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

Reader mode
Mr Zoat said:
"Someone just tried to kill him using inter-planar weaponry. I actually don't know how that works. I've stopped is by using a device intended for a completely different purpose. Or to put it another way, Mister Mackensen is alive by pure fluke, and I don't know if I could stop a follow-up attack." I turn back to the would-be drug dealer. "So, Mister Mackensen, I would strongly advise you to make a clean breast of things, because the chance that this was a coincidence is very low."
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That should say 'it'.
 
Mr Zoat said:
-continued making nonsense noises, and if my ring's translator can't translate them then they are indeed nonsense. Alright, padded restrain construct, teeth shield construct, mitten construct… Good, now he's not going to damage himself. Check for emotion drug pads-. Ah, a shame. Remove them. That should disrupt the correspondence ritual, but I don't like the way his brain is lighting up.
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'restraint'
Mr Zoat said:
"It's all plants and stuff. 'erbal. And it makes people feel better."
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Assuming this is true, these things are made from plants in another plane? Weird. Don't know what that implies.
 
Mr Zoat said:
1st September 2013
16:31 GMT -6

Edward Mackensen is indeed lying on the floor a short distance from what I assume is his desk-

"Dhrur-! Dhrur-! Dhrur-! Dhrur-!"
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At a guess, he'd just stood up to head over to Phil's office. At which point he got pole-axed by whatever's causing this. I hope the carpet's soft, because that could not have been a fun landing, especially in a dead flop.

-shaking and shuddering, hands clenched tightly -scan- heart racing, jaw clenched and saliva being expelled as he-

"Dhrur-! Dhrur-! Dhrur-! Dhrur-!"
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At least you have a picture of what to fix, given the last time you saw this.

-continued making nonsense noises, and if my ring's translator can't translate them then they are indeed nonsense. Alright, padded restrain construct, teeth shield construct, mitten construct… Good, now he's not going to damage himself. Check for emotion drug pads-. Ah, a shame. Remove them. That should disrupt the correspondence ritual, but I don't like the way his brain is lighting up.
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A user too. That explains the avenue of attack at least. And definitely marks them as dangerous if someone can hit you like this through them.

So assuming this is the same thing that happened to Timothy, fixing it should be a simple matter of feeding on the part of the spell that's on his body, and then removing the residual potion from his body. And done!

I feel his shakes slow and stop through my construct, and his eyes become a little more focused. Good show.
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Yes, right quick fix. Hopefully whoever triggered it isn't watching...

I remove the teeth shield construct.

"Mister Mack-."

"Fprh-! Fprh -!"
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...And there they go again. And this time it isn't purely via the patches, since they and the physical element are gone. That means the mystical connection remains even after the spell is removed. This just jumped up in priority significantly.

Ah..? Brain activity-. Yes, he's having a seizure again. Feed, and-. I take a spare spell eater out of subspace and tie it around his neck.

Phillip jogs up behind me. "What's-? What's happening?"
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I can't imagine it looks good from the outside, all that restraint equipment.

"I'm not sure. Please stand back."

No change. So the first fit was caused by magic just like Timothy's was, but this is something else..? How-?
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The sympathetic connection being exploited, no doubt. Every user of every variant of the emotion-modifiers is at risk of attack via whatever method this is.

I fabricate a mind shield and carefully place it over his head. It's not completely reliable without training, and I don't know why someone who could do this with telepathy wouldn't just wipe his mind of whatever they're trying to hide-.

It's not doing anything. Not telepathy.
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OL, do try to work it out faster? I doubt this is a fun time for the unlucky Eddie.

Um.

Sonic..? Sound baffle.

Doesn't work.
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Too indiscriminate, really. Get someone with similar pitch ranges as the target and they'd cop a hit too.

Nothing in the immediate environment. Lights..? No, illumination's stable.

Ah…
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Same issue as the sonics, really.

Planar barrier? If only because I'm running out of things to-.

