#source: doom patrol | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

meowmeowmeowmeow4x · 16 days

Text

Dark Blue Moon and the Suffering Sun Part 3

Danny would guess they'd gone about 20 miles by the time he'd stopped. They were well within Siren Territory by then, not that that was any comfort, considering the source of most of the trouble in the last six months, but distance was distance. Thankfully, none of his usual enemies bothered to rear their heads, likely licking their wounds from their last encounters.

In a tiny cave blocked off by kelp and coral, Danny leaned back against a wall and caught his breath. Damian had been silent for most of the swim, which was a small blessing. It let Danny think; think about what happens next. The tiny siren loosened himself from Danny's arms, and did a few cursory flaps of his fins.

"Where have you been taking me?" Damian mumbled.

"Around. Can't exactly double back to Amity right now." He hoped Bruce Wayne was an accepting man. He'd adopted kids from all manner of backrounds, but that didn''t help the same nagging uncertainty that plagued him whenever he thought about his own parents. If he'd just doomed Damian to a life without his father, he didn't know if he could live with himself.

Damian floated to the other side of the cave, his eyes on Danny the whole time, arms crossed in a scowling expression.

"And then?"

"I don't know. I give you back to your dad? I wasn't exactly planning out every step earlier."

"Then what were you thinking?" Damian's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Do you suggest I return to the public, to school looking like this? I can hardly breathe over water, let alone walk."

"I don't know! I just..." Danny poked his finger webbing. "I've been doing this for six months. And the whole time, even if it was hard and painful, I never lost someone. No one ever, well." Danny swallowed thickly.

Damian huffed. "You are a poor excuse of a hero."

"I failed you, there's no denying it. I was too late, and I let you drown. I'm sorry. There was no other way, I swear."

Danny looked up to Damian again, but the smaller boy looked away, his expression unreadable. "Take me back."

Yeah, that wasp probably the best he could do for Damian now. Bruce Wayne was probably having the mother of all freakouts, and if Damian never wanted to see Danny again, then that was fine. He was sure the world's richest man would be able to accommodate Damian's needs just fine. Rich people were weird like that.

It took some begrudging glares, but Damian at least allowed Danny to take his hand and use his much better swimming skills, but Damian didn't look very happy about it. Then again, today was probably the worst day in the kid's life.

They were approaching the island at rapid pace, its lustrous palm trees swaying in the distance, a promise of stability, and safety at last.

Motors hummed in the water. Danny's blood froze. Immediately he submerged and ducked near the sea floor.

"What is this delay for? Let me see." Damian pushed against Danny's hand, but the older boy kept firm.

"Patrol boats. Dozens of them. And they're all on high alert. And they've got Fenton tech. Shit."

"Can't you swim past them?"

Danny sputtered. What was this kid thinking? He wasn't some god of the sea! "I can't fight thirty boats by myself! They're gonna skewer us both!"

"What about your camouflage?"

"That would've worked a couple months ago, but these guys have got Fenton Sonars."

Damian did a double take. "The Fentons? You mean the town crackpots?"

Ouch, his parents were a little obsessed, but they definitely weren't crazy. Not anymore. "The town siren hunters. And yeah maybe Jack's not great at hunting, but their inventions work. I've got a scar or two to prove it."

"My father is on that island." Damian growled. "You have to do something."

"But it's not your dad on those boats, is it?" Danny furrowed his brow. "Those guys don't see you as human, or even sentient. They think you're another monster to be studied."

"No thanks to you." Damian challenged.

Danny growled back. "I was saving you! And now you wanna be un-saved?"

They glared into each other's eyes. Danny should really feel bad about squaring up to this literal child, but man was he difficult not to get annoyed at. Deep breaths, Danny, deep breaths. This was going to be more difficult than he imagined.

Damian glared at Phantom, the supposed siren superhero of Amity Park. He wanted to scream, to yell and to cut something open, preferably Phantom, if he weren't his only ticket home, and if only he had his weapons on him.

Such a loss of composure would be beneath him, so he remained stubbornly defiant.

As much as he wished for it not to be the case, Phantom was in all likelihood correct. This horrid, horrid body was new to him. Dozens, no, hundreds of foreign sensations flared from every part of his person, each impulse sending his body wobbling in new, unexpected directions. He would never get through the blockade on his own, which killed half of his initial plans. These blasted sonars killed the other half.

Damian grit his teeth. "Fine." He said, despite the embarrassment welling up at having to admit defeat. "But this conversation is not over."

"I bet." Phantom said, the infuriating cur.

By Damian's estimates, it should have been around midnight when Phantom stopped. They took refuge underneath a larger cave, filled with sparse furniture, a rug and some tables, with dark green curtains over the entrance. Small glowing jellyfish provided faint light. It seemed like the hopelessly domestic scene Jonathan would enjoy.

Damian slithered (He didn't crawl or shuffle. He was too dignified) into the corner of the cave, where he assumed a defensive position and poured all his seething hatred into glaring at Phantom.

"Welcome to Casa de Phantom! Or at least one of them. I've got a couple hideouts here and there. I'd say 'make yourself at home,' but I guess you beat me to the punch." Phantom said with a laugh. How dare he!

Damian hissed. "Tt. I am taking advantage of the opportunity for respite while taking necessary precaution against a rogue element."

"A rogue element? I don't know if you're serious or just pulling my tailfin."

"Do not test me, Phantom."

"Right. Look, I'm gonna go get us some food, so just stay put or something or other. I won't be long and then we can talk about where we go next. Oh, and don't touch anything!"

Damian growled at him again for good measure. Phantom exited the cave in short order, leaving Damian with ample opportunity for investigation. He wouldn't be a Robin if he didn't seize this opportunity.

Damian uncoiled himself and pulled his body along the soft sand. The grains tickled and pricked at his scales. The tables held a number of different gadgets and tools. Human clothes like t-shirts, a few vests and belts were scattered around. The bench held various strange devices, like a glowing blue lipstick, and a thermos of all things. Damian knocked on the thermos, the clanging sound confirming it was hollow. The most incriminating detail of all, however, was the distinctive F logo branded onto the side of each and every device.

How does a siren with no legs acquire so many inventions from siren hunters? He supposes they really are better siren hunting inventors than proper fighters. It was a miracle Jack Fenton hadn't drowned by now, considering how he conducted himself in a fight.

The thermos was lightweight, its metal settling gently against his webbed hands. Videos of Phantom's exploits have been scarce, and grainy, showing very few useable details. Various buttons and lights adorned the thermos, showing it was no ordinary soup holder.

Damian popped the cap off. The thermos' interior contained a circular mechanism of some kind. "What in the world?" Surely this could not be a weapon. The cylindrical design and lack of handholds would have made it too unwieldy. The kickback from any shot would throw off the wielder's aim every time. As Damian peered and tried to get a closer look, his finger slipped on one of the buttons. Blast.

