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

Duplication (part 3)
Blankly
Staring


"Hello."

She regards me for a moment.

"Brian, that's not a finger."

I look at the surprised blond man standing just behind her.

"Hello Brian."

"It was a finger five minutes ago. All the.. systems said that it was dead."

"They were correct. I was dead. I'm still dead."

That may not be clear. I pull back my lips to give them a look at my fangs.

"You're a vampire powerful enough to regenerate from a severed finger."

I restore my lips to their accustomed location. "Not exactly. I'm a revenant-. On the parallel where I contracted vampirism, it isn't a disease so much as a form of automated possession. I was set upon by a group of revenants, killed and infected. This ring-" I raise my right hand, not pointing it at them but just drawing attention to it. "-destroyed the demon that would have claimed my corpse and then used its power to reanimate me. The blood I had been fed as part of the ritual changed my body somewhat, but the regeneration came from the ring."

The woman nods. "Like Lantern Driq."

"Possibly. I don't know the man."

"How are you with sunlight?"

"It's not a problem as long as I'm wearing a power ring. If I'm not, I catch fire." I frown slightly. "At least, I did last time I experimented. I drank the blood of a goddess recently and I'm not sure if that changes things."

The golden aura around her body intensifies slightly.

"… Which goddess?"

"She gave her name as 'Glorificus'. She was attacking a town and its defenders at the time, and after killing her leaving her blood seemed wasteful."

She considers for a moment, then runs a golden strobe over my body from her power ring.

"Are you alright?"

"Given that I'm dead, not by most standards."

"You've barely moved since I opened the door. Your facial movements aren't natural. And there's something… Off about your voice."

"I'm told that my behaviour becomes more lifelike after I rip out someone's heart and have this ring consume it."

"Who the hell made a power ring like that?"

"Based on my recent experiences, I believe that it was Nekron."

"And you're just telling me that."

"Yes. Why wouldn't I?"

"My files say that Nekron wants to kill every living thing in the universe. Of course, those are files I got from the Green Lantern Corps. If you can prove that he's someone else they were slandering, we may reconsider our approach."

"Based on the behaviour of this ring, I believe that information is correct."

"But you don't have to obey him."

"Technically, I have never received a direct order from him. I don't know for certain that I could disobey if I did. The ring appears to encourage omnicidal behaviour without compelling it. As things stand, my behaviour is my own."

"Do you mind if we test that?"

"I don't think that summoning Nekron would be in your interests."

"With a wizard."

"I'm not completely certain that I would 'mind' if you shot me in the head and incinerated my remains. Unless I've taken a heart recently I don't really feel things."

"Do you need hearts?"

"The ring would eventually run out of power if I didn't harvest hearts."

"And how long will that take?"

"That depends on how much I exert myself. I can remain active for two months without recharging."

"Can you recharge from animals?"

"Animal blood is fine for my revenant physiology. However, the ring requires hearts filled with emotion. By definition, that requires mental complexity."

"And how do you normally recharge?"

"Usually, I take hearts from violent, predatory cannibals."

"Other vampires."

"Other revenants. Sometimes demons. I have no particular objection to killing a human while in this state, but by the same token I have no particular motive to do so."

"Do you want to get that desire back?"

"I appear to appreciate it when I have it."

"Would having another ring help? We've got quite a lot."

"I am unfamiliar with gold rings, but I doubt it, since I lack the will in my default state to use them. I suppose that it may be possible for another to infuse me. Is that something which you know how to do?"

"I can't say that I do." She considers for a moment. "Why were you a finger?"

"I appear to be able to regenerate from any part of my body. When faced with destruction I threw my finger through a planar portal. The rest of me was then destroyed."

"What by?"

"A Manhunter robot. It could drain my constructs and ring, as well as being extremely strong and resilient."

"Did you know what was on the other side of the portal?"

"No, though I assume that Time Trapper and Red Queen believed it to be a safe location. The Red Queen we were working with at least. The one who came through the portal was released by a Manhunter."

Her ring is at her mouth immediately.

"Corps Commander to all Lanterns. Detain Red Queen now."
 
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Having to zoom in on each individual word to read is kinda annoying, but I'm not exactly hopeful that might change even if I ask.
 
Having to zoom in on each individual word to read is kinda annoying, but I'm not exactly hopeful that might change even if I ask.

Blood from a stone, my guy. Zoat does as Zoat does.

EDIT: People have been telling him the way he spells 'wow' ('whaw') is stupid and distracting as hell for literal years. He still does it. Just as an example.
 
but they really are not vampires, tho.

When debating fictional terms, there's an argument to be made (if still a pedantic one). When you're in that world, where that's what vampires are and always have been and the fiction was based on the real thing but got it wrong? No. They're vampires. When they've been dealing with this shit for literal thousands of years you don't get to swan in like you know better.

