Oliver sets up his new lair with help from Cisco and Barry.
As Oliver leaned on a rusted metal desk, waiting patiently for Barry and Cisco to arrive, he still found himself in total disbelief over where he was. He had scouted the place earlier to make sure it was still suitable for his operations, and surprisingly, it was. All the place needed was a clean-up, and then it would be good to go.
The conduit basement of the defunct Verdant and before that, Queen Industrial Inc. factory, appeared starkly reminiscent in condition to when Oliver first set up his base of operations here. The place been abandoned in the wake of its discovery by the police 9 years ago, so the entire area was dirty and dusty. Majority of the former equipment that used to be here was either inoperative or broken down and scattered across the floor. The police had ravaged the place, so it was expected that the computers, servers and suit mannequins were strewn all over. There were few other places in Star City which Oliver could use to set up a new base of operations, and none of them were as practically suited as his first lair. It was poetic in a way, that as he continues his crusade, he returns to the very place where it began. This time, however, there would be nobody else. Just like how it was supposed to be. Just Oliver, and the mission.
He would ask for help if needed, but nobody would be drawn into the thick of it. Nobody could. Diggle is now a senior ARGUS officer and has two young children who he has to be there for, while Roy is about to become a father. Team Flash would stay preoccupied with Central City, and Supergirl has her own whole universe to take care of. Other than that, there wasn't even anybody left to consider. They were all gone.
His thoughts were interrupted by the opening of the breach in front of him. Cisco stepped through holding a small storage box, and before he could say anything, a streak of red lightning zipped past him several times, with each time gear bags, storage boxes and containers piling up next to him.
"Show-off," remarked Cisco, much to Oliver's amusement. Barry's blitz caused much of the dust on the floor to puff up, causing Cisco to stumble back and attempt to wade the dirt away from his face. Eventually, the red streak came to a stop, and Barry and Cisco walked over to Oliver to greet him.
"We got all the stuff you asked for," said Barry enthusiastically.
"Thank you," said Oliver politely. "Do you mind helping me set it all up?"
"No, not at all," replied Barry.
Before anything could be set up, Oliver first tasked Barry with cleaning the place. That took less than a minute with Barry's superspeed. With that out of the way, the process began. 12 years ago, it had taken Oliver about three full days before the lair was up and running. Now, with a couple of helping metahuman hands, it didn't take them longer than a few hours for the place to be set up. They laid the place out practically the same as it used to be. Once they were finished with the task, Oliver happily obliged to sit and have a beer with Barry and Cisco. Cisco sat at the computers, while Oliver and Barry leaned against desks opposite each other.
"So, you're really back in the game?" asked Barry, receiving a nod from Oliver in reply. "I'm not going to lie, it is a little weird that you decided to come back to this place."
"I think it's cool. Talk about a throwback," interjected Cisco as he took a sip of his beer.
"It's not a throwback. It's just the place that made the most sense since The Bunker is busted," replied Oliver.
"I suppose. So, who are the big bads?" asked Cisco. "They must be pretty important if they're bringing you out of retirement."
"I don't know yet, but that's the point of this. I'm going to find out, and then I'm going to stop them," replied Oliver.
"You sure you're up for this?" asked Barry concernedly.
"I wouldn't be here right now if I wasn't. Why the concern?" asked Oliver.
"Just. You're my friend, and I want to be sure that you know what you're doing," replied Barry. "You have to be prepared for what's going to happen when you jump back into this world."
"I know. No need to get all wise on me. Remember, I'm the one that's the all-knowing mentor," joked Oliver.
"Oh, no, not anymore," replied Barry, as he took a sip of his beer. "Technically, I've been a hero longer than you now, so…"
"What?" replied Oliver sternly.
"I've been The Flash for nine years. You were only the Green Arrow for five years," said Barry, as he shrugged his shoulders.
"He's not wrong," remarked Cisco.
"Barry, the five years I was away and five years as the Green Arrow," replied Oliver, being met with reserved looks from Barry and Cisco, "You have to count those first five years."
"You can't count the first year," replied Barry.
"Why not?"
