⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗘

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
saving firestorm

⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

JULIET WAS KIND of struggling with the fact that she could alter realities.

She didn't know how, she didn't know why. Some fabric in time and space must've ripped when that red chemical combined with the lightning strike from the Particle Accelerator, but why her? She was just an ordinary girl, and now she had this whole new weight on her shoulders. What if she did it accidentally? What if she caused the Earth to fall apart? What if she suddenly made it that nobody existed?

To say her mind was spinning out of control was an understatement.

She stood in S.T.A.R. Labs the next day, having rushed over due to an urgent call from Dr. Wells. Apparently, General Eiling had stormed into S.T.A.R. Labs and took Professor Stein away. She stood in the cortex by the computers with Barry while Caitlin, Cisco, and Ronnie stood behind them.

"He didn't hurt you?" Barry asked.

"Barry, I told you, only my pride is hurt," Dr. Wells answered. "Unfortunately, I'm not in the position to take on armed soldiers."

"Where do you think Eiling took Professor Stein?" Caitlin questioned.

"I imagine some off-the-books military research facility."

"We can't just let them have him," Juliet argued. "We have to go get him back."

"Easy," Dr. Wells instructed. "Eiling has already demonstrated he has the weaponry to disable the Flash and Scarlet, or worse."

"Well, we can't let him turn Stein into a weapon," Caitlin stated.

"How do we find him?" Ronnie inquired.

All of them turned to look at him. If Ronnie and Professor Stein were connected, he had the answer.

Ronnie looked around at all of them. "What?"

They brought him back into the treadmill room. Ronnie laid back on the bed while Caitlin hooked him up to the machines. His vitals got displayed across the computer screen. Juliet was sitting next to Barry on a table, vaguely aware of the way their shoulders and thighs were pressed up against each other's.

"No abnormal brain activity," Caitlin announced. "All vitals steady."

"You really think Ronnie can somehow feel where they're keeping Stein?" Barry asked to Dr. Wells, who was next to them.

"Ronnie got dizzy when the soldiers grabbed Stein, and Stein developed Ronnie's obsession with pizza," Cisco replied.

"I don't feel anything right now," Ronnie admitted.

Caitlin placed a hand on his arm. "Just keep trying."

"Whatever this is, it doesn't have an on and off switch."

"It's possible it's just some kind of residual connection," Dr. Wells suggested. "A temporary link to your time together."

Juliet's eyebrows knit in thought as she watched Ronnie suddenly sit up straighter.

"Wait," Ronnie cut in. "I feel something." He started to breathe heavier. "I'm — I'm cold."

He was quiet for a moment before his body suddenly convulsed in pain. Ronnie let out a scream as well. Juliet's eyes widened and she instantly stood up.

Cisco rushed to Ronnie's side. "You're okay, man, we got you."

Juliet looked back at Dr. Wells. "What's going on with him?"

"Nothing's going on with him," Dr. Wells responded over Ronnie's cries of pain. "It's goin on with Stein, and Ronnie is feeling his pain. I was wrong. The connection's not temporary. It's only getting stronger."

"Just try and hold on," Caitlin reassured Ronnie.

Ronnie glanced to the table by his bed. "Water. Water."

Cisco handed him the glass of water. However, instead of drinking from it, Ronnie poured the water and smashed the glass on the table. Juliet slightly jumped backwards from the sudden noise of glass shattering and reached up, taking Barry's arm in her hand. Barry placed a hand on the small of her back in response. Juliet's eyes widened even further in shock as she watched Ronnie start to carve into his skin with the broken glass.

"Ronnie, no!" Caitlin shouted.

"Wait, Cait, wait," Barry said.

"He's cutting himself!"

"Hold on," Juliet let out, realization flashing across her features. "Let him."

Ronnie let out pained breaths as he continued to carve into his skin. Juliet felt slightly sick to her stomach as she watched him do that. Finally, when he was finished, it was revealed that he had written the word WHERE into his skin.

"Anything?" Caitlin questioned anxiously.

"Nothing," Ronnie stated. "Nothing, just . . . just cold. Like a metal surface. Pressure on and on and off. Tap, tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap, tap, tap."

"Morse code," Dr. Wells noticed.

"I got this," Cisco voiced before running off.

"Same thing again," Ronnie continued. "Tap, tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap, tap, tap."

Cisco wrote down what the taps were in letters. "Twenty-seven."

"What does it mean?" Caitlin inquired.

"Twenty-seven," Juliet echoed. "Army base twenty-seven. They go by numbers sometimes, like Area fifty-one."

Cisco instantly started to type on the computer. "Facility twenty-seven, about three hundred miles away. It was shut down in 1961."

"Well, that's where they're keeping Stein," Barry said.

"Bet you that's where they're keeping aliens, too."

Juliet stared at him. "Cisco, what the fuck?"

"You cannot tell me that the government doesn't have aliens, JJ," Cisco insisted.

