This time, even though Savitar was on guard, he still couldn't dodge. The problem was simple—after leaping, he had no way to gain traction or build up speed.
All he could do was watch as the blazing beams from Herman's eyes filled his entire field of vision. His armor blared with a chorus of overload warnings.
How to put it... light and fire aren't exactly slow.
"BOOM!"
Savitar was blasted back into the same crater as before, sending up another massive cloud of dust that widened and deepened the pit even further.
Within the crater, the divine fire rays churned and surged like an erupting volcano, burning so fiercely that the Savitar armor glowed a molten red.
The divine fire shining in Herman's eyes—its heat alone was enough to melt vibranium. Yet Savitar's armor still held on. It was strained to the limit, but not melting, at least not yet.
This thing... unless destroyed through resonance, was nearly indestructible.
By conservative estimate, it was technology from the twenty-sixth century—perhaps even the thirtieth—judging by how it endured the divine fire's might.
Herman immediately gave up the idea of roasting Savitar to ash.
"Maybe I should give you a chance."
He descended slowly from the sky, withdrawing the blazing divine fire from his eyes. His expression was calm as he looked down at Savitar, who was struggling to stand.
"You're mocking me!"
Savitar roared, once again transforming into blue lightning as he lunged at Herman, who had just landed on the ground. He thought this might finally be his opening.
"Too slow."
Herman sidestepped him effortlessly.
"Damn you!"
Savitar missed again, but didn't stop. The Speed Force within him exploded in waves as he charged again and again, each strike faster than the last.
Herman moved just as swiftly across the ground, his form flickering like an afterimage, dodging every blow with effortless precision.
"This isn't right! You shouldn't have this kind of speed! Even if you're Superman... I'm the fastest man alive!"
Savitar refused to accept reality. He screamed in denial, attacking Herman with increasingly desperate speed.
Within moments, violent currents of air erupted around them. The entire Advanced Research Laboratories were left in ruins, as though a monstrous typhoon had swept through.
Blue lightning flashed wildly across the ground, weaving a vast electric web that completely surrounded Herman. The dark night sky itself was lit up with its glow.
Each second, Savitar unleashed hundreds—no, thousands—of ferocious strikes against him.
But it was useless.
Herman remained calm and composed, his expression unchanging. His movements were subtle, almost minimal, yet every time he effortlessly avoided Savitar's attacks.
Savitar hadn't even brushed the edge of his cloak.
Of course, Herman's speed and reflexes were formidable—but that wasn't all.
The real reason was that Savitar's mind was an open book. There was no mental barrier, no defense at all.
To a telepath, facing a brute like this was child's play. Every move, every plan Savitar conceived was laid bare before Herman, as if written in plain sight.
"If that's all you've got, I'd say you're still about a hundred thousand light-years away from becoming a god."
Herman's tone was calm, almost casual. He wasn't mocking—just stating a simple fact.
But Savitar took it as pure provocation.
"Damn you!"
Furious, his speed surged again. Under the shroud of night, blue lightning burst across the sky, and the very air trembled with violent turbulence.
Tornadoes began to form, tearing through the Advanced Research Laboratories, uprooting entire structures. Fueled by raw speed, Savitar charged toward Herman once more.
"I don't believe you can dodge this!"
His current velocity was so immense that, under normal circumstances, it would have allowed him to traverse time itself countless times over.
He roared and hurtled toward Herman—but before he could even reach him, he saw Herman's eyes lock firmly onto his movements.
He can track me?!
Impossible!
What kind of monster is this!?
Savitar's mind faltered. Panic rose in his chest—just as he realized Herman was moving straight toward him instead.
"Your speed's too slow. Maybe I should help you with that."
With a smooth motion, Herman sidestepped Savitar's attack, reached out, and caught his shoulder. Then, with the effortless precision of someone tossing a football, he hurled him forward.
Savitar's initial momentum was already tremendous. Combined with Herman's throw, his velocity skyrocketed to a level beyond what even he could control.
But instead of exhilaration, dread filled him.
He spun wildly through the air, streaking like a bolt of blue lightning across the city, blurring past skyscrapers and streets at impossible speed.
Before he could even stabilize himself—
Herman appeared in midair again, gripping him as if hauling a piece of cargo, and threw him once more in the direction of his momentum.
