Chapter Sixteen
A half hour later, Wally pulled into the crowded parking lot of the Four Seasons hotel. The kids had already packed their sleeping bags and swimsuits for the night before they'd left for the lake. They always looked forward to sleepovers with their grandparents, and as much as they loved Grandma's old house, her new one, as temporary as it might be, had a pool, and nothing was cooler than a pool.
Wally had already decided to pass on dinner, playing it off as long day with papers left to grade as opposed to worrying his parents that something was wrong. The longer he stayed the better chance his mom would begin to notice something was off; she could read him like a book. By the time they'd crossed the bridge into Central City, his head had already stopped aching and the feeling of impending doom had begun to pass. As far as the kids knew, all was right with world, and Wally had actually started to believe it until he saw Cassie Sandsmark pacing up and down the lobby. That's when he knew something had happened.
As he walked into the lobby, Wally waived off the anxious Amazon for a moment, shuffling his kids past her and into the elevator, pressing the button and sending them up to the penthouse Dick Grayson had so generously provided. When the elevator doors shut, he turned to Cassie.
"What's happened?" he asked, his heart full of dread.
"Jay," she swallowed hard, unable to look into his eyes. "He's… he's dead."
Wally's stumbled back, feeling like he'd been punched in the gut, his knees barely able to keep him upright. "Oh my God. When? How?" he asked desperately.
"About three hours ago, at his farm."
"Zoom?" he swallowed, his mind beginning to rage.
"We don't know yet."
"But Jay was under your protection right? League protection" he said angrily. "You didn't leave him alone out there did you?"
"Of course not," she defended. "Blue Beetle and Kid Flash were there with him."
"Is Bart…are they ok?" the speedster asked, his heart pounding through his chest.
"I don't know. Nobody's told me anything other than to find you and get your family to safety."
She pulled his com unit irritably from her belt. "You have to carry this Wally; I can't protect you if I can't find you."
I don't think it matters anymore, he thought to himself. You can't stop him.
"Batman has a team prepping a safe house in a secure location somewhere, but until it's ready, we're all on lockdown. Back-up is on its way, and Black Canary has gone to retrieve Iris All…."
As if on cue they turned to the loud rumble of Dinah's Suzuki AEM pulling into the parking lot, her blonde hair splayed in all directions as her passenger pulled of the heroine's helmet. From across the lot, green eyes met green eyes, and his aunt rushed into the lobby, grasping her nephew fiercely.
"It's him isn't it?"
"The League doesn't know yet. I've got to find Bart."
Canary joined them. "Wally, Bart's fine. He's on a mission with Batman at this moment trying to determine this assailant's identity, but until we get the all-clear to move, protecting your family is our number one priority. I'm going to need you all to go upstairs."
Wally nodded. "Dinah give us a minute ok?"
Canary respectfully nodded, taking Wondergirl and stepping away, leaving aunt and nephew to their privacy.
"Someone's needs to be with Joan."
"They will Iris, wherever they end up taking you all, I'm sure she's coming too."
"You all? You're coming too right?"
"Absolutely" he nodded eagerly, "I just need to go get something first."
"Wally you heard Dinah. I don't like this anymore than you do, but we need to stay…."
"It's important Iris!" the speedster interrupted. "You just have to trust me. Until I get back I need you to help Mom and Dad with the kids. They have no idea what's going on or what's about to happen, but they're not stupid, it won't take them long to realize who these strangers are that are hanging around them. They're gonna be scared and they're gonna have a lot of questions. They'll need their favorite aunt to let them know it's all going to be ok."
"What am I supposed about tell them if they ask who Dinah or Ollie are?"
"You tell them the same thing you told me back in the day what you introduced me to the Flash; That you're the number one reporter in Central City, and you literally know everybody," he said with a wry smile.
"Wally…" she protested.
"I'll be back in less than an hour. I'll be careful I promise, but I need you to do this for me Iris…please."
The older redhead paused, sighing as she nodded her head. Wally took out his phone to make a call as Iris walked to Dinah. "Let's head up."
"One minute," the speedster answered, directing his phone around the lobby, searching for a better cell signal. "Just let me finish this call."
Canary turned to Wondergirl. "Stay with him, don't let him out of your sight."
"Understood." the junior hero replied.
"Damnit," Wally cursed to himself, hoping his bodyguard would have joined them and followed suite. He needed another plan quick.
His mind ran to his children. How do you tell two eight year olds their lives are in danger? That the boogeyman is real and he's coming. How in a matter of minutes do you strip away their innocence, and throw them into a world they can't possibly understand. How do explain evil?
Even though his body might not follow suit, his mind still moved at light speed. He knew exactly what he had to do even before Cassie's last words to Canary had escaped her lips.
Suddenly the speedster stumbled back slightly, finding a chair for support and easing himself down.
"Wally! Are you ok?" Cassie asked, rushing to his side.
