A/N: I'm not gonna say much, let's just get some responses to reviews and get down to business.
Response to reviews:
spiderman1fan: Thank you. I'm glad you like what's coming. As for your other argument, well, I'm not sure what you mean by disagreeing with me. What I'm basically trying to say is that I don't want to do a story with Barry early in the MCU. Now you are right, it would establish Barry as a hero but he's already done that on his earth, save for maybe Cisco and Caitlin at the most. I'm just trying to establish him as bit more experienced. Also, I plan on bringing in Darkseid after Infinity War and Endgame or around that time. Plus, I didn't really like the first Thor film that much, so I didn't like doing that. By the way, Darkseid's name is spelled 'Darkseid', not Darkside. There's a difference.
"All men have limits. They learn what they are and then learn not to exceed them. I ignore mine." - Batman
Early Morning
Central City
West House
At 5:30 am, in the West-Allen household, Joe West was up and awake, leaning against the wall as he looked down at a picture of Barry and Iris. It was a rather popular picture, both Barry and Iris were sitting next to each other on a bench, smiling at the camera. It was in the old days, before Metahumans, before Killer Frost, Savitar, Zoom, Reverse Flash, before The Flash. It was back when things were normal or at least as normal as they could be with a geeky scientist like Barry living in Joe's house. Joe missed Barry greatly, he wished Barry hadn't left but a part of him couldn't help but feel happy for Barry that he was away. On the bright side, he didn't have to worry about Cisco (or Caitlin) being genuinely pissed at Barry or guilt-tripping him about Flashpoint. If Barry was away from that, he would no longer be hurt by it. Still, though, Joe just couldn't help but wish that Barry would return, he wished Cisco and Caitlin left Team Flash and Central City even. Joe would've preferred that over Barry leaving.
Then, Joe overheard the sound of footsteps echoing through the entire West-Allen household as someone stood behind Joe.
"Hey Dad." Iris called out.
"Hey Iris." Joe said, his voice was devoid of any emotion.
"You miss him?" Iris asked out of the blue, referring to Barry.
"Yeah, I miss him." Joe confessed.
"Do you think he'll come back?" Iris asked.
"I don't have an answer for that." Joe admitted. "But I have hope and I have faith."
"I wish I did too." Iris said in guilt.
Meanwhile, with Barry and Oliver
Barry and Oliver were climbing a mountain. Oliver was ahead of Barry, who was a few feet lower than him. Barry grabbed his hand onto a ledge as he pulled his body upward before standing on the ledge while holding onto two spaces on the mountain, to prevent himself from falling.
"How much further?" Barry asked tiredly.
"We're almost there." Oliver assured.
"That's what you said half an hour ago." Barry pointed out.
"I'm serious, just a few more feet." Oliver said, looking upward. "I can see the edge of the mountain."
Barry rolled his eyes and sighed as he continued climbing, he climbed and climbed, feeling the intense and increasing pressure on his fingers and his hands but nevertheless he persisted, he would never give up, ever. Besides, it was too late to turn back now. Barry looked up and noticed that Oliver was gone as he smiled with hope, it was just a few more feet. Barry pulled himself up as he continued climbing and climbing before he finally set his hand on the edge of the mountain. Barry clung his feet onto some small ledges on the mountain. With all his remaining strength, Barry held onto the edge of the mountain as he pulled himself all the way up before finally laying down on the mud-dry, grassy ground. Barry breathed heavily, feeling the grassy, dried-mud ground on his face.
Oliver looked over at the exhausted Barry and couldn't help but chuckle at him. Barry rolled his eyes at Oliver's laugh, the man truly had an odd sense of humor. Barry then got up to his feet, breathing heavily from his exhaustion as he and Oliver exchanged glances.
"Let's go." Oliver said before turning around and walking, not even waiting for Barry.
"Yeah, sure why not?" Barry said sarcastically.
Barry then ran as fast as he could (at normal human speed due to the power dampening bracelet he was wearing) as he eventually caught up with Oliver. Barry was winded and completely exhausted, his body was covered and drenched in sweat despite the cold, chilly winds. Thankfully, the cold gave some form of relief from the extreme heat and sweat he had been feeling. Barry and Oliver continued hiking up the mountain when suddenly, they noticed long and wide flat-lands in front of them. Miles and miles into the flat-lands, there was building which both Barry and Oliver could see when they squinted their eyes. Barry couldn't help but feel a form of familiarity from the flat-lands, the same kind that he saw in his dream, only they were more deserted in his dream and there was no building.
"Well, there it is..." Barry sighed, trying to ignore the effects of his exhaustion. "...Nanda Parbat."
