Vaermina
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With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)
- Thread starter Mr Zoat
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- self insert young justice
Anarkic (part 5)
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Mr Zoat
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1st May 2013
09:49 GMT -5
Ambrose nods at me as I come in to land. His hair's mostly grown back now after he… Got Anti-Lifed and drafted into a slave gang. At the moment he looks almost respectable. Alan and Johanna can carry on interviewing suspects without me, but I need my go-to street magician to try to track down whoever performed that ritual.
"I thought life was getting safe and predictable. What is it?"
"Do you know that ritual John Constantine uses to erase records relating to him?"
He considers things for a moment. "There's a couple of spells that can do that. I don't know exactly what he uses." He frowns. "Not sure if electronic records would be easier than paper records…"
"We've lost both. Can you detect where the spell was used if you have access to the person whose records were erased?"
"Yeah, probably. I'm fine, thanks for asking."
I frown. "I know you're fine, I checked-. Oh. Ah. Right. How are you doing?"
He rolls his eyes and shakes his head. "I think we got that bit the wrong way around."
"Right, it's just-. After we got rid of the Anti-Life, I checked everyone on my 'friends and acquaintances' list. I knew you were basically alright and then got back to work. If you'd actually needed anything I'd have dealt with it, but given how busy I was…"
"Nice to know I'm on there somewhere." He watches me, and…
Have I forgotten something? Well, not forgotten, but-. The damned. The last time I checked on them was when I brought Demon Supergirl to Themyscira.
"And your house guests?"
"All better. We spent some time bonding on a community manual labour project."
"And… The Anti-Life overrode their… Problem?"
"More like bypassed it." He shakes his head. "No, it was more like your life broadcast at the end that sorted them out."
"Ah, well, good. How well are they functioning?"
He raises his left eyebrow. "Compared to what?"
"The average member of society. I'm not asking because I like them, I'm asking so that I can either check off the project as 'complete' or actually complete it. Is there anything I need to do -like ferry them back to their home countries- that I haven't done so far?"
"No, they've… They've settled down, now. Got jobs, made friends… I think the best thing to do is leave them here." He shrugs. "Unless they ask you to move them."
Uh. Obviously that breaks U.S. immigration law, but it's a handful of people and given everything else that's going on…
"Alright. I can send messages to their families if they want, otherwise I'll leave supervising them up to you."
He gives me a sour look. "You never stopped leaving it with me."
I.. can't tell whether he's just having a moan or if he's genuinely aggrieved. Probably best to directly ask.
"Is there something I can do to make it up to you?"
"Try asking that sort of question about four months ago."
"I'd need a time machine for that, and we dismantled the last one. And the Legion of Superheroes wants to arrest me, so I can't just leave a time capsule-."
"No-. Not literally. Just show a bit more consideration."
I nod. "Alright. How many people do you want me to leave to die in favour of showing you consideration?"
He narrows his eyes slightly, his lips silently moving as he tries to get to grips with what I just said.
"Serious question. Superman would just say sorry and start popping by at random intervals, but the reason I came to you in the first place is because I think you're well-intentioned and capable. I haven't dropped anything on you that you didn't tell me you could handle, and you've clearly done a good job. The world's a mess, and a few days ago I was rescuing people before they could have their brains pulled out to be used as computers. Do you want me to not rescue them in favour of checking in on people who aren't in any danger?"
He sets his jaw. "Your people skills could use some work."
"Well, alright. I'll find a class to attend. I don't really like nine year olds much anyway. I'm sure Lonnie -who is an orphan, by the way- will be fine facing down LexCorp hit squads without me."
"Lead with that. Jesus!"
And then I see-. Whatever spell he's using to deflect my empathic vision weakens for a moment, and there's-.
I frown in puzzlement. "Is this because you think you should have been able to duck the Anti-Life?"
And the spell completely stabilises. "No, it's because you're an arse."
"Lots of people got turned. And you're a street magician. Unless you were specifically prepared for it, you shouldn't expect that you'd be much safer than a random member of the public, particularly if they focused on you to any degree. Nearly got me at one point."
