2583/The Construction of the Fables

The Construction of the Fables
Date of Scene:	25 September 2017
Location:	Legion Cruiser: Lab
Synopsis:	Lyle and son talk about the present, and the potential future.
Cast of Characters:	Brainiac 5, Invisible Kid
Tinyplot:	Mirror, Mirror

---

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        Brainiac 7 has shed his combat suit for his under-uniform, which is a lot like Brainy's, except it's black and white—and a labcoat, and tinted visor.  He's got a small device set up in the center of the lab, and he's busily making adjustments to it and running calculations on it.  "This would be a lot easier if I was IN the Anti-Matter Universe," he says to himself, "but then again…."  He's got a very boyish air around him, as he tinkers with the device he's building.

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "I knew you'd be in here," Lyle says, wandering into the labs with Shadow floating in behind him.  He looks a little haggard.  He really has been trying to get proper sleep, but it's not easy.  There's no crook of a green arm to nestle into.
        "I, uh… oh, grife.  Everything around here is awkward," he says with not a little frustration.  "But I need to let you know that I've been in touch with another Brainiac, though she doesn't use that name.  And she's on her way to help."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        Lyl has let his coloring lapse, so he's back to that pale shade of green.  "You know you always said you slept best with Brainy.  You said the sound of him thinking helped you fall asleep.  I could give you something?"  Then he sets down the tool he was using on the bench.  "Another Brainiac?"  He frowns.  "I don't recall there being a female Brainiac active in this era."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "Oh, boy."  Yeah, complicated.  "I'm trying to avoid chemical help in that area," Lyle says, trying to piece it all together in his head.  "If it gets worse, I may change my mind."
        He looks like he wishes his uniform had pockets he could jam his hands into while he paces.  "I don't know about this time, as such.  Like I said, she doesn't use the title.  But if she did, she'd be Brainiac 8," he says with unmistakable emphasis.

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        Lyl lowers his arms to his sides.  He's silent for a long time.  "So that's what Beryl did with her."
        He goes and pours himself a silverale, having found Brainy's stash of the stuff.  "…I designed Brainiac 8.  She was supposed to be a proof of concept in building a fully sentient Android.  Not artificial intelligence, Actual intelligence.  Brainy helped me with some of the design work… he said he didn't want to meddle with it too much, his attempts at creating synthetic intellects had a bad habit of going bad."
        "Then Brainiac 6 stole my work, and built her as a weapon… then dumped her somewhere in time.  And apparently he dumped her here."  He lets out a slow breath, and then downs his silverale.  He staggers.  "Whoa.  Brainy's special blend.  He upped the alcohol content."
        It's worth noting, Lyl would've been just a boy when he designed Indigo… he's barely more than a boy now.  Boy's first Actual Intelligence.

