Purgatory of Contrition
Disclaimer: I don't own The Flash
Author's Note: Chapter themes are "Illusion of Control" by The Anix and "Under Your Spell" by The Birthday Massacre.
Several days after Rupture was defeated, Zoom decided he would pull out his riskiest card, hoping she would discover a weakness from Savitar. There had to be something. When he figured out what it was, he would thoroughly enjoy reducing the god-like being into a pile of simpering garbage.
"Spread panic, spread fear, root out Savitar and learn what you can from him, but do not engage," Zoom demanded, itching to squeeze his hand tighter around Killer Frost's throat. "Disobey me and I will make you suffer," he threatened, before shoving her down.
Killer Frost glared, rubbing her neck and coughing, but then cowered when his lightning increased, indicating his unstable mood. "I'll do as you say…" she agreed quickly, hating him, but not having any other choice.
"Don't disappoint me."
"Yes, Zoom," she reluctantly obeyed him.
The next night, Team Flash was shocked at the news reports they had been getting that whole day. Someone was attacking random institutions, freezing people and vehicles, hurting cops, chasing down people who tried to stop them. Looking through the system, Cisco gaped at what he was seeing. "N-No way…" he said, then flipped his screen to the larger view screen.
"Killer Frost," Harry responded grimly, recognizing her. He had hoped she wouldn't show up, not wanting to crush Caitlin's already fragile spirit. As expected, he could practically feel her tense near him, saw the look of horror on her face.
"Oh Jesus, that's…" Joe trailed off painfully.
"What do we know about her?" Cisco asked Harry, trying not to bring attention to who it looked like either, feeling worried for Caitlin's mental fortitude.
"She's usually a solo player, in it for her own interests, but Zoom would have recruited her. I can bet my considerable intellect on it," Harry explained.
"How are we even supposed to stop her?" Joe asked, not wanting to think of the vigilante going to their rescue again. They needed to start pulling their own weight!
"Well, if she has the powers of cold, maybe a heat gun…" Cisco sighed. He had already made these weapons, and they had been stolen. Was he really considering making more? "Maybe a really strong hairdryer…" he grumbled in defeat.
Caitlin wrung her hands, remembering everything Zoom had been taunting her with about her alter-ego. Even now, she could barely find it in herself to cope, wondering she truly had a bit of Killer Frost in her, as he had claimed. She tried to keep her composure, tried not to be affected by the sight of her hurting people and causing panic. It wasn't her. It wasn't, no matter how much Zoom taunted her.
Elsewhere, Savitar had been watching her as well. He had felt a shift in the Speed Force, and knew Zoom had opened another portal. He scowled. The coward still hadn't found the balls to show up. As he observed her random targets, he again toyed with the idea of killing her, but again, he was stopped by that nagging, self-righteous part of him that reminded him it was wrong. At the same time, he knew he would have trouble killing someone that looked so much like Caitlin, even if he had threatened to do so to Cisco in the past.
Irritated and needing to do something, he sped over to her.
Killer Frost gasped, stumbling back a little when a hulking mass of armor and electricity was suddenly right in her path. She lifted her hands defensively, crouching slightly, wondering if he was there to stop her. Was he the Savitar that had Zoom so obviously spooked? "Who are you?" she asked with narrowed eyes.
Savitar was impressed by how confident she was, only seeing a small amount of anxiety in her eyes. She was clearly stronger in character than Rupture had been. But then, he wasn't surprised, having seen that strength in Caitlin, even when she was being tormented by Zoom. "You know who I am. I'm sure Zoom mentioned me."
Killer Frost cautiously lowered her hands. Zoom had told her to learn about him, not to try to fight him. Besides, if he was scared of him, she couldn't imagine how much more of a threat he was. "What do you want?"
"Correct me if I'm wrong, Zoom sent you to learn of my weaknesses, hasn't he? He's far too much of a coward to do it himself," Savitar sneered. "But ask yourself this, why work for a coward like him, when you could work with me instead?"
Killer Frost was shocked, not having expected this. "And why would I want to do that?"
"Zoom kept you prisoner, hadn't he? Abused you, barely fed you, suppressed you, is using you as a pawn… you're nothing to him," Savitar explained, watching the anger and pain in her eyes. "I am your solution," he said, and felt a moment of anxiety shoot through him, the same words being thrown at him by his tormentor before. He shook himself and concentrated again. "I can protect you. I am faster and stronger than Zoom. Help me lure him out, and I will set you free," he promised, and actually meant it. He saw the hope flicker through her and knew he made the right choice with his words.
