Flashette(Book Three)

11

      "Look at this, boys!" The group leader explained as he opened a briefcase out of the back of his van and revealed a gun. I was watching this group and was waiting for the perfect time to show myself. The leader pulled out the weapon and showed his team.
"Not even the military has these yet." They all studied it.
      "Looks like Christmas came early," one replied. I came out from my vantage point and sped to them.
     "Do you know what the only problem with that is?" I asked. "You guys are all on the naughty list....Christmas is cancelled," I said before I went after them. They began shooting and I dodged the bullets. When I came to my senses, the van was nowhere in sight.
         "They're heading north," Caitlin said in the earpiece.
      "You have to cut them off before they get to the freeway," Cisco replied.
As I ran after them, they began shooting after me. I dodged their shots before Wally ran by my side.
      "Hey!" Wally said. "So, how you wanna play this?" Wally asked.
     "I think I have an idea," I said before I took a right and Wally followed. We caught sight of the van and miraged. We sped so fast that the group only saw one of us, and we knew it was time to split. Wally went for the van, and I stayed behind. I watched as their van began to spin and I still caught up to them. Their van made a hard stop and I turned to Wally.
"Nice work!" I exclaimed.
"They're out cold!" Wally replied. I gave him a hi-5.
"THEY SAVED US!" A group of girls exclaimed. I turned to see a cheerleading squad.
"What's your name?" One asked. I nodded my head to Wally and smiled.
"Kid Flash..." Wally replied.
"Can we get a picture?" Another asked.
"Yes!" Wally exclaimed. He took a selfie with them and they squealed. Flashing red and blue cop lights were now in our peripheral vision and sirens sounded. We let the cops handle the rest and we left for S.T.A.R Labs. Wally left and trail of fire in the shape of a lightning bolt and one girl took a picture. I smiled once again and headed back. I patted Wally's shoulder as we entered the cortex.
"Nice save!" HR exclaimed.
"Thanks, but Chloe did most of the heavy lifting," Wally said before giving me a high-5.
"Bravo guys, but I found 6 other ways you could have done it more efficiently.....Just-Just saying..." Julian said before turning a tablet to us.
"The bus load of hot cheerleaders thought we did the right thing," said Wally. I rolled me eyes.
"Calm your testosterone...Speaking of.....Where's Barry?" I asked.
"He's......Busy....." Cisco hesitated.
"Doing what?" I asked.
"Stuff.....We asked him to go on a trip for supplies. With the museum and everything....." Caitlin trailed on.
"Okay..." I replied, suspiciously.
"Let me buy you a Cofee at CC Jitters to celebrate another win...GO KID FLASH!" HR exclaimed before he pushed Wally out of the cortex. HR stopped abruptly. "Bond, are you coming?" He asked Julian.
"No thank you!" Julian replied as he continued to tinker with the tablet in his hand.
"Was he a good boy out there?" Iris asked me.
"Very. He's wanted this for a long time. He's really enjoying the moment."
"I'm glad....By the way, when you were out capturing the electric gang, did you see them meeting with anyone else? Word on the street that there's another arms dealer out there. They have sophisticated weaponry, similar to Plunder's gun."
"I think the police can handle tha-"
"I'm still a journalist, Chloe. This is my job! I can't hide just because of what you saw," Iris said before she walked out of the cortex, leaving me in deep thought.
"That was deep," Cisco said from his computer in the corner of the room.
"That's the least of my worries...Tell me you've found a way to change the future."
"We found a way to change the future."
"Did you really?" I asked, excitedly.
"No." I slapped Cisco's chest. "What? Ow! You told me to tell you that-"
"I'm being serious here! This is my life! It's a serious matter. Not just my life, but Barry's, yours, my children's, everybody's life is at risk here!"
"Okay, okay....we didn't find a way to change it, but Caitlin and I may have found some way to map it. You're gonna love it! Follow me," Cisco said before leading me to another room where a Lego diorama was sitting on the table. Caitlin was standing over it.
"Julian suggested we make a 3D reconstruction of what we saw, exactly how we saw it."
"With toys."
"The medium's not important," said Caitlin.
"Is this Barry?" I asked as I picked up the little figure. "Why is he an astronaut? You know they make Flash-"
"Eye on the ball, Chloe!" Cisco said as he took the figure from my hands and placed it on the baseplate. "This diorama tells us you need to cover this distance," Cisco said as he pointed to an empty space with his hands. "In less than .21 seconds."
