Legends of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #1

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Legends of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #1
Space Cowboys

Written and Edited by Daniel Dyer

Several months ago.

You failed me, Qwardian,” speaks a booming voice.

The Thunderer, head bowled, speaks softly, “S-S-orry, Lord. It was the Elite. They invaded Qwa....”

“Save your excuses,” the large, dark, powerful being commands. “It is of no more consequence. I have a new solution to our dilemma.”

And the large being raises up a holodisc, projecting a hologram of a rather dangerous, biker looking alien with grey skin, wild spiked black hair, jagged teeth, and blood red eyes.

“UUURPP!!” the hologram belched. “Hey, sweet cheeks. Haul your ass over here and give the Main Man some more brew!”

“Lord?”

“He is a colorful individual. However, he is one of the most dangerous, viscous bounty hunters in existence. He will bring me what you lost me without alerting the Guardians of the Universe to my involvement.”

Then a loud BOOM is heard as a gateway appears behind the stone-faced behemoth.

“Farewell, Lord Darkseid,” states the Thunderer as the Lord of Apokolips leaves through the newly formed gateway, a loud boom sounding as it closes behind Darkseid.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Now, in an intergalactic bar.

“It was like this, bar keep,” says a small blue-greenish alien with one eye. “That new bounty hunter was right on my tale.”

Over at a table, a being sits, long trench coat on and a hat pushed down to cover his face, with his back to the bar. Overhearing, he turns slightly.

“It was like he was a force of nature, I tell you. Determined to stick it to me.”

“But you got away, did you, Weeble?” asks the bartender.

Weeble, huh?

“Barely. Which is why I need your help. I need outta here. On the soonest transport. Discreet like.”

In trouble again. Too bad I...

“Weeble, Weeble, Weeble,” says a voice from the doorway to the bar.

“Gulp.”

A bright yellow light begins to illuminate from the individual, lighting his face. The face of Guy Gardner: Warrior. “Thought you got away, huh?”

Weeble tries to run but suddenly a yellow bird cage appears around the short alien.

“Gotcha, runt,” Warrior states as he flies out of the bar with the caged Weeble.

Gotcha, bastitch.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

The scene replays in the Guardians of the Universe’s citadel on Oa.

“Gardner of Sector 2814 is still in possession of a yellow ring of power,” states one Guardian.

Another replies, “It seems Gardner of Sector 2814 is no longer a threat.”

Yet another continues on, “He is a threat.”

“Which is why he must be left to be...”

“For now.”

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

“I didn’t do it, I didn’t....hmph.” Weeble’s rants are haulted when a yellow muzzle appears on his head.

“Like I care, Weeble. I’m getting.....AARRGH!!” Guy screams as his mind is suddenly assaulted by images of fire and a wasteland. And then a voice...

>>Help me!<<

“What the...?”

But before Guy has time to process the images, a fist slams into Guy’s face. The fist belongs to Lobo, a Czarnian dressed in leather, with chains all over and spikey hair.

As Guy flies backward, the ring generated cage vanishes and Weeble hauls tail.

“Where do ya think you’re goin’, squirt?” asks Lobo as he snags Weeble with one of his chains. “Since precious here ain’t gonna collect, no sense in wastin’ the bounty, now is there?”

“N... no, sir.”

“Good boy.” Lobo puts two fingers in his mouth and whistles. As if calling a dog, a jet-powered motorcycle with a skull shaped front drives up. “Hold this for me,” Lobo says as he puts Weeble in a sack on the side of the bike. “The Main Man has a bit of business to conclude,” Lobo says as he takes out a crowbar and turns back to where he left Warrior, only to find him gone. “Huh?”

“Great vocabulary, chuckles,” states Guy from behind.

The Czarnian turns and receives a yellow bat swung into his face.

“Ya know,” Guy starts as he forms a couple of yellow machine guns. “I should be thanking you.”

“Really?” Lobo asks as he takes a few yellow bullets to his chest. “Why’s that?”

Guy switching to a grenade launcher. “Ya inspired me.”

“I’m flattered.” Lobo sees a yellow grenade headed right for him. “Uh-huh.” The blast goes off in his face, launching Lobo back. “Ya fraggin’ bastich! Awright, Clyde. There’s gonna be a whole lotta pain comin’ yer way and the Main Man always delivers.”

Lobo starts swinging, and Guy barely manages to get a shield up in time.

“So, ya goin’ through all this trouble just to one up me on a bounty?”

“Naw.” Lobo punches Guy’s shield so hard, it cracks it. “I’m gettin’ paid for yer hide, ‘Yellow Lantern’. You gone an’ fragged off a very powerful bastich.”

Guy forms a machete. “And this mysterious employer is...?”

“Nuh-huh.” Lobo whips his chain around the yellow knife, pulling it from Guy’s hands. “No can do, Clyde.” The Main Man punches Guy sending him back. “Client/hunter confidentiality.”

“Wow. An upstanding bounty hunter,” states Guy as reforms a shield.

