18751/Homecomings: Return from Vega

Homecomings: Return from Vega
Date of Scene:	04 August 2024
Location:	Carol and Hal's Apartment
Synopsis:	Hal returns from the Vega System with the most critical sort of news to catch Carol up on. They have a chance to touch upon the coming of Galactus and perhaps equally important, the fact that there might be more emotional energy spectrums out there then just Green and Violet...
Cast of Characters:	Hal Jordan, Carol Ferris

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Hal Jordan has posed:
It has been a... difficult few days to put it mildly.

It is not uncommon for Hal to get pulled off world from time to time. It's a big galaxy out there afterall, and while there are a few thousand fellow Green Lanterns, that is still a lot of ground to cover.

It is also something that he is doing his best to minimize, as much as possible, since moving in with Carol. They both lead busy lives. It isn't just him who is going to be unavailable at times. She has responsibilities to Ferris, to the Star Sapphires and she knows of his to the Corps as well.

They are both accepting that about the other, making a more determined effort with a distinct eye to making things work between them.

And so far it is. Amazingly so. Really, Hal can't really remember the last time that his personal life was in such good shape. Having someone who both knows all of his secrets, his responsibilities and is willing to accept them because they have their own that need accepting in turn makes for a tremendous difference. Makes all the difference in the world.

That their rings can open up portals, that they can speed even interstellar travel makes a difference. But not every part of space can be bridged in a few hours. And sometimes the various crises going on out there can't be solved in just a day.

That is the sort of thing that Hal has been working on, that he made sure she knew aobut before he departed this most recent time. That it involved some sort of threat that could kill several of his fellow Green Lanterns and that, while not officially charged by the Guardians to look into, Hal never the less felt compelled to get involved with anyway.

Because of course he did.

So it has been days since he has been home. Not even close to the ongest period that he has been out in space of course, but the longest since they found their way back to one another, before he moved in with Carol.

the fact that he has somewhere to return to, has someone to return to makes a big difference right at the moment. That he has a home. Because he knows how fleeting that can be. He knows of several million people that he helped save -- true -- that can no longer say the same. And that can't help but way on him some.

That green streak of light descends from the heavens, racing through the sky, slowing only when it hits atmosphere and starts to drop towards Metropolis and a very specific apartment there. By the time he is over the city itself he is already fading out of the visiual light spectrum, masking his approach as he sweeps in towards their -- and that still feels odd and strangely good to think about -- *their* apartment.

Phasing through the wall as if it isn't even there, Hal's glowing form once more shifts into view, his features unusually haggard, brow ever so slightly furrowed with worry that is unusual on his normally confident features.

"Carol?" he calls out. "Are you home?"

Carol Ferris has posed:
Carol hasn't been saving the galaxy from any existential, world-devouring threats. Not recently, anyway.

Instead, she's has been spending the last few days in meetings with the Board of Directors of Ferris Aircraft, the US Air Force, and SHIELD, all of whom wanted to hear about their little run-in with the F-15s over the CONDOR ONE MOA. The dust had finally settled. The in-flight recorders had been downloaded, and an in-depth analysis had been conducted. Once all of the data analysts had finished their work, it was time for Carol to start getting the summonses to explain what happened.

"And where is Hal Jordan now?" they all wanted to know, because it's only Carol showing up to the meetings.

"He is recovering at home from injuries sustained in the course of his employment."

Not duties. He wasn't active duty, anymore. This had been a job -- testing of a new drone prototype -- not a military training exercise.

"I'll remind the board that at no time has Mr. Jordan's conduct or performance been called into question by any of the reports you have in front of you. If you have specific questions for Mr. Jordan, you may submit them to my office in writing and I will ensure they are answered for you. Otherwise, I would request that we stay focused on questions you have for me."

It wasn't her job to look into the Lizard League. For all intents and purposes, she ran a perfectly legitimate Aerospace Design and Engineering company. Her "job" was to answer questions regarding the loss of one of the military's F-22s and help the proper authorities gather the intel they need to counter the threat in the future.

Star Sapphire, however, was _very_ interested in the Lizard League. Even if it wasn't necessarily her business, either. They'd made it her business when they shot down Hal Jordan.

All that being said, Carol was getting home late, showering later, and crawling into bed alone. The days had been exhausting, and it didn't help that Hal wasn't there after she'd gotten used curling up with him every night, but this was just life. She would have her days spent away at some point.

"Bathroom!" Carol calls from the direction of the Master Bedroom and, from there, their fairly luxurious bathroom. "Rotten timing," she shouts, the amusement clear in her voice. "I just got out of the shower."

And she did, in fact, just get out of the shower. She still has the mane of (even darker than usual) soaked, dark hair hanging around a face that's devoid of makeup. Bare shoulders. A towel wrapped around her and tucked to keep it in place. Her skin is glistening and damp, and the mirrors and glass surfaces are still fogged up.

