Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The rain lashed against the rusted, crumbling facade of the old Radianite facility on the outskirts of Istanbul. Thunder rolled through the sky like a distant roar, punctuating the quiet tension that hung in the air. From beneath the storm’s fury, the sound of rapid footsteps echoed through the darkened corridor of the abandoned building. Click. Click. Click. Motion detectors sputtered as they sensed movement.

A security drone buzzed into the darkness, its damaged circuits sparking in sync with the storm. The drone’s sensors shifted, locking onto a figure moving with unnatural speed. A surge of electric energy crackled in the air—then, a blur of black and blue darted past. Aslı Çiçek , known to the world as Flash , streaked through the hallway, her electric blue-tipped ponytail trailing behind her like a banner of chaos. Her jacket flared behind her, revealing the neon lines of circuitry woven into the fabric. Sparks leapt from her fingertips, the crackling energy reflecting in her glowing yellow eyes. “ They always think they can hold power. Lock it away. Control it... ” she muttered to herself, her voice calm but edged with mischief.

“ But power isn’t meant to sit still. ” She skidded around a corner, her boots leaving static traces on the wet floor. A guard, crouched behind a tech turret, turned just in time to catch a glimpse of her glowing figure. His scanner blinked red, a warning he didn’t have time to process before the static hit. “ Target located—she’s jamming our grid! ” the guard shouted, but his voice was drowned out by a violent surge of electricity.

Flash grinned as she slammed her foot into the ground, her body surging forward in an Arcstep. She appeared behind the guard in an instant, elbowing him in the back with a force that sent him sprawling to the ground. Another guard raised a rifle, but before he could pull the trigger, Flash lashed out with a bolt of energy, sending her Voltage Lash snaking through the air to disable his weapon. It sparked, fizzled, and died in a flash of blue. "Did I short-circuit your plan?" Flash taunted, her voice ringing out, dripping with cocky confidence. “ Not enough volts for you, huh? ” With a leap, she tossed a Static Mine in the path of a third enemy.

It hovered, crackling with energy. Her eyes flicked to the ceiling—just in time to spot a fourth guard creeping down the metal scaffolding. She pulled her leg back and launched herself into the air, twisting mid-jump. The mine exploded beneath her, a burst of electricity arcing between the guards in the room. The resulting shockwave rippled through the air, chaining lightning between the hapless soldiers. “ I’ve got all the volts you need. ” Flash laughed as she landed, rolling to her feet and disappearing into another Arcstep, leaving a trail of afterimages in her wake.

But the battle was far from over. The room buzzed with the sound of reinforcements flooding in, and Flash felt the familiar rush of adrenaline pumping through her veins. Her heart raced, and the electricity coursing through her veins thrummed in anticipation. The moment had arrived. It was time to show them what true power felt like. BOOM! The EMP pulse rang through the building as she slapped both palms together. Her body crackled with violent arcs of electricity, the air thick with the tension of a storm about to break. The black lightning surged through her as her vision flickered to an overwhelming yellow glow. “ Let me show you what an overload looks like. ”

In an instant, the entire room seemed to distort. Enemy tech sputtered and died, turrets spun uselessly in place, and even the soldiers’ weapons went limp. Flash moved with terrifying speed, her limbs blurring as she wreaked havoc in a storm of electric fury. With each movement, her power intensified. Arcstep. Voltage Lash. Every step she took sent shockwaves through the air. A guard tried to flee. Flash smirked, the jolt of exhilaration in her chest reaching its peak. She released another Arcstep and was on him before he could blink.

With a flash of lightning, he crumpled to the floor, his body still twitching from the electric pulse that had overwhelmed him. The last of the operatives, a towering figure in heavy armor, raised his rifle in a desperate last-ditch effort. Flash didn’t even break a sweat. She bent low, darting forward with lightning speed and knocking the rifle aside with a flick of her wrist. Her knee connected with his chest before he even had time to react, sending him flying back into the wall. She stood over him, breathing steadily despite the chaos she’d just unleashed.

Her eyes glowed bright yellow, matching the pulse of energy that still coursed through her. Her body crackled with power, every muscle primed and ready for more. Brimstone’s voice crackled through her comms, impressed but never surprised. “ Control, this is Brimstone. Flash just cleared the site. Solo. ” Flash wiped a bead of sweat from her brow, her voice tinged with playful arrogance. “ Told you. Just needed a little spark. ” As the facility fell silent, the faint hum of electricity was the only sound left. Flash surveyed the room, her fingers still crackling with energy, her heart pounding from the adrenaline. She’d delivered. Not for redemption, but for the thrill. And she was already craving the next fight.

Chapter Text

The lights in her room flickered the moment she walked in.

Not because the power was out—because she was still charged.

