Earth-2.
Central City Police Department.
A lot of police officers were scurrying about, minding their own business. Some of them were going to the next case, and some were trying to solve the ones they had already solved. Everyone was busy doing their own thing, but sometimes they talked and joked with each other. Two were drinking coffee by the window and discussing the events of last night at the bar. Another two were working on a plan to intercept a pesky gang. And one was doing the most dangerous job of all, trying to devise a plan to catch another meth man. With the advent of Zoom, meth men stopped being afraid of anything. Attacking, killing, robbing, these criminals were lawless. Of course, there were some normal people among them. There was even one who tried to stand up to Zoom, but it didn't work.
Flash. For many in the city, this man gave hope. But that hope was quickly dashed with his disappearance. No one had hope for him anymore. Although, the police never trusted these meth men. It's their job to catch criminals, not rely on some outsider.
In the station, at one of the computers, sat an unremarkable man. Dark-haired, with a small mustache and beard. He didn't pay attention to what was going on around him, but sat quietly looking for something in the computer. After a couple of minutes, having found the necessary information, he smiled and stood up.
The overweight man next to me noticed this, and asked with a smile:
«Matt, if you're getting coffee, grab me one too, huh?
At the comrade's inquiry, the man nodded and started to leave. But he didn't go for coffee, he went down the elevator and out of the police station. He walked farther away, got into his car, and then the unbelievable happened ... His appearance changed, and he became a completely different person. Black hair, slightly pale skin, regular facial features, a straight nose and a mocking grin. Light stubble and unusual eyes with strange red veins gave the man an unusual appeal. Unfortunately, that was one of his problems, as his face was almost always memorized.
Naturally it was Hunter who was looking for the information he needed about Reverb. It wasn't hard to find it, it was finding where he lived that was the hard part.
After the change in appearance, only the police uniform said that everything that had just happened was real. After changing into normal clothes, Hunter looked at the backseat and grinned:
«Thanks buddy, you've been a great help.
The man lying on the seat did not answer, for he was unconscious. If he looked closely, there was a remarkable resemblance in his appearance to the one Hunter had taken not so long ago.
You could say this cop was unlucky, he wasn't in the right place at the right time.
Patting the man on the shoulder, Hunter threw on his leather jacket and got out of the car.
***
The cops were very helpful. I was able to learn a lot more about Cisco Ramon from Earth-2 than I had known before that day. He was a criminal in this world, but his mind wasn't much worse than Cisko's from my Earth. He was also an inventor, but he had a much harder life. Although, he had a brother who supported him. After all, their parents were dead, so they looked out for each other.
Cisco used his talents for criminal purposes. Robbing people, robbing banks, stealing jewelry. Not a bad list if you ask me, as good as his brother's. They were partners, worked together a lot.
Reverb's last location was checked out by me. Unfortunately, the results were disappointing. He was long gone, having paid off a large sum of money. Not even his belongings were left, so it was impossible to search by scent either. Though there was still a smell in the house, and it was quite similar to the smell of Cisko from my world. But there were differences, oddly enough. Following the trail was not an option, the odor in the house was faint. But outside, it was already completely gone. If we're gonna look, we're gonna have to look in specific places. I'd have to get close enough to find him. That wasn't an option for me, I wasn't going to waste any time.
But in this case, I had a plan "B." It was bound to work. Cisko is a secretive man, so the police couldn't find the places he frequented. But his brother.
A few teleportations and I found myself next to an unremarkable bar on the outskirts of town. This place was pretty useful to me. Dante used to frequent this place, but of course the cops couldn't get him. Especially now that he was a meth man. This bar was frequented by criminals, Dante being one of them. Unlike the low-key Cisco, this guy liked to drink and party. I figure he must have some friends here I can nail down and find his whereabouts. I find one brother, the other one won't be a problem.
Dante Ramon's meta powers were no good to me. Like he could manipulate plasma or something. Certainly not bad powers, but I decided to refrain. Not only were his powers useless to me. But his death wouldn't be beneficial either. In the future, he would go to earth to avenge his brother, so killing him wasn't worth it for now.
I wasn't interested in other meta people either, not yet. There were a lot of them, but it wasn't wise to do anything right now. Killing Reverb alone could make a big difference. I didn't need a bunch of other deaths. In the future, I'll study them and take the most useful ones. Having powers isn't bad, but having useless ones is pointless. I still haven't found a use for the powers of the Multiplex. Hartley's powers helped identify electronics. Mardon's powers helped in combat, same with Rostein's powers. There's no need to talk about the usefulness of Peekaboo's and Faceless One's powers. Even the Rainbow Raider's powers could be used for something. All of them combined well and didn't conflict. Even Rust's power was strangely altered by my body. I'm now durable, but weigh the same as normal people. You could say this power was working all the time. The point is also that I'm already sturdy due to my own strength, which allows me to evolve eating bone marrow.
I don't know if I have limits yet, so it's wise to absorb other people's powers. I don't know if I have limits yet, so it's wise to absorb other people's powers. In the future, I plan to take only useful ones, so that most meta people can even survive.
Plus, I'm not sure about some of the powers yet. Zoom's powers, Firestorm's powers, even Killer Frost's powers were kind of weird. Fire and Ice powers probably won't combine at all, and even if they did, who knows what the effect would be. Let's not forget, Fire Storm, it's two people, and Killer Frost is a bit off at all. I don't mind giving up fire, it's too much of a risk. But ice is something to think about..... As for Zoom, it's weird, it's something to think about.
Shaking off the unnecessary thoughts, I headed for the bar. I'd think about it later. I wouldn't get a chance to meet them, much less eat them. They'll all still play their part in creating the flashpoint. When the time comes, I'll decide what to do with them.
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