Chapter Five

Disclaimer: I don't' own the Justice League. But if you wanted to give it to me, I wouldn't say no. . .

AN: Okay, no, I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I'm re-uploading this chapter, because I realized I hated the way it was going, so I re-wrote the end, and I'm still alive, I swear! Remember that time when I was like, 'Taking forever to update? I'll never do that again!'

...well I lied. Sorry about that. Uh. *cough* Have a sort of new chapter? I'm currently working on Ch. 6, have no fear! I'm legitimately going to start working on this story again, so there's that, at least.

As always, questions, comments, and suggestions are welcomed with open arms!

Wally couldn't help laughing at her innocent question, and yeah, maybe that was a little cruel- she honestly didn't know what the game was. But her face was so…confused! It was adorable! And she smiled, which made it totally worth it, he'd never seen her smile, and he was getting off track.

"Come on, I'll explain when we get there." He stood and refastened the cuffs, because he liked her, sure, but he wasn't an idiot, no matter how often Bats said he was. They got cursory, disinterested looks from the other heroes they passed on the way to the training floor, but no-one questioned them. For a moment, Wally wondered what Batman would think about that, about them not challenging someone -even if they were a founding member- bringing a prisoner up through the regular levels by themselves, despite the fact that she was only a teen. But, he wasn't Batman, and was just as glad for the lack of scrutiny. He could feel Kate tensing up where he had a firm grip on her shoulder, and maybe it was just in his head, or maybe it was because of their shared power, but he would almost swear he could feel her accelerating up from relative speed, as though she was preparing for an attack. An attack that wasn't coming, but she wouldn't realize that.

"Hey, relax," he told her, sotto voce, "I've got your back!" He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze, wincing at the unintended pun, but she didn't seem to take offense, and she lost a small bit of the tension. They reached one of the floors dedicated to training, and Flash guided her into his preferred room, a changeable obstacle course in the center of a track that ran angled for high speeds around the outside of the room. As soon as the door was secure behind them, he again took off the manacles and set them down by the doors. They wouldn't be needing those in here.

Kate had never realized how many 'superheroes' there were, she'd only ever been told about the Justice League Seven. It had been reassuring to know that her deal with Flash held out here as well; she resented it, but she needed his protection. Getting the cuffs off put her more at ease, but even as he explained the rules to this game, she felt a strange tightness coiling in her; not like fear, or anticipation, but the need to truly move, an itch just beneath her skin that was only getting stronger.

"So- think you can handle it?" Flash was asking her, a challenging smirk spurring her into jutting her own chin out and matching his stance.

"Sure," she replied casually, not quite believing how bold she was acting, but going with it anyway, the itch was irresistible now, "You'reIt!" She practically flew from the spot, only catching a glimpse of his stunned face, but her fear of being punished was swallowed up in the need to run faster. Dodging around the street-like obstacles was trickier than she expected, she was used to actual buildings. These only came up to about chest height on her, scaled down to fit in the room. A disappointing moment later, and Flash was running level with her, a 'block' away, grinning.

"Not bad!" He started weaving closer and she realized the game wasn't up yet- he had to touch her- and she counter maneuvered. "Next round, we're going to have to work on your opening strategy- cheating doesn't go down well most of the time." He wasn't even straining, and though Kate wasn't really running full out as she dodged and circled, she wasn't holding back either. She cut a sudden left, but Flash darted just in front of her, lightly tapping her nose and winking as he ran by, "You're it!"

Enraged and exhilarated, Kate tore after him, unused to an objective regarding speed that was difficult for her to achieve, except perhaps in the early days of her training, before the upgrades.

But Flash was a difficult target.

He was fast, of course, faster than anything she'd ever seen, but he was so…so comfortable with his powers. He'd take leaps and dives over the obstacles, or turn on a dime, never breaking stride or losing his balance. Somehow the fact that he wasn't totally holding back her made her feel like, like maybe she could keep up too, that she wasn't someone he needed to be guarded around. It was a strange feeling.

They broke out of the obstacles and onto the track ringing the room, and Flash began to pull away even faster. Kate growled, determined not to be outdone, and somehow, she moved faster. And faster. The tension in her body reached a new fever pitch, and she couldn't slow down, couldn't stop the mad beating of her heart or the fire that had infected her veins. She was terrified, but couldn't do anything about it, trapped in a body that was already at the extreme, already panting with no breath to spare to call out, or even whimper at the sensations. It felt like her mind was coming apart, moving too fast for her body to keep up, and she was breathing too hard, and this was- there was no way this was going to end well.