He frowns. "How?"
"Used an infected clone of me."
"How did they clone you?"
"No, I cloned me. They stole them."
"Wha-?" His eyes widen slightly. "Using a drop of blood or a hair is-."
"A way to remotely affect someone, I know. I had defences in place that would have stopped a opportunistic raid of my home. They used super powered Justifiers. Look, I'll be happy to go over every concern you have later, but I'd like to recover Lonnie Machin as soon as possible. Can we please focus on that?"
"Who is he?"
"An unusually intelligent and socially conscious boy-" I take a hologram projector out of subspace and create an image of him. "-who appears to have stolen something from LexCorp. Parents missing presumed dead after the Anti-Life."
"Can we get something of theirs? Easier to track him like that-."
"Does it work if he was adopted?"
"Not as well. Natural parents?"
"Mother was killed in an arson attack, father's in an asylum for the criminally insane. As far as he knows, his son died in the fire too and that's how we're leaving it."
"Someone I'd have heard of?"
"Yes."
"Right. Okay. Take me to the people who had their-." He frowns. "Is this Lonnie boy a wizard?"
"Not as far as I know, but he's a… Scientific rationalist. If a phenomena exists, he's happy to study it."
"So if he found a book on magic..?"
"He would carefully follow the instructions."
"Except the magic books you get in America aren't-. Right." He metaphorically girds his loins. "Let's get on with it."
09:49 GMT -5
Ambrose nods at me as I come in to land. His hair's mostly grown back now after he… Got Anti-Lifed and drafted into a slave gang. At the moment he looks almost respectable. Alan and Johanna can carry on interviewing suspects without me, but I need my go-to street magician to try to track down whoever performed that ritual.
"I thought life was getting safe and predictable. What is it?"
"Do you know that ritual John Constantine uses to erase records relating to him?"
He considers things for a moment. "There's a couple of spells that can do that. I don't know exactly what he uses." He frowns. "Not sure if electronic records would be easier than paper records…"
"We've lost both. Can you detect where the spell was used if you have access to the person whose records were erased?"
"Yeah, probably. I'm fine, thanks for asking."
I frown. "I know you're fine, I checked-. Oh. Ah. Right. How are you doing?"
He rolls his eyes and shakes his head. "I think we got that bit the wrong way around."
"Right, it's just-. After we got rid of the Anti-Life, I checked everyone on my 'friends and acquaintances' list. I knew you were basically alright and then got back to work. If you'd actually needed anything I'd have dealt with it, but given how busy I was…"
"Nice to know I'm on there somewhere." He watches me, and…
Have I forgotten something? Well, not forgotten, but-. The damned. The last time I checked on them was when I brought Demon Supergirl to Themyscira.
"And your house guests?"
"All better. We spent some time bonding on a community manual labour project."
"And… The Anti-Life overrode their… Problem?"
"More like bypassed it." He shakes his head. "No, it was more like your life broadcast at the end that sorted them out."
"Ah, well, good. How well are they functioning?"
He raises his left eyebrow. "Compared to what?"
"The average member of society. I'm not asking because I like them, I'm asking so that I can either check off the project as 'complete' or actually complete it. Is there anything I need to do -like ferry them back to their home countries- that I haven't done so far?"
"No, they've… They've settled down, now. Got jobs, made friends… I think the best thing to do is leave them here." He shrugs. "Unless they ask you to move them."
Uh. Obviously that breaks U.S. immigration law, but it's a handful of people and given everything else that's going on…
"Alright. I can send messages to their families if they want, otherwise I'll leave supervising them up to you."
He gives me a sour look. "You never stopped leaving it with me."
I.. can't tell whether he's just having a moan or if he's genuinely aggrieved. Probably best to directly ask.
"Is there something I can do to make it up to you?"
"Try asking that sort of question about four months ago."
"I'd need a time machine for that, and we dismantled the last one. And the Legion of Superheroes wants to arrest me, so I can't just leave a time capsule-."
"No-. Not literally. Just show a bit more consideration."
I nod. "Alright. How many people do you want me to leave to die in favour of showing you consideration?"
