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Chapter 285: Who Plays the Bad Cop?
Orin Vale couldn't quite put his finger on the feeling. He was certain he had never encountered this black creature or anything like it, yet its body was indeed radiating a faint energy fluctuation similar to fear—the Yellow Light from the Emotional Spectrum.
But if he had to be specific, the amount was minuscule, far from the level of a power ring. It was as if it had been tainted by a stray fragment of fear energy somewhere.
Moreover, this monster didn't seem to possess a clear consciousness.
"Hungry... so hungry..."
The monster staggered to its feet, a bizarre light glinting in its surprisingly wise-looking eyes.
It stared at Orin Vale for a moment, then dazedly shook its head.
"You... have no... fear. Not tasty..."
With that, it turned as if to leave, apparently intending to find food elsewhere.
Naturally, Orin Vale couldn't allow that.
He wasn't about to let it get away.
Orin Vale stomped his foot and shot forward like a bolt of lightning. A torrent of electricity tore through the monster's body. The black shell instantly disintegrated, as if it were being torn apart by a raging current. The lightning caused its mud-like body to crumble, turning into a cloud of ash.
But Orin Vale's sight was precise. The moment the creature's body exploded, he shot out his right hand and snatched a core from the center of the disintegrating form, releasing a translucent, pale blue bubble from his palm to envelop it.
It was a fragment of energy, somewhere between a gaseous and solid state, churning erratically within the spherical shield.
Carrying the shield, Orin Vale shot up into the sky. In just a moment, he had flown to one of his several strongholds: Brainiac's former mothership.
Old Bu's mothership was already a crystallization of cutting-edge technology, and after some modifications by Orin Vale, it had been transformed into an advanced stronghold better suited for him. It housed all sorts of top-tier technology beyond human imagination, the best equipment and environment.
With the help of the equipment here, a scan quickly provided Orin Vale with the results he expected.
"An energy fluctuation reaction similar to the Fear Spectrum," Pal reported. "Matching the data against similar energy wavebands, there are signs that a relatively concentrated energy reaction invaded the galaxy a week ago, but the reaction vanished in an instant."
"Extrapolating from the residual data record, it's possible that someone deployed a certain amount of fear energy into the galaxy in a concentrated burst, but the energy then dispersed, scattering to various locations across the galaxy."
Orin Vale stroked his chin, frowning slightly.
Fear energy... could it be Parallax again?
The last time, he had blown Parallax to bits, but it was common knowledge that Parallax was the embodiment of fear in the universe. You could defeat it, but you could never eradicate it. As long as organisms possessed the concept of "fear," Parallax was indestructible.
Therefore, the result of their last encounter was less an annihilation and more like kicking Parallax back into the Fear Spectrum to recharge.
Perhaps Parallax had gotten angrier the more it thought about it after returning, and this time it decided to come back fully prepared to stir up some major trouble?
It wasn't entirely impossible.
The Parallax in the Green Lantern movie had pulled a similar move. A small fear fragment of its came to Earth and infected Hal's old buddy, Hector Hammond. Hammond became one of Parallax's remote puppets, possessing power on par with a Green Lantern and capable of siphoning fear energy for Parallax from afar.
If that was the case, then this was something to be taken seriously. If it really was Parallax, this could be part of some grand, sinister plot. And considering their past grievances, Orin Vale felt it might even be aimed at him.
Although he was a natural counter to Parallax, its power level was undeniable. Allowing it to lay its plans would be a terrible idea. Whatever the mastermind behind this was doing, Orin Vale had to raise his guard and act before the conspiracy could take shape.
"How's the ship's radar?" Orin Vale asked.
"Debugging is complete," Pal said. "Brainiac's radar has been calibrated with Oa technology and can cover two-thirds of Sector 2814."
Orin Vale wasn't very familiar with Old Bu's technology, but he had learned a lot from the Oan tech tree during his time with Ganthet. The senses of a single Green Lantern ring could cover an entire universe sector, reporting any illegal activities within that sector to the corresponding Lantern at any time. Orin Vale had applied this technology to the hardware of Old Bu's warship, greatly extending his own reach.
"Excellent. Calibrate the radar to target all reactions similar to the Yellow Light Spectrum within Sector 2814," Orin Vale said. "Don't miss even the faintest suspected coordinates. Report the results to me when they're in."
