispersed formation.

"No, it's-." / "She's fine-."

Kon and I look at each other, and I bow my head to my prince.

"That's Tlaltecuhtli. She's an Aztec goddess, and she's here to-."

Tlaltecuhtli stops and reaches down, tearing Aztec zombies off their stakes and lifting them up. She then splits her head in two to reveal her second mouth, and…

Drops the zombies in.

"To help."

"Prince Kon-El!" The pentekontarchos looks at him for direction. "Your orders!"

"Move away from the Aztecs and let her take them."

"Ah, except…" I put a construct sarcophagus around the one that Zosime was working on. "This one, I'm experimenting with her."

The pentekontarchos frowns and looks to Kon for confirmation. He nods, and she organises her women to put the zombies in a pile and then back away.

While I stick a heart in this one, inject cloned blood into the circulatory system, and use a construct to make it beat, and then add a transmuted cardiac stimulator to keep it beating before closing up her chest.

And monitor for any change.

Kon comes a little closer, trying not to be overheard. "Should we try and help the others? Stop her eating them? I mean, can we?"

"We could try. I don't think we'd be successful, and as far as I'm concerned this is more like a resurrection than a healing. If it works and we get someone who can tell us what's going on then great, but if we can't then I'm not going to beat myself up over it. These people are dead, and when they were alive they were Aztecs."

"They died a long time ago. And they're the souls of the dead. This isn't… Right."

I shrug. "No, but it's part of their belief structure. When we find out what happened to their hearts we can try and sort something out but so far this one isn't moving."

I try scanning her again.

"I'd guess it's because they can't supply their own power in the way that a goddess can, but I don't know that. I don't have a perfect solution and this is the best available non-perfect solution."

He nods, clearly not happy but not having anything better. "Zosime, is Grandma in the city plaza?"

"If she's not on the beach, yes."

"'kay. Let's go check in with her."
 
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I look around. I looks like the attack by the dead in this part of the island is under control, with the Aztecs being netted or knocked down so that they can be pinned. I generate construct spike drivers and speed up the process, earning myself a few grateful nods.
That should say 'It'.

"Shirt? I have bough sports bras from New York. They provide far better support-."
That should say 'bought'.

"He has a several stage plan and we're only about half way there at the moment. What happened next?"
Since Paul is talking about himself, that should say 'I have'.
 
17th February 2013
17:01 GMT


"Lantern?!" Zosime looks up in surprise after shoving what looks like a javelin through the arm of a Aztec… Fine, zombie. "Prince Kon?"

The Aztec woman has clearly had a rather bad time of it, but despite wounds to her abdomen, neck and head she's still clumsily trying to rise, to attack the one to defeated her.
The drawback of fighting those that cannot feel pain or tiredness: They don't stop until they're so broken they cannot move at all. An issue many modern police forces experience when dealing with those hopped up on mind-altering substances...

"Hey." Kon nods, taking in the fallen woman. "Are we holding?"

"This is hardly the first time the dead have attacked Themyscira." She looks down with the stoicism of a three thousand year old veteran. "Our fallen sisters usually dress more decorously."
That would be the fallen who emerge from the gate of the dead, known sometimes as Doom's Doorway.

I look around. It looks like the attack by the dead in this part of the island is under control, with the Aztecs being netted or knocked down so that they can be pinned. I generate construct spike drivers and speed up the process, earning myself a few grateful nods.

"If your shade ever attacks me without a shirt on, I'll be sure to dress you before anyone else sees."
Heh, what you might call a full-frontal assault? :p

"Shirt? I have bought sports bras from New York. They provide far better support-."

"You just want an excuse to-" I raise my eyebrows sceptically. "-show off your skin."
Well, if you look like the average Amazon does, why wouldn't you?

She shrugs. "Delphine likes it. How did you get here?"

"Ah, long story short, you should probably avoid the west side of the island for now."
Hopefully they can explain things when Tlalte-whosit gets here.