"Let's go." Oliver said before handing Barry his quiver and bow.
"What's this for?" Barry asked.
"Just in case." Oliver replied.
"Right." Barry sighed as he and Oliver began their mile-long trek towards the structure of Nanda Parbat.
A Few Hours Later
Central City
S.T.A.R. Labs
H.R., Harry, Jesse, Iris, Joe, Caitlin and Cisco were all in the cortex, waiting patiently for Wally to arrive with a certain friend of their's from Team Arrow. Then, a flash of yellow lightning entered the room as Wally stood next to Diggle, who had an uncomfortable look on his face.
"Trash can." Caitlin said.
"Shit!" Cisco said as he a black trash can and handed it to Diggle.
Diggle took the trash can quickly as he turned around, digging his head into the empty trashing and throwing up as if he were sick. Team Flash looked away in disgust as they heard Diggle's vomiting echoing through the vomit-filled trash can before sighs of relief followed, indicating that Diggle was calm. Diggle then placed the trash can away from him, wiping his mouth before looking at Wally and the rest of the team with an annoyed and angry look.
"I swear, guys..." Diggle sighed. "...my life was somewhat normal before I met any of you, not just Barry. Speaking of that, where is Barry?"
"That's why we got you." Iris said. "Have you or has anyone on the team seen him? Or even a speedster? Anything."
"I'm sorry, Iris, I didn't." Diggle said before coming to a sort of realization. "Though, Oliver did mention he was going out with a friend of his."
"Was it B.A.?" H.R. asked.
"I don't know." Diggle confessed. "Oliver said he was going with a friend. It could've been anyone."
"Did he say where he was going?" Joe asked.
"Yeah, Nanda Parbat." Diggle replied as he was met with many pairs of confused eyes.
"Nanda Parbat?" H.R. asked. "As in, the home of the League of assassins?"
"You have that on your earth?" Caitlin asked.
"Not really, they're just a myth." H.R. replied as he stared in shock at Diggle. "Wait, the League of Assassins are real?"
"Nanda Parbat is their home base or something like that." Cisco said. "But didn't they disband or something?"
"Some of 'em." Diggle replied. "Some of them followed Malcolm Merlyn, others followed Nyssa. They're still in Nanda Parbat. We don't know where Merlyn's faction is."
"Why would Barry want to go to Nanda Parbat?" Iris wondered.
"To learn how to fight, to do something like that, I don't know." Diggle said. "I don't know how Barry thinks or what he thinks like."
"Where is this Nanda Parbat place?" Cisco asked. "Can we breach ourselves there?"
"No." Diggle replied. "They have special dampeners, you can't breach there. Or anywhere that's within a five hundred mile radius. We're going to have to hike there."
"Okay, well." H.R. said, trying to spark up the light in the room. "Who's up for a camping trip?"
"We can't all go." Harry pointed out. "Some of us have to stay in case the city gets under attack or if a new Flashpoint Metahuman shows up."
"So we split up." Wally said firmly, like a leader. "Iris, Harry, Cisco, you guys are going with Diggle. You're going to get Barry back. Jesse, Caitlin, H.R., Dad, you guys stay here with me. Monitor the city and keep it safe. Caitlin, since you can control your powers, you're on the field with Jesse and I. Dad, you're with CCPD, tell Singh that The Flash isn't in Central City and that the police need to be alert. H.R., you're here, you'll be guiding me, Jesse Quick and...Sub-Zero."
"Sub-Zero." Cisco said, thinking of the new code name for Caitlin. "Sounds cool. Caitlin, did you get the new suit I made for you?"
"I did. It looks great." Caitlin said with a smile.
"Okay, Wallace has given out the orders..." H.R. said. "...let's put it to a vote. All in favor?"
Everyone, including Diggle, raised their hands.
"All opposed?" H.R. asked as everyone dropped their hands. "Okay then, that settles it. Let's get ready."
"I'll call A.R.G.U.S." Diggle said. "See if Lyla can get us some packed bags with what we need."
"You do that." Joe said. "I gotta get to CCPD. And guys, bring Barry home."
"We will." Harry promised.
Joe then turned around and left S.T.A.R. Labs as Team Flash prepared themselves. Iris, Harry, Cisco and Diggle prepared themselves for their mission to find Barry while H.R., Caitlin, Wally and Jesse prepared themselves to defend the city with everything they had. Caitlin left the cortex to find her suit, she kept walking down the halls of S.T.A.R. Labs., she then stopped in the Cisco and Harry's work room, where they made and created all their devices. Caitlin then noticed her suit on a random dummy in the middle of the room. Caitlin walked forward and stood in front of the suit as she looked at it with surprise.