Savitar knew Killer Frost, having learned quite a bit about her in the past. He knew how much she yearned to be left to her own devices, to not be held down by anything or anyone. She was a solitary creature, unlike Caitlin, and would do anything to get that peace back. "You want that... don't you? Just think of it, freedom. The chance to go back to your own home, free of Zoom? To have your chance at a life you couldn't have with him around? I can give you that."
Killer Frost shifted uneasily, his offer extremely tempting, having a good feeling he was being truthful. "How do I know I can trust you?" she asked anyway, a part of her afraid of being double-crossed. In the world of villains, it was always a high possibility, and she wasn't sure he was a true hero.
"You don't. You'll just have to have faith," Savitar responded truthfully. Killer Frost huffed with indecision, pacing a little, fear and doubt keeping her agitated. Savitar watched her wrestle with herself for a moment. "I won't force you to do this if you truly don't want to, but if you hurt more people, I will stop you. In the end, the choice is yours."
Killer Frost glared at him. Some choice. His words had the same finality as Zoom's. "Fine," she finally agreed. "I'll work with you."
Savitar grinned in a crazed way behind his helmet, eager to finally end this. He would send her a back however way he could, even of he had to convince Cisco that she was Earth-2's responsibility. If he was anything different than Zoom, it was that he kept his word.
Back at Star Labs, the team watched in disbelief from the CCTV feeds, watching Killer Frost get confronted by Savitar, but then watched them walk away together, side by side. "Holy shit, is… has he been a villain this whole time?" Cisco asked incredulously, not even bothering to pay attention to Caitlin's weak frown at his cursing.
"Let's not jump to conclusions, maybe… maybe there's a good reason she teamed up with him?" Caitlin offered, not willing to believe otherwise.
Harry frowned, sharing a look of doubt with Joe. "Maybe Savitar is actually part of Zoom's plans?" he countered.
Cisco paced, hating the doubt and secrecy. The armored speedster had saved them all a few times already, and wasn't attacking anyone else, unlike everyone else Zoom sent. Was the masked man really that cunning? Who was Savitar? Where did he fall in all of this?
They were all silent, contemplating what they had witnessed. Harry crossed his arms, worry knitting his brow, glancing at the med lab, at where Jesse and Wally were chatting quietly. He looked over to Caitlin, seeing how she sat hunched over, looking like she was about to throw up. "We need to keep a close watch on him. Let's work on a way to try to track him," he offered, receiving a nod from Cisco.
A few days later, Killer Frost paced in Savitar's lair, itching to do something, but not allowed to. She watched him, staring out into the city beyond the factory, his face unreadable. She had been beyond surprised when he had revealed himself to her, stepping out of his armor, claiming he wanted her to trust him more. In a way he had made himself vulnerable… but somehow, she doubted he was any weaker without the armor, even if he was slimmer than Zoom.
There was something about Savitar that was intensely intimidating, the scar not withstanding. The way he stood, the way his confident eyes regarded her, like he knew everything about her, like he could snap her neck with just a look, it made her careful with him. It struck her as strange then that she didn't feel like her life was actually threatened by him, despite the caution, unlike how she felt around Zoom. There was something more… stable about Savitar, which somehow didn't seem like it should be the case. She might have even been attracted to him if she wasn't so damn annoyed of being toyed with all the time.
Killer Frost clenched her fists, becoming irritated. "I'm tired of just sitting around!" She growled, itching to do something, anything!
"Patience," Savitar scoffed. "Zoom will know you aren't doing as he commanded you to, so it'll make it too tempting for him to stay hidden in his hole. He'll come out to investigate himself when you put yourself out into the open," he explained. He knew it had worked for Caitlin, and banked that Zoom was so set in his ways that it would work again. If he was out in the open like that, he could reach him like he did last time. This time he wouldn't just punch him.
"When can we get it over with?" she sighed, not liking the unease she felt at just waiting.
"Tonight should work," Savitar hummed thoughtfully.
"Thank god," Killer Frost sighed, leaning against an old machine with relief.
