"Anyone care to explain what a Grodd is?" I asked as me, Barry, Cisco, Caitlin and JOe walked into the Cortex.

"Five years ago, Eiling and Wells were working on a project to expand soldier's cognitive abilities during battle. What we didn't realize is that Eiling was trying to create soldiers with psychic abilities." Caitlin informed as Barry frowned.

"What do you mean by psychic?" He asked as Caitlin frowned.

"Eiling was trying to create super-soldiers." I muttered as Cisco snapped his fingers with a nod.

"But when Wells found out about the terrible experiments that Eiling was doing, he shut down the entire project." Caitlin said as Barry and I scoffed.

"So a psycho killer has a soft spot for animals. How sweet." I said with a roll of my eyes. "What happened to Grodd?" Caitlin only shrugged.

"We don't know. After the Particle Accelerator exploded, I went down to check on him, and the cell was empty." She said as I rolled my eyes.

"So there's been a super-soldier gorilla running amuck in the streets of Central City for nearly a year, and we are just now hearing about it?" I said as Caitlin pressed her lips together.

"Maybe this. . . Gorilla was in hiding." Joe suspected as I shrugged.

"It's a possibility." Cisco said.

"When the dark matter hit Grodd, all the serums and drugs that Eiling injected him with could've activated." Caitlin said as I crossed my arms.

"So you're saying that the Particle Accelerator created a. . . Meta-Gorilla? Well Cisco. You know what happens when a super intelligent ape whose pissed off at humans escapes captivity." I said as Cisco stared ahead, nodding slowly.

"This is some Planet of The Apes shit." He muttered as I nodded, zoning out as Caitlin showed everyone Grodd's brain scan. I waved a finger in the air, going to the monitors as I looked something up.

"Guys." I said as they all stopped talking, looking to me. "There have been reports of some sort of animal down in the sewers."

"MM. Alligators." Cisco said as I chuckled.

"C.H.U.D.S." I said as he snickered, fist bumping me as everyone frowned. "Are we the only ones that actually watch movies?" I said as Caitlin sighed loudly before typing into the keyboard.

"Uh, a few months ago, two sewer worker's went missing. The search party reported hearing strange animal like noises down in the tunnels." Caitlin said as I turned to Barry and Cisco.

"Where exactly did they go missing?" Cisco asked as Caitlin hummed.

"Fifth Avenue and Tenth Street." She answered. "There's an access point to the sewers about two blocks east of that intersection." 

"I'll start there." I said as I stood up.

"Woah what? No you aren't going there alone." Barry said as he stood in my way. "Especially when it's a meta-gorilla." 

"Alright then. Guess you're coming too. C'mon Cisco." I said as he choked on his slushie.

"What? Nah I-I'm good here. Wading through miles of rats, roaches and human excrement. . . Count me out." He said as I slowly turned to him, glaring. "uh.. I mean Count me in! Heh..." 

"You guys need a cop there." Joe said as Barry puffed out a breath.

"Joe. While we would honestly love to have you with us, I feel this is a three person job. And seeing as Grodd seems to like me even though I have never seen his face, I think it's best you stay safe and here." I said as Joe frowned at me before sighing, giving me a nod before pulling his gun out of his holster.

"One of you take this." Joe said as I slowly grabbed it. "Just in case." 

***

"Can't believe I'm down here looking for a supernatural gorilla. I'm terrified of regular gorillas." I whispered as we all snickered at him before a loud thud echoed in the sewers. I spun around, the flashlight lighting up the wall ahead of me.

"What was that?" I whispered again as I felt Barry's hand snake around my waist, pulling me close to him.

"Hey I want some protection too!" Cisco said before stepping closer to us. Just then, a rat fell from the wall, startling me as I yelped, practically flinging myself back into Barry.

"S-sorry. I have a fear of rats." I said as the two looked at me confused. "Childhood trauma." I said as they both clicked their tongues. Cisco set up another flare, only to stop when we saw handwriting.

"Holy shit." I muttered, stepping closer to the wall as I trailed my fingers along it.

"Looks like we're in the right place." Barry said as Cisco nodded.

"He's evolving." I scoffed out a smile. I had always imagined something like this happening, but far into the future. I wasn't expecting it to happen in my timeline. 