     "And what do you think?" I asked.
      "I think it's-"
       "Impossible," Julian said as he entered the cortex.
      "Why?" I asked.
    "Multiverses might be new to me, but mathematics is not." Julian walked over to the board. "Pay attention. This is your speed timeline," he said as he drew it out for us. "This is your maximum velocity when you first got your powers and this is your top speed. This is where you need to be in May in order for Barry to save you."
     "Thanks for that riveting pep talk coach, but we have it all covered here. Why don't you go take a knee?" Cisco asked.
      "You're right....I have to get back to CCPD, as do you." Julian exited the room and Caitlin turned.
    "He's right....Just in his own snobbish way."
      "He was a dick about it, but his math isn't wrong." With that, my phone rang and I proceeded to answer it.
     "On my way," I replied before I put my phone on sleep mode and spoke:
     "It was Joe, I gotta go."
"We'll finish this up later," I said before I grabbed my briefcase and walked out.
"It was about time you showed up," joked Joe. I stepped through the frame of Jitters' broken window. I was currently on the ground, examining the broken glass and surroundings. "The strange thing is that nothing is missing. Cash is still in the register and the safe wasn't touched. It seems like there's a lot to go through just for a late night cup of Joe, right?"
"Definitely a meta. We'll have Julian look into the database," I replied. Barry walked through the door, late as always. "And it's someone new....New and dangerous," I replied to Joe. I gave a side eye at Barry when he appeared by my side. "Nice of you to join us, Mr Allen."
"Sorry I'm late, I was--"
"Not here."
"Yeah.....Right...."
"I'm sure this is something The Flashes can handle. My superhero babies."
"Wally's doing really well."
"Speaking of my kids...." Joe hesitated. Nervousness began to rise in my chest. I figured he knew about my death-future thing. "Iris told me an interesting story..." I was now about to panic. This was it. "About the whole new arms dealer in town. Has she told you guys?" Joe asked. I relaxed and spoke:
"Yea-yeah....She's told us..."
"Since you are best friends and can get things through to her, can you try to get her to back off a bit?" Joe asked. I nodded. "And if there's something going on......I've said it again, but just know that you can talk to me, okay?" Joe asked.
"We know," I spoke before we split off. Barry and I decided to get a coffee and walk around the city. I took this as an opportunity to talk with Barry.
"Beautiful day," Barry said as we walked toward the park. We strolled down the path, taking in the crisp winter air and the squeals of the kids playing below.
"Where were you?" I asked.
"Home..." Barry replied.
"What were you doing?" I asked. Barry acted as if he had a lump in his throat.
"Uh--I-Uh-Was....Doing work!" He covered.
"What type of work?" I asked.
"Y-y-know....Bills and the mortgage and-" I stopped Barry there. My phone had been blaring in the middle of the peaceful park and I checked my notifications.
"It was Cisco, the alarm is going off. They're in trouble," I said before Barry and I sped to S.T.A.R Labs.
When we entered, we went down to the speed lab to see HR on the ground and a girl standing infront of Cisco. Caitlin had been over by HR, assisting him and Wally had been frozen by the beam of energy coming from her hands. She stopped when she noticed us.
"More speedsters. This town full of freaks," she said before she opened up a portal: "Audios, Cisco," she said before she jumped in. Cisco waved and we all regrouped in the cortex.
"She's a meta from my earth....She has powers similar to Francisco's and she is a "collector." Her name is Gypsy, and she's here to collect me."
"Why would she need you?" I asked.
"Apparently inter dimensional traveling is a big no no."
"How did she even find you?" Cisco asked.
"Couldn't have been hard with that new book he's publishing. The one about inter dimensional traveling and stuff," I contributed.
"He's been publishing it without our knowledge or permission, as well as making himself look like the hero," said Barry.
"Every book does need a central protagonist."
"How about Chloe or Barry?" Caitlin suggested.
"It is my book so-"
"Cisco Ramon....Or should I say...Mr Gypsy....What was that out there?" I asked. "First you have the hots for Lisa "Golden Glider" Snart, and now her? What is your deal for liking the enemy?" I asked.
"I'm sorry! I can't help who I'm attracted to. Even if it is the sexy, intense, smoking hot, dangerous ones."