She pads out of the shower to meet him, but its the sight of his frowning face that brings her up short.

"Hal, what's wrong?"

Hal Jordan has posed:
He has been away for quite a few days. Nothing compared to some of their separations in the past of course, but definitely a little new and unusual since they picked up where they left off, all very hot and heavy for one another.

Under other circumstances, less dire circumstances, it is more then a little likely that neither his pressing news or the long days in space would prove to be much of a persuader, especially not with the sight of her there in nothing more then a towel, still aglow from that recent shower. There is very little doubt that he would be dragging her right back into that shower and all talk about hearings, the Lizard League and the Green Lantern Corps busienss could damn well wait until after they got cleaned off.

Though maybe not until after getting a little dirty together first.

Such is the weight in his eyes though that the cocky pilot inside Hal doesn't suggest such a thing. He doesn't even let that gaze roam over her, as enticing a vision as she might be after so long away. Instead he simply crosses those few feet between them, meeting her in the bedroom door and wraps arms around her, drawing her in close to him. Practically clinging to her like she is his life raft in a suddenly very violent, very dangerous storm.

A part of him wants to ask her how the hearings went, whether she has learned anything about the Lizard League. To just make sure that all the things that he had to pick up and walk out on, leaving her holding the bag, are still okay. That she's okay.

But again, their is that air of ditraction, that sense that something so dark and overwhelming is pressing in on him that he can't make time for anything else. Not even all the nicities he wants to spend time doing with her.

So he just pulls her to him and hugs her close, silent for a moment as he composes him, as he tries to figure out just where to start.

The fact that he has discovered the secret of the Vega system. About why, in all of the wide galaxy why that particular galaxy was one of the only ones rendered off limits to the Green Lantern Corps. About his discovery of an entirely nbew part of the emotional spectrum. That on the world of Okaara he discovered an Orange Lantern and it's unstable wielder. That the power of the emotional spectrum is not just limited to the Green, as the Guardians of the Universe claimed for so long. Not even the Green and the Violet, as they explained away about their one time mates harnessing the power of love.

But that there is an Orange spectrum out there as well. The power of Greed.

And if it exists, it begs the question what other emotional light spectrums might also be there.

It is important of course, as is his anger with the Guardians for keeping thrings from their most loyal servants yet again. But it can wait. For just a little bit longer.

"It was so much worse then I expected Carol," he says quietly, finally leaning back so he can catch her gaze with his own. "So much worse then I think anyone could have imagined. We watched an entire world die. We saved as many people as we could, got them to safety, but we couldn't stop it," he says, before continuing in a rush.

"There will be a number of us meeting soon. Diana managed to glean some information from the being responsibile, some potential way of stopping him. We're going to meet soon. You'll come with me, right?"

Carol Ferris has posed:
The connection between them spans the entire universe.

Using only her ring and the power of her feelings for him -- her true love -- Carol has summoned Hal to her side in an instant from galaxies away. Most couples could never hope to have tangible proof of that magnitude of their chemistry or their feelings for reach other. Most couples had to rely on the spoken words and actions, had to hold on to the belief that the other really believed the words they were saying.

But Carol didn't need the proof. Even if her ring didn't have the ability to summon him from across the universe, she wouldn't have a doubt in her mind about how Hal Jordan feels about her -- and she hoped he wouldn't about her, either. Their chemistry, while absolutely undeniable when time and emotions allowed, was so much more than physical desire. They'd proven that to each other over and over again throughout the years -- especially the years of Star Sapphire being Green Lantern's enemy, brainwashed to hate him by the very people she now led.

There's no disappointment in Carol's features when Hal's gaze skips his normal, lingering appreciation of her form. There's no hesitation as she moves to meet him, to stretch her arms up around his shoulders and cling to him, lengthening up onto her toes to hold him tightly to her. Her face buries in his neck, her wet hair lying against his shoulder.

She says nothing. Not until he speaks. She would hold him there for hours, if that's what he needed, and never let him go.

But when he does finally lean back to look at her, her eyes are filled with concern. Her hand reaches up to his face, brushing at his cheek affectionately, thumb over the full well of that high cheekbone, fingers slipping back into the hair above his ear.

We watched an entire world die.

The words... don't make sense to her at first. It's just confusion. What do you mean you watched an entire world die? What does that mean? Unasked, but there in her eyes.

You'll come with me, right?

"Of course I'll come with you," she assures without hesitation.

She would have done it for Hal without question or explanation, but if he really did watch an entire world die, she had a vested interested in it herself... if Love was under threat, the Star Sapphires needed to know what was happening.

"Hal..."

