Harry tinkered with Cisco's vibe goggles so that they could broaden the spectrum of his ability to vibe. They needed to in order to get ahead of Grodd and figure out exactly where he planned to attack Central City with his army. It had worked, and Cisco figured out the location that he was going to be.
He tried to convince Gypsy to help them fight this battle but she had refused. They let her out of the cell and allowed her to go back to her Earth to stop the fugitive that she was once looking for. That meant that they were all on their own in this fight, Alex was unsure if they were going to be able to beat hundreds of gorilla's with only the four of them.
Once they had figured out the street Grodd planned to attack, Joe set up a SWAT team again and the four speedsters showed up. However, the gathering had only been a distraction in Grodd's plan. He had taken control of Joe and nearly forced him to shoot himself. If it wasn't for Barry, he would have.
They didn't know why he needed the distraction, but they were going to figure that out. They had discovered that when Grodd takes control of someone, they also have the link to his mind as well. Cisco, Wells, and Alex were going to build a TCM simulator to get Joe to remember exactly what he saw.
It was the only plan that they had at the moment and it was going to have to do. Before Alex met up with them, she stopped to chat with Barry. They hadn't talked all day and by the looks of it, he wasn't doing too well with this whole second attack and still not being able to get ahead of Grodd and his plans.
"Barry," Alex jogged after him as he stormed down the hall. He didn't stop walking which meant that she used her powers to teleport in front of him so he couldn't avoid her. "Is everything okay? You seem off."
"I'm just tired of seeing the people I care about be put in harms way," Barry sighed. "I mean we catch Grodd and then what? Just send him back to Gorilla City just to some up with another immaculate plan to kill off everyone again? No, We have to end this once and for all."
"Wait, stop, stop," Alex kept up with him as he walked past her again. "You want to kill Grodd?" Barry shrugged, why not right? "No, no way I'm not going to let you do that. You have morals, Barry. You cross that line once and there is no going back. I'm not going to let you do this to yourself, especially when it's not just about stopping this attack to save everyone."
"I kill Grodd, the attack never happens, that changes the future and you're one step closer to living the rest of your life in peace," Barry argued. "I mean why not kill him right? Look how many people he's killed, how many times he's hurt the people we care about? Your life for his, seems like an easy decision to me."
"No, Barry," Alex forced him to stop walking this time. She had a serious tone in her voice. "Losing the humanity and mercy that makes The Flash, The Flash is more important than my life. I will lock you in that cell again if that is the only way but believe me when I say I will stop you before you're stupid enough to make that choice."
Alex stormed away from him after that to leave him with his thoughts. There was not a chance that she was going to allow him to change his morals on her behalf. She cared too much about him to let him fall that low. She didn't care if someone like Oliver had made those bad choices, this was Barry.
Barry felt guilt when he ate the last cookie in the jar, he couldn't live with himself if he was to kill someone, even if it was someone as terrible as Grodd. Once he crossed that line, he couldn't undo it, he couldn't run fast enough to stop the hatred within himself if he was to kill.
She was frustrated at him. He knew that she didn't like the ends that he was going through for her. He should have also known better that she was going to be furious at him for thinking like that. Barry was a smart guy, but too many times did he make dumb choices when it came to the safety of her.
Alex planned to go find Cisco and Wells, but instead, ran into her brother. Dylan quickly noticed the scowl on her face and asked what was wrong. Since being there, he had never seen her angry. It was a huge change from their teen years when he rarely saw a smile on her face.
"My ever loving fiancee is what's wrong," Alex nearly snapped. "I know that he's worried about my future but there's just some things that he's willing to do that I'm not ready to accept. I mean is my life really worth the death of another?"
Dylan stayed silent. He didn't know what she wanted to hear. Of course in his eyes she was easily worth the life of another, she was his family. But her attitude at the moment told him that she didn't want to believe that. She didn't want to believe that not only Mirage, but Alex Holt was worth someone's life.
Alex sighed at his quietness, she was sure that he had the same mind set as Barry at the moment. "Look, Dylan, not that I don't love having you here, because I really do and I'm glad that you know the truth now, but I think that you have to go home, where it's safe. If Grodd does attack I don't want you anywhere near it."