“Ya think? Better work on that image. Gotta rep to think about.” That’s when Lobo pulls out a remote, presses a button and BOOM!

“What the...?” Guy turns around to see a hufe gateway opened behind him.

Lobo takes advantage of the distraction and rushes Warrior, sending them both through the Boom Tube. “Wow, what a ride?”

“Get off me.” Guy forms a hand and picks up the Czarnian, pulling him from him. Guy then looks around, seeing the landscape from his visions. “Where are we?”

“A li’l place off the beaten path,” answers Lobo.

“Apokolips,” comes the booming voice of Darkseid from behind.

“Gotcha prey, Darky,” Lobo states as he puts his arm around Darkseid.

“Remove. Your. Hand.” Darkseid almost become inflamed.

Lobo, showing he’s not as dumb as he looks, does exactly what Darkseid told him.

“You did well, Czardian.”

The Para-Demons, mindless henchmen of the Dark Lord fly down and grab Guy.

“Get off me, ya ugly...” but Guy falls silent when he discovers he’s unable to use his ring.

“Haul him away, boys,” says Lobo before he sees Darkseid glaring at him. So, where’s the moolah, Darky?”

“Ah, yes, your payment. Kanto, give the Czarnian what he deserves.”

Approaching Lobo is a being straight out of medieval times, and looks very human. Kanto holds up a briefcase, and holds it up to the Main Man’s face, but when it opens it, its empty.

“What the frag is this?”

Then a gas shoots out in Lobo’s face.

“Bastitch! No... one... double-crosses...the...” collapsing to the ground, Lobo continues, “...the Main...” and he passes out.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

“Ugh,” Lobo awakens in a cell, rubbing his head.

“Morning, sunshine,” Guys says from the cell across from the alien biker. “Looks like your benefactors weren’t forthcoming on your payment, huh?”

Lobo gets to his feet and begins inspecting the bars. He touches one and gets shocked, blasted back. “ARGH! Frag it all to...”

“Feel like telling me why this Darkseid wants me?”

“Frag you,” retorts the Czarnian.

“Client/hunter privilege? Are you insane?”

“Didn’t ask. Don’t care. Your fragging ring still on the fritz?”

“They took it. Probably figured whatever they used to dampen it might not.....ARGH!!!” screams Guy as images fill his head once more. This time, images of a cage, located in one of the firepits. A green alien, apparently in constant torment.

>>Please... help... me...<<

“The Hell?”

“Ya don’t look good.”

Guy gets to his feet. “I’m fine.”

“Whoopie-da-da-fraggin’-do.” Lobo just sits and leans against a wall.

“I’m also gettin’ outta here.”

“Good luck with that.”

“You’re just goin’ to sit back and enjoy their ‘hospitality’?”

“This is Darkseid we’re talkin’ about. Even I’m not crazy even to take on that bastitch. Lucky he didn’t put us in the firepits.”

“Firepits?”

“On your feet, Czarnian,” says a huge and harry being. He’s called Kalibak and he’s accompanied by a dozen Para-Demons. “You and the Earther are being transferred.”

“Me and my fraggin’ mouth.”

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Not long, as Lobo and Guy are being escorted into the depths of Apokolips by a few Para-Demons. Kalibak is now elsewhere. To Guy’s surprise, they were unchained.

“Hey,” whispers Guy. “How come we aren’t chained.”

“You have no ring. I’m weakened. This is Apokolips.”

“So, the ‘Main Man’ is just gonna roll over a give up?”

“Never said that, ‘Warrior’. Just waitin’ fer the ‘opportune moment’, eh, mate?”

They have Pirates of the Caribbean in space? Who knew? “What exactly would be the opportune moment, in this case?”

“Right now,” and Lobo pushes a Para-Demon, knocking him into a second one, causing both the demons to fall over the ledge.

“Come on, Warrior.”

“Right behind ya, Lobo.”

>>Heeelp.<<

Guy stops in his tracks. “There’s someone else here.”

“It is a prison.”

“He’s callin’ for help. He showed me this place... asked for help right before you attacked.”

“What a coinkiedink. Now, if you’ll excuse me,” says Lobo as he turns to go.

“You’re just gonna leave him?”

“Looks that way, don’t it?”

“Fine then, guess I’ll be goin’ alone.”

“Yer funeral,” Lobo states, going into a room and crashes back out on his bike. “My hog! Overheard they picked it up! Smell ya later, bastitch!” And Lobo flies off.

“Coward!” shouts Guy and instantly sees Lobo stop, then speeds back in reverse.

“Hop on,” Lobo says plainly. “Oh, and here.” Lobo hands Guy his yellow ring. “It was with the bike, but apparently its out of juice.”

Guy takes the ring, gets on and the duo ride off, on their way towards the firepits.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

“Master,” says a short, creepy-looking being with a cloak on.

“Yes, Desaad?” asks the Dark Lord.

“They’ve escaped the Para-Demons, sir.” Desaad informed.

