Mr Zoat
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Thank you, corrected.
I think that's right. It wouldn't be a crew if there was just one.
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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
RoninSword
Sky God
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Mr Zoat
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He's not convinced that Knight can give informed consent.
SpiritualSlacker
Nurse God of Mischief
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Okay, this sort of feels like it might be less the Justice League taking over the world, and more like Paul taking over. Or perhaps Cadbury Logistics.
Which, I guess, would be one way to achieve a unified planetary government.
Creation's Commandos (part 5)
Mr Zoat
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5th December 2023
13:45 GMT -5
Rick Flag Sen-.
And it hits him again. It's not as raw as it was, but it-. The horrible sucking void in his chest when he's forced to remember that he isn't ever going to see Rick Junior again.
Not in this life, anyway.
Rick… Flag, checks to make sure that the door is fully closed before turning to Amanda 'The Wall' Waller.
"So what's his deal?"
"He's really an angel, as far as we can tell." She opens a desk drawer and pulls out a dossier. He flips it open and takes in the photograph. "We found him in a crater in Jump City a couple of years ago. First responders said he was babbling something about the end of the world."
The angel in the picture looks a whole lot more ragged than the calm and collected man he just spoke to.
"If he's an angel, I guess he'd know."
"Intel tried making sense of it. Some of what he said made sense. Most of it didn't. He didn't carry any I.D. and-"
He snorts quietly in amusement at the idea of an angel carrying an I.D..
"-the lab found what appeared to be the remains of a data stick in his robes. We haven't been able to get much out of it."
The next couple of pages are lab reports, attempts to analyse his body and blood. Unsurprisingly he doesn't have a human blood type, though apparently he did have some human blood on his skin when he first appeared.
Waller looks at the dossier. "Next page."
He obediently turns it over-.
Some of these people he recognises. Harley Quinn making faces at the camera. Captain Boomerang pretending to ignore it. A few others he doesn't, but given how they look..?
"The Suicide Squad."
Waller shrugs with her face. "If we'd ever had an angel, I'd have remembered it. Our best guess is that he's from an alternate timeline of some kind."
"Not from the future?"
"No. There's a date on the file. And Captain Boomerang's dead."
He grits his teeth. Just for a moment.
"I know."
A few team pictures, including one with… Weapons that don't look like they're from Earth. A few people go missing, but that's not-. Not unusual for the Suicide Squad. Then a picture of Lan naked, pictures of his badly damaged robes and-.
His eyebrows shoot up, and he stares at Waller.
"Are these..?"
"Power rings? Sure, as far as we can tell. He hasn't asked about them since he arrived. It's possible that he's forgotten that he ever had them. Unfortunately, we can't work out how to reassign them and so they won't work for anyone else."
"So, okay, how did he get from this to working here?"
"Have you read the part about his blood work yet?"
"Ah… Silver, can't be fully analysed but doesn't look like human blood under any microscope."
"No, the other part."
Down to the notes…
That…
"He originally bled human blood, but the silver blood… Replaced it?"
"It's not a firm conclusion, but it looked like it. Look at the side view photo."
He does, frowning. "What am I looking for?"
"The scars."
Scars? The wounds are too fresh to have scarred. None of them-. Wait.
"At the base of the wing?"
"It's the same on both sides. So either someone tried to cut them off, or he didn't start with them and they got grafted on. That's also the only wound that had a silver scab."
"What did the rest have?"
"The regular human kind. Oh Positive. The med techs said that they flaked off as the silver blood replaced it."
"So what, he's not an angel? He's just a guy with wings stuck on?"
"He might not have been an angel to start with, but as far as anyone can tell, he is now. When he came around he asked for me by name. Of course, we hadn't finished getting those pictures by then. I was already heading there to oversee things. When I got there, he acted like an amnesiac who finally remembered something."
"Did he know that he was part of the Suicide Squad?"
"He hasn't mentioned it."
