32

A Team of Misfits

Barry experienced a lot of things in his life. Some good. Some bad. Some in between. While there were those that would say the Particle Accelerator explosion would fall on the bad side of his life, directly leading to the death of his father and some of his closest allies. But without the explosion, he wouldn't have had some of the best people come into his life. Those same people that simultaneously yelled at him after he finally revealed to them what he'd seen in the future. He'd been unsure of when was a good time though Iris made it an easy decision for him; if he didn't tell everyone, she would.

"And do you want me to be responsible for that heartbroken look on dad's face?" Iris demanded.

Barry cringed as soon as the words left her mouth. That look, that look of utter disappointment and heartbreak he'd only seen a few times. When he was young and had just moved in with him and Iris and had said repeatedly that Joe wasn't his father and never would be. When he was older, much older and had said the same after an emotional bout of seeing his father in jail and dealing with Eobard Thawne for the very first time. It was horrifying to see the look on his face both times he'd said that. A look of pure, unadulterated pain that showed how deeply words could cut and how far they could wound. Wounds that weren't easily healed by apologies, but by time and understanding.

"You're not my father."

It was even as horrifying to see the look on Joe's face each time Barry set out to save the world; first with the Singularity that had opened then with Zoom. Joe's fear of losing those close to him was real. The pure fear of an adult possibly seeing their child going off to their death. He'd gained a son in both Barry and Wally and throwing in the rest of Team Flash, Joe was a time bomb waiting to go off is something happened to any of them.

That's why Barry completely refused to meet Joe's gaze when he finally uttered the words. "I went to the future," and explained everything he'd seen there. Everything he'd hidden and had plagued him when he allowed himself to slow down long enough. Joe was initially silent in response, Wally reacted with shock, stammering out a question that the sister he'd only just met and gotten to know was going to die, Jesse questioned about the other two. Cisco, Caitlin, and Cadence yelled.

A lot.

They demanded to know why Barry kept it a secret, why he hadn't told them sooner, hadn't given them the chance to prepare for it. Caitlin yelled the most, upon the realization that she was indeed going to turn into Killer Frost. That surprised Barry the most, how much anger she managed to explode upon him at once. Then once it was gone, she returned to that sweet Caitlin they all loved, wanting to know what the plan was.

"Plan?" Barry repeated, blinking rapidly.

"Yes, a plan," Cisco insisted. He leaned against the computer desk, arms folded as he stared Barry down. His eyes smoldered with an inextinguishable fire of determination. Or was it denial. Frustration? Frustration at all the lies they continued to tell each other, all the secrets they continued to keep while thinking they were doing the right thing? Wanting to keep his friends safe meant more to any of them than anything else. For Cisco, Barry noted, it meant the most. He heard enough stories from Caitlin and even Cisco's own admission that he hadnt' had many friends growing up. Hadn't had anyone who understood his passions in life. At STAR Labs and with metahumans he had the life and the friends he'd always wanted, the same life that would come ripping apart in a nearby future his best friend had kept form him. More than anything, Cisco couldn't allow himself to believe all the closest people were him was going to die. "We're not going to sit back and let this happen."

"It's the first time we've got a chance to see what may happen," Cadence said. She'd stopped yelling, but the fire in her eyes, the true fire that Barry could see flickering, was only just starting to burn. "And we can change it to what should happen." She looked around the room for support. They appeared interested in what she was saying, but skeptical. Anything that had to do with time travel was difficult to understand. Even Barry didn't fully get it and he doubted he ever would. "No one's ever said changing the future messes things up in the present."

Harrison folded his arms, speaking up before HR could get the chance. "You're saying this is going to happen within the next few months?" He took in a deep breath when Barry nodded. "Statistically speaking there are thousands of ways the future can go and the choices we make today, even having this conversation right now can change the future like that." He snapped his fingers for emphasis.

"Or, if you want to go into a bit more depth, Retrocasuality," Tess explained, "is what we're referencing here."

