Only Because I Need You Too

Chapter 13: Foe

Caitlin felt the cold whirling around her. Chunky flakes of snow drifted silently to the floor. The black sky that hung above her was barely fought away by the powerful lights below her. From her perch atop one of Central Cities high stone buildings, she could see a lot. Thin streams of people filtered through the streets below like ants in an ant farm. Cars were not much better. The dark silhouette of S.T.A.R. labs could be made out on the horizon. This was their third attempt, but by no means the last. A cold sensation crept up Caitlin's spine, forcing a shiver through her body. The brunette clenched her jaw and scanned her surroundings. There was nothing but rooftops and impenetrable shadows to be seen. A large office block rose up from the pavement behind her, all of its windows consumed in blackness. "I know you're there," she called out into the darkness.

For a moment, all Caitlin could hear was the thundering of her heart and soft whooshing of her lungs. Gently fiddling with her fingers, she stepped towards the shadowy part of the rooftop, her back rigid. "I want to speak to you, please." There was another break of silence. She bit on her lip and allowed her shoulders to fall, but as if by magic the Observer stepped out from the shadows and into the light. Caitlin's heart froze in her chest. The dark wooden mask glared at her, even in the pitch black. In the Observer's hands was his bow, loaded and taught but aiming at the floor. Not a word. Caitlin decided that was as good an opening as any, "look, I don't know if your trying to hurt me, kill me, help me or what, all I am here to ask is that you leave my child alone. If you are trying to kill me, then wait till she is born..." The doctor raised her brows and kept her arms loose by her sides. "If your patient enough, you might not even have to lift a finger. I'm sure you know, but I'm supposed to die soon." Caitlin's voice wavered, if only for a second. The Observer straightened up, the grip on his bow got a little tighter.

A cold breeze blew past them. Crushing reality set in. If their plan didn't work, if even Killer Frost couldn't withstand Frigid... then Caitlin would die and never once get to see Dawn. Never see her take her first steps or win her first race. Dawn would be little more than a figment of how she planned her future. The Observer twitched and before Caitlin knew what was coming, she was staring at the tip of an arrow.

In a rush of heat and electricity, Caitlin found herself on a completely different rooftop with Ethan is his Shadow suit standing right by her side. The pair turned on heel to glimpse down at the rooftop the doctor had just been standing on but it was empty and devoid of life as though no one had ever been standing there in the first place. "That was too close for comfort," Ethan grumbled, roping an arm around her shoulders.

"Perhaps, but at least now we have an answer." Caitlin murmured. Her whole body felt numb. Wrapping her arms around herself, she leaned into him.

Ethan sent her a sad smile, "the Observer is not a friendly."

*

Caitlin did her best to remain stone faced, but when standing in the presence of a stone face, it was difficult. Archie's features were frozen in terror as the old man stared into the eyes of death. His rocky form took up half the space in her lab, but she didn't mind. Over time she had gotten used to shimmying around the large objects other members of the team had thrown her way. Barry sat on the gurney, his lips pressed into a thin line. Bright light reflected against the glittering specks in the stones and illuminated the drops of blood. Not to mention the snowflake on his hand. Caitlin ground on her teeth and reached out to touch a cold finger. Half expecting the old man to twitch away or bark at her, she was surprised when the cold rock of the stone remained unmoved. It felt grainy and hard underneath her fingertips.

"Oh wow," Caitlin sighed, scanning the man's features. Running a hand through her hair she stared at the rocky spike that was embedded in his heart. "It's amazing he is still alive," she hummed, running a finger along the rocky spike. It must have been formed by the Sandman, there was not much other way a spike of its size could end up impaling an up right man. At least they knew who was still working with Medusa.

"Do you think you can find a way to keep him alive when Medusa is caught?" Barry asked, large sad eyes scanned the statue and landed on her.

Caitlin pursed her lips before pulling them back into a frown. "This rock has forced him into a state of hibernation. That rock has pulverised his heart, and there is no chance a new one could be transplanted in time. To unfreeze him would be a death sentence." She crossed her arms over her chest.

Barry nodded slowly, "I see." He sighed and shifted his weight and brought his eye up to meet Caitlin, "I did some research on him. Since the last time we met, the poor sod has kept himself out of trouble. Focused his time on his family." Caitlin opened her mouth to reply, but found no words suitable enough to speak. Instead, she just stared at the statue's stone encrusted scream. "It was his daughter that found him in their home."

Caitlin ran a hand up her bare arm, circling round and sitting down next to Barry on the gurney. "That must have been an awful shock," she replied, her shoulders drooping slightly.

"All we can do is sit and wait until another child looses a parent," Barry sounded exasperated. As though he hadn't slept in weeks and the mere thought of doing do was tiring him. Caitlin looked closely at him. The misery in his face was evident, but his cheeks were still flushed pink and light still reflected from his eyes.

"Barry, you shouldn't worry about things you cannot change," Caitlin told him. Placing a hand on her stomach, she felt her gut churn. Perhaps that was advice she should follow. If she was going to die, then she was going to die. Gritting her teeth, she shook her head. No, if there was any chance she could see Dawn growing up, then she was sure as heck going to take it. She would not stop fighting for a future with her family. Never.

Barry opened his mouth to question her, but Caitlin rose her hand. "Don't get me wrong. You should never stop trying to protect others and trying to prevent the spread of death, but there are some things you can do nothing about. Some people you cannot save. Take the Captain for example. Yes he died, but you had no way of knowing he was going to be murdered so you couldn't do anything about it. You should never blame yourself for the deaths of those you couldn't protect because I know you Barry." She placed a hand gently on his shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze, "I know that you always try your best to help others and that if you could have, you would have saved them."

Barry ran a hand along his leg and let out a loud sigh. "That doesn't make it any less painful when I have to watch their bodies being lowered into the ground, knowing full well that if I had been there they would still be breathing."

Caitlin nodded, "of course. Losing someone is never easy, but there are times when you need to let go of blaming yourself. There was nothing you could have done," she assured him gently, her own eyes flicking back to the statue of the old man.

"I know," was all he responded.