Flights of the Canary

By Michael Weyer

So this had been in my head since episode 4X18. At first, one idea, then another, stuff I couldn't get rid of but not quite a full-scale story. So it hit me, why not do it as one-shots? In each case, imagine that in 4X18, in some cases Laurel is saved. In others, Damien uses his magic to punish the team by sending her through a breach to some other place. Either way, various fandoms I do not own are involved so hope you enjoy.

In Brightest Day

Laurel grunted as she tried to struggle against the magical hold around her. It did no good as she still remained stuck in place. She saw Darkh come to her, the arrow in his hand and steeled herself. If this bastard expected her to beg for her life, he had another think coming. She didn't feel afraid right now, just defiant as Darkh moved in.

"So give your father this message…" he began, pulling his arm back…

And suddenly, a blast of bright green light filled the room. Everyone winced at the sight as an object streaked forward, floating before Laurel's face. She blinked as she saw it was a ring, a strange symbol on it as a voice seemed to boom out of nowhere.

"Dinah Laurel Lance of Earth. You have shown the ability to overcome great fear."

The ring flew forward to wrap itself around Laurel's finger. A shimmering covered her completely, the black leather wrapping about into a different uniform. It remained black over much of her body except for a green covering over her torso, a white circle at her chest. Her mask was also now green.

"Uniform completed. Transport to Oa prepared."

In a blast of green energy, Laurel was lifted off the ground, smashing through the roof of the jail and streaking off into the night sky.

A long stunned silence echoed below, finally broken by Darkh. "Okay…That was unusual."

It took Laurel about five minutes to realize she was screaming despite the fact she was flying in space. It took another minute to grasp she was flying through space. She saw the streaking of stars around her, her mind barely able to process any of this. A bright green dot became larger and larger before her as she recognized it as a planet. She seemed to slow, the ring pulling her hand forward and her entire body with it as entered its atmosphere. A sprawling city lay below her, highlighted by what looked like a gigantic lantern, solid green and seeming to smoke with energy.

She felt herself landing before it and let out a loud gasp for breath. She looked around to see various other beings flying or walking about. All wore rings and green uniforms but that was about all they had in common. She saw folks with tentacles, skins of every possible color, a giant crystal, a squid, a blob of…something, even what looked like a chipmunk. "What…the hell…is this?" she whispered.

"Welcome to Oa."

Laurel shrieked at the voice behind her and spun around. She reflexively held up the hand with the ring and from it shot a massive blast of energy that looked like a giant version of one of her batons. The dark-haired man in a similar outfit held his own ring, forming a giant shield to block it. Laurel just stared in disbelief as the baton faded. "Did…I do that?"

"Yeah, it's something the first time." The man smiled and extended a hand. "Sorry, Hal Jordan."

"Laurel Lance." She shook his hand automatically as her mind processed this. "I'm sorry but…where am I? Who are you, what is this?!"

"Easy," Hal said, holding up a hand. "You'll be given the full explanation later but for right now…You've just been recruited into what's basically an intergalactic police force."

Laurel stared at him. "Space cops?"

"Yeah, my reaction too," he admitted. "But it's true. The ring chooses those who can overcome fear. I guess you qualified somehow."

"I can't do this… I have people back on Earth…"

"Same here." Laurel stared at him and Hal nodded. "Coast City."

"Star City."

"Star? You mean Starling?"

"How long have you been away?"

"A few years. I was a test pilot, came across a crashed alien space craft and the dying pilot gave me the ring." He saw Laurel's nervousness and sighed. "Look, I get it, you were yanked out of things but the ring chose you for a reason, Laurel. Just giving it up isn't really in the cards."

Laurel held the ring up to gaze at it. "What do I…do with it?"

Hal grinned as he put a hand on her shoulder. "Ever been to boot camp?"

"Um…in a way."

Hal nodded as he led her off. "It's not quite that gentle."

"I can't stop it," Felicity whispered as she stared at the screen. "I can't…"

She could track the nuke as it raced across the sky. "I can move it but…" She let it hang in the air, Layla and her father getting what she was saying. She glanced at a monitor showing a satellite view of the missile, her mind whirling as she tried to figure out something, anything to…

"What is that?"

At Noah's voice, Felicity blinked, seeing a dot coming onto the radar. "Did we get a jet on them?" she asked.

Layla shook her head. "No, not ours." She got on her phone to make a call as Felicity quickly called up a satellite camera tracking the missile. She frowned as she saw what looked like a form trailing green light flying up to come next to the nuke. "What in…"

The figure raised an arm, another beam firing out to wrap around the missile completely like a massive rope. It began to trail off as the missile kept going. "Is…is that…is this happening?"

For once, Noah couldn't think of a thing to say as he took in the sight.

Flying across the air, Laurel grit her teeth together as she concentrated. The rope she imagined tightened as she began to fly herself away, grunting as she did her best to drag the large object off. Ignore the pain. Ignore the impossibility. Nothing is impossible with the right will. With Hal's words echoing in her ears, Laurel pulled herself up, dragging the missile behind her. She strained both her muscles and her mind as she moved to a straight-up position, flying upward to space and dragging the nuke behind her.

