Dedicated to AgentofDreams989 and JoshuaSmith943 for all of their amazing support of my work!

" That was fun, wasn't it?" Iris asked her friend, brushing a strand of her long black hair from her face as she sat in the driver's seat of her blue sedan, that they were driving down the nighttime streets of Central City.

She was wearing a black leather jacket over her tan sweater, its shoulder pads and the matching black dress pants having helped create the sense of business that she always tried to present when doing her job.

A half crescent moon hid behind the shadow of several passing black clouds, small specks of it poking out to shine its light down on the city below, though its shade of red cast a rather ominous, yet entrancing sight for the residents of Central City.

A blood moon doesn't happen every day. And somehow's just as creepy as it is beautiful. Honestly, I'm just glad that there's something different in Central City that isn't trying to kill us for once.

" Yeah I mean, getting to go to National City to take pictures of Supergirl? Now I get why Ralph called me Peter Parker." Kamilla laughed, her shoulder length black hair resting nicely against her brown overcoat and white dress shirt.

" It's sad that Allegra didn't want to join though." she added, disappointedly.

" She said that she wanted to hang back at Star Labs and train a little more with Barry and Frost." Iris answered, recalling the conversation that she'd had with her mentee earlier that morning.

It feels nice to get to call her that. To have someone that I help grow into a better person.

" Still, it would've been nice for Cisco to have answered at least one of my calls." Kamilla frowned, as she glanced at some of the nearby passing buildings, their dark exteriors lit up by the lights of the people inside.

" Yeah, Barry hasn't returned any of mine either." Iris commented, a hint of worry in her tone as she took a quick glance at her phone, none of her five calls or four messages having been returned by her husband.

That's weird. Even when we're really busy, we always make time to shoot each other at least a text. Not just because we love each other and want to get to talk with one another, but also so we know that no supervillain's kidnapped the other. And after things like Crisis... we don't want to waste any time that we have without each other.

" I mean, I'm sure they're fine." Kamilla quickly corrected herself, not wanting to give another reason for her friend to have to worry about her husband.

" Yeah, they probably just got caught up doing some science thing at Star Labs." Iris agreed as she turned the car left, trying to push away the thoughts that always jumped to her mind when Barry could be in danger, thoughts that she had to so frequently try to suppress over the years of loving The Flash.

I'm being silly. Nothing's happened to him. I'm getting worked up over nothing. Just still nervous and on edge from Crisis.

" Either way, we can ask them in just a minute when we get to... Star Labs." Iris trailed off, as the large exterior of the scientific complex came into view.

A deep shade of night's darkness covered it as all of the building's many lights and power indicators were nowhere to be seen, leaving what looked like a deserted shell behind, a sight that Iris had never seen in all of her time since she had joined Team Flash.

Or, your gut could be right and there's something seriously wrong going on.

" That's... not normal." Kamilla stated, as both her and Iris leaned forwards in their seats to get a better view.

" I've never seen Star Labs without power."

" Me neither. Which means this can't be good." Iris agreed, worriedly.

" Cisco's in there." Kamilla commented concernedly as she saw the silver ford that her boyfriend owned.

" And that means that,"

" Everyone else probably is too." Iris finished, her eyes still locked on the large, empty looking place as her mind immediately flashed to her husband.

" And that's exactly why we're going to help them." she added, as she slowly sped up and drove into the mostly empty parking lot (aside from Cisco's car and the Star Labs van), the looming presence of Star Labs, and whatever had happened inside, casting its deep black shadow over them.

I'm coming Barry.

" Eeeh." groaned Iris as she and Kamilla pried open the normally automated glass front doors of Star Labs and squeezed their way inside, the shrill grinding sound of metal on metal echoing throughout the large, empty lobby as they did so.

Because pushdoors are below the great Eobard Thawne.

The lobby's vast size was rivaled only by the little amount of content in its open space, only really the remnants of the times that Dr. Harrison Wells had used it before the Particle Accelerator Explosion, alongside a few piles of dusty tarped attraction pieces from H.R. Wells' Flash Museum that had closed up a long time ago, occupying the area.