Darkseid smiles. “Good.”

“Uh... Lord?”

“What is it, worm?”

“They’re on their way to... to the firepits, sir.”

Darkseid’s eyes flame again. “J’onn!”

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

“So, which one has the green fragger in it?”

“I’ll know it when I... WATCH OUT!” yells Gardner as he sees Kalibak land in the path of the bike.

Kalibak grabs the bike and tosses it, knocking its riders off.

“Lobo, can ya take him?”

“Hey, the day ain’t arrived when the Main Man will back down from the bastitch son of Darkseid.”

“Good to know. You take him while I go find the mental case.”

“Gotcha, cupcake,” and Lobo kisses Guy on the cheek.

As Lobo gets up to go after Kalibak, swinging his chain as he approaches, Weeble crawls out of the bag on Lobo’s bike.

“Gulp... Apokolips?” And Weeble crawls back into the bag.

“The master shoulda just sent me to apprehend the ring.”

“What’s wrong? Daddy don’t have as much confidence in you as you do?” Lobo swings his chain at Kalibak.

Kalibak catches the chain, pulling the Main Man towards him, punching him.

“That kinda tingled. Here’s yours,” Lobo tells him as he pounds the offspring of Darkseid.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Now, which cell is the one from my vision..

>>This one. Help me,<< Gardner hears in his head.

Thanks, and he heads towards the cell. Now, how do I get you out?

>>One of them. The elite of Apokolips.<<

Oh, gee, and me with no magic ring.

“Halt, Earther,” states Kanto as he approaches.

Well, that’s half the problem. Now, how to defeat him? Guy avoids Kanto’s blade swing. Come on ring, work, dammit! That’s when Guy notices a bit of energy emmet from the ring. Its working? All right! And he forms a yellow sword with the ring. “Care to dual?”

Kanto only smiles.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

“I can do this all day,” Lobo says as he keeps pounding the now bloody and beaten Kalibak. “Guess we now know why Pops didn’t use yer talents.” Lobo gives him one last punch and then grabs the small box on Kalibak’s belt.

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

And with the duel.

“You are good, Earther.”

“I try my best, Apokolipter. Would that be the best wording?”

“Actually, we are a race of gods!”

“And you’re the god of what? Drag?” Guy asks as he forms a yellow bat behind Kanto, hitting the assassin with it. Guess I could learn somethin’ from the mama’s boy after all.

As Guy grabs some keys from the unconscious Kanto, he hears clapping, then sees Lobo walking toward him, being the source of that clapping.

“Ya coulda helped, ya know?”

“Coulda. Dinnit. Now let’s go.”

“Our ‘Martian’ friend first.” and Guy unlocks the cell, seeing a green skinned alien with a cone shaped head.

The alien stumbles from the cell, so weak he’s unable to speak and can only use his telepathy.

>>Thank you. My name is J’onn J’onzz. I am the last Martian.<<

“You really are a Martian?”

>>Yes. I have been imprisoned here ever since...<<

But before J’onn finishes, Darkseid teleports down.

“The big man’s here,” Lobo announces and presses a button on the little box he holds, and a loud BOOM echoes throughout the firepits.

“The Martian is my property.”

“Yeah, well he’s coming with us,” Guy declares while a yellow hand smacks Darkseid in the face.

“Not good, bro,” states Lobo and gets on his bike. “Time to go.”

“Darkseid does not suffer such indignities. You seek to be heroes by rescuing this being, do you?”

Guy stands in front of J’onn and says, “I seek to save an innocent’s life, no matter his significance.”

“Warrior, not smart.”

“Fine,” Darkseid booms and twin beams shoot from Darkseid’s eyes, in a direct line towards Guy, yet, instead of hitting him, they go around him and zap J’onn, vaporizing the last Martian. “You may go, ‘Warrior’. You get to live with your failure.”

Guy flies straight at Darkseid. “Why, you big...”

Darkseid turns and glares at Guy. “Do not anger me, worm.”

“Yeah, you wouldn’t like him when he’s angry,” interjects Lobo.

Guy stares Darkseid in the face.

“You get to leave with your life. If you persist in agitating me further... you won’t. Go!”

Warrior still stares at Darkseid, then turns and flies towards the Boom Tube. As Guy passes Lobo, he grabs the sack. “This is mine,”

Lobo follows Guy through the gateway. “You earned it. Buy me a brew and you can have him.”

And the Boom Tube closes.

Darkseid smiles and teleports to his throne room. “Is it done, Desaad?”

“Yes, Master,” states Darkseid’s toady as he gives his master another yellow ring of power.

“Perfect. When the time is right, this will put the Guardians’ lackeys out of commission.”

---

[Spider-Man Beyond]

And deep in the bowls of Apokolips, there is screaming a waling. Beings of all races, tortured and tormented. But one particular being does not give up hope. He found a savior once. He believes he can again. It could take him years. But he will not give up hope. He will not let the last of his race end on Apokolips.

>>Help me...<<

The end... for now.