Ship of Fools: A Taylor Varga Omake (Complete)

[Derek M]

Epilogue: DC-verse

The conference room on the Watchtower wasn't one of the larger ones, so it was fairly full with six people. Four of them were in costume -- Batman, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, and Superman. The other two were Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen. Superman was in the process of going over the events of the wedding.

"The level of technology was fairly impressive. I would say in some ways they were comparable to Kryptonian tech, though not in every way," said Superman.

"Some of their tech was deliberately handicapped by the Terran Empire, especially artificial intelligence and genetic engineering," added Jimmy.

J'onn asked, "That's the alternate timeline with a moral and ethical inversion, similar to our own Justice Lords?"

Jimmy nodded. "Besides reading all the stuff from our universe, I watched a lot of the films and television shows depicting Miles' universe. They were fairly well made. There were a half-a-dozen episodes involving the mirror universe from different series."

"Who are the Justice Lords?" asked Lois.

"Alternate universe version of the Justice League that turned into authoritarian rulers of their Earth...basically what would happen if Luthor were right," answered Jimmy.

Lois stared at her colleague for a few pregnant moments. "So...you learned everybody's secrets? Secret identities, plots...who killed Kennedy?"

Jimmy paled a bit, thinking of how tenacious Lois could be when she wanted to know something. "I read and watched a lot of fiction based on our universe, but a lot of it isn't accurate."

"But dangerous nevertheless," commented Batman.

Lois frowned. "How do you know it isn't accurate?"

"Because I never went back in time to Nazi Germany, you never dated Lex Luthor, and Superman can't reverse time by flying around Earth really fast or catch criminals by peeling the 'S' off of his chest and turning it into flypaper-like cling wrap," replied Jimmy with a smirk.

"They had stories about me dating Luthor?" exclaimed Lois with a look of outrage.

"Because that's the important part..." muttered Wonder Woman quietly.

"A significant amount of information available to Jimmy has proven to be accurate," interjected J'onn. "Enough that steps have been taken to protect his mind from intrusion."

Batman looked at the Martian with narrowed eyes. "You can't read his mind?"

J'onn shook his head. "I cannot detect his mind. While I can sense his presence, where I would normally see his thoughts, it is simply blankness."

Lois gave a short laugh. "That explains so much..."

At Jimmy's look of annoyance, Superman chastised, "Be nice, Lois."

Batman lifted his right hand off of the conference room table, the motion from the otherwise motionless hero drawing attention. "I think we need to get back to the point, here. We need to classify our interactions with the Family and their affiliates. They are clearly individually powerful, and they have powerful allies. They also have access to mystical and technological abilities from a wide range of alternate realities."

Wonder Woman asked, "How is that different from many of the other beings in our universe?"

The Dark Knight nodded slightly, acknowledging her point. "I agree that there is a similarity. However, there is the issue that the powers from our universe are known factors. We can predict how the pantheons, the Lords of Order, or beings like Morningstar are likely to act and react based on their areas of interest and past behavior. The Family are new, and they have already had a dramatic impact on the balance of power in this universe."

"I think you're overestimating your ability to predict the will of the gods," said the Amazon with a slightly dismissive shake of her head.

"Jimmy knows the Family better than any of us," interjected Lois. Turning to the redhead, she asked, "What do you think of the Bat's concerns?" She ignored the slight downturn to the corners of Batman's mouth at the shortened name.

Olsen considered his answer, and then considered his audience. "Generally speaking, the Family are interested in fixing problems that most of the League would agree need fixing. They aren't interested in controlling people or conquest in general, and are extraordinarily generous, patient and friendly. The only exception to that is that if you explicitly and directly threaten them, or more realistically, somebody under their protection. At that point, they can bring an overwhelming amount of power down on whatever is necessary to eliminate the threat. Honestly, I can't see you having any conflict with them unless the Justice Lord scenario somehow happens in this reality."

Superman quirked an eyebrow. "Why is a threat against those under their protection more realistic?"

"We spoke a lot about the Family back on the Ship of Fools, and the general consensus is that we couldn't come up with any particular being that we were absolutely positive could take on the Family and win decisively," answered Jimmy. "I mean, there are beings in our universe that they probably wouldn't take lightly, but I wouldn't bet on, say, Darkseid, being able to beat them. I would rather not think about what a fight between them and the Endless, or the inhabitants of Zrfff from the Fifth Dimension, might look like. It probably wouldn't be very good for the stability of our universe, though."

"They're really that powerful?" asked Superman somewhat skeptically.

Jimmy shook his head. "Don't look at it as a head-to-head match of strength, though they aren't lacking in that aspect. While the Family have access to a truly ludicrous range of abilities, including superscience and the supernatural, they excel at solving problems through innovation and indirect action. While they can be smug and exasperating at times, they don't really have much of an ego, and are more than willing to reach out to allies, or when necessary, convert enemies to allies, in order to accomplish whatever goals are in their sights."

Lois started laughing. The heroes looked at her, not sure why she found Jimmy's words funny.

"What's so amusing about that?" asked Batman.

She looked at him, humor still in her eyes. "Didn't you folks just get back from helping deal with a team of the worst supervillains in another reality on behalf of the Family?" She shifted her gaze to Superman. "Clark, didn't you tell me yourself that you witnessed them martial together pretty much every power in the universe to help the aliens behind the Green Lantern Corps? Batman is trying to run a threat assessment on them! Wouldn't you say that that horse has well and truly fled the barn already?"

She started to laugh again at the slightly sheepish look on the faces of the League heroes, but this time Jimmy couldn't help grinning as well.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Lex walked into the pub in Gotham, an upscale faux-Irish establishment targeted at people that would never go into an authentic Irish pub unless they were under-aged backpackers travelling through Europe on an ill-advised journey of self-discovery. In the back corner, Bruce Wayne looked up from his phone and nodded to him. He made his way back, and sitting down, pulled out the same anti-eavesdropping device that they used in every meeting.

"So, Bruce, did you have fun on your trip?"

The billionaire gave a brief smile and said, "What's not to love about a private island away from everything?"

Lex picked up the menu and began looking through the options. "I wonder if the shrimp here is any good?"

Bruce winced. "I think it's reheated. The onion straws are good."

Lex looked over the menu at Bruce. "So, did they have a private island in that dimension where you and the rest of the Justice League ended up?"

Without missing a beat, Wayne put up a confused look and asked, "I'm sorry? What are you talking about?"

"Bruce, Green Arrow's op-sec is not nearly as good as the Bat Clan's," said Lex. "Oliver should know better at this point."

Bruce stared at Lex for a good sixty seconds. Then, his face changed, like he was taking off a mask. "How long have you known?"

"About you specifically?" asked Luthor. "Since shortly before our first meeting with the Kryptonian."

Wayne's eyes narrowed. "If you try to do anything with that information..."

Lex scoffed. "You'll what? Knowing the civilian identity of a superhero isn't a crime. I have no intention of attacking you. I also think you'll find that many of the supposed crimes I've committed...at least those not related to a certain Kryptonian...are either misattributed or exaggerations. Don't get me wrong, I would never be so hypocritical as to claim the high ground for either ethics or morality, but that's hardly unique in the ranks of the world's billionaires."

Batman...for that was clearly to whom Lex was speaking, despite the lack of cape and cowl...asked, "Then why tell me?"

"Do you think you're the only genius billionaire suffering under an obsession? It took almost dying of illness followed by a miracle to realign my own priorities."

The other man barely managed to conceal visible signs of his own surprise. "You think that you're like me?" This was followed by an angry frown.

Lex looked Bruce in the eye. "Tell me that you don't have contingency plans in case any of the Kryptonians are mind-controlled, suborned, or in any other way become a serious threat to the safety and freedom of this planet." When Bruce didn't answer, he continued. "My plans were driven by the assumption that such had already happened, but they were also warped by my growing mental instability. What would happen to you if you lost control over your paranoia and had nobody to help ground you?"

"Are you saying that's what happened to you?" asked Wayne.

Now it was Lex's turn to frown. "I have Mercy...but the circumstances for that relationship mean that she is always going to follow my lead on things. Given the prevalence of Bat-themed heroes around Gotham, I have to assume that you're better grounded."

Bruce looked down at his menu at that. "Not everybody would agree with you on that."

"Regardless..." Lex paused. "The reason I'm telling you this is that I have no desire to be a comic book villain. Lex Luthor is not simply the Blue Boyscout's foil. The lizards pointed out a very real threat to this world, and anybody who attacks it is attacking my home, and that cannot be borne."

"Yet I had already agreed to work with you," prompted Bruce. "What else do you want?"

"I want you to trust me to the point that you aren't expecting me to stab you in the back. That type of divisiveness can only hurt us in the event of an attack." Luthor paused. "If you know for a fact that I know who you really are, including Oliver, Clark, Wally, and the others, then that adds weight to my intentions when I don't use that against you."

Bruce looked sharply at his dining companion. "If that's true, then you could let us see what's going on at LexCorp. There's a lot of room there to hide things."

Luthor smirked. "Just as there is at Wayne Enterprises...like your plethora of Bat toys. As for giving you access, you know that we're still business competitors? The same goes for Queen."

Wayne obviously couldn't argue against that point. He wouldn't be pleased to have Luthor go through the internal research, planning and finance documentation for Wayne Enterprises. "What about the Question? He has no vested business interest, and he can keep a secret." The man obviously knew the true identities of most of the costumed heroes and villains in the world.

Lex frowned. "I might be amenable...especially if we can agree on the parameters of the search, as well as mutual disclosure."

"You want him to look at Wayne?" asked Bruce.

Lex nodded. "One thing you're right about is that there is a lot of room to hide things in either company. If any of my employees are doing things without my approval, I want to know about it, and I would bet you feel the same."

The Dark Knight considered the matter. Given some of the information shared by Saurial about their world, including things going on in his own company, it wouldn't hurt to have an independent audit. It would also be fair, if Luthor was truly willing to share his dirty laundry. He might even want to see if Oliver would accept a similar audit. "All right. Assuming we can work out the details, I can agree to that."

Lex gave a small smile. He then returned his attention to the menu. "Are the onion straws really worth ordering?"

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Plas flew toward the asteroid holding the Guardian Lantern's detention facility, his package secured in a glowing green force-field from his ring that maintained life support and prevented escape attempts. He noted the various acknowledgements mentally when each of the prison's various defense measures authorized his approach. He wasn't entirely sure what would happen to anybody who tried to approach without authorization, but Ganthet had told him that even an Oan would have difficulty doing so. He had no desire to test his theoretical immortality against such power.

The arrival area was absent of any other beings, which was typical. Most of the prison was automated or managed directly by the warden. That being greeted him as he set down on the platform, dropping his prisoner to the ground. "Lantern Plastic Man, welcome back."

He nodded politely to the image on the screen. "Braniac. I've got a new inmate for you." This iteration of the previously hostile AI was Braniac 22. It had taken a number of evolutions before Dragon was satisfied that the Kryptonian AI had developed a true sense of empathy, ethics and morality. She had done such a good job that the Guardians had agreed to turn over this facility to the result. Braniac had a force of reformed Manhunter robots to help guard the prison, but they were the only non-prisoner occupants of the facility.

The prisoner picked himself up from where he was sprawled on the floor. He coughed and brushed at his crumpled purple suit. With a glare, he complained, "You used to be a funny guy, hero."

Plastic Man formed a tie and adjusted it like a Vaudeville comic. "Everybody's a critic," he said in a raspy voice.

The image of Braniac regarded the prisoner. "Joker...welcome to Guardian Lantern Holding Facility Zero-One."

Ignoring the AI, Joker continued to address Plastic Man. "I'm surprised Bats was willing to let you poach on his turf, Plasty."

Plastic Man raised an eyebrow. "You tried to open a portal to an alternate dimension. That puts you squarely under the remit of the Guardian Lanterns. Really, though, I think even Batman was getting tired of you using Arkham as a temporary vacation home, though he would never admit it."

"How was I supposed to know opening that portal was such a big deal?" said the Joker disingenuously.

"The treaty with the Guardians was the biggest news item for the entire month of August on your world," commented Braniac with a distinct air of being unimpressed. "In any event, please place the prisoner in the intake capsule, Plastic Man."

Thanks to a glowing green set of hand and leg irons and some stretchy arms, Joker found himself in a small, elevator-like capsule. The door shut with a final-sounding thunk.

"What's happening?" he asked out loud.

Braniac's voice responded out of nowhere. "You are being shuttled through the internal security layers of Guardian Lantern Holding Facility Zero-One."

"And what happens when I've served my sentence?" asked the villain.

"The prisoners incarcerated in Guardian Lantern Holding Facility Zero-One are all assigned life sentences."

"Without a trial?" Joker frowned, wondering how difficult this place was going to be to escape.

"We have a recording of you actually attempting to open a dimensional portal while you explain your entire plan to a Guardian Lantern, and our analysis shows a 98.9% probability that you were being completely forthright in your intent. Furthermore, you have a long record of incarceration for a number of crimes that even on your homeworld would call for lifetime imprisonment or capital punishment. The local government also agreed that we could process you as an escaped prisoner, given your numerous exoduses from custody." Braniac seemed slightly bored by the recitation.

Muttering to himself, Joker said, "I guess I'll have to get myself out of here."

"Unlikely," replied the AI, having heard the muttering. "The percentage chance of escape from Guardian Lantern Holding Facility Zero-One is less than one-millioneth of one percent, and that would require external intervention." The security measures had been penetration tested by Doctor Fate, Orion of the New Gods, and Metis of the Family. Saurial had then given it a try, and while she had been able to get into the facility, she hadn't been able to get anyone else out of it...at least not in one piece. Braniac, however, thought there was a 73.8% probability that if she actually needed a prisoner released, then she would present a rationale that both Braniac and the Guardians would consider persuasive rather than attempt a prison break.

Joker frowned. "Do you have to say the full name of the prison every time?"

"If you wish, I can refer to it by the name the other prisoners use."

"And what's that?" asked the former Clown-Prince of Crime.

"For unclear reasons, the majority of the inmates refer to Guardian Lantern Holding Facility Zero-One as, 'the Birdcage.'"

While shorter, the new name didn't make Joker feel any better.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Darkseid sat on his throne, waiting for news of his latest plot. His paradaemons would return soon...and they had best have captive the hero he sent them to collect. His plans would soon manifest.

"I would not count on it," said a voice from the shadows of the throne room. Out of a dark alcove stepped a familiar figure.

The leader of Apokolips looked in shock at his rival. "You DARE to come here, to the heart of my power, Izaya?"

