H.R. sat alone in the Cortex.
Cisco 'Vibe' Ramon had left to fight (or to save) Caitlin 'Killer Frost' Snow. Detective Joe West and Barry 'The Flash' Allen had left to fight Savitar and save Iris West. Iris West, who was Joe's daughter and Barry's fiancee. Iris West, who was about to die because H.R. couldn't keep his big mouth shut.
It was all his fault. He liked to talk, and he liked to cheer people up. He rarely stopped to think about what he was saying until after he said it.
They'd all been so happy to hear that Barry had gotten the power source they needed for Tracy's bazooka. Barry had seemed so innocently concerned about where Iris was. H.R. wanted to cheer him up. If he had waited just a few more seconds, they would have realized something was off, since Barry wasn't turning around.
Besides, in order to hide Iris from Savitar, they had to hide her from Barry. Savitar would remember where they had hidden Iris back when he had been Barry. Anyone else on the team would have at least questioned why Barry wanted to know something he had told them not to tell him. But H.R. just couldn't think as fast as the geniuses who surrounded him.
He always felt like a man among gods.
And now this man had put an innocent woman in danger. Savitar had taken Iris West, and he was going to kill her, unless the rest Team Flash managed to make up for H.R.'s mistake.
H.R. sat alone in the Cortex and thought about these things.
He tried drumming to get his mind off things, but even drumming felt pointless. It just reminded him of another of his useless skills which contributed nothing to the team. He cast aside the drumsticks, and they clattered across the computer desk. He stood up, needing to stretch his long legs.
He walked down one of the many curved hallways of STAR Labs. He traced the arrows Cisco had painted on the walls, which all pointed back towards the Cortex. H.R. kept getting lost in the STAR Labs corridors, so Cisco had idiot-proofed most of the building. He still got lost but not as frequently.
H.R. stopped suddenly. An idea had occurred to him. He knew how to cheer himself up. He needed to cheer someone else up. And what cheers people up more than cute decorations? And who needed cheering up more than prisoners?
It was a genius idea. He sprinted to the lab Cisco had been letting him use. He got lost and had to double back twice, but he eventually found his way. He grabbed his decoration supplies and picked out the perfect posters. He skipped down to the Pipeline and used the remote opener Cisco had made for him.
The touch screen was just so complicated, and frankly, everyone was afraid H.R. might accidentally set a dangerous metahuman free. So Cisco made a special remote just for H.R., and it had so many cool features. It wouldn't open if there was a dangerous metahuman inside, and it was color coded, so it was easier to keep track of the two buttons. The green one was labeled 'open', and it opened the Pipeline cell. The red one was labeled 'close', and it closed the cell. It took some time, and a lot of practice, but H.R. had finally gotten to the point where he could press the right button on the first try about half the time.
He was getting good at this.
H.R. stood inside the Pipeline cell and began to hang the motivational posters high on the wall. That was one thing he was useful for on Team Flash. He was tall and had long arms, so he could reach almost every top shelf in the building. Cisco and Caitlin were very thankful to not have to get a stepladder out every time they needed to fetch things that were just out of reach. He didn't mind helping because that's what teams are for.
H.R. smiled at the kitten clinging desperately to a branch on the poster. "Hang in there," he urged it, repeating the advice written above the picture. It might have been his imagination, but the kitten looked more determined and confident now that he had encouraged it.
He bent down to pick out the next poster. He was debating between a cute baby and a skateboarding chipmunk when a loud alarm sounded.
He looked around. What should he do? He could run up to the Cortex, but what then? He didn't have a weapon, and he couldn't outrun a Speedster. He had a cellphone, but if he stopped to make a phone call, Savitar might be there quick enough to stop him. There was only one solution.
He got the door remote out and firmly pressed a button. Nothing happened. He looked down to find his thumb on the green button. He moved it over and pressed the red button. Second time was the charm. The glass jaws of the Pipeline cell door clamped shut, right before Savitar zipped into the access tunnel in a flash of white lightning.
"Hah!" H.R. exclaimed triumphantly, pointing a victorious finger at the thwarted Speedster. Then he dug through his collection of posters and quickly found one of a smirking hamster. He slapped it against the glass so Savitar could read its advice: 'Better luck next time.'
The armored Speedster read the poster but didn't react. He looked up at H.R. and cocked his head to the side, like he was examining his prey with scientific curiosity. The smile faded from H.R.'s face.
Then Savitar took a few steps back. H.R. hoped he would leave now that he knew he couldn't attack anyone on Team Flash. But instead of leaving, the Speed God knelt, like he was bowing in reverence. The back of the metal suit opened up like an iridescent butterfly spreading its wings. The Time Remnant of Barry Allen stepped out of the crouched suit and stared at H.R. with his half-burned face.
H.R. stared back, mesmerized by this man who looked so much like The Flash, but who wasn't The Flash. Without looking away, H.R. fumbled around in his pockets until he found the cellphone Caitlin had gotten him before she became Killer Frost.
"What are you doing?" asked the Time Remnant in a gentle voice.
