Post by C_Miller on Nov 4, 2011 15:36:57 GMT -5
Ultimate Flash: Requiem #1
A Death in the Family Pt. 1
A couple of days had passed since Barry Allen, better known to the citizens of Keystone and Central City as The Flash, had died to save the world and all of history along with it. The cities were in such a state of shock that they cleaning process hadn’t even been started yet and it was a big one. But the real shock and the real hardship was with the Allen family.
Iris, Wally, Danielle and Blaine had moved in with the Garricks and Jessie immediately took a leave of absence from school to return home and help her friends. While Wally and the kids were taking it hard, no one was taking it harder than Iris. Every time she attempted to plan the funeral, she broke down into a state of near hysteria and the only person who could calm her down was Wally.
“Aunt Iris, why don’t you let Jay and I take care of all this? We’ll send him off in the best way possible. You can trust us.” Wally whispered into his aunt’s ear as he held her close on the Garricks’ living room couch.
She nodded through her sniffles. “Yeah… thank you…. You’re becoming more like your Uncle every day.”
The truth was that the longer Barry was dead, the more Wally felt like he had to live up to his memory. Playing the role of Barry within the Allen family was getting easier for him, but it wasn’t close to being easy enough and it never would be.
After Iris and Wally had sat on the couch holding each other for nearly a half hour the phone rang. Wally let go of his aunt to lazily answer it. “Garrick Residence. Wally West speaking.”
“Wally West?” The man’s voice on the other end of the line asked. “My name is Cam Albain with the Huffington Post. You’re the… nephew of The Flash. I was wondering if you’d be willing to answer a few questions for us.”
Wally turned beat red. “THIS IS THIRD CALL I’VE TAKEN FROM YOU JACKASSES FROM THE MEDIA TODAY! IF YOU DON’T STOP CALLING AND HARRASSING MY FAMILY, I WILL MAKE SURE YOU WISH YOU WERE EOBARD THAWNE!” Wally slammed down the phone, which nearly broke it in half.
“Wally?” Iris asked.
He didn’t answer. He just got up forcefully and stormed off towards the door. “I’m going for a walk.”
Wally felt a swell of guilt for leaving his aunt as he slammed the door behind him. He felt that guilt until he saw a small gathering of reporters on the front lawn. “You DON’T want to talk to me right now.” Rather than wait for an answer, he continued to sulk off down the block.
He walked in silence for a while with only the wind blowing through his hair that made the only sound. After about an hour, he ended up in the Messner Woods, where he used to go as a kid when his Uncle Barry used to take the family to the Garricks’. He and Jessie would spend in among the trees, playing hide and seek and tag or collecting salamanders or fireflies. They even shared their first kiss there. There was nothing romantic, just experimental, as Jessie would constantly be forced to remind him.
“Hey Wally.” Wally heard a familiar female voice off in the distance. He looked over and saw Jessie sitting on a large stump with her knees brought up to her chest. Her cheeks were red and tear stained. She looked like hell, but she was always beautiful to him.
He walked over to her and sat down next to her on the stump. “Hey, Jess.”
“Hi,” was all she could muster, even though they had already greeted one another. The pair sat in silence for what felt like a century, but Jessie managed to break the silence. “M… my speed is still gone.”
Wally looked at her sympathetically. He then pulled her into a tight embrace and hooked her head under his chin. “I’m sorry, Jess.” He heard a whimper from underneath him. “I… I don’t know how this Speed Force thing works, but maybe it needs time to correct itself.”
“You wouldn’t understand… You’ve never felt what it’s like to tap into the Speed Force…”
“Then help me.”
She pulled away from the embrace and moved away from him. “Wally, I just want to be alone right now. Can you do that for me?”
He signed. “Yeah, sure. Look, Jess, we’re all hurting. You’re not alone.”
“Just go away.”
Wally shook his head and resigned. “Well, if you need me, you know where I’ll be.”
