13th January 2004
10:04 GMT
I can feel the fear.
Not the heavy handed sudden shock the Thanagarian marines felt as I slew them.
This is a nebulous thing, creeping, cloying, running from mind to mind and soul to soul.
The way the people around me look everywhere but at me.
The way the guards hesitate.
The nebulous sense that something has gone very wrong.
No one dares flee.
No one can force themselves to remain as they were.
Around me some of the most powerful people in this country discover new ways to fidget.
I smile beatifically at the stage.
President Gonzo isn't afraid, though from the brief inhuman lack of animation I'm going to assume that he is at least puzzled as to how to continue with this farce. The two agents who have scurried forwards are less sanguine, but he's more or less brushing them off. Kara's finger nails are
dug into her palms. She isn't afraid. She's angry. I'm sure that if she didn't have to worry about collateral damage she'd have charged me already. As it is, her training won't let her start anything. Rayner is more puzzled than anything else. He recognises my voice from our brief conversation but he doesn't recognise the symbol on my chest and may well have not spotted the ring on my right forefinger. William is looking at me with distaste, but I think that's more due to me crashing the party and being rude than anything else.
Gonzo comes back to life. "Okay. This is unexpected, but… Glad to have you with us, Grayven. And hey, I'm sure a lot of us have wanted to do that to Tom at one time or another."
Very nervous laughter from a couple of places. I look at him curiously. How's he going to play this? Father Time's still closish. He must know that there's no point in trying to run. It's no secret who struck down SHADE's aerials. Ring,
quick check that it's really him?
The chronoton flux is still present, Corpsman.
Near the back of the seating area, security personnel start walking up to the guests and guiding them from their seats. Ah, much better. There's a
plan now. They don't need to decide things. They can just
act.
"Supergirl only came to Earth five years ago and only became an American citizen under her own name six months ago, but I for one wouldn't question her courage in the conduct of her duty or devotion to the people of this country. Green Lantern's been off Earth for a while now, but on his first day with that power ring he took down a super powered serial killer. And in addition to knocking Thanagarian fighters out of the air during that fight in Egypt he saved the lives of at least eight of our downed pilots with shields and with crash mat constructs. Captain Marvel took the time to free the people the Thanagarians were holding hostage before joining the fray, eighty men and women who were looking down the wrong end of Thanagarian energy weapons. God only knows what would have happened to them without his help."
Not a lot, probably. Thanagarians aren't big on hostage taking. If they don't kill you right away they're probably not going to.
"So Grayven… Why don't you tell us here and the American people at home a little about yourself. And your friends, the Justice Lords."
Ah.
That makes sense. The back third of the audience has headed away and Kyle's ring is starting to
sparkle.
"If you insist." I get to my feet, arms folded behind my back. "I am Prince Grayven of Apokolips. You may remember my father -Darkseid- from his invasion of Metropolis, where he beat the sssss…" I raise my eyebrows at the
presenter. "Pre-watershed?" She freezes for a moment, then nods. "
Stuffing out of Kal-El. Or the follow up, where he mind controlled him and sent him back here to kill his friends and family. I personally rule a small stellar empire and my intent is to add Earth to it."
"You may be new around here, but in America we don't take kindly to that kind of talk."
"Even better! What greater stage could there be for me to prove myself than here, against the heirs of those who killed Darkseid? The power of Earth's champions is known throughout the galaxy! I had considered simply bombarding you from orbit, but what does that prove? No, I wanted to give them one last chance to confront me." I look around, spreading my arms wide. "That was the cue?" I make a show of looking around, my eyes passing momentarily over the two still on the stage. "No one?" I blink slowly, shaking my head. "Truly, that is a great-."
Something slams into the right side of my face, sending me flying across the White House lawn. I
create construct claws from the fingers of my right hand and dig them into the ground, creating great furrows as I arrest my momentum. Kara's floating just over the President's head
wearing her true uniform, eyes glowing an angry red as she stares down at me.
I stand, dismiss the claws and rub my cheek. "Ah, a love tap! Have you reconsidered my proposal, Kara Zor-El?"
"It's In-Ze!"
I squint. "In ze what?"
"
Aaaaaagh!"
Her eyes glow brilliantly for a second and I throw my left hand forwards,
forming a shield and
releasing enough dust from subspace that the burning beams from her eyes are visible for the cameras. Wouldn't want people to think I threw up shields for no good reason, would I?
"Is this a Kryptonian mating custom? I ask because I assumed that you'd gone native. I just brought a DVD of The Wedding Singer. I mean, am I supposed to eye beam you back? I'm genuinely lost here."
William scratches his head. "Um, are you two-?"
"
No!
We're not!" She starts sucking in a breath in order to freeze me.
"Kryptonian style it is then." Ring,
green Kryptonite lasers from my eyes, please.
Give it a few seconds' build up.
As you wish, though be clear that I do not approve of these theatrics, Corpsman.
Fine.
My vision goes green for a moment. Several more VIPs run past me, but I ignore them. She's wearing the uniform I made, after all. Took me a while to make one that
didn't make me feel like a
creep for demanding that she wear it. Had to dump the skirt and thigh boots, obviously. This one is an outgrowth of my work on clothing for Kon and Match. Even stuck small sunstones into the otherwise pointless belt.
Doesn't have a helmet though.
I
transition backwards, lower my barrier and
let loose with the Kryptonite. People often misunderstand how Kryptonite works. Both versions of Kryptonians I've met would laugh off a bullet made of the stuff. All that would happen is that it would shatter on their skin. At worst, they might get a mild burn where it struck. It's the
radiation which the stuff gives off that's dangerous. And I'm putting out quite a lot.
The beam diffuses as it leaves my eyes, but by far the majority of it strikes her directly in the face. "Ah-AGH!" She staggers backwards and collapses while Rayner suddenly wakes up to the fact that an actual fight is happening,
creating a barrier across the front of the stage as Marvel moves to shield Gonzo.
I smile condescendingly at Rayner. "I hear you had a run in with John Stewart recently. Somehow, I'm not worried by the prospect of fighting the man who
somehow managed to lose to a Lantern who no longer owns a power ring." That said,
construct armo-.
"Shazam!"
Drrreagh! Agh, bright! Marvel's grabbed me around the waist and is holding me up to soak his lightning! I remember his fight with Superman, where every strike caused him to change shape. My armour seems to be preventing enough of the bolt reaching him to trigger that effect. Alright then.
"Sha-!" I
shove construct tendrils down his throat and
spray Skunk scent into his mouth. He spasms, biting through the construct and collapsing onto the floor. I kick him in the chest hard enough to lift him into the air and then turn away as he crashes back to the ground, vomiting and wheezing.
"Rayner. Just thee and me, then. Hope you've brushed up on your Lantern to Lantern combat."
"
I kicked the ass of the last guy to use that ring.
I doubt you'll be much harder."
"Pride cometh.
Impress me."
