Chapter 160

Just as Alan and I exit the GCPD, my communicator goes off. It's Barbara.

"Natalie! ...the yellow space man, creature, thing...it's Ed! It's really Ed!" Barbara is speaking slowly, still gathering her senses and still in a lot of pain.

Alan looks puzzled, but I turn to him, "Ed is a friend of ours, he works in forensics at the GCPD."

"So if he's wielding the powers of the Yellow Lantern, that means he's already in possession of the Yellow Lantern ring, or rather, it's in possession of him," Alan realizes aloud.

I raise an eyebrow, "The ring possess the wearer?"

"Somewhat. While my Green Lantern ring draws upon its wearer's courage, the Yellow Lantern ring draws upon fear, or the desire to imbue fear."

"Yellow Lantern, Green Lantern, what is this all about, Natalie? And uhm, who's the hunk?" Barbara chuckles.

"I am Green Lantern, protector of Sector 2814, and a member of the Green Lantern Corp," he introduces himself, "but my civilian name is Alan Scott."

"The superhero? ...Natalie, what is going on?"

I chuckle, "I'll explain later, trust me, I haven't quite grasped it all myself. But in the meantime, where did you see Ed?"

"In the warehouse district, by the docks, I woke up here...the last thing I remember...someone carrying me from a car…"

I shake my head, "Oh god, Oswald, he said you'd be taken care of-"

"Cobblepot? What happened? What happened to me after I fell?"

"Like I said, I'll explain everything later. First priority, we need to get you out of the warehouse district, then we need to find Ed."

Barbara slowly nods, "I'll send you my coordinates. You have a lot of explaining to do, Natalie."

The communicator shuts off, and I turn to Alan, "The warehouse district is on the other side of town, it's going to take us hours at get there. We're going to need to hurry if we wanna get to her, she's clearly still hurt-"

"No need to fear, the power of the ring of courage will guide us!" he declares, without any sarcasm or self-awareness.

Leading me into a secluded alleyway behind the GCPD, Alan activates his ring, transforming him into Green Lantern. His ring projects a bubble that encases me, and carries me with him as we fly up into the sky.

"You know, you can be a bit strange sometimes, but I like having you around," I admit.

Spotting her from above, Green Lantern and I land right by Barbara. As soon as the energy bubble around me disappears, I run to her.

"Oh my god, Barbara, are you alright? Are you in pain?"

Barbara, hiding in a discreet alleyway between two warehouses, in slouched by a dumpster, her Batwoman costume in tatters, seeming to have been scorched.

"No, no, I'm fine, I just can't believe Ed hit me with a laser beam..." Barbara exclaims, before she turns and notices Green Lantern, "you...you're the other one, aren't you?"

"Yes. Green Lantern, protector of Sector 2814, which includes Earth, ma'am. I assume you're the 'other' masked superhero as well?"

"We're not superheroes...I don't know what we are. It feels like we run more than we fight," Barbara grumbles, as Green Lantern and I help her onto her feet.

Green Lantern points his ring at Barbara, and a green light emits from it, scanning her body, "She's been hit by a blast from the Yellow Lantern ring. She needs rest, and time to recover. Natalie, you should stay with her while I confront the holder of the Yellow Lantern ring."

"Well, hang on, if Ed's the one who has the Yellow Lantern ring, I should go with you. Ed's my friend, we went to school together, we work together at the GCPD. Maybe I can talk him out of it-"

"Your friend's mindstate has been altered by the Yellow Lantern ring. It enhances the wearer's fear and feeds off of it. Even if he is your friend, he might not be the same person you once knew," Green Lantern clarifies.

Green Lantern creates an energy bubble around the three of us, and we ascend up into the sky.

"Well he's still my friend, so if there's a chance I can help him, I'm gonna try."

His expression stern, Green Lantern shakes his head, "No, in fact, it's very likely I will have to kill him in order to retrieve the Yellow Lantern ring. A wearer of the ring will do anything to protect it, and I will use every measure possible to obtain it."

Barbara and I exchange worried glances, before Barbara speaks up, "Kill Ed? I thought you were a superhero."

"Being a superhero means protecting the people from the villians and demons of the world at any cost," Green Lantern clarifies, before turning to me, "Natalie, if you really do insist on joining me, I won't stop you. But I must warn you, you are highly unequipped for the situation."

I raise an eyebrow, "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

We stop back at my apartment, I lay Barbara down on my bed as Alan, now back in civilian clothes, takes a look around. Between fighting the Talons, dealing with Oswald, and getting transported to an alternate universe, I haven't really had the time to properly clean my apartment. Several dishes lie in the sink, the floors haven't been swept, and most of the surfaces throughout the living room are in need of a light dusting.

"So much for a woman being the keeper of the house," Alan mumbles under his breath.

I give him something of a stink eye, "Sorry if the accommodations aren't up to your standard."

Alan takes a good look at me, as I put a damp cloth on Barbara's head, and tuck her in. I then get up and move out of the bedroom, going to the kitchen to fill up a glass of water. Feeling around my hips I realize I still have my Trickstress utility belt attached to me. Unclipping it, I throw it onto the kitchen counter before getting Barbara her glass of water, Trickstress daggers and grappling gun on full display in the kitchen.

"You're not like most girls, are you Natalie? You're...uhm, what the kids call 'full of spunk'."

I chuckle, "That's not what the kids say."

Barbara has begun to doze off as I set the glass of water on the nightstand beside the bed. Alan and I walk into the living room, and I close the bedroom door before I ask,

"And what about you, Alan? Would you call yourself 'full of spunk'?"

He sits down, shaking his head and crossing his beefy arms, "Not in the slightest. I'd like to think of myself as a white-bread, purebred all-American guy. At least, those are the morals I try to uphold, each and every day ma'am."

My lip twists to the side, as I take out the picture I'd snatched at the GCPD earlier, "Then, what exactly is this?"

All the confidence falls from his face as I reveal the picture of Alan with the dark-haired man, "I'm not trying to get you in trouble for anything Alan, but I had a feeling the whole 'upstanding citizen' thing had to be making up for something-"

"Are you accusing me of sexual deviancy?" Alan snaps, launching up from his seat and snatching the picture from my hand, "I will have you know, that just happens to be Samuel Honda, my...longtime roommate. We've been pals since our college days, of course we're close! And what am I supposed to think of you and Barbara, hmm? Two perfectly attractive women, and yet no husbands in sight!"

"But that's exactly what we are," my frank words stop Alan in his tracks, "and even though we have to hide from the world, that doesn't mean we need to be in denial about what we are, or how we feel."

Alan stares at me in silence for several seconds, before carefully folding up the picture and putting it back into his wallet. His expression relaxes for the first time, his jaw loosening, his cheeks sagging just a touch.

"I...I see. Well...hopefully we can...come to an understanding...of mutual silence...over the issue-"

Before he can say another word, I march over to him, and pull him into a hug. I manage to just barely wrap my arms around his muscular torso. My eyes get a little watery as Alan returns the hug, gently placing his arms around me.

After a few moments, we let go, and I smile, "Alright Mr. Protector of Earth and Sector 2814, let's go get your space artifact."