"Life doesn't give us purpose, we give life purpose." -Flash

If you had the power to change anything, how much would you change? You have no knowledge of the consequences, but the one thing you change, will stick. Save a loved one? They stay alive, but anything else could change. Not just your own life, but the entire world could change. It's called the butterfly effect. A small change multiplies into having a momentous effect. Save your mother from dying, the attack on the White House succeeds during 9/11, causes World War 3. You saved her but killed billions. So I ask again, if you had the power to change anything, how much would you change?

The Speedster

A blonde little boy bounded into his house. "Mom! I'm home!" He looked around his empty living room. "Mom? Dad?" Barry looked around the room. He skipped up the steps. "Mom?" He heard screaming from his room.

"BARRY RUN!" His mom screamed. Barry ignored her and ran in to his room. His mom was laying on the floor crying while a yellow blur was surrounding her. "NO BARRY RUN!" She screamed again. The yellow blur stopped suddenly. It was a man in a yellow suit. He was grinning at Barry.

"This is going to be fun." The man in yellow laughed and took a step toward Barry. Barry closed his eyes. He felt someone snatch him up and a rush of air around him.

"Barry, your safe now." Barry heard a different man's voice. He opened his eyes to see a man wearing a red and yellow suit, with a lighting bolt. He put Barry down on the sidewalk. They were a couple blocks from Barry's house.

"Flash?" Barry asked confused. This didn't look like the Flash, Barry was used too. He didn't wear the metal helmet or jeans. He also looked younger.

Flash smiled sadly. "Yeah something like that." He hugged the young boy. "I have to go Barry. Be strong for me okay, Champ?"

Barry nodded and wiped away his tears. "Yes sir, Mister Flash."

Flash smiled and gave him a salute. He then sprinted away and back into his childhood home. "Reverse!" Flash yelled at the yellow figure.

Reverse grinned at Barry, at his feet was Barry's dead mother. "She was so pretty Barry. Too bad you couldn't save her, or was it that you wouldn't save her?"

"We both know the effects of changing something Reverse. There's no telling what you've changed in the future." Flash clenched his fist.

"You will never get the chance to find out Barry." He grinned.

"We'll see about that." Barry growled out and attacked Reverse. The two raced around the house landing hits on each other. Barry swung his fist at Reverse but his hand passed harmlessly through him. "What the hell?" They both stopped in their tracks.

"When I said you'd never get to see what you've changed, I meant it. I'll never get to see it either." Reverse laughed in his face. "Time is correcting itself. Soon we will cease to exist, because the timeline we are from no longer exist."

"So what, you planned this? Why would you do this? Do you think if you kill my mother, instead of my father doing it, it will stop the Flash from being created?" Flash yelled.

"No. I came back to kill you, so then the Reverse of the new timeline wouldn't have to deal with you. You beat me to it, so I got mad and killed her." Reverse sighed as he faded further out of existence. He was fading faster than Barry was. "It was a miscalculation. If I hadn't killed her and instead killed your father, maybe then the Flash wouldn't have been created."

Barry shook his head in disgust. "I don't believe in fate Reverse. But no matter what you do, where you go, or when you go, I can guarantee I will be there to stop you." Barry promised.

Reverse smirked. "We'll see Barry. We'll see." He faded from existence forever. Barry sighed. He knelled down and held his dead mother's hand.

"I'm sorry Mom." Barry whispered and kissed her cheek. He wiped a tear from his eye. He sighed when he heard someone run into the room.

"What the...what did you do to this women?" Jay Garrick the First Flash asked. He noticed the red suit and lightning bolt. "Why does your suit look like mine?"

Barry stood up. "I am the Flash from an alternate future. I came back to... do something." Barry had to be vague with Jay, at risk of screwing up this timeline even more. He smiled sadly. "It's nice to see you again Jay. I know you don't know me, but I know you."

Jay stared at him blankly. "Yeah okay psycho." He scoffed. He ran forward and tried to grab Barry. Barry was on the other side of the room before Jay knew what happened. "What?" Jay turned around and saw Barry relaxing against the wall.

"A villain from my timeline came back to this time, to kill the young boy that lives here. I got him out but while I was gone, the villain killed her." Barry explained. "I can't go further in depth, I'm sorry, but there are some things you must do. The women's husband is going to take the fall for this, so you need to adopt the boy yourself. He is three blocks north waiting on the sidewalk for me to return. I'm not going to be able to, so you have to."

