EXPEDITE ▇▇▇▇ VOLUME TWO
━━ ❛ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏 𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 ❜
chapter no. 051!
A WHIRLING BUBBLE OF BLUE ENERGY BEGAN BREAKING THROUGH THE AIR IN THE SPEED LAB. A dark blue oval was in the center, spreading out into a brighter blue that resembled the afternoon sky outside. All was silent until a blur of red appeared, three figures looming behind it. Harry cocked his bazooka back, ready to fire at whoever was coming.
The breach floated in mid-air for a second, everyone in the room silent and ready to put up a fight if it wasn't Director Warren and Damon Rowland who were crossing through to their Earth.
A bright blue lightning illuminated the room, and everyone shielded their eyes. The light faded to reveal the men they'd been waiting for. Both of them were in their usual MHTF suits, a small duffle bag in each of their hands.
"Easy there, Han Solo. Lower the bazooka," Miles nodded to the brown-haired scientist, gesturing for him to drop the weapon. Harry rolled his eyes yet still brought it down to his side.
Caitlin walked forward, a small smile on her face. "Thank you for coming. It's so good to see you two," she greeted them, a rush of relief washing over her shoulders as Damon stepped forward, embracing her in a warm hug.
"Of course. Anything for Piper," the black-haired man murmured, rubbing the doctor's back before pulling away.
Outstretching his hand, Miles gave Caitlin a slight smile as they shook hands. "Speaking of Lita, where are you on locating her?"
"Nowhere. We don't know where Piper's staying, but we have run into her recently," Caitlin answered before any of the men behind her could.
Glancing at one another, Cisco and Harry shared expressions of concern at how calm Caitlin was behaving. The woman had been a nervous and anxious mess for days, trying desperately to find a cure for the drug flowing through Piper's veins. She hadn't gone home more than twice and barely slept a wink. So, the current calmness in her voice was unnerving and noticeable.
"In your message, you mentioned that you believe the drug has completely taken over at this point, correct?" Miles asked, following behind the brunette as she turned on her heel, motioning for everyone to follow her.
Caitlin nodded, exiting the room. "Yes. When we saw her a few days ago, Piper was completely immune to everything Barry and Cisco said to her. Nothing made her hesitate or pause in her movement."
Placing one foot in front of the other, Barry glanced over at Cisco, noticing that the long-haired boy kept his eyes to the floor.
"Look, the longer she's working with Savitar, the more we lose her. We can figure out a cure later. We need to find out where Savitar is and soon. Whatever he has planned, it's happening any day now." Harry interjected as everyone reached the Cortex.
"Try in the next four days." A voice spoke, and Miles and Damon turned their attention to the center of the room. There stood three individuals that the two recognized immediately, all wearing grim expressions and curved frowns.
Furrowing his brows, Barry frowned. "Erin, Iris, Joe, what're you doing here? I thought all of you were at work," he spoke, stepping forward.
Taking a deep breath, Erin glanced at her girlfriend, the two of them sharing an omniscient look while the detective beside them found it difficult to force the words out of his mouth.
"CCPD received a letter," Joe eventually choked out, pulling an evidence bag from his pocket. "It was found nailed to a dead child's body bleeding out on the precinct steps this morning."
Walking forward, Cisco took the plastic bag and peered down at the enclosed letter.
Loved ones begging and screaming,
As my power is descending,
And all the while, the sky is gleaming.
Central City is nearing its end,
And the fun is only about to begin.
By now, you all know your score,
For you have been warned,
The approaching end you fear
Is deadly near.
The prophecy has become true,
One shall betray you,
Another shall fall,
And worse of all,
The one with wasted breath
Is the one who will suffer a fate
Worse than death.
So, say your goodbyes,
And bid your loved ones
A farewell,
It is finally time
To unveil my spell.
You have four days.
Gulping, the long-haired boy felt his body drain of all color as he re-read over the scribbled words that were stained red.
"Ramon, what does it say?" Harry asked, placing his hands on his hips.
