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thejusticelounge2012-08-03 04:15 pm
bossymarmalade) wrote in thejusticelounge2012-08-03 04:15 pm
gods of war
This scene takes place in the evil!world AU. Hal Jordan is possessed by Parallax. Kyle Rayner is driven insane by Ion. Guy Gardner is Ion’s creature, and a Red Lantern.
——-
Guy jutted his head up skyward and roared, acid blood spewing from his mouth and drizzling down his bare chest, before he flew straight up, abandoning his jacket and turtleneck, which fade from existence as Guy flew away, homing in on the god of fear.
“Well well…” Parallax sensed Guy Gardner approaching and he shifted in his construct palace in Coast City. He laughed coldly, standing up. “If you wish to try me, then let’s play, Lantern.”
“Find Parallax” Guy frothed. “…find…killllllll….”
Flying up into the air, Parallax encountered Guy in a rage. “You really are irritating.” He aimed a punch for Guy. “Don’t you realize I can strip you of everything? Your strength, your ring, your very LIFE?! I could wipe you from existence and memory before you could even think to stop me.”
Guy constructed a giant C-clamp vice around Parallax, twisting it hard, trying to crush him, while his red ring simply blasted him mindlessly with Rage.
“Insolent fool,” Parallax mocked and he increased his size until he broke Guy’s hold. He then grabbed Guy, his fist now big enough to easily hold him.
Guy narrowed his eyes, his will unbelievably strong, and constructed spikes all around himself of green light, shooting through the ‘human’ hand gripping him.
Parallax recoiled. “AH!” he yelped and threw him to the ground. “You butchers worm…!”
Guy came at Parallax again. He couldn’t stop fighting. He couldn’t. He must protect Kyle at all costs. His Kyle. His everything.
“Enough of this!” Angry now, Parallax constructed a cage around Guy and hung it in midair, as Guy raged against the cage, acid blood gushing from his eyes, nose, and mouth.
“Damn you are annoying.” Parallax hissed, and flew back to survey his work. “Now then…where is your little keeper?”
Guy slammed against the bars on one side, and then the other. It was futile. He tipped his head back and screamed to the heavens. “KYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEE!!!!”
Laughing, Parallax mocked the Lantern in glee. “Yes. Call him!” He shrank himself down again in a whirl of green. “Call him to me…” He waited, pacing around the cage until, growing impatient, he bellowed, his voice doubled with what sounds like a scream over his normal tone.”I GROW TIRED OF WAITING, ION!!”
“Guy Guy Guy Guy Guy Guy Guy,” Ion insanely sang in Kyle’s voice, as he flew towards the city where he sensed Parallax lay in wait. Of course. The path led him to Coast City. Ion laughed at the idea. It was almost…precious.
In Coast City, Guy lashed out with his right hand constructing a green buzz-saw, to try and cut through the bars. “I WILL KILL YOU!!!!!”
“Be silent!” Parallax yelled and clapped an energy gag onto Guy.
Ion rocketed towards Coast City, where the Parallax being was crouching like slavering beast. Unfazed, Ion flew directly towards him. Kyle was Ion. It was his duty to right the world and punish Parallax. This was his reason for being. And Earth will praise Ion for saving their worthless souls.
“PARALLAX. YOU ARE MINE—” Kyle stopped suddenly, seeing Guy locked up and tortured in the cage. “My pet….”
This body was so comfortable, Parallax reveled. Hal Jordan’s skin and mind were perfect for him, like being home again. Hal had been his gateway out of that hell, and he’d never been so comfortable since. They were one, now, Hal Jordan’s pain and will and every scrap of fear ever felt all made them up. He could feel Ion draw closer, the Hal part of him looking to Kyle…while Parallax leered and licked his lips. That moment of hesitation was all he needed. Leaping at him, he knocked Ion aside. “Fool!” he cackled, pursuing him. “I will devour you! and I will make your power my own!”
His mouth gagged by Parallax, Guy couldn’t even cry out a warning to his beloved Master. He thrust his hand out through the bars, reaching towards Kyle desperately, and on seeing Kyle knocked aside, almost choked, literally, on the Rage spewing from his nose.
Ion laughed hysterically, or perhaps it was Kyle laughing. It was difficult at this point to tell the difference and Kyle kept it that way. Ion blamed Kyle for being so unstable and unfocused, and yet the human clung so desperately to the power while it drove him slowly insane. Or, as Kyle told himself, the Ion infinite powers only made him see things clearer. Everything and everyone needed Ion’s guidance and punishment. But everything could wait. Ion would destroy the world, if it meant he could defeat Parallax once and for all. “I’m not the fool, Parallax.”
Ion blasted Parallax away, flying up and towards the cage. Kyle smiled. “I’m here, Guy Guy Guy Guy,” he cooed, but he found he couldn’t release him. He turned and snarled at Parallax. “Free him!”
Parallax reeled, flipping through the air before catching himself. He glared at Ion, jaws stretching wide in a screaming roar. “I will do no such thing!” he shouted, voice echoing. “That fire belching buffoon is an irritant!” He stalked toward Kyle, gaining speed before flying at him and kicking him away. He picked up the cage, his smirk wicked. “Actually you want him? HAVE HIM!” He threw the cage at him, Guy and all.
Ring Txt: Kyle…forgive me! I failed you. He captured me and-
“You failure!” Ion screamed, using a shield at the last minute to prevent the cage from crashing down on him. He was driven to his knees. “You’re nothing but a failure, Guy!” Kyle’s voice broke and for a moment, it was Kyle staring in terror at the warped, horrible face of Parallax. He grit his teeth and stood up slowly, encasing the cage in a light construct and flinging it aside. He didn’t care if Guy got injured (but he did! oh Dios he did!). All that mattered was Parallax. Ion stalked towards him. “I want you, Parallax. I want you on the ground, worshipping me. WORSHIP ME!” Ion flew at Parallax, his fist exploding in a ball of fiery light, with the intention of impacting against Parallax.
It wasn’t Kyle’s fault…It wasn’t, thoughts swirled in the back of Guy’s rage-filled mind. Kyle couldn’t be saying those things…could he? No…
These were the last thoughts of any sense that Guy’s fractured, tortured, broken, Rage-filled mind had before he lost consciousness. He fought hard to stay with him, to concentrate…to not fail…but injury and deprivation of oxygen was too great, and he collapsed against the now-sideways floor of the cage.
“Worship you?!” Parallax laughed, countering Ion’s assault with his own. The green energy around him steadily changed, the green on his armor bleeding away. In its place was blazing yellow, the true colour of fear. He charged at Ion, their energies colliding, locking up with each other. Parallax roared again, jaws wide enough for Ion to see down his snakelike throat. “I will consume you!” he snarled. “I will make you beg for mercy!”
Ion made a grating, gargling noise in the back of his throat as he and Parallax clashed against each other, causing such a burst of energy and power, it emanated across Coast City and shattered whatever windows were left, making the buildings around then tremble.
“I will never beg.” Ion whispered, but it boomed out as if it was a shout. “I. Am. A. GOD. And just as much as you feed off of Hal Jordan,” Ion’s mouth twisted into a curling smirk, “I feed off of not just Kyle Rayner, but Hal Jordan’s residuals from Earth’s sun as well, yessss yes yes. And it tastes good, Parallax, doesn’t it. Your Hal Jordan…” Ion licked his lips. He then let go of Parallax’s arms, grabbing hold instead of Parallax’s already sloping jaw and tearing it wider as Ion forced Kyle’s head into the unnaturally gaping maw. “So feed off of meeeeee,” Ion screamed, almost gleefully as he tried to crawl into Parallax, ripping and tearing and pulling. “And I shall suck on Hal Jordan’s marrow from within.”
