Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Hope's Peak Academy, Class 77B

It was the cold autumn of October at Hope's Peak Academy. The cold wind was blowing through the area as the leaves of every tree had turned into a rainbow of autumn colors. And inside a classroom, were a bunch of students as they were doing their normal day of school. The teacher, Miss Chisa Yukizome was currently teaching her students on many school subjects as well as helping them improve on their talents. As they had finished with their subjects, Yukizome looked up to the clock and saw that it was nearly time for class to be over. Knowing this, she decided to make an announcement.

"Attention everyone, before we end class, our Ultimate Princess, Sonia, would like to make a quick announcement," Chisa spoke out as she allowed her student to take charge.

"Thank you, Miss Yukizome," Sonia said as she took full center. "As everyone knows, today is my birthday and I planned on having it on a very special place to show my gratitude to being a normal student here."

"So after talking to my parents about it, they agreed to allow me to have my birthday party on one of Novoselic's best cruise ships!" she said with excitement as her eyes sparkled. This got everyone in the classroom extremely excited as this would be many of their first time being on an actual cruise. 

"With that said, I want to inform all of you about something important when coming to the party. Everyone must have an invitation letter I gave all of you in order to enter the party. That should be simple enough, an I correct?" Sonia instructed as she held up a white, fancy looking invitation.

Everyone's response was a simple yes as they all raised there invitation to show Nevermind that they had one. "Well, if that's the case, then there should be no problem."

"It seems you're done with your announcement then," Yukisome said as Sonia nodded in response. "In that case, class dismissed."

With that, everyone began to pack up their things and a couple of them walking up toward the Ultimate Princess to talk about their excitement of this fantastic party. Many others were talking with each other on what they'll be doing at the party, what they will wear, what food will appear, all the kinds of questions that people would ask for a big event like this. There is such a big atmosphere of excitement and happiness as everyone was talking to their friends to express themselves. Everyone looked happy.

Well, expect for one.

Sitting in his desk as he was putting away his stuff in his backpack, was a teenage boy. He had hot pink dye hair, pink contact eyes, and shark teeth. He wore a blue jumpsuit with a baseball cap. This first year student is the Ultimate Mechanic, Kazuichi Souda. He had a very neutral face as he finished packing his things and stood up from his desk. One would think he would be just as excited as anyone about this big event, being able to go to a party on a cruise ship is something anyone would howl in joy about this. 

That is if you were invited to the event in the first place. Yes, Souda was the only one in the entire classroom to not get an invitation to the birthday party. Whether Sonia forgot to give him an invitation or didn't want to, he didn't care. This was something he expected at this point. As everyone were happily chatting away, Kazuichi quietly left the classroom.

'I wonder what I should do today?' Souda thought to himself as he walked through the hallways of the school. 'I could probably fix those appliances some people sent me to fix. Or maybe-"

"Souda!"

Kazuichi was interrupted from his thoughts as he turned around to see who called him. It was a familiar red short bob haired girl with olive eyes, pale skin, and freckles across her cheeks. And like most students, she wore a brown school uniform. The girl is the Ultimate Photographer, Mahiru Koizumi. The red head was walking towards before she finally caught up to him. 

"Oh hey, Koizumi. Is there something you need from me?" Souda asked.

"Yeah, I want to know if my camera is fixed yet? I'd like to have it now with the party that's happening tonight," Mahiru asked him.

"Oh right, you gave me your camera to fix it. Hold on, I think I brought it with me. Let me check," Kazuichi replied as he dug into his backpack. After a couple more seconds of looking, the mechanic pulled out Mahiru's camera and handed it to her.

Koizumi tested out the camera as she took a picture. She smiled in joy seeing that her camera was working again. "Oh, just to let you know. I had your camera completely waterproof so you don't have to worry about it being ruined by any water," Kazuichi added in.

"That's great to hear. Thanks," the photographer said as with a happy look. 

Just then, someone bumped behind Koizumi, spooking her a bit. Souda and her look to see that someone was her best friend. A girl that had an appearance of a small child with blonde hair tied into a ponytail with a pink bow hair tie and orange eyes. She wore a yellow kimono with a pink rose-outline pattern and a purple obi sash, along with Japanese sandals. This child looking high school student is the Ultimate Traditional Dancer, Saionji Hiyoko. 

"Hey Big Sis," she said happily, sounding like a little sister. "I was looking for you. I need your help on what I should wear for the birthday party." 

"Oh right, I promise we do that. Alright, let's get going," Koizumi said as she and Hiyoko walked through the hallways towards their dorms, leaving Souda alone. 

Kazuichi sighed by this as this was a common occurrence for him. As soon as someone talks to someone else, he's pretty much forgotten. He was always annoyed because of that, but at this point, Souda was used to it by now. Feeling a little down, Kazuichi thought he do something tonight to cheer himself up. And he knew just the thing.

Junkyard

It was around seven at night at this massive junkyard near the sea. There were mountains upon mountains of metal scraps, destroyed machines, and lines of nonfunctional cars. Despite the mess of mostly garbage, this was a great place to find some goods. "One man's trash is another man's treasure," Souda would say to himself as he was climbing on a mountain scrap, looking for anything to take. With some gloves on, the mechanic dug through the metal and other worthless junk to find something of worth. After about a minute of digging, Kazuichi cheered to himself as he found himself a small kitchen oven. Though it was broken, there were many parts in it that was very much still functional. Placing it in his duffle bag, Kazuichi continued to look for whatever junk he can use.

After about an hour in, Souda snuck himself through junkyard, passing any guards and dogs,  and made his way to the car section. Walking through the isle of broken down cars, Kazuichi walked towards the very end to find his favorite vehicle in this entire place. A massive, flame decorated, van. Though, like the rest of the vehicles here, it had lost its engine and wheels so it could no longer be driven. However, the surface of the van still looked good with no massive bump on it. 

Souda walked behind the van as he opened the door and entered inside. Turning on his electric  lamp, we see that there were some tools, litter was all over the floor, cardboard covering all the windows, and a blanket and pillows for comfort. It was pretty obvious that this van was Souda's hangout place whenever he snuck into the junkyard and find himself good parts.

Setting his duffle bag down, Kazuichi sat down as he dug through and took out the goodies he found today. From broken appliances, to good mechanical parts, and, surprisingly, an RC toy car that was fixable, Souda hit the junk pot today. 

"Aw yeah, so much great stuff I got today. I don't even know where to start," he said to himself in excitement, feeling like a kid in a candy store. 

"Maybe I'll start with this one." Souda picks up the toy car as he grabbed a screwdriver near him.

But before he could do anything, his phone began to buzz. Kazuichi pulled out his device and looked at it to see what it is. It was a notification for his social media account, MonoBook, telling him that there was something new. Souda decided to check it out as he unlocked his phone. As soon as he saw what the notification wanted to show him, all of Kazuichi's happiness disappeared. Turning into a sadness as he frowned in bitterness.

What he saw was a picture of his classmates smiling at the camera, with the ocean and the main deck in the background, posted on the Class 77B page for everyone to see. In the description of it saying, "Sonia here, having a wonderful time with all my classmates!!!"

"All my classmates?" Souda said to himself as he laughed at this like a sad joke. After all, he was the only one not at the party. But he knew that they wouldn't notice something like that since he was pretty much forgotten. It was always like this since last semester. No, his entire life.

All throughout his life, Kazuichi had no friends. Remembering back in elementary, he was basically a nerd, with black hair and glasses, that studied a lot and tinkered with machines with a look that made him blend with the crowd. He was bullied and taken advantage of because of that. In middle school, the mechanic decided he had enough and changed his appearance to a punk-ish look to make himself look intimidating and cool looking. The result was the people started to leave him alone and the bullying stopped. In fact, people stopped paying attention to him all together. That was when his loneliness really began. Souda thought that maybe being accepted into Hope's Peak Academy and becoming the Ultimate Mechanic would help him finally find some friends. However, that wasn't the case.

All because of his stupid obsession with Sonia Nevermind. As a child that suffered bullying and had family problems back home, Souda dreamt of a beautiful, blonde girlfriend that would be his side and make him feel better, be an escape from the cruel reality that was life. However, this led to becoming an oblivious stalker to the Ultimate Princess. This not only brought a bad imagine towards Sonia, but made him the butt monkey of the class. It was by far one of his biggest regrets in his life which Kazuichi was glad that he finally realized how pointless it was and got over Sonia in four months. After apologizing to her, Souda, at that point, decided to move on.

However, that wasn't easy. Apparently his obsession with Sonia and acting like an idiot was the only thing that made him stand out. Because after that, everyone pretty much stopped talking to him. While everyone was busy being chums with each other, Souda was all alone, doing his own thing. He was only ever called when one of them wanted him to fix something of theirs or make sure everything held on correctly for any event. Events he was never invited or included in to the point he stopped hoping they would. This MonoBook picture only seemed to rub the fact that he was still an unlikable, lonely, loser. 

Feeling some tears appearing, Kazuichi began to wipe them off his eyes and exited out of MonoBook. "Whatever, I already accepted the fact that they'll never like me. So, I don't need them," Souda said himself, upset.

Wanting to either forget the picture or get over this negative feeling, Souda put on some earphones, put up his music, and began fixing the RC toy car. He should know by now that no matter what he does or what change he does himself, inside or appearance, nothing about his miserable life would change.

At least, that's what he thought.

In the depths of space, where the planet Earth and Moon are in full view. Everything seemed normal as expected of this vast unknown. That is until something came into view. A strange, alien looking spaceship is traveling through the void at incredible speeds as it entered into the planet's atmosphere. As heat build up around the ship, turning it into a flaming comet, inside the transportation is an alien. A human looking one with red skin and a strange suit that consisted of black and green with white gloves. And on the fingers of his right hand was a strange looking emerald ring. The red-skinned man was in terrible condition as purple blood oozed out of his abdomen. It was clear that he didn't have long to live. But he had to keep fighting death. As there was one thing he absolutely needed to do before he decease.

Eventually, the spaceship crash lands on a remote island, specifically on the beach. After the large sound of the explosion, the environment became silent as only the sounds of fire appeared. The ship was now a wreck as many pieces scattered around the area either buried in the sand or lost in the wilderness. And fire had appeared all over the place due to the explosion. It seemed that no one could survive a crash like that. 

However, the mysterious alien was able to survive thanks to a green energy surrounding him as he laid in the rough sand. When the green light disappeared, the alien lifted his hand and activated his ring. 

"Find...him, quickly," he uttered.

Back with Souda, the mechanic was still doing his tinkering with the toy until he was finally done. Smiling in satisfaction, Kazuichi lifted the newly fixed RC toy car. "Aw man, this toy looks perfect. Even looks like something you see in a fancy toy store," he said happily as he puts the toy car into his duffle bag. "Maybe I'll donate this somewhere. I bet any kid would love it."

Kazuichi then grabbed onto the RC's remote control. "Now to fix this and the toy car can be used again."

Then suddenly, the van rapidly shook for a few seconds before stopping, scaring the daylights out of Souda. "What the hell?!" Kazuichi said, breathing heavily as he made his way towards the backdoor of the van. "What was that all of a su-" 

As soon as the mechanic opened the door, his face changed to absolutely shock, becoming silent. Kazuichi saw that not only was the van covered in a bright green light, but the vehicle is over a thousand feet in the air. All Souda did was back away, closing the door in the process, as he sat back down. Then, on instinct, Kazuichi gave himself a quick jab to his gut, causing him some pain. 

"Okay...this is not a dream," he groaned in pain. "Then what is hell is going on?"

The van continued to fly through the air until it reached the remote island. The vehicle descended towards the beach as it safely landed onto the sand. Once this happened, Souda slowly opened the backdoor and exited the van. He was surprised to see that he was transported to a random beach of all things. 

"Okay, this is not what I expect to be taken to," Souda said, still shocked by all this. "But why am I here?" 

As the mechanic looked began to look around the area, Souda's head stopped moving as his eyes spotted the crashed spaceship. "Holy crap, what happened?"

As he continued to see the flaming, destroyed vessel, a groan was made which got Kazuichi's attention. Seeing where the noise was coming from, his eyes widen in horror and disbelief. Souda was paralyzed for a moment when he saw the red-skinned man laying in the sand, soaked in his own blood. "Oh my god," the mechanic uttered as he then ran towards the stranger.

Kazuichi kneeled down to the man as he checked on his wound. "Oh man, oh man, what do I do?! Maybe if I move him to the van, I can do something!" he said to himself as Souda began to pick up the stranger. 

"No...it's alright," the stranger said, waving his hand as Kazuichi laid him back down. "It's too late for me…"

"Come on man. That can't be true. I'm sure if I do something I can-" Souda was interrupted as the red-skinned man grabbed onto his jumpsuit and pulled him closer towards him. "It's okay. I knew this day would come...eventually. So...we mustn't waste time," the stranger said, his voice growing weaker by the second. "What...is your name?"

Souda was silent for a moment as he was trying to comprehend all this, but eventually answered. "Souda. Kazuichi Souda."

"Souda. My name...is Abin Sur. I have…brought you here...because you were chosen."

"Chosen? Chosen by what?"

"By this." Abin Sur lifts his hand to show Kazuichi a green ring with a unique symbol of a circle with two tangent bars. "You have been chosen...to be its next wielder."

"What? I-I feel like it made a mistake. There's no way-"

"The ring...does not make a mistake...when choosing it's wielder," Abin Sur spoke, interrupting the mechanic. "Take the ring...and put it on...your finger. Please."

Despite the fear and doubt he was experiencing right now, Souda decided to do what the dying man said and slowly took the ring and put it on his right index finger. "Okay, now what?" he asked.

"Point the ring...inside the battery," Abin Sur said, pointing at a green object near them. Souda quickly went towards the object and picked it up. The mechanic was surprised to see that the object is an old-fashioned oil lantern. But the strange thing about it was that instead of a fire, there was a bright green emerald glow. Something about the light felt powerful yet beautiful to see at the same time. Remembering what he had to do, Kazuichi pointed the ring towards the green light, waiting for the alien's instructions.

"Now...repeat these words...In brightest...day." 

"In brightest day."

"In blackest.. night."

"In blackest night."

"No evil shall...escape my sight."

"No evil shall escape my sight."

"Let those who worship...evil's might."

"Let those who worship evil's might."

"Beware...my power...Green Lantern's light."

"Beware my power...Green Lantern's light?"

Souda's confused thoughts were interrupted as the glow with the lantern emitted a beam of light that went towards the ring. The ring glowed bright with an emerald light. Then, a green flame appeared and began to engulf the stunned mechanic. Despite being on fire, the flames didn't harm him. Souda felt so much power flow through his body, that he felt he could do whatever came to his imagination. The mythical flames began to slowly disappear to reveal Kazuichi Souda, but this time, he was now wearing the same green and black uniform like the one Abin Sur had. Though he no longer has his cap on as his whole hair is out.

Once the transformation was done, Souda looked at himself with complete awe. The change of clothes and power flowing through him made the mechanic feel like a completely different person from before.

"You are now a...Green Lantern. One of the protectors...of the universe," uttered Abin Sur, getting Souda's attention once more. "The Guardians...will sent for someone...to get you."

"Protect the ring...use it...wisely…"

Like that, Abin Sur took his last breath and succumb to his injury.

"Wait, Abin Sur! Who's coming to get me?! Who are the Guardians? What's this all about?" Souda shouted, more confused by all this as he shook the stranger to wake up. But it was all futile, the Green Lantern known as Abin Sur is dead.

Knowing this, Kazuichi just stood there, completely confused by all this. What is a Green Lantern? Who are the guardians? And why was he chosen? He was left with more questions than answers. Despite that, looking at the deceased man, Souda felt that it was appropriate to give him a proper burial. 

"Damn, how the hell do I bury him? I'm going to need a shovel or something to start digging," he said to himself, thinking.

Just then, the ring glowed and emitted a green energy which formed into a shovel. Kazuichi was taken aback by this as he didn't expect this. When he went and touched it, the mechanic was surprised to see what he could grab it, like it was an actual object with mass.

"Holy crap, I just imagine a shovel and this ring made it," Souda said in awe as he looked at the ring. "I wonder..."

Kazuichi began to use his imagination to think of something to summon. Then the ring create another energy object as it took the form of wrench. Then, in quick session, Souda turned the wrench into a sledgehammer, then to a sword, then a toy airplane, and finally into a massive minigun.

"Holy crap," he said as he wield the minigun. He face of awe changed into amazement and happiness. "This is so cool! I never knew I could do something like this! Oh man, the things I can make with this ring."

While he was excited by what else he could do with the ring, Souda was reminded of what he had to do. He still had to give Abin Sur a proper burial. So with the knowledge he gained, Souda used the ring to create a light construct, taking the form of a drill. The mechanic uses the drill to create a hole big and deep enough to bury the red-skinned man. Once it was done, Kazuichi used the ring to pick up the former green lantern and placed him in the hole, which he buried up. With all that done, Kazuichi did a prayer for the stranger.

"Abin Sur, I may not have known you since we only talked for about a minute before you died. I don't even know what kind of person you were or what you did. But like anyone else, you deserve a proper burial. I'm sorry I couldn't save you, but I hope you're able to rest in peace," Souda chanted as he put his hands in a prayer position. He stood there for a minute or two before he left and went back to the van. 

"Man, this day just got crazy. Never in my life did I think something like this would happen to me," Kazuichi said to himself, processing everything that just happened. "While it is cool that I got something out of this, I'm questioning how the hell do I get off this place."

Souda began to brainstorm on what to do until he looked at green ring. "Maybe…"

The mechanic raised his arm to the sky as he got into a flying position.  "Okay, here goes nothing."

"To infinity and beyond!"

And by some crazy coincidence, the ring powered up and launched Kazuichi high into the sky, going above the clouds. At first, this scared the mechanic due to how high he was and surprise that his idea actually worked. Though eventually, that fear turned into flat out excitement and laughter. It was surprisingly easy for him to get the hang of this and fly natural. It was an incredible experience as his heart beat went faster than it has ever been before. The feeling of the air hitting his face, being able to reach heights that even no bird alive could reach, and being able to go at speeds faster than any known jet plane in the world with ease, this is a wonderful feeling Souda was going through. 

"This is awesome! Waaaaaahooooooo!!"

The mechanic could just fly like this without a care in the world. Flying fast, doing tricks, just having the feeling of freedom would have been enough. 

However, Souda remembered that he was flying so that he could fly back home to his dorm at Hope's Peak. So Kazuichi didn't waste any time and flew to the direction to where he believed Japan was. Because, if the mechanic was being honest, he had no idea which direction to take to get back home. It would of taken Souda a while to find land. But thankfully, the ring allowed him to more at incredible speeds to make things easier. It only took Kazuichi a couple seconds to finally spot the coast of Japan's beach in the horizon.

"Finally, now I can get back to my room and sleep this off," the mechanic said to himself, really wanting to go to sleep after this crazy day.

However, Souda stopped himself as he spotted something in the distance. It was some kind of giant boat with very bright lights. Despite the distance, Kazuichi recognize the vessel. 

"Wait a minute? Is that what I think it is?" Souda said as he used his power ring to form binoculars to get a closer look. He was surprised how far the construct allowed him to see but was thankful nonetheless.

It seems that his suspicion was correct as the boat is indeed the cruise ship known as the S.S. Novoselic. Apparently one of the country's ships that Sonia is using to celebrate her birthday party. The things people can get as royalty is incredible.

Though that awe slowly changed into jealous as Souda put down the binoculars. He felt angry and jealous by the fact his classmates were having the time of their lives at a possible one of a lifetime cruise ship party. While he was elsewhere, not giving a damn about him. Even when Kazuichi gained something incredible today, it's not like he can shared this with anyone. However, Souda shook that thought away.

"Whatever, they can have fun with their party for all I care," Kazuichi scoffed as he was about to fly away. 

That he until he heard a sound. A sound that sent a chill down his spine. As sound he was familiar with. A sound of gunshots. And it came directly at the cruise ship.

Souda immediately created binoculars once more and looked at the cruise ship again. Only this time, zoomed in enough to see the people on the vessel. What he saw was truly a horrible sight for anyone.

The mechanic saw all of the people on the boat being pushed by intimidating men with assault rifles. All of them were being forced to into the main deck of the cruise, with many more men aiming their weapons at them to make sure they didn't escape. He even saw a few dead bodies on the floor, showing that they were the ones that tried to fight back and paid the price. One that really got his sight was his entire classroom as they were all grouped together, a few of them that knew how to fight were knocked out. With Sonia Nevermind at full center of it all as she was face to face with a bearded man with an eyepatch, which he assumed was the leader. So far, things were not looking good in the slightest.

"Oh crap," Souda uttered, scared and shocked by all this. "What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?"

"I need to get the police involved, get help. Maybe there's police nearby to-"

Kazuichi stopped his muttering when he looked at the ring on his finger. This helped him remember that he had powers now. He could go and save them from this threat. But he was hesitating himself as Souda didn't know if he would be of any help considering he just got this ring. What could he do against trained and experienced terrorists? Even if he had an incredible power.

But his thoughts were interrupted when Souda heard another gunshot. Looking back at the ship, the mechanic's face changed to complete horror as he saw one of the men with a smoking gun. And in front of him was a dead child, no older than eight. Even worse, the man was smiling at this like it was an accomplishment while other people were crying from this.

The sight was so unbelievable and horrible for Kazuichi that it make him paralyzed with fear as tears appeared. But then that emotion changed into something else. It changed into anger. His hands tighten into fists and his face changed to reflect his current emotion. Seeing this was more than enough to tell Souda what needed to be done. He wasn't going to let any hesitation prevent him from stopping this horrific tragedy. It seemed that the ring responded to that emotion as Kazuichi was now flying towards the cruise ship in order to put an end to this.

Cruise Ship

This was supposed to be a fun night. A party where everyone of her classmates and others could have the time of their lives. Where the only sounds that were made were of shouts of joy and laughter. That was what Sonia was telling herself during all this. But things really took a complete 180 turn here. From gunshots and the murder of a couple of the ship's staff and security, she, her entire class, and everyone else on the cruise ship were now held at gunpoint by a dangerous mercenary group. 

Nevermind looked at her classmates to see how they were doing. Many of their emotions varied from being serious about this while being quiet with the others scared with a couple of them crying. Many of her other classmates, Pekoyama, Nekomaru, and Owari, were knocked out and tied up. Sonia tried to stay strong through all this but she was just as scared as everyone else. Just then, a man walked up towards the princess. While he wore the same mercenary-like outfit like the others, his biggest feature on him was the black beard and an eyepatch on his right eye. 

"Well princess, I must say that this party of yours is absolutely incredible. Good food, nice music, and all of it on a cruise. You really went the extra mile here," the man said with a grin on his face.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Sonia said, demanding to know.

"Oh that's right, none of us actually introduced ourselves," he said, jokingly. "Where are my manners? While I can't tell you our names, I'll tell you that we're a bunch of mercenaries for hire. I believe this should be enough to tell you who we are." He showed the princess their logo which was a black hawk with its wings stretched out. Sonia silently gasped as she realized who they were.

"You're...you're the Black Hawks," she uttered.

"Black Hawks?" Mahiru questioned.

"They're a mercenary group well known in my country for doing misdeeds someone hires them to do as long as they had the money. They've been an enemy to my family for years," Sonia explained in fright.

"Exactly. Your royal family have usually been a pain in our ass when it came to our jobs. Luckily for us, when we found out that you were out of your country and home, out here in the ocean, we found the perfect opportunity to get some needed revenge," he said as he chucked. "As for what we're going to do with you, we're just going to use you for ransom since my group are running low on money. You know how it is."

"Is it the same with the rest of us?" Sonia asked.

"That too, although they aren't that value compared to you. So it won't matter to the world if we killed a few," he said with a shit eating grin that made Soina grit with anger.

"You heartless bastard," she growled. 

"Hey relax, as long as they do we say and don't cause any trouble, then we have nothing to worry about."

Just then, a scream was made and many turned to see what was happening. They see one of the grunts fighting a woman as it looked like he was taking something from her. "Give me the fucking necklace, you bitch!"

"Please, let go of me!"

The struggle continued until a small child came in bit on the mercenary's arm, which caused the man to let go of the woman. In retaliation, the man shoved the boy to the ground and pulled out a pistol. "Little brat," he growled as he aimed his weapon at the boy.

"Don't do it!" Sonia yelled.

But it was too late, the mercenary pulled the trigger and shot the boy, killing him instantly. "Johnny!" The woman, who's the mother, screamed in agony as she held the dead boy. 

"Jesus man, the hell are you doing?" the leader said annoyed.

"Boss, I just wanted the damn necklace from the woman since we'd get a lot of money out of it. But she had to fight back along with that little shit. I was just doing what was necessary," the grunt said, casually.

"Just make sure you don't kill too many. I don't want a fucking mess around here."

"Sure thing boss. Now…" The grunt faced the crying woman again as he aimed his pistol at her head. "Where were we?"

However, just then, a green light came out of nowhere and launched the mercenary away, making him hit the railing of the boat and knocking him unconscious. Everyone was shocked by this sudden action as the mercenaries prepared themselves for this.

"What the hell?" the leader said, weapon ready. 

As the mercenaries looked around to find the threat, the green light appeared again and rammed two more of them, knocking them out. And like that, each and every mercenary, one by one, were being rammed by a mysterious green light and brought into unconsciousness. Seeing this, the mercenary leader grabbed Sonia by the neck and aimed his gun on her head. 

"You're coming with me and if any of you follow me, I'll put a bullet in her head," the leader said as he quickly made his way into the ship's corridors.

Back with Souda, floating over the ship, he was generally surprised to see that he had managed to knock out all the mercenaries on the ship's deck. He felt some kind of accomplishment that he was able to do all this. However, this was far from over as Kazuichi felt there was more of them and had to be ready.

Just as he was about to fly down to the cruise ship to check on the people, the mechanic stopped himself as he realized something. Using his ring to make a mirror, Souda look to see that his face was very much visible and recognizable. "Damn it, I can't go in there like this. Everyone and my classmates will know who I am and things could get complicated," he said to himself. "I need to disguise myself so they won't know it's me."

Using the ring, Kazuichi created accessories that helped hide his identity. A mouth mask to cover his shark teeth, a helmet for his pink hair, and another mask to hide his eyes. Examining his face again, Souda grin to himself as this disguise was perfect. With that, Souda flew towards the ship and made his landing. 

Once he was at full view to everyone on the cruise ship, they all looked at Souda with awe and shock. He even saw a few of them become tense as they prepared for the worst. Kazuichi couldn't blame them since he's basically a mysterious person that came out of nowhere and has superpowers. But he didn't pay attention to that as he walked towards class 77B, specifically his teacher Yukizome. 

"Miss, are you okay?" he asked Chisa as he helped her up.

"I'm...okay. But who are you?" she questioned, is awe by looking at him.

"I'm just someone who was passing by and saw you guys needed help," he said, assuring them that he isn't a threat. "Is everyone where safe?"

"Yes, of course. Other than a few casualties, everyone should be fine," she answered.

"That's good to hear," he said, happily. Though he still felt bittersweet because there were casualties involved. But he'll have to deal with that later.

Souda then looks at the unconscious Peko, Nidai, and Akane with worry. "What happen to them?"

"They were hit on the back of the head, rendered unconscious. They were considered a threat," Chisa explained.

"D-don't wo-worry, the three haven't suffer any extreme injuries, so they'll be fine," Mikan pointed out as she checked in them.

"That's good to hear. But back to important matters, who are these people and why are they here?" Souda asked.

"They apparently called themselves the Black Hawks. Mercenaries for hire. From what they said they wanted to hold us for ransom," Yukizome explained.

"Yeah, it was awful," Mahiru added in, getting the mechanic's attention. "They came out of nowhere, shoot their guns and forces us here. We were just having fun until they threatened our lives. They were even gloating during all this before you came. Then their leader ran off with So-"

Koizumi's eyes widen in fear upon remembering. She then ran towards him and grabbing onto his shoulders, beginning to plead. "You have to save Sonia! Or they'll do something horrible to her!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Calm down!" Kazuichi said as he grabbed a hold of her and calmed her down. "What do you mean by save Sonia?"

"That's right, the leader took our friend, Sonia, inside the ship. He said he shoot her if we went after her," Nanami spoke out, just scared about her classmate's life.

Hearing that brought a lot of fright from hearing this news. But the feeling changed into anger and determination. While Souda may have gotten over her and rid his obsessive feelings towards her, Sonia was still his classmate and there were people that cared about her. So he knew he had to save her no matter what.

"In that case, I'm going after them and saving your friend," Kazuichi said with determination. "Do you guys might know where he might have taken Sonia?"

The only response he got was many of them shaking their heads and the others not responding. 

"Sorry man, there's a lot of places where the bastard could of taken her," Fuyuhiko spoke out. "Besides, there could be more mercenaries still inside. So that could be a problem." Hearing that made Kazuichi groan in frustration.

"Damn it. Even worse since I don't know anything about this ship or how many more mercenaries there are so I'll be going in blind," Souda said annoyed as he looked at his ring. "I wish I could just scan this ship and know where they are and how many."

"Affirmative"

Kazuichi blinked for a moment before looking at the ring in shock by the fact that it talked. Just then, the ring sent out a green wave around the ship before it responded again.

"All remaining mercenaries are in the boiler room of the ship with only seven remaining as well as about fifteen hostages with them. With a hostage being held by their leader."

Souda was quiet for a moment as this was completely new to him. He did not think the ring would be able to talk back to him like that. But, he shook it off as there was still business he had to deal with.

"Okay, now I know how I should handle this. I want everyone here to move to a safer location and to tie up the other mercenaries good and tight. I have a feeling they'll try to attack again when they wake up," he instructed class 77B to do. "I'll take care of the rest." He then made way towards the inside of the ship.

"Wait."

Souda stop in his tracks as he turned around to see Koizumi walk up to him with worry on her face. 

"Please, bring our friend back safe and sound," she said with desperation in her voice.

Hearing that, Kazuichi was now more determined to save Sonia and take down these Black Hawks. "I will," he replied as he flew into the ship's corridors.

Boiler Room

After a quick flight, Kazuichi finally made it to the boiler room of the ship. Hiding behind a crate, he took a look at the room filled with pipes, levels, dials, and other machinery. And in the center of it all was the hostages, presumably the boiler room staff, as they were surrounded by six mercenaries with their guns aimed at them. And in what seemed to be the office for the boiler room, there was the leader with Sonia beside him, very much afraid by all this. 

Souda knew he had to take down all of these mercenaries at once along with the leader or else someone could get killed. So he began to brainstorm ideas on how to deal with this. So he began to think of different superpowers Souda's seen from the manga and comic books he's read before that maybe his ring could replicate. Then an idea came up.

"Hey ring, could you make me turn invisible?" he asked the ring quietly.

"Affirmative. It should be simple enough."

In an instant, the ring turned Souda invisible as he was completely out of sight and bend with the environment. "Okay, let's do this."

As that was going on, Sonia was sitting on a chair as the leader of the Black Hawks was pointing a gun at her, thinking of what to do right now. The fact that someone or something had come out of nowhere and put a massive dent to his plans was unexpected. Even worse, the green light could come after him.

"Damn it all. Years of planning and supplies use for this, down the fucking drain. This was not supposed to happen," the leader growled quietly. "What the hell am I supposed to do?!"

"I suggest that you surrender."

The leader was taken out of his thoughts when he looked at Sonia, who had spoken. "It's obvious at this point that this green threat is going to defeat you considering it had disposed of the rest of your men," she said to him. "Your only option at this point is to surrender to prevent any more casua-"

The Ultimate Princess was interrupted when the leader backhanded her in the face, forcing her to the floor. Sonia held her cheek in pain as it was bruised, tearing up.

"I don't remember asking for your opinion!" he shouted as he stomped on Sonia's back, yelping in pain. "My plans may have failed, but that doesn't mean I'm out!"

He then grabbed Nevermind by the hair as he pulled her face to face. "Besides, as long as I have you as a hostage, I'll be perfectly fine. After all, you're worth more than everyone on this ship combined."

As he said that, the window of the office was broken into pieces as something burst inside. The leader of the Black Hawks was caught off guard by this as he was suddenly punched in the face, crashing into the wall.

Sonia was surprised by this as she laid on the floor. She wondered who was responsible for this as the princess didn't see anyone else in the room. That is until a green light appeared then quickly disappeared to reveal a stranger in a green and black uniform, which was Kazuichi. While he was glad Sonia was alive, Souda was more focused on the leader, who was slowly getting back up, as he had a face of anger. As he took care of the remaining mercenaries and save the crew, the mechanic had witness this pathetic human being hurt Sonia. He wasn't going to let that stand. 

As the mercenary leader was about to pull out his second pistol to retaliate, Souda had already closed the gap between them. "You fucking scum!" Kazuichi shouted as he punched the leader in the face, making him drop his weapon. At that point, it became a fist brawl. Despite the mercenary leader being leagues more skill in combat, that didn't matter to Souda as he overwhelmed him with his overpowered strength and speed. Even when the leader got a good hit on the green stranger, it didn't slow Kazuichi down as he continued his onslaught on the man. Souda just kept on attacking the man to the point that he was positive that he broke a bone or two. At that point, the leader was already close to unconsciousness as he could barely stand properly let alone fight back. Despite this, Souda still wasn't satisfied as he wanted to make the man suffer as he was about to punch him again.

'Souda…'

Hearing that, Kazuichi stopped himself from punching the man as his fist was mere inches towards his face. He just stood there quietly as the mechanic was wondering what the voice was and why of all time he was remembering it. Until he recognized it. The voice belonged to her.

'There's nothing wrong with feeling anger and wanting revenge. But, you should never act on them. Because you're not like that. You're a kind boy.'

The voice and words were enough to get Souda's head straight and finally stop as he let the mercenary leader collapse to the ground, unconscious. Now with the threat taken care of, Kazuichi paid his attention at Sonia, who was looking at him with a neutral, hard to read look. 

"Hey, um...are you okay? Need any help?" he asked.

The response Souda got was her immediately running up to him and tightly hugging him. While caught off guard, he could hear Sonia begin to cry heavily on his chest. "Thank you...thank you…" she muttered with a voice filled with gratitude. Hearing that, Kazuichi had a warm smile on him as he hugged her back to comfort her. 

"Your welcome."

After about a couple minutes of her crying, Sonia had finally stopped crying and calmed herself. With that, the disguised Souda and Sonia left the office, with the mechanic carrying the unconscious leader in a green restraint. They walked back to the boiler room to meet with the freed crewmen, who had just finished tying up the other mercenaries and keeping an eye on them.

"Hey guys, looks like things are taken care of here," Souda asked the crewmen. 

"Yup, other than a few bruises, we're fine. We also called the others on the deck to let them know we're alright. They also told us that all the mercenaries are locked up so they won't be attacking us anytime soon," the boss of the crewmen explained to Souda, who sighed in relief.

"That's great to hear," Souda replied.

"Yeah, all we have to do is get this ship moving and get back to land. So the police can deal with them," the boss said happily.

"Uh boss, that might be a problem!" one of the crewmen shouted, getting the boss's attention. "It looks like the mercenaries mess up and destroyed some of the controls here! It wouldn't be safe for us to drive this ship back to shore if we don't have access to the engines here!"

"What?! Can't we fixed it?!" the boss yelled, displeased by this.

"We can but it'll take hours! And even then, we don't have the necessary parts to make a full repair! So at this point, our option is to call for someone to pick us up and wait!"

"God damn it," the boss grunted in frustration. "That'll take too long. And I really don't want to wait with these bastards here considering they could come up with something to take back control."

"So what do we do?" another crewman asked. At that point, they all began to think of what to do next.

"Wait!" Sonia spoke up loudly getting everyone's attention. "It's possible that our green savior has an idea that could help us here. Maybe even fix the controls!"

With that said, everyone turned their attention the Souda, the green savior, who looked a bit taken aback by this sudden change. But, nevertheless, Kazuichi began to think of what to do. He could fix the controls with him being a mechanic and the ring would make this easier and faster to do. However, something else came in mind.

"Well, I'm pretty sure I can fix the controls," Souda said as he looked at his ring with a grin. "But, I think I have a better idea in mind.

Docks

Somewhere in the docks of Kanto, we see a small security post. Inside it is a security officer as he was currently reading a manga, Red Eyed Killer, out of boredom. "Hm, this has good ideas, but the execution of them and characters are terribly written," he said as he continued reading.

Just then, a tapping sound was made on the glass on his post, stopping the guard from reading. The security guard went outside to see who it was out there that was calling him. Stepping outside, he didn't see anyone out there, only boats and cargo as far as the eye could see. 

"Excuse me, sir!"

The guard was taken aback by the sudden voice and turned to see where it was coming from. The man's eyes widen in shock by what he was seeing. He saw Souda floating in front of him and above him is the S.S. Novoselic as it was being carried by a bright green hand construct. 

"Is there a free dock here where I can put this ship at?!" Souda asked loudly.

While the security guard was quiet by the utter ridiculousness of a ship in the air, he responded by shaky pointing to the left. Souda look to the left and saw a free spot to put the ship at. "Thank you!" Souda shouted with a smile as he and the ship floated to the open dock.

As the mechanic left, the security guard fell on his butt to the ground. Questioning what he saw was real or not. Though there was one thing he knew. He was not going to forget about this in a lifetime.

Back at the cruise ship, once it was placed in the docks, everyone was now sitting around as they waited for the police to come. The ship's crew, along with the awoken Peko, Nekomaru, and Akane, got all the mercenaries together as they tied them nice and tight. And Mikan was currently checking and nursing the injured. Souda flew back to the deck and was greeted by Sonia and Yukizome. 

"Green savior, I can't thank you enough for coming to our rescue. I don't know what would've happened if you didn't come," the princess said, expressing her gratitude towards the hero. 

"It's fine. All I did was do what anyone would do in a situation like that. I'm just glad I was able to stop them before they did anything worse," Kazuichi said casually.

"Maybe, but you really did do a lot of good here today. You are definitely what others would call a hero," Chisa commented, causing the masked hero to smile.

Just then, the rest of class 77B ran up and surrounded the green hero, acting like a bunch of fans meeting a famous celebrity.

"Oh my god! Never in Ibuki's life did she think she see an actual superhero!" Ibuki said cheerfully.

"That was incredible. It was like seeing a video game come to life," Chiaki commented.

"You are definitely hero material. Especially with that nice body of yours," Teruteru commented in his typical sexual tone. 

"The costume, the mask, and the powers I saw. You've given me so much inspiration on what characters I can make for my anime," Ryota said.

"Oh yeah! You certainly showed your fighting spirit out there!" Nekomaru shouted with so much enthusiasm.

Hearing all these comments, Souda couldn't help but smile happily from this. After all, this was a really long time since he's ever been praised. Even more surprising that level of positivity from the comments was this high. The mechanic truly felt special because of this.

As this happened, Mikan came up to the class, nervous as usual as she had news for them. "G-good news everyone, it seems like no one was seriously injured so we should be good."

"That's great to hear Tsumiki," Yukizome said.

"Although, we lost people today. It's only ten people, but still, it's a tragedy," Mikan said in a sad tone.

The atmosphere became gloomy as they were reminded of the people that lost their lives tonight. Kazuichi was even looking at the rows of the deceased as they were laying the floor with white sheets over them. Specifically, he was looking at the crying woman as she was grieving over her child's deceased body. It was such a heartbreaking sight to see. It made him hate himself for not being able to prevent this. 

"If only I'd gotten here sooner…" he uttered angrily, gritting his teeth and gripping his hand into a fist. He thought of the many ways he could have stopped this from happening. Calling himself pathetic for not taking that option in the first place. 

Then suddenly, Souda felt someone held onto his wrist, snapping him out of his thoughts. He looked to see Mahiru, who was giving him her famous scolding glare that meant she was going to set him straight. 

"I know what you're thinking about so you better stop now!" Koizumi scolded him as she continued. "Don't think for a second that you're responsible for that kid's death. You weren't the one that led to his death. He died because that mercenary bastard shot him. And he and his friends would have killed more of us if you didn't come in and take them out. So stop thinking you were responsible because you weren't!"

While Kazuichi was taken aback by her words, though he expected Mahiru to act like this from past experience, he was surprised to see her face changes into a saddened and understanding look. "You did what you could. Even if we lost people today, you saved us from an event that would have been the death of us all," she said with a sense of relief and gratitude.

Souda was generally surprised to hear Koizumi say something like that to him. But he was glad she did as the mechanic felt like he really needed it.

"She's right," Pekoyama spike out, getting the green savior's attention. "From experience, in these kinds of situations, it's expected that someone could die at any moment. That's the harsh truth. What matters is that you were able to save everyone on this cruise from the same fate."

"Exactly, it sucks that we lost people, but let's just be happy that every else made it out safe and alive," Fuyuhiko added in, smiling.

Kazuichi stood there quietly as he processed everything his classmates told him. Eventually, he was able to grin to himself. It's sad that people died today. But at least he saved everyone from sharing their fate as they can continue to live on with their lives. "Thank you guys. I really needed that," he said happily with the class smiling back.

"Anyway, have you called the police to come?" the mechanic asked the princess. 

"Affirmative, the police along with the Special Assault Team will come in about a minute or two to apprehend the Black Hawks. We won't have to worry about them anymore," Sonia explained, happy about this.

"If that's the case, then my work here is done," Souda said as he began to walk towards the edge of the ship.

"You're not going to stay?" Imposter spoke out.

"Nah, not really a fan of being interrogated by the police. You know, superhero stuff. Secret identity and whatnot," Kazuichi explained as he began to float. Just as he was about to fly off, Mahiru grabbed onto his wrist, getting the green savior's attention.

"Wait, can you at least us who you are or a title of some kind?" the photographer asked him with many of his classmates waiting in anticipation.

Souda was silent as he was somewhat panicking in his head as he didn't have a name for himself. There's no way he was going to tell them his real identity. And he couldn't come up with a good hero name. The only hero name he got from was from Sonia, but that's it. But then, he remembered a title that the alien, Abin Sur, gave him. A title that he got when the ring chose him as it's next wielder. Remembering that, Souda looks back at his class with confidence in his eyes.

"For obvious reasons, I can't tell you my real name. But as for my title. Call me...Green Lantern."

With that, Green Lantern flew off the ship and into the night sky, leaving a bright green trail behind and making class 77B speechless in awe. 

Souda flew through the skies as he was finally heading back to his dorm room. While it was such an amazing experience for him today from saving people, to being given a powerful ring, Kazuichi was relief that he could finally go home and get some sleep. 

"Man, today was an experience. Never in my life would I imagine myself doing all that," he said to himself as he looked at the emerald ring. "While I still have questions about all this, I'll ask them tomorrow. Right now, I'm going to lie on my bed and sleep this off like it was a bad hangover."

While Kazuichi Souda didn't know what challenges or events that would happen to him now that he has this green ring, he would have to prepare himself for those to come. So, for now, Souda will have to wait until whoever will come to pick him up and start his journey as a Green Lantern.

Space, Unknown Planet

In deep space, we see a deserted planet that's near our solar system. This yellow planet was a completely rocky terrain with no signs of organic life. The planet was completely empty. It was until we see something lying on the ground. It was some man looking machine of red and blue. It was completely motionless as it didn't look like there wasn't any power in it. That is until

"...Reboot Sequence Complete"

Like that, the eyes of the android brighten up green and began to stand up. Picking up a mechanical staff, the android checked on its systems to see if everyone is functional. With everyone looking fine, the machine used some kind of tracking system and looked around the depths of space. It kept looking until the system picked up something. An energy source. Fueled by willpower.

"Will detected."

Uttering those two words, the android activated its rockets on its feet and began to fly through the black endless sea of stars and planets. To go to its main target. To kill the Green Lantern.

Chapter Text

Hope's Peak Academy, Dormhouse

Inside his room, which had a bunch of tools and machinery laying around the floor, is Souda. Sleeping away after the events that happened yesterday night. Everything was very much peaceful until...

BEEP BEEP BEEP

The sound of his phone's alarm went off and rang loudly throughout the room. Taking action, the mechanic grabs his phone and immediately turns it off, groaning in annoyance, as he wanted to sleep some more, but the alarm had fully awakened by now. Begrudgingly, he got up to a sitting position and began stretching his arms and shoulders.  

"Man, what a dream. To think I actually became a superhero in it," he said to himself, still stretching. "Pretty cool experience I have to say."

Once he finished his stretches, Souda noticed on his right hand, the green ring was still there on his index finger. Seeing it, Souda truly remembered the events that took place last night. 

"Oh… right. It wasn't a dream. It actually happened," He said, still surprised by all this. He was just a regular high school student. For the most part as he had an Ultimate Talent. But even with a talent, he never really considered himself special. Seeing as he was pretty much an outcast for most of his life. To think that a nobody like him was chosen to become a Green Lantern. Even more shocking was that he, considering his anxious personality, was able to defeat a terrorist group and save a ship full of people. Granted, he couldn't save everyone, but he still saved lives nonetheless.

"Oh man, even after getting a good night's sleep, I still can't get over the fact that I was given this ring," Souda said as he looked at the green ring, remembering what the red alien told him. "I know that I'm supposed to be a guardian, but I still don't know anything about the Green Lanterns." 

He wanted to know more about the Green Lanterns so he could get a better understanding of what he's going to do before being picked up by whoever that was coming for him. It's not like he can just ask his ring for those kinds of answers. 

Oh wait…

"Ring, you can answer me any question about the Green Lanterns, right?" Souda asked from his ring.

"As long as it's within my knowledge, then yes."

"Good enough for me," uttered Kazuichi before he asked his question. "Ring, what are the Green Lanterns?"

With that, the ring began to create a hologram that showed him all kinds of different aliens that wore the same outfit and ring like Abin Sur. There were all kinds of crazy aliens there. From humanoids, jellyfish looking ones, a few resembling animals. And one he swore he saw was one with a volcano for a head. They were all flying as they used their rings to create energy constructs. 

"Founded by the Guardians of the Universe three billion years ago, The Green Lantern Corp is an intergalactic police force that is responsible for the protection and safety of the entire universe. With one or two Green Lanterns assigned to one sector out of the 3600, they are in charge of keeping peace and order within it."

"A police force? Damn," Souda uttered in awe by the amount of information he was given. 

"To become a Green Lantern, the Guardians created the most powerful weapon in the universe, the Power Ring."

The Power Ring? At least Souda now knew the name of his ring. 

"The ring can only be used by someone with great will and the ability to overcome great fear. So the ring will search for a worthy successor with those traits. Whether be by the Guardians or when a Green Lantern falls in the line of duty, should the previous user allow it."

The ring stopped with the hologram as everything returned back to normal. 

"Because you met these requirements, you were deemed worthy to replace Abin Sur and become the newest Green Lantern."

Kazuichi sat there in silence, processing everything the ring had told him. It was extraordinary to hear that someone like himself was chosen to be a part of a massive police force. To be worthy of being given one of the most powerful weapons in the universe. It felt too much for him. He felt so much confidence in himself because the ring saw something within him that decided that he was worthy.

At least, that's what he wanted to feel. 

In reality, even if the ring said so, he didn't feel worthy. Souda didn't do anything that he would recall that made him hero material. He never did anything that truly made him stand out other than his talent. He was just a lonely mechanic with past issues. 

While he was grateful that he was chosen to be a Green Lantern, a part of him still felt that the ring made a mistake.

But he didn't dwell on that for too long when he checked the time and showed that it was 7:30 am.

"Aw crap, I gotta get ready or I'll miss class!" Souda immediately got up from his bed and changed into his usual jumpsuit for the day.

Hope's Peak Academy, Main Building

Running through the halls, Souda was hurrying to get to class and to not be late. He eventually made it to classroom 77B and opened the door to enter. To his surprise, the classroom was empty. Which was odd since it was about to be eight and class would begin. 

"Where is everyone?" Kazuichi wondered as he entered the classroom. Did something happen to them or class was moved somewhere else? 

"Souda?"

Kazuichi was startled as he turned around to see where the voice came from. At the front entrance to the class was Mahiru. The two stared at each other for a few seconds before Souda said anything. "Koizumi. Glad to see someone else made it to class."

"Souda, what are you doing here?" Mahiru asked 

"Ah… to attend today's class," Souda answered bluntly.

"Souda, did you not get the email we were sent this morning?" The photographer questioned the mechanic.

Kazuichi was shocked to hear this as he grabbed his phone. "Email? We were given an email?" he said, searching through his email account.

Koizumi groaned as she expected this. "Geez, typical of a boy. Yes, we were given an email by Ms Yukizome."

She was right. Souda found the email and opened it as it read:

Dear Students of Class 77B

Due to the horrific event that had conquered last night, class will be canceled for today. I wish you to be able to recover and calm yourselves when we meet again. 

Sincerely, your teacher,

Ms. Chisa Yukizome 

"Oh wow, your right. Can't believe I missed that," Souda admitted.

"Honestly, this is something I would have expected from you," Mahiru huffed. 

Souda scratched the back of his head, wincing from Koizumi's words. "Okay, I get it. It was stupid of me to not check something important like that. Though why are you here anyway, knowing class is cancelled?"

"I forgot that I left my chopsticks inside my desk so I came here to get them," Koizumi answered as she headed towards her desk to get her chopsticks.

"I assume that you're going to eat something," Souda said. 

"Souda, that's really none of your business. I'll be leaving now," she huffed as the photographer made her way towards the classroom door. 

"Wait!"

Mahiru stopped as she turned back to Kazuichi, taken back by his shout. As his spooked she was, Souda sighed as he rubbed his neck. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to shout. I wanted to ask you something."

"Geez Souda, learn to control your voice next time," Koizumi scolded the mechanic, her hands on her hips. 

"Right. Again, sorry," Kazuichi replied back, feeling guilty.

Hearing that, the photographer let out a groan before calming herself. "Okay, what is it that you wanted to talk about?"

"I just wanted to know if you're doing alright? Especially hearing about what happened to you and our classmates at the cruise," Souda asked.

"Oh, so you've heard," Koizumi said, feeling gloomy from remembering those events. 

"Yeah, I found out this morning when looking through my phone," Souda answered with sympathy. "I wanted to know how everyone was doing after all that. But I guess that's not happening."

"Well you can't blame them. We were put into a situation where any of us could have died. Right now, we're just trying to calm ourselves down. Do something to get our minds off the whole thing. I'm actually going to hang out with my friend at the Reserve Course," Mahiru explained. 

"That's great to hear. It's good to be with a friend to talk to about it," the mechanic said before deciding to ask her a question as something else came to mind. "By the way, not to sound nosy, but how did you guys manage to get out of that mess?"

Mahiru began to smile as she said, "We were saved by a superhero."

"Superhero? As in the ones you see in comics?" Souda asked, being skeptical about this. Well, more like acting skeptical as he knew Koizumi was referring to him when he was disguised as Green Lantern.

"Mhm, it was crazy though. I never thought we would be saved by a superhero," Mahiru said as he reminded the emerald man, smiling warmly by his green light. "Green Lantern, he called himself. Not a bad name."

Souda nodded in response, secretly glad that the name stuck so well. "Not a bad name. Wish I could have seen him in action."

"Yeah you wo-" Koizumi stopped talking when she realized something. "Wait a minute, what do you mean by that? Weren't you on the ship?"

"Oh… well, um…" Souda uttered out, trying to explain himself.

Mahiru beat him as she began to speak. "Now that I think about it, I never saw you once at the party. Did you even go?"

Souda looked a little nervous due to the photographer's questioning. But he decided to answer her question. "Well… not really. No."

"Really? How come? It was Sonia's birthday. You should have been there like the rest of us," Koizumi said, demanding an answer. 

Souda was silent at that moment as he felt trapped into a corner. He didn't want to tell her that he wasn't invited to the party. He felt that would cause more drama into the situation. And Koizumi was dealing with enough after yesterday. So with some quick thinking, Kazuichi thought up a believable excuse. 

"Well, I was really busy with something. Someone needed me to fix something of theirs and they were urgent about it. And when I finished, I lost track of time and didn't realize that it was night time. So I didn't get the chance to go to the party."

"Really? That does sound like you. But seriously, you could have finished the job faster or rescheduled? I know it's your side job but still," the photographer argued. 

"I know, I know. Rescheduling never came to mind. Also, I may be the Ultimate Mechanic, but it still takes me time to fix stuff," the mechanic retorted. 

Mahiru sighed at his response. "I guess that's understandable. But you need to be more considerate next time. After all, we're all classmates and we should be together in events like these."

"I-I'll keep that in mind next time," Souda replied with a small chuckle as he rubbed the back of his neck. While he seemed good about it, inside, he felt self-conscious about the words Mahiru told him. 'She says I should be more considerate. Yet I doubt the others would care… they barely know I exist.'

"Anyway, I hope you're feeling a little better after going through all that," Souda said, being sympathetic.

"Thanks. Well, I better get going then. Can't have my friend waiting." Like that, Mahiru began to make her way towards the doors and exit the classroom.

"Wait!"

In a sudden move, Koizumi stopped in her tracks, a little shocked by Souda's sudden shout. Even the mechanic was taken back by this. He didn't know why he did what he did, but a part of him felt like he needed to. Once Mahiru turned back towards him, Kazuichi was quick to speak out his words.

"Listen, if you ever want to talk to someone about all this or to relieve yourself, you can talk to me."

Mahiru was taken back from hearing this as she looked at Kazuichi with shock in her eyes. Souda's eyes widened in surprise as he just released what he had said. When a part of him wanted the mechanic to say something towards the photographer, he did not expect those words to come out of his mouth.

"Souda… are you telling me that you want to hang out with me?" Koizumi spoke out.

Kazuichi was stunned for a moment, starting to sweat a little, before he quickly responded. "Oh, um, yeah. You seem very interested in this Green Lantern so I thought it would be interesting to know about him from you. But if you don't want to, that's fine too."

Koizumi was about to speak up about his proposal, but by some kind of instinct, Kazuichi spoke once more. "Well, I better get going. I just realized I haven't had breakfast yet and I need to buy some stuff for my workshop. So I better get going. See ya!"

Like that, Souda immediately stormed out from the classroom, leaving the stunned Mahiru alone. He kept moving in a fast and panic state until he found himself outside the school building. Once alone, Souda leaned against a nearby wall, taking a breather and calming down his nerves.

'Holy shit, what did I just say?' Souda thought to himself, still trying to process what he had said earlier. 'Why did I say that?'

Kazuichi simply groaned as he began to make his way towards the school gates. 'Maybe a trip to town could calm my nerves. I just hope nothing too crazy happens today.'

Tokyo

In a busy street, in the middle of the city, people were minding their business. People were driving their cars through the roads, others were in stores or shops to buy what they needed, and the rest were walking down the sidewalk to get to their destination. All and all, everything felt very normal.

One man was currently driving in his car, heading to his destination. Everything seemed okay… until something fell from the sky and landed in front of his car. The man barely had any time to process this before hitting the brakes. He was barely able to stop the car in time from hitting whatever it was in front of him. 

"What the fuck?!" the man shouted in shock. He went out of his spooked state to see what just happened. His eyes widened by the bombshell he was seeing. Standing tall, the red and blue machine stood in front of the vehicle, showing signs of hostility. The people around the area looked at the machine with awe and fear. They wondered what it was and why it was here. 

All the while, the robot was currently scanning the city to find its target. Eventually, the machine found something in its radar. Green energy of willpower. It was a small signal but it was noticeable enough for the android to know where it is. 

"Will detected."

The machine grabbed the car in front of it and threw it aside, sending the car a good couple feet up as it crashed into a building. The man could only scream in fright as he was engulfed by the explosion, killing him. 

Seeing this, everyone in the area began to run for their lives, away from the mechanical murder. Others were getting out of their cars as the machine pushed the vehicles aside as it continued to walk towards its destination.

After getting some screws and parts for his next project, Souda made his way to a nearby fast food joint called the Ronald King to get something to eat. 

"Man, this place really knows how to make a good hamburger and fries," Souda said, sitting as a table and enjoying the taste of his food. As he continued to eat, the mechanic's mind suddenly remembered the conversation he had with Koizumi. Specifically the part where he unknowingly asked if she wanted to hang out with him. 

Kazuichi groaned in embarrassment from that. "Why did I ask her that? We barely know each other and rarely talk. So why would she want to even be around someone like," he uttered it himself, groaning. "Besides, she pretty much has a bad opinion on men."

Souda then looked at the glass window of the restaurant next to him, seeing his reflection. Just seeing his own reflection reminded the mechanic of what he did during his first semester of school. Specifically, the things he did to get the princess's attention. "I bet I'm considered one of the worst in her eyes," he said, feeling gloomy. 

Kazuichi looked back at his food as he picked up a french fry and ate it. "Why do I still keep hoping that I'll find someone I can actually trust? I should know by now that's never going to happen."

As he was about to continue eating his lunch, the door to the restaurant opened to reveal a man. The man looked scared and paranoid as he ran towards the counter, to the cashier. "Billy, turn the channel to the news!" he shouted.

"What, why would I-"

"Just do it!"

Seeing how serious his friend was, the cashier took out the remote and changed the TV channel to the News. As well as putting up the volume at its highest. 

"This is channel 6 News bringing in horrible news!" the news reporter said in horror. "At around 8 a.m, massive destruction had occurred in downtown Tokyo and is now spreading into a nearby neighborhood area. Witnesses report that the cause of all this is some kind of extraterrestrial being."

"We go to our reporter, Yuki Watanabe, for a report of the disaster at hand."

The scene changed into a split scene with the male reporter on the left scene and a woman reporter on the right scene as multiple soldiers were behind her, setting up for battle. "Thank you Lee. As you can see, the situation has gotten extreme. To the point that now the military has been called in to deal with this new threat."

"Is there anything else to report about this extraterrestrial being that has appeared?" the male reporter asked.

"From what the people said that witnessed the being, they describe it as some kind of mechanical robot," the woman reporter answered.

'A robot? How could a robot become a massive threat?' Souda thought as he felt this was impossible. Especially seeing as how robotics haven't reached that level of machinery yet. 

"While we do not know what this robotic menace wants, we just hope that our soldiers are enough to take it down," Yuki commented. "This thing must not-"

"Captain, I see it! It's coming this way!"

Hearing that, the camera was positioned towards the end of the street. And at full view, everyone in the restaurant saw the robot, walking and throwing away anything in its way. When Souda saw the machine, he felt his spine shiver in fear. The way the robot looked made it menacing. It was like something that came out from a horrifying nightmare. He's seen his fair share of all kinds of robots when he studied robotics. But this machine was way too advanced from anything he's ever seen. It looked extremely dangerous. It almost looked unstoppable.

"Men! Open fire!" 

With that, the soldiers fired their assault rifles and launchers while the tanks fired their destructive shells at the robot that created a massive explosion. Engulfing it completely. As the huge fire appeared, the soldiers and news crew looked at the sight in silence. 

Like them, everyone and Souda looked at the TV screen, waiting in anticipation. Wondering how much damage was done towards the robot. Or if it was even destroyed.

"D-Did we destroy it?" one of the soldiers uttered out. 

"I-I think we did," another said, smiling in relief. 

But then, out of the flames, a green beam of light appeared as it hit one of the tanks, destroying it and killing any soldiers in or near the vehicle of war. 

"What the?!" one of the soldiers shouted in horror and disbelief.

Looking back at the flaming inferno, the robot slowly walked out, showing no signs of damage done to it. Not even a scratch could be seen anywhere on its metal frame. With its arm up, the android fired out more green lasers from its hand, destroying the remaining tanks and killing a few more soldiers in the process. 

"Open fire!!!"

With that simple command, the remaining soldiers fired their weapons at the android once more. With a few launching more rockets or throwing grenades at it. However, it was all in vain as the bullets and explosions did nothing to make a single dent on the robot. Deciding to retaliate, the machine opened up its compartment in its shoulders and fired multiple rockets at the soldiers. Engulfing them in a massive explosion, leaving no survivors. 

The news crew saw in horror by the complete and utter massacre this machine had displayed with ease. Never did they believe that this robot would be this powerful, this dangerous. 

"Oh god…" the new reporter woman uttered in shock before changing into a state of panic. "We have to get out of here now! This is not worth it!"

But before they could do anything, the android paid its attention at the news crew as it aimed its hand at them. 

"Your military means nothing to the Manhunters."

With that, the machine fired a massive laser beam at the news crew. All they could do was scream and they were engulfed by the burning, green energy. Like that, the screen went static. 

Everyone who has witnessed this massacre we're left speechless. The news reporter in the station was silent as his composure was starting to slip, showing fright. The people in the restaurant weren't any better. Men were sweating, trying to hide their fear. Women were weeping from the horror they had seen, hoping that all of this was some kind of sick joke. And the children were in shock as they were trying to comprehend all this. After all, this was their first time seeing an actual genocide. The parents hugged their children to provide comfort to not only them, but for themselves. 

Souda, like the rest of them, was absolutely terrified by what he had seen. It was like what had happened at the cruise ship with the terrorists and how they had killed a few innocent people. But this was on a whole different level. With the terrorists, they were still human beings that didn't pose too much of a threat to him and could be easily dealt with. But this robot was much more menacing as it had displayed its power by destroying the military fleet with ease. With no hesitation. No remorse. No mercy. He felt his anxiety build up as small tears appeared in his eyes.

It took the news reporter Lee a couple of seconds before he regained his composure and continued on with his podcast. "W-We apologize for this. We, at the studio, had no intention of showing our viewers such a horrific sight. But with this in mind, we will announce the following warning."

"Stay in doors. Do not go outside under any circumstances. And if you see this robot, stay away from it. Just hide and wait until this whole situation is dealt with."

Just as he finished, the news reporter seemed to have gotten a call from his ear piece. Once that happened, he turned back to the screen and said, "This just in. One of our coppers is currently in the skies, watching the event. We now go live to our helicopter for any updates."

The scene changes to a man sitting on a seat in the helicopter. "Thank you Lee. As of right now, things aren't looking," he shouted as the camera switched into the helicopter's, shooting the destruction the robot was causing to the neighborhood and arriving military. "This machine is destroying more of our military the moment they try to attack it. Nothing they do seems to be slowing the damn thing down."

"Can you tell us the robot's current location is and where it seems to be going?" Reporter Lee asked.

"From the looks of it, the robot's leaving the neighborhood and seems to now be entering Nozomu Forest," the helicopter reporter answered.

'Nozomu Forest? Why would that robot go there,' Souda thought to himself. It was just an ordinary forest like another. Nothing but trees and other wildlife for miles. The only thing there of any relevance is-

The moment of realization hit him like a truck as his eyes widened in shock and fear. Inside that very forest is his school, Hope's Peak Academy. He didn't know why the robot was heading there. But he didn't care. Kazuichi immediately got up from his table, grabbing his pack, and ran out of the restaurant. Despite a few people warning him not to leave, Souda ignored them as he continued to run towards Hope's Peak. But he stopped himself as another realization came in him.

'Shit, I'm pretty sure I can't enter the school at this point. Seeing as there's a giant killing robot and military blocking my path,' Souda thought to himself, groaning in frustration. 

As he put his hands in his pocket, Souda's right hand felt something. Pulling it out, he sees the green power ring. Seeing this, Kazuichi immediately knew what to do. 

"Maybe I can't enter the school… but Green Lantern can."

Looking around, Souda finds a nearby alley and enters inside. Placing the ring onto his finger, Kazuichi began to transform into his hero persona as he was engulfed by green energy.

Hope's Peak Academy

Back at the school, in the Reserve Course area, we see Mahiru sitting on a bench, near the fountain, as she was eating her breakfast. Next to her and eating was her best friend, Sato. A girl from the Reserve Course that had violet eyes and long, dark-green, wavy hair along with having a school uniform provides Reserve Course students.

While everything seemed fine, Sato noticed that Mahiru was eating much slower than unusual. Seeing this, the green haired girl decided to speak up.

"Hey Mahiru, are you alright?" 

Sato's voice was able to get Koizumi out of her train of thoughts as the photographer looked at her friend. 

"Yeah, I'm fine Sato. I was just thinking about what happened yesterday," she admitted. 

"You mean the terrorist attack?" Sato asked.

"No, not that. I'm thinking about the Green Lantern," the photographer answered before she continued. "I've seen a lot of crazy things when I came to this school. From the crazy skills everyone has with their talents to their personalities. But I never expected to see a real life superhero. It was crazy yet exciting to see someone like that."

"Really? I don't see what's so great about that. I mean, sure he has powers and saved people, but I feel like this guy would be nothing but trouble in the future," Sato expressed, eating some rice. 

"He didn't seem that way to me. He felt like a good person."

"Seriously?"

"I am. When I met him, after defeating the Black Hawks and saving my friend, Sonia, I was in awe. He looked so heroic. Like someone you know will do good for the world. Trust me, you'd get that feeling when you meet him."

Sato sighed from hearing this. She didn't think that Mahiru would admire someone this fast. She met this Green Lantern once and her friend saw him as an amazing hero. Sato didn't really like that, but if this is what Koizumi believed then she'll be fine with it. 

"If you say so, but I won't keep my hopes up," Sato said.

"Fair enough," Koizumi replied as she was about to eat her breakfast. 

"Hey hey hey, if it isn't the camera bitch and her trash fire friend!~"

Was about to until Mahiru and Sato heard that. Koizumi became squeamish as her anxiety was building up. While Sato groaned in frustration, becoming defensive for her friend as she recognized that voice. Walking towards the two was a blonde girl with her cheeks having a subtle natural blush on them. This was another Reverse Course student and member of the Kuzuryu Yazuka family, Natsumi Kuzuryu, who was looking at them with her smug smile. 

"Natsumi...what the hell do you want?" Sato growled, clearly wanting her to leave.

"What? I'm not allowed to be here? This area is allowed to everyone," Natsumi said smugly. 

"Get to the point," Sato growled, not wanting to play games with her. 

"Geez, you can never control your anger can you?" Kuzuryu scoffed in annoyance before she continued. "I just wanted to see how the red head was doing after that event last night."

Mahiru twitched a bit from Natsumi mentioning her. Knowing that this wouldn't end well. 

"And why do you want to know?" Sato questioned, still emitting anger out from her voice.

"What? I just wanted to know her experience. Her being held at gunpoint by terrorists. It intrigues me," Natsumi explained in her smug curiosity.

Mahiru's anxiety began to spike up from this. Beginning to remember the awful events she and her classmates had to go through. The masked man forced them into areas as their hostages, even injuring others to do so. And killing those who wouldn't comply. The laughter they emitted from the terror they committed. And the child they murdered. It was making her feel scared, becoming uncomfortable from all this as her eyes widened and her forehead turned blue. 

Seeing this enraged Sato as she stood up and faced the yakuza."You bitch! Koizumi's suffering as is and now you're making it worse! Do you even have a soul?!"

"Don't you get all pissy with me! I'm just curious that's all!" Natsumi argued. 

"Natsumi, there you are!"

The new voice caught all the girls' attention as they turned to see who it was. Running towards them was a tall teen boy who had a suit, signifying that he was part of the Reserve Course. He had short, spiky-ish brown hair with an ahoge and green eyes. This was the ordinary boy, Hajime Hinata. Someone that all three of the girls were familiar with. Mostly with Natsumi as he was technically her only actual friend in the school.

