Chapter 140 – Red Lightning
Dante remained in the med bay overnight. Monitors beeped quietly beside him, his chest bandaged, his breathing steady. For a man who'd been thrown like a rag doll by a speedster's punch, he looked surprisingly peaceful—like he was just taking a long nap after a hard day's work.
By morning, the glass doors to the med bay slid open.
Eva McCulloch stepped inside.
She wore her usual calm expression, arms crossed loosely, eyes scanning the monitors before falling on Dante. But there was a tightness in her jaw, a stiffness in her movements that betrayed what she felt.
She was relieved—truly relieved—to see him alive. And yet... surprised.
"Hey," Dante murmured, his voice still a bit hoarse.
Eva smiled gently and walked over, sitting beside the bed. "You look like hell."
Dante smirked. "You should see the other guy. Oh wait—you can't. He's two pieces now."
She laughed softly, though her smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "I thought I lost you."
"You didn't," he said, watching her closely. "I told you. You're stuck with me."
They sat in silence for a moment. She reached forward and gently adjusted a wrinkle in the blanket covering him—small, meaningless, but something to keep her hands from shaking.
"You didn't have to jump in front of me," she finally said.
"Yes, I did."
Her eyes flicked to his, searching, trying to understand. "You're just a janitor."
Dante smiled lazily. "Exactly. Who else is going to clean up this city's mess?"
Eva exhaled, her laughter dry but filled with emotion. "You're unbelievable."
After a few more minutes, she stood and kissed his forehead. "Rest. I'll be back later."
Then she turned and left the med bay, her calm expression returning like a mask.
---
In the Cortex, Barry stood beside Patty near the monitors. They were talking quietly, reviewing speed data from last night's attacks. Cisco was typing furiously at his console while Wells stood behind him, pointing at energy readouts. Caitlin moved between stations, coordinating medical files and scanning for any anomalies.
Everything felt normal—almost.
Until Eva stepped out of the med bay and into the Cortex.
She didn't say anything at first. Just stood there, looking at the floor, hands folded tightly in front of her, her brow furrowed.
Barry noticed immediately. He excused himself from Patty and walked over. "Everything okay, Eva?"
Eva looked up slowly. Her voice was low, almost uncertain. "How is he alive?"
Everyone in the room turned at that.
Cisco blinked. "I mean... aren't you happy he's still alive?"
Her eyes widened. She realized how it sounded. "No—I don't mean it like that. Of course I'm happy. You don't understand. You all saw the footage, but I was there."
The Cortex fell quiet.
Eva's voice became steadier. "That white speedster was going to kill me. Dante pushed me out of the way. He took the hit instead. You didn't see it happen the way I did."
They listened intently now.
Eva continued. "The speedster hit him... at full speed. Not a push. A strike. You don't understand—it wasn't just a punch. It crushed his chest inward. Like—his ribs folded into his lungs. You can't walk away from that. You don't walk away from that. No human survives something like that."
Caitlin paled slightly. "He did have massive trauma. But still... he's alive."
Eva nodded. "Exactly. He shouldn't be."
Cisco frowned, glancing at the others.
"And there's something else," Eva said, her voice quieter now. "Something I didn't say before. Because I didn't trust what I saw. But I know what I saw."
Barry stepped closer. "What is it?"
Eva looked him directly in the eyes. "The red lightning."
The room stiffened.
Eva glanced at all of them. "You all thought it came from somewhere else, right? Some new speedster? Some mystery hero?"
Barry nodded slowly. "We haven't identified the source yet. We assumed it was a third party."
Eva shook her head. "No. It didn't come from outside. It came from Dante. I saw it."
They froze.
She spoke with clarity now. "That red lightning—it burst out of his body. It wasn't random. It sliced the Godspeed clean in half, and then... it went back into him. Like it never left."
Silence.
Barry's face twitched.
"You saw it too, didn't you?" Eva asked him gently. "In the footage. It wasn't just an explosion. It was a discharge—from inside him."
Barry hesitated, then nodded slowly. "I saw the frame. I wasn't sure if it was real or just a feedback loop. But it... it looked like it came from his chest."
Wells narrowed his eyes. "A speed force reaction? But Dante's not a meta."
"Not anymore," Caitlin corrected. "He was. Once. But it burned out."
Barry looked at Cisco. "Run a scan. I want Dante's vitals reanalyzed. Every molecular pattern. See if there's any trace of Speed Force energy."
"I'm already on it," Cisco replied, hands flying over the keyboard.
Eva's voice dropped lower. "I'm telling you—he didn't just survive. Something woke up. Something in him. And I think… I think it saved us both."
Barry turned back to her, jaw clenched. "If that's true… then whatever's inside him might be the reason the Godspeeds came to CCPD."
Eva met his eyes. "Exactly."
Patty, standing quietly behind them, finally spoke. "If Dante really is connected to this red lightning… then someone—or something—might come looking for him."
Barry nodded grimly.
Eva whispered, "We need to protect him."
Barry agreed. "We will."
But as the Cortex filled with the sound of scanners and calculations, one thing was certain
Something had awakened.
Something red.
Something powerful.
And the war with Godspeed was only beginning.
---
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