all_powerfull (all_powerfull) wrote in dc_nextgen,
@ 2010-10-19 00:21:00

Entry tags:

After the Death of Gods, what's left to say?
Ty didn't spend much time in Atlantis. His wounds weren't physical, and Arthur quickly made it clear that Ty was somehow to blame for all of this, and wasn't welcome. Not near him, not in Atlantis, and not near the body of the Princess. And no, she was not coming to the surface for burial or anything else.

He's been in his workshop ever since. Now and then he tries for some semblance of order, trying to put the dust and scraps back together into pieces, and pieces into something vaguely recognizeable as machinery. Trying to reassemble his star charts, his blackboard full of equations, his notebooks full of warp theory calculations. It never goes far... either things just don't reassemble right, or frustration kicks in and he destroys it all over again.

After all, that's what he does. He destroys, he loses. All the power in the world, all the powers in the world... control over time, and he was too late. The might of a god, and everything slipped through his fingers. One of the greatest psychic wills in existence, and he still lost control. And worst of all, brilliant minds, use of 90 percent of his brain and total recall... letting him relive and replay every instant. Every minute detail. Every sound, every sight. Reviewing everything he should have done over and over.

They'd been so close. Vacation, normalcy, holidays with his mother now that, with Cait's help, he had achieved a semblance of control. His plans for Christmas... and now it was all gone.

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whydowescream
2010-10-19 08:00 am UTC (link)

"Okay," Ruth says calmly. "You're right about not losing control. But the 'not using telepathy because you're afraid he's still there' thing can't go on indefinitely. I'm sure you know that. If you think it's a serious problem, maybe we can get another telepath to come listen." A deep breath. "Or maybe you could just try something real simple and see how it handled."

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	all_powerfull 2010-10-19 08:08 am UTC (link)
	He considers. "I've been working on getting used to telekinesis again. I don't think I'm ready for telepathy... this manifest was... it was different. I've never felt such... not even evil. Just... emptiness. I couldn't do anything but watch... I didn't... I couldn't have done that." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-19 08:14 am UTC (link)
	"You were in really serious shock when it happens. I don't know anything about how you normally manifest, but it's not that surprising that it would be a pretty hard break, really disassociated from your normal self." "Practicing what you can a little at a time sounds good." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

all_powerfull
2010-10-19 04:29 pm UTC (link)

Anything else to talk or think about, even manifestations, is good. "Its always a little different. Usually its just that its me, but with a new power that goes out of control. So, like, Chemo just means I'm spilling toxic chemicals everywhere and poisonous, and can't stop. Then sometimes, when its part of who they are, I get some quirks... like, Captain Stingaree's powers are that Captain Stingaree is a pirate... so I went all pirate. The Riddler's 'powers' are being an annoying git, so I had to ask someone a stupid riddle. This one... it was like I totally became... it."

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	whydowescream 2010-10-19 05:48 pm UTC (link)
	"So you generally end up with a power you didn't know you had before, or just couldn't access before?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

all_powerfull
2010-10-19 08:43 pm UTC (link)

He nods. "My own powers are technically sort of like my father's and grandfather's, except that I copied the people my mom was around before I was born. I can use the powers of the heads of the society... her main associates, but the other 200-some members... I've copied them, at least apparently, but I can't access their abilities intentionally. When I get too stressed, the absorption cells brings one of them up, seemingly at random. I get their abilities... and sometimes more, depending on the person. Because of the overload, I can't copy any new abilities either."

