LNH/LUNA/ACRA: The Liminals #11

[Drew Nilium]

On 4/12/23 6:02 PM, Jeanne Morningstar wrote:
> THE LIMINALS
> #11: "Every Time A Bell Rings..."
> A tale of angels and demons by Jeanne Morningstar

oooooooh

> A Leadership Cry.Sig Net.ropolis 2023 prelude (maybe?)

Sure, why not!

> This issue is dedicated to Rachel Pollack (1945-2023)
> "To learn to play seriously is one of the great secrets of spiritual exploration."
> –The Forest of Souls: A Walk Through the Tarot

It's goshdarn true.

> Dee? Xauriel McKenna--Masterplan Lad, guardian of the narrative; Victoria 
> Arden--Forsaken Lass, survivor of Limbo; Alice Ashdown--Net.Access, champion of 
> crossovers; Sakura Mangas--Manga Girl, synthetic senshi of creativity; and Maria 
> Hart, troubled trenchcoater, along with her ostrich familiar Sunny!  They are 
> four young net.heroes, one trenchcoater and one ostrich who fight to understand 
> themselves and the worlds they inhabit, moving between the heroism of the LNH 
> and the uncanny strangeness of the Lunaverse--the Liminals!

YEAH THEY ARE \o/

> "So," said Masterplan Lad, finishing the the last touches on their lipstick. 
> "How do I look?"
> 
> "Amazing," said Sharon. "If I didn't have a girlfriend, I'd be grabbing ahold of 
> you and pinning you to the wall and kissing you right now."

ghehehehe :3

> Just then, to MPL's frustration and relief, the moment was interrupted

X3 Extremely them.

> when Doug 
> walked into the room, bearing the the night's movies–Sharon Friedman and Alys 
> Delano (as they knew their names were now) were DVD watchers; they'd even been 
> known to still watch videotapes.
> 
> Doug's abiding obsessions in life were mech anime and black and white movies. If 
> you got him in a room with Alice to talk about Macross, or with Sharon about Old 
> Hollywood, they'd never talk about anything else for a week.

Oh, I love it, I love this detail-oriented characterization.

> Doug was bisexual, and he had a boyfriend and a very likely potential girlfriend 
> in Sig.ago, where he'd grown up. His pride in his home city was still pretty 
> considerable (he'd told MPL shortly after they met that he in all honesty 
> preferred Dvandom Force to the LNH; he even admitted a fondness for Teenfactor). 

Awwwwww :>

> He'd moved here for a film history research fellowship; but had told MPL he 
> preferred not to date people in Net.ropolis as there was too much drama. He'd 
> meant this in the colloquial sense, not the narrative-metaphysical sense, but it 
> was still true: the constant flow of Drama around the city meant that it could 
> be difficult to hold down stable relationships.

Mmmmm, legit, legit.

> Masterplan Lad knew a lot of queer people in long-distance relationships. As 
> in-person queer spaces grew harder to access due to gentrification, and the 
> internet became one of the most important vectors for queerness, it had grown 
> more and more common. Some people he knew–such as Frat Boy and Fearless 
> Leader–were even dating people in other dimensions.

Metaphor! \o/

> That meant that 
> Net.ropolis could be near any other city, and that made it that much easier for 
> people in long-distance relationships, though they could never predict when 
> Net.ropolis would be there. It was a little harder for Sig.agoans, 
> though–Sig.ago was Net.ropolis's conceptual opposite; one of the things that 
> defined Net.ropolis was that it was Not Sig.ago and vice versa.

Ooooooh, yeah, excellent point - especially with Net.ropolis being connected to 
the tradition of coastal cities in superhero media.

> "Hey," whispered Alys, gently tapping them on the shoulder, "are you expositing 
> to yourself again?"
> 
> "Er, yes," they said.
> 
> "Well it's time to listen to Doug exposit instead."

Awwwwwww. :>

> Then they looked up at Doug instead, who was going on animatedly about the movie 
> they were watching today--one of those old Dolores De Wynter romantic comedies, 
> "Miss Net.ropolis"–and went on for a bit about her various trysts with famous 
> lesbians and experiments with gender.

eeeeeeee cute :D Oh, I see the Ultra-Humanite reference there.

> And naturally, they thought of Maria. They felt something they'd been 
> feeling for a while now–a deep frustration and an absolute, desperate need, the 
> absence of her hand on their skin.

Awwwwww. :>

> Masterplan Lad felt someone tap them on the shoulder. They turned around and saw 
> a familiar figure in a familiar trenchcoat. "Hi," said Maria.
> 
> "What? How did you--"
> 
> "We're both magicians, babe. And I sealed a narrative connection between 
> us–remember?"

:3 <3 <3 <3

> "So ah, what have you been up to?"
> 
> "Oh, roaming about the Earth and walking up and down on it.

What a fucking trenchcoater answer. X>

> "Well, I've been recovering after what we went through. At some point I'll have 
> to help sort out the post-cascade canon, but right now I'm supposed to rest as 
> much as possible. Ninja's orders.

