Chapter 1: A New World
POV: YJ Wally
Ever since he the day he successfully re-created that experiment and woke up in a hospital with super speed, Wally's felt there's been a barrier. One he never understood, all he knew was that it stopped him from running as fast as his uncle. At the start, with his slower speed, he felt he needed to prove himself. Over time he accepted the 'fact' that he'd never be faster than Barry, but he'd be damned if he let his uncle and future cousin die at the North Pole. He knew that with his speed, he could save the day at the cost of his own life.
With every bolt of lightning that struck him, he felt himself slowly turn into energy. As he kept running, something compelled him to push himself further. The more he was zapped, the faster he felt. Barry and Bart hadn't noticed that Wally was slowly speeding up. After the incident and the smoke cleared, everyone assumed Wally was dead. However, when the scarab on Blue Beetle's back said that Wally would cease, it was calculating the energy being added to Wally and it knew he would be thrown into a tear in the universe. Nobody else knew this though.
At the last second, Wally broke the barrier that had plagued him so long. With the need to be faster to save everyone else, he managed to tap into the speed force. In Universe-16, the speed force was still an unknown anomaly. Not even Bart with all his future knowledge knew anything about it and assumed Wally died. Wally was the first speedster of Universe-16 to enter the speed force.
Wally couldn't believe his eyes as he looked around. As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but lightning and a seemingly endless abyss. Looking down, he was seemingly running on air. To his eyes though, it was one of the most beautiful places he's ever seen. Soon, he came to realize that his legs were running on their own and he couldn't stop them. His mind refused to let him, with a feeling that something bad would happen if he stopped.
"Is this what death is? Just an endless abyss? Some sort of lonely prison? Being conscious of what's around you, but not being able to do anything?" As far as Wally was concerned, he was dead. There was still a feeling in his gut though that if he kept running, he might eventually make it somewhere, might eventually break free of this beautiful prison.
Wally didn't know how long he's been running, but the longer he ran, the more he felt attached to this place. As the attachment grew though, so did the feeling that he needed to break free of this place. Almost as though the longer he ran, the further he got from everything and everyone he loved.
More and more time went on in Wally's mind. But time didn't seem to have a presence in this place. As if it were a place outside of time and space. Soon, the only thing in Wally's mind was to keep along the way, someone that looked really familiar began running next to him. The man was wearing a red suit with yellow lines and a lightning bolt insignia on his chest. Though he was quite battered and the suit was torn up, the man looked around in awe. He never seemed to notice Wally running next to him.
Soon, voices seemed to start calling for the man. The first one was of a female that yelled "Flash!". Wally felt that was a name he should know. As the man talked back to the voices, the man said something about the place being some sort of speed force calling him home. The female and another voice called the man Wally and started to pull him out. That name suddenly sparked something in Wally's mind. Memories of his life and what he needed to return to.
With new resolve, Wally started to force his legs to speed up. As he gained more control of his body and became more aware of his surroundings, the man next to him was seemingly gone for only a few minutes. As Wally kept running, he saw the tear that the man had created. After the amount of time he felt he'd been in there, this seemed his best chance for escape. Forcing himself to turn, he jumped through the tear. As he went through it, he lost consciousness.
POV: JLU Wally
It's only been a few days since the world was saved from Darkseid by the Justice League. It's been a fairly quiet day for Wally. Most of the league is divided down on Earth protecting people from natural disasters or whatever's going on. Wally decided to stay up on the Watchtower to help J'onn with monitor duty. He got bored pretty quickly though and headed down to the cafeteria to get a snack. There were a few people sitting around the cafeteria. He thought about sitting down with Green Arrow and Black Canary but decided against when he saw them flirting.
Instead sitting alone, he quickly inhaled the food he had gotten. As he sat there wishing for something to do, the gods seemed to answer his call as J'onn contacted him. "Flash, the sensors have just picked up a very unusual energy at the North Pole. Since I can't transport anyone that far north due to the magnetic field, I need to beam you down in Northern Canada since you can get there the fastest." He heard the martian say through the comm. "Sure thing, I was hoping for something to do anyways." Wally replied. "Don't take this too lightly Flash. We don't know what could be causing this energy. Contact when you get there so that I know whether to send someone down in a javelin or not." J'onn said before transporting Wally down somewhere in the middle of a snow covered tundra.