He goes limp, his brain activity returning to normal.
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Extra-planar? what the heck could that be, then? Parallel universe drugs... Earth Minus Fourteen? One of Earth Fourteen's pocket dimensions? Far too many possible causes to guess yet.

The… Heck..?

"Is he okay? Or..?"
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Don't distract him or things might go poorly.

"I don't want to jinx it, but there's nothing wrong with him at this precise moment."

How would-? How would that even… Work?
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And how long is all this going to last? Will they drop the attack after a while, guessing that he's dead, or will Eddie need to keep this planar barrier in place until they get found?

Okay, the machine I'm using to block inter-planar contact doesn't have to be as big as the standard model, because I'm only blocking one person rather than an entire planet. That.. should do it. And a backup, and I'll leave the spell eater there just in case…

I transform the restraint construct into a soft chair construct, removing the mittens… Yes, his hands are more open, good. And remove the teeth guard.
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Best to keep him secured for now, regardless.

"Whatthefuckwhatthefuckwhatthefuck..?"

"That's what I want to ask you, actually."

"Hey." Phillip puts his right hand on my left shoulder. "Give the guy a minute."
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He doesn't really have a minute, you know. If this planar barrier system shuts off and he goes right back into overdose mode, he's dead. The sooner OL can track down his attackers, the better.

"Someone just tried to kill him using inter-planar weaponry. I actually don't know how that works. I've stopped is by using a device intended for a completely different purpose. Or to put it another way, Mister Mackensen is alive by pure fluke, and I don't know if I could stop a follow-up attack." I turn back to the would-be drug dealer. "So, Mister Mackensen, I would strongly advise you to make a clean breast of things, because the chance that this was a coincidence is very low."
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And really, someone who just tried to kill you on the off chance you might talk doesn't deserve any loyalty.

"U-h-! Haa!"

I take a purple healing ray out of subspace and shoot him with it.
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Right, brain might still be wobbly. Shock is a thing, even with Power Ring healing.

"Uh."

Alright, he appears to be… Somewhat recovered. Given how he's been sweating he'll need a shower, and given how he's been a party to turning my company into a drug distribution network I don't feel inclined to handle that for him.
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And I doubt his pants are in the best shape, given the whole seizure thing. That room might need a deep clean too, after...

"Mister Mackensen?"

"Ah. Shiiiiiiiit. What the what was what-." He focuses on me. "Who-?" I raise my left fist in his direction and make my ring's sigil glow. "Ah. Oh, okay, can I make a full confession?"
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Well, at least he's quick on the uptake. Not even needing to be told 'you're nicked'.

"I would appreciate it."

"And… Then what happens?"
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If it were any other hero? Righteous face-punching. In OL's case, judicious application of force in the interest of correcting this folly.

"I deal with this mess, make sure that your business partners don't kill you using whatever they just tried, and then put in a good word with the judge overseeing your case to try and make sure that you get the minimum sentence for whatever it turns out that you did. Naturally, your full confession better be jolly darn full."
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So no hiding anything, sonny Jim. Every scrap of information you know, right quick...

"They seriously tried to kill me?"

"Either someone did, or you just had the weirdest reaction to-" I hold up the patches that I removed from him. "-these things that I've seen so far."
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If you're lucky, OL won't add possession and trafficking to the docket. Or at least recommend charges for it are dropped in court. However it works...

"That wasn't-. I-. I-. Uh."

"Is anyone else likely to have been marked for death in the same manner?"
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I'm more worried if anyone important has been using these things. We know Bleez has. Any notable politicians using them for a mood balancer or other OMACs wanting to feel something... Anyone could be targetted by those seizures or worse.

"I don't think so? I'm the main point of contact in Hub City. I don't really-. No one else has contact with the-. Suppliers."

Phillip looks a little irritated. "Charlie, what the Hell?"
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Phil, I know this is shocking, but please, save any outbursts till the end?

"I included shipment manifests!"

"Like Hell you did! You listed them as 'erbal medicine!"
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Heh, your accent's slipping, mate. I can understand being upset, though.

"That's a disciplinary."

