The Last Daughter of Krypton - IC

[ChasNicollette]

Pete, Gabe, Alfred, and Raya.

Jamie moved in to speak to Wraith, and Pete and Gabe stood there for a moment, gawping at Wraith's tale of terrible woe.

But then there were newcomers and, touching Pete on the shoulder, Gabe suggested that they go introduce themselves.

"Mean Joe Greene," Pete nodded to J'onn. "'Fred. How're they swingin'?"

Alfred, recovering from Damian's unexpected departure and Constantine's alike, blinked at Pete. "Side to side, rather like usual. Though I'm unsure this is the time or place to discuss that, if such a time or place even exists..."

Gabe smiled tightly at Var-Sen, and at Var-Sen's pretty blond bride-to-be, and had no idea who they were. "So, um. Seems like I'm not the only newcomer at the party anymore, and I have to say, I'm a little relieved. I'm glad to have someone else who's as clueless about all of this as I am."

He held out his hand to Raya, the ol' Heartland Handshake. "I'm Gabriel Sullivan. And you are?"

Raya arched a cornsilk eyebrow, and smiled a soft little smile. "I am Raya Ro-Zan of The House of Zan, ere long, Rao willing, to be wed into The House of Sen. And this is Var-Sen, my Yellow Sun so often dressed in black. We serve the destiny of Krypton's Last Daughter."

Gabriel paused. "...oh."

And suddenly felt very much alone.

But suddenly, Pete was there, taking Raya's hand and shaking it emphatically, his eyes dancing with a sort of flirtatious glee. "Let me be the first, Missus Sen, to personally welcome you to Earth. Me and The Prof are old buddies, me and Spock danced with some uglies down in Honduras, and I would be honoured to show you the sights."

Raya grinned a beaming grin. "I must say," she nodded enthusiastically, "Var-Sen promised me that his friends of Earth were quite marvellous, and you do not disappoint. For a planet of a mere Level 1.5 stage of development, your sense of humour is surprisingly well-developed."

Pete's eye twitched. "Sense'a humour. Riiiiight."

And grinning, Gabriel Sullivan no longer felt entirely alone. "If you think that's funny, you should read his newspaper articles."

"Screw you, Chloe's Dad," Pete shook his head. But he was laughing.

 

[ChasNicollette]

Rose.

Absent-mindedly, Rose had tucked the dragon's tooth into her belt.

Merick grinned at Rose as she talked to him, and to Chloe.

"Glad to see you made it back in one piece. Oh, hey, you remember Gar? He is like a shapeshifter or something now. Sweet huh?"

Merick nods in the direction of Gar. Gar, meanwhile stands in awe. For the moment in the form of a large bear, his jaw hanging comically.

"Dude... that was the coolest entrance ever..." After a moment Gar realizes that Merick had just said his name. What? Oh right, hehe... Rose, right?" Gar shifts quickly into a small bird and flutters and lands on Merick's shoulder. "Good to see ya. You can call me Changeling."

"Pleased to meet you, again," Rose grinned to the green avian perched upon the teleporter's shoulder. "'Changeling.' I'm Rose, right, but if we're exchanging noms de buttkick I'm 'The Valkyrie Missile.' (I should really come up with a shorter version of that.) I guess you're kind of green, huh? Between J'onn the Martian and Merick's supersaturated force-crackle mode, that colour's like an epidemic. It's cool that you can still talk in animal shape, Animagi can't even do that..."

She grinned at her friend, her eyes dancing. "And I guess one piece is pretty good work, all things considered."

Rose paused, though, and glanced in the direction of the leathery caped guy who'd just barrelled out of here almost like he had a plan...

"Hey, that wasn't Bruce, was it?" she wondered. "'Cause, y'know, he's kinda right. If Kara's in trouble we shouldn't just sort of gab about like we're at one of those ginchy sock hops or something. We should totally get our crap together and saddle up!"

She frowned, though, shook her head. "That wasn't Bruce. Sounded like him, kinda. 'Who was that masked man, anyway?'"

 

[AmenRa]

Blake

"Tell me a story, Doctor Blake. Make it good. Make it true. My time is of the essence."

Blake considered for just a moment. He knew those that sat in the seats of power could hear things, almost anything, given their super-capable listening devices that could pick up cellular phone conversations half a world away. He knew his friends Tony, and even the good Dr. Richards, had access to this technology.

Thusly, he decided he wasn't about to say too much to the one identified as Watchtower via his cell phone.

He would, however, tell her everything, in person. Only he wouldn't do the talking. He would let the voice of Thor be heard.

"Someone wants to meet with you," he answered her. "He understands you have knowledge of certain cave writings that could help decipher an ancient prophecy. Tell me where you are, and I will see that thunder finds you."

 

[AmenRa]

Var-Sen

Var-Sen understood that J'onn would speak no more of the Thunder God, so he approached and nodded hello to Gabe Sullivan, and he gave Pete a wink. He turned to see Chloe still on the phone, with Rose nearby.