Buildings collapsed beneath him.
The icy surface of a lake flashed by.
Screams echoed from terrified bystanders.
He nearly collided with a speeding train. Every time he was thrown, Herman was already there—appearing out of nowhere at his landing point, ready to send him flying again before he could even catch his breath.
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
Finally, in a remote, overgrown forest far from the city, Savitar crashed through dozens of towering trees before slamming into the ground, carving out a massive crater in the soil.
"How's that for speed? Thrilling enough for you?"
Before Savitar could even think about standing, Herman was already there, standing at the edge of the crater.
The Raven's portal faded behind him.
Herman placed his foot lightly on the Savitar armor.
It looked gentle—but to Savitar, it felt like an entire mountain pressing down on his chest.
No matter how desperately he struggled, he couldn't move an inch.
"Damn you, Superman! How dare you! How dare you treat me like this!"
Savitar roared, his already fragile pride crushed completely beneath the weight of humiliation.
"Hm? And why shouldn't I dare?"
Herman lifted his foot and brought it down again—this time squarely on Savitar's head. The gesture was calm, deliberate, and infinitely more degrading than before.
"I'll kill you! I'll drag you down with me!" Savitar screamed, his voice frenzied, his body trembling as the blue light surrounding him began to shift into a burning red.
"Hm?"
Through his telepathy, Herman sensed it immediately—Savitar had just injected himself with some kind of stimulant inside his armor. The substance appeared to amplify the Speed Force within his body, forcing it to erupt beyond its natural limit.
To put it simply, it was a drug that could make a cripple outrun Usain Bolt. For a weak Speedster, using it could instantly elevate them to the fastest alive.
But there was a price.
That same drug could easily burn the user to ashes.
Herman recognized it—it was V9, a substance once featured in The Flash series. A drug that traded one's life force for speed.
Savitar had clearly been pushed past his limit. Even someone as terrified of death as he was now resorted to a life-draining serum just to keep fighting.
"I'll kill you!"
A dark, electric blue glow flared across Savitar's entire body.
The sheer speed that radiated from him was enough to make even Herman acknowledge its danger. Savitar's movements blurred until his body was nearly invisible—moving so fast that even Herman's eyes struggled to track him.
"Looks like I messed up... or maybe not."
Herman had been inside Savitar's mind the entire time—of course he knew exactly what the man was planning. He simply hadn't stopped him because he wanted to witness the true effect of V9 for himself.
And now he had.
The drug's potency was terrifying.
The instant Savitar injected it, his speed skyrocketed beyond Herman's ability to keep up. For a brief moment, the mortal Speedster had reached the threshold of a Sky Father–level existence.
Of course, the true power wasn't Savitar's—it was the Speed Force itself.
"Enough."
Herman had seen enough of the Speed Force's tricks. There was no way he'd let Savitar counterattack—or escape.
The divine light in his eyes dimmed, shifting into a deep, abyssal black. From the [Realm of the Dead], an army of Frost Giants emerged once more, summoned into the world of the living by Herman's will.
As the [Lord of the Dead], every being slain by Herman became his eternal servant. Whenever he wished, he could pull them back into the mortal realm to fight for him again.
Even those Frost Giants, who had hated him with every fiber of their being in life, could not resist. His command was divine law—an order they were eternally bound to obey.
Their souls would not allow defiance.
A chorus of cracking frost echoed through the forest as countless icy beams erupted from the Frost Giants. From every direction, the freezing blasts struck Savitar, encasing him in a thick layer of ice before he could even rise.
Speedsters feared cold more than anything else. Extreme frost was their natural nemesis.
And the so-called "God of Speed" was no exception.
"Maybe I should add a touch of Death's frost from the Realm of the Dead..."
Herman placed his hand on the frozen statue, pouring even colder, deathly energy into the ice.
Inside, the disfigured Barry Allen trembled violently, his body shaking, his mind unraveling.
"How... how could this happen…"
Despair filled his thoughts as the last of his defiance crumbled. He couldn't comprehend how he'd lost so miserably.
What were those translucent creatures that appeared out of nowhere?!
He had traded his very life for speed—and before he could even show it... it had been completely taken from him.
...
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