Shine In The Dark - A Private Lantern Corps RPG

[Lantern Thaal Sinestro]

Sinestro had been happy to see Ceraphel, until she threw up. Then he was concerned and mildly nauseated himself. It was no secret that he did not have a very good constitution, though he would like to deny it. Seeing someone puke made him turn a little green as well, though it faded soon enough. It had just taken him by surprise. Normally, he liked to prepare himself for that kind of thing.

He had been far from prepared.

"She's right," Sinestro said about Hal, "he's nuts. I don't think he has a stomach that can become upset, so he doesn't even notice what chaos he's causing other people. I've flown with him more than once myself." Though he had never thrown up. But that was also because he had always been mentally prepared for it. His will was an amazing thing, he could admit that.

He forced himself not to do a lot of things he really wanted to do, when the time called for it.

"Oh great, my daughter's on that jet with him, too," sighed Sinestro, clearly annoyed, "doesn't he know how to take it easy, or was he trying to make Ceraphel sick?!" he was fuming, but he didn't dwell on it, moving over to Ceraphel to help her over to the washrooms. He wanted to help her out, and tell himself that he didn't want to punch Hal in the nose right at that moment.

But if Soranik threw up, too, he would definitely reconsider not punching him in the nose.

He moved beside the woman, placing a hand on her back gently as he guided her over. "Perhaps we should go back to the apartment once Hal and Soranik land," he said lightly, "give you a chance to rest." And a chance for him to yell at the lantern, too. He really wanted to yell at him. Typical Hal- he never thought of anything ahead of time.

✘ ✘ ✘

In blackest day, in brightest night,
Beware your fears made into light
Let those who try to stop what's right,
Burn like my power... Sinestro's might!
✘ ✘ ✘

[Minaarchangel]

Ceraphel let him lead her to the washrooms and she went inside, checking to make certain nobody else was in there so that Sinestro could join her. She got a paper towel wet and wiped down her face, and then rinsed her mouth out. She wet another paper towel, put it on her forehead, and reached over for his hand, smiling a bit though she was looking a little blue, as her people did when they were feeling nauseated.

"Don't blame Hal," she managed. "I told him to have fun. I really thought I would be able to handle whatever he threw at me, but I'd never been on a plane like that before. I guess I wasn't ready for it."

She got a strange look on her face, and Ceraphel ran to get sick again, though this time it was just dry heaving that made her stomach hurt. Eventually it calmed down, and she had to come out and do the face wash and mouth rinse once again before putting a cool, wet paper towel on the back of her neck, still trying to manage a smile for him. She did not want Sinestro to worry about her because she had thought she could handle the g-forces that came with flying in a jet.

"I don't want you to miss out on anything though. Take me back to the apartment and the rest of you go do something. I'll rest and get rid of this headache."

While Ceraphel was being tended to, Carol left the research department to head up to the control tower, where she got a pair of headphones on and tapped into the frequency that Hal and Soranik were using. She felt like they might avoid a major conflict if Hal returned contrite and concerned instead of boisterous and happy from being up in one of her expensive planes. She also wanted to keep the two of them from destroying her company if at all possible.

"Hal, I don't know what you're doing up there, but your antics made Ceraphel sick. I'd come in really repentant if I were you. Sinestro did not seem pleased. At all. He's busy taking care of her right now."

[Lantern Thaal Sinestro]

"He should still know better," huffed Sinestro, "he knows more than enough about those jets to know how people react when they're on them."

Hal was annoyed to hear that Sinestro was mad at "I'll be careful," he chuckled, "but I don't know how it's my fault! She told me she could handle it!" He didn't argue too much, though, as he knew it wasn't really going to get him anywhere. Still, he didn't feel like he had done anything wrong. He ended up finishing his flight with Soranik a little calmer than he had with Ceraphel, just to be on the safe side. Thankfully, it seemed like she had a thicker skin, and she wasn't bothered by the flight, even before he had decided to go easy on her. They both got out of the jet feeling just fine.