Heeheehee. X>

> "I've been calling myself Dee. For the moment, anyway."
> 
> "Dee, huh? So, like, John Dee?"
> 
> "Not particularly, no. I hadn't thought of that. That whole ceremonial magick 
> tradition–that's not really who I am. It's too rigid, appropriative, and 
> convoluted. And when something's too convoluted for me..."

X3 Legit.

> "So you're more of a chaos magician, then?"
> 
> "Well, I think the understanding of our storytelling universe naturally tends to 
> something like chaos magick–thinking of magic as a narrative function. But even 
> chaos magic strikes me as too programmatic much of the time."

Mmmmmm, big mood.

> "Right! So you're a trenchcoater, then." Maria hooked her arm around theirs. 
> "Systems and received traditions are bullshit. They always disappoint us. We 
> understand this. That's the trenchcoater way."
> 
> "Hmm. I do see much that appeals to me in that, but... It's not a system of 
> rules, but it is a set outlook, and I'm not sure it's mine. I'm not sure any of 
> the ones I'm familiar with are."

I'm really vibing with all these feels. X>

> "I'm sure. I will say, it's very stressful to not fully understand all that. And 
> not know what my name is."
> 
> "Yeah, but it's also kind of cool? A lot of magic revolves around names. The 
> Name Eater of the Seventh Abyss of Kelorak can't get you if you don't have a 
> name in the first place."
> 
> "Ah, there's another thing I didn't know I had to feel anxiety about," said 
> Masterplan Lad.

X3 Also an extremely them thing to say.

> I gotta initiate you further. This isn't a sex 
> thing. Not *yet*." She winked conspicuously.

:3

> "Well tarot is great. It's like, not useful for offensive magic but it's good 
> for figuring the world and yourself out.

You know what would be good for both, a tarot deck made out of Magic: The 
Gathering cards.

> Being good at tarot is the reason I'm 
> not an even bigger disaster than I am. C'mere."

X3

> Grabbing ahold of their hand, she pulled them through the door of a nearby 
> shop–the Promethea Spiritual Supply Shop.

Ah yes. n.n

> The scent of the air was heavy with cheap incense. At the deck was a middle-aged 
> white woman with a lot of rings wrapped in a sparkly green shawl. There were all 
> kinds of vaguely spiritual knicknacks, gewgaws and trinkets on the walls and 
> shelves, from rune stones to rings to crystals. MPL grimaced to see a rack of 
> dreamcatchers.

Well, that's familiar.

> They took 
> out and examined the JONG! Tarot, based on Arthur Spitzer's acclaimed series, 
> with images of iconic characters such as Plum Master and Dumpster-TRON.

Oh my god I want that so bad. X>

> It was the old familiar Rider-Waite-Smith Deck, the main one 
> their Writer used, as that was the one Rachel Pollack had used as a baseline in 
> her books. While tempted by the Dvandom Force tarot, they took the RWS out of 
> the carousel.

Awwwww. :> (I want the Dvandom Force tarot too, of course.)

> 
> "OK," said Maria. "Now the next step is..." She leaned in to whisper them, 
> putting her hand on their shoulder. "We steal it."
> 
> "What?"
> 
> "Yeah, there's a custom that you can't buy your first tarot deck. It has to be 
> given or stolen. I mean, it doesn't *have* to be that way, but it's cooler and 
> therefore more dramatic and therefore gives your magic that little bit of edge."

Gaddangit Maria. X>

> "You're an LNHer, right? And you have mega scrupulosity even for a net.hero. So 
> that's why *I'm* gonna steal it."

Well, fair

> There was an ear-splitting scream like a banshee's.
> 
> In the real world, someone who ran a kitschy spiritual supply shop would not 
> actually have the magic powers to attack anyone who stole from them. But this 
> was the Looniverse, and therefore...

X3 YEAH LEGIT

> "Thief!" said the woman at the desk. She raised up her rings, which emitted a 
> red light that looked like tinted filmstrip. "By the Neon Noodles of Net.torak!" 

XD

> "And here I was thinking we'd get through the whole issue without a fight 
> scene," said Masterplan Lad. 

It's all part of the fun. n.n

> Masterplan Lad looked about desperately for some kind of talisman or artifact 
> they could use but amid this heap of commodified signifiers stripped of 
> meaning–which is what magic is–there was nothing.

Mmmmmmm. x-x

> Before the Neon Noodles of Net.torak had hit, 
> Masterplan Lad felt lines of force wrap around their body, pressing into them.
> 
> They had to admit it felt good.

eeeeeeeeeheehehehe :3

> "Ah, so you've counteracted her binding spell by using your own on me first. I 
> imagine–ngh!–you've put a lot of thought into constructing this spell."
> 
> "Oh, I have." Maria cackled.

X3

> "Do you think you can escape me?" said the shopkeeper. "Now I will summon a 
> demon! Behold!" She raised her rings, which began to grow in a green light.
> 
> All the talismans in the Spiritual Supply Shop shook. The foundations began to 
> quiver.
> 
> The shopkeeper looked around nervously. She knew that she'd made a terrible 
> mistake but it was too late to back away.