That night, Cisco and Harry were alerted to a ping on their meta detectors, having set it to recognize metas from Earth-2. The team watched from the security feeds on the streets as he and Killer Frost walked along the street. They noticed then how Savitar disappeared, leaving her to walk alone. She didn't seem surprised though, so maybe it was planned?
"Are they… going to try to lure Zoom, like Caitlin did..?" Joe asked with surprise.
"It looks like it!" Cisco muttered. "Maybe they think Zoom will fall for it again?"
"Sure he will. Not," Harry scoffed.
However, just as Savitar predicted, the temptation to confront Killer Frost for her disobedience was far too strong for Zoom to resist. Killer Frost flinched as a familiar portal opened and Zoom appeared. "Zoom," she greeted, her hands behind her back, forming an ice spike, anxiety prickling the hairs on the back of her neck.
"I told you what would happen if you disobeyed me!" Zoom growled, stepping closer, malice and intention in his tone.
"We'll see about that!" Killer Frost cried and shot her spikes at him, but Zoom, as predicted, was faster.
Behind Zoom, Savitar sped over… unfortunately, Zoom knew he would be nearby, having a good feeling she had stopped attacking because of him. He lifted his hand, throwing up a portal in hopes of trapping him, not realizing that what it actually did was make him slam into it and get repelled, thrown back several feet. Savitar lay stunned for a moment.
In the meantime, Zoom formed another portal, before rushing her and ramming his vibrating hand into her chest, piercing her heart. "Such a shame, you could have been very useful to me," he mocked, before pulling her into the portal with him.
Savitar saw this happen and cried out in fury, speeding toward the portal, trying to catch him before he went in fully, but even though he made it on time, he was again slapped away by the Speed Force itself. He landed with another heavy thud, forced to watch the portal vanish.
"No!" Savitar howled in disbelief and fury. He had said he would protect her! He failed again! He raged, shouting out in anger and sadness, cursing the speed force for not allowing him to jump after him! His plan was spoiled and he now had another life taken to feel guilty over! The idea sent him into a rampage, grabbing a van nearby and destroying it until the pain and anger dulled slightly.
Knowing it would do him nothing to destroy random things, he sped away to his lair. Once there, he shoved out of his armor and paced, shouting to the nothing around him. "How am I supposed to do what the fucking Speed Force wants if it won't let me use it to stop him!" he growled out loud, feeling his head pounding with his anger. He slumped onto his chair, hating the guilt he felt at not being able to protect Killer Frost, like he said he would. As long as that piece of shit could jump through portals, would he be able to really protect anyone? And again, he grunted in irritation, wondering when it had become so important for him to do so! He was Savitar! He shouldn't care! Fuck!
Team Flash sat staring at the once again eerily silent and unremarkable footage of an empty street in shocked silence. They could hardly believe what they had just witnessed. Savitar had actually convinced Killer Frost to work with him to try to take Zoom down, he hadn't been another villain after all. Unfortunately, it had failed.
They had watched Savitar cry out when Killer Frost was killed, watched his attempt to go after Zoom, but then saw that he somehow wasn't able to enter the portals. Maybe his armor prevented him to do so? They watched him destroy a vehicle out of rage then, before speeding away. They all collectively cringed at the sight, seeing how powerful he was, but how he also seemed to have a temper problem. Maybe it was best they kept their distance from him.
Caitlin pressed a hand to her face, taking deep breaths, doing her very best to contain the sobs that threatened to come out. Witnessing your own double get brutally murdered by the same man trying to steal you away was not something anyone could handle. What did it mean for her? Was she even able to keep Jay from killing all of them if he won against Savitar?
Cisco saw her struggling and went over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder, doing his best to comfort her. "We'll do our best to keep you safe," he said to her quietly, but they both knew those were empty words.
A few days later, Iris West rubbed her arm, remembering the conversation she had with Cisco after she noticed how numb Caitlin was. She learned about Killer Frost, having also seen the footage of her causing damage, and felt horrible that even if she had been a villain, she had lost her life trying to stop Zoom. Savitar had somehow convinced her to help him.
Zoom, Rupture, Griffin Grey, Killer Frost, everyone Zoom tried to use against them, Savitar seemed to turn around back on him, continuing to protect them for reasons none of them still fully understood. Her endless curiosity and need to uncover the truth was getting to her. For the first time in months, Iris felt like there was something her mind could latch onto.