Everyone jumped at the sound of something growling. "If I hadn't seen Jurassic Park-" Cisco started before I finished for him.

"I wouldn't be nearly as terrified right now." We all nodded before I looked at Barry. "If Grodd is getting smarter. . . D-Do you think he's getting bigger too?" 

There was a loud rumbling as I laughed nervously. "Truck?" Cisco said as I smiled through the fear.

"More like 'fuck.'" I said as we all nodded, freezing at the sight of a large, gorilla like silhouette.

"GAH!" Barry was the first to fall down from the pain of the high-frequency ringing. I was next, but Cisco wasn't affected.

"Barry! Cora!" Cisco yelled as I shuddered in pain, holding my ears closed as I tried to block out the pain. It worked for a few moments, allowing me time to grab Joe's gun and fire two shots at Grodd before being thrown backwards.

And then it was darkness.

***

I gasped, my eyes shooting open as I looked around. It was nearly dark, save for the small light emitting from a drain above me. "Oh god. . ." I muttered, looking down at my legs. They were healed, but there was blood on my knees down.

What happened?

"B-barry?! Cisco!" I called out, but no one called back. There were grunts, my heart starting to pick up the pace as my lower lip trembled. 

"Please just be the road, please just be the road-" There was a roar, a loud whimper escaping me as my eyes were glued shut. "That's not the road."

"God Barry help." I mumbled.

"No. Help. Here." I heard a deep, brooding voice in my thoughts, causing me to let out another whimper as I slowly opened my eyes to see Grodd. 

"Oh my god." I muttered, my hand quickly reaching for the gun, but my mind had other ideas. As I aimed it at Grodd, my hand slowly made it's way to my forehead, my eyes widening in fear as I began to cry. "P-please-"

"Father. Hate gun." The gun flew out of my hand, my heart finally beating again as I gasped for air.

"F-Father. . . You mean Dr. Wells?" I asked Grodd as he huffed. I'll take it as a yes. "W-Where is he? Where is Doctor Wells?"

Grodd got to close to my face, a whimper escaping me as I shut my eyes tightly. "NOT. HERE." 

Barry

"Cisco she's still down there! How could you just leave Cora in the sewers with Grodd?!" I yelled as Joe shot up, along with Caitlin. 

"You guys, what." Joe said as Cisco stepped back, clearly afraid of Joe at the moment.

"It was too late! By the time I had reached Barry, Cora was out cold and being dragged by Grodd! I-I couldn't do anything it's not my fault!" Cisco argued as I clenched my jaw and hands.

"Cisco, didn't you put a tracker in the dart you shot Grodd with?" Caitlin asked as Cisco put a smile on his face, nodding. 

"We can track Grodd." He said before I shook my head.

"I can't wait for that. I can't wait for that tracker to be activated. If I have to I will search every inch of that sewer until I find Cora. For all we know she could. . . She could be-"

"Please don't say it, Barry." Cisco begged as I huffed through my nose. "And besides. What happens when you find them? Grodd can take over your mind the same way he did Eiling." He continued as I ran a hand through my hair.

"Can you guys build me something? Some kind of tech so that he can't get into my mind?"

Cora

In all my life, I knew that there was the possibility of being kidnapped.

But not by a damn gorilla thats bigger than the doors to my apartment complex.

This is what I get for dating a superhero.

Are we dating? I mean, neither of us have made it official, but like. . . we've kissed. Nearly had s-

"stop thinking." Grodd growled as my eyes widened, nodding.

 "You got it, big guy." I muttered as he huffed, walking in a circle. 

As i tapped my finger on my knee, I stopped, hearing something I've only heard maybe a thousand times.

"Barry. . . " I muttered once more, a hopeful smile on my face as I saw red lightning speeding into Grodd, only to see him be thrown against a wall.

"BARRY!" I yelled, going to stand up only to be forced down by Grodd's mind. Barry shot up, speed punching Grodd only to be grabbed by the throat. "Let him go!" I screamed as I tried to stand up, but couldn't.

Barry was then thrown next to me, my hands going to reach for him, but yet again I failed to move. Once again, Barry and Grodd disappeared, and I was finally able to slowly stand up. But I didn't feel like following.

But I could hear their thoughts. Barry's were going crazy. Maybe. . . Can I get inside his mind?