"It's a little chilly, better make this fast. Don't want my toes freezing off." Wally said to himself aloud as he zoomed off in the direction of the was there, was not anything he was expecting. What he found was a young adult with bright red hair and a familiar outfit lying face down in the snow. He went up to the person and flipped him over. The insignia on the guy's chest was all he needed to see to confirm that this was someone in a Kid Flash outfit. The only differences in this person's costume and his own were the white circle on the chest, the red lightning bolt head things and the goggles.
Wally checked the person's pulse and was relieved to find him alive. He stood up and pressed a finger to his comm. "J'onn, I've reached the North Pole and I'm not sure how to explain this, but there's nothing here except an unconscious person. Nothing else seems out of the ordinary and I'd have to guess that this young man here has something to do with the energy." Wally explained the situation to J'onn all while keeping a close eye on the boy in front of him. "Alright, I'll send someone down in a Javelin to pick you both up and I'll contact Batman and have him come up here to investigate things more closely." J'onn replied and left Wally waiting impatiently.
No matter who this person was, with the outfit they're wearing and the location they're in, the boy must be a good guy. When a bat plane instead of a javelin showed up, Wally was somewhat suprised. Once the plane landed and Batman walked out, Wally didn't waste a second before rushing up to him. "What're you doing here Bats? I thought J'onn was going to have you go up to the Watchtower." Wally stated. "That's what he wanted me to do, but I decided to come here right away and scan the place for energy and examine whoever it is that you found.
Wally then waited some more as Batman started gathering data on his wrist computer. Once he was done, Wally brought him over to where the person was lying. Batman was almost as suprised as Wally at the sight of the person, though it didn't show on his face. "He has a similar outfit to that of your old Kid Flash one." Batman simply stated as he bent down and scanned the boy for vitals. "He's in stable condition, but if he stays in this weather much longer, he'll get frostbite and freeze to death." Batman then stood and started walking over to the bat plane. Wally picked up the boy and caught up with Batman as they entered the vehicle. "Where are we bringing him?" Wally asked. "We're bringing him to the Watchtower for medical treatment and observation.
Wally felt the ride to the Watchtower was too slow, and couldn't wait to get there. Simply seeing the boy in the costume had caused Wally to have some sort of attachment to him. On the way up, Batman had also told J'onn about the person they'd found. J'onn didn't seem too affected by the situation and simply coordinated some of the Watchtower medical staff to prepare a cot in the medical bay.
Once on in the Watchtower, Wally ran the boy into the medical bay and set him down on the cot that was prepared and left him for the then zoomed to Batman and Martian Manhunter to figure out what they're going to do with the boy. Wally half listened as the they talked about boring stuff. He perked up at the mention of the boy himself. "We're going to have to wait for him to wake up before we can question him. Until then, it'd be smart to have at least one hero watching him to make sure nothing happens." Batman said then looked straight at Wally, somehow knowing Wally would want to do it. "Don't worry Bats, I've got it handled." Wally said before running back to the medical bay.
Batman then went to work on studying the data he'd gotten from the North Pole. He also started to examine a some DNA he'd gotten off the person at the North Pole.
POV: YJ Wally
All he could feel was pain. Every part of his body hurt and he couldn't remember why. His head also hurt too much to open his eyes. As he laid there, the pain continued but his memory slowly started coming to him. Running for so long, nothing but running for as long as he could currently remember. Then, a man in Flash suit that apparently shared his name had unwittingly saved him. Well, maybe. Wally still didn't know where he was or what was happening.
The only thing Wally could do was listen. As his hearing became focused, he could hear the hum of electricity and some light breathing that wasn't his own. He painfully turned his head towards the sound and cracked his eyes open. Light blinded him and caused his head to hurt a lot more. The pain caused Wally to go unconscious again.
POV: JLU Wally
Wally had gotten a chair and sat next to the boy. The medical staff had undressed him and put him in a hospital gown. Sitting there watching the boy without any thoughts other than questions, Wally had fallen asleep. If he weren't asleep he would've seen the boy wake up for a few seconds, but as the two of the lay there Batman had finished studying the DNA and saved the energy data to be looked upon at a later date. His new found information of the boy's identity was of utmost importance to be brought to Wally.