Becoming too curious for her own good, she pulled out everything anyone had ever collected about the mystery hero. She began trying to research him, but there was very little on him. Looking through the blurry pictures, people catching short glimpses of him, she had memories of the Flash, even when he was the Streak and still unknown. This was like a crueler version of him. He had the emblem on his armor after all, but it could just be the sign of the speed force. Zoom had it too. All speedsters seemed to have it. At least that's what Harry Wells had said.
She was so engrossed in her research that she didn't notice David, a coworker, move over to her desk. "Hi Iris," he said, making her jump with surprise.
"Oh! Hi David," she responded, blushing from embarrassment.
David took the blush the wrong way and smiled, encouraged. "I was actually wondering if um… if you'd like to have dinner some day? Or-! Or coffee, whatever you like," he grinned awkwardly, hoping he hadn't messed up.
Iris stared in surprise. "Like… a date..?"
David ran a hand over his clean-shaved head, his dark skin tinting red with a deep blush. "Y-Yes, if you'd be open to it..?"
Iris felt a pang of guilt go through her. David was a really nice guy, and wasn't half bad looking either. He was tall and had high cheek bones. She knew she needed to move on, but felt like it was still too soon. Besides, how could she think about starting a relationship now with Zoom hiding around the corner?
Fortunately her silence was enough to discourage him. "Maybe another time then?" he smiled a little sadly, and moved on.
Iris again felt guilty for dashing his hopes. Why was she having such a hard time with this? It should be simple! She knew she had a problem. Maybe she should get a second opinion, knowing she was still being held back.
After work, she began to drive over to Star Labs, but then sighed to herself, knowing she shouldn't be using her friends like therapists when they had their own problems. What kind of a person did that make her? So instead, she decided to turn around and head home. She couldn't rely on everyone to guide her all the time. She knew she was stronger than that. She was a West, after all!
When she got to her small apartment, she prepared a light dinner and sat down, letting her mind mull over the subject. Iris knew she was still deeply troubled by Barry's... gruesome death, his life being taken far too suddenly. The look in Barry's eyes, knowing he was going to die… Iris took in a sharp breath and forcibly shoved the memory away, tired of crying herself to sleep over even just a short glimpse into that scene in her mind.
Focusing on her current dilemma again, she was also torn up about the city and the world losing The Flash, she had a deep drive to figure out how to defeat Zoom, wanted to protect her friends and family however way she could, even if she wasn't as skilled as they were. On top of that, she also was now very interested on discovering the truth about the mysterious Savitar. All in all, she had a lot on her plate. She wasn't ready to open up to yet another person that she might accidentally hurt just by proxy of her way of life. As bad as she felt about dissuading him, it was as much for her as it was for his protection.
The next day found Iris standing in front of David, apologizing for having to turn him down. "You seem like a great guy, but I have a lot I'm dealing with. I need to focus on my own healing before I can open up to anyone again. I'm sorry…" she explained, and was relieved to see the genuine understanding in his eyes.
"No, that's okay. I get it," he sighed. "I tried too soon, I think. I know you've been out with bereavement pretty recently. It was stupid of me to ask," he said, waving away her guilty shake of her head. "Maybe we can try again some other time?" he smiled. "I'll see you later," he said and walked off.
Iris sighed, hating how relieved she felt as seeing him leave. She sat back in her seat, wondering if she was a bad person. Was she just being selfish? But then, she really didn't want to date him, even if he was nice. She shouldn't feel obligated to move on if she didn't want to. Sighed in frustration, she settled back in at her desk and pulled out the information she was working on last night.
Maybe she was obsessing over him a little, but she knew even her coworkers- even her boss was intrigued by the mystery hero. Iris tried to see if any of her coworkers got anything on the mysterious super with the armor, but he was extremely evasive and no one did. No reports of him saving people like Barry had, like The Flash or even The Streak had. He was keeping himself as hidden as possible.
Frustrated, over the next few days she went out and tried to find him herself. She managed a few glimpses of him moving through the city, standing somewhere, staring off into the distance, but whenever she tried to get close, it was like he knew and sped away. She would return to work, or return home, either hers or her dad's, and just fume with disappointment.
