"Keep at it, Mick!” shouted Captain Cold, aiming his freeze gun at the police, a blue cold beam shooting out of it, forcing the officers to shield themselves from the icy laser, “If the Flash and his annoying friends are back we gotta draw them out!” he continued, putting on his trademark goggles.
Rory smirked, “You have no idea how long I wanted’ta do this!” he held out his own weapon and shot out a giant beam of fire, nearly burning the officers ready to stop them.
Then, a yellow blur revealed itself as the Flash, who stood in front of the two Rogues, “Well, if it isn’t Cold and Heatwave. What are two lowlifes like you doing back in Central City? Did the Legion of Doom bore you to pieces?” he joked.
“Laugh all you want, Flash.” hissed Cold. “It’s us two against you. And you barely made it out last time!”
The Flash chuckled, “Now why would I come alone this time?” he asked his enemies.
Before Cold could respond, a thick ball of gossamer jammed itself on the barrel of his cold gun. And Heatwave suddenly found his weapon levitating out of his grip, “What the hell is this?” asked Mick, turning his head to find the culprits. “What game are you playing here, Flash?!” he nearly shouted at the speedster.
“Uh, that’d be us!” yelled Spider-Man, who swung next to the Flash. But he wasn’t alone as Twilight lowered herself with her wings, hiding them once she landed, “Sorry, Icy Hot! But you’re about to get your butts handed to you by a knight and a princess!” declared Peter, getting himself into a battle stance.
Snart merely laughed at Spider-Man’s declaration, “Heh. You nearly died fighting the Legion when we first met because of us! Do you really think that a princess can help you?”
Twilight growled, “Let me show you what this princess is capable of.”
“With pleasure.”
“Okay, Barry. Cold and Heatwave should be no trouble for you at this point.” Caitlin said. “Don’t make the same mistakes as last time.”
‘Yeah, had a feeling. Any advice?’
Cisco swallowed his popcorn, “Yeah. Try to separate them. Get Twilight to disarm them. Without their guns they’re no better than common criminals.” he laughed.
“Is this what you do all the time?” Sunset asked.
“We’re here to watch over Barry,” Caitlin answered, “Ever since he got his speed, we guided him through any battle.”
Wells frowned, “I guess it’s to make up for what S.T.A.R. Labs did a few years ago. This lab and the original Harrison Wells took responsibility for what happened to Central City. And in a way, atone for my mistakes as well.”
“Okay. I have no clue what the shock you’re talking about.” Miguel admitted, “Can you elaborate please?”
“Of course.” sighed Dr. Snow, “The Harrison Wells of this Earth had finished a lifelong achievement, a particle accelerator. We were unsure if it was safe to use, but he made sure that it would turn on when he said so. Cisco and I were here, but… Then it went off.”
Cisco continued, “The energy from the accelerator was unique. It gave many people in the city… unique abilities, myself included. And Barry… He was struck by lightning, putting him in a coma for nine months, where he was taken here by Wells’s orders and have us keep an eye on his state until he woke up. Turns out he was given the Speed-Force, which is what gives a speedster, their… speed.”
“Why would the Wells of this world want the particle accelerator if this was the result?” Ant-Man asked, “This is starting to sound like what Darren Cross had planned with the Pym Particles.”
“It turned out he really wasn’t Harrison Wells. It was Eobard Thawne, also known as the Reverse-Flash.” Caitlin revealed, “He was stranded in the past after trying to kill the Flash, and he took the body of Wells to give himself the Speed-Force from the Flash with the particle accelerator. We erased him from existence for good.”
“But that’s impossible.” Miguel responded, “We fought him in Equestria! And I’m pretty sure he didn’t look like this guy. So, someone must’ve brought him back.”
“His birth was a fixed point in time.” Wells elaborated, “Even though we destroyed his future self in a different point in time, he still needs to exist to ensure a stable time-loop. He showed up here sometime after I did. He was from earlier in his timeline than the other Reverse-Flash they faced. Ever since then he’d show his mug, and face Allen for no goddamn reason.” he groaned.
"Sounds like an arch-nemesis all right." groaned Ant-Man. He had faced Cross plenty of times himself, knowing that once you make an enemy like them, they'd never leave. "So, these Captain Cold and Heatwave guys don't look like trouble. Why even bother bringing Spidey and Twilight with him?"
"Snart and Rory are crafty. If they're on the Legion of Doom like you all said, there could be more to this than what we're seeing." Caitlin explained.
