Life Ore Death
* Thanagar Trip, day 4 [Renka PoV]
'
Oh, that's all it is? Voting?' "I had been under the impression that it was… I admit, the Hawkwoman mentioned Thanagar did not celebrate holidays as Earth did, but I had been under the impression that it was something similar, or something resembling a weekend."
"Nope," the Lantern Stewart answered, as we floated above the Sea of Scythia and observed a school of fish-like beings frothing the water with activity. "Thanagar takes its voting very seriously, as you may have guessed with all the anti-crime warnings and their laws. Each adult Thanagarian is expected to set aside a few hours during the 'clerical days' to thoroughly search the available materials provided on each candidate for each race they can cast a vote in. Political debates, approved ads, articles summarizing their histories…."
"You know, I didn't want to say anything – and I still don't want to offend you, Mr. Hawkman," Jimmy added quickly, "but I was sort of assuming the Ruling Council was a nicer name for a military dictatorship, what with how Big Brother everything is."
'
Big Brother is a literature reference from that book on my list,' I recalled with some satisfaction. '
An invasively observational government.'
"That is not an uncommon opinion; Superman and Lantern Jordan both expressed similar feelings when they first visited and saw how we live. We're a society both orderly and militant without falling into the war machine of autocracy, and it's a rare balance to find. Humans – most of them," the Hawkman amended with a nod to me, which I returned pleasantly, "couldn't live like this for very long, and wouldn't want to try it, though I find even the downsides to our way of life preferable to the rampant corruption and secrecy on Earth."
"Seconded," I agreed emphatically. "It would be inappropriate for Earth to mirror Thanagar, but taking a few tips from their successes would be beneficial, I think. Mm. Of course, the Lois Lane may lose her job without any scandals to uncover," I observed. Jimmy chuckled.
"Eh, she'd figure something out. All those screens on loops just means that there are still criminals, like we see with Valkyr, and I bet Lois would have a blast in some wingmen department, sniffing out crimes to uncover," Jimmy figured. "Hey, I have a question?"
"Ask," the Hawkman said, activating some setting for security in the tent equivalent we had set up out here.
"That's what we're here for, after all," the Lantern Stewart agreed.
'
If Jimmy is hesitating, then it is probably about a sensitive subject. Embarrassing or classified… I bet embarrassing,' I decided.
"It's a question about Nth metal is all, and a lot of the information on it seems to be a no-go for people from other planets."
"With good reason," the Lantern Stewart said, "but like with the Emotional Electromagnetic Spectrum, there are some things that have spread and some things anyone can figure out, so if it's about those, we can probably answer it."
'
Interesting that he included himself in the "we" statement,' I thought. Then I realized, '
No wait it isn't. Rusts, it's entirely obvious. Thanagar has treaties with New Genesis that include Motherbox rights recognition and cooperation; of course it must have treaties with the Green Lantern Corps as well, and Lantern Stewart would know more information than he could share.'
"Is there, like, Nth metal in the bodies of everything? Because, just, I know it has anti-gravity abilities," Jimmy reasoned, "and some of the animals we saw looked a little too big to exist, like that Cromodron. It totally should've been crushed under its own weight by its shell, but it isn't, even though most of the biggest animals you can naturally get are dinosaurs and elephants. That thing was way too huge, even with Thanagar's climate and everything, but if Nth metal is in nature and it makes gravity not a big issue… Am I onto something?"
"I think the answer is a definite yes," I contributed, because '
Lantern Stewart's face went blank and his neck muscles aren't moving, which suggests he is deliberately not reacting to this. That probably means it's correct.' "Motherbox and the Professor Szarak did not confirm it for me, but the sizes of the animals we have seen, the number of substances Nth metal can alloy with-," '
The fact that it can be metabolized and can bond to a host in its pure form,' I did not add, because that was somewhat classified, I knew. "-and the Nth metal dust in the story about Valmorra's veil and victory all suggest that conclusion. Moreover, I know that Jackal cut some Nth metal out of the Hawkwoman."