The only light that illuminated the space was the small shine of the ruby moonlight through the large rows of the front glass windows, its glow somehow making the normal everyday things that Iris saw look unsettling and foreign now.

All of that might just be my nerves more than whatever's going on here. But I doubt that it is.

Iris and Kamilla both walked over to the lobby's main desk, Iris walking around it and flipping the switches that Cisco had taught her to had the light's been off, yielding no results.

" The powers dead." Iris stated, as she flipped the switch one more time to confirm its uselessness, more concern about the situation growing with each new detail they discovered.

Something's very wrong.

" Try the emergency switch. It runs on a backup generator that's powered by an alternative power supply than Star Lab's main generator, so if something takes down its main lines then the building still has some reserves to run on." Kamilla noted, to Iris' confusion.

" Cisco." she explained, her boss nodding understandingly.

That makes sense.

Iris flipped on the emergency power switch, causing the glow of small red lights to hum to life all around them as their weak light dimly lit the way further into the complex, something far better than the previous pitch black that the two had prior been in.

" Well that solves that problem." Iris commented, both her and Kamilla already staring off towards the dark depths of the large building.

" Now time to face our next one." she finished, both her and Kamilla exchanging worried looks before they slowly moved towards the hallways of the supercomplex, the two taking their time to go slow and take in all of their surroundings as they went, looking for anything that would give a hint as to what had happened at Team Flash's home.

I get the feeling that whatever it is, it's not going to be good.

The doors to the lab's main elevator slid open with the same soft glide and quiet beep that it always did, but it could've been as loud as a gunshot to the two women that rode inside of it.

Every little noise seemed to echo throughout the long hallway as they stepped out of the machine, which gently swooshed shut once more.

The eerie red glow of the emergency lights were the only thing preventing the space from becoming engulfed in darkness, aside from the two's phone's flashlights.

The laughter and smiles, alongside the serious planning and hero-ing sounds that usually resided within the halls were gone, now replaced only with the ear splitting quiet that was only interrupted by the gentle clicks of the reporter's heels, their dark shadows cast in long shapes behind them as the red washed over their bodies.

Iris felt a deep sense of dread start to creep through her body with each step that she took further into the place she'd called home so many times, the thoughts of what may have happened slowly starting to force their way to the front of her mind.

I don't know what's going on here, yet. But I do know that whatever it is isn't going to keep me from finding you.

" Everything on the first floor looked okay," Kamilla whispered, her voice and demeanor holding much more bravery and confidence than Iris could say she was feeling.

" Which means we go through this floor next." Iris replied quietly, both of them keeping their heads low as they continued to creep forward, their phones held steadily in their hands.

" If we can get to the Cortex we might be able to find a way to power the monitors for long enough to get the security feed. We see that, and we find out where everyone is." Iris explained, Kamilla nodding silently in response.

We're on our way to being one step closer to solving this case.

Iris and Kamilla slowly crept up to the wide overhanging entrance to the Cortex, its white features glowing red with the light from the nearby emergency light bulbs, of which three lined the walls of the room in a triangular shape.

The Citizen reporters both stepped into the room after taking a moment to make sure it was safe, Iris already moving over to the half oval desk in the middle of the room to get to work on restoring its power.

This isn't exactly my strong suit. But I've seen Barry and Cisco do it hundreds of times bef...

" Iris!" Kamilla whispered sharply, causing Iris to jump back slightly in alarm as she quickly turned to her.

" Sorry, I just thought we might need these." Kamilla apologized, as she held out a large sized energy cannon from one of the nearby weapon racks, its deadly form sitting quietly in its off position.

" It's okay, that's a good idea." Iris agreed, breathing a sigh of relief as she gratefully took the weapon from her before slinging it over her shoulder and onto her back, Kamilla holding another one of the same kind with both of her hands.

She scared me a little bit there.

