The ripple effect of Barry Allen dumping Kara Danvers in the past, was felt all the way into the possible future where Kara cheated on him.
Pregnant Kara, in the future lost her babies in her belly because of the ripple effect. And she slowly faded away.
Future Barry and Future Kara's memories were reset and Barry's future self ended up back in Central City and Kara's future self stayed in National City...They were not on speaking terms, and they both quit the Justice League.
They both started fighting crime again but they were not themselves. They were much colder and more distant. Filled with anger and regret…
If only they can change whatever the mistake they made that led up to this day, if only they can finally see past through their hate, sadness, and hurt.
In the future, there were no longer Supergirl and The Flash. No, those heroes died that fateful day. Instead, something else emerged, replacing the two former heroes. Something much more darker. Something much more dangerous.
The Justice League were very worried, if Barry and Kara continued on this condition for a long time, they wouldn't have any other choice than to intervene. For them and for the good of the world.
"What do we have?" Superman asked as he walked towards the Caped Crusader.
"Ronald Garcia, a small time criminal. He's currently confined to National City Hospital. He's got a broken back bone and his face bloodied when he was admitted, he's also currently in a coma." Batman replied.
"Rao, this is getting worse and worse every minute. Any more cases?" Kal-El asked as Batman sighed.
"The crime rate in Central City and National City has gone down but the criminals, they are always at the brink of death whenever the police and paramedics find them. I think it's time that we make this right." Bruce suggested, making Clark nod his head in agreement. The two of them are way out of hand, they are now someone else, something else.
Meanwhile...Back in the past
Barry was on another planet, Earth-5, he was trying to move on with his life. He was trying to forget Kara Danvers and her cheating doppelganger from the future.
He moved into an empty apartment in Earth-5 National City and he got a job with L-Corp, and Earth-5 Lena Luthor was his boss.
Barry showed up to work everyday, on time. He did his forensics job and he did it incredibly well. His boss, Lena Luthor was impressed.
Barry Allen and Lena Luthor were on a first-name basis. They became fast friends, but they remained professional during work hours. Truth be told, Barry began to develop a bit of a crush on Lena's Earth-5 doppleganger, but he knew that a workplace romance never ended well, so he hid his feelings.
Despite that, he could sense his feelings continue to grow stronger with each passing day. Lena was a beautiful woman. He could admit that, but there was so much more to her than just a pretty face.
She was powerful, and not just in a financial sense. She was so passionate about her work and believed in what she was doing that she inspired him to continue working hard. And he felt that just barely scraped the surface of who Lena Luthor actually was.
It saddened him that he would one day have to return to his own Earth. He had taken a leave of absence from the hero's life and he trusted the others to take care of things whilst he was gone, but there were some responsibilities of being The Flash just he would never be able to escape.
Barry eventually decided to ask Lena out for a coffee after work, and she said yes.
Barry and Lena sat across from each other and Barry began the conversation by saying, "I asked you out today because there's something I need to tell you Lena."
"What is it?" Lena asked curiously.
"One of these days, I'm going to have to go back to wherever I came from because I have responsibilities there that I have been neglecting lately." Barry answered.
"Oh? Well where is this place you are from?" Lena asked.
"You're not going to believe me when I tell you this but I'm from another Earth. The theory of the Multiverse, it's true."
Lena stared at him for a few seconds before letting out a laugh. "You're right. I don't believe you," Lena said. "But I'm willing to indulge you on this. When are you leaving?"
"Soon, but I was hoping that I could show you where exactly I am from. I believe Central City on this planet has never heard of me, before. But I can show you what Central City is like on my planet." Barry offered.
"So you're from Central City," Lena commented. "I think that's the only thing I got from all of that. Listen Barry, I am a very busy woman and I can't just hop on a train to the next town whenever I want. I have a company to run. If you're planning on tending your resignation, as sad as I am about it, there's nothing stopping you,"
Barry looked around the cafe and made sure that nobody was looking and he flashed Lena and himself back to her office.
