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Captain Hal Jordan was chosen to represent an intergalactic police force created by the oldest beings in existence - the Guardians of the Universe. Protecting Earth and all of space sector 2814 from every extraterrestrial threat imaginable. Hal Jordan shines his light proudly as the Green Lantern

"In brightest day, in darkest night, no evil shall escape my sight.
let those who worship evil's might, beware my power - Green Lantern's light!"

From last issue…

A quiet smile spreads across Hal Jordan's face. “ Simply a man… I am the Honour Guard of the Green Lantern Corps and on my hand I wield the most powerful weapon you can imagine. I have held within me the natural embodiment of fear itself and I have conquered it. I have reignited suns and lived at the dawn of time. I have stood at the Right Hand of the Presence as his weapon of Vengeance.” He pauses for a moment. “ No, you are right – I am just a man. And the people you have hurt are my friends. The people you are threatening are my family. The place you are destroying is my home. I am a man – a man who has conquered fear, even fear of death. So if you want Earth Nekron … if you want me, I'm here, waiting for you.” Hal raises his fist and his ring pulses again. “ Bring it!”

DC Infinity Proudly Presents

#12

RING OF DARKNESS (4 of 4)

By Neil Gow

 

The Throne of Shadows, Coast City

Nekron laughs.

From beneath his ornate gothic helm his desiccated mouth opens and wicked laughter resonates around his Throne of Shadows. The walls shake at the noise of a God, amused. “I have always found you amazing, Hal Jordan. Has life ever had such an arrogant, bombastic champion? You stand here, still shaking after seeing the borders of my realm, your friends decimated by my forces and your planet on the verge of becoming the first of many to fall to the armies of the dead and you seek to threaten me? Here? Now?”

Jordan does not move. His fist is still raised. His power ring is still flashing with the massive power charge he has drawn down directly from the Central Power Battery on Oa. His eyes burn into the visor of Nekron, never moving. Every muscle of his body is ready for this one last battle.

“By the Blackest Night! You really have conquered fear, haven't you Jordan? I can see it in your eyes. No fear, no horror, but …. Yes! Yes, there is something, something I have never seen before in you. Is that? No, it could not be – I have seen passion in you before, Hal Jordan, and loyalty and a myriad of other emotions but this? Love? What do you love Jordan?”

Hal continues his vigil.

The Many Deaths of Hal Jordan

I am floating in the flesh covered middle realm between life and death. It is the home of Nekron, a being of pure death. He has freed Krona from his prison and together they have waged war on the Corps. Many of died. More have had their endurance and their dedication tested to the limit. Nekron summons the spirits of their dead loved ones and forces them to kill them, again, one final time. I can only imagine the heartbreak.

I have beaten him. Not alone. I travelled to this realm using the last power of the Corps. Some brave Lanterns may be dying in the cold of space now because they gave their last to me. Their sacrifice and the aid of the dead Lanterns trapped in his realm allowed me to stop Nekron. However, I am trapped now. The nexus between this realm and ours is closing. My ring is spent.

It is so cold. So very cold. I am … Dead.

Oa, the Centre of the Universe

Explosions rock the buildings around the Central Power Battery as the Corps desperately defend their most sacred place against the attacking Keepers – guardians from the anti-matter universe. To make matters worse these Keepers have been masquerading as real Guardians. The Corps have no idea how long they have been doing it, but it has cost the lives of hundreds of corpsmen.

“Oh this is more like it! I've been waiting for years to give it to one of the Smurfs and now I don't have a reason to hold back!” Guy blasts again and again, laying down a suppressive field of fire to keep the Keepers back.

“How is he?” Kilowog throws up a green shield as the newest Green Lantern, Kerys Va cradles the unconscious body of Salaak.

“His ring appears to be keeping him stable. Can they do that?”

“They can, kid, they can. Now, Guy, any idea how we can get out of here?” Kilowog stands over Salaak and Kerys as another Lantern falls under the energy assault of the Keepers.