The two friends used the knowledge they'd picked up from hanging around all of their scientist friends to put together a more make-shift power hookup to the emergency system plug in that resided on the desk's side, soon getting it to the point where the monitors quietly hummed to life in front of them, (though not without the tiny fear that it could easily spark and short out in seconds).

Luckily (and a bit to their surprise), it booted up without any issues.

Huh. Guess I learned a bit more around here than I thought.

" It works!" Kamilla exclaimed while still keeping her voice low, both her and Iris leaned in close to the screen's white light.

" Which means that we should have all of the camera feeds from across Star Labs, hopefully." Iris thought aloud, as she typed in the few commands to bring up the footage, of which pulled up easily (though there was an unusual hum and whir from inside the machine while doing it).

At this point just call me Felicity Smoak.

" Alright," Iris started, breathing a sigh of relief that her risky plan had worked.

" Now it's time to figure out what happened here..."

As she pulled the footage up though, no one could be seen in any of its frames, the dark surroundings being penetrated only by the occasional glimpses of red.

" Wait, where is everyone?" Kamilla asked, confusedly.

" I... I don't know. They have to be here somewhere." Iris stuttered, as she cycled through all of the live videos one by one.

Cisco, Caitlin, Allegra, they can't have all just disappeared.

As she looked for her loved ones, Iris' mind still stayed fixed on the one person that she loved the most, wanting nothing more than to see his face, to feel his warm touch, to hear his words of assurement that he was okay. To just know that he was safe.

Barry, where are you?

A quick dart of movement suddenly swooshed past the bottom corner of the Training Room's feed, the blur disappearing almost as quickly as it had appeared.

" Did you see that?" Kamilla asked hurriedly, pointing to the same thing that Iris had seen that same moment.

" Yeah," Iris answered, as she pulled up the footage, the image now returned to its still state.

" What was it?" Kamilla asked, confusedly.

" I don't know." Iris admitted, just as bewildered as her friend.

Before either of them needed to think too hard though, the blur appeared again in one of the main hallways, seeming to go from one corner of the screen to the other in the blink of an eye.

" There it is again!" Iris stated, the strange form gone once more.

It appeared again on another of the hallways cameras, performing the same disappearing trick as it had the first time too, though there was no denying that it was real now.

" First the Training Bay, then down the right through the hallway, without passing through any other rooms..." Kamilla trailed off, as the picture formed in the two's minds.

" It's coming straight for us." Iris finished, her dread quickly turning to fear.

Though neither of them were prepared for what came next.

A sharp streak of black and harsh gust of wind tore through the open space of the Cortex as something ran through it, Iris and Kamilla both raising their energy weapons quickly to try and fend off whatever the thing was.

A loud burst of the shriek of tearing metal combined with the flash of electricity flooded the room as the monster raced through, one of the three emergency lights bursting apart as it passed, causing both Iris and Kamilla to cover their heads as shattered glass rained down around them.

Once again though, the thing had vanished as quickly as it had appeared, leaving silence once more in its wake.

Though not without leaving something behind this time, Iris carefully moving to inspect what remained.

A long stretch of claw marks and torn metal was left along the left wall of the room, messily cutting through one of the power lines that led to the light above them, small sparks still weakly flickering out of its broken husk.

Iris slowly reached her hand out to feel the strange gashes that had been left behind, squinting through the dim lighting to make out what she was looking at.

Little traces of a black substance dripped from various parts in the damaged walls, the jelly-like material seeming to have a mind of its own as it almost pulsed quietly.

That looks like...

Iris gasped as she ripped her hand away from the wall, firmly clutching it close to her chest as her heart started to beat fast.

" What's wrong?" Kamilla asked worriedly, as Iris took another step backwards, her eyes still locked on the strange substance.

" We have to go. Now." she stated shakily, watching as the black goo slowly drained off of the wall and back into the shadows.

The roaring rush of wind came back as the black streak returned, blasting through the Cortex once more as it cut the power to the last of the lights in the room, the space now only having the dull glow from the backlights in the hall.

" Now!" Iris exclaimed, both her and Kamilla turning on their heels and racing out of the Cortex, heading back towards the elevator, a low, sinister growl echoing through the hall as they left the monster behind them.