"Natsumi, why are you always causing trouble when you talk to them?" Hajime said, immediately realizing what was going on.

"What? I'm just curious that's all," Natsumi said, defending herself. 

"Well, your curiosity just caused Mahiru to have to go through bad memories!" Sato argued as she pointed at Koizumi, who was currently trying to calm herself. 

Hearing that and seeing Mahiru's state made Hinata understandably angry as he turned to the young yakuza. "Natsumi, you shouldn't have done this. I keep telling you to think about what you say. But you didn't do that. Now, because of you, Koizumi is suffering again."

While Natsumi was taken back by Hajime's words, even looking a little guilty, she stubbornly stood her ground. "Well so what?! It's not like she died or got majorly injured!"

"Still, that's no excuse. What do you think would have happened if she really died there?" Hajime argued. 

Natsumi was beginning to feel extremely irritated by this as she turned her face away from Hinata and said, "If she did, then I might have a chance to enter the main course."

Hajime was stunned by what Natsumi had just said. He knew the yakuza would say horrible things due to her own problems. But this was crossing the line. Just as he was about to scold her, Sato, out of nowhere, slapped Natsumi. Nearly causing the girl to fall down.

The green haired girl was about to pounce at the young yakuza, but was immediately stopped by Hinata as he restrained Sato. Even when Sato struggled to break free, Hajime was able to hold her back. 

"You bitch! How dare you say that!" Sato shouted in a rage as she tried to get out of Hajime's hold. "This time for sure. I'm going to end, once and for all!"

As Natsumi managed to compose herself, she looked at Sato with anger and was ready to attack. But before she could, Mahiru came out of nowhere and got between Sato and Natsumi so they wouldn't get close to each other. 

"Both of you, stop! This is only going to make things worse!" Koizumi pleaded, struggling just as much as Hajime. 

"She's right. This is getting out of hand!" Hajime added in. But the two girls didn't listen and they were mainly focused on each other. Wanting to tear each other apart.

"You really want to do this?! Cause if you do, I'll make sure you'll regret it," Natsumi growled.

"Why you little-"

"AAAAAAAH!"

Like that, Sato and Natsumi stopped arguing and Hajime and Mahiru let go of the two girls as they were taken back by the sudden scream of terror. But it wasn't just that. The four students saw multiple Reserve Course students running, heading towards Hope's Peak's school grounds. 

"What the? Why are they running?" Sato spoke out, wondering what's happening. 

Before anyone could respond to her question, the sound of gunfire was heard. They all turned to see one of the school's security guards as he was firing an assault rifle at something. As his gun ran out of bullets, the security guard began to reload his gun as quickly as possible. But stopped as he noticed the four students looking at him. 

"What the hell are you four doing here?! Get into Hope's Peak now!" he demanded loudly.

"Why? What's going on?!" Hajime questioned the guard. 

"There's no time for that! Just-"

Out of nowhere, a massive green laser hit the guard, engulfing him in the burning beam of energy. Once the beam disappeared, all that remained of the security guard was a burning skeleton. All the flesh and muscles burned off with only the tendons remaining. The skeletal corpse then fell to the ground, shattering into pieces. 

The four students had a look of horror and disgust by what had just witnessed. As Hajime and Sato stood there in shock, feeling their spines shiver in fear, Mahiru covered her mouth in horror as her forehead turned blue. Even Natsumi looked down right terrified as her smug nature completely disappeared. 

"H-Holy shit…" Natsumi uttered, breaking the silence. 

"H-How? Why did this happen?" Mahiru questioned. "W-W-Who's responsible for this?"

Her question was answered as the four heard massive stomps being made. They all turned to the source to see something truly bizarre yet terrifying. Walking towards them their way, creating small tremors with each step, is a tall, red and blue robot with a metal staff on hand. Not only was the machine gigantic, but the way it looked showed that the robot was extremely dangerous and not to be messed with.

"Okay, I'm starting to get fucking scared, right now. What the fuck is this thing?" Natsumi uttered loudly.

"I don't know but we're not finding out. We need to get out here now," Hajime stated as he began to run towards Hope's Peak Academy as Natsumi followed suit. 

Seeing this, Sato was about to run as well but stopped when she looked at Koizumi. The photographer looked completely terrified. So much so that she just stood there, not moving an inch as she was too scared to do so. 

"Came on, Koizumi. We have to move now!" Sato shouted, shaking her friend to snap out of her frozen state. After a couple more shakes, the green haired girl managed to get Mahiru back to her senses. 

"Sato?" the photographer uttered.

"Good, you're back. Now let's go!" Wasting no time, Sato grabbed Koizumi's wrist and the two ran towards Hope's Peak Academy. 

As they ran, the robot spotted the four students as they hurried to Hope's Peak's school grounds. Using its sensors, the machine scanned Hajime and Natsumi. But found nothing on them. The robot then moved its focus on Sato and Mahiru. While there was nothing on the green haired girl, its systems picked up something on Koizumi. It was a small trace of green energy on her. Though small, it was still noticeable. With that, the machine knew what to do.

Back with the students, the four of them continued to run towards Hope's Peak Academy to get to safety and away from the threat. Hajime decided to look back to see if the robot was going after them. But to his shock, the robot was nowhere to be seen. It was like it disappeared.

"Huh guys, is it just me or did the robot disappear?" Hajime pointed out. The other three looked back and became just as shocked as he was. 

"Holy shit, you're right," Natsumi said in shock. "Where the hell is-"

The young yakuza was interrupted as something landed in front of them, causing a shockwave that forced them to the ground. The four students groaned in pain as they tried to get up. Mahiru tried to pick herself up from the concrete ground until something stopped her. Standing in front of her was the robot. The machine looked down at the photographer with its green, lifeless eyes at her, not moving a single inch.

Mahiru looked up in horror as she felt her anxiety increase, her heart beating so fast that she felt like it would burst out from her chest. She felt this feeling before with the terrorist group, the Black Hawks. The feeling of helplessness and despair. Knowing that she could do nothing to escape this situation. Only this time, that feeling was increased by tenfold as this time around, it was a robot that would likely kill her, here and now. The redhead wanted to do something, anything, to get out of this predicament. But nothing came in-

"Where is the Green Lantern?"

That immediately got Mahiru out of her train of thoughts. She did not expect the robot to speak to her, let alone ask her a question.

"What?" Koizumi uttered, unclear about the question she was told.

The robot responded by stabbing its mechanical staff to the ground, a few inches near her face. Mahiru let out an "eep" as she felt even more frightened and her forehead turning purple. She even felt tears appearing in her eyes. 

"My tracking system has scanned traces of green energy of will on you. Which indicates that you have encountered the Green Lantern of this sector," the machine stated, scaring Koizumi more with its emotionless voice. "Provide the location of the Lantern."

The robot pulled its staff out from the concrete walkway as it aimed it as the photographer. Charging it up and ready to fire a killing blow through the girl's head. 

"You have twenty seconds to comply."

"Get away from her!!!" 

Coming from the left, Sato rushed towards the robot as she had a large piece of wood and smashed it onto the machine. But her attack, as expected, did nothing to scratch the android. All it did was get the robot's attention by aiming its hand at the shocked Sato, ready to kill her in one blast. Luckily and shockingly for her, Natsumi pushed her out of the way, allowing both the girls to avoid being hit by the green laser. 

"Natsumi? The hell?" Sato questioned in shock, never expecting the yakuza to save her. Sato pushed the blonde girl off her as she said, "Are you trying to pull?"

"You're welcome for saving you, bitch," Natsumi replied angrily. "What were you thinking trying to fight that thing with fucking wood?!"

"I'm trying to save my best friend, that's what!" Sato shouted as she got up and was about to run towards the machine. 

"I wouldn't do that!" 

Sato stopped in her tracks as she turned to see Hajime, grabbing her wrist. 

"And why the hell not?!" Sato yelled, yanking her arm out of Hinata's grip. 

"Because it's obvious that you'll die if you fight that thing," Hajime said, reasoning with the green haired girl. "I understand what you're going through, but if you try to fight it again, you'll just die for nothing. 

"So what am I supposed to do?! Just stand here and let that machine kill Mahiru?!"

Like that, Hajime stood there silent. He didn't know what to do here. He wanted to save Koizumi as much as Sato. But there was no real option they could take to get the redhead away from the robot. All he, Natsumi, and Sato could do was just stand there and watch. Waiting until the android ended the photographer's life. 

Back with Koizumi, she was very much glad that Sato was saved from becoming another kill for the robot. Though she was surprised to see Natsumi, of all people, actually save her like that. 

"Ten seconds. Where is the Green Lantern?"

Mahiru was brought back into reality as she remembered that the robot was still in front of her. Expected her to answer its question or die. Seeing as she had no choice in the matter, Koizumi decided to answer. 

"Look… I don't know where he is. I just met him last night… after saving me and my classmates… then he left. I don't know where he is," she answered as honestly as possible. Hoping that will work. 

"Your answer is not sufficient. You will tell me where the Green Lantern is."

"What?! But I'm being, honest to god,  truthful with you!" Mahiru shouted, pleading for her life.

"Five… Four…"

It was at that moment that Mahiru knew… she wasn't going to escape this alive. No matter how much she would explain, the robot wouldn't listen to her. All Koizumi could do now was close her eyes and wait for the inevitable. 

"Three… Two…"

Honk! Honk!

The sudden sound was enough to stop the machine from counting. The robot didn't have any time to react as it was hit by a massive green truck. Ramming the android into the woods.

Mahiru opened her eyes and looked around her in shock and confusion, wondering what just happened. Her answer came when a familiar face appeared in front of her. She smiled in relief as the superhero from last night, Green Lantern, had come to her rescue. 

"Green Lantern… you're here…" Koizumi uttered.

"Of course, I'm here to help out," he said as the masked hero picked the photographer up on her feet. "Glad to see you again. And grateful that I got here on time."

"I can say the same thing," she replied with a smile. "You saved me yet again."

"Hey, it's what I do."

As the Lantern finished, he and Mahiru were approached by Hajime, Natsumi, and Sato. The three looked at Souda in complete shock and awe. In front of them was a man in a weird costume as he had a green light emitting from his body. The same light they felt had an incredible power within. The costume man was the definition of a superhero from a comic book. 

"Holy shit… an actual superhero," Natsumi uttered out. "I thought redhead was making him up."

"I thought the same thing," Sato agreed with the yakuza. She shuttered at the fact that both her and Natsumi agreed on something for once.

"This is unreal," Hajime muttered.

Kazuichi looked at the three and saw that they were fine. So he decided to do his heroic duty. "It looks like you guys are alright. Is this all of you or is there anyone else?"

"It's just us," Hajime spoke out. "I'm pretty sure that the school is going to be evacuated because of this."

"Alright then, all of you go to Hope's Peak and join in the evacuation," Green Lantern said as he floated in the air. 

"What are you going to do?" Natsumi asked.

"I'm going to deal with that robot," Souda replied as he was about to fly. 

"Hold it!"

But he was stopped when he heard someone call out to him. He turned to see Sato, staring at him in anger. "Why should we trust you with dealing with that thing?"

Souda looked at her in confusion as he raised one of his eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"

"Yeah, he seems like he wants to help," Hajime told Sato, trying to get her to drop this.

"I don't buy it!" Sato shouted at Hinata before she looked back at Green Lantern. "That damn machine mentioned you when it was about to kill Mahiru! Saying that it wants you! So what's that all about?! Were you trying to lure it here?!"

Kazuichi was understandably shocked to hear this from Sato. When he saw this machine in the news, killing anyone in it's way, he knew that the robot was nothing but trouble. But to hear that it tried to kill Koizumi and was looking for him specifically brought him more worry. He didn't fully know what the machine is, but now knows that it's a lot more dangerous than he thought.

"Sato, you can't accuse him of something like that! He saved my life!" Mahiru told her friend.

"We don't know anything about this guy! For all we know, he could be doing all this for attention!" Sato argued. 

"All of you, join the evacuation, now. I'm not saying it again," Kazuichi told them in a more serious tone.

"Hey, you never answered my question! Why is that robot after you?!" Sato yelled out.

"That's what I want to know."

With that simple response, Souda flew away from the group as he made his way towards the machine. He looked back to see that Koizumi was able to get her friend to get moving and run into the Main Course's school grounds. Sighing in relief that they did what he told him, Souda won't have to worry about them getting in the way. All he had to do was stop this robot and prevent it from getting near the students.

At the crash site, we see the robot lay on the ground as rooted trees and dirt covered it after being hit by a truck. However, the machine looked fine as it tossed the trees off it and let the dirt fall off as it stood up. Once fully up, the machine's sensors picked up an energy source that was heading it's way. The robot looked up to see Green Lantern Souda fly down and landed near it. Once Kazuichi was in front of the machine, he took a good look at it as the machine did the same.

Despite it not being a living creature, Souda could feel the amount of power it had. Being up close to the machine, he can definitely see the amount of fear it displayed. He was starting to feel a bit of anxiety. Can anyone blame him, this thing was responsible for killing so many people and causing massive damage to his city and school the moment it showed up. He knew that the machine was nothing but trouble and had to take care of it, immediately. Even if a part of him wasn't sure that he could do this, the mechanic had to try. So with that in mind, Souda decided to speak.

"Okay, what the hell are you and why are you here?"

"Green Lantern of sector 2814, identified. Target in sight."

"Answer my question, asshole! Who are you?!" he shouted as he had his ring aimed at him. 

"I am a Manhunter. And I am here to complete my given objective."

"And what objective is that?"

"To kill you."

That answer was enough to tense up Souda. He now knew that this would be a fight for his life. He was starting to become afraid, considering the mechanic is still a rookie when using the ring. He was beyond nervous since he barely even knew how to fight. He was extremely grateful that his helmet and mask hid that emotion well. But despite all, he knew that he had to take care of this Manhunter. Cause he was the only one who could. So he forced down his fear and anxiety and prepared for battle. 

"If that's the case, I'm going to have to take you down."

The Manhunter responded as it wielded its staff and activated it, sending out sparks of electricity from it. 

"You are incorrect. Your power is nothing against the Manhunters."

"We'll see about that."

The two fighters, the Green Lantern and Manhunter, stood there. Not moving an inch. Staring at each other as they waited for who would make the first move. While it had been a couple seconds of waiting, Souda felt that he was waiting for minutes. Waiting for either him or the machine would make the first move. After a long wait, one of them finally made a move. 

Souda charged up his ring and fired a massive beam at the Manhunter. Hitting hotter than the surface of the sun, Kazuichi kept this up until he was certain that the machine was destroyed. However, he was met with a surprise as the Manhunter came out from the laser beam and punched Souda in the stomach, sending him flying into the air. The Green Lantern barely had any time to process what just happened as the Manhunter appeared at his side and struck him with its staff to the right. Then the machine appeared above Souda and slammed both its fists at him, launching him to the ground below and creating a crater. 

Kazuichi groaned in pain as he tried to get himself back up. But the Manhunter appeared and grabbed his leg. The robot slowly dragged him then smashed the mechanic multiple trees nearby. Despite the pain, Souda was able to retaliate by shooting a beam at the Manhunter's head. Now free, Souda attacks by creating a sleight hammer contract and swings it at the machine. Though he got a hit, the Manhunter was quick to retaliate and fired a laser beam from its hand and blasted the Green Lantern a feet away from it. The machine jumped towards the mechanics ready to stab him with its staff. Though Souda was quick enough to fly and evade the attack, causing the Manhuhter to stab the ground instead.

This left the Manhunter wide open for an attack as Kazuichi fired missile constructs at it. The mechanic continued his barrage of missiles at it, not letting for a second. But then the Manhunter flew to Souda, tanking the missile with ease, and headbutting him with its metal head. Kazuichi winced in pain as the machine grabbed him and threw him hard in the air. The Manhunter used its staff to fire off bolts of electricity at the Lantern. Though Souda was quick to recover and evaded the lighting with his flight. Seeing this, the robot flew after him as it fired more lighting bolts at the Lantern. It became a dog fight in the skies as Souda fires green lasers while the Manhunter fires lightning blasts. As well as evade each other's attacks to the best of their abilities. However, the android managed to close the distance with the green lantern and smacked him with his metal staff twice, sending the teen crashing to the ground below.

Bouncing off the ground, Kazuichi fell back to the dirt, laying face down, gasping in pain. The mechanic laid there, feeling tired and sore from the robot's attacks. As the teen pushed him to get back up, the Manhunter had landed near him and began to move towards the Lantern. Seeing this, Souda aims his ring at the machine to attack. But the Manhunter was quick to grab onto his ring hand. Kazuichi shouted and groaned in pain as the metal hand was crushing his hand. He tried to escape but it was all in vain. The android lifted up the Green Lantern and raised him to meet it eye to eye.

"It's over."

The Manhunter proceeded to knee kick in the stomach, causing Souda to cough and gasp in pain. Then the machine aimed his metal staff at his chest and blasted the lantern with a beam of electricity. Pushing the poor teen through multiple trees and creating an explosion that engulfed Kazuichi. 

The Manhunter looked at the smoky site, analyzing it with its systems, finding any signs of the Green Lantern. It found nothing and determined that the Lantern was dead. 

"Green Lantern of Sector 2814 has been exterminated. Initiating the next objective."

The Manhunter began to use its sensors to scan the entire planet. Scanning every living creature, every mineral, every element, pretty everything about this blue planet. Once it was finished with its scanning, the android gave out its report.

"This planet, while small, has large amounts of necessary resources. Along with a large population of the dominated species. All beneficial for the cult. New objective: enslave this planet for the cult."

With its new goal in mind, the Manhunter was about to do just that. But then suddenly, the machine was hit, in the back of the head, by a green missile. While it didn't damage the machine, the attack managed to stagger it a bit. 

"Like I'm letting you do that."

Recomposing itself, the Manhunter turned around to see Kazuichi Souda. While he looked injured, the teen stood before the machine, ready to continue their fight.

"The only thing that's going to happen is me reducing you into scrap metal," he said in a threatening tone. 

"It seems that I have miscalculated your durability and usage over your ring." Manhunter set its metal staff at its maximum level so the electricity is at its most lethal. "I will not repeat this mistake."

(21. Kakarot vs Broly | DBS: Broly Original Soundtrack)

Despite his fear and pain he was feeling, Souda was all the more determined to take down this machine. So when the android flew at the Lantern, ready to attack him with its staff, Kazuichi flew into the skies to evade the attack. He continued to fly higher and higher as the Manhunter chased after him. Though interestingly, Souda made sure that the ring was aimed at the machine.

'Come on, come on. Hurry up,' the mechanic thought to himself. 

At that moment, the ring blinked a few times to indicate that it was done. 

"Scanning complete. Full schematics of the Manhunter have been downloaded."

"Thank god," Souda said in relief as he created a blueprint construct in his hands. He read through every single piece and details about the machine at a fast pace. After seeing its power and taking a beating from the robot, Kazuichi knew that he had to play smart here. So with his mechanic mind, the teen had his ring secretly scan the Manhunter on its structure, weaponry, programming, anything on the android. As he read through the schematics, the mechanic had to dodge every blast of electricity from the machine. He kept evading the attacks as the teen and robot flew out of the earth's atmosphere, entering space. 

This went for a bit until the Manhunter managed to close the gap and punch the Green Lantern back into the earth's atmosphere. Although the mechanic was set on fire by reentry, Souda's focus never broke out from reading the blueprints. As he was heading closer to the earth below, the teen head finally finished reading. 

"Okay, I got a good idea of what to do," Kazuichi said, discarding the blueprints and let them disappear. He quickly regained control and stopped falling. With that, the Green Lantern flew back to the skies and went straight towards the machine. While the Manhunter fired more electric blasts, Souda was able to evade them. As he was getting close to the robot, Kazuichi formed a mechanical gauntlet and reeled it back, forming a fist. The Manhunter did the same as it formed a fist. Once they were inches away, the Lantern's and android's punch collided, creating a massive green shockwave. Pushing back the clouds around them, clearing the sky. 

The collision pushed back the Lantern and robot. Though Souda was quick to recover and immediately created a minigun construct and fired away at the machine. While some bullets hit the android, the Manhunter was able to evade them and fire more lightning bolts at the teen. It was once more an air board dog fight as a barrage of green bullets and lightning blasts filled the sky. Kazuichi even fired a couple missiles at the robot and one of them managed to hit it head on. While it did some noticeable damage, the Manhunter still flew at the mechanic and whacked him with its staff; launching him to the ground below and creating a large crater.

The robot flew downwards to the down Lantern, ready to stab him with its stab. But it did that, Manhunter noticed that the Green Lantern was gone. Elsewhere, Souda flew out from the ground, using a new ability he figured out, which was intangibility, and began using his ring. Creating a bullet train, Souda commanded to run at full speed, ramning the machine. The train continued pushing the robot through multiple trees until it picked up the train, along with its carts, and threw the vehicle away. It then flew at the Green Lantern. But Souda was ready for Manhunter as he had created multiple vehicles, racing cars, trucks, and a jet plane, and had them charge at the android. The android paid no heed to this as it flew through the vehicle constructs with ease. As the robot was about to punch Kazuichi, he used his intangibility to faze through the machine. He used this opportunity and fired more rockets behind the Manhunter. 

Despite the surprise attack, the Manhunter was quick to react and knew what to do. The machine flew after Souda as he fired laser beams at it. As the robot was getting close to him, the mechanic was ready to faze through it with his intangibility. But when he did that, the android activated some kind of green energy around it that stopped Souda in his tracks, unable to faze through the machine. Shocked by this, Kazuichi was left wide open for the Manhunter to electrocute him with its staff. The mechanic screamed in pain as he was dealt with 50 million volts of electricity. Eventually, the lightning launches him many feet away. 

As the Manhunter was about to give chase, a green box fell on top of its head and into it's free hand. Before the robot could do anything, the green box opened and a spring loaded boxing glove came out, socking the machine. This not only stunned the android, but the attack forced it to drop its staff. As the metal staff fell, Souda flew to it and grabbed the weapon. Once in his hands, the mechanic surrounded the weapon with a green shield and crushed it into pieces. Letting the pieces fall, Kazuichi flew back to Manhunter as he created green gauntlets with spikes on the knuckles. 

"Not so tough without your metal stick!" he shouted as he punched the robot's face. Despite making a dent, the robot quickly retaliated by blasting him with a green energy beam, forcing him to crash to the ground below.

"Okay, I stand corrected," Souda uttered, groaning in pain.

When he looked up, Kazuichi saw the Manhunter flying towards him like a missile. The mechanic didn't waste anytime as he created a shield bubble around him and protected him from the full powered tackle. The tackle was strong enough to push him and the robot through the ground as they dug deeper and deeper into the earth's crust. Enough they enter inside an underground cave filled with lava. 

Diving into the lake of molten rock, the Manhunter laid a barrage of punches to the green shield before shattering it and grabbing the Lantern by the neck. Thinking quickly, Kazuichi gathered a large amount of energy to create a massive spherical shockwave that pushed the machine off him, and as an added bonus, caused damage to one of the robot's hands, taking away its ability to fire its energy beams from it. 

Quick to retaliate, Souda created another construct around him in the form of a drill. The Green Lantern rammed at the Manhunter at incredible speeds in both movement and spinning. The drill caused some good damage to the robot as they dug their way back up through the earthy terrain. They eventually made it back to surface as the two opponents separated from each other. Despite the amount of pain Souda was feeling throughout his body and the occasional twitches due to the electricity, the mechanic was glad to see that his efforts were rewarded as he saw that he caused damage to the Manhunter and slowly cripple it. 

"Okay, I've done some actual damage to it," Souda said as he lit up his ring. "But I still have a long way to go."

Kazuichi created a sledgehammer construct before charging at the Manhunter as the android did the same. The hammer swing and mechanical fist collided as they created another shockwave.

(Music End)

Back in Hope's Peak Academy, things were getting chaotic. Students were running out from the buildings, pushing each other to get out of the school. Although school security were doing their best to keep things in order, the large student horde made that difficult. 

One of them was a tall, intimidating looking, muscular, tan man with short dark greenish-grey hair and pink eyes. His facial looks expressed intimation and anger. He also wore a blue security uniform like the rest of security. This man is Juzo Sakakura, once Ultimate Boxer, now Head of Security for Hope's Peak Academy. 

The Ultimate Boxer was currently not liking the situation at hand. First he gets reports that some intruder breaks into the school and that a couple of his staff are dead. Even worse was that a few students from the Reserve Course were killed as well. So now he and his staff had to evacuate everyone out of the school. Only problem is that every student was in a state of chaos as they were desperately trying to escape. Even some of the teachers were in a state of panic. Because of this, Juzo was having a hard time here. 

"I told you idiots! No pushing! We'll get you all out of here so stop panicking!" Juzo shouted, though the crowd didn't listen.

"God damn it, to think that something like this would happen. What's even attacking us?" the boxer uttered to himself.

"Sakakura!"

The Head of Security turned to see Yukizome, his college and friend, running towards him, with a worried look on her.

"Yukizome," Juzo greeted her.

"Juzo, I need your help," she said in a pleading matter. 

"Can't exactly help you here. Considering I have to deal with this mess," Juzo said, pointing at the mass of panicking students. 

"Please Juzo, it's one of my students. I can't find her, Chisa said.

"Chisa, if she's missing, she'll likely be within the crowd and evacuate from the school," Juzo told her.  

"Juzo, like my class, my student was involved in a terrorist attack, so I don't want her to deal with any more stress like this," Chisa argued back.

Before the boxer could say anything else, someone called them out. They turned to see Mahiru, Hajime, Natsumi, and Sato running towards them. 

"Miss Chisa!" Mahiru yelled, glad to her teacher. 

"Koizumi!" Chisa said in relief, hugging her student. "Thank goodness you're alright."

"See, I told you she would be fine," Juzo pointed out.

Chisa ignored her friend as she paid her attention to her student. "Koizumi, where were you? I was worried sick."

"I'm sorry for making you worry. But now's not the time. We have to get out of the school," Mahiru told her teacher.

"We're kinda doing that already," Juzo said.

"Okay, but we have to get everyone out now or else we're all going to die," Mahiru warned them.

"What do you mean by that?" Chisa asked in concern.

"What she means is that we encountered the killer behind this," Sato added in.

"Wait, you all saw the intruders? If so, how many are there and what do they look like?" Juzo questioned.

"It's not a group of people. It's hard to believe but it's not a group of people," Hinata intervened. "But rather… it's a robot that's attacking the school."

Juzo and Chisa looked at the reserve course student with an understandable confused look. 

"What kind of sick sense of humor is this? This is no time for fucking jokes!" Sakakura shouted at Hajime, obviously displeased by this. 

"This isn't a damn joke! There's some giant, killing robot in the school. All of us saw it with our very own eyes!" Natsumi argued loudly. 

"She's right. There's a robot wreaking havoc to the school," Sato spoke out, shuddering once more at agreeing with the yakuza girl.

"Okay, let's say that there's this killer robot on the loose in our school. Then why the hell isn't the robot here, wrecking havoc?" the Ultimate Boxer questioned them. 

"Because there's someone stopping it and buying us time. And that someone is the Green Lantern," Koizumi answered.

"Green Lantern?" Juzo said, not understanding any of this nonsense.

"Wait, Green Lantern is here?" Chisa asked, sounding relieved by this.

Mahiru nodded as she said, "Uh huh, he saved our lives from that machine. So we need to leave so we don't get in his way."

"Okay, this is sounding ridiculous! Chisa, you can't believe this crap!" Juzo shouted in anger and confusion.

"Juzo, I know it sounds ridiculous but the Green Lantern is real. I saw him myself along with my class yesterday. If he's real, then the robot to an extent is real too. So they're not making this up," Yukizome told Sakakura, trying to convince him.

Juzo still didn't look convinced as expressed, "I'm sorry but there is no way I'm going to believe something like a Green Lantern fighting some killer robot."

As he finished, a green light appeared from the skies and crashed through one of the school's buildings near them then fell to the ground, creating a crater. Luckily, no one was around the crash area so there was no need to worry about any injuries. Though that didn't take away the shocked and spooked looks the group had as well as other bystanders. 

"What was that?" Hajime wondered.

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out," Juzo stated as he turned to one of the guards. "I want you to continue the evacuation! I'll go check it out!"

Juzo ran off towards the crash site as Chisa ran after him. "Hold on, I'm coming too!" she yelled, running after him.

"Should we go after them?" Mahiru asked. 

"Probably not. Besides, Green Lantern was adamant about us leaving the school with everyone else. Besides, we just get in the way," Hajime acknowledged. 

"You're right. All we can do is get out of here and hope that Green Lantern can deal with the robot," Natsumi added in.

"Pfff, I still don't see why you guys are putting your fate in this guy. We barely know anything about him. For all we know, he's not strong enough to beat the robot. So why put so much faith in him?" Sato questioned, still not trusting of the Green Lantern. 

"Sato, I know it seems weird for me to just trust him," Koizumi began to explain. "But when I saw him, I just felt like I knew that everything would be fine as long as he was there. Like I knew him. Besides, he saved my life before, I'm sure he can do it again."

Sato was very much taken back by what her friend said. The fact that Mahiru put Green Lantern on such a high regard like that was fascinating. Especially since she was known for her opinion on men. Despite that, Sato still couldn't bring herself to completely trust the green man.

"I don't know. What if he fails and loses to this thing?" Sato asked. 

"I'm hoping he does. Since he seems like the only one that can actually be a match with that thing. If he loses, then we all lose," Hajime pointed out, putting his faith toward the Lantern.

"For now, let's get out of here. I nearly died from that thing. I'm not going through that again," Natsumi expressed. 

With that, the group joined the other students to evacuate from the school. For all they can do now is wait and hope that the Green Lantern can stop this threat. 

At the crash site, Souda slowly got back up on his feet as he groaned in pain. "God damn, why is this robot so hard to destroy?" he said in frustration.

As he was soothing his sore spots, Kazuichi heard someone call him out. 

"Hey you!" 

Souda turned to see Juzo as he looked at him with an angry look on him. "You better tell me who the hell you are?! Or else!" Juzo shouted, getting into a boxing stance.

'Oh god, not him of all people,' Souda thought to himself, cringing to see Juzo here. While he never had to deal with the guy, the mechanic was well aware of how angry the guy can get when things go wrong. So angry that most rationality is thrown out the window. He really didn't want to deal with the boxer. Especially since the Manhunter can come at any second. 

Luckily, Chisa came onto the scene and managed to stop Sakakura from doing anything reckless. 

"Juzo, stop! He's not a threat! He's the Green Lantern I told you about," Yukizome told her friend, trying to calm him down. 

'Oh thank whoever that she's here,' Souda thought in relief.

"Wait, that's the Green Lantern?!" Juzo shouted in disbelief, looking at the green man before turning back to Yukizome. "Chisa, he looks like a cheap halloween costume little kids wear. You think I can take him seriously?"

"I'm standing right here, you know," Souda uttered quietly, annoyed. 

"Juzo, he saved me and my classroom, I know we can trust him," Yukizome told her friend.

"Chisa, for all we know, he could be the reason this whole thing is happening," Sakakura argued. 

Seeing as the two adults were arguing, Kazuichi decided he would try to break it up before things got out of hand. But then he heard something, the sound of something coming at them at mach speeds. Realizing the danger, Souda immediately created a shield around him, Chisa, and Juzo. Right on cue, the shield took on the full force of the charging of the Manhunter. The mechanic felt his body wince by the pressure his shield had to endure. Yukizome and Sakakura were in a state of shock by what had just happened. They barely had time to react before the Manhunter began to punch the shield multiple times to break through. 

As Souda stood his ground, using all his concentration to keep the shield up, Chisa and Juzo looked in awe and shock by all of this. Especially the boxer as he saw the robot right in his very eyes. 

"Holy shit, the robot's real," he uttered. 

"I'll say," Chisa replied as she looked in panic, hoping that this machine won't get them. 

As the Manhunter continued to pound away at the force field, Juzo decided to speak up. "Lantern, I hope you have a good idea on how to get us out of here."

"Kinda hard to do when I'm dealing with this," Souda retorted. As he said that, the three of them noticed small cracks appear around the shield, indicating that it was close to shattering. 

"Okay, if any of you two got any ideas, I'm all up for it!" Souda shouted as he began to panic a little. 

"M-Maybe you can create a weapon of some kind… like a gun or an RPG?" Chisa suggested, saying whatever came in mind. 

"Are you serious? From the way I'm seeing this, it's going to take more than that to hurt the damn thing," Juzo pointed out. "You'll need a fucking cannon for this. A military one at that."

Hearing that gave Souda an idea as he remembered one weapon that can help them. So with that in mind, he turned to Juzo and said, "Hey, Juzo was it, are all the people from the Reserve Course building evacuated?"

Juzo was a little confused by this question but answered it anyway. "Well… of course. They were the first to be evacuated since the threat was closer to them. So the building's completely empty."

"Sounds good. Also, sorry for any damages I'm going to cause."

"Wait, what do you mean by that?"

Souda didn't answer his question as prepared to initiate his plan. As the shield was close to shattering, the mechanic waited for the right moment to act. As the Manhunter was about to punch the shield once more, the Lantern used his ring to cause the shield to burst, creating a massive energy shockwave that pushed the robot into the air. When the machine was about to retaliate, Kazuichi had already created an artillery gun and immediately fired it. Creating a large explosion and blasting was Manhunter away as it crashed into the Reserve Course building.

Souda winced a bit when he saw the damage he and the robot caused at the Reserve Course building. 'God, I hope I don't have to play for the damages.' he thought. 

Souda then looked back to Juzo and Chisa as they were a bit shaken by what had just happened. "You two alright?" Kazuichi asked.

"Y-Yeah, I-I'm fine," Juzo answered in a stutter. 

"S-Same here," Yukizome replied. 

"Good to hear," Souda said in relief before he continued. "Now that you guys know the threat first hand, I trust that you two will focus on getting everyone evacuated as soon as possible?"

"After seeing that thing, I'm making sure none of my men go after it," Juzo admitted, feeling shakened from witnessing the robot's power. 

"Good then spread the word that no one is to try to fight this thing no matter what. Got it?" Souda told them.

"You got it. But I expected you to deal with that robot and defeat it," Chisa said. 

Souda nodded back at the teacher and replied, "I plan to."

Just then, the three heard multiple high pitch sounds. As if something was flying through the air at hypersonic speeds. They looked up to see multiple lights coming out from the Reserve Course building and into the sky. 

"What the hell is that?" Juzo wondered, looking at the bright lights.

As they looked in curiosity by this, Souda took a closer look at them. Thanks to his enhanced eyesight from the ring, the mechanic was able to see what they were. And what he saw made him shake his core in fear. What he saw was multiple missiles flying up high through the air until they started to descend down, towards his location and the still evacuating students. 

"Shit…" he uttered before turning to Chisa and Juzo. "Both of you! Get out of here now!"

"What, why?" Yukizome asked.

"Missiles!" he shouted as Kazuichi flew into the air to stop the assault.

Souda flew high in the air, heading straight towards the missiles. Once close enough, Kazuichi created a minigun and laid fire at the missiles. He was able to destroy most of them with only three missiles left. He was about to shoot them down, but was suddenly struck by a green energy beam. Souda was able to stop himself from falling and regain control to see what had happened. He was met with the Manhunter as it fired more laser beams at the lantern, forcing him into evasive action.

"God damn it! I don't have time for this!" he shouted, focusing his attention on both trying to shoot down the last remaining missiles while also dodging the machine's attacks. 

"Your needs are invalid. All that awaits you is death."

As the Green Lantern continued to evade the laser beams, Souda was able to fire at two of the missiles, destroying them. Now all he needs is to get the last one before it's too late. As he tried to get to the missile, the Manhunter managed to get close and slam the Green Lantern to the ground. Kazuichi tried to get up but was stopped as the robot stomped on his back, pinning him down. The mechanic struggled to escape but the machine's strength and weight were too much to break free. 

"Your struggle is inevitable. You will die here," the Manhunter said as it aimed it's hand at Souda, ready to blast him with a laser beam.

Souda began to panic as he didn't know what to do. He was pinned down and he had no idea what construct to use to get him out of this. Kazuichi looked around to see what he could to escape his predictable but found nothing. That is until he looked at the ground. That instantly gave him an idea.

Acting fast, Souda aimed his ring at the ground and blasted it at full power. This not only blasted him and the Manhunter high into the air, but allowed Kazuichi the chance to escape. Using this, Souda towards the last missile. As the missile was getting close to hitting a crowd of students, all screaming in terror at the sight, the Green Lantern was quick enough to create a bubble around the missile. Allowing it to explode within the bubble thus preventing any casualties. 

Sighing in relief, Souda paid his attention back to the Manhunter it was currently flying towards the mechanic. Seeing this, Kazuichi flew up high into the sky and the robot followed. He was glad for this as Souda needed to get this machine away from the students and teachers. As the two flew up high, out of the planet's  atmosphere and into outer space, the Manhunter began to fire more missiles at the Green Lantern. This time, the missiles were following them specifically. 

"Of course it has heat seeking missiles!" Souda groaned in frustration. 

Kazuichi soared through the air as he evaded the missiles that nearly hit him. All the while he had to with the Manhunter still on his tail as it fired more green lasers at him. While this was a stressful situation, Souda was able to use some clever thinking to use robot's lasers to destroy a few missiles as he shot down some as well. Though there were still a few missiles left. 

"Come on think. I need a way to disarm this machine or I'm doom," Souda said to himself. He brainstormed for an idea that could help him here. Despite the sound of the missiles chasing him at high speeds and the Manhunter shooting its laser at him, an idea finally popped into the mechanic's head. 

Souda pointed his ring close to his face as he said, "Ring, at my command, I'm going to need you to use a large amount of power into defense. Is that clear?" 

"Affirmative. But be warned. Current power level is at 45%."

"Great to hea-" Kazuichi stopped talking when he heard that. Confused by this, he confronted the ring for his question. "45%? What the hell do you mean by that? And when does jewelry act like a phone?

"The power ring, while powerful, carries a finite charge. So it is important for a Green Lantern to frequently charge their rings on a daily basis from their power batteries."

"And you're telling me this now because?!" Souda shouted, demanding an answer.

"You never asked."

"Frickin' smartass," the mechanic muttered in frustration.

Despite this unforeseen issue, this wouldn't stop Souda from going through with his plan. So the Green Lantern flew around the sky some more before he was able to fly straight towards the Manhunter with the missiles still chasing him. As he was getting close, Kazuichi fired his own laser beam at the robot, creating a smokescreen around it. With his plan working, he flies above the machine to let it get attacked by the missiles. But as he was above the smoke screen, something grabbed onto his leg, stopping him from moving. Looking down, Souda saw the Manhunter as it now had a strong grip on him. Without saying a word, the robot chuck the Green Lantern at the missiles. Kazuichi screamed as he was bombarded by the remaining missiles, engulfing him in a massive explosion.

The Manhunter looked at the explosion with its expressionless eyes, scanning it for any readings of life. Although it found nothing, the machine recalled how this Green Lantern was much more durable than it had calculated. So not wanting to take any chances, the Manhunter opened its shoulder compartments and was ready to fire more missiles in the area. But just then, the Green Lantern flew out from the explosion and headed towards the robot. 

"Got you!" Souda shouted as he proceeded with his plan. 

Kazuichi created two bubble constructs around the shoulders of the Manhunter. As he did that, the android had fired off its missiles. But because of the bubble constructs, the missiles explode on contact as well as the Manhunter from the inside. This created a massive explosion that was stronger than any nuclear weapon on the planet, combined. It almost resembled a miniature sun in a way. 

Back with Juzo and Chisa, the two were currently running out of the school as they passed through the gate. As they did, they were spooked as the entire area began to light up brightly. The two looked up and were greeted with a shining explosion in the sky that almost looked like the sun. It was so bright that they had to cover their eyes. 

"What the hell is going on up there?" Juzo questioned.

"Not sure, but I hope that Green Lantern is winning," Chisa replied. 

"Hope you're right cause I doubt anyone of us here can take it on," Juzo admitted as he and Yukizome continued to run and check up with the others.

Back to the action, the explosion lasted for a couple seconds until it eventually disappeared. Though a massive smoke cloud remained. Out of the smoke cloud was Souda as he was blasted back by the shockwaves of the explosion. Despite the strong shockwaves that were pushing him towards the ground, Kazuichi was able to gain control and stop himself from falling. With all that done, the mechanic landed on the ground and then sat on the ground. He breathed heavily as he was beyond exhausted. He was also very much sore and had scratches all over him due to the fight. 

Souda looked up at the massive smoke cloud as he sighed in relief. "Thank god… it's over. Now… I can rest," he said, still gasping for air.

As his breathing was starting to get back to normal, Souda noticed something. Within the smoke cloud, he could have sworn he saw something come out from it. Out of curiosity, Kazuichi took a closer look at the sight in greater detail. What he saw made his eyes widen in shock. 

Coming out from the smoke cloud was the Manhunter. And looked completely different from before. Many parts of its armor were gone, especially with its shoulder compartments. But the rest of the armor had melted. Infusing with it's now, mostly exposed exoskeleton. There were even some parts of it that showed sparks and free wiring. One feature on the robot was that half its face was broken off, exposing a single, circular green light. Now looking like a robotic zombie of some kind, the Manhunter flew downwards at Souda. In the intent to kill him.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me," Souda groaned in frustration as he forced himself back up. The mechanic held his ring close to him as he asked, "Ring, how much power do we have?" 

"Power level is at 36%" 

"Fine by me. Let's get this over with."

Forcing himself back up, Kazuichi used the ring once more and took flight. Forming green mechanical gauntlets in the process. Once the two got close, the Manhunter began to unleash a flurry of punches, even throwing a couple kicks as well, at the Green Lantern. Though Kazuichi was fast to evade them then delivered his own punch when the opportunity presented itself. As the fight continued, the mechanic noticed that the machine wasn't firing its laser beams anymore. All it was doing was trying to get close to him to attack. With that, Souda realized that the robot no longer had any of its weapons. It was completely defenseless, though still dangerous to fight. Knowing this, the Green Lantern knew what he had to do. 

Souda now focused on evading the Manhunter's attacks, allowing it to get close. As this went, Kazuichi would find an opening he was looking for and commence his plan. Flying below the android, he created a green construct that wrapped around the machine's feet and legs. With that, Souda used all his strength to crush them with enough force to completely shut down its rockets. Disabling its ability to fly.

"Time to bring you back to earth!" Souda shouted as he pulled the Manhunter, with his construct, and threw the robot to the ground. Allowing the machine to crash land and create a crater in the process. As Kazuichi looked down at the sight, he began to rethink what had just said and cringed a little. 

"God, I got to work on my quips," he told himself as the mechanic flew after the robot.

As Souda landed near the crater, the Manhunter jumped out from it and charged at the Green Lantern. With the android completely wide open, Souda created a green cage around the machine. The robot began to punch the cage in order to break it and escape. But Kazuichi used all his concentration and will to make sure that the cage can withstand its attacks. He then shrank the cage to not only restrain the machine's movement, but begin to slowly crush the Manhunter.

Seeing the situation, the mechanic began to let out a chuckle. "I got to admit, I thought that I was going to lose this fight. But it seems luck favored me today," Souda said happily. "Now that you're completely defenseless, it's time to end this once and for all."

Souda wasted no time and had the cage shrink and it began crushing the Manhunter. Though this was a slow process as his ring was running low on power and that robot is extremely durable. So it would take some time before the deed was done. As the cage slowly got smaller, the Manhunter spoke. 

"It seems that I have miscalculated. Despite being categorized as a rookie, you show potential to become a powerful Green Lantern."

Souda let out a small, awkward laugh by being called a rookie. "It was that obvious?"

"However, that power alone will not defeat me. I will escape this and I will kill you like the other Green Lanterns that tried to stop me."

Kazuichi felt some anger rise in him from hearing that. "You bastard. Too bad that I'm making sure you'll never kill anyone again," he growled, applying more pressure to the cage. He even heard a few cracks be made on the machine. 

"I will kill you... like I did to this sector's previous protector." 

"The hell you on abo-"

"Like I did to Abin Sur."

Like that, all his anger completely went away. Souda looked at the Manhunter with complete utter shock by what he had just heard. For this machine to utter out that name, it was surprising to say the least.

"W-What?"

Chapter Text

Hope's Peak Academy

At the front gates of the greatest school in Japan, every student stood on the streets. The sky above them filled with grey clouds, signifying that it would rain soon. All waiting in fright and worry as every student was evacuated due to the sudden attack. Who the attacker was or were, they had no idea. Many speculated that it was one of those student shooters, the kind that kill their classmates for some need of revenge. Or some lunatic broke into the school somehow to have some sick twisted fun. Whatever the case was, the situation was grim, especially after hearing that a few security guards were killed in the process.

As everyone was doing their own thing to pass the time, the entirety, well most of Class 77B were huddled together as they tried to calm themselves with the situation at hand. Though it wasn't easier said than done with a few of them.

"I can't believe this. After my disastrous birthday party, I only wished to have some sort of peace. But now our school is being attacked by some kind of threat. Is lady luck, as you call it, just fucking with us," Sonia expressed, feeling upset and saddened by all this.

"I am not sure, my Dark Queen. But whatever demon it is that had decided to invade our realm, I am sure that our own demon army can slay it. And if needed, I, Gundham Tanaka, Supreme Overlord of Ice, shall vanish the intruder myself," Gundham told her, holding the princess's hand to calm her.

"Thank you Gundham, I appreciate your words," she replied, laying her head onto his shoulder.

"Man, this sucks. There's some kind of intruder in the school and I'm stuck here, waiting," Akane expressed. "I could just go in there and fight off this intruder. Beat up him so badly that they wished to never step into our school."

"Akane, that's a stupid idea. Whoever's attacking us could have guns with them or something else dangerous in hand. You'll most likely get killed. Especially what happened last time," Fuyuhiko warned her.

"You don't know that! And last time, those assholes got lucky! This time I'm prepared. Whoever these assholes are aren't going to get the jump on me again," Akane shouted, pumping herself up for a fight.

As the Ultimate Gymnast looked like she was ready to pounce, Nekomaru came in and placed his hand onto her shoulder. His grip was strong and firm to not only to calm Akane but to retrain herself as well.

"Owari, I understand that you're feeling frustrated after yesterday. Being taken down like that so easily can make you feel pathetic. Me, Peko, and a lot of us felt the same way," Nidai told her. "But with the way you are now and the fact we know nothing about the intruder, you would just be putting yourself in danger."

"Then what the hell are we supposed to do?" Akane questioned him.

"We stay here and wait." Akane and Nidai turned their attention to Peko as the swordswoman looked at the gymnast. "Unless we know who our opponent is and if we are needed, we will have to wait."

Absorbing those words into her head, Akane reluctantly complied as she sat back down. "I hate this, but I guess if I have to, I'll do it."

As that discussion ended, Hiyoko looked around the area as she was looking out for something. "I hope Yukizome found Big Sis Mahiru already. I'm starting to worry if something bad happened to her."

"I'm sure Koizumi is alright. Though I do wish she came here sooner," Chiaki said as she just as worried about her photographer classmate.

As the class continued to wait, they were spooked by the sudden shaking of the earth along with the loud crashing sound.

"Holy moly, what was that?!" Ibuki shouted in shock.

"It felt like a bomb was set off nearby!" Ryota added in.

The class, along with the other students and teachers, were all questioning what had just happened. What had caused this sudden load tremor to appear. Then without warning, a large gun sound was made and something flew into the air, crashing into the Reserve Course building. Many of the watchers were startled by this, all of them silent now as they wondered what was that. And then suddenly, multiple lights came out from the building, making a high pitched sound as they moved beyond mach speed.

"What are those?" Teruteru uttered, feeling nervously.

"Some kind of lights…" Mikan guessed.

As everyone else tried to guess, Sonia looked at them, eyes widened in horror, and her heart nearly stopping. "Missiles…"

"What?" Tanaka questioned the princess.

"Those are missiles!" she shouted in fright.

Her cry was loud enough for everyone else to heat. And like that, all the students and teachers began to panic, screaming of their possible demise. Many of them tried to push each to go somewhere and not be in the range of the missiles. Just when things became chaotic, something fortunate happened. Flying into the skies was an emerald light as it flew towards the missiles. Then began to shoot them down with what sounded like a machine gun of some kind.

"Is that who I think it is?" Imposter uttered in shock.

"It is," Sonia spoke up as her eye began to sparkle in joy. "It's the Green Lantern! He's here!" As she said that, Class 77B began to cheer in glee, knowing that the hero is her to save them. All the while, a couple students looked at them with confusion. Three of them even walked up to them.

"Ah, the Green Lantern. A new being that will bring so much hope in our darkest day. How truly wonderful," Nagito commented in his usual, creepy attitude.

"Green Lantern?"

Sonia, Gundham, and Chiaki turned their attention to the three students being Ruruka Ando, Sonosuke Izayoi, and Seiko Kimura.

"What the hell is a Green Lantern?" Ruruka asked once more.

"Only a real life superhero! He's the one that saved me and my classmates from death! And now he's here to save us once again," Sonia explained, her energetic personality coming back.

"Are you referring to that green hero that you were talking about nonstop last night?" Seiko asked.

"Like one of those superheros you see in cartoons and comics?" Izayoi added in.

"Indeed! With him here, I'm sure we will all be safe," Nevermind boosted.

"Okay, you do realize how stupid that sounds, right?" Ruruka said, not buying anything that the princess said.

"But it's true!" Sonia argued. "He saved us all from the Black Hawks. I would not be here if not for him."

"Right, and I'm the tooth fairy," Ando replied sarcastically.

"But it's the truth!" Sonia yelled in denial.

"Ruruka, don't be so harsh. They do sound like they're telling the truth," Seiko spoke up.

"You can't be serious? No matter how truthful anyone says it, it's not going to sound any more believable," Ando stated.

"She's right, unless you guys have some kind of proof, we won't believe that this Green Lantern exists," Izayoi added in.

"Guys!"

Everyone in the group stopped with their discussion as they turned to see a welcome surprise. Running towards them was Mahiru along with Hajime, Sato, and Natsumi.

"Koizumi!" the class shouted as they surrounded them.

"Big Sis!" Saionji cried in joy as the dancer hugged Koizumi. "I'm so glad that you're alright!"

"I'm glad to hear that," Mahiru replied as she hugged her friend back.

"Natsumi, thank god you're here! I was starting to get worried!" Fuyuhiko said as he and Peko stood in front of his sister.

"Eh, don't worry about it. I can take care of myself," Natsumi gloated before hugging her brother. "But I'm happy to be with you again."

"Hajime!" Chiaki yelled in joy as she ran up to the Reserve Course student. "I'm so happy you're here."

"Same here, Nanami," Hinata replied, happy to see his close friend.

"While we're happy to see you all again, where were you, Koizumi? We assumed the worst when we were evacuated and didn't see you," Sonia asked.

"Sorry guys, I was just hanging out with my Sato to relax with Natsumi and Hajime getting involved. But then all of a sudden, we were attacked," Mahiru explained.

"Attacked?! You encountered the intruder?! That's crazy!" Ibuki shouted.

"Dear god, that must have been frightening to see," Mitarai uttered.

"Who's the intruder?! What did they look like?! I'll be sure to kick their ass!" Akane asked the photographer, ready for a fight.

"I wouldn't if I were you. You may be an Ultimate, but I doubt you can fight that thing," Natsumi spoke up.

"Huh?! What makes you say that?!" Owari questioned in anger.

"Yeah, what's up with that?" Fuyuhiko asked as well.

"Because the intruder isn't exactly human," Sato answered.

"Isn't exactly human? What are you talking about? What exactly is attacking the school?" Ando asked, still confused by all this.

"Sigh, I know it's hard to believe, but what's attacking us isn't a guy," Hajime spoke. "Rather, it's some kind of robot."

Once he said that, everyone looked at Hajime as if he grew a second head. That sounded nonsensical in every single way. Even when they lived in a world where Ultimate talents are a thing, this still didn't sound right.

"A robot? That… sounds ridiculous," Seiko said.

"More like impossible! You expect us to believe that?! This isn't a sci-fi movie!" Ruruka shouted.

"But it's the truth! That's what we saw. Why would we make something like that up with the situation at hand?" Mahiru argued.

"I don't know, but I don't believe this. How can a robot of all things do this?!" the confectioner yelled, trying to make sense of all this.

But as she said that, the sky suddenly brightened up, creating a shining light above them. It was so bright, it was like they were staring at the sun. Everyone covered their eyes, protecting themselves from going blind. After a couple of seconds, the light disappeared and the sky went back to normal.

"What the hell was that?" Sonosuke questioned.

"It was if some demonic creature tried to create their own sun," Gundham commented.

As everyone wondered what had just occurred, Mahiru was staring up at the sky. Her mind was thinking about the Green Lantern and how he's doing in his fight with the robot. Worried whether he could defeat that thing or not. Though she hoped that the green savior is the victor here. "Green Lantern, please win this. For all of us."

Cutting back to the fight, Souda looks at the Manhunter, still encased within a green cage construct. The young Green Lantern was ready, with all his might, to crush the machine into scrap. But then the robot spoke of a name. A name he didn't think it would now.

"W-What?" Souda uttered in shock. "What are you on about? How do you know Abin Sur?!"

"It seems that you have encountered the previous lantern of this sector. I calculated that he would die alone. It seemed, however, that I was wrong."

"Answer me dammit! How do you know Abin Sur!" Kazuichi shouted in demand.

"All you need to know is that I'm the reason Abin Sur is dead. And you will join him," the machine said as it still tried to break free."

Souda groaned in frustration by the Manhunter's refusal to answer his question. However, he shook that thought out as he refocused back onto the cage construct. "You know what? Forget it! I'll find out later. For now, I'm going to end this once and for all," he said as he continued to crush the machine.

"You may proceed. However, all it will do is benefit the cult."

"What? How is destroying you a benefit?! That makes no sense!" the mechanic shouted.

"The Manhunter is telling the truth."

Kazuichi stopped whatever he was doing at that moment and looked down at his ring. "What do you mean by that?"

"There is added information from Abin Sur as to warn the next wilder for when they encounter the Alpha Manhunter."

"And what warning is that?" he asked.

"When an Alpha Manhunter is destroyed, they will admit a signal to the Manhunters, giving them our current location."

"So you're saying that if I destroy this Manhunter, more of them will come?"

"Precisely."

"Son of a bitch," Souda muttered in frustration. "Then what the hell am I supposed to do?" At this point, he tried to think about what to do here. How was he supposed to destroy this Manhunter without setting off the signal, putting his planet into danger. The mechanic felt stuck at this point. How did Abin deal with this?

And like that, an idea popped up.

"Ring, can you show me the time when Abin Sur fought this Manhunter?" Souda asked at his power ring.

"I can do that. But are you sure about this?"

"I don't have much choice right now," the mechanic answered. "If I want to win this, I feel like looking into Abin Sur's memories will point me in the right direction."

"Very well."

On command, Kazuichi's eyes glowed green as he was taken somewhere else.

His eyes refocusing, Souda found himself in a different location. He was in the depths of space. As he examined himself, the teen was taken back by how his entire body was completely green. It was like he was just body shaped emerald light. Once he accepted this interesting change, the mechanic looked around his area for anything and spotted something.

Near him was a massive spaceship like that in sci fi movies. Though it looks completely damaged as if something attacked it. And even worse was that he saw a couple aliens floating out in space, completely motionless.

"Dear god, what happened here?" Souda uttered in shock by this disaster.

"We are looking into the memory of the previous lantern, Abin Sur. This is when Abin was currently on a mission assigned to him by the Guardians."

"What kind of mission?" the mechanic asked.

"He was assigned to investigate the killings of Green Lanterns near his sector. Approximately four lanterns were killed before he began his mission. Even more unsettling was that many planets and stars were wiped out upon where these killings happened."

"Holy crap…" Souda uttered in disbelief. As he said that, the teen saw a familiar sight. Flying towards the spaceship was Abin Sur as he stopped to look at the disaster. He had a frown on his face, saddened by the lives that were lost today. Though he shook that emotion out as he had a job to do. Looking through the area, the alien used his ring to emit a light to find anything out of the ordinary.

"Abin Sur? Abin! Over here! I need to warn you!" Kazuichi shouted as he moved toward the alien. But as soon as his hand touched Abin's shoulder, it fazed through the previous lantern like he was a hologram. Souda flew back in shock of this. "What the?"

"He cannot hear or see you. This is a memory of a past event. Affecting playback will not change the past reality."

"Damn it…" he uttered, disappointed.

Knowing he could do nothing to change this, Kazuichi looked back to Abin Sur as he was still looking for any clues or survivors. Just when it looked like nothing was here, Abin stopped in his tracks as if he sensed something. Quickly using his ring, he created a shield to his right to block a green laser beam. Just as he was about to attack, the alien was punched from behind. As he managed to stop himself, the Green Lantern was met with multiple missiles heading his way. Thinking quickly, Abin Sur shot out multiple small green projectiles, hitting them every missile head on and causing them to explode.

As a massive smokescreen appeared, Abin floated in place as he waited for his attackers. The smoke eventually cleared as three figures came out. The three being the Manhunters. Like the one Souda was currently facing, these Manhunters were huge with the red and blue body and their own metal staff in hand.

Souda was blown away from seeing this. "Three? There were three of these?!"

As the mechanic processed this, Abin Sur spoke. "I should have known that you mechanical abominations were involved in this. Though there's something off about you three. You're different from the Manhunters I've faced before."

One of the Manhunter's scanned the alien. "Identified. Abin Sur. Green Lantern of Sector 2814."

"I see your cult has kept tabs on me," Abin commented.

"You are declared a threat to the Manhunters," the second Manhunter spoke.

The third Manhunter activated it's staff, aiming it as the Green Lantern. "For that, you are to be terminated."

The Manhunter fired off multiple bolts of lightning at Abin Sur while the other two unleashed a swarm of missiles. Taking evasive maneuvers, the veteran Green Lantern flew around to avoid the barrage of attacks. He then creates a shield contract on his left arm while lighting up his ring. As more missiles came in, Abin shot them down with his laser while blocking the electrical attacks with the shield. The alien did his best to attack back, even managing to get a good few hits on one of the Manhunters. However, the machines were relentless. They made sure the lantern barely had any chance to fight back.

'These machines… they're different from the others I've faced before,' Abin Sur thought, doing his best to avoid their attacks. 'They're more coordinated and possess more power behind them. Especially if only three of them are enough to face me.'

As the Green Lantern dodged more of the attacks, one of the Manhunter's flew at the alien. Once close, the machine began to swing its electrical staff at Abin Sur. Forming a blade out of his ring, Abin swung it back at his attacker, clashing against the metal staff with each blow. He was holding his own, even managing to cut onto the robot's armor. However, one of the missiles hit him from behind.

"Abin!" Souda shouted in fright.

Taking this opportunity, the Manhunter hit the Green Lantern with its staff, electrocuting him. Abin Sur screamed in pain and he was blasted back. Launching him towards one of the Manhunters, who proceeded to bring down both its arms onto the alien. The attack forced Abin flying towards the third Manhunter as it punched him away. As the lantern was spinning uncontrollably through space, the Manhunters locked onto their target as they fired more missiles at him. The missiles closed in onto the lantern and exploded on impact.

As the explosion cleared up, the Manhunters looked around the area to see for any remains of the Green Lantern. Though with their sensors, they didn't find anything. Despite that, the machines continued their search to be sure their target was terminated.

As the robots continue their search, we see Abin Sur hiding behind a piece of floating debris after nearly escaping his doom. He was even invisible to ensure that he wouldn't be found.

"Shit man, that was some quick thinking there," Souda commented, impressed by the previous lantern.

Abin peeked out his eyes to look out from his hiding place, he saw two of the Manhunters near him. The machines scanned through different directions of the area but found nothing.

"There are no signs of the Green Lantern here, as if he disappeared," the one Manhunter said.

"I am in the same position. However, the Green Lantern must be around here. There is a low chance for him to escape," the second Manhunter said.

As the Manhunters continued their search, Abin Sur pointed his ring towards him. "Ring, I'm going to scan these Manhunters for any notable changes to them. I need you to compare what I scanned with the body structure of the usual Manhunters I face."

"Affirmative."

As Abin Sur moved from his hiding spot and followed one of the Manhunters, Souda looked at him, impressed by his calm and determined nature he was displaying. He was like a soldier of war, showing no fear on his face. As expected of a veteran Green Lantern.

"Man, it's impressive just how confident yet careful he is. The presence he's displaying is almost the same as Pekoyama. But Abin's aura is somehow stronger than her's," Souda commented.

Back to the scene, Abin Sur slowly followed the Manhunter, making sure his presence was as unnoticeable as possible. The ring emitted a light to scan the machine from behind but making sure the energy it discharged was low enough to not be perceived. It took awhile and a lot of patience but the scanning was finally done. With that, the Green Lantern quickly flew away from the robot and hid behind another large piece of debris.

"What have you found?" Abin asked towards his ring.

"The design and parts of both these models seem completely similar. Though there are differences between them. The version you scanned has more power and weaponry to it. Designed to destroy planets and stars in their wake. As well as to overwhelm their opponents."

"Hm, these Manhunters are much more dangerous than I thought. Seeing as they're giving me a challenge. But is there anything else about them I need to worry about?" the Green Lantern asked.

"There is something notable within their stomach area,"the ring answered as it showed the alien a diagram of the Alpha Manhunter. Focusing on the stomach area of the robot, highlighting a cylinder shaped object. "It seems that this device here activates when either this part or the Manhunter is destroyed. It will immediately set out a strong signal throughout the galaxy to alert other Manhunters of its location."

"So if I destroy them, I risk more of these machines to appear and better their odds," Abin Sur said.

"That is correct."

"Hm, this will be trickier than I thought," the Green Lantern said to himself, thinking what to do here. In a few seconds, he thought of a plan. "Ring, if I remove the device without damaging it, will the signal not go off?"

"Judging by the schematics, that is indeed possible."

"Good, now I have a fighting chance," he said as he powered up his ring.

Just then, a mechanical hand broke through the debris and tried to grab Abin Sur, thinking quickly the lantern threw him away from it and the floating piece of debris. It was obvious he was found, as immediately the Alpha ripped through the metal sheet, and looked directly towards the alien. Abin could also see from the corners of his vision as the other machine warriors were closing in on him, trying to come at him at all sides.

"You are a fool to reveal yourself. As if you are ready for death," one of the Manhunters stated.

"You are correct about one thing. I am ready, ready for combat," Abin claimed, creating a mace construct in his hand.

Immediately, the Manhunters opened fire with a swarm of laser blasts and missiles at the Green Lantern. Abin Sur dodged each of them as quickly as he could, while firing his own beams at them. He tried to aim for the most important parts of the Manhunters, their arms, legs, and revealed weapon systems. Knowing that the range options would be the most hazardous. He is only able to disable one of the weapons before one of the other Manhunters gets close.

A clash is heard as Abin forms a mace to meet the machine's staff, with it's electrical charge surging to a point that Abin could feel it nearly burning his hands. He knew holding his position would mean death. Off balancing was the key. So he threw up his feet and kicked at the hunter's chest, throwing himself backwards. While doing so he focused on his ring, changing it to that of an oddly bent blade.

Souda found why it was made though, as he saw the veteran move back, he swung, allowing a large slash to be made across the manhunter, cutting through one of its arms, and even reaching up to its eyes.

Abin Sur quickly sliced off the other arm before moving it in front of the Manhunter, using the robot as a shield from the swarm of laser beams. As the armless machine was tanking a barrage of attacks, the Green Lantern got to work as he created small tool constructs to cut into the robot's stomach. Taking apart the machine's innards with precise movement, Abin was able to find the signal device and removed it. In his grabs, the lantern put the device inside a small rocket construct and had it fly off at an isolated part of his sector and destroy it there. Abin then placed a bomb construct inside the Manhunter's body before pushing it towards the other two Manhunters. The armless Manhunter crashed into its brethren before the bomb detonated. Creating a massive explosion that launched the two Manhunters back in different directions. One of them crashing into a nearby asteroid, the other into a large piece of debris.

Back with Kazuichi, he saw all this with ar in his face. Filled with excitement by this intense battle as if he was watching an action packed movie in the theaters. "Holy shit, not only am I finding out more about these Manhunters and how to deal with them, but I'm also getting to see this amazing battle too. This is kickass!" he shouted in joy.

Returning back to the fight, Abin weighed his options on who to give chase before deciding to go after the Manhunter in the large debris. As he flew there, the robot broke out of the debris as it fired its laser beams from its hands. Though the Green Lantern had fast reactions as he fired his own laser blasts from his ring, cancelling out their attacks. The battle became an all out dog fight as the two flew around, firing their laser beams at one another. They passed through any rock or debris in their way; neither one letting up their attacks or their focus on their targets.

The battle went on until, as Abin Sur made a turn around a giant rock, the Manhunter appeared in front of him. The robot attempted to punch the alien into paste, but the lantern swiftly moved back to avoid the attack. Though the robot moved close to Abin to continue its assault.

"With our battle in close range, you are now at a disadvantage,"The Manhunter stated as it went for a right hook. "Surrender and die." But just then, Abin Sur blocked the hit with a massive monster arm-like construct. Then he attacked back with his own punch, pushing back the machine. The robot was stunned and it bared witness to the Green Lantern as his arms were covered with a monster arm-like construct. There were even two extra arms behind his back.

"Close range may be a common weakness to many lanterns. However, I'm not one of them."

With that said, Abin Sur got up close to the Manhunter and began to slug the machine with his fists. The robot attempted to fight back with either it's punches or laser beams. Unfortunately for the machine, the Green Lantern didn't give it a chance to attack back. Abin even managed to crush the Manhunter's hands and shoulders to prevent it from using any of its long range attacks. The lantern continued his assault, leaving massive dents on the robot's body until he finished it with one last punch. The punch damaged the Manhunter's face, creating large cracks before launching it back.

As the Manhunter was now a good distance away, Abin Sur used the green energy from his arm constructs to create a sniper rifle. Aiming his gun at his target, Abin Sur shot a projectile, a claw shot, at the stunned machine. The projectile hit the Manhunter as it shot through its metal body. Behind it, the claw shot construct held the robot's signal piece as it flew into the depths of space, million of lightyears away. With the signal piece gone, the Green Lantern flew at the machine as he created a sword construct. The Manhunter tried to fight back as it charged at the alien in a desperate attempt. However, Abin flew past the machine behind it, slicing the robot into two. The two halves of the Manhunter staggered a bit until they exploded into pieces.

"Holy shit, talk about a beat down! Who knew Abin was such a badass. It's no wonder he's a veteran," Souda commented on glee.

Abin looked at the sight with relief as he took a breather. "That's the second one down. Now all I need is deal with the last one. Though, where is-"

Just then, the last Manhunter appeared right in front of Abin Sur, it's hand glowing with green energy. Shocked by this, the Green Lantern didn't have any time to react to what was about to happen to him. The machine fired off a fully charged laser beam onto the alien's right side.

Souda looked in horror, all his excitement gone in an instant, from what he just witnessed. The sudden whiplash was cruel for the mechanic as he was brutally reminded that this playback would show him how Abin Sur died. "Abin!" he shouted in distress.

