A/N: Suicide Warning.
STAR Labs, Central City, Earth One.
After the metal case containing Tracy's research was sent through the breach away from Earth One, Cisco once again vibed the future. However, based on the forlorn look on Cisco's face, the group of Julien, Barry, Joe, HR, and a wheelchaired Wally became concerned at what he saw. With a heavy heart, Cisco told Barry and the others that Iris would still die at Infantino Street, at the top of the stairs, and that Vibe would still battle Killer Frost in a forested area.
Seeing his last shot at keeping Iris slipping away from his grasp, Barry told Cisco to send him to the Speed Force. Barry stared at the confused faces of Cisco and the others before saying that he wanted to make a deal with the Speed Force.
Barry announced that he was going to ask the Speed Force itself to intervene by cutting Savitar from his powers. And in return, Barry would accept any punishment the Speed Force would mete out for that one favour. Joe and Wally immediately disagreed while Cisco looked at the floor in disbelieve over what Barry had just suggested. Cisco thought about the fact that Savitar still hadn't found out about Iris being sent to Kara's Earth, and that Savitar hadn't brought her back to Barry, Joe, and Wally so that he could gloat that he knew the future.
Cisco guessed that if Savitar could, he would have brought Iris back from National City, just to show how futile it was for Team Flash to send Iris away from her 'destiny'.
'The future could only happen if Iris was brought back here.' Cisco then looked up from the floor and shook his head before asking Barry if he would bring Iris back if the Speed Force agreed to cut off Savitar.
"Yes," Barry said.
"Then she'll die, Barry," Cisco said in a soft voice while looking away, "we saw the future's unchanged. Wherever I sent her, she's in a safe place and…."
"I can't stand around here, Cisco," Barry interrupted.
"You talk to the Speed Force," said Cisco, "but we can't bring her back, at least not now."
"What if Cisco's right? What if the Speed Force says that they can't help?" asked Wally as he looked at everyone. It was a question that Cisco was about to ask. He guessed from his vibe that, since Barry was there facing Savitar, then the Speed Force refused his plea. Barry and Joe were staring at Wally with anguish on their faces while Cisco trudged over to the console in the Cortex and then sat down. In the meantime, Julien leaned against the wall before saying that the only way to prevent that future was for Iris to stay wherever Cisco had sent her.
"Tracy too?" asked H.R as he thought about the possibility of any romantic pairing with the former graduate student.
"Possibly," Julien said as he looked at Cisco, who was looking back at him. Julien could see regret in Cisco's eyes before he spoke up, "and Cisco may have saved her life too. If we bring just Tracy back to this Earth, then there is the possibility that she could reveal where Iris was sent. And then Barry would know Iris' location, and because of that, Savitar would know. I say Allen needs to talk to the Speed Force and make a deal to cut off Savitar's speed. And depending on their answer, we take the next step."
"Agreed," H.R said turning to look at Barry. Joe placed a hand on the speedster's shoulder and nodded his head. Barry could see stars were already welling up in Joe's eyes before he left with Cisco.
And Barry did ask the Speed Force.
When Barry returned, he stumbled towards the railings in the breach room and panted. Barry tried to keep the lump forming in his throat down as Joe rushed to his side and lay a hand on his back. Barry, his lower lip trembling could only turn his head and stare at Joe with a sense of loss radiating from his very being. Barry looked away and spoke about what happened in the Speed Force with a cracked voice.
Barry told the remaining Team Flash that he tried to make a deal with the Speed Force. But the Speed Force was not going to interfere. Barry then relayed what the Speed Force told him; that everything that happened was his fault for messing about with the timeline. And only he himself could fix it… only he himself could get rid of Savitar, "they said that I'll have to sacrifice everything. They said I'm not ready yet. But I will be. At the last moment, just when it's too late to save Iris, I'll know what I have to do."
"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Wally while Cisco stood next to Barry as support.
"I don't know," Barry admitted, "but I asked Cisco to vibe the future again."
"And?" asked Joe with a quivering voice. He hoped that the future would somehow change, that he would not lose his little girl.
"Iris still dies," Barry said.
"So… so what do we do?" asked Wally.
Barry knew that what Cisco said earlier was correct. That if he brought Iris back to Earth-One, then she would definitely die. If Tracy was brought back to Earth-One, then she could very well reveal Iris' location out of sheer excitement at having travelled through worlds. She could say something or mention someone that Barry would recognise, and if Barry knew. So, would Savitar. Barry suspected that between now and the time of Iris' destined death, something could happen to force Iris back to Earth-One… or he would do something incredibly fooling like bringing her back to Earth-One himself.
Either way, Iris would die.
So Barry put his faith in Tracy, "we... we hope. I'm not bringing Iris back until he's imprisoned in the Speed Force with Tracy's device."
National City, Earth Thirty Eight.
Iris couldn't sleep.
