PS238 by Aaron Williams
Ps238: The School for Metaprodigy Children
©2006-2015 PS238 by Aaron Williams Powered by WordPress with ComicPress
©2006-2015 PS238 by Aaron Williams Powered by WordPress with ComicPress
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Oh, dear… and this, ladies and gentlemen, is why you never run someone else’s powers without fully understanding them.
A lesson that both telepaths and power-mimics everywhere could really stand to learn!
Depends on the power-mimic, most of them in comics manage just fine copying anyone’s powers. The only power-mimic I’ve seen ignore powers that require practice or care (like teleportation) was the Exiles version of Mimic from Marvel and that was more to nerf him (otherwise he’d have been running around with half Magneto’s powers like his evil counterpart, or half of Phoenix).
I think bubble-head is about get a dressing down from the little girl.
They will be LUCKY if that’s the worst that happens. KA-THOOM looks decidedly unsafe for all involved…
I am guessing three dead. Then again, dead has never happened in this comic before.
Dead has happened in this comic before, it just un-happened afterwards. You know, with Ambriel?
Granted he was a villain, but I don’t think Dr. Irons survived the helicopter crash.
But was he technically alive anyways?
of course! He was made of plant matter at the time. IIRC anyway.
If by that you mean she very thoroughly the suit that makes him more than a psychic card reader, then hopefully so.
very thoroughly what?
“Removed”? Leave the guy in his underwear.
I think I meant destroyed, but don’t remember for certain. How annoying.
By dressing down, you mean a kick to the shin that makes him feel she nearly broke it, right?
“Nearly”?
Innnteresting.
The next few panels just headed very, very much unlike anyplace PS238 has ever gone.
They’re probably fine. Right? Right?
Fine?
I legitimately do not know. Suffering the death of a friend — even a friend for four panels — while linked to their mind is a classic of the genre.
It’s a bit.. dark for a child-oriented story, but even in the lightest and brightest of tales, ‘fine’ is not always good.
Rastov’s an illusionist, this might be illusion, and he has to be rugged to have lasted so long. Phloe is a grown up hero of great achievement and plausible survivability. The Eggverse isn’t the real world. There are ways and ways and ways for ‘fine’ to eventually be revealed. But dramatically?
Dramatically, “Not Fine” is quite justified.
Phlogiston has said that she makes thing explode while in her plasma form. I suspect she does so by physically interacting with them–as seen in panel 2, where contact with her hand shredded the edge of Rastov’s hood. If so, she’s probably used to being at ground zero and not too much the worse for this boom.
Conjuror is probably somewhat protected by the shield; he might be shaken up, but likely not seriously harmed. Neuronet is far enough away that he, regrettably, probably isn’t hurt at all. (Yet.)
The real question is Rastov, and it depends on what he really is. If he’s just what he says–basically, a squishy wizard who was relying on the shield spell–then yes, things may have just gotten quite messy. However, he could also be something else in disguise, or even just a projection of one of the egg’s defenses/tests. If it’s testing for heroic traits, someone just failed. Badly.
I wonder… Phlogiston’s colors are the same as that jewel on his staff.
If her powers are actually magical, this could get interesting.
Really bad form treating 84 as nothing but a distraction, FISS or not (although at least he FINALLY used her super-hero ID and not something dismissive like ‘girl’). I also imagine what we see is the results of him losing his connection to her as her brain crossed the boundary of the force field and I might just have been wrong about no one getting hurt this early in the story.
I think at this point everyone should be considering how Julie aka 84 is going to hurt him for doing this to her and Phlogiston.
I’m not sure we can really hold him (or the others) not saying ’84’ against them. We forget that we’ve had years of time to get used to calling Julie by her code name. These people have had, what, 20 minutes?
Except he manages to remember everyone else’s names just fine, outside of Phlogiston everyone refers to 84 in some dismissive fashion by not using her super-ID. Four new people to deal with and the only one he fails to use is 84’s and fails consistently, even when he dislikes the person.
