...As much as I love Gina Dartt's Just Between series (a truly awesome Janeway/Seven romance series), I have to admit that even a review board that worshiped Kirk would have her dragged out into the streets and shot as an example to the others, if they actually cared about morality....
Ship of Fools: A Taylor Varga Omake (Complete)
- Thread starter Derek M
- Start date
- Crossover
...As much as I love Gina Dartt's Just Between series (a truly awesome Janeway/Seven romance series), I have to admit that even a review board that worshiped Kirk would have her dragged out into the streets and shot as an example to the others, if they actually cared about morality....
Chapter 34: Bringing the Hammer Down
- Location
- Maryland
Chapter 34: Bringing the Hammer Down
The Asgard battlecruiser slipped out of hyperspace and immediately cloaked. Baldur of the Asgard checked the sensor readout, looking for any sign of the illusive Vanir. The Asgard's new allies had pointed them in the direction of the Pegasus galaxy as the location for their less ethical cousins, and the High Council was determined to put a stop to any malfeasance against humanity, especially now that the genetic degradation of their race had been reversed. Unfortunately, this system was absent any telltales for Asgard technology, though there was a world inhabited by primitive humans.
Baldur's mood improved dramatically when a hyperspace window opened and a gigantic vessel dropped into real space. The massive, organic vessel was a Wraith hive. The hive was accompanied by three Wraith cruisers, and they immediately began launching an additional screening force of dart fighters. They were clearly targeting the human world, although they were also obviously in no hurry. Wraith dominance of the Pegasus galaxy was effectively unchallenged since the retreat of the Lanteans. Baldur was looking forward to again challenging that dominance and teaching the predatory species another lesson.
First, the Asgard moved his cloaked ship closer to the vessels, scanning them for life signs. There were over two hundred human life signs on board the various vessels, most of them in suspended animation. Baldur raised his shields and dropped the cloaking field, then set the ship's computer to use the teleporter to bring the humans over to the Asgard vessel. The Wraith reacted quickly, with the cruisers and the hive beginning to send bolts of plasma ineffectually at the Asgard ship's shields. When the cruisers were clear of human life signs, Asgard plasma beams lashed out and destroyed them. The hive ship began attempting to move away and escape, while darts began desperately impacting Baldur's shields. Once the humans were all retrieved from the hive as well, the plasma beams again lashed out, tearing the engines out of the hive and inadvertently vaporizing a number of unfortunate darts. The beaming array then began disassembling the hive wholesale, until something triggered secondary explosions that destroyed the rest of the massive vessel. At that point, the handful of remaining darts began to flee for the planet and the local Stargate. None of them made atmosphere.
Baldur remotely healed the handful of humans with injuries, then deposited the group down by the local Stargate. Hopefully, the majority would be able to make their way home, or would find a new life with the local humans. If there were any Wraith collaborators in the group, then that situation would likely resolve itself as well, as the transport beam would automatically disable any energy weapons. Baldur appreciated problems that solved themselves.
He was slightly frustrated at the lack of Vanir, but this was the third Wraith hive he had been able to destroy. One of them had been grounded on a planet, however, which took some of the fun out of it. He had to wonder how deficient the Lanteans had been to allow a species that didn't even have shields drive them out of the galaxy. He suspected that the original Ancients would not have been so sloppy. The Wraith infestation was bad enough that Baldur thought he would recommend continued patrol flights through Pegasus even after the wayward Vanir were brought to heel. It wouldn't hurt to give some of the younger captains a little more combat experience, even if it was against an inferior foe.
Baldur jumped his ship to hyperspace for a few minutes and reached the next system on his list. This one proved to be more interesting, although still Vanir-free. The inhabited planet, however, contained an industrial civilization unusually advanced for Pegasus. Advanced humans were likely to be of interest to the Vanir if they were looking for experimental subjects. He dropped a stealthed spy satellite to watch the planet. If nothing else, the Asgard might get lucky and catch a bunch of Wraith by surprise when they inevitably showed up to bomb the humans back to the stone age. Survey complete, the Asgard vessel entered hyperspace again to continue the hunt.
At a mountain observatory on Sateda, an astronomer noticed an unusual flash of light in the night sky. Further examination revealed nothing, however, so he simply wrote it off as random light noise, possibly from a passing airship.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Saurial arrived in the Dreaming before Morpheus's grand castle and waited. She was amused to see that at present, it looked very close to Cinderella's castle at the California Disneyland. It didn't take long before the owner of the realm appeared.
"Curious. Rarely has any being from outside visited the Dreaming on multiple occasions while awake," said Morpheus.
"I'm sorry for intruding, but we are actually looking to speak with your sister, Death. Your realm is somewhat more accessible," said Saurial.
Morpheus gazed at them. "Particularly for your kind, I suspect. I will call for her." Morpheus vanished, presumably to do whatever tasks occupied his time.
It was not long before Death appeared. The manifestation of Death here took on the appearance of a goth teen girl wearing a silver anhk necklace. "Varga. Your kind normally summons me in a more direct fashion, though not to speak."
Saurial nodded her head. "We have a problem with the universe containing the Federation. Parts of it are fractured almost as badly as this one, and it was done deliberately by a hostile power. Unfortunately, dealing with this is going to require something drastic. Anti-life."
"I'm surprised. You have gone to great lengths to ensure that the Blackest Night prophecy does not come into being," said Death.
With a smile, the lizard woman said, "We're asking for your help because we absolutely don't want to create a zombie apocalypse filled with Black Lanterns. However, we need something that can negate a power capable of crushing together parallel dimensions. Meeting force for force would just cause even more damage."
The girl gave the half-demon lizard a considering look. "You have another source of information. I suspect the wizard Dresden can help. His universe has beings who have figured out how to condense anti-life into solid form."
Saurial smiled. "Well, I have been meaning to go to Bolivia and check in on things."
Death met her smile. "Hopefully it works out better for you than for Butch and Sundance."
Saurial laughed out loud. "Nice reference."
"I like that film," replied the Endless.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Xander was waiting for news about Cordelia and Connor. He came back from his visit home to find that Anya had gone shopping with Faith (which he would not have predicted), so now he was sitting alone while the Nox looked at the two unconscious rescuees. He had never met Connor, but he had watched the television show and he felt sorry for the kid. The boy had never been anything but a pawn since he was a baby. Xander also had a great deal of affection for Cordelia as well, and what had happened to her made him nauseated.
A female Nox entered the room and went over to Xander. He looked up at her expectantly. She frowned. "We have delved into the circumstances surrounding their afflictions. I am afraid that we are constrained in our possible treatments."
"That doesn't sound good," said Xander.
"The boy has had a completely artificial personality laid over his original. His original mind is effectively feral, and the magics of Wolfram and Hart have suppressed it to the point of damage. There is...little that we can do for him as he is," said the Nox sadly. "The woman is a different matter, though still severe. Her mind has been tampered with by higher powers repeatedly. She has had her genetics spliced with non-human tissue. She was forced to give birth to a dark power, which has damaged her higher reasoning centers. We can undo the modifications done to her, though that will cause a certain amount of unavoidable memory loss, as the changes have altered her brain. Alternately, we can stabilize her in her current form, but she will have to deal with the full weight of her experiences."
Xander's face fell. He said, "Are you asking me to choose her treatment?"
The Nox smiled. "You care for her. You know her better than we do. What would she choose?"
He thought about what had happened to her and came to a decision. "Make her human again. If she wants to be enhanced, I'll trust what the Family can do over anything the powers that have been manipulating her have done." He paused for a moment, then added, "What are you going to do about Connor and his family?"
"His family will have their memories corrected and they will be returned home," said the Nox. "They are innocent victims. For Connor...he needs a real childhood."
Xander looked at her, confused. "Isn't it a little late for that?"
She frowned. "We have had a significant amount of debate, but the most ethical option is a drastic adjustment to the patient's current age. Connor will be returned to what would be a normal human age of five Earth years."
The young man had to physically push his mouth closed with his hand after that revelation. After a few moments, he said, "you can do that?"
"We would not normally make such a significant change to a sentient being, but in this case it preserves as much of his self as can be saved," said the Nox sadly.
"Will he remember what happened to him?" asked Xander.
"Eventually," replied the Nox. "We will lock away the memories of his life until he is more mature and able to understand what happened. We would suggest that he return to spend time with us when he comes of age."
Well, thought Xander, at least Cordy can't complain that being made human was the worst thing that could have happened. He also wondered who was going to tell Angel that he was now the father of a toddler.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
"All right," said Saurial. "Let me show you some of what we call the Family style. Now, some of it is much easier with a tail, but we can compensate for your handicaps."
Karrin, Natasha and Kennedy all looked bemused as Saurial began demonstrating martial arts moves. Randall was sitting off to the side, observing. He had quite reasonably, in his mind, pointed out that at least three of the four women had super strength, and all four of them were ludicrously skilled in martial arts. His chance of getting hurt was fairly high, and the fact that they could rapidly fix anything he broke wouldn't make him feel any better while it was happening.
He was perfectly happy watching the Latina slayer, the Russian super spy and the Chicago ex-cop spar with Saurial. Ignoring the fact that the ladies were pretty easy on the eyes (which he was more than smart enough to never voice out loud), he was able to pick up skills just from watching them thanks to Amy's enhancements. Enduring a trivial amount of teasing from Kennedy and Saurial, and an indecipherable look from Natasha, was easily worth keeping the education painless.
