Chapter Fifteen

The archer and detective sat outside on the veranda of the Mission Cantina, dining at one of Gotham's best kept secrets tucked away in the newly developed lower east side. After the blowout of the engagement party, neither woman were much in the mood for margaritas, instead perfectly happy with tea and the best homemade guacamole in the city.

"…and then I left that morning, and he called me on Sunday night just like he said he would, and I guess we talked for…a couple hours at least."

"That's great!" Barbara exclaimed, before noticing her friend's slightly sullen expression. "Right?" she added in a quiet concerned voice.

"Yeah, I think so," the blonde replied hesitantly. "It's just….

"What?"

The blonde sighed. "What am I doing Barbara? You know what I've done; you know all the blood I have on my hands. How can he want someone like me in back his life again, around his kids? He has a faint idea about my past but what if he asks me for specifics, what if he starts adding the numbers up? I'm not going to lie to him. I can't…I won't. What if he decides I'm not good enough, what if realizes he was right and I am broken."

"That's a lot of what's," Barbara chuckled

"I'm serious," the archer scolded.

"Artemis, Wally's a really really smart guy, and trust me when it comes to his family, they'll always come first, but he's not walking into this blind. If he's welcomed you into his life, if you're spending time with his family, he knows what he's getting into."

"What if I hurt him again?"

The red head's genial demeanor suddenly grew serious. "Don't. That's my advice, just don't. If you're scared I understand, you're not used to feeling vulnerable, but I'd be willing to bet that Wally's just as nervous as you are, and that's ok. If this is something you want, I mean really want, talk to him, tell him, but if you're not willing to see where this might go, it's better to end it now before it goes any farther. End it as friends, for both of your sakes."

Artemis stared into her taco salad, like it was some fortune telling magic eight ball. Barbara hadn't said anything she wasn't already thinking, all except for one; being vulnerable.

That was a feeling she wasn't prepared for, something she'd refused to allow herself to be. Scared sure, fear kept you sharp, but naked and helpless were things that gave someone else power over you, just the Shadows had. She'd sworn never to let that happen again, but unfortunately for her, vulnerability was the price you sometimes pay when dealing with matters of the heart.

"Does this have anything to do with Zane?" the detective asked.

"No," Artemis answered quickly, "not even in the slightest. Why does everyone keep asking that? I owe him my life, several times over actually, but that's a life I'm not living anymore. I'll always care about him, but I don't love him." Her eyes grew distant as she said quietly. "Those were the rules."

"I'd be sure if I were you," Barbara replied.

Artemis's brows furrowed, preparing to defend herself when the detective's communicator began to chime.

"Sorry," the red head winced, taking the micro receiver from her purse and placing it into her ear. "Go for Batgirl," she whispered. Moments later her eyes grew wide and her face went pale.

"Understood," she replied shakily. "I'll be at Zeta Tubes in ten minutes. Batgirl out."

Barbara froze for a moment, fumbling with her purse, trying to put the communicator away while getting out her debit card to pay. She was so distracted she nearly forgot about the women sitting across the table.

The archer grabbed her hand. "Barbara what is it?"

"Jay…Jay Garrick's dead," she replies in stunned disbelief.

"What?" the archer asked equally shocked. "How?"

"It was Zoom, or someone claiming to be him. The intels pretty vague right now, but Batman's issued a League wide priority one alert. Everyone's being called in."

"What about Wally?" the blonde asked urgently.

"Bruce didn't say anything else. Look I'm sorry, but I've got to go; I'll call you as soon as I know anything I promise. Try not to worry ok? Cassie's with him. She's a fighter."

Artemis nodded nervously. "Go!"

The detective squeezed her hand firmly before rushing out of the restaurant, leaving the archer alone at the table, lost in her thoughts, her mind everywhere.

This was not happening, not now. She needed to do something, to be a part of something, but she'd lost that privilege a long time ago. Wally was hundreds of miles away, hopefully being rushed with his family to the closest Zeta Tube and safe house. The League would protect him; they'd keep him and his family safe.