The suit was clearly made of reinforced polymeric leather. The pants and the top were made of black leather, according to Cisco, he had lined the leather with Kevlar, making the suit partially bullet resistant. The top was completely sleeveless as there were absolutely no sleeves from it, there were sleeves on the suit but they were seperated from the rest of the suit and it was clear. On the top, there were many glowing crystal-like material pieces, which altogether was shaped like a snowflake. The snowflake stretched out from the waist to the chest-level and there were also some jacket-like, dark blue sleeves hanging off the shoulders, it mainly appeared to be a fashion addition. All in all, Caitlin liked how it looked. Little did the rest of the team know that Caitlin's intentions weren't as good as they thought it would be. Caitlin wanted to release Killer Frost (not Sub-Zero) immediately but she knew she had to wait, she had to be patient. Then, when the time came, she would show her true colors, her true self and then, it would be hell in Central City. Caitlin smiled evilly as her eyes glowed icily.
"Killer Frost is coming." Caitlin said in an icy tone.
Nanda Parbat
Afternoon
Barry and Oliver were almost complete with their mile-long trek towards Nanda Parbat. They could see the old, ancient building in front of them. Both Barry and Oliver had their quivers filled with many, many arrows and strapped over their shoulders and on their backs. They held their bows with their non-dominant hands, keeping themselves ready when suddenly, an arrow landed on the ground, two feet in front of Barry, stopping the young Metahuman in his tracks. Barry looked up and saw tens and tens of hooded archers on the roof, standing near the edge of the roof, aiming two to three arrows at Barry and Oliver.
"Ollie!" Barry yelled out.
"Take cover!" Oliver yelled back.
Barry and Oliver ducked behind two different large rocks as the arrows, thankfully, hit the rocks instead of Barry and Oliver.
"Tell me you can take of the meta-bracelet!" Oliver yelled to Barry as he and the young Metahuman fired a few arrows, knocking out a few of the archers but not enough of them.
"I left the key back in S.T.A.R. Labs!" Barry yelled back as he shot two arrows, hitting an archer in both shoulders, causing that archer to fall back on the roof.
Of course you did. Oliver thought to himself but right now, he was too busy taking out the archers on the roof. So was Barry, who was glad that he wasn't killing any of them. Oliver noticed Barry's progress and he was impressed, none of Barry's shots had missed in any way, he had been learning quicker than Thea did. And Oliver called her Speedy, not the fastest man (and learner) alive. Barry and Oliver continued firing arrows at the archers but for every archer they took out, three or four more would emerge, reversing their progress. Barry and Oliver continued trading arrows with the archers when suddenly, a woman's voice echoed through the entire building and outside.
"Cease fire." the woman ordered in Arabic as Oliver immediately recognized the voice.
"Nyssa." Oliver sighed.
"What'd she say?" Barry asked.
"She told them to back off." Oliver replied.
"Well, let's pay her our visit then, shall we?" Barry suggested as Oliver nodded.
The two men placed their loaded arrows in their quivers as they got out of hiding from the large rocks. Barry and Oliver walked towards the ancient, old structure as they noticed that the doors were open, partially revealing the inside of the building. The two men entered the building as two of the many ninjas inside closed the doors behind him. Out of nowhere, Oliver reached for Barry's hand as forcefully dislocated Barry's them with a crack sound before slipping off the meta-bracelet as Barry cried out in pain.
"What was that for?" Barry asked.
"You don't need it, they already have many meta-dampeners here." Oliver explained.
In the past, Barry would've complained but now, having been completely exhausted and tired, he didn't feel like arguing any further. Barry relocated his thumb as he lightly winced in pain before shaking off the pain in his hand. Barry and Oliver then turned away from one another as they saw Nyssa Al Ghul walking down the stairs before stopping on the floor as she immediately eyed Oliver and then Barry. Beside Nyssa, stood an elderly man with short hair, a small mustache and a small beard. He was dressed like the other ninjas in the room (having worn full-on black clothing), only unlike them, he didn't wear any kind of mask and so his face was completely exposed. The rest of the ninjas had sorts of masks that covered everything except for their eyes, their eyebrows and the top of their noses. Nyssa, at that point, then greeted both Oliver and Barry.
"Husband." Nyssa said to Oliver before turning to face Barry. "Mr. Allen."
"I take it your Nyssa Al Ghul, the new Ra's and leader of the League of Assassins." Barry said respectfully, his hands behind his back.
"That I am." Nyssa replied. "To what do I owe the great pleasure?"