Abin Sur screamed in agony as he felt his insides burn. His eyes popping out from the unbearable pain he was experiencing. Eventually the beam stopped and the Manhunter would then punch the lantern, sending him to crash land inside the destroyed spaceship. In panic, Kazuichi flew towards in an attempt to help the veteran, hoping that he was alright. As he made his way inside the spaceship towards the lantern's location, he was met with a horrifying sight.

Laying on the wall was Abin Sur, as he was in terrible condition. His right side was bleeding heavily, his suit and body being dyed by his purple blood. Breathing heavily, groaning in pain, the alien tried his best to fight through the pain and get up, but it proved to be more difficult than he thought. Unable to bear the sight, Souda ran up to him and reached his arms out to help the lantern. Unfortunately, his hands fazed through Abin, causing the mechanic reel back in shock.

"Reminder: this is playback of a memory, you cannot alter what has already occurred."

"But… there has to be something I can do!" Kazuichi argued at his ring, feeling more dread.

"You cannot change the past. This is the reality for a Green Lantern."

Feeling dumbstruck from that fact, Souda was brought back to the situation as he paid attention to Abin Sur. The lantern had managed to get himself up, leaning against to support himself. Trying to stay strong, Abin talked to his ring. "Ring… status report…"

"Power level is around 15%. You have also suffered immense bleeding. Loss of large muscle tissue as well a small piece of your rib cage. And lastly, you have suffered a broken leg. Immediate medical treatment is needed."

Groaning at the situation, Abin Sur now found himself in a terrible predicament. He knew that he had little chance now to escape here alive, let alone win this fight. As he tried to think of something, the alien noticed a piece of bone sticking out from his thigh leg.

"That… isn't supposed to be there." Abin says, trying to hold back a cough.

"Hypothesis: It is possible during the punch you endure by the Manhunter, causing the collision into the ship-"

"Ring, stop."

Now getting a full grasp of the situation, the lantern thought up of a plan that could potentially help him here. "Ring, I'm going to need you to focus half of my power into keeping me alive. Then scan the interior and exterior of the ship and plant it all into my consciousness."

"As you wish."

As the ring did what it was told, Souda looked at Abin with complete disbelief. Even with an injury he has and his now low chances of defeating the Manhunter, this lantern still remained as calm as possible. Thinking of a plan that would help him either escape or win this battle. Kazuichi didn't think he had ever seen anyone act like that. If it were him, he would probably be crying in pain and horror, panicking and trying to accept his fate before being killed. In a way, Souda found Abin to be both insane and brave here.

His thought process was interrupted as he heard a sound be made from inside the ship. Out of curiosity, Kazuichi flew towards the sound to see what it was. And to his terror, it was the Alpha Manhunter, the last of the three. The machine had received its metal staff back as it now walked through the ship, scanning the place to find its dying target. And in an instant, the robot's sensors picked up something. The Manhunter began to walk towards its target as Kazuichi followed.

"Fuck man, whatever Abin has planned, it better work," Spuda uttered to himself.

The Manhunter continued to follow its target, even breaking through the walls to find him. Eventually, after breaking through another wall, the machine would come across Abin Sur. The lantern was lying on the metal floor, his breathing becoming heavier than before. He was trying his absolute best to crawl away, but he had little stamina to do so.

"Abin… no," the Ultimate Mechanic uttered in shock as he couldn't bear to see him like this.

The Manhunter walked towards the down Green Lantern, shaking the room in the process. It got close enough to where it was right in front of the alien.

"It seems you have miscalculated. For even with your rank, you were no match for the Alpha Manhunters."

"It seems so…" Abin uttered, coughing up some blood.

"As of now, this will be the day you die. And this ship will be your grave," the Manhunter stated as it raised its foot up, ready to crush the Green Lantern underneath it.

Despite what was going to happen to him, Abin Sur simply looked up at the machine, smiling at it with fresh blood on his chin. "You're right… I knew this day would come… it was inevitable."

As he said that, the Alpha brought down it's foot onto Abin Sur, crushing his upper body into a bloody paste.

It was what should have happened, but instead, the Green Lantern shattered into green pieces like glass. While it couldn't show it, the Manhunter was surprised by this. Same can be said for Souda, he was shocked by what had occurred. He pieced what had just happened as he uttered, "It was a clone construct?"

"However…"

Both Kazuichi and the Manhunter turned to the voice. Seeing the real Abin Sur as he used his ring to charge up one of the ship's cannons, aiming at the machine. He looked at the robot with a ferocious look as the cannon was now fully charged.

"I refuse to die by your hands."

Without hesitation, Abin fired off the cannon as it unleashed the large white beam. The Manhunter could do nothing as it was engulfed by the beam, being blasted out of the spaceship. The machine was pushed back at lightspeeds by the beam as it disappeared into the depths of space.

With all that done, Abin Sur fell onto his knees as he was extremely exhausted now. Charging up that cannon was not only exhausting, but a huge gamble for him to take. The Green Lantern was grateful that luck was on his side.

"Jesus, I didn't think that you had to take such a risk like that. That was like Komaeda levels of bullshit luck," Souda commented, relieved that this whole horror show was over with.

Kazuichi continued to look at Abin as the veteran slowly got himself back up, floating in the air. His breathing slowed down as he looked beyond tired. "Ring… status… report…"

"Power level is at 6%. And with your current condition, flight is impossible."

Abin chuckled at that, coughing out some blood on the process. "Figures… it's a good thing… I scanned the ship beforehand. Now… take me to… one of the… emergency pods."

On command, the ring slowly guided the near dead Abin Sur towards his destination. Souda followed along as he wanted to finish this playback already. It took awhile but the veteran finally made it to one of the working emergency pods the ship had. Entering inside and sitting himself in the cockpit, Abin turned the ship on and ready it for flight. "Ring, set the ship's coordinates… to the closest habitat planet."

"It is done," the ring said. "Your destination will be a small blue planet called Earth."

That name caught his full attention as Abin has a look of shock on him. It was like he was familiar with the planet before. As the alien let the name sink in, the Green Lantern let out a small chuckle.

"It seems… that monster was right. Fate has set me… on this path," Abin uttered as the ship was now ready to blast off. All it was needed was for him to press a button. "I only hope… that my successor is ready… for what's to come…"

With that, Abin Sur pressed the button and the ship took off. Flying through space towards its destination. Souda stood there, seeing the ship leave his sights, as he pieced together what happened next. While this memory gave the mechanic the information he needed against the Manhunter, he was not prepared to witness all that.

"So this is how Abin Sur ended up like that when I first met him. And how he crashed landed on my planet," Kazuichi spoke out.

"Correct. And with all his will, Abin Sur kept himself alive to make sure he would pass his ring onto a worthy successor. That successor being you, Kazuichi Souda."

Souda stood there for a good while, still sorting out everything he witnessed, before he aimed his ring towards him. "Ring, take me back to reality. We're done here," he commanded, wanting to get out of this memory immediately.

"As you wish."

On command, the ring brought Kazuichi out of the memory and back to the real world. He was brought back into the forest with the Manhunter still in its cage. While Souda was still enduring the whiplash of seeing the memory of Abin Sur's death, he wondered how long he had taken in the playback.

"Ring, how long was I in that playback?" Souda asked.

"Calculating… you have been in there for 5 seconds."

The mechanic looked at the ring with shock in his eyes. "That short?! Holy shit," he said, still in shock by what this ring can do.

"It seems that you have seen the past."

Souda was brought out of his thoughts as he looked back to the Alpha Manhunter. The machine looked at him with it's one remaining eye.

"You have witnessed the fate of the previous of this sector. How I was the one that led to his death."

Kazuichi looked down, feeling over the edge about what he had to witness. Feeling that seeing those memories brought him more harm than good. Despite that, he remained as calm as possible as he still had a job to do.

"Yeah, I'll admit that what I saw was painful. Hell, a part of me is regretting seeing all that," Souda admitted as refocused on the task. "But that doesn't mean I didn't get something out of it. I now know how to deal with you. All I have to do is remove that signal device and everything is done with. I'll wipe out the last of your kind."

Kazuichi formed some small tools within the cage as they were ready to tear about the Manhunter's stomach area. And with his ultimate talent as a mechanic, this shouldn't be too difficult for him to do. Though before he could proceed, the killer robot spoke once more.

"Do you really believe that destroying me would end us?"

Souda was taken out of his focus as he looked back at the Manhunter. "I mean, yeah? Why wouldn't that be the case?"

"Because there are more Manhunters in this universe."

"Oh come on, there can't be that many? I only saw three of you. How many could there be? Like ten or more?" Souda argued.

"You fool. There are approximately a million of us. And the number continues to grow."

The moment the Alpha said that, Souda was speechless. When he saw the three robots in the playback, he expected the Manhunters to be a group, like about a hundred of them. Not an entire army that with a number this huge.

"No… that has to be a lie. There's no way your group of yours has a million of you! Just from scanning you, I can tell it would take years just to build one of you! Let alone an entire army of that magnitude!" Souda shouted.

"Deny all you want, but it is the truth. And the cult has conquered hundreds of planets because of it. Although there have been species that have managed to defeat us. Such as the case with the natives of Korugar and the Thangarians. However, more times than not, most species of any planet fall under our rule."

Kazuichi was starting to get angry by all this. "Fuck off! That's nothing but lies!"

"The Manhunter is telling the truth."

The mechanic looked down to his ring as he was bewildered by what it said. "What?" he uttered.

"It is true. The Manhunters have been known for conquering planets to expand their cult. Gain more resources and slaves to become stronger."

Hearing that, Souda remembered back at how this robot mentioned taking over the planet for its own needs. He knew that that was bad news, but never in his mind did he think that it would be that disastrous. "I mean- this thing could be lying for all I know."

"The Manhunters are machines with no emotions. They have no reason to lie."

At that point, Souda was beginning to feel actual dread. It was bad enough that this thing was responsible for Abin's death. But to find out that these abominations took over planets only increased his anxiety, his fear.

"Such denial… this reminds of a time the cult took over Mars."

"Mars?" Souda uttered in shock.

"Indeed. It was over a billion years ago, before your race was even born."

In a flashback, we are taken back about 3 billion years on the red planet, Mars. While it still had the red deserts and red sky, there was a presence of life here. Many unique plants and animals are visible in the wild life of the planet. And in one part of the area was a city with buildings built oddly compared to earth's. And the inhabitants that roamed the city were the Martians. A species that consisted of tall, green humanoid beings with red eyes. All wearing blue and red clothing. They were all doing their own thing, living their lives as usual.

"The species of the planet, the Martians, were powerful for their immense strength, shapeshifting, and being one of the most powerful telepaths in the universe. Their planet also had many useful resources."

Then, out of the blue, the red skies were filled with multiple glowing lights. The martians looked at them with uneasiness and curiosity. They wondered what these lights were. Some believed them to be stars or meteors. But what they saw was something much more horrible. Raining from the sky were the Manhunters.

"We knew that we had to conquer them."

Without warning, the Manhunters rein down onto the martian civilization with energy beams and missiles. Destroying many buildings, ruining their landscapes, and killing many of their civilians. As the aliens screamed and ran in terror and more of the machines flying into their planet, the invasion had begun.

"As expected, the Martians fought back."

As weeks went by, the planet's civilization was now in ruins. While many Martians were hiding in their safe zones, their military went into the front lines to fight the Manhunters and defend their home. It seemed both sides were evenly matched with either one gaining an advantage over another.

"However, the more we fought, the more we learned about them."

As one Martian soldier destroyed a group of Manhunters, one of them appeared in front of him. A design much different from the ones he had faced. Tanks on it's back and a large orb on its head.

"The more we learn of them, the better we were able to understand their weaknesses."

The martian transformed into a serpent-like creature as it was about to attack the robot. However, the newest Manhunter quickly emitted a screeching noise within its range from the orb. The martian was stopped within his tracks as the noise was affecting him negatively. The alien shrieked in agony as his shapeshifting was going wild as well as his telepathic mind being assaulted. The soldier was left wide open as the android opened its hands and unleashed a wave of fire onto him, burning him to death.

"With that information, their soldiers fell… one by one."

The scene shows many martians being killed in many ways. Their brains are overloaded by the screeching noises, crushed into a bloody paste, electrocuted to death, blown apart into pieces, and burned alive by their flames. And in no time, the martian military was no more.

"With their military and leaders dead, we began our conquest. Forcing the remaining population to gather all their planet's resources. Metal, fuel sources, plant life, anything valuable to the cult were taken."

The scene changes as we are shown the martians forced into either the mines or the fields to gather all the resources within the area. The Manhunters standing by to make sure they complied to their demands. The martians were forced into horrible conditions, oppressed to work nonstop, and got little to no food and rest.

"And the ones who could no longer move, they were disposed of."

A tired martian child is seen with his own brethren, carrying a large amount of plants on his shoulders. Though his aching muscles finally got to him as he fell down to the ground. The boy laid there, too exhausted to barely move, to even think. And the rest of the martian slaves paid no attention to him as they knew that there was nothing that could be done. The child laid there as a Manhunter approached him. Standing above the martian, the machine simply raised its foot and crushed the slave into a bloody paste. With the deed done, the machine focused back on the other slaves to make sure they were doing their tasks.

"They have done their jobs well. Though, when they were close to extinction, the martians decided to rebel in a futile attempt for freedom."

At one point, the remaining martians banded together as they attacked the headquarters of the Manhunters. With their own created weapons and weapons they stole from the monstrous machines, the aliens fought back with everything they had. It all seemed hopeful for the martians. That is until more Manhunters came, the same kind that were designed to kill their species. The rebellion knew at this point that it was all over.

"As expected, it was futile."

Without hesitation, the Manhunters circled the last martians and unleashed a torrent of fire at them. The sound of shrieks can be heard until it was replaced with the sound of crackling of the flames as they cooked the dead meat. At that very moment, the martians became extinct.

"With their species now extinct and their resources dried up, the Manhunters no longer saw any value with the planet. So we left. Leaving Mars to remain as a dead husk. To remind others of what the cult is capable of."

"And Mars was not the first planet the cult has conquered nor it will be the last. If you truly now believe that destroying me would end all that, then you truly are arrogant."

Souda stood there, his face filled in horror and disgust by what he was told. It sounded like something you hear in a movie, only this actually happened. And that's what made it worse. He even looked down to his ring, hoping that it would tell him that the story wasn't true.

"What it said is true. Mars was one of the many planets in this sector that suffered under the might of the Manhunters."

"You monsters…" Kazuichi uttered in disbelief. "Why would they do this?"

"It is simple, Green Lantern. They have no emotions. They know not of right or wrong. They cannot be reasoned with. They show no remorse, mercy, or fear. All they know is to eradicate life."

As the Ultimate Mechanic was hit with this kind of information, the Alpha Manhunter spoke once more.

"Your ring is right. The main objective for the cult is to not destroy the Green Lantern Corp, but to wipe out all life, to eradicate all emotion. In order for our goal to become reality, the cult must become stronger. And if we must conquer planets to do so, including yours, then so be it."

"No, I won't allow that… I won't let your damn cult enslave my planet and put everyone here in a living hell!" Souda shouted in defiance.

"No matter how much you deny it, the results will remain the same. You now know what the Manhunters are truly capable of. You are now afraid of us."

Crack

The noise startled Souda as he looked to where the noise came from. To his horror, he saw that the cage began to break as multiple cracks appeared. The cracks grew larger as the mechanic quickly tried to strengthen the construct.

"Now that you know, all that's left is for you…"

However, it was too late as the Manhunter broke the cage into green shards, freeing itself from its prison.

"To accept death."

The Green Lantern moved back by this sudden change of events. Before he could even do anything, the Manhunter punched Souda, launching him back. Despite the pain his face felt, the teen managed to dig his feet into the ground to stop himself. Then immediately fired multiple missile constructs at his enemy. But as soon as they made contact on the robot, the missiles shattered easily into pieces, like stone against glass.

"What the…" Souda uttered in disbelief. Believing this is some kind of cruel prank, he created a train construct and commanded it to ram towards the machine. But like before, the train hit its target and it was easily turned to scrap before disappearing.

"This shouldn't be happening. What the hell is going on?!" he shouted.

"Warning, your mind is currently experiencing emotional stress. Power usage has fallen."

"What?! The hell is that supposed to mean?!" Kazuichi yelled at his ring.

"As I expected, you are a mess. Fear, paranoia, and anger has consumed your body," the robot stated as it unleashed a flurry of punches at the lantern, who nearly dodged them. "Your emotions are now out of control."

The machine then knee kicked Souda in his stomach, sending him flying into the air. Gasping in pain, Kazuichi managed to fight through the pain as he flew back towards the Manhunter, moving at incredible speeds with a spear in hand.

"The more unstable a lantern's emotions are…"

As Souda got close to the Manhunter, the machine grabbed into his head, breaking the spear in the process. Then the Alpha immediately smash the Green Lantern's head into the ground, breaking apart the earth around them. Kazuichi felt blood come out from his mouth, staining his mouth mask, as he gasped in pain.

"The weaker their will."

With that, the Manhunter then threw Souda deeper into the forest as he crashed into multiple trees. As the mechanic crashed into a different part of the forest, the Alpha gave chase. Running towards its target to kill him and end this pointless battle.

Back at the front grates of Hope's Peak, everyone was still waiting for when this mayhem would end. Chisa and Juzo were with Class 77B as they wondered if the Green Lantern was able to defeat the robot. As this happened, they were all spooked by the sudden crashing sound made near them.

"What the hell was that?!" Juzo shouted in shock.

"I don't know. You think it was the Green Lantern?" Chisa wondered.

"The Green Lantern? I was correct! He's here to save us from this robot threat!" Sonia yelled with glee as her eyes sparkled.

"Oh for fucks sake, I still can't believe that you're spouting that nonsense," Ruraka said in annoyance.

"The Green Savior is not nonsense! You take back what you had just said!" Sonia shouted at Ando with great displeasure.

"Look, like I said before, unless you have some kind of evidence to prove that he's real, I'm. Not. Buying it," Ruruka retorted.

On cue, something crashed landed at the front gate of the school. Everyone was frightened by this as they all moved back from the crash. As the dust cleared, everyone saw the Green Lantern, laying on the ground, groaning in pain.

"Is that who I think it is?" Seiko uttered.

"That's him! That's the Green Lantern. I told you he was real," Sonia told Ruruka.

Ando was taken back by the sudden appearance of the so-called hero. Though her mindset couldn't fully accept this. "Well… that could be some random guy in a costume. I mean, where's the robot he was supposedly fighting?"

On cue, as the lantern slowly got up, Souda saw something heading towards him at an alarming rate. Acting fast, he flew out of the way to prevent himself from being crushed by it. The dust kicked up as everyone was spooked by this sudden event. The dust was cleared up as a massive being walked out. It being the zombified looking Manhunter, its sights aimed towards Kazuichi.

"Is that… an actual robot?" Ruruka questioned in shock, aiming that question to Mahiru.

"Yeah… the same one that almost killed me," she answered, feeling scared from seeing the machine again.

"Yeah, but what the hell happened to it?" Natsumi spoke up, taken back by the look of the android.

"It should be obvious that the Green Lantern was responsible for damaging it. So he can do it again," Sonia said with confidence.

Back to the fight, Kazuichi flew towards the Manhunter, with a sledgehammer construct as he was ready to smash his opponent. But as soon as his weapon hit the robot, it bounced back, not making a single scratch against the metal frame. Despite that, Souda tried again and swung once more. But the machine simply performed a punch, breaking the construct and knocking the lantern back.

"Um, okay. He's here to defeat this robot, right? So why isn't he doing that?" Ando asked.

"I-I'm not sure," Sonia admitted, a little surprised by how the fight is going. "I assume that the opponent is much stronger than he thought. But I'm sure that he can still win this!"

Souda kept on fighting the Manhunter, or at least trying to. The Alpha had forced him to go on the defensive. Creating multiple shields to block each attack. However, the robot's punches broke through each one with ease, like breaking dishes. No matter what he did, Kazuichi was getting no opportunity to fight back.

"Okay, I don't know if this is a joke or not, but why the hell is Green Lantern struggling?" Nastumi asked in worry.

"Maybe this robot is more powerful than he thought?" Teruteru expressed.

"Well whatever's happening, this is not looking good," Sato added in as she went into her deep thoughts. 'I should have known that he wouldn't have been able to beat this thing. To think that he got my hopes up.'

Sato looked at Mahiru to see how she was doing. As she expected, Koizumi was paying her full attention at the fight. Her entire body and face expressing worry, distraught by how things are turning out. While she believed that the Green Lantern would save them and defeat the killing robot. Her body frantically shuddering, the photographer was hoping for the green savior to win. To save her, her classmates and teachers, and her school from this mechanical monstrosity. However things did not seem to be the case. At this point, she was praying to whatever god out there to help them in their dire need. 'Come on, Green Lantern… you can do this.'

Kazuichi manages to avoid getting hit by one of the Manhunter's punches. Then creates a minigun construct and fires a rain of green bullets at the machine. However, the attack does nothing to the robot as it easily ran through the bullets and backhanded Souda away, destroying the construct as well.

"I don't understand. He was able to hold his own before. Why is the Green Lantern struggling now?" Chisa questioned, unnerved by all this.

As she said that, Yukizome noticed Juzo, who was looking at the fight in frustration. Mostly at the Green Lantern, like was displeased by his actions. "What the fuck is wrong with him?!" he growled.

"What do you mean?" she asked the boxer.

"He's completely out of it!" Juzo angrily replied. "His emotions are all over the place. It's messing up his concentration."

"A-Are you completely sure?" she asked with worry.

"Chisa, I'm a boxer. I can tell how someone is fighting from the look of their eyes. I'm positive that this Green Lantern's head is not in the game," Juzo explained. "It's like there's a thought in his head that's preventing him from focusing."

"What do we do then?" Yukizome asked.

"Unless your hero can get his shit together, we may have to go in and fight that thing ourselves," Sakakura said, making his close friend be filled with anxiety.

"Oh no… please don't fail…" Chisa uttered, praying for the Green Lantern to succeed.

Souda quickly created a shield construct to block the incoming attack. But it was futile as the Manhunter punched through the shield and went into the lantern's face and chest area. Kazuichi was launched back a large distance as he was forced into the school grounds. Crashing into the ground, the teen groaned in pain. He continued to get the ring to get back into full power, but his emotions were still out of control.

"Come on… work!" he grumbled at his ring.

As he tried, Souda was shocked to see the Manhunter above him, foot raised up to crush him. Kazuichi immediately rolled out of the way as the mechanical foot stomped into the ground, breaking it part. The Alpha didn't let up as it continued trying to crush the Green Lantern as he kept on rolling around. The mechanic rolled away far enough that he could fly off from the ground. Souda decided to make his move as he created a drill construct on his right hand and charged at the machine. However, his plan backfired immediately as the Manhunter grabbed onto the drill and broke it with ease.

With the lantern's ring hand in its grasp, the Manhunter held onto Souda as it began to spin him around. Moving him faster and faster that he looked like a spinning blur disc. After one more spin, the robot pulled the teen to the ground, slamming him with incredible force, causing him to scream in pain. Kazuichi barely had any time to comprehend the situation as he felt the robot pull him. He tried all his might to anchor himself or break free from its grasp, but nothing worked. The android lifted the lantern into the air and smashed him onto a tree, which broke on impact. The robotic killer kept this up for another three attacks, slamming the Green Lantern into whatever was in its sight. All the while, Kazuichi screamed in agony as there was nothing he could do to escape this.

After the fifth slam, the Manhunter grabbed onto the lantern's head before beginning to run. As it did that, the robot smashed Kazuichi into the ground, dragging him through the rocky rubble as his screams were muffled by the dirt. This went on for a couple seconds before the machine pulled the lantern out from the ground and threw him at the school building of Hope's Peak. Crashing onto the wall, Souda created a crater on it before falling off, descending towards the ground. Once he hit the ground, the mechanic laid their motionless, only action was him gasping in agony. His eyes even lost some emotion in them.

Seeing the Green Lantern in defeat, the Manhunter began to walk towards him. "Now it is time to end this pointless struggle."

Souda remained motionless as the Manhunter came closer. He wanted to do something. He wanted to get up, get his act together, and fight. But he couldn't. His fear and self doubt have weighed him down like rocks were on his back. They prevent the mechanic from taking action. Even worse, the young boy had no idea how to take these weights off him.

As the Manhunter was only a couple fast away from ending the Green Lantern's life, something attacked the machine from behind. The robot stopped as it turned around to see its attacker. To everyone's surprise, the crowd and the Manhunter saw Akane, standing face to face towards the enemy.

"Damn, I have to admit. That metal armor of yours is tough. My leg is aching a little because of it," Owari admitted.

"Why engage me in combat? It should be obvious that your chances of winning are nonexistent," the Manhunter stated.

Akane stood there, cleaning her ear with her pinky, as she said, "Yeah, I somewhat get that feeling after seeing your fight." Then, her appearance suddenly changed, looking like a wild animal that's craving for a fight. "But I'm always like this. Wanting to fight strong opponents and becoming more powerful than before. Besides, I owe that guy for saving me and my classmates and I won't know if I can win if I don't try."

The Manhunter stood there, not showing any reaction of any kind. It was like this for a couple seconds before the machine turned around and continued to walk towards the fallen Green Lantern.

"Hey, what the hell?! Aren't you going to fight me?!" Akane shouted in anger.

"You are not classified as a threat. Therefore, not worth my attention."

Hearing that triggered something within Owari. Feeling insulted, the gymnast rushed towards the robot as she was ready to punch it. But as soon as she striked, Akane felt her hands sting in pain as it made contact with the metal of the enemy. Even with that, the Manhunter paid no attention to her as the fallen Green Lantern was it's main target. Leaving the teen girl to hold her hand in pain.

But then, a rocket suddenly appeared and flew towards the Manhunter, hitting its mark. Akane was surprised by this and looked behind her to see where that came from. She saw many students and teachers as they formed a group, all carrying a weapon of some kind. Like Chisa as she was carrying a rocket launcher as it was emitting smoke.

"Phew, thank goodness we came when we did. And I'm somehow glad that Nevermind had something like this on her," Yukizome commented as she reloaded her weapon.

"Akane! Didn't I tell you not to put yourself in danger?" Nekomaru yelled at Owari.

"I guess. But I did what my gut told me. And it told me to fight that thing and help the Green Lantern," she expressed.

"I understand that. But if that robot actually decided to fight back, it would have killed you. You should have thought this out more!" Nidai shouted, expressing displeasure towards his trainee. Those words seem to have made an impact towards Owari as she looked down, feeling somewhat depressed.

"But what I'm disappointed the most is that you tried to fight that robot without us!" Nekomaru expressed loudly, catching the gymnast off guard. "You're not the only one who wants to fight that thing. With the Green Lantern down, someone has to step up and fight this thing. To protect not just the school, but also everyone else here. One of us has no chance against an enemy like that. But with everyone here, I think we have a chance."

"He is right. The more fighters we have, the better the odds," Peko commented as she had her sword out.

"I commend your desire to defeat this foe. But you must remember that we are here to help. By my words, I, the Great Gozu, will use all my strength to take that bastard down!" the Ex-Ultimate Wrestler shouted as he tore off the jacket of his suit.

Akane was somewhat taken back by this ordeal. But her expression quickly changed to excitement as she was pumping herself up for a fight. "All right then. Let's take this asshole down for good!"

"Before we do…" Peko moved in front of Akane as she gave the gymnast a pair of brass knuckles. "Fuyuhiko asked me to give these to you. As a way to even the odds as he said."

Owari put them on, looking at them with bewilderment, not used to using a weapon. But despite that, she gave out a smile as she cleaned her fist for combat. "Not my preferred method of fighting, but seeing how things are, I guess I can make an exception for today."

As she said that, everyone turned back to the large pillar of smoke, waiting for their opponent. Right on cue, the Manhunter walked out of the smoke, completely unfazed by the attack. The machine stared at the small group of students and teachers, staring back at it and ready to fight.

"It seems that there are more of you. Wanting to engage in a fight with me."

"Of course we do! No one gets away with attacking our school like that!" Yukizome shouted.

"Exactly! So prepare to get your ass kicked by us Ultimates!" Juzo yelled as he entered his boxing stance. Everyone else followed suit as they entered their own fighting stances.

"Seeing as the Green Lantern is beaten, I will make quick work on all of you." The Manhunter stated, it's one remaining eye glowing green. "To make sure that all of you are terminated."

As that said, the clouds on the sky began to pour drops of water out of them. It started off slow with a few drops falling onto the area. Then thousands of raindrops came and hit the ground, emitting a sound similar to pebbles falling on a floor rapidly, unstop. Setting the stage for the battle between the students and teachers of Hope's Peak and the deadly Manhunter.

As the battle began, Souda continued to lay on the ground. His body is still numb in pain and his mind is overwhelmed with negative emotions. He tried his best to get up, but his body wouldn't obey him. Kazuichi thought that this was the end. That he and many others would die by this machine.

Souda heard something coming close to him. The mechanic wasn't completely sure on who was coming towards him. But he figured that it was the Manhunter, walking towards him as it was ready to end his life. At this point, all Kazuichi could do was accept his fate and lay there. After all, there was nothing he could really do to fight back.

But to his surprise, instead of the Manhunter, Souda was greeted by three students, Mahiru, Sato, and Mikan. Two of them help Green Lantern to lay on his back while getting him under a tree to get him out of the rain. While Mikan opened her medical kit and took out what she needed to examine and treat the fallen hero.

"Mikan, how is he?" Koizumi asked her friend.

"H-He's in a bad condition. Just from feeling his body, his skull is cracked, some of his bones and organs are definitely bruised, his right is starting to swell up and one of his toes have been dislocated," she explained as she began to wrap a bandage around the Lantern's head. "I can try to treat him. But I'm not sure if he'll be in a perfect condition to fight."

"Well, you better get him fixed up because we pretty much need him to take care of that robot," Sato said.

Like that, Sato and Mahiru stood by as they allowed Mikan to heal the Green Lantern the best she could.

Focusing back to the fight, things were not looking good. Every student and teacher were doing their best to fight against the Manhunter. However, as expected, every attack they delivered, between up close or long range, nothing was really harming the machine. It was like watching an army of ants fight an elephant.

Akane, Nekomaru, and Juzo are seen punching the Manhunter with their brass knuckles. Using all their strength to harm the machine. But it was futile as the robot's metal frame didn't dent in the slightest. Once they delivered their attacks, the three immediately back away from the Alpha as they evaded being nearly crushed by its metal fist.

As the machine pulled it fist out of the crater it had made, the Manhunter was hit by a barrage of bullets and knives at it. Courtesy of Fuyuhiko and some security guards firing their guns at the robot, while Izayoi was throwing his strongest knives. The projectiles did nothing but get the machine's attention as it ran towards the shooters.

"Scatter!" Fuyuhiko shouted. Everyone did that as they nearly escaped the Manhunter's attempt to crush a couple of them under its large arms. Only creating a large crater underneath it.

The Manhunter turned towards the people closest to it and ready to attack. But then, something came in and stopped the machine's assault. That something being Seiko, tackling the robot with full force. Though she looked very different from her usual look. Her face mask was gone, revealing her braces, her slender body had gained some muscle, her hair became longer than her body, and her eyes were fully pink with her pupil being black. Her tackle, while didn't harm the robot, was enough to make it lose its balance.

"Gozu! Go for it!" the pharmacist shouted. At her call, the wrestler charged in as he grabbed onto the robot's legs.

"With pleasure!" he shouted as he tripped the machine to fall to the ground.

"Now prepare yourself for a world of hurt!" The Great Gozu let out a large battle cry as he delivered an elbow drop onto the Alpha, sinking it further into the dirt. He then rolled away, getting a safe distance from the machine.

"You doing good, Gozu?" Kimura asked.

Gozu was rubbing his elbow due to the aching pain it was emitting. "Other than this sting on my elbow, I'll be fine. Though it's metal frame is much stronger than I thought."

"I'll say," Seiko replied.

The Manhunter began to pick itself back up, completely unfazed by the attack combo. As it was about to charge onto Seiko and Gozu, multiple small animals swarmed the Alpha. Multiple rodent-like animals roamed inside the machine with four hamsters, better known as the Four Dark Devas of Destruction, taking the lead.

"Hahaha, go my great demon army! Show this mechanical demon the error of its ways on why it was a mistake to go up against the great Gundham Tanaka!" the Overlord of Ice shouted, while laughing in delight.

The rodents went inside the Manhunter as they attempted to defeat it from the inside. The machine wouldn't allow that as was to crush them with its hands. However, it was stopped as a giant bear held onto its arm. And the other was held onto by a lion. The two animals did their best to hold the robot down as they let their little companions do their job. Once further inside that mechanical monstrosity, the rodents found all kinds of wires and tubes against the metal frames. The small animals went up the wires and tubes as they began to chew at them. Though the moment that they did, the rodents found an immediate flaw in their plan. No matter how much they chew, they could bite through the tubes as they were made of an extremely strong substance. As for the wire, the moment a few of them made contact with it, the animals were electricity and killed immediately.

The rodents gave out a chain call for it to reach their master. Hearing the cries of his minions, Gundham was shocked by what they had told him. 'What kind of sorcery was used to create this abomination? In any case, I must recall my army.'

"Come back my minions! Return to your master!" Tanaka shouted.

At his command, the devas and rodents got out of the Manhunter as fast as possible. As they all ran out from the machine, the Alpha decided to finally take action. Breaking out of their grip, the robot grabbed onto the bear and lion and proceeded to smash their head together. The sound of cracks was heard as blood oozed out from the animal's heads. The robot throws the lion at Gundham, hitting and pushing the breeder back. Knocking him down for the count. Then the machine proceeded to crush the bear's head into a pulp with it's hand. With the breeder down, the Manhunter walked towards Tanaka, ready to kill him as it stepped onto some unfortunate rodents in its way.

But then, Seiko and Peko intervened as the pharmacist held onto the robot's head. Allowing the swords woman stabbed her blade into the machine's neck. With that, the Manhunter stopped moving, staying perfectly still at that moment. Pekoyama and Kimura remained their positions in silence, wondering if what they did worked.

"Did that work?" Akane wondered as Nekomaru and Juzo were beside her, watching the scene unfold.

"I doubt it but I'm hoping it does," Juzo spoke up.

The silence went on for a while, waiting what would happen next. Just when the fighters thought that it was over, the Manhunter immediately grabbed the two women and threw them off it. Throwing them at a high enough height that could kill Peko. So Seiko was quick to grab the swords woman to protect her as the pharmacist used her body as a cushion. Crashing to the ground, Peko was unscathed and looked fine. Though Seiko was in pain as she groaned, feeling her body ache.

Seeing what had occurred, Nekomaru, Akane, and Juzo ran towards the Alpha to attack. But the machine saw them and immediately took action as it slammed it's fists into the ground. The force was enough to cause a shockwave that damaged the ground and to push up the broken, rocky debris into the air. The shockwave launched the three fighters into the air as they fell back down.

With the three down, the Manhunter resumed its pursuit on Gundham. However, Yukizome wouldn't allow this as she aimed her rocket launcher at him. "No you don't!" Chisa shouted as she fired another rocket at the machine.

As the rocket was inches away from hitting its target, the Manhunter did something unexpected. The robot caught the rocket like a pro athlete catching a ball with ease. Yukizome was shocked by this event. But was quickly taken out of it as the Alpha turned the rocket around and let it fly back towards her. The teacher but barely managed to avoid the rocket hitting her. But the explosion it created did push her back, badly damaging her left arm. Chisa laid there as she winced in pain, trying her best not to cry.

"Chisa!" cried class 77B, each with a look of horror on what had happened to their beloved teacher.

With its target down, the Manhunter began to walk towards Chisa. "This entire fight is pitiful." Goza appeared as he ran at the machine. Grabbing it from behind, the wrestler was prepared to suplex the robot. However, it proved to be heavier than he thought as the Great Gozu, even with all his might, couldn't lift the Alpha a mere inch off the ground. Noticing the teacher, the Manhunter delivered an elbow strike onto his face. From the crack sound, Gozu's skull had been cracked. The machine then grabbed the giant man and threw him somewhere else as it continued to walk towards Yukizome.

"No matter what weapons you use or how many of your species engage…" Bullets and knives were fired at the Manhunter's side. The robot turned to see Fuyuhiko and Izayoi as they continued to fire their respective projectiles at it. Without hesitation, the machine placed its hand on the ground and tore a chunk of rock out from it. Crushing the rock into smaller pieces and chucked them at the two shooters. Fuyuhiko and Izayoi immediately ducked and took cover. While they avoided death, one of the rocks managed to hit them.

For the gangster, a flying rock scratches the left side of his head, causing Fuyuhiko to go down, nearly going unconscious. As for the blacksmith, one of the rocks directly hit his right shoulder, effectively dislocating it. Despite different injuries, Kuzuryu and Sonosuke were in extreme pain, with both of them screaming.

"Fuyuhiko!"

"Izayoi!"

Peko and Ruruka both screamed in horror at their respective lovers from what had happened to them.

"The results will remain the same," the Manhunter stated as it allowed Pekoyama to attack it. In a fit of rage, Peko brought down her sword in an attempt to slice the machine apart. But as soon as the sword made contact with the metal frame, the weapon shattered into multiple pieces. The swordswoman barely had a chance to ready before the robot flicked her away with its fingers, knocking her out.

"No matter how much you all continue to fight…" The Manhunter was finally in front of Chisa as it lifted its foot above the beyond frightened teacher, ready to crush her to a paste. "No man escapes the Manhunters."

As the Alpha brought down its foot, Yukizome was saved by the last second. Nekomaru grabs his teacher and runs out of the machine's range, letting it stomp on the ground instead. In a safe place, the team manager let down Chisa gently on the ground.

"Nekomaru… thanks for the save there," Chisa thanked her student.

"It's no problem. You just rest up while I take care of this," Nidai said as he was about to walk back to the robot. However, Yukizome managed to stop him by pulling onto his jacket with her working right arm.

"You can't. This thing is too powerful for us. I won't let you throw away your life," she pleaded.

Seeing his teacher's eyes filled with distress, he decided to reassure her. "Sorry teach, but I can't back down. Whether we like it or not, there's not much options for us other than to fight that thing. And I'm fully prepared to go all out."

"But we can't even scratch it, so why-"

"I know that. But here's the thing, Akane told me something during the fight," Nidai admitted. "She had one of her gut feelings. This one tells us to keep on fighting. Stall as much as we can even if we don't stand a chance."

"But why?" Yukizome asked.

Nekomaru turned back to her with a reassuring grin of his. "Because… we need to buy some time so the Green Lantern can make his comeback."

With that said, Nidai walked towards the Manhunter to engage in combat. However, he wasn't going in alone as Akane, Juzo, Seiko, and Gundham followed suit. "Didn't think you guys could still fight. I almost thought I have to take this robot on by myself," the team manager commented.

"Don't be silly, coach. We ain't letting you hog up all the fighting to yourself," Akane replied.

"Indeed, this mechanical demon must be punished for its sins. For not only daring to harm, I, Gundham Tanaka, but to harm his followers as well," the breeder said as he and his hamsters were ready for battle.

"Kid's right. I may have been taken down, but I'm not out of the fight yet," Juzo added on before turning his attention towards Seiko. "How about you?"

Kimura didn't say anything as she was in the middle of devouring more of her drugs. As she finished, the pharmacist's muscles grew much more than before. The sclera of her eyes turning black with her irises becoming blue. Seiko let out an intense growl before she spoke, "I'll be fine."

"Good, then we can go all out," Sakakura said as he cracked his knuckles.

The group got near the Manhunter as the robot looked at them. "Why continue this fight? You all should know by now that your chances of winning are nonexistent. What reasoning do you have to keep this up?"

"Well, I can't speak for all of us here as I'm pretty sure we have our own reasons for this," Nidai admitted. "But one thing is for sure, we all have the same goal to protect our school and classmates here or die trying. Guess you can say it's our own will."

"Such idiotic reasons," the Manhunter stated as it walked towards the small group, it's single eye glowing bright green. "Such emotions bring more harm than good. And I'll be sure to plant that idea into your head. When I kill you all."

We go back to Mahiru and Sato as they had witnessed the battle between the group of Hope's Peak and the Manhunter. Needless to say, but they were shocked and horrified by what this machine had done. The injuries it had inflicted onto the students and teachers, the killing of one of Gundham's animals, it was sickening.

"Dear god…" was all Mahiru could utter at the event.

"This is insane. That robot looks like it could fall apart at any moment. So why the hell is it still difficult to destroy it?" Sato grumbled in anger.

"I don't know. But what are we going to do? I don't see how any of us can win this?" Koizumi pointed out, feeling scared by the possibility of them losing.

"Shouldn't it be obvious? We heal up Green Lantern and get him to fight that thing again," Sato answered.

Mahiru looked at her with shock by what her friend suggested. "W-We can't do that. Sato, he's injured for god sakes!"

"He's not that injured. And besides, he's the only one that can actually harm the robot, so he's our only option to win," Sato argued before turning towards Tsumiki. "Hey Mikan, how's the Green Lantern?"

The nurse was just finishing tying up the bandages wrapped around the lantern's right arm. "H-H-He's fine for the most part. I tried to heal his wounds the best I can with what I have. But he'll need an actual hospital and rest."

"Okay, but can he stand up and fight?" Sato asked.

"I mean, he could. But it would definitely make his injuries worse," Mikan answered.

"Good enough for me." Sato walked up towards the lantern as she kneeled down at his level. "Listen lantern, I understand that you're injured and all, but we need you to step up right now. You're the only one that can actually harm it. So come on, get up and defeat that thing."

There was a silence as the girls waited for the Green Lantern to talk. Waiting for his answer. Expecting that he would say yes and get up to fight once more. However, Kazuichi gave them an unexpected answer.

"I… can't…" he uttered, shocking the three girls.

"What?" the green haired girl said.

"I can't," Souda said once more. "It's too powerful...it has...it has everything it needs to kill me. To kill everyone and I...and I..." He chokes up for a moment, as his breathing becomes desperate. "I can't win. I can't fight it! The ring is shooting basically a flashlight at this point and I can't save anyone!"

"What the fuck are you saying, you're all we have and you're just going to quit?!" Sato shouted, irritated by what he said.

"Well, what can I do?! My ring isn't working anymore. I mean, look, ring how much power do I have?!"

"Power level is at 10%. Recharge is required."

"You see. Even if I wanted to, I can't beat it!" he exclaimed.

Sato's anger grew more as she held her hand out. "...then give me the stupid thing! All I have to do is put it on and I'll have your powers!"

"It doesn't work like that!" he shouted back. "The ring is powered by will and a creative mind! Just being angry, you aren't gonna make anything!"

The reserve course student had just about enough now. Letting her anger out, Sato grabbed onto his suit as she raised her fist, ready to punch him. "You son of a bitch!"

Mikan was quick to stop her as she pulled Sato away from the Green Lantern. "What are you doing?! You can't attack someone that's injured. It's inhumane."

"That bastard is basically asking for it!" she argued.

"So what?! That doesn't give you the right to attack him like that!" Mahiru shouted.

Sato now paid her attention toward her friend as the both of them began their argument. "Oh and what he said is any better?! He's supposed to be this hero and save us from this threat. Yet here he is, crying and complaining like a child!"

"Well, can you blame him?! I'm pretty sure anyone would be afraid of it after taking on someone like that," Mahiru yelled.

"And you're okay with this?! You're okay that this asshole is just going to do nothing to help?! Giving up like the pathetic man he is?!" Sato shouted.

"Of course I'm not okay with this!" Koizumi answered. "I don't like that he's like this, but I can't blame him."

"I mean, I want him to get up and fight that monster. That robot has caused nothing but trouble the moment it came to our school. I don't want it to kill any of my friends. I don't want anymore people dying after I had to go through yesterday! I want that thing to be destroyed," the photographer expressed in sadness and anger, tears beginning to well up from her eyes. "So it does hurt knowing that Green Lantern won't be able to do anything, even refusing to do this. But at the same time, I can't blame him for feeling this way. With what that robot has done, anyone would be scared of fighting it. Doubting that they could do anything. I'm scared too. I doubt any of us can do anything to escape this nightmare."

Souda heard all that and let all those words sink in. While he was glad that Mahiru understood his fears, he mostly felt horrible. Koizumi was scared out of her mind and the Manhunter was going to kill everyone here including him. Yet all he's going is laying there and whining about being useless. He truly was pathetic.

"Scared? Scared?!" Sato looked at Kazuichi, completely mad and disgusted before turning back to Mahiru. "You think because he's scared gives him an excuse to chicken out?! Well, guess what? We're all scared!" Souda was taken back by what the reserve course student said as his ears focused on hearing her out. "I'm scared, Mikan's scared, and I bet everyone else fighting the robot is scared! Yet despite all that, they're still fighting. And you want to know why? Because we can't just stand around and wait to fucking die! We have to fight! Cause standing around and waiting for death is just hopeless!"

Those words. They hit something within Souda that he didn't expect. They hit him in a way that made him remember something. Something he was told a long time ago. Something that he nearly forgot about but still lingered on to.

'I don't want to go…'

A memory when he was going through one of his depressing moments.

10 Year Earlier

On a bright, sunny day, we see a very average elementary school. Things were lively there as many people were entering the area. Parents dropping off their kids for half a day, students hanging out with their friends, and teachers entering the building, ready for another day of education. Everyone seemed cheerful for the start of the school day.

Expect for one.

Near the entrance of the school was a mother and son. The woman, named Miyako Souda, was around her early 20s as she had long, black hair tied into a ponytail and light brown eyes with brown glasses on. She wore a very casual outfit, a black t-shirt, blue jeans, and work boots.

Beside her was her 6 year old son. The boy has black, spiky hair and light brown eyes with red glasses. And wore a red shirt, blue shorts, sneakers, a brown backpack, and a yellow hat.

"Okay Kaz, we're here. I'll pick you after school, okay?" Miyako said cheerfully. Though her expression changed when she saw her son, having a gloomy and worried look on him. "Kaz, are you okay?" she asked worryingly.

"Mom…" Young Souda uttered nervously. "I don't want to go."

"What?" the mother said.

"I don't want to go in there. I want to go home," he said firmly, though his voice still sounded nervous.

Miyako became upset from this, not liking what her son said. "Kazuichi, we're already at your school. You even agree to go today."

"I only said that because dad was there,"

Souda said as he looked down, expressing anger in his voice.

Choosing to ignore that, as her husband was a sore spot for him, Mrs. Souda tried to get her boy to be reasonable. "Come on Kaz, I let you skip school two times last week. You can't just stop going altogether."

"But I hate it. All the kids ever do is call me names. The teachers don't care about me. No one wants me there," Souda said, upset, as his eyes began to tear up. "I don't like being here. I'm scared something bad will happen. I want to stay with you."

"Sweety, please we talked about this-"

"I know but… I can't. You said that I can, but you're just hoping! Well, hope does nothing!" he says with tears in his eyes.

Miyako takes a breath, as she leans towards her son and places a soft kiss to his forehead. "I know..." She tells him, wiping his tears from his eyes. "Hope, alone can't do anything. It takes strength to do it… not from here..." She gestures to his arm. "Or even here." She pokes at his head. "But here." Placing a finger to his heart. "It is where your will comes from. And with it… your hope can be made real."

"But I'm not strong at all," the boy said, his nose sniffing.

"Neither am I… but you still wake up everyday. You still want things to be better. You still love me. That means you're strong where it counts." She gives a smile to her boy. "I know you're scared. Trust me, I'm scared too, having to leave you here… but you want to know why I am doing so?"

"Why?"

"Because I hope you are going to be okay. And I know you have the will to make it real."

Those words seem to have calmed Kazuichi, making him a little fluttered as his cheeks went red. Though there was still the feeling of him being unsure. Noticing this, Miyako knew what to say next.

"Tell you what, if you go to school today, I'll make sure to make your favorite meal when you get home," she said in a merry tone.

This seemed to do the trick as Kazuichi looked at her with joy in his eyes. "Are you really?"

She chuckled at her son's sudden enthusiasm. "Seeing as I have leftover rice, I can make you some egg fried rice."

The young boy then hugged his mom, burying his face in her chest, saying, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"There's the smile I wanted to see. But you still have to go to school. Got it?" she said as she hugged him back.

"Okay, mom. I will," Kazuichi said as he continued to feel the warm of his mom. "I love you."

Miyako gave out a small smile from that. "I love you too, my little Honey Bunny."

Like that, the teen boy was brought back into reality. He checked his surroundings first to be sure and it seemed to be true. Mahiru and Sato were still arguing with each other, Mikan was keeping an eye on his condition, and the remaining group were trying their hardest to fight the Manhunter. Once he knew he was back, Souda tightened his hands into fists, now ready to take action.

After reliving that memory, something changed within Kazuichi Souda. All the fear he was feeling within, the large ball of terror, diminished into a small speck. It almost felt waking up from a bad nightmare, being more energized and focused.

"You're right."

Mahiru and Sato stopped their argument as they looked back at the Green Lantern, who was currently getting back up.

"What's wrong with me?"

(My Hero Academia OST - You Say Run)

Souda forced himself back onto his feet, despite Mikan warning him not to do so. "They're giving all they have while I'm here, quaking like a coward."

"Death awaits you all," the Manhunter said as the robot charged towards the students and teachers.

"I can't let them throw away their lives like this."

"The thing's coming at us. Prepare yourself," Nekomaru stated as Akane, Gundham, Seiko, and Juzo prepared for the fight of their lives.

"Because I am their protector."

Like that, his soul, his will burned brightly like a star. This bright light emitted throughout his body and mind then finally into his ring. The ring began to emit an extremely bright green light that coated his hand and entire arm. The teen's body let out an emerald aura around his body as his intimidating looking eyes were now completely green, energy of will surging out from them.

"I am a Green Lantern!"

Mahiru, Sato, and Mikan were taken back by the sudden surge of energy from the hero. Then in an instant, Green Lantern disappeared, leaving off a green trail behind. The Manhunter kept running as it was getting closer to the group of fighters. But then, Souda appeared behind the machine as he used a sledgehammer construct and slammed the robot away. The attack was intense as it created a massive shockwave that pushed the group and students and teachers away, along with the drops of rain around them.

"Green Lantern, continuing our fight is inevitable. You have no chance of winning," the Manhunter stated as it ran towards the Green Lantern.

"And I care because?!" Souda retorted before charging at the machine as he created mechanical gauntlets in his hands. The two combatants reeled back their fists before swinging them out, clashing together with enough force to create a massive shockwave around them. Pushing back everything, even the rain for a moment, from the intense gusts of wind they made.

Kazuichi and the Manhunter gave out two more punches before unleashing a barrage of them. Souda even created multiple arm constructs behind his back to get more hits in. Moving their arms so fast that their arms were blurs. Their fight caused a massive gust that blew back whatever with the force similar to that of a hurricane.

Mahiru is seen being pushed back by the intense winds hitting her. She tried to resist but the gust was too powerful as she barely stand or eye. She kneeled down beside Sato and Mikan and held on to them. "He's really giving it his all!" she shouted.

"H-Holy shit!" Akane yelled as she and her group were pushed back.

The students outside the school were either kneeling down or holding onto something to prevent being blown away from the massive gust. "T-This is crazy!" Ruruka exclaimed as she was holding onto a pole.

"You kept criticizing me for my certain flaws when you aren't any better!" Souda shouted, still continuing his barrage of punches at the machine. "I can tell that your body and joints are close to breaking!"

The Manhunter managed to get an opening as it punched Kazuichi in his stomach. The mechanic gasped as he reeled back in pain as the Alpha was about to attack again. However, Souda pushed through the pain to catch the metal fist in his hand. The robot tried again with its other fist but the teen caught it as well. Souda then used his arm constructs to grabbed onto the android's knees, shoulders, and head, holding it down.

"You're right that my emotions were getting the best of me. It was why I was so weak," Kazuichi uttered as he was using all his strength and will to restrain the Manhunter. He then created two more arm constructs and commanded them to dig inside the machine's stomach area. "This time however, I'm getting my act back together and ending this!"

As Souda dug deeper through the robot's stomach area, the Manhunter was doing its hardest to break free. But the arm constructs kept it still. The more theachine struggled, the more it was damaged as its metal armor was denting, its fingers were bending backwards, breaking, and the rest if its face broke off, revealing its exo face with two glowing green lights.

'What is this? Why am I feeling this way?' Sato thought to herself, seeing the fight. The strength the Green Lantern was displaying against the mechanical thing. Struggling with every fiber in his body to keep it still to get the job done. It made her feel something within herself. 'This guy is a coward. He refused to fight before and he's the reason this monster is attacking us in the first place.'

The reserved course girl look in complete awe as the lantern pulls outside some kind of device out of the machine. 'So why? Why does he look so heroic?'

With the signal device out, Souda let out a roar as he front kicks the Manhunter away from it, crashing through the ground. Kazuichi threw the the signal device away as well as the left arm of the robot that he torn off. Then he sprinted towards his opponent.

"In brightest day, in blackest night!"

The Alpha stopped itself with its remaining arm before charging after the Green Lantern. Once up close, the Manhunter attempted to crush him with its fist. But Souda created a shield construct and blocked the attack before pushing the robot back.

"No evil shall escape my sight!"

Souda surrounded himself with green energy to create a drill construct. Then he flew at speeds that broke the sound barrier around him at the Manhunter. The drill hit the machine's right leg, tearing it off from it. The mechanic flew back to the airborne robot as he wrapped a lasso construct around the Alpha's neck. Tied up well, the Green Lantern flew up into the air, dragging the machine with him. Once he was high enough in the sky, above the grey clouds, Kazuichi spun the Manhunter ar incredible speeds that the robot appeared to be a circular blur. With enough momentum, Souda threw the Alpha back to the earth, creating a large hole within the clouds and a massive crater.

Everyone looked at the sight with complete and awe. They were silent as they paid their absolute focus on the event at hand. Waiting for what the Green Savoir will do next.

Time seemed to slow down at this very moment as the Manhunter was slowly bouncing off the ground and into the air. Even the raindrops around it were moving at slow motion. Then in an instant, Souda landed in front of the machine. He stood up straight, focusing all his attention at the nearly broken robot.

"Let those who worship evil's might."

Using every ounce of will in him, Kazuichi focused all his green energy into his right arm, into his power ring.

"Beware my power…"

Once his arm was fully amped with green energy, making his arm glow a bright emerald light, Souda reeled it back before thrusting it towards the machine.

"Green Lantern's…"

The fist connected right onto the Manhunter's chest, emitting a great green light between Souda and the machine. With a sound that was similar to that of a missile that was ready to be fired.

"LIGHT!"

Like that, the power ring fired off a massive green beam, blasting the Manhunter into the sky, into outer space within a nanosecond. The beam even blew the clouds away, clearing the city and the areas around it from the rain. Turning it into a sunny day once more.

The pillar of emerald light along with the monstrous roar of made could be seen and heard within thousands of miles away. Every person, wherever outside or inside a building of some kind, witnessed the pillar. Every one of them questioned what this is and what caused it.

"W-What the hell?!" one citizen shouted, shocked by what he was seeing out from his apartment.

In the air, a news helicopter was moving at unfocused movement, trying to maintain its balance so it wouldn't fall. The news cast in it were amazed by what they were seeing. The cameraman made sure that he caught the pillar of light on film.

"Are you seeing this?!" the news reporter yelled, focusing his attention on this spectacular event.

The green beam continued to blast the Alpha Manhunter further away from Earth. Eventually pushing it out from its solar system, then out of sector 2814. The beam even burned the robot, slowly reducing it into ash. The beam pushed the machine further away into the cold depths of space until the green pillar and the android disappeared for good.

Once the entire event was done with, everyone outside Hope's Peak Academy looked up into the sky in shock, completely silent. Still struck with awe by what they had just witnessed.

"D-Did that Green Lantern… blast that thing… into space?" Ruruka uttered.

"I-I think he just did…" Saionji replied, still in whiplash by what she saw.

Sonia looked stunned by all this, her eyes widened in shock. But then, her demeanor slowly changed as her eyes were to tear up and her mouth began to smile. "I knew it... I knew he would make our hopes become a reality! Yes!" The princess proceeded to hug her classmates, crying in joy, cheering for this joyous event.

Back with everyone else that partook in fighting the Manhunter, they all looked at the area of where the green pillar of light used to be. Still trying to comprehend what they had just witnessed. How something like this could even happen.

"Holy crap, that was insane. It was like that guy blasted that robot into space," Akane spoke out.

"Actually Akane, I think he really did just that," Nekomaru said, agreeing with her.

"To think the green man could possess a power greater than the nine realms of hell itself," Gundham commented as he was giving care to his Four Devas.

Seiko looked at the sight as she went into deep thought. 'So this is the power…'

'Of the Green Lantern.' Juzo finished.

(Music End)

As everyone was still staring at the area of where the pillar used to be, Mahiru was one of the only people to walk towards it. Sato and Mikan followed suit. The redhead looked around the place to find someone. It didn't take her long as she found the person, standing perfectly still within a dust cloud.

"Green Lantern?" she said.

As the dust cleared, the photographer got a good look at the hero. As expected, he looked beyond exhausted. He was breathing heavily, some parts of his suit was torn, some blood was seen on him, especially from his mouth mask, and his right arm was twitching.

"Damn, are you alright?" Sato spoke up.

"...ha… ha… not really…" Souda uttered out. "My body is sore… my injuries are acting worse… I'm beyond exhausted… and my arm won't stop shaking…"

As he said that, Nekomaru, Akane, Seiko, Gundham, and Juzo approached the Green Lantern. "Shit, you look awful," Juzo pointed out.

"I figured…" Kazuichi turned his attention to the boxer and asked, "Everyone… your group that fought that thing… and the others outside the school… are they okay?"

Juzo was stunned by what the lantern had asked of him. He was most likely in the worst condition compared to everyone that tried to fight the robot. Yet he wasn't worried about his own health. He was focused on how everyone else was doing. If they were safe. Sakakura couldn't help but be impressed by this guy's caring nature.

"We got a couple injured from the robot, but other than that, everyone is safe and alive," the boxer replied.

Souda let out a smile, glad to hear that things turned out well. "Good… that's all I needed to hear."

"It looks like… my work here is done… I should probably get going…" Kazuichi said as he slowly pointed his ring into the air.

"Up… up… and…"

The lantern stopped talking as his legs got all wobbly and his mind started to lose consciousness. Resulting in him falling to the ground. Everyone yelled out for the savior as they tried to help him. Luckily, Juzo was quick enough to catch the Green Lantern in his arms.

"Is he alright? What happened?" Mahiru said in concern.

Mikan began to examine the lantern before letting out a sigh of relief. "It's fine. He's just unconscious. He just needs to rest."

Everyone seemed to calm down after hearing that. They were glad nothing too bad happened to the Green Lantern.

"Though he does need medical attention. So can we get people to carry the injured and take them to my office?" Mikan asked.

"Sure thing. You heard her, let's get the injured to be treated!" Nidai shouted and everyone did just that. While Mikan led Juzo to her office so she could start treatment on the Green Lantern.

Blackest and silence. It was all the teen could experience at the moment. It was relaxing after everything he went through. He wanted to enjoy this more. However, his senses were starting to come back as he was slowly starting to wake up. His ears picking up sound, his skin beginning to feel, and his eyes slowly starting to open. After his senses came back, Souda finally woke.

Adjusting himself, the mechanic stood up as he saw that he was on a bed. Looking around, Kazuichi found himself inside a room with other beds, cabinets filled with bottles and boxes, and a very particular odor in the air. This immediately told him that he was in the nurse's office.

Once his body recovered all its energy, Kazuichi got out of his bed as he sat on the edge. "Jeez, this was a crazy day," he said to himself, easing the muscle sores his body was experiencing. "I just became a Green Lantern in less than a day. Yet I was forced to fight a Manhunter of all things. Life is weird."

As he was able to get used to his sores, Souda stood up and walked around the place. Wondering what had happened after his fight with the Manhunter. He didn't walk too far as he was face to face with a mirror on a table. This immediately got his attention due to what he saw in it. Instead of the Green Lantern, Souda saw himself, back in his jumpsuit, cap, his standard outfit. He began to panic at the possibilities that would lead to this.

"Shit, shit, shit… Did they find out about my identity? What's gonna happen to me?" he uttered in panic, thinking of all the problems he would have to deal with. He had recently just gotten the power ring and became a hero. Yet already, his secret identity had been blown like this. The one time he wanted to make sure that he didn't screw up, and he did.

Just when he thought that his entire world was ending, Kazuichi noticed a folded piece of paper next to the mirror. Folded in a way that signaled that it was a note. The mechanic picked up the folded paper and opened it up, revealing a message. He began to read what it was about.

Dear Green Lantern,

Hope you're doing well after your fight. We had our Ultimate Nurse, Mikan Tsumiki, and Ultimate Pharmacist, Seiko Kiruma, help treat your wounds. Thought it was surprising to see how your ring immediately healed you completely when the two were done treating you. Though I assume that your ring used up all its power. Because after that, it stopped glowing and your uniform was disappearing, starting with your hands.

Souda mentally screamed in distress by what he had read. That would most definitely expose his secret identity. Just when was going to despair, he pushed on and continued to read the note. Just to get things over with.

And when that happened, I quickly covered your body with the blanket. So we didn't get the chance to see who you really were behind your disguise.

This caught Souda completely off guard. He didn't think that they would actually do something like. This calmed him down a bit. But he wanted to know why they did this so the mechanic kept on reading.

If you're wondering why we did that, it's because of me. After you save us all, defeating the robot, I felt like it was only fair that we keep your identity a secret. Some of us wanted to know who you really were behind the mask. But I knew we had to respect your privacy. I'm glad that many of them were by my side. So after some convincing, everyone agreed to leave you alone. So you don't have to worry about anyone knowing who you really are.

Kazuichi felt relieved after reading this. Now he didn't have to worry about this anymore.

With all that explained, I just wanted to say thank you. You really did a lot for us today. And even when all hope seemed lost, you managed to get yourself back together and kept on fighting. For all of us. We wouldn't be here without you. From everyone in Hope's Peak Academy, especially Class 77B, we want to thank you and we are eternally grateful. I hope you continue to do what you do in the future.

Sincerely,

Mahiru Koizumi

Reading the last word of the letter, Souda felt a warm feeling within himself. He began to smile as he felt good. Happy that his efforts were recognized and appreciated. And the fact that they respected him enough to leave his secret identity alone, it felt satisfying. So with all that said and done, Kazuichi slowly and carefully left the room and made his way out of the school.

After a slow process of not being seen or caught, Kazuichi somehow managed to get outside the school. Far enough, the teen moved at a quick pace as he needed to be convincing enough that he had just arrived at Hope's Peak and had just found out about the crazy event that had happened. Entering into the school and heading back to the dorms, he found Chiaki and Twogami and their teacher, Chisa, outside, having a conversation with each other. Most definitely about the Manhunter attack. Seeing as they deep into their conversation, Souda thought it was best to sneak back into his dorm room. It wasn't like they would notice him anyway.

At least that's what he believed.

"Souda! There you are!"

Kazuichi stopped in his tracks when he saw Yukizome, Chiaki, and Twogami headed his way.

"Where were you?! We've been looking all over for you!" Chisa exclaimed.

Souda was a bit taken back by what his teacher told him. He was not expecting this. "You were looking for me?"

"Of course we were! When we did recall, we realized that you were missing. So we got everyone to look for you. We almost thought the worst happened," Chiaki explained.

"Oh… well, I'm perfectly fine so no worry there," the mechanic replied.

"Though there is still the question that is left unanswered. Where were you?" Twogami demanded.

"Oh right. Well you see, I happened to be in town to get some things for myself and get something to eat. I heard about the whole thing on the news. And I was forced to stay in a restaurant until the whole thing blew over. That was why I wasn't around," Souda told them, being as honest as possible.

Twogami gave him a stern look at the mechanic, analyzing him in every detail. After about a long period of staring, the imposter's look relaxed as he said, "He seems to be telling the truth."

"Well, if that's the case, I'm just glad that you're okay," Chisa expressed happily.

"Um… thanks. So what's going to happen after everything that happened?" Souda asked.

"We're not completely sure. But I heard that the principal will make an announcement any moment now to explain what he will do for the school. I think," Nanami answered. "So for now, we should probably wait until then."

"Makes sense. If that's the case, I'll just be in my dorm room then," the mechanic said.

"Huh, don't you want to let everyone know that you're here and alright?" Chisa asked, taken back by his words.

"It's fine. I'm pretty sure everyone is still a little freaked out by what happened today. So I don't want to bother them right now,"

"If you're sure, then we'll let the others know that you're back and safe," Twogami said.

"Sounds good. Hope you guys are doing alright. And thanks for checking up on me," Souda expressed.

"Of course, you're one of my students. I'll always be there if you need me," Yukizome told him in a soft and gentle tone with a smile.

Seeing that made Souda feel pleasant. It really has been a while that he received a loving compliment. "... thanks. Then I'll see you guys later than."

Waving the three goodbye, Kazuichi walked back into his dorm room. Entering inside and locking the door, the teen stood there for a couple seconds before let out a relieved sigh, feeling relaxed that he managed to lie like that considering that he was an awful liar. He really thanked any god out there that helped him get out of that sticky situation.

"Oh thank whoever that I managed to get out of that," he uttered to himself before pulling out the power ring from his pocket. "Well, I better fully recharged this. Don't want another threat coming in, trying to kill me with my ring still dead."

Walking up to his closet, he pulls out the power battery as he points the ring to it. "I'm really glad that I took this with me."

After the events of the Manhunter attack, the principle of Hope's Peak made an announcement. Due to the damages the school had taken, Hope's Peak Academy would be closed down for about an estimate of two weeks for repairs. While he and others didn't want this, it was necessary. So everyone from the main building and reserve course were sent back to their homes as the dorms were in need of repairs as well. Many students have said their goodbyes as they took either car, bus, or train to head back their families.

Souda didn't really say any goodbyes to anyone as he felt it was pointless. While he was glad that some of his classmates and teacher were worried for him, that didn't mean the others were on the same page. But he was fine with it since the mechanic was used to this by now. Kazuichi was currently at the bus stop, sitting on a bench, waiting for his bus to pick him up. Though it was taking a while for it to arrive so he passed the time hearing music on his phone, earphones in his ears.

'Geez, how long is it taking for my bus to get here?' Souda thought to himself as he checked the time. 'If this keeps up, I might as well just use my ring and fly back home.'

Just as he was about to consider using his ring, the mechanic felt something tap on his shoulder. Startled, Kazuichi let out a small scream as he looked behind him. To his surprise, he was met with Mahiru, who looked startled as well.

"Koizumi? What are you doing here?" Souda asked, pausing his music and taking off his earphones.

"First off, don't scream like that! You nearly gave me a heart attack," Mahiru scolded.

"Hey, you're the one who spooked me first!" Souda complained.

"Because you couldn't hear me with your earphones on! How else was I going to get your attention?" the photographer retorted, her hands on her hips.

Despite wanting to talk back, Kazuichi knew that she was right. "I guess you make a good point. Sorry for scaring you like that," he said, his tone much calmer.