He narrows his eyes slightly, his lips silently moving as he tries to get to grips with what I just said.
"Serious question. Superman would just say sorry and start popping by at random intervals, but the reason I came to you in the first place is because I think you're well-intentioned and capable. I haven't dropped anything on you that you didn't tell me you could handle, and you've clearly done a good job. The world's a mess, and a few days ago I was rescuing people before they could have their brains pulled out to be used as computers. Do you want me to not rescue them in favour of checking in on people who aren't in any danger?"
He sets his jaw. "Your people skills could use some work."
"Well, alright. I'll find a class to attend. I don't really like nine year olds much anyway. I'm sure Lonnie -who is an orphan, by the way- will be fine facing down LexCorp hit squads without me."
"Lead with that. Jesus!"
And then I see-. Whatever spell he's using to deflect my empathic vision weakens for a moment, and there's-.
I frown in puzzlement. "Is this because you think you should have been able to duck the Anti-Life?"
And the spell completely stabilises. "No, it's because you're an arse."
"Lots of people got turned. And you're a street magician. Unless you were specifically prepared for it, you shouldn't expect that you'd be much safer than a random member of the public, particularly if they focused on you to any degree. Nearly got me at one point."
He frowns. "How?"
"Used an infected clone of me."
"How did they clone you?"
"No, I cloned me. They stole them."
"Wha-?" His eyes widen slightly. "Using a drop of blood or a hair is-."
"A way to remotely affect someone, I know. I had defences in place that would have stopped a opportunistic raid of my home. They used super powered Justifiers. Look, I'll be happy to go over every concern you have later, but I'd like to recover Lonnie Machin as soon as possible. Can we please focus on that?"
"Who is he?"
"An unusually intelligent and socially conscious boy-" I take a hologram projector out of subspace and create an image of him. "-who appears to have stolen something from LexCorp. Parents missing presumed dead after the Anti-Life."
"Can we get something of theirs? Easier to track him like that-."
"Does it work if he was adopted?"
"Not as well. Natural parents?"
"Mother was killed in an arson attack, father's in an asylum for the criminally insane. As far as he knows, his son died in the fire too and that's how we're leaving it."
"Someone I'd have heard of?"
"Yes."
"Right. Okay. Take me to the people who had their-." He frowns. "Is this Lonnie boy a wizard?"
"Not as far as I know, but he's a… Scientific rationalist. If a phenomena exists, he's happy to study it."
"So if he found a book on magic..?"
"He would carefully follow the instructions."
"Except the magic books you get in America aren't-. Right." He metaphorically girds his loins. "Let's get on with it."
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Ngamer11
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I hope Paul will eventually reveal to someone the identity of Lonnie's father.
Chojin Patriarch
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Ah, of course. Ambrose Bierce, proud member of the trenchcoat brigade, Constantine-lookalike division. Perfect man to look in for advice, since John is probably still relaxing. I see he didn't get through Anti-Life unscathed, though...
Yes, this is going to be an interesting consultation.
Presumably John's version is a craftier one that works cheaper for more subtle results.
There's 'fine', and then there's 'Fine'. There's a big difference between those two marks.
I'm sure he wasn't very high on the list, though. And there's still some folks OL hasn't been able to check on because of Atlantis.
...And that's been so long ago, we might need a refresher...
I suppose that's one way to get over things.
Like it did a great many issues on Earth. At least for those exposed to it.
...Comatose from trauma and depression?
And that is probably unlikely. Too many connections now.
I hardly think anyone's checking that sort of thing at this point. Enough time to arrange some things.
Why can't it be both?
Good point indeed. On the other hand, OL has an excuse for having been busy.
Fair ask. Keep in mind just how many irons he has in the fire.
Man, so many good points being tossed back and forth...
Well, when you put it like that...
Ha! Down to business, then.
Man, even John Constantine couldn't manage that. He got out of it by straight up peacing out of the universe for a while.
Nothing special about ambrose, after all. Not much a cosmic force can't do when it's being applied with a sledgehammer's force.
...Which still hasn't been found, I'll note. One got destroyed, but there was more than one.