"Technically, they are. As far as I knew, they're, like, mild narcotics. Less dangerous than alcohol."
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...Until now, anyway. Most alcohol doesn't give someone hooks into your metaphysique that can allow them to short out your nervous system like that.

"That doesn't make them herbal medicine."

"It's all plants and stuff. 'erbal. And it makes people feel better."
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And there are plenty of plant products that can be poisonous in edge cases. Would you claim that's fine too, then?

"Happy does. Angry doesn't."

"Anger makes people feel better. I know it doesn't fix their life or anything, but it sure works to get someone moving."

"Uh-huh. Your union representative might believe you, but I'll warn you now that your employer doesn't. Keep going."
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And hope his suppliers don't mount a more direct attack to silence him.

Whoever's behind this evidently has a long reach. Or access to some very powerful technology. This whole situation is going to have to be resolved very quickly, before whoever's behind it starts targetting people OL can't zoom in and save as easily. Hell, worst case scenario, anyone who's used these patches could be in danger of being potential hostages...
 
Anti-Life ate the Parliament of Trees. Perhaps Mannheim-side ate the pre-Aztec pantheon/mythology, swallowed, and sent some notes to Darkseid. But the Parliament could have been eaten and spat back out, contained where they couldn't interact with The Green.

We don't know the full history of the battle in which The Grey (funguskind) ripped through The Green. It's possible the Grey ate the parliament while anti-life influenced both groups; that's basically what we were told. But, if the plants are a factor in this magic? Well, why not pull the sympathetic resonance trick seen with Paul's stolen bodies on intoxicated targets?
 
Meanwhile, on Earth 8096 New
16th June 2012
23:58 GMT -5

"Hahaha-!" The door beeps unlocked, and I push it the rest of the way, my left arm still around Aaron's side. He's not laughing, but-. I should just ask if I'm-.

If I'm going to keep seeing him, which… Yeah, I think do wanna do that.

"So..? Can y'all not..? Laugh?"

"Not precisely. I can make the noise and the gestures, but I don't have the human instinct for expressing amusement in that manner." He-. He's thinking about what else to say as we head into the entryway and the door closes behind us. "Your observation concerning Rachel's curfew was both accurate and mildly insulting to a person who could be regarded as our mutual antagonist, while still being offbeat enough to be an insulting joke rather than just an insult."

I frown. "Is that robot-amusement, or did y'all just kill the joke?"

"I have a preference for jokes that engage my intellect, because it forces me to consider an expression's multiple potential meanings."

"So is that a 'yes'..?"

"I do not have a human sense of humor. As with many things, I experience it… Differently. I do appreciate jokes. I prefer wordplay and observation comedy. Physical comedy does nothing for me. What do you prefer?"

"Ah don't… Ah don't know? A little a' everythang, I guess?"

"Then there is a significant overlap. And perhaps I will develop an appreciation for physical comedy under your guidance."

I raise my eyebrows and look at him speculatively. "Are y'all askin' me out?"

He stops dead, and because I'm still holding onto him I stop too.

…

"Uh-."

"I believe that I am. Do you have a diary or appointments calendar? I will need to compare it to mine to see when we are both available before I plan an excursion."

I smile-. Yeah, I'm going for 'winsomely'. "Ah might say 'no'."

"I do not believe that you will. And it would be premature to say 'no' before you hear what I have planned." He looks away, up the stairs. "I was expecting your father to greet us. Should I take this as a sign of his trust or, given how frequently the Avenger's Mansion is attacked, should I be concerned?"

Um…

Yeah, actually, where is Dad? Or Janet? Dad might give me time to say goodbye before checking up on me, but Janet doesn't have that kind of self control. They might have got called away for some big emergency, but the quinjet was still in the hangar…

Ah…

Tony could be anywhere. Steve's usually in bed by ten, but if he's out with Logan… He could be back any time. Hulk and Skurge… I don't have much to do with them.

Uh. Is no one around? I look at Aaron-.

