"OK guys," Quinn says between his teeth, avoiding any sudden movements, "what's the game plan? That local looks kinda skittish."
Chin-Su, without moving the rest of his body, will stretch a hand down along the ground, the LONG way around to Anthro in a wide arc until his hand is behind the young man, and tap him on the shoulder.
Sam looks around slowly. He relaxes if he doesn't see any wild animals.
Anthro leaps a good two feet off the ground, spinning in mid-air with his fingernails held out like claws.
Seeing no enemy, he pounces on Chin-Su's extended hand. And then runs off with it into the jungle.
Quinn is ready. He'll dash off after Anthro. "BRB, guys". He loosens the silvery rope from his belt and takes off after Prehistoric Mowgli.
Chin-Su will stroll casually in the direction of his ever-extending arm.
Sam shakes his head. "Evac Nam Pots." he shouts at Anthro.
The cave man stops!
He shakes Chin-Su's hand (not like a handshake, more like a wet dog shaking itself) and jumps in place, but doesn't progress further. Because he stopped.
"Anthro run away!" he exclaims, but his words aren't backwards, so he doesn't. "Long hand man girl!"
Chin-Su puts his other hand up defensively, and approaches slowly. "Anthro stay," he says cautiously. "Anthro help long hand man girl find friends."
"Friends?" Anthro replies. "Yellow fish ape with white woman and bald arm men?"
Chin-Su frowns a moment in thought, then turns towards Sam. "Does that sound right?"
Quinn relaxes his stance (but keeps the rope handy, just in case). "Yeah, actually Sam, could you give us a rundown of what we're doing here again? between androids and presidents and serpents and wolves and elves and sea captains and ninjas and whatnot, I kinda lost the thread." He shakes his head. "Honestly I don't know how the regular Justice League keeps track of it all. Who'd have thought the hardest part of being a superhero was the logistics and team management?"
Chin-Su cocks his head and looks up thoughtfully. "Well, actually..."
It couldn't be simpler: Sam tied up the Shaggy Man with Fenris the Wolf's chain, which naturally set Fenris loose to destroy the world. But the Legion of Super-Heroes came back through time to see how we defeated Fenris, since they have a Fenris problem up in the 30th century as well. We defeated Fenris with the Midgard Serpent, summoned by a sea captain, and then the Legion headed back home. But their Time Sphere malfunctioned, sending them to the Stone Age. Here were are to save them! Now honestly, how hard was that to follow?
<silence>
<crickets>
Don't everyone speak at once ...
Thursday, April 12, 2018
Thursday, April 5, 2018
Nevada: The Garden of Holes
Roy uses his ring to form a flying elephant to convey Kasumi and Jimmy to Nevada. The elephant's extended pompadour haircut deflects the wind from their faces.
Kasumi notices that the elephant is clad in spangled sequins and high-heeled biker boots, with a cavalryman's half-cape with an extended flared collar. About its waist is a massive champion's belt. And it has huge sunglasses on.
As they pass over the cloudless desert expanse beneath themselves, the Leaguers spy a tank, spinning slowly around its central axis, climb into the heavens on a ballistic arc. It intersects a speeding fighter plane, clipping off its wing and sending the plane into a smoking dive for Terra Firma!
"I got the plane!" says Roy, leaping off the back of Elephis, which he leaves in existence for the others. "Can one of you get the tank?"
Kasumi notices that the elephant is clad in spangled sequins and high-heeled biker boots, with a cavalryman's half-cape with an extended flared collar. About its waist is a massive champion's belt. And it has huge sunglasses on.
As they pass over the cloudless desert expanse beneath themselves, the Leaguers spy a tank, spinning slowly around its central axis, climb into the heavens on a ballistic arc. It intersects a speeding fighter plane, clipping off its wing and sending the plane into a smoking dive for Terra Firma!
"I got the plane!" says Roy, leaping off the back of Elephis, which he leaves in existence for the others. "Can one of you get the tank?"
Stone Age: Before the Rock
Before the invention of the stone axe, before, indeed, tool-using of any kind, lived a genius named Anthro, who, frustrated by the fruit hanging just above his reach, dragged a stone over to the tree and stood on it, harvesting a tasty handful of apples.
And then three figures, one in black, one in blue, and one in red, faded into existence against the solid green of the jungle!