Mahiru let out a sigh. "It's fine."

There was now silence between them, neither one looking at each other. During this, Souda was thinking about why Koizumi was here. I mean, they did interact with each other this morning. However, the mechanic didn't think he would be talking to her this fast. Just as he was about to ponder on, the photographer broke the silent atmosphere.

"So… how are you doing?"

Kazuichi looked at her with shock. "W-What do you mean?"

"I meant, how are you feeling after what had just happened this morning. With the robot attacking the school," Koizumi explained.

"Oh… that. I mean, it's crazy to hear about that. Though I feel like I should be asking you this question. Seeing as you met face to face with the robot," Souda wondered, even if he already knew.

"I mean… It was a scary experience. I almost thought I would actually die there," Mahiru admitted, shaking a bit from the awful memory.

"Sorry to hear that. But at least you seem better now," Kazuichi said, trying to make her feel better.

The photographer let out a sigh as she seemed to calm herself. "Yeah, it was all thanks to Green Lantern. He saved us yet again." Mahiru began to form a small smile, remembering her last talk with the green savior. "It's incredible just how strong and determined he is as a hero. He used every once of his power to save us from the robot. Even when he looked like he was about to give up, Green Lantern pushed himself to continue on fighting."

"But to think that me and my friend, Sato, were the reasons he regained his determination back is shocking," Koizumi admitted, letting out a small laugh with a sad smile. "I mean, I can understand Sato helping him since she was pretty much yelling at him to get back in the fight. Me on the other hand, all I did was try to encourage him, more like plead for him to save us. I doubt my words contribute to helping him. I was just an ordinary girl crying out for help."

Souda looked at Koizumi as he recognized her expression. She looked saddened by her own worth. Like she lacked self confidence. Something he knew all too well. Maybe this was the reason why he would speak up.

"I doubt that honestly," he said, getting Mahiru's attention. "I don't know what happened when you were with the Green Lantern, but I feel like you did a lot more to help him then you think."

"What do you mean?" she questioned.

Kazuichi took a deep breath before he began to explain himself. "Simple, you beg him to help you, to save everyone in the school. I mean, you were probably scared, nearly crying at the thought of that machine killing everyone. Including your friends and our classmates. You didn't want that. So you pleaded for him to stop the robot and save them. It wouldn't seem much, but it was all you could think of doing."

"But it was enough. You managed to break through his fears with your words. Like your friend, you help him get his act together. Because you reminded him that there were still people that needed to be saved. And you would be sad if you lost any of your friends at that moment. Even if he was scared, he had a job to do and he did just that." Souda gave Koizumi a reassuring smile "You helped him get his focus back and give him the drive to fight again. It might not seem much, but I can definitely see him thanking you for that. Like that is proof enough that you contribute to his determination. So you should give yourself more credit then that."

Mahiru stared at Kazuichi, frozen in surprise by what he said. His words felt so honest and sincere, she never thought he could say anything like that to her. The photographer looked away as her face faintly blushing. "T-Thank you for that. I appreciate your words."

Souda gave her a small, sincere smile as he was glad she was happy. "No problem."

"Though getting back to my previous topic, where were you when the robot attacked?" she asked.

"Well… I think I told you before, I was going into town to get some things for myself along with getting something to eat. When I heard about the machine heading to the school, I wanted to run back to see what was happening. But seeing as the military and police were blocking the way, all I could do was wait until everything was over with," the mechanic explained himself, trying to sound as convincing as possible. "I was starting to feel anxious, afraid of what would happen to you guys. I'm really grateful that Green Lantern came in when he did."

Mahiru nodded in agreement. "Most of us are. But also glad you're alright. I was worried about what happened to you since I didn't see you with our class."

Kazuichi looked at her with shock in his eyes. "Y-You were worried about me?"

The photographer looked at him with a smile. "Of course I was worried. It's only natural to worry for one of your classmates."

"Oh… thanks," the mechanic uttered, having a good feeling within him. "By the way, not to sound rude, but what brings you here? I thought you would be back home by now."

"I would, but I got a call earlier and my mom is going to be picking me up. She heard about the terrorist attack along with the robot destroying the school. So she dropped everything from her work, flew back from Afghanistan to come back home and check on me," Koizumi answered, looking happy. "I'm glad since I haven't seen her in a while."

"That's good. After everything you went through, you deserve to be with your family and relax," Souda commented.

As Mahiru nodded in agreement, a car appeared in front of them. Seeing an older, red haired woman in the driver side, Mahiru got up from her seat. "Well, looks like I better get going."

Once the photographer was in front of the car, she turned back to Kazuichi. "Thanks for the talk, Souda. I really appreciate it."

The mechanic gave out his own smile as waved his hand goodbye. "No problem. I'm happy to be of help. See ya."

"See ya," Koizumi said before entering the passenger side of the car. With that, the car drove up through the road. Taking a left turn, disappearing from his sight.

Souda sat there as he realized that this was the first time in a while that talked to someone. To have an actual conversation with no problems. It felt good for him. And even if it seemed unlikely, Kazuichi would like to talk with her again. As he thought of this, his bus had finally arrived, opening its door for him to enter.

"It's about time it came," he uttered to himself with a sigh as he entered the bus.

It was around night time, about seven when Souda finally made it to his destination. Entering into his street, the mechanic walked through the neighborhood until he reached a single, two story, blue house. Stopping at the entrance, Kazuichi pulled out his keys as he used them to unlock the door and enter the house.

Once inside, Souda reached for the light switch and turned them one. The inside of the building brightened to reveal the living room. The area was very much quiet and it looked like no one had interacted here for a while.

"Grandma?! Are you here?" the Ultimate Mechanic shouted. He looked around the house to find her. Checking the bottom floor of the house to the top floor, going into her room. But once he finished his search, Souda came to the realization, letting out a sigh. "She's not here. Should have expected that."

Knowing this, Kazuichi pulled out his phone as he made his way to the kitchen. Going through his contacts, he pressed onto his grandma's number to call her. He waited for a couple seconds, hearing the ringing sound, until she finally picked.

'Hello?'

"Hey grandma, it's me."

'Ah Souda, my young man! It's been so long since we talked. How are you doing?'

Kazuichi made his way towards the refrigerator and opened, looking for whatever food was available.

"I'm doing fine, grandma. I wanted to check up on you and see where you were."

'Oh sweetie, I'm still currently on my trip on the cruise. We're about to head to Singapore.'

"Oh right, nearly forgot. Anyway, I'm calling you to let you know that I'm at the house right now," Souda told her as he grabbed a can of soda out and some food before closing the fridge.

'At the house? Why are you there? Did you get in trouble with the school, young man?'

"No, it's nothing like that. I'm not sure if you heard the news, but my school was under attack. A lot of damage was caused there so everyone was sent home until they refix everything."

'Oh my lord. Are you alright?! Did anything happen to you?!'

"Whoa, grandma calm down! I'm fine! I was in town when my school got attacked. I stayed in a restaurant until the whole event was dealt with," the teen reassured his guardian as he began to eat his food at the table.

'Sigh… I'm glad to hear that, sweetie. I don't know how I would be able to handle hearing you get hurt.'

"I know, grandma."

'Anyway, how long will you be staying at the house?'

"For about 2 weeks at best. Once I get informed that the school is reopened, I'll head back."

'Sounds good then. Do you want me to send you any money? For food and necessities?'

"You don't have to. I still have some leftover money from my side job."

'As much as I'm glad that you're earning yourself some money, I'll send in more to you just in case.'

"Alright then, I'm fine with that."

'Okay Souda, I better get going. There's an event that's being put up for us seniors. And I've been dying to go.'

"That's fine, grandma. Make sure you have fun."

'Oh I will. Now take good care of yourself and can you be a dear and give the house a good spring cleaning? I can already tell that it's been getting dusty there.'

"Oh yeah, it definitely has. I'll see what I can do."

'Perfect. Goodbye Souda. Call me if you need anything and I love you.'

"I love you too. Bye."

With that, Kazuichi hung up from the phone as the silence took over once more. He sat there, looking at his phone while still eating. Remembering his strange relationship with his grandma. After moving in with her, things felt like good things were going to happen to him. Especially seeing as he was away from his dad. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.

His grandmother tends to be neglectful in a way. She usually never talked to Kazuichi when it seemed like he had any problems. In fact, she pretty much let him do what he wanted so long as he didn't get into massive trouble. A part of him was glad that she didn't delve too deep into his personal life. But he also felt sorrow as it seemed that his grandma didn't want to get involved with his problems. That didn't mean he hated her though. Souda very much loved his grandmother as she gave him a real home and did her best to provide for him. He just wished that she made more of an effort to be there when he needed support.

"Well, at least I have the house to myself," Kazuichi said to himself before finishing all the soda left in his can.

Having finished his food, the mechanic proceeded to clean up after himself. Once done, Souda decided that he would go to his room and sleep in early. After all, he had just fought and defeated a Manhunter in the morning. So he felt like he deserved this.

But then, in a crazy change of events, the windows emitted a bright green light. Souda staggered back in fright by this sudden action and yelped in fright. Kazuichi processed all this as he could tell that whatever or whoever this is, they were outside of his house. And if his encounter with anything mysterious, the Manhunter, taught him anything, it's that there was trouble afoot. Knowing this, the mechanic quickly took out his ring and equipped it onto his finger.

"Okay, I don't know what this is or why they're here. But I'm not taking any chances," he said as he changed into his Green Lantern uniform. His ring emitting a green light as he was ready for battle.

"Calm yourself!"

Kazuichi stopped whatever he was planning on doing when he heard that. Wondering who the voice belonged to, the room around him is bathed in green due to the emerald light. Then three figures fazed through the walls of the house, entering the kitchen with their intangibility. As the green light settled down to the point that Souda could properly see, he was greeted with a crazy surprise.

In front of him were three aliens. All of them were wearing the same green and black uniform like him. They even had their own power ring. Needless to say, Kazuichi was certainly taken back by this. To be in the presence of what he can tell are other Green Lanterns.

"It seems that we have finally found you."

Chapter Text

Today was very much hectic for Kazuichi Souda. Not only did he recently obtain a green ring, becoming a Green Lantern, but also had to use it to save people on two occasions. First was stopping the Black Hawk terrorists, then fighting a machine known as a Manhunter. The latter almost killed him before he managed to defeat it and save everyone in Hope's Peak Academy. After that, Souda didn't think things couldn't get weirder. But he was currently being proved wrong as in his house, in his living room, are three other Green Lanterns. Their looks immediately told the mechanic that they are definitely aliens.

The alien on his left looks like a bird-like creature that had aquatic features. Like a combination of a fish and a parrot. The next alien to the right of him is a female. She resembled a human being in a way, but her pink skin, whitish pink hair, and purple hair made her stand out. And the last one is the alien facing him with a calm yet controlling determiner. Like the pink one, this one also resembled a human. Only his skin was red, black hair, a mustache, and yellow sclera in his eyes. There was something about this red alien that stood out to Souda. Like this was this hidden aura of intimidation on him that told others that he was not someone to be trifled with. Yet despite that, he was the first to greet the mechanic.

"Do not be alarmed, young one. We are not here for battle. We just wish to meet with the newest member of the Corp," the red alien reassured.

It seemed to work as Kazuichi powered down his ring and seemed more calm. "Sorry about that, it's just… today has been crazy for me," Souda admitted.

"It's fine, many lanterns have their own bizarre experiences when they first obtain their ring. I speak from experience," the pink alien responded, before focusing her attention on Souda's ring. "Young man, may I see the ring? It is important that we do."

Kazuichi was a bit taken by the woman's request to see his ring. But seeing they are veteran from the look of things, Souda assumed that to examine the ring for any issues or whatnot. Understanding that, he lifted up his hand to present his ring to the pink alien, who grabbed it and carefully looked at the ring. She examined it for a good couple seconds before she let go of Souda's hand, having a look of sadness on her.

"So it is true, Abin Sur truly is dead," she uttered.

"What was the point of that? It's obvious since his ring on this child now," the aquatic alien pointed out.

"I know, I just wanted to be fully convinced," she replied, looking somber.

"I get that, it was hard for me to really be convinced about all this Green Lantern stuff. Even when Abin died in front of me after giving me the ring, it was still hard for me to accept all this," Souda admitted.

"Died in front of you? You mean he was alive when you encountered Abin Sur?" the aquatic alien growled.

Kazuichi was taken back by the bird-like alien's sudden mood change but answered him anyway. "I mean, yeah he was, but-"

Souda was interrupted when the aquatic alien lifted him up by his uniform and slammed the teen against the wall. The mechanic was now scared by this sudden turn of events. And the anger that the alien was admitting to the young lantern.

"If Abin was alive, then why didn't you save him? Why didn't you try to help him when he needed it the most?!" the aquatic alien shouted.

Kazuichi tried to say something but the intensity of the situation was too much for him to answer. Luckily for him, the red alien quickly forced the aquatic alien to let out of Souda and push him back.

"That's enough! I understand your pain, but you have no right shouting and attacking him like that. You don't know what he has been through," the red alien scolded his ally.

"But he could have helped him. He could have at least tried to save his life!" the aquatic alien retorted

"Of course I tried to save him," Souda uttered out, getting the alien's attention. "When the ring took me to Abin Sur, seeing just how wounded he was, I wanted to save him. I wasn't a doctor but I wanted to at least try. But he stopped me, telling me that it was alright. Even when he was dying, he looked so peaceful, like he knew that he was going to die and accepted it. It was that feeling that told me that I needed to respect his decision and allow the ring to take me. But believe me when I say that I truly wanted to save Abin, even if it seemed impossible."

Those words seemed to resonate with the aquatic alien as he began to calm down, keeping his emotions under control. "That sounds exactly what Abin would do," he said before turning away.

"Please forgive my friend here, Abin Sur was a close friend to us. So hearing of his death was shocking for all of us. A few of us are still grieving over his death," the red man explained.

Souda calmed himself down after all that before speaking up. "It's fine. He did scare me there but I understand why. Thanks for helping out there, mister…" Kazuichi paused for a moment when he realized something. "Wait, what is your name?"

"Oh, that's right. We have yet to properly introduce ourselves," the red man said as he began introductions. "I am Thaal Sinestro, Green Lantern of sector 1417. She is Boodikka of sector 1414. And he is Tomar-Re of sector 2813. Think of him as your neighbor of sorts."

"It's a pleasure to meet more members of the Corp," Souda said in respect.

"Indeed, and what would your name be?" Sinestro asked

"Oh right- I'm Kazuichi Souda, Green Lantern of sector 2814," Souda quickly answered.

"It is a pleasure to meet with you, Kazuichi. Now that the introductions are done, we must focus on an important matter at hand," Sinestro said as he began to explain himself. "We are here to warn you about a threat that will likely come to your planet."

Boodikka used her ring to create an image of three Manhunters. "The threat being the Alpha Manhunters. Machines created by our sworn enemies, the Manhunter Cult. These are far more advanced compared to the standard Manhunters we fight. With far more destructive power, stronger armor, deadlier weapons, even if they are prototypes, these monstrosities are dangerous."

"A single Alpha Manhunter has enough power to destroy stars. So all three fighting together would become a force to be reckoned with. Even higher ranked lanterns would fall to them," Tomar added in. "So far, about four lanterns have died against these three."

"Yeah, I know. And Abin Sur was assigned to investigate the whole thing. To try to stop these three. He was able to destroy two of these Manhunters. But one was still able to deliver the killing blow to him. Forcing him to retreat and fly to earth. To call for help and at least pass his ring to someone else. That's how I became a Green Lantern," Souda said, remembering the awful sight of seeing Abin be killed like that, yet still remain hopeful throughout all that; he was definitely a strong lantern, even till the very end.

The other three lanterns looked at Kazuichi with shock to see that he knew all that. "Yeah… but how do you know all this?" Boodikka questioned.

"Well, I needed to look into the memories and archive of the ring to find a weakness against the Alpha Manhunter. Especially when that machine arrived on my planet and tried to kill everyone," Souda answered, scratching his cheek a bit.

"What?! The Alpha Manhunter was here?!" Tomar Re shouted in shock.

"That can't be. If the Manhunter was here, our rings would have certainly picked them up by now," Sinestro added, angrily. "I don't know what you're playing here, but I will not tolerate any lies."

Kazuichi was feeling a bit scared by the threatening aura Sinestro was admitting, but he stood his ground. "But it's the truth! I never lie about this, I'm an awful liar. I'm serious when I say that the Manhunter came to my planet and attacked my city and school. I had to fight the damn thing in order to protect them."

Boodikka looked Souda in the eyes, examining them for any deception but found nothing. "He's telling the truth. If what he's saying is true then we were too late to stop the Manhunter."

Tomar shook his head in agreement. "Meaning that the Manhunter is still out there."

"Actually, we don't have to worry about the Manhunter anymore," Souda corrected.

"And why's that?" Tomar Re asked.

"Because, as crazy as it sounds, I was able to defeat the Manhunter and destroy it," Souda answered as honestly as possible.

Once again, the three Green Lanterns at him in uttered shock, even thinking that he was pulling some kind of awful ruse. "Kid, I'm sorry, but even I can't believe that. These Alpha Manhunters are a nightmare for rookies. I can really believe that you were able to defeat that machine when you just got the ring," Boodikka admitted.

"She's right, I don't believe that you could defeat a Manhunter of this model unless you have proof," Sinestro sternly told the young lantern.

"O-of course I can prove it," Kazuichi stuttered out as he looked down to his ring. "Ring, can you show these guys my battle with the Alpha Manhunter?"

"Affirmative."

The ring powered up and created a hologram, showing the memories of Souda's fight against the Manhunter. From their first encounter, the brutal battle the mechanic had to endure, the memories he saw of Abin Sur's final moments of life, his near death experience, and the final brawl before Kazuichi blasted the robot out of the planet, out of his sector. The hologram then disappeared, leaving the three Green Lanterns shocked in complete awe by what they were shown.

"My god, this rookie actually defeated the Manhunter and saved his planet," Tomar Re uttered.

"Indeed he did," Sinestro said, looking impressed by what he saw. "To think that I would be proven wrong. If you were able to defeat a Manhunter on your own, then you certainly have some potential within you."

"Hehe, thanks. I just did what had to be done, you know," Kazuichi admitted, feeling a little proud of himself.

"You certainly pulled through and I'm glad for that. Though I have a question. I noticed that during your battle, you tore about the Manhunter, piece by piece, especially with its arm and leg. What exactly did you do to them?" Boodikka asked.

"Oh those, well… after being beaten to near death like that, I just wanted to go home and rest. So I kinda just left them there at my school," Souda answered.

This immediately got Sinestro's attention as he looked at Souda with great displeasure, anger, and disappointment. "You mean to tell me that you left advanced technology of one of the most dangerous robots in the universe alone? To be picked up and taken by your species? For them to use it for their own self?"

Kazuichi backed up as Sinestro stared him down, making him feel small and insignificant compared to the red man. Souda was feeling scared now that he realized that he made a mistake. "I mean- yeah? And I assume… that was a bad idea, r-right?

"What you did is one of the most reckless and idiotic decisions any lantern could make!" Sinestro shouted at Souda. "Instead of securing those pieces of Manhunter technology, you left them there for any human to take and tamper with! Technology that could either singal more manhunters to appear in that location, or be misused by the people of the planet! How could you make a mistake like that?!"

"Look, I'm sorry! After everything that's happened to me today, I was tired and wasn't thinking clearly!" Souda said in distress, feeling awful about all this.

Sinestro was about to yell again but stopped himself as he saw how scared Souda was. It was because of this that he was reminded that this teenager is still a rookie. A rookie that was forced to endure a dangerous challenge: defeat an Alpha Manhunter on his own. Even for a well trained Green Lantern, this would still be a difficult task to survive in, let alone complete. And this rookie was able to do it, even when the odds were stacked against him, when he was close to death's door. That kind of battle would put anyone in extreme stress. This combined with him still being new to the Corps would make sense why Souda didn't think to get the Manhunter's remains out of there. Knowing all this, Sinestro took a deep breath and calmed himself.

"I believe you're correct, Souda. I… apologize for my outburst. Even if you had made a mistake like this, you are still a rookie and there are still things you have yet to learn when it comes to the Corps. Please, forgive me," Sintestro said as he lowered his head for forgiveness.

Kazuichi was a little surprised by this as he didn't expect someone like Sinestro would lower his head like that. But he felt that his words were genuine so he lowered his head as well. "It's fine… I understand why you were angry at me. I did make an awful mistake like."

The two lanterns lifted their heads back up as they both made peace with each other. Boodikka then patted Souda by his shoulder to comfort him. "Don't worry about it. Sure you made a mistake but you're still new to all this. Just be sure that you'll learn from this mistake to become better. Then everything will be fine for you," she told the mechanic with a comforting tone.

"That is indeed true. After all, I do see potential within you, Souda. With the proper training and guidance, you will become a powerful Green Lantern in no time," Sinestro said, reassuring the mechanic of his worth.

Souda couldn't help but smile a bitc feeling grateful from receiving a compliment like that. "T-thank you," he uttered out.

"Okay, now with that done, we should go and confiscate the Manhunter tech away from the humans. Then we take them back to Oa," Boodikka pointed out.

Sinestro nodded in agreement to his partner. "You are correct. That is an important priority for us to do. Boodikka, you will help accompany me to receive every piece of Manhunter tech at this Hope's Peak Academy."

"As you command," Boodikka said.

"Tomar Re, you will escort Kazuichi Souda to Oa. The guardians will want to meet with him and hear about this. We'll catch up once we confiscated all of the Manhunter remains," Sinestro instructed his comrade.

"I can do that," Tomar complied.

"Good, then I'll see you back in Oa. Oh and Souda, if you're going to be a Green Lantern, at least wear the ring probably," Sinestro said before he and Boodikka flew off, leaving Souda and Tomar Re alone.

"Well, let's get going then. Are you ready?" Tomar asked.

"Before we go, what did he mean by wearing my ring properly?" Souda questioned

"Oh, well see you, when you have the ring on, it's important, if possible, to wear it on your middle finger to get the most usage out of your ring," Tomar explained to the young lantern.

"Does it really make much of a difference?" Souda asked, still not sure about this.

"Sinestro is one of the greatest lanterns we have. And if he says that you should put your ring on your middle finger, I would take his advice," Tomar answered.

Being told this, Kazuichi did as Sinestro told him and took the ring off his index finger, placing it on his middle finger instead. "Okay, now I'm ready to go."

Tomar nodded as he lit up his ring. "Good, then follow me."

Like that, the two Green Lanterns flew out of the house with their intangibility and blasted off into the night sky, entering space. Within three seconds, Kazuichi and Tomar Re had already left the Milky Way Galaxy. The two flew through the cosmos for about two minutes before they finally arrived at their destination. Souda was greeted by a massive green planet with multiple lights flashing out from the planet's surface, along with two rings surrounding it.

"Oh wow, is that Oa? It's beautiful" Souda uttered in awe.

"Indeed it is. If you think this is impressive, wait until you see the Corps itself," Tomar Re said happily as he led Souda into the planet's atmosphere.

Within a second, the two Green Lanterns were now in the citadel. Multiple buildings around them as they were on floating platforms. All of them lighting up multiple emerald lights. And flying pass Souda and Tomar were the other members of the Green Lantern Corps. Alien species of different shapes and sizes, all donning the green and black uniform. To say that Souda was filled with awe was an understatement. The mechanic was amazed by what he was experiencing. Filled with wonder and accomplishment as he realized that he was the first ever human to travel this deeply into space, arrive on a different planet, and be surrounded by other sentient life. It was experiencing a dream that many humans have wanted to accomplish in life and he did it.

"Are you enjoying the view? Tomar asked happily.

"More than you can think," Souda replied with a dumb smile on his face.

Tomar Re let out a chuckle by the mechanic's childish excitement. "That is good. And while you may want to explore this place, we have important business to attend to. So we mustn't waste anymore time. Come, I will take you to the guardians."

"Oh… right, lead the way," Kazuichi said as Tomar led him through the citadel.

Within a couple seconds, the two lanterns arrived at a dome-like building. Kazuichi and Tomar landed at the entrance and let themselves in, walking through the hallways of the building. They eventually made it to a massive door with another Green Lantern there. This skinny alien had red skin, a diamond-like head, and four arms. In front of him was an advanced yet unique looking computer, with multiple buttons and holograms on it. The four-armed alien greeted Souda and Tomar as he pressed a few buttons on his computer.

"Souda, this is Salaak, Green Lantern of sector 1418. He is the senior administrator to the guardians. He keeps everything as organized as possible," Tomar told the mechanic.

Hearing this. Souda decided to greet himself as well. "Oh, hello Salaak, I'm Kazuichi Souda-

"Newest Green Lantern of sector 2814, I'm already aware. Your basic information about you has already been added in the archive," Salaak stated as he showed Souda a screen that carried all his information about him, his height, weight, blood type, medical conditions, and almost everything about him was there.

"Holy shit, how did you get all this?!" Kazuichi questioned in shock.

"The moment you put on that ring, I scanned it and had it bring up all your information that we need to know about you. It's a basic procedure that every lantern has to do, so don't be surprised about it," Salaak explained as he worked on his computer a bit. "I have informed the guardians that you are here, so please enter through that door. And young lantern, be at your best behavior."

Tomar and Souda simply nodded as the two walked through the door into the room. "What was up with him? It felt like he was talking down on me," Souda whispered to Tomar.

"Don't worry about it, Salaak is like that with most lanterns here, especially rookies. But I'm sure you'll get along with him just fine," Tomar Re whispered back.

Kazuichi and Tomar walked further into the room as the mechanic saw the uniqueness of the room. It almost resembles a courtroom in a way, though there are no chairs, desks, or even a jury box. Just a circular platform with stairs on them and a massive ring circle a good couple above it. As the two Green Lanterns stepped onto the platform, they noticed shadows around the area. Souda looked up to see who was making them and was certainly taken back by what he was seeing.

Floating down from the hole in the ceiling of the room, were small people. Small people with blue skin, white hair, and red robes. All of them bearing the symbol of the Green Lantern Corp. Despite them looking somewhat similar to each other, Souda could see some differences from them that made them unique from one another.

"Are these guys the Guardians of the Universe?" Kazuichi asked in a whisper.

"Indeed they are. They're the ones that created the Corps," Tomar Re whispered back.

"Interesting, though I have a question here… why are they blue?" Souda quietly asked.

Tomar was a bit taken back by the young lantern's question but decided to whisperly answer it anyway. "That's just how they are. If I were you, I wouldn't talk about their looks. Some of them are pretty sensitive about it."

"I'm sorry, I… just assumed with all the green stuff like… buildings, lanterns, the planet even… yet they're blue… i-is there like a yellow one and they do the fusion dance or something?" Souda asked in a whisper.

"Souda, you might want to shut up, our meeting is about to begin," Tomar Re whispered.

The Guardians of the Universe floated down onto the ring circle platform as they were ready for the meeting. All sixteen of the guardians stared down at Souda, examining the teen. "So, you are the Green Lantern of sector 2814?" one of them spoke up.

"Yes… sir? Um, sir, is it okay to say that, right? Do I need to take a knee?" he says, bending one leg down.

A few of the guardians let out a chuckle at the young lantern's sense of humor, though the rest were not amused. "That is not necessary. Please stand back up," one of the female guardians spoke, getting Souda to get back on his feet.

"Despite this odd act, seeing this boy only proves our suspicion. Abin Sur truly is dead," one of them spoke as the guardians lowered their heads down to grief for their fallen ally and soldier to the Corp.

"He… died a good death. He fought a good fight, and it was because of him my planet had any chance it did. He took down two manhunters, Alpha's at that," Souda admitted, wanting to tell them how much Abin helped him.

"Indeed, he was one of our best lanterns in the Corps. We will make sure that his legacy is not forgotten," one spoke out.

"Though your words have intrigued me. We know from reports that there were three Alpha Manhunters. If Abin only destroyed two, what happened to the third one?" a different guardian spoke, questioning the Souda. The rest of the guardians looked at the mechanic for the answer.

"Oh well… I beat it. You know, ripped it apart and broke it. All that stuff," Souda answered as honestly as possible.

The guardians seemed to be taken back by his answer as they murmured among one another. "I'm sorry? Could you repeat that? I'm afraid we miss-heard you," one guardian asked.

"Maybe it's because of how high you guys put yourself." Clearing his voice, Kazuichi spoke up. "I destroyed the final Alpha Manhunter, on my own."

"If this is an attempt to make a joke, we're not laughing," the same guardian said, looking at the mechanic with disappointment and anger.

"Ranakar..." a different guardian spoke up.

"Do you honestly expect me or any of us to believe that this single rookie, who I can tell has had the ring for a few hours, was able to defeat an Alpha Manhunter?! It's idiotic!" Ranakar argued, with many of the guardians agreeing with him.

Seeing as they didn't seem to believe him, Souda decided to speak up. "Look, I get it, it's hard to believe that someone like me can defeat a Manhunter of that power. But believe me when I say I fought and defeated it with all my strength and will. I wouldn't make something like this up. What would I gain for lying about defeating a Manhunter? I'm still new to this whole Green Lantern Corps stuff!"

The guardians murmured with each other as a few did see his point. Though Ranakar and a couple still weren't convinced. "Maybe so, but we have seen many lanterns before you boast of how powerful they are or say they're immediately ready for the most difficult challenges most veteran lanterns have to face. Only to be proven wrong. What makes you any different from them?"

"Because I can back it up with evidence. I have the recording of my fight with the Manhunter. I can show it and you'll see the truth," Souda said, presenting his ring.

"Really now? I doubt it would actually prove anything," Ranakar dismissed.

"Now you're just being unreasonable, Ranakar," one guardian called out, defending the young lantern.

"You can't be serious, Ganthet! For all we know, this could be a ruse, a forgery for his self interest. Even you saw first hand some rookie lanterns attempting this," Ranakar argued.

"That may be true, but we have to at least give him the benefit of the doubt. He said that he has proof of his battle with the Manhunter, we should at least hear him out," Ganthet argued as well, many of the guardians seeming to agree with him. "Go ahead young lantern, show us your evidence."

Souda gave a nod before using his ring to show the guardians of the universe the replay of his fight with the Alpha Manhunter. The guardians were certainly shocked by what they were seeing. A couple, Ganthet included, were very much impressed by this Green Lantern's will and determination on the right. Even at his low point, he was able to push through and defeat the Alpha Manhunter. Once the replay was finished, the guardians seemed convinced.

"It looks like the rookie was telling the truth after all. Even knowing that the playback was not a forgery, but one of his memories," Ganthet said to Ranakar. "I believe you owe him an apology."

Ranakar seemed to be reluctant at first, but let out a sigh as he knew that had to. "It seems that I was wrong in this instance. You have certainly shown yourself to be more capable than I gave you credit for. Though I must ask, what did you do to the parts left behind from the Manhunter after you defeated it?"

Souda felt some sense of dejavu but dismissed the feeling as he tried to explain himself. "Well, you see-"

"They're right here!"

Right on cue, Sintero and Boodikka appeared inside the room with the remains of the Alpha Manhunter in their green bubble. "I apologize for intruding like this but it felt that it was important to bring this to you all," Sinestro explained himself.

"Of course, Sinestro. The Green Lantern of 1417 is recognized," another guardian spoke.

"Thank you, Appa Ali Apsa. As you can see, we have the remaining pieces of the Alpha Manhunter from the young lantern's world. It seemed the humans were about to take the remains for themselves, but me and Boodikka were able to get them before that could happen," Sinestro explained as he and Boodikka showed the guardians the arm, leg, signal device and other pieces of the Alpha Manhunter.

"Most impressive. As expected of one our greatest lanterns in the Corp," Appa Ali Apsa commended the red alien.

"Though seeing this does bring up a question, why wasn't it this young lantern that brought forth these remains?" Ranakar questioned.

"Oh… you see, after fighting the Manhunter and being exhausted, I kinda just… left them there," Kazuichi admitted, not feeling proud to say it.

"It seems that even with all his power and mind, the human still made a mistake, and a greater one at that. To leave technology of that caliber to a primitive species is nothing short of idtiotic," Ranakar said in displeasure, making Souda look down in shame. Luckily for him, Boodikka came to his aid.

"Ranakar, with all due respect, don't you think you're being harsh on Souda here? He's a rookie, so he wouldn't immediately know that he had to do that. Especially after dealing with such a chaotic fight with the Manhunter," Boodikka pointed out.

"Boodikka makes an excellent point, Ranakar," the guardian known as Sayd said. "Souda has been through enough as is. The poor boy must have been scared and worried when the Manhunter attacked his home planet. He had to focus all his mind and energy to not just stop the machine, but to save his people as well."

"Sayd is correct. It is true that Souda did make a

unfortunate mistake on his part, but with how much he had to deal with and endure before coming to Oa, I say it is reasonable that he deserves a pardon from this. Besides, now that Souda is here in the Corps, we can train him to better handle these kinds of situations in the future and more," Ganthet added, with many of the guardians agreeing with him, before looking at Souda. "I can trust that you will learn from this mistake and better yourself from it, yes?"

Kazuichi understood the question and quickly shook his head in agreement. "Yes, of course. I'll be sure not to do that again," he replied quickly.

Ganthet let out a smile. "I am glad to hear that. I believe this would conclude our meeting. Let us take these Manhunter pieces to our laboratories to be examined. Help us find more weaknesses to defeat the cult. Allow Kazuichi to be on his way so he can be trained to become a Green Lantern."

The guardians seemed to all agree on this as a few used their telepathic powers to lift the Manhunter pieces towards them. "We shall take these pieces and be on our way. Tomar Re, you will be Souda's guide until it is time for him to train," Appa Ali Apsa command.

"As you wish," Tomar agreed.

As the guardians were about to leave, Ganthet decided to leave some last words. "Kazuichi Souda, I welcome you to the Green Lantern Corps. Good luck."

With that, the guardians left the room through the home in the ceiling. Taking the Manhunter pieces with them. Leaving Souda and the three other lanterns alone.

"Well, now with that done with, me and Boodikka must go as well. We have a mission assigned to us that we must complete," Sinestro said as he powered up his ring. "Let's go, Boodikka."

"Of course. Goodbye, Souda," Boodikka said before she and Sinestro flew off out of the room and into the sky, leaving the planet.

"Now with that done, let me show you around before your training hour begins," Tomar said.

"Oh sure, lead the way," Souda said as he followed Tomar for a tour of the Green Lantern Corps.

For what felt like an hour, Tomar Re showed Souda around the city of the Corps. From the many houses they had, the cafeteria, their library, medical bay, departments, and so much more. It was amazing for Kazuichi to see, to be shown just how much the Corps offered. The mechanic was very much intrigued by what he was being shown. Especially when being told about their engineering department.

"Holy shit, I knew this Corps had a lot to offer, but this way more than I expected," Souda admitted in awe.

Tomar chucked a bit from Souda's excitement and interest in the Corps. "If you thought all that was spectacular, then you'll definitely love to see the last two that I saved for the best."

Kazuichi felt pumped as he allowed Tomar Re to lead him to another building. The alien informed him that this was the Hall of Great Service they were entering. With a few twists and turns, the two lanterns ended up inside a room and Souda was met with an incredible sight. In front of the two lanterns was a massive green book with the Corp's symbol on it. It was somehow bigger than most houses the mechanic had seen in his life.

"Oh. My. God. That is one massive book," Souda uttered in shock.

"This is the Book of Oa. It is an artifact that contains the entire history of the Guardians of the Universe and the Green Lantern Corps. The many rules that we guardians have place here for the Green Lanterns to follow when on duty. And the stories of the many lanterns that were in the Corp before us," Tomar explained as he used his ring to open the book.

The book opened up and revealed its many pages to Kazuichi Souda. Thanks to his ring, he was able to see a lot of information, every word within them. He was genuinely surprised by just how much information this book had. It's more information than the entire library of Hope's Peak Academy. No, even all the libraries on Earth wouldn't even compare to this. The book came to an end as it reached the desired page Tomar wanted.

To his mechanic's shock, Souda was greeted with a page of Abin Sur. It told him everything about Abin Sur and his time as a Green Lantern, from the day he was chosen, to his many adventures, then finally to death as he gave his ring to Kazuichi. The teen couldn't help but feel emotional seeing this. Sad that someone like him had to die. Yet grateful that he was given the ring, a chance to save his planet from the Alpha Manhunter. Abin Sur would be someone Souda would never forget, even respecting the man.

"Abin Sur's tale is now among them. A tragic yet peaceful end," Tomar Re said as he felt emotional for a bit. "One day, your tale will be here too. As will mine."

"You really think so?" Souda asked, caught off guard.

"Of course, no matter how little time any Green Lantern has committed to the Corps, their history will be recorded and shared to future generations. As you grow, I expect you to make a good example and show newer recruits what it means to be a Green Lantern. Can I count on you to do that?" Tomar Re requested.

Kazuichi was taken back as he didn't expect someone to ask him to do that, to see him put in the effort in a friendly manner. It kinda made him happy as he rarely had anyone expect more from him. "Sure thing. I'll do my best," Souda replied in confidence.

"That's what I like to hear. Come, there is one more thing I must show you. It is mandatory for all rookie lanterns to see," Tomar Re said as he led Souda to their final part of the tour.

Souda and Tomar eventually made it to a massive building that was in the center of the citadel. The building was taller than any skyscraper on Earth. With the most intriguing part of it being the large pillar of green light coming out from the top. Once the two lanterns went through the entrance, he was greeted with extraordinary sight, mainly for Kazuichi. In front of the Green Lanterns is a big version of the power battery. No, scratch that, this battery was gigantic. Bigger than even Hope's Peak Academy. And the energy it was emitting from the center was… enchanting. It was like an incredible power, leagues greater than the power battery he had on Earth.

"Okay, this thing has got my immediate attention. What is this massive, glorious piece of tech?" Souda asked in awe, his mechanic eyes focusing on every detail of the massive behemoth of a battery.

"This device, that has gotten your interest, is the Central Power Battery," Tomar answered as he began to explain. "It is the reservoir for all the combined power of the Green Light of Will. It is what powers our separate batteries, our very rings. This is what gives the Green Lanterns their incredible power."

"That's pretty cool. But I have to ask?" Souda said as he flew around the Central Power Battery. "How does this work? What metal was used to create this device? What's the power source for this? How does it channel all this energy to the other lanterns? Why is it so big? Why is it designed like this? Why-"

"Souda, one question at a time!" Tomar shouted, getting the mechanic to calm down.

Souda flew back to Tomar, feeling a little embarrassed by what he just did. "Hehe, sorry about that. It's just… I'm a mechanic and I… couldn't help myself. You know, with the new piece of technology that I'm pretty sure is many years more advanced than mine," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.

"It's quite alright. Though it would be best to keep the excitement under control next time," Tomar expressed to the mechanic. "Although, if you really do wish to know how the Central Power Battery works, it would be better that you ask one of our engineers that question. I'll even recommend you to one of our best in the Corps, allow him to broaden your view on more advanced technology in the universe."

"Really? You do that? I would appreciate that so much. I can't even begin to thank you," Kazuichi said, shaking Tomar's hand in gratitude.

"It is of no worry. I simply believe that a Corps could use more members that know how to rebuild technology and create new inventions for the Green Lantern Corps," Tomar Re expressed happily. "Now there is one more thing you must do before you begin your training."

"And what's that?" Souda asked.

Tomar had Souda follow him as they were now in front of the center light of the Central Power Battery. "Now, place your ring into the center of the battery and gather its power. I'm sure you're aware of how it works," Tomar instructed the teen.

"Oh yeah, let me just…" Souda uttered out as he readied himself before aiming his ring at the Central Power Battery.

"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!"

Like that, a green energy from the Central Power Battery went into the ring and powered up Souda. The mechanic was completely stunned by the amount of pure will power coursing through his body, it was incredible. He felt even more powerful than he did before when he gained the green energy from Abin's power battery. The standard power battery couldn't even compare to this. It was like a grain of sand against a sandstorm. That was how powerful the energy from the Central Power Battery was. Eventually, Souda regained his bearing and he took a breather, processing the new power he had within him.

"I take it that you enjoy this power coursing through your body?" Tomar asked with a smile.

"Oh hell yeah, this is crazy. I knew this central battery would have more pure power, but this is on a whole other level," Souda answered, still in awe from the power boost he got.

"It's good that your body is getting used to this power. It can be a bit overwhelming for new lanterns, even I was taken back by the central battery's power, but you'll get used to it," Tomar explained as he recalled his past. "But enough about that. It's almost time for your training. We must get going."

"Training time already? Damn, starting to get a little nervous now," Kazuichi admitted.

"It will be difficult, but as long as you're determined and have the will to push through, you'll do fine. Now come, we mustn't waste anymore time," Tomar said as he led Souda out of the building and somewhere else to begin his training.

After a while, Tomar Re had finally led Souda to the training grounds, outside the citadel. The two flew down to the entrance as they saw multiple rookie lanterns there. All of them are either standing around or sitting, waiting for the training to begin. Kazuichi felt nervous about this as he wasn't someone that enjoyed the first days of learning. Speaking from experience, recalling his first days of school, from elementary or high school.

"Are you alright, Souda?" Tomar asked.

"What? Oh no, I'm… kinda fine. Just a little nervous, that's all," Souda admitted, trying to get his nerves to relax.

"I know that sort of thing can be nerve racking, believe me, I was in the same position as you. The training will be hard and brutal at first, but you'll get a hang of it," Tomar reassured the teen.

"Okay, but can you give me some tips? You know, things I should do and not do when I'm there," Souda asked.

"If you want my advice, it's best to give your utmost respect to your sergeant. Don't say or do anything that will get you on his bad side and do what he said. He is there to train you to be full members of the Corps," Tomar explained. "And it is important to never look away from your sergeant's eyes. I know your sergeant and believe me, if you look away from him, you admit defeat. "

"Alright… starting to feel a little scared, but I can do that," Souda said, feeling more nervous than before. "Anything else?"

"Just one last thing. Do not mention your victory over the Alpha Manhunter to the others here," Tomar answered in an utmost serious tone. "While it is a victory you rightfully earned through your hard work and wit, it is best not to mention this to the other rookies that most have not seen combat yet. We don't want their egos raised and believe that they can do the same thing like you did. A raised ego for a rookie lantern will get them killed. And also, no offense Souda, but even with what skill you displayed in defeating the Alpha… part of me still believes it was mostly due to luck."

Kazuichi felt a little down by him not being able to bring up his victory against the Alpha Manhunter. But with what Tomar explained to him, it makes sense. Especially with how he won his fight. A part of him knew well that his victory against the machine was pure luck as well. "Okay, I guess that makes sense. I'll be sure not to bring it up," he said.

"Good, that's all I have to say for advice. All I can say to you… is good luck. You're really going to need it with this instructor," Tomar Re expressed.

"Speaking of, you know who he is? His name?" Souda asked.

"I do. But I feel like it will be more fun if I leave that as a surprise. Goodbye," Tomar Re said jokingly as he flew off, leaving the mechanic alone.

"Well that isn't assuring in the slightest," Kazuichi muttered to himself before looking back at the training grounds. He felt nervous about going in there and greeting himself to the other rookies. But as Tomar told him, he needed to hang in there. He was there to be trained so the mechanic just had to go in there and begin his training. Hyping himself up, Souda was now ready to enter the training grounds

"Okay, let's go," he muttered to himself in confidence.

With that, Kazuichi walked into the training grounds area, prepared for whatever would be thrown at him. Entering the area, Souda was greeted by a bunch of aliens, all of them either talking, sitting, doing anything to pass the time as they waited for the sergeant to arrive. At first, they were all minding their own business. That is until one of them noticed Souda and got his nearby comrades to look at the mechanic. The group of rookies were looking straight at Kazuichi, muttering stuff to each other about the teen, who was clearly able to hear.

"Is that a human?"

"I thought humans only stayed in their own solar system."

"I didn't think a human could ever be part of the Green Lantern Corps."

"They do, I think this is the first one the Corps ever had."

"Why does he have pink hair? You think he's one of those albino things?"

Kazuichi chose to ignore their comments as he didn't want to get in trouble on his first day. Besides, he didn't know how to respond to a situation like this. Especially since all he knew about aliens was that they were grey and had big heads. Though he couldn't help feeling a bit nervous. After all, these aliens seemed to be bad-talking him. It was starting to bring up bad memories of his time at school, how those kids made fun of him… just for being different.

"Hey!"

Souda was taken out of his thoughts when he was greeted by someone. He looked around to see where the voice came from but found no one.

"Down here!"

Kazuichi looked down, as the voice told him, and was greeted with a new sight. Below him was a squirrel, dressed in a Green Lantern uniform, smiling at him. Souda was pretty shocked by this as there was a literal squirrel in front of him. And it wasn't like an alien looking one that had unique features that you know that it's an alien squirrel. This guy looked like any ordinary squirrel you see on Earth, only this one can talk and move like a human. It felt like he was in one of those animated cartoon shows with the talking animals and stuff.

"Hey, are you still in there?"

His voice got Souda out of his thoughts and refocused on his new acquaintance. "Oh sorry, just a little surprised to be approached by someone. With how that group is talking about me and all," Souda admitted.

"Eh, that's fine, they tend to do that with any rookie that gets their attention. Besides, I can tell that you're uncomfortable right now. With the comments I heard them saying about you," the squirrel said.

"Yeah, I only just arrived today and already some guys are bad-talking me. I'm feeling uneasy here," Souda admitted.

"I can tell. Why don't you come with me? I have another friend that's in the same situation as you and we're staying over there. Better than standing here, don't you think?" the squirrel offered.

Souda felt grateful for someone coming in and helping him out here. Seeing as he was being offered beneficial help, the mechanic decided to take it. "Sure, I'd love to," he answered.

"Wonderful, come with me," the squirrel said as he floated in the air, a green aura surrounding him, and led Souda somewhere else. "Oh yeah, I should introduce myself. My name's Ch'p, Green Lantern of sector 1014."

"Hey Ch'p, I'm Kazuichi Souda, Green Lantern of sector 2814."

Ch'p led Souda to a different area of the training grounds, away from the peering eyes of the others, and was greeted with another rookie. A teen looking girl with orange skin and blonde hair. Her Green Lantern uniform was unique as she wore a white top, with a green skirt, gloves, and boots. She seemed to be a bit nervous being there, but was relieved to see Ch'p approaching her.

"Ch'p, I'm so glad you're back. Where were you?" she asked the squirrel.

"Sorry, I had to help out another lantern that was feeling nervous too. You might be interested in him," Ch'p said as he showed Souda to her.

"Um, hey. How are you doing?" Kazuichi spoke.

"Oh, I'm fine so far. Though I am a little nervous. I mean, I used to be a student back on my planet, figuring out a physics problem. But then, I got this ring and now I'm here. I honestly wasn't expecting myself to become one. I don't see myself worthy to be a Green Lantern," she admitted as she showed her ring.

"Yeah, I can relate to that. I didn't even feel worthy when I was chosen. I thought that it was a mistake. But apparently it wasn't," Souda admitted as he looked down to his ring. "As much as I don't completely see myself as worthy, I might as well give it my all and see how good I am. You get me?"

The teen girl nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I was chosen by the ring for a reason, I might as well try," she said, feeling a little better. "I should introduce myself. I am Arisia, Green Lantern of sector 2815."

Kazuichi chuckled a bit from hearing about her home sector. "Huh, I guess we're sector neighbors. I'm Kazuichi Souda, Green Lantern of sector 2814."

"Really? That's nice to hear," Arisia replied happily, before examining Souda's face and body, looking at every detail of it. "Hold on, you're from sector 2814… and these features… are you a human? The ones from Earth?

"Oh, um… yeah, that's my home planet," Souda answered awkwardly as he was feeling uneased by the girl looking at him.

"Incredible, this is the first time I've seen a homosapien in real life. I've only seen them in books based on the many planets in sector 2814," Arisia admitted, feeling excitement for meeting a real human.

"Hehehe, I feel the same way. I always saw aliens as imaginary, something you see in movies, shows, or games. And then yesterday, I got a ring and here I am proven wrong," Souda said in a joking manner.

"Yup, the universe is really weird that way," Ch'p added, making the three lanterns let out a chuckle.

"It is weird. And funny you say that you say that you're a student, Arisia. Back on my planet, I'm a student myself," Souda shared.

"Really? What level of education are you on? I'm currently starting my first year of university," Arisia said.

"University? Wow, you must be pretty smart to get there. As for me, not sure if your culture would understand this, but I'm a high school student, second year. So it wouldn't be on the level of education you're on. Though the high school I go to is very special in its own right," Souda explained.

"Really? How so?" Ch'p asked.

Souda began to explain himself to the two intrigued rookie lanterns. "Well, the school I go to is called Hope's Peak Academy. It's a very famous school in my home country where they select certain students that excel in a certain talent. To teach them and help improve their talents more to help the world and bring in hope."

"Ohh, that sounds fascinating. I definitely love to be in a school like that," Arisia expressed in awe.

"Yeah, that's pretty cool. Though I have to ask, what talent do you have that got you chosen?" Ch'p asked.

"Oh, in my school, I'm the Ultimate Mechanic. I can repair all kinds of machines on my planet. And even make some tech of my own design," Kazuichi answered.

"You build and repair machinery? That's incredible. You certainly have a very beneficial talent. You must be very helpful when needed," Arisia commented.

"Hehe, I guess I am. I can be useful when something needs to be fixed and all. No matter what appliance is broken, I should be able to fix it," Souda said.

"Now that's pretty useful. I'm sure your talent would be useful for the Corps," Ch'p added.

"I feel like it would. Though I do need to know how to work with alien technology before really using my talent for the Corps. But enough about me, what about you? What were you like before becoming a Green Lantern?" Kazuichi asked Ch'p.

"Eh, nothing much honestly. I was just a regular farmer on my home planet. Growing crops and acorns for my people. It's hard work but it is rewarding," Ch'p answered.

"Squirrels being a farmer and making produce for other squirrels, that is weird for me," Souda muttered to himself, trying not to say it out loud, but Ch'p still heard him.

"What's so weird about a squirrel being a farmer?" Ch'p questioned.

"Oh… I'm not trying to sound mean here. It's just, back on my planet, we also have squirrels," Souda answered.

"Oh really? Are they like me?" Ch'p asked.

"Weeeell, kinda. Though they aren't really intelligent like you. They act more like wild animals than anything. Hell, I'm still surprised to see a talking squirrel but I should have expected that with being in space and all," Kazuichi admitted.

"Honestly, I didn't want to say anything, but on my planet it's the same thing for humans. You're people are like dumb, and throw their own poo at each other," Ch'p confessed.

Souda was also shocked by this but decided to accept it. "Wait really? Huh, that's so ironic in a way. I guess we both learned something new today."

Ch'p looked at the mechanic with a blank stare as he said, "Dude, I'm joking. Your planet is weird."

"Oh… I didn't realize that. But yeah, my planet can be weird," Souda said, feeling a little embarrassed for not realizing the joke sooner.

"It may be weird, but every planet has their own weirdness to it. But that's what makes it so unique. Kinda like you in a way," Arisia commented as he examined Souda's hair. "Humans usually black or brown colored hair from what I've read, but you have pink hair. Maybe you're one of the rarer humans with a unique hair color."

"Yeah, it's possible. Your hair is as pink as a pig's belly," Ch'p said as he held a bit of Souda's hair.

"H-hey! Don't grab my hair like that!" Kazuichi shouted, getting the squirrel to let out of his hair, even back away from the two lanterns as they were getting too close to him.

Though as Souda backed away, he accidentally bumped into someone with his back, causing them both to lose their balance. Kazuichi nearly tripped as he felt like he bumped into someone. Luckily, he was able to regain his footing and prevent himself from falling. Once he did that, Souda looked behind him to see who he bumped into. To his dismissed, on the ground was a female lantern. A woman had orange hair and light purple skin, with her hair tied into a ponytail. Everyone near them, who saw this, looked in shock. Like they felt that something bad was going to happen. But Kazuichi ignored them as he immediately went to help the woman.

"Oh crap, I am so sorry. I should have looked where I was going. Are you alright?" Souda said as he offered a hand to help the female green lantern up.

However, the woman declined his help as she got back up on her own, dusting herself off. "I'm fine. Just be aware of your surroundings next time," she spoke.

"Oh that's good to hear," Souda said, sighing in relief. "Again, I'm really sorry. I hope you aren't hurt or anything."

"I said it's fine. You don't have to worry about it. As long as it doesn't happen again, then everything will be fine. Just be careful next time," she said the woman took her leave.

"Oh… sure. I'll keep that in mind," Kazuichi replied as he waved the woman goodbye.

Once she was gone, Ch'p and Arisia came from behind to check on Souda. "Hey, are you alright?" Arisia asked.

"I'm fine. I'm just glad that woman is okay, and not angry at me for bumping into her like that," Souda said in relief.

"I'm relieved that you got out of that without a beating. You have no idea how lucky you are," Ch'p pointed out

"What do you mean? You make it sound like she would have hurt me if I looked at her funny," Kazuichi asked.

"Yeah, she didn't seem all that bad," Arisia wondered as well.

"Okay, with Souda, I understand since he's the first human to enter this far into space. But Arisia, how do you not know about Laira?" Ch'p said.

"Laira?" Arisia asked in curiosity, with Souda listening in as well.

"Yeah, Laira of sector 112. She comes from royalty, the kingdom of the Golden Dragon on the planet Jayd. Her father trained her to be one of the best fighters out there, even believing that she could take his place in the future," Ch'p explained.

"Wait, you're saying that she's a princess?" Souda asked in shock.

"A princess that can kick your ass in more ways than one," Ch'p added.

"Huh, good to know," Souda replied, keeping a mental note of how to deal with Laira. 'Note to self, try not to do anything stupid around her. As to not make yet another big mistake in my life.'

"Seriously though, how do you not know about Laira and the Golden Dragon?" Ch'p asked Arisia

"Well… the thing is… I've never been outside my sector until now. I've been just studying and visiting other planets in my sector, focusing on pursuing my career," Arisia answered.

"A career, huh? What kind of career?" Kazuichi asked.

"Oh, it's nothing special. I plan on being a physicist. Study and learn more about all kinds of energies in our universe. Maybe find more efficient ways to use them to better our everyday lives. I know it's simple but that's something I want to do with my life. To help others," Arisia said nervously.

Kazuichi felt that Arisia was feeling a bit down about herself, thinking her dream wasn't all that important. Something he could relate to. So he decided to try to cheer her up. "That's a really nice goal to aim for. Sure it's simple but you seem to be putting a lot of effort into it. You seem passionate about wanting to do this. And so what if it's simple, this is something you want to do and there's nothing wrong with that."

Arisia was surprised by this and felt touched by his words. "Y-you really think so?"

"I know so. I mean, I'm a mechanic and I want to fix stuff for others and make them happy. It's simple, but I don't care; it's what I want to do. So don't look down on your dream just because it's not grand or anything. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be simple," Kazuichi reassured with a smile.

Arisia seemed to take his words into heart as she smiled, feeling much more confident with herself. "You're right. My dream and path isn't something massive or grand, but it's something I want to do. Even if I'm a Green Lantern, I'll do my best to become a physicist," she said with confidence.

"That's the spirit. Besides, as a Green Lantern, I'm pretty sure you'll have a better shot at becoming one more efficiently. Hell, I might meet up with an engineer for the Corps to broaden my view on tech. So let's give it our all from this point on," Kazuichi exclaimed as he offered to do a fist bump.

However, both Arisia and Ch'p seemed to be startled by this as the girl backed away a bit. "I'm sorry. Did I do something wrong?" she asked in fright.

"Yeah man, what are you trying to do? Wanting to punch her like this," Ch'p shouted, upset about this.

"What? What are you guys on about?" Souda questioned as he tried to analyze the situation. Seeing the two were frightened, looking at his fist, and raising up their guard, Kazuichi quickly understood the misunderstanding and began to explain himself. "Oh, no, no, this is not what you think! I'm doing what is called a fist bump."

"Fist bump?" Arisia questioned.

"Yeah, it's something we humans do back on my planet. We just bump our fists together as a way of agreement or saying hello," Kazuichi explained as he gave a demonstration with his own fist.

"Is it going to hurt?" Ch'p asked.

"It won't. We're just like tapping our fists together. We're not actually going to punch each other's fist, that'll hurt. Here, I'll let you go first. Give it a try and see for yourself," Kazuichi said as he raised his fist up into position.

Arisia looked a bit nervous about doing this as this was all new. However, if Souda said it wasn't going to hurt, she decided to give it a try. So she raised up her fist and, in a quick session, bumped her fist against his. Arisia pulled her hand back like how one moves away from a dog that they were scared of. But as she calmed her nerves, the alien girl had finally processed everything that had happened in those couple seconds.

"Huh, that… didn't hurt. I was… interesting. I kinda like it," Arisia admitted.

"See? I told you it would be fine. It might feel awkward at first, but you'll get the hang of it," Souda said happily.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. You know, I'm really glad right now. Back on my planet, I don't have many friends there. So being able to talk with you two like this, it makes me happy," Arisia admitted.

"Yeah, I kinda feel the same way. It's nice to talk with others," Kazuichi said as he understood.

"Same here, and with us all here together, I say we're officially a group now. From now on, let's help each other out," Ch'p said.

"Sure thing," Arisia replied.

"I can work with that," Kazuichi agreed, glad he's making his first friends within the Corps. Even more relieved that he's made a better first impression compared to his first day in Hope's Peak Academy. Though something came up in his mind.

"Hey guys know who the sergeant is going to be or when they're coming? I feel like they should have been here by now," Kazuichi questioned as he looked around for their possible sergeant but found nothing.

"Not sure, though I have an idea on who our sergeant will be. He's said to be one of the meanest, hardest, toughest of all the lanterns!" Ch'p explained in an exaggerated, sacred tone.

"A-are you being serious?" Arisia asked, feeling scared and nervous.

Before Ch'p could reply back, something came in and landed on the center of the training grounds. The rookies were not only spooked, but the shockwaves pushed them back, making them fall to the well as a massive dust cloud blinding them. Once the dust cloud cleared up, the rookie lanterns got up, questioning what had just occurred.

"What the hell was that?" Souda uttered in shock.

"I think that's our sergeant," Ch'p answered as he pointed at something.

Looking at where Ch'p was pointing at, Kazuichi and the other lanterns were in awe at who had appeared. Standing in the center, making his presence known, was a massive alien. An alien that looked like a hybrid of a bulldog and a boar, pink-skinned with big red eyes and large tusks protruding upwards from both sides of his lower jaw. Another aspect about this alien was his Green Lantern uniform. To simply put, he is dirty. It was covered in soot, dirt, marks, and other dirty stains. It looked like it hadn't been washed in a long time. The pink alien looked around the area, examining the recruits there.

"Well, well, well, looks like we got ourselves the new recruits. Can't wait to see how long it takes for all of you to break," he said in a deep and empowering tone.

"Holy hell, who gave Pumpa steroids..." Souda mumbled, unfortunately it was a little too loud as the large creature turned towards him.

"Oh, you're screwed," Ch'p uttered.

The large alien appeared in front of Kazuichi as he stared down at the mechanic with angry eyes. Towering over the mechanic to make him look small and insignificant compared to him. And it was working as Kazuichi was looking scared, sweating a bit, as he was intimidated by how gigantic the alien was. "The hell you just called me, highlighter?" the massive alien growled

'Holy shit, I got to fix this and fast,' he thought in fright.

"Well?" the pink alien asked impatiently.

"Just saying you look...big and tough...sir?" Souda quickly explained, hoping that would work.

The gigantic alien continued to stare down at the teen for a couple more seconds, Kazuichi trying his best to keep his cool, remembering his advice to look directly at his sergeant's eyes. He did not look away or else he would admit defeat. Eventually the alien stepped back and gave the teenage boy his space. "That's what I thought," the alien scoffed.

As Kazuichi let out a relieved sigh, the pink alien looked around the area with displeasure. "Now what are you all doing? Get in rows of three before I make you do 100 push-ups!" he demanded.

"Sir, yes sir!" Every rookie lantern's shouts as they all form into rows. Souda, Ch'p and Arisia being on the first row.

"That's what I like to see!" the pink alien shouted as he walked by the recruits, examining them and seeing what he's working with. "Welcome to the Green Lantern Corps! And your first day of training! Or what I would like to call the start of the worst experiences of your life! You want to know why?! Cause I'm going to break you poozers down, then build you back up to be even worthy of the Corps!"

"Sir, yes sir," the recruits replied back,

"Bullshit, I didn't hear you! Say that again!" the sergeant commanded.

"Sir, yes sir!" they all shouted in unison.

"That's better!" the pink alien said as he began to introduce himself. "I am Sergeant Kilowag! Green Lantern of Sector 674! And I will be training you all physically, mentally, and spiritually! I will work you all like dogs, train you until your bones crack, force you to move your bodies where even your spirit will beg you to stop! During your 2 weeks of training, you will not like me, you may come to despise my very existence! But as long as you all know what it means to be a Green Lantern and be component enough to protect your sector, then I'm fine with it! After all, I am fair!"

Kilowag walked through the rows of recruits until he stopped in front of Laira. "What's your name and sector, rookie?!"

"Sir, I am Laria of sector 112, sir!" Laria shouted in response.

"Laria of sector 112?! The same one from the Golden Dragon Empire?!" Kilowag shouted, acting shocked by the news. "I've heard of you! You're the supposive greatest fighter in your kingdom, even said to the greatest in your sector! Is that true?!"

"That is correct, sir!" Laira replied back.

"Holy shit, looks like we got ourselves a real poozer here! She believes that just because she's the so-called greatest fighter in her sector, it means that she's better than everyone! I bet you think you're ready to be Green Lantern and take on the hardest mission us veterans have to deal with on a regular basis! Is that correct?!" Kilowag screamed.

"Sir, I do not, sir!" Laira yelled back.

"Oh really now?! You just admitted to being the greatest fighter in your entire sector yet you respond with this?! Why?!" Kilowag shouted, demanding an answer.

"Sir, I may have been a warrior in the past and fought many battles before coming here, but I am still a rookie! I have no experience or knowledge of how the Green Lantern Corps fully functions-

"Did I ask for a fucking life story, should I get some popcorn and a box of tissues!?" Kilowag shouted, interrupting Laira.

"No sir! I apologize, sir!" Laira yelled back.

"Damn shame! Next time, shorten your response. I want to hear 20 words or less, do I make myself clear lanterns!?" Kilowag asked his unit.

"Sir, yes sir!" the rookies shouted back

"I can't hear you!" Kilowag yelled

"Sir, yes sir!" the rookies replied louder.

"That's more like it!" Kilowag shouted as he paid his attention back to Laira. "I may not have liked you telling me a story, but I do like that you know your place, Private Storyteller! Though I still expect you to work your ass and give me results! Show me that you're good enough to be a true member of the Corp!"

As he said that, a frog Green Lantern let out a chuckle. "He said that yet his uniform is filthy, like he hasn't heard of a bath before," he muttered.

Unfortunately for the frog, Kilowag was able to hear that and he did not take too kindly to it. "Who said that? Who the fuck said that?!" Kilowag shouted in rage as he stomped the rows, reaching the third row. "Who's the idiotic, shit-eating, poozer that signed his own death warrant?!"

Kilowag looked around and saw that no one was going to speak up. "Nobody huh?! Apparently a ghost just came by just to insult me! I will have all of you stand here for days until someone feses up! None of you will eat or sleep and I will make sure you all look like fucking skeletons, ready to be reduced to ash! So who said it?!"

Kilowag marched up to an alien Green Lantern that consisted of her being an eyeball with tendrils for its body and arms. "Was it you, pink eye?!"

"Sir, no sir!" she replied telepathically.

"You piece of shit, you look like a pathetic excuse of a jellyfish! And with your telepathic powers, I bet it was you!" Kilowag countered.

"Sir, no sir!" the eyeball alien shouted.

"Sir, I said it, sir!" the frog Green Lantern admitted.

Kilowag looked away from the eyeball alien, focusing all his attention on the frog. "Well… no shit. Who do we have here? A fucking frog. Private Frog Legs. I like that you're admitting that it was you. I like you. You can come over to my home and fuck my wife in front of me."

Kilowag then punched Private Frog Legs right in the gut, forcing the rookie onto his knees as he gasped in pain. "You little, disrespectful scumbag! I own your ass and name! You will not laugh! You will not cry! You will show me some goddamn respect! Even if I have forcefully screwed it into your brain!"

"Sir… yes sir!" Private Frog Legs groaned.

"Seeing as your lazy daddy didn't teach you about respect, how about I do it for him. I want you to go around this Citadel, hundred laps, without using your ring!" Kilowag commanded, creating a big construct on the frog's ring hand, to make sure he couldn't use it.

"Ah… sir, yes sir!" the frog lantern replied as he was about to get up.

"What are you doing?!" Kilowag questioned the rookie.

"Doing your hundred laps, sir!" the frog yelled back.

"Who said anything about running? I want you to crawl," Kilowag said with a growl.

Private Frog Legs looked up in shock by what his sergeant told him. "Crawl, sir?"

Kilowag glared down at the frog lantern. "You heard me. I want you to crawl all hundred laps. I want you to really get your suit all ripped up and dirty. To really understand what it's like to wear a suit like mine. You have a problem with that?"

"Sir, my arms will be worn out before I make a hundred laps!" Private Frog Legs explained.

"Oh really now?! Though you do make a point. This may be too much. So instead, I'll have you crawl around the Citadel and give me fifty laps. That shouldn't be too difficult for you. After all, I am fair," Kilowag said.

The frog lantern just looked at Kilowag in shock as he was expected to do that. Though Kilowag didn't look pleased by this as he said, "What? Are you stargazing? Get your ass moving! Now!"

With that command, the frog lantern got on the ground and began to quickly crawl away. Leaving the unit to make his fifty laps around the Citadel. Once he was gone, Kilowag looked back his rookies and shouted, "Let his fuck up be a reminder for what happens when you try to be a comedian! Those who show no respect or an ounce of discipline to me or the Corps are the worst kind of poozer! The kind that needs to be broken down and fixed up to even be seen as decent beings! Though there is one thing you all need to know! I don't care what species you are, what planet you come from, or how clean or dirty you are! What I care about is that poozers are effective enough to be a Green Lantern! And if you poozers can't do that, I'll keep drilling that idea into your heads until you get it right! I'll make sure we train for a year or longer until all of you understand this! Am I clear?!"

"Sir, yes sir!" the rookie lanterns shouted

"I can't hear you!" Kilowag commanded.

"Sir, yes sir!" the rookie lanterns screamed louder.

"Now you're getting the hang of it!" Kilowag shouted.

'Oh my god, and I thought Miss Yukizome was scary when angry,' Kazuichi thought to himself.

"Now that we got introductions out of the way, let's actually begin your training!" Kilowag yelled as he made his way to the front of the unit as faced them all. "Who's power, poozers?!"

"Our power, Sergeant Kilowag!" the unit responded.

"Who's light, poozers?!" Kilowag shouted

"Our light, Sergeant Kilowag!" the unit replied again.

"You're damn right! Now follow me!" Kilowag commanded as he floated into the air and flew up into the sky.