Zosime frowns while Kon shakes his head. "How did Themyscira get here?"

Zosime looks over to her pentekontarchos, who nods as she organises her detachment to chain up the zombies and cart them away.
That would be... Lieutenants? Squad leaders? Easiest way to think of them.

"It was just after Oizys touched our minds. Reformation Island vanished, and I hoped that whatever magic moved it would affect the rest of us as well."

Kon looks concerned. "How did everyone..? Did everyone make it?"
Huh. So Constantine's spell only protected the smaller island. Typical.

"After two thousand years of isolation I doubt that any of us have not felt such misery at least once. Though had it gone on longer it would have been uncomfortable."

"So..?"
To be fair, humans aren't generally built to live as long as they have. Who knows how people who live that long deal with such things...

"We prayed for deliverance. Some of those who are skilled with magic attempted to alter the wards to block out whatever malevolent magic-." She frowns. "What was it?"

"It's called 'Anti-Life'. There's this evil alien god called 'Darkseid' who uses it to make everyone so depressed that they just give their souls to him."
A gross oversimplification, but given their history, I'm sure it's a cleaner motivation than the truth.

She actually seems to brighten up a little. "And you are fighting it?"

"Yeah. It's not easy, but Paul found a way to get rid of it."
Which still isn't guaranteed to work, yet. But any plan is an improvement when things are this bad...

"He has a several stage plan and we're only about half way there at the moment. What happened next?"

"The gods moved us here. The priestesses say that Olympus and Skybreak are now one, or… Connected together. We are in the realm of the gods."
So they hauled it up by the mountain peak? Sensible enough, given that the spire was already sort-of connected already.

I look towards Skybreak, and… Yes, the topography is a little different to what I remember, and a little more like what I remember of Olympus.

"And the Aztecs?"
Presumably one of the Aztec deities is upset. Or Mannheim pulled off something big.

"Is that their name? They do not talk much."

"They probably call themselves 'Mexians'."
Not to be confused with the modern Mexicans, who are their descendants.

She nods. "Like the woman at the pastry shop."

"No, she-. Maybe, but she's probably Mexican. That's where the word comes from, but it's not the same thing. Their gods require human sacrifice to remain strong, and they like receiving their sacrifices heart-first."
The history of words is weird sometimes.

She frowns, looking down at the impaled man beneath her. "These are sacrifices?"

"We're not exactly sure-" There's a loud thud of footsteps heading towards us. "-what's happening there."
Ah, that'll be the local Aztec expert advisor...

Zosime looks west, hefting her spear as the other Amazons abandon prisoner detainment and begin to form up. "When you said to avoid the west side of-."

The towering form of Tlaltecuhtli walks around the side of the mountain, stomping on- Quick referral to my mental map of Themyscira. -some pasture fields that she probably isn't damaging by accident, being an earth goddess. Amazon eyes widen and they shift into a dispersed formation.
Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if the crops were springing back up after she lifts her foot. Still, rude.

"No, it's-." / "She's fine-."

Kon and I look at each other, and I bow my head to my prince.
A rare occasion for OL to be outranked by someone on Earth. :D

"That's Tlaltecuhtli. She's an Aztec goddess, and she's here to-."

Tlaltecuhtli stops and reaches down, tearing Aztec zombies off their stakes and lifting them up. She then splits her head in two to reveal her second mouth, and…
Oh, this is going to be unpleasant, isn't it?

Drops the zombies in.

"To help."
Presumably she's just keeping them in her stomach, and won't actually digest them. Hopefully she remember to spit them out later.

"Prince Kon-El!" The pentekontarchos looks at him for direction. "Your orders!"

"Move away from the Aztecs and let her take them."
Only appropriate. They are her... Believers? :confused: Not entirely clear on the terminology involved here.

"Ah, except…" I put a construct sarcophagus around the one that Zosime was working on. "This one, I'm experimenting with her."

The pentekontarchos frowns at looks to Kon for confirmation. He nods, and she organises her women to put the zombies in a pile and then back away.
Hey, if she takes exception, it's on OL's head.

