"Remember, Dr Polaris, do as you're told, when you're told!" Captain Atom said to the man beside him.
Doctor Polaris is a powerful super-villain who manipulates magnetic forces. He served on one of the original Suicide Squad teams and is primarily an enemy of the Green Lanterns of Earth. He was here because the crisis they faced was far greater than his crimes. If the sun died, life on Earth would essentially come to an end as well.
Dr Polaris sneered.
"I don't know what sort of deal a con as you cut with Amanda Waller, but--"
"There's no deal, Captain," Polaris interrupted smoothly. "She outlined the situation; I volunteered. If we fail, it doesn't really matter if I'm in prison or not... does it?"
In front of them, Mr Miracle adjusted his headset, checking the synchronisation grids of his technology. He was very focused, driven to succeed for reasons beyond those of the other heroes.
Sure, having Earth survive would be beneficial, since he had left Apokolips, but the real reason he wanted to succeed was Big Barda. He had met her not that long ago and gotten smitten with her right away. They were perfect for each other, in his mind, but no matter what, she seemed to have only one man who she had on her mind.
Hal Jordan, the Cyan Lantern.
Oh, how he hated that name. Initially, he thought that it couldn't possibly be that Big Barda, a New God, would ever bother with a mere mortal. Then he found out it was a Lantern, and he figured out just who it was.
The Cyan Lantern was not unknown in the universe. Especially not after he sent his constructs to Apokolips and then levelled the entire place, defeating Darkseid's current form and leaving without an explanation.
New Genesis, and particularly the wise Highfather, ruler of the New Gods on New Genesis and adoptive father of Orion, Darkseid's son, was more than interested in the man who had done what he had failed to do.
Mr Miracle tried to find out more, but there just wasn't any secret. No one knew how he got a Cyan Lantern Ring. And it made no sense either. There was no Cyan Lantern Corps.
Nevertheless, Mr Miracle knew that if he wanted to win Big Barda's attention and that of Highfather, he would have to do something big. And defeating the Sun-Eater and saving the Earth's sun might just be that thing.
"Mother Box is ready. Let me know when you see--"
"There--!" Takion shouted, pointing a glowing finger into the deep expanse.
The Mother Box's alarms began to trigger in a rapid, synchronised way.
PING PING PING.
"Even a blind man couldn't miss it!" Takion muttered.
And indeed. Rising before them was an incomprehensibly massive shroud of shifting, devouring darkness that seemed to swallow the very concept of space-time and light itself.
Mr Miracle gripped his controls, his jaw set.
"All right, everyone, showtime! Let's not disappoint the fans back home!"
"Maxima never disappoints!" the alien warrior queen declared, her psychic power flaring to life in a ruby-red display.
"Funnel your powers to the coordinates we discussed earlier!" Captain Atom said, his body erupting into a blinding, star-bright metallic sheen as energy from the Quantum Field channelled through him.
Beside him, the Source Elemental Takion unleashed a massive torrent of cosmic energy, while Dr Polaris manipulated the surrounding electromagnetic fields. They focused their combined might into a single point in space, trying to activate the Boom Tube and tear a hole right through the dimensional fabric.
"Boom Tube is forming!" Mr Miracle yelled.
A deafening, warped sound seemed to tear through the void of space, as impossible as that may be, as a massive, purple Boom Tube began to manifest directly in the path of the darkness.
Inside the nearby observation ship where many of the other Justice League Members were waiting and observing, the primary display screen was completely filled with blinding white light.
"The Boom Tube's forming..." a technician reported over the comms. "... they're combining their powers... creating a vortex..."
"How are Captain Atom and the others holding up, Superman? Can you see them?" someone asked.
Superman tracked the immense thermal signatures and kept his focus locked on the coordinate grid, where the four were doing all they could.
"The contained atmosphere around the Pax Romana's hull makes it a little difficult, but... yes. They're all pushing their limits. Takion, especially, isn't used to--"
"Hold! Something is wrong!" Alpha Centurion shouted, his fingers flying across the controls in a sudden panic. "My ship's scanners indicate a dimensional--"
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*
...