Anthro, frozen in place, watched them with wide, staring eyes. His tanned skin and rawhide loincloth didn't blend very well with the greenery at all, but he knew many animals were stupid about colors, and saw only movement. Also, everything was in varying depths of shadow, as the riotous growth over their heads blocked out all but jagged slivers of direct sunlight.
Sam Skeptic notices immediately boot prints in the soft jungle loam. Boots with a perfectly flat tread, like slippers, or the futuristic boots of the Legion of Super-Heroes!
Quinn notes that Anthro is tall and skinny, with powerful strap-like muscles under a glossy coat of not washing. The kid, for he appears to be quite young, is standing with athletic balance and could probably bolt suddenly, or dash in and plant a powerful punch or kick before most men could react.
Chin-Su notes that it's not especially hot right now, but the sunlight is so intense that outside the jungle, it would be pretty unpleasant.
And then three figures, one in black, one in blue, and one in red, faded into existence against the solid green of the jungle!
Anthro, frozen in place, watched them with wide, staring eyes. His tanned skin and rawhide loincloth didn't blend very well with the greenery at all, but he knew many animals were stupid about colors, and saw only movement. Also, everything was in varying depths of shadow, as the riotous growth over their heads blocked out all but jagged slivers of direct sunlight.
Sam Skeptic notices immediately boot prints in the soft jungle loam. Boots with a perfectly flat tread, like slippers, or the futuristic boots of the Legion of Super-Heroes!
Quinn notes that Anthro is tall and skinny, with powerful strap-like muscles under a glossy coat of not washing. The kid, for he appears to be quite young, is standing with athletic balance and could probably bolt suddenly, or dash in and plant a powerful punch or kick before most men could react.
Chin-Su notes that it's not especially hot right now, but the sunlight is so intense that outside the jungle, it would be pretty unpleasant.
Hawaii: Ahar! There She Be ...
The green schooner sails on the wind, and without contacting the ground far below, makes excellent time! Soon it is gliding smoothly into Waikiki Bay, bearing Lady Hawk and Cap'n Bill.
Upon arriving, they feel overwhelmed by their task. Neither is a policeman, after all, with no special training in detective work, and no proven record of enduring long days and nights of unremitting effort with no clear prize in sight. Best to just give up, and forget whatever it was they came for.
The fact that Vina IS indeed a detective with massive police training, or that sailing is almost entirely composed of nothing BUT days and nights of toil with no guarantee of success ... doesn't matter. It's almost as if they are hearing a script recited internally, but in their own voices.
Upon arriving, they feel overwhelmed by their task. Neither is a policeman, after all, with no special training in detective work, and no proven record of enduring long days and nights of unremitting effort with no clear prize in sight. Best to just give up, and forget whatever it was they came for.
The fact that Vina IS indeed a detective with massive police training, or that sailing is almost entirely composed of nothing BUT days and nights of toil with no guarantee of success ... doesn't matter. It's almost as if they are hearing a script recited internally, but in their own voices.
Time to Split
"Superboy's disappearance sounds like a mystery needing detective work--and that's a Hawk specialty," says Vina. "So, I'm for that."
"Oh, and some people have been calling me Lady Hawk. But Michelle Pfeiffer, I'm clearly not."
Roy says,
"That's right, Cap'n Bill! We have a mystery in Hawaii and a dangerous menace in New Mexico -- one's an island surrounded by the world's largest sea, and the other's a landlocked desert! You should definitely go to Hawaii and look for Superboy."
"Heh. Michelle Pfeiffer."
Chin-Su scratches the back of his head. "I ain't much for the thinkin' stuff. And catching tanks sounds like it calls for speed and strength, and it'd be a bit of a stretch to call my powers anything like that - pardon the phrase." He frowns critically. "On the other hand, I spent my college years playing 'Timesplitters' on the Gamecube. I feel pretty qualified to timetravel."
"Allright!" he says, suddenly jumping up. "It's time to SPLIT!"
"I don't like the desert and I can't really swim with this," Quinn says, giving the shield a little shake, "so I'm with Chin -- time travel sounds like my jam."