She had seen Tracy and Winn working with several groups to build a new device from scratch. She knew that they hadn't slept yet given the urgency of the situation; a whole department working on a solution to save one life from a being who was faster than the Fastest Man Alive.
Iris tried to convince Tracy and Winn to get some sleep, but caffeine was running riot through their bodies. Coffee fuelled them throughout the night and morning, and Iris suspected, through the rest of the day until they had something by half past Eight at night. That was near the time of her death.
That was the time when Savitar was due to stab her through her back and then through her heart. There was no rhyme or reason as to why she had to die. In fact, Iris didn't want to know why she had to die.
It simply hurt too much.
As she stood on the balcony on the highest floor of the DEO building after a restless four hours of simply lying down on a cot in one of the quarters in the DEO, she looked out at the first rays of sunlight breaking through the clouds and reflecting against the glass covered buildings. The National City skyline shone as Iris closed her eyes and tried to come to terms with her possible fate. With the adrenaline having run out in her system, Iris started to feel exhausted. She needed to sleep, even though she couldn't. And it's not as if she didn't try.
How could anyone sleep when their death is supposedly destined to occur in a few hours? How could anyone hold on to their sanity hoping that they had done everything preventable to change the future; without knowing if they really did change the future? That was what went through Iris' mind. Jon had approached her last night, and they did talk while Tracy and Winn were working together, and Supergirl was out saving the city.
They just sat down and talked. Iris tried to keep her coming death out of her mind as she spoke about her life. She told Jon about her father, Wally, and Barry. She laughed about how she never knew how much she loved Barry until he sacrificed himself to get his powers back so that he could fight Zoom. Iris laughed as Jon sat next to her, and simply smiled, as she talked about meeting Wally for the first time… and her fear that Wally would be injured when he first exhibited his powers.
But her own death was in the back of her mind, and it kept coming to the fore even though she tried pushing it away.
"You'll be protected, Iris," Jon gently said as he lay a hand over hers. "We'll protect you. Supergirl's one of the strongest beings in this world. And no so-called speed god is going past her."
Iris turned her head and looked at the man. And hoped he was right.
Back in the present day, all Iris could do was wait. That's the only thing in her mind; the waiting. Nothing anyone did for the rest of that day would bring her out of the large section of her very being that waited for her death. Not even's Kara's cheerful demeanour could bring her out of her thoughts, which including wondering if there would be any pain as she felt the blade entering her heart.
Sure Iris would smile thanks to Kara taking the day off from work to keep her company; with a day that, thankfully, had no large issues that needed Supergirl's attention. However, Iris' smile would never reach her eyes. It was a smile meant to placate those around her, to make them believe she was doing alright.
Iris spent time with Kara; the both of them catching up on events following the Music Meister incident while at lunch later that day. And then later at Kara's apartment where the both of them had a get together with Mon-El, Alex, and Maggie. The entire time, while Kara tried to cheer-up Iris, Tracy and Winn, along with several other engineers had pulled together and nearly completed a device to trap Savitar.
But it is the best-laid plans that crash down hard the hardest. And Cisco's plan was about to crash spectacularly.
With the clock showing nearly Eight thirty at night, Tracy and her team had a small bit of the device to complete. In the meantime, Iris, Kara, Mon-El, Maggie, and Alex were having dinner at Kara's apartment with Iris glancing at the clock on the wall every few seconds.
The time was now eight twenty-five, and Iris' heart raced. She put down her fork while staring at the clock. She could take in another bite of the pasta Kara cooked as the seconds ticked away. Kara stared at Iris as she heard her racing heartbeat. Kara then turned to the clock, and then back to Iris who leaned back in her seat and stared at the food on the table in front of her. Iris then glanced at the clock again.
One minute had passed by. But it felt like an eternity.
"Iris," Kara said gently while everyone around the table looked at the woman from Earth One, "Savitar is not going to harm you."
"We'll protect you," Alex reassured Iris while glancing at Kara who was nodding her head.
Central City, Earth One.
"It's time," Savitar growled as he stood still in a gloomy and dark warehouse. It was a minute ago that he dispatched Killer Frost to attack a bank so that she could lure out Barry and Cisco. His plan was for the future events to unfold as they were supposed to happen. He saw Killer Frost form an ice slide before she took off into the air before he ran back into the warehouse, his base of operations.
He didn't tell Killer Frost that Flash and Cisco would both try to stop her, and knew that Frost finding out her former friends were working against her would further push Caitlin's mind deep into Killer Frost's psyche. The combined attack from both Flash and Vibe would spill the fight into the streets outside where Barry would push people out of the way while Cisco and Frost attacked each other.
Savitar knew that Barry and Cisco would want to bring the fight away from innocents. He knew that Barry would create a distraction that would pull Killer Frost to a forest at the edge of the city with Cisco meeting Barry there. Savitar knew the folding exactly as it should.
'And then Iris would die, and Cisco would lose his hands,' Savitar smirked underneath the armour.
"I'm coming for you, Iris," Savitar growled as he ran into a breach.
