A relatively long chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter 2: Picking up Speed
Joe West walked into the West household to see his daughter and a bandaged Barry on the couch talking in hushed voices.
"Oh, Barry. Thank the Lord that you're home safely." Joe let out a breath of relief at his son, home safe. "You have to leave. Now. Pack some of your stuff and get in the car."
"Dad wait," Iris said, standing up, "Barry has made a decision already. He's staying here and using his powers to help other metahumans like him."
"No. Absolutely not, it's too reckless, and not to mention, dangerous. Barry, you could get caught, or worse they could kill you. I will not have this family torn apart!" Joe said firmly, with tears in his eyes.
Barry stood up as well. "Joe… Other families, fathers even, are thinking the exact same way as you. How about the metahumans who don't escape? Children, ripped from their parents. I can stop them with my new ability. I can save them."
Joe took a minute to process Barry's words, knowing he was right. "Are you sure about this Bar? Risking your life for others? It may be a valiant move, but I don't know if I can just stand by…" A tear slipped down Joe's cheek.
Barry gave Joe a small smile. "It's not the 'valiant' thing to do, Joe. It's the right thing. This is why I got these powers. I know it."
With a sigh, Joe replied, "Alright Bar. You know I'll support you. I just want to know that you are sure about this."
"I'm sure."
For a couple days, Barry ran on the treadmill for a few hours, getting faster and faster. He had already ran to the highest speed setting and knew he could run so much faster. Surprisingly, Barry's shoulder wound had basically healed overnight. Perhaps his set of powers was even more complex than he thought.
One morning, at dawn, Barry woke up to run. Using Joe's extra-large sweatshirt, Barry slipped the hood over his head. The hood dipped in front of his face so that his face was concealed by the shadows.
He slipped out of the house and started running at a relatively slow pace. After a few minutes, he sped up to roughly the maximum treadmill speed. It wasn't enough. He could go faster. Pumping his arms, he went faster. And faster. The cries of the mother and daughter rang through Barry's head. He had to be faster if he was to save the other metahumans. Yelling, he ran faster along the block, closing his eyes, imagining other people who would need his help. He opened his eyes.
The world was flying past him. Buildings blurred as he ran past. Turning his head briefly, he saw a red streak trailing behind him.
"Woohoo!" Barry exclaimed, basking in the wind in his face, his city flying by. He had run all around the city four times, when he arrived on the porch of his house, at about 7AM. Barry had hoped to slip in and out without anyone noticing, but he walked into the house to see Iris and Joe sitting on the dining table.
"Barry, we've been worried sick! Where have you been?" Iris asked standing in relief and confusion.
"Sorry to worry you guys, I was just out running, testing my new ability. I didn't know you'd be up so early." Barry answered, scratching his head.
"Yeah, I woke up to ask you where my phone was and you weren't there, so I woke dad up," Iris answered.
"Barry, you know it's not safe to be out when your face is plastered on the streets. What if you were seen?" Joe scolded.
"Don't worry, Joe, I was careful, I promise. And plus, I was going so fast that no one could have even seen me if they tried." Barry was giddy just thinking about it.
"How fast did you go?" asked Iris, curious.
"So fast that there was actually lightning trailing behind me and the city blurred around me," he answered, smiling with pride and excitement. Iris and Joe stared at Barry. Iris stared at Barry in amazement, while Joe stared in disbelief. "Hey, I can prove it." Barry said, leaving the room with a flash of red lightning.
"Where did that kid go now?" Joe asked, trying to hide how amazed he was by the fact that there was actually lightning, but frankly, failing. A full four minutes passed and the two were starting to worry a little. Barry arrived as if he materialized from thin air, holding two covered cups of coffee from Jitters.
"I know you haven't had you cup of joe yet, Joe," Barry said, smiling, handing both of them the coffee.
"Wow. You ran all the way to Jitters, got coffee, and ran back in under five minutes?" Iris asked, raising in eyebrow.
"Yep," Barry answered, "Although I kind of took the coffee from the barista's hands, but don't worry, I left extra tip on the counter."
"Kid, you got talent, I'll give you that," Joe said, smiling.
"Not talent, a gift." Barry winked. "Now, I don't know about you, but I am starving."