After that, Sinestro said he wanted to take Ceraphel back to the apartment and Hal went along too, of course. Soranik as well, just because she wanted to sit with Ceraphel for a while to make sure she was alright. That was the doctor part of her coming through as always. Once they arrived, Hal looked at Sinestro, who was clearly not in a good mood.

"Hey, how about you and me go grab a drink? I know a really great bar, and it's not far from here. The ladies could have some time alone and you and me could have a nice chat. How about it?"

"Fine," Sinestro hissed, "I have some things I'd like to talk to you about, too."

"You know, I figured that," Hal replied easily enough, before turning his head to look at Ceraphel. "I really am sorry about what happened. I didn't mean to make you sick," he offered her lightly. He then gave Sinestro a clap on the shoulder and headed off with him, leaving the women to chat with one another while Ceraphel recovered.

"That guy," sighed Soranik, "he just doesn't know when he's in over his head. I'm sure Sinestro is going to have a nice conversation with him about making you throw up! He must have looked absolutely livid."

✘ ✘ ✘

In blackest day, in brightest night,
Beware your fears made into light
Let those who try to stop what's right,
Burn like my power... Sinestro's might!
✘ ✘ ✘

[Minaarchangel]

Ceraphel was certain after a few minutes of a wet paper towel against the back of her neck and occasionally on her forehead that she was done getting ill. She just wanted to sleep now, because her head hurt around her eyes, and her throat burned roughly and her stomach was in knots but no longer nauseated. It had never occurred to her that she would be so delicate when it came to riding in a vehicle instead of flying under her own power. When she was ready to go, she let Sinestro take her back to where he had been working, and she had him sit down in a chair before she sat on his lap, her forehead tucked against his neck as she closed her eyes.

When Hal and Soranik returned, they headed back to Hal's apartment, and Ceraphel tried to protest that Soranik should go out and have some fun, or go hang out with Carol, who had stayed at work. But she soon realized that the doctor in Soranik was not going to be denied, so she just leaned against Sinestro until he and Hal decided they were going to go out and have a drink. Eyes closed against the throb of pain that came when she got up, Ceraphel tried to give Hal a smile.

"It's okay Hal. Neither of us could have known that I'd react so badly. Besides, I know you didn't mean to make me sick. You two have a nice time out, and I should be okay in a little while."

She headed into the guest room and lied down on the bed, the relief of not having to remain upright was so strong that she closed her eyes almost immediately. Soranik was welcome company though, and she lifted an arm over her eyes and let it rest there.

"It wasn't Hal's fault," she said softly. "But I imagine Sinestro is still going to yell at him good and loud. It's my own fault, really. I thought I could handle it, and when I started not feeling so good, I didn't say anything to Hal. I just hope that they don't get into some kind of rowdy fight that destroys something. I can only imagine what would happen if the lantern powers came out."

Reaching out, she picked up the cold bottle of water Hal had provided her with before they left and took a sip of it, "I've never been motion sick before, I didn't know it felt this awful. Now I feel bad for all the criminals I've picked up and ignored when they moaned about being motion sick."

[Lantern Thaal Sinestro]

"Don't think about it too much and you'll be fine," Soranik ventured, "it goes away pretty quickly, usually. I'm not sure what Hal has around here, probably nothing healthy, but I could make you some tea or something. We could talk about something else if you like. How are things with you and Sinestro? Still strong?" Of course she was going to fish. She wanted to help her father, after all. If she found out Ceraphel was feeling a little uneasy, she would have to tell Sinestro so he could wait and not ruin his chance at this. After all, timing was extremely important. If he wasn't careful, he could ruin his one shot at asking her to marry him and things would get very awkward!

Or maybe she was just over-thinking things.

Sinestro and Hal got to the bar without making a scene, and managed to sit down without trouble brewing. But it wasn't long into the drinks that things got a little heated. Of course it started because of what had happened. Sinestro had complained that he hadn't been thoughtful and Hal returned that he hadn't been aware, so how could it be his fault? Sinestro wanted to knock him across the face just for that, but he kept it in while the conversation continued. Hal was adamant he hadn't done anything wrong. Then, of course, he said the wrong thing.