"That's different," Katar informed us. "Certain Thanagarian operatives have Nth metal implants in our bodies to provide enhancements that aid us in our duties. Shayera and I, as wingmen, have been made stronger, more resilient, and faster fliers than our civilian kinsmen. Other agents may have other abilities, and there are… You inquired earlier about the monastic traditions."
"I did," I agreed, letting his change of the subject slide by. '
That's as good as confirmation on the trace amounts in their bodies. …In fact, that may explain something about why they are so secretive with the knowledge. If it became widely known that Nth metal could be harvested from their dead bodies… I wonder if Jackal knew, or if it was only a lucky guess.' "What are some of the abilities, if you do not mind? …Do they vary between Łî-sahr-kanzz and Çipi-trį-na bodies, or are they the same?"
"Different methods can create similar results between the species, but they are not the same," the Hawkman answered. "The ones I know best are the Four Wings sect and the Bright Blade sect, as I once dreamed of joining them in my youth. The Four Wings adherents undergo surgical procedures that divide and regenerate their wings, turning them into easily the fastest natural flyers on Thanagar. The Bright Blade students undergo processes that turn their wings into sharp and resilient blades."
'
Processes that increase the amount of Nth Metal gathered in their wings,' I mentally translated, but I left it unsaid.
"I fought an exhibition match with a Bright Blade master once," the Lantern Stewart reminisced. "One slash of his wing cut clean through my strongest construct, and his wings could shield him from laser fire."
"That's so cool," Jimmy gushed, and I could not have guessed whether he had caught the subject change or not. "Is there anyone who does both schools, with four super-sharp wings? Oh, and are there Lizarkon monks like that, too?"
Much to my surprise, the Hawkman replied, "It's rare for anyone to climb in the ranks of more than one practice, but it's not unheard of, and there are many schools for each species, and for both species in a few places. You are interested in visiting," he perceived.
"Very interested," I agreed. "I may wait to hear from the Professor Szarak's contact, but if you have any connections to them…?"
"None more likely than were mentioned," the Hawkman deferred.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
* June 25 [Rocket PoV]
"Hey!" my sister from another mister called out, waving wildly as I scanned the restaurant.
"That's her," I told the other two, and we headed over. Darnice popped out of the booth and hugged me quick. "Man, sistah, it ain't like more than a few days," I faux-chided as I hugged back. "Ladies, this is my best friend Darnice. D, meet Artemis and Megan. Before you ask," I continued as they shook hands fast, "Arty's hair is totes natural, and Megan is a total 'fan' of Miss Martian, so the look's intentional."
M'gann was mixing her appearance up for practice, and while I
knew it wasn't blackface or anything, it was still
weird that she'd palette swapped out her usual coloring for skin like mine (she'd literally used me as a shade reference before we left) and black hair.
"This is so. Totally. Kickass!" Darnice cheered emphatically (and I was so glad the restaurant was busy so no one'd overhear, thank you for that tip Order of the Phoenix,) as we plopped down. "I'm really trying not to fangirl too hard or anything so tell me if I freak but you guys are all awesome and I'm
so pumped to meet you. Is, I mean, are questions about how you started this whole thang off-limits?"
'
Straight to the point as ever,' I kinda sighed as the other two shared a look, not that I was disappointed or anything.
"I'd rather pass on mine, but Megs is free game," Artemis said as M'gann nodded welcomingly.
"Yeah. It's not funny," I added to D, "but it's
something that on Mars, it's the White Martians who're oppressed by the colored ones."
"Green and Red," M'gann added easily, not fidgeting or stuff. "Uncle J'onn's Green, but I'm actually White; I hid out on his spaceship to get away from… from
everything, and that's how I came to Earth. Then the crime-fighting was mostly just…" She gestured vaguely.
"Green, Red, and White?" D repeated.
