The night air rushed past him like a roaring wave. The streets of Central City blurred beneath his boots, streetlights streaking like comets in his peripheral vision. Barry Allen—The Flash—ran.
Orange lightning sparked off his suit, crackling in the slipstream of his speed. His chest rose and fell steadily, not from fatigue, but from thought. Heavy thought. The kind that crawled under his mask and refused to let go.
Jay Garrick.
Barry's jaw clenched behind his cowl.
He could still see it—Jay smiling next to Caitlin like nothing was wrong. Like he wasn't the monster tearing holes through their world. Like he wasn't Zoom in a clean shave and a silver helmet.
Barry shot past a red light, his reflection flashing off the glass of a city bus. He barely saw it.
"How long are you gonna let this go?" he muttered to himself, low and tight. "How long are you gonna play nice?"
The streets twisted as he veered west, running parallel to the river. Bridges flashed by. Towering buildings passed like shadows. Every time his boots hit the pavement, a crackle of speed force lit up behind him. Pedestrians couldn't see him. Not really. Just a gust. A breeze. Maybe a flash of orange in the corner of their eyes if they were lucky.
"Maybe I should just end it," he breathed. "Take the mask off. Call him out."
He took a sharp turn through a side street, the world slowing around him for a split second as his mind raced faster than his body.
Jay was Zoom.
Jay had lied to everyone. Manipulated them. Smiled while people died.
Of course, Barry knew who he was but it seems Zoom was not as smart as he plays to be, the clear sign was there that he did not trust him, and the moment HR Wells came, Barry completed trusted him, that was a sign enough.
Barry's fists clenched as he pushed harder, faster. His lightning lit up alley walls and rooftops. The world trembled in his wake.
"What am I waiting for?"
But even as the question echoed, he hesitated. Something deep in his chest held him back—not fear, not doubt. Just the weight of everything. The city. The team. Caitlin.
Would they believe him? Would they even want to?
A spark of static hit the edge of his senses. Barry slowed slightly, head turning toward the skyline.
Then he felt it.
A shift in the air. Thin, like the universe inhaling. Like the seams of reality tugging loose at the edges.
Dimensional rift.
His eyes narrowed. The glow of the Speed Force pulsed behind them.
He focused—sensed it. It was faint. Recent. Barely closed. Someone had come through. Someone fast enough to dodge his initial sweep.
And then, in his earpiece, HR's voice crackled in, all panic and excitement.
"Barry—hey—Central City Picture News just pinged. Someone tripped the breach alert system I set up, the one that tracks meta signatures. Woman. Meta. Name she gave when she strolled in? Dr. Light."
Barry didn't say a word.
He just ran.
---
The city warped around him. Trees, buildings, street signs—gone in a blur. He was moving faster than he'd run all week, faster than his last encounter with Zoom, faster than logic. The orange lightning pouring off him lit the dark like a burning comet.
He hit 3rd and Main in seconds.
The Picture News building loomed ahead, bright and glassy, oblivious to the storm about to hit it. A security guard looked up at the front doors—too slow.
Barry was already inside.
He saw her immediately—Dr. Light, halfway through the lobby, her arm just starting to glow with unstable light energy. Hair down, eyes hidden behind her visor. Her lips parted in surprise as a gust of wind slammed against the walls.
Then he was on her.
A red blur. A crack of thunder. She didn't even have time to gasp.
Barry tackled her with speed-precision, one arm wrapped tight around her waist, the other gripping her wrist to keep her from firing. The world stretched around them as he accelerated again, dragging her body with him as if it weighed nothing.
The light in her hand fizzled out as she screamed, the sound lost to the wind.
They were gone before her feet could touch the floor again.
---
Back in STAR Labs, a blast of wind exploded through the cortex as Barry skidded to a stop just outside the pipeline cells.
Dr. Light tumbled to the floor in a daze, hair whipping across her face. She tried to scramble back, hands glowing again—but Barry was already standing in front of her, mask still on, eyes cold.
"You're not going anywhere."
His voice was low. Flat. No anger. Just fact.
She looked up at him, breathless. "What the hell was that?! You—how did you even—?"
"Zoom brought you here, to kill me knowing you can't, so you know that all of these is just sucide and also your powers won't work inside there."
Her eyes narrowed, the glow in her palms building again.
Barry didn't move. "Try it."
She hesitated.
He stepped forward, just once, and the light dimmed.
He didn't need to fight. The message was already clear.
Behind him, HR jogged into the room, almost dropping his tablet. "Whoa. You got her already? That was—okay, yeah, that was fast."
Barry didn't answer. He opened the pipeline cell and motioned with his hand.
Dr. Light gave him one last look—fear and confusion tangled together—before stepping inside. The door hissed shut behind her.
Barry stared at her through the glass. "You're gonna tell me everything you know about Zoom, his next move that's if you know about it and I promise you, I will let you go back to your world after I'm done with Zoom, your choice."
Dr. Light looked away, crossing her arms.
Barry turned back to HR. "Monitor her. I'll question her in an hour."
HR blinked. "Okay. Uh… sure. Just for the record, you are kinda terrifying right now."
Barry started walking out of the room, peeling back his mask. "Good."