Disclaimer: I do not own Arrow.
Arrow lair
Night
"Any luck?" Diggle asked as Oliver walked into the lair.
"Just more Ghosts that would rather die than talk," Oliver said grimly as he put his bow up before turning around to face Diggle, "nobody is going to give up Darhk. John. I need you to talk to Andy again."
"Last time Andy and I talked, he wasn't very cooperative." Diggle reminded him.
"Darhk has gone to ground and Andy is our best bet at finding him. If I talk to him and he refuses to cooperate, I can't be held responsible for my actions. Talk to him." Oliver growled.
Star City Police Station
Later
"Baby how you doing?" Quentin asked and got no response from his daughter.
Ever since the shooting, Laurel had been in a state of shock. She had not responded to either Oliver or Quentin, which caused concern from both men. Oliver had stayed the rest of the night, trying to coax Laurel out of her shock with no luck. Reluctantly, Oliver had left to search for Darhk.
"Baby, when you're ready to talk, I'm here." Quentin squeezed her hand before getting up and walking away.
"I screamed," Laurel spoke up and Quentin stopped, "I screamed…and the car door broke off and body slammed the Ghosts."
Quentin's relief was short lived as he processed what his daughter was saying. This was news to him, Oliver certainly hadn't said anything. Hearing a knock on the door to his office, both of them turned as Oliver walked in.
"Hey," Oliver greeted Quentin before turning to Laurel, "how are you?"
"I-I don't understand what happened." Laurel said as she looked up at her boyfriend.
"I know, we'll figure it out, 'kay?" Oliver said as he took her hands and she nodded unsurely.
"Anything on Darhk?" Laurel asked and he shook his head.
"Nothing yet. I actually need to talk to your dad for a minute if that's okay." Oliver said as he looked over at Quentin.
At Laurel's nod, Oliver and Quentin walked out of the office.
"So you left some stuff out of the police report." Quentin noted.
"I didn't think it was a good idea to reveal that my girlfriend might be a Metahuman." Oliver said and Quentin nodded, conceding.
"Well, tell me now: what happened?" Quentin demanded and Oliver sighed.
"I'm still trying to wrap my head around it but…when the Ghosts attacked, Laurel screamed. When she did, some sort of…energy, I guess, came out of her mouth. It ripped the car door clean off the car and hit the first group of Ghosts. The other Ghosts got spooked and took off. You know the rest," Oliver told him and Quentin nodded slowly, "is there any possibility that Laurel could have been affected by the particle accelerator explosion in Central City?"
"No. she wasn't anywhere near it, she was here in Star City." Quentin said but Oliver caught a certain look in his eye.
"But you know something, don't you?" Oliver demanded.
"You wanted to speak with me?" Quentin reminded him and Oliver decided to let it go…for now.
"We've played every card on the table...except one. Because when we do, he'll know that you've been working with us." Oliver told him and Quentin understood immediately.
"You wanna know where I've been meeting him." Quentin said and Oliver nodded.
"You won't be able to go home; luckily we have space in the bunker. There's a living quarters." Oliver told him.
"What about Laurel." Quentin asked as he looked through the glass and into his office at Laurel, who still seemed out of it.
"Based on what his Ghosts reported to him, I don't think he'll go after her again. If he does, then Laurel can come down there to." Oliver told him and Quentin nodded slowly.
"Office building, eight-hundred thirty second floor Sixth Street, thirtieth floor. Should we tell Laurel?" Quentin asked and Oliver shook his head.
"Look at her, her head's not in the game. That'll get her killed if she goes out like that." Oliver said and Quentin nodded in agreement.
"Okay, but listen: with Laurel out of the game and me watching me back, your team's gonna get awful small." Quentin pointed out.
"That won't matter once Darhk's off the board." Oliver growled as he turned to leave.
"So you're back to dropping bodies?" Quentin questioned and Oliver paused.
"Just this one." Oliver said before he walked off.
Star City
Later
Green Arrow moved through the building, his bow drawn with an arrow as he searched for Darhk. However he lowered his bow and replaced his arrow in his quiver when he came across the bodies of a team of Ghosts. Cautiously moving through the room, Green Arrow opened a cabinet to reveal a symbol drawn inn red ink that very well could have been blood: a giant A surrounded by a circle.