Joe's eyes widened in surprise before he let out a surprised laugh. The same wheezing laugh he gave when teasing his children. This time, however, there was a tone of disbelief behind the laugh. The same amount he'd shown when Barry told him about the future in the first place. Only, that time, accompanied by the tears that came to his eyes when the truth hit him hard. "I'm sorry, that can't be a real word."

"Oh, it certainly is," HR said, sticking his drumstick in the air. "It's a psychological term that's spread around far and wide on my Earth. Have you not—how can you not have heard the word." He placed his hands on his hips, shaking his head. "You guys, you—you scamps, you need to listen to me a little bit more. What it is—"

"—No offense, HR, but I'd like to hear it from the actual professor of psychology," Cisco broke in.

"Right, yes. Well, please take it away Ms. Morgan. I'm sure you can explain it better than I can."

Tess smiled her thanks. "Retrocasuality is also known as Backwards Causation. It speaks about implications within your life. Where cause and effect is looked at, especially how effect precedes the cause in time. Metaphorically. It's the idea that you may be able to change something about your present that was originally set in motion in your past. Or that you might be able to use the future, even though it 'hasn't happened' yet, to also change something from the present. It's an exercise that's used in psychotherapy to help those who feel they're stuck and unable to change or grow."

"Where the future can affect the present and the present can affect the past," Harrison summarized.

"So…Barry's returning to the past may have been what caused this future?" Jesse asked. She tapped her chin, eyes shifting in thought. "Not just Flashpoint? Not just all these other metas and Savitar's appearance."

Tess hesitated. She sucked her lips and said, "The trouble with retrocasuality is that it hasn't actually been proven. Just like this future that Barry's seen hasn't been proven. It's one of many futures that can be created."

"That's what Jay said," Barry agreed.

"So what do we do?" Iris asked.

Barry looked at her. Her voice was filled with shaky determination. She had more time to come to grips with her impending death, when he had told her before. She blew up later. Barry had returned to the West house to give Joe, Iris, and Wally the good news about his and Cadence's official engagement and found her sitting on the front steps, shrouded in a blanket to keep the chill out.

The chill had hit Barry straight in the bones as he approached her. Iris didn't move until he sat down next to her. Then, abruptly, she turned and started to wail on him, her small fists landing blows on his chest and arms that he didn't bother to defend himself from. He deserved it. Then she'd collapsed into his arms, sobbing hysterically over the future that was to come. Barry could've held onto her and reassured her 'everything's going to be okay, I promise' but couldn't find himself to do so.

It wasn't what she needed to hear.

She needed to let her anger out.

It was why Barry was and wasn't surprised when Brady punched him across the face. Brady had been unusually quiet since hearing the truth. He was coming more into himself with being a member of Team Flash, giving his opinions and suggestions when the time came. This time, however, as soon as Barry explained what he saw, Brady fell silent and stared at him. A Blue Screen of Death, Cisco dubbed it. Shocked to the core.

After the meeting with Team Flash had ended, Barry went to Brady and pulled him back into the hallway leading to the Cortex. "I couldn't help but notice you weren't saying much. I know this is hard, but it's not—"

Thwack.

Brady reared back and punched Barry hard across the face. Startled, Barry stumbled aside, throwing out his hand to hold himself up before falling over. Barry rubbed at his jaw, gasping for air. Brady could punch harder than he thought. He looked at the young boy whose eyes steadily glared back at him.

"Is this why you proposed to my mom?" He asked.

"I, uh," Barry stammered.

He couldn't get the words out. Funny how he could do it before, when talking to Kara. Maybe it was because she was so impartial to everything that was going on. Being from another Earth gave her her own set of problems. Barry couldn't imagine telling Deity first, he'd probably received an even stronger punch to the face. He was sure Cadence sensed it in some way, when he watched her expression change after he explained. Saw there were dots connecting as to why he'd spontaneously proposed to her.

