DC Comics Presents: Killing Roy Harper
Chapter 6: The Flash and the Joker
By Christopher W. Blaine
e-mail: darth_yoshi@yahoo.com
DISCLAIMER: The Flash™, Joker™ and all other characters and situations used in this story are ©2002 by DC Comics Inc. and are used without permission for fan-related, non-profit entertainment only. This original story is ©2002 by Christopher W. Blaine and may not be reproduced in part or as a whole without the express permission of the author
"Good evening and welcome to Viewpoint on WGBS. I'm Clark Kent, your host for tonight's show." Clark smiled and swirled in his chair. "We are especially pleased tonight to be interviewing perhaps the most important man in the world…"
"At least for today," Speedy said, grinning from ear to ear. He was dressed in full costume sans his yellow cap, which he held in his lap.
"You're too modest," Clark responded. "As of today, you're the official leader of the Justice Society of America, the premiere law enforcement organization in the world. How does that make you feel?"
Speedy shrugged. "I don't think I'm worthy of the honor. After we sabotaged the Legion of Doom's plans to extort money from the citizens of England, I was just happy to be able to come home safely."
"The Legion of Doom was beaten because of your timely actions against the Composite-Superman. It was those efforts that ultimately led to Hawkman stepping down and naming you as the new Society chairman." Clark turned to a television monitor that was displaying Hawkman standing at a podium. There was a date stamp in the bottom corner indicating that it had been filmed that day.
After the speech had played out for the viewers, the camera once again focused on the reporter. "Much has been made of your relative age, Speedy, and many have said that it is perhaps a time for a change to the ranks of the JSA. Some of the members have been active for nearly sixty years."
The young hero nodded. "I've heard some of those cries and I've consulted with the senior members, especially Green Arrow, whom you all know I will especially rely on in the coming weeks. I was going to wait for a more official setting, but I suppose there is no better time than the present." Speedy lifted his hat and displayed a piece of paper he had hidden underneath it. Clark winked at him and the camera moved to focus on the hero. Speedy picked up the paper and began to read from it. "As of midnight tonight, several senior members of the Justice Society of America shall be going into retirement. Those members include Wonder Woman, Wildcat, Green Lantern, Sandman, Starman, Hourman and Black Canary. In order to maintain the Society at full operational capability, I have held a meeting with Superman, the chairman of the Justice League of America, where I suggested combining the two groups. As you know, the Justice League was established as a way to train newer heroes in the proper use of their abilities and how to uphold the common good.
"As such, we are going to welcome in the general membership of the Justice League as well as Wonder Girl from the Teen Titans." He blushed slightly when he mentioned her. It was no secret that she and he were an item.
"That's quite a line-up," Clark said, obviously pleased. Behind his glasses, he was actually Superman and now the vice-chairman of the Justice Society of America. It had been his dream for years to become a full member of the illustrious team. "I understand that there was one Justice League member who was not too happy about the changes."
There was an almost indiscernible twitch to Speedy's left eye. "Yes…it seems that the Justice League Flash has decided to pursue crimefighting on his own." Speedy then turned to a new camera and smiled warmly. All signs of his previous irritation having disappeared. "Rest assured, however, that Jay Garrick, the true Flash, will remain active on the Society for as long as we need him."
Barry Allen turned off the television and stood up, looking around his empty apartment. He often times imagined what life would have been like if he had not been such a coward when it came to asking Iris to marry him. It didn't matter now; she was married to Thawne, who had been his rival for her affections almost from the beginning.
His personal life had gone downhill since the accident that gave him his super-speed powers, his professional life had simply plunged into the abyss. As the Flash, he had been a member in good standing with the Justice League, even getting a best friend in Hal Jordan; as Barry Allen, chemist, he was near bankruptcy. The lightning bolt that had given him his powers had also destroyed the police lab where he worked in Central City. That had resulted in the city firing him, believing that he had been responsible for the damage.
The subsequent lawsuits by the city and several police officers on duty that night had depleted his savings and inheritance from his uncle. He tried to get work on the Keystone City police force, but found he was being black-balled by none other than Jay Garrick, the original Flash and the head police scientist for that department.
Barry had also started to notice that the more he criticized the relationship between Hal and Green Arrow, a member of the Justice Society, the worse things got for him. He always assumed it was just paranoia until earlier today when Superman had announced the disbandment of the Justice League. The very first thing he had said after the announcement was that the Flash, as in Barry Allen, had not been invited to join.