"Understood. Deploying now."
An interstellar sector scan was a massive undertaking and wouldn't be finished in a short time. After setting it up, Orin Vale didn't linger and left the warship.
He planned to make a trip to the Watchtower later.
The Justice League's Watchtower had been built, a truly epoch-making facility. This would be Orin Vale's first official visit since its completion.
However, as he flew through the stratosphere at supersonic speed, he caught a glimpse of some commotion on the surface.
Central City. It seemed a riot had broken out in Iron Heights Prison.
That was where The Flash's most formidable opponents were imprisoned. Every supervillain The Flash had captured since his debut was locked up there.
Prison riots weren't usually on Orin Vale's radar, but since he was just passing by, he didn't mind taking a look. It was a small effort, after all.
But it seemed he wasn't needed.
By the time Orin Vale landed, the situation was already mostly under control. Not only was The Flash on the scene, but Green Lantern was also here to assist. The two seemed to have developed much better chemistry since joining The League, and the fight hadn't presented much difficulty.
However, the sight of the widespread damage would probably make a lot of people's blood pressure spike when it was written into the financial report.
"I told you, there's something fishy going on here."
The Flash zipped back and forth between the ruined debris, looking like a hyperactive child.
"The source of the riot wasn't internal, but external. Someone broke in and cracked the security system. Someone has to know the answer."
"Same old method. We'll just ask the person involved," Green Lantern said.
"Wait."
The Flash stopped his zipping around and came to a sudden halt in front of Hal.
"Let's get this straight first. I get to be the bad cop this time."
Green Lantern's eye mask seemed to twitch, and he looked amused. "Are you serious, Flash? You tell me, between the two of us, who looks more like the bad cop?"
"But you always get to be the bad cop. I want a turn this time."
Green Lantern chuckled. "But you don't look the part at all."
"Please, just this once... I can give you a supersonic massage."
"Nope."
"I can run to the East and get you some local food. Totally authentic!"
Hal pondered for two seconds.
"Make it extra spicy."
"Deal, no problem," Barry readily agreed. "Don't worry, I guarantee it'll still be hot when I get back."
(end of chapter)
Orin Vale couldn't quite put his finger on the feeling. He was certain he had never encountered this black creature or anything like it, yet its body was indeed radiating a faint energy fluctuation similar to fear—the Yellow Light from the Emotional Spectrum.
But if he had to be specific, the amount was minuscule, far from the level of a power ring. It was as if it had been tainted by a stray fragment of fear energy somewhere.
Moreover, this monster didn't seem to possess a clear consciousness.
"Hungry... so hungry..."
The monster staggered to its feet, a bizarre light glinting in its surprisingly wise-looking eyes.
It stared at Orin Vale for a moment, then dazedly shook its head.
"You... have no... fear. Not tasty..."
With that, it turned as if to leave, apparently intending to find food elsewhere.
Naturally, Orin Vale couldn't allow that.
He wasn't about to let it get away.
Orin Vale stomped his foot and shot forward like a bolt of lightning. A torrent of electricity tore through the monster's body. The black shell instantly disintegrated, as if it were being torn apart by a raging current. The lightning caused its mud-like body to crumble, turning into a cloud of ash.
But Orin Vale's sight was precise. The moment the creature's body exploded, he shot out his right hand and snatched a core from the center of the disintegrating form, releasing a translucent, pale blue bubble from his palm to envelop it.
It was a fragment of energy, somewhere between a gaseous and solid state, churning erratically within the spherical shield.
Carrying the shield, Orin Vale shot up into the sky. In just a moment, he had flown to one of his several strongholds: Brainiac's former mothership.
Old Bu's mothership was already a crystallization of cutting-edge technology, and after some modifications by Orin Vale, it had been transformed into an advanced stronghold better suited for him. It housed all sorts of top-tier technology beyond human imagination, the best equipment and environment.
With the help of the equipment here, a scan quickly provided Orin Vale with the results he expected.
"An energy fluctuation reaction similar to the Fear Spectrum," Pal reported. "Matching the data against similar energy wavebands, there are signs that a relatively concentrated energy reaction invaded the galaxy a week ago, but the reaction vanished in an instant."
