Chapter Summaries

Su Ming and Deadpool discussed the staged Holy Grail War, the Hand of Creation, and the elusive Record Keeper of The Source. They learned little about either cosmic threat, but Deadpool suggested that a Joker who once met the Record Keeper might know more.

• The Adjutant told Su Ming that she had mixed fabricated government scandals with genuine tycoon scandals to clear Little Superman's name and portray him as a misunderstood hero.
• Su Ming and Deadpool estimated that the Holy Grail War could end within a week, while Deadpool complained that too few people had died and Earth Prime had suffered too little destruction.
• Su Ming said he had defeated a member of the Hand of Creation but suspected the being had survived, and Deathstroke described the five members' hand-like formation.
• Deadpool asked his livestream audience about the Hand of Creation and learned that the comics gave no names or details beyond their ability to create or destroy multiverses.
• Su Ming told Deadpool that the Record Keeper of The Source had escaped Little Rich, and Deadpool suggested asking a Joker who had met the Record Keeper for information.

Su Ming explained why he intended to keep the Record Keeper at a distance rather than kill him, then offered Deadpool a future job involving the Hand of the Void. Their conversation drifted into Deadpool’s Hydra prank and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s secret prisons.

• Su Ming told Deadpool that the Record Keeper should remain alive but be driven away and kept from discovering his intelligence.
• Su Ming asked Deadpool whether he had heard of the Hand of the Void and mentioned a future job after Deadpool finished his work on Earth Prime.
• Deadpool recounted how he had alarmed an Amway salesman by introducing him to Hydra, prompting S.H.I.E.L.D. to arrest the man.
• Su Ming explained that the salesman was likely sent to S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Minotaur Prison in Montenegro rather than the Raft.
• Deadpool and Su Ming discussed the prisons’ inmates and methods, including the lobotomies performed at Minotaur Prison.

Su Ming hired Wade to investigate the Hand of the Void in Multiverse 2, persuading him that his Cancer Cells made him powerful enough to face the threat. Wade accepted the mission and asked for more money to deal with another wielder of Dark Concepts, but balked when he learned it was the Great Evil Beast.

• Su Ming showed Wade a specimen of Dark Concepts and explained that the Hand of the Void had become a servant of the Great Darkness in Multiverse 2.
• Wade realized he had accepted Su Ming's mission after taking an advance payment and questioned whether he could face the Hand of the Void.
• Su Ming claimed Wade was Omniversal-level because of his Cancer Cells and encouraged him to investigate the Hand of the Void.
• Wade accepted the mission and asked Su Ming to pay him extra to deal with the other wielder of Dark Concepts.
• Su Ming identified the other wielder as the Great Evil Beast, and Wade declined, suggesting Cable handle the arm-wrestling instead.

Su Ming joked with Deadpool about selling a kidney while Superboy-Prime staged a solemn performance atop the bones of the Lizardfolk and A'San he had killed. After receiving new instructions, Superboy-Prime flew toward Yellowstone Volcano Park to stop an eruption and fight the Elemental Creatures emerging from underground.

• Su Ming dismissed plans to confront the Great Evil Beast and joked with Deadpool about selling a kidney, prompting Deadpool to consider finding someone who wanted to die from pleasure.
• Superboy-Prime surveyed Bone Mountain, confirmed that no Lizardfolk remained alive nearby, and posed for staged publicity photographs.
• Superboy-Prime delivered a mock lament for the dead, though he privately thought the bone-filled landscape was cool and doubted the dead could reach Heaven.
• Superboy-Prime received new instructions to go to Yellowstone Volcano Park, defeat the Elemental Creatures emerging there, and push the erupting volcano back underground.
• Superboy-Prime flew toward Yellowstone and used Google to learn about the park before facing reporters.

Su Ming left Deadpool on Earth Prime to help Superboy-Prime act out the Holy Grail War while he went to Earth-0 to investigate changes to the Speed Force Plane with Barry. He arrived in Central City, where the Flash’s rescue-first approach had earned him the community’s trust.

