#Manhunt in Space

[whitewaterpaper]

Här på W2P har vi fortsatt att se högoktanig skräpfilm för att bevara någon form av ovett att uppskatta dagens holllywoodrullar.

Darby O'Gill och småfolket / Darby O'Gill and the Little People (1959) Charmig liten film med snygga special effekter och en ung Sean Connery i en av de bärande rollerna. Men ack så tråkig.

Devil's Men, the / Land of the Minotaur (1976) Skräck.

Disappeared, the / My Daughter Is Missing (2017) Helt okej thriller som kunnat bli fantastisk med mer kunnigt folk i registolen och bakom pennan.

Doors (2021) Nä. "Smal SF" som vill mycket och berättar lite.

Frozen Alive / Der Fall X701 (1964) Vetenskaplig SF som leker med vad man i framtiden kanske kan göra.

Ghost Walks, the (1934) "Skräck".

Jagad av Rebellerna / Moonraker, the (1958) När man vill göra en Robin Hood-film utan att göra en Robin Hood-film.

Kolossen på Rhodos / Il Colosso di Rodi (1961) [🔁] Har sett den tidigare, hittar den dock inte i filmdagboken så det kan ha varit medan datorn var på rehab. Små trevlig liten äventyrsfilm med fond i antikens Grekland.

Last Starship, the (2017) [👎] Kul koncept men nä.

Manhunt in Space (1956) [🆓] Charmig Rocky Jones-film som antagligen är en av höjdpunkterna denna vecka. SF från en oskyldigare tid.

Oro Arrowhead (2021) [👎🆓] Skattletaräventyr på Jysk-budget. Har sina positiva sidor, men inga värd att sitta av nästan 2 timmar för.

Robin Hood (1973) [👍🔁] Disneyklassiker.

Solum (2019) Inte så pjåkig "Hungerspelen"/"Battle Royale"-film från portugal. Vill lite för mycket. Men klart sevärd.

Speed Cross (1980) [👎] Motorcross action. Filmen är ungefär lika bra som kvaliteten på den italienska dubben.

Väktarens hämnd / Leprechaun (1993) Warwick Davies i högform. Jennifer "Rachel i Vänner" Aniston före Vänner. Resten av filmen lämnar en del att önska.

Jag minns inte exakt vilka som finns på tuben, några av dem iaf. I övrigt är det kanske bara "Solum" denna månad jag skulle säga kan vara värd att slå ett öga på.

[sisaloofafump]

In case it seems like every third comic has Batman in it... you're not wrong. He's been in 38.6% of DC issues since 2020, with a stark increase of 8% each decade since the 90s and surpassing Superman in popularity. Despite this, there's been a massive drop off of comics where he is teamed up with Superman or a Robin (although the amount of group team ups between Batman Family members has increased, as well as Nightwing solos).

[declamationark]

DPXDC prompt: There’s an alien invasion incoming and the justice league are all up in arms to defeat them. Once they break into the mothership, however, they discover that the aliens were already beaten up and there’s this ghostly child cackling in the control room. It’s Danny and he is Obsession-drunk and having an absolute blast exploring every nook and cranny of the ship, dismantling it to see how the machines work, driving it around, chatting a hundred miles per hour to the definitely-concussed and groaning alien commander, and just zooming fro and fro with eyes dilated so hard there’s only a tiny ring of green in his eyes, lost in the feral serotonin sauce

Bonus points if the justice league calm Danny down by having him fanboy over Martian Manhunter, and then in the end, Danny goes “I’m gonna stick with you now! No takebacks!” and adopts J’onn into the Fenton family, now J’onn has two midwestern folks to hang out with for the holidays (the Kents from that Christmas special and now the Fentons)

[ghostbsuter]

"Excuse me?" Jazz's voice echoes in the meeting room in space. She gains the attention of the heroes immediately and sees them tensing up in at her appearance.

Behind her, he swirling green portal is open, waiting for her to return.

A blond, coat wearing man, curses upon seeing her and gives a half bow. "Princess Jasmine," he speaks up, eye twitching.

"What brings you here?"

At the greeting and reveal of her title, few others fall into bows, the lady at the head of the table, wonder woman?, gives her a smile.

Her eyes pin the green skinned man to his seat, who in return tilts his head at her.

"My brothers birthday is soon," she focuses on the man again. "I'm simply here for a present."

The man tenses, another curse slipping. "Ah– king phantom, right? I wasn't aware his birthday would be so soon."

Jazz ignores him, calmly walking to the Martian and placing a picture of Mars before him.

"The tales of your people have brought much interest to my brother. He became a big fan." She tells, sharing her intentions at his light poking.

"I ask for a signature, it would make his day."

Martian Manhunter, alien hero, and once upon a time, a father even smiles. He's delighted yet feeling a deep-rooted sadness. The tales of his people continue to spread in the afterlife, it seems.

Jazz leaves quickly after, not before giving Diana a number, they are cousins after all.

Danny will love her present.

[zhelin-thames]

Danny meets JL members #7

[Danny "being the little shit he is" floating around the Watchtower, minding his own business.]

[Martian Manhunter approaches, phasing through a nearby wall.]

Danny: [startles] Dude! Ever heard of knocking? Martian Manhunter: You phase through walls yourself. Danny: Yeah, but I’m the ghost kid. You’re, like… a space ghost.

Martian Manhunter: I am J’onn J’onzz, the last survivor of Mars. Danny: [grins] Sweet. I’m Danny Fenton, the half-survivor of Earth. J’onn: [pauses] That is… unusually dark for a teenager.

[J’onn and Danny comparing abilities]

Danny: Okay, so you can phase through walls, shape-shift, and read minds? J’onn: Correct. Danny: I can phase, fly, shoot ectoplasm, and scream so loud it shatters windows. J’onn: Fascinating. Danny: Wait—can you do that thing where you get really big and scary? J’onn: Do you mean this? [transforms into a massive, monstrous figure] Danny: [wide-eyed] Okay, yeah, that’s terrifying. Teach me.

J’onn: Your abilities seem to stem from ectoplasmic energy. Danny: Uh-huh. And yours come from… Martian vibes? J’onn: [calmly] We call it genetic superiority. Danny: [grinning] Fancy way of saying “alien magic.” Got it.

[Danny tries to prank J’onn]

Danny: [invisible, sneaks up behind J’onn] Boo! J’onn: [doesn’t flinch] Your ectoplasmic signature gave you away. Danny: Dang it! How’d you know? J’onn: [smiling slightly] I could hear you laughing before you phased.

[Martian Manhunter Reads Danny’s Mind (danny let him)]

J’onn: Your thoughts are… chaotic. Danny: Thanks. I try. J’onn: You also appear to be replaying a jingle about snacks in your head. Danny: [grinning] It’s a coping mechanism.

[In the Watchtower Cafeteria]

J’onn: Earth food is… peculiar. Danny: [eating a sandwich] You’re not wrong. So what do you eat? J’onn: Martian plants and thought energy. Danny: Thought energy? That sounds like something a ghost would do. Are you sure you’re not, like, half-ghost too? J’onn: [raises an eyebrow] I am not. Danny: Sure, sure. That’s what I said before I fell into a portal.

