Escape Velocity // The Flash

Chapter Twenty-Five: Freaky Friday

Superman did, however, feel someone's desperate attempts and turned his head with speed similar to a less experienced Speedster. That's still pretty fast...but not fast enough. It was already too late. Upon this realisation The Flash had stepped in front of Superman and taken the hit for him. Barry was knocked completely off his feet...but in the opposite direction.

His head throbbed and his body felt completely numb, but he somehow managed to deduct that he was on the other side of the street...behind a limo...with a foreign contraption grasped tightly in his hand. Barry's blood ran cold. He heard screams in the distance, but could only concentrate on his own legs. They were less bulky but made up for that in length. Around them was a black pantsuit that would likely be worth thousands of dollars. Definitely too rich for his tastes.

Barry gulped then scrambled towards the limo's side mirror. That's when a noise somewhere between a gasp and a shriek sounded from his throat. He was bald! And old! And...he was Lex Luthor.

"Lex! We're going to be late for the meeting." The voice of Mercy, Lex's bodyguard, called from behind him. Barry's (or Lex's) entire body tensed. He had to play it cool until he found out how to reverse this. If he was over here then the real Lex would have to be...oh no.

A large crowd had gathered around the downed Metahuman. Reporters scribbled frantically on their notepads and photographers clicked away on their camera's - knowing that a picture of The Flash flat on the ground would be worth a small fortune. Superman knelt beside him, concern drenched on his face.

"Flash, are you okay?" He tried to suppress the urge to call him by his real name. "What happened?"

The Flash touched a hand to his head, feeling the fabric of a mask beneath his fingers and freezing. It had taken a few passing seconds for him to register that someone had just spoken, but when he recognised the voice every muscle in his body flinched. His eyes flickered in the direction of Superman then widened slightly. Had he failed again?! Superman was suppose to be dead!

It took another minute for him to finally remember Superman's words. He had called him 'Flash'... Lex allowed his gaze to fall downward, seeing the tight fitting costume of the scarlet speedster. This definitely wasn't his body, nor his intention, but Lex wasn't a fool. He wasn't about to let this opportunity slip by.

Lex stumbled to his feet, legs trembling unnaturally beneath him. It felt as if he wanted to run for miles, it was an urge that itched at his very core. Still, he kept his composure and stood as straight as he could without dizziness threatening to knock him back down again.

"Yes, Superman. I'm fine. Thank you." He said coolly. "Someone was trying to shoot you with a beam of pure polar energy. It completely eradicates the existence of solar energy, which as you know is the basis of your powers. They must've known exactly how to effect you."

Superman's brow furrowed and he used his enhanced vision to scan the area for the culprit but they were long gone by now. "I'll be more careful. I really appreciate your rescue, but you could have been hurt."

"The main thing is that I wasn't, right Supes?" Lex forced the nickname out of his throat but struggled to not say it with a punch of poison in his tone. "I'll go look for any suspects. You should lay low for a while though, they're probably still looking for you."

Before Superman had the chance to respond, The Flash had turned on his heel and ran in the opposite direction. The only problem was that he was still visible. He hadn't tapped in to the Speed Force so he was sprinting away like a normal person. It was a little odd to actually see him run but Superman tried to ignore it. Barry was probably just a little dazed from the fall. It couldn't be anything else...