AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm finally doing it, I'm trying my hand on writing a BRATVA fic. With Spotlight (my Olicity fic) completed and two others nearing completion (two chapters to go each), I will have the time to dedicate for a new fic to write.
For all of you who continue to support my writing and leave inspiring messages here, on my twitter or tumblr account, this one is for you!
In my desire to at least have a tinge of originality, I am putting a twist to this story by electing to re-write with Felicity Smoak as the Bravta Captain, her journey to realizing this destiny and how she finds her way to her One True Love. This is definitely a Felicity centric fiction.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Twitter: lollipopsays
Tumbr: everythinglollipop
The NEW BRAVTA CAPTAIN
AU. The Queens are connected to the Russian Bratva but they had a fall-out which led to the death of Robert Queen. The Queens have the chance to get back into the inner circle of the Solntsevskaya Bratva Leader Anatoly Knyazev during his visit to Starling City but once again something unexpectedly goes wrong where it not for the heroism of the mysterious Felicity Smoak the Bratva head would have been dead on Starling soil triggering massive repercussions.
Anatoly immediately designated Felicity Smoak as the new Bratva Captain in Starling City forever sealing her and the Queens fate together.
THE NEW BRAVTA CAPTAIN
Chapter 1
"OMG! Are you the bad guy they are after?"
"Do I look like a bad guy," the man said in a heavy Russian accent.
Felicity eyed the man for a few seconds and crossed her arms standing her ground.
"Okay, maybe some men, some very bad men," gesturing toward the hallway "are maybe after me. But only because I happen to be a very powerful man and the men probably see an opportunity to take me out."
"Who are you exactly, and you better tell me the truth because I have a way of knowing if you are lying to me," the girl who probably weighed less than half his weight Anatoly judged but looked quite cable of making good on her threat told him almost aggressively. Well, Anatoly had been threatened before, by several types of human beings, ladies included, but this was a unique experience for him. The girl looked harmless enough, glasses and high ponytail, she looked more like a librarian than a high risk threat but Anatoly felt like honesty was the way to go with her.
"My name is Anatoly Knyazev leader of the Solntsevskaya Bratva," Anatoly told her truthfully.
Felicity's eyebrow rose, "is that like the Russian mob or something," she questioned him in jest not really thinking her question through. All she knew was that the guy quite bulky, who looked like he had a hard life but at the same time had manners that told her he was an educated man had a thick Russian accent and from the little she knew about them, which obviously was from the movies and various TV shows, the Russian mob was as good a guess as any.
The man took a non aggressive step toward her, "exactly like the Russian Mob, the Solntsevskaya Bratva is the Russian Mob."
Felicity took an involuntary step back, "you're kidding right? Although you don't look like you are," as she noted Anatoly's nod as if to convince her, "you really are Russian mob and not just any mob person, you're the leader of this Sol…..Solnt….. I'll just call it Bratva mob thing?"
"You can simply call it Bratva, my dear. It's the accepted term."
"So what are you doing here?"
"I have a meeting with the Queens, but the bad men," Anatoly returned to the conversation they were having a few minutes ago, "interrupted us and things got messy, assault rifles and all, I took the stairwell from the top floor but heard footsteps echoing from above and below therefore I opted to sneak into this floor, your floor. It was all dark, I thought it was empty but then there you where."
"Here I am," Felicity answered him.
"So what's a girl like you doing alone in the office on a Friday night?"
"This girl," pointing to herself, "works with Queen Consolidated as their IT specialist and it's during the quiet moments like this that I work best, or at least it was quiet until you barged in here."
"And what does an IT specialist of Queen Consolidated exactly do?"
"Coding, firewalls upgrade, securing systems, tech savvy stuff…." Felicity rambled.
"Quite intriguing…" Anatoly paused hearing a distinct noise that told him whoever was after them was in fact on the floor he was now in probably doing a room by room check.
He placed a finger to his lips and gestured to her that he was going to turn off the light switch as he encouraged her to come near him.
Felicity grabbed her things, her phone and her tablet before the light was switched off.
"Stay behind me," Anatoly whispered to her as he crawled around.
"Wait,' Felicity pulled Anatoly's hand, "the men, they are after you not me. Maybe you can just leave me be and they wouldn't bother with me."