Just like they did for Jay

The archer swallowed hard, trying to force the bile back down. There was nothing she could do, and for the first time in years she felt completely and utterly helpless.

Artemis took a deep cleansing breath and found her center. She was too well trained to panic. She needed a plan.

Sitting alone in the restaurant was stifling. She had to be in motion. Artemis threw down enough cash cover her meal and tip, and exited the veranda. The first logical step was to find Roy and tell him what had happened. Together they'd figure the next one.

She got her bearings and began to head towards the upper west side when suddenly a car screeched to a stop and a hand reached out and grabbed her.

"What the hell!?" the archer cursed, immediately taking a fighting stance when she recognized her assailant.

Barbara Gordon grasped her hand, pulling her into the cab. "Come on let's go."

"What?"

"You're coming with me."

"But the League…." the blonde protested.

"I'll handle the League. Now shut up and get in the damn cab."

The redhead leaned through the partition to the driver. "The old warehouse district; and I'll double your fare if you skip the red lights."

A quick cab ride later and the two women arrived at the abandoned row of buildings, jumping out of the car and taking off down the alleyway, searching for a very specific broken down telephone booth. Moments later they'd reached their destination.

Barbara stepped inside the booth, entering in her ID code and interrupting the automatic transport sequence.

"This is Batgirl - B16 requesting passenger override."

The detective waited impatiently, tapping her feet until the Zeta system processed her identity and request.

"Recognized," the computer's metallic voice replied. "Adding additional transport beam in five – four – three…

Barbara reached out quickly, dragging the archer into the booth with her. "Stay close… and try not to piss anyone off."

Seconds later a bright light consumed the booth, as Zeta radiation flooded the chamber, deconstructing molecules and sending the detective and the archer into the heavens.

xxx

As the zeta beam reassembled her molecular structure, Artemis palmed both her eyes, massaging away the spots in her vision caused by the blinding light of transporter. It had been a very long time since she'd last stepped foot on this satellite, but if memory served, they should have materialized just outside of the promenade, instead she found herself in some kind of dressing room?

"Um…did we talk a wrong turn?"

Barbara chuckled, rushing over to a wall of lockers, quickly finding hers an opening it with a fingerprint scan.

"Things are a little different from the old days," the red head replied with an amused expression. She reached back, taking her hair and putting into a ponytail as she began to change "There are several Tubes located across this base to choose from during transit. The one we took brings you to the UUV?"

"Excuse me?" the archer begged

"Uniforms and utilities vault. It's a secured area outside of the main hall for storing personal items and suiting up, and in our case trying to sneak you on board the most secured installation on the planet without anyone noticing."

Artemis felt her brow begin to dampen.

The detective peeled out of her civilian clothing, her jeans and t-shirt pooling on to the floor as she searched the spacious locker for pieces of her uniform. Artemis examined the room while her friend dressed, finding familiar code names scattered across the wall of storage units.

"Even auxiliary members have access to the satellite now," Barbara spoke, as she pulled the light Kevlar laced top tightly across her chest. "That why you see so many names that aren't full time Leaguers."

Artemis nodded as Barbara walked to the opposite side of the room, opening the corresponding weapons vault and taking her utility belt and a handful of armaments that she attached to it. At the bottom of the vault she grabbed one final item, reaching over and placing it on the archer's head.

"A grey ball cap." Artemis frowned, "That's my masterful disguise?"

"This way," she directed the archer towards the exit.

"Barbara I'm going to stand out like a sore….."

Moments later the archer's jaw dropped.

What was once a cold stone and steel construct now stood a cavernous ivory cathedral. Iron beams were now replaced by some kind of glowing crystalline structure. Five stories tall transparent aluminum walls encompassed the main hall, giving the illusion that you could literally walk off the satellite straight into space. Alien technology that was light years ahead of what she recalled, surrounded the main halls and corresponding rooms and junctures. This new base was massive; easily three times the size of its predecessor by her accounts. This moment was beyond surreal.

