Vell stood in the centre of the odd room with her hands planted on her hips. She couldn't even make sense of the different things she saw around her. Well, she knew what the chair was. And the tables. Fortunately, her species had invented the same kind of furniture. But there was this strange, flat, black panel that faced the dirty couch. Instead of waiting for Hal to come out of his bedroom and explain all of this, Vell just scanned the object with her ring.

She discovered that the black panel was a viewing screen, connected to an outlet in the wall. This kind of technology was at least familiar to her, but it was much sleeker in appearance than Bekkorian screens. Almost like they spent a lot of time designing the thing to look nice, an idea that made her scoff.

Next, her attention was delivered to the kitchen. On the counter were several appliances with which to cook something called 'bread'; one was a two-slotted heating device and the other was another heating device but instead had to be pressed onto the bread. To Vell's astonishment, there were even more electronic heating devices built-into the counter.

"By the twin moons. Who needs all of those devices for cooking...?" Vell muttered to herself. "Do these weaklings need to cook everything they eat...?"

Hal then finally emerged from his bedroom, wearing nothing but a pair of boxer shorts. His eyes split open when he caught sight of Vell. "Jesus! What are you doing here? You can't just come into my apartment like that..."

"I'm not Jesus. I'm Vell." She said proudly.

The human squinted. "I...can't tell if you're just stupid or if that was a joke."

"It was a joke you inbred idiot." She snapped, spending a rude amount of time staring at his shirtless body.

"Yeah. Well the point of a joke is to be funny. What are you doing here? Some kind of emergency?" Hal asked moving over to the fridge and pulling out a 2-litre bottle of milk. He casually cracked the thing open and chugged a mouthful of it.

Vell crossed her arms and answered "No, I had time off and wanted to see you again."

As he put the milk away and slammed the fridge door, Hal smirked coolly. "I do tend to have that effect on people. I hope no one saw your uniform when you came in. It's a secret that I'm a Green Lantern."

"I thought your friends knew."

"Yeah."

"And your brother's family."

"Yeah alright, it's not a complete secret. My loved ones know. I keep it a secret to protect them. Lose the uniform, will you?" He demanded.

Vell evaporated her uniform, and was clad once again in her casual Bekkorian clothing. Hal moved over to the wealth of cooking devices in his apartment and asked "You hungry?"

"It depends. I haven't tried Earth food before."

"I got you covered." Hal reached into his fridge, pulled out a tub of yoghurt and tossed it at Vell. She caught it with little effort. "This should be safe for you." He said.

The Bekkorian cocked her head and peeled the lid off as she sat onto the couch. She'd had sour experiences with trying alien food in the past, before she was wise enough to research whether or not the food agreed with her digestive system. Vell cautiously stuck the tip of her tongue out and slowly dipped it into the substance. It wasn't exactly delicious but it wasn't disgusting either. "Thanks. It's okay."

Hal began to cook himself some bacon and eggs on his stovetop. "I tried my best. It wasn't exactly easy to find something compatible with your biology. Half of the stuff on this planet will make you sick."

"I'm used to it. Besides I'm sure you'd have the same problem on Bekkor." Vell mused as she determined which device on Hal's coffee table was the control unit for the view screen with a quick ring scan. She snatched the remote control up whilst still lapping at the yoghurt, and powered the viewer on.

The TV switched on halfway through an episode of Knight Rider. "Where is this?" She asked.

"What?" Hal called over the sound of crackling bacon.

"What is this feed covering?"

Suddenly, Hal's front door was thrust open and Tom casually came through. "Hal, what was the name of that guy with the giant head--"

As he closed the door behind him, his eyes fell onto Vell. He then muttered half to himself and half to Hal "Is that...is that an alien? Is that an alien wearing a sports bra sitting on your couch...? Eating yoghurt with her abnormally long tongue...?"

"Oh, Tom! Just in time. This is Vell. Vell, this is my good friend Tom."

"You know...you should lock the door. Someone could just walk in and see this weird little operation you got here." Tom murmured under his breath, still processing the image of the extra-terrestrial woman.

Vell licked the yoghurt from her lips and said "Hey. I heard you think I look like a slave."

