Flash Rebirth || Wally West [1]

02| Flashpoint

***

The moment that everyone entered the Cortex they immediately began to work. Settling into a routine that they clearly had been doing for a long time now. I was the only one who didn't have a place as I stood uncomfortably near the entryway, observing everyone. One thing that I didn't fail to notice was the my sister's chair was left untouched. Anytime that she was in this room she was seated in the chair to Cisco's right, now it remained empty. A reminder of her absence.

"We finally get rid of Zoom, and there's another evil Speedster?" Joe commented clearly irritated at the current situation. On the way to S.T.A.R Labs Cisco and Caitlin filled me in with what was happening the last couple of months, like the weird husk that we're appearing all over the city. Now Barry was telling us the he just faced another evil speedster. I wasn't there when they faced Eobard Thawne, but my small involvement with Zoom told me all that I needed to know about evil speedsters. That they were irritatingly arrogant. 

"Who is this guy, now?" Wally asked from his seat in the corner. And I wondered what his places was in all of this too. It felt that everyone needed to contribute something, I didn't know what my contribution was. Wally didn't seem to know his either.

"I can help you with that. I finally got the results back from the test I ran on the husk that Barry gave me this morning." Caitlin began to say as he typed away at the computer in front of her. "And it's weird, because there's no traces of dark matter, but there are traces of the Speed Force."

"So that's the husk from this Speedster?" Joe questioned. 

"Appears so. His name is..." 

Barry sighed, and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. "Edward Clariss." 

"And somehow Barry is exactly right." Caitlin stated, seeming clearly confused as the images of the speedster appeared on the screen around us.  

Iris who had been intently looking down at her phone stood and faced Barry with a stern look in her eyes. "Can I talk to you for a second?" 

Barry simply nodded as he followed Iris out of the Cortex. I didn't understand why they had to talk in another room. Especially if they were going to discuss this case like it seemed they were. "Do they do that often?" 

"Do what often?" Wally questioned, and I suddenly realized that all eyes were now on me. A feeling that I didn't quit enjoy. 

"She means does Barry always need to be pulled aside to be give a pep talk or be talked out of doing something stupid?" Cisco clarified with a bitterness to his tone that seemed to be reserved only for Barry. "The answer is yes. Diane used to be that one to do it. And well... she's not here anymore."

The bitterness was still in his voice and I wondered if any part of Cisco resented Barry for my sister's death too. I understood that Diane's choices were her own. That she decided to leave on her own that night. That knowledge didn't change that fact that my heart still yearned for revenge. With the need to kill her killer. Only that her killer was already dead. Because Oliver Queen was the one to kill Damien Darhk. 

A couple moments later  Iris returned on her own, and we were all slightly confused by Barry's sudden absence. Though it was Joe who voiced his concern. "Where's Barry?"

To answer is question Barry suddenly raced into the room, my hair whipping across my face. I felt a hint of irritation as I brushed my hair away from my face, to find a startled Barry at the center of the Cortex. 

"I need to tell you all something." Barry declared breathlessly as he looked around the room hesitantly. "The truth." 

"The truth about what?" I asked not hiding the accusation in my voice. There were many things that I could forgive, and lies was not one of them. And whatever it was that Barry had to say weighed heavily on his shoulders, I could only wonder if his hesitation was due to the fact that he feared not to be forgiven.