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With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)
- Thread starter Mr Zoat
- Start date
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- self insert young justice
Stsword
Versed in the lewd.
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The Question is a shaman, his magic isn't like other forms of magic if Zoat is taking inspiration from that Question limited series.
That version of the Question wouldn't cast a spell that erases his records, he'd commune with the spiritual plane and ask his records to erase themselves for him.
Same effect and still magic but very different methodology.
The same way that the Congregation's So;urce based magic doesn't seem the same to him.
Vaermina
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Kara's a Silver Age Kryptonian, meaning she has the ability to break the fourth wall.
Ardy
I trust you know where the happy button is?
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By punching it really hard, of course. Just look at what happened with Superboy!
And That's Okay (part 5)
New
Mr Zoat
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19th July 2013
09:55 GMT -5
Rather than… Tiles, it's a single unbroken surface. No scuff marks or accreted dust from irregular cleaning, and… It sort of merges into the wall on the periphery of the room. The furniture is.. gone, and the dimensions of the room have shifted. It's gone from a cylinder to a trapezoid, the floor area larger than the roof. The stairs upwards are.. sort of twisted and shrunk, probably still usable, but… I don't think that's a good idea.
And… I get the feeling that I'm not welcome here.
"Question, what is this in aid of?"
Check myself… Yes, it appears that I'm here physically.
"There's a non-zero chance that Superwoman will tear your lighthouse apart trying to find me."
The feeling of not being welcome intensifies, and the room seems to.. twist further, getting smaller as the door to outside widens.
"And while I'm not sure exactly what you're doing, it's extremely likely that I can brute force my way out. I want some recognition for the fact that I'm indulging you."
I fly-.
Ah. I don't fly, but instead stand up like a normal person and walk towards the door, the feeling of malevolence decreasing as I do so. Outside…
Hm.
The rural outskirts of Hub City are blurry and indistinct, the occasional building having a little more definition but still being simplified. Almost like a child's drawing, the walls, roof and windows being identifiable but any other detail being entirely omitted.
I think I know where I am.
"You've brought me into the city's mind. Let me explain why that was stupid." I start marching towards… Where the reclamation is taking place, yes, that's the best place. The area of the city that's being restored by me. "Even though on the surface denying me my exotic abilities looks like a good approach to confronting me, you're really just binding them by applying external power. Now, as a street shaman that's usually a pretty good approach; sticking a mugger into an oubliette where they can't hurt anyone or be hurt in turn is a pretty nifty technique. But it's less effective when the person you're imprisoning can interact with their environment or with magic in general and can brute force an exit if they choose to. I could interact with the city's desires and really mess around with your spell. And the city. And its inhabitants. If your use of a spell depends on the person you're using it on being a good person then you didn't need to cast it in the first place."
Oh.
"Unless I got to you too late, the Peace Agents were right, and Doctor Tetch already got to you. In which case, feel free to ignore me…" I nod. "Good plan."
I-. Ah. As I approach the outskirts of the city proper, I see a… The roads and pavements are merged into one, but there's a sort of… Shimmer? No, that's not right. Potential? Which gets stronger towards the middle. No discrete cars, but… The chance of a car-encounter. Normally that wouldn't worry me, but if I'm in a magical location what I'm looking at is more the idea of a car crash, and human bodies usually come up second best in those.
So I stick to the edges. Hm. Now, running in a city might worry people, but there should have been enough joggers for long enough that it won't build… Hah, malignity. So I increase my speed, looking around at something only a handful of people will ever see. Hah, it's like getting up close to a skybox or something.
Oh, this is going to be a problem in a couple of centuries. Less if this reality has a Jack Hawksmoor… The later version, where they gave him a massive power up. The early version where he was a human adapted for living in a city life rather than in a small hunter-gatherer community wouldn't really be relevant. Unless… Maybe I could have a word with Tyche? She isn't one of the gods that I've reached out to before, but if she's a self-interested rational agent then I'd have thought that the possibility of bringing things like this under her purview would be something that would interest her.
"I just made a plan to use this place's existence to power up one of my gods! This is why I shouldn't be left on my own to think of things!"
Ugh. Sandman. One of the few issues I read. Supposedly, normal people can take a wrong turn and end up in here for a while, until they see something that looks like a path out. But that's for a random person, and literally dropping off the edge of the world was traumatic enough for the point of view character that he… Moved to a small village somewhere? I read it a long time ago.
But if you don't abandon fire because it burned you once…
If you're a street shaman…
You could learn to step between one and the other… Not quite at will, but close to it. And… In this place, cities are only dimly aware of one another…
It wouldn't be instant travel, but if you got on a train or bus or in a car here, you could move from place to place without passing through space in the material world… Probably a good deal faster.
