Betrayal

"Calm down, Iris. Tell me everything that happened."

Inside the cortex, Team Flash huddled around a shaken Iris as Joe sat her down, handing her a glass of water.

"We were on our way to his apartment when a blur appeared before us, forcing us to a stop. When Eddie went out to check what it was, a man grabbed him by the throat."

"They exchanged some words…but he was gone before I got a chance to even leave the car."

Iris buried her face into her palms, sobbing as it was clear she'd failed to compose herself.

The others glanced at each other, the same question running through their mind.

'Why?'

It still wasn't clear to them what exactly Reverse Flash's motives were for starting World War M and choosing to confront Derek.

Well, almost all of them.

'Killing Barry's father wasn't his only goal, I see.' 

Derek noted, quiet as he stood behind the others.

His expression remained casual, even showing hints of confusion and sorrow at knowing Eddie, the man he had yet to meet, was in danger.

'I'm not surprised he was able to figure out I might use Eddie to wipe him from existence. After all, even Eddie put two and two together, shooting himself to get rid of Thawne in the show.'

However, Derek now had to deal with the fact that this play could no longer be his trump card.

Not one he could so easily access now at least.

'If he was able to figure that much out, what else does he have up his sleeve?'

The mere thought was enough to make Derek hold back a smile.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" 

All eyes turned to Derek as he focused his eyes, looking to see Iris addressing him.

"Oh…I'm Derek." Derek waved with a light smile.

"He was one of the main helpers in catching the Metahuman who framed Eddie not too long ago. Hannibal Bates." Joe mentioned, prompting Iris to nod.

"Oh…It's nice to meet you." She remained respectful despite her anguish.

'Iris West…ugh. I'll admit, she was rather tame in the earlier seasons compared to who she'd become later in the show.'

Nevertheless, he was not a fan of her character. Who could blame him?

Was there anyone who liked seeing her on-screen?

"Iris, why don't I take you home, let those more suited for this deal with it, huh?" 

Though reluctant, Iris soon nodded, complying as Joe escorted her out, wrapping his trenchcoat around her.

And as soon as they were out of earshot…

"Retract your Eclipse…"

The others turned to Barry who suddenly spoke, his jaws clenched in anger.

"It's about time we find out who is under that mask."

***

-BRRR

Barry stood in the pipeline, a futuristic yet industrial design blessing the area.

The walls are adorned with smooth, metallic surfaces that reflect light, creating a high-tech ambience. 

The corridor is lined with intricate piping and structural elements, emphasizing a mechanical feel.

At the far end of the corridor, a prominent circular door stands out, featuring a gear-like pattern, giving it a robust, engineered look.

It swiftly opened upward, revealing the glass prison, an obsidian statue frozen in a running position.

Barry stood before it, staring with a flat expression.

-BLOP

In the next second, the outer obsidian layer surrounding the figure retracted, revealing a man in a yellow suit.

-THUD

"Huff…huff…huff…"

The figure, or in other words, Reverse Flash, dropped to one knee, breathing heavily as he looked up, meeting Barry's gaze.

"Took you long enough."

Reverse Flash's face was no longer blurred, his eyes and voice normal and rubbing Barry, and the rest of Team Flash who watched from the cortex, the wrong way.

And before Barry could even speak, Reverse Flash wasted no time, sticking his thumbs in his mask, and pulling backwards.

"Oh…my god…"

Caitlin muttered, seeing Wells' face, slumping down onto the seat behind her as her legs gave out.

They had already known this was the case after seeing the real corpse of Harrison Wells, it was why Barry and Cisco barely showed any reaction other than their intense glares.

But they could all agree it wasn't easy to see.

"Who are you?" Barry asked, his demeanour surprisingly composed despite any emotions he may be feeling.

"My name is Eobard Thawne."

'Thawne?'

They all simultaneously thought. This was because they recognised that name.

"Like Eddie Thawne?" Barry asked.

"A distant ancestor of mine. Not one of the ones I'm so proud to be related to." Thawne smirked, pulling his arms behind his back.

"What? Nothing to offer me, Flash? Not even some Big Belly Burger? It's one of the few perks of living in this time. We're out of cows, where I come from."

"Where you come from? You mean the future, don't you?"

"One hundred and thirty-six years from now to be precise, but that isn't what you wanna know."