"As I said before, Nyssa, in our meeting..." Oliver said. "...I want you to train him."
"And why?" Nyssa demanded. "Why should I train him? What benefits would it give me?"
"It isn't supposed to." Oliver said sternly. "You owe me two favors."
"One." Nyssa corrected, or so she thought.
"Two." Oliver replied back. "One for Ra's and one for Merlyn. I'm merely collecting one of them."
Nyssa then sighed as she conceded. "Very well, then, husband. Mr. Allen, we shall begin your training. Azaad, here, will be your mentor. Fight without your speed, we have dampeners placed in the room."
The man standing next to Nyssa, clearly named Azaad, stepped forward as he stood in front of Barry before speaking.
"Drop your weapons, all of them." Azaad said as Barry went by his order, dropping his quiver, his bow and a knife he had packed with him on the floor.
Azaad and Barry walked in circles, Barry was still breathing heavily from his exhaustion when Azaad spoke in his thick Arabic accent.
"In order to be able to fight for what you stand, you must master your true weapon." Azaad said, much to Barry's confusion as he and Barry walked and walked in circles. "Not external ones such as guns, bullets, knives, arrows or swords. Your internal weapon, what lies within you. Are you ready to begin?"
Barry sighed deeply, staring disbelievingly at Azaad as he spoke, sounding completely out of breath. "I can barely stand."
Out of nowhere, Azaad kicked Barry in the stomach, knocking the young Metahuman off his feet as Barry fell onto the floor. Azaad continued kicking Barry over and over again.
"Death does not wait for you to be ready!" Azaad said, kicking Barry, causing him to roll backward as Oliver tried to resist the urge to help his friend. Azaad continued to kick Barry, speaking each sentence with each kick. "Death does not show mercy! To the old, the young! The strong or the weak!"
Azaad then sent one final kick to Barry but this time, the young Metahuman was ready as he got onto one knee and grabbed Azaad's kicking foot before locking it with his hands. Azaad held his hands in a sparring position to keep his stance on his one leg as Nyssa stared at Barry with surprise, never before had she seen a man so inexperienced yet capable of giving one of her best lieutenants a hard time. Barry got down to action as he threw Azaad's foot off his body before getting onto his feet as he and Azaad began their fight.
Azaad threw a left hook at Barry, who blocked with his right hand but Azaad overpowered Barry's block as he hit Barry's neck with choke-hold styled hit from his right hand while using his left to occupy Barry's dominant hand. Barry was disoriented by the hit as Azaad then released Barry, only to do a jumping front kick on his chest, causing Barry to fall to the ground. Barry got onto his knees and elbows as he tried to get back up but Azaad kicked him once more as the hit sent him sliding across the floor a few feet. Barry groaned in pain and exhaustion as Azaad grabbed and forced Barry back onto his feet.
"Get up." Azaad demanded. "You must never stay down, always get back up."
Azaad then proceeded to repeatedly punch Barry in the face before stretching out his left leg to do a sidekick on Barry's chest, causing Barry to stumble back. However, Barry kept his stance as he wiped the blood from his nose and mouth before holding his hands in a sparring position. Everyone else in the room (Nyssa and Oliver included) stared Barry in shock, he just wouldn't give up. Azaad then ordered the other ten ninjas in his room.
"Get him!" Azaad ordered in Arabic as the ten ninjas charged at Barry.
Oh great! Barry engaged into a long fight with the ten ninjas. The first one threw a right hook at Barry but Barry grabbed the ninja's right wrist, pulled it down before delivering two punches to the ninja's face, knocking him out instantly. Barry then encountered the second ninja, who threw a 180-degree turning sidekick, Barry skid to left, facing the ninja's back as he kneed the ninja in the back before grabbing his neck and throwing to the ground. However, Barry had been caught off-guard as the third ninja did a flying kick at Barry's back, causing Barry to fall forward. Luckily, Barry managed to catch himself as he front-rolled before getting back onto his feet before turning around to face the third ninja. The ninja lunged forward at Barry to do another flying kick but this time, Barry was ready as he skid back, avoiding the ninja's kick as he landed in front of Barry. Barry, immediately dropped to the ground and turned around 360 degrees, swiping the ninja off his feet as he hit his head hard on the ground, being knocked unconscious. Barry got back onto his feet, three ninjas down, seven more to go.
