run_barry | Guy's Night Out

After everything that's been going on lately, the time has come for a break. A planned visit from a friend is just the thing and with no major crisis going on at the moment, it's the perfect time to make that happen.

So, with an itinerary that includes science, food and video games, Barry is excited to bring Yamato in from Milliways for another trip to Central City.

Opening the door from the bar that's a broom closet in S.T.A.R. Labs, Barry gestures Yamato through.

"Here we are," Barry says with a smile. "Welcome back, dude."

The corridor, like most of rest of S.T.A.R. Labs that doesn't get used by Team Flash much, is usually pretty dimly lit, but today the passageway is bright in anticipation of their guest and the science that's about to commence.

Nodding down the hallway, Barry says, "Cisco and Caitlin are in her lab and we're all set up for you."

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"Please, if I live past thirty-five it'll be a miracle," Yamato scoffs, nudging his knuckles against Barry's forehead. "But hey, whatever makes you feel better about slipping into your twilight years, gramps."

He gives Caitlin a quick nod, following her.

Caitlin leads the way into another room where Cisco is prepping the MRI machine. When they walk in Cisco looks up, throwing a smile.

"Yams, hey dude, you survived the preliminaries," Cisco says with a grin.

"I definitely don't believe that," Barry replies to Yamato, trailing behind him and Caitlin. "But if that's the case, then you're middle-aged right now."

Which makes Yamato the old man here.

Caitlin heads across the room to check over the machine, tutting at she works.

"Given what a big help you were here, and what Barry's said about you and your friends in your world, I would hope you live well beyond that, Yamato. The world-- worlds really need someone like you around."

"I did," Yamato says, flashing a grin at Cisco.

He's all ready to jokingly ask Barry if that means he gets to have a mid-life crisis now (wait, does he get to pick what his mid-life crisis is about? Cool), except then he hears what Caitlin says, and gets hit by a wave of embarrassment.

"I, er -- I'm sure Barry exaggerated," he says, ducking his head. "But, um. Thanks."

"Hmm, a modest man, that's a change from the show offs around here," Caitlin says, giving a smile to Yamato's embarrassment and the chance to rib her teammates.

"Hey, I've earned all my bragging rights," Cisco says, affronted.

"Lay down," he tells Yamato, gesturing at the table that will take him into the MRI machine.

"I'm not-- always... a show off," Barry argues, faltering when he takes a moment to think about the case against him and his defense falls apart.

Bowing out seems like his only real option, so Barry nods for the door.

"I'll be in the control room. Yamato, you alright?"

Yamato stifles a laugh behind his hand at that, taking few seconds to just make sure he can re-establish an appropriate level of gruffness.

"Yeah, I'm fine, gramps," he says eventually, giving Barry a quick nod.

With that done, he lies down on the table, settling his arms at his sides and staring at the ceiling.

"Saw that," Barry says of Yamato's stifled laugh and with the air of 'I'll get you back'.

With Yamato's belongings in careful tow, Barry exists the room.

Caitlin nudges Cisco out of the way and takes over beside Yamato.

"Rude," Cisco says after being bumped out of the way.

"Go wait in the other room," Caitlin tells him, waiting for him to follow after Barry before she turns her focus to Yamato.

"Okay, so this machine is a bit more advanced than your standard MRI, you know Cisco, so... " That's sort of enough said, right?

"It's going to take some really detailed imagery and readings. It'll take a little while, but you won't feel anything, you'll just hear the hum. Are you claustrophobic or do you have any type of anxiety?"

One corner of Yamato's mouth twitches upwards in a half-smile, for a split second. Of course Cisco would make a super-MRI. Of course he would.

"No, no claustrophobia or anything like that," he says, shaking his head.

"Good. Although if you did, that would be alright, too. We can manage that," Caitlin replies, adding a little more reassurance.

"I'll be in the control room, giving you any instructions over the intercom and keeping you updated on how it's going. So, just lay back and relax."

Caitlin pats Yamato's shoulder and steps over to activate the table.

The table Yamato's lying on slides smoothly into the machine and Caitlin leaves the room, letting the door close behind her.

After a moment the intercom clicks on, but it's Cisco's voice coming over the speaker.

"Alright. Now the interrogation begins!" Cisco says in a sinister voice.

"CISCO!" Caitlin's voice shouts, cutting off a maniacal laugh from Cisco.

The intercom clicks again and it's Barry who says, "Uh, hold please for technical difficulties... "

"I think I'm starting to understand why Cisco didn't go into medicine," Yamato says, amused. He's not even sure if they can hear him or not.

"Yeah, and the world is better for it," Barry replies with a chuckle.

Barry steps aside to turn the microphone over to Caitlin who comes on sounding slightly exasperated, but definitely not with Yamato.

"Alright, Mr. Ramon is going to wait out in the hallway. We're ready to begin in here."

A few moments later the lights dim just a touch and the MRI machine hums to life.

"I can't believe you sent Cisco to sit in the naughty corner."

