Legends of the Green Lantern Corps #4

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Legends of the Green Lantern Corps #4
The Aftermath

Written by Scott D. L. Kruger
Edited by Daniel Dyer

Hal flew over the seemingly endless forest, not in a plane, but using his amazing ring. He no longer felt alone. With him, on his left flew Jenni... the love of his high school life and step-daughter of his mentor. On his right, Guy Gardner... why Guy of all people?

He flew closer to Jenni and reached out to grasp her hand. She smiled warmly & took his hand in hers. Man, did that uniform look amazing on her. A sudden scream of anger, a bolt of yellow lightning and Jenni dissolved into ash. As the remnants of her hand sifted through his finger, he turned to face her murderer. Guy Gardner stands before him, also in the requisite Green Lantern uniform, however his was a sickly yellow. He was frothing at the mouth with anger.

“How dare you choose her over me... the ring shoulda' been mine!”

Guy raised his yellow ring towards Hal. Hal was ready, he knew how to beat the yellow & he fears nothing. Take your best shot, I'm ready.

Guy fires...

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Hal awoke with a start, & still feeling groggy from the fight. It was still nighttime... he had only been out for about 30 minutes or so. He struggles to stand up... the wounds he suffered at Sinestro's hands were almost completely healed already. A definite bonus (among many) to wielding this particular piece of jewelry. Once up, he looks around at the devastation. Rock, upturned Earth & the wreckage of his exploded jeep cover the dry lakebed. He looks down at the ring on his right hand and takes a deep breath. The ring is pulsating with energy.

Well, I still have the ring & I'm breathing, so I guess he stayed down... What is it with you & the freaky dreams?

He wobbles over to the wreckage of his jeep, the air around it thick with smoke. He uses the ring to generate a gas mask to protect him from the fumes. He walks around the jeep to what had once been the front end, not quite sure what to expect. Sinestro's ring did work differently than his own, but it is possible that he was able to survive having a jeep dropped on him... Hal stepped up to Sinestro's lifeless body, noticing the pistol on the ground next to what's left of the aliens head. Sinestro's blood & shell casings covered the ground.

Guy... I forgot about Guy.

"Ring, can you scan the area for any signs of Guy Gardner?"

A beam of green light shot out from the center jewel and swept the immediate area. The beam stops at an area near Sinestro's body & shoots upward into the night sky.

{Guy is no longer on Earth,} came Abin Sur's familiar voice as the beam fades back into the ring.

Hal walks over to where the beam stopped & notices footprints that stop. Guy had walked here and vanished.

Oh no...

Hal runs back over to Sinestro's remains and for the first time realizes, his uniform is no longer the sickly yellow color. It is the same emerald green as his own. The yellow & black veins were gone as well... as well as the ring. The yellow ring. The dream. Hal glanced down at the ring & then back up into the night sky.

Premonitions as well?

{No, just fact,} the voice of Abin Sur came again as his spectral image appeared before Hal again.

"I could have used your assistance back there."

{I am the ring... what other assistance did you require?}

"A little advice, maybe?"

{Alright... that is quite unnecessary,} as the image pointed at his power-ring gas mask. {The ring automatically protects you from harm.}

Flustered, Hal dissolves the construct, "Fine. Now what? I can't leave him here," pointing downward at what was left of Sinestro's head.

{I have consulted with the Guardians, they were impressed by your accomplishment. You are the first to defeat the power of LEGION. They do not believe, however, that you are capable of tracking the rogue's missing ring. You are to remain here until you are contacted... most likely by a Corps training officer.}

"Understood, but... what do I do about this?" motioning to the wreckage & Sinestro's body.

{Command the ring to send Sinestro's body back to OA, after that you can vaporize the wreckage.}

"Right." Hal began to aim the ring, but paused in mid-motion. He turned back to Abin's image, a confused look on his face, "What's 'Oh-Ah'?"

{It is the planet at the very center of the known Universe, the home of the Guardians, and the headquarters of the Green Lantern Corps. For safety reasons, only those bearing a ring of power can find it. Just aim the ring, and will his body to OA. By the way, your friend that finished Sinestro off, seems a bit... unhinged.}

"Yeah, you don't know the half of it," Hal stated to no one, as the spectral image had already faded.