A few feet ahead rested what appeared to be an interactive holographic kiosk of some kind, designating directions to other areas of the satellite; hydroponics, the armory, recreation areas, holographic training room, laboratories, medical bays, engineering workshops. The list went on and on.

The satellite was a frenzy of activity, and it took a few moments before it dawned on her that there were now civilian personnel working aboard, wearing uniforms and matching caps, just like the one Barbara had placed on her head.

When in the hell did this happen? Artemis whispered, but Batgirl ignored the query, grabbing her friend's hand and dragging her through the chaos and confusion of grey uniforms, trusting their deception would last just long enough for them to find Batman and Nightwing. It wasn't one of her better plans, but it was the best she could come up with on the fly. The messy details could be sorted out later Barbara hoped, if not this might well be her last trip to the satellite as well.

The Watchtower was bigger, the League was bigger, and Artemis felt so….small. This was a sanctuary for heroes, not assassins.

Moments later they reached the center of the complex where the monitor womb stood; the nerve center of the Watchtower, where the Leagues' vast computer communications sensor networks rested. That's where they found Batman.

Grouped together with the Dark Knight were Nightwing, Green Arrow, and the Atom, cycling through multiple images displayed across the large monitor on the wall. On the far left screen Mr. Terrific and his CSI team could be seen at the Garrick's farm investigating the crime scene. In the background was the heartbreaking image of Black Canary consoling the elderly speedster's wife.

The screen on the far right showed a collection of video feeds from the last twelve hours, obtained from home security systems, local businesses, and highway patrol cameras in and around upstate Missouri, all failing to catch any glimpse of the villainous speedster's approach.

The monitor above showed moving images captured by Blue Beetle's armor during the battle. Those visuals were what currently held the four heroes' attention.

"Hell of a time for Clark, J'onn and Hal to be off planet," Oliver Queen grumbled.

"A message has been sent." Batman remarked, "However there's no telling when it will be received."

Ray Palmer leaned in closer, adjusting and filtering Beetle's raw video. "It definitely looks like him, but at the speed his moving there's no way our facial recognition software can get a match."

Batman nodded grimly. "And so far Terrific and his team haven't found any DNA traces other than the two Flashes'."

"Bart said the voice was modulated, masked somehow." Dick interjected. "but his inflection, his tone, his choice of proper names were a lot like the Zoom he remembered."

Batman nodded, reaching up and brushing aside two of the videos to alternate monitors, leaving the battle playing as he added one final video feed side by side to it. The detective reached down to the keyboard adding a time stamp to both broadcasts. As the savagery of Jay Garrick s death played out on one, the reversed could be seen on the other; a solitary man resting tranquilly in his bed in peaceful solitude. The detective reversed the film back several frames, watching again as both times stamps synced up perfectly.

"It's not him." Nightwing sighed in bewilderment, looking up at his mentor. Very rarely had he seen the Dark Knight perplexed. This happened to be one of those times.

"Apparently not," Batman replied emotionless, "but that doesn't mean he might not have some insight that could be helpful."

"There's only one way to find out," Nightwing added.

As the four heroes continued scrutinizing the playback, Dick felt a familiar hand ghost his shoulder, relieved to finally have his fiancé aboard. When he turned to welcome her, he noticed the archer by her side. Nightwing's eyes widened under the domino mask for a moment as Batgirl leaned in and whispered in his ear. "I'm in a lot of trouble aren't I?"

Dick smirked stepping to the side, allowing the two women better access to the screens. As usual the Dark Knight's demeanor remained composed, as if neither surprised nor concerned by their sudden appearance.

"Ray would you mind bringing them up to speed please?" Batman asked.

Palmer stepped forward. "At approximately 16:30 CST, Jay Garrick and Bart Allen were attacked at the Garrick's farm in northern Missouri by an unknown assailant. The images you see here." he gestured toward the screen, "came directly from Blue Beatle's sensor array. Cross referencing the readouts to our own computer systems, we estimate the assailant was moving at approximately 3068 mph; roughly four times the speed of sound."