[Later, J’onn texting the Justice League Group Chat]

J’onn: The ghost child is… peculiar. The Flash: That’s just Danny. Green Lantern: Did he prank you yet? J’onn: He tried. It was… underwhelming. Danny: [joins chat] I’ll get you next time, Space Dad. J’onn: I am not your “Space Dad.” Danny: [grinning] Too late.

[ew-selfish-art]

Dp x dc AU - If the Internation Space Station orbits the Earth 16 times a day, then so does the Watchtower.

Danny’s on track to move out of his parent’s house and move to Gotham for college (He swears that Sam bribed the board to let him in- and she wasn’t even going to that university!) but the dorms don’t open for another three days and he cannot wait to escape. Seeing his parents try to perfect yet another weapon to use against him while he changed out the ecto filters on the portal was too much. He’s completely over the idea of staying when he already has everything packed and ready to go.

The solution? Take all his boxes into his haunt in the Ghost Zone, leave them there and then spend some time in camping in space. He’s already explored the Infinite Realms enough to be bored of it for a minute (not to mention he wants to avoid getting more ‘favors’ to do from Clockwork) and hell, he just wants to see some stars.

He grabs his tent, a sleeping bag and all the food and things he could need and brings it into the atmosphere with him. Keeping it all tethered to him, Danny stays in a fixed position above Gotham (Cause that’s where he’s going next, duh) and treats himself to some quality Me-time.

Only problem is that several times a day he has to make himself intangible while he lets satellites and things pass through. Easy enough and honestly pretty interesting to observe as a wannabe engineering student.

He doesn’t know when exactly it happened the first time- but it turns out the Heroes of Earth all congregated in a satelite office building? It was bigger than the ISS! What the heck!?

Going intangible but not invisible, the JL spot Danny and are incredibly confused how an ‘Alien’ teen just happens to appear in their meeting rooms disappearing at the rate (slowly but surely) of the Watchtower moving through space. Was that camping gear? How was he roasting a marshmallow? Did propane camping stoves even work in space??

16 times a day they get the opportunity to ask Danny a few questions. He mostly ignores them or gives them joke answers. Eventually Martian Manhunter phases through the Watchtower to join him.

They talk about how hard transition periods in life can be and having strained relationships with family. J’ohn returns to the watchtower on its next cycle and reports that the kid is just fine, being an adult is just a hard thing to do.

[minty364]

DPXDC Prompt #141

Danny’s school held a contest where their students would have to write about a member of the Justice League that they admired. They framed it as a normal assignment and then mailed them to the hero. Danny didn’t think anything of his letter until he gets a few letters pop in front of him, apparently if you burn a letter for a ghost the recipient will get it. Danny thinks back to his own letter to Martian Manhunter and he remembers mentioning in his letter that not all ghosts were bad and he wishes they had the same rights as aliens did.

Of course the Justice League shows up to town and Danny is star struck as Martian Manhunter shows up to Danny’s doorstep to ask about his letter.

[greennightingale]

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 85

Dan is very grumpy. He’s not pouting, despite what the others would claim, he’s brooding. How many times were they going to get de-aged?! And this time they were all clones! He did not sign up for reincarnation, nor for getting turned into a literal baby. 

He doesn’t care if this world has heroes or villains or whatever, he’s going to bite the next person to pick him up. Happily if it’s one of the scientists currently scrambling around as alarms go off. 

Though he’ll happily do the same to the new colorful people too. Honestly he’s just feeling particularly violent, and it’s not like he can murder with his tiny baby hands. At least his so-called siblings look just as ready to attack as he does. 

[evilhorse]

Cosmic Odyssey house ad (circa October 1988)

[thebubblesareevil]

Slowing down and Speeding up...

Part 1

The next night, as he prepared for sleep, Barry planned. He had a list of questions and was determined to get them answered. So he kissed his wife and laid down to sleep, determined. He would get answers out of Danny even if it killed him!... Though ideally it wouldn't... hopefully.

Barry laid there for what felt like hours trying to sleep, trying his best not to fidget too much and disturb Iris. Slowly, ever so slowly, Barry began to doze off when...

BEEP...BEEP...BEEP!

Barry jumped out of bed at the sound of his communicator. Grabbing the device he read the message. He sighed as he gave Iris a quick peck on the cheek, telling her to go back to sleep, knowing neither of them would be getting any rest as her own phone began blaring.

Questions would have to wait, for now he had work to do.

--------

Three days and an Alien invasion later, Barry collapsed into his bed. Iris chuckled at her husbands antics.

"Is the big, strong, superhero tired?" She asked, sitting next to him as she gently rubbed his back.

"Hngh" came the muffled reply. Iris chuckled.

"I know, I know, it's been a long few days. That doesn't change the fact that even speedsters need to brush their teeth." Barry groaned. "And no superspeed! As tired as you are you're more than likely to crash into the wall." Slowly Barry dragged himself from the sweet comfort of his pillow to brush his teeth.

Once done, he blearily trudged back to the bed, collapsing once more. Iris chuckled before draping the covers over his prone form. She turned off the lights before joining him in bed.

Barry barely processed anything as she ran her fingers through his hair before wrapping an arm around him.

"You did such a good job sweetie, you saved so many lives, and I'm proud of you." Barry barely managed a smile as she kissed him. "Now get some sleep, you've earned it."

"Yr suu prrft, I lrve u Rs." Barry mumbled as he drifted off to sleep, as his wife giggled.

"I love you too."

---------

When Barry's eyes flew open, he was almost as tired as when he shut them. He was surrounded by a tunnel of rushing light, his first instinct was to run of course, before his last dream came to mind. He took deep calming breaths as he let go of his tight grip on the speed force. Exhaustion flowed through him, but (at the risk of sounding like a certain bat) he had questions that needed to be answered, so he walked.

And Walked...

And Walked......

And-

"What are you doing?"

Barry's eyes flew open, though when they closed he couldn't say, only for him to jump back from Danny's face that was a mere 2 inches from his own. The teen burst out laughing.

"Where the heck did you come from!?!" This only seemed to make the teen laugh more.

"Dude, you've been walking around with your eyes closed for about an hour!" Barry turned red from embarrassment. Doing his best to salvage the situation Barry cleared his throat.

"Yes, well, it's been a long week. That's not important! I have some questions for you!" Danny tilted his head to the side while pointing a single clawed finger at his chest. "Yes you!" He shouted. Danny grinned.

"Okay, shoot! What do you want to know?" Barry was nearly taken by surprise but quickly recovered.

"Okay, first things first, why are we here?" Danny looked at him like he was crazy.

"You went right for the difficult questions, huh. I mean I'd like to say we all have a purpose, although I learned that sometimes that purpose is to help someone else's purpose. I mean... there's no real set answer I don't think, however-" Barry just stared at him blankly before shaking his head.

