Chapter 24
Caitlin and Cisco were the last of the group to make their way to The Cortex, and Caitlin had just spotted her friend Felicity Smoak sitting in one on the swivel chairs that faced the desk full of computers, she was about to greet her old friend and enter the room when she felt a hand take a tight grip on her elbow and pull her back around the corner of the hallway and she turned to see Cisco with a hurt and somewhat angry look on his face.
"What is he doing here?" Cisco demanded.
"What is who doing here?" A confused Caitlin responded, answering Cisco's question with one of her own.
"You know who I mean, Oliver Queen." Cisco responded and he sounded like he didn't believe Caitlin when she said she had no idea who he was talking about, and he looked even more hurt.
"Because Barry invited him…?" Caitlin replied as she tilted her head in confusion.
"I knew it!" Cisco yelled as he threw his hands up in the air and turned around and began pacing back and forth across the hall. "Barry and I have one fight and all of the sudden that changes everything." He then turned to face Caitlin again. "Tell me who is always building him new tech, Who built the suite he uses and always cleans it up no questions asked, who went to another earth with him, and who has always been there for him even when things were at their worst, like when you kicked him out?"
"You were." Caitlin answered still unsure where this sudden outburst of anger and frustration was coming from.
"Exactly." Cisco stated as if he had just proven a point of some kind. "Yet the first time we have a real fight and he goes out and gets Oliver Queen to take over my job?! I mean I know he and Oliver are good friends but I was here first and no one should be taking my place, it's just wrong, I'm his best friend, or at least I thought I was." Cisco finished looking hurt.
"I really don't think Oliver Queen has any interest in taking over your job here, Do you Cisco? Barry hasn't said anything to me about it." Caitlin said trying to calm her friend down and still really confused as to how he had jumped to that conclusion.
"Not my job here." Cisco explained sounding more frustrated. "I know you two have been talking about doing a real wedding and now because we had a fight Oliver Queen is getting my job as best man, that is just wrong!"
"What?" Caitlin exclaimed shocked and it took all of her self control to stop herself from laughing.
"That is what he is here for right, you two are getting married soon, so that is why you invited everyone here." Cisco stated and he suddenly seemed very unsure of himself.
"No." Caitlin stated firmly.
"No?" Cisco asked now looking more then a little embarrassed.
"No, he is here because Barry and I need some advice on how to turn S.T.A.R Labs into a business that makes enough money to support its self and us if we are going to get married and fight off Adder." Caitlin explained and this time she couldn't stop a little laugh from leaving her mouth.
"That's it?" Cisco asked as he looked down at the floor and shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other.
"That is it." Caitlin stated firmly and then explained. "Look Cisco I don't know when Barry and I are having the wedding and I have no control over who he picks as his best man, but I am pretty sure it will be you. Now can we go in there before someone comes out looking for us?"
"Yeah, let's go." Cisco said without looking up at Caitlin and he walked past her into the Cortex, he clearly wanted to pretend none of this had happened and Caitlin couldn't help the smile that broke out across her face. Cisco had clearly been shocked into getting over his anger at Barry, and to her that was a good thing.
As everyone gathered together in The Cortex Barry Allen and Oliver Queen stood in front of everyone in the big open area. Oliver was facing the door and watching everyone enter, without showing any emotion on his face, as he normally did, he then turned and spoke to Barry.
"Barry, can I have a word with you?"
"Sure." Barry replied as Oliver turned his back to the crowd and led them to a corner of the room, when Oliver finally spoke it was in a whisper but there was no mistaking the annoyance in his tone of voice.
"Barry I shouldn't have to say this, but there isn't much point to my having a secret identity if you keep telling more and more strangers who I am and that you work with The Green Arrow."
"Hey, I didn't tell them that, I'm not stupid." Barry objected, Oliver shot him a look and then Barry continued nervously. "But a rich tech giant named Blake Adder may secretly be a crime boss, and he may have hacked our computers and coms and we don't know how long he has been doing it, so he may know."
"What?!" Felicity gasped out in surprise, she had somehow managed to sneak up on the both of them and insert herself into the conversation between the two men. "How come everyone I nearly worked for, and half the people I worked for always turn out to be a super villain of some kind?!" She groaned.
"So you are saying that someone out there with the ties Adder has, could know that I am the Green Arrow." Oliver demanded now sounding a little angry.
"Hey, I am sure it wasn't his fault and he called us here as soon as he found out." Felicity stated trying to calm Oliver down she then turned to Barry and looked at him questioningly. "You did do that, right?"
"Yeah, of course." Barry said and he didn't like the way things were doing, he felt like a kid who was scolded for doing something bad. "I didn't want to talk about it over the phone in case he has those bugged."
"Okay." Oliver said taking a calming breath and then he added. "So do you really need our business advice?"