National City, Earth Thirty-Eight.
Jon was in the main control hub of the DEO as he watched screens that were monitoring any and all potential alien threats to Earth. Specifically, he was still searching for the Daxamite queen, Rhea, and her spaceship. He felt that their last encounter had ended too easily… and he felt a growing unease that the Deo and Supergirl hadn't seen the last of Rhea. His thoughts then turned to Iris' safety, and he was about to ask for a status report on the Speed Trap's development when there was a loud 'swish' sound behind him.
Jon turned around as several of the agents manning the consoles got up and proceeded to place their hands on their weapons. Before anyone could aim a weapon at the breach, there was a bolt of white lightning, that shot out of the breach and went down one hallway. Jon's eyes widened when the breach closed, with the bolt reappearing once again a few seconds later.
"No," Jon whispered as the bolt stopped and revealed a piece of hulking grey armour with blue accents all around the body. In one hand was the device that Tracy and Winn had been working on which was crushed in the palm of an armour clawed hand. Savitar opened the hand, and then pieces clattered to the floor as the DEO agents cocked their weapons.
"Wait," Jon ordered as he raised his hand. He stared at the bleeding and unmoving form of Tracy Brand who had a spear impaled from her back through her heart. Jon searched for signs that the woman was breathing while reading her mind for any brain activity. But there was nothing… Tracy Brand was dead. Jon then looked up onto the eyelets that shone blue on the helmet that formed Savitar's armour. However, he simply couldn't read the mind of the man under the armour.
"Savitar," Jon said as he transformed to his Martian self while the former speedster retracted the spear into his armour, thus dumping Tracy's dead body onto the floor. It was then that Winn, who last saw white lightning swirling around the room where he, Tracy, and several others were working before being flung onto the walls and slamming back down onto the floor. His body in pain from the impact against the wall, got up as quickly as possible and contacted the main Hub, and told Jon in a pained voice, "we have a problem. I think Barry's here."
"Barry's gone," Savitar growled as he stared at Jon who quickly ordered someone to call Supergirl, and relay an order to her that she needed to hide Iris immediately, "I am Savitar."
"Why do you wasn't Iris dead?" Jon as he went back to trying to read Savitar's mind. In the meantime, one of the agents was already on the way to calling Kara and Alex.
Savitar tilted his head as he felt fingers reaching into his brain, and smiled underneath the suit. "My mind works faster than ever before, Martian. I am immune to mind readers. I will tell you this though. After Iris dies? Supergirl will bow down to me. If she interferes? Then Supergirl will die. Remember that. But for now? Farewell."
Jon saw Savitar take off running out up the stairs and then out the building by running down the side. With Supergirl having been contacted, the phone was handed over to Jon. He spoke to Alex while Kara changed into her suit, at the same time Mon-El was about to rush out the window with Iris who was feeling numb. She didn't feel Mon-El's hands on her arms while pulling her back to the balcony. At the same time, Kara's voice… as did the voices of Alex and Maggie while they were taking out their weapons, seemed so far away. Iris could hear her heart racing over the sound of the voices around her.
Iris was now two minutes away from her death. And she didn't feel anything.
"Mon-El," yelled Kara pointing at her boyfriend and then signalling him to take Iris away while Alex and Maggie pointed their guns at the door, "get out of here and…."
"Hello, Kara," Savitar said, interrupting Kara after he phased through the front door and stood in front of her. In the meantime, just after phasing through the door, Savitar violently shoved aside Alex and Maggie, both of whom were flung against the walls before falling on the floor unconscious. Mon-El and Iris, who forced herself out of her own mind as she watched the two women fall onto the ground, rushed to Alex while Mon-El rushed to Maggie and tried to wake them up. Savitar glanced at Iris who was looking up at him while trying to wake up Alex and sneered under the armour.
"Barry," Iris said as tears streaked down her cheeks while Kara was yelling at Mon-El to get Iris out of the house.
"Maggie and Alex are alive, I can hear their heartbeats… now go!"
"Please Barry," yelled Iris as Mon-El grabbed her shoulders and pulled her up. He used his strength to carry her and then move as super speed towards the balcony. "Don't do this, Barry! Please… don't!" Savitar took a step forward. He was about to run at Iris and Mon-Ell who took off out the window. But Kara moved to stand in front of him.
Savitar looked at the 'S' and remembered his own past, really, he was remembering Barry's past. He remembered saving Kara after she crashed through a window. He remembered battling against 'sparky' and 'shrieky', and he remembered their battle against the Dominators. Savitar remembered singing with her in an alternate reality. Savitar remembered their team-ups that hadn't happened yet.
And then there was the war.
He remembered Iris' death at the hands of the aliens, the Dominators, who attacked with a coalition of other races to put down the metahumans for good. Savitar remembered Kara's hand on his shoulder as bodies of Dominators, Daxamites, and several other races that they had never heard off lay around them. Their necks were broken at Barry's hands which were cradling Iris' dad body.