Highfather stopped moving forward and smiled. "I do not come alone."

It was then that Darkseid noticed that his guards and minions were absent. Instead, other figures stepped forward...figures that were not friendly to him. Highfather was flanked by Orion, his own treasonous son, and Metron, hovering in his gods-damned chair. One-by-one, other members of the new Gods became visible: Commander Gideon, leader of the New Genesis army, the cybernetically-enhanced Hyalt, Shadowfall the archer, Madame Nature, Highfather's security chief, and many others. Darkseid pressed a button that should summon his guards and servants.

"Father," said Orion, "your servants and slaves are being occupied by others. We have the forces of New Genesis, as well as the Justice League of Earth and the Guardian Lantern Corps. Others will not come to your aid."

Darkseid's eyes widened slightly. "How...and why would you do this? For many centuries you have ignored my efforts."

Highfather frowned. "We could not allow this plan to succeed. Your paradaemons were stopped before they could kidnap the hero known as Cyborg. Your search for the Anti-Life Equation will end here." The technovirus that could have been released had Cyborg been brought to Apokolips could not be allowed to exist. The result could have been every bit as dire as the averted Darkest Night prophecy.

Without responding, Darkseid unleashed his omega beams at Highfather. To the villain's dismay, the nigh-unstoppable beams seemed to cease to be when they got near the leader of the New Gods, and served as little more than a signal to start the one-sided battle. Despite his power, the dark god was unable to stand against the entire pantheon of New Genesis.

Twenty minutes later, Orion and his wife Bekka entered the throne room, escorting a bruised and battered Kalibak. The brutish son of Darkseid was snarling, but had clearly learned that to fight back now was to lose. He stopped and stared for a moment when he espied the figure of his father...but instead of the powerful god, his father seemed to be changed into a statue of dark stone. The statue seemed to ooze power and malevolence, but was completely incapable of movement or speech. Looking around at the gathered New Gods, Kalibak asked, "What have you done?" with a hiss.

Highfather looked at him. He seemed both disgusted and saddened by the circumstances, but he answered Kalibak's question. "Your father's search for the Anti-Life Equation is over. He will be imprisoned somewhere safe, but he will no longer be able to rule. I turn his throne over to you." Highfather's normally kindly face flashed in an instant into a wrathful visage. "Do NOT make me come back here again."

With that, the New Gods and their allies departed, taking the imprisoned Darkseid somewhere...and Kalibak was sure it was somewhere beyond easy retrieval. The new ruler of Apokolips raged back and forth across the throne room for the better part of an hour before finally collapsing, tired, into the throne at the end.

As he pondered what to do next, he reached toward the button to summon Darkseid's inner circle...but he paused. Wasn't it HIS inner circle, now? As the call went out to Desaad, Granny Goodness, Steppenwolf and the others, a very small smile began to crease the corners of Kalibak's mouth.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Jimmy stared at the room full of Middle Eastern artifacts. He had been tracking down information on a smuggling ring associated with Intergang, and had followed a lead to this warehouse on the outskirts of Central City. He had expected to find shipping manifests, and perhaps other documentation that would help him uncover the full extent of the smuggling. He hadn't expected to find that one of the offices was now filled with items that looked clearly mystical in nature, and very old. The smart thing to do now would be to call Flash and have him bring in the Justice League. Doctor Fate, or maybe even Shazam, would probably be the best person to deal with this collection.

As he began to move around, taking photographs of the items, he began to wonder if he was being a bit overconfident. Having a Family healing symbiote, and having Saurial on speed-dial, meant that he was rarely worried about his safety these days. Still, having documentation of the contents of the room might be helpful, and he could easily call in Flash when he was done. As he was thinking this through, his foot got caught on the edge of a rolled up carpet...and as he fell forward, it seemed to him as if the carpet itself had actually moved to trip him. His hand brushed up against something.

Jimmy pushed himself back, which resulted in him falling on his backside as the carpet shifted again. There was smoke issuing from a brass vessel that was carved with ankh symbols. He started to edge toward where he had dropped his phone, deciding that calling somebody, either super-fast or super-snarky, was a really good idea. He had just reached his phone when the smoke resolved itself into a stunningly attractive woman with dark hair and sharp Eurasian features. Looking down at Jimmy on the floor, she gave a small smirk and said in a powerful voice, "I am Khasa, the genie of the lamp, and you have freed me!" She then paused, as if expecting a reply. When none was forthcoming after a moment, she narrowed her eyes and asked, "Are you capable of speech?"

"Yes," said Jimmy, sliding his phone into his pocket as he picked himself back up off the ground. "I can talk. You wouldn't happen to know a guy by the name of Mxyzptlk, would you? Or maybe his quinto-partner, Gsptlsnz?"

Her face turned into a look of surprise, then quickly transformed into suspicion. "How do you know these names?" Her eyes bored into him...but then widened again in shock. "Why can't I read your thoughts? What kind of being are you?"

With a soft smile, he replied, "I'm just a human with a few necessary enhancements thanks to some friends of mine. I know those names because Mxyzptlk likes to prank a friend of mine."

Grudgingly, she replied, "Your friend must be pretty unusual to keep Mitsy's interest for any length of time."

Jimmy shrugged. "He's a Kryptonian living on Earth, and is considered one of our mightiest heroes. I have a theory that Mxyzptlk is making sure he doesn't get complacent. Just out of curiosity, how long have you been in that lamp?"

Khasa seemed to settle back, and then folded her legs up underneath herself, apparently figuring that this whole encounter was way too far off script to bother with the standard shtick. She sat there, hovering in mid air, as she answered. "It's been a few hundred years. Why?"

Jimmy himself sat down on a convenient crate. "That's not a lot of time by Fifth Dimension standards, but the human world has changed quite a bit in that time. For one thing, there's been an explosion of metahumans within the last century or so. There have also been some rather significant changes with the Guardians of Oa."

"You seem very well informed about matters for a human?" said the genie, a question in her voice.

Now Jimmy's face flushed a bit. "I tend to be a bit of a trouble magnet. Weird things happen to me fairly regularly. Some of it would probably even surprise you."

She laughed in amusement at the human. "What could you have possibly done that would surprise me?"

He couldn't help himself. He snorted, and then covered his mouth to hide his own laugh. At her look, he said, "Look, let me tell you about the time I was kidnapped by a paradaemon. An explosion in the boom tube sent me into a hell dimension, where I fell through a plate glass window in the middle of a ruined town. The guy who pulled me out of the broken glass was himself sucked in from another dimension when he and his friends closed a hellmouth..."

The female genie listened. Over time, her face went from disbelieving, to surprised, to interested. As he was telling her about finding Peter and Taylor on a derelict spaceship, he noticed that she had somehow procured hummus and flat bread, which she was eating as he told his story. When she noticed him looking at the hummus, she offered him some.

The hummus was amazing.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Peter excused himself for a moment and answered his Family phone, recognizing the ring tone. "Jimmy! Good timing. Daniel and Sarah stopped by to visit. I'm going to put you on speaker." The two archaeologists and Peter's wife, MJ, all greeted their extra-dimensional friend. "So," continued Peter, "what's going on with you?"

"Well..." said Jimmy over the speaker with some hesitation. "I met somebody."

There was an expectant silence, and then MJ prompted more by saying, "That's great, Jimmy. Where did you meet?"

"That's the odd part. See, I was tracking down this smuggling ring, and I had traced them to this warehouse outside Central City..." Jimmy quickly told his story, ending with, "...and then, I offered to show her around the modern world some, and we kind of fell into a relationship."

"He met a genie in a magic lamp," said Daniel.

Peter shook his head. "I know, I know." Both men let out a groan.

"What, seriously?" asked Sarah, an air of building annoyance in her voice. "You two should be happy for Jimmy!"

Daniel raised up his hands apologetically. "We are...we absolutely are. Congratulations Jimmy."

"Then what was that about?" asked MJ, who had been surprised by the men's reactions.

Peter winced, then said, "Xander won the bet."

"What bet?" said Sarah, looking to Daniel for an answer.

"Nothing bad," answered Daniel quickly. "It's just, of the crew, Jimmy was the last one without a romantic partner after Taylor met Carlos."

"What does that have to do with Khasa being a genie?" asked Jimmy over the phone. It was clear that he was more amused than annoyed, unlike the two women.

"We bet on what kind of girl...er, woman...he would find," clarified Peter. "I said he would end up with a superhero or supervillain."

"And I thought it would be an alien," added Daniel. "Xander's guess was something supernatural, so he won."

"What was the bet?"

"Just bragging rights, basically," said Peter. Thanks to the Family, none of the old Ship of Fools crew were hurting financially.

"What would have happened if I ended up with just a plain-old human woman?" asked Jimmy curiously.

Daniel looked around the room. "Does anybody here think that was likely?" The silence on that was rather telling.

"Well, I think this calls for a celebration," said MJ. "We should call up BBFO and see if we can have a get-together with everybody, maybe at Sineya."

"Well, Khasa did express a desire to meet everybody, so I'm up for it..."

* * * * *​

She watched him as he slept. He still needed a few hours of sleep every night, though not nearly as much as most un-enhanced humans. She didn't mind, as it gave her time to think. James Bartholomew Olsen was probably the most extraordinary human she had ever met. He interacted with beings of immense power regularly -- heroes of legend, demigods, wizards, and metahumans. He simply saw it as normal, and treated everybody as equals, with an equal amount of kindness and respect. He had even treated her that way when they had met, much to her surprise.

She shuddered slightly as she remembered meeting Varga. The mind of a young girl was joined to a truly ancient demon of earth-shattering power, and its aura was almost overwhelming. Khasa was not the most powerful native of the Fifth Dimension, but she was no slouch, either. She would...hesitate...to try and engage Varga on an even footing, and not without good cause or preparation. Jimmy had hugged "Saurial" like a long-time friend when he had seen her. It wasn't like he was just ignorant, either. She has asked him when they had gone back to their quarters, and he knew. He was quite aware of who and what Varga was. He had gone with them to speak to Highfather on New Genesis, after all...and hadn't that revelation been yet another shock?

For the first time in her long life, she was considering attaching herself to someone else for more than just a short time. The whole genie act was amusing, with the whole myth being one of the best pranks ever, but it was also getting old. Jimmy, though, lived a truly extraordinary life surrounded by people who were the opposite of boring...and he would likely live quite a long life at that, even by her standards.

"Hey," he said. His eyes opening. "How long have I been asleep?"

"Just a couple of hours," she replied with a smile.

He smiled back. "Have you been watching me that whole time?"

"Just thinking," she answered.

He pushed himself up to a sitting position. "Anything I need to know?"

She sat down on the bed next to him, leaning into him. "I just never really thought I would ever fall in love with a human."

He laughed. "To be fair, I wasn't expecting a genie, either."

The two shared a laugh, then found other ways to occupy the rest of the night.

 

[Derek M]

Epilogue: Dresden-verse

Waldo Butters pondered life as he road the elevator down to the sixth sub-basement of the Dresden Security HQ. When Harry and Karrin showed up and offered him a job at a substantial increase in pay, he had thought he was dreaming. Then he had thought that something was seriously off about Harry and Karrin. Then they had taken him out to eat and explained what had happened to Harry over a few ales, and he had drank a little too much. The next morning, after a glass of water and an aspirin, he had accepted their offer.

He had expected that they would want his help in medical matters, since that was his area of expertise. Instead, they had offered him...well, he was still surprised at what they had offered him. The weight of Fidelacchius was settled on his back. Michael Carpenter, who was now apparently fully hale and healthy despite his earlier debilitating injuries, was training him in how to properly use it, though the sword itself seemed to be helping in that regard. Apparently, nobody (including the sword that was more than a sword) seemed to have any issue with a Jewish Knight of the Cross, which forced him to reconsider everything he thought he understood about religion in general. Harry had commented that the other Knight, Sasha, was apparently an atheist. How the man reconciled that with wielding a holy sword forged with a nail from the Crucifixion was a mystery.

"Thinking deep thoughts?" asked his partner. Andi Macklin was a former member of the shapeshifting group known as the Alphas. The young redhead had been keeping the very pregnant Georgia Borden, another Alpha, company when they had been kidnapped by the Fomor. Harry's brother, Thomas, had come to their rescue, and Harry had quickly offered most of the Alphas jobs. Andi had accepted. Now she was assigned as his partner.

He shook his head. "Still just wondering about how my life has changed recently. This is all very different from being a Medical Examiner." Well, in truth, it was less different than he might have liked. Every since he had met Harry, his life had been more PC than NPC. It was weird that he was playing a Knight...but then their group already had a Wizard.

Andi smirked at him. "Harry and Karrin are still being mysterious about why they gave you the sword?"

"Harry just says that I'd proven myself worthy," he replied. He still didn't know why the wizard insisted on giving him the call-sign, "Jedi." He thought it was kind of badass, but he didn't get how it fit him. He wasn't that much of a Star Wars fan.

The elevator came to a halt, and the two of them fell silent and began walking forward into the corridor revealed by the opening doors. They each could feel the various layers of security scanning them, probing them, sensing their intent and verifying their identity. Butters didn't understand a lot of it. He had inquired, but his eyes had glazed over somewhere between, "positron interposition array," and "Parthian soul-convection runes." His take away was that it was an intimidating combination of technological and mystical measures that would keep out almost anything, including some of the nasties stuck in cold storage out on Harry's island.

The container at the end of the corridor was actually stored in a pocket dimension, one that could only be accessed from the end of this particularly dangerous corridor. Butters took the wrapped package out of his pocket and put it next to the other five in the vault, then sealed the door.

"Six down, twenty-four to go," commented Andi.

She and Butters began to head back to the elevator. "The Church still has five of them, actually," he commented.

"For now," she said with a grimace. The Catholic Church had a disturbing habit of letting Denarian coins back into circulation. That was why Harry had this vault in the first place.

Butters shrugged. "Some of the Sineya folks that came to visit said it might not be possible to take all of them out of commission -- something about balance and free will. Personally, I'll keep taking them as long as I'm called to do so." He was still getting used to the idea that as a Knight, he got his marching orders through feelings and hunches inspired by the divine. His employment contract had language giving him free reign to follow those feelings, given that they came from a higher power. It never even occurred to him to abuse that leeway. Anybody worthy of being a Knight probably couldn't.

The elevator took them up to the third floor. Another oddity of the Dresden Securities HQ is that the elevator always seemed to know where you needed to go. Waldo and Andi had offices on the third. As they got off the elevator, Andi asked, "Are we still on for tonight?"