Her name is on her suit in large clear numbers. The others aren’t wearing nametags.
Sure they are: Jerk, Dirtbag, and Schmuck. Apply them which of the three you choose.
So, 84 was moving away from ground zero, and has that “I” going for her. Phlogiston, I hope, has some resistance to her own powers, if that was just her powers going out of control…
I don’t expect the guys to come out of this fiasco in anywhere near as good shape as the ladies. But unfortunately I expect Neuronet didn’t get hurt as badly as Conjurer and Firedrake.
Yet. ^_^
Taking control of your team members without their consent isn’t a moral gray area, it’s just evil. Even more so when you use them as ‘diversions’. It’s fairly hard to use mind control powers without approaching the ?is this evil? area. Not sure how he made it to super hero status without finding out the hard way that people don’t like to feel helpless.
Legit uses of mind control without consent would be limited to something like the following:
a) Self defence (in the most immediate and urgent sense)
b) A person being out of their mind and unable to give consent; restrained for their own safety and that of those around them.
c) (Very briefly) to move someone out of the way of imminent danger.
None of which apply here, of course.
And I’m a tad worried that he may have kept his hero status by conveniently editing peoples’ memories.
A case could also be made if mind control were used to stop a conflict without harming anyway (for example, forcing a hostage taker to release the hostage and set his weapon down, allowing team mates to restrain him without needing to beat him up first), but it would be very tricky and extremely easy to misuse powers in this situation.
Then he has blown it totally at this point.
So, Phlogiston became material in the middle of a shield. She is either cut in half, or the field that keeps her together was interposed with the sheild, big bada boom, or both. Hopefully the chaos god wants to keep them alive, or offers their restoration as a favor to 84, because I can see all but 84 being turned to pink mist by this.
Who wants to bet that Neuronet’s going to try blaming any casualties on 84 and Phlogiston’s inability to do as he told them to?
He will certainly be able to blame them for the headache they both intend to beat into him for this.
If Neuronet was a supervillain (or an evil person pretending to be a superhero), I’d say he was taking advantage of the situation to eliminate some of his competition.
I am so fed up with the recklessness, pettiness, arrogance and blatant disrespect The Conjuror and Neuronet have shown. Firedrake I’m giving the benefit of the doubt as just same rash idiot who basically still means well. I feel so sorry (and proud) for 84 and Phlo working hard and going through a lot of crap to do the right thing, to be heroes.
Specifically, I’m guessing Neuronet has done this sort of thing before- hijack someone to use their powers in a super-fight. If so, he should have at least known better than to just rush in. He should have checked the memories of the person he was mind-controlling to see the intricacies and full effects of their powers.
Accidents like that are the stuff that sets off comic book storylines like Marvel’s Civil War (or the PS238-verse’s Kid Powers’ twisting of reality when he’s not careful).
(That’s all praise for Aaron Williams’ writing and characterization.)
I just hope to see a happy ending for this story.
That did not look healthy for anyone involved. 84 is out of the immediate blast radius but …
Think how unhealthy it will be for Neuronet if Phlogiston is injured, and 84 decides she needs to express to Neuronet her displeasure over Neuronet’s actions.
Given that PS238 definitely falls on the optimistic side of the Sliding Scale of Idealism vs Cynicism, I’m not worried about whether or no Phlo survives, though she is at quite a large risk of permanent impairment.
Neuronet, if he’s very very lucky, has only made an enemy of 84.
If he’s unlucky, he’s just made an enemy of a trickster god.
What happens when the trickster god decides that it’s no longer funny?
he plays a very long very dark game
Exactly.
We’ve all suggested that maybe he’s testing them, not just on terms of their skill and power, but the Integrity of their character. What if the Eye itself has a ward around it that can only be bypassed by those with a true sense of Integrity and Worth?
So it could very well be that the only one who Can retrieve the Eye is someone who understands at a deep level what it means to be a Hero, or truly Wants to understand what it means.
