The person who knocked before stepping inside was the town sheriff.
The moment she saw him enter, Rachel instantly felt a wave of guilt wash over her and subtly tried to slip away.
Adrian noticed immediately.
With a casual motion, he reached out and lightly grabbed the edge of her clothes, stopping her before she could escape.
The sheriff maintained a polite, professional attitude as he briefly explained the situation to Adrian and Martha.
The two men Rachel had taken down were not seriously injured. After lying on the ground for a while, they eventually got back up and drove themselves to the hospital.
Unfortunately for them, things took a turn on the way there.
A patrol car noticed their suspicious behavior and pulled them over for questioning. Under pressure, the pair quickly folded and confessed everything without much resistance.
After a short investigation, the police had no trouble confirming Rachel's identity.
"Do I… need to take responsibility for this?"
Rachel looked nervous as she asked the sheriff.
"No," the sheriff replied reassuringly. "This is only a routine statement. Based on their confession, it appears you were acting in self-defense."
He gave Rachel a small nod.
"I'm only here to ask a few questions and record your statement."
"That's good."
Rachel let out a breath she had been unconsciously holding, lightly patting her chest in relief.
The possibility of facing legal trouble for injuring someone had been weighing heavily on her mind.
Now that the sheriff had clarified everything, the tension in her shoulders eased considerably.
Once the questioning ended, the sheriff took his leave.
Still, Martha clearly did not believe the issue ended there.
She turned her attention to Rachel, her expression serious but concerned.
"Rachel."
Martha's voice softened slightly.
"You need to tell me honestly, what were you thinking?"
"I…"
Rachel lowered her head uneasily.
"I'm sorry, Mom. I just didn't want you worrying too much."
Her voice carried genuine guilt.
Recently, Martha had already been overwhelmed with responsibilities involving the town council, leaving little time for herself. Rachel had seen how much pressure she was under and did not want to burden her further.
"Rachel…"
Martha sighed quietly before sitting beside her.
"What worries me most isn't what happened," she said gently. "It's the fact that you keep things to yourself. No matter what happens, Adrian and I are your family. You can talk to us about anything, even if it's difficult."
"I understand, Mom."
Rachel nodded weakly, guilt written across her face.
Adrian remained silent throughout the exchange, quietly listening from the side without interrupting.
When Rachel finally sat down, looking discouraged, he walked over and gently ran a hand through her soft hair.
"Brother, I'm sorry for making you worry."
Her voice came out small and apologetic.
"It's fine."
Adrian brushed it off casually before lowering his voice.
"You handled things pretty well."
Rachel blinked in surprise.
"Really?"
"Of course," Adrian replied, keeping his voice low enough that Martha would not overhear. "Especially since you didn't expose your magic. That part was smart."
A faint smile appeared on Rachel's face at the praise.
"Guys like them weren't worth using magic on anyway," she whispered proudly.
Then she glanced toward Martha before leaning slightly closer.
"Uh… brother, do you want to come to my room later? I want to show you the magic I've been learning recently."
Her eager expression made her excitement impossible to hide.
Adrian naturally had no reason to refuse.
"Sure," he replied with a smile. "I'd love to."
The next day.
Far beyond Earth's atmosphere, deep within space, Guy Gardner led a large squad of Green Lantern Corps members toward Earth.
Compared to the previous mission, their numbers had increased significantly, and this time, they came fully prepared with specialized weapons.
Before long, Guy spotted movement in the endless darkness of space.
The enemy.
The Yellow Lantern Corps.
"Hold on," one Green Lantern muttered. "There are only two sentries."
He narrowed his eyes.
"Yellow Lanterns. Looks like we got lucky."
Guy immediately shook his head.
"No," he said, his expression hardening. "We're not lucky. Yellow Lanterns are reckless, but they're not stupid. Honestly, I'm surprised Sinestro convinced these two to stay on watch this long."
He prepared himself for combat.
Unfortunately, the two Yellow Lanterns, one male and one female, had already noticed them.
The moment they realized who was approaching, they retreated without hesitation.