Wally had awoken several hours later at the sound of the medical bay doors opening. Standing up to investigate the source of the noise, he spotted Batman walking towards him. "Hey Bats, what's up?" He asked nonchalantly while yawning and stretching his arms. "I have something I need to show you." Was all Batman said before turning around and walking out of the medical bay. Wally just followed him curiously wondering what Batman would need to show him.
They eventually reached a room that held a large computer similar to the one found in the bat cave. Wally simply stood there as Batman typed something on the computer and opened up a file that left Wally flabbergasted. The boy was him, well not exactly him, but a 95% match to himself. The only difference was eye colour. The boy had green eyes while he had blue ones.
"I suspect some sort of interdimensional forced brought him here." Batman stated. "So he's from another universe just like the Justice Lords were?" Wally asked him. "Yes, and he's obviously that universes version of you. His suit's design and material suggest he's from a time slightly further in the future from now, but he's younger than you." Batman explained. "Chances are he comes from a universe where things happened much later. Especially considering you haven't been Kid Flash for many years." Wally just stared at the screen.
Suddenly the two of them received alerts stating the boy was awake. Before Batman could do anything about it, Wally was out the door and running towards the medical bay.
POV: YJ Wally
During the few hours that Wally was unconscious after waking up the first time, his mind seemed to place his memories back in order. Wally woke up once again, but in a less confused state. He was also in less pain. "How long was I stuck in that... that 'speed force' for? I really hope I get to see Artemis and everyone else soon. It feels like I was running for years in that place. Am I even still in the right place? All that running might have brought me some place else."
Wally was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a noise nearby. He slowly turned his head and opened his eyes. This time the light wasn't nearly as harsh on his eyes and he saw a red blur heading towards him at a high speed. When t stopped in front of him and his eyes focused, he saw the Flash. "Uncle Barry? Wait no, the costume is different. You're the guy that was there with me. The voices called you Wally." He stated.
This statement just left the man confused. "I'm sorry but I don't know what you're talking about. I just found you yesterday lying in the snow at the North Pole." The man in the flash suit said. "You either never noticed me or you don't remember it, but I was with you in the speed force. I was there running next to you. When the voices called for you and said Wally, I snapped out of whatever daze I was in and jumped out through the tear you created when you left." Wally simply said.
Batman had also walked into the room and heard what Wally had said. "So then the possibility of you being from another universe is much more plausible." He stated as he walked up to both of them. "Considering your suit is different and the Flash isn't Barry, but someone who shares my name, I'd say that's a good guess." Wally said while looking at Batman. "So then your name is Wally, I'm going to guess that your last name is West since you share almost the same DNA with the Flash here." Batman said. "Almost the same?" Wally asked. The Flash answered him. "We have different eye colour. My eyes are blue."
"Wait, if I'm the Flash here, is Batman still Bruce, or is it one of the Robins?" Wally asked, now curious about the differences in this world. Batman was a bit taken aback by the kid knowing his identity but decided to keep that question for later. "I am Bruce Wayne, but I believe it is I who will be asking the questions. We're going to need to know more about you, your universe and this speed force that brought you here. So if you're feeling all right, I want you to come with me so that I can question you." Batman spoke and then turned around and started walking out of the room not even waiting for Wally.
Wally quickly pulled the IV out of his arm and grabbed his Kid Flash outfit that was on the table next to his cot. Quickly getting dressed in it at super speed, he ran out of the room to follow Batman. The Flash just stood there for a few more seconds before registering what had happened and followed Kid Flash out of the room.
A/N: So this is a story that I just felt the need to start. Even though I'm currently working on another story, I think I can handle writing both of them. I mostly felt the urge to write this becuase none of the YJ/JL crossovers I've read have involved the Justice League cartoon and stuck to canon while having two Wallys. Most of them either have the JL Wally be the one from YJ that disappeared, or change up one of their Canons a lot. In this, there is slight changes to the JL Wally. The changes being the fact that I'm going to have Barry exist in the DCAU. I always found it weird that in the DCAU some characters were combined. Such as Barry/Wally, Jason/Tim and Hal/Kyle. I just felt it necessary for this considering in one of the JLU episodes, a Kid Flash outfit is in a case at the Flash Museum along with two different Flash insignias. So in this story, the JLU Wally's backstory is less like Barry's where he is accidentally drenched in chemicals and hit by lightning, to his more regular one where he recreates the accident that gave Barry his powers.