Chapter 67: divided we fall part 2
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Star Labs
Late morning
The Avengers and Team Flash scrambled to dodge the bullets as Bucky opened fire on them. Wanda used her powers to stop as many of the bullets as she could but Bucky kept firing. Running out of bullets, Bucky dropped the pistol but pulled out two more fully loaded ones.
"Wally, Pietro, get us out of here!" Steve ordered as they took cover behind the computers.
"HR!" Cisco shouted as he glanced towards HR's unmoving form.
"There's nothing we can do for him," Natasha said her eyes filled with regret.
In two blurs of yellow and blue, the two teams had disappeared.
Argus prison
Same time
Chaos was the word that came to mind as Barry and Logan walked through the prison, seeing prisoners run wild and free. Claw marks marred some of the walls, but what could have claws strong enough to leave marks in steel, Barry didn't know.
"So how do we handle this kid?" Logan asked Barry as they looked around.
"We find Alexei. Dealing with these guys is gonna be hard, but Alexei is gonna keep making it harder for us if we don't stop him now," Barry told him.
"They might be a problem," Logan said, stiffening as he stared straight ahead.
Barry followed his gaze to see two people blocking their path. One was a hulking man that towered over him and Logan by at least a few feet. He was heavily built and had a mane of blond hair that reached his mid back. He smiled, revealing sharp teeth, like a tiger's. The other was a woman who looked suspiciously like China White with black hair.
"Friends of yours?" Barry questioned.
"Not exactly. We have a history back on Earth-2. They must have followed me here," Logan said, eying them wearily. "Creed. Yuriko."
"Logan," the man said in a growl of a voice.
"We don't have time for this, there is a man here who will kill us if we don't stop him," Barry said, trying to reason with them.
"They won't listen kid, they live only to kill," Logan said grimly as he summoned his claws. "Get out of here, find Alexei. I'll deal with them."
"Not alone," Barry said, refusing to leave Logan to face them alone.
"You really are one of the good ones. Hope that doesn't get you killed," Logan said before, with a roar, he rushed forward.
As Logan and Creed rushed each other, Yuriko rushed Barry. She quickly knocked the side baton he had taken from the earlier scuffle with the guards out of his hand. As Barry and Yuriko began exchanging blows, Creed grabbed Logan by the throat and slammed him onto the floor. Logan appeared to be knocked out, but when Creed let go, Logan whirled around, getting Creed in the chest with his claws. Creed roared in pain before yanking the claws out and throwing Logan into the wall, hard. As Logan got up, it became obvious that Barry was far out of his depth with Yuriko. He had come very far since Steve and Natasha had begun training him, but it was clearly not enough to contend with the likes of Yuriko.
Yuriko grabbed Barry by the neck, slamming him up against the wall. Barry was sure it was over when, out of nowhere, a gun shot rang out and blood splattered as a bullet hit Yuriko in the head. Her grip slackened and she fell to the floor, releasing Barry as she did. Barry slid to the floor on his knees, gripping his neck as air filled his lungs. Creed and Logan looked away from their fight to see a man in a prison uniform holding a gun. He fired, getting Creed in the shoulder. Creed roared in pain as Logan rushed him, making a cut across his neck and the man fired again, getting Creed in the head. Creed went down with a loud thud as they all stood over him.
"Not sure that'll kill him, so we better keep moving," Logan said.
"What will kill him then?" the shooter demanded angrily and Logan shrugged.
"If I knew that, he'd already be dead," Logan said as Barry got a look at their savior and gapped.
"No way, you're The Punisher!" Barry exclaimed and Logan looked confused as Frank Castle of Earth-1 looked over at him.
"I hate that name," Frank muttered.
Star Labs
Same time
"What the hell just happened?" Wally exclaimed as they all met in the pipeline.
"Savitar used the Mind Stone to gain control of Bucky's mind, just like he did to Roy," Steve explained sadly, hating that Bucky was once again unable to think for himself.
"Well, say what you will about Savitar, the guy has played us," Clint said as they all looked over at him.
"What are you talking about?" Sam asked confused.
"Isn't it obvious? All of this has been part of his plan," Clint said. "He had Pepper killed; knowing Tony would come to us for help. Then he captured us, knowing we would call Barnes for help. He made Cisco create a new scepter for him so he could gain control of Barnes and Roy and showed us who he is so that Barry would lock himself away. He's been ten steps ahead of us this whole time!"