While I stick a heart in this one, inject cloned blood into the circulatory system, and use a construct to make it beat, and then add a transmuted cardiac stimulator to keep it beating before closing up her chest.

And monitor for any change.
Presumably expecting the spiritual side to handle itself, then. Humans are quite a bit more resilient in that respect.

Kon comes a little closer, trying not to be overheard. "Should we try and help the others? Stop her eating them? I mean, can we?"

"We could try. I don't think we'd be successful, and as far as I'm concerned this is more like a resurrection than a healing. If it works and we get someone who can tell us what's going on then great, but if we can't then I'm not going to beat myself up over it. These people are dead, and when they were alive they were Aztecs."
Which, need you be reminding, means they were fine with human sacrifice. Whether that would change of they or someone they loved was a sacrifice is up in the air...

"They died a long time ago. And they're the souls of the dead. This isn't… Right."

I shrug. "No, but it's part of their belief structure. When we find out what happened to their hearts we can try and sort something out but so far this one isn't moving."
Probably too marinated in Anti-Life, or something.

I try scanning her again.

"I'd guess it's because they can't supply their own power in the way that a goddess can, but I don't know that. I don't have a perfect solution and this is the best available non-perfect solution."
Oh, right. Presumably their soul has long since moved on. Which makes the Aztec afterlives even weirder.

He nods, clearly not happy but not having anything better. "Zosime, is Grandma in the city plaza?"

"If she's not on the beach, yes."

"'kay. Let's go check in with her."
I can see that being a much-awaited meeting for both of them.

Well, that went well. Hopefully the diplomatic side of things goes as well when they meet up with Queen Hippolyta. The 'eating the walking dead' thing is a bit strange, but there's at least one goddess who symbolically eats 'sin' in the form of... 'Dirt'. What kind of dirt they mean is somewhat unclear, but, well... I suppose it's a living.
 
Zosime looks up in surprise after shoving what looks like a javelin through the arm of a Aztec… Fine, zombie.
'an Aztec'
"Delphine like it. How did you get here?"
'likes' or 'liked'?
The priestesses say that Olympus and Skybreak are now one, or… Connected together.
Took me a hot minute to figure out that Skybreak is the mountain.
"No, she-. Maybe, but she's probably Mexican.
Bold on the 'i' too? It sounds a little weird otherwise, to me at least.
 
Seriously, where is this "Mexian" thing coming from?

The Aztecs did not call themselves Aztec.

Although they were called the Mexica, singular Mexicati, according to wikipedia, so I'm not sure where the Mexian thing comes from.

Also the Mexica Empire was actually an alliance of three different city states, so the individual tribes had their own names like the Tetzcocah and Tepaneca.
 
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The Aztecs did not call themselves Aztec.

Although they were called the Mexica, singular Mexicati, according to wikipedia, so I'm not sure where the Mexian thing comes from.

Also the Mexica Empire was actually an alliance of three different city states, so the individual tribes had their own names like the Tetzcocah and Tepaneca.

I know, that's my point, Mexica is what it should say, not Mexian. I'm gonna assume that it's actual ignorance by the Illustres, in which case, why is he even correcting it?

I even commented on that already, when the Mexian thing first showed up:

I think you mean Mexica? That's what they called themselves, where the name Mexico comes from. Cause the only Mexian I know is from something and somewhere else.
 
That should say 'It'.
That should say 'bought'.
Thank you, corrected.
Since Paul is talking about himself, that should say 'I have'.
No, that's correct. He's deliberately referring to himself in the third person.
"The gods"
"pastry shop"
"stops"
Thank you, corrected.
'an Aztec'
'likes' or 'liked'?
Thank you, corrected.
Bold on the 'i' too? It sounds a little weird otherwise, to me at least.
No, I think that's how he'd say it.
 
Break Time (part 6)
17th February 2013
17:07 GMT


"Kon-El!"