Unsurprisingly, Kennedy picked up the moves almost immediately, but the other two women were also shockingly quick to learn new moves. After about thirty minutes of sparring, Saurial suggested adding weapons. Kennedy was almost absurdly eager, so Murphy and Natasha both decided to sit out while Kennedy and Saurial crossed blades. While both women had their own weapon skills, they were curious to see how the slayer did. It was soon obvious that Kennedy was a little shocked at how easily Saurial was keeping up with her despite being a slayer, and the lizard woman equally obviously was highly amused by that. Unlike Natasha, who had made it clear to Murphy that she was the winner of their bouts, Saurial simply continued to fight until Kennedy gave up and acknowledged that she couldn't beat the lizard girl.
Meanwhile, in an entirely different building, Raptaur was sitting and listening as Dr. Strange talked about the differences in magic between universes with Harry, Molly, Bonnie and Willow. "Wait," said Molly. "You're saying that as long as magic exists, then the multiverse HAS to exist?"
"If the anthropomorphic transitive principle proposed by Kalazar is correct, then that's a natural consequence, yes," confirmed Strange.
"Unfortunately," added Harry, "that also suggests that any power source strong enough to overcome my universe's magic/tech incompatibility is likely to incinerate the user."
"So we tie it to an external source, like a sponsoring deity," suggested Willow excitedly. She was absolutely thrilled to be discussing magic with such a skilled group of practitioners. Tara had been knowledgeable, but she had also been magically home schooled.
Harry winced. "The beings of power in my universe aren't exactly safe to tap like a power main." He had seen first hand the consequences of trying to tap outside power.
"I may be able to assist," said Raptaur.
Strange raised an eyebrow. "You have a way to provide that much power?"
"Perhaps," said Raptaur with a smile, "but I may have a different alternative. On a different topic, I have a question for Harry. Have you ever encountered a substance that could be described as condensed anti-life?"
Harry looked at Raptaur with surprise. "You're talking about mordite?"
"Mordite? That is an interesting name." Raptaur proceeded to explain about O'Brien's universe and some of the things that they've learned about the causes of the problems there.
"This mordite sounds like it may do what you need," said Strange, "but it sounds like an exceedingly dangerous substance."
"It's instantly lethal to any mortal," agreed Harry. "Even ignoring that, I'm not sure how you would get some."
"Who might know?" asked the large reptile, sensing that Harry wasn't saying he couldn't help.
"I know somebody who knows somebody," said Harry vaguely.
"Are you thinking about who I think you're thinking about?" asked Molly with a small smile. "And if so, are you going to tell Karrin?"
Harry winced. "Yeah, this is going to be awkward enough without that." Molly's smile faded when she remembered what Harry had planned up until his unexpected inter-dimensional trip. "In any event, I'll try and setup a meeting with somebody who can help."
"I would appreciate any help you can provide," said Raptaur. "We need something that will break the stalemate in that universe if we're going to fix things."
"You're taking on quite a lot," said Stephen. "I know from personal experience that it can be hard enough to protect just one universe."
"The Family isn't planning on taking over long-term responsibility for these realities, but we do like sticking our snouts in where we can upset things in favor of the good guys," answered Raptaur.
"I'm not complaining," said Bonnie. "I'm grateful for the Family sticking their snouts into our reality. I might not have ever been born in more ways than one without them."
"I don't think any of us are complaining," said Harry with a smile.
Strange was pretty sure that there would be some folks who would complain in his universe, and not just miscreants like Wilson Fisk. A certain one-eyed head of S.H.I.E.L.D. would likely have issues with the less than orderly interventions by the Family. He needed to talk to Stark, too, before the narcissistic billionaire did something foolish. Wong had told him that Richards, Xavier and Stark had tried to get him to meet with them, so he suspected that some of the cat was out of the bag, even if it was just the whiskers.
Raptaur was looking at Strange with a knowing smile, which made him wonder if it wouldn't be worth it to facilitate an introduction between the lizards and some of the folks back home. He would have to carefully consider whether the potential entertainment was worth the likely backlash.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Vicky was sitting on the roof of the warehouse where her sister had turned her world upside down. She had discovered that TV and movies and books were all apparently views into alternate universes (which made her wonder if there were universes where the characters from Degrassi High or Beverly Hills 90210 lived). Then she had met with Taylor, and Taylor's demonic other half, Varga, and learned that calling her sister a healer was drastically underselling her abilities. Part of her was happy that she understood the reasons and circumstances behind, "the Family," and she understood why this was a better situation than would have happened if the PRT...or her own mother...knew the reality of the situation. Another part of her was trying to adapt to having a lot of her assumptions and implicit knowledge invalidated. She had literally stopped in mid-flight on the way home when she realized that she didn't really want to face her parents at the moment.
"You OK up there?" called a voice from below.
Vicky peered down over the edge of the roof to see a red-haired young man peering up at her, one she recognized from Taylor's group the other day. Curious, she stepped off the roof and floated down to the ground. The man seemed momentarily startled, but then he patiently waited for her to touch down.
"I'm just trying to absorb the reality of what you and your ship mean. I'm Vicky, by the way," she said, unsure if he would remember from the other day.
"Jimmy Olsen," he said, reaching out his hand to shake hers.
She raised an eyebrow. "Like, Superman, Lois Lane, Daily Planet Jimmy Olsen?"
"You've heard of me, then?" he asked with a grin.
She rolled her eyes. "You're probably more famous in this world than you are in your own."
He laughed. "I'll try not to let it go to my head. Do you want to come inside and think? We've got a replicator if you're hungry or thirsty."
She shrugged. "Sure. You seem pretty immune to the weirdness, so maybe you can share your perspective."
He led the way through the outer office again while saying, "I thought I was pretty used to weird back in my world, but this whole adventure has broadened my horizons a bit. A guy who can fly and shrug off gunfire is pretty tame compared to meeting actual gods and demons."
"Tell me about it," muttered the teen girl. "Being a cape in Brockton Bay is pretty strange anyway, but things have just gotten more bizarre since the Family arrived."
"But in a good way?" asked Jimmy as they started up the ramp into the ship.
Vicky thought about that question briefly before realizing there was no question. "Absolutely. This town is safer and has a better attitude about the future than we've had in years -- longer than I've been alive, if you listen to the older generation." That wasn't even counting what Amy had done for their dad.
There were three people already sitting in the galley when Jimmy and Vicky arrived. Vicky recognized Taylor Hebert sitting next to an older couple. Biting the bullet, she went over to Taylor, held out her hand, and said, "Hi. I'm sorry about the other day...I thought you were the Taylor from my universe. I'm Vicky."
Taylor looked at her slightly skeptically, but then shrugged and shook her hand. "I'm Taylor. I'm afraid I know my universe's version of Glory Girl, and we're not exactly friends."
Vicky frowned. "I hope it wasn't something the other me did?"
"I wouldn't over think it," said Jimmy from behind Vicky. "The sequence of events in your universes were very different, and from the stories we've heard, it sounds like a lot of bad luck led to unfortunate decisions on the part of everybody."
Taylor snorted. "That's for sure. Your universe is like the lighter version of mine. I got sucked out of my universe during an attack on this city by Leviathan, for example."
"Leviathan attacked HERE?" asked Vicky with a slight squeak.
"Not here, but my version," clarified Taylor. "Your lizards seem to make you immune to Endbringer attack."
"That's pretty handy to have in a local hero team," said the other man sitting at the table. "You would think New York would be a hard target in our reality, what with the Avengers, the Fantastic Four and Doctor Strange in residence, but that only seems to draw in more crazies."
Vicky looked questioningly at the couple, and Jimmy provided an introduction. "Vicky, this is Peter and Mary Jane Parker."
Vicky mouthed the names silently, then looked sharply at Peter. "Spider-Man?"
MJ, Taylor and Jimmy all laughed, though MJ was at least trying to stifle her laughter. She said, "Pete, I think your secret identity in the multiverse is a lost cause."
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Vicky, embarrassed. The Unwritten Rules were such an important aspect of cape life that she couldn't help but feel like she had made a big faux pas.
Pete waved it off. "Don't worry about it. When the others rescued Taylor and me from that derelict, Harry called me by name almost immediately. Apparently, I'm a comic book character in his universe, too."
Vicky asked what he meant about rescue, and that led to a more thorough retelling of the Ship of Fools and its jaunts through the multiverse. Then they talked about some of what the Family had already done post-rescue for the various inter-dimensional refugees, including the changes MJ had asked of Ianthe.
"You're a cape now?" asked Vicky, looking at MJ.
MJ nodded. "I'm thinking of going by Arachne. There's already a hero named Spider-Woman on the West Coast."
"Did Ianthe suggest that? The Family seems to like the names from Greek mythology," said Jimmy.
"She did, but I like it," said MJ with a grin.
"Isn't it kind of weird that we're all from universes where people with superpowers put on costumes and go fight crime?" asked Vicky with an insight that was becoming more common as her temperament evened out.
"I think it has to do with the fact that the number of folks with special abilities has increased rapidly fairly recently in all of our worlds. In my world and and in Pete's world, there are genetic factors coming into play that have drastically increased the number of people with super powers," explained Jimmy.
Pete added, "Harry and Xander come from worlds where magic has been around forever, but it's largely a secret, so the way special abilities like magic are handled are very different."
