Legion World Forums LEGION OUTPOST Bits o' Legionnaire Business Re: Legion Worlds Six - updated 20 Oct 20

Whoo, nice backstory for Tharok! I like the focus on his intellect

Kid Pulsar’s first Legion outing, showing that he deserves membership. He seems to have shaken off Psyche’s corruption.

I like your mention of the Legionnaires’ refraining from commenting on social issues, but that they also did some scans to satisfy themselves

Totally agree on the Tharok comments; it never really occurred to me how little background we've ever seen before for him, and this really encapsulates the attitude and approach that we're already familiar with from the comics. Reading that interlude really makes me interested in seeing how he's gonna pop up next, excellent work Harbi!

I liked the rescue mission too, I like seeing superheroes do more regular things occasionally. Duplicate Girl and Amynta's reactions in particular were good character work

interlude two:


The explosion destroyed virtually half of his body.

The security forces placed his dying remains into a stasis pod. He would not be allowed to leave the mortal coil just yet, not without public justice being served. The masses would learn that theft of military equipment would not be allowed. The military had their best surgeon personally care for him and over a period of two months they built and attached half of the torso, head and a leg and arm from a servo-droid onto the maimed Tharok.

He would stand public trial and they intended to ensure the local boy from the upper class family that had gone rogue would be thoroughly humiliated in the process of facing the draconian legal system. The masses would see what happened to those that would dare to break their laws.

In an ironic twist it was this humiliation that made him into the truly evil man he was to become. While awaiting trial the military rulers let slip that it had been they that had employed him with the express purpose of catching and putting him on trial. The dictators needed to keep the masses in their filthy place, and what better way than by showing them the cost of crossing their rulers.

In his anger the man who had always believed that he had been born deserving of much more that those around him bitterly plotted his revenge.

The military leaders planned on holding a showcase trial that would destroy the reputation of both the few remaining independent elite along with this one thief that they would claim had betrayed his home world. Tharok knew that he would have at most a couple of months before his trial would begin so he used his incredible intellect to design a potential armory for his servo-droid half. Between his own industrious intelligence and the information he could access through the robotic attachment he set out to build the crude weapons he would need to escape this hellhole once and for all.

And in the process he planned on teaching the militia that had betrayed him the life lesson that there was a reason why he was of the elite and they weren't...

The show trial that should have sealed his fate instead became a massacre of Zadron's military rulers and a large number of their supporters within judiciary and government.

On the day of the trial, within seconds of stepping into the monumental faux-baroque courthouse Tharok accessed the controlling AI and overrid its security protocols, he then disrupted the communications grid, lighting, door access and all alarm systems within. It was simple enough to reprogram the security staff's weapons so they could not target him, instead firing automatically whenever anyone wearing a security uniform got close. The security forces where neither fast nor intelligent enough to stop their own weapons from enacting their own massacre. Tharok also set the automatic air conditioning to suck the air out of every room. In the end he murdered the final twelve survivors with his bare hands, taking great pleasure as his robot hand snapped the necks of each and every one while all the time he broadcast his actions across all local bandwidths to the planet that had once been his home.

He escaped with literally seconds to spare before a large contingent of armed forced and planetary police could capture him, but by then the damage had been done.

As well as being renowned as a thief of some merit Tharok gained the reputation for vengeful ruthlessness.

end interlude two.

Second Base Legionnaires, responding to alarm raised on Mruntis Aljaharam Nix 3

Tyroc – Deputy leader - Troy Stewart of Marzal city pocket dimension, sonic control
Dragonwing - Marya Pai of Earth, breathes dragon fire and acid
Monica Sade of Rimbor - strength, reflexes, line of sight teleportation
Karate Kid – Mithindrivithis Ngandraffa of Lythyl, strength, reflexes, mimetic motor learning giving incredible combat skills

Newly promoted from Home Base Academy (Mentor in brackets):

Bouncing Boy ii - Stoor Chamble of Pasnic - creation of personal spherical force field (Tyroc)

Science Police meta-squad seconded to Legion World Second Base:

Magno - Science Police Officer Dyrk Magz of Braal, manipulation of magnetic fields



Tyroc thought that the alarm coming from a fusion sphere on Mruntis Aljaharam Nix 3 would be a nice quick mission to help integrate the new Science Police Officer from Braal into the group.

The small world was mainly industrial, which wasn't a surprise given its large heavy metal rich mantle and cold climate, and currently had a human population of only just over two million. The automated factories that covered almost half of its land mass produced many common every day items that were used in households throughout the United Planets and other than that generally it wasn't considered either attractive or particularly interesting enough to have many visitors. As it spun around an unexciting red dwarf star so far from the Inner Worlds this really was a prime example of a back water planet.

Henry warped the team into the area from where the alarm had been raised and it was immediately apparent that it was being caused by a group of Sklarian raiders trying to 'liberate' the fusion sphere from the city state grid. The few street lamps that illuminated the night darkened block revealed the thin yellow skinned women as they worked with a singular purpose.

"Hold!" Tyroc barked as his team started to race forward, "I want Eyes an' Ears folks... they ain't seen us yet so let's make sure we get this right, okays?" The current team leader was aware that this was his first time on a mission with the Science Police Officer so needed to know that officer Magz would be fully aware of the situation. It wouldn't hurt Bouncing Boy any as well and Tyroc planned on giving the new Legionnaire every opportunity he had to shine.

"Eyes and Ears" ...a situation report sharing immediate information with all involved.

"Up there, magnetic clamps holding the security drones." Dragonwing pointed up into the shadow of the power sphere. The enormous dome sat tightly in amongst a built up area that looked to be mainly storage or factories. There was very little in the way of decoration or open space. The walls were all dark gray local stone giving the entire place an oppressive feel. Fifteen metres above the Legionnaires a small fleet of magnetic clamps held onto half a dozen security drones. They were almost impossible to see against the dark background so as Tyroc looked up he marveled at what he imagined Marya's eyesight must be like to spot them so quickly.

"Sklarians are on the couplings, there." Science Police Officer Magz reported as he hovered above the group. The team could see a couple of single person crafts with digging tools currently grafting into the small sidewalks.

"An' goin’ By their usual MO there'll be a command craft above. Okay then, Magz... you and Sade get those drones freed, Dragonwing and Karate Kid take out the Sklarians tryin' t' dig the sphere up, Bouncing Boy with me... let's do it!"

Bouncing Boy smiled. He had enjoyed the last three weeks with Tyroc as a mentor. The deputy leader had encouraged the young man at every turn and treated him as an equal to any of his way more experienced teammates. It had been quite a ride! And here they were away on another adventure, this time stopping Sklarian raiders... Stoor Chamble gave a quick mental thanks to his ancestors for allowing him to have so much fun in one lifetime.