Her voice is so soft, still so concerned, so full of sympathy that one can almost feel her heart breaking in her voice. Carol has always felt things _so_ deeply... and the thought of him witnessing the death of an entire planet. Of being involved. Of rescuing refugees, only to know he couldn't save everyone... she can feel the weight of that in her soul, and she didn't need her ring to do it.

"I love you."

A gentle reminder. A reassurance. A commitment. A positioning of herself as his support, his anchor, his pillar.

"I'm so sorry."

There may be nowhere else in the galaxy where it was safe for him to fall apart, to truly let his emotions take him, but with her, here, she wraps him in a blanket of absolute acceptance. With her, he can rage and scream and cry and laugh and love.

Hal Jordan has posed:
There are plenty of things that Hal Jordan doubts in this particular world. He questions how evil can exist on such a scale as it does sometimes. He questions the insane desires of some of those that he is forced to face down and fight over and over again. He is, icnreasingly, questioning of the leaders of the Green Lantern Corps, of the Guardians of the Universe and all of the secrets that they keep, ones that they keep even from their most loyal followers who live and die for their cause.

What he never has to quesiton, not even a little, is Carol's feelings for him. Or his for her.

Their path might not have always been easy. They fell in love young -- maybe too young in some respects -- at least on his part. They had time as adversaries, or at least her being manipulated to being one more of his enemies, one more threat to deal with.

But they have overcome all of that. His immaturity. Her conditioning. They have found their way back to one another again and again, across the vastness between stars themselves. That means something. With each passing year, heck, each passing day, that means more and more.

So just having her arms around him, having those dark eyes peer into his own is enough to bring a certain sense of calm back to him. To let him reimpose that most formidable of Wills upon his chaotic thoughts that race and threaten to ramble, to impose a certain order over them once more.

When she tells him that she loves him it is enoguh to make his eyes soften at last, the tension of that furrowed brow flood out of him and he lets out a long, slow breath. "I know you do," he replies quietly. "And you have no idea how much that means to me, especially right now."

His hands slip from around her, though certainly not to go far. Instead they seek out her own, clasping them in his own, fingers intermingled with her own. "You know I love you too, right? I hate that I don't have time for a proper hello. To show you just how much I missed you," he says quietly, eyes fixed on her own, that instinctive emerald glow that surround him, that protects him from all manner of threats finally dimming, finally evaporating in her presence.

"But I wasn't exaggerating. It's bad Carol. As bad a threat as I've ever seen," he says quietly. A little more measured. A little more under control. "Tamaran. That was the name of the world. You would have loved it. Their people are passionate. Their planet was a paradise, at least before it was conquered. And Galactus just... devoured it," he says, a grim note threatning to creep back into his words.

"That's what he calls himself. I'm not sure what he truly is. Some primal cosmic being or force I suppose. The Guardians, surprise, surprise haven't exactly been forthcoming about what they now. But he seems to go from world to world, feeding on them, destorying them and any life that exists on them. He has Heralds two, that announce his coming. At least two of them now, either of them more then a match for any single Lantern perhaps One of them killed a whole force of them," he admits, the line of his mouth tightening once more.

"And they are headed this way."

Carol Ferris has posed:
"Of course I know you do," Carol breathes, looking up at him with an incredulous smile. "I would know even if you never said the words again."

She squeezes his hands.

"And you _have_ shown me. You just did."

She loved everything about him, body, mind, and spirit, but she needed nothing more from him than this affection -- honestly, nothing more than that first glance -- to feel everything he was so worried about conveying to her.

How could she not know just from the curl of his fingers through hers? From the heavy, searching look in his eyes? She couldn't protect him from every demon that existed in the universe, but now that he was hers again, she would rise to meet that need for her as often as he needed it. It was nothing less than what he would do -- what he had done -- for her.

"The refugees? They have shelter?"

Of course that's where her mind would go first.

But she wouldn't be able to avoid the inevitable. Galactus. Heralds.

The lives of the Green Lanterns that had fallen. She looks stricken, the color draining from her face. Hal could have been one of them. If she lost him, she felt like a piece of her own soul would die with him, and she had no idea what would happen to her then.

"God, Hal... here?"

War was coming to Earth, and it didn't immediately sound like a war that they would easily win. It wasn't a war that anyone wanted, but a war that was coming to them anyway.

She leans up, pressing her lips against his for a lingering few seconds. It's not sensual or seductive, but it is filled with love -- another reminder. She isn't just Star Sapphire, ready to stand by his side and face down any threat. She isn't just his love, ready to hold him and support him through any trial.

She is both and so much more besides.

"I'll get some clothes and my ring. Talk to me while I'm getting ready?"

Hal Jordan has posed:
The situation is dire of that there can be no doubt. Planet destroying threats? It doesn't get much more real then that.

