I own Constable Moriarty (it was either that or "Winchester," and M*A*S*H already did that joke; I suspect someone might have done the "Holmes/Moriarty" joke, as well, but since I haven't seen it, I shall remain in blissful ignorance). I own the quasi-anonymous characters.
I own nobody else.
We finally have it. The final saga to "Spectres of the Past."
And the beginning to "Quantum Locked," "Bad Blood," and a potential one-shot that exists purely to poke fun at Vector—which inspired Bad Blood, just so you know, and which I'd like to try drawing up as a comic on my deviantArt page (operative word: try)—and likely any others I can think of.
And one final Encyclopedia-inspired rewrite: this time I modified Adi-Ra's role (she needed rewriting anyway thanks to her tendency to pop up in my my other storyverses) to make room for Remington's canon mother Eli-Za.
I own... Adi-Ra, a.k.a. the "Nocturnus refugee" or "that Nocturnus witch." ;)
"How goes the battle?" Kragok asked.
"Not well, Grandmaster," Lien-Da replied. "The Guardians have the troops on the run."
"Pathetic," Kragok growled. "Have you found the Emerald?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Then so long as the troops have the Guardians...busy, I can commence with the next step. Bring me my son."
"Uh, sir, that's kind of a problem." Lien-Da swallowed. It would be better if the brat died out there; maybe the Guardians would kill him before they realized it. One less obstacle in her way.
But if she didn't report it, Kragok might suspect the part she had played. "The woman...your wife. She's run away with that Nocturnus witch. And..." She swallowed again. "And we believe she took the boy with her."
"What?"
—
Two female echidnas ran through the woods, a small child struggling to keep up between them.
The boy tripped, and one of the females yanked him back to his feet before his knees hit the ground.
"Hurry," she managed to whisper; she was too afraid to shout if she wanted to.
Five minutes later, the woman stumbled, and the boy started to pull her to her feet.
A shadow loomed over them, and she suppressed a shriek and tried to shove her son behind her. The other woman stood up to shield them from view.
Spectre concentrated his Chaos Power on the woman, and...
Stop.
His power dissipated before he could blink. Aurora stared at him.
The image faded as quickly as it had come, and he found himself glaring at two Dark Legionnaires.
The woman on the ground swallowed. "You're—you're a Guardian?"
Spectre blinked several times before he realized she had spoken. Why had he stopped? "I am," he snarled, trying to hide his confusion.
"What are you doing, Eli-Za?" the other woman snarled. "Get up! That trick won't confuse them for long... we have to go, now! Before they catch up!"
"Forgive me for not being properly terrified of you," Eli-Za said to Spectre. She glanced back the way she'd come. "But right now, I'm a little more worried about my people catching me."
Spectre shook his head. He simply could not understand the politics of these monsters. "Your people? Why would you—" He caught sight of a pair of eyes peering around the woman. "You have a child."
The other woman rolled her eyes and nodded. "The Legion wants him," she snarled. "They won't have him." A sound made her jerk her head around. She stared off the other way. "No, oh no, not yet, not now..." She grabbed the boy and pushed him towards Spectre, startling another shriek from Eli-Za.
"Adi-Ra—!" Eli-Za managed before she choked on her own fear.
"The Guardian won't let them take your son," Adi-Ra stated. "Now get moving!"
The boy watched the two women with a mixture of fear and confusion.
Eli-Za swallowed and nodded. "Stay with the Guardian, Remmy," she said. "He'll protect you."
"Yes, momma," the boy said.
Spectre opened his mouth to protest, then closed it without a word. For it was Aurora looking at him again through Eli-Za's begging eyes.
Eli-Za pushed to her feet without another word, and the two women continued to race away from the sounds.
Spectre heard many people, many machines, coming at him. He pulled the boy to himself. He crouched to wrap his arms around the child, and flung his cloak, and his power, over both of them.
The boy clung to him, shaking. "We gotta go, we gotta move, they're gonna get us, they're gonna get momma..."
"Shh, shh, little one," Spectre whispered. "They won't see us. But you need to be quiet, or they will hear you."
"'Kay."
Spectre watched, not daring to teleport with so many enemies so near. He crouched among the trees, letting the natural shadows enhance his Chaos-made shadow.
