The Hubris of Parallax
Is this guy's brain malfunctioning?
Luke was thoroughly perplexed. Who did it think he was—Hector, Hal Jordan, or even Superman?
Come on. I'm Luke Shaw, a transmigrator who wields the Green Flame.
You running into my body is no different than... cough, cough... a beauty throwing herself into my arms.
Luke raised his hand in a gesture. The Green Flame scattered across the island rapidly converged toward him. The Green Flame penetrated his skin, seeping into every cell and every part of his soul. The fire burned fiercely, turning Luke into a man of fire.
A high-pitched, miserable shriek, laced with endless despair, came from his mind.
Luke shook his head, speechless. He gave his body a shake, and a yellow sphere of light, completely surrounded by Green Flame, appeared in his right hand. Residing within the light sphere was a tiny, multi-limbed, segmented, insect-like creature—the true, primitive form of Parallax.
"Spare me! Spare me!"
"I don't want to die! Please, Earthling, I am willing to surrender!"
The voice came from within the sphere, filled with intense urgency.
Luke chuckled softly and exerted pressure with his fingers.
Snap!
The sphere shattered. The Green Flame surged, forming a net that completely enveloped the tiny insect inside.
"No! No! No! No! No!"
"I will not let you get away with this, Luke Shaw, native of Earth in Sector 2814! I remember you! I will return for my revenge!"
The insect shrieked and struggled in the flame, constantly spitting out venomous threats. Luke sneered and increased the heat. The Green Flame aggressively eroded its body and incinerated its spiritual essence. In the end, only a patchy yellow halo remained.
"What is this?"
Luke curiously examined it. Suddenly, an immense fear surged from his heart, making his entire body tremble. His fingers shook uncontrollably, his face went pale, and dense sweat broke out on his forehead within two seconds.
Such terrifying power!
Luke involuntarily took a step back, his face unable to hide his shock.
What is that thing? So terrifying! Could it be...
A thought struck him, and his eyes instantly brightened.
The emotional spectrum is one of the fundamental forces of the universe. Each emotion represents a power derived from the rules of existence: Rage, Avarice, Fear, Willpower, Hope, Compassion, and Love. All seven emotions have corresponding physical entities.
Parallax is the source of fear.
The yellow halo was what remained after Parallax was incinerated. It could resist the burning of the Green Flame, suggesting it was at least on the same level of power.
The power of a natural law?
Luke stroked his chin, feeling a slight itch of desire. It was one of the universe's primordial forces, the raw power of fear. If he could get his hands on it...
Luke couldn't contain his excitement, but a thought of the inherent danger made him hesitate.
This thing was too dangerous. A single slip-up could cost him his life.
After a long period of indecision, Luke grit his teeth. It's now or never. I can't miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Taking a deep breath, he cautiously extended his right hand to touch the yellow halo encased by the Green Flame.
Sweat streamed down his cheeks. Luke held his breath, completely focused, and slowly, his fingertip made contact with the halo.
Boom!
An unimaginable psychic impact exploded in his mind.
His eyes rolled back, and he collapsed onto the ground.
The Integration
The yellow halo flowed and shifted, manifesting various bizarre worlds. The structures of these worlds were completely different from any known planet. They contained no life or water, only yellow micro-particles of various shapes.
The Green Flame burned fiercely, permeating every world, turning each one into a sea of fire.
This process seemed long, but in reality, only a few seconds passed.
Soon, the yellow halo vanished, replaced by a green-glowing energy sphere. The sphere melted into Luke's brow, disappearing completely.
The battle ended, and the island returned to silence. This peace lasted only a few minutes. As waves of intense impact came from the distance, Carol (with a bruised face) and Linda (in ripped clothes) appeared in the sky above the island.
Linda gave a cold snort, picked up the Phantom Armor (and Luke inside it), and vanished.
Carol returned the snort and used her power to restore the ruined island to its previous state. Then, she retrieved Hector's massive head from the wreckage and disappeared in the opposite direction.
Political Fallout
Hector is dead!
On television, President Joel Nash personally announced the news.
Following the announcement, Coast City erupted in the most fervent celebration in its history. Citizens poured into the streets, singing and dancing.
Every neighborhood was celebrating. The joyous atmosphere swept away the previous gloom that had hung over the city.
The killer monster was dead. No more trembling and hiding at home. Was there anything more worth celebrating?
Since the Army and the FBI were deployed, the credit for taking down Hector was naturally attributed to the government. Coupled with the media's promotion, the FBI's Ace Five and the Fourth Mechanized Infantry Division quickly became heroes in the public eye.
As for the civilian casualties and economic losses caused by the battle, that was a problem for later.
In the hearts of the American people—who primarily focused on present-day pleasure—heroes came first, and everything else was secondary.
Of course, the celebration belonged only to the common people. The White House office was filled with gloom.
The high-ranking officials had been arguing for two hours over the question of whether Hector was truly dead and still hadn't reached a consensus. President Joel Nash, aiming for the upcoming election, had unilaterally announced Hector's death without definitive proof.
While this boosted his approval ratings in Coast City by at least 10 points, it put the military and the FBI in an extremely awkward position.
As the saying goes: alive, we need to see the person; dead, we need to see the body.
Without a body, death could not be confirmed.
The Fourth ID and the FBI searched the area around the crater for hours but found no corpse. He had vanished. He might have been pulverized by the meteor, or he might have been severely injured and temporarily hiding.
The former was fine, but the latter would be a huge problem. If such an extremely dangerous, anti-human monster recovered and returned, how could they explain it to the citizens of Coast City? Who would bear the responsibility?
FBI Director Jack Harvey and Attorney General Marshall Warren strongly demanded that the President retract his statement and wait until all was settled before speaking.
Joel Nash would never listen. The US President is elected every four years and can only serve two terms. He had only served one, and with the next general election approaching, he could not go back on his word.
To win, he needed support!
To gain support, he had to make the public clearly see that he was the best presidential candidate, and he would fight tooth and nail for it, even if the probability of winning was low. That was Joel Nash's creed.
The two sides argued fiercely over the matter. Eventually, the furious Jack Harvey and Marshall Warren slammed the door and left. Vice President Dick Cheney and several military representatives also left shortly after.
The vast office was left with only the President and a few of his close aides.
Joel said sternly, "Is there any conclusion on the meteor incident?"
Assistant Jason Lowe shook his head.
"No definitive news, but people on the ground say the D.E.O. has relevant intelligence."
"The D.E.O.?"
Joel narrowed his eyes, a trace of coldness flashing within them.
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