It had made no sense, since he was faster and younger than Jay Garrick, but he also suspected that Garrick wasn't the one behind it. Anytime he thought about Speedy, Green Arrow's young partner, he got chills. Sometimes, he felt as if he were the only person in the world that saw the eyes that the boy had. Not so much the color, but the pure evil they seemed to radiate. Even in the presence of Green Arrow, who was supposedly his greatest hero, there was a coldness about the young man.
Sighing, he went over to the simple cot that now served as his bed and picked up his costume. Once, he had been able to shrink it and put it in a special ring. He had to pawn that ring to pay the rent months ago. Again, he felt the temptation to use his powers to get himself out of the hole he had dug himself into.
He shook his head, physically throwing the images out of his mind and into the air. The Legion of Doom already sported one evil speedster, the Reverse-Flash, and Barry knew that right now, he was the only person who had a chance of keeping that monster at bay. Jay Garrick wasn't fast enough and Wally was…
Barry fought back the tears threatening to explode from his eyes. Wally had been Iris's nephew and the hero Kid Flash. As a member of the Teen Titans, he had done Barry proud and the two had grown as close as father and son. Very soon after Wally had begun dating Donna Troy, or Wonder Girl, as she was known in the super-hero culture, he had been killed in a battle with Trigon along with the first Robin. Only Speedy had returned to tell the sad tale and very soon afterwards had begun his well-publicized relationship with Wonder Girl.
Barry always felt that something had not been right about the whole affair and as he slowly put on his costume, he remembered when he had brought his fears to the attention of the Batman. At the time, the Batman had agreed with him that something did not seem right. Very soon afterwards, however, the Batman began training a new Robin and had acted like he didn't know what the Flash had been talking about. All of it seemed so contrived that he had almost laughed.
Now standing in full costume, he felt safe. For whatever reason, nothing bad happened to him as the Flash and he found himself taking to sleeping in the costume. He had only taken it off to wash it.
The events of the day had convinced him that something strange was going on and that the person behind it was Speedy, the new leader of the Justice Society of America. He wanted to go to Hal, but his friend always seemed so distant when it came to the subject of the sidekick of Green Arrow. It was not like Speedy had control over him; it was more like Hal was bound by some unseen force not to speak what he knew.
No, he thought to himself, his best bet was with the Batman. Despite the changes in the man, Barry believed that deep inside, Batman knew what was going on. The Batman understood, but like Hal, he was trapped by some invisible hand.
"You know too much, do you realize that, scumbag?" Robin asked as he drew his hand back.
The Joker smiled, blood running down his chin from his damaged gums. "This is unwarranted assault…"
Robin brought the crowbar back down, slamming it into the Joker's shoulder. There was a popping sound and the Joker cried out. The cry was for the pain only, as the Clown Prince of Crime knew that there was no one to come to his aid. When someone needed help in Gotham City, they called for the Batman.
Unless, of course, he was the one attacking you. "How is it that you know so much about Roy Harper?" the Batman asked coldly. Robin dug the tip of the crowbar into the Joker's damaged shoulder. "I can call him off at any time."
"I'm sure you can, but it's a pretty idle threat because you won't," the Joker said through gritted teeth. He eyed the youth who was enjoying hurting him so much. "Trying so hard to be like Dick, eh, Jason?" The comment unnerved Robin for a moment and the Joker used the reprieve to kick out, his spindly legs stabbing at the teen's knees. Caught completely off-guard, Robin fell as the Joker scrambled up.
His arm hanging useless at his side, the Joker tried to summon his famous humor. "Well, Bruce, I guess it's you and me. How about you let me go and my lawyers won't come after you for damages. Got to protect the Wayne Fortune…"
The Batman scowled. "I have no idea how you learned my identity, but it won't do you any good. Speedy has said you must die, that you know too much." He began to approach as a cursing Robin stood up. "Tell me how you found out about Speedy."
As the Dynamic Due stepped into the shadows that the Joker tried to shrink into, he noticed that there was a blue glow to their eyes. "You guys are possessed, don't you realize that? Batman…buddy…come on! Think! I'm the killer, not you." He crossed his eyes and stuck a finger in his nose. "Crazy old Joker! Yes, sir, that's me!"
The Joker realized his argument was falling on deaf ears and he said a silent prayer to whatever being had dropped him in the middle of this insanity. For a moment, he considered the possibility that he was completely lost in his own madness, but he knew that just simply wasn't so.