And her first impulse -- at least after calming him down, reassuring him -- is to ask about all those millions of displaced refugees who have suddenly lost their homes. Who have, in all likleihood all suffered losses to their families.

And despite himself, despite the situation, the taunt emotions of the past few days, all the frustration and anger and yes, even fear, Hal just can't help but smile. At least for just a moment.

Those fingers tighten around hers, squeezing gently and he leans in, just enough to brush his lips across her own -- both in a proper hello and in appreciation for just how much she means to him. Now, in this moment and in general. "You have no idea how much you reassure me about the general state of things every single day," he says quietly before giving his head a little shake. "They are as safe as they can be. We found them a world that they can settle on, for the time being. It's out of the way. It should be safe enough from this... Galactus' rampage. If anywhere can be considered safe," he admits.

Reluctantly, he gives up his hold on her, surrendering that reassurance as comfortable as it is to the necessity of her getting ready. Already they are probably setting up at the Hall of Justice, sending out those alerts to gather in anyone that can make it. Representatives from all the prominent Earth-based superhero teams and perhaps some from beyond.

"It seems that way," he agrees quietly. "There's still a lot we don't understand about this power. Answers that we just don't have yet," he admits, expression tightening a little. He has no trouble assigning blame for that squarely on the Guardian's shoulders.

Following her into the bedroom, his gaze tracks her now, eyes warmer, more familiar in the way that they look at her. Though there is that little, troubled line still creasing his forehead.

"Carol..." he asks before hesitating for a moment. "Have the Zamarons ever mentioned a... different kind of lantern. The possibility that there might be emotional energy spectrums out there beyond the Green and the Violet?"

Carol Ferris has posed:
'You have no idea how much you reassure me...'

She smiles proudly back at him, her eyes -- blue without the power of her ring coursing through her -- crinkling a bit at their corners. These moments were just as important as watching Top Gun or wanting to drag each other back into the shower. These little, necessary, shared moments of emotional intimacy, even amid otherwise dire topics, reminded them of who they were... separate and together.

But that smile is woefully short lived. A moment of peace stolen like the eye of a storm passing.

"Good."

Relocating a planet's population -- even part of a planet's population -- is no small logistical undertaking. Even under from the looming threat of Galactus's inexorable march towards Earth, it wasn't simply enough to bubble a few families and put them on a spaceship. They had to have a home to go to, families had to be kept together, they had to fed, they had varying medical needs. Saving people was about so much more than just... saving them.

As reluctant as Hal is to let her go, she's equally as displeased about pulling away from him, but she knew him well enough by now. He didn't have to say, 'Hurry and get ready. We're already running late.' She knew.

"Well, if anyone knows how to pull people together, it's Diana," Carol mutters as she heads towards the big, walk-in closet, pulling out clothes without putting much thought into it. She would be attending the meeting as Star Sapphire. What she wore underneath mattered only when she changed back, so she chose one of her work dresses and a pair of pumps. Simple. Routine. Easy to get out the door quickly in. "With any luck, the collective hive mind will be able to make up for what the Guardians haven't shared."

Dress, undergarments, shoes, all laid out on the bed, she's about to drop her towel when that last question hits her like a slap in the face.

She knows he didn't mean it that way. She does. He's emotionally charged, and he's trying to cover all his bases, leave no stone unturned. But even as her hand touches the fold of her towel where it's tucked in just under her arm, she looks up at him and goes eerily still.

"...Have I been keeping secret knowledge of other Lantern Corps from you for the last seven years? Is that... what you're asking?"

Presumably since she was first named Queen of the Zamarons. When else would they have told her, if not then?

She's not mad. There's no venom in the question. But she does ask it blandly enough, staring him squarely in the eyes long enough, for him to realize how utterly ridiculous it is.

"No."

No beating around the bush for Carrol Ferris. Straight to the direct answer. It does raise another interesting question, though.

"Why?"

Finally, she does drop that towel. There's nothing sensual nor prudish about it. She simply sets to the task of getting dressed.

Hal Jordan has posed:
It seems unlikely that there is somehow going to be some repository on Earth that is going to have the answers to all of their questions. All the information that they still lack. While the crew of the Milano has proven surprisingly capable, while the collection of unlikely allies that they gathered along the way have proven similarily adept, if they did not have answers, if the Nova Corps didn't have answers, it is hard to believe that anyone on Earth will have them.

Though he has been proven wrong before. Sometimes that necessary piece of the puzzle can be found in the most unlikely of places. Maybe they will get lucky.

But he suspects that their best hope will remain with the Guardians, with his Oan masters, the founders of the Green Lantern Corps. Little blue trolls that can be at times with their secrets and stubborn refusal to completely trust their followers, to trust their own Corps with critical information at times.

It is enough to drive Hal up the wall sometimes.

