The Justice Force: The Team Gets a Pet!

He knew he was different among those who could access the Red Light. Creatures who bore the rings were cursed with the endless rage created from vengeance. Great minds became perverse from the overwhelming desire of achieving their ultimate goal...revenge. Even after bathing in the acidic ocean of Ysmault, masters of the red ring still chased after the desire for vengeance. But what would happen to those who achieved it? He witnessed rings abandon their masters after they satiated their bloodlust. Without an object to fuel their anger, the ring searches for the next tormented soul like a forest fire without anything to burn. Fortunately, Ezekiel was different. He remembered taking out his would-be assassin, remembered it so clearly one would think it took place that morning. However, although it brought him satisfaction, his anger burned as bright as the sun. Ezekiel eventually gathered the courage to ask Hal Jordan for help in mastering this power. To which Hal answered with an offer to the Bahamas.

"Humans tend to make the most troublesome of lanterns. But you're a different type of red kid," He remembered that night. Hal Jordan and Uproar sat upon a cruise, one which Hal offered to take Ezekiel on for a short vacation. "The *right* kind of red." Hal smiled. "Atrocitus whines and cries about his home world. Rather than use this amazing power to stop crime before its too late, he selfishly chases his own vengeance. But I've witnessed you shed tears for others. Your lack of strength during times when you've brought everything to the table and it still wasn't good enough has become your furnace." Hal Jordan sipped his mojito. "And when that's not enough, you open your heart to the injustice of the universe."

Those words. It was as if Hal peered into his very soul and pulled out the truth. Even now, as Uproar stood on the balcony of his room and peered onto the nearby town, his crimson world shined with thousands of stars. Some brighter than others. Some fading and others flaring. He could *see* it. As bright as day in the darkest of nights. But it could never overwhelm him...and it definitely tried. But he knew anger was nothing more than just a sensation. Everything experiences anger. But choosing when to act was the epitome of emotional mastery. After all, he was quite the angry child.

Ezekiel blinked. Without his usual cloak and armor constructs, the ebony man would look no different than others. He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. Today was definitely not the best...trading blows with a demigod wasn't the best of ideas. Every twitch felt like his muscles were screaming. But he felt alive. Oh did he feel alive! "I need a fucking shower." He groaned. Ezekiel stepped into the shower and turned on the water to scorching hot levels. He focused on retracting his suit so that he could feel the burning water against his skin. It felt good. So good he shivered. His eyes closed as he placed his forehead against the cold wall.

*I...hate...you*

Ezekiel's eyes shot open. He turned around but couldn't find the source of the plea. It felt stronger than the others. Different. Even through the curtains where the window lead to an endless sea, a bright light exploded. One which only he could see. Someone needed his help...

Fighting a lantern, even for a young god, was tiring. Lanterns were no walk in the park. However, that didn’t stop Gabriel as he moved around his room in Mount Justice. He had just finished setting up his television and consoles and was now placing his games and books on a bookshelf. Finally, on top of the shelf, he place a series of pictures. One of him with his parents, another with Captain Marvel and the seven founding members of the Justice League after the invasion of Darkseid. He smiled as he looked at it but moved towards his bed.

Plopping down on the bed, Gabriel began to nod off. As he did, he fell into a dream. He stood on a stone in the middle of an ocean as a large storm raged one. He heard a voice over the wind and thunder, or perhaps the wind and thunder was the voice.

*“An ancient species of mine has awakened. Assure it’s status, little god.* Pantheon awoke with a start. He wasn’t sure who contacted him, but he had an idea.

A door slammed shut as Ryan trudged through his room and flopped down on his bed, exhausted from the events of that day. He let out a massive sigh, turing to look over his room. It was painted light blue and decorated with a mural of the Seattle skyline. The ceiling had little glow in the dark stars stuck to it in constellations. A large tv was hooked up to the wall with a couple game systems below it. To the left of that sat a large wardrobe that was flung open, clothes spilling out messily onto the floor around it. On the wall opposite to the foot of his bed was a massive bookshelf containing copious amounts of comic books and television shows. "Man we're all a bunch of weirdos I guess." He spoke to himself, reflecting on his day.

He'd interacted with many of his new teammates, most of them being very eccentric. The real highlight of the day was a duel that almost broke the damn building down. He'd noticed in their first mission that Uproar and Pantheon were somewhat at each others throats. This time they'd finally tried to go at it. Thankfully, for the base, Ryan had been there to step in and stop the duel from progressing any further than it had. Keeping two from touching each other until they finally cooled off.

Ezekiel immediately dried himself off and went towards the window. His ring automatically generating his signature outfit. *Maybe I should call for help?* Uproar thought. *No. This is a lantern's duty. Involving them would only make me look even weaker. I'll just make sure to get back before the morning.*

Without hesitation, Uproar jumped from his window and flew off. A shining crimson light streaking across the sky.

## A Once Deserted Island

An older gentleman, cloaked in a white tuxedo and swirling crimson wine in a pointed glass, peered over his lavish balcony. To think that this massive island cost less than several hundred million. A distant island from which he could watch Happy Harbor, a city which he hoped to run one day, it would serve as one of the Triad's marine bases. Equipped with a beautiful resort and several underwater laboratories. Protected, of course, by thick forest and dangerous wildlife combined with mercenaries paid fortunes by the hour. This old tyrant sipped his wine and smiled. Earlier today, his men managed to find the score of a lifetime. Something ancient sailers would spread rumors about. Tales of ships being capsized by gigantic tentacles. An ancient creature of Atlantis, the size of an island and uncontrollable by all except one! While, doing what he managed to accomplish today was easily seen as an act of war against the actual sea world, he doubted that anyone could make such a connection.

The door behind him creaked open. From which a younger gentleman emerged. "Mr. Tsung! We've managed to successfully restrain the Kraken at our northwest base." He said. "Sha'll we commence with the plan?"

"No. A kraken of that size will serve us in the future. But for now, it's nothing more than bait, used to lure our actual target to us." Tsung Shen answered.

"Seems quite expensive for some bait." The young captain exclaimed.

"There is only a handful of these magnificent beast in this world. But they possess enough power to rule the seas unhindered. We wouldn't stand a chance against a full grown Kraken. But as long as the baby is in our grasp, she'll come to us in a more *calm* manner." He sipped his wine once more. "In the mean time, shut off all communications and arm all our naval defenses. Just in case any Atlantean's discover us before our plans come to fruition. They shouldn't though, they're too busy looking for their king!"

Uproar could hear it. Hear its cries of anger. Hatred. It unknowingly called out to his his heart-his ring-and wrapped around it with a tight grip. So tight, Uproar's burning blood almost ignited him from the inside. He approached the source of this anger, a massive island which, to his knowledge, had been deserted for several decades. Still, Uproar decided to approach this in a more stealthily manner. He gently landed behind several trees and leapt into a nearby bush at the sound of marching. He peaked through the branches and saw several camouflaged men with their guns pointed upwards.

"This island hasn't been occupied since the 50's." Uproar thought. He noticed a weird symbol on their shoulder patch. Three triangles... "I might've stumbled onto something deadly." He bit his lip...his finger hovering over the team communicator. One push and everyone would know to rendezvous at his position. "No. I can handle this!" He cursed, placing the communicator back into his pocket.

*First, I need to find the source of this rage.*

Gabriel rummaged through the kitchen, quickly scarfing down some food before heading out while reading a book on myths. He wasn't even sure he needed food in this form, but it was a simple comfort for him. After consuming the few food items, he came to the conclusion that the team needed to go on a shopping run to stock up un the mountain. "Several heroes in one place will need something to make up for all the energy we are gonna burn." Pantheon said to himself as he walked outside.

With the power of the living lightning that was in the core of his being now, Gabriel's costume wrapped around him to show his status as Pantheon. He looked towards the sea and remembered his dream. While we wasn't sure before, he was confident now. *The sea and storms, it must have been the great god Poseidon. What beast is he referring to though?* Pantheon thought to himself as he flew towards the sea. "Poseidon's power isn't in me, Oceanus isn't Pontus, Susanoo, Njord, none of the sea gods granted me power. This will be... something to see." Pantheon said aloud as he sighed.

Ryan sighed aloud as he pushed himself up from his pillow glaring out the window at the ocean. "I can't believe that less than a month ago I was just living in Seattle, now I'm damn hero." He pointed his hand at the bookshelf, focusing as a book flew to his hand. "Moby Dick, huh. I think I'm getting better at this." He focused again, sending the book back to its place on the shelf. His eyes wandered back to the window, catching a glimpse of a figure briefly hovering in the air before shooting out to sea. "I'm pretty sure that was Pantheon. The hell is he doing." Ryan muttered, reaching the conclusion that he was probably going off to finish his duel with Uproar. They both seemed like the type to dislike unfinished business.

"I should probably follow him huh." He nodded to himself and cracked open his window, grabbing a briefcase with his costume in it. He leapt from the window, propelling himself through the air and onto the water. He touched down, using his vectors to stand on sea. Then he propelled himself forwards, dashing in the direction of Pantheon.

Uproar's ring smarted. A familiar sensation as his body shared what Hal called a high capacity sympathetic frequency. He felt the anger of that mysterious beast on this island. And it burned. So much so, he wanted to set the entire place aflame. He managed to travel further inland without detection. Quickly dispatching these mysterious gun toting men with rapid strikes. His punches clean and sharp, a whiplike crack of his arm, a sure sign of one who boxed against some of the most fearsome aliens. He hid their bodies among the bushes.

"Wo Shing Wo Triad." Uproar whispered. He'd managed to gather some of their belongings in his small escapades. He made sure to grab a couple of their identification cards. "Shocking that a bunch of smalltime gangsters would invest in timeshare properties." He chuckled.

"What was that?!" A man shot around, aiming his gun towards a nearby tree. His partner stood several feet off with his own weapons drawn.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen," Uproar started. He turned away from the tree and revealed himself in the moon light. A blood red shine emanating from the silver orb in the sky. "Going around, knocking you guys has gotten me nowhere. So I'm going to try a more...different approach."

"Fire!" The partner screamed. Their fingers glued to the trigger, a rain of bullets fired at Uproar. His ring shined and a crimson shield emerged, deflecting the bullets. Several found themselves buried in their own legs. He shot his hand forward and the shield transformed into two bestial claws, wrapped tightly around their bodies. He slammed them against the trees and slowly approached them

"I've been meaning to try this method out. Usually, I can only shift through the minds of the angered. A pretty useless power normally...unless I can make you mad!"

"P-please child. Us Wo Shing Sho are followers of the Enlightened one. Our emotions are under control at all times." The common filth spat. "Even now, we fear nothing. Not even death!"

