Chapter 2
Eye for an Eye
Emerald light engulfed Jessica, blinding her and burning every cell in her body. As agonizing as the fiery radiance was however, as much as she wanted to let go and be swept away by it, a single thought acted as her anchor to the realm of the living.
'Think of Sara,' either she or the ring commanded. 'Your greatest strength is your willpower. Your enemies cannot kill that which cannot be tamed.'
Finally after an eternity of burning alive, Jessica awoke under a hot Texas sun, writhing in agony and gasping for air.
"A-am I dead?" she rasped. "Please tell me I'm dead."
"I have good news, bad news, and worse news," the ring announced. "The good news is that I was able to convert SOME of The Eye's raw energy into our reserves. The bad news is you're still alive, and the worse news is that so is our enemy."
Jessica rolled onto her stomach holding the side of her head. A red minivan had conveniently stopped her from flying into the next county, but the owner wasn't likely to be too happy about the cabin having been caved in and partially melted.
"First thing's first," she muttered, wincing slightly. People screaming, cursing, and honking their horns all across the parking lot and those neighboring weren't doing her migraine any favors, much less her anxiety. "Ring, get in touch with The Watchtower. Alpha priority. If Her Royal Pain-In-My-Ass has the same powers as a Green Lantern, only stronger, she could blast a hole straight to the Earth's core and destroy the entire planet."
"I've been trying, but all communications are being jammed by The Eye of Ekron. We'd have to leave Earth's atmosphere just to potentially get them working again, possibly even the solar system."
Jessica staggered to her feet and discovered her uniform smoking slightly. "Is Sara alright?"
"The Empress and Eye appear to be ignoring her. Your sister's in as much danger as the rest of the planet, though substantially less danger than what WE are currently facing."
"Okay, not that I wanna take a Hyper Beam to the face again, but could we keep absorbing energy like that to keep them busy?"
"Negative. The previous blast was weakened due to The Eye of Ekron just awakening, as well as its power signature being similar to our own due to having just siphoned our energy. We lost more than we actually gained. The next attack will be much stronger, and I will be unable to convert ANY to our reserves."
"Speaking of, how much energy do we have left?"
"We're currently sitting just above thirty percent. Recharging here is ill advised. We cannot allow The Empress to get her hands on a power battery. She'd then be able to siphon energy from The Central Power Battery on Oa. For the safety of the universe, that cannot be permitted."
"Then what should I do, Ring?" she asked, suppressing a yawn as the malaise of helplessness settled in. "Please tell me?"
"Drawing the attention of The Empress is our first priority. The civilians need time to escape, and your fellow Leaguers will figure out what's happening eventually. We just need to stall her."
Jessica nodded. Even if she'd had a better plan, she was too tired to argue. She spent almost every waking moment tired and weary, but especially after creating constructs. Each one was like losing another night of sleep, or a week's worth after going toe-to-toe with Lobo and getting shot with a laser. It was a sensation Jessica had grown accustomed to since becoming a Green Lantern, mostly because she was already intimately familiar with being physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually exhausted.
"One worry at a time, Jessica. Right now, all you need to do is get The Empress' attention and fly fast."
"Fly fast," she repeated. " I-I can do that. I think..."
The smell of someone burning still lingered in the air as she limped back toward the mall. She could just make out a pair of emerald figures floating toward her. Neither The Empress nor the Eye seemed in a particular hurry, which suited Jessica just fine because neither was she.
It was a shame her ring couldn't recharge on its own. The longer a fight dragged on, the weaker she became. Jessica had never allowed her ring to fall below fifty percent charge before so it had never been much of a factor, but even when she was flying at night to decompress and get over her fear of heights, Jessica always felt as though she was playing an anxiety-inducing, resource heavy, time management game that her life depended on.
"Would you rather play human target, or go back home and play 'Resident Evil'? Or perhaps 'Silent Hill'?"
"Shut up! You know better than to joke about that. David's an asshole."