Joe made some eggs and bacon, setting it on the table. Barry drooled at the sight of the food and practically inhaled his plate within five minutes.
"Is it totally weird that I'm still hungry?" Barry asked, bits of bacon stuck in his teeth.
"Does super speed also give you a super appetite?" Iris asked, laughing, for she had barely half of her plate. Barry laughed along with her.
"No joke, I'm still starving," Barry smiled. Two more plates of eggs and bacon later, Barry leaned back in his chair. "Alright, now I'm full."
"Glad to hear it, Bar," Joe said, after making the extra two servings of breakfast and glad he didn't have to make a third.
Barry got up and put his dishes in the sink, then plopped down on the couch and turned on the TV, flipping through the channels lazily.
Joe stood up and said, "Well, you might get to stay home, but unfortunately, I'm not a wanted man, so I have to go to work. Bye baby girl," He said to Iris, kissing her on the head and waved to Barry saying, "See ya Bar." With that he left, the door shutting behind him.
Barry hadn't heard a word Joe had said, for he was too engrossed in the top Central City headline on the news, "Red Streak in the Streets: Friend or Foe?".
"Hey, Iris can you come here for a second?" Barry called. Iris shut her laptop and left the article she had been writing.
"What's up Bar?" she asked, sauntering over to the living room. She sat next to him and watched the news anchor spill the latest news about this red streak.
"This morning, a red streak has been said to be travelling up and down the streets of Central City. No one knows for sure, but speculation says that the streak is actually a metahuman with super speed, running across the city. But the real question remains to be answered. Is this man or woman a friend or a foe? We have received intel from meta-officers this afternoon telling us that this metahuman is dangerous and should be apprehended. Others believe that this streak could be a harmless meta, a hero, some may even say. More on this story later. Next, the mayor of Central City announces the-" Barry shut off the TV and looks at Iris.
"What should I do?" Barry asked helplessly.
"You have to prove that you aren't dangerous," Iris answered, quite matter of factly, "Thank goodness they haven't put two and two together to figure out that you're the streak."
"A lot of people won't agree with what I'm trying to do, Iris, " Barry sighed.
"That's all the more reason to do it! Barry, look at me." Barry turned to face Iris. "Who cares if no one agrees with you? There are always going to be people who stand against you. But what matters is who believes in you. I believe in you, Barry. So many other people will too once you put yourself out there."
Barry sat there, wordless, for a few seconds, thinking about Iris' words, and took a deep, shaky breath, "Thanks, Iris. I know you're right. It's just, what if I only make things worse? What if they figure out who I am and take it out on you o-or Joe-"
"Barry, you can't think like that. Dad and I will support you, no matter what. Anyways, 'what is life without a little risk?'" Iris said with an encouraging smile.
"Did you seriously just quote Harry Potter?" Barry asked, a smile creeping on his face.
"You bet I did," Iris said, laughing. Another set of alarms rang through the neighborhood.
"Attention Central City residents. The criminal, Barry Allen who we have said to be a threat to the community has been assumed to escape, proven through several eyewitnesses including Cisco Ramon and Dr. Harrison Wells. We will still work towards apprehending this criminal, but for now, the city lockdown has been lifted. Thank you." The voice signed off with a beep.
"That's great Barry!" Iris exclaimed.
"I wonder who those people are," Barry wondered.
"Who cares? Probably just some people who don't support the metahuman system or something?" Iris speculated.
Barry's face turned slightly more serious. "Back to business, I'll need a disguise if I'm to go out to save metas in broad daylight," he said.
"Ooh, a superhero costume?" Iris asked jokingly.
"Don't call it that, it sounds lame. It's a disguise for not a superhero, but a vigilante."
"Alright, alright, whatever you want. Dad has a ski mask in the garage that you could use to cover your face?" Iris suggested.
"That sounds good." A thought struck Barry. "Hey, Iris, where are we going to do with the metahumans once we prevent them from being taken?"
"One thing at a time, Barry. We'll figure it out." Iris left to retrieve the ski mask. Barry was looking out the window, still planning ahead when he saw the meta-collection truck driving down his street, knowing only pain would come with the vehicle. Iris walked in with the mask and Barry grabbed the red mask, slipped it over his face, and sped off after the truck, tailing it.