He walked over, wrapping Rose in a big hug, and then manuevered her by her shoulders so she could see Raya. He stood behind her and whispered in her ear. "That is she," he said. "She's The One."

Var-Sen then looked over to Ceri and Jamie. He gave them a nod and a warm smile of friendship.

 

[Lunaramblings]

Merick stifled a laugh as Damien departed. "He does realize that he totally just sprinted out of the room containing two dudes that could totally teleport all our asses back right? I mean, seriously, we can be back in Smallville before he gets off the front lawn."

Merick just grins as Constantine sticks out his tongue and nods as Rose talks.

Gar smiles warmly at Rose as she talks. "I like that kid, really. I mean, a little long, but I like it." Gar taps Merick on the arm. "Ready when you are, lets totally get moving."

Merick grins and looks at Chloe. He doesn't want to interrupt her call. "Whenever everyone is ready. We can leave. 'Sides, I could totally go for one of those fancy muffins they have at The Talon... kinda hungry." Merick laughs as he looks at Rose, "Oh, and that was The Black Hood, I think he said. Dude can fight but he is... well lets just say if EmoGothness were an olympic event he would totally take the gold. He is a bit high-strung, but he seems like a good guy, I guess."

 

[Abraxas Winterlight]

Wraith & Bekka

"Taking the what???"

Sometimes Rose's dad forgets to speak English when speaking english.

"Well, the part about the dragon is true. Not planned mind you, but true. We have a...understanding now. It won't be bothering us again."

I paused, and walked over to Bekka. She was looking a little wild in the eyes. I bent down and looked her straight in the eyes.

"We are OK. Our girl, though, she may not be. I'm gonna need your help. You got the master unit to those G7 Locators you gave the girls?"

She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath "(Not having kids. With my luck they would end up just like him and I'd be white haired by thirty!)"

She pulled the unit out of her belt and punched some commands in. "OK, hers is offline, but I can get her last known location before it went offline." More button pushing and a frown, then she held the unit horizontal, and a hologram of the area sprang up over it.

"OK, this is a google earth representation of the area, enhanced by Odin with more recent satellite data. It should be good enough for Mr. Tennylson and spooky here to get you guys there, and from there you can track her."

She stopped then and looked at the bird on Merick's shoulder. "Changeling, your going too. Once you find where she disappeared from, go bloodhound and track her that way. OK, so how does that plan sound to you guys?"

 

[Lunaramblings]

Gar grins at the pretty lady in the wheelchair. In a flash he transforms into a dove and lands on her chair. "Actually, ma'am, bear's have a sense of smell 7 times more sensitive than a bloodhounds. Polar bears can smell a mate 90 miles away. You know, I was... well... I mean... I was thinking that maybe we could go out sometime... picnic or something... I mean, um... Well, just think about it." Gar winks as he flutters back to Merick's shoulder.

 

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe.

"Someone wants to meet with you," he answered her. "He understands you have knowledge of certain cave writings that could help decipher an ancient prophecy. Tell me where you are, and I will see that thunder finds you."

It was true, indeed, that ECHELON had eyes and ears everywhere.

That Big Brother had maybe grown a little bigger since Orwell's "1984" was published in 1949.

And thus, Chloe had taken a great risk speaking that name with her voiceprint.

But she didn't expect Doctor Blake to take that same chance, if he had secrecy to keep. She had hoped to get the gist, at least. But some truths must only be exchanged from eye to eye.

She looked up at Merick, looked at Edmund and Marcy and Dale.

She pursed her lips, and glanced around. Things were starting to happen, though she wasn't sure exactly what. The bruiser with the knuckles and the tosser in the trenchcoat were gone, Damian had departed...

John Smith was here. J'onn J'onzz was here.

But the energy in the room was all moving towards the door.

An instant had passed by the time she returned her attention to the phone.

"Texas," she growled. "El Paso. The ranch of Edmund Tennylson of TennTech fame. But I may be absconding this locus post-haste. If you move like lightning, you may catch us. But if you cannot find me here, meet me later at The Caves."

She smiled faintly. "Godspeed, Doctor Blake."

 

[TearsoftheWorld]

Benjamin Wallis bent down at the knees to examine a piece of concrete that had been upturned when Kara and Victor had jumped from the roof and landed on the ground. Around him were gathered a few of his top officers and more than a handful of the scientists that had been personally involved in the experiments on Victor Stone.

Each and everyone of them feared for their own lives...

"Where are they now?"

"We've tracked Victor to a house in downtown Metropolis. We believe the girl is still with him."

"And do we-"

"A team is already on the way."

Benjamin Wallis dropped the small chunk of concrete he was holding and then turned to walk back towards his car. Although Benjamin showed no outward signs of frustration, everyone knew that he was extremely pissed. They all knew that he would not suffer another disappointment.

"Get this mess cleaned up," Benjamin said before he disappeared inside the black S.U.V.

* * * * * *​

"Is that..."