'Was an asshole," she reminded herself. Even though her anxiety hadn't yet fully manifested back then, David introducing her to survival horror had earned him an earful and several bruises, as well as mutual apologies as well as couch cuddles for a few nights.
She smiled at the memory, but a deep voice grumbling in a foreign language that the ring thankfully didn't translate caused her to come to an immediate halt, and seemingly out of thin air, a hulking man missing half his face and most of his torso staggered out in front of her.
Jessica screamed and fell backward, and both her and her ring rattled off their favorite respective curses directed toward Lobo.
"Congratulations by the way," the ring said, sounding out of breath. "I am fluent in all known languages of the universe, but Spanish is by far the most efficient and colorful to curse in."
Jessica was still cursing when she got to her feet and needlessly dusted herself off. She put even more distance between herself and Lobo, but in truth, the same galaxy was too close for comfort. She could barely look at him without vomiting, but perhaps the most repulsive aspect was the fact that he had a wide grin that would've spanned ear to ear if the other half of his face hadn't been missing.
"You alright, Mamacita?"
"Y-yeah. I'm fine. Wait, what did you just call me!?"
More of Lobo's mouth regenerated, now a full grin with only a few teeth still missing. "Alright, The Main Man's got a plan. He can detect the weakness of his prey just by looking at them. Lucky for you, you weren't the target, and I don't do psychological warfare. Wouldn't be fair if I did."
"What's that supposed to mean!?"
"Easy, J-Bird," the ring said before she could do something drastic, like burn his face off again.
"The Eye of Ekron's almost as weak to Kryptonite as Superman, but unfortunately I'm fresh out. You wouldn't be able to make any constructs that resemble Kryptonite on a subatomic level would you?"
"Sorry, I barely passed Chemistry."
"Really? It was my best subject next to mathematics, atomic theory, biology, theology, philosophy, and gym," Lobo said, not even bothering to feign modesty. "Anyway, The Eye of Ekron has powers similar to a Green Lantern, only stronger on account of acting as both a power ring and battery. The Empress on the other hand has no real powers of her own, and The Eye is useless without a mind to connect with. Defeat one, you defeat the other. It's a parasitic relationship kinda like you and your ring. Or is that symbiotic? Anyway, you're both useless without the other."
Jessica nodded, choosing to ignore the insult, and feeling better already that she wouldn't be going in alone. "Alright, divide and conquer. You take The Eye, and I'll take out The Empress. Just make sure you're far away from civilians."
"Sounds like a first date, Sugar-Tits!"
Lobo took off running while Jessica stared with her mouth hanging open and arms folded across her chest. "Did he just call me-"
"It's not too late to team up with The Empress instead," the ring suggested. "Or at least wait for him to get partially disintegrated again. I have a recording function if that interests you."
Jessica sighed and shook her head. "Unfortunately we need him. I can't beat them on my own, and I probably wouldn't last long pretending I'm a clay pigeon anyway. Once this is over, and if we survive, then we kill him. Deal?"
"Deal."
Jessica took to the air while Lobo sprinted underneath. He was limping slightly on account of still missing half a leg, but if he was in any pain or even mild discomfort, Jessica was doubtful. She gladly let him take the lead, especially when he unraveled a long chain that had previously been wrapped around his arm, and began swinging it wildly.
"Is that a meat hook!?" She decided to give Lobo an even wider berth, and allowed herself a brief moment to enjoy the best part of being a Green Lantern, the thrill of flying, before diving straight for The Emerald Empress.
"You think such pitiful tactics will work on us?" she mocked. The Empress waved a hand, and while The Eye seemed to deal with Lobo on its own accord, a beam of energy shot toward Jessica, meaning to bisect her.
She effortlessly spiraled around the laser, putting all her flight training with Hawkgirl to good use, and created a spear and shield when her boots touched the ground a few yards from The Empress. Instead of creating her own constructed weapons however, The Empress merely laughed as a wall of energy surrounded her.
Jessica struck the protective barrier with a ravenous flurry that would've made an Amazon proud, but The Empress shook her head and laughed. "You're flailing like an angry child, Lantern." Jessica had to agree, but admittedly it felt good to be hitting something again even if it was pointless.
