Being a hero is no easy task. It requires bearing more responsibilities and sacrificing much of yourself.
Harrison Wells, who was once a mentor and a guiding figure in life, turned out to be the Reverse-Flash, the murderer of Barry Allen's mother. And now, with the Reverse-Flash dead, Barry lost the only chance to clear his father's name. The joy of regaining his speed was short-lived as Barry found himself overwhelmed by these tragic events, pushing him to the brink of collapse. His life had suddenly turned dark, with no light in sight.
Just then, an alarm rang on Cisco's phone.
"It's Joe, he's in danger," Cisco informed Barry Allen after reading the message.
Barry took a deep breath, temporarily pushing aside his sorrow, and disappeared in a flash of lightning. Cisco and Caitlin exchanged worried glances and hurried back to the lab to assist Barry.
Even without the Reverse-Flash, Team Flash had to move forward.
Shh!
A flash of light, and Su Sheng returned to his villa.
Thea Queen and Laurel Lance were chatting when Su Sheng walked in. Thea got up and asked, "Can I go out for a walk? I haven't seen much of Central City yet."
Su Sheng shook his head. "In a few days. If you show up now, Oliver will definitely find you."
"So what do I do? Just stay here all the time? That's boring," Thea complained, then her eyes lit up. "I saw your steel suit. Can I try it?"
"Sure, go ahead. I'm going to make a new one anyway."
The current suit was just a prototype, with many functions still needing improvement. The first issue was the energy source. Su Sheng planned to analyze the blue energy from the Reverse-Flash's tachyon device and then head to Mercury Labs to obtain tachyon particles. He also needed to research shrinking technology at the nanometer scale and artificial intelligence systems.
The Reverse-Flash could store his suit in a ring, a technique Su Sheng found intriguing.
He remembered that Dr. Harrison Wells from Earth-2 had also conducted research in this area!
Then there was the Time Vault in the S.T.A.R. Labs, containing the artificial intelligence known as Gideon, which Reverse-Flash had brought from the future. Gideon was also the name of the AI aboard the Waverider in the Legends of Tomorrow. Though both shared the same name, they were like different models of the same brand—distinct but similar.
The DC universe had many impressive AIs, but beyond Gideon, one that stood out to Su Sheng was Indigo, a villain from Earth-38, Supergirl's world. Indigo was a humanoid AI, also known as Brainiac 8. Brainiac itself was a legendary artificial intelligence, created by the Coluans, who evolved into a self-replicating entity that controlled entire planets. Brainiac not only upgraded his abilities but also developed emotions like greed, jealousy, and hatred, becoming a threat to all life. In the comics, Brainiac was responsible for the destruction of Krypton and later came to Earth, becoming a nemesis to Superman and the Justice League. He was known as the "Collector of Worlds," shrinking cities and entire worlds as trophies.
Indigo, as Brainiac 8, was a formidable foe. Despite being a villain, she had once joined the Outsiders, triggering the famous "Graduation Day" event in the Teen Titans series.
She was far more advanced than Gideon.
"Artificial intelligence can wait," Su Sheng mused. "Once I figure out how to travel between universes, I'll go to Earth-38 to find Indigo. For now, I should focus on getting the tachyons from Mercury Labs."
Su Sheng spent the rest of the day in his garage lab, working on the upgrades for his steel suit, while Thea Queen and Laurel examined the original suit.
Before they knew it, night had fallen.
After a simple dinner and tidying up, Laurel quietly retreated to her room.
Thea, yawning, turned to Su Sheng. "I'm getting sleepy. How about you?"
"Do you know where my room is?" Su Sheng asked casually without looking up.
Thea nodded. "Yeah, why?"
"Go wait for me there. I'll come after I finish reading this," Su Sheng said, holding up the book in his hand.
"I didn't mean sleep with you," Thea muttered as she turned and walked away.
Su Sheng chuckled and returned to his reading. After about half an hour, he got up, took a shower, and headed to his room.
When he opened the door, he found Thea lying on the bed with her back to him, a thin blanket draped over her shoulders.
It didn't look like she was wearing pajamas.
With a quiet chuckle, Su Sheng walked over, gently turned her around, and their eyes met. Thea smiled and snuggled into his arms. Holding her slender body, Su Sheng thought about how she felt different, maybe a little smaller, but still perfect in his arms. He made a mental note to get her a proper outfit for next time.
The night was peaceful.
Though Thea had subtly hinted that she wouldn't mind more than just sleeping, Su Sheng simply held her until she fell asleep, leaving her a bit disappointed but eventually content as she drifted off.
Morning came, and the sun shone brightly through the window.
The sound of a phone ringing woke Thea. Groggy, she opened her eyes to see Su Sheng holding the phone, seemingly talking to someone.
The voice on the other end sounded like a woman.
"You caught the Gas Men? Heh, well, they're of no use to me. You didn't have to call to tell me," Su Sheng said, casually stroking Thea's hair with one hand. Thea, still half-asleep, felt a lazy warmth spread through her. She smiled, closing her eyes as she snuggled closer to him.
Su Sheng glanced at her, noticing her playful demeanor as she began to slowly slide down under the covers.
Thea had seen how Helena used to do this!
"Apology? No, that won't be necessary," Su Sheng continued, his tone shifting slightly as he focused back on the call. "You thought of a way to make it up to me? A friend? Heh, Caitlin, of course, I consider you a friend. That's why I'm only punishing you instead of killing you. And Sisko... I have a little gift for him too!"
With that, Su Sheng hung up the phone, turned to Thea, and with a playful grin, they began their morning exercise amidst Thea's surprised exclamations.