"Mommy?"
"Yes darling?"
"Why're - why're you crying?"
"Because Mommy's sad, darling."
"Why're you sad? It's Christmas! You...you should be happy."
"I am happy, sweetheart, believe me, I am."
"But, but you said you were sad."
"Well, you can be sad and happy at the same time. Remember what I told you about Grandma? How I felt when she went away?"
"Uh-huh. But why're you sad?"
"…Mommy's sad because her little girl's growing up so fast. Because soon, my little Laura's going to have her own life. She's going to be a lady, and I'm not going to be there for her anymore."
"No, you're not. You're always gonna' be here. Right?"
"Aw, don't pout, darling. Of course, I'll still be here."
"…'kay."
"Tell you what – we still have a bit of cookie dough left. I don't think Santa will mind if we keep some for ourselves."
"Yeah!"
Pain flooded Laura's senses.
She wanted nothing more than to slip back into the darkness, if only to hide from the pain. Slowly, despite the pounding in her head, Laura opened her eyes to a blurry world, but she did her best to focus until she could see clearly. The small room – small enough to be a closet – that she laid in looked exactly like the inner workings of the particle accelerator, and Laura suppressed a groan as she started to sit herself up, just noticing the handcuffs that kept her hands locked to each other. The man in yellow was nowhere to be seen, but she could only be grateful for that.
Groaning, Laura pulled as hard as she could against the handcuffs. When they didn't show any sign of giving, she tried to summon some cold, hoping that she would be able to break the cuffs once they froze. However, as soon as she felt the familiar energy building in her hands, it quickly disappeared, followed by a painful shock that made her vision white out. After a few more painful tries, Laura came to the conclusion that her cuffs were the problem. There was something strange about them, and Laura had to give her attacker some credit for being prepared. Still, she needed a way to get out, and soon.
"Glad to see you're awake."
Laura looked up, nearly screaming when she saw a pair of red eyes peering down at her. However, she managed to collect herself quickly, and faced the murderous speedster with a steady gaze.
"What do you want from me?"
"I already told you. For you to stay out of my way."
"Why not just kill me? You already killed Nora Allen. You're planning on killing the Flash What's so hard about killing one more person?"
"Once again, I've already told you everything you need to know. Now, hold still."
Laura barely had any time to comprehend the order before she was being held down on the floor of the cell, her arms stretched above her head painfully and the speedster's blurred face hovering inches from hers. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him produce a needle from his suit, and watched in horror as he slid it into her forearm. Pinned down to the point of being completely immobile, Laura was unable to do anything but watch as the needle filled with her blood. When it was finally full, he pulled it out, and it disappeared, though she knew he'd merely put it away faster than she could see. A small drop of blood ran down her arm, and Laura forced herself to keep his gaze as she sat up, her tormentor already on the other side of the glass.
"What the hell did you do to me?"
"You weren't supposed to be here. I intend to find out why you are."
"You're - you're insane."
"Perhaps, perhaps not. Don't worry – once the Flash is dead, you'll be free to go. I might even let you and your little friends keep his body before I head home."
"You goddamn-"
"It's been a pleasure, Dr. Sanders." And with that, Laura was alone, with only her screams to keep her company.
Laura wasn't aware how long she spent in that room, throwing herself against the glass to try and break it, and failing time and time again to break out of the cuffs. The constant shocks of electricity left her dazed every time she tried to summon enough cold to do something, which was quite infuriating when she realized that she was blacking out nearly every time. It was almost as if they'd been built for her, but she couldn't imagine who would have built it and she didn't have the time to dwell on it. Her first priority was getting out and warning the others, even though she had no idea whether any of them were still alive. But she couldn't give up.
She couldn't.
As the effects of her most recent shock faded and she could stand on her feet again, Laura faced the glass door of her cell with a murderous glare. It was the only escape route that she was aware of, but apparently it had built for tougher things than her shoulder. Or her fist.
Still, there had to something she could do.
Think, Sanders, think!
As she faced the door, Laura forced her mind to become blank. There were a number of things she could do. She could wait for the man in yellow to return, but that was out of the question. She could try to summon some more cold – but she really wasn't looking forward to losing more time, or another painful shock, or both. She could slip out of the cuffs, which might not set off whatever was delivering the shocks, but they were practically hugging her wrists. There was a little space in between her wrists and the metal, and if her hands were just a little smalle-
Laura knew what to do.
