Barry Allen accelerated past the speed of light, entering what the Speed Force called the Time Bowl—a phenomenon unique to this reality. Inside it, the Speed Force formed an inverted dome, wrapping around him like a shimmering shield.
Beyond it, time itself stretched open, the past and future flowing like rivers of light. Any point in history was now within his reach.
"Malrick! Where are you, Malrick?"
The moment Barry appeared, his voice echoed through the glowing currents. Panic filled his chest; he needed to explain the changes that had warped their world.
But when he looked up, Malrick wasn't there.
Instead, a black and white Siberian Husky stood before him, poised and alert.
The dog's piercing gaze made Barry feel as if he were being judged from above.
"Wait… a dog? Where's Malrick? Why is there a dog in the Time Bowl!?"
Barry pointed, eyes wide. "You—do you have Speed Force too!?"
The Husky didn't answer. It simply nodded, calm and dignified.
Barry's mind spun. "Okay… so even dogs can use the Speed Force now. Am I losing it?"
Before he could ask more, the Husky tossed a data disk toward him. Barry barely managed to catch it.
"What is this? For me?"
"Watch it," the Husky replied, its voice deep and magnetic—eerily similar to Malrick's.
Barry didn't even have time to question why a dog could talk. The disk in his hands flared to life, projecting a glowing holographic image.
The image was Malrick.
"Malrick!" Barry blurted out, relief in his voice.
"Barry, you've done it again," Malrick's projection said, cutting straight to the point. "Batman told me you altered your father's fate. I'm sending Krypto back from the future to deliver this message."
"Earth has been conquered again by Darkseid. Everyone has been turned into Parademons. Krypto is returning to restart the universe. Make sure you finish watching this data before returning to reality."
The message ended abruptly.
Barry froze, the hologram fading from his eyes. "Darkseid… again? No…"
The name alone sent a chill through him. He remembered the scorched Earth before its reset—the endless war, the devastation. And now the future was even worse.
"I messed up again…" Barry whispered, his hands trembling. "What happened to the future?"
The Husky didn't respond. It only pointed toward the disk, then sprinted forward, disappearing into the glowing light.
"Hey! Wait!" Barry's shout faded into the void. He was alone again inside the Time Bowl.
He took a deep breath, staring down at the disk. "This must show what's coming… and I have to watch it here before time erases it."
He pressed a button. The hologram interface expanded before him, displaying two folders—Documents and Videos.
Barry opened the video folder first. Each clip was labeled with the insignia of the Justice League.
He clicked on one marked Batman.
He expected to be scolded—but Bruce's voice was calm.
"Barry, if you're seeing this, the world should have restarted. Remember…"
One by one, the recordings played. Barry's expression grew darker with every second.
The videos showed a future where humans were transformed into Parademons. Superman, enslaved by Darkseid, patrolled the Earth like a god under command. Battlefields burned on Apokolips.
"Darkseid… how could this happen?" Barry clenched his fists. "I have to stop him!"
He opened the Documents folder next. It contained everything the future Batman team had gathered—Lex Luthor's master plan, the Anti-Life Equation, even the password to Apokolips's armory.
Barry read every file three times, memorizing it word for word. Sweat rolled down his face. The longer he stayed in the Time Bowl, the more it drained him.
When he could barely move his fingers, the Speed Force ejected him back into reality.
He hit the ground hard. The last thing he heard was Bruce Wayne shouting, "Barry! Barry! Alfred—get Superman and Wonder Woman, now!"
---
When Barry woke, he was lying on a luxurious bed inside Wayne Manor.
"This is Bruce's place. How long have I been out? I have to tell them—now!"
Someone had changed him into pajamas. He rushed out into the hall, following the faint voices coming from the main chamber.
Inside, the Justice League had gathered—Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Cyborg—seated around a round table under the ten-meter ceiling.
"Guys! You're all here, great! Listen, I've got something really important—"
Barry froze.
In the center of the table, the data disk the Husky had given him was projecting the same information. His teammates' expressions were grim.
Superman stood with folded arms, his eyes glowing faintly behind his glasses. Diana frowned deeply, Aquaman's jaw was tight, and Cyborg was already interfacing with global data streams.
"So the information wasn't destroyed…" Barry murmured, taking a quiet seat. There was nothing more for him to deliver. Now, it was up to them.
When the projection ended, Batman shut the disk off and placed both hands on the table.
"We have three immediate objectives," he said evenly. "First, stop all of Luthor's operations. Second, secure Lois's safety."
Barry leaned forward. "And third—figure out how to stop Darkseid?"
Batman shook his head. "No. That's the fourth."
"The third is to build the Hellbat Armor."
Barry blinked. "Wait—what?"
---
The Speed Force was even more astonishing than Malrick had imagined.
Normally, reaching light speed required immense energy or the manipulation of physical laws. But inside the Speed Force, he only needed to glide a few steps, as if skating on air, and reality itself pushed him faster.
When he returned to the exact moment he'd said goodbye to the future Batman team, the exhilaration still lingered in his chest.
The Earth—once scorched and lifeless—was alive again, vibrant and green.
"Everything's back to normal," he murmured.
His Black Light clone clapped once before dissolving back into his inner world.
The next second, Malrick's true self appeared beside Diana and Tony.
"The restart's finished?" Tony asked, still repairing the damage to his Anti-Superman armor.
"The reset's done," Malrick said. "But the war isn't over yet. Our timing couldn't be better."
He turned his gaze toward the Pacific.
Across the horizon, the Red Legion's armored divisions, Atlantis's armies, and Themyscira's Amazon warriors were assembling in full strength.
At their center stood the Justice League—Superman in his jet-black suit, Batman in lethal battle armor.
_______
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