Chapter 96: Scooby-Doo, Part 2

"He murdered your daughter?" Barry asked, in astonished horror.

"You had a daughter?" Cisco added, causing everyone to throw him a look.

"Cisco!"

"What? Our Wells didn't have a daughter!"

"That's because he wasn't really Harrison Wells but time traveler Eobard Thawne who took over the actual Wells' body," Caitlin deftly pointed out.

"And since he murdered Wells' wife Tess Morgan, he had no means to have a counterpart to this Wells' daughter," Barry noted, "In fact, he wouldn't want to have children since that would tie him to the past since he planned to go back to the future after I went back in time to stop him from murdering my mom. Except that I didn't do that so—"

"Okay, I'm not following any of this and it's irrelevant to the situation," Wells announced, cutting the entire conversation off. He turned back to Barry. "Yes, Zoom murdered my daughter. He murdered a lot of people's daughters and sons, but I didn't care until… until…" he let out a breath of regret.

Barry peered at him knowingly. "There's more to it than that, isn't there?"

Wells tilted his head. "You're quite the intuitive one, aren't you?"

The former assassin shrugged. "It's a gift."

Wells huffed. "Well, you're right. Zoom originally kidnapped her as a hostage to force me to develop a way to take away someone's speed and let it be reabsorbed by someone else. I succeeded, using data I got from a deceased metahuman named Russell Glosson. But when I handed it off, instead of giving my Jesse back to me, he murdered her right in front me. A vibrating hand through the heart." His eyes turned glassy at the memory, and everyone shifted uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry," Barry said sadly, empathetic to the other's man plight.

"Don't you dare say you're sorry," Wells snapped his head up, glaring at Barry angrily, "You don't know what it's like—"

"Yes, I do," Barry cut him off before he could say more. "Watching someone that you care about, that you love, dying in front of you, being helpless to save them? That's a feeling I know all too well."

Wells met his eyes, and seeing the truth in Barry's words, looked away. Almost in shame, it seemed. Nobody said anything for a moment.

"Right," Barry finally spoke, clapping his hands together. "The goggles."

The older man nodded, then looked at Cisco. "Come along, fake Reverb. Let's get you fitted out."

"It's Vibe," Cisco insisted.

"Whatever."

Cisco muttered something unintelligible under his breath but still followed. At Barry's look, so did Stein and Ronnie. Caitlin and Laurel were about to go too, but Barry stopped them.

"You two are going to be doing something different," he explained.

"What do you mean?" Laurel asked, crossing her arms.

"We're on Zoom's earth. That means this place has the greatest amount of knowledge about him and his associates."

"You want us to do research?" Caitlin said, looking very interested.

"Yes. Find out everything you can about Zoom, and your doppelgangers. And the doppelgangers of anyone else you can think of as well — the last thing we need is to be caught off guard again."

Both women nodded. "What about you?"

As if on cue, Barry's stomach rumbled again.

"I," Barry held up a finger, "am going to get some food."

About an hour and a half later, after having located the kitchens and filling up on everything in the fridge, Barry returned to Laurel and Caitlin to find them sifting through several files on Wells' computer. Apparently, the Particle Accelerator had exploded a year earlier than it did on their earth, meaning this Central City was more adept with dealing with metahuman criminals. Not only was there an entire database for them, but an algorithm had been created to track their movements and any other noticeable statistics.

Upon learning what they were doing, Wells had handed the women a flash drive so they could download the database for future reference. They had promptly accepted it, and began perusing the files while the download was ongoing, focusing on their doppelgangers in particular. They were both frowning heavily, suggesting that whatever they had learned about said doubles was not very pleasing to them.

"Something wrong?" Barry asked, breaking them out of their thoughts.

"Nothing. Just… ruminating on the differences between us and our doppelgangers."

Barry raised an eyebrow.

"They're both colossal bitches," Caitlin clarified, and it was telling that she was speaking with that kind of language, "but they've lived pretty sad lives."

The speedster nodded slowly. He could understand that. He wasn't really any different — it had taken a lot of tragedy to turn him into the man he was today, even if he was a significantly lighter shade than the two women his friends were speaking of.

Laurel exhaled, then perked up. "Hey, Barry? Do you want to look at the file they have for the Flash of this world?"

"They have one on him?" Barry scrunched up his face. "But isn't that a criminal database?"

"Yes, but seeing as he was technically a vigilante…" Caitlin shrugged.

Barry licked his lips thoughtfully. "Show it to me."

Laurel nodded and started typing on the computer, and the file appeared on one of the bigger monitors mounted on the wall of the room. Barry glanced at it, masked some faint surprise. Beneath the face of his teacher Hunter Zolomon, was the name Jay Garrick. The man, presumably his teacher's Earth-2 counterpart, was wearing a red leather jacket with a large yellow lightning bolt stitched on it, and blue leather pants with black boots. But what really caught Barry's eye was what he was wearing on his head.

