What Brings Us Together (A Ralph Dibny/ The Flash Fan-Fiction)

Chapter Two: Roger That

I laid on the hospital bed in the medical lab, my arm draped over my eyes. I had an ice pack pressed to my head, along with cuts and bruises all over my body. I knew I was being harsh with Cisco earlier, but I'm freaking exhausted. I don't think logically when I'm exhausted.

Cisco was standing beside the bed, looking thorugh the shelf of stuff and Wally was wandering around with an ice pack on his shoulder. In the cortex sat Joe and Iris, watching the news report about the Samurai. 

"The Flash hasn't been seen in six months, leaving us to speculate what could save us from this newest threat."

"There are other superheroes in this town." Wally mumbled bitterly.

"Yeah, and your boy, Kurosawa over there blew us away like ragdolls performing his reverse Excalibur. We haven't faced anything like this before." stated Cisco.

"Why do you think he only wanted The Flash?" I sat up, adjusting my icepack.

"He said you weren't 'the best'. It's probably some pride thing. He wants to prove that he's the most powerful." I suggested.

"He's threatening to destroy the city. Do you you think he can do it?" 

"I say yes." Joe answered.

"He has to fight the flash." Cisco said.

"Who isn't here, so you got a plan B?" 

"What if he was?" I furrowed my eyebrows. "Iris, you said it yourself, just us trying to keep the city safe, we're barely getting it done.  Laura, due to the extra CCPD work and being Skyrocket looks like she hasn't slept in six months-"

"Acurate." I agreed.

"-and this guy," He pulled up the picture of the Samurai on the TV, "he's no joke. If we don't offer up The Flash, there's gonna be serious damage. People are gonna die and that's gonna be on us. We need to bring Barry back."

"Cisco, we can't. If Barry comes out, the Speed Force Prison goes-"

"It becomes unstable," Wally finished, "It could destroy the city, the whole world."

"Which is exactly what we're trying to prevent." Iris pointed out. I smiled.

"If anyone can figure out how to do it...it's Cisco." I pointed out.

"In the next twenty-four hours?"

"Yes! Guys, I've been working on this."

"For how long?!" Iris exclaimed.

"Since the night he left."

"Cisco!"

"I've had help. I've consulted with Harry and-and Tina and Tracy and Felicity and Curtis, and I'm pretty sure I've figured out a way to stabilize the Speed Force Prison and free Barry without unleasing another lightning  storm on the city. I just need a couple more things."

"Maybe we should." Joe reasoned.

"No. You've been working on this for how long and you never told us?"

"I didn't wanna say anything until I was certain."

"Are you certain that the Speed Force won't take Wally in his place? Are you certain you can even close it before it rips Central City in two," Iris countered, "Are you sure Barry's even still alive?"

"He's gotta be. Iris, you of all people...how can you not be in on this?"

"Because Barry is gone. That is the only thing any of us can be certain about. Now, let's do what we can do to come up with a plan to take out the Samurai. Ok?"

"No." I said, shaking my head. Iris looked at me.

"No?"

"No! If Cisco thinks he can bring Barry back, isn't it worth a shot?"

"No, it isn't. We have other things to worry about-"

"I CAN'T DO THIS ANYMORE, IRIS!" I shouted. Everyone went silent and tears streamed down my face. I started breathing heavily, trying to calm down. "I...I've got nothing left. I knew from the beginning that I couldn't do this. I tried, I really did, but...I've got nothing left. I haven't slept in six months, I am running on coffee and power naps, and I..." I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath.

"Why don't you sit this one out?" Joe said, putting a hand on my back. "Go home, get some sleep. Take a break, ok?" I sighed.

"Yeah...yeah, maybe you're right. Sorry, guys...I'm sorry." I wiped my tears away. "Sorry."

"It's ok." Iris told me. "I hadn't realized it was that bad, I'm sorry." I shook my head. "Go home. We can handle this without you, at least for a little while."

"Yeah..." I turned, walking out of the cortex. But instead of leaving I headed down to the pipeline and sat down on the floor, my back against the wall. I recalled one of my past conversations with Barry, sitting right in this very spot. It was the night that HR died.

Barry slid his back down the wall, plopping down next to me.

"Shouldn't you be with Iris?" I asked tearfully. He stared straight ahead.

"I'll go in a bit. I just wanted to see how you were holding up." I shook my head, tears leaking out onto my face.

"Why do we this?" I whispered.

"What do you mean?"

"This...Superhero crap. What good is saving lives and defeating the bad guy if we lose everyone we love in the process?"  He turned his head, looking at me now.

"Because  if you have the ability to do something, but choose to do nothing...that is a lot worse then giving your life for something good."  I lowered my head, tears dripping into the white spandex material covering my legs. "Heroes don't do the right thing because it's fair to them. The do the right thing because someone has to. Like HR did."

"Maybe I'm not a hero then."  He shook his head.

"Laura, you were a hero before Skyrocket or Metahumans even existed.  You were the type of person to pay for the person in line behind you just because you could. You are kind, and you always see the best in people, even when they treat you terribly. It's that kind of selflessness and optimism that proves that your powers aren't what make you a hero. Don't let HR have died in vein. Remember that what we do is for the greater good, regardless of the risk." I leaned my head on his shoulder, sighing.

"Why do you always have to be right?" I sniffed.

"I'm just that good." I chuckled.

Barry Allen was always there to show me the side of myself that I couldn't see. And now he's gone, and if I thought I couldn't do this with him...

I stood up, dusting off the invisible dirt and leaving the pipeline, only to run into Cisco.

"Hey, I thought you went home." he said.

"I am. I just...was feeling Nostalgic, I guess."

"Barry?" He asked. I nodded.

"It's crazy...now that he's gone, I'm just...wondering how I ever had doubts when he was here to talk me out of them." He sighed.

"Well...think you can postpone your coma for another half-hour or so?"

"What do you need?" I asked.

"I know Iris said no to bringing Barry back, but...I have to try. And I am going to need a certain red-headed scientist's help."

"You found Caitlin?' I asked. He nodded.

"I'm going to talk to her now. I don't know if she'll listen to me but with both of us? I think we can convince her to help us." I nodded.

"Ok, let me get changed and then we'll head out."

"Roger that."