Parallax almost jerked away, almost knocked Ion aside…then realized what he was doing. He seized Ion by his arms, pinning them to his sides. His jaws stretched as his head lurched forward, pulling the body of Ion’s host into his mouth. A few jerks and hard gulps, and he could lift his head and hoist the other’s feet off the ground. He swallowed hard once more, teeth snapping shut as he growled in satisfaction.
“Foolish Ion,” he snarled, leering. “FEAR is the enemy of Will! And your host is afraid…”
He could feel Kyle’s fear now, fear of losing Guy, fear of losing himself, just like Hal. Yellow energy swirled around him and burst outward, shaking the structures of the ghost city.
Ion heard Parallax’s last words but remained steadfast as he was enveloped by the cold, yellow darkness within Parallax. Let Parallax gloat and destroy his precious ghost city in celebration. Parallax could destroy as much as the world as he liked, it was of no concern to Ion. It was merely one wretched planet, that his own host Kyle Rayner was pathetically attached to.
Ion noted that Parallax chose this city, this Coast City; a city close to Hal Jordan’s similarly pathetic human heart. That was the key, Ion knew. He concentrated, relying not on the powers of Ion, but on the minds within.
Within….within….within, there: Kyle was crouched under a table, rocking himself. His eyes were closed shut, but Ion forced them open, forced a door of blinding yellow light to swing threatening open before Kyle.
Kyle stood up slowly and felt compelled to walk towards it, even as tears streamed down his face. He batted against the imaginary feet of his hanged mother, who swung over the threshold of the door. Kyle took a few steps out into the blinding yellow, trying to control his whimpers. He looked around, walking, just walking. He opened his mouth to call for the first person he could think of.
“H….H-Hal?”
Through the haze and darkness, there was a voice. Blearily, Hal forced his eyes open. He knew this wasn’t the real world, not a physical place, but a mental one. a spiritual one. Nevertheless, the pain he felt was real, and the blood on his tongue and over his body also felt real enough. He could hear Parallax gloating, cackling in his triumph, but all of that seemed so far away. He couldn’t stop him now, not anymore. His mind was worn thin, his will drained from being captive of the very embodiment of fear for so long. All that was left of him was laid on an altar, bleeding, eternally dying but never able to close his eyes and greet the release of oblivion. Parallax wouldn’t allow it.
But…that voice. He knew he heard it, and he knew who’s it was. He forced his eyes open, the symbol of fear emblazoned over his once brown eyes.
“K-Kyle,” he hissed out, trying to move. “Kyle……Kyle, I’m here.”
Kyle was near blinded by the yellow, it was all just spots and shapes flickering around his eyeballs, like when a person stared too long at the sun and then looked away. Blotchy. Everything was blotchy and rotten and horrible and Kyle wanted to return to his safe, nice room where he could live forever under the table, staring at his mother’s hanging corpse. Ion did that. It was the first murder he’d done in the name of righteousness and it didn’t stop after that. And when Ion killed his mother, Kyle retreated into himself, giving his body over to Ion’s control, telling himself it was for the good. It was all for the greater good.
“Please let me go back, let me go—” Kyle stopped begging when he thought he heard a voice in the distance. Some small, still determined part of him hiccuped past the terror; and like a fog, the blinding yellow started to give way and Kyle lashed his way forward.
“Hal. Hal, I can hear you, HAL!!” Kyle was running now, yelling with his torn throat and mouth. ”Hal I need you to, we need to, Hal —” Kyle suddenly came up upon the altar, and the sight before him was more horrendous that he could have ever imagined. Hal was strewn on it, blood draining endlessly from him, discarded like waste into drains - drains that likely fed directly to Parallax.
“Oh god,” Kyle moaned and fell against the altar, half in a panic and half in some strange, grotesque relief that Hal was in the same situation he was in. Kyle cradled his head. “Hal…I found you.”
The artist’s hands were so soft and gentle that their touch alone brought tears to his eyes. Kyle…sweet Kyle, gentle Kyle, beautiful Kyle. He leaned into the touch, sighing out a rasping breath before he looked up at the other.
“Yes…you did,” he said. “Finally…I’m so glad.” He raised a hand to touch Kyle’s cheek, some of his own blood smearing over it as he stroked slowly, assuring himself this was no delusion. Kyle was here. Maybe…just maybe, Kyle could save him.
“Kyle..please, listen to me.” He licked his lips slowly, feeling the altar beneath him shudder. He arched in pain, crying out as blood gushed anew from his wounds and ran in thick red rivers down the sides and to the floor. Parallax knew someone was here, but he was cocky enough not to immediately interfere. Yet. Turning his head, Hal coughed and convulsed, flecks of blood staining his lips and Kyle’s hands.
“I can’t take this anymore,” he wheezed. “Please…Kyle, please you have to save me. You have to stop Parallax.” A trembling hand reached up and seized hold of Kyle’s shirt.
“Please…Kill me.”
Kyle’s eyes went rabid-wide as he listened to Hal’s plea. He compulsively stroked Hal’s soft hair, even though it was matted in coagulated blood. It didn’t matter. All Kyle wanted to do was provide some semblance of comfort to Hal, anything to ease Hal’s nightmare of torment and agony. Kyle bit at his own bloody lip, and caught Hal’s hand in his own, feeling starved for human contact that wasn’t cruel or violent. A small sob bubbled in Kyle’s throat. Despite everything Hal was enduring, how much Hal was dying over and over again by Parallax’s whim, he was still so gentle, so urgent. So…lost.
Blinking rapidly, Kyle didn’t break eye contact as he turned his head and pressed his lips against Hal’s fingers, their blood mingling. Another lurch rocked the foundations and Hal buckled again, his already-agonized face contorting in pain as Parallax sucked him dry, while the entity also tried to grasp what Hal was doing. Kyle’s mind spun, already half-addled by the madness brought about by Ion’s powers.
It would be so easy. Ion’s killed so many countless people already. All Kyle had to do was curl his fingers around Hal’s willing, pliable neck and -snap!- like Ion made him do to so many innocent people. And Hal wanted it. He wanted it…look at how much, dios….
…Except no. “No no not again. It’s just me and you right now, Hal,” Kyle murmured, shaking his head. “I found you. You are here. You’re actually here,” Kyle laughed unhappily, suddenly unable to believe that Hal was actually still clinging to life, no matter how frail. Kyle held Hal’s hand tighter.
“You’re my hope, Hal. You. I found you,” he repeated that, like a mantra. “We’re going to get through this. It’s what we do. I believe we can. I know it.”
The idea of continuing to live was almost too painful for him to bear, and the ‘room’ around them burned brightly with golden light as the fear of never dying crept into Hal’s mind. But…It wasn’t life as he had been, bound to Parallax, trapped here, captive to the whims of a mad god.
Kyle was here, grasping his hand, and Hal felt strength in that grasp, strength he’d thought had long since left him. He was Kyle’s hope…and Kyle was his. The Corps were decimated, scattered and weakened. Other than a handful of scattered members driven half mad, only the avatars remained.
Like him. Like Kyle.
His free hand moved to hold the back of Kyle’s head, pulling him closer. He had to feel him, feel his warmth, his hope, his will to keep going. They could fight this. They could bend the entities to their will. Will…Hal’s eyes flashed green for an instant, and he felt a rush of strength return to him. Maybe…just maybe…
“I need your help,” he said. He managed to sit up just enough to press his forehead to Kyle’s. “I can’t fight this alone.”