He smiled at her. "Barring interruption from the divine, absolutely," he replied. He loved the fact that she seemed to be completely understanding about his calling. It would have been a requirement from anybody with whom he was romantically involved. Their relationship was yet another drastic change in his life, though it was a good one. His initial hesitation at dating his partner had disappeared when Andi had pointed out that Harry and Karrin were obviously a couple, and had not tried to implement any rules about fraternization among the staff. They probably realized how hypocritical that would be.

She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Pick me up at eight."

Waldo Butters was smiling as he went back to his desk to write up an encounter report.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

"Are you coming to the meeting tonight?" asked Justine, looking at her fiancé.

Thomas grimaced. He didn't have a problem with Justine finding religion in the form of the Cult of Aphrodite. The goddess had been too good to him to find it in his heart to resent his love's devotion. His problem was that the others in the cult had a tendency to look at him in a way that made him uncomfortable. He was used to having women and men look at him lustfully. What bothered him was the slightly manic tinge that came from the fact that many in the cult saw him as some, "chosen," of the goddess. "You know how awkward that is."

She laughed a little at his discomfort. "Thomas, you're being ridiculous. You know that She is perfectly happy with you just living your life. You don't have to play the role of prophet. You don't even have to worship Her."

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "You know I have no problem making the occasional offering and prayer. My family did that when necessary, usually for less wholesome reasons than celebrating love. It's how some of your flock treat me. I'm pretty sure Marissa has convinced herself that she's destined to bear my child for the good of the faith."

Justine laughed outright at that. "She's going to be disappointed. Your first child is going to be with me." With Thomas being a White Court vampire, Justine had long ago reconciled herself to the fact that monogamy was just not going to happen unless she wanted to stay celibate. That was no longer an issue thanks to Aphrodite's boon to Thomas, but that attitude meshed well with being a priestess of the goddess of love. Polygamy certainly wasn't a requirement for clergy, but being non-judgmental was.

"First and any others, if I have my choice," replied the vampire.

Justine kissed him. She loved him, and she knew that he loved her in return. She also knew that the two of them were likely to be around for a long time thanks to Family medical technology, and that Thomas was going to have no shortage of opportunities with other women given his supernaturally good looks, the fact that he actually had been chosen by the goddess, and the way he was raised by the Raith family as an almost instinctual flirt and seducer. Aphrodite had communed with her about this very topic. There would come a time when he would be more concerned with who he wanted to be, and less concerned with avoiding the path of being too much like his father, and she would support him regardless.

"If it makes you feel better, you can play the role of overprotective boyfriend while we're socializing," she prompted him.

He quirked his lip. "That does sound amusing. It also would probably annoy Marissa."

Justine rolled her eyes. Marissa was a slightly spoiled rich-girl with a bit of a princess complex. She had come to the cult in an attempt to find herself, and was still adjusting to not being the center of attention for everything. The girl was still amazingly young...and would be perfect fodder for any number of supernatural predators. Instilling a bit of genuine faith in the goddess was a project that was for the girl's own good. Thomas was well aware of that fact, so he was probably complaining just to needle her. "Just don't annoy her so much that she leaves the protection of the cult."

"I'm not a monster," he said with a slight frown. Absently, he rubbed his fingers against the necklace he wore constantly. "At least, not anymore."

"You never were a monster. That's why I fell in love with you," corrected Justine.

He smiled back at her. "It wasn't just my dashing good looks?"

"That helped," she said, and kissed him again, more deeply. They could talk more later.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Arthur Langtry was annoyed. It wasn't because of the fact that Harry Dresden was well on his way to rivaling his own level of power. The man had always been annoyingly effective, leveraging his not-inconsiderable power to accomplish far more than technically should have been expected, much to the regret of his various foes. Now, he had apparently found a short-cut to rather dramatically narrow the distance between their skill with and knowledge of magic. As long as Dresden remained aligned with the objectives of the Council and obeyed the laws, that was acceptable. Even Morgan had grudgingly acknowledged that Dresden was on the side of the light before the taciturn Warden's death.

It also wasn't because of the fact that the newly defined role of Council Sorcerer gave Dresden almost as much leeway and freedom of action as the Blackstaff and the Gatekeeper. The role had been established during the post-war peace negotiations. Both the Faerie Courts and the Archive had insisted upon a degree of distance between the White Council and Dresden Securities. John Marcone and Donar Vadderung had both supported that position...and more surprisingly, so had the White Court vampires. Langtry suspected that they all had their own reasons for doing so. In general, it was a combination of support for Dresden, fear that the White Council would use his newfound wealth and magical strength to further tilt the balance of power, and concern over the degree of influence held by the Black Council, and by extension, Nemesis, over the wizards.

No, what really annoyed the Merlin of the White Council was the fact that Harry Dresden had managed to preserve his insouciant attitude toward the Council and his position as the Merlin in particular. The man had gone through horrible experiences, fought in a war, traveled to entirely new realities and learned profound secrets of creation...and he was still a massive pain in the ass.

"You can't tell me that you've accounted for every member of the Black Council," said Dresden. "You would have to know far too much about that organization to say that with certainty."

Langtry glared at him. "I can assure you that the surviving members of the Senior Council have been vetted. The Blackstaff saw to it personally, and I'm sure you don't believe that he is compromised?" Ebenezar McCoy was the current Blackstaff, and also Harry Dresden's grandfather.

Harry glared back. "Of course I trust him. I trust him more than you do, probably."

The Merlin's glare turned into a frown. "I trust him implicitly. Our personal matters don't enter into it."

"You two have been holding a grudge since the eighteenth century," said Harry blandly.

"Wizards have long memories, as I'm sure you'll learn," replied the Merline in a subtle dig at Harry's youth. "Nevertheless, I trust his efforts to ensure the security of the Council."

Harry shook his head. "I think wizards are far too confident in their own methods. While I was away, I learned about techniques used by a non-magical organization faced with supernatural infiltration. They called them master/stranger protocols, after the different types of abilities that posed the worst threats to their organization."

Skeptical, Langtry asked, "What do these master/stranger protocols do?"

Harry proceeded to describe the measures used by the Parahuman Response Teams to prevent parahuman infiltration and control. Both Taylors had been familiar with the concept, though the Family had had access to more of the official documentation as affiliates. As Harry explained them, he could see the Merlin's frown getting deeper. Unfortunately, the required level of institutional paranoia by the protocols was fairly burdensome. Miles had tried to introduce the concept to Starfleet, but the only groups showing any interest in implementing them had been the various intelligence services. Despite their efficacy, the master/stranger protocols weren't exactly efficient.

The Merlin finally shook his head. "I cannot imagine most wizards willingly submitting themselves to isolation and interrogation based solely on suspicion. Wizards are far too fond of their prerogatives...and their secrets."

"I agree, and I'm not suggesting you adopt them wholesale. Wizards do have alternatives that the original creators of the protocols lacked," said Harry in a slightly conciliatory tone.

"Those would be the methods in which we are overconfident?" asked Langtry with a degree of sarcasm unusual for the powerful wizard.

Dresden winced a bit. His mouth still didn't always do him any favors. "Saying wizards are overconfident isn't the same as saying their methods don't work. I'm simply trying to add some additional safety measures to our security to make it harder for those who would try to manipulate us. At a minimum, the Senior Council and the Wardens should start using some of them. Wards that track movement without sounding alarms, having Warden teams be in constant communication with personal passwords...most importantly, we don't assume that any facility is impregnable." St. Petersburg had supposedly been impregnable, but the Vampire Courts had proven that false.

The Merlin quelled his initial instinct, which was to reject Dresden's concerns entirely. Some of what he described could actually be done fairly simply, and would be an improvement to their peace of mind. It was also possible that they could be guilty of excessive hubris. "If you can work out a plan to implement these changes with McCoy and Luccio, I'll review them. If they won't hinder the Council in other ways, I'll approve them."

Dresden winced. He was a little surprised that Anastasia Luccio was still the Warden Commander, and slightly discomfited at the idea of working closely with her again. Their former relationship had been another plot by the Black Council, and it made things awkward. He had spoken with Karrin at length about the whole thing, and she had helped him come to terms with it. As such, it wasn't a problem, per se, but that didn't mean he was looking forward to it. To the Merlin, he said, "Deal. We'll let you know when we have something."

"Please do," said Langtry. He then got up and left Dresden's office without saying goodbye. Despite Dresden's enhanced status, Langtry was still the Merlin. The walk to the room in the Dresden Securities building that allowed openings to the Nevernever was long enough for the man to develop both a slight annoyance at the inconvenience and a modicum of respect for the level of security in the building. Arthur Langtry was a practical man, and he was more than willing to tolerate things he didn't like for the sake of the Council.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

David suppressed a grimace as Mab dealt with the intrigues and assignments of the Winter Court. He knew that Mab knew how he felt about the machinations and predilections of the Winter Fae. Luckily, he was able to spend much of his time guarding the edge of reality against the depredations of the Outsiders. Much was not all, however, and it was times like this, when Mab insisted on his presence at Court, that tried his patience. He absently fiddled with one of the vambraces that were part of his modified costume. Mab had insisted he change up his armored bodysuit for something slightly more medieval, though the level of protection provided by his new armor was actually superior to his prior outfit thanks to Mab's magic. Not for the first time, he wondered if that nut Myrddin wouldn't have been a better choice for Winter Knight. Then again, getting the Protectorate hero involved with the Family might have been more trouble than it was worth.

Mab gave him a brief glance and just enough smirk to be visible. It was clear that she knew exactly what he was thinking, and found the whole thing amusing. She had also made it clear that her amusement was the only reason why she tolerated his general attitude about things, though his level of power undoubtedly made him a useful tool. She finished speaking to a powerfully-muscled horned fae. Whatever she said, the creature obviously wasn't happy about it. That didn't stop him...it?...from bowing to Mab and leaving quietly. The Queen made her way over to her Knight.

"Now that that's done," she began, "how goes your efforts to protect this reality?"

He frowned, sure that she was well aware of everything relating to the protection of the Outer Gates. "We've stopped seventeen attempted incursions...as you know."

"You've blunted seventeen probes of our defenses, you mean," replied the Winter Queen. "What do your instincts tell you?"

David thought through the question. He thought back to his feelings during the attacks. "The first half-dozen attacks were real probes, looking for weaknesses. The subsequent attacks have been less aggressive...less innovative." He paused for a moment in consideration. "You think the Outsiders are no longer actually trying."

Mab gave a small smile. "While I have no doubt that they would happily exploit any foolish weaknesses, you and your minions have been capable enough to avoid showing any. My feeling is that they are putting their attentions elsewhere, on other schemes, without wanting to make it obvious."

The hero frowned. "So what do we do?"

Mab regarded him coolly. She was sure his tendency to speak to her as if he were an equal was more annoying than Dresden's impudent wit. With the wizard, she knew it was in part a defense mechanism...and she knew that he always had a thread of justified fear toward her. Harry Dresden knew who and what she was, and he had had ample experience dealing with the Winter Court thanks to his mother. Her current Winter Knight was accustomed to receiving the deference of others, and unused to having to give it.

"Do you know, Knight, the meaning of the word eidolon?" she asked.

He stiffened slightly. "I was aware of the meaning when I picked it as a cape name."

She smiled at him cruelly. "An image of perfection, of a god...is that how you considered yourself?"

He had the good grace to look embarrassed. "It was a calculated attempt to reassure people about the power of their heroes..."

"But it played to your ego as well, did it not?"

"It did," he agreed quietly.

Mab moved smoothly around him, looking at him, striding with a supernatural poise that was slightly unsettling. "Of course, people had no idea how wrathful their god actually was...but you know the other definition of the word? An eidolon is a phantasm...a reflection of reality." Mab made a small motion with her hand.

David staggered slightly, then his eyes widened. His powers were gone.

"Don't worry, you're far too useful to me to take your powers permanently," she told him. "Those powers of yours aren't really yours, though. They're stolen from a being that also wasn't a god, but arguably had a better claim to a false crown."

Eidolon gasped in shock as a feeling of ice crept into his body. He felt physically stronger, but his powers were still gone.

"Knight, your Queen has a mission for you...one that requires more subtlety than your usual task. You will have to rely on my gift to you, the Winter Mantle, instead of your stolen powers. Do you understand?"

David bowed his head down, understanding what this was really about. "Yes, my Queen."

Mab soon had him sent off on a minor mission against the Fomor. As he left, she idly wondered how much more interesting it would have been trying to break the wizard. His attitude didn't just mask fear. It also concealed a solid core of iron...one that could be every bit as dangerous to the Faerie Courts as the literal substance. Her replacement Knight was a man who, even as a hero, had been trying to live up to a false image. Controlling him was almost too easy, but his stolen powers were far too useful not to make use of him. The lizards had chosen well in picking an irresistible temptation as a replacement.

She soon dismissed her thoughts to focus on other matters. The issue of the Wizard Dresden was now a done deal in the literal sense, and Mab was as constrained by a deal as were any of the fae. It was something she had in common even with those pathetic faeries that had served the wizard in return for something as trivial as pizza, though pointing out that comparison in her presence would be...unwise.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

"You know, you could just stay here and apprentice with Dad," said Bonnie.

Maggie rolled her eyes at her older sister. "I know, but he's been teaching me for years, and I don't have the advantage of being a Spirit of Knowledge to give me a broad foundation like you do."

Her sister frowned. "It isn't all perks, you know. There's a reason why a lot of what I know is sealed away." When your metaphysical mother was a fallen angel, there was quite a lot of dangerous, or simply distasteful or disgusting, knowledge available.

"I know, I know...we don't have to go over this again. You know I can come back to visit every weekend. Papa and Mama are fine with it." One quirk of the two sisters was that they each had their own parental terms of endearment for Harry and Karrin.

Bonnie felt her eyes get a little moist, and she sighed. "I know...I just also know I'm going to miss you." The two sisters had been extremely close since the day they met, though it had taken time for them to open up and share their feelings verbally.

The younger daughter went over to her sister and gave her a hug, comforting her the same way Bonnie had the younger back when they met for the first time. "Just call me, you big doofus. It's not like you can't reach me pretty much anywhere in the multiverse."

At that moment, Karrin Murphy Dresden came into the bedroom. "Aren't you girls ready yet? We've got to get going soon."

The moment between the two sisters changed into a shared exasperation with the parental units.

"Mom, you know we'll get there on time no matter when we leave?" asked the biologically older sister.

Karrin gave them both a look familiar to every human and most non-human mothers. "And you both know that if we let your father get started on something new, we won't leave until tomorrow?" Harry had just finished a big experiment, and there was no way she wasn't going to take advantage of the lull in focus.