"You're right Clint," they all jumped as they heard Barry's voice, usually so warn and kind, now so cold and filled with malice, echoed through the building over the intercom. "To quote Adrian Chase, I'm ten steps ahead of you and you haven't even figured out what game we're playing yet."
"Then come out and face us now!" Pietro shouted and Savitar laughed.
"Ah Pietro, the one who set me free. I must thank you," Savitar said before a wistful, almost sad note entered his voice. "You know, in all the time that I was in the Speed Force, planning my escape and what would come after, I never imagined just how difficult it would be to do it. To do what had to be done, to inflict such pain and suffering on the people I love. And yet, it does not change the fact that this is all a necessary evil. It does not change what needs to happen."
"Was attacking my family a necessary evil, you son of a bitch!?" Clint snarled.
"I had no part in that Clint, Alexei acted of his own volition," Savitar told him.
"And yet you continue to work with him," Steve noted in disgust.
"He is a means to an end Captain, nothing more," Savitar said with conviction.
"Guys, he's somewhere in Star Labs," Cisco realized with dread.
"As if we didn't have enough problems with Bucky!" Sam groaned.
"We deal with Bucky first, and then we worry about Savitar," Steve said, taking charge of the situation. "We need to hit Bucky on the head, hard. That should break Savitar's hold on him."
"Yeah, except he's one of the world's top trained assassins. That's easier said than done Cap," Tony said darkly, a grim look in his eyes.
"Tony, we don't have time for personal grudges," Natasha said, seeing the look in his eyes.
"We save him, not kill him. Savitar is the threat, remember that," Steve said as he and Tony had a brief stare down.
"Whatever," Tony said grudging, looking away from Steve in a huff.
Argus prison
Early afternoon
"What the hell is this place?" Logan asked as Frank led them into what looked like an armory of guns and other weapons.
"The guard's armory. If we're gonna take back the prison, we'll need all the help we can get," Frank said as he began to grab a rifle.
"You called him The Punisher earlier," Logan said quietly as he leaned his head close to Barry's. "What's his story?"
"His name is Frank Castle. He was a Vet, a marine until he came home and his family got caught in the crossfire of a gang war in New York about two years ago. He went on a killing spree, killing every member of the gangs who killed his family. Didn't matter if they were young or old, a hardened criminal or some kid who had no idea what he'd gotten himself into, he killed them all in cold blood. The media called him The Punisher," Barry said and Logan looked over at Frank wearily. "One day, he just stopped. The internet was buzzing with conspiracies theories about why, but I guess he was just picked up by Argus. From what a friend of mine told me, I'm surprised Amanda Waller didn't try to recruit him for her Suicide Squad."
"She tried," Frank said and the pair jumped, surprised he could hear them. "I told her first chance I got; I'd make a run for it, no matter what it was. The Government tried to turn me into a hitman before. I wasn't gonna take it then, I wasn't gonna do it now. She decided I was more of a liability than an asset and sent me here."
"Can we trust you bub?" Logan asked wearily.
"We're on the same side here; we both want to take back the prison from those psychopaths out there. The enemy of my enemy is my friend and all that shit. A group of them are holding some of the guards' hostage, torturing them. You gonna help me stop 'em or not?" Frank asked as he looked over at them.
Star Labs
Same time
Bucky walked down into the pipeline, staring down at Steve, who stared across from him from the other end.
"Buck, you need to stop. Savitar, he's controlling you," Steve tried to reason with his friend.
Without saying anything, Bucky pulled out a pistol and took aim at Steve. Just before he fired, a blue blur sped over and tried to get the pistol. However, Bucky grabbed Pietro by the arm and threw him across the room. Pietro landed painfully on his back as a blue beam shot out at Bucky, hitting him full force in the chest and sending him flying. He hit the wall and slumped to the floor.
"Did that snap him out of it?" Cisco asked stepping up next to Steve as Clint helped Pietro to his feet.
Bucky chose that moment to walk back in, his eyes still shining blue.
"Apparently not," Clint said as Bucky lunged forward.
Argus Prison
Same time
Several guards were tied up and on their knees as several of the prisoners surrounded them. The guards were silent; sure they about to die as one of the prisoners stepped forward.
"You kept us all in cages. You have any idea what that was like?" The man sneered at the nervous guards.
