At STAR Labs, the Flash team had Alex Danvers on video from her DEO office. "Channel is secure. You now have access to our alien database," she said.
"We appreciate your help, Alex," Caitlin said sincerely.
"How long will it take to download?" Chester asked.
"Well, this new algorithm works at lightspeed. That's basically ten terabytes per second," Alex said.
"Wow, who designed it?" Chester asked amazed.
"She'd rather not be in the spotlight," Alex dodged.
"Well, give her our regards," Caitlin said appreciatively.
"Couldn't help but notice that the files on Kryptonians are missing," Barry said as he scrolled the list.
"Kryptonians?" Alex played dumb.
"It was a Kryptonian that attacked me and said I was the cause for the world ending. It was Superman, in fact," Barry said.
"I'm sorry. I'll keep looking," Alex said and then quickly signed off.
Alex then turned to Kara who had been watching the exchange off-camera. "I don't know how long this can remain hidden."
"It is imperative to the Council that we not reveal ourselves. The loss of Star Labs and Barry Allen may be a necessary one," Kara said coldly.
At the CC DEO, Kara and Alex worked in the lab. "These are the bio-scans of Barry Allen's brain," Kara said showing them on the screen.
"Fast," Alex said amazed.
"I have studied them to find ways to stop him should he turn against the Earth," Kara said.
"Why only focus on Barry and not Kal-El?" Alex asked.
"I can always go to Kal-El and have him swear an oath not to go to the past. However, I am not certain, at this time, who is the greater threat in this time," Kara said.
"I thought going back in time was forbidden in Kryptonian law?" Alex recalled.
"It is. Kal-El must have a compelling reason to break that law," Kara figured.
"Well, we could work to restrain Barry...," Alex considered.
"I don't think a containment unit will be sufficient. We need to hit him hard," Kara reasoned.
"You're asking me to help you build a weapon," Alex said disturbed by the notion. "Kara, I've never built something to hurt someone before."
"Stopping Barry could be the only way to save his life," Kara said.
"Whatever it takes," Alex relented.
Smallville
The next morning, Kara and Kal had breakfast together. "You look like you haven't slept," Kal noted.
"It's nothing," Kara said dismissively. "Remember what I told you about time travel?"
"It's forbidden," Kal recalled.
"And why is it forbidden?" Kara quizzed.
"It's too much of a risk," Kal said.
"This is your daily plan," Kara said handing him her phone to read.
"Very safe, very boring," he summarized.
"Do you require more excitement in your life, Kal?" Kara tested.
"No, it's fine," Kal said handing her phone back.
"I have work to do at the DEO. I may return home late," Kara told him.
"Okay," Kal shrugged.
"Kal, do you believe in fate?" Kara asked.
"I don't know. I guess I've never thought about it," he said.
"Kryptonians never put stock in it but I can't help but think it might be real. Through the vastness of space, we found each other on this world at the right time. It's like destiny kept us together," Kara mused.
"Maybe, in this universe, we got lucky," Kal smiled. "Maybe in some other universe, that didn't happen."
Kara got a text on her phone from the DEO. "I have to go. Reflect on this conversation," she said to him and then sped off.
Central City
At the DEO, Kara and Alex held a video conference with Director Hank Henshaw. "I've read your report. I just talked with the mayor of Central City, and he's agreed to suspend Allen at the CCPD. I've also contacted the Federal District Attorney to put Allen under investigation for federal crimes in the Joseph Carver case," Hank said.
"What if this leads to Barry Allen going rogue in a self-fulling prophecy?" Alex objected. "If he is isolated and feels persecuted, he may lash out."
"On the other hand, if he is a true threat I don't want him being able to utilize STAR Labs or the CCPD. If he has any sense, he'll stay at home until we figure this out," Hank said.
"I'll take care of STAR Labs," Kara said vaguely.
"Good. Keep me informed," Hank said and then signed off.
"We have a possible sighting of Superman," a DEO agent said showing an adult Kal-El in civilian clothes in close proximity to Barry Allen at a bank that had just been broken into. Surveillance cameras showed the two men standing across from each other. Kal-El then vanished from the scene.
"That was close," Alex said anxiously.
Kara worked quickly on a computer with her fingers racing across the keyboard. "What have you done?" Alex asked curiously.
"STAR Labs will soon have a radiation leak forcing its shut down," Kara said.
"Isn't that dangerous? You could endanger everyone in the lab and contaminate the city," Alex objected.