Barry held his fists up in a sparring position as the seven ninjas charged at him. One ninja threw a sidekick but Barry grabbed the ninja's foot before placing it over his shoulder as he threw the ninja over his head and onto the ground. With a 180-degree turning hook kick, Barry knocked out another ninja that was behind him. Halfway there. Barry thought to himself as he turned around to face the five remaining ninjas who all stared at him in either shock or fear. Two ninjas both charged at Barry as they both jumped in the air and tried to land on top of Barry, who skid back, avoiding the ninjas. Barry then dropped to ground, turning 360 degrees as he swept one of the ninjas of their feet before jumping back onto his feet to face the other ninja. The other ninja threw a punch at Barry, who quickly grabbed and locked the ninja's, Barry then twisted the ninja's arm, breaking it instantly as the ninja cried out in pain. Barry then swung his right elbow at the ninja's head, knocking the ninja down. Suddenly, one of the three remaining ninjas kicked Barry in the back as Barry fell onto the ground. The ninja then tried to step on Barry's head with his right leg but Barry rolled to his right, just in time to avoid the hit. Barry then kicked the ninja in the stomach, slowing the ninja down. He then got onto his knees grabbing the ninja's shirt and throwing him over his head and onto the ground.
Barry then turned to face the two remaining ninjas, who much like Azaad, Nyssa and Oliver, were either impressed by Barry's skill or afraid of what he would do to them. One of the ninjas charged at Barry as he began throwing multiple fast and quick punches, Barry was almost caught off-guard but he managed to either block the ninja's fast punches. The ninja kept punching and swinging his fists at Barry so fast that the hits often appeared as blurs to Barry without his speed. The ninja continued swinging his fists violently and savagely at Barry, who desperately blocked and avoided the hits. Then, the ninja threw a slow punch, having been exhausted and winded as Barry caught it with ease before locking it tightly. Barry then headbutted the ninja twice before turning to face the other side as he held onto the ninja's arm before throwing the ninja over his shoulders and on the ground. Barry then turned around to face the remaining ninja who charged with a turning hook kick. Barry quickly ducked under the kick just in time before getting onto his feet and punching the ninja in the face. The ninja stumbled back, disoriented, giving Barry time to make his moves. Barry then threw triple-punches at the ninja's stomach before throwing one final punch to the ninja's head, Barry put all his power into what he hoped to be his final hit, knocking the ninja onto the ground as he groaned in pain. Barry stayed on his feet as he faced Azaad, Nyssa and Oliver. Oliver stared at Barry in surprise, he just kept going and never gave up. Nyssa was impressed, she never saw such potential in a man so inexperienced. Azaad was calm, in his old age and all his years, he had seen very few students with Barry's persistence but he had seen them before.
Barry continued looking at the trio of fighters before slowly, very slowly walking over to them, his exhaustion was taking it's toll. Part of Barry just wanted to drop to the ground and lay still in the pool of sweat he was covered in. Nevertheless, the young Metahuman stayed on his feet. Azaad walked over to Barry, staring into the young man's eyes.
"I will not lie, I am impressed." Azaad said. "I have rarely ever seen such men with such perseverance. You have much to improve and that is an issue, we will fix during your training. Remember this, boy, death will never wait for you to be ready. Nor will fate or any of the enemies or opponents you face. You must always be ready, even when you are not, remember that."
"I will." Barry promised.
"Very well." Azaad replied. "Your training begins at dawn, do not be late. Mr. Queen, here, tells me you have such a reputation. Another issue we will fix. I will not tolerate late students."
"Understood." Barry said respectfully.
"Very well." Azaad replied before looking over to the halls as Barry did the same. "Walk with me."
Azaad and Barry walked beside each other, down the halls. Barry walked through the halls not as Barry Allen, not as The Flash but something else, someone else. Who he did as was unknown to him, in time, he would learn.
A/N: Things are moving rather quickly. Barry is beginning his real training, half of Team Flash has gone out with Diggle to find Barry, the other half if forced to protect Central City without The Flash and Caitlin is about to rogue, things are not looking too good. Obviously, as I'm sure you already know, Diggle and Team Flash's mission to find Barry in time won't really work.
For Caitlin's suit, just imagine her season 6/season 7 suit from The Flash, though I'm pretty sure my description of the suit gave that away. If it didn't, well, here this information is to let you know.
As for Azaad, he is not a DC (or Marvel) character. He's an O.C. created by me. If you want to put a face to him, just imagine Batman Begins' Ducard/Ra's Al Ghul.
Since Barry didn't go to the MCU in this chapter, he will go in the next chapter, I promise. And yes, I did borrow his fight scene with Azaad and the ninjas from Batman Begins (though the part with the ninjas was entirely me). Anyways, thanks for reading this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it and I'll see you in the next one. Please let me know what you think of this chapter and let me know if I'm making enough progress.