Gulag Camp, Soviet Union — 1986
After The Atom and Heat Wave were led out, Jack Kadere dragged a blackboard in front of Martin Stein.
"The Firestorm Matrix. Write it down."
Martin Stein stared at him. "You actually want me to write it?"
Jack patted his shoulder. "Write it, and I'll let you go."
"You know what happens if they get this formula."
"You know I'm more terrifying than Savage."
Was Vandal Savage terrifying? Absolutely. But Jack Kadere wasn't just terrifying—he was hopeless. Especially now that he had a time ship.
Martin Stein's face cycled through resistance, calculation, and finally despair. He picked up the chalk and began to write.
"There." Valentina leaned forward as he finished, eyes bright. "I've never seen a formula this elegant—this compact—but..." She frowned. "Something's missing."
Martin Stein said nothing, guilt written across his face.
"It really is brilliant." Jack studied the equations with genuine admiration. Deriving this himself would have taken a decade. "You're a genius."
"No, there's definitely something missing." Valentina's frown deepened the longer she stared. "A gap somewhere."
"Escort him out," Jack told Valentina, nodding toward Martin Stein. "Then wait for me in the laboratory."
Valentina blinked. "You know what's missing?"
"Obviously."
"Alright." She moved toward the door.
"No." Vandal Savage's voice cut across the room. "What happens if you release all of them without giving me the final piece? He stays. He leaves after Firestorm is successfully created."
Jack's eyes narrowed. "Are you disrespecting me?"
"I've given you enough respect already." Savage's tone went cold. "Not this time."
"Then die."
Lightning erupted from Jack's fingertips the instant the words left his mouth.
Crack!
The bolt struck Savage dead center—and did nothing.
"What do you think I've been doing all this time?" Savage pulled his trench coat open, revealing a specialized suit beneath. Insulated mesh covered every inch of his torso. "Made specifically for you. Even if you multiplied that charge tenfold, it wouldn't touch me."
Jack made a soft sound of acknowledgment. "You're making this difficult."
"Not at all." Savage smiled. "Help me create Firestorm, and the old man goes free."
Jack considered this for a moment, then slowly raised both hands. "Pick a side."
"What?"
"Left or right. Choose."
Savage studied him with suspicion. "What game is this?"
"Just pick."
"Fine. Left."
"Left it is." Jack lowered his right hand. His left stayed raised, palm aimed at Savage's chest. "Ten million volts."
BOOM.
A serpent of lightning—massive, blinding—lanced across the room and swallowed Savage whole. Inside the writhing column of electricity, his insulated suit detonated in a spray of charred fabric. Seconds later, what remained of Vandal Savage collapsed to the floor, body blackened like burned timber. The stench of cooked meat filled the interrogation room.
"Tenfold?" Jack shook his head. "My current has no upper limit."
He turned to the blackboard and wiped the Firestorm matrix clean with his sleeve. Valentina and Martin Stein stood frozen, staring.
"Well? Let's go."
---
Back in their quarters, Lilah was already packing. Laurie stood off to one side, silent and still.
"Master." Lilah turned as they entered. "Almost finished."
Jack smiled. "You're getting better at anticipating. The Aerie's on the roof. Finish up and wait for me there."
Lilah hesitated. "Are you helping Valentina become Firestorm?"
"Yes."
"Firestorm needs two people to work, right?" Her voice was careful. "Who's the other one?"
Jack's smile turned knowing. "Why? Interested?"
Lilah gathered her courage and nodded.
Lilah and Valentina. A female Firestorm. The idea had a certain appeal. He wondered which of them would serve as the dominant host—or if they could alternate.
"Come to the laboratory after you've delivered everything." He turned and walked out.
"Yes!"
Lilah pumped her fist and spun toward Laurie, who hadn't moved. "What are you standing there for? Help me carry these."
---
After escorting Martin Stein out of the camp, Valentina rushed to the laboratory. She recalibrated the equations, adjusted the reactor settings, and was running final checks when Jack arrived.
"Tell me." She didn't look up from her instruments. "What's missing?"
"A partner."
"A partner?" She straightened, realization flooding her features. "Two people—Firestorm requires two to stabilize the energy matrix."
Her eyes locked onto his. "Are you going to merge with me?"
Jack shook his head and glanced toward the doorway. Lilah was jogging toward them.
"Your partner just arrived."
"Lilah?" Valentina's confusion cleared. "Of course. Her."
The moment Lilah reached them, Valentina seized her wrist and pulled her into the reactor housing. She cranked the power to maximum. The core blazed crimson, heat radiating outward in waves. Both women placed their hands on the reactor's surface, their bodies pressed close—
WHOOOM.
Fire erupted through the chamber, filling every inch with searing light.
The door hissed open.
Valentina emerged wreathed in flame. Fire rolled across her shoulders, her arms, her face—but didn't burn. She was the fire.
Female Firestorm. Success.
"This power—" Valentina clenched her fist, watching plasma dance between her fingers. "This is incredible."
"Good." Jack turned toward the exit. "I'll find somewhere for you to test it out. For now, we're leaving."
"Leaving?" Valentina's voice sharpened. "No. I'm staying. I'm going to help my country crush the Americans."
A fireball screamed toward Jack's back.
FWOOM.
Flames engulfed him, roaring up to consume his entire body.
"No!"
The cry ripped out of somewhere inside Valentina—inside Lilah. The fire instantly died. Firestorm split apart, and suddenly there were two women standing in the laboratory again, both gasping.
"Master!"
Lilah started running toward him—then stopped.
The flames on Jack's body weren't going out. They were changing. Drawing inward. Concentrating around his hands, his head. His eyes had turned solid crimson, burning like coals in a furnace.
"Fire... Firestorm?" Valentina stumbled backward. "How—how can you become Firestorm by yourself?"