The thermos whined. Its interior glowed blindingly bright. Before Damian could react, a blue beam engulfed his body. Damian felt his body warp and compress into a tiny space, before his vision went dark.

Damian awoke, vision blurry and head pounding. Phantom's smug face floated above him.

"And that's why I told you not to touch anything."

Damian shook off the grogginess and sat up, almost colliding with Phantom's face. "What manner of trap was that? Were you attempting to disfigure me once again for your sick pleasure?! En garde!"

Damian was no good swimmer in this form, but it was easy to launch himself off the floor and into Phantom. Phantom, for his part, didn't sit idly like the last time. He raised his arm and blocked off Damian's access to his neck, a shame, but that did not stop Damian sinking his teeth into Phantom's flesh.

That is, if he could actually penetrate his skin.

Damian blinked in shock. Sirens were supposed to have razor sharp teeth. He'd seen those fangs in Phantom's own mouth. He should be drawing blood right now, but as he was he was barely denting Phantom's scales.

Phantom laughed, as if it just tickled. "Dude, I literally let you out of the thermos. It's not a 'trAP to diSFiguRe yOu fOR mY sIcK PleaSuRe,' it's just a containment device for sirens. Also can you stop that please, it tickles."

Damian flung himself off of Phantom's arm, retreating back into his corner. "How have I not drawn blood?! This is madness!" Damian sucked in breaths through his gills, an endlessly foreign and vulnerating sensation. "The only useful thing about this body was supposed to be its natural offensive capabilities, yet it is unable to achieve even that!"

"Siren kids just have blunter claws and teeth. Youngblood's the same."

"Do not call me a child!"

"Your claws will grow in over time, it's just the nature of things."

"You say that as if you will not return me to my true human form."

Phantom shifted uncomfortably.

Damian pressed. "Well?"

"Yeah about that..."

"Do not tell me you have no way to reverse it!"

Phantom's look of guilt sealed it. Damian's heart sank. Goodbye Robin, goodbye previous life. All his hard work and sacrifice for naught. Phantom had saved him from death by drowning, but suddenly Damian felt as if he were better off dead anyway.

Tears built up. What was happening to him? He hadn't cried since he was five years old, a show of weakness that grandfather had beaten out of him. Then again, he was really one year old back then, artificially grown to a competent age.

"H-hey, d-don't cry or anything, I was just-"

"I am not crying!" Damian shouted. He turned away from Phantom and stuffed his face into his tail, praying somehow the tears would go away on their own. He was Damian Wayne, son of Batman and daughter of Talia Al Ghul, there was no such thing as crying for him, none at all. There had been nothing, absolutely nothing he had been unable to overcome. He was going to overcome this, no matter what. These things he knew.

Why had this feeling not abated?

There had to be a solution, there just had to be. There had to be some kind of surgery that could split his tail into legs again. No that was absurd, what kind of quack surgeon can completely alter someone's species? Perhaps magic instead? Normally he hated the involvement of magic, but if it was the only way. Perhaps Zatara could assist, or he could pawn something off to that Constantine. But nothing ever good happened from associating with that man. Or maybe Aquaman would have a solution, someone well versed in oceanic magic, except Aquaman's claim of being king of the ocean was doubtful considering the siren attacks that lead him and Father to this forsaken resort town in the first place. What if... What if....

Damian felt lightheaded.

A weight pressed on Damian's body. Warm scales against his own, their individual texture segmented, but smooth, like a kind of weighted blanket. A hand laid on his shoulder. Damian remembered where he was, remembered to perform the mental exercises Father had taught him.

Slowly, his breathing evened out. His fins steadied into a gentle lull. Damian's eyelids felt heavy. His chest vibrated in a strange rhythm he couldn't place...

Suddenly the weight disappeared, and Damian blinked himself awake. Phantom retreated a sociable distance away, looking sheepish.

"Sorry, about touching you without your consent, I just saw you were hyperventilating, and I remembered a few classes about this stuff, and I watched that film too, Puss in Boots 2, it was great and-"

"Do sirens watch human media often?" Damian said. He gripped his tail, something solid to keep him anchored.

Phantom seemed to freeze for a moment. "Uhm well, maybe they do! just because we're sirens doesn't mean we're uncultured!"

Damian would have loved to pick this information apart, scan it for weaknesses until he knew this person in and out, but at this moment, he simply sat and let it settle underneath the shame of expressing similar, or even more weakness.

"Speak of this to anyone, and I will have your head."

"Yeah that would be a dick move, so if I ever did that, feel free to take it."

#dpxdc #danny phantom #danny fenton #damian wayne #merman #merboy #angst #dcxdp #mermaid au #mermaid transformation #transformation #transformation angst #damian does a little biting #he smol tho #teef too blunt #panick attack???#i hope i dont fuck this up xD

86 notes · View notes

painlandpalace · 11 days

Text

anybody who genuinely believed dead boy detectives 2024 would be less gay than their doom patrol episode you knew NOTHING about the source material and im still mad about it i kept telling you and you wouldnt listen 🙄 yall heard the show would have some charles/crystal romance and lost your minds as if that part is not INTEGRAL to the painland slowburn OPEN YOUR MINDS. OPEN YOUR HEARTS. OPEN A FUCKING COMIC BOOK WHILE YOURE AT IT.

#dead boy detectives #dearly.txt

52 notes · View notes

incorrectpennzeroquotes · 10 months

Text

Rippen, to Boone: If stupidity were a superpower, you'd be goddamn Superman.

#penn zero part time hero #pzpth #penn zero #rippen #Source: Doom Patrol

17 notes · View notes

i-write-sometimes-maybe · 11 months

Note

Can I pleasee request a Lady Lesso x Never!student!reader platonic where the reader has a nightmare or something and Lady Lesso is making rounds through dormitories and notices the reader scared and confused and so she comforts her and stuff. Just angsty and fluffy and hurt/comfort. I love motherly Lesso.

Comatose- Lady LessoX NeverStudentReader (Platonic)

Synopsis: See ask :)

Warnings: Mentions of blood! Nightmares (night terrors) and being chased, descriptions of wounds, insecurities. Using some book descriptions. Please let me know if I missed anything! (I didn’t realize how much I used ‘darling’ until I reread it, sorry).

Word Count: 3.5k

A/n: I’m so happy for another request you have no idea. I LOVED this request so I hope I did it to your liking and I didn’t stretch it too much. I enjoyed writing this one and I also love motherly Lesso :). Reblogs, likes, and comments are all welcomed!

☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎☁︎︎

Your lungs were burning, rapidly inflating and deflating with each of your movements. Your feet were moving so fast you were practically flying.

But it wasn't fast enough.

You could feel everything and nothing at the same time. You could hear the blood coursing through your veins and the sound of the dirt and leaves crunching beneath your bare feet. The sound of your rapid breathing almost overpowering it all.