"You didn't mention it to him?"
"Why would I? He's happy working for me and bringing the love of the 'Most High' to the prisoners."
"If they're his power rings, he'd be a whole lot more useful with them than without them."
Waller shakes her head. "As things stand, he's useful and under control. Until we know more about what he can do and why he's really here, he doesn't get told anything. I'm only telling you this much so you can keep an eye out for any anomalous behavior."
"He thinks he's here to serve you. Why not just ask him?"
"Because he's not here to serve me. He's here to serve-" She points to a picture of a stern-looking black woman with… Waller on her name lanyard. "-her. Task Force X was still active when whatever happened to him happened."
Flag turns another page. "What are these towers?"
"Did you read the reports on Steppenwolf?"
"The guy the Justice League stomped? Yeah, what about him?"
"He came from a planet called 'Apocalypse'. And as far as we can tell, so did they. They're boring into the Earth's core for some reason, and it looks like there's a lot of them."
"And the things guarding it look like Doomsday. It looks like there's a lot of them, too."
Waller nods. "And we don't have enough kryptonite spears to kill that many."
"It sounds like making sure that doesn't happen here should have top priority."
Waller smiles bitterly. "But how do we know which side he was on?"
"Going out on a limb here, but I'd guess he was on the side of the angels."
"But does that mean he saves bodies or souls?" Waller shrugs. "If every human dies but most of their souls go to Heaven, does he think that's good? Is… Whatever this is, ordained by God and something we're just supposed to accept?"
"I've gotta say, I'm honestly impressed with how paranoid you are."
"Thank you. It's my job to suspect things like him until there's categorical proof he can be trusted. And I'd like you to try getting that, too."
13:45 GMT -5
Rick Flag Sen-.
And it hits him again. It's not as raw as it was, but it-. The horrible sucking void in his chest when he's forced to remember that he isn't ever going to see Rick Junior again.
Not in this life, anyway.
Rick… Flag, checks to make sure that the door is fully closed before turning to Amanda 'The Wall' Waller.
"So what's his deal?"
"He's really an angel, as far as we can tell." She opens a desk drawer and pulls out a dossier. He flips it open and takes in the photograph. "We found him in a crater in Jump City a couple of years ago. First responders said he was babbling something about the end of the world."
The angel in the picture looks a whole lot more ragged than the calm and collected man he just spoke to.
"If he's an angel, I guess he'd know."
"Intel tried making sense of it. Some of what he said made sense. Most of it didn't. He didn't carry any I.D. and-"
He snorts quietly in amusement at the idea of an angel carrying an I.D..
"-the lab found what appeared to be the remains of a data stick in his robes. We haven't been able to get much out of it."
The next couple of pages are lab reports, attempts to analyse his body and blood. Unsurprisingly he doesn't have a human blood type, though apparently he did have some human blood on his skin when he first appeared.
Waller looks at the dossier. "Next page."
He obediently turns it over-.
Some of these people he recognises. Harley Quinn making faces at the camera. Captain Boomerang pretending to ignore it. A few others he doesn't, but given how they look..?
"The Suicide Squad."
Waller shrugs with her face. "If we'd ever had an angel, I'd have remembered it. Our best guess is that he's from an alternate timeline of some kind."
"Not from the future?"
"No. There's a date on the file. And Captain Boomerang's dead."
He grits his teeth. Just for a moment.
"I know."
A few team pictures, including one with… Weapons that don't look like they're from Earth. A few people go missing, but that's not-. Not unusual for the Suicide Squad. Then a picture of Lan naked, pictures of his badly damaged robes and-.
His eyebrows shoot up, and he stares at Waller.
"Are these..?"
"Power rings? Sure, as far as we can tell. He hasn't asked about them since he arrived. It's possible that he's forgotten that he ever had them. Unfortunately, we can't work out how to reassign them and so they won't work for anyone else."
"So, okay, how did he get from this to working here?"