It was reassuring to Flash that Kate still had so much spirit, even if she'd spent basically her whole life as a lab rat. She'd taken off with a restless energy and fire that seemed at odds with the quiet, still girl they'd brought in. He rather approved of the change, though - kids should always be energetic, and that went double (or triple) for speedsters. It had been worrying, but this reemergence of life made him grin as he chased her down, not even feeling the urge to chastise her for her underhanded tactics earlier. But just because he was glad she was playing didn't mean he wasn't going to push her, see what she was really capable of. It was perhaps deceptive of him to use the game that way, but honestly, it was probably the only way to get even a semi-unguarded response from the girl, considering her reactions to the questions at medical. Plus, they got to blow off steam this way, play a game, AND get her out of that depressing cell, so he counted it as a win.

Deciding he was through watching her dexterity, he decided to try to coax her to higher speeds, tagging her it and running a few more circuits of the obstacle course before making a b-line for the track. What he found when he checked behind him, though, didn't look so much like competitiveness as a panic attack.

He was at her side instantly, and she shot him a look that practically screamed 'help!', but she kept going.

"Slow down, Kate," he ordered, voice dead serious for once, but she didn't comply, shaking her head. Okay. Okay. Either that meant, what, that she wouldn't, or -hell maybe she couldn't? "Can you?" He asked, keeping up effortlessly as she slowly got faster, cursing when she shook her head again as best she could. He swept her into his arms and stopped them both, but she wasn't- she was no longer running, but her body was still functioning at speeds she couldn't handle. "Breathe, Kate, come on, you can do this, you can slow down." He kept himself on the same level of acceleration, knowing that if he left her even for a moment, he might not be fast enough to help her before her heart gave out. She was still gasping in air, a terrified whine marking every exhale, and he didn't know what to do! His own body was flushed with adrenaline, both from running and the current situation, trembling with the need to do something about this. He had to slow her down somehow, but med bay was too far, even for him, with the time frame they probably had.

Running on little more than instinct and hope, he sat along the edge of the track, back to the wall, and sat her in his lap, her back to his front. Holding her wildly vibrating and twitching hands together with one hand, he placed the other on her chest, just below her collar bone where he could feel her heart thumping away and lungs laboring to keep up with her accelerating body. "Breathe with me, Kate, you can do this, it'll be okay." He didn't know what to do, so he just held her close, repeating the mantra. He felt a subtle shift in her speed, and it gradually matched his exactly, and an idea struck him.

"Stay with me, now, stay with me Kate…" Slowly, slowly, so slowly it was practically killing him, he began to decelerate, and after a heart stopping moment felt her speed decrease as well. He wanted to whoop and drop his speed down to relative time in his usual abrupt manner, but he knew that if he broke her concentration now, he might not get it back. They continued slowing, Flash murmuring encouragement and holding her securely. The second they hit relative time, he scooped her up, jogging out of the training room, not using his speed for fear it would set off another attack or whatever Kate had just had.

They got a lot more looks this time, mostly because Flash wasn't known for going 'normal' speeds, ever, rather than the girl he was carrying. He warned off anyone who looked like they'd approach the pair with a stern look, the surprise of which let them pass by before the recipient could recover. Kate lay compliant in his arms, shaking, her hands tucked up on her stomach, though one of them had managed to fist itself in his uniform. Med bay had never seemed so far away, but they made it in good time, doctors flocking over as he set the ashen girl on a bed. There was a barrage of questions, and he answered them as best he could as the well meaning medical personnel crowded around. He was trying to describe what had happened to the doctor who usually dealt with the Flash when he was injured, when a quiet curse behind him drew his attention back to Kate. She was curled up as close to him as she could get, her wide, tear-filled eyes following the nurses' fluttering hands. He quickly realized what the problem was. Kate had started to accelerate again, in fits and starts this time, heart monitor going crazy. When she realized she had his attention, she started babbling. "W-what are we doing here?! I'm sorry, please-"

"Woah, no, hey, it's alright Kate," he took her shoulders firmly, again bringing his speed up to match hers, "It's okay." For a moment, her speed synced with his. "They'll help you-" and her speed skyrocketed, "Kate, common, listen to me!" But she was shaking her head, crawling back away from him with a determined look. He should have been expecting it, but he was just as surprised as the others in the room when she burst out the doors; of course, only he saw the actual act- to the others, she had simply disappeared. He knew it was unrealistic, but the couldn't help feeling disappointed as he gave chase.

