BungieONI
Seven gremlins in a trench coat
- Location
- Lickwidget
- Pronouns
- She/Her
A stupid picture on the internet.
Here.
From Deviantart apparently.
Ring-Maker [Worm/Lord of the Rings Alt-Power] [Complete]
- Thread starter Lithos Maitreya
- Start date
- Crossover Users' Choice!
Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
Here.
From Deviantart apparently.
HereticMIND
[happy_robot_dinosaur_noises.flac]
- Location
- Howard County, MD
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
Oh no. Coil has a Ring.
This can only end poorly!
Aside from that, I'm literally chomping at the bit for the next update. So far, this has rekindled my interest in (at least) watching all the LotR movies, which will probably earn me some flak from the Tolkien purists that reside here. Very interesting thus far!
Please tell me that Coil will be stabbed by Narsil or Iphannis. Please.
This can only end poorly!
Aside from that, I'm literally chomping at the bit for the next update. So far, this has rekindled my interest in (at least) watching all the LotR movies, which will probably earn me some flak from the Tolkien purists that reside here. Very interesting thus far!
Please tell me that Coil will be stabbed by Narsil or Iphannis. Please.
Timerider
That guy who really should get out more.
- Location
- The End of the World.
He's more likely to end up a burnt-out soulless husk. The Rings of Power are not something to be treated with such carelessness. Golllum = exhibit A
- Location
- Ohio
Other than their CRIMINAL exclusion of Tom Bombadil and the origin of the Barrow Daggers(Which were actually one-shot super daggers against Ring-Wraiths(more or less), which means MERRY was really the one responsible for the Witch-King's demise, and Eowyn is merely incidental), the movies are mostly alright.
Or for a slightly better source on Sauron's height, there's the book of Tolkien's letters. Unfortunately, I don't have that book, but a quick search onine shows letter 246 has relevant information. Apparently Tolkien said "Sauron should be thought of as very terrible, in form a man of more than human stature (but not gigantic)," but that's at the end of the Third Age. During the First and Second Age he might well have been much taller. I do vaguely recall a reference to his height sometime during those two Ages, somewhere in the History of Middle Earth books, but I've not been able to track it down.
Letter 246 says quite a few other things too. In it, Tolkien talks about what would have happened if Elrond, Galadriel or Gandalf had taken the One Ring, about what would have happened if Gollum hadn't bitten the Ring off Frodo's finger and fallen into the lava with it, about Sam Gamgee's character: ' a mental myopia that was proud of itself, smugness, cocksureness, and readiness to measure all things by his limited experience', and much more.
For anyone who doesn't know, the History of Middle Earth books are a 12 volume collection of Tolkien's writings, with commentary from his son. In places they can get a little lost in the fine detail - talking about things like the differences between drafts 4, 5 & 6 of a scene where the published version was draft 23 - but they're full of fascinating information. Unfortunately I don't have those books either. I just borrowed them from the library.
- Location
- United Kingdom
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[disagree]
Merry helped, but it took someone in a very particular mindset to be able to face the Witch King. Without Eowyn, nothing would have come of Merry' s actions.
Spider Sunrise
BeaconHill
Lost Among Carbon Fields
Hunger: "Spider Sunrise"
Ring-Maker Omake (Major AU)
Ring-Maker Omake (Major AU)
Taylor's eyes slowly opened. A single shaft of light shone through a crack in the blinds, a faint blue-purple that sparkled in the dust of the room, as bright as a beacon to her enhanced senses. Even that one tiny twilight ray, pale and weak, was enough to wake her, to burn and prickle as it traced across her skin.
Taylor reached up to her face, touched it softly. She was human. Hadn't changed in the night. She shifted unhappily out of the path of the light, knowing she was awake but not quite ready to accept it yet. She checked the clock. 5:41 AM. She wasn't completely surprised – early awakenings were among the many unpleasant side effects of her power. She'd be more careful with the blinds next time. Or she'd just go to sleep transformed, hiding under the bed as a spider or a centipede or some other beautiful thing. That was usually how she woke anyway, these days. She locked her bedroom door these days, just in case her mother tried to come in.
Taylor grumpily stood up, walking to her blinds, flipping the one misaimed slat downward and returning the room to perfect darkness. It was no obstacle to Taylor – she saw just as well, either way. Then she turned back around, and smiled at the small collection of spiders that had gathered on her bedside table. "Good morning, children," Taylor whispered.
"Good morning, mother!" they all responded, eager to please even this early. She wasn't sure why they called her mother, or why they wanted to be called her children; they just knew, or so they said. But they were cute and obedient, and she saw no harm in humoring them.
"Is Annette awake?" she asked them. To anyone but her, the words would have sounded like nothing at all – hissing, perhaps, or a breath that lingered just a little too long on her lips. The spiders' words were even stranger still, nearly silent and different for every spider, and yet Taylor could understand them all. Just one of the many oddities she'd grown used to with her power.
"No," one of them whispered. Her voice sounded high and squeaky to Taylor. The spiders mostly didn't have names, but Taylor knew this one well. She'd been hanging around Taylor's house for a while, and had become a good friend. "I think her alarm is for six-thirty."