The heavy footsteps from the two's running pounded through the empty space as they rushed back towards where they came, Iris looking over her shoulder every few seconds to see if whatever had been chasing them was still there.

No sign of it. Which doesn't exactly instill me with confidence!

" The elevator's right up ahead." Iris said to Kamilla, neither of them slowing even a pace in their run as they still held their guns in front of them.

" What'll we do once we get inside?" Kamilla questioned, somehow still surprisingly cool headed.

Seriously, I know that people say that I'm cool under pressure, but it's like Kamillla's not even phased by it.

" Something that doesn't involve us getting ripped to shreds by some kind of monster!" Iris answered hurriedly

" Good point!" Kamilla agreed, as the two of them rounded the corner to the elevator, an unpleasant surprise waiting for them.

A white haired woman dressed in a dark blue dress stood across from them, the white snowflake that usually covered the chest of the dress piece covered in dark black veins, the same veins that ran all along the person's pale skin, including her face.

Her eyes were set in a deep black where the pupils would usually be, only leaving a void behind, the row of bared teeth under her dry black lips only adding to the horror in front of them.

" Frost?" Iris asked in disbelief, a single feral growl and instinctive head cock being all that was returned.

" I don't think she wants to talk." Kamilla said, as two corrupted black icicles formed in the former hero's hands.

" Yeah, well neither do we." Iris stated, as she aimed her energy cannon up at the ceiling between them and their friend, blasting a bolt of energy in its direction.

Frost lunged forward at them as fast as she could, only mere moments away from reaching the pair before a large chunk of debris filled the gap between them, blocking the predator from her prey.

That worked better than I thought it would.

" Good thinking." Kamilla complimented, as they looked at their former path out.

" But... where do we go next?"

A shrill shriek filled the air as the pile of ruble started to shift tremendously, the infected meta already on her way to getting through.

Or it worked as well as it sounded like it would.

" That way!" Iris stated, as she quickly started to move back down the hall.

" But what about the thing that's in the Cortex?" Kamilla asked, running besides her boss, both of them quickly closing in on the room they'd just fled from.

" If we can make it past without it seeing us we might be able to get to Starchieves and find something to help us..." Iris started, as they rounded another bend in the hall past the Cortex, the sharp noise of a gunshot echoing down the red light walls, followed by two more in kind, Iris and Kamilla instinctively ducking down in fear.

As they were protecting themselves, Iris noticed the bullet impacts in the wall, each of which were dripping with the same black goo that she had seen in the Cortex before.

When they both willed themselves to look back down at their attacker, Iris took in a sharp breath.

A man dressed in a brown trenchcoat and a short cap stood across from them, his features all matching the same as Frost's twisted form. He held a smoking pistol in both his hands, a low growl bubbling from his throat as the first monster's had too.

" Dad," Iris stuttered heartbrokenly, as she looked at her father's disheveled state.

No...

" Iris," Kamilla urged as she shook her friend's arm, pulling her back to the present.

" I'm here," Iris reassured her, swallowing hard as she pushed her thoughts away.

The only way to help him, them, is to find a way to fix this.

" Argh!" Joe howled, as he fired another burst from his sidearm, just missing the reporters by a mere inch.

" Come on!" Iris called, as they both quickly turned back, only to hear another ear piercing screech echo from it, the thundering fall of heavy footsteps approaching them fast.

Being trapped and without any other options, Iris knew that there was only one thing to do.

" This way!" Iris called, as she pulled Kamilla into the Cortex, quickly yanking down on the emergency lockdown switch on the room's inside, which caused two heavy doors to seal the wide entrance.

The faint cries and frantic punches of their friends could still be dimly heard from the other side of the door, which thudded quietly against their weight, although they were safe for the time being.

Which I doubt'll be for that long.

" I'm not sure how long that'll hold them, but hopefully long enough for us to come up with a new plan." Iris huffed, trying her best to regain her breath.