"So what happens now?" Barry asked. "She takes you back and you pay a fine?"
      "The punishment for unauthorized breach travel on my earth is," HR paused. "It's death."
       "What?" I asked. "And you're telling us this now?"
      "24-25 years ago, a neighboring planet came through a breach to our earth and almost destroyed it. Since then, that's been the rule. The collectors are there to "collect" the people who violate the ban."
     "Why did you risk your life coming here?" Caitlin asked. Dodging the question, he spoke:
      "I'm gonna get packing," he said before he exited.
       "Though he can be annoying at times, he doesn't deserve to die."
     "Different earth, different morality," said Julian.
       "But he doesn't go back. In the future, he was in a picture with Barry and I. What if we didn't let her take him back?"
       "You might not have then, but taking him back will change your future and prevents Chloe's death."
"I'm not gonna let him die over me. I can't do that to him."
      "I gotta go-" Barry said before he left suddenly. I looked toward the entrance of the cortex and I moved my hair out of my face as he sped away.
     "Is he okay?" Cisco asked.
     "He's been acting weird.....He was late to Jitters this morning to look at a crime scene."
      "Isn't Barry always late?" Caitlin asked.
      "We usually leave together, but his mind has been somewhere else lately."
       "Well, if I had known my pregnant fiancé carrying my twins was going to die in four months, I would be a little off."
      "I'm sure your right. I'll give him some space. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some business to take care of," I said before speeding to Central City Picture News.
      "Hey, Iris," I said as I walked over to her desk. She was working on her current article.
      "What's up?" She asked.
      "Just coming to talk, how have you been?" I asked.
      "Good. How are the babies?" She asked.
       "Also good. What are you working on?"
       "My new article. There's a new arms dealer in town and-"
       "Don't you think we have enough on our plates right now?" I asked. "There's a whole other thing with HR and you want to go looking for trouble?"
       "Not you too!....How many people are going to be dragged into this? First Wally, My dad, Barry, and now you?"
     "I just want to make sure you stay safe."
      "I appreciate your looking out for me, but-"
      "Please, Iris!" I responded. She hesitated and sighed:
       "Fine."
       "Really? Just like that?" I asked.
      "If it will get you all off my back."
       "Thank you," I said before I hugged her and sped back to S.T.A.R Labs. HR was packing and I talked to him.
    "You know what I'll miss the most about this earth?" He asked.
"Me...My babies...Barry and I's wedding.."
"Close...Soap operas. Daily doses of drama served in hourlong chapters."
"Are you calling my life a soap opera?" I asked.
"Of course not, but your life isn't the average piece of pie."
"Speaking of not your average piece of pie, I noticed you dodged Caitlin's question earlier. Why did you risk your life coming here?" I asked. HR hesitated:
"On my earth, I had fame and fortune. I was a bestselling author and I was loved by all. But I felt useless. I thought that if I came here I could be of help. I could be useful."
"There's gotta be something you can do. Get a lawyer or-"
"THERE'S NOTHING I CAN DO!" HR snapped. "...I'm sorry....I didn't mean to snap at you....My only option here would be trial by combat, but-" HR said before the alarm went off and Caitlin spoke over the loudspeaker.
"Guys, that was Gypsy. She's here."
"Well HR. You wanted a trial by combat. That's what you're gonna get."
"No Chloe, please don't-" HR went on as I sped up to the courtyard. Cisco and HR followed behind me.
"I'm impressed. I didn't think it'd be this easy. Let's go," Gypsy said, taking HR's arm.
"Where are you going?" Cisco asked, stepping foreword. "If you want him, you're gonna have to get through me. I challenge you to trial by combat."
"No..No he isn't, I'm gonna fight her," I said, stepping forward.
"He said it first," Gypsy replied.
"That's a thing?" I asked.
"That's right, I challenge you to trial by combat over HR Wells."
"You know that means fight to the death, right?" She asked Cisco.
"For the loser," Cisco replied.
"And I'm guessing you'll want 24 hours to prepare?" She asked.
"No I do-" Cisco said looking back at me. I nodded crazily. "I will take full advantage of the 24 hours."
"Very well," Gypsy said before she created a portal and stepped through it.
"She's gonna kill me, isn't she?" Cisco asked. I nodded and proceeded inside where the rest of the team was hard at work. But still no Barry.
      "She's good," Julian said as he observed Gypsy on the screen.
