Looking at Laura, who had fallen silent again, Jack Kadere chuckled as he pulled her into his embrace. His hand gently traced her exposed long legs as he smiled.
"You were first tricked by Kate and then forced by me; it's true you've had a rough time. But I never forced you to stay by my side—that was your choice. So, since I'm in a good mood, if there's anything you want to say or any request you want to make, now's the time. Miss this chance, and you might not get another."
Laura hesitated, her lips parting slightly, but no words came out.
"Do you want to kill the Comedian to avenge your mother? I can help you," Jack asked, his tone casual but probing.
Laura's head dipped in an instinctive nod before she caught herself and shook it quickly. If killing the Comedian would solve anything, she would have done it long ago. Besides, from this timeline's perspective, the Comedian should already be dead.
"Are you sure?" Jack pressed.
Laura gave a soft hum of affirmation.
"As you wish," Jack said simply. He had only given her the chance because he was riding high from copying a new ability and was in a generous mood. If she wanted to remain quiet and submissive, that was her decision. He wasn't going to lose sleep over it.
Jack lay back on the sofa in the living room, idly scrolling through news reports from Central City on a tablet. Nearly every headline was about the so-called four-person crew. Their rampages had left chaos in their wake, and they hadn't even bothered to hide their powers. Countless photos and shaky cell-phone footage had been uploaded, their identities and abilities already exposed. The police had plastered their faces on wanted lists all over the city.
Beyond them, there was the Flash. The Scarlet Speedster had saved countless civilians recently. At first, many dismissed him as a hoax or an urban legend, but the havoc caused by the four-person crew had shifted public opinion. Now more and more people were convinced the Flash was real—that he was a guardian watching over Central City.
Still, Jack knew Barry Allen was caught in a tight spot. The Mist's last intended victim had been the cop who arrested him—Detective Joe West. Joe wasn't just any officer; he was Barry's adoptive father, Iris West's dad. That personal connection complicated everything.
Even with one of the four villains already gone, the remaining three were enough to keep the Flash scrambling, not to mention the other criminals who never stopped testing him.
And the Reverse-Flash? Jack smirked. Eobard Thawne was trapped in this era, desperate to return home. That alone was torment enough. Once Thawne recovered from his setbacks, Jack planned to toy with him again. In the meantime, he had other projects.
He wanted to see if he could create something resembling the Iron Man Armor. His scientific knowledge and access to abilities gave him a unique advantage. At the same time, he wanted to refine his Speed Force skills—especially time travel and dimensional jumps.
The armor wouldn't be easy. It required vast resources: money, rare materials, specialized equipment, and time. But none of that was a problem for Jack. He converted the villa's garage into a fully equipped workshop and ordered everything he needed. Thanks to the powers he'd copied from Firestorm, transmuting materials into money or components was a trivial task.
Within a week, the garage was overflowing with high-tech equipment and raw materials. The only delays had been delivery times.
The sound of pages flipping filled the air as Jack sped through book after book. At the same time, the TV news droned on about whether the Flash could hold the line against the villains threatening Central City.
What amazed Jack most was how much faster he could learn using the Speed Force. Books that would take ordinary geniuses months or years to finish, he absorbed in minutes. But he knew too much speed risked burning out his focus. So he developed a new trick: Hyper-Sensory Perception.
By adjusting his perception, Jack could control how quickly or slowly he processed sensory input. Reading at ten times speed felt like fast-forwarding a movie. Slowing things down, on the other hand, made him absorb details as if time itself had stretched. To outside observers, he was still just a blur of red lightning—but internally, he experienced perfect control.
Closing the final book, Jack eyed the mountain of reading stacked beside him. His lips curled into a grin.
"It's almost time to give it a try."
"Swish!"
In a streak of scarlet lightning, Jack vanished from the living room and reappeared in the garage.
Laura, startled, hesitated before following him. As she stepped inside, she froze. Red lightning spiraled around the workbench, moving so fast it seemed to wrap the entire room in an electrical cocoon.
What shocked her most was how calm the air remained. At such speeds, there should have been gales strong enough to knock her off her feet. But there was nothing. Just the low hum of energy.
"Swish!"
In an instant, Jack Kadere appeared beside Laura, resting his arm casually across her shoulder as he gestured forward. "Done. What do you think?"
Laura's mouth fell open in shock.
Before her stood a gleaming suit of red and gold armor. Sleek lines traced across its frame, the metallic sheen almost alive beneath the light. Every joint, every plate fit together seamlessly, giving it the aura of something that belonged more to the future than the present. Even though Laura had adjusted to modern technology since being with Jack, she had never seen craftsmanship like this. It wasn't just a weapon or a suit—it was art.
Despite not caring much for machines or armor, she found herself drawn in, her hand instinctively brushing across the cold surface. After a long silence, she whispered, "It's… incredible."
Jack grinned. "I ran the design simulations over three hundred times. Theoretically, it shouldn't have any flaws. The only drawback? No artificial intelligence yet, so it's basically an advanced manual system. As for energy—well, that's still a headache. At full output, it can only hold five minutes of combat before draining. Flight's a bit better, about the endurance of a small chopper. There's plenty of room for upgrades—better power cells, portable deployment, self-repair, weapons systems, you name it."
Laura nodded, listening intently.
"You like it, huh?" Jack chuckled at her absorbed expression. "Funny. People always say armored suits are a guy's dream, but here you are, staring like I just built you a crown. When I get time, maybe I'll craft one just for you."
Laura blinked, surprised, then looked up at him. "You… could really do that?"
Jack smirked. "That depends on how you perform."
As he stepped forward, the armor's chest plate split apart with a hiss. Jack climbed inside, and the panels folded shut around him with a seamless click.
The lifeless visor flared to life, its eyes glowing an ominous white-blue.
"I'm going to test it," Jack's voice echoed through the modulator.
A low hum built beneath the suit as propulsion nodes lit up on his palms and boots. Blue energy flickered, lifting him gently at first, before—whoosh!—he blasted through the open garage and into the night sky.
///////
Author's Note: I know Jack doesn't need external power—he's already strong enough. But come on, armored suits are just plain cool. And while DC has its own collection of advanced armors, I wanted to give some of the women around him, especially those without natural powers, a way to hold their own in this dangerous world.