That was a bit foolish. Especially just leaving them unattended in your base.
Worry about recriminations later, you've got a mission.
At this rate, he's going to have such a reputation before he even goes public.
Oh, yeah. That is a bit awkward. I doubt any existing familial connection would be that strong.
...Man, imagine how he would react if he found out about this.
How has that smiling fellow been getting on? Between the Anti-Life and the White Light events...
And the reverse of Clarke's law applies here: Any sufficiently analysed Magic is indistinguishable from Science.
Carefully edited to remove any particularly dangerous information and spells, I take it.
Hmm... Would getting a sample from his father help find him? It might be a trick to do so, but if it can be useful... At any rate, they'll find him sooner or later, however they manage it. OL will find a way to locate him somehow... Though it'll be a troublesome thing over how many people find out about Lonnie because of this.
Z000
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he not wrong
when you juggle as many thing as Paul does, he kinda have to drop a few low priority one that look fine on the outside
Mr Zoat
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There is always a most important thing to do. That cannot be changed.
Ngamer11
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I know. That's why I said lessen. Though now I'm wondering who'd make for a good OL. Do you have a list of candidates among the people of Earth 16?
Neruz
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If the choice is between saving lives and putting the world back together after it was nearly destroyed by Anti Life, or making sure someone's feelings aren't hurt, that should not be a hard choice for any reasonable person to make.
Oglymogly
I trust you know where the happy button is?
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Dude, you are actively avoiding one of OL's main coping mechanisms for his lack of interpersonal skills. That's kind like using a voice modulator on a blind man.
This is a good reminder to the readers that OL has a fairly inhuman mindset after everything he's been through, though.
I didn't know Ambrose was a Phil Foglio creation. Cool thing to learn, thanks for the link!
Chaoswind
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We can then presume Jade extended family on both sides are alive and coping (otherwise Paul would have broken the news to Jade), he knows how Holly, Karon and Selina handled it, but their status isn't really relevant enough to report to someone else, if any of his immediate friend group had died we would have known about it by now so that means the team is fine (besides the Atlanteans?), the acquaintances extended list includes many Amazons so their loses against the Anti-Lifed after life zombies couldn't have been bad... Anyways could we take this part as confirmation that no one important died?
And I am including Dreams next incarnation in that list.
Darko
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"settled"
Plus, they may still be listed as dead.
WereDragon
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Had a moment of disconnect there, wondering how the prime SI knew about Krono's latest robo-brain escapade.
Not inaccurate, but also not all that productive. People have been failing to improve Paul's people skills since he stopped having conventional morality.
Silveraith
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Darko
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In order to make Jade feel better, Paul decided to resurrect some of the people she killed using the Lazarus Pit.
Some of them ended up in Hell and were traumatized when they got back.
Ambrose has been looking after them.
Mr Zoat
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The SI meets someone he thinks would be a good candidate later this episode. He's badly wrong, but he's working off limited information.
At the moment he'd probably just set his rings to await his resurrection, or return to Maltus. In a few yeasr he wouldn't mind recruiting Anarky, but he's just not mature enough at the moment.
Thank you, corrected.
Ngamer11
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That's a shame. Though now I hope he'll do something that will make Anarky more receptive to being recruited in the future.
BartlettMagic
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right. i can see the potential there, but that kid needs to get an enormous reality check that i kinda think only OL can give him.
who is his father, and is there a reason why he might be special? the only reference i could find in my (admittedly quick/lazy) search was Mike Machin, a low-level criminal that was accidentally killed by Jim Gordon- and that's the Arrowverse page. i didn't see anything else on who Anarky's dad might be.
also, what is the big deal with Anarky anyway? why was he on OL's "list of people to keep an eye on"? i'm not deep in the lore anymore, but last i checked Anarky was at best a 'nuisance antagonist' that never went fully 'dangerous/crazy supervillian'. why is Anarky's sudden appearance an 'oh shit' moment for OL?
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Ngamer11
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Jack Napier aka the Joker. Paul checked up on it when the Team was fighting the Injustice League.