"Why can't you?" Jay asked out of curiosity.

"I don't belong here." Barry said simply. He was dangerously close to fading away completely. "Time is correcting itself. Which means soon I won't exist anymore. It was nice to see you again Jay." Flash disappeared finally.

Jay shook his head in disbelief. "What the hell? Focus Jay, I have to go get that kid." Jay ran down the street and found Barry. "Are you okay?" Jay asked as he knelled down and looked the boy over.

Barry grinned. "Flash! You look like you again. Why were you wearing that weird suit?" The young boy asked.

Jay smiled sadly. "I was trying something new kid. I decided to stick with this." He hugged Barry. "What's your name, Slugger?"

"No it's Barry. Barry Allen." Barry smiled. "Why didn't you bring my mom?"

"Barry..." Jay pushed down his emotions. "We have something to talk about."

Barry was a smart kid. He knew what was happening. "No..." He burst into tears and sobbed.

"I'm so sorry Barry." Jay hugged him. "So, so sorry."

"Come on Barry. Let's play basketball!" One of Barry's friends motioned to him and ran for the basketball court.

Barry was distracted by something else on the playground. "Yeah I'll be over in a second. Don't start without me."

His friend scoffed. "You know nobody is going to start without the best player."

Barry smiled. "Yeah I do." He watched his friend leave and then made a beeline for where he had been staring earlier. Two older boys had a kid Barry's age pinned against the wall. Barry casually walked up behind them. "Excuse me, could let go of my friend here?"

The two bullies glared at Barry, while the kid against the fence looked terrified, for Barry. "No he owes us money." One of the big uglies said.

"I doubt it. You should really smile, the frown isn't doing much to help your ugly face." Barry grinned. The kid against the fence laughed drawing a glare from both bullies. The second bully reached to grab Barry. Barry dodged his hand. "I wouldn't suggest that. You wouldn't want Big D to come over here, and protect his teammate."

The bullies shared a look and then glanced down at the basketball court where a black kid the size of a full grown adult was playing. He drove into the paint and dunked on a kid half his side. Fear crossed their faces and they dropped the kid. "Fine. Your lucky D is your friend." They stomped off in anger.

Barry helped the kid up. "So what's your name?" He asked.

"Thank you." The kid smiled. "And I'm Hunter."

"Cool. Wanna go play ball?" Barry nodded toward the court.

"Sure I've haven't played in awhile." Hunter shrugged and they ran to join the game.

Barry soaked in the energy of the crowd. He couldn't focus on his coach in a moment like this. 4th quarter of the state championship, down by 2, despite stellar performances from Big D, Hunter, and especially Barry. Jay and Joan were cheering from the stands. "Barry! BARRY!" Barry's coach yelled at him to get his attention.

"Sorry, coach." Barry apologized and returned his focus to his coach.

"Get your head in the game kid." He said. "Now, I'm letting you guys choose. Do we go for the tie, or do we go for the win?" He looked at his team.

Hunter grinned. "No question. We go for the win." He fist bumped Big D.

Big D nodded. "No argument from me. I know the guy who can make the shot." They both looked at Barry.

Barry grinned. "Easy. Let's go win this thing." Barry put his hand in the middle of the huddle. Everybody else followed his example. "1-2-3 CARDINALS!" The team took the floor. It was their ball.

Barry stood out of bounds and waited for the ref to blow his whistle. Barry took a deep breath and scanned the crowd. He caught Jay's eyes. Jay nodded at Barry and smiled. Barry grinned and passed the ball to his point guard, Hunter. Hunter dribbled around at the top of the key.

Barry sprinted toward the corner closely followed by the other team's guard. Hunter drove to the basket and dished it off to Big D. Big D received the ball and the guard covering Barry broke off of him to try and stop the monster that was Big D. Big D passed the ball over the guard's head right into Barry's hands. With 3 seconds on the clock Barry set his feet, and let the shot fly. The buzzer sounded with the ball just out of Barry's hands.

The once loud arena had turned almost dead silent as the ball floated threw the air. Then the ball found the bottom of the net. Swish. The crowd went wild and Barry raised his hands above his head. He yelled and hugged Hunter and Big D. The three jumped around the court screaming. Big D picked both of them up. "We fucking did it!" He twirled them around before setting them back down and running into the stands to hug his equally huge father.

Barry and Hunter high fived one more time before going to talk to their families.

