Ringbearers

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Ringbearers are the individuals found throughout parts of the Daria Multiverse who possess the alchemically based artifacts/weapons known as Defender Rings.


Contents

Background

Created by Brother Grimace (the actual term first used to describe such individuals was Richard Lobinske) and first seen in the Doggieboy fic 'A Little Vacation', the concept of the Ringbearers was inspired by the Green Lantern Corps and by by the Spaceknights of Galador; in many ways, however, the Ringbearers' lineage and mandate are similar to that of the Spaceknights. (For example, one thousand Ringbearers were created to fight the zombie outbreak on D-476, just as one thousand Spaceknights were created to fight the Dire Wraith menace.

While normally operating as a deterrent against hostile beings and destructive events of unnatural origin and acting as a reconnaissance force on other worlds in order to act to prevent such beings or events from affecting those worlds (the primary roles of the organization), the Corps of Ringbearers (the organization's stated title) have found themselves operating more often as a force for preserving order and saving lives (in a covert fashion).

Because Ringbearers possess an overwhelming amount of power, are possessed of a innate sense of morality, and the fact that one of the primary endowments placed upon the Rings keeps them from performing acts that would be considered "evil" by their own sense of morality, Ringbearers are usually not welcomed by political leaders and coalitions on most worlds. Ringbearers cannot be easily controlled or compelled to act in accordance with the political wishes of the moment. In this regard, Ringbearers are in all but the most desperate cases barred from operating on many worlds. When this happens, Ringbearers (usually citizens of the world in question) are recruited, trained and kept secretly in reserve on those worlds, silent watchmen waiting to act if the need arises.

With the events known as the Daylight Crisis occurring in many universes, the Ringbearers narrowly averted a civil war within their ranks concerning how to deal with the crisis. Due to the strict adherence to their mandate, the Ringbearers refrained from any attempts to stop the events from happening. Afterward, Ringbearers (slightly expanding their mandate to assist worlds ravaged by supernatural events) landed on some Earths, setting up secure areas and engaging in massive relief efforts to humanity on those worlds; this included endowing great numbers of humans (and other species) with metabilities, and turning a number of beings into Ringbearers themselves. On most Earths, however, Ringbearers are being sent in under 'Whisperer' status; using their Rings and powers in a covert manner, they are acting to ensure the continued survival of 'pockets' of mankind until the end of the solar instabilities that caused the crisis, and mankind is capable of providing for itself once again.


(There were two notable exceptions to these activities by the Corps of Ringbearers. On one alternate Earth, an alternate version of Beavis who possessed a Ring acted to prevent coronal mass ejections from reaching Earth. Though he perished in the attempt, he managed to shield that Earth for almost twenty-four hours, allowing millions to be saved. The second exception was Danielle Todds; she was instrumental in preventing an extinction-level event upon the Earth categorized as 'D-247' (also the reality of the Legion of Lawndale Heroes' in what is known as the Sapphire Dawn incident.)


Ringbearers are not the only entities monitoring activity among the multiverse. A Corps of Ringbearers developed in one other universe, though that organization was destroyed by the Ringwraiths and they are now referred to as the "Lost Ringbearers". Some portions of the Multiverse are under the aegis of The Agency, first mentioned in the story, "Three." In general, there is normally little overlap between areas of influence between Ringbearers and The Agency. Though all the details are not generally known, the Nova Valdris Accords, adopted after the Vengeance Ring Crisis, formalized the relationship between the organizations. It has come to light that the primary differences between Ringbearers and The Agency are:


(a.) Ringbearers, while capable of trans-temporal/trans-dimensional travel, generally eschew it for the purpose of 'policing time' and only make changes to the time-stream to correct cataclysmic events on the planetary level when caused by unnatural forces and/or events, and through the application of technology that has caused events that were not predestined to occur (for example, the Class Four undead event that happened upon the world shown in 'A Little Vacation' would have been corrected by the Ringbearers even without the actions of Ezra Stone - but his actions, leading to the introduction of Daria Morgendorffer into the event, assured that Ringbearer intervention would be forthcoming.
(b.) While Ringbearers are capable of monitoring multiversal activities, they do so primarily for the purpose of detecting and monitoring extra-dimensional HST incursions/ activity on unsuspecting worlds in order to dispatch forces.
(c.) Operatives of The Agency will not act in any manner that may interfere with the natural course of events (for example, Richard allowed himself to be injured in combat rather than possibly kill while at Camp Grizzly (during events chronicled in 'A Visit to Camp Grizzly'). However, Ringbearers will act in similar circumstances through covert use of their Ring-endowments - or will use their rings to alter memories if they are forced to act in an open manner.