Roy: "So that's Cap'n Bill and Lady Hawk for Hawaii, Chin-Su and Quinn for the Stone Age, and I guess that leaves me, Jimmy, Kasumi and Sam for Nevada! That is, if we have some way to get Chin-Su and Quinn back from the Stone Age. I guess there's no time pressure there .. heh. But is that good for everyone?"
Chin-Su looks like something just occurred to him. "Something just occurred to me," he says helpfully. "Do we even have a way to GET to the Stone Age in the first place?"
Roy: "I was thinking Sam, sorry! The Anti-Magician could do it, and if not, there's always my ring. And bringing you back when you're done would use the same pathway: Sa ... Anti-Magician could just say, "Bring heroes back when their work is done!" in his far-out magic lingo. Right, Anti-Mage?"
Sam a.k.a the Anti-Magician sighs. "Give me a moment. I need to figure out how to pronounce 'take us back to the stone age.' Be warned, this might go horribly wrong." then, after a moment of muttering and another to see if any of his old companions want to come with him, he says "ekat su kcab ot eht Enots Ega."
And silently, like the fading of a memory, Peltast, Chin-Su, and the Anti-Magician are simply ... passed into WHAT WAS.
Cap'n Bill salutes Roy. "To the Sandwich Islands, then! With a fair schooner and a following wind, going down by the Great Horn Spoon, we should be there in merely seven months. Unless one of ye can charm us there by your charmings? Anyone have a magical umbrella, or a pair of silver slippers, by any chance?"
Roy replies, "No, but I think I can do you one better ..."
And his ring creates a four-masted ship-rigged schooner out of green light!
"All aboard for the Sandwich Islands!"
"Oh, and some people have been calling me Lady Hawk. But Michelle Pfeiffer, I'm clearly not."
Roy says,
"That's right, Cap'n Bill! We have a mystery in Hawaii and a dangerous menace in New Mexico -- one's an island surrounded by the world's largest sea, and the other's a landlocked desert! You should definitely go to Hawaii and look for Superboy."
"Heh. Michelle Pfeiffer."
Chin-Su scratches the back of his head. "I ain't much for the thinkin' stuff. And catching tanks sounds like it calls for speed and strength, and it'd be a bit of a stretch to call my powers anything like that - pardon the phrase." He frowns critically. "On the other hand, I spent my college years playing 'Timesplitters' on the Gamecube. I feel pretty qualified to timetravel."
"Allright!" he says, suddenly jumping up. "It's time to SPLIT!"
"I don't like the desert and I can't really swim with this," Quinn says, giving the shield a little shake, "so I'm with Chin -- time travel sounds like my jam."
Roy: "So that's Cap'n Bill and Lady Hawk for Hawaii, Chin-Su and Quinn for the Stone Age, and I guess that leaves me, Jimmy, Kasumi and Sam for Nevada! That is, if we have some way to get Chin-Su and Quinn back from the Stone Age. I guess there's no time pressure there .. heh. But is that good for everyone?"
Chin-Su looks like something just occurred to him. "Something just occurred to me," he says helpfully. "Do we even have a way to GET to the Stone Age in the first place?"
Roy: "I was thinking Sam, sorry! The Anti-Magician could do it, and if not, there's always my ring. And bringing you back when you're done would use the same pathway: Sa ... Anti-Magician could just say, "Bring heroes back when their work is done!" in his far-out magic lingo. Right, Anti-Mage?"
Sam a.k.a the Anti-Magician sighs. "Give me a moment. I need to figure out how to pronounce 'take us back to the stone age.' Be warned, this might go horribly wrong." then, after a moment of muttering and another to see if any of his old companions want to come with him, he says "ekat su kcab ot eht Enots Ega."
And silently, like the fading of a memory, Peltast, Chin-Su, and the Anti-Magician are simply ... passed into WHAT WAS.
Cap'n Bill salutes Roy. "To the Sandwich Islands, then! With a fair schooner and a following wind, going down by the Great Horn Spoon, we should be there in merely seven months. Unless one of ye can charm us there by your charmings? Anyone have a magical umbrella, or a pair of silver slippers, by any chance?"
Roy replies, "No, but I think I can do you one better ..."
And his ring creates a four-masted ship-rigged schooner out of green light!
"All aboard for the Sandwich Islands!"
