4 Unlimited Power
The sound of footsteps and rolling wheels could be heard while Wells and I made our way through the labyrinth dubbed S.T.A.R Labs with him taking the lead.
As minutes passed, we said nothing, only allowing the echo of perpetual motion to be echoed throughout the halls.
Wells was a complex character. A smart complex character. One that felt uncertain when probability didn't play out in his favor and so in our travels, he was probably doing complex calculations in real-time, thinking about the best way to make the most out of me.
Although I knew the truth about his sinister nature, I concluded that I was safe for the time being. The reason for my security was that it would have been far too suspicious if I had disappeared out of thin air. The remaining staff of S.T.A.R Labs would have found me vanishing extremely bizarre if Wells had no valid explanation for the occurrence. After all, due to his immense computational abilities, he had a standard to uphold. If tabs weren't being kept on me at all times, a spotlight would have revealed cracks in his stolen persona. Above all, if his intentions were to kill me, he would have already done it by now hundreds of times over. I was untrained in terms of the Speed Force and only had combat experiences from the 2 karate classes I attended in the 3rd grade and common street brawls.
While he ran simulations in his head of how to best utilize me, I took in my environment which was a lot to digest.
Although I could only assume that a lot of repairs had been made in the past year, the S.T.A.R Labs was still in shambles and was holding on to its structural integrity by a thread.
We walked past 10 lab facilities in the span of 20 minutes that were mid reconstruction.
Even though they were under maintenance, one could tell from the exposed support beams that the roof had collapsed in on itself.
The walls were still scorched on certain pathways we ventured down. We even walked past a place that looked like a memorial for the dead… but the sed place looked rather morbid. In a large open room, I saw in passing, there were flowers gently resting on the floor in front of walls that looked to have painted silhouettes of human bodies. When I squinted in order to gain a clearer look, I realized that the particle accelerator was a repugnant annihilation device that should have never been activated in the first place.
The shadow men on the walls weren't paintings, they were the vaporized bodies of the scientist who gave their all for the betterment of society. For those who died by the dozens, they only amounted to flowers, candles, and various other momentos. I revived superpowers when they couldn't even receive a proper burial. I felt a strange assortment of feelings. I felt sorry for those who were lost while I felt proud of myself for managing to find a way to survive. I didn't know how many people died here, but S.T.A.R Labs was quite large. The number of casualties was presumably far from minuscule.
'So… this is what happened to those who weren't blessed enough to get powers. What a shame.' I thought. Deep down, I was relieved. The reason being was that when I realized I had arrived in the Arrowverse in the time period I manifest, my first instinct was to go to S.T.A.R Labs the night of the explosion in hopes a good random power would activate within me. Now, I was well aware that the chance of my previous plan for obtaining power and succeeding was wishful thinking at best. Because I was endowed with knowledge of the future's events, I was bestowed with the power to manipulate it and its outcome.
Strolling along with Wells, I realized my powers were acting strange. While I was in the presence of the supervillain, I could sense the ominous aura that permeated from him. At first, I didn't know if it was caused by the speed force or if it was me overthinking things but as time went on and our proximity remained the same, I was certain that I could feel something. As I put my hand to my chin, as if the universe was confirming my suspicions, the hairs on my arm stood up stiffly as if they were rubbed against balloons.
'Strange…' As I was in my head, wells stopped where he was as we had arrived at our destination. Turning around, he looked at me with slight confusion.
"We're here. Is there something wrong with your arm?"
"No. I just goosebumps. It's kinda cold considering I'm here with only this gown on. The holes in this place don't really help with that either." I replied.
"Ah. My apologies. Usually we would have had a team vigorously working to make repairs to the building but as you can see, we have a lack of staff. We have to outsource which can be… costly. In the meanwhile…" The then pressed a button on his wristwatch.
"Ms. Snow."
["Go ahead."]
"Bring Omen one of our sweat suits."
["I'll make sure to stop by the supply room. Is there anything else you need?"]
"That'll be all. Thank you, Ms. Snow."
Walking into his office, I noticed that "Wells'" sense of decoration was relatively minimalistic, having a few pictures of his wife here and there and a few trinkets like a Newton's Cradle on his desk. The walls were mounted with holographic monitors with previews for various different projects that looked very alien to me, but I paid them no mind.
