New Blood.
By Erik Howlett and Black Crow Knightmare.
Disclaimer: The Legion of Superheroes belongs to DC Comics and DC Entertainment, whilst all OCs in this story are the property of myself and fellow author Black Crow Knightmare (formerly Rider Paladin). We do not claim any of the actual the members of the Legion or elements of the 31st Century as our own, and are only writing this story as a leisurely past time and because we are both humble fans of this genre simply telling a story. Some of the Legionnaires featured here are a mixture of their comic-book and animated incarnations, hence the different pairings, codenames, costume designs, and so on.
Alright, it's time to get the Tryouts underway, and we're kicking things off with an Legion hopeful whose power speaks for itself… Literally. Does he have what it takes to make the cut? Will his powers be just the thing to kick off the Tryouts on a high-note? Will his abilities only further ground Livewire's fear of the Tryouts in general, or alleviate them? All these questions and more will be revealed, so read on, True Believers, read on!
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Audition 1: Rock Opera.
Truth be told, the set-up for this year's Legion Tryouts Day was much more comfortable than the last.
With the temperature a bearable 60 degrees, a slight breeze rustling through the trees every so often, and a cloud popping up here and there, Livewire couldn't think of a more picturesque day, let alone a day for the Tryouts. Not only that, but they didn't have to use the old audition room from when they'd first started the Legion, thanks to the renovations that had gone on in later years as the team had begun to expand. This year, auditions were being held outside in the Spirit Gardens, an outdoor Zen garden that had been planted as a therapeutic place of meditative relaxation for the members of the Legion that made their home in New Metropolis, a sort of 'thank you' gift from the governments of Orando and Winath for all the Legion had done for the United Planets over the years. A vast array of alien flora grew here, with vibrant colors as numerous and unique as the shimmering rainbow patterns that flickered across the morning mist that settled upon the garden's hours before the festivities had begun.
Seeing as there were reporters crawling all over the Legion Plaza, and a good number of hover-cams flitting about the skies in hopes of catching even the slightest glimpse of the many hopefuls as they auditioned for a spot on the team, precautions had been taken to assure that things were kept as personal as possible, and that applicants were not given any special treatment from the rest of the crowd, ensuring that the identity of those who made it to the final round of the Tryouts were kept secret until the time was right. To accomplish this goal, a special 'privacy-field,' was erected around the screening area. Created by the scientists on Colu, the privacy-field was a special kind of force-field that allowed people to freely enter and exit its barrier, while using special particles composed of hard-light energy to refract incoming wavelengths of photons and render the interior of the area it covered… Well, practically invisible to the public eye, both on the ground, and in the air. The only way people could tell where the screening area was happened to be the metal ring that hovered nearly twelve feet off the ground, its special lenses casting the privacy-field over the prearranged patch of earth just as programmed.
As for the Legionnaires, they had things pretty well set up inside the privacy-field for the auditions. A hover-desk had been brought in to accommodate the ten Legionnaires who would be doing the actual judging for the event (Livewire, Saturn Girl, Apparition, Timberwolf, Brainiac 5, Shrinking Violet, Chameleon, Umbra, Karate Kid, and Princess Projecta respectively), as well as a special chair outfitted for their personal preferences and also equipped with anti-gravity propulsion systems like the table. Triad had elected to handle the other affairs that went hand-in-hand with the interviewing processes, such as ushering the applicants into the screening area, maintaining some form of order outside, and keeping track of the names and rankings the other Legionnaires wrote down on their interactive, touch-screen 'clipboards.' These had each applicant's name written on them, and three check boxes marked 'Yes,' 'No,' and 'Maybe,' the last meaning the applicant would be considered for the status of Honorary Member if not selected for the finals for whatever reason.
