(~˘▾˘)~~(˘▾˘~)
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'The spaceship crashed on Earth, and there's a dying alien with purple skin.
This should be Abin Sur.'
David waved his hand, and the gravitational field, like a giant hand, smoothly grabbed the escape pod from the seawater to the beach.
He looked at the ring on his finger.
'I just don't know whether it was Clark or I who got the Green Lantern ring that should have belonged to Hal Jordan.'
"Hey, how are you feeling?"
After seeing the alien being in a daze, Clark quickly opened the transparent pod door and tried to stop the bleeding by pressing Abin Sur's chest.
"Don't die soon, I'll take you to the hospital right away."
Although he knew the hope was slim, maybe this alien with bleeding purple blood, had a body structure similar to humans.
"No." Abin Sur weakly shook his head, struggling to fulfill the final duty of a Green Lantern.
"Cough... cough, my name is Abin Sur, the guardian of the Green Lantern Corps in Sector 2814 of the universe."
The power of fear was eroding his body, and he couldn't hold on for much longer.
"Don't speak anymore; now you need to conserve your strength. You'll be at the nearest hospital in five seconds."
Listening to the horrifying sight of him coughing up blood while speaking, Clark wanted to pick up Abin Sur and hurry to the nearest hospital.
"Let him speak, Clark."
David held his shoulder to stop him and shook his head.
"The medical facilities on Earth can't save him."
As one of the most advanced technological creations in the universe, the Lantern Ring itself had healing capabilities. If it could heal, it wouldn't activate the process of choosing a successor.
There was nothing he could do for the life of this honest and upright Green Lantern.
'Even the Dionysian Factor might not be of any use.'
David's gaze swept over the terrifying power of fear, which was like maggots on Abin Sur's horrifying injuries.
"I don't have much time," Abin Sur nodded with difficulty.
Clark looked complicated.
An alien who was still alive, although it was impossible to be of the same race as him, was the only alien visitor he had ever encountered, and yet they had just met, and the other was about to die.
"According to the Corps' regulations, I... I must choose a successor for the Lantern Ring before I die.
This time is somewhat special, with me also having the Lantern Ring of my comrade Vontara of Sector 2811."
Abin Sur first looked at Clark, then at David again.
David understood that the ring on Clark's hand should belong to Abin Sur, which confirmed his earlier guess.
'As Superman, Clark has been sought out by the Lantern Ring more than once in the comics, and even initially, when Abin Sur was on the brink of death, the 'strong will' the Lantern Ring sought was Clark's. But because of his Kryptonian identity, Abin Sur had to find someone else, and he got Hal Jordan.'
They didn't know what the outcome of this situation would be.
David's eyes brightened slightly, and he suddenly thought that the members of the Green Lantern Corps all possessed extraordinary abilities and played crucial roles in the universe, and they might offer more emotional points than Atlantis.
"What makes it even more special is not just the decision to choose successors for two Lantern Rings but also your identities: a Kryptonian and an unknown, powerful race."
The Lantern Ring selection process had somehow chosen two aliens on this planet full of billions of native life forms, and Abin Sur didn't know what to say.
"Kryptonian? Are you talking about me?" Clark pointed to himself, looking somewhat surprised.
Nearly twenty years had passed, would he finally have a chance to learn about his own heritage?
But what was going on with his brother's unknown, powerful?
"I'm from Earth," David said, shaking his head slightly.
David knew it must be his mutant Eternal physique that caused Abin Sur to fall into a misunderstanding.
All his other templates were from Earth; only the Thanos template was different.
"The ring has chosen you. Wear it... put on the ring, aim it at the lantern, recite the oath, and you will become a member of the Green Lantern Corps, bearing great honor and responsibility..."
Abin Sur didn't have time to determine if they were suitable candidates or not. It looked like neither of them were greedy nor malicious people. Seeing an alien in a high-tech spaceship on the verge of death, they had no ulterior motives. One of them even wanted to save him.
He tremblingly pointed his finger at the lantern under the seat of the escape pod, which charged the Lantern Ring.
"The universe needs you. I have fulfilled my last duty as a Green Lantern. I hope... I hope the universe can survive this crisis."
There had been a long and unpleasant history between Krypton and the Green Lantern Corps, almost to the point of enmity.
A Kryptonian not being allowed to become a Lantern was an unwritten rule, even though it was not explicitly stated in the Corps' code.
However, in the face of the current universal crisis, Abin Sur felt that this was one of the rare times when he could break the rules.
