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It had been six months since Thad had taken over Bart’s life. With one clever move, Thad had trapped Bart in a VR Prison, where the boy could play hero for the rest of eternity. Meanwhile, Thad could move forward unhindered with his plan. He would completely take over Bart’s life, destroy everything and everyone Bart loves, before finally destroying Bart himself. After all, that had been the reason Thad had been created; to destroy the Allens for good. And Max Mercury was already dying, which was an excellent start. But then something changed. His impersonation was perfect, and he had managed to fool everyone, except for the dog but he quickly found a way to remedy that. He brought up Bart’s grades from C’s to A+s, managed to win the respect of Bart’s peers and his teammates, and even earned the friendship of Bart’s friends, including Carol who knew Bart’s secret. He worked diligently at school, home, and the lab of Dr. Morlo. He had become a hero, a better hero than Bart, and had earned respect. The feeling was strange. He had never been treated with such warmth before. People would hug him and thank him for rescuing them. Max even praised him. The words still echoed in his memory.
He had just unraveled a class four tornado and was heading home when Max’s voice came through the communicator.
“You’ve made… amazing progress these last few weeks! All the things that we’ve been working so hard to teach you… you should be proud of yourself because I am very, very, proud.”
‘He’s… He’s proud of me!’ Thad had thought to himself with a grin. ‘No one’s ever been proud of me before… But all these people, all his friends and family, they really care about me! Everything is so… so positive! The gratitude, the praise, especially from Max! I could learn to like this. Maybe… maybe I won’t kill Max in the speedforce after all! Maybe I’ll keep this life and become a hero!’ And with those thoughts floating through his head, along with images of a grand future with him as the beloved hero instead of Bart, Thad rushed back to the house.
That was the moment that had changed it all. After that thought, that dream, Thad had realised just how much he cared for Bart’s friends and family. He genuinely liked Helen, who cared for him the way mothers are said to care for their own, and he had begun to find Bart’s friends more pleasant to be around.
“Welcome Home, Speedy one!” Helen greeted him as he entered the door. ‘Home,’ Thad thought, ‘I like the sound of that.’ He watched on as Max, who had been sitting at the computer monitoring any situation that might call for a speedster hero, struggled to stand. He had been getting worse by the day, and yet he showed no worries, instead he remained very positive and was completely thrilled by Thad-Bart’s progress. As Thad watched on, wondering why Max was pushing himself to move, he saw Max close the distance between them and pull him into a hug.
“I wanted to tell you here, in person… how very, very proud I am of you.” Max said, struggling to get the words out with whatever strength he still had.
‘He pushed himself so hard… to hug me? All that effort… just to come over here to hug me?’ Thad thought, stunned.
“Th-thanks, Max.” He managed to say, as his mind continued to whirl. No one had ever put in this kind of effort for him. He wasn’t quite sure how to handle it all. But the moment was soon over, as Max was running out of time, so Thad scooped up Max, an all too light Max, into his arms and raced off to Dr Morlo’s lab; after saying goodbye to Helen, of course.
At the Lab, Max was fading fast, his strength unable to keep him upright for more than a few seconds. Thad found himself terrified. For the first time, Thad feared he would lose Max for good. But that had been his goal originally. As time went on, Thad felt more and more conflicted about his life, his plans, and what the future would hold for him. He set Max down in a chair, worry filling his heart, as Max tried to reassure him.
“S’okay” Max panted, “I just… need to catch my wind… But b– before that, I wanted to talk to you. I want you to know how much I appreciate everything you’ve done and sacrificed to get us here… but there’s still a chance that this won’t work. If the Speed Force doesn’t revive me… I’ll still feel like we’ve succeeded. After all this time trying to get you to focus and follow directions… you’ve finally become everything we’ve been working toward…”
Max took a shaky breath as Thad felt his heart swell with pride.
