Jack Kadere's purpose in forcing Weather Wizard Clyde Mardon to attack S.T.A.R. Labs was simple: he wanted to know if Barry Allen tapped into the same Speed Force as him.
The Speed Force was peculiar—using it consumed energy, but at the same time, it could replenish itself, creating a cycle that balanced out. Yet, even with that balance, Jack knew that if one concentrated enough, they could sense the fluctuations during both consumption and replenishment.
Relying on someone else to tell him wasn't good enough. Waiting for Caitlin Snow to notice and inform him later wasn't ideal either. It was better to dictate the time and place on his own terms—forcing Clyde Mardon to attack S.T.A.R. Labs, ensuring Caitlin would contact Barry Allen immediately.
Besides, watching a fight unfold was always entertaining.
Whoosh!
A streak of yellow lightning shot across the horizon, racing straight into S.T.A.R. Labs.
"He's here." Jack muttered to himself, closing his eyes briefly, trying to feel the subtle pulses of Speed Force energy. "Is it just too little? Not enough of a fluctuation to sense properly?" he analyzed softly.
He couldn't see the battle from his position, but he knew Caitlin would be informing Barry about what was happening. Jack leaned against the rooftop edge, content to observe how events played out.
Half an hour later, Clyde Mardon finally arrived.
The Weather Wizard stood tall in front of S.T.A.R. Labs, raising his arms high. Winds whipped furiously around him, spiraling into a violent storm.
"Clyde Mardon!"
The Flash appeared in a crimson blur, coming to a halt just a few feet away. Barry Allen's face shifted in alarm at the massive storm Clyde was summoning.
Clyde gave Barry a hard look, saying nothing. He simply thrust his hand forward, sending a violent gust barreling at the Scarlet Speedster.
Boom!
The blast caught Barry off guard, hurling him through the air and slamming him onto the pavement. His inexperience in combat was glaring.
"Guys, what do I do now?!" Barry shouted, scrambling back onto his feet while pressing his comms.
"If he keeps this up, he could whip up a city-destroying tornado," Cisco Ramon's urgent voice rang through the earpiece. "Barry, you've got to stop him!"
Stop him? But how?
"If I run in the opposite direction, can I counteract the force of the storm?" Barry asked quickly.
"Yes, but your body might not—" Caitlin began, but Barry was already moving.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
He circled the storm at lightning speed, his golden lightning tracing a ring around the vortex. With each pass, the storm's violent upward draft began to weaken.
Clyde snarled and lashed out, directing the winds directly toward the speeding Flash.
Barry gritted his teeth, pushing harder. One lap. Another. By the third, the strain was unbearable. His muscles screamed, and with a grunt, he was thrown violently aside.
Even moving at near-invisible speeds, Weather Wizard still tracked him with precise accuracy, his eyes locked on the crimson blur. Barry's collapse proved how dangerous this foe was—his control over the storm was absolute.
The moment Barry faltered, the storm's power surged again, threatening to engulf S.T.A.R. Labs in destruction.
"Still no change?" Jack Kadere observed from a nearby rooftop, his arms crossed as he analyzed the fight. A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. "Not fast enough? Not burning through enough energy? No… this kind of extreme running should have created dimensional ripples. Which means… what I've tapped into is a separate Speed Force."
The realization made his eyes narrow. A separate Speed Force. That meant his connection wasn't dependent on Barry Allen's version of it. He remembered reading about Bart Allen in the comics—the impulsive young speedster who had once absorbed the Speed Force itself and merged with it, becoming a living embodiment of speed, a white Flash.
"My lightning hasn't changed color because I haven't reached that threshold yet… My Speed Force isn't as vast as Barry's." Jack's thoughts raced as quickly as his energy. "Barry's Speed Force blankets the entire Multiverse, like a cosmic tether that touches every timeline. Every speedster who draws from it strengthens it, and in death, they return to it. But me? My Speed Force exists apart from his. Independent. That means wherever I go, the Speed Force is with me."
That detail was key. Jack thought back to stories where Wally West once lost his powers after being stranded in another universe. Without the Speed Force's connection, Wally was powerless—while someone like Quicksilver, fast though he was, couldn't reach those same heights because he wasn't connected to that cosmic source.
"But if my Speed Force is separate," Jack mused, "then no matter where I go—even outside the DC Universe—it's still mine to command. No cut-off, no weakening. That also means I might be able to create my own speedsters, my own lightning family… and if they can feed my Speed Force by running, then I'll never run dry."
His smirk widened. "I'll test that someday."
Meanwhile, Weather Wizard's storm grew monstrous, lightning and gale winds tearing across the sky. If unleashed fully, it would flatten the Labs in seconds.
Barry forced himself up, his chest heaving, his expression clouded with doubt. He stared at the storm as if it were an impossible wall. Inside S.T.A.R. Labs, Caitlin Snow and Cisco Ramon were frantically monitoring, both equally lost on how to guide him. The helplessness etched on their faces was clear—even being a superhero's support team was no easy job.
"Barry."
The calm, steady voice belonged to Dr. Harrison Wells. He stepped forward, his eyes never leaving the storm or Barry. He couldn't allow the young speedster to break here. If Barry died now, everything—his plan, his path back to the future—would collapse with him.
"Listen to me," Wells urged, his tone carrying the weight of command and mentorship. "You've always had the power within you. You're not just some guy struck by lightning, Barry. You're the fastest man alive. Now prove it."
Barry clenched his fists, his breathing steadying.
"Run, Barry. Run!"
The words struck him like a spark to dry tinder. His doubts fell away, replaced with a burning determination. Barry launched forward, lightning igniting across his body as his legs blurred.
Faster! Faster! Faster!
His speed skyrocketed, exceeding his previous limits. The storm's expansion faltered, its violent pull weakening under the pressure of Barry's counterforce.
With a deafening boom, the cyclone imploded, winds scattering harmlessly into the sky.
Barry staggered to a stop, drenched in sweat, his chest heaving with relief. A triumphant smile crept onto his face, pride surging at the victory.
But the moment was shattered by a cold metallic click.
Barry froze, eyes widening at the sight of Weather Wizard aiming a pistol at his chest.
"You're the Flash, huh?" Clyde sneered, his finger tightening on the trigger. "All that speed… and you're still just a man who can be stopped by a bullet."
Jack Kadere's expression darkened as he watched. He pinched the bridge of his nose with exasperation. "Really, Barry? You can outrun sound, bend time itself, but the second someone waves a gun at you, you freeze? Unbelievable."
…
PS: Weather Wizard, Clyde Mardon, is the first metahuman villain Barry Allen faced in The Flash Season 1. Honestly, I can't help but roll my eyes at the show sometimes—Barry's power level is inconsistent, his intelligence dips at the worst moments, and the writers love to solve everything with a last-minute pep talk. Classic TV Flash.