Queen Hippolyta smiles broadly as we come in to land, then walks over and wraps Kon in a warm embrace. She's wearing a slightly more ornate version of the armour worn by the other women, and seems to be in generally good spirits. I watch for a moment, then turn to the nearby Philippus and open my arms with a winsome smile.

She settles for tapping her fist against my cuirass. "Lantern. I see that you restored the Earth Goddess's heart. I hope that you do not play Euanthe false?"

"Not intentionally, but who knows what women think."

She chuckles, because that's not just a chauvinistic jibe but a quote from a popular Themysciran play. The male character is something of a well-intentioned but slightly pompous figure of fun, and they.. were going to include it in their next international tour.

Queen Hippolyta half-releases Kon while keeping her right arm around his waist, leading him closer to the central table covered by a map of Themyscira. There are markers indicating the locations of Amazon military units, with slightly different signs to distinguish between guards and militia. All Amazons are trained as soldiers, but they don't all take to it to quite the same degree and they've only been able to get enough orichalcum to equip the standing army.

"We have some respite, now that Tlaltecuhtli is permanently dealing with the heartless. Orange Lantern, please update the map."

I scan, and shift the markers to their precise locations. Then I add markers for the remaining Aztec attackers and a single large one for Tlaltecuhtli.

Hippolyta nods to me. "The remaining heartless will be contained within the hour, and… Fed to Tlaltecuhtli. That will grant us the first true respite that we have had since the attacks started."

Philippus snorts. "I think that will create more disappointment than joy, majesty."

"Perhaps the loudest complainants would enjoy marching to the shoreline for reconnaissance."

"Your majesty, could you explain to us what is going on? Zosime gave a quick.. summary: Reformation Island vanished, the Anti-Life started affecting your minds and then you were teleported here, then…"

"Lord Hephaestaean explained that we had been brought here as part of his effort to protect both us and Olympus from the… Anti-Life. The precise mechanics are beyond my understanding, but we now stand a little closer to the gods than we did."

"Power… Gradient. It's possible to move physical objects into the immaterial realm. You have to have a fairly concrete part and it would take a lot of power…"

"Lord Hephaestaean said something similar. For a time we were simply relieved that we were safe. Then something occurred to cut us off from Olympus. The mountain is still there, but we cannot reach the gods and they cannot reach us."

I nod. "I couldn't rise more than a hundred metres into the air. I assumed that was just how it worked here. It wasn't like that before?"

"No."

Hippolyta shakes her head, and I wince inwardly as I realise that I'm not likely to be able to get useful thaumaturgical information here that could let me work out how that happened. Most Amazons have a basic grasp of magical practice but next to none of magical theory.

"So it's Tlazolteotl, right?" Kon's looking at me as he says it, but my only response is a shrug. "Bast said that she was looking better than she had for a long time. Aztec gods get stronger when they get fed hearts, and Tlaltecuhtli didn't have a heart when we got here."

"Plausible, if speculative. And it wouldn't explain why the other Aztec gods were okay with her doing that."

"What's Tlazolteotl goddess of?"

"Disease, adultery, vice and absolution. And bathing, for some reason."

Across the table, Menalippe looks slightly more horrified than everyone else. "And she consumes hearts for that?"

"All Aztec gods except Quetzalcoatl do. It's why no one worships them any more and why the whole region was happy to convert to Christianity. And why the Aztecs mostly got slaughtered by their tributaries rather than the Spanish who conquered them. Demanding money is one thing, but demanding people to be sacrificed isn't something people will accept in the long term."

"The hearts of other gods."

I shrug. "The principle's sound. Until we see some of the other Aztec gods, we can't conclude that for certain. Though it does put what Zeus did to Metis into perspective. Anyway, Kon and I are here trying to track down a kidnapped elf, and the sheeda who probably did that had his heart removed as well. And whoever it is also acquired the blood of a God of Travellers from some undoubtably nefarious reason."

"Which God of Travellers?"

