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—
Oa
The Guardians' Council Chamber
If Miles had to describe the Guardians to a human who had never heard of them before, Papa Smurfs without the hats would be his first choice.
"Miles Beckett of Earth, welcome to Oa." One of the Guardians greeted. Miles wasn't even going to pretend to know their names.
"Thank you."
"Lantern Stewart has informed us regarding your knowledge of Blackest Night. We are listening." Miles was sure they forgot to ask what he wanted in return on purpose.
"Has he not informed you it wasn't free this time?" Half the reason he informed them about the Manhunters was to prove his reliability.
"You would bargain for the future of the universe?" The voice would have sounded offended if the Guardians weren't such staunch advocates for not feeling emotions.
"I am not bargaining. I have my terms: you either accept them and I relay to you what I know, or you don't and I leave, simple as that." Miles said this was a business transaction with clear terms; if anyone was bargaining, it was them.
"What are your terms?" One of them said after they discussed it for a couple of minutes amongst themselves.
"100,000 Earth tons of processed gold in bars—now I know it is insulting to beings like you who are beyond material need, but Earth has barely learned to crawl, and we already have to deal with a ridiculous amount of threats, and that gold will be necessary. Also, I require a Green Lantern ring, and I need to take Larfleeze out for an errand. Of course, I will convince him myself; I just want you to not interfere." Miles knew the first part was easy; in fact, he could have asked for a planet made of gold, and the Guardians would have given it. It was his second and third terms that presented a problem.
"You know Agent Orange? Then you know it is vital he stays where he is." Larfleeze was a one-person Lantern Corps, which made him an extremely dangerous and lethal opponent, and the Guardians had to make do with convincing him to stay in the Vega system, as they had no other option that was worth the price they would pay.
"And he is vital to my plans, so if you want to know what will trigger Blackest Night, you will let him out, or you can try to figure it out yourselves." Miles said, knowing convincing the other side you will walk away if you don't get what you want would press them into a corner.
"Perhaps we should contain you until you are ready to speak." One with a receding hairline suggested receiving contemplative glances.
"Do you know what is in this briefcase?" Miles held it out. If the Smurfs resorted to threats, so would he.
"Our scans detected nothing in it." Source of valuable information or not, the Guardians weren't going to let anyone walk into the Council Chambers before guaranteeing their safety.
"Because the object inside is from the Antimatter Universe, and your rings cannot scan something that shouldn't exist, you should know that; after all, Krona was the one who created it," Miles said, ruffling the figurative feathers of the Guardians.
"What is in it then?" The Guardians became alert. What the human said was correct: after Krona created the Antimatter Universe, they had ceased all the activities that might give their lost brethren a way back into this universe, and their knowledge of the inner workings of that universe was lacking.
"A beacon to summon the Anti-Monitor for a short while to this universe, and I won't hesitate to use it if you think you can imprison me." Miles said,
"Anti-Monitor? We are not familiar with it." The one who suggested imprisoning Miles said knowing anything from that universe would have dire effects on this one.
"An extremely powerful being capable of destroying universes, and already innumerable universes have met oblivion at his hands. Now, since he will be here for a short amount of time, the universe will be safe, but I can't say the same for Oa."
"You are bluffing." Miles could see the beginnings of worry in their demeanor. He had them.
"Perhaps I am, perhaps I am not. The only way to find out is to open the briefcase. If I am bluffing, nothing happens; if I am not, you will have to fight and risk your lives. So let me ask you, is it worth the risk? After all, Larfleeze is a known quantity, whereas Blackest Night and Anti-Monitor are not. Miles steered the conversation back to the matter.
The Guardians started to discuss the pros and cons of whether imprisoning the human was worth the trouble. The human knew things he had no business knowing; who could say he didn't have the means to actually bring a creature from the Antimatter Universe?
Better to fight the enemy they knew than the one they did not.
"You have made your point; you will have your gold, and we will allow Agent Orange to leave the Vega system for this one instance. However, rings are not given; they choose their bearers." The one with the Elvis Presley hair agreed for the entire council after they finished their discussion.
"You are the creator of the rings; I am positive you can hand me one." Not like he was going to use the ring.
"What is it that you want the ring for if you cannot use it?" Yoda's blue cousin spoke, wondering what fate awaited the ring.
"Personal business" Realizing Miles wasn't going to explain further, the Guardians looked at each other for confirmation; eventually, they all gave their consent.
"We agree to your terms."
"Then ask, and you shall receive."
—
Three Hours Later
Miles explained everything he remembered about Nekron, how he was in a dimension of his own, his powers, and how the death of an immortal would create a paradox and unleash the Lord of the Unliving into the universe so he may bring blackest night and end all life. He mentioned the Entity, which the Guardians were aware of, and how it created the White Lantern Corps by fusing with any existing Lantern, regardless of where they stood in the Emotional Spectrum.
As killing what was basically the ultimate death wasn't possible, the only way to defeat him was to seal the rift between dimensions with Nekron on the other side.
He couldn't mention Krona's death explicitly but did warn them that since the Maltusians were immortal, they should be extremely careful when putting themselves in mortal danger.
Even for the Guardians of the Universe, it was a lot to take, so they decided it was for the best if Miles stayed on Oa for a couple more days.
"I must say you have given us a lot to consider." A Guardian followed him, and from the way he looked troubled, Miles reckoned he was Ganthet, probably the favorite Guardian of many Green Lanterns.
"The multiverse could be a dark and dangerous place."
"Indeed." The immortal Maltusian sighed, knowing it was their scientific research that created it in the first place.
"I have also wanted to speak to you regarding your payment. When and where do you want us to deliver the gold?"