Another bark of laughter bubbled from Kyle as he saw it: that thing that he’d wanted to see so badly, that he’d willed to happen without even knowing it.
But there it was - a flash of green in Hal’s eyes that looked so cool and calming and beautiful to Kyle, he almost forgot he was insane, forgot that Ion had a steel-grip on his very being. Kyle greedily closed the gap between himself and Hal, breathing in deep and fast, the smell of green light and warmth and Hal’s breath and his blood.
Yes.
Hal’s deep dark blood against the delicate pinks of Hal’s bruised lips and cheeks. And the slight flush of smudged blues and light indigos streaking underneath Hal’s exhausted, liquidy brown eyes. Kyle huffed as a sound caught in his throat, and he realized with a shock down his spine that all this time, ever since Ion took over - he’d seen things in monochrome greens and whites and blacks. Kyle blinked his eyes shut when Hal gathered him close. When he dared to open his eyes, his eyelashes brushing against Hal’s as the older Lantern held their heads steady-close and…yes.
Kyle could see in color.
And it was beautiful. Because it was Hal. His face was an explosion of sumptuous, graceful colors up close and staring steadily, right back at Kyle. There was no better sight to see first thing - in glorious technicolor - than Hal Jordan. Hal Jordan sitting up, the strength of his hand bracing against the back of Kyle’s neck. Kyle shifted, his own hands sliding up and holding the sides of Hal’s face.
“I feel good,” Kyle said, sharing Hal’s breath. “I feel right. We’re not wrong anymore, and I’m ready to do this. I’m with you and we’ll fight this and win, like Lanterns do, Hal. Like Lanterns do. Together.”
Hal’s body tingled a moment, almost able to feel the moment Kyle rattled his own bonds and broke them loose. He could feel rejuvenating strength coursing through Kyle, through his own fingertips, and into his exhausted body. Kyle gave him the will to fight back, the drive to get up, and the hope that they could overcome this, that they could live and set things right again. He slid his fingers into Kyle’s hair, thumb stroking the soft black strands slowly. He’d almost forgotten what it felt like to be this close to someone, to feel the heat of another so close to him.
Gazing into Kyle’s eyes, he found the resolve he needed. He wanted to see Kyle smile for him. Just for him. The world outside was hell, and it would be hard to live in. They would have to rely on each other. Caressing his cheek, Hal leaned closer, tilting his head slightly. He felt his lips brush Kyle’s, felt Kyle’s breath, tasted his blood. Breathing his name, he leaned close and pressed their lips together, closing his eyes.
Parallax let out a distant scream, and the golden fire around them leapt and danced wildly. It was hardly a power struggle now, not now that Hal had an anchor. He had Kyle.
Relishing the feel of being so near to Hal, the strength being built and passed between them was like manna to Kyle. Not between Parallax and Ion, no. The entities were a distant memory right now, and that felt so good, so free that it coursed through Kyle’s very soul.
All he wanted to do with this feeling was share it with the man who made it happen. Hal gave him hope and Kyle pushed all of the goodness and freedom back towards him, and reveled in how much they filled each other, fueled by the drive and will and determination that Kyle thought he’d lost so long ago. Perhaps he had. Perhaps he really was an empty shell all this time. He couldn’t think of any better way to replenish than standing his ground beside Hal.
When Hal closed the gap between their lips, Kyle’s eyes fluttered shut and he melted his broken, torn up body against Hal’s…except Hal wasn’t feeling similarly broken or destroyed, not anymore. Kyle wasn’t either, he realized. He’d been so used to feeling abused for so long…but Ion couldn’t keep him beaten down anymore. The Ion entity had made itself purposely weak to get within Parallax, convinced that Kyle was so controlled, he would willingly drag Hal’s broken spirit back for Ion to cannibalize.
Ion underestimated what Kyle thought of Hal. He murmured Hal’s name, a smile of triumph curving his lips as he curled himself around Hal’s frame, his hands sliding along Hal’s back in wide eager circles.
“We got this,” Kyle whispered confidently against Hal’s open mouth. He dared to open his eyes again, and watched in fascination as Hal’s mind slid into green, the sickly-looking yellow frilling and flopping on the corners of Hal’s consciousness. At the corner of his eye, Kyle saw his home - his mother’s home where Ion had been keeping him - enveloped with beautiful green. The green light coming from their rings, Kyle realized with such unadulterated joy, he pulled at Hal’s silky hair. No blood clotted in it now.
It was tempting to stay here forever, like this. “I didn’t think I’d ever feel this…hope and…this…Hal.”
By now, in Kyle’s mind, Hal’s name was synonymous with will.
The altar beneath them melted away, leaving them in a soft patch of tall, sun bathed grass. Everything around them was alive, its life feeding back into the two of them. Hal felt his strength renewed, his mind clearer than ever before. He felt Parallax struggling, trying to reach out and snatch him back. But his will was too strong, protected with his connection to Kyle. Taking the other’s hand, he laced their fingers together, their rings touching and sparking wildly with the energy of it. He could feel Ion inside of Kyle, an internal battery that now poured on all the strength they needed. Their rings glowed as the charges were restored.
-50%-
-75%-
-100%-
-200%-
-700%-
It seemed ridiculous at first, but remembering that the green entity was inside Kyle, and they were linked. Ion’s power was their power. And Parallax’s was, too. Hal nuzzled Kyle, smiling at him as his eyes gleamed bright green.
“Come on,” he said, pulling Kyle against him. “Let’s take back our freedom.”
Kyle took a deep breath, letting it out in a loud vocal sigh. He wasn’t afraid to use his voice anymore. He wasn’t afraid of anything at all. He stared with intense pleasure at their linked hands and linked rings, the green energy crackling around them. It all made sense now. Ion wasn’t anything more than a power source, now that Hal had found a way to funnel it towards depleting Parallax’s control over him. It couldn’t have been more beautifully crafted.
Kyle cracked his neck, one side and then the next, running his fingers along the side of Hal’s face with nothing short of adoration, before turning to look around.
“You got it, Hal,” Kyle hummed agreeably and with a glance at Hal, they flew up, mind and body fusing and re-melding as they rode the green light transfer from spirit to being. Around them Parallax’s echoing protests flapped. “How do we deal with Parallax?” Kyle touched Hal’s arm to get his attention. “I want to use Ion to seal Parallax away somewhere. Nice and tight and forever.”
Holding his hand tightly, Hal quickly formed a plan. It would all have to be perfectly timed and executed…but the two greatest Green Lanterns alive would be executing it, so he had no worry at all. He pressed his hand to Kyle’s cheek again, leaning close to kiss him once more. He needed that last little push in order to keep himself together and win the last fight that was about to come.
“I can purge Parallax out of myself,” he said. “You can use Ion’s power to trap him the second we’re separated.” He stroked Kyle’s hair and smiled at him. “I know you can do it. I believe in you.” He kissed him once more, hugging him tight. His hands clutched at Kyle as the last vestiges of the mind’s safety faded to reality again.
Hal literally tore Kyle free from his body, throwing him aside before his body twisted in agony. Parallax was losing his grip and he was fighting with all he had to stay in control. Hal clutched at his chest as it pulsed unnaturally, armor breaking as his skin and ribs stretched outward. His hands tore at the breast plate, breaking it away and leaving his chest exposed as he staggered.
“KYLE!” he shouted, gritting his teeth. “N-NOW!” He thrashed and arched his back, bellowing in pain as his chest burst open. The yellow beast shot free, curling in the air and shrieking in rage. It was weak, and it had to flee…but it lacked the strength.
