Welcome to the first showdown between the Flash and Savitar. The god of speed is going to be the toughest opponent Barry will ever face. I can't wait for you all to see how I'm going to end this. But until then, my co-authors are Brightburn1985 and ThomasMarieAmell2.0. Thomas has just posted a one-shot series about Superflash. Go check it out, I love it.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Flash
"You may serve the Speed Force Flash but I rule it. After having spent millennia, I am the epitome of the Speed Force. I am not just another speedster. I am The Speedster. I am a God." Savitar rasped out.
Barry didn't let his facial expression change, but he simply drank in the sight before him. It seemed that none of the others were able to see this behemoth, so it must be because Barry was able to unconsciously slow down his perception of the world. Enough that he could catch the end trails of this person. It also meant, being the only other current speedster on this Earth, he was the only one able to see him.
When Barry looked at him, Barry didn't see a god, he saw a walking tin can. A metal tin can with blades large enough to cut a person in half. Which reminded him of that little girl he'd tried so desperately to help, but had unfortunately met an untimely demise.
"Frankie Kane. You're the one who killed her. Weren't you?" Barry accused him through gritted teeth. Frankie had mentioned sensing a giant metal man that she couldn't see right before she was murdered. This thing fit the description to a tee.
"She was a disappointment. Magenta held potential, but Kane dragged her down. As soon as she tried to flee, I was forced to tie up that loose end." Savitar answered.
"How could you?!" Barry shouted, glaring at the figure keeping him aloft. "She didn't want any part of this. You could have left her alone. She didn't have to die!"
"That's the duty of a god Flash. I decide who lives and dies." Savitar responded.
"Call me agnostic." Barry retorted. Barry tried to pry Savitar's hand off his torso, but his struggles proved futile when Savitar's grip tightened.
"Let's go for a run." Savitar said.
Barry's eyes widened as he shouted to his team before he disappeared. "Get Alchemy in the Pipeline! Don't-"
Barry was cut off as Savitar ran off with Barry's body in tow. But Cisco and Caitlin complied with Barry's last request. Cisco opened a breach directly beneath Alchemy that would drop the figure in a cell in the Pipeline where the team would question him themselves.
Joe commandeered a truck to place Wally in and drive his son out of the scene and to the safety of STAR Labs where they could hopefully find a way to get Wally out of the cocoon.
Cisco breached himself and Caitlin back to the Cortex where HR was waiting for them, staring at a monitor that showed Barry's tracker appearing and disappearing all over Central City.
"Oh god," Cisco gasped as he looked upon the sheer power of the invisible man Barry had attempted to chase in the station. Whatever it was, it could move instantaneously. How could Barry go up against this?
"Question." HR raised his hand. "I've been studying your Flash, and it's never been mentioned that he can move that fast. So I need to ask, is that him that's moving on the screen?"
"No it's not," Caitlin whispered as she watched the signal travel from one place to another.
Savitar had been running all over Central City, dragging Barry along for the ride. If Barry thought Savitar was fast before, it was entirely different to be travelling alongside the alleged god. It was as though they were travelling through a tunnel of light. As if Savitar had managed to enter a realm where time stood still and reappear wherever he desired. And it was all so fast, Barry had no time to react to the different settings before Savitar would send him a few punches and then carry him off to their next destination.
Finally Savitar ended their run when it hurled Barry forward into the ground. The speed and force of which left an impression in the ground before Barry came to a halt.
"Had enough?" Savitar taunted him.
Barry's response was to shakily stand to his feet and try to reach Savitar with his speed. Savitar was faster and stronger than him. Barry was forced to admit that. The only thing he could hope to achieve was to catch Savitar by surprise.
But even Barry's surprise attack was too slow, as Savitar saw it coming and dashed away and reappeared right behind Barry before he even realized Savitar had moved.
Savitar grabbed the back of Barry's neck and slammed him face down into the ground. Barry grunted in pain, but he was too weak to try to get Savitar off of him.
"Pathetic," Savitar scoffed at him. "Is that all you can do? I'd have hoped you could live up to your title of 'The Fastest Man Alive'."
"Go to hell." Barry grunted, his face still pressed into the dirt.
"What you call hell, I call a marathon. There is nothing you could ever do to stop me, nor will there ever be anything to stop me." Savitar growled menacingly.
Savitar leaned down next to Barry, but kept his hold on the fallen speedster. "I'm not going to kill you right now." Savitar whispered. "It would be so easy to strike you down, but that would be too easy. I want to see you suffer. I want to see every struggle, every sacrifice you make in a feeble attempt to try to stop me. Because that would make beating you all the more worth it. I want to see your face when you realize you've been utterly defeated."