The red head took a deep breath, rubbing his eyes. "I'm fine Cassie, just…just a little dizzy. I need my meds. Would you do me a huge favor and go up to the room and get them, I really don't want my kids to see you carrying me in from the elevator if you don't mind, I have image to protect," he said with a wry smile.
"My mom knows exactly where they are. I'll stay right here, scouts honor," he chuckled weakly.
Cassie nodded hesitantly, weighing Canary's orders versus common sense. The Flash was a senior member of the League too after all. "Sure…anything. Just stay off your feet and I'll be right back."
Growing up Wally West had been a lot of things; president of the math club, the science club, the founder of the Blue Valley Flash fan club, sidekick, and junior hero, but the one thing he'd never been was a scout. As soon as the elevator door shut, he was already in the parking lot, jeep tires screeching as he sped towards the interstate.
Once the elevator reached the top floor, Cassie rushed out, finding the penthouse door open as Iris explained the situation to the Wests. She could see the kids in the other room watching TV, and with them safely out of earshot, Wondergirl respectfully broke into their conversation.
"I'm really sorry for interrupting, but Wally's feeling a little…under the weather. He asked for his meds."
Mary West stared quizzically at the young blonde's request. "Meds? What meds?"
"Oh gods" she mumbled to herself in disbelief realizing she'd been played. Her head dropped in defeat as Canary's eyes shot daggers through her. For someone training to be an Amazon warrior, she still had a lot to learn about strategy.
"Diana's so going to kill me," she cringed.
xxx
Batman and Nightwing stood at the monitor, coordinating with other League members on a plan of action as Bart came out from the uniform's vault, his broken arm wrapped in a sling. Artemis doubted it would stay that way when they finally faced Eobard Thawne. If he was anything like his older cousin, the arm was already healing as they spoke.
The speedster walked up next to the archer, staring out at the commotion, unsure if this was common place or utter confusion. Bart had never really spent much time aboard the satellite. The Flash's self-imposed exile for the League had kept him away when wearing the scarlet, but still he, Tim, and Jamie were known to sneak aboard from time to time, just for kicks.
"If you want to change into something, I'd bet your old uniform is somewhere up here on file."
Artemis shook her head. "That girl's long gone," she said with a tinge of bitterness, her eyes locked onto the Amazon princess in the distance, watching Wonder Woman as she made her way around the Monitor Womb.
Wonder Woman was one of the original seven, a hero born and bred, but the archer wondered how high and mighty she'd be if she'd been raised by the devil instead of a Queen. If she'd spent her youth being trained and tortured, told what a failure she was time and time again instead of being revered; if she'd been taught to be a tool of evil instead a symbol of hope. Artemis had long accepted her past, but she resented being judged by someone who'd never walked a day in her shoes. The archer had made her mistakes, she'd paid the price, and now she'd earned a chance at redemption. Immortal princess be dammed.
It was always rumored that the Amazons were originally created to protect "man's world," but ultimately abandoned it instead. It seemed she and Diana of Themyscira were both trying to make up for their families past mistakes. How did that make Wonder Woman any different? Any better?
The archer quickly realized that her resentment was overshadowing the young hero next to her and all he was going through, all he had lost.
Looking at his heartbroken eyes, it pulled at the heartstrings Artemis wasn't sure she still owned. It was scary how much he looked like Wally in the yellow and red.
"I'm sorry Bart. I appreciate the thought. I'm just ready to get out of here."
"Me too." he replied stoically
From across the room, Dick caught her eye, gesturing for them to head towards the main transport area. As they walked towards the far end of the satellite, Green Arrow caught up and joined them mid stride.
"You two be careful ok? This is probably a dead end, but maybe Thawne does know something. Just remember, if for any reason things start to go south, get out of there asap. Batman and Nightwing can hold their own until the League arrives.
They both nodded. At face value it might appear that Green Arrow doubted their worth on a mission like this, but Artemis knew what Ollie meant. Bart was hurt, and she…she was just an assassin, albeit a really talented and dangerous one, but those skills paled in comparison to someone like Zoom, someone fast and deadly enough to sneak up on a speedster.
"But just in case…." Oliver smiled, handing over his bow and quiver to his former protégé. "I think you still remember how to use these, right?"
Artemis matched his smile warmly. "I think I can figure it out."
They reached the platform, joining Batman and Nightwing, as Green Arrow stepped to the console, activating the Zeta Tube Transit System.
"Good hunting!" he yelled over the whirling engines as they slowly came to life. The transport tube soon filled with blinding alien radiation, opening a portal to their earthly destination.
Recognized Batman 02, Nightwing B01, Kid Flash B23, Artemis BO7
And for the second time in less than a day, the archer watched as her molecules deconstructed and faded into the ether.
xxx
It was a rough jostling ride into Keystone. The speedster's backpack and other belongings bounced across the jeep floorboards as he took sharp turn after sharp turn before finally pulling into his old neighborhood, the vehicle jerking as his tire hit the curb.