Like Ion fed off Kyle’s energy and sanity, Kyle fed off Hal’s confidence and determination to keep himself steady and focused. And most importantly, unafraid. Every time Hal touched him and kissed him, Kyle felt like nothing would ever return him to the brink of madness. This would work, because Hal knew it would. Therefore it was simple: if Hal knew it, then Kyle knew it too. That was how it worked. And to feel this balance once more between them - shared between two Green Lanterns - was incredible enough.
Being torn out of Hal felt traumatizing, but Kyle only had to recall the memory of Hal’s continuous, loving kisses to drive away any feeling of loss or pain. Besides, any residual discomfort Kyle felt was nothing compared to watching the way Hal’s body twitch and convulse, tearing away the armor as Hal strangled his own cries of agony. Breathing hard, Kyle braced himself on his feet and watched, slowly raising his ringed fist towards Hal to prepare for the inevitable.
And then it happened.
Hal arched backwards, almost folding in half as the Parallax entity burst forth. Even in its weakened state, it was monstrous and terrifying. It blubbered angrily, dripping yellow and sucking it back into its pulsing form. Kyle felt the palpable terror, but trusted Hal’s barked instructions to cut right through the fright. Kyle calmly sucked the entity into a heavy duty vacuum, then wrapped the construct in chains upon chains upon chains and finally stuffed into a perfectly rendered version of a Lantern battery.
Kyle shook his head clear. Ion was purged. And Parallax was trapped. And…
“Hal!” Kyle flew over, holding Hal up in his arms. He crashed down to his knees, and pulled Hal closer. Kyle cupped Hal’s cheek, petting along his jaw. “It’s gone, Hal. You did it, dios mio.” Kyle nestled his face against Hal’s, almost crying in relief. ”We’re safe.”
Hal collapsed, physically drained and worn out. He landed in a heap, panting as he watched Kyle bind the yellow demon. It was over…they’d won. Finally. His eyes felt so heavy, begging to close and just let him rest…sleep at long last. No more pain, no more exhaustion, no more fighting. Just well deserved rest. It would have been so easy too, just to let himself slip away in those few seconds.
But then Kyle was there, holding him, touching him again with those warm, gentle hands. Groaning, Hal forced his eyes open, smiling at the other. His chest hurt, but the gaping wound had been temporal, and had closed itself like it never happened. Still hurt like it had, though. Leaning into Kyle, he nuzzled back and sighed quietly.
“WE did it,” he said. “You and me…” He took Kyle’s hand and clasped it, letting them rest against his chest. “Together.”
Hal’s energy was fading fast, but Kyle was touched that he’d managed to gather enough reserve strength to reassure Kyle, confirm that this nightmare was over for the both of them. He bent over Hal and kissed him, just once and without much urgency. ”Congratulations to us, Hal,” Kyle spoke softly, as he smiled. “We did it.”
Well…
Kyle looked up and at their reality. Coast City. A ghost city. Long destroyed by Parallax ages ago, and rebuilt only to be destroyed again. The same could be said for the rest of the West Coast, everywhere Ion’s madness touched, was as ruined as Coast City, only more populated. No one ever chose to live in Coast City.
But here they were, Hal exhausted and only half awake and Kyle slowly echoing that same exhaustion as the adrenaline wore away. The Lantern battery construct was smoking, but staying in place, trapped in Ion’s power. No more madness or insanity or possession or…
Kyle’s eyes widened and he kept a close hold around Hal as he turned this way and that, looking for — ah. In the corner of the decrepit apartment building rooftop, Guy lay in a broken, unconscious heap. The cage and gag, of course, were long gone.
“Stay here,” Kyle joked, pressing his nose against Hal’s forehead as he carefully let Hal lay down. He trudged over to Guy, taking forever to roll the heavy unconscious man over. Kyle reached over him, and slid the red ring off of Guy’s finger. He looked at it for a long while, before standing up and using his ring’s power to drag Guy back towards where Hal lay.
Close enough, Kyle collapsed between them. He lay on his back and held the Red Lantern ring up, for Hal to look at. Poor Hal was barely awake at this point, but he was able to take note of the ring. Kyle took hold of Hal’s free hand with his own and squeezed Hal’s fingers between his own.
“I should destroy it.”
For a moment, Hal felt a spike of panic when Kyle walked away. Then, he reassured himself Kyle would be back, and swiftly. And sure enough, he was, Guy in tow. Good, Hal thought. He’d been worried about the red head, and even if he was unconscious, he was alive, and that was what counted.
Like Kyle, Hal had to take a moment to just take in the city. There wasn’t much of it left, not that there had been anyway. Still, it seemed like a fitting place to end his possession by Parallax. There wasn’t anything here for him, not now. Not anymore…He looked over at Kyle as the other laced their fingers, smiling warmly at him. Sweet and gentle Kyle…how he had ever played host to the green entity, Hal would never know.
“You should…if you don’t, it will just find someone else.” Closing his eyes, he half chuckled. “Counter-productive, don’t you think?”
Distracted from the ring, Kyle stared up at Hal with a mix of admiration and incredulity. Even after all of that, after the horrible, agonizing time of Parallax, here was Hal now: casual and gentle and cracking wise. As if they - the three of them had all just come up to the rooftop of some random building (no, that wasn’t right. Parallax and Hal did everything for a reason, and something about this particular apartment building tugged at Kyle’s memory, but he was too tired to recall) to just hang out. Like they might have hung out, years and years ago. A painfully sweet feeling gripped Kyle hard in his chest as he realized that they were actually, finally free.
“Ah haaa. Hal…” Kyle stretched himself up to kiss Hal again, the tremble in his chest sinking into a pleasant ache in his belly as he took the time to appreciate the softness and give of Hal’s still-bruised but so-willing lips. He held himself there for a while, closing his eyes and sketching the memory of Hal-in-colour against his eyelids. It was a memory he didn’t want to forget.
Sprawling out again, and shuffling himself a bit closer to Hal so they could keep more in contact, Kyle lifted the Red Lantern ring up between them again. He raised Hal’s hand in his own, their rings touching and sparking up together once again.
“Okay, I know usually it takes a blue and a green, but. I think we can make anything happen, right now.” He grinned up at Hal, full of confidence. ”So screw the rules. Let’s do this thing. Tres…dos…uno—” Kyle flicked the ring up into the air and as it twirled up, their Green Lantern rings shot out beams of green light - Kyle’s green slightly more on the blue side, Kyle noted - and the red ring shattered, reflecting red along them before it dissolved.
Destroying the red ring was one last bit of freedom, freedom for Guy. For the first time in Hal couldn’t remember how long, they were all free. Making a soft and sleepy noise, Hal shifted a little, laying on his side and nudging Kyle’s arm out of the way. He nestled his head onto a spot on his chest, smiling as he heard Kyle’s strong heartbeat and steady breathing. There were so many things to do now, so many people to look to….but for the moment, he could wait. Everything could wait.
“Thank you Kyle,” he murmured, brushing a kiss over his chest. “Thank you…for everything.” He closed his eyes, fatigue settling in and pulling him easily into a doze.
Kyle kissed the top of Hal’s head instinctively. “We did this right, we did something right, after a really long time. It’s finally right. Thank you right back, Hal,” Kyle’s voice cracked just a bit and he shifted to hold Hal tightly.
He looked over to Guy, who was still passed out, but fortunately not any more or less injured than Hal. Gently, Kyle grazed his free hand along Guy’s red hair, and then slid gown to cup around Guy’s shoulder. ”We’re going to be fine…” Kyle told Hal, told Guy…told himself. “We’re all going to be…”
Kyle’s eyes slowly slid shut, and the Lanterns slept heavily and finally at peace, on the rooftop of Hal’s Coast City apartment building.