Mostly, you could hear them gaining on you, their boisterous steps creeping behind you. One foot right after the other. This was practically nothing for it, you knew that.

You would've gotten further if you hadn't tripped. On what it was, you didn't know. All you knew was that the half-second you were down was a half-second too long.

You could feel the blood trickling down your legs from your now injured knees, but it wasn't enough to get you to stop or slow. You were close to passing out from the lightheadedness you were feeling, the air rotating through your lungs too fast to make it to your head.

Don't. Stop. Running.

That's all you could think about. At least, that's what you tried to think about. Not the claw marks that now adorned your back, sliced through your pajamas.

You weren't too sure how you got to where you were, you were just in your dorm before this, right?

The vibrations from its steps grew stronger as it got closer, strong enough to make your running weak and you faltered once more. You tripped once again.

But what you didn't know, was that you weren't running in the forest but the school's corridors. And it wasn't a twig you tripped on but you had run into the corner of the corridor wall.

Your scream-like yelp would've attracted the attention of anyone and everyone if it wasn't in the early hours of the morning.

But it attracted the attention of one.

Lesso was on patrol in the South corridor when she heard an unknown noise in the East corridor. Your dormitory corridor was the West corridor, but you'd been running too fast around the school and you managed your way through the North corridor.

Lesso was beyond ready to catch a student out of bed past curfew, it had been far too long since she's had some fun in the Doom Room.

She set herself on a mission to uncover the source of the sound. Unbeknownst to her, she would walk right into it.

You could feel the breath of the creature on your wound, an unwelcome heat covering you. You couldn't see where you were going, the only thing you knew was that you just had to get away from where you were.

You desperately wanted to stop running, to breathe properly, but mainly you just wanted to sleep. To get back in your hardly comfortable Never bed, to return to a dreamless sleep. But you couldn't. Stop. Running.

You were sure you saw the end, the out of this hell maze you were suddenly in. But you were wrong. The claws pierced into your back, causing a scream to come from you as you crashed into the ground.

Only it wasn't the ground, but the Dean.

She hadn't even had enough time to be angry before she saw your terror-stricken face.

"No! No! Release me! Please!" You all but screamed with tears streaming down your face, the beast had finally captured you.

Or that's what you thought.

To say Lesso was confused would be an understatement. She placed her arms around you to attempt to stabilize your flailing form, but she wasn't doing too well.

"Y/n? Y/n, hey!" She had no idea what was going on, that is until she saw your glazed-over eyes.

Your horror-filled features looked at Lesso, but that's not what you saw. What you truly saw, she didn't know, but Lesso knew you would never look at her like that, at least she prayed to whatever creator that you never would.

"Please..." Your voice was frail. "Please let me go, I-I just want to go..." Lesso knew you weren't fully there but she wasn't fully sure how to get you to return either.

In a desperate attempt for your return, she placed two fingers on your temple. You weren't asleep exactly but you weren't awake. Maybe a slight jolt could bring you back. Lady Lesso had no other ideas.

At the slight shock to your temple, your vision cleared.

You weren't staring into the red eyes of a terrible beast anymore, but the Amethyst eyes of your Dean.

Seeing her shock and concern all tied into her features made you break down. Well, you were on the border of breaking down already, but at that moment you felt so safe.

"I, I just want to sleep..."

As you hid your face in the crook of her arms, the very arms that still held onto you tightly, she finally got a look at you.

Sweat covered nearly every inch of you, but that was the least of her worries. Both of your knees were significantly scraped and bleeding, the blood effortlessly running down your legs. Your entire left side was scraped and now bruised, the bruise covering practically your entire arm.

Lady Lesso didn't know if this was your doing, or the doing of another. It was almost too much to be self-inflicted.

"Y/n?" Lesso's voice was extremely soft and delicate, almost to the point where you couldn't hear it.

"Mhm." You hummed in acknowledgment, still desperately trying to catch your breath.

Lesso adjusted her hold on you, careful to not come into contact with your injuries. She knew you were finally lucid again. You stayed silent, waiting for her to continue but she hadn't yet.

She was waiting for your hyperventilating to die down, for your heart to stop vibrating, for you to calm down at least to a fraction of what you were currently at.

"Darling?"

"Yes?" Your breathing was still rapid but it was slow enough that you could finally speak.

"What- what was that?" Lesso was still trying to wrap her head around what happened.

You hid your face further into her, not caring that it was the Dean of Evil that you were hiding in.

"I, uh, I get nightmares..." You sheepishly answered.

That was a nightmare? Lesso knew you weren't present but she couldn't imagine a nightmare so bad it would cause you to end up bloody and bruised in her arms. How torturous it must to be be mentally and physically affected by a dream.

"Okay. Come with me, darling, I'll get you cleaned up."

She pulled you up, but your weak and pained body caused you to nearly collapse again. And you would've if it weren't for Lesso catching you last minute.

Your knees couldn't keep from buckling and your feet were sore from running.

Lesso practically carried you all the way to her office, luckily her office wasn't too far.

Though you were finally present, you still weren't really there. The exhaustion from not technically sleeping was blatantly obvious. Lesso set you down on her couch, the one in front of her fireplace, as she summoned a bunch of first aid supplies for you.

She could see the way you stared through her into nothingness, the large bags under your eyes that wouldn't budge.

She lit the fireplace with a wave of her hand, hoping to rid you of the goosebumps on your skin.

"Y/n?" She attempted again.

"Hmm?" You responded but you didn't move.

"When was the last time you actually slept? A night's sleep without a nightmare, I mean." Lesso wasn't sure if every nightmare involved your body being physically awake.

"Uh, how long have I uh, been at the school?"

Lesso frowned at your question but thought on it for a moment, "About three years, why?"

"Then it's been, four years." You didn't even blink as you spoke, and Lesso's heart ached for you.

A part of her was pleased that it wasn't the school that caused them, but she wished she knew about them sooner. After all, these weren't just nightmares.

Lesso wasn't sure what to say, so she said nothing. She grabbed some antiseptic on a cloth and began wiping your wounds clean.

Only at the sting of the cleaner did you break out of your trance-like state, a wince coming from you as you pull your knee back from Lesso.

She abruptly looked at you, "I apologize, but I have to clean your wounds so they don't get infected." You blinked a few times before giving your knee back to her, allowing her to continue.

"Sorry..." You shyly added.

"There's no need for you to be sorry, darling." She responded, tossing the blood and dirt-soiled cloth into the fire before grabbing a fresh one. "Have you told anyone about these?" She continued to work on cleaning up your wounds.

"Uh no, I haven't. But they weren't always this bad." You watched as she switched to your other knee, eyes closing in anticipation of the sting.

"Maybe I could help." You looked at her curiously, not expecting her to want to help.

"You'd do that?"

She paused, looking up at you with a soft smile, "I would, it wouldn't hurt to try. Has there been any times when you last remember not having a nightmare in these last few years?"

