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Chapter 352: Armored Gauntlet
Oa, Green Lantern Corps Headquarters.
Green Lanterns flew everywhere in the sky, and figures shuttled through the Central Fortress. The entirety of Oa had entered a state of pre-war mobilization. The Lanterns charged their Power Rings, while artisans performed final inspections and maintenance on various weapons.
All the Green Lanterns scattered across the various sectors had essentially been recalled, all of them on Oa preparing for battle.
They knew Sinestro. He hated the Green Lantern Corps that had exiled him, and he especially loathed the Guardians. He believed the Guardians were short-sighted, lacked the necessary iron fist, and had stripped him of the right to use his Power Ring to protect his home.
Now, Sinestro was recruiting troops far and wide, building a vast Yellow Lantern army that was clearly meant to rival the Green Lantern Corps. He had even won over many powerful allies, making it clear he intended to settle old scores with the Green Lanterns. It was only a matter of time before they attacked Oa, and it was bound to be a bitter fight.
It was for this very reason that the Guardians considered they might also need powerful allies in the coming battle. Thus, they made an exception and allowed an outsider to land on the forbidden grounds of Oa.
And the honored Lantern Hal Jordan, upon whom the Corps had placed great hopes, was currently in the cafeteria, eating and drinking with Orin Vale.
Hal placed a food tray on the table, filled with an unknown viscous liquid and a pile of tentacles. If one looked closely, one could even see what looked like a head in the unidentified liquid, covered in large eyeballs that would make one's SAN value plummet.
It made one wonder about the source of the Green Lantern Corps' food supply.
"Don't judge it by its ugly appearance, it's surprisingly delicious," Hal said, hands on his hips. "It took me a while to get used to this stuff when I first joined the Corps.
"I remember it was because of a bet with Kilowog. He laughed at us bumpkins from Earth, saying we wouldn't dare eat this. Ha, what a joke. I downed three big bowls right in front of him."
Orin Vale calmly chewed on a tentacle with an eyeball on it and nodded slightly. "The taste isn't bad."
Hal was a bit surprised. "Damn, you're even calmer than I was back then."
"I've seen stranger food," Orin Vale said.
Only then did Hal remember that this person wasn't from Earth to begin with. He still had no idea where he came from. The amount of interstellar dark cuisine the man had eaten might truly be no less than his own.
"This cafeteria of yours is quite large, and the food selection seems pretty rich," Orin Vale said, glancing around.
"This is the Third Cafeteria, and there are four others," Hal shrugged. "I've still only tried a small portion of it all. Sometimes it's quite interesting to taste the delicacies from various galaxies."
"Indeed."
Orin Vale looked around, and after a quick scan, he noticed something interesting on the menu at one of the windows.
"Grilled Xenomorph Leg?" Orin Vale was surprised.
Could this Xenomorph be the same one he was thinking of?
"Oh, that's a creature that kills by instinct. It has a potent acid that can corrode anything and likes to lay its eggs inside living organisms... but its meat is savory and surprisingly tasty.
"What's that saying again? The most high-end ingredients often only require the simplest cooking methods."
Hal said earnestly.
"I highly recommend it."
Orin Vale was speechless.
Just remove the head and tail and it's edible, right?
He now recalled that Xenomorphs did seem to exist in the DC Universe and even had a crossover comic with the Green Lanterns.
Poor Xenomorphs. In this universe teeming with god-like beings, their only role was to be on the dining table...
"Oh, by the way, didn't you say before that you had some business to take care of if you got the chance to come to Oa?" Hal asked while chewing on the tentacle of some unknown creature.
"Yes," Orin Vale replied, eating at an unhurried pace. "But I'm already taking care of it."
"..."
Hal hadn't quite processed it yet, but Orin Vale wasn't bound by space like ordinary people. Appearing in two places at once was a simple matter for him.
For example, right now, one of him was sitting in the Green Lanterns' cafeteria, appreciating interstellar delicacies with Hal Jordan.
While the other had just phased through a wall into the vault deep underground beneath the Green Lantern Headquarters, checking out what good stuff the Guardians had stored in their little treasury.
Ganthet had once revealed the access password to Oa's central systems, but considering Ganthet had been expelled from the Council, Orin Vale had already guessed the password might have been changed. Even so, he had at least used the Guardian's knowledge to get a general understanding of the Green Lantern Corps' system.