——-
Guy jutted his head up skyward and roared, acid blood spewing from his mouth and drizzling down his bare chest, before he flew straight up, abandoning his jacket and turtleneck, which fade from existence as Guy flew away, homing in on the god of fear.
“Well well…” Parallax sensed Guy Gardner approaching and he shifted in his construct palace in Coast City. He laughed coldly, standing up. “If you wish to try me, then let’s play, Lantern.”
“Find Parallax” Guy frothed. “…find…killllllll….”
Flying up into the air, Parallax encountered Guy in a rage. “You really are irritating.” He aimed a punch for Guy. “Don’t you realize I can strip you of everything? Your strength, your ring, your very LIFE?! I could wipe you from existence and memory before you could even think to stop me.”
Guy constructed a giant C-clamp vice around Parallax, twisting it hard, trying to crush him, while his red ring simply blasted him mindlessly with Rage.
“Insolent fool,” Parallax mocked and he increased his size until he broke Guy’s hold. He then grabbed Guy, his fist now big enough to easily hold him.
Guy narrowed his eyes, his will unbelievably strong, and constructed spikes all around himself of green light, shooting through the ‘human’ hand gripping him.
Parallax recoiled. “AH!” he yelped and threw him to the ground. “You butchers worm…!”
Guy came at Parallax again. He couldn’t stop fighting. He couldn’t. He must protect Kyle at all costs. His Kyle. His everything.
“Enough of this!” Angry now, Parallax constructed a cage around Guy and hung it in midair, as Guy raged against the cage, acid blood gushing from his eyes, nose, and mouth.
“Damn you are annoying.” Parallax hissed, and flew back to survey his work. “Now then…where is your little keeper?”
Guy slammed against the bars on one side, and then the other. It was futile. He tipped his head back and screamed to the heavens. “KYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEE!!!!”
Laughing, Parallax mocked the Lantern in glee. “Yes. Call him!” He shrank himself down again in a whirl of green. “Call him to me…” He waited, pacing around the cage until, growing impatient, he bellowed, his voice doubled with what sounds like a scream over his normal tone.”I GROW TIRED OF WAITING, ION!!”
“Guy Guy Guy Guy Guy Guy Guy,” Ion insanely sang in Kyle’s voice, as he flew towards the city where he sensed Parallax lay in wait. Of course. The path led him to Coast City. Ion laughed at the idea. It was almost…precious.
In Coast City, Guy lashed out with his right hand constructing a green buzz-saw, to try and cut through the bars. “I WILL KILL YOU!!!!!”
“Be silent!” Parallax yelled and clapped an energy gag onto Guy.
Ion rocketed towards Coast City, where the Parallax being was crouching like slavering beast. Unfazed, Ion flew directly towards him. Kyle was Ion. It was his duty to right the world and punish Parallax. This was his reason for being. And Earth will praise Ion for saving their worthless souls.
“PARALLAX. YOU ARE MINE—” Kyle stopped suddenly, seeing Guy locked up and tortured in the cage. “My pet….”
This body was so comfortable, Parallax reveled. Hal Jordan’s skin and mind were perfect for him, like being home again. Hal had been his gateway out of that hell, and he’d never been so comfortable since. They were one, now, Hal Jordan’s pain and will and every scrap of fear ever felt all made them up. He could feel Ion draw closer, the Hal part of him looking to Kyle…while Parallax leered and licked his lips. That moment of hesitation was all he needed. Leaping at him, he knocked Ion aside. “Fool!” he cackled, pursuing him. “I will devour you! and I will make your power my own!”
His mouth gagged by Parallax, Guy couldn’t even cry out a warning to his beloved Master. He thrust his hand out through the bars, reaching towards Kyle desperately, and on seeing Kyle knocked aside, almost choked, literally, on the Rage spewing from his nose.
Ion laughed hysterically, or perhaps it was Kyle laughing. It was difficult at this point to tell the difference and Kyle kept it that way. Ion blamed Kyle for being so unstable and unfocused, and yet the human clung so desperately to the power while it drove him slowly insane. Or, as Kyle told himself, the Ion infinite powers only made him see things clearer. Everything and everyone needed Ion’s guidance and punishment. But everything could wait. Ion would destroy the world, if it meant he could defeat Parallax once and for all. “I’m not the fool, Parallax.”
Ion blasted Parallax away, flying up and towards the cage. Kyle smiled. “I’m here, Guy Guy Guy Guy,” he cooed, but he found he couldn’t release him. He turned and snarled at Parallax. “Free him!”
Parallax reeled, flipping through the air before catching himself. He glared at Ion, jaws stretching wide in a screaming roar. “I will do no such thing!” he shouted, voice echoing. “That fire belching buffoon is an irritant!” He stalked toward Kyle, gaining speed before flying at him and kicking him away. He picked up the cage, his smirk wicked. “Actually you want him? HAVE HIM!” He threw the cage at him, Guy and all.
Ring Txt: Kyle…forgive me! I failed you. He captured me and-
“You failure!” Ion screamed, using a shield at the last minute to prevent the cage from crashing down on him. He was driven to his knees. “You’re nothing but a failure, Guy!” Kyle’s voice broke and for a moment, it was Kyle staring in terror at the warped, horrible face of Parallax. He grit his teeth and stood up slowly, encasing the cage in a light construct and flinging it aside. He didn’t care if Guy got injured (but he did! oh Dios he did!). All that mattered was Parallax. Ion stalked towards him. “I want you, Parallax. I want you on the ground, worshipping me. WORSHIP ME!” Ion flew at Parallax, his fist exploding in a ball of fiery light, with the intention of impacting against Parallax.
It wasn’t Kyle’s fault…It wasn’t, thoughts swirled in the back of Guy’s rage-filled mind. Kyle couldn’t be saying those things…could he? No…
These were the last thoughts of any sense that Guy’s fractured, tortured, broken, Rage-filled mind had before he lost consciousness. He fought hard to stay with him, to concentrate…to not fail…but injury and deprivation of oxygen was too great, and he collapsed against the now-sideways floor of the cage.
“Worship you?!” Parallax laughed, countering Ion’s assault with his own. The green energy around him steadily changed, the green on his armor bleeding away. In its place was blazing yellow, the true colour of fear. He charged at Ion, their energies colliding, locking up with each other. Parallax roared again, jaws wide enough for Ion to see down his snakelike throat. “I will consume you!” he snarled. “I will make you beg for mercy!”
Ion made a grating, gargling noise in the back of his throat as he and Parallax clashed against each other, causing such a burst of energy and power, it emanated across Coast City and shattered whatever windows were left, making the buildings around then tremble.
“I will never beg.” Ion whispered, but it boomed out as if it was a shout. “I. Am. A. GOD. And just as much as you feed off of Hal Jordan,” Ion’s mouth twisted into a curling smirk, “I feed off of not just Kyle Rayner, but Hal Jordan’s residuals from Earth’s sun as well, yessss yes yes. And it tastes good, Parallax, doesn’t it. Your Hal Jordan…” Ion licked his lips. He then let go of Parallax’s arms, grabbing hold instead of Parallax’s already sloping jaw and tearing it wider as Ion forced Kyle’s head into the unnaturally gaping maw. “So feed off of meeeeee,” Ion screamed, almost gleefully as he tried to crawl into Parallax, ripping and tearing and pulling. “And I shall suck on Hal Jordan’s marrow from within.”