"I gotta say, this is ten times better than last year," admitted Livewire as he leaned back in his hover-chair and propped up his feet on the desk, actually starting to relax a bit than he normally did at the Tryouts, which caused his friends to grin in satisfaction. All Garth really needed was the proper setting and this year's Tryouts wouldn't be as bad as he made it out to be. Hell, he might even start to enjoy it somewhere along the way. "This is way more relaxing that the musty, old audition room. Thank God we did that overhaul on the H.Q., huh?"
"Yeah, besides, I like things this way a whole lot more," beamed Saturn Girl wholeheartedly, glad to see her future husband actually enjoying himself for a change. "I mean, we're outside, the weather's perfect for the Tryouts, and it's almost like the universe decided to take a day off of crime for once."
"You forgot about these awesome drinks," Chameleon chimed in from four seats over, his own posture almost mirroring that of Livewire's, save for the fact that he was in the process of enjoying a sizable chocolate malt, somewhat loudly to the displeasure of his fellow Legionnaires' ears. "Man, Tenz' makes one tasty shake."
"It's too bad he had to turn in his uniform and ring though," sighed Karate Kid regretfully, remembering how much fun it was to have Matter-Eater Lad on the team. Tenzil Kem may not have been the most powerful of the Legion, but he was still a valued member of the team. When he got injured in the Legion's battle with Mordru the Mystic, it had been touch and go there for awhile, so no one could blame him for resigning from active duty. Thankfully, he didn't leave the team altogether, and chose to put his degree in the culinary arts to good use in the Plaza's galley/diner.
"At least he's still around, Val," rebutted Garth refreshingly, downing a shot of his own, chilly glass of mega-vitamin fruit shake. "And, I'll take having one of our own alive and cooking over dead and buried any day of the week."
"He's got a point, dear," agreed Projecta as she placed a comforting hand on top of her husband's, earning her a pleasant smile from the martial arts master.
"Well, let's get this crazy-train a-rollin' then, shall we?" asked Umbra in a somewhat anxious tone, eyes alight with anticipation. Not only was Tasmia interested to see what new powers and personalities would be on display this year, but she had an ulterior motive for finding enjoyment in this year's Tryouts. Earlier that morning, she, Chameleon, Violet, and Timberwolf had started a small, good-natured betting pool on how long it would take for Livewire to lose his mind.
"(sigh)… 'Guess there's no real point in delaying the inevitable then, is there?" admitted Livewire somewhat hesitantly as he shifted his feet off the hover-desk and returned to a more formal sitting position, setting down his glass and taking up the touch-screen he'd left on the arm of his chair. It was a necessary evil, this day-long torment he was about to endure for the sake of justice and galactic peace, but that fact alone didn't make it any easier for him. His past experiences with the Tryouts hadn't been all that great, and even with the more relaxed setting of this year's affair, he still couldn't help but be uneasy about the crop of applicants they would be judging this year. It was only routine for him to end up skewered, scorched, slimed, or for any number of misfortunes to befall him for that matter. Still, he knew that he was just going to have to grin and bear it. If for nothing else, then for Irma's sake.
"So, how's up first, Luornu?" asked an anxious Apparition, obviously more into the spirit of the Legion Tryouts than Garth. She'd seen a lot of eventful displays in years past, and she always walked away from each of them wanting more. Something about seeing how many teens like herself would show up just to try and make a difference in the universe with the wide array of diverse superpowers that each wielded excited her, like all of their hard work being heroes was worth all the hassle in the long run.
"Um, let's see," replied Triad's Orange (passive) persona as she keyed up the first applicants form on her hand-held. After a few seconds of searching, she came up with a name. "Ah, here we go." Before she could say anything further, Tinya couldn't help but notice the Carggite begin to blush furiously as a weak smile came to her face. Having made that face before, Apparition knew right away that the first applicant was a cute boy. Doing the best she could to compose herself, Triad Orange continued. "His name's Leonardo Giovanni, a metahuman from right here on Earth, from New Venice, Italy to be exact."