"Okay, okay, jeez."

Ronnie stood up from the bed. "I'm coming with you."

"No, you're not," Caitlin protested. "You can't."

"I'm connected to Stein. I have to go."

"But did you ever stop to think why your connection to him is growing stronger by the minute? Maybe you're being drawn back together. Maybe your proximity will cause you to re-merge into one."

"And what happens to me if he gets killed?" Ronnie asked.

Juliet slightly winced. He had a point.

"Cait, Juliet was right. The world is different now. Look, I — I thought we could get away, start a new life, a normal life, together. But there is no normal life for us. You will always risk your life to try and help people, and I will always be the guy that runs into that pipeline for you."

Juliet swore she could've started crying right then and there. That was literally so cute. Ronnie and Caitlin were just so adorable. She hoped that either Iris or Barry felt the same way — that they would run into an exploding pipeline for her, just like she would do for them. Juliet had a feeling they would.

"The Quantum Splicer," Cisco interjected, handing Ronnie the machine. "It was used to separate you once. Maybe it could be of use to keep you you."

"Thanks," Ronnie replied. "Okay, let's go."

Caitlin stopped him. "Wait." She kissed him hard for a moment, making Juliet slightly smile. "Come back. All four of you."

Juliet nodded to her.

"Let's go," Ronnie urged.

Barry reached the door first. He held it open for both Juliet and Ronnie, who quickly went through it. Juliet then teleported into her suit while Barry sped into his as well. Barry took Ronnie in his arms and ran them away while Juliet closed her eyes, concentrating on where the base was. The familiar tingling feeling spread throughout her body and when she opened her eyes, she were standing outside of a big building with high gates and a helicopter flying overhead. Barry sped in with Ronnie a moment after.

"Oh," Barry commented. "This place definitely doesn't look too shady."

"Stein's inside," Ronnie revealed. "I can feel our connection growing stronger, like he's pulling me."

"It's as I feared — the Firestorm matrix is building toward a proximity reemergence," Dr. Wells told them over the comms. "Like all matter, it yearns to be whole. If you do merge . . . we might not be able to separate you again."

"Eiling has a gun to Stein's head."

Juliet's head whipped over to Ronnie. "He has a what to his head?"

"A gun, J," Barry responded. "Come on, keep up."

"He's about to pull the trigger," Ronnie voiced.

"Barry, go," Juliet stated.

He sped off, only to return a second later with Professor Stein.

Professor Stein stumbled a bit from the sudden movement, but his eyes locked on Ronnie. "Woah, I never thought I'd be happy to see you."

"Yeah, likewise," Ronnie agreed.

"Let's get out of here," Barry suggested.

However, there was the sound of a car behind them. Juliet turned around, only to see an army vehicle stop on the road. A soldier pulled out a cannon and blasted a missile. Juliet held up her hand and focused on the missile, red energy traveling up and down her arm. The missile stopped in midair, also surrounded by red energy.

Juliet looked back at Ronnie and Professor Stein for a moment. "Get out of here."

Ronnie and Professor Stein ran away.

It seemed the army had come prepared. Another soldier shot another missile. Since Juliet was busy with one, Barry ran forwards and grabbed it.. However, it exploded, and Barry emerged from the smoke with some kind of liquid all over his suit that was smoking. Juliet's eyes widened as he let out a scream of pain.

She looked back at her own missile. Juliet had never done something like this before, but it was worth a shot. She imagined the missile in her mind, vibrating so fast that it ended up exploding because it couldn't take it. Juliet slowly curled her hand into a fist, and sure enough, the missile exploded.

"Barry, I'm picking up some serious pH numbers on your suit," Cisco said.

"They hit me with some kind of chemical," Barry responded.

"It's a weaponized phosphorous. Water or foam won't extinguish it."

"But you can't burn in a vacuum, so you need to create one," Dr. Wells added. "Juliet can help. Run, Barry, run! Control, Juliet, control!"

Juliet raised both of her hands as Barry ran to a nearby field and started to run in circles. She concentrated on the air and moved her hands so the air circled faster and faster. Juliet could vaguely hear more words over the comms, probably for Ronnie and Professor Stein, but she ignored it. All Juliet focused on was helping Barry.

Finally, Barry stopped running. He sped back in front of Juliet, only to reveal to her that his suit was completely burned. His face was also completely burned. She could only imagine what it was like under the suit — oh my God, okay, not like that.

"Jesus Christ," she let out. "Are you okay?"

"My skin hurts," Barry revealed. "Actually, everything hurts."

"We can fix that later. You have speed healing for a reason." Juliet held out her hand to him. "Now, I think we have two people to save."

Barry took her hand. Juliet concentrated on the both of them and teleported to where she could feel Ronnie and Professor Stein. It brought her to a gate of the facility. Firestorm was laying on the ground while Eiling was standing over them. He didn't seem to notice that the two superheroes had appeared. Barry started to go forwards, but Juliet placed a hand on his chest, smirking slightly to herself. She got this.