Moments later he pulled up to his parent's house, or what was left of it. The remaining stricture had been leveled, police tape and orange and white cones surrounding the sunken gap that was once his basement, but he didn't have time for nostalgia, he was on the hunt.
Wally jumped out of the jeep and took off running into the back yard, searching out the lone Red Oak tree on the property. Looking up, it was hard not to notice the missing mass of scarlet leaves, the scorched and blackened limbs. Wally knew it would eventually recover, so would the house, but it wasn't the tree that he came back for, it was what rested underneath it.
At the base sat several heavy limestone rocks encircling the base tree. At first glance it would appear a poor man's attempt at landscaping, or perhaps even the gravesite of a beloved pet, but what lay hidden underneath was much more important.
Wally lifted the massive stones from atop each other, removing three layers of rocks until he found it; his time capsule, his message in a bottle, possibly his salvation.
Years ago, a teenage science prodigy had nearly blown up his family's home in an experiment that just about killed him, an experiment to create the impossible. Like any good scientist, he kept detailed notes and logs leading up to that fateful night. Chemical compounds, atmospheric conditions, hyper-physics, time of day; notes written by a wunderkind in his own messy version of shorthand. These notes were way too dangerous to ever be placed on a disc or hard drive. Maybe it was for posterity or fear of discovery, or possibly to leave a map to follow in the event he ever needed to do it again. To recreate the impossible
There in a hermitically sealed glass bottle rested the answer, a desperate Hail Mary, more likely to fail than succeed, but he had to do something, to protect his family, his friends and himself. He pulled out the crumpled paper, holding them up to the sun. They weren't in mint condition, but they would do. He quickly pulled out his cell phone from his back pocket, searching through his contacts until he found her number.
Moments later a voice answered on the other end of the line.
Thank you for calling Mercury Labs, who may I direct your call?
xxx
The quartet materialized within the sealed transport chamber, locked behind a three foot thick, reinforced titanium steel door. Artemis immediately knew wherever they were; they took their security very seriously here. Once their identities had been confirmed, the one ton vault door creeped open to find a middle-aged grey haired man waiting to greet his guests.
It was a complete juxtaposition from where they'd left. Where the Watchtower was consistently in a state of barely controlled chaos, this facility was quiet, almost tranquil. A place completely secret and off the books, housing a classified group of the most powerful and deadly villains the world had ever known. Beings so dangerous that they could never be allowed tout to walk the Earth again. Less than seven Leaguers even knew of its existence, and only three knew its exact location.
"Batman," the grizzled ex-government spook greeted the Dark Knight in his trademark low gruff voice.
"Faraday," Batman replied in kind, extending his hand to the former Suicide Squad director.
"It's good to see you, but like I said in my message, I think it's going to be a wasted trip."
"Possibly," the detective replied, always a man of few words. King Faraday eyed Batman's companions briefly, aware of their identities, all except for one, but never bothered acknowledging any of them. They weren't supposed to be here in the first place. This was a secured facility, visitors of any kind were strictly prohibited, those were the rules dictated by the clandestine donor who funded it, but if the Dark Knight was willing to break his own rules and bring a team along, it had to be important.
The group made their way to the single elevator in the lobby, entering it as Faraday swiped his badge and typed in his key code. Suddenly the elevator began to drop, speeding down hundreds of feet into the main holding floors.
Moments later Batman and Faraday stepped out into the large access tunnel. It was at least twenty five feet tall, and just as wide; spacious enough to allow the transport of temporary holding cells on unmarked flatbeds throughout the complex and into their permanent and final destinations. How something like this was ever constructed so far underground was unfathomable.
Artemis and Nightwing followed next, leaving Bart the last to leave the car, his face unreadable. Artemis wasn't sure if it was fear, focus, or something else, but just to be safe she stepped back to the young speedster. Revenge can make you do foolish things. She literally wrote the book on that chapter.
Faraday stepped ahead, leaving the quartet behind for a moment to inform the guard at master control to prepare to open the outer doors to Cellblock Two.
"There are seven floors to this facility," Batman spoke, his eyes never leaving Faraday as he addressed his team. "Five for prisoner holding, one administrative, and, and one for transportation. There are never more than seven meta-humans detainees housed here at any given time with a guard to prisoner ratio of ten to one."
"Who do they have in here?" Bart asked
"It's classified. All of this is classified, so you will not discuss this with anyone; friends or teammates. Is that clear?"
They all nodded as Faraday came back to join them. "They're ready. Three rules; don't cross the red line, don't antagonize the prisoner, and don't get in the way if we have to discipline him. I don't give a shit if you're superheroes or Jesus Christ himself. If you break any of my rules, you'll end up tazed and in a matching cell. Understood?"