"Who are you?!" Barry grunted in an attempt to remain strong whilst at the mercy of the metal man.
"You already know who I am, for we are both children of the same entity. You just don't want to know." Savitar snarled, but then disappeared. The pressure he was putting on Barry's neck fading as Savitar sped off in a crack of light.
Barry remained on the ground, trying to catch his breath. The pure shock of having been beaten so thoroughly was still catching up with him that Barry was still processing the fact that he wasn't dead. Not yet at least.
The only reason Barry wasn't killed was because Savitar, whoever he was, wanted Barry to get to his absolute best, before showing him Savitar was still leagues ahead of him. He was playing in an entirely different field, an entire different game. It would all be hopeless unless Barry produced a miracle and would be able to catch up, even just barely.
A breach opened behind him and two familiar figures, Caitlin and Cisco jumped out, their stances ready for a battle. "Where is he?" Caitlin asked.
"He's gone. Left a little while ago." Barry informed them, remembering that only he was able to see Savitar. Still, that encounter with Savitar had shaken him more than anything before. More than Thawne and Zoom combined. For the first time, Barry didn't think there was any possibility he could overcome this man. This god.
"Well thanks for making us worry for nothing. When we saw your tracker stop moving, we thought something happened to you." Caitlin shouted at him.
"Sorry for making you guys come all this way, but I appreciate it," Barry smiled at them trying to keep them from seeing the worry he was feeling, slightly wincing from the bruises that would be healed by the morning.
"Come on, you're hurt. Cisco will breach us to STAR Labs so I can check you over for any lasting injuries."
"Is that all I am to you people? Just a taxi to take you around the city?" Cisco asked.
"So how much is this going to cost?" Barry said as a joke. Inside, he felt like he wanted to curl into a ball and hope to every other deity in existence that Savitar would never be able to find him.
Caitlin laughed at Cisco's expense, but Cisco just muttered incomprehensibly as they all stepped through a breach that would take them to STAR Labs.
Alchemy was unconscious in the Pipeline. The stone had been retrieved, and a box with strange markings had been hidden in the robe Alchemy was wearing.
The rest of the followers had either been apprehended by CCPD, or had escaped when Savitar had taken them away. But they managed to get their leader. The entire thing was basically a cult with Alchemy at the head.
Usually this wouldn't fall under the category of being illegal as they were actively working under the belief of Savitar, a god that Barry had encountered himself. The problem was, Savitar was killing people they 'enlisted', and that was a loose term considering the circumstances of how they were trying to recruit Wally, and so that made them accessories to several counts of murder. At the very least, the murder of Frankie Kane since Savitar had admitted it to Barry, and it wasn't hard to assume it was Savitar who murdered Clariss in his cell.
Nobody had removed the mask of Alchemy since they'd placed him in his cell. They felt that only Barry had the honour of doing so since he just got his body dragged across all of Central City from a supposed god.
"Anyone feeling the tense vibe or is it just me?" Cisco asked while he stood next to Caitlin and Barry in front of Alchemy's cell.
"We're ready whenever you are." Caitlin said to Barry, holding him up since some of his injuries still weren't fully healed, there were still bruises at some parts of his body but they were slowly healing.
Barry nodded his head, and opened Alchemy's cell door so they could go inside. Alchemy had been unconscious ever since he'd arrived. Barry cautiously entered the cell, half expecting Alchemy to jump at him any second, but without the stone, he seemed harmless. Barry reached for the mask, and when it came off, it revealed a head of blond hair on a familiar face that Barry had seen since he'd returned from Flashpoint.
"Oh boy," He stood up straight with some help from Caitlin, clutching the mask as he stared at the sight of Julian wearing Alchemy's clothes.
"Oh man, I thought that man was just a dick! I didn't think that he was evil! Like Draco Malfoy evil!" Cisco commented when he finally got a glimpse of who Alchemy is behind the mask.
"This doesn't make any sense." Barry muttered. "Julian is a disagreeable man, but he's not evil. He wouldn't do this."
"Well, clearly he did considering he's Alchemy. We all saw what he did." Caitlin said. "Whatever rock he had, it put Wally in that cocoon. He summoned Savitar when his plan went awry. And there's no way Alchemy could have switched with Albert. We breached him directly into the cell. Julian Albert is Alchemy."
"You don't understand, there is no way Julian can be Alchemy. He hates what Alchemy has done. Despises it." Barry insisted.
"Or he could be lying to you, you know like Thawne and Zolomon. They all pretended to hate the big bad villain but it turned out that they were the said big bad villain. Do you get what I'm saying?"