Guy looks around. Oa was sparsely attended by a few experienced Lanterns, some instructors and a swath of rookies. The Lanterns monitoring Oa's cells will have activated the phasing system that protects them. They will be out of phase and unobtainable. The Book of Oa is secure. A team of Lanterns have secured the Star Sapphire entity – the last thing they need now having to handle Superboy Prime again.

Fight or flight. They can stay and try to beat the Keepers or they can retreat. Guy smiles. In the past, he would have fought and fought until he was beaten to a pulp and then he would have just thought that the fight had started. Not now.

“Lanterns! Veterans, form a shield. Maximum power. Rookies, get behind it and stay safe! Ladies and Gentlemen, we are leaving! Rendezvous …. Sector 38, co-ords 22.112.305. Prepare to transwarp!” Guy barks out his order and the other Lanterns obey. Only Kilowog raises an alien eyebrow.

“Hey poozer, could you have barked that order any louder? I don't think they heard you in the anti-matter universe!! And Sector 38? What are you doing? That's …. Oh”

Transwarp activates and the Lanterns disappear!

The Keepers look around as their foe retreats. They concur. Their power flares and they follow their prey.

The Many Deaths of Hal Jordan … Death in the Heart of the Sun

The sun is dying. Earth is waiting for the slow death that comes when heat disappears. Only I can save them. Only I have the power to restart a sun! Not Superman. Despite all his great strength, phenomenal speed and titanic resilience, he is a creature of the sun and now he is inert. Not Batman. Bruce might sneer behind his mask at my motives and rage against my power but the great detective has no influence here, in the depths of space. Diana? No. The Marvels? No. Only I can do this.

Why should I? When I said I could make this right before, they ignored me. They fought me. They stopped me making my perfect world. Now, only I can save their imperfect world. The irony is cutting. However, it is who I am. I am their hero, I am the one that they really look to when it comes to the crunch. I am their only hope. They will remember that, when I am gone. All of my power rests in the words slipping from my tongue. An oath I have said hundreds of times.

It is so hot. So very hot. I am … Dead.

The Throne of Shadows, Coast City

Nekron stares at Hal Jordan, his dead eyes staring into the human's soul, desperately searching for something to exploit. Jordan stands still, his eyes fixed on Nekron. His face is emotionless.

At their feet, Donna moans as the darkness penetrates her consciousness. Shapes begin to form in her mind. She sees young heroes running into battle, being cut down by shadowy forms. Blown apart by mysterious assailants. She feels the pain of every hit. She is wracked by every puncture of young flesh by jagged metal. She screams as her friends die. She weakens as their blood pours into the ground around her.

Victor. Garth. Raven. Cassie. Kory – all dead. More Titans she only knew fleetingly. Dead. Some she has never seen. Dead. The Titans. Dead.

Donna screams in her head, the past and the future clashing in her psyche. What has she done?

Sector 2261

“I must admit, if I have to be trapped forever on a deserted planet, this would be the one I would choose.” General Stone plucks a ripe orange fruit from a nearby bush and bites down on it, letting the juices dribble down his chin.

“I am not aware of this planet. I know this system and this planet is not charted here.” Thom Kallor, a superhero from the far future, leans against a tree. He looks perturbed.

“Trees, rocks and water. This is my own personal hell. How I yearn for the war factories of Okaara!” Vhelarn, the Okaaran warlord hits the ground. “This place is unnatural. So many plants cannot be good for anyone.”

“I assume that our ‘guardians' have a plan to get us off this rock? I did not agree to accompany you on this mission to be trapped here. It is undignified. I am Gal Tallam, Royal Prince of Talok VIII…”

“Hush.” The mysterious figure known as Kendros holds up his hand. “There is a presence here.”

“You are mad, telepath. We are alone.” Gal Tallam waves him away but as he does, Kendros closes his hand, using his telekinetic powers to shut Tallam's mouth for him.

