Post by Deleted on Mar 27, 2015 5:43:03 GMT -5
Titans East Chapter 39 – “The Mystery of the Bermuda Corals” Part Two
Written by: Green Lantern
Co-conspirator: Power Guy
Featured Artist: The Stranger
Editor: Marcus Mebes
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waikiki Beach, Hawaii
Daniel Jordan sat at a table for two overlooking the tropical beach. He wore a long sleeved white shirt, black pants, and a maroon tie with small blue-colored sailboats. Sitting across from him was as lovely a date as anyone could ask for. She wore a knee-length white dress decorated with a large red tropical flower pattern. Her raven colored hair was combed to the side and sported a red hibiscus flower just above her right ear. Both smiled as the waiter served them roast pork with a rice pilaf. The plates were exquisite. Sargona removed the cherry from her pineapple drink and savored it. “So, are you going to tell me why we are really here?” she asked.
“I got a tip from a guy named Whirlpool that something to do with the Bermuda corals would be going down here today,” answered her dashing suitor. “I figured that if it turned out to be false information that at least we could enjoy the opportunity.”
“Are you sure that we can handle it alone?” asked Sargona teasingly.
“Well, I tell you what,” he answered. “If something does go down and it turns out to be a bit of a challenge… next time we will bring half the team with us. But for now let’s just enjoy the moment.”
Both enjoyed their meals. Daniel enjoyed the scenery and the sound of the waves lapping the beach. Sargona enjoyed watching “her man” gazing at the beach until she noticed two young blonde ladies jogging along the shore.
“So, who do you like on our team?” she asked to get his attention.
“…of the Titans?” he said as he stretched his arms. “I like everyone.”
“No one special?” Sargona pried. “No best friends?”
“Well, yeah: YOU!” he said with a smile.
“No one else?” she continued as she watched the two scantily clad blondes change directions.
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. Something was up. “Well, I was starting to really like Starman, but then he was transferred to the Titans West. Dark Arrow has always been my best buddy, but he keeps rejecting my offers to join the team.”
“Come on, Daniel. Just say it. Admit it,” insisted Sargona.
“I’m not sure what you mean,” Daniel said uncomfortably, pretty sure he knew what she meant.
Sargona looked him straight into his eyes. “You have another ‘best friend’ on our team.”
The image of DiDi Queen in a pink blouse with her hair down and entered Daniel’s mind. “…I… I…”
[glow=red,2,300]BZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!! [/glow]
BANG! BANG!
[glow=red,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT!!!!!!![/glow]
Daniel turned his head toward the ocean to the amazing display of aquatic war. An army of amphibian-humanoids were in a sudden battle with both the Devil Ray and the Sting Ray. Daniel immediately jumped up from the table and ran towards a nearby group of trees. Sargona took one last bite of pork and ran towards the ladies’ room. Green Lantern soared the skies and shot emerald blasts at some of the frog-men.
“Green Lantern to Hall of Justice,” said the young hero through his Titans of Justice communicator. “Immediate assistance required at Waikiki Beach, Oahu, Hawaii.”
“Wonder Man here,” came the reply. “All agents on various assignments. I could be there in 45 minutes at best.”
“Thanks, anyway,” answered Green Lantern.
Sargona appeared above the coastline flying on her red carpet. Blood colored beams emanating from her ruby shot toward the Devil Ray. With great skill, Sargona maneuvered out of the way of the energy blasts from both Devil Ray’s and Sting Ray’s manta guns.
“Green Lantern to Titans West: Immediate assistance required in Oahu!”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Metrotower
Starman gazed at the Metrotower screen intently. He pushed a couple of buttons and downloaded another image of Supergirl. Starman often volunteered for monitor duty for the free internet time. He took another bite of his donut and chuckled at the thought of Wonder Warrior’s face if he ever found out what he’d been doing with all his time.
Beep! Beep! Beep! “Green Lantern to Titans West: Immediate assistance required in Oahu.”
Starman quickly sat up straight at the monitor desk. “Hey, GL! How ya doin’?”
“Starman! Can you put together a squad and meet us at Waikiki Beach?” asked Green Lantern urgently.
Starman could clearly hear the sounds of battle in the background. “No prob, man! I can be there with the Silverstreak in ten!”