A red blur raced by him and he figured it was his own blood, spraying against the alley wall. He expected there to be pain, but was thankful that there wasn't. He was certain he was going to meet his maker, who appeared to have a somewhat nerdy voice.
"What the hell is going on here?" the Flash said, coming to a halt. He had raced all over Gotham City trying to find the Batman. When he saw them approaching the Joker, he assumed that they were apprehending the criminal.
As he had approached, he noted the extensive injuries the Joker had suffered and he would have sworn he could feel the malice coming off of the other heroes. "I want an answer now, Batman!"
"Little Flash, run away," Robin cackled. "You aren't welcome here!" The boy turned towards him and reached down for the crowbar. The Flash thought he detected some sort of field around both Batman and Robin. It wasn't unusual for him to see such things with his vision. He saw many things differently since he gained the ability to move at super-speed.
"Welcome or not, I asked a question," the Flash said, eyeing the approaching Robin. Before the Teen Wonder could take two steps, the Flash began moving his arms in circles. Small tornados launched out and struck Robin, throwing him up against a wall.
A batarang sailed out at blinding speed, but it was a snail's pace to the Flash. Vibrating his molecules, he allowed the weapon to pass through him. Batman moved with a speed the Flash was surprised to see and managed to get a good solid right hook on the Scarlet Speedster as he became solid again. The power of the strike put the Flash on his butt.
Batman pulled out a cord from his utility belt and wrapped it around the Flash's neck. The Flash reached up immediately, out of reflex, and pulled at the cord. He couldn't believe what was going on; the Batman of all people was trying to kill him. The pain of the cord matched with the Batman's strength kept him disoriented enough that he could not vibrate out of the death grip.
"Your time is over, Allen," the Batman whispered.
The Flash felt his grip starting to slip when there was a sudden wet sound. Batman's grip loosened and he fell over the Flash. The speedster rolled away, coughing and looked up to see the Joker holding a bloody crowbar.
The criminal dropped it like there was death clinging to it. "I'm sorry, but there was no other way to stop him. Lucky for me he's possessed or else he would have kicked my rear."
The Flash stood up and saw a nasty gash on the back of the Batman's cowl. He knelt down and examined the wound and checked for a pulse. Satisfied that the Caped Crusader would live, he looked at the Joker. "Why were they trying to kill you?"
"Lordy…wasn't it Impulse that said 'for a guy who supposed to be fast, you're not too quick'." The Joker looked over at the unconscious Robin. "Let me guess, you have no idea who Impulse is, do you?"
The Flash shook his head. "You're talking nonsense…"
"No," the Joker said, blowing out loud. "I woke up a few weeks ago and realized that I wasn't the man I had been. I realized that the world was only minutes old…"
"You're under arrest…" the Flash began, stepping towards the Joker.
"Barry," the Joker started, waving to the two heroes lying on the ground. "Do you not see what is going on? The Batman was trying to kill me and you; Speedy is is in charge of the Justice Society and I'm the sanest man in the world."
Roy Harper stepped up to the podium and cleared his throat. Behind him, the huge emblem of the Legion of Doom was illuminated to add effect. "We have a problem, gentlemen and when we have a problem, I get very angry."
There were murmurs from the villains and Roy allowed them the opportunity to discuss who was at fault. After a suitable amount of time, he tapped the microphone with his index finger. "If I could please have silence."
When it was quiet again, he spoke. "There are two men on this planet that could mean the end of everything that I…we have built."
"I thought you said that this world would be perfect! You promised that we would be able to operate without fear of intervention," the Master Jailer called out.
"You need to shut up," Roy responded. "Who here has ever heard of the Flash?" All raised their hands. "I'm talking about Barry Allen." None of the hands went down immediately.
"If you would just let me kill him, there would be no problem," the Reverse-Flash said, standing up. He pounded a fist on the meeting table. "Why did you even drag him into this new universe anyway?"
"He's an anomaly…a balance of the temporal scales," Vandal Savage said from a corner. He sat picking his nails. Roy tried to hide his disgust for the bearded bear of a man. Roy absolutely detested facial hair on a grown man; it was so primal. If any single person could represent the bestial nature of man, it was Vandal Savage.
"What do you mean?" the Composite-Superman asked, scratching his head. He appeared to be getting dumber day by day.