Rolling over to his desk, he motioned for me to sit in one of the two leather seats before his glass table.
"Now, Omen. Can you tell me what you know about S.T.A.R Labs? I recall earlier you saying that you weren't familiar with my work. I would like to get a gauge of what you are familiar with." He said, gently lacing his fingers together.
"I'm gonna be honest. I don't know much. The information I do know is very limited."
"Please… Go ahead." He waved.
"It stands for the Scientific and Technological Advanced Research Laboratories. You guys do things to better the world and that's about it." I admitted.
"I guess you get the general gist, but here's a little update on our current situation.
As I informed Mr. Allen before you, S.T.A.R. Labs has not been operational since FEMA categorized us as a class four hazardous location. 177 people died that night in this building alone while 1,000 were killed within a 3-mile radius due to collapsing buildings or radiation. Many more were injured during the event. Myself amongst them." For a moment, he went silent as he looked at his chair feigning despair which almost caused me to smile.
'He's so full of shit.'
"Fortunately for us, due to our past scientific achievements and advancements geared towards the efforts of evolving humanity, S.T.A.R. Labs has been pardoned of any crimes that may have been unintentionally committed by the government."
"Although the public was outraged in the beginning, we've been freed… mentally, we were shackled. The people of S.T.A.R Labs would never emotionlessly sweep away our past actions underneath the proverbial rug. Sacrifices were once made on our behalf, so we decided to make some of our own, even if some of our people had been impacted negatively by the explosion."
"With that being said, because we were and still are a multi-billion dollar entity, we and our investors decided to gather a respectable amount of our resources in attempts to reimburse the families and businesses that had lost On the grim night of December 11th.
Monthly, S.T.A.R Labs hosts charity events in honor of those who've passed. As the founder, CEO, and cause of the explosion, I decided that in doing these actions, our public perception would improve. More importantly, our relations with Central City as a whole would be enriched. I know for a fact that we can never bring the dead back, but it is on us to maintain their memory and keep good faith instilled in this city."
"Ah." I mumbled in contemplation.
"45 minutes…"
"Hm?"
"45 minutes is how long I got to experience my life-long dream. For 45 minutes, my purpose was fulfilled." I had to commend his acting skills. As he spoke, he clenched his teeth and gripped his fist as tightly as he could, expressing immense regret.
"Sorry… I was a bit emotional." He said while looking me in my eye empathetically. If I didn't know any better, I would have completely fallen for it. He absolutely sold his performance.
"Don't worry about it… It's fine. Go back to what you were saying."
I said with a voice of concern.
"Where was I… Oh, yes. While I was recovering, that was when I heard that you and Mr. Allen were in the hospital. While you both were on your death beds, the hospital wasn't equipped to handle the unexplainable power outages that were aggressively occurring. You and Barry had taken turns slipping in and out of cardiac arrest which was actually a misdiagnosis. As you did, like clockwork, power surges started to surge sporadically in waves that washed over the city in a manner that would suggest a god was playing tricks on us, flicking the lights on and off."
"You can probably guess that you two were the cause… you weren't actually dying over and over. No, you were being reborn. Your hearts were moving so fast that the modern technology of the outside world didn't have the means to correctly access you. That's the reason why you were brought here."
'The whole city? It was only supposed to be the building… Now that I think about it, there weren't that many people that were supposed to die either.'
For a moment, I rested my hand on my chin looking perturbed. I concluded that either the butterfly effect was starting to take action or this universe was real with real humans instead of actors. There were no censors like on The CW.
"I'm guessing this has something to do with Barry's powers, I presume?"
"No… I'm almost certain that this has something to do with the both of you."
"Wait… what do you mean by that?" I slowed down my words pretending to be confused about what was going on.
"14 months ago, the particle accelerator went online exactly as planned, as I stated prior. But I didn't explain how there was an unaccounted anomaly that occurred during the presentation. The electron volts became unmeasurable. The acceleration ring on a device at the lower level popped. Energy from that detonation was thrown into the sky. And that, in turn, seeded a storm cloud which manifested the lightning bolt that struck you and Barry… it is the reason you are here."
"..."
