At seven times the speed of sound, Xander entered the West-Allen loft with Nora West-Allen in his arms. He gently set her down on the couch, before speeding away to grab supplies. Xander found towels, a first-aid kit, some bandages, and a pillow. It wasn't until he moved back to the couch that he noticed the gauntlet located on the left arm of his suit.
Making sure he was in Flashtime, he tapped the gauntlet, watching as it activated. Xander scrolled through the settings, finding several suit functions that he had been unaware of. There were many functions, including; His mask could be switched with a cowl. He could change the color scheme of his suit. Thermal-threading, in case the suit was frozen. Voice alteration, so he didn't have to vibrate his vocal cords. A flotation mode. Self-repairing armor, to repair the suit in case of damage. A Heads-Up Display. A defibrillator. A deadlock function, to prevent his cowl from being removed. Pulse cannons, in case he lost his speed. And most importantly, nano-plasma circuitry, which powered the suit.
Xander tapped away, changing the color scheme of his suit from white and gold to red and gold. He moved forward, gently placing the pillow and towels beneath Nora's leg, as to prop it up. He then pulled the first-aid kit closer, pulling out a pair of scissors before starting to cut off the right leg of Nora's pants. The sight was...disturbing. Her fibula bone had been pushed up, and out of her skin.
"Nora...this is going to hurt...a lot," Xander said sadly as Nora winced in pain. She gritted her teeth, before nodding. In one swift motion, Xander snapped the bone back in place, producing a deafening scream from Nora as she bent back in pain. In less than a second, Xander cleaned the wound with alcohol wipes and disinfectant, before wrapping it in bandages.
"T-Thanks," Nora said weakly, her eyes filled with both pain and tiredness. Xander nodded, speeding away, before returning seconds later with several glasses of milk, only to find her fast asleep. He placed the milk on the table next to her, before moving over to the kitchen, only to find Iris West standing in front of him.
"B-Barry?" Iris asked, noting the sleeping and bandaged Nora on the couch, as well as the new color-scheme on his suit. Xander shook his head before his cowl disappeared to reveal his face. Iris stepped forward in anger, reaching for something in her pocket as Xander held up his hands. "Woah, Woah, Woah. I'm not here to hurt anyone,"
"Prove it," Iris said. Xander nodded, slightly worried as he cautiously stepped forward. When he was a foot away, he reached out...and tapped her forehead. She went rigid, and with that time, Xander turned around, grabbed Nora, and ran away from the building.
FLASH MUSEUM
Xander came to a stop in an empty alley just outside of the Flash Museum. With a single thought, his suit disappeared, leaving him in civilian clothes. He carefully sat Nora down on the ground, before speeding off, reappearing seconds later with a wheelchair. Xander picked Nora up and sat her in said wheelchair. "Thanks," She said gratefully.
With a nod, Xander grabbed the wheelchair, and pushed it along. "So...where to first?" Nora asked. Xander grinned, pushing her along as the Flash Museum came into view. "The Flash Museum? My mom might see us there. It's too risky," Nora said.
She is right Xander. The Speed Force announced in his head as they got closer. However, if you vibrate, your, the wheelchair, and Nora's molecules, you can render the two of you invisible to any outside viewer. Xander nodded, grabbing Nora by the shoulder, the Speed Force in his body emerging as he phased himself, Nora, and the wheelchair.
"What the -" The two phased through the door leading into the museum, before turning to the Cosmic Treadmill Exhibit. Xander pulled the wheelchair to a stop, moving around it, coming face to face with Nora. "The treadmill should still be operational. We should be able to use this to get you ready," He picked her up once again bridal style and laid her down on the treadmill.
Place your hand on her leg. The Speed Force ordered. Barry nodded, and placed his hand on her knee, producing a wince of pain from Nora. Give her your energy. He did so, vibrating his hand into her knee, before pulling it away seconds later. "Any pain?" Xander asked. Nora shook her head in shock as he removed the bandages from Nora's knee, revealing the fact that it was completely healed.
"Thanks," Nora said happily as she stood up from the treadmill. "Ok...what now?" asked Nora as she jumped into the air in excitement. "Get on," Xander responded as he motioned to the treadmill. He pressed the 'On' button, watching as Nora easily kept up with the treadmill as it picked up speed.
"231 mph. 254 mph. 316 mph. Mach 1," Xander said as Nora and the treadmill continued to pick up the pace. "356 mph. 392 mph. 476 mph. 511 mph. 543 mph. 599 mph. 627 mph. 653 mph. Mach 2!" Xander shut off the treadmill before Nora could enter the timestream, watching as Nora slowed to a stop.
"Only Mach 2? The museum says my dad could go Mach 17," Nora said sadly as she stepped off of the treadmill.
