Chapter 13: Captive
"This is justice!" the Green Lantern yelled, his eyes blazing.
"This isn't justice, John! This is revenge!" Superman cried out, trying to wrestle himself free from the Green Lantern's emerald grip. Superman had believed he could surprise Green Lantern with his speed, but he was wrong. Superman had been snatched out of the air like a fly whose wing beat had been slowed by the chill of winter. Once captured, Superman had tried to reason with him, but his words fell on deaf ears; ears deafened by rage and hatred.
The air crackled around them as the Green Lantern's power level continued to grow. It was an astonishing sight as he had both Superman and Star Sapphire held firmly by energy fields. Still miles away, the Javelin raced toward the battle.
"C'mon Wally, step on it!" Shayera yelled from the Javelin's passenger seat.
"I'm goin' as fast as I can, cap'n" he replied in his best Scottish accent.
"This is serious Wally!" Shayera yelled.
"When is it ever not serious?" he responded.
"Shayera's right. This is serious. Look at these readings" Batman stated, pointing to the sensors on the Javelin's dashboard. "There is a huge energy fluctuation just ahead".
What the sensors had revealed could now be seen with the naked eye as the Javelin cleared the horizon. From the Javelin's cockpit they could see the back of the Green Lantern as his energy beams extended around him. His aura was so bright that it completely masked the color of his costume.
"This is what I was afraid of" Shayera stated. "His energy level is off the chart!"
"Is that why he looks so…so super Saiyony?" Flash asked.
"Quick, while we have the sun to our backs, get behind him!" Batman directed.
Wally activated a switch and the Javelin's afterburners screamed as they awakened.
Unfortunately, the noise of the Javelin's afterburners springing to life gave its position away; the Green Lantern turned and saw them approaching. A sinister smile came across his face as he tried to bring them down.
"Hang on!" Flash cried out, as he banked the Javelin hard to the right to avoid the energy beam. His maneuver caused them to fly past the Green Lantern, but they could now see his other prey. "He's got Superman and Star Sapphire!" Flash yelled out.
"I gotta get out there. Flash, open the ramp!" Shayera ordered.
"What are you going to do?" Batman inquired.
"Try and talk him down" Shayera said.
"You've heard the transmissions, Lantern sounds unstable. Are you sure about this?" Batman asked.
"No, but I know attacking him directly isn't going to work. I've got to reach him mentally…emotionally. Open the ramp door, Wally" Shayera stated, taking a deep breath.
"I hope you know what you're doing" Flash said.
"Me too, Wally. Me too" Shayera replied, walking to the top of the ramp as it slowly opened. The wind came howling into the Javelin as she stretched out her wings and allowed herself to be taken by the airstream. Once she was outside, Flash closed the ramp.
"Just in case this goes bad, we need to provide her with cover" Batman stated. "So try and shadow her".
"You got it" Flash acknowledged.
"Shayera, we are going to give you cover" Batman explained over his Com link.
"Thanks, but don't get too close" Shayera replied.
"Understood" Batman said.
Shayera had allowed the wind and her wings to carry her back to the spot where they originally encountered Green Lantern. By this time he had covered Superman's mouth with a manifested muzzle and had begun to remove Star Sapphire's mask with another energy beam. Star Sapphire was fighting back, but losing badly.
Like Green Lantern, the strength of her power was based on her mental state and the gem on her mask helped to channel her mental energy. In desperation, she gathered all of her remaining mental energy and tried to break free from his grip with one massive blast. He merely smiled when she failed. She watched helplessly as he removed her mask and let it float slowly to the pavement below.
He was still smiling when he manifested the whirling blade.