Issue 4: "... As Fast as You Can..."

[Editor's Note: This story takes place in the current DC2 continuity. The concluding arc to Charlie's tale of Flash's early years will continue in a few months and wrap up in time for our Issue Ten Event!]

The Flash speeds down an avenue in Central City, shifting swiftly between commuters and pedestrians moving about the city in the after work hours. The speedster cuts sharply into a cross street and zooms toward the sounds of panic. He arrives on the scene of the accident as it is in progress. His senses attuned to his ultrametabolism, the events play out in slow motion before his eyes. A car has lost control and swerved into the sidewalk, but instead of stopping has ramped into the air and is plunging forward into the large window of a restaurant. People scatter hopelessly in all directions as they tumble and run, appearing almost frozen to the Flash. The hero surveys the situation in micro-glimpses and in nanomoments knows what he has to do.

He moves underneath the car, through the door to the small eatery, and swoops the patrons into the back of the store before a single heartbeat passes. He turns to face the car looming above the sidewalk outside and drops his speed down into real-time. As his perception synchs into normal speed he calls out to the confused customers now behind him. “Get down!”

The restaurant owner pulls his small son in close as the realization of danger grows across his face. The boy looks up, “Dad? What’s hap---”

SKA-RAAAASSHHHH!

The glass covering the entire face of the restaurant explodes inward as the car penetrates the building and the Flash goes to work. The boy opens his eyes after long seconds pass to see the car suspended in the air. A minivortex surrounds the errant vehicle as the Flash moves his arms at hyperspeed to sustain it. Shards of glass and debris hover lazily inside the tight current of wind and the boy looks over at the other patrons, all staring in disbelief at the incredible turn of events.

“Son!” The Flash calls over the loud whine of air current. “I need your help!”

The boy looks quickly. “Me?!”

“Yes! I can’t put this down in here! I’m going to need someone small to crawl to the door and tell the crowd to clear a spot outside!”

The boy stares at the front of the store and the people outside and breaths nervously. He looks at his father who nods with concern and approval. “Be careful, Arturo! You can do it!”

Arturo walks to the side wall and begins to crawl, the wind whipping his shirt. He moves slowly at first watching to avoid fallen chairs and broken plates. He tells himself he will go all the way to the door without looking up, that it will be even easier if he closes his eyes but he knows he can’t. About halfway he looks up. The car moves and bobs slowly and the pieces of glass swirling about inside move closely by.

"You're almost there!" He father closes his fists nervously.

The young boy closes his eyes and keeps going. In a moment he is through the door and yelling to the onlookers.

“Vamanos!! Everyone please! Move to the side! The Flash has to bring the car out!!”

The crowd quickly parts to both sides and the funnel follows out through the missing store front. The Flash concentrates and he moves. Each move is made carefully as he guides the car slowly down to the pavement. He lowers the velocity of the vortex only enough for the heavy car to settle to the ground. In less than an eyeblink he is on the other end of the small twister and pushing the glass chunks and pieces back through the air to the front of the store. He moves in close and begins moving his arms at incredible speed, grabbing and changing the positions of the fragments. He becomes a blur of movement. Pieces of the window shift about impossibly fast, hovering, shifting, and moving back into place one by one.

“What’s he doing?” One of the crowd asks out loud while staring wide-eyed at the implausible act.

“I… I think he’s fixing the window.” Another answers, not even sure of his words. The shaken customers move outside from the building, watching the Flash as he works.

The Flash’s senses are tuned in at full speed. His eyes dart back and forth as he keeps every bit in play, controlling the fragments kinetically, working the window back into place like a puzzle. He places each one and rubs it at superspeed to heat and soften it before moving it into it's spot. The plate window grows over long seconds until it is completely restored. A quick once-over scrubbing his hands across the window, the friction polishing it back to a smooth finish. Another brief moment and the furniture is reset inside and the chaos of debris moved into the dumpster in the back, and the Flash stops short in the middle of the crowd.

A second passes and then a cheer goes up! The Flash smiles despite himself at the relieved and jubilant group. He moves to the driver who is being attended to close by.

“You might want to have those brakes looked at, sir. I don’t think anyone wants a repeat performance.”

“Y-yes. Thank you, Flash.”

He smiles and nods before turning to the smiling young boy, Arturo. “And thank you, little man! I couldn’t have done it without you.” He reaches into a hidden pouch in his belt and pulls out a card and hands it to him. The dark-haired boy read the front. “Friend Of The Flash.” He smiles even larger and looks back at the Flash.

"Send that to the address on the back and they'll send you a t-shirt."

“Thanks!”

The Flash just winks and turns with a wave to the group before speeding off.

There is a crackle in Flash’s pulse-radio earpiece. “Hello Flash.”

The speedster is taken off guard. Who? He stops dead in his tracks.

“I have something here you might want to see. Downtown Blue Valley. Now!” The voice is low and maligned.

Wally! He cuts quickly through traffic and toward the small Midwestern town.

Moments later he moves into the modest-sized business district of Blue Valley, stopping cold at a large machine in the middle of the street. He looks the large metal device over. It appears to be a very big gun, or.. a death ray? Careful what you wish for, he laughs to himself.

To the side of the huge gleaming mahine he is startles at strange site of his sidekick on the street. Weak and kneeling inside a glowing orb of gray energy. “Kid Flash? What's going on?!”

“Flash…. no… run… before he…”

“A sad sight indeed. Poor little Flash Junior.” A white-haired man dressed in a suit dotted in color panels steps forward from the other side of the machine. “He'll be okay if you stay where you are.”

“Dr. Spectro?” The Flash smirks. “And I thought this might be serious.”

The man stops in the street next to fallen young hero, the low-hanging afternoon sun glinting on his red glasses. He rests his weight on a cane with a large, smoky crystal fastened on top.

“What is it this time? Another 'Spectrum Inverter Ray'? That was quite a traffic jam you caused. Or maybe a plot to steal the largest gems of every color? Well, whatever it is let’s hurry up so we can get this over with.”

The villain only smiles under his nose before a sharp bolt of achromatic energy sparks out of the jewel, ripping across the Flash and knocking him back. He looks down to see the color from the stricken part of his suit is absent., reduced to a dull gray. But moreover, his strength is gone with it! He breathes deeply as he leans forward.

“What… did you do?” Before he can move, Spectro walks to him and slaps a chrome disk to his chest. Small, metallic tendrils shoot out from the object and lock around Flash’s torso, constricting tightly into place.

Bee-deep! A single, bright red light beams in the center of the device.

“What?! What did you do?” Barry stands a little straighter as his energy gradually returns with the color across his chest.

“I call it a Speed Bomb, Flash.” Spectro strolls back to his previous spot. “Your power will return in exactly 30 seconds, at which time the bomb will activate. A very powerful bomb in fact.” He gloats to the hero. “You will have to run to keep it from detonating. At certain intervals it will beep and you will have to increase your speed to match it and keep it dormant. This will continue until… well, I guess we’ll find out won't we. Do not try to remove or tamper with it in any way or it will explode. It is quite inescapable.” He smiles again. “So I guess the question really is, Flash… how fast can you go?”

The Flash grits his teeth, not knowing what to say.

"What? No more jokes?" Spectro adds. He looks down at his watch. "Get ready.... and... GO!"

The device beeps and the Flash blasts out of the city.