As if on cue, the shimmering surface of the privacy field began to warp and shift as someone crossed over its boundaries into the screening area. One look told the Legionnaires that this was their first applicant, for he certainly had a bit of 'Italian flair' about him. He was an elegantly handsome sixteen-year-old, with a face to rival that of any fairy-tale's Prince Charming, eyes like glowing amber with cat-like irises, and thick black hair that was slicked back into windswept spikes on top, flowing down into an impressive, shoulder-length mane. The only method that Leonardo apparently used to conceal his identity (something that a few superheroes still did nowadays) was half of a white porcelain masquerade mask, like something right out of Gaston Leroux's Phantom of the Opera. The rest of his attire consisted of an ebony black tuxedo that had a similarly colored, high-collared cape fastened about his shoulders by a golden chain. Holding the links together was a similarly gilded clasp, upon which was emblazoned the rust-colored symbol of what looked to be a lion's head, no doubt a family crest of some kind.
"Ciao, Legionari," Leonardo said politely in Italian, bowing low and grabbing a handful of his cape to sweep in front of him dramatically as he introduced himself. "I am Leonardo Giovanni of Venezia Nuovo, though you may address me by my alias, Rock Opera, if you prefer."
"Good to know you, Rock Opera," smiled Tinya sincerely as she shifted slightly in her seat, leaning forward in anticipation for his audition.
"So," began Livewire as he looked over Leonardo's application on his handheld, an eyebrow rising slightly when he saw what the Italian metahuman's special power was, "it says here your ability is, 'sonic manipulation.' Now, I don't have to tell you that we see a lot of applicants with sonic scream abilities similar to those of the ancient heroine, Black Canary, at these Tryouts, so what makes yours different from the usual screamers?"
Upon hearing this, Leonardo simply smiled knowingly, having heard this all before. Boy, were the Legionnaire's in for a pleasant surprise. "Si. Well, maybe a demonstration would be better than simply telling you about it."
"Why not?" replied Irma earnestly, admittedly interested in seeing what Leonardo's sonics could do that set him apart from the others as their first applicant. "Whenever you're ready, Rock Opera. Let's see what you can do."
Nodding compliantly, Leonardo took a moment to clear his throat and took a deep breath. Then, without a moment's hesitation, he opened his mouth… And began to sing. Only, this was more than just simply singing a few bars of a solo aria. No, what came out of his mouth sounded more powerful than that. Somehow, Leonardo's voice had changed to mimic the nearly infinite range of pitch possessed by an entire chorus, musical instruments included! It was like a private, one-man concert of archangels had descended from heaven to perform especially for the gathered Legionnaires. So impressive and thunderous was the sound the performance made, that it stretched out far across the boundaries of the privacy field, and out into the crowd beyond. All who heard Leonardo's voice couldn't help but be in awe of such wondrous music, immediately moved by the display though they knew not who among them was making such beautiful noise. Among the crowd, many who had gathered there couldn't help but tear up a bit in response to what they were hearing.
O amici, non più questi suoni!
Cantiamo canzoni più allegro,
più piena di gioia!
Gioia, bella scintilla di Dio,
Figlia di Elysium,
Fuoco di ispirazione ci battistrada
Tuo santuario.
La tua magia potere ri-unisce
Tutto ciò che ha diviso personalizzato,
Tutti gli uomini diventano fratelli
Sotto il dominio del tuo ali gentile.
Chi ha creato
Una amicizia duratura,
Oppure ha vinto
Una moglie fedele e amorevole,
Tutti coloro che possono chiamare almeno una loro anima,
Partecipa al nostro canto di lode;
Ma qualsiasi che non possono deve strisciare in lacrime
Di distanza dal nostro circolo.
Tutte le creature bevono la gioia
Al seno della natura.