Arrow Lair
Later
"Lonnie Machin," Oliver brought up the pictures so Thea and Diggle could see, "he symbol that I found in Darhk's lair is consistent with the symbol that Machin left near the bodies of two paramedics a few months ago."
"Okay but why is Machin targeting Ghosts?" Thea asked confused.
"When he kidnapped Danforth's daughter, Darhk was the one who gave up his location." Diggle explained.
"This is payback. Darhk cleared out before Machin got there; he's one step ahead of Machin. But Machin is one step ahead of us." Oliver explained.
"Well, I'll go chip away at my stone wall." Diggle said before walking off to interrogate Andy again.
Star City Police Department
Same time
"Any leads on Darhk?" Laurel asked as she walked up to Quentin at his desk.
"I gave Oliver a lead earlier. Are you okay sweetie?" Quentin asked as he looked up at her.
"I just…I don't understand what happened. I'm not a Metahuman, I know I'm not." Laurel said confused.
"Sit down sweetie," Quentin sighed and Laurel did as she gazed at her father uncertainly, "back when your mom and I were still in college, her dad, your grandfather, told me a story, an old family legend. Back in the Middle Ages, one of your ancestors, a man with a wife and daughter, stole from a sorcerer. The Sorcerer placed a curse on his wife and daughter in retaliation. Every time the two would scream, glass would break, stone walls would fall apart, and people would be blasted away. And it wasn't just them, their children and their children's children had the same affliction. I thought it was just a story at the time but if what Oliver told me was true…maybe there is some truth to it."
"So what, I'm cursed." Laurel said confused.
"I don't know but it seems a little coincidental, doesn't it?" Quentin asked before his phone went off. "Huh."
"What?" Laurel asked confused.
"I got a lead on the Hive crime scene. Turns out, the blood Machin used didn't come from Ghosts." Quentin explained.
Arrow liar
Later
"Michael and Crystal Olguin, Machin's old foster parents. The disappeared three days ago. Machin is settling old scores, he painted their blood at Hive so Darhk is probably next on his list." Oliver explained to Diggle and Thea.
"Machin's gotta be laying low somewhere, right? What about his old house? I mean, it's gotta be vacant, right?" Thea pointed out.
Oliver turned and walked over to the computer, sitting down and typing rapidly. After a few moments, security footage of a house was brought up on the screen.
"Who's that?" Thea asked as they saw someone moving towards the house.
"It's him. Suit up." Oliver ordered.
Star City
Later
"Well, that's not at all creepy." Speedy said lowly as she and Green Arrow looked at pictures on the wall where the faces were scratched to the point where you couldn't make them out.
"Fronts clear." Green Arrow said over the comms.
"Same for the back. Only thing here is some trash and a lot of mess," Spartan told him before pausing, "hold on, I think I hear something."
Together, the three vigilantes converge in the living room. Machin is on the couch, wearing a plastic mask as he watches TV. The three walked up behind the couch and Machin stands up with his hands in the air.
"Well this is a surprise," Machin said as he turned around, "I was expecting Mr. Darhk's friends but you'll d. especially you dear."
"Wait." Green Arrow said as Speedy's hand moved towards her quiver.
"Funny, I was gonna tell you the same thing." Machin ducked as a cabinet above the TV opened up, revealing two guns.
Team Arrow scattered throughout the room as they gun turned towards them and opened fire. Speedy ran off after Machin as the guns whirled around the room when Green Arrow and Spartan tried to follow.
"It's a motion sensor." Spartan pointed out to Green Arrow.
Green Arrow nodded as he notched an arrow. He peaked out and fired. The arrow hit an electronical device above the guns, no doubt its power source. It sparked and the guns stopped.
"Good." Green Arrow said lowly.
The pair rushed out of the room and into the kitchen to see Speedy standing in front of Machin.
"Stay away from her!" Spartan pushed Speedy back and stepped in front of her protectively.
"Oh, I would never hurt her. You on the other hand." Machin took out a pistol.
Green Arrow fired, his arrow knocking the pistol out of Machin's hand. Green Arrow then rushed at Machin, kicking him in the chest. Machin fell into a bag of trash, appearing unconscious.
"You okay?" Green arrow called back to Speedy.
"Yeah." She assured him.
"Now what?" Spartan asked.
"We find out what he knows." Green Arrow said grimly.