"Katherine," Victor responded, his fingers delicately roaming over the picture of his girlfriend that he had picked up from off the mantle. Kara Zor-El picked up a second picture frame, one that had Victor wrapping his arms around the same girl. She was wearing a Santa Claus hat, and Vic had on the happiest and dopiest smile that Kara had ever seen.

It made her smile...

"She's beautiful," Kara said softly.

Victor sat down in a chair and continued to stare at the picture in his hands. Kara moved to sit down opposite of him, and for a while neither of them spoke a single word.

"We were going to be married... after we were finished with school. Now we'll never get that chance..."

"That's not true. Once we find her... I'm sure everything will be alright."

"No it won't. I mean look at me! Look at what they turned me into," Victor said, his voice a mixture of anger and anguish. "How could she ever love a thing like me?"

"I think that's something that you have to let Katherine decide for herself."

Victor sighed and bowed his head down, and Kara got up from her seat to gently rub her hand against his back, hopefully to calm some of his anxiety.

"I'll never be free... not with these scientists chasing me down wherever I go," Victor said after a moment, his fears once again dispelling any hope that Kara had instilled in him.

Kara, however, wasn't ready to call it quits just yet.

"I have a few friends that can probably help us out. We'll find out a bit more about these guys and get them off our backs," Kara said with a comforting smile, and Victor turned his head to look up at her.

"You'd really do all that? For me?"

Kara brightened her smile and then nodded her head.

As much as she would have loved for their brief respite to continue on indefinitely, Kara suddenly heard some noises outside the house.

Footsteps

Kara quickly rose to her feet, and using her x-ray vision she discovered that at least a dozen or more soldiers had begun encircling the house they were resting in.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"We've got to go. Now."

 

[ChasNicollette]

Rose, Raya, Ceri, Jamie, and Pete (with Alfred and Gabe).

"Well," Rose frowned at Damian's absence, "at least he's got a solid take-charge attitude. A lot of emogoths would just sort of angst for awhile and then maybe they'd write a bad poem about Kara being missing, at least he's on his way somewhere. (Does he have a car? When we 'port we can pick him up on the way.)"

She shook her head, though. "Still. Is this going to be a trend thing? We name ourselves by slapping a colour on a noun and seeing what sticks? 'Red Dart,' 'Golden Glider,' 'Green,' ah, I dunno, 'Green something shiny?' If I'd've known that I wouldn't have travailed so hard over my silly long name. Would've called myself 'Argent Raven.' Or, you know, something."

Rose quit her griping instantly, though, when she glanced up and saw John Smith.

He walked over, wrapping Rose in a big hug, and then manuevered her by her shoulders so she could see Raya. He stood behind her and whispered in her ear. "That is she," he said. "She's The One."

Rose beamed at him and hugged back, as, with clarity and grace, Raya nodded to both Gabe and Pete and followed Var-Sen to the girl with the Rao-red hair.

As Raya was walking over, Rose glanced up at Var-Sen, and whispered in reply: "She's lovely, Professor. She really, really is. And I can tell she makes you like eight hundred kinds of happy..."

But then she got an inscrutable expression, just as Raya neared them, and she murmured, looking instead at Wraith: "So you know who your One is? How old do you have to be, d'you think, before you know your One when you see them?"

Var-Sen then looked over to Ceri and Jamie. He gave them a nod and a warm smile of friendship.

Raya glanced over her shoulder at these two others to whom Var-Sen nodded and smiled, and she, too, greeted them silently with affection.

As though they were one, Ceri and Jamie waved to Raya and Var-Sen.

"Handsome couple," Ceri murmured.

And Jamie would have replied, but Wraith had a very important question.

"Taking the what???"

Sometimes Rose's dad forgets to speak English when speaking english.

Jamie blinked. He was rubbish, after all, at terrestrial languages, he was usually the first to say so. "Taking the. Piss. Winding us up? Making a... funny? There's the thing with a punchline, erm, and--"

"Well, the part about the dragon is true. Not planned mind you, but true. We have a...understanding now. It won't be bothering us again."

I paused, and walked over to Bekka.

Jamie nodded thoughtfully. "Mm. Dragons aren't much cop these days. Back in the olden, they used to hold whole villages in dread... nowadays, three blows to the snout with a rolled-up newspaper, that'll teach 'em."

But even as Jamie talked, essentially to himself, Wraith had gotten the attention of a very generous woman with some very excellent toys.

She pulled the unit out of her belt and punched some commands in. "OK, hers is offline, but I can get her last known location before it went offline." More button pushing and a frown, then she held the unit horizontal, and a hologram of the area sprang up over it.

"OK, this is a google earth representation of the area, enhanced by Odin with more recent satellite data. It should be good enough for Mr. Tennylson and spooky here to get you guys there, and from there you can track her."

She stopped then and looked at the bird on Merick's shoulder. "Changeling, your going too. Once you find where she disappeared from, go bloodhound and track her that way. OK, so how does that plan sound to you guys?"