Oh I know what this is gonna be

> At the center of the crater that was once a spiritual supply shop was something 
> that might have once been a man. Crosshatched with bulging muscles, he exuded 
> Liefedity. This was none other than the LNH's old foe, the Robgoblin, now 
> demonically re-powered by the Power Liefeld!
> 
> "Oh no," said Masterplan Lad. "I didn't think we were going to address this plot 
> that quickly..." [See System Corruptors #37]

Good job! >:D

> "No! Fight NOW" shouted Robgoblin. "ROBBLE ROBBLE ROBBLE!" He sent a wicked 
> burst of energy from his axe, causing more destruction.

XD XD XD omfg <3

> "No," said Masterplan Lad. "This moment feels... significant somehow. I think I 
> have to face him..."

:D

> A faint glow of light had begun to surround Masterplan Lad. They felt the panic 
> give way to to a giddy sense of potential. "Hold on. I think I can feel 
> another... major dramatic shift about to happen, in who and what I am. I... I 
> think you can draw it out."
> 
> "I can feel it too," said Maria. "There's power building inside you. I gotta 
> warn you... it's going to hurt."
> 
> "Then let it," said Masterplan Lad.

HELL YEAH :D YOU GOT THE TOUCH

> Masterplan Lad felt a sharp pain in their shoulder blades.
> 
> Their bones cracked and shifted, their flesh split. Their clothes and reality as 
> a whole shifted around them. From behind them they could see a great light.
> 
> Their body was filled up by pain, but in Maria's hands it didn't feel so bad.

eeeeeeeeee ;-; :D <3

> They stood up and stretched out their two bright silver wings.

:D :D :D

> "I... ah. Hmm," said Masterplan Lad.
> 
> "What????" said Robgoblin. "An angel? Who's not a hot girl like Avengelyne? 
> Blasphemy!" He shouted.
> 
> "I mean, some people might disagree with the not a hot girl part," said Maria.

YEAH >:D

> They 
> could sense the flow of Drama around them in a much more immediate, visceral 
> way. They knew their initial intuition was right–it wasn't time for this 
> storyline to be resolved. This was one of those times when putting things off 
> just might be the right answer.

That's the spirit!

> "I'll bet," said Maria. "But this actually is a lot better. Now you don't have 
> to worry about your umbrella being stolen by the Terrible Ones or some shit."

X>

> "Aww. That's it for our date, huh?"
> 
> "...we were on a date?"

*Extremely* sapphic.

> "Wait! I had a thought about teh name thing. Hear me out–Denys, with a y. Which 
> is a form of Dionysus, as in Pseudo-Dionysus the Areopagite, the author of On 
> the Angelic Hierarchy. That seems on theme now. It fits the cadence of your 
> name, it makes the 'Deus Ex Machina' pun work, and it's kinda halfway between 
> 'Dennis' and 'Denise' so it's a good genderqueer-y name."

Oooooooh, nice nice.

> "Hmm... interesting. It also connects my name to Bacchus, I note, who some call 
> the founder of trenchcoatry. But what if it doesn't work out?"
> 
> "Then you can just change it again.."

:3

> And somewhere in an abandoned apartment building, a figure paced. A figure who 
> happened to be made of conglomerated snail mail.
> 
> The Letterhack had been planning its revenge for a very, very long time now. 
> It'd been five years since the first issue was posted, for god's sake!

:D YESSSSSS <3

> The Letterhack heard footsteps and turned around. A couple of very 
> greasy-looking men in suits had walked into the building, who seemed charged 
> with an arcane power. There were wands in their pockets, and they definitely 
> didn't look happy to see it.
> 
> They were hit wizards from the Wizard Mafia.

omg :D Tying it together.

> That was good. Mafia plots were 
> serious, realistic, important. The fact they had their wands pointed at it was 
> less good.

X3

> "Ah, but I am no ordinary mobster, my friend," said the ruff guy. "I am Edward 
> De Vere, Earl of Oxford, author under various pseudonyms of such renowned 
> literary works as Hamlet, Moby Dick, and The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl.

YESSSSSS :D :D :D


> And 
> thusly shall I, like the son of Atreus, avenge the most foul and unnatural 
> wrongs done unto me!"
> 
> "Who was that?" said the Letterhack. "Is that from Dune?"
> 
> "Ah, my friend, I shall give you a literary education yet... As well as an 
> education in what I in one of my most exquisite essays once called the simple 
> art of murder..."

X3

> NEXT: The Manga Girl Revenge Squad!

:D YEAH!!!

> And now we know what MPL's deal is right now, to the extent that they themself 
> do. This was a plot development I thought up... jesus christ almost ten years 
> ago, back when I was watching that terrible but weirdly fun CW Constantine series.

Oooooo, neat.

> While I couldn't fit it into this issue, they do have the ability to "fold" 
> their wings into extradimensional space which makes it easier to get through 
> doors and such. (Which is why they're not visible in Leadership Cry.sig #8).

:D

> I really have no idea when Robgoblin will show up again. Is he going to come 
> back in Leadership Cry.sig? That cascade already has a ton of plot elements, but 
> you know how cascades are...

indeed. X> I guess he's out there floating, waiting to be brought in...

Drew "delightful" Nilium