He originally thought it might be a bit difficult. After all, this was the central hub of an interstellar peacekeeping force, representing the pinnacle of this universe's capabilities. Infiltrating the headquarters of such a power should have required some effort.
Unexpectedly, it was surprisingly easy.
He concealed his aura, used optical manipulation to become invisible, and then maintained supersonic speed to phase through the walls. He managed to sneak in smoothly without even triggering his "Peerless Infiltration."
It was much easier than he had imagined.
At first, Orin Vale found this a bit unsettling.
Seriously? You guys are the universe's law enforcement legion. Is it really okay for your headquarters to be as easy to enter and exit as a public restroom?
But on second thought, he remembered that his own hometown was also a universal peacekeeping force, and their security wasn't much better. Every time their Director Hikari tinkered with some new black technology, it would get stolen before he could even get a feel for it.
Afterward, the Security Patrol would come and ask if the thief was Empera or Lugiel to be so audacious as to steal from their home base.
Then Hikari would say it wasn't anyone like that, just some passing mook. "I'm just a scientist," he'd argue. "I don't have your kind of power. What am I supposed to do if it wants to steal from me? Stab it with a light sword?"
Thinking of this, Orin Vale suddenly felt that the Green Lanterns' sieve-like security was excusable. In comparison, it actually didn't seem that bad.
The vault held many dangerous items, but Orin Vale wasn't interested in most of them. He was just here to borrow some Green Lantern knowledge.
So, he was naturally drawn to an item on the wall marked "DANGEROUS GOODS."
A pair of gloves.
Gloves forged from an unknown metal, with a texture slightly similar to a Power Ring. Two cable-like structures extended from the gloves, plugging into a backpack-like metal structure that appeared to be its power source.
Even the vast majority of Green Lanterns would be unlikely to recognize what this was, for it came from a history sealed away by the Guardians, a part of Oa's darkest origin chapter. Even the most core Green Lanterns later on had no right to know those secrets.
But Orin Vale recognized it, because it had appeared in the Lantern comics.
This was Krona's armored gauntlet, the precursor to the Power Ring. Forged by the renegade Guardian Krona, it required no charging and no Central Power Battery, connecting directly to the green light of the emotional spectrum. A single gauntlet had the output of a dozen Power Rings.
It was exactly what Orin Vale needed.
(end of chapter)
Oa, Green Lantern Corps Headquarters.
Green Lanterns flew everywhere in the sky, and figures shuttled through the Central Fortress. The entirety of Oa had entered a state of pre-war mobilization. The Lanterns charged their Power Rings, while artisans performed final inspections and maintenance on various weapons.
All the Green Lanterns scattered across the various sectors had essentially been recalled, all of them on Oa preparing for battle.
They knew Sinestro. He hated the Green Lantern Corps that had exiled him, and he especially loathed the Guardians. He believed the Guardians were short-sighted, lacked the necessary iron fist, and had stripped him of the right to use his Power Ring to protect his home.
Now, Sinestro was recruiting troops far and wide, building a vast Yellow Lantern army that was clearly meant to rival the Green Lantern Corps. He had even won over many powerful allies, making it clear he intended to settle old scores with the Green Lanterns. It was only a matter of time before they attacked Oa, and it was bound to be a bitter fight.
It was for this very reason that the Guardians considered they might also need powerful allies in the coming battle. Thus, they made an exception and allowed an outsider to land on the forbidden grounds of Oa.
And the honored Lantern Hal Jordan, upon whom the Corps had placed great hopes, was currently in the cafeteria, eating and drinking with Orin Vale.
Hal placed a food tray on the table, filled with an unknown viscous liquid and a pile of tentacles. If one looked closely, one could even see what looked like a head in the unidentified liquid, covered in large eyeballs that would make one's SAN value plummet.
It made one wonder about the source of the Green Lantern Corps' food supply.
"Don't judge it by its ugly appearance, it's surprisingly delicious," Hal said, hands on his hips. "It took me a while to get used to this stuff when I first joined the Corps.
"I remember it was because of a bet with Kilowog. He laughed at us bumpkins from Earth, saying we wouldn't dare eat this. Ha, what a joke. I downed three big bowls right in front of him."
Orin Vale calmly chewed on a tentacle with an eyeball on it and nodded slightly. "The taste isn't bad."
Hal was a bit surprised. "Damn, you're even calmer than I was back then."
"I've seen stranger food," Orin Vale said.
Only then did Hal remember that this person wasn't from Earth to begin with. He still had no idea where he came from. The amount of interstellar dark cuisine the man had eaten might truly be no less than his own.