Three Legionnaires dragged Adi-Ra back into the clearing to face Kragok. Eli-Za was nowhere to be seen. "Where are they, witch? Where have you taken my wife and son?" the Grandmaster hissed.
Spectre's eyes widened. Son? The boy was Kragok's son? That certainly changed things. He tightened his arms around the boy; it was so tempting to simply crush—
He shook off the thought. Kragok's or not, he was only a child. His mother had trusted him to protect the boy; Aurora expected him to protect the boy. For what, he could not fathom, but he would not go against the goddess. Not in this. He would not kill a child.
Adi-Ra straightened as much as her captors' grip allowed. She smiled, leaving no trace that she'd ever been afraid. "He is gone, master, gone where you cannot find him. Gone away from your experiments, where you and your 'scientists' cannot touch him again!"
Kragok struck her, and struck her again, but no matter how much he hurt her, she refused to say another word.
The boy hid his face in the Guardian's arms. Spectre sensed it was all the boy could do to stay quiet; he covered the boy's ears, but he could not close the sight or the sounds from his own mind.
It was hard to say whether Kragok was enraged at Adi-Ra's silence or if he had merely given up. All Spectre knew was that one minute, the Grandmaster was interrogating the woman, and had lifted his arm to strike her again.
And the next, Kragok had yanked his claw out of her chest, and she dropped to the ground with one last gurgling breath.
"Keep searching!" Kragok growled.
But before the Legion could move, the other Guardians arrived.
Spectre took advantage of the distraction to teleport himself and the child to Haven.
—
"Spectre!" Sabre called. "Grandfather Spectre, where are you?"
"Father!" Sojourner called. "This isn't like him."
"'Like' him?" Tobor repeated. "He's a wild card, grandson. A wild animal. You can't simply predict what he'll do."
"I know what my father is like," Sojourner snarled. "He wouldn't just wander off without telling us—"
"Did you find him?" Thunderhawk interrupted.
"No," Sojourner replied. "I'm going back to Haven. Maybe I can find something on the monitors."
Thunderhawk nodded, and the other Guardians went back to searching.
But when Sojourner walked into Haven, his father, having no idea who had interrupted him, instantly went on the defensive. Spectre yanked the child back to himself and readied his power to unleash at the intruder.
He stared, finally recognized his son, and tried to relax his power.
But something wouldn't let go.
It is my son; I am in no danger. So where is this terror coming— He searched his mind for the source of the fear. The boy! Is he...is he directing my power? Incredible; I've never felt such a mind. But as amazing as it was, he had to stop himself from attacking. He directed a thought at the child. Boy, please. I cannot protect you if you do not let me act.
After a moment, the pressure disappeared, and Spectre dropped to his knees, gasping and shaking.
What did he do to me? Spectre wondered, eyes wide. It wasn't just the effort to hold back. When his power had dissipated, it felt as though it had been drained. Drained, like he hadn't felt since...since he'd first laid hands on the Master Emerald.
What has the Legion done to him, that he can do this to me?
Worse, he did not think the boy was even aware of what he'd done.
"Father, what—" Sojourner took two steps forward before Spectre lifted one hand.
"Stop," Spectre gasped. "Give me...a moment." He could still feel the boy's terror; Spectre worried what could happen if he could not defuse that fear.
He sat back on his heels and looked under his cloak where the child hid. "It is all right, little one. You are safe. He is not the enemy; he is with me. My son will not hurt you."
"Um...father?" Sojourner watched his father warily, but Spectre didn't have that expression; he didn't seem to be talking to voices again.
Then the child peered out from under Spectre's cloak, and Sojourner could only stare.
"I apologize if I was a little...tense," Spectre said to Sojourner.
"'If?'" Sojourner echoed, not taking his eyes off the child. "'A little?' We're all a little high-strung from the fight, but really, father. If you wanted to give me a heart attack, you're doing a good job."
"I was trying to smooth over some of his memories," Spectre explained. He grimaced. "I think I had not...quite...severed my connection when you walked in. And he...was afraid..."
"That's what happens when you muck around in someone's head without backup," Thunderhawk scolded, walking in to hear the end of the conversation. "'Smoothing over his memories,' grandfather? You, of all people, should know better. We don't touch other people's memories without permission, and a child that young certainly won't understand what he's giving permission for. What were you even thinking?"