"There's a Christmas joke in there, but Ah can't quite make it click," I agreed, because M'gann was totally a good sport about it.
"Just… Don't Martians shape shift? I mean, you're Green on TV and now you look Indian, so how can you
tell?" D wondered.
"We're also telepathic. There are some Martians who try to pass by either walling off their thoughts or fiercely
thinking of themselves of Green, but it's
really hard to get away with and it's not good if you're caught."
"Huh."
"Yeah," I said, "so apparently racism is everywhere, even if it changes shape." '
There's a nice title in there, somewhere,' I figured.
"Life sucks and then you die," Artemis agreed drily. Then, "Waitress."
We changed the subject, we gave our orders, and we got left alone again.
"There was something interesting I noticed when we Mr. Carr covered the Civil Rights movement," M'gann noted.
"Yeah? Oh, hey, is there anything like that in Martian history?" Darnice asked. "Things getting better, not worse?"
"Things are much better even than they were when Uncle J'onn was born," M'gann agreed.
"Megs is from a mixed marriage, which would've been a
big no-no not long ago," I elaborated because it popped into my head. "That interesting thing, was it what you mentioned about reverse-segregation?"
"Reverse segregation? Like, forced integration or something? That's a bad thing?" Darnice asked.
"It is," M'gann said, "when the White minority have to be distributed evenly through a majority of Greens. We're always outnumbered something like two to one, and Whites can be made or forbidden to move home if it would through off the ratio too much. Outside of our family homes, there's no place we can look around and see, 'Hey almost everyone looks like me.'" She smiled sadly. "Of course, even my family home didn't have
that. My brother M'comm and I are the only two White like our dad is."
"Sucks," Darnice sympathized.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
* Thanagar Trip, day 5 [Renka PoV]
"While Jimmy is out of earshot, I wish to ask you something," I informed the Hawkman.
Jimmy had gone ahead with the Lantern Stewart to get closer pictures of Thanagarian wildlife – we were also debating whether to visit a nature museum or zoo when we returned to Thalandar, but while we were away we had the opportunity – and it seemed a good time.
"It involves classified data," he correctly assumed.
"Almost certainly, in a tangential manner. What is the official story for Thanagarian corpse disposal?" I inquired. "I have been told that Thanagarians are not a people prone to monuments, including cemeteries, but I suspect there may be some important protocols to prevent harvesting Nth metal from Thanagarian corpses. Is this accurate, or should you not tell me?"
The Hawkman wordlessly waved me down, and we dropped into the growth of the large forest below us.
"I need you to register as possessing this knowledge before we leave, and to sign affirmations that you will not share it," he said.
I had already done some of that, but I supposed Wingmen would handle it differently than scientists, and I largely liked redundant security.
"If necessary, I am willing to leave the memories in a copper-mind in your keeping," I avowed, "but that may not prevent me from concluding similarly if I reinvestigate the evidence of what we have seen." '
Nor would it prevent Motherbox from repeating it, if she so chooses.'
"That will not be necessary," he said, leaving out any mention of Thanagar's potential inability to tell if I had done so without….
'
Actually, they could check if I had done so,' I realized abruptly. '
If I store it as an unlocked copper-mind, and I provide… Of course, that would require them to be able to access a nicrosil-mind containing copper Feruchemy investiture, but it may not be impossible with Nth metal.'
'
I may ask more about that later...' "Very well," I acknowledge, releasing the mild tap of acuity I had initiated. "Still, this is clearly secret."
"Not as such, compared with our discussion yesterday, but carelessness is inappropriate. When a Thanagarian dies, a division of the Sanitation Department inspects the body for signs of homicide and takes it away briefly for sanitization treatments. A minority of Cipitrina may keep a few feathers preserved in memory, but those are usually gifted while the individual is alive, rather than taken after death. The corpses are usually used for medical studies and medical training, after which the remnants are recycled into yeast farms."