     "Why did you agree to fight her?" I asked.
     "I don't know," Cisco replied. "What are my chances of wining on a scale from one to ten?"
     "You're going down buddy."
     "I'd give it a solid 1."
      "Look, she has the same powers as you. Meaning, you can do everything she does. All you need is a little confidence and some practice, alright?" I asked. Cisco nodded and I patted him on the shoulder before stepping down from the computer platform. "Let's see what you got!" I said before Cisco put on his goggles and gloves. He began shooting blasts from his hands.
    "How was that?" Cisco asked.
     "Good. You just have to face the right way."
     "Am I ever gonna get this?" He asked.
     "You will. Whenever I'm in a tough fight that I think I can't win, I take a deep breath."
     "I'll try again." Cisco thrusted his hand and a portal opened. He stepped inside and it closed behind him.
     "Where'd he go?" Julian asked.
    "I don't know, he should be-" I spoke before I was interrupted by another portal. This time, it wasn't nearby.
     "Up here," Cisco said from the rafters.
     "I think we need to have a talk," HR said before leading me over to the exit. "And Caitlin, help him down please."
       "We can let Francisco fight Gypsy," HR said as we walked down the hallway. "He's dead. He knows that-"
     "No-" I said.
     "You know that."
     "I-" HR interrupted me, again.
     "Caitlin and Julian know it....We all know it. That's why I wanted you to fight her."
     "He could come through...We don't know. It would be so much easier if I could track her down."
   "Lucky for you, I know where she is. I tagged her with a tracker last time she was here."
     "How do we know that's-" I said before HR pulled up the tracker on his tablet. "Accurate."
      "According to this, she's at the waterfront. Whataya say....For Francisco?" HR asked.
     "Let's do this!" I said before I suited up.
     "This earth may be not my home, but they make an excellent cup of coffee," Gypsy said from her bench as we approached.
    "You have to try the Brazilian roast. It's amazing and it's new, and I'm bringing a few bags back with me."
     "Will you be going back in a bag as well?" Gypsy asked.
      "Francisco was trying to protect me. He is on over his head with this one but-" HR said before I came out from behind the tree. She turned around quick and pulled me through a portal. She dragged me through until another one opened and I was pinned up to the side of a tree on the opposite side of the park.
    "STOP!!" HR yelled.
      "Why?" She asked.
      "They're just trying to protect me, let her go."
      "You're a criminal. You have to face justice. You broke some of the most sacred laws. You must come with me now."  
     "But you didn't face Cisco."
      "Why do I have to now? You're here. You made an attempt."
    "That wasn't part of the deal. The deal was that you face Cisco. You're big on the law...We made a deal. What happens if you break this one? We may have, but I know Cisco will keep his half of the bargain."
     "He better. And to make sure, I'm taking this guy for assurance," Gypsy said as she pulled HR through a portal.
    "That's not good," I said before speeding to S.T.A.R Labs.
     "She took HR?" Cisco asked in disbelief.
     "Apparently it was okay because we broke a rule when we tried to drop in on her."   
    "That wasn't very clever, wasn't it?" Julian asked. I shot him a glare. "A deals a deal."
     "What happened to: "we'll help you train?" Cisco asked.
    "We will."
     "Or all you need is confidence and practice?"
     "You do."
      "Or I believe in you?"
      "I do."
      "Apparently you don't. If you did, you wouldn't have gone behind my back. Now if you'll excuse me, my instincts are telling me I need to go write my will," Cisco said before he exited.
      "CISCO!" I called. He just continued walking.
        "Should I go talk to him?" Caitlin asked.
      "I got it," I replied before following him. He was tinkering with toys in the workshop and I could tell he was upset.
        "Don't get too close. I wouldn't want to hurt you because I have no idea what I'm doing, right?" Cisco asked.
    "I never said that. Everything's just happening so soon. With my babies now and everything...Especially with the whole not getting faster thing. It was easier with Zoom and the Reverse Flash, but Savitar's a whole other level. And knowing what happens to me...I don't want to leave Barry alone with two kids to raise on his own."
"Similar to how I'm afraid of what's gonna happen to HR if I don't win this fight with Gypsy. How do you do it? You're always the hero?..How do you deal with all that constant pressure all the time?"
"I have you guys in my corner. You're always here to help me face my fears, so I'm gonna help you through yours. It is okay to be afraid, trust me. Whenever you need me, I'll be there...