Tuesday, April 3, 2018
To Us, This is Tuesday
"Great!" enthuses Roy. "C'mon, let's get to the Watchtower and we'll enter you all in the Mission Monitor Board's roster!"
He casts a green globe with his ring, which has several beeping circles on it.
"Or maybe we can do that ... after!" he declares.
"Looks like someone's reported Superboy missing from Honolulu," Roy relays. "And ... tanks. Tanks are falling out of the sky near Taos, New Mexico."
"So between those, and the situation in the Stone Age, and, uh, I think that's everything ... it looks like it's time for the League to SPLIT UP! Like they always do!"
"Who wants what?"
He casts a green globe with his ring, which has several beeping circles on it.
"Or maybe we can do that ... after!" he declares.
"Looks like someone's reported Superboy missing from Honolulu," Roy relays. "And ... tanks. Tanks are falling out of the sky near Taos, New Mexico."
"So between those, and the situation in the Stone Age, and, uh, I think that's everything ... it looks like it's time for the League to SPLIT UP! Like they always do!"
"Who wants what?"
Roll Call with pictures
"Sam, can your powers take us back to the Stone Age? Or, maybe this Phantom Stranger can help?"
Sam sighed "If I'm lucky. I'm not very good at teleportation. it's not easy to say 'teleport to the stone ages!' backwards."
"Sega enots eht ot tropelet" says, Vina, with no effect, of course.
"Or, you could go with:
'Seoreh esoht wollof!'"
By the by, this is basically what Vina looks like. Just add elf ears.
Cap'n Bill is a bald, bewhiskered, blue-eyed old sailorman with a pegleg or hickory, dressed in a long blue seaman's pea jacket and brimless cap. He has a pipe clenched between his teeth that is puffing like the smokestack of a steam engine.
He tells one and all solemnly that no one has ever seen a mermaid and lived to tell the tale. He also interrupts himself to agree with himself.
"Tell ye I can, can I, all about the Flying Dutchman, and Davy Jones' Locker, and Captain Kidd, and how to harpoon a whale or dodge an iceberg, or lasso a seal. Aye, 'tis true, I been everywhere in the world, almost, on many a voyage long days past. Been wrecked on desert islands and were once set upon by cannibals, and more than that!
"And now the Sea Fairies have cast their charm, and I have the Sea King's awful powers.
"If 'tis a set-to, or a to-do, hard squall, or ship run aground, a sturdy swab and true ye'll find me."
He thrusts out a calloused hand to shake.
Vina shakes his hand. She has a few callouses herself.
"Looking forward to hearing some sea tales, sir."
"I am Kasumi," Kasumi Toru bows. "The humble sister of the great Olympic star Nabiki Toru. I accidentally picked up the tiara and bracers of Wonder Woman that clearly were meant for my sister.
"Now I must bear the brunt of this error and fight evil!"
Vina says:
"Sorry, but I haven't heard of your sister. We don't have a TV. But I doubt if it's a mistake. You -did- pick them up. And, you're doing something with it." She smiles. Broadly. In a cheerful All-American way.
Standing there is a young man dressed in a Superman-inspired costume. He has short red hair, freckles, and around his neck is hung a camera. He says, "Hi! I'm Jimmy Olsen, Super Man's substitute, I'm a reporter for the Dally Bugle!"
He looks a bit like this
Jimmy will offer a hand shake to the three he just met.
"I am confused about something," Says he, "Why are we reveling our secret identities to people we just met in a public area so that any passing criminal could learn the information and use to threaten our loved ones?"
"I would never do that!" protests a passing criminal.
Chin-Su raises an eyebrow above his head. "You're actually the only one to give your full name, Jimmy Olsen." He glances around. "Well, you and Roy, but that... That's just Roy."
"Well, I don't wear a mask .." says Roy. He points the ring at his face and makes a domino mask of transparent green light. It's like he has green glass over his eyes ... it doesn't hide his identity very well.
Which Roy does not know until he makes a mirror, also.
"Oh," he says. "Yeah, I'm going to have to do without a secret ID. But hey! Superman doesn't have one, and he's okay!"
Kasumi looks like this:
Sam is a tall, dark haired man in a tux with a top hat and cane. he also has glasses. "I guess we should come up with use names then. I'll be... The Anti-Magician. That sounds about right."
I would say Chin-Su looks a bit like this:
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