“Make it five!” said Green Lantern before cutting off contact.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waikiki Beach, Hawaii: Seven minutes later
Starman flew out of the Silverstreak towards the war scene. He was both awed and humored at the sight of Green Lantern plucking “frog-men” with a giant green pair of tweezers and collecting them in an even larger green glass jug. He noted that Sargona was having difficulty handling two villains at the same time. One of them was a female who appeared to be dressed like Black Manta. She looked tough. Starman decided to leave her for Sargona. He aimed his cosmic star rod at “Black Manta.”
“YES! Direct hit!” he shouted as the Devil Ray fell head first into the sea.
“Took you long enough,” grunted Green Lantern as he plucked up two more frog-men and placed them with the others in his glowing container. “Where’s the rest of your squad?”
“Sorry, just me this time. So, who are the slimy frog-men?” asked Starman.
“Near as I can tell, they are the goons of an underwater tyrant named Trog,” explained Green Lantern. He saw the look of dissatisfaction on Starman’s face as he shot blasts at escaping frog-men to herd them closer to Green Lantern. “Trog’s an Aquaman villain. It seems there is a big uproar in the underwater community about a mythical coral necklace.”
“If its mythical, why do they have their panties all in a wad about it?” asked Starman.
“They all seem convinced that the Bermuda corals are real,” answered Green Lantern.
“By the way, congratulations on being the new head honcho of the Titans East!” said Starman.
“Thanks!” said Green Lantern. “I kind of miss Celsius being leader though. I really appreciated every decision he ever made… except one.”
“What’s that?” asked Starman in surprise.
“Trading you off to the West team,” answered Green Lantern.
Starman’s grin was quickly erased as Devil Ray suddenly jumped out of the water and pointed his gun at his head. Green Lantern quickly shot a blast at Devil Ray, resulting in the manta gun blast hitting Starman’s shoulder instead of his face.
“Arrrrrrgh! You scaly jerk! That hurt like…” began Starman. Then he noticed the tear in his jacket sleeve. “Do you have any idea how much this jacket cost me?” he said enraged.
Devil Ray aimed his masers at both heroes. Seeing the imminent calamity, Sargona shot her next beam past the Sting Ray and knocked Devil Ray out cold. Green Lantern picked him up with a giant pair of green tweezers and placed him in the jar. Starman gave Green Lantern a “thumb’s up.”
Sargona had long been distracted by personal grievances and needed to work off some stress. This fight with Sting Ray was just the opportunity she had been looking for. She was tired of messing around and decided to get down to business.
Sting Ray aimed at Starman, but missed because of Sargona’s direct hit on the villainess’ arm. She lost one of her masers to the sea, and turned her head quickly to glare at Sargona, who followed-up with a second blast, effectively knocking Sting Ray on her rear-end. She landed on a jagged rock.
“That one was dedicated to Black Vulcan,” thought Sargona.
Sting Ray got up and hurled herself in rage at Sargona, who tripped her. Sting Ray landed on her face in the sand.
“…and that one was for the Huntress, for attracting that Sportsmaster-creep to the Titans East.”
Jumping on the Sting Ray, Sargona turned her over and slapped her face. “That one was for Celsius for letting a murderer on the team without even bothering to do a background check!”
Sting Ray shouted out in exasperation and ran toward Sargona. Sargona punched the villainess in the eye with all her might and followed-up with a good, hard kick to the back-side. “And that one is for Sonic (censored by the Hall of Justice Fan-fiction Code Authority) for daring to even look at my man!” she thought in anger. Sting Ray suddenly disappeared.
“Where did she go?” thought Sargona in confusion.
Then all of Trog’s remaining goons submerged. The three heroes looked at one another.
“Can either of you swim?” asked Green Lantern.
“I… I don’t know what will happen to my star rod if it gets wet,” answered Starman.
“I don’t really have any underwater experience,” hedged Sargona.
The three looked at each other. “Let’s go do it!” shouted Green Lantern. His two companions shrugged and followed. Then, just before they hit the water, the frog-men resurfaced in a panic.
“What’s going on?” shouted Sargona.
The answer to her question came as a blue-clad young man with a trident surfaced and continued chasing the thirty-plus frog-goons.
“All right, Aqualad!” cheered Starman as he began blasting.
