⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
time travel

⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

THE ENERGY INSIDE of Juliet's hands buzzed as she walked through Jurgens Industrial, practically begging to be released. Carter and Kendra were walking in front of her in their strange hawk suits and chained up while she stood in between Barry and Oliver, but even the strength in numbers couldn't stop her racing heart.

Savage walked closer to them, holding his staff. "You brought them." He looked at their outfits. "And dressed for the occasion, I see."

"We're only doing this because two lives aren't worth two cities," Oliver replied.

"Well, in that case, you are wiser than I gave you credit for." He laughed softly. "It's been a lifetime. Still wearing those ridiculous outfits, I see." Savage's eyes went from Oliver, to Juliet, to Barry. "You don't need to be here for this. The culling has a tendency to be . . ." He pulled back his trench coat, revealing all of his weapons. "Unsightly. Your new friends betrayed you."

"Just do what you're gonna do," Carter insisted.

Savage stared directly at Kendra. "It's wonderful to see you again, my love."

"I will never be your love," Kendra argued.

"I know." He pulled his knife out from his sheath. "That always makes this easier." Savage walked closer to her. "Chay-Ara, parting is such sweet sorrow."

He raised his hand out, preparing to stab her in the chest, but Juliet was faster. Juliet's mind immediately connected to his, and the red energy that had been wanting to be released finally did. It traveled from her fingers all the way up her arms, and surrounded Savage's figure as well. She pushed her hands forwards, causing Savage to stumble back away from them.

Oliver went up next, starting to attack Savage. Juliet let her concentration drop as Barry sped up to Kendra and Carter, removing them from their chains. Savage took Oliver down and sent a blast from the staff towards Barry. It immediately hit him in his chest, making him fly backwards.

Savage then turned the staff to Juliet. He sent another blast from it to her, but Juliet summoned a red ball of energy in her hand and threw it. When they met in the middle, they fizzled out, just like back at the church. Savage's face contorted in rage and he started to send blast after blast towards her. Juliet met each one with her own energy, but Savage was on an absolute God damn mission.

When she was busy extinguishing a blast, Savage sent another one. It made contact with Juliet's chest, and pain flared throughout her body. Her feet left the floor, and she shrieked in surprise as she flew all the way backwards. Juliet's head knocked against one of the metal poles, and her body crumpled onto the cold concrete.

It was honestly a miracle she didn't pass out. The world only went black for a second before Juliet came to her senses. Her mind was spinning impossibly fast, and she pressed herself up onto her hands. Juliet blinked the fogginess out of her eyes to see Kendra and Carter laying on the ground, motionless with knives embedded into their skin, dripping blood onto the floor. There was a flash of yellow lightning, and she watched as Barry grabbed the staff that was on the ground and turn it on Savage.

"I've got it!" Barry screamed. "The gauntlets aren't working!"

Juliet reached up and touched her head. At once, her skin glowed red before fading. All of the throbbing and dizziness she had disappeared at once. She got to her feet and ran over to Barry. Sure enough, blue energy was surrounding the staff, and Barry wasn't protected. Oliver went on the other side of the staff and grabbed onto it.

So, Juliet felt completely fucking useless. There was no room for her on the staff, and all she could do was watch Savage fight against the staff's power and how the life force started to drain out of Barry and Oliver, turning their skin an ashen shade of gray.

"Let go, Barry!" Oliver exclaimed.

"No, I'm not leaving you," Barry protested.

"You're fast enough to get away. Go!"

"Ollie, no."

"Run, Barry," Oliver stated. "Run."

The gauntlets sparked, and Barry got blown backwards from the force of the staff. Juliet's eyes widened as Savage ran forwards and captured the staff from Oliver. Oliver fell backwards onto the ground, and Juliet took multiple steps back, landing right by Barry. Savage lifted up the staff and brought it down on the ground, causing a huge energy explosion begin.

"Ollie!" Juliet screamed as she watched him completely burn to ashes from the staff.

Barry, in the split second he had before the burst of energy hit him, looked over at Juliet — his girlfriend, the love of his life, the one he was meant to be with forever. Call him selfish — well, it really fucking was selfish, but Barry could not leave her behind, not when she was right next to him.