So from what we’ve seen currently only 84 and Phlogiston are qualifying to meet those standards.
Unless the others experience an epiphany and do something like a Heel-Face Turn except instead of Evil to Good its absolute jackass/tool to someone who understands what it means to be a hero.
Hey, the only one we have good reason to believe doesn’t would be Neuronet. The others, Phlogiston and 84 excepted, just seem to have no idea how to be polite/classy.
Think how Neuronet will get to enjoy a few years as a frog, in a elementary school for children with super powers.
[shaking head] “Telepaths. They never knock before entering.”
So…. umm…. yeah. I was angry enough with the last update. But this….
There will be a reckoning.
When Julie really focuses, I’ll bet that she can shake off Neuronet the next time that he tries something like this. Remember that she once knocked out a telepath with their own psychic shackles.
She needs to add the Alan Parsons Project to her playlist.
Not just Eye in the Sky, either. I Wouldn’t Want To Be Like You should be there was well.
“What? Of COURSE there’s a risk, but” I’m way over here and I’M not in any danger, so do what I tell you, girl.
I was already pissed off, but now he might have gotten Phlogiston killed. Payback time!
If Phlogiston has actually died, Neuronet has done more than “gotten her killed”. He KILLED her. He pushed her into the situation, he was warned beforehand her powers were not easy to control, then he threw her in in such a way that if he lost control of those powers, she would *explode*(assuming that is what happened).
I can only hope, if that is actually what went down, that this is all happening in a virtual reality and at the conclusion we find that no time has passed and that Phlogiston is fine. I don’t fancy being Neuronet in that situation, either.
No fair rewriting Aaron’s script, thanks. Neuronet seems to have thought he could co-ordinate 84 and Phlogiston into a fight-ending double-team. Less risk to everyone involved. Unfortunately, he didn’t check the magical force field for anti-psychic effects, much as he started bragging before when his entire team combined couldn’t even find where Veles’ mind was located. (Being a deity means a fleshly body is essentially a puppet; Veles is no more that body than Mxyzptlk is really a short man wearing a bowler hat.) End result: His control of Phlogiston is disrupted as she passes through the field, resulting in exactly what she’s been warning everyone about since this started. Her powers are very effective at going BOOM in large and destructive ways, and it’s a good thing for everyone but her (and Rastov, of course) that she was contained by Rastov’s shield when she detonated.
I have a feeling 84 and Phlogiston aren’t the only ones who are about to tear Neuronet a new one.
Sorry, but taking Control of something that You Don’t Understand is in and of itself a Risky Endeavor. He even admitted that her attack was a Risk. Had she done it on her Own Will, the risk would have been lower because she understands better how to Control her own powers. Him hijacking her body only Increased the Risk Factor, it does not Reduce It.
As to his control of Phlo, I think its more the fact she went boom than anything which severed his control over her.
In a way I’m hoping that Veles’ is displaying key moments to the world from their time inside the egg to show what some of the “heroes” are actually like.
A trickster deity? He’s probably live-streaming the whole thing, with special captioning for the telepathic conversations and free popcorn.
… which could bite Neuronet once he gets out, because his teammates are presumably watching, and I find myself wondering just _how_ he got the post of team leader.
Who says he’s team leader? Veles probably just grabbed the guys he thought would be funniest from the teams without obviously viable candidates.
He probable overpowered the others with his mechanical booster and made them his puppets.
Did we just skip a page here, maybe?
I’m betting phlogiston is going to be in a vapor state for quite a while. Literally and figuratively.
Are you saying that you think she’s steaming?
This is why we can’t have nice things!
I felt the need to drop rocks before, NOW I feel the need to bury Neuronet headfirst into a pile of fresh excrement and send him into a ‘poonado’ spin :<
My guess?
1) “She’s dead Jim”
2) death is only for ‘within the egg’. When this is over and the survivors leave, any that died will be restored.
“Vent gas to prevent explo zee on.” -Homer Simpson
Phlogiston! NOOOOOO!