"Have you read the part about his blood work yet?"
"Ah… Silver, can't be fully analysed but doesn't look like human blood under any microscope."
"No, the other part."
Down to the notes…
That…
"He originally bled human blood, but the silver blood… Replaced it?"
"It's not a firm conclusion, but it looked like it. Look at the side view photo."
He does, frowning. "What am I looking for?"
"The scars."
Scars? The wounds are too fresh to have scarred. None of them-. Wait.
"At the base of the wing?"
"It's the same on both sides. So either someone tried to cut them off, or he didn't start with them and they got grafted on. That's also the only wound that had a silver scab."
"What did the rest have?"
"The regular human kind. Oh Positive. The med techs said that they flaked off as the silver blood replaced it."
"So what, he's not an angel? He's just a guy with wings stuck on?"
"He might not have been an angel to start with, but as far as anyone can tell, he is now. When he came around he asked for me by name. Of course, we hadn't finished getting those pictures by then. I was already heading there to oversee things. When I got there, he acted like an amnesiac who finally remembered something."
"Did he know that he was part of the Suicide Squad?"
"He hasn't mentioned it."
"You didn't mention it to him?"
"Why would I? He's happy working for me and bringing the love of the 'Most High' to the prisoners."
"If they're his power rings, he'd be a whole lot more useful with them than without them."
Waller shakes her head. "As things stand, he's useful and under control. Until we know more about what he can do and why he's really here, he doesn't get told anything. I'm only telling you this much so you can keep an eye out for any anomalous behavior."
"He thinks he's here to serve you. Why not just ask him?"
"Because he's not here to serve me. He's here to serve-" She points to a picture of a stern-looking black woman with… Waller on her name lanyard. "-her. Task Force X was still active when whatever happened to him happened."
Flag turns another page. "What are these towers?"
"Did you read the reports on Steppenwolf?"
"The guy the Justice League stomped? Yeah, what about him?"
"He came from a planet called 'Apocalypse'. And as far as we can tell, so did they. They're boring into the Earth's core for some reason, and it looks like there's a lot of them."
"And the things guarding it look like Doomsday. It looks like there's a lot of them, too."
Waller nods. "And we don't have enough kryptonite spears to kill that many."
"It sounds like making sure that doesn't happen here should have top priority."
Waller smiles bitterly. "But how do we know which side he was on?"
"Going out on a limb here, but I'd guess he was on the side of the angels."
"But does that mean he saves bodies or souls?" Waller shrugs. "If every human dies but most of their souls go to Heaven, does he think that's good? Is… Whatever this is, ordained by God and something we're just supposed to accept?"
"I've gotta say, I'm honestly impressed with how paranoid you are."
"Thank you. It's my job to suspect things like him until there's categorical proof he can be trusted. And I'd like you to try getting that, too."
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Darko
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"drawer"
With a name like that it would be weird if they all came back.
And you really don't want giving the orange one to anyone unless you want a Larfleeze situation.
I'm guessing a correction is unnecessary since she wouldn't necessarily know that it's spelled as "Apokalips".
I kinda see her point.
Mr Zoat
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Thank you, corrected.
Duke Long
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'they look…'?
Chojin Patriarch
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Ah, a chapter from General Flag's POV? This will be enlightening. Presumably he's gone over the details of the other Commandos, but not Lan's. I shudder to imagine what happened to his son, though. If the previous Suicide Squad thing happened... I can suspect what.
Ah, definitely a private conversation about Lan, then.
'As far as you can tell', eh? Yes, leaves a big amount of leeway, and with Word of Zoat...
Looking like someone who survived a universal retcon, I would imagine.
I suspect the wings would be a pretty significant identifying detail.
What's the bet a lot of it was coded in a proprietary data format used by the Squad's agency in the previous universe? And half their trouble was just getting their systems to recognise it when they connected to it?
No doubt the things they were able to get off it.