True to her style, she didn't confront him about it. Probably understood his motivations behind it. If she were angry, he had no idea. Brady had kept his own feelings so secretly guarded that when he had the chance to let it out, it was a message he certainly didn't miss.

"I hate you," Brady spat before running from the Cortex.

Barry's muscles twitched, itching for him to race after Brady but kept himself from doing so. How many times could he follow his first instinct to run and not have it turn out badly? No, that time he waited for Brady to calm to a point where Barry didn't risk getting punched again. It took a week for Brady to come around and apologize. Barry forgave him, of course, then apologized on his own merit. Brady needed to hear it. That had been what he was missing, truly apologizing for all the secrets he'd kept from the Team.

Now with everything behind him, there was nothing keeping him from focusing on the future. And the future was coming to him sooner than he thought. Once Barry and Cadence proposed to each other, it didn't take long for them to announce it to the rest of Team Flash with encouraging responses. Brady had screamed, "Finally!" at the top of his lungs before falling into a series of whoops and cheers that rivaled any of what Cadence had done during her cheerleading stint in high school.

Joe, Iris, Wally, Jesse, Cisco, and Caitlin, of course, were just as excited for the group, immediately enveloping them into a group hug that left even Joe teary—and was still teary when he told Barry off for not mentioning to him he planned on proposing in the first place. The only ones they were nervous to tell was Harrison, Tess, and Maya. Barry more so nervous about the former than the latter. He didn't have a close relationship with them—and understood how Cadence felt around Iris, Joe, and Wally—and had no idea how they'd react.

If Maya's immediate planning of an engagement party was indication, things were fine. Finally, things were looking up.

Cadence ducked into the CCPD break room at the end of her shift, pushing through a crowd of her co-workers who were also ready to go home. The night shift would be coming in soon and she didn't want to get caught speaking to them anytime soon. Not that she didn't enjoy bantering with her co-workers, but sometimes she wanted nothing more than to compress from the day by herself. And, her feet were starting to hurt. Sitting at a desk all day was detrimental to her health, she'd seen enough studies about it and had even given out that advice. Walking around Central City all day had that same affect. It was detrimental to her health, her feet throbbed as much as her heart did, having taken on a case of a child who was so used to being home alone that they hadn't seen their parents in a few days and had no idea where they were to be contacted and could fend for themselves. They were only five.

It was horrifying.

Cadence let out a long sigh, running her hands through her hair, kicking off her shoes

"Is this a bad time?"

Cadence looked at Julian as he approached her. He appeared slightly off balanced yet at the same time incredibly rigid. Like a marionette whose strings had just been jerked upwards. Julian smoothed down his tie. "I didn't expect to see you here," he remarked. "I figured you'd be out there enjoying your party." He held out his hand. "I believe congratulations are now in order."

Cadence shook his hand firmly, showing off the engagement ring on her ring finger. She wondered if he could tell she was consciously keeping her strength in check, making herself be gentle so that she didn't crush his hand. "Thank you," She said stiffly, unable to let go how he'd been mocking of her and Barry before. Who continued to say congratulations to someone when he knew they weren't engaged and had been on the verge of breaking up? It didn't help that Julian had kept the smug smile on his face the rest of the Captain Singh's wedding, making it harder for either her or Barry to really sit with the truth. "Did you need something?"

"Pardon?" Julian said. Trepidation crossed his face and he brought his hand back to the pockets of his slacks. He cleared his throat. "Oh, right, yes, I, was hoping I could trouble you for your files on Frankie Kane's case."

Red flags immediately went up in Cadence's mind. "What about them?" Julian may have apologized for what he'd done to mess up her case and drive Frankie out of town, but something about it still didn't seem right with her. Not to mention, he was starting to come too close to them at STAR Labs. He knew about Caitlin, she'd admitted it to him, how much longer was he going to hold that information above them before he finally pulled the pin on his grenade. "What do you need them for?" An incredulous laugh escaped her lips. "In the middle of an engagement party, no less."