The auto defense drones protecting the power sphere had been disabled by a small fleet of floating magnetic clamps usually used in the construction industry. SPO Dyrk Magz, called Magno amongst his teammates, reached out with his Braalian magno-kinesis and neutralized the clamps thereby releasing the security drones which promptly sparked and plummeted to the ground, the clamp's magnetics obviously having disabled some vital electronics within the drone's ceramic shells. With a flick of his hands Dyrk Magz flung the clamps away to crash into the bleak gray walls of the factories around them.

"So, seems I didn't need a hand there, sorry Sade. You wanna go help Marya and the kid?" He smiled as he asked, knowing full well that the former Repo from Rimbor would like nothing better than to kick some Sklarian raider backside. She smiled broadly and gave a salute in response before disappearing with a 'pop!'

While two excavation ships were digging out the conduits around Power Sphere from the sidewalks several Sklarian engineers were working on de-coupling the spheres power conduits that had already been revealed. There was a small group of guards stood nervously around them. Karate Kid and Dragonwing appeared as if out of nowhere as the distorters on the belts camouflaged their approach in the dimly lit street. Blaster fire erupted around the Legionnaires but the two young women were already amongst the guards and within a matter of seconds the eight Sklarian soldiers that had been guarding this site were unconscious. The engineers tried to run away as they saw the carnage erupt around them but Dragonwing proved too fast and fierce for them.

With a 'pop!' Monica Sade materialized beside her colleagues. "Nothin' left for me, eh? You two are just so selfish and mean..." Dragonwing laughed as Karate Kid apologised.

As the three Legionnaires watched, Magno hovered between the two excavation ships. They could feel the change in the air as he reached out again with his incredible abilities and tore both drilling crafts in half before throwing the pieces onto the sidewalk before his teammates. A Sklarian raider crawled out of the wreckage of each of the fallen ships and was quickly dispatched as Monica Sade teleported next to them and slapped incapacity cuffs onto their arms. Magno landed gently beside her and gave a thumbs up sign to his teammates.

"That was fun... wanna look see if we missed anyone else?" SPO Dyrk Magz cheerfully asked. Without waiting for a reply the Sci-cop took to the air again to fly a circuit around the Power Sphere.

"Y'know, he may be a sci-cop an' all but I really like him." Marya Pai said to Monica Sade as she too took to the air to help her new colleague search for any other raiders they might have overlooked.

The Legionnaires found a further sixteen Sklarians and two more excavating crafts. Monica Sade made sure that this time she got to deal with her fair share.

"'enry, we know there's a Sklarian command craft somewhere above us, c'n you help find it and put me an' Bouncy Boy up t'ere?" Troy Stewart said into his flight ring.

The holo-man appeared before Tyroc and smiled. "According to real-time satellite scans there is an unregistered craft approximately 146 klicks directly overhead. Shall I open a warp?"

Tyroc smiled and said yes. Bouncing Boy stood just behind his mentor. The young man from Pasnic could feel his body's cells start to build up energy as he mentally prepared to create his spherical force shield. He would be ready for whatever they found on the craft in high orbit above them.

"Set y'r flight ring to sonic protection mode now Stoor, Ah'm goin' in a-shoutin'!"

Stoor Chamble smiled. It definitely helped the new Legionnaire having the additional audio-protection the flight ring gave him in situations like this. Brainiac 5 had added an app to Stoor's flight ring that neutralised sound under a hour after the young man from Pasnic was matched to Tyroc as his mentor. It meant he wouldn't need to hold back while Troy Stewart unleashed one of his legendary sonic attacks on their opponents.

The honey and violet warp spun into existence and the two Legionnaires dived through.

Three Skarians turned on the Legionnaires as they flew through into a small command deck. Tyroc's scream followed very quickly by Bouncing Boy ricocheting into the raiders meant they were unconscious within seconds of the Legionnaires arrival.

Two of the women had incapacity cuffs snapped on their arms rendering them unconscious. When Stoor approached the third to do the same Troy stopped him.

"Ah need t' ask them why they t'ink this is th' way to get technol'gy."

Bouncing Boy gently lifted the semi-conscious woman onto a swivel chair and turned her away from the control panel so she faced the senior Legionnaire. Moments later she started to groan as she returned to full consciousness.

"Ah wouldn't try anyt'ing as mah colleague has cuffs ready for y' as soon as y' look's if you're gonna do anyt'ing fishy. You und'rstan' me?" The raider glanced over her shoulder as Tyroc spoke. She could see Bouncing Boy stood just behind her with a set of incapacity cuffs in his hand, only inches from her arm.

"Humans... you're all the same. You don't scare me."

"Prob'ly, but then prob'ly not. Listen, why you's doin' this? The United Planets and Sklaria have a contract. You understan' why we ain't givin' you all our tech in one go? We wanna see you int'grated but not before yous're ready. You gotta get used to the tech afore you move to the next t'ing... two or three decades and you got it all."

"You're an idiot. Your kind and your timescales... two or three decades? I'll be long dead and gone by then. I'm almost four of your years now, I've got two... maybe three left. Not all life forms have the same biology as you but you UP liars knew that. You stupid animal! My great grand daughters might see your technology but why should I wait? The Sklarians learn as fast as we live, why should be limited by your slow brains and biologies?" The raider spat at the Legionnaire, her face flushed with anger.

Stoor Chamble felt his head start to spin as the realisation of what the raider was saying sunk in. The Sklaarians, while appearing fully humanoid, had incredibly short lives! For the current generation on Sklaria it would appear as if the United Planets was unnecessarily limiting their access to technology. The wondrous technology that the United Planets had promised then when the peoples of Sklaria had first encountered humans on the edges of their solar system 15 years before wouldn't be shared for at least another three or four generations to the Sklarian population.

Troy Stewart nodded sadly and then shrugged. "Okay. That really wasn't interestin'... blah blah you're th' victim, yeah right. You can cuff 'er now Stoor."

As the raider fell unconscious Bouncing Boy turned to his mentor.

"T-Troy... what she said... d-do you think they think we're intentionally d-delaying helpin' their world?"

"Nah, not at all, ah think they're greedy an' impatient and hide behind the sympathy vote they g't when we hear they ain't too long lived. Their leaders signed th' agreement with the UP back in th' day an' it ain't our place to rip it up though it seems ev'ry new gen'ration o' Sklarian creates more raiders to try th'r luck ag'nst us. Let's call the science Police t' pick these up, check on our teammates then g't home. We're done here."

Tyroc smiled encouragingly at the junior team member before adding, "Good job today Stoor, you did really well again. You're makin' a fine Legionnaire."

Bouncing Boy ii smiled his reply, his thoughts no longer on the apperently tragic short lives of the women he had just cuffed. If Tyroc didn't worry about it then as far as Stoor Chamble was concerned there was no need for him too either.

Everyone, thanks for the appreciation of Tharok's backstory - hope you liked the latest part.