Heh. Almost, but not quite. I bet if he looked closer, he'd see odd little differences.
That big a signifier, then? At least they're fairly close to the truth.
So the Corto Maltese mission did happen in this timeline, since that's where Boomerang died in the DCEU. And also Rick Flag Junior.
While they probably took pictures of every bit of him, I doubt it's what I first thought.
Which explains the seals binding them. Rings are notoriously weak against magic, after all, and I presume that holds true in this timeline.
That would be due to the wings, I take it.
Probably a quite extensive list of footnotes, I'd expect.
Very interesting. So he was badly injured, but the wings healed him and 'converted' him into something closer to a full angel.
It's not like he's familiar with the anatomy of an angel, after all.
I'd be amazed if any of them scarred at all, given the restorative nature of his Angelic physiology.
A very telling detail, and I'm not surprised they noticed it.
I wonder if Constantine exists in this timeline, and whether he's known to the agency. And whether he has a st of Angels Wings in his lockup.
And it probably disconcerted her a little when he spoke to her like he knew her well.
Which means he may remember, but is keeping mum, or he doesn't remember at all.
It's all fun and games until the bill comes due, though. And hers will have a lot of red on it.
And with any luck, he will remember something on this mission. It's just the team's luck.
She just happens to have the same face, and appears to have the same soul as that Waller. I suspect he wouldn't be fooled if he looked deeper, though
The 'towers' reference puts me in mind of the original Crisis, but Steppenwolf is from the DCEU 'Justice League' movie. I'm guessing the former would have been deployed if he'd succeeded.
Ah, the joy of real life not having subtitles. Presumably carving Firepits into the planet, I take it?
Or Supermen to wield them, much less to throw at the problem.
And what triggered it? At best, it gives you a definite scenario to make contingencies for.
Well, technically it is, but not a God you want ordaining anything, since it's really bad for everyone.
Unfortunately, that kind of attitude ends up with you seeing threats where there aren't any...
So, some good confirmations of things Mr Zoat revealed. 'Lan' survived a Crisis retcon, but the surviving cost him dearly in body and soul. He brought echoes of that dead timeline, which made Waller very concerned and very suspicious. And naturally, her first thought is to maximise how she can exploit him. Typical Waller, really...
DAT_NOOB
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I assume he survived Justice League Dark Apokolips War but would that mean darksied's dead?So, some good confirmations of things Mr Zoat revealed. 'Lan' survived a Crisis retcon, but the surviving cost him dearly in body and soul. He brought echoes of that dead timeline, which made Waller very concerned and very suspicious. And naturally, her first thought is to maximise how she can exploit him. Typical Waller, really...
Lord Ernest
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Did he die in that movie? I don't remember it.
And with the reset of the timeline due to Flash, wouldn't he be alive again, anyway?
Duke Long
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Yeah, that business with Time Trapper does seem like it should prevent this. Maybe the other timeline does still exist and yet lan somehow got some memories from it? Seems weird.
Mr Zoat
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Thank you, corrected.
DAT_NOOB
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IIRC The "Flashpoint" pre and post Dark Apokolips war was the Flash going back in time and killing Darkseid as a baby (Well really Constantine tricking flash into killing darkseid).
So the reset of the timeline was caused by baby Darkseid dying.
Darko
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It's not like he's familiar with the anatomy of an angel, after all.
I remember the first Prophecy movie and the autopsy that was performed on an angel.
They lacked eyes, had both male and female sex organs, their insides were more similar to an aborted fetus.
There was an episode that showed that the Spectre trapped him in the House and Mystery and was torturing him for the changes he made.
If I remember correctly, the alterations that Paragon did to the whole time mechanics things is that time travel still works, but if anyone travels in the past and changes things, the timeline they came from wouldn't be changed, but a different universe would be born from those changes.
If that's the case then the mechanics are still in place since Lan ended up in a different universe.