'Every moment you stall her, the further away the civilians get from here,' the ring said privately, not wanting to be overheard. 'Dealing with two enemies at once will also put a strain on her concentration. The Eye may have a mind and will of its own, but it cannot act on its own. The Guardians' foresight may not be infinite, but it is far reaching.'
Jessica slacked off her assault to assess Lobo's out the corner of her eye, and saw him swinging the chain like a whip with deadly accuracy. The metal appeared to be made out of something immune or at the very least heavily resistant to energy from the emotional spectrum, but whenever it'd get close to coming into contact with The Eye, a powerful barrier would interrupt it.
It was only because of Jessica's excessive training with Diana and Dinah that she sensed the incoming attack, and raised her shield and jumped backward before she could be impaled by a wall of spikes protruding from The Empress' barrier.
'She doesn't like getting her hands dirty,' Jessica thought to herself. 'She thinks she's like real royalty or something. Not a battle-hardened warrior. Not like me.'
'Astute observation,' the ring said. 'She's NOTHING like you. What else does her fighting style tell you?'
Jessica gave herself a moment to think, which wasn't easy when someone was trying to burn you alive, impale you, and cut you in half. The Empress wasn't a fighter, that much Jessica was certain of, and all of her constructs thus far had been powerful lasers or means of keeping her opponent at a safe distance.
"She relies on brute strength," Jessica realized. "Which probably means she hasn't spent the past five months mastering the fundamentals like I have." She thought back to what Sara always told her about soccer, that by the end of a game but especially toward the end of a season, the players with better technique always shined because inexperienced players that relied on pure athleticism couldn't rely on their natural abilities like before.
"Wonder Woman said something about beating Superman in a fight not long after they first met," she said, barely avoiding another laser. "He'd been more powerful in almost every way, but Diana beat him because she was the better fighter and exploited his lack of technique. Let's see if the same is true for Her Royal Heinous..."
Jessica dove toward the ground with as much force as she possibly could, driving her fist into the concrete in the process. A moment later, a green hand emerged underneath The Empress, and grabbed hold of her, slamming her hard into the barrier. Jessica squeezed and applied as much pressure as she possibly could, but a force field much like her own kept her from squeezing the air out of her.
"HOW DARE YOU LAY YOUR HANDS ON YOUR QUEEN!"
The barrier exploded and Jessica recoiled from the feedback in her ring, her hand practically numb, but quickly took to the air once more when she found herself having both The Empress and The Eye's undivided attention.
"Oh crap! Plan worked. Didn't think it'd actually work." She flew for her life using every trick Hawkgirl had taught her, but even still she was occasionally finding her hair and uniform singed.
Running out of sky, she created an oversized catcher's mitt to grab hold of as many strands of energy as possible, and sent the mitt flying in the opposite direction. The constructs still followed her of course, but it at least forced The Eye to expel more energy, and with any luck, the longer strands would have less impact when they inevitably caught up with her.
"Looks like you're about to find out," the ring said. "5-4-3-2-"
Jessica braced herself and created a bubble shield, which thankfully didn't pop upon impact with the burning light or when she hit the concrete at a hundred miles an hour. Another volley struck her shield, attempting to drill through her willpower made manifest.
"I don't suppose you'd appreciate another countdown?"
"Don't worry, Mamacita!" she heard Lobo holler. "The Main Man doesn't sneak away after a one night stand!"
The bounty hunter finished dealing with his own constructs and leaped atop The Eye. He let out a tremendous roar that sounded as though he was being electrocuted, but he continued smiling wide as if it were the greatest pleasure he'd ever known.
"You ever hear the Earth saying, 'Eye for an eye'?"
Grinning like a madman, Lobo raised his meat hook and sank it deep into The Eye's pupil. Jessica shuddered, imagining a splinter in the eye. All of a sudden however, her shield was no longer under attack, and Lobo's roar became something resembling an actual scream.