"I'm telling you, Julian is not the guy. He spends his entire day being spiteful. Alchemy isn't the work of a man who doesn't understand metahumans. Alchemy is manipulative. He knows what he wants and how to make people get it for him. Julian works for what he wants. He's an honest man. They're not the same." Barry said.
"Okay, If what you're saying is true, then how come Julian is wearing Alchemy's clothes even when Cisco breached him directly to his cell, which has not been open up until five minutes ago?" Caitlin asked.
"I don't know." Barry shook his head. "But I know I'm right. I'm going to talk to him as soon as he wakes up and get to the bottom of this."
"You do know that I ordered you rest until you're fully healed, right?" Caitlin raised her eyebrows at him. "'Cause it looks like you, won't be following my order."
"I'll be fine. How long until he wakes up?" Barry asked.
"Ten more minutes, I guess. Twenty tops."
"I'll rest until then. Nobody talks to him until I do. Wake me up when he does." Barry yawned and returned to one of the beds in STAR Labs.
"That is a long ass nap for someone who just had a minor concussion, you know that right?" Cisco said in a joking manner while Caitlin choked on her own saliva.
"I may or may not have added a couple of minutes for Barry to rest." Caitlin said sheepishly.
"Aww. You do care about him," Cisco smiles cheekily.
"I thought that was obvious when I told you I love him a couple weeks ago." Caitlin rolled her eyes.
"I know. It's just nice to hear you say it."
"Bloody hell!" Julian cursed out loud as he slowly regained his consciousness. His head was aching pretty bad and the clothes he was wearing were uncomfortable. "Where am I?"
The cameras in Julian's cell alerted the others that Julian was now awake and ready for questioning. Reluctantly, Caitlin went to fetch Barry from his nap. Julian wasn't unconscious for nearly as long as she'd hoped. It was late, and Caitlin had been hoping Julian would be out for the rest of the night, but it looked like luck wasn't on her side tonight.
"What-what time is it? Is Julian awake?" Barry asked while he was being woken up by Caitlin, who nodded her head.
Barry shot out of bed, quickly put on his hero suit, and went down to the Pipeline where Julian was being kept.
The flash of lightning drew Albert's attention and he saw the dark figure of the Scarlet Speedster in the shadows.
"Flash! Flash, thank god. Help me. I just woke up here and I don't know why!" Julian smiled, standing up on his feet as he walked closer to the glass barrier between them.
"I know. I'm sorry, but it's safer for everyone that you stay in that cell." Barry said regretfully. He could have handled it if Julian had been angry at being locked up. It tore him that Julian looked at him with such hope at the prospect of being freed.
"What do you-what is happening? Why am I locked up? Did-did you lock me up, Flash? I'm innocent!" Julian said, the hope in his eyes were replaced by betrayal and anger.
Barry took out the mask Alchemy had been wearing when they apprehended him. "We found you wearing this. Alchemy's mask when you were apprehended. There is no possibility that it was anyone else. Your delivery here could not have been interrupted. You are Alchemy."
"See, that's the thing, I'm just another normal human. I work for the bloody police! How could I be some lunatic who's spewing husks all over the city left and right?!"
"Alchemy was in possession of a stone. A glowing stone that was able to shoot beams of energy. When someone else touched it, they were encased in a cocoon. A box with strange markings was in the robes you were wearing. When the stone and box were in close proximity, they both began to emit light. They're both connected, and both were in your possession when the police found you." Barry explained.
"But that's impossible, I was doing paperwork in my crime lab! Check the security footage! I'm innocent, Flash."
"Nobody knew where you were before the raid. You'd disappeared an hour before the task force was assembled. You weren't in CCPD after 7."
"That's bloody impossible! That-that's the last thing that I remember before I woke up here." Julian took a seat and buried his face into his hands.
"Has this been happening a lot? When you lose track of time? Only to wake up somewhere else with no idea how you got there?" Barry asked. He was starting to get an idea on what was going on here.
"Yeah, I've been seeing a therapist but they've got no clue what's happening to me. It all started after I came home from that expedition."
Julian went on to tell the story of how his little sister had died. Julian was so overcome with grief, and he didn't receive any solace from his parents. One night, after a particularly bad day, Julian received a vision of his sister. Telling him of a legendary stone with powers beyond anyone's imagination.
After that, it was like an obsession. Julian had spent millions of dollars and years in order to find the resting place of the stone, when one night, they finally found the box where the stone, the Philosopher's Stone, had been buried. But when Julian opened the box, that was when he was subjected to his first black out.
"I woke up the next day in my hotel room. When I saw the news, the rest of my team was dead. Killed. I panicked. I thought they were going to pin the whole thing on me, so I fled to America." Julian ended his story.
