Flashette(Book Three)

12

"How's it going?" Barry asked to the team as we walked into the cortex.
"Does she know?" HR asked.
"If it's about the nursery, yes. If it's not, then no," I replied.
"Yes, the nursery, what else would it be?" HR asked.
"Totally unexpected and a major surprise."
"We're all happy for you guys."
"Yup. Only a few more months," I replied, patting my stomach.
"What are you gonna do, bring them here?" Cisco asked.
"We can't stop being The Flashes, guys....Ofcourse they're coming here. They can spend some time with their godparents, their aunt, their uncle, and their grandpa."
"I guess that's okay..." replied Cisco.
"Let's just hope these are speedster babies. That could really help out the team. On the other hand, good luck catching up to them....We better buy more paperweights Caitlin. We had to order a lot just for those two. Now we're gonna need double the amount."
"I agree they're gonna be a challenge, but that's what you get with children. Not that this whole thing had terms and conditions," I said looking at Barry. "Or at least a label of caution."
      "Not my fault...." replied Barry. "You forget it takes two to-"
"To avoid where this conversation is going, I'm gonna move on," said Cisco. I directed my attention towards him. "We may have found a new way for the future to be changed.....What if Wally saves Chloe instead of Barry?"
"That might work," I replied.
"You want to let Wally do that without much field experience. He's new to the ropes here," said Caitlin.
      "That's what training is for. And I've already got it planned out," Barry said before we or suited up and followed Barry. He lead us to the streets of Central City.
     "This is it?" I asked.
    "He is getting faster, but not fast enough. We're gonna race him."
      "You're going all Zoom on us?" I asked Barry.
     "Yes I am, indeed. Cisco set this street up with sensors so we can track our speeds and Caitlin will be monitoring our vitals. The finish line's on the other side of town."
      "Is this the day the greatest upset on speedster history goes down?" Wally asked.
      "This isn't about winning or losing, okay?" I asked. "It's about training. You need to get faster so you can stop Savitar and save me."
    "Which I'm gonna do.....I'm not gonna let you die....But I'm gonna make you eat my dust....Sorry....I had to."
"You know there's a reason why we're called the fastest alive, right?"
"Ladies and gentlemen, the Central City Speedster 500 is about to begin.
But first, I've got five-to-one odds Barry and Chloe take down Wally," Cisco said in the earpiece. I laughed and Wally sent me a smile.
"Any takers?" Cisco asked.
     "Yep," said HR. "Game of speculation? Are we we're betting? Yeah, no, I'm in....On my Earth, financial wagering was banned after an unfortunate incident with Vice President Al Capone."
       "Well, lucky for you, you live here now," said Cisco.
       "Yes," agreed HR.
       "Put me down for $80for Chloe," said Caitlin. "I know she's the faster one out of all of them. I've known since the beginning. You remember their first day of training. Mama needs a new confocal microscope."
"Put me down for her as well," said Iris.
       "Joe, got to be in it come on..." nudged Cisco.
       "No, not me," Joe replied. "That's a Sophie's Choice I'm not gonna make."
       "All right, HR, you put your life in my hands, so I know for a fact you like high stakes," challenged Cisco.
        "How much you in for?" Cisco asked.
       "Wallace's recent speed tests ensure that he is on lock....Put me down for an Abe Lincoln."
     "What?" Iris asked.
      "Uh, 100....Whatever 100 is on this Earth, put me down for that." I giggled, and after hearing their bets, I spoke:
       "Guys, we're ready."
       "All right, all right. All bets are in, and may the odds be ever in your favor," Cisco said, jokingly. "Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines," Cisco said as we got in starting position.
      "Ready?" Cisco asked.
       "Get set," I spoke.
       "Go," Wally finished before we were off.  We sped around our course, and Barry and I both knew it would be a close call. Hearing the narrations of the race in our ear, it was hard to focus.
      "At the first marker, 1/3 of the way in, Flashes are in the lead or is that Kid Flash?" Cisco asked.
    "KID FLASH!" HR exclaimed "Come on, little Joseph, GO!....Come on, mama needs a new pair of shoes. Come on, Wallace, down the lane!" HR yelled.
     "Guys, it's hard to focus when-" I tried to say before yelling took over my earpiece.
       "Ooh, second marker and Wally's in the lead," Cisco said.
        "Yeah, Wallace! That's my boy!" HR exclaimed, jumping up into the air.
        "You mean that's my boy," Joe corrected.
      "Yes...I wanna double down....I wanna double down on this right now," HR said, taking out his wallet."
      "HR, what a big spender."
      "Guys, they're neck and neck."
       "And almost at the finish line."
We were toward the end. I kicked it into high gear and phased through a building. Wally, not learning that yet, had to go around it. I crossed the finish line first, making me the winner.
       "Oh! Oh, yes! Pay up!" Iris exclaimed.
"Hmm?" Cisco asked.
"Now? Do you guys take IOUs" HR asked. I took my earpiece out of my ear and held it.
"Come on, man, that didn't count.
You know I can't phase yet."
"Man, you just saw me do it, right? And you have to be ready to face any obstacle that's put in your path," I replied.
"Yeah, well, don't worry, Barry.
I'm gonna get faster....Pretty soon I'm gonna be faster than you....And I'll be fast enough to save Chloe."
