The Inexpressible Nature of Ultimate TruthIn a world populated by nearly eight billion souls, each one of us carries within the potential to encounter the ultimate truth, the absolute essence of reality that lies beyond the reach of ordinary perception. Yet, even if every individual were to experience this profound truth firsthand and attempt to articulate it through words, symbols, or metaphors,…
(Time for something a little more lighthearted/found family. Could probably also make this a crack prompt instead.)
(#) = Notes at the end of post
(*) = Just me building off of other ideas.
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Visitation Rights
When Danny went to list Dani/Ellie as his heir after she'd come back from her years of traveling the world, he was quickly informed that he already had one in line for the thrown.
"What? Since when?!"
The pretentious, floating eyeball looked like he wanted to be anywhere else other than here, providing information to King Phantom, but explained anyway.
"The day you officially achieved royal status, you permanently linked your being to the Infinite Realms. When this happened, however, a child was in the process of being created with the assistance of ectoplasmic runoff that's been leaking into the mortal world for centuries. As a result of your power being incorporated into the Realms at such a time, this human child retained an imprint of your core signature. The Infinite Realms itself has recognized this child as your offspring. Your... other offspring has yet to be recognized in such a way and would therefore be considered your second heir once claimed."
Danny stared at the Observant with wide, blank eyes that were slowly filling with dread and panic.
"Why are you just telling me this now?? My coronation was over a decade ago!" He held his face in his hands and gave a horrified groan at what he just learned.
"If you really wanted that clone as your heir, I'm afraid it's too late to change it-"
Danny's head shot back up with a snarl and furious green eyes.
"That's not what I'm upset about you walking cataracts! Eleven years! I've missed eleven years of this kid's life!! How could you think I-"
At a loss for words, he growled deep in his chest. Deep enough that it echoed throughout the halls and rattled the floors.
"Who is this kid, and where can I find them?"
Once given the information and learning of the child's other parental figures, he gets to work. A few weeks later, he appears in the home office of a well-known billionaire with a stack of papers that he promptly slams onto the desk in front of the startled man. (1)
"I demand visitation rights to our son, Damian Wayne."
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(1) Danny actually visited Talia first to get visitation rights. Needless to say, that didn't go very well. He's still got a couple knives floating around in his chest cavity because of it.
(*) ALSO! I'm not sure how this lines up with the DC/Batman timeline. All I figured out is that if Danny waited to be crowned until after he graduated college as an astrophysicist, which take 5 to 7 years, he'd be about 36 years old when he finds out about Damian. Bruce would be about 41, so the age gap is only 5 years. If y'all wanna make this Danny/Bruce, go ahead!
Danny’s accident happens early. Little 6 year old child was left alone in the lab. Instead of popping out on the human side he ends up in the ghost zone.
Only temporarily. A natural portal opens. Dropping 6 year old Danny on top of John Constantine.
After Tucker and Technus became friends and warmed to the idea of developing new technological gadgets together, Danny let the ghost experiment with the existing technology in his house. As long as Technus promised to prevent world domination.
The ghost in question was excited and began to develop a game with the descendant of the Pharaoh, they both assured it would be the best game they had ever seen. However, because the game was set between the world of the living and the Infinite Realms, it wasn't uniquely available to Danny's dimension.
The game went online for all possible dimensions. This very quickly caught the attention of a family of bats a dimension away, who had gathered that day for the typical family bonding game of the week.
Tim noted that the game's graphics were excellent, and he liked the visual scenes, so he recommended it. Jason and Damian were excited by the gameplay, Dick and Steph were absolutely thrilled to find out that the characters were customizable and you could carve some character lines into them, Cass was happy that it seemed to be an open world adventure and Duke liked the story the game had for those who were interested.
The game became popular quickly, but the creators seemed to be nowhere to be found, which was quite strange. The family decided that they would play it anyway.
Tim out of boredom decided to hack the game, he was surprised when the digital security walls were reinforced and a symbol resembling a combined DP on bright green was displayed on his screen.
He showed his siblings the symbol but none of them were familiar with it. In the end, he found nothing about it and decided to complain to his friends online.
That's how Team Phantom ended up listening to Batfam's lengthy speech about the game's mysterious ghost creator. Danny couldn't help but laugh at the unintentional pun. Too bad he couldn't meet his new friends, who kept insisting they lived in "Gotham", he supposed they would eventually tell him.
Following the close of a galaxy-spanning war, the members of FIXER, a slapdash special forces team, are no longer needed. Washed up and no longer having a purpose, they now find themselves sent on useless mission after useless mission. They pass their time by complaining and doing whatever they can to stave off boredom. However, on this newest assignment, they slowly and unwittingly begin to uncover a strange mystery. Each member will be tested - whether by sheer monotony and boredom of military life or else by the unfathomable dangers lurking just beneath.
Thinking about "your weakness is how you always want to be the hero" and how the series returns to this at the end
Li Lianhua hated how he acted as Li Xiangyi and spent years trying to distance himself from it, but ultimately he still fell back into the similar patterns, for all his added experience
His main priority was always to "do the right thing" regardless of how that would impact on those around him. And it *did* impact those around him. From Qiao Wanmian and Shan Gudao as Li Xiangyi to Fang Duobing and Di Feisheng as Li Lianhua
Giving the Styx flower to the emperor so he could use it as leverage to guarantee Fang Duobing and his family's safety. Using the last of his power to save Yun Biqiu. Constantly putting others above himself whilst actively refusing to recognise that his self-sacrificial nature would hurt those he cared about most
And sure, he thinks he's going to die anyway. They're going to be hurt regardless and he can't do anything about that. His odds are low of the Styx flower even working. But ultimately, he refuses to even consider trying. Li Xiangyi has been dead a long time and Li Lianhua is just there to tide things over. What value is the life of a ghost
To the end, he lives and dies a hero. To the end, he refuses to live for himself.
Dean's name in small print underneath... they've always worked at the same casinos. Las Vegas is not as big as New York. How can I think that they never met?
Photo credit: Morgan Christopher
crylaughing li lianhua why are you cheerfully watering the plants at a place you don't live in. while the people who do live there are watching. PLEASE