Artemis smirked at his bullshit bravado, but just to be safe she'd make sure she and the speedster stayed far behind. This man and this place were no joke. This wasn't Akrham, this wasn't Supermax, this was a facility where they kept the worst of the worst. Powerhouses that had gone toe to toe with the likes of Superman. The prisoners housed here probably had had no preliminary hearings, no trials, mist likely had never even spent a minute in a courtroom. They were too dangerous for that, and in cases like this, the League didn't much worry about anyone's 6th amendment rights.
She was an observer, nothing more, and if she was being honest, a nervous one at that. As dangerous as the life she'd left behind had been, the Shadows paled in comparison to the evils that dwelled her. These weren't drug lords, mafia kingpins, or the endless list of people who'd wronged the secret society. They were psychopaths and mass murderers, far too dangerous to be left on the streets, and now she was trapped in here with them.
Hero or assassin, she knew she was way out of her depth. If Batman wanted her help, he'd ask, but other than that, shut-up and stay out of the way was the plan. That was the price of admission.
The steel vault door hissed as the turbines slowly came to life opening the heavy reinforced hatch. Inside, soft classical music played, echoing peacefully throughout the room. As they walked in, they found themselves standing on a large raised metal platform. One guard sat to the left behind a control panel, the other to the right armed with a state of the art stun rifle.
Directly ahead, three steps down, fifteen feet behind a red painted line stood the transparent aluminum cell. Spacious but sparse, covered on all sides with small circular air holes that could be closed with a push of a button when quantities of nitrous needed to be pumped in through the ventilation system in order to keep the prisoner docile and calm. To the side of cell was a narrow opening, used to insert and retrieve meal trays, deposit books, or place restraints on for the detainees for their one hour exercise period.
And inside that cell lay Eobard Thawne; speedster, mass murderer, propped up on his bunk, book resting on his chest reading.
"As I said in my communique," Faraday reiterated, "Thawne never leaves his cell, not even for his one hour recreation period. Prisoners are never allowed to interact with each other. He never requests anything other than a few new books every now and then, and never gives any of the guards or staff the slightest bit of trouble. I don't like to use the words model prisoner, not after what some of these sick fucks have done, but Thawne is as close as they come."
"Zoom," a quiet voice corrected from inside his cell.
"Sorry Professor," Faraday replied with an eye role. "I've got months of surveillance footage you can go through, but the bottom line is, whoever you're looking for, this aint your guy. You've got fifteen minutes."
"Stay here," the Dark Knight ordered to his team as he approached the cell, stopping less than an inch away from the broken red line.
"Thawne," Batman began, "I have a few questions I'd like you to answer if you could."
The speedster and the archer eyed each of in mild disbelief, this is not how the Batman they knew interrogated prisoners, but Nightwing understood the approach. Thawne was not your ordinary criminal. He was psychotic and calculating. Every single word meant something to him. He needed to be recognized and respected. Aggression and threats would have little effect on him. In a nutshell, he needed to be needed. Dick was fairly sure this would be Bruce's play, anything just short of actually saying please.
The villainous speedster made no attempt at a reply, instead just flipping the page of the T.H. White novel in his possession; The Once and Future King.
Batman collected himself and began again. "Professor Zoom…."
The speedster cut him off mid-sentence. "Bartholomew, are you not even going to come forward to say hello?"
Bart tensed as he stepped towards the cell. "Just answer the damn questions." he demanded.
The older speedster placed his book down gently on the bedside table, changing positions and slowly sitting upright, his hands folded around his waist
"Don't be vulgar Bartholomew, it's beneath you. Still, I'm touched to see a fellow speedster so I'm willing to overlook it," he smiled graciously.
"Thanks professor," Bart replied sarcastically.
Zoom rose to his feet, wearing an unmarked yellow jump suit, an inhibitor collar around his neck and two gravity bracelets on his ankles, ready to be activated in a moment's notice as a failsafe.
Zoom finally turned from Bart to his inquisitor, very unimpressed with the specter in black on the other side of the glass. Most men would cower at the idea of being interrogated by the vigilante, but Thawne wasn't most men. Batman was prepared for that.
"Bartholomew, where are your manners. You haven't introduced me to your friends. The young man looks very familiar; I believe we may have met many years ago correct?"
Dick remained stoic behind the mask as Zoom nodded in recognition.
"Yes, yes now I remember. You were the one who spared me a most gruesome death at the hands of dear Wallace, however the lovely lady, I don't believe we've met?"
The archer snarled soundlessly at the man in yellow, wishing for her dagger instead of the arrows. One of the first lessons taught by her former taskmasters was how to make a person talk. It was one of the few skills she was now grateful for from the Shadows. It would take very little effort to step inside that cell and show the professor what a good student she'd become.
When Zoom received no response from either Artemis or Nightwing, he sighed, turning to Batman. "I believe you had questions."
Batman began his interrogation, choosing his words carefully as Nightwing and Artemis studied Thawne's responses, his infections, his body language. The way his eyes shifted when he answered, any pause or delay in his answers, any kind of hand-to-face activity.