"Well, until then, what's my name? Oh yeah....I forgot...THE FASTEST WOMEN ALIVE!" I exclaimed. I then sped away, leaving a lightning bold behind. I sped into the cortex and everyone congratulated me.
"Yeah, yeah. I knew I'd win. It's easy racing against these two, even if I'm pulling more weight...And that lighting bolt trick, I bet you thought you were the only one who could do that, huh?"
"Don't gloat," said Wally.
"And I heard about all the money you owe the girls," I said to HR and Cisco.
"What money? We don't owe any-" they said before my phone buzzed. I answered the call and spoke after I hung up and put the phone in my pocket:
"Let's go, Bar, Joe needs us," I said before we grabbed our stuff and sped to Joe.
"Hey Joe."
"Heard you won the race, congrats Chloe."
"Thanks...Anyway, where's the body?" I asked. Julian called our names and we examined it. We took samples and made smalltalk with Julian about what this could be until Joe came back over.
"This ones a little ghastly guys....."
"Why?" I asked.
"Because this man died less than eight hours ago."
"What?" Julian asked, surprised.
"Eight hours?"
"He was a chef here. Stuart Holzman and the owner confirmed that he was working last night," said Joe, reading from his notepad.
"That's a lot of damage in a short amount of time."
"We thinking he's a meta?" Joe asked.
"Possibly," Julian replied as I continued to look over the evidence. "Although certain chemicals can cause a similar reaction."
"Yeah, any acid with a pH below two," I replied.
"Precisely."
"We could be looking for an aggressive variant of a necrotized fasciitis," said Barry. Joe gave him a stare.
"Do you always expect me to know what that means?" Joe asked.
"A flesh-eating disease."
"In a restaurant? I'm never eating out again," Joe replied. I laughed.
"An autopsy might help us hone in on what really did this."
Yes, I agree," said Julian. "Unfortunately, County denied my request for a 3D image medical scanner, which would make short work of the process."
"Okay, well, we have one at S.T.A.R Labs..." said Barry.
"Allen, this is an active investigation. There is protocol to follow, surely?"
"Not if we're gonna figure this out."
"Okay, I'll bag the body myself and meet you there."
"Great," I replied. I took Barry's hand and walked out with Joe before he stopped us.
"Since I have you both, I wanted to ask......Cecile's daughter, Joanie, is in town, and I was thinking that maybe we could all get together." Barry and I shared a glance. "If you don't think it's too soon...I mean, I haven't exactly been dating Cecile for that long."
"It's not too early, Joe. Do whatever your heart desires. I see you and Cecile together...I think it's time."
"Yeah?" Joe asked.
"I'm sure."
"And Jitters is that cool? Or is that too casual?"
"Joe, don't worry, okay? It's great.
Joanie's gonna love you."
"I love you guys....Thank you!" Joe replied, happily. He patted us on the shoulder and proceeded to leave.
"It's nice to see him so happy."
"I agree." I stood in thought for a moment. I put all the pieces together based on the current events and my thoughts stopped me.
"You okay?" Barry asked.
"Yeah. I just need to show you something," I said before Barry and I sped to S.T.A.R Labs. I took him to the room adjacent of the cortex where my whiteboard was. Written on it were the events leading up to my death.
"Look," I said as I pointed to the board. "That's the name of the restaurant where we just were."
"Okay..."
"I spoke to the owner, and he said he doesn't think that the restaurant can survive an attack like this and they'd most likely have to reopen under a new name.....It's all coming true, Barry."
"No it's not, you have to-"
"I thought things were changing."
"Things are changing, okay?" Barry asked, pulling me into a hug. "They are.....I was supposed to stop Plunder, right? And instead Wally did.....
We're gonna stop Savitar too. I'm making sure of it."
"What if we can't stop all of this? I'm scared, Barry. What's next?" I asked. "You know how I felt about leaving you with our babies. What about them? I don't want them to grow up like us Barry...I don't want them to suffer like we did," I cried into Barry's shoulder.
"It's okay...." Barry assured as he rubbed my back. "You're safe now and we're gonna stop Savitar...But maybe we should tell Joe.."
"NO!" I replied, breaking the hug. We agreed that we wouldn't....
Besides, you saw him earlier.
He's he's planning for a future with Cecile....You know how much he cares about me, and if we tell him about Savitar, it's all he'll think about. I can't do that to him."
"Is that's how you feel, I won't. But I want you to listen to me.... I promise you I'm doing everything in my power to make sure that that future never happens. You know how dedicated I am to keeping you and our babies safe."
"I do...Thank you, Bar," I said, kissing him on the cheek. We walked out of that room and saw the rest of the team in the cortex.
"I thought you were downstairs....How much of that did you hear?" I asked. The rest of the team had been watching the autopsy that was going on in the medical bay.
"All of it. It was like a Dr Phil session in there," Cisco replied.
"We won't tell. Your secret's safe with us," said HR.
"Doctor-patient confidentiality, right?" Cisco asked. I sent him a glare and he focused back on the autopsy.
"You think this is what it's like to be a character on "CSI"?" HR asked. "What do they hope to gain from that examination?" he asked, cluelessly.
"They're trying to find the exact cause of death....Once we know that, we'll have a better idea of what we're dealing with....But until then, we need to train." I turned around to face Wally, who was looking at me eagerly.
"I'm gonna teach you everything I know, starting with phasing."
"Yes!" Wally said, pumping his fist in the air. "Finally. Teach me your ways, speedster queen," Wally said, bowing.