"This cafeteria of yours is quite large, and the food selection seems pretty rich," Orin Vale said, glancing around.
"This is the Third Cafeteria, and there are four others," Hal shrugged. "I've still only tried a small portion of it all. Sometimes it's quite interesting to taste the delicacies from various galaxies."
"Indeed."
Orin Vale looked around, and after a quick scan, he noticed something interesting on the menu at one of the windows.
"Grilled Xenomorph Leg?" Orin Vale was surprised.
Could this Xenomorph be the same one he was thinking of?
"Oh, that's a creature that kills by instinct. It has a potent acid that can corrode anything and likes to lay its eggs inside living organisms... but its meat is savory and surprisingly tasty.
"What's that saying again? The most high-end ingredients often only require the simplest cooking methods."
Hal said earnestly.
"I highly recommend it."
Orin Vale was speechless.
Just remove the head and tail and it's edible, right?
He now recalled that Xenomorphs did seem to exist in the DC Universe and even had a crossover comic with the Green Lanterns.
Poor Xenomorphs. In this universe teeming with god-like beings, their only role was to be on the dining table...
"Oh, by the way, didn't you say before that you had some business to take care of if you got the chance to come to Oa?" Hal asked while chewing on the tentacle of some unknown creature.
"Yes," Orin Vale replied, eating at an unhurried pace. "But I'm already taking care of it."
"..."
Hal hadn't quite processed it yet, but Orin Vale wasn't bound by space like ordinary people. Appearing in two places at once was a simple matter for him.
For example, right now, one of him was sitting in the Green Lanterns' cafeteria, appreciating interstellar delicacies with Hal Jordan.
While the other had just phased through a wall into the vault deep underground beneath the Green Lantern Headquarters, checking out what good stuff the Guardians had stored in their little treasury.
Ganthet had once revealed the access password to Oa's central systems, but considering Ganthet had been expelled from the Council, Orin Vale had already guessed the password might have been changed. Even so, he had at least used the Guardian's knowledge to get a general understanding of the Green Lantern Corps' system.
He originally thought it might be a bit difficult. After all, this was the central hub of an interstellar peacekeeping force, representing the pinnacle of this universe's capabilities. Infiltrating the headquarters of such a power should have required some effort.
Unexpectedly, it was surprisingly easy.
He concealed his aura, used optical manipulation to become invisible, and then maintained supersonic speed to phase through the walls. He managed to sneak in smoothly without even triggering his "Peerless Infiltration."
It was much easier than he had imagined.
At first, Orin Vale found this a bit unsettling.
Seriously? You guys are the universe's law enforcement legion. Is it really okay for your headquarters to be as easy to enter and exit as a public restroom?
But on second thought, he remembered that his own hometown was also a universal peacekeeping force, and their security wasn't much better. Every time their Director Hikari tinkered with some new black technology, it would get stolen before he could even get a feel for it.
Afterward, the Security Patrol would come and ask if the thief was Empera or Lugiel to be so audacious as to steal from their home base.
Then Hikari would say it wasn't anyone like that, just some passing mook. "I'm just a scientist," he'd argue. "I don't have your kind of power. What am I supposed to do if it wants to steal from me? Stab it with a light sword?"
Thinking of this, Orin Vale suddenly felt that the Green Lanterns' sieve-like security was excusable. In comparison, it actually didn't seem that bad.
The vault held many dangerous items, but Orin Vale wasn't interested in most of them. He was just here to borrow some Green Lantern knowledge.
So, he was naturally drawn to an item on the wall marked "DANGEROUS GOODS."
A pair of gloves.
Gloves forged from an unknown metal, with a texture slightly similar to a Power Ring. Two cable-like structures extended from the gloves, plugging into a backpack-like metal structure that appeared to be its power source.
Even the vast majority of Green Lanterns would be unlikely to recognize what this was, for it came from a history sealed away by the Guardians, a part of Oa's darkest origin chapter. Even the most core Green Lanterns later on had no right to know those secrets.
But Orin Vale recognized it, because it had appeared in the Lantern comics.
This was Krona's armored gauntlet, the precursor to the Power Ring. Forged by the renegade Guardian Krona, it required no charging and no Central Power Battery, connecting directly to the green light of the emotional spectrum. A single gauntlet had the output of a dozen Power Rings.
It was exactly what Orin Vale needed.
(end of chapter)
