American comics: Starting with Luke the Maker

Inside the cave.

"This is your base? It looks pretty cool." Hal Jordan turned around, looking at the instruments and various monitoring screens, his eyes shining.

"We have some questions and we hope you'll answer them truthfully." Batman's deep voice sounded. Bruce Wayne didn't hide himself; he realized that unless he abandoned the Batman persona in the future, or mastered some kind of energy, it would be difficult to conceal his true identity.

But for now, with Rogers in front, he could act as another persona – the behind-the-scenes supplier providing equipment and funding for Batman.

"What do you want to ask?" Hal Jordan looked at Wayne, who was speaking. He found the man looked familiar.

"Your origin, your experiences, what do you want to do on this planet?" Wayne asked a series of questions.

"Before I answer, can you ask him to return my ring?" Hal looked eagerly at his ring, still floating near Rogers.

"How am I supposed to give it to you? I don't even dare to touch it right now." Rogers clutched his head, looking pained. He had never imagined that after his ring was activated and gained a nascent consciousness, it would actually be jealous!

Yes, he knew from Luke that a person could generally only wear rings of one attribute. Wearing rings of opposite attributes together could lead to some terrible accidents.

But Luke had never told him that those terrible accidents would involve the ring's consciousness frantically washing over his body, expressing rejection and dissatisfaction.

Even though the Green Lantern ring was within reach, he could grab it with a single motion, and it would cooperate, he still didn't dare to reach out.

Green Lantern Hal was silent for a moment, then actively stepped forward to retrieve the ring, but unsurprisingly, the ring continued to play hide-and-seek with him. As he reached out, the ring moved away a short distance; as he reached out again, it floated away again. After several attempts, Hal looked miserably at the Green Lantern ring, which used to listen to him and cooperate seamlessly, feeling somewhat at a loss.

Then, the next moment, something that made Hal's face turn green happened before his eyes. Seemingly realizing that it couldn't get close to Rogers and that it couldn't win against Rogers' Ring of the Mind in an energy confrontation, the Green Lantern reluctantly, with many backward glances, left Rogers. Then, to Hal's surprise, the ring seemed to have discovered something, and with a whoosh, it dragged a streak of green light and floated in front of Bruce Wayne.

Hal was completely stunned!

In one day, he had suffered two critical hits! He had been betrayed by his ring twice in a row! It was as if his girlfriend had seamlessly connected with two people right before his eyes. He felt that even without the ring, he had turned green all over.

Everything came to an end after the ring was rejected by Bruce and reluctantly returned to Hal, falling into a state of self-imposed isolation. But in the short term, Hal probably wouldn't be able to use the Green Lantern ring as freely as before.

"You said you're a native?" Wayne frowned as he looked at Hal.

"Yes, is there something wrong with that?" Hal was puzzled by Wayne's question.

"So, after this ring was handed to you, you accepted your new identity without any suspicion?" Wayne raised an eyebrow.

"The other side is good, I think there is no problem, right?" Hal paused, lowered his tone slightly, and asked tentatively.

"Do you understand the organization behind the ring?" Wayne asked again.

"I've been to one of their headquarters. They are an ancient civilization in the universe, dedicated to maintaining the stability and tranquility of the universe. They have a powerful Green Lantern Corps under their command, managing different sectors of the universe. I am the new Green Lantern for this sector." Hal explained. He hadn't joined them for long, and hadn't stayed in the so-called headquarters for long either. He simply learned about the history he was told.

"Then it seems you are still too naive. What if they have bad intentions? Even if they don't, does this ring have any backdoors that can be controlled? If something unexpected happens, will you choose to stand with us, or with them?" Wayne, who was always suspicious of everyone and everything, shook his head slightly at Hal's easy acceptance of their ideas and the identity they gave him.

Too inexperienced.

"Is he always like this?" Hal looked strangely at Rogers.

"Don't ask me." Rogers shook his head. He didn't have any ill feelings towards the Green Lantern Corps. If everything Hal said was true, then this group, like the Avengers he was in, was a group inclined towards order and justice. Rogers instinctively felt good about this kind of group.

"Okay, what else do you want to ask? I'll state in advance that I'm still a newbie. Although they say I have great potential, I don't know much." Hal waved his hand, wanting to end the topic. As someone who had gained power, he instinctively didn't want to believe Wayne and examine the Green Lantern Corps and the Guardians from his suspicious perspective.

"Is there only the Green Lantern Corps?" Rogers asked curiously.

"As far as I know, the only one I've come into contact with is the Green Lantern Corps." Hal didn't know why Rogers would ask this question, but he still gave his answer.

"The green ring represents will and courage. The stronger the will and the more steadfast the courage, the more power it can unleash. So, what is the source of their power? It can't be an energy source that appears out of thin air, right?" Rogers originally thought that there was a genius like Luke in this universe, but the information he got from Hal made him instinctively feel that his guess had a big error. He wanted to know more information.

"I know this. It is said that the power of the Lantern Rings comes from the Central Power Battery, so after the Green Lantern Corps members use up the energy in their rings, they need to return to the Central Power Battery at headquarters to recharge." Hal said.

"It sounds more like a control method. It cuts off the foundation for your independence from the root and enhances your dependence on them, strengthening control over the Corps." Wayne added from the side in an expected tone. "Of course, this doesn't mean they're doing badly. If it were me, I would also take this approach. Controlled is always better than uncontrolled."