The rest of the rookies flew up and followed their sergeant. Souda, Ch'p, and Arisia flying with one another as they talked with each other. "Holy shit, Ch'p. You weren't kidding when you said that this guy is one of the meanest people out there. How has his voice not cracked from screaming that much?"

"I guess it's from years of practice. I can tell that we're going to be in a world of pain after this," Ch'p commented.

"I'm not looking forward to that," Arisia said nervously.

Souda flew near Arisia and patted her shoulder to comfort her. "Hey, I know this whole thing is scary, but as long as you give it your all, I'm sure you'll be fine."

"You really think so?" Arisia asked.

"We know so," Souda replied with Ch'p nodding in agreement.

"Yeah, we three are a team now. So we need to give it our all and work together. So let's toughen up and be ready for whatever our sergeant has to throw at us," Ch'p added, pumping himself up.

Those words seemed to have encouraged Arisia as she smiled a bit. "You guys are right. We are Green Lanterns after all, so we need to be prepared for everything."

"Exactly, and as a team, we'll help each other no matter what," Souda said, with Ch'p and Arisia nodding in agreement.

The three were then taken back as they heard Kilowag shout at his unit. "Listen up poozers! For our first part of our training, I want to see how effective you all are when it comes to using your rings! So your first session is for all of you to follow me to the Oubos Star System in sector 3550! It'll take us two hours to get there so I expect all of you to keep up and not fall behind! I ain't slowing down for anyone!"

With that, Kilowag flew into space at massively faster than light speeds as the other rookies followed. At first, it seemed to be no issue for the recruits to follow Kilowag, catching up to him with ease. But then, their sergeant began to speed, going faster. The rookies were caught off guard by this as they sped up as well. Kilowag continued to go faster while the recruits tried to catch up. As he sped up, Kilowag looked completely fine, as if this was second nature for him to do. However, many of the recruits were giving it their all just to keep up with their sergeant.

'Holy shit! This guy wasn't kidding when he said that he wasn't slowing down for anyone. And I thought the Alpha Manhunter was fast,' Souda thought to himself, pushing himself to go faster.

Kazuichi looked around to see a pattern with the lanterns. The ones in the front seem to be doing better at catching up with Kilowag, one of the rookies being Laira. Then there were the ones from behind, the ones that were struggling to keep up with the group. Arisia was in that group and she was looking tired. Kazuichi, along with Ch'p, were in the middle. Not as fast but not struggling to keep up with their sergeant.

"Arisia is really struggling," Ch'p commented.

"No kidding, should we move back and stay by her side?" Kazuichi asked.

"No, it's okay!" Arisia shouted, hearing their conversation. "I need to be able to give it out all during our training! So we shouldn't hold back like this!"

"Are you sure about that?!" Kazuichi asked.

"I'm sure! I'll be fine so don't worry!" Arisia reassured her friends.

Souda and Ch'p look at each other, wondering what to do here. But after looking back at Arisia, still giving them a reassured look, the two came to a decision.

"Okay, we'll keep on going! Try to go faster! You can do it!" Kazuichi responded.

"See you one the other side!" Ch'p added.

"Of course, I will!" Arisia replied back as the three lanterns continued to fly and follow Kilowag.

In two hours, the group made it to the Oubos Star System. Kilowag made his stop, landing on a red planet, and waited for the other rookies to come. The front row of the group landed on the planet, looking slightly tired but could still breathe fine. Then the middle row came in twenty seconds later. They looked very much tired, taking some deep breaths, but they'll live.

"Fucking hell… that was tiring…" Souda admitted

"No kidding… the farm work I do back home… is easier than this," Ch'p commented.

"Enough chit chat! Stand over there while we wait for the rest of you poozers!" Kilowag commanded.

"Sir, yes sir!" the recruits there shouted as they took into two rows and stood there, waiting for the rest to arrive.

After about a minute, the remaining rookies finally made it to the planet. Landing on the ground, Arisia and all the others looked exhausted. Sweating and gasping for air, she could barely stand properly with the amount of energy they wasted just so they wouldn't fall behind.

"Well, well, well, look who finally decided to arrive! I was beginning to think you slowpokes wouldn't even have made it here! Care to explain why it took you all so long to get here?!" Kilowag shouted, demanding an answer.

"W-we… tried… but you guys were too fast for us, sir," Arisia replied, still catching her breath.

"That's inexcusable! Was the ring really correct about choosing a pathetic person like you as a Green Lantern, Private Orange Peel?!" Kilowag shouted.

"I'm sorry, sir," Arisia said.

"I didn't ask for an apology!" Kilowag yelled, scaring Arisia and the other lanterns with her. "Just from this simple exercise alone, this unit truly is pathetic! Even with a few good ones here, these sorry excuses of aliens are holding you all back! It doesn't help that none of you even attempted to help them out or get them to do better! As a unit, all of you are supposed to work together and help each other improve! It's clear that none of you know the first thing about teamwork! All of you will be punished! Am I clear?!"

"Sir, yes sir!" the other recruits shouted in response.

"Good! Then I want all of you to fly up outside the planet, now!" Kilowag demanded.

"Sir, yes sir!" the regions responded as they all flew out of the planet and back into space. As they did, Kazuichi and Ch'p flew next to Arisia.

"Hey Arisia, are you doing alright?" Souda asked in concern.

"O-oh, I'm fine. Nothing to worry about," Arisia replied quickly, though the tears in her eyes were betraying her.

"Arisia, you don't have to hide it. We can tell that you're sad. I'd be too if I was yelled at like that," Ch'p said.

Arisia seemed to loosen up and show her true state as she was beginning to cry. "I-I'm sorry. I just- just feel pathetic. I'm a Green Lantern and I failed to do a basic exercise and drag you all down for my mistake."

"Hey, hey, don't feel like that. I mean, sure you fell behind, but we fucked up too. Me and Ch'p should have stayed with you and helped you out. But we didn't," Kazuichi told her.

"Yeah, and you got yelled at for it. We're sorry," Ch'p added.

Arisia sighed a bit before saying, "I can't help but feel I would get yelled at regardless."

Kazuichi couldn't help but laugh. "Maybe, but hey, he probably would have done the same thing with any of us. So that's something I guess."

"You're right about that. But Arisia, don't be so down about this. This is our training. It's common for us to make mistakes. We just have to learn from them and become better. That's something I learned when I started off as a farmer back home. It's brutal at first, but you'll get the hang of it," Ch'p told her.

Arisia took some deep breaths as she wiped away the tears, feeling much better than before. "Okay, if you guys think I can, then I'll keep trying."

"That's the spirit," Kazuichi said with a smile, giving her a thumbs up.

All the rookie lanterns eventually made it into space, outside the planet's orbit, waiting for their sergeant's next order. Then suddenly, the green bubble surrounded the rookies, trapping them. They all were either freaking out or on their guard in what was happening or who was doing this. That is until their answer came as Kilowag flew up to the bubble as his ring was glowing.

"I bet all of you are wondering what the hell is going on here? Well, I'll tell you," Kilowag said before he began to explain. "Some of you poozers are very much lacking in terms of endurance and speed and that needs to be fixed. When it comes to a unit, it is only as strong as the weakest link. So as a unit, you need to make sure that all of you are at strongest or else all of you will fail. That's why I thought of the best method to help you poozers improve."

Just then, something appeared underneath the rookie lanterns. The rookies were taken back by the sudden appearance of a large black hole underneath them. The black hole immediately began to suck the recruits into it. While many of them were able to act fast and fly, moving against the gravitational force of the black hole, a few weren't so lucky and were being pulled in, Arisia included. Though a few of them, Souda and Ch'p included, managed to use their rings to create tendrils and grab the other lanterns before they were sucked into the black hole.

"Everyone, if you don't want to be sucked in there, start flying now!" Kazuichi shouted.

The lanterns didn't need to be told twice as they used their rings to fly. Joining their fellow lanterns, they all flew upwards, fighting against the gravitational pull of the black hole. All the while, Kilowag seemed to enjoy the sight.

"Okay, we're getting somewhere! It is said that a person can truly push their limits when in a live or death situation! So how about I make things worse?!" Kilowag exclaimed as his ring glowed green.

As he said that, the recruits were met, in shock, by multiple meteors flying at them at faster than light speeds. The lanterns were forced to take evasive action and dodged the meteors. This exercise was proving to be extremely difficult for the recruits to do, even the stronger ones. Not only were they forced to dodge meteors, but had to focus on not being sucked into the black hole. It was pretty much an endurance test and reaction test combined. Souda and the rest of the unit are really being pushed to their limits.

"Keep it up, poozers! I expect you all to keep this up for the next two hours! To make up for our last exercise!" Kilowag told them.

Kazuichi let out a growl at Kilowag before focusing back on the exercise at hand. 'Asshole.'

For the entire day, Kazuichi and the rest of the recruits were pushed beyond their limits in terms of endurance and power of their rings. From ring blasting, to construct making, to how strong their defenses they created were. After what felt like time slows down to a painful pace, Kilowag led the recruits back to the citadel back on Oa as they were done for the day. Their sergeant led his group to the barracks, to their sleeping quarters.

"Here are your sleeping quarters. This is where all of you will be sleeping for the remainder of your time here. I suggest you all sleep immediately, you're going to need it for tomorrow's training. Goodnight," Kilowag said as he left, leaving the recruits to get themselves acquainted with their quarters.

Souda, Ch'p, and Arisia forced themselves to the closest bunk beds. "Oh god, my muscles are crying in pain," Kazuichi uttered. "I just want to lay down and sleep this off."

"We'll sleep soon, Souda. First, we need to clean off all this dirt and sweat," Ch'p replied as he climbed up the top of a bunk bed. "Hey Kaz, you want to share this bunk bed together?"

"Sure… I'm fine with that," Souda said as he sat on his bottom bed, taking a breather.

"Aw, now I'm alone. I was hoping I could share a bunk bed with one of you," Arisia expressed, feeling left out.

"Hey, don't feel like that. We're still a team, we're just going to be on different beds," Kazuichi assured her.

"I know but still. Who am I going to bunk with? You two are the only ones I actually know," Arisia wondered, feeling nervous.

"If you wish to share a bunk bed with someone, then you can share it with me."

Arisia was spooked when she noticed Laira standing behind her. Souda and Ch'p were spooked as well as they didn't notice the princess warrior's presence. "Oh crap! Where did you come from? You scared me," Arisia exclaimed, taking deep breaths to calm her nerves.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to scare you like that. I just thought you might want to share a bunk bed with me as you seem nervous to ask the others," Laira offered, with her bunk bed next to Kaz's and Ch'p's.

"Wait, you're okay with me bunking with you?" Arisia questioned, still not sure about accepting Laria's offer.

"Well, I did offer," Laira replied in a friendly manner. "You seem like a nice enough girl to bunk with so I thought we could be friends."

"You and me? Friends?" Arisia questioned in shock.

"Indeed, is that a problem?" Laria asked.

"What? No, no! I'm more than happy to be friends with you. I'm just… a little shocked to hear that," Arisia admitted.

"Why? Did I sound too hostile?" Laria asked in concern.

"No, you're very friendly. It's just… well… I've heard that you can be… more intimidating," Arisia answered, feeling nervous about what was going to happen next.

Laira seemed to understand what Arisia meant by that as she let out a sigh. "I guess one of you thought that I would harm others if they even looked at me wrong. Or that I tend to be a loner, correct?"

"Yeah, you hit the nail there. Ch'p did say that it was wise not to interact with you unless we wanted to get our asses kicked," Souda replied as he pointed at the squirrel.

"What the?! You're singling me out here?! Come on!" Ch'p shouted.

"Hey, I'm being honest here," Souda retorted.

"So it was you who spread this rumor to these two. Did I really not loon that trust worthy to you?" Laria questioned, looking intimidating.

Ch'p looked scared by how a warrior princess was staring at him with her cold, unforgiving eyes. "W-wait, now hold on. I just said what I heard about you. They talked about how dangerous and deadly you can be. And I didn't want to get involved in that. I'm sorry if I offended you in any way. Just don't hurt me, please," Ch'p rambled, hoping what he said would save him here.

Both Souda and Arisia were in full focus on this whole situation. Wondering what Laria's reaction would be to Ch'p's excuse. They were expecting Laria to possibly hurt Ch'p for spreading a rumor like that or worse. They didn't want to do anything that could cause the situation to become worse so they just stood there and waited for what would happen next. Laria stared down at the scared squirrel for a good couple seconds before she began to laugh. The three rookies were shocked to see Laria switched from a serious death stare to an amused look, laughing like she heard of a joke.

"Okay, I'm confused here. Am I in trouble or not?" Ch'p asked.

"You're not in trouble. I'm just messing with you," Laria said as he laughed a little more before calming down. "But for real, I get why you or anyone else would think that. When it comes to battle, training, and war, I'm always at my absolute focus. I have to be if I want to win or survive. But when that's not happening, I just do my own thing and relax or do something fun. I'm more than just a warrior, you know."

"That's pretty cool to hear. Though it is still surprising to see you like this. For a warrior princess, I didn't think you have a sense of humor. Though that's mainly because your joke wasn't all that great, seeing as we thought Ch'p was going to die" Souda admitted.

"It's fine, I get that a lot. Though that's probably why most people don't really want to be near me," Laria said, remembering how others avoided her, believing that she would attack anyone who got close.

"Oh my, that sounds lonely," Arisia said in sympathy.

"It is, but that's just how it is," Laria admitted.

"Well, in that case, why not join our group then?" Souda offered, catching Laria off guard.

"Y-you'd really want me in your group?" Laira asked in shock.

"I mean, sure. I mean, you seem friendly and a kind person. I don't see why we shouldn't let you join. Besides, the more the merrier," Souda answered with a smile. "How about you guys?"

Arisia nodded her head in agreement to Souda's decision. "I'm good with it. She did offer me to be her bunk buddy, so I'd like to be her friend too."

"Eh, why not. You're scary but pretty cool to be around. So I'm happy if you join us," Ch'p commented.

"So, what do you say? You want to join our group?" Souda asked as he, Ch'p, and Arisia waited for Laira's answer.

Laira seemed to be stunned by the offer. She wasn't expecting this when she first came to Oa. To be trained to become a Green Lantern. But she was very grateful for this as the princess smiled back at the mechanic. "You know what? I'd be more than happy to join your group. It'll be a wonderful experience for me."

The group looked happy as Souda got up from his bed, went up to Laira, and shook her hand. "Then welcome aboard. I hope you enjoy our company."

"I'm sure I will," Laria replied with a smile.

"While I'm glad that we got a new member of our group, we should probably focus on getting ready for tomorrow," Souda pointed out.

"Yeah, I really need to shower after this crazy day," Arisia admitted.

"Good point, we all need to shower before going to bed. Though a thought came to mind, do we have to share a shower? Like one big room for all of us to bathe in?" Souda asked.

"It's not. We get separate showers. I checked, and we have sixteen enclosed showers," a cyclops recruit answered as he made his way to the showers. "You might want to go now or be in a line."

"Yeah, he makes a good point. Let's get moving," Kazuichi said as he quickly went to the showers, with Ch'p, Arisia, and Laria following him.

Lucky for them, they managed to be the first ones to arrive at the showers. The four took their separate showers and began to clean themselves. Though Souda seemed to be having trouble.

"What the? Why are there so many settings for the shower?" Souda commented.

"Well, each alien has their own unique way of cleaning themselves. I'm sure you'll find your setting. Just look for it," Ch'p replied from his shower.

Kazuichi let out a sigh as he began to mess with the settings to get the water. And the results were less than stellar. "Oh god, this is definitely not water! Why is it purple?!"

"Um, try a different setting! I bet I'll work!" Arisia suggested.

Kazuichi took her advice and changed the settings, but not something worse. "Holy shit, it's lava! Who alien species showers with lava?!" he shouted.

"You'd be surprised," Laria said, letting out a bit of a chuckle as she focused on bathing herself.

Outside of the barracks, Kilowag was seen, standing in the training area for a good while as he was waiting for something. After about a couple more seconds, the sergeant heard something coming up to him. He looked to see that it was Private Frog Legs, who was crawling through the dirt, looking absolutely exhausted, sweating more than a pig on a summer's day, and his suit being completely torn and dirty. He kept crawling until he stopped right in front of Kilowag, letting himself collapse to the ground as he finally finished his 50 laps.

"Ah, welcome back. Any more comments on the state of my uniform cadet?" Kilowag asked, kneeling down to better communicate with the frog.

"No sir… I just want to sleep, sir," Private Frog Legs uttered out, barely able to talk.

Kilowag chuckled as he helped the Frog Green Lantern up onto his feet, making sure he could walk back to the barracks. "Clean yourself up first, you smell like a Thanagarian's toilet. Barracks are at that building over there, where your sleeping quarters are. Now get going."

"Sir, yes sir," Private Frog Legs uttered our as he slowly made his way to the barracks

Kilowag lets out another chuckle before walking away to his sleeping quarters. "Poozer."

Chapter Text

Oa

In the barracks of the Green Lantern Corp, within the sleeping quarters, everything was quiet. All the new recruits were still in their slumber, looking relaxed and peaceful. Some of them laid on their beds, unmoving as if they were a brick, or some moving around their beds and even snoring. And a few, like Souda's case, were drooling in their sleep. Everything seemed to be nice, perfect to be asleep in the early morning.

However, someone else had different plans for them.

Kicking the door down with a single kick, Kilowog barged into the room as he formed a green trumpet in his hand. Then he immediately used the instrument to play a loud tune, so loud in fact that the sound waves were shaking the very room itself like an earthquake. This was enough to wake recruits up from their slumber. Most woke up spooked, screaming at the sudden loud noise and shaking beds, a few, like Arisia, falling off her bed in panic. Souda himself was so spooked that he ended up hitting his head against the top bunk of the bed.

"Ow, son of a bitch!" Souda uttered in pain.

Kilowog kept on playing his tone until every recruit finally woke up and got out of bed. "You like my solo, poozers?! Been practicing on it! I think I'm getting better," Kilowog shouted as the rookies were just groaning, still feeling tired from the sudden wake up call.

"Now what are you all standing there for and groaning like zombies? Clean up your beds!" With the swift command of their sergeant, the rookies got to work on cleaning up their beds. "I want you all to clean up your beds in under a minute! And once you're done, head to the cafeteria for breakfast! You will have 30 minutes to eat before we start your training! Make every second count! Do you understand?!" Kilowog commanded.

"Sir, yes sir!" the rookies shouted back.

"Good! Now get moving!" Kilowog shouted as he moved around the room to inspect everyone, seeing if they were cleaning their beds correctly.

With Kazuichi, he was somewhat struggling as the way he was folding his sheets didn't look right. They either seemed messy or unorganized and the teen was getting pissed off by this. "Oh come on, why is this so hard?" Souda uttered in frustration.

"Hey buddy, are you done yet?" Kazuichi looked up to see Ch'p, who had just finished cleaning up his bed, with no wrinkle in sight.

"The hell? How are you so good at this?" Kazuichi questioned as he still tried to fix his bed.

"This is a common thing my family does back on our farm," Ch'p replied as he looked at Souda's second attempt at doing his bed. "Wow, you kinda suck at this."

"Oh come on, I'm not that bad. Besides, I bet there are others that are struggling like me," Souda countered.

"Not really, no." Kaz and Ch'p were greeted by Arisia and Laira, the both having just finished fixing their beds, looking just as neat and organized as Ch'p's bed. In fact, most of the other rookies had finished fixing up their beds.

"Oh come on. Why is life so unfair?" Kazuichi muttered.

"How are you this bad at making your bed?" Arisia asked. "That's like one of the first things you do when you start your morning."

"Look, I don't really fix my bed back home. I just get up, eat something, and do what I need to do for the day. Never really thought I needed to bother cleaning up my bed," Kaz admitted.

"That's not a good mindset to have, Souda. You need to clean up after yourself. Especially with Kilowog around. Speaking of, he's coming this way," Laira pointed out, the sergeant marching his way towards them.

Kazuichi began to panic as he started to go into overdrive, trying to fix his bed the best he could. Though it was too late as Kilowog had finally come by to inspect their beds. Though he gave Souda's bed one good glare, processing what he was looking at. Examining how uneven the sheets were and the wrinkles on the pillow. He did not look pleased.

"Cadet. When is your mother reporting in?" Kilowog asked Souda.

"...excus-"

"Ah, then your daddy?!" Kilowag shouted, interrupting the mechanic.

"Sir, I-"

"Butler, maid, little servbot, stop me when I make it, rookie!"

"I-I do my own bed, sir?" Souda responded, finally getting a chance to say something.

"Noooo. Clearly you have better things to do, don't you?" Kilowog said in a mocking tone.

"I guess not, sir," Souda replied, starting to become afraid.

"Yes, you do…," Kilowag said as he glared down at The mechanic. "Start running."

Souda felt his body shiver in fear by what his sergeant just told him. "Sir?"

"15 second head start...14...13…"

Seeing the danger and not wanting to see the end of that countdown, Souda just immediately made a run for it. He dashed out of the sleeping quarters towards the outside in less than a second, leaving a gust behind. Some of the recruits were shocked by this sudden event and others were waiting for what would happen next. How would Kilowog react to this and if he would actually chase after Souda. But to their dismay, Kilowog didn't move a single muscle. He just stood there, like he was expecting this.

"Pfff, poozer," he uttered as he looked at Arisia, Ch'p, and Laria. "Since you three seem to be close to him, I'm ordering one of you to teach him how to clean his bed properly. Or else there will be hell to pay."

"Sir, yes sir," the three responded as Kilowog took his leave.

"Soooo, who's going to call Souda?" Arisia asked.

"I'll get him," Ch'p replied as he flew off to get the mechanic.

Cafeteria

In one of the massive buildings of the Green Lantern Corps was the cafeteria. With three floors filled with tables and chairs for the attendants to eat on. With the first floor having the kitchen and the stall where all Green Lanterns go to get their food. A long line of lanterns formed as they waited for their turn to get their breakfast. An interesting feature of the stall was the multiple rows of green boxes beyond the stall. With multiple chefs grabbing one for themselves and giving them to their Green Lantern customer. Making sure that the food was the right and safe for the certain alien to eat.

In the very line, Souda and his friends were entering the building, waiting for their turn.

"You seriously thought Kilowog was going to chase after you? Like really hurt you?" Arisia asked.

"Hey, that guy is a giant and looks like he can kill just by poking me. I was not risking it," Souda admitted.

"Either way, you seemed to have gotten into Kilowog's bad side," Laira commented.

"He did. All because he can't fix up your bed. That's like one of the first things you learn to do as a kid. I'm surprised you don't know how to do that," Ch'p pointed out.

"Look, I'm not exactly the cleanest person back on my home planet and I had other things to do so I never really bothered to really clean things. I mean, I'm a mechanic. I have a lot of stuff to fix or build that takes up time," Kazuichi stated.

Laira seemed to have a disappointed look towards Souda from hearing his argument. "Even so, you need to make time to clean yourself up. I understand there are times when you're busy doing things, but you mustn't let yourself slack like that. Even warriors must have some sense of cleanliness."

Souda seemed to take Laura's words in, reflecting on them. "I mean, I guess so. It is a bad habit for me to have."

"At least you have us to teach you how. It shouldn't take too long," Arisia added.

"Yeah, good point," Souda said.

Eventually, one of the chefs shouted, calling out four more lanterns to receive their food. And the four were next in line so they went up to counter, talking to a different chef to get their breakfast. With Souda, he was greeted by a green muscle alien with a fat belly, donning his Green Lantern uniform with a messy white cloth on his hip.

"Hey, and your name is?" Souda asked

"Name's Greet, what's your name and sector so I can give you your food," Greet responded.

"Oh, name's Kazuichi Souda of sector 2814," Souda answered as the chef went through the green boxes to get his breakfast. "So, what do you have to eat for someone like me?"

"For a terrestrial like you? We got smoked ham with hash browns," Greet said as he received a green box and gave it to the mechanic.

"I am grateful for this," Souda said gratefully, glad that he didn't have to eat anything alien.

Grabbing his green box, Souda walked away from the counter, Greet calling for the next lantern to come up, and looked around for a table.

"Souda! Up here!"

Kazuichi looked up to see Arisia, motioning her arms to come up to the second floor where she was. Souda flew up and followed the orange girl to the table where Ch'p and Laira were at, already eating their food.

Souda flew to the table and took his seat. "Man, you guys didn't waste any time and just dug into your breakfast," Souda commented as he placed his green box on the table.

Ch'p was eating an acorn off his plate filled with nuts and fruits, taking a big gulp before talking, "What can I say? After our training yesterday, I was pretty hungry."

"Indeed. While I can go a few days without food, it is important for one to regain their strength," Laria said as she went back to eating her rice porridge and dumplings, something Souda was not expecting to see.

"Yeah, good point. I am pretty hungry myself. So let's eat," Souda said as he opened his box, revealing his smoked ham and hash browns. Grabbing the dorm provided, the mechanic took a piece of ham and ate it. He felt his mouth and taste buds savor the flavor of the ham. The salty meaty taste of the meat satisfied him. "This is so good."

"No kidding. These are the best eggs I've ever had," Arisia said as she was eating her blue eggs and pancakes.

Souda looked at Arisia's food with weirdness and confusion while still eating his own. Trying to comprehend why her food is in that particular color. Arisia seemed to have noticed this as she was feeling a little uncomfortable by the mechanic's stare.

"Um, is there something wrong, Kaz?" Arisia asked.

"It's nothing really. Just… Why are your eggs blue?" Souda questioned.

"Because that's how they are on my planet?" Arisia replied awkwardly. "Is that an issue?"

"Oh no, nothing like that. It's just… on my planet, eggs are a different color. So seeing them blue is just odd for me," Souda quickly said.

"In that case, what color are the eggs on your planet then?" Arisia asked.

"They're white," Souda answered.

Arisia stopped munching on her food as she looked at Souda with disgust in her eyes. "That's… disgusting. How can you eat that?"

"Same reason you eat blue eggs, they're delicious," Souda argued back.

"But they're white! That's so gross!" Arisia yelled..

"Okay, that's enough," Laira intervened as she calmed the both down. "Let's stop talking about what our foods are like in our worlds and eat our own. I don't want any of us to make a mess and make us late for training."

"Hey, good point. I don't want to make Kilowog any more mad as is," Souda commented as they all got back to eating their breakfast. "Anyway, what do you guys think Kilowog will have in store for us for today?"

"Knowing the training he made us go through yesterday, it's likely going to be the same thing as usual," Ch'p answered as he picked up a berry and began eating it.

"Though with Kilowog, he will likely change the training session to see just how well we do in different scenarios," Laira pointed out. "It's best we prepare ourselves for anything he throws at us."

"Yeah, me in particular. Compared to all of us here, I'm not exactly the best of the squad. Especially with how I was the slowest and needed help," Arisia said, feeling a little down, remembering how poorly she did in yesterday's training.

"Hey, come on. No need to feel too bad about it. Not everyone did well and it was our first day of training. So you shouldn't feel too down on yourself," Souda said, trying to reassure his friend. "Besides, even though I somewhat did well, I still have some flaws. I mean, you saw how bad I was at making my bed while you did yours perfectly. That has to count as something."

Arisia didn't seem too sure as she still felt doubt until Laira spoke. "He is right. It is true that you still have ways to go but the same can be said for the rest of us. We are all new to being Green Lanterns and we have much to learn. Even for someone like me."

"Eh, I'm not too sure about that. I mean, you are Laria, the warrior princess. You don't really have many flaws or if any at all," Ch'p pointed out.

"Don't let my reputation fool you, Ch'p. Everyone has their drawbacks, including me. Remember, we're all here to be trained to become Green Lanterns. So we're all expected to give it our all. So don't single yourself out because you don't feel good enough compared to all of us. I give it your all and you'll be fine," Laira expressed, soothing Arisia's worries.

It seemed to work as Arisia's atmosphere and mood was becoming more positive and even smiled. "Yeah, you're right. I need to just give it my all and do my best. That's what anyone can do at this point."

"That's the spirit. As long as we do that, then we'll be fine. Besides, I doubt Kilowog's training will get any harder than yesterday's," Souda commented as he ate some smoked ham.

"Keep going, you good for nothing poozers!"

Once breakfast was done, all the recruits were immediately put into training and it was as brutal as yesterday, if not more. The first thing they were forced to do was fifty push-ups, fifty sit ups, and were now doing a seven kilometer run. At that point, many of them rookies were starting to get tired, sweating like crazy. A few were so exhausted, they looked like they were ready to drop dead on the ground.

"Oh god… my legs… are on fire…" Souda uttered, gasping for air.

"I've never… had… to run this much… before…" Ch'p said, running on all fours as fast as possible. "I wonder… how Arisia… is doing…"

Souda looked behind him to check on her, and as expected, Arisia looked beyond tired. The orange skin on her face was turning red as she was continuously gasping for air. And the way she was running looked sloppy, like one misstep and she was going to trip and fall.

"Well… better than yesterday… I guess…" Souda replied as he focused back on their run.

Finally, the recruits finally arrived at the end of their run, Kilowog allowing them to rest as many fell to the ground to catch their breath. Souda fell on his ass as he was taking deep breaths and letting his muscles rest, with Ch'p laying his back next to his body. While they were doing that, Laira was seen helping out an exhausted Arisia as she led the girl somewhere to sit and rest.

"H-How… did I… do?" Arisia asked, her words being slurry due to how tired she was.

"Well, you did better than yesterday since you were able to keep up with Souda and Ch'p this time around," Laira answered as she made sure the orange girl was steady.

"Okay poozers, you're on a ten minute break! After that, we'll start our training," Kilowog announced.

"What? I thought this was training!" the frog lantern shouted.

Kilowog responded with a chuckle like he heard the most hilarious joke. "Hell no! This was just a warm up. This was easy compared to what I have for you all have to do next. So be ready, Private Frog Legs," he said as he walked away.

The frog lantern let out a growl of frustration of hearing his nickname again. "Why does he call me that? My name is not Frog Legs," he mumbled.

"Just let it go, Lok. That's just something our sergeant does with us," the cyclops green lantern, Spol, said as he tried to calm down his friend.

"Yeah, whatever," Lok Neboora grunted as he went back to relaxing.

Next we see the rookies are currently lifting tons of rocks on top of them, using whatever construct they created to hold them. Many used boxes, baskets, barrels, creates, and so many more to handle the weight of the rocks. Though a few are being creative with using something else to carry them. Souda, for example, was using a massive tool box to carry the rocks.

Everyone was really being pushed to their limits, with them using every once of their concentration to keep their constructs active. Making sure that they were strong enough to hold. Especially when more rocks were added into their constructs by Kilowog.

"Your constructs are only as strong as your will. That's why you gotta be able to make them strong enough to handle just about anything," Kilowog instructed as he looked at his recruits, all struggling to stay strong, a few looking like they were on the verge to give in.

"I think you're all ready to handle some more weight," Kilowog said as he used his ring to drop more rocks into their container constructs, making everyone wince and groan at the newly added weight.

Souda was keeping his mind focused, making sure his construct was good and sturdy. 'Come on, Kaz. If you can lift a car engine for a good period of time throughout your career, this should be simple.'

Kilowog walked past his recruits, checking on them to see how they were doing. Glaring at them, daring them to make a mistake. Some of them tried to ignore the glare from their sergeant to focus on their exercise. But some were starting to lose their cool from Kilowog's glare. Enough that their constructs were weakening and showing cracks. Eventually, four constructs were broken, Arisia included, and their cargo fell to the ground, scattering around the area.

"Hey! Who the hell told you all to stop?! I didn't say it was break time!" Kilowog shouted.

Lok took some deep breaths before saying in frustration, "We can't really focus with you glaring at us like a crazy person!"

"Oh? Am I making you uncomfortable? Is me LOOKING at you too hard?!" Kilowog asked loudly.

"Well… yeah!" Lok responded.

"Well, dear almighty! Apparently you can't even make a simple construct without someone looking at you! You need to go into a room and do it privately?! Give you some material to do the job correctly?!" Kilowog yelled, making the frog lantern look away in shame.

"Let me ask you something, poozers?! If you're ever in a fight or doing your active duty and you need to make a construct, do you ask everyone around you to not look at you so you have time to make said construct?!" Kilowog asked, though the rookies didn't say anything as the remaining others were still doing their exercise.

"WELL?! ANSWER ME!" he shouted for an answer.

"Sir, no sir!" the rest of the recruits shouted back.

"Exactly! When on duty, you're expected to be able to act properly and make your constructs as effectively as possible! If not, then either you or someone else will die! All because you can't handle people looking at you when making a simple construct!" Kilowog explained before turning back to the four lanterns that failed. "You all should be ashamed! Now drop and give me 50!"

On command, Arisia, Lok, and the other two lanterns got on the ground and began doing their push-ups. All of them felt embarrassed and ashamed after being yelled at like that. Though they pushed through it to finish their push ups, to avoid getting yelled at by Kilowog.

While the mechanic was still focusing on his task, Souda couldn't help but feel bad for them. 'Geez, I get that this is training and all. But Kilowog doesn't have to be a douche about it.' Souda thought, not liking how their sergeant is treating them.

Next scene, the rookies were brought to an obstacle course filled with all kinds of dangers and hazards. But nothing too much that their rings couldn't protect them from. Beside the entrance was Kilowog as he was carrying a box in his hands.

"Alright poozers, let's see if you all can manage to not fuck up this," Kilowog said as he began to explain their next exercise. "In this course, all you have to do is maneuver through this obstacle course towards the finish line while I bombard you all with my own attacks."

"...This sounds simple. Hard yet simple." the eyeball octopus alien named Salaah said with her telepathy.

"Yeah, I think we can do this," Souda scommented.

"I doubt it. I'm sure there's a catch to this," Laira warned

"Yeah, whatever. Let's get this over with," Lok scoffed as he was ready to take on the obstacle course.

"Hold it!" Kilowog shouted, getting the frog to stop in his tracks. "What do you think you're doing, Private Frog Legs?"

"What does it look like? I'm going to clear your obstacle course," Lok said confidently.

"I bet you are. However, you forgot something," Kilowog said as he opened the box and pulled out something, giving it to the frog lantern. To everyone's shock, in Lok's hand was an egg. A blue egg with orange spots on it.

"An egg?" Lok uttered in confusion.

"Exactly. You all will be given an egg to carry. In this course, your objective here is to clear through the obstacle course while protecting this egg. Use any construct you like that you think can help you. But one thing must be clear. In order to clear this course, you must cross the finish line and make sure the egg is unharmed. So protect this egg like your life depends on it. Do I make myself clear?"

"Sir, yes sir!" the rookies shouted.

"Glad to hear it. Now get over here and get your eggs!" Kilowog demanded.

The cadets formed a line in front of Kilowog as they took their eggs. Souda, Ch'p, Arsia, and Laira were the first to get their stepped on the sideline as the four examined their egg.

"You know, I wonder what the point is to have an egg on us while doing this?" Souda wondered, looking at his egg.

"I assume it's to teach us how to protect things other than ourselves when in battle. After all, we are Green Lanterns. We don't just protect ourselves, we protect innocents," Laira answered.

"That is true. Though is it odd that he has us use an egg as something to protect," Arisia commented.

As she said that, the three noticed Ch'p was doing something with his egg. Using a marker construct to scribble something onto it. The three were very much curious on what their squirrel buddy was trying to do.

"Hey Ch'p, what are you doing?" Souda asked

"Oh nothing much, just giving my buddy a face," Ch'p replied as he continued to scribbling

Once Ch'p finished his work, he revealed his egg to his friends. To their surprise and amusement, Ch'p had drawn a face on his egg. With eyes, a nose, ears, hair, and a smile on it, looking like a happy squirrel on it. The way Ch'p was holding his egg, it was like it was a buddy to him.

"Say hello to Egg Buddy," Ch'p introduced happily. "Don't he look so happy?"

Arisia let out a giggle. "Egg buddy does look cute," she said in amusement.

Souda and Laira smiled at Ch'p's creation, enjoying this light hearted moment. Though it was interrupted when Kilowog turned towards them. "Hey poozers, this ain't a clubhouse to hang out! Join the others to participate in this course!"

The group immediately got up and ran off to join the others. Though Kilowag stopped Ch'p with his foot as he noticed something off with his egg. He examined At and saw that there was a drawn face on it. Kilowog gives the egg a good look for a few seconds before letting out a "…heh." Kilowog formed a smile as he let Ch'p go to join the others.

Ch'p caught up with the others as he climbed onto Kazuichi's shoulder, who was looking at him with shock. "How?" he uttered, expecting their sergeant to yell at the squirrel.

Ch'p let out a shrug as he hugged his egg buddy. "Guess he has a sense of humor."

"Lucky bastard," Souda uttered.

Once the rookies were together, one by one, each rookie took their turn to try out the obstacle course while protecting their egg with a construct of their choosing. Dodging every hazard in front of them. All the while, Kilowog was attacking them with his own constructs, all of them aiming for their eggs. Unfortunately for them, while the course was simple, it was very much difficult. Most of them ended up failing the course as most of them had their eggs shattered into an orange yolk mess. What was even worse was that the farest they got was halfway before their egg was shattered by either Kilowog or the hazards in the obstacle course. Needless to say, Kilowog was not pleased by this.

"You useless stumbling pieces of shit! That was one of the worst performances I have ever seen! I've seen cripples get through that course better than you! Brain dead space apes with muscle spasms could handle those eggs better!" Kilowog screamed, all the recruits looking down in shame, all covered in orange stains from the broken eggs.

"The only ones that actually did decently are cyclops, the princess, and a squirrel!" he shouted, pointing at Laira, Spol, and Ch'p. The latter hugged his egg buddy so casually. "It's pathetic that none of you could protect a fucking egg!"

While many of them felt shame, one Green Lantern, a dog humanoid alien, decided to speak his mind. "I-I don't get it. Sure we failed the course, but why are you so upset about the eggs? Were you going to use them to make lunch or something?" the dog lantern named G'nort asked in confusion.

That seemed to set off their sergeant in a fit of rage, the other recruits looking at him like he just signed his own death warrant. Kilowog walked towards G'nort, pushing aside other rookies without a care, as he grabbed the dog lantern. Picking him up by the collar and lifting him up into the air. Kilowog looked down at G'nort with so much anger and displeasure while the dog alien was absolutely terrified of the situation he was in.

"What was that you said? Are you trying to be funny or are you that stupid, Private Mutt?' Kilowog said in a quiet yet intimidating tone.

"Um… I don't think so?" G'nort uttered.

"That's your problem… you don't THINK!" Kilowog shouted as he threw G'nort to the ground, the dog alien whimpering. "Your job as a Green Lantern is to not just fight, it's to also protect the innocent and bystanders! Make sure no harm comes to them! If you can't even protect a fragile egg, then how can you expect yourself to protect an actual life?!" He looked at his other recruits as they all looked visibly shook by his words. "Same with the rest of you! Get your acts together or else! Got it?!"

"Sir, yes sir!' they shouted back.

"Then you are dismissed!" With that, Kilowog flew off, leaving the recruits by themselves.

Everyone decided to walk back to the barracks to get some rest and to clean themselves up from the yellow stains on them. As they were walking off, Souda and Ch'p walked up to G'nort and helped him back up on his feet. "Hey man, you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, a little sore on the arm but nothing a little rest can't fix. But gosh, Kilowog was such a scary guy. Though maybe I should have realized that by now," G'nort responded.

"You're right about that. Though he doesn"t have to be a dick about it," Souda expressed, feeling anger towards their sergeant.

"Maybe, but it's fine. I'm sure things will get better," the dog alien said, making his way back to the barracks.

"He's right, you know. The start of things are gonna be rough, but I'm sure things will get better for us. We just gotta endure through it," Ch'p said, still holding his egg buddy.

Souda let those words sink in, remembering he usually had to endure any hardship in his life. Having to just suck it up and take whatever life had to throw at him. He's done this throughout his life, he can do it here. "Yeah… I guess you're right. Let's head back," he said as the two flew off.

"By the way, how long are you going to hang on to that egg? I feel like it's gonna go to waste. Might as well just eat it," Kazuichi pointed out.

Ch'p let out a gasp as he held on to his egg friend to protect him. "How dare you suggest that? He's egg buddy. And I will not allow any harm to come to my friend."

"I think you're too into that egg," Souda said in a deadpanned tone. Causing the two to let out a chuckle, flying off to join the others.

In their next scene, the rookies were currently doing their next course, which involved them having to protect about hundreds of green balloons from multiple knife constructs, thrown by Kilowog.

"Remember, no blanket shielding or bubbles! Catch them!" Kilowog shouted as threw knives at them. "And for every balloon popped, that's ten push ups you poozers have to do!"

Everyone did their best to stop the knives and protect the balloons. However, it was obvious that there were going to be some hiccups here and there as a couple knives managed to pop the balloons. Some were barely able to stop the knives as they were losing more and more of their balloons. Souda was doing better than most as he was using small mechanical hands to stop the knives, though he had already lost twelve of his balloons. He looked around and saw that a few of them were doing pretty well with this exercise.

Laria was able to stop the knives from hitting her balloons with weapon constructs that suited her at the moment. From swords, to a staff, then a rope dart, the warrior princess was doing well on defending her balloons. Though hearing her reputation and seeing her in action, Kaz expected that with her being a warrior princess as all that. Though what he wasn't expecting to be good at this was Lok. Using a mixture of his long tongue, jumping, and gauntlet hand constructs, he was able to prevent any of the knives from passing him.

'Huh, for a guy that runs his mouth, he's pretty good at this,' Souda thought as he caught three more knives and crushed them into nothing.

Eventually the exercise ended and Kilowog did not look pleased with their performance. "Well poozers, I say that we did a good job today. But that would actually imply that you maggots did anything worth praising! Out of the five hundred balloons I had you all protect, you all lost three hundred and twelve! That's more than half!"

The rookies looked disappointed and frustrated by yet another berating from their sergeant. Many of which are upset with themselves for not being able to improve fast enough. Feeling like they still had much to learn.

"You useless pieces of Rancor shit are pathetic as lanterns! The only thing you poozers are good at are push-ups! Speaking of…" Kilowog used a calculator construct to up some numbers. "With the amount of balloons that popped and multiplying that by 10, you poozers own me 3,120 push-ups. And I expect all of you to do it."

Most of the rookies looked in shock at what Kilowog demanded them to do. They almost thought that he was crazy to think that they could do more than three thousand push-ups. That felt inhuman.

"What are you all looking at me for? I got something on my face?" Kilowog said. "I told you what you all had to do. SO GET TO IT!"

Everyone immediately got on the floor and did their pushups, Kiwolog, even making a number counter for every recruit to keep track of their number of push ups.

"Keep going, you poozers! And one thing to mention, none of you will be allowed to eat or sleep until you give me the amount of push-ups you own me! Do you understand?!" Kilowog shouted.

"Sir, yes sir!" the recruits yelled back as they continued their long day of push-ups.

After completing their full set of push-ups and taking an entire day off, Kilowog has his recruits back in the field. This time, having them do an exercise involving them using their rings to cut through diamonds. Craving through the diamonds with their lasers to the desired shape and number of facets they were requested to do. Kilowog walked past everyone, checking on how his recruits were doing and their progress.

"One minute left, poozers! I expect you worthless no lives to give me my fifteen facet diamonds by then! Do you hear me?!" Kilowog shouted.

"Sir, yes sir," the recruits yelled back.

Kilowog stomped through the field, keeping a good eye on the diamonds to make sure that they were doing the task right. He stopped as he looked at Laira and her diamond. The princess was using the ring's laser on her diamond to add in the finishing touches. And like that, Laira had finished her craving and presented a fifteen facet diamond.

"Not bad, Private Storyteller," Kilowog said before moving on to the next recruit.

He moved on to check on the cyclops alien, Spol, had just finished his diamond and it was yet another perfect fifteen facet diamond.

"Hmm, now that's good craftsmanship. Good job, Private Allen. Like good old times," Kilowog said, reminiscing his younger years when he met a good alien with the same name.

"I-It's Spol, sir…" Spol uttered.

"Don't ruin my moment, cadet. Take the compliment, Allen, or I'll pop your eye again," Kilwog said in a threatening tone.

"Y-Yes sir," Spol replied.

Kilowog let out a grunt before looking around the others and stopped behind Souda, who was still working on his diamond, almost close to his goal

"Twenty five seconds, Private Highlighter. You should have finished by now," Kilowag said as he glared at the mechanic

"Don't rush me. I'm almost done," Souda grunted back.

"Oh, I shouldn't rush you now? Oh my apologies." Kilowag suddenly backhands the diamond, sending it thrown off across the floor. "...just a friendly reminder. 20 seconds left."

Souda felt complete shock by what Kilowog just did to him. Which then changed to anger as his blood boiled. And as much as he wanted to yell back, he knew what was more important. So the mechanic ran up to his diamond, picked it up, and got back to carving it.

"Ten seconds!" Kilowog shouted as he glared down at the mechanic.

Despite the pressure and rage, Souda continued to carve his diamond with what little time he had. And to luck, he was able to crave it into the fifteen facet. The requirement needed to pass. "There! Satisfied?!" he shouted as he showed his diamond to Kilowog.

Kilowog examined Kazuichi's diamond before letting out a huff. "Two seconds left private… cutting it close don't you think? Maybe next time don't let it fall to the floor."

Souda let out a growl but restrained himself. "Dudley noted."

Kilowog walked away from Souda as he made a bell construct and it began to ring like crazy. "Times up, poozers! Place your diamonds on that tray over there so I can examine your crappy work!"

Some of the rookies let out a groan before they took their diamonds and placed them on the tray. Once they did, Kilowog walked towards the tray and examined every diamond and how they were carved. He saw that a couple were perfectly cut or passable for the exercise. The rest however were not the case as they all looked poorly cut or unfinished. Needless to say, Kilowog did not look happy.

"What is this? What the fuck are these?" Kilowog questioned as he held a couple of poorly done diamonds in his hand and showed them to the recruits. "What kind of cuts are these? Didn't I say I wanted fifteen facets? Or was I just dreamin' it?" He then crushed the poorly made diamonds with his hand, turning them into shards and dust.

The recruits were silent as they didn't know what to say in this situation. They had failed in their exercise, what more is there to say, many thought.

"Well? I'm waiting for an answer!" Kilowog shouted before looking around and calling out one of them. "You! Private Orange Peel!"

"W-What? Me?" Arisia uttered as she pointed at herself.

"No, I'm talking to another wimpy alien with orange skin behind you. Of course I'm talking to you!" Kilowog yelled as he stared down at Arisia. "Why were you unable to do the simple task of giving me a fifteen facet diamond?"

Arisia looked intimated as she tried her best to respond back. "W-W-Well, you did give us a short amount of time to carve the diamonds… and it was somewhat difficult to do the task with how new this was for us to do… sir." Some of the recruits that failed the exercise seem to have nodded in agreement with Arisia.

"Ah, so it seems this was a little too hard for you all to use your rings like this. Is that right?" Kilowog asked, looking at his rookies who all seemed to be in agreement. "Alright then, let's make it a little easier."

Next scene we see the rookies all inside a section of the kitchen, currently peeling potatoes, without the use of their rings, using peelers to do so.

"And I want all those potatoes peeled by dinner!" Kilwog demanded as he pointed at the giant sack of a thousand potatoes in it. "I'll be craving for some mashed potatoes tonight!"

"Hey, some of us completed our exercise! Why do we have to do this?!" Lok complained as he was peeling a potato.

"You need to remember you are all part of a team. If one of you fails, then congrats… you all fail!" Kilowog answered.

"Ugh, this is bullshit!" Lok responded in anger.

"Well, that's life! Get used to it!" Kilowog shouted before leaving, slamming the door shut.

"Lok, you really shouldn't test your luck with Kilowog. He's our sergeant. That and he will discipline you hard," Spol said to the frog.

"Whatever, this is bull crap. Some of us are doing well enough yet we're being dragged behind by the weak lanterns of our group. Especially Miss Orange Peel over there!" Lok shouted as he pointed at Arisia. "Seriously, what kind of response was that?! You're the reason we're all having to do this!"

Arisia, in response, looked down in shame. Believing his words.

"Lok, that's uncalled for," Spol scolded his friend.

"Yeah, why don't you fuck off?" Souda retorted.

"Why? It's the truth, isn't it? Out of all of us here, Arisia is the one that's lacking behind," Lok expressed "Well her plus the dog over there!" Lok pointed at G'nort, who was doing a poor job at peeling his potato.

"Hey, not everyone can be good at everything, pal! She's learning! We all are, that's the point of the training!" Souda shouts. "Why don't you shut up, stop bitching and moaning, and get to work before the sergeant sees us!"

Lok glared at Souda for a couple seconds before letting off a scoff and going back to peeling his potato. "Whatever! But this is stupid, we're Green Lanterns, not errand boys. This task feels beneath us."

"Maybe… that's the lesson in it?" Arisia offered. "I mean… we are Green Lanterns but… wouldn't we have to do some task like this sooner or later in our work anyway?"

"She does make a good point," Laria added. "Even the most powerful or respected warriors are known to do smaller tasks. Not everything as a lantern is about fighting."

"Honestly, I'm not that bothered by this. This is common work I had to do back home," Ch'p said as he was peeling his potato with ease despite his small size.

"So how long do you think it'll take us before we finish?" Spol asked.

Souda looked at the remaining potatoes in the sack then looked at the amount of peeled ones in the container. "Well, we peeled about fifty so far in about a few minutes. If I calculate this right, I say we'd be fine in about an hour or two. But we have to be really focused and keep this up nonstop."

"You really think we'd be able to accomplish the task that quickly?" Salaah questioned.

"Yeah, I'm sure we will. And in record time too. What's the worst that can happen?" Souda said confidently.

Just then, one of the cooks came into the room with a sack in hand. He placed the sack beside the recruits. "We're having a big dinner tonight and we need a lot of potatoes. So here's another thousand of them. Get moving," Greet told the lanterns before leaving the room.

Everyone stared at the two massive sacks filled with potatoes. Realizing that they have a lot more work in them to do and some were not happy about it. Souda, in particular, felt like irony had suddenly come in and punched him in the face. All because he tried to be optimistic about the situation.

"So, we will be able to finish in record time, huh?" Lok asked in a mocking tone.

"Just shut up and start peeling," Souda barked back as he grabbed a potato and peeled it.

The next day of their boot camp training, the entire squadron was placed inside a room. With the exit out being a thirty degree slope tunnel in front of them, with barriers as their obstacles. At the very top of Kilowog with five turrets beside him.

"Since you poozers have been fucking up lately with simple exercises, I thought I have you all try something else! Really see what you useless sacks of trash can do in a chaotic state of the battlefield!" Kilowog shouted as began to activate the turrets. "For this task, I want all of you to get up to the top as quickly as possible! All the while, these turrets will shoot at you so I'd advise you to try to avoid getting shot!" With that, the five turrets came to life, taking aim and ready for anyone that comes into their sights. "Now, any questions?"

"I have one. Are you trying to kill us with those weapons of death?!" Salaah questioned.

"Oh relax, Private Pink Eye! These things are only going to fire these disks at you! You won't die from them!" Kilowog shouted as he showed them green disks. "But I would suggest not getting hit by them! Now enough questions, start the course!"

With that, the recruits ran up the slope, making their way to the top. Once they did, the turrets aimed at their targets and began firing disks at them. The rookie lanterns took immediate action and either blocked them with their shield constructs or hid behind one of the barricades. Souda was one of the few that made a shield construct as he slowly made his way to the top.

"I don't get the point of this one. This seems pretty easy. Aside from the fire power those turrets have, I just gotta use this shield and slowly make my way to the top. I can do this," Souda said to himself as he continued to block the disks with his shield construct.

But just as he was feeling confident about all this, Souda was met with an unexpected surprise. Well more so hit by a surprise as a disk not only broke through his shield construct with ease, but struck him right in the face. Kaz was forced back and crashed landed onto a nearby barricade.

"Souda, are you okay?!" Arisia shouted in concern.

Kazuichi didn't say anything as he was focused on getting behind the barricade for cover. Once he did, Souda let out some couches before spitting out a tooth. The teen was shocked beyond belief by what had just happened as he stared down at his bloody tooth as he held his aching cheek.

"No… not really… what the hell broke my construct so easily?" Souda questioned as he looked at what hit him.

To his shock, Souda found what disk had hit him as it had traces of his blood on it. The mechanic questioned how this simple looking disk was able to break through his construct with ease and hurt him so badly. The only thing he noticed about it was that it was yellow instead of green. But as he looked around the disks that scattered the floor around them, he noticed something old. The disks were all in a different color, from green, yellow, red, blue, and orange.

"The hell? Why are these disks in different colors? And how could this disk hurt me so badly?" Souda questioned.

Ch'p appeared beside the mechanic after nearly avoiding a disk and hiding behind the barricade. "Seems like you're still new to some things. Apparently for Green Lanterns, they have this weakness to yellow. Basic terms, your ring can't affect anything that's yellow."

"The fuck? What kind of lame weakness is that?!" Souda shouted, flabbergasted by this information.

"But on a more important note…" Souda peels out as he calls out to Kilowog. "Hey sergeant! Mind telling us why there are different colors of disks being shot at us?! I thought you said that there were only green disks! I got hit by a yellow one!"

"Oh right! I forgot to mention that detail!" Kilowog shouted in a shocked yet sarcastic tone. "See, these turrets don't just carry green disks, but other disks of color! That includes yellow! I say I'm sorry, but I'd be lying! So shut up and get your ass to the top! Same with the rest of you!"

With that, despite their frustration of that fact being left out, the recruits focused back on doing the course. And as expected, many of the rookies struggled to get through the course due to their fear of getting hit by a yellow disk. Though it was inevitable as whatever the recruits did to try and progress, they would somehow end up getting hit anyway. Lok tried jumping through the room with his agility, but was eventually hit by three yellow disks in the stomach and chest, forcing him to the ground. Salaah attempted to slither through the ground like a snake avoiding the disks with precise yet elegant movement. It seemed it had worked until one yellow hit the wall, ricocheting towards Salaah, hitting her in the eye. The tendril alien immediately took cover as she tended to her injured eye as it was tearing up and turning purple. Then there was G'nort, who was trying to get through the course with a bone construct, blocking the disks like a staff. On paper, it would have worked when used properly. Unfortunately for the dog lantern, he did not as he kept missing to hit the disks with his bone and was getting hit by a yellow disk, forcing him back. Yet, despite his plan failing, G'nort kept resorting to using his bone staff to make his way to the top, and was again being pushed back by another yellow disk.

"Man, he really likes using that same plan over and over. He might not be smart, but I'll give him this, he's determined," Souda commented.

"No kidding. He's got nerves of steel," Ch'p replied.

"Private Mutt! If you summon another bone construct, I'm gonna get the newspaper!' Kilowog shouted.

"B-B-But this is all part of my plan! Granted, this is the only one I have, but it seems to be working out wel-" G'nort was interrupted when a yellow disk suddenly appeared and hit him straight to the nose, making the dog whimper in pain.

"Ooooh! Poor G'nort…" Souda said, wincing at the sight.

Though many were struggling to get through the storm of disks, a few were managing to get through them with better results. Laira was using her own staff to block the disks away from her while using his senses to evade the yellow one. Then there was Spol, who was just using arm shield constructs to block the disks. Though when the yellow ones came in, the cyclops simply took the attack head on. Like a tank, he was barely fazed by the yellow disk hitting him at high speeds.

"Everyone, get behind us! We can clear a path for all of us to get to the top!" Spol shouted.

"You heard the cyclops! Let's move!" Lok added as he hopped over towards Spol and Laira.

Everyone else did the same as they followed the two up towards the top, having to evade a yellow disk that tried hitting them. Some of them create shield constructs to the side of them to provide more protection. As they all slowly moved towards the top, they all believed that they were going to make it, actually completing a course with flying colors. That is until they heard something from behind them. Souda was one of the lanterns to look behind them to see what the sound was. To their shock, they see the door to the beginning room closing up before four more turrets popping out from the floor and ceiling.

"Turrets. Guys, there's turrets coming from behind!" Souda warned the others.

Laira turned around to see what Souda meant and was taken back by the sudden turrets that appeared behind them, the barrels spinning as they were about to fire. "Everyone! Take cover!"

Everyone ran behind one of the many barricades for cover as the back turrets began to fire their disks at them. Though a couple of them were still hit by the yellow disks, such as Ch'p being pinned to a wall with a force by one or Laira smacked across the face with her's. Arisia was about to get hit by three of them but was saved by Souda as he pushed her out of the way in time. Though the yellow disks ended up hitting him on his arm and face, forcing him to the ground. Just as Kazuichi was about to get up and get to safety behind a barricade, one yellow disk ricocheted off the walls and ended up hitting him in an unfortunate place, mainly the lower part of his body where his family jewels were.

Souda let out a scream so high pitched, the others could have sworn that it would have enough to shatter glass. The mechanic didn't move from his spot as he was holding onto his privates to make sure they were still good. It was good fortune for him that Spol came to his rescue and carried him behind a barricade, where he laid him against the barricade as Arisia checked on him.

"Souda? Are you okay?" Arisia asked.

"...no," Souda softly replied, his voice now high pitched.

"Oh no, one of the disks must have hit his throat. He's having trouble speaking," Arisia said in concern.

Souda didn't have the strength to correct his orange friend as he was trying to soothe the pain in his balls. "The dick… of all the places, why did it hit me in the dick?"

"A dick? Is that some type of anatomy body part that only humans have? I don't think my books ever mentioned that," Arisia wondered as she turned to Spol. "You have any idea what that might be?"

"Hey, your guess is as good as mine," Spol replied, not wanting to get involved in this.

"Can we stop talking about the human's body and focus on the task at hand?!" Lok shouted at the two. "Why are there turrets behind us?! Did Kilowog fail to mention that too?!"

Kilowog heard that and decided to reply to the frog's question. "Yeah, I was busy with other stuff that I forgot to tell you maggots every single detail about this course and hold you hands like babies! I guess I forgot just how weak and helpless you dumbasses are!"

"Besides, it's all your damn fault for taking too long to get to the top! And thanks to you all being as slow as Nameki Slugs, you're all pinned down there! You have no one to blame but yourselves! But either way, you still have a mission, rookies! So get your acts together and complete it!" Kilowog demanded loudly.

"He's right. As brutal as he is, we got ourselves into this mess. So now we have to get ourselves out of it," Laira spoke out.

"Agreed. We must find a way for all of us to get out of this and complete our course," Salaah added.

"Meaning that we all have to work together to get through this. But how?" Souda said, feeling a little better.

"Maybe we could try the same strategy that Laria and Spol tried before. But we have one side deal with the front turrets while the other deals with the back ones," Arisia suggested.

"Is that really going to work? No offense, but we're not exactly the most coordinated team here. Especially since some of us are, for a good term, lacking," Lok pointed out, his eyes looking at Arisia and G'nort.

"Unless you have a better idea, we have to go forward with this plan," Spol countered, making the frog lantern go silent.

"Okay, so we're in agreement on all of us being a group tank and defending each other," Ch'p recapped.

"Pretty much," Laira simplified.

"Okay then, let's go guys," G'nort said with determination as he stepped out of the barricades.

"Wait, G'nort! Not now!" Souda shouted as he and Lok ran up to the dog lantern to drag him back behind the barricade.

Unfortunately for them, they were too late as the turrets fired their disks as Souda, Lok, and G'nort. Forcing the three back behind the barricades now in immense pain. Kazuichi, in his case, was hit again in the groin by a yellow disk. Forcing the mechanic to fall to the ground as he held his privates.

"Argh! My balls!" Souda shouted in pain.

"You have balls? Were you planning to play a game or something? Like bounce them around?" Ch'p asked.

"Ugggh…" was all Souda said as the rest of the unit tried to do their plan to get through the course.

It was already more than an hour after the course started that everyone finally reached the top, outside. As expected, everyone was in an awful state: bruises, cuts, and blood covered them. They were holding any part of their body to soothe the pain. Some were even laying on the ground as they couldn't stand up properly anymore due to the agony they were experiencing.

"Well, it's about damn time you all got up here. And in an hour and sixteen minutes no less. I gotta say, if you all were trying to entertain me with how bad you all were down there, then congratulations, you succeeded," Kilowog told them, letting out a chuckle, remembering how many were hit by the disks and making funny, painful expressions.

"Sir… you're welcome, sir… but I think Souda is dead. Either that or just comatose," Ch'p said, holding his bruised side, as he pointed at the downed Kazuichi, who responded with a high pitched "eeeeee."

Kilowog let out a small chuckle with how poor of a state the mechanic was in before facing his unit. "Normally, I would yell at you all for doing so badly at the course. But seeing all of you in pain and Private Highlighter squealing like a girl, it amuses me to no end. So I'll dismiss you all for today. Go to the infirmary and be ready for tomorrow."

With that, Kilowog flew off and the rookies floated their way to the infirmary to get their injuries treated. Spol was carrying a good amount of the recruits on his arms and shoulders as some of them couldn't move on their own, Souda included.

"They kept hitting me in the dick…" Souda uttered, still in excruciating pain. "Why? Why did those turrets hit me in the dick?"

"Seriously, what's a dick? Is it important for a human to function in a more healthy condition?" Arisia asked.

"To some degree, you could say that…" Souda replied.

"Oh, then we must get you help immediately. I'm sure the doctors here can help," Arisia said urgently.

"I hope so…" Souda said as he was taken to the infirmary.

The next day, after getting patched up by the infirmary(in Souda's case, getting his testicles fixed and being fully grateful for it), the entire unit found themselves a new location. an area that had a massive circle with wet, deep mud within it and strong looking barricades around it. Everyone stood behind the barricade as Kilowog was floating in the middle of the arena.

"Alright maggots, after seeing you all give it your hardest in these courses I put you through and finding ways to overcome it, I can safety, without a doubt, and you all fucking SUCK!" Kilowog shouted. "It's astonishing just how massive many of you fucked up in these courses, and the ones that did pass were either lucky or actual competent! I have seen old people with Alzheimer's and fragile bones put better effort than any of you brain dead idiots!"

Kilowog looked at his recruits and many of them were upset by his words, either upset with how harsh he was or upset with themselves for not being good enough. Either way, he didn't care.

"But if there's one thing you poozers should be able to do, the one thing that anyone with basic instincts can comprehend with ease. That thing is how to use your fists and fight," Kilowog said as he continued to explain. "So for today, I want to see how all of you would do in a fight, how you would handle yourselves in a one on one fight. And like any fight in the battlefield, you'll be paired up in a random order. So I suggest you poozers are prepared for anything."

Lok let out a small chuckle as he seemed confident. "In that case, I think I'll be doing fine. I mean, other than maybe a few, most are average at best. I can beat them no problem," he whispered to Spol, barely paying attention to what else Kilowog was saying.

"I wouldn't say that, Lok. It's not good to underestimate everyone here. Some might be better at hand to hand than you think," the cyclops argued.

"Yeah right, whatever opponent I'm pinned up against, I can take them down with ease," Lok said with confidence.

As he said that, a green spotlight shone upon Lok, putting him at center attention. The frog lantern was taken back when everyone was looking at him, expecting him to do something. Fortunate or unfortunate for him, Kilowog came in to explain.

"Private Frog Legs, thank you for volunteering," Kilowog said happily. "Now get into the pit so we can start the fights."

While taken back at first, Lok composed himself as he jumped over the barricade and into the mud pit. "Alright then. I think it's only fair that I show everyone what it means to be a Green Lantern," Lok said as he stood in the middle of the pit.

"If you say so. Now, let's see who you'll be fighting first," Kilowog said as he made a pinball lottery machine construct. He let the machine roll up the pinballs for a good fifteen seconds before grabbing one at random. The sergeant looked at the ball to see who's name he drew before shouting out the name.

"Private Storyteller! Step into the mud pit!" Kilowog demanded.

On cue, Laria jumped over the barricade and entered the mud pit, walking into the center of the arena with Kilowog and Lok.

"For our first match, we have Frog Legs vs Storyteller!" Kilowag announced

"Hey, wait a minute, this doesn't feel fair. I'm pretty sure this won't end well for me," Lok argued.

Those words got Kilowog to glare down at Lok, intimidating the frog with his presence. "What's the matter? Getting cold feet? Scared to get your ass kicked by a girl? I do recall hearing you saying that you show everyone what it means to be a Green Lantern or was I just hearing things?" he questioned.

"I- well- I… no, but-"

"Then don't argue back," Kilowog growled, interrupting Lok. "Besides, I said that you'd be fighting Storyteller. And if I tell you to do something, you do it without any back talk, you worthless waste of space! Do you understand?!"

Lok looked back with a frightened face before uttering, "Sir, yes sir…"

"I can't hear you!" Kilowog shouted.

"Sir, yes sir!" Lok yelled back.

"Good, now get ready. On my mark, you two will fight with everything you have!" Kilowog instructed as he made a bell ring construct.

Despite the scare, Lok composed himself as he got into a combat stance. "Well… whatever. I should be able to take you on. I mean, those stories about you seem exaggerated. I bet you aren't even all that."

"Arrogance is not a trait a warrior should carry. It will only lead to their downfall," Laria responded

"Big deal. I'll try and go easy on you. After all, I am nice like that," Lok said smugly with a smile.

Lariat put a smile of her own as she got into her stance. "Then by all means. Show me what you can do."

After a few seconds of silence, the bell came to life as it rang out its loud dinging sound. Immediately, Lok jumped towards Laira and threw two punches at her, which she evaded both. Passing her, Lok landed in his hands and tried to donkey kick the princess with his strong legs. Though Laira was able to backflip away from the attack. However, this was all part of Lok's plan, to distract Laria to get an open shot for a sneak attack. Wasting no time, the frog lanterns took his opportunity and launched his tongue at the warrior princess's face. Lok was confident that his plan would work and that he would be winning this with his plan. To show the others just how strong he is compared to everyone else.

Unfortunately, his plans came crashing down when Laria not only dodged the attack in time, but also grabbed Lok's tongue. The frog was shocked by this as he tried to pull his tongue back into his mouth, but couldn't as Laria had a good grip on it. Wasting no time, Laira pulled Lok towards her before kicking his face into the mud. Before Lok could recover, Laria wrapped his tongue around his neck and arms at restraints. Lok struggled to get out of his situation, but couldn't as Laria had him pinned well.

"Ack! Oka oka! I giv! I giv!" Lok gargled, trying to form words.

Despite the weird noises that were words, Laria let him go, even untying the tongue so that Lok could tell it back into his mouth. Letting him cough and breathe properly, spitting out mud.

"Really… before I could even get a snack ready… disappointing," Kilowog said, unamused by what he saw before turning to Laria. "You did well, Private Storyteller. You're actually one of the more competent lanterns I have here. So keep that up."

"Thank you, sir," Laira said.

Lok got himself up as he continued to cough, trying to recompose himself. "You got… Ack- lucky! I'll- cough! I'll get you next time! Just you… cough! Just wait and see!"

Laira only replied with a smirk. "Alright then, though I expect that you're stronger the next we fight."

"Alright, enough chit chat! Out of the mud pit! We're gonna start the next match up of randoms!" Kilowog shouted as he spinned the lottery machine once more.

