Chapter fourteen, people!
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Rainbow Legend: Spirit of the Dragon
Chapter 14: Trust and Teamwork
As the interceptor makes its way through space, most of the crew were having lunch in the mess hall. "Here you go, son. One fresh yellowtail burger and a mango milkshake," Avian said as he served Koren his food before he sat down beside him with his plate.
"Thanks, dad," Koren thanked him as he took a bite. "This is good!"
"You're lucky I packed enough food for us. I just hope it's enough," Avian admitted. They ate peacefully with Razer who quietly ate his meat in a polite manner. Then Kilowog enters the hall and "accidentally" bumps Razer on his way to the table.
"Aw, grub time," Kilowog said as he dug into his bowl of grubs. The Daemons had disgusted faces, but didn't say anything and resumed eating. Koren saw Razer staring at Kilowog's eating habits and had a bad feeling that they're going to start something, and boy, was he right.
"You got a problem, poozer?"
"Only that I dislike clumsy seven foot pigs!" Razer taunts him and a fight breaks out, sending their food on the ground.
"Hey, hey! Break it up!" Avian shouted as he held Kilowog while Koren helped Razer. "Stop it!"
Lucky for them, Hal came in just in time and breaks it up. "What did I say about killing each other?"
"Come on, Hal. We're just fooling around, right?" Kilowog glared at the Red lantern.
"If you're going to have a food fight, do it with food, but if you're looking for a real fight, then take it somewhere else!" Avian said, bringing Koren closer. "Don't bring us into it next time!"
"This ship's too small for this nonsense. I want you two to shake hands. It's an old Earth custom to show there are no hard feelings. Come on, shake hands." Unfortunately, the only thing they shook was their fists towards another. "Not like that!" Hal groaned as he puts down their fists.
"Attention! Incoming Distress call," Aya announced as she displays the message.
"This is Captain Goray of the container ship Truvedon. I've struck a pinhole and I'm unable to proceed. One of my engines has failed. The other is at full power but it's just slowing the inevitable. I need help!"
Kilowog was suspicious of this. He suspects that it's a Red Lantern trap, but Razer assures him that it's not because he was the one in charge of setting such trap.
"Trap or not, there' someone in trouble. We must help," Avian said. Hal agreed and calls Goray and tells him to stay put while they rescue him.
They went into their stations as Aya flew towards their destination. "I've got two questions. A: how far are we from that pinhole?" Hal asked.
"I.8 terraquads and closing," Aya answered.
"Which brings me to B: what's a pinhole?"
"Is that like a black hole where it sucks everything in it?" Koren wondered.
"More or less," Razer answered. "It's a microscopic black hole at the center of a whirlpool of energy. The closer that ship gets to the pinhole, the stronger gravity becomes."
"In other words, that ship will be crushed into a cube in a matter of seconds," Avian concluded.
They arrived at the pinhole where they saw the ship being pulled in by the gravity. Aya tries to deploy a tractor beam but the gravitational well redirects it as do the grappling lines they try to shoot with at the cargo ship.
"We'll have to go out there and attach them to the Interceptor manually," Hal instructed.
"It's never the easy way, is it?" Avian sighed as he, Kilowog, and Razer followed their leader.
"Now, where's the fun in that?" Hal joked. Avian groaned and instructed Koren to stay in the ship until further notice.
"This is a dangerous undertaking. Why are we risking three lives to save one?" Aya asked.
"A Green Lantern protects innocent life even at the risk of its own. That's what we do," Hal answered and left Aya and Koren.
"Oh."
"Quite a downdraft!" Razer grunted as the gravity was already given to them.
"I flew through heavy storms and typhoons on my home planet, but nothing like this!" Avian shouted. They attach the cables to the cargo ship but when Razer falls behind before entering the ship, Kilowog ignores his distress. Avian saw that and then helps Razer immediately and proceeded to pull.
"Alright, Aya, let's haul this baby out!" Hal ordered.