"I meant in the Speed Force! I mean if you happen to know the meaning of life we can talk about that later, but for now I just want to know why we are in the Speed Force." he interrupted, too tired to run in circles. "I've talked to other speedsters about this dream before and none of them have ever been here, so why are we here?"

"Oh! Well that's a much easier question!" Danny gave him a fanged grin. "I'm here because I was wandering around the Infinite Realms and stumbled upon this little piece of heaven. As I've said before, prime napping real estate, or anything really. You and Speedy Gonzales are the only other people I've ever run into here, and he never really bothers me anyway." he shrugged at Barry's look of shock and annoyance.

"As for you, that's a whole other can of worms. After the last time we ran into each other, I asked around some of the older circles of ghosts. It was actually one of the Observants that had the answer, or at least a vague explanation." Danny put his hands behind his head as he got himself comfortable, floating mid-air. Barry was not jealous, thank-you-very-much.

"And?" He pushed.

"And for some reason you've got a stronger connection with the speed force than the others. Something about how you generate energy when you run. They wouldn't explain more than that, they're pretty annoying like that." he shrugged. "Sorry if it's not the answer you were looking for." Barry sighed.

"It was less than I'd like, and more than I expected. Okay, next question. Who is that other guy? Why was he after me?" The half-ghost cringed with a hiss.

"I was afraid you would ask that... he's kinda complicated." Danny sat cross-legged as well as crossing his arms. "So from what I can tell is he's kinda your grim reaper." Barry jolted in shock.

"He's what?!?!"

"Hey, calm down, no need to freak out!" Danny replied trying his best to calm the panicking speedster.

"You just told me the grim reaper is after me and you want me to calm down?!?!?" he shouted.

"He's not after you, for Ancient's sake! Sit Down!" he commanded and to his own surprise, Barry sat down.

"He is the grim reaper of speedsters, but the only reason he was chasing you is because you were running around in the Speed Force. That's how you mess with things that shouldn't be messed with, and it's his unending job to stop/punish people who mess with those things."

"And exactly would I be messing with?" He asked, doing his best to calm down.

"Space-Time. Now next question, I came here to get my homework done. I may have more time here but it's not infinite." Barry took a deep breath, nodding.

"Okay, well I guess the biggest question I have is about you." Danny raised his eyebrow, curious. "You said you died, can I ask how?" Danny froze, possibly literally as Barry started to feel a chill in the air.

"That's...That's not really something you should ask ghosts. It's considered extremely insensitive and rude, honestly most ghosts would attack you for asking something like that." Barry nodded.

"Hey, it's okay, you don't have to answer if you don't want to." Danny took a deep breath and nodded.

"My sister thinks I need to talk about it, she's probably right as usual."

"If you want to talk about it, you can do so at your own pace. No pressure." Danny smiled softly.

"Thanks, I might take you up on it sometime. Now it's my turn to ask a question." Barry grinned.

"Fair is fair, hit me."

"Why are you so tired? You haven't been here in about a week so I gotta admit I'm curious about what you've been up to." Danny shrugged. Barry laughed.

"My Earth got hit by an alien invasion, the whole league was fighting them back for the last three days. We managed to stop the invasion and Superman (Danny snorted) managed to broker a peace treaty to prevent future conflict." Danny was grinning through the whole explanation. "What's with that face?" Danny chuckled (no it wasn't creepy, calm down Barry)

"So let me get this straight. You have ALIENS, ALIENS in your world, and they invaded." His grin got bigger, showing off his jagged teeth, as Barry nodded. "We are going to unpack the fact that you have a guy on your team that calls himself Superman later. Right now I need you to tell me EVERYTHING! What did they look like? Were they green? Did they fly? Were they able to breath oxygen or did they use gas masks? Why did they invade? What planet were they from?!?!" Barry was honestly impressed by how much the ghost was vibrating as he shot off question after question. Barry cleared his throat.

"Well, I'm gonna be honest I don't have all the answers about those particular aliens. I was more concerned with stopping the invasion more that anything." Danny visibly deflated as he started to droop from where he was floating. "But! I have a teammate that's from Mars." The ghost immediately perked up, his form glowing brighter than before.

"SERIOUSLY?!?!?!" He shrieked. Barry chuckled, happy to see him excited about something normal.

"Oh yeah, Superman is actually from the planet Krypton and Hawk man and Hawk woman are both from Thanagar. Hell if you wanna reach a bit, Green Lantern may be from Earth but he's a space cop." Danny could light up a room with how much he was glowing at this point.

"Tell me all about the Martian! You can tell me about the others later, but you gotta tell me about the Martian."

"Okay, okay, but not for long. You already said you needed to do homework." Danny groaned but conceded, giving Barry his full attention. "Okay so in the League he goes by the name Martian Manhunter, but his real name is J'onn J'onzz. He was pulled from his planet in the middle of a war...on accident. The poor scientist had a heart attack when he saw J'onn show up outta nowhere. He kept himself hidden for years to keep the government off his back, but when the world needed him he joined the league." He grinned.

"He's a pretty chill dude, honestly, once you get passed the telepathy. I won't tell you everything about him, cus superhero bro code and all that, but he is in fact green, he can shapeshift, as well as density shift through most solid objects, oh and he can fly too." He finished with a yawn. Danny practically squealed in excitement.

"That's so awesome! I'm so jealous, I wi-" Danny froze looking around, much to Barry's confusion. "I very much would love it if I could meet him." Barry squinted at the strange pause but shook his head, too tired to question it. Danny however started to give him a smug look.

"You look like you're about to collapse." Barry yawned.

"You're not wrong." he remarked.

"Why don't you lay down and get some sleep? I've gotta do my homework anyway."

"But...I am asleep?"

"You might be asleep physically, but mentally you are talking to me. I'm guessing this is honestly a weird astral projecting kind of thing. Trust me, lay down, take a nap. You'll thank me for it later." Barry sighed, too tired to argue as he laid down on the, surprisingly comfy, ground.

Danny floated close by, the soft scratched of pencil against paper lulling him to sleep.

-----

Barry woke with a start, jumping from the ground, startling the floating teen. He quickly looked around surveying the area.

"Feel better?" He looked at the teen in surprise, because yes he did, he felt much more awake.

"How long was I asleep?" Danny shrugged.

"I don't know, maybe 20-30"

"Not bad for a 30 min nap." He said as he stretched.

"Yeah, no, sorry. You slept for 20-30 HOURS. Minimum." Barry froze.

"What?"

"Oh yeah, I actually just got back from school. You must have been really tired!" Danny grinned.

"How? Why am I still here? Why am I not home?!?" Barry began to shake as Danny raced up to the speedster.

"Hey, Barry, I need you to calm down. Time works differently, remember? Everything is okay." Danny grabbed hold of Barry's arm only to be thrown of as lightning started to surround him. "Barry, if you don't calm down Zippy is gonna come after you again. I need you to BREATHE!" It was too late, Barry could see him.

The black speedster.

He was coming for him.

Barry backed away from Danny and ran, he ran as fast as he possibly could he ran until-

-----

Barry jumped out of bed, running for his life and straight into a wall.