"I was thinking," Spectre replied in a carefully neutral tone, "that he had suffered much at the hands of the Dark Legion. Enough that he would understand. Especially after their leader killed that woman...in front of him..." That Kragok hadn't known the boy was there made no difference.
Sojourner's eyes widened.
Spectre nodded at his son's unspoken reply. "I thought it best if the boy does not remember."
"Oh, please! Doesn't the Legion already have a way to wipe out their memories?" Thunderhawk asked. Sojourner spun around to stare at him, and the lavender echidna snorted at his expression. He signaled for the other Guardians to return. "Bring her in."
Locke and Sabre teleported in with Fidelis. Between them stood a very subdued Eli-Za.
"Momma!" the child shouted. He pulled free of Spectre's grasp. Spectre, already drained of most of his strength, found himself knocked backwards in the process. He was too dazed to attempt to stand up.
Thunderhawk didn't even bother to hold back his amusement at the elder's weakness.
Eli-Za looked up, startled, and jerked free of the other two Guardians, prompting angry shouts that she ignored. "Remmy? Oh, Remmy, are you all right?" She gathered the boy up in her arms.
"Yes, momma. The Guardian protected me, just like you and Adi-Ra said he would."
"Oh..." Eli-Za's gaze fell on Spectre. "I'm terribly sorry, sir," she said, holding out one hand to the Guardian. "Remington, shouldn't you apologize for knocking him down?"
"Sorry," the boy muttered.
"Think nothing of it," Spectre replied. He waved off the other Guardians and allowed the woman to pull him to his feet. "He was simply... excited to see you again. I would be, too, in his place."
Eli-Za's brow furrowed. The other Guardians had acted much as she expected, but Spectre's behavior flew directly in the face of everything she'd ever heard about him. This demonic creature had not only protected her child, he was being kind to her, and she had no idea what to make of it.
Spectre caught her confusion, and pointedly ignored it. "Forgive me if I had missed something during the fight," he said. "But I believe your name was... Eli-Za? And the other woman with you was Adi-Ra?"
Eli-Za nodded. "And my son is Remington."
Remington twisted around to look at each of the Guardians before he caught Spectre's gaze. "But you can call you Remmy if you want," he said. He did not shrink away from Spectre, though he continued to cringe at the others.
Sojourner started laughing. "How do you like that? He likes dad, of all people, but he's scared of the rest of us?"
Some of the other Guardians joined in with Sojourner's laughter.
Spectre continued to frown. The child's—Remington's—fear was to be expected; Spectre had suspected, then confirmed when he'd examined the boy's memories, that they were the first creatures the boy had seen besides the Legion. Of course Remington would be afraid of them. But Spectre didn't dare say a thing...not while Tobor was near.
Tobor cleared his throat, and the child cringed again, and tried to hide in his mother's arms. His mother looked like she would rather be the one hiding, though they both calmed slightly at Spectre's approach.
"You mentioned another woman," Tobor said. "Another... runaway from the Legion?"
Eli-Za shivered under his gaze, but she managed to answer him. "Adi-Ra. She was from... I think she called them the Nocturnus, some other group that had found itself trapped in the Twilight Zone. It was her technology that brought us here." She started shaking harder. "It was supposed to look like an accident, like we'd been killed... vaporized. I guess I shouldn't be surprised it didn't work, though, not after Kragok had pulled a similar trick to murder his own father."
Sojourner winced.
"Where is this... Adi-Ra?" Tobor asked.
"She was killed," Spectre said before anyone else could speak. "The Legion caught her after the two of you had separated. I saw Kragok murder her before I could stop him." His eyes dropped to the ground. "I'm sorry," he whispered.
"Oh..." Eli-Za sniffed and fought to hold back her tears. "She was... I don't think I ever really trusted her, but she was the closest thing I had to a friend."
"Enough," Tobor snapped. "What else? Why were they after you?"
"I... I don't know," Eli-Za said. "The same reason they'd go after any runaway, I suppose. Perhaps they can't abide the thought that anyone would ever choose to leave them." She cast a worried glance at Spectre, but he chose not to betray the lie.
Tobor frowned, but did not pursue the subject.