"Blasphemer and fool!" The Empress cried. "Perish like the rest of your godless race!"
Jessica dropped her bubble shield and ran to help, but Lobo's screams forced her to halt.
Ethan had screamed the exact same way after getting shot...
He'd been more angry than scared or in actual pain, and might've turned back to fight with his fists if not for getting shot a dozen or more times in the blink of an eye.
"Warning," the ring said. "Explosion imminent. Containment procedures advised."
Jessica's limited training for such situations had her taking to the air once more even if she was on auto-pilot. She flew above both The Eye and Empress, and sealed them both under a dome.
"Think Lobo can survive this?" she asked, wincing at the sheer amount of concentration it was taking to create such a powerful construct.
"Concentrate on everyone else's survival first, Jessica. Including your own. Lobo-"
The Eye erupted, and Jessica screamed as the explosion was too much for her remaining energy levels, not to mention her pitiful willpower.
"If your own life isn't worth fighting for, then what about Sara's? She's counting on you."
"And I can't let her down. I won't let her down." Jessica gradually increased the size of the dome so as not to lose it completely, but eventually the construct ballooned and she found herself caught up in the explosion of light.
Then nothing but darkness...
"Hey, you, you're finally awake I see. Fifteen percent power remaining by the way. Thought you ought to know."
Jessica groaned and rolled onto her stomach. "Five more minutes, Ring. I don't wanna get my ass kicked by Wonder Woman today..."
"That is the least of your concerns. You were only unconscious for approximately ten seconds. This fight is not yet over, and I fear we may have lost our only ally..."
The dust and remaining energy in the air subsided, and Jessica's heart sank when she saw The Empress still standing and The Eye floating beside her. She vomited however when she saw what remained of the now former greatest bounty hunter in the universe.
A pair of legs sheared at the waist remained upright, seemingly standing out of habit, then quickly turning around and running in the opposite direction. Thankfully not in Jessica's who was busy wiping her mouth.
She heard grumbling and what sounded like Czarnian curses, along with what she could've sworn was a high-pitched whistle. "D-did he just talk out of his own ass? Wait, did he just whistle!?"
"Why does that surprise you..."
Lobo's space-venturing motorcycle, or 'The Hog' as he called it, pulled up alongside his remaining half and he hopped aboard. An impressive yet ineffective barrage of blaster fire rained down on The Empress and Eye, who created another barrier for their protection.
"Your very existence offends me," she said. The Empress waved her hand and summoned several dozen beams of deadly light. The Hog did its best to avoid them, and appeared to be semi-resistant to energy from the emotional spectrum just like Lobo's chain, but it unfortunately proved to be less agile than Jessica, and both The Main Man and his ride found themselves blasted out of the sky.
With the threat scattered into a million pieces, if not vaporized entirely, The Empress turned her attention back to Jessica, who finally got a good look at the damage Lobo had done. The Eye of Ekron was sparking now, and had a massive gouge in the middle of its iris, and was leaking some sort of acidic liquid that burned the concrete wherever it dripped. The chain and meat hook were still entirely intact, and dangled precariously from its pupil.
"I've got some Visine if you need some," she called. "I also know a good ophthalmologist who'll send corrective lenses over the phone."
"Not bad," the ring congratulated. "You'll be trading barbs with The Joker before you know it."
The Empress walked forward with all the regality her name suggested, The Eye following closely behind. "My apologies. It appears as though you're only half as incompetent as I previously thought. You now have our undivided attention."
"If you don't think I won't take that as a compliment, then you obviously don't know me very well."
"I take back what I said. You're not very good at witty hero-villain banter..."
"That's why I'm practicing. Also, the longer I can keep her talking, the longer I live and sooner the Justice League- Oh crap!"
Jessica rolled out of the way of incoming energy bolts before taking to the air once more, all the while having to deal with a smart aleck which was rather appropriately adorned her middle finger.
"Both your conventional therapist and Black Canary have told you to avoid self-deprecating humor. It doesn't do your self-esteem, or lack thereof, any favors."
