A/N: Okay, so, a LOT of things have happened since I last update. The world is in crisis at the moment, and countries are in lockdown, and this virus is just going nuts. So yeah, lot of bad things happening, which sucks. But that doesn't mean that it's all doom and gloom - life still, somehow, must go on. One silver lining to having to stay home is that I now have loads of time to read and write - and hopefully you are all also finding ways to make the most out of the situation.

Anyway, welcome back, dear readers! Real world may be in kind of a bad place right now, but this story is about to hit its height. Thanks again to dorizard for leaving the one and only review on the previous chapter (and what a nice review it was) and to PredaconWyvern for subscribing/favouriting (perhaps you'd care to leave a review this time round? ;). Without further ado, here is the next installment of Hal Jordan's hero's journey.

Enjoy!

Chapter Twenty: Rainbow Split

"I don't fucking believe this…"

Flash was just as stunned. "Hal, is that…"

"Yeah. That's Sinestro."

"Why is he yellow?"

"Long story."

Up in the air, the flying combatants had temporarily paused to take stock of the astounding situation. Sinestro rose tall and proud, stamping his presence over the airspace. The two Star Sapphires — one of whom was apparently Carol (Hal still couldn't wrap his head around it) were hovering next to each other, on cooperative terms for the moment; Doctor Fate remained off to one side while Hawkgirl flew over to the Green Lantern — whom Hal assumed was his replacement — who was watching Sinestro warily, ring hand at the ready.

"Give me the quick version," said Hawkgirl; John noted and appreciated the militaristic discipline in her no-nonsense tone.

"That's Sinestro, former Green Lantern and now a traitor allied with the Thunderers of Qward. They attacked Oa yesterday." John's gaze shifted to the only other hard light wielders in the vicinity. "Why are there two Star Sapphires?"

"Nobody knows. They apparently have issues with each other; we're just trying to catch them both and sort it out later."

Sinestro too was staring at the Star Sapphires, but not in confusion — he looked more intrigued than anything.

"I didn't think the Star Sapphire Corps had a presence on Earth," he said.

"A Corps?" Hawkgirl echoed in disbelief.

"That is none of your business," retorted one Star Sapphire.

"We have our own customs and obligations, just as the Green Lanterns have theirs," added the other.

"Fair enough," said Sinestro. "Don't get in my way and I won't get in yours."

"Deal," both Sapphires agreed.

"Excuse me, but what in Ichthultu's name is going on here?" Hawkgirl interjected.

Sinestro gave her a pitying look. "The affairs of wielders of the emotional spectrum are not your concern."

"You know, smartass, I'm getting real tired of all this 'holier than thou' crap," said John. He closed his hand into a glowing green fist. "Shut up and let your ring do the talking."

"As you wish."

Sinestro dove for him, and the two Lanterns resumed their battle from Oa. Almost at the same time, the two Star Sapphires retreated farther up in the air to continue their duel. Hawkgirl noticed quite quickly that while the Star Sapphires were more or less evenly matched, John was unable to touch Sinestro with any of his constructs. And while the whole double Star Sapphire affair was a messy, ambiguous situation, she knew for a fact that Sinestro was indisputably a bad guy.

"Fate, can you cast a protection spell over this area? So the battles won't cause major damage?"

"Yes, but the nuances could take some time, particularly to be effective against hard light."

"Then get started."

"Very well," said the wizard, "but what exactly is your plan?"

"I'm pulling rank," said Hawkgirl. "We're going to let the Star Sapphires duke it out and then we'll go after them when they've tired themselves out. In the meantime we're going to backup Green Lantern against Sinestro, because I think he needs the help." As if to emphasise her point, a shot of yellow light grazed John's arm, causing him to yell in both pain and anger. "Flash, any objections?" Hawkgirl said over the comm. line, referring to the only other Founder onsite.

"Nope, sounds good."

"Aquaman, Vixen, you heard all that?"

"Copy that, Hawkgirl," they acknowledged.

"Good. Let's go." She gripped her mace and charged into Sinestro.

Down on the streets, Flash was scanning the situation from the ground level. He quickly concluded that there was no way for him and Aquaman to help against Sinestro unless they could get him down to their level, and he wasn't sure whether Vixen's animal mimicry extended to bird's flight — he'd only ever seen her mimic land animals before.

"Hal, got any tips for dealing with your crazy ex-mentor?" When there was no answer, Flash turned to look at his friend, who was staring not at Sinestro, but at the violet glow higher up in the sky. "Hal?"

"Carol…" he muttered.

"Hal!" Flash strode up to the former Green Lantern and shook his shoulder. "Snap out of it!"

Hal finally turned to him, and the peculiar mix of bemusement and horrified realisation in his brown eyes stunned Flash.

"Wally, it's Carol."

"Where?" Flash looked around for the black-haired woman he'd only ever seen pictures of.

"She's Star Sapphire…Carol is Star Sapphire. One of them, anyway."

Flash automatically redirected his gaze upwards — from this distance, he could see little of the two Star Sapphires besides their violet auras.