He doesn't feel the need to rush her. He already knows that she gets the urgency of the situation. It is there in her face, in her expression, even the way that she held him, helped bring some semblance of that iron mask of will power back into focus within him. "You're not wrong," he agrees. "And planetary emergency usually guarantees that most people are going to sit up and pay attention," he agrees, mouth twisting for just a moment in some semblance of a self-depricating smile.

When he asks that question, he doesn't even think about the implication of it. It is certainly not meant as accusatory. So when she goes still, when she rephrases that question to emphasize the unspoken implication of his own words, he blinks in surprise. "Oh Carol, no. I'm sorry. That's not at all what I meant," he hastens to assure her, turning towards her once more.

Despite their time crunch he pads back over to her once more, laying hands on her bared shoulders and drawing her in to the circle of his arms once more. "Ugh, sorry. I can see how it would sound that way, but no. I'm just frustrated with the Guardians," he says with a sigh. "I don't know if I've ever mentioned it before, but the Green Lantern Corps has been forbidden to enter the Vega system for hundreds of years. Based on some treaty the Guardians claim. Some treaty that no Green Lantern alive has actually seen, let alone read. It's just... hard to imagine what would ever make them agree to such a thing," he admits.

"Or it was," he says quietly, leaning back, brow furrowing once more. "On the first world that we travelled to, the one that was spared -- Okarra -- I found a power hidden away beneath one of their most holy sites. A being," he says, pausing once more as if gathering the right words.

"He had a Lantern Carol. An Orange Lantern. And I'm pretty sure that instead of Will or Love, he was tapping into the power of Greed. I've never felt anything quite like it before," he admits slowly.

Carol Ferris has posed:
There might not have been any anger in her words, but that didn't mean she was going to protest when Hal strode over to her and interrupted the process of getting dressed.

"I know," Carol whispers as she stretches up against him again, arms slipping around his neck, forehead tucking under the curve of his jaw. Her nakedness didn't matter. Despite their prodigious chemistry, they were so far past it being a novelty that she didn't even seem to notice. Once more, she clung to him, savoring the closeness and the comfort that provided. "And you can't know for sure until you ask."

She would probably have done the same thing in his situation, because regardless of the personal implications, you really don't know for sure until you ask the question. And when you're just on the heels of having a bunch of information without from you by a bunch of 'blue trolls,' it's hard to be sure about what other information might be withheld by others.

Once he starts explaining, though, she draws back far enough to look at him, still clinging to his shoulders. Whatever he had on his mind, it was important.

"You haven't..." told her about the Vega system. There's a little shake of her head. It hasn't been relevant. Her brow furrows a little as she goes quiet so she can listen, however.

"You found... a being." Pause. "With an _Orange_ Lantern?"

She blinks, her mind reeling to process the information. She shakes her head, confused.

"Is the being... alive?" Because, once more, of course that's her first question. "I don't understand. The Zamorans knew how to harness the power of love using the Star Sapphire gem because of thier connection to the Guardians and the Green Lantern Corps. That's how the Star Sapphire Corps was made."

Nothing he didn't know already. He was substantially responsible for the Zamorans using the gem to make the Star Sapphire Corps instead of continuing to use it to manipulate Carol.

"You think the Guardians know about the Orange Lanterns, and they forbade any of the Green Lanterns from going into the Vega System to keep it a secret? Why? Who would make a Lantern out of... greed?"

She didn't really even need to ask the question. Plenty of beings in the galaxy would twist a Lantern into something exclusively for their own gain. The Zamorans themselves had manipulated her to their own ends for years. Their record was hardly spotless where it came to some forms of greed and abuses of passion for their own selfish purposes.

She had so many questions. She'd already asked some of them, but she couldn't help throwing out one more... the most obvious of them.

"What are you going to do? What are WE going to do?"

Hal Jordan has posed:
Words are nice sometimes. But sometimes actions count for a little more.

And right now Hal very much wants to make sure Carol is well aware of the fact that he doesn't think she would keep such important information like this from him deliberately. That certainly isn't his line of thought.

But the Zamarons have manipulated her before. In some very personal ways. The Guardians are not above playing similar games though rarely quite so directly, prefering misdirection and half-truths to out an out control. And while they -- unlike the Guardians -- seem to have taken some lessons from their recent past to heart, one can never be quite so sure.

It would not be the first time either one of them had been deceived afterall.

"It didn't even occur to me how that might sound. Sorry Carol," Hal replies quietly, instinctively nuzzling back at her, pressing his cheek against the top of her head -- that hair that he so very much loves still damp against his skin. "You just stand a little higher in the Zamaron's estimation then I do in the Guardians. I didn't know if maybe they had dropped hints or something, even if they didn't come right out and say anything."