Ugh. And while I've been assuming that Dr. Tetch had access to a hush tube, he might just have been using this.
Some magic doesn't work properly when performed by someone under mind control, but a lot works just fine. And it's not as if I actually know Mr. Sage well enough to know whether or not he's acting out of character, particularly now.
"Can you ask someone to keep an eye on Superwoman? She.. sort of needs that."
Getting closer to the centre of the city, and the wisps are… Becoming more noticeable. Rather than just a blur, I can see bonnet, doors and headlights, and faintly hear engines, horns and the noise of rubber on tarmac. The wisps at the sides of the streets are also more solid, vague impressions of people… Not any particular person, but manifestations of 'people-ness'. I imagine that if someone was next to me that their general impression would be the same but that we would both describe different specific details.
For a moment I wonder how this could be utilised, and then I remember the issue of The Authority when the fake Doctor sold advertising space in the human collective unconscious… What could I do that people wouldn't mess up almost immediately? Well, maybe I could use the intercity train networks for improved Dolmen Gate safety?
No, that's dumb. They're already instant and strictly point to.. point. But if I could connect them to the train network-. No, because Atlanteans strongly dislike using spiritual realms like this-.
STOP
I look up at what I think is a reflection of advertising hoardings… Several reflections of advertising hoardings, each with a clearly readable depiction of the word 'stop' on them. And I think I felt it when the word appeared.
"Are you telling me to stop thinking about turning this realm into a transit hub, or stop walking?"
BOTH
It's interesting, because the words are laid out like an advertising hoarding would have them. Bold colours clearly relating to some product or other… I think that one is Coke… Not sure about the others.
"This isn't an effective way to communicate information…" I frown. "Unless this is Danny the Street or something and you can blow newspapers at me with articles which actually explain what you want."
NO
"It's annoying, you know? I'm trying to do the right thing, but I end up with this credibility gap and people who I actually agree with refuse to cooperate. I had this thing with Lex Luthor a few years ago where I begged him to switch sides and raise humanity up, and he… Didn't go for it. And now I've got you. So, what? What's this about?"
"Finding somewhere-" I turn around as The Question walks out of an alley that wasn't there a moment ago. "-to have a private conversation."
09:55 GMT -5
Rather than… Tiles, it's a single unbroken surface. No scuff marks or accreted dust from irregular cleaning, and… It sort of merges into the wall on the periphery of the room. The furniture is.. gone, and the dimensions of the room have shifted. It's gone from a cylinder to a trapezoid, the floor area larger than the roof. The stairs upwards are.. sort of twisted and shrunk, probably still usable, but… I don't think that's a good idea.
And… I get the feeling that I'm not welcome here.
"Question, what is this in aid of?"
Check myself… Yes, it appears that I'm here physically.
"There's a non-zero chance that Superwoman will tear your lighthouse apart trying to find me."
The feeling of not being welcome intensifies, and the room seems to.. twist further, getting smaller as the door to outside widens.
"And while I'm not sure exactly what you're doing, it's extremely likely that I can brute force my way out. I want some recognition for the fact that I'm indulging you."
I fly-.
Ah. I don't fly, but instead stand up like a normal person and walk towards the door, the feeling of malevolence decreasing as I do so. Outside…
Hm.
The rural outskirts of Hub City are blurry and indistinct, the occasional building having a little more definition but still being simplified. Almost like a child's drawing, the walls, roof and windows being identifiable but any other detail being entirely omitted.
I think I know where I am.
"You've brought me into the city's mind. Let me explain why that was stupid." I start marching towards… Where the reclamation is taking place, yes, that's the best place. The area of the city that's being restored by me. "Even though on the surface denying me my exotic abilities looks like a good approach to confronting me, you're really just binding them by applying external power. Now, as a street shaman that's usually a pretty good approach; sticking a mugger into an oubliette where they can't hurt anyone or be hurt in turn is a pretty nifty technique. But it's less effective when the person you're imprisoning can interact with their environment or with magic in general and can brute force an exit if they choose to. I could interact with the city's desires and really mess around with your spell. And the city. And its inhabitants. If your use of a spell depends on the person you're using it on being a good person then you didn't need to cast it in the first place."
Oh.
"Unless I got to you too late, the Peace Agents were right, and Doctor Tetch already got to you. In which case, feel free to ignore me…" I nod. "Good plan."
I-. Ah. As I approach the outskirts of the city proper, I see a… The roads and pavements are merged into one, but there's a sort of… Shimmer? No, that's not right. Potential? Which gets stronger towards the middle. No discrete cars, but… The chance of a car-encounter. Normally that wouldn't worry me, but if I'm in a magical location what I'm looking at is more the idea of a car crash, and human bodies usually come up second best in those.