Taylor sighed. Made sense. Annette was a morning person, but not that much of a morning person. "All right. Let me know when she wakes up. I'll get dressed and make breakfast."
"Yes, mother!" the spiders chorused, before skittering off through the house, as Taylor opened her closet and started to dress. She frowned, just a little bit, at the sight of her reflection in the closet mirror.
Taylor Rose looked... wrong. In her transformations, it was obvious: she was unnatural, monstrous, horrifying, no matter what she chose to look like. Her human body had now started to go the same way. Her skin looked pale and fragile, almost translucent, bone-white. Her hair had darkened; it was jet black, sleeker than it had been, its curls only barely reflective. Her irises were a pale gray, her lips had turned to a dusty maroon color, and her fingernails were almost black. She no longer wore glasses; she didn't need them any more. The effect was striking, yet unsettling.
Lisa had been trying to get her to dress goth for weeks now. Maybe it would be a good way to camouflage her changes, but Taylor was still stubbornly resisting. Instead, the clothes she put on were determinedly cheerful, even too loud – a bright yellow dress with white stockings. Despite her uncanny look, she did wear it well. Once she'd been something of a beanpole, but it hadn't taken long for a shapeshifter like her to handle that problem.
She slipped through the halls of her home. She didn't have far to go – the kitchen was right at the bottom of the stairs. She and her mother lived in a cute little townhouse by the university – light brick, modernist, with an overgrown little garden – but it was very, very tiny.
Taylor almost forgot to turn the lights on. Even then, she only did because her mother would be surprised to find her cooking in the dark. She pushed the power button on the little black-and-white TV on the counter; it sprang to staticky life.
"And now," said a pompous announcer as a woman in a flashy superhero costume strutted onto the screen, "we welcome Brandish from the Church of the Holy Choir for the morning's—"
Taylor turned the television back off, a mixture of disgust and hatred on her face. The Choir may have been a cape religion, flush with superheroes of all kinds, but her own powers were no blessing – instead, they made her one of the Corrupt, demonic and irredeemable. Spawn of Ungoliant, whoever she was. In return, Taylor considered them all spiderfood.
She put on her apron, then shoveled ingredients out of the cabinets and the fridge, stacking up quite a pile. Ever since her trigger, she'd had both ravenous hunger and a seemingly bottomless stomach. So Taylor would cook breakfast, then eat it, then cook breakfast again. Whenever her mother came out, she'd have something fresh and hot for her. And she'd eat six or seven breakfasts in the meantime. A good trade.
Taylor spent an hour or so there, just cooking different recipes and eating the results. Most people would have thought it odd. Most people didn't have Taylor's hunger. When the spiders warned her that her mother was coming downstairs, she had just started on a batch of pancakes; when she heard the stairs beginning to creak, she already had them on a plate and looking delicious.
"Good morning, Taylor," her mother called as she stepped into the kitchen.
Taylor spun around as though she'd been startled. "Oh!" she said. "Good morning, mom! Would you like these pancakes? I'll just make myself another plate..."
"That sounds delicious," Annette said with a smile. "Thank you, Taylor." Her sweep across the counter revealed no evidence that Taylor had made anything beyond these simple pancakes; she'd hidden the rest of her ingredients away. Taylor did most of the cooking these days – she was great at it – and she also bought the groceries, so her mom wouldn't notice anything missing either. "But I can't believe you can work with it so dark. Just one light on?"
"Sorry, Mom," Taylor said; she rolled her eyes, then very effectively hid the wince as her mother flung the blinds open. Taylor had trusted her mother with everything, once upon a time. But something in her just didn't want to tell her mother that she was a supervillain. It was a sad, small impulse, one she wasn't proud of; nevertheless, she followed it.
It wasn't so easy for someone like her to live with someone who didn't know. Her powers were strange, restrictive. At times like this, it hurt. But Taylor was okay with that. Every human part of her loved her mother, truly and deeply. And so she accepted the pain with a smile, as a price well worth it.
Annette sat down at the table, amidst a towering pile of papers – exams, it was that time of year – and moved them around just enough to make space for breakfast. She smiled as Taylor started to carry her breakfast over, the plate of pancakes and a glass of orange juice.
The resemblance between Annette and her daughter was obvious – they were both tall and thin, with long, dark, curly hair. They were both just a little ungraceful, too – Annette's elbow stuck out crookedly as she leaned back when Taylor bent over to set the meal down on the table. They'd looked almost the same before Taylor got her powers. But now Annette's hair was a few shades lighter, more akin to a very dark brown than to Taylor's pitch black. Her eyes were a bright, colorful blue, magnified just a little behind big, thick-framed glasses. And her skin was tanned and healthy-looking, with none of Taylor's pallor.
"Surprised you didn't have the TV on this morning," Annette said.
"I tried, but the Choir was on..."
"Right." Annette made a face. She may not have been a cape – Taylor knew that for certain, among her many side powers was one that let her sense other capes – but she had her own reasons to mistrust the Choir. "Anything coming up at school?"