Gar grins at the pretty lady in the wheelchair. In a flash he transforms into a dove and lands on her chair. "Actually, ma'am, bear's have a sense of smell 7 times more sensitive than a bloodhounds. Polar bears can smell a mate 90 miles away. You know, I was... well... I mean... I was thinking that maybe we could go out sometime... picnic or something... I mean, um... Well, just think about it." Gar winks as he flutters back to Merick's shoulder.

"Seems to me," Pete chuckled, walking over, shaking his head at Gar Logan, hands in his pockets, leaving Gabe hesitating over near J'onn and Alfred, "that this Changeling Boy don't need to change forms. Dude's already a hound-dog."

 

[Abraxas Winterlight]

Bekka

Bekka smiled as the bright green dove landed on her shoulder. "Actually, ma'am, bear's have a sense of smell 7 times more sensitive than a bloodhounds. Polar bears can smell a mate 90 miles away. You know, I was... well... I mean... I was thinking that maybe we could go out sometime... picnic or something... I mean, um... Well, just think about it."

"Your sweet Gar, but don't you think there would be less running and screaming if we didn't go with over half a ton of green bear?"
She stopped and looked at Wraith then.

"And as enticing as your offer is, I have someone in my life. And no Spooky, I am not saying who."

 

[AmenRa]

Blake/Thor

Watchtower had wished him Godspeed.

He told her goodbye, and then he ended the call. With an expression of determination on his face, Dr. Donald Blake, MD FACS, raised the old, gnarled cane high and then slammed it into the ground.

The delicate sound of thunder echoed throughout rural Lowell County.

And where Dr. Blake once stood, there now stood Thor.

The Thunder God began to twirl Mjolnir by its unbreakable thong, spinning it rapidly out to his side, each swing becoming faster and faster until the hammer was but a blur.

The air around him began to disperse, and crackles of lightning coursed around his body. They became denser, the lightning sparkles, as tongues of them lept out from him. And then lightning descended from the sky, a simple, small bolt, striking the place where Thor stood. And then Thor was no more.

Outside the main house of the Tennylson ranch, a curious thing happened. There was suddenly sparkles of lightning, buzzing with electrical noise and the smell of ozone. Birds took flight from their resting in a tree nearby, and a dog began to whimper and whine. An air current moved, contained within a small orb about the size of a doorway. And then........

KRAKKA - BADOOOOOOOOOM!

.....thunder echoed across the estate as Thor stepped forth from the trans dimensional doorway.

Inside the house, J'onn J'onzz turned his head sharply at the unearthly sonic boom, and said simply, "He is here."

 

[ChasNicollette]

Jamie, Ceri, Rose, and Chloe.

J'onzz was not the only person in the house with enhanced senses.

To be sure, the vast spectrum of his senses would outmatch even Argus and Heimdall of Myth... and on top of these, he possessed a telepathic awareness with which none other here could well compete.

But when the fabric of space and time ruptured, an in interruption in the continuum, at least two other souls in that place whipped their heads around and gazed in that direction with wide wide eyes.

Jamie Hamilton possessed keener senses than the most of men, a gift hidden away in his genetic code and awakened still further by years of use. He had tuned himself to the fundamental forces of the universe, and an event of this magnitude would not go undetected. At first he thought it was that interesting Damian, using that Boom Tube again, but no, no, this was a different part of the same octave.

His hand flew to Ceri's.

Rose McCrimmon possessed keener senses than the most of lasses, a gift awakened in her genetic code by stones from beyond the turn of the worlds. And while she lacked her father's acuity, lacked his fine-tuning, she had heard this very sound not very long before, and she recognised it instantly.

Her hand flew to Chloe's.

Ceri had been turning back to Diana to resume their conversation.

Chloe had been clapping her phone shut and offering Var-Sen and his blushing ladylove (well, not blushing exactly) a weary but gracious grin.

Ceri looked at Jamie in astonishment, but Jamie's eyes danced as he wove his fingers into hers. "Run."

Chloe looked at Rose in bewilderment, but Rose's eyes were serious as ice and not to be argued with: "Someone you've got to meet."

And Jamie Hamilton sprinted from the room, Ceri keeping pace only, it seemed from sheer force of habit, only enough time to fire Diana an apologetic look...

And Rose McCrimmon sprinted from the room, hot on the heels of her father and mother, Chloe keeping pace only, it seemed, out of sheer adrenal startlement, only enough time to fire Var-Sen and Raya an apologetic look...

The halls of the estate flew by and Jamie burst out onto the front steps, clearing them in a bound, Ceri's clunky boots puffing up dust when they landed, and they ran a few more strides and... stopped.

The halls of the estate flew by and Rose burst out onto the front steps, clearing them in a bound, Chloe landing awkwardly but salvaged from landing on her hindparts by Rose's catching her and cushioning them with flight, and they ran a few more strides and... stopped.

Jamie was grinning. Ear to puckish ear. "Now that. Is what I call impressive."