“His name is Whirlpool. He’s Tempest’s son,” said Green Lantern as he began plucking up frog-men with his tweezers. “You know, the original Aqualad.”
The battle was quickly finished. Green Lantern turned five power-ring created jars over to Whirlpool.
“Thanks for the help, Green Lantern!” said Whirlpool cheerfully.
“Thanks for taking these Trog-goons off our hands!” answered Green Lantern.
“Hey, I don’t see Devil Ray in there,” observed Starman. “Where’d he go?”
Sargona and Whirlpool investigated the jars. Green Lantern was going to help when he noticed Starman’s ripped jacket. The tear was big enough to expose the green lantern tattoo on Starman’s left shoulder. Starman quickly covered his shoulder with his hand in embarrassment.
“Relax,” Green Lantern said with a smile. A green lawn chair burst forth from his power ring. Emerald animated images of Jemstone and Supergirl followed. Green Supergirl sat Starman down in the lawnchair and began gently massaging Starman’s temples as green Jemstone repaired Starman’s leather jacket.
“GL? Did I ever tell you how awesome you are?” Starman said with a silly grin.
“I… well, I can’t take all of the credit. The ring… it seems to want to pamper you. I think it likes you!” said a perplexed Green Lantern. He turned his attention to Whirlpool. “Did you find him?”
“No, he got away. That Devil Ray is a sneaky one,” answered the Atlantean.
“Hey, Whirlpool. I have a proposition for you,” said Green Lantern. “You come with stellar references and the Titans East could use a guy like you who specializes in underwater missions. What do you say? Would you like to join up?”
“I appreciate the offer… but the oceans of the world come first,” began Whirlpool. “Tell you what: Put me on your reserve list and call me when you really need me.”
“Sounds like a plan!” answered Green Lantern as the two heroes shook hands.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Pacific Ocean off the California Coast - Five Days Later
Green Lantern zoomed above the Pacific waters, balancing on a green star rod identical to Starman’s.
Thwip! Thwip! Thwip! Three solid green stars shot from Green Lantern’s power ring into the sky. Using his star rod, Starman shot at each of the star shaped targets in the sky.
[glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow] BOOM! [glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow] BOOM! [glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! ZZZZZZZZZT!!! ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow] BOOM!
“’Took ya three shots to get that last one!” teased Green Lantern as he air-surfed on his emerald star rod.
“Hey! But I got it!” said Starman. “You know, that’s really cool how you stand on your rod and kind of surf in the air like that!”
“Wanna race?” challenged Green Lantern.
Starman wasn’t sure if he could balance on his star rod while flying. He was concerned what would happen if he lost his balance and his star rod got wet, or worse: was lost in the ocean. “I don’t know…”
“Chicken,” teased Green Lantern as two green colored chickens emerged from his power ring and flew high into the skies.
[glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow]BWAK! [glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow]BWAK!
“Got ‘em both!” said Green Lantern. “Great job!”
Starman decided to try it. He put one foot on his star rod while mid air and then the other. He wavered back and forth with both arms as he tried to find his balance. Green Lantern chuckled at the sight. No sooner did Starman find his balance, than Green Lantern shouted, “On your mark! Set!” Then a green banner with the words ‘FINISH LINE’ appeared 100 feet in the distance. “GO!”
Both heroes rode their rods towards the goal. Starman was amazed at how effortlessly Green Lantern maintained his balance. Starman did not want to be beat by Green Lantern in a Star Rod Race, so he doubled his speed. Soon he wobbled, fell off his star rod, and did a belly flop into the Pacific Ocean.
KLIK!
Starman surfaced to find Green Lantern with a wide grin and holding a camera. He was relieved to see his star rod levitating in the air with a green energy glow about it.
“I got a great shot of your landing, Starman!” joked Green Lantern.
“Just tell me one thing,” said Starman as he dried his hair with the green towel Green Lantern offered him. “How do you manage to stay on your star rod so well?”
“Simple!” said Green Lantern. “I commanded my ring keep me in perfect balance!”
“Ha, ha, HA!” said Starman sarcastically. “Is this why you invited me out here to practice? So you could get a humiliating picture of me to sell to Arachnid?”
“Nah. I got a much better reason than that!” said Green Lantern. “Follow me.”
Twelve minutes later the two heroes arrived at the Jordan residence in civilian clothing and entered through the back door.