"Nothing too bad..." Like any good professor's daughter, Taylor used to love school. She'd had class with her best friend Emma for years. But then she'd gotten back from summer camp one year to discover that Emma had made a new friend named Sophia Hess. And, for no reason she had ever figured out, Sophia could not stand her. Even for a bitch like Sophia, it had seemed weird – the sheer disgust on her face was like nothing she'd ever seen. And Emma had sided with Sophia, against her.
So Taylor stayed away from them until the start of school. Surely they'd get over it, right?
No. They did not get over it. After a week of absolute torture, Taylor finally told her mother, and Annette had raised hell. At times like that, her mother somehow seemed to be everywhere – yelling at Alan Barnes, in Principal Blackwell's face, haranguing Sophia's mother and stepfather. The teachers sprang into action – they both got suspended. But Emma and Sophia wouldn't change, and Alan was too stubborn to get Emma help. But he did the next best thing: he got them both transferred to Blomquist, a high school run by the Choir church, where Taylor would never see them again. She'd been incredulous, but apparently Emma and Sophia really had become quite devout.
Even with them gone, the bullying back at Winslow hadn't stopped – now it was because Taylor was openly anti-Choir. But it was sullen. Restrained. Taylor was merely ostracized, not actually tortured. And she did have a few friends. Outcasts like herself. It hadn't been a bad life.
If only that had been enough for her, she might not have powers now. But Taylor had gotten strange after Emma left her, just beginning to feel the hungers that now ruled her, for power and violence and pleasure and above all to consume. And that led her to dangerous places. To dangerous friends. She had no need to do this, no reason. But she wanted to.
It was such a strange memory, looking back on it. Regretting so badly something that would be second nature to her now, something that would hardly make her blink an eye. When her hungers exulted in something, she no longer questioned it. Back then? She'd triggered over it.
Taylor's pancakes were ready; she sat down beside her mother, fork in her hand, ready to eat her eighth breakfast of the day.
"So, Taylor, keeping up with friends?" Her mom tried to smile, but Taylor could tell she was still worried.
"Yeah," Taylor said. "I went out to the mall with Greg and Louise yesterday." Not a lie. Even a busy supervillain like her could take some time out for her civilian friends. Last week, though, she'd just made something up.
"And you're certain you've been keeping safe? I know how late you've been getting home." Taylor hadn't told Annette anything, but she wasn't completely out of the loop. She'd suspected Taylor was getting involved with gangs even before she triggered. Now? She didn't think Mom had guessed she was a supervillain yet. But something told her she wouldn't be surprised, either.
"Mom, relax. You know I wouldn't do anything that would put me in danger." Also not a lie. Taylor's power could be frustrating at times, but among its advantages was near-invulnerability – Taylor hadn't been hurt even once since she got her powers. Yes, she really was completely safe. "How are your students?"
Annette groaned, pressing her hand to her forehead. "They're... frustrating. The essays are dreadful, and a dozen students missed the exam. My mailbox is snowed in."
Taylor laughed, grinning at her mother. "Come on, you know exam season is almost over."
"It feels longer every time," Annette grumbled. "And it comes later every year. This year it's almost to the anniversary. I wonder if someone's gonna try to get out of bad grades calling me an infidel?"
Taylor smirked. It had caused them no end of trouble, but it was still one of her favorite family stories.
Back when Annette attended Brockton U herself, she'd been one of Lustrum's followers, a feminist who fought men, the patriarchy, and the establishment in general. The Church of the Holy Choir, as the face of heroism back then, was an obvious target. But when they protested, the Choir rioted. Danny Hebert, Taylor's father, died in the fighting; Taylor was born nine months later. And Annette had become a pariah, Lustrum's group taking all the blame.
The Choir had swept the whole incident under the rug in the years since, as hot-blooded activists butting heads, and urged that its followers forget. They mostly had. But Annette hadn't forgotten. She never would.
"You all ready for school?" Annette said, her expression still just a little sour.
"Yup!" Taylor nodded. "Got all my work done last night." True. Though Annette would likely not be happy to find out that she'd done most of it in her supervillain lair.
"Everything packed?"
"Of course!" Taylor glanced back up to the clock. 7:01AM. "I still have a few minutes though, right?" She looked down to her plate. "And half a pancake left." She could have devoured the whole stack near-instantly, but that earned her dirty looks at school and shock from her mother. So she was pacing herself.
"Don't push it. You know I'm making you walk next time you miss the bus."
Taylor rolled her eyes. "Got it, Mom." She finished up the last of her pancake, then gulped down her glass of milk. She thought she'd gotten away with that – she was supposed to be rushing.
They stood up together, walked to the front of the house. The sky was overcast, so the sunlight wouldn't hurt too bad, but Taylor still put on a jacket, pulling the hood tightly over her face. Annette's hand rested gently on Taylor's shoulder for a second as she put on her shoes. Taylor smiled back up at her, then ran out the open door, waving to her mom from the steps, blowing a kiss.