"You were there," Savitar said as he looked at Kara whose hands were hanging by her sides, "you were there when she died the first time."
"Barry…."
"I travelled back in time," Savitar whispered as he looked away from Kara, "I tried to save her, but she died every single time. I travelled back, again and again, hoping for a different outcome… but she still died every time. The Dominators, Daxamites, the Frioe, and…. And the Rogues. They were all a danger, and so I killed them."
"Barry" Kara said as Savitar's head shifted back to her, "if we've ever been friends, I need you to stop. This…"
"I broke after she died, Kara," Savitar said, "I broke every time I watched her die. Every time I went back in time, every time I jumped into another reality where I try to save her… she dies. All I felt was pain. I killed everyone who could harm Iris since I could not save her directly. But she still died."
"People die, Barry."
"I am Savitar!"
"You're my friend, Barry Allen," Kara said as she placed her hand on her chest, "you…."
"You tried to stop me," Savitar said, "an alternate Cisco escaped and tried to warn other worlds that I was coming. I killed the evil in those worlds but the heroes would always come up against me. You, your cousin, the Bat, the Amazon, the robot, the Lanterns, the Flash, all of you would go against me. And Iris would still die. And I would kill all of you."
"Barry…" Kara shook her head as she realised what Savitar was saying, "how… how many did… did…"
"I kill?" asked Savitar in a mocking tone, "hundreds? Thousands? Tens of thousands? I lost count. I needed to take my pain away. And I found a way, Kara. My pain of losing my Iris is gone. To take the pain away, all I did was kill her by my own hands. And I've never felt as good."
"By Rao's light," Kara said as she stepped back in surprise and disbelief, "no… the Barry I know…"
"I am not the Barry you know!" yelled Savitar leaning forward.
"You said you killed Flashes," Kara said, "so how are…"
"Those Flashes aren't me," Savitar said, "I am native to my reality. I can kill those Barry Allen's in another reality without affecting me."
"Barry.. you…" Kara tried to speak through her disbelief, but she was interrupted.
"When I came back to Earth-One after I sensed a variation…, it was different," Savitar said, "the Barry Allen was different. He made me sick seeing him so happy. I took special glee in killing Iris. I felt no pain when I stabbed her.. she was the hundredth Iris to die? I lost track. I felt like a god…. I am pure speed, Kara. I travelled to the beginning of time with a stone made of crystallised speed force energy. And I spread my myth… my own legend. Of Savitar, the god of Speed. And then.. then the Barry of Earth One called me out years later and trapped me in the Speed Force. When I was released from the prison, I knew that Iris would be here because, when I fought Barry the first time? He sent her here."
"Then why didn't you interfere when Cisco created the breach?" asked Kara.
"I wanted to give them hope," Savitar crowed, "hope that Barry could save Iris. Hope that Iris would believe she could be saved. Hope. I wanted to give Joe hope. Wally hope. HR, Julien. I wanted to give them all hope that things would turn out for the better."
"Oh, Barry," Kara whispered shaking her head.
"And then," Savitar looked at the clock and saw that he was two minutes overdue. He looked back at Kara and sneered, "then I wanted to crush that hope. Destroy each and every one of them. Then, when they're dead? I'm coming for you, Supergirl. So I am warning you now, Kara. Step away, and live, and love with your boyfriend. Let your pain grow, for when I take it away with your life, it's that much sweeter."
"Barry," Kara said as Savitar looked back at her, "this isn't you. Stop this, please."
"Barry's gone, Kara," Savitar growled as he stood in the middle of her living room facing the girl of steel. "only I remain. I am Savitar."
"And you are Barry," said Kara as she spoke gently. "You told me how much you love Iris, Barry. I can't imagine you ever killing her, or…"
Two and a half minutes' overdue.
"Goodbye, Supergirl," Savitar said as he ran towards the balcony. From Kara's perspective, she saw Savitar running towards the balcony. And Kara interfered. Or at least attempted to interfere.
'He's going to go after Iris'. She saw, in slow motion, as Savitar moved towards her. Kara had to stop him before he could reach Iris. "I have to stop you, Barry." Kara moved at super speed as well. She was nearly within reach of Savitar when he sped past her at a higher rate of speed than she thought possible. Kara turned back around and saw the armour in a kneeling position. The blue accents were turned off and the rear of the armour was open. Kara looked around and tried to hear for any heartbeats other than her own, Alex, and Maggie However, she couldn't hear anyone else.
"Barry?" asked Kara as she walked to the rear of the armour. She saw the hollow interior, and then looked around as her heart raced. Suddenly, she heard a swish sound behind her. But no heartbeat. Kara turned around. To her, everything was still going in slow motion as she saw Barry. A badly burned and enraged Barry, with yellow electric energy coursing through his body, take a step forward while pulling an arm back. Kara saw the glint of a blade as it was pushed forward. Kara knew she was invulnerable… and so she didn't do anything. She expected the blade to crack.
