Author's Note: Alright guys. We're almost done the story and in just one month, the Flash himself is gonna COME SOON! WHOO! I'm excited, are you excited? Cuz I'm excited :D ANYWAYS, in this chapter we're gonna find out what happens to Bart so let's get ready! It's gonna be a one wild ride! Let's get going!

Summary: Succeeding in his plan, Inertia had devoured all of the speed from Bart but the side effects start to take place.

Chapter 16: The Effects

"You have lost, Flash." Inertia's demonic voice came, his red eyes flashing. "You have lost and there is nothing you can do. I'll give you little time to spend with your loved ones as you watch your world crumble."

The speedsters stared in horror at the mad man. But if there was anything in the world it was that they weren't going to lose. Even though there are three of them, there still may be a chance of winning over this disaster. As long as there's hope, they can do this. As long as there's hope, they will have the chance to defeat this evil.

Wally's death will not be in vain.

"Barry, you need to come. It's not safe there anymore. You guys need to come back, find a plan then defeat the madman." came Cisco's voice.

"No. There's still a way to end him. There's got to. I'm not leaving." Barry responded.

"Look around, Barry. What can you do?"

It seemed that this time, Barry's words had faltered and all he could do is to helplessly stare at the villain.

"I'm not running away." Barry replied. "Not this time."

A hand was placed on his shoulder. Barry gave a short quick glance before he turned his head to the side only to meet the eyes of Dawn with an unread expression.

"Sometimes, us Flashes, can't win a battle despite having the power. Sometimes, it's just wise to run away from a battle—it's not called foolhardy but rather saving your life."

Barry stared at her, a sharp look drew on his features as he was staring at them.

"There's nowhere to run!" Inertia roared and then, with the power that was running inside him, it got reignited and he felt the familiar surge of power. And then, at full charge, the fiend released the attack and the powerful speed blast was sent crackling through the air, sending off its energy vibes.

The bolt raced forward until it tore the ground in half which made the speedsters be startled.

"We have to go!" Don urged them.

With that in mind, the trio ran at their full speed, avoiding the tear that was in the ground.

:(/\):

Everyone who were in the S.T. lab didn't dare to breath. No one even knew what to say anyway. Things had become such disastrous that they didn't even know if it was possible to defeat the maniac.

Because they were in thought, most of them gave a jump of startle when they felt a familiar breeze; the shock pulled them away and they all turned around to see Don, Dawn and Barry.

But something seemed off about them. Especially Barry.

Harrison studied the three wore down speedsters with an intense look, one might think that his face was actually glued like that way. Cisco let out the breath he didn't even knew he was holding and because of the disturbed silence, he had to break it.

He couldn't take it anymore.

"So…?"

Barry flashed his eyes at his friend, bearing him down with a gaze. For a minute, Cisco felt uncomfortable. Maybe it's because of his eyes that are suddenly devoid of any life? He frowned. Were things at the field was really that bad…?

Barry shook his head before walking off, his eyes clouding with emotions. Because of that, everyone eyes turned to the direction of the twins who shifted awkwardly.

Dawn stared back just as equally. She really didn't want to be bearer of the news. If anything, it should've been Barry but obviously, he wasn't in the talking mood. She supposed he needed some time off.

Just to cool off.

You never want to angry a speedster. That much is clear. Even for a normal human being.

"Guys…?" Caitlin whispered so quietly that the two had to crane their ears. "What…happened?" she asked, shakily.

Dawn looked away, unable to meet the concerned eyes of the female. She just didn't want to be the bearer of the news. That much was clear. Seeing that Dawn wasn't participating, Don let out a sigh. Looks like the choice was turned on him.

Don looked at the group, straight at the eye as his eyes were cloudy.

"Wally's dead."

:(/\):

Tick tock tick tock…

The sound of the clock echoed in the living room. There, on sitting at a chair, was Barry who was deep in thought and he simply stared at the table as though it was the only thing that could distract him.

In reality, it actually did.

He just couldn't believe it. He had let his nephew die simply because he, himself, didn't catch on that Wally couldn't keep up with the rest of them. This time, he really was late. He was late and he couldn't do anything about it.

Just like he was late about saving Bart.

On the table was supper; his plate full of food which Iris had left a note upon the table, stating that she went out for the night. His plate which he hadn't even touched. The food was getting cold.

Tick tock tick tock.

Barry wondered if the twins had told the news. He supposed he shouldn't left off like that; to let them be the bearer of the news when he should've told them. And again, Barry was beating himself over it. If there was one thing where Inertia and him has to agree, it would be that he failed.

He failed the Flash legacy.

He failed; it was simple yet so sharp. It felt like a knife had pierced his heart and was twisted.

He had failed everybody.

The sound of the door opened startled him, snapping him back to reality as he gave a little jump. Few seconds later, the silent kitchen was interrupted by footsteps.

"Did I miss the party or what?" a joking voice asked.

Barry looked up to see Joe with an amused smile but the speedster quickly tore his gaze away and resumed staring at the table. Joe frowned. He knew something was up with Barry; he usually laughs at his jokes.