"Would be troublesome if I was a Yellow Lantern." Uproar smirked. He spat drops of crimson liquid upon their foreheads, which slowly crept down their body. It branched off into a vein formation, seeping deep into their body. He watched as their eyes widened. Veins popped. He could feel their hearts increase rapidly. "Good. Good. We're all angry on the inside. Some of us just need a little spark to light the forest aflame." Uproar approached until his eyes were matched with theirs. His ring shined brighter as he entered a world of red. Shifting. Flashes of images. He wasn't quite the telepath. But an angry mind was simple to read through. Images. Even a child could understand this picture book. Yet the torrent of dreams found their source in anger. And such, he had to remain detached.

"Cheating wife. Dead kids." Uproar recited plainly. "The usual." He squinted his eyes beneath his cowl. "There." Yes. Exactly the clue he needed. At the base of the mountain was a gigantic door. From which a tunnel extended deep within until reaching a giant shaft. A scream. Orders. The man returned to his post as a good pawn would. This was a grunt after all. Uproar smirked. At least now he knew where his target was.

"I'd kill you...but that wouldn't be the heroic thing to do." The Red Lantern teased. "So, I'll let your allies decide how useful wild beast are." Uproar's construct vanished. Causing the two men to fall to their knees. Overwhelmed by madness. *Shit...I might've used too much.* As if that was a question! His eyes lowered and his shoulders sunk. A wave of sympathy washed over him as he felt it.

"I see..." Uproar whispered. For the two men, once partners in crime, aimed their guns at one another and fired without hesitation. Uproar sighed at the gruesome scene. Without the residual anger from the telepathic link, the images he saw actually made sense. The guys dead children lead to his wife cheating...with his own partner. He'd long suspected it...

That's the catch with anger. Every fit of rage. Every bit of that crimson elixir which leaves one feeling so alive possessed a piece of their soul instilled in it. But with great power comes a requirement for an even greater comprehension. Without it, it'd be a child wielding a torch among eucalyptus leaves.

"What was that?!"

Uproar turned around. A guard squadron approached. Quick thinking! He grabbed the bodies and dragged them into a nearby bush before running towards the mountain. This wasn't the time for philosophy.

As Pantheon landed on a distant island, he heard gunshots loud and clear in the distance with his enhanced hearing. Even without it, they rang out in the silent night sky. *Fun, must be a welcoming party,* Pantheon thought as he began to walk forward. He focused his eyes to look around perfectly in the darkness.

He thought of the dream again. "Protect what beast, where is it? Damn Greek gods and their prophecies never being simple to follow." Pantheon said aloud to himself before signed. A gunshot rang nearby. Pantheon turned to react, but as he did the bullet crushed against his strong body. He looked at the simple gunman, with a group of three behind him, look confused over what just happened. "Hi, I know I'm not particularly famous, but I'm gonna let you in on something. The Big Man with the 'S' shield called me the 'Adamantine God', for reasons I think you just figured out."

Pantheon sped towards the group at great speed. He used a series of four punches, one for each, charged with the power of his lightning. He held back broth his strength and voltage, but the taser-punch was enough to knock them out cold. They would stay that was for some time, with either other allies finding them, public tourists, or hopefully police. Based on their manner of dress, they seemed to be in some sort of group together.

Pantheon looked at the night sky as he turned away from them. He was still confused on what the dream was telling him to do. Maybe it was just a meaningless dream and he left the comfort of his bed for nothing. No. That was unlikely. While he has dreamt of weird things before, he never had a violent awakening from a voice giving him commands. Where was he supposed to go?

That's when Pantheon caught it. The light of the distant moon illuminated the sky enough to let Pantheon see that in some great distance, storm clouds were moving. They even seemed center and unmoving from their current position, a strange sight indeed. Pantheon remembered his dream once more. He stood on a rock in the middle of the sea with a storm brewing overhead. "Must be Poseidon's calling card." Pantheon began to run forth towards the direction of the storm and unknowingly into a larger enemy territory.

Three gunmen strode across the sand of shore chatting with each other about the latest football game. As they spoke about who made the best field goal and agued over who was a better quarterback, shots were heard in the air. The three spun around, turing towards the inner island in shock and removing their weapons from their sides. They tapped their earpieces but the radio was silent. Just then a strong gust of air startled them and they spun around to face a cloud of sand. As it cleared a man was revealed, dressed in pajamas and holding a black briefcase.

"Hey what's up have you guys seen like someone who looks umm, like a boy scout I guess. That's what Uproar call him anyways." Ryan asked rather casually before quickly noting their weapons. As they raised their guns towards him he held his hands out in protest. "Hey wait come on lets not do this right now. I don't even know you people. I'm just looking for my friends." His words were to no avail and they opened fire. The hail of bullets stopped just short of Ryan, hovering in the air. "I'm assuming you've all seen The Matrix right. Yeah I'm basically Neo from that." The bullets fell from the air clattering to the floor as Ryan lurched forwards. His vector enhanced knee connected with one of the men's stomachs, sending him flying into the ground.

As their comrade writhed in pain on the sand the others pointed their weapons back at Ryan but he was too quick. A briefcase hit the first one square in the jaw, knocking him out cold. The second one opened fire but Ryan was already too close to be hit. His hand connected with the mans face as he slammed him into the ground headfirst. "So are you guys gangsters or what? Start talking right now okay. I wanna know why you all have weapons and are so keen on shooting an unarmed dude.

"We are Wo Shing Wo, followers of the great.." He was cut off by Ryan slamming his head down into the sand.

"Save it. I've heard of your pathetic gang. I used to fight your kind when you worked under Crimson King. Then with his fall you guys finally tried to slink back into Seattle's criminal spotlight once he was out of the way. Didn't do you much good with the quakes did it." His voice was much darker, reminiscent of his time in the streets. "I've fought your kind before and I don't appreciate the existence of you or the organization you belong to." Ryan pressed harder on the man's head, pushing him further into the sand. "But the fact that you worked with him, that is what draws the line." The man's head was forced under the sand as it hardened around him. The other two were swiftly dispatched by Ryan's hands as well.

He opened the briefcase and his suit popped out. He wrapped it around his form, and Ryan became Cain. He'd originally just come here to follow Pantheon but if this happened to be some sort of base, he'd snuff them out. "I suppose the gunshot will lead me to Pantheon, might as well figure out why he's here huh." Cain remarked before dashing through the foliage.

Cain emerged from the brush in a clearing to see a red shape move by him. Wait Red? "Uproar is that you? The hell are you doing here?" Cain spoke, holding his hands in confusion.

Uproar couldn't risk the potential trouble. He reacted without a second's hesitation. Wrapping his fingers onto Cain's mouth and slamming his teammate against a tree. The darkness of the trees above hid the two from the oncoming foot patrol. Once out of the distance, he let Cain fall to the ground. If not for the bandages and his cowl, Cain would see Uproar's ebony face twisted in a growl. "Why'd you follow me?!" He whispered violently. Perhaps the most violent whisper the world has ever heard. "How the-"

"Fire!"

In Uproar's anger, he'd forgotten that he was a Red *Lantern* partaking in a stealth mission. His rage shining brightly off of his suit must've caught the patrol's attention. He quickly faced their attacker and shot his hand forward. Knives of crimson light piercing their temples before dissipating. He never cared for killing but always held a special hatred for drug lords and other criminals who profited off the suffering of others. With them gone, he turned to Cain.

"I swear to god, it's like you're a puppy. Who else is here dammit?!"

"So I'm not alone here, I see. Yo Cain. Uproar." Pantheon said as he walked up. He looked down at the bodies of the drug lords. "I'm not particularly phased by the killing of an enemy, but I can't imagine Martian Manhunter will be particularly pleased. What are you both doing here?"

However, Pantheon turned his gaze back towards the storm. "What is going on there, why does it matter?" Pantheon mumbled softly to himself. As he looked back towards his allies. "While the mob are like cockroaches, I can't see or hear anymore, so let's figure out what we are all here for."

"What the hell man?" Cain roared, picking himself up from the ground. "I didn't even know you were here. I was legitimately surprised to even see you." He glared at Uproar. It was then that another voice joined the fray, he whipped around to see Pantheon behind them. "I was after him he was just flying off into the night and I followed him. Turns out you're both on this damn island with the Wo Shing Wo." He turned to face a looming building in the distance. "I don't exactly know why you guys are here but if the head of this damn organization is here I'm taking him out."

## A Once Deserted Island

An older gentleman, cloaked in a white tuxedo and swirling crimson wine in a pointed glass, peered over his lavish balcony. To think that this massive island cost less than several hundred million. A distant island from which he could watch Happy Harbor, a city which he hoped to run one day, it would serve as one of the Triad's marine bases. Equipped with a beautiful resort and several underwater laboratories. Protected, of course, by thick forest and dangerous wildlife combined with mercenaries paid fortunes by the hour. This old tyrant sipped his wine and smiled. Earlier today, his men managed to find the score of a lifetime. Something ancient sailers would spread rumors about. Tales of ships being capsized by gigantic tentacles. An ancient creature of Atlantis, the size of an island and uncontrollable by all except one! While, doing what he managed to accomplish today was easily seen as an act of war against the actual sea world, he doubted that anyone could make such a connection.

The door behind him creaked open. From which a younger gentleman emerged. "Mr. Tsung! We've managed to successfully restrain the Kraken at our northwest base." He said. "Sha'll we commence with the plan?"

"No. A kraken of that size will serve us in the future. But for now, it's nothing more than bait, used to lure our actual target to us." Tsung Shen answered.

"Seems quite expensive for some bait." The young captain exclaimed.

"There is only a handful of these magnificent beast in this world. But they possess enough power to rule the seas unhindered. We wouldn't stand a chance against a full grown Kraken. But as long as the baby is in our grasp, she'll come to us in a more *calm* manner." He sipped his wine once more. "In the mean time, shut off all communications and arm all our naval defenses. Just in case any Atlantean's discover us before our plans come to fruition. They shouldn't though, they're too busy looking for their king!"

Uproar could hear it. Hear its cries of anger. Hatred. It unknowingly called out to his his heart-his ring-and wrapped around it with a tight grip. So tight, Uproar's burning blood almost ignited him from the inside. He approached the source of this anger, a massive island which, to his knowledge, had been deserted for several decades. Still, Uproar decided to approach this in a more stealthily manner. He gently landed behind several trees and leapt into a nearby bush at the sound of marching. He peaked through the branches and saw several camouflaged men with their guns pointed upwards.

"This island hasn't been occupied since the 50's." Uproar thought. He noticed a weird symbol on their shoulder patch. Three triangles... "I might've stumbled onto something deadly." He bit his lip...his finger hovering over the team communicator. One push and everyone would know to rendezvous at his position. "No. I can handle this!" He cursed, placing the communicator back into his pocket.

*First, I need to find the source of this rage.*

Gabriel rummaged through the kitchen, quickly scarfing down some food before heading out while reading a book on myths. He wasn't even sure he needed food in this form, but it was a simple comfort for him. After consuming the few food items, he came to the conclusion that the team needed to go on a shopping run to stock up un the mountain. "Several heroes in one place will need something to make up for all the energy we are gonna burn." Pantheon said to himself as he walked outside.