"You know what we should do?" HR asked, ruining my moment. "We should concoct some simulations to help Wallace learn this new skill....
What do you say, Francisco?" HR asked.
"I got one word for you: quebracho...." Cisco replied.
"Let's go," I replied.
"Quebracho!" HR exclaimed as he followed us down to the speed lab. We set Wally up and he began speeding aroud the track. He came down off the ramp and tried phasing. He smacked right into the wall and fell with a thud.
"Ouch!" Wally said as he stood up slowly. "That hurt like a-"
"Like you ran into a giant wooden wall? 'Cause you did," said HR.
"And it's not just any big wooden wall. That's double-reinforced quebracho. That's like the strongest stuff on the planet, right there," Cisco said from behind us.
"Well, fantastic choice, Cisco," Wally said. I stood up:
"Well, it shouldn't matter if it's wood or steel or stone.....If you're moving fast enough, you can phase through anything."
"Even molten lava you know, if you ever ended up in a volcano," HR chimed in. (With a haven't you people ever heard of....)
"You know, I still don't get it....How do you do this?" Wally asked. I walked over to the wall and helped him.     
       "Watch...When you vibrate at the natural frequency of air, your body, your cells, will be in an excited state that'll allow you to phase," I said, taking my hand and phasing through the wall.
"Yeah, it's not it's not really helping.
What exactly do I do?" Wally asked in frustration.
"Connect with your body, right? Connect with the air. Be pure electricity....You have to feel everything that's around you."
"So go fast and feel things...Yeah, no worries," Wally said making funny hand gestures as he walked back to his starting position. I laughed.
"You can do this, Wallace," encouraged HR.
"Okay," Wally replied. "All right, all right....You can do this," Wally said before he ran towards the wall and failed. He was shot back and slid across the floor.
"Again," I replied. Wally groaned and picked himself back up off the ground. He turned around and sped back onto the track. He continued to speed around.
"This isn't working," I said in frustration.
"You're right, it's not working," agreed HR.
"You've been training him," I said to HR. "What's worked?" I asked.
"You know what works with that guy? Vocal encouragement," HR replied before yelling: "You got this, Wallace!"
"I don't know why you even ask him," Cisco said.
"What did Wells do with us?" I asked.
"His plan was, uh, more methodically constructed than John Doe's in "Seven"," Cisco replied. "Plus, he had a bit more time to work it out by, give or take, 15 years."
"Sorry to tell you, but we don't have 15 years," I said before my phone buzzed. I read my text and saw it was from Joe.
"We have a crime scene to go to. I'll be back, but please make sure he keeps practicing, okay?" I asked. Cisco and HR both nodded.
"Go, Wallace!" HR yelled. Barry and I sped to the crime scene. I walked down an alley to see Joe standing in the middle of it over a body. The rest of the street had been blocked off.
"Body was found by that bicyclist.
Same M.O. as the first one.
This victim was performing here last night.....He's a lounge singer named Julio Mendez." After Joe said that, my thoughts came back. That name sounded familiar and in a few short seconds I knew why.
      "In Flashpoint, he was Captain Mendez."
"Sorry..." Julian interrupted. "In Flashpoint, this this alternate universe that you lived in, he worked at the CCPD?"
"Yeah," Barry replied. "That was certainly him."
"Wait a second," I whispered to myself. "There was another...Vic, Stuart Holzman. Do we have a photo of him?" I asked.
"Yeah," Julian replied before taking out his phone and handing it to me. He had a picture up of the chef from the other night.
"That's him."
"Who?" Joe asked.
"He was a cop there, too."
"So this is the second dead cop from Flashpoint?" Joe asked.
"Yeah....We got to figure out who this guy is. If we hurry, there's still a chance we can get some of the attacker's residual DNA before this corpse disintegrates, but we've got to move quick."
"I think you can help with that," Joe motioned to me.
"On it," I said before I took the body and Barry took Julian to S.T.A.R Labs. Barry stayed, and I went back to talk to Joe.
"Did anybody see me?" I asked, turning around.
"Damn, I barely saw you."
"Today I did prove I'm the fastest of them all."
"We have to get going," Joe said.
"Hey, I know how excited you are for this coffee thing with Joanie and Cecile, but I think we should hold off.
I don't think it's a good idea right now."
       "Chloe, these two attacks don't establish a pattern."
"Well-"
"And besides, I'm a cop. If I canceled my plans every time I was in danger, I'd never leave the house."
     "I understand, I would just feel a lot better knowing you were someplace safe."
"Name a place safer than a coffee shop with my speedster children," Joe proposed. I stood in silence. "Meeting Joanie is important to Cecile, therefore it's important to me....Some things are worth taking risks for."
"Okay."
"Let's get out of here," Joe said before we left for Jitters. When we got there, Barry was waiting with Cecile and Joanie. They were laughing and I waked up to them.
"Hi Cecile," I said, accepting her hug. She sat back down and I held out my hand for Joanie to shake.
"Chloe," I said before we shook hands.
"Joanie," she spoke before she sat down next to her mom. I kissed Barry and Joe and Cecile did the same. I greeted Wally and Iris before sitting down at the table.
"I'm gonna go get the drinks....Chloe, do you want to come with me?" Joe asked.
"Sure," I replied, standing up and walking over to the counter. Joe gave the order and we stood in line to wait.