"I'm planning to study capes in college. As far as I know, nobody knows where powers come from in our world, though they've ruled out strict genetics or traditional supernatural theories," said Vicky.
"Actually," interjected Taylor, "I may know something...or rather, I think the Nox know something."
"The Nox?" asked Vicky.
"They're an alien race in Daniel's universe. Their planet has been kind of an alternate home port for the Ship of Fools in that universe. They're good people," explained Peter.
"They claimed that my power came from an extra-dimensional parasite," said Taylor.
"That...sounds unpleasant," said Vicky. She looked a little disgusted at the thought.
"Have you mentioned that to Ianthe or Saurial?" asked Jimmy.
Taylor shook her head. "It slipped my mind...and I guess I assumed they already knew? They seem pretty well informed about those types of things."
Vicky shook her head and said, "We should tell them. It might be important." Amy had said that they had some ideas about the source of powers, but she hadn't gone into any detail. It was clear that they were working on more than just their inter-dimensional visitors' problems, however.
"In my experience, it's better to overshare information than it is to assume something is already known," said Jimmy. "That's a classic mistake that can lead to all sorts of unfortunate consequences."
"While we're doing that," added Vicky, "Taylor, why don't you tell me some more about why you and your version of Glory Girl don't get along. I might be able to help with that."
Taylor stared at the blond girl for a moment before answering, "You may not like hearing it."
"No matter what happened, it didn't happen to me personally. I think I have to start getting used to being flexible about this type of thing...or I'll probably go crazy," said the blond heroine.
"Yes...Peter's lucky I can tell the difference between him and the comics about him," said MJ.
"Like what?" asked Peter with a disgruntled look.
She looked back at him somewhat critically. "Two words...Black...Cat."
Peter blushed, and muttered, "Right...you had to look at those comics..."
Vicky turned back to Taylor. "Hey, are our worlds based on a fictional story in another universe?"
"No, not that we've found so far," answered Taylor. "If we do find one, I'm going to track down the author and tell him what I think of his story, though." The idea that Emma, Sophia and the locker were all made up so that somebody could tell a good story kind of pissed her off.
"I guess it makes sense that we haven't found stories about us. For one thing, we would probably know a lot more about powers and stuff if we had a bunch of comic books or movies about our world," said Vicky thoughtfully.
"We've certainly learned a LOT of secrets about our realities -- some of which are kind of dangerous to know. You may be better off not learning certain things," said Jimmy.
"I think I'm about maxed out on Earth-shattering revelations, thanks," said Vicky with an exaggerated tone and a laugh. "Still, the Family has been doing good things, and I want to be part of that. I'll help if I can, even if it means helping you deal with an alternate version of me. You may even end up friends with her."
Taylor was about to comment on how unlikely that was...and then she remembered where she was, the company she was currently keeping, and the events that had led there. "Eh," she replied, "stranger things have happened."
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
The Lucian Alliance did not have a huge presence on Hebridan. Mostly, this was due to the fact that the goods and services they provided that were legal on Hebridan already had previously entrenched competition, while those that were illegal were punished harshly...and also had previously entrenched competition. A small presence was still a presence, however, which is how a certain group of women encountered them.
"Isn't slavery illegal on Hebridan?" asked Faith.
Vala nodded. "Slavery is illegal, but indentured servitude is still practiced, especially for debts. It's also not illegal to deal with slavers off world, as long as none of the actual trade happens locally."
"Indentured servitude?" asked the slayer.
"Slavery where you earn a wage that goes toward buying your freedom, at least in theory," explained Anya. "Realistically, once you get stuck in that kind of arrangement, it can be almost impossible to get out again."
Faith thought back to her childhood. "Yeah, I get that." Being poor sucked, no matter what planet you were on.
"Slavery is an inefficient and barbaric practice," said Seven with disdain.
"I wasn't really a fan of the show, but don't the Borg, like, force people to join them all the time?" asked Faith.
"Assimilation is not slavery...though I will admit that the nuance is lost for most of the victims," explained Seven. "Each member of the collective is an equal part of the whole."
The group of them were standing in front of a shopfront that advertised as a place for "hiring" servants. The line of cages on the inside of the shop was visible from outside. Two of the cages were occupied by three different men wearing electronic restraints. There were two armed guards visible, while an obvious sales clerk manned the front counter. As the women were peering inside, a well-dressed man pushed past them slightly rudely and made his way into the shop.
Vala stiffened. "That man is a Goa'uld."
"How can you tell?" asked Anya.
"Anybody who's been a host can sense Goa'uld and Jaffa even after they're freed," explained Vala absently. She began walking into the shop herself.
"Vala?" called Anya. "Where are you going?"
"Wait here," she said, and went through the door.
The three women left outside glanced at each other, then as one they followed Vala into the shop (although Anya muttered under her breath about spending too much time with white hats). Once inside, they could hear the conversation between the shopkeeper and the Goa'uld.
"Have the servants delivered to my ship," he said while handing over his credit disc.
One of the men in detention heard this and complained. "Hey, I'm just on a debt contract. You can't sell me off-world!" The man behind the counter didn't bother to reply, but he did press a button, which caused the man's collar to buzz. The prisoner's eyes rolled up and he staggered and fell to all fours.
"I want to counter-bid!" said Vala, who had been standing in line behind the Goa'uld.
The Goa'uld turned to her and glared. "I have already tendered payment."
"I'll pay double!" said Vala.
The Lucian behind the counter raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, but all sales are final. If you need assistance, though, we have other labor centers that could meet your needs. We could even bring in contracted labor if you're willing to pay for transport."
The armed men moved closer and put their hands on their guns. Faith moved like lightening and quickly knocked both guards out and was soon standing with a handgun in each hand. As Faith moved, Seven raised her arm and projected a blast of force that lifted the Goa'uld off of his feet and propelled him through the back wall. The clerk went to reach for a communicator on the table, only to fall unconscious when Anya slammed him in the temple with a security baton.
Vala looked around at the results with an open mouth. "Why did you do that?"
"They were reaching for their guns?" said Faith.
"I eliminated the Goa'uld when I saw Faith attack the guards," said Seven with a raised eyebrow.
"He was calling for help," added Anya, nodding to the clerk.
Vala threw her hands in the air. "We weren't done negotiating!" She then went over to the clerk's desk and pushed a button that opened the cage doors. "And where did you get that baton?" she asked Anya.
"Saurial gave it to me when she gave me the credit disc. She said it might come in handy," replied the former demon.
They moved over to the cells. Anya used the clerk's key to remove the restraining collars, and used a squeaker on the one who had been punished. "Why are you guys in these cages?"
"I owe money for back taxes," said the one on the floor.
The other man said, "My business went under and I couldn't cover all of the debts."
"We can cancel their debts at a public terminal," said Vala.
"Wait, why would we do that?" asked Anya. It wasn't her money, but there was still the principle of the thing.
"Because if we don't, then the legitimate authorities will be after us for inciting rebellion," explained Vala. Anya rather grudgingly nodded her acknowledgement.
Faith gestured with one of her pistols to the third prisoner. "What about this guy?"
The man looked up from where he was sitting in his cell and said, "I can pay you if you take me with you."
"If you can pay, then why were you a prisoner?" inquired Seven.
"I'm not here for debts. The Lucians were holding me for that buyer," he said. He stood and stepped out of the cell.
Vala immediately stepped back. "He's also a Goa'uld!" Faith raised her guns, while Seven raised her force field projector and Anya hefted her baton.
The man lowered his head, then raised it again, his eyes flashing. "I am not a Goa'uld," he said, his voice reverberating. "I am Tylon of the Tok'ra."
"Then who was the Goa'uld?" asked Vala warily.
"He is an Ashrak, and he was taking me back to his lord, a minor Goa'uld who used to be a servant of Ba'al before he disappeared. I believe his master is attempting to take over Ba'al's holdings, and I was serving as a spy in Ba'al's court for the Tok'ra," he explained.
"He wants what you know about Ba'al's operations, then," said Vala knowingly. "Unfortunately for him, the Family isn't likely to let another System Lord rise any time soon."
"Who are the Family?" asked the Tok'ra.
"They're the ones who have been taking out the System Lords like yesterday's trash. They're also the ones who gave new queens to the Tok'ra," said Anya.
Tylon frowned. "The Tok'ra have no queens."
"How long have you been out of contact?" queried Vala.
"Too long, apparently. I need to get off-world before the Ashrak comes back," he said.
"Didn't Seven just blow him through the wall?" asked Faith.
Vala shook her head. "That won't stop an Ashrak for long. Let's pay the debts for those guys and get Tylon to the spaceport."
The four women and three men went off to find a terminal. The clerk, who had woken up fairly quickly but pretended to stay unconscious, grabbed his communicator after they left. "This is Tarst at Labor Station Four. Four women just came in and made off with the Tok'ra. No...there's more. They know who's been taking out the System Lords. Yeah...no...they're headed to pay off the contracts for the other two who were in the cells, then they're going to the spaceport. Right." He disconnected...and looked up to find himself staring at a hara'kesh. "Shit," he said.
The Ashrak glared down at him. "I want you to tell me exactly what your friends are going to be doing to get back my merchandise."
While the clerk was being interrogated, the first results of his call were a group of Lucian Alliance enforcers moving through the streets, looking for the group of women who were just finishing up with paying off the debts of the two indentured servants in return for profuse expressions of gratitude, which Anya rather quickly brushed off with false politeness.