Most supervillains didn't go to school. Then again, most supervillains didn't have a mom like Annette. Taylor grinned at thin air as she sped toward the bus stop. Today, she hoped, would be a good day.
~~~~~~
Special thanks to LithosMaitreya – not only did he write Ring-Maker in the first place, we also chatted a lot about this omake!
This world seems different. I wonder what changed?
Last edited:
- Location
- parker colorado
You should make your own thread and continue writing this omake into a story.
- Location
- Estonia
And don't forget to link it here if it does evolve into its' own story (presuming Lithos' permission).
Lithos Maitreya
Character Witness
- Location
- United States
You should make your own thread and continue writing this omake into a story.
@BeaconHill and I talked a great deal about this omake. A series is quite likely. If she wants them in their own thread, she's more than welcome to make one; if she wants to keep posting them here, I'm more than happy to threadmark them. I'm happy as long as I get to read them.
Dantalion
Insight: 362
- Location
- A Guest Room at the Brass Embassy, dying of Frenzy
- Pronouns
- Any
Looks like instead of getting Sauron: The Shard, she got Shelob: The Shard.
Timerider
That guy who really should get out more.
- Location
- The End of the World.
Shelob's mom more like.
- Location
- West Michigan
SoW Shelob, I think. (I haven't played SoW)
AFAICT, there's no crossover. Here's what I can determine:
- The references to Heroes having a religion called 'The Choir' suggests that their powers come from Eru and they are, to some greater or lesser extent, aware of it; in LotR the great God Eru literally sung creation into existence with his choir of angels (called Valar and Maiar)
- Taylor apparently gets her powers from another source, one which automatically makes her a Villain and abomination in the eyes of the Heroes. Given her spider theme and the references to hating the light, this source is probably Ungoliant, a giant monstrous spider in Tolkein's legendarium which attempted to eat the sun. AIUI, Ungoliant is one of the few things Eru did not create - not part of his great Song - which would explain why Taylor is considered anathema by the Heroes.
Flicker 8.4
Lithos Maitreya
Character Witness
- Location
- United States
Many thanks to @Assembler, @themanwhowas, @Skyrunner, and @BeaconHill for betareading.
Many thanks to @MugaSofer for fact checking.
I stared down into the empty Jewelry Box in my hands. My body was slumped against the brick wall behind me. I wasn't sure my legs would carry me now.
The Box rattled slightly in my shaking hands. The world around me was a flurry of activity. PRT officers were running around, shouting, getting in and out of vans, trying to salvage the situation, even as a few continued processing enthralled civilians.
"Annatar," Sophia murmured beside me. "Are you okay?"
"It's gone," I mumbled. I could barely hear my own voice. "Narya's gone."
She reached out and gingerly closed the empty Jewelry Box. Her hand lingered on its lid. "We'll get it back," she said. "I promise."
The Box fell from my nerveless fingers with a clatter. My hands dropped to my sides as I raised my head to look up at the sky. The first stars were just starting to peek out from behind the haze and smog. The last light of the sunset was painting the world like a coating of liquid gold.
"The sun is setting," I murmured. "It's going to be a long night."
Sophia's hand slipped into mine and squeezed. It wasn't very effective, through my gauntlet, but I appreciated the gesture. "We'll be all right," she told me.
I squeezed back, but Vilya thrummed forebodingly on my finger, and my heart did not rest easy.
"Whoever it was got away." Armsmaster's voice broke through the haze over my mind as he turned back to me. His hand dropped from the side of his helmet. He had been speaking quietly with someone over the radio. "Annatar, can you see anything with Vilya? Panacea, are you getting anything with Nenya?"
Panacea shook her head. "Nenya's only giving me vague impressions when I search for Narya."
"Rings of Power are hidden," I said. "Even Nenya can't find Narya as easily as that, unless Narya's Bearer wants to be found. And Vilya can't see its future unless Narya's Bearer wants it to be seen."
Armsmaster's jaw worked for a moment, as though he was chewing his tongue. I got the distinct impression that he was holding back a curse.
"Do we even know who it was?" Sophia asked. "What power did they use? Did anyone recognize it?"
"No," said Armsmaster, "but I've contacted Dragon, and she has Tattletale working on it right now. We should—"
He broke off. His head turned slightly, as though he was looking at something in the periphery of his vision. "Okay," he said. "Tattletale believes the culprit to be one of the Travelers."
"Aegis mentioned them," Clockblocker said. "They were at the meeting about Bakuda. Nomadic villains, right?"
"Supposedly, but they've been in the Bay for nearly two months now. Tattletale claims they're in Coil's employ," said Armsmaster. "We'll have to launch an offensive against Coil to get Narya back, if this is true."
"Coil's been operating for years," Aegis said. "We don't have time for a protracted fight. Valefor can enthrall more people every day he's free!"
"Which is why it's important that he stay contained," Armsmaster said, tapping the side of his helmet, near his ear. "Protectorate, how is containment going?" His voice echoed in my radio as he communicated over the Protectorate/Wards public channel.