You can do this, Cora. Simple. Just. . . Focus on Barry. Focus on him, and you'll win.

I shut my eyes tightly, taking in a deep breath. "Barry? I-I hope you can hear me. I know your mind is going crazy because of Grodd. But just listen to the sound of my. . . voice in your thoughts. Focus on the good memories or something. Whatever Grodd is doing to you, fight it. You are stronger than you think, you can do this. Do it for me." 

"You are The Flash, after all." I finished, waiting to hear his thoughts disperse to normality. A smile crossed my face as I heard his thoughts return to silence, before a sick feeling appeared in my stomach.

"No- Oh god-" I held my stomach as I threw up, cursing to myself as I lost my 6 year streak. Or was it 8 years?

It doesn't matter. The streak was gone.

Guess I won't be using that power for a while.

I collapsed backwards, groaning as I rolled my eyes back in pain. Where was Barry?

"Cora!? Cora!" I heard Barry yell as he reappeared from one of the pipes. A weak smile came to my face as I looked up at him.

"Hey Bar." I muttered as he helped me stand up, looking me up and down.

"Are you okay?!" Barry said as I slowly nodded. He leaned in to kiss me, only for me to push his face back.

"I wouldn't. I just threw up saving your ass." I said as Barry grimaced before chuckling. 

"Let's get you back to S.T.A.R. Labs."

***

After Barry released Eiling, everyone ended up doing a bunch of tests on my own brain to see if Grodd was in control. Thankfully, the overweight monkey wasn't.

"Why do I feel like I'm the one always getting into danger?" I said as I crossed my arms over my lap, looking at everyone as they shrugged.

"Seems to me you're good at being a damsel in distress." Barry joked as I scoffed.

"So anyway. What was Grodd's lair like?" Cisco asked as I rolled my eyes. "Does he like King Kong or is he more Planet of the Apes?" 

"Um. Terrifying. and NO. Because I didn't ask." I said as Cisco held back a chuckle. "Can I go now?"

"You're body is still healing, Cora." Caitlin said as I frowned at my X-Ray.

"I didn't even know my ribs were cracked." I said as I pressed where one was, wiggling my fingers to feel no pain.

"Maybe it's a good thing we didn't catch Grodd." Cisco said as he and Caitlin exited the medical room, their conversation turning into a whisper as Barry sat next to me.

"Barry. . . I'm sorry." I said quietly, not removing my gaze from the wall ahead of me. "Maybe if I didn't go down with you and Cisco I wouldn't have worried you guys so much."

"Maybe, but if it were just me and Cisco, he could have been taken. Or Joe if he came with." Barry replied as I sighed, resting my head on his shoulder. "Everything Grodd did was just to distract us. He wouldn't have killed you even if he wanted to, because Wells didn't want you to be killed." He continued as I frowned.

"I still can't believe all of this is truly happening." Barry uttered as I frowned. "He was the man I trusted so much. . . And look at who he is."

"Barry . . . Sometimes the people you trust the most will turn against you faster than you can run." I simply said as he sighed, nodding in agreement.

"You know everything you said to me while we were down in the sewer. . . You know why I wasn't afraid?" Barry asked as I looked up at him. "Because you were there. Even though I was. . . Really scared, having you there in my head was how I was able to stand up to Grodd. Everytime I falter, or make a mistake, the thought of you is what picks me up, and keeps me going. You have been a part of my life this past year, and I couldn't ask for anyone else to defeat these meta-humans with."

I smiled up at Barry as he did as well, his eyes glistening with happiness. "Without you, there wouldn't be The Flash." He said as I bit my tongue, gripping the locket he gave me in my hand. I had yet to take it off since he gave it to me before Christmas.

"You are my lightning rod, Cora." He muttered, his hand reaching under my hair and to the back of my neck, pulling me into a kiss.

"LET'S GO! CARRY FOR THE WIN!" Cisco screamed as Barry and I jumped back from each other.

"Cisco!" I yelled, but he was too excited by the thing he just saw to be scared. And with his beaming smile, Cisco skipped out of the Cortex and to his little workshop.

And all me and Barry could do was laugh. "Big Belly Burger?"

I smiled widely, nodding. "I thought you'd never ask."