Jessie let a couple more tears flow down her cheeks. “Wally, wait!” She turned around and saw that he was already gone. Accepting defeat, she sat back down on the stump and began to sob into her knees.
“I’m so sorry, Jessie.” She spun around on the stump and saw Max Mercury in full robes was gazing at her with tears forming in his eyes.
She opened her mouth but only managed a couple of sounds that emanated from the back of her throat and a few tongue clicks. “Max…? I thought? How are you here?”
He walked up towards her and took Wally’s spot next to her on the stump. He had a serene quality to him as he walked and sat as if he weren’t using his legs at all. As he sat their bodies touched and she felt an instant swell of confidence. “Flashpoint… I guess I’m allowed to leave the Island now. It all has left me extremely disoriented. When I discovered this, I had to come here to offer an apology.”
“For… For what?”
“Leaving you here. Leaving you without power. Taking your mentor away from you. Not giving you more answers when we had time together.” Jessie nodded. As he stood there with a sense of vulnerability, she couldn’t help but agree with his sentiments.
Jessie felt as if it were her turn to speak, but couldn’t think of what to say. She was thankful when he continued talking. “You were great for Barry. He couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Done what?”
“Anything. You were his link to humanity. Without you he couldn’t have been the hero he could have been.” Max’s voice was steady, much steadier than she felt it should be.
She rolled her eyes and scoffed at the wizard through her tears that had continued to flow down her cheeks. “I was just a stupid sidekick. You’re describing Iris.”
He touched her face and brought her to gaze to his. “Iris was for Barry. You were for The Flash.” She lazily nodded in agreement, although she didn’t quite agree with the sentiment. “With Barry gone, I need a new champion… I need you. The Speed Force needs you.”
She could hear a rumble of thunder in the distance as she turned to look at Max with a questioning look on her face. “But my speed… it’s gone.”
Max snapped his fingers and out of the sky, a bolt of lightning came down and struck Jessie straight in the chest, knocking her backwards and off the stump. Suddenly, it was like a light turning on in her head. She could remember the equation, but what’s more is that she knew she didn’t need it. For the first time in her life, she had a true connection with the Speed Force. “I should have done this two weeks ago…”
“It’s time to be a hero, Jessie…” With that a fog rolled over the woods and Max began to disappear into it. Jessie sat there for a moment and collected her thoughts. Then, with a wide smile on her face, she stood up and took off towards home.
***
Iris hadn’t moved from her spot on the couch, pensively gazing out the window since Wally left an hour ago. “Iris?” She turned around slowly to see the perpetually friendly face of Jay Garrick, her husband’s closest friend and confidante. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m surviving. Barely.” Jay sat down next to her lightly as she continued to stair out the window and play with her long red hair. She seemed quite a bit older than he had remembered her, but he couldn’t blame her. He didn’t know what he’d do if Joan passed away.
She looked up at Jay with tears in her eyes, showing an extreme effort to not let them fall. “I’m so sorry I didn’t save him… I couldn’t save him.” Jay’s tear ducts followed suit and he pulled her into a tight embrace. She had known Jay for years, but they had never been especially close, yet she felt comfortable in his arms and she was willing to savor any comfort she could get.
They sat in that position until they both saw Impulse run down the stairs, grab something out of the fridge and run back up. The only way Iris could see him was her sensitivity to the Speed Force, which she developed after fifteen years with Barry. “What do you make of him?” Jay shook Iris out of her daze.
“I don’t… I can’t… Jay, he’s my grandson, but his father is not one of my children… what can I say?” Iris’s frustration bled through her words as Jay tried his best to calm her down.
He wiped a tear from her eye as he began to speak. “He seems to be a good kid. Trying really hard to stay out of the way. I think you should give him a chance.”
“That’s easy for you to say. He’s not calling you grandma.”
Jay attempted to answer, but Jessie running into the living room and parking herself right in front of them interrupted him. “I got my speed back. At last. Where’s Wally? Is he back yet? Probably not? I’ll go find him.” She quickly cackled and sped back out the door to look for Wally.
