The first thing Jay saw when he walked into the room was a robot. He was startled for a moment, until he realized that what he was seeing was not really a robot at all. It was the old super hero called the Robotman. The original one. There was a new one now, who was a member of the Doom Patrol, but this one was the first. His name had once been John Britton. He was a world war one flying ace, formerly known as the Iron Ace. After a crash in the thirties, he was rebuilt by a genius and made into man of metal. A robot man. Jay had met him before, back when Jay was the original Flash and a member in good standing of the Justice Society. Robotman had fought beside the JSA on occasion. Jay was glad to see that he was still functioning. There were so few of the old guard left.

"Hello, John," Jay said. "I didn't except to see you here."

"I prefer to be called Robotman," the metal man replied.

"I see," Jay said, surprised not only by the words by also by the cold tone in Robotman's voice. "Have you come here to pay your respects?"

"Negative," Robotman answered. "That is a human action. And I am no longer human. I am of the machine world. I came in answer to a request by Rita Farr, the Elasti-Girl, to guard the comatose patient from attack by Dr. Doom."

Jay could tell that there was a lot more to this situation than he had been told. "Excuse me, Robotman. I'd like to see him."

"You may proceed, Jay Garrick."

Jay walked over to the bed. He looked down at the comatose figure who lay there. This man was one of the great legends of all time. At 100 years old, he'd proven himself a great champion of justice over the decades. He was Doc Savage, the man of bronze.

"Hi Doc," Jay said. "It's me, the Flash. I don't know if you can hear me, but even if you can't, I'll feel better saying what's on my mind. We all hope you get through this. You mean a lot to so many people. You were the first of us, and the best of us. No one in the world, except maybe Captain America, better symbolized what a hero should be. I always admired you, both as a hero and as a scientist. I still remember the day you helped me build the cosmic treadmill. I'd never been more impressed by anyone's scientific genius before. You were amazing. It would be a loss to the world if we should lose you. There aren't many of us old timers left alive and well. Hang in there, Doc. Win this battle too, just like you won all the others. You'll be in my prayers."

Jay turned and walked away from the great hero. As he passed the Robotman, he patted the metal man on the shoulder. "Take good care of him, Jo . . . Robotman!"

"I shall endeavor to perform my appointed task adequately."

Flash felt a chill after talking to the emotionless former pilot. The Flash walked out of the hospital. Once outside, he headed for the express bus stop. There was a time when he would have run, and covered the distance in a hundredth of a second. But no longer. It would be too much of a strain on his aged body. As he walked, he passed a phone booth. He decided to call Joan and tell her how the Doc was doing.

"Jay!" Joan snapped loudly into the phone. "You've got to get back here! All Hell is breaking loose in Keystone. And bring some help!"

Jay got some minimal information and then hung up. He needed to summon help and so quickly dialed the number of the first man who came to mind.

Jay suspects that it's a leak in the speed force, possibly caused by his years of accessing that force here in Keystone. That's only a theory. But whatever the truth is, everyone in this town is afraid to move, because they suddenly find themselves accelerating to light speed. Residents of Keystone are suddenly spread out all over the globe. I use my ability to sense other speedsters to track them down and bring them back home. Joan Garrick was smart enough not to move once she saw what was happening to everyone else, so she's safe at home. Jay is with her now. I think I've rounded everyone else up. My problem now, is what to do with them? What do I do with a town of people as fast as I am, who have no idea how to control their power?

Flash cruised around the town, grabbing anyone who accidentally started to accelerate beyond their ability to control, and returning them safety to their home. He struggled to find some way to rectify the situation.

The Speed War may have begun long ago, or perhaps it only started moments ago. That all depends on how one views time. But whenever it started, it was quickly escalated.

The instigator was a powerful being called Ghostlight. Light was old when the Galaxy was young. He ate light and he moved like light. He was a spectral by-product of light. He was the fastest moving creature in all existence, other than light itself. After an incident in a long ago battle with a cosmic being, Ghostlight went to sleep. He slept in the heart of a sun. For a thousand centuries, he slept. But when he finally awoke, he was not happy. Something new had developed. Something called the Speed Force. He hadn't known about it before. But it clearly was present. And it gifted people with the ability to move just as fast as light. Some moved even faster. Mere mortal had pierced the light barrier and crossed over the speed of light.

