#metrotask

Barry Allen: Task 003

Location: Streets of Metropolis

Time: 9:23 AM, June 3rd, 2014

Forecast: Sunny with some cloud coverage later on in the evening.

It was about 9:20 and Barry had to be at work at 9:30. For the first time in a very long time, he might actually be on time. He crossed 9th Avenue and walked, all the while a dark worry pestered his subconscious. Barry spent his entire time concentrating on matching the pace of people near him, not wanting another episode. The coffee shop was bad enough, and he didn’t want that to ever happen again. But, in order to prevent Barry from losing control and moving quickly, he had to get his new ‘abilities’ in check. Just yesterday, he had been walking home from work and he saw a car crash occur on the opposite side of the street. In mere fragments of a second, Barry was across the street, face first in the grass near the curb. He hadn’t even tried to move that quickly, it just happened. The question he had asked himself yesterday while lying in the grass pulsed vigorously through his subconscious. “What is happening to me?" 

In truth, Barry had no fucking idea what was going on and the only clue to his situation was a brief conversation with a stranger that he had had a day or so ago. It was possible that this speed and lack of control was here to stay, and Barry had little to no control over it. That, alone, was a terrifying thought. And as he walked at a human pace to the police station, his entire focus was towards maintaining a homo sapien speed. Then, something broke his focus. There, about twelve blocks ahead, was a large armored truck. It was near a bank, of course, and probably had millions of dollars ready to deposit into the closest bank. For the first time in a very long time, the thought of possible evil ran through Barry’s head. He had pushed the idea of stealing money out of his mind almost completely, when the doors to the truck opened.

Barry Allen: Task 002

Location: Streets of Metrocity & Barry's apartment lobby.Time:  May 29th, 2014. 4:02.Forecast: Clear skies. Temperature of about 60 degrees all day, light breeze of 2-3 miles per hour NE.

Barry’s mind is jagged, and his thoughts are in pieces.

 { quick, hot, burning, cold, wet, rain,

run run run run!

walk. breathe. walk. breathe.  

burning.

pain.

walk. breathe.

walk. breathe.

pain.

hospital.

NO.

walk. breathe.

ignore. pain. pain.pain. 

ignore. walk. }

After an unimaginable amount of mindless wandering around the city, Barry finally starting to think normally again. He had no idea where he was or how he got there. People were giving him strange looks while he stumbled. It was no longer raining, and it was pitch black outside. In fact, it was so late that it had almost started to transfer into morning. He looked up, ignoring the concerned facial expressions that were shot towards him and tried to get his bearings. While ignoring a hot pulsing throb that seemed to cover his entire body, Barry realized that he knew where he was. Maybe. It looked familiar. He turned right and continued to walk. If he knew where he was, Barry was about seventeen blocks from his apartment. He could be home in thirty minutes. Tops.

 Just then, a woman grabbed his arm. Ow. Ow. Ow. He could feel her fingers pressing into her skin, they felt very cold. The woman flinched when she touched him, almost jolting backwards. "Young man, are you alright?" Barry frowned. Sure, he could not remember a few hours, but he felt fine, for the most part. Okay, so he knew he should probably visit a hospital and see medical help, but that was pointless. If he were to explain where he was when he was exposed to that yellow chemical, Barry would be in legal trouble for breaking and entering a private scientific facility. That was a no-can-do. So, as of right now, Barry was concentrating on getting home. Then, he would see for himself and decide if he needed medical help. Snapping out of his mental daze and finally replying to the middle aged woman, "Yes. I’m fine. Thank you." Before she could say another word, Barry continued to walk towards his small loft, the throbbing starting to intensify.

 As Barry came to the next turn, he noticed that everyone around him was moving exceptionally slowly. So slow that Barry had to wind in and out of people to continue to walk home. Even more strange, the throbbing had instantly started to dissipate, to the point that almost no pain remained in his back, chest, and face. He pushed his dark eyebrows together, concerned and perplexed. This had never happened to him. Normally, Barry moved slowly. That’s why he was always late. Did this have anything to do with the chemical? Was he high? Before he could answer, he found himself stopped short at the front door of his apartment building. That was strange. According to his watch, as he glanced down at the object that had some yellow residue caked in the face, he had only taken 5 minutes to walk home. Barry must have misjudged the distance and not actually known where he was.

Barry Allen: Task 001

Location: Streets of Metrocity & Oscorp Research FacilityTime: May 28th, 2014. 19:18Forecast: Metrocity will be under a severe thunderstorm warning until 9 pm on May 28th. Close lightning strikes are expected as well as moderate street flooding. Stay away from windows and stay safe.

Barry trucked through the rain, carrying the chrome centrifuge tight against his chest. The object was large enough that it required both of his hands; therefore, he had no arms to hold an umbrella or defend against the elements. His glasses were covered in rain, so vision was almost non-existent, and his jacket sopping, sticking the cold fabric tight against his skin and quickly draining all body heat from Barry. He had six blocks left and decided to try his luck at a cab. Almost blindly, Barry nearly stepped into the street and called out as loud as he could against the rain pounding the pavement. "Hey! Can I get a cab? Over here!" He waited only seconds before a car honked, a noise Barry interpreted as ‘get the fuck out of the way’ and he jumped backwards. Lucky enough, the car didn’t hit him or destroy the centrifuge. Unlucky enough, he was hit by a typhoon of rainwater that was shot up by the car’s rapidly spinning tires. “Shit.” He called out, jumping even further backwards, to hopefully prevent any more water damage to the machine, if that was even at all possible. 

 Now that hailing a cab seemed impossible, Barry faced forward, adjusted his grip on the centrifuge, squinted his eyes, and began to walk. Straight into the rain. He had been making his journey for about twelve more minutes when he saw a building that looked a bit familiar to the scientist, Oscorp. Barry had only gone on tours in the building, but never actually had the chance to work there or really, truly explore. He felt a flicker of curiosity light, but it was quickly extinguished by the pouring rain that pounded into Barry’s back and torso. As he got closer to the large facility, a thought crossed his mind. There had to be scientists in the building, there had to be. And they would help him. They would understand that he needed to take care of his machine and get out of the rain. Barry paused for a few moments, considering the risks, when a large crash of thunder seemed to shake the whole street. That made up his mind, and Barry walked quickly towards the back lot of the research facility. 

 He headed for what appeared to be a door, but he couldn’t be sure as he was squinting through glasses that were coated in water droplets. But, as Barry walked slowly closer and closer towards the building, he saw that it was, in fact, a door, and it was open. He shook his head to throw some of the water drops off his glasses, to make sure it wasn’t an illusion. It was real. There, in front of him, was an open door that lead straight into the heart of Oscorp’s research facilities. He paused after taking a few steps so he could stand safely under the awning and out of the rain. Barry couldn’t decide. This was illegal, no doubt about it. Breaking and entering, clear as day. But, he had to save his machine, and scientists were sure to understand that. Machines were expensive, well maybe not to the budget of Oscorp, but to a government funded crime scene program, it was a big deal to get anything new.