"Joe, be cool. It's going great so far. I can tell you're stressing."
"How can I not, it's just-"
"Order for Joe West," the barista called. Joe walked over and picked up the drinks. I helped him walk them over to the table.
"French roast for Cecile," Joe said placing the cup down. She thanked him and Joe gave Joanie her drink:
"Non-dairy green tea latte for Joanie."
"You not much of a coffee drinker, Joanie?" I asked.
"Well, I used to be, but then I learned hot roasted coffee beans contain cancer-causing levels of acrylamide."
"Well, damn," Joe replied. I could see he needed some help, so I gave it to him.
"Joanie, Cecile says you're at Coast U?" I asked. She nodded. What are you studying?"
"I'm undecided," she replied.
"Are you leaning towards anything?" Barry asked.
"Not really."
"Coast U's pretty far, right?" asked Wally. "Do you ever miss Central City?"
"Actually, I like it better there...Well, there is one thing I miss about Central City."
"What's that?" I asked.
"You're gonna regret that you asked," Cecile mumbled as she took a sip of her coffee.
"Kid Flash," Joanie spoke. I almost choked on my drink.
"She's a little little obsessed," said Cecile.
"Kid Flash is the one thing you miss about Central City?" I asked.
"Whoa, Chloe, slow down. You don't have to be so skeptical about it.
Kid Flash is cool....What do you like best about him, specifically?" Wally asked.
"Well, he's fearless and brave.....He's a hero, and he's probably pretty cute under that mask," replied Joanie.
"Yeah, I think so, too," said Iris.
"Come on, Joanie, honey, Kid Flash? He's a showboat he's snapping selfies, he's leaving graffiti bolts on buildings," said Cecile.
"Okay, that's his signature move."
"Yeah, well, from what I hear, The Flashes are the one's who are actually saving people."
"Sounds like Cecile's Team Flash," I whispered.
"Joanie, my dad would never brag about this, but he knows Kid Flash," Iris spoke.
"You do?" She asked in shock. "Is my mom right? Who's the real hero: Flashes or Kid Flash?" Joe looked at both Wally and I. Ofcourse both Wally and I felt like we were better than the other, but it wasn't up to us. Joe gulped:
"Uh...they both do great things for Central City..." Joe replied.
"Okay, but if you had to choose?" Joanie reiterated.
"I-I don't I don't think I could choose," Joe replied.
"Yeah, but if you, like, had to."
"Um, would you go get me some cream, Wally, please?" Joe asked him. Wally stood up to get it and Joe's phone went off.
"Excuse me," Joe said, standing up. "This is work. Chloe, Barry," Joe said as we stood up and joined him we walked down the stairs and outside to the front of the building.
"What's up?"I asked.
"They got some DNA off Mendez's corpse. They were able to match it with the CCPD database and got he name Clive Yorkin. They sent each of you the info. Check it out," Joe said before we looked down at our emails and read the information. We were interrupted when a guy came up to us.
"Detective Joe West! Long time, no see!" A man exclaimed as he approached us.
"Do I know you?" Joe asked.
"You don't remember me? You and your cronies had a very fun time ruining my life....Not gonna let you do that this time around.." the man spoke. Concerned, I defended Joe.
"I think you have the wrong guy."
"I don't think so young lady, this is the Joe West I remember...Look a lot more full of life now, though.
But don't worry I can change that," he said, sliding his hand across a nearby table. The table turned to dust and crumbled.
"Everybody get back!" I yelled.
"Joanie, go," said Cecile before she lead her daughter out of the shop
"Everybody get out of here!" I yelled again. Everybody fanned out.
"Yes, everybody run," said Clive. "I only want him....You can't hide up there, Detective....No one can hide from me anymore." Joe held his gun at Clive.
"One more step, and I'll shoot," Joe said before Clive put his hand up in their air.
"Didn't work then and it won't work now, either," Clive said before Joe shot multiple bullets at him. They didn't penetrate his skin, but slid down his torso as grains of sand fell to the floor.
"Told ya."
"Stop!" Wally said as he sped in. He was suited up and stood behind the meta. Wally was about to attack before Clive stopped him.
"Ah, ah, ah...Can't touch me, speedster." I motioned my arms in a circle by my side and Wally caught my drift. He began to move his arms in a circular motion and created a cyclone. Clive was shot into the back door and Josie returned.
"I knew it.....I knew Kid Flash is the hero," she said, coming down from the balcony. Wally appeared.
"Well, thank God for Kid Flash, huh?" He asked.
"Clive's gone," I said, noticing the spot that Clive was before.
"I'm gonna head out, we'll have to reschedule Cecile." Cecile nodded and Joe walked out with Cecile and Josie. I glanced behind me before we sped to S.T.A.R Labs.
"This guy's got the touch of death," Cisco said, looking at pictures and video of our meta.
"Yeah, he does, and it's not just people....Anything he touched turned to ash," said Barry.
"Joe, I really think you should just stay here until we find Yorkin," I pleaded. "I told you it wasn't safe before, and looked what happened. I was right then, and I'm right now."
"As much as I trust you, I can't. Now, I have to go check on Cecile and Joanie. They were pretty shook up," Joe said, grabbing his coat and walking towards the exit. I sped infront of him.
"Are you crazy? This guy wants to kill you."
"If it wasn't for Wally and Chloe, he could've," said Barry. "He could've killed any one of us."
