"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The apartment door was knocked. The black-haired woman at the desk looked up in surprise. She glanced at the watch; it's not visiting hours, and the apartment security would never let in uninvited guests. So who could it be?
She put down her pen, opened the door, and found a row of people in black standing outside. The leader showed her an ID and then said, "Hello, Miss Carol Ferris. There's been a terrorist attack, and we need your cooperation in the investigation. Do you have time?"
The woman called Carol squinted her eyes. She was about to say something when the people in black stormed into the house. She took a deep breath, realizing they were not here for a friendly visit.
"What do you want from me?"
"I told you, there's been a terrorist attack..."
"Which one?"
"The Capitol Building has been moved from Metropolis back to the District of Columbia. The perpetrator is a terrorist glowing green."
"You mean moving the Capitol Building back to its original location counts as a terrorist attack?"
"Without the consent of all members of Congress, yes."
"And what's it got to do with me?"
"Your boyfriend, Hal Jordan, is this mysterious terrorist. I need you to call him back right now."
"No way, get out of my house immediately."
"It seems you haven't understood the situation, ma'am. This is not a negotiation." The agent walked over to look at Carol, then said, "Don't think you can use the same tricks against us as against the police. You should know we don't exist at all. You can't report us to anyone."
Carol was shaking with anger. But being a pilot and astronaut, the more urgent the situation became, the calmer she got. Her mind began to race. As Hal Jordan's girlfriend, she knew very well his temperament.
Previously, during a test flight, Hal insisted on his ideas, causing a fighter jet to crash, which cost him his job and faced hefty compensation. Other people might have been overwhelmed, but Hal didn't succumb. He chose not to numb himself with drugs or alcohol, instead, he actively sought reprieve from compensation and even aimed to return to his job. This proved he was an optimistic and resilient person.
Yet, his flaws were obvious too. If he weren't so impulsive and reckless and could follow orders, the accident wouldn't have happened. Carol knew very well Hal's quick temper; when emotions came, the initial explosion was fierce enough to knock people off balance. If you confronted him then, a major argument was inevitable.
And this mysterious agent said Hal gained superpowers and moved the Capitol Building back to Washington. The greater the power, the greater the ability to cause trouble. Especially knowing he was threatened, he would be furious beyond measure and retaliate against all these people.
Carol was well aware of the recent uproar over the re-vote incident. She could guess why these people were so frantic to define Hal as a terrorist — simply because moving the Capitol Building back disrupted their plans.
"Since you are unkind, don't blame me for being unjust," Carol thought coldly in her heart, "daring to rudely break into my home and threaten me, certain I can't retaliate, then I must show you something."
She feigned a resigned expression and said, "Come on, didn't you investigate before coming? I already dumped him. He's been fired from the airline and is facing huge compensation. I don't want such a disgraceful boyfriend."
"You want me to call him? Sure, if you can stand me arguing with him for half an hour. Not only won't he be drawn near, once I finish insulting this useless coward, he might fly out of America in anger."
Carol pretended to be angry, sat down on the nearby sofa, and stared at the agent with folded arms. The agent seemed unimpressed, walked over to the sofa opposite, sat down, and looked at her, saying, "I just need you to call him over, anyhow, even if it's to provoke him into coming for you. Ma'am, you'd better hurry, or else..."
Before finishing his words, Carol directly pulled out an electric shock device from under the sofa, lunged at the agent, and slammed the device on his chest. With a crackle, the agent was electrocuted into convulsions. As the remaining agents recovered and drew their guns, she flipped over the back of the chair, dodging the first round of firearm attack, then grabbed a vase off the display shelf and smashed it over, seizing the gap as they dodged to dart around the shelf and swiftly run toward the hallway.
Passing through the corridor, Carol reached the stairs, ran down them, turned at the end, and pressed the button at the restroom entrance. The hidden door appeared. Carol dashed inside and gave the approaching agent a disdainful glance before the hidden door closed.
She was the West Coast's top pilot and astronaut. If it weren't for having to inherit the family business, preventing her from pursuing the riskier career of a test pilot, she would have been the best test pilot. These agents were incredibly foolish, thinking she was the kind of fragile woman who would only cry and scream when faced with trouble.