"You're joking."

"Would I joke about this?" Hal exclaimed. "It's her, Wally — I have no clue who the other lady is, but the one who hates my guts is Carol Ferris."

"But Carol's not a meta," said Flash in confusion. "How did she get powers like yours without a ring?"

Hal shrugged helplessly. "I'm just telling you what I know. I didn't recognise her before — I had no idea…and she never said…"

"Carol as Star Sapphire and Sinestro's here in yellow? Helluva coincidence, Hal."

"Yeah, my life is messed up." Hal glanced at the battle between Sinestro and Hawkgirl and the new Green Lantern, and then looked again at the pink flashes in the sky. "Wally, I can't do anything about Sinestro, but maybe I can get through to Carol."

"How?" Flash demanded. "Not five minutes ago she picked you up and looked like she was about to murder you!"

"I don't think she entirely knows what she's doing — the Carol I know would never harm innocents, regardless how she feels about me or Green Lantern. Whatever made her Star Sapphire, it's affecting her judgment. Maybe I can snap her out of it."

"How?" Flash asked again.

"I don't know. But I have to try." Hal gave his friend a pleading look. "Will you help me get to her? Please?"

Flash sighed. After a moment's hesitation, he activated his comm. "Batman, is there anyone who can fly up on the Watchtower?"

"Zatanna. Why?" The Dark Knight's tone was wary.

"We need air support."

There was a pause. "I'll send her down."

"Copy that. Aquaman, you're still on Sinestro; but Vixen, rendezvous on me."

"Roger."

"Thank you, Wally," Hal said gratefully.

"Don't thank me yet. Your ex-girlfriend may still trap us all in crystal — if she doesn't kill you first."

"Zatanna, I'm sending you down because Flash asked for backup in the air." Before Zatanna could express more than a grim satisfaction at the prospect of fighting Star Sapphire, Batman continued sternly, "However, I need you to understand that this is not the place for emotional recklessness. Don't let Sapphire get under your skin. And avoid her crystal."

Zatanna rolled her eyes. "I know how to look after myself, Bruce."

"I'm counting on that."

Zatanna hopped onto the teleport pad; an instant later she was down in Coast City. She took a quick moment to assess the situation. Doctor Fate was chanting what sounded like a protection spell as various buildings briefly glowed gold under his supervision. Hawkgirl was flying over to assist the new Green Lantern, who was being clobbered backwards by a giant hard light hammer from…Zatanna had no idea who he was, but he looked like a yellow version of a Green Lantern. Aquaman too was making his way to the beleaguered Green Lantern. The Star Sapphires were nowhere to be seen. Catching sight of Flash and Vixen, Zatanna jogged over to them — and was astonished to find them accompanied by Hal Jordan.

"Zatanna!" Flash said when he saw her. "Good, you're here — no time for questions, I'll explain later — suffice to say, one of the Star Sapphires is Hal's ex-girlfriend, and he thinks he can talk her down from her murderous rampage."

Zatanna barely blinked. "Great. Where is she?"

"Somewhere up there." Vixen gestured towards the sky. "My guess is they're both in the stratosphere by now."

"Vixen, does that totem of yours allow you to fly?" asked Flash.

"Yes."

"Okay, good, that makes things easier. Next question: can you hold your own one-on-one against Star Sapphire?"

Vixen frowned. "If she's the same one I've been fighting against this past month, I could probably keep her busy for a while — but not for long, I'd need backup."

"Noted. Right, here's the plan." Flash cleared his throat. "Zatanna, take Hal up and let him get Carol's attention. Judging from her previous reaction to him, she should come after him voluntarily, but if she doesn't, then it's up to you, Hal, to bait her. Once that's done, try to bring her to the ground so Hal can have his heart to heart where I can keep an eye on them. Meanwhile, Vixen, you need to keep the other Sapphire busy — and Zatanna can help you once Hal and Carol are secure."

Zatanna tossed a skeptical glance at Hal. "Do you really think you can get Carol to stop?"

"I have to try," he reiterated. "She blames me, for some reason — and she might not be entirely wrong. I owe it to her to try and snap her out of whatever influence she's under."

Zatanna shrugged. "Okay, but if she's the one who put my father under, she and I are going to have words."

She cast a quick spell to propel Hal and herself into the air, Vixen following close behind with eagle flight.

John's back slammed into a wall and for a second he saw black. His vision cleared just in time for him to glimpse a yellow bulldozer bearing down on him. Instinctively, he put up a shield, only remembering when the vehicle pierced through green that his ring didn't work against Sinestro's.

"Goddammit!" He flung himself sideways, scraping his leg against the pavement in an effort to escape — but the bulldozer continued inexorably. John curled into a defensive ball in a futile attempt to protect himself.

Just before the bulldozer could run him over, it vanished. John glanced up to see Hawkgirl raining mace blows onto Sinestro. She was holding her own well, but that would only last until…

Right on cue, Sinestro projected a giant paddle and swatted Hawkgirl away as if she were no more than an irritating gnat. Not for the first time, John cursed the fact that his ring was so ineffectual against the renegade Lantern. Most powerful weapon in the universe, my ass.