They are as long lived as the Oan, offshoots of the same race. But where one of them has embraced reason and cold logic, the other has embraced feeling and emotion to a much greater extent. It is possible that they generally don't know about the existence of other 'lights' on the emotional energy spectrum. That it has never occured to them to ask. Unlike the Guardians they have only recently harnessed a considerable number of individuals to serve as their Star Sapphires.

The Guardians, if the prohibition on entering the Vega system is any indivation, have known for centuries, if not longer.

"He was alive. Strange, really, incredible possessive and inclined to lay claim on just about everything he saw. Which perhaps makes sense if he is truly powered by Greed," Hal conceeds, leaning back from her just a little so that he can find her gaze once more.

"I don't know where this Lantern came from or if there are more. I hope not. I'm pretty sure that he has killed Green Lanterns before. He seems to... conjure up armies of those that he has claimed, has killed. They seem to fuel his power, making him far stronger then any individual. Maybe that's it's power. He is a Corps onto himself, with all the beings he has claimed his enslaved soldiers. I suppose it makes a degree of sense. Greed doesn't share," he muses before shaking his head.

His expression hardens just a little, lips pursed. It isn't difficult to ell that there is a little anger there. And no one can make him angry faster then the Guardians. "I don't doubt that they knew he was there. I'd wager the system was declared off limits after he claimed the essence of the Green Lanterns I saw him conjure up. Rather hten trying to do anything to avenge them, or deal with the problem they just tried to lock it away and pretend it didn't exist,m" he says, rolling his eyes in exasperation.

Because that always works real well.

"And it raises the question of whether there are even more colors out there. More lights," he notes. "So after this meeting I think it's past time that I took a little trip to Oa and had a word with my little blue overseers."

Carol Ferris has posed:
"I know. I get it. I do."

Carol's hand slips from around his shoulders to reach up and touch his cheek as she gazes up at him. The last thing she wanted, in that moment, was to pile a bunch of additional emotional weight on his shoulders. But, at the same time... she needed him to _know_ that she wasn't keeping secrets from him, and the best way she could think to drive that point home was to be as blunt as possible.

It had had its effect. Maybe more than she intended. But she was soft and sincere in her understanding.

Then there's that revelation, though. It's.. honestly not the answer she had been expecting. And as the story unfolds, it only seems to get worse. And worse. And worse.

"Wait... conjure up. With a ring? He's making _constructs_ of the people he's killed?"

That almost seems to turn her stomach -- the thought of zombie construct of Hal's friends out fighting against him, forcing him to fight people he's known and fought beside, cared about, just to get to this Orange Lantern.

"The Guardians..."

She shakes her head, blinking.

"They just... wait? Hoped he would stay put? Not use his army against them? So, now what? Is he still... out there? Is he fighting Galactus? Is he _with_ Galactus?"

That's a terrifying thought, and the anxiety in Carol's voice is rising, even if she'd been the one trying to calm Hal only a moment before. But, that was before she understood the full extent of the problem... before she started comprehending all of the weight she'd seen in Hal's eyes and heard in his voice.

The planet. The refugees. Galactus. An Orange Lantern.

Any one of those things would have been traumatic -- a lot to process emotionally. But all of them at once?

"I'll go with you."

The words are spilling out before she even really has a chance to process them. She'll go with him and do what? Convince the Guardians to tell HER something? That's laughable. They were more likely to be MORE close-lipped with a Star Sapphire standing there, demanding answers.

But she could be there for Hal, even if she wasn't standing in the meeting.

"I'll go to Zamaron, too, and see what I can find out. You're welcome to come with me."

It's... not quite a dig, but it is a callback to the point she was trying to make earlier. She wasn't keeping anything from him, and she wasn't planning to.

Hal Jordan has posed:
There is a whole heck of a lot to unpack. And not nearly enough time to do it in.

He would like to keep holding her, to keep her close until she is left with absolutely no doubt that it isn't her he has any doubts about. The same might not be able to be said about the Zamarons however.

And it most definitely can't be said about the Guardians right now.

His inquiries about Galactus, about this 'Ultimate Nullifier' and the 'Power Cosmic' that seems to make his Heralds more then a match for a host of Green Lanters have all gone unanswered. As has his inquiry about the Orange Lantern and it's strange wielder.

In fairness he has also ignored the angry request to answer for his decision to disobey the Guardian's prohibition on entering the Vega system so that lack of communication is not an entirely one way street.

But given the circumstances, he certainly feels as if he is in the right here. That the pressing questions of Galactus, of his Heralds, the tool that might be able to be used to defeat him and of course everything that the Orange Lantern encompasses all seem to constitute an emergency of the highest order.

If the Guardians want to slap his wrist for breaking a regulation once this is all dealt with, well, whatever. Hal doesn't mind answering for his actions.