Hal aimed his ring at Sinestro's lifeless body.

Oa.

The wreckage lifted off the body. A stream of emerald energy emanated from the ring to envelope the body, then streaked off into space. Hal quickly disintegrated the remains of his vehicle, wishing he had found something different to smash over Sinestro's head. Regardless of all that happened this evening, the aches, the pains, the cuts, bruises, scrapes & scratches, he still felt like a kid on Christmas morning.

Will I ever get used to this?

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Fisherman's wharf, San Francisco. "Captain Carl's Tattoos & Piercing Studio," a dive that has, somehow through the years, remained open. The little hole in the wall reeks of fish & cigarettes, definitely not the most pleasant of tattoo parlor's, but for Abel Tarrant, this was home away from home. He has always felt that regardless of how poorly the parlor smelled, this was where the talent was. "Captain Carl," though an obese ex-sailor (whom generated, single handedly, most of the smell) is a true artist. Abel sits in the Captain’s chair as the finishing touches are added to the Captain's latest masterpiece, put the finishing touches on his latest creation. Abel was sure that it would also be Captain Carl's last creation.

Abel had been a very disturbed child. As a young boy he regularly tortured small animals & anyone else smaller than him. Smaller, meaning shorter. Abel was very tall and lanky even in his pre-teen years. His parents thought him quirky, and only disapproved of their "angel's" long, jet black hair. At the age of 17 a friend introduced Abel to the Wiccan religion, hoping that a life of meditation & peace would be good for Abel. His friend thought wrong. The idea of doing spells & enchantments thrilled Abel, but, by the age of 19, Abel decided that the Wiccan religion was a bit passe. Two years of herbs & communing with nature were not his cup of tea. He needed a bit more excitement in his life, and besides, he always preferred the darker side of life. He renounced his Wiccan ways and proclaimed himself "Warlock". He once again took to the way of violence. At least now he had a reason to kill small animals.

To date, Abel has covered almost 60% of his body in tattoos of various sizes & shapes. Abel has designed the majority of his tattoos basing them off of creatures & images he'd seen in the "Book of Shadows". One night after a particularly nasty evening of binge drinking & ritual animal sacrifice, he decided to imbed his talisman (a stone many Wiccan's use as a focus for their power & life energies) just beneath the skin of his neck. This particular stone (the Talisman of Venus) coupled with the ritualistic tattoos had a startling effect. He discovered (quite painfully) that he could bring these tattoos to life & that they would do his bidding. His newest Tattoo, that of a large serpent, would come in quite handy with what he is planning... After all, what's an Apocalypse without a giant serpent?

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

The all too familiar scent of jet fuel & burnt brake pads filled the air in Hanger 18. Hal just stood next to the upgraded F-15 Eagle he had just flown over the desert. Upgraded, it may have been, but still a relative antique. Why did he feel the same? He was only 30... the prime of his life. Perhaps it was the idea of being retired from the military in 2 short weeks. He always associated the term 'retired' with someone 65 or older... Hell, not even half way there yet. Besides, he was moving onward & upward. A new career flying for Ferris & the Green Lantern Corps. Nope, not a bad life indeed.

The investigation into the disappearance of Lt. Guy Gardner had produced no results, which was no surprise since Hal alone knew the truth. As big an ass as Guy was, he was the least likely person to go AWOL. In fact, Hal was sure that Guy would be in the service for life. But it wasn't like he could march into General Scott’s or Captain Stewart's offices & say "Guy's not AWOL, he killed an alien with a (possessed) magic ring in the desert while I was fooling around with my (non-possessed) ring. Then he used the magic ring to fly off into space somewhere... that way, actually." No, that would not go very well at all. He began to make his way back into the locker room to change out of his flight suit.

