Chapter 602: Reverse Flash Albert Swan: Batman's Enemy

Do you remember that moment?

The moment your life really began?

When Batman put on the hood for the first time, Wonder Woman left Paradise Island for the first time, and Superman unzipped his chest clothes in an alley for the first time, revealing the S.

Or maybe we might as well tell the story a little more clearly.

When Professor Albert Swann of Reverse Lightning observed the Speed ​​Force in the laboratory for the first time, the golden lightning flashed with dreamy reflections in his pupils.

You take the first step and become a new person.

Is that scary? Or does it feel like you finally learned to breathe?

You spent so many years alone, not even sure what you were looking for.

But you finally found you and your life.

You are no longer alone.

You come together like gurgling streams that merge into a river.

You are telling the same story and you reach out to each other like you always knew they would be there.

And those adventures, have you ever dreamed of them? Do you actually experience so many adventures? You saved the universe! And the timeline, and the very existence of this world.

Again and again.

Among the ruins, Albert Swann turned his head and looked at Thomas Wayne who was looking at him.

Poor old Thomas, the father of Batman and Bruce Wayne, but he is the Batman of this world and the current Batman.

His youngest son died in an accident when he was 8 years old.

The other person raised his gun and put it on Albert Swann's forehead.

Next to him, Cyborg screamed: "Are you crazy? Did you kill Superman?! Fuck you Wayne, we need him, he can save the world!"

Under the feet of Cyborg and Thomas, the skinny Superman died tragically on the ground.

"Not this... I don't want this world." Thomas Wayne put the gun to Swann's forehead.

"I just want a world where my son is alive."

he said.

Cyborg was holding his head next to him, and he yelled: "You're crazy, Wayne, we had a chance..."

No one cares what he says.

Reverse-Flash Albert Swann just looked at Thomas Wayne with pitiful eyes, looking at this old man who was crazy for his beloved son.

He exhaled slowly, then beat Thomas Wayne to his words and said every word Thomas had to say.

"Swann can change everything, he can bring him back, I have to force him... to bring Bruce back."

Thomas Wayne was stunned.

Reverse-Flash Albert Swann has many abilities. He is a genius who developed the Speed ​​Force, but Albert Swann's only ability does not include mind reading.

That's Gorilla Grodd's talent. Each of The Flash's enemies has a unique ability. No two enemies have nearly the same abilities.

But Reverse Flash still did it, he repeated what he wanted to say before he said it.

The brilliant Thomas Wayne realized something.

His gun clattered to the ground.

The whole person staggered back.

"How did you...this...this is impossible..."

"What?" Cyborg was beside him, confused. Even though Victor Stone has the most powerful electronic brain on the planet, about three-quarters of his brain is still filled with the muscles of a football player. (Note: Although Cyborg’s body is made of metal except for his heart and lungs, only 1/4 of his head is replaced by metal)

Thomas Wayne became furious, he jumped up suddenly, and then grabbed Reverse Flash Albert Swann by the collar: "You are lying to me, you are lying to me - you bastard!"

He cursed loudly: "You must-"

"You have to go back in time and reboot the world to change everything, you have to do that."

Reverse Flash sadly uttered all the words Thomas Wayne was going to say next, and this fact made Thomas' feet completely weak, and he fell down.

And Reverse Lightning also finished the second half of the sentence:

"Otherwise I will stop you forever, until the end of time or my life!"

Swann turned to look at the dumbfounded Cyborg.

"I'm sorry Victor, but you won't remember this soon, so I guess I don't need to apologize too seriously, and you, Clark."

He said to the corpse on the ground: "Thomas failed to kill you in the previous reincarnations, but you were killed by him once this time. It's really unlucky. But time will restart soon and you will be resurrected, so it doesn't matter. It makes sense.”

Batman Thomas Wayne hangs his head.

"You've been back many times, haven't you Swann?"

he whispered.

"Yes, I'm sorry, old friend," Reverse-Flash said.

"I'm sorry to tell you this until now, but I tried to tell you the truth in advance, but the final result will make the end come earlier."

"You're right, it's true. I've come back many times. But no matter what I change, the timeline will always lead to a bad ending."

"My son is dead, my wife is crazy, and the whole world is falling apart! All because you want to outdo him!"

(Note: This universe is a reflection of the Flashpoint event in the main universe. In this event, in order to save his mother, the Flash accidentally restarted the entire multiverse under the covert influence of Doctor Manhattan and Reverse-Flash Swann. Everything changed)

Faced with the accusation of old Thomas Wayne, Reverse-Flash Albert Swann did not answer "I am indeed better" like his previous timeline self.

He was too young, cruel and vicious at that time. He asked Thomas Wayne to look around and told him that Barry Allen was dead, and that this dirty and smelly reality was a reflection of Barry Allen's failure.

But it never occurred to him that the world was not just Barry Allen's, but his as well.

This is also the world of Albert Swann.

Therefore, Reverse-Flash Swann sincerely apologized to Thomas Wayne, even though he had said this apology countless times in endless reincarnations.

"I'm sorry, Thomas. I've long tried to give you the gift of a Gotham without Batman and without my interference."

Reverse-Flash Swann said: "But no matter how hard I try, Bruce Wayne can't live past the age of ten."

"I solved Crime Alley, car accidents, and earthquakes, but in the last reincarnation, even if I guarded him all night, Bruce Wayne still got food poisoning from accidentally eating a sandwich made by Martha Wayne. This poisoning reaction The abnormally severe reaction, which developed together with the allergic reaction, caused Bruce Wayne to die at the age of 9 and 11 months. As a result, Martha Wayne became crazy and became the Joker again like in the previous reincarnation."