I love writing Lu, so may need to write her out soon before she takes over, though at least there's a good reason why she can appear so often in the various storylines

Originally I had written out a part for Dirk and a few others dealing with the collapsed dam on Ventura but given the horrific news about the people lost after the burst dam in Brazil I've shelved it for now and will recycle the interpersonal moments into a later section.

Omni, meant to reply to you earlier re: Beast Boy - he was shunned on Lallor by all the girls as I assume they didn't feel safe not knowing if it was him in dog form humping their legs so he went mad and kidnapped Legionnaires. Perfectly rational, I agree... he somehow cast illusions making them think he was in some underground cellar then escaped from them once they had escaped from him (and I thought my stories could be unnecessarily convoluted) before dying trying to save a young girl from an attacking monster by turning into a smaller and less threatening monster himself. Totally bonkers, but there you go, Thankfully his nephew won't be quite as erratic, hopefully...

More soon as Ayla deals with thieves on a space-train, Thunder considers a new job, Dawnstar has a problem and we get our first real clue at what Tharok is up to.

Thanks again folks,

C

some great stuff here Harbi, love how you're taking the time to explore (well!) all the various characters in little chunks, pairs and sextets.

Love the idea of teams always having 6 members, even for "easy" missions. One, it's practical; two, it gives lots of chances for some fun new groupings! Magno, like his Reboot counterpart, is such a sunny guy. Dragonwing's enhanced eyesight is a nice addition to her powerset, making her more well-rounded.

Are you trying something new with Tyroc's speech patterns? They seem more pronounced and different now.

Bouncing Boy II - he thinks for himself, but he also places a lot of faith in Tyroc. I wonder if this bit about Sklarians' shorter lives will become a bigger plot point.

Hi, IB thanks again for the kind feedback.

Tyroc's accent is based upon soneone i know who grew up in Jamaica before living in northern England for 10 years. It's fairly a unique accent to put it mildly. It's really difficult to write properly.

The Sklarians seem to show up every few years trying to steal technology in the comic so thought it would be a good idea to come up with a reasonable explanation why, and a short life span vs a long term arrangement with the UP seemed a pretty good idea.

More soon, thanks again

C

I like this new Bouncing Boy's personality; I kinda feel like he could go one of two ways where he either gets himself in trouble blindly following the Legion's ideals over his own or he gets himself in trouble when he becomes experienced enough to stand up for his own ideals more firmly. Either way it will be interesting to see how he develops. The Sklarians having a short lifespan is an interesting concept in and of itself, but I really like how you've used it to kind of subtly show the more Orwellian side of the UP as well. The Legion's future might be basically a utopia, but there's a lot of moral/philosophical questions you have to stop asking yourself to live in a functional utopia.

I really like the way you write Lu, but I get what you mean....it's partially why I wrote her out, there's a temptation to just put her in everything because she's super competent but also a much more realistic personality than a lot of the Legion so it's interesting seeing how she plays off people. Even now that she hasn't been an active part of my Legion for ages, she still has WAY more appearances than any of my other characters lol

Was Dragonwing's eyesight intended to be superhuman or just naturally really good? I like either way, but it's always kind of interesting to see normal variations from character to character along with power variations.

Harbinger vol. 6 is shaping up nicely.

everyone's comments have pointed out this is the first time we've gotten one for him. Something else else i Didn't know and I really enjoyed Tharok's origin story! I love that he comes from a wealthy family who always felt it was his birthright to have the best of the best and it wasn't until the fall of his family that he truly learned anything. This origin kind of makes me think of him in a Lex Luthor kind of way with his superiority complex. it just has that vibe to it. Sometimes it takes a great fall to find out who you were meant to be. Once he becomes a thief and then his people set him up to trap him to get him home to pay for his "crimes" was a great way to showcase his world while still giving his reasons why he made that final turn from petty thief to vengeful murder. I'm looking forward to how this will connect to the next time we see Tharok in the present.

A world that chose not to move forward with their tech beyond the 25th century? hmmm that could be a fun world to explore. Adding in the extinct flora and fauna ...I wonder if there'sa world or worlds where history is preserved completely.

Kidnapping Children to stop taxes? Wow those people must have felt super desperate to do that.
Lu's team was super effective and the idea of The Spear of Artimis walking around being up on people with a smile on her face made me laugh. I can see her skipping through the camp wompping on the soldiers.
I agree with IB Kid Pulsar has shaken off that corruption pretty well. Will we ever see his side of that? maybe some lingering nightmares?
I'm glad the team didn't try to get involved with Government on this world and try to "fix" things. especially after their recent bouts idk how that would go.

The Skilarian raid mission was also well done. I never knew that they had such a short lifespan and it does give real credence to why they are raiders of tech. Especially with that law you'd think it would be taken into account a species life span when introducing them to new technology. If it was then that's kind of cruel to deny them.

Tyroc makes for a good mentor and I like how supporting he is of Bouncing Boy II.
Officer Magno's pretty powerful and cheerful. Things I like.
These two seem to be fitting in pretty well. Even Dragonwing likes him and she doesn't really like anyone. lol.

I love when you give us new flight ring applications and having one that can protect against Tyroc's screams makes so much sense and I love it!

I don't like tyroc's attitude towards the raider he questioned. it seems to cavalier and uncaring. It reeks of the insensitivity and lack of understanding of other sentient species which kind of seems like the antithesis of any Legion motto or training. Even though he points out that the Skarlina leaders are the ones who make the deal that doesn't mean its not a bad deal. I guess I'd just expect more from a deputy leader.

I agree hopefully BBII will learn that he needs to think a little bit for himself.

Can't wait for more!

First Base, refectory on level 22a

Ultra Girl - Li-Fahn Qiong of Xanthu - incredible strength, speed, indestructibility, spaceflight, and projection of force blasts, effectively limited to one at a time
Polar Girl - Mel Lassar of Tharr, cryokinesis

The two young women had joined the team less than a month ago but both already were buzzing from how much they had experienced in that time.

They had both went through training at the academy at the same time and yet had not been particularly close while there. Three weeks ago Ultra Girl had saved Polar Girl's life as they struggled to fight their way through a Tyrrazian cyborg blockade. Polar Girl had received a gut shot that had tore through her uniform and burned her flesh badly. Thunder had told Ultra Girl to use her Red Energy to blast the attacker responsible and then protect Polar Girl until Dr Shakespeare arrived. Afterwards, while Mel recovered in the medi-bay Li-Fahn had visited with a copy of a data crystal giving the full mission log showing how the team broke the blockade to take the Tyrrazian's battle planet from them. After this report Ultra Girl had also stored six new episodes of The Strangest Highways and Byways... Of Space! The Xanthuian knew that this was Polar Girl's favourite program, a semi-autobiographical soap based upon the diaries and journals of the famous 28th century galactic explorer Sir Krystyan Megabong.