"Come on, we have been through much worse metas than Yorkin." I looked at Joe and my eyes began to water.
"What?" Joe asked. "Chloe, what's going on?...Are you okay?"
"I'm fine.....We're all fine....We're not losing anybody today..." said Joe.
"Maybe not today, but soon."
"Soon? W-what are you saying?" Joe asked. His face grew with concern.
"Chloe..." Barry said, reaching out to me. I knew he didn't want me doing this, but I had to. I couldn't keep secrets like this, not from him.
"Barry, he needs to know."
"Needs to know what?" Joe asked. I hesitated, but spoke:
"When I threw the Philosopher's Stone into the Speed Force, there was an explosion, and I was propelled to the future."
"The future?" Joe asked. I nodded.
"It was a few months from now. The babies were born, and everything was okay, according to the news report that was playing when I first arrived. My attention was directed to a scream, and I rounded the corner to see Barry standing in front of his worst nightmare. Savitar had me in his grasp and whipped out one of his claws-"
"Where are you going with this?" asked Joe.
"Savitar stabs me and kills me right infront of Barry. He wasn't fast enough to save me." I said, a tear rolling down my cheek.
"So you're saying that in a few months,  you die?" Joe asked, choked up.
"Unless we can change the future, Dad," said Wally.
"Which we're gonna do, Joe, okay?" Barry asked.
"I'm not, we're not gonna let this happen.....How long have you known about this?" Joe asked. The room went silent. "HOW LONG?" he yelled.
"A couple of weeks now," I replied.
"And you're just telling me now? You're my daughter! You have kids you're supposed to look after!" Joe yelled.
"I didn't want them to say anything because I knew how you would react," I said.
"This is not something you keep from your father, Chloe, you should've known that!"
"And you should've too!" Joe said, pointing at Barry.
"It wasn't his fault, don't point fingers. I didn't want to tell you. It was my fault."
"I can understand why Cisco and Caitlin didn't want to tell me because they didn't grow up under the same roof that you did.....They don't know they don't know what Chloe means to me, Barry, but you do."
"I know Joe, I-" Barry said before Joe walked out of the cortex.
"I'll talk to him," I said before I followed him to the elevator.
"Joe, I-"
"I just need some space, okay?" Joe aaked. I backed off. By the time I entered the cortex, Barry was gone and Cisco, Wally, Julian, and Caitlin were left.
"Barry headed to CCPD. He told me to tell you to go home."
"You deserve some rest, Chlo," said Cisco. Caitlin and HR nodded.
"Okay," I replied before grabbing my bag and heading home. I plopped down on my couch and began to dial Joe's number. My thumb danced over the call button, until I pushed it and listened to the ringer. It went to voicemail:
"Hey Joe, it's Chloe...Again...I'd love to talk about this...Love you.." I said before hanging up. I began scrolling through my phone before I heard a thud.
"Barry?" I asked before my door began to deteriorate, leaving just a doorframe.
"Good evening, Chloe Allen," Clive said before I set off my panic button on my phone, hoping someone at S.T.A.R Labs was paying attention.
"You know, initially, I wanted your dad dead....But then I thought, "If I really want to make him suffer, I should kill his daughter instead. An even better plus that she's carrying his grandchildren. He already lost one, how about another two?"
"This is not how I'm supposed to die," I said, standing my ground. I could have used my powers to escape, but he was too close and could kill me in an instant.
"Oh, I'm pretty sure it is," he said, stepping closer. His hand hovered over my arm.
"No, stop!" Wally yelled as he entered. Wally tried to speed to me, but was a hair slow. Clive touched my arm and it began to turn black.
"Too late, Kid Flash," Clive said before he made his escape.
"Chloe..." Wally whispered as I fell to the floor in pain. He called Barry, and Barry met us at S.T.A.R Labs.
"What happened?" Barry asked as he joined my side in Wally's arms.
"It was Clive. He touched her and her arm went black."
"Get her in here!" Caitlin yelled as I was moved to the medical bay, where I was hooked up to the monitors. Joe rushed in
"I'm here, Chloe. I'm not going anywhere," Joe said as he stood by my side.
" Elevated heart rate and a temperature of 104..." Caitlin read from the monitors. "The decay is reaching her subcutaneous tissue."
"We have to give her something.
There has to be something we can give her....What does this do to the babies? Are they okay?" Barry asked, nervously.
"It's not bacteria and antibiotics won't work," Caitlin replied.
"We have to do something.....Nothing's not an option," said Barry. We all stood in thought before Cisco stood up from his chair.
"Okay, what do you do when a banana ripens too quickly?" Cisco asked, coming closer to my bed.
"Put it in the freezer," Barry replied.
"That's brilliant," Julian replied.
"Caitlin, you can freeze her arm.
It'll stop the spread of decay and give us some time to find a cure." Caitlin shook her head.
"I trust you," I said with every ounce of energy in my body.
"I can't, even if I wanted to...
We're not talking about a cold blast.
This is a specific and continuous cold stream."
"Too high a temperature and the decay spreads, too low and the frostbite will destroy your nerve endings," Barry said.
"And that long using my powers, I could lose control," she spoke, her voice cracking.
"Caitlin, you are strong, okay? Stronger than you know. You are not going to lose control," I whined. I felt a sharp pain and groaned.
"Caitlin, try, please," Barry pleaded. The virus spread farther up my arm and Caitlin threw her necklace off. She whipped her hand out and ice shot from it. She coated my arm with a sheet of ice and be continued to keep it going.
