The Democratic Republic of Congo ...
Oct. 1st, 2017 06:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
planetaryguide posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
watchtower_rebirthMuch to his shame, Elijah didn't like returning to Africa that often. It made him think of Anaykah, the brilliant scientist from the Lost city of Opak-re – Jakita's mother – and that was a pang that he didn't like to face. It's been decades, and he was still in love with the woman. Worse, she was probably still alive out there, somewhere, wherever they hid the city after Jakita was born, after Anaykah and Lord Blackstock broke their only really big taboo.
But this was hardly Opak-re. That was a dreamlike, sci-fi fantasy. This part of the Congo was impoverished by drought and war, ravaged by soldiers and terrorists and practically ignored by the world at large. It made him angry that he avoided this, too. the human misery here was a solvable problem, he believed, but governments and corporations are driven by self-interest, and places like this were only there to be exploited, as far as they were concerned. American, Russian and Chinese companies raced to strip the entire country of its resources and pay a pittance in return.
But that was an issue for another day, one he intended to return to when he was able. In the meantime was the mission ahead of him, and the unlikely company with which he'd found himself. An emergency in Fawcett city had called Freeman away, leaving him with the Martian Manhunter and Jenny Quantum. The latter he'd been aware of for ages, of course, before he was even common knowledge. he'd looked in to death of one Dr. Erdel in the '50s, and became aware of the alien's presence on Earth. He even wrote about him for a Planetary Guide. But the Martian proved benign, so he didn't intervene. Still, having him here now made him nervous. He wasn't at all certain they'd land on the same side when push came to shove.
And then there was Jenny ... He had ... ahem ...known Jenny Sparks, of course, so having this 17-year-old girl in front of him who was her reincarnated was a bit odd, but it was her power that really unnerved him. She had bent reality to create a door between Singapore and the Congo, allowing them to traverse the seconds in the space of a few heartbeats. Jenny Sparks had been one of the most powerful people on Earth. Jenny Quantum probably was the planet's most powerful person, and it was unclear what she would do with that power. In a lot of ways, the world would reflect her life, and vice versa. He could see why that would make her valuable to someone like ...
He didn't know. He didn't really know who his enemy was, here. Anubis? Certainly, but there was a more mundane hand in all this. Luthor? No, Luthor was with Superman. Still, if he ever realized exactly what Jenny and the other kids represented ...
He shook it off. Jenny didn't know exactly where to bring them, so she got us to a municipality in the area where they were mostly seen, and the trio rented a jeep, seeing as "I'm an old geezer who can't fly." They had an idea where we were going -- a township out in the savannah, but only rumors telling them what to expect ... fantastic technological marvels, on the verge of propelling the impoverished township out of poverty and into the future. That was something Elijah would like to see.
But this was hardly Opak-re. That was a dreamlike, sci-fi fantasy. This part of the Congo was impoverished by drought and war, ravaged by soldiers and terrorists and practically ignored by the world at large. It made him angry that he avoided this, too. the human misery here was a solvable problem, he believed, but governments and corporations are driven by self-interest, and places like this were only there to be exploited, as far as they were concerned. American, Russian and Chinese companies raced to strip the entire country of its resources and pay a pittance in return.
But that was an issue for another day, one he intended to return to when he was able. In the meantime was the mission ahead of him, and the unlikely company with which he'd found himself. An emergency in Fawcett city had called Freeman away, leaving him with the Martian Manhunter and Jenny Quantum. The latter he'd been aware of for ages, of course, before he was even common knowledge. he'd looked in to death of one Dr. Erdel in the '50s, and became aware of the alien's presence on Earth. He even wrote about him for a Planetary Guide. But the Martian proved benign, so he didn't intervene. Still, having him here now made him nervous. He wasn't at all certain they'd land on the same side when push came to shove.
And then there was Jenny ... He had ... ahem ...known Jenny Sparks, of course, so having this 17-year-old girl in front of him who was her reincarnated was a bit odd, but it was her power that really unnerved him. She had bent reality to create a door between Singapore and the Congo, allowing them to traverse the seconds in the space of a few heartbeats. Jenny Sparks had been one of the most powerful people on Earth. Jenny Quantum probably was the planet's most powerful person, and it was unclear what she would do with that power. In a lot of ways, the world would reflect her life, and vice versa. He could see why that would make her valuable to someone like ...
He didn't know. He didn't really know who his enemy was, here. Anubis? Certainly, but there was a more mundane hand in all this. Luthor? No, Luthor was with Superman. Still, if he ever realized exactly what Jenny and the other kids represented ...
He shook it off. Jenny didn't know exactly where to bring them, so she got us to a municipality in the area where they were mostly seen, and the trio rented a jeep, seeing as "I'm an old geezer who can't fly." They had an idea where we were going -- a township out in the savannah, but only rumors telling them what to expect ... fantastic technological marvels, on the verge of propelling the impoverished township out of poverty and into the future. That was something Elijah would like to see.
no subject
Date: 2017-10-04 12:19 am (UTC)And more. If his other self had damaged their minds, perhaps he could have repaired them.
"But I was unable to find anything conclusive. Only whispers and rumors."
no subject
Date: 2017-10-04 12:20 pm (UTC)She shrugs.
"Most American supertypes don't come to China, and I've been a little busy trying to recontextualize Chinese authoritarianism. So, it's possible I missed stuff."
She gives j'onn a winning smile, but it's clear she's not joking. Not really.
no subject
Date: 2017-10-04 12:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-10-08 12:41 am (UTC)His eyes flashed briefly with something like anger. "He failed, and reality was largely restored. But... not evenly, and not the same for everyone. And not all is as it was."
no subject
Date: 2017-10-08 02:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-10-08 02:25 am (UTC)"Oh, please," she says. I don't have Jenny Quantum's memories, so I don't really know what went down between the two of you, but I've been with you just a couple hours and I can already tell you practically run on hope. You, like, literally spent a century tracking down all the hidden, wonderful things that were hidden around the world, to record them and make sure they weren't abuse. How in the world is that not an act of hope?"
no subject
Date: 2017-10-08 02:25 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-10-08 03:53 am (UTC)"Regardless of his reasons, Manhattan was defeated. But it seems as though whatever alterations he made are not reverting evenly.
"It is hardly the first time we have seen the very fabric of reality played with. Perhaps it only has so much elasticity to it."