After that the short woman from Tharr had been a lot more appreciative of her colleague, while the powerfully built woman from Xanthu had opened up more in response. Two days after that Mel had burst into tears when she had been given permission to return back to her quarters from the Central Medi-Bay on LW2, as it was called then, while Li-Fahn's natural protective urges encouraged her to stay with her obviously upset colleague until she had settled back down. Over the next three weeks they had met each other at some point every day and started to build a solid friendship in the process.

Right now though they were simply having breakfast together before finding out what the Mission Monitor Board had in store for them today. Their fellow former Academy student Jadee Whittakka, Friction, was usually sat with them noisily slurping at her Caffe-pod but today she was already away on a mission... Both Mel and Li-Fahn felt a little bit jealous, but not enough to stop them enjoying their own Caffe-pods and protein steaks... the meals here on Second Base were infinitely better than what they had gotten used to while at the Academy. For one thing they didn't need to slather everything with condiments here just to give it some flavor!

Mel's sly humour and Li-Fahn's pragmatism were not naturally compatible but alongside Jadee's earthy sense of humour and loud laugh the three new Legionnaires had found an unexpected bond building between them.

They were after all the newest Legionnaires on the team. They each were focused on the role they had been given and were doing their absolute best for the team and appreciating every opportunity they had while there. In their own way all three young women had a thirst to live their lives to the absolute max!

And they each took great delight in sharing their happiness with colleagues that were going through the same experience.


While the two young women spoke they were unaware that at that moment in the senior Team briefing room their respective mentors were talking about the two new Legionnaires friendship.

"I'm really glad you suggested pushing those two into working together Cece." Ayla Ranzz smiled at the team's deputy leader.

"They've both got a lot to learn from each other, Mel's determination and Li-Fahn's compassion for starters..." Cecelia Becks smiled back at her Winathian colleague.

"If ever things go wrong here you could easily get a job as a match maker, you know that? You'd make a small fortune." Ayla teased.

"Ha, that would be a laugh." Thunder chuckled as she spoke. Lightning Lass patted her colleague on the shoulder.

Both Legionnaire's flight rings breeped, interrupting their conversation. A holo of Luornu Durgo popped up between them.

"Ayla, we've a mission that needs to leave ASAP... are you free to lead it?"

"Yup, will get down to Henry's room now. No worries Lu."

"Thanks, details to follow though looks like a serious robbery..." With that the holo disappeared as quickly as it had arrived.

"Thanks again Cece, see you around." Ayla said as she rushed out of the Senior Team ready room.

Thunder didn't reply. She was well aware, unlike most of her colleagues, that for all of Lightning Lass' swagger the electric Legionnaire had been struggling over the last few months since she had returned to the team. Losing Salu Digby in senseless battle and her twin having returned to Winath to establish his own family ands fortune meant that Ayla felt uncomfortably alone... a singleton! Something else else that was culturally anathema to one raised on the distant agri-world were twins were the norm.

Perhaps, thought Thunder, taking the role of a match-maker wouldn't be such a bad thing.

XS burst into the cavernous room and saluted Thunder. The extra-dimensional speedster had not long returned from a mission on Ventura and was flush with excitement after its success. Cece and Jenni spoke for a couple of minutes before XS said she had to dash as she was supposed to cover monitor duty for the next six hours. Cece wished her a peaceful shift as she turned to leave.

As Thunder walked out of the side meeting room she checked her chronometer and sped down the corridor. Right now Cece Becks had places to be and other teammates to catch up with... and even some fun to be had.

Match making would need to wait for another day.

Jacques gave Danielle a quick hug and left her sitting on her couch.

He knew that by the time he had reached the door of his sisters apartment that she would be fully immersed into the AI dominated ether of First Base. He had spent the last twenty minutes with her, initially they had spoken about their family and mutual acquaintances before falling into a comfortable silence that had lasted for over ten minutes. Jacques Foccart understood that Danielle appreciated the silent times between them as much as he enjoyed their conversations so was more than happy to sit there with her.

He now had other things on his mind. His trip across to this planetoid was not purely to visit his sister as much as he loved her. There was someone else he needed to see. Drura Sehpt would be finishing her shift in the medi-bay soon and the former Invisible Kid planned on taking her to Earth to experience some West African cuisine at one of his favourite Metropolis restaurants.

First though, Jacques had an old friend to drop in to see. He figured that Professor Querl Dox would feel much more comfortable in his new role as full time Operational Manager rather than being on combat mission status. Still, as Brainiac 5 had removed his icon from the mission monitor boards list of active members that could be called upon for missions it was obvious to those watching that the Coluan had felt a momentary twinge of sadness.

Still, Jacques had been aware that an on-going project that Querl had found enjoyment from was monitoring the flight ring feed from missions, allowing the Coluan genius time to focus on issues that he may have overlooked had he been on the mission and dealing with the immediate circumstance that they were facing. In the last three weeks Brainiac 5 had used the flight ring comm link to advise on several missions and afterwards used data from them to finesse training programs in light of oversights he had observed from the incoming data. Jacques had smiled as each request had come through to the Academy - Querl's happiness at having the time to create such detailed training plans for his colleagues was very obvious

Phantom Girl had offered to find a laboratory assistant for the Coluan though he had declined. Jacques thought that Tinya had grown into a capable leader. Jo Nah’s untimely death at the hands of Black Adam’s daughters had forced her to come out from behind the Rimborian’s boisterous shadow. He acknowledged that in a bitterly ironic way, Tinya Wazzo losing the love of her life had been the making of her as a Legionnaire leader.

Currently Brainiac 5 was primarily focusing on ensuring both Tyrrazian battle planets were perfectly retro-fitted for the teams purposes. The two men spoke for a few minuted but Jacques could easily see that Querl was distracted by the work at hand so excused himself and went to find Drura.

Kent Shakespeare bumped into the former Invisible Kid outside the medi-bay and smiled. The two men chatted easily as they walked and Jacques almost didn't see Drura as she ran towards him. They had a quick hug and kiss while Dr Shakespeare scanned the daily log. After Drura had taken her arms from around Jacques' neck the large doctor said over his shoulder:

"Unless you want to volunteer to help the auto-drones sluice out the tanks I'd suggest you two get going." He turned his face to smile at them.

"Merci, 'ave a peaceful evening." Jacques said as he took Drura's hand and walked out of the medi-bay.

After the two lovebirds had left Kent Shakespeare sighed. Before him a hard light screen displayed the latest results fron Jan Arahs rehabilitation on Winath. Kent had hoped that the former Legion leader would be returning soon but as it stood it would likely be at least another month or more likely two. He shook his head and closed the file.

"Well..." he said to himself, "As long as it takes, I'll still be waiting for you Jan."

Kent hoped that once his Trommite lover recovered he would feel the same way in return.