It is suspected that different organizations or individuals could be operating in other multiverses and may be represented by characters like The Man, The Man in the Red Shirt, Angel, or Paul.


Ringbearer ranks

The official rank-structure within the Ringbearers (one of many changes that occurred due to the events of the Vengeance Ring Crisis) is as follows:

  • Ringbearers Postulant: Novice Ringbearers with one year or less in service.
  • Ringbearers of the Line: The vast majority of Ringbearers.
  • Brevet Ringbearers: Ringbearers who possess the elemental affinities of Quintessence and Earth (the rarest affinities) and have demonstrated an extraordinary level of skill/competence as Postulants or as Ringbearers of the Line. These Ringbearers are given limited leadership duties, and/or special assignments due to the nature of their powers.
  • Senior Ringbearers: Ringbearers who have possessed their abilities for over ten years (twenty for Ringbearers who have served their career time primarily as Whisperers, and/or have served less than 12-18 months in active Line service).
  • Master Ringbearers: Seasoned Ringbearers who are, by virtue of skill, personality and capability, selected to lead missions or are given command of Ringbearer bases or stations. Master Ringbearers will usually be the first to approach a world in a diplomatic 'First Contact' mission.
  • Elder Ringbearers: Ringbearers who have held a Ring for over one hundred years.
  • Elite Ringbearers: Ringbearers who have demonstrated extraordinary skills and talent in their duties vastly beyond that normally demonstrated during the course of Ringbearer duties. Being anointed the designation of 'Elite Ringbearer' is the equal of being awarded the Victoria Cross, or the Congressional Medal of Honor, but is also considered more honor than rank, almost in the form of a knighthood. Ringbearers awarded with this designation are technically listed by their current designation, but are addressed as 'Sir' or 'Dame'/'Lady' in formal settings, as according to gender.
  • Supreme Ringbearers: Ringbearers with extraordinary records who are specifically chosen to command major Ringbearer bases or large interstellar/trans-dimensional campaigns; will have no less than 25-50 years in service.
  • First Ringbearers: Surviving members of the cadre of one thousand Ringbearers who actually came from D-476, fought as members of the first generation of Ringbearers, and then went off-world to actively propagate the Corps by bequeathing Rings to worthy beings on other planets.

Specialized Ringbearer Units

While all Ringbearers are, by mandate and training, hunters of supernatural threats first and foremost, there are many who have specialized duties beyond this. Some of those groups include, at present:

  • Whisperers - perhaps the largest special group, these are Ringbearers who are assigned to worlds where Ringbearers are banned by political fiat, or are placed on worlds where metahumans are unknown or believed to be myths/fantasy. Robert Nelson is an example of a Ringbearer with Whisperer duties.
  • Pathfinders - Ringbearers who are assigned to search throughout the Multiverse for habitable, Earth-like worlds for habitation and the possible relocation of displaced populations from worlds where circumstances preclude their return. These individuals are also known as Earth Hunters.
  • Messengers - Ringbearers who are specifically chosen for 'first contact' missions to worlds undiscovered beforehand, or to lead teams of Ringbearers into first strike missions on worlds dealing with HST incursions.
  • Warhammers - Ringbearers whose training and primary purview is geared towards military operations. Warhammers are almost exclusively posted to duty aboard a Sky Vault; like the Emissaries, their appearance in the field is a sign of great danger threatening the area.
  • The Emissaries of the Ringmasters - very few in number, these are usually Senior, Brevet, or First Ringbearers whose primary duty is to be dispatched from D-476 to deliver personal messages or commands from the Ringmasters themselves. These individuals are RARELY seen, and their appearance is to be considered an omen of great importance or disaster.


While there are Ringbearer bases of operations on some worlds through the Daria Multiverse, such as the Ringbearer Headquarters located on Nova Valdris, there are also the Mobile Advance Bases like the Tintagel used during the campaign against Apocalypse on D-517. On a larger scale, the Corps of Ringbearers also operates six very large space-borne facilities known as 'Sky Vaults'.