"Is there anyone who is still alive who knows about the stone?" Barry asked.
"No," Julian shook his head. "My parents promptly disowned me when I set foot out of the family estate. I don't even remember what they really look like anymore."
"I'm sorry about that. And I'm sorry about locking you up in here but we still need to confirm your story. I'll be back." Barry said before walking away, leaving Julian alone in his cell.
"His story checks out. There was indeed a stone called The Sorcerer's Stone somewhere in India. That's what I get for making a Harry Potter reference."
"So what do we think? Do we let him go?" Caitlin asked.
"Something has happened to Julian and the stone is a part of it. But whatever it is, we're not going to find out with him locked in the Pipeline."
"And what about Alchemy? What happened to him?" Cisco asked.
"I don't think there is an Alchemy. Remember we've encountered a meta with an alternate personality, I think this is the same case." Barry said. Barry hadn't spoken, or even referenced Frankie Kane since that night so for him to even indirectly mention her was a shock.
"You think this is what's happened with Julian? That the stone has somehow created Alchemy in Julian?" Caitlin suggested.
"Exactly. Julian isn't the one behind the wheel. I don't know, but I know that whatever is happening is because of that stone." Barry pointed to the rock that they had placed inside the box. If releasing the stone from its container was what started Julian's blackouts, maybe placing it back inside would keep it from causing anymore harm.
"That box gives me the creeps." Cisco commented.
"What readings did you get from it?" Barry asked.
Cisco took a moment to think about what exactly he was going to answer that question. "It's nothing," Cisco said dramatically.
"Pretty sure it's not nothing." Barry replied, looking directly at the box that was sitting on the table.
"I mean I've put this through every test, every scan I could think of. Twice at least. It's not giving me any readings. It's like the box doesn't exist." Cisco answered.
"Irrationality is not an argument against its existence. Only a condition of it." HR spoke up.
"I'm pretty sure Nietzsche never encountered a thing that literally can provide no information at all."
"What I'm trying to say is that, just because we can get no readings from it, doesn't mean we won't learn more about it. We're just not using the right tool." HR said.
"Now what are you saying?" Caitlin asked.
"Mr. Albert has been able to access the power of the stone. Perhaps he can shed some light on this mystery." HR pointed out.
"I'll go get him." Caitlin offered and headed down to the Pipeline to release Julian.
Barry glared down at his feet when Caitlin went to get Julian.
Cisco noticed Barry's silent fit of anger but didn't comment on it. He suspected he knew what Barry was angry about and it brought a little bit of hope in his chest. Maybe Caitlin's crush wasn't so hopeless.
Once Julian was out of the Pipeline, they got to talking about how they would go about identifying what the Philosopher's Stone was.
Julian was adamant that they keep the box closed. As long as it remained sealed, no harm would come to any of them. But then there was also the threat of Savitar. Just because Alchemy was out of commission didn't mean Savitar was just going to stop.
"What if I hook you up to the stone?" Cisco suggested. "The stone remains inside, we can pull you out at any time. It'll be completely safe without the danger of exposing the stone to the world."
"You can do that?" Julian questioned.
"The stone is able to create its own brain waves in you. It shouldn't be difficult to sync your brain waves with those of the stone. That way, we'll be able to talk to Alchemy without his powers." Cisco answered.
"And you promise this will be completely safe?"
"Absolutely. Probably. Maybe." Cisco said. "I can't stop, someone stop me."
"Alright, let's do this before I lose my nerve, but this is the only time." Julian agreed.
With Julian's consent, they began hooking up wires from the box to Julian's head that would hopefully connect the two.
"So now what do I do?" Julian asked.
"Just relax and count back from ten." Barry said.
"Okay. Te-" Julian began but immediately fell asleep before he could even finish saying the first number.
Cisco snapped his fingers in front of Julian just to make sure he was really asleep. When Julian didn't stir, it confirmed he was sound asleep. "That was fast." Cisco commented.
"So how will we know if it worked?" Joe asked.
"That's the thing, we won't until something happens with Julian." Cisco said.
At that moment, Julian shot up, wide awake but still strapped to the chair. He swivels his head to take them all in. "None of you are on your knees. It is wise to bow before a deity."
"Alchemy?" Barry questioned. But his words didn't align with the position as a high priest, to refer to themselves as a god… But then Barry managed to connect the voice. "Savitar."
"I was wondering when you would realize." Julian nodded his head.
"I thought Julian was Alchemy." Caitlin said.
"There is no Alchemy. Savitar uses the stone somehow to speak through Julian. Savitar is the one who's been behind everything this whole time." Barry realized.