"Simple enough and straightforward," I agreed, having expected something like that. "I assume other cultures—aliens, I mean—have attempted to harvest Nth metal from Thanagarian corpses, or from the living beings, yes?"
"Yes, which is one of the reasons Thangar prefers to handle this information delicately. Earth is ostensibly an ally, and the possibilities of your exchange should profit us, but this is not information to spread around."
"I will endeavor to deserve your trust in me," I avowed, making certain to meet his eyes directly. "Mm?" '
Why did he just-?'
"If you are making an oath of severity," the Hawkman explained, cradling his helmet in his hands, "it is customary to do so bared."
"Certainly." I slipped off the ties that held my chosen green and gold mask to my face. "I will endeavor to deserve your trust in me."
"I believe you," the Hawkman stated, and replaced his helmet. I fiddled with my mask and glanced around at the vast trees.
Rather than individual trunks, the forests in this part of Thanagar tended to resemble mangroves, or enormously twisted bushes.
"In consideration of the Nth metal present in many living beings, I expect it would be inappropriate to take a sample with me," I reflected.
"Only small amounts can be harvested from any given organism, but we try not to allow for sloppy habits," the Hawkman agreed. He may have seen an unvoiced question in my expression, because he added, "An adult of either species should only yield enough Nth metal to make a nugget the size of one of your teeth, excluding any ability implants they have received."
We remained grounded, exploring the foliage for some time—I was curious about the presences of the Red and the Green, or other shamanic elemental forces on Thanagar, but I had no answers to those questions—but after almost an hour, the Hawkman received a message.
"There has been an outbreak of violence in pursuit of the criminal Sh'ri Valkyr and her yet unknown accomplices," he reported shortly. "They… There are preliminary indications that her cohort had harvested Nala Mahan's corpse for unknown purposes."
"Rusts," I swore. '
What an ominous revelation of events, in light of our recent conversation.'
"Worse," he relayed, "our wingmen have been yet unable to retrieve the genetic samples taken from you."
"The Doctor Fate can perform rituals to render stolen samples mystically inert," I dismissed. "Unless they are very skilled mystically, I am not very worried… Should I become anxious?"
"Indeterminate. Protocol will be to require secondary, in-person confirmation of any activity tied to your gene sequence," he said, "but those are intended for cases of stolen identities. …In your opinion, is it likely that the Light would have connections here, or cloning technology?"
I sucked in a sharp breath, closed my eyes to concentrate, and tapped deeply from my zinc-mind's acuity.
Sixteen heartbeats later, I opened my eyes to face him.
"If the Old Ones are divinities with any similarities to the New Gods, then Apokolips would be very interested in any activity on Thanagar, I think. If the Light provided information that an individual possessing Anti-Life was traveling here, then they would absolutely be interested in gathering further information on me, in addition to any interests Apokolips has toward Thanagar in general. Whether the DNA sample would be given to the Light I could not predict… Whether it could be used to clone me… I do not know how much is needed to do so."
"It may vary, depending on the method," the Hawkman answered.
"If some of their agents escaped or sent messages- Rusts, it is likely that Sh'ri Valkyr has a tracker on something we purchased, or has hacked our signals. Motherbox, can you investigate with scanning please? Hawkman, are we safe here, or might they pursue us?"
<Initiating scanning of location, objects, and energy signals, > Motherbox affirmed.
"We should be safe from them here." The Hawkman checked his messages again. "A squad of wingmen are being sent to meet us."
"Is it possible to contact them?" I half-demanded. "My approach as an enemy would be to shadow or infiltrate the legitimate forces."
"That is..." He thought it over and nodded abruptly. "It would be safest to retreat directly to civilization," the Hawkman determined.
"If you will call Jimmy and the Lantern Stewart to us, Motherbox should be able to quickly open a small Boom Tube," I affirmed.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
* June 26 [Overview]
In a dark room, Joar Mahkent stood before a semi-circle of 8 screens. They winked on one at a time, bathing him in icy blue light.