Miguel crossed his arms, "Yeah. The Legion of Doom's been doing that ever since they got to Equestria. Sending other guys, heroes or villains to do their dirty work."
"Fear toxin, Deadpool, mind-control, aliens." Ben grumbled, "It's been a pain in the ass since this all started. I was hoping to catch a break on Earth, but Doomsday, and a trip to Gotham as well as this sure isn't making it feel relaxing, that's for sure." he said, thinking about when he was comatose.
"Hey, can you pass some more popcorn?" Spike asked, picking a claw through a window. Cisco smiled and walked over, placing a few kernels in his hand. "Thanks, Cisco."
"No problem, man." Cisco said. "Now, let's see what Barry and the others are up to."
"They have better stopped Cold and Heatwave before any damage could be done."
Twilight shot a concussive blasts at Snart's hands, making him release his gun. "What's your plan, Cold?" the former alicorn asked, seeing Cold run for his weapon. He managed to grab it before she could take it and he shot a beam of ice in her direction, the sorceress erecting a forcefield to shield herself from the blast.
"We know something you don't, princess." Leonard revealed, "Something's comin' and we wanted to wear you down before they get here."
"What are you talkin--" Twilight was cut off by a stinging pain on her back, making her fall to her knees.
"Twilight!" shouted Spider-Man, shooting a web-ball in Heatwave's direction, stunning him long enough for the Flash to perform a running uppercut.
'Allen! What the hell hit Twilight?' Wells asked through Barry's communicator. Barry placed a hand on his ear to answer.
"I-I'm not sure. We're looking right now. But with Cold and Heatwave still here, we're kinda swamped."
Heatwave smirked, "Damn right you are."
Suddenly, a blur tackled the Flash, sending him flying. Spider-Man turned his head while helping his wife up, seeing the culprit that tackled Barry while he was distracted. "Who are you?" asked Peter. It was a bizarre costume choice in the couple's eyes. The man wore a black suit with yellow lightning trimmings on his sides and an insignia on his chest. His cowl gave him a menacing appearance, and almost gave Peter a vibe similar to the Reverse-Flash, "Are there like discount evil Flashes I'm not aware of or something?"
'Oh he is more than that...'
Twilight looked up, seeing a hooded figure wearing a gas mask standing on a rooftop, holding a strange device. The princess narrowed her gaze at his strange apparel, as though he was hiding his true self. "You did that to me..." she mumbled, "You used a spell on me. How?"
Alchemy laughed, 'I am capable of many things. I am Alchemy, after all. I can harness abilities like no one else can. Like this man... In another timeline like this one, and another Earth, he is gifted. He has no rival to his speed.'
"That's right, Flash. I know about your little war in the other world. About my destiny in another life." the black-clad speedster said, his voice distorted.
Spider-Man shook his head, "So what? This Jigsaw sounding guy just up and gave you superpowers you thought you were destined to have? That's pretty crazy if you ask me. Is that why you two randomly showed up here?"
"That's right, Spider-Man. We knew about these two and their little scheme, and this time with your little team scattered, there's no chance you all will make it back to Equestria." Snart declared to the wall-crawler.
Clenching his fists, Peter spoke, "I can sure as hell try. Twilight, you take care of this Alchemy nut! Flash can handle this new speedster! I'll stop Captain Cold and Heatwave!" he saw the two nod and they all got right back in action.
"You tried before, remember?" Heatwave laughed, already shooting fire at Spider-Man, who's Spider-Sense warned him and he backflipped away from the blast in time. "You wound up almost dead! You should'a just stayed burnt like a good little spider!"
Spider-Man performed a handstand as he somersaulted back to his feet, "Well that was because you had your Legion of Doom cronies helping you out! This time, it's one superpowered hero against two crooks with themed guns!"
Captain Cold aimed his gun upwards while Spider-Man was jumping around, hitting Peter with an ice blast directly to his chest. Peter screamed in pain as he felt the force of the beam. "You should back up your declarations, Spider." he boasted, holsting his weapon behind his head in a taunting manner.
'Son of a... That thing still hurts! What's in that gun? Absolute zero temperature laser beams?' thought Peter, holding his chest as he gasped for air. He punched the ground, "Doesn't matter. I'll stop you. Like all the other crooks! You're both no different than O'Hirn and Marko before they got their powers. It's all the same."
Rory let out a laugh, "Really, kid? That's the best ya got? We should'a just left you to die."