“Hey, dad! I got someone here I want you to meet!” shouted Daniel Jordan.
Hal Jordan entered the room dressed in his Green Lantern uniform. He looked both majestic and heroic. “You must be Starman!” said Hal Jordan as he extended his right hand toward Starman.
Starman’s eyes widened and he nodded his head with a silly grin. Green Lantern Hal Jordan was his hero. He never dreamed that he would actually ever meet him in person, and now he was shaking hands with him. “Pleasure to meet you!” said Hal Jordan warmly. Starman would kick himself daily for the next six months for acting like such a fan-boy geek in front of his hero. He nodded and grinned as he shook Hal’s hand faster and faster. He wanted to say something cool or respectful, but he was so overwhelmed by the moment that he couldn’t speak.
“Daniel, why don’t you ask your friend to stay for dinner?” asked Carol Jordan as she joined the three heroes in the kitchen.
KLIK! Daniel took a picture of Starman with his dad. Later, Starman would ask Daniel to get his dad to autograph it. He would treasure this picture for the rest of his life.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Epilogue: Classified Location
The Stranger watched from the privacy of another plane as an African-American woman laid a baby girl to rest in her crib. The woman suffered from a black-eye and several bruises and limped as she walked about the room. She put salve on her cracked lip and said softly to her sleeping child, “Your daddy took your older brother, but don’t worry, he won’t be coming for you. He doesn’t even know you exist…”
She removed a pink coral necklace and draped them from the mobile hanging above the crib, “…and now that we have these, we can get your brother back whenever we want to.”
She carefully hung a black and pink costume in her closet and took out the helmet of the Sting Ray. She sat on her bed and began polishing it. “…but first thing’s first. We have to make that nasty Sargona pay for hurting Mama.”
The Stranger was concerned about the future of the young girl if she were to be raised by the Sting Ray. At this point, the infant still needed her mother, but the day would come soon when the Stranger must interfere. The young child was the daughter of the great warrior Strato Hawk, after all. But this problem paled in comparison to the impending tragedy which would spiral from the events of this day. He must leave this scene to consider how to best deal with the calamity which would strike the Titans of Justice imminently.
The End
Written by: Green Lantern
Co-conspirator: Power Guy
Featured Artist: The Stranger
Editor: Marcus Mebes
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waikiki Beach, Hawaii
Daniel Jordan sat at a table for two overlooking the tropical beach. He wore a long sleeved white shirt, black pants, and a maroon tie with small blue-colored sailboats. Sitting across from him was as lovely a date as anyone could ask for. She wore a knee-length white dress decorated with a large red tropical flower pattern. Her raven colored hair was combed to the side and sported a red hibiscus flower just above her right ear. Both smiled as the waiter served them roast pork with a rice pilaf. The plates were exquisite. Sargona removed the cherry from her pineapple drink and savored it. “So, are you going to tell me why we are really here?” she asked.
“I got a tip from a guy named Whirlpool that something to do with the Bermuda corals would be going down here today,” answered her dashing suitor. “I figured that if it turned out to be false information that at least we could enjoy the opportunity.”
“Are you sure that we can handle it alone?” asked Sargona teasingly.
“Well, I tell you what,” he answered. “If something does go down and it turns out to be a bit of a challenge… next time we will bring half the team with us. But for now let’s just enjoy the moment.”
Both enjoyed their meals. Daniel enjoyed the scenery and the sound of the waves lapping the beach. Sargona enjoyed watching “her man” gazing at the beach until she noticed two young blonde ladies jogging along the shore.
“So, who do you like on our team?” she asked to get his attention.
“…of the Titans?” he said as he stretched his arms. “I like everyone.”
“No one special?” Sargona pried. “No best friends?”
“Well, yeah: YOU!” he said with a smile.
“No one else?” she continued as she watched the two scantily clad blondes change directions.
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. Something was up. “Well, I was starting to really like Starman, but then he was transferred to the Titans West. Dark Arrow has always been my best buddy, but he keeps rejecting my offers to join the team.”
“Come on, Daniel. Just say it. Admit it,” insisted Sargona.
“I’m not sure what you mean,” Daniel said uncomfortably, pretty sure he knew what she meant.
Sargona looked him straight into his eyes. “You have another ‘best friend’ on our team.”