EDIT: Thinking about it, this is probably the speech Giles gave him. But because he's both Paul and an emotionless Black Lantern, he was unmoved.
 
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When debating fictional terms, there's an argument to be made (if still a pedantic one). When you're in that world, where that's what vampires are and always have been and the fiction was based on the real thing but got it wrong? No. They're vampires. When they've been dealing with this shit for literal thousands of years you don't get to swan in like you know better.

But isn't that Paul's job, to apply metaknowledge and be right because he's protagonist-kun?

/s, because if I don't people will think I'm serious.
 
Blankly
Staring


"Hello."
Ah, Zaul. Always such a treat.:rolleyes:

She regards me for a moment.

"Brian, that's not a finger."
Heh, bet that's a surprise for Brian.

I look at the surprised blond man standing just behind her.

"Hello Brian."
I have to admit, his deadpan politeness always puts a smile on my face...

"It was a finger five minutes ago. All the.. systems said that it was dead."

"They were correct. I was dead. I'm still dead."
Of course, just because he's dead, doesn't mean he's Dead-dead... This is the DC Universe, home to Death's Revolving Door as decided by popularity.

That may not be clear. I pull back my lips to give them a look at my fangs.

"You're a vampire powerful enough to regenerate from a severed finger."

I restore my lips to their accustomed location. "Not exactly. I'm a revenant-. On the parallel where I contracted vampirism, it isn't a disease so much as a form of automated possession. I was set upon my a group of revenants, killed and infected. This ring-" I raise my right hand, not pointing it at them but just drawing attention to it. "-destroyed the demon that would have claimed my corpse and then used its power to reanimate me. The blood I had been fed as part of the ritual changed my body somewhat, but the regeneration came from the ring."
Ah, Zaul. Pedantic as every other Paul, and so matter-of-fact about it.

The woman nods. "Like Lantern Driq."

"Possibly. I don't know the man."
As evidenced by the lack of a Link.

"How are you with sunlight?"

"It's not a problem as long as I'm wearing a power ring. If I'm not, I catch fire." I frown slightly. "At least, I did last time I experimented. I drank the blood of a goddess recently and I'm not sure if that changes things."
A not particularly nice goddess, so not anything to feel sorry about...

The golden aura around her body intensifies slightly.

"… Which goddess?"

"She gave her name as 'Glorificus'. She was attacking a town and its defenders at the time, and after killing her leaving her blood seemed wasteful."
"I mean, it was just sitting there, dripping and soaking into the ground..."

She considers for a moment, then runs a golden strobe over my body from her power ring.

"Are you alright?"

"Given that I'm dead, not by most standards."
Moving about while dead is okay by anyone's standards.

"You've barely moved since I opened the door. You're facial movements aren't natural. And there's something… Off about your voice."

"I'm told that my behaviour becomes more lifelike after I rip out someone's heart and have this ring consume it."
And that alone should be ringing a few alarm bells if she's read her files.

"Who the hell made a power ring like that?"

"Based on my recent experiences, I believe that it was Nekron."

"And you're just telling me that."
Surprised there was no reaction at that, but I doubt Zaul is paying any particular attention right now anyway.

"Yes. Why wouldn't I?"

"My files say that Nekron wants to kill every living thing in the universe. Of course, those are files I got from the Green Lantern Corps. If you can prove that he's someone else they were slandering, we may reconsider our approach."

"Based on the behaviour of this ring, I believe that information is correct."
Yeah, I suspect anything about Nekron in the Guardian's files is gonna be lowballing it, just by the by... Unless the fallback plan is "Evacuate the universe ASAP."

"But you don't have to obey him."

"Technically, I have never received a direct order from him. I don't know for certain that I could disobey if I did. The ring appears to encourage omnicidal behaviour without compelling it. As things stand, my behaviour is my own."
And it's kind of hard to care about what you're doing, without emotions...

"Do you mind if we test that?"

"I don't think that summoning Nekron would be in your interests."

"With a wizard."
Yeah, probably a safer option...

"I'm not completely certain that I would 'mind' if you shot me in the head and incinerated my remains. Unless I've taken a heart recently I don't really feel things."

"Do you need hearts?"

"The ring would eventually run out of power if I didn't harvest hearts."
Though given how little he actually does with it, I suspect any charge lasts a long-ass time...

"And how long will that take?"

"That depends on how much I exert myself. I can remain active for two months without recharging."
Yup, pegged it. Though he's getting by without things like translations, and only an emergency Environmental field, I bet.

"Can you recharge from animals?"

"Animal blood is fine for my revenant physiology. However, the ring requires hearts filled with emotion. By definition, that requires mental complexity."
Though it's no coincidence that the Embodiments are all animal-forms of some sort...

"And how do you normally recharge?"

"Usually, I take hearts from violent, predatory cannibals."