Within the confines of the privacy field, a similar feeling came over the Legionnaires as the listened to Rock Opera's performance, though they also experienced a number of different sensations as well. Livewire, for whom the overall stress looming over him in relation to the remaining tryouts was starting to affect him, suddenly felt a jolt of adrenaline wash over him all at once, pumping up the otherwise depressed Legionnaire. Chameleon started to feel very groggy, as though all the energy was being sucked out of him the way a hard workout usually did, and his body began to feel very drained physically. Soon, the combination of that feeling and the pleasant, sonorous melody of Leonardo's singing, had put him to sleep, his head slumped over the back of his hover-chair in snoring, snot-bubble-blowing slumber. Brin, the tough as nails berserker of the Legion, suddenly felt a rush of emotion flood over him, and began to tear up himself, sniffling slightly in response to the beauty of the music. Two chairs over from Timberwolf, Violet felt as though she'd been injected with a shot of pure caffeine, her hands shaking in response to the jittery sensations surging through her at the moment.
Giusto e l'ingiusto
allo stesso modo il gusto del suo dono;
Ci ha dato baci e il frutto della vite,
Un amico ha cercato fino alla fine.
Anche il worm può sentire contentezza,
E il cherubino sta davanti a Dio!
Lieti, come i corpi celesti
Che Egli ha fissato per i loro corsi
Attraverso lo splendore del firmamento;
Così, fratelli, è necessario eseguire la vostra razza,
Come un eroe verso la vittoria.
Sei milioni, ti abbraccio.
Questo bacio è per tutti il mondo!
Fratelli, sopra il baldacchino stellato
Deve abitare un Padre amorevole.
Non cadete nel culto, moltitudini?
Mondo, lo sai il tuo Creatore?
Cercatelo nei cieli;
Sopra le stelle Egli deve abitare. (1.)
Soon, however, the song came to an end, and Leonardo brought it on home, the chorus growing silent and the instruments becoming still. Soon, the only sounds that could be heard where the rustling of the breeze in the garden's trees and the uproarious applause that echoed from outside the privacy field in response to Rock Opera's performance.
"So, what do you think?" grinned the Italian metahuman charmingly. Before him, Livewire, Chameleon, Timberwolf and Shrinking Violet suddenly felt the strange sensations that had overwhelmed them only seconds ago abruptly vanish, returning them to their previous states, save for Garth, who felt a lot better than before.
"Whoa, what the heck was that?" wondered Timberwolf in confusion, wiping the salty remnants of tears from his fur with his claws.
"Yeah, it felt like I drank a hundred pounds of coffee," admitted Violet as she felt her nerves settle a bit, the shaking in her extremities dying down a bit.
"What're you guys talking about?" questioned Karate Kid curiously, eyeing his teammates suscpiciously.
"You mean, you didn't feel anything?" marveled Livewire in confused amazement.
"Actually, they didn't," explained Leonardo matter-of-factly. "You see, my powers allow me to use my voice to produce frequencies of sound beyond the range of human capabilities, as you just witnessed, as well as use a secondary layer of hypersonics naturally produced by my vocal chords to subtly alter the body chemistry of others and disrupting homeostasis for a variety of affects. As you just saw, or felt as the case may be, I can weaken people's immune systems, slow the production of adrenaline, manipulate the release and flow of certain hormones, and so on. For example, with Livewire, I altered the flow of adrenaline in his body to give him a jumpstart of sorts. I did the same with Chameleon, though in his case, I slowed his body's production of adrenaline to the point where he had no choice but to fall asleep. I can also selectively choose who is effected by my powers, hence the reason why only you guys felt it and everyone else didn't."
"Now that was definitely an original superpower," admitted an impressed Saturn Girl as Rock Opera simply beamed in response to her praise. Looking to her future husband with a visible "I-told-you-so" in her gaze, she opened their own private telepathic link to see what he really thought about the Italian metahuman's abilities. 'You've got to admit, Garth, that was an impressive display to say the least.'