"It worked," said Barry, happily.
"Oh, thank God," said Joe, sighing and sitting back in his chair.
"So far, so good," said Caitlin. Everyone was happy for the time being except Wally, who wore a frown.
"Wally, where are you going?" Barry asked as he noticed Wally walking toward the door.
"Out of the way where I can't screw up again," Wally said before he continued to walk away.
"Barry, can you get him for me," I said before Barry got up. "If you guys don't mind, I'd like to talk to Wally alone," I said to the team before everyone left the room and Wally entered.
"We should've called Barry first...I just thought I could do it.....I thought I was ready....Obviously, I'm not-"
"Wally....It's okay. I'm still here, right? I'm okay, for the moment...It's not on you."
"It is my fault. I put you and your babies in danger...I wasn't fast enough, Chloe. He could've killed you. You can still die if there's no way to stop this. That's totally on me."
"Wally, stop.....Look, when I got these powers, I-I I was really lucky, in a weird way. I had a lot of people helping me through all of this. I had Wells....both of 'em...As well as Jay and Zolomon. Two of them turned out to be bad guys, but even they were good teachers who really taught me how to use my powers....I haven't been that for you yet."
"You're telling me everything that I need to learn....I'm just not getting it," said Wally, looking down.
"It's not that at all. I've been letting you coast by on your raw talent, which you have a lot of, but teaching it's a lot more than just doing something and expecting you to follow.....It's about inspiring and empowering you to use your gifts to succeed on your own.
That's what I need to do...." I said, finally realizing. "That's what I'm gonna do from now on....So the next time you're out there and you're alone, you will win...Deal?" I asked.
"Deal!" Wally agreed. I smiled and HR came into the room.
"Guess who just came up with a way to track down Yorkin?" HR asked before Cisco joined the conversation.
"It's crazy!....Like defies time and space crazy!" Cisco said before he handed me a tablet.
"Okay, here's what we know....
We know Yorkin's going after cops in Flashpoint, right? What we don't know is who he's going after....But if we find out who they are, then we can be ready for him.
"Right, so how do we do that?" I asked.
"We vibe Flashpoint," Cisco suggested.
"Flashpoint doesn't exist anymore," I said. "It was gone after-"
"Stop you right there, CA," HR said, holding up his hands. "Flashpoint doesn't exist anymore in this universe.
But in quantum mechanics, the daughter universe theory tell us-"
"Universe theory?" I interrupted.
"For every decision you make, a universe exists where you don't," said Wally. "Yeah, I actually went to that class."
"You better be going to all your classes," said Joe as he entered the bay.
"So if there is a universe where you stay in Flashpoint, Francisco here could vibe it," said HR.
"And you're sure you can do that?" I asked.
"No, no...Not at all.....But Gypsy did say I could do some pretty incredible things--with my powers---Yeah, she did....Things I'm not even aware of yet, so things I haven't even imagined."
"Well, let's get to imagining," I said said before Cisco clapped his hands.
"All right! Let's do this!"
"What do you need me to do?" I asked.
"You're not gonna do anything, you're on bed rest," said Barry. "Until we figure out what's going on with your arm, you can't leave."
"I'm sorry, dad. I didn't know that I was grounded. Last I checked, I'm an adult. Let's go, Cisco," I said before Cisco walked over to me.
"All I need you to do is focus on Flashpoint, okay? Focus on CCPD, Joe, Mendez, that part of it, and I'll take care of the rest," Cisco said before he put on his goggles and took hold of my other arm. Images flashed in m head before we were taken there. Everything was how I remembered it.
"It worked! I'm here!" Cisco exclaimed...."Huh, for some reason I thought Flashpoint would look a lot different."
"Focus!" I yelled before he got back to his task.
"Okay, all right, if I were Joe West, where would I be?" Cisco asked.
"He was at the same desk."
"Got ya," Cisco replied. Cisco hesitated before speaking again.
"Ooh, Joe's in trouble......." Cisco stopped again before speaking.
"Here we go."
"What's happening?" I asked. Cisco came back and took his goggles off. His grip loosened on my arm.
"Stone...Stone was the other cop.....And let me tell you, she loves her perp walks."
"Laura Stone," I said, pulling her up on my tablet. "She's a PI. I showed the team a picture.
"Yeah, that's her," Cisco confirmed. "It was you, Mendez, Holzman, an Joe...You guys took down Yorkin in Flashpoint."
"Well, then, that means she's the only one that Yorkin hasn't gone after yet," I spoke...."A classic example of saving the best for last."
"I'm on it," said Joe. "You guys stay here and try to figure out how to catch somebody we can't touch." Joe walked out and Barry joined my side. Julian was passing by and Barry called him in.
"Hey, Julian," Barry said before Julian stopped and poked his head in the door.
"Do you have anything? Did we figure anything out about Chloe's arm?"
"Look, it's early days, but first tests show that her blood is attacking the cells in her body..."
"Wait, that's the opposite of how my blood causes cells to regenerate. Usually, her blood does the same."
"The virus has stunted the regeneration process," replied Julian.
"Can we use my blood to save her?" Barry asked.
"Bar-"
"Listen, I don't think that your blood is the key to saving Chloe...
But I do think it might be exactly what we need to take down Yorkin," Julian said before the monitors began to blare like crazy.