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "All of a sudden, I really regret teasing Janet van Dyne."  Lyle wanders over a little unsteadily and takes the silverale, pouring himself a stiff one.  "Wait, this is a chronological nesting doll.  You designed her?  Because Brainy worked on her.  And I did too, briefly."  He sips his—he knows what kind of a kick Brainy put into it.  "And may I just say that I am NOT ready to be a grandfather."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        "I did," Lyl says.  Brainy did say when he was building Indigo a new body that a lot of the elements of her schematics looked like his work.  "I never built her, though.  It was supposed to take years.  By the timeline I'd set I finally would've been ready to start building her.  But Brainiac 6, that thief, stole my work."  He grits his teeth.  "Unimaginative hack."
        He sighs.  "I guess it'll be nice to see her in the flesh, as it were.  Maybe I shouldn't tell her that I designed her.  Also, time travel is complicated."
        He decides to change the subject.  "You're really that in love with him, huh?  Half the time, you two were arguing.  Sometimes the arguments got so bad you didn't speak for years.  I already told you that."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "And that reminds me," Lyle says, himself not untalented at redirection, "how exactly does Brainiac 6 fit into this chronology?  If Querl and I are your fathers and not your grandfathers—what?  Did Querl go off on his own?  Or did his mom decide to try again?"
        Lyle tries to digest what L.D. says.  "I suppose I can't say that's impossible, Querl and I are both very headstrong.  But it's not of much relevance to the problem at hand."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        "I know, I was trying to change the subject.  Project: Indigo is a very sensitive subject for me, and I'm not sure how I'm going to handle seeing her."  Lyl rubs the back of his neck, and then says, "I didn't inherit your talent for changing the subject."
        "Brainiac 6 is a clone of my grandmother, Brainiac 4.  Querl.  Um."  He looks down.  "He killed her.  It was a whole thing, he got expelled from the Legion for a few years for it.  Please don't tell him.
        "But he did it to save half of the Legion.  Old-Timers and my friends.  That was when he became the director of the Time Institute.  He was mad at you when you got tapped to run UP Intelligence by Rokk, because 'nobody was there to watch me'."  He clasps his hands behind his back.  "He worries."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "Yes, well, for a creature of pure reason," Lyle says with a smirk, "Querl can be staggeringly unreasonable sometimes.  And he's not the only one who worries."  He shakes his head.  "I suppose he could get that used to having me around, but I can't imagine turning down Rokk if he needed me for the job.  I wouldn't trust anyone else to do it.  I know, I've been there.  And he knows chronodynamics aren't my specialty—what did he think I was going to do, sit in his lab and pass him his test tubes and occasionally tell him what a genius he is?"
        And then Lyle laughs.  "And it's way too early to have this argument, since it hasn't happened yet.  Lead me not into digression, I can find it myself."
        His look turns more serious.  "You know, I can't say with any certainty that if I were confronted with a clone of my father, I wouldn't be tempted to do the same.  Querl is not a casual killer.  I can say with certainty that even if he did, it was because he had to.  No other option."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        "I'm sorry, no.  He killed Brainiac Four.  His mother.  I should've been clearer," Lyl says, "Brainiac 6 activated after that.  It was a contingency Brainiac 4 set up."  So… Brainy killed his mother to save the Legion.  "You argued that at his tribunal, too.  Against his wishes.  He didn't want an advocate.  He got mad at you about that, too."
        Then he shakes his head, and says "It's like Sun Boy told me.  At the end of the day, there's no Legionnaire nobler—or more obstinate—than Brainiac 5."
        "I know I'm telling you too much.  All I can say is… possible future."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        Lyle smiles.  "I shall take it as read that these are just potentialities.  Especially since knowing about them gives me a chance to change them, if I choose."  He laughs softly.  "You can probably guess all the questions I'm trying very hard not to ask, for that very reason.  I've been painfully aware of the dangers ever since we arrived in this time.  I don't want to jeopardize the future existence of the Legion.  I'm not the temporal dynamics expert Querl is, butI can do some of the math in my head, and I know just how chaotic some of the chronofunctions are."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        "Yeah, I don't know how he does it.  I'd tell him I think he's the smartest Brainiac ever, but he'd never, ever come down—"
        He closes his eyes, and smiles.  "But I had two really great dads, in two very different ways."
        Then he pours himself another Silverale.  "The Legion endures.  It survives crisis after crisis.  Just—" He says, "Be ready for Vandal Savage."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        Lyle smiles, and tries to hide swallowing hard.  "Well.  Considering I never expected to be a dad in the first place," he says, with a little more tremor in his voice than he'd like, "thank you."  He raises his glass to toast against Brainiac 7's.  "And you could tell him he's the second smartest, and leave him to wonder who he's second to."  Lyle grins.  Are you sure this isn't the evil one?  No, not with that grin that says he's having fun.
        "Savage.  I've seen that name in the records.  I will keep in mind that he comes after us eventually," Lyle remarks.  There's an almost audible *click* as he files that away mentally.  He's not a Brainiac… but he's no slouch.