"What's the closest spaceport?" asked Anya, eager to get the Tok'ra on his way.
"The closest one is private," said Vala. "Unless we own a ship there, we'll never get in. We need to get to the next district over."
"Hey, I think we got company," said Faith, eyeing the four toughs who seemed to be making a beeline straight for them.
Vala looked over at the thugs, then looked at the building beside them, and said, "Change of plans! In here..."
The women crowded into the foyer of a secured office. A voice over the intercom said, "Welcome to Calpar Security. Please state your business."
"We wish to purchase a top-tier security contract," said Vala.
"Please present your credit disc," responded the voice.
Vala motioned toward Anya, who frowned but put the disc against the scanner. There was a bright and chirpy tone, and then the inner door of the foyer opened. One of the reptilian Hebridan was sitting inside wearing a paramilitary uniform. "Welcome to Calpar Security. How can we help you today?"
Vala walked into the main office followed by the others. "We need protection from the Lucian Alliance. We need to get this gentleman," she said gesturing to the Tok'ra, "off world."
The security agent looked at her for a moment. "Hmph. The Lucians are scum. You don't need an ultra level security package for that."
"Tell him about the assassin," said Anya with a smile.
The agent shifted his gaze to her. "The assassin?"
"Our companion is being pursued by a Goa'uld assassin," said Seven blandly.
"An Ashrak?" asked the agent more attentively. "You're being targeted by an Ashrak? All right, that makes more sense. We'll have an armored transport take you to the nearest spaceport. Where off-world do you need to go?"
The Tok'ra looked at the women for permission before saying, "Just get me to a Stargate on an uninhabited world."
"All right. If you would like to wait in our executive lounge, your transport should be here within the next half an hour," said the agent with a smile.
"How long is that in Earth time?" asked Faith sotto voce.
"Approximately twenty-six minutes," replied Seven. Faith just nodded.
"So we have time to retrieve our packages?" asked Anya.
"Packages?" asked the Tok'ra.
"We didn't actually come to Hebridan to rescue you, you know?" said Vala tartly.
"This is the strangest rescue..." muttered the Tok'ra.
"Hebridan control, this is the Lucian Alliance Ha'tak Tellagros, waiting for cargo pickup at thirteen-hundred hours," said the captain of the ship.
"Affirmative, Tellagros. Shift to holding track fourteen while you await your cargo," replied Hebridan control.
The captain turned off the communicator and looked over at his first officer.
"So we just wait?" asked his first.
"Until the rest of the task force gets here, or until they call from the surface with information on a ship," answered the captain.
"I hate waiting," complained the officer.
The captain scoffed. "That Tok'ra was worth more than they thought, so just shut up and wait." He turned to look over a data pad, ignoring any response.
Gridik was watching a vid of a fight when one of his enforcers came into the room. "What?" he asked crossly, annoyed at being interrupted.
His enforcer pulled a tablet. "Somebody stirred up the Lucians. Here's a picture of them."
Gridik looked at the tablet, and saw a very familiar blond woman. He absently rubbed his recently-healed hand. "Call out the boys. Also, call Tasch and call in that favor. I want to see his gunship in the air."
The enforcer nodded and left to give orders.
The Ashrak sat in his al'kesh. It irritated him to have to call in assistance, but time was running short and they needed to know what Tylon knew about Ba'al's holdings. There was no way the To'kra would be foolish enough to try for the chappa'ai with the Lucians out in force on the ground, so he would have to take a ship. Hopefully, five ha'tak from Agni's fleet would be enough to run them to ground.
"Hey Vi, have you seen Faith around?" asked Buffy.
The redhead looked up from her book. "Faith? I think somebody said she and Anya went shopping?"
Buffy stopped. "They went shopping? Why didn't they invite me?"
Violet shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. Why don't you try calling them?"
"Oh, duh," said Buffy. "Thanks."
Buffy pulled out her BBFO phone and dialed Anya's phone. In a bag sitting on a drone heading toward the local security offices on Hebridan, the mobile phone was ringing unanswered.
The Asgard battlecruiser slipped out of hyperspace and immediately cloaked. Baldur of the Asgard checked the sensor readout, looking for any sign of the illusive Vanir. The Asgard's new allies had pointed them in the direction of the Pegasus galaxy as the location for their less ethical cousins, and the High Council was determined to put a stop to any malfeasance against humanity, especially now that the genetic degradation of their race had been reversed. Unfortunately, this system was absent any telltales for Asgard technology, though there was a world inhabited by primitive humans.
Baldur's mood improved dramatically when a hyperspace window opened and a gigantic vessel dropped into real space. The massive, organic vessel was a Wraith hive. The hive was accompanied by three Wraith cruisers, and they immediately began launching an additional screening force of dart fighters. They were clearly targeting the human world, although they were also obviously in no hurry. Wraith dominance of the Pegasus galaxy was effectively unchallenged since the retreat of the Lanteans. Baldur was looking forward to again challenging that dominance and teaching the predatory species another lesson.
First, the Asgard moved his cloaked ship closer to the vessels, scanning them for life signs. There were over two hundred human life signs on board the various vessels, most of them in suspended animation. Baldur raised his shields and dropped the cloaking field, then set the ship's computer to use the teleporter to bring the humans over to the Asgard vessel. The Wraith reacted quickly, with the cruisers and the hive beginning to send bolts of plasma ineffectually at the Asgard ship's shields. When the cruisers were clear of human life signs, Asgard plasma beams lashed out and destroyed them. The hive ship began attempting to move away and escape, while darts began desperately impacting Baldur's shields. Once the humans were all retrieved from the hive as well, the plasma beams again lashed out, tearing the engines out of the hive and inadvertently vaporizing a number of unfortunate darts. The beaming array then began disassembling the hive wholesale, until something triggered secondary explosions that destroyed the rest of the massive vessel. At that point, the handful of remaining darts began to flee for the planet and the local Stargate. None of them made atmosphere.
Baldur remotely healed the handful of humans with injuries, then deposited the group down by the local Stargate. Hopefully, the majority would be able to make their way home, or would find a new life with the local humans. If there were any Wraith collaborators in the group, then that situation would likely resolve itself as well, as the transport beam would automatically disable any energy weapons. Baldur appreciated problems that solved themselves.
He was slightly frustrated at the lack of Vanir, but this was the third Wraith hive he had been able to destroy. One of them had been grounded on a planet, however, which took some of the fun out of it. He had to wonder how deficient the Lanteans had been to allow a species that didn't even have shields drive them out of the galaxy. He suspected that the original Ancients would not have been so sloppy. The Wraith infestation was bad enough that Baldur thought he would recommend continued patrol flights through Pegasus even after the wayward Vanir were brought to heel. It wouldn't hurt to give some of the younger captains a little more combat experience, even if it was against an inferior foe.
Baldur jumped his ship to hyperspace for a few minutes and reached the next system on his list. This one proved to be more interesting, although still Vanir-free. The inhabited planet, however, contained an industrial civilization unusually advanced for Pegasus. Advanced humans were likely to be of interest to the Vanir if they were looking for experimental subjects. He dropped a stealthed spy satellite to watch the planet. If nothing else, the Asgard might get lucky and catch a bunch of Wraith by surprise when they inevitably showed up to bomb the humans back to the stone age. Survey complete, the Asgard vessel entered hyperspace again to continue the hunt.
At a mountain observatory on Sateda, an astronomer noticed an unusual flash of light in the night sky. Further examination revealed nothing, however, so he simply wrote it off as random light noise, possibly from a passing airship.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Saurial arrived in the Dreaming before Morpheus's grand castle and waited. She was amused to see that at present, it looked very close to Cinderella's castle at the California Disneyland. It didn't take long before the owner of the realm appeared.
"Curious. Rarely has any being from outside visited the Dreaming on multiple occasions while awake," said Morpheus.
"I'm sorry for intruding, but we are actually looking to speak with your sister, Death. Your realm is somewhat more accessible," said Saurial.
Morpheus gazed at them. "Particularly for your kind, I suspect. I will call for her." Morpheus vanished, presumably to do whatever tasks occupied his time.
It was not long before Death appeared. The manifestation of Death here took on the appearance of a goth teen girl wearing a silver anhk necklace. "Varga. Your kind normally summons me in a more direct fashion, though not to speak."
Saurial nodded her head. "We have a problem with the universe containing the Federation. Parts of it are fractured almost as badly as this one, and it was done deliberately by a hostile power. Unfortunately, dealing with this is going to require something drastic. Anti-life."
"I'm surprised. You have gone to great lengths to ensure that the Blackest Night prophecy does not come into being," said Death.
With a smile, the lizard woman said, "We're asking for your help because we absolutely don't want to create a zombie apocalypse filled with Black Lanterns. However, we need something that can negate a power capable of crushing together parallel dimensions. Meeting force for force would just cause even more damage."
The girl gave the half-demon lizard a considering look. "You have another source of information. I suspect the wizard Dresden can help. His universe has beings who have figured out how to condense anti-life into solid form."
Saurial smiled. "Well, I have been meaning to go to Bolivia and check in on things."
Death met her smile. "Hopefully it works out better for you than for Butch and Sundance."
Saurial laughed out loud. "Nice reference."