“I tell you. There is a presence here. It is … immense.”

I AM MOGO, GREEN LANTERN OF THIS SECTOR. I AM THE PLANET YOU STAND UPON. DO NOT BE AFRAID. THE LINES WHICH JOIN THE DESTINIES OF EVERY BEING IN EXISTENCE HAVE BROUGHT YOU HERE. THE GOD SUN IS REBORN AND HE WILL DESTROY ALL LIFE. HE STARTS AT HIS HOME, THE SOL SYSTEM. YOU WILL TAKE ME THERE. I WILL STOP HIM

All five men jump as the voice rumbles through their heads. Whatever madness is running through their minds, they feel the presence of Mogo touch their souls and they understand the truth of his words. General Stone rallies himself and answers.

“ I am… Stone, from Earth. I know the Green Lantern that works my patch. He's a good man. If this God Sun is attacking Earth and you'll need to be there, we'll help you but … well … I cannot see how we can move a planet?”

“I can.” Thom Kallor steps forward. “ Now I know why I was brought here.”

Sector 38

The Corps appears in a flash of green, many of them suffering terrible injuries. Guy orders his ring to run a head count. Everyone made it. Now they had to stay alive.

“Hey rookie! Kilowog tells me you're some sort of telepath?” Guy floats next to Kerys.

“Yes, I am. Apparently this is a bad thing for a Green Lantern.”

“Not today lady, not today. We need to hide. Our rings can be suppressed but our minds cannot. I need you to do some funky telepath stuff. Shut down our presence.” Guy waves his hands around, hoping that it will help his explanation. “Sheesh, I wish you were a Martian!”

“I am uncertain whether I will be able to do it, High Marshal Gardner. These sentients are not Cerelan. They are not potent telepaths.”

“Honey. I don't really care. We have about ten seconds before the Keepers arrive and we need to disappear because I really REALLY do not want to be in the middle of this when it all hits the fan.”

“ I am sorry, sir, but I have no idea what you are talking about?”

Kilowog hovers behind her, places his hands on her shoulders and slowly turns her around. “There you go kid. Become a Lantern. Fly the galaxy and see places you never want to see again. Sector 38. co-ords 22.112.305. The dark side of the planet we like to call….”

Kerys looks down at the planet below, covered in flaming industrial pits the size of cities. “Is that Apokolips?”

“It certainly is. Now Rookie Va, can you PLEASE initiate some silent running before the owner notices the Green Lantern Corps in his backyard?”

The Many Deaths of Hal Jordan … Death to Chemo

My city is dying. And it is not. I can feel the battle between life and death raging as I lie here, in a pool of glowing green acid. I have worn this ring for as long as I care to remember, in the fight to preserve life and now, life has been extended indefinitely and something in me knows that I need to stop it. I need to kill these people because life and death are natural and to stop one is to throw the entire balance of the universe off kilter. The ring? The ring is broken, fractured, useless.

So I lie here and I melt in a cloud of acrid smoke. Or do I? If everyone else is caught between life and death, why should I be? I have been here before. I have been on the edge of Death's realm before and something stopped the cold from taking me. I have stood at the heart of a reborn sun and I came back. I have been dragged from the realms of the dead time and time again. Why should this time be different.

And then I knew the truth.

The Space above Apokolips

The Keepers appear. They link their minds and scan the space around them. They are sure that their prey should be here. Pulses of power spread out, searching, probing.

Hidden, Kerys Va draws strength from her power ring and the willpower of the other Lanterns. Even with this incredible boost, she is uncertain she can prevail. Her head is pounding, her heart beating faster than she can remember. She can feel the fear rising in her. What if she fails? All of these people will be slaughtered, just like the people of her homeworld. She will be responsible.

No. Remember the training you have received. Overcome fear. You will not fail. You are a Green Lantern. You will overcome the fear. Face it. Use it.

The shield holds.