Just as she was about to hit the street she saw Wally pulling around the corner with a sullen look on his face. She sped up to him and ran a quick circle around, which Jay and Iris saw from the window. They then saw him lift her up and spin her around before passionately kissing her. “Maybe now, they’ll actually get together…” Jay mused with a slight smile.
Iris lightly chuckled. “It’s been a long time coming.”
Jay lightly hit his forehead with his palm and snapped his fingers. “What I came down here to tell you. The coroner wants us to come down to the morgue. Something about burial proceedings.”
Iris let more tears flow. She knew this was coming, but that realization didn’t make it any easier. “I’ll grab my coat…”
***
Iris, Jay, Jessie and Wally had piled into Jay’s 1997 Keystone Bolt Sudan and were en route to the city morgue. Although it was a rather grim trip, Jay could help but smile as he peered into the rearview mirror and saw his adoptive daughter and the adopted son of his legacy, close friend and colleague with their hands loosely entangled in the back seat.
The pulled into the parking lot and saw a mob mixed of supporters, mourners, criminals and publicity seekers out side of the morgue. Jay got out of the car first and created a perimeter around the building. When Iris, Wally and Jessie, exited the car, he began to run around them in a circle to form a barrier and grant them safe passage into the building. Jessie didn’t let Wally’s hand go until they were safe in the lobby of the morgue.
“Ah, you must be Iris Allen. I’m Dr. Michael Rory. I’m currently handling your husband’s case.” He stretched out his hand and she reluctantly shook it. “Please follow me.” He led the group through a maze of examination rooms with bodies openly lying on them, as if forgotten in the entire hubbub of the day. They made Wally uneasy as he looked around. He had never been comfortable with death.
They finally arrived at a large room in the back of the building that had a single table in it. On the table was a form that was clearly a man’s body under a simple white sheet. In the room, in the far right corner was Detective Fred Chyre, Lieutenant Joe Jackam and Officer Cal Freeman, a boy who graduated high school with Wally. Against the left wall was a bigger surprise. Captain Cold stood there stoically at attention, facing the body of Barry Allen.
“What is he doing here?” Jessie shot out with bitterness and venom.
Cold laughed. “Just doing your job… oh wait, you can’t run anymore.”
In a fit of rage she sped at him. “I” she settled on his left side. “Got” she ran to his right side. “Better” she then ran and stopped right in front of him, which to her dismay didn’t faze him at all.
“Jessie! Not now.” Jay screamed at her.
He chuckled again. “I’m grabbing a cup of coffee.” With that he silently left the room before giving a wordless taunt to Jessie, which to Jay’s surprise, she ignored.
Once he had left, Fred approached Barry’s family and tipped his hat to Iris. “I’m really sorry for your loss, ma’am.”
“Fred, I’ve known you for a decade and a half. You’re Blaine's godfather. You can call me Iris.” She gingerly wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him lightly on the cheek.
He removed his police cap and brought it to his chest; his eyes expressed deep, deep sorrow. “I knew him for a long time… I never knew.”
Iris rolled her eyes. “No one did. Thankfully.” She looked around the room and settled on Barry’s corpse that was conveniently covered by a simple linen sheet, yet something drew her to reach for it. Before she could pull it off, Wally grabbed her arm.
“Aunt Iris. You don’t want to do that.” She closed her eyes, drew in a deep breath and nodded back at him, leaving an empty silence.
The coroner stepped in to break up the tension. “Have you decided what you would like to do with the body?”
“Cremation.” Captain Cold commented as he walked into the room with a fresh cup of black coffee in a simple white Styrofoam cup.
Jessie turned to face him in an aggressive manner again. “And you know of Barry’s final wishes how? My god! Why are you even here?”
Cold refused to dignify the final question with a response. “I don’t know what he would have wanted. However, I do know the people I work with and the actual crazies out there would do if he had a marked grave.”
