Chapter Text
There are few things that are constant in Wally's life lately. The clothes on his back barely count; Grodd had already carved a little hole in his heart and curled up in there, so he was also staying for good; the grief and emptiness left by his mother's passing will always hang over his head for the rest of his life, right beside the guilt for killing Barry. But even the most constant things, he was no fool to think that they might still not be taken away, one way or another. Clothes can be stolen; Grodd could be killed or taken back by the scientists; the guilt and the memories can be wiped away with a strong enough hit or the right machine. Nothing is forever.
Well, not nothing.
There is one single thing that Wally can't ever imagine living without. One thing that has been biting his ankles since he was 10, and he had to confront death itself in his mother's open casket funeral. The thing that has keep him moving and running and living and fighting and running and talking and hoping and running.
It's fear.
Fear of death. Fear of loneliness. Fear of his father. Fear for his father. Fear of Barry. Fear of consequences. Fear of the future. Fear of the past. Just, fear.
The paranoia chasing him no matter how fast he ran. The anxiety weighting his shoulders down with every action. The adrenaline kicking in his bloodstream at the smallest sign of danger. He really felt like a scared little cat in the middle of a jungle, and he fucking hated it.
He was getting better, too. The Syndicate was a nice break from the rest of the world that only seemed to want to put his head on a pike. They understood. The powers, the responsibility, the feeling of being chased constantly. He was starting to feel like maybe, just maybe, there could be a new constant in his life that might not be so easily taken away.
Having said that, Wally was down right terrified at this moment. It was supposed to be an easy but important mission, that's why there were together, that's why Wally wasn't scared. Of course, that was his first mistake.
A flashing light was all it took, and he was no longer where he was supposed to be; not in the lab but instead in the middle of a city; it was night, it was midday when they started the mission; there was no one, Green Lantern was right beside me, where is she, is she okay? Where is this? Millions of thoughts running rampant in less than a millisecond, each one more catastrophic than the last. He could feel the anxious ants running under his skin and spiders filling his lungs with every breath. It only got worse when he turned around, taking in his surroundings and he saw him.
Barry?
He was covered up in a red suit, somewhat alike the one he was using when Wally killed him when he last saw him, but somehow it looked more plain. Most of his head was covered, but Wally would never be able to forget those blue eyes even if he tried. Those blue eyes that appear in every single one of his nightmares. They were looking at him, studying, yet there was no realization in his face that Wally could see.
He wanted to reach out, but he only had one second to want, before it started. It seemed that whatever moved them into this city also fucked with the foreign energy burning constantly in his veins; the energy making him run faster than god; the energy that let him be in multiple times at the same time; the energy that let him see all that was and that could be.
In a moment, he was there. In the same moment, he was running away, he was being spilled into the pavement, he was watching Barry, he was talking to someone. All that was and all that is and all that was going to be assaulting him mercilessly. Head pounding and thoughts spiraling and fear increasing and adrenaline pumping and everything was wrong and everything was calm and everything was too much and—
Wally calm.
That familiar voice settled everything as quick as it started. He realized that what felt like years was probably less than two seconds in reality. Now Grodd was gently pressing his forehead against Wally's nape, the closest he could reach while hanging from his shoulders. Those words, as simple as they were, seemed to do the trick, and Wally was here again, washing away the distress like a light summer rain. All other versions of himself abandoning him, leaving him alone in his time, at his own moment.
Thank you, he mentally sent to Grodd.
The little monkey may have been able to stop the onslaught of thoughts and movements and memories, but it was not enough to ease the uncomfortable itch of anxiety burning within, only now the panic was underlined with determination. If Barry was alive, then something was clearly wrong, and whatever that is, Wally had to leave before it hit him like a truck. The rest of the Syndicate would survive without him, right? Right now, the wisest thing would be to run and get his bearings and understand what was happening and knowing where they were and—
Between dramatic thoughts, Wally hadn't realized he was already running as fast as he could, gently cradling Grodd in his arms as to protect him from the force of the movement. Between all the noise in his head and the tornado of emotions, one true impulse remained over all of them, keeping sovereignty over all of his current actions.
I need to leave.
It didn't matter how much Wally liked Barry, it didn't change the fact that Wally was part of the Olympus project; it didn't erase the probability that Thawne was behind this. In fact, he was willing to bet that this was Thawne's fault. That is to say that clearly the right option for him was to run away. Obviously. And all of his teammates were strong enough that they wouldn't die if he left, right? Actually, could just not be there and Wally was doing the right thing by leaving and—
Someone following.
It didn't matter how much it happened, he has yet to get used to Grodd's voice in his head when he was deep in thought. It was only by sheer muscle memory that he didn't trip face first out of surprise.
He forced himself to snap out of it and put more attention to his surroundings. Grodd was right, someone was following him. But not in any vehicle like the rogues were, they were also running, just like him.
Turn left. Jump.
He mindlessly followed Grodd's directions, fully believing that the monkey had it in his best interest that they lose their chaser. Letting Grodd figuratively take the wheel, he started going through all the possible options. Diana is fast, so is Kal, but not even them could keep up with me for this long. Is it another speedster? Is it Barry? Did Thawne found a way to use the energy to bring him back and gave him the speedster power? Is he just here to torment me?
Ignoring the hunger that was just staring to take root at the bottom of his stomach for using so much energy so fast, he kept running and taking turns and doing his damnest to lose the other speedster. It seemed he was finally leaving him behind when, out of fucking nowhere, a second speedster came crashing into him in the direction he was heading. For the first time in the minutes since he left that portal, Wally was forced to stop.