FLASHWALLY FLASHWALLY FLASHWALLY

She had tried to apologize for whatever she'd done wrong, but Flash wouldn't listen! She'd thought that maybe the league would be different, that Flash would be different, but they weren't. Well- they were, a little, she supposed. They didn't have Nicky. And if they couldn't make her sit still for all the painful modifications or test or procedures, there was no way she was going to let them. Flash seemed to think that she would sit through whatever he wanted, just because he asked- but no matter how nice he'd been, he hadn't won her loyalty yet.

For once, she was excited to use her extra energy boost for what she wanted, not on some stupid treadmill or hooked up ot loud machines. Even with her earlier scare, she was confident she could handle herself now. Using the terrified adrenaline, she burst off the bed, and an effortless moment later, though the door.

As sweet and exhilarating as her moment of escape was, she had only milliseconds to enjoy it. A brief impression of red and blue was all she got before she ran into what had to be a reinforced steel/concrete wall. Stunned into immobility, she barely reacted when someone pulled her back, except to try to curl up to avoid any more pain.

FLASHWALLY FLASHWALLY FLASHWALLY

Wally had only been a few seconds behind Kate, but the girl apparently attracted trouble like a magnet. He burst out the door to find Superman down on one knee, trying to ask if Kate was all right. She was curled in a loose ball, leaning back from Sups with a dazed, pained look.

Sighing, he knelt down with them, gathering Kate into his arms as Superman apologized, trying to explain himself.

"Dude, it's fine. She wasn't meant to be running off anyway," Wally explained as they walked back into the med-bay together. The good news was that the shock of impact must have derailed any uncontrolled acceleration- the bad news, well, he'd think about that later.

Kate seemed to come back around as he lay her back on the bunk, and he held her shoulder down as he medical personnel hooked her up to the basic monitoring equipment. She only really started to struggle when he strapped her wrists down, but he quieted her with a sharp look.

He hated that it had worked. How even now, she seemed to be afraid of them. He tried once more to reassure her that they wouldn't hurt her, but he could tell she didn't believe him. Stepping aside, he let the doctors take care of her as he conversed quietly with Superman.

"She's pretty quick. I didn't even have time to grab her before she ran into me," Superman commented mildly. Wally nodded, arms crossed as he watched the bustle around Kate's bed.

"Yeah. Except- there's something weird about it. We were playing tag, and she just- lost control. It was like she couldn't stop accelerating, but I have no clue why."

Superman frowned and turned to consider the girl on the bed himself. "Want me to take a look?" he offered as they watched her twist and squirm and be as generally uncooperative as she could be, strapped down. Everyone there could tell she was terrified- she flinched every time anyone around her so much as moved.

Wally debated a long moment before he answered. On one hand, he wanted to respect her privacy, but on the other hand- blood tests would take ages to finish, and they weren't likely to be nearly as comprehensive as they would need to be. Even the tests they took earlier weren't done being analyzed, and they'd already had a … situation. "Yeah, actually, that would be great."

Her desperate fear kept him from being too annoyed that she'd run from him after he'd promised not to hurt her, after she'd promised to trust him. Mostly it made him even more determined to find out what had been done to her, and by whom, so he could beat the snot out of them and leave them to rot in jail.

Next to him, Superman ran a hand across his eyes, drawing his attention to the alien. "What is it?" Wally demanded impatiently.

"She's been- modified," Superman kept his voice low, but not low enough to disguise his vague horror. "I'm not even sure- Right now, it looks like all her cells are being overworked, on a cool-down. Nearly everything in her body has been tweaked or re-written. I think what happened was a result of a recent cascade change."

Wally felt his stomach drop as he looked back over at Kate.

"This…isn't the first time, either." Superman added. "Whoever did this has probably had her since childhood, at the latest."

Forcing himself to speak, Flash asked, "Do you think she'll have another episode?"

"I don't think so, no," Superman replied after a moments pause.

"Great– I- I'll be back in a minute, I need to– go." He dashed out of the spacious room, into the winding halls of the 'Tower, doing his best to outrun the terrible thoughts chasing him.

Comments are like sunshine in my world!