"Standard procedure, I suppose," Julian said, casually. He cleared his throat once more, bringing a hand up to rub the back of his neck. A move reminiscent of Barry, it didn't fill her with any comfort. If anything, it made Cadence regard him with even more suspicion than before. She and Julian didn't talk about anything not conclusive to work when at work. Nor did they speak outside of work. The conversation wasn't new and yet it was making the hair on the back of her neck stand up.

Something wasn't right but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. "I finally have the time to put in the finishing reports of the case and I'd like the insight that you gave for said reports," Julian explained. His eyes flickered over her. "You're the meta expert."

Cadence's suspicion ten-folded. "I'm no expert," she said. She hoped it came across as modesty and he'd put it aside. But, knowing Julian, it wasn't going to happen. He was as persistent as Cisco was when he wanted to order his favorite pizza. That was evident with how persistent he was to prove Frankie was a meta and that she'd been the one to hurt her foster father. "It's in your job description, remember?"

Julian stepped closer to her. "Yes, but you're the one who has had more experience with what metahumans can do. I just clean up the aftermath and determine what happened to a victim." He kept his eyes locked on her, watching her as closely as she watched him. So far, she didn't detect any dishonesty from him. "You've seen what's happened when the victims have ended up in the hospitals and other forms of medical care." Cadence continued to stare at him. Julian sucked in a quick breath, moving to the door so quickly it startled Cadence. "If I can't get any answers from you then I guess I should just ask Caitlin."

That got her attention. She practically barked at him when she asked, "What about Caitlin?"

"You mean you don't know about her?" Julian's smile was shark like. There was blood in the water and he certainly smelled it. "She hasn't told you she's a metahuman. And here I thought you were best friends. Thick as thieves." His lips twitched around his teeth. "Don't tell me that not even Allen has told you anything about it." Cadence pressed her lips together, trying to figure out what to say that wouldn't give anything away. "I'm not one to judge, but keeping secrets doesn't sound like a good foundation for a marriage, yeah?"

"What about Caitlin?" Cadence demanded, unable to keep the growl from coming to her voice. Whether it was Caitlin or Cisco, putting her friends into any situation that would cause their lives to be ruined did not sit well with her.

"She's a meta. She told me. And not just a meta, but that one they call Killer Frost?" Cadence did her best not to react, but couldn't help but take in a sharp breath. "I see that sounds familiar to you." Julian folded his arms and leaned on the counter next to her. He dropped his voice to an almost menacing level. "What do you know about Killer Frost? What do you know about Caitlin?"

"I don't know anything, Julian. And if she were a meta, this is the first I'm hearing about it—"

"—bollocks. You're having me on. You know more about this bloody meta than you're telling me. And you're doing the same thing Allen's done." Julian ran a hand over his mouth, tapped his fingers against his chin. "He begged me not to say anything about Caitlin and I agreed to it so long as he quit his job at the CCPD. I'm sure you've heard about that."

"Barry's mentioned it once," Cadence said flatly. "What does that have to do with me?"

"Well, you're marrying the bloke—"

"—What does Caitlin being a meta have to do with me?"

Julian eagerly pounced on Cadence's words. "You admit it then?"

Dismay washed over Cadence. Her face dropped. She hadn't meant to say anything, hadn't meant to have the words slip out. Hadn't meant to seriously betray Caitlin. The worst thing was, she knew Caitlin would've forgiven her in a second for the slip-up. She would give a kind smile and simply draw her best friend into a hug and comfort her when Caitlin was the one who needed to be comforted.

Julian spoke before Cadence could respond. "So, she's a meta. What about your little engineer friend? They both work at STAR Labs so he'd be aware if she were a meta. Know where other metas are. Aand they work with the Flash, I'm sure they know his identity as well." Julian rubbed his palms together. "Imagine what'd happen, if I were to break who The Flash was, as admirable as the people of the city think he is, he's not above the law."

