Side-Plan 2: Mary and Zatanna -- explanations by Lori

Mary's eyebrows had both risen as her eyes had widened. "Save the world?" she sent. "How are we going to do that from down here?"

"Put a pin in that, Mary," Zatanna sent, her eyes narrowing in contrast to Mary's. "You're Lori Lemaris."

"Yes," Lori sent back, simply.

"Lori Lemaris is dead." Zatanna's mental voice was flat. "You're Ovyah, pretending to be Lori Lemaris."

"What?" Mary sent, surprised. She then closed her eyes. "The same way she pretended to be me."

"Partially correct," Lori sent back. "Lori Lemaris is dead, yes. And yes, Ovyah assumed Lori in answer to one of Lex's wishes. But I am Lori Lemaris. Just like when Ovyah assumed Mary Batson, she was Mary Batson, right down to calling upon the Power of Shazam to become Mary Marvel."

She looked back at Zatanna. "And before that she assumed Zatanna and therefore was Zatanna."

The telepathic image seemed to look at both women. "My spirit is Ovyah's. You're right about that. But my memories, my understanding, my emotions, my fidelity and my loyalty... those are mine. They are Lori Lemaris's, because I am Lori Lemaris."

"You can't be Lori Lemaris," Mary sent, clearly angry now. "You don't have her soul."

Lori paused. "That's... not entirely true either. I... have... an echo of her soul. Or a shadow. Or... maybe I share it. Just like the Mary Batson who 'moved to Seattle' echoed your soul, or the Zatanna who 'signed out for two weeks' echoed your soul, Zatanna. And that's part of the point."

She drew closer. "I only know about those events because Ovyah's connected those wishes, because 'Lori' wouldn't know them, normally. I can't tell you things Lex is doing now other than what I can sense telepathically, even though Ovyah's with him. And I have to be careful with telepathy."

"You're not really presenting a strong case," Zatanna sent. "If what you say is true, then that Fake-Zee wouldn't have cooperated with Luthor."

"You have to understand... the wish that incarnates an Ovyah into assuming a person? Isn't a compulsion, it's a natural law. It's like being bound in Wonder Woman's lasso -- it doesn't **** you to tell the truth. It eliminates the possibility of being deceptive, so the truth and nothing but is as natural as breathing."

Lori shifted, her image shimmering. "When that Zatanna went to the Justice League Watchtower, there were reports that Superman was late in checking in. She immediately jumped in to help, and offered to 'cancel her trip' to stay with them. If they'd agreed, she'd still be there, and she'd be entirely on their side."

She looked at Mary. "When she assumed Mary Batson, she didn't just talk to Freddie and Billy and your folks. She called down the thunder so she could stop some criminals and save innocents. That wasn't maintaining a role, Mary. It wasn't mocking your ideals. She lived those ideals, because she was you."

Mary looked thoughtful. "When Lex mocked me, the fake... that other Mary told him to stop, and to be nice, because this was hard enough on me. I thought she was twisting the knife, but..."

Zatanna still looked dubious. "So... are we supposed to believe Ovyah's secretly on our side? Because thanks to a spell they made me cast, I know all about her. She was incarnated to be Lex's perfect servant. I don't believe for a second--"

"No. She wasn't. She was incarnated to be the djinn Lex would find most appealing. So she's duplicitous, willful, Machiavellian, intelligent, and does nothing Lex doesn't wish for. She won't willfully misinterpret a wish, but since she has effectively no latitude she doesn't try to shape the wish towards intent. And even beyond that..."

Mary cocked her head sideways. "Beyond that... what?"

Lori half-smiled. "Ovyah may be incarnated anew, shaped by her Master's subconsciousness, but she does have certain qualities that are eternal. Zatanna knows them, right?"

Zatanna paused. "Yes, I do. She actively yearns to be used -- to serve her Master. Left alone she grows restless. Itchy, almost. And eventually can start causing trouble. That doesn't apply here, because Lex is using the fuck out of her--"

"...so to say..." Mary sent, rolling her eyes.