The second from the left and the third from the right were ringed in red, denoting that temporary stand-ins were present. Even so, six of the Light had arrived for his report, and the presences of Bane and Zahl did not diminish the importance of what was happening.
If only it wasn't bad news, and he wasn't still living down his son's turning, Joar might have felt more confident in speaking.
L1: <Your report, Icicle? >
"Sir," he said uncertainly, "our sources in Central City report that Sam Scudder, Mirror Master, has been arrested, and checked into the Ironwood Heights Prison Hospital. He is injured and unconscious, but expected to survive."
L8: <God fucking damn it. Tell me he wasn't trying to kill Flash. I have told you-! >
L1: <Eight, that's enough. Mirror Master is currently not an affiliate of the Light, nor are many of Central's Rogues. >
L4: <Captain Cold is turning out to be less useful than anticipated, then. >
L8: <Yes, I do believe I warned you of that. What is the status of Flash and his sidekick? They aren't usually so brutal. >
Joar resisted the impulse to check the report on his phone. "Flash and Kid Flash both remain alive, and have been seen around Central City. According to Chief Paulson's report, Mirror Master held Kid Flash hostage in an attempt to lure Flash into an ambush. When it apparently succeeded, in killing Flash-," L8 began grumbling again. "-Kid Flash broke free and began savagely beating him, until Flash revealed that he had escaped and survived. There is no mention of pressing charges."
L3: <Were it another hero, I would suggest using this to spread propaganda about the violence of the vigilante profession, but Flash and his sidekick are too conventionally popular for it to stick beyond, at worst, a public apology. >
L4: <Would it be worth having Mirror Master 'die from his injuries' in treatment? >
L1: <At the very least, it could traumatize
that child and push him closer to instability. >
L8: <No. No, no, no, no, nononono absolutely not. We need them left unharmed for the time being. >
L5: <Eight…. >
L8: <
Listen to me. We do not want the Flash family dead or unstable. Not until we can take them down
permanently, with no chance of failure. Those are the men who lock up the darkness of the Justice League, damn them. Kill one, and the other will be broken down as well. I have
seen the depths it will drag all of them down to. We do not want that darkness in the world, outside of our control. >
L6: <And if we can take them both down, sir? >
L8: <Then we will likely see the League's "nuclear" retaliation. We cannot kill them until the rest of the League has fallen as well. >
L2: <So, Señor Ocho, we need only wait a week or two? I can be patient, indeed, if we will seek out those niños in due time. >
L3: <Be careful, Bane. Ra's has approved you to succeed him in leading the Shadows, and Eight has seconded the recommendation, but you do not yet have his seat on the Light. Your audition is still under way, and while you are free to dispense with Ra's al Ghul's resources as you see fit, your actions do impact the Light's activities. We expect to see extraordinary returns from your current plan. >
L5: <A plan which was contingent partly on Mirror Master's involvement. How will you handle this, Bane? >
L2: <Señor Icicle, make arrangements for Mirror Master's equipment to be stolen from the lock-up, por favor. All that is
necessary for the next step in preparations is Dr. Crane's co-operation. Provided, of course, I may access agent "Crackle" for this mission, or some other source of teleportation distribution. You have faith in me still, sí? I promise to succeed where no one has before, and end the Justice League. >
L8: <It's not wise to make promises you can't keep, Bane. …One, your opinion? I think he can pull this plan off, but I it will strain our resources to attempt it. The Justice League will be out of commission for months, or permanently, if this works. >
L1: <Dosing "Agent Crackle" with Starro-tech was an excellent suggestion, Eight, but even if he's gone several months undetected, laying low to evade detection means he has not done much to advance our interests, beyond a recent, failed attempt for our ally. I would risk it. >
L3: <I believe you missed a step or two; we do not know whether any mirror copy of Crane would retain enough information to brew the Fear Toxin variants to our required specifications, nor whether a copy would remain in Crane's cell long enough before ceasing. >
L8: <Unless, "Señor Bane," you want to risk the wrath of the Bat by blowing your cover. >
L2: <Gentlemen, me perdóne, por favor. It is my plan, and I will take care of the petty details as intended… or I will suffer the consequences. No more. No less. However, Agent Crackle should be only necessary in delivering equipment between locations until later stages. Riskless. >
L7: <On that, we must agree to disagree. However, I care little for the result either way, so long as Fate is ended at the end of it. >
L1: <We shall see. Four, how fairs the replacement laboratory? >
L4: <The materials and systems have all been set up, but some of the samples are having… difficulty. General Zahl? >
L6: <My apologies, honored councilmembers. L Six would undoubtedly know more about the details, but with the recent scrutiny L Two has come under, our workers and my master have been balancing too many projects. L Four, you would know more than me. >
Queen Bee harrumphed, and then checked her notes again.
