Chapter 162: Technology Through Borrowing
"Uh... are you serious?"
Barry Allen gave Orin Vale a strange look.
As he spoke, a bunch of electrodes were attached to his head, a mechanical device was strapped to his back, and cables extended from it to the equipment behind him. Under his feet was a somewhat bulky treadmill.
"Of course, I'm serious."
Orin Vale replied, his eyes on several floating interfaces displayed before him.
"Crank it up to maximum speed and give it a run. My equipment will record all the necessary readings generated while you're running."
"...Alright, if you insist." Barry scratched his head. "But let me say this first, this thing better have a warranty. Because I can't afford to pay for it if I break it, and you know what my salary is like. I still have to figure out this month's rent..."
"It's fine, just run. I'm starting it up," Orin Vale interrupted before he could digress further.
A three-second countdown, and the system activated. Power surged, the tracks began to spin, electricity arced in Barry's eyes, and he took off at a sprint.
In an instant, he became a blurry afterimage.
Three seconds.
That was the limit of what the treadmill could withstand. At around 1.3 seconds, Barry's speed surpassed its tolerance limit. At around 2.6 seconds, the lightning radiated by the Speed Force fried its circuits.
The engine was damaged, electric sparks flew, metal parts melted with a shriek, the casing shattered and cracked, and black smoke billowed out.
Barry screeched to a halt, standing amidst a pile of metal ruins. The force field released by the nearby mobile armor prevented the explosion from spreading, and freezing energy suppressed the high temperature.
"See, I told you so," Barry said, spreading his hands helplessly, indicating it was his fault.
Orin Vale stroked his chin. "This treadmill is a priceless treasure in terms of current human technology, and you just broke it. Given that you don't have the financial capacity to compensate for it, it seems you can only offer yourself to me as payment."
"Alright, I guess that's how it has to be." Barry sighed dramatically. "My demands aren't high—just three dishes and a soup for every meal. Oh, and easy on the sugar in my coffee."
After the brief banter, his figure flickered and reappeared behind Orin Vale's display screen.
"Okay, we'll talk about selling myself later. How's the situation?"
"It only lasted less than three seconds, but it has already given us more than enough research data," Orin Vale said. "This was just a prototype anyway. I plan to build a much more powerful one that will help you gain full control over your ability to travel through time and space."
"For real?" Barry still found it hard to believe.
"Of course. But besides an upgraded design, that will require a deeper level of research into the Speed Force. Before that, let's look at the results from this run."
Orin Vale enlarged one of the many interfaces.
"Here's a comparison between your brain scan and the total Speed Force energy your body radiates during high-speed movement."
"Uh... why does it look a bit weak?" Barry frowned.
"Because it is. When you enter a Speed Force state, your brain is already much faster than a normal person's, but it's too slow compared to your own body. If you could use your brain to enter the Speed Force..."
"I could think incredibly fast," Barry realized.
"Not just that." Orin Vale turned around and said to him, "This can also achieve the effect of 'Expanded Cognition,' allowing you to think about many things at once and enabling your attention to more comprehensively analyze any information received by your senses. It could even let you simulate thousands of different possible outcomes of your actions in an instant.
And with mental acceleration, it would, in turn, speed up your command over your body and your use of the Speed Force. Master this technique, and you can become faster than before while consuming the same level of Speed Force."
"I can get even faster." Barry's eyes lit up. "That's incredible. But how did you... I mean, you just glanced at the scan results and could immediately propose such a theory. Truly..."
Orin Vale smiled without a word.
What else could he say?
It was a matter of experience. Accelerated thinking, expanded perception—he had undergone similar training a long time ago. He could do it too, not through the Speed Force, but simply as a racial talent.
By helping Barry become faster, Orin Vale could also learn more, which in turn would help him become faster himself. And for his more long-term goal: building a cosmic treadmill to try and break through the world barrier using the Speed Force.
Although Orin Vale's progress seemed quite rapid, and he had helped the rookie Flash to quickly master speed and techniques that would have originally taken him years to learn, he still felt it was too slow.
As expected, an intern has his limits. Orin Vale mused that if it were Director Hikari of their Technology Bureau here instead of him, he probably would have already borrowed the power of the Justice League's seven founding members, speedrun the whole process, and be back sipping tea by now.
And you know, that really wasn't impossible.
The Land of Light's technology tree was long past what it had been in the Showa Era. Back then, the design philosophy for weapons in the Land of Light was still stuck on the idea that "a bracelet using the latest Ultraman technology defeated the supposedly invincible Bemstar."
Now, times had changed. In the current Ultraman Universe, Earth's tech tree was all about stealing, while the Land of Light's tech tree was all about borrowing. The Technology Bureau's blue-headed leader, Hikari, had tinkered with a whole bunch of little toys over the years, borrowing the power of Ultraman, borrowing the power of aliens, and not even sparing the monsters.
So if Director Hikari came here, within a month, he would absolutely be striking a debtor's pose, saying "Superman-san, Flash-san, lend me your power!" Even Darkseid would be completely baffled, unable to recognize what kind of move this was.
Currently, Orin Vale's main research subjects were his domesticated Kryptonian and this high-speed volunteer, Barry. Rookie Master was just starting out and had few pieces of 'black technology', otherwise, he might have considered borrowing some ideas from him as well.
The power sources of the Justice League members were generally quite overpowered. The laws and principles behind them were often far more profound than what they usually displayed. Never mind borrowing their power, the abilities of each founding member were at least worth researching.
If only a few more founding members were available, it would at least be helpful for further understanding some of the unique laws of the DC Universe...
"Sir, there is a special visitor in the shop, asking for you," Pal reminded him.
"Who?"
The shop's surveillance feed appeared inside Orin Vale's helmet.
He then saw Diana Prince in civilian clothes, standing at the counter.
"Excuse me, but I'd like to ask, is Mr. Orin in?"
***
Heavy curtains blocked the sunlight, enveloping the room in deep darkness.
Enormous murals hung on the walls, depicting gods amidst the clouds. The holy Mount Olympus stood at the center of the paintings, and the lavishly robed gods were vivid and mysterious, their faces carved to be astonishingly lifelike.
Lex Luthor and his secretary, Moxie, walked among countless exhibits and unsettling statues.
"I don't understand, boss," Moxie said. "Are we here to find a new ally?"
"More or less," Lex Luthor said flatly. "I had thought Gotham's Poison Ivy would be a powerful helper, but she turned out to be just a second-rate character. Gotham City is full of unreasonable lunatics. They have talent, but they're of no use to me."
"Then the one we're looking for this time must be very special," Moxie said.
"Oh, of course."
A mysterious smile appeared on Lex Luthor's face.
"This time, we're looking for a true Wizard. One who possesses magic more mystical than that of the gods recorded in myth. In fact, if you ask me, she's far more terrifying than any god."
A woman's laughter echoed in the darkness.
The two of them stopped in their tracks.
"You're very clever, and you have good judgment, Baldy."
A woman appeared before them, looking down on them with her hands on her hips and a proud expression.
"You're right, man. You are facing the most powerful wielder of Black Magic. All men will kneel before me and chant my name—
—Circe!"
(end of chapter)