Hot Blooded Reunion [Human Torch]

[Martyr]

🟢

It did not take all that much to convince Lyja to work against the humans. She'd been an ally of them before, certainly. Lyja had been an associate and a member of the Fantastic Four. It was in fact why she had taken the form of Crystal, who had a similar distinction.

The other reason was why she was here, at Johnny Storm's penthouse, which he maintained so that he could still — she wasn't jealous.

She would be with him even if she had to debase herself  by pretending to be his flavor of the — day. She certainly wasn't jealous. Shortly after walking through his door, she started to change.

The woman traded in her name. Black Cat became Lyja. Her snow white hair was switched for dark green. Her big brown eyes became green. Her skin turned verdant and she gained pointed ears and a chin marked by ridges. She lost a couple inches of height and a couple from her chest. Her little black dress transformed into a Skrull military uniform.

The Lazerfist first spoke in Skrull before repeating the same words in an Earthling's tongue. 

"My beloved."

A wry smile fell over her lips.

"For what it's worth, it was a lovely evening. You were very gentlemanly."

Template adapted from Silv.

[Slim]

“I think next time we should try getting a table out on the balcony, it seemed pretty nice out th-” Before Johnny could finish his fairly mundane thought, his world turned upside down. He’d shut the door to his place behind him and hit a few buttons to reset the alarm, and then turned around to look at Felicia. Except as soon as he set eyes on her, she began to undergo a very familiar metamorphosis, the suddenness of which caused Johnny to stumble a single step back as his eyes ignited in flame.

What stopped the rest of him from following suit was the face that was revealed, a face he recognized well. ”Lyja?!” he exclaimed, betrayal and confusion battling for the dominant tone of the two syllables. Her words didn’t sink in with him at first, he was too busy being struck by the several scenarios that could’ve led to this particular moment in time, none of them good. If Lyja was here, acting as Felicia, where was the real Felicia? When had the swap happened? Was Felicia okay? He remembered the date night being pretty impromptu, proposed over a phone call while he’d been dealing with something at the Baxter building. Had it been Lyja on the phone?

”What are you doing here, Lyja? Where is she?” The second question had more emphasis than the first, Johnny seeming a bit far from gentlemanly right now. In any other circumstance Johnny might have felt nostalgia or an inner conflict, but when a person you cared about turned out to be a Skrull, it usually didn’t mean great things for the person they’d impersonated.

Tag: Martyr

[Martyr]

🟢

"Johnny, my darling, you should be happier to be reunited with your loving wife!"

 It was a phrase she had said before and would almost certainly say again. Clearly she had some issues to work out. The alien's eyes danced a bit as he kept pressing her about the location of the Black Cat.

"I am an understanding woman. Perhaps too much of one. By Zorr'Kiri's bonds, the adulteress is not in a position to be harmed by any Skrull."

That may or may not be a case of exact words. In spite of her swearing by the Skrull Goddess of Love, who knows what other species may be in a position to do so.

"Oh, Johnny, I have waited so long to take this form again. I was impersonating Crystal for ages. I tried to reveal myself to you at the Baxter Building but you weren't there."

There were so many other women. 

"Even revealing myself to you now is an act of trust. Of . . . love. I know what will happen to your people when this is all over. It's regrettable but it is the will of the Empress. I can only mitigate the damage to you. To our family. Join me and be spared the fate of your planet, Johnny."

Template adapted from Silv.

[Slim]

It was as if Lyja was playing a game where the goal was to see how many different faces she could get Johnny to make in a minute’s time. Shock, confusion, horror, anger, disbelief, worry...he changed his visage almost as often as the skrull in front of him, every word she spoke setting him off in some new way. He listened with gritted teeth and a hair-trigger, containing himself just long enough to let her speak because of the history between them. It paid off in the form of a promise she made to him that Felicia was fine, even if the promise was phrased in such a way as to have more holes than a Shia LaBeouf movie.

“Look, you can’t-”


But Lyja continued, her steadfast words overpowering his own. Revelations, offers, assurances came fast and furious, and it was almost too much for the fiery hero to keep up with. ”Lyja, slow down. What the hell are you talking about? When whatis all over?” She had presented him with a thread and opportunity in the same breath, and there was a certain kind of mental whiplash that came with that. As much as his worry for Felicia was far and away the most important concern he had right now, it was hard not to latch onto the thought that something was threatening the world itself.

[Martyr]

🟢

"I can't what?"

 The alien turned from him as she spoke, as if facing him directly with her coming words were too much to bear.

"I can't look after you? I know that my mission has taken me away from you for far too long. That doesn't change anything; that doesn't excuse anything."

She turned back to him.

"The great Skrull general Tz'ano said that in each of your enemy's weaknesses there is another path to victory. We saw what happened with Captain Marvel. The whole universe saw it if they were paying attention. As a result of that ruptured dam, your world was flooded with chaos. What alliances, teams, families, didn't merely crack were shattered."

"The Empress sees an opportunity to finish the job, Johnny. It's why I was sent here. As a spy my skill set isn't just listening, it's whispering in the right ears, it's putting things in motion."

"What's coming will be the end of the Fantastic Four, the end of the Avengers, the end of all of them, because they will be severed from everything. With me, Johnny, my love, you can be spared."

Template adapted from Silv.

[Slim]

Though it wasn’t necessarily in his nature to stay quiet, the stakes were too high right now. Lyja had Johnny reeling, but at the same time, she was talking. Talking was good! The only way to get his feet back under him was to understand exactly what the hell was going on, and Lyja at least seemed more than willing to explain. On the other hand though, she sure had seemed like his girlfriend for pretty much the entirety of the evening, so maybe his assumptions weren’t all that concrete.