This was a situation that was intolerable for Ghostlight. He would not tolerate it! He would destroy the Speed Force. And he tried, several times. Ghostlight was powerful, and it was often only by luck that those in the Speed Force were able to fight off the Ghostlight. The speedsters gathered up as much help as they could. They began to give flesh and blood beings the power to cross over into the Speed Force itself, becoming one with the speed force. They became speed warriors, soldiers in a war that raged in the wink of an eye.

Ghostlight began to recruit his own acolytes. Many followed him. He led his troops in this speed war against the very source of speed itself.

Barry was battling a group of fire monsters on the planet Vulcan. The heat of the planet was more than a normal human could withstand. But Barry had spent the last years as a being composed of nothing but pure speed. When he returned to the physical world, he was able to make some specific modifications to his mortal being. He increased the power of the aura that protected him from speed friction. It was now strong enough to withstand the heat of fiery Vulcan!

The fire monsters were mindless slaves of Ghostlight. Ghostlight had ordered them to mine silicon for weapons that would be used in the war against the speedsters. The Flash was sent to stop them. The Flash was more than a match for the simple fire monsters. He used his speed to extinguish their flame. With a sonic boom, he caused a landslide, which buried the silicon mines.

One more battle over, but still so many more to come, he thought sadly. He felt badly about having to destroy the simple rock monsters. He felt great dismay over the future victims of this war. So many deaths. And the worse part was, if Ghostlight won, what would the side effect be to the galaxy when the speed force was destroyed?

Flash was about to run back into the Speedforce, but he was distracted. Someone else was on the planet. It was a woman. A beautiful woman with red hair. The Flash ran over to her. She looked familiar. There was something about her that rung a bell. He had seen a picture of her or something.

"Who are you?" he asked.

She showed no emotion. She stared with a supernatural calm. "Once, long ago, I was called Natasha Romanoff. I was a human from Earth, as were you. And like you, I was once a member of that noble mortal fellowship called the Avengers League."

"Natasha Romanoff," Flash repeated, dragging the long ago memories from his mind. It all seemed like an eternity ago. "You were the Black Widow! You were the one who became the Spectre. You saved the Earth from the King of Tears."

"I was," she said. "And I have spent many years in the hostile realm of that evil creature. But now I have been brought back."

"Why, and by whom?" Flash asked.

"By whom would be the great presence, from whom I received my powers. As for the why, I am to make a judgment."

"On who?"

"On you, Flash."

"Me?"

"Not only you," she said. "On you, on your fellow speedsters and on Ghostlight and his evil followers. This war that you are waging threatens everything that lives. The side effects of it are already affecting many other worlds including your home world of Earth. This must end before universal Armageddon ensues."

"Judgment shouldn't be too difficult," Flash said. "You said yourself that Ghostlight and his followers are evil."

"Yes," the Spectre yelled. "But I have learned that, even though one is evil, he still may have a purpose in the universe. I must decide which of you — the warriors of Speed of the followers of the evil Ghostlight — Are more worthy to survive."

"Can't you decide?"Flash asked.

"I . . . cannot," she said. "I have spent too much time away from mortal. Their philosophies of good and evil have become a distant memory. I fear making the wrong decision. I need to find someone else to make the choice for me. Someone who is ambivalent, who is a shade of gray. Someone who is not wedded to either good or evil. I must find just such a person."

"Where will you look?" Flash asked.

"I will go home," the Spectre replied. "I will go to a place where I am comfortable. Since the Earth is already affected, it is as good a place as any. I will then seek out those who I know to be heroes. I will seek out the Avengers League. I will get them involved in this battle. And I will find a foe for them to fight. And then I will find someone to judge the outcome of that battle. And whomever he chooses, he will decide the result of this war between good and evil!"

Captain America. Martian Manhunter. Wonder Woman. Iron Man. Quasar. The Wasp. Hawkeye. And Batman. The worlds greatest heroes. The Avengers League.

"What's the situation?" Cap asked the Flash.

"I'm not really sure," Flash said, "but I'm glad you guys are here, because I have a feeling that things are going to get a lot worse before they get better. I have a feeling that something big is coming."