Questions and answers went back and forth, but Bart payed no attention, his mind distracted, repeating the same words over and over in his head.
Something's not right
He wished Wally was here. He'd be able to figure it out. Pinpoint what was off what he was missing. Be a second set of eyes.
Eyes
That's when it stuck him, the odd feeling he wrote off as nerves when he first looked at the villain. Trying not to be conspicuous, Bart slowly reached up to his forehead, pulling down his goggles, activating the light/radiation wavelength and thermal imaging detectors. What he discovered took all his strength and effort not to gasp, not to give it away, but that millisecond of hesitation was not lost on the prisoner.
Thawne smiled, halting the line questioning, looking directly at the young speedster. "Clever boy," he grinned. And with those words, all hell broke loose.
Thawne started to blur, his body vibrating faster and faster, beginning to flicker. His body dissolved into photons, the inhibitor collar and boots falling to the ground with a metallic thud.
Faraday ordered everyone back from the cell, two words escaping his lips when he noticed a glowing yellow glove sticking out of the center of his chest.
Behind him Professor Zoom pulled his hand free, the dead bloodied body of Faraday and the two guards slumping to the cold steel floor. He stood arrogantly over the dead men, his face unmasked, a statement that he wanted there to be no confusion as to who was responsible for these deaths, and soon many others.
A contrail of red lightning began to encircle the room, jagged blinding lines of raw energy spinning in circles, finally forming into three distinct bolts racing out towards the three non-meta heroes.
Before they could impact, a familiar yellow bolt shot thorough the enclosure sending the three heroes slamming against the side of the cell to safety. Dazed, the Dark Knight reached to his waist, unlocking a Batarang from his belt as Nightwing did the same, but before Batman's fingers could activate the release mechanism, his vision began to blur, his skin burning. Waves of nausea formed in his gut and he felt himself losing consciousness before suddenly subsiding.
Across the room, red and yellow streaks of lightning collided and repelled off the walls, blinding contrails sparking like fireworks on the fourth of July, but there was nothing the two detectives or the archer could do but watch as they found themselves trapped inside of the transparent aluminum cell, vibrated through the construct and now prisoners courtesy of Zoom.
The light show ended suddenly, as the elder speedster held the younger one by the neck, pinned against the shorted out control panel.
"Impressed, Bartholomew? You should be. I call it a speed mirage. The Force just keeps bestowing such wonderful gifts. And with each life I take, my connection gets stronger and stronger."
The arrogant villain looked back at the confused heroes, focusing directly to the elder detective.
"Come now Batman, did you really think a scattering of chemicals and a bolt of lightning was enough to allow us to travel between the seconds?"
He looked at the struggling teenager in his grip. "You never told them?" turning back to his captives. "He never told you?" he repeated in disbelief.
"Told us what?" the archer demanded though the air holes.
"The source of our power. The electrochemical manifestations we all went through just opened the door; the Speed Force is what gives us the lightning. That's what we call it anyway. A few moments from now I'll have his share and be on my way."
Zoom looked up at the struggling speedster with pity. "It's incredibly fortuitous that you came to me, almost destiny I suppose. You were next on my list, but you have been for quite some time. I have to admit I'm impressed with your elusiveness, first at your apartment and then at that old fool's house."
"Don't say his name," Bart rasped, struggling and kicking, only to be spun across the room, pinned against the very cell that housed his tormentor, his head slammed repeatedly at the blink of eye against the surface, blood flowing freely from his eyes and mouth.
"You son of bitch." Dick cursed, slamming his gloved fist on the cell wall.
Thawne cocked his head, mocking the young detective. "What is it about the youth of this century and vulgarity? You truly are savages."
"Fuck you!" Artemis hissed at the smiling speedster as he just rolled his eyes in confirmation.
"I'd love to continue this banter, but even for someone like me, time is a factor. Just know this, the only reason any of you are still breathing is because I let you. I want there to be a record, a witness of what I do today."
He spun the broken speedster around, slamming the back of his head against the cell one last time for good measure. "Say hello to your grandfather for me. Once I figure out where dear Wallace hid his speed, he'll be joining you all soon enough. Then it will all be mine and I can finally go home. The line will be broken. No more speedsters, no one but me."
Kid Flash's jaw tightened, showing as brave a face as he could muster as Zoom's hands began to blur, his fingertips barley phasing through the surface of the young speedster's breast bone. Bart screamed out in agony as Thawne turned towards the trapped heroes. "Enjoy your stay; it might be the only safe refuge in this entire godforsaken prison, once I release my fellow inmates and all. For all its failings, it is an impressive cell, just not for the likes of me."
He looked to the Dark Knight to see him smiling through the glass at him. Every logical molecule in his body warned him to ignore it. He'd won the day, seconds away from killing another speedster, and had outmaneuvered and outsmarted the world's greatest detective in the process, but his ego just couldn't ignore the chance to have the final word.