"The Flash has been helping the city."

"Like Flare has?"

That made Cadence shut up. Central City, unfortunately, still hadn't recovered from seeing the 'Dancing Flame' burn down a building, injuring some and traumatizing others. No matter what Cadence did to save anyone, there was always going to be an air of distrust around her and the thought alone kept her up at night, made her sick to her stomach, horrified her to no end. And it had just been thrown back in her face. Julian's words made Cadence shut up, but it didn't keep her from glaring. Didn't keep her anger from spiking so quickly that it affected the room around them. She was sure smoke was seconds away from pouring form her ears. Julian frowned, glancing towards the ceiling. He pulled at the collar of his dress shirt, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead. "Bloody hell, I know it's Christmas time, but they don't have to turn up the damn heat so much."

Cadence steeled herself, made sure her voice didn't break when she replied, "What do you want?" She asked, voice growing low, throaty.

"For starters, I need all the information you have on metahumans," Julian said, immediately snapping to attention. His voice sounded almost robotic. That proved it. He knew exactly what he wanted. "Not just form your most recent CPS cases, but from your medical examiner files as well. I reckon there's a lot of information in there as well. I assume it has Allen's signatures and information from the cases you've worked together."

"Some of them," Cadence mumbled.

"That's the first thing I need. The second thing I'll need is, in your words, all the information you have on Killer Frost. Her power set, how she's able to use her powers, what'll defeat her. Everything of that sort."

"And in return? What do I get out of this?"

"Relax, I don't want your job. I could care less about some ankle biters neglected by their parents," Julian dead-panned. "It'll make them tougher. Though I guarantee some of them are just children who's mums and dad's buy their love." He cleared his throat. "If there's anything else I need, I'll let you know. I'd like everything you can give me on my desk by the end of the week. I'm not too much of a—"

"—dick?" Cadence guessed.

Julian smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes. "I was going to say 'jerk' but your colloquialism is a good choice, innit?" He continued. "I'm not too much of a dick to not let you enjoy your engagement party. Cheers." He turned on his heel and left the break room.

Cadence hummed to herself, clenching her fist around the edge of the counter she hadn't been aware she was crushing. It shattered, splinters embedding themselves in her fingers. Turning her palm up, Cadence watched blood drip over her fingers before deftly plucking out the splinters, the wounds sliding shut the seconds the wounds were empty. There was too much to think about and not enough time to give the right amount of energy to each thought. It wasn't fair, honestly. Every time something good happened, something more nefarious was right behind to turn everything on its head and create a tailspin so fast they were still recovering days later.

Cadence closed her eyes, thinking to Julian. He'd been very specific about what he'd needed of her to keep Caitlin safe from…whatever he was planning. Cadence's lips curled, her teeth clenched. Keeping things quiet from those around them clearly wasn't working to keep any of them safe. Their secret identities made it easier to walk the streets during the day, made it easier for them to just be themselves and not put on a show every second of every day. But to know those that were starting to come closer and closer to throwing everything of what's become their normal away…

It was ironic, in a sense. When she first got her powers, she did everything in her power to pretend she was normal. She trained and worked on her powers by herself in secret every day—taking time after school, before her cheerleading, soccer, and swim practices, using other times where her parents went to events to do it. She remembered the first time she learned how to teleport, focusing all her energy from going her bedroom to the living room. From the attic to the basement. Remembered when she armed herself with a fire extinguisher and a flame retardant blankets wrapped around the trunks of trees on their property to work on target practice.

And now, her new normal of being able to do something with that work was close to being taken away. Cadence shook her head, pushed herself from the damaged counter and left the CPPD. She took in a deep, calming breath the second she was outside, the sun setting over Central City putting her in a better mood than before. That was, until a gust of wind caught her attention.

