We're Stardust, You and I | BIRDFLASH

It's all a blur we're clearly fading baby

Wally West was cold.

An unnatural, bone-deep chill that gnawed at his core, turning every movement into agony. His muscles screamed with each attempt to stretch, sending sharp spikes of pain through his body. A cough rattled from his chest, dragging him from the foggy embrace of unconsciousness, and the world came into focus slowly, the edges blurred by the lingering haze of pain.

He blinked against the void that surrounded him, thick and impenetrable, swallowing sound and light alike. Shapes shifted in the gloom, but nothing stood out, nothing familiar. He squinted, straining to see, but all that greeted him was more of the same suffocating void.

"It's quiet here," a voice murmured from somewhere in the darkness. Wally's head snapped toward the sound, heart lurching. The voice was calm, steady, unmistakably familiar. "You've been out of it, Flash. Are you awake now?"

His mind struggled to catch up, thoughts sluggish and heavy. He searched for the source of the voice, but his memories were scattered, slipping away before he could grasp them. There was something... a gala? No, that wasn't it. The memories were fragmented, elusive, like trying to hold onto smoke.

"Kaldur?" Wally croaked, his voice rough, barely a whisper. Another cough tore through him, leaving a raw, painful rasp in its wake.

A silhouette shifted in the darkness, and a small, relieved smile touched Kaldur's lips. "Yes, Flash," he replied softly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm tired of people asking me that," Wally muttered, the words coming out more bitter than he intended. The question felt like an accusation, a reminder of his current state of weakness.

Kaldur's expression grew serious, concern lining his features. "I'm sorry, but I need to know the extent of your injuries. Can you move?"

Wally tried, willing his body to respond, but the cold was too much, freezing his muscles into painful stiffness. He grimaced, shaking his head. "It's too cold... and she's not there," he mumbled, barely coherent. "Why isn't she there?"

Kaldur's gaze sharpened, worry creeping into his eyes. "Who's she, Wally?"

"The Speed Force... I can't feel her anymore, Kaldur. What's going on?"

A heavy silence hung between them, Kaldur hesitating, the weight of Wally's words sinking in. "What's the last thing you remember?" he asked cautiously.

Wally closed his eyes, trying to sift through the fog in his mind. "It's all hazy," he admitted. "The last clear thing I remember is being at my apartment... but after that, everything's scrambled. I was running away from Nightwing... but I don't remember why. I was in Gotham and I was scared."

Kaldur's expression softened with understanding. "It will come back to you, Flash. You and Nightwing have been working on the offworld technology case together, right?"

Wally blinked, confusion flickering in his eyes. "How do you know that?"

"Because you both sent an email to the League, asking for reports on any findings. This tech has been affecting every city that has a hero or vigilante protecting it."

Wally nodded slowly, trying to piece it all together. "That makes sense," he murmured, but the memories remained out of reach, just beyond his grasp. Gotham, maybe... his boyfriend? Every time he tried to focus, a masked face loomed in his mind, shrouded in shadow, the connection too painful to untangle.

"Kaldur... how did you get here?" Wally asked, trying to redirect his thoughts away from the confusion.

"Some electromagnetic frequencies have been affecting life around my city," Kaldur explained, his tone measured. "I went to investigate and was electrocuted and pulled into a device."