Chapter Text
“Panic erupted at Central City Hall after unknown gunmen kidnapped Congressman Leonard Snart in broad daylight during his ‘Metas are Human’ rally. Eyewitnesses to the attack say three of Snart's security guards were killed in their efforts to protect the Congressman, and four more were injured. Authorities are putting in every effort to recover the Congressman, working around the clock to bring him home safely. If anyone has any information regarding—”
“Hey man, are you watching the news?” Barry didn't bother with a hello when he heard the call connected; his eyes still glued to the footage of the kidnapping replaying on the TV screen.
This was the first time since being back in Central that he'd felt the familiar course of adrenaline start to build in his blood. His feet were already vibrating just thinking about running head-first into a new mission. This was a problem he could solve as easily as making a run to the grocery store. He might not be in the military anymore and his whole team may be suspended from using their powers on US soil until the investigation is over, but there wasn't a chance in hell he was going to let that stop him from saving not only his personal hero but the Congressman leading the fight for metahuman rights.
If Leonard Snart died, metahumans wouldn’t stand a chance against the discrimination and dehumanization they were up against in Congress.
“Yeah, crazy, right? Can't believe they got the drop on Captain Cold.” Cisco replied readily, the echoing broadcast accompanying his voice. “I mean, we've all heard the stories from General Lance.”
Leonard Snart hadn’t always been a Congressman, of course. He was the beloved Mayor of Central City before that, and a decorated police officer briefly after being honorably discharged from the military due to an injury in the field. Leonard Snart was the only human to ever Captain the same covert metahuman team Barry had helped lead for the past five years.
The original Rogues were legendary, especially their human leader.
He may have only been human, but Snart had a genius-level intellect, was an expert tactician, not to mention an exceptional marksman, and a bit of a kleptomaniac at the most convenient of times. Captain Cold was a highly decorated war hero who helped turn the Rogues into the military's best secret weapon.
The motivational stories that General Lance had told them during training and the old missions she would drill them on had fueled Barry's endless quest to be the best operative he could be. He ended up chasing Captain Cold's legacy like it was critical to his career, right up to the point of obsession. It had helped him rank up quickly, religiously studying Snart's tactical strategies, missions, and reports. Barry learned from his mistakes before he could even make them, most of the time, thanks to Snart’s detailed mission logs and his additional references to counter scenarios that would have been successful. Barry is the man he is today because of Leonard Snart–his hero, his teacher, and his inspiration. He couldn’t stand back on the sidelines and hope someone else was going to put a plan together and save Snart.
He had to do something.
“Yeah, they would have just shot him in the street if they wanted him dead,” Barry theorized, finally giving in to the restlessness running through his body and taking off into a sprint, barely being able to enjoy the exhilarating feeling of running again before he was across town and right into the middle of Cisco’s underground workshop. “The kidnappers must want something else, but that doesn't mean they won't kill him when they get it.”
“Is this you trying to ask me to look into where they’re keeping him?” Cisco questioned with a surprised eyebrow raised as he took the phone away from his ear and set it down near the gutted metal tube spilling over with wires sitting in front of the scientist, along with an array of tools and loose equipment. If Barry wasn’t mistaken, it was one of Hartley’s sonic grenades he was tinkering with.
The same sonic grenades that the Military had confiscated after they were discharged.
Barry knew he couldn't have been the only one going stir-crazy since they had been sent home, but Cisco had been smart enough not to inform the government about his ability to breach when he enlisted, allowing him easy access to anything he wanted from this world or another.
“Maybe? I don't know. I feel like I should do something, he could die,” Barry replied warily, running a hand through his hair as he considered what would happen if he didn't get involved. “The guys who grabbed him have to be professionals; there's no way of knowing what they'll do if SWAT gets involved. I'm thinking if you can pin down his location, I can be in and out with Snart before you finish telling me the address.”
“I'll let Frosty and Cait know what's up while I track him down, have them set up the med room for him just in case.” Cisco was already abandoning his workbench and moving towards his computer as he spoke, typing out a message to the girls on his phone while he booted up his PC. “Want me to contact his team and let them in on the plan?”
“After. I don't want to take the chance if this is an inside job. I want Snart safe before we bring outsiders in on this.” Barry responded, knowing in his gut that the only thing they could afford to worry about right now was making sure Snart made it out of this alive.