“You’re… you’re like a son to me–”
‘This is it.’ Thad thought to himself, ‘This is everything I’ve been working toward! He loves me! But he doesn’t even know it’s me! He doesn’t yet realise that fool Bart is long gone and never coming back! Finally, someone loves–’
“--Thad.” Max eyed him as Thad blinked in surprise. No one should have been able to figure it out. This whole time, they all thought he was Bart, that somehow Bart had become a genius like himself. He had successfully taken over Bart’s life and won over his loved ones, so how could Max Mercury have possibly figured out he wasn’t actually Bart?
“It is Thad, isn’t it?” Max continued, as Thad stood frozen in place. “It’s been you for quite a while.”
“Wha– I mean, c’mon, Max! It’s me! Bart! The impulsive speedster you’ve been mentoring this whole time!” Thad put on his best Bart Face as Max shook his head.
“No, you’re not. But that’s okay. I don’t know why exactly you wanted to pretend to be Bart, but I figured you deserved a chance.” Max smiled weakly, reaching out a hand to rest on Thad’s shoulder. “You are very clever, and I’m sure you’ve managed to fool just about everyone else, but you couldn’t fool me. You may look like Bart, but you are not him. You’re you. When I realised it was you, I figured this would be a great opportunity to get to know you, and I’m glad I did.”
“When this is all over, regardless of if I survive or not, you’re welcome to stay. This time as yourself.” Max said with a fond smile. “You’ll have to bring back Bart from wherever you sent him eventually, but as long as he’s not in any immediate danger, you don’t have to do so right now. Besides,” Max coughed out a little laugh, “I wouldn’t be surprised if he had already found a way out and was heading back home now.”
Thad, frozen in awe of this behavior, found his thoughts racing faster than ever. He had thought he’d like to keep this life, but now he could really be himself? Surely there was some sort of catch. But Max had never lied to him, or had any sort of strings attached to his promises before, so why would he now. Overwhelmed by emotion, Thad fell forward into Max’s embrace.
“I’d.. I’d like that. I’d really like that.” He mumbled into Max’s shoulder. Max’s hands rubbed his back gently.
“Then let’s get this over with. If we both make it through this, let’s race home together. And, if it fails, run back home for me and tell Helen what happened. She’s very kind, I’m sure she’ll want you to stay as well.”
Thad nodded, throat tight with emotion, and willed his composure to return. He would save Max Mercury, and then he would go home, to his family, together. He would free Bart, if Bart hadn’t already broken free, and then he’d finally start his life. Not one following the will of someone else, but one full of his own choices, side by side with his real family. Thad rose and, after helping Max to his place, started running on the treadmill to sync up with the portal into the Speed Force. As soon as Dr Morlo gave the signal, Thad grabbed Max and rushed forward. The Speed Force embraced them as Thad continued to run. He was not about to let Max die now. Not after all they had been through in the short time they’ve been together.
“I know I’ve said this before, but I really am so very proud of you. We make a good team, a good family– you’re like the son I never had… and I just wanted you to know how much all of this, and you, mean to me… I love you, Thad.”
Thad was blinking back tears as he raced ahead. After what felt like an eternity, but was in actuality a few minutes, Thad and Max stood before the Speed Storm. Max placed a gentle hand on Thad’s head, lightly tousled his hair, then turned and walked into the storm. Thad watched on with bated breath as Max seemed to grow within the storm before he finally reemerged. There, in front of him, was a fully healed Max Mercury.
“It… it worked! I did it!” Thad cheered, rushing into Max’s arms.
“Yes you did. You did well, Thad.” Max said, hugging Thad tightly. “Now, let’s go home.”
And so they did. Together, they escaped the Speed Force, returning to the Lab they had left. Then Thad showed him where he had trapped Bart and together they freed him. After an explanation, Bart agreed that Thad should stay with them, and so the trio raced back home to tell Helen the news. And just like that, the little family Bart had come to know and love grew, as Thad finally found a place, and a family, that he could call home.