"I like that film," replied the Endless.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Xander was waiting for news about Cordelia and Connor. He came back from his visit home to find that Anya had gone shopping with Faith (which he would not have predicted), so now he was sitting alone while the Nox looked at the two unconscious rescuees. He had never met Connor, but he had watched the television show and he felt sorry for the kid. The boy had never been anything but a pawn since he was a baby. Xander also had a great deal of affection for Cordelia as well, and what had happened to her made him nauseated.
A female Nox entered the room and went over to Xander. He looked up at her expectantly. She frowned. "We have delved into the circumstances surrounding their afflictions. I am afraid that we are constrained in our possible treatments."
"That doesn't sound good," said Xander.
"The boy has had a completely artificial personality laid over his original. His original mind is effectively feral, and the magics of Wolfram and Hart have suppressed it to the point of damage. There is...little that we can do for him as he is," said the Nox sadly. "The woman is a different matter, though still severe. Her mind has been tampered with by higher powers repeatedly. She has had her genetics spliced with non-human tissue. She was forced to give birth to a dark power, which has damaged her higher reasoning centers. We can undo the modifications done to her, though that will cause a certain amount of unavoidable memory loss, as the changes have altered her brain. Alternately, we can stabilize her in her current form, but she will have to deal with the full weight of her experiences."
Xander's face fell. He said, "Are you asking me to choose her treatment?"
The Nox smiled. "You care for her. You know her better than we do. What would she choose?"
He thought about what had happened to her and came to a decision. "Make her human again. If she wants to be enhanced, I'll trust what the Family can do over anything the powers that have been manipulating her have done." He paused for a moment, then added, "What are you going to do about Connor and his family?"
"His family will have their memories corrected and they will be returned home," said the Nox. "They are innocent victims. For Connor...he needs a real childhood."
Xander looked at her, confused. "Isn't it a little late for that?"
She frowned. "We have had a significant amount of debate, but the most ethical option is a drastic adjustment to the patient's current age. Connor will be returned to what would be a normal human age of five Earth years."
The young man had to physically push his mouth closed with his hand after that revelation. After a few moments, he said, "you can do that?"
"We would not normally make such a significant change to a sentient being, but in this case it preserves as much of his self as can be saved," said the Nox sadly.
"Will he remember what happened to him?" asked Xander.
"Eventually," replied the Nox. "We will lock away the memories of his life until he is more mature and able to understand what happened. We would suggest that he return to spend time with us when he comes of age."
Well, thought Xander, at least Cordy can't complain that being made human was the worst thing that could have happened. He also wondered who was going to tell Angel that he was now the father of a toddler.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
"All right," said Saurial. "Let me show you some of what we call the Family style. Now, some of it is much easier with a tail, but we can compensate for your handicaps."
Karrin, Natasha and Kennedy all looked bemused as Saurial began demonstrating martial arts moves. Randall was sitting off to the side, observing. He had quite reasonably, in his mind, pointed out that at least three of the four women had super strength, and all four of them were ludicrously skilled in martial arts. His chance of getting hurt was fairly high, and the fact that they could rapidly fix anything he broke wouldn't make him feel any better while it was happening.
He was perfectly happy watching the Latina slayer, the Russian super spy and the Chicago ex-cop spar with Saurial. Ignoring the fact that the ladies were pretty easy on the eyes (which he was more than smart enough to never voice out loud), he was able to pick up skills just from watching them thanks to Amy's enhancements. Enduring a trivial amount of teasing from Kennedy and Saurial, and an indecipherable look from Natasha, was easily worth keeping the education painless.
Unsurprisingly, Kennedy picked up the moves almost immediately, but the other two women were also shockingly quick to learn new moves. After about thirty minutes of sparring, Saurial suggested adding weapons. Kennedy was almost absurdly eager, so Murphy and Natasha both decided to sit out while Kennedy and Saurial crossed blades. While both women had their own weapon skills, they were curious to see how the slayer did. It was soon obvious that Kennedy was a little shocked at how easily Saurial was keeping up with her despite being a slayer, and the lizard woman equally obviously was highly amused by that. Unlike Natasha, who had made it clear to Murphy that she was the winner of their bouts, Saurial simply continued to fight until Kennedy gave up and acknowledged that she couldn't beat the lizard girl.
Meanwhile, in an entirely different building, Raptaur was sitting and listening as Dr. Strange talked about the differences in magic between universes with Harry, Molly, Bonnie and Willow. "Wait," said Molly. "You're saying that as long as magic exists, then the multiverse HAS to exist?"
"If the anthropomorphic transitive principle proposed by Kalazar is correct, then that's a natural consequence, yes," confirmed Strange.
"Unfortunately," added Harry, "that also suggests that any power source strong enough to overcome my universe's magic/tech incompatibility is likely to incinerate the user."
"So we tie it to an external source, like a sponsoring deity," suggested Willow excitedly. She was absolutely thrilled to be discussing magic with such a skilled group of practitioners. Tara had been knowledgeable, but she had also been magically home schooled.
Harry winced. "The beings of power in my universe aren't exactly safe to tap like a power main." He had seen first hand the consequences of trying to tap outside power.
"I may be able to assist," said Raptaur.
Strange raised an eyebrow. "You have a way to provide that much power?"
"Perhaps," said Raptaur with a smile, "but I may have a different alternative. On a different topic, I have a question for Harry. Have you ever encountered a substance that could be described as condensed anti-life?"
Harry looked at Raptaur with surprise. "You're talking about mordite?"
"Mordite? That is an interesting name." Raptaur proceeded to explain about O'Brien's universe and some of the things that they've learned about the causes of the problems there.
"This mordite sounds like it may do what you need," said Strange, "but it sounds like an exceedingly dangerous substance."
"It's instantly lethal to any mortal," agreed Harry. "Even ignoring that, I'm not sure how you would get some."
"Who might know?" asked the large reptile, sensing that Harry wasn't saying he couldn't help.
"I know somebody who knows somebody," said Harry vaguely.
"Are you thinking about who I think you're thinking about?" asked Molly with a small smile. "And if so, are you going to tell Karrin?"
Harry winced. "Yeah, this is going to be awkward enough without that." Molly's smile faded when she remembered what Harry had planned up until his unexpected inter-dimensional trip. "In any event, I'll try and setup a meeting with somebody who can help."
"I would appreciate any help you can provide," said Raptaur. "We need something that will break the stalemate in that universe if we're going to fix things."
"You're taking on quite a lot," said Stephen. "I know from personal experience that it can be hard enough to protect just one universe."
"The Family isn't planning on taking over long-term responsibility for these realities, but we do like sticking our snouts in where we can upset things in favor of the good guys," answered Raptaur.
"I'm not complaining," said Bonnie. "I'm grateful for the Family sticking their snouts into our reality. I might not have ever been born in more ways than one without them."
"I don't think any of us are complaining," said Harry with a smile.
Strange was pretty sure that there would be some folks who would complain in his universe, and not just miscreants like Wilson Fisk. A certain one-eyed head of S.H.I.E.L.D. would likely have issues with the less than orderly interventions by the Family. He needed to talk to Stark, too, before the narcissistic billionaire did something foolish. Wong had told him that Richards, Xavier and Stark had tried to get him to meet with them, so he suspected that some of the cat was out of the bag, even if it was just the whiskers.
Raptaur was looking at Strange with a knowing smile, which made him wonder if it wouldn't be worth it to facilitate an introduction between the lizards and some of the folks back home. He would have to carefully consider whether the potential entertainment was worth the likely backlash.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Vicky was sitting on the roof of the warehouse where her sister had turned her world upside down. She had discovered that TV and movies and books were all apparently views into alternate universes (which made her wonder if there were universes where the characters from Degrassi High or Beverly Hills 90210 lived). Then she had met with Taylor, and Taylor's demonic other half, Varga, and learned that calling her sister a healer was drastically underselling her abilities. Part of her was happy that she understood the reasons and circumstances behind, "the Family," and she understood why this was a better situation than would have happened if the PRT...or her own mother...knew the reality of the situation. Another part of her was trying to adapt to having a lot of her assumptions and implicit knowledge invalidated. She had literally stopped in mid-flight on the way home when she realized that she didn't really want to face her parents at the moment.
"You OK up there?" called a voice from below.
Vicky peered down over the edge of the roof to see a red-haired young man peering up at her, one she recognized from Taylor's group the other day. Curious, she stepped off the roof and floated down to the ground. The man seemed momentarily startled, but then he patiently waited for her to touch down.
"I'm just trying to absorb the reality of what you and your ship mean. I'm Vicky, by the way," she said, unsure if he would remember from the other day.
"Jimmy Olsen," he said, reaching out his hand to shake hers.
She raised an eyebrow. "Like, Superman, Lois Lane, Daily Planet Jimmy Olsen?"
"You've heard of me, then?" he asked with a grin.
She rolled her eyes. "You're probably more famous in this world than you are in your own."
He laughed. "I'll try not to let it go to my head. Do you want to come inside and think? We've got a replicator if you're hungry or thirsty."
She shrugged. "Sure. You seem pretty immune to the weirdness, so maybe you can share your perspective."
He led the way through the outer office again while saying, "I thought I was pretty used to weird back in my world, but this whole adventure has broadened my horizons a bit. A guy who can fly and shrug off gunfire is pretty tame compared to meeting actual gods and demons."
"Tell me about it," muttered the teen girl. "Being a cape in Brockton Bay is pretty strange anyway, but things have just gotten more bizarre since the Family arrived."
"But in a good way?" asked Jimmy as they started up the ramp into the ship.