“He has a point.” It was Wally’s turn to speak up. Since Jessie met him, he rarely spoke when it came to matters of The Flash and various superhero issues. He always left them up to Barry, Jessie and Jay. They knew better, in his opinion.
“I can’t believe you’re siding with Captain Cold.” Jessie spat back towards the redhead.
Wally shook his head. “If we buried him, his place of rest would be a lighting rod for the scum of the city. Constantly being defaced and destroyed. We can’t have that. I’d have agreed if you said it, if Iris said it or Satan came and said it.”
Iris closed her eyes and took it all in. “Yes… you’re right… do it.”
The Doctor nodded and left the room to prepare for a cremation, followed by the police officers. “The memorial’s tomorrow… I’m heading home to get some sleep. I’ll be standing guard…” With that Captain Cold left the room leaving Jay, Jessie, Iris and Wally alone with Barry’s body and their thoughts.
“Well, isn’t this sweet… It’s like a little Speed Force Family… an incomplete one, but a family at that.” A smug voice from the door way spoke, causing all of the people in the room to turn.
Jay’s eyes grew wide. “J… J… John?”
“In the flesh.”
John Chambers strolled over to where they were sitting and sat down in the only free chair. “So, I take it that’s the infamous Barry Allen… you know when I heard that his identity was revealed, I was a bit surprised. He always struck me as smarter than that. I suppose if you’re dead, your brain goes with you.”
“Who the hell are you?” Wally asked with vigor.
Jessie shifted in her chair, pulling closer to Jay out of discomfort. “He’s… he’s my birth father.”
Before Jessie could finish her last word, with lighting fast reflexes and speed, Wally’s fist had connected with John’s jaw and he was on top of him, on the floor repeatedly hitting him.
“Wally, stop!” pleaded Jessie.
Jay immediately jumped up and pulled the young man off, causing John to only laugh at the display. “Very good, my boy. How long have you wanted to do that one?”
“Since I met your daughter.”
John nodded. “Very good, very good. You have a fire in you, boy. Make sure it never goes out.” He got up, dusted himself off and gazed at his daughter who was now holding on to Wally for dear life. “So, you’re the heir apparent to the Golden Shoes? Or the winged helmet if you should chose, I suppose.”
She eyed her adopted father with a question stair. “No. He’s far too old.” Wally looked at her and she met his eyes. He had never seen the look of pure terror and disease in her eyes before. She was usually quite carefree. “Oh… I see. He never prepared you for this… it’s a pity.”
“N…no. I’m prepared.” She sounded small. Not like the twenty-one year old woman who had been a superhero since she was thirteen. She sounded like a child who was being scolded by her father.
Chambers laughed. “I may have believed you if you didn’t stutter or whimper. I can show you.”
This time Jay shot up and stood between his daughter and her biological father with his fists raised. “Do you remember what I told you would happen if you ever tried to come back into her life?”
“I know you too well, Jay. I doubt you even have it in you to lay a punch, much less murder me.” Jay didn’t take the challenge lightly. Immediately, his fist collided with John’s nose, causing Jay to feel a snap.
John was in immense pain, but he stifled a laugh. The response led Jay to attempt another punch, but this one was caught by Jessie who ran in between them. “Dad, stop.” She pleaded with tears forming in her eyes.
She turned to Chambers who had blood flowing down his face from his nose. “You can help me? You think you can make me a better hero?”
John smiled. “I know I can.”
Jessie sadly nodded. “Then I’ll come with you… I need this.”
“Jessie, don't!”
“Wally, Barry left me with nothing. Dad hasn’t been fully active since before I was adopted. I need to do this. If you love me like you say you do, you need to understand that.” She closed the gap between them and kissed his lips chastely. When she pulled away he had the same look of shock and sorrow on his face.
John rolled his eyes. “Come on, Jess. It’s time.”
She turned around and walked out of the room with her birth father, leaving the rest of the room shocked, angry and confused.