"Warning. Gravitational pull is too intense. Cable cannot withstand this strain."
"Looks like we'll have to get the captain ourselves," Hal said as they get into the ship via the airlock. As Razer goes ahead, Hal and Avian discussed Kilowog's issues with him. "You could have given him a hand back there."
"I don't need a recruit on my six, especially a Red lantern," Kilowog argued.
"Razer already has a grudge on the GL's. Don't make it worse by your mistreatment to him," Avian scolded.
"Then why are you defending him?"
"He saved my son, you know. I owe him that much. The least we could do is give him a chance to trust us and I'm willing to give him one."
Hal agreed to the Honor Guard. "Whether you like it or not, he's part of our crew, so deal with it."
The Lanterns find Goray in distress, but relief for their arrival. "I'm in half power now and I have no way to pull myself out!"
"Exactly what are you hauling?" Hal asked. Kilowog and Avian examined the cargo which they revealed to be eggs that are about ready to hatch. Hal took one and scanned the creature inside. "I can't tell what kind of creatures they are inside."
"Who cares? Only vermin and insects hatch from eggs," Razer said without a care for them.
"Hey, hey! Half of my planet's populations are dragons and creatures that hatch from eggs. My adoptive family came from eggs as well," Avian defended himself.
"I hatched from an egg," Kilowog sternly pointed to himself.
"My point exactly," Razer glared, earning a growl from Kilowog. Luckily, Hal interrupted before a fight could be released. Aya confirms that the eggs are from a rare species from a now-extinct planet.
"So the Truvedon isn't just a cargo ship. It's an ark," Avian realized.
"Change of plans: we're going to rescue every life form here," Hal ordered but Razer doesn't care and says that they should get out. Goray agrees that they should evacuate, warning them that the starboard engine is offline. "Then we'll restart it. We'll get the civilian clear," Hal said while Avian assisted Goray.
"You're leaving me with him?" Kilowog complained while glaring at Razer. Avian turned to him. "You two needs some bonding time. We're a team, so act like one."
When they get onboard, Goray says that Hal is crazy and Hal doesn't dispute him. "Brave, crazy… It's a fine line."
"Yeah, don't forget to add stubborn and cocky on your list. Sadly, smart isn't one of them," Avian commented.
"Green Lantern Hal Jordan, I have several suggestions to conserve energy until the inoperative engine is repaired," Aya suggested, but unfortunately, Hal ignores her and orders the AI to keep the interceptor out of the gravity well. Avian tells Koren to stay put and keep in touch.
"He must have not heard me."
"Yeah, sometimes I get that a lot," Koren agreed. "So, what were you suggesting?"
"With the current time we possess, I may not be able to explain it completely. I may be able to help them, but it involves leaving my post and if you were to help, it may require disobeying your father's orders."
"That is the most dangerous and risky way to help our friends. Let's do it!"
"What are the chances that Razer and Kilowog aren't at each other's throats?" Avian asked Hal, but immediately saw them fighting already. "I had to ask." Hal returns to break up their arguing.
"Knock it off! We leave you alone for two minutes and you're already trying to kill each other?!" Avian shouted. "Seriously, you two are gonna be the death of us!"
"Try something like that again and I'm blowing my ring charge on you, pinhole or no pinhole!" Kilowog threatened as Razer glared back. "I'm not afraid to die."
"You should be. You'll live longer," Hal suggested and tells them to focus on the task at hand. It wasn't long that Goray contacts Hal after the ship lost power. "Goray, why is the computer offline? Aya, are you there? AYA!"
When Hal also gets no response from Aya, Goray panics and tries to leave. The grappling lines part and the interceptor jerks and then halts, knocking Goray unconscious. The cargo ship starts to "fall" into the pinhole, causing the Lanterns to plummet toward the rear end of the ship. Kilowog breaks their fall just in time while Hal and Avian stops the equipment from crashing onto them.