Joe heard through the grapevine that Iris had been looking for Savitar. He was worried about this, knowing how obsessive she could be, how much danger she put herself in without even realizing it sometimes. When he saw her at his house that night, talking with Wally while they watched TV, he knew this would be a good time to talk to her. He finished unloading his pockets. "Iris, can I talk to you for a second?" he asked, and lead her to the kitchen. "First, I'm happy to see you here, baby," he murmured, kissing her head lovingly.
"Thanks dad," Iris smiled, comforted by his warm affection. "What did you need to talk about?"
"Listen," he sighed, knowing this would be a tough talk. "I heard you've been digging in on this Savitar guy. I want you to be careful. Guys like him are unpredictable and dangerous," he warned her.
Iris rolled her eyes and shook her head. "It's not like I'm going to go out there getting myself in trouble to find him!"
"Baby you published your blog with your name on it for everyone to see. It was you talking about and looking for the Streak. I wouldn't put it past you to get yourself in over your head…"
Iris scowled, not liking the lack of faith her dad was showing her. "If you hadn't noticed, I've been a lot more careful the past few years since then! Besides, he's not dangerous. He hasn't hurt anyone innocent, and all he's done was try to protect us. Why is that so wrong?"
"That's not wrong. I just want you to be careful. Your curiosity could get you in trouble."
Iris let out a breath, knowing he spoke from the heart. "I get that. But you have to remember I'm an adult, and it's my job to undercover the truth. That's all I want to do. This city deserves to know who their new hero is. And I'm going to find out," she said and left him in the kitchen, going back to the couch. Joe sighed again, rubbing his head. She was as stubborn as he was.
Over the next few days, Savitar had noticed Iris' attempts to follow him as he hunted for Zoom. It reminded him of when he had been the Streak. If he wasn't so torn up about her trying to reach him, he might have thought it funny. But he didn't. All he knew was that she was making it difficult for him to stay away and stay focused on his mission. He also thought she was being careless, and felt annoyed that he had to worry about her persistence getting her in danger.
Disappointed by her lack of results, Iris slumped down at her desk. Just like with everyone else, Savitar's incredible speed didn't even leave a blur if anyone ever happened to catch a glimpse of him. Not even with high speed cameras. He was just… impossible. And very mysterious. And that unfortunately made her even more interested and compelled to find him.
A report came on the tv, sounding intense. Iris turned to regard it, then sat up, watching in horror as the news feed showed an entire building falling apart. It was a science facility, all but leveled. Needing to see what was happening, if it was the strangely absent Zoom, or if Savitar might be nearby, she stood. "I'm going to get the scoop!" she announced to get boss on the way out, not giving him a chance to say anything to her.
Team Flash had been investigating as well, and arrived on the scene almost at the same time as Iris. "Iris! What are you doing here?" Cisco asked with deep concern.
"Getting the latest intel for the paper. Please don't the two of you lecture me too," she sighed, seeing them about to do just that.
The men kept silent, knowing better than to argue with her. Together they went on, trying to be quiet. When they sneaked closer, they were shocked to see who it was. Laurel Lance! "That is Black Siren," Harry announced, holding his rifle ready. He saw the alarmed look on Cisco's face. "Let me guess, you know this one too?"
"Yeah, we did," Cisco responded sadly. "She was a friend and we loved her."
Harry sighed and nodded. "Zoom is using everyone you knew against you. It's psychological warfare. Just remember, her frequency matches my Earth. She's not your friend," he told them.
"We know that..." Cisco muttered quietly.
"Maybe we can talk to her? Maybe she's under Zoom's influence too, like Killer Frost was..?" Iris suggested.
"Uh…" Cisco sighed, having a good feeling this wouldn't work. Lately nothing they did actually worked against metas. On normal criminals they could hold their own, but not on super-powered criminals. "We can try..?"
They went over to her, seeing police officers laying on the asphalt, gripping their ears. The black-clad meta turned to regard them curiously. "Oh? More visitors? This Earth is so generous with all the warm welcome," she smiled a cruel smile that made her eyes darker than they should be.
"Look we don't want trouble-"
"-That's funny, because I love trouble!" she laughed, before screaming at them. They fell to the ground, cringing, covering their ears as the pain bursting in their ears incapacitated them. She then stopped, observing them with cruel pleasure.
"Please… we just… we want to talk!" Iris begged, wanting to see her motives, to help her if they could. "You don't have to… work for him..!"