One more thing that the Guardians don't seem to share with him.

So he grudgingly lets her go, letsher get back to preparing for the forthcoming meeting, moving to stand at the end of the bed, a pensive look on his expression.

"Strange, right? But that is exactly what it appeared to be. Except... they didn't behave just like constructs, you know? They clearly dig what he wanted, but they seemed more autonomous. Almost like there was a consciousness to them even still. It was... disturbing," he admits.

His next piece of news is not significantly better either. "We convinced him to help us against Galactus' Herald on Okaara. But in truth I think it's as much because he considered the world his and no one takes his things. I do know that particular world was spared, though whether it is because Galactus wasn't interested in it, or because the Orange Lantern was able to drive him off, or if they cut some sort of a deal I can't say. We were in something of a rush to reach Tamaran ahead of them by that point," he admits.

There is just too much about this entire situation that he doesn't know, too many questions that he just doesn't have the answers for. It's... frustrating. Usually the fact that the ring has access to the Oan Galactic Database means that he knows exactly what he is dealing with.

But here? This time? Nothing. He's flying blind.

And Hal very much likes to know where he's going.

That offer to come along, to do what she can with both the Guardians and the Zarmarons is met by a faint smile and Hal dips his head in her direciton. "I hate to pull you away. I know you have a lot on the go around here too. But I would definitely feel better," he admits quietly. "I don't know how much of a difference it will make with the Guardians, but I'd have to think if the Zamarons know anything they'd have to be more likely to share it with you then me," he conceeds.

That subtle if telling point isn't missed, and the corners of Hal's mouth twitch slightly. "I'm going to be, well, not paying for, but reminded about that little slip of the tongue for awhile, aren't I?"

Carol Ferris has posed:
"Do you think he actually... absorbed their consciousness somehow?"

That doesn't make it ANY better. In fact, that makes it significantly worse. It's not just that he's recreating the form of those he kills to fight against their one-time allies. If he's actually turning them into a zombie army...

A shudder runs down the length of her body even as Carol gets back to getting ready, clearly unwilling to pull away from Hal in the moments he wanted to hold her -- after all, she didn't really know how much time they really had, and she'd much rather be in his arms than not. But, there was still that ominous sensation of a ticking clock lingering like a cloud over both of them. They _were_ on a schedule.

"So the Orange Lantern is still on Okaara? And we don't know if he's planning to stay there?"

She's trying to piece it together... at least to catch up to Hal's understanding of the situation, even if that was frustratingly fragmented, even for him. But at least he'd been there. At least he'd seen everything with his own eyes. Maybe she could get Hal to show her some of what happened with his ring, later. Right now, she was fastening her bra behind her back and slipping her arms through the straps.

"I'm sorry... which slip of the tongue?" Carol asks, looking over at him as she's stepping into her dress and pulling it up to her hips so she can slip her arms through the sleeves. "The one where you 'accidentally' accused me of keeping a _major_ piece of information from you about a threat that could have gotten you killed?"

The air quotes aren't actually made, but they can be heard clearly in her voice, despite the amused little curl of the corner of her lips. Those blue eyes are still sharp, though -- the eyes of Carol Ferris, CEO, just daring her cocky test pilot to challenge her.

"Is that the slip of the tongue you mean?"

She blinks a couple of times and then pulls her hair forward over one shoulder, turning her back back to him and stepping back expectantly so he can zip her up.

"I have no idea what you mean. I'd already almost forgotten that you think I would keep something that important from you."

She turns her head just enough to shift her eyes all the way to the side, to smile that vaguely predatory smile at at him over her shoulder.

Hal Jordan has posed:
It is definitely not a very reassuring thought.

The truth is Hal just doesn't have enough information about any of this. Not about the Orange Lantern and it's strange wielder, not about it's capabilities. Not about Galactus and the threat he represents. That is concerning, alarming. Because all he has to go on are his impressions.

And the impressions he has been left with are decidedly concerning.

"I can't be sure," he admits, absently running a hand back through his hair, instinctively smoothing it into place before giving another little shake of his head. "It's just the impression that I got. That they were more then your run of the mill ring constructs. Maybe it's just the nature of his power, one of the unique traits to the Orange."

Both the Green Lanterns and the Star Sapphires have them, their little areas of speciality, their abilities that seem inherent to the emotional energy that they channel. Hal loves her dearly, but he can't imagine that he is going to somehow open up a portal through space and just... pull her to him. That's not how the Green energy of Will works.

But it is, understandably, how the Violet energy of Love might work.

