2nd August 2013
11:01 GMT
"So how old
are you?
"
Tomar-Re's presence has lit a fire under the Xudarian Foreign Ministry, but bureaucracy can only move
so quickly. The Minister is at a function and can't just disappear at my say-so, most of the senior civil servants have gone home for the evening and it's not like this happens often enough for there to be an established procedure.
"Why do you ask?"
"Given the sort of mental focus required to become a Green Lantern, I doubt that you joined the Corps as a child. And you were active when Krypton exploded, which was forty Earth-years ago.
"
"Ah, yes. Seventy would be fairly old for a human, wouldn't it?"
"You're seventy?
"
"Seventy-eight, if I'm adjusting for the differences in year-length correctly. Late middle-age for a member of my species."
"Is a forty-year career normal for a Green Lantern? I got the impression it was usually a good deal shorter.
"
"A trick of statistics. I live in a peaceful Sector. Rings in Sectors with a high level of violence are..
exchanged more rapidly. Sector Seventeen, for example, had a very high turnover until Lantern Chance joined the Corps.
Lantern Larvox is extremely fortunate to have him as a partner."
"I met Lantern Chance, but I don't know Lantern Larvox.
"
"I don't either. It
is on the other side of the galaxy. Most of what Lanterns in most Sectors do is interplanetary police work. Your home Sector-. No, your home
world may have given you the wrong idea."
"And the Reach war zone.
"
"That as well. Though it may interest you to know that Abin Sur was a Green Lantern for far longer than I have been."
"Have you ever thought about quitting? Going back to whatever you did before?
"
"I don't think that I
could. I made an effort to keep up with modern astrophysics after I got my ring, but it's been a while since I attended a lecture or read a research paper. How about you?"
"Four more years.
"
"Oh?"
"Not to
quit, but I want to get married and… That's when NEMO thinks that the Reach will be pushed out of the Periphery. At that point I'll feel alright about reducing my hours-. And
hopefully the Earth won't have re-imperilled itself too badly. I think I'll enjoy focusing on something smaller in scale.
"
"A four-year betrothal? That seems a little long."
I tilt my head back, rolling my eyes.
He blinks at me. "Did I say something untoward?"
"No, it's just that a
lot of people have said that, including
me. Unfortunately, I picked a number and she sets a
lot of store in sticking to your given word. And Earth's in a bit of a mess right now.
"
"What happened this time?"
"Anti-Life.
"
His eyes
glow for a moment. Then his head fronds stand on end.
"And last year it was our time travelling descendants from the far future. I'd just like to go a couple of years without something like that happening.
"
"I would like that for you as well, because that way those things are not happening in the closest Sector to mine." He sighs. "I assumed that Kal-El would some day want to take me to task for my failure to preserve Krypton. I did not think that anything like
this would happen."
"A lot of people could have saved Krypton, and you did the best you could when you became aware of what was happening. I'm sure he sees it-
"
We both hear the sound of many feet heading down the corridor outside the meeting room where they dumped us.
"-that way too.
"
Foreign Minister Zolan-La enters, dressed in her best party frock, a huddle of aides scurrying after her. "Green Lantern! I'm sorry it took so long to get away!"
"That's quite alright, Minister. This-" He gestures to me as the ministry crowd file in and take up their seats. "-is the Illustres of the Orange Lantern Corps."
I raise my right hand and wave. I don't get a response this quickly from governments on
Earth, but I suppose that's the advantage of having a service record longer than my life to date.
The minister looks me over. "Yes, and he-." She looks me over again. "He?"
"He.
"
"He wants us to hold a trial for the kryptonian Dru-Zod. I thought that the kryptonians were extinct."
"They used to put their criminals in a place called the Phantom Zone. In a horrifying example of cosmic irony, all the prisoners survived while all but a handful of others died. Some were in for minor offences: a few months ago we let out a man who was in for theft. Others committed more serious crimes.
"
"And the people of Timaron are also not extinct."
"No. I'm not sure how many survivors there are in total; Amalak implied that it wasn't very many.
"
I should probably take a look at Timaron while I'm in the area; if nothing else Lantern Mother of Mercy could help with the geoscaping.
"Our sun radiates wavelengths which-."
I shake my head.
"We've got radiation shields, both personal and area affecting. And we've also got gold kryptonite, which painlessly nullifies exotic kryptonian abilities. We'll be using multiple layers of both, as well as having empowered kryptonians on standby. And I'll be tagging along as well. If you're agreeing to do this, I'll collaborate on preparing the courtroom with everything it needs for the trial to happen safely.
"
"Good. Now: the trial itself. We have
some records of the Timaron justice system, but it would be helpful if someone who was actually involved with it could be involved. Are there any such people?"
"I don't know. I'll find out… If you're agreeing to host it?
"
"Yes, in principle. My only concerns are safety and authenticity."
I nod.
"Would it be alright if I brought a timaronian or two here to look at venues? I'll see if there are any jurists amongst them when I pick them up.
"
"That will be fine. I'll assign a member of my staff to assist you when you return."
"Thank you. And thank you for getting on this so quickly.
"
"Justice is long overdue. Will there be room to examine General Dru-Zod's other crimes?"
"A trial under Timaron law can only really cover crimes committed on or around Timaron. And I imagine that they'll want a death sentence if he's found guilty, and it's a little hard to try someone when they're dead. What crimes are we talking about?
"
"Timaron wasn't an isolated world. There were ships from several other species in the system when Dru-Zod attacked."
"In that case, I imagine so, but let me check with the Timaron delegation. Meet back here in five days?
"