"Damn." Batgirl whispered.

"The figure in yellow attacked Jay first, pinning him against the hood of his tractor. We don't know much about the struggle beforehand, but the video and eyewitness accounts needless to say…are pretty grisly."

The two women gasped as the speedster's blurred hands sunk deep into the elder Flashes' chest cavity.

"Bart rushed out to defend Jay, but whoever this was easily tossed Bart around like a rag doll, sending him hurdling into the orchard."

"Is he ok?" Artemis worriedly asked.

"Broken arm and two fractured ribs. All things considered he's pretty lucky." Nightwing added.

"This speedster returned seconds later, finishing the job. Superheating Jay's body until he basically…de-materialized for lack of a better word. He attempted the same course of action with Beetle, but the armor went into self-preservation mode and somehow fended off the attack, and the next thing they knew the assailant was gone. Mr. Terrific is currently onsite as we speak searching for tissues and DNA samples of both Jay and whoever did this is."

Batman entered in a command, and the video brought the attacker into sharper focus. "There is a distinct vibrational shift, a blur if you will, that's preventing us from getting any kind of positive facial or voice identification"

"What more do you need? Barbara replied angrily. "It's freaking Zoom. This is the exact M.O. that happened to Barry!"

"The image to the right begs to differ," Wayne argued, pushing the third video off to the side, leaving the feed inside Eobard Thawne's cell front and center.

"This is Thawne, twelve hours ago, sitting in a classified Cadmus Meta-Human holding facility two thousand miles away, at the exact time of Jay Garrick's death. Eyewitness accounts back this up. He's never left."

"There's must be a new speedster in play," Dick suggested. "With either a Zoom fixation…"

"Or a Flash's," the Atom concluded.

As the four heroes continued their debate, Green Arrow pulled Artemis to the side.

"You doing ok kid?"

Artemis chuckled. Ollie was the only one who'd ever called her that. From the first day he and Batman had walked into her den to give her a once in a lifetime offer. From the moment she stepped foot in the cave, he'd always been by her side, the security blanket she'd argued time and time again that she didn't want or need, but still was always grateful to have.

Oliver Queen was what a father figure was supposed to be, and without children of his own, she became the daughter he never had. It didn't hurt either that he knew a thing or two about being indebted to the Shadows as well.

She nodded, trying to mask her complete and utter insecurity. Even back in the day when she'd been welcomed here, this place and the heroes who resided here were intimidating to say the least. Now under the current circumstances it was ten times worse.

"I guess we're going to have to put your trip out to Star City on hold for a little while longer."

"Ollie I know I don't belong here. Trust me this wasn't my idea," she frowned in Bargirl's general direction, "but I just want to…help somehow. I've got to do something."

"I know kid, I know it's personal. We'll figure something out. Just stay close and try not to piss anyone off ok?"

She was about to ask if anyone knew of Wally's current whereabouts, when she turned and looked at her old mentor curiously. "You're the second person to say that to me."

Moments later she knew why.

"What is she doing here!?" a voice echoed from across the Watchtower, hushing the satellite into nervous silence.

"Aw shit," Arrow mumbled.

Artemis cringed when she heard that voice; she being the only she the speaker could possibly be referring to. The teenager that had left her friends and teammates behind all those years ago didn't exist anymore, and a skilled and deadly assassin had now taken her place, more accustomed to being the hunter, than the huntee, but those skills paled in comparison to the hero bellowing from across the satellite; this person being on the top of a very short list of people you do not want to cross, let alone be pursued by. Artemis swallowed hard as the figure approached. This was not going to be good.

The sea of grey quickly parted as Princess Diana of Themyscira stormed across the main hall, the satellite seemingly quaking with each powerful step, stopping less than a foot away from the two archers.

