Hey guys,
Prompted by Paul here to put this up.
Among many other wonderful things, Jens was my co-GM for a JLU Play by-post game using the Mutants and Masterminds Second Edition system on Dakota's Playground forum. The premise was simple - imagine the "Justice League Unlimited" series continued going past the events of "Destroyer" and simply have fun playing in the DCAU and adapting some of interesting DCU stories to that universe.
I really don't know if I'm going to continue - the loss of Jens is reason enough to cancel it, as what I need in a co-GM is a kindred spirit who both knows and loves the JLU series while also having a good idea how to adapt DCU stuff to that particular context. I'm posting up our individual prologues, because we each bounced our ideas off each other to make them work. If anyone's interested as co-GM or player, let me know.
First, my prologue - and it should be immediately clear what infamous DCU story I was adapting (bonus nerd points for figuring out what other story I homage in this opener)
dakotanightsong.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=jlus3&thread=840&page=1#4584530 years from now….Matt Ryder wiped the sweat from his brow as the Old Man in front of him loosened the screws on the ventilation grate. “They won’t last much longer.” As if to emphasize his point, the building shook, slamming Matt’s head against the top of the shaft. “Blast it! If Monarch doesn’t kill us, our own fighters will!”
“Patience.” The Old Man delivered flatly as he worked the last screw. “Did you know that the weight of a standard screw is exactly the same as the carrying capacity of a common black ant? That is not a coincidence.” The Old Man turns to face his young companion. His silver hair was cropped closely against his scalp on the sides, with the top covered by the rolled up balaclava he wore. Not that it mattered; he had no facial features to speak of.
The grate cluttered to the ground as the Old Man hopped to the floor, looking surprisingly ginger for his age. He lowered Matt down. The room was dark, save for the spotlights over the many display cases arranged evenly across the span of the giant room. Each display case contained a costume, many of them burnt, torn, or bloody; some where nothing more the shreds of a cape, others had a complete costume, as well as their weapons and accessories.
“This is what you had me spend three years undercover trying to find? His trophy room?” Matt shook his head. “I don’t care what weapons we find here.”
“We aren’t looking for a weapon.” The Old Man moves from case to case, not pausing for more than a few seconds. “No weapon will be enough.”
“Then what are we doing here? Our forces are being cut to ribbons and –“
“-it’s inevitable. The Resistance will be over. There was no chance of victory.”
“You’re insane.”
“You are not the first to say so.”
“Then what are we here for? I should get my wife to safety-“
“She’s already dead.”
“What!” Matt couldn’t contain himself any longer as he grabbed the Old Man by the front of his jacket. “What are you talking about?”
“Waller used your codes to shut down the automated defenses, to give her troops a chance. Once Monarch realizes what’s happened, you, your family, are all as good as dead.”
“THEN WHAT WAS THIS ALL FOR?”
“To save the world.” The Old Man’s fingers were bony, but strong enough to make Matt release his grip. He resumed searching the display cases. He stopped before a mannequin wearing a purple costume and cape, a shattered crossbow lay at the bottom of the case. The Old Man put a hand on the glass for a moment, and bows his head. “I’m sorry.” Whether the statement was directed at him, Matt could not tell.
Matt took a deep breath. “OK, so what the hell is your plan? Because I don’t believe you just got us all killed to look at some costumes in cases.”
“Just one. And here it is.” The Old Man gestured to a green and white costume.
“David Clinton a.k.a. Chronos. Time traveler from a possible future. Monarch killed him years ago. Didn’t want to touch his equipment though. Too dangerous. Timeline too fragile. Good.” The Old Man took out a crowbar and swung it against the glass with all his might, shattering it. Alarms begin to wail. “Not much time. Put it on.” The Old Man began removing the golden harness from the mannequin.
“What? Why?”
“To go back. Change the timeline. Stop Monarch from betraying the League.”
“Why don’t you go back? You’re the only one who knows who he is, after all.”
“That’s …not entirely correct.”
Matt’s jaw dropped. “You’re kidding! Oh, come on!”