Once Lena got her bearings, she took a look at her surroundings in complete shock. "How did- When did-" Lena stuttered. Lena took a deep breath as she turned to look at Barry. "What happened?"
Barry simply held up his hand and vibrated it and said, "I am the impossible."
"You're an alien is what I'm getting here. This all makes sense now, you talking about returning to your home planet and all that. You must miss your family and have to go back to them," Lena said.
"Actually, my ex-girlfriend was an alien. She was from the planet Krypton." Barry explained.
"Krypton? A kryptonian? You dated a kryptonian? How'd that pan out?" Lena asked.
"Not well, she was going to cheat on me." Barry explained. "So I felt I couldn't trust her anymore."
"Regardless, look I understand now. You need to go back to your home planet. This was probably just a vacation for you, a way to get away from your breakup."
"I just wanted to be honest with you, since we're friends Lena. I really did enjoy working with you, you're an incredibly smart person, not to mention beautiful. Any guy would be lucky to have you. But you're just like me, you're afraid of letting someone in, because you don't want to be hurt...Well, I am afraid too." Barry explained before slowly walking away.
"It was nice working with you Barry, if that even is your real name. I hope you have the greatest fortunes in your future endeavors," Lena called out to him. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone about any of this. I'm sure you'd like to keep all this under wraps,"
Barry travelled back to Earth-1 and decided to see if he was needed at STAR Labs.
As soon as he arrived, everybody cheered and crowded around him as if assuring themselves he was in fact, back in their lives. "Barry!" Everybody yelled as they swarmed him and gave him a group hug.
"It's good to be back." Barry said smiling.
"Where have you been? It's been months since anyone has seen you?" Iris asked. "So much has gone on since you've been here,"
"I've tried to make things work with Kara, but long story short it was just a waste of time. She was going to cheat on me in the end." Barry explained.
"That's horrible Barry, I'm so sorry. You want me to hit her for you?" Caitlin asked with conviction in her voice, her eyes glowing white as she glared.
"I just wish the pain in my heart would go away." Barry frowned.
"So how have you been these past few months? Everything okay?" Joe asked in concern.
"I'm okay now. Everything was so out of focus when I learned where that relationship was going, but now I wished I knew sooner so I wouldn't have wasted so much time on that." Barry said. "Everything seemed so clear when I first got together with Kara but now everything just seemed little darker than before,"
"I know Barr. You put your whole heart into a relationship. But I'm glad you're getting better son." Joe placed a hand on Barry's shoulder in comfort.
"At least now, I don't have to put up with Kara's overbearing and overprotective sister." Barry joked.
"In-laws are always the worst," Cisco laughed along.
"So has anything happened here in the months I've been away?" Barry asked.
"Yeah, a few purse snatchers and bank robberies." Wally said.
"So nothing too serious has happened? That's slightly alarming," Barry commented.
"Yeah, we've all been on edge for a while waiting for the next big bad to take their shot at us," Cisco said.
"I'm surprised Thawne didn't try to attack Central City while I was away." Barry commented.
"Well Thawne always has been one for the waiting game. Not to mention the entire reason he became a speedster was because of you, so he's probably taken the time you're away to plan when to strike you next. If he's even still out there," Cisco said to him.
"I think Thawne is probably in the future since the last time I saw him I had to toss him through a time breach." Barry said in thought, "Anyway, I'm glad National City is thirty-seven Earths away because I don't know if I'm ready to make my peace with Kara, but I'm definitely not going back to that relationship."
"Well you know, you two are superheroes. There will come a day where the two of you will need to come together and work alongside each other again for the benefit of the people. You're going to see her again. That's just inevitable," Caitlin commented on the situation.
"Yeah, I think I'll wait until I'm needed in National City, but I don't think I am. I mean, they have Supergirl to protect them." Barry reasoned.
An alert sounded throughout the building indicating that something was amiss in the city. "We've got a few robberies going down. Looks like a gang. Think you two can handle it?" Cisco asked Barry and Wally.