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	whydowescream 2010-10-19 09:05 pm UTC (link)
	Ruth listens and nods. "With 200 people, that definitely makes sense." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	all_powerfull 2010-10-19 09:37 pm UTC (link)
	"Yeah, its a wonder sometimes that its not worse. Amazo limits out at about a dozen powersets, and that's the most advanced one we know of. My father was somewhere around the same. But that may partly have been less a matter of hard limits, and more safety protocols." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-20 04:35 am UTC (link)
	"It sounds like good plan, if it was. I realize it's a purely academic point for you." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	all_powerfull 2010-10-20 04:53 am UTC (link)
	He sighs. "Ivo is a genius. Even now, roboticists still don't know how half his technology works. Of course, he was always trying to push his limits... hence my father." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-20 05:14 am UTC (link)
	Ruth nods a little. That whole thing really was very unusual and hard to follow. "Did you ever know your father?" she asked. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	all_powerfull 2010-10-20 05:18 am UTC (link)
	He shakes his head. "He committed suicide less than a month after he met my mother. He never knew she was pregnant. He was so troubled, trying to determine what he was... human, machine, hero, villain... I can't help but think if he had known, it might have helped some of that." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-20 05:20 am UTC (link)
	"I can definitely see what you mean," Ruth says quietly. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	all_powerfull 2010-10-20 05:31 am UTC (link)
	"Yeah, I'd always wondered. I mean, he and my mother weren't that close for long, so I don't know what would have happened, even had he survived." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-20 05:35 am UTC (link)
	"Always hard to say," she agrees. "Easy to speculate about what might have happened, but hard to say." A long pause. "Iris says the Titans have certain memorial traditions," she says quietly, simply. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	all_powerfull 2010-10-20 05:52 am UTC (link)
	"I'm glad that there'll be something, at least. Arthur isn't going to let me attend the funeral." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-20 05:54 am UTC (link)
	She listens and nods. "So when do you think you'll be comfortable getting out of this room?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	all_powerfull 2010-10-20 06:19 am UTC (link)
	"I don't know... even if I will. I mean, sure, eventually, but with no ground... and this on edge, I don't think its safe." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

whydowescream
2010-10-20 06:27 am UTC (link)

"Well, we both know you can't just sit here indefinitely wondering which of your powers will turn on you when. Can you explain again why the telepathy is scaring you more than, say, the telekinesis? I understand that the guy from your last manifestation was horrific, and you're worried about something lingering, but what do you think'll happen if you talk in somebody's head?"

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all_powerfull
2010-10-20 06:36 am UTC (link)

"Because... when he was in charge, he talked to Oceanus like he wasn't done. I can't tell what, or why, or exactly how... but normally when I manifest, there's no 'awareness', just the powers, or some weirdness. He talked like he was making plans, and killing Oceanus was just the beginning. Telepathy... its easier just to shield, close that off until I figure out why this one was so much different. Besides, Cait i...was my anchor. Every time I reach out, she's not there. It just makes it that much more... immediate, I guess."

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whydowescream
2010-10-20 06:46 am UTC (link)

She listens. "Okay. That's understandable. It really, really is. And I'm not trying to rush you too much, just reiterating what we both already know -- that you can't sit here for too long just clamping down on yourself without a plan."

Ruth took a deep breath. "And I don't mean any offense, Ty, and I'm not stupid; I realize that nobody's going to be able to handle it the way Cait did. But I'm sure plenty of us would be very willing to do a little ad hoc grounding when you're feeling like you really need it."

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	all_powerfull 2010-10-20 06:53 am UTC (link)
	"I know... but I don't have a plan. Eventually, maybe. And grounding... I don't want to do that to someone unless its necessary to save the world. Grounding... I form a telepathic link, they take a lot of my stress, worry, emotion... so I can focus. And right now, especially, I don't want to do that to anyone. I know everyone else is dealing with a lot too." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-20 07:07 am UTC (link)
	She listens and nods. "Okay. No small deal there. I stand by the statement that plenty of us would be willing if it came down to it. And remember that things can qualify as an emergency situation before the point when the ice caps melt, turning the seas to lemonade." A Charles Fort joke, Ruth? Really? Now? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	all_powerfull 2010-10-20 07:10 am UTC (link)
	He manages a hint of a smile, though its forced. "I was an emergency reserve before. I'll stay on that status for now. It was already too dangerous to have me along on a lot of missions. Now its just moreso. I appreciate the offer, but I'm hoping its not necessary." As much as he'd really like a reprieve from all the doubt and grief right now. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	whydowescream 2010-10-20 07:16 am UTC (link)
	She nods. "All right. So now, I'm going to get you something to drink. You get to pick what it is." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)