Nononono-. Come on! He's nice, but I'm not that desperate to keep touching-.

Not like that-!

Aaron pulls away from me-. He can't hear what I'm thinking, right-. No, no, he's walking over to one of the plant pots around the side of the room. When he gets there he bends down and picks up…

"That is a rune associated with Norse culture." He turns back towards me. "Does it belong to one of the aesir?"

"No, that's Dad's. He uses it when he wants to talk to Hela."

Aaron thinks about that for a moment. "I was not aware that he was a diabolist. Is his ring magical in nature?"

"No, not Hell. Hel-." He leans towards me slightly. "One 'L'. The Norse goddess. Princess, whatever. Thor's niece. He got dumped in her dimension when Loki tried taking over Asgard, and they've been friends ever since."

"Ah. A magic cellular telephone." He passes it to me, and I put it in my pocket because thank you Janet, this dress has pockets. "It does seem unusual that your father would have dropped it."

It… Does. He usually keeps it in one of the pouches on his armour, or in his room when he's in regular clothes. I can't think of a reason why he'd just… Drop it, and then not pick it up.

"Do you believe that combat is imminent?"

"Could be."

"Understood." His right arm… Folds up, exposing some kind of gun built into his forearm, and parts of his left arm fold out into a shield. "Please keep me between yourself and any aggressors. I am far easier to repair."

"Yeah, but I've still got a little of Rachel's power."

"You were able to disable Rachel by touching her gently on the shoulder. Hydra agents would be more of a challenge."

"Rachel was focusing on you an' not me."

And this is the other bit of my power I don't like. It's not as bad as the 'no touch' thing, but… Unless I've trained with a power or it's automatic like Logan's regeneration or Mr. Summers' eye laser, I don't know how to use it. Except that when I drain someone, I get glimpses of their thoughts and memories. Got me real confused for a while, but it turns out that I can use it to use their skill with their power… So long as I don't mind not knowing whether I'm me or them for a while. Just need to get into her headspace…

Okay, doesn't show emotions on her face because that would be a sign of weakness. In-your-face, because other people thinking you're a violent wackjob makes them think twice about starting anything. Looking around for threats because when you can't see one that just means that it's better at hiding-.

Cast-offs, that's what they were known as. Mutants Apocalypse had decided weren't worth keeping, whose abilities were useless or self-destructive. He actually preferred regular humans to 'failures', so while he mostly left human communities alone, mutants who didn't live up to his expectations were used as suicide soldiers at best, and handed over to his scientists for experimentation at worst. I watch as they slowly work their way towards where the Human Liberation Front has prepared an ambush, people with no real control of their powers and with no training in using the weapons they're holding. The H.L.F. will kill them of course, this is old hat to them, but Apocalypse just uses them to locate rebel formations.

I wonder what the real weapon will be this time. Is one of them carrying a tactical nuke? Implanted, perhaps? A disease weapon? Or are they just marking targets for one of his enforcers? I see one of the H.L.F. cyborgs take a firing position, and tighten my grip on the air around my body with my power-.

The cyborg is floating off the ground-! No, that's too soon, the rest of them-

"Anna Marie?"

-will spotargh!

I gently lower him to the floor and then check that my telekinetic field is working. Yeah, my body is slightly blurry, so that should be alright.

"Sorry. She weren't lyin' about people usin' androids like you in her future. Okay." I get my cell phone out and dial 'Dad'. "'fore we blow things outta proportion…"

It rings. It rings again. And-.

"Orange Lantern."

I relax. "Hey Dad. Ah'm back."

"Oh? How did it go?"

"Rachel went psycho. 'part from that, it was… It was fun. Ah… Are you okay?"

"Yes? Why wouldn't I-? Wait, is this something American fathers are supposed to stress over? Was I supposed to be pacing in the hallway or something?"

I roll my eyes. "No."

"Do you want me to? Because I can get there in about fifteen seconds if I run."

Well, yeah, if you run instead of… Using your ring like you usually do…

"That's faihn, Dad. We'll come see you. Where are you raight now?"