She'd only done it a handful of times, when her curiosity had gotten the better of her. It had been extremely painful, and she'd sworn off ever doing it again. But the situation was dire, and she didn't have many other options. With a sigh, she sat down on the floor of the cell and braced herself as she grabbed on to her right thumb. It took a few seconds for her to steady her shaking hands, and when she was ready – oh, who was she kidding – she pulled as hard and as fast as she could.
There was a small, distinct pop, and the surge of agony in her arm left stars dancing in her vision. Laura leaned forward, gasping for breath until she had recovered enough to press her thumb closer to her wrist, which was pretty goddamn painful, and pull it out of the cuff. Putting her thumb back was easy, and the other cuff was off within minutes. When she was finally free, Laura summoned a small bit of cold, sighing in relief as she felt the swelling in her hands recede slightly.
That left the glass, but Laura already had an idea about how to make that work. Glass became more fragile, more breakable when frozen – if she could work up enough ice to freeze the entire door, then she might be able to break it. She did the best she could; the shocks from the cuffs had left her dizzy and lightheaded, but she couldn't sit and twiddle her thumbs until it was safe to proceed. When every inch of the glass was covered in frost, Laura did her damnedest to break it, but after multiple attempts, her shoulder was even sorer than before and she was having trouble seeing straight.
She was desperate. She was angry. She was terrified. When her last attempt sent her bouncing back across the cell, Laura was done. A cry of rage left her as cold flooded her senses, and she wasn't even aware of the crackling sound that filled the small space when she punched the glass head on.
Crack!
Laura's heart stopped midbeat at the sound, at the sight, of the small crack. It was then that she felt her arm – somehow, it felt heavier than usual. She chanced a glance at it, and if the stakes weren't so high, Laura might have fainted. Her arm looked alien to her, now a faint white hue and almost painfully cold to the touch. Small spikes jutted out of her forearm, and as she looked closer, the part of it that had changed was almost entirely transparent. All her fingers moved normally, but looking at them move only made her stomach churn and her mind spin.
What's happening to me?
If there was an answer out there, it would have to wait. Her friends needed her. Whatever had happened to her arm, it was now strong enough to break the glass.
Now, it was her way out.
The glass fell away after several more well-placed strikes, and Laura's hand thrummed heavily with energy, almost as if it were satisfied by her escape. As she brushed away the remaining shards, a few sharp edges catching on her unchanged arm, Laura wondered how she was going to explain this new side to her abilities to her team. Unless…
Laura forced herself to relax, holding out her arm in front of her as she closed her eyes, and pictured her arm as it had been before, completely normal. There was a crackling sound that seemed to go on for ages, and when it finally grew quiet, Laura opened her eyes to an arm made out of flesh and bone.
Holy fuck.
There was no time to panic, no matter how much she needed it. Right now, she needed to get to her friends. As she put some distance between herself and the cell, Laura decided that she was most somewhere in S.T.A.R. Labs. She wondered briefly as she found an elevator how the man in yellow had been able to break into the building in the first place, but the thought left her mind just as quickly. When she finally reached the main floor, voices she didn't have the energy to recognize echoed throughout the halls of the building, but she ignored them and forced herself to keep moving. When she arrived, Cisco and Caitlin were hovering by the controls, and they shot to their feet as she stumbled through the doorway.
"Laura - oh my god, what happened to you?" Caitlin was by her side immediately, but Laura cut her off, despite the fact that the entire drum section of the Central City orchestra had decided to start playing in her head.
"He - he knows - he knows about the trap."
"What?"
"Where's Dr. Wells?"
Laura's question was answered as Cisco gestured behind her. On the screens, the hauntingly familiar image of the yellow speedster stood stock still in the completed trap, surrounded by Cisco's force fields. Joe and Dr. Wells were gathered in the room as well, joined by several police officers in tactical gear and Eddie.
"What's going on?"
"Apparently, that metahuman task force Eddie applied for got approved after the man in yellow showed up. Laura, who knows about the trap?"
"The – the man in yellow; he was at my apartment, locked me up in the Cortex. He knew about the force fields, Cisco."
As shock dawned on Cisco's face, Caitlin reached for the mic, but before she could turn it on, Laura saw him grow confused as the screens began to flash. "Cisco, what's wrong?"
"The super-capacitors, they're failing. The field's fluctuating. He's going to get out."
"Dr. Wells, get out of there, now!" Caitlin shouted into the mic, but they only got static in return. However, the sound from the screens was still working, and the trio watched with growing horror as Dr. Wells spoke to the man in yellow.
"The reason I know all this is because your powers are almost exactly those of the Flash."
"I'm not like the Flash at all. Some would say I'm the reverse."