The Keepers spread out expanding their search until the darkness of space suddenly becomes much much darker. A grave image appears. A rocky grey face of the Lord of Apokolips appears before them.

They are in the presence of Darkseid.

“Beings. You trespass upon the realm of Apokolips. I sense great power within you but I warn you, that power dwarfs in comparison to that of a God. Leave now or face my wrath!”

The Keepers float in space. They do not speak. They do not acknowledge the image. And then they disappear. Darkseid's image flickers and then fades from view.

Minutes pass.

“And relax.” Guy Gardener signals to the other Lanterns to bring their shield back online. “Signal received from Oa. The Keepers have not returned. They've gone. Time for us to go home!”

Kerys sags in space, exhausted. Kilowog holds her up. “Good work rookie. Damned good work.”

The Throne of Shadows, Coast City

The Truth. We search for it. We die for it. Do we ever really know it? I do now.

“You asked me what I love, Nekron. I have an answer for you. I love life. And here's another bombshell. You are not Death.” Hal Jordan lowers his hand, his ring glow fading.

“I am the Lord of Death. You are a mortal. How dare you!” Nekron weighs his sword heavily in his hand.

The room is filled with green light. Jordan is glowing, the pure power of the Oan power battery. “This is life, Nekron. Can you feel it? Can you? I can and I have and all of my life I have bathed in this light and the power of life. I have died and I have come back and guess what? You weren't any part of the package. I have worn the Spectre's robes and no-one mentioned you. You are not Death. I don't know what you are, but it is not Death.”

“I AM DEATH. I CONTROL THE FLOW OF LIFE. I AM THE BLACKEST NIGHT!”

“No, you are not. You are a creature that has invaded my planet, threatened my home and hurt my friends. And now, Nekron, you are going to see what happens when you mess with someone who understands life and death.” Hal Jordan raises his hand and unleashes the raw power of the Oan power battery.

The Throne of Shadows shatters, as beams of emerald power lance through it. The shadows battling the Justice Society are shredded. John Stewart is caught in the blast and pulsates in mid-air, flexing like a madman as the energy drives off the darkness.

Nekron screams. His armour shatters. His sword dissolves. He floats into the air surrounded by green energy. All that remains is his gaunt, decaying, pale body.

“ I … am … Death!” Nekron cries in pain.

“ No. You are not. You are just another being who thinks they can meddle with things that are beyond his grasp. On the other side of the galaxy, the people who trusted me to lead them are dying because I have to be here, with you, because you thought you could attack my home, my friends and my family. Guess what Nekron? I'm sick of it. Sick of creatures like you! It's time someone made an example of one of you. Someone like me!”

“ Don't Hal.” Green Arrow stands next to the recovering figures of Donna Troy and Alan Scott. He has an arrow nocked in his bow. “ Whatever you are thinking of doing, don't. Look around. It's over. You won. We won.”

Hal looks at Ollie. He looks back at Nekron. He looks at Ollie. His ring flashes. Nekron disappears, spiralling into space in a cocoon of emerald.

“Ollie. Even after all these years? After everything you know about me and what happened to me, what did you think I was going to do.”

Ollie smiles. “I thought you were going to do what I would have done. Killed the son of a … sorry, not in front of the kids, right?”

“Ollie?” Hal looks confused. Ali Mansfield steps out from behind him,

“Hal, this is Ali. Ali, this is Hal. You met before but I don't think you were formally introduced. Hal, this is your daughter.”

Hal looks at the girl and stares into her eyes. Reflected in them he sees the same resilience that his father used to see in him. Instinctively he knows that Ollie speaks the truth. He has a daughter. A child. He is not alone…. His ring flashes.

HONOUR GUARD LANTERN. EMERGENCY RECALL SIGNAL FROM OA. HIGH MARSHAL GARDENER HAS INITIATED HIGHEST PRIORITY RECALL. OA IS COMPROMISED

Hal looks at Ollie and Ali, at the city which has been brutalized by Nekron. At the very thing that he fought to protect. He looks down at his ring and feels the last remnants of the power he drew from the Central Power Battery coursing through him.