"Mach 2 is the necessary speed of going into the timestream. I gave you a boost out there before Godspeed," Xander said. "So...are you ready to see your father?" She nodded as the two grinned. "Ok, let's go," The two sped off, moving through the museum before moving into the restricted area known as the 'Pipeline'.
"Ok...what now?" Nora asked excitedly.
"Now...we run," Xander winked, before speeding off in a flash of bright yellow lightning. Circling the pipeline several times before Nora joined him. "Ok, we're both at Mach 2!" Xander announced to Nora, who was at his side. He focused on one specific event in the timestream, one that would alter the timeline greatly, without risk of the loss of life.
"You ready?!" Xander asked, receiving a nod from Nora. The two ran head-on into a funnel of blue energy, past memories and events flashing before their eyes. Enter the Speed Force Xander, and set right the mistakes we made. Xander nodded, grabbing Nora by the arm before charging further into the blue.
"Sure you're up for this, Flash?" The event called to him, Barry Allen's voice ringing in his ears. "You got it, Flash," Jay Garrick answered. Continuing to focus on the memory, Xander charged forward faster than ever.
"I'll let you know when you reach optimal speed," Cisco Ramon's voice called out to the two speedsters, who nodded. "Ready... go!" The two ran forward, entering the blinding light that was the Speed Force.
STAR LABS CORTEX
Team Flash, including Barry Allen, Iris West, Joe West, Wally West, H.R Wells, Cisco Ramon, Caitlin Snow, Jay Garrick, and Julian Albert all entered the Cortex of STAR Labs with worried expressions on their faces. "That was so scary. I mean, that was...was it not truly frightening, what the voice and the prophecies and the...oh, it was... I mean, that's a scare-a-thon, wasn't it? I'm gonna have a mint tea and a coffee and a laydown," H.R said in what seemed like one breath as everyone else sighed.
"Do you think the things that he said about one of us betraying him and one of us dying could really be true?" Caitlin asked before Cisco sighed.
"I mean, if it really was future Barry that pissed him off and locked him up somewhere, then maybe he knows what happens to future us," said Cisco.
"He doesn't. He's never getting out of wherever he's trapped," Barry replied. Silence filled the room for a moment as everyone contemplated this. Before Joe asked, "So how are we supposed to stop him?"
"The stone," Jay said simply.
"Jay's right," Barry said. "The stone has been the key to everything. It's... it's how he controlled Julian, it's how he's created more metas,"
"So we destroy the stone and Savitar is gone for good," Iris mused.
"It's impossible to destroy. It's been around forever, there's a reason for that," Julian replied.
"Why don't we just bury it again, put it back in the ground where you found it?" Wally asked.
"Mm-mm. 'Jumanji'," Cisco said.
"Someone would just find it, and we'd be right back where we started," Joe said.
"We need to make that box disappear forever. There's only one thing we can do with it. Throw it into the Speed Force," Jay mused.
"Wait, you can do that?" Wally asked excitedly.
"Oh, yeah," Jay said. "The Speed Force is eternity itself, an endless void of time and energy,"
"It'd be like trying to find it after it got lost in space," said Barry.
"But that stone is loaded with gravimetric force. I mean, I don't think you could run fast enough to reach the Speed Force and carry that at the same time," said Cisco in worry.
"He can with my help," Jay countered. "We run as fast as we can. You trail behind me, siphon off some of my speed, combine it with your own, and when you have enough, throw that thing deep into the Speed Force,"
"And that would work?" Joe asked.
Barry sighed. "We need to find out,"
STAR LABS PIPELINE; DECEMBER 25th, 2016
"Sure you're up for this, Flash?" Barry asked, in which Jay replied. "You got it, Flash," The two grinned, getting into running positions as Jay clutched the Philosopher's Stone's box.
"I'll let you know when you reach optimal speed," Cisco said as the two speedsters nodded. After a moment of tapping on a tablet, Cisco yelled. "Ready... go!" The two speedsters took off at the speed of sound, Jay taking the lead as the two ran.
"Jay's moving really fast, this might actually work," Iris said in disbelief over the comms as the two speedsters continued to run laps around the particle accelerator. Jay tossed the box over to Barry, who continued to run as Jay came to a stop. "Now, Barry!" Cisco shouted.
After completing a few more laps, Barry threw the Philosopher's Stone box in the direction of the Speed Force, a grin on his face as he did. That grin on his face disappeared however when a blinding light escaped through the breach, before being replaced by two streaks of yellow and purple. The two streaks, one bright yellow, and the other bright yellow and bright purple, sped past Barry and Jay, and out of the accelerator.