Aslı sighed and shut the door with a nudge of her boot. The high-security latch clanked shut behind her. Her jacket was torn at the shoulder again, trailing the smell of ozone and burnt polymer. Her ribs ached where the voltage had backfired during the mission—too much energy, too fast, too soon. Classic.

She tugged the high-collar jacket off with a wince, tossing it onto a charging hook near her wall. Sparks jumped between the embedded circuits and the outlet, automatically syncing her suit’s stored discharge with the room’s grid. The hum of recharging filled the space. Familiar. Comforting.

She slumped onto the edge of her cot, which was more wires and cooling gel than actual bedding. Her fingers still buzzed—microtwitches of leftover static arced along her knuckles.

She flexed her hand and muttered, “Still sparking. KJ’s gonna yell.”

A small screen blinked to life near her desk, showing a pending message from Killjoy:

“You pushed your voltage limits again, didn’t you? You need the gauntlet upgrades. We’ll talk tomorrow. REST.”

Aslı rolled her eyes and leaned back, exhaling through her teeth. Her bandolier, singed at the strap, rested on the table beside a half-empty can of soda and a tiny plastic tulip—yellow, hand-painted. A piece of home. It somehow survived every move.

The room was quiet now. No enemy turrets, no bulletfire, no barked comms in her ear. Just the low pulse of energy slowly draining from her muscles, the crackle of static relaxing into nothing.

Her mind replayed the mission.
Arcstep. Lash. Mine. Surge. Blackout.
She’d cleared the site, but it had cost her—too much time in the overclock. Her vision blurred near the end. Her hands were still trembling, even now.

She reached up to untie the electric-blue band that held her hair back and let it fall around her shoulders. The black tips were damp with sweat. Her fingers brushed over a forming bruise under her collarbone.

“Still breathing,” she whispered. “Still burning.”

The lights dimmed to a soft cyan, automatically reading her slowing heart rate. She let herself lie back fully, boots still on, arms sprawled across the sheets like she’d just collapsed there.

Above her, the ceiling lit with a slow, artificial thundercloud—her own customization. Lightning rolled gently across the panel, a mirror of her own soul: always moving, never silent.

She closed her eyes.

Tomorrow she’d charge up again.

But tonight?

Tonight, the storm could rest.

Chapter Text

The room was gone.

The cot, the walls, the hum of the HQ—all vanished.

She stood barefoot in a hallway that stretched forever. Old fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, flickering unevenly. The floor beneath her was wet, slick with something that smelled like copper and rain. Her bandolier was gone. Her jacket, torn worse than before, hung off one shoulder like molted skin.

Something was wrong with her hands.

They twitched, spasming with arcs of uncontrolled voltage, fingers curled like claws. Static dripped off them in long threads that never touched the floor.

"Aslı."

The voice came from behind her, soft but electric, crackling like a faulty intercom.

She turned.

A figure stood at the far end of the hallway—a mirror image of herself.
But where Flash crackled with bright, focused energy, this version of her was burned out. Skin gray with overcharge scars. Eyes glowing far too bright. Her mouth opened—

—and the light spilled out.

"You did this," the voice said from inside her own ears.
"You're burning too fast. Too bright. You think you'll live like this?"

She tried to Arcstep away, but her feet stuck. No charge. No response. Her power—the power she always trusted—refused her.

"No, no, no—move!" she gasped.

The copy stepped closer, dragging an electric chain behind her, scraping sparks on the tile. Every step sent pulses of agony up Aslı’s spine. Her heart hammered. Her fingers sparked uncontrollably.

"You think they’ll keep you around when you melt down, little spark?" the nightmare sneered.
“You’re not Neon. You’re not stable. You’re a weapon with a ticking battery.”

The lights above shattered one by one.

Boom. Boom. Boom.

Darkness.

Suddenly—FLASH.

She was back in the facility. The last mission. But different.

Everyone was dead.

Her Static Mine had gone off too early. Her teammates were caught in it—Phoenix lay twisted in a heap, his jacket scorched black. Killjoy’s turret smoked beside her ruined gauntlet.

"No… no, I timed it right—!"

She turned and saw herself again. The nightmare copy. Smiling.
“You overloaded. Just like they warned you.”

Her own voice, echoing back at her:
"Let me show you what an overload looks like."
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.

Everything burst in white—

Aslı bolted upright, gasping, the room briefly lit by a pulse of electricity that jumped from her chest to the wall outlet. Her heart was racing. Her sheets smoked slightly under her hands.

The storm ceiling above flickered.

She stared at her palms, breathing hard.

Still sparking.

Still burning.

She whispered to herself in Turkish, quiet and scared:
"I’m not gonna lose control. I’m not."

But deep down, she knew.

The faster you run, the harder it hits when you stop.

Chapter Text

Cheese Incident (Valorant HQ Kitchen – 3:07AM)

Killjoy finds Flash standing in front of an open fridge.
Lightning’s arcing between all the cheese packets.