“Yeah, good call, can't have the man spearheading the ‘metas are human' movement dying before he can get the bill passed.” Cisco agreed with an approving nod, fingers dancing over the keyboard as he pulled up the satellite footage of the kidnapping.
“Exactly. He's our only chance at keeping our civil rights, Cisco, we gotta save him.” He didn't mention he was their only chance of getting the team back together, and their dishonorable discharges dropped. Lance still kept in contact with them all, even if it was dangerous for her own career to be mixed up with their disgraced team at such an uneasy time like this. She had risked it, though, to tell them she had talked to Snart about their situation, and he had vowed to do what he could to get them all reinstated and the investigation handled by an unbiased party.
“I know, man, I'm tracking them through CCTV cameras right now, shouldn't be much longer. You should suit up.” Cisco suggested pressing a button on a small remote while nodding towards the now-moving back wall where he kept the team’s secret emergency gear stashed. It seemed like Cisco was keeping a lot of secrets from the government down here. The man always had to be doing something with his hands, anything to keep him busy and his ideas flowing. It was a trait Barry had always admired about his best friend, especially right now.
“Red or black?” Barry asked the scientist, trying not to get caught up in the nostalgia of seeing his team's suits lined up and on display again. It had only been three months since the team was disbanded, but it felt like years to him. This felt like coming home, much more than arriving at Central City airport after 12 years away had.
“Black. Should probably keep this one stealthy.” Cisco replied, turning his head to the side to meet Barry's eye. “Are we playing this like Karmana or Kota Baharu?”
“Moscow,” Barry said with a soft hum, trembling fingers reaching for the reinforced tripolymer fabric waiting for him. It really had been too long, the anticipation was almost too much for him to handle. He's missed the comfort of his super suit. Of his team. His life. God, everything had gone to such shit so quickly that he never even got to prepare himself for never suiting up and leading a mission again. It had been stripped from him just like his team, his rank, and his reputation had.
“Oh really?” Cisco curved his surprise quickly, his worry pushing forward instead. “You think he'll remember the call sign?”
“He'll remember,” Barry replied confidently, not wasting another second and flashing into his suit. It was even better than he remembered, like a missing limb growing back, or maybe he had missed his old life more than he cared to admit.
Now, he felt safe and powerful and needed. Three things that had been severely lacking in his life since being discharged.
“Let's hope you're right,” Cisco muttered before glancing down at his phone and smirking in triumph. “I've got the location, and Cait is almost ready. It's showtime, Lieutenant Flash.”
“Don't call me that, man. I'm not your Lieutenant anymore.” Barry said with a shake of his head, brushing off Cisco's quick reply.
“The government may have royally fucked us all over and disbanded the team, but that doesn't mean I lost respect for the rank you earned dude.”
“Whatever, can you just give me the address, please? We have a Congressman to save.” Barry pulled his cowl up and attached the mask so his face was completely covered, letting it settle into place and feeling his shoulders drop down, all the tension he was carrying leaving him at once. There was no better feeling than using his powers to save someone, and now, after months of moping around his shoebox apartment and his mind-numbing third-shift security gig, having to refrain from using his speed, he was going to get to use it to save Leonard Snart.
He knew the ‘Oh shit, I’m going to meet Leonard Snart!’ freak out he would no doubt have later would be embarrassing and long, but it would mean Snart would be alive and that was more than enough for Barry to look forward to making a fool of himself in the future.
“Uh, yeah, about that,” Cisco winced at the latest text that popped up, shooting Barry a constipated smile. “Hopefully he's like really grateful you’re risking it all right now to save his ass and can keep you from getting arrested for doing it. Frost says they know you're active. APB is about to go out. Waller is pissed.”
“Better make this good, then, I'm too pretty for prison.” Barry couldn't help the grin that stretched across his face as Cisco finally rattled off the address to him, offering him a lazy salute that a year ago would have gotten him kitchen duty for two weeks. Now it just earned him a good-natured laugh from Barry.
“Good luck, Lieutenant,” Cisco said with an encouraging pat on the back, letting out a small laugh to himself when Barry took off just as quickly as he had appeared. “Something tells me you're going to need it.”