"But that's strange," Caitlin said, looking over the readings. "The abnormal activity in your brain just disappeared."
Daniel shrugged. "Strange or not, whatever it was didn't belong there, so I'm happy it's gone."
Cisco leaned closer to the monitor, expression turning analytical.
"Okay, but that's actually a pretty big deal. The energy entered your body when the singularity hit you. Now the abnormal activity's completely gone, and we didn't remove anything."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning I have no idea where it went, and that really bothers me."
He tapped the screen, checking the readings again. "Energy doesn't just vanish. If it left your brain, it went somewhere. Released, transferred, converted into something else — I don't know."
"Cisco, you're asking me like I have a PhD in weird space-time energy."
"No, I'm asking because you're the guy who got hit by it."
"Well, I'm also the guy who has absolutely no idea what happened."
Caitlin shot Cisco a look before checking Daniel's vitals herself. "He's right about one thing, though. We shouldn't assume the energy's completely gone just because the symptoms stopped."
Daniel sighed. "Great. So my headache disappears and somehow that's bad news."
Cisco gave a small shrug. "Welcome to S.T.A.R. Labs."
"You're both terrible at making people feel better."
"That's not really our specialty," Caitlin said, smiling faintly.
"Actually, mine's more science, technology, and occasionally making terrible decisions," Cisco added.
"Yeah, that sounds about right."
Daniel suddenly felt something cold brush against his hand. He looked down, but the sensation vanished almost as fast as it came. He flexed his fingers, found nothing, and let it go.
He got off the medical bed and looked at Cisco. "So, I can assume Reverse-Flash escaped?"
"Yeah. He left," Cisco said, shaking his head. "Gone before we could track him."
Daniel sighed. "Fine. Next time I see that guy, I'm making sure he doesn't get away."
Before either of them could respond, he vanished from the room.
Cisco stared at the empty space for a moment. "Man, he really does come and go like air." He turned to Caitlin.
"I still can't believe he's supposed to be the strongest guy on Earth. What do you think would happen if he actually fought Superman?"
No answer.
He glanced over his shoulder. "Caitlin?"
She was standing near the medical equipment, back to him.
The temperature in the room dropped.
Cisco rubbed his arms. "Uh... did the air conditioning just fail?" He headed for the door, figuring he'd better check the thermostat himself.
Caitlin didn't move.
A few strands of her hair slowly turned white. Her posture shifted, the usual warmth draining out of her expression. She lifted her head, a cold smile spreading across her face.
"The strongest man on Earth..." Her eyes narrowed toward the door Daniel had vanished through. "He has a lot of energy inside him."
The smile widened. Frost spread across the edge of the medical table beneath her hand.
For a moment she stood perfectly still, studying the spot where he'd been standing, as if she'd just discovered something she desperately wanted to understand.
Then she smiled again, quietly. "I wonder how much of it I could take."
***
Daniel finally made it home and found everyone busy with their own things — some talking, some working, some just relaxing — but nobody seemed particularly bothered that he'd vanished for two days.
"Ummm... was anyone worried about me while I was gone for two days?"
Nobody responded.
He looked around for a second, sighed, and decided not to bother asking twice.
What Daniel didn't know was that the strange energy had already slipped out of his brain and spread into different corners of the world. It was no longer inside him — but that didn't mean the problem was over.
Wherever it had gone, it had already started causing its own disturbances, and Daniel had no idea any of it was happening.
The next morning, Daniel was still asleep well past the hour most people started their day.
He didn't have a job that required early mornings, had more money than he knew what to do with, and being as powerful as he was left little reason to drag himself out of bed at sunrise. Sleeping until the afternoon was practically routine for him.
Then he heard heavy breathing nearby.
Daniel opened his eyes and found himself face-to-face with Harleen.
She was leaning over him, one hand beneath her chin, wearing a wide smile, staring directly at him. Something about the way she looked at him set off every alarm bell he had.
Harleen was normally innocent, professional.
This version of her was something else entirely. The smile, the way she watched him, gave off the unmistakable impression of someone obsessive. Possessive.
Daniel was completely dumbstruck.
What the fuck am I seeing this early in the morning? Is the innocent, professional Harleen actually standing over me like some obsessive psychopath?
He stared at her another second before deciding his brain had to be messing with him again.
I must be daydreaming.
He closed his eyes. Counted a few seconds. Opened them.
Harleen was gone.
He relaxed, letting out a quiet breath. Yeah, definitely was dreaming.
He turned toward the other side of the bed.
Harleen was lying right there.
Daniel froze.
She was still there, looking directly at him, same wide smile.
"...You've got to be fucking kidding me."
*****
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