"I want to check on Rachel's condition first."
Shane put Atom's helmet back on, and his voice once again took on that muffled quality that made his identity impossible to discern.
Batman frowned and began to think.
"Do you know anything more about that 'other you' who took your place?"
"A future version of me—technically speaking, Reverse Flash should know more."
Batman shook his head slightly.
"Reverse Flash has always been elusive. Ever since the other you entered this world, I've lost contact with him."
Shane snorted beneath his helmet.
Obviously, the moment his other self had forced his way into this world from the hypertime stream, Reverse Flash—who was highly sensitive to the flow of time—had immediately sensed that something was wrong.
That bastard Thawne had definitely hidden himself right away.
An speedster who could travel freely through temporal nodes and was determined to hide—who the hell could find him?
Still, that alone revealed quite a bit.
"The future me obviously wouldn't be weaker than I am now. But when he entered this world, he probably gave up part of his power. Assuming the best-case scenario, that guy should be about as strong as me."
"Then if you had to speculate, what would your future self do?"
Once again, Batman's question struck right at the heart of the matter.
Shane looked somewhat embarrassed.
"If the point of divergence started after Reverse Flash appeared, then if my ideals never changed... I'd probably rule the Earth?"
The corner of Batman's mouth curled up, looking entirely unsurprised.
The blue Boy Scout, who had been sitting quietly in his chair, was shocked all over again. He abruptly straightened up, as though he were meeting Shane for the first time.
"Rule the Earth? You actually thought about that? I thought we were friends who