However, it didn't.
Kara released a gasp when she heard a 'shruck' sound. She had her eyes wide open as she stared into Barry's eyes. She saw anger and hatred in those eyes. She then heard another 'shruck' sound as pain tore through her body while feeling warm liquid flowing down her abdomen. She looked down while her arms, feeling as if they were lead weights, grabbed Savitar's arms. She looked down and saw blood pouring down her body and dripping down to the floor. The red liquid streaked down her costume and skirt as she looked back up and stared in disbelief into Savitar's eyes.
Her body started to feel numb as she stared into Savitar's eyes which looked straight into her own. She felt one of his hands grab the back of her head while her arms fell away from his shoulders and lay limply by her side. And then there was another 'shruck', Savitar stared into her eyes while he stabbed her side, and then pulled out the blade. Blood poured out of the fresh wound before Savitar pushed the severely weakened Kara.
She crashed onto the floor and lay on her back, her blonde hair strew across the floor.
"Ba... Barry…" Kara said as she tried to move her weakened arms after she fell onto the floor. She raised then, and then they fell onto her abdomen.
Four minutes overdue.
Savitar looked at the clock, and then back at Kara, and then at the gold coloured knife in his hand before he placed it into a sheath in the small of his back. "You should thank Lena Luther of Earth Six One Six for this Gold Kryptonite knife. I had to pry it out of her cold, dead, hands when she thought I was one of you. Her mistake."
"Ba… Ba…." Kara struggled to speak as she felt her body going cold while hearing Alex groan. Kara couldn't turn her head, she was staring directly into Savitar's eyes as tears streamed out of her own.
"Goodbye, Kara Zor-El," Savitar said.
Five Minutes overdue.
"We would have created the League in the future, Kara," Savitar said as Alex slowly opened her eyes to see Savitar crouching over her sister who was bleeding profusely on the carpet, "you told me about Krypton's religion once, in the future. May Rao take you into his arms."
"Kara?" groaned Alex as she tried to get up, "Kara?"
Savitar then zoomed into his armour and ran out the window to the DEO. In the meantime, Alex scrambled on all four to her sister whose lips were getting blue, as was her skin. "Kara!" Kara!" She then grabbed her phone, noticing the golden knife in the corner, and dialled a number. "Jon! Jon! Oh God help!" All she got were screams on the other end of the line followed by a groan from Jon. Alex heard the sounds of lightning followed by gun fire and the sounds of bones breaking. She looked back at Kara before she closed the line and then dialled another number. "Clark! Please help. For the love of God please help. I'm in Kara's apartment, please help!"
Kara gave a small smile as she looked up at her sister. And then she began to close her eyes slowly while Alex put away the phone and screamed her name. In the meantime, the DEO was a disaster area as Savitar jumped through a breach after having killed and injuring seventy percent of the personnel in the tower.
"Kara!" yelled Alex as she cradled her sister's body back in the latter's apartment as she closed her eyes, "Kara!"
Central City, Earth One, six minutes past Iris' 'destined' death.
Killer Frost lay on the frozen ground in a clearing as Barry and Cisco, with his shades up on his forehead, stared down at their friend. The both of them teamed up against Killer Frost, both seeking to get through to Caitlin who they hoped was still inside Killer Frost's psyche. And now all they had to do was bring her out to the fore. Barry and Cisco then stared at each other before giving the other a high five. Barry then pressed the earpiece on his mask and connected himself to the Cortex where Julien was celebrating that Killer Frost was defeated.
"Oh and hey," HR said while Joe stood next to him, "the time has come and gone, guys. I think we changed history."
Barry and Cisco looked at each other with a smile on their faces. History indeed had changed. To Barry, Iris was alive somewhere and she had Tracy with her to help with the creation of the device. All he had to do now was be patient.
"You want a ride back to the Cortex, my friend?" asked Cisco as he opened a breach.
"Nah, I…." Buffy wanted to tell Cisco that he wanted to go for a run and that he would be back to the Cortex very soon. But before he could continue, another breach opened up. Barry and Cisco stared at the breach, and then at each other, and then back at the breach upon hearing an electrical sound.
"Guys!" yelled Barry into his headset as the two breaches closed while Killer Frost was still on the ground, her hands cuffed with the power dampeners. "It… it's Savitar. And… and…."
"Tell them," Savitar growled as he held a squirming Iris up by the back of her neck.
"And he has Iris," Barry yelled as Team Flash looked at each other with worry. They thought that the future had been changed. HR had his hands on his head as he walked back towards the wall in disbelief. Julien, Joe, and Wally were listening to Iris calling for Barry, for Joe, and for Wally; telling them that she loved them. And then Savitar interrupted by saying something that nearly made HR collapse. And it made Barry stumble back with Cisco having to hold him steady.
"Tracy Brand is dead," Savitar gloated as he tightened his hold on Iris who screamed out loud, "and soon, Supergirl will die too."