With the power of the living lightning that was in the core of his being now, Gabriel's costume wrapped around him to show his status as Pantheon. He looked towards the sea and remembered his dream. While we wasn't sure before, he was confident now. *The sea and storms, it must have been the great god Poseidon. What beast is he referring to though?* Pantheon thought to himself as he flew towards the sea. "Poseidon's power isn't in me, Oceanus isn't Pontus, Susanoo, Njord, none of the sea gods granted me power. This will be... something to see." Pantheon said aloud as he sighed.

Ryan sighed aloud as he pushed himself up from his pillow glaring out the window at the ocean. "I can't believe that less than a month ago I was just living in Seattle, now I'm damn hero." He pointed his hand at the bookshelf, focusing as a book flew to his hand. "Moby Dick, huh. I think I'm getting better at this." He focused again, sending the book back to its place on the shelf. His eyes wandered back to the window, catching a glimpse of a figure briefly hovering in the air before shooting out to sea. "I'm pretty sure that was Pantheon. The hell is he doing." Ryan muttered, reaching the conclusion that he was probably going off to finish his duel with Uproar. They both seemed like the type to dislike unfinished business.

"I should probably follow him huh." He nodded to himself and cracked open his window, grabbing a briefcase with his costume in it. He leapt from the window, propelling himself through the air and onto the water. He touched down, using his vectors to stand on sea. Then he propelled himself forwards, dashing in the direction of Pantheon.

Uproar's ring smarted. A familiar sensation as his body shared what Hal called a high capacity sympathetic frequency. He felt the anger of that mysterious beast on this island. And it burned. So much so, he wanted to set the entire place aflame. He managed to travel further inland without detection. Quickly dispatching these mysterious gun toting men with rapid strikes. His punches clean and sharp, a whiplike crack of his arm, a sure sign of one who boxed against some of the most fearsome aliens. He hid their bodies among the bushes.

"Wo Shing Wo Triad." Uproar whispered. He'd managed to gather some of their belongings in his small escapades. He made sure to grab a couple of their identification cards. "Shocking that a bunch of smalltime gangsters would invest in timeshare properties." He chuckled.

"What was that?!" A man shot around, aiming his gun towards a nearby tree. His partner stood several feet off with his own weapons drawn.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen," Uproar started. He turned away from the tree and revealed himself in the moon light. A blood red shine emanating from the silver orb in the sky. "Going around, knocking you guys has gotten me nowhere. So I'm going to try a more...different approach."

"Fire!" The partner screamed. Their fingers glued to the trigger, a rain of bullets fired at Uproar. His ring shined and a crimson shield emerged, deflecting the bullets. Several found themselves buried in their own legs. He shot his hand forward and the shield transformed into two bestial claws, wrapped tightly around their bodies. He slammed them against the trees and slowly approached them

"I've been meaning to try this method out. Usually, I can only shift through the minds of the angered. A pretty useless power normally...unless I can make you mad!"

"P-please child. Us Wo Shing Sho are followers of the Enlightened one. Our emotions are under control at all times." The common filth spat. "Even now, we fear nothing. Not even death!"

"Would be troublesome if I was a Yellow Lantern." Uproar smirked. He spat drops of crimson liquid upon their foreheads, which slowly crept down their body. It branched off into a vein formation, seeping deep into their body. He watched as their eyes widened. Veins popped. He could feel their hearts increase rapidly. "Good. Good. We're all angry on the inside. Some of us just need a little spark to light the forest aflame." Uproar approached until his eyes were matched with theirs. His ring shined brighter as he entered a world of red. Shifting. Flashes of images. He wasn't quite the telepath. But an angry mind was simple to read through. Images. Even a child could understand this picture book. Yet the torrent of dreams found their source in anger. And such, he had to remain detached.

"Cheating wife. Dead kids." Uproar recited plainly. "The usual." He squinted his eyes beneath his cowl. "There." Yes. Exactly the clue he needed. At the base of the mountain was a gigantic door. From which a tunnel extended deep within until reaching a giant shaft. A scream. Orders. The man returned to his post as a good pawn would. This was a grunt after all. Uproar smirked. At least now he knew where his target was.

"I'd kill you...but that wouldn't be the heroic thing to do." The Red Lantern teased. "So, I'll let your allies decide how useful wild beast are." Uproar's construct vanished. Causing the two men to fall to their knees. Overwhelmed by madness. *Shit...I might've used too much.* As if that was a question! His eyes lowered and his shoulders sunk. A wave of sympathy washed over him as he felt it.

"I see..." Uproar whispered. For the two men, once partners in crime, aimed their guns at one another and fired without hesitation. Uproar sighed at the gruesome scene. Without the residual anger from the telepathic link, the images he saw actually made sense. The guys dead children lead to his wife cheating...with his own partner. He'd long suspected it...

That's the catch with anger. Every fit of rage. Every bit of that crimson elixir which leaves one feeling so alive possessed a piece of their soul instilled in it. But with great power comes a requirement for an even greater comprehension. Without it, it'd be a child wielding a torch among eucalyptus leaves.

"What was that?!"

Uproar turned around. A guard squadron approached. Quick thinking! He grabbed the bodies and dragged them into a nearby bush before running towards the mountain. This wasn't the time for philosophy.

As Pantheon landed on a distant island, he heard gunshots loud and clear in the distance with his enhanced hearing. Even without it, they rang out in the silent night sky. *Fun, must be a welcoming party,* Pantheon thought as he began to walk forward. He focused his eyes to look around perfectly in the darkness.

He thought of the dream again. "Protect what beast, where is it? Damn Greek gods and their prophecies never being simple to follow." Pantheon said aloud to himself before signed. A gunshot rang nearby. Pantheon turned to react, but as he did the bullet crushed against his strong body. He looked at the simple gunman, with a group of three behind him, look confused over what just happened. "Hi, I know I'm not particularly famous, but I'm gonna let you in on something. The Big Man with the 'S' shield called me the 'Adamantine God', for reasons I think you just figured out."

Pantheon sped towards the group at great speed. He used a series of four punches, one for each, charged with the power of his lightning. He held back broth his strength and voltage, but the taser-punch was enough to knock them out cold. They would stay that was for some time, with either other allies finding them, public tourists, or hopefully police. Based on their manner of dress, they seemed to be in some sort of group together.

Pantheon looked at the night sky as he turned away from them. He was still confused on what the dream was telling him to do. Maybe it was just a meaningless dream and he left the comfort of his bed for nothing. No. That was unlikely. While he has dreamt of weird things before, he never had a violent awakening from a voice giving him commands. Where was he supposed to go?

That's when Pantheon caught it. The light of the distant moon illuminated the sky enough to let Pantheon see that in some great distance, storm clouds were moving. They even seemed center and unmoving from their current position, a strange sight indeed. Pantheon remembered his dream once more. He stood on a rock in the middle of the sea with a storm brewing overhead. "Must be Poseidon's calling card." Pantheon began to run forth towards the direction of the storm and unknowingly into a larger enemy territory.

Three gunmen strode across the sand of shore chatting with each other about the latest football game. As they spoke about who made the best field goal and agued over who was a better quarterback, shots were heard in the air. The three spun around, turing towards the inner island in shock and removing their weapons from their sides. They tapped their earpieces but the radio was silent. Just then a strong gust of air startled them and they spun around to face a cloud of sand. As it cleared a man was revealed, dressed in pajamas and holding a black briefcase.

"Hey what's up have you guys seen like someone who looks umm, like a boy scout I guess. That's what Uproar call him anyways." Ryan asked rather casually before quickly noting their weapons. As they raised their guns towards him he held his hands out in protest. "Hey wait come on lets not do this right now. I don't even know you people. I'm just looking for my friends." His words were to no avail and they opened fire. The hail of bullets stopped just short of Ryan, hovering in the air. "I'm assuming you've all seen The Matrix right. Yeah I'm basically Neo from that." The bullets fell from the air clattering to the floor as Ryan lurched forwards. His vector enhanced knee connected with one of the men's stomachs, sending him flying into the ground.

As their comrade writhed in pain on the sand the others pointed their weapons back at Ryan but he was too quick. A briefcase hit the first one square in the jaw, knocking him out cold. The second one opened fire but Ryan was already too close to be hit. His hand connected with the mans face as he slammed him into the ground headfirst. "So are you guys gangsters or what? Start talking right now okay. I wanna know why you all have weapons and are so keen on shooting an unarmed dude.

"We are Wo Shing Wo, followers of the great.." He was cut off by Ryan slamming his head down into the sand.

"Save it. I've heard of your pathetic gang. I used to fight your kind when you worked under Crimson King. Then with his fall you guys finally tried to slink back into Seattle's criminal spotlight once he was out of the way. Didn't do you much good with the quakes did it." His voice was much darker, reminiscent of his time in the streets. "I've fought your kind before and I don't appreciate the existence of you or the organization you belong to." Ryan pressed harder on the man's head, pushing him further into the sand. "But the fact that you worked with him, that is what draws the line." The man's head was forced under the sand as it hardened around him. The other two were swiftly dispatched by Ryan's hands as well.

He opened the briefcase and his suit popped out. He wrapped it around his form, and Ryan became Cain. He'd originally just come here to follow Pantheon but if this happened to be some sort of base, he'd snuff them out. "I suppose the gunshot will lead me to Pantheon, might as well figure out why he's here huh." Cain remarked before dashing through the foliage.

Cain emerged from the brush in a clearing to see a red shape move by him. Wait Red? "Uproar is that you? The hell are you doing here?" Cain spoke, holding his hands in confusion.

Uproar couldn't risk the potential trouble. He reacted without a second's hesitation. Wrapping his fingers onto Cain's mouth and slamming his teammate against a tree. The darkness of the trees above hid the two from the oncoming foot patrol. Once out of the distance, he let Cain fall to the ground. If not for the bandages and his cowl, Cain would see Uproar's ebony face twisted in a growl. "Why'd you follow me?!" He whispered violently. Perhaps the most violent whisper the world has ever heard. "How the-"

"Fire!"

In Uproar's anger, he'd forgotten that he was a Red *Lantern* partaking in a stealth mission. His rage shining brightly off of his suit must've caught the patrol's attention. He quickly faced their attacker and shot his hand forward. Knives of crimson light piercing their temples before dissipating. He never cared for killing but always held a special hatred for drug lords and other criminals who profited off the suffering of others. With them gone, he turned to Cain.

"I swear to god, it's like you're a puppy. Who else is here dammit?!"

"So I'm not alone here, I see. Yo Cain. Uproar." Pantheon said as he walked up. He looked down at the bodies of the drug lords. "I'm not particularly phased by the killing of an enemy, but I can't imagine Martian Manhunter will be particularly pleased. What are you both doing here?"