The image of DiDi Queen in a pink blouse with her hair down and entered Daniel’s mind. “…I… I…”
[glow=red,2,300]BZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!! [/glow]
BANG! BANG!
[glow=red,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT!!!!!!![/glow]
Daniel turned his head toward the ocean to the amazing display of aquatic war. An army of amphibian-humanoids were in a sudden battle with both the Devil Ray and the Sting Ray. Daniel immediately jumped up from the table and ran towards a nearby group of trees. Sargona took one last bite of pork and ran towards the ladies’ room. Green Lantern soared the skies and shot emerald blasts at some of the frog-men.
“Green Lantern to Hall of Justice,” said the young hero through his Titans of Justice communicator. “Immediate assistance required at Waikiki Beach, Oahu, Hawaii.”
“Wonder Man here,” came the reply. “All agents on various assignments. I could be there in 45 minutes at best.”
“Thanks, anyway,” answered Green Lantern.
Sargona appeared above the coastline flying on her red carpet. Blood colored beams emanating from her ruby shot toward the Devil Ray. With great skill, Sargona maneuvered out of the way of the energy blasts from both Devil Ray’s and Sting Ray’s manta guns.
“Green Lantern to Titans West: Immediate assistance required in Oahu!”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Metrotower
Starman gazed at the Metrotower screen intently. He pushed a couple of buttons and downloaded another image of Supergirl. Starman often volunteered for monitor duty for the free internet time. He took another bite of his donut and chuckled at the thought of Wonder Warrior’s face if he ever found out what he’d been doing with all his time.
Beep! Beep! Beep! “Green Lantern to Titans West: Immediate assistance required in Oahu.”
Starman quickly sat up straight at the monitor desk. “Hey, GL! How ya doin’?”
“Starman! Can you put together a squad and meet us at Waikiki Beach?” asked Green Lantern urgently.
Starman could clearly hear the sounds of battle in the background. “No prob, man! I can be there with the Silverstreak in ten!”
“Make it five!” said Green Lantern before cutting off contact.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waikiki Beach, Hawaii: Seven minutes later
Starman flew out of the Silverstreak towards the war scene. He was both awed and humored at the sight of Green Lantern plucking “frog-men” with a giant green pair of tweezers and collecting them in an even larger green glass jug. He noted that Sargona was having difficulty handling two villains at the same time. One of them was a female who appeared to be dressed like Black Manta. She looked tough. Starman decided to leave her for Sargona. He aimed his cosmic star rod at “Black Manta.”
“YES! Direct hit!” he shouted as the Devil Ray fell head first into the sea.
“Took you long enough,” grunted Green Lantern as he plucked up two more frog-men and placed them with the others in his glowing container. “Where’s the rest of your squad?”
“Sorry, just me this time. So, who are the slimy frog-men?” asked Starman.
“Near as I can tell, they are the goons of an underwater tyrant named Trog,” explained Green Lantern. He saw the look of dissatisfaction on Starman’s face as he shot blasts at escaping frog-men to herd them closer to Green Lantern. “Trog’s an Aquaman villain. It seems there is a big uproar in the underwater community about a mythical coral necklace.”
“If its mythical, why do they have their panties all in a wad about it?” asked Starman.
“They all seem convinced that the Bermuda corals are real,” answered Green Lantern.
“By the way, congratulations on being the new head honcho of the Titans East!” said Starman.
“Thanks!” said Green Lantern. “I kind of miss Celsius being leader though. I really appreciated every decision he ever made… except one.”
“What’s that?” asked Starman in surprise.
“Trading you off to the West team,” answered Green Lantern.
Starman’s grin was quickly erased as Devil Ray suddenly jumped out of the water and pointed his gun at his head. Green Lantern quickly shot a blast at Devil Ray, resulting in the manta gun blast hitting Starman’s shoulder instead of his face.
“Arrrrrrgh! You scaly jerk! That hurt like…” began Starman. Then he noticed the tear in his jacket sleeve. “Do you have any idea how much this jacket cost me?” he said enraged.
Devil Ray aimed his masers at both heroes. Seeing the imminent calamity, Sargona shot her next beam past the Sting Ray and knocked Devil Ray out cold. Green Lantern picked him up with a giant pair of green tweezers and placed him in the jar. Starman gave Green Lantern a “thumb’s up.”