"Other vampires."
"Yes, that's what I just said."

"Other revenants. Sometimes demons. I have no particular objection to killing a human while in this state, but by the same token I have no particular motive to do so."

"Do you want to get that desire back?"
Eh... Not such a smart idea...

"I appear to appreciate it when I have it."

"Would having another ring help? We've got quite a lot."
Only if his ring can eat the other ring's charge for itself, and that's bad...

"I am unfamiliar with gold rings, but I doubt it, since I lack the will in my default state to use them. I suppose that it may be possible for another to infuse me. Is that something which you know how to do?"

"I can't say that I do." She considers for a moment. "Why were you a finger?"
Huh, she only just got to that point? Though I suppose talking to an animate, erudite corpse is a good distraction...

"I appear to be able to regenerate from any part of my body. When faced with destruction I threw my finger through a planar portal. The rest of me was then destroyed."

"What by?"

"A Manhunter robot. It could drain my constructs and ring, as well as being extremely strong and resilient."
And she should immediately be on guard. Manhunters mean Maltusians...

"Did you know what was on the other side of the portal?"

"No, though I assume that Time Trapper and Red Queen believed it to be a safe location. The Red Queen we were working with at least. The one who came through the portal was released by a Manhunter."
He says it so casually...

Her ring is at her mouth immediately.

"Corps Commander to all Lanterns. Detain Red Queen now."
Called it, she was a mole!

Well, that's that question answered. The alternate Red Queen appears to be a mole. Presumably that's why the factory was a smoking crater... I suppose we'll soon see.

Correction:
You're facial movements aren't natural.
Your facial movements aren't natural.
 

I was going to say blonde is just an alternative spelling, but it turns out blonde is the feminine declension, while blond is male. I've learned something new today, thanks!

On a completely different note, talking to Baul must be incredibly creepy due to the complete lack of emoting.
 
Is it bad I kind of hope one of the Scoobs in Sunnydale punched him in the mouth for being so utterly pedantic about not calling them vampires?
Nope.

Heck it's beyond even pedantic, given their particular definition of vampire predates the one he is used to by over ten thousand years.
 
I like deadpan. And this Paul is capable of nothing but deadpan. He's (unintentionally) hilarious :D

One thing though:

"It's not a problem as long as I'm wearing a power ring. If I'm not, I catch fire."

How does he know this? Can he maintain consciousness without a ring? Could he keep going just on blood as 'not-a-vampire'?
 
Is it bad I kind of hope one of the Scoobs in Sunnydale punched him in the mouth for being so utterly pedantic about not calling them vampires?

He wouldn't be a Paul if he wasn't pedantic to the point you want to commit violence upon him:D

Still not sure that RQ is the mole though.
She could have just transferred herself to the body of the version of her in the Manhunter, but it is still possible that Krona can track them through her
 
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Thank you, corrected.
As evidenced by the lack of a Link.
No, that's because he's already had a link once in this story.
Though it's no coincidence that the Embodiments are all animal-forms of some sort...
Except Nekron himself. And the life entity.
Correction: Your facial movements aren't natural.
Thank you, corrected.
 
Haha, he is so unbothered by everything.

It's bad for him of course and I do feel sorry, but it's hilarious to read.

"All of existence appears to be in danger. I suspect I would be bothered by that if I was in a non-dead state"

I wonder if you could motivate him by pointing out Non-Existence =/= Death and Nekron probably wouldn't like it? I mean the dude wouldn't be Nekron anymore. He wouldn't be anything.
 
When debating fictional terms, there's an argument to be made (if still a pedantic one). When you're in that world, where that's what vampires are and always have been and the fiction was based on the real thing but got it wrong? No. They're vampires. When they've been dealing with this shit for literal thousands of years you don't get to swan in like you know better.

EDIT: Thinking about it, this is probably the speech Giles gave him. But because he's both Paul and an emotionless Black Lantern, he was unmoved.
I mean, are you really surprised? He's British, they've been doing that for 400 years.
 
Maybe it would bother Nekron but this Paul is basically a dead flesh robot.

It wouldn't bother Nekron either.

Despite equating Nekron with death, that doesn't work, since Nekron predates life according to Blackest Night.

Death by necessity can't predate life.

So Nekron is not the cessation of life, but the absence of life, which would make him oblivion.

Blackest Night is Nekron's attempt to get those darn kids off his lawn so he can go back to peaceful nothingness.
 
That is… mildly yet intensely horrifying.
To be both fully cognisant and utterly unmotivated.

Although the fact he is able to do anything indicates that he would be an immensely powerful Will user if he could be restored to life.

but they really are not vampires, tho.
Paul is not the arbiter of nomenclature. The vampires of the Buffy-verse are called vampires by all parties. Thus their official and correct name is vampire. When Paul invents his own language he can rename them.
 

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