"Oh my God," Joe said as he stumbled back in shock. He was about to lose his daughter, and the person who had been protecting her was about to die as well. It was something thought impossible since Kara was supposed to be invincible. In addition, the only hope they had of stopping Savitar, Tracy, died as well.
"B.A!" yelled HR as he strode in anger at the thought that Tracy was dead, to the central console in the Cortex, "kill him!"
"H.R," Julien said holding the older man's shoulder, "I.. I'm sorry."
"Iris," Barry said as he took a step forward. "I…."
"Meet me at the place where you are fated to see your love fall, Barry," Savitar says, "and when she does. I will feel no pain… no loss. But you? You will crumble and lose. And then, as she bleeds out onto the ground? I will put you in the very same prison you put me. And I will live on."
"Why!?" demanded Barry, "Why do you hate me!"
"Beat me first," Savitar chuckled before he ran off with Iris.
Barry and Cisco watched him run off, and then Barry, after ordering Cisco to take Killer Frost back to STAR Labs, took off after Savitar. Barry followed Savitar through the city, slowly getting closer to the villain, until reaching the corner of Infantino Street. It was there that Savitar suddenly stopped as Barry was getting closer. He then turned and ran towards Barry who was coming at him. He held on to the screaming Iris with one hand while, with his other hand upon reaching Barry, pivoted and then grabbed the younger Speedster's arm. Savitar, with everything in slow motion, after grabbing Barry's arms, then flung him at super speed into a tree trunk.
"Barry!" yelled Iris as Savitar rushed up the stairs and took the very same place where he killed Iris once before. Savitar looked on in smug satisfaction as he lowered Iris to the ground while watching Barry groan as he slowly got up to his feet.
"Welcome to the end, Flash. My time of ascension? Oh, it's right here, and now."
Barry limped forward as he glared at Savitar, and then he looked at the terror on Iris' face. He had seen this very situation before. He saw Savitar pull back an arm as a spear extended from his wrist. Barry could hear Savitar say something, but it wasn't registering in his mind. All Barry could do was look on helplessly at Iris as tears streamed down her cheeks. Barry knew he would fail… everything he had done to change the future brought him to this point in time. In the future, he would fail, and now he knew he would fail as well. He could run as fast as he wanted, but Savitar was closer to Iris. He was right behind her, and Barry was seconds away in comparison.
'This is my fault,' Barry thought to himself as he stared at Iris. Everything was going in slow motion as his mind processed his thoughts at lightning speed while Savitar aimed the spear at Iris' back. 'He's here because of Flashpoint. He's here because of me. Everything that happened was because of me. Savitar, Alchemy, Killer frost and…. Oh God, Kara. Then Tracy, Wally, Joe, Cisco, Jay,,, Oh God Jay's stuck in that prison because of me. All because of me. Their lives changed because of what I did. Because of Flashpoint. Because of one stupid idea. I…'
"I have to sacrifice everything," Barry whispered as he stared at the grass, and then back up at Savitar. And finally, it hit him. Barry finally understood what the Speed Force told him, "that's what the Speed Force said. I have to sacrifice everything." Barry breathed hard as he slowly figured out what the Speed Force meant.
He would have to be prepared to lose everything and everyone that he loved. Iris, Joe, Wally, Cisco, Caitlin… he would lose them all. Barry knew this was the very time the Speed Force was talking about. The time when he would know what needed to be done to save Iris.
A sacrifice.
Barry would have to sacrifice everything so that the love of his life would live. So that Savitar, his future self, would never be created. But the problem was that there would be no Flash since Savitar was responsible for creating the Philosopher's Stone that granted Wally his powers.
"Cisco and the others will find a way," Barry whispered after he shut off his suit's communication system. "And… and I can't think of any other way. We all lose… and it's my fault. To get rid of Savitar, the only other way is to… to make a sacrifice."
It was what he needed to do.
"Savitar!" yelled Barry as he started to vibrate his hand while Iris looked back at her love with eyes wide open in terror.
Savitar looked up as Barry's hand vibrated. Back in the Cortex, everyone stared at the camera feed that showed Barry standing tall while his left hand vibrated. "Why isn't he running?" Julien asked while everyone stared at the feed.
"He can't make it," Joe whispered as he watched Savitar, and then Barry, "he can't… NO! BARRY!"
Everyone in the Cortex looked on in horror as Barry plunged the vibrating hand into his own chest just as Savitar was about to plunge the spear through Iris' back.
"Barry!" yelled Cisco as he opened a portal and jumped through while Joe collapsed on his knees as Savitar simply vanished. Julien and HR had their hands covering their mouths in utter shock as Barry's body fell backwards into Cisco's arms just as he popped out of a breach.
