Speed Force

The Speed Force is usually depicted as lightning and blurs of yellow and red. This is because the Speed Force is used mostly by Flash's throughout DC history and these are their symbols and colors. The Speed Force is sometimes referred to as the source of all speed, but it is sometimes imagined as a sort of location. All DC speedsters are connected to the Speed Force regardless of the origin of their powers and it is said that when they die, speedsters become one with the Speed Force, sort of a Valhalla for speedsters.

However not all DC superhumans with super speed are connected to the Speed Force, rather it is basically the ones whose primary power is superhuman speed, such beings include:

Barry Allen: The second Flash, his powers are also connected to the Speed Force, which was where his spirit went after his death, even though it was seen in Heaven. Barry Allen, Max Mercury and Johnny Quick all resided in the Speed Force but together they helped Bart Allen capture Superboy-Prime within it. But after Bart returned to Earth so that he could absorb the Spped Force, Barry gave his grandson his costume choosing to remain within the Force.

Bart Allen: The fourth Flash, his powers came from the Speed Force, and at one time he wished to lose this connection, fearing the Speed Force. This was because during Infinite Crisis he was brought into the Speed Force where he aged four years and returned, only to absorb the Speed Force into himself, claiming it was gone.

Jay Garrick: The first Flash, he was unable to keep up with the many speedsters when they entered the Speed Force to entrap Superboy-Prime and as such when Bart returned and absorbed the Speed Force, Jay's powers began to swiftly diminish. Eventually however, when Bart met his demise, Jay's powers have returned to their full strength.

Johnny Quick: Johnny Quick met his fate, when to save his daughter's life he ran into the Speed Force, and merged with it.

Liberty Belle: She inherited her connection to the Speed Force from her father but was temporarily believed to no longer be connected to it.

Max Mercury: A speedster whose spirit is currently trapped in the Speed Force.

Rival: Reverse-Flash was sucked into the Speed Force and their he went insane after remaining their for 50 years. When he returned he wreacked havoc and eventually became a being of pure speed energy who has possessed the body of Max Mercury, thus condemning Max to the Speed Force.

Savitar: Savitar is connected to the Speed Force, developing powers other speedsters had not. Recently he stole the powers of many of them, resulting in some of their deaths or realization that the Speed Force did indeed exist.

Wally West: The third Flash, his powers were connected to the Speed Force, a dimension he chose to live in during Infinite Crisis. He turned into a being of pure speed energy and came to his wife, Linda Park West who grabbed onto him and so they and their children, Jai West and Iris West vanished into the Speed Force. There they remained for many years, so that the twins could age without any pressure on their lives from Wally's superhero life.

XS: A descendant of the modern day speedsters, she too is connected to the Speed Force.

Black Flash

The Black Flash is a Grim Reaper of sorts for speedsters. When near death, all speedsters connected to the Speed Force must face the Black Flash and unless they are able to outrun him they die.

Powers

The Speed Force serves as the primary measure of velocity in the DC Universe. They are usually referred to in terms of different barriers: The Sound barrier, Light barrier, Time Barrier, Dimensional Barrier, and finally the Speed Force Barrier. It introduced several "new" powers to Flash and other Speed Force-powered persons. Some of these powers had previously existed during the DC Silver Age, but were unexplained and later explained as manifestations of the Speed Force.

The Speed Force can be used to various effect including limited to time travel, faster-than-light travel, speed duplicates, constructs using Speed Force energy, faster healing and speed stealing or lending. It also provides speedsters the ability to function at unnatural speeds without the laws of physics stopping them. Speedsters in the force are protected from the full force of impact and heat at the speeds they travel. It also lets them breathe, receive stimuli (sight, hearing, etc.), and avoid completely destroying themselves and the world around them as they move. It can even be used to hold enemies indefinitely.

Here is a list of abilities granted by the Speed Force:

• Infinite Mass Punch - When The Flash begins traveling near light speed he gains the relative mass of such a great speed allowing him to strike with blows with the force of "a white dwarf star."

• Speed Lend/Steal - His most useful new power, Wally West could "rob" objects of their kinetic energy and , for example, stop bullets in flight or convert a supervillain to a statue and use the "stolen" kinetic energy to accelerate his movement. He could similarly lend his speed to objects or allies, enabling them to temporarily travel almost as fast as himself.

• Accelerated Healing - Using the Speed Force to accelerate his healing factor, Wally West could heal from deadly injuries, without aging. While he was in the Justice League Of America, Wally could use this power to heal his other team members by accelerating their healing factors without aging them.

• Constructs - Wally West made the discovery that if he concentrated he could create solid energy constructs using the Speed Force. He has used this ability to close his costume to protect against disease, create pockets for holding items, and to compose his costume. This costume has also exhibited bullet-proof properties.

• Shield - Exhibited by Savitar, whose Speed Force mastery allows him to reflect objects away from himself.

• Flight - Exhibited by Johnny Quick and his daughter Jesse Quick.

• ESP - Used by Max Mercury, whose strong connection with the Speed Force allows him to detect the motion of any object around the world and also to perceive another speedsters. Wally West also exhibited a this ability to perceive Linda across time and space.

• Total Recall - Bart Allen as the Flash used this ability to remember everything he reads using his super-speed. He is the only speedster to show this ability.

• Speed Scouts - The only speedster to use this ability, Bart Allen can create duplicates of himself using the Speed Force that, using the Speed Force's timeless nature, can travel forwards and backwards through time, manipulating objects or merging their consciousness with Bart's, informing him of their actions. Once, when a Speed Scout was killed, Bart fell into a coma and has never used this ability since.