"Yeah, well, OWW!" A bolt scraped her shoulder. "As much as I wish they were both here right now, especially that jerk-ass Todd, they're not. I am. It's just how I deal with things, and I'm not dealing very well right now if you hadn't noticed! You should know this better than anyone."
"That I do, J-Bird, but you're wrong. Both would be very proud of you right now, as am I. You may want to brace for impact though, and create a bubble shield while you're at it. You're about to be rear-ended in 5-4-3-2-"
Jessica did as instructed, and once her barriers and herself were done exploding, she fell from the air and landed hard on the concrete.
"Less than ten percent energy remaining," the ring said quietly. "You were rather prophetic calling The Empress a 'Royal Pain-In-My-Ass'. Do you wish for me to add Preparation H to your next grocery list?"
"The Eye of Ekron has killed hundreds of Green Lanterns over the millennia," The Empress interrupted, "but you are by far the most pathetic."
Jessica groaned as she rose to a kneeling position. Her migraine was even worse than before, and she touched the back of her head and found blood. "Trust me, I know. For the past five months I've been telling my ring that it made a mistake choosing me."
She nearly toppled over trying to get back to her feet, but used the remaining half of a convertible to steady herself. "Whatever you have to say isn't anything I haven't already told myself countless times the past four years, so save your breath."
The Empress looked slightly taken aback, but let out a cackle that Jessica thought would've made her favorite Disney villains proud. "What's this? A self-loathing Green Lantern? The Corps must have really gone downhill the past few centuries while I was asleep. They certainly scraped the bottom of the barrel when they chose you."
Jessica grinned and The Empress stopped her cackling. No matter what she may have thought of Jessica, a Green Lantern staring death in the face with a smile was nothing to take lightly. Even if they were still just an inexperienced rookie with a power ring running on empty.
"I just told you. Whatever you have to say can't be any worse than what I tell myself everyday before getting out of bed, and you still haven't hurt me as much as I have over the years. No offense, but if goons from 'The Sopranos' can't kill me, and if I can't kill me, a floating eyeball with a detached retina doesn't stand a chance."
The Empress pursed her lips and cocked her head to the side. "You think YOU can defy the queen of this universe and her god?" she said. "If you've lived such a pitiful existence, allow me to put you out of your misery like the dog that you are."
The Eye of Ekron fired a beam of concentrated emerald light, and Jessica did similarly from her ring.
"Willpower increasing," it said, "however, power levels are failing..."
"I can do this," Jessica said between her teeth. "I can-"
The death light inched closer to her by the second, but despite the veins bulging in the sides of her head, all her favorite curse words being muttered, and her sister's life hanging in the balance, she just couldn't find any more willpower within her.
"Power levels rapidly draining. Forty-five seconds remaining, not that we'll survive another thirty."
Jessica nodded. "I got an idea. Hope you don't mind breaking a few Corps rules."
"I believe we're low on remaining options..."
She reached out with her non-ring finger, and an old-timey lantern like what coal miners used a century ago appeared in her hand. It was solid emerald not unlike one of her constructs, except it had actual weight to it and power radiating from within. It was the lantern from which the Green Lantern Corps had gotten its name, and from where she got her powers.
The Empress cackled again, this time like the Wicked Witch of the West. "You fool! With a Lantern's power battery, The Eye's power will truly be limitless! Thank you for helping establish our reign over the universe. Your ring will make a fine addition to my collection"
She waved her hand and several dozen Lantern rings briefly adorned her fingers. Jessica gritted her teeth. "If you want MY ring, you're gonna have to pry it from my cold dead fingers!"
"My dear, that's exactly what I intend to do. If there's even a body left..."
Although she had never set foot on Oa or seen the Central Power Battery for herself, Jessica could feel its near infinite power flowing through her. She had all but memorized the words of her oath, but now they were seared almost painfully in her mind and soul.
"In brightest day!" she chanted. "In blackest night!"
Her ring and lantern lit up, and The Eye's energy was pushed back nearly a whole inch.
"No evil shall escape my sight!"
