Chapter 1

My name, is Oliver Queen. After five years in Hell, I returned home with only one goal: to save my city. But my old approach wasn't enough. I had to become someone else. I had to become, something else. I had to become... the Green Arrow.

Two Ghosts ran through a shipyard, attempting to outrun a man wearing black leather and a type of helmet. The media ran his name as "Spartan", who works with the Green Arrow. The Ghosts turned a corner, stopping to catch a breath.

"Did we lose him?" One of the Ghosts asked. The other soldier looked around the corner.

"Yeah." The other guy said. "I think we did." However, a man in a green hood and carrying a bow and arrow jumped down from a nearby roof, landing in front of them.

"You're wrong." The Green Arrow snarled with a voice modulator. The two Ghosts pulled up their weapons, but the Arrow was too quick, smacking the guns to the side and shooting them both in the legs with arrows. With the threat eliminated, Green Arrow spoke into his communications device. "Canary, the south side is clear. How are you and Speedy doing?"

"Just fine." Black Canary responded, using her Canary Cry to incapacitate more Ghosts on the north end of the shipyard, while Speedy shot the remaining men with her own arrows. "We're just finishing up."

"Hang on, we got a runner." Spartan informed, chasing after a lone Ghost. Just as Diggle was about the tackle the man, a smoke bomb was thrown down, allowing the soldier to escape. "Dammit, I lost him!"

"Don't worry, the Ghosts aren't the priority." Oliver reminded everyone. "The main goal is to save the city."

"Well, we're barely saving it right now." Thea pointed out. "We take out one Ghost, ten more show up."

"Every bit helps." Oliver replied, before activating his comms. "Felicity, is the shipyard clear?"

"Yep!" Felicity's voice filled everyone's communications. "Aside from the one that got away, there aren't anymore Ghosts in the area!"

"Great, let's head back." Oliver ordered, and Team Arrow got into their van and drove back to the Bunker.

The Bunker

"Another night, another job well done." Felicity congratulated, as the rest of the team exited the elevator. "Shall we break out the champagne? Vodka? Margaritas?"

"No, we need to figure out what Damien Darhk and HIVE wanted with that shipyard." Oliver declared. "There must have been a reason."

"Isn't that obvious?" Diggle asked. "Darhk wants control of the city. That's why he approached you to not clean up the bay four days ago."

"But if Darhk wants this city to die, then why is he interested in controlling it?" Laurel asked.

"That is a question for another time." Oliver stated. "Right now, I need to check on my mayoral campaign."

"Need me to come with you?" Thea asked. "I am your chief of staff, after all."

"I think I'll be fine." Oliver reassured his sister. "I'm just going to set up a date to clean up the Star City bay area." Smiling, Oliver entered the elevator and rode up to his office, passing one of the support beams on the way.

Flashback

Lian Yu

Five Years Ago

Oliver and Taiana exited the cave and began to walk towards the location Queen mentioned.

"Where did you say we were going?" Taiana asked, curious.

"Two years ago, a man named Anthony Ivo showed up to this island." Oliver explained. "His ship, called the Amazo, had sunk just off the coast."

"And you are planning to go there why?" Taiana asked.

"Because I think Ivo had detailed maps of this island." Oliver continued. "I don't think there's any other way he could have found this place." Oliver and Taiana continued walking, when they heard a metallic click.

"Oliver?" Taiana called out, looking down in horror. Oliver looked down as well, seeing that she had stepped on a landmine. "What do we do?"

Now

HIVE

Damien Darhk entered the main room of HIVE's headquarters, seeing that his associates had finally arrived.

"Ah, old friends!" Damien greeted with enthusiasm. "I trust your flight went without a hitch? Plenty of peanuts and first class?"

"Enough, Damien." One of the members, Milo Armitage, announced. "We came by to see your progress here. We would like to move Genesis forward as soon as possible."

"And while you had killed Miss Fayad, she was right about one thing." Another high ranking member, Phaedra Nixon, chimed in. "The vigilante problem is becoming worse. The Green Arrow and his friends are fighting back and pushing your progress further behind."

"Not to worry." Darhk reassured his partners. "I have an old friend coming to help with this." Just as he finished speaking, a Ghost ran into the room with his mask and goggles off.

"What happened at the shipyard?" Damien asked.

"Sir, please, the Green Arrow stopped us from taking control." The man pleaded.

"You should know by now, you're expected to take your way out." Darhk scolded. "And after Lonnie Machin, I don't do second chances." Damien looked up to the ceiling and nodded, and what appeared to be a midget with red hair jumped down, pulling out a knife and slashing across the man's eyes. The Ghost screamed, as the midget cut off his fingers and forced them down his throat one by one, choking him to death. The midget turned around, facing Damien and the rest of HIVE, who looked on in terror. The midget had blue eyes, freckles, and wore overalls that said "Good Guys" on them.

"Chucky, old friend." Damien spoke, unfazed by the gruesome murder. "It's been a while!"

"God damned right." Chucky replied in a south Chicago accent. "So what do you want, me to bump off the guy in the green hood and his buddies?"

"You read my mind." Damien wore a wide grin. "But I also might need you to do something else for me."

"This is why you altered the Mirakuru two years ago?" Milo asked, frustrated. "You tampered with the drug to use on Nica Pierce just to make that thing happy?"

"That is no way to talk to a friend of mine!" Damien chided. "Besides, after I gave the Akuma to her doctor, we gained an important ally to HIVE. Now if you'll excuse us, Mister Ray and I are going to discuss the nature of him being here, alone." Damien picked up Chucky by the arm and walked to his private office, showing the Khushu idol at an altar.

"You know, I never got to see your toy." Chucky remarked. "Oh, Tiff sends her regards. We're still working out the plans to get back at Nica."

"Tell her I said hi." Damien replied. "Now, down to business. You get the gist of why I called you."

"Sure, I come here and give the Green Arrow some Hell." Chucky said sarcastically. "Anything else?"

"I need you to keep an eye on Quentin Lance." Damien finished, showing a picture of the police captain. "He's been working with me for the past month, but it seems that each time I give him new information, the Green Arrow and his costumed friends somehow figure it out. I have my suspicions, but I need to be sure."

"That's a tall order, Damien." Chucky noted. "But hey, if you're still sending drugs to fuck with Nica's mind, I guess I still owe you." Damien looked at the doll, with a cold look in his eyes.

"Excellent." Darhk smirked. "I've already tried to send a meta human named Jeremy Tell after the Green Arrow, but he failed."

"Well don't worry." Chucky responded, looking at his reflection in the knife's blade. "I won't."

*Arrow Title Card*