To Be Continued
A Death in the Family Pt. 1
A couple of days had passed since Barry Allen, better known to the citizens of Keystone and Central City as The Flash, had died to save the world and all of history along with it. The cities were in such a state of shock that they cleaning process hadn’t even been started yet and it was a big one. But the real shock and the real hardship was with the Allen family.
Iris, Wally, Danielle and Blaine had moved in with the Garricks and Jessie immediately took a leave of absence from school to return home and help her friends. While Wally and the kids were taking it hard, no one was taking it harder than Iris. Every time she attempted to plan the funeral, she broke down into a state of near hysteria and the only person who could calm her down was Wally.
“Aunt Iris, why don’t you let Jay and I take care of all this? We’ll send him off in the best way possible. You can trust us.” Wally whispered into his aunt’s ear as he held her close on the Garricks’ living room couch.
She nodded through her sniffles. “Yeah… thank you…. You’re becoming more like your Uncle every day.”
The truth was that the longer Barry was dead, the more Wally felt like he had to live up to his memory. Playing the role of Barry within the Allen family was getting easier for him, but it wasn’t close to being easy enough and it never would be.
After Iris and Wally had sat on the couch holding each other for nearly a half hour the phone rang. Wally let go of his aunt to lazily answer it. “Garrick Residence. Wally West speaking.”
“Wally West?” The man’s voice on the other end of the line asked. “My name is Cam Albain with the Huffington Post. You’re the… nephew of The Flash. I was wondering if you’d be willing to answer a few questions for us.”
Wally turned beat red. “THIS IS THIRD CALL I’VE TAKEN FROM YOU JACKASSES FROM THE MEDIA TODAY! IF YOU DON’T STOP CALLING AND HARRASSING MY FAMILY, I WILL MAKE SURE YOU WISH YOU WERE EOBARD THAWNE!” Wally slammed down the phone, which nearly broke it in half.
“Wally?” Iris asked.
He didn’t answer. He just got up forcefully and stormed off towards the door. “I’m going for a walk.”
Wally felt a swell of guilt for leaving his aunt as he slammed the door behind him. He felt that guilt until he saw a small gathering of reporters on the front lawn. “You DON’T want to talk to me right now.” Rather than wait for an answer, he continued to sulk off down the block.
He walked in silence for a while with only the wind blowing through his hair that made the only sound. After about an hour, he ended up in the Messner Woods, where he used to go as a kid when his Uncle Barry used to take the family to the Garricks’. He and Jessie would spend in among the trees, playing hide and seek and tag or collecting salamanders or fireflies. They even shared their first kiss there. There was nothing romantic, just experimental, as Jessie would constantly be forced to remind him.
“Hey Wally.” Wally heard a familiar female voice off in the distance. He looked over and saw Jessie sitting on a large stump with her knees brought up to her chest. Her cheeks were red and tear stained. She looked like hell, but she was always beautiful to him.
He walked over to her and sat down next to her on the stump. “Hey, Jess.”
“Hi,” was all she could muster, even though they had already greeted one another. The pair sat in silence for what felt like a century, but Jessie managed to break the silence. “M… my speed is still gone.”
Wally looked at her sympathetically. He then pulled her into a tight embrace and hooked her head under his chin. “I’m sorry, Jess.” He heard a whimper from underneath him. “I… I don’t know how this Speed Force thing works, but maybe it needs time to correct itself.”
“You wouldn’t understand… You’ve never felt what it’s like to tap into the Speed Force…”
“Then help me.”
She pulled away from the embrace and moved away from him. “Wally, I just want to be alone right now. Can you do that for me?”
He signed. “Yeah, sure. Look, Jess, we’re all hurting. You’re not alone.”
“Just go away.”
Wally shook his head and resigned. “Well, if you need me, you know where I’ll be.”