What does he do?

Epilogue

Hal and Alan stand over the body of John Stewart, held in an emerald casket. His breathing is weak and shallow. Dr Midnite stands on the other side of him. “He's alive and well, but his mind has closed down. The trauma was too much for him. Something is healing him, but its slow.”

“His ring. His ring is fighting back, but its weak. All of the rings are weak at the moment.” Hal rests his hand on the casket. “He will live, right Doc?”

“He will. We'll look after him. Nothing will harm him now.” And with that, Dr Midnite and Mr Terrific push the floating platform away.

Alan and Hal face each other. Hal tries to speak but Alan stops him. “No. Let me. First things first. What happened to Nekron?”

“I had pure Power Battery energy to use, so I did to him what the Guardians did to Krona. He's cocooned in emerald energy and spiraling through space-time, locked out of phase with reality. He will never bother anyone again. Look, I can tell you are gearing up for one of your father-son speeches but I really don't have time!”

“OK. Things have changed Hal. I know that. You've always been alone, despite what some people might think.” He glances at at the waiting figure of Green Arrow, standing with the very confused Ali Mansfield. “And now you have Donna and Ali but …”

“I have to go. The Corps need me. The Guardians are gone.” Hal shifts, uncomfortably.

“Dammit Hal, will you listen to me for once. Look around you? These people need you too. That's your daughter standing there. Have you even spoken to Donna since the battle?”

“She … she left. Quickly. Something about the Titans. She was … crying.”

“And did you even think about going after her? She loves you Hal – for what that's ever done anyone any good, she loves you and you can't see it. You're not alone Hal, you never have been.”

“Alan…I have to go!” Hal turns and takes to the air, hovering. “ Ollie, look after her will you? Ali … I .. I'll be back, I promise. Alan, Earth ... its yours for now. Protect it for me. I promise, I'll be back. The Corps needs me. One last tour Alan. One last tour and then everything changes. It has to change. I cannot … it has to change.” And with that, Hal's power ring flashes and he disappears into the night.

“Well, I'll be damned!” Green Arrow rolls his eyes and brushes back his hair. “Did Hal just deputize you into the Green Lantern Corps?”

Alan Scott shakes his head. “I think he just did Ollie. I think he just did…”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next Issue: Alan Scott is the new ring-bearing protector of Earth as Hal travels to Oa to rally the Corps in their search for the Guardians, starting with a mission for himself, Guy and Kilowog. John Stewart is lying in a coma in JSA headquarters. Kerys receives her new instructor and their first mission returns her home. Oh yes, and something about SOLARIS VS MOGO! All this and more, coming soon

Shameless Promotion: What's that? Donna has run off on Titans business? What could that be? Find out in Titans #1, coming soon to DCI by yours truly. Hey, we don't just throw this together you know!

Authors Notes: I remember the first time I was exposed to the Green Lantern Corps – not Green Lantern himself, but the greater corps. I was on holiday near Scarborough and I picked up a copy of Tales of the Green Lantern Corps#1. Brian Bolland cover, Joe Staton artwork, the first appearance of Arisia and generally just a kick-ass comic. That series has been one of the inspirations for my Green Lantern series so far, hence the appearance of the rather obscure Nekron as the bad guy in these last four issues.

Green Lantern has been my first real foray into fanfic for some time and my first honest attempt at doing an ongoing solo title. Well, sort of, because it isn't really a solo title – there are a plethora of characters in the background who all have their part to play and keeping their stories interesting and coherent has been like herding cats. In the next few issues that cast will be changing – some familiar faces will be disappearing and new ones will be being brought into the fold as the title spreads it's wings throughout the DCIU. One thing that I have been asked for on numerous occasions is more Corps members, so that's being delivered, don't worry.