Star City
Later
"Aren't we risking some crazy Bond villain stupidity here? I mean, he needs to be locked away." Speedy said as she and Green Arrow stood across from Machin, who was tied to a stone pillar.
"He found Darhk's base of operations, without any help. We need to find out how and where Darhk is right now." Green Arrow said firmly.
"He's crazier than Malcolm, why would you believe anything he'd say?" Speedy demanded.
"Because I don't have any other choice. Now I am done talking about this," Green Arrow snapped before walking over to Machin, "give me the room. Wake up, where's Damien Darhk."
"He's at home; I was planning a party for him when you interrupted me." Machin mocked.
Snarling angrily, Green Arrow struck him across the face with his bow and Machin howled in pain.
"Tell me where he is!" Green Arrow growled.
"Or what?! Look at me, what could you possibly do to me that I haven't already enjoyed?" Machin smiled crazily.
Sneering, Green Arrow took out an arrow from his quiver. He was about to fire when-
"Stop!"
Startled, Green Arrow turned to see Black Canary walked into the room. Stunned, he lowered his bow. With an angry look, Black Canary gestured to another part of the parking garage and walked over, Green Arrow following behind herm ore slowly.
"What are you doing?" Black Canary asked once they were far enough away that the others couldn't hear.
"Getting answers about Darhk." Green Arrow said simply.
"Ollie, not like this. I know you're angry about what's happened, what Darhk did, but this isn't the way." She tried to tell him.
"It's not just that. I feel like, I could have beaten Darhk by now but…I just haven't been prepared to go far enough." Green Arrow admitted.
"Ollie, you-hey!" Black Canary's cry caused Green Arrow to whirl around.
"Speedy, stop!" Green Arrow cried out as he saw his sister press an arrow against Machin's neck.
Hearing the sirens, Speedy lowered the arrow and the three vigilantes turned and fled.
Arrow Lair
Later
"What were you thinking?!" Laurel demanded as they arrived back in the lair.
"I wasn't gonna kill him." Thea snapped.
"Really, because that's exactly what it looked like from I was standing." Laurel snapped back.
"He got in my head okay?! But I wasn't gonna kill him." Thea told Laurel.
"Uh, guys?" The two turned to Diggle. "I'm not sure what's going on…but where's Oliver?"
Startled, the two turned around to see Diggle was right: Oliver was not in the lair.
Star City
Same time
A police transfer car was driving when an arrow suddenly struck it in the front, causing it to pull to a stop. Getting behind the truck, Green Arrow fired at the truck, knocking the back doors off. Machin then jumped out, squinting at him.
"Long time no see." Machin noted.
"We didn't finish our conversation." Green Arrow told him.
"And what, I'm supposed to be so grateful I just give up what I know about where Darhk is? Not. Likely." Machin smarted off.
Green Arrow notched another arrow and Machin raised his arms warily. Green Arrow fired and his arrow broke Machin's handcuffs.
"You make sure he's dead." Green Arrow ordered before walking off.
Arrow lair
Later
"Have you lost your mind?" Laurel demanded as Oliver walked inside.
"I did what was necessary after you made it so," Oliver said and Laurel looked at him confused, "SCPD only found Machin because you told them where I was holding him."
"You were only holding a man prisoner because you're angry about what happened. I love too much to see you self-destruct over a personal vendetta." Laurel told him.
"Do you have any idea how many people Darhk and Hive have killed over the last six months? It may be a vendetta but it's not personal." Oliver said as he turned away from her.
"Even you don't believe that, so don't expect me to. Ollie, you're self-destructing over what happened and don't try and deny it, I know you better than that." Laurel told him and he was silent for a moment.
"I can't help but think that the reason Darhk is winning is because I haven't been willing to go far enough. I don't know what the point of what I'm doing as Green Arrow is…if I can't even protect the people closest to me." Oliver finally admitted.
"Ollie, what happened wasn't your fault. You can't keep punishing yourself and those around you for things outside of your control. This was not your fault, okay?" Laurel said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Okay." Oliver said, her words giving him a feeling of a great weight being lifted.
"Hey," Diggle said as he walked in, "am I interrupting?"
"No," Oliver said as they turned towards him, "Anything from Andy?"
"He gave me a location where Darhk usually meets. I thought it was a dead-end 'til I cross referenced it and found a residential address."