There's also just the possibility that Paragon's system just broke down or someone destroyed it.
WereDragon
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So if I understand things correctly: The world Angel!OL was on got invaded by Apokolips and he, either deliberately or accidentality, shifted over to a different world. He landed badly losing his memories, at which point the local Waller robbed and enslaved him. Which honestly is very on-brand for her.
With luck that Maltusian will visit and shake OL out of his stupor.
NightmareWarden
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THAT is what caused it??? Pfft, that's some classic comic book malarkey.
Mr Zoat, https://youngjustice.fandom.com/wiki/Ronal has not showed up in any of the chapters in the Story Only thread. Not sure how the ages and whenever he'd inherit the throne would line up with your fic, but it's an option if you need a new character to develop in the aftermath of "Ahri'ahn." Or he could be a victim of it all, who Kaldur winds up aiding. Plenty of options.
Mr Zoat
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He was probably executed.
Ardy
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I'm rereading the anti life arc, it's a much better read going in with the full story than getting daily updates
Edit: also in the gate crossover, I was 99% sure the Americans were there to assassinate the prince only to have the Chinese show up to do the same thing, because that's exactly what a psychotic nationalist like the gate author would think is a good idea to make the JSDF look good. They were just awkwardly pretending "ah yes, we were here to… talk to you, off the books, but heroically defended you when it came down to it."
Makes it much funnier
Edit: also in the gate crossover, I was 99% sure the Americans were there to assassinate the prince only to have the Chinese show up to do the same thing, because that's exactly what a psychotic nationalist like the gate author would think is a good idea to make the JSDF look good. They were just awkwardly pretending "ah yes, we were here to… talk to you, off the books, but heroically defended you when it came down to it."
Makes it much funnier
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The Man (part 7)
Mr Zoat
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2nd June 2013
11:35 GMT
"…facilities available."
Queen Artemis and a couple of her ministers nod as I make my proposal. From what I've been able to determine, since their world never industrialised their culture didn't really pick up on the idea of mass production. The closest they've really got is their basic education system, but even then they mostly do it as a master-apprentice thing.
"Now, I don't know how many people have had a chance to read through the books on thaumaturgy which I left last time..?"
Artemis and a man with an impressive Father Christmas beard and opulent purple robes nod.
"How hard would it be to convert it to your notation?"
The man shakes his head. "For something as advanced as your gateways there would be little point in converting it. The Atlantean command of thaumaturgy is far and away more advanced than ours. It would be easier to learn their notation from the beginning rather than confuse matters with an imprecise translation."
I nod. "Okay, but you'll need to be aware that some of your thaumosphere's constants are going to be different from the environment the Atlanteans are used to working in."
He nods enthusiastically. "I have already begun charting them, though it would be convenient to have an expert to refer to."
"King Orin has reverted Gamemnae's order, so after a brief break Atlantean scholars will be available for foreign employment once more. Minus the specialists who are going to be working with Venturia on the deep thaumaturgy research. At this point the techniques needed to manufacture the Dolmen Gates are well known enough to be handled by skilled craftsmen, rather than expert thaumaturgists."
King Orin seemed to think that it would be a good deal easier to get a larger pool of volunteers for a project intended to directly benefit Earth than for one which just involved hiring people for a foreign war on the other side of the galaxy. And even fairly pessimistic suggestions show that it will take millennia before the Reach reach Earth at their current rate of expansion. The galaxy is too big a place for things to be otherwise. They are a threat, and Kadabra and Truggs' historical reports make it clear that they'll eventually be one to us… But they're not now and won't be anytime soon.
"So the next question I have is… What do you want in exchange?"
A man in a red robe with a thick belt nods. "Naturally, we have no agreed-upon exchange rate."
"If we did I'd just work out what the going rate was and add a few percent. Now, I can offer payment in any Earth currency you like, but unless Dream transportation is a lot more simple than I think it will be, that's not much use to you. It would probably be easiest to either allow me to purchase a large amount of local currency with… Metal, lore, equipment, or… Whatever you want. Alternately I could issue my own currency here, but I don't know how that works within your legal system."