Juliet barely had time to think before Barry wrapped her up in his arms and ran away. Considering she wasn't a speedster, she couldn't really tell what was going on. Juliet looked over Barry's shoulder to see a blue light approaching them, which had to be the energy blast they were running from.

However, it suddenly disappeared. Juliet's eyebrows knit in confusion before the running suddenly stopped. Barry set her down, and Juliet slightly stumbled on her feet for a second before looking around. They were back in the warehouse from yesterday, and Oliver and Merlyn were there as well.

"Thank you for coming," Oliver said. "I know this more than a little crazy."

Juliet gripped onto Barry's arm a little, trying to steady her mind. Sure, she had heard about time travel, and sure, she learned that she could alter realities, but she never thought she would actually be a part of it. Yet here she was, in the past.

So Barry was right. He had time-traveled to the day before with Juliet, like he had seen, before everything went wrong. Yet Juliet couldn't stop her mind from absolutely freaking the fuck out.

Savage came in, and the meeting went exactly the same as it had yesterday, except for Juliet's snarky comments. He said the whole speech about how he needed Kendra and Carter to live and that he was going to destroy their families. Juliet spent the meeting staring at the floor in shock, because it was — quite literally — the same thing she had heard before. That also meant Oliver hadn't made that run that DNA test, the same one that caused Felicity to act all strange.

"I came to this meeting out of curiosity. It is now sated. Bring Khufu and Chay-Ara to Jurgens Industrial in twenty-four hours or I will see you dead and buried under the bodies of your loved ones," Savage finished.

He let the bloody arrow fall to the floor with a clatter before walking away. Juliet didn't glare at him this time, she just tried to regulate her breathing.

Oliver looked back at them. "Barry, Jules, you all right?"

"Yeah," Juliet breathed out. She grabbed onto Barry's arm again. "I just need . . . sorry."

She pulled Barry to a more secluded part of the warehouse while Merlyn gave Oliver that speech about how he would come for him if Thea got hurt.

"I know," Barry voiced quietly.

"You . . ." Juliet trailed off. "We're—"

"In the past." Barry let out a sigh. "I know."

"This is crazy," Juliet responded. "We're not supposed to mess with shit, but how are we supposed to let the end of the world happen?"

Barry glanced back for a second to see Oliver leaving. "I don't know. But we'll figure it out." He planted a kiss to the top of her head. "Come on."

They allowed Oliver some time to drive before leaving the warehouse. When Juliet teleported back to the farmhouse, Oliver had already parked and gotten off his motorcycle. Barry sped in next to her. Juliet let out a deep breath and took off her mask, pushing some of her hair away from her face with her fingers.

"We need to brief the team," Oliver announced. "Come up with some type of counter attack."

"It's not gonna work," Barry called.

Oliver stopped in his tracks. "What?"

Barry pulled the hood of his suit down. "Nothing, all right. N-Never mind. I shouldn't have said anything. I . . ."

Oliver glanced between them in concern. "Hey, what's going on?"

"Okay, look. This isn't gonna make any sense to you. But I — all right, so I traveled back in time with Juliet from when we tried to take out Savage. I — I — I mean, later when we try to take him down, in the future, and it doesn't work."

Oliver blinked. "You're right, that doesn't make sense to me."

Barry shrugged. "Our world is stranger than yours."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Juliet responded absentmindedly. "Theirs is all kind of up in the air."

"Well, maybe we use that to our advantage," Oliver suggested, completely brushing past Juliet's comment. "You say that whatever we do against Savage doesn't work?"

"Yeah," Barry agreed.

"Then we come up with a new plan."

"No. No, no, no. Okay, look, you can't. W-W-When I mess with time, it doesn't end well. I just happened to drag J into this whole situation, too."

"But what you're telling me is that it already doesn't end well," Oliver countered. "Barry, Jules, people in our line of work, we don't get second chances. We need to take this one."

Barry looked down at Juliet for a second, who shrugged, before nodding. "All right, I hope you're right."

"All right. Let's start with what went wrong."

