God's "Mercy" and Warning!

In the motionless world, Link withdrew his hand from Barry Allen's shoulder.

Every secret of the Speed Force lay open in his Kryptonian-level superbrain, like a codebook whose cipher he had completely cracked.

He looked at the scarlet speedster before him, still frozen mid-stride, his eyes empty.

Barry Allen was like a perfect specimen stripped of its soul, the very concept of speed fixed for eternity in the most tragic way imaginable.

Kill him?

The thought flashed through Link's mind, then he dismissed it.

A dead Flash had limited value.

But a living Flash, branded with fear deep in his soul, would be the finest gift Link could send the Justice League.

"Your mission is complete, Barry Allen."

Link's voice echoed through the frozen dimension like a divine decree.

"You saved your city. You're still the hero thousands look up to. You should be proud."

He walked slowly up to Barry and touched a finger to his forehead.

At his fingertip, a nearly imperceptible thread of power laced with chaos and darkness quietly emerged.

"In return for your generous 'sharing,' I'll grant you a mercy."

"I'll let you forget this unpleasant experience. Forget this eternal picosecond. Forget the despair of being a bird in a cage."

A cold smile curved Link's lips.

"But there is one thing you must remember."

"Remember my name."

"Let it be the nightmare that makes you tremble with every heartbeat. Let it be the shadow you can never escape whenever you enter the Speed Force."

"Go tell your companions. Tell those 'gods' up on the Watchtower."

"I was here."

As the last words fell, that thread of chaotic power erased every trace of that picosecond from Barry Allen's memories with the precision of a master painter.

It did not destroy the memory. It covered it,