"Oh. Uh. No, I don't. This is a misunderstanding... Orion slave girls aren't actually real slaves. They're just characters from a TV show."

The Bekkorian glanced back at Hal in confusion, who ignored her completely and continued cooking.

Hal asked Tom "You want some breakfast?"

"Breakfast? It's one o'clock." Tom chirped in outrage. "Yeah. Sure."

With that, he locked the door and threw himself onto the couch beside Vell. The pair sat there silently, watching the adventures of David Hasselhoff and his talking robot car.

"Tom, where is this video feed coming from? Do you think this Michael Knight guy could use some help?"

"Oh dude, this isn't real. He's just an actor."

Vell blinked at the screen in silence for about ten seconds. "I...don't get it. That guy's pretending to be someone else? Why?"

"The writers make up the story, they get actors to pretend to be all the people in the story, then they record it to entertain people."

"...Okay, okay so let me get this straight." Vell said, putting her tub of yoghurt down. "That guy is not that guy. But he's a guy just pretending to be that guy, who was made up by another entirely separate guy, and is being recorded by yet another guy."

"Don't forget the other actors."

"Oh. Right, so everyone we see here is one of these 'actors'."

"Yeah. There's also the people that make the sets, the props, the makeup and of course the guy that voices the car."

"The car doesn't even talk? What the grak is this? Do your people like being lied to?"

"Really? You don't have stuff like that where you come from?" Tom asked with disbelief.

Hal, finally feeling like joining the conversation now that the annoying part was taken care of by Tom, explained "The only things to watch on Bekkor are public executions, gladiatorial deathmatches and live broadcasts of real wars being fought."

"Exciting." Tom said sarcastically. "Sounds very...liberal."

Several minutes later, Tom joined Hal outside on the balcony to chow down on some breakfast. Vell remained glued to the strange visuals on the view screen. After closing the glass sliding door, Hal leaned on the railing of the balcony as Tom glanced from the plate of bacon in front of him to Hal, who seemed a little tense.

Tom asked with a warm tone. "How are you doing man?"

"I'm doing alright. I appreciate you coming here."

The mechanic joined Hal by the edge of the building. "No prob. I'm here for you. So...have you spoken to Carol again?"

"No. Not sure if I can right now..."

"I'm sorry. I mean...it sucks. You deserve to be happy, after everything you've done for us."

"Thanks pal. I'm trying to figure things out. It's not fair on her."

"It's not fair on you either, dude. Someone like you should be worrying about defending the universe from extra-dimensional entities, not about missing a date. You need someone who gets it."

"I'm trying to find a new rhythm."

Tom plucked a piece of bacon from his plate and stuffed it into his mouth. "Does it include pasty over there?"

Hal laughed, looking through the glass door at Vell. "It might."

"Awesome, man. It might be the right thing for you. Maybe trying with someone on the Corps is the way around the problems you and Carol had."

Hal shrugged "Yeah, it's worth a try I guess."

"Got any more stories for me?"

"Ran into Starro again. It was kinda terrifying."

"Starro? Terrifying? I'm thinking of the right Starro, right?"

"Yeah, believe it or not. She got me out of there with my mind in one piece."

Tom smiled keenly at that remark. "Sounds like you've been lying to me about how annoying she is."

"Oh she's still annoying."

Without warning, Hal's ring bleeped urgently. He'd programmed it to monitor the internet and other signal sources for any signs of trouble with a series of search terms and give him a heads up.

"Shit." He muttered. A screen appeared before him, and Tom joined the human Lantern in watching the broadcast. The video showed a team of humans all brandishing yellow weapons of varying purpose.

"Ugh. Is that the Demolition Team?" Tom groaned.

"Well...time to take out the trash." Hal quipped. His uniform appeared in a flash of light. "Just drop the plates in the sink when you're done, the usual."

"Yeah, yeah, just go!" Tom urged.

Hal pulled the sliding door open and yelled "Hey rook, there's trouble. Let's get moving."

Vell cocked her head at the news report on the TV which was covering the same Demolition Team attack. "Oh, so that's real but not the talking car?"

Without delay, Vell dropped the now empty yoghurt tub and summoned her uniform. As it sprawled up over her body, she leapt over the couch and joined Hal in taking off from the balcony. Tom was left staring in awe as the Green Lantern took flight once again.