Vicky thought about that question briefly before realizing there was no question. "Absolutely. This town is safer and has a better attitude about the future than we've had in years -- longer than I've been alive, if you listen to the older generation." That wasn't even counting what Amy had done for their dad.
There were three people already sitting in the galley when Jimmy and Vicky arrived. Vicky recognized Taylor Hebert sitting next to an older couple. Biting the bullet, she went over to Taylor, held out her hand, and said, "Hi. I'm sorry about the other day...I thought you were the Taylor from my universe. I'm Vicky."
Taylor looked at her slightly skeptically, but then shrugged and shook her hand. "I'm Taylor. I'm afraid I know my universe's version of Glory Girl, and we're not exactly friends."
Vicky frowned. "I hope it wasn't something the other me did?"
"I wouldn't over think it," said Jimmy from behind Vicky. "The sequence of events in your universes were very different, and from the stories we've heard, it sounds like a lot of bad luck led to unfortunate decisions on the part of everybody."
Taylor snorted. "That's for sure. Your universe is like the lighter version of mine. I got sucked out of my universe during an attack on this city by Leviathan, for example."
"Leviathan attacked HERE?" asked Vicky with a slight squeak.
"Not here, but my version," clarified Taylor. "Your lizards seem to make you immune to Endbringer attack."
"That's pretty handy to have in a local hero team," said the other man sitting at the table. "You would think New York would be a hard target in our reality, what with the Avengers, the Fantastic Four and Doctor Strange in residence, but that only seems to draw in more crazies."
Vicky looked questioningly at the couple, and Jimmy provided an introduction. "Vicky, this is Peter and Mary Jane Parker."
Vicky mouthed the names silently, then looked sharply at Peter. "Spider-Man?"
MJ, Taylor and Jimmy all laughed, though MJ was at least trying to stifle her laughter. She said, "Pete, I think your secret identity in the multiverse is a lost cause."
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Vicky, embarrassed. The Unwritten Rules were such an important aspect of cape life that she couldn't help but feel like she had made a big faux pas.
Pete waved it off. "Don't worry about it. When the others rescued Taylor and me from that derelict, Harry called me by name almost immediately. Apparently, I'm a comic book character in his universe, too."
Vicky asked what he meant about rescue, and that led to a more thorough retelling of the Ship of Fools and its jaunts through the multiverse. Then they talked about some of what the Family had already done post-rescue for the various inter-dimensional refugees, including the changes MJ had asked of Ianthe.
"You're a cape now?" asked Vicky, looking at MJ.
MJ nodded. "I'm thinking of going by Arachne. There's already a hero named Spider-Woman on the West Coast."
"Did Ianthe suggest that? The Family seems to like the names from Greek mythology," said Jimmy.
"She did, but I like it," said MJ with a grin.
"Isn't it kind of weird that we're all from universes where people with superpowers put on costumes and go fight crime?" asked Vicky with an insight that was becoming more common as her temperament evened out.
"I think it has to do with the fact that the number of folks with special abilities has increased rapidly fairly recently in all of our worlds. In my world and and in Pete's world, there are genetic factors coming into play that have drastically increased the number of people with super powers," explained Jimmy.
Pete added, "Harry and Xander come from worlds where magic has been around forever, but it's largely a secret, so the way special abilities like magic are handled are very different."
"I'm planning to study capes in college. As far as I know, nobody knows where powers come from in our world, though they've ruled out strict genetics or traditional supernatural theories," said Vicky.
"Actually," interjected Taylor, "I may know something...or rather, I think the Nox know something."
"The Nox?" asked Vicky.
"They're an alien race in Daniel's universe. Their planet has been kind of an alternate home port for the Ship of Fools in that universe. They're good people," explained Peter.
"They claimed that my power came from an extra-dimensional parasite," said Taylor.
"That...sounds unpleasant," said Vicky. She looked a little disgusted at the thought.
"Have you mentioned that to Ianthe or Saurial?" asked Jimmy.
Taylor shook her head. "It slipped my mind...and I guess I assumed they already knew? They seem pretty well informed about those types of things."
Vicky shook her head and said, "We should tell them. It might be important." Amy had said that they had some ideas about the source of powers, but she hadn't gone into any detail. It was clear that they were working on more than just their inter-dimensional visitors' problems, however.
"In my experience, it's better to overshare information than it is to assume something is already known," said Jimmy. "That's a classic mistake that can lead to all sorts of unfortunate consequences."
"While we're doing that," added Vicky, "Taylor, why don't you tell me some more about why you and your version of Glory Girl don't get along. I might be able to help with that."
Taylor stared at the blond girl for a moment before answering, "You may not like hearing it."
"No matter what happened, it didn't happen to me personally. I think I have to start getting used to being flexible about this type of thing...or I'll probably go crazy," said the blond heroine.
"Yes...Peter's lucky I can tell the difference between him and the comics about him," said MJ.
"Like what?" asked Peter with a disgruntled look.
She looked back at him somewhat critically. "Two words...Black...Cat."
Peter blushed, and muttered, "Right...you had to look at those comics..."
Vicky turned back to Taylor. "Hey, are our worlds based on a fictional story in another universe?"
"No, not that we've found so far," answered Taylor. "If we do find one, I'm going to track down the author and tell him what I think of his story, though." The idea that Emma, Sophia and the locker were all made up so that somebody could tell a good story kind of pissed her off.
"I guess it makes sense that we haven't found stories about us. For one thing, we would probably know a lot more about powers and stuff if we had a bunch of comic books or movies about our world," said Vicky thoughtfully.
"We've certainly learned a LOT of secrets about our realities -- some of which are kind of dangerous to know. You may be better off not learning certain things," said Jimmy.
"I think I'm about maxed out on Earth-shattering revelations, thanks," said Vicky with an exaggerated tone and a laugh. "Still, the Family has been doing good things, and I want to be part of that. I'll help if I can, even if it means helping you deal with an alternate version of me. You may even end up friends with her."
Taylor was about to comment on how unlikely that was...and then she remembered where she was, the company she was currently keeping, and the events that had led there. "Eh," she replied, "stranger things have happened."
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
The Lucian Alliance did not have a huge presence on Hebridan. Mostly, this was due to the fact that the goods and services they provided that were legal on Hebridan already had previously entrenched competition, while those that were illegal were punished harshly...and also had previously entrenched competition. A small presence was still a presence, however, which is how a certain group of women encountered them.
"Isn't slavery illegal on Hebridan?" asked Faith.
Vala nodded. "Slavery is illegal, but indentured servitude is still practiced, especially for debts. It's also not illegal to deal with slavers off world, as long as none of the actual trade happens locally."
"Indentured servitude?" asked the slayer.
"Slavery where you earn a wage that goes toward buying your freedom, at least in theory," explained Anya. "Realistically, once you get stuck in that kind of arrangement, it can be almost impossible to get out again."
Faith thought back to her childhood. "Yeah, I get that." Being poor sucked, no matter what planet you were on.
"Slavery is an inefficient and barbaric practice," said Seven with disdain.
"I wasn't really a fan of the show, but don't the Borg, like, force people to join them all the time?" asked Faith.
"Assimilation is not slavery...though I will admit that the nuance is lost for most of the victims," explained Seven. "Each member of the collective is an equal part of the whole."
The group of them were standing in front of a shopfront that advertised as a place for "hiring" servants. The line of cages on the inside of the shop was visible from outside. Two of the cages were occupied by three different men wearing electronic restraints. There were two armed guards visible, while an obvious sales clerk manned the front counter. As the women were peering inside, a well-dressed man pushed past them slightly rudely and made his way into the shop.
Vala stiffened. "That man is a Goa'uld."
"How can you tell?" asked Anya.
"Anybody who's been a host can sense Goa'uld and Jaffa even after they're freed," explained Vala absently. She began walking into the shop herself.
"Vala?" called Anya. "Where are you going?"
"Wait here," she said, and went through the door.
The three women left outside glanced at each other, then as one they followed Vala into the shop (although Anya muttered under her breath about spending too much time with white hats). Once inside, they could hear the conversation between the shopkeeper and the Goa'uld.
"Have the servants delivered to my ship," he said while handing over his credit disc.
One of the men in detention heard this and complained. "Hey, I'm just on a debt contract. You can't sell me off-world!" The man behind the counter didn't bother to reply, but he did press a button, which caused the man's collar to buzz. The prisoner's eyes rolled up and he staggered and fell to all fours.
"I want to counter-bid!" said Vala, who had been standing in line behind the Goa'uld.
The Goa'uld turned to her and glared. "I have already tendered payment."
"I'll pay double!" said Vala.
The Lucian behind the counter raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, but all sales are final. If you need assistance, though, we have other labor centers that could meet your needs. We could even bring in contracted labor if you're willing to pay for transport."
The armed men moved closer and put their hands on their guns. Faith moved like lightening and quickly knocked both guards out and was soon standing with a handgun in each hand. As Faith moved, Seven raised her arm and projected a blast of force that lifted the Goa'uld off of his feet and propelled him through the back wall. The clerk went to reach for a communicator on the table, only to fall unconscious when Anya slammed him in the temple with a security baton.
Vala looked around at the results with an open mouth. "Why did you do that?"
"They were reaching for their guns?" said Faith.
"I eliminated the Goa'uld when I saw Faith attack the guards," said Seven with a raised eyebrow.
"He was calling for help," added Anya, nodding to the clerk.