Red robe shakes his head rather sharply. "It is absolutely forbidden."
Artemis considers it for a moment, then shakes her head as well. "Part of the way in which we ensure that our physical coins are legitimate requires them to be the only type in circulation."
"So, no scrip?"
Red robe's mildly contemptuous expression conveys the negative. "As far as the magic we use is concerned there is very little difference."
"And a currency purchase?"
"That's…" He makes eye contact with several other councillors for a moment. "Something that we could do, though it would be… Unusual."
"Okay. Ah, don't keep me in suspense. How does it usually work around here?"
"Usually, someone from off-world would contract with a local noble. A contract would be drawn up and bound in blood. The off-worlder would provide whatever was agreed upon and the noble would arrange for the work to be carried out."
"Ah, yes, we have something similar on Earth, though I… Imagine that the intent is a little different. Is it-." I turn to Queen Artemis. "Are you able and willing to serve in that capacity? I have no idea what the royal demesne is like here."
From the.. somewhat less than pleased looks I'm going to assume that I shouldn't have asked that.
"I apologise if I've violated local custom-."
Queen Artemis raises her right hand to stop me. "I am a head of state without issue. Given the nature of the contractual binding, I have avoided putting my name to such agreements."
"It's immediately fatal?"
"It can be, if the violation is severe enough. One off-worlder once used a trade agreement to bring a large fission bomb here. Since then, we have used a clause to.. prevent the signatories living long enough to perform such a betrayal."
"And you're the queen, so you can't put yourself in position to be affected just in case you need to break the contract." I nod. "So can your castellan sign it under their own authority, or do I have to find someone else?"
She tilts her head slightly. "I am a little surprised that you aren't more concerned about the binding that you would undergo."
"Oh, psh." I shrug, smiling. "When I first came to this universe I agreed to a year's servitude under pain of being endlessly attacked by supermonsters if I disobeyed an order. A simple thing like 'pay on time and don't nuke our planet' is nothing compared to that one."
She sits back, her eyes widening slightly. "You didn't tell me about that."
"I've been involved in a lot of crazy things in the last three years. I.. needed to get some of my planet's senior heroes to trust me quickly, and making myself unable to disobey achieved that. I trusted them not to abuse that authority, and… They never did."
Let me down in a big way once, yes. Made inappropriate use of my oath, no.
"Actually, your situation reminds me of my own queen. Queen Hippolyta only had an heir relatively recently, and when Princess Diana got curious about who'd been next in line before her she tracked the woman down. She was a distant cousin of the queen, and when Diana told her that she'd been Crown Princess until she was born, she said 'That can't be right. Are you sure?'"
"I don't think it's quite the same. I came of age fifteen hundred years ago."
"You're right: you're half Queen Hippolyta's age." She blinks in shock, her expression fading. "And she had a daughter by using clay infused with titanic magic, shaping it into a girl and then getting her patron gods to bring it to life."
She stares at me for a moment, and then nods slowly. "Your homeworld sounds… Fascinating."
"The word you're looking for is 'mad'. And yes, it is."
"I think I should like to visit it."
"Um. You can? But… The Anti-Life wrecked our civilisation. If you could give us a couple of years we could probably have things running properly again, otherwise it's… Not going to look very impressive."
"I understand. But if we are to be a part of the rebuilding, I should see what it is like." I nod. "Because I see the wisdom in keeping a pact of this size under direct royal control, and the only way that could be done-" A couple of the advisors give her an odd look. And then give me an odd look. "-requires both parties to be completely certain about the relationship."
"Alright, well, give me a day to sort out accommodation and I'll await your pleasure."
11:35 GMT
"…facilities available."