You thought about it for a second. And there was.

But you couldn't tell her.

Your cheeks reddened and you began to retreat into yourself, you shook your head at her question.

But it was clear she didn't believe you.

Her look narrowed, expecting the truth from you, "Yes there is. What is it, darling?" You knew she only wanted to help.

And damn were you aching for a good night's sleep.

Your voice was small, "I had a sleepover with my friend a little while back, and I didn't have a nightmare."

"Ah," Now it made sense why you were quick to hide this admission. "Nothing to be ashamed of, darling."

Lesso knew just what you needed, and at your shocked and confused face, she also knew that you wanted it too but couldn't bring yourself to ask for it.

"A-are you sure? I mean, I'm just a measly-"

"That's enough," She gently yet sternly cut you off. "If that's what you need, there's no harm in at least trying it."

You wanted to argue, but you wanted to sleep more.

Lesso finished up your knees with a bandage, knowing that you'd likely need them to be changed in the morning. Well, later morning.

You were confused when she sat beside you but didn't even look at your face.

When you realized she was looking at your arm, your line of sight shifted to look at what she was seeing.

A gasp involuntarily left you when you saw bruised whelps already on your arm. It was never this bad. She gently grabbed your arm to examine the marks closer.

"I'm assuming you ran into the corridor walls or maybe you fell on this side, I'm not entirely sure." She answered the question you hadn't yet voiced.

Your face contorted in pain as she cleaned this would too, adamant about preventing infection, "I'm sorry, darling, I must. Luckily, it's not too bad here like on your knees." You only nodded at her words.

She still wrapped your arm, knowing it'll help keep it clean.

You released a breath of relief as she finally ceased her actions, with nothing left to clean.

"What about my back?" You asked.

She moved to get a look at your back, "It's not bleeding or anything, is it sore?"

You were confused.

"But? It got clawed?" Now Lesso was confused too.

"May I?" Lesso asked in reference to your shirt, wanting to know if there was an injury that she couldn't see.

You nodded and allowed her to get a look, she lifted your shirt and then spoke, "I'm not seeing any marks or anything here, darling."

Your brows furrowed in silent questioning.

"Darling, would you like to tell me about this nightmare?" She gently asked, replacing your shirt to how it was before.

"It's the same few dreams but lately it's the same one," You looked at Lesso, seeing the concern and care in her features. "I'm in bed and then I'm suddenly in a forest running from a beast. But, at some point, I trip or it claws me and I get caught. Sometimes it's both."

That's when it clicked for Lesso, and a feeling of relief came to her when you weren't looking at her like a monster but you were actually looking at a beast.

"I'm sorry, darling, I'm sure that's exhausting,"

"It is, but I don't think I've ever actually gotten out of bed and started running outside of my dream before..."

"Well, sometimes these horrors can be so powerful and unpredictable that it is indeed possible. I've just never seen it to your extent."

You sighed in disappointment, thinking that you'd never be rid of these nightly horrors.

"Don't give up on me yet, darling. There's something we've yet to try." She placed her hand on your shoulder.

You looked into her eyes, mouth open but she didn't allow you to speak, "Yes, I am sure. You need some sleep." You simply blinked and nodded in acceptance.

Lesso can see the pure exhaustion that practically coated your face.

"Okay, come on, time for bed." She stood up and pulled your tired form with her.

You coyly followed beside her, never had you thought that you'd end up sleeping alongside the Dean. But at this point, if it helped you sleep you didn't care what it was, you'd do it.

You just hoped that this was, indeed, going to help.

"Is there anything you'd need?" You just shook your head. "Okay, go ahead and get comfortable, darling,"

Before Lesso could finish, she saw your concerned and scared look, "Not to worry, I just need to change first. I'll return, I promise."

You only nodded again, too tired to actually speak.

"Good, I'll be back in a moment."

As she turned into her bathroom to change, you took a quick glance around her quarters. You knew you probably shouldn't, it is an invasion, but you couldn't help it.

You were slightly surprised to see the room littered with books everywhere, an occasional candle placed in different places, but it was oddly warm for a Never dormitory. Must come with being the Dean, you thought.

You would've looked a little more but it was dark and you were more tired than curious at the moment.

You sheepishly moved to the bed, and the reality of the situation begin to set in. You moved from the edge to lay on the far side of the bed, not yet moving to be under the covers.

Once Lesso finally exited the bathroom, she was expecting you to be all bundled up in the duvet but was confused to see you sitting up with your legs crossed.

"Darling, you do know that you're allowed in the bed right?"

"I, uh, yeah, I do." You practically whispered.

She nodded, beginning to come to the bed, "Good, so maybe it would help if you did that." She raised her brow.

You looked at your fidgeting fingers, "Y-yeah, sorry." You scurried up and off the bed.

Only then did Lesso realize her mistake, "Darling no, I'm sorry. It's alright, come on, just get comfortable so you can finally get some rest." She came up beside you and lifted the corner of the duvet beside you.

You wordlessly got in the bed, instantly enjoying the softness of the sheets. Lesso couldn't help but smile as she saw you pull the duvet up under your chin and snuggle further into the bed.

She was always proud of you but was always confused. She knew there was something off and she finally knew what. Every day, you put on a facade, one that showed you being energized and happy. And that wasn't the case.

Lesso got into her side of the bed, just ready for slumber herself.

"Lady Lesso?" You whispered.

"Yes, darling?"

She could sense the embarrassment in your voice, the shyness not hiding, "Would it be alright if- actually never mind." You realized halfway through asking that you were being ridiculous.

Asking the Dean of Evil? Asking her if you could rest against her? How idiotic you thought.

"Darling, the answer will never be a yes if you never ask." Lesso had a feeling of what you were asking but if you wanted it then you can ask for it.

She knew that she shouldn't be so vigorous with you right now, but she's still the Dean of Evil and can't help it.

A soft sigh came from you, you just wanted to sleep, "Could I, would it be okay if I rested closer beside you?" Your voice was just above a whisper and you instantly were ready for the no to come.

But it didn't.

"Of course, you can." You were stunned but you kept quiet and shuffled closer to the Dean.

You instantly enjoyed and relaxed in her warmth as you came up just beside her.

Lesso didn't think you were being serious when you asked to rest near her, but you were. You stopped just shy of touching her. Lesso couldn't have that.

"Come on, I don't bite." She raised her arm and wrapped it around your shoulders, pulling you to actually rest on her.

You kind of froze, not expecting her to do that, but it lasted a mere moment before you practically melted into her embrace, sleep finally coming to you once more.

Lesso didn't admit it but she could feel you fight the sleep off, every time you drifted off you flinched back awake. She still hated this for you, hating that sleep was so hard for you.

It wasn't the nightmare you were afraid of, it was the potential of hurting Lesso. But it got to the point where fighting sleep was becoming too difficult, so against your wishes you gave in.

You finally allowed yourself to sleep.