For once, Barry's expression changed as his chest moved upward upon taking a deep breath.

"Go on, Barry. Ask me." Thawne continued, the feeling that he could read Barry like a book irking the latter.

But he didn't care.

His heart was racing and tears were forming in his eyes just thinking about it. Soon, his emotions overpowered any reason he had for being here in the first place as his lips moved without his consent.

"Why did you kill my mother?"

"Because I hate you," Thawne answered right after as if that was something he'd been meaning to get off his chest.

"Not you now. You years from now. In the future…or rather, in a future. A future where we are enemies. Reverses of one another."

"Why were we enemies?"

"It doesn't matter. What matters is that none of us were fast enough to beat the other. That was until I learned your secret identity."

Thawne's eyes narrowed.

"I learned your name. Barry Allen. With it, I learned how to defeat you once and for all. Go back and kill your younger self, wiping you from the face of this earth completely."

Thawne clicked his teeth bitterly as if the mere memory caused him to seeth.

"But then you, future you, was able to save your younger self. Hoho, I was so…mad." Thawne turned, scratching his head.

"But then I thought, what if you were to suffer a tragedy so great that, younger you, could not recover from it? Then you would not become the Flash."

Barry's eyes shifted away from Thawne, the mere thought of what was coming next making him lose his train of thought and stare into nothingness.

"And so, I settled with the next best thing. I killed your mother. I had done it. I was free. I could finally return to a future without the Flash." 

Surprisingly, Thawne erupted into laughter as he rubbed his forehead.

"But in doing so, I realised something. The Reverse of the Flash could not exist with the Flash himself. I lost my speed and couldn't go back home, trapping myself in this time."

"And the only way back…"

Thawne smiled, perhaps bitterly or maybe because the thought was so ridiculous it was funny.

"Was to create the Flash."

Finally, Barry broke, his eyes flooded with bloodlust as he clenched his jaws.

"So why help me save so many people? Why help me be a hero…"

"Because I needed you to become faster!"

Thawne matched Barry's tone, yelling.

"That's the only reason I've done things. From training you to having you fight Metas and for even starting World War M. All so you could become faster." Thawne stopped closer, pressing both hands onto the glass.

"Fast enough to rupture the space-time barrier and create a stable wormhole through which I could return home."

Barry scoffed.

"Why would I ever do that?"

"Because Barry…"

Thawne tone lowered with the weight of what he was about to say.

"If you give me what I want, I will give you what I want. You can go back and save your mother."

The tension in Barry's eyes softened as these words echoed in the pipeline.

"You can prevent your father from going to prison and subsequently being buried under it. You can reunite the Allen family."

Barry's mind raced, so much so that he didn't even try to correct Thawne as the latter prematurely claimed his father's death.

"No…I don't believe you." Barry speaks after heavy contemplation, his eyes falling on Thawne's mocking smirk, causing something to boil within him.

-SLAM

"I want to kill you right now." Barry hissed, slamming his fist on the glass cell.

"I understand your rage. But maybe a peace offering will help convince you."

Thawne walked to the glass.

"There's no point in using Eddie for leverage. I'll find him…"

"This has nothing to do with Eddie. He's unharmed and is currently finding his way back home, although it might take a while. No, this has to do with someone else close to you that has betrayed your trust."

Barry's arms dropped, backing away as the thought of ignoring the next words Thawne spoke occurred to him.

However, he couldn't stop himself from listening.

"Haven't you ever wondered how I've known some things I shouldn't have or that if I wasn't the only one lying to you?"

It did. However, Cisco and Caitlin had long since proved their trust and loyalty ten times over.

"Uh uh, I'm not talking about either Cisco or Caitlin," Thawne confirmed as if he could read Barry's mind.

But then who else…

Barry's eyes widened as his heart sank, a single figure looming in his mind.

"That's right, you got it. The man, or rather a boy, who has been working with me since the beginning."

Despite Thawne needing Barry's help and despite the fact he knew there was no gain from further antagonizing himself, his lips couldn't help but curl from ear to ear as he watched Barry's crestfallen expression of defeat.

"Derek Bond." 

———————————————————————————-

I wanna see where the audience's mind is with all this. Lets hear what you think will happen next.

Also, start of the week. Lets have them powerstones rolling in, lads.

But if you don't wanna wait…

patreon.com/SonderNow