Iris jumped out of bed at the crash, racing over to her husband's side.

"Are you alright!?!" She asked as Barry groaned.

"Yeah, all good. Can't say the same for the wall." Iris turned to look at the cracked wall with a sigh.

"Barry, I love you. This is the third time this month. We have got to put some kind of cushioning on this wall if we wanna keep it."

Barry sighed, taking in his surroundings.

He felt better rested than he had in years. He grinned.

"You're probably right, I'll get right on that. But first, breakfast!" He smiled at his beautiful wife.

"I'm making waffles!" Iris laughed.

"Well you certainly got a good nights rest, huh. I think I'll get a little more shut eye while you cook." Barry laughed

"Sounds like a plan!." 'Today was going to be a good day', Barry thought with a smile 'a good day, indeed.' 

@hypewinter@daemonlogical@crystalqueertea

[sshbpodcast]

Character Spotlight: Lwaxana Troi

By Ames

Lwaxana haters, see yourselves out (or stick around and see how wrong you are!), because A Star to Steer Her By loves our black-eyed Betazoid mama. She’s the daughter of the Fifth House, holder of the Sacred Chalice of Rixx, heir to the Holy Rings of Betazed, and also one of our favorite characters from The Next Generation!

Like Katharine Pulaski (whom we also stan with the best of them!), Lwaxana Troi is a character who gets way more hate than she deserves, who grew substantially every time she appeared on the show, and who has way more nuance than even some of the main characters we’ve discussed from the show so far! And that fashion sense? Holy cow. So pack your absurdly huge luggage, don your fluffiest wig, and meet up with us and Mr. Homn as we celebrate (and occasionally criticize) all things Lwaxana below and this week on the podcast (sashay over to 55:22 for the convo). We’re going on a manhunt!

[Images © CBS/Paramount]

Best moments

Murderers! Assassins! While her first couple of appearances in TNG were fairly annoying, as you’ll see in our next section, the one thing Lwaxana gets emphatically right in “Manhunt” is figuring out the two Antedians the Enterprise was carrying are actually assassins. And she drops this information in the most nonchalant way possible, cementing her status as a major boss.

Release them and I will stay with you willingly Oh boy is “Ménage à Troi,” a tough episode to gauge. While it certainly has its lows (Lwaxana constantly crashing Deanna’s day, Ferengi shenanigans at their worst, and some sexual assault and implied rape swept under the rug), Mrs. Troi does put her daughter first and insists to Daimon Tog that Deanna and Will be released if she sacrifices herself like any mother would.

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? The other great scene that Lwaxana inspires in “Ménage à Troi,” is one we mentioned in our Picard Spotlight post, when she and JL work together to trick the Ferengi into releasing her. Even from across viewscreens, she compels the beautiful diatribe of Shakespearean poetry from Jean-Luc that ends up saving the summer’s day!

What does that little one do, Mister Woof? I don’t know why, but it always tickles me the couple of times on the show that Lwaxana calls our Klingon security head “Mr. Woof” as she does in “Half a Life” and others. Is she doing it just to evoke a reaction from him? Does she actually know his name at all? Regardless of the answer, it’s a cute joke that the writers play.

It is the custom for your loved ones to join you at this Resolution, is it not? Our fuller opinion of the character really started getting formed once the show reached “Half a Life” – one of our TNG faves – and we got a different look at this man-hungry helicopter parent. Suddenly, Lwaxana has nuance. She fights for people other than herself or her immediate family. She becomes vulnerable with Timicin, something we didn’t think possible from her character. And when she decides to go with him to his Resolution, it feels personal, complex, and complete.

A child who is trusted becomes worthy of that trust We gave Deanna some rightful criticism for thinking that writing up a contract between Worf and Alexander would be a good idea in “Cost of Living,” and Lwaxana waltzes in like a fairy godmother and throws that terrible idea in their faces! Immediately, she knows how to better parent Alexander than anyone else on the show ever had, low bar that that is.

You’re telling me you’re not going to be naked at your own wedding? It feels like such a triumph for Lwaxana to so brazenly show up naked to her wedding in “Cost of Living,” fully embracing her Betazoid heritage and throwing her strong will and individuality in Campio’s and his little toady’s faces. Now why she was engaged to that uptight twat in the first place is another story, but good for her anyway!

Whatever it is, we can face it together Here’s an actually good moment she shares with her daughter: That tear-jerking moment in “Dark Page.” It’s another instance in which we see Lwaxana as having more personality traits than we were led to believe she had as she comes to acknowledge the death of her daughter Kestra, and also we see Majel Barrett nailing some acting we’d never seen from her before.

Nobody’s ever seen me like this By the time we reach Deep Space Nine, the writers have figured out what to do with Lwaxana Troi to make her an impactful character. Sure, she’s still a great comic device, especially against rigid characters like Picard and Odo, but it’s in the way that she is humanized (or Betazoidized?) in scenes like the truly remarkable turbolift scene in “The Forsaken” that she really shines.

Then sway with me, Odo. Sway with me. While Lwaxana’s constant pestering of Picard gets tiring really quickly, her relationship with Odo proves something more interesting. In one of those Odd Couple kind of pairings, she’s able to get Odo to come out of his shell, even if it’s just a little bit, so when she gets him to dance with her in “Fascination,” it’s delightful and shows more layers to their respective characters.

Before I met her, my world was a much smaller place Okay, so the weird inspiration vampire side of the plot of “The Muse” may be idiotic, but the Lwaxana-Odo scenes are pure gold. Lwaxana and Odo, again, find each other to be the only people they can be vulnerable with, and Odo agrees to marry a very pregnant Lwaxana to get her out of an existing marriage, delivering the purest, most intimate and beautiful speech we’ve heard from him (until Kira, at least).

Strut your stuff on the catwalk Finally, we just have to give massive points to her remarkable fashion sense. One of our favorites is this blue number from “Fascination,” with the perfect wig to complement it and accessories like whoa. Make sure you check out our full screenshot assemblage that we put together previously to give fair credit to the excellent costuming of this iconic woman.

—

Worst moments

Momzillas gone wild Mrs. Troi is not without her faults, however, and most are man-related. How much pressure she puts on her daughter to get married is more than uncomfortable, it can get downright offensive. When the arranged marriage she initiated between Deanna and Wyatt comes due in “Haven,” it’s clear that this momzilla doesn’t always have her daughter’s best interests in mind; just her own.

Use your mind, not your mouth We also found it just plain rude how much Lwaxana insisted on communicating with Deanna telepathically in “Haven” and other episodes. a) Deanna has made it clear she’d rather speak out loud, and b) Picard and other crewmembers can’t hear what’s being said and that’s impolite, especially coming from someone of such standing in the Federation.

Oh, Jean-Luc, what naughty thoughts It becomes a running gag for the first couple appearances of Lwaxana how much she makes sexual advances on Captain Picard, who is just trying to do his job most of the time. But “Manhunt” really takes the cake for just going overboard with presumptuous behavior unbecoming for a woman of her stature. Leave the poor guy alone!