"You can't remake the universe and not expect there to be some loose ends. Allen died during the Crisis, yet our boy Roy up there eliminated the entire event, per se." Vandal seemed quite please with himself at having grasped the full magnitude of the situation.
"Let's say I used the Crisis to my advantage," Roy retorted. Vandal Savage was an immortal man and therefore a temporal anomaly himself. He had figured out that there were certain aspects of universe creation that could not be controlled.
As the Time-Guardian, Roy had managed to arrange the untimely death of the version of Roy Harper that had existed in what was considered the "real" universe. By killing Harper, he had disrupted the natural flow of time enough that he could move in and reshape the universe to suit his own needs.
"Allen is here to balance our glorious leader," Savage said with a small laugh. "He can't be killed without a consequence. The problem is, Mr. Time-Guardian, is that you can't be sure what the consequence will be."
Roy rolled his eyes. "Vandal, please…let's just concentrate on the problem at hand." He pushed a button on the podium and a viewscreen lowered from the ceiling. When it stopped, the lights dimmed and a picture of the Joker appeared on it. "This is the…"
"Joker!" Cat-Man called out, elbowing Sinestro. "Minor league nobody if you ask me."
Tired of the interruptions, Roy's eyes flashed blue and Cat-Man disappeared. It had the desired effect as calming silence enveloped the room. "In what I like to call the false reality, this was perhaps the most insane man in existence. He managed to slip through the cracks and is now allying himself with Allen."
"So? Kill them both and be done with it," a tall redheaded woman said.
Of all of the people in the room, he had the most in common with Shyla. A former native of the "Earth-1" universe, she had been a scientist on the planet Krypton. Interested in space travel, she had tried out for the Kryptonian space program, but had been rejected because of her lack of physical strength.
Seeking to increase her strength, she developed a process by which she could imbue herself with the bio-electric energy of living creatures. The effect was temporary and when she knocked a statue onto an innocent man, her then normal strength could not save him.
Charged with manslaughter, she was sentenced to 1.41 Earth years within the Phantom Zone. As a literal ghost, she stood by and watched her world explode less than a year later and Kal-El, son of her jailer Jor-El, rocketed away to eventually become Superman.
Shyla eventually escaped, but ran afoul of Superman's cousin, Supergirl, and had been returned to the Phantom Zone. There, she watched as the Crisis Wave destroyed her universe. Like Roy, her god had forgot her. As an Earth-1 Kryptonian, she was arguably one of the most powerful beings in his Legion. Because of their like interests, and an admitted sexual attraction to each other, he had made her his second in command. To the rest of the world, she was the actual chair of the Legion. "Maybe I should," Roy said, drumming his fingers. "Can anyone tell me what could happen?"
"He's a Flash," Abra Kadabra began, "quite possibly the greatest one ever. His nobility is renown throughout time and space. Ever since a human discovered the power of the Speed Force and called themselves Mercury, speedsters have been pivotal in the temporal alignment."
"Yes, yes, yes, Abra," the Reverse-Flash interrupted, "we all know that the Speed Force is the thread that holds the cloth of time together. Can we save the lecture for some other time?"
"Will you jerks please shut up? Mr. Harper wants our opinion, we should be happy to give it," Deathstroke yelled above the din. Being former military, he was the usual calming influence during these arguments. Roy allowed them to happen because it kept them from agreeing on turning on him.
From his days as a hero working with Green Arrow, he knew better than to turn his back too long on any villain. "Thank you, Slade," Roy said. "Perhaps you would have something to offer."
"From listening to you guys, I'm assuming that the 'cosmic-balance' requires that at any given time, someone must possess the ability to tap into the Speed Force."
The Reverse-Flash smiled. "Exactly. No offense to the great mind of the Time-Guardian, but when you reshaped the universe and plucked all of us out of time, I kind of gather that I was picked to be the Speed Force anchor."
Roy inclined his head. "You were also a successful operative for me, Eobard, and that guaranteed a reward. However, you are correct when I sought to have you to perform that function. I was not sure exactly how either Jay Garrick or Wally West would react under my control." The Legion members understood that this Earth was based upon the ideals of the Time-Guardian and that certain things occurred as he felt they should. He had long ago revealed that when he had selected the speedsters for this new world, he had left out those he felt were the largest threats. Barry Allen's appearance had been unsettling at best. "But I get what you're saying. Whatever the final plan is, we must be prepared for what happens afterwards."
"I don't understand…why can't the Reverse-Flash be the Flash?" the Composite-Superman asked, scratching his head again.