" But what about whatever was in here?" Kamilla asked, cautiously shining her weapon's light attachment across the room, surveying for any signs of what had been following them earlier.

" Maybe it left?" Iris suggested, though with very little confidence, as she joined her in searching the dark room.

Nothing illuminated the place now except for the two's small flashlights, their light casting dark shadows all across the few things it showed the women.

The main computer that had been functioning only minutes ago now laid in tatters, its broken form letting out weak sparks as it sat in its ruined state.

More slash marks lined the floor and ceiling of the space, small drips of black goo dripping down from it as if jelly had been smeared across the roof.

Wherever, and whoever you are, you better be prepared to get payback for hurting my friends.

A loud "whoosh" sounded throughout the control room as a dark shape rushed past them, its darkness somehow seeming stronger than the rest of it surrounding them.

" It didn't." Kamilla replied shakily, her and Iris' lights darting all around the room in an attempt to find their attacker, their hearts beating loudly against their chests.

This thing's so fast it's almost moving with the shadows. Almost as if...

The streak of black suddenly burst out of the darkness again, a loud howl accompanying it as it lunged at Kamilla, moving so quickly that neither of the reporters were able to react to the attack.

" AAHHH!!!"

" Kamilla!" Iris cried, as she threw herself around and pulled her weapon's trigger, trying to blast the monster, the thing having already disappeared back into the darkness, nothing left of Kamilla except her low faint cry that soon died out, engulfing the room in quiet once more.

" Kamilla," Iris repeated sadly, mourning the loss of her friend.

That's it, I'm done playing games.

" I know you're here somewhere, so are you going to make me wait here while you have your lackeys do your dirty work for you or are you actually going to show your face?" Iris stated fiercely as she stared out into the pitch black darkness in front of her, shutting off the only source of light that was on the tip of her gun.

If he wants me, he can have me.

The black goo that rested all along the walls and floor of the Cortex suddenly started moving on its own, slowly draining from the cracks in the ground and tears in the metal towards the back of the room, the unnerving slushing sound growing in intensity as each second passed, all moving in the same direction.

A familiar egotistical laugh echoed out from the black, followed up by the somewhat cliche slow clap that Iris had learned no villain could resist.

" Well done, would you like your trophy for figuring out the easiest thing in the world, Iris?" the man sneered, as the white lights flickered back to life around them, revealing the villain's true form.

Black veins ran deep down the entire length of his body and across his plain black t-shirt and brown cargo pants, his skin far paler than both Iris' father and Frost's combined.

His deep black eyes seemed to produce a sinister glint where his eye whites had once been, his face worn up in an evil grin as he looked at the small powerless mortal in front of him.

Bloodwork.

" Rosso." Iris stated, still making sure to keep her weapon clutched firmly in her right hand as she leveled it with his chest.

I'm not sure if shooting him will do anything, but it's better than nothing.

" You mean your savior?" he corrected, still grinning widely.

" How'd you get in here? Last I checked you were locked up in a dark hole at an Argus facility." Iris questioned.

" Funny what a mix of one little mistake from an incompetent guard and an eternity's worth of patience can do for you." Rosso chuckled.

" That's the price of being human though." he smirked.

" So what, you came back for revenge?" she continued, still closely training her weapon on him.

" Hmph, you'd all like to be so flattered." he smirked again, as he turned and looked at the empty display mannequin of The Flash suit.

" I came back here to finish what I started three weeks ago, before humanity's rise to godhood was ruined by your team's efforts." Rosso explained, bitterness hanging in his voice.

" But I must admit, you were all very, very smart. Much more so than I'd planned for." he laughed, Iris cautiously moving around the oval desk and closer to the villain for a clearer shot.

" A mistake I won't be making again." he sighed, as he gently ran his hand along the mannequin's chest.

" But rest assured Iris, there's still plenty of room for revenge in my new world." Rosso grinned, as he slowly turned back around to face her.

" And what're you going to do after I've shot a hole in your chest?" Iris stated fiercely, as she held her glowing blue weapon aimed towards him, it's quiet hum not doing justice to the amount of power it held.