"Yes, it's part of our plan to fight Adder, we need S.T.A.R Labs up and running again." Barry explained and he was glad Oliver seemed to be calming down, or at least he was projecting calm to hide his rage.
"I feel like I should point out that while Oliver and I have both been chief executive officers of companies before, it didn't turn out too great in either of our cases, so maybe we are not the best people to give you advice here." Felicity piped in and this earned her a somewhat panicked look from Barry and a disapproving look from Oliver. "Okay, I will try to only think positive thoughts from now on, yep that is me, Ms. Positive, I'll just be positive." Felicity rambled in response.
"She is right, I am not sure how much help we can be to you with that." Oliver stated as he turned to Barry.
"Look all I need you to do is give us some guidelines and speak up if anyone says something really stupid, because at least you two have run a business before, that is more then anyone here knows how to do." Barry now almost pleaded.
"Okay." Oliver replied and then returned to his original point. "Still that doesn't answer my question, what have you told all these people about me?" Oliver asked as he motioned to indicate all the people who had gathered in The Cortex.
"Look all I told them is that I once worked a case as a C.S.I at your company and that you two are friends of mine. All they know is that you are Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak, nothing else." Barry explained.
"Alright." Oliver replied relenting a little. "Then I guess we should get started." He said and then he turned to face all the people in the room with Barry doing the same thing.
"Okay, everyone can I have your attention, please?" Barry called out and he was trying his best to sound like a leader, but with Oliver standing right beside him, he didn't feel much like one, still he did manage to get everyone's attention so he continued. "Okay we need to find a way to get S.T.A.R Labs up and running so it is making money, that is why we are all here and that is why I have invited Oliver and Felicity, because they have both run companies before, so I asked for their advice. So I guess if you have an idea just throw it out there and they will tell us if it has a chance of working."
"Okay, well I don't think you want a lot of people running around this place, too many secrets, so unless you plan on locking up everyone you employ at the end of each work day, this will have to be small in scale so you can limit their access to certain rooms, and that means updating your security system." Barry was surprised to see that Joe was the first one to speak up, but he had to admit that while what he said clearly came from the security concerns a cop would have, he did make a good point.
"Right, so we need something small scale, but that will bring in a big profits." Barry stated as he rolled the thought over in his head.
"That most likely mean you can't manufacture or ship it from here." Oliver pointed out.
"Yeah, you will want a product of some kind that you can put a patent on and then you can license it to other companies to make and sell and then you just take a cut of the profits." Felicity agreed.
"Do we have anything that we could do that with right now?" Wally asked, as a new comer to the group he was clearly unsure if he was saying something stupid, but he spoke up any way.
"I can't think of anything." Cisco stated gloomily.
"Question." H.R injected as he banged his two drumsticks together. "How do you monitor all of B.A's vitals as he is running around the city?"
"Well there are a bunch of tiny sensors I built into his suit that transmit the data back here to S.T.A.R Labs." Cisco explained.
"Yes, and they fit into the fabric of his suit and monitor everything from his blood pressure, to broken bones, to his body temperature, isn't that right?" H.R asked.
"That is right, it's how I can be ready to treat Barry and know exactly what is wrong with him by the time he gets here when he is hurt." Caitlin injected excitedly as she for once was the one to finish H.R's thought.
"No one else in the world has tech like that and if it was built into people's clothes and the data transmitted to a hospital or doctor's office it could save thousands of lives." Felicity stated as she walked towards the chair that Caitlin was sitting in.
"That is right, I mean if a doctor could see the first signs of a heart attack in one of his or her patients before they felt it and have them into the hospital more quickly, that would save lives, not to mention victims of strokes, and hospitals wouldn't have to wait so long for test results." Caitlin continued to infuse.
"Why didn't I see this before?!" Cisco said as he slapped his forehead with his hand.
"Because you didn't have the genius here before." H.R stated.
"All I have to do is fine tune the software so that it can transmit the signal from the sensors to cellphone towers instead of the S.T.A.R Labs satellite so it can be used anywhere in the world and we have a patent that we can file in just a few days that should bring in dump trucks full of money." Cisco said excitedly as he began typing on his computer.
"Well that sounds like a marketable product to me that will restore the reputation of S.T.A.R Labs." Felicity said with a smile as she turned to face Barry. "I think you are in business."
"That is all good and it makes it harder for Adder to openly attack S.T.A.R Labs and it gives you money to fight back against him, but what do you do if he still decides to blow Barry's cover?" Oliver asked somberly and this brought the mood of the room down.
"Well you were able to handle it when the police accused you of being the Arrow because he later turned up in public while you were at a very public party." Felicity stated carefully and trying not to give anything away while still making her point.
"So you are saying all we have to do is arrange for Barry to be seen in public at the same time as The Flash?" Iris asked.