Parallax almost jerked away, almost knocked Ion aside…then realized what he was doing. He seized Ion by his arms, pinning them to his sides. His jaws stretched as his head lurched forward, pulling the body of Ion’s host into his mouth. A few jerks and hard gulps, and he could lift his head and hoist the other’s feet off the ground. He swallowed hard once more, teeth snapping shut as he growled in satisfaction.
“Foolish Ion,” he snarled, leering. “FEAR is the enemy of Will! And your host is afraid…”
He could feel Kyle’s fear now, fear of losing Guy, fear of losing himself, just like Hal. Yellow energy swirled around him and burst outward, shaking the structures of the ghost city.
Ion heard Parallax’s last words but remained steadfast as he was enveloped by the cold, yellow darkness within Parallax. Let Parallax gloat and destroy his precious ghost city in celebration. Parallax could destroy as much as the world as he liked, it was of no concern to Ion. It was merely one wretched planet, that his own host Kyle Rayner was pathetically attached to.
Ion noted that Parallax chose this city, this Coast City; a city close to Hal Jordan’s similarly pathetic human heart. That was the key, Ion knew. He concentrated, relying not on the powers of Ion, but on the minds within.
Within….within….within, there: Kyle was crouched under a table, rocking himself. His eyes were closed shut, but Ion forced them open, forced a door of blinding yellow light to swing threatening open before Kyle.
Kyle stood up slowly and felt compelled to walk towards it, even as tears streamed down his face. He batted against the imaginary feet of his hanged mother, who swung over the threshold of the door. Kyle took a few steps out into the blinding yellow, trying to control his whimpers. He looked around, walking, just walking. He opened his mouth to call for the first person he could think of.
“H….H-Hal?”
Through the haze and darkness, there was a voice. Blearily, Hal forced his eyes open. He knew this wasn’t the real world, not a physical place, but a mental one. a spiritual one. Nevertheless, the pain he felt was real, and the blood on his tongue and over his body also felt real enough. He could hear Parallax gloating, cackling in his triumph, but all of that seemed so far away. He couldn’t stop him now, not anymore. His mind was worn thin, his will drained from being captive of the very embodiment of fear for so long. All that was left of him was laid on an altar, bleeding, eternally dying but never able to close his eyes and greet the release of oblivion. Parallax wouldn’t allow it.
But…that voice. He knew he heard it, and he knew who’s it was. He forced his eyes open, the symbol of fear emblazoned over his once brown eyes.
“K-Kyle,” he hissed out, trying to move. “Kyle……Kyle, I’m here.”
Kyle was near blinded by the yellow, it was all just spots and shapes flickering around his eyeballs, like when a person stared too long at the sun and then looked away. Blotchy. Everything was blotchy and rotten and horrible and Kyle wanted to return to his safe, nice room where he could live forever under the table, staring at his mother’s hanging corpse. Ion did that. It was the first murder he’d done in the name of righteousness and it didn’t stop after that. And when Ion killed his mother, Kyle retreated into himself, giving his body over to Ion’s control, telling himself it was for the good. It was all for the greater good.
“Please let me go back, let me go—” Kyle stopped begging when he thought he heard a voice in the distance. Some small, still determined part of him hiccuped past the terror; and like a fog, the blinding yellow started to give way and Kyle lashed his way forward.
“Hal. Hal, I can hear you, HAL!!” Kyle was running now, yelling with his torn throat and mouth. ”Hal I need you to, we need to, Hal —” Kyle suddenly came up upon the altar, and the sight before him was more horrendous that he could have ever imagined. Hal was strewn on it, blood draining endlessly from him, discarded like waste into drains - drains that likely fed directly to Parallax.
“Oh god,” Kyle moaned and fell against the altar, half in a panic and half in some strange, grotesque relief that Hal was in the same situation he was in. Kyle cradled his head. “Hal…I found you.”
The artist’s hands were so soft and gentle that their touch alone brought tears to his eyes. Kyle…sweet Kyle, gentle Kyle, beautiful Kyle. He leaned into the touch, sighing out a rasping breath before he looked up at the other.
“Yes…you did,” he said. “Finally…I’m so glad.” He raised a hand to touch Kyle’s cheek, some of his own blood smearing over it as he stroked slowly, assuring himself this was no delusion. Kyle was here. Maybe…just maybe, Kyle could save him.
“Kyle..please, listen to me.” He licked his lips slowly, feeling the altar beneath him shudder. He arched in pain, crying out as blood gushed anew from his wounds and ran in thick red rivers down the sides and to the floor. Parallax knew someone was here, but he was cocky enough not to immediately interfere. Yet. Turning his head, Hal coughed and convulsed, flecks of blood staining his lips and Kyle’s hands.
“I can’t take this anymore,” he wheezed. “Please…Kyle, please you have to save me. You have to stop Parallax.” A trembling hand reached up and seized hold of Kyle’s shirt.
“Please…Kill me.”
Kyle’s eyes went rabid-wide as he listened to Hal’s plea. He compulsively stroked Hal’s soft hair, even though it was matted in coagulated blood. It didn’t matter. All Kyle wanted to do was provide some semblance of comfort to Hal, anything to ease Hal’s nightmare of torment and agony. Kyle bit at his own bloody lip, and caught Hal’s hand in his own, feeling starved for human contact that wasn’t cruel or violent. A small sob bubbled in Kyle’s throat. Despite everything Hal was enduring, how much Hal was dying over and over again by Parallax’s whim, he was still so gentle, so urgent. So…lost.
Blinking rapidly, Kyle didn’t break eye contact as he turned his head and pressed his lips against Hal’s fingers, their blood mingling. Another lurch rocked the foundations and Hal buckled again, his already-agonized face contorting in pain as Parallax sucked him dry, while the entity also tried to grasp what Hal was doing. Kyle’s mind spun, already half-addled by the madness brought about by Ion’s powers.
It would be so easy. Ion’s killed so many countless people already. All Kyle had to do was curl his fingers around Hal’s willing, pliable neck and -snap!- like Ion made him do to so many innocent people. And Hal wanted it. He wanted it…look at how much, dios….
…Except no. “No no not again. It’s just me and you right now, Hal,” Kyle murmured, shaking his head. “I found you. You are here. You’re actually here,” Kyle laughed unhappily, suddenly unable to believe that Hal was actually still clinging to life, no matter how frail. Kyle held Hal’s hand tighter.
“You’re my hope, Hal. You. I found you,” he repeated that, like a mantra. “We’re going to get through this. It’s what we do. I believe we can. I know it.”
The idea of continuing to live was almost too painful for him to bear, and the ‘room’ around them burned brightly with golden light as the fear of never dying crept into Hal’s mind. But…It wasn’t life as he had been, bound to Parallax, trapped here, captive to the whims of a mad god.
Kyle was here, grasping his hand, and Hal felt strength in that grasp, strength he’d thought had long since left him. He was Kyle’s hope…and Kyle was his. The Corps were decimated, scattered and weakened. Other than a handful of scattered members driven half mad, only the avatars remained.
Like him. Like Kyle.
His free hand moved to hold the back of Kyle’s head, pulling him closer. He had to feel him, feel his warmth, his hope, his will to keep going. They could fight this. They could bend the entities to their will. Will…Hal’s eyes flashed green for an instant, and he felt a rush of strength return to him. Maybe…just maybe…
“I need your help,” he said. He managed to sit up just enough to press his forehead to Kyle’s. “I can’t fight this alone.”
Another bark of laughter bubbled from Kyle as he saw it: that thing that he’d wanted to see so badly, that he’d willed to happen without even knowing it.