'Heh, okay, okay, you're right sweetie,' conceded Livewire with a smirk, knowing when to admit defeat. Though he had some concerns about how Leonardo's abilities would fare against robotic opponents, he'd both seen, and felt, enough to safely say that Rock Opera would be making it to the finals. 'Besides, he was able to throw Brin, Tinya, Reep, Salu, and myself all at once! Just imagine what he could do to an enemy!' With his future wife nodding in concurrence, Garth turned to his fellow Legionnaires to see what they thought of the Italian meta's demonstration. It was unanimous. "Well," began the current Legion leader with a grin as he turned to the hopeful Leonardo, "congratulations, Rock Opera, you've just made it to the finals!"
"Eccellente!" shouted the newly minted finalist jubilantly, fist-pumping the air in triumph at this news. "Grazie, Legionari, you don't know how much this means to me. I won't let you down, I promise!"
"Oh, there's no doubt about that, kid," replied Timberwolf with a fanged grin.
"Yeah," Apparition chimed in, "after what you just did, I'd say the finals should be a breeze for someone with your potential."
"Especially since the last time I saw Timberwolf cry like that, it involved a mile of Scotch-tape, a plastic leg, a pink tutu, and a bowl of chopped onions," smirked Princess Projectra impishly, a flood of deliciously embarrassing memories coming back to her as she watched Brin squirm in his seat at the very mention of the event.
"We promised never to speak of that dark day," growled the furred Legionnaire in annoyance, the white haired princess eyeing him mischievously.
"All kidding aside, good luck in the finals, Rock Opera," Triad Orange piped up sheepishly, mentally kicking herself for getting worked up over how attractive Leonardo was, remembering that she and the other Triads had Chuck Taine (Bouncing Boy) to go home to when all was said and done. Still, like most girls her age, she was a sucker for a pretty face.
"Grazie, Triad," thanked Leonardo politely, stopping on his way out to the waiting area to give her another of his courteous, cape-sweeping bows. "I am happy to know that I have already made a good impression on my first try. Well, until the finals then." And with that, he placed a small kiss on the top of her hand, and turned to exit the privacy-field, his cape fluttering in the breeze behind him as he vanished beyond the veil of holographic light. When he was gone, a blushing Triad Orange, sank to the floor, her weak knees caving under her as she gave a long, dreamy sigh.
Chuckling to themselves at her antics, Livewire and the other Legionnaires began marking down their decision for Rock Opera's audition on their Omnicon handhelds. When all was said and done, the Italian metahuman had scored a perfect 10, 'Yes' checked by his name all across the board. When it came time for the finals, there was little doubt in their minds that Leonardo would be one of the many to come out on top when the dust settled. True, his powers did have their limits, but the charming Rock Opera seemed to have a good handle on them, as well as a cool head when it came to otherwise intimidating situations. He definitely met the criteria for becoming a Legionnaire. He had a unique superpower (which was a must, as the Legion's constitution encouraged diversity amongst the team), and he had the heroic potential and courage that all Legionnaires needed to survive in combat and work as a team.
"See, Garth, that wasn't so bad," joked Umbra from across the table. "We got the first audition finished in record time, and you didn't get totally florged like you usually do." Now, that brought a lot of laughs all around, even from Livewire. It seemed like a tradition for the Legion Tryouts that, somehow, he was always the one to be covered in slime, shocked into a babbling stupor, crushed under debris, or gassed until he smelled like an entire sewage planet before the day was out. But, thankfully, he had been spared in this first round, so the future looked a little brighter.
"Yeah, and he actually gave you that little jolt you needed to push you outta our usual funk," Chameleon pointed out.
"Hey, you're right, Cham," admitted the Legion leader cheerily, still feeling the uplifting effects of Rock Opera's power as he listened to the crowd outside applaud and cheer for the applicant in question as he made his way into the chaos beyond the privacy-field. "I feel ten times better after that. Maybe things will turn out differently this year after all." A smile from his future wife assuring him of his words, Garth turned his attentions back to his Omnicron as Triad Orange began to compose herself to continue the auditions in a more professional manner. "So, who's up next, Luornu?"
