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Guy Gardner’s severed head was the first thing The Flash saw upon opening his eyes. He sat upright quickly, scrambling awkwardly away from the disembodied visage. His hands found Gardner’s arm, and Wally stood without looking. He had never particularly liked Guy Gardner, but he’d always had a healthy respect for him. It didn’t mean he’d ever want to see the man beheaded.
Looking around, Wally recognized the surroundings as the JLA Watchtower. Or, rather, what was left of it. Trophy cases were shattered, computer equipment was destroyed, and bodies lay strewn about like confetti. Cyborg. Lagoon Boy. The Wonder Twins. Some he didn’t recognize; others he knew too well.
It was the subtle differences, though, that told him what he needed to know. Before blacking out, The Flash and Dr. Fate had been thrust head-long into the energy field known as the Speed Force. A type of ‘Valhalla for speedsters,’ the speed field stood beyond light speed. Most speedsters that enter never exit; Wally West seemed to be the exception. In the past, he had been flung through time upon skirting the edge of the field. This time, however, he had entered full-force. He could only assume that Dr. Fate had cast a spell in order to save them before they were lost forever, and that said spell had brought them to the home timeline of the being responsible for sending them careening off into the Speed Force in the first place.
Godspeed.
Flash stepped carefully through the wreckage and human carnage of the Watchtower, when he heard something shaking in the corner of the room. The source of the sound was a slightly-built man, wearing a loose fitting green jump suit with a full face mask and orange bug-like antennae. He was noticeably shaking and scared out of his wits. Wally didn’t recognize the man, but he recognized the costume: it was Ambush Bug.
Wally cautiously approached Ambush Bug, intent on learning what had happened here. He crouched down next to him and began to speak slowly and carefully.
“Ambush Bug?” he asked to get his attention. “Hey, it's me, Flash.”
Ambush Bug's head darted up in terror. Even through the mask that hid his features, Wally could tell that the Bug had been completely insane. “I'm the last one!” Ambush Bug yelled. “She couldn't kill me! I'm Ambush Bug!”
This Ambush Bug was different from what Wally remembered of the man. The Ambush Bug that Wally knew was certainly out of his mind, this much Wally knew from hearing Superman talk – nay, rant, and if you can get Superman to rant, that’s saying something – about him. He thought of himself as a superhero, and often tried to help, only to make the situation worse. Wally’s Ambush Bug was insane, but this world’s Ambush Bug was psychotic.
“You're not the last, Bug,” Wally consoled. “I'm here now. We'll beat this together.”
Ambush Bug shook his head emphatically. “No way, Flash,” he yelled unnecessarily loudly. “I survived on my own! You can't team-up with Ambush Bug and expect to hold your own!”
Ambush Bug began to giggle uncontrollably and Wally stood up slowly. Ambush Bug was going to be of little use to anyone. “Have you seen Dr. Fate?” he asked, hoping to get just a little bit of useful information out of him.
Ambush Bug shook his head again. “Dead,” he screamed. “Even Fate couldn't survive like I could!”
The giggling continued, and Wally decided to check the monitor womb for any information pertaining to the current events. He had apparently been out of the loop for some time. He ran to the computer and started to accumulate information. This world’s Flash had died a few days ago, killed by Godspeed. The Justice League had fallen as well. The last time he had seen Godspeed she had been in his world. He prayed she wasn’t still there.
“Flash.”
Fate’s voice again came out of nowhere, and before he could think to look around, Dr. Fate appeared next to the fastest man alive.
Wally sighed at the sight of him, relief evident in his face. “Man, am I glad to see you,” he said. “We have to get home. She could still be there…”
Fate shook his head solemnly. “Godspeed has left our reality. I…cannot find her.”
“Dammit! You think she’s coming back here?”
“Flash,” Dr. Fate continued, not acknowledging Wally’s question. He paused for a moment. Despite the helmet, Wally could tell he was shaken.
Finally, Fate spoke again.
“I've found Superman.”
“When I first brought us to this universe, I was unsure of a course of action should Godspeed have followed us. I left you in the Watchtower, thinking it the safest place, and departed in an effort to gather what was left of this world’s heroes. Superman was the last I sought out, to be called on as a final resort should this world’s other heroes fall to Godspeed.”
Dr. Fate’s speech faded as he and The Flash stepped out of the cosmic portal and back into an unfamiliar reality. Fate stepped in front of the fastest man alive, leading him down a shattered, rubble-covered street in an eerily recognizable city.
Wally looked around curiously. “Is this Metropolis?”
Fate came to an intersection and stopped. “Here.”