Sargona had long been distracted by personal grievances and needed to work off some stress. This fight with Sting Ray was just the opportunity she had been looking for. She was tired of messing around and decided to get down to business.
Sting Ray aimed at Starman, but missed because of Sargona’s direct hit on the villainess’ arm. She lost one of her masers to the sea, and turned her head quickly to glare at Sargona, who followed-up with a second blast, effectively knocking Sting Ray on her rear-end. She landed on a jagged rock.
“That one was dedicated to Black Vulcan,” thought Sargona.
Sting Ray got up and hurled herself in rage at Sargona, who tripped her. Sting Ray landed on her face in the sand.
“…and that one was for the Huntress, for attracting that Sportsmaster-creep to the Titans East.”
Jumping on the Sting Ray, Sargona turned her over and slapped her face. “That one was for Celsius for letting a murderer on the team without even bothering to do a background check!”
Sting Ray shouted out in exasperation and ran toward Sargona. Sargona punched the villainess in the eye with all her might and followed-up with a good, hard kick to the back-side. “And that one is for Sonic (censored by the Hall of Justice Fan-fiction Code Authority) for daring to even look at my man!” she thought in anger. Sting Ray suddenly disappeared.
“Where did she go?” thought Sargona in confusion.
Then all of Trog’s remaining goons submerged. The three heroes looked at one another.
“Can either of you swim?” asked Green Lantern.
“I… I don’t know what will happen to my star rod if it gets wet,” answered Starman.
“I don’t really have any underwater experience,” hedged Sargona.
The three looked at each other. “Let’s go do it!” shouted Green Lantern. His two companions shrugged and followed. Then, just before they hit the water, the frog-men resurfaced in a panic.
“What’s going on?” shouted Sargona.
The answer to her question came as a blue-clad young man with a trident surfaced and continued chasing the thirty-plus frog-goons.
“All right, Aqualad!” cheered Starman as he began blasting.
“His name is Whirlpool. He’s Tempest’s son,” said Green Lantern as he began plucking up frog-men with his tweezers. “You know, the original Aqualad.”
The battle was quickly finished. Green Lantern turned five power-ring created jars over to Whirlpool.
“Thanks for the help, Green Lantern!” said Whirlpool cheerfully.
“Thanks for taking these Trog-goons off our hands!” answered Green Lantern.
“Hey, I don’t see Devil Ray in there,” observed Starman. “Where’d he go?”
Sargona and Whirlpool investigated the jars. Green Lantern was going to help when he noticed Starman’s ripped jacket. The tear was big enough to expose the green lantern tattoo on Starman’s left shoulder. Starman quickly covered his shoulder with his hand in embarrassment.
“Relax,” Green Lantern said with a smile. A green lawn chair burst forth from his power ring. Emerald animated images of Jemstone and Supergirl followed. Green Supergirl sat Starman down in the lawnchair and began gently massaging Starman’s temples as green Jemstone repaired Starman’s leather jacket.
“GL? Did I ever tell you how awesome you are?” Starman said with a silly grin.
“I… well, I can’t take all of the credit. The ring… it seems to want to pamper you. I think it likes you!” said a perplexed Green Lantern. He turned his attention to Whirlpool. “Did you find him?”
“No, he got away. That Devil Ray is a sneaky one,” answered the Atlantean.
“Hey, Whirlpool. I have a proposition for you,” said Green Lantern. “You come with stellar references and the Titans East could use a guy like you who specializes in underwater missions. What do you say? Would you like to join up?”
“I appreciate the offer… but the oceans of the world come first,” began Whirlpool. “Tell you what: Put me on your reserve list and call me when you really need me.”
“Sounds like a plan!” answered Green Lantern as the two heroes shook hands.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Pacific Ocean off the California Coast - Five Days Later
Green Lantern zoomed above the Pacific waters, balancing on a green star rod identical to Starman’s.
Thwip! Thwip! Thwip! Three solid green stars shot from Green Lantern’s power ring into the sky. Using his star rod, Starman shot at each of the star shaped targets in the sky.
[glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow] BOOM! [glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow] BOOM! [glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! ZZZZZZZZZT!!! ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow] BOOM!