"Your friend is really nice. What he said to you was very kind."

"...You heard all of that?"

Vell laughed in confusion. "What, do you think I'm deaf?"

"Oh. Right. Bekkorian ears."

"You couldn't hear through that thin transparent material?"

"No."

"So you just removed me from the conversation."

Hal rolled his masked eyes. "Vell, it's a human thing. We're more open to talk about personal things in private. Besides it was more for Tom, so it didn't feel like you were intently listening like some third-wheel."

Vell nodded. "I'm not offended, I just think it's strange."

The pair headed into downtown Coast City, towards the Queen Industrial motor plant. "Okay, shields up. These guys might actually be able to hurt you."

Vell noted the gold coloured weaponry and groaned. "The yellow impurity...? But I took out Despotellis, a Yellow Lantern."

"Yeah, a microscopic one. You know how much yellow there is on him? It's not even visible to the naked eye."

"Oh...yeah that makes sense."

"Don't worry. The more you use that weapon, the more it becomes a part of you. The impurity won't be a problem for much longer if you keep at it. Until then, be careful. Humans are squishy, just go for them instead of their gear."

"Okay." Vell nodded. "Any other directives?"

"My people are normally non-combatants; they won't be able to defend themselves so keep that in mind."

Vell tensed her brow at this new piece of information. "Oh. Okay."

"Problem?"

"No, it's just that you care enough to help people weaker than you. I thought it was just you, then I met Kal-El. That kind of thinking just doesn't happen back home."

Hal smiled coolly. "Well, get used to it rook. Here we are; get your head in the game."

The pair came up to the Queen Industrial plant in downtown Coast City, which was the scene of a big hubbub. Trails of smoke ascended into the air, thickening the atmosphere with its blackness. The five members of the Demolition Team were at work shredding the plant into shrapnel with their advanced tools, which have gone up against the Emerald Crusader once before when they were hired to decimate the Los Angeles branch of Ferris Aircraft.

According to the Earth records that Vell accessed via her ring, the five-man team of mercenaries consisted of Hardhat, Steamroller, Scoopshovel, Jackhammer and Rosie who acted as the leader of the arsonists. The strange names were beyond her understanding, but she made a mental note to ask Hal about them later.

Hal came roaring in first, slowing to a hover above the squad. "Bad idea to play on my turf, Rosie. I suggest you guys throw 'em down and come quietly."

Rosie was a tall, broad and strong looking red-head. Her chest was hugged by a fitted grey t-shirt with the initials 'D.T' stencilled on them, and she wore a pair of stained, blue work pants topped off by steel-tipped boots. Strapped onto her head was a yellow helmet, which revealed her sharp features and freckled face. "Ain't gonna give up without a fight Lantern, even if ya' brought a pal. We got a fat pay check bankin' on that."

Vell's ring instantly highlighted civilians in potential danger from the collapsing structures around them, and she wasn't ready to imagine all the different ways to save them. "Hal, go save the humans...! I'll keep these poozers busy."

Hal arched an eyebrow. "Are you sure?" He asked genuinely.

"Yeah. I'm sure you have a better construct repertoire for rescue ops."

Without another second to spare, Hal willed forth a variety of different specialised tools with which to buy time for the escaping people whilst Vell landed on the ground. Rosie smirked smugly as she spat "It ain't a secret that rookie Lanterns don't like yellow. An' I haven't exactly seen ya' 'round, sister."

"You talk like you've got brain-damage." Vell insulted.

Scoopshovel set his sights on the Bekkorian Lantern, eyes burning. "This bitch has a mouth on her, Chiquita. Let me make it bleed."

The dark-skinned man armed with a cybernetic exo-skeletal arm with a hydraulic shovel leapt over to Vell and thrusted his robotic weapon outward. Remembering not to rely on her ring to block the strikes of their yellow weapons in case her constructs fail on her, Vell used her combat training to duck below the would-be painful blow, then envisioned a sturdy Bekkorian death club in her right hand.

As soon as she slid clear of the strike, she swept the thing into Scoopshovel's helmet-clad head with a resounding clang, knocking him backwards. Vell snarled, realising that the yellow helmet he wore dampened the potency of her ion construct. Scoopshovel stumbled back towards Rosie, but regained his footing. "Son of a bitch...!"