"Bygori," Guy said, glancing toward a tiny winged Lantern nearby, "you're the best scout we've got. How did they spot us?"
The Green Lantern he addressed was small, no larger than a butterfly.
With crimson hair, elegant wings, and distinctly elven features, Bygori excelled at reconnaissance due to her stealth abilities and tiny frame.
At the moment, however, she looked thoroughly annoyed.
"They didn't spot me," she said sharply.
She pointed behind the group.
"You brought Mogo."
Guy paused.
Behind them floated an enormous living world.
Mogo.
The Green Lantern of Sector 2261.
A sentient planet.
"You seriously expected them not to notice an entire planet moving through space?" Bygori asked flatly.
Though smaller than Earth, Mogo was still massive enough to be impossible to overlook.
Unlike ordinary Green Lanterns, Mogo was not humanoid.
He was a living planet, a being driven by justice and self-awareness. Because the Green Lantern power ring responded to willpower, anything capable of possessing genuine will could theoretically become a Lantern.
Years ago, a fallen Green Lantern's ring had remained on Mogo instead of returning to Oa.
Eventually, the ring bonded with the sentient world itself.
Since then, Mogo had become one of the Corps' most powerful and respected members.
Gentle, wise, and immensely powerful, Mogo had even served as a temporary refuge and operational base for the Corps during times of crisis.
Like every Green Lantern, Mogo possessed the ability to create energy constructs powered by will.
He could generate force fields, resist telepathic interference, travel through space, and even transport allies across vast distances.
Bygori folded her arms.
"So yes," she said dryly, "the giant living planet gave us away."
Guy rubbed his forehead.
Fair point.
The two Yellow Lanterns had clearly noticed their arrival and were likely rushing to report everything to Sinestro.
And that was a problem.
Because Sinestro had fully aligned himself with Adrian and was currently somewhere on Earth.
"Fine," Guy muttered, exhaling deeply. "No point sneaking around anymore."
He turned toward the gathered Green Lanterns.
"The Guardians authorized the use of stronger force against the Yellow Lantern Corps."
His expression darkened.
"Their hands are stained with blood."
Green energy flickered around him.
"We catch up to them, fast."
The Green Lanterns surged forward like streaks of emerald light.
The fleeing Yellow Lanterns stood no chance.
They were quickly intercepted, and battle erupted almost instantly.
Against an overwhelming numerical advantage, the two Yellow Lanterns were completely overwhelmed.
Salakk, who had previously been assigned to watch over Hal Jordan before John Stewart helped him escape, remained outside the battle.
He floated beside Guy.
"You should notify our allies on Earth," Salakk said. "We can arrive in less than half a day now. A surprise attack is no longer possible."
Guy shook his head.
"No. Sinestro already knows we're coming."
His voice remained unusually steady.
"We're dealing with some of the most dangerous people on this planet."
His gaze sharpened.
"What happened to Kilowog can't happen again."
The memory of their fallen ally still lingered heavily among them.
"We move carefully," Guy said firmly. "No mistakes."
Meanwhile.
Inside Metropolis.
Within the walls of Iron Heights Prison, Hal Jordan and John Stewart walked through the facility's heavily secured corridors.
Iron Heights housed dangerous metahumans and enhanced criminals, many too powerful for ordinary prisons to contain.
Among its inmates were Black Lightning, Huntress, and several imprisoned Green Lanterns, including Arisia.
Elsewhere in the prison, Warden Wolf sat inside his office, buried beneath unfinished paperwork.
The broad-shouldered man looked imposing even while seated.
His muscular build stretched against his suit, while thick sideburns framed his stern face, making him look every bit like someone no one wanted to challenge.
Taking a sip of coffee, Wolf let out a tired breath before organizing the files spread across his desk.
He checked the time.
Almost eleven.
Lunch was getting close, yet he was still stuck working overtime.
The federal government seriously needed to pay him more for this.
Standing from his chair, Wolf walked toward the window overlooking the prison grounds.
Outside, Iron Heights sat unusually quiet.
Too quiet.
===
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