"You were always like this," he huffed as he down another shot, "you think you're right and no one else's opinion mattered! And look what happened to Korugar because of it!"

"What?!" Sinestro snapped, "you dare say something like that to me?! Who do you think you are?"

"I'm the guy always cleaning up your messes, that's who I am! Whenever you get in trouble, I'm the one dragged along to get you out of it again! You even know how many times I've had to come help rescue you? How many times Ceraphel asked me to help? And I did! Every time! But you never really change, do you? It's only a matter of time before..."

"Before what, Jordan. Say it, I dare you," Sinestro growled threatening, both men ignoring the squeak of the bar tender to take things outside.

"It's only a matter of time before you mess things up with Ceraphel, too," Hal replied challengingly. And that was it- Sinestro lost it. With an angry yell he tackled Hal, knocking the both of them to the floor. He wasn't thinking about his ring, just about pummeling the man. Punching him again and again until he got it through his thick skull that he couldn't say whatever the hell he wanted, especially not to Sinestro.

Their fight certainly broke a lot of chairs, mostly over one another, as well as bottles and a table and finally a window as Sinestro tossed Hal through it, jumping out after him. Naturally, everyone was watching, but the fighting skills of both of the men were so impressive that no one else sought to get involved. Then, finally, Hal responded by using his ring. Lying on the ground, he turned up to face Sinestro again. The white lantern was advancing on him quickly and he wasn't quite ready. So he instinctively pointed his ring at him, sending a blast his way that connected with his chest and sent him careening into the side of the nearest dumpster. With a grunt, Sinestro slumped against the dirt, coughing. It gave Hal enough time to scramble back to his feet, before Sinestro also got himself up and the fight continued some more.

Right up until the police came. Then both men surrendered without using their rings or attacking the officers, seemingly snapped from their battle modes by the sirens and police voices. They were cuffed and put in two different squad cars, the bloody men taken to the police station after they both declined the need to go to the hospital. They were placed in the same holding cell, though neither of them seemed interested in continuing the fight at that point.

Hal had the police officers call his apartment, albeit reluctantly.

✘ ✘ ✘

In blackest day, in brightest night,
Beware your fears made into light
Let those who try to stop what's right,
Burn like my power... Sinestro's might!
✘ ✘ ✘

[Minaarchangel]

"A cup of tea would be nice, if Hal has any," Ceraphel replied.

She smiled a little, "I think we're doing okay now. I know we fought the other day on Oa, but our fights...they're not the loud, explosive things because we can't face the real problems. We just both have tempers, it seems. I have insecurities, he has behavioral patterns that aren't conductive to a relationship, but we're both trying to make a change for the better, and that's the important part. I know it just takes time for that kind of thing to grow and work."

Ceraphel managed to sit up a bit, her back against the headboard of the bed, "And after all we've been through to just be together, I can't imagine things ever being so bad that we would want to part. I love your father so much, I hope I get to spend the rest of my life with him."

It was a mushy, warm sentiment, but she felt no shame over it. It was their love that had gotten them through some of the worst experiences in their lives. Ceraphel could feel the warmth bubbling up inside her, and she smiled brighter, looking out the window, "Having him by my side has made me a better lantern. And that's the most important thing in my life, except for him."

When the phone rang in the apartment, Ceraphel was up and about, and she managed to get to it, picking it up. The delight at hearing Hal's voice was quickly tempered by the short story of the bar fight and their subsequent incarceration. Sighing, she promised him she would call Carol and they would decide what to do about it, and then hung up before he could protest. Carol's number was in his speed dial, marked as number three under Pizza Hut and The Frying Dragon Chinese Palace, and she called the business woman at work.

"...They're where?" she asked.

"In jail. Hal said they picked a fight in a bar and now they're in a drunk tank? Does that sound right?" Ceraphel asked.