._รต … *TWITCH* … Hello, Neuronet. I want to introduce you to a friend of mine: Mr. Trash Compactor. If you keep your stupid mouth shut, I may allow you to take off your suit before I toss it in.
The real problem is what Senator Headmaster has been worried about – pride. When you think you are better than everyone else, you act like it and trash those of lesser ability under-foot. While it’s obvious that Headmaster is a super a-hole, I think this little foray into the minds of the supers shows it is also not entirely unfounded.
Humility is not a very well developed trait in those that are told they are awesome all the time, which is why 84 is the perfect person for this, she always thought of herself as an afterthought, not a whole lot of pride to lead to her fall. Well played Aaron, well played
Anyone else notice that when Phlogiston passes through the wizard’s shield bubble, the white aura around her is negated? Look at her reaching arm and the top of her head, which is clearly meant to be exiting the shield, and the portions of her body inside. The white aura is gone. I suspect that it’s some kind of containment field intended to prevent Phlogiston ever coming into direct uncontrolled contact with the atmosphere.
Maybe that’s what she meant by difficult to control. Her powers are as much a burden as a blessing, as she must carefully control her own little pocket of atmosphere, to both permit her respiration, but also prevent her from spontaneously detonating. Whatever her plasma is made of must interact violently with oxygen, as so many materials do.
By becoming intangible, she was able to pass through the shield, but her own personal atmosphere aura was disrupted.. I imagine that, if Phlogiston had been in control, she’d phase through the shield and make sure to reconstitute her atmospheric aura herself, keeping the two or more portions of aura flush with the wizard’s bubble, a difficult feat even while standing still, a master feat of coordination when moving. Something Nutterbutter over there didn’t take into account, likely assuming Phlogiston’s ‘Necessary Secondary Superpowers’ are automatic and reflexive.
Obviously, I’m too late to say anything new, so I will sit this conversation out.
Huh. So, mass-shifting the electromagnetic interaction between matter so that one body of matter doesn’t interact with another body of matter is “nothing fancy.” I really need to look up “fancy,” because I had thought that was something fancy.
An extra-wrong thing about Neuronet is that he could have contributed to this fight in a far more legit way – since his power suite isn’t limited to telepathy, but also includes telekinesis (http://ps238.nodwick.com/comic/2014-12-01/).
Paddy, another fun thing, that might have been missed. What Grigor said.
“You have the full use of your abilities, for all the good they’ll do you.”
Which either means their powers are effectively useless in the challenges ahead, or the enemies are so strong it won’t matter. I’m leaning toward the former personally.
Or that Veles knew that they wouldn’t think outside the box and instead go exclusively for the all-solving hammer for every problem, yielding failure when a more novel use of their powers could have resulted in success.
Very true! For instance, he could have grabbed the shield and shaken whatsisname in it like dice in a cup (assuming the “shield” has some kind of “surface” which can be gripped; Aaron can play the physics of that any way he wants to). Failing that, he could have reached through the shield with his TK powers, and played “bounce the baddy” back and forth between the inside walls of the shield (assuming the shield permits “TK powers” to pass, and assuming it has an “inside wall.” If it doesn’t, the baddy goes flying out of his shield.
Much pain incoming towards bubble-head.
Well, at least now there’s no sense of guilt in wanting to see Neuronet get killed.
Also, body-jacking is only OK when fighting an Omnicidal Multi-Dimensional Cosmic Space Worm that also happens to be the Source of your own superpowers, NOT when the adversary is just a run-of-the-mill chained guard dog!
Neuronet was “talking” to Phlogiston and probably used Julie’s correct super-hero ID to keep Phlogiston’s “yammering” to a lower level.
(While we were only “hearing” Neuronet’s side of the conversation, it sounds like Phlogiston was trying to reason with Neuronet instead of just protesting.)
Yep, definitely a merchant banker. Neuronet would fit right in at Goldman Sachs.