October 30, 11:05 PM
His head felt like it would explode any minute now as Barry drifted from unconsciousness into consciousness. And he felt sick. No, not really sick but different. Everything was loud, his own heartbeat sounded like a drum. He took a shuddered breath and slowly opened his eyes only to close them again. Everything was bright. It reminded him of the time he woke up from his coma and Caitlin shining light into his eyes. It blinded him too. He gulped and tried again. This time however, everything was dark and fuzzy. Barry moved his head slightly to the left and saw shadows dancing on the wall.
He began to panic. Why was he here? How did he get here? Why did he feel so sick? He tried to sit up but a hand shoved in on the ground rather violently.
"Stay there, boy." A deep and rusty voice said. But that only increased Barry's panic and he tried to move away. A few snickers echoed around the room and Barry's head snapped from left to right, but he still couldn't make out anything in the dark.
"I said stay, boy." The voice said again, now angrier than before. And now he was kicked to the floor. Barry gasped, but couldn't move with a heavy boot now on his chest. The man above him snickered and Barry looked up and couldn't believe what he saw. While he still couldn't make out his face, he looked into two red irises, shining brightly in the dark. And now he saw the rest of them too. Red eyes staring at him, at least 7 pairs. And he gulped again.
"What the…" Barry said and tried to take the boot from his chest, but it was an impossible task, like the guy pinning him down had super human strength.
"Be quiet, boy. Be quiet." The voice said, slightly annoyed.
"So, what will we do with him?" another, younger voice asked.
"Suck him dry, little bastard tryin' to save the city… can't have that now, can we?" yet another whispered.
"But mother wants this one, mother need this one." A forth voice quirked from behind.
"But imagine what…"
"Silence!" The first voice roared and it was dead quiet. The red eyes look back at Barry and he could have sworn he saw a toothy grin appear on the man's face.
"Now, now, don't be a fool, boy. After tonight, you're whole world will change and you will become a man… or even more…" he trailed off and something hit the back of Barry's head.
October 30, 8:36 PM
A loud scream echoed through the cortex as Iris entered S.T.A.R. labs and ran towards the sound. The moment she entered the room however, she couldn't contain the grin spreading on her face and a low chuckle.
Standing there, was a nervous Wally in his Kid Flash Costume, an anxious H.R. who looked at the drumstick in his hand and a furious Caitlin, dripping wet. If she wouldn't have had her cuffs on that damped her powers, Iris would be worried, but instead she look amused at the trio.
"Ehm, sorry Caitlin, we were… ehm… training… right H.R.?" Wally stuttered and looked at H.R. who kept playing with his drumsticks.
"Oh, right…. I totally agree with Wallace here, we were training… a new technique…" H.R. trailed off in an attempt to calm Caitlin down, but instead it had the opposite effect.
"If you would need to train a new technique, we have a speed lab down the hall." Caitlin said frosty and waved her hand towards the door, signaling them to leave.
The two boys left quickly the cortex and Wally looked sheepishly at Iris.
In the right corner of the room, Cisco tried not to laugh. It was hard, really. Caitlin looked like… well… a wet poodle, with water still dripping from her brown curls. He took his cherry lollipop out of his mouth and grinned at his best friend.
"This is not funny." Caitlin said, but Cisco couldn't contain his chuckles anymore and began to laugh.
"Man, I should make a picture. Never ever…" He laughed and moved around the cortex and looked for some spare clothes. Iris chuckled as well and came towards them.
"Should I even asked?" she said while looking for a towel in the near bathroom and handing it to Caitlin. Said one only shook her head, took the towel and the spare clothes Cisco had handed her and disappeared in the bathroom, locking the door behind her.
Cisco laughed loudly and looked at Iris. "Man, this was awesome. Wally and H.R. had this crazy idea about catching falling water with Wally's super speed. And then Caitlin came through the door and …" he chuckled. "You should have seen it. They looked so scared, when they saw her."
Iris had to agree, this was funny. She grinned and shook her head at her baby brother's actions. Some crazy idea.
At the same time, Joe West sat in his chair at the police station and sighed. He looked at new missing person report, the ninth this month. And even more over the last three. He couldn't wrap his head about it, but more and more people were disappearing. He looked up and saw the kid's parents, talking to one of his coworkers, the mother had tears in her eyes while the father had no expression whatsoever. This was not good.