"женщина, не будьте упрямы!, what's your name?"
"Felicity, Felicity Smoak" she whispered to now hearing the noise of doors opening and closing.
"Felicity, the bad men wouldn't care who you are, they would just put a bullet to your head first without thinking."
"Oh."
Anatoly and Felicity where both crouched down underneath a workstation as three men passed by them, one man, probably the team leader giving instructions in the Russian language to the two others.
Felicity could barely see Anatoly's expression but she could still see an outline that told her he was not happy and barely held on to his temper.
"We have to get out of here. We are sitting ducks as you call it. It's only a matter of time before they find us and kill us both," Anatoly whispered to her under his breath.
"Maybe I can help, but I'll have to use my tablet. Will it be safe? Won't the light attract attention?"
Anatoly looked at her then at the angle they were hidden, calculating the options before he nodded," you have a couple of minutes."
"Okay, that's all I need or even less."
Anatoly served as look out but was distracted by what Felicity was doing. It looked like she had a blueprint of the building on her tablet and was navigating through it to find the best possible exit points.
"Got it," Felicity fist pumped getting a tempered smile from Anatoly.
"We need to get to the hallway, there are six elevators there, but there is a seventh one slightly hidden next to the fire exit which serves as a freight elevator for loading and unloading stuff, it's not usually used but I just accessed it's controls. I can override the master control so that no one would know that the freight elevator moved at all. It will lead us to the basement. I have my car there."
"You can do all that?" Anatoly asked her quite impressed.
"Maybe I shouldn't be telling you that, you being Russian mob and all…"
"Ah, but I'm one of the good guys here."
"I only have your word that you are. For all I know, you are masterminding world destruction."
"You intrigue me Felicity. But alas, we do not have to time for small talk if we both want to stay alive. Tell me what to do," Anatoly told her while getting a gun out of a hidden place inside his shirt.
"You have a gun," Felicity stated the obvious gesturing to the gun.
'I don't leave home without it. I have other weapons with me but I don't think it will match up with the kind of firepower the bad buys have with them so you will have to stay close to me."
"Okay," Felicity inhaled deeply. She looked at her tablet again before she said, "I'm ready."
Anatoly held her by one arm the other hand holding his gun which was one ready. "Where do we go?"
"Right," Felicity instructed.
Anatoly crouched with Felicity once again as they made their way to the freight elevator staying low. Anatoly suddenly pulled Felicity to a stop and a few seconds later Felicity realized why, the men were coming back.
"Which way?" Anatoly asked her again.
"Straight," Felicity responded.
They were nearing the elevator when Felicity stumbled on something, the noise echoing across the floor attracting the attention of the three men who immediately opened fire indiscriminately.
"Get down, Anatoly told her shielding her with his body until the firing stop as one voice shouted in Russian again, probably for the other two to stop firing.
""I'm sorry," Felicity said her voice cracking.
Anatoly inhaled and looked at Felicity before he answered, "it's not your fault. You shouldn't even be here. We will stay low for a few more seconds."
"Wait," she grabbed his hands again, "I can turn of the lights and sound some alarms from my tablet, maybe it would provide the distraction we will need to get to the elevator?"
Anatoly looked at Felicity in admiration, "you can do that?"
"Yes, yes I can. Just give me twenty seconds."
"You have ten. I can hear footsteps coming this way."
"Oh God!" Felicity started typing commands into her tablet.
Suddenly the track lights all went out then a few seconds later a loud alarm sounded, "fire alarm," Felicity told Anatoly.
"Come on then, this is the moment we need."
Anatoly pulled Felicity inside the darkened freight elevator and pulled her down until the elevator door closed once again and the lights of the elevator flickered on.
Both Anatoly and Felicity ended up sitting down on the elevator floor, Felicity still typing some commands into her tablet and Anatoly just watching her animatedly.
"What are you doing?" Anatoly asked her.
"Erasing all the camera feeds so they won't be able to trace us. I'm also grabbing the camera feeds from the basement to see if it's been compromised."
"You are quite an extraordinary woman, Felicity Smoak."
Felicity looked up from her tablet for two seconds blushing before she looked down again, "No I'm not. I'm as ordinary as they come. I'm just an employee of Queen Consolidated trying to survive tonight."
"Well, Ms. Smoak, if we live through tonight, your life will definitely change. That I promise you."
