In order to get into the swing of Discoveries again I decided to write some fic set in that universe, drawing inspiration from a playlist I made ("Running through the Veil of Reality" available on 8tracks, arranged by microraptorglider). These are not song fics as they do not incorporate any lyrics from the songs; just my motivations for including them in the list. There are spoilers for where I was going in the story (This first one is set after it would have concluded).
More work on Discoveries is not guarunteed but receiving feedback will certainly help and if nothing else give me the warm and fuzzies inside. :)
(Also, for those familiar with Discoveries, I did change Daniel's name to Joe here in order to be more consistent with canon. I am likely to do the same in discoveries itself (and have done so on a03).
"Somebody's Watching Me"
Barry was not the sort to believe in conspiracy theories, but this was not because he was lacking his share of paranoia. Julio gently teased him whenever Barry suggested an outlandish theory such as the possibility that the perpetrator had phased through the walls or teleported inside. Though Barry himself often did so in self-deprecating jest, he knew a part of him also hoped and feared that he was right. He also expressed his fear in more mundane ways, checking that he had indeed locked his apartment twice before leaving and calling up Iris and Joe West to make sure they were ok.
With Iris's help and support, he was self-aware enough to recognize that his fears were shaped by the night his mother died. Life for him was sharp and unpredictable, a part of the reason he clung to the predictable patterns of science. An unknown force could overturn your life, no network of conspirators needed. Those that denied what happened afterward did not need bribery or cover-ups to call you crazy; they could believe that all on their own.
That said, Barry believed Iris when she proposed that there was some human connection between the super-human criminal activity, a person pulling the strings per se.
Barry's own condition made him more likely to accept the possibility of spontaneous and accidental events granting superpowers, but he also knew how improbable such changes would be without even more widespread cases of radiation poisoning or genetic deformities. Superpowers are incredibly delicate and the pieces shouldn't fall into the necessary harmonies by accident. Hell, Barry wasn't quite sure why the lightning bolt and chemicals hadn't killed him. Why can his muscles move fast enough for him to speed down streets, his nerves communicate fast enough for him navigate in the blink of an eye, and his cells and bones regenerate fast enough to survive the pounding against the pavement? How could such an aligning of the stars happen more than once and create, for all intents and purposes, pyromancer?
Furthermore, this rogues gallery wasn't just superhuman. Most had superhuman abilities for sure, but their abilities often had technological components to stabilize and weaponize them. Furthermore, the criminals themselves often had a working knowledge of the technology and how to maintain it, but could hardly replicate it themselves.
Mick Rory's body generated tremendous heat and energy, and his blood contained heat and fire resistant proteins. Yet, those would be nothing without the device that acted alternatively as a flamethrower that directed the heat outward and a hose that concentrated those proteins and sprayed then as a foam to control the fire's path. The thief may be a pyromaniac, but he knew it would hardly do good to burn the goods he was going to steal.
When Barry suggested it to the rest of the task force, Julio laughed. "As a species we don't have the understanding of chemistry, biology, or genetics to create someone like Mick and his heat gun. Hell, STAR Labs had been practically frothing at the mouth to get a hold of it and have scratched their heads since we handed it over. STAR Labs. They have geniuses like Snow and Ramon." He let his chuckles die out. "But, the gun had to come from somewhere, and unless the X-men start knocking on our door, I doubt Mick was just miraculously born that way."
Thawne shrugged. "There were sightings of a blur of color and flashes of light by the incidents, and somebody even said that a person in a red suit appeared out of it. Perhaps such things are more likely than you think."
"I'm half way inclined to believe that Mick was lying about somebody grabbing his bag to cover up the fact that he freaked out about him being surrounded. Before you mention anything, that would account for what Detective Li and those two kids saw as well." Julio said rolling your eyes. "We should probably look more into who could have given Mick that tech."
Detective Thawne smirked. "You two should probably first finish up the paper work from the case. I want the reports on my desk by one, and Barry," Thawne looked him dead in the eye, "don't be late with them."