The man then pulled out a knife and stabbed one of the guards in the chest, causing the man to cry out in pain. Richard Dragon smirked in sick satisfaction as the other inmates cheered in approval. Up above on a railing, Alexei watched, satisfied as an emotionless Roy stood next to him. Suddenly, a shout pierced the air.
"Alexei!"
Everyone stopped, turning to the source. Barry walked into the room, appearing unarmed.
"Well, look who decided to show up," Alexei said with a smirk.
"You wanted me? Well here I am, so let these guards go," Barry ordered.
"I don't think so Flash. I told you, Lord Savitar wants you dead. You have no powers, you're outmanned and outgunned. You were a fool to come here alone," Alexei said smugly and was confused when Barry raised a devilish eyebrow.
"Who said I was alone?"
At that moment, there was a roared as Logan jumped out from seemingly nowhere, his claws out and began to engage of the inmates. Meanwhile, a rifle was thrown through the air and Barry caught it, opening fire as Frank walked in, firing at some of the inmates.
Star Labs
Same time
Sam kicked Bucky in the chest from in the air, sending Bucky to the floor. But Bucky didn't stay down, jumping up, grabbing Sam by the floor and dragging him down. Bucky slammed Sam onto the floor, hard, but before he could do anything else, Wally sped over and got Sam away from Bucky. Natasha then jumped on top of him, wrapping her legs around Bucky's neck in a choke hold. She tripped frantically beating him on the head, trying to snap him out of it, but to no avail. Bucky seemed to stumble but they realized this was intentional when he threw her off, grabbing her by the neck and slamming her against the wall.
"James," Natasha gasped out and this seemed to reach something in him as Natasha saw a flicker in his eyes and his grip on her neck slackened ever so slightly.
Bucky then glowed red and was thrown back. He slid across the room and Natasha slumped to the floor, her hand on her neck as Steve and Clint rushed to her side.
"You okay Nat?" Clint asked in concern as he helped her to her feet.
"Fine," Natasha said as Bucky got to his feet.
"Buck, snap out of it," Steve once again tried to reach his best friend.
"No use Cap, only way we're getting him to stop is if we knock him out," Clint said, drawing an arrow from his quiver.
With a roar, Bucky rushed forward once more.
Argus prison
Same time
Logan was engaging Dragon, even with his claws; Logan was having a hard time keeping up with Dragon. The guy was good, Logan would give him that. Meanwhile, Frank was engaging a woman who had what looked like blue scales for skin.
Spotting Alexei and Roy on the railing, Barry tuned his rifle on his enemy and opened fire. Alexei ducked, dodging the bullets before Barry was suddenly tackled. He dropped his rifle, landing on his back. He looked up to see a big, tank of a man that towered over him with a smirk. Barry pulled out a pistol and fired. But, to his shock, the bullets simply bounced off the man.
"You think you can hurt me? I'm The Juggernaut bitch!" he man roared, picking Barry up by his shirt.
Juggernaut heard something fall to his feet and looked down. He saw a grenade at his feet and looked back up, stupidly staring at Barry as wiggled his fingers, the clip on his index finger. The grenade went off and Juggernaut was sent flying back by the force of the explosion. He let Barry go in the process and Barry fell down, landing hard on his back. Barry pulled himself to his feet and heard the sound of something running on an iron cable. Barry looked up to see Roy land on the ground near him.
"Don't suppose we could talk about this?" Barry asked.
In response, Roy simply whirled his bow.
"Didn't think so," Barry sighed before Roy rushed him.
Star Labs
Same time
Wanda sent an energy wave at Bucky, which sent him flying back but Bucky simply got back up again with a sneer of his face.
"He just won't stay down!" Cisco exclaimed in frustration.
"Time to play hard ball," Clint said, notching an arrow and firing.
Bucky reached out and caught the arrow. However, Clint flipped a switch and the arrow exploded, sending Bucky to the ground. Everyone waited until Bucky got to his feet, hoping that had done the trick. When he lifted his head to reveal his eyes still glowing blue, that hope was shattered.
"Enough playing around," Ton said as his something flew out and merged with his body, the others realizing it was the Iron Man suit as Tony was now decked out in it. "It's time to literally knock some sense into him. Wanda, can you restrain him for a moment?"
