First step: VPN installation. Barry navigated to the ProtonVPN website and created an account using a burner email address he'd set up on his phone. He paid for a year of service using a prepaid debit card he'd bought with cash weeks ago. No connection to his real identity.
The VPN software downloaded and installed. Barry configured it to route through servers in three different countries.
Switzerland to Iceland to Romania. Each layer adding another degree of separation between his real location and his digital activity.
Next: encrypted email. He set up a ProtonMail account under a fake identity. Random name generated by a website. Fake birthday. Fake location. The account existed but had no connection to Barry Allen whatsoever.
Then: Tor browser installation. This took longer, the old laptop struggling with the download. But eventually it completed and Barry had access to the deep web, that layer of the internet where anonymity was the default and tracking was nearly impossible.
By 8:30 PM, his digital infrastructure was complete.
Everything routed through multiple layers of encryption and anonymization. Even if someone tried to trace his activity, they'd hit dead ends and false trails.
Barry tested it by running a location check. The websites he visited all thought he was accessing them from Iceland. Perfect.
Now came the real work.
Barry opened a text document and began researching Clifford DeVoe in detail. He already had basic information from his earlier reconnaissance at the university. Now he needed specifics. Personal details that could be weaponized for social engineering.
DeVoe's wife: Marlize Mechanic. Her maiden name was visible on older social media posts from before they married. Mechanic. Security question answer number one.
DeVoe's undergraduate university: Princeton. Listed on his CV. Security question answer number two.
DeVoe's birthday: March 15th, 1978. Public information from his faculty profile. Security question answer number three.
DeVoe's first pet: A dog named Einstein. Mentioned in a 2008 blog post about teaching methodologies where he'd joked about his childhood pet being smarter than some of his students. Security question answer number four.
Barry compiled everything into a document, cross-referencing details against common security question formats. Most systems used variations of the same questions. Mother's maiden name. First pet. Birthplace. High school mascot. City where you met your spouse.
All of it could be discovered with enough research. And Barry's enhanced intellect made that research trivial.
By 10:00 PM, he had a complete profile. Everything he needed to socially engineer access to DeVoe's accounts.
Now he just needed to craft the attack vector.
Barry opened a new document and started writing. The phishing email needed to look completely legitimate. Right tone. Right formatting. Right level of urgency without being overly dramatic.
He pulled up examples of legitimate CCU IT security emails from his earlier research. Studied the formatting. The language. The signature blocks. Everything needed to match exactly.
An hour later, Barry had his draft:
---
*Subject: URGENT: Mandatory Password Reset Required*
*From:* CCU IT Security
Dear Professor DeVoe,
This is an urgent notification from Central City University Information Technology Services. We have detected unauthorized access attempts on faculty accounts within the past 48 hours.
As a precautionary measure, we are requiring all faculty members to immediately reset their passwords through our secure portal.
To reset your password, please click the link below and log in with your current credentials. You will then be prompted to create a new password that meets our enhanced security requirements.
[SECURE PASSWORD RESET PORTAL]
Failure to complete this reset within 24 hours will result in temporary account suspension to protect your data.
This is a mandatory security measure. Please complete the reset at your earliest convenience.
Thank you for your cooperation in keeping CCU systems secure.
Sincerely,
CCU Information Technology Services
Central City University
[email protected] | (555) 0199
---
Barry read through it three times, checking every detail. The tone was professional but urgent. The formatting matched legitimate university emails. The fake email address would route through a domain he'd set up to mirror the real CCU address.
The link led to a fake login page Barry had built using a simple web template. It looked identical to the real CCU portal. When DeVoe entered his credentials, the page would capture them and store them in an encrypted database only Barry could access.
Then it would redirect to the real password reset page so DeVoe wouldn't suspect anything was wrong.
Perfect social engineering. Believable threat. Legitimate-looking solution. Minimal suspicion.
Barry copied DeVoe's email address from the university directory and pasted it into the recipient field. His finger hovered over the send button.
This was it. The point of no return. Once he sent this email, he was committing to cybercrime. Unauthorized access to computer systems. Identity theft. All of it technically illegal even if his intentions were ultimately heroic.
But Barry had already made his choice. The original Barry Allen would have hesitated. Would have worried about the ethics. Would have talked himself out of it.
This Barry Allen knew what needed to be done.
He clicked send.
The email vanished into the digital void, routed through his VPN and encrypted email service. Untraceable. Anonymous. Waiting for Clifford DeVoe to make the mistake of thinking it was legitimate.
Barry closed the laptop and leaned back in his chair, exhaling slowly. His heart rate was elevated slightly. Adrenaline in his system even though he was sitting safely in his apartment.
Done. The attack was live. Now he just had to wait.
Barry checked his phone. One news notification caught his eye:
"Queen's Gambit Departure Confirmed for Friday Morning - Queens to Embark on Pacific Journey"
Nine days. The Queen's Gambit would sink in nine days. Barry's short positions were ready. His financial play was set up. DeVoe's data would be his within 48 hours if the phishing attack worked.
Everything was coming together.
Barry stood up and walked to his bedroom, suddenly exhausted. The mental effort of the day catching up to him. Enhanced intellect didn't eliminate the need for rest.
He lay down on his mattress on the floor, staring at the ceiling. His mind refused to quiet down completely.
Too many moving pieces. Too many variables.
But for the first time since the transmigration, Barry felt like he was actually making progress. Real, tangible steps toward the future he was building.
Coffee with Iris had gone well. His digital infrastructure was solid. The phishing attack was deployed. Phase One was in motion.
Barry closed his eyes, letting sleep take him.
In nine days, the Queen's Gambit would sink and Oliver Queen would disappear.
And Barry Allen would be ready to profit from it.
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