Disclaimer: I do not own DC Comics or the CW TV shows Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow or any other characters or elements pertaining to the mentioned franchises.

"The Ninth Circle?" Malcolm demanded, confused. "What does that mean?"

"We are the force of change, Mr. Merlyn." King said. "We are the force that moves the world forward from the shadows. We're simply businessmen."

"What businessman threatens someone else and sends an assassin after him?" Malcolm demanded.

"The one that cannot leave any loose ends in case someone says 'no' to him." King said with no remorse as Malcolm glared. "Perhaps you'll have more common sense than Mr. Chen."

"What do you want from me?" Malcolm asked, not liking where this was going but his instinct of self-preservation had won.

"Join our cause."

"What cause?" Malcolm asked.

"Look around you, Mr. Merlyn." King said as Malcolm tried to get up, surprised that his hands had been cut loose as they approached the window. "People around full of greed, squabbling over money and natural resources, devouring each other and killing each other for scraps. Sooner or later, the world will grow so large, a cleanse will be necessary. The strong will eliminate the weak, until we intervene."

"You're suggesting genocide." Malcolm gapped.

"Genocide?" King repeated, offended. "Nothing so brutal. At least not on the scale you might think. It's more of a… culling with surgical precision."

"Still, you're killing innocent people." Malcolm pointed out.

"Is anyone truly innocent, Mr. Merlyn?" King sneered. "Have you forgotten what happened in Gotham to Thomas Wayne and his son?"

Malcolm looked down, remembering Bruce's funeral, the memory still fresh in his mind.

"I offer you to dedicate your cause to make the world a better place. Sacrifice a few to save the many. Can't you see we want to make the world a better place, just as much as your family wants to make the Glades a better place?" King asked.

"At what cost?" Malcolm demanded.

King sighed. "Imagine a village running out of crops for food, children starving and everything on brink of collapse and no one is able to come in time to help and more and more people come, hungry and suffering. What would you do?"

"Seek aid elsewhere." Malcolm automatically replied as King laughed.

"Mr. Merlyn, you are incredibly naïve. The world has finite resources. Sharing them will quickly exhaust them." He pointed out. "It's a simple calculus. To save lives, you need to make sacrifices, life needs to be kept in checked, otherwise it ceases to exist. It needs correcting."

Malcolm tensed at the implication. "You're insane."

"It's a simple calculus, Mr. Merlyn. Nothing more." King said with no remorse.

"I will not be participating in mass murder." Malcolm snapped.

"Look around you, Mr. Merlyn." King pointed out. "Your Starling City is on brink of collapse despite your family's and Mr. Queen's best efforts. Apathy runs around like plague and the likes of you won't do much to help it, despite your pleas."

"I want to make my city a better place." Malcolm said. "But not like this." King sighed. "If you're gonna kill me, might as well make it painless."

"Kill you?" King sneered. "No. In time you'll see our point. You're free to go."

Malcolm blinked surprised but before he could open his mouth, someone put a bag on his head and everything went black.

Merlyn Manor

As Malcolm woke up, he was in bed, next to his wife, who was sleeping peacefully and Malcolm had assumed it was a dream… until he saw on the desk a badge with nine circles, each had a circle within circle, the same symbol was on the floor at the place, where they took him and Malcolm instantly realized it was not a dream and he did his best to forget…

Sometime later, Starling City Docks

"Robert, are you sure you want to go?" Malcolm asked.

"Oliver and I will be fine." Robert assured him as then, Laurel showed up with Tommy as they both went out from the car with a younger girl.

"Ollie?" Mia rushed to Oliver, hugging him tightly. "I don't want you to go."

"It's gonna be OK, Speedy." Oliver assured her. "Why you may be a Queen…"

"Remember that you're also Merlyn. And our family is strong." Malcolm knelt to her and did a magic trick as he pulled a coin out of Mia's ear as she giggled.

"If you'll be alone, remember that you're always welcome in our home." Tommy said. "You're as much as my sister as Ollie's."

"See you, Tommy." Oliver hugged him tightly.

"Goodbye, Ollie." Laurel embraced him and kissed him before they went on Queen's Gambit.

Merlyn Manor

"Is Ollie gonna be OK, Tommy?" Mia asked as Tommy was swinging her on seesaw outside the garden.

"You know he can look after himself, Speedy." Tommy assured her.

"I wish you didn't call me that." Mia sneered.

"Come on, it's cute." Laurel said.

Then, they went inside the manor as they saw the news of Queen's Gambit going missing and Malcolm entered and in shock he dropped the mug in his hand as Mia covered her mouth, Laurel broke down in tears and Tommy looked absolutely devastated.

"Laurel is not coming here anymore, Tommy." Mia said, sad as she sat on the ledge of the stairwell with Tommy.

"I know." Tommy said. "I've been trying to tell her that we need her as much as she needs us but she's not listening."

"I wish Ollie was here with us." Mia said.

"I miss him too, Speedy." Tommy hugged her. "But I'll always be here for you."

Sometimes later, Malcolm was trying to cope with grief in business endeavors and trying to be there for his family until…

"The crime rate in Glades is spiking…"

"The place is going to crap, is it?" A blonde with glasses gapped as she looked at the news.

"Felicity, bring me some coffee, please."

"Of course, sir." Felicity nodded as she left the office.

Then, he was starting to hear the news about criminality rising in Starling City and terrorist acts across the globe being committed more and more… when someone visited him in the office. A young woman in red dress and dark brown hair.

"Mr. Merlyn."

"May I help you?"

"I have a proposition for you." The woman said. "My name is Miranda Tate. You may have met my associate, John King."

Malcolm paled. "What do you want from me?"

"I was just wondering if you have considered our offer. You've been trying to help the people in Starling City, when no apparent result is achieved." Miranda said. "The same thing is happening all across the world. Why confine yourself to one city with no result, when together with us, you can save the world?"

Malcolm sighed. "I admit, it may have been necessary, what happened with the mugging."

"So, will you join us?" Miranda asked.

Malcolm entered the circle as in front of him stood John King and around him more people in suits, wearing badges with nine circles.

"Do you swear to uphold the principles of our order, whatever the cost may be?"

"I do." Malcolm nodded.

"And never to share our secrets, nor divulge the true nature of our work, unless you want to bring in more brothers and sisters to join our cause?"

"I do." Malcolm nodded.

"And to do so now until death - whatever the cost?"

"I do."

"Then we welcome you into our fold." Talia al Ghul stepped up. "Welcome into the Ninth Circle, brother Malcolm."

Malcolm nodded as he put up the badge with nine circles. "What happens now?"

"Training." King said as he had in his hands two swords.

Author's Note:

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