GLTAS|Hunt

One Last Ride?

It was such a bizarre thing to have to learn that a lantern had died. Either directly or... Whenever the ring decides to return to Oa. But when one of your friends, someone you'd worked with and had admired, had been the one to be the next lantern dead, you wished in secret that it was you, and not them.

For Hal, it was that feeling as he arrived to Oa to mourn the death of Green Lantern Tomar-Re. An experienced fighter with a huge weight of guilt that huge around him. That guilt was allowing Krypton to explode, and not being able to do a thing about it. Kilowog provided a memorial piece, highlighting his work - his last act was saving New Genesis from the same fate that Krypton had. His successor, a bug that constantly refers to herself as Forager, watched with much grief and shame, only being able to know her predecessor via the ring's memory and the memory of others. In her gasp, in her lower paired of crossed arms, was a book with Shakespeare's name all over it.

Hal thought that someone must have gifted her the book. He wanted to say something to her but couldn't amongst the clapping crowd. As soon as he made his way past, she was gone.

"Wish this reunion was on better terms, Jordan." Said Kilowog as he floats to the human.

"You're telling me. How have you been?" Hal said as they both shook hands in respect.

"Well, actually. I mean, things started out lucky. Granted, working out peace negotiations with New Genesis and the various people of Earth gets nowhere slowly. But, you won't believe who Tomar and I ran into on the way there." Kilowog said.

Before Hal can ask who, Forager approaches. "Green Lantern Kilowog," she greets in a shy tone. "Forager would like a-- oh, Forager is sorry. Forager did not realize that there is a conversation happening."

"It's alright, kid. But I'd like you to meet Hal Jordan of Earth." Said Kilowog. "Hal, Forager."

"Nice to meet you." Hal greeted. "A collection of Shakespeare. That is an earth-specific topic. How did you get it?"

"Forager was gifted this collection by Forager before Forager followed Green Lantern to Oa." Forager said.

Hal blinked in confusion.

"What she means is that another member of her species, a red Forager, gave her this before she left." Kilowog clarified.

Hal nods, stilling for a moment before smiling. "Have you heard of nicknames?"

"A few times on Earth, yes. Though of Forager's planet, Forager only refers to Forager's self as Forager."

"Would you like to have one, in case we meet with other Foragers?" Spoke Hal with a friendly grin.

The bug nods with an eager grin.

"How about Violet?"

"Violet..." The bug tries out. "Violet... Vi... O... Let... Violet likes it very much so, Green Lantern Hal." She says with a smile.

Hal smiles back as Kilowog approved. "Better sense than how you got Aya's name." He jokes softly. Though the name Aya stuck, Hal giving the name an extra "a" and a "y" to replace the "i" was a little silly. Even older now, the human chuckled at his younger self before his mind thinks to the past. The group, consisting of the two senior lanterns, Aya and Razer, on the Interceptor. It was a family. A family both missed.

"Green Lanterns Hal Jordan, Kilowog, and Forager report to the Guardians at once." The voice of Appa rang through the rings of the three.

"Are the Green Lanterns and Fora-- Violet in trouble?" Asks Violet.

"Don't worry. The thing you should know about the Guardians is that they'll call you in for tiny stuff in order to scapegoat." Hal said before launching towards the Guardian's Temple.