Black Siren scoffed. "Who, Zoom? What if I like working for him?" she taunted, circling them, sneering at the very pretty woman with the rich mocha complexion. "It's times like these it feels so good to be bad…" she sucked in a deep breath, suddenly she was blasted back by a shock wave.
Cisco stared at his hand in surprise. "Did… I just do that..?" Iris stared as well. They saw Black Siren stand back up, looking pissed.
"Here she comes!" Harry said, and tried to fire on her, missing by a hair as she dodged the shot. She screamed at him, knocking him down, then turned back to Cisco. She watched him try to blast her back again, but this time it didn't work. She grinned at him.
Savitar pulled people out of the building without anyone noticing. If only to silence the screaming in his head to help them. Everything had been so much more simple when he didn't care anymore, damn it. He sighed, seeing them in trouble again. He was frustrated by how reckless they were, taking risks far too big for their limited capabilities. It was as though without the Flash they didn't have a stable plan. Harry was reluctant to take command, Caitlin didn't want it, Iris was still finding herself, and Cisco's powers weren't anywhere near their peak yet, far from it.
He glanced around the area, but hadn't seen any other metas this time. No army. This was strange. Last time he saw her, she was the leader of a huge band… but this time around, it seemed Zoom was being more discrete, not wanting to risk keeping a portal open like that in case he would find him.
He remembered how Zoom had taunted him at the precinct, saying they were very much alike. It seemed now more than ever that he was spot on. But he wasn't Zoom. He hadn't even had an interest in hurting random innocent people like Zoom had. What he did as Savitar was focused, had structure and purpose, even if it was completely twisted and corrupted logic. Zoom was chaos incarnate. And this rubbed him the wrong way. Now the blowhard was being a chicken shit, sending out lackeys instead of showing himself.
His attention went back to the fight, watching them dodge more attacks by her. He had honestly hoped they could have banded together better and taken her down themselves. He couldn't always save them! He sighed again, seeing them thrown down by another scream. He hated seeing them in pain, and knew he had to act again, he couldn't wait for them to suddenly get structured. How was it that reawakening his memories seemed to be changing him so quickly? Before she could wail on all of them again, threatening to finish them off, Savitar sped over, throwing her down.
After the ringing stopped, the Cisco, Harry, and Iris looked up to see Savitar there, towering over Black Siren, who looked up at him with understandable shock. They watched her scramble to her feet and back up. "So… you're Savitar, huh?" she asked, doing her best to keep her voice from shaking.
"I am," Savitar snorted.
"Zoom is afraid of you, you know…" she sneered.
"I know," Savitar said, his voice clear with amusement.
Black Siren scowled. "I can't imagine why! I bet underneath all that armor you're pathetic!" she taunted, circling him, moving behind him, curious why he wasn't moving. "And I bet all that nice metal will be a perfect amplifier, too!" she said, and screamed. To her surprise, he turned slowly, and began walking toward her.
"My armor has sound dampening," Savitar gloated. "Just in case I went up against noisy idiots like you!" he growled and sped toward her, grabbing her throat. He saw the fear in her eyes, remembering how unimpressed she was with him in his past. He squeezed until she passed out, then released her. "She's knocked out," he said, turning to the three watching with surprise. "Be smarter about how you face metas! Don't just rush in! Study the enemy first!" he growled at them before disappearing.
"Whoa!" Cisco muttered. "Dude took her out with one hand!"
"Yes, well, if you're done being a fan boy, do you mind helping me load our friend up in the van?" Harry drawled, brushing past him to cuff the still unconscious Black Siren.
"Uh, yeah, sure. Hey, Iris, are you going to be okay? Need a lift?" Cisco asked, seeing how Iris was looking around intently.
"Hm? Oh, I'm fine. Thanks though!" Iris smiled, before walking away. She didn't see him anywhere. Maybe she should just give up and go back to work. With a sigh of disappointment, she began to head back to her car. Suddenly an achingly familiar rush of speed and wind swirled around her and she found herself in a dark alley. She spun around in surprise… and there he was. She was so stunned she couldn't speak.
"Why have you been looking for me?" asked the deeply mechanical voice, his tone irked, having seen her almost die. Again.
It took Iris a moment to come back to her senses, simply too astounded that he sought her out. "I… I need to know. Who are you? Why have you been saving us?" She asked softly, honestly a little intimidated by his enormous presence.