"I don't think it will be that simple for you." Oliver said. "It worked for me because I am not The Arrow, but with Barry you have to have someone with super speed posing as The Flash, and he has to be in the same room as Barry since everyone knows the The Flash is fast enough that he can make it seem like he is in two places at once."
"The grand opening of the museum." H.R said excitedly as he was finishing off a cup of coffee. "Think of it, we announce that the proceeds from opening night will go to charity and that The Flash will be there, people and the media will show up in droves, and then we have Barry working out there and there will be tons of witnesses along with photos and videos to prove Barry isn't The Flash, and if Adder goes through with his thread it will just make him a public laughing stock and people will assume the documents he is using to back up his claims are fakes."
"Okay, but who do you get to play the part of The Flash? It has to be someone with super speed." Oliver asked, and he clearly still was not buying this as an answer to their problems.
Interrupting the conversation was the sound of a phone ringing, it was Joe's, he pulled it out of his pocket and had a quick conversation at the end of which he looked a little upset. "I have to go into work." Joe explained and Barry and Iris were on their way other to him when he stopped them. "You guys need to keep working on this problem." It was clear something was wrong.
"Are you okay, dad?" Iris asked and she looked very concerned.
"Yeah, I am fine." Joe bluffed not too convincingly. "Look it's just something has come up at work and I have to go in, but you guys need to fix this Adder problem, okay?"
"Okay." Barry and Iris both answered with a sigh and then watched helplessly as Joe left the room and they turned around and tried to focus on the problem at hand.
"Hey, I have super speed!" Wally piped up excitedly and it was clear he was trying to keep himself from thinking about what could be going on with his father as well.
"No offense Wally, but the Flash has been photographed a lot and I think people would notice if you pretended to be him, I mean everyone knows The Flash is white." Caitlin pointed out and she hated shooting him down like that because she knew he was just trying to help.
"Yeah, right, I was forgetting that." Wally conceded as his shoulders sank.
"So that plan will not work, we need a new one." Oliver stated.
"Wait a minute I don't think so." Barry said a second later after giving the matter some thought. "Cisco anywhere on any of our computers does it talk about the breach down in the basement as a portal between worlds?" Barry asked.
"No." Cisco answered as he stood up from his chair and looked over at Barry. "I just listed it as an unknown and unstable phenomenon left over from the vortex and the official story is that Zoom and his army of darkness were just a group of evil Meta-Humans, neither the government or the press ever said anything about them coming from another dimension."
"So in other words there is no way Adder could know about the multi-verse, or Earth 2." Barry stated excitedly.
"Wait, Barry are you thinking of doing what I think you are thinking of doing?" Caitlin asked and it was like she was reading his mind, Barry smiled as he replied.
"Yeah, I am thinking I be The Flash on opening night and I go and get the Barry Allen from Earth 2 and he pretends to be me here, it's perfect!" Barry infused.
"Wait isn't that the weird earth where you and I are married?" Iris asked with a strange look on her face and being reminded of this clearly didn't make Barry or Caitlin comfortable.
"Yeah, it is." Barry replied with a shudder and this seemed to please Caitlin, he then added. "But I don't think you and I grew up as brother and sister there, Joe didn't seem to like me enough for that to have happened."
"But will that Barry even want to help you and come all the way to another earth? He sounded like he was kind of a wuss." Iris asked concerned now.
"He is also the reason I am still here, and once I explain to him how I saved his Earth I am sure he will want to help." Barry stated confidently.
"Well then it sounds like the sooner I have the museum ready to open, the better." H.R said and he didn't wait for a response, he just jogged out of the room, seemingly to get back to work on his pet project.
"I think I will go help H.R, maybe my super speed can be useful there." Wally stated as he left the room too.
"Since we seem to have everything under control here I am going to go and try to find out what is up with my dad." Iris stated and she too turned and walked quickly out of the room leaving just Barry, Caitlin, Cisco, Oliver, and Felicity in the Cortex.
Barry then turned to Oliver with a grave look on his face. "Hey Oliver now that it is just us I can ask you something."
"Sure, what?" Oliver responded and he didn't like the look on Barry's face.
"Well is any of your equipment missing, like say one of your voice modulators?" Barry asked carefully.
"No, why would you ask that?" Oliver replied looking a little puzzled.
"And you haven't been training anyone who left your team lately?" Barry asked.
"No, what is this all about Barry?" Felicity demanded as she stepped in.
"Because I have been tracking a Meta and she seems to be using one of your voice modulators, and well when I ran into her today the way she fought reminded me of you." Barry stated still looking at Oliver.
"Wait, you ran into a Meta and didn't call us so we could help you, and you didn't even tell me?!" Caitlin said shocked as she punched Barry in the left shoulder.
"It's okay, she seems to be on the same side of the law as we are, but she seems to hate me for some reason."
"Why?" Caitlin asked with growing concern that Barry was in way over his head.