Carol walked further inside and quickly reached the safety house's hall. Instead of picking up the phone, she sat down at the computer and began searching for news related to the Capitol Building.
Soon, she found the relevant report and saw the original video. She enlarged the video to take a closer look, and was 100% sure that the man emitting green light all over was indeed her boyfriend, Hal Jordan.
"What the heck…" she muttered, rubbing her forehead. Then she picked up her phone again to call her friend, saying, "Hey, Snapping Turtle, help me look someone up. Hal Jordan… Yes, he's my boyfriend. No, he hasn't cheated. But I need all his recent action information, video clips would be best… I told you he hasn't cheated!"
After waiting in the safety house for a while, an email soon arrived containing the data sent by her friend. Carol sighed a bit helplessly — Snapping Turtle really did investigate as if he was checking for infidelity, gathering surveillance footage from every nook and cranny shop, emphasizing the gender of the people accompanying him.
As she flipped through the footage, Carol found a particularly strange video. It took place in a slightly dim alley, where three people suddenly approached Hal, and Hal waved his hand, releasing a beam of green light that knocked everyone down.
She paused the video and enlarged it to take a closer look, realizing those three individuals were actually airline company employees. Carol understood: Hal's test flight accident was severe; not only did it cause a plane crash, but it also failed the safety audit. Almost all crew members involved would bear the responsibility, leading to many losing their jobs and even facing compensation claims. No wonder these people sought trouble with him.
Then she found another video with green light, showing Hal taking off directly, flying at a very fast speed. Carol estimated that he almost matched the initial speed of a rocket launch.
Therefore, Carol could confirm: Hal's superpower was exceptionally strong, almost second only to the very famous superhero Superman she had seen on the news. Furthermore, such green light could become highly versatile, and ordinary firearms couldn't cause him any harm; conversely, he could defeat ordinary people effortlessly.
"Great." Carol picked up the phone and started dialing. As the call connected, she said in a somewhat distressed voice, "Hal, could you... could you come here? I have some things I want to talk to you about..."
Less than two minutes later, Hal landed at the window of Carol's apartment. He opened the window and rushed inside just as the agents who couldn't open the safety house door charged in.
Seeing their attire, Hal instantly realized they were hostile. His mind buzzed, and he threw a punch, releasing a green light that knocked everyone away. In his haste, he failed to notice the agent stunned by his electric shock, and he dashed downstairs.
However, upon reaching downstairs, he couldn't see Carol anywhere. Hal immediately panicked. He hurriedly ran back upstairs, grabbed an agent by the collar, and asked, "Where's Carol? Carol Ferris?! Where is she???! Where did you take her?!!!"
The agent, badly shaken, couldn't say anything beyond some groans. Furious, Hal threw him onto the ground, and with a "whoosh," flew out of the window. Carol's call was barely two minutes ago; they shouldn't have gotten far.
Hal began searching along the streets. Meanwhile, Carol exited the safety house via a concealed elevator, circled the street from the building's rear, and dashed out pretending to be scared. As soon as Hal spotted her, he flew over and embraced her.
"Oh, God!" Hal exclaimed, "I thought you..."
"No, Hal, listen to me," Carol gripped his shoulders and said, "It's the opposition party. Because you moved the Capitol Building back to its original place, their proposal to re-vote might not pass. This could cause them to lose the election, so they've gone mad, retaliating against you. They've labeled you a terrorist and might dispatch the military and police to hunt you down!"
Hal was instantly dumbfounded. He couldn't immediately comprehend what Carol meant, as it was simply too absurd.
The Federal Government had approached him to move the Capitol Building back to its original location, and he also believed the Capitol Building belonged in Washington. Besides, they promised to absolve him from compensation, allowing him to resume his role, so he went and did it.
Now you're telling me another group disagreed and decided to label his action of moving the Capitol Building as a terrorist attack, and on top of facing unemployment and sizable compensation claims, they still want to hunt him down?!
Hal was momentarily speechless, uncertain whether to despise their cunning or his own naivete.
He finally realized why the Capitol Building stayed in Metropolis for so long; there was a reason behind it. So many superpower users on Earth didn't move it, yet here he was, foolishly doing so — he was Earth's biggest fool!