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Chapter 335: You Call This a Green Lantern?
Thaal Sinestro raised his incessantly flickering yellow ring—it was a communication request from one of his subordinates.
"It is I," Sinestro said calmly.
"This is Yellow Lantern Sludge, oh great Sinestro! Hal Jordan has been teleported out of Oa by the ring as planned. My squad has surrounded him and we are about to take him down."
Sinestro's expression changed, and he roared, "You fool! The plan was to lure him to the designated location, I never ordered you to engage him directly! You worthless trash are no match for Jordan! Retreat to the designated coordinates immediately!"
"Ah?" The Yellow Lantern on the other end was taken aback by the scolding and stammered, "But... but he's just a single Green Lantern, and our rings can counter a Green Lantern's energy. Our squad has more than twenty members, and he's all alone."
"I said, retreat! What part of that do you not understand!?" Sinestro roared. "You cannot possibly defeat him!"
"F-fine."
The Yellow Lantern cut the communication.
Despite his compliance, he still felt Sinestro was exaggerating. Green Lanterns were supposed to have little resistance against Yellow Lanterns. A twenty-on-one retreat was simply preposterous.
Though he greatly respected Sinestro, he couldn't help but suspect that his boss might be overhyping Hal just a little...
But that thought was instantly annihilated by the shocking scene that followed.
Because he understood that Sinestro... truly had not been exaggerating.
In just a few moments, twenty Yellow Lanterns were utterly routed, scattered across the ground. Hal hovered in mid-air, and as far as the eye could see, the entire battlefield was filled with his Green Lantern constructs: two missile launchers, a materialized fighter jet, and a large surrounding circle of war vehicles, tanks, Green Lantern mecha, and more.
"A little late to think about running now, isn't it?" Hal glanced at the Yellow Lanterns strewn across the ground. "Anyone else?"
The defeated Yellow Lanterns on the ground all wore looks of utter disbelief.
Is this a fucking Green Lantern?
What's with that ring's absurd output? Did you fucking carve the Central Power Battery into a ring and wear it on your hand???
Sector 2814, Earth, Gotham City.
Arkham Asylum.
A golden radiance appeared on the horizon, a beam of golden light tearing through the night sky as it swooped down. It was so fast that Arkham's sentries barely had time to react before the electrified, heavily armored outer wall was easily pierced by the golden light.
A yellow ring shot into the asylum at immense speed, unstoppably breaking through layer after layer of barriers until it reached the deepest part of Arkham.
The nameplate on the cell door read "Jonathan Crane," his codename: Scarecrow. He was a former university psychology professor who also held a doctorate in chemistry.
A double doctorate holder and a university professor—it sounds impressive, but compared to the rest of Batman's fan club, his credentials were just so-so. Passable, at best.
These days in Gotham, you'd be embarrassed to rob a bank if you didn't have at least one or two doctorates.
Scarecrow had dedicated his life to researching the deepest fears in the human psyche. Using his exceptional talent for chemistry, he developed his "Fear Gas," taking pleasure in spreading fear.
So, it was obvious that this little hobby of his naturally had an astonishing affinity with one of the embodiments of the cosmic Emotional Spectrum.
"Jonathan Crane of Earth, you have the ability to instill great fear..."
"Welcome to the Sinestro Corps!"
The ring slipped onto his finger without preamble. A brilliant golden light immediately enveloped Scarecrow's entire body. The emblem of the yellow ring was reflected in Jonathan Crane's pupils. An intense emotion, as if carried on an electric current, surged at light speed directly into his central nervous system.
The sensation was like being electrocuted. Unparalleled fear spread through his body along with the surging power. Scarecrow's eyes widened, and he let out a series of strange "Ooh, ooh, ooh" cries as his entire body convulsed.
"Sooo goood~"
He stared at the yellow ring on his hand, already intoxicated by it in that single moment.
This was it. This was the primordial form of fear he had pursued his entire life, a masterpiece of divine craftsmanship! Only today did he realize that he had been born for this very moment.
With this power, he would never lose to Batman again—no, he would never lose to anyone again.
Now, Scarecrow was invincible!
Brimming with immeasurable confidence, he unleashed a blast of yellow light from his ring, blowing open the outer wall in a single strike. Scarecrow stepped out over the broken bricks and rubble, feeling the abundant power coursing through him, his ego swelling to an unprecedented size.
He saw the Arkham guards shouting in panic and the jailers rushing toward him amidst the shrill sound of the alarm. But looking at them now, he found them pitiful and laughable.
They had no idea what true power was.
"Feel fear!"
Scarecrow roared, raised his hand, and activated his ring. The very image of fear from his imagination transformed, becoming a sky filled with giant monsters.
Scarecrow himself didn't know it, but his performance was actually one of the best among all new Yellow Lantern recruits. His lifelong obsession with fear granted him, upon his first contact with the yellow light, a vast reserve of energy incomparable to other Yellow Lanterns. With a single thought, his summoning brought forth a vast army of Yellow Lantern constructs that blotted out the sky, taking the form of monstrous birds, ferocious beasts, and alien worms.