KJ: “Aslı. Why is there a glowing Gouda levitating in my fridge?”
Flash (dead serious): “I'm testing conductivity. Also I was hungry.”
KJ: “It's melting."
Flash: “It's evolving."

The cheese explodes.

Arcstep into the Shower (Training Wing – 9:22AM)

Flash tries to Arcstep from one sparring pad to another.

Overshoots.

Straight through the locker room wall.

Directly into Brimstone’s cold shower.

Brimstone (mid-scream): “WHAT THE HELL?!”
Flash (soaked, blinking): “…Sir, your loofah conducts electricity. Respect.”

"Do Not Touch" Glove Moment (R&D Lab – 2:45PM)

Killjoy invents anti-static gloves.

Tells Flash not to touch them yet.

Flash, five minutes later, wearing them, running around like Naruto:
“LOOK AT ME I’M GROUNDED! NOTHING CAN STOP ME NOW!”

She touches a control panel. It does stop her. Immediately. With a pop and a squeak.

Panel dies. KJ screams in German.

Uno Reverse (Interrogation Room – 6:01PM)

Protocol captures a hostile operative.

Flash is assigned to "observe quietly."

She walks in with a folding chair, slams it backward, sits cool.

Flash: “So. You zap people too?”
Enemy: “What?”
Flash: “I mean it’s cute. Little stun gun. Baby volts. I call that a Tuesday.”
Enemy: “…Are you interrogating me?”
Flash: “No, I’m bullying you. Big difference.”

Enemy cracks within four minutes.

Nighttime Shuffling (HQ Dorms – 1:13AM)

Reyna hears buzzing. Walks into the hallway. Sees a faint glow under Flash’s door.

Opens it.

Flash is lying upside down on her bed, balancing a lemon on her nose, phone hovering mid-air, hair floating.

Reyna: “Aslı.”
Flash: “I’m practicing psychic conductivity and citrus stability.”
Reyna: “…Do you ever sleep?”
Flash (whispering): “No. I charge.”

Chapter Text

Flash Karaoke (HQ Rec Room – 8:36PM)

Neon set up karaoke. Mistake #1.

Flash somehow hacks the mic to auto-tune her voice with pitch-based lightning pulses.

Flash (singing):
🎶 “I’m fast, I’m flashy, I broke your coffee machine—”
static crackle
🎶 “This song is mostly screaming~!”
explodes a lightbulb with a high note

Everyone claps. Sage silently unplugs the speakers mid-set.

F orbidden USB Port (Command Center – 2:11PM)

There’s a port on the terminal marked DO NOT CONNECT POWER SOURCES.

Flash plugs herself into it.

Literally.

Chamber: “What are you doing.”
Flash (charging with arms out like a lightning Jesus): “Becoming... one with the uplink.”
Chamber: “You're corrupting the entire UI."
Flash: “I am the UI now.”

Everything reboots in Turkish.

The Stand-Off (Training Arena – 11:45AM)

Flash and Phoenix face off for a warm-up duel.

She Arcsteps. He flashes.

She sidesteps his flash. He sidesteps hers.

They both scream, blind anyway, and run full-speed into the same wall.

They lie on the floor.

Phoenix: “I can’t feel my eyebrows.”
Flash: “I can. They’re extra crispy.”

Box Gremlin (Supply Wing – 4:57AM)

Omen senses… movement. In the crates.

He opens one.

Flash is curled up inside like a feral cat, holding a bag of expired trail mix and glowing faintly.

Omen: “Why.”
Flash: “I live here now. Rent’s free. Ambience is moody. No one yells if I explode something.”

She zaps the door closed again. Omen backs away slowly.

Wrong Number (Mission Comms – Field, 6:00PM)

Brimstone radios in mid-op:

“Status report.”

Flash (on open channel): “Sir I accidentally overcharged the comms and now I’m talking to a toaster in Istanbul.”

Brimstone: “…What?”
Flash: “It asked for weather updates. I told it I am the storm.”

Phoenix (somewhere): “She's fried again, mate.”

BONUS MINI-MEME: "Stuff Flash Has Definitely Said"

• “If I run fast enough I don’t need a plan.”

• “Voltage is just a suggestion.”

• “I learned to Arcstep by chasing my own Wi-Fi signal.”

• “Brim said ‘don’t cause a scene’ and I heard ‘make fireworks but subtle’.”

• “Sometimes I wake up with static hair and I just go with it. It’s a vibe.”

Chapter Text

"Not Authorized Personnel" (Armory – 12:30PM)

Sign says RESTRICTED ACCESS: CLEARANCE 5 ONLY.

Flash walks up with a smile, slaps a sticky note on her chest that says "CLEARANCE 5", and casually walks in.

Turrets beep at her.