'The universe needs more powerful Green Lanterns to protect it...'
After silently reciting the last sentence in his heart, Abin Sur, one of the greatest Green Lanterns, closed his eyes and passed away.
'Corps members? Hope that the universe will survive the crisis?'
Clark was at a loss as he stared at the lifeless body in front of him.
He instinctively resisted joining any Corps, but it seemed like the universe was in danger?
He looked at David, hoping to get some answers from his brother. Although David shouldn't know about alien matters, the impression his brother always left him with was that there were very few things he didn't know.
"The Green Lantern Corps, led by the Guardians of the Universe, claims to be responsible for maintaining order in the universe. They wield the power of will as their weapon..."
David briefly introduced the Green Lantern Corps.
As for the so-called universal crisis, it should be referring to the entity Parallax.
"It sounds like a corps of selfless people, worthy of respect?"
Upon hearing Clark's words, David had a faint, contemptuous smile.
...
"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!"
"Is this enough?"
The ring had transmitted the oath. In the attic of the farm, following David's lead, Clark hesitantly aimed the Lantern Ring at the Green Lantern and recited the oath.
After a burst of green light, the full functionality of the Lantern Ring was officially unlocked.
A suit of armor woven from the power of will covered Clark's body.
"This feels very uncomfortable," Clark said, feeling uncomfortable as he looked at the green light emanating from his suit. He hated the color green.
Clark didn't have any intention of joining a Universal Corps and leaving his family and home planet to protect the peace of the universe. However, what Abin Sur had said about the universal crisis before his death made him care.
"Earth is also a part of the universe. If something happens to the universe, Earth can't escape it."
Furthermore, he wanted to know about his own heritage, and why he, as a baby, had been sent to Earth through some kind of program many years ago. What about his family, his people?
After the ring was unlocked, a lot of information related to the Lantern Ring flooded into Clark's mind, and he quickly learned about the things related to the Green Lantern Corps.
"A Lantern of the Kryptonian race," David, who was standing nearby, crossed his arms and had a slightly strange expression.
This was probably something that had never happened in the million-year history of the Green Lantern Corps.
"How is this possible?"
As he browsed through the information stored in the ring, Clark couldn't help but change his expression when he finished reviewing the information related to Krypton. His expression changed and he looked at his brother in panic.
"I… I am a descendant of a naturally cold-blooded cosmic colonial empire?"
Seeing Clark's reaction, David was shocked and waved his hand, and the information recorded in the Lantern Ring materialized into a holographic screen.
Unlike the detailed information about cosmic races or factions in the universe, the entry about Krypton was short, only a short page and a few sentences.
"Krypton, located in Sector 2183 of the universe, was a life-bearing planet in the Andromeda galaxy. It no longer exists. As former colonizers of the universe, the time period Kryptonians thrived the most, when they still existed, was when countless inhabited worlds were colonized by them. It was a long dark era of the universe.
The internal system of Kryptonians was ancient and decadent, with innate limitations on their abilities. How much they can achieve is determined at their birth. The ruling class suppressed individuality, and social hierarchies were unmovable. Each Kryptonian was born as a naturally cold-blooded and powerful machine..."
David raised an eyebrow, understanding why Clark had reacted that way. No one would feel comfortable knowing they were descendants of colonizers who had brought dark years of humiliation to the universe.
"My homeworld is destroyed, and I'm the descendant of naturally cold-blooded cosmic colonizers... Is this... is this true?" Clark looked at David, urgently seeking answers.
He couldn't help but recall Lady Cassandra's prophecy once again.
After returning home, David told Clark some of the things he knew, such as the fact that this planet was not as simple as it seemed and hides ancient things and races older than human civilization. He had had some contact with the Atlanteans and had learned things that ordinary people didn't know.
As for his conquest of Atlantis and becoming the ruler of the Seven Seas, David didn't feel the need to discuss it further.
"Half of it is true," he nodded.
Krypton was indeed a former colonial empire in the universe, and it had colonized almost every known inhabited world at its most powerful.
The group of little blue people who claim to maintain the order of the universe is also those who group of people called themselves the Guardians of the Universe, leading the Green Lantern Corps to fight against the Kryptonians.
However, a hundred thousand Kryptonians are said to possess the power to destroy the universe, and there were far more than a hundred thousand Kryptonians on Krypton at that time.
