Lakehouse [Ohio]
The same time
Rachel
There's a fire startin' in my heart
Reachin' a fever pitch and it's bringin' me out the dark
A crowd started to gather around the duo as Rachel began to sing. Oliver and Quinn moved closer towards the front, mainly so they could get the best view possible of their friends performing but it made Oliver feel better knowing that he had Barry in his eyesight whilst a deranged alien wanted him dead.
Barry
Finally, I can see you crystal clear
Go ahead and sell me out and I'll lay your ship bare
Oliver grinned at Barry as he sang, he knew the kid could sing but he forgot how well he could. Luckily he had turned his mic on moments before the performance. Now Team Flash and Team Arrow get to enjoy listening to Barry sing a duet.
See how I'll leave with every piece of you
Don't underestimate the things that I will do
There's a fire starting in my heart
Reachin' a fever pitch and it's bringin' me out the dark
Both Barry and Oliver could hear Iris, Caitlin and Felicity singing along in the comms and it made them both smile wider. Oliver could barely make out Joe and John's comments whilst the girls were singing it was that loud. Quinn turned to Oliver with a puzzled look on her face so he grabbed the spare comm set he had and placed it in her ear, muting the mic so no-one would realise she was listening in.
The scars of your love remind me of us
They keep me thinkin' that we almost had it all
The scars of your love, they leave me breathless
I can't help feelin'...
Quinn chuckled softly as she heard the girls singing, well trying to sing anyway. It sounded like a bunch of dying cats to her. Oliver just rolled his eyes fondly as he heard them all begin to bicker. Whilst they all argued a lot, they were the people he considered like a family to him.
Rachel & Barry
We could have had it all
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
Rolling in the deep
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
You had my heart inside of your hand
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
And you played it to the beat
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
Barry and Rachel's voices sounded amazing together, Quinn realised. They blended together perfectly and at times they complimented each other astonishingly. No wonder they had been chosen to sing.
Rachel
Baby, I have no story to be told
But I heard one on you and it's gonna make your head burn
Think of me in the depths of your despair
Makin' a home down there as mine sure won't be shared
Oliver began scanning the room when Jesse arrived. She walked over to both Oliver and Quinn with a smile on her face, she was trying not to draw attention to herself, Quinn noted. She silently took the spare earpiece out of her ear and handed it over to the female speedster, smiling at her. Jesse accepted it and placed it in her ear, activating the mic and speaking at a low level as more people began to watch Barry and Rachel sing.
Barry
The scars of your love remind me of us
They keep me thinkin' that we almost had it all
The scars of your love, they leave me breathless
I can't help feelin'...
Quinn clapped along with some old couple as they sang their hearts out. It was actually quite entertaining to watch them do that but they were not as good as Rachel and Barry.
Rachel & Barry
We could have had it all
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
Rolling in the deep
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
You had my heart inside of your hands
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
And you played it with a beatin'
Barry
Throw your soul through every open door
Rachel
Count your blessings to find what you look for
Barry
Turn my sorrow into treasured gold
Rachel
You'll pay me back in kind and reap just what you've sown
Rachel & Barry
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
Yeah, we could have had it all
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
We could have had it all
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
Yeah, it all, it all, it all
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
We could have had it all
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
Rolling in the deep
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
You had my heart inside of your hands
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
And you played it to the beat
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
You could have had it all
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
Rolling in the deep
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep)
You had my heart inside of your hands
(You're gonna wish you never had met me)
And you played and you played and you played
And you played it to the beat
Everyone clapped, but they soon stopped when slow clapping descended from the stairs. Oliver and Barry's attention snapped to the stairs, eyes falling into slits as they realised who was standing there.
"Good performance, Rachel," The voice said, smirking.
"Jessie?" Rachel asked, exasperated.
S.T.A.R Labs [Central City]
The same time
Caitlin and Cisco were manning the comms immediately. After hearing Rachel say Jessie's name, they had both shot up from their seats and were looking at everyone in the room.
Lakehouse [Ohio]
The same time
Alan entered the room seconds later, Stacey in tow as he heard that the main room had fallen silent. Stacey had her eyes wide open as she met Jessie's eyes. There was a malicious hunger in them and it made her feel uneasy.