Flash: “Hey hey hey, I’m CLEARLY five.”
She zaps the access panel. The door unlocks.
Reyna (from the hallway): “Why are you like this?”
Flash (already inside): “Chronically unsupervised.”

The Screwdriver Thing (Killjoy’s Workshop – 10:02AM)

Killjoy, exhausted: “Aslı, please don’t touch anything sharp or sparky.”

Flash nods.

Three minutes later she’s dual-wielding two screwdrivers like sai, spinning in circles on a wheeled chair and yelling:

“SCREW NUNCHUCKS!!!”

She crashes into a plasma battery and erases the lab Wi-Fi for six hours.

Stealth Mission (Unknown Location – 02:00AM)

Briefing says: Stealth only. No power surges. No light.

Flash shows up to the drop point in glowing sneakers and a cropped jacket with neon circuit embroidery.

Sova: “You are glowing.”
Flash: “I call it ‘tactical distraction.’”
Neon: “You look like a rave.”
Flash: “Good. While they shoot at me, you win.”

She proceeds to draw literal fire while beatboxing into her comms.

They do win.

The Milk Heist (Mess Hall – 11:11AM)

There’s one bottle of almond milk left. Breach and Yoru are eyeing it. Standoff vibes.

Flash Arcsteps between them, grabs the bottle mid-blink, vanishes again with only a static pop and the distant sound of laughter.

She drinks it out of a measuring cup later while watching them bicker on the security cams.

Surprise “Testing” (HQ Exterior – 7:45PM)

Chamber: “What was that explosion just now?”
Flash: “I wanted to see if I could make lightning go sideways.”
Chamber: “Did it work?”
Flash: “It did. Into a drone. The drone no longer exists.”

Chamber sighs and walks away.

Flash (quietly, to herself): “He didn’t say not to do it again.”

Bonus: Flash Plays Games Like a Goblin

• In a training sim with Phoenix:
  “Let’s split up—NO wait I’ll be all three decoys, I’m really fast.”

• During Valorant GO Kart Night:
  Electrifies her kart tires. Wins. Blows out a fuse and crashes through a vending machine.

• In a strategy meeting:
  Draws a smiley face with lightning on the hologram table. Labels it "me". Then zaps in a bigger lightning bolt. “Also me but angrier.”

Chapter Text

Field Trip: City Recon (Istanbul – 2:17PM)

Objective: low-profile recon near a suspected Radiant hotspot.

Flash shows up in a neon windbreaker, LED earrings, and light-up sneakers that squeak when she walks.

Cypher: “What part of 'blend in' did you not understand?”
Flash: “I am blending. With the local club scene.”

She is not wrong. A small crowd mistakes her for a street performer. She starts dancing with a busker while zapping her fingers in rhythm.

Mission fails upward.

Boba Catastrophe (Shopping Plaza – 3:12PM)

Flash tries boba for the first time. Loves it.

Overcharges the straw on accident.

Launches a tapioca pearl at supersonic speed into the next kiosk’s decorative teapot.

It explodes like a claymore.

Flash: “Okay so I might have weaponized dessert.”
Phoenix (laughing so hard he chokes): “You’re never allowed in a food court again.”

Crane Game War (Arcade – 4:45PM)

Flash sees a crane game with a tiny plush of KJ’s turret.

Spends 15 lira. Fails.

Spends 50 lira. Fails.

Silently puts her hand on the glass and channels static through the base.

The claw jerks like Frankenstein’s monster and drops the plush directly into the prize bin.

Neon (watching): “That was illegal.”
Flash: “That was destiny.”

Tourist Trap (Landmark – 5:30PM)

Sova’s trying to take recon photos.

Flash keeps photobombing every single one by Arcstepping just as he clicks.

One image has five Flashes at once. She’s in mid-jump, throwing peace signs in all of them.

He looks up, haunted.

Sova: “She’s a cryptid. A very loud cryptid.”
Flash (already climbing a statue): “I LIVE IN THE LENS, OLD MAN.”

Dance Floor Incident (Underground Club – 11:22PM)

Mission shifts. Intel suggests Radiant activity at a local club.

Flash enters. Vanishes into the lights instantly.

When the team finds her again, she’s mid-breakdance, surrounded by stunned dancers and blasting electro beats from a speaker she absolutely stole from HQ.

Enemy Radiants try to ambush her.

Flash: “OH YOU WANNA THROW HANDS?? I BROUGHT VOLTS!”

She electric-slides directly into one and takes down two more with a beat-synced Arcstep combo. Crowd thinks it’s part of the show.

Team Debrief (HQ – Next Morning)

Brimstone: “Your mission was to observe quietly.”
Flash: “I did observe! Loudly! With style!”
Brimstone: “You blew up a smoothie bar.”
Flash: “That was unrelated and deeply personal.”