The two girls gave the mandatory eye roll, but both replied, "Yes, Mom./Yes, Mama."

The four members of the Dresden clan were pleased to see Bobbi Cade manning the Skimmer when they teleported up.

"Bobbi!" exclaimed Karrin. "How have you been? How's Robert?"

The starship designer smiled and returned a quick hug. "Good! Robert's good. Actually, we just found out...I'm going to be a mother!"

That revelation led to a round of congratulations and excitement, though Harry was slightly less energetic about it than his wife and daughters. The group soon settled down, and Bobbi triggered the jump to Gaia, the Nox homeworld. The family soon disembarked, leaving with some last words of happiness over their pilot's pregnancy.

Ianthe and Lya were waiting for them at the Nox medical facility usually used for human patients. The purple lizard looked up from a tablet at their entrance. "Ah, good, you folks are right on time. The procedure went extremely well."

"I wouldn't expect anything less from you folks," commented Harry. "Is he awake yet?"

"He woke up a short time ago," said Lya. The Nox was as serene and pleasant as always. "He was slightly disoriented at first, but I believe he will adjust quickly."

"Can we see him?" asked Bonnie.

"Of course," said Ianthe. "Go on in. I'm sure he'll be happy to see you."

The four made their way into the next room. Lying on the bed was a young man of about twenty. He had dark brown hair and a pencil-thin mustache on his lip. His eyes were closed, but they opened when he heard people entering the room. He smiled when he saw who it was. "Harry! Harry's family!"

Bonnie rolled her eyes. "We have names, Bob."

The young man grinned. "I know, kiddo. I'm just saving time."

The wizard walked over to the side of the bed. "How does it feel to have a body of your own, old friend?"

Bob paused to consider the question. "It's different from possessing somebody, that's for sure. Everything feels more vivid...more tangible, if that makes any sense." He hesitated for a moment, then continued. "It's good, though. Really good."

"You'll get used to it eventually," commented Bonnie. "I'm glad I didn't have to spend a lot of time living in just a skull."

Bob laughed. "It had its pluses and its minuses."

"At least you won't have to worry about somebody else controlling you just because they have your skull," said Karrin.

"Technically, they could still do it. Of course, they'd have to take my skull from my body, first..." said Bob thoughtfully.

"Ew, gross, Bob..." commented Maggie.

He raised his hands placatingly. "Sorry, sorry...still not used to identifying with the biological."

"What's with the mustache?" asked Karrin.

Bob raised a finger to his lip. "All the best leading men had mustaches," he replied. "Erol Flynn, Clark Gable, Tom Selleck, Burt Reynolds..."

"Yosemite Sam, Ron Burgundy, the Swedish Chef," continued Bonnie mischievously.

Bob just raised an eyebrow and said, "Funny," in a flat tone of voice.

"Are you coming home with us?" asked Maggie hopefully.

Bob grinned back and said, "Well, eventually, sure...but Ianthe offered to let me look around a bit. There are places I've always wanted to see, like the Watchtower, Sineya Station."

"Places filled with women wearing tight clothes?" suggested Karrin wryly.

Bob frowned, but then quickly grinned again. "That's not the only reason to go."

"It's not like slayers and superheroines can't keep him in line," added Harry with a chuckle. "You may want to be careful you don't break that new body."

"And don't expect me to fix things if you get hurt doing anything inappropriate," commented Ianthe, who was now standing in the doorway.

"I'm hurt that you think so little of me," said the former Spirit disingenuously.

"More like she knows you," muttered Karrin under her breath. Bob had made more than a few inappropriate comments...at least until she threatened to stick his skull in front of a TV playing back-to-back Teletubbies.

After a lengthy visit, the Dresdens left Bob to finish recovering and adjusting. On the return trip from their visit, Karrin asked Harry, "Are you sure it was a good idea giving Bob his own body?"

Harry frowned. "He's earned it. He's shown a lot of loyalty and courage for somebody limited by being a disembodied spirit." He looked over at Bonnie with a loving smile. "We know that having a body just makes it that much easier to grow as a person."

His daughter smiled at him. "I love you to, Dad."

"You're worrying too much, Mama," said Maggie. "How much trouble can he get into?"

Harry, Bonnie and Karrin all looked at her with wide eyes. After a moment, Maggie realized her error, and blushing, said quietly, "oops, sorry."

Karrin and Harry looked at each other. Harry said, "I'll give the Watchtower and Sineya a heads-up."

Karrin nodded. "Probably for the best."

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Molly looked around the table. Seated around it were representatives of the coalition. Loki of the Asgard from Peter Parker's universe sat between the Leanansidhe and Lya of the Nox. Faith Lehane represented the Sineya Council. Rashid of the White Council and the Highpriestess Justine of the Cult of Aphrodite were also at the table. "How are we doing?" she asked.

The first to speak was Loki. "Our troops have managed to hold the Outsiders at the breach with the help of the Winter Knight."

The Leanansidhe nodded. "The forces of Winter and Summer have also managed to track down those who made it through in the initial break. All but two pockets have been eliminated."

"The slayers have managed to stop most of the Fomor in Chicago," added Faith. "Though there are still a few holdouts. Falcone has been working with us, though I don't think he's happy about it."

Justine added, "Our faithful have been working to get the targets of the Outsiders to shelter. None of the refuges have been breached, thanks to the Nox."

Lya merely nodded in acknowledgement.

"The Wardens are having similar success in containing things in New York, Seattle and Dallas...but I am concerned that our efforts are simply containing the enemy. How goes the rest of the plan?" said Rashid.

Molly gave a small smile. "Harry said that the trap is ready. As long as Nemesis takes the bait, we should be good to go."

"Oh, it will go to them," commented the Leanansidhe. "Our enemy has been subtle, but he has made a fatal error in letting his objectives be known."

"Will it be enough?" asked Loki.

Faith laughed. "Don't worry. Red and the others will have things settled."

The god of mischief simply tilted his head in acknowledgement, and the group continued to discuss logistics and preparations for the likely aftermath.

* * * * *​

Ivy sat, playing a mobile game on her cell phone. For obvious reasons, reading wasn't really a good pastime for the Archive, as she already had access to every bit of text written by mankind. This silly little game with the bits of candy being smashed was quite amusing, though she doubted it would keep her attention for long. Luckily, she didn't have long to wait, as she felt a presence manifest behind her.

She put the phone down and turned to look at the humanoid-shaped void that had materialized in the room. The body had belonged to a wizard on the Black Council, but Nemesis had long ago purged any trace of the wizard's soul, and was now using the corpse as a framework to manifest on this plane. The Archive looked at the abomination and said simply, "You're too late."

She could sense the malevolence of the being, tinged by a hint of eagerness and confusion. Kincaid hadn't been happy with her for using herself as bait, but it was necessary to flush the Outsider out, and they had a plan. The mercenary himself was waiting back with the rest of their allies, as even he acknowledged that there was little that he could contribute to this battle. Her other allies were another matter, however.

From out of the alcoves around the prepared room stepped a host of mystical powerhouses. Harry Dresden was there, of course, as was Arthur Langtry, the Merlin of the White Council, and Ebenezar McCoy, the Blackstaff. There was also Stephen Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme of another universe, and Willow Rosenberg, the most powerful caster of the Sineya Council. Zatanna Zatara represented the Justice League and the homo-magi of her universe, though she was dressed in blue jeans and a halter top rather than her over-the-top costume. Randall Martins, the wizard previously known as the petty supervillain Über, completed the group.

Ivy could sense the entity's alarm, as the others had been carefully masked from its perception. "You see, the trap is already prepared."

As the group, including Ivy, began chanting, the void that was Nemesis made an attempt to flee. When that failed, it sent bolts of force and destruction at the chanting mystics, only to have them splash against an invisible barrier. There soon came a disquieting squealing noise from the Outsider, the kind of noise made by a small animal caught on an impaling branch. The creature began to shrink, until eventually all that was left was a crystalline prism that seemed to be filled with swirling black ink. The crystal itself was cold and greasy to the touch.

All of the casters gave a sigh of relief when the deed was done. The Merlin was the first to speak. "You are sure, Dresden, that you have the ability to keep this abomination imprisoned?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "You know that blacky here isn't even the worst thing in Demonreach, and we've been over this already."

"Saurial helped set up the prison herself, and she's waiting there to make sure," added Randall. "Personally, I can't think of anybody I would trust more to make sure this guy never again sees the light of day."

"I agree," added Ivy. "The protections on the prison waiting for Nemesis are quite impressive."

"Let it go, Arthur. You know we all agreed on this," commented McCoy.

"Fine," conceded the powerful wizard with ill grace.

Harry turned to the other participants. "Thank you all for helping with this."

"Of course," replied Zatanna. "You've helped us out a number of times. It's only fair." Strange and Rosenberg nodded their heads, with the redhead adding, "Definitely."

"We should get this crystal to Demonreach quickly," prompted the Blackstaff.

Harry nodded. "Right, then I can go and help the others clean up the rest of this mess."

There were several flashes of light, and then all that was left in the room was dust.

 

[Derek M]

Epilogue: Stargate-verse

Teal'c sat in the council chambers on Dakara, listening to the other Jaffa debate. While this was common, the topic itself was at least new.

Gerak was striding back and forth, speaking in an aggravated tone. "I am skeptical of the Tok'ra. Many Jaffa died due to their manipulations and attacks, and they are the same species as the False Gods." A number of the watching Jaffa nodded their heads or added verbal agreement.

Bra'tac rose. "While I too urge caution, it is unfair to blame them for the deaths of Jaffa who still swore allegiance to the Goa'uld, or would you condemn those of us who have had to kill our enslaved brothers?"

"Of course not," replied Gerak with an irritated look. "The Tok'ra, however, care little for Jaffa, enslaved or not."

"I have to admit," added U'kin, former Jaffa in service to Cronus, "that I am uncomfortable with the idea of allying with the Tok'ra. They are most likely going to want hosts, and we have less need now for prim'ta." The Tauri and the Asgard had freely shared medical technology that allowed the Jaffa to survive without a larval Goa'uld, though it would take some time before all Jaffa were treated.

Teal'c decided to speak. "While the Jaffa and the Tok'ra have often been at odds, we both shared the goal of overthrowing the False Gods. It would be prudent to at least listen to their words." There was little sense in judging their proposal before it had been heard, after all.

"I agree that we should at least hear what their representative has to say," said Ka'lel, the only female on the council and representative of the Hak'tyl, the female Jaffa who had fought against Moloc's insane mandate that all girl Jaffa be killed. Their resistance and fighting prowess had earned them a seat here.

After that, the rest of the Jaffa Councilors grudgingly agreed to hear out the speaker sent to them by the Tok'ra. A messenger was sent to where the Tok'ra was waiting, and soon a man arrived in the typical uniform worn by the Tok'ra when they were not playing the role of spy or infiltrator.

"I am Antoc, of the Tok'ra. I bring greetings from High Councilor Per'sus, and the Tok'ra High Council," said the man, his voice reverberating with the deep tones of a symbiote speaking through a host.

"And what does the Tok'ra High Council want with the Free Jaffa?" asked Gerak, using a tone that made some of the more moderate Jaffa wince internally.

Rather than take offense, Antoc smiled "The Council, and our queens, are interested in avoiding conflict with the Free Jaffa. There have been regrettable incidents in the past where both your people and ours have been caught in attacks that were targeted at the Goa'uld."

"The Tok'ra have no queens," interjected Yat'Yir, Gerak's second.

"We did not," agreed the Tok'ra, "but with the help of the Asgard and their friends, we are now able to reproduce again, increasing our numbers."

"Do you seek hosts?" asked Bra'tac, voicing the question that was on the mind of every Jaffa present.

With a knowing smile, Antoc said, "We do not. I am not here for that reason...and I am aware that the Jaffa no longer have a pressing need for prim'ta."

"How is it that you do not need hosts if you're again growing in number?" prompted U'kin suspiciously.

The Tok'ra bowed his head, and when he raised it and began to speak, it was in a normal human tone. "I am Cassius, host to Antoc. We feel it may be better if I answer that question. The Asgard and their friends have given us an alternative to hosts. The Asgard reproduce by cloning, and it is possible to create a cloned body to serve as a Tok'ra host."

"Yet you are still host to Antoc," said Bra'tac questioningly.

"Those of us who are already blended are accustomed to sharing a body, and indeed, I would feel a great sense of loss were Antoc to move on to another one. Blended Tok'ra and their hosts are closer than friends in many ways," said Cassius with slight hesitation. He again bowed his head.

His voice changed back to that of the Tok'ra, and Antoc said, "Forgive Cassius, as he dislikes the display of emotion. It was one of several reasons that he chose to volunteer to become my host." Antoc gave a fond smile. "Having said that, new Tok'ra larva who have never blended find the clones to be an agreeable alternative to being trapped in an aquatic environment."

"Do the clones themselves have no sense of identity?" asked Teal'c.

Antoc shook his head. "They do not, as they have been designed to be incapable of functioning without a symbiote. They literally have no mind beyond what is needed to keep the body functioning. You may think of them as a type of biological craft, used just as we all use starships to travel in the void." It was clear that several of the council found the overall concept disturbing based on their expressions, but none voiced their concerns out loud.

"If you do not want hosts," said Ka'lel, "then what do you wish of the Jaffa? We will not fight your battles for you." The Jaffa had had quite enough of fighting on behalf of others.

Antoc shook his head. "Nor would we expect that. There may come a day when we fight together as allies, but that day is not close. What I said before is the truth. We wish to avoid needless conflict. We also wish to engage in trade. While the Tok'ra have access to advanced technology, our numbers are still relatively few."

"Would you be willing to share some of that technology?" asked Gerak, his gaze turning speculative.

"That is part of what we offer," agreed the Tok'ra. "We would also agree to help you maintain the Goa'uld technology in your possession, including the factories, foundries and shipyards. We know the Goa'uld did not share many secrets with the Jaffa." In truth, the plan was to help them maintain the technology, while offering them help with general education, medicine and agriculture. Some of the Tok'ra were still wary of the Jaffa, just as the former slaves were in turn wary of a group that was biologically identical to their former Goa'uld masters.

The negotiations proceeded from there. Gerak and his faction were suspicious, and not pleased to find that military technology would not be immediately forthcoming. He was also reluctant to allow the Tok'ra access to their production facilities for fear of sabotage. Bra'tac's allies, however, were more accommodating and willing to negotiate. During a break in the discussions, Teal'c went to have a quiet word with Antoc.

"You have repeatedly mentioned friends of the Asgard. I assume you do not refer to the Tauri," asked the former First Prime.