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        There is a pause, and then Lyl moves to hug his… father.  It is warm.  He's definately not as flinchy as Querl is, sometimes, and he rests his chin on Lyle's head.  He's tall.  He sucks in a breath, and says, "It'll be all right, dad.  We'll get him back.  Because we're still alive, and that means there's hope."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        Lyle hugs back tightly.  "Just your continued existence tells me that.  If something happened to Querl before we assembled your genetic structure in the lab, then you wouldn't be here.  I know we're going to get him back, just becasue the alternative is not thinkable."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        There is another pause, and then Lyl says, somewhat awkwardly, with a pat to Lyle's back.  "You know—if you'd like to cry… I won't tell anybody.  Sometimes you just have to, you know?"

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "I have.  A lot, lately."  Lyle's voice is a little shaky making that admission.  "He can be such a jerk… and I love him even when he is.  I think I'd be more worried about him if he suddenly became all sweetness and light."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        That makes Lyl give another, brief squeeze.  "It's okay."  He closes his eyes.  "I'm a little sick thinking about Indigo, so it's really nice to have a hug.  I had… put away how much of myself I put in her.  She was supposed to be my kid, for me to build when I was ready.  Brainiac 6 stole that from me.  So I'm kind of terrified."  Then he adds "You drove him crazy whenever you were around.  But not as crazy as he went when you weren't around.  As an outside observer?  You make him happy."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "I'm not worried about Indigo.  Granted, I haven't seen her since she was an unactivated frame on a workbench.  She's…" Lyle trails off, trying to think how to explain this.  "…not like any other Brainiac I've met.  She's a lot more free with her emotions.  Which can only make me wonder how much of the part of me that's in you, you put in her."
        Lyle sighs.  "I'm a brain part he doesn't have.  I'm a blinding flash of inspiration, not the results of long and complete analysis.  I think… I think he wishes he had that too.  I think that… I don't know if it bothers him, but I think he can't figure out why I've got it and he doesn't."  He grins.  "Probably he wants it as much as I wish I had his ability to just concentrate."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        "That's what people who love each other do, dad," Lyl says, before he lets him go, and puts his hands on Lyl's arms.  "They complete each other.  He's had his moments of inspiration, but no, you're right—he's not as creative as you in the crucible, and it drives him crazy.  He's all structure and procedure, and you just fly with it—"
        "We need to get back to work.  I'm going to be ready to send you through to the Anti-Matter Universe, soon.  Dad… this is going to be one of the worst experiences of your life.  I'm just warning you—you'll see versions of people you love, but twisted and evil.  And you'll wonder to yourself how things went so wrong, what unfortunaate thing happened to them that made them turn out so… sick.  The smart ones pick up on that and will use it to try to manipulate you.  Keep this at the forefront of your mind.  There's no tragedy in that universe.  Every member of the Consortium was born bad and if you try to offer them understanding and empathy… they'll use it against you."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "That's… not going to be an easy reflex to resist," Lyle says.  "I have a few projects I want to get hammered into usable shape first.  I think I can neutralize whatever it is Stargrave did to Wraith.  And I want that as a bargaining chip."  He swallows hard.  "Even if I have to sell it to him as his chance for revenge on Stargrave."
        Weak smile.  "You'd think with all the stuff I did for Intelligence, I wouldn't hesitate to use someone against himself.  Well, there's a reason I wanted out of Intelligence.  But, the training is still there.  I'm willing to bargain Wraith's freedom from Stargrave for Querl's freedom from him."

Brainiac 5 has posed:
        "I would think very carefully about that," Lyl says.  "Wraith is a monster among monsters.  The bargaining chip might work… but he might do something unpredictable.  Or he might decide to kill the two of you out of hand.  He's a spymaster, saboteur and assassin.  He likes secrets, and he likes killing people.  And nobody in the Legion has ever SEEN him during our conflicts with the Consortium—just his handiwork."
        "And he might find an alternate universe version of himself too tempting to resist."

Invisible Kid has posed:
        "Or too tempting to work with.  If he has my brains, then he chafes under Stargrave the same way I hate to admit I sometimes do under Querl.  The opportunity to one-up Stargrave just might be too much for him.  And…"
        There's a very long pause.
        A…
        …very…
        …long…
        …pause.
        "And I'm not so trusting I wouldn't leave myself a 'behave OR ELSE' option on it," is all Lyle finally says.