Vala threw her hands in the air. "We weren't done negotiating!" She then went over to the clerk's desk and pushed a button that opened the cage doors. "And where did you get that baton?" she asked Anya.
"Saurial gave it to me when she gave me the credit disc. She said it might come in handy," replied the former demon.
They moved over to the cells. Anya used the clerk's key to remove the restraining collars, and used a squeaker on the one who had been punished. "Why are you guys in these cages?"
"I owe money for back taxes," said the one on the floor.
The other man said, "My business went under and I couldn't cover all of the debts."
"We can cancel their debts at a public terminal," said Vala.
"Wait, why would we do that?" asked Anya. It wasn't her money, but there was still the principle of the thing.
"Because if we don't, then the legitimate authorities will be after us for inciting rebellion," explained Vala. Anya rather grudgingly nodded her acknowledgement.
Faith gestured with one of her pistols to the third prisoner. "What about this guy?"
The man looked up from where he was sitting in his cell and said, "I can pay you if you take me with you."
"If you can pay, then why were you a prisoner?" inquired Seven.
"I'm not here for debts. The Lucians were holding me for that buyer," he said. He stood and stepped out of the cell.
Vala immediately stepped back. "He's also a Goa'uld!" Faith raised her guns, while Seven raised her force field projector and Anya hefted her baton.
The man lowered his head, then raised it again, his eyes flashing. "I am not a Goa'uld," he said, his voice reverberating. "I am Tylon of the Tok'ra."
"Then who was the Goa'uld?" asked Vala warily.
"He is an Ashrak, and he was taking me back to his lord, a minor Goa'uld who used to be a servant of Ba'al before he disappeared. I believe his master is attempting to take over Ba'al's holdings, and I was serving as a spy in Ba'al's court for the Tok'ra," he explained.
"He wants what you know about Ba'al's operations, then," said Vala knowingly. "Unfortunately for him, the Family isn't likely to let another System Lord rise any time soon."
"Who are the Family?" asked the Tok'ra.
"They're the ones who have been taking out the System Lords like yesterday's trash. They're also the ones who gave new queens to the Tok'ra," said Anya.
Tylon frowned. "The Tok'ra have no queens."
"How long have you been out of contact?" queried Vala.
"Too long, apparently. I need to get off-world before the Ashrak comes back," he said.
"Didn't Seven just blow him through the wall?" asked Faith.
Vala shook her head. "That won't stop an Ashrak for long. Let's pay the debts for those guys and get Tylon to the spaceport."
The four women and three men went off to find a terminal. The clerk, who had woken up fairly quickly but pretended to stay unconscious, grabbed his communicator after they left. "This is Tarst at Labor Station Four. Four women just came in and made off with the Tok'ra. No...there's more. They know who's been taking out the System Lords. Yeah...no...they're headed to pay off the contracts for the other two who were in the cells, then they're going to the spaceport. Right." He disconnected...and looked up to find himself staring at a hara'kesh. "Shit," he said.
The Ashrak glared down at him. "I want you to tell me exactly what your friends are going to be doing to get back my merchandise."
While the clerk was being interrogated, the first results of his call were a group of Lucian Alliance enforcers moving through the streets, looking for the group of women who were just finishing up with paying off the debts of the two indentured servants in return for profuse expressions of gratitude, which Anya rather quickly brushed off with false politeness.
"What's the closest spaceport?" asked Anya, eager to get the Tok'ra on his way.
"The closest one is private," said Vala. "Unless we own a ship there, we'll never get in. We need to get to the next district over."
"Hey, I think we got company," said Faith, eyeing the four toughs who seemed to be making a beeline straight for them.
Vala looked over at the thugs, then looked at the building beside them, and said, "Change of plans! In here..."
The women crowded into the foyer of a secured office. A voice over the intercom said, "Welcome to Calpar Security. Please state your business."
"We wish to purchase a top-tier security contract," said Vala.
"Please present your credit disc," responded the voice.
Vala motioned toward Anya, who frowned but put the disc against the scanner. There was a bright and chirpy tone, and then the inner door of the foyer opened. One of the reptilian Hebridan was sitting inside wearing a paramilitary uniform. "Welcome to Calpar Security. How can we help you today?"
Vala walked into the main office followed by the others. "We need protection from the Lucian Alliance. We need to get this gentleman," she said gesturing to the Tok'ra, "off world."
The security agent looked at her for a moment. "Hmph. The Lucians are scum. You don't need an ultra level security package for that."
"Tell him about the assassin," said Anya with a smile.
The agent shifted his gaze to her. "The assassin?"
"Our companion is being pursued by a Goa'uld assassin," said Seven blandly.
"An Ashrak?" asked the agent more attentively. "You're being targeted by an Ashrak? All right, that makes more sense. We'll have an armored transport take you to the nearest spaceport. Where off-world do you need to go?"
The Tok'ra looked at the women for permission before saying, "Just get me to a Stargate on an uninhabited world."
"All right. If you would like to wait in our executive lounge, your transport should be here within the next half an hour," said the agent with a smile.
"How long is that in Earth time?" asked Faith sotto voce.
"Approximately twenty-six minutes," replied Seven. Faith just nodded.
"So we have time to retrieve our packages?" asked Anya.
"Packages?" asked the Tok'ra.
"We didn't actually come to Hebridan to rescue you, you know?" said Vala tartly.
"This is the strangest rescue..." muttered the Tok'ra.
- - - - -
"Hebridan control, this is the Lucian Alliance Ha'tak Tellagros, waiting for cargo pickup at thirteen-hundred hours," said the captain of the ship.
"Affirmative, Tellagros. Shift to holding track fourteen while you await your cargo," replied Hebridan control.
The captain turned off the communicator and looked over at his first officer.
"So we just wait?" asked his first.
"Until the rest of the task force gets here, or until they call from the surface with information on a ship," answered the captain.
"I hate waiting," complained the officer.
The captain scoffed. "That Tok'ra was worth more than they thought, so just shut up and wait." He turned to look over a data pad, ignoring any response.
- - - - -
Gridik was watching a vid of a fight when one of his enforcers came into the room. "What?" he asked crossly, annoyed at being interrupted.
His enforcer pulled a tablet. "Somebody stirred up the Lucians. Here's a picture of them."
Gridik looked at the tablet, and saw a very familiar blond woman. He absently rubbed his recently-healed hand. "Call out the boys. Also, call Tasch and call in that favor. I want to see his gunship in the air."
The enforcer nodded and left to give orders.
- - - - -
The Ashrak sat in his al'kesh. It irritated him to have to call in assistance, but time was running short and they needed to know what Tylon knew about Ba'al's holdings. There was no way the To'kra would be foolish enough to try for the chappa'ai with the Lucians out in force on the ground, so he would have to take a ship. Hopefully, five ha'tak from Agni's fleet would be enough to run them to ground.
- - - - -
"Hey Vi, have you seen Faith around?" asked Buffy.
The redhead looked up from her book. "Faith? I think somebody said she and Anya went shopping?"
Buffy stopped. "They went shopping? Why didn't they invite me?"
Violet shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. Why don't you try calling them?"
"Oh, duh," said Buffy. "Thanks."
Buffy pulled out her BBFO phone and dialed Anya's phone. In a bag sitting on a drone heading toward the local security offices on Hebridan, the mobile phone was ringing unanswered.
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- Location
- Canada
Love the new chapter. No one can stir up trouble like Vala and Faith,
For your next editing pass:
Did you mean illusive : deceptive or elusive : hard to apprehend?
any of us are complaining
Looking forward to more.
For your next editing pass:
Did you mean illusive : deceptive or elusive : hard to apprehend?
any of us are complaining
Looking forward to more.
Lycanthromancer
The Arcane Fuzz
- Location
- USA
Seven, Anya, and co are getting in some real trouble. Of course, all of them are used to this kind of thing.
They're all vicious and competent enough that soon all the aliens will be screaming Ei! Non! Votch! Jo! And other words that mean "no!"
In fact, I'm sure Seven in particular will be especially notorious, being known as "Seven of NEIN!" which is what aliens will scream when they hear she's coming.
They're all vicious and competent enough that soon all the aliens will be screaming Ei! Non! Votch! Jo! And other words that mean "no!"
In fact, I'm sure Seven in particular will be especially notorious, being known as "Seven of NEIN!" which is what aliens will scream when they hear she's coming.
- Location
- Maryland
I wrote that section a few days ago. I probably meant elusive when I wrote it, but I actually like illusive better in this sense, as Baldur doesn't really like the Vanir.
Thanks, fixed.
- Location
- Maryland, USA
Thank you for your latest chapter. I was just starting to read it for mis-steaks when my wife came home. Probably by the time I'm able to return all the mis-tookswill be foundered.
[Added ~1.5 hours later.]
Finally got back to reading and wasn't able to find any further mistakes.
Thanks again.
[Added ~1.5 hours later.]
Finally got back to reading and wasn't able to find any further mistakes.
Thanks again.
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FaerieKnight79
Verified Pixie
- Location
- The Internet
Don't forget rescuing all the victims of the Wraith. Heh, I suppose that entire plot thread from Stargate Atlantis was due to the fact the Asgard had all opted for suicide already.
- Location
- united states
I have only one thing to say about the snip: Murphy has entered the building!
Oh, Lord. You have the Lucien Alliance, A Goa'uld task force, a Hebridan Crime Syndicate and Security forces, and (soonest) a horde of worried (read, pissed off) Slayers coming to a head.