The Flash stepped up next to the golden-clad mystic, and the crumpled body lying on the wreckage before him caused his jaw to drop.
Fate stood, motionless and emotionless. “There is no record of when he fell. No reporter was left alive in this city to write it down. No photographer snapped his picture as Godspeed beat the life from his body. All that is known is that, of this Earth’s heroes, Superman was the third to fall.”
Wally turned away from Superman’s body and closed his eyes. He took a few steps back from Fate and tried hard to control his own breathing.
Fate did not move. He only spoke. “It had been believed, amongst the other heroes who kept any record, that Godspeed and Superman might have been the same person.”
The Flash shook his head. “It’s Linda. It’s my wife. Or at least this world’s Linda, we obviously saw them in the same room together back home.”
“How could she have gained speed?”
“I don’t know. I…honestly, I don’t care, not here. Priority one is keeping her away from our world.”
“I agree. We must -”
Dr. Fate cut himself short, and Wally finally looked back at Fate. The fastest man alive shivered slightly. “I feel something.”
“As do I,” Fate replied. “The Helm of Nabu cries out. Godspeed is returning.”
“Godspeed has returned!”
Her voice booming from all directions, Godspeed appeared before them before either of them could react. The Flash was first to act, instinctively vibrating his molecules as Godspeed lashed out at him furiously. It was all he could do to keep up with her, and it wasn’t long before a solid blow to the stomach sent the scarlet speedster sprawling backwards.
“By The All-seeing Host of Ce'lusagdap, Shackle the Frozen Air!”
Dr. Fate spoke, his resolve as strong as the spell of detainment he recited, and Godspeed found herself trapped, shackled to the ground. She struggled in vain as Fate approached where she stood. Before he could reach her, however, Godspeed spoke her own incantation.
“I Revoke The Integrity Of Xyrgidid!”
With just a few words, Godspeed freed herself from Fate’s mystic trap. Before he could speak again, Godspeed had spoken another spell. Without warning, the globe that had once stood atop the Daily Planet building came falling out of the sky, making its way towards the spot where Dr. Fate stood. As quickly as he could incant a spell to save himself, Godspeed could counter it. As the globe barreled down towards him, Fate felt himself lifted off the ground by a strong gust of wind, pulled out from under the falling object as it shattered heavily on the ground.
The Flash set Fate down and looked around quickly. He found Godspeed standing a few feet from them, her hands folded across her chest. Despite the helmet, Wally could read her body language: she was glaring at them.
Wally did not move. “Why’re you doing this?”
“Isn’t it obvious? Hell hath no fury, Wally. I guess my Wally never learned that, though.”
“What’d he do to you?”
“Not what. Who. And that’d be Jesse Quick, in case you’re curious.”
“I can’t believe you’d go on a killing spree because your husband cheated on you.”
“I couldn’t believe my husband would cheat on me, but, well, here we are.”
Wally glanced towards Fate, who nodded to him. He stepped towards Godspeed carefully. “Linda…”
“Enough talk.” Before either Dr. Fate or The Flash could move any more, Godspeed raised both her hands towards them. Lightning danced from her fingertips, engulfing the two heroes. Beneath her helmet, Linda smiled.
“Prepare to die.”
Flash stood still. It was all he could do. “Can you move?”
Next to The Flash, Dr. Fate stood motionless. “No,” he replied with a groan. “I assume this is what it feels like to have your speed stolen. My heart is barely beating. I thought you said she was a novice speedster.”
“Yeah, well, she learned to steal speed pretty quickly,” Wally answered. “She's going to kill us slowly. I guess she's getting tired of instant slaughter. She's going to relish every second of our deaths.”
They stared straight ahead, unable to turn their eyes anywhere else. Godspeed stood before them, ten feet away. She was just standing there, watching. Her body was unmoving but her mind was working in fast motion, taking in the moment a thousand times per millisecond. With absolute power over the flow of motion, control of the passage of time was hardly impossibility.
“I'm trying everything I can but nothing’s working,” Flash explained. “She's moving so fast that it doesn't even look like she's moving. Even if we can do something, she'll kill us before we even finish thinking about it.”
“I have a plan,” Fate said. “Assuming that Godspeed is currently moving and thinking too fast for the sound of our voices to catch up with her.”
“I think we're working on borrowed time here, Hector,” Flash said. “Do whatever you can as soon as you can.”
“Can you hold your own for a few minutes?” Dr. Fate asked Wally.
“I guess I don't have a choice. What do you have in mind?”