"What can you tell me, Joe?" Captain Singh asked as he entered the room.
"Name's Mason Brown, 17 years old, 6.1 feet, around 160 pounds. Same as the others, went out with friends, walked home, and never made it back. No witnesses. His friends didn't see or hear anything. "Joe answered and massaged his scalp.
"Damn it, this is the ninth person going missing this month. If this keeps up…" he trailed off and breathed out.
"Where the hell is Allen? Our forensic team?" he yelled.
And with that, Bartholomew "Barry" Henry Allen ran through the door, knocking over some papers, followed by Julian Albert who only shook his head in disapproval. They might get along now, but he still seemed annoyed by Barry's tardiness.
"Albert. Allen. Did you find anything? And please, tell me you have good news."
"Ehm, Captain Singh…." Barry tried but Julian cut him off.
"No sir, it appears there were no traces of Mr. Brown left. It seems like he disappeared into thin air, if I wouldn't know it better." His british accent was thick.
"This evening gets better and better." Singh said to himself.
"Albert, I want you to go over everything again, look for anything we missed. And Allen…" he trailed off. "Help him with that." And he dismissed them.
As they moved towards their lab, Barry looked at Julian and he nodded. And with a loud Swoosh Barry disappeared and the floor was illuminated in yellow lightning.
October 30, 8:46 PM
The Flash speeded around the city, while Cisco and a now dry Caitlin Snow, talked to him via the coms.
"I mean, it's weird, like, super creepy weird, people disappearing the night before Halloween…" Cisco said and munched on something. Barry could only guess that he was eating his Halloween candy.
"Not that Central City turns into a ghost town like the movie from 1988, but…" but Caitlin interrupted him.
"Despite the movie reference here, Cisco is right. It is weird. Over the last three months 39 people disappeared without a trace. They have nothing in common. But it's a high number." Caitlin said through the coms.
Barry thought about it. Even though Central City was a big city, with the Flash around, these crimes normally didn't happen so often. Kidnapping, yes, but not like this.
"Can you tell me where Mason was last seen? We only have the location his friends gave the CCPD, but maybe a traffic camera picked something up." Barry asked and ran towards the location Cisco gave him.
October 30, 9:21 PM
Caitlin nervously looked at the computer screen where it showed Barry's last location before their connection with the suit broke. The red dot blinked. Flash. 9:02 PM. Almost twenty minutes ago.
Wally had raced there but didn't found anything suspicious. It was like the scarlet speedster vanished into thin air.
The female doctor shook her head. Worrying would not bring Barry back, they had to work together now to find him. She stood up and walked over to Cisco, who worked on some of the machines next to the flash suit.
"You know, whatever happened, it is just… creepy. I have no other word for it. Like 'Shining' creepy. The suit should be perfectly fine. If it was destroyed, the computer would show me that, but it's just like it's not there anymore… And I can't vibe him." Cisco mumbled.
Caitlin didn't answer right away.
"I know." Then she heard something drumming. She turned around and saw H.R. standing in the door. He looked up, still a bit unsure if she should approach Caitlin after their 'water attack'.
"Well, I totally agree with San Francisco here, this doesn't make sense. So, I read a bit through your files." Cisco made a face and put his fingers to his head. "And you guys had multiple occasion where you guys used the satellite for fluctuations, for example when Caitlin here," he hesitated when Caitlin gave him a Killer Frost glare. "Well, ehm, so you guys looked for fluctuations in the atmosphere. But funny thing is, Barry also…"
But he never finished that sentence.
"Barry leaves a trace of electricity when he's running. So that means when we recalibrate the satellite we can find him." And Cisco gave himself a high five. H.R. looked pleased as well.
"So, I'm gonna recalibrate everything, H.R." he pointed to the Wells from earth 19, "you're gonna help me, I need some stuff to do that." And Cisco cracked his head.
"Caitlin, see if you can get in touch with Joe or Iris, I can't get a hold of them, and right now, this isn't the best thing. Reminds me of too much of Tom Riddle making people disappear." He shuddered and moved towards the computer.
As the two boys worked, Caitlin took her phone and went outside the cortex.
"It's so much more fun to be bad."
Did she just hear that or imagine it? Probably just her nerves. She shook her head and made her way towards the medical bay to get her car keys.