"We've secured the location Dragon pointed to on the west side," came Miss Militia's voice. "Assault and I are in position to intervene if Valefor and Eligos make an attempt to escape their shelter."
"Good. And the north side?"
"Velocity here. Battery, Triumph and I are in position. We've secured the north exit from the shelter."
"Good. I've got the south exit under control, and Dragon will come reinforce me here as soon as she and Tattletale are finished." Armsmaster turned to us. "Wards, you should all get back to base. We can secure the area from here."
"Yes, sir," said Aegis. He turned to me and Sophia, then hesitated. "Shadow Stalker…" he sighed. "Just help her."
Sophia nodded beside me. "Come on, Annatar," she said gently. "Let's get back home."
I swallowed and realized that I was shaking, and had been for quite some time. I forced myself to fall still. "I'm okay," I said. "I'm fine."
She looked at me. I couldn't see her face under her mask. "I know," she said. "Come on." She pulled me into a van by the hand, sat me down in a seat, and held the door open for Panacea.
"I knew this might happen," I said quietly. "I knew, and I didn't—I should have done more to protect them. Narya."
"Hindsight's 20/20," said Sophia, her eyes on me as she held the door open for Clockblocker. "Don't beat yourself up over it."
I stared at her. "A villain has a Ring of Power," I said hoarsely. "And it's my fault."
She shut the door and turned to me. "No, it isn't," she said. "It's theirs. Maybe you could have done better. So could everyone. That doesn't make it all your fault." She sighed and shook her head. "You're shivering."
I forced myself to grow still again. "I'm fine."
She looked at me doubtfully, then sighed. "Okay, I'll take your word for it. Just… take care of yourself, Taylor. We have time."
"How much time?" I asked. My chest felt tight, my lungs didn't seem to want to inflate properly. I looked down at the floor. "How long do we have, until Coil learns to use Narya properly? How long until he rallies an army to his cause? How long until we're embroiled in a war, Ring-Bearer on Ring-Bearer? How long—"
Then Sophia's arms were around me, pulling me close. "Long enough," she said.
"So," Piggot said grimly. "Coil has Narya, and we don't have a way to counter master effects."
"I'm sorry," I said. My voice sounded weak, like a child's, even in my own ears.
Piggot didn't reply. She just closed her eyes and rubbed at her temples.
"If it helps," said Sophia, "We're all basically immune to master effects. It'll take a lot more than Valefor to break any of us."
"We, as in Annatar's Ring-Bearers," Piggot grunted without looking up.
"Yes."
"Yes, ma'am," Piggot corrected, looking up at Sophia for a moment before turning back to me. She just watched me for a moment before speaking. "You look pale."
"I'm fine."
"She's in shock," said Sophia beside me. "She needs to rest."
Piggot sighed and nodded. "Even you're human, I guess," she said dryly. "Okay. We need you on alert, so I don't think I can send you home, but I order you to get some rest. Shadow Stalker, see to it that she does."
"Yes, Ma'am," said Sophia gratefully.
I gritted my teeth for a moment. Narya is gone, in the hands of the enemy, a madman is running amok in my city, people are being imprisoned to keep them from triggering compulsions, and you want me to get bedrest?
There was a rattling in my ears. I looked down. My hands were shaking. Slowly, I forced them to still. I clenched my fists once, and then released them. "Okay," I said. "All right. Lead the way."
Sophia led me back down to the Wards HQ. The others were all there. The door to the console room hung open, and Carlos was at the seat, his headset askew so that one ear was free to hear the rest of us.
Everyone was looking at us when the elevator door opened. I had the distinct impression that they had been talking about me.
Sophia nudged me. "Get out of that armor," she said. "Clear off the couch, everyone. Taylor needs to lie down. Director's orders."
"Shock?" Amy asked. "I might be able to help."
"Please," I said. "We don't have time to waste."
"We also don't know what to do," Carlos told me. "We know where Valefor is, but we haven't even been able to confirm that he and Eligos are the only capes they have, let alone how many hostages they might have. We have no idea where Coil or the Travelers are, except that they're probably south of Downtown. And we don't have the manpower to mount a search."
"Finding Narya is important," I said furiously. "More important than making sure we have an army at the perimeter—"
"We don't have an army," said Aegis grimly. "I don't think you get it, Annatar. When Valefor crashed your van on the way to the fight, earlier, he crashed almost every PRT van we had in the field. Almost a third of the local PRT's field personnel were either killed or put out of action in about a minute."
I stared at him. Swallowed. "I didn't realize it was that bad," I said.
"Can we stop," said Sophia forcefully, "stressing Taylor out before Amy's either healed her or she's had some sleep? Please?"
"Thank you, Sophia," said Amy. "Get your armor off and then come lie down, Taylor."
I allowed myself to be led to a changing room. I was left alone for a minute to change, and then brought over to the couch. Amy laid me down and set her hand on my cheek. "This won't take long," she promised.
It was true. Almost at once, I started to feel better. The cold, clammy feeling that had been encroaching upon me for the past hour faded. The fog that seemed to fill my head dissipated, and with it the faint beginnings of a headache I'd been feeling.