Jessie let a couple more tears flow down her cheeks. “Wally, wait!” She turned around and saw that he was already gone. Accepting defeat, she sat back down on the stump and began to sob into her knees.
“I’m so sorry, Jessie.” She spun around on the stump and saw Max Mercury in full robes was gazing at her with tears forming in his eyes.
She opened her mouth but only managed a couple of sounds that emanated from the back of her throat and a few tongue clicks. “Max…? I thought? How are you here?”
He walked up towards her and took Wally’s spot next to her on the stump. He had a serene quality to him as he walked and sat as if he weren’t using his legs at all. As he sat their bodies touched and she felt an instant swell of confidence. “Flashpoint… I guess I’m allowed to leave the Island now. It all has left me extremely disoriented. When I discovered this, I had to come here to offer an apology.”
“For… For what?”
“Leaving you here. Leaving you without power. Taking your mentor away from you. Not giving you more answers when we had time together.” Jessie nodded. As he stood there with a sense of vulnerability, she couldn’t help but agree with his sentiments.
Jessie felt as if it were her turn to speak, but couldn’t think of what to say. She was thankful when he continued talking. “You were great for Barry. He couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Done what?”
“Anything. You were his link to humanity. Without you he couldn’t have been the hero he could have been.” Max’s voice was steady, much steadier than she felt it should be.
She rolled her eyes and scoffed at the wizard through her tears that had continued to flow down her cheeks. “I was just a stupid sidekick. You’re describing Iris.”
He touched her face and brought her to gaze to his. “Iris was for Barry. You were for The Flash.” She lazily nodded in agreement, although she didn’t quite agree with the sentiment. “With Barry gone, I need a new champion… I need you. The Speed Force needs you.”
She could hear a rumble of thunder in the distance as she turned to look at Max with a questioning look on her face. “But my speed… it’s gone.”
Max snapped his fingers and out of the sky, a bolt of lightning came down and struck Jessie straight in the chest, knocking her backwards and off the stump. Suddenly, it was like a light turning on in her head. She could remember the equation, but what’s more is that she knew she didn’t need it. For the first time in her life, she had a true connection with the Speed Force. “I should have done this two weeks ago…”
“It’s time to be a hero, Jessie…” With that a fog rolled over the woods and Max began to disappear into it. Jessie sat there for a moment and collected her thoughts. Then, with a wide smile on her face, she stood up and took off towards home.
***
Iris hadn’t moved from her spot on the couch, pensively gazing out the window since Wally left an hour ago. “Iris?” She turned around slowly to see the perpetually friendly face of Jay Garrick, her husband’s closest friend and confidante. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m surviving. Barely.” Jay sat down next to her lightly as she continued to stair out the window and play with her long red hair. She seemed quite a bit older than he had remembered her, but he couldn’t blame her. He didn’t know what he’d do if Joan passed away.
She looked up at Jay with tears in her eyes, showing an extreme effort to not let them fall. “I’m so sorry I didn’t save him… I couldn’t save him.” Jay’s tear ducts followed suit and he pulled her into a tight embrace. She had known Jay for years, but they had never been especially close, yet she felt comfortable in his arms and she was willing to savor any comfort she could get.
They sat in that position until they both saw Impulse run down the stairs, grab something out of the fridge and run back up. The only way Iris could see him was her sensitivity to the Speed Force, which she developed after fifteen years with Barry. “What do you make of him?” Jay shook Iris out of her daze.
“I don’t… I can’t… Jay, he’s my grandson, but his father is not one of my children… what can I say?” Iris’s frustration bled through her words as Jay tried his best to calm her down.
He wiped a tear from her eye as he began to speak. “He seems to be a good kid. Trying really hard to stay out of the way. I think you should give him a chance.”
“That’s easy for you to say. He’s not calling you grandma.”
Jay attempted to answer, but Jessie running into the living room and parking herself right in front of them interrupted him. “I got my speed back. At last. Where’s Wally? Is he back yet? Probably not? I’ll go find him.” She quickly cackled and sped back out the door to look for Wally.