"You," Juliet revealed, following after Oliver as they went back towards the house. "You're in a completely different headspace when we go up against Savage. It's like you're a completely different person, as if your whole world got turned upside down. You're not acting right."

"Why not?" Oliver asked.

"Ollie—"

"Jules." Oliver turned around to stare at her seriously. "Why not?"

She took a deep breath. Juliet hadn't realized it at first back in their lab, but considering how Oliver looked like he was going to be sick when he saw the Y chromosomes match from the hair and the blood, and the way Felicity reacted . . . it could only mean one thing.

"You're going to give Barry and I a hair sample to run forensics on," Juliet explained. "It hasn't happened yet, considering we're in the past right now, which is technically your present . . . I'm getting off track. So, we do, and you looked extremely shaken up after. Felicity found out about it, and you had a really big fight, one that ends things between you two."

"What was the fight about?" Oliver questioned.

Juliet's eyes softened. "Oliver—"

"Jules."

"You have a son, Ollie," Juliet told him. She watched him in concern as he froze up — just like at the lab. "That's why you're not focused when we fight Savage."

"And then Kendra can't access her powers and then the tech they're developing to counteract Savage's staff does not work, and . . ." Barry added. "Everyone dies, Oliver."

Oliver looked back at them, determination etched on his features. "This time they won't. This time we do things differently."

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JULIET TRIED HER best to live her day exactly like she had earlier. The only difference was that she didn't have the talk with Cisco about Barry ghosting and she didn't go back to her lab because she had told Oliver everything last night. In all honesty, time travel was making her confused.

The sun dipped down below the horizon, painting the sky an inky black dotted with stars. They were getting closer and closer to their second face-off with Vandal Savage, and so far, they hadn't come up with anything different to do.

She stood in the dining room, leaning into Barry's side a little. Barry pressed up against her, his hand slipped comfortably in the back pocket of her jeans. (No, Juliet will not be commenting any further on that.)

Cisco then came through the door, Kendra following right behind her. "Oliver, you were right. I don't know how you knew, but you were right. The gauntlets won't work. They're missing a critical element."

"How do you know?" Diggle inquired.

"Because I remembered," Kendra admitted. "I remember how Savage killed us the first time. Back in Egypt."

Carter stared at her in shock. "I've never been able to remember our first death."

"Well, these sky rocks — meteors — they fell and they completely destroyed the royal palace."

"During the Middle Kingdom, Egypt experienced a high level of meteorite activity," Felicity cut in. She then noticed all the looks she was getting. "I know stuff."

"Which is one of the many reasons we love you so much, but also doesn't seem to help us stop Savage," Laurel said.

"It's the calamity Professor Boardman was referencing," Kendra explained. "The meteors, they had a glow about them, and Savage's staff had two gemstones with the exact same glow."

"Yeah, the gemstones might be made up of the same element as the meteorite," Barry voiced.

"The Egyptians would use meteorite in their craftmanship," Felicity agreed, turning back to her computer.

"And the minerals glow in proximity to each other," Caitlin added.

Cisco snapped. "Like Sankara Stones."

"Oh, wait, the Indiana Jones reference is the only thing I understood," Thea interjected.

"Two pieces of the same meteorite, like an Nth metal. That is the key to counteracting the staff."

"Believe it or not, this isn't actually the craziest thing I've heard today," Oliver replied, and Juliet shrugged — fair enough.

"There's a sample of the meteorite from the Middle Kingdom at the Keystone City Museum of Natural History," Felicity announced.

Juliet gave her a two-fingered salute before teleporting away. She went right into the museum, and did a couple of small jumps until she found the Middle Kingdom exhibit. In a glass case was a black rock that had blue gemstones in it. Considering no other one looked like it, she assumed it was that. Juliet got the rock before teleporting back to the farmhouse.

She extended it to Cisco. "This should be it."

Cisco took it. "I could synthesize a compatible isotope out of this and coat the gauntlets with it."

"Okay, do it," Oliver instructed. "Savage doesn't know that Kendra's gained access to all of her abilities. That makes you our ace in the hole."

"Where do you need us?" Diggle asked.

Oliver looked at him, Laurel, and Thea. "Suit up."