And yet, it was useless.
A blinding light, like divine punishment from the heavens. A massive pillar of light tore through the darkness, descending from above. In a single strike, Scarecrow's vast army was instantly annihilated, completely vaporized into dust.
The arrogant laugh on Scarecrow's face instantly froze.
Glancing at his instantly vaporized vast army, then at the large, smoking crater in the ground, Scarecrow froze.
From elation to disillusionment took but a single instant.
Witnessing such great power, such might, he suddenly felt the grand ambitions that had just filled his mind were rather... comical.
Inside his mobile armor, Orin Vale descended slowly with his arms crossed. He landed in front of Scarecrow and pointed at the ring on the man's hand, gesturing for it.
Scarecrow nodded, obediently removed the ring, and handed it to him. Then, he sensibly turned around, returned to his cell, and sat back down in the corner, hugging his knees.
Having witnessed that earth-shattering strike, Scarecrow had an epiphany.
He shouldn't be out here. He belonged in there.
The friendly neighborhood of Arkham was his true, forever home.
Orin Vale was quite satisfied with his sensible decision. The yellow ring tried to flee, but Orin Vale casually formed a blue bubble and enveloped it.
At first, the yellow ring struggled desperately, darting back and forth. But the blue light soon began to seep into it. It resisted with all its might initially, but as the blue energy penetrated it bit by bit, its struggles grew weaker and weaker.
Eventually, it stopped moving entirely, allowing the opposing force to enter as it pleased, and simply went limp.
"Scan this yellow ring. I want to know where it came from," Orin Vale commanded. "This is the second time a yellow ring has appeared on Earth in the last two weeks. I doubt it's a coincidence. Crack its program and see what commands it received. I want to know what the hell this Yellow Lantern Corps is up to."
"Executing now," Pal replied.
Shortly after taking off with the yellow ring, Orin Vale received an unexpected message.
"A communication from Odym, sir," said Pal.
"Blue Lantern Corps?" Orin Vale said. "Put it through."
The image of Blue Lantern Saint Walker immediately appeared on the screen. The background noise was deafening, and Saint Walker himself looked battered and grimy. Behind him, the flames of war seemed to be raging.
Orin Vale frowned. "Saint Walker? What's going on over there?"
"I'm on Odym, at the Blue Lantern Central Power Battery," Saint Walker said through gritted teeth. "...We are under attack!"
(end of chapter)
Thaal Sinestro raised his incessantly flickering yellow ring—it was a communication request from one of his subordinates.
"It is I," Sinestro said calmly.
"This is Yellow Lantern Sludge, oh great Sinestro! Hal Jordan has been teleported out of Oa by the ring as planned. My squad has surrounded him and we are about to take him down."
Sinestro's expression changed, and he roared, "You fool! The plan was to lure him to the designated location, I never ordered you to engage him directly! You worthless trash are no match for Jordan! Retreat to the designated coordinates immediately!"
"Ah?" The Yellow Lantern on the other end was taken aback by the scolding and stammered, "But... but he's just a single Green Lantern, and our rings can counter a Green Lantern's energy. Our squad has more than twenty members, and he's all alone."
"I said, retreat! What part of that do you not understand!?" Sinestro roared. "You cannot possibly defeat him!"
"F-fine."
The Yellow Lantern cut the communication.
Despite his compliance, he still felt Sinestro was exaggerating. Green Lanterns were supposed to have little resistance against Yellow Lanterns. A twenty-on-one retreat was simply preposterous.
Though he greatly respected Sinestro, he couldn't help but suspect that his boss might be overhyping Hal just a little...
But that thought was instantly annihilated by the shocking scene that followed.
Because he understood that Sinestro... truly had not been exaggerating.
In just a few moments, twenty Yellow Lanterns were utterly routed, scattered across the ground. Hal hovered in mid-air, and as far as the eye could see, the entire battlefield was filled with his Green Lantern constructs: two missile launchers, a materialized fighter jet, and a large surrounding circle of war vehicles, tanks, Green Lantern mecha, and more.
"A little late to think about running now, isn't it?" Hal glanced at the Yellow Lanterns strewn across the ground. "Anyone else?"
The defeated Yellow Lanterns on the ground all wore looks of utter disbelief.
Is this a fucking Green Lantern?
What's with that ring's absurd output? Did you fucking carve the Central Power Battery into a ring and wear it on your hand???
Sector 2814, Earth, Gotham City.
Arkham Asylum.
A golden radiance appeared on the horizon, a beam of golden light tearing through the night sky as it swooped down. It was so fast that Arkham's sentries barely had time to react before the electrified, heavily armored outer wall was easily pierced by the golden light.
A yellow ring shot into the asylum at immense speed, unstoppably breaking through layer after layer of barriers until it reached the deepest part of Arkham.