After the second fight, the third fight was drawn and in this one, it was Kazuichi Souda vs Spol. The mechanic felt that he was at a disadvantage with how big the guy was and knowing how strong he is. Spol wasn't Kiwolog big and strong, but the cyclops was one of the best lanterns in the unit for a reason. Despite that, Souda entered the arena and came face to face with the giant that was Spol. The two got into their fighting positions, waiting for the bell to ring.

"Okay, just a heads up, um… I promise not to hit your eye," Souda uttered.

Spol let out a chuckle as he formed a smile. "Thanks, I appreciate it. And I'll try not to do the same with your two eyes."

"...yep. Thanks." Kaz replied, a little surprised by how nice the guy was.

Just then, the bell rang and Spol wasted no time and attacked. Slapping Kazuichi in the face and launching him a good two feet off the ground before crashing back into the mud. Everyone was taken back just how much force Spol delivered into attack, while wondering if the human was alright, thinking that the fight was already over. But to their shock, Souda was able to pick himself up out of the mud, a little dazed as he eased his aching cheek. Many were impressed by just how durable that human lantern is.

"Ow! Seriously?! Not even a warning?!" Souda shouted, soothing his face and wiping the mud off his head.

"Sorry, were we not starting?" Spol apologized.

"You think all fights have a warning, poozers!? Get back in there!" Kilowog shouted at Souda.

"Ugh, fuck! Fine!" Souda yelled back before towards Spol to fight him.

The fight continues with Souda and Spol giving it their all. The mechanic decided on using his smaller size and moving fast to engage with the cyclops, similar to what he did with the Alpha Manhunter. This strategy allowed him to get some good hits on his giant opponent and last longer. Though Spol was a much more powerful fighter then he let on, being able to get through Souda's speed with precise accuracy and brute strength. The fight ended with Spol being the winner as he had Kazuichi in a headlock.

"I believe this is your moment of surrender?" Spol asked casually.

"It would… if I can… breathe!" Souda yelled as his face was turning blue.

"Oh, apologies," Spol said as he let Souda out from his headlock, letting the young man breathe.

Once he was back to normal, Souda faced Spol, "Fuck, you're strong. But still, that was a good fight," Kazuichi said as he offered his hand for a good fight.

"Yeah, you did alright for yourself," Spol replied as he took his hand and shook it. "Keep training and you'll be just fine."

"Thanks, I will," Kaz replied before the two separated and exited the mud pit.

In the fifth fight, Ch'p was pinned up to fight G'nort. This felt odd as it was a squirrel having to fight a dog man. Though what was odd was that Ch'p was holding the advantage against G'nort throughout the fight. The fight was pretty much a game of cat and mouse in a sense as G'nort was chasing Ch'p, trying to get him. The dog lantern was even on all fours to better his chances at getting the squirrel. But Ch'p was too fast, agile, and quick minded for G'nort. All the while, Ch'p was slowly taking down G'nort, such as getting in his own hits, making the dog lantern hit himself, or just tire him out to near exhaustion.

"Wow, Ch'p is really handling G'nort well. Even with the size and strength difference," Arisia commented.

"No kidding. Though I feel like I'm watching one of those looney cartoons," Souda pointed out.

"Ha! No wonder why I'm enjoying this so much!" Kilowoh yelled as he was eating some popcorn, enjoying the show.

The fight lasted for about three minutes before Ch'p tired out G'nort enough that he was vulnerable to a squirrel punch to the face. The dog lantern fell to the ground, whimpering, as Ch'p stood over his body, his head raised up triumphantly.

"And they say squirrels are no match for dogs. Well, I showed them today," Ch'p said happily.

"Man, this feels embarrassing…" G'nort admitted, feeling down.

"It was, for a so-called dog, you're pathetic," Kiwolog said, appearing above the dog lantern. "If I recall, chasing down squirrels and even killing them are something dogs are supposed to be good at. Yet here you are. Can't even do something that basic. You're a disgrace."

G'nort couldn't help but whimper in sorrow as his ears folded down.

"Uh, hold on, when you said that thing about dogs killing squirrels, you weren't actually going to let him kill me right?" Ch'p asked with concern.

Kilowog ignored the squirrel as he was more focused on the crying pup. "The fuck you doing whimper!? Did you make a mess on a rug!? You're a lantern, ACT LIKE IT!"

G'nort did what Kilowog said and stood up tall, trying his best to fight back the tears in his eyes.

"Geez, a little mean there, don't you think?" Ch'p said.

Kilowog glared down at the squirrel with a threatening look. "You really want me to turn my attention to you?"

"Uh, no sir. Sorry sir," Ch'p quickly replied.

"Good. Now you two, get the hell out of the mud pit and out of my sight!" Kilowog demanded, with the two immediately running out of the mud pit.

After a long while, the unit were now watching the last fight on the mud pit. And the last two combatants pinned with each other are Arisia and Salaah. The two were circling around the pit as they waited for one of them to start. While Salaah looked ready to strike with her many tendrils, Arisia looked a bit hesitant about all this. Mainly because she was having a hard time trying to figure out how to fight an alien like Salaah.

'How exactly am I going to fight her? Her whole body consists of an eyeball with tentacles,' Arisia thought as she was analyzing her opponent. 'I should probably avoid the eye so as to not blind her. But where do I hit?'

Just then, Salaah made her move as the eyeball alien charged at the orange girl. Arisia was startled as she tried to do something, either move out of the way or try to counter strike. But she was too slow as the squid-like alien had wrapped her tendrils around the orange girl's body and began to constrict her opponent like a snake. Arisia tried to find a way to escape, to counterattack her opponent. But she couldn't find any weak spot to use against Salaah. Though it was obvious to Arisia that the alien's massive eyeball would be a good weak point to use. But she hesitated like before, fearing that hitting the eyeball could cripple Salaah or worse. It was that weakness that caused Arisia as she was completely pinned with no way out, causing her to lose.

Once that was done, Salaah let go of Arisia and helped get up, congratulating her for trying. Some members of the unit let out a couple claps for their fight, even if they knew that Arisia didn't give it her all in her fight. Some of them just wanted this to end and head back. Get a shower or rest. Though that idea seemed to have been thrown out the window when they saw Kilowog enter the mud pit and stomp towards the female lanterns, Arisia specifically.

"Oh no, this doesn't look good," Souda whispered to Ch'p, seeing just how angry Kilowog looked.

"Yeah… I just hope he doesn't chew up Arisia too much," Ch'p replied, concerned for their orange friend.

Kilowog appeared in front of Arisia, glaring down at her with rage in his eyes. Causing the orange girl to look back in fear, feeling like she was in a world of trouble.

"Orange Peel… stand," Kilowog commanded.

Arisia immediately stood up straight and put her hands behind her back. "Standing."

"What was that?" Kilowog asked.

"I-I was fighting," Arisia answered.

"Were you now? Is that what you called that?" Kilowoh said sarcastically.

"Well… I tried… but I couldn't find an opening," Arisia told him.

Kilowag glared at her with a more vicious look on his face. "...Are you really going to lie to my face, Arisia?"

Arisia felt a chill down her spine as she realized the situation she was in and the mistake she made. "I-I wasn't trying to…"

"Oh but you did. Just now," Kilowog countered.

"I-I'm sorry…" Arisia apologized.

"Are you? Well you should, seeing as you decide to waste mine and everyone else's time here! By just giving up, like a spineless worm!" Kilowog screamed, letting out his frustration onto her.

"B-but… I didn't know how to fight her… seeing what her body is like," Arisia said, trying to explain herself.

"You didn't know? Well, how about I show you how to do it?" Kilowog said as he approached Salaah and proceeded to punch her in the eye, knocking her onto the mud.

"Oh my god, is she going to be okay?!" Arisia shouted.

"Ah… I'm okay… Ouch though…" Salaah spoke, picking herself up out of the mud.

"You literally couldn't so much as throw a punch!?" Kilowog questioned.

"I-I just thought that-"

"You thought?!" Kilowog interrupted Arisia. "That's your problem, you overthink this shit! What's so hard about doing a simple punch?!"

"I didn't want to do anything that could hurt Salaah or worse…" Arisia admitted

"Oh so that's what it was? You just think that your comrade here was weak," Kilowog growled.

"W-what? No, I didn't think that!" Arises argued.

"So what, you just thought that she couldn't defend herself, you thought she was a fake lantern? We're giving pity rings now!?" Kilowog shouted.

"I just… I didn't want to hurt a comrade…" Arisia uttered.

"Who cares what you want!? You're a lantern! All of you are lanterns!" He leans down to her level. "What about me huh, care to swing?" His eyes gave a piercing glare, a huff from his breath was enough to throw her air back. "Come on, I'm big and tough… DO IT."

"I don't think that-"

"PUNCH ME, YOU PATHETIC EXCUSE OF A LANTERN!"

Arisia was now feeling anxious as the pressure was getting to her. Even when Kilowog had left himself completely wide open for an attack, his glare was still intimidating her, making her feel squeamish. She tried to raise her shaking arm to punch her sergeant. But she couldn't. She tried but couldn't as tears were appearing in her eyes. Whether it be anxiety or fear, she just couldn't bring herself to punch Kilowog.

"I can't! I'm sorry, I can't!" Tears wield up in her eyes, trailing down her face as she takes a fearful step back.

Kilowog looked disappointed at Arisia when she started to cry. He then glared at her with disapproval and anger. "What the hell? Are you crying?" Kilowog said with a snarl. "Are you seriously that pathetic that you can't even do a simple command? How the hell can you expect yourself to be a Green Lantern if you can't even do a simple punch?"

"Hey, lay off!" A voice calls out.

Kilowog was taken back and turned to his side to see who shouted at him. To his intrigue, the culprit, who was glaring at him was none other than Kazuichi Souda. The rest of the unit were shocked to see the mechanic calling out Kilowog like that, like he had a death wish. Arisia especially as she wasn't expecting the mechanic to take a stand like this.

"Souda, what are you doing? Are you mad?" Ch'p quietly said nervously to his friend, who ignored him as Souda jumped over the barricade and into the mud pit. Walking towards Kilowog to face him.

"Yes, I am mad," Souda simply replied.

Kazuichi eventually made his way towards Kilowog, being about two feet apart. The two glaring at each other to intimidate each other. Though Kilowog was more frightening due to his larger size and more threatening aura.

"Are you talking to me, cadet?" Kilowog asked with a stern tone.

Kazuichi felt intimidated by his sergeant's stern look at him. Like he was being stared down by a deadly predator, looking at him with its vicious eyes. Waiting for him to make a move so it could end him. Souda felt scared, but his anger for his friend pushed past that and he stood strong.

"I don't see any other giant asshole around, so I must be talking to you, Porky!" Souda shouted back. "Do you enjoy seeing us in pain?! We try our best and you just keep pushing us down! Arisia does fall behind but she's trying her best, damn it! Same with G'nort! Yet you still find a way to knock them down just for existing! We're already doubting ourselves as is! It's like you want us to quit! To hate ourselves!"

Kilowog still had a stern look on his face, not once fazed by Souda's words. "I've got nothing to explain to you."

Despite those words, the teen kept talking. "We came here to be taught to be Green Lanterns, to serve the Corps, not to be insulted and beat down just because! If one of us ends up quitting or worse because of you, you'll be nothing more than a bully! Sir!"

Souda let those words sink deep into Kilowog, waiting for him to respond back to his words. And eventually, he does as Kilowog's face begins to frown. The sergeant slowly walked up to the mechanic as he took off his ring and had it fly off into the hands of Arisia, something Kazuichi and everyone else was not expecting. Deciding to do the same, Souda was about to reach into his hand and take off his ring.

"If you value your life, I wouldn't take it off," Kilowog uttered, stopping Kaz from removing his ring. This filled the teen with a sense of fear from his sergeant's warning. Especially with how his voice sounded; in a mad yet controlled tone. "Now, what was that you called me?"

Even with the fear growing inside him, Souda responded back. "You're a mean, despicable, son of a-"

Souda didn't have any time to finish his sentence as Kilowog socked him in the face, sending the mechanic flying and hitting into the mud. Many of the recruits were taken back by the sudden attack. Even if some of them knew that this was going to happen, that didn't mean they didn't wince seeing that. Kazuichi picked himself back up, wincing in pain as he coughed mud out from his mouth. The mechanic held his face in pain as he didn't expect it to hurt this much. Even the protection of the ring didn't help in lessening the impact.

"You done?" Kilowog questioned, still looking at Kaz with his stern look.

Instead of backing down, Souda got back on his feet and wiped the mud off his face. Holding his hands up, entering a stance. Ready for a fight.

Kilowog doesn't seem to react much. Only standing still.

"Souda please-"

"Stand down, Orange Peel!" he shouts suddenly when Arisia attempts to get between them. "If he wants to fight me so badly… then let him. Now you and Pinkeye, GET THE HELL OUT OF THE MUD PIT!"

Though hesitant, Arisa and Salaah did as he demanded and left the mud pit and joined the others. Leaving only Kilowog and Kazuichi alone in the mud pit. Souda in a fighting stance while Kilowog stayed standing still.

"Just to let you know, I'm going to give you a taste of the pain you'll have to endure as a Green Lantern," Kilowog said with a growl, his nostrils letting out hot air into Souda's face. "So don't even think about surrendering. Because I won't hold back until you're nothing more than a broken mess."

Despite the threat he was given and the hot breath annoying him, Souda didn't back down as he was determined to fight. Unleash his anger onto Kilowog for what he did to Arisia. Make him feel the pain he inflicted onto her. Teach him a lesson. Whatever fear he had, Kazuichi pushed it away to focus all his attention into fighting.

"Good to know. Cause I'm not holding back either," Souda replied back.

Without any hesitation and seeing as he got himself inside this situation, Souda ran up towards Kilowog to attack him. The mechanic threw a few punches but the sergeant evaded them with ease. Despite him being a giant, Kilowog was surprisingly fast. After dodging another punch, Kilowog threw in his own punch and knocked Kazuichi back. The teen hit the side of the barrier, gripping onto it as he tried to catch his breath and ease his pain.

"Souda stop! You're gonna get hurt!" Arisia pleaded from the other side.

"Yeah man, you can't win this!" Ch'p added.

Despite their warnings, Souda pushes away from the barrier and regains focus back in Kilowog. "Sorry, but no. Someone needs to punch some sense into him."

With that, Kazuichi ran through the mud to fight Kilowog, ready to punch him again. But the sergeant was easily able to catch his punch with his hand. Kilowag then proceeded to lift the mechanic into the air before dropping him on his knee, hitting the teen's ribs, and letting him drop to the mud.

Everyone let out a wince at the sight, a few looking away from the painful sight. "Holy shit, I felt that!" Lok said in a grimace.

"His poor ribs…" G'nort mumbled.

Souda tried to attack him again, but Kilowog shoved his arm aside and headbutted the mechanic to the ground. He then jumped up and elbow dropped on Kaz's chest. The teen was groaning as he held onto his chest as he tried to get up. But Kilowog got on his feet first and proceeded to grab Souda by the hair and slammed his face against the barrier wall. Kilowog let Kazuichi fall to the ground as he held onto his face, his nose starting to bleed.

"Oh man, he broke his nose! It's all bleeding now!" Ch'p shouted, squirming.

Arisia looked in shock and dread at how bad the injury Souda got. Especially with how brutal Kilowog was with the mechanic in their fight. She felt like she needed to do something and stop this, feeling that she started all this. Before Arisia could move and intervene, Laira grabbed Arisia by the shoulder and stopped her.

"Don't," Laria uttered.

"But I have to do something. Or else something worse could happen to Souda," Arisia argued.

"Getting involved will only make things worse. Remember, Souda was the one to challenge Kilowog to a fight. He has to see through it to the end," Laria countered. "All we can do is wait and see how things go."

Arisia didn't like the idea but understood that they had to. All she could do now was hold onto Kilowog's ring and hoped that Souda would make it out alive.

Back to the fight , Kazuichi managed to get himself back up and looked at Kilowog with anger. "You cheating son of a-"

Kilowog suddenly lets out a spit, aiming it inside Souda's mouth, making the mechanic cough in disgust. Leaving him open for Kilowog knee kicks him in the stomach, knocking the wind out from his body.

"Like I give a shit," Kilowog uttered as he walked behind Souda and performed a German suplex on him, burying his head deeper into the mud.

Kazuichi laid in the mud as he groaned due to the amount of pain he was experiencing. He slowly raised his head up to see Kilowog. He was still looking down on him with his usual glare that the mechanic was starting to hate. Though the weirdest part was that his sergeant was his hand to him, offering to help him up. He wasn't sure if it was him being tired or his mind not working right due to blunt trauma, but Souda decided to accept his offer and grab his hand. Just as Souda was about back on his feet, Kilowog punches him back to the mud.

"Important thing to take note of. Your enemy won't play fair," Kilowog said.

Souda groaned in pain as he wiped the mud off his face, allowing him to see again. Looking at the mud in his face and processing the words his sergeant told him, Kazuichi got an idea. "Good to know," he uttered.

Then immediately, Souda threw the mud at Kilowog's face, blinding him as he tried to wipe the mud off. Kazuichi found his opening and just went all out on Kilowog. Unleashing a haymaker of green powered punches onto his sergeant's face, not letting up for a second. The others looked in shock at the sight of the mechanic, finally getting an opening and giving his all on their sergeant. Even his group of friends were impressed by this. After about half a minute of punches, Kazuichi ended his assault by bringing both arms on Kilowog's jaw, forcing him into the mud.

Everyone stood in silence, shocked by the sudden turn of events. The only sound to be heard was the deep breaths Kazuichi was taking in. Everyone was wondering what was going to happen. Was Kilowog going to get up or stay down and make Souda, a rookie, the winner? Their question was quickly answered as Kiwologh immediately got back on his feet, spitting out a tooth, before looking back to Souda with his angry glare, looking completely fine.

With that, whatever rage and determination to fight Kilowog just extinguishes as Souda looks back in fear. "…I'm sorry…"

Kilowog responds back by punching Souda in the face. Then unleashed his one haymaker of punches on the mechanic. Ending it all with one final punch that launched the teen towards the barrier, shattering into pieces. As the dust cleared, Souda is seen laying on the ground, groaning in pain, his uniform ripped up and covered in mud.

"Souda!" Arisia shouted as she and a few rookie lanterns ran up to Souda, checking on him.

"Buddy, you okay?" Ch'p asked.

"I'm in… so much pain…" Souda groaned.

Kilowog stood near them, checking to see how Souda was after his beating. Once he saw that the mechanic was done, he looked towards the rest of the recruits. "Anyone else?" he asked, daring anyone to try and give him a reason to beat them to a pulp.

No one said anything as they were all visibly too scared to even say anything, let alone challenge him. Knowing that they got their attention, Kilowog decides to say something.

"You all don't like the way I train you? Don't like how I treat your friend? That this is too hard?" Kilowog said as he dusted himself off. "Well let me tell you something. I don't give a damn what you like. Same with the rest of you! My job is to train you all to be the best Green Lanterns you can be, ready for the challenges ahead! When you all get the green light and are allowed to do your duty to the corps, deal with all kinds of dangers, and be lucky enough to see your family grow, then that's enough for me! But remember, being old in the corps is a privilege. We fight the battles that the weak can't! We die so that innocents don't! It's that simple!" Kilowog put his hand out, calling his ring back from Arisia's hands as it flew back into his finger, glowing green. "Once you all put your rings on, your lives stopped being your own."

Everyone was silent, letting those words of his speech processed into their minds. Though Ch'p eventually spoke up.

"Um… sir, I think Souda is knocked out," he shouted.

Kilowog looked at Kaz and the squirrel was right. Souda was completely knocked out cold, not moving a muscle yet still having a pulse.

"In that case, one of you will take him to the infirmary. You're all dismissed for the day. I expect you all to be ready for tomorrow's course. Got it?" Kilowog demanded.

"Sir, Yes sir!" the rookies replied.

Kilowog looks at Souda one last time before letting out a scoff. "Poozer…" he uttered before flying off.

Souda found himself looking at nothing but darkness. His whole body felt numb and motionless. Though eventually, his mind slowly regained consciousness as he saw a light. The light grew larger and brighter until it revealed itself. Kazuichi's eyes fully widened as he was greeted by the green ceiling above him. Once his senses came back, the mechanic saw that he was at the infirmary area. He held his head to ease the pain, trying to remember that had happened. Though he barely got any time before he was bombarded with yelling.

"Holy shit, He's alive! I told you guys! You owe me your peanut butter in the MRE's for the next week!" Ch'p shouted at Lok.

"Fine, whatever! At least we know that Kilowog won't kill us in his training!" Lok responded back in frustration.

"Did you guys seriously place a bet on this?! He's your friend!" Arisia scolded.

"Hey, it's because he's my friend that I knew he live through it," Ch'p replied

"We're not actually friends. I was just curious if he would make it or not," Lok admitted.

Spol looked at the frog with a disapproving look, "That's messed up, Lok. You shouldn't be doing stuff like that."

"Oh come on, like I was the only one thinking about it!" Lok retorted.

"Enough!"

Everyone went by the command of Laira, who was currently helping Souda sit up on his bed, making sure he took things slowly. "Take it easy, Souda. Don't overdo yourself," Laira told him gently.

Kazuichi let out some groans as he held his head, trying to ease his aching head. "Ow… thanks. Things were getting too loud for me. Where am I? What happened? Why does my head hurt? And why does my nose ache?"

"You're in the infirmary. The doctors treated your injuries so you'll be fine. But your head is still recovering. You took one hell of a beating back there," Laira told him.

"I mean yeah, our buddy here got into a fist fight with a guy three times your size," Ch'p pointed out.

"We were ordered to take you to the infirmary and we waited until you woke up. Kilowog really hurt you back there," Arisia added.

Souda groaned as he slowly started to remember his fight with Kilowog. Only remembering just how painful it all was. "Oh I can feel that he did. Gonna be honest, I kinda don't remember anything after the first punch."

"Well, you pretty much tried to punch him and he just took you out with ease. At best, you only managed to make him spit out a tooth. It's not much but I guess it's something," Laria informed the mechanic.

"I thought you were gonna be dead when that happened. I even heard you go 'I'm sorry' and then BOOM!" Ch'p explained in an exaggerated tone, his hands doing motions.

Souda let out a groan as he fully remembered the fight. "Oh god, I remember now. I can't believe I actually said that."

"Yeah and that was funny," Lok said mockingly. "You were really scared at that moment. I can't believe you actually did that. It was like you had a death wish."

"Come on, Lok. Give the guy a break. He's suffering enough as is," Spol told his friend.

"Whatever man. It was his own damn fault for doing that," Lok said as he got up and left the infirmary.

"Sorry about him, Souda. Lok's not a bad guy, but he can be a jerk," Spol said, apologizing to the mechanic.

"It's fine. I'm used to that sort of thing now. It doesn't affect me," Souda replied.

"If you say so. I gotta go and keep an eye on Lok so he doesn't do anything dumb. Anyway, take care of yourself and get well," Spol said before taking his leave.

"That Lok is so rude," Arisia pouted as she crossed her arms. "Why's he gotta be like that?"

"Eh, don't pay him too much mind. Those types of people aren't worth getting angry over," Ch'p said. "Besides, let's focus on the fact that Souda is okay and not in a coma."

"You really thought Kilowog was going to do that to me? Can he do that?' Souda asked in concern.

"Can you blame me? The way he was hurting you made me think that something bad was going to happen. Especially when Kilowog stopped holding back," Ch'p said loudly.

"I'll say. He certainly didn't hold back," Arisia agreed. "Still, let's be grateful that it's over with."

"You are right about that, but I feel pathetic," Souda said, recalling just how badly he lost that fight. "I tried to be rebellious, to stand up for a cause, and instead, I got my ass kicked."

"It was to be expected. Though it is surprising that you lasted that long," Laria said.

Ch'p didn't seem to agree with that as he bluntly said, "I mean it wasn't really that lo-" Laria glared at Ch'p, which he immediately got the message. "I mean… totally! Impressive how long he lasted!" he said, correcting himself.

"Either way, what you did was reckless. I understand that you had some disagreement with our sergeant, but to decide to fight him head on like that was… frankly stupid. Kilowog is an Honor Guard for a reason," Laria pointed out.

"She's right. I even thought he was going to cripple you or even kill you," Arisia expressed.

"Nah, he wouldn't do that," Ch'p reassured her.

"How can you tell? It felt like he had every intention of killing me," Souda asked.

"Well, the Green Lanterns are the good guys, they're not exactly people that will just kill at random. They want to train us to be Green Lanterns, so killing us would not be a good idea," Ch’p pointed out as he continued. "Besides, as bad as it was for some of us, other than the disk course, none of us have really been hurt or needed immediate medical care."

Souda went silent as he thought through the last couple days of their training and Ch'p was right. Aside from his dick getting hit multiple times by flying disks, they were never really put in any serious danger where their lives were threatened. And Kilowog did seem to keep a good eye on them to make sure they were trained well yet made sure they were all doing well and taken care of. However, Kazuichi couldn't really ignore the insults he said to them that broke a few of them down into tears.

"…yeah, that is true. But I"m not fully convinced. Not with Kilowog being such an asshole when he trains us. I mean, he made Arisia cry because she made one mistake in her fight. He makes us feel like we're useless," Souda expressed with distaste.

"And?" Laira questioned as she made her counterpoint. "He did say he was not gonna take it easy on us several times. After all, we're being trained to become Green Lanterns, so he has to push us beyond our limits to make sure that we're ready for just about anything thrown at us. Like it or not, we are getting stronger from this."

"Maybe, but that doesn't mean-"

"Souda, it's fine!" Arisia interacted, interrupting the mechanic. "As harsh as this is, Laira's right. I know that what Kilowog said hurt me. But I do understand why he did say that. To get us to be the best lanterns we can be." Arisia then looked down on the floor as she felt disheartened. "Besides, I need to work harder compared to everyone else. After all, I'm technically one of the weaker lanterns in this unit. I can't be holding you guys back."

"Technically not true. Ch'p is," Laira said bluntly.

"Yeah… wait, what the hell?!" Ch'p shouted in shock.

"You're the one that needed help opening your ration package without your ring," Laira recalled with a smile.

"Hey, no fair! That stuff is laser proof!" Ch'p argued angrily, jumping and failing his arms around.

Souda looked at Laira, wondering why she brought that up like that. Considering that Ch'p is doing pretty well for himself despite his small size. But then he noticed Arisia, who looked like she was trying to control herself, placing her hand over her mouth, as she began to chuckle. Connecting the dots, Souda smiled as he joined in with Laira.

"Oh yeah, despite being the fastest and most nimble, you're pretty weak. Not surprised that Arisia is stronger than you," Souda said jokingly.

"Not you too! Besides, I'm strong! I can lift up a cup by myself!" Ch'p countered.

"Didn't it fall over you and you were stuck under there for an hour?" Laira pointed out.

"Oh yeah, I remember that!" Souda said as he let out a chuckle. "The moment I freed him, Ch'p was completely soaked in his drink! Hehehe, he looked like a wet furry plushie!"

Ch'p was about to say something but was interrupted when Arisia suddenly started to laugh. She was laughing so hard that she seemed to be having a bit of trouble breathing and her eyes were tearing up recalling that memory. Souda and Laira joined in the laughter as Ch'p was angrily trying to get them to stop. The mechanic felt glad as he and Laria were able to get Arisia to get her mind off of her self doubts. Being able to cheer her up and see her smile. Even if it was at Ch'p's expense.

After angrily jumping around and realizing how pointless it was to argue back, Ch'p jumped off the bed and walked away angrily. "Ugh, whatever! I'm going to bed! I'm not dealing with this bullying!" he said as he stomped out of the infirmary.

Arisia finally managed to stop laughing as she calmed herself down, wiping off the tears in her eyes. "As over dramatic as he was, Ch'p's right. We need to get some rest for tomorrow. Kilowog said that we all need to be ready for tomorrow's course," she said as she got up from her chair. "You stay here and rest. We'll see you in the morning."

"Alright then… hopefully I'll feel my legs by the morning," Souda said jokingly.

Arisia let out a giggle as she told him as she left the infirmary.

"Well, I should take my leave as well, I wish you a good night's sleep," Laira said as she was about to walk away. That is until Souda stopped her.

"Laira wait," Souda called out, stopping the princess on her tracks as she looked back at the mechanic. "Before you go… I need to ask you something."

"Alright, what is it?" Laria questioned as she sat back down near Souda.

Kazuichi took a deep breath before asking his question. "Be honest, how did I do today when I came to my fights with Spol and Kilowog? In terms of fighting hand to hand I mean."

"Well… in my honest opinion, you sucked," Laria answered bluntly, causing the mechanic to let out a groan.

"Yeah, I figured as much," Souda admitted in disappointment as he laid himself back on the bed.

"I'll give you this, you did hold your own fairly well with Spol. Granted, it was obvious that he was going to win, but you did try to use some strategy there," Laria explained to the mechanic. "But with Kilowog, you didn't seem to have any strategy against him. You did nothing but try to punch him and hoped for the best. With that kind of fighting style, it made you predictable."

"Figured, but what about Kilowog? How would you rate him?" Souda asked.

"Obviously he's an expert fighter. Sure he took cheap shots but his punches and stance were better, he had better balance, and his wrestling moves really complimented him with how big he is. Overall, Kilowog is strong; he is an Honor Guard for a reason," Laira explained.

"Yeah, no kidding. He moved way faster than I thought he would," Souda replied.

"Indeed. Though, why do you want to know about this?" Laira asked.

Souda stared at the ceiling, reminiscing about every fight he's been in once he got the ring. Mainly with the fight with the Alpha Manhunter back on Earth. He remembered how he did against that machine and how he was able to destroy it and win. Then he thinks about today and how he lost two fights with ease despite going all out against Spol and Kilowog. Thinking just how big things were going to get at this point.

"I don't know. I guess it's because I got a realization of the things I'll have to deal with as a Green Lantern. How I'm just realizing that I still have a long way to go as a fighter and how small I am compared to the other threats in this universe. Kilowog seemed to have reminded me of that,' Souda spoke up, letting out a sigh

"That's expected, Souda. You're still new to all of this and it's expected that you'd make mistakes. Same with the rest of our unit. That's why we're here. To be trained and improve. Don't feel so down about it," Laira reassured him.

"Sigh, I know, but still. Though you have it a little easier compared to the rest of us. I mean, you're one of our very best and the greatest fighter in your sector. You got it easy compared to us," Souda expressed.

"Souda, just because I'm the greatest fighter my sector has to offer doesn't mean that I'm automatically ready for the challenges as a Green Lantern. Like I said before, we all have much to learn; that includes me. After all, there is much I do not know about the power ring and what it can do," Laira told the mechanic, expressing some distaste from those words before calming herself to continue. "So don't think you're lacking because I'm one of the better lanterns in the unit. When you compare yourself to others for what they have, you'll never see the good qualities you have in yourself."

Souda felt himself be taken back by her tone of words, how irritated she sounded when she made a counter against his claim of her being a strong fighter and having it easy because of it. He wanted to ask her if she was alright and that he did anything to upset her. But he decided to not say anything so as to not cause any trouble.

"I guess you're right. But that doesn't mean I don't feel any better. That I need to improve myself sooner and better," Souda admitted, still thinking that he could do better.

Laira offered her comfort as she patted Kaz's shoulder. "And you will in time. Your time will come to show just how much stronger and wiser you will become then before. So don't think that you're lacking because of your loss with Kilowog. After all, feeling loss teaches us our flaws and how we should fix ourselves because of it. Never forget that." Laira told him before she got up and walked towards the exit.

"Get some sleep now. Tomorrow will likely be another difficult challenge for us to take. So let us both be prepared for that," Laria informed as she was at the exit of the infirmary. "Goodnight, Souda."

"Yeah… Goodnight Laira," Souda said back with a wave of his hand. Laira waved her hand back at him before flying off.

Kazuichi let out a sigh before getting comfortable in his bed to get ready to mechanic thought about what Laira said to him and how she was right. Maybe it is best that he be patient and keep trying to see real improvement. Even if it feels frustrating, it is better to wait and see how things go for him later on in the future. For now, he would close his eyes as he felt himself drift into slumber.

"Let's just hope… that things get better…" Souda uttered before going to sleep.

Chapter Text

Oa

It was the next day on the planet Oa, as the Green Lanterns Corps continued to function properly as usual. The lanterns keep the city in check, going on missions, or just hanging out. A very standard and calm day for the Corps. Though things were going to get more hectic, mainly for the recruits.

At the infirmary, Kazuichi Souda was currently still sleeping. Looking like he was having a wonderful dream of some kind. He looked so peaceful and relaxed. He could sleep for another couple hours before waking up. It was unfortunate that time had different plans for him.

A small alarm clock near his bed immediately went off, ringing like crazy. Souda started to groan for a bit as he tried to block the noise out with his pillow. As much as he wanted to just turn it off and go back to sleep, Kaz was reminded that he shouldn’t be sleeping in. Unless he wanted to be under the wrath of Kilowog again. And he was not going to test his luck with his sergeant again after yesterday. 

“Ugh, fine. I’m up! I’m up!” the mechanic complained as he got out of bed and turned off his alarm clock. He took to some stretches before finally getting up. 

Souda was about to leave when he saw that his bed was messy. Remembering how he was berated by Kilowog for this sort of issue, he tries to fix his bed, remembering the lessons he was taught by his group. Though as try as he may, his bed didn’t look all that well done. It was an improvement compared to his first day of bootcamp. But it didn’t look right. The sheets looked crooked and the pillow seemed a bit messy. 

“Dah, what am I doing wrong? I’m doing what they said but it still doesn’t look right,” Kazuichi complained. 

Then suddenly, a green light engulfed the bed. Souda was taken back as he saw the green light fix up all the mistakes, making everything nice and tidy. Once the light faded, the bed was finished, looking completely clean and neat for the next patient who needed it. 

Souda wondered who just did that. His question was answered as a doctor appeared behind him. “I commend your efforts with fixing one of our beds. But it seems you still have much to learn.”

Kazuichi turned to meet with the new individual. Another alien in a green lantern uniform with a white doctor’s coat. He almost resembled that of a human but there were very obvious differences to him. Such as the fact that his face had line ridges beside his eyes. Even seeing some ridges on his chin. And his hair mostly on the back of his head, somewhat looking like he was balding on his forehead.

“Y-Yeah, seems like I do. Thanks by the way,” Kaz replied.

“It’s of no issue. Though you didn’t need to do that. The nurses and staff are usually in charge of cleaning the beds and such. But I will admit that you did an alright job. You just need a bit more practice,” the doctor said.

“Yeah… guess you’re right,” Souda uttered in agreement. Just then, the doctor did a scan with his ring on the teen, spooking him a bit. Then he processed all the information he gathered into his mind. 

“It seems you are in prime condition, young Souda. Your body is fully reenergized after a recommended 8 hours of sleep, all your injuries and bruises have nicely healed, and your testicular area has made a full recovery it seems,” he said with joy.

“Testicular what?” Souda asked in bewilderment.

“You’re reproductive organs of course. Your human anatomy was a new realm for me to explore as you’re the first human I’ve ever examined. It was a bit daunting at first, but after a few more examinations and references, I was able to figure out how your body functions and made the appropriate procedures to fix you up,” the doctor explained as he patted his shoulder. “So you don’t need to worry about your reproductive organs not working. They’ll work just fine when the time comes for you to mate with your significant other.”

Souda couldn’t help but be embarrassed by what he heard as his face blushed. “W-W-What the hell, man? Don’t say that so bluntly,” he yelled.

“Was that too much for you? I assumed you would want to know this as you were very adamant about them being healed. At least that’s what your friend, Arisia, explained to me,” The doctor expressed.

“I know and I get it. Just don’t say it so loud. Especially in an open room like this. It's embarrassing,” Souda explained.

“Oh, I apologize then. But as I said before, you have made a full recovery. So you are ready to continue your training with Kilowog,” the doctor told him. “So it would be best to get breakfast and head back to your squadron before you get a scolding or worse.”

Kazuichi couldn’t help but shutter at the idea of being punished by Kilowog, especially the beating he got yesterday from that one sided fight. “Yeah… don’t want to go through that again,” he uttered.

“Well, best not to leave you waiting. Go on ahead and get ready for the day. I’ll let Kilowog know that you’ll be ready for training today,” the doctor said as he wrote something on his clipboard.

“Alright then. Thanks for the help… uh… what is your name?” Souda asked, realizing that he didn’t know this guy’s name.

“Oh right, how silly of me to forget to introduce myself,” the doctor said with a laugh as he offered a handshake to the mechanic. “I am Dr Phlox, Green Lantern of sector 316.”

Souda took his hand and shook it with a smile. “Nice to meet you, Phlox, I’m Kazuichi Souda, Green Lantern of sector 2814. But I assumed you knew that already.”

“I did, but I appreciate that you gave me an introduction nevertheless,” Phlox expressed happily.

After a brief goodbye to one another, Souda left the infirmary, waving goodbye to Phlox, as he flew off to the cafeteria. 

At the cafeteria, the place was as crowded as ever with many Green Lanterns at their tables, eating their food for the morning. Souda left the counter with his green box as he looked for a place to sit. After a while of looking, he managed to find his group and flew towards them. 

“Hey guys, how are ya?” Souda started as he took a seat at the table. 

The group seemed to be happy to see the mechanic back, Arisia being the first to greet him. 

“Souda, you’re okay! I almost thought you wouldn’t be able to participate in today’s exercise or worse,” she said in relief.

“Hey, come on now. I know Kilowog beat my ass pretty badly yesterday. But I’m a lot more durable then you give me credit for,” Kaz replied as he opened his green box and ate his breakfast, pancakes with a fruit salad.

“Well yeah, but Kilowog was likely holding back. Even then, he threw you around like a ragdoll,” Ch’p commented as he was chewing on an acorn. 

Souda groaned a bit as he recalled the pain he received from his sergeant. “Don’t remind me,’ he muttered as he had food in his mouth.

“At least you know better than to challenge Kilowog again. Also, don’t speak with your mouth full,” Laira scolded the mechanic before she took a sip of her drink.

Souda pouted a bit before he swallowed his food, taking a drink to drown it all down. “I know, but still. I felt like I had to do something there. Like I wanted Kilowog to not be such a douche about training us. Yet I ended up looking like a jackass in the process. I just ended up getting my ass kicked in the most humiliating way possible,” he said in a depressed tone.

“I mean… you managed to survive through it before going unconscious. That has to count for something,” Ch’p remarked.

“Maybe, but he did not hold back. You guys saw what he did to me. Kilowog made sure I suffered and I certainly did,” Souda retorted.

“It is true that you went through a painful experience. But to say that Kilowog went all out against you is very much false,” Laira rectified, this getting the attention of the other three. 

“What do you mean by that? You saw what Kilowog did to Souda. How did he not go all out?” Arisia asked.

“I’d assumed you’d recall one detail before they fought. Mainly on the fact that Kilowog gave his ring to you before fighting Kaz,” Laria pointed out, making Arisia’s eyes widen in realization. 

“Oh yeah… he did do that…” Arisia uttered, remembering holding onto the ring during the entire fight. 

“Yeah, and Souda still had his ring on. When you think about it, Kilowog put himself at a disadvantage by fighting someone with a power ring,” Ch’p added.

“So that means… Kilowog put himself at a massive disadvantage on purpose,” Kazuichi said in realization. “But why would he do that?”

“As I said before, as harsh as he is, Kilowog is here to train us, to be ready for whatever we have to face as Green Lanterns,” Laira answered as she explained further. “In his way, he showed us the challenges we have to endure and how strong we must be to overcome them.” 

Those words resonated within Souda, Arisia, and Ch’p as they thought about all this better. Despite having one of the most powerful weapons in the universe, there was still so much that they had to learn. They had a good idea that they needed training to be able to fully use their rings. But now, they now see just how big of a gap it is to be a fully realized Green Lantern. Like with Kilowog and any other lantern within his level.

Ch’p was the first to speak. "Damn… he really is on another level than us, isn't he?”

“He is…” Souda responded. “How are we supposed to be anything like him?"

"We're not…” Laira answered. “We're supposed to be better."

“You’re really blunt about that,” Kaz retorted.

“I’m just stating the truth. We’re not going to be like Kilowog. We can only be what we make ourselves to be. Like I said, becoming a powerful lantern takes time. So don’t worry too much about the when, focus on the now,” Laira said to offer some comfort. 

“I guess you’re right. As much as I want to improve myself, I have to realize that it’s going to take time. Doesn’t mean it isn’t any less frustrating,” Arisia expressed as she still felt like she was lacking. 

Laira placed a warm hand on Arisia’s shoulder for comfort. “Everything will be okay. Things like this take time. So don’t rush it. You’ll do fine,” she said in supporting words.

Arisia let out a small smile as she looked at her ring, reflecting on the past few days in bootcamp, wondering if she was even worthy of this ring after failing so much. “Yeah… I hope so,” she replied with a sigh.

“You will, Arisia. Besides, despite some things, you’re doing better than me now after I challenged Kilowog like that,” Souda said to cheer up his friend. “I likely made an enemy with him and got my ass kicked badly because of it. Besides, what I did yesterday only made me look like a dumbass.”

“Well I think what you did was pretty damn impressive.”

The group were taken back by a new voice that entered their conversation as they turned to who said that. Greeting them was another fellow green lantern and like everyone here, he had a very unique look to him. For one, he had long blue hair and skin with his eyes being red. He was probably one of the tallest people they’ve met in the Corp. And while he wore his Green Lantern uniform, it was only noticeable from seeing the lower half of his body as he had black pants and green boots. And even then, they were made to be very baggy. In the upper body, he wears a light brown shirt with a skull ornament on his neck, chains dangling from it with a pair of dice at the end part of it. His most noticeable feature of him was the red coat he wore, with a Green Lantern symbol on the left side of it. He gave them a friendly smile, with a hint of cockiness in it. The group didn’t see anything bad about him but were a bit wary of his presence.

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to join you all for breakfast,” he said. The group didn’t have any time to agree on this or not as the blue man just sat on a seat between Souda and Arisia as he placed his green box on the table. Opening it, he was greeted with a bowl of stew. Grabbing a spoon, the blue man took a couple spoons in and seemed to enjoy himself.

“God damn, that’s some good old meat stew. Not as good as the stuff back home, but it’s definitely up there,” the man said in delight. 

Souda, Arisia, and Ch’p looked at the newcomer with awkwardness as they wondered why he was here. Laira seemed to be on guard in case he tried something on them. While the blue man didn’t seem like a potential issue, something about him felt off. 

Ch’p was the first to speak up as he asked, “Um… and you are?” 

The blue man stopped eating his stew as he looked at everyone at the table looking at him with a tense, uneasy look at him. Then it hit him on his head that he hadn’t properly introduced himself.

“Oh fuck, I thought I forgot something. My bad,” he said, rubbing the back of his head. He got up from his seat as he began to introduce himself to the group in a grand manner. “Feast your eyes on one of the toughest gunslingers on the planet Garnet on sector 17. The man that wiped out most crime in that hellhole. I’m the one and only, Jack T Chance!”

Kazuichi, Arisia, Ch’p, and Laira looked at this Jack with a perplexed look on them. Jack had presented himself with such high regard and was expecting some kind of praise. But they all either had a confused or odd stare at him. Not sure what to say to him. Jack noticed this as he began to question them.

“What? You never heard of me? Come on, I made a big impact in my sector, I gotta be well known by one of you,” Jack stated loudly as he looked at Souda and Arisia. “You two must have heard of what I did on Garnet, right?”

“Sorry, but we haven’t,” the two answered in unison. 

Chance had a shock on his face as he looked like he choked from the air itself. “Seriously, do you two live under a rock or something? How have you not heard of me?”

“Dude, I’m the first real human to ever join the Corp. My race hasn’t ever left our solar system,” Souda explained bluntly.

“And… I never really leave my planet… and there’s only so much news I can read,” Arisia replied, feeling embarrassed.

“Well… this is disappointing…” Jack uttered to himself in disappointment before paying his attention towards Ch’p and Laira. “What about you two? Don’t have my great introduction go to waste like that.”

“I don’t know. I hear a lot of stories and some tend to be true or fiction,” Ch’p expressed as he tried to remember. 

“Hey, my achievements are not fiction, rodent. They’re as real as they come,” Jack corrected as he focused on Laira. “Surely you, the great Laira Omoto, would know of me.”

Laira was taking a quick sip from her drink before she spoke. “I know of you, Jack. The man that ended almost all crime on your planet. You were hailed a hero to everyone there, celebrating your accomplishment for days.”

Jack couldn’t help but let out a cockiness of grin as he let out a laugh, patting himself on the back. “Glad to see someone recognize my skills.” 

“However, I have also heard of the troubles you’ve gotten yourself in as well.”

Those words caught Jack off guard as his smirk fades away, looking at Laira with a shocked face.

“You’ve been a Green Lantern for only a short while and already you’ve caused enough trouble to put you on probation,” Laira continued as she began to list off all the troubles he’s committed. “Where to even start? How about the amount of area and property damage you caused in a single day. The amount of money needed to repair your mess is astonishing.”

Jack fidgeted around a bit as he tried to brush off that issue. “Well… there were a lot of bad guys I had to deal with, take down, arrest, all that stuff. So collateral damage was unavoidable.”

“Maybe but the way you handled some of your situations was very irresponsible. I heard how you dealt with those criminals. Most of them were beaten to a bloody pulp, having to be taken to emergency care as a result,” Laira reminded him, causing the others to have shocked looks on their faces.

“Jesus dude, what the hell?” Souda uttered in shock.

“How can you do that yet brag about it?” Arisia questioned. 

Jack glared at the orange girl as he bluntly answered her question. “Because those guys were the worst of the worst. They were the reason my planet and my sector is the shithole that it is. Making people suffer for their own amusement. They deserved all the pain I gave to them and more.” 

“Maybe, but you should have handled the situation better. We’re supposed to be better than that,” Laira countered.

“I am better. I did the one thing everyone on my planet wanted to do. What needed to be done. And that’s all that matters,” Jack said in his defense. 

“Even if it means getting innocent people caught in the crossfire?” Laira questioned.

Any irritation or anger faded from Jack as he looked a bit ashamed from remembering that. “I mean… yeah… but they didn’t die or get injured too badly. That has to count for something.”

“No, that’s still very irresponsible of you to do,” Ch’p spoke as he felt just as disappointed by his reckless actions. 

“Whatever, I don’t have to take that from you all. Just because I’m somewhat of a mess, doesn’t mean I don’t take this seriously,” Jack grumbled, waving off any negative comments on him, before pulling out something from his jacket. To everyone’s shock, Chance pulled out a gun, twirling it around so casually. The group jumped out from the table as they backed away in caution.

“The fuck, man?! You carry a gun?” Souda yelled in fright.

“Why are you twirling it like that? Like it's a toy?” Arisia questioned. 

Jack didn’t seem to take her words seriously as he casually did some tricks with his pistol. “What… this is just a thing I do to relax. I like the sound it makes. Also the weight. Tried with constructs but it just doesn't have the same feel. Throws off my rhythm. I can even juggle three at the same time if you want to see.”

“I suggest you put that away or else you’ll get us in trouble,” Laira warned him.

Jack didn’t seem to take the situation seriously as he pulled out a second pistol and juggled it with the other pistol. “Oh please. I’m not an amateur, I know how to use these,” he said smugly.

Laria didn’t find his humor amusing as she glared at him with a fierce look, warning him that she was going to do something drastic. “...put them away or I am taking them away,” she warned Jack one last time.

Jack looked at her for a couple seconds, staring into her eyes and saw how serious she was. He knew he was one for wild fun, but there were lines that even he wouldn’t cross. Testing the patience of Laira is one of them. 

“Fine,” Chance said, letting out a sigh, as he twirled his guns one last time and put it back into the satchel.

“There, happy?” He asked the princess.

“Not really,” Laria replied as she and the others sat back to their seats. 

Jack grumbled a bit, not pleased at the predicament he was in, as he went back to eating his breakfast. “Guess my idea of impressing myself as grand as possible didn’t go all that well.”

“That does bring up something I’ve been meaning to ask,” Ch’p said as he asked his question. “Why are you even here? Was that all you wanted to do? To show off?”

“Well… that was half the reason. The other half was because I wanted to see the man that was either brave enough or dumb enough to fight Kilowog,” Jack answered, pointing his attention to Souda, who was shocked that Chance wanted to see him and cringe at remembering his fight with Kilowog. 

“Can it be both?” the mechanic uttered. 

“Hmmm… sure. But I have to admit, as someone that likes excitement in his life and battles all kinds of bastards in my sector, I had my doubts wanting to fight Kilowog,” Jack expressed as he faced Kaz. “But then you came, you decided to fight that giant bastard in a fit of rage. I have to admit, that got me impressed.” 

“Even when I got my ass kicked in more ways than one?” Kazuichi reminded the cowboy.

“Yup. You were at a complete disadvantage against Kilowog. There was no scenario where you had a chance of winning. Yet you keep going. Your rage and will wouldn’t allow you to do that. You’re a crazy son of bitch but with guts. I like that,” Chance said to the mechanic with a sense of admiration.

“I-I mean… I just did what I thought was right. To defend my friend. Despite the fact that it didn’t work out well. For a big guy, he moved so fast that I could barely react,” Souda pointed out. 

“Maybe, but somehow, not sure how, you managed to not only blindside the big bastard, but get multiple hits on him. No rookie that I heard of has ever done that. Even asked around and apparently this is news for everyone,” Jack stated, recalling the words he heard from other Green Lanterns. How many were shocked to hear the news of a rookie challenging Kilowog like that. “No one just talks back to Kilowog and punches him. That’s usually how you end up in the hospital or dead.”

“Learned that the hard way,” Souda uttered, eating more of his food. “I hope my ass being kicked was worth the watch. Cause I’m never doing that again.”

Jack waved his hand, acknowledging what he meant.

“Eh, that’s fine. At least I got to witness something like that. Besides, I can tell by looking into your eyes that you’re going to do more crazy stuff in the future. And I can’t wait to see it.”

Souda seemed to be confused by what Jack said to him. “Really? I doubt I’d do anything else crazy.”

Before he said anything, Jack picked up his bowl and placed it near his mouth. Slurping up all his stew, using the spoon to guide his food towards his mouth. Once he was down, he placed an empty bowl on the table, letting out a burp on the process. The group looked taken back by how fast he had devoured his breakfast that fast. 

Chance gulped down his entire drink before he spoke. “Trust me, kid. I can just tell you’re gonna do some amazing things in the future. Gonna keep an eye out on you.”

Like that. Jack T Chance got up from the table and walked away, waving them goodbye. The group looked in silence as they were still processing what they had just experienced. 

“Well… he was something,” Ch’p said, breaking the silence. 

“No kidding,” Kaz replied in agreement. “I didn’t think I would get the attention of someone like him.”

“He was certainly a thing. I mean, he didn’t seem bad or anything. He just felt… well…” Arisia spoke, trying to find the right words on how to describe Jack.

“Reckless, full of himself, and very much insane?” Laria finished for her.

“Harsh way to put it… but yeah,” Arisia nodded, feeling bad for having to describe someone in a negative way. 

“So what should we do about the guy?” Ch’p asking the important question.

“Probably best to not interact with him too much,” Laira suggested.

“Yeah. He doesn’t seem like a bad guy, but he definitely has his issues. More so than I want to really deal with,” Souda said in agreement. “Anyway, we should probably finish up our food so as to not be late.”

“Very much so. Especially as we only have about five minutes left before training begins,” Laira said, checking the time with a clock construct, having already finished eating here breakfast.

Kazuichi, Ch’p, and Arisia look at the warrior princess with shock in their eyes. Then looking down at their trays as they saw that they had about half of their food still. Knowing all that, three immediately got to work on finishing their food, stuffing their faces to finish their breakfast as fast as possible. Souda even tried to do what Jack did, shoving his food into his throat to consume it faster. It worked for about a few seconds before the mechanic began to feel a pain in his chest. He dropped his tray back on the table, trying his best to shallow the food, holding his chest to soothe the pain.  

"Did you seriously forget that some species consume food differently?" Laira said in a witty tone, letting out a small laugh. 

Kaz only coughed as he grabbed his drink and gulped it down. He let out a sigh of relief, taking deep breaths. “He made it look so easy though.”

In the deepest parts of space, we see Kilowog and his unit flying through space. The former leading his recruits to their next training course for the day. Today’s course felt very much different from the others as they were taken from Oa and led to a massive meteorite located in another star system. As they got closer, they saw that there was an arena, a faculty that was surrounded by giant walls. 

Once they landed, the unit found themselves in a massive battlefield-like course, the size of three football fields, looking like a torn apart landscape with holes, mud, trenches, barbed wire and random barriers spread around. They saw there were other areas and environments as well that looked just as difficult to navigate. And on the right of the arena, blocked behind a fence or just scattered through the battlefield, they saw old, worn out yellow robots. Standing there motionless, statue-like. Seeing them send a chill to a few lanterns due to how freaky they look and how uncanny they seem. 

“What are those things? They’re creepy looking,” Arisia uttered at the sight of these robots.

“They are definitely robots. Whoever designed them did their job to make them unsettling,” Kaz replied, feeling uneasy about these things. 

“You think we have to fight them?” Ch’p wondered, currently Kaz’s shoulder.

“Probably. Why else would they be here?” Souda answered.

The mechanic then felt his back be smacked, nearly causing him and the squirrel to fall, courtesy of Jack T Chance. 

“Come on, grow a pair. I think this is going to be exciting. Being allowed to fight and go all out, that sounds like a fun time,” Jack expressed with a smirk.

“Of course you say that,” Laira said, doing an eye roll. “And shouldn’t assume too much. We don’t know what our next challenge will be. There could be more to it than we initially thought.”

“She makes a good point,” Souda agreed. “We have to be prepared for anything. Kilowog does seem to like someone to put us in situations where we get hurt or worse.”

Jack brushed off the worry as he put his hands behind his head. “Yeah sure, whatever Kilowog has in store with us, I’ll be more than ready to take it on.”

“If you say so,” Souda uttered.

Arisia continued to look at the motionless yellow robots, fearing what might occur with them. Worrying that they will likely fight them, not knowing if she could handle them. Due to her train of thought, Arisia was distracted to notice a small piece of debris in front of her. She stepped on it, causing it to roll and make her slip. The orange girl looked in shock, her eyes closed, as she was about to fall to the ground. But to her luck, someone came in and caught her. 

“Woah, careful there. You don’t want to get hurt now.”

Arisia opened her eyes as she was greeted by a new face. Helping her back on her feet is a teen boy with black hair, slightly tanned skin and brown eyes. He practically looked like a human being like Kaz. He let out a smile as he made sure she was steady. Arisia couldn’t help being memorized by the person she was seeing. A teen boy that looked incredibly strong and towering, yet had a gentle aura about him. She couldn’t help but be memorized by the teen.

“Glad I caught you in time. Or that would have hurt,” he said in relief. “Are you alright?”

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine,” Arisia replied, feeling her face heat up a bit.

Just then, another rookie lantern appeared next to them. He was an interesting alien as he was literally a giant crystal ball with metal tendrils for arms and legs. Having a mohawk and two white triangular eyes. He approached the human looking lantern with curiosity.

“Oh dear, she is alright, Sodam? Any potential injuries that could affect her performance in this exercise?” the crystal ball alien asked in concern. 

“No, nothing like that. I caught her in time before she fell,” the teen named Sodam replied.

The spherical Green Lantern let out a relieved sigh. “That’s a relief,” he said before turning towards Arisia. “You should be more careful, miss. This place is filled with all kinds of small junk that one could easily trip over. Well those that need to walk on two feet. I don’t have that issue as I am able to float. Well, the ring lets me float but my species can float on their own without it.”

Arisia looked a bit confused, awkward mainly by what the crystal ball alien had just told her.  “Um, yeah. Good to know… I guess…” she uttered. 

“Is something the matter? Is something bad occurring to your head? Dizziness? Headache? Hearing a weird sound that only you can hear? Or maybe my body is reflecting light onto your eyes,” the alien rumbled on, making Arisia uncomfortable. “Maybe if I move at a certain spot so that the light won’t bounce off my body onto your eyes or-”

“Chaselon, cool it!” Sodam yelled, causing the crystal ball alien to stop talking. “Chaselon, you’re rambling again.”

“I-I am?” the alien named Chaselon uttered in shock before sulking. “Oh crystals, I did it again, didn’t I?”

“You kinda did. Don’t worry though. You’re fine,” Sodam reassured his friend.

Chaselon let out a sigh before facing Arisia, his eyes expressing remorse. “I apologize for my behavior. I-I seem to have a bad habit of babbling too much. I’m not used to talking with others. Again, I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. I get it. It’s hard to talk with people sometimes,” Arisia expressed in understanding.

“Indeed it is. I try to talk about any subject that I assume would be interesting, but it seems I only become overbearing. I don’t really know how to talk with others all that well as I have very few friends,” Chaselon admitted.

“Yeah, same here,” Arisia replied before holding onto Chaselon’s metal tendril arm. “But we can learn how to better talk with others as friends.”

Chaselon looked in shock at her words, even touched. “R-Really? You’d want to be my friend?”

Arisia gives him a small smile. “Of course. You seem nice. And the more friends, the better.”

Chaselon’s eyes sparkled as they expressed joy, even bouncing around a bit. “Oh that’s great. I am so happy to be your friend. I hope we can get along with each other.”

“Same here,” Arisia replied.

“Glad to see you’re starting to make friends. I knew you could do it,” Sodam said happily for his crystal ball friend.

“Well, I did have some help from your guidance. I am grateful for that,” Chaselon said, crediting his pal.

“Hey, I just gave you a guiding hand. That’s all. You did all the work,” Sodam reassured him. “Though we should probably get moving. We don’t want to be left behind.”

Arisia and Chaselon looked behind and saw that the group was a good distance away from them. 

“Indeed, we were way too absorbed in our conversation. Let us regroup as to not face Kilowog’s wrath,” Chaselon suggested.

“Good idea,” Arisia agreed as she flew off to catch up with the group, Sodam and Chaselon following behind. 

The three would catch up with the others as they were greeted by Kazuichi, Ch’p, and Laira. 

“Hey Arisia, we were starting to wonder where you were,” Kaz expressed.

“Sorry, I nearly tripped back there. Lucky for me, these two were there to help me,” Arisia said as he motioned towards Chaselon and Sodam. 

“Hello, it is a pleasure to meet you all. I am Chaselon, Green Lantern of sector 1416. I hope we can all be good friends,” Chaselon introduced himself. 

“Sure thing, buddy. The more the merrier,” Ch’p said, nodding in agreement. 

“Yes, the merrier,” Chaselon said, shaking his head in excitement.

Sodam looked happy for the crystal ball alien, glad to see him starting to make friends. Though his smile faded as he looked to his left to see Kazuichi staring at him. He felt a bit unnerved by the way the pink haired teen was looking at him. Looking complex and odd by his presence. Sodam was about to say something until Souda beat him to it. 

“I thought I was the only human,” Souda said in confusion.

“What? What do you mean?” Sodam uttered. 

“I mean, I wasn’t aware a second human was chosen to be in the Corps,” Kaz said before placing his hand on his chin. “Thought is more than one lantern allowed in each sector?” 

“It does happen often so I assume it’s allowed,” Ch’p replied before flying up close to Sodam and examining him. Looking back at Souda for reference. “Oh yeah… you two really do look the same in terms. Like two peas in a pod.”

“Wait, so does that mean another human came here without any of us knowing?” Arisia said as she examined Sodam. “It’s so interesting to see another human here. With black hair this time. Is it natural or painted?”

“What? No, it’s natural. And I’m not a human,” Sodam answered. “Just because we look the same, doesn’t mean we are.”

“In that case, what are you exactly?” Ch’p asked.

“Well, I’m what you call a Daxamite,” Sodam simply replied. 

Everyone seemed to be neutral on what alien species he was. Some wonder if they recall any information on them. Laira though seemed to have her eyes narrowed at Sodam. As she recognized the word “Daxamite.”. 

“A Daxamite?” Arisia said in wonder. “That’s a species I’ve never heard of.”

“I feel like I heard of them somewhere but I can’t recall anything,” Ch’p mentioned. 

Sodam rubbed the back of his head as he seemed to be avoiding eye contact. “You see, we’re what you call an isolated planet. We don’t even have space travel to do this sort of thing. A lot of this is new to me.”

Souda couldn’t help but chuckle from hearing that. “This is starting to feel funny to me.”

"How so?" Sodam asked.

"Well everyone else here looks different. Except us… no two races look alike yet here we are. That and we’re both new to this whole other life on other planets thing,” Souda answered. 

Sodam put it into thought as he shook his head in agreement. “That is true. I’m a Daxamite and you’re a human. And we’re from completely different sectors that are very far away from each other.”

“Maybe, but is there anything different about us?”

“Not sure. Maybe we’ll find out sooner or later.”

Souda and Sodam gave each other a friendly smile as the mechanic offered a friendly handshake, which Sodam accepted.

“Kazuichi Souda, Green Lantern of sector 2814.” 

“Sodam Yat, Green Lantern of sector 1760.”

“Aw, look at that. You two are already becoming friends,” Ch’p pointed out.

“That’s good. After all, the more friends, the merrier,” Chaselon added with joyful eyes.

“Indeed, though as much as I enjoy us becoming more acquainted with one another, we should focus on being prepared for the course ahead,” Laira reminded them. “After all, it seems we’re getting close to our destination.”

“Yeah, we should get moving,” Arisia agreed as she flew off to catch up with the group with the rest following.

As they caught up, Laira was greeted by Jack as he flew next to her. Seeming to have a more serious look on him. 

“Hey princess, couldn’t help but overhear your friendly talk with your two new pals,” he said quietly.

“And what of it?” Laira questioned him.

Chance made sure that the others were occupied with one another. And saw they were focused on each other without a care before replying back. “I heard about that Sodam guy being a Daxamite. Or did I hear him wrong?”

Laira immediately understood what he was saying as nodded her head. “You did not hear wrong. He is a Daxamite.”

“Fucking knew it. But why is one of them here?” Jack uttered as he glared at Sodam Yat. “Last I recall, they prefer being alone on their planet than being around us. Does he have some secret agenda? Or worse?”

“I doubt it. I sense no malice nor dark intentions within him. Besides, he was chosen to be a Green Lantern. I doubt a ring would want him if he thought the way his people do,” Laira stated as she looked at Sodam as well, who was chatting with Arisia. “I can tell he’s not an enemy, the ring chose him for a reason.”

Jack took her words into consideration before letting out a huff. “You better be right. But I’ll keep my eye on him… just in case. Better safe than sorry with them involved.”

Like that, Jack left Laira be and flew off. And Laira joined back with her group. As calm as she seemed, the warrior princess did have some doubts about Sodam Yat. Especially with her knowledge on the Daxamite species. However, she pushed that aside as he didn’t seem to be a bad person. Nothing about him hinted that he was like his people. Though surprises can occur when you least expect it. But as of now, Laira saw nothing wrong with Sodam. So there was no worry about him being close to her and her friends. She’ll see what happens and act accordingly.

Eventually, the unit would reach their destination. Finding themselves at a tower of some kind. Kilowog led the rookies inside, walking through the many hallways within. The group were silent at this moment, mentally preparing themselves for what this training course has to offer. Kilowog stopped as he was in front of a metal door, putting in a code, the door slid open as the sergeant stepped to the side.

“All of you. Get in.”

His command was short and simple. No threats or a loud tone in his voice. But the cadets did as they were told as to not face Kilowog’s wrath. One by one, they all entered the large room until all 15 were inside. Then Kilowog had the door closed immediately, locking them all inside. Many of them were feeling nervous, questioning what was going to happen. What their sergeant was going to force them into. Eventually, the lights lit up, brightening up the room, as a large screen turned on. On the screen was Kilowog as he stared down at his recruits with his usual glare.

“Alright cadets, aftering seeing that many of you are still lacking and some of you seem to like to be rebellious, I decided to try something new that will really get you poozers up to speed. Show you what a war for a Green Lantern is like!” Kilowog shouted through the mic as he began to explain as a protector cone out of the floor, lighting up a holographic replica of the arena the course would take place on. “For today’s exercise, you all will have to travel through this torn up battlefield and reach the other side. There, you’ll find a red flag waiting for you. Your goal is to grab that flag and take it back here. Once that’s done, the exercise will end.”

Everyone seemed to take in everything their sergeant said and understand it well. It was a very simple task for an exercise. Yet it was obvious that this course felt too easy. Like there was something else they needed to worry about.

“This sounds pretty easy for us to do. Yet I feel like there’s more to this course than he’s telling us,” G’nort spoke up.

“No shit. Knowing him, Kilowog has something else in mind for us. Something to make our task harder to do,” Lok commented. 

“And before you morons think this will be easy, there's more to this course,” Kilowog said before having the projector show them images of the robots they saw earlier on the battlefield. “You recognize these robots? These things are going to be your enemies, the ones that will stop you from trying to get the flag. They will do everything in their power to stop you. And as you can see, they’re painted yellow. So good luck trying to defeat them when your rings will just be flashlights to them.” With that, the screen turned off. 

“Well, isn’t that reassuring?” Ch’p spoke sarcastically.

“Whatever challenge we’re placed in, I’m sure we can overcome it together,” Spol said to inspire. 

“I hope so,” Salaah said telepathically.

In a different room of the building, we see Kilowog in front of a massive control panel as he has a good view of the battlefield with the windows. Pressing a couple buttons and switches, he was setting things up for the stage to be set. 

“Alright, you poozers. Let’s see what you all can do in a real life battle,” Kilowog uttered before pressing a red button.

As the recruits waited for whatever was going to happen, the room began to shake a bit as if a tremor was occurring. 

The sounds of gears clanked throughout the meteorite as many parts of the arena shifted and turrets moved around, and the robots came to life as their single visor grew a bright red. They twitched a bit, moving into odd positions or picking themselves up. But they eventually stood up straight, grabbing whatever weapon they were provided or found on the ground. The fences were lifted and the robots were allowed into the battlefield, standing in position, readying themselves for their enemies to come. 

Back at the room, the massive door split in two, the two halves sliding at opposite sides. Opening up to reveal the outside. All the recruits looked out to see an army of yellow robots. All of them standing there, staring at them with those bright red lights that were their eyes. Waiting on command to attack. To put the rookies through hell.

“Okay… this is very unsettling,” Souda commented as he looked at the yellow robots. Getting awful flashbacks to the Manhunter he fought a while back.

“Yeah, no kidding. They look like they’ll skin us alive for existing,” Ch’p said, hopping onto the mechanic’s shoulder. 

“You think we’ll be able to handle them?” Arisia asked.

Sodam placed his hand on Arisia’s shoulder to provide comfort. “Not sure honestly. But I’m sure we'll think of something.”

“Mission start!” 

“Wait what?” Souda uttered as everyone else looked taken back as well.

As soon as he said, the robots lifted up their guns and aimed at the unit. They immediately began to fire at their targets. Yellow beams of light swarming at the rookies as they were in a panic. Everyone immediately took cover, screaming as they either stayed inside the room or going out into the battlefield and finding something to hide behind. 

“Shit! We just started and already these things have us pinned!” Lok shouted.