She turned to Barry as he straightened himself, pushing back his hair. "Hey." He took one look at her face then frowned in concern. His eyes bored into hers, filled with so much concern and love that made Cadence smile, immediately feeling nothing but warm relief wash over her. He stepped closer to her. "You look stressed. Is everything okay?"

Cadence didn't respond to his question, instead, she watched him then shift his gaze to the CCPD, as if only just noticing it there. She gently smiled, wondering if he'd come to see her because he was already unable to handle watching Brady and Conner.

Brady had been nothing short of ecstatic when he found that one of his Christmas gifts was Conner being back in Central City for a short visit. How her mom managed to pull it off, she wasn't sure. (Just as Cadence still wasn't sure how she, Harrison, and Tess all managed to put together an engagement party in such a short amount of time). It'd be sad when Conner had to go back into hiding, but at least for the time being he could have some closure over having to say goodbye initially.

Finally, Cadence grasped Barry's hand, watching as he let out a wistful sigh through his nose. "You really miss working here, don't you?"

"What makes you say that?" Barry tore his gaze away from his former work place. He blinked at her.

"The fact you're managing to stand completely still," Cadence said honestly. With the Speed Force coursing through his veins, Barry, almost, couldn't sit still. So much so that a knee almost always was bouncing, he cracked his knuckles, paced, did everything at top speed. Sitting still was impossible for him. "Did you really come to walk me home? Did cabin fever get to you already?"

Barry grinned. "I had to get out of there. Your mom was starting to—"

"—Drive you crazy?"

"—she's a little excited, I'll give her that," Barry admitted. "Every five minutes she asks me something about the wedding and I don't have any answers."

"Oh." Cadence waved her free hand. "She's just ready to show off her new future son-in-law. Believe me, she gets worse. We'd hardly started dating and she was as enthusiastic about Ryder." Then a wicked smile came to her face. "Either that or she wants to marry you herself."

"Don't put any ideas in her head," Barry said, laughing. "I only just managed to get away." His smile waned. "So…is everything okay?"

"Yeah." Cadence quirked an eyebrow. "I just had an interesting conversation with Julian."

"Amazing," Barry teased. "We only just got engaged and you're already flirting with another guy."

"Amazing. We only just got engaged and you're already jealous," Cadence swiftly returned. Her smile faded as well. "It wasn't about me, it was about Caitlin."

Now Barry's face screwed up in confusion. He could see her trying to push Caitlin and Cisco together, honestly, he wondered about it himself. But Julian. Especially when he was trying to blackmail her. He couldn't quite tell if Cadence was serious, she did enjoy messing with him. "Do you really think he's her type? I mean, they're both smart but he's so…."

"Unbearable?"

''I was going to say completely unbearable but that works."

"I didn't have a problem with him until this whole thing with Cait," Cadence admitted. She sighed in resignation, squeezing his hand, pulling him behind her as they started to walk down the street, falling in step with the rest of Central City. She spoke quietly so only he could hear. "He knows she's a meta and it's only so long until he finds out about the rest of us. He wants as much information about her as possible. If I don't give it to him, he'll out Caitlin to everyone."

"Just like him wanting me to quit my job," Barry agreed.

Cadence nodded. "I want to see how much he knows."

"Do you think it's safe?"

"No." Her honesty made him start. "if we don't have an idea of what we're up against, we may as well just turn ourselves over to Breathtaker, Savitar, and Alchemy right now."

"Maybe that's not a bad idea," Barry mused. Cadence looked at him in surprise. Turning themselves over was giving up, wasn't it? And they never gave up. "It'd give us a leg up on what they're up to, figuring out a plan once we're in their clutches. It worked once before."

Cadence nodded. It had worked once before; when Breathtaker had kidnapped Team Flash and Team Arrow almost three years before when he took over Central City. When Barry had been furious to find out she'd been trying to kill him the entirety of their friendship. It took a long time for him to fully forgive her for it. And while they had been in held captive, they figured out the Assassination Bureau's and Suicide Squad's weaknesses to break free before defeating Breathtaker enough to reverse the damage he'd caused.