Just as she was about to hit the street she saw Wally pulling around the corner with a sullen look on his face. She sped up to him and ran a quick circle around, which Jay and Iris saw from the window. They then saw him lift her up and spin her around before passionately kissing her. “Maybe now, they’ll actually get together…” Jay mused with a slight smile.
Iris lightly chuckled. “It’s been a long time coming.”
Jay lightly hit his forehead with his palm and snapped his fingers. “What I came down here to tell you. The coroner wants us to come down to the morgue. Something about burial proceedings.”
Iris let more tears flow. She knew this was coming, but that realization didn’t make it any easier. “I’ll grab my coat…”
***
Iris, Jay, Jessie and Wally had piled into Jay’s 1997 Keystone Bolt Sudan and were en route to the city morgue. Although it was a rather grim trip, Jay could help but smile as he peered into the rearview mirror and saw his adoptive daughter and the adopted son of his legacy, close friend and colleague with their hands loosely entangled in the back seat.
The pulled into the parking lot and saw a mob mixed of supporters, mourners, criminals and publicity seekers out side of the morgue. Jay got out of the car first and created a perimeter around the building. When Iris, Wally and Jessie, exited the car, he began to run around them in a circle to form a barrier and grant them safe passage into the building. Jessie didn’t let Wally’s hand go until they were safe in the lobby of the morgue.
“Ah, you must be Iris Allen. I’m Dr. Michael Rory. I’m currently handling your husband’s case.” He stretched out his hand and she reluctantly shook it. “Please follow me.” He led the group through a maze of examination rooms with bodies openly lying on them, as if forgotten in the entire hubbub of the day. They made Wally uneasy as he looked around. He had never been comfortable with death.
They finally arrived at a large room in the back of the building that had a single table in it. On the table was a form that was clearly a man’s body under a simple white sheet. In the room, in the far right corner was Detective Fred Chyre, Lieutenant Joe Jackam and Officer Cal Freeman, a boy who graduated high school with Wally. Against the left wall was a bigger surprise. Captain Cold stood there stoically at attention, facing the body of Barry Allen.
“What is he doing here?” Jessie shot out with bitterness and venom.
Cold laughed. “Just doing your job… oh wait, you can’t run anymore.”
In a fit of rage she sped at him. “I” she settled on his left side. “Got” she ran to his right side. “Better” she then ran and stopped right in front of him, which to her dismay didn’t faze him at all.
“Jessie! Not now.” Jay screamed at her.
He chuckled again. “I’m grabbing a cup of coffee.” With that he silently left the room before giving a wordless taunt to Jessie, which to Jay’s surprise, she ignored.
Once he had left, Fred approached Barry’s family and tipped his hat to Iris. “I’m really sorry for your loss, ma’am.”
“Fred, I’ve known you for a decade and a half. You’re Blaine's godfather. You can call me Iris.” She gingerly wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him lightly on the cheek.
He removed his police cap and brought it to his chest; his eyes expressed deep, deep sorrow. “I knew him for a long time… I never knew.”
Iris rolled her eyes. “No one did. Thankfully.” She looked around the room and settled on Barry’s corpse that was conveniently covered by a simple linen sheet, yet something drew her to reach for it. Before she could pull it off, Wally grabbed her arm.
“Aunt Iris. You don’t want to do that.” She closed her eyes, drew in a deep breath and nodded back at him, leaving an empty silence.
The coroner stepped in to break up the tension. “Have you decided what you would like to do with the body?”
“Cremation.” Captain Cold commented as he walked into the room with a fresh cup of black coffee in a simple white Styrofoam cup.
Jessie turned to face him in an aggressive manner again. “And you know of Barry’s final wishes how? My god! Why are you even here?”
Cold refused to dignify the final question with a response. “I don’t know what he would have wanted. However, I do know the people I work with and the actual crazies out there would do if he had a marked grave.”