Felicity heard the words but dismissed them, busy as she was checking on all the feeds.
"I'll have to turn off the lights of the elevator once it opens again. My car is to the right side about ten cars down, the red mini. So far I can only see about two men guarding the basement exit, I'm not sure if they are your bad men or not."
Anatoly nodded without saying anything, he had a strong suspicion that some of his own men had turned traitor against him that was why it was so easy to get to him. They had easy access to storm the top floor of QC that served as the executive floors. He still had no idea what was the fate of Moira Queen and her son Oliver Queen, both of whom he had been meeting with when the incident had happened.
Right now, Anatoly knew he had to get away from the QC building first since it had been compromised and then do what he did best, methodically hunt down the perpetrators behind the attempt on his life. It could be that the Queens themselves were behind it although they had nothing to gain and everything to lose. Then again, they could just as easily be victims like himself. Their only crime was not having top notch security, a very costly mistake on their part.
Anatoly felt a tug on his arm. Felicity was giving him the signal to move. This woman may have single handedly been responsible for not just saving his life but more than that, for screwing the plans of what was now shaping up to be a carefully planned attack by a very professional group. No, there definitely was nothing ordinary about Felicity Smoak.
In the end, they had made it out unscathed save for a few minor bruises.
Yes, Anatoly Knyazev leader of the Solntsevskaya Bratva definitely owed his life to Felicity Smoak and he knew what he needed to do next. Whether she liked it or not, Felicity Smoak was now forever tied to Bravta.
Felicity had spent the next day holed up with Anatoly who now had sorted out his loyal men from those who had betrayed him. Felicity should complain, she really should, but she had a room to herself, a room that had five-star written all over it in a 2-bedroom plush hotel, the other bedroom of course occupied by Anatoly himself and the hallway sprawling with security.
Anatoly had convinced Felicity that going home was not an option at this point for her safety. He had argued that Felicity had saved his life now it was his turn to ensure his savior was safe. It was how it was with the Bratva, an eye for an eye and all that.
Felicity Smoak was now tangled up with the mob and all that went with it, how her life had changed in the span of a day.
And tonight, Anatoly had informed her, she would accompany him to the Queen Mansion. The Queen Mansion! In all her time working in QC, which was all of five months, she had never stepped foot much less been in the same room with any of the Queens. Not Thea. Not Oliver. Not Moira. Not even her second husband, Walter Steele. She had never even been to the top floor of QC save for that one time that she had to sit in on a meeting about the IT mainframes and security that her boss was presenting.
Nope, it had taken her being "involved" in Bratva business to get an invite to the Queen Mansion. Why were the Queens even in business or at least acquaintances with the Russian mob? Felicity asked herself.
So here was Felicity, impeccably dressed as if she belonged to the high society of Starling City courtesy of Anatoly Knyazev leader of the Solntsevskaya Bratva smiling at the Bratva leader as he bent forward, his hand carefully guiding her out of the town car as the Queens, Moira and Oliver as well as Walter Steele where lined up in the entrance of the Queen Mansion as if greeting dignitary.
As she straightened up, pressing down the non-existed crease of her dress Anatoly once again folded his arm, a signal for her to tuck her arm under his.
She noted the raised brow in speculation of Moira Queen and the quiet calculated look of Walter, but her eyes rested on Oliver as he carefully but thoroughly looked at her from foot to head before resting his eyes on hers making her stumble for a second as Oliver's eyes pierced hers.
Anatoly had steadied her, not missing the exchange between the young Queen and the young woman old enough to be his daughter. Yes, they were all in for a surprise tonight, Anatoly told himself.
As they entered the foyer of the Mansion, Moira was quick to offer her apologies for what had happened at QC the night before. Had it not been for his own quick escape to Felicity's floor and the invaluable help the young lady beside him had provided him, he would have been dead.
He was confident however that the Queens where not at fault, they had not been the ones behind the attack. He had his sources and loyalists confirm that. However, this latest incident just confirmed what he had still believed. Although the Queens undoubtedly had the power, money and the position to be the anchor of the Bratva in Starling City, they lacked a key ingredient.
His being in Starling City was much about the Queens finally being accepted back into the Bratva's inner circle and maybe, just maybe naming Moira, Oliver or even Walter as the new Bratva Captain after Robert Queen had fallen from grace and eventually lost his life.