In your corner."
"Such a heartwarming speech, but what Mr Ramon needs is to defeat his interdimensional adversary," Julian said as he walked in, interrupting. "I found a way," he said, pulling up something on the computer. We all watched.
"This is her signature move: The breech and blast. A split second before she enters a breech, her feet come off the ground. She'll be off balance and vulnerable. I'm sure you can find a way to use this in battle."
"Let's go kick some ass," Cisco said before he suited up. I stayed with the rest of the team and listened in.
"Times up. Looks like your friend was a coward after all," Gypsy said to HR.
"He's not a coward. He's one of the finest men I know."
"That's right....Fine as hell!" Cisco replied. "Let's do this," Cisco said before the battle began. Gypsy shot a blast at Cisco and he flew back.
"This isn't good."
"He can hold his own," I said before I watched the screen. Cisco was continuously being pulled through breeches and being beat up. I actually thought he wasn't going to pull through. But towards the end, he had the upper hand. He used what Julian had pointed out and caught her off guard. He shot a blast at her and she fell to the ground.
"I have never met anyone like you, Mr Ramon. By the powers of earth 19, this prisoner is yours for the taking. I underestimated you."   
"YES!" We all exclaimed, jumping up and down.
     "C'mon," Cisco said as he reached out his hand.
      "What are you doing? You won. You're supposed to-"
      "That's not how we run around here," Cisco said before he half smirked. He helped Gypsy up and they came back to S.T.A.R Labs.
     "So what happens now?" I asked.
      "I return back to my earth and tell them I killed him," Gypsy replied.
      "You can't do that!"
     "If I tell them I failed, they'll know it was a lie. I've never failed until now. He'll just have to stay here and never go back to Earth-19 again."
     "Okay," replied HR, sadly. Gypsy went to grab her bags.
     "That's an absurd amount of Coffee you're bringing back. I know they don't have it on your earth, but that can't be legal."
    "I won't tell if you don't.....You know, some laws are worth breaking for the right person..." She said before she batted her eyelashes at Cisco. Cisco and Gypsy leaned in. Their lips brushed before a portal appeared and she dissappeared in it.
      "What an accent!" Cisco continued. He brushed himself off and proceeded to his computer.
       "I'm gonna head home, I have to see what Barry's been up to this whole time. See you later guys. Nice work, Cisco." I sped home and walked through the front door. All looked normal, but I couldn't see Barry.
     "Barry?" I called. I heard him speed around upstairs before coming down to greet me.
      "Hello my lovely. How are you today?" He asked before kissing me.
      "Great....What have you been up to today?" I asked. "You missed Cisco's big fight."
      "You'll have to tell me about it."
      "What's going on with you? You've been distant lately. Ever since the thing with Savitar." Barry's head went down. He focused on the floor before bringing his eyes back up to meet mine.
      "I've been distracting myself in every other way possible. I don't want to be reminded of our fate."
     "And you don't have to think about that. Our babies will be here soon, and we have them to worry about. Don't worry about me. I have enough people going out of their way to make sure that doesn't happen. Live in the moment, Bar. That's the problem with the whole "normal life" thing I talked about earlier. Our powers will always get in the way of having one, but that hasn't stopped us from making it the best. That hasn't stopped us from continuing on. We've faced a lot together, and if Savitar kills me, you have to move on. I know how much you love me and how much I mean to you, but you have to move on for our family's sake."
      "Alright...." Replied Barry. "But let's not think about that now. I have something to show you," Barry said before leading me down the hall.
     "What are you doing?" I asked. "This is where the nursery is gonna be, why are we---" I said before Barry opened the door. I looked around the room and gasped. Tears filled my eyes and I stepped inside. It had been painted and furnished. It had everything. The drawers, the changing table, the cribs....Everything. I turned to Barry with tears in my eyes and engulfed him in a hug.
     "Worth it?" Barry asked. I nodded.
     "I'm sorry I thought-"
    "It's okay," Barry said before he kissed the top of my head.
       And then the realization hit me. I had been so calm about the whole Savitar thing that I didn't realize what I'd leave behind. Barry......My Friends...My home.....My Babies.....
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HERE IS A CHAPTER FOR YOU!! Sorry it's late, but a lot has been going on. I'm working on a few shorts and another chapter. I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you in the next chapter!
-Flashette1