~A minute before Derek acquired the suit~
-CRACKLE!!!
-VRRR!!!
Two separate Red and White Lightnings dashed at inconceivable speeds, covering the entire landmass of the grassy plains with a single leap.
Though it was impossible to distinguish what was happening from a regular person's eyes, they could see.
The two responsible for the raging lightning.
For them, everything was slowed, as if the world itself was bending to their needs.
Thawne, dashing as the Red Lightning generated behind him, stared to the side as he locked eyes with Savitar.
The latter, eyes glowing bright blue, boomed like thunder as his White Lightning lit the area.
And for the thousandth time in this battle, they engaged, shooting toward each other like bullets.
Savitar threw his arm in an attempt to grab his foe, however, Thawne was quick to drop to his buttocks, sliding below the towering figure.
Using this momentum, he shot out his heel as it struck Savitar's shin, causing the latter to drop to one knee.
Not wasting a single second, Thawne shot up, raising his hand which he vibrated to blurring speeds.
Twisting backwards, he prepared to shoot it through Savitar's heart.
However…
-SHING!!!
A long blade shot out from Savitar's forearm, an inch away from Thawne's chest as he was quicker to the jump.
-BRRR!!!
Yet, Savitar's blade was simply met with air despite passing through Thawne.
Thawne, still standing before him, glitched as his body became more translucent as if he were just a hologram.
-VRRR!!!
In the next second, this Thawne disappeared as another leapt behind Savitar, arm vibrating.
"Nice try…"
The red in Thawne's eyes faltered as he listened to Savitar speak, his head turned back just enough for their eyes to lock.
-SHZZZZ!!!
Just like Thawne's hand vibrating, Savitar's entire body did the same as Thawne simply passed through, hitting the ground with a hard THUD.
-CLAMP
"Face it, Thawne. Your speed isn't what it used to be."
Savitar clutched Thawne's jaw, pinning him against the ground as he spoke.
-BOOM!!!
Digging his feet into the ground, Savitar shot forward, pushing Thawne through the dirt as the latter tore through the earth, unable to break free.
"Perhaps if your speed wasn't on life support you'd be able to put up a better fight."
"But you weren't able to beat me back then and you aren't able to beat me now!"
Thawne's eyes widened upon hearing this.
"LGHR!!!"
Thawne let out a muffled yell, unable to speak clearly with Savitar's hand over his mouth.
But Savitar knew what he was trying to say.
"You accuse me, a God, of lying? You don't go home, Thawne. But it makes no difference whether you believe me or not. You will die now."
"I'm going to drag you throughout this city and have the world witness your pathetic defeat. Starting with Star Labs!"
Saying this, Savitar turned his head to the colossal building in the distance, bolting toward it as he destroyed the grassy plains with Thawne's body.
However…
"Draw!!!"
-SHING!!!
-THUD!!!
Thawne and Savitar were sent tumbling at normal speed, rolling a dozen times and hitting the ground so hard they left craters.
"Huff…huff…huff…"
Thawne, weakly raised his head, desperate to see what happened.
However, as he did, he froze as he stared at the long needle-like spear impaled straight through Savitar's leg.
"GAH!!!"
Savitar roared in pain but still shot his eyes down to stare at the obsidian-like spear in his thigh.
His mind raced with questions, distracted by the pain as he failed to hide his discomfort.
'Who…'
They both thought. However, before they could finish, a voice cut them off.
"Expand."
-BLOP
-SHING!!!
"ARGHH!!!"
Savitar let out a feral howl as the needle shrunk inside him, expanding in the next second as a circular saw, severing his leg from the inside.
Thawne watched with wide eyes, the glowing red in his pupils disappearing as the blur in his mask followed.
He constantly darted his eyes between the severed leg a few feet away and Savitar who was writhing in pain.
However, it wasn't until the next few seconds until he noticed another figure suddenly appear beside them both.
Or rather, a familiar boy.
'That boy…impossible. Is he a speedster? No, I can't feel the speedforce in him. So how? But more importantly…'
He stared at the familiar boy, black hair messy and unkempt as it covered most of his forehead and bright green eyes.
'Why have I never heard of someone like this? Who is he?'
The boy was breathing heavily, his arm outstretched as the needle that had reverted to a ball of slime, shot back at him.
"You…"
Savitar spoke between his struggles.
He stared at the quiet boy with loathing, his blue eyes narrowed as he glared.
He felt rage like none before, staring at the boy who leisurely stood.
But that wasn't the main reason he was so angry.