“What do we do?!” G’nort shouted in a panic. 

“We get into a better position, that’s what! Everyone into the battlefield and find new cover! This little room won’t help us long!” Spol shouted. 

Like that, the rookies ran out from the small room and into the massive arena. Due to the barrage of yellow lasers that was coming in every direction, the recruits had to split up. All of them scattering like a flock of birds as they all went into different locations and directions of the field. The yellow robots chasing after them. 

Back within Kilowog, he looked to a different control panel next to him. This one had multiple screens on it that gave him better shots of his rookies respectively. All thanks to small microscopic bots following them.

“Hahaha, the lanterns in the Engineer and Tech Department really know how to build their stuff. Always one upping themselves with each repair they do. These robots are way more powerful and dangerous compared to last time,” Kilowog commented as he looked at how the yellow robots had the rookie lanterns cornered, shooting their guns or throwing yellow bombs at them. The sight of seeing his unit struggle against their foe brought a smile on his face. “These robots should really push these poozers to be better. Really help them grow a stronger spine.”

Back on the battlefield, everyone ran through the area, hiding behind anything to protect them from the continuous laser assault from the robots. Each lantern in a different part of the battlefield as they tried to figure out how to handle their current situation. 

In the deep trenches, five lanterns managed to join up together to form a group. The five people being Souda, Laira, Lok, Chaselon, and Jack T. Chase. All of them walk through the trenches, their feet pushing through muddy water, trying to navigate through the maze.

“God, it’s so muddy. I can already feel my feet getting wet,” Kaz complained as he looked at his mud covered boots.

“I don’t see the issue here. I can walk through it just fine,” Lok said, his webbed feet making it easy for him to move through the wet mud. 

“And I’m doing just as well,” Chaselon added as he floated in the air.

“Easy for you two to say,” Kaz muttered in frustration.

“Stay focused, you three. We have a goal to complete and cannot afford to be careless,” Laira told the three behind her.

“The princess is right. If these robots are ruthless as Kilowog said they are, we need to keep our guard up,” Jack added, his guns out as he looked around for the enemy.

They continued to navigate through the trenches, trying to find a path towards the flag. Yellow laser beams flying above them as they seem to try and hit them. They were lucky that being below ground was protecting them from harm but it made it difficult for them to figure where they were going. Having to use instinct and guesses to find out where to go. Passing by many pieces of broken tech and wood in the muddy water. 

“This is annoying. How the hell are we supposed to know where we're going? We can’t look up without one of us losing a head,” Jack grumbled.

“Then we need to find a way to properly navigate through the trenches. Any sort of signs or change of environment may suffice in knowing our location better,” Laira suggested.

“True, maybe I can create a construct that could help us. To guide us through this maze,” Kazuichi added as he looked at his ring. 

“What exactly can we make that would help us?” Lok said skeptically. 

“I don’t know. We just need something,” Kaz replied, brainstorming an idea. 

Just then, the group heard something fall into the trenches, making a splashing and squishy sound in the mud. They looked behind themselves to see a yellow robot. Looking at them with its single red eye. And behind it were two more of its kind. The three yellow robots looked at them with such intensity before they bolted forward, running at their targets in such an inhuman way.

“Robots heading our way!” Chaselon shouted in fright.

Jack took immediate action as he pushed through the group and aimed his gun as the yellow robots. He shot all his bullets at the robots with precise accuracy, aiming for places he assumed to be weak points. When the bullets hit their marks, they only bounced off their metal bodies. Only one managed to do damage as it pierced through one of their eyes. However, despite the damaged vision of its cracked up eye, the leading yellow robot still kept up its charge. 

“Okay, that didn’t do much,” Jack uttered in disbelief. 

“What do we do now?” Chaselon uttered in fear.

“We run, that’s what!” Lok replied as he hopped out of there, everyone joining him. 

The group ran through the trenches, taking different paths to try to escape from the enemy. But the yellow robots were right on their tails, moving at fast speeds. Their movements being inhumane with one of them was literally running on all fours. An unsettling sight for the more fear induced lanterns.

“Jesus, what the fuck?! They’re terrifying!” Kaz yelled in fright.

“I think that’s the point!” Jack replied as he reloaded his guns.

Just then, two of the yellow robots transformed their arms into guns as they began to fire yellow lasers at them. The group were trying their best to evade the blasts. Though it was very hard to do as being in a narrow path made it difficult to evade. One of the lasers managed to nearly hit Kaz in the face, only making a cut mark on his cheek. 

“Holy fuck…” he uttered in disbelief.

“Don’t worry. I have an idea!” Chaselon shouted as he created a green shield construct. 

“What the hell do you think that’s going to do?!” Jack yelled.

“Defend us for their attacks,” Chaselon replied.

But as soon as he said that, the yellow robots shot at the shield construct, ripping through it like it were made of tissue paper. One of the attacks hits Chaselon on the side, sending him crashing to the mud. The crystal ball alien groaned as he felt part of his glassy body burn.

“Shit, Chaselon’s down!” Kaz yelled, kneeling beside the alien and checking his wound. “We need to get him out of here!”

Lairs was the first to make a move as she ran up front and fired a laser out from her ring. Though her target wasn’t the yellow robots, but the upper parts of the trenches. She aimed it at just the right moment for the mud walls and wood to collapse onto the yellow robots, burying them. The path is now blocked by a hill of mud.

Laura turned back to her team. “This won’t hold them for long. Let's move while we have the chance.”

They all nodded in agreement as they began to move out. Chase and Lok moved first, and Souda and Laira followed behind, carrying Chaselon over their shoulders. The team took a turn to a different path to find whatever place they could find cover. Back at the mud pile, everything seemed quiet until it began to shake. A robotic arm popping out from it with a force.

Elsewhere on the battlefield, in rocky terrain, we see Arisia and Sodam running through the place. Dodging the many yellow lasers that were fired at them by the yellow robots that stood on a rock pillar. A few robots were even chasing after the alien teens, freaking them out with their unnatural moment.

“They’re gaining on us!” Arisia shouted in distress. 

“Just keep running! Or else they’ll get us!” Sodam yelled.

“But we need to do something! Or else they’ll catch up!” Arisia relied loudly.

“I’m thinking! I’m thinking!” Yat screamed.

One of the yellow robots got close to the rookies as it jumped into the air, leaping towards the defenseless Arisia. It was mere inches away from clawing its target to shreds. That is until a fireball, appearing out of nowhere, hit the machine at point blank, reducing it into pieces. More fireballs appeared and destroyed the other yellow robots on the ground before attacking the ones on the rock pillars. 

Arisia and Sodam stopped their running as they looked in shock at what had occured. Seeing whoever was launching fireballs at the yellow robots. Though the machines were quick to take cover and fight back with their own yellow lasers. 

“Well… that’s something to our benefit,” Sodam uttered, taking in deep breaths. 

“Though who’s the guy fighting them?” Arisia wondered.

“Hey, Arisia! Sodam Yat!”

The two turned to the person calling them as they were greeted by Spol, waving at them behind a boulder. “Over here! It’ll be safe!”

Heeding Spol’s call, Arisia and Sodam Yat ran towards the cyclops, jumping into the hiding spot he was in. They all took cover behind the boulder to avoid some of the yellow lasers coming at them. 

“Thank goodness you came. We were about to get torn up out there,” Sodam said in gratitude.

“Then I'm glad me and a friend came here in time,” Spol replied.

“Speaking of, who is your friend?” Arisia asked.

At that moment, a wall of fire appeared in front of them, giving them greater cover from the yellow robots. The flames were so hot that it looked like that stone around it was beginning to melt. The three lanterns raised their arms up for cover from the intense heat that came from the flames. Walking out from the flame wall was another Green Lantern recruit. 

His body was made of molten rock and magma. The inner body is composed of super hot inner plasma with volcanic rocks covering it. His head resembles a dome shaped fire with a rock like face. And like the rest, he dons a Green Lantern uniform. Though his entire arms and bottom half of his legs were exposed.

“Oh yeah, I’m totally hot. So hot that those lame robots can’t handle me, ” the plasma alien said as he let out a laugh at his own joke.

“Vulcan, be more careful with your flames! We were nearly blinded by it!” Spol shouted.

“Well sorry for being too awesome to look at,” Vulcan said, letting out a snicker.

Spol let out a groan. “As if Lok wasn’t bad enough to deal with,” he muttered. 

The four were spooked as more lasers blasted their way, the lanterns taking immediate cover beyond some rocks. Peeking out, they saw the yellow robots, some having climbed up higher rock pillars to get a better shooting range at them. A few were walking through the flame wall as they slowly approached the recruits. Despite the heat of the flames having somewhat melted their metal bodies and messing up their circuits, the machines were determined to destroy their targets. 

“Okay, these robots are pretty persistent. I’ll give them that,” Vulcan commented before launching more fireballs at the enemy. 

But as soon as he did, the yellow robots immediately activated yellow shields around them, blocking the fireballs. They then shoot more of their lasers, said lasers passing through the bubble shields towards their targets.

Vulcan took cover as a laser nearly hit him. “Oh that’s just not fair,” he uttered.

“We can’t stay here! We need to get the hell out of here!” Spol yelled.

“But where do we go?! It’s not like there’s anywhere we can go!” Sodam Yat pointed out.

Just when things were dire, they felt the ground shake for a moment, an intense shake, before a drill construct popped out before it disappeared. Creating a large hole as a result. The four lanterns were shocked by this until they heard someone call out.

“Everyone jump down here! You’ll be safe!”

Vulcan looks perplexed by this as he said, “So should we listen to this random voice that came from this hole?!”

More yellow lasers were blasted at them as the machines were getting closer. 

“Either that or we stay here and get wrecked! I say we jump in!” Spol shouted, with Arisia and Sodam nodding in agreement.

“Alright then, I’ll give us cover! Jump in!” Vulcan said as he fired more fireballs at the enemy. 

Spol was the first to jump onto the hole, then Arisia, then Sodam. Once they were in, Vulcan brought his hands together to create a massive fireball before igniting it into an explosion. Blowing back the yellow robots and tearing apart the area. Leaving a massive smoke screen behind. Vulcan immediately used this chance to jump into the hole while using his ring to gather rock and dirt to plug up the hole. 

After a few seconds of free falling, Vulcan finally landed on solid ground, finding himself in a new location. The fire alien uses his flames to light up the darkness that surrounds him. He saw that he was in a cavern. Vast in size and the air humid. Spike rocks on the ceiling with bodies of water all around. 

“Ugh, water. Why did I have to be near water?” Vulcan grumbled.

“Vulcan!”

Vulcan turned around as he was greeted by Arisia, Spol, and Sodam. All of them were glad to see him.

“Thank goodness you’re here. Especially with how dark it is here. Now we can see where we are,” Sodam said in relief.

“Okay, but you could have just used your lantern rings to light the way, right?” Vulcan pointed out. 

“We could. But you provide a more effective light down here. Plus we can conserve the power in our rings like this,” Arisia explained. 

“I’m reduced to a light source? Well that’s just swell,” Vulcan uttered in grouchy sarcasm.

“It is amazing though. Not only can you fight these robots without using your ring, but can light your way through pitch black darkness. Your species are such a versatile lot,” Arisia complimented the alien with admirable. 

Vulcan was taken back by the compliment but immediately formed a cocky smile as he took the compliment with pride. “Well, what can I say, my species are pretty awesome that way. You’re lucky you got someone like me here. Especially as I’m basically your trump card.”

“While you are indeed powerful, power and pure strength can only get you so far.”

Approaching the four lanterns was another Green Lantern rookie. She was an aquatic alien, a humanoid fish with light pink shiny skin that shared most traits from that of a shark. Having large fins on her arms and a fin tail on the back of her head. Like the rest, she wore a Green Lantern uniform, with her hands and feet exposed, showing her claws and web membrane between the fingers and toes. And was holding a silver trident in hand.

“You may be able to fight these machines without the hindrance of your ring’s weakness, but they will be far from easy. We need an effective strategy or else things will be dire for us,” she explained.

“I don’t know. My flames seem to be enough to really damage these robots. Especially since our rings don’t do jack to them. As much as I appreciate your advice, fish girl. I think I’ll be fine,” Vulcan said with confidence as he patted her head.

The aquatic alien smacked Vulcan’s hand off her head as she glared at him. “My name is Tala. And I would appreciate it if you remember it.”

“Yeah, that’s a maybe,” Vulcan said casually before walking off.

Tala let out a growl as she was able to do something to the pyro alien until Spol stopped her. “Just let it go. He’s not worth it. Besides, it's a thing with him that he can’t remember names. He keeps calling me cyclops.”

Arisia and Sodam walked beside them as they saw the whole thing. “He is definitely something,” Arisia commented before facing Tala with a smile. “But I have to say. Thank you for saving us back there.”

“Yeah, even with the fire guy, we would have likely been in trouble if it wasn’t for you,” Sodam added.

Tala felt herself blush a bit as she felt a sense of happiness flow through her. “I-I am very glad to hear that.”

“So now that we’re safe, what should we do? We have an objective to complete and those robots are making it difficult to get to the flag,” Spol spoke out. “And I have no idea how we’re supposed to get past them with our weakness exploited.” 

“Well lucky for you all, I have a plan that can help us,” Tala answered confidently. “Hence why I brought you all here inside this cavern.”

“Really now? And pray tell how we’re gonna get to the flag with all this rock and water around us,” Vulcan asked, trying his best not to step into any puddles of water.

“We’re going to use the caverns to guide us towards the flag without issue,” Tala said as she began to explain. “Many may not know this, but my species has an ability known as echolocation. It allows me to find the location of objects by reflected sound. I can use this to help us figure out where to go and to guide us there.”

“That could work. Would help us out on where to go in this maze of a cave,” Spol said. 

“Hold on. I noticed an issue with this plan,” Sodam called out as he began to point out the issue at hand. “I’m no expert or anything, but last I recall, doesn’t echolocation only really work underwater? And how exactly would you be able to find the flag with all this rock blocking you?”

“Actually, echolocation can work out of water through the air by usage of sound or movements,” Arisia corrected her friend. “But he is right about one thing. I don’t see how you can use echolocation with the walls of stone blocking us all around.”

Then suddenly, the cave began to shake for a bit, pebbles falling off the ceiling due to an explosion. One pebble hitting Vulcan’s head then falling off. 

“And I’m pretty sure those loud explosions and fighting is going to make it harder for you to sense anything,” Vulcan pointed out. 

“That is true, but I have my ring with me. And I can use it to enhance my echolocation. Enough to allow me to see the entire battlefield clearly. To see where we need to go and guide us through the caverns,” Tala explained.

“Can you actually do that with your ring?” Sodam asked.

“Well, it is said that the ring can do anything with enough imagination and willpower. So this should be possible,” Arisia answered.

“Then it’s settled. Tala will help guide us through the caverns of this place while we help her however we can,” Spol said, Arisia and Sodam nodding in agreement. Vulcan being the only one being skeptical about all this. 

“So, I have a question,” he spoke, raising his hand.

“This isn't a classroom, you don’t need to raise your hand, Vulcan,” Tala told him.

“Anyway, what happens when the bots follow us, and we hit a dead end?” Vulcan pointed out. “I mean, we are in an enclosed space… and this isn't a good place for me to do my stuff without burning you guys too.”

“Well, you have me. I can manipulate the water with and without the ring. So I can be full support. And if we reach a dead end, we can just dig our way through with a simple construct. Besides, don’t you know how to focus your attack on one enemy at a time?” Tala questioned.

Vulcan felt a bit embarrassed, looking a bit reluctant about answering her question. Though as much as he hated to admit it, he told the truth. “…I haven’t learned it yet. I found it easier to just unleash my flames all around me anyway. I’m still the best though.”

Tala looked at him with an amusing smirk on her, seemingly enjoying his moment of embarrassment. “Well, they say danger is the best teacher. So learn it fast or become dead weight, your choice.”

“You're the ones that will get burned.”

“Not if I soak you to prevent it.”

Vulcan looked annoyed as the aquatic alien as his flames grew hotter in anger. “Ugh, you're a bummer,” he uttered.

Tala let out a giggle in response. “Someone has to keep you in check, Captain Magma,” she said in a mocking tone, much to Vulcan’s irritation. “Now, allow me to do my thing.”

With that, Tala began using her echolocation, all while activating her ring to enhance her ability. Waves of her enhanced echolocation flew all over the caverns, passing through the bedrock, and then reached into the surface of the battlefield. Feeling everyone from living to machine, and all obstacles and landmarks. Having a clear idea of what she is seeing, Tala focused all her efforts into finding where her prime target was. After a while of pinpointing smaller objects in different locations, she was able to find the red flag and where it was.

“I found it,” Tala said suddenly as she pointed her trident at the direction they needed to go. “This way.”

“You guys heard her, let’s follow,” Spol told the others as they all followed the aquatic alien. 

“Are you really sure this is the right way?” Vulcan asked.

“I’m positive. I know where we’re going. Now please keep up, Captain Magma. We need your fire to light the way. Seems to be the only good use you have so far,” Tala replied in an insulting tone.

Vulcan growled at his nickname but smirked as he replied, “Whatever you say, fish girl.” Getting a groan from Tala.

“Wow, those two aren’t getting along with each other,” Arisia whispered towards Sodam.

“Not kidding. Better to let them sort it between each other,” Yat said back, the teen girl nodding in agreement. 

Like that, Tala guides the group through the caverns with Vulcan providing light for the others. All of them preparing themselves for what could occur on their journey.

After a few twists and turns of the trenches, the group of lanterns were able to find a bunker room. Jack was the first to enter the room, checking out for any potential danger. Once the coast was clear, Chance signaled the others to come in. Kazuichi and Laira carried an injured Chaselon inside the room as they laid him against a crate. Lok entered next as he made sure no one was near before closing the door. 

“Okay, we’re safe for now,” Lok uttered, taking a moment to breathe.

“Yeah, but it’s only a matter of time before those damn machines find us. Let’s look around to see what we can find to defend ourselves,” Jack said as he put his guns away. “I’ll check around to find anything we can use. Even tell where we are in this damn maze.”

Laira and Souda are beside Chaselon as they check on his wound. It seemed the part of his glass body had cracked a bit and heated up, other than that, he seemed fine.

“Doesn’t seem too bad. How are you feeling currently?” Laira asked.

“Well, other than the burning pain on my side and my head spinning, I should be fine. I do apologize for being a burden back there,” Chaselon said, feeling a bit down about himself. 

“It’s fine. We just did what any good teammate would do. We’re just glad you’re okay,” Souda reassured him. 

“Thought it was stupid of you to make a shield construct against them. Did you forget that our rings don’t affect yellow?” Lok intersected, looking through a crate for weapons. 

“As harsh as that was, he is right. Why did you do that?” Kaz asked.

“I assumed that having something to protect us from the lasers would help. I was in a bit of a panic though as I forgot about that detail. I apologize for my incompetence,” Chaselon apologized.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. Learn from this and be better,” Laira said, using her ring to heal the wound somewhat. “Now can you get up?”

Chaselon grunted a bit but was able to hover himself back up. “I think I can manage… hopefully.”

“It better be. Cause we got a lot of work to do,” Jack said, having created an odd looking telescope construct. The construct passed through a small few inch opening until it reached the outside. It looked around the area, looking for something, until it finally found it. Spotting the red flag many meters away. 

Jack pulled away from the telescope as he made a compass construct. Looking at it to tell him which directions are which. Once memorized, he clicked his finger to make his telescope construct disappear as he faced the group. 

“Okay, before I give my info. Lok, what did you find?” Chase asked the frog.

Lok only let out a sigh as he dropped a bunch of objects to the ground. “Just a bunch of junk. We could probably use them as makeshift weapons, but I doubt they’ll do us much good.”

Laira went to the pile and picked up a rusty yet sturdy pipe. “Maybe not, but we’ll have to make due. We don’t have many options here.”

“She makes a good point. I can probably do something with this,” Jack said as he grabbed the pickaxe.

The others went into the pile and picked up a weapon of their own. Chaselon chose an off looking sledgehammer and Lok picked up a pair of hammers. Kazuichi was the last to choose and the only thing that he could find as a weapon was a large rusty wrench.

“The mechanic gets the wrench. Of course. At least it’s big and bulky,” Souda commented before looking at Jack. “So what did you get?”

Jack activated his ring as he summoned a hologram of the map of the entire arena, getting every detail of it on point. “This white dot is where we’re at,” Jack said, pointing at the white dot then moving his finger at the very end of the arena, where a tiny flag was. “And that’s where the flag is. Judging from the distance, it’s probably about 600 meters away. So we have a long way to go before we even make it half way.”

“So where should we go from here?” Laira questioned, looking through the trench maze they were in.

“We just take the paths that lead us north. We can use this compass I made to get use there,” Jack answered as he showed them his compass construct. “This should help us get there easier. Though once we clear the trenches, we’ll be in this location. A plain valley with very little or no cover. So once we get there, we’ll have to plan something to get through because this is our only path to the flag.”

“So we’ll all be sitting ducks out here. How exactly are we supposed to defend ourselves against these robots if our only means of attack is useless to them?” Lok questioned.

“He is right. We are at a massive disadvantage here. We practically can’t do anything at this state with our weakness used against us,” Chaselon added, soothing his wound.

“Not true,” Laira said as she countered their point. “This is a test to see how we handle an enemy with our weakness used against us. I have been taught that even when the odds are stacked against you, you adapt, change your strategy, find a new way to win while still using what you have against them.”

“She’s got a point. And besides, Kilowog said it himself.  We’re supposed to get to that flag and bring it back to base. We don’t need to defeat these robots, just grab the flag,” Kaz pointed out.

“Alright, but how exactly are we supposed to get there then?” Jack asked 

“I’m sure we’ll find a way. We just have to think of a plan.” Laira answered. 

Just then, something shot through the door to the bunker room, tearing through the metal like paper, revealing to be a yellow mechanical arm. The arm reeled back to the edge part of the hole as it began to peel the metal back, making the hole bigger. Revealing one of the yellow robots they had fought earlier. Its red eye still cracked as sparks came out. And behind it, we’re more yellow robots, waiting for the door to open, then destroying whoever was inside. 

“Guys?” Souda uttered in fright.

“Everyone stand your ground,” Jack said as he lifted up his pickaxe. “We’re gonna be in for a nasty fight.”

The rest raised up their weapons as they prepared themselves for a fight for their lives.

In a different area of the battlefield, we’re taken to a jungle area. Large trees with roots popping out, vines covering all over, so much grass all around, this area was completely overtaken by the plant life. G’nort and Ch’p were running around like crazy as they tried to avoid not getting shot. The yellow robots run, crawl, or jump from tree to tree after them. In Ch'p case, mostly running and evading from the yellow robots that were trying to grab or crush him. 

“Holy moly, these guys don’t quit!” Ch’p shouted as he was running away from a robot chasing him, which was running on all fours. 

“My bites don’t do anything to them either!” G’nort replied as he was running from the laser blasts. 

Ch’p scurried about as fast as he could, even jumping into a hole of a tree to hide in. However, this proved futile as the yellow robot grabbed into the hole and split the tree to two, revealing the squirrel. Ch’p tried to make a run for it but was hit with a laser blast from the robot’s eye, sending him crashing to the ground. As the little creature tried to get up, the machine appeared and stomped its metal foot on him. Ch’p managed to grab onto the foot in time. But was now trying his hardest to push it back so as to not be crushed. 

“Ch’p!” G’nort shouted in distress, running back to save his friend  

But one laser managed to hit G’nort in the arm. The force being enough to knock him to the ground. As that happened, multiple robots appeared and swarmed the dog lantern, kicking him from all sides. G’nort whimpered, curled up into a ball, as he tried to do anything to get out of his situation. But was greeted by another kick to the face. 

“This is bad… this is really bad…” Ch’p uttered as he felt the metal foot push closer and closer to him. 

All seemed hopeless as the squirrel was trapped and the dog was being kicked all over. That is until…

“AAAAAAAAH! AH! AAAAAAAH! AH! AAAAAAAH!”

The robots stopped kicking G’nort as they looked up to see where the yell was coming from. They eventually spotted someone coming at them through the air. Swinging towards the machines on a vine as if they were Tarzan. The individual being a literal black duck that donned a standard Green Lantern uniform. Though his most noticeable thing about him is how cartoonish he looks.

“Have no fear, fellow lanterns! For it is I, Darvin Duck, is here to save you all!” the duck announced triumphantly. 

All the robots immediately took aim at the duck and started firing their yellow lasers at him. Darvin screamed as moved his body like crazy to avoid getting shot. He reached closer and closer to the machines as he was ready to kick them with his web feet. 

But the robots moved out of the way, letting Darvin swing pass them. The duck yelled in frustration at his failed plan. 

The robots continued to fire at the duck as G’nort seemed to be ignored. Much to the dog’s relief. However, his moment of rest was over when his ears picked up something. Looking at one of the trees behind them, G’nort saw that the base part of the tree had been damaged to the point of being unstable. The upper weight of the tree became too much as it crumbled down and tumbled down towards his direction. G’nort immediately crawled away as the robots were too distracted on the duck Green Lantern to notice. Because of this, the tree ended up falling onto the machines, crushing them with its massive weight, destroying them. 

Darvin the Duck swung back to the area, still screaming in a panic until he hit face first on a tree. The duck fell off the tree to the ground, his face mangled up from the crash. His beak was bent as his eyes swirled from dizziness, stars floating above him all while uttering nonsense.

Back with Ch’p, he was feeling his limbs give out as the robot’s foot inched closer and closer towards him. The squirrel felt dread as the robot stared down at its victim. Knowing that this will be the end of this lantern.

Swoosh!

Ch’p was shocked by the sudden sound of metal being torn apart and the fact the robot stopped applying pressure on him. In fact, the robot was lifted in the air then thrown to the ground next to the squirrel. The robot was twitching as its chest area had been torn through, oil and wires revealing. Ch’p was then spooked when an invisible force crushed the machine’s  head like a soda can.

“…what the hell was that?” Ch’p uttered in confusion.

Ch’p ran up towards G’nort as he was rubbing his bruises while Darvin pulled himself back up. Shaking the stars off his head.

“Well, that could have gone better,” Darvin said to himself, patting dirt off his uniform.

Just then, they three heard the sounds of metal clanking coming towards them. They see another group of yellow robots running in their direction. Though they saw someone else that was running away from the robots. That being Salaah as she was slithering through the ground like a snake and avoiding getting shot at. 

“Guys, help me out here!” Salaah screamed in terror.

“Oh no, more robots. What do we do?” G’nort uttered in fear.

“Fear not, dog. I, Darvin, will save you all. With my telepathic powers!” Darvin announced as he raised his hand up to use his powers.

“Darvin, how many times do I have to tell you?! That cup fell on its own! You don’t have powers like me!” Salaah shouted in frustration.

“You’re just saying that so I don’t use them, keeping all that power to yourself,” Darvin retorted as he was trying to destroy the robots with his mind. 

“ Get it through your thick head! You don’t have-”

Then suddenly, one of the robots was slashed in half. Its upper body separates from the lower half as they fall to the ground. The other robots stop to examine this while the others have a look of shock by what they just witnessed.

“Huh, I was going for more of crushing him into a cube. But this works too,” Darvin spoke. 

As some of the robots still examined their sliced up brethren and the others were facing the lanterns, they heard something. The sound of clicking echoed throughout the area, sounding beast-like. The robots became cautious at a possible threat nearby while the other lanterns felt a chill from how unsettling the clicking is. 

As soon as the clicking stopped, the yellow robots were attacked again. This time one was shot in the head by a blue energy blast. The machines didn’t have time to react as an unknown force began its assault. Three disks were thrown as they embedded themselves within their target’s heads. The three robots falling and twitching from their damaged circuits. 

Then in an instant, the same unknown force appeared once more and attacked the remaining robots. Slicing, stabbing, crushing, blasting, and so much more were used to destroy the machines one by one. They weren’t given a single chance to counterattack as every single one was destroyed. All of them were reduced to scrap metal. The four rookies being in awe and shocked by what they just witnessed 

“Holy moly, I didn’t know my psychic powers were that strong,” Darvin said, amazed by his own ability.

“Will you please stop with that?” Salaah said loudly. “Besides, that wasn’t psychic powers. This was something else entirely.”

“If that’s the case, who or what did this?” G’nort questioned.

Ch’p was just as curious and perplexed by what had occurred. But he was the first to notice the movement of the dirt, being kicked up into the air. Like someone was walking there. And the clicking noise came back that the others picked up on. The sound was more clear as the clicking was coming in front of them. This unknown force kept kicking up the dirt as it got closer to the four Green Lanterns before it stopped in front of them. Then suddenly, the air began to distort, blue flashes of light flickering, as someone came into view.

Coming out from his cloak tech was another Green Lantern recruit. Though his uniform was odd as only his chest bore the black and green colors of the Corps, with a white circle in the middle of his chest. The rest of his outfit, he has metal shoulder pads with metal gauntlets on his arms. He has other pieces of armor on the shin part of his legs. He had fishnet clothing that covered his legs and stomach. The most noticeable features were the gun on his shoulder and the gray mask, the eyes glowing yellow and his dreadlocks in full view. 

He stood in front of the lantern recruits, retracting his claws back in the right gauntlet, as he flicked some oil off his hand. 

“Well, he seems nice,” Darvin spoke out.

Ch’p was the first to approach the alien hunter as he floated in front of him. “So you’re the one that did all this? Even saving me from being crushed earlier?” he asked. 

The masked alien didn’t say anything, only letting a few clicks out. Though he did answer back with a simple nod. 

“In that case, I outta thank you for saving me back there. Same with the others. Things could have gotten ugly if it wasn’t for you,” Ch’p said happily. 

The alien hunter simply nodded in acknowledgment as he joined the group.

“Good that we have a competent fighter in our group. I feel like things will only get tougher as we get closer to the flag,” Salaah commented.

“Pfff, maybe he is good, but not at my level. I mean, what are weapons compared to my incredible psychic powers?” Darvin gloated.

Salaah said nothing as she simply used her real psychic powers to lift Darvin in the air and slam him repeatedly against the tree before throwing him to the ground. Darvin groaned in pain as he was seeing stars again. 

“Try beating that, idiot,” Salaah said as she slithered away. 

Darvin shook off his dizziness and injuries as he tried to pick himself back up. “…you’re despicable,” he uttered.

Just then, G’nort appeared in front of the duck and offered him a hand. Darvin was reluctant at first but accepted the offer. Grabbing the dog’s hand as he helps him back on his feet. 

“I just wanted to thank you back there. I was really in trouble with those robots attacking me like that. And if it wasn’t for you distracting them, I might have been a goner. So again, thank you,” G’nort said with a smile, showing gratitude to the duck.

Darvin seemed aback from this thank you, but immediately went back to his usual egoistic self. “But of course. It is only natural to help a fellow lantern in need. You were lucky I was around when I was. But not to worry, as long as I’m here, we’ll be ready for anything,” he said confidently.

G’nort couldn’t help but look at Darvin with admiration, feeling relieved that this duck is here to help them. “I’m sure we will. I’ll help you out however I can,” G’nort replied.

“Huh, someone wanting to be my sidekick. Never thought it would happen but I’m not complaining,” Darvin said to no one, making sure G’nort wouldn’t listen, before wrapping his arm around the dog alien’s shoulders. “Good to hear, pal. Stick with me and we’ll be able to make it through this a-okay.”

“You truly are the best, Darvin,” G’nort said happily.

“I know I am. Cause I’m me,” he replied smugly.

As the two started to become acquainted with each other, Ch’p and Salaah looked at this whole ordeal with worry and uncertainty with their team up.

“This doesn’t seem like it’ll end well,” Ch’p uttered.

“Likely won’t,” Salaah said, nodding in agreement. “Let’s keep an eye on them in case anything goes wrong. Especially with the duck.”

“Agreed,” the squirrel replied. “But getting back to our situation, how do we get to the flag? With how we are, and yellow robots running around, it’s going to be tough getting there. Even with our hunter friend helping us.”

“That is true. Those robots could be anywhere. And ambushing us would be easy for them with how thick this jungle is,” Salaah said, examining how much greenery and cover there was for the enemy to take advantage of. “We need a safe way to travel. Though we also need to know where the flag is.”

Ch’p tried to think of an idea but couldn’t think of anything. “This is gonna be difficult. Maybe our new friend can help us.” But to his shock, the masked lantern was gone. Nowhere to be found. “What the… where did he go?”

“He was just here a moment ago…” Salaah said in shock.

Then suddenly, the hunter alien came back, appearing from the air as he landed beside them. Ch’p and Salaah were spooked by this as they nearly fell. Their mind's racing from the sudden adrenaline.

“Don’t scare us like that! Nearly made me pop a vessel!” Salaah shouted, trying to calm down.

The masked lantern didn’t react to her response as he kneeled to the ground. He then used his finger to drag it through the dirt, creating line after line. Ch’p and Salaah looked from behind to see what their ally was doing. Darvin and G’nort joined in as they looked at the writing the hunter alien was doing.

“Huh, what’s this? A drawing? Trying to draw a puppy? A kitten?” Darvin asked, examining the drawing with an unsure look. “Well, you’re doing it all wrong. Let me fix it for you.”

Darvin tried to place his hand to the ground to draw something. But the masked lantern grabbed his hand to stop him, growling at the duck to back off or else. He took the hunter’s warning and immediately backed away. 

“On second thought, it is your drawing so you would know what you’re doing,” the duck uttered, not daring to anger the alien.

The masked lantern just shook his head as he went back to his drawing. It didn’t take long until he was done. He motioned his hand for the others to look at it. The four rookies looked down to the ground and saw what their ally had drawn. The picture was that of a map, lines and scribbles were used to resemble certain landmarks. There were five dots in the bottom of the map and a flag symbol in the very top. With a dotted line between them. 

“What is this? This looks like nothing but scribbles and circles. Like a five year old drew it,” Darvin commented before looking at the masked lantern. “You need to take art classes.” The masked lantern growled as the duck who raised his hands up defensively. “Hey, I’m just saying.”

“I’m pretty sure this is a map,” G’nort corrected. 

“Yeah… I knew that. Just wanted to know if you guys knew that,” Darvin said, quickly refixing his composure.

“ Yeah right,” Salaah uttered, seeing through his facade. “Though this will definitely help us in the long run. I assume these dots are us and this flag symbol is… well, the flag?”

The hunter nodded to her question.

“And the dotted line is the path we need to take to get there. How long would you say it will take us to get here in minutes?” Ch’p questioned.

The masked lantern raised his hands and put up nine of his fingers.

“About nine minutes? So we’re not that far off from it,” Ch’p said. “But it will be hard to get to the flag with how thick this jungle is. Robots possibly hiding in wait for us, it’ll be hard to get to it like this.”

“So what should we do?” G’nort asked, everyone wondering that themselves. 

Lucky for them, the masked hunter had an idea. Jumping into the air towards the nearest tree, perching on a large tree branch. Doing some hand movement before pointing his finger in a certain direction. 

“What is he telling us to do now?” G’nort wondered.

“Let’s see…” Darvin tried to analyze his hand movement to decipher his message. “I got it. He’s telling us that there’s an exotic bird we have to see. Didn’t take him as a bird watcher.

The masked lantern made his clicking noise filled with irritation as he did his hand motions again.

“No? Okay, you want us to… examine the flowers up there. Though I’m not seeing them. Maybe they’re hidden,” Darvin guessed again. 

The hunter growled as he motioned his arms into an X, signaling no, and tried again with his hand motions to tell them what he’s trying to say. Specifically towards the duck as he tried to be as detailed as possible. 

Darvin thought hard on this as he knew it was something else the masked lantern was trying to tell him. “I got it now! You want us to hug the trees like a bunch of hippies! I may be a lot of things, but a hippy isn’t one of them! So I may not do this.”

The hunter alien only responded with a rage filled roar as he slammed his head against the bark of the tree. Rending it to the point that the top part of the tree fell off. Most of the branches fell to the ground below and chucks of wood flew everywhere. 

“For a supposive tree hugger, that’s not really environment friendly,” Darvin pointed out bluntly before Salaah smacked him hard in the back of the head. “Ow!”

“You idiot! He’s telling us to climb up the tree! Then jump or fly from tree to tree for travel!” Salaah yelled, the masked lantern nodding with her.

“Well why didn't he just say that? Would have avoided the confusion,” Darvin said as he flew up to the tree. 

Salaah's eyes twitched a bit as she looked like she was going to pop a vessel. “This duck, I swear!” she yelled. 

“Just let it go. Better that than to dwell on it too much,” Ch’p advised his friend as he climbed up the tree.

Salaah just groaned, letting her anger go as she flew up with the others.

G’nort was the last to fly on the tree as the group were ready to begin their journey. Though the masked hunter did some hand motions first as he was telling them something, even pointing at Ch’p at one point. 

“Hey, you seem to understand him well enough. What is he saying?” Ch’p asked Salaah.

“He’s saying that he’ll be in the front and we will follow him. And he also wants you to join him. I assume it’s due to your size. You’ll be able to move faster and be less likely to be spotted,” Salaah explained before looking at the hunter. “Is that correct?” The masked lantern gave her a thumbs up in response.

“Okay, I can do that,” Ch’p said as he stood next to the hunter. “Lead the way,” 

The masked lantern nodded in response as he jumped towards a tree in front of him. Ch’p followed suit, then the others came after. Lanterns like the hunter, Ch’p and Salaah were able to jump and climb through the trees without using their rings. Darvin flapped his arms to fly from tree to tree. G’nort was the only one that used his ring to float through the air.

Ch’p stayed close to the masked lantern before asking him a question. “Hey, just a quick question and to make things easy for us, what should we call you? Or more specifically, what’s your name?”

The hunter alien was silent for a moment before looking at his left wrist gauntlet and began pressing buttons. Then suddenly, a recording began to play from his mask. Hearing a bunch of different voices being jumbled together to form a sentence.

“M-My name i-i-is… Juttam Entum… Ra Yanumarasi…”

Ch’p was taken back, mainly due to how long his name was. Even having trouble trying to pronounce it.

“Juttam… Entam Ra… Yanumushi?” he said.

Juttam shook his head no at his pronunciation. 

Salaah was the next to try. “Juttum Enam Ra Yamari?”

Juttam shook his head again, making an irritated clicking sound. 

G’nort then gave it a shot. “Jutm Enm Ri Yanumarshi.”

Juttam growled at the dog for that awful pronunciation.

“I’m sorry. Your name is just really hard to pronounce,” G’nort defended himself, hoping the masked lantern wouldn’t hurt him.

“Geez, whoever gave you that unnecessary long name must have really hated your guts,” Darvin commented. “I got it. Instead of having to remember that ridiculously long name and making our lives harder, let’s just give him a nickname. Let me see…” Darvin thought hard on what to use for their mute companion. “I got it! Let’s call him Jery!”

The four looked at the duck with shock, Jerry being the most flabbergasted though it was hard to tell with the mask on him. 

“Jerry? Why Jerry?” Salaah asked. 

“Simple, this name is short, easy to say, and it makes him stand out. Plus I used the first four letters of his four part name and combined them together. An acronym if you will,” Darvin explained proudly.

Salaah looked in shock at what the duck said, his words sounding smart. “I don’t know what’s surprising, the fact you can create an acronym or the fact you actually know what an acronym is,” she pointed out.

“Guess you just underestimate my intelligence as you underestimate my power. But not to worry, you’ll probably be close to being as great as me. Shoot high and maybe you’ll reach my level,” Darvin gloated with pride.

“Golly, you really are amazing. I hope I can be as great as you,” G’nort said happily.

“Don’t worry, G’nort. Like I said before, I’ll be here to help and guide you no matter what. Now follow me, sidekick. Let us continue our journey and capture that flag!” Darvin proudly announced as he was about to fly off with the dog lantern following.

“Hold up!” Salaah shouted, stopping the two. “Did you forget that he’s the one that’s supposed to lead us to our destination?” She said all this as she pointed her tendril at Jerry.

“Oh yeah, well what are you waiting for, Jerry? Lead us to the flag. We don’t have all day!” Darvin commanded the hunter. 

Jerry growled as he looked like he was about to attack the duck. But Ch’p stopped him as he jumped on his shoulder.

“Cool it, man. He’s not worth it. Plus we’re in a dangerous situation where we need all the help we can get. So just tolerate him for now,” Ch’p told Jerry.

Jerry let out his clicking as he was contemplating on what to do with Darvin. But after thinking it through, the masked lantern let out a massive puff of hot air. Deciding that he will not do anything to the duck. At least not yet. 

“F-F-Fine…” he replied with his recorder. 

“Great, then let’s get going, Jerry,” Ch’p said cheerfully to his friend.

“Yeah, lead the way, Jerry,” Salaah replied.

“You can do it, Jerry,” G’nort said, encouraging his ally.

“We’re counting you, Jerry,” Darvin added. “See? Told you that nickname would stick.”

Jerry let out a soft growl, irritated that this would be the preferred name for them. Though he let it go, deciding that it wasn’t worth it. Letting out another puff of hot air, Jerry continued to jump through the trees, the others following suit.

Back with Kilowog, in the tower, he got a good look at what his recruits were doing and how they were handling their situations through the monitors. His microscopic bots gave him a good view at the situation they were in. With the first group, he saw Kazuichi, Laira, and Jack trying their best to fight the robots and to hold them back. While Chaselon was being kicked back and forth by two robots and Lok being strangled by one. The second group were still traveling through the caverns as Tala led the way. And the third group jumped from tree to tree towards the flag with no issue. 

“Other than the shit show that the first group are in, they seem to be doing alright,” Kilowog uttered in observation. “Too bad things are only gonna get harder at this point. Unless they find a way to destroy the yellow robots, then they’re done for.”

Kilowog even saw that the robots were getting more calculating with their moves. Some equipping drills to their arms or some activating their rocket feet and took flight. 

“So these poozers better show me their stuff and fast… or else.”

With that, Kilowog continued to look at the monitors to see what his rookies will do to complete the course. To see if they have the strength and willpower to overcome the obstacles and capture the flag. 

Chapter Text

Within the deep caverns of the meteor, the lanterns continue to drill through the rocky terrain to get their destination. Eventually reaching into another chamber, with more pools of water to be found as water dripped from the spikes from the ceiling. A few drops fell on Vulcan, making a sizzling sound. Much to this irritation.

“Ugh, I hate this so much. Are we any closer to the rendezvous point cause I want to leave as soon as possible,” Vulcan complained. 

“Patient, Captain Magna, from what my echolocation is telling me, we should be getting close. Just bare with it a while longer. Unless you’re scared of a little water,” Tala teased

“Oh haha, it's gonna take a lot more than a few drops of water to put me out, fish face,” Vulcan boasted.

Just then, a large drop of water landed on top of him, extinguishing the fire on his head as it was now sizzling steam over hot red rocks. Vulcan groaned with frustration from this predicament while Tala giggled at him.

“You were saying?” she asked with a mischievous smirk.

Vulcan glared at her as he lit the fire back on his head. “Shut it,” he responded with venom in his voice.

Tala was unfazed by his words, still teasing him. “Tsk, tsk. Such a child you are,” she replied.

As the two bickered, Arisia, Sodam Yat, and Spol saw the entire thing with their own reactions. Sodam chuckled in amusement at how intense it was getting, Arisia felt a bit uncomfortable by all this, while Spol was showing irritation by the sudden arguing. 

“They seem to be getting close,” Sodam commented. 

“I don’t think that’s what you call close,” Arisia pointed out.

“Let’s just hope they don't argue when those robots appear on us,” Spol groaned.

“I doubt it,” Sodam said as he empathized with the location they were currently in. “I mean, we’re underground, a good hundred feet from the surface. Plus they don’t know that we’re here.”

“Doesn’t mean you should lower your guard,” Spol warned him. “Those robots are capable of just about anything. They were built to counter us after all.”

“And another thing, who made you leader? I should as hell didn’t vote for you. I would make a better leader,” Vulcan argued.

Tala gave him a flabbergasted look, astonished by how full big headed this alien is. “That’s not the point! Besides, I doubt you would be able to do any-” Tala stopped talking as her echolocation picked up something. Multiple somethings. And they were all heading towards them at rapid speeds. “Everyone prepare yourselves! We’re being targeted!” 

“Targeted? By who?” Vulcan questioned her.

His question was answered as a yellow metal claw punched through the roof of the cavern, followed by multiple others, from claws, drills, and spike pistons. All digging through the tough rock until they made large holes, where multiple yellow robots jumped out from them. Their single glass eyes shining through the darkness with a bright red color, their sight locked on at the rookies. 

“By them!” Tala yelled as she twirled her trident around her body before aiming them at the robots. 

“Everyone, attack!” Spol shouted as he charged the robots. 

Vulcan chuckled in delight as he lit his body on fire. “About time!”

The robots got to work as they charged the lanterns, swinging their built in weapons at them. Spol engaged with his robots with his tremendous strength, grabbing on and using one of them as a weapon to attack the others. Tala and Vulcan aided his assault as they attacked the robots that tried to swarm him. Vulcan used his fire attacks to melt the robots into liquid metal while Tala sliced them apart with her trident enhanced by her water manipulation. The entire cavern now becomes a chaotic battlefield of fire and water. All while Arisia and Sodam looked in awe at the spectacle they were witnessing by the three lanterns.

“They’re really incredible,” Arisia uttered in awe.

She was quickly knocked out from her current thoughts by Sodam as he smacked his hand against her back. “No time to get all google eyed! We gotta help!”

“But what do we do?! We can't use our rings against them,” Arisia questioned her friend.

“Simple! We adapt!” Sodom responded as he ran off to face a robot. 

The Daxamite picked up a severed robot arm, one with a hammer hand, and swung it at a nearby robot with all his might. He did manage to stagger the robot, even denting the metal on its head. But all it did was get its attention as the robot began to attack Sodam Yat. The Daxamite evades the slashes before swinging his hammer once more to the head, this time, shattering it to pieces. 

Sodam smiled at his first robot destruction, but it quickly faded as more robots swarmed him. The teen tried to fight them back, but he was easily overwhelmed by their power. One ripped his weapon out from his hands while the other punched him in the stomach, launching him away as he crashed to a rock wall. The Daxamite felt his back ache as he tried to stabilize himself, but was pinned to the wall by the robot, its claws gripping on his neck. He gasped in agony, trying to break the claws off him, but it was all futile due to the robot’s strength and yellow metal weakening his powers. Sodam’s face began to turn purple from the lack of breathing as the robot was about to pierce its claws through his head.

That is until a green beam hit the robot’s head. The attack did nothing to damage it, but it did get its attention as the machine turned its head 180 degrees to face its attacker, who happened to be Arisia. The girl looked nervous as her ring was aimed at her foe, her entire body shaking with fear, trying to stay as firm as possible. 

“L-Let go of him you…you j-jerk…” Arisia said, trying to sound threatening, but her shaky voice betrays her. 

Even without emotions, the robot did not take Arisia in any level of seriousness, pitying her more than anything. But this distraction proved to be beneficial as Sodam used his ring to take action. He made a drill construct and immediately pierced it up the roof of the cave, causing it to crumble into large rocks as they fell onto the robot and Sodam, burying them.

“Sodam!” Arisia cried out, horrified by what she had witnessed. She was quick to rush towards the rock rubble to try and dig her friend out. As she tried to figure out the best way to free her friend, a drill construct blew through the rubble, causing Arisia to jump back in shock. Once the construct disappeared, Sodam popped out from the hole, breathing out heavily.

“Oh thank goodness…” Sodam uttered in relief.

“Sodam!” Arisia was quick to hug the Daxamite. “You’re okay!” 

Sodam was taken aback by the sudden embrace, but he simply patted her head in response. “Of course I am. The ring can’t affect these robots, but it can still protect me,” he replied with a smile. “I should thank you for what you did earlier. Really saved me back there.”

“O-Oh, I didn’t really do anything. I just yelled and tried to sound tough,” Arisia admitted.

Sodam shook his head, not wanting to hear her doubt herself. “But it’s what helped me get an opening and escape. I would be in further trouble if you weren’t here,” he complimented her. “Don’t discourage yourself like that.”

Arisia felt her face blush from his positive attitude. “You really think I did good?” he asked

“Of course I do. You’re a great friend to have,” Sodam replied with the warmest of smiles.

Arisia stood there as she was engulfed by the warm light emitting from Sodam Yat, unsure how to make the teen before her. He was so kind and helpful to her despite only having met not too long ago. She couldn’t help but be moved by his genuine kindness he was giving to her. Though their moment was interrupted when a robot was about to sneak attack them, but was destroyed by a massive fireball, shocking the two lanterns.

“Hey! If you two aren’t busy patting each other on your backs, we could use your help!” Vulcan shouted before firing a massive flame blast at a robot horde.

“Steel yourselves!” Tala added as she sliced two robots in half with her trident. “Our battle is not yet over!”

“She’s right. Focus on the fight at hand,” Spol yelled as he punched a robot’s head off its body.

Seeing as the battle wasn’t over yet, along with more robots jumping out from the holes, Sodam Yat and Arisia took their stance as they both grabbed a robotic limb as their own weapon. 

“You distract them, I’ll attack. Sounds good?” Sodam suggested.

“I’ll do what I can,” Arisia agreed.

With that, the two charged into battle, swinging their weapon at the robots. 

As the battle underground continued, another one was about to begin as another group of Green Lanterns were traversing through the trees of the jungle from above. Jumping from branch to branch was Jerry, leading his group through the lushful green terrain, with Ch’p and G’nort right behind him. Along with Darvin and Salaah flying beside them, the duck flying with his unnatural arm-like wings and the eyeball using her telekinesis to carry her through the air. 

“So, how much longer until we arrive at the flag?” Ch’p asked as he scurried through a long branch. 

Jerry raised up 4 fingers from his hand in response

Ch’p nodded. “Four minutes? We’re getting close.”

“But we’ll likely be running into more of those robots. So everyone be ready for anything,” Salaah warned them. 

“Fear not, my eyeball companion,” Darvin spoke as he began to boast. “We will all be alright. As long as you have me and Jerry, then we’ll overcome anything!” Hearing the nickname caused Yautja to growl at the duck.

“And what exactly are you going to do? Talk to them until they rust?” Salaah questioned, her eye expression doubt. 

“Make your comments, but you’ll see what I’m truly made of. They won’t know what will hit them when I give them the good old one two,” Darvin stated as he threw a few punches and kicks like he was mimicking a karate move.

“Geez, Darvin. You’re so amazing. With how much confidence you have with yourself,” G’nort commented.

“I know, my dog pal. I am amazing.” Darvin flexed his body, trying to make himself stronger than he actually looked with his noodle arms. “And as long as you stay by my side, then my greatness will rub off on you.”

This somehow got G’nort to be amazed by the duck’s fake bravo, looking at him with sparkling eyes. “Woozies, I sure hope so,” he uttered in awe.

Salaah stared at their entire conversation in disbelief, questioning how any of this is even happening. “Of all the lanterns to look up to, it had to be the duck?” she questioned.

“I mean…at least he’s making a friend,” Ch’p answered, trying to find some positivity in this friendship, even if he was just as concerned as her.

The four lanterns kept on traveling through the treetops until they noticed that Jerry had stopped in his tracks, causing the others to halt as well. All of them perched in a large branch, with Jerry being quieter than usual, seemingly looking at something. 

Darvin didn't like this one bit. “Hey, what’s going on here? We got a flag to capture. We have no time for sight see-” Jerry was quick to quiet the duck by grabbing his bill beak, shutting him up. 

“I appreciate that,” Salaah commented.

Ch'p climbed onto Jerry's shoulder, looking around the area. “You sensed something?” he asked, with the Yautja nodding in response. All while Darvin tried to free his beak from the hunter's hand. 

“What could he be looking for?” G’nort questioned, already feeling frightened. “Are there more robots out there?”

“Of course they'll be more. They're not gonna stop until they take us all down,” Salaah says, preparing herself. 

The lantern recruits stood close to each other, all of them staying as vigilant as possible for the potential threat. Looking through the lushful plantlife for any hint of movement or presence of those machines. But no matter how hard they look, they could find nothing, causing them to become more tense. Just as it seemed like it was a false alarm, Ch’p ears moved instantly, his senses telling him that they found something. Right behind them.

“Off the tree! Now!” 

With his warning, the lanterns quickly jumped off the branches, just in time to avoid the yellow lasers that came from above. Jerry was the first to make a move as he fired his shoulder mounted cannon into the sky at rapid pace. They passed through the air until a few managed to hit something, despite there seemingly being nothing there. The impact of the attack caused the assailant to shimmer into existence as electricity flowed across it. The shape reveals themselves to be two robots with jetpacks on their backs, along with guns as hands.

“It’s those robots again!” Ch’p yelled.

“How did they sneak up on us?! We should have at least heard them!” G’nort questioned in fright.

Jerry pressed a button on his gauntlet to play out a new recording. “...c-c-cloaking device l-like mine…jets made to be s-silent…”

“Clothing device?” Darvin asked, confused, before looking at the robots again. “But I don’t see them wearing any clothes.”

“Cloaking, you idiot!” Salaah corrected in frustration. “These things are made to sneak attack us!” 

Just then, more yellow lasers were blasted at them. Though this time they were coming from the jungle itself. The lanterns were forced to scatter, avoiding the flurry of lasers and trying to find a hiding spot. Ch’p and Jerry manage to hide behind a rock as the squirrel was breathing heavily.

“So, just a suggestion, but can’t you use your mask to find where these robots are?” Ch’p asked. “You gotta have something like that.”

Jerry shook his head in response as he played a new recording. “C-Can’t…only have heat si-si-signature scanner…w-worthless against m-m-machine…”

“Oh that’s not good,” Ch’p uttered in dread. “That’s not good at all.”

As he said that, Jerry suddenly grabbed Ch’p before jumping out of their hiding spot, narrowly avoiding the lasers hitting them. The Yautja would retaliate by throwing a sharp disc in a certain direction, which sliced the head off a robot, its cloaking device deactivated, before falling to the ground. He placed Ch’p on his free shoulder before summoning out his claws from his gauntlet, slashing the blades through the air as it managed to stab through another robot. With the machine in his grasp, Jerry ripped it in half, allowing oil and other fluids to pour out from it, before throwing both halves forward. The liquids sprayed through the area, covering whatever was in its range, including parts of the invisible robots, showing where they were.

“...b-b-be my eyes from b-behind…I’ll do w-what I can…”

“You got it, big,” Ch’p responded as his friend charged forward to fight the robots.

Moving back to the rest of the group, Salaah, G’nort, and Darvin were currently running away from the laser blasts coming at them. The group kept running, hovering in Salaah’s case, through the jungle until they found a massive tree. They all entered under the roots to use as cover, using this moment to catch their breaths. 

“We should be safe here for now,” Salaah said.

“What do we do now?” G’nort questioned, clearly afraid. “They’ll get us for sure if we stay here.”

“Then it seems that I’m needed for the task at hand,” Darvin announced, making himself look as tough and confident as possible. “Stand back my fellow lessers. I shall save the day!”

Salaah could only stare at the duck with an unenthusiastic look on her single eye. “How so? We can’t exactly harm them. I doubt you have anything to harm them either.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, my eyeball friend.” Darvin would use his ring to form a good old fashioned bomb, chuckling like a manic during the process. “Eat this, you metal freaks!” he yelled before throwing it.

The bomb would fly out into the opening with its purpose to destroy any robots within its range. This would however fail as the bomb would end up hitting a vine, which not only caught it, but slingshot it back towards the duck. Salaah and G’nort screamed in terror as they ducked and covered as the bomb ended up hitting Darvin in the face, making a massive explosion that could be seen from the horizon. Once the smoke cleared, we’re met with the aftermath of it, a massive clearing within the jungle as the once massive tree was reduced to ash. And in the middle of it all was Darvin, his body ash black, his eyes filled with red veins, and his yellow bill beak was now behind the back of his head. He stood there, his eyes expressing bitterness, as he grabbed his beak and placed it back to his front face. 

“Well…that didn’t go as I expected,” Darvin expressed.

Salaah and G’nort would appear beside him, both of them looking at Darvin with both shock and concern. 

“A-Are you okay?” G’nort asked.

“Physically, yes. But my pride is another story,” Darvin admitted.

“How the hell are you still alive? Or at least not permanently crippled?” Salaah questioned. 

“Well, in my world, my people get hurt all the time. It’s a daily occurrence for us,” Darvin answered casually, wiping off soot from his body. “You should see my neighbor, Donald. He’s a real blow hard jerk, but he can take all kinds of beating. Guess it’s fitting with him being a sailor.”

Salaah could only give him a perplexed look in response. “You are one odd duck.”

“I think you mean the greatest duck you’ve seen,” Darvin corrected her with a smug smile.

“No.”

“So Darvin, not to sound untrusting, but what was the point of the bomb?” G’nort asked. “Last I recall, our rings can’t affect the robots”

Darvin was surprised by his words, showing that he had completely forgotten about that basic fact. Yet despite that, Darvin shrugged off his shock and immediately came up with a believable excuse. “Oh…well, I knew that. I just wanted to add the element of surprise. After all, no enemy would suspect their foe doing something that insane.”

His bluff seemed to work as G’nort looked at him with admiration. “Woozers, I never thought of that. You truly are smarter than you look,” he said with awe.

This causes Darvin to smile proudly. “But of course. I am your superior after all,” he boosted.

“Oh you are so full of it,” Salaah uttered with disdain.

Just then, the three heard the sound of stomps from a distance, along with metal clanging. They looked in front of them for where the noise was coming from, but saw nothing. Even if they couldn't see them, the lanterns could tell that there were a group of robots stomping towards them, aiming to bring great harm to their targets.

“Crap, they found us,” G’nort yelped. 

“How are we supposed to fight these things if we can’t see them?” Salaah said as she tried to think of a plan. “Maybe I can use my psychic powers to help us locate them.”

“No need for that. I'll take them all on!” Darvin boldly claimed as he threw a few punches and kicks into the air, mimicking a martial arts stance. “Now watch and learn from the master!” He would then charge at the enemy.

“Wait! Don’t go, you idiot!” Salaah warned. 

But it was too late. Darvin was already running towards the open field and began to fight the invisible robots with his space kung fu. Well, to be more accurate, the duck was just flailing his arms and legs in the air, all while letting out fighting noises, thinking he was doing something. But reality would hit him hard as Darvin would be attacked by an invisible force. From a punch to the gut, then to his face, then kicked in his legs, these robots showed Darvin no mercy as they reduced him to a bruised, broken mess. 

“I-Issss that…a-a-all you…got?” Darvin uttered, wobbling around with his face mangled, both eyes blackened, and spitting out a couple teeth.

In response, one invisible robot held Darvin from behind before another started punching him all over his upper body and face. All while G’nort and Salaah watched it all. The dog looked very concerned for his friend, while the eyeball looked very amused with what little expression she was able to show.

“Um…shouldn't we help him?” G’nort asked.

“Nah, he’s a master after all,” Salaah replied, enjoying the entire show. “Besides, I think he’ll make a comeback sooner or later.”

Moving back to the trenches, with the bunker room, things were not looking so great for the last group there. Kazuichi was helping out Laira and Jack fight off the robots that were swarming the room. All while Chaselon was being tossed around by two robots like they were playing a game of handball, and Lok was pinned down by another robot, who was currently choking him out. Needless to say, the situation was dire for the lanterns. 

“God damn it!” Kaz yelled as he pushed a robot off him with his wrench, only to be greeted by another one that tried to attack him. But he managed to swing his rusted weapon fast enough to knock it back. “There’s no end to them! They’re gonna swarm us if this keeps up!”

“Tell me something we don’t know!” Jack yelled as he stabbed his pickaxe into a robot’s head before throwing its twitching body at another. Then he pulled out his gun to shoot at more robots trying to enter through the door, but stopped when his gun only let out clicking noises. “Shit, I’m out!”

“We need to push them out somehow! Don’t give up!” Laira warned before she swung her pipe at her robot multiple times before kicking it back. But was greeted by two more that tried to attack her, forcing her to jump back. 

As the three were trying their damndest to push the robot horde back, Lok was in his own predicament. He was trying his hardest to get the robot off him, but the machine wouldn’t budge. He was already feeling his neck getting close to break from the metal claws wrapped around it, along with how little air he had left in his lungs. It was only a matter of time before he croaked. The only thing that kept him going was seeing the sight of Chaselon being attacked by two robots. Because Chaselon was still injured from the laser shot to his body, he couldn’t fight back as much as he wanted to. Leaving him susceptible to these robots to kick him around like he was a beach ball. And Lok didn’t like seeing that.

Thinking his hardest, Lok would figure out a plan that could possibly help him out of this. It was unlikely to work, but it was all he had to go with. So with this, using every ounce of his willpower, Lok would force his mouth open and launch out his tongue towards the ceiling of the bunker, grabbing a rusted pipe. Then, with all his might, he pulled the pipe out from the ceiling’s concrete and onto the back of the robot’s head. The impact from the pipe was not only strong enough to dent the robot’s head, but it caused it to open its claw hands, freeing Lok from his strangulation. With that, Lok used his legs to kick the robot off him before he began hacking and coughing, massaging his neck while regaining the air back into his lungs. Once he was composed, the frog lantern grabbed his hammers and charged at the robots attacking Chaselon, using all his strength to smash the machine’s head. Then Lok would use his tongue to grab the dazed robot and flung it at the other robot, forcing them away. 

With the threat dealt with, Lok went to the downed Chaselon and helped him up. “Come on. I got you,” he uttered, putting his ally’s arm over his shoulder to carry him.

Despite not having a mouth, Chaselon was breathing heavily as he gave his friend a thankful look. “...T-Thank you…thank you so much…”

“Thank me by buying me a drink after this,” Lok responded, gawking his mouth out as the taste of metal and rust was on his tongue 

Lok carried Chaselon through the room until he was behind Kaz, Jack, and Laira as they were still trying to fight the robots back. But as more kept entering the room, it was becoming an impossible task. They were running out of options and running out of space. It was only a matter of time before the robots swarmed the lanterns. 

Kazuichi swung his wrench at another robot, but it caught the weapon with ease. The mechanic tried to pull his weapon back, but the machine would end up snapping the wrench in two. Souda was shocked by this, but he retaliated fast by kicking the robot back, causing it to stumble to the other robots behind it. “Fuck me! We’re gonna be crushed if this keeps up!” he yelled as he threw the broken handle at another robot.

Chance shoots his second pistol at a robot, helping Laira out, before it begins to click itself. “And there goes the last of my ammo!” he yelled in frustration, swinging his axe at the robot that tried to sneak attack him.

“Come on, you bastards! You have to have something we can do!” Lok complained.

“We’re trying, you warted asshole!” Jack retorted. “Besides, I don’t see you giving us any ideas!”

“Fuck off! I almost got choked to death while trying to save his ass!” Lok yelled back, while motioning to the injured Chaselon he was carrying. “I’m doing more work here than any of you!”

Laira would come in between them before she kicked a charging robot away, sending it flying and hitting its group, causing them to stumble into a pile. “Do not fight with each other! We must focus on a solution to get us out of this predicament!” she reminded them.

“Like what?!” Lok questioned. “We’re trapped with a bunch of robots blocking our path! Our weapons aren’t doing shit! And worse, our rings are useless against them! At best, we can move dirt around!”

That last sentence hit Kaz’s head as an idea began to form. “Move dirt around…like digging?” he asked the frog.

“Yeah, what less do you think I’m saying?!” he retorted.

That was when a plan finally formed within the mechanic’s head. “Lok, you fucking genius! Makes me wish I thought of that sooner” Souda shouted in glee before moving towards the wall behind them. “Guys, give me cover! I’m getting us out!”

“What?! How?!” Jack questioned.

Souda responded by forming a massive drill construct beside him and commanded it to drill through the wall, breaking through the concrete and entering the dirt. Digging deeper through as it formed a large tunnel, creating their escape route. 

“Everyone inside!” Kaz commanded.

The lanterns did as he said and ran into the tunnel. Lok and Chaselon were the first to enter, then Jack, before Souda went in next. Laira would stay behind to fight off the robots to allow her allies to escape. Once they did, she swung her pipe forward, knocking multiple robots back, before entering the tunnel. But not before using her ring to laser the roof of the tunnel, causing the dirt to crumble and fall down. Creating a massive wall of dirt that separated the robots from the lanterns. 

“That should hold them. We must move,” Laira said as she rejoined her group.

“Gotcha. Just keep my back guarded. Those robots could dig their way to us,” Kaz replied as he focused on his drill construct.

“Gotta say, that was some impressive quick thinking there. Really saved our asses back there,” Jack commented as he gave the mechanic a pat on the back.

Kazuichi couldn’t help but chuckle in response. “It was nothing. Besides, Lok helped out just as much. He was the one that gave me the idea,” he corrected, pointing his thumb at the frog. “He really saved us back there. Thanks man.”

“Indeed…Lok is a great ally to have,” Chselon uttered out in agreement.

Lok was taken back by the sudden compliments he got, flattered even. But he still kept his uncaring nature up as he just scoffed in response. “Whatever. As long as you guys contribute, then it’s all good.”

Kaz just sighed with a smirk on his face. “If you say so,” he uttered before facing Laira. “So what’s our next move?”

“The best course is to just continue drilling through until we’re close to the flag,” she instructed before giving out everyone's roles. “Chance, you’ll guide Kaz to where he needs to go. Lok will continue looking after Chaselon. I will be on surveillance, to ensure the robots don’t come near us.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Souda said in agreement as everyone else was on the same page. “Jack, you remember where we need to go?”

Chance would create a compass construct, reading its contacts, before pointing at a certain direction. “That way. Up north,” he directed.

“Then let’s get moving,” Kaz added as he led his drill construct towards the north direction with his teammates following behind. Slowly making their way towards the flag.

Returning to the underground caverns, the battle between the lanterns and robots continued as the area was covered with fire and water. The lanterns were fighting their absolute damndest against the robot horde. Vulcan and Tala shot out fire and water projectiles respectively while Spol and Sodam used their strength to repel any robot that got close. Arisia was providing whatever support she could, either through distractions or getting them robot limbs to use as weapons. But despite their best efforts, they were slowly being overwhelmed. More robots kept coming out from the hole, taking up more space in the caverns. To make matters worse, they were beginning to adapt to their attacks and strategy. It was only a matter before they would be engulfed by the yellow swarm.

“Damn it all…these guys are like bugs! They don’t stop coming!” Vulcan complained as he unleashed another massive wave of fire. “You want some?! Well get some!”

As more fire was launched at the robots, slowly melting them, the fire began to spread throughout the area. To make matters worse, some of the fire was getting close to the other lanterns. Feeling the intense heat drying her scaly skin, Tala used her water powers to douse the flames, preventing them from spreading to the others.

“Vulcan, be careful! The flames are growing too big! You need to focus your attacks on the enemy or else you’ll burn us along with them!” she scolded.

“Hey, my flames are what’s keeping those robots away! I have to keep them big!” Vulcan yelled back before unleashing more fire forward.

As the flames grew larger, the heat they admitted was causing the others discomfort. It was becoming harder to breathe or to focus. Tala was taking it the worst as her species was not well adjusted to high temperatures. Even the protection of the ring could only do so much with how intense the fire was becoming every second. Even needing to use her water on herself to not dry up.