"Unfortunately, it does," Carol sighed. "Okay, I'll go bail them out."

"I think I should go too," Ceraphel said. "Aside from keeping them from picking at each other, I really want to have a talk with Sinestro about vacation behavior."

The word talk would come out of her mouth sounding ominous for Sinestro. Carol almost felt sorry for the guy. Almost. Instead, she agreed to come get Ceraphel, and they headed to the police station, where she had to pay the two hundred dollar bail for both of them, plus a fifty dollar fine each for public intoxication, and another fifty each for court fees. The police would give them back their belongings, and they would be escorted out of lock up to where the two women were waiting. Neither one of them looked particularly pleased at the moment.

Carol, because she spent over six hundred dollars to get them out of jail and out of a court date. Ceraphel because Sinestro had not held his temper over something as minimal as motion sickness and had ended up picking a fight in public. She imagined that the damage would have been worse with lantern rings involved, but that was just a small favors kind of thankfulness. Carol looked the two of them over with a piercing glare.

"I hope you're proud of yourselves. Let's go."

Ceraphel just shook her head and headed out of the police precinct with Carol, neither of them waiting for the two men to follow. She would yell at Sinestro when they had some privacy to do so.

[Lantern Thaal Sinestro]

Sinestro and Hal said nothing to each other in the cell, just waiting for their inevitable punishment. They both looked like ten miles of bad road- Hal's left eye was swelling and he had bruising over his nose, blooding drying from his nostrils. He had a few cuts here and there from the glass, and a multitude of other bruises from them bashing away at one another under his clothing. Sinestro, meanwhile, looked very similar. His right eye was swollen shut and he had a large bruise next to his mouth on the left side, making his cheek swell a little too. He had a cut on his forehead that had been bleeding over his face, but the blood there was also drying since it was only a small wound. He, too, had various other cuts and bruises on him, though his were mostly around his chest, which was very bruised and slightly burnt from where the lantern energy had hit him. They both had heavily bruised knuckles and fingers, and some might even have been broken.

However, neither of them seemed to notice their injuries as they leaned on opposing walls with their arms crossed. They remained absolutely silent until Carol, Ceraphel showed up to bail them out. Soranik had decided to wait for them at Hal's apartment, with supplied to treat whatever wounds they had given one another.

Talk about a working vacation! And she had been so happy to hear that Ceraphel wanted to spend the rest of her life with Sinestro, too.

Hal seemed to turn into putty at that point, offering Carol tons of apologies and begging her not to be angry with him. That he would pay her back when he got some money. Apparently her cold glare had broken him in an instant.

Sinestro, meanwhile, remained as calm and collected as ever, his anger from the bar having faded. He was surprised at himself for reacting in such a way, but he supposed Hal had said the one thing he really hadn't wanted to hear.

Mostly because he was scared it was true.

The two men limped grimly after the woman, and the silence continued until they got back to Hal's place. Then Hal went into his room, and Soranik went after him to treat his wounds, first. She imagined Ceraphel would help Sinestro, since it didn't seem like either of them had anything that explicitly required the help of a doctor. Anyone could clean a couple cuts.

Sinestro moved into the bedroom, sitting himself down on the bed with a wince.

"It was my fault," he sighed, his voice a little muffled from his swollen cheek, "I just... got so angry with him. I snapped."

✘ ✘ ✘

In blackest day, in brightest night,
Beware your fears made into light
Let those who try to stop what's right,
Burn like my power... Sinestro's might!
✘ ✘ ✘

[Minaarchangel]

Carol was not unbudging. She accepted Hal's apology, and added the six hundred or so to the growing tab that he owed her and that she knew she would never see. But she was not inclined to come inside.

"Soranik can take care of you. I'm still angry."