"We know where Darhk lives." Laurel realized.
"Suit up." Oliver ordered.
Star City
Later
"Hey, you sure you're okay? You were pretty out of it earlier." Green Arrow asked Black Canary concerned.
"I'm fine." She assured.
"We're sure Machin is here?" Speedy asked before they saw his symbol on the drive way.
"Oh yeah." Black Canary muttered.
"You two." Green Arrow gestured to the back of the house and Black Canary and Spartan nodded.
While those two went for the back, Green Arrow and Speedy walked through the front door. Walking into the sitting room, they saw Machin holding a flamethrower near the face of a young girl while an older woman, obviously her mother, watched in horror. Green Arrow fired, his arrow hitting the flamethrower. The flames went out as the gas was drained from it.
"Get on the ground!" Green Arrow barked and Machin sighed in irritation.
"First you catch me, then you break me out, and now you're here to catch me again. Make up your mind." Machin snapped as he turned around to face them.
"Sick 'em." Green Arrow ordered and Speedy fired.
Machin took out a pair of Kamas, using one to deflect Speedy's arrow. The three them lunged at each other, Machin using his Kamas to deflect the two archers as they tried to strike him with their bows. While this was going on, Black Canary and Spartan snuck in and over to the mother and daughter.
"Get them out of here!" Green Arrow ordered.
While their allies freed the hostages and got them out, Green arrow and Speedy continued to engage Machin. Machin, with two precise strikes, was able to knock both archers off their feet. They landed on the ground and Green Arrow looked up to see Machin fleeing out the back door. The two archers shot to their feet and ran out the door but Machin was nowhere in sight.
"Split up." Green Arrow ordered and Speedy nodded.
Speedy ran off to another part of the grounds as Green Arrow walked forward, looking for Machin. However, he froze and looked off to the side. He felt a swell of fury and hatred as he saw Damien Darhk. With a roar of rage,, Green Arrow rushed at Darhk. The two engaged each over, Green Arrow whirling around, dodging Darhk's fist before striking Darhk across the face with the end of his bow. Green Arrow dodged Darhk's punches before slugging him, sending Darhk to his knees. Darhk stood up, holding his nose as he glared at the archer. Using his magic, Darhk snatched an arrow from Green Arrow's quiver before hitting him in the shoulder with it. Crying out in pain, Green arrow sensed another strike and quickly caught it in mid-air.
"I don't think so." Green Arrow growled.
"Where is my family?!" Darhk demanded and Green Arrow remembered the woman and child from before, feeling as though the universe was laughing at him.
"I saved them." Green Arrow told him with a hint of self-disgust.
"I wanna be clear about something," Darhk walked forward after a moment, "I have shown you repeatedly you cannot beat me. You saved my family, so I'll give you a few weeks to spend with yours. Enjoy your time, what's left of it."
Green Arrow watched with contempt as Darhk then turned and walked off.
Arrow lair
Later
"Are Darhk's wife and daughter in police custody?" Oliver asked as he walked into the lair.
"They told police they weren't his wife and daughter," Diggle began and Quentin shook his head as Oliver looked at him with disbelief, "had a fake ID and everything."
"Speedy," Oliver said after a moment, "you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm just sorry I let Machin get away." Thea apologized.
"I'm just glad you're okay. I'm gonna…head home." Oliver said before he turned and walked off, everyone watching in concern.
Oliver and Laurel's loft, next day
Early morning
"You never came to bed last night," Laurel said as she walked into the sitting room to see Oliver sitting on the couch, "Have you been up all night?"
"Couldn't sleep." Oliver said simply.
"Ollie…are you okay?" Laurel sat down next to him and Oliver laughed humorlessly.
"Here you are worried about me while you're probably going through an identity crisis. How are you doing?" Oliver looked over at Laurel.
"I'm fine, honestly. I was pretty freaked out at first but…I'm coping. Are you?" Laurel asked concerned and Oliver sighed.
"Darhk gave us a few weeks before he comes back, then it's back in business." Oliver told her what he had kept from the others.
"And when he does, we'll be ready," Laurel promised as she put her hand on the side of his face and made him look at her, "together?"
"Together." Oliver agreed before they shared a kiss.
So, what do you think? Please leave any thoughts or comments you may have in a review, feedback is greatly appreciated.