He can't believe -- no, actually, he can believe Cisco would do what Caitlin says, he's seen her annoyed.

As the MRI starts, Yamato seems pretty calm. A little fidgety, but more out of boredom with just lying there than anything else.

After about five minutes of scanning, though, the limiter that Yamato gave to Barry starts to react -- the blue lens set into it, with the symbol of the Crest of Friendship carved on it, starts to give off faint pulses of light. Slow at first, and then a little faster.

"He should know better than to annoy my patients," Caitlin returns.

There’s not much to do once the machine starts, so Barry pulls out his phone and fiddles with that while Caitlin monitors the MRI. Barry had set Yamato’s items into a metal tray for safe-keeping and doesn’t notice there’s anything up until the flashing starts to become more insistent.

The blue flickering glow finally pulls Barry’s attention away from his phone screen and he head-tilts at the necklace.

Leaning over, Barry crowds Caitlin out of the way a little in order to reach the microphone button.

"Hey, Yamato... your uh-- your Crest thing is doing something in here... "

Caitlin turns from her screen, ready to be annoyed with Barry now, but then spots the flashing from the tray.

"Oh."

Yamato blinks.

"... What? No, that shouldn't be possible," he says. "Even if my Crest wasn't dormant, it wouldn't be reacting on its own unless it thought it was -- I don't know, threatened by something from the Dark Ocean, or Infection-related."

And neither of those things are happening here, Yamato knows that for a fact.

That flickering is getting brighter, though. Brighter and more rapid. Another thirty seconds passes, before blue light starts streaming out of it.

The temperature plummets sharply, and doesn't seem to be stopping its downward descent. Across S.T.A.R. Labs, there are snowflakes materialising from thin air without falling.

Outside the Labs, things might be getting even stranger, as the sky darkens from day to night and the sun is replaced by a much too large full moon. Slowly, bit by bit, cold and snowy winds are starting to pick up across the city.

"It's definitely doing something," Barry replies.

When the flashing turns into streaming light Barry grabs Caitlin just as she hits the emergency shut off on the MRI console, and zips them out of the room.

Only his movements aren't as fast as they should be, and when Barry sees his breath forming on the air and feels the cold biting through his clothes he knows why.

"Yamato!"

Barry's shout is followed by Cisco's, coming in over the loudspeakers in both rooms.

"Hey guys! We've got a situation brewing!"

From the Cortex Cisco is looking at a whole slew of sudden emergency readings across the city while GP races around the room squawking his own 'MAYDAY' alarm.

Yamato barely feels the cold his Crest creates, but he hears Barry's shout, and Cisco's just after, and even if he doesn't know all the details he can figure out what's happening.

Once the MRI is off, though, the light from the limiter begins to fade, then sputters out entirely. Those snowflakes immediately melt back into droplets of water, dropping to the floor at once, as the temperature starts to even out again.

Outside the Lab, those winds slow to a stop, and a few seconds later the full moon fades as well, night shifting back to day as if nothing had happened.

"Guys? Guys, give me some kind of status update."

Barry stands for a moment, ready to act if anything else happens.

The light show seems done and Barry shifts, ready to take off, but looking at Caitlin first to ask, "Are you alright?"

Caitlin nods, "Yeah. Go."

With that Barry takes off in a gust, heading to the Cortex to see what's happening.

While Barry goes to check things out, Caitlin opens the door and heads for the MRI machine, activating the table to bring Yamato out.

"Barry went to check in with Cisco on the alerts. What was that?" she asks Yamato.

When Barry arrives in the Cortex Cisco looks up from the screens and gestures at them.

"Well, we've either got another Weather Wizard, Captain Cold has upped his game, or it's the end times. Blizzards just popped up around Central City and we've got a full moon out, with the spontaneous night to go with it."

Yamato is up off the table as soon as it's out, trying very hard to keep his expression flat and not look like he's completely horrified with himself.

"I don't -- is everyone okay? Nobody got hurt?" He asks. "That's not -- I've had MRIs before, years ago, I don't know why that ..."

Okay. He needs to explain.

"My powers, they come from a kind of -- extradimensional elemental spirit thing that lives inside me," he says. "And it can act on its own if it feels threatened, but that's not ... it's been dormant for months, and it shouldn't have felt threatened at all."

"We're fine," Caitlin assures Yamato. "A little chilly, maybe, but I've always been used to the cold. How about you?"

She looks him over, trying to assess his status and is maybe considering giving him another quick check up after all of that.

"Extradimensional elemental spirits are a new one for us," she says after listening to Yamato's explanation. "If it wasn't the machine do you think it was threatened by us?"

They were poking and prodding at Yamato, maybe his powers took exception to that.

In the Cortex Barry starts looking over the situation.

"I think it was Yamato's Crest," Barry tells Cisco. "It started acting up and all this happened."

"Well it's settled down now, but there are still a lot of calls lighting up emergency lines, you should probably get out there and do a run through," Cisco says.