Green Lantern's Return

10: "Nothing to cry over."

Mount Justice

January 29, 07:55 EDT

    Cyra paced outside one of the bedrooms in the mountain. This one never had any residents, leaving it bare and with nothing that could be used as a weapon—not like Charlie's muscles weren't weapons enough.

Cyra had to drag Charlie back to Earth, who stayed silent, but Cyra could sense a gleeful hum in his twitching smile. When they first landed on Earth, Cyra thinks that is the only time she saw him without his own mask on. His face slacked in awe at the beach of Mount Justice. He watched the rolling water, his eyes scanning the rocks and the mountain all the way up to the blue sky. He closed his eyes as ocean salt sprayed on his face and the wind tousled his hair. Cyra only expected so much with him stuck on Oa, where his view was of a prison cell.

"Shut up," Cyra snapped even though Charlie wasn't talking. "Get inside."

Cyra shoved him forward and Charlie walked down the bay hangar into the garage of the Cave. "Welcome home," she heard him mutter to himself.

"This isn't your home," Cyra said. "Don't worry, you'll be back on Oa soon enough when you try to kill me again."

Charlie glanced over his shoulder at Cyra. "I'm not going to do anything. I'm trying to be a better person, Cyra. You don't have to worry about me."

"Yeah, and I'm not a Green Lantern." Then Cyra threw Charlie into a room and put a large green chain and lock over her door. She looked at it for a moment before adding a wall construct, making no way out.

Cyra let Nobody explore the Cave on his own with strict orders not to steal anything. The alien waved her off and promised he wouldn't, but Cyra would have to check his pockets before he left. If he left. Cyra still didn't have a place of her own and she didn't want to have to sleep at the Cave. Or have Charlie and Nobody stay here. Cyra wondered if Alcatraz still had some cells that could hold a super-powered alien.

Cyra had called John Stewart to see how things were going in space and to report she wouldn't be joining them. John didn't sound very surprised, giving Cyra an inkling that she was the only Lantern out of the loop.

Believing in the fortress she built around Charlie, she went into the kitchen, trying to find some solace in food. It was empty and that made Cyra frowned. She hoped to rant about her problems but it felt off to do so. She just returned after five years and she wants so badly to slip into her old role, but everything felt so different. It feels wrong for Cyra to ask for advice when she was supposed to be a Big Bad Green Lantern who survived space but can't survive her own life.

Cyra made herself a sandwich and leaned against the counter when she ate it.

Fortunately, Nightwing arrived just in time to distract her from her own depressing thoughts.

"You're back from space," Nightwing grinned. Cyra had to keep correcting herself that he wasn't Robin. It wasn't very hard—he grew up a lot.

Cyra nodded. "And I came bearing gifts."

"Yeah. Nobody is stealing parts from Superboy's motorcycle."

"Aww, he's fitting in already. I'm so proud." Cyra wiped away an invisible tear. "But I meant the one I have locked in one of the bedrooms."

Nightwing raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"Charlie," Cyra shrugged nonchalantly.

Nightwing instantly tensed on alert. "The psycho alien who tried to kill you? He's here?"

"Yup."

"Why? He pretended to be your friend and then tried to destroy you and Green Lantern Senior and the entire planet. He killed his own mentor. That guy is unhinged."