Hal's Ill-Fated Search
After being thoroughly chewed out by Sinestro all night, Hal decided it was time to reclaim his courage.
"I am Hal Jordan, the fearless Green Lantern! I must not fear!"
"For the Green Lantern Corps, for Abin Sur, for Tom, and for Car—Carol, I must defeat you, Luke Shaw! Just wait, I will beat you and take back what belongs to me!"
Hal furiously pumped himself up in front of the mirror, then grabbed a Browning handgun he bought on the black market and headed to the suburbs.
He could feel it: the Ring was beneath the artificial lake in the suburbs, which likely housed one of Luke Shaw's secret bases.
Hal drew his pistol and cautiously searched the area. After hours of looking, he had turned over every stone for hundreds of meters but still couldn't find the entrance.
"Damn it! Where is it?"
Hal cursed angrily, looking up at the sky. A clap of thunder lit up half the horizon, and soon a drizzle began, which quickly intensified into a heavy, relentless rain, washing the world in a gray gloom.
Freezing cold, Hal was forced to huddle in his car, cursing the sky and lamenting his misfortune.
Coast City's autumn is notoriously rainy, and the downpour continued ceaselessly.
From morning until evening, the heavy rain refused to stop. Hal, huddled in his van, was like a lapdog abandoned by its owner—cold in body and spirit.
As night fell, he had no choice but to spare Luke Shaw's life for now and try again tomorrow.
The next morning, it took five rounds of his alarm clock for Hal to groggily open his eyes. His limbs felt heavy as lead, his head ached, his throat was scratchy, he felt weak, and he lacked energy. Taking his temperature, he was unsurprised to find it was 39.5°C (103.1°F).
Staring at the number on the thermometer, Hal sank into a prolonged silence.
In that moment, he wanted to commit murder.
In that moment, Sinestro also wanted to commit murder, and also to beat someone up. He strongly suspected that Abin Sur's Ring was faulty for choosing such a simpleton as a host.
The accompanying Green Lantern soldier couldn't bear it any longer and said seriously,
"He needs our help."
Sinestro shook his head coldly. "The Corps requires elites, not cowards. This is his trial. If he cannot complete it, he does not deserve the Ring."
The soldier frowned. "But the Ring chose him."
"The Ring is the Ring. I am me."
After uttering this nearly cold-blooded statement, Sinestro turned and left, his forceful behavior leaving the soldier speechless.
Oa's technology far surpassed Earth's. The Green Lantern Corps soldiers who arrived quickly learned the true nature of the planet from the internet. While they looked down on the backwardness of human civilization, they had to acknowledge the powerful presence of the planet's super-heroes.
Especially Superman of Metropolis—lifting oil rigs, dragging cruise ships, carrying airplanes... such overwhelming power commanded respect.
After returning to the spacecraft, Sinestro pushed Hal out of his mind and focused on the search. The tracker showed that Parallax had landed on Earth and never left.
This meant it was highly likely attached to some Earth organism, perhaps a surface dweller or an Atlantean.
Finding a hidden target among billions of people was not easy. Fortunately, the recent Mummy Case murders provided a clue. The killer, Hector Hammond, had abilities eerily similar to Parallax. It was highly probable that he was the infected individual who had summoned Parallax to Earth.
Confirming the information, Sinestro immediately issued a command: Search for Hector Hammond at all costs.
The big-headed monster had become the fuse for all these events.
Amanda's Leverage
In a hidden missile base in the northeastern part of Coast City.
Amanda Waller and the hastily summoned presidential assistant, Jason Lowe, walked together to a laboratory. Inside a culture dish at the far end of the lab, a perfectly preserved, lifelike giant head floated quietly: Hector Hammond's head.
Just one look, and Jason went pale, as if he had seen a ghost.
"He... he..."
"He is incapacitated and controlled by a special method I used. He will not wake up. You don't need to worry."
Jason immediately sighed in relief. He cautiously looked again, and only after confirming the head in the culture dish showed no signs of waking did he slowly turn his head, speaking with extreme seriousness.
"Madam, I must remind you that your current actions are jeopardizing national security."
Amanda extended her hand.
"Let's talk outside."
Jason gritted his teeth, gave the head a reluctant glance, and followed her out.
The two came to a meeting room. Amanda personally brewed and placed a cup of coffee in front of Jason.
"I have always held deep reverence for the President. However, due to Dick Cheney and others, some misunderstandings occurred. I sincerely hope those misunderstandings can be forgotten."
She then dropped a piece of creamy candy into the coffee.
The candy quickly melted in the hot coffee, releasing an enticing creamy aroma. Jason shook his head dismissively.
"Ms. Waller, you are being too simplistic."
"We have always been well aware of what you and your A.R.G.U.S. have been doing behind the scenes against the President. Now that you've fallen out, you expect us to completely forget the past unpleasantness..."
Jason smiled coldly, his face showing unconcealed disgust. "What do you take us for?"
Amanda ignored his expression, taking a spoon and stirring the coffee until the candy dissolved. She then said unhurriedly,
"The President's biggest concern right now is the upcoming general election. According to the latest polls, his approval rating is under thirty percent. Winning is nearly impossible, unless his election opponents suffer another 'sudden incident.'"
Amanda raised the cup and took a sip. "An event can only happen once, not twice. To prevent similar incidents, Congress and the Federal Court have made detailed arrangements. If you try that again, they will use 'endangering national security' as an excuse to send Joel Nash to prison, where he'll never see the sun again."
"As the President's most trusted assistant, your fate won't be much better."
Jason paused, then said chillingly,
"Are you threatening me?"
Amanda shook her head. "I can raise the President's approval rating from thirty percent to forty percent."
"You must be joking."
Jason stood up abruptly. "Ms. Waller, I don't have time to waste with you here. You can't possibly manipulate the votes of tens of millions of people."
"Since I said it, I have the ability to do it. Just look at Hector. You wasted so much manpower and resources yet couldn't deal with him. If I hadn't intervened in time, Coast City would be hell right now."
That one sentence was like cold water thrown over Jason, instantly cooling him down. After a few seconds of silence, he sat back down in his chair.
"I need to know the detailed plan." He paused, then added, "And your demands."
Amanda placed the pre-prepared document on the table.
"It's all here. You can read it while you talk to the President. I hold deep regret and hope for Mr. Nash. I sincerely hope we can board the same warship, fight side-by-side, and become intimate friends."
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