"Wh - no, you can't expect me to leave now," Dylan argued. He wasn't shocked that she was trying to get him to leave. After all, the whole reason that she kept her life a secret was to keep him safe. If gorilla's were planning to destroy the city then she wanted to know that he was out of harms way.
"I'm serious, it's not safe here," Alex tried again. "You're the only family that I have left and I can't see you get hurt in this life, especially because of me. I brought you into it because you needed to know the truth but now it's time for you to go back to your regular life. I'm sorry that is has to be this way, but it does."
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"Hey, Alex, just wanted to let you now that your idiot boyfriend is trying to stop a missile strike by himself, figured you want to -"
Alex had gone back to her apartment with her brother. He was angry with her in the fact that she was trying to get him to leave but he understood where she was coming from. Alex was worried about him and his safety, at the end of the day he needed to understand that she new best.
When they got to her home, he tried one more time to argue with her that he should stay. If she was really going to die in three months time then he wanted to be there to spend those last days with her. He deserved that much after all the trouble that she had put him through.
Alex told him that he couldn't, at least not until things were at least calmed down in the city and they were in imminent danger. That didn't seem to be any time soon so therefore he wasn't going to be coming back either. If he was the last member of the Holt family then he needed to live to carry the name on.
When Dylan finally agreed to her plans, they had started packing his things. He wasn't ready to leave his sister again quite yet but he had not other option. She could shove him wherever she wanted if she so choose to. For now, he would go back to his home in Coast City.
They were just finishing getting him ready to go when Cisco called her phone. Barry was at the military base attempting to stop the missile launch on his own. Alex didn't even let Cisco finish talking before she was in her suit and out the door to try and help him stop the attack.
When she got there, a General had been passed out on the ground and Barry was trying to figure out the code that would stop the launch. Alex, with quick thinking ran over to the general and used her powers on him. She shifted into him and was instantly hit with a huge headache.
Grodd must have been using him to be able to create the attack. Alex pushed through the pain and figured out the five digit pin that they were going to need to stop it. She shifted back into herself and pushed Barry aside. Without hesitation, she pressed the numbers which thankfully turned green.
"It worked!" Barry cheered. He didn't thin twice about grabbing Alex and pulling her in for a long, sweet kiss. "I am so happy to see you right now you have no idea."
"I think I have a little bit of an idea," Alex chuckled. "But you know there's lots of ways to convince me later."
"We can still hear you, just so you know. Thanks for scarring me, again," Cisco spoke into their earpiece. Alex rolled her eyes and pulled him in for another kiss. "Alright that's enough," she still didn't listen to him. "Okay!" Finally Barry parted away with his face bright red of embarrassment.
The two of them headed back to STAR Labs where everyone was waiting for them. If Grodd's plan failed then surely he was soon ready to attack again. This time, he was going to use his army. Alex feared the gorilla's more than she feared the missiles, there was no way four of them could stop them all.
When they arrived, Cisco was already looking for Grodd and his army. If he outsmarted his location before then he could probably do it again. Alex paced around the room waiting for something to come up. Wally watched as his friend became more and more worried.
He was going to go talk to her when her phone rang. Alex fished for her cell out of her pocket and was surprised to see that Dylan was calling her. "Hey, Dylan, what's up?"
"You guys wouldn't happen to be looking for an army of over-sized monkeys right now would you?" Dylan asked, it sounded like he was in the car. Confused, Alex questioned what he met. "Because I just saw about a hundred of them, headed towards State and Oakhill when I was going to go back home."
"Get the hell out of there, now!" Alex exclaimed over the phone. "Get back to STAR Labs, it's probably the safest place for you right now. "
"I already am," Dylan assured. "And Alex? Be safe, please." Alex hung up her phone without answering. She told the rest of the team what her brother had told her. They weren't sure what had gotten her all panicked until she explained. They were out of time.
Barry had a plan. He pulled Cisco aside to try and get his help. Whatever he was planning, it was going to have to be good otherwise they were screwed. Alex had very little faith that they had enough power to stop all of them. They had enough trouble with Grodd as it was.