"Please, grace me with what's so amusing, Share your final warning, your unfulfillable promise to stop me.
The Dark Knight mouthed something towards him, nodding in satisfaction afterword, but his muffled words struggled to escape the glass. Zoom chuckled at his pathetic attempt to delay the inevitable, but his curiosity got the better of him, placing himself now within earshot.
"You were saying?" Zoom sneered
Batman let slip two words. "Listen… carefully"
At that signal, Nightwing dropped two small spherical devices out the air holes, speeding towards the floor, ready to detonate on impact, but before they could hit the ground, Zoom had them in hand, literally plucking them out of the air at the blink of eye. Before either man could react, Thawne had already examined them for incendiary devices, shaking his head at the pathetic attempt.
Zoom smiled. "Duds I believe the term is," he mocked just as Nightwing reached to his belt, arming the emitters. A second later to sonic grenades activated, sending Zoom and Bart seizing to the floor.
The shriek was deafening as blood flowed from Thawne's unprotected ears. He sped unsteadily to his feet. Rushing towards the cell, his hands beginning to vibrate through the dense molecular structure of the construct, as a blurred glove reached through grabbing at the Dark Knight.
"I've changed my mind," he rasped, his blurred fingers trying to make contact with Batman's chest. "The surveillance cameras will be my testament, as will your deaths. There is no Batman where I come from; perhaps today is the reason why."
Klaxons and alarms began to flood the room, florescent lighting now replaced by spinning warning lights. More sonic grenades were dropped through the cell opening followed by flashbangs, but this time Zoom had no defense. Artemis ran to the small rectangular open, breaking off arrow tips and tossing explosives to the center of the room adding to the chaos.
Nightwing winced in pain, covering his ears while searching through the smoke for the young speedster, hoping Bart's goggles and earpieces were providing him so small ounce of protection from the blinding sonic onslaught. Even inside the sealed cell, the noise was deafening, and as a small section of smoke cleared, Dick could see both Zoom and Kid Flash writhing on the floor in agony. He pulled two sets of sonic dampener form his belt, placing one set in his ears and the other to the fallen archer struggling on the floor. He looked to Batman only to find him on the opposite side of the cell, searching fruitlessly for a locking mechanism of some kind to escape the cell.
Zoom pulled himself to his hands and knees, crawling towards the young speedster, determined to finish what he started. Thawne would take no satisfaction in the teen's death. Bart Allen was unique, one of only a few individuals who'd ever ridden the lightning, but for Zoom to achieve his goal, he had to take from Allen what rightfully belonged to him. The same however could not be said for the heroes behind the glass. They were going to pay for their audacity, perhaps not now, but soon. Once he'd killed the last speedster, he'd be unstoppable.
Zoom stood above his prey lying helpless on the floor preparing to strike, when suddenly his eyes went wide as a strange sensation washed over him.
Someone was trying to open a door, a door to another dimension. At that moment Zoom knew exactly who it was and what he was trying to do. Bart Allen would have to wait. Another speedster was out there searching for what he'd lost. Zoom had to be there when he found it.
With all the determination and strength he had left, Thawne crawled to the far side of the room, fighting through the pain. Willing his molecules to vibrate, his body began to blur once again, and moments later the bloody battered form of Eobard Thawne slowly slipped through the prison walls, heading towards the surface. After that he'd be free, free to finish the job he'd started in Keystone years before.
xxx
"Wally this is insane," Dr. McGee pleaded, as the middle aged physicists struggled to keep up with the speedster, rushing through the maze of hallways inside Mercury Labs.
Tina McGee had been a longtime friend and confidant of the Allen/West clan. Then working at STAR Labs, she'd been the first scientist Barry approached after acquiring his speed and becoming the Flash. Together they'd worked to solve the mystery of his metamorphosis; testing his limits, discovering new abilities, striving to help him get even faster.
It was only natural that after Wally's accident, she'd be the one he'd take him to. Together the three had become quite the team. Tina had even gone as far as to help Wally design his first uniform. She recognized something in the young speedster that she saw in herself; his love and thirst for science. Though never to be mistaken for kid friendly, she'd become something of a surrogate sister to him. There were no secrets between them, and she'd be lying if she didn't find it a bit exciting to be drawn into the world of secrets and superheroes.
It was her letter of recommendation that eventually got him into Stanford. An alumni herself, it didn't take much convincing for her former professors and instructors to see Wally's brilliance.
She been heartbroken when he quit his doctorate program, but his wife had just died, his uncle and mentor as well. He was suddenly a single father, needing a job and a career to provide for his burgeoning family. Tina had no doubt in her mind Wally was an amazing teacher, but he was meant to be something more; a scientist. One of her fondest hopes was that he'd return to that path one day.