Barry listened to the steady beep of his heart monitor. Joan was wiping tears away from her eyes. Jay next to her. He was keeping his worry and anger under the surface. The doctor came in the room and sat down next to Barry. "Alright Barry, your scans have come back and I'm afraid I have bad news." He sighed and MRI scans out of his folder and handed them to Jay and Joan. "When the car struck you it broke several ribs, and ruptured your liver. Luckily we got to you in time, and your going to recover from that." Jay breathed a sigh of relief. Joan hugged Barry.

"What about my arm?" Barry demanded. "Is it going to be fine?"

The doctor nodded. "Yes. It will return to functionality with some physical therapy." Barry grinned. "However, I'm afraid it won't recover to the point where you can play ball again." The grinned disappeared and Barry turned silent. "I'll leave you alone." The doctor left quickly leaving Barry with his adopted parents.

"I can't play basketball." Barry said quietly.

"It'll be alright Barry." Joan promised and ran her hand through his hair.

"No it won't." Barry said a little harsher than he meant. "Sorry, Joan. It's just..." He broke down into sobs.

"Joan can you go get us some water?" Jay asked. Joan nodded and left the two alone to talk. "Barry it is going to be alright."

"How? Basketball is my dream." Barry wiped his eyes.

"Barry, this is something that doesn't get said much, but sometime your dreams fall short. You had a great basketball career in high school. You got offers to Duke, Kentucky, Metro U, and a dozen other places. Now that path is over. Basketball is over for you. And that sucks." Jay said. "But your a genius Barry. You understand complex physics and chemistry better than most college professors. You have a future Barry, it just doesn't lie with basketball."

Barry nodded. "Yeah your right. Metro U should still let me go. They wanted me more for my grades anyway." He smiled.

"See you already found a college." Jay smiled. Joan came back in the room with three glasses of water.

"Sorry about yelling Joan." Barry apologized.

"Oh Barry it's fine." She kissed him on the cheek and Barry spent the rest of the day talking with his adopted parents about his future.

"So what exactly is this experiment supposed to do?" Hunter asked his best friend. He was staring at some bubbling chemicals and test tubes. It looked like something a cartoon mad scientist would come up with. Hunter could match Barry's science intelligence when it came to physics, and was even better at mathematics. But chemistry or biology was far out of his expertise.

"I'm attempting to create life." Barry said simply. He ran around between the chemicals checking their temperatures and mixing together compounds at exactly the right time. "I think I figured it out."

"You think you figured out how to create life from non-living organic compounds? Barry, if your right that's a huge discovery. Depending on how complex the life form is of course." Hunter said now staring at the chemicals with fascination.

"That's kind of what I'm banking on. Probably let me finish college a couple years early." Barry shrugged. "There's also the scientific obligation to try if I can."

Hunter nodded. "As good of a reason as any." He looked around for a source of energy. "So how exactly are you planning on generating enough energy for this?"

"Lightning storm. According to the weather channel it should be right above us in...56 seconds approximately. I connected the lightning rod on top the apartment building to my apartment and it should travel directly into the chemical compound that I will mix right now." He quickly mixed some chemicals and minerals together. "Now we just wait about 34 seconds..."

"Barry this seems incredibly dangerous." Hunter wasn't worried. He still had faith in his best friend.

"I've run the calculations. The odds that it doesn't work are like 99%, but the odds that something goes horribly wrong are 1 in 1,456,980."

"Oh. That's why you sent me those numbers." Hunter said.

Barry nodded. "Yep. I had to make sure they were right before I tried this." He said. "10 seconds, here we go." He said and waited for the lightning to strike. The building shook and lightning fired into compound. "It worked!" Barry yelled and high fived Hunter. Then the compound exploded covering both of them in it.

Barry woke up several hours later laying the mess of chemicals. He groaned out in pain. "Hunter?" He asked into the darkness. When he got no reply he staggered to his feet. Barry ran to the light switch but immediately smashed into the wall. He managed to stay on his feet. "What the...?" He turned on the light and looked around the room. No Hunter, no where.

In the 3 years since the accident Barry told his girlfriend Iris about his new found speed, and Hunter's disappearance. He had graduated and found a job at the Central City PD as a CSI. He had also found out his friend, Clark Kent, was an all powerful alien with speed that matched his own, and strength far beyond human.