"What the hell?" Barry asked in disbelief as he and Jay shrugged. The two ran back to the Cortex and were met with an odd sight. Two speedsters stood in the middle of the cortex, staring at the rest of the team, who all had weapons aimed at the two. Cisco had his Vibe gloves at the ready. Caitlin had a pulse gun ready. Joe had his gun trained. Iris, Julian, and H.R were against the wall, and Wally was ready to run forward.
"Who the hell are you two?" Joe asked, "And why did you take the stone?" That's when Barry saw it. The speedster wearing the red and gold suit was clutching the Philosopher's Stone. The red-clad male speedster turned to the female speedster, who was wearing an oddly familiar suit, with an 'S' symbol on the chest, and motioned for her to let him do the talking.
"I took the stone, cause it would get you killed," The red-clad speedster motioned to H.R, who looked around, before getting the message. "By throwing it into the Speed Force, you were giving Savitar the key to escaping the Speed Force prison,"
"Wait, Savitar's in the Speed Force?" Wally asked.
"Yes. In the future, Barry Allen had come to a loss in trying to defeat Savitar, and so...he created the Speed Force prison and trapped Savitar there. Now...Dr. Snow. The last piece please?" The red speedsters motioned for Caitlin to give him something.
"What's he talking about Caitlin?" Cisco asked.
"I...I might have taken a small piece of the stone," Caitlin said as everyone started to freak out. "I'm sorry! The stone gave people powers, and I thought...I thought it could take mine away," She reached into her pocket, and pulled out a finger-sized piece of the shard, before tossing it to the male speedster, who caught it easily.
"Thank you," The speedster sat the stone's box down, before opening it. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Everyone but the female speedster exclaimed as the male speedster calmly removed the stone. "What are you doing?!" Barry asked again.
"Shut the hell up Allen," The speedster said with hatred, shocking the team at the fact the speedster knew Barry's identity. The speedster carefully inched the stone and the shard together, watching as white lightning surged between them before they clicked together. "Dr. Snow, I can give you two options,"
"What are they?" Caitlin asked.
"Are we seriously going to listen to this guy?" Barry asked.
"Look, Allen. I know you have mentor issues, but I'm going to seriously ask you to shut the hell up," The speedster said, a sting in his voice. "The choices are...I can take away Killer Frost forever, and you'll go back to the clever bio-chemist Caitlin Snow. Or...I can merge the two of you correctly, like Firestorm, allowing the two of you to live peacefully among each other," He held out the stone towards Caitlin, who seemed troubled. "The choice is yours,"
"What's the catch?" Julian asked.
"No catch, Mr. Albert," The man said. "You see, not all speedsters are evil assholes," He directed that directly to Barry, who seemed taken back. Caitlin moved forward, grabbing the stone before a blinding light moved through the room.
STAR LABS CORTEX
When the light subsided, Xander, Nora, and Team Flash were met with...Caitlin Snow. Who appeared completely normal. Xander grinned beneath his mask and nodded. "Ok," Taking what was left of the stone, he turned to Wally. "Wally West, the greatest of the four original Flash's. Allow me to give you the greatest gift of all," Wally, who seemed hesitant, moved forward.
Xander outstretched the stone to Wally and hesitantly grabbed it. Upon contact, yellow Speed Force energy suddenly poured into Wally, who arched back in pain as the Stone disappeared. "Wally!" Joe exclaimed as he ran forward. "Are you ok son?"
"I...I feel...wonderful! This is amazing! I feel like I can run around the planet without breaking a sweat!" Wally exclaimed in joy.
"That's because you can," Xander said, much to their confusion. "That stone was calcified or hardened Speed Force energy. I merely transmitted it back to its energetic state, and used it to increase Wally's connection to the Speed Force,"
"Who are you two?" Iris asked.
"Well, I'm the Flash, and this is XS," Xander said. "But due to your well-earned trust issues," His mask disappeared to reveal his young face. "My name is Alexander, preferably Xander, Morue. Oh, and now for the confusing part. Barry, Iris. This is your daughter Nora West-Allen," Nora removed her eye mask, revealing her face to the shocked team. "Go ahead, feel free to talk," The West-Allen's nodded, shuffling out of the cortex.
"Wait, you said Alexander Morue?" Cisco asked as he tapped away at the computer. "You disappeared the night of the particle accelerator. Did you get struck?"
"I was, yes. Sent off the roof of my restaurant too. Ended up in the Speed Force, and lived in there for what seemed like a millennia. Then, the Speed Force announced me as its 'Champion', and sent me to get Nora, and bring her here," Xander replied.
"So...why were you throwing shade at Barry?" Wally asked.
