Steps

Step 18.2: Darkness in the West

No. No no no. This could not be happening again. Leah pulled against the firm grasp that ensnared her. No!

"Did you think you could hide from me, Arpa? Me?" The man holding her arm smiled down at her. The venom and malice hidden in his grin made Leah's stomach flip. "You forget," he growled, "I can see all. I'm not like the others. There is nowhere you can hide from me."

"I'm not Arpa," Leah nearly screamed. "I don't know who she is or what she did, but I am not her!" She punctuated the last words, trying to make things very clear for whoever this was. This was so insane. Everything was insane! Who was this Arpa person and what had she done to upset so many people?! She writhed in his grip, trying desperately to break free of the hold on her.

"Don't lie to me!" He snapped, spittle flying out of his mouth. Leah winced. The man in his orange and green suit looked like he had come straight from a comic book. It was all skin tight and gaudy, the brightness of the colors nearly burning Leah's eyes. Her eyes stopped roaming him over as they came to rest on the two guns at his belt. That caused her to stop struggling. She was not getting shot at, not again. It was then she decided it was simply best to comply.

"Now, you," the man started again, a bit more composure in his voice, "are going to tell me where Vibe is."

"W-who?" Leah's brow furrowed in genuine confusion. The name sounded familiar; maybe they were a meta. But she still had no clue who they were or where they were for that matter.

"You're little boyfriend!" the man spat again before he took another breath to compose himself. "The one who pops around everywhere with his little portals? You're going to have him portal me back home. I'm sick of this Earth. They never should have sent me in the first place."

Leah's mind boggled. This Earth? She flashed back to what Professor Stein had said once to her in Star Labs about multiverse theory. "I can assure you that it is very real, and the ground that you stand on is at the heart of it all, at least in this universe." Her heart seized. Was it true? Were there really other worlds out there? Other Earths? Other versions of her? Leah snapped her mind back before she got lost in the thought. "I don't know who that is," she said firmly. "I'm not Arpa, I don't know a Vibe, and I don't have a boyfriend."

The grip on her arm tightened, causing her to wince. "You..." he growled before taking another breath. The anger in his face suddenly disappeared as his lips curled into another grotesque smile. "You know," he breathed, an air of superiority suddenly taking over his voice, "they think you're just some hacker. But we know what you can do. Mardon's seen it. But he said you're different here. Weaker. Easier to take."

Leah watched as the man's hand moved towards his belt. A hard lump formed in her throat.

"What? Not gonna blast me with one of those little EMPs of yours? Didn't think we knew that was you?" She let out a small cry as the grip on her wrist tightened again."No? Well it sounds like you're coming with me then, Apra."

A hollow scream caught in her throat. Tears began streaming down her face as whoever this man was started pulling her in the direction of the dining room. There was no escape here. None. She couldn't get out of it this time. This time, she really was screwed. No Flash to save her, no way to break free of the hold.

The man pulled a gun from his belt and aimed it at the one unbroken window left in her dining room. Leah watched as it shot out a beam and the glass began to wobble and warp until it didn't look like a window anymore. Their reflections sharpened in the glass, then spiraled and cracked, making splashing fractals in the surface of an otherwise still pond. Her heart pounded as the man began to step into the window, taking her with him.

No! No no no no no! This could not be happening. Whatever was on the other side of that window, she did not want to find out. Leah started to struggle again. To hell with getting shot. She was not going to be pulled into some other dimension. She lurched up and bit at the man's hand, trying the only thing she could think of to break free. The man roared, letting go and swinging his hand back where it connected cleanly with Leah's face. She was knocked back momentarily, collapsing fully into a heap on the floor.

Her hand reached up to her face at the point of impact. Blood? Was there blood? She drew her hand down to check.

"I'm going to KILL YOU."

A sharp melody suddenly broke through the chaos. Then, a loud crack pierced the air. Leah looked up, stunned, hand still glued to her face. The man, who had seconds before been standing in front of her, shattered into a million pieces as the glass fell around her. What...had she just witnessed?

Heavy footsteps from the left drew her attention. As she turned to look at where the noise was coming from, she came face to face with black boots. Black boots? She looked up to find a familiar green-suited man at her side. Hartley Rathaway stared down at her. "You," he hissed, "are coming with me."

His hand went to his belt as he grabbed a small ball and threw it to the ground. Dark green smoke filled the air. It burned her eyes and choked her. "FOR FUCKS SAKE, NOT THIS AGAIN."