Chloe's jaw dropped. "Good god. You weren't joking. How did he get here so fast, does he summon mystical lightning that grants him the speed of-of-of Mercury?"

"Hermod," Rose and Ceri said simultaneously, which made Chloe blink.

Rose had an adoring look on her face.

Jamie grinned the grin of mischief and of learning something fantastic and new, or at the very least, something old that had been under everyone's nose since forever but no-one had been wise enough to sniff...

Chloe's eyes were wide as could be. She was a little pale. (Not significantly advanced biology. Magic.)

But Ceri's face was one of deadly seriousness, seriousness that had eclipsed only momentary incredulity. "I'll handle this."

She strode forward, and she bowed her head and sank to one knee, pounding her fist to the Earth as though tamping a religious staff or even a magic hammer, and she spoke.

She spoke a flawless invocation in ancient Norse, known only by holy men and holy women and thought to be forgotten for ages and ages...

<"Thor of The Aesir,"> she declared, with voice resounding and head bowed, <"Child of Sky Father and Earth Mother, I greet thee in the manner of The Eld. Champion of The People, Bester of Frost Giants, Wielder of Cloud and Storm, knowst thou well that thou are not forgotten. And thou shalt not be forgotten so long as them that cherish courage and self-sacrifice draw breath in this land, so long as only there is one, there shalt be a Remnant.">

She lifted her head, and gazed Thor in the face, her dark dark eyes delving the depths of his impossible blues.

<"Welcome thou back, My Lord,"> she murmured. <"Gaia hast missed the tread of thine boots upon her. And so also has Man been bereft without thee.">

 

[Lunaramblings]

Merick looked at Gar with a look of exasperation. As he heard the footfalls pounding down the hall, he grinned.

"Why is it, that when people are in a hurry... they run AWAY from the dude that can get there instantly? I mean, seriously? Ok... let's go Gar. All aboard." Merick waves a hand at his parent's and grandfather, in a blink they were assembled on the porch, just in time to see everyone else come skidding to a stop.

"Dude... I really have to work on my entrance."

"No kidding." Gar stares incredulously, something most difficult for a bird to do, at the Norse god before them. "Do you think they offer classes? Or is it more like a natural talent?"

 

[Abraxas Winterlight]

Wraith

"Natural talent. Took classes while in the womb, genetically encoded in our DNA." I said as I pushed Bekka through the door and out on the porch with the rest of them.

And before me was Rose's mom on her knee in front of Thor. Not something you see every day. Rose and Chloe were standing by her dad looking in wonder at the sight before them.

"Lets go get our ladies Launchpad. And play nice with the Norse God, because he's the real thing."

I walked forward and stopped next to rose, entwining my hand in her free one.

"Hey you, want to introduce the big guy to everyone, since he knighted you and all."

 

[AmenRa]

Thor

He saw the people appear upon the front porch of the main house, and then one, a woman, with deep, dark eyes approached him without fear. No, not fear at all, but purposeful in her stride and manner. He watched her with a curious expression, and then when she went down upon one knee, Thor stood in place, his expression one of surprise, and he listened to her as she greeted him in the manner only a Swordmaiden could.

When she had finished, Thor himself dropped to one knee., humbled by such a heartfelt and serious prayer. Were he anyone other than Thor, he would have shed tears of joy and pride. He reached out and gently laid his hand on her shoulder.

"Truth has been spoken this day," he told her, "and it is mine honor to hear such words from thee".

"Rise, Ceri McCrimmon, Daughter of Celts, Daughter of Nords, and be well in the comfort thou hast brought me," he told her, "for thine salutation doth gladden the heart of Thor! Thou hast spoken that which has not been heard by these ears since time unremembered." He looked into her eyes, yet his voice was so that all could hear. "Know this," he said, his voice kind and gentle, "for thou dost not serve me, yet it is I who serve thee. 'Tis mine honor to wield Mjolnir against they that would seek to harm one as honorable as thee. Thou hast paid the respects due a Thunder God, and thou shalt never be forgotten. Let this day be remembered, for mine touch upon thee has revealed thou art the mother of the child called Valkyrie, and I shall call thee Sister."

The Mighty Thor then stood to his full height, holding the battle hammer Mjolnir across his chest with his folded arms. He directed his gaze to those on the porch. He saw Rose, the Valkyrie of whom he had spoken, and he saw the Wraith, his Brother of Shadow. He saw others he did not know.

"Let the one called Watchtower come forth," he called.

Gotta remember to speak plain, old English. Not everyone knows Old Norse, or is a fan of William Shakespeare you know.

Thor sighed in his mind, so that only Blake, in That Place, could hear. Aye, he answered the doctor. I will do my best.

Another group came upon the porch, consisting of a green-skinned Martian with whom Thor had met once more and accompanied by a man dressed in all black.

The Martian gave Thor an almost imperciptible nod of his head. Thor returned the gesture, looking long into the Martian's eyes.