However, Pantheon turned his gaze back towards the storm. "What is going on there, why does it matter?" Pantheon mumbled softly to himself. As he looked back towards his allies. "While the mob are like cockroaches, I can't see or hear anymore, so let's figure out what we are all here for."

"What the hell man?" Cain roared, picking himself up from the ground. "I didn't even know you were here. I was legitimately surprised to even see you." He glared at Uproar. It was then that another voice joined the fray, he whipped around to see Pantheon behind them. "I was after him he was just flying off into the night and I followed him. Turns out you're both on this damn island with the Wo Shing Wo." He turned to face a looming building in the distance. "I don't exactly know why you guys are here but if the head of this damn organization is here I'm taking him out."

Of course! Of fucking course Pantheon would be here. Of all people in the known universe, the golden boy scout would find a way to join Uproar on this weird quest. To think that the Guardians of the Universe would allow fate to play such hurtful games on one of their own. He was so overwhelmed with annoyance that he missed whatever-the-hell Cain complained about. Only returning to focus when he mentioned the Wo Shing Wo. "Do whatever you want human, I'm on Lantern duty." He snapped. Uproar turned to Pantheon. "These aren't your run of the mill thieves boy scout. These are drug lords and murderers. They'll kill everyone you love. As for why I'm here, I felt a great rage coming from...over there" He pointed to the mountain. "And I'm going to save whatever it is."

This wasn't a team sanctioned meeting. Which meant that Pantheon's word here meant nothing. *Now's my chance.* He thought. He started to float off towards his initial target. "You guys do whatever you want. I got bigger fish to fry."

Now wasn't the time for him to allow his anger to taint his thoughts. No. Especially considering the massive waves of suffering radiating from beneath the base before him. Uproar stood at two gigantic metallic doors which, with several knocks, revealed several feet of thickness. "You'd think with all this money, they'd invest in education and extracurricular activities for the youth. The greediness of man." Maybe he should punch through it? Too brutish. Rather, Uproar stood several feet back and regurgitated a massive blast of his napalm like blood. It burned through the formally impenetrable defense as if it was butter in the midst of a southern august.

Before the guards could react, Uproar waved his hand, conjuring hundreds of crimson blades which rocketed towards their throats. A quick and painless death. He noticed a giant platform at the center of the giant, hollow chamber. Crimson light shining bright from beneath. "Maybe I should've gotten some directions first." Uproar groaned. Oh well. One door, two door, this floor that floor. Or something like that. A red blast melted a small enough hole through the platform, which Uproar used to descend several levels down. "Definitely a fucking waste of resources dammit."

He touched the bottom and quickly hid behind several tons of massive machinery. He peaked around the corner where he saw an opening to the ocean surrounded by equipments stolen straight from a futuristic comic book. Hundreds of guards outlined the water filled opening, armed to the teeth in all sorts of weapons. Beneath them were scientist, some he recognized from the League's files on weapon tech. However, the crimson light shined once more...drawing his attention to the center. In a giant tank filled to the brim with water was a creature the size of a oil tanker. One with numerous tentacles...A giant squid!

"Once more." He heard the head scientist order. And on command, surges of electricity circulated the beast. Shocking it with high intensity frequencies. And although it was without sound, the rage that it felt shined brighter than the sun itself. Releasing a roar of pain and intense hatred rather than the audible cry of a child.

Uproar clutched his chest in response. The rage overtook him as he launched himself from hiding. He shot a blast at the scientist before aiming it at several other guards. "Dammit! I'll kill you all!" Uproar groaned.

"It's the Red Lantern punk!" The head of mercenaries screamed. An older gentlemen, he aimed his gun forward but flicked a switch. "The boss wants him captured. Switch to photon lasers. Bullets won't graze him!" His crimson aura deflected the bullets, allowing him to wreck havoc upon the sinners. However, the concussive lasers felt similar to getting hit by a freight train. Every time Uproar took out one or two guardsman, three more would slam against him.

"Focus fire!"

Uproar quickly gathered his footing, summoning forth a crimson shield against the massive laser. He felt his feet slide back towards the wall. His eyes quickly scanned the area looking for something to help the situation. Got it! *Hey buddy,* Uproar thought towards the creature. *I'm going to need some juice.* Red mist seemingly leaked off of the creature and into the ring. Simultaneously, his shield continued to grow and size and durability. Expanding outwards at an incredible rate. *That'll do!* Uproar whispered as the shield exploded outwards. Both the scientist and the mercenaries were slammed against nearby walls and machinery. With most of them incapacitated, Uproar landed and took a much needed breath of relief.

*Rookie mistake.* Uproar could hear Hal Jordan tease. For a gigantic piece of metal slammed against him from above. Before he could turn his attention to the beast, he was pinned to the floor by several tons. He searched for the perpetrator from beneath his makeshift prison. A man emerged from a nearby door. Dressed in a fine white suit and drinking from a pointed wine glass while holding a button.

"Quite the troublemaker. But to think we'd have two rare creatures here tonight...I want him tied up immediately..." The man's words trailed off as Uproar drifted into darkness.

Pantheon watched the Lantern fly off towards the mountain. A mountain which sat in the center of the storm. "Guess he at least confirmed my suspicions, but I'm getting extremely tired of his shit." Pantheon said aloud. "Cain, if you wanna help, you better keep up. I have a duty here from above and now to save temper tantrum over there."

With that, Pantheon leapt powerfully into the air, cracking the earth beneath him in his frustration. He began to fly at high speeds towards the mountain. As he approached, he saw a hole burned into a massive door that acted to keep people out. *Maybe the like a little draft, or maybe Uproar puked on it,* Pantheon thought as he flew through the hole. He landed on the ground and skid to a stop. He turned and saw Uproar pinned to the ground by a massive piece of metal. "Drug lords and murderers. Not a fan, but I'd say your mentor and his buddies wouldn't be down for death." Pantheon said, but noticed the Lantern had blacked out.

Pantheon turned his attention to the guards in the room. Too many flooded it, as well as the leader who had previously gotten Uproar captured seemingly leaving to a different portion of the chamber. *I could use lightning and zap them all down, but the lightning may strike Uproar by mistake. I don't know how much defense he has when he is knocked the hell out.* Pantheon looked around quickly to see how many were in the room. 30 men. In a flash, they all started to fire their guns. Surges of electricity danced through him from their stun setting they put on for Uproar.

Pantheon grew annoyed with the attacks. Even as a god of lightning, this many rapid fire shots were beginning to build up. *My powers aren't fully settled. This could be bad if I don't end this quickly,* Pantheon thought as his anger built up. Finally, he released it into a massive attack. Red energy flooded forth from his eyes and slammed into the nearest guard, knocking him to the ground with a thud. The beam then turned right to slam into another on a higher platform. This continued as the Omega Beams sought and removed the threats one by one until the only person standing in the room was Pantheon. He fell to his knee and covered his eyes in pain. The power burned in him, like a great fire trying to consume its way out. "I will master you, Omega Beams. I may have not chosen to get you, but you will recognize me as your new master. You will act for the side of good." Pantheon said as he pushed himself up.

The young god turned his attention to Uproar. He ran over to the lantern and began to pull up on the metal holding him down. It was harder than normal for Pantheon to do. "Must be from that massive attack, spent a lot of energy that way." Pantheon said through gritted teeth as he still pulled on the metal. It began to budge, but this set off an alarm. Pantheon didn't know the leader of the group intended to keep the lantern as a reward, which meant he had even less of a chance of knowing he set it to where if the area around the lantern was disturbed, including the metal that pinned him. Pantheon could hear the steps of soldiers filing in, but it didn't matter. As annoying as he could be, Pantheon couldn't just abandon Uproar. Digging deep within himself, Pantheon pushed the metal off and freed the lantern. "Time to wake up, douchebag." Pantheon said as he smacked Uproar's face to pull him out of his black out.

The Lantern and the God both left. The former with his mocking words and Anger. The latter acting for his godly duty. Cain watched both of them fly off and let out a breath. These beings viewed him as baggage but he could understand it. To a Lantern or a God this was but one of numerous planets and he was but one of the numerous frail beings on it. They didn't even care about his crimes or rage or anything, it was beneath their perspective to. That was fine, that was their nature and Cain couldn't do anything about it, not that he even wanted to. He let out a breath he'd been holding and grit his teeth. It didn't matter what they took him for or what they were doing. They were off in their own little world on some godforsaken adventure.

Cain eyed the mountain and shot off, the vectors blasting his body thought the sky and right into the base. He crashed through a wall above the giant broken door, the metal warped before him as all things did. The room he crashed into was an armory, filled with guns, ballistics, and other valued killing tools. The armed men that stood in the room whirled to face him, immediately opening fire. These projectiles were not bullets though, this was some form of energy. It didn't matter to Cain though, just like before the projectiles hovered in the air before him, held fast by their own being. He reversed their vectors, firing the onslaught back at his foes. The energy bore holes in their being till they became reminiscent of swiss cheese.

He waved his hand scattering the contents of the room to one side as he walked through it. Finally reaching the door Cain touched it, blasting it off its hinges and down the hallway. He stepped out of the room and was met with two guards attempting to bludgeon him from either side. They were both send flying into the walls behind them as he shoved his hand through the one on his right, it cut through his head like butter. The grabbed the one on the left and slammed his head into the wall. "Name and location of your boss or I'm taking your face off." He stated coldly.

"If you kill me you'll nev.." The man began to speak before Cain cut him off. Slamming his head into the wall, harder this time.

"You're disposable so don't start with me okay. Either give what info I want or I'll keep killing until I get it. If the next word out of your mouth isn't a name I'm moving on." He had gotten enough gang sass for a lifetime back in Seattle.

"Tsung Shen and I honestly don't know his location, maybe the penthouse up above or the lab down below." The guard whimpered.

"Thank you and goodnight." Cain replied as he removed his hand and with it the man's face. He'd stuck the outermost vectors to his own, using them like a makeshift adhesive. The man screamed in pain as he fell to the floor, finally bleeding to death. The face fluttered to the floor as Cain walked onwards only stopping as he heard a massive amount of gunfire from below. "Well I guess they're in the lab. Might as well see if they found him. Maybe he's still alive." Cain shrugged as he forced the floor apart falling all the way down to the lab.

The ceiling above Pantheon and Uproar opened as Cain came falling through, stopping himself only moments before he collided with the ground. He stood, noticing the unconscious Uproar and Pantheon slapping him. "At least the 'human' didn't pass out." He remarked. Just then armed guards came rushing into the room, their weapons primed and ready to fire. Cain however forced his hands forwards, sending a wall of wind to smash them all to walls, briefly delaying their attack. "Pantheon I don't know what the hell you two did in here but I'm probably gonna end up bringing most of this place down." He put his back to the two and breathed.