"The decay is spreading," Julian said, noticing the extension of the ice sheet on my arm and the virus following it.
"Why?" Barry asked.
"I don't know...." Julian said, puzzled. He rushed to the other side of the bed. I began to toss and turn and the pain worsened.
"Caitlin?" Barry asked, noticing her eyes turn to an icy shade.
"I'm losing control. I'm becoming...her..."
"Okay, all right, it's spreading...We need you," Barry said as I continued to shake. "Hey, it's okay," Barry said, attempting to stroke my hair and stop this. "It's okay...."
"Just a little bit longer, and she's dead," Caitlin said in her frost voice. "How's that for changing the future?"
"I know who you are, Caitlin.
You do not want to do this," Julian said, holding his hand out. He approached her with caution.
"This is who I am.....You said it.
It's time for me to take responsibility for my actions....Time for me to own who I really am."
"Who you are is Caitlin Snow.
I know firsthand the battle going on inside of you....I know what it feels like....When it happened to me, I lost.
All right? I was weak, and I let it win.
And I did I did horrible things to a lot of good people," Julian said, walking over to her side of the bed "And you don't have to do that....You're not gonna do that...You're stronger than I am, Caitlin....You're far stronger than I am...You're one of the strongest people I've ever known....You can win this fight...Chloe needs your help now," Julian said, placing his hand around Caitlin's arm. She gave him a look that put fear in his eyes, but she calmed down. Her eyes went back to normal and she looked up at Julian.
"It's all right....It's gonna be all right," Barry said, looking up at Caitlin and Julian. Caitlin placed her hands on my arm and continued to use her powers to stop the virus. A few minutes later, another alarm went off. It was the meta alarm and I told Barry to go. He refused to leave my side, but he eventually gave in.
I could hear HR and Cisco from the other room saying that it was Joe's panic alarm and it was coming from a train. Clive had destroyed the track and everyone on the train was going to die. I could hear Barry and Wally speed out and I took initiative.
"Caitlin....Caitlin...." I said, swinging my legs over the edge of the bed. I used all the strength I had left to sit myself up.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"You have to let me go....." I pleaded. "It's not gonna stop in time. Everyone will die."
"What about you?" She asked. "The virus....It will spread..."
"So be it...My life isn't worth all of theirs," I said before she bandaged my arm and I suited up. I sped to the tracks.
"We have to get everyone out of there," said Wally.
"We don't have enough time," I replied.
"Chloe?" Barry asked, full of surprise. "What are you doing here? The virus...You need to-"
"I couldn't let these people die and I couldn't just sit around....We're gonna have to move the train."
"How are we gonna do that?" Barry asked.
"I'll vibrate it....I'll vibrate it fast enough that I can phase through it and it will stop."
"You can do that?" Wally asked.
"I don't know....I've never tried before...But I have to try....Cisco did something he's never done before, and now it's my turn," I said before I turned around.
    "Let me do-" Barry said before I cut him off.
     "You worry about stopping it if my plan doesn't work. I didn't come out here with this virus just so I can sit out," I said before I turned to the train. "You know you can't put me on the bench," I said before I phased into the train. Joe caught my eye and I could tell he was shocked.
     "Ch--Children.....Hold on!" Joe yelled. I could tell he was surprised...So shocked he almost gave away my identity.
"Everybody hold on!" I yelled before I placed my good hand on the floor of the train and began to vibrate. The train began to shake and wasn't stopping. The team began doubting me and I felt a wave of doubt coming over me as well.
     "It's not stopping," said Barry.
      "It's gonna crash!" said Wally.
    "Chloe, get everyone out if there!" Cisco yelled into my earpiece.
The train came closer to the end and I tried even harder. I gave all I had and it worked. The train stopped. I sat on the floor, panting.
"Holy Kardashians," HR said into the earpiece. I could hear the clapping and cheering of the team in my earpiece, as well as those on the train. I stood up and waved to those I had just saved.
"Yeah Flashette!" one cheered.
"She saved us!" a women called.
"Nice work!" Joe said, joining my side. He placed his hand on my shoulder.
"Yeah....I did it..." I said, falling to the floor. I began to shake. Joe's figure became a blur.
"Why is she shaking, mommy?" A little boy asked, worriedly. Questions began to pop up from everyone and I was gone before anything else was said. I could feel Joe pick me up and carry me outside.
"What happened?" Barry asked, rushing to Joe.
"It's the virus. She needs Caitlin, now."
"On it," Barry said before he took me from Joe's arms and I was taken back to the medical bay.
"What happened?" Everyone asked as Barry entered with me.
"Medical bay, now!" Barry yelled before I was rushed in and hooked back up to the monitors.
"Bar?" I asked.
"Yeah, yeah, its me. Don't do that again, okay?" Barry leaned down and kissed me on the head. "You had the team worried. Don't do that again. We can't afford to lose you."
      "You needed me out there. I did what any hero would do."
      "You sure did." Barry gave me a look of admiration and I smiled. Cisco stepped into the doorframe, ruining our moment.
    "Not to ruin the sweetness, but we have another problem....Yorkin's back..."
"Wally, you have to go....I have to stay with her....You got this!" Barry encouraged.
      "But what if I cant?" Wally asked. "I already lost once. Maybe I'll-"
      "Do it, Wally. You're ready. You can do it. This is your fight." Wally nodded and sped out. Thanks to Cisco, we watched on the security cameras.