"--but she has other qualities. She takes delight in the wishes she grants... but... she's... efficient. She's always efficient. Imposing a wish's new reality on the universe takes power. The more the wish fits the universe, the less... power... it... takes..." Zatanna's eyes widened. "What was his wish -- what wish created you?"

Lori looked solemn. "He wished for Superman to be confronted by 'a woman he couldn't resist.' One he would have sex with -- as much sex as possible... and then have that sex be so powerful, and so enhanced, that his body would produce dangerously addictive levels of the endorphins and other hormones that sex naturally produces. He wished for Superman to be addicted to fucking someone other than his wife."

Mary stared at Lori, shocked. "You horrible beast," she sent.

"I don't deny that. But I am what I have to be. I addicted Superman. I'm reinforcing that addiction, almost constantly. But what Lex wanted was someone so alluring that Superman would break his wedding vows, the sexual addiction corrupting him and humiliating him for a weakness he couldn't possibly have stopped."

Lori then smiled, without humor. "But... he didn't wish for that. So Ovyah found a situation which didn't require her to overcome his natural virtue. He was confronted with his dead love... and put in a situation where addictive, telepathic sex was the one thing that could bring her back to life."

She lifted her chin again. "He didn't hesitate. He knew Lois would understand, no matter the cost, because Superman saves people. Lex didn't like that at all, but it fit the wish and took less power."

Zatanna was staring. "And you're here now..."

"Because Lex didn't just want you two to feel what Ovyah felt, and feel sexual pleasure, as he impregnated the two of you. He wanted you two to share the experience as completely as possible. She even tried to ask for clarification, and he cut her off. Again. Because Lex Luthor never learns."

Lori smiled, just a bit. "So... since I already existed and already had far more than enough telepathic power to do this -- because I needed it to addict Superman -- she combined the wishes. I'm still keeping Superman addicted, but I also telepathically meshed your nervous systems. As a side effect, you two can communicate, using me as a link. And since he didn't specify your being cut off when the experience was over, I -- Lori Lemaris -- could choose to leave the link open."

Lori closed her eyes. "Which I did. Because no matter what Lex's wish was? No matter if I had to and have to addict him and keep him addicted?"

"You love Superman," Mary sent, quietly. "Because you always have. Because you're Lori Lemaris, not a mockery or parody or fake."

"And he is in danger. The world is in danger." Lori opened her eyes back up. "I died to save this world. I remember that moment. Surrounded by monsters, striving and fighting and doing everything I could, Mera helplessly shouting my name as I was overwhelmed. I did that without hesitation. But I sure as Hell didn't do it so Lex Luthor could conquer it! And so long as Lex needs to keep his wish addicting Superman active, then I'm alive again. And if part of me has to follow that wish? The rest of me can save the man I love and protect this planet from a monster!"

Mary nodded slowly. "We'll help. But... what can we do?"

"Zatanna already started the resistance. We can build on that. And we can prepare, and start building towards our moment."

"Just the three of us?" Zatanna asked, smiling a half-smile.

"I expect that's all we'd need... but the thing is? Lex's second wish gave me the enhanced power I needed to join you two. My telepathic abilities were already significantly boosted and enhanced for his first wish. So now that I can have this link, I can bring others into it, at least if they're close enough."

"Others?" Zatanna asked.

"Absolutely. For instance..."

The door opened. Zatanna and Mary turned to look.

A woman walked in. She had dirty blond hair. She wore a grey jumpsuit instead of her Chauffeur's minidress. She had a sidearm but didn't look inclined to use it. Her hips were a bit fuller and she had the swollen bust of a recent mother, but she was still recognizable.

"Hello there," Mercy Graves said. "I assume Lori's been bringing you up to date? I certainly hope so, because we're already in up to our necks, and it's just getting deeper from here."