" Well, I think my gift could take care of that." Rosso said affectionately, as he held his hand out, a small sliver of the black goo dancing between his fingers for a moment before disappearing back into his body.

" But I think that the more important question is how you think you're going to touch a god. Especially when he has his loyal servant." he grinned, another wave of unease washing over Iris' body.

Loyal servant?

" What do you mean..."

Before she could say another word, a sharp streak of black tore into the room once more, its fist colliding hard with Iris' weapon as it was ripped out of her hands, sliding for several feet roughly against the ground's smooth tiled surface as she felt the tinge of pain shoot up her arms from the abrupt attack.

The thing then grabbed Iris, racing to the far side of the room as it slammed her back against the wall, holding her against it roughly by her throat, her feet just barely touching the ground as its clawed fingers stayed clamped around her neck.

Gasping for air from the impact of the assault and the hand threatening to squeeze the life out of her, Iris looked at the monster that was holding her, her heart searing with pain as she did so.

No, please no!

The same black veins that ran across all of Bloodwork's corrupted minions ran its length across the man's body, only it brought much further changes to him than it had the other two.

The normally red and yellow supersuit that he wore was now colored a deep red and black, black shreds of it covering the lightning bolt emblem on his chest, trying to destroy the thing that it stood for.

The talons that replaced his fingers ripping through his suit's gloves in a way similar to that of a werewolf's transformation.

His skin was as pale as the others had been, his eyes a black void in place of where his kind soul would've been seen shining through.

Something very different from the others though was the wide, unnatural, creepy smile that covered his face, a look of pure sinister joy that betrayed everything the person inside felt grinning out for the world to see.

Though by far the worst thing was the face that the man wore, the rest of him barely recognisable in Bloodwork's corrupted state.

" Barry?" Iris croaked, as a small well of tears formed in her eyes as she looked at her husband, the monster's evil smile growing even wider as it tugged to the corners of his mouth, flashing his black stained teeth.

" Your husband's gone, Iris." Rosso grinned.

" He's my servant now. A tool of the gods to use to bring this city and the world to its knees! So that I can show them the errors of their ways." he stated, honestly believing every word that he spoke.

It broke Iris' heart to see the love of her life the way that he was, trapped inside his own mind as Bloodwork twisted his body into a pawn for his plans, turning him into a monster that was barely recognizable as he forced him to do things that the hero had spent his whole life fighting against, just like Rosso had the last time he'd gotten to him.

" Barry," were the only words that filled Iris' mind, as felt her heart break at what had happened to her husband.

I have to try and get through to him. I was able to do it last time, maybe I can reach him again! Save him from Rosso's control!

" That's not true!" Iris gasped, one hand grasping around The Flash's claws as they dug into the sides of her neck.

" He'll never let you control him like you did last time!" she strained to say, her breath slowly leaving her lungs.

" You see, but that's where you're wrong Iris, I'm already controlling him, just like all of your friends." Rosso grinned, as he opened the heavy doors that had been keeping the other infected out, Frost and Joe snarling as they slowly walked into the room, stopping next to their master. Alongside their newest sister, a corrupted Kamilla.

" You can fight it Barry, I know you can!" Iris urged, as she turned her attention to the person threatening to snap her neck, the monster still smiling widely with delight.

" This isn't you!"

" Oh, but it is now." Rosso smirked, his full attention on the scene in front of him.

" You can fight this Barry!"

" Oh, he really can't. And it's actually kind of cruel to try and force him to reject my gift like that." Rosso sighed, shaking his head softly.

" But to prove it to you, kill her." Rosso stated plainly, his dog instantly hearing his master's orders.

" She doesn't deserve immortality."

The Dark Flash ripped his right arm backwards as he curled his fingers, a low laugh bubbling out of his throat as he got ready to kill the person that he used to love more than anything, tightening his other hand's grip.

" Barry... please." Iris pleaded, a few tears rolling down her cheek as she looked into his black eyes, looking past all of the darkness that Rosso had put in him as she searched for the light that she knew was inside.

