Hope Burns Bright

A/N: The finale to GLTAS gave me a lot of feels. I just wrote them out in fanfic form.

It was on some uninhabited planet out in the recesses of space somewhere that Razer ran out of power.

He felt the flickering of his ring long before that, but he hadn't taken the time to stop and recharge. He spent every waking second of his being searching the cosmos for a hint- just a single hint—that Aya still existed somewhere. He knew somewhere deep in his very soul that it was true and after believing her lost too many times already, he wasn't about to give up on her once again. Not anymore.

But his determination only brought him so far, and on the uninhabited fields of some unnamed planet, Razer fell from the sky.

Tumbling through the colorful foliage, branches barely breaking his fall, Razer hit the ground with a painful smack, the air rushing out of his lungs in one quick whoosh. Somewhere nearby, his red lantern bounced off a fallen branch and rolled under a patch of bushes, disappearing from sight. Dressed in his traditional clothing, he laid there and struggled to catch his breath again. The air was thick and cold against his lungs, his body ached from the sudden fall and a sharp rock poked at his back. He breathed slowly, looking up at the soft purple colored sky peeking through the bright blue leaves of the trees he had unceremoniously fallen through just moments before. As his lungs relaxed and drew in longer, less painful breaths, Razer closed his eyes.

It had been months since he left Oa. Many, many, months of flying dark, seemingly endless space, jumping from planet to planet, looking for nothing but a faint memory and a fleeting hope. It was a lonely voyage that he knew he had to travel on his own, but even after all that determination and the hope that he still held deep within his heart, he had found nothing.

Nothing.

Even a single hint would be enough for him to rekindle the drive that had him flying from Oa that day so many months ago, but as he lay splayed out on some random planet, ring run dry from power, he wasn't sure he could find the energy to rise from the ground again.

Opening his eyes, Razer stared at the sky again. He was tired and lonely, but he knew he wasn't about to give up. He owed her that much.

Placing his hands under his prone body, Razer forced himself up into a sit. The world spun briefly, but he focused on the branches stationary between his feet until he felt strong enough to stand. Finding his feet, he spent a long moment just looking around. Briefly, he looked at his hand where the Red Lantern ring sat prone upon his middle finger. He knew he needed its power to continue his search, but over the last few months, he had noticed its power fading. The rage that once burned within his heart felt so distant now. He squeezed his hand once, unhelpfully, before searching for his for where his lantern fell. Regardless of how weak the power was, he needed to try. It was all he had to help him find her.

He walked around for a long while and eventually found his lantern. He held the heavy red lantern his hands, its power dim. He gave a quiet sigh, held his ring above the small red light and recited the oath that hurt his heart to repeat. Then he waited. And waited. Opening his eyes, Razer felt a curl of dread in his stomach when he didn't feel that angry burn consuming his body as his ring charged power. Instead, he remained in his traditional dark grey clothing, the red ring resting uselessly upon his middle finger. He smashed down the feeling of desperation in his chest and recited the oath again.

Nothing.

"No, no, no!" he shouted. "Not now! I still need the power!" He recited the oath once more to no avail. A heavy disappointment fell over his heart and all his unresolved hopes pricked tears at his eyes. "Please… I still have to find her…"

The world was silent around him, a single breeze tossing the leaves of the trees about lightly. There was a small clink of something bouncing off the lantern clutched within his hands followed by a soft plop as it fell in the leaves upon the ground. Opening his eyes, Razer looked at the small object lying on the ground, his heart giving a sharp, painful tug.

It was a blue ring.

Reaching out with shaking fingers, Razer picked the ring up. It was nothing more than a ring; he had felt them before. But a feeling like none other rushed through his heart. There was no mistaking it. This ring was meant for him.

His hand shook as he pulled the red ring off and carefully slipped the blue one on in its place. He closed his hand, his heart swelling with renewed hope as the words came quickly to his mind.

"In fearful day, in raging night,
With strong hearts full our souls ignite.
When all seems lost in the war of light,
Look to the stars, for hope burns bright!"

He felt a rush of power explode from within him and burn through his veins much like when the red ring was charged, but so much better; so much brighter. All the hope that still lingered in his heart burst with a power so strong he felt it in his bones. Opening his eyes, he watched as the cursed lantern changed from red to blue, and he squeezed his hands.

Looking down at himself, he saw the blue uniform in place of the red one and felt the power of hope burning within him. Left on the ground between his knees was the useless red ring that once controlled his entire being for so very long. All of a sudden, he felt overwhelmed with the need to cry. For so long he had hoped that he would be rid of the curse that haunted his days since Ilana's death. He had long accepted the fact that he would be hand-in-hand with the red lantern until he could finally rise above those painful feelings that drug him down for so long. But now, cast in the glowing power of the blue energy he had long admired, he felt like he had finally found the hope he had long searched for.

Finally, he had found what he was searching for.

As he stood from his prone position on the ground, he looked to the sky again, renewed power running through his body. There was no doubt in his mind that this was a gift from Aya. A gift to rekindle the search for his love and the hope necessary to get him there.

Reaching down to pick up the lantern that felt so much lighter, he lifted to the sky with spirits up high. Finally, he could leave behind the chains that drug him down for all of his life and focus on the one thing that kept him searching.

Hope.