L4: <Several of the Project Brad samples—especially the older ones, but not all—have failed entirely for reasons no scientists yet agree on. Worse, Martian DNA is so far more difficult to read than the Kryptonian's, and introducing "Luthorium" to those samples-, >
L7: <Wait.
Luthorium? >
L3: <She means prolithium, Seven. "Agent Green" is another name; the Lazarus chemicals used to speed grow cloned tissue. >
L4: <Introducing it has consistently killed the Martian cells. We started off with almost a pint of Martian blood drawn from the Manhunter, and now the lab is down to a third of that. >
L3: <It killed off the Project Brad samples as well? How unusual; the chemicals functioned quite well with the Kryptonian cells. >
L4: <Personally, I suspect a sorcerous cause, unless Eight or Seven have any suggestions. >
L7: <A dozen. I'll send someone over to report on whether it's any of them when I can spare the manpower. >
L8: <The Thanagarians as well? It could have been something planetary… What about the Starro cell samples? >
L6: <By all accounts, the Starro cell samples, the Terminan samples, the Kryptonian samples, and almost all human sample have reacted well to "agent green" treatment, honored council. Some samples have failed at different saturation points, but accelerating a year's growth into seven weeks hasn't yet caused any sample to fail, provided it survived the original introduction of Agent Green to its system. >
L4: <Except for the Thanagarians. Agent Green will kill Martian DNA immediately upon introducing any amount, and the Brad samples have an extremely low saturation threshold, but Thanagarian DNA samples tend to die at a certain point in development. >
L5: <It may be an influence of the Nth metal in their bodies; we still do not understand its properties, and will not without study. >
L1: <It is on the list, but I received an apologetic report from the lone survivor of the diplomats I sent to Thaal Sinestro. >
L6: <They were wiped out? Your pardon, sir. >
L5: <By Sinestro, or by an outside force, One?"
L1: <They were not mistaken for genuine green lanterns, but my emissaries spoke poorly, and became combative when Sinestro attempted to intimidate them.