"Shit!" Cisco yelled as he shot to his feet, and Laura whirled around just in time to see the footage turn into white static. They had no way to know what was going on, and even as Caitlin continued to shout into the mic for Dr. Wells and the others to flee, Laura knew that it was far too late.
"Cisco, turn off the barrier! He's going to kill Wells!"
"If I turn it off, he's going to escape."
"We've got to get down there."
"You're not going anywhere."
The yellow speedster stood in the doorway, blocking their way, and Laura stepped in front of her friends. If he attacked, she was Cisco and Caitlin's best chance at surviving this, and she willed every ounce of cold in her body to her hands. Her friends stayed put behind her, which was a smart move; if they even tried to run, he would be there and back before they could blink.
"You should have stayed down, Dr. Sanders."
"See, that's the thing – I don't go down that easily. Ever." Laura spat, and hit him with so much cold that he even stumbled a few steps back. But then he was slamming his fists into her, and then she was flying back into the wall. She heard Cisco and Caitlin cry out in shock, but she was on her feet seconds later - she couldn't stay down, no matter how many hits she took.
"Get Barry!" Was all she managed to shout before the world became one big blur. The next thing she knew, she was on the floor, the man in yellow's hand crushing her windpipe and his eyes glinting with something more sinister than just red electricity.
As spots danced in front of her eyes, Laura saw something in those of the man crushing her windpipe. Something primal, something fierce, something so dark and dangerous that it sent shivers down her spine. He was a predator, and she was his prey.
And he had absolutely nothing to lose.
"You've been an excellent opponent. But I have bigger fish to fry."
Out of the corner of her eye, Laura caught a glimpse of red and yellow approaching, and her would-be-killer disappeared with his reverse in a gust of wind. She sat up, gasping for breath, but when Caitlin and Cisco rushed to her side, she brushed them off. This speedster had no qualms about killing; if Barry needed their help, they needed to be ready to give it.
Together, they burst out into the building's parking lot, just in time to see twin streaks of lightning, one red and one yellow, burst up through a portion of glass roof, twisting in a macabre dance, before rapidly descending back towards the concrete. Laura watched, horrified, as Barry was slammed first into the concrete then into a nearby truck, and kept her eyes on the fight even as her hands started to grow cold.
"Get away from him!" Laura screamed. She knew it was a risky move the moment she saw the man in yellow turn around, and he became nothing but a streak as he moved towards them. On instinct, she whipped her right arm towards him, and watched, transfixed, as a razor-sharp icicle as long as her arm flew straight at him in a burst of white light. He staggered a bit as it collided with his shoulder, giving Barry just enough time to gather his wits and rush at him. His victory was short-lived, however, and Laura felt her heart seize as the man in yellow quickly overwhelmed Barry. Fists flew at her partner faster than she could see and he fell silent as he was slammed into the pavement, until finally, the yellow speedster pulled him close and ripped back his cowl. He was limp and struggling to keep his eyes open, and Laura suddenly felt very helpless.
However, just as the man in yellow moved in for his final blow, a blast of fire that made her flinch sent him flying backwards. As the flames dissipated, Laura looked to see who exactly had stepped in, and felt her jaw drop at the sight of Ronnie Raymond, his hands and head alight with flames.
Huh.
However, her attention turned back to the yellow speedster as he climbed to his feet, his crimson eyes focused entirely on Barry.
"You've won this round, but this isn't over. See you soon, Flash" And then he was gone, in a streak of red lightning. There was a brief pause before Laura rushed to Barry's side, followed closely by Cisco. Her partner looked awful, and there was a look of defeat in his eyes that made her sick. Still, he looked relieved as his eyes looked up at her, and a tired smile broke out on his battered face.
"You're - you're okay?" She was helpless to bite back a watery laugh as she nodded, and wrapped one arm around him as Cisco took his hands, pulling him to his feet. However, as they did so, a burst of heat caught Laura's attention. When she turned to get a look, Ronnie was surrounded by flames once more, and she watched with a strange sense of awe as he lifted off from the ground, his flames leaving trails of smoke behind him as he sailed off into the night. Caitlin continued to stare at the sky long after he was gone, and with assurances from Cisco that he would take care of Barry, Laura joined her friend.
"He's...alive."
"You were right, Caitlin."
"He doesn't want me to look for him - god, I don't know what to do."
"…he's out there somewhere, Cait. We're going to bring him home. I promise."
Caitlin didn't respond, but as they watched the smoke trails slowly fade away in the night sky, Laura knew that the man in yellow was right. Whatever war they were fighting against him, whatever race they were running – it was far from over.
But they had won this battle.
At least, she hoped they had.
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