Return of The Corps

[Thaal Sinestro]

Ben Wade’s eyes were aflame with anger. He didn’t know why, God damn he didn’t know why. After everything he’d done, dragging these sorry ass criminals through the trails, chasing after him and gunning down any dumb bastard who got in his way. He fought a whole God damned town, he’d given away more than a few hundred dollars, and he’d gone through more than his fair share of hell just to make sure that they didn’t put Wade on that train. And he’d done it! Against all the damn odds, he’d done it. He’d killed over twenty men on his way, but he killed the dumb bastard that was trying to put him on that railway to Yuma. Shot him dead.

After all that, Wade’s eyes were full of anger, and he knew he was gonna have to draw.

Charlie bolted up and grabbed for his holster, but he found it empty. He blinked the sleep from his eyes, trying to see through dimness that surrounded him. He tried to get off of the bed, but the rattle of chains and the jerk of his leg told him that he was bolted to the wall.

“Ya know,” he said with the same cold quietness he was known for, “I kin just summon up a hacksaw to get myself up outta that.”

A shadow stepped forward from the corner of the small room, revealing themselves to be the metal man he had recently thought he killed. “You’d need more than a few minutes to make one,” he replied. His cybernetic voice was even more distorted than it had been before, likely thanks to the blade that Prince had jammed into his neck. “And it only takes me about a half of a second to pull this trigger.” The thin ray of light from the window glinted from the barrel of the exo’s gun, which just so happened to be pointed in Charlie’s direction.

The outlaw leaned forward, narrowing his eyes. “I think I might take the bullet then, mister. I hear that that funny little bald kid will bring me back if you end up killin’ me.”

“True enough,” Phantom growled, “but don’t think I’d be killing you. I think I’d just make you hurt real bad for a while. Make you wish you were dead.”

Charlie idly tugged at the shackle around his ankle, reluctantly glancing between it and his captor. “Well, what do you want from me then?”

The machine slowly stalked forward, and if the robber wasn’t mistaken he had a smile on his his face. “I want to give you something.”

The criminals mean eyes focused on the exo as he spoke, catching every little detail about him. “What’re you handing out that I can’t get for myself?”

Phantom exuded a crumpled, static-laden chuckle and shifted his weight. The barrel of the gun was still pointed at his prisoner’s head. “Well, your freedom for starters.”

“I reckon I could get that if I tried hard enough.” Charlie slowly reclined, taking on a more relaxed pose as the robot tried to sell him on compliance.

“We’ll banish you if you don’t comply. If you don’t know what that means, just imagine hell.”

Charlie smirked and glanced up. “If I was afraid of hell, you think I’d be a highwayman?”

A cool stillness hung between the two men, both monsters. The lingering motes of dust illuminated in the glaring sunlight that rained from the cell’s tiny window. “We’ll train you,” he finally replied, “You’re pretty fresh here in the Omniverse. There’s a lot you don’t know yet, about what you can do, what you can’t. We’ll even teach you how to fight, how to win.”

Prince smiled subtly. “From the way that rob’ry went, I figured you’d be the one wantin’ some lessons on that.”

Phantom turned his head to the side. “You remember the ring, traveler?” Charlie’s attention was caught, and he laid a little more quietly than he had before. “That’s not power you can learn to use on your own. It’s something more than just a weapon. It’s something deeper than that.” A distant madness could be seen reflected in the lenses of the exo’s eyes, his sight somewhere far away as he spoke. “It’s like nothing you’ve ever felt before; all the power in all the universe around your finger, and all the terror that comes along with it.”

Prince remained silent for a moment, glaring at the robot and considering his words. “Ye know, I don’t like all this talkin’.” He adjusted himself and then leaned forward, his face just barely caught by the sun. “So you’d best let me go, real peaceful like.”

“Afraid not, traveler.” Phantom pulled back the hammer of the revolver in his hand, ockcing it with a menacing click. “It’s a bit of a ‘do or die’ situation, you see.”

Shadows were cast over the highwayman’s face, and he didn’t speak above a whisper. “I guess you’d better get ready to send me to hell then, ‘cause you better know I’m comin’ for ya after I wake back up.”

“Purpose.” A dark form interjected from the doorway across the way from Charlie’s bed. “That’s what we offer.” Sinestro’s massive frame dominated the space, leaving little room for the light to filter in from behind him. “Structure. Meaning. The loyalty of the men on either side of you. Something to live for.” He brought his hand up before him, and the ring glowed a baleful gold, casting traces of yellow over his sharp features. “Someone to live for.”

Charlie looked into the man that stood before him. His eyes were aflame.