In her new role as Director and CEO of Mercury Labs, she'd always planned to bring him onboard, but Wally couldn't commit the time and energy it would take to be his best; his family came first.
Life seemed to have other plans for him. It was his current one however that made her so worried. She reached forward, grabbing the red head by his shirt, spinning him around towards her.
"Stop and think about what you're asking. We've spent years trying to figure out what happened to your abilities with absolutely no answers. Now you just want to re-create the accident all over again. Do you realize how dangerous this is?"
"Tina it wasn't an accident, it was an experiment. I've got the notes right here to prove it."
Her expression hardened. "You and I both know there's a lot more to it than that." she replied. "You're upset, I get that, but Wally you're not thinking clearly. What you're taking about is suicide. Think about your kids."
"I am!" he screamed as his hands balled into fists, causing the doctor to jump. Instantly he regretted the outburst, taking a step back to regain his composure. Tina was asking all the right questions, questions that a good friend is supposed to ask. What upset the speedster was he didn't have the answers, any good ones at least.
He took a calming breath. "Tina I'm sorry. You're right, this is stupid and reckless, but I've got to do something. That monster out there isn't going to stop and until he kills every one of us, and he doesn't care who gets in the way."
McGee nodded, realizing he was talking his late wife as much as the danger to his kids.
"Wally, you said yourself, they don't even know for sure who's doing this…or why."
"It's him. I can't tell you how, but I just know, and he's not going to stop."
Wally turned away, unsure of who he was trying to convince more; the doctor or himself, but he was quickly running out of time and neve.
"Tina I'm out of options. I'm scared shitless, but hiding's not the answer, he'll find us. He always has. I have to do something to protect my family, and I can't do it like this," he gestured to himself. She understood what he meant by it.
Slow
"If I don't do this, I'm as good as dead already."
McGee knew by the look on his face that he was going to do this with or without her help, and he'd have a better chance of success if he had a partner. She'd always wondered what it would be like to be a sidekick. She was about to have her chance.
"Ok," she signed. "Let me get my staff out of here. We're going to need some privacy."
xxx
Bart Allen lay prone on the floor unconscious, barely breathing; with remainder of the away team trapped on the other side of the transparent aluminum cell, helpless to reach him.
Batman adjusted the sensor array on his glove, extending his fingertips through the small air holes in the cell in hopes of getting a periphery scan of Bart' Allen's vitals. It wouldn't be very accurate from this distance, but it was the best he could so.
"Heart rate 40 beats per minute, respiration 16 breaths per minute."
"That not good," Dick replied anxiously, looking over the Dark Knight's shoulder.
"It's only an estimate. Quite honestly I have no idea what would be considered normal vitals would be for a speedster."
"It's taking the facility rescue team way too long to get inside," Dick asserted.
"That's provided anyone up there is still alive to rescue us," the Dark Knight added
"So no luck finding an escape route out of here?"
Batman frowned, "the designers were extremely thorough."
Dick chuckled dourly, "Let me guess, it was you."
Bruce's silence was his answer.
Across the cell, Artemis's eyes couldn't leave the fallen speedster, the reflection he cast so much like the teen she once knew long ago. Finally she turned to the dynamic duo "Have you ever heard any of them say anything about a speed force before?"
Bruce scratched his chin. "It would make sense. Sixty percent of the human body is just fluid. Imagine rocketing five hundred mile per hour and suddenly stopping on a dime? A body would essentially explode. Also what about friction? There were times at Barry's top speed he could reach levels of almost 4.1 miles per second. It's possible their uniforms had some form of heat shielding built into then, but not probable."
"If this speed force is real, something like that would be very hard to prove scientifically. Maybe that why Wally chose physics as a major. You know he couldn't let a mystery like that remained unsolved," Dick chuckled to himself remembering back to once of Wally's constant mantras when confronted with things he couldn't define.
Everything can be explained by science.
Artemis knelt down to the wall closest to Bart, anxiously watching the rise and fall of his chest, trying to determine if his breaths were getting stronger…or weaker.
What did Thawne mean when he said finding where Wally had hidden his speed?" Artemis asked.
"I have no idea," Dick shrugged. "At face value, if you believe anything that maniac said, it would sound like Wally didn't actually lose his speed, but …but somehow voluntarily gave it up? That doesn't make any sense. Even if he didn't want to be a hero anymore, I don't think that ability is something you can just walk away from. It's second nature to him. It would be like someone with perfect eyesight trying not to see."
"No matter the cause or effect, Thawne is looking for it," Batman added.
"And Wally has no idea he's coming for him right now," Artemis replied with a quake of fear in her voice. "We've got to….."
Suddenly a powerful jolt shook the room, ceiling tiles and dust dropping from the above, followed by another, then another and then another.
Moments later the two-ton steel door was ripped from its hinges, a statuesque Amazon warrior standing on the other side tossing it down the now abandoned hallway, followed by the prison's security team rushing in, bypassing the damaged control console and activating the emergency release protocols.