"Yeah, but they've been watching us closer now, I don't think the same thing will work again," Cadence pointed out. "And as for Savitar and Alchemy, as long as they have the Philosopher's Stone, they've got the advantage."

"Then we'll just need to find a way to get rid of the Philosopher's Stone." Barry said it with so much conviction that Cadence almost believed him. Almost. About 99%. But that was only due to a healthy 1% of doubt anyone would have. When it came to the end of the world and lives in jeopardy, a healthy sense of doubt was expected.

Cadence moved closer to Barry's side, dropping her hand from his to loop her arm around her waist, making him wrap an arm around her shoulders, pressing a kiss to the side of her head.

At least for the moment, things were okay.

"I still don't understand why you needed to gather information on Killer Frost," Savitar commented.

With his knees pulled up to his chest, arms looped around them, hands grasping each wrist, he would've looked like a man taking a stroll in the forest just outside of Central City. If not for the continuous gleam of malice in his eyes and half scarred face, anyone walking by would've thought Barry Allen was taking a nice stroll in the woods with Little Red Riding Hood.

That is, if Little Red Riding Hood had an ominous billowing cape with glowing eyes beneath. Breathtaker, on the other hand, was the big bad wolf and the lumberjack rolled together. Strong and filled with malice. He turned to Savitar, eyes boring into his. Hypnotic.

Savitar grimaced and turned his head away. He wouldn't allow himself to become hypnotized and brainwashed. "I told you, I know everything about Killer Frost, I don't need a rehash of the information I already have."

"Patience," Breathtaker said. "This is simply to see if our powers of persuasion is still strong enough to break through Albert's will."

"Believe me, Albert's not going to get away anytime soon," Savitar remarked. He stood up, stretching his arms overhead. Each of his vertebrae in his back cracked, allowing him to let out a long groan. He leaned back against the tree, bringing up a foot to rest on the trunk, folding his arms over his chest. "I only need him to do one more thing. As long as you can hold your influence over him, so that the Philosopher's Stone can take effect, I can do it." He took in a deep breath through his nose. "Barry and the others are moving at the exact pace they should be moving. Everything's going to work out. I'm kind of proof of that."

"Then why the need for Albert?"

"I needed someone close to them that they wouldn't expect."

"It appears they wouldn't expect you either."

Savitar grinned and flipped his long fringe from his face. "That, too," he agreed. Then his smile faded. He ran his fingertips along the scar that covered his face. Took in the lumps and bumps that previously had been a quite handsome face, if he did say so himself. Fortunately, that hadn't been taken away from him. Still, the anger he felt burning through his stomach was enough fuel to his fire for revenge. He wasn't going to let it overcome him. No, not when he was so close.

There was a bright flash of light and Julian appeared before them. He held the Philosopher's Stone in both hands, it illuminated the dazed expression on his face. Savitar grinned, walking to his lackey. He grabbed the stone and held it firmly in hand, taking in a deep breath as he felt the power of the stone course through his veins. Yes, he was so close to unlocking its full potential. And he couldn't wait until he had the chance to show Barry and the others what he could truly do.

"I have her getting the information we need," Julian said in monotone. "Once we have it, then we'll be able to move onto the next step."

"Perfect." Savitar grasped Julian's shoulder and shook him. "Just what we needed. He looked to Breathtaker for confirmation before passing him the Philosopher's Stone.

Breathtaker took it and the stone and it changed form a brilliant blue glow to a demonic red, pulsing repeatedly. His large hands enveloped the stone. He held onto it for a few minutes longer then handed it back to Savitar, the color of the stone changing back to a blue.

"I have my team ready," he said. "They've been put in place and have been watching Team Flash for the right moment."

Savitar's smile finally faded into a deep frown. "You've been saying that for days now. When are we moving in to strike? You know that if Team Flash are together they're strongest together." His gaze lowered and he spat, "Their care for each other is what keeps them going."