Dawnstar and Atomsmasher hovered together almost six full AU galactic north from the Legion's base in Sol space. This had been the first of the planetoids they had used as their headquarters, taken from the Dark Circle after that organisation's internal rivalry had led to a civil war amongst their five leaders which had ultimately ended its ruling elites control. Not that long ago this planetoid had been called Legion World, but now the Legion called it their Home Base.

Initially Dawnstar had been paired with Southern Lights as the junior members mentor but she had quickly requested to take on Atomsmasher instead as, she had argued, she was more likely to understand and assist with the Wraithcat's immense sensory abilities. Mon El had merely shrugged and agreed when she suggested it. The Starhavenite was aware that the Daxamite's expression was perhaps a bit too neutral as he acquiesced to her request. She didn't care, she just knew that close contact with the young mystic from her homeworld who had joined the team from the Academy brought out feelings in her that were not entirely professional... and, perhaps making this awkward situation feel even worse, she had a sense that he probably reciprocated.

She had spent the last two and a half weeks focused entirely on spending time with Atomsmasher and the other Legionnaires that preferred to operate outside of planetary atmospheres... but still, she saw Southern Lights too often for comfort and only last week they had worked on a mission together investigating reports of rogue space bandits operating within the Proxima Centauri system of asteroid fields. She had avoided speaking to him for most of that brief mission and hoped it had gone entirely unnoticed by the other Legionnaires present.

In the years since she had joined the group she had never worried if others had any view in particular of her, that simply didn't rate on her scale of things to care about. Suddenly, there was a young man of her people within their base and she felt nervous and hyper aware of every glance and word they exchanged. Dawnstar felt so confused!

Dawnstar knew that she couldn't avoid dealing with this for too much longer so had arranged to take Atomsmasher back to the Academy on the Legion's newly re-named Home Base for some training exercises. This proved to be very conveniently - as she was fully aware - as both Kara and Cece were due to hold a training session for the academy students today. The three of them had arranged to meet up once these classes were over. The winged tracker only hoped that her two friends would be able to give some advice that could help.

After escorting Atomsmasher back to Home Base Dawnstar arranged to continue on a training exercise with the Wraithcat in four hours time. She hoped that the conversation she was away to have would offer her a workable solution to her conflicting emotions within that time.

Kara saw the winger tracker first and zoomed across to her friend, a grin of genuine happiness on her face as she spun in close and briefly hugged Dawnstar.

<Dawny! It's so good to see you, we've all missed you since you moved out to Second Base>

<Thank you Kara, I have missed you and...> Before Dawnstar could finish replying to her Kryptonian friend Thunder flew past in a blur and lightly brushed against the tracker from Starhaven's shoulder.

<Gotcha! Tag! You're it Dawny!> Even before Thunder's flight ring created telepathic message had finished Black Adam's daughter was out of sight and Andromeda had also zoomed away in a different direction, her telepathic laughter loud and clear.

According to the rules of their game that the three Legionnaires played Dawnstar was now tasked with catching both of her friends before they would continue with their conversation. At least they had limited the range of the game to within the Oort cloud of whichever system they were in.

Dawnstar ground her teeth and dived after Thunder. The winged tracker only had a limited time here in the Sol system and they had for more important things to do than play games... her friends were needed to help her make sense of all the confusing emotions she was feeling.

"Let me go!"

Zoe Saugin snapped with such venom that Jazmin Cullen stepped back from her friend.They had returned from the fashion show two hours prior and after returning to her apartment to freshen up Jaz had wanted to find Zoe to make sure she was feeling okay. The flight ring tracker had alerted the Xanthuan that her friend was approaching the northern docking bay. Jazmin Cullen had immediately felt a deep concern and contacted Henry to ask to be warped up there. She knew she would never make it by herself in time... The holo-man had frowned but acquiesced with a nod before opening the warp for her.

"Zoe, honey... What is this? You're... have you been crying?" Kid Quantum instinctively put her arms out to give her friend a hug but they were batted away.

"I need to find Gahaji so I've booked a few days off... Jaz, he needs me." This time when her friend offered a hug Kinetix almost fell into it as she sobbed.

The Xanthuan remained quiet as she fiercely wrapped her arms around her friend.

"I'm gonna join you, there's no way my besty is going anywhere without me."

And there they were, in tears in the docking bay with Jazmin quickly figuring out who she could ask to cover her active duty shift...

That conversation had been twelve hours earlier and Jazmin believed even more now that her intuition had been right as Zoe appeated to be almost manic as she prowled around the small command cabin of the shuttle they had borrowed.

Gahaji's flight ring had been traced to the U-Vabbishte Toktrec Settlements in the galactic north of the Great White Asteroid Field that ran for almost 6 light years close to the uppermost point of the Raptor Nebula. Jaz was relieved to see on the scans that both Laurel's and Brin's rings showed on the scanner as being close by too.

Whatever was going on with Zoe and wherever Gahaji and Brin and Laurel happened to be, they would find out soon enough.

"The scanners show some weird stuff happening down there Zoe."

The two Legionnaires shuttle had been in a holding pattern for forty minutes as they awaited instructions where to land. Jazmin had not told the controlling AI that they were Legionnaires when it had asked for identification, instead she used her Xanthui Citizen Number... she hoped it would keep them from dealing with any media or intrusive scanning and perhaps even fool the Settlements AIs, for the short term if nothing else - just long enough for them to find their colleagues.

As they had approached the Settlements - large chunks of space rock that had been mined and retro-fitted into floating townships, open - presumably arable - parks, factories and commercial areas, connected by many, many klicks of intertwined tunnels and what appeared to be a mighty river flowing between several of the largest settled asteroids; it was unlike anywhere the Xanthui Legionnaire had ever seen before.

Jazmin had read the files on this place when the the onboard AI had identified where the tracking app was pointing them towards. It's history as a sanctuary against aggression was heavily commented upon which relieved her a bit. If they were walking into a trap it wouldn't be in a place set up against oppression, would it?

Thanks for your kind words guys, they are appreciated.

Dragonwings eyesight wasn't meant to read a superhuman, just very good - she does have cat like eyes if I remember right so perhaps they are also sharper in low light than a standard humans?

Next time, more Tharok as we find out where he is and you can start guessing what he's up to (it'll be quite obvious actually, though not what it all leads to - hopefully), and Ayla leads a team to solve a robbery on a space train.

Thanks again,

C

Wow! Once again I am amazed at how much you can pack into a few short vignettes. We have caught up with nearly everyone by now. And also, in ways which are very organic. Tinya and Ayla both lose their lovers, but Tinya blossoms as a person and leader while Ayla secretly struggles. Zoe's feeling for Gahaji - love? guilt? - spur her to find him. Jaz being her best friend seems so organic. And it will be good to see Laurel again!

Dawny in love, eek! Or in lust? What does she feel about Wildfire?

Brainy being a little bit sad not going on missions was cute. But I'm sure he rationalized it away, that workaholic.

Loving your new members, the friendship between Ultra Girl and Polar Girl and Friction for exmaple goes a long way towards characterizing them.