Juliet raised an eyebrow. Well, that was something that was different.

Their new plan was basically the same as the old one, just . . . better. Kendra and Carter would be chained up, making it seem like they were handing them off. However, they would strike, and then Diggle, Thea, and Laurel would come out from the back of a van. All they had to count on was Kendra's powers being accessed and the gauntlets working.

Juliet entered Jurgens Industrial for the second time. Her hands weren't itching with energy as much this time, considering she had already experienced probably the worst of the worst. She just wasn't quite sure she could get the image of Oliver's burning body out of her head as she walked through the warehouse.

"Ollie," Barry began as him and Juliet walked up to him. "Everyone's in position. Are you sure about this?"

"About changing the future?" Oliver responded. "Barry, what can happen here that is worse than what already did?"

"If I knew that, I wouldn't be so worried."

"Let's do it."

Savage was waiting for them, just like last time. The conversation went the same — him still being his creepy self, Carter telling him to get it over with. Blah blah blah. Living the same thing over was just weird.

He stared at Kendra. "It's wonderful to see you again, my love."

"I will never be your love," Kendra argued.

"I know." He pulled his knife out from his sheath. "That always makes this easier." Savage walked closer to her. "Chay-Ara, parting is such sweet sorrow."

Juliet didn't strike first this time. Instead, Oliver got an arrow and shot it at Kendra and Carter. Upon impact, their chains broke. Carter ran right at Savage, but he knocked him aside with the staff.

"Now, Kendra!" Oliver yelled.

Kendra straightened up, and at once, wings sprouted from her back. She flew at Savage and made him fall on his back on the ground. The van then drove into the warehouse with a screech. Savage sent an energy blast right between Oliver, Juliet, and Barry. Juliet raised her own hand and sent energy back at it, neutralizing the energy from the staff. She raised an eyebrow casually, summoning another ball of energy in her hand.

Savage whirled around and sent an energy blast to the van. It sparked and spun around. The back doors then flew open, and Diggle, Laurel, and Thea jumped out. Laurel opened her mouth and screeched with her Canary Cry, Thea shot arrows, and Diggle fired his gun. Savage dodged all of them with the staff before sending a blast their way, and the three ran to avoid it.

He knocked Diggle, Laurel, and Thea to the ground all while avoiding Oliver's arrows. Juliet glanced at Barry for a second, and they didn't even have to say anything to know what they had to do. She raised her hand, connecting her mind to Savage's, and froze him in place. Barry sped forwards, grabbed the staff, and ran back.

"Stand clear!" Barry called.

Juliet let her concentration drop from Savage. Carter and Kendra flew forwards, grabbing the others to get them away from Savage. Barry then shot the staff towards Savage. Savage raised his hands and stopped the energy. Unlike last time, Juliet didn't see the life force start to drain from Barry.

"The gauntlets are working!"

Oliver ran forwards and grabbed the other side of the staff.

"No, no, no, Oliver, get yourself to safety," Barry insisted.

"We're not leaving each other!" Oliver protested.

Juliet raised her hands, ready to intervene if anything went wrong. However, this time, things went right. Savage got blasted further and further with the staff, and with one final push from Barry and Oliver, his body burst into flames and turned into ash. The staff immediately vanished with a blue light.

"Did we do it?" Kendra questioned, running back into the room with the others. "Is he gone?"

Diggle stared at the pile of dust on the floor that used to be Savage. "Yeah, looks like."

Carter smiled at Kendra. "I knew you could do it."

"I'm having the strangest déjà vu," Laurel admitted.

Oliver sighed. "You're not the only one."

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AUTUMN LEAVES FELL like pieces into place as Juliet walked hand-in-hand with Barry through one of the parks in Central City. Oliver, Cisco, Carter, and Kendra were there as well — it was where they would all depart each other to go back to whatever the hell they were doing before. Or, for Carter and Kendra, to figure out what they would do next.

"So, how do you feel now that Savage is pushing daisies?" Cisco inquired. "Does this mean you guys are the immortal ones now and he's the one who gets reincarnated? 'Cause that would suck."

"I just sprouted wings a few days ago, and I'm just trying to wrap my head around that," Kendra replied.