Wanda nodded and Tony flew off at high seed towards Bucky. Wanda managed to restrain Bucky's arms, although it took a lot of effort, and Tony punched Bucky in the face, hard. Bucky went down, on knees, groaning in pain. He lifted his head to reveal his normal eyes. Everyone's relief was short lived when Tony punched him again, knocking him out cold.
"Tony!" Steve shouted.
"Just to be sure," Tony said gruffly.
Argus prison
Same time
Logan roared, yanking his claws out of Dragon's chest before whirling around, engaging a man with a knife as Dragon's body fell to the floor.
"You're out of your league Cain," Logan snarled and David Cain smirked.
"We'll see Logan," Cain said before the pair began exchanging blows.
Meanwhile, Frank pulled out a pistol and fired, getting the blue skilled woman in the abdomen. She gasped in pain, falling to her knees as Frank fired again, getting her in the head. Frank then cried out in pain as a knife hit him in the back. He yanked it out, whirling around to see a blond haired man with blue eyes smirking at him.
"Bullseye," the man quipped and Frank sneered.
"We'll see about that!" Frank shouted before he opened fire and the man dodged before rushing him, the two exchanging blows.
Barry dodged Roy's attempted strike with his bow before grabbing Roy by the arm. He threw Roy over his shoulder, slamming the archer on his back. Barry then threw away Roy's bow and Roy jumped up, slugging Barry hard. Barry stumbled back, but not before grabbing Roy's arm. Barry then yanked hard, and threw Roy to the floor. Remembering what Natasha had told him about how she snapped Clint out of Loki's control, Barry tried to slug him but Roy rolled out of the way. Roy then jumped up and tried to deliver a swinging kick to Barry's head but Barry just barely managed to dodge it.
Frank and Bullseye were trading blows when Frank suddenly pulled out the knife Bullseye had thrown at him. He tackled Bullseye to the ground and used the knife to slit his throat, causing a spray of blood to splash across his prison uniform. Looking up, he saw Logan used his claws to make a cut across a man's chest. His eyes traveled over to Barry, who was fighting the man in red. From what Barry had told him and Logan, this was the guy who was being controlled somehow. Well, time to fix that, Frank decided.
As Barry and Roy fought, Frank made his way over to them with his rifle and then struck Roy in the back of his head with the end of his rifle. Roy went down on his knees, groaning before Frank struck him again, knocking Roy out.
"Thanks," Barry said as he looked over at Alexei.
Alexei smirked at him before he began walking away. He was challenging Barry.
"Go after him," Frank said and Barry looked over at him. "We can handle things here, you deal with him. No half measures."
Frank handed him the bloodied knife before picking up his rifle.
"I'll cover you, go!" Frank shouted, opening fire.
Barry nodded in thanks before rushing up some stairs that led to the rail Alexei had been on. Frank opened fire as a huge hulking man came at him. Frank briefly remembered the guy the guards would talk about as "Bane', the monster born in hell. Suddenly, Bane stopped before falling over, Logan standing behind him, his claws bloodied with Bane's blood.
"Where's the kid?" Logan asked.
"Went after Alexei," Frank said before a roar pierced the air.
The pair whirled around to see Creed burst in, a snarl on his face.
"Told you it wouldn't kill him," Logan said before rushing Creed with a primal roar, Frank opening fire behind him.
Star Labs
Same time
"He should be okay," Caitlin said after checking over Bucky. "But he'll wake up with a headache.
"A headache will be the least of his concern," Clint noted, remembering his own experiences of coming out from under Loki's control.
Suddenly, a blur speed through the room and Caitlin was gone. Everyone whirled around to see Savitar holding the terrified Caitlin, a syringe aimed at her neck.
"No one makes any sudden moves, no one gets hurt," Savitar warned them.
Argus prison
Same time
Barry cautiously made his way through the prison, looking for Alexei. Barry's hair suddenly stood on end and he whirled around, bringing his knife up to block Alexei's own knife. The two stepped back, exchanging blows with each other. Barry grunted in pain as Alexei managed to nick him on the side before Barry slugged, him, sending Alexei stumbling back. However, Alexei quickly recovered, cutting Barry on the knee and sending Barry falling on his side.
"You're out of your league Flash. Natalia and Rogers may have taught you a few things, but it won't help you against me," Alexei bragged.
"You sure about that?" Barry asked lowly.