"Because I'm from the 25th century, you green-skinned primate!" The Reverse-Flash had hated the Composite-Superman since day one. "In the 'false-reality'," he began, inkling his head to Roy, "when Allen died, West took his place. West would eventually unlock all of the secrets of the Speed Force. There is no West anymore…"
Roy smiled. He had killed both Wally West and Dick Grayson when they tried getting too close to his beloved Donna. Donna Troy represented virginal womanhood to him; Shyla represented his baser desires that had to be fulfilled. He would have explained it to Donna if he thought that as a woman she could even begin to understand the complexities of being male. "So, the damage would be minimal. I agree, Eobard. Sinestro, you will have the task of killing Barry Allen and the Joker."
"What's so special about the Joker all of a sudden?" Deathstroke asked.
"For some strange reason, he realizes that none of this is real…or as real as he thinks it is supposed to be," Roy said. He looked down at the Legion from his raised position. "The Justice Society has absorbed the Justice League, giving it a larger membership base. I need a two year plan for having you fine people trim out the membership, sort of weed out the weak."
There was laughter and Roy caught that look in Shyla's eye. Her Kyryptonian heritage, experience and intelligence made him his equal…emotionally. He had not taken a lover in many centuries, but the idea of a beautiful mistress on the side was so like Julius Caesar. For only a moment, he imagined himself standing before the world with the crown of leaves, wearing a toga and dictating the laws of the universe.
"I find it very hard to believe anything that you're saying," the Flash said to the Joker. They were sitting in one of the Joker's secret hideaways deep in the bowels of Gotham City.
"That's nice…a super-hero that trusts nobody. Look, we can't stay here very long. Harper knows everything; he'll send the Justice Society or the Legion of Doom after us any time now." He moved over to a closet and opened it. There were several purple suits on green hangers. He started looking through them. "What was I thinking?"
"What are you talking about?" the Flash asked.
"These clothes; you would think even an insane man would choose a wardrobe with something more than grape." The Joker shrugged and pulled out one of the suits. "Oh, this is nice. It has an acid-throwing flower." He taped his jaw for a moment as he looked at the device. "How do I keep from getting acid on my own shirt?"
"Are you trying to say that you just woke up a few weeks ago perfectly sane?"
The Joker began to change out of his bloody clothes. The Flash averted his eyes when he saw the bruised and torn chalk-white flesh of the Joker's back. "Oh, it's more than that. I started to see things for what they really were. For instance, did you know that Clark Kent and Superman are the same person? My God, all he does is put on glasses and the entire world is fooled?"
The Flash nodded, dumbfounded. He, of course, had already known Superman's secret identity, but he now thought about the eyeglasses as a disguise. It did seem a little contrived. "Or," the Joker began again as he took a washcloth to his wounds, "how about Batman and Robin. It has to be Bruce Wayne and whatever teen boy he's hanging around with this year. He's the only one with the money, the motivation, the build…come on! You heroes really must think the world is stupid."
"That doesn't explain why you think Speedy…er, Roy Harper, is evil personified," the Flash said. He wanted to know if the Joker had the proof he had been seeking.
"Did you see the headline two weeks ago? 'Speedy defeats the Composite-Superman'. Speedy for God's sake! Superman yes, Batman yes, Aquaman maybe, but Speedy? The only way he could have done it is if he and the Legion were working together. I started investigating it, hoping to find an answer when I suddenly realized something was amiss."
"What?" the Flash asked, standing up.
"Well, I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but I seemed to remember something called a Crisis a few years back where many heroes and villains died. Now, that's when it all started clicking and I realized that I wasn't as insane as I thought I was. Something happened a couple of weeks back…someone changed time and I seem to be the only person who remembers what it was supposed to be like.
"Then, I remembered the Psycho-Pirate…"
"Who?" the Flash asked, searching his memory. The name meant nothing to him.
"The Psycho-Pirate; a villain who survived the Crisis…oh, never mind. I hate being the only person in the world who knows what the hell is going on." The Joker finished dressing and appraised himself in the mirror. "I managed to get the Batman to capture me and send me to Arkham Asylum. I remembered that was where the Psycho-Pirate was held in the real world. See, he remembered worlds that existed before ours…that was why they locked him up; he sounded fruity. Anyway, as soon as I start asking about him, strange things start happening."
"Like?"