And you were glad you did.

Lesso knew that the moment you allowed yourself to sleep that she could finally sleep herself, only once she was sure you were safe.

And for the first time in years, the first time in who knows how long, you slept without interruptions.

No nightmare, for the first time in ages.

You woke up with ease, not in a cold sweat. You woke up to the sun, not to pain and screams. You actually slept well.

You were distracted by a sound, and at that moment is when you realized you were alone.

You were confused about how you slept through her getting out of bed. What time was it?

When Lesso came back in, she was pleasantly surprised to see you awake.

"Am I late? Did I miss my first class?" You shot up, now suddenly worried. You couldn't miss class.

Lesso felt bad at your reaction, "Well, yes, you missed all of your classes." She saw your look shift into horror. "Don't worry, I excused you from your classes today. I decided that you needed your sleep." She left no room for any debate.

"Uh, what time is it?"

Lesso glanced at a clock in the corner of her room, "It looks to be about 6 pm."

"6 pm?!" You couldn't believe it, you hadn't slept over 12 hours in a long time.

"I have a dinner waiting for you just in my office, that's actually why I came back in, to see if you were in fact still alive." She joked though you were still taking things in.

"Thank you,"

She nodded, "It's not a problem."

You looked her in the eyes, "No, I mean, thank you. For last night. It, it really helped."

A simple smile came to her face, "I'm glad it helped," She was proud to be the one that helped you.

You got out of bed to enjoy the meal that was graciously brought for you. You were beyond grateful for Lady Lesso, she helped you more than you could have ever imagined.

Lesso watched on as you ate your meal, she could see that there was something that you wanted to say, to ask maybe, but decided against it. She could see just how grateful you were, it was clear in the way you showed her a smile.

At that moment, you didn't realize that your future nights were set to be shared with the Dean again. Maybe you could work your way to be able to sleep on your own, but Lesso knew that won't be anytime soon.

And she didn't mind.

🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮🝮

Taglist: @v3nusxsky @pebbleswritessometimes @inlovewithgreta.

I want more people on my Taglist :(

188 notes · View notes

angstics · 7 months

Text

2021 interview, transcribed by ibroughtyoumybullets

AIDAN: Is it like color, is it shapes? GERARD: I think it gets more specific than that. It feels like visuals from a movie, like a scene. AIDAN: Really? GERARD: Yeah. It feels like, like- I think I’ve heard other musicians describe this too. But cinema could be a big source of inspiration for me. AIDAN: Got it. GERARD: You know, like, when we were recording The Kids From Yesterday, we had it on repeat - there’s this short, there’s an anthology film, I believe it’s called Spirits of the Dead, and one of those short films is called Toby Dammit, and it’s Terence Stamp playing this guy Toby Dammit. And we had it playing the entire time we were doing the song. It starts off - it’s Fellini, who shot it, so it’s moving through this airport and everythings very warm, and there’s this warm glow coming from outside. And it really just synced up with the music for me. It helped push us to finish that song. So if I’m seeing my own cinema in my own head, it’s also fueling the music. AIDAN: Got it. That probably helps with the like, conceptualizing of the music. GERARD: It does. AIDAN: Is it fully formed for you, or are you developing the concept as you get each song? GERARD: Developing them as I get each song. Like, sometimes I’ll have a concept early. Lotta times I’ll just write a piece of music, and then I will think about what that makes me feel, but also what happens. What it could be about. It could be something like Cronenberg’s The Fly, or like body horror. Occasionally I would write body horror into my Doom Patrol run, and I like body horror. I think it’s super interesting, and I like the idea of transforming, and metamorphosis, and things like that.

#mcr #mcr film studies #gerard way #i saw this a long while ago but. it still drives me crazy. crazy.

104 notes · View notes

incorrectlooneytunesquotes · 6 months

Text

Dr. I.Q. Hi: Future knowledge is a toxin, Dodgers. Those who possess it are consumed by it. Duck Dodgers: That checks out. The Cadet and I dithscovered a future where killer butts have taken over the Earth… I.Q.: STOP TALKING ABOUT THE FUTURE!

#dr. i.q. hi #daffy duck #source: doom patrol

3 notes · View notes

androxys · 5 months

Text

Task Force What? An Incomplete (Yet Still Very Long) Guide to Some of the DCU’s Government Groups [Part 1]

So, you’re reading DC comics and a government agency pops up that you’re reasonably sure doesn’t exist in the real world. Who are they? What’s their deal? Here’s a quick primer on some of the groups that you may encounter.

A few notes and disclaimers: This writeup is primarily based on post-Crisis, pre-Flashpoint/New 52 comic canon. I’ve tried to note every exception to that general rule. Also, several of these groups and comics use historical markers tied to the real world, which makes less and less sense as we-as-readers get farther away in time from when these comics were originally published. DC eventually stopped using real people and events so frequently in comics to help with their timelessness, but I’m going to include the historical figures and times as depicted in the source material, even if that means the same Batman is supposed to have been active in the 70s and also in 2011. Just don’t worry about it.

This writeup is split into three parts, described below. This section is the most dense, dealing with the history of 13 agencies, some of their key players, and the organizations' general missions. Special thanks to my editors and beta readers for helping me shape this up.

Part 1: Organization Descriptions and Histories

Task Force X

Argent

The Suicide Squad

Checkmate

Central Bureau of Investigation

The Agency

Project: Peacemaker

Department of Extranormal Operations

All Purpose Enforcement Squad

Project Cadmus / The DNA Project

Human Defense Corps

A.R.G.U.S.

Spyral

Part 2: Timeline

Part 3: Reading Suggestions

Task Force X

One of the most famous of DC’s government groups, Task Force X is sometimes used interchangeably with “The Suicide Squad.” However, that’s (at least originally) not quite accurate! Task Force X was a government program that housed two clandestine programs: Argent and The Suicide Squad. Task Force X was originally started in the 50s by President Truman to make up for the disappearance of the Justice Society of America after Senator McCarthy summoned them before his House of Un-American Activities Committee and tried to force them to unmask. Task Force X was designed to deal with the “extraordinary” (read: metahuman and alien) threats that might face the U.S. government. Argent was the domestic program, while the Suicide Squad was international. The leader of Argent took his team and disappeared in the 60s, while the Suicide Squad disbanded soon after due to budget cuts.

Task Force X would be revived in the 80s when then-congressional aide Amanda Waller would present to President Reagan a plan to revitalize The Suicide Squad, this time utilizing supervillains for high risk, clandestine missions in exchange for reduced prison time. Waller also envisioned the reorganization of intelligence group The Agency, which would become the intelligence-focused division of Task Force X. The Agency would be led by former Doom Patrol member Valentina Vostok until its reorganization into Checkmate, at which point Harry Stein was named Checkmate’s King. Although Central Bureau of Intelligence leader Sarge Steel had significant reservations about Task Force X, the President ultimately approved the project.