"Mr. Raymond, Professor Stein, you're both fine Americans," Eiling was saying, pulling out a gun and pointing it at Firestorm. "Your country thanks you for your sacrifice."

Juliet focused on the gun. She flicked her own hand casually, making the gun fly far away from Eiling. Eiling stared at his hand in shock for a moment before he turned towards Juliet. She gave him a sickly-sweet smile before summoning a red ball of energy in her hand and throwing it right at him. It hit Eiling square in the chest and sent him flying backwards. He landed on his back, his head thudding against the ground.

She shrugged and walked closer to Firestorm, glancing down at Eiling. "Huh. Pathetic."

Barry offered his hand to Firestorm. He pulled them up, and Firestorm burst their hands into flames, staring down at Eiling. Eiling groaned from his blow.

"Ronnie," Barry said. "Home?"

"Yeah," Firestorm responded.

Ronnie then used his flames to shoot upwards into the sky. Juliet let out a small laugh — that was so cool. She turned to Barry and saluted him before her body materialized into thin air as she teleported away. He sped away in a flash of yellow lightning not long after.

They got back to S.T.A.R. Labs. Juliet teleported back into her regular clothes, and Barry did too. Barry lifted his shirt over his head to show Caitlin his injury. Juliet felt her face heat up at his shirtless state, but she winced at the very angry burn on his side.

"I think it looks worse than it is," Barry revealed.

Juliet's eyes narrowed at him. "Are you lying?"

"No. It really doesn't hurt that bad."

Juliet then reached up. Her fingers gently grazed over the blackened part of the burn. Barry winced from it.

"Sorry," Juliet apologized, and Barry lowered his shirt back down. "Doesn't hurt that bad, my ass. You liar."

Caitlin then walked up to Firestorm. "Ronnie or Stein?"

"It's me, Cait," Firestorm responded. "It's both of us. Somehow."

"Acceptance is a powerful thing," Dr. Wells explained.

"Powerful enough to reverse it?" Barry questioned.

"We could try," Firestorm offered.

All of them stepped back, giving Firestorm their space. Before Juliet's eyes, she watched as Firestorm's whole body burst into flames and then finally split into two. Ronnie and Professor Stein tumbled out of the flames together. They stared at each other in amazement.

"I think we're getting the hang of this quite nicely," Professor Stein admitted.

Caitlin instantly walked up and hugged Ronnie. Juliet frowned, placing her hands in the back pockets of her jeans as Ronnie got a conflicted look on his face. She knew what that meant. He wanted to stay with Caitlin, but he couldn't separate from Professor Stein.

"It's okay," Caitlin reassured him. "I understand. You have to go."

"How'd you know?" Ronnie inquired.

"I'm connected to you, too."

Juliet softly smiled at that. She felt Barry place a hand on her back and start to rub it comfortingly. Juliet glanced up at him for a moment, her heart racing against her chest like it always did. Was it just her imagination, or was it from the burn, but was Barry . . . blushing?

The next day, all of them with the exception of Dr. Wells went back to the Stein house so that they could explain what had happened to Clarissa and that Professor Stein could say goodbye.

"Where will you go?" Caitlin asked Ronnie.

"Pittsburgh, maybe," Ronnie answered. "Professor Stein has a colleague he thinks can help us learn more about our abilities."

"We can help you here, too."

"Eiling's already breached S.T.A.R. Labs. We need to stay one step ahead of him . . . for all of us. I'm coming back."

Caitlin nodded. "We'll have pizza."

Ronnie kissed her. Juliet grinned as she watched the two of them. She felt Barry nudge her ribs with his elbow, and she nudged him back, laughing slightly.

Professor Stein then walked up to the two superheroes. "Godspeed, Mr. Allen and Ms. St. James."

"You too," Barry replied, shaking his hand.

Juliet shook his hand as well. "Good luck."

"As to our earlier conversation, I believe in second chances," Professor Stein told Barry. "You'll get yours. And Ms. St. James, you'll figure out this new power. Both of you, give it time." He turned back to Ronnie. "Ready, Ronald?"

"Please stop calling me that," Ronnie protested.

Clarissa placed a hand on her husband's arm as he went towards the door. "I'll see you soon."

They all stood in the doorway. Ronnie placed the Quantum Splicer on his chest. Him and Professor Stein touched hands, and in a burst of flames, their bodies merged into one.

"We love you," Firestorm said.

With their head and hands bursting into flames, Firestorm shot into the air. Juliet watched as they went away for a moment.

Barry offered his arm to her. "Want to get Big Belly Burger before we go back to work?"

Juliet smiled and linked her arm through his. "For sure. Or maybe I can just alter realities and make it suddenly appear."

"I thought you didn't know how to do that."

"I don't, but I'll figure it out."

〖   ϟ   〗

well this chapter was short whoopsies

not much I can do about that sorry y'all