Barry opened his Flash ring and sped into his Flash suit as it popped out of the ring…
Once the incidents had been taken care of, Barry called out to his team, "Hey I'm going to crash for tonight. It's been a pretty long few months for me,"
"We understand Barry. Based on the past few months, there shouldn't be anything that we need to call you for, but if we do…" Caitlin said.
"Let me know and I'll be here as fast as I can," Barry confirmed.
Barry ran away to the empty mansion that he inherited from the fake Harrison Wells, and he lied down on the bed in the master bedroom and he went to sleep. And he dreamt about Kara and Lena.
Meanwhile in National City on Earth-38…
In the past few months, Supergirl had become ruthless in the criminals she dealt with. It didn't matter whether they were simple drunk drivers or people that were holding explosives, they were all dealt with the same way.
"Kara, I know you're angry about Barry Allen dumping you for no reason, but you need to let that go." Alex said through the comms.
"I just don't understand it Alex. I thought we were in a good place. We were happy together, and then all of a sudden he decides he doesn't want to be with me anymore just as I was about to open up to him more," Kara ranted to her sister. The two of them had many talks that were similar to this one.
"Anyway, Charles Howlett sent a letter in a tin lunch box that said Barry is back in Central City on Earth-1, but he didn't reveal why Barry dumped you…" Alex informed her sister.
"What do I care if that jerk is back? I want nothing to do with him. After everything I've done for him I deserved more than a simple 'We're breaking up,' He should've at least had the courtesy to give me a valid reason," Kara angrily shouted into her earpiece.
"If you don't care about whether he's back or not, then why are you holding onto all of this anger, pain, sadness and resentment for!? You're behaving worse than when you had to send Mon-El away, worse than when you were controlled by Red Kryptonite…" Alex said, hoping to get through to her.
"You would be angry too if someone took and ripped your heart out of your chest. I don't want anything to do with Barry Allen. He's nothing but a coward that can't commit to anything," Kara retorted.
A time breach suddenly opened up and Batman and Superman came out, holding future Kara with a low grade Kryptonite syringe implanted in her back.
The duo approached the present day Kara while they were still restraining their Kara. "Kara Danvers? You need to come with us," Batman grumbled to her.
"Who is that? Is that me?" Kara asked stupidly.
"I'm so sorry about this Kara, but this is something that had to be done," Superman said apologetically to his cousin.
"Kal? How are you here right now?" Kara asked her cousin. "What is going on here?"
"Just come with us, please and promise me you won't lose control, okay?" Superman made Kara promise.
Kara agreed as she let the two future heroes lead her to the DEO where they were currently conversing with Hank.
"Do you have Barry Allen under control, Agent Danvers?" Hank asked Alex through the comms.
"I'm travelling through the breach as we speak. As soon as I'm through I won't be able to contact you until my return. If I don't come back within 48 hours, come find me," Alex said through their devices before it cut out.
"Kal? What's going on?" Kara asked her cousin worriedly, the version of Kara that wasn't restrained that is.
"We need to get this Kara restrained first," Kal gestured to the woman in his arms. "Then we'll explain everything,"
"I can help you with that." Kara offered.
Soon the trio of heroes had the future Supergirl locked away in a containment cell where her powers would be neutralised. As soon as that happened, Kara turned to the two male heroes.
"Now that that is taken care of, will one of you explain why in Rao's name I just had to put myself in a cage and why Batman is carrying around that syringe filled with golden liquid," Kara demanded from the two.
"This golden liquid is gold kryptonite. It's designed to take away a kryptonian's powers permanently and we're planning on using it on her," Batman gestured to the syringe before pointing the woman in the cell.
"Kara, you've been dealing with criminals in National City, the same way this Kara has been. Coldly." Superman explained, "And we know why that happened. Barry Allen was brought into the future, and this Kara," Supes gestured towards the one in the cell, "Cheated on him in the future."
"So what you're saying is that she is who I will become and Barry found out about it?" Kara asked to clarify.