"Stand down, St James," Oliver began, reaching for the gun he had in his holster around his waist. Barry moved to stand next to him, slowly descending from the stool and maneuvering so he could grab the gun in his holster as well. Thank god he had paid attention to Oliver when he was explaining how to use the gun. Jessie just smirked at both Oliver and Barry, before making his eyes glow. He was going to use his heat vision.
Everything slowed down around both Barry and Jesse as they began zipping everyone out of the room and outside, at the front of the house. Oliver watched as the two speedsters collected the civilians, leaving him alone with the alien. Just great.
Seconds later, the room was empty, save for Oliver. Jesse and Barry came to a stop beside the archer, surprised at how he hadn't even used his heat vision yet.
"What do you want, Jessie?" Barry asked, his voice strong as he stared at the man who wanted him dead.
"You know what I want, Barry," Jessie said softly, moving to sit in a leather seat. The trio watched his movements closely, not liking how relaxed he was. He was usually a sporadic person, seeing him so contained scared them all.
"You want for me to suffer.." Barry commented, just as softly. Oliver tensed beside Barry. He would die trying just to make sure Barry never had to go through any more heartache.
"Exactly," Jessie added, smiling, "You made me look like a saint, I did something terrible to Rachel and I wanted to be known as a liar and someone you shouldn't mess with.. Then you came along, and ruined that entire plan. Soon, everyone hated you, and I was forgotten about"
"I didn't enjoy being hated," Barry whispered, "It was awful, having everyone believe you're some jerk who only cares about winning,"
Jessie scoffed and rolled his eyes, "You thrived in the hatred! That's why you threw that slushie at Blaine!"
"Actually, that was a lapse in judgement," Barry corrected, "I never meant for it to hurt anybody, I just wanted to stain Kurt's clothes"
Jesse and Oliver just exchanged looks behind Barry's back. What did he mean that he threw a slushie at someone? They both knew that his high school experience had been far more complex than any of theirs but that seemed a little extreme.
"Regardless, you had managed to make people fear you, something that I had been trying to do for the longest time," Jessie growled out, standing up from the chair. Barry just tensed as Jessie moved around the room freely.
"Your son is alive, Barry," Jessie reassured the Scarlet Speedster. He knew that's why Barry was so tense and hadn't dared to try to attack him.
Oliver sighed in relief as did Jesse, whilst Barry just stopped tensing, his whole body seeming to deflate at the words. His son was alive. He was okay..
Suddenly, Jessie flew at Barry, grabbing the speedster and flying out of the house, crashing through various walls as they were outside the building within seconds. Barry coughed as he stood up, swaying on his feet slightly from the impact his body made against the various walls. Jessie smirked before walking towards Barry, punching him rapidly. He made sure Barry had no time to recover, even if he was supposedly 'The fastest man alive'. Oliver and Jesse arrived outside the house moments later, Oliver armed with his bow and arrow whilst Jesse was just staring at the scene in front of her. She watched it all unfold in slow-motion.
Oliver attempted to aim an arrow at Jessie, growling softly as he kept shifting his position so he could hurt Barry. Jesse realised what Oliver was planning and ran forward towards the duo, grabbing Jessie and launching him off of Barry. Whilst he was busy recovering on the floor, Oliver managed to get a clear shot at Jessie and he took it, successfully injuring his left shoulder. Barry shakily stood up moments later, using his right hand to smear some of the blood on his face. Jesse looked at her mentor, nodding silently before they both began running in circles, building up power.
Barry threw his lightning bolt first, temporarily stunning the alien before Jesse threw her's, sending him flying towards the edge of the docks that were located at the back of the Lakehouse. Oliver then used one of his modified arrows and electrocuted Jessie, leaving him writhing on the wooden decking as he tried to move away from them. The trio closed in on the fallen man, making sure he didn't have anywhere else to run. A thud made them all turn around, their eyes opening wide as they realised who it was.
"Kara?!" The trio asked incredulously, staring at the other alien with wide eyes. Why was she here?
"Cisco came over and got me," She told them all, crossing her arms over her emblem. None of them had realised that the injured man had gotten away.
Barry cursed softly as he turned his attention back onto the ground Jessie had been laying down on previously. Upon seeing it bare, he felt his chest tighten in both anger and fear. His kid's life was on the line here, he had no room to make errors. Jessie had just escaped his clutches once again. It wasn't fair.