*"In and out Ryan, you can do this just breathe. It's barely any effort once you start it, just establish the perimeter."* He held his hands out and a perimeter was established, a wall spanning the entire room in front of him. Anything beyond the wall was in his designated area of effect. *"This is the moment, it's not like Seattle. This is going to be pure controlled chaos."* He reassured himself one last time before finally attacking. Every vector beyond the wall shook for a moment, an unnoticeable tremor as the dice rolled within them. Each vector beyond the wall was randomly being assigned a direction to move in at full force. It was initially mentally taxing, but after the initial phase Cain was home free. The vectors began to move as everything beyond the wall erupted in chaos. People were split into millions of pieces. The ground was scattered and the walls were broken apart. The only thing stopping the debris from flying to them was the established perimeter that Cain was now maintaining.

"You fucking!" Uproar's voice boomed from the darkness. Did he want to slap Pantheon back for hitting him? Of course. But...well, who knows what that bastard planned on doing with his ring. And so, Uproar nodded his head in a silent thank you before turning to the ensuing chaos before him. Lasers. Destruction. And now a purple haired maniac mentally destroying the remnants of the lab before him. Creating a tidal wave of blood and guts. As much as he pushed off the metahuman, Ezekiel could feel it. *What color was it again, the orange light?* Ezekiel thought. For this was a power that destiny bestowed upon Cain. But watching him work made Uproar smirk in admiration. The Red Lantern stood up, jumped out of the cage and touched Cain's shoulder. "Let's not forget who the heroes are." He joked. Uproar turned to Pantheon. "Hey boy scout," These next words burned as they floated from his mouth. "thank you."

Uproar could feel a wave of anger rushing downwards. *Mr. Tsung is on his way.* He growled. "Listen you two, we can't win this battle today. As much as I would love to eat him alive, Mr. Tsung is just one of many heads." Uproar looked at Pantheon. "And you know what'd happen if you cut one head off a hydra? One day, we'll strike them at the source. Erase them completely. Until then, we have to take what we came for and leave."

"I don't know why you guys came...But I sensed a great source of suffering and anger. And as a Red Lantern, it is my duty to tame the Red Light." Uproar turned away from his two saviors and held his ring out as it shined a bright red. "Come on. You're safe now." He spoke. His voice so soft as if speaking to a child. Suddenly, in the massive tank of water which was connected to an opening in the ground, a creature swam to the top. One with gigantic tentacles and a massive head.

"To think a giant squid caused all of this." He touched the glass and smiled. His ring still shining brightly as he absorbed the residual anger from the baby. "I don't know what they want from you, but I'm going to get you out."

"So this is what Poseidon entered my dream for. Evil group got a hold of his favorite species outside of Atlanteans. Guys, this is a Charybdis... or a kraken. That's the more popular name for the monster species. More fun to say at the very least. Greek ones were more ambush with the whole 'suck in a lot of water and ships' tactic using their siphon. The offspring got more aggressive as they got into colder water." Pantheon said as he looked the squid over. He admired the eight arms of the squid and followed the two longer clubs, making ten tentacles in total.

"Based on its size, while still huge to us, I think this one is a baby. I agree, we can't let him stay here. These things are strong, to let them stay with an enemy faction would be foolish. Uproar, can you make a construct to carry the tank? We need to get him back to the ocean. Cain, I'm still not entirely certain what to exactly call your powers, but can you use it to calm the waters and the squid? The less thrashing of the water and the beast, the better. Keep them still. I can help move it with my strength but with all that water, let alone the glass and metal and squid, will make that weight above my maximum range if I was here alone."

Cain released his hands as the objects settled to the ground. The opposite side of the cave was a mess of debris and blood. Even part of the roof had caved in onto the growing pile of destruction. "Of course of course. I'm just along for the ride here. I should step back and let the galactic guardian and the god do their jobs." Cain stated coldly, briefly glaring at Uproar as he made his way to the tank, only half listening to whatever Uproar was babbling about. He eyed what uproar presumed was a giant squid and chuckled under his breath. Giant squids weren't nearly this size, even the mighty colossal squid was dwarfed by the massive being. *"Kraken."* He mouthed as Pantheon began to elaborate on the creature. If the god was right about one thing, it was definitely a juvenile. Cain wasn't really sure if the Kraken could have kids but he was standing next to two otherworldly beings so he wasn't really gonna question it.

*"Cain calm the waters."* Such a simple task he was asked to do but the words rang in his head for some reason. Just like that they went right back to business as usual. Not a single thank you to Cain for destroying the opposition and decimating their entrances. But of course there was nothing. Why would there be thanks to a human for doing their work. They could have easily defeated them all in their eyes but the human protected themselves so the gods and guardians need not work to protect him. Despite his latent frustration Pantheon had never inherently wronged him, the god simply thought himself naturally above Cain. And so he calmed himself and responded in monotone.

"Yeah sure." The only words that escaped his lips. He placed a hand on the cage and the waves began to subside, still leaving enough wiggle room so that the animal could move calmly and breathe but not much else. He stared at the being and paused a moment. "Hey we're just gonna dump him into the ocean right. I feel like you can do that pretty easily without me holding it much." Cain spoke before looking at the Kraken. "We're gonna get you back in the ocean okay little guy." He gave the beast a smile, it was truly a marvel of nature.

Uproar looked at Cain deeply. For the past several minutes, he was so overwhelmed by the approaching threat that he overlooked it. But to consider Uproar the average Red Lantern would be insulting. His sympathetic nature, so fine and delicate, allowed him to differentiate the many shades of red by their minute alterations. And such, he looked to Cain with a saddened expression hidden by the shadows cast by his red hood. *Maybe I went too far earlier.* Still, this wasn't the time to address personal feelings. He'll just have to do it some other time when they're alone...if they manage to survive.

"Leave the lifting to me. Just..." Uproar hesitated. First he was going to expose his face this morning and now he had to exploit one of his own weaknesses? *But these aren't my enemies* He thought. "Red Lantern's aren't supposed to use constructs. Drawing upon too much rage can eventually lead to...insanity. I'm different, you could say that stubbornness has its uses. But, I can only focus on one construct at a time. And once created, I cannot do anything else." Ezekiel sighed beneath his mask. These words almost scorching his throat as they came out. "We're going against a personal army. So I'm trusting you guys to keep us safe." Embarrassing enough! Uproar didn't give them a chance to respond. Thank god these bandages hid his face, for the dark skinned lantern was turning the color of his ring.

"Okay. 1. 2. 3!" With a deep breath, a ray of light shot out of the ring and expanded outwards. It enveloped the giant cage and transformed into a protective casing. Bullets and lasers won't effect it. But in doing so, Uproar left himself vulnerable as the cost. "Come on." His slight jump turned into flight as he easily lifted the massive cage upwards. By extension, the cage had a platform for Cain as well. The two began to float upwards with Pantheon hopefully in suit.

"Don't let them get away!" The anger of the mercenaries shined brightly. Perhaps they angered at the merciless slaughter of their men? To think personal killers didn't like being killed! Regardless, Uproar lacked the luxury of debating philosophy with himself. The guards began to fire their guns and lasers. Bullets bouncing off his surroundings and laser just barely missing as he maneuvered skillfully through the light show. However the sweat from this task nearly drenched his Red Lantern uniform. He hadn't the energy to think about anything else besides breathing as they flew upwards.

As the tank cleared his head, Pantheon put his hands on the underside of the tank and began to push up to help the lantern. Just as he expected, even with the help he could still feel a great weight on him. "At least the water isn't thrashing, if it was I'm certain Uproar's concentration would be endangered and I would get crushed under this alone. Keep it steady, Cain, you're job is arguably the most important one of all three of us."

As the new wave of mercenaries came in, Pantheon looked his eyes on one. He fired a concussive blast from his eyes, sending the foe sprawling. However, as he did, he felt the tank get heavier on him. Pantheon remembered earlier, how the prolonged usage of his Omega Beams sapped his strength. "Crap, it's not all back and these beams make me weaker. Come on Saturn, do your job and anchor them all properly so I'm not fragmented in my power!" Pantheon shouted as he focused on moving the tank with the lantern.

"I'm sorry Cain, you have to handle the guards alone. I can't generate lightning without my hands and the beams use too much of my energy right now. You got them earlier when I got the metal off of Uproar, you got this."

The tank lifted off the ground due to the combined efforts of Pantheon and Uproar, with Cain holding it steady. As they took off, more and more guards began to pour into the from whatever holes were left. Cain stood as he listen to Pantheon ramble on. Was it obvious to him how badly his phrases were worded? Probably not, he was a god. The intent was enough and after that Cain was supposed to feel better. Doing the most important job, barely. Cain was making water stay still that the two of them could get out of there and make him feel like he was contributing. Now they wanted him to fight off the others cause they were once again above it. However he could tell that despite the god's terrible phrasing he probably did want to apologize to Cain in some way. *"I might as well just smile and nod, faster I get this Kraken out of here the faster this whole thing is over."* He nodded to himself before looking at Pantheon.

"You got it Pantheon." He shouted through a mock smile, his tone sounded upbeat at least. But to be honest he didn't really care that much if the facade worked or not. It wasn't like the god would either. Turning his attention to the real matter at hand Cain looked around to see the various energy blasts flying their way. He quickly extended his hand, creating a perimeter that caught the blasts before redirecting them back to those who fired them. As they reached the lip of the cave and came out over the open water he grazed his hand against the walls of the cavern, sending a pulse through the mountain. It was already massively unstable, separating all the vectors in a line down the middle would be simple enough. The entire mountain fell a bit as it crashed into the cave, filling it with debris and quite literally burying most of the private army alive. "Wowee that sure was swell huh guys. Can we please dump this guy in the ocean so I can go." His monotone was very noticeable.

"Listen Cain!" Uproar grunted beneath the severe wave of concentration pressing down upon his psyche. "I'm sorry for the way I treated you earlier. You may not believe it, but us Lanterns are pretty serious about our emotions." He started to dip but rose with a deep breath as he regained his concentration. Cain's own rage was mingling with that of the beast and interfering with Uproar's focus. To make matters worst, bullets and lasers started to fly from the surrounding jungle. Of course this wasn't it! "Right now, we really need your help. If not for us, do it for him! Do it because you wanted to be a hero! And I guess, do it because we're...you know...friends..."

Mr. Tsung emerged from the debris without a drop of wine spilled. His suit completely untouched. "This jungle is filled with my men. All they did was assure that my prize would be on its way without me lifting a single finger." He smirked, stepping onto a nearby jeep. A man covered in jungle paint drove off towards the shore upon which the lantern, god and mutant was flying.

Well Uproar had started it. "Glad to know the spaceman can still feel things." Cain spat back. "Look I'm gonna make this very clear for you. I get that you don't like having a human around in your business and I get that you think my presence is a nuisance. Some sad puppy following you. And don't try to deny it. You're an embodiment of anger, I doubt you lie through it." He glared at the lantern. "I followed you two cause you seemed the most experienced in this field and maybe cause I thought I wanted to be friends with you. We did a good job as a team on our first mission so I was like hey why not right." He continued as he extended a hand, deflecting the lasers and bullets that bore down upon them. "Know what, I'm dropping it. Don't talk to me about it right now. Don't even respond. My goal right now is to save this damn Kraken." He hardwired his focus to two main objectives, pacify and protect.