Libra survived the retribution by plucking out his own eye in apology to Sinestro, as "an offer of just balance for the insult". >
L5: <What of the power ring? >
L1: <Sinestro permitted him to keep it, but Libra has difficulty wielding it and will need to be retrieved from his location. He also reports that Sinestro may approach us of his own accord later this year, or would be receptive to a more polite offer. Seven-, >
L7: <No, I will not be able to go retrieve Libra and the ring in any reliable time-frame. I repeat: I am not Klarion. I have a fraction of his power, and it is taking everything my organization has to maintain our status quo at the moment. I need to personally refresh the wards used to keep a dozen different uncontrollable elements docile and apathetic, rather than pursuing "great justice," because none of my agents have the subtlety and skill yet. Sand's are the worst – I need to renew his every two days – but none of them last more than five, and if I empower them enough to last any longer, Fate will likely notice their presence despite all the trouble we've stirred up to keep him busy. >
L2: <Ladies, gentlemen, please. Remember, within two weeks we will have the entire Justice League out of our hair, sí? It will be soon. >
L1: <Libra will wait without issue,
if all goes according to your plan. >
L5: <I can send a few of my subtler agents – those who will not be missed – to assist Four, Six, and Seven. It may be all I can do, currently. >
L3: <You are still under scrutiny from February? >
L5: <Are you not, Three? It is… indeterminate, but I believe Mera is suspicious of me. Likely, I overplayed my injuries retrieving the Seal. >
L7: <How so? >
L5: <I did not anticipate the children's ability to incapacitate their enemies without injury; when my team took injuries and were "forced to" slay several koloss in combat, it may have given the impression that I was anchoring. >
L6: <I'm sorry? >
L3: <Sandbagging, Zahl. Throwing the fight, or almost doing so. >
L5: <Indeed. In addition, there has been renewed suspicion… in March I had to hastily arrange the death of an honored figure, the
Reverend Mother Cetea. While I believe I have benefitted greatly, the act was hasty, unplanned, and not without a great deal of risk. If I was less subtle than I believe myself… It seems prudent to remain quiet for the moment. If Two's chosen heir succeeds, after all, we will be free to act soon enough. In the meanwhile, I will send a few of my men, and I will see to stealing some of Sha'lain'a's early notes. >
L8: <Sha'lain'a is…? >
L5: <An interesting blind spot, Eight. Sha'lain'a of Shayeris is the mother of Aqualad, young Kaldur'ahm, and a biochemist quite gifted in sorcery. She largely created the treatments enabling Black Manta's men to imitate true Atlanteans in her teens. >
L7: <Have we considered recruiting or kidnapping her? >
L5: <The latter is… infeasible, so long as she remains happy in her ostensible retirement, but it may be worth attempting the former if we can sway Aqualad to our cause, which is why I advise we eventually reveal the truth of his parentage to him. >
L3: <While I disagree with Eight's dismissal of Aqualad's importance-, >
L8: <I have been fully upfront about the limits of my information. >
L3: <True. As I was saying, however, an early reveal of our Black Manta's link to Aqualad would have only had us lose him at Santa Prisca. >
L2: <…
Si, Señor Three. Very
much so. >
L4: <Successfully kidnapping her could both procure her services and be used to blackmail him. Is it worth considering? >
L5: <I would not attempt it unless I see her eat with bare hands. >
From the looks on the monitors and the long silence, Joar felt certain the he was not the only one to not understand that.
"…I don't think I caught that, sir," he offered, being the most subordinate of those present. "Her bare hands?"
L5: <It is a tell she displays; as a youth, Sha'lain'a of Shayeris often handled toxic, mystic, and otherwise unclean substances, along with regularly practicing spells through which she could emit poison. As a result, she carried utensils with her everywhere, and never ate with her bare hands. When I arranged a private meeting with her to discuss certain events, including the study of Hemalurgy we could perform with the spikes taken from our captive prisoners and the slain koloss, I witnessed her remove a fork from a case kept in her pocket, and use it to eat finger foods. The habit is evidence that she has not forgotten how to kill, no matter her medication, mindset, or maternity. >
L7: <You consider her dangerous enough that we would be unable to abduct her? I may be too busy to go personally…. >
L5: <In her years of activity, we called her
Stargazer, and
Irukandji. The former is a predatory fish with venomous spines and the ability to generate electrical shocks; they commonly hunt by burying their bodies in the sand, unseen, and leaping up to catch passing prey. The latter is a jellyfish no larger than one's thumbnail, so small that it is often unnoticed in the water; its sting can cause twelve hours boiling sensations, cramps, vomiting, and cardiac arrest. If it does not kill you directly, the neurotoxin will inflict a psychological sensation of doom so severe, patients have been known to beg for merciful deaths mid-treatment, and I theorize it to be an ingredient in fear toxin. Do you question me? >
"If you believe that we cannot capture her without risking irreplaceable assets, sir, then I will defer to you," Joar vouched when no one spoke.