"Damn." Whistled Hardhat as he strolled over. "This one knows how ta' fight. Lucky fer me, so do I."

Hardhat charged at Vell like a bull, as Scoopshovel came in once again for another go. Vell willed up a selsonite wall before the man who was decked out in a heavy armoured helmet, but the construct was shattered into shrapnel by the pure force delivered by the man's sprint added with his enhanced headwear. Vell only barely managed to weave free of Scoopshovel's second swipe, but this time made sure to hit him square in the face. Without a construct, she simply struck out with a fierce punch that broke the man's nose and sent him flying backwards off his feet.

However, in the time it took Vell to down the shovel-toting merc, Hardhat had managed to close the gap between them and take her unawares. He rammed his helmeted head into Vell's side, propelling her into a concrete wall. Her body broke through it like a stone through glass, and the Bekkorian rolled to a halt inside an empty office room. She sighed as she pushed off the ground and looked back outside.

Hardhat strode casually towards her, as his pal Steamroller roared past him. This one was riding a gold painted steamroller, which was rigged for speed and durability. The machine was heading straight for the building Vell stood inside, ready to pound her into mush. She snorted in amusement as she fired a blast of energy aimed at Steamroller's chest, which was covered by a grey t-shirt. The impact blew him off the vehicle, and without its handler, it slowed to a stop.

"My God...I should fire all y'all." Rosie spat.

Vell created a massive piston above Hardhat, then dropped it onto his head. As expected, it didn't affect him due to his armour, but it punched a hole in the concrete he stood on. With a shriek, Hardhat disappeared into the underground sewers of Coast City, causing Vell to sneer at Rosie with a cocky smirk.

Rosie opened fire with her hot rivet gun to no avail. The super-heated rounds bounced off Vell's personal energy shield. "Go on! Get 'er!" She commanded Jackhammer, who simply dropped his weapon and raised his hands.

"S-Sorry boss, but I ain't stupid!"

Rosie, with a growl, turned her gun onto Jackhammer. "You call yerself one o' us? Coward!"

Vell stood and watched, seeing no need to save the criminal from one of his own. However, an emerald fist smacked Rosie right in the face before she pulled the trigger, much to Jackhammer's pleasure.

Hal arrived with a crowd of unarmed civilians behind him. "Vell...were you just going to...watch her kill him?" He asked with great shock.

In confusion, Vell blinked rapidly. "I...I-I'm sorry? What?"

Glancing back at the crowd and waving at one man in particular, Hal walked over to Vell and said to her in private "That...that kind of thing isn't okay here. You need to protect everyone."

"Even the criminals...?"

"Yeah. Even the criminals."

"Why though?"

"I saved you, didn't I? Everyone deserves a fair chance. If I just finished you off, you wouldn't have been able to turn into who you are right now. That's how I see it, anyway. Everyone should be able to choose to be better."

The Bekkorian stared at the ground, contemplating this new information. Everything that Hal stood for was so strange and alien to her. No one from her world would ever be that...forgiving and optimistic. Not even her.

Hal sighed "I'm sorry...I don't mean to be a douchebag, but that's how the Guardians think it should work too."

"N-No, it's okay Hal. Don't think that I'm being weak and getting offended by you telling me this stuff. All of this is just so...strange to me. I'm sorry."

Several seconds later, the man that Hal waved to came strolling over. "You done having your pep talk?"

Vell spun to him and saw the most disgusting thing she had ever seen in her life. It was a human male who looked mostly normal. He wore a black suit and tie, had short and neatly kept blonde hair...but had this revolting patch of hair on his face, around his mouth. "By the grace of Lothura...what is wrong with your face?"

Hal gulped, his face basically turning blue from shock.

The man, known to humans as the billionaire entrepreneur Oliver Queen, scrunched up his face. "Well that's very un-PC."

Vell pointed at Ollie's goatee. "Is that...normal? Is he okay?"

"Excuse me, but who the hell is this?" Ollie chirped.

"This is Vell. My partner." Hal muttered. "And yes it's normal, now shut up." He playfully snapped.