"...Like this?" Hal extended his right hand.
Just as the ring was about to touch the lantern, he hesitated and pulled back.
Under Abin Sur's intense stare, he reached out again.
Then pulled back again.
It turned into a perfect loop of "now you see it, now you don't."
Fortunately, Abin Sur possessed saint-like patience.
If it had been Morin, Hal would have been punched already.
This kind of "I'm doing it-no I'm not-come catch me" behavior ranked at taunt level ninety-nine.
Even Abin Sur had limits.
When Hal reached out once more, the alien suddenly lunged forward and slammed the lantern directly against the ring on Hal's finger.
Green light exploded outward.
Hal was swallowed whole.
"What's that?" Diana asked as Morin stepped back to her side.
"The Green Lantern Corps," Morin said calmly. "An ancient organization that's existed for billions of years. Their power comes from the rings. The stronger the will, the stronger the energy."
"They divided the universe into 3,600 sectors. Two Lanterns per sector. That's at least 7,200 members, all answering to the Guardians of the Universe to maintain peace, order, and justice."
"Of course, 'will' isn't strictly defined, so not all Lanterns are saints. But these two-especially the one taking the oath-are genuine."
"As for the current crisis..." Morin continued, "...it involves something they sealed away billions of years ago. Parallax. A monster that feeds on fear and life force."
As Morin explained, Hal-bathed in green light-began speaking instinctively, following a voice echoing in his mind.
"In brightest day, in blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight.
Let those who worship evil's might,
Beware my power... Green Lantern's light!"
"You are now the Green Lantern of Sector 2814," Abin Sur said with satisfaction.
"...Okay," Hal said, staring at his hand. "How do I use this thing?"
"You must go to Oa," Abin Sur replied seriously. "You require physical enhancement, a uniform, and formal training."
"Oa?" Hal blinked. "Is it far? Will I miss my-oh. Right. Administrative leave."
He trailed off, remembering the Ferris Saber 3 and the brand-new F-35 he'd destroyed during testing.
Multi-billion dollar losses.
The only reason he wasn't in jail was because responsibility hadn't been determined yet.
Not that he was worried.
You could build planes with money.
You couldn't mass-produce pilots like him.
"That is easily resolved," Abin Sur said, turning toward his ship.
Then he stopped.
Awkwardly.
He turned back and extended his hand.
"...May I borrow the ring for a moment?"
His expression twitched.
Watching from afar, Morin and Diana shared a wave of secondhand embarrassment.
It had been his ring.
He'd given it away because he thought he was dying.
Now he wasn't.
But he couldn't just take it back.
So he had to watch it sit on someone else's finger and ask permission to use it.
Wrong.
And yet... perfectly reasonable.
"Sure," Hal said, slipping it off and handing it over.
Abin Sur put it on and exhaled as the familiar sensation returned.
"I'll teach you as we travel," he said. "Our power comes from will. As long as the will is firm, power is limitless."
"And one more thing. Never give in to fear. Once you do, Parallax can drain both fear and life force directly."
"As for using the energy... it's imagination."
"Imagination?" Hal frowned.
"Yes. Will determines strength. Imagination determines form," Abin Sur explained. "Without will, even a planet-destroying weapon couldn't break a simple shield."
As he spoke, the ring flared.
A green communicator formed in midair.
"I need to contact Sinestro. After that, we'll return to Oa. I'll need a new ring and an audience with the Guardians."
"Parallax has returned. The Corps must unite."
"Here's my number," Morin called out. A metal plate engraved with digits flew toward Hal.
"Personal Trainer?" Hal read aloud.
"That's my main job," Morin said. "Sorcerer's just a side thing-no, wait, a hobby."
"If you want to get stronger, look me up. Pay tuition. Guaranteed results."
"You have my thanks, Earth sorcerer," Abin Sur said solemnly. "I owe you a debt."
"If you want to repay it," Morin replied without missing a beat, "come to my gym."
He was absolutely not after Abin Sur's alien physiology data.