Cisco's eyes fluttered up before they were directed back down at the bag. "You know... the usual. How Savitar's prophecy has started to become true and how the downfall of Central City is upon us. Blah blah blah," he grumbled, muttering the last portion to himself.
"Let me see that," Miles demanded, clearing his throat as he took the evidence bag. His eyes scanned over the message.
Coming up from behind his fiancé, Damon read the letter out loud for the group, "Loved ones begging and screaming, as my power is descending, and all the while, the sky is gleaming. Central City is nearing its end, and the fun is only about to begin. By now, you all know your score, for you have been warned, the approaching end you fear is deadly near. The prophecy has become true, one shall betray you, another shall fall, and worse of all, the one with wasted breath is the one who will suffer a fate worse than death. So, say your goodbyes, and bid your loved ones a farewell, it is finally time to unveil my spell. You have four days." Looking up from the letter, the black-haired man met the anxious eyes of Caitlin Snow, who was playing with her hands.
"What prophecy is Savitar talking about?" The MHTF Director asked, averting his gaze upward.
Nobody answered the man, for none of them really knew what the prophecy was. They only knew what they remembered from the first time they met Savitar.
"Well?" Miles pressed, raising an expectant eyebrow.
Sighing, Erin rolled her eyes at the dramatics of everyone. "The first time we ever met Savitar, he told us that he knew our fears, weaknesses, and destinies. That he knew us better than we know ourselves. Which, side note, is total bullshit," she scoffed. "Anyways, he told us his knowledge about our everlasting damnation. One shall betray us, one shall fall, and one shall suffer a fate worse than death. That's the prophecy."
Furrowing his brows, Damon glanced at Miles. "How would Savitar know any of this?"
"We don't know. All we know is that one part of his prediction came true: Piper betrayed us." Barry breathed, placing his hands on his hips as everyone momentarily glanced at him.
"Director Warren, with everything you know about Piper's condition before she was drugged, could it have been possible that Savitar learned about this team every time he entered her mind?" Caitlin proposed, clearing her throat.
Miles sighed, rubbing his forehead as his brows drew together in thought. "I mean," he paused, "it's plausible— yes. However, whenever he would enter her mind before, he only showed her true horrors from her past. If he was searching her mind for something, Lita would have known or at least been aware of it."
"Maybe she was aware and just never said anything," Iris spoke up, inserting herself into the discussion.
Damon shook his head, "No. Piper's a very guarded person. She wouldn't let Savitar take advantage of her like that or anyone else."
Frowning, Barry glanced down to the floor, an unsettling feeling beginning to brew inside of him as his mind raced with a million thoughts.
"I don't know about that. You remember how bad of a condition Lita was in after Aureolin. I don't think anyone had ever seen her so broken before. At least not since Ginger was killed." Miles mentioned, glancing at the man beside him.
"Look," Harry interjected, stepping forward. "There are too many unanswered questions to which we won't get the answers if we don't figure out who Savitar is. His identity is the key to everything."
Sighing, the two guests nodded as they broke eye contact.
"Do either of you have any idea as to who it could be? Savitar originated from your Earth, you must have some idea of his identity. Your team has been trying to take him down for months now." Harry added, crossing his arms as he stared impatiently at the two.
Shaking his head again, Damon sighed. "Savitar was always more than careful to never leave a trace of evidence behind at any of his crime scenes. There were no rumors circulating about who he could be. Everybody was equally clueless as to who he was," he stated.
"Is it possible Piper knew?" Joe West finally spoke up, raising a brow.
It was silent as the two men shared unreadable looks. Eventually, Miles shrugged, "I suppose, but I highly doubt it."
"Why's that?" Joe questioned, glancing across the group to Harry for a brief second.
"'Cause if she knew, she would've either killed him in the field or brought him in, and she never did." The MHTF Director said sternly, rolling his shoulders back.
Iris's eyes lit up as a question crossed her mind, and she glanced at her girlfriend. "Let's just say Piper knew Savitar's identity. Who would mean enough to her that she wouldn't say a word and keep it a secret?" She challenged, raising a brow in the direction of Miles and Damon.