The Empress ran to the damaged Eye of Ekron, attempting to feed what little power she reserved for herself back into it. "Fool! Don't you realize you're battling the will of a god!?"
Jessica's ring almost laughed. "Child, don't YOU realize your so-called 'god' is battling the will of Jessica Cruz?"
"Let those that worship evil's might beware my power!"
"I'd be praying to your god right about now..."
"GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!"
All the power in the universe at Jessica's fingertips couldn't compare to the willpower to protect her baby sister, followed closely by her parents, and lastly the rest of her anxiety-inducing planet. Six months ago she had been a twenty-two year old woman too afraid to even leave her apartment, regressing some days into that of a small, frightened child. She had cried for her parents to help her. Prayed to her God to end her suffering. And wished upon every star in the night sky to fix her. Unbeknownst to her, Someone had been listening...
Throughout those four years, day after day, night after night, trapped in the same apartment, Jessica never gave up, and never surrendered to her most terrible thoughts. On a planet of roughly eight billion humans and other lifeforms, Jessica Cruz had been singled out amongst them. The otherwise simple act of leaving her apartment for the first time in years for the sake of others had been a brilliant beacon of willpower for her ring to follow, and finally after all their time together, Jessica caught a glimpse of what her ring had sensed all those months ago.
Jessica cried out as more power than she could've ever fathomed flowed through her. She and her ring were vessels for the limitless energy of Oa's Central Power Battery, all of which were given purpose by Jessica's willpower and imagination.
"This cannot be!" The Empress screamed as she, The Eye, and Jessica were all consumed by emerald light. "THIS CANNOT- MY LORD EKRON"
Something exploded in Jessica's face, and she crumbled to the ground screaming. It was as though a hot iron had been pressed against the side of her face, and she laid on the ground, writhing and whimpering, praying for the agony to come to an abrupt end. Tears staining her right cheek came as a relief, as did someone calling her name.
"JESS!" a familiar voice cried out. Jessica groaned and looked around, her right eye hopefully just swollen shut. Her hands and feet were numb, but using her elbows and knees, she was able to prop herself up, and saw that both The Eye and The Empress were lying motionless on the ground.
"We did it," she half-laughed, half-sobbed, though mostly sobbed. "We actually did it. Ring, we-"
Jessica's breath caught, and her entire body shook as she scooped up the remains of her ring off the ground. "Ring?" she whimpered. "Ring?"
The greatest thing that had ever happened in her life, and the only reason she had the strength to leave her apartment early that day lay dead, cradled in her hands. Just like Phoebe...
Jessica sobbed like a small child having lost her teddy bear, a teenage girl having just broken up with her future husband, and a young mother having lost her only child all rolled into one.
"JESS!" Sara screamed again. Jessica didn't respond. Couldn't respond, and didn't see her sister limping toward her, holding her ribs. After what felt like a lonely eternity Sara fell into her arms, laughing and crying. "You did it! I knew you would! I saw the whole thing! Most of it anyway! You were amazing!"
Jessica continued crying, her face buried in the crook of Sara's neck. She tried to speak but nothing intelligible would come out. Only whimpers, sobs, and apologies.
"Jess, what's-" Sara gasped when she finally saw her sister's face. "Dios mio..."
A terrible burn in the shape of Jessica's lantern covered the right side of her face. Her right eye was mostly swollen shut, but behind the blood and raw skin was what remained of a white, sightless pupil. For the first time Sara noticed her sister no longer wearing her Green Lantern uniform, but rather her hoodie and sweatpants, which had several rips and tears along with bloodstains which were growing and multiplying before her very eyes.
Jessica continued crying with Sara failing to soothe her pain, not knowing the real reason for her sister being inconsolable.
"Ring. My ring..." she whimpered.
Sara finally looked down at what Jessica was holding, and saw bloodied hands grasping the broken shards of what had once been the most powerful weapon in that sector of the universe. More importantly, what had been Jessica's best friend. More than that. A part of herself...