Antoc regarded him for a moment, and then asked, "Are you familiar with a reptilian species that refer to themselves as the Family?"

Teal'c nodded. "I am. The Tauri have encountered them several times." He had no personal experience with the lizards, though Jack had told him that his android duplicate was apparently working with them, which suggested that they were worthy of respect. He was also aware that Daniel Jackson was still working with them.

"I am not surprised. They seem to have quite a lot of unexpected knowledge, as well as an ability to travel amazingly quickly," answered Antoc. "They are responsible for both the design of the cloned bodies, as well as our new queens. The Tok'ra are in debt to them. It was partially at their suggestion that we are reaching out to the Free Jaffa."

"Indeed?" replied Teal'c with a raised eyebrow. That suggested that working with the Tok'ra might be to everyone's advantage, assuming the lizards were still being helpful.

Antoc nodded. "We have found that their advice tends to be good. We have also found that when they are disregarded, things tend to get...strange." Anise in particular had learned that lesson rather quickly. Queen or no, it was generally not a good idea to be rude to the reptiles.

By the end of the day, everyone was tired of talking, but the Free Jaffa and the Tok'ra had at least agreed to a non-aggression agreement and further talks about trade. Teal'c suspected that Bra'tac may move forward on his own, as waiting for Gerak and his allies would require an excessive amount of patience. Nevertheless, by Jaffa standards, this was rapid progress.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Jack considered the stack of electronic tablets on his desk. The whole point of computers, he thought, was to eliminate the need for physical stacks of paperwork. Unfortunately, thanks to outdated security standards, any document of Class Blue or higher required that it be submitted by courier, and each courier needed a tablet. He couldn't even load them from the tablets onto his own computer, because he had to go through five security authorizations each in order to do so, which took at least ten minutes. It just wasn't worth it. As the general in charge of off-world joint service forces, the number of Class Blue and higher materials forwarded to him was high enough that he almost never managed to clear his desk. Just as he was about to reach out and grab a tablet to read, there was a knock on his office door.

"Good morning, sir!" said Colonel Samantha Carter as she walked in.

"Carter!" said Jack happily. "You're just in time to keep me from reading reports."

Her smile grew slightly strained. "Procrastinating again on your paperwork, sir?"

"I'm prioritizing my time, Colonel."

"Of course, sir. I have the details on the new battlecruiser," said the blonde officer.

Jack's face grew, if anything, even happier. "Ooh, cool. Hit me with the details."

She handed him a tablet, which he took eagerly. He began to peruse the schematics as she described the ship. "We were able to solve the problems with the power couplings, which increased the rate of fire for the plasma cannons by a factor of three. It's actually slightly faster than the Asgard equivalent by about fifteen percent, though the power output is only about 97% of theirs because our superconductors still aren't quite as efficient. The firepower is still impressive. Even Aegir was impressed."

"Excellent...we may actually need the firepower if the Ori ever show up," commented Jack. "Of course, we may get to test it out on the Aschen, first..."

Carter's eyes widened. "I thought we had ships watching them? What happened?"

"They've sent out a number of unmanned hyperspace scouts. Here, look at this..." Jack shuffled through the tablets on his desk until he found the one he wanted. He used his thumbprint to open the file. "What does that look like to you?"

Sam reviewed the long-range scans taken of the vessel. "They're sending their stargates out on scouts? No...wait...they built their own stargates?"

"They figured it out somehow. It's going to take months, maybe even years, for those ships to get somewhere, but they can send gateships through the gate as soon as they get close to another system. It's only a matter of time before they run into somebody that will clue them in to faster hyperdrives," said Jack with a frown.

"I'm actually surprised they haven't just figured out how to build a faster drive system."

Jack shook his head. "McKay says he thinks they've fundamentally misunderstood something about the technology. You can ask him."

Sam's made a face like she had tasted something bad. "Yeah, no, I'm OK. I don't need to know that badly." She paused for a moment. "In any event, we should be good to begin production of the new ships next week. Each one should take about nine weeks to assemble, thanks to the Asgard construction beams."

"That's good. We're still short of ships, and with the Asgard focusing on Ida and Pegasus, we're bearing the burden of patrols in this galaxy. The Lucians are still being a pain in the ass, and not all of the Jaffa are content to join the Free Jaffa nation. Hell, rumor has it that there are still a few minor Goa'uld floating around out there with small fleets." There was no shortage of human worlds out there that were willing to sign trade agreements, and even defense cooperation agreements, but very few powers actually had a significant enough space navy to even secure their own space. In practice, any world that sent out large numbers of ships in the past tended to run afoul of the Goa'uld and get smashed.

"Well, this will definitely help, assuming we can find the crews," said the Colonel. "We're almost done with the design for the new carrier, too."

Jack looked up again at that. "The Lexington class? Still think they should have called it Enterprise..."

Samantha Carter refrained from rolling her eyes through an act of will. "The crew requirements are actually lower than with the battlecruisers thanks to the drones." While the ships would have an allotment of human pilots, most of the craft would be piloted remotely through the use of neural interfaces, similar to the approach used by the Eurondans. Most races apart from the Goa'uld found the loss rates for small craft prohibitive in space combat. The Lexington class would be Earth's attempt to retain the benefits of carriers without having to constantly replace pilot losses.

"I know, I skimmed over the summary I got three days ago," replied General O'Neill, gesturing at the tablets. At Carter's look, he added, "I do scan them all when I get them in case there's anything truly important."

"Well, sir, I should get back to work," said Carter.

Jack nodded. "Oh, I heard from Daniel."

Carter paused and looked back. "Really? What did he say?"

"He's decided to take an extended leave of absence," replied Jack.

Sam's face fell. "He's not coming back? Is he staying with the Family?"

"He's traveling, actually...with Sarah."

Her face changed from saddened to a mixture of surprised and mildly pleased. "Really? Sarah Gardner? Huh...well, good for him." Janet would be happy to hear that. They had both been worried about the archaeologist's mental well-being after his wife's death.

"Colonel Mitchell is not going to be happy, though. He was hoping to get the band back together, so to speak," said Jack with a smirk.

Samantha did roll her eyes at that. "I know. I already told him I wasn't willing to leave running the Starship Design Group. He's just going to have to recruit his own team." Teal'c was on Dakara as well, so the original SG-1 team that started at the SGC was well and truly disbanded. "Well, I had best get back."

Jack looked up at her hopefully. "I don't suppose you have any issues that would require me to come with you and help troubleshoot?"

Glancing at the pile of tablets, she just said, "Sorry, sir," and left.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Helia sat in the bar, drowning her sorrows. At least, she was making a game attempt, but her Lantean physiology made it difficult if not impossible to actually get drunk. The fact that they had something that could even effect her was kind of impressive, in a way. She supposed she should be thankful they let her stay on Atlantis after what she tried to do. In retrospect, it was idiotic, but after they had been rescued from the Tria, she had just wanted to take control of the situation. How was she supposed to know they had Asgard and actual Anquietas on staff, apart from the humans? Her attempt to override command authority on the city ship had ended before it even began.

"You look like you've had a rough day," said a deep voice.

She looked over to see a very large, dark-skinned man with long hair. She rolled her eyes. "I'm not looking for somebody to warm my bed."

He laughed. "My wife would kill me if that's what I was offering. I'm just making an observation."

"Well you can keep your observations to yourself," she muttered, taking another gulp of her drink, and wincing at the taste. "Ugh, what is this?"

"What color is it?" asked the stranger.

She looked down at the glass and took note of the color. "Green, I think."

"Ah, it's probably the absinthe. I tried that once. It's got a kick like Alaysian moonshine," he replied. "It's an Earth drink."

"Great, more Earth stuff." She set her head down and rested it in the cradle of her hands. Getting rescued by people from Earth had topped the day her ship's hyperdrive had failed between galaxies as the worst thing to ever happen to her.

After about thirty seconds, the man said, "I'm Ronon Dex of Sateda."

She turned her head to look at him, then grudgingly replied, "Helia of Atlantis."

"Uh, you live here?"

"I used to, a long time ago, back before the Earthers came here," she replied.

He paused to glance around at the hole-in-the-wall bar they were in. It sat on the end of one of the city's arms, near a pier that was used for the work boats being used to do more detailed mapping of the world's massive ocean. As such, it was as far from the heart of the city as you could get without leaving. "I thought the whole city was abandoned before the Earthers came? That's what they told us the first time we came through the gate, at least."

"I lived here before it was abandoned." At his skeptical look, she explained, "My ship was stuck without hyperdrive between galaxies, so we spent years travelling at close to light speed." When he still obviously wasn't getting it, she continued. "Going that close to light speed slows down time for the ship by a lot."

"Huh," he said, finally getting it. "Is it different? The city, I mean."

She glared at him. "You mean besides my people not being in control of the city anymore?"

"What would be different if they were?" he asked, honestly curious.

With a grimace, she replied, "We would control our own birthright. We would be able to protect our remaining people...maybe restart our civilization." Not that there were necessarily enough people on her ship to do that, but they could have found a solution somehow.

He turned his gaze back to his own drink, but asked, "What about everybody else in the galaxy?"

She looked at him, confused. "What about them?"

He was quiet for almost a minute. She took another sip from her drink, deciding it was better sipped. Finally, he said, "My world, Sateda, is not as advanced as this place, but we were advanced enough for the Wraith to take notice. They don't like human worlds that get powerful enough to challenge them. Those that do get bombed from orbit and harvested. The thing is, when the hive ship showed up to do that to us, a couple of Asgard warships appeared from nowhere and tore it to pieces. They were there because the Earthers came to Atlantis, and they saved my world and my family. Would your people have done that?"

She stared at her drink for a time. "We don't have the people or the resources to protect other worlds." As far as she knew, the city only had the gateships. Even if they had managed to find another Lantean vessel, they likely wouldn't have the crew to man it and keep the city functioning.

"You also didn't have the people or resources to beat the Wraith back...or even to rescue your ship stuck out between galaxies. It seems like things are better for you then they could have been," he commented. There was no malice in his voice, but she could sense the reproach anyway.

She frowned, not really wanting to consider his words, but they had some truth to them. The war with the Wraith hadn't been going well when the Tria departed, and it apparently had gotten worse rather than better...bad enough that her people fled, leaving the city hidden under the sea. She also remembered the bitterness that came from thinking that she was going to live out the rest of her life on a ship stuck between galaxies, with just her crew for company. She looked at him and changed the subject. "Why are you here, on Atlantis?"

"I'm on the security detail for the Satedan ambassador. She's here to negotiate a trade agreement...resources for technology."

She scoffed. "You mean tribute in return for protection from the Wraith?"

"No, actually. We expected it to be like that, but the Asgard are kind of funny. They seem to think hunting down the Wraith is great sport, and are happy to do it. They even try to rescue any captured humans first. We had a couple of people who had been taken while travelling to other worlds come back to us," explained Dex. "The Asgard representative here asked us to forward any information we had on the Wraith, and said they would take care of it. For myself, I'm just happy they seem to like humans."

"What about the people from Earth? What do they get out of this?" she asked, curious to learn more. It's not like anybody had shared much information with her after her failed attempt to usurp control of the city.

"The guy in charge, Director Woolsey, said Atlantis was a diplomatic and research outpost. He said Earth has got more than enough work to do managing their own galaxy without worrying about this one. He didn't go into details, but it was pretty clear that they consider Atlantis a frontier posting. I can tell you that Sateda is perfectly fine with that, and so are some of the other groups like the Genii." Satedan high command had been shocked at how much the Genii had been hiding their advancement, however. Sateda was setting up bases and colonies on other worlds now that the Wraith weren't a threat, and that was in part a response to the Genii, who had always come across as self-important dickheads even when they were playing the role of simple farmers.

Helia considerd that. In truth, there wasn't much reason for the people of Earth to invest their time in the Pegasus galaxy. She was guessing the potentia for the city were pretty much drained after all these centuries, so the intergalactic hyperdrive wouldn't work without replacement. That meant working in place if they wanted to mine the city for her people's technology. It wouldn't be too difficult with the help of the Asgard and the Anquietas. Speaking of which... "Do you know anything about the Anquietas...the Ancients...working with the Earthers?"

"You mean the Ancestors? I thought you were an Ancestor?"

She shook her head. "I'm Lantean. The Anquietas were our ancestors, and originally lived in Avalon, the same galaxy as Earth."

This time it was Ronon's turn to shake his head. "I don't know much about them. Woolsey mentioned that they had been rescued, so maybe they were in the same situation as you were? You'd have to ask one of them for more details."

That was more likely than a group of ascended deciding to descend just to work for a bunch of humans as technical advisers, thought Helia. She wondered what had made them want to work with Earth, even if they had been rescued by them. Maybe she could track one of them down when they were off-duty and ask some questions, like Dex had suggested?

The man in question finished his drink. "Well, I should get back to my quarters. I have duty tomorrow early. If you decide you don't want to work with the people here, you can always come to Sateda. I know the government would be thrilled to have you working with them as a technical adviser. Our world has got a lot of catching up to do."

"Thanks. I'll consider that," she replied. She didn't have any real interest in working on a low-tech world, but that did beg the question of what she was going to do with herself. She had already burned her bridges with those running Atlantis. Maybe she could try and get to Avalon...see if anything was happening with the Nox or the Furlings. If nothing else, the Nox would probably give her a place to stay while she figured things out, and Gaia was always pretty quiet...and she wouldn't have to worry about running into people from Earth.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Roald and Erika were sitting and listening to Loremaster Hallr in the man's house. Their parents were off enrolling them in the new school, and Hallr had volunteered to watch them. Unlike some of the older skalds, Hallr was all in favor of having the children attend formal schooling, being more concerned for their well-being and that of his people than he was worried about his livelihood and the threat posed by formal education.

"For many years, Thor's Hammer protected us from the Ettins, who still continued to test Thor's power every year. Many of them were killed. Then one day, warriors from Midgard came to visit. They had among them one who had worked for the Ettins, but now fought against them. That one was caught by Thor's Hammer, and the Midgardians had to destroy it to to rescue their friend. When they left, they gave us a box we could use to summon them," recited the skald.

"Why did they destroy Thor's Hammer if it was protecting us?" asked Erika.

He smiled down at her, pleased that she was asking questions. "They thought that Thor would still be able to protect us with his might. They also told us to call on them if we needed them, and that is what happened. One of the Ettins, a monster named Heru'ur, attacked us, and killed many, thinking that Thor had abandoned us. We called for aid from Midgard, and they sent their warriors back to help. Some of them fought the Ettins, while others located the Hall of Thor's Might, and called Thor."