October 30, 11:32 PM
Barry opened his eyes and he felt overwhelmed. He was laying on the ground, a shackle around his feet. It was dark and cold, but he could see perfectly, given the circumstances. Apparently he was in some kind of cellar, and apparently he was alone. He sat up and felt pressure in his head. He closed his eyes and breathed out.
"What the hell?" he said and looked around again. He felt agitated, angry. He made a fist. Whatever was going on, he had to get out of there.
"Bartholomew." A voice whispered.
He looked around, but he was still alone.
"I'm losing it." He said aloud and tried to concentrate, which was hard.
"Bartholomew. Don't go."
He shook his head violently. He had to get out of here. He tried vibrating through the shackles, but whatever these where made of, he couldn't phase through it. Which made him even more angry. Mad. He violently pulled at them.
"Bartholomew!" the voice said louder this time.
"Uggh." He pulled and out of pure luck, the shackles broke.
He stood up and speeded up the stairs, onto the road and away. He was far too emotional right now to remember where he was, but he knew where he was headed. S.T.A.R. labs.
He didn't notice the shadowy creature, standing only a few yards away from the scene.
"Oh, great…" it sighed and its yellow eyes followed the movement of the speedster until he was gone.
October 30, 11:39 PM
A whoosh sounded through the cortex and Cisco and H.R. looked up.
"BARRY!"
There he was, the scarlet speedster. Looking out of it. Like he wasn't all there.
"Barry?" Cisco tried again, and moved closer. He signaled H.R. to move outside the door and get Caitlin, Iris and Joe. Good thing, that Caitlin was able to track the Wests down and bring them to S.T.A.R. labs. Apparently some freak weather extreme was causing some malfunctions all around Central City. Mobile phones were pretty much useless now.
Barry's eyes looked at Cisco and he breathed out. He was pale, really pale. And there was blood splattered all over the Flash suit, coming from his head and neck.
"Barry?" a new voice filled the room. Iris moved cautiously around the cortex and towards Barry, behind her a distressed Caitlin and a worried Joe. H.R. and Wally stood by the door, watching the scene cautiously.
Barry's head snapped towards Iris in a creepy way and she stopped in her tracks. Whatever was going on, Barry seemed not okay. He stared at her like she suddenly turned into the Reverse Flash or Zoom.
"Barry, it's me. Iris." She tried again and this time he seemed to have heard her.
"Iris?" his voice was weak. He gulped. He looked around and saw Cisco, Joe, Caitlin, H.R., Wally and Iris, but something was different. They were… so much… clearer. Like everything was in ultra H.D. now. And he felt sick. He staggered.
Joe, who saw it coming, rushed towards Barry and help him stand.
"We should get you to the medical bay, Barr." He said and moved an arm around Barry's waist. The speedster only nodded.
Lying on the medical bed, Caitlin looked over his injuries. The rest of the team seemed to have disappeared, giving him some space, for which he was grateful for.
Caitlin looked swiftly over his wounds, tending to them while her cold fingers moved over his body. Normally, he never payed attention to it, but now he could feel her fingers tracing over his torso and the cold trail they were leaving. He closed his eyes.
"Seems like your wounds are healing pretty fast, I mean, normally fast for you. Still, you look really pale right now. Can you open your eyes for me?"
He obeyed and he looked into the shining light of Caitlin's flashlight. He squinted his eyes a little bit. This was a bit too bright for his liking.
"You're pupils are a bit dilated. I'm not sure if you have a concussion or not, but we should play it safe. Better lie down for a bit." She put the flashlight away.
He looked up at her. Over him, Caitlin face mirrored the expression of worry. He got used to that look. After all this time, after every injury, she looked at him that way. But now he saw more. He saw the dark circles under her eyes, the slight movement of a vein near her neck, the…
"Barry? Everything okay?" Caitlin asked suspiciously. She had noticed him starring at her like… a predator watching his prey. It reminded her of that animal documentation Cisco and her watched last week, before Cisco decided that they should watch some Star Wars instead.
Barry didn't answer and it creeped her out. She moved away, but he was faster. In a millisecond, she was lying on the medical bed, Barry standing above her, a hand on her neck, pushing her down rather violently.
"Barr…" she tried again, but he shushed her and put his other hand on her face. She gulped. He traced along her jaw line, towards her neck and stopped there.
For the first time, she wished she didn't have her power cuffs on. She was utterly scared of her best friend.
As his face moved closer to her neck, Caitlin screamed.
"CISCO!"