Until death us do part Later in “Manhunt,” it’s even grosser for Mrs. Troi to declare that she and Riker are to be wed. Whatever physiological state she was in is no excuse for how she goes out of her way to mortify her daughter, to put the moves on Deanna’s imzadi without consent, and to make scene after scene all for romantic attention. Why Gene Roddenberry would make his wife act like this is beyond us.

No man has ever been such a mystery to me Lucky for the flesh-and-blood men that Lwaxana spends most of “Manhunt” sexually accosting, apparently she has no idea what a hologram is. I don’t know how, but she’s so horny that when she meets Rex the bartender, she’s so intrigued by her inability to read his mind that she doesn’t even realize it’s because he’s not a real person. We can just imagine how far it went before it dawned on her.

Oo-mox is only the beginning It’s only fitting that someone like Lwaxana Troi should be there for the introduction of oo-mox on the show, and one time was already too much. During “Ménage à Troi,” Lwaxana unknowingly performs what’s essentially a sex act on her captor, which is gross enough as it is, but we learn later in an episode of Deep Space Nine that she also slept with Daimon Tog, and I vomit in my mouth.

Swipe right! We learn in “Cost of Living” that Lwaxana has gotten engaged to Campio, whom she effectively met on a dating app and whom she has absolutely no chemistry with. It strikes us as entirely out of character that she’d accept marriage to someone who wouldn’t allow her to be who she intrinsically is just because he’s rich. Thank the Four Deities she found a way out of it!

My name is Mud While we gave Lwaxana credit for spending more time with Alexander and treating him better than Worf ever does, we have to admit that the jacuzzi scene in “Cost of Living” is off-putting. Sure, it’s the future and we know that in Betazoid culture, nudity is entirely normal, but we’re still not sure it’s something Alexander is accustomed to or had any ability to consent to and that’s weird.

The worst thing that can happen to any parent This is a complicated one because it’s so triggering. I’m not sure it would be fair to blame Lwaxana or anyone for the accident that befell Kestra as we learn in “Dark Page,” but it’s very clear that Lwaxana blames herself. This is truly the lowest her character had ever been, and it explains a few things about how she so tightly latches on to Deanna, but it is a bad, bad time for her.

Bad thoughts, they hurt her What’s more accurate to say about the events from “Dark Page” is that Lwaxana had handled her trauma in an ultimately poor way. By blocking those memories as evidently Betazoids do with triggering events, she never was able to mourn or accept the loss of Kestra, instead avoiding the memories entirely in a way that turned out to be harmful to her and not fair to her late daughter’s memory.

Does no one understand quarantine procedures? I’ll nitpick about it every time some disease breaks out in an episode and no one seems to understand you shouldn’t go around touching everyone around them. So when Lwaxana has Zanthi Fever in “Fascination” and suddenly her horniness becomes contagious, I’m doubly pissed off because it resulted in a really, really stupid premise for an episode.

What I’d mistaken for love was nothing more than a prison After we mentioned just now when Lwaxana leapt at the chance to marry Campio in “Cost of Living,” we see she’s made the same mistake with Jeyal in “The Muse,” except now there’s a baby involved. The most irritating facet of Lwaxana’s personality is how man-hungry she always seems to be. It always clouds her perception, making her make bad decision after bad decision, and worse: making her compromise who she is.

—

Give it up for Majel Barrett Roddenberry, who could really do it all. Stick around next week for more kickass recurring characters on the Enterprise-D, and for our continued ride through the series Enterprise over on SoundCloud or wherever you podcast. You can also send us love notes over on Facebook and Twitter, but stop marrying every eligible dude you meet!

[shrapnelbomb]

My favourite be like

[starwriterulia]

Tomb of the Goshenite Stargazer Dragon - Chapter 1

THIS FANFICTION CONTAINS HEAVY SUBJECT MATERIAL THAT MAY TRIGGER READERS WITH ANXIETY, DEPRESSION AND PTSD. CHAPTERS 1-4 INCLUDE DISCUSSION OF:

PHYSICAL DISABILITY ASSOCIATED WITH ROBINOW SYNDROME,

REACTIVE ATTACHMENT DISORDER AND ITS CONNECTIONS TO THE AUTISM SPECTRUM,

CHILD ABUSE WITHIN FOSTER CARE,

PARENTAL NEGLECT POST-ADOPTION,

LOSS OF INNOCENCE DUE TO INTERNET EXPLORATION,

AND THE LOSS OF AN ADOPTIVE PARENT.

FURTHERMORE, SOME CHAPTERS CONTAIN 18+ CONTENT.

Bat divider by @violetbudd

Creator support banner by @cafekitsune

Latest revision: August 18, 2024. Added "Support your creators by reblogging" banner. Revised story Description following recent developments in the story, and moved it to Masterlist. Added Chapter summary. Added ⏭️ emoji below end of chapter banner with text explaining its function as a navigational button.

Chapter summary: Ra's brings Faith Lawson to Wayne Manor, and gives Bruce sufficient information about herself and Thalassic Space, then Faith sends Bruce home via a door that appeared in the Holding Room Ra's was in, in Platonia.

Fandoms: DC Comics, Batfamily, no Batcest, Thalassic Space (OC; takes inspiration The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Assassin's Creed: Black Flag, Silent Hill 2, Silent Hill 3, and other sci-fi, fantasy and horror titles, as well as original concepts, such as the science and lore of the galaxy.)

[In order of appearance] Characters: Bruce Wayne (Batman), Faith Lawson (TBA; self-insert) J'onn J'onzz (Martian Manhunter), Carter Hall (Hawkman), Shiera Sanders (Hawkgirl), Diana Prince (Wonder Woman), Urania (OC), Ra's al Ghul, Damian Wayne (Robin), Tim Drake (Red Robin), Barbara Gordon (Batgirl), Dick Grayson (Nightwing), Stephanie Brown (Spoiler).

Word Count: 9700+ / 11, 682 (post-revision on July 24. Seriously.) 4092 (July 30 revision. MUCH better.)

Content warnings: Mild depiction of blood; Urania talks about the murder of Ulia and her lover, a trans boy, both who were mutilated, and Ulia's corpse was raped; Faith talks about her adoptive father's death; Faith talks about the high school knee injury that sowed anxiety and depression in her life; Faith talks about her harrowing foster care experience, in which she was given Benadryl instead of proper discipline and attention.

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2

Saturday, February 10, 2024. 1:12 AM.

Batman meditated at the bottom of the left stairs in the great hall of Wayne Manor, the soft lights kept on during the night alight creating spots of amber in the dark. A woman with a light soprano voice groaned in pain and coughed violently behind him, from the study door, and continued to cough as she entered the great hall. She heaved and gasped for air while approaching him. ‘She has the seasonal flu.’ Batman noted. He turned his head to observe.

The young woman was ivory white, 4'6" tall, and had uncombed, mid-chest length black hair, three inches of ash blonde grown out at the top. She had a round face, a bulbous nose, hazel green eyes, dark circles, and dark, thick brows. She wore a black T-shirt and black pyjama pants with white ghosts, and light grey socks. She walked with a slight limp and carried a navy-blue duffle bag with golden letters spelling NVSS.