"For Barry, we had his family members consent to bring you here. You, on the other hand, had nothing. Either out of the kindness of my heart or a guilty conscious, I lied and said you were my adopted relative and that you worked for me."
"Ah." At his words, I just stared at him blankly waiting for him to continue.
But in response, the same look was returned.
"..."
"..."
"Well?"
"Yeah?"
"You don't have any questions about what's going on?"
"Nope."
"No questions about if there are others like you and Barry who have experienced strange effects from the explosion?"
"Nope. I already know there are. Barry is proof enough. On top of that, I heard you talking about the guy who can duplicate himself while I was paralyzed."
"No questions about him? No questions about how he's able to literally create perfect clones of himself?"
"No. I don't care about him."
I stated while shrugging my shoulders nonchalantly.
"From what I heard, he's literally just stealing cash from people. Why should that concern me? It's not like anyone died. I don't know who the guy is or why he's doing what he's doing. For all I know, he has a pregnant wife and kids to go home and feed and can't provide like he wants to. On top of all that, I don't even know if I have powers like Barry yet. I have barely been up for more than 2 hours." As I finished speaking, my words brought intrigue to the man's face.
A smile crept on his face slowly as if he was a hungry tiger who stumbled upon a gazelle with a broken leg.
"That… Interesting. I didn't expect that response."
"How so?" I asked.
"Although you don't know it yet, you are very powerful… to see you not immediately want to test those powers out on a "villain" Is a surprise to me… Usually, a person dreams of power. They want to exert it as well. Deep down, most people want to fulfill their fantasy of being the superhero in their story. One could only question the moral compass of a person such as yourself." Although his words were harsh, he kept the same sadistic and eggar smile.
"I have my own morals that I abide by."
"What does this set of morals entail?" He asked.
"Not snatching the food out of anyone's mouth… That's not to say that I would allow an old lady to get robbed in front of me. If possible, I would stop the situation. How could I not? But you won't find me going out of my way watching the streets at all times, making sure that all old ladies are safe and in bed by 10:00 pm. That's just not me. Never was."
"But some would say that's the responsibility of a hero."
"And I would say, some are idiots."
I retorted.
"Oh? I'm sure if Mr. Allen heard that, he would strongly disagree." He said teasingly.
"If he had a problem with the way that I handled things, then so be it."
I meant every word that I said. For a moment, he started to think to himself. I had no idea what the thoughts in his twisted mind consisted of, but it appeared as if he liked what I had to say.
"Okay, Omen. Hypothetically speaking… what if an individual, let's say what if Mr. Allen were to ridicule you based on your beliefs."
"Then I would tell him I didn't give a damn about what he thought of me."
"What if in this scenario, you develop your powers more in the near future. What if you too had a falling out of great proportion and ended up colliding with one another not just verbally, but physically?"
"Then I would stand for what I believed in."
"Would you fight back? Would you submit?"
"I meant what I said…"
For a moment, silence was exchanged between us once more as he glared at me attempting to detect weakness. I would have never in a million years shown any to the person before me, so with an upright posture, I stared right back without any crack in my stone-like facial expression.
"Interesting…"
Before he continued, the door opened up behind me with Cisco and Caitlin came in with different types of devices.
'What's that red swimsuit on his… shit.'
"Dr. Wells, we have everything set up including the treadmill." Cisco announced entering the room.
"And I have the S.T.A.R Polygraph right here."
Catlin and Cisco made their way over to the table Wells and I had been conversing at. Cisco placed a stretchy red swimming suit that cut off at the knee coupled with strange trinkets that looked like they were meant to be attached, while Caitlin placed down the Polygraph and all of its accessories.
"This is the biggest one we got. It will most likely fit considering the polymer it's made out of. It shouldn't hug your man parts too much." Cisco stated while patting my shoulder with a smile. Cisco was an overall kind human being. He meant no harm, so I took no offense to him touching my shoulder.
"Can you put this patch on your left arm and wrap this band around your head?" Caitlin asked. Following instructions, I also wrapped a strange heart rate monitor around my chest.
"Okay. Now you can ask him whatever you want."Stated the woman next to me. I was completely plugged in looking a bit silly.
"Good. Mr. Ramon, If you would be so kind as to leave the room."
He was standing around while Caitlin was monitoring my vitals through a tablet.