Instead, it was because he could see the boy's legs shaking, his knees threatening to buckle.
He breathed heavily, not only because his stamina was depleted, but also because his heart was racing for a different reason.
He was scared.
"You're…a coward! Who do you think you are to challenge me?!"
Savitar's sheer voice was enough to make the boy's hair dance on his forehead as small tremors were sent through the air.
"You're right…I am a coward. I am scared. But…"
The boy's lips slowly curled upwards as he continued.
"But believe it or not…I'm also happy. I…didn't run."
But it wasn't just that.
It was something else too.
Something that contributed to his shaking hands and adrenaline.
Excitement.
"Savitar…I'd like to know…"
For a single second, all time seemed to have come to a stop as Savitar and the boy stared at each other, Thawne watching in disbelief on the side.
"You call yourself a God, yet you bow at my feet. So…what does that make me?"
Thawne and the boy could almost hear the veins explode on Savitar's neck as he grits his teeth so hard they crack.
"YOU BASTARD!!!"
[You have chosen the path to power]
Savitar pulled back his arm, white lightning crackling as they condensed around his fingertips.
"As for who I am…"
[However, because of this, the Philosopher's Stone lacks a vessel]
[Actions have been taken to preserve your life]
Though Savitar was moving faster than the eye could see, the boy could see it.
He could see the arm moving slowly toward him, lightning growing more powerful as it went.
He could see it, even when he wasn't supposed to.
[Attribute Collected!]
[Attribute Type: Skill]
[Skill: Super Speed Perception]
But that's it.
That's all he could do.
See it.
Previous to this, he had to predict where Savitar would end up and throw his attacks seconds before he arrived.
And it helped that he yelled where he was going.
But what now?
[Actions complete]
[With nowhere else to go, the Philosopher's Stone has merged with you]
[Into your very cells, the Philosopher's Stone lives on inside you. Or rather as you]
[As a way to preserve itself and as a way for your survival]
[You have become the Philosopher's Stone]
'Had it been any other speedster but Savitar, I'd have watched myself die.'
'But as I said before, this Savitar is just a Projection, the real one being trapped in the speedforce.'
What allowed for this Projection?
Simple, it was one of the many abilities of the Philosopher's Stone that he utilised.
Or rather…
'My Philosopher's Stone. Or maybe just me.'
Be that as it may…
"...I'm a Number One Fan. Banish!"
-VWIP!!!
And with that, Savitar and his severed leg disappeared into nothingness, leaving the chill and silence of the night.
The wind whistled as the grass rustled.
The distant city noises could be heard every so often but mostly didn't reach so far out.
Amongst this all, the boy, or rather Derek, turned his head as he stared at the dazed Thawne.
And as Thawne snapped out of his trance, their eyes locking…
-VUAM!!!
-VRRR!!!
Like the wind, leaving behind nothing but Red Lightning that soon dissipated into the air, Thawne was gone.
And to this, Derek stared as he spoke once more.
"Thank god."
He slumped onto the ground, finally taking this chance to relax as he lay on the ground, staring into the night sky, his chest moving up and down and clothes drenched with sweat due to exhaustion.
"I'm at my limit. I'd have no chance if he were to engage."
Not only that, he could ruin the story for Season 1 if he wasn't careful.
However, despite almost dying tonight, Derek was smiling.
This was because…
"I did it."
And he had the System screen to confirm it.
[Quest Complete!]
He had a lot to get through as a dozen unread screens lay before him trying to catch him up.
But before that, he just wanted a single minute to regain his composure after all that.
-WHOOSH!!!
Derek widened his eyes as his breath halted.
His heart skipped a beat as this familiar noise entered his ears.
It was familiar because it was a constant sound effect in the Flash when he watched it.
Where Reverse Flash's speed sounded like sound in the immediate area was being distorted and Savitar was like a compliment to his power, this was like a breath of fresh air.
Despite this, Derek's eyes locked on the slime that had been hovering beside him all this time.
All it took was a mental command before it shot to his head, latching on as it morphed into a helmet, covering his entire head.
"Hey…"
A voice rang out, causing Derek to slowly turn, unsure if he should be excited or wary.
Either way, there was a large and boyish smile plastered onto his face.
'I finally get to meet him.'
Derek's eyes fell on a figure in a form-fitting red suit, a yellow lightning plastered over a red emblem on his chest.
With a mask covering his entire face but his eyes and mouth, the figure, his eyes narrowed and expression determined, stood with his legs bent staring at Derek.
'The main character of this whole story…'
"Who are you?"
'Barry Allen. The Flash.'