"There. It's braced for now," Hal said. Avian then became worried and tried to contact the ship. "Hello! It's anyone there? Koren? Koren! It's no use. No one's responding."
"We're almost in the crush zone. Let's get out of here," Razer insisted, but Hal continues to insist that they save the eggs. Kilowog and Avian then nodded to each other and began to leave.
"Where are you two going?" Hal asked.
"To buy us some time," Kilowog answered.
Avian turned to them. "We'll do all we can to stop the ship. The rest is up to you two. Good luck!" They flew outside and wrapped the cables around the cargo ship. Kilowog creates an energy-jetpack to blast himself out of the gravitational field and hold the ship in position while Avian creates giant dragon wings for support in his dragon form. Kilowog tells Hal to fix the engine quickly, but also warns him to keep an eye on Razer.
Razer isn't convinced of their plan. "It's hopeless. They're fools and they'll die out there!"
As they fly up towards the cargo bay, Razer notices the eggs have hatched when he sees some metallic spider-creatures eating the power lines along with a bird-like being carrying them with it. Hal tries to remove them using his ring but they appear immune to the green energy. Razer is able to blast them back with his red energy while the bird dodged it, but Hal holds him off, warning that they don't want to wipe out the rare species.
The spiders were moving past Hal and Razer towards the engine and the Lanterns realize that they'll have to exit the ship and proceed up the hull. After they reached the hull, Razer saw the large quantity of hatchlings with the bird leading them. "More hatchlings! We're already outnumbered. It would be worse if the rest of them hatch!"
"Look, I have no problem bringing a red lantern on to the team, but I will not tolerate pessimists."
They entered the engine room and sealed the doors behind them just in time, only to discover that the engine is frozen over. "They doomed us all! This engine isn't just offline, it is frozen solid! Those alien hatchlings ate through the lines that power the heaters!" Razer shouted in anger. "It would take a team of engineers to restart before we collapse into the pinhole."
"We don't have them or time!" Hal said as he saw the critters behind the door and the mysterious bird which looks like a green owl trying to let them in. He then contacts his comrade. "If we start going in, guys, I want you to cut us loose!"
"Not happening! You go, we all go," Kilowog refused.
"Hurry, please! Even the strongest of Green Lanterns have limits, you know!" Avian shouted.
"They're right. Even if I can fix the engine, I still need another five pairs of hands," Razer said.
"We're not giving up," Hal said, eyeing on the door.
"Then we'll go down fighting! At least my red energy makes a dent. First, the flying pest goes down!"
"That's right. Green energy doesn't affect them, but why is that owl trying to help them?" Hal wondered until suddenly he saw a mark on the owl's shoulder, the same one Avian possess. When he saw one of the critters, he gasped. "Razer, stop!" He then came to the owl and smiled. "Need a hand, Koren?" The owl grinned as he morphed back into Koren. Together they opened the door, letting the critters in.
"What are you doing and why did the bird morphed into Koren?" Razer shockingly asked.
"Because the owl is Koren and those things aren't the hatchings, they came from the Interceptor."
"They're Aya, Razer!" Koren said.
"You're both deranged!"
"It was her idea! She put herself into these robots so she could help us fix the engine," Koren explained. "And I helped her speed things up, plus I always come prepared," he pointed to his device which had a button which became his space helmet for air supply out in space.
"But why didn't you stop her from eating the power lines?" Razer wondered.
"Because she needed to shut down non-essential systems to conserve power just like she said," Hal explained and knew of her plan.
"I could have told you, but with the time we had, it was impossible. Being an owl was the only way to travel swiftly and easier through the debris."
They both saw Aya going into the engine, where she restarted the engine. As the starboard engine swings into position, Hal ordered Aya for full reverse in which she did.
"I can't hold on anymore!" Avian struggled until he passed out while Kilowog followed afterwards and they descended below.
But before they could descend any further, they were rescued by Razer with his ring power and brought them onboard.