Tonight he was having dinner with Captain Stewart & his step-daughter, Jenni. He had to cancel the last dinner they had scheduled due to a sudden inexplicable UFO crash. Jenni... hadn't really seen her since college... That should be interesting. Captain Stewart had become a surrogate father to Hal. When Hal was 12 he was asked to be the ring bearer (coincidence?) at John's wedding. That was the first time he saw Jenni Hayden. She was the 10 year old flower girl. Although girls were still quite "icky", he did think she was very pretty (for a child, after all, he was 2 years her senior). He dazzled her throughout the reception with tales of how he would be "the greatest pilot ever in the history of pilots". The two became friends until high school.

When their relationship became a bit more... complicated.

Deep in thought, as he changed out of his flight suit, Hal did not notice the enormous man approaching him from behind. The (abnormally) large man dressed in fatigues was Samoan by the look of him... 100% pure muscle. His name tag sported the name & title: Capt. K.I. Lowog.

"You Lt. Jordan?" The large man asked abruptly, causing Jordan to snap to attention.

"Yes sir!"

The large captain smiled at Jordan. "At Ease, Lt... Good, military types always know how to show the proper respect. Even if you are a Terran."

"I'm sorry sir...?" came Hal's befuddled reply.

The large man's toothy grin widened as he placed a silencing finger over his thin lips. His finger was almost twice the size of a roll of quarters. He looked around to make sure no one was lurking nearby (since humans were always so nosy). Satisfied that they were alone, he turned back to Hal and whispered. "My name is Kilowog & I've been sent by to begin your training."

"What training? I'm set to discharge in 2 weeks, my schedule is already set..." Hal argued.

"Not that you poozer, the Guardians sent me. You are pretty sprockin' dense, ain't ya? You're my new meat." With every word, Kilowog's grin seemed to grow larger.

"I only understood about half of what you said..." Hal said while peering over his shoulder making sure they were still alone. "I didn't know the Corps had other human members," he whispered.

"Ha! I'm not human," Kilowog shouted, while jabbing a thick finger into Hal's chest, "and don't forget it. Your kind never qualified... too emotional. I'm from Bolovax Vik in sector 674. I'm in disguise... trust me, anyone sees me the way I really look on this mud ball, well... you'll see what I mean. So, you off for the night?"

"Yes... I mean, no. I'm off in about an hour, but I have dinner schedul..." Hal began, but looking into the narrow eyes of the large man standing before him made him reconsider his last statement, "... but you know what? I can reschedule, no problem. I just have to log my report, and then I'm all yours."

"Great," Kilowog beamed, "I'll take the time to check out some of these aircraft of yours... I love machinery, and I get to see some interesting specimens on all these planets I'm sent to. I wanna see how your machines hold up to some of the others..."

"OK, great... just don't touch anything. Our planes can be kind of fragile to someone... your size." Hal cautioned.

"Heh, what do you know... you are fearless."

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

An hour later the pair headed out again into the desert, this time in a borrowed military jeep. The jeep bowing nearly to the ground with Kilowog's weight in the passenger seat. Kilowog wanted to see the lakebed where Hal fought Sinestro. As usual, the later the day becomes, the harder the desert wind blows, blowing sand across route 18.

"Is there some reason we didn't just fly here Jordan?" Kilowog asked as he rubbed sand out of his eyes with his giant digits. "And is there some fraggin' reason why you live on such a inhospitable planet & not have vehicles with tops?"

"Sorry... I can't just disappear from the base. And most people consider a convertible style enjoyable," Hal replied.

"Pfft... You must have thicker skin than other species as well..."Kilowog said as he spat sand. "I never studied your planet, that was always Abin's deal, bein' his sector & all."

"What was he like?"

"Abin? He was a sprockin' pain. Always questioning orders, always arguin', never satisfied... best student I ever had... always got the job done. Had a family too... not something we recommend, but not something we can stop either."

Hal makes the turn onto the frontage road leading to the lakebed. Luckily, again the coast is clear. Hal drives the jeep onto the lakebed and towards the blackened spot where the burning wreckage of his jeep & Sinestro's body once was. Hal hops out of the jeep with ease... Kilowog, on the other hand, has to pry his oversized body out, a limb at a time. Kilowog begins to stretch after he gains his footing.