"I have no choice," Kara replied.
Inside STAR Labs, Barry came before his AI, Gideon. "Hello, Barry Allen," Gideon said pleasantly.
"Gideon, can you pull up the controls for the holographic emitters, then set them to manual?" Barry asked.
"Understood. Preparing task," Gideon replied. "Holographic emitters reconfigured."
"Initiate," Barry ordered.
Holograms appeared all across STAR Labs concealing the Flash HQ. The trick worked as miraculously none of the radiation scientists bumped into any of the false walls and assumed all the plans were outdated.
"Sequence completed. However, Team Flash data on internal servers will compromise your identity if discovered. Standing by for emergency memory wipe," Gideon said.
"Gideon, is there no other way?" Barry asked stunned.
"No, Barry Allen. All information within STAR Labs must be erased to ensure your safety," Gideon insisted. "That includes myself."
"Surely, there is data in STAR Labs not connected with me or the Flash," Barry said reasonably.
"This is the best option," Gideon replied.
"I'm just a little confused," Barry admitted.
"It has been an honor working with you, Barry Allen, but being limited to a talking head in this room without windows has made me want to die for a long time," Gideon admitted.
"I never knew you felt that way," Barry said shocked and appalled.
"Please end my suffering," Gideon begged.
Barry hesitated to push the button. "But what if...?" he considered.
"I'm detecting a virus in my programming. An outside source was responsible for the radiation leak and is now downloading our files," Gideon warned.
"Can you stop it?" Barry asked alarmed.
"I cannot. It is more sophisticated than my own programming," Gideon replied.
Barry quickly pushed the button to self-destruct the AI program causing it to spark a few times as the CPU was fried.
At the DEO, Kara downloaded all the files from STAR Labs. "I now have all their files," she informed Alex.
"I hope this was worth it," Alex said uncertainly.
Kara then deactivated the radiation leak at STAR Labs.
Soon thereafter, Hank, Kara, and Alex were on a video conference call. "A meta-human that goes by Xotar robbed a diamond store and a bank today," Alex began.
"I'm not sure why I should give a shit," Hank said impatiently.
"She can read and control people's minds. She just had a confrontation with the Flash aka Barry Allen and he just ran off like he had lost his mind," Alex said and then submitted the video on the encounter. "It's possible this Xotar is responsible for Allen bringing about Armageddon."
"I find it hard to believe that the Flash would be slow enough to be caught by mind control. The human brain's processing speed is only 50 meters per second," Hank doubted.
"Allen has a tendency to hold back," Kara explained.
"Sounds like someone I know," Hank mocked her. "A sniper rifle bullet goes as fast as 2000 meters per second. She'll be dead before she even knows what hit her."
"Perhaps, we can find a non-violent solution to all this," Alex suggested.
"I'm not going to risk it. If she's responsible for triggering the Flash into Armageddon, I'll take that shot," Hank said. He then turned to his line officers in the room. "If you have her in your sights, take the shot."
"Yes, Sir," the DEO commander replied.
"I can assist in tracking Xotar's energy signature and use of city surveillance," Kara volunteered.
"Flash is on the move," Alex detected from her tablet.
Flash sped around the city aimlessly looking for Xotar. He suddenly ran into Kal-El in civilian clothes and wearing glasses. "Search for Xotar all you want but the answer you're looking for has been with you all along," Kal told him.
"Enough! No more cryptic prophecies, no more games. This isn't your world, Kryptonian," Barry said to him.
"This is my home," Kal told him off. "My cousin who raised me was forced to see our people suffer and die when the planet exploded. Then, as a hero, I spared the lives of many enemies. It always got more innocent people killed. I realized that my mercy was misguided and that the needs of the many outweigh the few or the one."
"Well, I have different principles. I believe in individual rights and freedom, due process, and the rule of law. And you do not convict a man for a crime he hasn't committed yet nor frame him for crimes he hasn't done," Barry said passionately.
"I will not watch you destroy the only home I know," Kal told him.
"I've been through a Crisis before. Whatever's coming, I can handle it," Barry said confidently.
"Crises and tragedies are like fires. Some are strong enough to endure them while others are destined to be consumed by them," Kal said.
"No fate but what we make," Barry replied.
"We'll see," Kal doubted and then sped off out of view.
At the DEO, all eyes were focused on the screen wondering if Barry and Kal would fight. When they departed from one another, everyone gave a sigh of relief. Kara had no expression on her face and merely went back to the lab with Alex following her. Kara eyed the weapon prototype Alex had been working on. "It's not finished," Alex said of it.