"Not a bad shot, for a red," Kilowog admitted which surprised Razer.
"You did great, Razer," Avian agreed.
Hal traveled to the main controls and tried to fly away from the pinhole, but he realizes that they're too close to escape. Razer, Kilowog, Avian, and Koren joined Hal and saw the pinhole coming towards them.
"It's no use. We don't have enough power to pull away!" Razer yelled.
"I'm not trying to pull away! I'm going to fly this baby right at it," Hal decided. His idea shocked the others and become worried.
"You're going to what?!" Razer asked.
"Have you lost your mind?" Avian cried.
"I don't think he had one to begin with!" Koren panicked.
"If I can fly with the current of the pinhole, maybe I can generate enough velocity to slingshot us out of here!" Hal explained and plots a course down into the pinhole, moving perpendicular to the gravity waves. Using his piloting skills, he uses the gravitational pull to increase the ship's speed and then used the increased velocity to escape the gravitational pull.
"Yeah, baby! Still got it," Hal cheered while the others groaned after the rough ride.
"That's it! I'm crossing "Astronaut" out of my 'what I want to be when I grow up' list," Koren sighed.
Later, the Lanterns repair Goray's ship and bring the real hatchlings over to the interceptor.
"Well, what do you know? So, that's my cargo," Goray smiled at the sight. Koren giggled when one of them licked him. "Aw, they're so cute! Can I keep one, Dad?"
"Sorry, Koren, but they are endangered species, not pets," Avian rubbed Koren's head. "Besides you already have a pet, Rusty, remember?"
"Yeah, I guess you're right. But you have to admit, they're adorable," he agreed as even Kilowog was enjoying their company.
"And to think I was going to abandon them," Goray said and promises to make sure they get to their destination.
Later on, after Goray left, Razer and Kilowog ended up eating together again.
"I'm sensing a serious déjà vu moment here," Koren hoped that there wasn't going to be another fight as he ate his burger.
"Only this time, it's a little more peaceful," Avian nodded until he saw Kilowog digging into his grubs again. He sighed and hid his disgusted face. "Of course, there are things that will never change."
"You two were foolishly brave today," Razer pointed out to Avian and Kilowog.
Kilowog tells Razer the same and thanks him for saving his life. "It comes with the territory," Avian agreed. "I'm grateful for you saving me as well."
Hal comes in, satisfied to see his teammates working together. "And thank you, Aya, we'd all be feeling pretty cramped right now if it wasn't for you coming out of your shell like that and Koren helped as well."
"Yes, like a hatchling from an egg."
"I'm not done. However pure your reasons were, it was dangerous for both of you to leave your posts. We need to set a few parameters for your behaviors."
"A Green Lantern protects innocent life even at the risk of its own, correct?"
Koren nodded. "That goes the same for Terragonians. We protect anyone who can't protect themselves no matter what."
"Wait a minute," Kilowog interrupted. "Koren, you do understand that you're not a Green Lantern, especially you, Aya. You can't be a GL."
"Why not?"
"Well, first, the rings gotta pick you," Kilowog explained.
"Why?"
"Help me out," he faced Hal for support but shook his head.
"Oh no, I want to hear this," Kilowog then faced Avian.
"Avian?" Unlucky for him, Avian shook his head as well. "I'm sorry, friend, but a wise Terragonian always minds his own business."
"Red?" His last hope was Razer, but he simply denied his pleas. "Leave me out of it."
"This ought to be good," Koren snickered as he wanted to see how it goes.
"Look, Green lanterns got to have a physical body to walk around and interact with people, not a bunch of creepy bugs."
"Parameter set." With that, Aya creates a new robotic body with her robot drones and inserts her consciousness into it. "A body like this?"
Everyone was amazed by this, except for Kilowog who slapped his forehead and groaned.
"Whooaahh!" Koren was excited by her new form. "Coool!" It looks like they have another comrade to fight with.
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