"Oh! Oh yeah. Sorry. Yeah. No problem. Don't want those anxiety levels to spike and all… Well, I guess I'll see you guys in a few." He said walking out awkwardly.
"The fewer people the better when handling these kinds of situations." Said Caitlin which prompted Wells to nod.
"Are you ready?" He asked.
"As ready as I'll ever be," I mumbled.
"Good. Ms. Snow?"
She raised her thumb in affirmation, causing him to nod.
"Is your name really Omen?"
For a moment, I paused.
'Technically, my name is omen since it's the first thing they dubbed me when I woke up… although it was a misunderstanding. Still… I plan to go by it from now on. Much better than my old name in my old world.' Before I answered, I tried my hardest to slow my heart rate and attempted to ease my breathing. Watching hundreds of episodes of Maury and Jerry Springer respectively provided me with the knowledge that being nervous would affect the results drastically.
As I thought to myself, Wells glared at me eagerly awaiting my answer. Not leaving him waiting any longer, I replied.
"Yes. My name is Omen."
Every second that Caitlin didn't answer made me nervous. Completely unexpected, in the next instant, Caitlin gave Wells a thumbs up indicating that I had told the truth.
"Have you ever gone by any other names or aliases in the past?"
He said adjusting his glasses.
I had to think carefully about each question. If I slipped up, it could've meant the end for me.
I wasn't scared that they would find out what I did to Barry. The worst thing that could have possibly come from that little discovery was my sentencing to jail for a month. Because I had no identity, things would have probably gotten more complicated, but I would have been able to bounce back from sed situation.
What I wasn't able to bounce back from was death. If I were to recklessly leave S.T.A.R Labs, I would have been dead before the sun was up. Who would have killed me? The very person who was interrogating me right now.
Wells… No. Thawne had been using the Speed Force for far longer than either I or Barry. He was probably the most physically powerful man on the planet with the capability of literally killing all 7 billion people that resided on it in a span of 1 to 3 days depending on his maximum speed. With being that powerful, one such as myself had to be well aware that he wanted to uphold the position.
When factoring in that he had been in the middle of his 10+ year plan to get back to his timeline, it was understandable and common sense that he would eliminate or cripple any threats that got in his way. With being an anomaly, he would 100% sever my head from my shoulders if it benefited him. That's why I planned on being cordial with him… for the time being, that was.
'I transmigrated to another world that was completely fiction in my past. Now, it's real and I reside in it. I have been reborn into it. I'm a different person now from what I was then. My body is completely different. My goals are completely different. I am Omen… and only Omen.'
"My name is Omen. It has been that way since I've popped up into existence." To them, I was answering a question. For myself, I was making a declaration.
Surprisingly, Caitlin gave another thumbs up indicating me telling the truth once more. I made sure to select my wording very carefully. There were plenty of nuances that the eagle-eyed could have seen as crack if I wasn't careful enough.
When I answered, I could see Wells' guard slowly but surely lowering.
"Good… Next question. Was there a reason you were in the Central City forensics Lab? Before you answer, just know that I've done my research. Choose your next words very carefully for they may have a tremendous impact on your stay here." He didn't mean at S.T.A.R Labs. He meant the land of the living.
I knew his goal behind asking this exact question. He wanted to know if I knew Barry was going to be turning into the Flash on the night of December 11th… I very much did, but I had absolutely no intentions of telling him directly.
'You wanted me to choose my words carefully, so I'll do just that.'
"I have no idea how I ended up in the forensics lab. All I know is that one moment, I opened my eyes and I was there."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"He's telling the truth."
"*Sigh*" Wells sat back, crossing his arms.
"You sound disappointed that I've told the truth. It sounds like you wanted me to fail."
"No. That's not the case. I'm just relieved. You should be as well."
"I guess I am, in a way."
"Last question… Do you have any relatives or friends? I couldn't help but notice no one came to visit you while you were unconscious."
"I don't have any relatives or friends."
'In this world.'I finished.
"Ms. Snow?"
"He told the truth."
"That is unfortunate news… but that concludes the interview process. You may take off all of your equipment. Next, we will be heading to our new training room where you're going to be displaying your powers to us. I think Cisco has waited long enough. Ms. Snow, please go keep him company?" Wells Concluded. Caitlin nodded, leaving with the lie-detecting equipment.