I smile at Menalippe's disquiet. "According to the merchant, one from a dead religion. Hermes is safe."

Hippolyta considers the map. "Do the Aztecs have a navy?"

"They weren't much of a naval power when their civilisation was a going concern." Not compared to Britain, France and… Well, Spain. "Tlaloc and Chalchiuhtlicue share the 'water' domain, but I don't know… Anything about what happens in the Aztec afterlife. I had thought they went in for reincarnation so there should only be a few human souls here, but… That's clearly not the case."

"How long did Aztec civilization last?"

"About two hundred years, early fourteenth century to early sixteenth century. Depending on what you count. The people weren't exterminated after they were conquered by the Spanish, but their religion was prioritised for elimination due to the whole human sacrifice thing."

I get the general impression that the Amazons aren't exactly impressed by that. And to be fair, compared to them that's barely any time at all.

Kon frowns. "Grandma, why did the gods bring Themyscira here? I mean, specifically. I don't think Amazons and Aztecs have ever met."

Hippolyta look at Menalippe and raises her eyebrows slightly. Menalippe nods. "The… 'Anti-Life' was not merely disquieting to we mortals. Lord Hephaestaean moved Olympus to ward off its attack on the magics of Olympus."

"Because it's not being attacked here and now?"

"The magics being inflicted upon it here are different."

"So it was a trap." That gets some attention. "Someone -probably Mannheim- launches an attack on Olympus and leaves an avenue of escape. Lord Hephaestaean sees what looks like a solution and takes it, and runs into an ambush."

I guess forming a working relationship with the new War God was always going to take a little while.

Hippolyta nods. "That may well be. But what comes next?"

"Reconnaissance. Superboy, Cernunnos and I can fly across the landmass and try and find someone to interrogate." I waggle the construct coffin back and forth. "Bringing the zombies to their senses seems a little more difficult than the goddess."

Hippolyta makes eye contact with Philippus, who nods.

"Very well. Captain Philippus and our pegasus riders will accompany you."

"That-."

"We saw you fall from the sky, Paul. And Kon could have drowned in the earth."

I nod. "Of course, majesty. How quickly can they be ready?"
 
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Hippolyta look at Menalippe and raises her eyebrows slightly. Menalippe nods. "The… 'Anti-Life' was not merely disquieting to we mortals. Lord Hephaestian moved Olympus to ward off its attack on the magics of Olympus."
"So it was a trap." That gets some attention. "Someone -probably Mannheim- launches an attack on Olympus and leaves an avenue of escape. Lord Hephaestian sees what looks like a solution and takes it, and runs into an ambush."
Those should say 'Hephaestaean'.
 
"So it was a trap." That gets some attention. "Someone -probably Mannheim- launches an attack on Olympus and leaves an avenue of escape. Lord Hephaestian sees what looks like a solution and takes it, and runs into an ambush."

I guess forming a working relationship with the new War God was always going to take a little while.
So this is also LePaul's fault.

Man, this whole storyline is basically just going from thing he caused to thing he caused. And it's hilarious.
 
17th February 2013
17:07 GMT


"Kon-El!"

Queen Hippolyta smiles broadly as we come in to land, then walks over and wraps Kon in a warm embrace. She's wearing a slightly more ornate version of the armour worn by the other women, and seems to be in generally good spirits. I watch for a moment, then turn to the nearby Philippus and open my arms with a winsome smile.
Ah, a pleasant family reunion. x3 Plus OL. Evidently the Aztec undead haven't made it far onto the island, if things are this calm. Though it helps what the Amazons are professional soldiers, and even the non-combatants are likely militia-trained.

She settles for tapping her fist against my cuirass. "Lantern. I see that you restored the Earth Goddess's heart. I hope that you do not play Euanthe false?"

"Not intentionally, but who knows what women think."

She chuckles, because that's not just a chauvinistic jibe but a quote from a popular Themysciran play. The male character is something of a well-intentioned but slightly pompous figure of fun, and they.. were going to include it in their next international tour.
Ah, OL. Always willing to make a fool of yourself to put others at ease. Let's hope said troupe continues their performances after all this is done. People could probably use the distraction.