Pantheon continued to push, slowly seeing the light of the moon draw closer and closer as they worked their way up. While it wasn't as fast as they could probably move, they were still making good distance. However, under the strain of pushing, Pantheon began to move his mouth towards Cain. "Who gives a damn if you are a human? Batman is a human! Take the ring off Uproar, he is a human! I was born human! The heroes who guided us, even if they are mythical or alien, are what they are because of the humanity that drives them forward!" Pantheon let out a gasp as the strain was growing more and more. "Almost there! Let's get the cage out and wipe out these idiots."

Uproar groaned. Was this what he sounded like to other people? He pondered, rolling his eyes in annoyance. There was an ugly side to anger after all, and the Red Lantern hated it. Regardless, the trio finally reached the ocean upon which they were able to place the tank down. After this, Uproar knew he needed to make things better with Cain. "We need to let it get acclimated to the water again." Uproar lowered his construct so that the tank was fully submerged while keeping Cain above the surface.

"Good. Good. Thank you all for bringing it closer to its mother. You've done me a great service, young heroes!" A voice screamed. Mr. Tsung stood at a nearby dock holding a device, a remote control which he pointed at the baby kraken. Before the heroes could react, he pressed the button. The collar around the kraken's tentacles brightened as electricity shot through its body.

"Pantheon! Can you siphon off the electricity? Cain, break off the collars and I'll take care of Mr. Tsung!" Uproar ordered. He trusted in the Cain's ability, shooting towards the demented crime boss...however, a shining star of crimson light grabbed his attention. Whereas he was about to rip the heart out of Tsung's body, he now stood suspended in midair. For their problem just worsened exponentially...

"Holy...fuck."

## Great Beast of the Water

Gigantic tentacles the size of skyscrapers shot out from the ocean. The scene was something out of that famous pirate movie Uproar grew up watching. A beast so large that it could easily wipe out an entire marine fleet. A monster of legends. Told by sailors and commanded by the gods itself. One would think to pray to Poseidon for assistance...To beg that Susanoo would come and help slay this mighty beast. It's tentacles shot outwards, devastating the coast of the island. A massive head hidden beneath the ocean itself, the sheer size of its tentacles enough to hint at the absolute monstrosity of the colossal sea god.

Pantheon leapt on to the younger kraken and grabbed a hold of the collar. Wrapping his fingers around all he could, Pantheon began to absorb the lightning of the collar. This gave him a rush, he could feel his strength returning as the energy of the lightning coursed through him. Using his strength, he tore a collar off in delight of his returning power. "One down, a lot to go! Feeling recharged!"

Pantheon grabbed two collars and began to absorb the electricity from both. He held them up so Cain could more easily snap off multiple ones at a time. "Let's go Cain, this beast is gonna suffer until each is gone- oh no." Pantheon watched massive tentacles tower in the sky. "The beast of Poseidon and the scourge of Njord, that is a fully grown Kraken! Cain! The faster we free the baby, the faster the mother will retreat into the sea!" Pantheon smashed the two collars together and broke them off that way. He quickly inspected the tentacles to make sure he didn't injure the beast. "Is the Flying Dutchmen going to show up next!?"

Finally, Pantheon filled his hands with lightning and shot bolts to all the remaining collars. As he soon as the bolts struck, Pantheon began pull the lightning back into his body. This made a path from all the collars to him directly. "Had to make sure I had enough power to manage that without knocking myself into the water from a massive overcharge to a Omega Beam-worn out body. Take them out Cain, then we can join Uproar in thrashing that monster in a suit!"

Cain grabbed the collars and began ripping them from the beast. "We'll get you out of here don't worry." He shouted the the young Kraken. He moved in sync with Pantheon, following the arching bolts to each collar as he disabled the mechanisms. "Pantheon I've got them all on my end." He shouted to his comrade as he jumped onto the open sea, using vectors to give himself stable ground. It was only now that he took in the true, terrifying majesty of the mother Kraken. Just one towering tentacle could probably drag and entire oil rig to the depths. "What the hell man this thing is massive. I mean I knew they were big but damn." Cain remarked before focusing back on the real problem. He narrowed his eyes at the man in the suit. "Tsung!" He shouted angrily as he dashed across the water to join Uproar.

They were doing their job, which meant that it was time to do what Red Lanterns did best. Those of the other corps considered the red ring a parasitic device. A living light which filled beings with so much rage, they'd recess thousands upon thousands of years into a more primal mindset. But the truth was, only certain beings were supposed to wield this power. Guardians of the red light had a special power. A specific duty which only they could carry out. In their power to absorb rage, they'd become the universe's ultimate pacification machine. While doing so was utterly dangerous, Uproar knew he could handle it. He had to. The Red Lantern weaved throughout the massive tentacles flailing through the sky. He watched bodies slam into the water's surface, surely becoming dinner for the angry moth.

Above! A shield deflected a tentacle, smacking him into another one from the sheer force. He quickly regained his composure and latched onto it. Using it as a guide to leap from one onto the other. One final flip and he stood not too far from Pantheon. "I can calm this thing down. But we need to get close without harming it. Think you can keep up?" Uproar teased. Without a response, Uproar leapt into the air and started to fly through the tentacles once more. He needed to locate its head. But in mid thought, a tentacle sent him flying backwards several feet. Quite the punch indeed, this beast was using it's massive appendages like whips.

Pantheon leapt and weaved in and out of massive tentacles. ‘’I can not pick up this thong, it will be too heavy, but I can do this,’’ Pantheon thought as he flew. He got behind the beasts head. Pantheon dove into the water and began to push the beasr. At first, it felt like he eas merely flyinging to endlessly stretching rubber, but he could eventually tell that he was moving with the beast. As he pushed, body of the kraken began to get beached as Pantheon slowly force the beast out of its territory. The young god was doing this in hopes of startling the massive beast, as well as slow it down to some degree. However, a tentacle whipped around and salmmed Pantheon deep into the water. He pushed upwards and rapidly broke the surface of the water, taking a fresh breath. “Alright, plan B.” Pantheon punched his hand forward and shot out a large bolt of lightning to stun the kraken as best as he could.

Uproar was busy trying to avoid flailing tentacles to actually help Pantheon. However, the young god gave him an opportunity to try and get closer. Red energy formed over his fist in the form of a boxing glove. Yes, he considered going toe to toe with a kraken. But he would summon the courageousness of Joe Frazier in order to accomplish this. With the Kraken shocked from Pantheon's blast, the Red Lantern dived into the water with a powerful straight right to its exposed head. The beast surpassed Uproar's expectations in size. It was a behemoth. He could understand how these things could erase entire naval fleets. Even his punch seemed to only annoy the Kraken, who grabbed Uproar with a tentacle.

"Shit!" Uproar screamed as the electricity funneled through the Kraken's body and into the Red Lantern. *It's using me to stop Pantheon. No wonder squids are so fucking smart.* Uproar thought. He needed an opening. A chance to delve into the enraged mind of the mother.

Pantheon heard the scream that came from Uproar. Seeing the lantern squirm from the lightning, Pantheon ended the attack. "The Kraken can redirect electricity... that's insane." Pantheon flew in rapidly. To attempt to get Uproar free and also anger the beast more in hopes of Uproar being able to work his magic, Pantheon punched the beast in the eye. From the beast, a loud screech vibrated through the air. The Kraken then slammed one of its massive tentacles into Pantheon to push him away and slam him into the ground.

Pantheon blacked out for a moment, but slowly returned to his senses. The beast was strong, and if he was just a little less durable, he would be dead right now. Pantheon shook his head to clear it and saw the beast coming back down with another tentacle. Pantheon quickly fired beams from his eyes into the beast in an intense burst to stop it before taking off into fast flight. Noticing the Kraken continuing to follow it with its tentacles, Pantheon came upon an idea. He dove down into an intersection of several tentacles and began to fly in several directions on a whim to confuse the Kraken. His plan played out when six of the tentacles were tangled up together. "Uproar, this side is a safe bet. Work your ring magic!"

"Great job, Pantheon!" Uproar screamed in excitement. He loved battle. For rage and combat often went hand and hand. And such, this beast boiled his blood in ways he hadn't felt in almost more than eight hours! Far too long for a Red Lantern. He darted at the giant squid with immense speed, aiming his ring towards it's head. Weaving through tentacles with the agility of circus monkey while keeping a speed which made him appear as crimson missile fired from a space station from the sky. He began to recite his oath, words which flowed fluidly from his heart...almost religiously. Drawing upon the blood magic on that barren planet so far far away. With each word, the Red Lantern could feel his ring raging with power, his blood boiling while the red light circulated throughout his body. A familiar feeling. But while it drove others mad, Ezekiel felt himself tethered.

"With blood and rage of crimson red,
Ripped from a corpse so freshly dead,
Together with our hellish hate,

We'll burn you all—That is your fate!
A deathly oath which often carried hatred and a burning passion. However, as forest fires were used to ensure the future generations of wildlife, Ezekiel used this flaming anger o preserve the future of this family. His ring shined brighter than a star, enveloping his vision in red. A connection...He began to feed upon the anger and rage of the mother, absorbing it from her being and onto himself. Careful only to take upon which spawned from the recent events. Absorbing the anger of beast centuries old could easily turn Uproar into one of those other feral beast. He slowly siphoned the red light, both charging his ring and calming the mother. Meanwhile, the telepathic link allowed him to share the memories of both Upraor and the baby Kraken.

Seconds later, Upraor stood above the mother and baby kraken embracing. His crimson aura shining brightly off his skin. Several deep breaths. Concentrate. Focus. Relax. He aimed his ring upwards and fired off a plasma blast of immense power.

"Ring Charge 99%
## Gang Violence

While Uproar and Pantheon focused on the Kraken, Cain had other plans. He rushed Mr. Tsung, extending a hand towards the man. "Don't you run this time." He roared as Mr. Tsung held his arm up in an attempt to block Cain. As the hero neared him his sleeve exploded as a metal shield expanded from a device on his forearm. Cain's arm ripped through the metal but Mr. Tsung swung his arm, tossing Cain and the busted shield from him and onto the sand.

"I don't plan on it. Soon as I take you out I can 'pacify' those acquaintances of yours. The Kraken is just icing on the cake now." Tsung grinned as Cain lunged at the more experienced man. He dodged to the side, leaving his shoe behind. As Cain drifted over it the shoe split open, emitting an electrical field that gripped Cain, stunning him.

