Barry's speed was like blood to him. Essential, primal, vital. The Speed Force was embedded in his DNA, written into the fabric of his being. Barry could not be Barry without his speed. The hero knew that he would no longer be satisfied with being just an ordinary CSI or an ordinary citizen. Barry could never be happy with being anything but the Flash.
When Barry ran, off to save people or just to get to work on time, he felt the energy of the lightning bolt crackling under his skin. He could feel it burning through his veins, flickering like his soul itself as he ran. The Speed Force is an immense and endless energy that could never be harnessed or owned, and Barry loved it with everything he had.
But when the choice was given to him, Wally's life in exchange for his speed, Barry didn't even hesitate. In his earlier day's as a hero Barry may have begged to exchange something else or insist that there had to be another way but the speedster knew there would be no bargaining with Zoom. Zoom wanted his speed and would happily kill anyone that opposed him; and so Barry didn't oppose.
It was agony how close Barry had been to stopping Zoom. He had increased his speed, finally faster than Zoom, only to have to give it all to the inhuman monster. Zoom would be faster than he ever was before and Barry wouldn't be able to outrun an ordinary man.
But he did not hesitate. He would keep Zoom from hurting his family. They would be safe.
Barry stepped onto the treadmill, his heart sinking at the realization that this was it. He was giving up his speed. Zoom would win. Pushing the smug face of Hunter Zoloman from his mind Barry thought instead of his family. He didn't know how long they would be safe from Zoom once he did this. Would Zoom go back to his own world? Surely once he had The Flash's speed he would be satisfied and go home. But there was always the chance that he would stay and kill them all anyway.
Barry swallowed his trepidation and started moving, feet flying across the treadmill as he pulled speed from the lightening within himself. He ran, his super speed creating flickers of lightening, sparking around him, and almost wanted to cry at the knowledge that this would be the last time he could use his speed.
Barry wanted to live in that moment as his legs flew and his arms pumped at his sides, energy soaring through him and power surging through every cell in his body. But Harrison's device began to pull the speed from the speedster, the energy of the Speed Force being torn from him, to give to Zoom. Barry could feel his power draining, his cells emptying of everything that made him special, the lightening dancing over him, heating his skin like a last goodbye.
Barry could feel his limbs growing heavier as the last of his speed was stolen, his legs stiffening and wobbling like jelly all at once as he tripped over his own feet on the treadmill. He was covered in sweat and his skin buzzed all over like pins and needles. His breathing was strained and his chest burned as his feet finally slipped on the slowing treadmill, sending him tumbling to the ground.
There was a yell, Iris calling name, and Barry blinked tiredly up at her from the floor as she leaned over him.
"Barry are you okay?"
He was panting and placed a hand on Iris' knee to keep from falling back to the floor.
"Yeah, I'm okay." Though how could he be? He just gave up his powers to a monster.
Zoom injected himself with the vial of lightening and screamed in elation as power surged through him, rippling across his black suit like a living thunder storm. A streak of blue lightning fired across the room with a crash like thunder as the speedster gripped Barry around the throat, squeezing so hard the hero began to choke.
There were screams but Barry couldn't tell who they were from, couldn't concentrate on anything except his need to breathe. Hunter's hand was crushing his windpipe and Barry's vision was swirling with black as his exhaustion and lack of oxygen threatened to send him tumbling into unconsciousness.
Someone was pleading with Zoom, Barry thought it might have been Caitlin, her strained voice fighting back tears as she begged the serial killer to spare The Flash's life. Barry's eyes squinted open, his mouth gaping in his seizing lungs search for air, and from the corner of his eye he could see everyone staring with different hues of horror.
Barry's hands were still fumbling weakly at Zoom's arm where it gripped his throat and held him to the wall. He had been held like this before, when Zoom had almost killed him; funny, how things aligned themselves. This time Barry could see Hunters face and saw the hesitation there. It wasn't because he had any reservations about killing another human being, Barry knew the man felt nothing akin to remorse when he ended people's lives with his clawed hands, it was because of what Cisco was saying.
"Let him go and I'll open a hole to your world. You can go home, there's nothing more to take here, just let him live. Please."
Barry mentally begged Zoom to agree with Cisco, his vision almost completely black now, his limp hands slipping from Zooms arm. And then he was hitting the floor, sucking in as big a breaths as he could through his damaged wind pipe, stars bursting in front of his eyes as oxygen returned to his air starved brain. Then a crackle of lightning and thunderous boom filled the room as streaks of blue shot out of the lab, Cisco disappearing with Zoom.
Barry felt hands on him and could hear Iris and Caitlin calling his name but all he could do was cough and drag in air as he shook on the ground. Zoom had won. He was going back to Earth Two where he could terrorize and murder as he liked. He was gone. And so was The Flash's speed.
(I don't like the fact that the writers of the show are happily ignoring the fact that when Wells took 2% of Barry's speed he got sick but when all of it was taken he was fine so idk i might do that in the next chapter if you guys want let me know what you think or just come talk about the episode cause damn)