"Patience."

Savitar's head whipped up. "I have been patient!" He spat. "I've been patient while we've sat back and done nothing. They're coming closer to figuring out what we're doing. Since those Cosmic Beings came to this Earth, it's only a matter of time until they figure out their warning."

"Your connection with Barry is strong enough to—"

"—I am Barry!" Savitar spat. His voice echoed along the empty forest. "In all matter of what existence truly is. I am Barry. I have his memories, his face, his powers. But I'm stronger than him. And with this,"—he lifted the Philosopher's Stone—"and with his powers, I'll be unstoppable." He nodded toward Julian, who continued to stare in space, not moving from his spot. "Then I'll be done with him and Barry and deal with the aftermath." He chuckled. "I have to tell you, it's not going to be pretty."

"Incognito's passing was indeed sad," Breathtaker said, finally speaking once Savitar calmed down. "But he knew the risks of joining me. He believed in what we were doing and willingly gave his life for the cause."

"And White Hot?" Savitar asked. "Cadence isn't dead. Why not coerce her into working for you again? Why the need for White Hot?"

"I need the power and until I can get Cadence to see reason, I need the one who is willing to help me. I need that power set, that ruthlessness and sheer power. There aren't many other metas who hold the ability. For millennia I've watched metahumans become complacent. Too used to the powers they have and allowing themselves to fall back into the shadows rather than exhibit themselves to be the powerful creatures they are." Breathtaker clenched his fist. "Incognito understood that."

"The question is, did he have a choice." Breathtaker and Savitar turned to find Black Blade suddenly appear from between the trees, turning visible as he went, stepping out from the shadows. "Incognito, like Stratos and Mindboggler, were at low points in their lives when you found them. You preyed on them to make them feel their only point in life was to work alongside you as you destroyed the world."

"Destroy?" Breathtaker sounded surprised. "I simply want to make it better."

Black Blade cocked his head, didn't seem surprised by the response. "By killing all humans." A statement. Not a question.

"If the humans don't want to perish they'd understand not to treat those with extraordinary powers with disdain and rather with the worship they deserve."

Black Blade tilted his head, spun his katanas at his side. Though they didn't move at any remarkable speed, a whooshing sound could be heard with each rotation of the blades. "The boy," he commented. Savitar lifted an eyebrow. "What is it you want with the boy?"

"Me?" Savitar lifted an eyebrow. He waved his hand, waving off the accusation. "Nothing. He's not even on my radar."

Lifting his sword, Black Blade pointed it directly at Breathtaker. "I meant him."

"That, is something we'll have to see in time," Breathtaker replied.

Black Blade continued to spin his katanas around his palms. Then he held them still, knuckles cracking around the grips. "Not if I have anything to do about it."

If Breathtaker had a mouth beneath his hood—something of which no one knew—it would've curled back into a smile. "I was hoping you'd say that."

A/N: Okay, writing Savitar and Breathtaker in this chapter was so fun. You have no idea. And, finally a long look as to what's going on with them. And the return of Black Blade as well, There's so much more with the villains that are coming in this back half of the story because…we're in the third arc of the story now. And with that, we'll see much more of the villains and how their plans progress.

Let me know what you guys think!

Cheers,

-Riley

Review Replies

Ethan: Yep, they proposed to each other. I was originally going to have it where Cade proposed to him that time, but figured this was better as a mutual thing after they finally determined (which you correctly pointed out) that they have a major communication problem. I had actually thought to have their semi-break up to last longer but decided against it. Not only because I felt it would've been dragged too long, but there's only so much darker I'd have this story, go. None of these guys have bene happy in a long time and that needed to change.

Guest: Glad you liked it.

DarkHelm145: I hope the beginning of this arc is just as good for you. Finally, we're getting some answers for things.

PowerHero432: Yes, the title did say it all! Haha.