Spider-Man stood up, taking the burn of Heatwave's fire elemental gun, the fire creating holes in his costume. "I just got this fixed..." he groaned quietly while holding a torn piece of his costume in his hand before throwing it aside. He walked forward, before sprinting as fast as he could ahead. Captain Cold shot first, prompting Peter to somersault away from the blast in time. Heatwave decided to point his weapon upward, beaming out fire in Peter's trajectory.
In a split second, Spider-Man flipped backwards and halted his movement, landing safely on the ground. "Watch where you point that thing, Heatwave. It might just burn you." he joked.
"Watch that mouth of yers, bug." Mick grunted.
Peter shrugged, "I can help it. You guys just aren't worth the effort right now. You nearly killed me, so forgive me if I'm a little sore on the fact that I almost got jumped by two lowlife crooks with themed guys." he said in a snarky tone.
"Did you call us lowlife crooks?" Captain Cold sneered.
"What if I did?" Peter responded.
Cold clenched his teeth, "I'll show you lowlife."
Spider-Man jumped away from Cold, stretching a hand so that he could jam Snart's gun long enough for his foot to collide with his face, knocking him out. "One down. One to go."
"I ain't goin' down easy." Heatwave warned.
Spider-Man sighed, "Sure. I believe that when I see it."
Mick growled, placing his gun at his side, and waiting for Spider-Man. Once Peter landed, he decided to swipe his arm, hoping to hit Spidey with his gun, but the hero leaned back in time thanks to his Spider-Sense. Then, Peter turned his body, kicking the gun away from Heatwave's hands.
"You'll regret that, bug." Heatwave grumbled.
Spider-Man moved away from a right hook delivered by Mick before countering with a left handed uppercut. Peter's fist collided with Heatwave's chin, snapping his head back slightly. Heatwave grunted in pain, landing a surprise kick on Peter's leg, making him tremble in pain a little. "Not bad, Heatwave..." complimented Spider-Man, "But like the Flash..."
Heatwave was ready to pick up his gun, but Spidey used a web-line to yank it to him. Spider-Man then trapped Heatwave in more webbing before knocking him out with a swift kick. "I'm too fast for ya!" he finished his taunt, seeing Heatwave fall to the ground.
Then, the two Rogues vanished from sight, Peter realizing what caused that. "Loki... Guess he doesn't want his Legion of Doom gone just yet. Gotta admit, they're fast."
"Who are you?" asked the Flash, seeing the black-clad speedster scowling at him. "I-I've never seen you before. Are you another speedster like me?"
"So many questions." said the evil speedster, "Let me explain myself as fast as I could. You did this, Flash." he revealed, pointing a finger at the Scarlet Speedster.
The Flash glared at the figure, "I don't even know you! What did I do to you?!"
"That's just it! You don't know me! In this universe anyway..." he removed his mask, "My name is Edward Clariss. I was a normal man in this universe, but Alchemy revealed something to me! There are infinite universes, many worlds!" Edward laughed, "When the portals to this other world opened up, Alchemy saw what I can become in another dimension. I was called the Rival!" he put back on his mask after declaring his new title.
Barry groaned, "So that's it? Some nutcase saw some alternate universe and then wibbly-wobbly you got powers?!" he turned his head to face the Rival. "Listen, pal. I don't want to hurt you. You did nothing wrong in this universe, so don't start now."
The Rival smirked, "That's too bad. There's another Flash out there who had no problem with starting trouble. Let it be known, Flash, that in this universe or any, I have no rival!" he spat, leaning forward to begin running.
Wells put his hand on his temple, "Ramon, what the hell is this speedster going on about?" he asked.
Cisco shrugged, "I-I have no clue, dude. This guys is making no sense from my end."
"He mentioned other worlds. You don't think he can see into alternate Earths like yours, Wells?" Caitlin wondered.
"That is a possibility, but there is no Rival on my world. He could potentially be referring to another world." Harrison Wells recalled, "This is another matter entirely."
Sunset raised a hand, "Um... It could be similar to something back on my world. In the Crystal Empire there is a magic mirror that can travel to any universe, or Equestria. There are links to different worlds, but perhaps Alchemy managed to figure out any changes on his own."
"That's right! That's how Peter, Twilight and I got to his Earth to find you!" Spike remembered.
"What?! You mean this whole time there was a portal back to Earth and we didn't know about it?!" Miguel shouted.
"It can only work every so often to connect back to your world. For now, we can travel to alternate Equestrias." Sunset revealed.
Ben sighed, "This is starting to sound confusing."
Scott crossed his arms, "Something we can agree on."
Cisco turned back to the monitor, "Barry. He's a new speedster, unlike Zoom and Reverse-Flash. This Rival guy should be no trouble for you at all." he boasted.
