Barry Allen sliced through the cell beneath Lucifer's throne with careful precision, trying his best not to get caught. After cutting through the fifth bar, the still form of a young woman stirred in the cell. "Hey, hey. I'm here to break you out," Barry whispered as he sliced through the sixth bar. "Don't make a sound," The girl nodded, hovering next to the cell gate as he cut through the seventh bar.
He quickly bent the cell door down, helping Nada out of it before turning to the Throne Room. "How did you find me?" Nada asked. "Dream didn't send you did he?"
"No. God did. I'm going through the eight trials of...I guess godhood. I'm delivering you to Heaven, where you will be taken back to Earth," Barry answered as he slowly guided her against the wall, coming upon the door just as it opened to reveal a dark haired man wearing a clean dress shirt and jeans.
"That's Lucifer, we must go now," Nada whispered to Barry as Lucifer made his way over to the cell. Barry and Nada inched out of the room to hear a blood curdling yell, before a roar echoed through the fiery tundra that was Hell. Hell itself was a small island with only three buildings. The Throne Building. The Portal Room, which led to the Underworld. And the Dungeons, which held minor beings of small influence to existence.
What lay beneath Hell was a sea of lava, which was continuously refilled by the lava-falls that fell from the sides of the island. What lay above was merely a sheet of rock, blocking any light from entering the large abyss.
Barry and Nada ran like hell through Hell, looking back only as a large lava dragon crashed through the roof of the Throne Room. Lucifer flew all the way to the white doors that separated Barry and Nada from Heaven, breathing a breath of fire before turning back to his human form.
"Did you think you could break into my home, steal my most prized prisoner, and take her back to HEAVEN?!" Lucifer asked, a fiery blade erupting from his hand. "Your soul is mine," Barry pulled out his small blade, watching it morphed into a sword in front of his eyes. "The Blade of Light. Looks like my counterpart thinks very highly of you," Lucifer said. "To bad you won't be alive toreturn it,"
"Nada go!" Barry shouted as he dodged an attack from Lucifer. He swung the blade to his right, nearly swiping Lucifer's legs before getting kicked back. Nada seemed unsure for a moment, but with a look of thanks, she ran through the doors, disappearing from sight as Barry and Lucifer fought.
"You're talented with a sword. Who taught you young one?" Lucifer asked as he sliced Barry's left arm.
"Talia al Ghul, daughter of Ra's al Ghul. And Oliver Queen, or the Green Arrow, also trained by Ra's al Ghul," Barry said as he sliced Lucifer's side.
"Ah. I remember teaching him. It took years. So...that means you must be from the future," Lucifer grinned, grabbing Barry's wrist before stabbing the speedster in the side. "You can't beat me kid,"
"I-I didn't have to...I-I just had to distract you," Barry said, watching as Nada hit Lucifer over the head with a large vase. While the devil was down, Barry grabbed him by the shoulder, and stabbed him in the spleen. "You won't die today, but you'll be in a hell of a lot of pain tomorrow," Barry said, kicking Lucifer to the ground before falling into Nada's side. The girl guided him through the doors, and into the white throne room, where God, Jesus, and Gabriel were waiting.
"Barry, are you all right?" Jesus asked, pressing his hand to the wound on Barry's left side, grinning as the wound closed over, healing instantly. Nada nodded excitedly. "He snuck passed all of the demon guards, before reaching my cell. He cut through each bar, and guided me out of the Throne Room. He then fought Lucifer sword to sword. He got hit, but he was able to take the devil down using the Sword of Light,"
"You took on Lucifer by yourself?" Gabriel asked.
"I mean, Nada helped...a lot," Barry said, rubbing the back of his neck. "So. How do I get to Skyland?" As soon as he said Skyland, a flash of white surrounded him immediately, pulling him into oblivion until...only darkness was left.
SkyLand
"Barry Allen," The man in question turned to find three women laying on a large bed in the middle of the large abyss, each wearing only white silk robes. "We need your help. Aphrodite has recently been captured, and sent to the Underworld. Like Nada, if you rescue Aphrodite, and return her to this place, you will have completed your fifth and sixth trial," The woman in the middle said.
"So...is there a door like in Heaven? I don't see one," Barry said, looking around the dark abyss to find a single vent. "Do I crawl through that?"
"To get to the Underworld, yes." The woman on the left responded. "Once you get to the Underworld, the vent will close,"
"Then...how do I get back?" The woman on the right grinned mischievously, tracing her hand down her left thigh before saying. "Aphrodite will show you the way," Barry nodded, prying the vent shield away, bending down before crawling into the vent. He crawled. Crawled. Crawled. Crawled, and crawled some more.
Underworld
Barry exited the vent to find the literal definition of hell. For as far as he could see, large upside down mountains hung off of the large abyss of rock layered above him. The floor beneath him seemed to be made of gravel and sand. The landscape was barren, with three rivers of lava flowing through it. In the middle of the large abyss called the Underworld was a large city, which contained only seven large buildings.
"Barry?" The man in question abruptly turned at the sound of the female voice, which he found oddly familiar. Then he found out why. Standing in front of him, wearing a wool robe and sandals was...Nora Allen. "Is it really you?" Nora asked. "No. No. This is just another one of Hades' hallucinations,"
"Mom?" Barry asked. "It is me. It's a REALLY long story, but...I was fighting this guy named Eobard Thawne, the man who...who killed you. He used this device...which changed his DNA to mine, making him look like me. Long story short I died, but was pulled into the Source, where all things were created. Then the Overmonitor, the highest of all beings, gave me eight trials to determine if I was worthy of great power,"
"W-What?"
