Chapter 18: Yellow Lightning
Oliver had left.
Back to Star City. Back to the chaos and responsibility that came with wearing a hood and carrying a bow.
Things in Central City returned to normal.
Or at least, what passed for normal in a place constantly dancing between science and nightmares.
Barry continued his runs. He stopped robberies. Helped civilians. Trained harder.
But something felt off.
Something in the wind. In the vibrations of the air. Like the storm wasn't over—it had just paused to catch its breath.
And then it happened.
---
It was midnight.
The city was quieter than usual, rain drizzling against rooftops and blurring the yellow glow of the streetlights.
Barry was returning from a call—an easy one. A mugger with shaky hands and no real intent. He let the guy go after a stern warning.
He was headed home, the blur of red streaking across empty streets, when something shifted in front of him.
A ripple in the air.
A flicker of yellow lightning.
He skidded to a halt. The world slowed. The silence grew heavy.
Then he saw him.
The man in the yellow suit.
He stood at the end of the road, perfectly still, his body glowing with that terrifying electricity. His red eyes burned through the mask. His hands curled into fists.
Barry froze.
The Reverse Flash tilted his head, almost like he was curious. Almost like he was... amused.
"Who are you?" Barry asked, his voice quiet but shaking with fury.
The figure didn't speak.
Then he moved.
In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Barry.
Then behind him.
Then across the street.
He was faster.
Faster than Barry had ever seen. Faster than anything he could comprehend.
Barry start to remember that horrible night years ago and spoke with anger
"You killed my mother," Barry growled, trying to track him. "You ruined everything. My father—he's still in prison because of you!"
Still no answer.
Just that haunting sound. The vibrating voice beneath the mask.
Then he struck.
A blur of yellow and pain.
Barry barely saw the punch before it landed. His body was thrown back into a parked car. Metal bent. Glass shattered.
He tried to stand—but the Reverse Flash was already there.
Another strike. Then another.
Barry fought back. Or tried to.
He threw a lightning-charged punch that hit only air. He ran in circles, tried to gain momentum—tried to land even a single blow.
But the yellow devil danced around him like a ghost.
Every move Barry made, the Reverse Flash had already countered.
Finally, Barry lay on the ground, gasping for air, blood dripping from his lip.
The man in yellow stood over him.
Then, as quickly as he had come… he vanished.
A thunderclap echoed in the distance.
And Barry was left alone in the rain.
---
The next morning, STAR Labs was filled with silence.
Barry stood in the Cortex, his shoulders tense, hands clenched into fists at his sides.
Everyone was there—Caitlin, Cisco, and Dante, standing quietly as Barry spoke.
"He was fast," Barry muttered. "Too fast. I couldn't keep up."
He looked up at them, his face pale and angry. "He barely touched me. Just a few hits. That's all it took."
Caitlin stepped forward, her voice calm and soft. "Are you okay?"
"I've been worse," Barry replied, brushing off the concern, but everyone could see the bruises. His pride was more damaged than his body.
Cisco frowned. "You're sure it was him? The one who…?"
"Yellow suit. Red eyes. That weird vibrating voice. It was him."
Dante stayed near the wall, watching.
Barry's eyes met his.
"He didn't kill me. He could've. But he didn't."
"He's playing with you," Dante said simply.
"Why?"
"Because he can."
The room went quiet again.
Barry ran a hand through his hair. "He said nothing. Just attacked me and left."
Cisco turned to the monitors. "Okay. Okay. We'll check the satellite feeds, look for traces of his lightning trail, anything we can use."
Caitlin looked at Barry. "If he's that fast, we need to understand how. Maybe he's using a different kind of energy. Or maybe he's... not even from here."
Barry stayed quiet.
Then he said, "I need to get stronger."
Dante raised an eyebrow. "You don't need strength. You need clarity."
Barry looked at him.
"What?"
"You're fighting with emotion. Rage. That slows you down. Makes you predictable."
"He killed my mom," Barry snapped. "You want me to be calm about it?"
"No," Dante said. "I want you to be better than him."
Barry didn't respond.
He just turned and left the room.
---
An hour later, Dante still lingered.
He stood in the corridor, arms folded, staring through the glass into the Speed Lab.
Caitlin walked up beside him. "You don't talk much unless it matters."
"Because most things don't."
"But this does."
He nodded once.
"You think Barry can beat him?"
Dante took a long drag from his cigarette and exhaled slowly.
"If he stops running from his fear… maybe."
Caitlin looked through the glass too, watching Barry now pushing himself on the treadmill.
"He looked broken."
"He is," Dante said. "But sometimes… you break before you get rebuilt."
They stood together in silence again, watching the red blur flicker behind the glass.
And far away, in the shadows of the city, the yellow lightning waited.
Watching.
Waiting.
---
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