In the shattered room of STAR Labs, Avery Ho stood up amidst the chaos. One of the most promising speedsters from Southeast Asia, she had never imagined she would face something like this.
— Everyone, fall back! — Barry shouted, shielding Nora. — He wants to divide us!
— That's already done — Lucas said, emerging from the rubble.
Avery ran at him, opening a vibrational rift and trying to trap him.
— You're not touching anyone else! — she screamed.
Lucas simply laughed.
— You have talent. But not power.
They ran along the crumbling walls, exchanging blows at insane speeds. Avery was creative. She manipulated air currents, froze the floor with friction, and tried to trap Lucas using frequency snares.
— You've learned well — Lucas said, dodging. — But the Force that fuels you now... belongs to me.
Avery screamed and hit Lucas with a direct combo, slamming him into a wall. She stopped, panting.
— Not bad — he said, rising slowly. — But now… it's over.
Lucas reached out, and with a pull of blue energy, drained Avery's speed. She collapsed to her knees.
— No... please...
— You still don't understand, Avery — Lucas said, kneeling before her. — I don't do this out of hatred. I do it because I can.
She fainted. Lucas stood tall.
— Who's next?
---
Max Mercury: The Philosopher of Speed
Max Mercury was running.
He ran as he had for centuries, leaping between moments in time, meditating on the nature of speed.
But this time, he was running toward death.
In the desert outside Central City, Lucas was waiting for him.
— Max Mercury. The monk. The philosopher. The man who believes running is spiritual.
Max stopped. The sweat on his brow wasn't fear — it was acceptance.
— You're dangerous, Savitar. Because you run without purpose.
Lucas frowned.
— I am the purpose. The end of the cycle.
— Speed should serve balance — Max said. — Not tyranny.
— Speed owes nothing to anyone — Lucas replied. — I run to consume. To dominate. To erase. That is nature.
— Then you are a disease — Max concluded. — And I am the cure.
They ran.
The fight was silent. Subtle. Spiritual.
Lucas, brutal.
Max, wise.
But Lucas was also relentless. And more powerful.
In the end, Max dropped to his knees.
— The Force... will reject you — he said, coughing.
— It already belongs to me — Lucas answered.
Max closed his eyes.
Lucas placed a hand on his chest.
— May your wisdom die with me.
And he absorbed his speed.