But there it was - a flash of green in Hal’s eyes that looked so cool and calming and beautiful to Kyle, he almost forgot he was insane, forgot that Ion had a steel-grip on his very being. Kyle greedily closed the gap between himself and Hal, breathing in deep and fast, the smell of green light and warmth and Hal’s breath and his blood.
Yes.
Hal’s deep dark blood against the delicate pinks of Hal’s bruised lips and cheeks. And the slight flush of smudged blues and light indigos streaking underneath Hal’s exhausted, liquidy brown eyes. Kyle huffed as a sound caught in his throat, and he realized with a shock down his spine that all this time, ever since Ion took over - he’d seen things in monochrome greens and whites and blacks. Kyle blinked his eyes shut when Hal gathered him close. When he dared to open his eyes, his eyelashes brushing against Hal’s as the older Lantern held their heads steady-close and…yes.
Kyle could see in color.
And it was beautiful. Because it was Hal. His face was an explosion of sumptuous, graceful colors up close and staring steadily, right back at Kyle. There was no better sight to see first thing - in glorious technicolor - than Hal Jordan. Hal Jordan sitting up, the strength of his hand bracing against the back of Kyle’s neck. Kyle shifted, his own hands sliding up and holding the sides of Hal’s face.
“I feel good,” Kyle said, sharing Hal’s breath. “I feel right. We’re not wrong anymore, and I’m ready to do this. I’m with you and we’ll fight this and win, like Lanterns do, Hal. Like Lanterns do. Together.”
Hal’s body tingled a moment, almost able to feel the moment Kyle rattled his own bonds and broke them loose. He could feel rejuvenating strength coursing through Kyle, through his own fingertips, and into his exhausted body. Kyle gave him the will to fight back, the drive to get up, and the hope that they could overcome this, that they could live and set things right again. He slid his fingers into Kyle’s hair, thumb stroking the soft black strands slowly. He’d almost forgotten what it felt like to be this close to someone, to feel the heat of another so close to him.
Gazing into Kyle’s eyes, he found the resolve he needed. He wanted to see Kyle smile for him. Just for him. The world outside was hell, and it would be hard to live in. They would have to rely on each other. Caressing his cheek, Hal leaned closer, tilting his head slightly. He felt his lips brush Kyle’s, felt Kyle’s breath, tasted his blood. Breathing his name, he leaned close and pressed their lips together, closing his eyes.
Parallax let out a distant scream, and the golden fire around them leapt and danced wildly. It was hardly a power struggle now, not now that Hal had an anchor. He had Kyle.
Relishing the feel of being so near to Hal, the strength being built and passed between them was like manna to Kyle. Not between Parallax and Ion, no. The entities were a distant memory right now, and that felt so good, so free that it coursed through Kyle’s very soul.
All he wanted to do with this feeling was share it with the man who made it happen. Hal gave him hope and Kyle pushed all of the goodness and freedom back towards him, and reveled in how much they filled each other, fueled by the drive and will and determination that Kyle thought he’d lost so long ago. Perhaps he had. Perhaps he really was an empty shell all this time. He couldn’t think of any better way to replenish than standing his ground beside Hal.
When Hal closed the gap between their lips, Kyle’s eyes fluttered shut and he melted his broken, torn up body against Hal’s…except Hal wasn’t feeling similarly broken or destroyed, not anymore. Kyle wasn’t either, he realized. He’d been so used to feeling abused for so long…but Ion couldn’t keep him beaten down anymore. The Ion entity had made itself purposely weak to get within Parallax, convinced that Kyle was so controlled, he would willingly drag Hal’s broken spirit back for Ion to cannibalize.
Ion underestimated what Kyle thought of Hal. He murmured Hal’s name, a smile of triumph curving his lips as he curled himself around Hal’s frame, his hands sliding along Hal’s back in wide eager circles.
“We got this,” Kyle whispered confidently against Hal’s open mouth. He dared to open his eyes again, and watched in fascination as Hal’s mind slid into green, the sickly-looking yellow frilling and flopping on the corners of Hal’s consciousness. At the corner of his eye, Kyle saw his home - his mother’s home where Ion had been keeping him - enveloped with beautiful green. The green light coming from their rings, Kyle realized with such unadulterated joy, he pulled at Hal’s silky hair. No blood clotted in it now.
It was tempting to stay here forever, like this. “I didn’t think I’d ever feel this…hope and…this…Hal.”
By now, in Kyle’s mind, Hal’s name was synonymous with will.
The altar beneath them melted away, leaving them in a soft patch of tall, sun bathed grass. Everything around them was alive, its life feeding back into the two of them. Hal felt his strength renewed, his mind clearer than ever before. He felt Parallax struggling, trying to reach out and snatch him back. But his will was too strong, protected with his connection to Kyle. Taking the other’s hand, he laced their fingers together, their rings touching and sparking wildly with the energy of it. He could feel Ion inside of Kyle, an internal battery that now poured on all the strength they needed. Their rings glowed as the charges were restored.
-50%-
-75%-
-100%-
-200%-
-700%-
It seemed ridiculous at first, but remembering that the green entity was inside Kyle, and they were linked. Ion’s power was their power. And Parallax’s was, too. Hal nuzzled Kyle, smiling at him as his eyes gleamed bright green.
“Come on,” he said, pulling Kyle against him. “Let’s take back our freedom.”
Kyle took a deep breath, letting it out in a loud vocal sigh. He wasn’t afraid to use his voice anymore. He wasn’t afraid of anything at all. He stared with intense pleasure at their linked hands and linked rings, the green energy crackling around them. It all made sense now. Ion wasn’t anything more than a power source, now that Hal had found a way to funnel it towards depleting Parallax’s control over him. It couldn’t have been more beautifully crafted.
Kyle cracked his neck, one side and then the next, running his fingers along the side of Hal’s face with nothing short of adoration, before turning to look around.
“You got it, Hal,” Kyle hummed agreeably and with a glance at Hal, they flew up, mind and body fusing and re-melding as they rode the green light transfer from spirit to being. Around them Parallax’s echoing protests flapped. “How do we deal with Parallax?” Kyle touched Hal’s arm to get his attention. “I want to use Ion to seal Parallax away somewhere. Nice and tight and forever.”
Holding his hand tightly, Hal quickly formed a plan. It would all have to be perfectly timed and executed…but the two greatest Green Lanterns alive would be executing it, so he had no worry at all. He pressed his hand to Kyle’s cheek again, leaning close to kiss him once more. He needed that last little push in order to keep himself together and win the last fight that was about to come.
“I can purge Parallax out of myself,” he said. “You can use Ion’s power to trap him the second we’re separated.” He stroked Kyle’s hair and smiled at him. “I know you can do it. I believe in you.” He kissed him once more, hugging him tight. His hands clutched at Kyle as the last vestiges of the mind’s safety faded to reality again.
Hal literally tore Kyle free from his body, throwing him aside before his body twisted in agony. Parallax was losing his grip and he was fighting with all he had to stay in control. Hal clutched at his chest as it pulsed unnaturally, armor breaking as his skin and ribs stretched outward. His hands tore at the breast plate, breaking it away and leaving his chest exposed as he staggered.
“KYLE!” he shouted, gritting his teeth. “N-NOW!” He thrashed and arched his back, bellowing in pain as his chest burst open. The yellow beast shot free, curling in the air and shrieking in rage. It was weak, and it had to flee…but it lacked the strength.