As he asked, I took everything off besides my gown.
"Before we begin testing, I must ask… Do you have anywhere to live? If not, you can stay in one of our living dormitories. There are plenty of them after the incident."
"No. I'm fine. I have a place I can stay."
"I'll take your word for it… a fitting room is across the hall while the testing area is two doors down to the left." I nodded, getting up to leave with the speed suit that was prepared for me.
"This goes here… That goes here… And, I'm all set."
After finishing dressing, I finally took the time to look at my reflection.
"Wow… I look… Fucking stupid." I said aloud.
My looks weren't the problem. I looked amazing from a biological standpoint. I had beautiful brown skin that had not one stretch mark nor scar. In fact, I was blemishless. Even my face was jade-like
My muscles were so cut that I looked as if my past self had been thrown into a hydraulic press and turned into a piece of human clay. After being converted into clay, I was given to an award-winning master sculptor to be molded into the best version of myself possible.
With a perfect square jawline, perfect plum-like cheekbones, legs that could knock down trees, triceps and biceps so defined that bullets would deflect off of them, and abs that could grate cheese, I was nothing short of a perfect human that would have put god's first creations to shame. I was already six feet, I felt as if I gained about 4 inches.
As a result of me being in a coma, my head was shaved into a taper cut that I would have to thank Cisco for not screwing up on. While my beard, which was well-maintenanced pre-coma, and that I intended to grow back, had left my face without a trace, instead of making me look like a baby, my facial symmetry was only further enhanced revealing my deep face dimples.
The reason I was perturbed was that although I had my looks going for me, I looked like a man cosplaying as a traffic cone. To add to my goofiness, I put air resentment goggles on.
'Wait, I won't even need these considering the speed force gives me an unviable barrier while I'm running… That is if the comics are right." I thought.
Taking the goggles off, I looked myself in the eyes and noticed something strange.
"That's odd… They're silver now?" I said, referring to my irises. At first, they were hazel but that changed for some unknown reason.
Maybe it was the particle accelerator. Maybe it was the dimensional hopping. Maybe it was the speed force affecting me differently than it ever did with Barry. Perhaps it was due to a combination of all 3 factors. I didn't know. For now, it was just purely cosmetic, so I didn't dwell on it for long and left for the testing room.
***
Walking in, I saw the same room Barry had entered in episode 2.
'This… Is strange. It's gonna take me a while to get used to this.' It was still very jarring to be in this fantasy world and experience everything I had only been able to witness in my past.
"Hello, Omen. Give us a few seconds before we have the treadmill up and running again… also, please inform us if you experience any form of dizziness or headache." Caitlin asked from an observation room not too far away. She, Wells, and Cisco were clicking and typing away.
At her words, I nodded heading over to the treadmill which had a screen mounted in front of it which I could only assume displayed an accurate representation of my Vitals.
"Hey, bud." Cisco greeted.
"Looking great in the suit I made. Your look screams mustached 1600's barbell lifter."
He added.
"'Great' is a stretch. Just like this suit."
"Well, I thought it was better than you having your bare butt cheeks out and open to the elements like they were with that gown." He said, acting offended by my words.
"I would rather wear nothing.."
"Now come on. That just hurts… I spent days making those suits for you and Barry. Days! To be treated like this, I might cry."
"Days?" I said while peering at him through the glass with a brow of suspicion.
"Okay. Maybe not days. Perhaps it was a day. And maybe there might be a possibility that we already had them and I just added pockets to them, but that's beside the point. I had no prior knowledge of sewing beforehand. You have to give me something."
"Fine. It must have been real difficult for you to studiously watch a 5 minute YouTube video, repeating their steps exactly, frame by frame." The sarcasm was laced thickly in my words.
Cisco smiled, then put on a coy and slightly vindictive mask.
"I'm glad you understand my pain."
I rolled my eyes so hard they risked falling on the floor.
Before Cisco could get more words out, the treadmill turned on.
"Omen…"
"The device has been calibrated to your needs."
"So, Do I just run?"
"Precisely." Wells retorted.
"Alright… step for humans, one large for metta kind."
I mumbled starting to walk, increasing my speed slowly making sure to pay attention to every minute sensation I felt in my body.