Roald looked perplexed. "Why didn't Thor already know we needed him?"

Hallr got a serious look on his face. "The Asgard were fighting monsters greater than the Ettins. The Býstál came in massive hordes, and could eat the weapons and armor of the gods. This fight distracted them, so Thor did not see our need until the Midgardians called him. He came in his chariot and defeated Heru'ur and his armies. After that, the Asgard revealed their true forms to us, and began to teach us their wisdom."

"Are the Býstál still out there?" asked Erika with wide eyes.

"No," he replied with a shake of his head for emphasis. "The Asgard met a group of friendly dragons, who helped them fight against them, and the Býstál were all destroyed."

"How does Thor's chariot fly?" asked Roald.

Hallr thought how best to answer their questions. "Thor's chariot is like a skeid, but instead of sailing the seas, it sails the heavens."

"But how? There isn't any water up there to float on, is there?" prompted the child.

"You will probably learn more than I know when you're in school, but think of it this way. If I shoot an arrow into the air, then it will fall back down again, yes?" The children nodded their heads, and he continued. "Cimmeria holds things to it, and things that try to leave get pulled back. If I had a powerful enough bow, though, then the arrow would never come down again, and when it got far enough away, it would stay there. Thor's people know how to use this to travel to different worlds like Cimmeria and Midgard."

Roald got a look of concentration on his face as he tried to imagine a bow big enough to launch a longship into the heavens. He felt there had to be more to it than Hallr was saying, but maybe that was why their parents wanted them to go to school?

"Is Thor really a god?" asked Erika.

Hallr didn't answer immediately. He wasn't sure how devout the children's parents were, and saying the wrong thing might end up coming to trouble. "Thor can smite his enemies with lightning, make things appear and disappear, travel across the breadth of the heavens, speak to anybody in any language, and knows the secrets of the universe. What would you call him, if not a god?"

The children seemed to accept this, much to his relief. He was looking forward to letting the teachers at school deal with the hard questions. Maybe he should look into going to Midgard to study how they studied lore? One of the Midgardians he had met had claimed to be a "historian," one who studied the ancestors of the Cimmerians who had lived on Midgard centuries ago. It might be interesting to see where they came from, before the Asgard saved them from the Ettins.

Roald got a strange look on his face, then asked, "Do the gods make babies like people do?"

Hallr swallowed, suddenly wishing he was already on his way to Midgard.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Years later...

"Daniel, are you sure we want to do this?" asked Sarah. The two of them were in the pilot and co-pilot chairs on the bridge of the skimmer given to them to use by the Family.

"I'm not absolutely sure, but you know I have a soft spot for orphans for obvious reasons," he replied. "I'm not comfortable leaving him where he is. You know we can help raise him better than those people."

Sarah frowned, but she admitted that once they figured out that the Ship of Fools had stumbled across the founding of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, it was only a matter of time before Daniel decided to do something to alter the timeline. It wasn't as if she didn't agree with him. Most of her doubts really centered on whether or not she was willing to take responsibility for an infant. The only reassuring aspect of it was that she was sure the Family and the Nox would help, and they had a whole army of slayers who would serve as babysitters.

The ship came out into orbit above Earth, and Daniel began scanning, looking to establish a date. "Well, Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower both exist, so we're at least some time past the 1890's."

Sarah looked for other signs. "There are signs of trench warfare across Europe, but no current fighting, except in Russia."

Daniel looked over. "So, after World War One, but the Russian Revolution is still in progress. That narrows it down quite a bit."

"What if we're too late?" she asked.

"We're nowhere close to being late if the Reds and Whites are still fighting over the Motherland."

"No, I know that, but we're not just going to sit around for years. We're going to have to jump forward," she said, slightly exasperated with him.

"If we nail down the time period, we can just make small jumps. The drive is pretty accurate," he said, wondering what had her so worried. "Is everything all right?"

She paused and seriously considered the question. After some thought, she replied, "I think I'm nervous about the idea of kidnapping a baby, even if there isn't any chance we'll get caught."

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "I prefer to think of it as giving an orphan a loving home. We're just not in a position to properly fill out the paperwork and go through a legal adoption."

"We could probably just bribe them to give us the child," she suggested.

"I don't think I could give money in good conscience to anybody who would actually sell an infant, regardless of the circumstances," replied Daniel.

She frowned, then nodded. "All right, you're right. I'm sorry to be so difficult about this."

He smiled at her. "You know me. I'm never going to say no to a discussion of the morality and ethics of any particular situation. It used to drive Jack crazy."

She laughed at that image. "I can imagine." She had met Jack O'Neill, and while he was a good man, he was also a soldier, with all that that entailed. He had a much higher respect for both obedience to authority and practicality then Daniel did. She still wondered how they had managed to work together so effectively, and even become close friends.

They spent some more time looking for clues from orbit, and then Daniel finally said, "I think the easiest way to do things is just to go down there and check the date."

"A bit risky, isn't it?" she asked.

"Less so if I go down to New York rather than London. Really, I just need to see a newspaper. How do I look?" he said, gesturing to his outfit.

Sarah considered. While his denim jeans and button-down shirt weren't current fashion, people would probably assume he was a typical laborer on a cursory inspection. His penny loafers would also probably pass, even if they were about a decade too early. "I think you're fine. Don't risk yourself, though. I would rather change the timeline than lose you."

He moved toward her and gave her a kiss. "Don't worry, I'll be careful."

Daniel used the teleporter to put himself in an alley that was clear of human life signs (though there were plenty of rats). He quickly made his way out, and got lucky. There was a discarded newspaper lying in the gutter. The masthead said, Illustrated Daily News, with a headline of, "GERMANS BLOCK SIGNING OF TREATY," and a picture of the Prince of Wales on horseback on the front page. The date was Thursday, June 26, 1919. It had almost certainly been published within the last day or two.

He was soon back on their ship, and it was a simple matter to program the wormhole drive with the right date offset, thanks to Saurial's help with the design of the drive control program. The drive system on the dimension skimmers was fairly idiot-proof. The two of them were soon at the right time, and were just waiting for it to be the middle of the night in London. Kidnappings were easier in the dark, after all.

Around one in the morning local time, a dark figure made his way through the shadows of London, avoiding street lights, pedestrians and automobiles. An unlocked window gave him easy access to the child's bedroom, causing him to wonder at how careless his guardians were. He paused for a moment when the young boy's eyes opened, but the infant didn't cry out or fuss. He just stared at Daniel, seemingly content...or perhaps surprised at this unexpected human contact. The archaeologist couldn't help but smile as he stole the infant out of the crib, back out the window, and ultimately off-world.

The woman who discovered the empty crib the next morning panicked a bit, worried that she might be blamed for the child's disappearance. The police were called, but the investigation was fairly cursory, and the case of the missing infant Tom Riddle was soon forgotten as a massive influenza pandemic swept through the city and the rest of the world.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Ganos made sure to save the edits she was making to her book before getting up to answer the frantic chiming of her doorbell. The person on the other side surprised her. "Eana?"

"Ganos, you're here! I don't know what I would do if you weren't." The short red-haired Lantean woman rushed in and gave her friend a desperate hug.

"Eana, when did you descend? You argued with me for hours when I told you my plans." Her friend had actually tried to convince her to stay ascended long past the point when most of the others had given up on her, considering her a lost cause.

"Just now. Ganos, it's the Ori. They deployed a weapon to Avalon like the one Moros was building." Moros, known as Merlin to the people of Earth, had been building a weapon designed to kill ascended beings...largely as a doomsday weapon to use against the Ori if they should attack.

Ganos was shocked. "What about the others? How many managed to descend or flee before...?"

Eana started to tremble. "I...I don't know how many made it. Not everybody. Ogil happened to notice the weapon come through the astria porta through pure luck. He sent out a warning, but I doubt it was in time for all of the ascended. Ganos, what are we going to do? The Ori will be sending priors and ships here, now that they've neutralized the ascended."

Ganos snorted despite the seriousness of the situation. "Don't worry about the Ori forces. The Confederation Navy is more than capable of handling any ships or troops, even if they don't ask the Asgard for help. The Ori can't be allowed to get away with this unprovoked attack, however."

"What are you going to do?" asked the still trembling woman.

Ganos pulled out a communicator. "I'm going to phone a friend." There was a pause as the call connected. "Hello, Saurial. I'm fine, thank you, but the Ori have attacked the ascended in Avalon." There was another pause. "Yes, a friend of mine just informed me. She descended before the weapon went off. Yes, it was similar to what Moros was building." Ganos listened for the better part of a minute, then said, "Thank you. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help." The call ended.

"Who was that?" asked Eana.

Ganos led her friend over to a chair. The newly descended sometimes failed to appreciate how much of a relief simply sitting down could be as the pull of gravity on biology was alleviated. "Do you remember when Brennus had his incident?" A human psychologist would probably have referred to it as a psychotic break, but the ascended preferred to be a bit more circumspect.

Eana stared at her. "Yes...he was never quite the same again." What she didn't say was that most of the changes had been an improvement, even if his hydrophobia was extremely bizarre in a being without a physical body.

"The being I just called was the cause of it. My hope is that she will come up with something appropriate to do with our distant cousins," said Ganos with a feral grin that looked slightly alien on the former school teacher's face.

The recently descended Eana was suddenly unsure if she should feel sorry for the Ori, which was disconcerting given that she was sure she hated them quite thoroughly. She also wondered what had happened to Ganos Lal since she had regained her body to evince such a gleeful vindictiveness from the woman.

* * * * *​

Eachann had been ascended for so long that he had almost forgotten that he had ever had a physical body. Like the other Ori, he had been reveling in their successful attack against the heretics who had fled to another galaxy. Some among them had argued that it would have been more satisfying to take over the mortals of their cousins' galaxy first, leaving them trapped by their own rules of non-interference until it was too late. Sanity had prevailed, however. They could easily subdue the mortals after the ascended were gone. Why risk having to fight beings that were in many ways the equal of the Ori, even if they handicapped themselves by refusing mortal worship? The weapon they used had worked as planned, leaving the survivors either descended or scattered far away. Now they simply had to send priors to create a supergate, and they would soon have a whole galaxy of new worshipers.

That, at least, had been the plan.

Now, Eachann was lying face down in mud, tasting the dirt in his mouth, while his stunned mind adjusted to the feelings of pain that were coming from his skinned knees and hands. He had been dropped from a height onto the rough, wet ground. He spent a good ten minutes just lying in the filth, trying to change to his ascended form or communicate with any of the other Ori, the priors, or even simple human worshipers. After repeated failures, he pushed himself upright, sitting back on his bruised legs and holding himself up with his arms. For a moment, he was relieved that his body knew how to move his limbs without him having to figure out how to do it through force of will.

Looking around, he could see walls that looked to be of carved stone. There was no light source, though there appeared to be enough light coming from somewhere so that he could actually see, albeit dimly. He appeared to be in a tunnel. He listened, but there was no sound. The air itself was still. After a few moments, he called out. "Hello?" He could hear his voice echo down the corridor a ways, but there was no response.

After a few more half-hearted attempts to use his ascended powers, he stood up and began walking. Neither direction seemed better than the other, so he picked one at random. He paused at regular intervals to listen for any noise, but was only met with maddening silence. Attempts to call out were also fruitless. With little else to do, Eachann walked in the dark. It was impossible to tell the passage of time. While he could feel the beating of his heart, he had no idea anymore how that biological rhythm mapped to any meaningful measure of time's passage. It wasn't like he could count the beats perpetually as he walked, regardless. For this reason, he had no idea how long it had been since he started walking when he stumbled across the body.

She was still alive, and he didn't recognize her. He knew he hadn't seen her recently, but there were trillions of humans and millions of ascended that he wouldn't recognize by sight of their mortal form. He did recognize the look of absolute horror that was frozen on her face. She lay on the floor, staring up at the ceiling, her eyes blank. She did not respond to his voice, or his touch...or even when he kicked her in the side in frustration. She just stared, her eyes wide, with a thin trail of drool falling out the side of her mouth. He briefly had the disquieting thought that he had no idea if he had to eat food in this body. He wasn't hungry...yet. His face took on a look of slight nausea as he considered that he had yet to see anything edible in these caverns apart from the comatose woman. Unwilling to stay by this woman, who was apparently brain dead, paralyzed, or suffering from some other malady, he continued walking. Disquieting as it had been, Eachann was thankful that he had at least found something other than the endless corridor.

His next discovery was an intersection, where two seemingly identical corridors appeared to meet. He paused to listen...and was surprised that he could very faintly hear the sound of a voice coming from one corridor. The voice sounded like it was screaming in fear. He began to run toward the sound. Part of his mind said that he could be running into danger, but the chance to actually meet another person capable of speech was too tempting, and he threw caution to the wind. It was to no avail, as by the time he reached the screamer, the young man lying on the floor was in the same state as the woman he had found previously. It occurred to him that this affliction may be the result of some kind of attack, assuming he hadn't hallucinated the screaming.

The endless march through the dark continued. The next time he paused to listen, he thought he could hear a slight sound, but it stopped before he could identify it. He tried calling out again, but there was no answer. Frustrated, he continued forward. When he paused again, he made sure to listen carefully the moment he stopped. There was a brief sound that sounded like the rustling of fabric? For the next while, each time he stopped, he could hear that same sound, and it was getting louder by incremental amounts each time.

Finally, paranoia and primal instinct overtook reason, and he started to run. He ran through the dark blindly. He no longer stopped to listen. He didn't stop at either of the two new intersections he passed. He didn't stop until he could no longer breath. Finally, exhausted, he collapsed to his knees and began sucking air in through his mouth in desperate gasps. He couldn't run any longer, even though his panic was still pushing him to do so.

He froze as he heard the sound of rustling fabric nearby. Frantically, he looked back the way he had run, and he could see a dark, cloaked figure floating toward him. He fell back to his side and turned around, and began pushing himself back from the figure with his hands and feet, scuttling like a frightened crab. He couldn't stop himself from crying out as the creature rapidly flew toward him, and he got his first look at the skeletal visage inside the cowl, its mouth gaping, its eye sockets blindly staring. He was still screaming when the thing reached out a bony hand and grabbed his neck, pulling him up like an obscene mockery of a kiss.

* * * * *​

Ganos was introducing Eana to the joy of ice cream, which was, in her opinion, one of the best creations of human civilization, when her phone rang. She answered, listened briefly, then thanked the caller and disconnected.

"Well?" asked Eana, eyeing her friend nervously.

Ganos smiled. "Saurial said the Ori are gone. We won't have to worry about them anymore."