The nameplate on the cell door read "Jonathan Crane," his codename: Scarecrow. He was a former university psychology professor who also held a doctorate in chemistry.
A double doctorate holder and a university professor—it sounds impressive, but compared to the rest of Batman's fan club, his credentials were just so-so. Passable, at best.
These days in Gotham, you'd be embarrassed to rob a bank if you didn't have at least one or two doctorates.
Scarecrow had dedicated his life to researching the deepest fears in the human psyche. Using his exceptional talent for chemistry, he developed his "Fear Gas," taking pleasure in spreading fear.
So, it was obvious that this little hobby of his naturally had an astonishing affinity with one of the embodiments of the cosmic Emotional Spectrum.
"Jonathan Crane of Earth, you have the ability to instill great fear..."
"Welcome to the Sinestro Corps!"
The ring slipped onto his finger without preamble. A brilliant golden light immediately enveloped Scarecrow's entire body. The emblem of the yellow ring was reflected in Jonathan Crane's pupils. An intense emotion, as if carried on an electric current, surged at light speed directly into his central nervous system.
The sensation was like being electrocuted. Unparalleled fear spread through his body along with the surging power. Scarecrow's eyes widened, and he let out a series of strange "Ooh, ooh, ooh" cries as his entire body convulsed.
"Sooo goood~"
He stared at the yellow ring on his hand, already intoxicated by it in that single moment.
This was it. This was the primordial form of fear he had pursued his entire life, a masterpiece of divine craftsmanship! Only today did he realize that he had been born for this very moment.
With this power, he would never lose to Batman again—no, he would never lose to anyone again.
Now, Scarecrow was invincible!
Brimming with immeasurable confidence, he unleashed a blast of yellow light from his ring, blowing open the outer wall in a single strike. Scarecrow stepped out over the broken bricks and rubble, feeling the abundant power coursing through him, his ego swelling to an unprecedented size.
He saw the Arkham guards shouting in panic and the jailers rushing toward him amidst the shrill sound of the alarm. But looking at them now, he found them pitiful and laughable.
They had no idea what true power was.
"Feel fear!"
Scarecrow roared, raised his hand, and activated his ring. The very image of fear from his imagination transformed, becoming a sky filled with giant monsters.
Scarecrow himself didn't know it, but his performance was actually one of the best among all new Yellow Lantern recruits. His lifelong obsession with fear granted him, upon his first contact with the yellow light, a vast reserve of energy incomparable to other Yellow Lanterns. With a single thought, his summoning brought forth a vast army of Yellow Lantern constructs that blotted out the sky, taking the form of monstrous birds, ferocious beasts, and alien worms.
And yet, it was useless.
A blinding light, like divine punishment from the heavens. A massive pillar of light tore through the darkness, descending from above. In a single strike, Scarecrow's vast army was instantly annihilated, completely vaporized into dust.
The arrogant laugh on Scarecrow's face instantly froze.
Glancing at his instantly vaporized vast army, then at the large, smoking crater in the ground, Scarecrow froze.
From elation to disillusionment took but a single instant.
Witnessing such great power, such might, he suddenly felt the grand ambitions that had just filled his mind were rather... comical.
Inside his mobile armor, Orin Vale descended slowly with his arms crossed. He landed in front of Scarecrow and pointed at the ring on the man's hand, gesturing for it.
Scarecrow nodded, obediently removed the ring, and handed it to him. Then, he sensibly turned around, returned to his cell, and sat back down in the corner, hugging his knees.
Having witnessed that earth-shattering strike, Scarecrow had an epiphany.
He shouldn't be out here. He belonged in there.
The friendly neighborhood of Arkham was his true, forever home.
Orin Vale was quite satisfied with his sensible decision. The yellow ring tried to flee, but Orin Vale casually formed a blue bubble and enveloped it.
At first, the yellow ring struggled desperately, darting back and forth. But the blue light soon began to seep into it. It resisted with all its might initially, but as the blue energy penetrated it bit by bit, its struggles grew weaker and weaker.
Eventually, it stopped moving entirely, allowing the opposing force to enter as it pleased, and simply went limp.
"Scan this yellow ring. I want to know where it came from," Orin Vale commanded. "This is the second time a yellow ring has appeared on Earth in the last two weeks. I doubt it's a coincidence. Crack its program and see what commands it received. I want to know what the hell this Yellow Lantern Corps is up to."
"Executing now," Pal replied.
Shortly after taking off with the yellow ring, Orin Vale received an unexpected message.
"A communication from Odym, sir," said Pal.
"Blue Lantern Corps?" Orin Vale said. "Put it through."
The image of Blue Lantern Saint Walker immediately appeared on the screen. The background noise was deafening, and Saint Walker himself looked battered and grimy. Behind him, the flames of war seemed to be raging.
Orin Vale frowned. "Saint Walker? What's going on over there?"
"I'm on Odym, at the Blue Lantern Central Power Battery," Saint Walker said through gritted teeth. "...We are under attack!"
(end of chapter)