Like Ion fed off Kyle’s energy and sanity, Kyle fed off Hal’s confidence and determination to keep himself steady and focused. And most importantly, unafraid. Every time Hal touched him and kissed him, Kyle felt like nothing would ever return him to the brink of madness. This would work, because Hal knew it would. Therefore it was simple: if Hal knew it, then Kyle knew it too. That was how it worked. And to feel this balance once more between them - shared between two Green Lanterns - was incredible enough.
Being torn out of Hal felt traumatizing, but Kyle only had to recall the memory of Hal’s continuous, loving kisses to drive away any feeling of loss or pain. Besides, any residual discomfort Kyle felt was nothing compared to watching the way Hal’s body twitch and convulse, tearing away the armor as Hal strangled his own cries of agony. Breathing hard, Kyle braced himself on his feet and watched, slowly raising his ringed fist towards Hal to prepare for the inevitable.
And then it happened.
Hal arched backwards, almost folding in half as the Parallax entity burst forth. Even in its weakened state, it was monstrous and terrifying. It blubbered angrily, dripping yellow and sucking it back into its pulsing form. Kyle felt the palpable terror, but trusted Hal’s barked instructions to cut right through the fright. Kyle calmly sucked the entity into a heavy duty vacuum, then wrapped the construct in chains upon chains upon chains and finally stuffed into a perfectly rendered version of a Lantern battery.
Kyle shook his head clear. Ion was purged. And Parallax was trapped. And…
“Hal!” Kyle flew over, holding Hal up in his arms. He crashed down to his knees, and pulled Hal closer. Kyle cupped Hal’s cheek, petting along his jaw. “It’s gone, Hal. You did it, dios mio.” Kyle nestled his face against Hal’s, almost crying in relief. ”We’re safe.”
Hal collapsed, physically drained and worn out. He landed in a heap, panting as he watched Kyle bind the yellow demon. It was over…they’d won. Finally. His eyes felt so heavy, begging to close and just let him rest…sleep at long last. No more pain, no more exhaustion, no more fighting. Just well deserved rest. It would have been so easy too, just to let himself slip away in those few seconds.
But then Kyle was there, holding him, touching him again with those warm, gentle hands. Groaning, Hal forced his eyes open, smiling at the other. His chest hurt, but the gaping wound had been temporal, and had closed itself like it never happened. Still hurt like it had, though. Leaning into Kyle, he nuzzled back and sighed quietly.
“WE did it,” he said. “You and me…” He took Kyle’s hand and clasped it, letting them rest against his chest. “Together.”
Hal’s energy was fading fast, but Kyle was touched that he’d managed to gather enough reserve strength to reassure Kyle, confirm that this nightmare was over for the both of them. He bent over Hal and kissed him, just once and without much urgency. ”Congratulations to us, Hal,” Kyle spoke softly, as he smiled. “We did it.”
Well…
Kyle looked up and at their reality. Coast City. A ghost city. Long destroyed by Parallax ages ago, and rebuilt only to be destroyed again. The same could be said for the rest of the West Coast, everywhere Ion’s madness touched, was as ruined as Coast City, only more populated. No one ever chose to live in Coast City.
But here they were, Hal exhausted and only half awake and Kyle slowly echoing that same exhaustion as the adrenaline wore away. The Lantern battery construct was smoking, but staying in place, trapped in Ion’s power. No more madness or insanity or possession or…
Kyle’s eyes widened and he kept a close hold around Hal as he turned this way and that, looking for — ah. In the corner of the decrepit apartment building rooftop, Guy lay in a broken, unconscious heap. The cage and gag, of course, were long gone.
“Stay here,” Kyle joked, pressing his nose against Hal’s forehead as he carefully let Hal lay down. He trudged over to Guy, taking forever to roll the heavy unconscious man over. Kyle reached over him, and slid the red ring off of Guy’s finger. He looked at it for a long while, before standing up and using his ring’s power to drag Guy back towards where Hal lay.
Close enough, Kyle collapsed between them. He lay on his back and held the Red Lantern ring up, for Hal to look at. Poor Hal was barely awake at this point, but he was able to take note of the ring. Kyle took hold of Hal’s free hand with his own and squeezed Hal’s fingers between his own.
“I should destroy it.”
For a moment, Hal felt a spike of panic when Kyle walked away. Then, he reassured himself Kyle would be back, and swiftly. And sure enough, he was, Guy in tow. Good, Hal thought. He’d been worried about the red head, and even if he was unconscious, he was alive, and that was what counted.
Like Kyle, Hal had to take a moment to just take in the city. There wasn’t much of it left, not that there had been anyway. Still, it seemed like a fitting place to end his possession by Parallax. There wasn’t anything here for him, not now. Not anymore…He looked over at Kyle as the other laced their fingers, smiling warmly at him. Sweet and gentle Kyle…how he had ever played host to the green entity, Hal would never know.
“You should…if you don’t, it will just find someone else.” Closing his eyes, he half chuckled. “Counter-productive, don’t you think?”
Distracted from the ring, Kyle stared up at Hal with a mix of admiration and incredulity. Even after all of that, after the horrible, agonizing time of Parallax, here was Hal now: casual and gentle and cracking wise. As if they - the three of them had all just come up to the rooftop of some random building (no, that wasn’t right. Parallax and Hal did everything for a reason, and something about this particular apartment building tugged at Kyle’s memory, but he was too tired to recall) to just hang out. Like they might have hung out, years and years ago. A painfully sweet feeling gripped Kyle hard in his chest as he realized that they were actually, finally free.
“Ah haaa. Hal…” Kyle stretched himself up to kiss Hal again, the tremble in his chest sinking into a pleasant ache in his belly as he took the time to appreciate the softness and give of Hal’s still-bruised but so-willing lips. He held himself there for a while, closing his eyes and sketching the memory of Hal-in-colour against his eyelids. It was a memory he didn’t want to forget.
Sprawling out again, and shuffling himself a bit closer to Hal so they could keep more in contact, Kyle lifted the Red Lantern ring up between them again. He raised Hal’s hand in his own, their rings touching and sparking up together once again.
“Okay, I know usually it takes a blue and a green, but. I think we can make anything happen, right now.” He grinned up at Hal, full of confidence. ”So screw the rules. Let’s do this thing. Tres…dos…uno—” Kyle flicked the ring up into the air and as it twirled up, their Green Lantern rings shot out beams of green light - Kyle’s green slightly more on the blue side, Kyle noted - and the red ring shattered, reflecting red along them before it dissolved.
Destroying the red ring was one last bit of freedom, freedom for Guy. For the first time in Hal couldn’t remember how long, they were all free. Making a soft and sleepy noise, Hal shifted a little, laying on his side and nudging Kyle’s arm out of the way. He nestled his head onto a spot on his chest, smiling as he heard Kyle’s strong heartbeat and steady breathing. There were so many things to do now, so many people to look to….but for the moment, he could wait. Everything could wait.
“Thank you Kyle,” he murmured, brushing a kiss over his chest. “Thank you…for everything.” He closed his eyes, fatigue settling in and pulling him easily into a doze.
Kyle kissed the top of Hal’s head instinctively. “We did this right, we did something right, after a really long time. It’s finally right. Thank you right back, Hal,” Kyle’s voice cracked just a bit and he shifted to hold Hal tightly.
He looked over to Guy, who was still passed out, but fortunately not any more or less injured than Hal. Gently, Kyle grazed his free hand along Guy’s red hair, and then slid gown to cup around Guy’s shoulder. ”We’re going to be fine…” Kyle told Hal, told Guy…told himself. “We’re all going to be…”
Kyle’s eyes slowly slid shut, and the Lanterns slept heavily and finally at peace, on the rooftop of Hal’s Coast City apartment building.