"You're a little dehydrated," said Amy absently, her eyes closed. "Get some water once I'm done."
"Okay," I said. "Thank you, Amy."
"Don't mention it. I'd rather fix shock than a gunshot wound any day." She pulled her hand away. "You should be better now. Go grab a drink, and then we can talk plans."
I nodded and stood up. As I crossed the room towards the sink, I heard Carlos' voice at the console. "Wards are all back at HQ, Ma'am. Panacea just cured Annatar's shock. We're ready if you need us."
"What's going on?" I called back to him as I filled a glass.
"All the ongoing hero operations are checking in," Aegis said. "Standard M/S procedure."
"Can you put it on speakers?"
A moment later, Armsmaster's voice filled the room. "Dragon and I have the south side of the perimeter under control. Tattletale was escorted to a rendezvous with Faultline. They're open to assisting with the Fallen, if we hire them."
"Good." That was Piggot. "We'll probably do that. I'll try to negotiate terms with them as soon as I have a minute. West perimeter, check in."
"Miss Militia here. Assault and I have control of this sector. We've isolated the locations Dragon marked. M/S procedures are unbroken."
"Good. North side, check in."
There was silence.
"North side?" Armsmaster's voice was sharp. "Velocity, Battery, Triumph. Report in!"
"Wards console, I've granted you access to Protectorate helmet cams," said Piggot. "Access Battery's helmet feed now."
Aegis fiddled with the console. "Working on it, Ma'am."
Soon an image appeared on one of the screens. The night sky twinkled merrily above the discarded camera. There was no moon tonight.
"Ma'am, this camera was removed. Battery isn't wearing it."
"The sun has set," I found myself murmuring.
A couple of the other Wards looked at me. Their faces were pale.
"What's happening?" Vista asked softly.
"Aegis." It was Amy speaking. Her eyes were downcast, and a curtain of mousy hair hid her face from view. "Call a master/stranger alert. Now."
He glanced back at her. "Did Valefor break through?"
She shook her head.
"What the hell is happening, boss?" That was Assault's voice. I hadn't spoken to him often, but I didn't need to know him well to recognize the fear in his voice, sharp and deep. "Where's Battery? What's happened?"
"The north side perimeter has been compromised." Armsmaster said grimly. "I'm ordering an increase in M/S threat level."
"We need to call everyone back," said Panacea, looking up. Her face was practically grey, so pale had it become. "We need to call them back now."
"What is it?" Aegis said sharply. "I need a reason, Amy! I need to know what's happening!"
Vilya was cold on my finger. A long, dark night was ahead.
Amy swallowed. "It's not Valefor," she said hoarsely. "It's Heartbreaker."
Please consider donating to my Patreon. Many thanks to those who have already donated.
Many thanks to @MugaSofer for fact checking.
-x-x-x-
I stared down into the empty Jewelry Box in my hands. My body was slumped against the brick wall behind me. I wasn't sure my legs would carry me now.
The Box rattled slightly in my shaking hands. The world around me was a flurry of activity. PRT officers were running around, shouting, getting in and out of vans, trying to salvage the situation, even as a few continued processing enthralled civilians.
"Annatar," Sophia murmured beside me. "Are you okay?"
"It's gone," I mumbled. I could barely hear my own voice. "Narya's gone."
She reached out and gingerly closed the empty Jewelry Box. Her hand lingered on its lid. "We'll get it back," she said. "I promise."
The Box fell from my nerveless fingers with a clatter. My hands dropped to my sides as I raised my head to look up at the sky. The first stars were just starting to peek out from behind the haze and smog. The last light of the sunset was painting the world like a coating of liquid gold.
"The sun is setting," I murmured. "It's going to be a long night."
Sophia's hand slipped into mine and squeezed. It wasn't very effective, through my gauntlet, but I appreciated the gesture. "We'll be all right," she told me.
I squeezed back, but Vilya thrummed forebodingly on my finger, and my heart did not rest easy.
"Whoever it was got away." Armsmaster's voice broke through the haze over my mind as he turned back to me. His hand dropped from the side of his helmet. He had been speaking quietly with someone over the radio. "Annatar, can you see anything with Vilya? Panacea, are you getting anything with Nenya?"
Panacea shook her head. "Nenya's only giving me vague impressions when I search for Narya."
"Rings of Power are hidden," I said. "Even Nenya can't find Narya as easily as that, unless Narya's Bearer wants to be found. And Vilya can't see its future unless Narya's Bearer wants it to be seen."
Armsmaster's jaw worked for a moment, as though he was chewing his tongue. I got the distinct impression that he was holding back a curse.
"Do we even know who it was?" Sophia asked. "What power did they use? Did anyone recognize it?"
"No," said Armsmaster, "but I've contacted Dragon, and she has Tattletale working on it right now. We should—"
He broke off. His head turned slightly, as though he was looking at something in the periphery of his vision. "Okay," he said. "Tattletale believes the culprit to be one of the Travelers."