 

[AmenRa]

The Martian Manhunter

J'onn J'onzz stepped up to Thor, standing just behind Ceri.

"Reveal what you know about the abduction of Kara Zor-El," he said, his eyes flaring red.

"Do not test me, alien," Thor replied, "for you did once and tasted my wrath."

J'onn was silent. He remembered quite well. Thor's half-brother, Loki, The Trickster, had dared to invade the Martian's homeworld with a demon-creature made of fire. J'onn chased the creature away, and he followed it back to Asgard, diving headlong into a trap Loki had set for both he and Thor. Thor, believing J'onn to be a demon himself, battled with him, nearly killing him.

"There was a battle on a road beside a felled tree," Thor answered. "There were soldiers, and a beast not of Midgard. She was taken."

"Soldiers," J'onn repeated. "This means government. Military."

"There is no honor in this," Thor stated. "A soldier must maintain a warrior's honor. These have none. They shall fall."

It was simply said by the Thunder God. It was such that he, a god of Asgard, Son of Odin, spoke simply. As simple as his command of the thunder that was his namesake, as simple as it was to make it rain.

They shall fall.

 

[ChasNicollette]

Rose, Ceri, Chloe, Pete, Gabe, Alfred, Raya, and Jamie.

Rose saw the way that Thor and J'onn looked at each other and she knew in an instant these two had a history. And not the good kind of history where they call each other once a year at Christmas and make fun of the office dork and keep a quasi-competitive running tally of how much luck each had had with the opposite sex...

Wraith suggested that Rose be the one to introduce Thor to everyone, but it seemed like J'onn required no such introduction.

Rose hated it when her friends fought. It made her feel all crawly inside and caught in the middle. And she knew either of these guys could do a lot of damage if they decided to come to blows...

...but without thought of it, without thinking at all enough for her to even register fear, she released Kyle and Chloe's hands, she stepped between the two titanic beings and she put her roots down, she wasn't going to budge an inch.

"Yeah, so, um," she mumbled, "it's good that we're on the topic of Kara, because she's of utmost importance here, no joking. Making the bad guys fall, and not each other, are we thoroughly capisce-ing that, yes, no? You guys wanna tussle, save it, pretty please, my friend is missing, and she's not the sort to go missing lightly."

Ceri arched an eyebrow at Rose, but Rose just shook her head at her mother.

You spoke a funny language. You looked like you were praying. So you're a kung-fu bad-arse and you're the best hairdresser this side of Metropolis, what else are you?

Later. We still have a lot to talk about, after all. (Later.)

Wordless exchange done in an instant, Rose cleared her throat and levitated a bit so that all could see her as she raised her voice: "A lot of you know the man in the red corner, J'onn J'onzz, Manhunter. But in the blue corner, weighing in at... who the heck knows, he's huge... is the thunder-god of Norse myth himself, The Mighty Thor, and he's a friend."

She kicked through the air, nipping over J'onn and Thor's head, and landed with a soft puff beside Chloe, gesturing from her to the giant blond beast of a man.

"Thor," she suggested, though suddenly Chloe was a little bit paler than before, "meet Watchtower. Watchtower, meet Thor."

Chloe smiled ever-so-faintly.

So many new faces. No time to talk to the old ones. (Professor Smith.)

First things first.

She extended her hand to Thor, and she nodded softly. "Good to meet you, ah, Thor. I, um, read somewhere once that your father crucified himself on The World Tree for nine days to learn the secrets of The Universe... he and I might want to compare notes sometime."

...not to be forgotten, nor neglected, Pete and Gabe and Alfred appeared behind the rest of them, peering out through the doorway. And they were dumbfounded. Raya stood with these human men, and she listened to the heartbeats of the Martian and the god, ready to intervene on J'onn's behalf if this silly man with the hair got any funny ideas.

(Blessed are the peacemakers, this was true, she commended the young woman's diplomacy, but blessed also are the warmakers who help their oldest friends cope with barbarians with tendons that sound like depleted promethium cabling when they move...)

Ceri fell back a step, and Jamie moved up beside her.

"That's not every day," Jamie murmured, more than a little bit taken aback, "that you get called the Sister of a god."

Ceri had a lost little smile on her face, and she was overjoyed. "Makes it all worth it. Blessed are those who have not seen and who have believed... I believed and I believed and then I've seen. It's almost enough to say, it's almost enough to say... that now I can die happy."

Jamie chewed that over. And slipped his hand into hers. "Please don't. I mean, you can be happy. But please don't die."

Ceri only nodded, and smiled that lost little overjoyed smile. "Oh, no, James. Not yet. Not yet."

 

[Lunaramblings]

As soon as Rose had realised Chloe's hand Merick moved to her side. He grinned.

As Rose made her introductions Merick started to laugh. Not quitely.