"Barry, isn't that…?" Caitlin voiced his thoughts, and Barry nodded in agreement, using his super speed to quickly read through the entire file. There were some interesting tricks written in there that he was eager to try out.

"Isn't that what?"

The three whirled around to see Wells leaning against the door sill, looking at them all with an expectant look.

"The helmet he's wearing fell through a breach into our world several months ago," Barry explained.

"Ah," Wells got away from the door and walked towards them, "That explains a lot. I was wondering where that helmet went. Zoom must've tossed it into the breach after he killed Garrick."

"How did he do that, by the way?" Barry couldn't help but ask, glancing at the picture of Jay Garrick curiously.

"Beat him within an inch of his life, ripped off his arm and then shoved a vibrating hand through his heart on live TV."

"What a lovely picture," Laurel said dryly.

"Yeah, well, Zoom never really cared for the faint of the heart," Wells snorted bitterly. "I never really liked Garrick, truth be told. He could be a sanctimoniously righteous asshole. But he was against Zoom and I can't help but regret his death. If I had tried to work with him earlier, helped him, maybe Zoom would've never gotten as far as he did. Maybe I could've stopped him before he killed Jesse."

There was nothing anyone could really say to that, though that didn't stop the two heroes and one scientist from shooting the older man sympathetic looks. Barry couldn't help but glance again at the picture of Garrick. The idea of their counterparts having different names on different earths didn't sound far-fetched, if one considered the butterfly effect and all, but he couldn't help but wonder.

"Wishing you could've met him?" Barry glanced back at Wells, who was staring directly at him.

"A little," Barry admitted, "Though it would be a little surreal considering I know his doppelganger on my earth. Though under a different name, surprisingly enough."

"Oh? Well, that's more common than you think," Wells noted, crossing his arms. "Out of curiosity, what is his name on your earth?"

"Hunter Zolomon."

Wells froze. For once, there was no coldness or disparagement in his expression, just sheer shock. Nobody missed his reaction, and now everyone's eyes were back on him. "Dr. Wells?" Caitlin ventured, voice quiet.

"Are you sure?" Wells ignored her in favor of Barry, who blinked.

"Yeah, positive. Why?"

Wells quickly went to his watch and started tapping buttons. "Because on this earth, Hunter Zolomon is a convicted serial killer."

A new file and picture appeared on the monitor next to the one with Jay's. The three breachers stared at it with wide eyes, with Laurel even going as far as to stand back up.

Unlike the picture of Jay, of a clean-shaven, American dreamboat, the picture of Hunter Zolomon looked, quite frankly, like something out of a horror movie. The man had long, dirty matted hair and a beard that made him resemble a Charles Manson shirt. And his file…

"Twenty-three counts of murder…?" Laurel whispered.

"That he was convicted for," Caitlin added quietly, "He might be responsible for more."

Barry couldn't keep his eyes off the entire thing, and committed it to memory. Which, considering he had an eidetic memory, wasn't hard. Something however caught his eyes. "It says here that he was treated with daily electroconvulsive therapy."

"Yes," Wells confirmed, also gazing at the picture.

"How likely is it that he was having a session the night your Particle Accelerator exploded?"

Wells didn't answer, which was answer enough.

"But how?" Laurel burst out, mind running a mile a minute, "If he's Zoom, then how can he also be Jay Garrick? Does he have a brother or something?"

"No," Wells shook his head, "Can't be. Zolomon was an only child. His parents, meanwhile, are deceased."

Barry's eyes trailed down the file. "It says here that his mother was murdered by his father right in front of him when he was eleven. Then his father was jailed for the crime and he was sent into the foster care system."

"Whereupon he grew up and became a serial killer," Caitlin finished.

"That still doesn't explain… this," Laurel pointed out, gesturing to the two monitors.

"Well, it's possible for a speedster to be in multiple places at once," Barry countered, though he didn't sound convinced, "but it's a mirage technique. Only one of them is real, and even then they're usually identical. Jay Garrick was murdered by Zoom on live TV in a very visibly gruesome fashion, so they had to be distinct, tangible individuals when it happened."

"So Zolomon can either be Garrick or Zoom, but not both?"

"Maybe. I don't know. But this cannot be a coincidence. Laurel, download that file too. We're going to need it, I'm certain." Laurel nodded and immediately began typing on the computer. Caitlin glanced at Barry.

"What is the Hunter Zolomon on our earth like?"

"Polite," Barry said after a moment. "Easy to get along with. Well liked by students and faculty, especially of the fairer sex. But…"

"But?" This time it was Wells who prompted him.

"But I never liked him," Barry confessed. "There was always something about him that felt… off. I knew better than to show it, obviously, but that didn't stop me from keeping a slightly closer eye on him. My instincts are usually spot-on, and he set them off like a Christmas tree."

Caitlin stepped forward slightly, looking hesitant and scared. "Barry, you don't think…?"

"I don't know what to think, Caitlin. All I know is that the moment I get back home, I'm launching an investigation into our earth's Hunter Zolomon."

