After Atom and Heat Wave were both ireleased, Jack Kadere dragged a blackboard across the room and placed it in front of Martin Stein.
"The Firestorm Matrix. Write it down," Jack ordered.
Professor Stein froze, his brows furrowing. "You… you really want me to write it?"
Jack clapped him on the shoulder with an unsettling grin. "Write it. Once you're done, I'll let you go."
"You understand the consequences if anyone gains control of the Firestorm equation," Stein said in a low, grim voice.
Jack nodded casually, his tone confident. "You should also understand that I'm far more dangerous than Vandal Savage."
Stein's face tightened. Was Vandal Savage terrifying? Certainly. The immortal warlord had been the shadow behind countless empires and disasters across history. But Jack Kadere was more than terrifying—he was despair made flesh. Since taking control of the Disciple, his reach across time and space had made him even more unpredictable, even more unstoppable.
Stein's hands trembled slightly as he wrestled with the decision. His expression shifted from defiance to reluctant acceptance before finally sinking into quiet despair. With a long exhale, he picked up the chalk and began writing complex equations across the board.
"That's it!"
Valentina Vostok's eyes lit up as she watched the professor finish his work. She leaned closer, her excitement barely contained. "Such elegance… I've never seen such a concise yet perfect equation. But… no. Something is missing."
Stein pressed his lips together and said nothing, guilt flickering in his eyes.
"Incredible," Jack said, nodding in admiration. With his own understanding, it would have taken him a decade at least to reach the same level of clarity. "You truly are a genius, Professor."
Valentina frowned, her gaze darting back and forth across the lines of the formula. "No… I can feel it. Something isn't complete. There's a missing component."
"Take him to the lab. I'll explain it to you later," Jack instructed her.
Valentina blinked. "You… know what's missing?"
"Of course," Jack answered without hesitation, his grin never fading.
"Very well," she replied, giving Stein one last thoughtful look before heading toward the door.
"No."
Vandal Savage's deep voice cut across the room. His dark eyes locked on Jack as he sneered. "What if you let him go but never reveal the final piece? Stein stays. Once Firestorm is successfully created, then you can release him."
Jack's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Are you disrespecting me?"
"I've given you enough respect already," Savage snapped. "But not this time."
"Then you can die."
Jack moved before the words even finished leaving his mouth. Lightning sparked violently from his fingertips, lashing out at Savage with explosive force.
The energy struck with a deafening crack—only for Savage to stand unscathed.
"What do you think I've been preparing all this time?" Savage pulled his trench coat aside, revealing the shimmer of a specially designed anti-electric suit beneath. His smirk was cruel, his voice dripping with smugness. "I tailored this just for you. Even if your current was ten times stronger, it wouldn't touch me."
Jack tilted his head, almost amused. "Oh? That's clever. But you've only made this more interesting."
Savage folded his arms, arrogance radiating from every movement. "It's simple. Deliver Firestorm to me, and then you can have the professor. That's the deal."
Jack raised both hands slowly, lightning flickering between his palms. His voice was calm, almost playful. "Pick a side."
Savage frowned. "What?"
"Choose left or right. Humor me," Jack pressed.
The immortal scoffed. "What trick are you trying now?" He waved a hand dismissively. "Fine. The left."
Jack's grin widened. "Good choice."
He lowered his right hand, extending his left. "Ten Million Volts!"
With a roar like thunder, a massive serpent of pure electricity erupted from his palm, coiling through the air before crashing down on Savage.
The anti-electric suit lit up violently, its circuits overloading in an instant. The air filled with the stench of ozone and burning metal as the suit exploded apart. Savage's scream was swallowed in the storm of lightning.
When the blaze finally faded, his body crumpled to the ground, blackened and smoking, like a charred husk.
"You said several times stronger wouldn't matter?" Jack shook his head with a laugh. "My current has no limit."
He casually erased the Firestorm formula from the blackboard, chalk dust drifting in the air. Turning to the stunned Valentina and Stein, he clapped his hands together. "Well? What are you standing around for? Let's move."
Valentina hesitated, glancing nervously at Savage's burned remains, before slowly nodding. She and Stein followed Jack out of the interrogation chamber.
Back in the adjoining quarters, they found Kate packing equipment, while Laura stood silently at her side, arms crossed and expression unreadable.
...
"Master, I'll be done packing soon," Kate said quickly, looking up.
Jack smirked. "You're learning well. I don't even have to tell you what needs to be done anymore. The Disciple is waiting on the roof. Finish this up, then meet me there."
Kate paused, glancing at him curiously. "Are we… are we really going to make Valentina into Firestorm? Doesn't Firestorm require two people to merge for the matrix to stabilize? Who's her partner?"
Jack raised a brow, the faintest of grins tugging at his lips. "What? You volunteering?"
Kate swallowed, then nodded bravely.
Jack considered it with mild amusement. A female Firestorm… interesting. The real question was which of them would be the dominant host body—or if they could alternate.
"Good. Once you deliver the gear, meet me in the lab," Jack ordered, turning to leave.
"Yes!" Kate nearly squealed with excitement, then spun toward Laura. "Don't just stand there sulking. Help me with these cases!"
Meanwhile, Valentina wasted no time. After escorting Stein out of the camp, she stormed into the lab, recalibrated the formula, and set the reactor for ignition. The crimson glow of the containment furnace bathed the room in an eerie light.
Jack entered just as Valentina looked up. "Tell me," she said eagerly, "what's missing?"
"A partner," Jack replied simply.
Valentina froze, realization dawning. "Of course… Firestorm is two beings fused. That's why the energy is unstable alone. Then—are you merging with me?"
Jack chuckled and shook his head. "Not me. Your partner just arrived."
Kate jogged breathlessly into the lab.
"Kate? So that's it!" Valentina exclaimed, immediately pulling her into the reactor chamber. The reactor pulsed like a beating heart as both women laid their hands on it—hands that soon found each other.
Boom!
A roaring wave of nuclear fire erupted, shaking the containment walls. The furnace door creaked open, and out stepped Valentina, now wreathed in living flame. Her hair shimmered like burning threads, her body encased in energy.
The Female Firestorm… had been born.
"This is incredible… this power, it's beyond belief!" Valentina cried, voice echoing with the Firestorm Matrix.
Jack folded his arms, unimpressed. "You'll have time to revel in it later. For now, we move."
But Valentina's expression hardened. "No. I won't leave. With this power, I can help my country stand against the United States!" Her arrogance flared as she hurled a blazing sphere of fire at Jack.
Bang!
The blast struck him directly, flames surging outward until they engulfed his entire body.
"No!" Valentina gasped, the flames dying instantly. The Firestorm form collapsed, splitting her and Kate apart. Both stared in horror at the inferno that should have consumed Jack Kadere.
"Master!" Kate cried, starting forward.
But then the fire changed.
The flames clung to Jack's skin, bending unnaturally. Slowly they condensed to his hands, his shoulders, his face.
Valentina staggered back. "That's impossible… Firestorm? You… how can you wield the Firestorm Matrix alone?!"