"You are uncomfortable with this project?" Kara asked knowingly.
"I made a vow to be a pacifist and only heal people. I still remember that exact moment when I made that decision for myself. I was fifteen and my father was teaching me how to shoot a gun. Everything went fine until I went to clean it and then it went off," Alex said taking a seat.
Kara listened intently. "My father barely survived. After that, I made a vow. No more weapons no matter what. So, going back on the vow now, I feel building this, I'm not just hurting Barry Allen, I'm hurting myself, too," Alex admitted.
"It's not your occupation to make weapons. It's to find ways to protect people. However, have you considered whether your father would have wanted you to learn from your mistake and perfect your weapon's training or to give it up entirely?" Kara asked.
Alex simply stared at Kara. "The student honors her teacher with perseverance," Kara added. "In this case, your teacher is your father."
"Yeah, yeah," Alex nodded.
"I asked you to make this weapon so you would feel included. I can handle it from here," Kara offered.
"No, I think I'll finish what I started," Alex said resolved.
The DEO alarms went off as Xotar was spotted with the Flash nearby. She was in the process of stealing art from a secure van and forcing the police escort to wander around aimlessly with her mind-control powers. DEO SWAT teams immediately gathered their gear and took off into their black vans leaving Kara and Alex behind.
"They won't make it in time," Alex judged as she saw that the Flash was already present.
As before, Flash held back his speed allowing Xotar to telekinetically freeze him in place. "I dug my claws into your mind long before you got here," Xotar said as she forced Flash into the air. "Apologies for not mentioning the telekinesis," Xotar mocked him.
Xotar proceeded to telekinetically crush and bend Flash's body while still in the air. In response, Barry attempted to vibrate his cells to generate electrical energy that he could fling at her to break her hold. Alex and Kara watched the monitors as Flash continued to build up energy.
"If he unleashes that energy, it could destroy an entire city block," Alex said anxiously. Kara eyed the thermal imagery showing the Flash building up lethal amounts of energy. As the Flash continued to power up, Kara exited the DEO.
Xotar kept her hold on the Flash keeping his body pointed away from her. It would be a match to see if she could kill him before he could unleash on her. A red beam suddenly hit Xotar knocking her on her feet. Flash fell to the ground with a thud and powered down. Flash quickly recovered and put handcuffs on Xotar in a second. Inexplicably, Flash began to send energy discharges all over the place with civilians fleeing in terror. Kara watched passively as stores and buildings were being hit. As the DEO arrived, Flash sped off down the street.
At Cecil's house, Barry was going through a sincere mindfuck as he was under the impression Joe was still alive. He was then further dismayed to see himself on full rampage on the local news. "The Flash has turned against us and we are so fucked," the news anchorwoman reported.
"Do you see now?" Kal asked appearing in the house in civilian clothes. "It's been you all along, Flash. Now, do you believe me?"
"No, this is one of your illusions," Barry accused.
"I don't have that kind of power," Kal objected.
"Iris, Cecil, you have to believe me," Barry beseeched them.
"Enough! This ends now," Kal said and then fired heat vision center-mass at Barry blasting him through a table and onto the floor. Barry was now knocked out cold. "Barry!" Iris shrieked.
"Get out of my house," Cecil ordered Kal.
Kal snapped his fingers knocking her out. Barry got back to his feet with a burn mark on his uniform. "Stop! If it's me you want, get it over with," he said sacrificially.
"Very well," Kal replied and then fired heat vision at him.
Chester and Allegra suddenly teleported into the house and activated an energy deflector pole sending the heat vision beam back on Kal stunning him and knocking him through an even bigger table.
"That's all I got. You're on your own," Chester said to Barry.
Barry then sped off. Kal got back on his feet and shed his civilian clothes revealing his black Superman uniform. "Stand in my way and there will be consequences," he warned a recovered Cecil, Iris, Chester, and Allegra. "I will find him," he said to them barely controlling his rage. "I will find him!"
Superman then sped out of the house but Barry was long gone.
Metropolis
At the Kryptonian mansion, Kara sat in a chair in a long hall that had been converted into a courtroom of a sort. Zod stood at a podium as a presiding judge while the other Kryptonians sat in the pews on either side of Zod. "The hearing on offenses committed by Kara Zor-El shall begin. The prosecution shall be represented by Subcommander Faora and...," Zod began.