The probable out come? A broken Alliance, a lot of traumatized Goa'uld, a decimated Crime Syndicate, a happy Security Force (mostly, if only these damned outsiders didn't interfere things would have gone soooo much smoother!), and Buffy getting a Blingy spaceship (and a horde of worshipful Jaffa).
The probable out come? A broken Alliance, a lot of traumatized Goa'uld, a decimated Crime Syndicate, a happy Security Force (mostly, if only these damned outsiders didn't interfere things would have gone soooo much smoother!), and Buffy getting a Blingy spaceship (and a horde of worshipful Jaffa).
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M. H. Fuzzball
Aperture Science-certified Horrible Person
- Location
- Sector 2814
I thought Karrin was still training with Natasha and Saurial?
FaerieKnight79
Verified Pixie
- Location
- The Internet
I thought Karrin was still training with Natasha and Saurial?
Wrong Murphy. Various individuals have evoked Murphy's Law, as well as Narrative Causality. They have asked what could go wrong, or thought to them self nothing can go wrong.
JoshuaSweetvale
Insectovore
- Location
- NL, 65 Million Years Ago
Not to nitpick your Goa'uld, but far as I've seen, official material has always called them "Lucian" and "Ashrak"(no apostrophe)
Also, Seven hand-blasting a snek through a wall is hilarious karma, considering Goa'uld did that all the time on the show with their Omnitool-thingies.
And freeing the Asgard from their plot-mandated hand-tying is always good for a proppa stomp.
Also, the anti-life thingy is a brilliant find, plot-wise!
Also, Seven hand-blasting a snek through a wall is hilarious karma, considering Goa'uld did that all the time on the show with their Omnitool-thingies.
And freeing the Asgard from their plot-mandated hand-tying is always good for a proppa stomp.
Also, the anti-life thingy is a brilliant find, plot-wise!
M. H. Fuzzball
Aperture Science-certified Horrible Person
- Location
- Sector 2814
I don't know whether to be exasperated, or worried, that you think I didn't know exactly which Murphy @Joseph Tracy was talking about...
- Location
- Beyond the Unknowable Veil
- Location
- Seattle, Washington, USA
Orion can use either one, and is basically the nuclear equivalent of setting a firecracker off under a tuna can. But that's not what an impulse drive does. Impulse is an enhanced fusion torch, that uses subspace coils to get more bang for the buck per actual kilogram of thrust. The system is also friendlier to nearby ships, stations, planets, etc, because the exhaust disperses into subspace instead of barbecuing whatever is behind the ship — though it's still very unsafe to get too close to the exhaust plume.
If you have artificial gravity, you don't need to move the gate. Just leave it fixed and rotate the cargo. When the gate is in secure mode, 'down' is always back into the event horizon, regardless of gate orientation. And making it safe it for transit is a matter of flipping a switch, not rotating an active wormhole. You could even make it fail deadly by having the gate aimed straight up, and making the gravity field render transit safe only when switched on — so a power failure seals the gate against incoming travelers.
Earth Bet has that too, in the form of NEPEA-5.
You have a recurring typo in this chapter. The Asgard homeworld is named Orilla, not Othala. Othala is a member of the E88.
But she wouldn't be wrong. The divergence point between canon Earth Bet and Earth Lizard is the locker — Annette died years before the locker, so she's the same Annette for both Taylors.
So don't clone her in the past. Make a long range deep scan via micro-wormhole, copy her — a Federation transporter would be able to do it with certain safeties disabled — and then clone her in the Family's present. Again, with enough input energy, a transporter can do it just fine.
This is why I suggest making a copy via a modified transporter and a micro-wormhole. Past Annette dies, timeline unchanged. Then in both Taylor's present, a pair of transporter clones are made. If altering the future in your own present drove people mad or nuked universes, it would happen every time someone chose what color socks to wear while getting dressed every morning.
Time travel is limited to time viewing, and only the present is altered — which every living thing does every instant of every day anyway.
You make the common error of assuming that Angel is Angelus. If I were to render you unconscious, strap you into a robotic exoskeleton that could puppet your entire body, and programmed the robot to go murder a bunch of people, would you be evil when you woke up?
No, because you were not driving. The same is true of Angel/Liam and Angelus. Angelus is the murderous robot, Angel is not. Even though they used the same body at different times.
What makes Angel's situation so nasty is someone made sure that he'd remember everything Angelus did, as if he had done it. It's not really any different than the 20 year prison sentence Miles O'Brien experienced.
Kneecapping a vampire is just as effective on them in the short term as it is on a human. The vampire heals faster, but not fast enough to be relevant. The reason most guns don't work on them is bullets are generally designed to make humans die of blood loss, not massive trauma. Vampires don't bleed, so bullets don't make them bleed out — but the same argument that says guns are useless against vampires can also be used to prove that stakes can't kill vampires either, so it's a flawed argument at best.
Spike's wheelchair demonstrates how effective disabling injuries can be on a vampire.
Remember what site you're on — anything is penetrative at sufficient velocity!
I generally go with exasperated. They had a choice between wondering if they had misunderstood or assuming you were an idiot, and chose the latter.
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FaerieKnight79
Verified Pixie
- Location
- The Internet
I generally go with exasperated. They had a choice between wondering if they had misunderstood or assuming you were an idiot, and chose the latter.
Or, and this is the more accurate assumption one could make, they made neither assumption and recognized the joke but also realized someone else might not recognize the joke and thought it'd be humorous to make the correction post.
- Location
- England
Before it devolved into endless PWP one of the best thought out ideas in Laurel K. Hamiltons Anita Blake novels was the use of Glaser Safety Rounds as preferred ammo against many nighttime creatures.
High muzzle velocity to give a better chance of hitting fast moving gribblies, deep wounding to take out heads and hearts, and unlikely to ricochet and cause hazard if fired indoors.
- Location
- The general area. Possibly behind you.
To be honest I can't see a vampire really enjoying a close encounter with a shotgun loaded with buckshot, or possibly buckshot and wooden pellets if you susbcribe to the 'Wood to the heart' method of killing them. A twelve gauge shotgun at close range with the right ammo leaves a massive hole in a body, and the vampire's body is still basically a human one, but with rapid healing from most things and enhanced strength. Blow a hole the size of your fist entirely through it and you're going to slow the bugger down at a minimum. Hit the heart or the head, they're dead. Hit the spine, they're not walking away, or even standing up, and that gives you time to finish them off.
Longer ranges could be done with hollow point deer slugs for the same reasons, again possibly filled with a piece of wood for the mystical properties. Admittedly it's a harder shot, but it's certainly possible, and with a drum fed automatic shotgun, you can make a hell of a mess of quite a few of them.
And that's not even taking into account a good flamethrower...
Or, for that matter, a backpack fed super soaker with a tank of holy water
Or thermite, or half a dozen other things I can think of off the top of my head.
The whole 'Guns don't kill vampires, Slayers do' thing was basically propaganda from the Council in my view Possibly because it put them in control of that aspect of life.
A Slayer with guns, now... That's probably their worst nightmare!
Longer ranges could be done with hollow point deer slugs for the same reasons, again possibly filled with a piece of wood for the mystical properties. Admittedly it's a harder shot, but it's certainly possible, and with a drum fed automatic shotgun, you can make a hell of a mess of quite a few of them.
And that's not even taking into account a good flamethrower...
Or, for that matter, a backpack fed super soaker with a tank of holy water
Or thermite, or half a dozen other things I can think of off the top of my head.
The whole 'Guns don't kill vampires, Slayers do' thing was basically propaganda from the Council in my view
Possibly because it put them in control of that aspect of life.A Slayer with guns, now... That's probably their worst nightmare!
- Location
- Russia
Now I'm wondering if there are any good Devil May Cry crossovers with Buffy, because it'd basically be that.To be honest I can't see a vampire really enjoying a close encounter with a shotgun loaded with buckshot, or possibly buckshot and wooden pellets if you susbcribe to the 'Wood to the heart' method of killing them. A twelve gauge shotgun at close range with the right ammo leaves a massive hole in a body, and the vampire's body is still basically a human one, but with rapid healing from most things and enhanced strength. Blow a hole the size of your fist entirely through it and you're going to slow the bugger down at a minimum. Hit the heart or the head, they're dead. Hit the spine, they're not walking away, or even standing up, and that gives you time to finish them off.
Longer ranges could be done with hollow point deer slugs for the same reasons, again possibly filled with a piece of wood for the mystical properties. Admittedly it's a harder shot, but it's certainly possible, and with a drum fed automatic shotgun, you can make a hell of a mess of quite a few of them.
And that's not even taking into account a good flamethrower...
Or, for that matter, a backpack fed super soaker with a tank of holy water
Or thermite, or half a dozen other things I can think of off the top of my head.
The whole 'Guns don't kill vampires, Slayers do' thing was basically propaganda from the Council in my view
A Slayer with guns, now... That's probably their worst nightmare!
- Location
- The general area. Possibly behind you.
Ooh! Idea!
Slayers with white phosphorus grenades!
OK, it's not a good idea, but...
Slayers with white phosphorus grenades!
OK, it's not a good idea, but...
- Location
- Germany
- Pronouns
- He/Him
If you go down that road, flamethrowers are already invented ... just saying.Ooh! Idea!
Slayers with white phosphorus grenades!
OK, it's not a good idea, but...