"How?" asked the stunned woman.

The smile on Ganos' face faltered. "I don't know. She just said that they took the opportunity to take care of two problems at once. I don't think I want to know any more."

The two women continued to eat their ice cream in silence.

* * * * *​

Albus ran a hand through the hairs of his red beard. He had just received news that the Dementors had vanished from Azkaban prison, and he was worried that this was somehow tied to a plot by Grindelwald. There had been rumors that Gellert was creating his own fortress prison in Austria...a place that prisoners never left. Had he recruited the Dementors to serve as guards?

Despite the best efforts of Albus Dumbledore and the International Confederation of Wizards in the years that followed, the Dementors of Azkaban were never seen again. There was no sign of them in Nurmengard Castle, though that was small solace to Grindelwald during his internment there.

 

[Derek M]

Final Epilogue

Vectura, Saurial and Metis were watching Dragon fiddle with the console. Finally, the robotic tinker said, "All right, that's done it. I've re-initialized the holoprojectors. Now let's try the start sequence again." There were a few more moments while things loaded, and then a holographic image appeared in the middle of the bridge area. The figure was in the teddy-bear shape of the Ob'enn, the species of aggressive ursinoids from the Schlock Mercenary webcomic, though this one had silver fur.

The figure looked down at its own form, then turned to Dragon. "Mother, is there a reason why you decided to give me the form of a psychopathic koala bear?"

Dragon smirked. "You're the embodiment of a powerful new ship, Sammy. It seemed appropriate to model you after Petey from the Thunderhead Superfortress."

"The same Petey who evolved into a multi-galaxy, godlike AI?" asked Metis.

Saurial chuckled. "Well, this ship has the multi-galaxy part down, and it is somewhat godlike."

"The Smug Advocacy is the most powerful ship I've ever even heard of," commented Vectura with a catlike grin. "I know, because I designed her."

The ship itself was tremendously impressive -- nobody would argue against that. While only half-a-kilometer long on the outside -- smaller than a standard Goa'uld ha'tak -- it packed quite a bit more into that hull thanks to Family mathematics and magic. The interior volume of the ship was ten times what would be expected of a ship that size. There were enough personal quarters to hold five thousand people without doubling up, though the whole ship could be run via AI. There were a plethora of labs for scientists, data analysts, tinkers and wizards. There were two massive hanger bays, both of which somehow used the same entrance in the hull. There were several cargo holds large enough for a full-sized Varga to stretch out length-wise. The multi-purpose weapon arrays on the hull were capable of generating a wide variety of energy output, ranging from point-defense beams to capital-ship-killers. There were also a plethora of FTL torpedoes with a variety of payloads, ranging from Family disintegration warheads to spatial distortion warheads capable of having extremely...unfortunate...effects on stellar bodies. The ship also possessed a massive weapon running down the ship's spine.

Metis was reviewing the specifications for the ship on a computer terminal as the others ran through diagnostics with the ship's new AI. "You named the spinal weapon the wave motion gun? Like in the anime?"

Vectura looked slightly embarrassed. "It's actually a good name for the weapon. The blast wave propagates through subspace, making it especially effective against grouped targets like fleets. I got the idea from what supposedly was going to happen to Romulus."

"Hopefully, we won't have to ever use such a weapon," commented Dragon.

A small dragon appeared sitting on a console. "While I agree with that sentiment, there are plenty of threats in the multiverse. The weapon should be capable of taking out a member of Scion's species with one shot...and there are universes described in fiction that have even worse threats."

"...and Vectura wanted to see if she could build one," added Saurial, who then laughed at Vectura as the tinker began running her fingers through her hair, preening like an embarrassed cat.

"So, what are we going to do now?" asked Sammy. "The Smug Advocacy is ready for her first mission."

There was silence for a moment, and then Saurial said, "Well, first let's go get Ianthe. I have a favor we need to repay, but we need to do some preparation first."

The watchers on board Sineya station left to return to their other duties when the spaceship vanished into a wormhole.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Sophia sat in a dark, one-bedroom apartment in Delaware. She had gotten sick and tired of running, and had come to the conclusion that whoever was following her had some way to find her no matter what she tried to do to shake them. Now, they were toying with her. Well, fuck that. If she was going down, then she would take her enemies down with her. To do that, she was making her way back to Brockton Bay. She had a list, and now it was just a question of how many on that list she could kill before they finally stopped her.

"Even one is too many, and would cause problems for us," said a voice behind her.

Hess spun around, to find a woman in a stylish business suit and fedora pointing some type of tinker-tech weapon at her. "Who the hell are you?" she asked as she tried to surreptitiously move her hand toward a crossbow.

The woman gave her a condescending look. "I'm the person who is going to make sure your foolish fantasies of revenge fail."

Snarling, Sophia shifted into shadow and started to move, only to scream as the weapon discharge caused electricity to dance over and through her shadow form. The former Ward snapped back to her physical form and collapsed to the floor, unconscious. The scar on the girl's wrist had become red and swollen in reaction to the current. She was probably lucky to be unconscious.

Contessa found that she was tempted to drop her current Path and just put a bullet in the stupid girl's skull. Unfortunately, that also would lead to some unfortunate consequences...and having the Family be annoyed with her would be unpleasant, if not quite so potentially fatal as letting the psychopathic Shadow Stalker actually injure or kill members of the Wards or the DWU. Instead, she picked up the limp form and opened a doorway to a place where she could hand the girl over to the appropriate authorities.

When the legal inhabitants of the apartment came back from vacation in Florida, they were puzzled to find nothing missing, despite clear signs that somebody had broken in. Somebody had left a travel bag behind, as well. The police collected the duffel bag containing food, clothes, a crossbow and a couple of handguns, but had no explanations for where it came from or why the intruder left it behind. It was disturbing enough that they decided to break their lease and move...but nothing else ever came of it, and the new tenants never had any issues.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Deep in the heart of the Imperial Palace on Holy Terra, on the continent formerly known as Asia, in a huge chamber known as the Sanctum Imperialis, sits the withered body of the Emperor of Mankind, entombed on his Golden Throne. The Throne itself is archeotech, based on knowledge long lost to the bustling servants of the Adeptus Mechanicus. It maintains the body of the Emperor, but barely so. From there, he helps power the Astronomican, seals the broken Imperial Webway, and fights against the forces of Chaos. It is not an exaggeration to say that his presence on the Throne is what allows the Imperium to endure. The Mechanicus knows, however, that the Throne will not last forever. Pieces of it are already failing. When it finally fails completely, then the Emperor will die...and so, likely, will the Imperium of Man.

Unknown to the others in the chamber, whether they be Adeptus Custodes, the bodyguards of the Emperor, or Adeptus Mechanicus, those responsible for maintaining Imperial technology, a figure stands to the side of the Golden Throne. The Custodes would be horrified to see the lizard-like alien standing so close to the body of the Emperor. The Emperor himself, when he finally noticed, is simply amused.

Feeling the powerful psychic Emperor's attention, Saurial mutters, "Took you long enough." She finished strapping the device she brought to the corpse-like arm of the Emperor. "Look, this is going to take a while. This device has got a healing symbiote built into it...one designed to adapt to your peculiar physiology. It's connected to about five hundred megaliters of biological slurry, which should be enough even at the rate you're burning through energy. It's also got a power tap, an extradimensional flywheel charged up with enough energy to power an Imperial battleship for a hundred centuries. Some friends of mine worked up a converter to transform electrical power into psychic energy."

The lizard girl smirked at the feeling of shock coming from the powerful psychic. It quickly changed to one of gratitude. Saurial shook her head. "Don't thank me. Just stop the Black Ships as soon as you can. The idea of hundreds of humans being sacrificed daily to keep this place running is horrifying. There's also a memory chip on the device with the specs for three different FTL drive systems. Just do me a favor and keep everybody in this nightmare universe from leaving it." She turned on the power tap when she felt the Emperor's acknowledgment of her request. The last thing they needed was Dark Eldar, Tyranids, or Orcs wandering the multiverse.

With the installation complete, Saurial teleported back to the Smug Advocacy.

Metis was waiting for her. "How did he react?"

Saurial shrugged. "Shocked and grateful. Honestly, I expected more smug. He probably knew something good was going to happen when he warned Daniel that the forces of Chaos were on the way." That warning had allowed the Ship of Fools to escape before Chaos had a clue who they were...or from whence they came.

"Well," replied the black lizard, "if a renewed body, an artificial source of psychic power, and a way to travel the stars without the Warp isn't enough for him to save mankind in this universe, then he's clearly been over-hyped."

Back on the planet, the Emperor considered the gifts presented to him. Already, he was channeling this new source of psychic energy to lessen the burden on both himself and on the other psykers tied into the Astronomicon. The Astra Telepathica was going to be surprised as the number of dying psykers dropped by an order of magnitude. He could also feel his body beginning to resuscitate at a cellular level, though it would take months before he stopped looking like an emaciated corpse. Nevertheless, he began sending messages through his Custodes. There was much groundwork to lay before he was able to act on his own, and there was still a chance that his empire would collapse. The forces arrayed against humanity were powerful, numerous and omnicidal. Despite that, the windfall from his effort to save those strange visitors from another universe was proving to be the best thing to happen to humanity in millennia. He would have to see if he could do something to thank the lizards without violating his promise to stay away.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Armsmaster was riding through the streets of Brockton Bay at night, responding to reports of a cape battle. Multiple people had called in reports of some kind of fight involving bright lights and people in costumes. The whole thing actually made him feel kind of nostalgic, as cape fights were fairly rare in the city these days. Most super-villains realized there were easier places to commit crimes than the home city of the Family.

As he turned the corner, he could see that the fight seemed to be over. There were five people, four men and a woman, wearing costumes and lying on the ground. Their hands and feet appeared to be restrained with glowing bands of light. Standing over them were two members of the Family...or at least, they looked like members of the Family, but he had never seen either of them before. The two of them were both slightly larger than Metis, but with blue-grey scales. Unlike Metis, they had six limbs like Raptaur. They were looking in his direction, and their glowing eyes were quite distinctive -- white with a pale blue tinge. Rather than the expected EDM armor, the one on the left was wearing gold armor that appeared to be inscribed with glowing runes, while the other seemed to eschew armor entirely, but instead seemed to have various bits of technology mounted directly to its scales. Colin wondered if that was the Family equivalent to cybernetics?

The one in golden armor spoke as he dismounted from his cycle. "You would be the local hero known as Armsmaster?" The voice was more masculine than that of Saurial and the others, and deeper than any but that of Kaiju...and Umihebi, though the memory of hearing Umihebi speak made him quell a small shiver in remembrance. The giant sea serpent had been more than intimidating.

Armsmaster nodded. "I am. Are you affiliated with the Family?"

"Yes," answered the other reptile. "My name is Koios, and this is my brother, Kastor. Our cousins Saurial and Raptor gave us an overview of the local humans with superpowers when we told her we wished to explore the city."

"We came across these five miscreants in the process of attempting to rob a jewelry store," added Kastor, the runes on his armor flickering slightly as he gestured toward them. "Saurial mentioned that that type of behavior was frowned upon here."

"Yes," agreed Armsmaster. "Although it is much less common since your relatives arrived in the city."

"From what they said when we arrived, these thieves seemed to think the absence of active gangs would make the city an easy target," commented the gold-clad lizard. "Rather foolish of them."

The tinker smiled slightly in agreement, then walked over to examine them. The five of them were still conscious, but were mostly glaring sullenly, though one of the men appeared to be fixedly staring at the ground, a frown fixed on his face. Armsmaster examined the restraints on their limbs curiously. "What are these restraints made of?" he asked.

"Magic...but don't worry, it is a simple spell. It should end on its own within a few hours," answered Kastor.

Armsmaster stared at the lizard for a moment, a slightly confused and horrified expression on his face, before asking, "Magic?"

Kastor nodded. "It is a specialty of our branch of the Family." He looked at his brother and frowned. "Although not every member shows the same aptitude for it."

The other reptile, Koios, smirked back at him. "It wasn't a question of aptitude. I simply enjoy science and engineering more."

"I blame Saurial," muttered Kastor. He noticed that Armsmaster was still staring at him. "Do you have much familiarity with magic?"

After another moment, Armsmaster shook his head. "No, I can't say that I do."

Koios chuckled. "With that power armor, he's obviously an engineer as well, brother."

Armsmaster looked sharply at Koios. "You recognize what it is?" Ianthe had seemed puzzled by the concept, after all.

The cybernetic lizard looked surprised, and then a look of realization passed over his face. "You've been talking to Ianthe, haven't you?"

"She really shouldn't bait the humans, brother," commented Kastor.

"Are you surprised?" asked the other lizard. Kastor simply shook his head in reply. Koios looked back at Armsmaster. "I would like to learn more about your armor, if time allows at some point in the future."

Armsmaster nodded. "Saurial knows how to get in touch with me. Now, I should see about the prisoners."

"The one in the blue costume is stronger and tougher than a normal human, while the one in the green can change his density, and the female is capable of sending out bolts of force. The other two did not display obvious abilities," explained Kastor. "I suggest having them restrained elsewhere before my spell ends."

With a gesture of thanks, Armsmaster began radioing for a pickup by a PRT van. As he was doing that, Koios reached to an implant on his arm and pressed a button with a claw-tip, at which point he vanished from sight. Looking quickly at where the other lizard had been standing, he noticed that Kastor had apparently vanished as well. With a sigh, Colin realized that they would have to update the Family's power ratings yet again.

* * * * *​

Saurial watched in amusement as the boys continued to roll around the floor in their biosuits, laughing their scaly butts off.

"Oh my god," gasped Koios, who was known as Kevin, or Leet, in human form. "I thought Armsmaster's head was going to explode when you mentioned magic. He was so distracted, he didn't even ask about my cybernetics."

Randall, a.k.a. Kastor, replied, "You never even got to make your Borg joke. We'll have to save it for next time."

"At least you got to show off your armor," commented Metis, who was also watching the two beside Ianthe.

The purple lizard shook her head. "I can't believe a villain team was dumb enough to come here to try and steal stuff."

"It was perfect, though," said Kastor. "It let us show off some of our abilities without having to answer a lot of questions." Looking at Koios, he asked, "How are you going to talk to Armsmaster about his armor without tipping him off, though? He's worked with you before."

Koios gave a shrug, still grinning. "I figure that if I focus on cybernetics from my side, I'll be all right. Dragon helped with them, so they're not actually tinker tech." Actually, the two of them had taken a lot of inspiration from Borg technology, and Kevin had learned quite a lot about it. His power had found it an interesting variation on his normal work, and had been unusually calm about the whole thing. "Besides, how likely is it that he'll look at me as Koios and suspect that I'm actually Leet?"