'I don't recognise that school. Her arms come to her upper thigh. Her biceps and forearms are about five centimetres long. She has dwarfism.' Her feet were wide, the arch of her right foot high. 'That can’t be her only injury that required operation. Her limp tells me she’s overexerted herself tonight and that she might have had a knee injury, which might have been caused by her dwarfism.'

Her chest was a C cup, she had thick thighs and 'A nice ass, I won't deny that.' There was an open cut on her right forearm. 'The item or weapon the villain used to cut the young woman activated her magic, displayed as the thin layer of white-blue light around her right hand. She stopped the attack and sent the villain away, likely to some kind of pocket dimension, giving her time to pack some belongings. But because of her disability and the villain possessing the item, she had to come along.'

'Also, this villain knows Batman's identity. They brought her here to get on my nerves. Narrows down the list by a lot. My guess is Ra's al Ghul.' Batman interacted with his gauntlet to begin an audio recording that he broadcast to the Watchtower. Martian Manhunter, Hawkman and Hawkwoman were on location, the latter two approaching the monitor.

The woman said, "Hi."

"Hello." Batman replied. He stood and climbed the steps to stand in front of the woman. "What’s your name?"

"Faith Lawson. I'm from Earth-33, and I'm twenty-four years old. September 4th, 1999, is my birthday."

Batman said, "Nice to meet you, Faith. Welcome to Earth Prime. Are you from British Columbia, Canada, by chance?"

"I am! Um, would you please help me?" From the study, a man screamed, his voice travelling with numerous wild screeches.

Batman noticed the light around the woman’s hand brighten. 'It must be managing her nausea while she needs to talk.'

The young woman said, "Oh, Platonia just acted on the last request I had, in case he cut himself with it, thinking it would give him control of Platonia. He's been brought to a Holding Room. No windows or doors, just a timeout. Time passes at half-speed in Platonia, and he's durable, so we don't need to worry about him dying."

'Not sure I believe that.' Thought Batman.

The computer of the Watchtower announced, "Welcome, Wonder Woman and Urania." Urania was a ivory white skinned woman with black, curly hair and dark brown eyes, wearing a toga and Greek sandals.

"Is she safe?" Said Urania

"She seems to be. Sounds like she has the flu, though." Hawkwoman said, walking back to Hawkman and Martian Manhunter with Wonder Woman and Urania.

"Welcome to the Watchtower, Urania of Pierian Spring. Please, tell us about your daughter." Said Martian Manhunter, as Wonder Woman, Hawkwoman and Urania stopped nearby Martian Manhunter and Hawkman.

"Sorry, one minute, Faith." Batman said the young woman, pointing to his ear.

"Oh, you're probably listening to the Watchtower, where Urania just arrived, right?"

"Yes, I am. Sorry, Watchtower. Urania, you may continue."

Urania said, "Thank you. In her previous life, 687 years ago, Faith was born as Ønske, sired by Víðarr and birthed by Skuld, and named by the Allfather, Odin. Skuld and Víðarr were too duty-bound to raise her, so Freyja and Freyr fostered her. The summer she was fourteen, Ønske saved a dragon pup from poachers on Vanaheim during a new moon, and returned the pup to its mother. The pup, Skinne, had a body of goshenite, a pink right eye, a yellow left eye, and pink and yellow stargazer lilies on her wings. Her mother, Frodig, was fluffy with pink fur and yellow eyes, and her father, Skjør, was made of white diamonds and had eyes of pink quartz."

"Frodig merged Skinne with Ønske to bestow Ønske with her Dragon Persona, the Goshenite Stargazer Dragon. That autumn, Ønske met Danu, the Fairy Queen of the Celts, after saving a coven of human fairies from Catholic witch hunters using seiðr and draconic illusions. From Danu, Ønske was given a Fairy Persona named Solas, whose firery sunrise wings turned black with dazzling white stars if Solas stood under a new moon. At fifteen, Ønske hunted with Freyja in Jotunheim for the troll-wolf beast called Blokkere, whose eyes and horns burned blue fire like the Naglfar. He was a pet of the pirate warlock Ebony Giant Elf named Bartholomew, who made himself captain of the Naglfar with his dark magic, eldest of the three sons of the Fallen Angel Nerobzal, once the Court Fool of Yahweh named Erophael. Oh, shall I tell you his story, as well? It is relevant."

"I don't see why not." Said Martian Manhunter.

"When Roman Emperor Nero committed suicide, Erophael laughed. Because it was not for joy but out of mockery for Nero's pathetic life, all life on Earth began to destroy itself. Yahweh banished Nerobzal to the Ninth Circle of Inferno, where Lucifer told Nerobzal about the white door behind Lucifer that no angel, demon or sinner had ever been able to open. Lucifer said that Nerobzal could claim whatever was beyond it, if he suceeded. There was a rather alarming situation involving the abomination living in the Perimeter of the Ninth Circle and Lilith that required the full attention of the angels, demons and Demon Hunters, who all ended up fighting each other. Nerobzal was freed by a kiss-ass demon who loved Lucifer, and Nerobzal skid on the ice towards the door. When he touched it, he knew what to do. Ulia, would you mind telling us the ritual?"

"Sure! So, the Domain of Platonia is a fortress entity inspired by the Navidson hallway from House of Leaves surrounded by the Skybox from the Team Fortress 2 ARG Project Skybox, defined as Julian Barbour’s platonia, a hypothetical entity containing every possible momentary configuration of the universe, primarily accessed via a door opening ritual inspired by the Doom II mod MyHouse.wad. Domains can also be created as a sailing ship or spaceship. I've had the idea of Platonia for about a year."

Urania said, "When you were a demigoddess, you knew about it for three years, until your death."

"MyHouse.wad reintroduced me to House of Leaves, and Platonia inspired the other two types of Magical Occupancies in Thalassic Space. Realms are moon planets created by gods, demons, demigods and demi-demons for magic people, which are Astral, Snow, Ebony and Fir Elves, Oak Dwarves, Spruce Humans, and anthropomorphic people, which include Felidae, Canidae, Lacertilia, Chiroptera and, ha ha, lemme, lemme say this a little slower so I don't get it wrong: Cyprinodontiformes,"

"That was pretty good!" Said Hawkman.

Faith laughed as she finished the sentence. "To live on with the creator. Plains are magic islands that can have shores on multiple planets at once, and are inhabited by magical creatures and humanoids, such as fairies, unicorns and Dragon Kin, namely Dragon Form people, along with dragons who do not have a humanoid form, and monsters and beasts who may have a humanoid form."

Batman hummed. "I'm with Project Skybox and MyHouse.wad. Tim went on a long rant about both of them, when they were trending."

"Oh, good, that saves me som time. In Thalassic Space, Platonia will also appear if someone does that ritual, or places their left hand on the door, knocks five times, and then opens the door. The ritual can be undone by doing the same with your right hand on the door after closing the door." Batman hummed.