"Done," Laurel chimed, standing back up and taking out the flash drive. She handed it to Barry, who put it in his pocket. "Anything else?"

"Other than Cisco, no. Though I do have one question." He turned to Wells. "Do you have any suggestions on how to physically differentiate the people of your earth from ours?"

Wells hummed. "… Vibrational frequency."

Barry caught on immediately. "All matter emits its own unique frequency. But matter from this earth would naturally emit a different frequency from matter on our earth."

"If you can somehow isolate or disrupt that frequency, you can check whether someone is from your earth or from mine."

The speedster adopted a thinking pose, tapping his chin. "Barry?" Caitlin asked after a few moments of silence.

"Just brainstorming. Might need some more minds on this. Remind me to contact Hartley when we get back home. We're going to have to cut his personal leave short." Hartley had been on leave ever since Zoom's attack at his parents' gala; both his parents had been casualties, and he was taking time to process the loss.

"Okay then," she turned to Wells. "Where's Cisco, Ronnie, and Stein? Did you finish the goggles?"

"We did. They're currently searching for a place where Ramon can open a breach."

"And we have got one!" Cisco cheered as he entered the room with Ronnie and Stein close behind. "In the same place where we got that weird winged helmet that the guy in that picture is wearing." He pointed at the monitor that showed a picture of Jay Garrick, then paused. "That's not a coincidence, is it?"

"We'll tell you all about it later," Laurel replied, moving to gather with the others.

"Of course," Barry slapped his forehead, "That's a breach from our world to this one. While the portal itself was gone, the disruption of energies is still there."

"But how did a breach get into your basement?" Stein directed his question towards Wells.

Wells shrugged. "Zoom, most likely. After he killed Garrick he started throwing his weight around a bit more. At one point he kicked everyone out of S.T.A.R. Labs on pain of death to do God knows what before letting us back in. I guess that's when he made it."

"Then the helmet…" Caitlin glanced at the picture of Garrick.

"… was a test. Or perhaps warning. Either way, he wanted us to have it, of only just to screw with us." Barry groaned. "God, I really hate that guy."

"Right then, quick reminder. We cannot let our guard down. For the time being, we have to assume that S.T.A.R. Labs is under enemy control, and that we need to liberate it from Zoom's henchmen," Barry instructed to everyone, as they prepared to depart.

"Barry, what about Ollie?" Laurel asked, voice full of worry. "It's been over three quarters of a day since my doppelganger replaced me. She has to be in Starling by now, and if she gets word we're back…"

Barry frowned. "Is it possible to open breaches to locations on the same earth?" He directed the question to Wells, who was helping Cisco get a feel for his task.

"Yes," Wells answered. "Reverb has shown the ability before, and if your friend is able to open a breach here he should be able to open a breach to Starling if need be. But for him to direct the breach to your friend in particular, he would need some kind of visual or feel of where he currently is."

"Cisco, are you still getting those visions of yours? Those… 'vibes'?"

"I am," Cisco replied, still trying to focus on tearing open the breach.

"Barry, what are you planning?" Ronnie asked, holding Caitlin close to him.

"I have a spare bow of Oliver's stored in the lab for emergencies. He's used it before, so if I give it to Cisco, he can use it to vibe Oliver's location. Then he can open a breach that can send Laurel there to deal with Black Siren," Barry explained.

Laurel crossed her arms. "That's great and all, but Barry, her sonic cry is too strong for me or Ollie. The moment I expose her, she'll try to kill both of us."

"Which is why I'm calling Kara before we send you."

Everyone paused as they thought that statement over.

"Yeah, that'll do the trick," Laurel admitted, smirking.

"Fake Laurel is going to be so screwed…" Cisco said gleefully.

"Excuse me," Wells interjected, scowling at being out of the loop, "What's so special about this Kara of yours?"

"Let's just say Miss Danvers is super," Stein said, smiling wryly, "and leave it at that."

After another half hour, Cisco let out a whoop of joy. "Got it! We're going home, baby!"

Several other cheers of relief followed his declaration. As everyone else began to surround Cisco, Barry took one more look at the Harrison Wells of Earth-2. "Thank you, for helping us."

"Just take him down, Allen," Harry said, not returning the happy sentiment. "Take him down, and make sure he never hurts anyone ever again. Do that, and we're even."

Barry nodded silently, and turned to join everyone else. "Ready?"

"Ready," everyone said, tensing themselves. Barry gave a confirmatory look to Cisco, who then clenched his fist and lifted it to the air.

It took several moments, but soon a visible ripple formed in the air, slowly circling a blue-colored energy until it gradually formed a familiar sight: a breach. Everyone took one last look at Wells, before entering the breach, one by one. After the last of them entered through, the breach closed, rippling away into nothingness, as if it had never been there to begin with.

Harrison Wells watched the space where it was for a long moment, imagining the familiar brunette locks of his daughter, before walking away.

A lot going on here, huh? The mystery of Zoom continues. Just what is going on with Hunter Zolomon and Jay Garrick? You'll have to wait a little while and see.

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