"Gah!" Cain screeched, held by the field. He quickly grasped his own vectors and moved them, tossing himself from the field and to the sand. He then reached out crushing the the field. "Just tell me where the hell the West Branch base is and this can be over." He growled.

"Oh the West Branch, you got beef with them kid?" Tsung replied, tossing a ball at the ground before him. It beeped as it hit the sand. The bomb exploded, glassing a large area of sand and sending a shockwave at Cain.

"Anyone who fucks with Seattle has beef with me." Cain yelled back, dispelling the shockwave as it neared him. He began moving towards Tsung, lunging at him with his right hand when he was in range. Tsung once again dodge to the side but Cain followed, manipulating his own vectors to move sideways. His hand slammed into Tsung's rib cage, gripping it. "Now start talking." He spoke coldly, holding up a threatening fist.

"I didn't know heroes were so brutal." He taunted awaiting Cain's blow.

"I won't ask again." Cain replied coldly, punching the man in the stomach. However he was metal with surprising force, his hand hurt. Was that metal?

"Seems like you can't think ahead and anticipate me. If you were using whatever your power is you mighta got me." Tsung taunted as he slammed his right foot into the ground. The ground he had specifically brought Cain to. The ground that he had specifically made into. glass. He moved his hand behind his back.

The ground exploded around Cain and Tsung, shards of glass filling the air. Both of them were pretty well armored and Cain was more surprised than anything. However as he stared at Tsung he noticed a ball behind him. "What the..." Was all he had time to muster before the flashbang exploded, filling his eyes with bright light emanating from behind Tsung. "Gah you fuck." Cain exclaimed.

In his brief lapse of grip Tsung freed himself, ripping his suit in the process. "Hmm Seattle, does that mean you're the one that brought down the Crimson King?" Tsung thought aloud, a sword extending from his sleeve as he dashed back at the still blinded Cain, striking him across the chest.

Knowing the direction of Tsung Cain began to manipulate the vectors but he didn't know the timing and was struck across the chest. The wound was thankfully shallow but it still hurt like a bitch. "Yeah and just like him you're going down."

"Keep dreaming kid." Tsung replied, kicking his other shoe towards Cain as an electrified net expanded from it, wrapping itself around Cain as he screamed upon the ground, bound and blinded. "If you can't keep your cool you'll never win in this dark world. I've been fighting super powered freaks for years. I know a lot. And It seems to me that you barely know anything about strategy." Tsung rambled as he drew closer to Cain.

*No no no no no. Not again not this again. This pain."* Thoughts raced through Cain's head the air around him began to warp. *"You can't lose it not. Not again. It doesn't matter what they said or did, they're counting on you and heroes don't let people down."* He argued with the void. The air began to warp further the net snapping apart as it was ripped apart. The ground shifted and sand flew in every direction.

Tsung noticed, having seen similar effects in his lab earlier, before the man had decimated it. He dashed forwards aiming his blade directly for Cain's head. He wouldn't let him ruin his plans any further.

*"Get it together think think think. I can't see but I can try. Breathe Ryan breathe."* He calmed his mind as the distortions began to disperse. He could feel the air as they did, he could feel the ground. He could see? The vectors were painting a picture of the surrounding area in his mind for a brief moment. There was Tsung's sword aimed for his head, he had to act now. Cain extended his hand outwards, grabbing the sword and guiding it into the ground using the momentum. He then grasped Tsung's arm with his other hand. "Gotcha." He spoke as the twisted the vectors in the sword and the arm, sending them traveling upwards. What resulted was Tsung's body being twisted around, rupturing in various places as blood poured from the man wounds.

"You brat you have no idea what you're doing." Tsung spat, as his body was twisted into a grotesque pulp.

"No. Talking." Cain sighed, collapsing on the sand.

Pantheon was huffing and puffing. It had been awhile since he has felt this much pain. To think, fighting a giant squid is what put him in this state. He looked up to see the two beasts reunited and smiled. However, he looked over to his other ally in Cain and that he was surrounded my a jungle of enemies. "No rest for the wicked, or for the heroes either."

Pantheon pushed himself forward towards the enemies. Pantheon began to punch out several of the guards, it was easy with his strength. Combined with his speed, he was able to take down several guards in a short span. Their typical weapons didn't matter much. Bullets flattened against him, knives shattered on him, concussive blasts... knocked him on his ass. Pantheon looked confused. "Where did that come from?" Pantheon then saw the lightning net of Tsung. "Oh. Better tech and weapons for higher ups. Makes sense." Pantheon stuck his hand out and blasted the weapon and made a massive burst to shock the foes around him.

Pantheon can handle them, Uproar thought before dashing towards the unconscious Cain. He looked to Mr. Tsung...or whatever was left...while lifting his partner up. *Some human right?* His face saddened at the sudden realization *He could've probably done that to you already.* Uproar sighed. Still, although the mother and child were united, the small group of heroes faced a much bigger threat. Pissed off mercenaries and triad members. They could easily escape this hellish situation. But then these scumbags would just go after the Krakens once again. No. "Come on Cain, wake up, we have to hold these guys off until those krakens are home free." He moaned while shaking Cain awake.

Several mercs found their way pass Pantheon and aimed their muzzles at the two. Uproar quickly formed a crimson shield which exploded into shards of glass that rocketed outwards. Striking down his attackers. He continued to fire plasma blast at the approaching enemies, blasting through their bodies one by one. "I hate to do this Cain but!"

Anger, like love and fear, was a unique emotion that possessed several physiological holds on one's being. He touched Cain's body and shot a rapid dose of rage throughout. A fiery wave which expanded into every cell and fiber of the purple haired man, inducing a sensation similar to an adrenaline shot. But an angered metahuman of Cain's potential wasn't something the world needed. So just as fast as the wave of rage circulated his body, it vanished back into Uproar.

"Gahh" Cain screamed, jolting from his brief rest. He could feel immense anger course briefly through him, fading as fast as it came. "Sorry there guys. Never been electrocuted that much before. Hurts a lot." His anger from earlier seemed to have subsided, possibly leaving with the anger induced by Uproar. All Cain knew was that he was feeling much more peaceful than before. Pantheon was annihilating the remaining soldiers and Uproar was standing beside him. Cain looked to the sky briefly to notice an object falling from orbit, falling towards them. "Get down!" He shouted as he pushed Uproar to the ground. The object shot over them and crashed into the jungle, the impact clearing most of the leaves from the nearby trees and sending shockwaves through the air. "What the hell was that." Cain muttered as he picked himself up from the ground and wandered through the fallen leaves and trees to find the crater. Apparently between the falling object, Uproar and Pantheon arriving, and the death of Tsung. The enemies decided to retreat.

Cain peered into the crater and what stared back was a body. Green skin and blank soulless eyes. His uniformed looked similar to Uproars but with a different symbol and blue. "Hey are you okay down there?" Cain called out as the being twitched, it's mouth moving in an attempt to form a sentence. However before it could it recoiled in pain, letting out a wild scream as it stood. The air around it began to flicker as the suit it wore began to take on a blackish hue. "Uproar what is going on here?" Cain asked, unsure if this was a thing some lanterns did or not. The ring it wore was giving off a black and white miasma, as did its eyes. It let out a guttural cry as it reached out, an array of extremely black blue blades burst forth, flying wildly at the heroes.

Without hesitation, Uproar released several of his own clawed tendrils from his being which countered the blue blades. He'd hoped that those humans would help with this problem...Yet they were nowhere to be found. Leave it to the big and bad mercenaries to run away when extraterrestrial threats appear. One would think that humans would stand against universal threats without fear after becoming wiser to the fact they weren't the actual center of the universe. Regardless, falling lanterns from the sky were never a good sign. Especially when they looked like this. "It's a blue lantern." Uproar whisper. "These guys are usually harmless pacifist without a green nearby." He kept his ring ready. He'd encounter another blue not too long ago...and remembered the feeling of his ring being rendered useless. Yeah, he'd need to be careful against this mysterious being. "But...somethings off." Uproar looked to Pantheon and Cain. Besides Pantheon, Uproar had the most experience with galactic politics. Even more so than the fledgling god next to him.

"My name is Red Lantern Uproar. I am acting substitute Green Lantern for Sector 2418 under permission of the Guardians of Oa. Why have you attacked us!?"

"I think what's off is that he isn't really that blue." Cain commented. However he kept most of his other comments to himself. Uproar was the authority on lanterns after all. If anyone had a chance of getting them out of this without a fight it was him.

The lantern stared blankly at the three, it seemed to have heard Uproar to a degree. Its body then twitched violently as it recoiled from them, curling into a more feral stance. Its miasma filled eyes glaring at them as their ring glowed with a dim light. It's lips curled into a hollow smile as it began to speak, a loud booming voice that echoed despite the wide area.

"When hope is lost, In endless night
You’ll know the cost, you’ll know true fright
When the world is gone, no wrong or right

You’ll miss the dawn, the endless light!"
As it spoke those words the warped ring shined brightly as thicker miasma began to pour from it, enveloping the lantern in a layer of the white and black energy. "You know not of this. Fear that cannot understand. It must be endless." The lantern spoke, a construct of black and blue light forming before him. Two massive serpents dove towards the three, twisting and contorting over one another as they slithered. Their jaws open wide.

"I see you're not going to answer me." Uproar groaned. His ring emitted a piercing light before three crimson vultures emerged from his imagination, shrieking as they tore apart the serpents in a bloodthirsty manner. Angrily ripping at their "flesh" and clawing at their bodies until the corrupted blue light was nothing more than a memory. "You think that a corrupted ring can stand against a **true** Red Lantern. A tainted **blue** ring at that!" Uproar spat. "Whoever you're working for has terrible taste in henchmen. Pantheon, Cain, rip his arm off! I'll keep his little toys busy."

Pantheon stood over several knocked out enemies. He was Uproar as he awakened Cain and the reveal of this corrupted lantern. "That doesn't sound like any oath Hal or John ever talked about. What the hell is 'endless light'?" Pantheon asked as the red vultures tore up the serpent construct. Pantheon jumped over to his two allies to stand along his allies before again jumping towards the lantern. Whatever he was, Pantheon had the strength to stand up to lantern constructs to some degree. He sent a massive bolt of lightning flying towards the lantern in an attempt to knock him out to remove whatever abomination of a ring he wore.

"I'm not sure what the heck it's talking about or what a corrupted ring is exactly." Cain shouted to his comrades as he took a running stance. "But I think I can try taking that arm of his off." He watched as Pantheon fired off a bolt of lightning before he sprung forth, rocketing at the lantern.

The figure did even anger over the destruction of the serpents, as from their mouths burst two more, shedding the previous constructs like a second skin. One of the serpents charged towards Uproar while the other went after Pantheon, who was currently firing lightning at the lantern. The lightning arced towards the man, however a massive palm of black and blue light met the bolt, stalling it briefly before closing around it and morphing into a loop that the lighting travelled around, gaining speed before the loop opened and the bolt was sent back at Pantheon. As Cain appeared before the lantern he would be met with a twisting wall of black and blue trees, their gnarled branches aimed at his face and their solid trunks blocking his progress.