The others seemed willing to let him get away with it, Icicle reflected, since it spared them from having to answer him.
L8: <What of other matters: any progress on your "succession," Five? Have any of the leads come through, or is it all too different? >
L5: <Information from such sources has proven unreliable, yes. Tula has been regrettably reticent after events of late, and with her activities largely confined to the surface, I thought it best to leave any continuation of my bloodline to natural progression. As to the other…? >
L3: <None of my private investigators turned up anything. One? Seven? >
L7: <I've done a few divinations with the blood samples you gave me, and had my subordinates do more, but the results are… scattered, and I have neither spare time nor energy for more specific work. Ask again in a month, if the new Two's plan succeeds. One? >
L1: <No results. It is a pity, but revealing "Ocean Master" to be Aquaman's "illegitimate son" seems not to be in the cards. >
L4: <Was
that the plan? Psimon needs to be more specific in his reports. Five, if Three could clone a human-Kryptonian hybrid, is there any reason we cannot clone and speed grow a hybrid child of Aquaman to be "Ocean Master"? Raqabat has seemed successful, so far. >
Joar watched as they all considered the prospect for a silent moment, with Bane scowling at the mention of his "backup replacement".
L5: <While that… Speed growth? No. According to Crackle's reports, Batman discovered that it leaves trace chemicals detectable in the same blood tests that would prove his paternity, correct? We must develop a way to offset that vulnerability, or they would discover it. >
L3: <A fair point. General Zahl, you may inform Six that my forces will take care of it, so as to not add another preoccupation to his activities. Are there any other concerns? >
L5: <Yes: the drugs Sportsmaster supplied Bane with, to undo the damage done by Venom use. If I am to be public in all my activities for the time being, might we arrange some samples to be captured? As Six has yet to replicate them, allowing me to oversee their study in Atlantis would still allow my operations to remain progressive, and it could free Six from the necessity. Since we
still….>
L1: <Now, now, Five. I understand that you disagree with my decision, but I have long allowed even two-faced agents to buy their freedom from service or punishment; it has served me very well in my time. As Kobra demonstrates, we lack a monopoly on shadowy organizations – for
now, at least – and even after learning that he had some supplier able to compound and produce those chemicals, our review has found no sign that Lawrence ever betrayed us, nor that any information he may have given has been used against us. Who knows? Perhaps he originally joined to scout the Shadows as allies for his first employers, and they are now considering joining The Light. >
L4: <Perhaps. Still. Good riddance to bad rubbish. >
"Quite," Joar agreed stiffly, still very glad that he had genuinely known nothing about Lawrence having a second, side employer of some kind.
L1: <Two weeks until the Justice League may be permanently out of our hair, then. Agent Crackle remains undiscovered, Rimbor remains in a self-righteous uproar, and our allies' agents have ensured that the news is spreading through channels unaffiliated with the Green Lantern Corps. Thia's escape was… unexpected, but it was a fitting distraction, and she has departed the system rather than remain. >
L8: <Two weeks until we find out how much chaos the League can contain, or they die trying. >
L7: <On that note, I have perhaps and hour before I need to renew… Actually, one more thing. Any news of the Gem? >
L1: <None yet, but our agents are remaining alert for her. Meeting adjourned, ladies and gentlemen? I will be departing soon to visit our allies and report on the apparent failure of a task undertaken at their request, as well as to deliver a token of our regard. >
L2: <If Five could arrange to ship me some of the Irukandji jellyfish, I expect Professor Crane will find them useful. >
L5: <They will be delivered within the week. Meeting adjourned? >
Each member of the Light chimed agreement, and the screens winked out one by one, until Joar stood alone in the dark room.
His cellphone dinged, denoting a message about his next set of instructions. He exhaled, wiped his brow, and went to get a beer
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