Cisco adjusted his blazer in the backstage corridor, exhaling slowly as the buzz of applause still echoed from Caitlin's finale. He glanced toward the stage, where August offered one last appreciative gesture to the crowd before retreating behind the curtain.
"You're on, Ramon," August said with a smile. "Don't blow up the holograms."
"Only slightly tempted," Cisco grinned. "You warmed them up real nice."
As his name echoed from the auditorium speakers, Cisco stepped out onto the stage, soaking in the rising applause. He carried no notes, no tablet, just himself. He always said the best tech guy is one who can improvise.
The lights dimmed just slightly, leaving a ring of focus around him.
"Good morning, folks," he began. "I'm Cisco Ramon. Chief Technology Officer of the revitalized, fully-supercharged, finally-on-the-right-track S.T.A.R. Labs. And I'm not here to show you magic. I'm here to show you science so advanced it just looks like magic."
A ripple of excitement moved through the crowd.
Behind him, the hologram flared back to life. With a wave of his hand, it reassembled the three-dimensional diorama of the future Central City that August had demonstrated before. But now, the scene focused in on S.T.A.R. Labs—a tower outfitted with glowing antennas, drone ports, and satellite uplinks.
"The future," Cisco continued, "is not just energy and environment. It's how we interact with the world. Which is why I want to talk about the Ghostlight Protocol."
The audience hushed again, waiting.
"What is Ghostlight? Simply put, it's interactive holography—hard-light interfaces designed to replace traditional screens, input devices, and even workspace tools."
The lights shifted. The hologram changed again. An architect's studio appeared, but without paper, computers, or screens. Instead, ghostlike but solid-blue prints floated midair. A designer moved their fingers through space, reshaping walls, rotating floors, layering blueprints with physical gestures.
"We've spent decades designing our futures behind screens. But what if we could walk through them instead?"
Next came a medical application. A doctor stood over a floating projection of a human heart, adjusting layers, highlighting blockages, mapping procedures. "Diagnostic overlays. Emergency response training. Live anatomical walkthroughs. The potential is limitless."
A burst of applause followed as the room absorbed what was unfolding.
"And we're not stopping there. Ghostlight comes with an app suite—we call them Threads. Architecture. Engineering. Education. Notepads that project your work. Boardrooms where blueprints become battlegrounds. And yes, gaming too—because even revolutionaries need a break."
Laughter followed. Cisco smiled. He had their attention.
He made a flicking motion, and the diorama vanished, replaced by a sleek, floating design—a pair of glossy black cuffs. Their surfaces shimmered with circuitry.
"Let's pivot. If you know anything about S.T.A.R. Labs, you know we don't run from problems—especially the ones we helped create."
Behind him, data on metahuman activity began to scroll. Incidents. Emergencies. The danger of uncontrolled powers.
"These are the ARC Cuffs—Adaptive Restraint Cuffs. Capable of dampening high-voltage abilities, regulating unstable cellular shifts, and suppressing anomalous kinetic surges."
A video played: a hostile metahuman subdued with a pair of ARC Cuffs, their powers neutralized within seconds. Another clip showed the cuffs syncing with a tablet, feeding real-time biosigns back to a control system.
"We designed these to be humane, secure, and scalable. They're already in use by Central City's Meta Task Force. And starting next quarter, we're offering licensing packages to vetted agencies worldwide."
The hologram zoomed out again, revealing a new facility model beneath Central City's outskirts: a sleek, high-tech meta-prison.
"In partnership with CCPD and national security agencies, we're building a secure metahuman containment facility—not a dungeon, but a rehabilitation-capable research compound. Because even those with power deserve a path forward."
There was a moment of thoughtful silence, punctuated by a few nods and whispers of approval.
"All of this—Ghostlight, the ARC Cuffs, containment support—was built with one principle: responsibility. We believe power must serve the public, not threaten it."
Cisco paused, his tone softening.
"A lot of people gave up on S.T.A.R. Labs. Said we were done after the accelerator. Said we were ghosts. But maybe ghosts can still light the way."
Another wave of applause.
As he turned back to the curtain, Cisco threw one last grin at the crowd.
"And for the record, yes. The Ghostlight platform supports live karaoke. You're welcome."
The crowd laughed. Applauded. Rose to their feet.
From backstage, Caitlin and August exchanged knowing looks.
"He nailed it," Caitlin said.
August smirked. "Told you."
They stepped forward as Cisco exited the stage, slapping his hand as he passed.
"Ready for the big finale?" August asked.
Cisco nodded. "Let's bring the house down."