"Oh, Jess," she said, beginning to cry herself. "I'm so sorry."
It never dawned on Jessica that the blood was her own and not her ring's, and try as Sara might to keep her sister from harming herself further, she wasn't able to pry the shards out of her hands.
'Jessica,' a voice whispered. 'You have the ability to overcome great fear. Together we shall overcome great fear, and evil shall beware our might...'
She didn't know if the voice was just her imagination or the dying words of her closest companion, but what little light remained in her ring faded.
"Ring..." she whimpered. "I-I'm sorry. Why'd you have to pick me to be your partner..."
David. Ethan. Phoebe. And now Ring.
All dead because of her.
"YOU BITCH!"
Jessica shuddered as the cry came across what remained of the parking lot. Looking up with a single blurry eye she saw The Empress getting to her feet. "You'll bleed for this! Your entire planet will bleed!"
The woman's green hair, eyes, and gown had faded just like Jessica's had. In their stead were blond hair, violet eyes, and velvet robes. Jessica assumed this must have been Sarya of Venegar's true form, but didn't much care, not even when she retrieved a long, thin blade hidden within her sleeve.
"Jess, we have to get out of here!" Sara said, but wasn't strong enough to lift Jessica, not when she might've had cracked ribs or worse, and not with Jessica refusing to move.
"Please just go, Sara," she mumbled. "Promise you'll win the championship and play for Gotham FC like you always wanted. Do it for me. Live the kind of life I never could. The kind of life I was too scared to live."
"Like hell I will." Sara attempted dragging Jessica to safety but collapsed beside her, and unknowingly held her sister in her arms much like how Jessica had once held Phoebe. "Jess..."
"Run. Please just run. I might not have been much of a hero, but at least I'll get to die like one. Please just go. I don't wanna be here anymore..."
'Your powers do not come from a magic ring, Jessica,' the same voice whispered. 'It's your willpower. It has always been YOUR willpower.'
Jessica was slipping into unconsciousness, but if she was going to die, she had a few things to say. "Sara, I love you, and I'm sorry."
Sara wiped her sister's bloodied face and kissed her forehead. "Don't be sorry. I love you too, J-Bird."
Jessica's breath caught, but she was just able to mumble a few more words. "In brightest day. In blackest night..."
"I'M GOING TO GUT YOU!" The Empress screamed, closer now.
"No evil shall escape my sight..."
Sara moved between her sister and The Empress, daring her to come within kicking distance. Red card be damned.
"L-let those that worship evil's might, b-beware my-"
"-power," Sara finished for her. Jessica smiled, barely hanging on to consciousness, unsure if the young woman looking back at her was Phoebe or her sister.
Sara wrapped her hand around Jessica's, the shards of the broken ring cutting them both.
"GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!" they shouted in unison.
Both winced as energy from the emotional spectrum itself flowed through them like electricity. Jessica smiled, the terrible burn on the right side of her face replaced by her Corps' emblem. "Welcome back, Ring."
"It's good to be back, J-Bird. I always believed in you."
"That makes... one of us..."
"Actually, I believe that makes TWO."
Jessica nodded. "Ring, protect Sara. Protect..." Her eyes closed, her head drooped, and the ring slipped off her finger and bounced onto the concrete.
Sara screamed for her lifeless sister, and it was almost without her notice that the ring flew onto her own finger. Power beyond her wildest desires consumed her, but for once it was the furthest thing from her mind.
"Sara Cruz-" the ring said- "you have the ability to overcome great fear."
"No. No, this can't be happening." She tried shaking her sister awake to no avail. "Jessica! JESSICA!"
"Welcome to the Green Lantern Corps. I'm sorry..."
Sara shouted at the ring, cursed it, tried prying it off and shoving it back onto her sister's finger who was bleeding even worse than before.
"Sara-" the ring said- "listen carefully. Your sister is already gone. I may be able to sustain her life, but The Empress would surely kill you both. If you wish to make it out alive and hopefully save your sister as well, channel every ounce of willpower you have at The Empress. Imagine a blast of energy defeating her. I shall provide the rest."
