Green Lantern's Protégée

26: "Looks like capitalist greed is universal."

Oa

November 12, 19:15 EDT

Cyra paced in the library. Salaak watched her with a permanent look of resentment as she shuffled through some books with rustling fingers. Every once in a while, the blonde would let out a breath of hot air from her nose, growl to herself, or shake her head—sometimes all three at the same time.

"Couldn't the Guardians have you wait somewhere else? Anywhere else?" Salaak finally spoke.

Cyra didn't speak, her feet thumping against the ground at a steady rhythm. Her finger tapped to that same beat on her crossed arms.

Salaak snorted and shook his head. "I got stuck with a crazy Lantern. Usually, it takes them longer to go nuts."

"I think I messed up," Cyra said at last, but more to herself than Salaak. "Kilowog was acting like I failed but I completed all the challenges! I even beat Kilowog in a fight! I don't know what is up here." Cyra rubbed her face.

"Maybe if you picked up a book every once in a while you'd know."

"Now is not the time to try and get me into a reading program, you old librarian."

"It may surprise you but Guardians care more about how well you can make a little gun or punch something. The Corps has honor, integrity, discipline—"

"Willpower," Cyra stated dryly, rolling her eyes. "I've heard it all before. I don't see how that has anything to do with the test though."

Salaak walked back from behind his book counter and raked his abnormally pointy pink knuckles across her scalp, causing her to jump back with a yelp. "You never see anything! You don't do much thinking either, do you?" He threw out his arms to the books around him. "Well, this is the perfect place for you to start. And stop pacing!"

Cyra let out a growl as Salaak went back to his castle of books, hiding behind its walls, only peeking up every once in a while to glare at her with his beady-eyed glare. Taking her pacing back past aisles of books, Cyra hid away. Dark black liquid glistened on some books and others lunged at her as she walked past—paper teeth scratching her legs the second before she managed to leap away.

Eventually, Cyra came across a book that didn't look like it was a monster about to kill her or made out of a monster. It had a simple leather-bound cover and was in the style of a diary. Cyra shrugged before opening it and was immediately assaulted with a whale-splash screech.

Cyra dropped the book, cupping her hands over her ears as she stumbled into a bookcase, almost getting crushed by a book the size of a car.

"What's going on?" Salaak yelled, appearing between the rows of books like a ghost.

Or, at least, that's what Cyra's thought he said. Her ears were thumping her entire brain and the screaming has yet to flatter.

Salaak waltzed over and snapped up the book. Cyra instantly slumped against the ground in relief. The pink alien put the devil book back onto its shelf with a small pat.

"I used to think anyone had enough intelligence to pick up a book and read it," Salaak said, his usual sarcastic tone turning into a gentle wonder of sorts, "—until I met you."

"Gee, thanks," Cyra groaned, sitting up into a cross-legged position. "Ugh, this sucks—I suck! I can't even read some dumb books without screwing up."

Some of the books shook on their shelves and Salaak shushed them. "The stupid human didn't mean it," he soothed before turning back to the blonde, whose head was hidden in her hands. "Aren't you supposed to be a Green Lantern? The most powerful police force in the Universe?"