"Extrapolating from the residual data record, it's possible that someone deployed a certain amount of fear energy into the galaxy in a concentrated burst, but the energy then dispersed, scattering to various locations across the galaxy."
Orin Vale stroked his chin, frowning slightly.
Fear energy... could it be Parallax again?
The last time, he had blown Parallax to bits, but it was common knowledge that Parallax was the embodiment of fear in the universe. You could defeat it, but you could never eradicate it. As long as organisms possessed the concept of "fear," Parallax was indestructible.
Therefore, the result of their last encounter was less an annihilation and more like kicking Parallax back into the Fear Spectrum to recharge.
Perhaps Parallax had gotten angrier the more it thought about it after returning, and this time it decided to come back fully prepared to stir up some major trouble?
It wasn't entirely impossible.
The Parallax in the Green Lantern movie had pulled a similar move. A small fear fragment of its came to Earth and infected Hal's old buddy, Hector Hammond. Hammond became one of Parallax's remote puppets, possessing power on par with a Green Lantern and capable of siphoning fear energy for Parallax from afar.
If that was the case, then this was something to be taken seriously. If it really was Parallax, this could be part of some grand, sinister plot. And considering their past grievances, Orin Vale felt it might even be aimed at him.
Although he was a natural counter to Parallax, its power level was undeniable. Allowing it to lay its plans would be a terrible idea. Whatever the mastermind behind this was doing, Orin Vale had to raise his guard and act before the conspiracy could take shape.
"How's the ship's radar?" Orin Vale asked.
"Debugging is complete," Pal said. "Brainiac's radar has been calibrated with Oa technology and can cover two-thirds of Sector 2814."
Orin Vale wasn't very familiar with Old Bu's technology, but he had learned a lot from the Oan tech tree during his time with Ganthet. The senses of a single Green Lantern ring could cover an entire universe sector, reporting any illegal activities within that sector to the corresponding Lantern at any time. Orin Vale had applied this technology to the hardware of Old Bu's warship, greatly extending his own reach.
"Excellent. Calibrate the radar to target all reactions similar to the Yellow Light Spectrum within Sector 2814," Orin Vale said. "Don't miss even the faintest suspected coordinates. Report the results to me when they're in."
"Understood. Deploying now."
An interstellar sector scan was a massive undertaking and wouldn't be finished in a short time. After setting it up, Orin Vale didn't linger and left the warship.
He planned to make a trip to the Watchtower later.
The Justice League's Watchtower had been built, a truly epoch-making facility. This would be Orin Vale's first official visit since its completion.
However, as he flew through the stratosphere at supersonic speed, he caught a glimpse of some commotion on the surface.
Central City. It seemed a riot had broken out in Iron Heights Prison.
That was where The Flash's most formidable opponents were imprisoned. Every supervillain The Flash had captured since his debut was locked up there.
Prison riots weren't usually on Orin Vale's radar, but since he was just passing by, he didn't mind taking a look. It was a small effort, after all.
But it seemed he wasn't needed.
By the time Orin Vale landed, the situation was already mostly under control. Not only was The Flash on the scene, but Green Lantern was also here to assist. The two seemed to have developed much better chemistry since joining The League, and the fight hadn't presented much difficulty.
However, the sight of the widespread damage would probably make a lot of people's blood pressure spike when it was written into the financial report.
"I told you, there's something fishy going on here."
The Flash zipped back and forth between the ruined debris, looking like a hyperactive child.
"The source of the riot wasn't internal, but external. Someone broke in and cracked the security system. Someone has to know the answer."
"Same old method. We'll just ask the person involved," Green Lantern said.
"Wait."
The Flash stopped his zipping around and came to a sudden halt in front of Hal.
"Let's get this straight first. I get to be the bad cop this time."
Green Lantern's eye mask seemed to twitch, and he looked amused. "Are you serious, Flash? You tell me, between the two of us, who looks more like the bad cop?"
"But you always get to be the bad cop. I want a turn this time."
Green Lantern chuckled. "But you don't look the part at all."
"Please, just this once... I can give you a supersonic massage."
"Nope."
"I can run to the East and get you some local food. Totally authentic!"
Hal pondered for two seconds.
"Make it extra spicy."
"Deal, no problem," Barry readily agreed. "Don't worry, I guarantee it'll still be hot when I get back."
(end of chapter)