When Barry had finished talking to Cisco, Wally and Jesse had joined them in their own suits. They were on their own for now, hopefully Cisco would be able to pull through on his end of the plan. This wasn't how she was supposed to die, she wasn't supposed to go this soon.
The four speedsters ran out of the lab and towards State and Oakhill. True to Dylan's word, they were marching down the street right towards them. They slowed their run down to a walk before stopping. Alex nervously cracked her knuckles as they stood there.
Wally asked if either of them had any advice on how to stop them. "Go for the legs?" Barry wearily advised. "Just try not to get caught, because trust me, they won't let go." Alex shrugged as the two younger ones looked to her. She had nothing better than that to say.
Jesse and Wally sped ahead. They tried to use their powers to the best of their abilities to take down the gorilla's as quickly as possible but it barely seemed to be making a dent. Barry had gone directly for Grodd, leaving Alex to figure out the most logical way for her to use her powers.
Once again, she had decided to use Mardon's. Shawna's wouldn't be much use, neither would Top or Mirror Master. She could use her speed, but if Wally and Jesse were already doing so then she figured that she should try something a little different and hopefully more effective.
Just like she had against the Dominators, Alex had whipped up a huge hail storm to rain over the army. The chunks of ice seemed to be doing some damage, but it wasn't enough. While still keeping the storm brewing, Alex raced around and followed the lead of Jesse and Wally.
Using her powers like that was starting to drain her. However, she needed to keep them occupied for as long as possible. In the corner of her eye, she saw that Barry had gotten hit and thrown into one of the near by cars. Alex tried to use a third aspect of her power - invisibility.
It had worked for a little while. She was running around completely unseen and frustrating the gorilla army more than ever. However, just like she had done before, she had over worked her powers. Alex nearly collapsed of the sudden exhaustion. The slowed pace made it easy for one of them to hit her hard enough to fly across the street.
Wally had gotten hit as well and not long after, Jesse had tumbled right by Alex. The army had paused as Grodd spoke to Barry, speaking threats of destroying the city unless Barry was to kill him. It was true, if Cisco didn't come through then they would have very few options.
Before worry and stress began to fill Alex, a breach had opened up just down the street from where she was. Cisco and Gypsy had jumped out of it. Only seconds later, Solovar had followed suit. Alex sighed in relief, now Solovar just had to beat Grodd.
"I challenge you, Grodd!" Solovar announced. He was dressed in the same kind of armor as everyone else was. The two gorilla's roared at each other before running for an attack. Their weapons clashed as they brawled. Solovar had pushed Grodd to the ground, jumping on him once before throwing him into the building.
Grodd had climbed up it, with their previous leader following him. The two fought out of sight - they had no idea what was going on. "This is like real life Donkey Kong right now," Alex joked.
"Oh you used to love that game," Dylan spoke over their earpiece. Alex was glad to hear that he was safe at the lab. She hadn't heard from him again since his call of informing her that the army was arriving.
They could hear the fight from above, the weapons, the roars, but they had no idea who was having the upper hand. It wasn't until Grodd had been flung off the side of the building and landed painfully into the cement did they realize who was winning. Solovar had jumped down as well.
Just as Grodd tried to stand up again, he was pushed down for a final time. Solovar had won that battle and saved Central City at the same time. He roared and pounded on his chest. The army knelt down to show that they would follow their old leader once more.
Solovar grabbed his spear and raised it way up in the air to kill Grodd. It was Barry that shouted out for him to stop. "Death isn't the way. Leave him here, where he's from. We won't let him go back to Gorilla City ever again. Just spare his life, like I spared yours," Barry tried.
Alec smiled as he spoke. Her words must have stuck with him enough that he wasn't willing to take a life any longer. If saving herself meant destroying Barry, she didn't want it.
Solovar lowered his weapon. "Send us home, all of us."
While Cisco, Gypsy, and Alex opened up three breaches, Barry called ARGUS to deal with Grodd. That was the only place that would be able to contain him for good. With all three meta's using their powers to get the gorilla's through, it didn't take long for them to make their way back to Gorilla City.