Reverse Lightning said: "And this reincarnation..."

"Bruce Wayne, who was eight years and three months old, drowned because Martha let him go to the swimming pool." Thomas Wayne looked ashen: "Martha went crazy because of this."

"Yes." Reverse-Flash said.

"Not just Bruce, other things in this world, the death of Mela, the alliance between the old gods and the new gods, the destruction of the earth, the civil war..." Swann said: "I try to postpone the occurrence of these things, but every time I postpone it until If it reaches a limit, it will inevitably lead to collapse.”

"Those things will always happen," Reverse-Flash Albert Swann said slowly.

And the scariest thing is not just these.

You see.

You are the Reverse-Flash.

In order to save your universe, you reset the universe to the longest timeline you can before the end of the world again and again.

again and again.

Taking the death of Barry Allen’s mother in The Flash as a node, you can go forward at most a few decades.

You restart the timeline again and again, as if there is no end to it all.

But you know that's not the case.

One day, this seemingly endless reincarnation will have to end, everything will come to an end, the universe will collapse, and the sea of ​​stars will dry up.

Yes, that’s right, of all people, you should know best——

Nothing lasts forever.

It scares you, doesn't it? end.

Is that why you never stop? Because you have nothing else?

But no matter what, you still chose to do it.

You may even begin to long for the end.

In a certain reincarnation, the reverse-flash Albert Swann roared in the sky at the Apokolips army that was about to destroy the earth. He killed all the new gods until they were bruised and exhausted.

And all these reincarnations are being drawn again in the extremely fast running of the reverse lightning, as the timeline is restarted.

Damn it, damn it, destruction, what price will it take for this to finally end? Is there finally an end?

Death?

It's useless. In the endless reincarnation, you have also died, but soon you found that you were resurrected by the timeline.

In a certain reincarnation, the reverse-flash Albert Swann jumped up from the grave, panting heavily. He touched the hole in his forehead that was shot by Thomas Wayne in surprise.

The timeline resurrected him and he was in a Schrödinger state where he was dead but not quite dead.

Even death cannot give you peace.

Stories always call you back, not even death can set you free.

Did that make you feel trapped?

As time goes by, the timeline restarts again and again. And you never stop, you never stop running.

Reverse-Flash finally accepts it all. He accepted that he could never prevent the end. The future is too far away and the past cannot be looked back on, so Reverse Flash chooses to live in the present.

He became friends with Dr. Thomas Wayne, who held 7-year-old Bruce in his arms.

He was having a picnic with his friends and family.

Even though he knew that in at least another year, little Bruce Wayne would die for some reason and this happy family would fall apart.

But so what, he couldn't change this.

Live in the moment.

Are you used to these things? You have already become ruthless, and before the end comes, you will reset the timeline to the previous time without blinking an eye?

But... in those quiet moments, between the exhalations and inhales between the endless doomsday coming again and again, have you ever thought about it?

Is this all you can be?

All your pain, all your loss, what do you have to do to show it?

Reverse-Flash Albert Swann wanders in front of Barry Allen's grave, holding the grave sadly.

No one could ever chase and run with him... everything he did. No one knows, not even Thomas Wayne has the memory of his last reincarnation.

Reverse Flash Albert Swan is always alone. There is no point in him talking to anyone about anything. Once the timeline is restarted, he will become a stranger or even an enemy to everyone again. And everything he does to maintain law and order, save the world, and heal the crisis will never happen after the timeline is restarted.

Is the world safer? Or no matter how hard you try, you are just dragging others into your destined tragedy?

No, nothing. Everything he did will be erased.

Is the world better? Or is Barry Allen right after all?

Nothing, nothing. He once wanted to stop the doomsday. He used countless methods and tried countless times.

Have you ever inspired anyone? Or have you just become an empty symbol, a machine that keeps restarting the timeline, and lost his power long ago?

I think so.

I am Albert Swan, and I am restarting my timeline, and I have done this restart many times.

I am just an empty shell, living in the world before the doomsday. Trapped in a cage.

"Yes, but look at your life, the cautious and empty life you have built, completing reincarnations again and again like going to work, greedily feeling the few warm moments in those reincarnations, and then waiting for the end of the world to come, and then restarting time again."

"You know that if you continue like this, your universe will eventually be destroyed, but you can't change anything no matter how hard you try."

Reverse Flash Albert heard the voice in his ear.

"Listen to me, do you feel that your life... feels like the truth?"

Reverse Flash heard the whisper, the voice whispered in his ear.

"Can you feel it? Your life now is not enough. You are not living to die. You have been very brave, you have been brave for so many people... Can't you be brave for yourself again?"

"Can you see that your life is meaningless, and then stand up and make a change?"

"Can you take that step, just like you did many years ago, can you be strong enough to look at that lie, even if you have woven your whole world around it, and then tear it apart regardless of all dangers, and start a new beginning again?"

Reverse Flash Albert Swan turned his head to look at the old Batman. In order to force him to restart the timeline to save his Bruce, the other party did not hesitate to shoot and kill the Superman next to him.

But Reverse Flash knew that his hope would always be empty.

But no matter what...

"He is brave enough, can you?"

The whisper said in his ear.

"Okay." Reverse Flash said.

"I have thought about it for a long time, I know. I agree with your proposal."

"Inspect Mohal."

"What do you want me to do?"