One thing that would be interesting Harbi, is how you decided to split your team. How did you decide who would be training staff, who wouls be on Home base, who would be on second? I'm genuinely interested and think it would be cool to know your thought process

Poor Kent, I hope get gets a happy ending with Jan!

Dawnstar and Southern Lights promises to go somewhere interesting...I always wondered how she'd react when she's actually attracted to a live flesh and blood type person while Wildfire's still around; the only times I can think of that it ever happened in the comics was on that exile planet (and we never heard from that guy again) and in that JLA story where she'd been living with the Thanagarian lady (who we never heard from again). We never really see her have to actually consciously make a choice between Drake or someone else. I have got a take on it but it's gonna be ages before I get round to it so I'm interested to see what your approach is like

Dawnstar's relationship with Kara and Cece is also really cute to see as she's historically terrible at making friends with anyone lol...and it's also such a Dawnstar thing for her to be annoyed that they want to play when she has an Important Personal Issue to monopolise everyone's time with

I think you've done really well in general at establishing individual friendships among your Legionnaires actually, and they all feel quite unique to themselves and logical!

Hi Harbinger,

hope things are well. finally getting a chance to respond to your latest post.

Polar Girl and Ultra Girl are now besties! I like how you showed how this relationship came about. I think we all take for granted how these friendships between the legionnaires are forged and tend to gloss over what sparked that moment. Even though it was suggested by the senior team. So its really cool to see it play out here. I like that Friction has also been added to this grouping.
Thunder's playing match maker...hmmm.

So I know Chronometer is a watch. But it sounds almost like a Time device used to track the time stream and where things should be happening. Its something I would think Henery would have.

Jacques and Danielle's relationship is super sweet.
Aww..Poor Brainy. I'm sure he will love it. But I'm going to miss him being on active duty. But as your organization grows I guess it makes sense. I like how he's using the flight ring comms and data now too. something I'm sure happened all the time we just never heard about.
Kent is so loyal and I hope him and Jan get to come back to each other.

Kara, Thunder, and Dawnstar make an interesting group of friends. I like the playful nature they have. Although Dawnstar seems less then happy with that playful nature at the moment.
I wonder why Dawnstar and Southern Lights have the connection/ attraction. we've never seen that kind of behavior before not even with Wildfire; whom she clams to love. So its interesting to see. I wonder if its something to do with her species...

Zoe and Jazmin are looking for Gahaji? this could be an interesting mission. But I wonder what's got Zoe so pumped up to find him. oh Jazmin after everything you've all been through a place of none aggression is the perfect place for a trap!

Can't wait for more!

interlude three:

In the years that followed Tharok's reputation only grew.

He had many opportunities to have a new body grown and once again regain his full physical humanity. Instead he used his freakish looks and increasingly impressive armory to keep his opponents off balance and scared.

He had stolen and integrated within his own systems Coluan AI tech. It had been easy to dismantle its own personality matrix and over write his own thoughts onto it while accessing the incredible data storage, retrieval and manipulation capabilities that the green skinned genius' had built.

The Legion had introduced him to Mano, the Persuader, the Emerald Empress and Validus, and despite the immense increase in power that they brought under his control somehow he achieved less with the Fatal Five than he had ever done alone. He knew that his team created too much noise and thereby attracted too much attention and so became far more obvious targets. Finally, after years of being the leader of the Fatal Five Tharok left them behind and returned to something nearer to his roots: He would steal everything he wanted and look after the only person that mattered to his worldview: himself. He had spent three years ensuring he had bases where he needed them and all the technology he wanted to ensure his success. He had a plan...

He knew that there was a strange and immense power source emanating from the planet Talok viii and he decided he would have it and use as he saw fit.

The nagging obsessive question that had tugged away at the back of his mind for over a decade finally took over. He would find the energy and use it to take over the galaxy for himself.

He had twice before visited Talok viii.

The second time had been with his team the Fatal Five. He had not told the team that the real reason he had shown any interest in such a backwards ugly race was not to set up their own empire, neither was it for the joy of ruling over the mass of illiterate and savage blue skinned whores and beggars, or for the pleasure of the natural wealth they could have stripped from the world. He had come here because there was an energy at its core that he could not understand and he wanted to find and take control of it.

What his team did not know was the first time he had travelled in the backwater deserts of the large central continent he had been looking to steal some weapon technology from one of the Forges for a client in the Inner Worlds. While there he had come across something strange... his self made scanning devices had picked up an anomaly, an access to a form of energy that none of his equipment could comprehend. He didn't bother searching for this strange energy source at that point but instead made a note to return here when he had the time. Tharok was planning a long term strategy, he wanted this unheard of energy and he wanted it for himself. He would not do anything to alert the local peoples or, even worse, the UP's Science Police to the potential he knew existed somewhere within this hideously dull world.

And now, years after those visits Tharok had finally returned to Talok viii.

That morning the galactic media were broadcasting the banal news story that the bloody moral supremacist Cosmic Boy was marrying the almost-Legionnaire Night Girl so those meta-morons would be too occupied by that to investigate goings on out here in the Outer Worlds ...now was the perfect time to act. He had refined his sensors to pinpoint the merest fraction of the strange power source he had picked up all those years ago and he was surprised where it led him.

In hindsight he knew he should have guessed.

His holo disguise was flawless as he strode through the city state of Asharabattaw on the southern edge of the Great Continent. To all eyes he was a simply dressed Talokean man of middling age with a small pot belly and worn down shoes. No-one looked twice at him as he made a circuit of the sprawling market place at the city's centre.

It had taken him almost two months but there in front of him was the person he needed to help make sense of the enigma that had drawn him here: Grev Mallor.

Yes, Tharok thought, the damned Shadow Champion's cousin radiated the smallest slither of the strange energy and would lead him straight to whatever it was that had set off his scanners all those years ago and then Tharok would finally have it all for his own.


end interlude three.

Lighting Lass - Senior Team member, Ayla Ranzz of Winath - electrical generation and manipulation
Polar Girl - Mel Lassar of Tharr - cryokinesis
Backlash - Mrruaw M’Nau of Simballi - enhanced strength, speed, senses, absorbs kinetic energy to boost own size and mass
Comet Queen - Grava of Extal colony - spaceflight, comet gas extrusion
Comet King - Drinchnar Lamment of Extal colony - spaceflight, comet gas extrusion

Gravity Kid - Science Police Officer Tel Vole of Earth - manipulation of personal or nearby gravity
Power Boy - Science Police Officer Jedidiah Rikane of Earth - personal density control


Science Police alert: Disturbance in progress on the Astro-Shuttle, Star-trax Express, currently 168,000,000 klicks and seven hours from Xemedda. Due to ongoing public unrest on Xemedda Central City over the System Circle Referrendum results there are no officers currently available to attend. Several alerts were sent from staff and guests that infer meta- beings are involved. Request assistance from the Legion!