"Diana, the kid just wants to…"

"I'm not talking to you Oliver, I'm talking to her. How dare you step foot in the place after what you've done," Wonder Woman practically snarled. "What gives you the right to think you're even remotely welcome here? By the Gods I should throw you out the airlock right now!"

Artemis swallowed hard again, but stood her ground. If the Amazonian was trying to intimidate her, then mission freaking accomplished.

Truth be told, the two had never been particularly close. Family ties run deep, and all the protégés and their mentors had a long history together fighting side by side; all but her.

How much of that resentment stemmed from the Amazonian's conflicts with both Sportsmaster and Huntress, Artemis didn't know for sure, but the lies and deceit she'd spun during her early days with the team didn't help the matter.

Even after the Team had defeated and saved the mighty Justice League, when heartfelt thanks and congratulations were handed out to the young heroes, Artemis could still feel the sting of judgement coming from the princess.

And then there was Wally.

Wonder Woman had always been surprisingly protective and nurturing of the protégés; standing up and supportive of their successes, stern but caring in the light of their failures, but none more than with the young speedster.

Maybe it was his enthusiastic innocence, maybe because his abilities reminded her so much of the god Hermes, or maybe because every time he fell flat on his face(which he did quite often), he got up on his own and kept moving forward. Whatever the case, Kid Flash held a special place in Diana's heart, and from the beginning Artemis could see it in the heroine's eyes that she did not approve of their relationship.

Loyalty and honesty were paramount among heroes and warriors, and because of those same family ties, the princess had always doubted the archer's. In the end Artemis had proven her right.

The Amazonian tuned to the gathered masses. "How did she get onboard? Who is responsible?"

From out of the shadows, Batman stepped forward. "I am."

It was moments like these when Wonder Woman regretted having a civilian crew on board, but the facility was now too large to function without them, and this was not the time nor place to air the League's dirty laundry.

"A word," she fumed, demanding as much requesting for Batman to follow her into the adjacent conference room. The Dark Knight turned and nodded for the rest of them to join. As they made their way to the private conference room, Barbara walked up beside the archer.

"What I'd say about not pissing anyone off?" she smirked.

Artemis threw her hands up in exasperation, eyes wide, mouth agape.

The princess maintained her composure all the way inside, until the automatic doors slid shut firmly behind then, then that composure completely eroded away.

"Bruce are you insane?" We're at a priority One alert. One of our own is dead, and you're bringing a wanted criminal on board during a time like this? Who's next? Ra's himself?"

Batman ignored the jibe. "Diana, I believe Artemis will be an invaluable asset to the next stage of my investigation."

"Really?" the warrior said sarcastically.

"Diana, it's my call, I need you to honor that"

There weren't many mortals she respected as much as she did Bruce Wayne, but she was also well aware of the detective's propensity to be the king of lost causes.

"I doubt if Hal or Clark would feel the same way about bringing a known assassin onto our base," the princess grumbled.

"Now wait a minute..." Green Arrow protested.

"Oliver I'd hold your tongue if I were you." she glared before turning to the young archer. "They have more faith in you then you deserve. Betray them again and you will face my fury."

Artemis remained silent as the warrior princess exited the room, exhaling deeply as soon as the door shut.

"Thanks a lot Barbara," she growled as the young red head sighed just as loudly.

Bruce turned to his future daughter in law, eyes narrowed behind the cowl. "A little warning would be appreciated next time," he said with a slight scowl.

Barbara nodded; eyes still wide from the uproar.

Artemis raised her hand; much like a child would in elementary school, careful not to repeat the last few minutes and anger anyone. "If I could change the subject for a second, does anyone know where Wally is?"

"Wondergirl is in route right now. As soon as she arrives, she'll get he and his family to safety. Once they're settled in, then we'll inform him about Jay."

"He's not going to like that." Dick added

"It can't be helped. In the meantime we'll need to prepare the safe house. Oliver I'd like you take lead on this. Until further notice, the families' will need twenty four hour protection around the clock. I'm thinking three League members at a time taking eight hour shifts. We'll use auxiliary members to relieve them."