"Jeez... thats it. I have met a martian, who may be green but not exactly little, a warlord from another planet, more super people than a guy can shake a stick at, found out a lot of family secrets, and now... now I meet a God... Riiiigghhhttt. Merick grins as he looks around. "Seriously... no one else finds this funny? Really? I mean... look, sorry that the Kara is missing, and I am all for going and finding her, but... seriously. I just needed to laugh. Or I was gonna die. Go back to the super serious business of world saviors... I will behave. Promise. Merick looks down and hopes he didn't make too much of a goof out of himself.

Edmund steps forward and looks with all seriousness. "Thor, huh... well, Mi Casa, Su Casa. Anyway... I will say that I am unsure that you can surmise the government... unless there is more than just them being soldiers to go on. Not all soldiers follow a flag. Most of the best ones don't. Besides, sounds more like merc tactics to me. Anyway... what's our move?"

 

[AmenRa]

Thor, J'onn, Var-Sen

Thor again scanned the gathered crowd. There were so many among them that emanated power, and there were those who kept their power within.

He bowed his head to Watchtower as she was introduced by the Valkyrie. She was but a girl, yet he sensed a great power within her. He took her hand, holding it gently, and he leaned and kissed it in a greeting a knight would bestow upon a Lady.

Holding Chloe's hand told Thor many things, but mostly he saw within her, and he learned of her special power and the impeccable loyalties of her heart.

"Aye," he answered her, "Lord Odin is wise and of great things. It is of such greatness that men aspire to, and yet with treachery among us, so much is lost." He contemplated a moment. "I wish to speak to you of Runes and symbols, ancient prophecies that are being fulfilled, and how such things are intertwined between Midgard and beyond. My father sent me to you, to find you, as he being wise as you spoke, knew that you would discover these things."

Var-Sen, who had stepped in place beside J'onn, spoke up. "My Lord Thor, she deciphered a prophecy for me," he told Thor, "and helped put the pieces of the puzzle together to start Kara on her journey to her destiny.

Thor turned to him. "You are of the stars," he surmised.

"He is Kryptonian," the Martian Manhunter answered. "The same as Kara, and the same as Raya Ro-Zan," J'onn pointed to Raya. "Their destinies are intertwined with Kara Zor-El's, and I suspect as much as with the prophecies you speak of."

Thor looked long at J'onn. "Long ago," he began, "I struck at you with anger and scorn born of Loki's deceit. For this, I ask your forgiveness. You are an honorable being, J'onn J'onzz, and I was wrong to think of you in darkness." He bowed his head in respect.

"The past shall remain in the past, Thunder God," J'onn said. "And you are most welcome here, among us, who are your friends."

Thor smiled. "It seems, though," he stated, "that my quest for knowledge has begun when there is trouble among us. These soldiers, who give themselves up to their greed, must be found," Thor told them, referencing Edmund's suggestion that they were mercenaries. "How may I serve?"

Var-Sen stepped over to Chloe and put his arm around her. "J'onn said earlier that he could not find Kara using his psychic abilities, but maybe if something spiked her psyche, then he could. We have a technology available within GenTech computers that could possibly reproduce the frequencies of one of the Crystals. If it were to be broadcast, perhaps Kara could hear it, and then we could locate her." Var-Sen looked down at Chloe. "What you think, Watchtower? Could we?"

 

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe and Jamie.

Var-Sen stepped over to Chloe and put his arm around her. "J'onn said earlier that he could not find Kara using his psychic abilities, but maybe if something spiked her psyche, then he could. We have a technology available within GenTech computers that could possibly reproduce the frequencies of one of the Crystals. If it were to be broadcast, perhaps Kara could hear it, and then we could locate her." Var-Sen looked down at Chloe. "What you think, Watchtower? Could we?"

We work before we play, is that it?

Chloe figured she could understand that.

Seems a very Kryptonian approach, from what I can gather.

Later for talking about you falling into a slice of Nowhere Land and then saying my name as you did. Later for that.

Chloe nodded, slowly, as she took in this information.

"I didn't really crack the prophecy," she explained, truthfully. "Mostly it was blind luck, and people helping me out, and Death telling me a secret. But that doesn't mean I'm going to shy away from the problem now before us."

She examined Var-Sen, and then examined Thor. "There's a computer-mind, called ODIN. And he may or may not have interfaced directly on a software level with another computer-mind, called The BRAINIAC, this one from Krypton. It may be that ODIN can tap into files gleaned from The BRAINIAC and reproduce the crystalline frequencies of The Elements of Power, maybe using a global satellite network to cover all corners of the planet?"

Chloe glanced across at Bekka and Wraith. "What do you think? Can one of you try and contact ODIN?"

Then Chloe's hazel eyes slid across to Jamie Hamilton, and she smiled a tiny little smile. "...if they can't? Well. ODIN's isn't the only mind available that's interfaced with The BRAINIAC directly."

Jamie blinked. "Wait, what? You what?"

 

[TearsoftheWorld]

"We've got to go. Now."

As Kara reached down to grab Victor's arm, several soldiers suddenly bursting through the side doors and windows of the house, and their guns were charged and ready to fire. Kara dealt with the first wave of attackers, but one of them managed to shoot victor in the arm before being knocked unconscious.