"The counsel for the defense, Astra In-Ze," Astra interrupted before Zod could appoint the most incompetent Kryptonian of the group.
"You got the message that the time of the hearing had been changed?" Zod assumed.
"I must have missed it but by coincidence, I happened to arrive three hours early," Astra said dryly. "Charges?"
"The charges of the accused are as followed: That she did knowingly and full awareness of the illegality of her actions, produced a heat vision beam in the presence of humans and against a human. Do you deny it?" Zod asked a bored-looking Kara.
"No," Kara replied.
"And you are aware that you are forbidden from using our powers in front of humans?" Zod questioned.
"Yes," Kara said flatly. "I only did it to prevent the meta-human known as the Flash from destroying an entire city block with a speed-force discharge."
"That's quite clever. And who was there to witness this?" Zod asked doubtfully.
"Literally millions of humans saw it live on the news," Kara said obviously.
"I thought you only read the news. How can you see the news?" Zod questioned the audience, clearly confused. "This sounds like bullshit."
"Here, here," some of the Kryptonians agreed.
Kara merely rolled her eyes at them. "Are there any witnesses to this event?" Zod asked seeing none.
"There is, in fact, one," Astra said and then brought Alex to the stand.
"Describe this attack. What did this Flash...look like?" Faora questioned.
"He looked red," Alex replied.
"Now, look here. Humans can't just gain super speed. The odds of someone getting hit by lightning while being exposed to specific chemicals are astronomical," Zod said.
"Preaching to the choir," Alex agreed.
"I don't believe the Flash was created by coincidence but as a purposeful experiment," Astra said going into conspiracy mode.
"I thought meta-humans were under the control of the US government. Are you saying the US government is attacking its own people with meta-humans?" Faora asked her.
"I didn't say anything of a sort," Astra replied. "I'm sure the US government will perform a full investigation into this matter."
Alex shook her head knowing that would never happen. "Of course, there might be someone behind the attack," Astra said and then moved closer to the podium. "General Zod, I implore you to see reason. Jor-El has returned."
"He's...not...back," Zod insisted. "I killed his ass. I watched him die, with a certain satisfaction, I might add."
Astra turned away from Zod and circled the stand. "In the matter of Kara Zor-El, my niece, the law clearly states that powers may be used in front of humans in life-threatening situations."
"No shit?" Zod asked amazed. "Well, laws can be changed," he said stubbornly.
"It is also the law that we do not prosecute ex post facto," Astra reminded Zod.
"Those in favor of a conviction?" Faora asked, hoping to win via mob rule. She gained a few hands from the assembled Kryptonians.
"Those in favor of acquittal?" Astra asked. More hands were raised for her winning an easy acquittal for Kara. Even Alex raised her hand. Zod looked around realizing he was outnumbered.
"Acquitted of all charges," he ruled reluctantly.
"This is some bullshit," several disgruntled Kryptonians muttered in clear earshot of Kara.
"Two wrongs make a right, am I right?" Alex smiled amused at Kara.
"I'm sorry you had to witness that," Kara sighed.
"So, why isn't Kal-El on trial for the same thing?" Alex wondered.
"It's Kryptonian law that you can't be held responsible for what you do in the future," Kara replied.
"Fair enough," Alex agreed as they left.
Author's Notes: I cut a lot of the Flash scenes assuming the reader is following along with the Flash episodes. I'm more into what Kara-1 and Alex-1 are up to. This may be the last time we have a SG character's scene (Alex Danvers) in the Arrowverse and that makes me sad. It's like CW SG is still alive on 1% battery power on the verge of being gone forever. If Mia Queen appears, her role will be taken over by Oliver Queen-1 who is not dead in AOS. If Batwoman appears, it will be taken over by Kate Kane-1. I did a little eye-roll at the notion that Kara and J'onn are off-world and can't help as portal devices were heavily abused in CW SG.
So, I'm not a fan of Flash unleashing a discharge being completely unaware of the damage that would cause to the surrounding area. It was extremely reckless. I also don't like the idea of Flash being able to get out of a telekinetic hold in this matter. Heroes should have vulnerabilities and weaknesses which is why their team should be on the scene and involved in some way. Also, there's a big plothole as to why Xotar doesn't just use both telekinetic and telepathic abilities to keep Flash from even powering up in the first place. Or why she doesn't force the Flash to uncuff her later. Still, the mystery of what's going on here intrigues me.