Queen Artemis and a couple of her ministers nod as I make my proposal. From what I've been able to determine, since their world never industrialised their culture didn't really pick up on the idea of mass production. The closest they've really got is their basic education system, but even then they mostly do it as a master-apprentice thing.
"Now, I don't know how many people have had a chance to read through the books on thaumaturgy which I left last time..?"
Artemis and a man with an impressive Father Christmas beard and opulent purple robes nod.
"How hard would it be to convert it to your notation?"
The man shakes his head. "For something as advanced as your gateways there would be little point in converting it. The Atlantean command of thaumaturgy is far and away more advanced than ours. It would be easier to learn their notation from the beginning rather than confuse matters with an imprecise translation."
I nod. "Okay, but you'll need to be aware that some of your thaumosphere's constants are going to be different from the environment the Atlanteans are used to working in."
He nods enthusiastically. "I have already begun charting them, though it would be convenient to have an expert to refer to."
"King Orin has reverted Gamemnae's order, so after a brief break Atlantean scholars will be available for foreign employment once more. Minus the specialists who are going to be working with Venturia on the deep thaumaturgy research. At this point the techniques needed to manufacture the Dolmen Gates are well known enough to be handled by skilled craftsmen, rather than expert thaumaturgists."
King Orin seemed to think that it would be a good deal easier to get a larger pool of volunteers for a project intended to directly benefit Earth than for one which just involved hiring people for a foreign war on the other side of the galaxy. And even fairly pessimistic suggestions show that it will take millennia before the Reach reach Earth at their current rate of expansion. The galaxy is too big a place for things to be otherwise. They are a threat, and Kadabra and Truggs' historical reports make it clear that they'll eventually be one to us… But they're not now and won't be anytime soon.
"So the next question I have is… What do you want in exchange?"
A man in a red robe with a thick belt nods. "Naturally, we have no agreed-upon exchange rate."
"If we did I'd just work out what the going rate was and add a few percent. Now, I can offer payment in any Earth currency you like, but unless Dream transportation is a lot more simple than I think it will be, that's not much use to you. It would probably be easiest to either allow me to purchase a large amount of local currency with… Metal, lore, equipment, or… Whatever you want. Alternately I could issue my own currency here, but I don't know how that works within your legal system."
Red robe shakes his head rather sharply. "It is absolutely forbidden."
Artemis considers it for a moment, then shakes her head as well. "Part of the way in which we ensure that our physical coins are legitimate requires them to be the only type in circulation."
"So, no scrip?"
Red robe's mildly contemptuous expression conveys the negative. "As far as the magic we use is concerned there is very little difference."
"And a currency purchase?"
"That's…" He makes eye contact with several other councillors for a moment. "Something that we could do, though it would be… Unusual."
"Okay. Ah, don't keep me in suspense. How does it usually work around here?"
"Usually, someone from off-world would contract with a local noble. A contract would be drawn up and bound in blood. The off-worlder would provide whatever was agreed upon and the noble would arrange for the work to be carried out."
"Ah, yes, we have something similar on Earth, though I… Imagine that the intent is a little different. Is it-." I turn to Queen Artemis. "Are you able and willing to serve in that capacity? I have no idea what the royal demesne is like here."
From the.. somewhat less than pleased looks I'm going to assume that I shouldn't have asked that.
"I apologise if I've violated local custom-."
Queen Artemis raises her right hand to stop me. "I am a head of state without issue. Given the nature of the contractual binding, I have avoided putting my name to such agreements."
"It's immediately fatal?"
"It can be, if the violation is severe enough. One off-worlder once used a trade agreement to bring a large fission bomb here. Since then, we have used a clause to.. prevent the signatories living long enough to perform such a betrayal."
"And you're the queen, so you can't put yourself in position to be affected just in case you need to break the contract." I nod. "So can your castellan sign it under their own authority, or do I have to find someone else?"
She tilts her head slightly. "I am a little surprised that you aren't more concerned about the binding that you would undergo."