'Time to ramp up the speed a little.' The walk turned into a jog.
That walk turned into a brisk jog.
As if an otherworldly being had invaded my body, I felt an overwhelming urge to move faster. Listening to its will, I followed suit.
"*woosh-woosh-woosh-woosh-woosh*"
The sound of the air around my arms and legs being pushed out of the way could be audibly heard.
As I ran, I could feel immense invigoration flowing all over my body. That feeling… the sensation it provided me… it was completely different than anything I had ever felt before.
As I ran, I felt like an entirely new sense was awakening within me. No…It felt like I was activating another pair of lungs that have never been used before.
With each impact that my foot made to the treadmill, soothing vibrations would be absorbed into me providing me with more vitality… With more energy.
'This feeling is…different… I want more.'
Before I knew it, I was smiling. As I ran, I was gifted with more and more euphoria.
The sensation felt like a drug… and I was hungry for more of it.
I needed more of it. I knew that I would have to move faster to do so… and so I did.
"*WOOOOOSH*"
My legs stomped the ground harder while my vision became tunneled.
'This power… It's amazing!' I scrambled internally.
Leaning forward, increased my speed even faster than before and was now at a full on sprinting pace.
"Ugh… guys? He's moving faster than the machine can keep up with."
Said Cisco.
Through running, I felt calm while also feeling excited. Although I was alone, I felt as if I wasn't. I felt a strange presence warping around my body and embracing me. I could almost hear it whispering in my ear telling me it would never leave my side. I could feel it's unconditional love for me. I could smell its aroma…
No. This wasn't a ghost-like presence. This was my own power leaking from my body creating a protective shell-like armor.
Its origin was my creation… and I wanted to understand it.
"Omen, the machine is reaching a state of critical overload. It's time to get off."
I could hear a feminine voice, but at this point, I was too invested to listen.
A single thought processed in my mind over and over.
'I can go even faster.'
"*Krakakakooom*"
As I ran, I could feel no pain. I could feel no fatigue. I felt almost infinitely energized.
"Omen, It's time to stop the test. Our assessment Is over."
'Faster.'
"Omen it's time to get off, right now!"
'Faster.'
"Omen!"
I could hear muffled cries, but they were falling on deaf ears.
'Faster.'
My greed for momentum consumed me. I needed more. I could never have enough.
***
The man was moving so fast that the air pressure behind him created white and black lightning streaks. His physical movements couldn't be detected with human eyes and observers would only beagle to capture a red blur.
"HAHAHAHA!" A terrifying and booming echo of what could only be presumed to be laughter could be heard riveting in the ears of the three onlookers.
"He's lost it… Dr. Wells, What's happening? Why can't he hear us?"
Cisco asked in a panicking voice.
"I don't know. I can only presume that he's moving at such a speed where sound waves aren't being able to be transferred through his Ears as they're supposed to. Pretty soon, and this little device of yours is bound to blow. He's producing too much energy for the treadmill to handle." Wells' words to Cisco felt like a beating over the head. Cisco had thought himself to be a genius who created a treadmill that could measure any speed, and yet it couldn't withstand 700 mph and was self-destructing before his very eyes.
"What should we do if he's not able to hear us? He's sitting on a bomb and Barry isn't here."
Caitlin asked with worry written all over his face.
"We'll do nothing. The explosion won't be enough to kill him and we're safe in this room. Allow things to play out." He stated calmly.
"Are you sure he'll be able to survive that? At these levels, the blast will be more devastating than 10 sticks of dynamite." Caitlin was in a very vulnerable state. Although it had been over a year since she lost her husband on judgment day, deep trauma surfaced whenever a person she remotely cared about was in danger.
Although she only exchanged less than 20 sentences with Omen, she had taken care of him for such a long time, it was hard not to be invested. It was a doctor's responsibility to make sure they stayed alive, afterall.
"I've done my calculations. He'll survive." Wells then turned to look in Caitiln and Cisco's panicking eyes reassuringly.
"Trust me."
"That explosion may not be enough to kill him, but enough to kill my pride." Cisco mumbled.
***
Even Though I was giving my everything with every step I took… I knew I was capable of more.
'Faster.'
"*BOOM*"