• Su Ming told Deadpool to finish staging the Holy Grail War within three days and remind Superboy-Prime to stay on script.
• Su Ming explained that he needed to find Barry because the Speed Force Plane had changed after the battle with Pralaya, then left Deadpool to direct the performance.
• Before departing Earth Prime, Su Ming checked that the Hand of Creation and the Origin Court had left no traces in the Single Universe.
• Su Ming traveled to Earth-0 and headed for Central City to find Barry.
• Su Ming reflected that Central City and Keystone City had a strong social atmosphere because the Flash rescued people while leaving fires and other aftermath to emergency workers.

Su Ming visited Barry in the middle of the night and woke him by pretending to be Batman and claiming Earth was about to be destroyed. Barry recognized the prank, dressed, and joined Su Ming downstairs, where they settled in to talk over pizza.

• Su Ming reflected on Barry’s high food costs and his expensive car-modification hobby.
• Su Ming entered Barry’s bedroom in Batman’s form and tickled his feet with Dark Matter to wake him.
• Su Ming told Barry that Earth was about to be destroyed, but Barry recognized him as Slade and called out the disguise.
• Su Ming went downstairs while Barry dressed and followed him to the living room.
• Su Ming complained about Barry’s pizza, then heated it with his powers as they prepared to talk.

Su Ming told Barry about the cosmic threats and the damage Perpetua had left behind, then explained that he wanted to investigate the Speed Force. The two prepared to seek help from the holders of the other Two Forces.

• Su Ming recounted the Record Keeper, the Hand of Creation, Perpetua, the Origin Judges, and other revelations to Barry.
• Barry admitted that the information overwhelmed him and changed into his uniform while trying to sort through it.
• Barry demonstrated that he could not access the Speed Force and described his connection as sealed behind plastic wrap.
• Su Ming compared Barry's condition to a dislocated limb rather than an amputation and proposed inspecting the Speed Force Plane.
• Barry agreed to go with Su Ming, and Su Ming suggested first consulting the holders of the other Two Forces.

Barry and Deathstroke discussed Barry’s missing connection to the Speed Force, the other Forces, and the whereabouts of Machoke Woman and Psionic Man. Barry explained that he could live without his powers and shared his dream of buying a home, marrying Patty, and having two children.

• Barry told Deathstroke he had not seen Machoke Woman or Psionic Man since before the Metal Event and wondered why they had disappeared.
• Barry described Machoke Woman’s robberies and Psionic Man’s invasions of people’s minds, while noting that both had helped him against Reverse-Flash during Flash War.
• Su Ming explained that the Still Force resisted Barry because it opposed the Speed Force and guessed that it would eventually choose Turtle’s son.
• Barry acknowledged the danger of the Still Force but said he could still use it a little and hoped Turtle’s son would not return to crime.
• Barry told Deathstroke that he could live honestly without his superpowers and would still devote himself to helping others.
• Barry said he dreamed of buying an apartment near Central City Farmers’ Market, marrying Patty, and having two children.

Su Ming offered to buy Barry a home near Central City’s farmers’ market, insisting that Barry had earned the money through their past work together. Barry resisted accepting the gift, but Su Ming made clear he would find a way to give him the house, leaving Barry resigned to the plan.

• Barry told Su Ming and Deathstroke that he wanted to buy a large home near the farmers’ market, but he and Patty had only saved about two hundred thousand US Dollars.
• Su Ming estimated that the home would cost around three million US Dollars, and Deathstroke offered to buy it for Barry immediately.
• Barry refused to accept the house as an unearned gift, but Su Ming argued that Barry deserved a share of his payment for their past missions.
• Su Ming revealed that he planned to use part of his seventy-six million US Dollars to buy the house and give it to Patty.
• Barry realized he could not stop Su Ming from giving him the house, and Deathstroke teased him about his past womanizing.

Deathstroke forced Barry Allen to accept his offer to buy him a house while they waited for someone connected to the Speed Force to come looking for him. Barry reluctantly chose an apartment, but Deathstroke took him to inspect an unsold penthouse instead.