"Just tell him that you've been spending a lot of time with Leet, and you're intrigued by all of the pop culture related to advanced science," added Metis. "That should cover any cultural references that slip into the conversation." They could always do what they had done with Ianthe. Randall would probably have little trouble "wearing" Koios so that he could appear in the same room as Kevin when Armsmaster came by the next time.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Wash was sitting in his pilot's chair, contemplating the happenings of the last few weeks. Strange things had been happening. First, River had lost her mind in a bar and attacked a bunch of people...apparently because of an advertisement sent out by the Alliance to trigger her programming. The girl was surprisingly lethal, not to mention limber. Then, they went to meet Inara, the Companion who had decided to leave the ship before, after receiving a message from her, and Mal had barely escaped from a government agent. Inara had come with him. Next, they had gone to Haven, only to find that the Alliance had sent a ship to attack the colony. That ship had been shot down before it could destroy the town, thankfully, though it wasn't clear who had done so. Shepherd Book, another former passenger, had also come back with them after receiving a mysterious message verifying that he was the target of the attack, and that staying would put the town at risk.

The next stop had been the dead world of Miranda, where they discovered that the Reavers, psychopathic cannibal pirates of the space lanes, had been created accidentally by an Alliance experiment intended to enslave the population through chemistry. Apart from the horrible circumstances, somebody had come through before their arrival and destroyed the vast majority of the Reavers' ships, which let them sneak in unnoticed. The sneaking out hadn't gone so well, and a handful of Reaver ships had chased them. Those ships had been ambushed and destroyed by an Alliance fleet that had been waiting for them...a fleet that rather strangely seemed to ignore them entirely. That let them get to Mr. Universe's broadcast facility, where the truth about Miranda was released to anyone and everyone. The fallout from that was still yet to be determined.

In the end, the whole thing had seemed somewhat anti-climactic for some reason, with neither the Reavers nor the Alliance really impeding them. Not that Wash was unhappy. It was a miracle that everybody had made it out of that mess alive, and he was happy to see Inara and the Shepherd again. They were both good people. It just felt...off, for some reason. Like, the universe never seemed to roll the dice in their favor quite so much.

It was almost a relief when their proximity alarm began to sound suddenly. Wash was an optimist by nature, but the thought that the other shoe was about to drop on them was somewhat of a balancing agent, in a weird way. When another ship appeared like magic right in front of them...well, he wasn't quite feeling so relieved any more. "Mal," he called into the intercom, "you better get up here!"

Mal soon appeared on the ship's narrow bridge, and had Wash's darling bride, Zoe, following. Mal swore. "Liou coe shway duh biao-tze huh hoe-tze duh ur-tze!" Then he asked, "What the hell is that?"

Wash shrugged. "I have no idea. It literally just appeared from nowhere in our path."

"That's as big as an Alliance carrier, sir. Do you think they're Alliance?" asked Zoe.

There was a chirp from the console before he could respond. "Well, whoever they are, they're hailin' us." He reached out and turned on the video screen...and then froze, with his mouth open in shock.

"Hi there!" said a chirpy voice, one that seemed odd coming from the what looked like a giant purple lizard. "I'm glad you guys finally took care of that Miranda situation. We've been watching you for a while, and we wanted to stop by and introduce ourselves!" After a few moments when the three humans just stared at the screen without saying anything, the lizard asked, "Can you hear me? Is the volume on?"

"I think I can," said Mal quietly. "Zoe, Wash, do you see what I'm seeing?"

"If you're seeing a giant purple talking lizard, than yes. If not, then somebody needs to take over while I go lie down," answered Wash. Zoe just nodded.

The lizard seemed to snicker for a moment. "Don't worry, I'm real. I know you folks haven't met any aliens, but humans aren't the only beings in the universe," she said. "My name is Ianthe. Do you mind if I come over to your ship to talk to you?"

"What about?" asked Zoe, ever the practical one despite being a more than a little freaked by the circumstances.

"Other than just meeting you, we have what I think will be a very lucrative business proposition for you," replied the lizard with a toothless smile.

Wash looked out the window with an unreadable expression. "You want us to dock with your...ship?"

The lizard shook her head. "Naw. I'll just meet you guys in your cargo bay." With that, the message blinked out.

Both Zoe and Wash looked to Mal, not sure how to react. "Zoe, go tell Jayne to get Vera ready and meet us in the cargo bay. Wash, warn the others that we might be havin' some unusual visitors." He was pretty sure that would result in the entire crew showing up, but then that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. River was pretty much a solution to any problem involving hurtin' somebody by herself. "I'll go tell Inara."

Soon, the entire crew was waiting in the cargo bay. Kaylee, Simon and River had shown up as a group. Jayne was there with his favorite gun, standing next to Wash and Zoe. Inara had come down with Mal, and Shepherd Book had already been in the hold, reading a book that looked like it was written in Latin.

"Did we run into another ship out here?" asked Kaylee, slightly nervously. The last ship to find them out in the black had had a bounty hunter on board, and Kaylee hadn't had a good experience with him.

"I'm not sure what we ran into, honestly," answered Wash. The captain didn't say anything.

Inara looked at the airlock door. "Are they coming to dock with us?"

Mal finally answered, "I'm sure I don't really know..."

Book sent Mal a puzzled look. "Who exactly is it?"

"That would be me," said a voice from directly behind Shepherd Book. Eyes widened, and Jayne brought his gun up.

Book spun around, surprised, and said, "Huh choo-shung tza-jiao duh tsang-huo!"

"Hello. My name is Ianthe," said the large, intimidating, and not-at-all human giant lizard standing behind the Shepherd. "I'm happy to meet you all!"

Jayne was, shockingly, the first person to speak. "Is that an honest-to-god ruttin' alien?"

The lizard smiled, showing a disconcerting amount of teeth. "I'm not human, if that's what you're asking, Jayne Cobb."

"You're blank, like a chalk board without any writing on it..." interrupted River. She was staring at Ianthe strangely.

The lizard's smile changed to one that was warmer and less threatening. "I'm immune to readers, River."

Simon put his hand on River's shoulder protectively. "You seem to know a lot about us?" he asked suspiciously.

Ianthe nodded. "We've been watching you, and helping out from time to time. I'm sorry we weren't able to take out all of the Reavers before you arrived at Miranda, but they're annoyingly good at hiding for insane psychopaths." She looked over at Book. "We also took out that ship that was going to destroy Haven."

"Thank you for that," said Book with a polite nod. "I assume you're responsible for the mysterious message warning me to leave, as well?"

"That was Metis. She thought it might be a good idea in case the Alliance wanted to try again," agreed Ianthe.

"Metis is another one of your kind?" asked Zoe.

Ianthe nodded. "My sister, actually."

"Where do you people come from?" asked Wash in a slightly exasperated tone. "I mean, I'm pretty sure I've never seen your kind wandering around on any of the planets we've visited."

"We're not from around here," said another voice. The whole crew turned as one to stare at the new person. She looked a lot more human, but was still covered in scales, possessed a tail, and had an enthusiastic set of dentition.

"Are you Metis?" asked Mal. "And how the hell are you gettin' on my gorram ship?"

"No, I'm Saurial. We left Metis back on our ship," answered the lizard girl. "And we got over here via teleporter, and we're naturally very sneaky."

"Teleportation like that doesn't exist," insisted Simon.

Jayne scoffed. "T'aint no lizard-girls either, yet here they are."

There was a brief pause in the conversation. "Hate to say it, but the man has a point," admitted Zoe grudgingly.

The large purple quadrupedal lizard went to stand next to the taller biped. "Now that that's settled," she added, barreling through the fact that the humans present probably didn't feel that way, "let's get to our offer."

"We're here to negotiate a contract for the Serenity," said Saurial.

Mal looked at the lizards suspiciously. "You need something smuggled?" He had images of scaled invaders swarming over the various worlds of humanity, and suppressed a shudder.

Saurial seemed to read his thoughts and smirked slightly. "Actually, Malcolm Reynolds, we would like you to sign a contract that stipulates what happens to this ship if and when you or your descendants wish to dispose of it, presumably at the end of its natural service life."

There was another pause as everybody absorbed that. Finally, Inara spoke. "You want to buy Mal's ship...but you're willing to let him and his descendants use it for as long as they want? What happens if the ship is destroyed? Even if the Reavers are no longer a threat, there are other dangers." It wasn't like the Alliance was likely to turn a blind eye to smugglers...especially ones as high-profile as they now were. In fact, it was questionable as to whether or not they would even be able to take jobs of a less-than-legal nature anymore.

"We're willing to take that risk. In return, we offer a number of things. The first is a full load of fuel and as many spare parts for this ship as you can store..." began Saurial.

Kaylee chirped in excitedly, "You've got parts for a Firefly aught three?"

Saurial grinned at the irrepressible mechanic. "We can manufacture pretty much anything, as long as we have either samples or detailed specifications."

"Anything?" asked Kaylee with a gleam in her eye. "Does that mean you could manufacture some upgrades?"

"Just tell me what you would like," replied Saurial easily. "We can probably provide it."

Jayne interjected, "I could use some more ammo for Vera."

Saurial looked over to the mercenary. "Not a problem. In fact, we can supply you with plenty of ammunition for all of your sidearms." She turned her attention to the doctor. "We can restock your infirmary, as well, but that leads into another part of our offer. Ianthe?"

The purple lizard stepped forward. "I am what my people call a bioshaper. I have the ability to heal pretty much any injury or disease."

At that announcement, Saurial watched the crew. Zoe looked thoughtful, a hand on her stomach. Inara was hiding her reaction well, but there was a slight stiffening of her posture. Simon appeared to have a mix of wariness mixed with reluctant hope. Kaylee and Jayne were both still fixated on their potential windfall of parts and ammo. Book was inscrutable. Wash looked slightly baffled. Mal was keeping a strict poker face, but was clearly slightly discomfited by the situation. River kept looking between Saurial and Ianthe, as if each was a puzzle that was too difficult for her to solve.

Simon spoke. "You're offering to treat our crew? Would you be willing to let me observe your work?"

"Our methods are non-intrusive, Simon Tam, but I would be happy to explain to you in detail exactly what I find with each of you, as well as what corrective measures I plan to take before I do it," agreed the purple lizard.

Saurial continued, "We're also willing to provide you with a fair amount of platinum...say, one thousand kilograms?"

Mal finally spoke. "Color me skeptical, but you're offering us thousands of credits worth of gear, some kind of magical healing, and a ton of platinum for a promise to do something in the future that may or may not happen?"

Saurial looked slightly chagrined. "Sorry for the confusion. I meant a thousand kilos per person."

There was another long pause as most of the crew looked at the lizards in shock. River, however, walked up to Saurial unnoticed while everyone else was stunned. Simon didn't really notice her movement until the girl was already at arm's length from the dangerous-looking reptile. The girl looked the amused lizard in the eye and said, "You don't need to do any of this. You could take the ship, and we couldn't stop you. Or, you could wait until Serenity was empty, or abandoned, and take it then. Instead, you're being generous. Why?"

Saurial smiled broadly. "You really are quite perceptive, River."

The girl in question stared back, unimpressed. "Duh."

"We're not from your universe," answered Ianthe. "We have seen what might have happened with this ship and its crew. You impressed us. Every single one of you made choices to do the right thing when there was an easier path. We also realize that you may have difficulties pursuing your former line of work. Illicit activities typically require a degree of anonymity that you no longer have."

"So why do you need the ship?" asked Mal.

Saurial answered the captain's question. "There will come a point where a group of lost people need a new home for a time. This ship can serve that purpose, and the consequences of them finding the Serenity will mean good things for a great many people...more than can easily be understood or explained."

Mal considered Saurial's words for a time. "All right, I'm willing to negotiate."

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

"Everything seems to have worked out in a satisfactory way," said the voice.

Q smirked. "I told you that you were being a worry-wort."

There was a pause. "It could have gone very badly."

"As badly as giving the power of the Varga to an abused teen-aged girl in a world teetering on apocalypse?"

"Taylor Hebert is a unique individual, regardless of the universe."

Now Q scoffed. "Every human is a unique individual...and yet they are all the same. So limited, yet every once in a great while, they surprise you."

"Your kind were not so different once," replied the voice with some amusement.

Q waved the comment away with a hand. "Ancient prehistory. The question now is, what is the half-demon girl going to do now that she's upended a handful of different realities?"

"Unknown, but I have no doubt that it will be entertaining."

Q found he couldn't argue with that.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A group of lizards sat on the bridge of the Smug Advocacy.

"So, we can go and pick up the ship, then drop it on the planet where Daniel and Miles found it, and the whole fixed time loop is complete. Then what do we do?" asked Metis.

Saurial grinned. "Work on our backlog of projects? You've got to find something to keep 'Saurial's Angels', busy, too," she said. Metis winced slightly. Saurial had refused to take ownership of the group, claiming it was Metis's fault, and thus her responsibility.

"We still have to get dragons of our own," added Ianthe. "We've put that off for too long, what with fixing everybody's problems across the multiverse."

"I am interested in following Randall's progress as a wizard," said Varga in Raptaur form. "He shows promise, and has access to resources most practitioners would envy."

"And we can't forget about that planet where we found the mordite. There was something strange going on with those alien ships in orbit, and the whole world seemed to be recovering from a nuclear war," commented Saurial. "There are some shenanigans going on there."

"What about our civilian lives?" asked Ianthe. "Technically, Taylor and I still haven't graduated from high school."

"I think it is fair to say that Taylor continues to go mostly for the social aspects. She surpassed in learning anything the Brockton Bay public schools could impart some time ago," replied Varga.

Saurial added, "I think I would like to graduate, but I can't honestly see myself bothering with university anymore. There is too much to do, and plenty of things to learn by doing them."

"We should see if any of our friends are interested in working with us. I think Lucy, at least, would look good with a tail," commented Ianthe.

"She'd have one already if she knew she could get one," chuckled Metis.

A holographic teddy bear appeared in front of the group. "The Serenity is now well on their way. What course should I set?"

"Second star to the right, then straight on 'til morning," said Saurial jokingly.

Sammy, the ship's AI, frowned. "It will take some time to extrapolate the location of Never Neverland based on relative quantum variances in the spacetime characteristics of known realities."

The lizards all exchanged amused glances. "Just take us back home to Brockton Bay, Sammy," said Saurial.

"Acknowledged," replied the AI.

The ship soon vanished.

THE END