"No," Wally sobbed as he covered his eyes with his hands while, back at Infantino Street, Iris screamed Barry's name as she ran down the stairs. She crumbled onto her knees when a tearful Cisco looked back at her and shook his head. Iris grabbed Barry's gloved hand and then leaned down and lay her head on the Flash emblem. She cried her heart out as tears streamed down Cisco's cheeks.
"Barry," she wept as tears fell on his uniform.
The Speed Force.
For Barry, the moment he plunged his left hand into his chest, he heard Iris scream his name at the top of her lungs. And then everything went white.
"Barry."
Barry suddenly found himself standing in a swirling vortex of clouds and lightning jumping from one cloud to another. He looked around and then down at himself. He saw that he was still wearing the Flash uniform. He then looked up at the violent swirls around him and whispered, "so, this is hell."
"Not exactly," said a familiar female voice as Barry spun around to find his mother, Nora Allen, or at least the Seed Force manifestation of her, standing with her arms by her side. "Hello, Barry."
"Mom," he whispered, "I…"
"The Others wanted to allow you to change time," said Nora as she took a step forward and Barry looked away. "I could not allow that to happen."
Barry was surprised about hearing that revelation as he looked back at his mother with confusion on his face. Nora took another step forward and pursed her lips before speaking once again, "we saw your mother die. We saw your father die. We saw Eobard Thawne manipulate events so that you become the Flash much earlier. All of that affected you in ways you have yet to understand."
"No," Barry shook his head, "Eddie, or at least the Speed Force Eddie, said that I was allowed to change time, and…"
"You were supposed to have gotten over Nora's death," the Speed Force manifestation of Nora Allen said in a disappointing voice. "You should have learned about dealing with grief.. that is what our last meeting was about before we gave you back your powers. But you lost your father to Eobard Thawn, and then you decided to change time. We… I… couldn't allow that."
"You couldn't….?"
"We knew you would fracture time itself," Nora interupted looking at Barry, "so we placed you in a pocket dimension separated from the timeline. All so that you could witness first-hand what your actions would have wrought to the people you claim to love."
"I love them," Barry exclaimed as he pointed at the swirling clouds, "I love them all! I…."
"But yet, you alone decided to play God and change their futures," Nora said staring at Barry who looked away as if he was scolded by the real Nora Allen. "Your actions changed their lives without their permission. It affected all of their lives; from Cisco losing his brother, to the Dominator attack, to Caitlin being Killer Frost, to… to Iris dying. That pocket dimension had its own multiverse, own future, and the past. And in that Earth One's original future before Thawne changed the timeline, you lost Iris in a war."
Barry listened in stunned silence as Nora explained Savitar's origins, and what he did to take away his own pain, by killing Iris' throughout the Multiverse in the pocket dimension.
"My God," Barry whispered after he heard everything he needed to hear from Nora. Barry felt sick as he imagined doing what Savitar had done. He looked away from Nora and turned around so that she wouldn't see him cover his eyes with his hands.
'I killed Iris. So many Iris', so many of my friends and.. and even people I've never met. Oh God... what… what have I done.'
"Savitar was grief and anger made flesh, Barry," Nora said as she lay a hand on his shoulder, "he is what you could have become. And it could still happen." Barry then turned to face Nora, and asked her what he needed to do to stop Savitar from ever coming back. Nora simply smiled at Barry and placed her hand on his cheek, "you can't". Nora then brought her hand down to Barry's chest and then looked up again, "Savitar is what's in your heart, Barry. Anger, rage, resentment… all uncontrolled, desiring to lash out. You've seen what could happen, Barry. You have to understand that those you love will die. It could be in a car crash, or it could be in battle… but they will die. What matters is what you do to handle that anger and grief."
"I don't know how." Barry said as he looked into Nora's eyes.
"You have friends and family who love you, Barry," Nora said gently, "they will help you get through the loss you've experienced, and the losses still to come. You have already made one sacrifice to save your friends, Barry. If you didn't? Then Savitar would have trapped you for all time after killing Jay. He would then have devastated that Earth One. It was a no-win scenario, one which you didn't hesitate to make a decision between yourself and others. And that's what a hero needs to do, to make the sacrifice so that innocents are kept safe."
"So my world? My Earth One?"
"Is waiting for you," said Nora as a breach opened up. "the pocket universe has served its usefulness. Now, we place our trust in you, Barry. And soon, in Wally West and Jessie Quick. The breach will take you back home. To everyone else, just a second would have passed by after you entered the breach into the pocket dimension."
Barry then made sure his cowl was still on and nodded his head.
"Barry," Nora said gently, "be careful. The next time you travel back in time to make a change like saving me? Then… then we cannot interfere. The changes will be real."
Central City, Earth One, now.
Barry nodded his head before he then sped through the breach, and found himself running through the streets of Central City. He still had all of his memories of the pocket dimension, he still had all his feelings, and he still had the same old fear of losing Iris. And he knew he needed to do something about that.
Barry also knew he had to learn to slowly come to terms with his parent's deaths and to deal with the memories of the Iris, Cisco, and the others he lost in the pocket dimension.