“He has a point.” It was Wally’s turn to speak up. Since Jessie met him, he rarely spoke when it came to matters of The Flash and various superhero issues. He always left them up to Barry, Jessie and Jay. They knew better, in his opinion.
“I can’t believe you’re siding with Captain Cold.” Jessie spat back towards the redhead.
Wally shook his head. “If we buried him, his place of rest would be a lighting rod for the scum of the city. Constantly being defaced and destroyed. We can’t have that. I’d have agreed if you said it, if Iris said it or Satan came and said it.”
Iris closed her eyes and took it all in. “Yes… you’re right… do it.”
The Doctor nodded and left the room to prepare for a cremation, followed by the police officers. “The memorial’s tomorrow… I’m heading home to get some sleep. I’ll be standing guard…” With that Captain Cold left the room leaving Jay, Jessie, Iris and Wally alone with Barry’s body and their thoughts.
“Well, isn’t this sweet… It’s like a little Speed Force Family… an incomplete one, but a family at that.” A smug voice from the door way spoke, causing all of the people in the room to turn.
Jay’s eyes grew wide. “J… J… John?”
“In the flesh.”
John Chambers strolled over to where they were sitting and sat down in the only free chair. “So, I take it that’s the infamous Barry Allen… you know when I heard that his identity was revealed, I was a bit surprised. He always struck me as smarter than that. I suppose if you’re dead, your brain goes with you.”
“Who the hell are you?” Wally asked with vigor.
Jessie shifted in her chair, pulling closer to Jay out of discomfort. “He’s… he’s my birth father.”
Before Jessie could finish her last word, with lighting fast reflexes and speed, Wally’s fist had connected with John’s jaw and he was on top of him, on the floor repeatedly hitting him.
“Wally, stop!” pleaded Jessie.
Jay immediately jumped up and pulled the young man off, causing John to only laugh at the display. “Very good, my boy. How long have you wanted to do that one?”
“Since I met your daughter.”
John nodded. “Very good, very good. You have a fire in you, boy. Make sure it never goes out.” He got up, dusted himself off and gazed at his daughter who was now holding on to Wally for dear life. “So, you’re the heir apparent to the Golden Shoes? Or the winged helmet if you should chose, I suppose.”
She eyed her adopted father with a question stair. “No. He’s far too old.” Wally looked at her and she met his eyes. He had never seen the look of pure terror and disease in her eyes before. She was usually quite carefree. “Oh… I see. He never prepared you for this… it’s a pity.”
“N…no. I’m prepared.” She sounded small. Not like the twenty-one year old woman who had been a superhero since she was thirteen. She sounded like a child who was being scolded by her father.
Chambers laughed. “I may have believed you if you didn’t stutter or whimper. I can show you.”
This time Jay shot up and stood between his daughter and her biological father with his fists raised. “Do you remember what I told you would happen if you ever tried to come back into her life?”
“I know you too well, Jay. I doubt you even have it in you to lay a punch, much less murder me.” Jay didn’t take the challenge lightly. Immediately, his fist collided with John’s nose, causing Jay to feel a snap.
John was in immense pain, but he stifled a laugh. The response led Jay to attempt another punch, but this one was caught by Jessie who ran in between them. “Dad, stop.” She pleaded with tears forming in her eyes.
She turned to Chambers who had blood flowing down his face from his nose. “You can help me? You think you can make me a better hero?”
John smiled. “I know I can.”
Jessie sadly nodded. “Then I’ll come with you… I need this.”
“Jessie, don't!”
“Wally, Barry left me with nothing. Dad hasn’t been fully active since before I was adopted. I need to do this. If you love me like you say you do, you need to understand that.” She closed the gap between them and kissed his lips chastely. When she pulled away he had the same look of shock and sorrow on his face.
John rolled his eyes. “Come on, Jess. It’s time.”
She turned around and walked out of the room with her birth father, leaving the rest of the room shocked, angry and confused.
To Be Continued