When the two time travelers nodded their heads, Kara hanged her head down in shame. "No wonder he decided to leave me, but I hadn't done anything yet so why would he do that?" Kara questioned.
"That's something you're going to have to ask him and you'll get that answer when Alex comes back with him through the breach," Kal answered.
Barry showed up through a breach about five minutes later with Alex trailing behind him.
"Why did you bring me here?" Barry glared at Alex. "This is the last place where I want to be right now,"
"The future changed and it's your fault." Alex replied simply.
"I don't need to stand here and explain my decisions. I don't regret a thing I did and I'm not looking to change anything," Barry said, "Anyway, I thought you'd be happy, Alex. I've cut all ties with you and Kara." Barry pointed out.
"There's a lot you need to answer for. First and foremost, the fact you decided it was okay to change the timeline again. I thought you weren't supposed to do that anymore," Kara yelled at him.
"What? Am I supposed to live with a potential cheater!?" Barry asked pointedly.
"I expect that we could talk about this. You just left me with nothing." Kara pointed out. "Was I so horrible that I didn't even deserve a reason to why you ended the best relationship I ever had?"
"I was happy until I found out that a version of you kissed Adam Foster in front of a version of me. You know, my mother was having an affair behind my father's back. When he found out, they both lost it. I never saw them that angry before. It got so bad they were going to go through a divorce until that night happened. You're just a cheater!"
"A version of me is a cheater," Kara corrected him. "That's not me. You can't place the blame of them onto me. That's not fair. I'm not responsible for their decisions, just like how you're not responsible for your doppelgangers,"
"How can I ever trust you again? I'd rather throw our relationship away than experience the same pain my father felt." Barry replied stubbornly.
"Then that makes you a coward, because then you won't be able to experience the real things in life if you just give up at the slightest mention of trouble," Kara shouted at him. "What kind of hero are you if you're not willing to take any chances at life? You're a pathetic excuse of a person and I'm glad that you ended things. It saved me from a life with a complete coward,"
"Are you finished? Can I go back to my life now?!" Barry shouted back.
"Yeah, because you know what? Now I got closure because I found out you are a sorry excuse for a living being," Kara glared at him before taking flight and leaving the building and away from her ex-boyfriend.
Barry ran back through a breach to his mansion and lied down and thought about what Kara said.
Barry thought that he couldn't find the strength to justify his actions to himself anymore. Kara hated him because he was a coward, maybe he was. But he can't go back in time again and fix it, because that'll just make them angrier. He needs to live with this. He needs to just move on with his life.
But that would be easier said than done. Everything Kara said was true. Their relationship was probably the best he ever had, despite where it was going to lead. He had a lot of good times with Kara and the gang on Earth-38. And they had saved his life as well as his new friend Charles.
He had no idea if Darkseid was still going to come after him, but as long as he stayed on his own Earth, he should be safe. Barry still shuddered when he came upon thoughts of his time on Apokolips.
Barry decided to wait until he was needed again before showing his face to his friends and family on Earth-1.
Meanwhile at the DEO, Batman and Superman were still waiting outside of the cell of the future Supergirl. They may have prevented the current Supergirl from following the same path, but they still needed to deal with the version who did. They needed to remove her powers, lest she be a danger to herself and the entire world. They just needed to be patient until she rested. Then they would inject the gold kryptonite into her system, taking away her powers permanently.
They injected the gold Kryptonite into her system and then Kara woke up. She tried to use her heat-vision but she couldn't…
"What did you do to me?" Future Kara growled at the two. She tried to access her other powers, but she couldn't feel them. For the first time, in the longest time, she couldn't use any of her powers.
"You're no longer a superpowered individual. We took them away." Batman replied.
"I'm sorry Kara, but you were just too dangerous. You were wild and reckless. The people don't need a hero like that." Superman said. "We had no choice. We couldn't let you continue like this,"
"So you just kidnapped me and stripped me of my powers?" Kara shouted at them. "You took away a piece of me that I've had for almost my whole life? I'm not the villain here. You are, and someday you're going to pay,"
"Tell that to Ronald Garcia. You put him in a coma." Batman taunted.