Queen Hippolyta half-releases Kon while keeping her right arm around his waist, leading him closer to the central table covered by a map of Themyscira. There are markers indicating the locations of Amazon military units, with slightly different signs to distinguish between guards and militia. All Amazons are trained as soldiers, but they don't all take to it to quite the same degree and they've only been able to get enough orichalcum to equip the standing army.
As I thought. Not every one of them is a soldier (Ah-woo!) but they are all fighters.

"We have some respite, now that Tlaltecuhtli is permanently dealing with the heartless. Orange Lantern, please update the map."

I scan, and shift the markers to their precise locations. Then I add markers for the remaining Aztec attackers and a single large one for Tlaltecuhtli.
Ah, what she would probably have given back in the day for such overwatch.

Hippolyta nods to me. "The remaining heartless will be contained within the hour, and… Fed to Tlaltecuhtli. That will grant us the first true respite that we have had since the attacks started."

Philippus snorts. "I think that will create more disappointment than joy, majesty."
First good fight some of them have had in a couple of centuries, then?

"Perhaps the loudest complainants would enjoy marching to the shoreline for reconnaissance."

"Your majesty, could you explain to us what is going on? Zosime gave a quick.. summary: Reformation Island vanished, the Anti-Life started affecting your minds and then you were teleported here, then…"
Details would be nice.

"Lord Hephaestaean explained that we had been brought here as part of his effort to protect both us and Olympus from the… Anti-Life. The precise mechanics are beyond my understanding, but we now stand a little closer to the gods than we did."

"Power… Gradient. It's possible to move physical objects into the immaterial realm. You have to have a fairly concrete part and it would take a lot of power…"
I wonder if the blessings of the Goddesses is enhanced here? Imagine if even the weakest was on par with a Danner enhancile.

"Lord Hephaestaean said something similar. For a time we were simply relieved that we were safe. Then something occurred to cut us off from Olympus. The mountain is still there, but we cannot reach the gods and they cannot reach us."

I nod. "I couldn't rise more than a hundred metres into the air. I assumed that was just how it worked here. It wasn't like that before?"
I mean... Other than trying to climb the mountain, how would they have known?

"No."

Hippolyta shakes her head, and I wince inwardly as I realise that I'm not likely to be able to get useful thaumaturgical information here that could let me work out how that happened. Most Amazons have a basic grasp of magical practice but next to none of magical theory.
And those that do are probably busy with other duties.

"So it's Tlazolteotl, right?" Kon's looking at me as he says it, but my only response is a shrug. "Bast said that she was looking better than she had for a long time. Aztec gods get stronger when they get fed hearts, and Tlaltecuhtli didn't have a heart when we got here."

"Plausible, if speculative. And it wouldn't explain why the other Aztec gods were okay with her doing that."
Perhaps there's been a change of leadership over there. Someone a little blood-thirstier is in charge, perhaps.

"What's Tlazolteotl goddess of?"

"Disease, adultery, vice and absolution. And bathing, for some reason."
The Sin-eater. The bathing is more purification than mere cleaning...

Across the table, Menalippe looks slightly more horrified than everyone else. "And she consumes hearts for that?"

"All Aztec gods except Quetzalcoatl do. It's why no one worships them any more and why the whole region was happy to convert to Christianity. And why the Aztecs mostly got slaughtered by their tributaries rather than the Spanish who conquered them. Demanding money is one thing, but demanding people to be sacrificed isn't something people will accept in the long term."
Bit short-sighted of them. Guess they believed their own mythos too well.

"The hearts of other gods."

I shrug. "The principle's sound. Until we see some of the other Aztec gods, we can't conclude that for certain. Though it does put what Zeus did to Metis into perspective. Anyway, Kon and I are here trying to track down a kidnapped elf, and the sheeda who probably did that had his heart removed as well. And whoever it is also acquired the blood of a God of Travellers from some undoubtably nefarious reason."
Perhaps some manner of inversion spell. A spell to prevent someone (or someones) fleeing?