Encyclopedia Galactica: Space trains were a novelty created during the 23rd century by rival corporations vying to get the most passengers to use their services to travel between the settled worlds and moons and satellites of the Sol system. The reasoning behind these constructs was to harken back to an earlier time in public transport, before the terrible risks inherent in space flight, that was often nostalgically seen as more refined and less dangerous. So designers created interplanetary shuttles that resembled famous locomotives and carriages from history and generated hologamatic tracks for these shuttles to follow as they cleaved their way through cold space.

Currently there are only thirteen known original space trains in operation within the UP that the general public, if they can afford it, may travel upon. Of these, one is in Sol System operating between Earth and Mars on a semi-regular basis, the second holds a casino and orbits Ventura while the third is out on the edges of the UP in the Xemedda Upsang system. This operates a twice weekly shuttle between the two occupied planets.

(continued...) Xemedda Major has the majority of the systems heavy industries while Upsang Minor contains the majority of the arable and populated land. The system has a human population of a little under a billion and average GDP above that of the majority of United Planets systems.

The space-train shuttle is renowned to be too expensive for the vast majority of the population to use regularly though it is well known as a high end venue to host corporate functions and parties for the thirteen hours it takes to travel between the two very different worlds.



Lightning Lass realized that usually a mission like this would only need to have a standard quorum of six members but with Polar Girl being her trainee and Backlash having decided that he would follow Ayla on every mission now that she was a senior team leader, Comet Queen and King being inseparable and Gravity Kid and Power Boy being allowed to go on missions together she thought that standard protocols could go hang - she liked everyone on the team and intended to use them.

As the Legionnaires stepped through Henry’s warp less than five minutes after the alarm had been raised into the conductors cabin Ayala gave a silent wish that this mission would go well: It was her first official mission leading a team since accepting the offer to join the senior team.

The cabin was small with dark faux-wood panelling and a single bed and desk along one wall. The conductor was both relieved and intimidated by the legionnaires appearance. Lightning Lass quickly reassured her that they would try to be quick and careful as they investigated the robberies.

After taking a few deep breaths the conductor told the Legionnaires that the train was hosting a party for Madam Shadow Prime Convener Esalla Mooreni, the leader of the largest opposition party bloc to the leading Planetary Unity Party. There were a mixture of celebrities and leaders of industry on board with three separate security teams operating amongst the various groups of dignitaries.

Security personnel had all collapsed simultaneously and two mysterious figures appeared in clouds of smoke announcing that the people on board the space train had stolen from the poor and needed to return their wealth to the rightful owners. Both figures had worn large hooded capes and intricately carved wooden masks. It was generally assumed that the robbers were magical in nature though the terrified guests had handed over jewellery and credit chips with little argument. The one person who refused, a generally belligerent action-holo star, was struck down after a wave of one of the robbers hands and immediately after the refusing actor had fallen unconscious onto his table.

“Like, starshine, we ain’t got a magical Legionnaire to glom this for us here.” Comet Queen said with a gulp.

“Gravilitious, we’re more'n enough ‘gainst any magic thief. Prolly some weirdo te'path playin' nebulous head games anyway...” Comet King reassured her.

“Indeed, so... Comets, I want you outside checking there’s no escape vehicles nearby or signs of incursion that the onboard security missed. You can stop anyone wanting to leave too while you’re out there. Got it?” Lightning Lass said brusquely. The conductor quickly showed the two legionnaires out of the cabin and along the corridor to an airlock.

“Right, I’m no expert but I’ve got a feeling this isn’t really magic at work so let’s try to figure out a more prosaic solution. Though if it is something weird we’ll ask Xao or Glorith to join us, okay?”

As the space train was currently stationary until the crime had been investigated Ayla planned on starting at one end of the train and making her way to the other, taking statements and investigating as they went. She hoped they could flush out some malcontents en route.

“Right, Jed and Tel, you take statements from the guests. Keep them short.” She added the last part with a smile. “Mel and M’rrau are with me investigating what went on. Everyone okay with that?”

The team agreed and Lightning Lass led them out into the dark corridor.

It became quickly obvious that this had been a very exclusive gathering.

In total, including the twelve security officers, there were only thirty nine passengers on board the space-train at the time of the robbery.

While Power Boy and Gravity Kid spoke to the passengers Lightning Lass called all the security staff together and asked them about their experiences before, during and immediately after the robbery had taken place. All twelve of the security operatives complained of headaches and feeling nauseous after they had regained their consciousness. None, for all their training and skills had expected anything like this or had much information at hand to add to help the investigation.

Ayla didn't want to say anything but she felt these were the bottom end of the security market. Each looked physically impressive enough but overall she doubted any of them had any particular smarts to offer.

Polar Girl scanned them all while Lightning Lass spoke and across the telepathic grid told Lightning Lass and Backlash that there were minute signs of a neuro-toxin in each of the security staff’s bloodstreams. The guards had all been poisoned. Mel Lassar quickly used her flight rings connection to Legion Worlds data banks to figure out which toxin had been used - it was called Agent Silmonus Beta 341, a common enough poison stockpiled through the more warlike planets in the fringes of the UP. A toxin that could be used to kill, it was virulent and caused immediate collapse of a persons bodilly control leading to suffocation and multi-organ collapse in most cases. Luckily in the guards cases only a microscopic amount had entered each of their blood streams. Perhaps as little as several molecules only.

<Very precise...> Ayla mused.

<If they'd got that dose slightly wrong it'd've killed the guards> Mel sent.

<So... we're dealing with people with some military training> Ayla replied.

Several of the guards were belligerently eyeing their opposite numbers from other teams. There were muttered insults and nudges happening around the team before one stepped forward rather abruptly. Polar girl quickly stepped in front of the fine slab of a man, easily twice as broad as she was plus a full metre taller and held her hand up with a finger pointed only an inch or so from his Adams apple. Her broad smile and the frosty mist that coalesced from her finger tip, along with having the backing of a tigerram and one of the most destructively powerful Legionnaires right behind her, were enough to make him gulp and back down.

"You need to be calm to deal with stress... Perhaps deep breathing will help?" Mel Lassar smiled as she spoke, "Now... I bet you're probably worried that your resume won't look so great with this robbery on it, though... hmmm, I imagine if you help us catch whomever is responsible you can claim some credit, eh?" The short Tharrite said just loud enough so that the whole carriage could here it. There was an obvious undercurrent to her words that all of the security personnel understood - don't cause any trouble, help the Legionnaires solve this mystery and it could help your career from taking an abrupt nosedive once word of the robbery gets out.

"Of course, ma'am." The guard said grudgingly.

"What's your name there?" Polar Girl asked.

"Ptre Deaydoar... Officer Deaydoar." The large guards voice was deep and steady.

