The Flash's "Hallucination"!

The ventilation shaft was deathly still.

Link hovered in silence, like a statue absorbed by the darkness. His eyes were half-closed, but his mind raced faster than ever before.

One picosecond.

To the universe, it was a vanishingly small unit of time. Between mortals and gods, it was an uncrossable gulf.

Within that single picosecond, he had to sense the opening, decide, move, pass through, and make himself solid again. If any step was off by even a ten-thousandth of a second, the Mother Box's violent spatial laws would tear him down to elementary particles.

"A challenge..."

Link smiled without a sound.

He liked challenges.

He began making minute adjustments. Every cell, every strand of muscle fiber gathered strength for the burst beyond his limits that was about to come.

He began to count down.

Just as he was about to seize the perfect window and slip into the Temple like a ghost—

Light footsteps and a broken, cheerful whistle drifted down the distant corridor.

Link stopped at once.

His gaze pierced the metal grille.

A familiar red figure was bounding in his direction.

Barry Allen.

"What a nuisance."

Link frowned slightly.

If he acted now, Barry would certainly spot him. Link was entirely confident he could crush the fastest man on Earth again, but that would ruin his perfect plan for a silent intrusion.

He wanted no crude smash-and-grab. He wanted an elegant performance that would shatter every hero's confidence.

He watched the unsuspecting Barry, who was still wondering how many doughnuts he should eat after his patrol. A mischievous glint entered Link's eyes.

"Since you came to me, I might as well make the lesson stick."

Watchtower, Sector A corridor.

Barry Allen hummed a tune as he made his rounds, bored out of his mind.

Ever since