None but Sojourner saw the way Spectre watched Tobor with a frown. None but Sojourner saw Remington reach up to whisper something in Spectre's ear, something that caused him to watch Tobor more closely, more suspiciously.
Spectre leaned over to mutter something in the child's ear, and the child nodded.
—
Spectre looked in on the child where he'd fallen into an uneasy doze. Amazing that the child could sleep, with all the shouting going on in the next room.
He sighed and left, shutting the door behind him. No sense letting them wake the boy up easily. "No decision yet?" he asked Sojourner.
"Nuh-uh. They're still arguing about that neutralizing chip of theirs."
"Incredible," Spectre muttered. "They criticize me for trying to smooth out the worst of the child's memories, and they're seriously considering wiping away everything?"
"I don't like it either," Sojourner said. "From what she's telling us, it really will be everything. She won't even remember she has a son."
"Nor him a mother," Spectre replied. "How is she taking the idea?"
"As well as anyone faced with the idea of losing her child, I'd think. But that's the weird part... it was her idea." Sojourner took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "There's another problem, though."
"How shocking."
"Sarcasm, father? Really?" Sojourner rolled his eyes. "Listen, if she tells us what to do with the chip, we wipe the kid's memory and remove the thing. That's over and done with; apparently they don't like to do cybernetics on kids unless it's some medical emergency. Something about having to replace everything as the kids get bigger, she said. But she's going to need prosthetics, skin grafts..." He shrugged. "It's going to be a lot more work getting her to fit into society."
I believe you have that backwards, a voice said from behind them.
Spectre froze.
Sojourner turned around slowly to find the speaker. "A... Aurora?"
Spectre took one quick look at his son's expression, decided he wasn't simply hearing voices again-or they both were-and turned around to see what he was looking at. He bowed. "My lady."
"Great," Sojourner muttered. "Nothing like the personal attention of a goddess to get your day going."
Don't flatter yourself, Aurora replied. Sojourner cringed. I am here on the child's behalf, and none other. Your own roles in his protection are of little consequence. She cocked her head and smiled. That Spectre's skills were suited to the task was something of a... bonus, however.
Spectre resisted the urge to groan. Only a bonus, my lady? Aurora merely smiled, smug and mysterious as ever.
"But why, my lady?" Sojourner asked. "We try to protect who we can, but there are millions of children who need saving, millions who do not benefit from your intervention. Why this particular one?"
Has it occurred to you that I am unable to save every child that needs saving? Should I then give up on any that need aid?
"No, my lady," Sojourner replied, stung, feeling as though his mother had just scolded him. "That wasn't what I meant."
I understand. As to why this child... She smiled. I believe your father knows the beginnings of an answer to that, already.
Sojourner blinked, and looked at his father for explanation.
Spectre only sighed. "Yes, my lady."
"My lady..." Sojourner hesitated. "My lady, you said I had it backwards. When I said that it will take more work..."
To integrate Eli-Za into society, yes. For her part, you are merely over-thinking the matter. She has little enough cybernetics to be found, and there is, shall we say, precedence for a Legionnaire's presence without being recognized as such.
She looked at Spectre when she said this, and he couldn't help but shiver. Was she talking about his own nightmares... or about the things the voices kept saying when he was awake? Or Jani-Ca's crew, perhaps, but they had required magitek to conceal their origins.
"And the boy?" Sojourner prompted.
She kept her eyes on Spectre. His neutralizing chip is defective. It will appear to work, but it will not remove the most critical of his memories. You will remedy that.
"Yes, my lady," Spectre replied. "What would you have me do?"
Tomorrow, you will take him to the city, to see your grandfather, while the Brotherhood works with Eli-Za. You will explain to Hawking that which you have concealed from the Brotherhood— Spectre cringed, fearing who might have overheard —and he can arrange for the boy to have other caretakers. You will complete what you started with his memories; nothing of his old life should interfere with the new.
Spectre wanted to protest. He looked at the goddess for a long moment...then his shoulders slumped. "Yes, my lady."
—
As the goddess had bid, Spectre took Remington into the city.
Spectre told Hawking, and the Constable Moriarty, just what he'd told the Brotherhood. That Remington had suffered a great deal at the Legion's hands, ending when their leader murdered the woman Adi-Ra. Of Eli-Za, he said nothing, leaving it to the rest of the Brotherhood to report on their own progress with her.