She dropped them off, and left the three of them to walk into the house, two bruised and bloodied, and one eerily silent Ceraphel. She followed Sinestro into the bedroom where they were staying, and silently made the bruise patches out of violet light. She waited until she had a good stack before she motioned for him to take his shirt off, so she could see the extent of the damage that he and Hal had done to each other. Frowning more deeply, she began slapping the patches on roughly, a sure sign that she was upset.

"Can we take one vacation where you don't end up coming home to me in bruises and cuts?" she finally asked, obviously having been doing her best to keep herself from being livid. "One. Just one! You might have the strongest will in the universe but it also makes you damn pig headed."

Another bruise patch. And another. All slapped on without care as to how much it might have hurt him.

"This was not a big deal, Thaal," she continued. "Billions of people all over the universe get motion sick every day. Just because it happened to me doesn't mean you had to pummel the person responsible. I shudder to ponder what you might do if I tripped over a lamp cord and skinned my knee. Would you decimate the building?!"

Ceraphel sent a violet construct of herself out into the kitchen to fetch some ice, and it came back, holding the crushed ice in a violet energy ice pack. It handed the ice to her, and she put it on his right eye, then cut it in half and put the other half next to his mouth. The construct Ceraphel stood quietly and held the last of the bruise bandages, and she finished putting them on, before using her ring to heal the worst of them. The bruise near his mouth was treated as well, but not the one near his eye, as she felt delicate about doing that.

"Soranik can fix your eye," she continued, frowning at him. "So do you want to explain what this was all about? Because you can't possibly tell me that this was all about me throwing up a couple of times or having a lingering headache. Which is back, by the way."

[Lantern Thaal Sinestro]

Oh god, he remembered this. Just like the last time she had been angry with him- she was the worst at fixing up wounds! He hissed painfully as she slapped the patches on, to the point where he dispelled her violet constructs with his white energy and just left the injuries as they were while he got to his feet to get away from her.

He didn't need to sit there and let her smack his already painful bruises!

"It wasn't about you being motion sick," Sinestro commented quickly, "it was about him not thinking things through again. Not paying attention. Of course he didn't see it that way, and the fight took off. I don't know what to tell you- we just have a lot of history together. I just couldn't take listening to him telling me that I'm the one who messes everything up. That I'm going to mess up things with you, too!" He sighed, running a hand through his hair. It made him wince, though, as he felt a bump on the back of his head from where he had slammed against the dumpster.

In the other room, he could hear the his daughter giving Hal a stern talking to as well, though he could make out what was being said. Just an angry voice and the occasional whimper of pain from Hal. Somehow, Sinestro imagined the wound treatments they had both been getting were about the same, though Soranik was treating Hal traditionally and not with constructs.

Sinestro paced the room, feeling annoyed. Not at Ceraphel, he knew she had a right to be angry, but at himself. He shouldn't have let himself get worked up. He knew he shouldn't have. But when it came to Hal, he couldn't keep himself from getting angry.

Hal knew how to get under his skin.

"I'm sorry," he told her again, the lantern moving over to the window to peer out at the street below. Not exactly the best view, but it would do for the moment. "I don't know what it is about that guy- he knows just what to say to make me want to punch him right in the throat. But I never intended to fight him. I had been trying my best NOT to, in fact. My mind just went blank."

He crossed his arms over his bruised chest, keeping his eyes on the street below as he brooded over what had happened. It hurt. His chest was aching. That jerk. He knew he needed to be careful about his heart. He was glad when he heard a sharp yowl from the other room, probably as Soranik popped a finger back into place on Hal's punching hand.

"I know I'm pig-headed," he added with a sigh.

✘ ✘ ✘

In blackest day, in brightest night,
Beware your fears made into light
Let those who try to stop what's right,
Burn like my power... Sinestro's might!
✘ ✘ ✘

[Minaarchangel]

"You're..."

Ceraphel calmed down a little, frowning at that. She really hoped that had been the booze talking and not how Hal really felt. She came back over to Sinestro, and guided him back to the bed and had him sit down. This time, she was much more gentle as she began putting patches on his bruises, her fingers stroking his hair away from his face carefully.