After an inter-departmental war known as the Janus Directive, Task Force X was dissolved as an umbrella organization. The Suicide Squad and Checkmate were made fully independent of one another, with Sarge Steele assuming direct control of Checkmate from Waller, who stayed on as the director of the Suicide Squad.

Argent

Argent was the U.S. based division of the original, 50’s Task Force X that dealt with domestic and civilian “extraordinary” encounters. Originally led by a man named only as “Control,” Argent went underground after Control killed a man connected with the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963. Control’s vision for this new, even more secretive Argent was an internationally focused spy agency for justice, though little is known about how effective he was. Presumed defunct, Argent was not revived when Amanda Waller proposed her new Suicide Squad. Eventually, the new Suicide Squad made contact with the remenants of Argent, and were witness to the ultimate end of the program.

The Suicide Squad

Originally, the Suicide Squad was the self-given name of WWII platoon with a depressingly high fatality rate. Over the course of the war, the squadron found themselves on Dinosaur Island, which certainly didn’t help those numbers. Richard Montgomery Flag Sr. was brought in to help lead the group, turning the squadron around into a highly decorated division of the Army.

In 1951, after the Justice Society was driven underground, President Truman created Task Force X to be able to combat “extraordinary” threats now that there were no costumed heroes to rely on. Truman requested that Flag Sr. lead The Suicide Squad, which focused on international threats. This group was largely composed of veterans of the WWII Squadron S. This version of the Suicde Squad was disbanded after the death of Flag Sr.

A third version of the Squad was created by General Stuart, tapping Rick Flag Jr. to be its leader. This team continued to deal with extranormal threats, but disbanded after a mission in Cambodia that saw the loss of half the squad. It was also revealed that regardless of the fatalities, budget cuts demanded the end of the program.

The most famous version of the Suicide Squad was proposed by congressional aide Amanda Waller to President Reagan in the 1980s, following the Legends event. Waller envisioned a revival of Task Force X as an umbrella program, with the new Suicide Squad being staffed by incarcerated supervillains. These villains would undertake high-risk, clandestine operations in return for reduced prison sentences. Part of the appeal of this model was the deniability: in the event that an operation went poorly, the government could simply blame it on the supervillain. President Reagan approved the program–Waller was the leader of Task Force X, which included both the Suicide Squad and The Agency, which was soon remade into Checkmate.

This Suicide Squad operated out of Belle Reve penitentiary, which was a maximum security prison specializing in holding supervillains. The initial administration of the Suicide Squad consisted of Amanda Waller as its director, Belle Reve’s warden John Economos, psychologist Simon LaGrieve, bureaucratic assistant Flo Crawley, and pilot Briscoe. Waller brought in Rick Flag Jr. to serve as her field leader and Ben Turner, the Bronze Tiger, as second in command. While the Squad certainly lived up to its name and reputed high mortality rate, notable team members include Eve Eden, Nightshade; Floyd Lawton, Deadshot; June Moone, Enchantress; and George Harkness, Captain Boomerang. I’m not going to spoil the whole Oracle plot for you, but know that Barbara Gordon actually debuted as Oracle in the pages of Suicide Squad, so consider this your sign to go read Suicide Squad (1987).

After the events of The Janus Directive, Task Force X was dissolved as an umbrella organization. While Waller was left as the director of the Suicide Squad, she no longer had any leadership in Checkmate, which had passed into the control of Sarge Steel, director of the Central Bureau of Investigation.

After a number of missions, Waller eventually disbanded the Suicide Squad, finding herself disillusioned with the Squad’s goals. However, because this is comics, the Suicide Squad would not stay dead for long. Waller would periodically create new incarnations of the Squad to address spontaneous issues that would arise, often crossing over with other superheroes' adventures. During Lex Luthor’s presidency, Waller would be appointed Secretary of Metahuman Affairs, taking Sarge Steel’s place.

After Checkmate was rechartered as an United Nations organization, Amanda Waller took a position as the White Queen. To limit conflicts of interest, this effectively meant that the Suicide Squad was permanently disbanded, as Waller was prohibited from operations and could not be involved in the leadership of both organizations. This didn’t stop her, however, and Waller formed a new incarnation of the Suicide Squad that began Operation: Salvation Run. This project involved rounding up all supervillains and deporting them to a prison planet via Boom Tube (yes, really) where they were supposed to stay indefinitely. Waller was eventually ousted from Checkmate, but not before she and her Squad managed to deport the majority of Earth’s villains. The Suicide Squad would have to confront its ghosts during the Blackest Night event, when zombified fallen members of the Squad came after living members, but further adventures were cut off by Flashpoint.

Checkmate

Checkmate started from The Agency, a quasi-independent intelligence focused division of Task Force X led by former Doom Patrol member Valentina Vostok. Vostok brought in former NYPD lieutenant Harry Stein, who soon reorganized the group into Checkmate. Borrowing from chess’ hierarchy, Stein was King, working with his Queen counterpart to coordinate various agents. Bishops oversaw Rooks, who planned missions for support agents–Pawns–and special agents–Knights. Checkmate operated out of Konig Industries in Shelby, Virginia until the events of the Janus Directive. During that event, Checkmate lost roughly 40 Knights and its Konig cover was blown. With only a third of its agents, Checkmate was subsequently forced to relocate to a NORAD base in Colorado.

Harry Stein resigned as head of Checkmate after his son was shot, leading Sarge Steel to promote Phil Kramer to King and Kalia Cambell to Queen. They would lead Checkmate against Jade Nguyen, the assassin known as Chesire, during the time she took control of several nuclear warheads and bombed the nation of Qurac. At some point Checkmate would establish their division between black side, which ran operations, and white side, which was primarily intelligence.

Bishop Jessica Midnight recruited Sasha Bordeaux, Bruce Wayne’s former bodyguard, into Checkmate. Bordeaux had been imprisoned due to suspicion that she was an accomplice to Bruce Wayne's alleged killing of Vesper Fairchild. Checkmate faked Bordeaux’s death in prison and provided her with plastic surgery to assume a completely new life as a Checkmate operative.

After Kramer, former Knight David Said would become the new King of Checkmate. He would lead Checkmate against Batman in Gotham City, a campaign that saw them abduct Helena Bertinelli, the Huntress, and install her as Queen in an attempt to have her share secrets from Batman. This arrangement was actually a plan between Batman and Huntress, however, and Bertinelli ended up serving as a mole for Batman on Checkmate.

For this next section, I choose to believe that Checkmate was a victim of Superboy-Prime’s altering of reality in the leadup to Infinite Crisis. Checkmate is suddenly headed by Maxwell Lord, Said and Bertinelli are nowhere to be seen, and Lord’s motivations are massively different from any of his previous appearances. Regardless, under Lord, Checkmate amassed information on every metahuman on Earth with plans to eliminate them. To do this, Lord was given access to the Brother Eye satellite, and together they controlled over one million OMACs–civilians that had been injected with nanotechnology to make them unwitting cyborg sleeper agents. When Ted Kord, the Blue Beetle, discovered what Lord had been up to, Lord killed him and instructed Bordeaux to dispose of the body.