Joe sighed, placing away his jacket and pulled out a chair; its leg scraped against the wooden floor.

"Alright, something happened. What is it?"

Barry shook his head, not wanting to say it. "Nothing." he replied without any emotions.

"Uh uh; you totally have me convinced there." Joe replied. "We can play this game all night but you and I both know you're going to give in sometime. So it must as well be now."

"I just don't want to say it." Barry whispered. "It's…it's too painful. I can't say it. I don't want to be the bearer."

Joe gave in a deep thought; a sympathetic look upon his face. "That bad, huh?"

Tick tock tick tock.

Something started to slide down Barry's cheeks though he was unaware of it. This concerned Joe and he wanted nothing more than to help him but he can't unless Barry gives him the permission to do so.

Barry soon realized that there were tears falling down. Frustrated and depressed, Barry placed his elbows on his lap; his head on his hands.

"I've failed. I've failed as the Flash. I've failed as the hero. I've failed the legacy." Barry said, shakily.

Joe blinked. He hadn't expected him to say that. Not at all. But he admit. What did he fail? And speaking about the legacy, where are Wally and Bart?

"Barry…" Joe asked, quietly. "Where are Wally and Bart?"

And from that simple sentence, more tears started to fall which racked Barry's body.

"Where are they?" he repeated although he frowned. Why was this such a sensitive topic?

"Wally's dead, Joe. Wally's dead." Barry's voice cracked.

And the house was back to being silent.

:(/\):

He didn't know how long it had been passed. A few weeks? Maybe. He hadn't even moved out of his bed for the past several weeks which concerned certain people a lot. Of course, an argument had broken out between the two; one was sent storming up the stairs and the other one was probably still sulking.

Guess who's upstairs?

None other than Barry.

The Flash curled himself into a ball, the conversation from the past few weeks still haunted his mind.

"He's what?" Joe asked, sharply. His eyes glued to the adopted son and he found himself unable to believe the news. But the broken down speedster that was sitting right here at his home proved it.

Joe had never seen Barry this broken before.

"Wally's dead." Barry repeated. He's sick to the stomach whenever he had to say it. He just couldn't say it anymore.

His body was already full with emotions; sadness, grieve, sorrow, angry…

"Bart…I don't know what happened to him. One minute he was okay and then the next, Inertia had gotten him and he took away his speed. I didn't saw his body, Joe. I don't know if Bart's still alive." Barry responded.

"So you left him." Joe observed, still being shocked by the news.

"I didn't left him. I just don't know where he was. That speed column was still being activated and there's probably a good chance that Bart might've been sucked into it."

Joe drew a confused look. "The speed column? Are you sure that not's the Speed Force?"

Barry snapped. "What has the Speed Force got to—"he began, angrily then paused. He stared at the table again and then looked back at Joe who had an unknowing look.

"No…no, it's not possible. Bart couldn't be in the Speed Force. Otherwise, I would've felt him." Barry shook his head.

"You said you didn't saw his body. The chances are high. If Bart isn't in the speed force then where else he could've been? Did he suddenly gain the ability to fly? You're not connected to the Speed Force like how Bart is."

"But I'm the one who formed it." Barry argued back. "My speed generates it from there."

"Then give me one good reason why Bart might not be in the Speed Force, Barry." Joe irked. He felt his anger rise but he was maintaining it. And for Barry…? Not so much.

There was an intense air in the atmosphere; Barry glared at Joe and he was starting to be annoyed with him. With that last sentence, Joe started to walk out of the kitchen. He was tired and it had been a long day. However, he stopped at the entrance of the kitchen.

"I hope you're going to be prepared for the next day," Joe started. "Because you better tell Iris sooner or later."

Barry shivered at the flashback that had just been played in his head. He wants to forget it. Naturally, Joe isn't speaking to him when he found out that Barry still hadn't told Iris. He just couldn't bring it to her. He can totally imagine how the conversation will go.

"Hey Iris. Oh, nothing is up. I just wanted to let you know that Wally's dead."

Yeah, that would so go well.

Barry let out a shaky sigh. He supposed that he should get out of the room. It doesn't do any good at all. And he has been really distant lately. Sighing, Barry pulled himself together and slowly but eventually, he dragged himself out of his bed after staring at the floor for a few minutes.

Although he had gotten out of bed, Barry still found himself being deep in thought even as he opened the door of his room. And because he was so deep in thought, he didn't even realized that he had bumped into someone.

"Barry!" a voice exclaimed.

And just by that voice, it snapped him back to reality. "I—I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going and I bumped into you…" Barry looked up only to trail off when he saw Iris smiling at him.

"Hey! You're out of your room. Welcome back to the living!" she greeted him.

The speedster gave a nervous chuckle. "Y—yeah…Civilization…party. Yeah…" he laughed, sheepishly.

Iris gave him an odd look. She knew he was socially awkward, clumsy and well just plain awkward but something about him is off. He was nervous. But for what reason?