Sara nodded and closed her eyes. The Green Lantern's oath came to mind, written on her mind and soul, but only one word mattered to her. "JESSICA!"
She screamed her sister's name and a force of energy emerged from the ring, sending The Empress across the parking lot and flat on her back while Sara collapsed beside her sister, out of breath and suddenly exhausted. It was as though she'd just spent the entire day at soccer practice after pulling an all-nighter partying after another day of practice.
"Wh-what happened?" The ring slipped from her finger, muddling her thoughts even further, and she felt a sharp pain in her ribs.
The ring returned to Jessica, and a faint emerald shielding appeared around her. Her chest began to rise and fall at regular intervals again, and the flow of blood became a trickle.
Sara shook her head, trying desperately to stay awake. "Ring, will she be alright?"
"If she receives immediate medical attention, I believe so. Unfortunately I am operating on less than one percent power, and I'm still unable to contact The Watchtower. However, I believe Jessica's commlink may be working again. It's in her LEFT ear. Thankfully..."
She nodded, her vision blurry, and had to brush her sister's bloodied hair away to retrieve the small device practically invisible to the naked eye. "Watchtower, come in. Watchtower, does anybody hear me?"
"Jessica!?" Cyborg said. "Jessica, is that you?"
"I'm Sara, Jessica's sister. Listen, she-"
"What the hell is going on down there? Energy from the emotional spectrum has been going haywire all over the planet. Sensors are down and I haven't been able to get a hold of anyone over commlinks. What the hell did Jessica do?"
"Jessica didn't do anything besides save everybody's lives," Sara practically shouted. "Some woman and a floating eyeball-"
"The Emerald Empress and The Eye of Ekron," the ring said helpfully.
"Yeah, them. They appeared out of nowhere while Jess was fighting Lobo." She groaned as her ribs burned from just saying his name, as did other parts of her body which she now felt somewhat conflicted about. "Jess fought them and won, b-but she's hurt and needs help. Please help her! I-I can't-"
"Right, help is on its way, Sara. Emergency transport to the med-bay is standing by. I've also got Red Tornado and Hawkgirl inbound. They'll clean up the mess down there."
"I'm coming too!" Sara grabbed her sister's hand. "Hey, this won't merge us into one person like in Star Trek, will it?"
She never got an answer, and just as she felt her molecules begin to tingle, she wrapped her arms around Jessica and cradled her fallen hero.
"It'll be alright, Jess," she said, brushing hair away from her terrible burn. "Just hold on. Everything will be okay..."
(A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. One of the first scenes I had envisioned prior to writing "Embracing the Limelight" was Jessica getting incapacitated in a fight and giving her ring to Sara as a means of protecting her. Sara being a "backup Lantern" for Jessica makes sense given that both Guy and John were once backups for Hal, but it's also just something I found very endearing given that they're sisters. Another scene I wanted to write was Jessica receiving her iconic burn across the right side of her face. Canonically it doesn't mean much, and has rarely (if ever) been referenced, and the reason for its existence doesn't make too much sense in all honesty. I liked the idea of Jessica receiving it in a fight where her power battery exploded in her face (explaining its shape), and that while the actual burn could be treated, it'll always remain when she uses her powers since they're linked. Sara might think it looks cool, and it'll probably help Jessica hide her identity, but I doubt it'll be something she's particularly proud of at this particular time in her story.
Discovering that Jessica has really great chemistry with Lobo was a nice surprise when I began writing "Embracing the Limelight". He most definitely lives on the wild-side that Jessica is attracted to (both platonically and otherwise), and I think Lobo's "rough around the edges" personality is perfect for someone more straight-laced like Jessica, who in some respects has forgotten how to live. Jessica was a prisoner to her apartment and her depression and anxiety for four years, but Lobo in many respects represents boundless freedom. He does and says what he wants, whenever he wants, and while "offensive", he's also a bounty hunter and mercenary. As well as endearing in an odd way.
All credit goes to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has blessed me with this story and all of you. God bless)