Sasha sent Blue Beetle’s goggles to Batman, alerting him of Kord’s death. Once Lord knew that Batman was on his tail, he accelerated his plans, using his mental manipulation powers to take control of Superman and send him on a rampage to keep other heroes occupied. When Wonder Woman caught up with Lord, she bound him in her Lasso of Truth and commanded him to tell her how to set Superman free. The only option he gave her was for him to die, so Wonder Woman snapped his neck. Upon Lord’s death, Brother Eye immediately activated all OMACs and began the King_Is_Dead protocol, which involved killing every current Checkmate agent. Bordeaux, who had been imprisoned by Lord after he discovered her subterfuge, escaped, though not before her own unique OMAC programming activated. Lord had intended for her, as his Knight, to be a special type of OMAC, leaving her somewhere between human and machine. Later, Bordeaux would team up with Batman and other heroes to take down Brother Eye.

After Infinite Crisis, Checkmate was recharted by the United Nations to be an international group with a stronger system of checks and balances. Checkmate operated under a system of twos: two Kings and two Queens, with a Knight and Bishop for all four royals. Most specifically, the U.N. charter set out a Rule of Two: each position had to be balanced with meta and non-metahumans. As before, Black side was operations while White was intelligence. Bishops advised their royals, while Knights were special agents. Rooks were an elite Black Ops unit, while numerous Pawns were standard agents.

At the time of its chartering, the new Checkmate had the OMAC enhanced Bordeaux as its Black Queen, Taleb Beni Khalid as its unpowered Black King, JSA Green Lantern Alan Scott as White King, and Amanda Waller as White Queen. After Scott resigned as White King his Bishop, fellow JSA member Michael Holt–Mister Terrific, took his place.

This Checkmate frequently clashed with Kobra, the international cult intent on bringing a new age of chaos to the world. However, they also had a non-insignificant amount of infighting. Significantly, Waller was forced out as White Queen after she tried to preemptively remove Bordeaux and Holt, knowing that they were getting close to uncovering her illicit Suicide Squad and their Operation: Salvation Run.

After the events of Brightest Day, Maxwell Lord returns from the dead and uses his power to make nearly everyone on Earth forget about him. He immediately begins to try to regain control of Checkmate, beginning a misinformation and discrediting campaign against Checkmate’s leadership.

Central Bureau of Intelligence (C.B.I.)

The Central Bureau of Intelligence is a sort of corollary to the Federal Bureau of Investigation within the DC Universe. The organization primarily focuses on information gathering from domestic and international sources, then utilizing that information for operations. However, while other groups are focused on “extranormal” threats, the CBI is primarily concerned with “normal” missions. When special assignments do come up, special agents are dispatched.

The CBI was known to be active when Task Force X was being revived by Amanda Waller. While Sarge Steel was both known to be involved in the CBI and important enough to sit in on Waller’s meeting with the President of the United States, it is not clearly stated that he was the director of the CBI at that time. However, Sarge Steel would officially be the director of the CBI by the time of the Janus Initiative. Despite the massive reorganization at the time, the CBI was left largely alone. Steel would be promoted to the Director of Metahuman Affairs, a Cabinet level position wherein he would oversee all metahuman related operations for the federal government.

Among the most notable CBI agents are the aforementioned Sarge Steel, King Faraday, and former Teen Titan Roy Harper. After leaving the Titans, Harper would work for the CBI as a special agent–it was during this period he met Jade Nguyen, the assassin known as Chesire, and conceived their daughter Lian.

Eventually, the CBI would be incorporated into the Department of Extranormal Operations.

The Agency

The Agency was a group led by former Doom Patrol member Valentina Vostok that aimed to monitor superheroes. When Amanda Waller presented her plan to reform Task Force X, the Agency was reorganized into Checkmate. Among its divisions was Project: Peacemaker.

Project: Peacemaker

Project Peacemaker was the program that created and maintained Christopher Smith’s activities as Peacemaker. Originally, Project Peacemaker was a division of the Agency. When Task Force X was revived under Amanda Waller’s proposal, the Agency was reorganized into Checkmate, and Project Peacemaker is implied to have been made its own entity. However, when Task Force X was dissolved after The Janus Directive, Project Peacemaker became folded into Checkmate under the supervision of Sarge Steel.

The Department of Extranormal Affairs (D.E.O.)

In terms of real-world publication, the DEO began in 1998 as DC’s effort to begin consolidating all of the various federal metahuman organizations under one umbrella. In this author’s opinion, this was for the better.

The Department of Extranormal Operations is the U.S. government’s most modern and comprehensive agency to assess and combat metahuman threats through intelligence gathering, field operatives, and their own research.

The DEO conducts extensive research on metahumans and extranormal entities, with various degrees of transparency or consent. The DEO has been depicted to hold individuals against their will in order to study them, to the point of sending either their own agents or other affiliated groups to hunt down subjects that escape. This research seemed to be, in its early depictions, its primary focus. However, the DEO would take broader forays into intelligence, using that information for good… and sometimes to blackmail heroes into working for them.

In most depictions, the DEO is led by Director Bones, a former member of Infinity Inc, who reports to the federal Director of Metahuman Affairs. Bones is the direct supervisor of operative Cameron Chase, who has proved herself an exceptional agent. Through Chase, Kate Spencer–the Manhunter–was brought in to work for the DEO for some time.

The DEO is expansive enough to have several subdivisions within it. One such group was the Department of Metahuman Affairs, where Wonder Woman would work after Infinite Crisis. This subdivision would focus specifically on gathering and preparing intelligence on active metahumans, should the government need it. This subdivision would be led by Sarge Steel, who had left the White House upon the election of Lex Luthor and Luthor’s subsequent appointment of Amanda Waller to Secretary for Metahuman Affairs.

Another group known to be active during Luthor’s presidency was Knightwatch, a more militaristic division that responded to possible metahuman attacks on federal personnel and buildings.

The DEO’s research facilities are detailed in various comics across the 90s. It is gradually revealed that the DEO either maintains or sponsors a variety of training camps and research facilities, sometimes called “orphanages,” that hold metahumans under various states of duress. One example is Secret, the Young Justice member who is shown escaping from a DEO orphanage, and later gets Young Justice’s help shutting down similar experimentation programs. A group of metahumans who escape from the DEO collectively get taken in by the Titans. Conversely, some of the individuals who go on to be the Relative Heroes are depicted to be in a more traditional fostering environment, though it is still connected to the DEO.

Within the continuity of the Supergirl TV show, as part of the Arrowverse, the DEO is a governmental organization that specifically deals with extraterrestrial threats and encounters.

