Chapter 3: Cold Snap & Hot Leads
National City was fun, but Adam had a multi-verse to explore, and a System that practically demanded he go annoy other heroes. Plus, he had a timeline to follow, and the next big Arrowverse event was calling his name like a siren song of impending chaos.
"Alright, System, next stop: Central City!" Adam thought, pulling up a mental map. "January 19, 2016. The Flash S02E09: 'Running to Stand Still'. Christmas in January, with a side of Weather Wizard, Captain Cold, and Heat Wave. Perfect. Just what the doctor ordered for a Tuesday."
He materialized in a quiet alleyway in Central City, the air noticeably colder than National City. "Figures. Cold powers, cold city. Someone needs to invest in some better heating infrastructure here." He quickly found a news broadcast on a public screen, confirming the date and the escalating meta-human activity.
"Okay, Adam, time to be a subtle, chaotic guardian," he mused. "No grand entrances. Yet. Just… nudges. Like a particularly annoying ghost in the machine."
He heard the distant sirens, the tell-tale sign of Barry Allen being late for something important, or, more likely, chasing a villain. He teleported to a rooftop overlooking a busy street, just in time to see Weather Wizard conjuring a mini-tornado. Civilians screamed, scattering like startled pigeons.
"Oh, for crying out loud, Mardon, can you not?" Adam muttered. He saw a mother struggling with a stroller, directly in the path of some flying debris. Without a second thought, he focused.
[SYSTEM: Teleportation used. Energy Cost: Low.]
Poof. The mother and stroller were suddenly a block away, safe behind a parked car, looking utterly bewildered. Adam, meanwhile, was back on the rooftop. "See? Helpful. And completely untraceable. I'm like a guardian angel, if guardian angels had a penchant for sarcastic commentary and were powered by future tech."
He watched as Barry, a red blur, zipped past. The Flash. "Man, he's fast. Like, really, really fast. Faster than my accidental teleportation, probably. Good to know my limitations. For now."
The Rogues were a different breed. Captain Cold, with his signature parka and absolute zero gun, and Heat Wave, a walking inferno of bad decisions. Adam saw Snart aiming his cold gun at a fleeing security guard.
"Okay, this is where it gets tricky," Adam thought. "Can't directly interfere, but… a little nudge." He focused on a nearby fire hydrant. Shimmer. An illusion of a giant, glowing, neon-pink flamingo (his new signature, apparently) appeared directly in Snart's line of sight, squawking loudly.
Snart, mid-aim, paused, his cold, calculating eyes widening almost imperceptibly. He blinked. The flamingo was gone. He looked back at the security guard, who was now safely around the corner. "What in the…?" Snart muttered, shaking his head. "Must be the cold getting to me. Or Rory's been spiking the coffee again."
Rory, meanwhile, was busy setting a car on fire. Adam, feeling a burst of inspiration, created an illusion of a tiny, disgruntled leprechaun doing an Irish jig on top of the burning car. Rory stared, his pyromaniac glee momentarily forgotten, replaced by sheer bewilderment.
Adam grinned. "Two birds, one stone. Or, you know, two Rogues, one flamingo and one leprechaun. My work here is almost done."
Later, as Team Flash was cleaning up the mess, Adam decided it was time for a more direct (but still subtle) interaction. He found Cisco Ramon, the resident tech genius and pop-culture aficionado, tinkering with a device.
Adam teleported directly behind him, startling Cisco so badly he yelped and dropped his soldering iron.
"Whoa there, Vibe," Adam said, leaning in conspiratorially. "Careful with that. You almost gave yourself a third eye. And not the cool, mystical kind."
Cisco spun around, his eyes wide. "Who are you?! How did you… my sensors didn't pick you up! Are you a new meta? What's your power? Can you, like, turn things into pizza?"
Adam chuckled. "Slow down, speedy. One question at a time. And no, I can't turn things into pizza. Yet. But I can make you think your coffee tastes like existential dread." He snapped his fingers, and Cisco's coffee mug, sitting innocently on the table, suddenly shimmered, the liquid inside briefly turning a murky, unsettling shade of purple before reverting to normal.
Cisco stared at the coffee, then at Adam, then back at the coffee. "What the…?! My coffee! It's… it's fine now, but it was purple! You did that, didn't you?!"
Adam shrugged innocently. "Me? Nah. Must be a new metahuman. Or maybe you just need more sleep, buddy. You're seeing things."
[SYSTEM: Achievement Progress: Witness Hero in Action (Flash). Current: 75%][SYSTEM: Plot Deviation Detected: Minor. Effect: Unforeseen.]
"Minor plot deviation, you say?" Adam thought, a satisfied smirk playing on his lips. "That's my specialty. And Cisco's annoyance? Chef's kiss. This is going to be a fun rivalry."
He teleported away, leaving a sputtering, bewildered Cisco behind. Barry, who had just walked in, looked at his friend. "Cisco, what's wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost."
"Worse, Barry," Cisco mumbled, still staring at his coffee. "I think I just saw a sarcastic ghost. And he messed with my coffee. My coffee!"