One second, the vanguard was standing at ground zero of a building Boom Tube; the next, they were thrown across the void in a displaced wave of energy.
Captain Atom was the first to find his bearings, shaking his head as his metallic skin reflected the foreign star-field.
"What the--? How'd we get all the way over here?" He looked over at the resident escape artist, Mr Miracle. "Something went snafu, and you yanked us out of that ground-zero death trap, Miracle?"
Mr Miracle massaged his temples, looking thoroughly bewildered.
"Um, yes and no... The Sun-Eater was playing havoc with the Boom Tube, but I didn't--"
"Oh, that, uh... that was me," Takion interrupted softly, his golden form shimmering against the dark backdrop of space. He floated closer, his pitch-black eyes wide.
Takion was a very powerful individual with immense wisdom, drawn directly from the Source, allowing him to sometimes perform feats that were sometimes broken.
"I could see the 'Tube was about to reach critical mass... so I stepped between seconds and moved everyone a safe distance away!"
Doctor Polaris offered a tight, approving nod.
"A handy ability, Takion. Rife with possibilities..."
"It is?" Takion asked.
"Virtually useless against the Sun-Eater, of course. Do we know what caused that violent disruption?" Polaris went on.
"Well, according to Mother Box, the Sun-Eater... doesn't exist entirely in our dimension!" Mister Miracle explained, adjusting his gauntlets while the projections analysed the anomaly.
"Which explains why the quantum energies directed against it had little effect."
On the other Justice League Position, Alpha Ceturion was explaining the same thing. Superman's expression hardened, as he stepped toward the centre of the bridge deck.
"Our turn at bat, then... and we'd better hit a home run! If we can't send it away, we'll have to lure it away... by tempting it with a second sun!"
The idea was solid. Anyone who could manipulate or generate heat and massive amounts of energy flew through the cold void and began pouring all their power into a single point, creating, essentially, a second sun.
"POUR IT ON! Alan, good that you're here; your sphere will hold and amplify our powers! The ship's shields will protect us!" Superman said.
He was happy that at least Alan Scott, the first 'Green Lantern' of Earth, had just arrived to help them. Alan had also naturally felt the danger the entire Green Lantern Corps faced, but chose to help Earth instead, knowing that if he didn't, the Corps wouldn't bother with the planet and wouldn't waste a single thought on it.
Firestorm, Ray, Superman, and a host of energy manipulators unleashed a coordinated, blinding cascade of multicoloured energy. Crimson, emerald, amber, and golden beams slammed into a localised point in space, feeding their raw power directly into a containment sphere projected by Alan Scott's Green Lantern sphere, mimicking the intense heat and light of a much smaller, living star.
...
The sheer energy output was pushing the strike team to the absolute breaking point.
"I don't know how much more the Pax Romana's shields will endure, Superman!" Alpha Centurion yelled.
"Doesn't matter! Can't stop now--" Superman grunted.
Then, their eyes widened. Through the viewports, the rolling, pitch-black form of the Sun-Eater began to shift its trajectory and sent a tendril towards the second star they were creating.
"--it's working!"
"The Sun-Eater's being drawn away?" Captain Atom asked, from their position far away in the solar system.
Maxima watched the cosmic devourer bend toward the decoy.
"Hard to tell... but it seems to be reaching for the smaller, closer sun... Yes! Yes, it's about to envelop it!"
Spirits were high. It was working; they had done the unthinkable and created a second sun... although it wasn't that unthinkable; they had to be very creative.
The dark cloud rolled over the newborn-smaller star like a heavy shroud, blotting out the vibrant light in a matter of seconds. But triumph instantly turned to absolute agony.
"EGHH!" a hero screamed in shock.
"Hang on! HANG ON!" Superman roared, but a sudden, unnatural drop in temperature and endless darkness drowned out his voice.
"H-heaven above! So c-cold! L-like a knife in my--" Fire muttered, her green flames instantly snapping out as a supernatural freeze crept across her skin.