All Purpose Enforcement Squad (A.P.E.S.)

The All Purpose Enforcement Squad is an international, interdepartmental group of highly trained special agents. APES features most prominently in the Young Justice series, represented by Donald Fite and Ishido Maad.

While APES has connections to international organizations such as Interpol and Scotland Yard, they seem primarily U.S. based, as APES was the primary group trying to recover Secret, a metahuman who escaped from a DEO research facility.

Project Cadmus

Project Cadmus, sometimes also known as the DNA Project, is a government supported genetic research lab. Cadmus is involved with cloning and gene sequencing for the purpose of creating new life, with their most famous creation being Superboy.

Originally led by Director Paul Westfield, Cadmus employed various scientists engaged with genetic manipulation. The most notorious of these scientists was Dabney Donovan, who created “DNAliens” with inhuman powers. These DNAliens include Dubbilex, the grey skinned, horned telepath who would serve as a mentor to Superboy. Cadmus also employed the adult members of the original Newsboy Legion. These adults cloned themselves to create a new Newsboy Legion, and additionally cloned former NYPD officer Jim Harper–the original Guardian. This new cloned Guardian would serve as head of security of Cadmus.

Donovan was eventually fired from Cadmus due to the extremity of his experiments. Donovan would go on to align himself with The Agenda, another genetic lab responsible for their own Superboy clone: Match. Cadmus would also have an enemy in the form of the Evil Factory, led by Mokkari and Simyan, servants of Darkseid.

After a virus affecting clones and DNAliens breaks out, Cadmus began to receive intense scrutiny. A purification by fire was attempted, with missiles aimed to destroy sections of Metropolis and stop the virus. After the missiles were stopped, Donovan revealed himself to be the mastermind of the virus and killed Westfield, leading Mickey Cannon to be named the new administrative director of Cadmus. This scrutiny forced Cadmus to withdraw from the public eye, going deeper underground.

Under Cannon, Dabney would be kept imprisoned in Cadmus to serve as a scientific advisor under armed guard. Cannon also brought in Serling Roquette to be the new head of genetics–Roquette would eventually be responsible for curing Superboy of the genetic quirk that kept him from aging. Cadmus would continue to withdraw from attention, especially under the presidency of Lex Luthor.

Human Defense Corps

The Human Defense Corps was a group started under President Luthor’s administration with the goal of having an entirely non-metahuman taskforce that could respond to meta-level threats. This was in line with Luthor’s goal of reducing dependency on superheroes, and as such only recruited from decorated military veterans.

A specific subgroup within the Human Defense Corps was Squad K, a division specifically armed and trained to take on Kryptonian targets.

A.R.G.U.S.

You may have noticed that I didn’t put what A.R.G.U.S. stands for up above. That’s because sources disagree. According to the wiki, A.R.G.U.S. stands for Advanced Research Group Uniting Super-humans. A.R.G.U.S. was created post-Flashpoint to be a governmental organization associated with the Department of Homeland Security. Specifically, A.R.G.U.S. aims to support super- and meta-human endeavors, rather than having an antagonistic relationship with the superhuman community.

A.R.G.U.S. took on a life of its own within the TV Arrowverse shows, where it’s called the Advanced Research Group United Support. There, A.R.G.U.S. is the de facto government agency for dealing with metahuman threats. It was formerly led by Amanda Waller before leadership passed to Lyla Michaels.

Spyral

Before I start to give the details on Spyral, I have to disclaim a few things about it. Spyral was first mentioned in the New Earth timeline, during Grant Morrison’s time with Batman Incorporated (2011). This was immediately before Flashpoint and the New 52 reboot. However, this run of Batman Incorporated kept going within the New Earth continuity past when Flashpoint happened, meaning that the comics had to disclaim that they were still the old continuity, even though the reboot happened. But then! Batman Incorporated (2012) was a direct sequel to the New Earth run, even though this Volume 2 explicitly happens in the post-reboot continuity.

All of this to say, Spyral is an organization that has roots in the New Earth continuity, but was largely fleshed out in the post-Flashpoint universe. Because of the relative lack of information in the pre-Flashpoint continuity, however, we can assume a lot of the later established details can be retroactively applied.

Technically, Spyral is not a U.S. agency. Originally, Spyral was founded during the Cold War to be a United Nations affiliated spy group. The U.N. made former Nazi spy Otto Netz, under the pseudonym Agent Zero, the head of the organization. He was subsequently tasked with recruiting Spyral’s agents and building the organization for the U.N.

Spyral continued into the 80s, at which point Netz was revealed to be a double agent and imprisoned in a lighthouse. Though the organization seemingly collapsed at that point, Spyral’s operations continued. At some point before his imprisonment, Netz recruited Gotham City socialite Kathy Webb Kane into Spyral and tasked her with discovering the identity of the Batman. Kathy developed the Batwoman persona to get close to Batman, though the revelation that Netz was her father caused her to break off contact with both Batman and retreat from Spyral. Kathy Webb Kane was believed to have been killed by Ben Turner, the Bronze Tiger, during his period of being controlled by the League of Assassins.

Netz would be broken out of his imprisonment by the Leviathan Organization, which is a militaristic group led by Talia al Ghul, after her estrangement from her father Ra’s al Ghul. Leviathan seeks to undo much of modern society in order to rebuild the world in a “better” way. Talia set Netz up as Doctor Dedalus to combat Batman and his Batman Incorporated initiative, designing elaborate traps across the globe to keep Bruce Wayne and his operatives occupied. Netz was eventually killed within one of his traps by Damian Wayne, who was attempting to save his father.

It was revealed after Netz’s death that Kathy Webb Kane was still alive, and had faked her own demise in order to become the secret headmistress of Spyral. After Netz’s death, the U.N. officially reactivated Spyral in order to combat Leviathan’s continued growth.

Spyral operates out of St. Hadrian’s Finishing School for Girls. Initially in the New Earth continuity, the school had been a Leviathan facility, training young women as infiltrators and assassins. It was the site of Stephanie Brown’s mission as Batgirl on behalf of Batman Incorporated, and she and Batman managed to stop the Leviathan plot. In the post-Flashpoint continuity, St. Hadrian’s is Spyral’s base, where elite students are trained as spies. It’s assumed that Spyral just took control after ousting Leviathan.

After Dick Grayson was publically unmasked as Nightwing, he joined Spyral to investigate the organization. During this period, he worked with Helena Bertinelli, who was working as the Matron of Spyral. Grayson would continue as Agent 37 of Spyral for some time, until his identity was restored. At that point, he and Bertinelli both returned to Gotham to take up the mantles of Nightwing and Huntress, respectively. With Bertinelli’s departure, directorship of Spyral and the title of Patron passed to Agent-1, the operative known as Tiger.

#dc comics #amanda waller #suicide squad #sasha bordeaux #checkmate #meta #my writing

58 notes · View notes