Returning from patrol, Oliver parked his bike and as he made his way towards the concealed back door in the alley behind Verdant, he stopped dead, staring.
The door was wide open. The entrance was littered heavily with garbage and as he approached, he smelled the lingering smoke.
Fear and rage shot through him; clutching his bow tightly in one hand, he took off around the corner of the building, skidding to a halt at the sight of the black, skeletal remains of his father's old factory.
Sadness engulfed him. His club was dead.
It was gutted, completely gone. That much was obvious, even in the dim light offered by some nearby streetlights.
The building itself and the club could be rebuilt, stronger than before. Oliver's only other worry at the moment was . . .
"FE-LIC-I-TY!"
To anyone listening, his roar of terror could be heard five blocks away. Fortunately for Oliver, no one was within earshot.
Taking off again, he returned to the alley door, carefully stepping around the overturned furniture and broken shards of shattered glass. All the while, he scanned the entirety of the Foundry, looking for any sign of Felicity.
As he neared the stairs, a feminine groan caught his attention. Oliver's heart barged into his throat when he saw Felicity, still lying where she'd fallen; having not noticed her, the rioters had carelessly thrown furniture on top of her.
Rage, and fear for her coloured his vision a dozen shades of red as he frantically tore the offending pieces off her and bent to check on her condition.
Her glasses were gone, lost in the mess. She blinked slowly up at him, confusion and relief written all over her face.
There was a lot of blood, and Oliver swallowed, trying not to panic as to how badly Felicity might be hurt.
She reached for him then; though she was normally strong, her grip on his hood was weak. "Hi Oliver," she managed to say; her voice was barely a whisper, hoarse from smoke inhalation. "Hospital, please?"
Nodding once, he went to change and after a few minutes, he returned. Carefully lifting her up, he took one last hopeless look around the dark, destroyed Foundry and whisked her out the back door in search of help.