"On it," Arrow answered, heading towards the door before stopping in front of the archer, gently placing his thumb under her jaw, guiding her eyes to his. "Chin up kid, it's going to be ok."

"Thanks Ollie," she whispered, watching him until the doors slid shut behind him.

"Barbara I'll need you to assist in retrieving the West's, Garrick's and Allen's. This needs to be handled delicately. Their situation is stressful enough as it is, but placing them into protective custody after what has just happened is going to reopen old wounds. I think you'd be best suited in working with them.

"Ok. I'm going to start making some calls," she replied, kissing her finance's cheek before she turned to the archer and shrugged. "Stay out of trouble ok?" the red head stated with a crooked grin.

"Barbara I swear to God…" Artemis fumed as the detective left the room.

"What about me?" Dick asked

"Thawne needs to be thoroughly interrogated to determine what he knows...if anything. It could be dead end, but it still needs to be investigated. The two of us will….'

"Three," Bart Allen interjected, limping into the conference room and grimacing as he sat down next to the archer."

"Bart, you can barely stand," Nightwing argued

"Dick, I need to see him with my own eyes. I don't care what your monitors say. If it's him, I'll know it."

"Flash…." Batman protested.

In a seriousness rarely seen from the young speedster, he looked directly into the Dark Knight's eyes. "Batman I have to do this. This is my family. I've already lost one grandfather and now a man who's been like one too? If this had been Dick, or Tim, or Barbara, you'd want to be there, you'd have to."

Bruce remained silent, thinking back to the one hero Bart hadn't' mentioned by name. It would have taken an act of God to keep him from being involved in every facet of the investigation into of Jason' Todd's death. He couldn't deny Bart the same courtesy.

Nightwing nodded, turning to archer seated alone at the conference table. He turned back to his mentor and chuckled. "It's not like we can leave her here," he shrugged.

xxx

"Dad!" the young red head shrieked. "Hurry! I can't hold on much longer!"

Wally and his son rushed over to find Iris struggling mightily against the monster, being drug foot by foot into the crystal blue abyss.

"It's huge!" she laughed, pulling the fishing rod as hard as she could, the line tight and taut, as the choppy waters splashed around it.

Jai stepped in front of his father, grabbing the rod and pulling and reeling, trying not to lose the fish. After a few tugs he looked over to his sister and frowned.

"It's not a fish Iris; you got it snagged on something."

"Did not!" she argued, looking at her father to save the day. "Tell him it was a fish daddy."

Jai reeled the rest of the line in as Wally grabbed the end, seeing not only the hook but the weights and bobber gone as well.

"Sorry pumpkin, but I think Jai's right," he chuckled.

Iris huffed, kicking the tackle box and storming off. "Fishing is stupid."

"It's because you stink at…." Jay began to taunt before catching his father's stern gaze. It wasn't worth getting grounded just to one-up his sister.

It was a beautiful day at Stockton Lake. The sun blazed across the water, ducking behind the clouds ever so often, all the while reflecting perfectly off the surface of the water like a mirror to the heavens.

Days like this were important to the speedster, getting back to the basics. No iPads, iPhones. No distractions and certainly no Justice League communicators. Ironically times like this he didn't miss his speed as much. Life moved way to fast as it was, and being out here alone with his kids, he was thankful for the slow, allowing him to capture a perfect moment in time, but still his heart weighed heavy.

There was someone out there, someone hunting speedsters. With the Justice League now involved, he knew the threat was real. It frustrated him that the very men and women he'd tried so hard to separate himself from, were now the ones he had to count on. It's not that he didn't respect or care about them, they were just a part of another life; one he didn't want his kids anywhere near.

But at the same time, he knew it wasn't fair to Bart to carry the burden alone, to have to play two heroes at once to keep the legacy of the Flash alive, but at least now he'd have support and back up in the hunt for this man. Wally knew he'd be no help, and the only thing worse that not having his speed, was the feeling of being worthless.