"Officer Deaydoar, I think you should be our liaison officer here. So, first order of the day is we'll need you to get these other fine security personnel to help keep the guests calm and reassured. Do you think you can do that?"

"Of course, ma'am..." There were a few dark mutters from the other guards at this but no-one challenged him.

<Very neatly done Mel, thank you. These boneheads would've only slowed us down>

<I am always prepared to sit on one of them if you like? That would, I believe, slow them down considerably> Backlash added, the big cat's warm humour evident in its tone.

Both Polar Girl and Lightning Lass resisted to urge to laugh.

The Comets spun a twisting path around the space-train. Like a double helix they crisscrossed each other's path as they quickly flew the length of the train.

Their comet gas extrusions would reveal any cloaked craft nearby to ensured there would be no unexpected departures.

It was immediately apparent that whomever had robbed the people at this event were not parked up close-by. Comet King had sweetly resisted the urge to give his queen a flying cuddle as they passed each other, instead his blew her a kiss and smiled broadly. Comet Queen giggled and waved in reply but continued speedily flying her twisting course around the length of the space-train to fully cover it with Comet gasses. It took the pair only minutes to ensure all sixteen carriages and the engine at the front were contained within a swirling mass of toxic fog. Let's see anyone try to sneak out of that!


Amongst the passengers Tel Vole and Jed Rikane made sure that the twenty seven guests who were here for this event were aware that the two men were both Legionnaires and fully trained Science Police Officers so would catch the thieves responsible. Tel recognised a few of the assembled guests as minor celebrities in Sol, but out here they were obviously held in much higher esteem. He had heard once that on Earth you couldn't throw a stick into a crowd without hitting someone famous. Out here on the edges of the UP with it's much lower population density there were unlikely to be crowds so the odds of finding someone with any celebrity status was far less likely. Tel tried to not show how bored he was by the attitude shown by these D-listers and was slightly disappointed that Jed appeared to be enamored by their celebrity status.

<Oh play the game Tel. We need them to relax and open up, not be all defensive towards us> Power Boy sent across the artificial telepathic link after catching a stern glance from his husband. Gravity Kid blinked and quickly thought about it. His husband was right.... again.... though he remembered one training exercise from the academy that Luornu had said often got results.

<You be good cop then Jed, I'll be bad cop when we need it>

Power Boy sighed but nodded his agreement. The large purple skinned man knew that his husband was far more technically minded than people orientated and he wished sometimes that Tel would just listen to him, but, oh well, if Tel wanted to play bad cop then Jed would need to up the niceties. With his most sympathetic look plastered on Jed turned to an elderly woman sat in the corner of the group and asked if she needed any assistance.

As they made their way through the guests it became apparent that every one of the guests had lost items of value and had been shaken by the experience. None of them appeared as if they were in collusion with the robbers so it began to look very doubtful this had been an inside job.

Towards the back of the group sat a man that both Legionnaires immediately recognized - Urso Rey Majestor, Captain of the Outer Worlds Laser Ball team. He was keenly followed by the media as his incredible athleticism, super photogenic looks and quick wit made him popular with a wide demographic of UP citizens.

<Now... I'd happily be Good Cop for him> Jed sent through to his husband.

<Yup, he could be Bad Cop to me all day... Though dont expect me to share> Tel replied. The two men exchanged a knowing glance and small smile before approaching the sports star, neither trying to show what they thought as they started asking him about his experience during the robbery.

Backlash sniffed the air again.

The large tigerram had been ascertaining the scents of every person present. As the great feline did this Ayla walked behind him sniffing the air as if she too were discerning the individual smell of everyone there.

A weasel-like security officer called Puul Jobi had led the three legionnaires along to the end of the last carriage where, he said, several of the guests had seen the thieves vanish into thin air. Polar girl scanned for any residual energy or elements that might give a clue about any teleport technology used.

"No sign of anything... nothing coming up at all. Maybe they were magical afterall, will I get Xao here to help?" The short young woman said to her mentor.

"No sign of life Mel? They have left haven't they? And while your at it scan for that toxin too." Ayla asked, her tone was light but Polar Girl blushed as she realized she had been so fixated on finding any sort of teleport signature she hadn't thought of scanning for anything else. She quickly willed the functions on her flight ring app to broaden out to register any distinctive sapient life form and also of the nerve agent that had been used earlier.

"I have the scents of other people... fresh... it is as if they are still here but not so much." M'rruaw said. The large feline brushed his broad face across the thick carpeted floor.

"This is weird... the scan is saying we aren't alone..." Polar Girl sounded confused and unsure as she said this.

"Okay, I think I know what's going on. It certainly isn't magical. Do you smell that perfume? It's quite faint... Faint but musky and sweet at the same time? I noticed it when we got to this carriage... Salu used to wear it, it's called Skale. It's a big hit on Imsk." She ushered Backlash and Polar Girl to move behind her. Sparks started to spin around her finger tips. They were stood at the end of the last carriage, next to a fake dark wooden exit door.

"Here is were the scent led you, is that right M'rruaw?"

"That is correct, it goes no further."

Ayla Ranzz smiled as the small sparks shot from her fingertips and singed the rich carpet. She continued for about twenty seconds before something started to move. She signaled her teammates to move back and then spun a disk of burning electricity and dropped it onto the carpet. This time the reaction was explosive!

Six people dressed in army fatigues appeared to shoot out of the floor.

"Imskian rebels.... thought so." with that Lightning Lass released a flash of electricity that blasted the group of size changing thieves backwards against the carriage wall.

Four of them were blasted immediately unconscious. The remaining two were blown off their feet and thrown against the back wall of the carriage. One of the thieves managed to get a shot off from his blaster that struck Backlash, causing the tigerram to expand as his metabolism used the energy to boost his own mass.

Polar Girl quickly stepped forward and placed incapacity cuffs on their arms.

"The magic was a misdirect, as was the 'take back for the poor' line. That one's been used throughout history to justify stealing from the rich... they wanted money to further their own agenda. I hate Imskian rebels. Let's get the Science police here to take them away." Lightning Lass turned her back on the pile of bodies as she spoke.

Ayla Ranzz had learned from Salu Digby about the fractious politics of Imsk so knew that those in power on that world clung on precariously while those who wanted it would stoop to any level to get it. It sickened her that they didn't just sit around a table and work out compromises that wouldn't lead to such awful troubles and senseless destruction and loss of innocent lives.

<Ayla Sparktastic Lass...> Grava's voice came through the telepathic grid <Drinchnar's found this cute toy ship all shiny and starlight sweet... it just started flying away from our cloud bank. He's got it in his yummy arms, can we keep it? Can we?>

Lightning Lass laughed as she replied, <Sure... though I don't think it'll be small for long. We've just caught some Imskian terrorists and that'll be their escape shuttle.>

<Awww... that's totes darkstar sad> Grava's reply as she shared her disappointment at not being able to keep the small craft as a souvenir of this mission.