Now it was The Old Man who snapped. “I wasn’t there! “ He paused for a moment. “ When he blew up the Watchtower, I was…elsewhere. I can only go by guesswork.”
“You’re still the best bet to go – they’ll trust you. Or the younger you, he’ll trust you.”
“I wouldn’t trust me.”
Matt couldn’t repress the urge to roll his eyes.
The outer wall collapsed as a burst of energy exploded outward. Armored boots slowly clanged against the concrete floor as the Monarch walked into the room.
“Question. It’s been a looong time.” Despite the electronic masking, Monarch’s tone came off as friendly. “It’s over. Waller’s gone, the Resistance is finished.”
“Inevitable.” The Question walked towards the Armored behemoth. He took a quick look back at Matt, giving a slight nod, before facing Monarch.
“Do it.”
Monarch sighs as he raises his right arm. “Such a waste.” The gauntlet glowed white hot before a flash of white enveloped the Question.
Only ashes remained.
He walked forward. “I’m afraid it’s your turn now, Matt. I’m truly sorry.”
Matt madly fumbled at the controls, and was quickly rewarded when a tunnel of white opened before him. He laughed as he began to rush for the portal.
Monarch fired another blast, but his timing was off; it hit the portal just as Matt entered it. Waves of energy bounced through the tunnel as Matt fell, the energy turning from white to gold and bathing him in heat.
Matt Ryder screamed as he fell through time.
and now Jens' Prologue 2:
dakotanightsong.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=jlus3&thread=846&page=1#45877The man in green hovered in the Nothingness. In the distance, a literally unmeasureable distance, he watched a hand open. From the hand sprung forth a star, then more stars, then enough stars to form a galaxy. One galaxy became two, two became four.
The man in green sensed the probes sent by the renegade Guardian Krona. He didn’t care. He knew that he was invisible to Krona’s sensors. Let the little immortal try to find out how the universe was born. It made no difference at all to the man in green.
„I like it here,“ he said. „It’s quiet. I can think.“ He turned his head and looked at the pale man who had just arrived. „Nice mask.“
The pale man ignored what the man in green said. He just glowered at him.
„Oh, come on,“ the man in green said amicably. „You can drop that whole wrath of god routine. This is me, remember? You should know better than anyone that I don’t scare.“
„If you attempt this, I will stop you,“ the pale man said. “You know that.”
“And you will fail.”
“You don’t know that,” the man in green replied. “Actually, the fact that you exist at all implies that I won’t be defeated.” He sighed. For a moment, he looked very tired. “I can’t be defeated,” he said. “You know that better than anyone else. Or should, anyway. I’m not sure how much your master has brainwashed you. In your heart, you know I’m right. In your heart, you know that you need to let me do this. I’m not going to hurt anyone, you know that.”
“You don’t want to, I know that. But you will.”
“But it doesn’t matter, don’t you see? Even if I happen to hurt someone along the way, when I’m done, I’ll have made it right again. That’s all I want, and you know it: make things right. All the things that have gone wrong, all the things that your master probably insists are part of his plan.” The man in green was getting increasingly agitated as he spoke. “Well, I have a newsflash for you. Your master, he’s one cruel bastard. When I’m done, the people will see what the universe, what life, can be like.”
“And they will worship you. Is that it? You will be their new god?”
“Don’t be silly, you know better than that. No, I’ll be just one more normal man, living a happy life. Just like everyone else is going to be. Everyone will be happy. There will be no more crime, there will be no more disease, there will be no more mad gods trying to destroy or conquer the universe. There will only be peace and harmony and happiness.”
“But woe to anyone who stands in your way, right?” the pale man had an audible sneer in his voice.
“Yes.” The green man’s eyes became steely. “I know what you’re thinking, my friend,” he said. “You’re thinking to stop me. But you can’t. You can only stop me by killing me, and if you kill me, you will never exist.”
“Don’t be so sure about that,” the pale man replied. He faded away, leaving the man in green alone at the birth of the universe. The man in green turned back to watch the hand generate more stars and galaxies. But his mind was no longer at peace.
“This is all screwed up,” he said. “But I’m going to make it right.”