“’Took ya three shots to get that last one!” teased Green Lantern as he air-surfed on his emerald star rod.
“Hey! But I got it!” said Starman. “You know, that’s really cool how you stand on your rod and kind of surf in the air like that!”
“Wanna race?” challenged Green Lantern.
Starman wasn’t sure if he could balance on his star rod while flying. He was concerned what would happen if he lost his balance and his star rod got wet, or worse: was lost in the ocean. “I don’t know…”
“Chicken,” teased Green Lantern as two green colored chickens emerged from his power ring and flew high into the skies.
[glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow]BWAK! [glow=yellow,2,300]ZZZZZZZZZT!!! [/glow]BWAK!
“Got ‘em both!” said Green Lantern. “Great job!”
Starman decided to try it. He put one foot on his star rod while mid air and then the other. He wavered back and forth with both arms as he tried to find his balance. Green Lantern chuckled at the sight. No sooner did Starman find his balance, than Green Lantern shouted, “On your mark! Set!” Then a green banner with the words ‘FINISH LINE’ appeared 100 feet in the distance. “GO!”
Both heroes rode their rods towards the goal. Starman was amazed at how effortlessly Green Lantern maintained his balance. Starman did not want to be beat by Green Lantern in a Star Rod Race, so he doubled his speed. Soon he wobbled, fell off his star rod, and did a belly flop into the Pacific Ocean.
KLIK!
Starman surfaced to find Green Lantern with a wide grin and holding a camera. He was relieved to see his star rod levitating in the air with a green energy glow about it.
“I got a great shot of your landing, Starman!” joked Green Lantern.
“Just tell me one thing,” said Starman as he dried his hair with the green towel Green Lantern offered him. “How do you manage to stay on your star rod so well?”
“Simple!” said Green Lantern. “I commanded my ring keep me in perfect balance!”
“Ha, ha, HA!” said Starman sarcastically. “Is this why you invited me out here to practice? So you could get a humiliating picture of me to sell to Arachnid?”
“Nah. I got a much better reason than that!” said Green Lantern. “Follow me.”
Twelve minutes later the two heroes arrived at the Jordan residence in civilian clothing and entered through the back door.
“Hey, dad! I got someone here I want you to meet!” shouted Daniel Jordan.
Hal Jordan entered the room dressed in his Green Lantern uniform. He looked both majestic and heroic. “You must be Starman!” said Hal Jordan as he extended his right hand toward Starman.
Starman’s eyes widened and he nodded his head with a silly grin. Green Lantern Hal Jordan was his hero. He never dreamed that he would actually ever meet him in person, and now he was shaking hands with him. “Pleasure to meet you!” said Hal Jordan warmly. Starman would kick himself daily for the next six months for acting like such a fan-boy geek in front of his hero. He nodded and grinned as he shook Hal’s hand faster and faster. He wanted to say something cool or respectful, but he was so overwhelmed by the moment that he couldn’t speak.
“Daniel, why don’t you ask your friend to stay for dinner?” asked Carol Jordan as she joined the three heroes in the kitchen.
KLIK! Daniel took a picture of Starman with his dad. Later, Starman would ask Daniel to get his dad to autograph it. He would treasure this picture for the rest of his life.
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Epilogue: Classified Location
The Stranger watched from the privacy of another plane as an African-American woman laid a baby girl to rest in her crib. The woman suffered from a black-eye and several bruises and limped as she walked about the room. She put salve on her cracked lip and said softly to her sleeping child, “Your daddy took your older brother, but don’t worry, he won’t be coming for you. He doesn’t even know you exist…”
She removed a pink coral necklace and draped them from the mobile hanging above the crib, “…and now that we have these, we can get your brother back whenever we want to.”
She carefully hung a black and pink costume in her closet and took out the helmet of the Sting Ray. She sat on her bed and began polishing it. “…but first thing’s first. We have to make that nasty Sargona pay for hurting Mama.”
The Stranger was concerned about the future of the young girl if she were to be raised by the Sting Ray. At this point, the infant still needed her mother, but the day would come soon when the Stranger must interfere. The young child was the daughter of the great warrior Strato Hawk, after all. But this problem paled in comparison to the impending tragedy which would spiral from the events of this day. He must leave this scene to consider how to best deal with the calamity which would strike the Titans of Justice imminently.
The End