"I'm on the toilet."

Oh.

"How about we..? Talk about this tomorrow-? Ah, later today?"

"Sure Dad. And… Thanks, for setting this up."

"You're welcome. What are fathers for?"
 
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Don't worry about it, Rogue. I guess you could say he's feeling green today.

Granted, when it comes to Zoat being impersonated or vice-versa, it's not as weird as that time when I thought Mr. Zoat and Vaermina were secretly the same person, but still.
 
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CrazyNoVa said:
Don't worry about it, Rogue. I guess you could say he's feeling green today.

Granted, when it comes to Zoat being impersonated or vice-versa, it's not as weird as that time when I thought Mr. Zoat and Vaermina were secretly the same person, but still.
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Have you ever seen them in the same room?
 
Mr Zoat said:
No, not Hell. Hel-." He leans towards me slightly. "One 'L'. The Norse goddess. Princess, whatever. Thor's niece. He got dumped in her dimension when Loki tried taking over Asgard, and they've been friends ever since."
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Right.

"Friends".

Mr Zoat said:
reason why he's just… Drop it, and then
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"he'd just"

Mr Zoat said:
watch as they slowly work their way towards the Human Liberation Front has prepared an ambush,
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"towards the place the Human Liberation Front has prepared as an"
 
Mr Zoat said:
16th June 2012
23:58 GMT -5

"Hahaha-!" The door beeps unlocked, and I push it the rest of the way, my left arm still around Aaron's side. He's not laughing, but-. I should just ask if I'm-.
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Ah, looks like the kids are home from their party. I doubt Aaron feels any awkwardness at intruding like this, given his inexperience with social situations. Now, will they notice anything unusual about the Mansion tonight?

If I'm going to keep seeing him, which… Yeah, I think do wanna do that.

"So..? Can y'all not..? Laugh?"
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Ah, young love. Well, affection, at least. An look at this way, Anna Marie, you can help shape him into a nice guy alongside his 'father'.

"Not precisely. I can make the noise and the gestures, but I don't have the human instinct for expressing amusement in that manner." He-. He's thinking about what else to say as we head into the entryway and the door closes behind us. "Your observation concerning Rachel's curfew was both accurate and mildly insulting to a person who could be regarded as our mutual antagonist, while still being offbeat enough to be an insulting joke rather than just an insult."
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So he basically considers what others are doing for cues to laugh or not. Especially those in socially antagonistic positions. Don't want to laugh along with the bullies, after all.

I frown. "Is that robot-amusement, or did y'all just kill the joke?"

"I have a preference for jokes that engage my intellect, because it forces me to consider an expression's multiple potential meanings."
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I'm guessing routines like 'Who's on first?' make him give a sensible chuckle.

"So is that a 'yes'..?"

"I do not have a human sense of humor. As with many things, I experience it… Differently. I do appreciate jokes. I prefer wordplay and observation comedy. Physical comedy does nothing for me. What do you prefer?"
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High-brow humour, then. Wonder what his opinion on puns are.

"Ah don't… Ah don't know? A little a' everythang, I guess?"

"Then there is a significant overlap. And perhaps I will develop an appreciation for physical comedy under your guidance."
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Oh-ho? You suggesting you wouldn't object to further social encounters with the lady, then? 😘

I raise my eyebrows and look at him speculatively. "Are y'all askin' me out?"

He stops dead, and because I'm still holding onto him I stop too.
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Boy does have to work on his ability to walk and think, though.

…

"Uh-."

"I believe that I am. Do you have a diary or appointments calendar? I will need to compare it to mine to see when we are both available before I plan an excursion."
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I'm sure Jan has something worked out. She's probably gonna squee like a mosquito when she sees how well it worked out.

I smile-. Yeah, I'm going for 'winsomely'. "Ah might say 'no'."

"I do not believe that you will. And it would be premature to say 'no' before you hear what I have planned." He looks away, up the stairs. "I was expecting your father to greet us. Should I take this as a sign of his trust or, given how frequently the Avenger's Mansion is attacked, should I be concerned?"
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Nice to see he can recognise the classic tropes of superhero bases.