The Flash nodded, hearing Cisco's message. He ran forward, with the Rival chasing after him. Two trails of lightning sped by Central City as two speedsters fought it out. The two ran up a building before reaching the top where they hopped off.
The Rival grunted, landing on the side of another building in order to run down it without injuring himself. Barry repeated his actions and continued to follow Clariss. "All you evil speedsters are the same!" Barry could be heard shouting.
"What the hell does that mean?!" the Rival asked, clearly offended, "I am better than you!"
"And very childish." Barry commented.
The Rival and Flash made their way back to the streets, swerving away from traffic, and in some cases hopping over vehicles in order to keep moving. "Anyway..." Barry continued, "All you speedster ever do is use your speed to spite me."
"And I'm supposed to care, why exactly?" Edward wondered.
The Flash pushed the Rival's side, making him trip slightly, but he continued on. "Because you don't know how to use your speed! You just got it today for crying out loud!" he taunted, seeing the Rival catch up to him.
"Shut up!" Edward hissed, punching Barry.
Barry grunted, stopping in his tracks. The Rival chuckled as he ran up to Flash to punch him again, but the Flash moved to his left, grabbing Clariss' arm and tossing him. The Rival hit the windshield of a parked car, it cracking under his weight. "You think you know so much, Flash. But I was given the memories of this other world. I know what I'm doing." he bragged.
"Yeah, sure." Flash joked.
The Rival got up and tackled Barry, placing his arm on his throat as he planted him on a wall. "It's over, Flash. There is no other speedster who can match up to me."
"E-Except... Zoom." Barry choked out, kicking Edward in the chest, making him falter. The Flash gasped as he heard his communicator go off.
'Allen. End this now. Run up the building and stop him.' Wells ordered from his end.
The Flash nodded and did exactly as suggested. He ran up the building a little before jumping off, his fist reared back as the Speed Force gave him the power necessary to stop the Rival. The Rival remained stunned as Barry continued his descent.
Then, Barry's fist collided with Edward's head, making him tumble on his side painfully. The Flash picked up the Rival by the costume and shoved him on the wall, using his speed and his other hand to repeatedly punch the Rival. "It's over, Clariss. You really don't know how to use your speed and that was your downfall."
'Nice work, Barry.' said Caitlin, 'You should wait for the police to take him to Iron Heights.'
The Flash nodded, "Yeah. Last thing we need is this guy to leave my sight."
Twilight teleported away from a blast shot by Alchemy, reappearing in her spot a second later. Alchemy raised a hand, 'I see you are a master of your abilities. I can see promise in you.'
"I don't want to listen to you!" hissed the sorceress.
Alchemy shot a beam at Twilight, but it missed. 'You know not of what I am capable of.'
The former alicorn shot her own concussive blast at Alchemy who staggered backwards slightly. Alchemy grunted, using a strange stone, which glowed.
Then, pieces of stone and the street began to float, alerting Twilight that something was wrong. The princess shielded herself from the oncoming debris with a forcefield.
Twilight managed to grab a rock with her magic, aiming it at Alchemy, who managed to destroy it with the strange stone he used earlier to lift them. 'You are unique, miss. I will enjoy killing you.' boasted the masked being.
"I'm not dying to some cloaked wannabe wizard." Twilight growled.
Alchemy used his stone to create a small forcefield, which Twilight managed to blast apart. "This plan of yours makes no sense. Why bother fighting the Flash?"
'Fate says so.' Alchemy said in a calm tone, 'We are destined to fight these battles no matter the universe, you are different. You are from another world.'
"That's right. And I'm making sure you won't affect anyone ever again!" said Twilight, using her magic to hold Alchemy. Alchemy used his powers to nullify the magic.
"How?" asked the sorceress.
'This stone.' Alchemy raised the artifact. Twilight used her magic to grab it, making Alchemy useless in a fight. She then teleporter behind Alchemy and hold him down with a spell before using a beam to knock him unconscious. 'N-No...' he groaned before his head slowly tilted to the side, losing the battle.
"Some alchemist." Twilight joked, hearing the familiar sound of webbing. She saw Peter land next to her, releasing the web-line connecting to the side of a building. "Are Cold and Heatwave down?"
"Not quite." Peter revealed, "They were warped away. I'm guessing it was by Loki."
"We'll deal with them when the time comes. For now we should find Flash and make our way back to S.T.A.R. Labs and explain what it was that just happened." Twilight suggested, using her magic to life Alchemy.
Spider-Man nodded, "After you, m'lady."