Eventually Barry found the courage to tell Jay about his superspeed, the accident, and Hunter's disappearance. Jay then told him about the night his mother died. "Barry, I think you were the Flash I met that night. You came back from the future to save yourself from some speedster villain in the future." Jay paced around the room excited. "Barry this means something."

"That time travel is possible?" Barry said confused.

"No. Well, yes but that's not what's important." Jay said. "Okay, it is, but not right now. What this means is, that your meant to be the Flash. The timeline changed and you still got superspeed. It's... fate."

"I don't believe in fate Jay." Barry said shrugging. "Besides your the Flash."

"I don't want to be the Flash anymore, Barry." Jay said suddenly. "I want to retire Barry. You can be my successor, I'll train you, show you the ropes. Then you can take my place and protect Central City. Please Barry, give it a shot."

Barry nodded. "Of course, Jay. I'll do anything for you. I owe you everything."

"Thank you, but don't do it for me. Do it for the people of this city. They're the ones that need you." Jay hugged him.

Barry looked down at his bleeding mentor. His face was busted and multiply bones shattered. "He's very fast Barry." Jay half laughed and coughed up blood. "Stop worrying kid. I still have enough speed left in me to survive this."

"Jay, I don't know if I'm fast enough to beat him." Barry said.

"Bullshit. I know your fast enough to beat him. I've never seen a speedster as fast as you. This is your true calling Barry, not playing in the NBA." Jay said. "Go show the world who the fastest man alive is." He grinned.

Barry grinned back. "Just let me go suit up." After about 10 seconds he returned in his Flash suit. (Just the normal one) "Be back in a flash." He winked and shot away at the speed of sound. He ran to the S.T.A.R. Labs HQ located in the city square. He raced up the stairs to the top floor.

Reverse was holding a man in the air by his lab coat. "Dr. Harrison Wells. You have been researching the speed force recently, have you not? I desire to know what you have learned. Somehow your research gets lost to time."

"Never. I'd never let someone like you abuse it." Wells said as he struggled.

"Well we'll just have to see if we change that." Reverse grinned and threw Wells into the air. Barry caught him and set him down outside S.T.A.R. Labs.

"I'll be right back." Barry said before running back in and finding himself face to face with Reverse-Flash.

"Finally, the real Flash. Not that imposter Jay Garrick. I wondered how long before you would interrupt my plans...again." Reverse sneered.

"I've never met you." Flash said. "But I plan on interrupting any plans you have."

"So...this is the first time we've met for you. Then allow me to introduce myself. I am the Reverse-Flash, and I am the bane of your existence." Reverse-Flash shot towards him aiming a punch. Flash wasn't ready and went flying through the wall and into the next room. "Finally, I meet an inexperienced Flash." He was suddenly on top of Flash punching him at super sonic speeds. "I can finally get rid of you, and I will rule all of time, as the fastest." He continued his onslaught. "Any last words? I owe you that I suppose."

"I'm the Flash." Barry said in pain. "And I'm the fastest man alive, no matter what time you go to." He punched Reverse in the face and kicked him off. He unleashed a combo of punches into his face and stomach. Reverse-Flash managed to grab one of his fist and threw him into the wall.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Reverse screamed. Before he could attack again, a collar latched around his neck and sent electric shocks into his brain knocking him out. He collapsed revealing Harrison Wells standing behind the Reverse-Flash holding a huge gun.

"Good work Doc." Barry said and staggered to his feet.

"He's a speedster. He won't be out for long." Wells warned.

As if Reverse-Flash had heard him, awoke with a gasp. He stumbled to his feet. "Fine you win this time Flash. I'll be back." He activated something on his wrist and a portal opened up. He ran through it and it closed behind him.

"We'll talk about that later Doc." Barry said passing out in exhaustion.

Fate. The fickle mistress. In the words of Forrest Gump, "I don't know if we each have a destiny, or if we're all just floatin' around accidental-like on a breeze. But I, think maybe it's both." That was his opinion on the matter. I for one believe the universe is a chaotic mess governed by sometimes confusing, but strict scientific laws. A universe like that has no room for fate. Then there is the other side. That everything is predetermined, that all choice is an illusion, and that we slaves to a plan decided by some higher power. Then again, maybe it's like Gump said, a little bit of both.

Life is locomotion... if you're not moving, you're not living. But there comes a time when you've got to stop running away from things... and you've got to start running towards something, you've got to forge ahead. Keep moving. Even if your path isn't lit... trust that you'll find your way. -Flash