Probably.
The core strength of the [Personal Trainer] profession was [Fitness Effect Amplification].
Over years of testing, Morin had figured it out.
As long as he trained alongside a client, his own stats increased based on the client's physical ceiling.
That was why Clark Kent had spent years in his gym.
Those iron plates used to seal Parallax?
Weights.
Clark could control his density. Normal weights were meaningless.
Morin had compressed dozens of tons of iron into thin plates just to make them usable.
Naturally, Morin benefited the most.
His physical stats rose alongside his students.
Eventually, his body reached a point he couldn't even quantify.
The last time he checked his status panel, the [Physique] stat was gone.
Vanished.
Maybe the system stopped measuring past a certain threshold.
If [Intelligence] or [Magic] reached that point, would they disappear too?
Would that unlock something else?
He didn't know.
And guessing without data was pointless.
He'd rather dissect magic or design new spells.
He wasn't satisfied.
Growth had no ceiling.
Quantity bred quality.
That was why he marketed fitness programs to humans-and why he never passed up aliens.
Every new species was potential progress.
"I don't fully understand," Abin Sur said slowly, "but once the Parallax crisis is resolved, I will come."
"Good," Morin nodded. "We'll talk then."
He decided not to push his fitness sales pitch on Oa yet.
Let the honest alien experience it first.
"Time is limited," Abin Sur said gravely. "If Parallax approaches Earth, notify us immediately. Evacuate civilians. Minimize losses."
"We will arrive upon receiving the signal."
"Understood," Morin replied seriously. "Thanks."
No arrogance.
He'd never faced Parallax before.
Calling backup against an eldritch horror was basic survival instinct.
Only idiots insisted on fighting fair.
After contacting Sinestro, Abin Sur and Hal were enveloped in a green sphere and shot into space.
"Should we prepare too?" Diana asked, her expression tense.
"If it comes, we deal with it," Morin said. "Normal people can't fight this. They'd just be food."
He paused.
"But yes. Some preparation won't hurt."
He cast a massive detection spell, sweeping the area for fear energy.
Satisfied, he erased the ship's wreckage.
"No traces. I can't stay longer. The military's coming, and I don't feel like dealing with them-or wiping memories."
"What about that?" Diana pointed at the iron box floating nearby.
"Oh, this?" Morin engraved words onto it.
A Small Gift for the Honorable Angels.
He opened a portal to Heaven and tossed it in.
Then slammed it shut.
Ignoring the frantic pounding and shouting on the other side.
If Heaven couldn't handle a bit of fear energy, they were useless.
Besides, this wasn't dumping trash.
It was providing an opportunity for merit.
Perfect logic.
"All done."
They left together.
Minutes later, the military arrived.
They found crash marks.
Nothing else.
What Morin didn't notice was this-
When the ship crashed, a single drop of Abin Sur's blood-tainted with fear energy-sprayed from a fracture.
It fell into the ocean.
A small fish swallowed it.
A big fish swallowed that fish.
A shark swallowed the big fish.
The fear drifted farther and farther away.
Morin's detection hadn't covered the entire ocean.
His telepathy could-but not the energy itself.
That single drop remained.
Quiet.
Waiting.
-
"Is Oa far?" Hal asked as they flew through space. "How long is this going to take?"
For a pilot, space was new.
Yet Hal showed no fear at all.
Either brave.
Or dense.
Maybe that was why the ring chose him.
"Oa is distant," Abin Sur replied. "But there is a nearby jump point. We'll open a wormhole."
They shot past an orbiting space station.
Two astronauts on EVA saw green light streak by.
Over comms-
Astronaut 1: "Did... did a giant green rat just fly past us?"
Astronaut 2: "This is space. There are no rats."
"And why would a rat be green?"
Find Advance chapters
And for More Fan fiction
👇
👇
[Support link: pat reon.com/RioRaRyu]
------------
More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 250 power stones = Bonus Chapter
Give me more Power Stones
------------