"He killed my family," Xander said simply, shocking the group. "Not directly...because of Flashpoint. That timeline aloud for Eobard Thawne to live...and that...evil fucking asshole...killed my parents the same way he killed Nora Allen, a knife through the heart. And then...he snapped my sister's neck in front of me,"
"Dear God," Julian said.
"It was due to Barry Allen's actions that my family died," Xander said.
"He didn't mean to do it, he -" Joe was cut off by Xander, who scoffed.
"He knew exactly what he was doing, Mr. West. He was selfish, and was undeserving of his powers!" Xander exclaimed. "And I swear, if he alters the timeline one more time, I will not hesitate to rip the Speed Force out of his throat,"
"But you affected the timeline by coming here," H.R. said, ignoring the threat Xander made to Barry.
"Did I?" Xander asked. "You see, not all speedsters are as fucking stupid as Barry. Some, like myself and...Thawne...know what we're doing. Not only does being the Speed Force's champion come with its perks, but I've had millennia to study the timeline and the effects I would have on it,"
"So...what cool abilities do you have?" Wally asked.
"I can kill gods. I can run so fast I reverse time. I can phase. Time travel. Create energy constructs. Speak, think, see, and read at high speeds. Travel through dimensions. I can give and take away speed. I'm immune to telepaths. I can generate lightning at will. Create vortex's. Create temporal duplicates. Manipulate atomic matter. I can manipulate space and time, as well as exist outside of time and space without a physical form. And lastly, I can manipulate my age," Xander finished as everyone stared at him in shock.
"You really must be the Speed Force's champion," Jay Garrick said. "I've never met a speedster with all of those abilities,"
"Will you teach me?" Wally asked in excitement, producing a sad look on H.R's face.
"Of course, but there's a catch," Wally nodded. "H.R. helps. I can't teach you everything by myself," H.R. and Wally grinned as the three nodded.
"So...Savitar's gone?" Cisco asked.
"Yep. That stone was the only calcified Speed Force energy that exists, and now it doesn't anymore," Xander said as Barry, Iris, and Nora reentered the room.
"What's your deal?" Barry asked Xander. "Why do you hate me?"
"I h-" He looked at Nora, before sighing. "I don't hate you. I just...your actions hurt people. Flashpoint allowed Thawne's survival, and with that...well...Thawne killed my family," Xander said.
"I...I'm -"
"Sorry? Right," Xander said sadly as the mood in the room fell. "You being sorry doesn't take away the fact that you don't know what you're doing!" Xander exclaimed in rage. "Thawne fucked up! He fucked up, and was to inpatient to fucking wait! And now, the Speed Force is left with you!" He shouted.
"Then take away my speed!" Barry shouted. "Enough talking. Do it!"
"I CAN'T!" Xander in rage, yellow lightning sparking in his eyes, scaring everyone in the room. "I can't," He hung his head.
"Why not?" Barry asked.
"Because the Speed Force likes you," Xander said. "Not this you. The original you. The older and more mature you. The you from before Thawne fucked everything up. You power the Speed Force Barry. I may be its Champion. But you're the Engine. The one that keeps it running" said Xander.
"Damn...and us?" Jay asked, motioning between him and Wally.
"You retire, but are infamous for being the very first Flash," Xander said to Jay. "And after Barry...after Crisis. Wally takes up the mantle of the Flash and does a hell of a job. Even killed Death by running to the edge of the universe,"
"I did that?" Wally asked.
"With some help, yeah. You, Wally West, will be so in tune with the Speed Force, that you'll be able to communicate with it at will as I can," Xander said.
"Ok...who else will join our crusade?" Joe asked.
"I can't tell you that. Timeline and all," Xander said, before turning to Nora. "Oh, and please keep quiet about the future. You won't get in trouble from the Speed Force, but...people might be affected if too much gets out," Nora nodded.
"Great! So...what do we do with Savitar gone?" H.R. asked.
"Now we relax. No doubt the timeline will naturally correct due to the changes. I've affected the timeline at a point where it doesn't create an entirely new timeline, but instead…adds to it," Xander said. "So, it's Christmas...why don't we celebrate?"
"Are we good...Flash?" Barry asked, holding out his hand. Xander looked at it for a moment, before sighing. "No. I can never forget what you did, and the results of what you did," Barry and Nora's faces fell for a moment, before Xander continued. "But we, the Speed Force and I understand why you did what you did. And...we forgive you," The two Flash's exchanged a handshake, before smiling and nodding to each other.
"Ok, I'm in dire need of a drink. Who's ready?!" Cisco exclaimed as he skipped out of the room. Everyone grinned before making their way out of the room, leaving Xander and Nora alone in the room. "So...XS,"
"Flash," The two grinned at each other for a moment, before taking off out of the room, their destination...the West residence.