Almost - A Flash and Arrow crossover

Chapter 25

There were several loud bangs, glass shattering, the occasional burst of light. Shouts could be heard, but indecipherable between the walls.

Then Caitlin's scream echoed through their earpieces.

"RONNIE LOOK OUT!"

A single gun shot cut through the commotion.

All was silent.

XXXX

Barry didn't really understand what happened. He registered Ronnie - and Martin - going into the bank. He registered the shouting, the crashing, the breaking of glass. He registered the bursts of light which illuminated the small area where himself and Oliver stood outside the bank.

He registered Caitlin's panicked warning, screeched down their ear-pieces.

He didn't register, however, his legs seemingly acting before his mind could comprehend what was about to happen.

Mere milliseconds after Caitlin yelled Ronnie's name did Barry's body act for him. Was it instinct? Muscle memory? They were questions for another time.

His feet hardly touched the floor and the familiar feeling of electricity pulsed through his body.

Time seemed to slow once he burst through the door. Well, technically for him, it did. The speed he was travelling made everything appear at an almost stand-still.

How could he forget this.

But even with his surroundings slowed, Barry was still acting too fast for his own good.

His eyes automatically locked onto the tedious firing of the gun held in a slightly smoking Marco's hand. Sparks flew from the weapon as the bullet soared through the air at a relatively fast speed.

Towards Firestorm.

It was a strange moment in time, where the scene that was practically frozen, save the barreling bullet. Marco's face was twisted with rage. His brows were knitted together as his mouth was open in a silent roar, showing his crooked, yellowing teeth. Pieces of his clothing were burnt and the rubber on his shoes was scorched badly.

Firestorm stood straight. Ronnie's face was wincing slightly, no doubt at the volume of his wife's scream. But Barry could already tell it was too late for him to react fast enough to dodge the speeding bullet. The speedster wondered what Stein would be saying to Ronnie from within his mind. Would Martin be affected? Would he feel the bullet as well? What would happen to him?

All these questions. Not the place and time to ask them.

Shaking the disturbing thoughts from his mind, Barry refocused himself on the situation.

So he did what he had done before. He let himself do what felt natural by following his instinct.

To save someones life.

Lightning sparked behind him, creating dramatic flashes as he sprinted in Ronnie's direction. Within seconds in his time, milliseconds to anyone else, he had over taken the bullet and was reaching out a hand to grab the scruff of Ronnie's jacket.

Barry could feel the rippling waves and hear the thunderous noise of the bullet approaching himself and Firestorm. He needed to be faster.

With speed he had no idea he possessed, he threw Ronnie and Martin to his right with all the strength he could muster. Ronnie's body flew through the air, his arms loose in the flight as he soared across the other side of the bank.

Barry, however, flung himself to the left. He dodged the speeding bullet with only half a centimeter to spare.

Close shave, he thought to himself.