"You're not going to drive me away, Thaal. I'm here for the long haul, no matter how badly you want me to go away."

Leaning down, she kissed the bruise on his cheek gently, "You're just stuck with me. And there is very little you can do to scare me off. Keep in mind, you were possessed by a demon who tried to murder me and came extremely close. And I still decided that you were the best thing that ever happened to me. I'm afraid you're going to leave me, and you're afraid you're going to scare me off, and neither of us are right."

She did flick one of the bruises, "But that doesn't mean you need to let Hal bait you. Hal Jordan of all people. I know he's the leader of the green lanterns, but seriously...it's Hal."

Going into the bathroom, she came back out with a wet wash cloth and began cleaning the dried blood off of his skin, letting the bruise pads heal the wounds as well as her violet energy could. Then she sat down on his lap and put her head against his shoulder, holding onto him gently so that she did not hurt any bruises that might have gone untreated because she was somewhat angry, despite the fact that she knew Hal had come out and pushed one of Sinestro's buttons so easily. Sighing softly, she shook her head.

"I'm going to go give Hal Jordan a piece of my mind. I want you to lie down and let Soranik take a look at your eye."

Kissing his cheek once again, she moved to his lips, just close enough that he would feel her own moving against his, "I am with you forever. I love you Thaal."

Ceraphel got up and opened the door out into the other room, and came to find Soranik and Hal, the gentle expression gone from her face, back to something hard and determined, and while not nearly as threatening as Carol's glare, it gave her an air of menace.

"Could you please look at Sinestro's eye, Soranik?" she asked. "I don't want to fiddle around with it, violet energy isn't a bad healer, but I am always afraid of something going awry. Besides. Hal and I need to have a talk."

[Lantern Thaal Sinestro]

Sinestro sighed and smiled at Ceraphel the best he could manage with his beaten up face. Since he had gotten rid of her constructs with his white energy, at least he could see her a bit instead of feeling surrounded by ice packs and bruise pads. But she guided him back over to the bed to give it another go, and he let her, feeling that she was much more gentle than she had been the first time around.

“I know,” he sighed, “after everything we’ve been through, of course I know that. But somehow… he just got to me. I don’t know. Maybe it’s just because of all the hate we have built up between one another.”

He winced slightly when she flicked one of his bruises, though he chuckled.

He leaned against her, listening as she complained about Hal. “You don’t need to defend my honor or anything,” he told her lightly, “I can fight my own battles.” Still, if she wanted to yell at him, he wasn’t really going to stop her. He instead reclined as she instructed, to rest while she went to get Soranik. He imagined he would soon hear her voice through the walls, too.

When Ceraphel joined them, Hal and Soranik both looked up. Hal had a bandage over a clearly broken nose, as well as one on his cheek. A couple fingers with in a small splint and he had other bandages on him that were covering his various wounds. He frowned when he saw Ceraphel. “Is he okay?” He asked awkwardly, though her glare told him maybe he shouldn’t speak to her. Soranik got up and gave a nod, moving into the room and closing the door behind her since she knew Ceraphel wanted to talk to Hal. Apparently she knew more than Hal had been willing to say.

Soranik went into the room and took a look at Sinestro’s eye, as asked. It looked pretty swollen, but she soon discovered that nothing had been damaged and the bruising would eventually go down. He had been lucky, because his eye was going to be just fine. She then took a moment to look over his heart, since he complained to her that his chest was hurting. She took it very seriously and went about making some machines with her ring and hooking him up to get things checked out properly. He couldn’t say how many times she had done that, just to find out he was fine, but he appreciated her wanting to make sure.

He sighed and settled back onto the bed, listening to the monitors beep though he was really trying to see if he could hear Hal and Ceraphel. It was hard with Soranik telling him he needed to be more careful with his heart.

Again.

✘ ✘ ✘

In blackest day, in brightest night,
Beware your fears made into light
Let those who try to stop what's right,
Burn like my power... Sinestro's might!
✘ ✘ ✘