"Are you wounded?"

John blinked as Aquaman appeared in front of him, seemingly out of nowhere.

"Nothing life-threatening," he replied. Even as he said it, though, he felt his muscles shaking with fatigue. He'd been fighting for hours, after all.

Aquaman noticed. "You are weary."

"I'm fine," John insisted. "I'll rest after we beat Sinestro."

"I presume the only way to ensure he is defeated is to separate him from his ring, or otherwise incapacitate him so that he cannot use it."

"Yes."

Aquaman looked thoughtful. "Tell me, does Sinestro require air to breathe?"

It didn't take long for Hal and Zatanna to locate the two Star Sapphires; once they gained sufficient altitude, all they had to do was follow the purple lights. When they reached them, the two violet women were locked in battle, each one trying to overpower the other's construct. Hal immediately recognized the plane one Star Sapphire was bringing to bear against the spiked wall of the other; it was the Peregrine.

"Carol!"

She turned at the sound of his voice, startled, and her Peregrine construct faltered. The other Sapphire lunged; but Vixen was there, tackling her and forcing her away.

Meanwhile, Carol's Star Sapphire was glaring at Hal, her aura flaring with her resentment. "What do you want, Hal?" She seemed to be barely restraining herself from attacking him; Hal wasn't sure whether it was because of Zatanna's presence or the influence of Carol's better nature over the Star Sapphire persona.

"I need to talk to you."

"Oh, now you want to talk to me. Where was this all the other times I needed you?"

"I know I haven't always been there for you, and I'm sorry," Hal admitted. "But I'm here now. Please, Carol, let me help."

For a moment, something flickered in Star Sapphire's eyes — Carol's eyes — but then her gaze hardened. "There's nothing for you to help me with anymore."

"Carol…"

"You had your chances, Hal — dozens of them," she threw at him. "Time after time after time — and so many of those times, you weren't there. Even when you were, you were gone again the next time. I could never rely on you, no matter how much I wanted to. You were so busy being Green Lantern you didn't have time to be Hal Jordan. And now, the one time when I need Green Lantern instead, you've quit. So tell me, how the hell am I supposed to trust you to help me now?!" Carol was nearly shouting by the end of her speech, her hurt and frustration clearly audible in Star Sapphire's voice. Her aura pulsated wildly, fluctuating with her emotions.

Vixen's voice crackled through the comm., sounding strained. "Zatanna, anytime you wanna pitch in would be fantastic."

"Hal, we need to hurry," Zatanna reminded him quietly.

Carol said, "Leave, Hal, before I do something we both regret."

Hal made up his mind. "No." Without warning, he launched himself at Star Sapphire, who shrieked in shock as his weight combined with gravity pulled her downwards.

"Hal!" Zatanna exclaimed as Star Sapphire recovered and rocketed them both up and away.

"Go! Help Vixen!"

He was a regular human without his ring, outmatched against the fury of Star Sapphire, who was coming to the fore and leaving Carol buried once more — but Hal's tone brooked no argument from the sorceress. Faced with the dichotomy of aiding a teammate in distress or helping a civilian who was determined to be suicidal, Zatanna chose the first option, though not without alerting Flash as to what was going on.

"Flash, I'm on my way to back up Vixen. Hal and Star Sapphire have taken off."

"Where?"

"I don't know. Hal just threw himself at her; Star Sapphire's in control."

Flash swore over the comm., but both he and Zatanna knew there was really nothing they could do without more air support.

They both also knew Hal, and knew that whatever happened to him now, it was by his own choice.

Star Sapphire catapulted up into the clouds, trying her best to dislodge Hal, who whose arms were stubbornly locked around her waist.

"Let go!"

"Not until you listen to me!"

"I am done listening to you," she seethed.

She put on a burst of speed and executed a series of loop-de-loops, but Hal was a pilot used to the g-forces inside a plane, and he clung on persistently.

"What is wrong with you?" Star Sapphire demanded, exasperated, as she hovered in the air.

"Firstly, I care for you too much to let you carry on as a villain; secondly, if I let go, I will quite literally fall to my death," Hal said quite calmly.

"And whose fault is it that you don't have a ring anymore?"

"It's not my proudest achievement, I'll admit, but that's beside the point. I'm holding on here for your sake, Carol, and unlike so many other times before, I'm not letting go unless you make me."

"I can make you," Star Sapphire threatened, lighting up her fist with violet energy.

"Then do it," Hal challenged. It was less dignified than it might have been, with him still hanging on to her midsection, but the provocation in his voice — the one that dared her — was unmistakeable. "Go on. Hit me with your best shot."

With a cry, Star Sapphire ignited, her aura heating up until Hal was forced to let go. As he tumbled towards the ground, all he was able to register was a vague, stunned numbness that his gamble hadn't worked.

A/N: Next chapter will be up next month. Till then, stay safe, stay sane, and be kind!