So I stick to the edges. Hm. Now, running in a city might worry people, but there should have been enough joggers for long enough that it won't build… Hah, malignity. So I increase my speed, looking around at something only a handful of people will ever see. Hah, it's like getting up close to a skybox or something.
Oh, this is going to be a problem in a couple of centuries. Less if this reality has a Jack Hawksmoor… The later version, where they gave him a massive power up. The early version where he was a human adapted for living in a city life rather than in a small hunter-gatherer community wouldn't really be relevant. Unless… Maybe I could have a word with Tyche? She isn't one of the gods that I've reached out to before, but if she's a self-interested rational agent then I'd have thought that the possibility of bringing things like this under her purview would be something that would interest her.
"I just made a plan to use this place's existence to power up one of my gods! This is why I shouldn't be left on my own to think of things!"
Ugh. Sandman. One of the few issues I read. Supposedly, normal people can take a wrong turn and end up in here for a while, until they see something that looks like a path out. But that's for a random person, and literally dropping off the edge of the world was traumatic enough for the point of view character that he… Moved to a small village somewhere? I read it a long time ago.
But if you don't abandon fire because it burned you once…
If you're a street shaman…
You could learn to step between one and the other… Not quite at will, but close to it. And… In this place, cities are only dimly aware of one another…
It wouldn't be instant travel, but if you got on a train or bus or in a car here, you could move from place to place without passing through space in the material world… Probably a good deal faster.
Ugh. And while I've been assuming that Dr. Tetch had access to a hush tube, he might just have been using this.
Some magic doesn't work properly when performed by someone under mind control, but a lot works just fine. And it's not as if I actually know Mr. Sage well enough to know whether or not he's acting out of character, particularly now.
"Can you ask someone to keep an eye on Superwoman? She.. sort of needs that."
Getting closer to the centre of the city, and the wisps are… Becoming more noticeable. Rather than just a blur, I can see bonnet, doors and headlights, and faintly hear engines, horns and the noise of rubber on tarmac. The wisps at the sides of the streets are also more solid, vague impressions of people… Not any particular person, but manifestations of 'people-ness'. I imagine that if someone was next to me that their general impression would be the same but that we would both describe different specific details.
For a moment I wonder how this could be utilised, and then I remember the issue of The Authority when the fake Doctor sold advertising space in the human collective unconscious… What could I do that people wouldn't mess up almost immediately? Well, maybe I could use the intercity train networks for improved Dolmen Gate safety?
No, that's dumb. They're already instant and strictly point to.. point. But if I could connect them to the train network-. No, because Atlanteans strongly dislike using spiritual realms like this-.
STOP
I look up at what I think is a reflection of advertising hoardings… Several reflections of advertising hoardings, each with a clearly readable depiction of the word 'stop' on them. And I think I felt it when the word appeared.
"Are you telling me to stop thinking about turning this realm into a transit hub, or stop walking?"
BOTH
It's interesting, because the words are laid out like an advertising hoarding would have them. Bold colours clearly relating to some product or other… I think that one is Coke… Not sure about the others.
"This isn't an effective way to communicate information…" I frown. "Unless this is Danny the Street or something and you can blow newspapers at me with articles which actually explain what you want."
NO
"It's annoying, you know? I'm trying to do the right thing, but I end up with this credibility gap and people who I actually agree with refuse to cooperate. I had this thing with Lex Luthor a few years ago where I begged him to switch sides and raise humanity up, and he… Didn't go for it. And now I've got you. So, what? What's this about?"
"Finding somewhere-" I turn around as The Question walks out of an alley that wasn't there a moment ago. "-to have a private conversation."
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Ngamer11
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I think this is the point where the Question realized he may have made a mistake when he brought Paul into the mind of his city.
I'm guessing the Question is a little surprised that Paul is just rolling with how he was communicating and showed up because it wasn't intimidating to Paul.
Vaermina
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Orange Lantern becomes such a ten year old child when someone gets one over on him.
Darko
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"how this"
Chojin Patriarch
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So, to some degree, the idealised form of itself... As rendered in a low-quality 3d model. So this is almost certainly not the real world anymore. It looks like the Question has done something dreadfully clever.
The question is, how easy will it to be get out?
Though I'm sure she'll also be happy to rebuild it, given a good explanation.
Certainly, unless he's completely cut off from the Honden, one greediport would let him slip free.
The space imposing its rules on him, or just him playing nice, I wonder...
Ah... I remember that issue of Sandman.