Barry suddenly surged forward, cutting Alexei on the leg before jumping to his feet; slugging Alexei and making him drop his knife. However, Alexei was unfazed, sending a few blows to Barry's face and grabbing the knife from him. Alexei then grabbed Barry by the front of his prison uniform and threw him over the rail. Barry fell to the ground below, to the prison section and groaned in pain as Alexei jumped down, landing on his feet.
"I told you, you're out of your league," Alexei told him, kicking Barry in the side and smirking as Barry cried out in pain. "You're no match for me without your powers. Here is how you're going to die Flash."
Alexei knelt down and grabbed Barry by the front of his prison uniform once more, hoisting him to his feet.
"You're going to die in prison. And you will not be remembered as the hero of Central City. You will be remembered as the coward who died, begging for death. Who was nothing without his powers," Alexei said smugly.
As he spotted Alexei holding the knife Frank had given him, Barry got an idea. It wasn't a very good idea, in fact, it bordered on just being plain stupid. But it was the only idea Barry had left.
"You're right," Barry said and Alexei was taken back. "I can't beat you without my powers. But you can't beat me with them."
Before Alexei could realize what had happened, Barry yanked the knife out of Alexei's hand and brought the blade down on the power dampening collar around his neck. As he cut into the wiring, the failsafe went off, shocking both Barry and Alexei. Alexei let Barry go, stumbling back in pain as the collar fell to the ground. Barry felt his powers back, surging through him, and took action.
Before Alexei could react, Barry sped over, punching him. Barry sped Alexei inside an open cell, punching him over and over again before Alexei could react. Finally, Barry took the knife and stabbed Alexei in the point where his neck met his shoulder. Alexei gasped in pain as Barry let go. Breathing heavily, Barry watched as Alexei slumped to the floor, overwhelmed with pain but still very much alive.
His strength leaving him, Barry turned and stumbled out of the cell. With the last of his strength, Barry took the cell door and closed it, locking Alexei inside. His strength now gone, Barry fell to the floor, welcoming unconsciousness.
Star Labs
Same time
"Okay, just calm down. Let her go," Steve tried to reason with Savitar.
"Ah Steve, so concerned about your lover. Or is ex-lover? I gotta say, it's pretty hard to keep track with you two," Savitar said, looking back and forth between Caitlin and Steve.
"Hey, you don't need to do this," Wally said, desperately trying to reason with ths version of Barry.
"Oh but I do. Want? No. Need? Absolutely," Savitar said a hint of sadness entering his voice. "I doubt God wanted to flood the earth, but he realized it was necessary. The world needed a reset."
"So what, you think that what you're doing is for the greater good?!" Tony exploded.
"As surely as you did when you backed The Accords and created Ultron. Didn't work out so well for you though, did it Tony?" Savitar mocked, taking sadistic pleasure in the look of shame that crossed Tony's face.
"Hey, listen to me," Cisco said, stepping forward but stopped when the syringe inched slightly closer to Caitlin's neck. "You were once Barry, you were. You were our friend, our family. I heard it in your voice earlier and I can see it in your eyes now. I know you still care about us."
"You're right, I do," Savitar said, his expression softening slightly before it hardened once more. "It's a weakness. A weakness I will not stop from allowing me to do what needs to be done!"
Savitar then jammed the syringe into Caitlin's neck and she gasped as he injected whatever was in it into her. Savitar then yanked it out as he stepped back. Steve and Cisco rushed to Caitlin's side as she cried out in pain.
"Caitlin?" Steve asked in concern.
"Cait, what's wrong?" Cisco asked in panic.
"Get away," Caitlin said, her voice trembling.
"What?" Cisco asked confused.
"Get away!" she shouted, lifting her head to reveal icy blue eyes.
Suddenly, Caitlin was surrounded by an icy mist and it exploded to surround the room, throwing Steve and Cisco back. The mist hid Caitlin and Savitar as Sam and Wally helped Steve and Cisco up respectively. Then, Caitlin stepped into view, but she wasn't Caitlin anymore.
Her hair was no longer brown, but a white blond color. Her skin was pale and her eyes were an icy blue color. But most telling was her expression. No longer was it filled with warmth of any kind, but a cold, detached look as she regarded them with indifference. This was not Caitlin, but Killer Frost. And Savitar smirked as she sent an ice blast at her former friends.
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If you enjoy please support me on my patreon Future 80+ chapters at patreon.com/Darkphoenix11
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