"The Departed are ghouls original to Thalassic Space who serve the Four Princes of Hell. If enter Platonia without the ritual, the Departed and Umbrella Man will find you. When Platonia realised my aductor is a demon, it stopped being aggressive after he found the Nordic iron doors to my dragon tomb. Well, the Departed are surely trying to eat him, but Ra's is durable."

"Ra's al Ghul. I thought so. Not many of my villains know my identity, or would go so far as to bring a would-be victim into my home."

"Yeah, we had a wet dream where I was in his bed. He said I was perfect: a girl who looked like I do, had a creative mind, and, he assumed, powers that he could manipulate. I closed my eyes with a tired, amused hum, ya know, 'cause it was a lucid dream, and weird things happen all the time. I tried to let the episode end and take me somewhere else. But my Role was transferred to my Nero Persona, a jumpscare girl with a kuchisake-onna smile named Odeya. She had other ideas about how to end the dream. She poked her head from under the bed, told Ra's how to open a Door to Platonia, and then he woke up in front of his closet door and did the ritual."

"He could manipulate your mind, too."

"Oh, I know. If he wasn't evil, I'd be into him. I'm asexual panromantic. I don't need to explain my undying love for gender expression, but I will say that one thing I've learned from playing The Lord of the Rings Online and meeting Preston is that sometimes older men and women are pretty awesome. They can be patient, romantic and wise. Those are like, my favourite parts of a person that aren't physical. I love looking at facial features, followed by shoulders, back and hips, hoo mama!" Faith tilted her head back as she said this, and laughed. Urania and Wonder Woman giggled. "You obviously know asexuality is a spectrum, so I don't need to explain that." Batman nodded, humming. "I also have a personality disorder called Reactive Attachment Disorder."

"I’m familiar."

"My foster parents did the damage. My adoptive parents tried, but they couldn't gentle parent me for long, so my dream world version of my mom is cruel."

"What about your dad?"

"He passed in November 2021 from an aortic dissection. He was a good man. We all miss him."

"I’m sorry for your loss."

"Thank you. Anyway, we can just go in the room, I'll open the door, tell the Departed to leave with a gift of my hair and blood, and then the old man can take the door home. We'll see him again when we see him again. If he finds me in my next dream, I'll try just send him home? W-We'll see. Have Zatanna on speed-dial."

"I'll do that, Faith. Thank you." Faith nodded.

"You were saying, Urania?" Said Hawkman.

"Yes, thank you. After eight long hours, Blokkere was slain, but Ønske's left leg and lower back were brutally wounded. As Freyja held Ønske, she had a vision that urged her to leave with Ønske for Pierian Spring, in the forest on the back side of Mount Olympus. They arrived under a full moon, and Freyja begged for Ønske to live and walk again in exchange for the muse who would accept to become Ønske's mentor. My sisters and I had foreseen their arrival and Ønske's future as Faith, and agreed that I was best suited. When I healed her, I bestowed upon her the name Ulia Χαμένος (Chaménos), meaning 'lost', as tribute to the people of Thalassic Space whom she would go on to protect. I prefer to call her Ulia, as you have surely noticed."

"For four years, Ulia travelled with Freyja and Freyr or with me and my sisters around the Nine Realms and Ancient Greece. She was even invited to Paradiso, the summer of the first year, and the archangel Uriel greeted her as patron angel and bestowed Ulia her mortal name and story, which she would be reborn as. The Yule of her nineteenth year was spent on Mount Olympus, and among its guests was a elf-eared, silver dragon-skinned transgender prince with white hair and blue eyes named Argophael. He was sired by Menoetius from Opus and birthed by Danu, Fairy Queen of the Celts, but stolen as a babe by Bartholomew, which my sisters and I did not know of, nor had heard about from the Norns. Zeus revealed it was secret because Bartholomew had taken planet Bafsina of Thalassic Space hostage, but it could be freed now that Argophael can fufilled his quest to arrive at Yule. Zeus told that Argophael was Ulia's Animus and one true love, but it was an ill-fated love, as Bartholomew would now not only hunt Argophael, but Ulia."

"Argophael gifted Ulia a snowglobe depicting a galaxy containing a white-blue O-type star to the north, an asteroid belt of goshenite to the east of the star, a black hole that I knew to be Sagittarius A* to the south, and an asteroid belt of obsidian to the west of the black hole. Ulia kissed Argophael, and a yellow G-type star and a red M-type star appeared in the galaxy, colliding with the O-type star and sending a massive wave of energy into space, creating a solar system like Earth's before the G- and M-type stars merged and became the "vampire" companion of the O-type star that it had been missing. Ulia and Argophael slept together that night, and the next morning drew the first chalk-portal to Thalassic Space on a wall of Mount Olympus. They travelled for three years, sending letters frequently, and settled in the Puzzle Tower at the Carnival of Seasons of White Sun Harbour on the moon planet Realm of Tree Peoples. This is where the Ebony Elves, Oak Dwarves and Spruce Humans of Thalassic Space came from. Astral Elves came from the Lightless Realm, ruled wisely by the second son of Nerobzal, Krampus, before he was tainted by the Fool's Poem, written by Nerobzal after he escaped into Platonia."

"The Fool's Promise was the self-mutilation that those who read the poem aloud with hatred in their heart would undergo to submit themselves to him, and join Nerobzal's army of undead, dark sorcerers, and evil vampires and werewolves. Snow Elves came from the Lightful realm, ruled by the youngest son of Nerobzal, Santa Claus, until they and Santa fled with the Astral Elves for the three original planets of Thalassic Space, Yotutrnaeyl, Bafsina and Grace, after Krampus was lost to the Fool's Poem. Last of the Tree Peoples, Fir Elves came from the Realm of Album, and in the northern sea of which was the island called the Sanctuary of Gla'si where the first unicorns and pegasi of Thalassic Space were born from the womb of Epona, sired by Helios."

"Bartholomew murdered Argophael and Ulia as they were enjoying the night life of the Carnival from the balcony of my tower. It was an air assassination committed with Bartholomew’s black ebony sword aflame with the blue fire of the Naglfar. The cat anthropomorphs who maintained the Puzzle Tower and filled with the sounds of their own children and challenge tours for carnival guests found the lovers the next morning. Argophael's body had been mutilated, his face and the skin of his hands and feet removed as he died. Bartholomew raped Ulia's as she bled out, and seared her arms, legs and stomach with the fire of his sword."

"Gods, that's horrible." Said Wonder Woman.

"The cats restored their bodies and laid them in the sarcophagus in the final room of the dragon tomb Freyja and Freyr prepared, at the command of the Norns, after Ulia had recieved her Dragon Persona. The tomb was filed with draugr and traps."

Faith said, "My dragon tomb is actually a dungeon. It's Saarthal from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim."

"Hm." Said Wonder Woman, with a smile. "It sounds like you had fun creating all of this, Faith."

"Oh. It's obvous, isn't it?"

"Oh, it is, but that's not a bad thing."

Batman asked, "How long have you been working on Thalassic Space?"

