The Flash returned to S.T.A.R. Labs a short while later after dropping Tony into the particle pipeline prison beneath the lab. The reinforced cells were specifically designed to contain metahumans safely while they figured out how to help them—or stop them from hurting people again.
Barry stepped back into the main lab still looking mentally exhausted from everything that had just happened.
Cisco Ramon immediately rolled his chair over with obvious interest.
"So," Cisco asked excitedly, "how was Reaper?"
He had already seen footage from the street cameras and instantly recognized Daniel. Ever since the Metropolis incident, Cisco had become an unapologetic fan of Reaper.
In Cisco's defense, the powers were objectively cool.
Black chains. Giant shadow hands. Storms covering entire skies. Pulling space ships into darkness. Everything about Reaper looked like somebody designed powers specifically to look intimidating.
Barry stared at Cisco for a second before answering slowly.
"He's… somehow kind of similar to you."
Harrison Wells glanced up briefly from his tablet while Caitlin Snow looked mildly interested from the medical station nearby.
Cisco blinked once. "Wait, what does that mean?"
Barry gave him a tired look. "You both talk way too much during serious situations."
Caitlin laughed quietly at that.
Cisco placed a hand against his chest in mock offense. "Wow. Unbelievable. I offer charisma, emotional support, and style to this team."
Then he pointed at himself confidently. "Also, does he have the same handsome face as me?"
That made Caitlin laugh harder while Barry just stared at him in silence.
"What?" Cisco Ramon asked while pointing at himself. "Caitlin, are you saying I'm not handsome?"
Caitlin Snow looked at him but didn't answer.
Compared to Reaper—who already somehow had an entire online fandom despite appearing publicly for less than two weeks—Cisco really wasn't competing in the same league.
Cisco slowly lowered his hand. "The silence was unnecessary."
Before the conversation could continue further, Harrison Wells looked toward Barry from behind the console.
"Mr. Allen," Wells said calmly, "was there anything particularly unusual about him?"
Barry let out a slow breath before answering.
"Yeah," he said. "You probably won't believe me, but I think he can control time."
That immediately silenced the room.
Cisco blinked once. "As in controlling time time?"
Then he lifted his wrist slightly. "Because technically I can control time too. It's called owning a watch."
Barry didn't even react to the joke.
"No, Cisco," he replied seriously. "I mean actual control."
His expression tightened slightly as he remembered the fight.
"He moved normally while I was moving at the speed of sound. Then he reversed time a few seconds like it was nothing."
Caitlin's attention sharpened immediately.
Cisco stared at Barry for several seconds before asking more carefully, "You actually saw him do that?"
Barry nodded. "He has some kind of clock-shaped mark on his left arm. It started glowing before everything rewound."
Instead of looking concerned, Cisco leaned back in awe.
"Wow," he muttered. "My idol is somehow even cooler than I imagined."
Barry ignored that comment and looked toward Cisco and Caitlin instead.
"And he knows both of you."
Caitlin frowned. "Me?"
She was certain she had never met Reaper before.
"Before leaving, he told me to say hi to Cisco and Caitlin for him," Barry explained.
Cisco immediately pointed at Barry suspiciously. "Okay, no. You're messing with me."
He shook his head firmly. "How would he even know who we are? Nobody's supposed to know about the Flash or this place."
Barry didn't smile.
The silence lasted long enough for Cisco's expression to slowly change.
"...You're serious."
***
Later that night, inside Daniel's new office in Central City, the clock on the wall ticked quietly as another figure slipped through the window.
Catwoman landed silently on the floor in her black catsuit, goggles resting above her eyes while she scanned the office with practiced calm.
Officially, Selina Kyle had simply come to "check the security."
Unofficially, she was absolutely here to rob her suspiciously wealthy new employer.
The man casually kept artifacts worth millions inside desk drawers. At that point stealing from him practically counted as financial responsibility.
As Selina approached the desk, she noticed a single sheet of paper sitting directly in the center like it had been left there intentionally.
She narrowed her eyes slightly before picking it up.
Dear whoever this is,
If you're reading this, it means you are a thief. Yes, thief. A criminal. A robber of poor innocent doctor trying to survive in society.
Please don't rob me. I have a family to feed.
...Yeah, no. I'm not writing that kind of bullshit.
Anyway, if you value your life and don't want to experience becoming a human roller coaster, I strongly suggest not stealing from this office.
Because afterward an unstable, powerful, unbelievably handsome man with many glorious titles such as Lord of Darkness, Future King of Handsome Men, Destroyer of Depression, Guardian of Beauty, and Supreme Doctor of Miracles will enter your life and never leave you alone again.
Also this warning only applies to ladies.
If the thief is a man, I'll turn you into a eunuch and throw you into the fucking street.
Selina slowly lowered the paper afterward.
She honestly didn't know what disturbed her more.
The fact Daniel somehow expected someone to break in tonight—
Or the fact he apparently sat down and willingly wrote this entire thing.
"This guy is seriously insane," she muttered under her breath.
Then she calmly folded the note and slipped it into her pocket anyway.
Mostly because it was funny.
*****
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