“I have trouble saying this,” Dr. Fate explained, “but this looks like a job for Ambush Bug.”
“Great,” Flash replied with a sigh. “And here I thought we wanted to survive.”
“Just stay alive, Flash. I'll be back as soon as the spell I cast three minutes ago finally catches up to our speed.”
Within seconds, Dr. Fate was gone without so much as a wisp of smoke. It took several seconds for his image to fade from the Flash's vision. At Dr. Fate’s disappearance, Godspeed finally moved from her inactive position. She was angry.
“Where is he?”
Wally smirked at her. “He had to run to Kinko’s, make some copies, he should be back soo-”
Wally’s speech was cut off by the back of Godspeed’s hand across his face. “You arrogant son of a bitch. You’re just like him.”
“You mean your Wally?” The Flash struggled to move. He felt his fingers wiggle as he continued. “I’m not. Your Wally – and I’m just guessing here, I didn’t know the guy personally or anything – but your Wally’s the kinda guy who takes a good thing and messes it up. He’s the kinda guy that can’t leave well enough alone. Or maybe he’s just the kinda guy who’s taken in by Jesse Quick for…I dunno, whatever reason. My point is, I’m not that guy. I’m not your Wally. I mean, I don’t know what to tell you, but I’ve met a few other me’s over the years, and honestly? This just…to me, it sounds like you just got the short end of the stick. For every hundred good Wally’s there’s bound to be a bad one in there somewhere – Hell, same thing goes for Jesse, I’m sure – and I think, in this case, you got the bad one. You got the dud. I don’t know what to say other than, I’m sorry.”
He stopped. Godspeed stood motionless again, her back to him. After a long moment, she spoke quietly to him. “Thank you.”
Wally smiled to himself. One of his forearms was free now. He continued. “I really am sorry. No one deserves to be cheated on, it’s not right. And I think, that thing about the hundred good Wally’s for every bad one, I think that applies to Linda Park, too. But you’re not the bad one, I don’t think. You’ve had some things happen to you that have pushed you, but you’re not bad. It may just be because I’m in love with one, but I don’t think there is such thing as a ‘bad Linda Park’ out there. I’m probably prejudiced on that, though, but you know what I mean.” He paused. “What do you think?”
Godspeed turned, stepping towards slowly. “I think,” she said, her voice echoing under the helmet of Nabu, “that on that point, you’re wrong. I think, if you think that in all the universes there’s not one bad Linda Park, then I think you’re living in a fantasy world. And I think,” she continued through clenched teeth, “that after what he did to me…” Her hand flew out from under her cloak before The Flash could react, and she struck him hard across the face. “…that sorry’s just not gonna cut it, Wally.”
The Flash turned his head from her and spit blood out of his mouth. He turned back to her and smirked. “I changed my mind.”
As quickly as she had smacked him, the scarlet speedster’s right arm flew through the air. His fist caught Godspeed hard across the face, ill-protected by the helmet of Nabu from a seventy mile-an-hour punch. She staggered backwards, falling to the ground.
Wally righted himself and glared down at her. “You’re definitely the bad one.”
Without warning, a burst of light filled the street. It engulfed both The Flash and Godspeed before dying down. Wally opened his eyes carefully.
Dr. Fate stood next to the fastest man alive. He turned towards him. “I have returned.”
“No kidding.”
“And I have brought Ambush Bug.”
Wally smiled. “Well, this is where it gets exciting, isn’t it?”
Godspeed was momentarily stunned. She was in the process of returning to her feet as she cast another spell. As quickly as she had spun the spell, however, she froze in place.
Wally looked at Dr. Fate and smiled. “Let me guess. She tried to steal our speed again and you reversed it back at her.”
“A simple reflection spell,” Dr. Fate said. “Now we must work quickly. It's only a matter of moments before she figures a way out of her stasis.”
Wally looked at the limp form of Ambush Bug as Fate laid him on the floor. It appeared that Ambush Bug's insanity had driven him to suicide. He had torn out his own eyes with his fingers and chewed off his tongue.
“I thought you said we needed him,” Wally said. “He looks pretty dead to me.”
Dr. Fate immediately began to take off Ambush Bug's costume. “We don't need the person in the suit,” Fate said. “We need the suit itself.”
Wally turned and looked at Godspeed, who was moving so slowly that it was barely perceptible. “She's moving. We need to hurry,” Wally said in a growing hurry. “What do you need me to do?”
Dr. Fate had succeeded in disrobing Ambush Bug and held the suit out to Wally. “The Ambush Bug suit contains Apokolyptian micro-boom tube technology,” Fate explained. “We need to rewire the circuits and plant them onto Godspeed.”