Alex had been completely wiped out. After using her powers in over drive already, she could barely keep the breach open long enough. As soon as the last one had went through, she had collapsed onto her hands and knees. Her whole body ached from putting in the extra effort.
Wally and Cisco helped her stand back up. She tried to shake off the feeling and promised them that she was okay. They didn't look convinced but didn't try to argue with her. Barry finished up with ARGUS and Grodd was taken away and hopefully never to be seen again.
Thankfully, Barry had been too busy to see her collapse. She felt weak, but fine. She had never tried to use so many different parts of her powers all at once. In turn, she also discovered that she wouldn't try it again unless necessary. It was too dangerous.
Wally and Barry had grabbed Cisco and Gypsy on their race back to STAR Labs. Half way there, Alex had once again started to feel weak. This time, however, blackness spotted her vision. She couldn't stop her knees buckling from under her and the sudden stop flinging her body down the street.
The last thing she heard was her name being called.
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"Welcome back to the real world, Mirage."
As many times as she woke up to the bright medical lights of Caitlin's lab, she still wasn't used to the intensity of it. Alex groaned and shielded her eyes from the light. Whoever was beside her laughed at her reaction. Dylan sat in the chair with his feet propped up on the bed.
He planned to leave the city as soon as it was safe but when his sister was brought back to the lab unconscious he knew he needed to stay a little while longer. Caitlin assured him and everyone else that she was going to be okay, she just needed some rest from over working her powers.
Cisco told the truth about what he had seen happen to her which had cleared everything up. It didn't make Dylan any less worried. The team assured him that she was there all the time and always ended up being okay. It didn't help him feel better and in fact made him more scared for her.
How many times did she put herself in danger? How many times had she been put into that hospital bed? How many times had she been so close to the verge of death that they didn't know if she was actually going to make it? Dylan felt like he still barely knew anything about her life.
Even if she was saving all these people, what was going to be the tipping point of not being able to make it back home? If she had never been apart of that life she wouldn't have had a timeline lingering over her head. It would have also meant that she wouldn't have gotten her life together either.
In her eyes, it was worth it. The risk of not having a long life was worth it because of everything that she had done. She was going to leave the world knowing that she had done good, a lot of good. Alex knew that her father would have been proud of her and that was what she cared about.
"Can't get rid of me that easily, a lot of people have tried," Alex partially joked. She sat up straighter in the bed, a headache suddenly casting over her. She looked at the clock to see that it wasn't nearly as late as she expected. However, everyone had gone home already.
Barry must have gone back to the apartment as well. If Dylan was staying then he knew that he was leaving her in trusted hands. While she was out, it had given the two of them time to chat. Dylan admitted to Barry that he was glad that it was him who had found his way into Alex's heart.
All of the struggles that she had in her life and the pain that came with them, she deserved this kind of happiness. Alex was right, he was exactly the kind of man that their father would have wanted her to end up with, he could see that.
"As I've heard," Dylan retracted his feet from their original spot. He had a grim look on his face, but quickly hid it before she noticed. "So, fighting an army of gorilla's, everything you've dreamed of and more?"
"Terrifying, actually," Alex told him. "Every fight is. I know that I joke about it a lot but this is serious stuff. I've gone into fights wondering if I'm going to make it out alive, or if Barry will. We've had a lot of close calls - it keeps us on our toes for what comes next. Now that you really know the truth about all of this, what are you thinking?"
"I think that my sister is the bravest person that I have ever met in my life," Dylan honestly told her. "But, it also makes me realize just how much danger you're always in. I'm worried about it, a lot. I know that you aren't going to quit this gig and I'm never going to ask you to. It's just, I wish that things were different."
"You know that I've always been one to go after a thrill," Alex placed her hand over top of his. "I'm a lot more cautious and a lot more stronger than I ever was before. I've always been on my own to handle myself and now I have friends and a team that care for me. You have to trust what I'm doing."
"I do, I trust you with my life," Dylan promised. "Which is why I'm heading home in the morning. You may love the thrill but this life isn't for me, even if I wanted it to be. I'm glad that you found your place with these people. You deserve that after everything."