It was revealed in the Tales of the Ringbearers fic 'Balance' that, in order to better prevent themselves from acting in a overt nature of interference with the events of other worlds (a tactic that has brought them into disagreement with The Agency, the Corps has created an non-profit humanitarian organization which they have named the 'Silver Circle Foundation'. Embedded on a great number of worlds, the Silver Circle allows the Corps of Ringbearers to establish legitimate facilities on those worlds where they can more easily act in their roles of surveillance against possible alien or supernatural threats, as well as provide ongoing non-crisis humanitarian relief to the populations of those worlds. It is known that as of present, over fifteen percent of the Corps of Ringbearers (including most Whisperers) are active within the Silver Circle. On many worlds, the Silver Circle acted to save lives and re-establish viable living areas for humans and other creatures alike in the wake of the Daylight Crisis; Archangel mentions that he spent a great deal of time on his homeworld assisting in this manner. (It was also noted that his home-world - D-77 in the Daria Multiverse - was also hit by a zombie invasion nine years earlier and was still in the process of recovery when this disaster his as well.)

The Ringbearer Creed

First appearing in the 'Tales of the Ringbearers' fic 'Recital', the Ringbearer creed is as follows: 


We are the Ringbearers  
We are the light that drives back the darkness
We are the wall that no evil can breach
We are the staff and the sword that shall defend life
We are the fire that will light the way to tomorrow
Our Rings are Forever. We are Forever.

Known Ringbearers

The Flying Moor, a fictional literary superhero in the Legion of Lawndale Heroes universe, is the owner of a Defender Ring; Priscilla Henry also owns a Ring, as does the DELPHI agent known as Archangel.

Five alternate versions of Robert Nelson are also known to possess Rings, as does Julie Renner, and in Legion of Lawndale Heroes, Mack Mackenzie and Tom Sloane encountered a alternate-reality version of Alyssa Milano who was also a Ringbearer (and offered Mack the chance for a Ring). It has also been confirmed that a Ringbearer has been in Lawndale since the Legion's inception, ordered to only observe their activities and not interfere or even make contact unless in the gravest of situations.

An evil version of Daria Von Doom reportedly captured and used a ring. There is no word on whether the ring was recovered.

Two alternate versions of Beavis are known to possesses a Ring, but the amount of chaos from that has yet to be seen ("Fire! Fire! Fire!"). One died while trying to protect an Earth from a Coronal Mass Ejection. The other is still alive, and is reportedly kept under the supervision of DELPHI.

Danielle Todds is a well-known Ringbearer who has taken part in many major campaigns and operations.

Jane Lane also possesses a Ring; this is the same Jane Lane who befriended a young version of Robert Nelson during the events of A Little Vacation and The Cynic and The Defender, but a different Ringbearer than Robert gave her the Ring. The events of Neighborhood Improvement take place when Jane is 21-22 years of age, so these events take place several years in her future.

An alternate version of William Dorn possesses a Ring. In the story, he is revealed to be at least 200 years old

Other Ringbearers:

From Last Man:

From Jurisdiction:

From Majesty and The Servant:

From Hungry is the Night:

From A New Assignment:

From Null Again:

From Corrupted Adaptation:

From Rules of Engagement:

From First Day on the Job:

  • Mike Cooper, originally from "Daria-159", but assigned to...

From A Rookie Mistake:

From Tabula Rasa:

From Let Vengeance Ring

From Birthright:

From Redemption:

From Journey's Debt:

From End of the Line:

From Strange Paths to Regret:

From Augustus:

From Sometimes, You Have to Run:

  • Jim (unseen in story, only mentioned by main character.)

From New Dead:

From Babysitting Duty:

From an unnamed fic located in Scenes That No Daria Fanfic Should Have:

From Temporary Duty

From With New Responsibility

Known People Given Ringbearer Powers

Some people are never given a Ring themselves, but instead are gifted powers by a Ringbearer so that they can help out when needed. Three of the Ring's abilities (the Ringbearer's choice) are given to the person, in addition to the abilities to fly and use telekinetic powers. Jane Lane from D-320 was given some powers prior to being given a Ring herself. Others include:

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