"Without the willpower to act, hope means nothing!" Uproar teased. His crimson vulture quickly morphed into a mongoose, which would intercept the serpent attacking Pantheon. Out of the Red Lantern corps, Uproar's construct ability was often considered a divine gift bestowed upon the human by the rulers of the blood magic. But at a terrible cost...The Red Lantern dispelled his construct and took a deep breath, regurgitating a massive blast of napalm-like blood which melted the blue ring's corrupted light completely. "Pantheon get Cain!" The amount of focus required for his constructs made it impossible for him to cover both Cain and Pantheon...at least without a proper plan of action.

Pantheon ran to grab on to Cain, moving him out of the direct path of the lantern. "Looks like we will best serve as long range supports, what do you think?" Pantheon turned back towards the lantern. Now that he was occupied with Uproar, Pantheon fired off a blast of Omega Energy. The beams flew from his eyes and snaked around to hit the enemy lantern in the back. Pantheon kept the beam going for several moments to try and damage the lantern as much as possible.

"Get off of me you fuck. I had it covered!" Cain snapped. He furiously pulled his arm from Pantheon's grasp and glared at him, ignoring his words entirely. He quickly returned his gaze to the lantern.

The as the beams began criss crossing through the lantern's body. They shot around him, landing some hits while his constructs deflected them in some cases. As Pantheon turned them off though his body had a couple prominent holes.

*"Now."* Cain thought dashing in at the arm that held the ring. His hand cut through it, removing the lanterns arm as it fell to the ground behind him. "Not so tough now are you." Cain grinned. With the arm now removed the lantern could no longer use the ring, at least that's what he thought.

"Poor foolish godling. You do not understand this. The light is endless." The lantern spoke as it stared directly at Pantheon. The wounds on its body began to fill with a black substance, it seemed to be healing in some way. It was then that a blue beam shot from its detached arm, blasting Cain and knocking him to the ground. The same black substance shot from the lantern to the arm and drew it in, reattaching it. The lantern then flew into the air, looming over the three as it began to recite its oath again. The miasma pooled around its ring. This time the miasma itself took shape, nine massive serpents with three aimed at each hero.

The Red Lantern watched the young god and metahuman fight. The two of them managed to cause considerable damage to the mysterious lantern. But their bickering allowed it to reconstruct itself. To think Uproar was the calm one in this situation. He felt Cain's rage boiling inside. A sensation he knew all too well. "Cain, you need to calm down." A familiar voice resonated within Cain's psyche. Uproar used his intimate connection with the Red Light to communicate with the metahuman. "Right now, we need to act as a team. Separate we're strong. But together we can do amazing things." An image would imprint itself in Cain's mind-scape. A crimson fighter jet made of crude shapes and emitting surges of electricity. "Besides, this ain't your light Cain and you know that."

Uproar's focused returned to the battle at hand. "Let me try something new." He lacked the complexity of John Stewart, who would've created his own army of mongooses by now. But where the Red Lantern lacked resourcefulness, he made up for it in creativity and passion. The same fiery energy which surged through the red light. His red ring shined brightly once more, conjuring eight gigantic tentacles which sprouted from his lower hips. "What'd you call this Pantheon, A charybdis? I remember reading about this way back in school." With deep focus, he used his first three tentacles to smash against the three serpents soaring against him. With this opening, his fourth tentacle shot towards the poisoned lantern in hopes of ensnaring him. Meanwhile a fifth tentacle prepared to smash him from above.

Pantheon was shocked by the lantern addressing him. He never spoke to the figure, yet it knew his status. Regardless, Pantheon prepared for a much larger bolt of lightning. Pantheon began to reshape the lightning into a massive sphere and there it. The ball burst into several streams of lightning, several of which hit the lantern at once. Pantheon made room, however, for when Uproar began his cephalopod-based attack. Pantheon knew the lantern was strong, but he had an idea. He used his speed to fly up to the Red Lantern. "Uproar! I have an idea. Instead of imitating the monster, why not use your anger abilities to form a bond with the mother. That thing was strong enough to knock me out for a moment, it could prove to be a powerful way to end this freak early."

Uproar's voice rung through his head. Images flashing through his mind of their first mission. God it was annoying, but he was right. The only thing he wasn't certain of was that last line. "Alright fine then, lets deal with this together." Cain shouted to Uproar, extending his hand to create a forwards moving wall of air vectors that clashed with the massive serpents. He then dashed to the other two using his own vectors. Hearing Pantheon's idea he shook his head swiftly. "That sounds like a terrible plan. Didn't you guys just calm that thing down. Not to mention we're no longer next to the water." He looked at the two once again and back a the lantern. "Pantheon you gotta bust out those beams again, so far that's the only thing that's put a scratch on him besides literally tearing a limb off. Uproar try and overwhelm him with your ring, you're not using three tentacles you could be." Cain wasn't much for speeches or master planning, but his time in the underground taught him to use his environment and allies to the best of his ability.

The Lantern grinned as three of his massive serpents were assaulted by tentacles, they grasped them with their jaws. Crushing through the red light. Three more were bombarded by lightning. They met the bolts with breath of pure miasma, a cloud of the gas cloaking and seemingly destroying both the bolts and the ball. The serpents that slammed into the air wall simply snaked around it as one of them aimed for the three. The other two grasped the excess tentacles from the red lantern that assaulted their master. They bit into them with fangs cloaked in miasma. Now all nine heads stared down the three letting out a loud echoing roar as they charged.

"It doesn't matter if we aren't right next to the water, the Kraken reach is more than enough to attack here. And I'm not saying piss it off like before, I'm saying Uproar should use images of what the lantern could do to the world to make it side with us in taking out the lantern. Then clear the anger before releasing it again for safety. For someone more than willing to kill a bunch of gang members that may have just joined or may not have done something bad themselves, why is using the much stronger than us divine monster a bad idea? We have been fighting for a long time today, let's just finish this." Pantheon said as he blasted the lantern with omega beams and fired bolts into the serpents.

For once, Uproar wasn't the person throwing his temper tantrums and overreacting. It felt good to be the voice of reason between two teammates. Hell, he started to feel bad for what he put others through! Either way, he looked to both Cain and Pantheon. "You two continue arguing. I'm going to go ask for a favor. When you're ready, bring our friend to the ocean." With those words, the Red Lantern darted across the night sky like a crimson star. Falling several miles off of sea. He took a deep breath and reached out with his rage. This was such a weird feeling...For locating others through their rage was much easier when they were angry. But Uproar knew that the ancient being still possessed some animosity against the world of land. Although calmed, he could feel the residual anger of the mother whose baby was kidnapped and tortured. No parent would let that go so easily. They can't! His ring shined. He hated infecting others with rage. It was an ugly thing to do, and something he's witnessed thousands succumb to by Apocryphus. But with open hearts, maybe he could call in a favor.

"Feel my rage...please help us."

Cain glared at Pantheon and Uproar as the latter departed. His opinion and perspective were being ignored and refuted, of course the gods knew better. He clenched his fist as he glared at Pantheon, about to yell his piece. However he paused, taking a deep breath. "Know what Pantheon, I don't agree with using this creature one bit, it doesn't deserve to be part of a fight that doesn't concern it I don't want it to get hurt over something that I think the three of us can solve on our own. We don't know the capabilities of this lantern yet so why subject something else to it." His voice was less a roar and more a bitter whisper. "But I can see that the both of you already made up your mind. So fine then, lets see what road your path leads to." He turned, preparing to dash to the beach after Uproar. He only looked back briefly to say one final thing. "For the record. A gang like that doesn't deserve second chances." And then he was gone.

The lantern that loomed over the two watched with glee only to be assaulted by a horde of omega beams. The serpents briefly recoiled, breathing miasma as they wrapped around their master to defend him from the assault. The onslaught would give all three heroes enough to time to reach the beach safely.

Pantheon continued to fire beams of energy at the lantern, darting back and forth in a zig-zag formation, leading retreating towards the beach in an attempt to get the lantern to tag along with him and follow. He made it to the beach and towards his pair of allies. "Cain, you are putting a lot on me. I don't want to see the Kraken harmed either, I was sent here to save it by Poseidon. But like you said, we don't know what the lantern is fully capable of. We know, however, that it is taking our attacks like its nothing and recovering from them with his black miasma. We know his constructs are at least on par with Uproar's. He is strong. The Kraken, though, is stronger than my invulnerability, making it at least stronger than Superman's average strength and I'd say that is being unfair to the monster's full power. The damned thing blacked me out for a moment. The gods of Europe created such a beast to enact their fury upon the world but we can use that fury in a way that is good for it and all of us. If the Kraken agrees to fight, it agrees to fight. If not, we can continue the way you wish. Saving the world is more important to me than your feelings, I'm sorry if that hurts them any further. Take your wrath out on me later if you must, but I fully believe the Kraken is the best chance of saving humanity and all of the world, including the Kraken itself, from this freak." Pantheon fired his beams to strike each protective serpent in the over and over as the beams bounced. Pantheon fell to his knees and continued the attack.

Such an ancient and primal wrath. It felt so powerful as if the Gods themselves personally carved out a piece of the red light and intertwined it in the beast's genetic code. It was mystical even. Something that he hasn't felt since his first encounter with Atrocitus. "Kraken this, kraken that, does anyone care if I go crazy if I fuck this up?" Uproar groaned. he established a link between the beast and himself, transferring images through one another. He would accept its rage...and answer back with his own. Hoping to establish a neutral understanding between the two.

"I think you're underestimating all of us, including yourself Pantheon. If there wasn't a Kraken would you suggest retreat?" Cain looked back to Uproar who floated beside the Kraken, clearly doing his thing. He glared back to the Lantern that approached, looming over them. "I feel like you of all people would feel the most sympathy for that beast, would wish to protect it the most. But the world can be saved in many ways I guess." He sighed as he readied himself. *"Ways that do or don't involve risking lives."* He thought.

The lantern grinned as it approached the three, Nine massive serpent heads blocking parts of the sky as they hung above the three. "Fall apart must you. A part of you is lost too. Endless light is you." It called out as the serpents roared ceremoniously, diving towards the three.

“I do sympathize with it. It is a beast that is part of the world that wants to exist in this world. Humanity isn’t the only beings that possess a will to fight, nor are gods or aliens. Nor would I suggest retreat. I simply see things available to us here and now.” Pantheon said as he flew between the serpents to avoid their fangs.

Pantheon turned towards Uproar, struggling with the Kraken. "Oh great beast, I am here on behalf of the great god Poseidon. Hear my cry as I serve him in this mission, loan us your strength so that this world and your own may remain safe!" Pantheon said this with authority, hoping the great beast would sense any lingering amounts of Poseidon's energy about him from the dream he had sent earlier.