"He couldn't have gotten far," Barry began, stammering as he began pointing rapidly at random locations in the horizon.
"Barry.. He got away," Oliver said softly, moving towards his friend slowly. He knew why he was like this but right now, he needed Barry to be level headed rather than hysterical. Once he could grab Barry, he did, pulling the younger man closer to him. Barry flinched in Oliver's hold but he didn't pull away, instead he focused his gaze out into the pitch black sky, this was not how it was supposed to go.
A scream from back inside the house caused them all to run back inside, shock taking over as they stared at the arrangement. Jessie was holding a loaded pistol to this woman's head. She seemed terrified. Jessie was smirking as she tried her hardest to escape his grip, but he only tightened it, pressing the gun harder against her head. Kara was frozen as she watched in horror at the scene in front of her. This was too familiar. The scenes had begun to merge together, she remembered the painful cries from Barry's son as he felt the gun get pressed against his temple too hard.
"Now, you're going to let me get away," Jessie began, he could hear the sirens coming closer. Sure, he could just take them all out regardless, but he wanted them to let him go. He wanted them to make sure he got to install a fear into them all.
The gun got pressed further into the woman's head and she yelled out in pain, trying to desperately get Jessie to stop.
"What's it gonna be?" He taunted.
Barry and Oliver paled at the decision. There was no way they could let this man get away but then again, they couldn't let this innocent woman take a bullet through the head from their inability to come to a conclusion.
The sirens got closer and Jessie tightened his grip even more, his nails digging into the skin of the woman's right shoulder. Sighing, Barry stepped backwards, resigning into the deal. He couldn't let someone else die because of him. Jessie turned to Oliver expectantly, smirking as the Emerald Archer stepped back, letting him go. In one swift motion, Jessie had thrown the lady free and had managed to pin Barry up against the wall, feeling the speedster tense under his hold.
"You can't stop me, Barry," Jessie began in a low voice, "The Enlightenment will come for you all"
Barry growled lowly at Jessie, his eyes turning golden as he felt the speed-force begin to take control. He felt his adrenaline pump, giving him this new energy. He felt it coursing through every nerve in his body, like a never-ending shock that kept him alive. This is what he loved about the speed-force. The way it took control and guided him through the worst of times, like it was his very own defence mechanism.
Jessie admired the way the lightning travelled through Barry's body, it was a pretty spectacular sight. Regardless, it didn't distract him, he still held his tight grip on Barry whilst he heard Oliver aim his bow and arrow at him once more. Oliver would do anything to keep him alive. That would be fun to see how far he could press that bond in the future.
"See you around, Flash" Jessie whispered into Barry's ear and he had flown off within seconds, leaving for the others to deal with the aftermath of it all. Barry had crumpled to the floor, his exhaustion catching up with him as he took a moment to take in what had just happened. The woman that Jessie had almost killed was in tears, she was getting comforted by Jesse as Oliver checked her over for injuries. Kara walked to Barry, no longer frozen. She held concern in her eyes as she stared at her friend on the floor, offering him one of her hands. She pulled him up and supported his weight as they hobbled over to Oliver and Jesse. Kara passed Barry off to Oliver whilst she and Jesse made work of cleaning up the room a bit more so they could sit the shaken lady down.
"You okay?" Oliver whispered to Barry, moving them both towards these two steps. Oliver placed Barry on them, crouching down in front of him as he looked at the bruises and dried blood staining his face from his and Jessie's confrontation.
Barry nodded in response to Oliver's question, his gaze towards the dirty floor. He had failed. This was their last chance to get Jessie before he went incognito again. This was the last chance he had to save his son. The son he never got to meet.
The comms offered distraction from the sinking feeling in Barry's chest. The yelling, the begging, that they were all okay was tearing his mind away from his son. Slowly, he raised his right arm and pressed his hand gently against it, activating his mic. He took a deep breath before slowly bringing it back to his side, wincing as he did and it did not go unnoticed by Oliver. The older man reached out and rubbed Barry's arm softly, moving from where he was crouched down to sitting next to his friend, trying to help make the appendage stop aching.
This had been a long night, and as Oliver looked around the wreckage, he could tell it was only going to get longer.