H.R.'s hand stilled. He knew he shouldn't listen. He knew he should make a phone call and alert the team. But he didn't. He held the phone in his hand and looked at the God of Speed.
"I'm calling the rest of Team Flash. They'll come back, and they'll fight you," said H.R., but he didn't open the clamshell phone yet.
"The rest of Team Flash?" asked Savitar dubiously.
"Yeah, they'll come, and they'll fight you, and you'll have to run," said H.R. with more conviction than he felt.
"No, I mean, when you say 'the rest of Team Flash,' it implies you're a part of Team Flash. Are you sure that's true?"
"Of course," replied H.R. quickly. "I'm on their team, and I've been on their team for months now. Don't think you can tempt me to join you, I'm untemptable."
"But aren't you already on my team?" asked Savitar. "I mean, you told me exactly where Iris West was. I have her right now, and I can kill her any time I want. The only reason she's still alive is so I can kill her in front of The Flash."
H.R. had pushed his guilt to the back of his mind, but now it was front and center again. Somewhere, Iris was trapped, awaiting her violent death at the hands of an evil monster. And it was all H.R.'s fault.
"Each member of a team is supposed to contribute equally to the group. Not only have you not contributed an equal share, you've actually hurt the team." Malice was slowly creeping into the Speedster's voice.
H.R. glanced over at the poster on the wall. He just had to 'Hang in there.'
Savitar continued his cruel monologue, moving closer and closer to the glass door between them. "As much as they might pat you on the shoulder and tell you it's not your fault, everyone knows the truth. They know Team Flash would be better off without you. Without your coffee, your annoying drumming, your verbal gaffes, and your idiotic suggestions. You can barely tell time, let alone give scientific advice. You're not even holding your cellphone the right way round."
H.R. looked down and turned the cellphone the right way up, but he still didn't open it. He looked up at Savitar again.
"Don't forget, I've lived this whole adventure already. I know how it ends. Do you want to know what happens next?" An evil glint burned in Savitar's heterochromatic eyes.
H.R. gave the slightest nod and took an involuntary step closer, desperate to know the terrible truth.
Savitar was practically touching the cell door now, and spittle was spraying onto the glass door as his impassioned lecture grew to a fever pitch. "You never contribute anything meaningful to Team Flash, and eventually, you conclude that you should leave. You're able stay away for a few months, but then you become so lonely that you crawl back to STAR Labs and beg them to take you back and they do because they're heroes and they feel sorry for you."
H.R. wanted to put his hands over his ears to block out the verbal acid being poured into his soul, but he couldn't move. He was mesmerized by this monster with the face of his friend.
"But nothing about you will change. You'll still be the same idiotic H.R. You still can't shut up, you still can't get anything right, and you still end up doing more harm than good."
H.R. started to turn away. He shouldn't internalize this negativity.
But Savitar continued, "Your stupidity will eventually cost Tracy Brand her life."
H.R. froze. He looked up at the Time Remnant, but no trace of deceit was present in his burned face. It was the truth. It was a terrible truth, but in his heart, H.R. knew it was inevitable. If he stayed, he would only hurt his friends. If he left on his own, he wouldn't be able to stay away. He would return and end up hurting innocent people with his own ineptitude. There was only one solution.
"Tracy won't die if I kill myself," H.R. said numbly.
"Wait," said Savitar. His voice suddenly returned to its initial gentleness.
H.R. waited.
"I can help you," said Savitar in a soft but earnest voice. "I can purify your soul."
H.R. listened with rapt attention to every quiet word.
The Time Remnant continued, "I can make sure you never hurt your friends again. If you kill yourself, they'll all blame themselves. But if you come with me…well, they'll still blame themselves, but it won't hurt as bad. So let me fix this."
"How?" H.R. asked in a desperate and choked voice.
Savitar spoke louder and faster, but his impassioned voice was free of malice this time. "By letting you do what you're good at. You're not a hero, so why are you trying to be one?"
Savitar pressed his hand against the glass door. "Don't fight who you are. You're funny, you're a quirky dresser, you're good at drumming, and you're good with your tongue. You're like a beautiful bird. Fun to watch, fun to listen to, and fun to play with. If you were my bird, I would cherish you forever."
H.R. pressed his free hand against the door from the other side, lining it up with the Speedster's palm. Only transparent glass kept them from touching.
Savitar was speaking in a quiet voice again, but his passion was undiminished. "The only thing you've ever wanted to do is make other people happy. You can make me happy. You can help me be a better version of myself."
H.R. drew a long and stuttering breath into his lungs. He dropped the cellphone on the floor and got the remote out. He pressed a button at random, and the cell door opened immediately. A small proud smile tugged at the corner of his mouth because he had pressed the right button on his first try.
As soon as the door started to open, Savitar flashed back into his suit and zoomed in to scoop up H.R. and take him to his new home. When the world finally stopped streaking by him at super speed, it took H.R. a minute to take in his new surroundings.
He was in a cell again, but it was nothing like the Pipeline cell. This one was dark and metal and harsh.
It was utterly devoid of any decoration.