"She didn't say." Barry stated and then he turned to Cisco. "Hey can you bring up the footage from that security tape I swiped from the pawn shop earlier today?"
"Can do." Cisco responded and a moment later they were all looking at the monitors as they showed black and white footage of the Meta and her fight with the armed thugs and Oliver looked a little worried by what he saw.
"That looks like League of Assassins training." He stated grimly. "I have never heard of them working with Meta's before, but if you combine their training with a Meta's powers. Barry you need to be very careful if you run into her again, and don't take anything she says at face value!" Oliver warned.
"Don't worry, I will be careful." Barry added and he looked at Caitlin as he said this, who was biting her lip and looking very nervous.
"What are this Meta's powers again?" Felicity asked somberly.
"She said they were exactly what I thought they were before I said anything and she seemed to know what those guys and I were going to do, before we did it. So I think she is psychic." Barry stated.
"League of Assassins' training and psychic powers, that is a combo I would not want to go up against." Cisco said quietly as he took in a nervous breath.
"The worst part is Adder wants me to stop her from fighting crime by the end of today." Barry then revealed to the shock of everyone.
"Barry, you can't do that." Caitlin stated in a small voice.
"She is right, you are a beacon of hope in this city, you can't let Adder twist that to his own ends or the people of this city will start to lose hope themselves." Oliver agreed.
"I know." Barry replied, trying to sound calm. "I just have to find her and convince her to work with me until we can take down Adder."
"Well maybe that will not be so hard if she is psychic." Caitlin said hopefully.
"You didn't hear the way she talked to me, she really seemed to hate me for some reason." Barry said and his voice was filled with shame as if this was a failing on his own part somehow.
"Well you haven't done anything to her, so it's not your fault." Caitlin stated firmly.
"Yeah, try telling her that." Barry said and then they were interrupted by a sound from his cellphone. Barry pulled it out of his pocket and read a text message and his face sunk. "It looks like she is causing trouble for Adder again, he just text me an address and told me to deal with her."
"Barry, what are you going to do?" Caitlin asked as her voice went up with worry.
"I am just going to talk to her." Barry stated and he flashed into his suite and out of the room and building leaving Caitlin to just tell the air to "Be careful." in a small broken voice.
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When The Flash got to the address Adder had text to him he found it was a club that the insides of which where as dark as night without the lights on, despite it being the middle of the day. He guessed it must have been some kind of hang out for gang land figures, judging by the number of disarmed men laying on the ground, crying out in pain beside guns that had been taken apart.
"I know why you are here." A modulated voice called out from the darkness. "I will never work with you Flash!"
"Hey, I just want to talk." The Flash said as he held up his hands and tried to sound friendly.
"I don't!" The voice said forcefully. "I know what you are going to ask next and you can call me Psi."
"Look I just need you to.." The Flash started and then was interrupted by the voice.
"Yes, I know, work with you to take down Adder." The voice said sounding more angry. "Well I hate to break it to you but I have bigger fish to fry then Adder and I can't let you stop me from doing what I am doing." Barry was now bracing himself for a fight as it didn't sound like Psi was going to listen to him at all.
"Stop reading my mind!" The Flash yelled into the shadows as he raced around trying to locate the voice.
"Fine." Psi said as she stepped out of the darkness and into the middle of the room. "My reasons for not working with you have nothing to do with Adder, I know you are just trying to buy time."
"Then why are you so against working with me?" The Flash demanded.
"My reasons are my own." Psi replied and there was a hint of hurt in her voice and The Flash knew that tone, he was bringing back memories she would rather forget, he knew the feeling all too well himself.
"Look I don't know how I hurt you, but I promise I will make it right." The Flash stated firmly but calmly as he walked toward Psi.
"Nothing you can do will ever make things right for me!" An enraged Psi bellowed as she caught The Flash off guard with a powerful punch to the face that sent him to the floor with what felt like a broken nose. The fight was on and there was nothing The Flash could do to stop it.
Okay I know I sound like a broken record at this point but sorry for the delay. I forgot about something my family was doing last week and it left me not able to write, sorry about that. Hopefully you had some fun reading this chapter and it help make up for the delay.
Let me know what you think and where the story is going in your reviews or PMs if you like, I love hearing from you guys.
You guys are the best and the next chapter is coming tomorrow and the chapters will start being longer again to, so you have that to look forward to. My goal is to have this story finished by the time the new season starts, but don't worry I will not rush it and everything is still preceding at the pace I have always had mapped out in my head. Sorry about last week.
Thanks for supporting the story, by following, favoriting, or reviewing. You guys are the best. :)
See you tomorrow! :)
PS Some times I really can't stand the censorship on this site, it keeps censoring CEO as if it is a dirty word, so I had to write it out in long hand as chief executive officer even though no one says it like that in real life while speaking. Okay rant over, hope you enjoyed this chapter.