"Your emphasis is similar to several partners I know. You and they may have more to talk about. But now my questions are not finished." Rogers pointed to Wayne, then looked at Hal in the middle of the two, and then asked: "The Central Power Battery, is it some kind of energy technology of theirs?"

"I guess?" Hal replied somewhat uncertainly.

"It seems he doesn't know much." Wayne saw the hesitant look on Hal's face and made a judgment.

Rogers asked a few more questions later, and Hal either answered uncertainly or shook his head blankly. Seeing that he really couldn't get anything out of him, the captain stopped questioning. However, his interest in the Guardians of the Universe increased greatly. As the oldest civilization in this universe, they know many secrets of this universe. Perhaps they have a way to communicate with other universes?

In Rogers's perception, their energy is still quite similar to Luke's energy. For example, before, if it wasn't for his prevention, the Ring of the Mind in his hand could have plundered all the energy contained in the Green Lantern ring in Hal's hand. It's like an upper and lower level. The Ring of the Mind has higher autonomy and wisdom, and at the same time, it has incredible diffusivity and erosiveness.

"Next, should we talk about Scarecrow?" After Rogers finished speaking, Bruce Wayne turned his gaze to Scarecrow, who was bound to the prison chair.

Crane's hood had been completely removed by Rogers and restrained with the light of the ring. Hal also shifted his gaze to Crane's somewhat pale face and thin body.

"I've always wanted to ask, who is he? I sensed some kind of threat from him and the hood. The Lantern Ring doesn't like it." Hal asked curiously, recalling the resistance he felt when he first arrived.

"You don't need to know more, until you're sure your ring won't transmit messages to the Guardian behind the scenes." Bruce reminded.

"I think we should give him and those Guardians some trust. I don't know what you've been through to be suspicious of everything. Extraterrestrial civilizations are both good and bad. In our place, we have also experienced attacks by invaders from other civilizations. At the same time, there is also the help of another extraterrestrial civilization." Rogers had a different opinion from Bruce. He was equally cautious, but he was not stingy with trust. The Ring of the Mind in his hand is now running in. It can't be said that it can see through people's hearts, but it can sense whether people are good or bad, and whether their words and expressions are true or false.

In his perception, Hal is undoubtedly trustworthy. He didn't lie, and he didn't sense any strong negative emotions that could pose a threat.

"That's you." Bruce replied in an unperturbed tone. But when his eyes moved away from Hal, he added: "But they were all brought and resolved by you, so you have the right to speak and the relative right to dispose of them. But correspondingly, if there are any bad consequences, you should also bear them."

"I won't pass on the responsibility I should bear to others." Captain said: "Our current plan needs like-minded people. The strength of your enemies is growing rapidly. If you don't learn to find companions, rely on companions, and believe in companions, you who want to solve everything single-handedly will inevitably be a loser. You will eventually find that you can't protect anything!"

Bruce was silent.

"I think Hal can join our plan. You can think of a name for the group or something. The spread and devastation of mental energy is already unstoppable. I don't have the ability of its creator to lock it in a data dimension without greatly affecting reality. We can't pray that human nature is all good, and we should also prepare for the worst. When he and the Guardians behind him need help, they will naturally be able to distinguish what is credible and what is not." Captain pointed to Hal and said slowly.

He is not blindly trusting others, nor is he without the necessary vigilance and caution. He has experienced no less than anyone present, but his personality, which was amplified by the Super Soldier Serum, and the subsequent subtle personality bias of the ring, made him not casually suspect others from a malicious perspective without evidence or signs.

Of course, this trust has been filtered and screened after being sensed by the Ring of the Mind. Just like Hal in front of him. The captain can sense his inner courage, brilliance, and some shining points in his personality. For him, that's enough to give a certain amount of trust and acceptance.

Bruce Wayne had to agree with Rogers's words. It's not that he doesn't have trust, but at the same time as trust, he will always have doubts. The only people who can truly gain his firm trust are currently only a handful, besides his old butler Alfred.

"I don't quite understand what you're talking about? What is mental energy? What are you talking about?" Hal felt like he was listening to a heavenly book, at a loss.

"You will know. This is also one of your responsibilities. After all, there is going to be a big problem here soon." The captain stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder. Hal sensed the ring in his hand jump again. He quickly increased his strength and clenched his fist, wrapping it tightly in his palm.

After Rogers and Wayne told Hal the whole story, Hal's whole person was sublimated. He felt that he might have had bad luck when he went out today. One big problem after another appeared in the sector he was responsible for guarding, and even his home planet.

According to the two of them, Gotham is being massively eroded and infected by some negative mental energy. In the future, various super criminals who have mastered powers similar to the Lantern Ring will continue to appear here. If this trend cannot be curbed in the early stage, this terrible situation will quickly spread, rapidly infecting more people and more cities, and even spreading to the entire universe.

This sounds a bit alarmist. Hal instinctively didn't want to believe it, but damn it, this man in front of him came with an aura that made people trust him. This made the suspicion in his heart have no room to struggle at all. It just symbolically bubbled up and was slapped to death on the beach by the back wave of belief. Of course, the key is that the ring in the other party's hand and the hideous hood with strange energy that makes people feel fear involuntarily are solid evidence.

"What do you need me to do?" Hal decided to lie flat.

PS: Thanks to classmate Silent Peak for the reward.