• Deathstroke explained that he could not find Machoke Woman or Psionic Man and planned to use Barry as bait while they waited for someone to investigate the Speed Force.
• Deathstroke teleported Barry to a market and insisted that he choose a home, but Barry refused to let him buy one.
• Deathstroke threatened to seize properties in Central City and put them in Barry’s father’s name, so Barry gave in and picked an older apartment building.
• Deathstroke ignored Barry’s choice, teleported him to a vacant penthouse in a new high-rise, and had Strangle open the door.

Su Ming bought Barry a spacious apartment in Central City and arranged for him to choose its renovations with Patty. Barry accepted the gift and prepared to bring Patty over to help decide on a design.

• Su Ming showed Barry the empty apartment and explained that it could serve as a home and future laboratory.
• Barry admired the view but worried about the cost, and Su Ming insisted that money was only valuable while society endured.
• Barry promised to protect Central City and humanity, misunderstanding Su Ming’s point about the apartment’s price.
• Su Ming told the Adjutant to prepare renovation plans and contact the real estate agent to bring the contract and keys.
• Barry said he needed to discuss the designs with Patty, and Su Ming offered to teleport her to the apartment.

Su Ming brought Patty to inspect a luxurious Central City apartment and claimed the Justice League had chosen it as a gift for Barry. Patty admired the home but doubted the story, leaving Su Ming to insist the League would confirm it if she asked.

• Su Ming compared Iris unfavorably with other Justice League partners and judged that she relied too heavily on Barry.
• Barry told Su Ming that Patty was ready, and the Adjutant teleported her to the empty apartment.
• Patty admired the apartment and said she would be thrilled to own a place like it.
• Su Ming told Patty he was buying the apartment for Barry and claimed the Justice League had voted to give it to him.
• Patty questioned Su Ming's explanation because the apartment was worth tens of millions of dollars, and Su Ming offered to summon a League member to vouch for it.

Patty accepted Deathstroke’s offer of a penthouse for her and Barry, and Deathstroke bought the apartment for them. The couple received the ownership documents, leaving them to begin their new life in the home.

• Patty agreed to accept the Justice League’s supposed gift and began choosing furnishings with Barry.
• Deathstroke warned Barry not to change his mind, then went downstairs to meet the real estate agent.
• Deathstroke bought the penthouse for 120 million, planning to pay with money from unclaimed bank accounts.
• The agent completed the paperwork and gave Barry and Patty the apartment documents, champagne, and a private garage space.
• Deathstroke poured drinks and toasted Barry and Patty’s new life.

Su Ming used Quantum Concepts to furnish and renovate a new home for Barry and Patty, who moved in that night. After they fell asleep, an unknown woman appeared in the house and quietly explored it, seemingly pleased with Barry’s living conditions.

• Patty chose a decorating style and gave Su Ming a list of basic furniture for Barry and her new home.
• Su Ming used Quantum Concepts to finish the renovation, moved Barry’s belongings, and reassured him that the power would not make him lose his emotions.
• Su Ming left Barry and Patty alone for the night, teasing Barry about marriage before disappearing.
• Barry and Patty explored the house, then went to sleep in their new bedroom.
• An unknown blond woman materialized in the living room and explored the home, showing particular interest in Barry’s belongings and surroundings.

Deathstroke caught the Speed Force visiting Barry and Patty, then confronted her about her motives. She admitted Patty could become another Barry, leaving Deathstroke to consider the alternate future she had tried to prevent.

• The Speed Force, disguised as Barry's mother, entered Barry and Patty's bedroom and watched them sleep.
• Deathstroke caught the Speed Force and pursued her through the city and into another dimension until she stopped.
• The Speed Force said the Time Goblins had injured her and that she had withdrawn to protect the Speed Force Plane from the conflict with Pralaya.
• Deathstroke asked why she had targeted Patty, and the Speed Force admitted Patty could become another Barry.
• Deathstroke recalled a buried Timeline in which Patty became the Flash and Barry took her place after seeing her future death.

Deathstroke deduced that the Speed Force wanted to reshape the Timeline through Patty and their descendants to create a being with all four Origin Forces. He warned her that the plan threatened balance and could destroy humanity, then brought her to Central City to discuss it.