Spol noticed this and tried to warn the fire alien.“Vulcan, knock it off! Tala can’t handle this much heat! We need to change our tactics!”

“Well, too bad! And until you can figure one out, I’m going to continue what I do best!” Vulcan scoffed as he was about to fire another fireball. 

But suddenly, a massive spray of water was fired onto Vulcan, extinguishing the fireball, while hitting him directly in the face. The water beam hit him so hard that it sent the fire alien back onto a wall before crashing into a puddle. Vulcan coughed violently as the flames around his body were gone, with only steam and molten rock to remain. 

Once his throat was cleared, Vulcan growled as he ignited the fire back on his head. “Those damn clanking robot-”

He was silenced yet again as more water beams splashed him once more. All done by three yellow robots, who were all handling the fire much better than the others and wielding water hose cannons as their left hands. With massive backpacks that carried a large quantity of water. The three continued to soak Vulcan with their water cannons to keep him down, while extinguishing the large fire to allow the other robots a better path towards the lanterns. 

“Shit! That’s not good!” Sodam yelled in dread. “We need to help him!”

“I've got this! Cover me!” Tala commanded as she doused herself in cool water before running off. 

“You heard the lady!” Spol added as he picked up a massive rock and threw it as a group of robots. Sodam and Arisia come to his aid with their made shift weapons. 

Tala ran towards the three robots as she summoned the water around her, morphing them into whip-like tendrils. She would use them to whip away any robot that tried to attack her, while twirling her trident around in combination. ‘Water may be a weakness to Captain Magma, but it's the greatest advantage for my race. All they're doing is giving me options.’

As she attacked, Spol, Sodam, and Arisia took down any robot that tried to get close. Pushing them back to cause them to trip over each other. “Get them away from Tala and Vulcan! Have them focus on us!” Spol yelled. 

“Easier said than done! They’re never ending!” Sodam barked back as more robots kept coming out from the holes, crowding the room much more.

After disposing of another robot with a water whip, Tala would make her way towards the three robots that were still dosing Vulcan with water. She used her trident to slice a robot’s backpack, releasing the water within it, which she used to slice the robot into pieces before using it to blast the other two away. Once they were dealt with, Tala tried to help Vulcan up.

“Can you move?” she asked.

Vulcan responded with coughs as he was trying to get water out from his throat. “T-Took you…long enough…”

“Well I’m here now,” Tala said as she was helping her ally back on his feet. “Let’s get you out of here before-”

Just then, a robot appeared from behind and kicked Tala away, forcing her to drop Vulcan into a puddle of water. As she staggered, the aquatic alien bumped into another robot, who grabbed her into a bear hug. Tala tried to break free from its grip, but the robot would not budge, and to make matters worse, she felt the metal skin of the machine become hot. Too hot. Intense heat was being emitted from the robot’s body as its frame was burning her skin. Tala groaned in pain as she desperately tried to free herself, but the heat was slowly weakening her, her struggle becoming less and less until she began to go limb, her very breathing becoming slower.

Vulcan managed to pull his head out of the water as he looked up, his expression changing to horror by what the robot was doing to Tala. “Fish face!” he yelled as he tried to get up and ignite his fire. “Let go of-” He was quickly stopped as two robots held the fire alien back down as the third one fired more water onto it. The high pressure of the water being strong enough to slowly cut through his rock body.

Arisia had swung her weapon at a robot, knocking it back, before she noticed the awful predicament they were in. “Guys! They got Vulcan and Tala!” she yelled out.

“Crap! We have to save her!” Spol shouted before punching a robot away. 

Sodam kicked another robot away before smacking it with his weapon. “How?! These robots have us surrounded!” Just then, two robots appeared in front of the teen and grabbed him. They ripped the weapon out from his hands before pinning him to a wall, then proceeded to punch the Daxamite in the stomach and the face. 

“Sodam!” Spol cried as he was about to help his ally. But he was stopped as a group of robots jumped onto the big alien. Spol staggered back as he tried to get them off him, managing to throw one off his shoulder, but more robots appeared and jumped on him. With the massive robots clinging on his body, adding a lot of weight on him, Spol would be forced on his knees as the machines effectively put him on a painful doggy pile.

“Spol…Sodam…” Arisia uttered in terror, realizing that she was the last lantern standing. 

The entire situation had just gone from bad to worse before Arisia’s eyes. Her entire group has been captured and slowly tortured with methods made specifically for them. The only one that remained was her, the weakness of the group and only a piece of scrap metal as a flimsy weapon. Needless to say, Arisia had no confidence in herself on getting her and her friends out of this dilemma. And to make matters worse, the robots spotted the last of the lanterns and slowly approached her, claws and weapons out and ready.

“Oh no…oh no…oh no…” Arisia uttered as she walked back, trying to get some distance between them. But that plan was immediately dismissed when her back met against a wall. It was pretty much telling that she was trapped, unable to do anything as the robots were getting closer to her. 

‘What do I do? What the hell do I do?’ Arisia stood there with pure dread, her body shaking, sweat soaking her skin, and her face expressing absolute fear. The only thing she could do was raise her weapon in front of them, but her shaking arms made it hard to even do that properly  ‘I can’t do anything by myself. I’m not strong enough. I’m not like-’

“I'll tell you. Boot camp in the Corps was something else.”

Arisia’s eyes widened as she suddenly recalled a memory from her past. The entire ordeal triggering that past memory, one that she will never forget. The time her uncle became a full fledged Green Lantern. 

It was in the far past, on her home planet Graxos IV, in her very home. Within her living room, a young Arisia was hanging out with her uncle, Blish, as he had gotten back from Oa after being properly trained. The man was happy to finally be with his family again after so long. After having a welcome back celebration, he decided to tell his niece stories about his time on Oa. 

“...then on the third week, Kilowog had me pull an asteroid the size of our moon from one star system and back. I'll tell ya, my muscles were beyond sore from it. And we still had to do a flying course afterwards.”

“Wow uncle, this Kilowog sounds kinda mean,” Arisia expressed. 

Blish would wave his hand dismissively. “Nah, he’s just a hardass. He's just doing his job. Simple as that. Besides, I did get better physically after all that. I never felt this strong. Now I understand why my bro was so full of energy.”

“What was the hardest part of your training? The one that really pushed you?” the young girl asked, wanting to hear more of his stories. 

“Hmm, the hardest part, huh?” Blish uttered as he began to think until he snapped his fingers. “It would definitely be the yellow robots. If you think the asteroid was bad, these robots were a hundred times worse.”

“Robots? What makes robots so hard?” Arisia asked. “Pretty sure dad was able to defeat a lot of those before.”

“It wasn't just because of the robots, but because of these two factors. They adapt and they're yellow,” Blish answered as he began to explain, using a yellow can as an example. “You might not remember, but for rookie lanterns, yellow is our weakness. I'm not sure why, but our rings can't seem to affect them.” He created a hand construct to try and crush the yellow can, but the can would only faze out from the construct, completely unharmed. “No matter how hard you try, nothing happens. With a weakness like that, it was life or death.”

Arisia was surprised by what she saw, this being her first time seeing the ring’s weakness. Her father had told her about said weakness, but she never thought it was this ineffective. Displaying how helpless Green Lanterns were when faced against yellow. “...how did you get through that?” she asked, wondering how any lantern could get through such a glaring weakness.

Blish smirked as he used his ring to summon dust particles around his hand-construct. “Simple, I remember what my bro told me during his time as a lantern. The power of our rings can't affect yellow. But it can with everything else.” The dust particles fully covered the construct while having its properties molded and firm. “What my brother did was surround the green energy within an object of his choice, or in my case, have something cover my constructs and change its properties the way I need it to be. Use this against a robot-” With a command, his dust covered hand construct grabbed the yellow can without issue and crushed it with ease. “I would reduce it to pieces while the construct would remain effective.”

Arisia could only look in awe by what her uncle did, amazed by how creative he was with his ring. “That's so cool. It’s like absorbing energy into an object before unleashing it. The force builds up the object and allows it to do feats that it couldn't before.”

Blish chuckled in response. “In a way, yeah. The more technical term would be enhancement. This technique saved me many times during boot camp, same with your dad.”

“Yeah, I guess it did,” Arisia replied with joy. But the expression would quickly change to sorrow as she was quickly reminded of something unfortunate. “Until it didn't.”

Her saddened expression would remind the uncle about what they lost when he was given the power ring. It hadn’t been that long ago since Fentara Rrab had died on a mission. It was a shock and tragedy for the family. A widow losing her husband, a man losing his brother, and a child losing her father. They were still trying to adjust to this new life for them, but the pain was still there. Arisia seemed to be close to tearing up, remembering when she was told of her father’s demise, having to see his body be buried in his funeral, it was just too much for her to endure. Just as she was about to cry, Arisia felt her head was gently touched, looking up to see Blish as he was comforting her with a head pat. 

“Arisia, I know how hard it’s been since he died. I’m still trying to accept that fact in my life. But if I know my brother well, he wouldn’t want us to be moping over his death. He’d want us to move on and live our lives,” he explained as he showed his ring to his niece. “When I got this ring, I promised myself to live up to our family’s legacy as a Green Lantern. For my brother, and for myself. So I want you to continue your life the way you want it. That way, you’ll make your dad happy.”

“You think I’ll be able to live up to him, to you even?” she asked, still unsure.

“Of course. You’re an Rrab. We’re already a famous family to the Corps. But most importantly, you’re Arisia. You got a lot going for you then you realize. Your moment will come that you’ll show them,” he said with full confidence.

His words were effective as Arisia began to smile once more before hugging her uncle. “Thanks. I need that.”

Blish smiled as he hugged her back while patting her head. “Anytime, kiddo.”

Back to the present, Arisia felt completely different from before, her breathing became stable as her body slowly stopped shaking. The teen girl felt her mind become focused as she knew what she had to do, only hoping that her plan was successful. With a deep breath, Arisia used her ring to gather rocks and dirts all around her. She has the dirt cover her yellow metal scrap while the rocks cover her hands to form into gloves, the new creations being enhanced by the power of the green energy. Once her newly made weapons were ready, Arisia stared down at the robots, her eyes changed from hesitation to determination.

‘Let’s see if this pays off.’

With that, Arisia charged at the robots, reeling her weapon back as she charged it with an extra amount of green energy. With a step forward, the teen girl let out a war cry before swinging her weapon forward, hitting the robots in front of her with such power that it blew them away with an extreme force. The robots flew through the air and hit the robots that were attacking Sodam Yat, freeing him, before hitting a group of other robots. The collision caused all of them to explode to limbs and scrap metal. 

Sodam looked at the aftermath of the attack with utter awe and shock before looking at Arisia, who was just as shocked as him. Surprised that her attack was able to do that much damage against the robots. “...woah…that actually worked…” she uttered

“H-How did you do that?” Sodam asked.

“It’s something my uncle showed me once,” Arisia answered as she showed him her weapon, the dirt covering it letting out a green glow. “Our rings can’t affect these yellow robots, but everything else can. So I just give my weapon a charge up and then use it.” She then gave the Daxamite a sheepish smile. “I just didn’t think it would have this much power behind it.”

Sodam was stunned by her explanation. “...that’s a really good strategy,” he said before saving her a proud smile. “I would not have thought of that. You’re much more clever than I thought.”

Arisia felt her face blush from his compliment, feeling a sense of joy. “T-Thank you.”

Though their happy moment was short lived as Arisia saw a few robots try and sneak attack them. She was the first to see them and reacted, pushing Sodam aside to swing her weapon at two robots, slicing them in half, before punching the last one through the head. Oil and wire popping from the metal cadmium as Arisia pulled her rock fist out, letting the broken machine fall. Arisia and Sodam were on each other's backs as they saw the yellow robots pick themselves up while more climbed out from the ceiling holes. 

“Shouldn’t be getting distracted like that,” Sodam commented as he had his fists up. “I’ll help Spol, you go help Tala and Vulcan. Ready?”

Arisia pointed her weapon forward, her expression being nervous yet firm. “As I’ll ever be,” she replied before the two then ran off in different directions to save their allies while the robots gave chase. 

As the teen was running towards the robot doggy pile, Sodam Yat would pick up a robot leg and then used his ring to gather the rocks around him, even using them to pick up scraps of metal. He would have the rocks and scrap form around the metal leg and transform it into a massive war hammer.

Once reeled back his hammer when he was close to the pile. “Get off him, you robotic bastards!” Sodam yelled as he swung his hammer forward, knocking off most of the robots off Spol. 

Feeling the weight lighten, Spol used all his strength to launch the remaining robots off his body. Even grabbing one robot off shoulder and tearing it in half. 

“You doing alright, Spol?” Sodam asked as he used his hammer to destroy any robots that tried to get close. 

“For better or worse. But I can still fight,” Spol replied as he cracked his neck. Then he examined Sodam's hammer with interest. “More importantly, how did you make that hammer? It has green energy yet there's traces of yellow on it.”

“This was Arisia's idea. Our rings can't affect these robots, but it can with everything else,” Sodam replied, showing off the green energy imbued into his weapon.

Spol couldn’t help but chuckle in amazement. “Pretty smart move honestly.” With this idea given, the cyclops would place his hands to the ground. Commanding his ring to rather rocks to cover his hands and lower arms, forming them into rock gauntlets. “Then I should follow suit.”

Sodam whirled his hammer around his body before aiming it at the robot horde. “Ready on your command then.”

With a yell, Spol charged towards the robot horde as Sodam followed suit. The cyclops swung his fist forward, launching away any robot that got in his way into the air, crashing onto the ground and exploding into pieces. Sodam made the next move by swinging his hammer at a group of robots, crushing them like soda cans against a wall. 

While the two handled the swarming robots, Arisia made her way towards Vulcan and Tala to save them. Her first focus was saving her aquatic friend from her predicament. So she ran up to the burning robot and stabbed her weapon through its head, short-circuiting it and causing it to let go of Tala. Once she was freed, Tala began to cough like crazy, trying to regain air into her lungs while also trying to get her body near water. Arisia noticed this and helped move her ally to a large puddle of water, making sure her burn areas were submerged. 

“Stay here, Sodam and Spol will be here to protect you. I'll help Vulcan,” Arisia instructed before running off, while Tala used the water to heal her burns and wounds. 

With Vulcan, he was still being held down to the ground, his head submerged in a puddle while the robots continued to dose him with their water cannon. 

Vulcan was fighting for dear life, trying to break free from his predicament, trying to ignite his flames to blast them off. But the water was too strong and relentless. It didn’t help that it was slowly cutting through his rocky body. It would only be a matter of time before the water would cut through and attack his insides. Just as he was reaching his limit, Arisia came to his rescue and stabbed her weapon through the robot with the water cannon, stopping its attack while shutting it down for good. She then swung her weapon around to throw the broken machine towards one of the robots holding down Vulcan before charging at the other robot and bashing her weapon at its head, leaving a massive dent behind as it fell to the ground. Once the threat was dealt with, Arisia helped Vulcan out of the water as he quickly used her ring to heal his injury, sealing up the nasty cut as best she could. Vulcan grunted in pain while he was coughing out any water that remained in his mouth. Eventually, the massive cut was healed and Vulcan was allowed to have a moment of rest. 

“Glad to see you’re okay,” Arisia said happily as she helped her friend up. 

“Funny…cause I feel like crap,” Vulcan replied, still feeling the stinging pain from his healed injury. 

Just then, Sodam and Spol came in to join them, the latter carrying Tala over his shoulder before letting her down into another puddle.

“Great, the team’s back together again! Now let’s get out of here!” Sodam suggested.

“I doubt they’ll let us,” Spol replied, signaling to everyone to look where he was pointing. 

In front of them were an army of robots, replacing the destroyed ones as they filled up half the cavern with their numbers. And worse, more were coming out from the holes, increasing their numbers to a terrifying amount. Each one turning their hands into sharp or blunt weapons to use against them. The lanterns, minus Vulcan and Tala, stood ready for battle as they aimed their weapons at their foes. 

“Okay, l need some honesty here, how bad is our situation?” Arisia asked

“Pretty bad. Even with our weapons and method, we're severely outnumbered,” Spol answered, feeling nervous about the situation. “It'll only be a matter of time before they overwhelm us.”

Arisia began to brainstorm what to do until it finally hit her. “In that case, we need to take them out in one go,” she said before facing the fire alien. “And Vulcan's the one that can do it.”

Vulcan looked at her with a questionable look. “Wait, what now?”

"You're the only one that can attack from long range and can spread your fire in every direction,” Arisia explained. “You have to do this!”

Vulcan only shook his head in response. “Well sorry to disappoint, but I can’t,” he said begrudgingly as he showed them why. Raising his hand up to try and start a fire, but there was nothing, barely any heat being made. “Those damn robots drenched me with so much water that I can’t even make a spark.”

Sodam wasn't happy hearing what his ally said. But before he could say anything, the robots began their assault and charged forwards towards the lanterns. The Daxamite would be quick to act on this as he used his hammer to slam the ground between them and the enemy, sending tons of dirt and rock into the air. Then he quickly used his ring to form the dirt and rock together, hardening them to create a dirt wall to protect them. In response, the robots attacked the wall from the other side to get through.

“Good thinking, Sodam,” Arisia complimented.

“Thanks, but this won’t hold them for long,” Sodam replied before facing Vulcan, his expression changing to anger. “Which means you have to do something! We’re in a life or death situation! You have to at least try!”

“Why try something when it’s pointless!” Vulcan barked back, just as angry as the Daxamite.

“This isn’t the time to argue! You have to do your part! They’re slowly approaching us” Spol shouted.

“Please, this is our only chance,” Arisia pleaded.

“Again, no way! I can’t do it! Figure out something else instead of wasting time!” he yelled back, adamant of his decision. 

“...figured you say that, you coward.”

Any attention Vulcan had was immediately focused on the person that insulted him. That being Tala, who was glaring at him while soaking herself in the puddle.

“What was that, fishface?” Vulcan uttered with a glare.

Tala wasn’t intimidated by his look for even a moment as she raised her body up from the puddle. “I see the water has dampened your hearing. So let me repeat myself. You are the biggest coward I have ever met. No, a coward is too dignified for you. I believe the human term ‘pussy’ fits you better.” Her words seem to have an effect on Vulcan as heat began to generate throughout his body, burning as hot as a sauna. 

Though as this occurred, the wall finally broke down, rock and dirt crumpling down to the ground as the robots charged forward towards their prey. Unable to prologue their assault, Arisia, Sodam, and Spol were forced to fight, charging at the machines head on. The three did well on pushing the horde back, even destroying a good amount of robots with their weapons, but it wasn’t enough. There was still a massive army to deal with and it only continued to grow in numbers.

“Geez, these guys just won’t let up!” Sodam commented. 

“We really need Vulcan to help us out here!” Arisia added.

“The fuck?! I’m a pussy for being logical?!” Vulcan shouted as his magma body was getting hotter. 

“No, you're a pussy for not even trying to act,” Tala answered, her voice sounding snarky yet playful. “You boast about how mighty your fire is, yet it’s been doused by a splash of water. It’s truly pathetic.”

Her words continued to add fire to the fuel as he grew angrier, sparks were flying out from his body while his rock skin became bright red. There were even glimpses of fire appearing on his head. “Watch it, gills! My fire is still hotter than anything you’ve ever seen! My fire makes stars look weak by comparison!”

Spol punched a robot’s head off its body before grabbing another and crushing it with his gauntlets. “I don’t know what Tala is doing, but it seems to be working,” he commented, taking down three more robots.

“I just wish she did it faster,” Sodam complained as he swung his hammer forward to knock back a group of machines.

Tala was certainly putting in the work as she was ready to use her final trump, one she knew would get him to act. “Really now? Cause all I’m seeing is nothing more than a small little candle.”

That did it. In that moment, Vulcan’s fires came back to life, covering his head and shoulders, the colors burning a bright combination of red, orange, and yellow. His own molten rock body even resembles magma at this point. All while glaring at the aquatic alien with eyes burning as bright as burning stars. “...what you call me?”

Despite the intense heat he was giving off, Tala kept up her act and gave him the most shit eating grin possible. “What’s the matter, candle? Is that a trigger word for you? And it fits you so well too.”

“I’m not a candle…I'm not a candle…”

“Well you're not proving me wrong. If you can't even fight a few measly robots, then you really are a candle,” she replied back, her voice ever so smug. 

Those words were enough to cause Vulcan's anger to turn into rage. His fire and magna body became bright yellow and white, his heat becoming so intense that the rock around him began to melt. 

“I'm not a candle, I'm not a candle…”

Just then, a robot appeared behind Vulcan and put him in a headlock, trying to choke him out. But this would be a mistake as within contact, Vulcan's flames were already melting his metal limbs and body to a sludge-like liquid. Twitching like crazy as its circuits were completely fried from the heat. Vulcan would glare at the twitching robot as he found the very thing he can use to vent out this frustration. 

“I’m not a candle!!!”

With a roar, Vulcan would fire a massive stream of flames at the robot, reducing the machine to molten slag. His fire continued forward as it hit a group of other robots, melting them all the same. Any attention the lanterns and robots had before were now focused on Vulcan, who was burning so bright that his light could melt the eyes of anyone that saw him without protection. Having a grin that screamed overconfidence and anger at the same time.

“Alright you damn machines, you want some real fire power, then I’ll give you all a real first experience!” Vulcan screamed as he unleashed his flames outward and launched himself towards the robots. 

The robots tried to attack their foe, but his fire was too much for many to handle. Vulcan unleashed fire so intense that the very cavern was beginning to melt from the heat alone. He would punch, kick, or throw a fireball to reduce the bots to nothing more than molten slag. As this was happening, the other lanterns could only look in awe, seeing their fire ally burn his opponents with ease. Overwhelming them with his flames while letting out yells of burning rage. All while using their rings to protect themselves from the intense heat Vulcan was unleashing onto the area.

“Woah…” Arisia uttered in awe.

“Woah is right,” Sodam replied, just as amazed by the entire scenery. “I didn’t think he could get this hot.”

Spol looked at it all in astonishment before paying his attention towards Tala. “What did you do to him?”

Tala gave him an ever so mischievous smile in response. “All I did was hit the right buttons and give him the motivation he ever so needed. People like him are prideful and feel insecure about size. Especially when you really rub salt on the wounds.”

“What do you mean by size?” Arisia asked.

Tala only giggled in response. “I’ll tell you when you’re older.”

Back to the fight, Vulcan formed a giant fireball in his hands before throwing it as a horde of robots, creating a massive explosion as a result. He went back to unleashing a wave torrent of fire at the remaining robots, melting them into massive piles of slag and wires. He just kept attacking the army with all his might, showing no signs of slowing down. But that came to an end when he was suddenly hit by a massive beam of white foam. The substance not only blasted Vulcan away, making him crash a wall, but also extinguish his flames. Even worse, the foam began to harden, trapping the fire alien in one place.

The culprits behind this attack were two robots, both of them of similar design. Heavily armored that was designed to better handle intense heat while having cannon as hands that shoot a special kind of carbon dioxide mixture form designed to put out fires for good. And behind them were even more robots as they replaced the previous army, ready to attack the lanterns. 

“Vulcan!” Arisia cried out in dread.

“Shit, looks like we’ll have to help out!” Sodam yelled as he was about to charge in. 

But then, the lanterns stopped whatever action they were about to take as they heard Tala’s laughter. The aquatic alien seemingly amused by what she was seeing, as if she had expected this sort of thing to happen. “It seems I was right about you. You really are a candle,” she said ever so mockingly. “I told you, told you, told you!”

At that moment, Vulcan had enough. Using the power from his ring, his flames reignited once more. The green energy of willpower increases the power of his fire to extraordinary levels. So much so that the hardened foam substance was turning charcoal black. 

“Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!!!”

With a scream, Vulcan unleashed every ounce of fire power within him, plus a good amount of green energy to create a massive fiery explosion. The lanterns quickly used their rings to create a force field to protect themselves from the roaring flames. The primal screams from Vulcan echoes through the cavern as his enhanced flames burn through everything within his range. The rock was turned into magma while the robots were melted into pure liquid, even those that were highly resistant to fire were easily burned. After all, very few things can survive a supernova. 

The fire and its tremendous force became too much for the cavern to handle as the supernova blasted through the roof and out towards the surface. Creating a massive pillar of fire and magma that could be seen throughout the battlefield, it could even be seen up in space from the meteor. 

The lantern group continued tunneling through the trenches until the ground suddenly began to shake violently. They stopped in their tracks as a loud destructive sound screamed through their ears or hearing holes, starling them. 

“The fuck was that?!” Souda shouted.

“Sounds like an eruption is happening out there!” Jack wondered. “Kinda wish I was there to see it!”

At the deep jungles, Jerry continued to fight the robots with Ch’p providing assistance on his shoulder, using the shoulder cannon like a turret. The two were exhausted, Jerry having cuts and bruises all over his body, with a large group of robots surrounding them. Their numbers were becoming too much for them to handle, but they would not give in. They would keep fighting until their last breath.

But just as they were about to continue the fight, a fiery explosion shot out from the ground, creating a pillar of magma within the horizon. The event was so great that it created ripples of burning shockwaves, incinerating and blasting anything in their way. Jerry was quick to react as he created a bubble construct to protect him and his ally from the blast. As the Yautja held the construct with all his concentration and might, the shockwaves blew away the robots around them. Many were melted by the heat or blasted away into pieces by the violent burning winds from the pillar.

“Freaking nuts! What is happening?!” Ch’p questioned, with Jerry unsure of the cost, purely focused on maintaining the construct.

In the tower, Kilowog witnessed the entirety of the magna pillar spouting in the middle of the battlefield. How it first came to be, its destruction, and then its eventual disappearance. It was an intense and majestic sight for anyone to bear witness to. But for Kilowog, it was just a cheap firework that only amused him at best.

“About time they do something interesting. I was getting bored here,” he uttered as he took a huff from a cigar he had in hand, right before throwing it in his mouth and chewing on it.

In the aftermath of the magma pillar, we’re shown a massive hole within the battlefield of the facility. The edges and walls become black rock as they resembled dry sludge, still admitting tension heat while trying to cool down. And in the epicenter was Vulcan and his teammates. The fire alien breathing heavily as he started to calm down as the fire on his head and shoulders began to simmer down. The other lanterns looked at their ally and the entire aftermath in utter shock. Surprised by the amount of power Vulcan had behind his flames. That he could do something of this magnitude. 

Despite having used up a lot of his power and feeling exhausted, Vulcan got himself to stand proud as he gave his allies a cocky smile with a thumbs up. “Oh yeah…who’s the best? The hottest in this universe? This guy,” he said before he collapsed to the ground, fatigue finally hitting him.

Spol walked over to Vulcan to check on him. “I knew his species could emit fire comparable to supernovas. But to bear witness it is an experience in itself."

Sodam agreed as he focused on Tala as he was carrying her over his shoulder. “I think your plan worked too well,” he commented.

Tala only shrugged in response. “Maybe, but it helped us all the same, so I see no issue here,” she said nonchalantly.

Sodam didn't react to her answer as he looked up through the hole, seeing the black sky of space with pillars of smoke accompanying it. “You think that’s the end of them?” he wondered. 

“I doubt it,” Spol responded. “With a test like this, there’s bound to be more robots coming our way. The best we did was slow them down.”

“Then that means we have a chance,” Arisia added, feeling confident with their odds. “We need to tell everyone about what we did here. How we can combat these robots. Then we’ll guarantee our victory over this trial.”

“But how do we tell them that?” Vulcan uttered as Spol carried him over his shoulder. “We’re practically separated in different areas of this facility.”

“Maybe, but we still have our rings,” Arisia answered, showing off her ring. “They can do whatever we imagine, so communications shouldn’t be hard for it to do.”

“They can?”

“Of course they can.” Tala pointed out, giving him a disappointed look. “That’s what our rings can do. Or did blowing up all that smoke make you forget?”

Vulcan just glared at her in response. “...you’re lucky I’m too tired to argue back.”

“Looks like we got a plan then,” Sodam said with approval before patting Arisia on her shoulder. “All thanks to our great leader here.”

Arisia was taken aback by what her friend said, shocked by the sudden position given to her. “L-Leader?! I-I don’t know about-”

“I agree, Sodam,” Spol spoke, confident about the choice made. “She certainly has the qualities to become one. We’ll be counting on you.”

“And we’ll help you however we can,” Tala added. “If that’s alright with you, Captain Magma?”

“I don’t care anymore. Do what you gotta do,” Vulcan uttered.

Arisia stood there with amazement yet nervousness at the same time, unsure how to react to such a position given to her. Feeling unfit for such a role. “A-Are you sure you guys really want me in that position?” she questioned. 

Sensing her doubt, Sodam Yat was the first to put her mind at ease, giving her a warm and confident smile. “We got this far thanks to you. I see no reason why we shouldn’t listen to your words,”

His words were short and simple, yet had so much meaning and trust behind them. It made Arisia feel some sense of confidence within her. Even if a part of her felt doubt, she decided to push that back in favor of taking needed action. “Okay, if you think I’m qualified, then I’ll try my best,” she said firmly.

Sodam smiled happily as did the others after hearing her words. “And we’ll be there to support you. Lead the way,” the Daxamite replied.

With a goal in mind and minds focused, the lantern group would take flight and fly out of the caverns and towards the air. Ready to face the trials before them.

Back at the trenches, this particular area was quiet, nothing but mud and debris that filled the location. With no sight of any living being or robot nearby. That is until a wall of one of the trenches was broken down by a massive green drill, making a massive hole before disappearing. Exiting out from the hole was Kazuichi and Jack T. Chance, who scouted the area for any potential threat nearby. Once they saw the coast was clear, Jack signaled the others that it was safe before he and Kaz ran off to check out the area. Laira and Lok, still carrying Chaselon, would walk out afterwards. The warrior princess kept her guard up for any potential sneak attacks while Lok would set his ally down to allow him to rest, using his ring to better heal his wounds.

“How are you feeling?” Lok asked. 

“My mind is a bit hazy, but I do feel better than before,” Chaselon replied, his voice a lot more upbeat than before. “Hopefully enough to continue the fight.”

“Let’s hope so, cause we can’t afford dead weight,” the frog said ever so bluntly. 

Chaselon didn’t seem fazed by his words as he gave him hopeful eyes. “Then I hope I do my part when needed.”

Lok responded with a scoff. “Whatever.”

Once she was absolutely certain they were safe and hidden, Laira let herself breath, resting her body for just a moment. She knew that she and the group would need as much rest as they could get until the robots appear and attack them once more. She just hopes that they’ll be ready when that happens.

“Hey Laira, you might want to see this.”

Hearing Souda call her, Laira would walk towards where he and Jack were. Climbing up the trench to see what was up there. Once she was with the two lanterns, Jack motioned his hands to tell the princess to look over the horizon. Over a thousand yards far, Laira was greeted at the very end of the battlefield, where the red flag was, tied to a worn out wooden pole. However, it was not alone. The flag was on top of a large hill of dirt, guarded by an army of robots. Every one of them looked out for their enemies as they carried deadly and destructive looking weapons on them. On the sides of the hill were massive gun turrets, mounted on solid concrete as they motioned around for any hostiles. And at the very bottom, was a massive field of dirt and sand, littered with massive large chucks of rusted iron along with barbed wire all over the ground. Very single weapon and obstacle painted yellow. The entire sight was a full on fortress designed specifically to defend and take down newbie lanterns. And it showed no mercy.

Kaz looked at the entire area with absolute dread. “Fucking hell man…”

“You said it,”Jack replied with a grim look. “That entire place is a death trap for us.”

“This entire trial has been nothing but a death trap for us. Who’s the asshole that designed this?!” the mechanic questioned angrily.

“...Kilowog.”

“...right.”

“Which is why we must plan this accordingly,” Laira reminded them. “Every fortress has a weakness to it, a blind spot that we can exploit. But we must do it as effectively as possible. We cannot afford any mistakes.

“And pray tell how are we supposed to get through all that when our rings won’t do jack shit?” Kaz questioned.

Before anyone could suggest anything, the three heard screaming from behind them, where they saw Lok and Chaselon being attacked by more of the robots. The trio quickly slid down the dirt wall and ran towards the others to help them. The mechanic and gunslinger grabbing whatever item around them for a weapon. 

Lok and Chaselon found themselves surrounded by a group of robots, either coming out from the massive hole or climbing over the trenches. Each of them holding a deadly melee weapon of some kind to harm their prey. Lok fought them back with metal scraps and his strong legs, while Chaselon used a rusted pole to provide support. Just as they were about to be overwhelmed, Kaz, Laira, and Jack came to their rescue, knocking back any robot close by, and creating a distance between them and the foe.

“We can never have a moment of rest from these assholes, can we?” Souda complained, wielding an old shovel.

“Then this wouldn’t be a trial,” Jack reminded him, holding his pistols at the barrel.

Kaz simply huffed in annoyance. “Good point.”

The robots were the first to charge towards their foes as the lanterns did the same. Kaz, holding up his shovel, was ready to fight off against-

“Everyone, this is Arisia! Can everyone hear me?!”

Kaz stopped in his tracks, startled by the sudden voice echoing his ears. He looked around his area to see where the voice came from. “Arisia? You're here? Where are you?” His focus was broken as a robot punched him in the face, knocking him to a wall. Souda uttered out an “ow,” as he spat out a tooth, before his instincts took over and he blocked the robot’s second attack with his shovel. “Arisia, where are you?!” he shouted before kicking the robot back.

Lok stabbed his metal scrap into a robot’s head before kicking it away towards a group, knocking them down. “The hell are you on about?! That girl isn’t here!”

“Focus on the battle and ignore everything else!” Laira scolded as she attacked two other robots with a twirl of her pipe. 

Kaz bashed his shovel against his mechanical opponent, striking it to the ground. “I swear I just heard her! Like she was in my mind!”

“Come on, man. Don’t go losing it now!” Jack told him as he pistol whipped his foe with enough force to leave a massive dent on its head. “We got a fight on our-”

“Anyone, please respond!”

Jack was taken aback by Arisia’s voice ringing through his ears. “Holy shit, she is here?!”

“It seems I can hear her too,” Chaselon responded, evading a slash from a robot’s arm blade. Then he noticed that his ring was blinking, as if it was receiving a signal. “And it seems our rings are the one responsible for such an occurrence.”

Putting the pieces together, Laira raised her ring to her face and responded to the message. “This is Laira! Can you hear me?!”

“Laira! Thank goodness I got a hold of you! Are the others okay?!”

Kaz was currently holding a robot in a chokehold, trying his best not to get thrown off. “We’re fighting for our lives! But for the most part, we’re fine!” he responded to his ring. “How are you talking to us though?!”

“Our rings can do anything, remember? I’m using it to create a transmission between you all!”

“Oh yeah…I forgot that our rings can do that,” Kaz uttered, feeling a bit dumb, before the robot threw him off its back. “Ow!”

“Why exactly are you calling us out of nowhere?!” Lok yelled, avoiding the laser shots from his foe. “We’re kinda busy fighting for our lives!”

“Because we figured out a way to pass the trial! We know a way to defeat the robots for good! And it involves using our rings!”

“Remember, our rings can’t affect anything yellow, but it can affect everything else! Including enhancing.”

At the jungle area, Sodam was communicating with the other lantern group as they were dealing with their robot enemies. One half of the robots were newly arrived reinforcements while the other half were the ones that survived the fiery explosion. Parts of their metal being melted, along with lost limbs, and circuits and wires being exposed, they looked like a mess. Yet they were still able to continue the fight. Jerry would fight off the robots as Ch’p was communicating to his friend. Even with his small cuts and injuries, along with his breathing being heavy, the Yaujta would continue to fight for as long as he could, jumping into the robot horde, and slicing them up with his wrist blades. 

“What are you on about, Sodam?! You’re not exactly making sense!” Ch’p shouted before dodging a laser blast that nearly hit him.

“Think about it for a sec! If we can’t use our rings to attack, then we can use everything else to harm them. But we need to use the rings to make them stronger!”

G'nort, Salaah, and Darvin were cornered by their own group of robots. All of them were very bruised or tired as they could barely fight back. All while Salaah was using her telekinetic powers to create a shield to protect them. But this wouldn’t last as the robots’ respected attacks were slowly cracking the shield, all while Salaah was struggling to keep it up as best she could. It was only a matter of time before the shield would break and the robots would attack them. They needed a plan and fast. Though the plan they were given by Sodam wasn’t exactly one they were keen on.

“That's the dumbest thing I ever heard!” Darvin pointed out. “The whole point of this thing was that we can't use our rings to fight.”

“I kinda agree with the duck. How exactly is this going to help us?” Salaah added before she felt an awful shiver down her body. “It feels wrong for me to even say that.”

“Just trust me on this! You have to at least try!”

“Maybe he's onto something,” G’nort suggested. “Maybe he and his team really did find a way to get through the robots. I mean, what reason would they have to tell us this?”

“Then I guess one of you can try it out, cause I’m reaching my limit!” Salaah said as her psychic shield had larger cracks.

“Nah-ha, unless we fully know if this will work, I’m not trying it!” Darvin stated as he remained firm. That until one robot managed to break its fist through the psychic shield, showing that they didn’t have much time left. “I mean…if anyone is willing to try it…I wouldn’t mind…like right now,” he said, his face sweating while looking nervous.

Just as the robot was about to further break the shield for its allies to get through, its arm was sliced off by Jerry with his wrist blades, who then stabbed his spear through the machine head. Throwing its twitching body to the ground, the Yautja would face the robot horde on his own, with Ch’p floating beside him. 

“So you’re willing to try, buddy?” Ch’p asked, with Jerry nodding in response. 

“What is he going to do?” Salaah asked.

Ch’p entered through the shield by fazing through it with his ring, joining the others. “He’s gonna do what Sodam suggested,” he answered. “We’re hoping this works,”:

“Is he really okay with this?” G’nort asked.

“It’s the best option we got,” Ch’p reminded them before turning his attention to the Yautja. “We gotta wish him luck.”

Jerry stood in silence as he faced off against an army of robots in front of him. All of them are either strong and new or broken and barely functional. Their numbers were likely in the hundred or even higher than that. While this would be a fun challenge for more experienced hunters of his clan, for a Young Blood like himself, this is a life or death situation. He had to be careful, he had to make every attack count. Though he was only given one shot to turn the tides. With his only strategy being a method told to him by Sodam Yat that even he wasn’t sure would work. But it was worth a try. After all, what is a challenging hunt without risk? 

Letting out an echoing growl, Jerry focused his ring’s power into his weapons, specifically his wrist blades and his battle spear that he pulled out from behind him. He kept this up until a green glow engulfed his weapons, his intentions fully placed within them, commanding them to be strong enough to slay his robotic enemies. Once his intent was sure and his body and weapons ready, Jerry let out his roar, one that would put the species of tigers to shame, before he charged forward towards his foes as they did the same.

He reeled back his spear with his arms, acting like spring locks, before releasing all the force forwards. Swinging his weapon at the robots with a force that even the air was sliced apart by the tremendous power the spear possessed. It not only cleaved through the machines like a hot knife through butter, but the force blew a horde away like an unyielding storm. Pieces of robotic limbs, circuits, and scrap metal flew through the air as they rained down to the other robots, either knocking them down or being stabbed by the debris. What was left were a bunch of scrap metal and stunned robots. Jerry standing before them, both shocked yet impressed by how effective this method is. One that proved to be the key to passing this trial.

The others behind the telekinetic shield were beyond awestruck by what they had witnessed. The amount of power that was behind Jerry’s spear was incredible and destructive. All done by a simple enhancement of his power ring. Even better, it was able to bypass the yellow weakness. 

“Holy moly…it actually worked…” G'Nort uttered in shock. 

“No kidding,” Ch'p replied as he felt the same. “We might actually have a chance here.”

Jerry turned his head towards the others as he gave them a thumbs up. Signaling that it was forth using. 

“Well, now that we know it works, who’s gonna go next?” Darvin questioned.

“If no one is stepping up…” Salaah said, her ring glowing in her tendril. 

“I will go first!” Laira said, her ring glowing ever so brightly. “All of you go on defense!”

“You got it! Good luck, Laira! Everyone, provide her cover!” Souda replied as he and the others grouped up together. Their backs against one another as they aimed their weapons at the approaching machines. 

“Are we really going to do this?! How are we sure this is gonna work?!” Lok questioned.

“It’s literally our only option!” Jack shouted as he kicked a robot back. “So shut up and fight these damn tin cans!”

“I hope she’ll be okay,” Chaselon expressed.

“She’ll be fine,” Kaz reassured his friend. “I trust her, like I am with Arisia,”

Once the battlefield was clear in front of her, Laira would be faced with the robots in front of her. Each one standing ever still, their growing eyes looking at her, waiting for her to attack, to counter. Laira knew these robots well enough what they would do and she needed to be smart about this. Be quick and efficient to take them down for good. She was putting all her faith in Arisia, hoping that this works as said. She grabbed a rusted pipe near her as the princess now has two pipes in both hands. She took a battle stance as she used her ring to enhance and transform the pipes into weapons much more fitting for her. The two old and rusted pipes now become swords, lanky yet sharp in design. While these weren’t swords Laira was used to, she had to make due with what was given to her. After all, a warrior is able to use whatever they have on them to their advantage.

Enhancing them fully, the blades glowing a bright green, Laira charged forward, her killing intentions at full display. The robots acted accordingly as they did the same, their metal claws ready to tear her apart. Despite their intimating appearances and weapons, Laira did not let her fear hold her back. It was now or never. Using the ring to make herself move faster, the warrior princess passed through the robots and their attacks like she was the wind itself. Eventually she landed on the other side, facing away from her foes. It was silent, unmoving. No telling what would happen next.

Swiiiiiiing~

Until the conclusion came.

Multiple sounds of quips could be heard before every single robot was split apart in one way or another. Spilt in half or into pieces, every robot was reduced to scrap metal before they all exploded. Leaving nothing behind. All while Laira remained stoic, yet having a faint smile.

“Holy shit…” Kaz uttered, having witnessed one of the most incredible sights.

“You said it…” Lok replied, agreeing with someone for once.

Laira stood up and faced her allies, gripping her swords tightly. “It seems Arisia has pulled through for us! We now have a way to fight back!”

Hearing that. Jack couldn’t help but chuckle in delight, twirling his pistols before gripping them on their barrels. “If that’s the case, I’ll give it a try!” Jack declared, enchanting his prized pistols with his ring’s power. He charged forward one of the robots and pistol whipped its head into pieces and circuits. Launching its headless body forward another group of machines, crushing them with unexpected force. “Woohee! Now that’s what I’m talking about! Just wish I could try this but with bullets!”

His words caused Kazuichi’s head to brainstorm, multiple ideas passing through his mind until one finally stuck. “Bullets, huh? If you’re in need of more, then I can make them!” Without warning, Souda grabbed any pieces of scrap metal and limbs from the robots, along with whatever metal scattered around him. 

“The hell are you doing?!” Lok questioned.

“What I do as a mechanic, make use of scrap and make something new!” Kaz replied, using his ring to form a contraption with non yellow metal while also gathering any sand nearby. “But I’ll need time! So just cover me!”

“Oh, like we need any more risks!” Lok complained, unknowingly leaving himself open for a yellow robot to attack him.

However, the frog was saved by Jack as he pistol whipped the machine to the ground, destroying it. “I say let him! If he can make me bullets, then I’m all in! Besides, at least he’s taking a risk!”

“But-”

“Lok! We must trust them!” Chaselon yelled at Lok, getting him to focus on him. “We’ve gotten this far because of our comradery! So stop your complaining and have faith in them!”

Lok was stunned to see Chaselon, usually a meek member, talking straight to him. If he was telling him to get his act straight, then he had to begrudgingly put his pride aside to survive. “Fine. I just hope the human knows what he’s doing.”

“Don’t worry. He seems to know what he’s doing,” Chaselon expressed, looking at Souda with awe as he was assembling a new type of machine.

Back at the jungle, the lanterns were fighting against the robot army. Only this time, they were the ones that were winning. Jerry was using his weapons to tear apart the machines, the enhancement of the ring making them much stronger than before. Beside him was Salaah, the end parts of her tendril arms now covered with rock and metal, resembling knives. She moved her many around in rapid speed, slicing through her foe with ease, before using her telekinesis to blast them away. 

“Now this is a power up. Who knew my psychic powers could be further improved by my ring?” Salaah commented, joyful at how effective her new weapons are.

Just then, Ch’p appeared beside her, now covered in metal and rock armor all over him, his hands and feet donning claws. “They did say the ring can do anything so it pays off when we think outside the box!” Ch’p said as his body glowed green. “So let’s show them what we can do when we can fight back!”

With a nod back, Jerry and Salaah charged forward with Ch’p at the robots in front of them. Jerry and Salaah sliced through their foes with ease, leaving one robot for Ch’p to handle. He used his metal claws to dig through the metal skin until he was able to enter into his foe’s inner mechanisms. Once inside, Ch’p began to mess around with the wires and circuits of the robot, making it move sporadically in a crazed manner. This went on until the robot finally stopped in its tracks, in a very odd pose. It remained like that for a good couple seconds, sounds of metal screeching and electrical surges being heard, until the robot stood back on its feet, its red glowing eye immediately turning bright green.

Inside the very robot, Ch’p sat near the engine, having disconnected it as he was now powering the machine up with his ring. Having this entire thing now under his control. “Already, let’s see what this guy can do,” he said with excitement. 

With a command, the robot turned its arms into saws and swung them at the other robots, its jagged teeth tearing them apart like paper. When any robots tried to get close to him, the controlled machine turned its arms into machine guns, even spawning more guns on its shoulders, and fired a flurry of bullets at them. Shredding them all into pieces of scrap.

“Oh yeah! Now this is what I’m talking about!” Ch’p yelled with joy, enjoying the sight of his robot destroying all the other robots around him.

As he was focused on attacking his enemies in front of him, Ch’p didn’t notice that there were a few robots behind him. All of them sneaking up to the controlled robot, their arms formed into blades, to take down their foe in a single attack. They were only a few feet away at striking range-

“Oh no you don’t!”

Out of nowhere, G’nort appeared and pounced onto the leading robot, stabbing his metal crafted claws through his chest before sinking his metal cover teeth into its head. With all his might, the dog alien ripped the robot apart, shredding it like it was paper. While he defeated his foe, G'nort was left wide open as the other robots ganged up on him, grabbing him by the arms to restrain him. He tried to break free, trying to use his metal teeth to bite them, but the robots were out of his reach, their grip too strong to overpower. With their foe hindered, one robot would approach G’Nort, their arm transformed into a spike blade, ready to end the rookie once and for all. But as soon as it was about to stab him, G’Nort closing his eyes out of fear, the robot was suddenly attacked by a fast blur, with enough force to explode it with metal pieces and wires.

Before the other two robots could react, they were dealt with by the same quick attack, destroying them and freeing G’Nort from his capture. Before the dog could wonder what had just occurred, his savior would appear as he landed in front of him. The savior unexpectedly being Darvin the duck, who was wielding two handmade nunchucks, made of wood and vines. 

“Have no fear, my weak minded sidekick. Your hero is here to save you,” he proclaimed, his demeanor much different from before. Much more focused and ready for combat. 

“Darvin?” G’Nort uttered in shock and awe.

“Just stand back and watch, buddy. I’ll show you what a real fighter can do,” Darvin stated as he twirled his nunchucks around. “You hear that you, buckets of bolts?! Come and get me!”

By his declaration, the robots surrounded the duck, transforming their arms into all kinds of weapons while a couple turned on their cloaking devices to turn invisible. With previous analysis of this lantern, Darvin was deemed as a non threat, one they would be easy to neutralize, so this would be seen as a simple task. With that, the robots charged forward the duck to overwhelm him with numbers. 

That was until Darvin jumped into the air, soaring so high that he avoided any attack the robots tried to throw at him. Before any of them could process what had occurred, the duck flew back down towards them and swung his nunchucks at them. The wooden parts of the weapon moved at speeds so fast that they were a blur, the force behind them being enough to shatter any robot near them into pieces. But he wasn’t done there. Darvin moved through the battlefield with such odd grace to him. Moving his nunchucks in such precision and force that he not only blocked or ricochet attacks, but he also destroyed the robots with ease. Even the invisible bots were dealt with as Darvin was somehow able to figure out where they were and destroy them. With such speed and brute force, the lantern was able to defeat all the robots without much issue, standing over the wreckage of scrap, limbs, and oil. 

G’Nort couldn’t help but look in amazement at what he had witnessed. Seeing his friend, the Great Darvin the Duck, show off his great skill and might. Truly displaying the hero that he had boosted himself as. 

“Oh woozers, that was super cool,” G’Nort uttered in awe.

“Of course it was,” Darvin boosted, twirling his nunchucks until they clamped underneath his arms. “This is me we’re talking about. I’m always at my best.”

“I never doubted you for a second,” G'Nort responds happily. “I’m so glad to have you as a friend.”

Darvin was taken aback by the genuine compliment from his dog companion. But he shook that feeling off as he put up his bravado persona back on. “...w-well that’s good. As long as you stick with me, then I’ll always make sure that you’re saf-”

Suddenly, Darvin was tackled from behind by an invisible robot, causing him to drop his nunchucks. Now defenseless. The duck found himself being grabbed from behind by the robot foe, who had him in a headchoke. With his weapons gone, Darvin was left at the mercy of the robot’s wrath as he felt his throat slowly crushed, the air forced out of his lungs. Just as he thought it would be the end, G’Nort was quick to come to his rescue, sinking his teeth and claws into the machine’s head and arms. Acting like a rapid animal, he tore through the robot’s head and arms like a chew toy, destroying it and freeing the duck.

Once Darvin was freed, G’Nort helped his friend up and provided comfort. “Darvin, are you alright?!”

The duck coughed violently before he was able to talk properly. “I-I’ll be fine…ack! I just need to breathe,” he replied, massaging his throat.

“Man, that robot really caught you off guard,” G’Nort pointed out. “It would have taken you down if I didn't get involved.”

“What?! Like that would ever happen!” Darvin retorted offensively. “Besides, I knew that robot was coming a mile away. I just thought that you deserved a win is all. You still need some work, but you’ll get there eventually.”

“Wow, you’re so generous, Darvin. But I swear, I’ll get stronger,” G’Nort said confidently. “Strong enough to make you proud.”

Darvin only smiled back as he petted his friend’s head. “I expect nothing more, my hairy friend.”

Returning to the trenches, the lanterns continued to fight off the robots that were trying to surround them. Each one using their own enhanced weapon to destroy a large amount of these machines, though it could only so much as more robots keep replacing the old ones. Appearing from all sides, which was made worse as they were in such an enclosed area that is a trench. It was only a matter of time before they got overwhelmed. As they fight back the machines, Kazuichi was still working on his contraption. Using his talent at its fullest as he was already making incredible progress.

“How much longer?!” Lok questioned, avoiding a barrage of lasers with his hops.

“I’m practically 90 percent there!” Souda replied, focusing on the cylinder shaped object before him, which was making all kinds of noise. “Just give about a minute or two!”

“No offense, kid, but I hope you know what you’re doing!” Jack admitted as he kicked a robot to the ground before pistol whipping its head to pieces.

“It will! I am the Ultimate Mechanic after all!” Kaz said with confidence. 

Chaselon stabbed his hand made spear into a robot before throwing it away. “I hope he finishes soon. I don’t doubt him, but I worry that we may be overwhelmed,” he admitted.

“Then focus on the battle and protect him,” Laira suggested, slicing a robot in half. “If he believes this will help us, then I will have faith in him.”

Chaselon understood her words as he regained his resolve. “Okay then, I will,” he said, raising his spear up towards the approaching robot horde. 

The rest of the lanterns continued to fight off the robots to allow Kazuichi to keep on creating his contraption. Laira and Jack were the ones that engaged the robots head on, taking them down one by one. All while Lok and Chaselon provided support as they took care of any robots that tried to attack their friends in their blindspots. Kaz continued to mess with his cylinder shape, adding the finishing touches. His entire mind and senses laser focused on finishing his creation.

“Are you done now?!” Lok shouted.

“Just a few more seconds!” Kaz replied, assembling his weapon.

As Laira jumped back to avoid a slash from a robot’s blade arm, Chaselon thrust his spear forward, stabbing its head to decommission. However, this left him open for another robot to not only take the weapon out from his grasp, but it broke the spear into pieces before trying to slash the lantern with its claws. Though Laira was quick to save her ally as she blocked its attack.

“Souda! We cannot hold them back longer!” Laira stated. “We need your help!”

“Hold on! I’m nearly there!” Souda retorted, seemingly doing one last thing. 

Lok stabbed his metal scrap into a robot before they broke, kicking the machine away. “Hurry your ass up before we’re-” He was interrupted as a robot tackled the frog to the ground, pressing its hand on his head, trying to crush Lok’s head into the dirt. While grabbing one of his legs to prevent him from escaping or fighting back.

“Shit, Lok!” Chance yelled as he tried to rush forward to save his ally, but was stopped as more robots blocked his way. The cowboy could only curse in remark as he tried to figure out what to do. With all these robots around him, along with his friend being slowly crushed by his metallic foe, Jack was stuck in a no win situation. Fighting these robots would take too long, making Lok suffer, but there was no way for him to get around them to get to the frog. He had to make a move of some kind and fast, but wasn’t sure what to do. “Come on, Jack, you can figure a way out of this. Maybe I can-”

“Jack! Get down!”

The sudden yelling made Jack turn around to see what called him out. To his utter shock, he was met with Kazuichi, who was currently wielding a massive gatling gun in his hands, with a long metal tube connecting the weapon to a massive cylinder metal pack on his back. 

“What the-”

“I said get down!” Kazuichi yelled as the barrel of the gun began to spin. 

Heeding his friend’s warning, Jack T Chance dove to the ground, allowing Souda to go all out. Once the barrel was spinning at high speed, the mechanic unleashed a flurry of bullets onto the robots. The rain of metal tearing through them with such incredible force that they tore through the machines like swiss cheese. Any remaining piece of them rendering unusable. He even took down the one robot that was attacking Lok, freeing the frog. Once he was done, Kaz stopped shooting, the barrel to a halt as smoke emitted from the holes. The aftermath of his attack only left behind scraps and limbs all around.

As tensions died down for a moment, Jack took the time to examine the newly made gun Kazuichi made for himself. It was definitely a crude piece of metal, one that was quickly put together with whatever was available for the mechanic to use. But Jack had to admit that this gatling gun worked far better than he expected. It moved and shot super well, almost on par with the real deal. For what it was worth, this coupled up gun worked perfectly. 

“Holy shit, kid,” Jack uttered with shock and approval. “That is one hell of a weapon you made.”

“Yeah, though you took your sweet time making it,” Lok retorted as he hopped next to them, spitting dirt out from his mouth. But at least it saved us, so I can't complain.”

“Thanks, guys. I am the Ultimate Mechanic after all,” Kaz boasted before he threw something at the cowboy. “A little something I made for you

Jack was quick to catch it and looked at what he was given. To his surprise, he was given a cartridge filled with bullets, all shaped perfectly to be used for his own guns. 

“I'll go help Laira and Chaselon. You guys take care of the rest. And Jack, show them the wrath of a gunslinger,” Souda said before flying off. 

At that moment, Jack T Chance began to laugh heartedly as he reloaded his pistols with his newly required bullets. He gave his weapons a good twirl, doing all kinds of tricks, before holding them properly. “Oh don't worry, kid. I have full intention to do so,” he uttered, his smile ever so wide as he was ready to unleash hell to his foes. 

Lok gave out a squeamish look at the cowboy, unsettled by his words and smile. “...really trying to scare anyone with that smile, huh?” he expressed. 

After an intense battle that involved metal burning bullets raining onto the battlefield, the lanterns were together once more after finally defeating their foes. The trenches littered with robot parts and limbs, oil being soaked in the sand and dirt, all while the rookies were either resting or regathering their bearings. Everyone was sitting or leaning against the dirt wall, except for Kazuichi as he was grabbing any salvageable scrap he could use before putting it inside his cylinder backpack. 

“Thank god we took care of them,” Jack said as he let out a long sigh before focussing on the mechanic. “I gotta admit, that weapon you made is something. Tore through those clankers like paper.”

“I know what you mean. It was a quick job, but I’m glad it turned out well,” Kaz replied as he examined his gatling gun. “Might need to make some modifications before we go and take on that fortress.”

“Speaking of, how are you able to create such a contraption?” Chaselon asked. I am intrigued by the weapon. “I can tell you used the metal from the robots to make this. And they’re all yellow painted, so it shouldn't be possible.”

“That’s why I had to remove the yellow paint with this sand” Souda answered as he began to happily explain his weapon. “My pack is made by placing the robot parts at the top for some good old sand blasting. Once they were good and I’m notified, I just used my ring to mold them into bullets for my gun. Same for Jack too. Speaking of…” Souda took out some cartridges from his cylinder backpack and gave them to Chance. “This is what I made so far. I’ll make more. At least as much as you can carry.”

Getting such a generous gift made Jack laugh heartily as he wrapped his arm around the mechanic. “I knew this kid had something in him, and he proved me right!” he complimented. “Glad to have you watching my back.”

Souda couldn’t help but let out a nervous chuckle, feeling a bit embarrassed. “I guess so. But I just did what Arisia told us and it somehow worked. Hell, I just acted when Laira proved that the enchantment was full proof.”

“And yet you still took action,” Laira spoke up as she was quick to point out. “Regardless of circumstances, you did what you thought was needed and it helped us. As far as I can tell, you did well. Everyone of us did.”

Souda couldn’t help but smirk from the reassuring words. “I guess you’re right.”

“I am not sure if I agree with that sentiment with how I was injured for most of it,” Chaselon expressed, not feeling the sentiment.

“You still put in the effort despite that, and in battle, every action counts,” Laira explained in a soothing tone. “As long as you have confidence in yourself, then things will turn out fine.” Her words seem to make Chaselon feel a bit better as Souda patted him on his back.

“Are we done with congratulating each other?” Lok spoke abruptly. “Because we’re not exactly done with this trial, if any of you forgot that there’s a massive fortress on the horizon.”

“As cheerful as ever, huh?” Jack pointed out sarcastically, pissing off the frog. But he did go back to being serious. “But he is right, we still have one last obstacle left to pass this test. We should inform the others first, see how they’re doing.”

“I’ll do that,” Laira said as she raised her ring towards her face. “This is Laira. Our group has managed to defeat the robots in our area and are currently hiding and resting. How is everyone else?”

“This is Arisia. We’re doing the same. Waiting on everyone else,” Arisia replied, as she was laying against a wall of rock. She and her group were currently hiding inside a hole, with some slabs of rock covering them. All of them took a moment to rest as Tala was using her water magic to heal their injuries. With Sodam Yat doing a look out with a telescope construct to see the far end of the battlefield. 

“Do you see the fortress at the very end of the field?”

“We do…and to be honest, I’m having some doubts here,” Sodam expressed, already fearing the worst. 

“It will be hard for any of us to even reach the hill, much less capture the flag,” Spol added. “Kilowog truly saved the worst part in the end.”

“I don’t see the issue,” Vulcan exclaimed, boosting his power as per usual, all while Tala was healing him. “All we need to do is use my amazing fire to burn that place down in one go. I can take that place down with my eyes closed.” 

Tala was quick to take down his argument. “As if the robots will allow you to do that,” she stated ever so bluntly. “They’re not as reckless as you.”

“Oh screw off.”

Tala responded back by splashing water into Vulcan's face, extinguishing the fire on his head. “An action I unfortunately can’t do.”

“It is good that we’re all okay, but I’m worried about Ch’p and the others.” Arisia expressed. 

“Don’t worry, I’m contacting them right now,” Souda said from the line.

“Ch’p, can you hear me? Are you guys alright?”

Back in the jungle, Ch’p was currently sitting on the shoulder of the robot he took control of. With the other lanterns, they were all hiding on top of the trees, taking their moment to rest as they had a good view of the massive fortress in the distance. All of them perched on a branch, though in Salaah's case, was floating in the air. 

“More or less. We’re somehow alive so that has to mean something,” Ch'p answered.

“I'm just glad you're all alright.”

“Of course we are!” Darvin exclaimed, standing tall and proud. “After all, they had me by their side. The robots were no match for the amazing Darvin the Duck!”

“Ahem.”

Darvin was drawn to the sound as he looked to his side, where he was being glared at by Salaah and Jerry. Even with one wearing a mask and the other being a literal eyeball, they were still able to express disdain at the duck. Though G’Nort looked neutral, seemingly waiting for his friend to compliment him on his efforts.

“Oh, and the others helped too, I guess. Especially my hairy companion,” Darvin said so quickly and so dismissfully. 

“Real humility there, duck,” Salaah said sarcastically, clearly unconvinced. Though G’Nort seemed to be happy enough.

“Why thank you. Now you know your place,” Darvin replied ever so smugly. 

This resulted in Salaah glaring at the duck harder as she used her psychic powers to break a branch off from above Darvin. Then she let the branch fall on Darvin’s head, causing a massive long bump to form on his head, his eyes swirling while letting out gibberish, before he fell to the ground. 

G’Nort looked over the edge with concern. “Will he be okay?”

“I’m sure,” Salaah answered nonchalantly. “He’s survived worse.”

“Okay, ignoring whatever just happened there, we should all start discussing what we should do next,” Kazuichi responded.

“That’s what we were trying to figure out ourselves,” Ch’p admitted. “How are we supposed to take on a fortress that big?”

“I’m not sure. We’re still debating on what our next move should be,” Souda said as he peeked out from the trench, looking at the fortress. “The place is not only littered with robots, but they have literal turrets that will shoot us down the moment they see us, and I know they have more hidden surprises for us.”

“Can’t we just go full on assault?” Lok suggested. “We got good numbers, and with the enhancement method, it should be far easier for us.”

“Not a good idea,” Jack said, quickly dismissing his idea. “With how many robots there are at the fortress, along with yellow still being a weakness for us, we’ll be taken out in a matter of minutes.”

“Our chances are too low to afford being reckless,” Laira added. “We need a plan that will ensure better odds.”

“What exactly can we do then?” Tala wondered as she finished healing the fire alien. “With no real blind spot, along with the enemy in both land and sky, it would be nearly impossible to just get to the fortress.”

“Then we just brute force it! Forget trying to find any weaknesses and take them head on! I’ll use my flames to just burn everything to a crisp. Make it easier to take them down,” Vulcan proposed as his hands were on fire.

“I swear, is pure destruction all you ever think about?” Tala asked with a disapproving look. 

“Hey, at least I’m suggesting something, I don’t see you giving us any other ideas,” he argued.

“Maybe, but any idea I could come up with would be better than anything you could think of in that empty head of yours,” she pointed out with disdain in her voice.

Her words caused Vulcan to glare at her as the flames began to burn hotter. “Watch your tone, fish face, before I make you.”

Tala would respond back with her own glare, water surrounding her body. “Try it, candle.”

Before anything could happen, Spol got in between the two and immediately stopped them. “That’s enough! We need to focus on the task at hand! Not attacking each other like children!”

That seemed to be enough to get the two to calm down, looking away from each other. “She started it,” Vulcan uttered, causing Tala to fume in anger. 

“So brute force won’t help us, but there’s no real way we can get through undetected,” Sodam pointed out, feeling the situation more helpless than ever. “I’m not liking our odds. This may be a dead end for us.”

“We can’t just give up like this. We just need to keep thinking,” G’Nort spoke up.

“And what exactly is there to think about? We’re stuck!” Lok yelled, hammering in the point. “The only option we do have is pretty much a death sentence!”

As everyone still tried to argue what should be their next move, Arisia was looking at the fortress before them. It was an intimidating monument that seemed impossible to take down. Really seeing how this such a task as capturing the flag was one of the hardest things they could do at this moment. Yet despite the challenge, the girl still tried to figure out ways for them to either get through the obstacles or defeat the enemy to ensure they capture the flag. There had to be a way if Kilowog put them in this trial, expecting them to pass. 

“I still say we just wing it and go for a full on attack!” Vulcan shouted, bringing back his idea.

“Vulcan, I swear, just stop talking!” Tala requested angrily. 

Her head lit up with an idea after hearing their conversation. A plan that Arisia knew could work. It was a risky one, but their best option. “Actually…Vulcan may be onto something,” she said.

Her group looked at her with shock in their eyes, Tala being the most flabbergasted by what they heard. “He is?” they all uttered.

Vulcan was just as shocked as them as he didn’t expect this. “I am?”

“Well kinda, but there’s more to it,” Arisia answered before she explained herself. “Maybe brute force is our way through this. But instead of just using it as a desperate attempt to overpower the enemy, we use it as a distraction.”

“A distraction?” Sodam asked.

“Exactly. But I need to know what everyone has on them. Any weapon or ability that could help us gain an edge,” Arisia asked the others through her ring.

“Well I have a robot that I managed to capture and reprogram. A little busted in some areas, but I can get it fixed,” Ch’p explained as he examined his robot that was now his mech. “Jerry here has all kinds of weapons on him, including a cloaking device and a helmet with all kinds of features. Like a swiss army knife.” Jerry gave a thumbs up in response.

“I have telekinetic powers,” Salaah added. “They should come in handy.”

Just then, Darvin jumped back into the tree, doing multiple front flips in the process, as boastful as ever. “As for me, I have the most important tool. My killer nunchucks and my kung fu moves!” he shouted before performing all kinds of attacks with his fists, kicks, and nunchucks. All while letting out karate yells to make himself look intimidating. But in his performance, his nunchuck ended up breaking the branch he was standing on, causing the duck to fall once more, crashing to the ground. 

Salaah couldn’t help but chuckle from seeing this. “Okay, that was kinda funny.”

“As for us, other than Laira's amazing martial arts, me and Jack have guns. Mine is good for crowd control,” Souda explained, twirling the barrel of his gatling gun after making some modifications to it.

“Can you make any more?” Arisia asked.

“Only if I got a lot of metal to work with,” he replied, checking the fresh metal he has in his cylinder backpack.

“Okay, then I have a plan. But first, we need to all meet up together. I’ll send you all coordinates for where we’ll meet up…”

Going back to the tower at the other side of the battlefield, Kilowog continued to look over the area, examining how the rookies were doing so far. From what he’s seen, they are doing much better now then they were in the beginning. The fact that they were able to fight off the robots and figure out a way is an improvement. But there was more to come as they arrived at the end part of the test, and that was to take down the fortress to capture the flag. And seeing as they were on the move, it seemed that the lanterns had a plan set in motion.

“They finally arrived at the end. Now the real challenge begins,” Kilowog uttered to himself. “Though I wonder if they're ready for this?”

He looked at one screen, showing him the robots within the fortress, many either on the hill or in the air, in positions as they were ready for the enemy. All while the turrets moved around, locked on and ready for whatever target comes into their line of view. These robots were ready to defend the flag no matter the cost, and they would not allow anyone to get past them. For any sane person, they would see this part of the exercise as overkill and should be stopped immediately. But for Kilowog, he just found this as the most amusing part of the test, one that he’s been anticipating the most.

“Eh, either way, I’m going to enjoy this. Don’t disappoint me, poozers,” Kilowog said, having the most delightful yet sinister smile he could make.