"Are you alright?" Kara asked as she examined the wound, but Victor shook the pain off and he strengthened his resolve to escape.

"I'm fine. It's just a scratch."

"Not from what I can see," Kara said as she used her x-ray vision to get a better look at his injury. Blood liquid slowly dripped down Victor's arm, but for the moment it was the least of his concerns.

More soldiers began pouring into the house, and Kara kept Victor close to her as they escaped outside. The pair ducked behind a car parked on the street, and for the moment they seemed to be safe.

"Can you run?"

"I think so... yeah," Victor said as he winced in pain.

Kara frowned, and she knew that his injury was a lot worse than he was letting on.

"Look... I'll get us as far away from here as I can. But we need to fi--"

Kara stopped short as felt something pierce her shoulder, and reaching up behind her she managed to pull out a glowing Kryptonite dart.

"Damn," she growled before angrily tossing it aside.

They just won't give up...

"Okay let's go-"

Kara winced in pain as she felt another dart strike her body, and at that moment she knew it was fruitless for her to try and escape.

Her abilities were failing her... she couldn't even hear them approaching anymore.

"You need to find... Rose... Smallville..." Kara said before she felt another Krpytonite dart dig into her back. She did her best to stave off the inevitable, but her powers were rapidly leaving her body. "Go! Get out of here!" Kara commanded sternly, and she gave Victor one last push away from her before she fell to the ground.

"Darn it," Kara mumbled as she wiped blood away from her lip.

She could barely move.

One of the soldiers caught up with her, but Kara managed to knock him away before she felt several more kryptonite-enhanced darts pierce her body. As more soldiers began crowding around her body, she watched as Victor Stone escaped into the darkness.

Before she passed out... Kara Zor-El let slip a very weak but genuine smile.

* * * * *​

When the young Kryptonian woke up again, she found herself locked up in a holding cell much like the first one she had been introduced to. Or at least it seemed to be the same... the bars looked like plastic hollow tubes... and Kara could hear a faint buzzing sound coming from them.

"Good, good. I was wondering when you were going to wake up," Benjamin Wallis said as he approached her cage. "Well your friend managed to escape... but it will only be a matter of time before we catch up to him."

 

[Abraxas Winterlight]

Bekka

"I have a dedicated link to him Chloe. He's been listening the whole time through my master unit here. It's designed to look like a Iphone, but it's much more." Bekka said.

She pulled out the device and punched in some commands, then sat it in her lap.

"OK, speaker is on and at it's highest volume. Odin has been pretty quiet lately, which is strange, but I have the link open so he should respond to your questions. Odin, you there?"

"I am here, Rebecca Michelle Greystone. I have listened to your conversation, as I do all conversations. Ask away Son of Rao, and if it is within my power I shall help."

Bekka frowned. That did NOT sound like Odin. And what the hell was Rao?

 

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe, and Rose.

Bekka frowned. That did NOT sound like Odin.

Chloe's frown was remarkably similar to Bekka's. "'That's not a good sound...'"

She paused, her eyes searching John Smith for his reaction.

"(Well,)" she mumbled, "(at least we know that he had a successful Kryptontech interface. Aaaand we've still got a back-up, this goes wrong.)"

A few yards away, Rose was grinning at Merick. She wasn't laughing quite the same as he was, but she got the joke, and she was grinning.

"Thanks for the recap strip, Sluggy Freelance," she winked at him. "Never without a reason to chuckle, right? Eighth-grade yearbook voted you 'Most Likely to Get Kicked Out of a Funeral Someday.'"

She paused, though, her grin fading. "I'm sure Kara would appreciate the attempt to keep spirits up. You're good people, Merick."

 

[Lunaramblings]

Merick grinned at Rose as she spoke. "That voting was rigged. I mean, seriously, who lets the new kid from Florida count the votes?!" Merick smiles before looking at the Thunder God. "So, your like the really real thing eh? Can't you just use your Godly dominion to make, like I don't know, the Norse God of 411 give you the answer? Nah... course not. Nothing is ever that easy." Merick continues to stare at the mountain of Divinity before him.

"Well, if they are paramilitary it is someone with a lot of money. By my count, that makes the list of suspects a lot smaller. And, given myself, and our present company, that list just got smaller. Anyone know of anyone else that might have a vested interest? Damn shame we just sent the Luthor boy off. I woulda enjoyed tryin to get him to talk... assuming he knew anything. Well, fun for us either way I s'pose. Lacking that, perhaps Odin, the computer not yer Dad, My Lord, can try to cross reference people with significant funds, and people that have interests in the area? Meanwhile, by my last count we have several folks here what can get us anywhere in the world in the blink of an eye? Whatta ya say we go see if there is anyone in Smallville that saw anything? Does the girl have family? They could be targetted if whatever these guys have planned doesn't work. They need to be looked after." Edmund smiles wearily. Its not everyday a sinner meets a God face to face, on his own front porch.