"Suit up newbie, I ain't here for my health." Kilowog's massive Green Lantern ring materializes on his right hand and the air around him is energized. Quickly the Samoan disguise he had chosen fades to reveal Kilowog's true visage, leaving Hal speechless with his mouth agape. Kilowog's massive muscular frame was impressive. Standing at 7'3" and with a face like a bald warthog, Kilowog could give even the bravest child nightmares for the rest of his or her life.

"Wow... Right. Hang on, I need to recharge my ring." Hal wills his power battery into existence and recites the sacred oath: "In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evils might, beware my power. Green Lantern's Light!" The air around Hal, charged like it was around Kilowog, as Hal's uniform appears.

"Never get tired of hearing that..." Kilowog said smiling (at least Hal thought it was a smile). "You may want a mask to protect your identity."

Hal quickly complied, wondering why he hadn't thought of that.

"So, meat, this is where you took out Sinestro, eh? I always figured one of us would have to take him down, guy always was a bit... intense."

"So I've heard. I didn't kill him though, that was Guy... another pilot like me. He was always a bit... intense too. "

"We were able to learn quite a bit from Sin's Corpse. There were still traces of the Legion Virus in him. It looks like the virus originated in the anti-matter universe of Qward. Looks like another scheme to try and invade our Universe... the Qwardians have never been quite this successful before. First rule of inter-dimensional warfare, make your enemies destroy themselves, then come on in & collect your prize. You know you're the first to beat an infected Corpsman... How'd you do it?"

"I'm still trying to get my mind around half of what you just said..." Hal replied. "What's a Qwardian?"

Kilowog, just shook his head and rolled his small beady eyes (once again, that's what Hal thinks he did). "Alright, we'll get into that later... let's get some training under your belt, then we'll find out how a rookie beat, arguably, one of our best. Have you tried flying yet.?"

"A bit... I've gone straight up, straight down & I did some defensive flying against him, nothing too complicated, but I..."

"Don't just stand there yacking about it junior, show me." Kilowog interrupted.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Throughout the night and into the early hours of the morning, Kilowog trains Hal. Speed control, stopping, stealth flight, air combat, forming constructs, generating simple beam blasts, image manipulation amongst other skills. Hal's mind soaks up the information like a sponge.

"Your ring can protect you from G-Forces... you'll be able to make maneuvers that would kill someone in one of your little toy planes," were the type of pointers that came from the big brute as Hal practiced flight.

After several hours had passed, Kilowog just stands silently as Hal continues. No longer offering up advise... Jordan is obviously a natural... although pilots usually are naturals when it comes to flight.

Kilowog yawns and looks up into the sky as the dawn begins to break. The sky begins to turn it's normal morning hue. He stares into the northern sky and notices that clouds have started rolling in. Slowly at first the dark storm clouds came over the horizon, then faster and faster.

Hal stops what he's doing and gently glides down, landing beside Kilowog. He stares straight up as the clouds engulf the morning and continue in their southern march. The rain came next. At first just a mild drizzle, turning quickly into a full downpour.

"You People have some sprockin' weird weather," Kilowog commented holding out his enormous hand. The red rain drops staining his white glove.

"This isn't natural..." Hal said as he touched a red stained finger to his tongue & quickly spit. "It's raining blood."

"You're blood’s red? Huh... Well, in my experience anytime it starts raining blood, it's a bad thing."

"Jeez, ya think? We need to find out what's going on. It came from the North." Hal retorted while generating a field to surround the both of them.

"Will the ring to show us the source of the problem ... and don't be such a poozer."

Pointing his ring towards the sky, Hal shoots off a blast of green energy and almost instantaneously an image appears in front of him. A lone figure in a dark cloak stands on the prison wall on Alcatraz island. The figure is summoning black energies from deep within San Francisco bay upwards into the atmosphere. The figure is surrounded by several large beasts, each of various shape & size, destroying the old prison walls and terrorizing tourists.

"Well, time to prove yourself hotshot, let's see if all that training keeps you from getting killed.."

"Ah crap..." Hal says to himself as he takes to the sky.

Continued...