Anatoly had research on all three candidates. There were others of course, outside of the Queens who had made their representations, but in the end, the Queen still had the inside track. And Anatoly knew they had waited long enough, they had lost a lot of ground to the Chinese Triad and to the others who believe themselves to be at the level of either the Russian Bratva or the Chinese Triad.
Anatoly knew, he had to name a Bratva Captain. And he had to name a Bratva Captain tonight. Which one, Anatoly looked from Walter to Moira to Oliver then gave his attention back to Felicity smiling at her before he answered Moira.
"Moira Queen," Anatoly said in a heavy Russian accent, "the attempt on my life within QC grounds was unfortunate however it was not unexpected."
"You have to believe that we had nothing to do with the attempt, we ourselves are victims of this incident."
Anatoly nodded as if agreeing with Moira before he answered her.
"It is fortunate then that all of us are alive and largely unscathed. I do not know how all of you had made it out, but I myself owe my life to this woman beside me, an employee of yours at Queen Consolidated, Ms. Felicity Smoak."
Moira's eyes widened at the revelation. Walter gave her a double take, familiar with her name and Oliver once again gave her a once over. With everyone's attention at her, Felicity couldn't help but blush.
"This young lady who I met yesterday had risked her life, braving being shot or worst to get me out of the building. It just took this young lady by herself to accomplish that. Was it luck or fate. You know me, I believe you know how this will work…." Anatoly paused to make sure Moira, Walter and Oliver, who were very familiar indeed with how Bratva and Anatoly's mind worked, each one of them had now fully turned to Felicity who swallowed as if anticipating something important and life changing was about to happen.
"I have made up my mind, Starling City needed a new Bratva Captain, Starling City will get a new Bratva Captain. I have decided to channel a lot of our Bratva resources here in Starling as a result of this decision and my confidence in the new Captain," Anatoly turned to Felicity, clasping both her hands in his.
"поздравления Felicity Smoak, вы новый Bratva Captain," Anatoly told her. The Queens and Walter gave simultaneous gasps at the announcement as they all could understand Russian however Felicity did not so she just stared blankly at Anatoly.
Anatoly turned to Moira and Oliver Queen, "as you can see, your new Captain has a lot to learn including the Russian language, it is your personal task to ensure she gets up to speed and is aided accordingly.
"эта понял?" Anatoly raised his voice to the Queens for emphasis.
Moira and Walter nodded readily while Oliver again glanced at Felicity speculatively.
"What just happened?" Felicity finally asked Anatoly.
Moira stepped forward, seeing that this was what was expected by Anatoly when he said they would be responsible for the new Bratva Captain, "Felicity dear, you have just been appointed as the new Bratva Captain of Starling City."
"Wait, what!" Felicity all but screeched.
"Come now, храбрый, it is done. Now," holding on to Felicity's arm once again, "Moira, I trust that dinner has been prepared for us?"
"Yes, yes of course," Moira quickly said falling back to her training as a dutiful host as she gestured for Anatoly and Felicity to follow her and Walter leaving Oliver to bring up the rear.
Oliver had remained three steps behind the odd couple of Anatoly and Felicity. His mind was still busy filtering through this new development. Undoubtedly, Anatoly's appointment of Felicity Smoak as the new Bratva Captain should not come as much of a surprise given the circumstances of how she had saved his life. That was the Bratva way after all. Oliver was more concerned with this unknown factor now that had inserted itself into the Bratva equation.
Oliver concluded that tonight he would observe the interaction of Anatoly and the new Starling Bratva Captain. In a day Anatoly will conclude his business then he will fly back to Russia. Then and only then would Oliver dedicate his next few days solely to getting to know Felicity Smoak, who after a quick google check on his phone indeed worked as an IT Specialist in his family's company, Queen Consolidated aside from being the new Bratva Captain.
Well, things really were going to get interesting for Oliver Queen. And it would be all because of Felicity Smoak.
Google cheat translations:
"женщина, не будьте упрямы (Woman, don't be stubborn!)
"поздравления Felicity Smoak, вы новый Bratva Captain" (Congratulations Felicity Smoak, you are the new Bravta Captain.)
эта понял? (Is this Understood?)
храбрый (Brave one)