"Oh, psh." I shrug, smiling. "When I first came to this universe I agreed to a year's servitude under pain of being endlessly attacked by supermonsters if I disobeyed an order. A simple thing like 'pay on time and don't nuke our planet' is nothing compared to that one."
She sits back, her eyes widening slightly. "You didn't tell me about that."
"I've been involved in a lot of crazy things in the last three years. I.. needed to get some of my planet's senior heroes to trust me quickly, and making myself unable to disobey achieved that. I trusted them not to abuse that authority, and… They never did."
Let me down in a big way once, yes. Made inappropriate use of my oath, no.
"Actually, your situation reminds me of my own queen. Queen Hippolyta only had an heir relatively recently, and when Princess Diana got curious about who'd been next in line before her she tracked the woman down. She was a distant cousin of the queen, and when Diana told her that she'd been Crown Princess until she was born, she said 'That can't be right. Are you sure?'"
"I don't think it's quite the same. I came of age fifteen hundred years ago."
"You're right: you're half Queen Hippolyta's age." She blinks in shock, her expression fading. "And she had a daughter by using clay infused with titanic magic, shaping it into a girl and then getting her patron gods to bring it to life."
She stares at me for a moment, and then nods slowly. "Your homeworld sounds… Fascinating."
"The word you're looking for is 'mad'. And yes, it is."
"I think I should like to visit it."
"Um. You can? But… The Anti-Life wrecked our civilisation. If you could give us a couple of years we could probably have things running properly again, otherwise it's… Not going to look very impressive."
"I understand. But if we are to be a part of the rebuilding, I should see what it is like." I nod. "Because I see the wisdom in keeping a pact of this size under direct royal control, and the only way that could be done-" A couple of the advisors give her an odd look. And then give me an odd look. "-requires both parties to be completely certain about the relationship."
"Alright, well, give me a day to sort out accommodation and I'll await your pleasure."
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Darko
Connoisseur.
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"with an"
Well one of those invokves having aliens trying to kill you.
Unless an up jumped shit-thrower talks to them.
If she breaks it then she dies without an heir.
Not so sure you can keep yourself from nuking.
Insane is the word.
Pretty much.
Lots of people give you odd looks.
She's flirting, isn't she?
Bigking321
Not too sore, are you?
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This feels like he is about to accidentally get married.
Ardy
I trust you know where the happy button is?
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Since when is Orin deciding Venturian policy? Did they rejoin Atlantean society under Ahriman or something?
Also, when is the hilarious date with Alan going to start? We were promised old man on ageless sorceress action!
Also, when is the hilarious date with Alan going to start? We were promised old man on ageless sorceress action!
Darko
Connoisseur.
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Gamemnae as Ahri'ahn did mention that they rejoined.
I'm guessing they're going to stay as a member until all of the damage Gamemnae did is fixed.
Duke Long
Glomerulus
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'scrip?'?
I'm not quite sure I understood the bit about ease of acquiring volunteers. Did it mean that mages are being pulled from the war effort, or just that it's not hard to provide for local requirements in addition to that? Or what?
Mr Zoat
Dedicated ragequitter
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No, they were there to abduct him. But that was supposed to involve killing his guard detail, so...
Thank you, corrected.
No, it's Atlantis-proper offering compensation for what their government did.
Thank you, corrected.
Atlanteans are more likely to volunteer for something not involving a foreign war.
Lord Ernest
At the End...
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Is it me or did something of the last part of the exchange flew over the Illustres' head?
So Aquaman wants more of the Atlanteans to stay on Earth, rather than go back to NEMO service, so he established a volunteer program for the rapid creation of a global Dolmen Gate Network. Did I get that right or am I lost?
So Aquaman wants more of the Atlanteans to stay on Earth, rather than go back to NEMO service, so he established a volunteer program for the rapid creation of a global Dolmen Gate Network. Did I get that right or am I lost?