Joker turned and looked around for his bright red lipstick. "Like someone named Batgirl came to my cell and threatened to kick my white behind if I didn't stop poking my nose into things." He found it and began to apply it. In moments, he looked like his old self. The Flash noted that he seemed to have almost superhuman recovery abilities.
"You were threatened by Batgirl and now you believe there is a world conspiracy?"
Joker shook his head. "See, that's where knowing what's really going on helps. I shot Batgirl several years ago; I remember that. She can't walk. Robin…that kid with the crowbar that attacked me today? I killed him. And you, Mr. Barry Allen…you've been dead for years."
"So you said," the Flash commented. He wanted to believe the Joker, if only to justify the gnawing feeling in his gut, but it seemed too fantastic. He knew who Batgirl was, one of the many crime fighters in Gotham City and she had been around for years. The Joker was a known killer, and yet it was Batman who had tried to kill the both of them earlier. "How do you know I'm supposed to be dead?"
"Please…they made such a big deal over it. By the way, now that I'm sane, thanks," the Joker said, giving him a wink. As much as the Flash hated to admit it, he was having a difficult time loathing the man. "You died saving the universe from the Anti-Monitor during the Crisis. That was after your murder trial."
"Uh, huh," the Flash said. "I suppose I killed the Reverse-Flash."
"You remember?" there was a hopeful look in the Joker's green eyes. When he saw that the Flash was just being sarcastic, his mood soured slightly. "I don't care if you believe me, but I know one thing: we have to put things right. I'm sane and can't live with the knowledge that this world is a lie. If we succeed, you die and I become a lunatic."
"I don't trust you," the Flash offered. "You're going to jail."
"Do you think that there is a jail in the world that can keep the Batman away from me? Eventually, Harper is going to get used to using him and look out! He'll be as deadly as we know he can be. You take me to jail, you've signed my death warrant." The Joker grabbed his hat and coat. "We have to find the answer to Harper's powers."
"He shoots arrows…"
The Joker had no chance to reply as the front door to the hideout suddenly flew across the room. A giant yellow boxing glove entered through the doorway immediately afterwards. The Joker was thrown back, but the Flash reacted much more quickly. Vibrating, he ran through the outside wall to get behind the intruder.
Outside, the Flash was surprised to see Sinestro floating in the air, a shimmering field of yellow enveloping him. The crimson-skinned alien wielded a power ring similar to that of the Flash's friend Hal Jordan. In fact, Sinestro and Jordan were mortal foes. The only tie that the Flash had to him was the fact that the Justice League had fought the Legion of Doom.
Under normal circumstances, there would be an exchange of threats and bad jokes, but the Flash could almost feel the intensity of Sinestro's will. He was here on a mission, and the Scarlet Speedster guessed it probably had nothing to do with anything pleasant.
Without a word, the Flash began to run in a small circle directly underneath Sinestro, trapping him in a red tornado. Sinestro was not fazed and used his ring to dissipate the tornado as fast as the Flash generated it.
"Your time in this existence is over, Allen. I have been promised that once you are gone, I will be put in charge of the Green Lantern Corps," Sinestro called out. He could not see the Flash, so fast was the speedster moving. "Surrender and I'll make your death relatively painless."
"That's such a load of malarkey!" the Joker called as he stumbled out of the ruined doorway. He saw that a crowd of gawkers had gathered, but no local police forces. No doubt that Harper was behind that. "You plan to make it excruciating painful."
Sinestro grinned. "Yes, I suppose that I do." He floated down to the ground to stand before the Joker. "My orders are to kill you as well."
"Smell my flower?" the Joker said, activating the small pump for the acid. The acid stream hit Sinestro's energy shield and splattered back. Small droplets fell onto the Joker's coat and in his face.
The Joker screamed and Sinestro laughed. "Fool! My ring is powered by pure anti-matter; did you really think that you're pathetic acid could penetrate my ring's protection?"
The Joker fell to his knees, his hands covering his burning face. Sinestro extended his ring hand, preparing for the coup de grace when the Flash suddenly appeared next to him. Vibrating again, the Flash attempted to attune himself to the specific frequency of Sinestro's force field.
In practice, he had been able to do it several times with other super-villains. Those fields, however, were based upon the physical laws of this universe, not the anti-matter universe. Reaching through the field, some of the Flash's molecules came in contact with the strands of anti-matter that permeated anything created from Sinestro's power ring.