I believe in you Barry, you're stronger than him.

The smile quickly disappeared from Barry's face as his right hand slowly lowered, Rosso's confident expression fading just as quickly, the black eyes that stared back at her flashing a hint of the person she'd married as it rang with sorrow.

Barry?

A small "clink" echoed around the room for a half a second, before sending everything into an eruption of chaos.

An explosion of light and sound filled the Cortex's high walls as everyone inside was taken by surprise, loud shrieks of pain and anger tearing out of all of Bloodwork and his copies as they clasped their hands over their eyes, Dark Flash dropping his wife to the ground as he did the same.

Iris' head rang with the loud deafening sound as she fell to the floor, her vision almost consumed in white blurs as she strained to see anything around her.

For a brief moment, her eyes met her best friend's, the ones that stared back at her being the ones she loved more than anything, before they disappeared into the darkness again, the monster grasping back at its eyes as it stumbled backwards.

" Barry, don't leave me!" Iris cried out hoarsely, though she honestly had no idea how loud or if the words had even come out.

Don't leave...

Iris felt someone roughly grasp her by the arm, dragging her up onto her tired feet as it pulled her in a direction she couldn't make out.

Not that it matters if it's one of Rosso's brothers or sisters!

" Let go!" she shouted inaudibly, smacking the blurred white form of the thing taking her on the back of the shoulder.

What she could only describe as a short cry of pain and/or anger pierced through the white noise as the person sharply whipped their head back towards her, grabbing her more firmly now as it shoved her forward and through a doorway, Iris stumbling the next few steps inward.

I'm not going to go down without a fight!

Iris swung her fist around at the shape of her captor, who ducked surprisedly at the last moment.

" Iris!..... Knock it off!.... More seconds until the effects wear off." said a strange but familiar voice, as his face started to come into view.

" Nash?" Iris asked confusedly, as she blinked several times, her vision slowly clearing as she saw the worn treasure hunter standing across from her in the Time Vault, holding his body up against its entrance as if it would keep the demolecularization door shut.

Seeing someone else uninfected other than her was a breath of fresh air for Iris, especially knowing that he had probably just saved her life.

I just wish that I'd been able to do the same for you.

" Nash how'd you...?" she started, before being quickly silenced by the adventurer, who held his finger up to his mouth to tell her to be silent.

A chorus of loud and angry growls echoed quietly from behind the vault's futuristic walls, almost all of them disappearing instantly down the hall without a second thought, as they ravenously searched for their next target.

All except for one, who lingered at the hidden room's door, his quick breathing slowing down with each small and curious step that he took forward.

Even through the solid wall of timetnium and in his broken state, Iris could tell that it was her husband on the other side.

Iris motioned for Nash to move aside, who protested with a silent anger before letting her pass, as she stepped right up to the door.

She slowly reached out and placed her hand on its cold gray wall as she shut her eyes, resting her head against the metal as well, knowing how stupid and pointless what she was doing probably seemed, but wanting with all her heart nothing more than to feel her love's touch.

And even though she couldn't see it, Iris felt the warm touch of Barry's hand on her own, the comforting connection of his head against hers, as if he was doing the same for her on the other side of the barrier, their love pulsing between one another as they stood in silence, both of their eyes closed compassionately as they let their breathing become one, tears gently falling down their cheeks.

" I promise that I'll find a way to bring you home Barry," Iris promised silently.

" What're you doing Flash? Find them!" Ramsey's voice boomed, sending chills down both Iris and Nash's spines.

" If he comes in here, we're dead." Nash mouthed to Iris, who knew that what he said was right.

She felt the warmth from Barry's touch slowly slip away from her, as if the monster on the other side truly didn't want to leave, before the pair heard a sadistic growl from the hero turned villain, followed by a sharp blast of wind echoing around the hall, Rosso's furious footsteps being the last noise that slowly died out, until all that was left were the two survivors in their hiding spot, both of them letting out a long sigh as they felt their heartbeat start to return to normal. They were safe, for now.

I promise.