"You know what they say, Kid Flash.
If at first you don't succeed, try again," Clive said, stepping closer.
"You have to stop him," I spoke, grabbing my earpiece off the table next to me. "I need you to get your blood into him...It'll counteract his cells and negate his powers."
"How am I supposed to do that when I can't even touch him?" Wally asked.
"You're gonna phase it into him," I replied.
"You know I've never done that before."
"And you just watched me do something I'd never done, but I did it because I had to. Even with this virus in my system, I pulled through. You can do this... Everyone here believes in you, I just need you to believe it, too....Now run, Wally.......Run...." Wally sped towards Clive and I knew Wally would do it...I knew Wally could do it...And he phased.
"It worked! I did it!" Wally exclaimed as he looked at his hand that was clean of the cut he had made before phasing.
"You sure did..." said Clive. "Good-bye, Kid Flash," Clive said before griping Wally's arm. He waited for the reaction, and got nothing.
"Oh, wha--look at that.
Your powers are neutralized, Yorkin."
"What did you do?" Clive asked.
"I won," Wally replied. Joe took care of Yorkin and Wally sped to S.T.A.R Labs. Everyone cheered and congratulated him.
"What's going on?" I asked as everyone was crowded around my bed. They had returned from the celebration and joined my bedside.
"It's okay...You're okay....Yorkin's done.....All thanks to Wally...." said Barry.
"I had a great teacher," Wally replied.
"With Yorkin's neutralized blood, I was able to make an antidote," Caitlin said, holding up an injector. I nodded and she administered it into my arm. The black began to fade away and I regained my strength.
"I see your rapid healing is back," said Julian.
"You'll have to wear a bandage for a day or two, but other than that, you're absolutely recovered," said Caitlin. She wrapped my arm up and I came to my feet.
"Thank you....I know what you risked for me," I said to Caitlin. She smiled and I returned it.
"I had some help," she said, turning to Julian.
"None of us could have done it alone.....It was all of us working together," said Joe.
"Yup, I'm really proud of everybody....Great job."
"We almost lost her again today," Barry said, taking in a deep breath. Our quick thinking worked for Clive, but who says it'll be enough to stop Savitar. If we're gonna save Chloe, we're gonna have to up our game," said Barry. The team nodded.
"No more lies, even well-intentioned ones," Joe said looking towards me.
"We have to be completely real with each other."
"I agree," said Cisco.
"I agree with Joe, too," said Julian.
"From here on out, complete honesty," I spoke.
"Honesty," Barry and I both spoke. He kissed me.
"Ugh! The PDA!" Cisco joked.
"Get some rest, all right?" Joe asked. "I'll check on you later," he said before he walked out. Barry and I followed.
"Savitar's prophecy of someone dying was Chloe?" Joe asked.
"Yes it was," I replied.
"But it's not gonna happen," Barry said.
"I'm glad she comes first in your life now. The relationship you have is truly remarkable. Never let that go."
"I'm gonna hold on to it as long as I can," Barry said, taking my hand. Joe smiled.
"Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Joe," Barry and I spoke before he exited. Barry and I said goodbye to the rest of the team before we headed home.
"Wait! Bar! The babies! We didn't-" I spoke, full of fear and worry.
"Caitlin checked them out. They're okay." I sighed.
"Now I can sleep peacefully knowing that my babies are okay," I spoke.
"And I can sleep peacefully, knowing my baby is okay," Barry said before I gave him a kiss.
"And I almost forgot," Barry said before leading me over to the door. I uncovered my eyes and saw the front door had multiple locks on it.
"Bar...You didn't have to do that..."
"Actually, I did. Nobody's getting in here unless they can teleport....Cisco did offer to build us a custom security door, but we've both seen how well those things keep people out of S.T.A.R Labs."
"I love it....Deadbolts work."
"Yeah?" Barry asked. I nodded.
"It's just with what happened here, I want to make sure you feel safe."
"I do."
"You know, you've been saying for weeks that you were gonna save me from Savitar, and while I trust you with my life, it was hard not to feel scared.
You know, sometimes it feels like The Flash is this guy my fiancé becomes when he runs off to save other people.
Like I'm the only one who doesn't get The Flash. He felt separate from you.
But yesterday when you saved me, I remembered that I have no reason to be scared. You're the flash, suit or no suit. The man I love is a superhero. I love and trust you, Barry Allen--The Flash. I love all of you, and I always will."
"I love you, too," Barry replied before he gave me a passionate kiss.
"That was so nice," a familiar voice spoke.
"JESSE!" I exclaimed, standing up to greet her. I held my arms out for a hug, but she rejected it.
"No, no, no, no."
"What's wrong?" Barry asked, joining the conversation.
"Grodd....He's got my dad...And he has him in Gorilla City."
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HERE IS A SUPER UPDATE FOR YOU! This chapter is double the length of my average chapters, so I hope you enjoyed. More is to come! Hopefully I will have the other two up sometime soon. A lot has been going on, so I haven't had time to write, but here is a chapter. With revisions, this chapter took over four hours, so I'll see what can be uploaded. See you in the next chapter!
-Flashette1

*Let me know what you this of this chapter. I feel like it isn't as good as my usuals, but let me know. If there's anything you'd also like to see, let me know. I do take requested ideas for shorts.*
(8,448 words....)

**Considering this was a longer chapter, updates may be slow.**