Savitar knew what she was truly asking, but decided he would be difficult, it was the least she deserved for driving him insane lately. "Savitar," he reminded her, wondering why he hadn't just left already. At this point he was just setting himself up for torture.
"No, I mean… who are you under the armor?" she asked with a frown.
"Human."
Iris thought she might have imagined the humor, despite the mechanical voice. "So, you're not a god?"
Savitar snorted at her cheek, smiling behind his helmet despite himself. He had always loved how clever she was, how easily she had always been able to keep him on his toes. "I guess not."
"But… maybe strong enough to beat Zoom?"
Savitar was silent for a moment. "Maybe," he conceded. It was his intention to kill Zoom, but he wasn't sure how much to tell her. He had already fucked up with the Iris from the prime timeline, royally. This time he wanted to be more careful with what he said to her.
"How do I know you're a living breathing man under the armor?"
"Maybe I'm a woman?" he teased, surprising her and himself. Somehow talking to her again was bringing out his playful side.
"No, I somehow doubt that. Can I see?"
"No."
"Just… even just a shadow. I have to know you're really human under there."
Savitar sighed, knowing she would continue to irritate him if he didn't do as she asked. After a pause, he backed up further into the shadows. Iris watched as the giant machine bent forward, all the lights shutting down. Then the back opened up and he stepped out. Iris struggled to see him. The only thing she could make out was that he was indeed a man, tall and had a slimmer, athletic build. He was wearing some sort of jacket, had light skin and short hair, but that was all she could tell.
She watched him put his hands in his pockets, studying her, and she felt suddenly nervous, her heart racing, something enticing about his mysterious nature. "You've been doing a lot of the same things The Flash has…" Iris mentioned softly, trying to distract herself, wondering if it was Barry somehow.
Savitar felt pain and anger shoot through him, not wanting to be compared to him, though he knew deep down that only The Flash would have saved those people on his own, even if he had been secretive about it. The fact was, the building collapsed, and the impulse to get them out was now so strong, he had moved out of very old and rusty muscle-memory. "I'm not him," he denied anyway, his tone dripping with frustration.
Iris shivered at the reverberating voice, even if his tone was irritated. It wasn't mechanical anymore, but it was still warped, like all speedsters did when they hid who they were. It had a familiar quality to it, but she wasn't sure. It was maybe deeper, more rough than she imagined. "I don't mean to offend you," she said then, hoping he would stay a little longer. For some reason, he didn't like being compared? Though if he was trying to make a name for himself, he might feel jealous or resentful. That just was a guess though.
Savitar studied her greedily. Seeing her this close, with his own eyes, made him ache like nothing he had felt so far. The last time he was this close… he was about to do something unspeakable. Now all he wanted to do was run his fingers through her hair, caress her cheek, kiss her sweet lips, but he forced the thoughts away, knowing better. A demon didn't deserve something as pure as her. Even so, he was compelled to get closer to her. And so, almost unwillingly, he moved in.
Savitar was suddenly behind her and Iris could feel his intense heat, his enormous presence surrounding her, making her heart speed up. "You shouldn't be looking for me," he whispered sternly.
Iris bit her lip, yearning to turn to look at him, to see what he looked like, but she didn't. "You sound just like my dad," she said with a half amusement, half annoyance.
He stepped closer and the feel of his warm breath on her shoulder sent goosebumps all through her. For whatever reason, she found herself shaking, her heart still hammering. He was this god-like, powerful being, and he was being so enigmatic. She felt a ghost of a touch on her bare arm, felt him lean in a little more and melted a little, feeling a strange kind of excitement.
"Are you hurt?" he asked softly, cursing himself for getting this close, but unable to stop himself.
"N-No," she squeaked, her voice barely above a whisper, hyper-aware of how very close he was.
"Do I make you nervous?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his tone.
"...A little..?" She breathed, then heard the smile in his voice.
"Good," he said in a dark timber, making her shiver again. He then sped back into the shadows, getting back into his armor. "Go home, Iris."
"Wait-!" But as she turned, he was gone.
Iris was beyond frustrated, she needed answers! What if it was Barry? It was just too big of coincidence he suddenly showed after… she brushed the awful memories away. No, it simply couldn't be. Realistically she knew he was gone, had seen what happened with her own two eyes. She focused on the current mystery, using it to bury her pain. She needed to find out more about him!