"Barry—"

"I gotta go." the scarlet responded in a hurry.

"Wait—"

The minute she touched his arm, Barry automatically pulled it back. Needless to say, it had hurt. Iris tried to hide away the pained expression but it simply wouldn't listen to her bidding.

"I—I have to go to S.T. lab. I'm sorry. I will tell you everything, I promise." Barry replied, staggering backwards a little. And then, within a flash, he was gone before Iris had even had the chance to say "Tell me what?"

:(/\):

Caitlin sighed. She couldn't believe that Wally was dead. Her heart ached at the dead speedster and even though she didn't know him that well, she still felt a lot of pain in her body.

She felt sorry for Barry and especially for the whole West family and because of that, Caitlin had wondered if Barry had told Iris or even Joe. She let out a shaky sigh; that would not be good at all.

Caitlin sincerely hoped that Barry would be better; she or Cisco hadn't seen him in the past several weeks and that worried them.

"Still no sign of Barry?"

Cisco's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and the female gave him a sorrow look, indicating that she hadn't.

"No." her voice cracked without meaning to. "I just hope he's alright."

"Me too." Cisco sighed. "You think he told Joe? Or even Iris?"

Caitlin could simply shrug. She had no idea what Barry was doing; he hadn't even contacted them to know what was going on and he had become distant lately which is a bad sign.

And as though, it was on cue, the two of them felt the familiar breeze. They expected to be the twins but they were wrong.

"No, Dawn. Barry hadn't come back to civilization yet." Cisco announced.

"Are you sure? Because last time I checked, I'm a male unless I have changed to a female last night."

Cisco froze and gave a glance at Caitlin who had her eyes wide. They both sharply turned around only to see the person they were expecting with a cracked smile.

"Hey." Barry gave a feeble smile.

"Barry!" Caitlin cried out. She practically jumped out of her seat and threw herself on him for a hug. She tightened her grip on him as though she was afraid to let him go.

"Woah…" Cisco blinked. "Welcome back to the living."

Barry flashed him a small sneer.

"No note, no contact! Why didn't you send us anything? A sign or something?" Caitlin exclaimed, unleashing her anger. "We thought you had disappeared somewhere!" she made a small hit on his arm. "Or something terrible had happened to you!"

"Sorry…sorry again."

"Caitlin, ease up on the guy. He practically came out from depression." Cisco responded. And Barry shot him a look.

"So uhm…did you tell…you know…" Cisco began, shifting awkwardly.

Barry struggled to say the words but then he nodded. "I only told Joe." he replied, quietly.

The two gave a look to each other before they let out an exclaim of shout.

"You what? What about Iris? She deserves to know! You can't have her be in the dark! It's unfair." the brunette exclaimed. "Barry, you're terrible."

"I'm sorry, alright?!" Barry drew out a frustrated shout. "I had a lot on my mind, lately. Joe and I had an argument ever since I had told him the news about Wally so now he's not speaking to me. He actually had given me a lot to think about, really and I wasn't ready to tell Iris about Wally. It just hurts too much. It hurts even now."

There was an awkward silence in the air and Barry let out a few shaky breaths. "And I don't even know what to do anymore." he whispered. "I've failed the Flash legacy."

And from that simple sentence, it made Cisco felt like a knife had stabbed him in the heart. Without thinking, Caitlin walked up to him and gave a slap across the face.

"I probably deserved it." Barry muttered, placing his hand on his stinging cheek.

"No, duh." Cisco said. "Out of everything, you did not fail the Flash legacy. Why did you even thought of that? You're being too hard on yourself."

"But I've lost everyone!"

"No you didn't. You still have Don and Dawn." Caitlin said.

A sharp silence settled in which left Barry and Caitlin to stare at one another.

"Alright," Cisco interrupted them. "What we need to do know is to relocate Inertia—he isn't dumb enough to go back to the same place where you had encountered them. After that, we need to figure out a plan on how to stop him and get Bart back." he finished.

Barry eventually tore his gaze away from the brunette and nodded. "Alright. Okay."

"Great. Now let's start to relocate Inertia." Cisco replied. Just as he walked past by Barry, he widened his eyes as something appeared in front of him. It took a while for him to realize that his powers were kicking in.

He found himself in a strange silvery grey column with bolts of lightning flashing by. He was confused, needless to say but what puzzled him even more was that there was a familiar figure in the middle of this strange column and it took him another full minute to realize who it was before his powers died down.

Cisco paused, eyes staring wide at what he just saw. That can't be possible…but obviously it was since the image had just showed him.

Did Cisco really saw Bart in the Speed Force?

Author's Note: Whew, finally got this done. Hope it's worth a read and not too confusing to read. I didn't really mention about the effects in this chapter but they are probably going to be mentioned in the next chapter. I was planning to make a "five month later" kinda thing, meaning that they had found Bart only to recall that he doesn't have his speed but later found out that he actually had his speed and was forced to be seen with it since Inertia made an appearance. But that probably wouldn't work since I already stuck Bart in the Speed Force. But anyways, I'll see you next time! Toodles!