They were all busy seeing who could skip rocks the farthest across the water when Iris asked a question that caught him completely off guard.

"Dad are you going to ask Artemis on another date?"

Wally looked down quizzically at his daughter. "Is that what you think that was? A date? Iris she's just a friend. All she did was come over for dinner and a movie."

"Sounds like a date to me." Jai added, one of the few times siding with his sister.

"Guys relax. It wasn't a date," Wally eyes narrowed at the two disbelieving sets staring back to him.

For the second time in as many minutes, his daughter figuratively knocked the wind out of him.

"Do you want to?" Go on a date with her I mean."

God she was so perceptive, all the traits of a good scientist.

"I don't know," he replied hesitantly. "How would you all feel if I did?"

"She seems nice," the young red head smiled, "I think it would be ok."

"She's cool," Jai added. "She has an annoying sister she can't stand too."

Wally rolled his eyes as Iris stuck out her tongue at her sibling.

"You smile a lot when she's around. We like it when you smile."

Her brother nodded in agreement.

"I don't know," Wally shrugged, before a wry smiled stretched across his face, "but when I do you'll be the first persons I tell." lurching forward, grabbing them into bear hugs, tickling until they squealed.

He looked down at his watch. "Time to go kiddos. We've got to meet grandma and grandpa for dinner at 6:00."

Jai took off towards the shore line, picking up and throwing as many rocks as he could into the lake on the way the jeep while Iris took her dad's hand, watching her brother zoom around like an idiot.

Wally looked down at matching green eyes and freckles. "You know you and your brother are the most important things in my life right? Nothing's ever going to change that. You're my guys, were a family, and nothing's more important than family."

"But….If I do decide to ask her out, you have to promise me that you'll tell me if it makes you or your brother uncomfortable. Besides, there no telling if she'd actually say yes anyway."

Iris leaned her head against her father, squeezing his hand tightly. "She'd say yes."

"Why do you say that?" Wally laughed.

"Cause I'm a girl, we know these things," she grinned.

A few minutes later, the three finally reached the dusty gravel parking lot where the jeep was parked. The kids had just strapped themselves in as Wally finished loading the back when suddenly his ears began to ring, and the world around him went white.

A wave of pain and nausea struck, driving the unsuspecting speedster to the ground. His skin was hot, prickly. He was sweating. The lake and everything around him started spinning out of control. Wally struggled to get to his knees as both kids burst form the jeep.

"Daddy!" Iris screamed, running to his side, followed by Jai, grabbing his father's waist, fruitlessly trying to pull him up.

"Dad are you ok?" Jai asked urgently as his father tried to breathe through the pain. Minutes later, the spinning and nausea began to subside, his tender skin beginning to cool.

"Yeah," he nodded to his kid's relief; finally steady enough to get to his feet. He wiped his damp brow, leaning against the Wrangler for support, swallowing hard through his tight throat.

"What happened Daddy?" his daughter asked nervously, her hands still trembling.

"I don't know pumpkin; maybe it was …..too much sun. Don't worry. I'm fine, really," he lied. "Let's get going. Grandma and Grandpa are waiting."

Both kids nodded hesitantly, jumping in the back and pulling on their seatbelts. Wally climbed into the front seat, closing his eyes for a moment. He'd had similar sensations before, but nothing like this. Since he'd lost his speed, the times he'd tried to run, tried to push himself too far, when he thought he could hear the lightning calling, he'd have these spells. Moments where his body warned him don't go too far, that that part of him was gone, but yet he'd try anyway. It was his nature. But this one, this spell was unlike anything he'd ever felt. And he wasn't pushing or exerting himself. He was basically standing still. This wasn't his body talking to him, this was something else. Something had happened and Wally knew it wasn't good.

Author's Note – I know a lot of you have probably given up on this story, but I have been working steadily on this and nothing else for the past few weeks. Life just got in the way. I have one to two more chapters ready to post later this week. Once again sorry this has taken so long, but the end is near. Hope you enjoy.