Second Chances: Flash

Chapter 12

Chloe Allen was currently sulking in the cell she'd been thrown into, still unable to believe that she'd been forced to sit on the sidelines while her brother got all the glory that came from taking down the bad guy. He even got a superhero suit like their father, but she didn't.

However, she was pulled from her sulking when she saw her brother walk up to the cell.

"So, did you get the guy?" Chloe asked.

"No, he escaped." Barry said.

"I bet if I was there, he wouldn't have." Chloe said.

"Or he would've killed you, since you're not ready to fight someone like him yet. Like dad and I have been saying." Barry said.

"And how am I supposed to be ready for someone like that if you and dad won't take off my training wheels?" Chloe asked and Barry rolled his eyes as he opened the cell door, but before Chloe could go anywhere, Barry grabbed her arm.

"What's going on?" Chloe asked.

"Since you won't listen to me or dad or Tina, I'm taking you to see someone that I think will be able to get the message to sink in for you." Barry said and before Chloe could say anything else, Barry sped off, holding Chloe's arm the whole time and she was so focused on trying to break free that she didn't even notice that they were in the middle of a storm until Barry finally came to a stop.

"Where are we?" Chloe asked.

"We're in the speed force. The source of our power." Barry said.

"But you're also visiting your mother." A familiar voice said and Barry smiled as he turned to see his mother walk up to them.

"Chloe, meet my mother Nora Allen, the host of the speed force. Long story." Barry said.

"How is this possible?" Chloe asked.

"The speed force is more than just the source of our speed. It's a sentient force of nature that can think for itself." Barry said.

"And I can also answer for myself Barry." Nora said, though she clearly wasn't mad, if anything, she was amused.

"So, you don't mind that I'm the daughter of your husband's second wife?" Chloe asked nervously.

"Of course not. I'm thrilled that Henry didn't stay hung up on my death forever. And I'm glad that he was able to keep your brother from obsessing over it." Nora said, giving her son a look.

"If you're expecting me to feel guilty about that, don't." Barry said, since he didn't regret all the time he'd spent trying to prove his dad's innocence.

"Anyways, I'm assuming that you didn't just bring Chloe here to meet me." Nora said.

"No, I was hoping that you might be able to explain to Chloe why she's not as fast as me, since she won't listen to me or dad." Barry said and Nora nodded.

"Chloe, I understand that you want to be as fast as your brother, but that will never happen. I'm sorry, but while you and Barry are both speedsters, Barry is special." Nora said.

"Why, because he's your son?" Chloe asked.

"No, Chloe, in some weird way, all speedsters are children of the speed force. Don't ask." Barry said.

"Anyways, Barry isn't just faster than you. He's faster than every other speedster on the planet. Including your father." Nora said.

"But why?" Chloe asked.

"The speed force chose Barry to be its avatar. Meaning that while I've chosen many speedsters over the years, including your father, Barry is the one who's destined to be my champion, it's chosen hero. That's the reason he was in a coma for nine months. Being my avatar means that he has greater access to my power than most speedsters do and his body needed to adapt to that. But you Chloe, your destiny is not to be my avatar or any avatar for that matter." Nora said.

"And count yourself lucky, because the negative speed force avatar is the only guy on the planet I genuinely want to kill, since he's the one who killed my mom." Barry said.

"This is all great, but it's not helping with my issue, since right now I can't help but wonder why you chose Barry to be your avatar and not me?" Chloe asked.

"Barry has learned to truly appreciate his speed and understand that it's a gift and not something to be abused. A lesson several speedsters have not learned. He has a deep understanding of the speed force that no other speedster possesses. But Chloe, if you don't give up this need to be better than your brother, then you will lose everything and everyone you've ever loved." Nora said as Barry realized what his mother was talking about.

"The negative speed force." Barry said.

"What?" Chloe asked.

"Your anger and jealousy, those are exactly the same qualities Eobard Thawne possessed that drew the negative speed force towards him. If you don't let go of this anger, you will be possessed by it and you'll become the worst version of yourself." Nora said.

"You don't understand? You think I want to be jealous of Barry? Because I don't. But honestly, I've always felt like I'm second best in our family. He's always been the golden boy and I'm stuck in his shadow." Chloe said as Barry looked at his sister.

"Chloe, you have to know I never meant to make you feel that way." Barry said.

"I know, but honestly, it was so easy for you to master your powers but I'm still struggling. It doesn't help that I'm not into science like the rest of the family is. I mean, I thought mom wanted me to take over Mercury Labs for her." Chloe said.

"No, she's been grooming me for that. She always knew that you weren't into science, that's why she and dad never talked to you about taking a role in the company. They wanted to let you find your own path, but clearly they should've talked to you about that. Honestly, I think that all of this could've been avoided if we'd had a bit more communication in our family." Barry said and Chloe nodded.

"Has this resolved your issues?" Nora asked with a smile, happy to see her son and step daughter getting along.

"Actually, there is one more thing and this is even more important." Barry said.

"What is it?" Nora asked.

"Savitar?" Barry asked.

"You already know he still exists Barry, however, there's not much else I can tell you about him." Nora said.

"What do you mean?" Barry asked.

"The timeline is still in flux from Crisis Barry. I'm still working on stabilizing it. Until I do, certain aspects of the future will be hidden from me, though I can confirm that he's not a time remnant of you. His connection to me has been mangled with a connection to the negative speed force. Until it's unraveled, his current location and identity will be concealed from me, but that will also keep him from attacking you. Wherever he is, until his speed is stabilized, he can't use it." Nora said.

"So we'll at least have some breathing room while we deal with Thawne?" Barry asked.

"Yes, but you know I can't get involved in your fight with Thawne." Nora said.

"And I'm not asking you too, I just need to be sure that he's the only headache I'll be dealing with right now." Barry said and Nora nodded.

"The moment I know more about Savitar, I will inform you, since I want to know who's keeping him hidden from me and why as much as you do." Nora said and before Barry could even agree with her, she snapped her fingers and sent both Barry and Chloe home.