Allowing the question to replay in their minds, the two men sighed. Neither of them had an idea. There weren't a lot of people left alive on Earth-Four that Piper cared about.
"I don't know. Almost everyone Piper is friends with or cares about is dead or in this room. She doesn't have many people left in her life." Damon admitted.
At his response, Iris frowned. Her question wasn't as good as she had hoped it'd be. She'd forgotten that the red-haired beauty didn't have as many people in her life as everyone else seemed to.
"Well, she knows his identity now. So, it must be someone she knows well enough that she would stay loyal to." Iris protested, nodding her head adamantly.
The long-haired boy looked up from beside Caitlin, nodding in agreement. "Exactly. Whoever the face behind the mask is, Piper must trust them a hell of a lot for her to join them. There's no way she would abandon us. Never in a million years. Even if she is drugged." Cisco added, looking amongst the sea of conflicting faces. To his right, Caitlin sighed and bit down on her lip.
Cisco had a point.
Whoever was behind the mask had to be someone Piper trusted more than anyone to leave so easily.
Then, the realization struck Damon, and he gasped, turning to Miles. "What if it's the mystery man?" He suggested, uncrossing his arms. The MHTF Director's eyes widened as the puzzle pieces began to add to his head at the suggestion.
"The mystery man?" Harry repeated, furrowing his brows as Barry breathed in deeply.
Miles glanced at Damon apprehensively, contemplating whether or not he wanted him to share the collective theory they had formed months ago. "After Piper killed Aureolin and saved the city, she became more distant than she already was. Even though she was going to therapy, which should've helped, every day, she would make up excuses as to why she was late to meetings or leave randomly to go somewhere. After a while, Miles and I figured out that someone had moved into her house. His clothes were in her closet, and it looked like he'd been living there for a while.
"Eventually, we confronted her, but she told us it was none of our business and shut us down every time we attempted to bring it up. So, we called him the mystery man. No one knows who it was that she was living with or possibly dating. The day she was coming home from therapy, which is also the last thing she remembers before she woke up here, we were all going to meet at her place. Miles and I arrived early and let ourselves in. When we walked inside, we noticed that all of his things were gone. The house was empty, and it was as if nobody other than Piper ever lived there." Damon concluded, noticing that the scarlet speedster had turned away from the group, his hands clenched into fists.
Miles sighed. "Something about her mystery man never settled right with me. Something happened the day before between them. Something bad. The day Savitar killed her that morning, Lita was still off. And this was two days after he moved out."
"Wait, hold on, hold on," Joe butt-in, his right hand raising in the air. "Are you suggesting that Piper was not only dating someone neither of you knew about, but this unknown person could be Savitar?"
The detective's words struck a nerve within Barry, and he clenched his jaw. He could feel himself growing light-headed by the emotionally overwhelming news.
Could it be true? Could Piper really have fallen for someone else?
Could she have forgotten about everything important the two of them ever shared? Could she have forgotten that he was her home?
Furrowing her brows, Erin immediately shook her head. "No. No, no, no, no. There's no way Piper would date someone that quickly after leaving. Not unless they were Barry Allen himself."
Her words caused everyone's eyes to widen as the realization struck them all.
"Erin's right... Piper wouldn't be with someone unless it was you," Cisco said slowly, pointing to Barry, who had turned around. The speedster breathed in deeply again, trying to hold himself back from crying out in frustration.
Harry rubbed his forehead, feeling a pulsing headache coming his way. "Savitar is Barry's doppelgänger from Earth-Four. That's why she went to him. Not only because she's drugged, but because he wears the face of the person she loves the most."
Looking at his boyfriend, Damon furrowed his brows in confusion. "That would make sense if there was a Barry Allen on our Earth," he replied, glancing back to the others.
"What do you mean if Barry Allen was on your Earth?" Caitlin questioned.