"You know, he does raise a good point, though," Barry voiced. "Savage is gone for good now, right?"

"I don't know," Carter answered. "We've never defeated him before." He looked at Kendra. "But we're free."

"Ugh, get a room," Cisco commented as Carter and Kendra hugged.

"Finally have the rest of your lives in front of you," Oliver said. "Have you thought about what you're gonna do?"

"Carter says in our past lives, we used to help people," Kendra responded. "After everything you guys have done for me, I think I should give that a try."

"You make it sound like this try is happening somewhere else," Barry stated.

"In our prior incarnation, we used to live in Saint Wilkin," Carter revealed. "You really liked it there."

"Could Cisco and I have a moment?" Kendra asked.

Carter nodded. "Of course."

Juliet smiled softly at Kendra. "Good luck . . . Hawkgirl."

They walked away, leaving Cisco and Kendra alone. Carter disbanded on his own, hovering around to wait for Kendra. Juliet, Barry, and Oliver continued on through the small park, passing by the pretty trees and flowers.

"Well, you two did it," Oliver began. "Everyone's alive. Our guardian angels."

"That's what you told us we could be when we told you about our powers," Barry agreed.

"Meant it then, and I know it now."

"Ollie," Juliet interrupted hesitantly. "I think we need to have a . . . batshit fucking crazy conversation."

"About my son?" Oliver guessed. "God, it feels weird to say that."

"Well, yes, but no. I meant if you're going to tell Felicity about him."

"I don't think that's any of your business."

"You're right, it's not," Juliet agreed. "But if I've learned anything from my idiot of a boyfriend, it's that when he messes with time, time messes back. We've already changed what happened with Savage."

"We're just worried about temporal backlash," Barry added.

"Wait, do you think that the timeline cares about what I tell my girlfriend?" Oliver questioned.

"It did with me."

Juliet blinked at him in surprise. "What?"

"Fate and destiny," Barry recited.

Her eyes immediately widened — she remembered that day at Jitters, and how angry she felt about Barry bringing up fate and destiny when she was still trying to get over Oliver, even though she didn't know how he knew about fate and destiny. Now, she did, because in that alternate timeline, she had probably told him about it.

"What are you gonna tell her?" Barry inquired.

"Well, you're right when you say that the rules keep changing and that the lives that we lead, they make us feel powerless," Oliver said. "And it makes me wonder if . . . if William wouldn't be better off with my world kept separate from his."

"Look, Oliver, take it from someone who didn't get to grow up with his father. I think the best thing for William is for you to be a part of his life."

"Thanks, Barry."

"Yeah, man."

Oliver immediately backed away when Barry let go of Juliet's hand to hug him. "I'm not really a hugger."

Barry grinned. "Yeah, tell me something I don't know. But the thing is, I am fast enough to just hug you without you knowing, so you might as well let me."

Oliver allowed Barry to hug him. "Fine."

Juliet smiled at them. Oliver let Barry go. Juliet approached him a little and put her hand on his shoulder. She pressed up onto her toes and kissed him on the cheek — clearly platonic from the way she felt nothing from it anymore. Juliet fell back onto her flat feet and took Barry's outstretched hand.

"Just keep Felicity in mind, okay?" Juliet told him.

Oliver nodded. He then turned around and walked away with a smile larger than Juliet had ever seen on him. Juliet then glanced up at Barry, her eyes glinting, before they started to make their way back through the park.

"So," Barry began, using their interlocked hands to pull Juliet right into him so they were chest-to-chest. "You gonna give me a kiss on the cheek, too, or what?"

Juliet laughed a little at him. "You're unbelievable."

"Come on." Barry even turned his cheek towards her to emphasize her point. "I'm waiting."

Juliet used her free hand to move his head so he was looking at her normally again. "I'll do you one better."

She then leaned up and kissed him fully. Barry's grip on her hand tightened a bit as his other one moved to hold her hip. Maybe Kendra and Carter taught them something new about each other. They had already known they would be married in the future, but Juliet had a feeling that they were soulmates.

〖   ϟ   〗

GOD FUCKING DAMN IT I MISS OLIVER