Um…

Yeah, actually, where is Dad? Or Janet? Dad might give me time to say goodbye before checking up on me, but Janet doesn't have that kind of self control. They might have got called away for some big emergency, but the quinjet was still in the hangar…
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We know AMH!OL got nobbled by skrulls. With him out of the picture, I bet they snagged Jan and Hank in short order. OR the love-bugs are making up... 😘

Ah…

Tony could be anywhere. Steve's usually in bed by ten, but if he's out with Logan… He could be back any time. Hulk and Skurge… I don't have much to do with them.
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Probably a little intimidated by their size. Skurge is no small fellow, and Hulk is, well, Hulk.

Uh. Is no one around? I look at Aaron-.

Nononono-. Come on! He's nice, but I'm not that desperate to keep touching-.
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...Are you? After so long with limited options for human contact, any new experience...

Not like that-!

Aaron pulls away from me-. He can't hear what I'm thinking, right-. No, no, he's walking over to one of the plant pots around the side of the room. When he gets there he bends down and picks up…
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Ah, something of note! Now, what do we know was dropped in here, hmm?

"That is a rune associated with Norse culture." He turns back towards me. "Does it belong to one of the aesir?"

"No, that's Dad's. He uses it when he wants to talk to Hel."
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Good, she at least knows what it's for. Though she did get the name slightly wrong.

Aaron thinks about that for a moment. "I was not aware that he was a diabolist. Is his ring magical in nature?"

"No, not Hell. Hel-." He leans towards me slightly. "One 'L'. The Norse goddess. Princess, whatever. Thor's niece. He got dumped in her dimension when Loki tried taking over Asgard, and they've been friends ever since."
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'Friends', yes... I wonder how far things have gone for them, relatively speaking. Still at the 'polite conversation over mild mead' or is AMH!OL getting to make booty calls? 😅

"Ah. A magic cellular telephone." He passes it to me, and I put it in my pocket because thank you Janet, this dress has pockets. "It does seem unusual that your father would have dropped it."

It… Does. He usually keeps it in one of the pouches on his armour, or in his room when he's in regular clothes. I can't think of a reason why he's just… Drop it, and then not pick it up.
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Which immediately makes her suspicious, good. That's going to help derail the skrull plans quite nicely.

"Do you believe that combat is imminent?"

"Could be."

"Understood." His right arm… Folds up, exposing some kind of gun built into his forearm, and parts of his left arm fold out into a shield. "Please keep me between yourself and any aggressors. I am far easier to repair."
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...Well, the tux was a write-off anyway.

"Yeah, but I've still got a little of Rachel's power."

"You were able to disable Rachel by touching her gently on the shoulder. Hydra agents would be more of a challenge."

"Rachel was focusing on you an' not me."
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True, her power works best from ambush. Hopefully she doesn't have to use it on anyone like her 616 version did, permanently gaining Miss marvel's powers for a long time.

And this the other bit of my power I don't like. It's not as bad as the 'no touch' thing, but… Unless I've trained with a power or it's automatic like Logan's regeneration or Mr. Summer's eye laser, I don't know how to use it. Except that when I drain someone, I get glimpses of their thoughts and memories. Got me real confused for a while, but it turns out that I can use it to use their skill with their power… So long as I don't mind no knowing whether I'm me or them for a while. Just need to get into her headspace…
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Something that she probably doesn't enjoy much even discounting her powers.

Okay, doesn't show emotions on her face because that would be a sign of weakness. In-your-face, because other people thinking you're a violent wackjob makes them think twice about starting anything. Looking around for threats because when you can't see one that just means that it's better at hiding-.
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A prickly little phoenix chick, yes. Once she gets some socialisation in more peaceful circumstances, she's always been a lot more together.