Stopping was probably his least favorite part of running, because literally and figuratively, it's when shit caught up with you. With the inertia he didn't have to think about energy or hunger or breathing, but the moment the movement stopped, it always hit him like a truck.
His lungs were burning, and he was suddenly so fucking hungry, and worst of all, he was vulnerable.
They stopped in the middle of a desert, there seemed to be a road a couple of kilometers away, but nothing he could use as a cover or to lose them. Fuck me, I should have been putting more attention to where I was going. Two figures stood in opposite sides of him; a yellow one that he crashed against, and a red one that has been chasing him all along. Both speedsters. How am I going to get out of this one? I've never been against one myself, let alone two. The red one — Barry, started walking slowly towards him with his palms in the air, not unlike how a veterinarian would approach a hissing, hurt cat in an alley. Ironically, this only raised Wally's hackles even more. He pulled Grodd closer to his chest, ready to run again. He had to fight the instinct to take a step back, otherwise he'd be getting closer to the yellow one.
"Wow kid, calm down, we ain't your enemies here," said Barry in a placating tone that Wally has heard before, back in a military base cafeteria, "how about you take a breather, and we talk it out? We can even get something to eat, I know a hungry speedster when I see one." He finished with a humorous tone, clearly trying to diffuse the conversation.
He didn't know how much he believed him. Probably not a lot. But before he was capable of communicating his thoughts about it, up in the sky, he heard a familiar dash of someone flying. Oh, thank god.
Maybe not as fast as the speedsters (but still not someone to underestimate) just a few meters shy of Wally's position, Diana landed gracefully, only raising a gentle gust of sand.
And as always, she took all the attention. Both speedsters turning to look at her for just a single second. A single second that was more than enough.
Wally fucking booked it.
The dust cloud he created with his departure sure wasn't subtle, but it was going to give him one hell of a head start. So he did as he always does, and ran for his fucking life, quickly following Grodd's indications as to where to turn. Lungs burning and stomach churning, he almost passed out when he heard Grodd's voice inside his head.
Lost them. Quiet now. Safe.
They were now in a forest, seemingly alone, but he could see a small town a couple of kilometers. Perfect. Taking out his patented Wonder Woman Magic Bag, he took out his emergency change of clothes and got out of the speedster outfit. Now dressed as the average homeless teenager, he set off on heavy feet towards the town, praying that they might have a small church that might be willing to help the needy with some food this Sunday evening.
Barry was stumped. He was clearly a kid speedster, hell, with his luck the kid is probably related to him in some way. And yet, he was just slightly faster both than him and Wally.
"No Speedforce residues found on the whole continent, or well, none that isn't from a known member of the family." Declared a defeated Cisco on the comms. "I have on idea what that kid is on, but it's not looking like something we have seen before."
Barry couldn't help but huff in frustration. He had to send Wally back to the HQ to report on what was happening and help the Bat with something. He was really tempted to call Wallace, Bart or the twins to help him out, but it didn't feel that big of a deal to call a whole family meeting over. But still, it felt wrong. The single moment they caught up with the kid the only moment he took to actually see him, Barry can't say he particularly liked what he saw. At the beginning he though he might be just another inter-dimensional threat, as you do, but after seeing meeting him, after having a chance to take in this mysterious speedster, it took him a moment to realize he was wrong. This was no Apokolips, this was a very, very scared child. And fear and speedsters did not mesh well, he would know. He was just a little under Bart's age, but surely older than the twins.
"I don't recommend to keep seeking him, he's just going to hide better." A sure and placating voice stated behind him, and Barry turned to look at the owner of it. It was the Other Diana, looking at him with something he could only describe as understanding. "Let the kid rest, he will come at his own pace, you have my word on that."
"How can you be so sure? Also, didn't you said you had to look after him or something? Shouldn't you'd be helping if you truly meant that you are not an enemy?", he said as he crossed his arms, and probably a little bit more frustrated and rude than any person with common sense would use for Wonder Woman, this universe or not. Luckily, she didn't seem offended.
"I did. And I found him at the same time as you, the difference is that a trusted friend told me not to worry. So I let him go. I recommend you do the same, as I highly doubt that either you or any of your friends in this universe have the abilities to catch him. Even I can admit that he is a slippery one." Her tone was light, dripping with sympathy and reassurance. Barry still didn't take it.
Wait.
She said that they wouldn't be able to catch him, not they they wouldn't be able to find him.
"Maybe you're right. But I still don't like having a rogue speedster running around in a panicked state. But it also didn't seem like he wanted to see me in particular, for some reason." It was a hard thing to forget, the absolute terror that took over the kid's eyes the moment he saw Barry.
"You noticed, I see." She answered, no less understanding than before, "yes, our Flash is very… distrusting of adults in general, especially those in uniform. Took us a long while before he even trusted us enough to have a conversation. He is a good kid, but he has certainty been done wrong by others. I can only pray to Artemis that he manages to heal and find peace, he is too young to be haunted by the past."
"So what do you recommend?", he was getting impatient, but right now she was the only one who could help him on this chase.
"Be kind. Be patient." she stated, and then just promptly laughed at the face of disbelief that Barry made. "I'm kidding, well, somewhat. He is a kid, he reacts better to other kids. On our end, we convinced him to talk using Arrow, one of the youngest of the group. Sure seemed more receptive that way. We could always go get him ourselves, but something tells me you don't want us running around just yet, do you?" There was a mischievous glint in her eye. He sighted.
"Fine. I'm calling the kids, they can continue the search while I take you to HQ. Let's go." She didn't put up any resistance as they made their way towards the closet Zeta tube, even if she did had multiple chances when he turned to his phone to text the children. This is so going to be a fucking mess.