"Julian was helpful in my goal, but now is the time for my ascension." Savitar spoke.
"What are you planning?" Barry asked.
"You cannot hope to understand my plans. And there is nothing you can hope to do to stop me. There is no defying fate."
"Who are you?" Barry asked once again.
"I've told you before. You know who I am. You've always known from the day you entered this world. You just choose not to know." Savitar answered.
"You're not a god. I know that at least. Otherwise you wouldn't need Julian to become Alchemy. You're not even here. You need the stone to keep yourself tied to this world. You're just a man who's trapped." Barry taunted him.
"I may be stuck in an eternity, but I will soon find my way out. My sentence is almost over, and I will be coming for you. Your fates have already been decided. There is no escaping your destinies."
"You don't know the future. Nothing is set in stone." Barry denied.
"Oh, I don't? I already know what the future has in store for all of you. One of you will be lost forever. One will uncover a truth not worth knowing. And all shall fall before me."
"We're going to stop you. We'll make sure none of that happens." Cisco says.
"You cannot stop what has already begun. You will remember me for all of eternity. I am Savitar!"
Barry rushed to pull the plug, disrupting the connection between Savitar and Julian. Julian shot forward as if he'd awoken from a terrible dream. "What happened? Did it work?"
"Do you think what Savitar said is true? One shall be lost? An uncovered truth? That we're all going to die by his hand?" Caitlin asked morosely.
"I'm sure he believes it's going to happen, but we're going to make sure it doesn't." Cisco assured her.
"How can you be sure?" Caitlin asked. "How can you know that everything is going to be alright?"
"I don't. But I need to have faith that we're going to pull through this, just like every other time." Cisco said.
"So what are we going to do about Julian?" Caitlin asked.
"Well, luckily nobody outside this room knows that Julian is Alchemy, so as long as we make sure the Philosopher's Stone stays inside the box, Alchemy won't return and Julian can try to lead a normal life." Barry answered.
"Maybe we should ask for his help," Caitlin suggested.
"Why would we do that?" Cisco asked.
"Because Julian knows things. He can help us to take down Savitar. He may even help with finding the last two metas Alchemy created." Caitlin pointed out.
"I don't think that's a good idea, I mean the least we can do is let Julian live a life free of Alchemy and Savitar. Plus, we can't just be adding another member of our team, it's got to be their choice whether they want to live a life like this." Barry said, not liking the sound of Caitlin's idea. Having Julian on the team means he and the team gets to spend more time with him. Especially Caitlin. And he did not like that thought one bit.
"Or he could be the key to stopping Savitar. We can try and talk to Savitar again through him, get some more information none of us can get."
"We promised Julian he wouldn't have to do that again. He would have to willingly agree to go through that another time." Cisco said.
"Well we would be able to contact him easier if we put him on the team if it were to come to that." Caitlin pointed out.
"We can't just add every person who might be of convenience to us in the future. We need to make sure he's going to be a good fit with the team." Barry said, crossing his arms in frustration.
"We let HR stay on the team, despite being a total fraud. Julian is actually a scientist, who is completely qualified to be on the team. Why can't we at least give him an offer to join the team?" Caitlin asked.
"That was different," Barry tried to defend weakly.
"You're right. This is different. We let someone who was lying to us join the team because he offered sentimentality. But we're not letting someone else join because you don't like him." Caitlin said sarcastically.
"That's… that's not… What do you want me to do?" Barry stuttered.
"I want you to give him a chance. Why can't you swallow your pride and offer an olive branch?" Caitlin asked.
"Hey, I tried to reach out. We went to get a drink after a long day. We went to a bar, we had a decent time and never spoke of it again. It's his turn to reach out to me." Barry pointed at himself.
"That's not how it works. If you want to be friends, just keep trying. Ask him if he would like to join the team. Take a step forward. Give him a chance. You have absolutely no reason to not offer him a spot on the team." Caitlin said.
"I know he's not going to be a good fit on the team." Barry complained. "He has to nitpick every little thing I do. It's a total hassle. It's not worth it."
"I can't believe how whiny you sound. You're so unbelievable!" Caitlin shouted before storming out.
So it's come to this. The final chapter before Caitlin reveals her feelings to Barry. Next chapter is going to directly follow this one. I don't want to reveal too much, but let's see how many of you will be able to tell what I based the reveal on. Whether they get together immediately or not is up in the air.
But in the meantime, any guesses on who my Savitar is? I've given a couple hints and nods to his true identity. Let's see how many of you can tell. Of course I will not be confirming anybody but it'll be fun to see what they are.
Next week can't come soon enough.