Fate looked at Godspeed, who was now moving at a slightly quickened pace. He was sure she would be free in a matter of seconds. Hurriedly, looked back at The Flash. “I'll hold her off while you work on that,” Fate said.
Wally began to tear the suit apart to get to the micro-circuits. As Dr. Fate stood between The Flash and Godspeed, the villainess finally broke away from the spell. She charged, full-speed, at Dr. Fate.
As he somersaulted across the floor to avoid Godspeed’s attack, Hector Hall couldn’t help but think to himself how strange this was. This was a far more physical battle than any he had had in a long time, and he actually thought he might be enjoying himself.
A blast of energy to the chest from Godspeed quickly made him change his mind.
Dr. Fate crawled to his knees before being kicked in the stomach. The wind knocked out of him, Fate fell to the floor hard. Godspeed knelt down next to him and slowly removed her helmet. Linda’s hair was tattered, shorn short by the friction of running at superhuman speeds. She snarled at Fate as she slid her own helmet down over the one worn by Hector.
Hector Hall’s body began to convulse. After a long moment, his body disappeared, absorbed into Godspeed’s own helmet. She stood slowly and replaced it onto her head. “Now then, where did my wannabe husband get off to?”
“I’m here.”
Godspeed turned to see The Flash standing before her, his fists clenched. Wally felt the tiny circuitry between his fingers and smiled. “Come and get it.”
“You don't stand a chance without your buddy, Wally,” Godspeed gloated. “All of your speed belongs to me. Everything you can do, I can do better, faster, and more viciously than you.”
“You really are just nutty as a fruitcake, aren’t you?” Flash responded. “You're so high on your speed pedestal and your Fate helmet high that you seriously underestimate the two of us.”
“Whether you think you will survive or not is immaterial to me. You have one second left to live.”
Flash smiled. “That's all we need,” he said. He sprang into action with the Ambush Bug tech in hand. Godspeed was quick enough to counter Flash's advance and instantly moved to the other side of the room.
Wally looked at her and then motioned as if he were checking his watch. “My second's up and I'm still here,” he joked. Godspeed burst towards him again in anger.
Wally yelled quickly. “Fate! Now!”
Godspeed stopped running. The helmet she wore was crackling with an unknown color of energy. The abrupt surprise that she was assaulted with gave her a moment's pause before Dr. Fate escaped from his imprisonment within her helmet. As Fate coalesced back into existence before her, the helmet that she wore was gone from her head. Dr. Fate was holding it in his hands.
The Flash acted. At just under Mach-1, the fastest man alive wrapped the teleportation tech around Godspeed's arms and neck like a spool of thread. Quickly vibrating the molecules of the power source, he shifted its mass into Godspeed's chest, depositing the small battery into her chest cavity and pushing Godspeed with all of his might.
As Godspeed tumbled to the floor, Dr. Fate spoke the incantation.
“Klaatu varada niktu.”
The spell went into effect immediately, activating the micro-boom tube technology worn by Godspeed. With a pop, she disappeared.
Dr. Fate stepped up next to The Flash. “She’s gone. Unable to break the spell or to stop herself from teleporting every few seconds.”
“So she’ll just teleport around this planet…what, indefinitely?”
“That is correct.”
Wally West looked around, at the wreckage of the city that he knew as Metropolis. He spoke weakly, under his breath, unable to comprehend it all. “I can’t believe she did all this…”
Dr. Fate removed his helmet. He now held two Helms of Nabu. He was unsure how that was even possible. “If only we had made it here sooner, we could have saved all of these people. We have a lot of work to do, burying the dead.”
“Godspeed won't bother anyone ever again, Hector,” Flash said, extending his hand to the white-haired man next to him. “We'll make sure what happened to this world never happens to ours.”
Hector shook Wally’s hand with a smile. It was an honest but slightly sad expression. “Thanks for your help, Wally.”
“Hey, I don’t care how life-threatening it is,” he replied with a smile. “If it gets me out of seeing Linda’s parents, I’m there. I’d take a White Martian invasion over a quiet dinner with the in-laws any day of the week.” He squeezed Hector’s hand before releasing it. “We did alright, you and me. I’m not saying we should make this a weekly thing, but…”
Hector nodded. “Of course. Should the need ever arise again…”
“Exactly. Alright, let’s get started here,” The Flash said with a slight sigh. “Sooner we finish this, the sooner I can get home to my wife.”
“For once,” Hector said with a smile, “I think the opera might not be a bad idea.”
The End...
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