The truck came to a stop about seven blocks away. Barry hid behind a tree, concealing himself from view. An officer exited the truck and rapped his knuckles three times on the door. What looked like a teenager opened the door and the two of them exchanged a few words that Barry could not hear.
The officer pulled out the blood scanner and pricked the teen's wrist. The scanner flashed green and the officer raised his eyebrow in suspicion, pushing passed the kid to force his way into the house. Barry longed to speed in and drag the officer out, but he knew he had to wait until the right moment.
A shout resonated through the neighborhood and the officer dragged what Barry assumed was the father, out of the house. The scanner in the officer's hand was still flashing red. The teenager grabbed on to her father's hands trying to keep the officer from taking him, but her protests went unnoticed by the officer. As an iron fist clenched Barry's heart, he thought Now.
Barry sped out from behind the tree and punched the officer in the face. The officer stood confused and Barry took the opportunity to pry the father from his grasp and put him down behind him, next to his daughter. The officer stood dumbfounded by the mysterious figure.
"You. Y-you're the red streak?" The officer asked.
Barry lowered his voice so that he wouldn't recognize him (just in case), and said, "Yes. And I'm not letting you take this man from his family."
The officer stood taller. "Oh yeah? And who's gonna stop me?," he scoffed. The man pulled out his gun and shot at him, but his weapon was no match for Barry. Five bullets were shot by the man. Each one seemed to shoot at Barry in slow motion. Mentally chuckling to himself, Barry caught each bullet, and dropped them to the ground in front of the officer.
"You know who's going to stop you? Me. Night, night." Barry knocked out the officer, who crumpled to the ground.
"Hey, what's the hold up, Al?" a voice hollered from the back of the truck. Barry had almost forgotten about the man in the truck. He creeped along the side of the truck waiting for the man to turn the corner. "Al?" the voice shouted again, "Jeez, this guy can't do anything himself, can he?" the man rounded the corner of the truck and Wham! Barry fist made contact with the other man's jaw which practically seemed the power button for most people. The other officer fell to the ground.
Barry quickly cuffed the officers with their own cuffs and spun around to see the man and his daughter with multiple emotions in their eyes. Gratitude and relief, but also fear and confusion. "Wh-who are you? And how can we ever repay you?"
"There's no need to repay me," Barry answered. "They'll be back eventually. For now, lay low, find a new house, and maybe even change your name because they will come after you."
"Thank you! Thank you so much!" The father exclaimed with glee and gratitude, hugging his daughter and kissing her on the head. The two hurried back inside the house to gather their stuff. Satisfied with what he had done, Barry ran home to Iris.
"So where'd you run off to this time? Save any metas?" Iris asked, elbows on her knees.
"I saved a father from being taken from his daughter. And it felt really good," Barry said, smiling from ear to ear.
Iris mirrored his smile. "That's great, Barry. I'm so proud of you." Suddenly, the phone rang. Barry went to pick it up hesitantly.
"Hello?" Barry said, "Who is this?"
"Uh. Hi, is this Barry Allen?" the voice asked.
"Yeah.. And this is?"
"Oh, sorry. My name is Cisco Ramon and I'm calling from Star Labs. We've seen what you've done, so we reached out to you." How did this person know who I am? Barry wondered.
"You're the one who told them I had escaped? You and uh.. Dr. Wells? Why?"
"Well we figured we couldn't have people putting together the fact that you are the red streak. By the way, I've been thinking of some super cool names for you. The blur, the streak, the whoosh, the flash…"
Barry coughed. "Um ok… But why are you calling?"
"Oh, did I not mention that? Barry Allen, me and my team want you to come to Star Labs and work with us to free these metahumans."
Hey! Hope you guys liked that. I had a little extra time on this Saturday morning so I got this chapter done early :D. Okay so I just read Prejudice by Redq and I will admit the summary does sound similar, but I promise this story will take a whole different direction.
Also, to people who asked when other characters are going to enter, next chapter, a lot of Star Labs characters will be introduced. This version of Dr. Wells will be the Harry, season 2 version cuz he's my favorite haha. Thanks for all the support. Expect an update roughly next week(?) Read and review!
By the way, for any Supergirl fans out there, I'm publishing a story pretty soon about Kara and Mon-El meeting on Daxam ;)