I wonder if Hub City had an excess of Avarice and Fear in its' 'mind' and a dearth of Compassion? It would explain so much about it.
He seemed too... Together for that.
And not even invulnerability would help, in that case, I suspect. Not in a conceptual realm like this.
I shudder to imagine what the immune system of this place is like. Probably like something out of a liminal space creepypasta or something...
That is a strange concept. I did always find his visual aspect interesting, mostly the treaded soles of his feet. Makes a lot more sense for walking on concrete and asphalt... As for Tyche, that could have an interesting effect. Perhaps cities would come to worship her...
According to the summary, he was more concerned if the cities ever woke up from their dream. But given the existence of city shamans, they're already awake... Eh, dreams don't really have to make sense, do they?
Fortunately, they don't operate like other living things, breeding, fighting and dying...
...Probably a bit too complicated for that. Keep it simple, OL.
...She really does need a minder, doesn't she? Too enthusiastic by half. Someone with a clicker nearby to keep her flights of fancy more grounded.
And now I picture it feeling like walking through a giant, low-resolution equivalent to Grand Theft Auto at street level rather than the overhead camera.
That was a messed up storyline, even for the Authority.
Wow, he's annoyed the city itself into telling him 'stop. Just stop.'
I would think all of the above. Even a patient city can lose its temper...
Funky. And if the streetscape was more realised, with actual people, he'd probably look like a loony, talking to the billboards.
Another thing to wonder whether they exist or not.
And maybe stop trauma-dumping on the poor city, OL? It's had a hard enough life so far.
Well, I suppose it's private enough. Still, I can't help but picture it as wanting OL gone as soon as possible just to stop him imagining horrifying concepts around it. Though I have to wonder what it thinks of him rebuilding its industry, and whether that affects the character of the 'mind'... And what that suggest about places like Gotham.
Mr Zoat
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And then you realise that what saw print was the censored version.
Rush really didn't deserve that in either case.
Duke Long
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'And its inhabitants.'
'were'
I would've said malice, but I'm glad you didn't because I've never seen this word before.
Cool! I think Tetch probably did have a hush tube (particularly given the experience of falling that Mr Chimp had) but it's a nice idea.
I was thinking this might be the case as soon as Oh El started to really complain. He was being kind of a dick.
WereDragon
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Eh, high risk high reward.
Correction, finding somewhere you feel in control.
Privacy was as easy as "Orange Lantern, take us somewhere privet." and waiting a few seconds.
Mr Zoat
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Thank you, corrected.
It's from Discworld. Hogfather, I think. It is defined as 'the hatred of the inanimate for the animate'. Death has a device to measure it, because it lets him know when the Auditors of Reality are up to something. The device uses small pieces of toast, some butter, and small pieces of carpet.
He'd regard that as hypocritical.
Hedges don't really grant that much privacy, though the greenery might put everyone in a more receptive frame of mind.
CTrees
Chasing the ring
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We just found OL's epitaph
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Duke Long
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Oh, I have actually read that one. Suppose I forgot.
Prince Charon
Just zis guy, you know?
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It's the sort of thing that could get meme'd if it were in the comics or the cartoon; it memorable in an in-character-for-him way like Dr. Will Magnus saying (almost triumphantly) "I told you I do crazy things without my meds!"
Steelplaza
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So "Superwoman" is apparently going to be a thing going forward. It wasn't just a one-off to tease Kara. Amusing.
But maybe also OL's subtle way of saying, "I know you aren't really Supergirl."
CrazyNoVa
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Considering that Ambush Bug showed up earlier in the story, that statement makes a surprising amount of sense.
Nobody got one over on Paul, though. He still had the advantage over both The Question and The City. As he said, putting someone who has the ability to screw with people's minds inside of your mind is a monumentally stupid idea.
Um, yes she is? She got her DNA scanned, and it matched the other Kara's DNA, remember?
Steelplaza
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Oh well if a DNA scan said so....
Come on now. If there is something going on, it's obviously at such a high level of reality fuckery that you're not going to pierce it with a casual scan. Heck, when you think about it, it shouldn't have matched the other Kara's DNA. The story is that this Kara is from a different universe with a different version of Kryptonians so that native-to-this-Earth kryptonite doesn't work on her, right? If her body is different enough that kryptonite doesn't work, why would the DNA be the same? (Okay, admittedly 'because comic book science' could be the answer.)
Mr Zoat
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It certainly looks that way. The issue is that she isn't in a Saturday morning cartoon setting, and certain attitudes are off-putting outside of that context. It's the difference between seeing a clown at a circus and seeing one outside your bedroom window in the middle of the night.
mastermenthe
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Ah, so the difference between attractive, and arousing, got it.