"Since my dad died."

"You’re unpublished?"

"Yes. The Double Eight of Thalassic Space will be my first. It's been taking a while because of depression and other things related to being an adult on income assistance who's only been employed for a year now."

"I think it'll be a hit." Said Wonder Woman.

"Aw, thank you!"

Urania said, "The last room takes a deviation from Saarthal, however. A massive, beautiful stone bridge where friends and family left letters and gifts connects the doors to an island surrounded by water from Pierian Spring. The island hosts the sarcophagus of Ulia and Argophael, as well as the sarcophagi of ten Dragon Priests."

Faith said, "For context, usually one is enough to pose a challenge."

"To exit without retracing your steps, you have to solve one of four puzzles. That will return you to the surface of the Plain of Ulia and Argophael, in the southern waters of the Realm of Tree Peoples. And that, ladies and gentles,"

"And non-binary peoples!" Faith chimed in.

Urania laughed. "Yes, them too, is a comprehensive retelling of how Ønske Ulia Chaménos lived and died."

"Thank you for sharing the story with us, Urania. And you, Faith, for your assistance." Said Martian Manhunter.

"What can I say? Storytelling is my passion! Oh. Ha ha. Mother. Guess what I still have to tell them, after I send Ra's home?"

"What do you feel is necessary, daughter?"

"The Dream World on Paper, and how, through it, I'm the Great Little Starwriter and Playwright of the Rondo Theatre." She said at half volume, making eye contact with Batman, "I prepared too much, in four years."

"You might have. It's all solid, though."

"Thank you!"

Urania said, "Yes, Ulia. You should tell them that, too."

"OK!" Faith said, cheerfully. "Into the study we go." Faith and Batman went into the study. There was a new white door on the far wall.

Batman said, "The window is gone."

"It will come back, once we end the ritual." Faith led Batman to the door. She pressed her left palm to the door and knocked on it five times with her other hand, left hand glowing neon orange as she knocked. Two seconds passed. Five knocks sounded from the inside. Faith opened the door. Before Batman and Faith was a long stone hallway with a bend to the right.

"Platonia, do you understand me?" An upwards grumble from the walls. "Please show us where you're Holding Ra's al Ghul. Thank you." Four seconds passed. The walls moved towards the exit, then rightwards for several seconds before opening to a small room with a four-foot-tall ceiling. Ra's was crouched and slashed his sword towards eight naked humanoids with pale grey dry skin devoid of genitals, hair and eyelids. The goshenite dragon tooth, the size of a pomegranate, laid on the ground near Ra's’ feet.

"Hello, Departed." Faith said. The creatures snapped their heads towards her. They had monochrome irises and neon red pupils. "That is enough. Leave my dragon tooth at my feet and return to the Underside. You may take a little bit of my hair and blood as payment. Thank you."

Instantly, the Departed scattered, phasing through the concrete walls. Three tried to bite Ra's arms and legs while Ra’s roared and fought them off. One Departed used this commotion to take the dragon tooth, and hurried to the entrance, stopping inches in front of Faith and placing the item down. Faith's cheeks rose in a smile. She crouched on her left knee, picked up the tooth in her left hand, and cut off a bit of her hair, offering it in her left hand while gently dragging the tooth along the wound on her arm to draw blood.

Batman kept an eye on Ra's. The demon sat, bewildered and out of breath, watching Faith and the Departed. Faith said, "You may drink for three seconds and share it with your kin."

"Thzaznank yabozuz." The warped voice of the Departed said. It took Faith's hair into its right hand. It made eye contact with Faith, pausing. Batman saw a spark of ill-fated attraction in her eyes. The Departed held Faith's wrist with its left hand and bit into her wound and began to drink.

Martian Manhunter said, "I don't recognise that language."

Hawkman said, "Probably because it's from Faith's fictional galaxy."

"Once fictional, now realised." Hawkwoman said.

"Precisely so." Said Urania.

Batman muttered into his gauntlet, “It’s a letter substitution language. It said, "Thank you."."

As Batman whispered to the League, Faith said, "Ow." And hissed. Seconds passed. "You are out of time."

The Departed separated its mouth from Faith's arm and licked its thin lips. "Yabozuz tazsrte delabiciouzs."

"You taste delicious." Batman quietly translated.

"I'm glad you enjoyed. Take care, now."”" Faith bowed her head.

The Departed mirrored the gesture. "Goz'dbzyabe." It turned and scampered away and to the right, phasing through the wall.

"That was “Goodbye.", obviously." Batman said.

"That door behind you will take you home, Ra's." Said Faith. "You've been given mercy by the Domain of Platonia, and the Nero Spirits who serve the Princes of Hell. Nightmares will burden you for two weeks, then one of the ghouls who just harassed you will visit you a quarter after one o'clock in the morning and offer to take your memories and knowledge of Thalassic Space in return for peace. Pursue my power again and you'll meet more of the evil and good forces of the galaxy, and me, with practice of my powers."

"You're fucking mad, girl." Ra’s smirked. "You could make this easier for both of us if you had just laid there and let me use you."

"I don't like men who don’t know boundaries. You're hundreds of years old, so there’s no point in trying to teach you. I'll just keep sending you home with blue balls." Ra's growled, got on his feet and opened the door. "Have a good night." Faith said, in a friendly tone.

"Goodnight." Ra's said, grumpily. He entered the door and closed it behind him. Faith sighed, closed the Door to Platonia, and repeated the ritual with her right palm, emitting white-blue light, on the door and her left hand on the doorknob. Batman noted that her hand stopped glowing, idly. The window returned.

"How was that?"

"That was good. Thank you." Faith nodded. "You can take any of the guest rooms on the right side of the next floor. I'll have Damian bring some tea up for you, and I'll bring you soup and medicine in the morning."

"Thank you." Faith walked out with Batman. She grumbled in pain as she began to climb the stairs.

Martian Manhunter asked Urania, "Will you be visiting your daughter tonight, Urania?"

"No. I will visit once she has had sufficient rest," Urania made claws with her fingers, pointed together and posed as if holding a rock melon sized ball. A golden celestial globe appeared in the space her hands had made. Urania grabbed it, and offered it to Martian Manhunter, who readily accepted it. "Or if she needs me when you are unable to reach Zatanna for magic control."

"That sounds all well and good, Urania. Thank you again." Martian Manhunter offered to shake Urania's hand.

Urania accepted the gesture. "You are welcome. Goodnight, all." She said, leaving the room with Wonder Woman. "And goodnight, Ulia!"

"Goodnight, Mother!"

"Robin?" Said Batman, stopping in the hallway as Faith entered the first guest room and turned on its light.

"Yes, Father?" Robin appeared from the shadows of the upstairs floor, close to where Batman stood.

"Would you please make Faith ginger tea with honey?"

"Yeah, OK."

"Thank you." Batman followed Faith into the bedroom.

Click emoji to navigate to next chapter. ⏭️

[soranatus]

Martian Manhunter by Colin Cracker

[pocketramblr]

... hey guys does infinite crisis uh. start on father's day