Secret Origins #7

Issue Details

Synopsis

THE CHASE Barry Allen visits his father Henry at Iron Heights on the anniversary of his mother's death, knowing that it would be better to celebrate her life on her birthday, but his memories of this day are so vivid.   He remembers how his mother had played along with his plan to wear a bowtie to school, putting to rests his doubts about looking nerdy. That day, he'd been set to run in a race at school, and worried he would come in last. She had reminded him that she and his father would love him no matter where he placed. When she'd put him on the bus to school, Barry hadn't known it would be the last time he'd see her alive.   He'd run in the 100-meter dash, and though he hadn't won, he was proud to have participated, even though bullies made fun of him for it, and chased him back home. He was so hurried in his escape that he didn't notice immediately that the front door of his house had been broken open. When he rushed in to show his mother the ribbon he'd won, he saw his mother Nora lying in a pool of blood, as his father leapt to his feet and begged Barry not to look. The next thing Barry remembers about that day was how his father was dragged away in handcuffs for his mother's murder, while Darryl Frye promised to look after him. Barry couldn't sleep that night, though, because he couldn't accept that his father had killed his mother. Someone else had to have done it, and he wouldn't rest until he'd found that killer.   To track the killer down, Barry put all of his effort into learning about forensics, so he could study the evidence. He graduated, and got a job with the Central City Police Department using evidence and forensic science to bring criminals to justice, in the hopes of giving other families the closure they needed - always with an eye to get the same for himself.   One night, while working on his mother's case, Barry was struck by a sudden bolt of lightning, and found himself bathed in lab chemicals. He healed from the ordeal faster than expected, and realized soon that he could do everything faster, now. With this ability, he realized he could do even more good than just working for the police. He'd realized that fighting crime for him wasn't just about his mother - it was about a life of service to the greater good - and as the Flash, he would chase bad guys to the ends of the earth. Unfortunately, Central City decided to throw some pretty intense bad guys at him. He is quick enough to stop them, though.   Once again, Henry begs Barry to stop coming to see him - to stop trying to exonerate him for a crime he admits to having committed. Barry responds that whatever his father may think, his investigation isn't just about getting Henry free. He has a hunch that there's something he missed, and he intends to find out what that is. When visitation hours are over, Barry bids his father goodbye, and promises to see him next month, and never to stop chasing the truth. TWO NAMES & TWO WORLDS Five years before the Apokoliptian invasion, Helena Wayne trained in the Batcave with her mother, Catwoman. The girl's persistence pleased her mother, who always seemed to come more alive at night - even during story time for young Helena. The girl was always very excited to hear the tale of the archery contest in the legend of Robin Hood, but on one night, her father - the Batman - returned home early. This angered Selina, who had warned him not to visit Helena while dressed in his Batsuit - especially when it had been riddled with bullets. Teasingly, Selina dragged him away to "lick his wounds," leaving Helena to finish the story herself.   Four years had passed when her mother began considering letting Helena go out on patrol, as her parents did. Helena was excited, but she admitted that she wanted an identity that was separate from those of her parents - one all her own. She drew her own design for a costume, modelled after her hero Robin Hood. Selina convinced her to lose the hood, and before long, the pair were leaping from building to building in the night. Her father, though, was more protective, demanding that she always train harder.   One night, the alarm in the cave went off, and Helena was too late to reach her mother, who had been killed by criminals. Angrily, she ignored her father's warnings and went after the killers alone. She was nearly killed, but was saved at the last second by Supergirl, who became her best friend.   When their families were killed during the invasion, three years later, Kara and Helena recklessly leapt into a Boom Tube, hoping to catch Darkseid. Helena hadn't realized then, that wars don't end with a heroic instant; only lives do.   The Boom Tube sent Helena and Kara to another world entirely. While Kara became obsessed with getting home, Helena decided to do some good where she had ended up, looking into the lives of her family, as it existed in this new place. She found that her mother's double - the Catwoman - was apparently not as zealous about reducing sex trafficking and abuse against women as her Catwoman had been, and so Helena determined that this would be her niche. She designed a new uniform for herself, and began an experiment in crime fighting. Though she wasn't as prepared as she should have been, she survived, and continued her work as the Huntress. LAB RAT Kon-El has always struggled with his identity, living in the shadow of the Superman. He makes his way to S.T.A.R. Labs in New York City, reminding him of how he was cloned in a lab, and besides the start of his own existence, the results were horrific. He has come to S.T.A.R. Labs with the purpose of discovering whose DNA he came from, letting them take a blood sample. As the doctors attempt to draw blood from him, Kon tells of how he was born.   He had wanted, then, to be told who he was to be. He followed the examples of Caitlin Fairchild and Rose Wilson, and even fell in with Harvest, finding a father figure in the madman. While he'd thought he was finding himself in following these people, he realized later that he was only becoming more lost. He began to understand who he really was, as a person, when he met the Teen Titans, and became a hero. Even that, though, lost its sense of authenticity for him.   The doctor prepares a needle with Kryptonite, and Kon explains that it won't be necessary, as his powers only mimic those of Superman. Eventually, he had met Superman, and the experience only further confused him. Superman had looked at him like his existence itself was wrong. Kon had rebelled against the expectation that he become a hero - especially if it was merely because he was bred to be one, that he should. When he tried to take a darker path, he realized he was wrong to.   Soon, things became weird, as he was tasked with becoming a cosmic herald for a being of great power, surrounded by other clones of Jon Lane Kent - the son of Superman and a human, born in the future. Jon Lane Kent fought his way to the present to destroy all metahumans, and Kon was sent to stop him. Of course, that encounter left him with more questions than answers.   Looking for a place in the world, Kon found that the Titans had moved on, but he hoped that there'd be a place for him to remain as a hero. Hearing this, the doctor finishes taking the blood sample, and sets it for analysis, but Kon admits that he already has a sense of who he is, in the telling of his story. He is Superboy, regardless of what the data tells them, and he will make his own way. As he leaves, the doctor discovers that while Kon is ostensibly half human and half Kryptonian, 10% of his DNA is from an unknown source.