"Yeah, I know...it's a long story," said Barry. "Anyway, I've completed four of eight, and this is my fifth and six. I need to rescue Aphrodite,"
"Aphrodite? As in the Goddess of Love and Beauty?" Nora asked, pointing up to the large tower that stood over the city. "Hades' Tower, where he resides while he 'rules' over this place. She's in a cell located beneath Hades' throne room. I can go with you...if you want," Nora stepped closer to her only son, only for him to back away. "Y-You don't want me to do you?"
"No," Barry responded, recognizing the look of hurt and pain on his mother's face. "I've accepted the fact that you're gone. You don't have a body for your soul to return to...so...you're stuck here. And I've accepted that time, space, and everything that goes with it...shouldn't be tampered with," Barry said. "I learned from that mistake when I selfishly created Flashpoint,"
"That wasn't selfish, Barry…" Nora said. "Those were the happiest three months I've ever seen you. It was closure. Closure that you needed,"
"No. It was me defying my closure," Barry said. "Watching you die was supposed to be my closure, but I didn't accept that, especially when...when Dad died. I was suppose to get over it before, but with dad, and then Jay...it was too much,"
"Barry…"
"I'm not taking you with me Mom," Barry said. "I've accepted that you're gone...I-I'm gonna go," Barry gave his mother a sad smile, before turning around and sprinting off.
"BARRY!" Nora called out as he entered the large tower, running passed the front desk, where a lone skeleton lay asleep.
Hades' Tower; Twenty Minutes Later
Barry ran through the tower, his hand intertwined with Aphrodite's as the two ran through the tower. Narrowly avoiding tower guards until the reached a dead end. "What the hell?" Barry asked as Aphrodite opened one of the many doors located in the hall. She grabbed Barry by the wrist, and pulled him in, throwing him onto a nearby bed before closing and locking the door. "What are you doing?" Barry asked. "We still need to -" Barry droned off, just as Aphrodite pulled away her wool robe to reveal her full naked body. Her skin reflected the burning fires that roared outside the window, and seemed extremely smooth to the touch.
Her ass and tits were lined and well-balanced, and the waist was defined. Her ass was round naturally, with her body in perfect proportion. She had slightly rounded shoulders that aligned perfectly with her hips, and her legs were well shaped, and extremely smooth. Aphrodite slowly approached, gliding onto the bed before positioning herself on his waist.
"So...I'm assuming the others told you I would show you the way out," Aphrodite said. Barry nervously nodded, producing a chuckle from Aphrodite. "Well...it turns out...the only way for a mortal to escape from Hades is to either exit through the dungeons...or sex," She leaned closer, her mouth pressed against his ear, before whispering. "Hard...core...sex,"
She quickly ripped off his shirt, slowly stroking his chest as Barry pulled away his jeans. He rolled her over, positioning himself over her, taking the plunge as Aphrodite cried out in pleasure.
Unknown Location; Fifteen Minutes Later
Having had the best sex he'd ever had in his entire life, Barry was confused as to why he was standing in front of what seemed like a large...wall. The wall itself was moving, almost like a wave as it bounced forward and back. Scrawled on the wall was a plethora of non-understandable letters, which seemed to depict a language Barry had never seen.
"Do you know what it says?" Barry turned to find a literal giant standing behind him. The man had a white mane for hair, which reached his middle-back. The giant wore black and gold armor, which reminded Barry a lot of the Monitor.
"N-No. I don't," Barry responded.
"Ah. To be expected...you are mortal after all...for now," The giant said, moving closer to the wall, where he gently caressed one of the symbols. "The scarlet knight will rise above all others, emerging from mortality as a man of many strengths" The giant resighted, before turning to Barry. "Congratulations, you have completed seven of nine trials,"
"Seven? Of nine?"
"Yes. Your ninth trial will be a test of your powers, with you having to complete the eighth first. The seventh, the trial of the gods...or New Genesis, was to defy your mother," The giant said. "You did just that, and completed your task,"
"Hmm," Barry said, scratching the back of his head thoughtfully as the giant continued. "Your eighth and 'final' trial, is to go to Apokolips. Capture Darkseid...and bring him here. Do this, and you will receive your powers," The giant tapped Barry's forehead with his giant finger, before turning back to the wall. "You will find yourself with access to the Speed Force once again Mr. Allen. Finish this trial, and come out alive...and you will have my respect,"
"Got it. So...who are you? And how do I get to Apokolips?" Barry asked.
"Ah...I am Highfather. The God of the New Gods," Highfather said. "How do you get to Apokolips? The Path,"
"The Path?"
"The Path. The path between dimensions, or a flow or strip through dimensions, which allows higher beings to travel between the different dimensions," said Highfather. "Enter the Path, and you will be taken to either Dream, Nightmare, or Apokolips,"
"Why didn't I have to do this before?"
"The Source wanted your trials to be easy, yet difficult. This trial will be nothing like the previous ones. The journey will be easy, but reaching your destination, defeating Darkseid and his army, and hauling him back to New Genesis will be difficult," Highfather said. "That is why you must utilize your connection to the almighty Speed Force,"
"Is there more I can do with my speed besides vortexes, healing, Time Remnants, etc?" Barry asked.
"Good question," Highfather said. "By using the Speed Force, you can manipulate many things. Space, Time, Atomic structures, and Energy Constructs. With these abilities, including the ones you will receive once you have completed the trials,"
"That's...a lot," Barry said. "So...where is this Path?"
"Follow the light, and you will find it young one. Safe travels," Highfather moved back to the wall, staring at the symbol-ridden wall as Barry moved away. His destination? Well, he didn't really know. He was going to find the Path...whatever it took.