"Aegis mentioned them," Clockblocker said. "They were at the meeting about Bakuda. Nomadic villains, right?"
"Supposedly, but they've been in the Bay for nearly two months now. Tattletale claims they're in Coil's employ," said Armsmaster. "We'll have to launch an offensive against Coil to get Narya back, if this is true."
"Coil's been operating for years," Aegis said. "We don't have time for a protracted fight. Valefor can enthrall more people every day he's free!"
"Which is why it's important that he stay contained," Armsmaster said, tapping the side of his helmet, near his ear. "Protectorate, how is containment going?" His voice echoed in my radio as he communicated over the Protectorate/Wards public channel.
"We've secured the location Dragon pointed to on the west side," came Miss Militia's voice. "Assault and I are in position to intervene if Valefor and Eligos make an attempt to escape their shelter."
"Good. And the north side?"
"Velocity here. Battery, Triumph and I are in position. We've secured the north exit from the shelter."
"Good. I've got the south exit under control, and Dragon will come reinforce me here as soon as she and Tattletale are finished." Armsmaster turned to us. "Wards, you should all get back to base. We can secure the area from here."
"Yes, sir," said Aegis. He turned to me and Sophia, then hesitated. "Shadow Stalker…" he sighed. "Just help her."
Sophia nodded beside me. "Come on, Annatar," she said gently. "Let's get back home."
I swallowed and realized that I was shaking, and had been for quite some time. I forced myself to fall still. "I'm okay," I said. "I'm fine."
She looked at me. I couldn't see her face under her mask. "I know," she said. "Come on." She pulled me into a van by the hand, sat me down in a seat, and held the door open for Panacea.
"I knew this might happen," I said quietly. "I knew, and I didn't—I should have done more to protect them. Narya."
"Hindsight's 20/20," said Sophia, her eyes on me as she held the door open for Clockblocker. "Don't beat yourself up over it."
I stared at her. "A villain has a Ring of Power," I said hoarsely. "And it's my fault."
She shut the door and turned to me. "No, it isn't," she said. "It's theirs. Maybe you could have done better. So could everyone. That doesn't make it all your fault." She sighed and shook her head. "You're shivering."
I forced myself to grow still again. "I'm fine."
She looked at me doubtfully, then sighed. "Okay, I'll take your word for it. Just… take care of yourself, Taylor. We have time."
"How much time?" I asked. My chest felt tight, my lungs didn't seem to want to inflate properly. I looked down at the floor. "How long do we have, until Coil learns to use Narya properly? How long until he rallies an army to his cause? How long until we're embroiled in a war, Ring-Bearer on Ring-Bearer? How long—"
Then Sophia's arms were around me, pulling me close. "Long enough," she said.
-x-x-x-
"So," Piggot said grimly. "Coil has Narya, and we don't have a way to counter master effects."
"I'm sorry," I said. My voice sounded weak, like a child's, even in my own ears.
Piggot didn't reply. She just closed her eyes and rubbed at her temples.
"If it helps," said Sophia, "We're all basically immune to master effects. It'll take a lot more than Valefor to break any of us."
"We, as in Annatar's Ring-Bearers," Piggot grunted without looking up.
"Yes."
"Yes, ma'am," Piggot corrected, looking up at Sophia for a moment before turning back to me. She just watched me for a moment before speaking. "You look pale."
"I'm fine."
"She's in shock," said Sophia beside me. "She needs to rest."
Piggot sighed and nodded. "Even you're human, I guess," she said dryly. "Okay. We need you on alert, so I don't think I can send you home, but I order you to get some rest. Shadow Stalker, see to it that she does."
"Yes, Ma'am," said Sophia gratefully.
I gritted my teeth for a moment. Narya is gone, in the hands of the enemy, a madman is running amok in my city, people are being imprisoned to keep them from triggering compulsions, and you want me to get bedrest?
There was a rattling in my ears. I looked down. My hands were shaking. Slowly, I forced them to still. I clenched my fists once, and then released them. "Okay," I said. "All right. Lead the way."
Sophia led me back down to the Wards HQ. The others were all there. The door to the console room hung open, and Carlos was at the seat, his headset askew so that one ear was free to hear the rest of us.
Everyone was looking at us when the elevator door opened. I had the distinct impression that they had been talking about me.
Sophia nudged me. "Get out of that armor," she said. "Clear off the couch, everyone. Taylor needs to lie down. Director's orders."
"Shock?" Amy asked. "I might be able to help."
"Please," I said. "We don't have time to waste."
"We also don't know what to do," Carlos told me. "We know where Valefor is, but we haven't even been able to confirm that he and Eligos are the only capes they have, let alone how many hostages they might have. We have no idea where Coil or the Travelers are, except that they're probably south of Downtown. And we don't have the manpower to mount a search."
"Finding Narya is important," I said furiously. "More important than making sure we have an army at the perimeter—"
"We don't have an army," said Aegis grimly. "I don't think you get it, Annatar. When Valefor crashed your van on the way to the fight, earlier, he crashed almost every PRT van we had in the field. Almost a third of the local PRT's field personnel were either killed or put out of action in about a minute."