The Flash screamed once the anti-matter attached itself to him. The contact on a molecular level caused a small explosion as the positive and negative forces fought for dominance. Sinestro's field failed and he was sent soaring over the crowd of people that had gathered.
The Joker looked up, his face covered with puffy burns and welts, and saw the Flash holding a hand up. Streams of blue-white energy dripped like water and he was screaming. The Joker realized that the energy was similar in texture and composition as the Crisis wave. "Flash…you have to get out of here! You died by absorbing anti-matter; somehow, you're doing it again!"
Through tears of pain, the Flash looked over at the Joker. "Why?"
"Sinestro's ring is powered by the same thing the Crisis Wave was made of, only on a much smaller scale. You're physical body is now acting like a magnet! You're drawing the Crisis Wave back!" Then it seemed as if someone had turned the lights on in a dark house. "That's it! That's what he did! He did something to the Crisis Wave in order to change history! You have the knowledge, now you have to go!"
"Go where…ahhh!" the Flash bellowed as his hand disappeared.
"The Speed Force!" the Joker exclaimed. "God…I do know everything! You have to run…run as fast as you can…go!"
The Flash wanted to object and argue, but the pain was too great. He felt there was true wisdom to the Joker's words and nodding thanks, he wiped his eyes and ran.
Sinestro pushed his way through the crowd, only to be stopped by the Batman and Robin. "Put the Bat-cuffs on him, son," the Batman ordered. Sinestro started to protest and then tried to fly away. As he jumped, he realized his ring was broken and landed back on his feet. Robin smirked and slapped the restraints on him.
Batman moved down toward where the Joker had crawled back into his hideout and found him sitting in a chair, applying a cold washcloth to his damaged face. "Time's up," the Batman said coldly.
The Joker looked up. "Well, for some of us it is."
"What the hell is going on here?" Deadman cried as he made his way through the throngs of disembodied spirits standing in line. He got to the head, where a teenage girl in a misty cloak stood with the Joker next to her. "Oh, crap, Secret, what is the hold up? Ever since that dumb-butt Harper screwed everything up, we've got spirits out the wahzoo running around up here!'
"Gosh, Mr. Brand," the girl ghost said, blushing. Deadman or Boston Brand to his friends nearly smacked himself. Secret had been a super-hero before the "Harper Incident" as they were calling it in Heaven these days. Really the spirit of a young girl killed by her super-villain brother, she had been given the task of escorting people to their final destinations by the Powers Above. "I don't know what to do with him."
Deadman regarded the Joker. "Put some barbeque sauce on him and drop him down the hole!"
Secret, blushing still, handed him a note. The Joker looked around, nodding his head. Deadman took the paper and read it. "Aw…this is crap! How does someone like him get put on 'administrative hold'?" Deadman wadded the paper up and threw it down. "Freakin' Jordan is supposed to be doing this stuff!"
"He got sent back to Earth," Secret offered. Though the Harper Incident had not initially affected him when his earthly identity was re-established, he had to obey. Jim Corrigan had been brought back by the Powers Above to take the role of the Spectre and he was not happy.
"I know that! All right, Joker, come with me. You'll be scrubbing the streets of gold with a toothbrush until this gets straightened out, you sick bastard!"
The Joker whistled a happy tune as he was led along. He thought about the Flash and hoped that he made it where he needed to go.
The Speed Force was like being deep inside a smile and Barry Allen found himself truly at peace. He had run with all of his might, the anti-matter slowly eating away at him. He had moved beyond time; he had seen the universe outside the world that Roy Harper had created and he realized just how right the Joker had been.
The universe did need to be set right, but there was nothing Barry could do about it. He wasn't strong enough to leave the Speed Force; for all purposes he was dead. The people he met here were friendly enough and slowly they began to fill in the blanks in his mind. He started to remember.
"I need someone to carry on this fight…I need someone I can pass this information on to," he said to the other speedsters.
Max Mercury shook his head. "There is nobody except Jay, who is under Roy's control and Zoom," he said, referring to the original Flash and the Reverse-Flash. "You need someone from this relative time-period, like Wally."
"Harper killed me, Max," Wally West said. "How about Walter West, the Dark Flash?"
"We can't find him," Johnny Quick called as he approached. "He travels in and out of Hypertime so much that we can't keep a line on him."
A new voice spoke up. "How about me?"
All of the beings turned to see a young man in a Kid Flash costume. "Who are you?" they all asked in unison.
The youth pushed back his mask to reveal a familiar face. "I'm Roy Harper."