And just like that... they were gone. The false sun was completely snuffed out, leaving nothing but a freezing, pitch-black void. Luckily, they had been protected by Alpha Centurion's ship, which swept through the sector, deploying recovery tractors to pull the frozen, unresponsive heroes out of the vacuum and into the docking bay.
"Uhh... everyone... a-all right? Firestorm... and I... m-moved... as fast as--?" Superman said.
"W-warm... need to get warm..."
"I know..." Alan Scott rasped.
"Fuh-frostbite... can't believe I guh-got... frostbite..."
"Sun-Eater d-devoured... all energies... even... b-body heat..." Alpha Centurion said through his teeth. "Med... medical unit... inside..."
Superman stood near the hangar doors, his fists clenched as he stared back into the dead space. He had tears in his eyes as he watched the endless darkness, where the sun had just been.
"I have to stop it..."
Firestorm placed a hand on the Man of Steel's shoulder.
"No, Superman! All you would accomplish against the Sun-Eater is to have your life's energy drained away!"
"But Earth--!"
"--needs you alive! There are dark days ahead..."
Alan Scott was deep in thought as he saw what had become of their beloved sun. He thought about what had brought him here, why he had been here instead of helping the Green Lantern Corps.
Hal had asked him to take his position and defend Earth while he went to have a look. He felt that fear permeated the emotional spectrum and had tried to mess with the colour green. Worrying about the sheer scale of the power released, Hal went ahead to deal with whatever it was, while he asked Alan to remain on Earth.
How useless, Alan felt right now. Not only had he not been there for his Corps, but he had also failed to stop the Sun-Eater.
He could only hope that Hal would succeed in his endeavour.
.
.
Hal shot through space-time, through a wormhole he willed into existence, and arrived in the void above Oa. It was a mess, a huge mess. Everything seemed to be destroyed, or most things at least.
The buildings were destroyed, the planet on fire, dead bodies lay everywhere, and it seemed as though all life had been wiped out... but Hal knew that to not be the case.
Time seemed distorted, and the swirling energies were in disarray. Someone had been here, or will be here, or is here... but it was hard to pinpoint exactly where.
He touched down.
The smoky, blood-orange haze of Oa's ravaged landscape hung heavily over the craters. Hal stood and waved his hand over everything, allowing his power to feed him back information on what had happened.
And then, as in virtual reality, the green light started acting like a clock, turning back time. Hal started to see action, a fight, a war, more like, between the Green Lantern Corps and the Yellow Lanterns.
He saw the brutal warfare, the deaths and destruction on both sides, and he saw the Guardians attempting to save their planet from a Sun-Eater that threatened to consume their sun.
...
And then, he saw Kyle and Sinestro. He saw their fight, couldn't hear their words, but lipreading told him all that he had to know. This was Sinestro's plan, his revenge against Hal and the Green Lantern Corps for what they did to him.
He now served a new master. Or rather, he used a new emotion to power his greed and rage.
Fear.
"Oh no."
From the shadows of the rock face, a small, blue-skinned figure materialised as green projections. Two Guardians had projected their forms to Oa from somewhere.
{Hal Jordan,} the male Guardian said.
"...You must be Ganthet."
{We must converse,} Ganthet stated. {Do not alert the others. This conversation must remain secret.}
"And why is that?"
{If the other Guardians knew Sayd and I were speaking with you, they would exile both of us,} Ganthet warned.
Hal looked between them, without much emotion. Truthfully, he didn't like the Guardians either, but he understood that they were better than Sinestro was, and since he hadn't quite understood what was truly going on, he chose to listen instead.
"Sayd? I thought Guardians didn't take names."
{Like Ganthet, I have recently chosen to exist as an individual mind,} Sayd explained. {You could have become the best our Corps had to offer. Why had you not returned when Ganthet tried to reach you?}
"I was exiled from the Corps, and they were doing fine without me. Kyle has immense potential and will become a legendary Lantern in the future. I will help in the way I wish and not bound by your rules."
{I cannot claim to understand your reasoning, young human. You are so young that we have forgotten what that is like. However, no matter what happened, the Green Lantern Corps needs a true leader to halt this incursion of fear.}
...
{We need you.}