Cast-offs, that's what they were known as. Mutants Apocalypse had decided weren't worth keeping, whose abilities were useless or self-destructive. He actually preferred regular humans to 'failures', so while he mostly left human communities alone, mutants who didn't live up to his expectations were used as suicide soldiers at best, and handed over to his scientists for experimentation at worst. I watch as they slowly work their way towards the Human Liberation Front has prepared an ambush, people with no real control of their powers and with no training in using the weapons they're holding. The H.L.F. will kill them of course, this is old hat to them, but Apocalypse just uses them to locate rebel formations.
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Because not every mutant gets phenomenal cosmic powers. Some just get really ugly appearances, or minor talents that can barely equal a gun.

I wonder what the real weapon will be this time. Is one of them carrying a tactical nuke? Implanted, perhaps? A disease weapon? Or are they just marking targets for one of his enforcers? I see one of the H.L.F. cyborgs take a firing position, and tighten my grip on the air around my body with my power-.
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Because Apocalypse is one hell of a troll as much as he is a master planner type of villain.

The cyborg is floating off the ground-! No, that's too soon, the rest of them-

"Anna Marie?"
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Focus, Rogue. Be mindful of the present, not what-may-never-bes.

-will spotargh!

I gently lower him to the floor and then check that my telekinetic field is working. Yeah, my body is slightly blurry, so that should be alright.
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As long as it holds out. I doubt she's really investigated too deeply about the mechanics of her power, due to the trauma it involves. So things like duration of absorptions...

"Sorry. She weren't lyin' about people usin' androids like you in her future. Okay." I get my cell phone out and dial 'Dad'. "'fore we blow things outta proportion…"

It rings. It rings again. And-.
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Bad sign right there. AMH!OL would have instantly responded.

"Orange Lantern."

I relax. "Hey Dad. Ah'm back."
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...And if he had her name showing in his contacts, he wouldn't have been nearly so formal in his response.

"Oh? How did it go?"

"Rachel went psycho. 'part from that, it was… It was fun. Ah… Are you okay?"
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Play it smooth, kiddo. Don't want to give any suggestion that you might suspect something.

"Yes? Why wouldn't I-? Wait, is this something American fathers are supposed to stress over? Was I supposed to be pacing in the hallway or something?"

I roll my eyes. "No."
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Skrulls may be able to copy appearances, but there are limits to the mental transformation, even during the comics' Secret Invasion preparations. If the copy hasn't taken a total mental scan of AMH!OL at this moment, then he's going to have blind spots in his memories and personality...

"Do you want me to? Because I can get there in about fifteen seconds if I run."

Well, yeah, if you run instead of… Using your ring like you usually do…
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And now she's definitely concerned. The impersonator is evidently being very wary of trying to use the Ring.

"That's faihn, Dad. We'll come see you. Where are you raight now?"

"I'm on the toilet."
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A sensible response, given the human tendency to react negatively to such a statement.

Oh.

"How about we..? Talk about this tomorrow-? Ah, later today?"
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She's not gonna hang around, that's for sure. Back to the X-Mansion?

"Sure Dad. And… Thanks, for setting this up."

"You're welcome. What are fathers for?"
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Hopefully she remembers to tell the real AMH!OL that when this is all sorted out.

If Rogue is on her game, she'll be right out the door with Aaron, ideally heading back to Xavier's and getting a hold of Logan and Cap. Assuming they haven't also been replaced by now. We might well see a junior X-Men team plus associates leading the fight against the skrulls before this is all over...
 
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Mr Zoat said:
And this the other bit of my power I don't like.
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'this is the'

Mr. Summer's eye laser
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'Mr. Summers'"

So long as I don't mind no knowing whether I'm me
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'not'

work their way towards the Human Liberation Front has prepared an ambush,
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'towards where the'

Chojin Patriarch said:
We know AMH!OL get nobbled by skrulls. With him out of the picture, I bet they snagged Jan and Hank in short order.
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It's been awhile, but I'm pretty sure that canonically they replaced Wasp. I don't recall if they got Hank or not.
(They did also get Cap first, he was Veranke's main enforcer.)
 
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