"And his father?" Hawking asked.
Spectre winced; he'd hoped that nobody would think of that. "His father..." He hesitated. But Aurora had told him to explain it to Hawking. "His father is alive, and I would dearly love to correct that oversight." He grimaced. "One piece at a time." He cocked his head. "While he is awake, I think. With a dull knife."
Moriarty shuddered at the image. Hawking merely lifted one eyebrow. Both had learned to expect Spectre's feral nature, and they waited for explanation.
Spectre made a disgusted sound. "His father is the one that murdered the poor woman."
Hawking frowned. "But you just said their leader—" His eyes widened.
Moriarty stared. "His father is—"
Spectre nodded. "Their Grandmaster Kragok."
Silence met this statement for roughly three seconds.
"Why would you save something like that?" Hawking demanded.
"I'm so sorry, grandfather," Spectre hissed, "but I wasn't aware of his lineage when I saved him. I thought I was merely saving a child that the Legion intended to harm."
"Harm?" Hawking repeated. "His own son? Children are sacred; surely even the Legion would not harm a child, not one of their own."
"You weren't there!" Spectre snapped. "You didn't hear what she said, before that monster killed her." He grimaced, then swiftly recounted what she had said, and the impressions he'd gotten when touching the boy's mind. Hawking's scowl deepened with every word, and Spectre's heart sank. "I don't know what they've done to him, but I am not about to turn him over to be their guinea pig."
"All the more reason to destroy him," Hawking muttered, though he did not care for the idea. Legionnaire or not, it was a terrible sin to harm a child. But if it was one child's life to protect an entire society...a society with many children of its own... "Especially as the Brotherhood is not a pack of kidnappers."
Spectre stared. Aurora could not have intended this...could she? Had she truly meant him to save the child's life, only for one of the Brotherhood to end it?
"You are child killers, instead?" Moriarty asked. He looked at Hawking. "Begging your pardon, Guardian, but are you suggesting that we penalize the child, who has committed no crime but to be born to your enemy? Punish him for the sins of his father?" The Constable shrugged. "Seems to me that sort of thing has a way of starting too many wars...or preventing their resolution."
"It is not about punishment," Hawking said, "but about eliminating a potential weapon. Grandson, you said it felt like he drained you; suppose that was their intent? Suppose the Legion intended for us to take the child, to weaken the Brotherhood from within?"
Spectre gritted his teeth. Aurora had bade him save the child.
But...only she knew that for certain. The Legion could have tricked him and Sojourner both.
Spectre scowled. The Legion could have tricked them, but he could not take that chance. Not in this. Not when a child's life was at stake!
"Can the Guardians suppress that power?" Moriarty asked.
"Yes," Spectre replied slowly.
"And the goddess bade you take the boy's memories from him," Moriarty said. "So you could eliminate that weapon without eliminating the child, could you not? And leave him no reason to return to the Legion." He smiled. "Not that he'd want to, not after what they did. I suspect the forgetting was meant for his benefit, rather than our safety."
"You have a thought, Constable?" Hawking asked.
Moriarty nodded. "I have a few...associates. Friend of a friend. I know of a couple who would like to have a child of their own, but are unable. Or another who..." He shook his head and stopped himself from saying more.
"Who?" Spectre asked.
Moriarty shook his head. "It's probably best if you don't know. Nothing wrong with them; just a good idea not to let people connect the child with the Guardians. Not given the child's...lineage."
Hawking sighed. "So be it."
The tone was full of such resignation and anger that it startled Spectre. "Grandfather?"
"Blood always tells, grandson. And when it does..." He looked at Spectre, and then at Moriarty. "Let it be on your tombstones."
—
Tobor smiled from his position at Haven's monitor. Now isn't that interesting?
As to Remmy's parentage: I have one idea that I'm playing around with in which his mother is still alive. Whether that's a good thing or not remains to be seen.
Also, as regarding his father, I've never actually seen it said as much in the comics, but that does appear to be the general consensus, at least if you go by the Mobius Encyclopedia (archiesonic dot wikia dot com). And though I've never seen anything that hints at that in particular, there are several scenes that appear to point to something like it.
And apparently, there was an online chat back in 2002 in which the identity of his father is verified. (Link, please?)