"Looks like it's…" began the Carggite triplicate as she searched her own Omnicron for the answer. When she finally came to the second applicant's entry, a puzzled look came to her face, telling her fellow Legionnaire's that this one was an oddity, "Jordax Tharok from the Apollo Satellite Colony orbiting Neptune."
As before, the privacy-field's surface warped again as the applicant in question dashed through the hologram to stand before the Legionnaire's, chest puffed out in an attempt at a heroic pose. Sure enough, this one was a definite oddity to say the least. A pasty skinned young lad, Jordax's attire consisted of a deep-green body suit, over which was worn a goggle-eyed helmet, thigh-high grieves, a pair of bracer-gauntlets, a heavy iron belt, and a breast-plate with the letters "GK" painted on it in red and blue. Immediately, Princess Projectra and Karate Kid noticed a small trail of multi-colored footprints followed after him, as though the boy had trudged through a freshly painted mural or something. Upon seeing the anxious look on the Legionnaire's faces, Jordax decided to introduce himself.
"My name is Jordax Tharok, but you can call me…" As the young hopeful spoke, he threw his arms out wide, like an conductor opening a symphony. Suddenly, unbeknownst to Jordax, but painfully obvious to the Legionnaires, the pasty boy's skin began to bubble and shift, as a pallet's worth of colors began to appear across his pale dermis. Oblivious to this bizarre occurrence, the young colonist finished up his introduction with an explosive proclamation of his 'heroic' alias. "GRAFFITI KING!'
As if triggered by the boy's name, the bubbling mass of colors that shifted and popped along his skin suddenly exploded in a tidal wave of colorful paint that practically flooded the interior of the privacy-field, plastering everything in sight with a gooey, Technicolor film as vibrant as a rainbow. Nothing escaped the blast radius of paint, and when the flood ceased, every Legionnaire was covered from head to toe with the stuff, save for Brainiac 5, whose personal force-field had managed to deflect the wave of color, leaving him and his seat, squeaky clean. The other Legionnaires, however, weren't so lucky. Though Apparition managed to phase off the paint with her intangibility, Timberwolf's fur was now a bright-yellow and completely soaked, as was everyone else. It was all the orange-and-violet Karate Kid could do to keep a blue-and-hot-pink Projectra from climbing over the table to personally throttle Jordax for coating her in filth, the princess of Orando raving and ranting like a mad-woman all the while.
"Oops," as all Graffiti King managed to squeak out at first, realizing that his powers had gone off prematurely… again. "Sorry."
"Me and my big mouth," sighed Livewire in exasperation, red paint dripping from his hair as he felt that migraine he'd managed to stave off earlier start to rear its ugly head again. So much for things looking up, this was gonna be one Hell of a long day.
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Author's Note: Well, you win some, and you lose some, I guess, Livewire. Still, the kick off to the Tryouts wasn't a total loss. Rock Opera certainly had what it takes to make it into the Legion, and his power is definitely unique enough. Now, how about the other hopefuls in the crowd? Can any of them be Legion material? Will they be total flops like Graffiti King, or hit it out of the park like Rock Opera? Will Livewire completely lose his mind in the coming insanity? Is this author finally starting to make it out of his two-month writing-slump? With more Tryouts on the way, all of these questions and more will be answered soon, so stay tuned for more insanity and mind-blowing displays of super-heroics, courtesy of Black Crow Knightmare and myself. This Erik Howlett reporting to you live from the Legion Plaza in beautiful New Metropolis for The Earth Spins, so stay tuned as one of Knightmare's own creations steps up the audition stage next. We'll be back with more in just a moment, True Believers!
(1) The lyrics above are the Italian translation for Beethoven's Ode to Joy.