"The Lanterns, who have been through countless battles and tempered by life-or-death trials, couldn't even defeat an ordinary Kryptonian who had been casually exposed to a yellow sun," David said.
As for the outcome of that battle, the little blue smurfs didn't speak much about it, but when they did, they described it as the darkest era they had ever experienced, and the results were self-evident.
The Green Lantern Corps, who had always claimed to maintain universal order, did not bravely sacrifice themselves in the face of the evil enemy that was colonizing the entire universe. Instead, they formed an alliance with Krypton, claiming to "maintain universal peace" together.
This was why David couldn't control his laughter when he heard Clark say that before.
"From what I know, the internal structure of Kryptonians is indeed decadent and corrupt. The son of a general is born to be a general, and the son of a scientist is destined to be a scientist. However, that's a far cry from being born naturally cold-blooded."
David shook his head and said seriously.
"Clark, you are who you are, and you don't need others to define you. Can't you feel what kind of person you are?"
It was normal that those little blue idgits inserted their own biases into their own army's internal information.
Those shameless smurfs were notorious for double standards, claiming to maintain universal order. In fact, many crises that nearly destroyed the universe were caused by them.
With David's comfort and reassurance, Clark felt much better.
As for the fact that Krypton had long been destroyed, it was shocking, but the impact wasn't as great as it might have been.
He had previously guessed what could have happened to make a baby be sent on a spaceship to another planet, and over the years, no one from his family or people had come looking for him.
Looking up at the direction of the Andromeda galaxy in the night sky, he couldn't help but think about when his homeland had also shone there, but now it was gone.
Clark lowered his head, feeling a sense of loneliness.
But then he thought about it; his own family was right here with him. What mattered now was protecting his loved ones and his hometown.
...
"So, you two were chosen by rings from outer space, brought in front of a dying alien, and selected to join a Corps that maintains peace in the universe?"
After breakfast, Jonathan was sipping hot tea, and he almost spewed it out with a weird expression on his face.
If he didn't know how special his two sons were, he would have thought they were making up nonsense.
But even knowing his sons' abilities, the idea of some alien corps and whatnot, Jonathan couldn't help putting down his teacup and sitting up straight.
"That's right," Clark nodded bravely, despite his discomfort.
"A Corps?"
Martha looked worried.
"It won't be dangerous," David reassured her.
He and Clark had originally not planned to tell their parents about this. However, when they saw them being taken away by the green light on TV, they had to explain.
"Actually, we don't plan to join them,"
David had suggested that they shouldn't mention the cosmic crisis to avoid worrying their parents. Clark hesitated for a moment but also agreed.
'Abin Sur spoke of it in a terrifying way, the crisis of the entire universe...'
David shook his head subtly.
Although the Parallax, an entity representing one of the seven emotional spectrum powers in the universe - the power of fear - was powerful enough to destroy civilizations, it seemed like an exaggeration to say it could affect the entire universe.
The so-called cosmic crisis was probably just referring to the destruction of the blue little smurfs and the Green Lantern Corps and the imbalance in the universal order caused by the absence of the Green Lantern Corps.
'However, whether the universe will be in danger is uncertain. Earth, on the other hand, is definitely under imminent threat,' David said.
He knew that according to the plot, Parallax would track the severely injured Abin Sur to Earth, as he was the legendary Green Lantern who had once defeated it.
Even though Abin Sur was not worth mentioning being far weaker than it after absorbing the life forces of two planetary civilizations.
However, Parallax had accumulated endless hatred for Abin Sur while imprisoned within the core of a planet, and it wouldn't rest until it saw Abin Sur dead and his body reduced to ashes.
"Mom, Dad, we might need to leave for a while,"
Clark hesitated, "Go and solve the problem of our Corps identities."
How could Clark sit still when he heard that the universe was facing a crisis? He wanted to go to the Corps headquarters on Oa, as recorded in the Green Lantern Ring's data, to find out what was happening and see what he could contribute with his powers.
'For the sake of the universe, and for Earth,' he clenched his fist silently.
David fell into a brief silence, unsure of how to explain that Parallax would soon be chasing them to Earth.
However, he suddenly sensed something through the gravitational field and turned to look.
A figure, drastically different in bodily structure from a human, with fish-like fins on its head and bald, shiny skin, was flying towards the farm.
The figure wore a sleek suit of armor and had a Green Lantern Ring on his hand.
"Maybe we won't need to... someone's here," David said.
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(~˘▾˘)~Don't forget to send your power-stones!~(˘▾˘~)