To Barry, they were real people. His relationships with them were real. And now they were gone. But his memories of them remained as he ran through the streets of Central City. He remembered running alongside Jessie and Wally, singing and dancing with Kara, proposing to Iris... all those happened. And BArry released a smile as a
But before he could go home, Barry had to make a few stops before heading home. He had to make certain that everything was okay. He ran fast and opened a breach to Earth Two where he met Harry once again and hugged the surprised man. He then raced to Central City University and hugged a stunned Jessie while she was taking her class. HE chuckled as Jessie's classmates whispered that there was a new Flash in town. Barry whispered in Jessie's ear to visit him in Earth One when she and Harry were free.
And then Barry took off to Earth Three. There, he met with Jay for Coffee. Barry told the surprised Jay everything that happened before asking him if they could sit down later on to talk about their powers. "I want to learn more, and… and I want to know how to use these powers so that…."
"I'll help," Jay said as he looked at the younger man. After shaking hands, Barry left and then opened a breach all the way to Earth Thirty Eight. There, Barry opened an exit breach into the DEO hub where Supergirl had just finished introducing Superman to the DEO agents. Barry and Kara hugged before the excited woman introduced Barry to Superman.
"What are you doing here?" asked Kara after making introductions while Superman looked at Barry and then at Kara who were both leaning against a table. He then looked at Jon who shrugged his shoulders before walking off, but not before telling Barry that they needed to talk about unauthorized breaches opening in the DEO. Barry nodded his head before turning to Kara and just staring at her before he hugged the surprised woman once again. "Barry?"
"I just wanted to see if you're alright," Barry whispered into her ear.
"Why wouldn't I be?" Kara asked whispering into Barry's ear before they parted. Barry simply smiled at Kara while holding onto her shoulders, and she held onto his arms, as Alex and Superman could only look on. It was then that Superman coughed, and Barry and Kara let go of each other and turned to Superman. However, Kara occasionally glanced at Barry wondering what he meant that he wanted to make sure that she was doing alright.
"So, Kara," Superman said with his arms crossed over his chest, "you have a boyfriend from another dimension? Don;t you think that's something you should have told me when…"
"We're just friends," both Barry and Kara said. The both of them were pointing at each other while staring at Superman.
"Really," Barry said before he looked at Kara who was grinning while telling Superman how Barry helped the DEO take down Livewire and Silver Banshee. Kara then turned to look at Barry, and their eyes met. Barry then turned to Superman and told him, while he remembered his own, and Kara's, time in the alternate reality, "she's my super-friend." And Kara blushed while Alex grinned as she locked eyes with Kara.
It would be several minutes later that Barry returned to Earth One, but not before telling Kara that he would be back soon, and then they could talk. He then, upon reaching Earth One, headed home. It was only ten minutes since Barry left the West house and they were wondering where he had gone. So when Barry ran into the house with his uniform, everyone got up from their seats and asked if there was a metahuman attack. Barry listened to their questions while staring at Iris, and then at Joe, Caitlin, Cisco, and then Wally.
Barry then turned his head towards Caitlin who asked once again if there was a metahuman attack since he was in his Flash uniform, "and we need to know where the attack happened so tha..."
"I…" Barry said before he rushed around the couch, past Iris and Joe, and Cisco, so that he could hug Caitlin. The surprised Caitlin looked at the others with her eyes wide open as if to ask 'what was going on'.
"I'm glad to see you, Cait."
"You were only gone maybe ten, fifteen minutes, Dude," Cisco said as he handed Caitlin an eggnog. Barry parted from Caitlin and looked into her eyes. He remembered her lying on her back, unconscious, as Killer Frost. Barry then took in a deep breath and kissed Caitlin on her forehead before stepping back, turning around, and hugging Cisco tight.
"Okay, but there is no way you're kissing my forehead," Cisco quipped.
"Bar?" asked Joe.
"Are you drunk, Barry?" Wally joked.
"Running while drunk?" asked Caitlin as Barry parted from Cisco and asked him if his brother was doing alright.
"Yea," Cisco said, "why?"
"Listen," Barry said as he stood next to Cisco and looked around at everyone, and then stopped at Iris. "Everyone close your eyes." Barry zoomed to Iris, and then grabbed the back of her, and kissed her full on the lips while Caitlin stared with her mouth hanging open. Cisco chuckled while Wally was cheering. Joe, on the other hand, was petrified as he stared at the both of them kiss before he looked away nervously while stepping back.
"It's about time," Caitlin said as she rushed to the table and poured two cups and eggnog as Barry and Iris separated, the two of them looking at each other.
"I love you, Iris," Barry whispered. It was then that Caitlin had Barry a cup, and then the other one to Iris before pulling the still petrified Joe away as he tried to mumble incoherently. Barry then turned and simply said four words as he looked at Caitlin, Joe, Cisco, Wally, and then back to Iris.
"We need to talk."
THE END.