"There is no Central City, the Flash, Barry Allen, Harrison Wells—none of you—in existence on our Earth. We've searched." Damon explained, gesturing to himself and his fiancé.
Shaking his head, the brown-haired scientist stepped forward as he slid off his glasses. "That's not possible. Every Earth is a mirror reflection of the other."
Cisco glanced at Barry, immediately noticing his pale and porcelain-white face. Just by staring at him, anyone could tell that he was stressed and anxious. Worry lines were etched across his forehead, and his lips were pulled down into a frown that had been present for quite some time now. His hands were balled into fists, and his jaw was clenched tightly.
Barry Allen was reaching another breaking point. His brain was on overdrive, working harder than ever to keep him tuned in to his surroundings.
"That's not the case for every Earth, just a few of them. If any of you exist in our world, we've yet to meet or find you anywhere. When Piper was at her lowest and worst mental state, we searched for any of you on every software and satellite we could. We sent people to go searching in other countries and states. Found nothing." Damon explained, his hands resting comfortably on his hips.
"It has to be Barry! Who else would Piper date and allow to move in with her? Who else would Piper trust enough to follow blindly and do whatever they asked of her? Who else could have convinced Piper to betray us? She wouldn't do any of it even if it was any of us asking! I know Piper. I know how in love she is with Barry Allen! I've been with her since she started crushing on him and watched her fall head-over-heels for this idiot. There's nothing she wouldn't do for him." Erin protested, pointing directly at Barry the entire time she spoke.
A look of mild offense crossed Barry's face at Erin's words, and his eyebrows raised. "Gee, thanks, Erin," Barry mumbled, trying to dismissively brush off the very large comment, but he couldn't.
Every word of what Erin said was right.
Who else would Piper do any of that stuff for? No one could come to Barry's mind except for himself. It had to be him.
Savitar was Barry Allen.
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"ONLY 96 MORE HOURS UNTIL THIS BABY IS LIVE..." Savitar murmured, a glow of pride dancing in his eyes as he watched Tracy Brand fuse together some of the wirings.
Collectively taking in a deep breath, Piper Lita watched with narrow eyes as the brown-haired man stood up straight. Looking her way, a small smile graced his lips. "All your hard work and dedication," Savitar began as he walked toward her. "It's finally going to pay off. In four days, my ascension shall begin." He raised his hand and cupped her cheek, softly running his thumb across it.
"Central City will be ours," Piper murmured, leaning into the palm of his hand.
Nodding, Savitar pressed a kiss to her forehead before stepping back. "There are a few errands I have to run; keep an eye on our guest. I'll be back," he muttered, running his thumb across her cheek one more time before speeding out of the room.
The blinding blue lightning faded, and Tracy sighed, placing down the blow torch in her hands. Looking over at the red and black-haired woman, she bit down on her bottom lip.
Did the scarlet archer really know what it was her partner was planning? Did she really know his true intentions?
"Savitar did tell you what this does, right?" Tracy asked curiously, pushing up the protective shield that covered her eyes. Underneath, her blue eyes were bloodshot from the lack of sleep and dehydration that she'd been suffering through for half the day. Her blonde hair was in the world's messiest bun, and her clothes were covered in oil grease, and dirt smudges.
Racking her eyes over the scientist, Piper pressed her lips into a firm line.
Tracy sighed, taking the woman's silence as an obvious no. "What he's having me build is a Facsimile Transfigurator Matrix. Essentially, it will simultaneously destroy the entire multi-verse, except our planet, and wipe out the existence of every speedster alive, except for him."
The room was filled with a tense stillness as the scarlet archer tried to process the woman's words.
Every speedster in existence was going to be wiped out. Erased. Simply thrown away as if they never existed in the first place.
"Wait, are you saying that the Flash will be erased from existence?" Piper choked out, pushing herself off the wall as she stood up straight. Tracy nodded.
It felt as if the walls in the room were closing in on her as her eyes shakily cast down to the wooden floors. Barry Allen was going to be erased from existence. The Flash was going to be erased from existence.
Forever.