"Whoever he is, I'm sure he deserved it. A criminal is a criminal and they don't deserve any mercy," Kara glared.
Batman and Superman dragged Future Kara into a time breach and they went back to the future. The entire reason why they came back to the past was to warn Kara of the person she would become if she continued being cruel. Hopefully now that they changed things, everything would turn out better. They really didn't want to resort to time travel. Everyone had been warned of the dangers of travelling through time, but it was the only way to prevent all the terrible things that would happen.
Five Years Later…
Barry is in a bar in Central City. And he's enjoying a glass of beer. He had gotten used to being alone. He had nobody to blame for being alone but himself.
He'd been living off of the money Thawne had given him and only coming out as The Flash for times that really called for it. At other times, he spent them at the bar drinking his sorrows away. Maybe even getting someone he liked for a night, but those usually didn't happen very often.
Eventually Barry grew bored of this and decided to discreetly visit Earth-38. He hoped to God that he didn't end up in Kara's apartment or in the DEO, and he didn't. He ended up in the desert field and he casually walked back into National City. He was looking for L-Corp.
After his time with the Lena Luthor of Earth-5 all those years ago, he was craving her companionship again. Even if she wasn't open to being in a relationship with him, just being friends with her would be more than enough.
Barry walked into L-Corp and requested a job interview and the interview went well enough and he was soon offered the job and Barry began to look for an apartment close to L-Corp but far enough away from Catco…
Even though he and Kara were on speaking terms again, things were still awkward between the two of them. It had taken a long time for them to reach this point in their purely superhero relationship. Being in such close proximity to each other for an extended amount of time would bond to be asking for trouble.
Barry managed to keep his distance from Kara, but he still showed up to L-Corp everyday and he did his job incredibly well.
Barry knew that his luck would eventually run out though, and it did, one day when he was working he looked up and saw Kara standing there.
"Why are you here?" Kara asked pointedly.
"Because I work here?" Barry asked in return.
"Since when do you work here? On my Earth?" Kara asked. "Barry, I'm going to give you one chance to give me a straight answer. What are you doing here?"
"Look, I'm not here for you, I'm here for somebody else." Barry replied vaguely.
"What could possibly drive you to risk running into me without an end-of-the-world scenario?" Kara asked.
Barry saw Lena Luthor talking with her assistant and he pointed to her with his eyes.
Kara followed his gaze where her eyes landed on her friend Lena. She turned back in shock. "Really? Lena? You don't even know her. How do you even know about her?"
"The day that I broke up with you, I went to a planet called Earth-5 and I worked at L-Corp there for a while." Barry explained.
"So why don't you go back to that Earth? Why risk running into me if you have another Lena Luthor to go to?" Kara questioned him.
"Because I'm trying to move on with my life, I'm trying to forget about you, why do you think I've kept my distance from Catco? But it's a free country. You don't own this planet. I'm not here to fight crime as The Blur."
"You have a whole multiverse of Lena Luthor's out there. Why did you come here?" Kara demanded to know.
"Maybe, I'm trying to keep Lena from going down a dark path. Like me, she's always been afraid to let people in, and she doesn't know your secret does she?"
"She found out about me being Supergirl. Her brother Lex told her and now she won't talk to me. I'm trying to show her that me being Supergirl doesn't change the fact that we're friends, but she's still really angry at me," Kara answered.
"Look, Kara. I can help Lena. If you let me. But you need to let bygones be bygones and don't undermine me when I'm trying to get through to her." Barry discreetly said.
"Lena is still my friend Barry. I care about her. If anything goes wrong, so help me, you will wish you never saved me that first day," Kara warned him.
Kara decided to let him go because, despite their falling out, they were still friends to an extent. And Barry had full rights to go wherever he pleased. If he wanted to live here where he may encounter her from time to time, she would let him. It wasn't like they were dating anymore. That was five years ago. She was completely over him by now.