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Green Nova
(Green Lantern + Nova)
Name: Hal Rider
Biography:
In brightest day, in blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight.
Let those who worship evil's might
Beware my power—Green Nova's light!
This is the oath of the Green Nova Corps (Lantern Corps + Nova Corps), founded billions of years ago on the planet Oadar (Oa + Xandar) by the all-knowing Universemind (Guardians of the Universe + Worldmind). Members of the Corps are chosen by their ability to overcome fear. Once chosen, they're granted a special helmet that allows them to harness their own willpower to do virtually anything. For countless eons they protected the universe; but the citizens of Earth, considered primitive by the rest of the cosmos, never knew of their existence and were never considered to join the Corps. Until the day one of their own crash-landed on the seemingly insignificant planet and selected the greatest Green Nova the Corps ever had.
Enter Hal Rider. When Hal was a boy, his father, a test pilot for Ferris Aircraft, took him to work one day to watch him fly. But then, something went terribly wrong and Hal watched his father die in a plane crash. You'd think he'd be traumatized by this but Hal refused to let fear win. So, on his 18th birthday, he set off to apply for the Air Force just like his dad did.
Hal wouldn't make it there that day; as he was walking, a bizarre floating helmet placed itself on Hal's head and took him to the California desert. There he met a dying alien in a downed spaceship. The alien called himself Abin Dey (Abin Surr + Rhomann Dey), member of the Green Nova Corps and guardian of Space Sector 2814. The helmet had sensed Hal's fearlessness and selected him to take Dey's place as a member of the Corps. On that day, Hal Rider became the first ever human Green Nova.
Before he would officially join the Corps, Hal would have to go to Oadar to train under one of the greatest of all Green Nova's, Annihilestro (Annihilus + Sinestro). During his training, Hal and Annihilestro would come to regard each other as friends.
That all ended the day Hal visited his mentor's homeworld and found out that he had been abusing his Green Nova powers to subjugate his planet's population. Hal called in the rest of the Corps and they stripped Annihilestro of his helmet. After being tried by the Universemind, Annihilestro was banished to the Anti-Zone (Negative Zone + Antimatter Universe).
From then on, Hal spent years as a member of the Corps and would even go on to form Earth's greatest team of heroes, the Avengers League (Avengers + Justice League). But Hal wouldn't be recognized as the greatest of all Green Novas until the day Annihilestro returned with his own Corps powered by the yellow light of fear. It was a long and bloody war between the Green Novas and the Annihilestro Corps, but it was Hal who stopped his former mentor and saved the universe from his reign. Hal even inspired the Corps to accept more human members into its ranks, though that's a story for another time.
That wouldn't be the only different colored Nova Corps Hal would meet. There were the Red Novas, fueled by rage. Seeking out those who have suffered great injustice, the helmets turn its wearers into violent berserkers and replace their blood with boiling hot plasma. Should they ever take the helmet off, they'll die. Their leader's name is Atrocitax (Atrocitus + Terrax).
The Orange Novas only have one member, thanks to their helmets filling whoever wears them with insatiable greed. His name is Lar'fleeze (Larfleeze + J'son) though he is largely recognized by his codename, Agent Orange.
The Blue Novas draw power from the blue light of hope. On their own, they're not very powerful, but when working in tandem with a Green Nova, both Novas can supercharge the other. After all, hope is only effective when paired with will, but it's also the thing that makes willpower possible. They were also founded by the Universemind and are led by their first member, Saint Air (Saint Walker + Air-Walker).
Indigo Novas or, the Indigo Tribe as they call themselves are fueled by compassion. Ironically, the helmets seek out sociopaths who are naturally incapable of compassion. Their Corps was founded when Abin Dey forced the murderer of his wife and child to wear the helmet, becoming the first Indigo Nova. Her name used to be Iroque Frost (Iroque + Emma Frost) but now she is simply called Indigo-1.
Lastly are the Violet Novas of Love. While not as destructive as their red counterparts, love can be just as volatile as hatred and they show this by encasing people in crystal and forcing them to feel love. They're an all-female Corps that won't stop until love is spread throughout the entire universe, whether it wants them to or not. They're led by a group of aliens called the Zamarons.
Hal has faced or fought alongside all of them, and no matter what emotion they have, his will has regularly proven to be stronger. Whether it's brightest day or blackest night, the universe can rest easy under the emerald light of the Green Novas.
Powers & Abilities: Like all Green Novas, Hal's powers all come from his helmet. Whenever he puts it on, his costume forms over his clothes and he has access to a multitude of powers including flight, faster than light speed, superhuman strength, a forcefield that allows the wearer to survive in space, energy absorption which is how the helmet recharges, energy blasts, energy constructs, and so much more.
All abilities listed above are just the helmet's most well-known capabilities. The wearer can also phase through objects, turn invisible, regenerate from physical injuries, control minds, manipulate matter, and even travel through time. There is a very good reason why the helmets are called one of the most powerful weapons in the universe. The only limits are the wearer's imagination and willpower, and when it comes to willpower, nobody can beat Hal.
Appearance: Hal has Caucasian skin with brown eyes and hair. His Green Nova uniform consists of a green helmet with a white 8-pointed star in the center. The helmet covers everything but his eyes and the lower half of his face. His costume covers his whole body and is black in color with three green circles on his chest in a pointed-down triangle pattern along with green armbands and boots.