He listened though, as his former flame explained that the Skrulls were here to take advantage of Earth’s hero climate and instability to deliver the coup de grâce. His eyes widened but he kept his lips sealed, because he needed to hear her entire pitch. Cutting her off would only cost him in the long run. He’d learned from Felicia that sometimes the best intel-gathering tactic was to just let people preach.

“I’m touched, Lyja.” he managed, though it was pretty far from the truth. Maybe he could use his time with Felicia to his advantage, and roleplay his way out of this situation. ”Even if, Lyja, I go with you… There are people I care about. My family, Felicia..I can’t just leave them to the wolves. How long until it happens?”

[Martyr]

🟢

LYJA THE LASERFIST
IN

HOT-BLOODED REUNION

---

"That's the beautiful thing, Johnny. We have every currently active Avenger already replaced and will soon have all of their reservists. Most of your X-men are taken as well. I saved the Fantastic Four for last Johnny. I wanted to give you time."

It was probably a bluff. Probably.

"Of anyone, the Fantastic Four have the most familiarity with our tactics. I had thought that you would see it and reach out. I was disappointed."

"You and your family, they're the beacons. They're the First Family, after all. The Empress isn't Galactus, Johnny. She does not seek to destroy the Earth. It will be among her many holdings. Life will go on. Humans will go on." In subjugation.

She again re-emphasized the current state of heroic politics.

"Johnny, this isn't like before. Your friends are in disarray. They won't be able to face this. Especially not with what's already done. Join us and spare yourself. Spare Reed, Sue, and Ben."

Template adapted from Silv.

[Slim]

Johnny’s blood ran cold at Lyja’s claims. It couldn’t possibly be true, could it? Was she trying to play him at the same time he was trying to string her along? He knew better than to trust her, but if there was even a ten percent chance that she was telling the truth… He couldn’t think like that. His mind raced, trying to come up with some kind of heroic plan, but the entire situation felt too fragile. One wrong move, and maybe someone he loved ended up dead. He couldn’t just burn his way out of this one.

She spoke of the fractured nature of Earth’s heroes, and that part was no lie. Everything that had happened.. The world had been changed irreversibly. Johnny wasn’t entire certain that would doom them in any conflict against the Skrulls, but it certainly wouldn’t make things -easier-.

”Life will go on,” he repeated, as if he was rolling the idea over in his head, trying it out. He stepped slightly closer to Lyja, his voice a little quieter. A Felicia tactic. ”Tell me about after, Lyja. What do our lives look like in the future you’re fighting for?”

Tag Martyr

[Martyr]

🟢

LYJA THE LASERFIST
IN

HOT-BLOODED REUNION

---

"For humanity as a whole? It won't go well, you should know that. The Empress finds humans — finds this planet — vexing. Those who are not troublesome can look forward to working for one of the great noble houses cleaning rooms or polishing war trophies. The impudent humans will die on some distant mining planet after a short and back-breaking sentence."

"The powered ones, like your friend Spider-Man, will be reeducated and sent to fight the accursed Kree until they fall for the Empire."

"Your planet may well be turned into a destination for those who serve the Empire well."

Her next words seemed to be anticipatory.

"It isn't something I am fond of, but it is the will of the Empress. She is going to take this planet, Johnny. Your best hope is to work with her instead of fighting a battle you and your people are going to lose."

Template adapted from Silv.

[Slim]

Even the sanitized version of Lyja's pitch was filled with promises of death, destruction and the shackling of the human race. That meant that the eventual reality would probably be even worse. Lyja even promised that Pete was going to be sent into the meat-grinder of galactic war, and Johnny wasn't able to hide the narrowing of the eyes that accompanied that news.

"You make it sound so enticing," he replied sarcastically, his mind racing to try and solidify his next move. He paced back and forth slightly, as if giving the offer some amount of consideration. What he ultimately realized, however, was that there wasn't a single person on this planet or beyond that would believe that Johnny Storm would ditch his world on a whim to join a race of skrulls, leaving Earth as a mausoleum for his friends and family. He could be Daniel Day-Lewis and still, nobody would believe it.

And so, with his pacing having put a little distance between himself and Lyja, he tried a different sort of Hail Mary. "Counter-Offer: You join US, and help me get back anyone that's been replaced. You already said youself that you aren't all that jazzed about this plan. Maybe we could do something about it. Together."

Tag Martyr

[Martyr]

Lyja the Lazerfist
(Lauren Green)

✳️

The alien thought long and hard about the offer. She had been on both sides of this war. She had fought for the Empire time and again. It was why she had first come to earth, part of a Skrull plot to defeat the Fantastic Four once and for all. Still, she had sided with the heroes, and by extension humanity as well, fighting alongside her husband against foes on Earth and away from it.



What she offered him was a worst case scenario, of course. It was acting as Judas, as Quisling or as Fren'ash the Lambasted did: as an appeasing snake, groveling at the heels of an oppressor for the promise of possible scraps. His offer would probably fail. Okay, there was no probably about it, but it would offer redemption in the eyes of her beloved, until they were plucked out by one of the great generals if not the Empress herself.

"It is a fool's errand, and we will die trying to defeat the might of the empire, but, yes, my beloved, I will side with you."

She attempted to embrace him, not that he was particularly receptive.

Template adapted from Silv.