"Which God of Travellers?"

I smile at Menalippe's disquiet. "According to the merchant, one from a dead religion. Hermes is safe."
And there are many dead religions in the world. Half the problem is that they're dead, so we can't even know how many.

Hippolyta considers the map. "Do the Aztecs have a navy?"

"They weren't much of a naval power when their civilisation was a going concern." Not compared to Britain, France and… Well, Spain. "Tlaloc and Chalchiuhtlicue share the 'water' domain, but I don't know… Anything about what happens in the Aztec afterlife. I had thought they went in for reincarnation so there should only be a few human souls here, but… That's clearly not the case."
Then again, these undead seem more representations of flesh, not of spirit.

"How long did Aztec civilization last?"

"About two hundred years, early fourteenth century to early sixteenth century. Depending on what you count. The people weren't exterminated after they were conquered by the Spanish, but their religion was prioritised for elimination due to the whole human sacrifice thing."
Yet a lot can happen in just two hundred years...

I get the general impression that the Amazons aren't exactly impressed by that. And to be fair, compared to them that's barely any time at all.

Kon frowns. "Grandma, why did the gods bring Themyscira here? I mean, specifically. I don't think Amazons and Aztecs have ever met."
Not like they'd ever have moved in the same circles. Unlike some alternates, like Planetary.

Hippolyta look at Menalippe and raises her eyebrows slightly. Menalippe nods. "The… 'Anti-Life' was not merely disquieting to we mortals. Lord Hephaestian moved Olympus to ward off its attack on the magics of Olympus."

"Because it's not being attacked here and now?"
Because Olympus is the home of one of the most prominent pantheons on Earth, and The God of Tyranny will brook no rivals.

"The magics being inflicted upon it here are different."

"So it was a trap." That gets some attention. "Someone -probably Mannheim- launches an attack on Olympus and leaves an avenue of escape. Lord Hephaestian sees what looks like a solution and takes it, and runs into an ambush."
Played like a fiddle. Kind of embarrassing.

I guess forming a working relationship with the new War God was always going to take a little while.

Hippolyta nods. "That may well be. But what comes next?"
That will depend on the Aztec pantheon, I suspect.

"Reconnaissance. Superboy, Cernunnos and I can fly across the landmass and try and fine someone to interrogate." I waggle the construct coffin back and forth. "Bringing the zombies to their senses seems a little more difficult than the goddess."

Hippolyta makes eye contact with Philippus, who nods.
Not much spirit to that one, eh?

"Very well. Captain Philippus and our pegasus riders will accompany you."

"That-."
Dude. Don't turn down extra hands.

"We saw you fall from the sky, Paul. And Kon could have drowned in the earth."

I nod. "Of course, majesty. How quickly can they be ready?"
Kind of embarrassing. Though I'm impressed they saw all that. Presumably there was a lookout watching that way at the right moment...

So, then. Hopefully if they head across to Aztec territory, they won't be taken as a raiding party. And depending on what force comes after them, that may well happen, if their leader is hot-headed enough. Still, this situation doesn't need any additional tension, so OL is going to have to be very careful to keep everyone's heads level...
 
So this is also LePaul's fault.

Man, this whole storyline is basically just going from thing he caused to thing he caused. And it's hilarious.

It's good writing. A proper story is driven by the decisions of the main character. Sure, the antagonists are doing things to, but it's best when that to is in response to the MC. Otherwise you get a passive mc with no agency that a story just happens to, and those are typically very frustrating to read.
 
Thinking about it.

The Olympians must be either falling apart and in full backstab mode, or Hephestus is just straight up ignoring their advice. Because Athena and Artemis at the very least should have seen right through a tactic like that.

On the up side, I guess this has done a good job proving Hephestus is not really king of the gods material.
 

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