"It's…taking it to space!" Felicity gasped. "Whoever or whatever, it's taking it out of our atmosphere!"

Laurel let out a loud yell as she yanked right at the edge of Earth's atmosphere. She let the ropes fade as the missile flew straight by her and into space. She let out a breath inside of the green shield around her as she watched it fade off, knowing it would just float aimlessly for a while before detonating far from Earth.

She looked back down, getting her bearings on the planet. She focused on her target and flew downward, her jaw set as she focused on the right city. It was time to finally get back to where she belonged.

"What do you mean, it didn't hit?" Ruve Adams paced the mayor's office, her cell to her ear. "This is important, do you understand me? If that didn't strike, we can't…"

The glass of her office window shattered inward just as a green hand snaked in to grab Ruve and yank her outside. She shrieked in the night air as she saw the uniformed figure floating in the air before her.

"Ruve Adams! You have failed this city!"

Ruve screamed as the hand faded and she fell downward, the street nearby. At the last moment, a huge cushion appeared to catch her and then wrap her into a cage. Ruve stared at the masked woman in the green outfit smirking at her. "Madam Mayor…on careful consideration, I'm afraid I'm going to have to turn down your offer."

She blinked in amazement. "Wait…Lance?"

"Feel free to know," Laurel said with a smirk. "You tried to instigate planet wide genocide, which, under code 118A of the Galactic Accordance is a Grade-1 offense."

"I…what?"

"Let's just say, you're going to be heading somewhere that makes Alcatraz look like Disneyland." She saw another green glow coming toward her and smiled. "And here comes your ride." Floating to them was a being in the same uniform as Laurel only looking like a bizarre warthog of some sort. "Ruve, meet Kilowog."

"Not bad, poozer," the alien rumbled in a grunting voice. "For a rookie." He raised his beam to flow to Kara's and seemed to take the green cage for his own. "Jordan's got things under control for the most part."

"Good." Laurel flew back. "I've got something to handle on my own." She backed up and then flew downward, streaking about the city with her ring glowing until it found exactly what she was looking for. Smirking, she streaked downward, using the ring to create a drill to grind into the Earth. She followed it down to blast into a chamber, startling the gun-toting men inside.

They opened fire, the bullets bouncing off the green shield around Laurel's body. She held up her ring to send out a green bolo, smacking them all away and sending them flying. Her eyes were fixed on Darkh as he whirled to face her, baffled at this intruder. "What in hell…"

"So, Damien," Laurel said in a strong voice. "Want to try and give that message again?"

Darkh smiled brightly. "Well, well. So rare I get a chance to kill someone twice but here we go." He thrust out his hand but Laurel just smiled as nothing happened. He frowned as he tried again but she kept coming at him with that smirk on her face. "Sorry, Damien. But this thing on my finger just happens to be the most powerful weapon in the universe. Against that, you're just a bad magic act."

She threw out her ring to envelop Darkh in a fist of light. He gasped as Laurel yanked him up and slammed him hard onto the ground. She looked about before seeing the statue on a nearby stand. "And of course, you keep it right out in the open. I'm so glad your lunatics have those egos." She sent a beam in the form of a fist to the statue to smash it to pieces. Darkh gasped as if stabbed as he felt his magic leaving him.

"Now…" Laurel picked him up with the green fist. "I think it's time to make sure you're put someplace that won't be as easy to break out of." She flew off with Damien yelling, amazed at what was happening.

As she expected, the reactions of Team Arrow to Laurel's arrival at the Lair were more than a bit thrown. Felicity, of course, was babbling away about the ring's scientific capabilities, Thea gave her big hugs and Quintin also hugging her tightly. "God, so worried about you…"

"I'm fine, Dad," Laurel smiled. "Guess I ended up a cop after all. Just…a bigger beat."

"Not bad." The group turned to see Hal and Kilowog enter. Thea and Felicity both let out shrieks at the sight of the purple-skinned creature as Diggle took a step back. "Guys," Laurel announced. "Hal Jordan, formerly of Coast City and that's Kilowog."

"Good to meet you all," Hal nodded. He smiled to Quintin. "You've got a hell of a daughter."

"I know that." Quintin looked from one to the other with suspicion. "Relax," Hal laughed. "I have a girlfriend."

"Just one?" Kilowog rumbled. "Yer slipping."

Oliver shook his head. "This is incredible."

"But true," Hal told him. "Right now, Darkh and his wife are being dragged to a special prison moon. It may be a bit rough but I've got leeway when it comes to folks trying to wipe out my home planet."

Oliver looked to Laurel. "So…you're not staying?"

"Still have some training left," she told him but smiled. "But I'll be back as soon as I can."

Quinten smiled with pride. "My girl a space cop. I always knew you'd make it big."

"Yep." Laurel grinned as she held her ring up, letting it glow bit. "This is one Canary who likes to fly high."

Green Lantern owned by DC Comics.