I stared at him. Swallowed. "I didn't realize it was that bad," I said.
"Can we stop," said Sophia forcefully, "stressing Taylor out before Amy's either healed her or she's had some sleep? Please?"
"Thank you, Sophia," said Amy. "Get your armor off and then come lie down, Taylor."
I allowed myself to be led to a changing room. I was left alone for a minute to change, and then brought over to the couch. Amy laid me down and set her hand on my cheek. "This won't take long," she promised.
It was true. Almost at once, I started to feel better. The cold, clammy feeling that had been encroaching upon me for the past hour faded. The fog that seemed to fill my head dissipated, and with it the faint beginnings of a headache I'd been feeling.
"You're a little dehydrated," said Amy absently, her eyes closed. "Get some water once I'm done."
"Okay," I said. "Thank you, Amy."
"Don't mention it. I'd rather fix shock than a gunshot wound any day." She pulled her hand away. "You should be better now. Go grab a drink, and then we can talk plans."
I nodded and stood up. As I crossed the room towards the sink, I heard Carlos' voice at the console. "Wards are all back at HQ, Ma'am. Panacea just cured Annatar's shock. We're ready if you need us."
"What's going on?" I called back to him as I filled a glass.
"All the ongoing hero operations are checking in," Aegis said. "Standard M/S procedure."
"Can you put it on speakers?"
A moment later, Armsmaster's voice filled the room. "Dragon and I have the south side of the perimeter under control. Tattletale was escorted to a rendezvous with Faultline. They're open to assisting with the Fallen, if we hire them."
"Good." That was Piggot. "We'll probably do that. I'll try to negotiate terms with them as soon as I have a minute. West perimeter, check in."
"Miss Militia here. Assault and I have control of this sector. We've isolated the locations Dragon marked. M/S procedures are unbroken."
"Good. North side, check in."
There was silence.
"North side?" Armsmaster's voice was sharp. "Velocity, Battery, Triumph. Report in!"
"Wards console, I've granted you access to Protectorate helmet cams," said Piggot. "Access Battery's helmet feed now."
Aegis fiddled with the console. "Working on it, Ma'am."
Soon an image appeared on one of the screens. The night sky twinkled merrily above the discarded camera. There was no moon tonight.
"Ma'am, this camera was removed. Battery isn't wearing it."
"The sun has set," I found myself murmuring.
A couple of the other Wards looked at me. Their faces were pale.
"What's happening?" Vista asked softly.
"Aegis." It was Amy speaking. Her eyes were downcast, and a curtain of mousy hair hid her face from view. "Call a master/stranger alert. Now."
He glanced back at her. "Did Valefor break through?"
She shook her head.
"What the hell is happening, boss?" That was Assault's voice. I hadn't spoken to him often, but I didn't need to know him well to recognize the fear in his voice, sharp and deep. "Where's Battery? What's happened?"
"The north side perimeter has been compromised." Armsmaster said grimly. "I'm ordering an increase in M/S threat level."
"We need to call everyone back," said Panacea, looking up. Her face was practically grey, so pale had it become. "We need to call them back now."
"What is it?" Aegis said sharply. "I need a reason, Amy! I need to know what's happening!"
Vilya was cold on my finger. A long, dark night was ahead.
Amy swallowed. "It's not Valefor," she said hoarsely. "It's Heartbreaker."
-x-x-x-
Please consider donating to my Patreon. Many thanks to those who have already donated.
- Location
- Germany
Sounds like fun.
I wonder if the Rings can turn Heartbreaker's absolute abilities into a willpower-thing or not. It's a bit of a clash between the source materials, between Tolkien's concept of Free Will and Wildbow using thinking in terms of brain chemistry rather than any mind/body seperation.
I wonder if the Rings can turn Heartbreaker's absolute abilities into a willpower-thing or not. It's a bit of a clash between the source materials, between Tolkien's concept of Free Will and Wildbow using thinking in terms of brain chemistry rather than any mind/body seperation.
- Location
- USA
*PANICKED SCREAMING*
Lithos Maitreya
Character Witness
- Location
- United States
I forgot to mention—this is a one-update week. Been too busy to write, and my backlog is draining fast.
SaltyWaffles
I am dissapoint, son
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Er...why in the world would Heartbreaker go and attack the PRT way down south? That's completely outside of his MO. He's the type to avoid a confrontation and live out his dream in comfort. And don't tell me he's under Valefor's thrall. Valefor would never be able to pull it off.
Regardless, this is something that Eidolon would get called in for. And Alexandria, if she's supposed to be immune to Master powers.
Regardless, this is something that Eidolon would get called in for. And Alexandria, if she's supposed to be immune to Master powers.
You think Coil told him about Regent? You know, since he seems to be burning bridges to have that ring.
Finagle007
[Verified Great Old One]
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
Doesn't Annataylor need a volcano to forge the One Ring? And not just any volcano either; Orodruin - Mount Doom - was a place of great power long before the Rings were made.