Diana rushed to Bart's side, lifting his unconscious form effortlessly, standing back as the cell began to hum, tumblers clicking into place unlocking. Suddenly the four walls came falling forward, allowing its inmates freedom.
Wayne rushed to the fallen speedster, checking his vitals, finally able to get a accurate. Reading; He didn't like what he found. Green Arrow stepped through the rubble, joining them."
"Dead end huh?" Ollie stated.
"Are you all ok?" Diana questioned.
"Bart needs immediate medical attention, but the rest of us, other than a little hearing loss are fine. I'll explain later," Batman replied.
"It was Thawne?"
Batman nodded grimly. "And he's more powerful than we initially imagined. He's had some kind of speed construct impersonating him in this cell while he was been out, presumably on the hunt."
"How many more casualties?" Nightwing asked gravely.
"Seven on this floor. Five more on the admin level." Ollie replied dejected, "but no prisoners released, thank God."
"King Faraday was a good man, he didn't deserve this, none of them did," Diana replied sadly.
"How did the kid survive?" Ollie asked, looking over at the bloodied speedster.
"Thawne was probably worried about your estimated time of your arrival. "Maybe something like this takes time." Dick suggested.
"It doesn't matter right now!" the archer snapped. "He's going after Wally. Please tell me you have him someplace safe!"
Green Arrow's face grew grim. "He ditched his protection detail about an hour ago and took off towards Keystone."
"He did what!?" Artemis yelled.
"He deactivated his com unit, but we're triangulating his position through cell tower pings. The last contact we had, he was heading northeast towards the outskirts of Central City. I was just about to assign a team to track and retrieve him when we received the prison's automated emergency call."
"What's northeast of Central City that's could be so important?" Arrow asked
That's when the pieces all fell into place and Dark Night figured out the connection between Wally's last location and Thawne's cryptic words, there was only one place he'd be going and one thing to do when he got there.
"He's going to Mercury Labs. That's what Zoom meant by knocking on the door. If Wally truly believes he's lost his speed, that's where he would go to recreate the experiment."
"He's what?" Nightwing demanded
Batman had to act quickly, and code names were just getting in the way. Diana, get Bart to the Watchtower. He needs a neurological scan right away. In the meantime we need a Zeta Tube to Central City.
"It's going to take a few minutes to bypass the dashboard," Arrow replied. "Zoom trashed it pretty good on his way out."
"I'll get it working," Nightwing asserted, stepping out of the cell followed by the others, sprinting towards the elevator shaft.
Fifteen minutes later, on the top floor of the Cadmus facility, Ollie stood next the transport console, programming in their destination. "We have two tubes in Central City; the closest one to Mercury Labs is twenty miles out. I doubt I can get a police escort there in time to meet you, you might need to….commandeer…. some transportation."
"Understood."
The princess looked to the entire team standing on the transport pad, eyeing each one carefully one by one, ending with the archer. This time there was no angry glares sent in her direction, no frowns of judgement.
Artemis knew what the Amazon saw on her face, fear, but something unexpected happened when she stared back at the heroine. The archer saw a different emotion entirely. Hope
"Be careful, all of you, Transport in five...four...three…"
Two second later the room erupted in light and they were gone.
xxx
Wally rushed to the chemical catalogue, searching for specific compounds and their locations in different storage areas around the facility. So many of the chemicals he needed were incompatible with others for bulk storage, some needing to be stored at room temperature, others well below.
He fought the temptation to add anything else to the volatile mix. So many of the new compounds available didn't exist years ago, and they had such potential to be much more beneficial than the ones he'd had access to back then, but this wasn't the time hypothesize. To have any hope of success he needed to stick to the original formula. Looking back now, how he'd accomplished such a task at the age of fourteen actually seemed as much dumb luck as a controlled experiment.
Maybe Tina was right after all he shrugged.
After gathering what they needed, the duo carefully made their way to the Hazardous Chemicals Lab, the only place safe enough to mix such combustible chemicals into one compound.
After a few minutes of crossing fingers and prayers, the mixture was complete; no signs of combustibility registering on any of the lab sensors, but that was only temporary. Once it was supercharged, that's exactly what it was designed to do. The last step was to load the chemical into the safety container and transport it to the vault.
Wally and Tina carefully lifted the vat onto a dolly, easing the container slowly down the hallway, trying not to jostle or splash the compound any more than they had to.
"Turn here," McGee directed, swiveling to dolly slowly to enter into the lab
"What's this?"
"It's a steel reinforced testing lab were sharing with some engineers from Boeing. They have a new large scale lithium-ion battery they're testing for their Dreamliner fleet. Essentially they work with our people trying to make the thing explode. This room is the strongest most reinforced lab I have."
"This last time I tried this I nearly burned my parents' house down, this will do just fine. Now all we have to do is find the lightning."
"I have some ideas on that."