• Deathstroke questioned why the Speed Force wanted Patty to replace Barry, and she claimed she only wanted Barry to rest.
• Deathstroke deduced that the Speed Force intended to use Patty and Barry’s descendants, along with the missing Machoke Woman and Psionic Man, to combine the four Origin Forces in one future being.
• Deathstroke confronted the Speed Force with his deduction and urged her to stop, warning that the result might replace The Source and change who she was.
• The Speed Force said she was acting for humanity, and Deathstroke acknowledged her past help before explaining that her plan violated balance.
• Deathstroke took the Speed Force to a hill outside Central City and warned that meddling with humanity could bring about a Great Flood.

Su Ming reasoned that the four Origin Forces depended on humanity and needed to maintain a balance, while the Speed Force admitted she had trapped the Strength Force and Sage Force in the Theater. He offered to help repair the damaged Speed Force Plane before the Origin Court and Hand of Creation could invade.

• Su Ming told the Speed Force's avatar that the four Origin Forces might restrain one another as part of the universe's dynamic balance.
• The Speed Force's avatar worried that humanity's extinction would deprive all four forces of what they depended on, and she said creatures without souls could not become her hosts.
• Su Ming mocked the Sage Force, and the Speed Force's avatar laughed at his remark.
• Deathstroke asked whether the Speed Force had imprisoned the Strength Force and Sage Force users, and she admitted she had trapped them in the Theater.
• The Speed Force said she would release them after repairing her Plane, which the Time Goblins had riddled with holes.
• Deathstroke offered to help repair the Speed Force Plane and told her to remove its concealment so they could locate the damage.

Su Ming explored the Speed Force with Black Flash and found a breach where the Time Goblins had eaten part of a Timeline. He identified the missing segment as a story about Bruce Wayne and Clark competing for Lois’s attention and decided to fill in the gap.

• Su Ming made Black Flash communicate by writing and learned that Black Flash was the dark side of the Speed Force, not Barry Allen, and could not defeat the Gods of Oblivion.
• Su Ming and Black Flash examined a dark wormhole that the Time Goblins had gnawed into the Speed Force Plane.
• Su Ming used his Quantum Concepts to view the surviving part of the damaged Timeline.
• Su Ming saw that Bruce Wayne and Clark had competed to court Lois during a voyage to Hawaii before the Time Goblins devoured the rest of the story.
• Su Ming decided to invent a continuation to fill the Timeline’s missing segment.

Su Ming repaired a hole in the Speed Force Plane by inventing a story about Bruce and Clark meeting on a cruise ship and becoming friends. The patched Timeline flowed again, and Su Ming continued onward to find more damage.

• Su Ming used Quantum Concepts to fill the Timeline gap with a story in which Bruce and Clark secretly fought pirates as Batwoman and Superman.
• Lois mistook Bruce and Clark’s drunken act for romance and arranged for them to share Bruce’s suite, where they pretended to sleep until morning.
• Bruce and Clark recognized each other as Superheroes, agreed to keep their identities secret, and parted ways when the ship reached Hawaii.
• Su Ming confirmed that the patched story let the Speed Force flow through the damaged Timeline and treated his invention as official history.
• Su Ming continued along the Speed Force to search for another wormhole, wondering whether his actions would lure someone out.

Deathstroke repaired a Speed Force Plane hole containing the missing childhood story of the mercenary Warhound and asked Black Flash about Fast Track. After learning she had survived in hiding, he persuaded Black Flash to negotiate her release instead of killing her.

• Deathstroke found a hole in the Speed Force Plane containing a missing story about Warhound and patched it with an invented tale about him skipping school to sleep in an internet cafe.
• Deathstroke asked Black Flash whether Fast Track was alive, and Black Flash said she was hiding in The Starting Line and that he intended to erase her.
• Deathstroke recalled that Fast Track had created a drug that could give people the Speed Force, prompting the Speed Force to trap her before she could distribute it.
• Deathstroke told Black Flash to negotiate with Fast Track, forbid her from making or promoting the drug, and let her out to keep Barry company.
• Black Flash agreed that the Speed Force could decide to release Fast Track.