"I'll give you the coordinates, and I cannot stress this enough, but be extremely discreet. I don't want the Justice League or the government questioning why the Green Lanterns delivered thousands of tons of gold to me."
"Are you not allied with them?"
"I am, but I also have my own methods to ensure Earth's survival."
"We will be discreet then."
—
Sometimes in groups, sometimes individually, the Guardians came to ask questions about the prophecy, and he did his best to answer. At the end of day two of his visit to Oa, the Guardians had had enough and thought it best to send Miles back to Earth.
"Miles Beckett, we are grateful for both instances you have supplied us with your knowledge, and you will have your negotiated fee. To that end, Ganthet will coordinate with you regarding the delivery. This communication device will allow you to contact him directly."
"That is wonderful to hear; there is nothing like a clean and simple trade deal to satisfy both sides."
—
"Finally done?" John was taken off duty for the duration of Miles' stay in Oa and had spent time with his fellow Lanterns while waiting.
"Yes, with how sensitive the whole matter is, it's no surprise it took a couple of days, but I am ready to go back to Earth. The sky here is dreadfully boring," Miles complained in a mocking tone.
"Hope you didn't tell that to the Guardians," John shot back, smiling.
"I am not daft, John."
"Let's go back then." John began to levitate, raising his ring.
"You did keep this matter silent, right?"
"The Guardians wanted it that way." John would have spoken to the League about the deal, but his bosses told him to keep it quiet, and it's not like he saw any harm.
"Well then, my interstellar chauffeur, take me back to Metropolis, please."
John shook his head, enveloping Miles in a green bubble.
—
Their journey back to Earth didn't require any haste, and John took the opportunity to ask more questions.
"So, how do we defeat this Nekron if he gets out?"
"You drag him back to the dimension he crawled out from and seal the breach."
"No other way?"
"John, Nekron is the final death; every single soul that dies passes through his dimension, regardless of their religion or lack of one. He is the physical manifestation of the concept of death as a cosmic certainty. As long as there is death, he will exist, so no," Miles replied, quoting the description he had read from the wiki.
"And here I thought dealing with the Imperium was bad."
"They are but a blip in the cosmos, John."
That didn't fill the Green Lantern with confidence.
—
Metropolis
Landing back on Earth after two days on Oa, Miles checked his phone for a call from Claire. He called the number back, and Claire answered after a couple of seconds.
"Hey, Miles. Glad to see you're alive." She spoke with a drawl, sounding incredibly relaxed.
"Claire, I hope you're not indulging in recreational substances out in the open."
"What?! No, I am just getting a massage, that's all," she replied, flustered and suddenly fully aware.
"Already enjoying the luxuries the capitalist system provides, I see. I will be at the hotel in half an hour; be ready by then." They would be heading to Massachusetts for the gold shipment.
"Understood."
Miles ended the call, calling for a taxi to the hotel.
—
Metropolis Grand Hotel
Claire opened the door for Miles as the young man got out of the car.
"What do you think?" She posed with her hands on her waist.
In a two-piece black and red suit showing her belly with a keyhole and no arms, along with red gloves and high-heeled boots, she cut a rather eye-catching figure.
"If you can fight in those boots, then I have to admit you are smoldering." Miles made a pun, watching Claire roll her eyes, but still pleased.
"So how did your business go?"
"Swimmingly, we need to be in Massachusetts for the Green Lanterns to bring the gold."
"Right, you did mention that last time, but who exactly did you meet out there?"
"They are called the Guardians of the Universe, immortal aliens who made it their goal to bring order to the galaxy, and the leader of the Green Lantern Corps."
"So, space cops?"
"Yes, most would describe them as such. Now, have you received your ID yet?"
"Here." She held it out, happy to have a part of her life taken back by the society.
"Perfect timing."
—
Metropolis International Airport
Renting a private jet and burning quite a bit of money to expedite the process, Miles and Claire were in the air in an hour.
Metropolis and Massachusetts were relatively close, so their flight wasn't going to take long.
"Mmm, this is rather good. Are you sure you don't want a glass?" Claire sipped the champagne, enjoying the expensive brand.
"No, I don't have good memories when it comes to alcohol." He refused, lying on the cozy seat with his hat covering his eyes.
"Why? Drunk father or something?" She asked, swirling the glass.
"Mother, actually, she married the college genius, unaware he only married her to fulfill the expectations our circle of acquaintances and my grandparents put on him. She resorted to drinking when I was four years old or so," he explained, seeing it as a good way to build rapport with Claire.
"What happened after that?" She lost her smile, seeing Miles was in the same boat as her.
"My father died when I was sixteen, and she disappeared with her young lover, taking most of the estate," he explained. Miles, having seen what a real family was from his friends in school, didn't shed any tears over either event.
"You too, huh?" She was sympathetic to his struggles, not that Miles saw them as such.
"Indeed."
"What did you do after that?" Knowing him, it was definitely something grand.
"I blackmailed a high-ranking banking executive and graduated college, and I am now busy trying to save the world." Claire blinked at the blunt admission, wanting to know the details, but she was more curious about the rest of his family.
"What about your grandparents? Didn't they offer any help?"
"Anything they offered would come with a leash around my neck, and I might have just strangled them with it." While they were worlds apart now, he still remembered the elitist, stuck-up old coots who cared more about their status than their children and ended up raising single-minded garbage in human form.
"That's brutal." She too had considered revenge against her parents but didn't know if she could do it, though something told Claire that Miles would.
"Suddenly getting cold feet, Claire?" Miles teased her guard.
"No, actually I find it rather hot. What about your mother? Aren't you worried she might show herself if you get famous?" She winked, bantering for the fun of it rather than any desire.
"We won't be seeing her again, ever." Miles said with certainty, knowing Claire would take it the wrong way, but it would stop her from getting nosy.