"The power levels he was giving were off the charts. So again, could just be a function of that," he concedes before falling silent for a moment. "But it didn't feel like they were just more powerful. It felt like there was a consciousness there. That his Greed had somehow claimed everything that htey were and made it his own to command. To toy with," he say, the certainty reflected in his words seeming to build as he takes those precious few seconds to consider the matter. To really consider it. Not in a pnaicked rush. Not while trying to juggle the idea of a world consuming monster heading towards their home. To break the problem down, to really just focus on that one element.

"As for whether he is still on Okaara, all I can really be sure of is that he didn't follow Galactus and his Heralds to Tamaran. Whether that's because he got what he wanted and they left 'his' world alone. Or if it is because he has chosen to roam elsewhere now that he is awake and aware that there are big things going on, I just don't know," he admits.

So yeah. There is also that floating around out there, out on their back burner to worry over. A craazed Orange Lantern of Greed who may or may not be roaming freely amongst the galaxy once more, and may or may not have the ability to consume the essences of whomever he kills, enslaving them to his will.

Pleasant right?

On the matter of his little mistake, the fact that she isn't quite ready to let it drop banishes at least a little of that worry from Hal -- at least for the moment. It makes him focus a little more on the here and now, instead of on all those concerns about what's to come.

It should fluster him, should make him hasten to offer further apologies. But it does not.

Instead he just turns back towards her, slipping in behind her and planting hands on either side of her hips, one hand lingering only for a moment before sliding up over the small of her back, to draw that hair away from one side of her neck so he can't plant a kiss at the back of it, sliding along to one side.

"I know, I know. My bad. And if we didn't have somewhere to be shortly I would definitely show you how contrite I'm feeling right now," he assures her.

"But later? I'll definitely make it up to you later."

Carol Ferris has posed:
"That's... a lot of gaps to fill in," Carol sighs softly as she waits for him to zip her up. "And we have no idea how much the Guardians are going to be willing to share with you... much less what their reaction is going to be to you finding all of this out in the first place."

She purses her lips, letting her gaze sweep forward again in thought.

"I'll be with you, Hal," she says after a few seconds of contemplation, her voice soft. She's trying to be reassuring, but even she can hear the concern in her voice. She's not sure what to do with it. She's not sure how much help she'll really be against what sounds like several things who can take on quantities of Green Lanterns at once, but she won't allow Hal to face them alone. "And you'll have the Star Sapphires, when the time comes."

It wasn't a question. If this threat, any of them, threatened another world, it wasn't just the business of the Green Lanterns.

But then he's up against her, pressing in closer.

"Are you?" comes Carol's voice as little more than a purr of pleasure as Hal's hands take that moment to explore, and she presses back against him. A sigh of pleasure blows past her lips. Contrition had rarely sounded so... appealing.

"I'll hold you to that."

It should have sounded like a threat. It was husky enough to be threatening, but the words had barely left her lips before she was turning around to face him, hands coming up to take his cheeks, to draw herself back up to the balls of her feet and press her lips against his.

It's not a reassurance, this time. It's a claim.

And when that lingering kiss naturally fades to her settling back on the ground in front of him. Her hair is still wet. She hasn't done her makeup. She knows it's time for them to go.

"All I need is my ring, and I'm ready."

Because unlike most women, she could use some Violet energy to get out the door a little bit faster, and she wasn't afraid to take advantage of it.

Hal Jordan has posed:
He is no more informed then when they began this discussion. But then odds were that he was never going to be. That wasn't the point.

What makes a difference is having someone who he can talk to about these sorts of things -- someone who isn't in the Corps themselves. John, Kyle, even *sigh* Guy have their merits when it comes to working things through.

But chances are that, while they could provide a good enough sounding board for these matters, he would feel no better when they were through with the discussion as when they began. Such is never the case when it comes to talking through things with Carol.

They will go to the meeting at the Hall of Justice, get the official report. They will make arrangements to head out to Oa, perhaps with a few other interested parties. They will find a solution for all of this. For Galactus. For his Heralds. For the Ultimate Nullfier. Even for this strange Orange Lantern and the possibility that the emotional energy spectrum is far more diverse and potentially dangerous then they could have ever imagined.

So while some men might be set on edge by the husky note to her words, Hal is anything but. He knows her to well. And while they have pressing matters to attend to, there is also nothing more important to him these days then her, then this.

So he returns that kiss as she stretches up to meet his lips with her own, drawing her in close to him, letting it linger until they just can't seem to any longer.

He does so appreciate that fact about her. That she can be ready to be off in a heartbeat, no different from him. That when she needs to be she can be every bit as no-nonsense as anyone.

And when she doesn't? Well, those results are pretty impressive too.

So as she spins away to fetch that ring, he reaches out, catching her by that hand and puilling her back towards him. "I mean, there's a lot of people they need to gather and some of them are coming from pretty far away. While we're just a few blocks away," he points out.

"Maybe we have just a few minutes..."

It's the important things, right?