"You were probably still very playboy-ish and weren't being a 'hero' yet," explained Barry. "Am I wrong?"
"No," conceded Oliver. "That still means we're tied. 9 and 9."
"Alright, fair enough," replied Barry, with Cisco nodding his head too. The three men each shared a laugh before taking more sips of their beers. Eventually, their time together had to come to an end. Barry and Cisco returned to Central City, while Oliver left his new lair to go visit Quentin in Starling General.
Oliver immediately recognised the two ARGUS agents inconspicuously sitting in the hallway which led to Quentin's ward. They each acknowledged Oliver's presence with a nod, one which Oliver returned to them. As he made his way towards the door to Quentin's ward, Oliver was surprised to see the two police officers attempt to stop Oliver from entering.
"Sorry, Mr Queen, but we can't let you in, sir," said one of the officers.
"Excuse me?" retorted Oliver.
"Captain Smith is speaking to the mayor, sir. He gave us strict instructions not to let anyone else in," said the other officer. Wood, his name-tag read.
"Officer Wood, I can assure you that there is nothing that they are talking about which either of them would not be comfortable with me hearing," replied Oliver calmly.
"Mr Queen, I can't disobey direct orders."
"Wood, you are well aware that Mayor Lance and I have known each other for nearly 30 years?" Blake replied with a nod. "Then you are aware that he is like a father to me, and that he is eventually going to tell me whatever he is talking to Captain Smith about. So please, just let me through."
Following a moment of consideration, Officer Blake conceded to Oliver's request, and let him enter. Immediately, both Quentin and Captain Smith's heads whipped towards him, but they relaxed when they saw it was Oliver.
"Mr Queen," said Captain Smith. "I thought I gave strict instructions to my men not to let anyone in."
"Unfortunately, I'm more persuasive than you," replied Oliver, as he walked over and shook the captain's hand. Captain Matthew Smith was the exact opposite of a stereotypical policeman. The man looked as if he had never eaten a donut in his life. He was lean and tall, roughly the same height as Oliver, and possessed slightly curly medium-length brown hair. The man grew up in Texas, possessing a Southern drawl in his speech, but had spent the latter half of his life in Star City and had now been an SCPD Captain for close to 5 years.
"Oliver. Smith and I were talking about a transport plan to get me out of here," said Quentin.
"No offence, Quentin, but I don't think we should discuss the details of such in the presence of Mr Queen," said Smith, slightly irking Oliver. On a personal level outside of their administrative affiliation, he and Smith never really developed a great relationship. He disagreed with Smith's firm anti-vigilante stance and they also possessed a notable personality clash. It appeared to be nothing personal, although Oliver sometimes wondered if that wasn't the case.
On the job, Smith was exceptionally stoic and stubborn, so much so that even Oliver, a man infamous for being those two very things, couldn't fathom how Smith lived like that day in and day out. The less than a handful of times when Smith was away from work and loosened up was when Oliver enjoyed his company, as he displayed a McConaughey-esque laid-back, friendly demeanour. But, by the next time that Oliver saw him, he was always back to his headstrong, austere self.
However, those traits weren't always detrimental considering the job that he had been tasked with. Addressing many of the problems plaguing the SCPD, such as corruption, inadequate training and various other issues required a man with his stubbornness and iron-will. In that regard, Oliver could not complain at all, as Smith had tremendously helped alleviate these issues and thus managed to restore the general public's faith in the police force.
"Come on, Smith. I know you're just trying to do your job but Oliver is like a son to me. In fact, I'll feel better if Oliver knows about this," replied Quentin, as he shot a nod towards Oliver.
After a moment of consideration, Smith decided to comply with Quentin's request. "Sure. Given how the perp is still out there, we think it's best that once Mayor Lance is discharged, he be escorted back to his residence by a SWAT team. Discreetly," explained Smith.
"What's so secretive about that?" asked Oliver.
"The fact that it's happening. We're going to do it at a random time and the vehicles transporting him will be unmarked so as to not draw attention to ourselves. We're taking all the precautions we can to ensure Mayor Lance's safety."
"Any leads on the shooter?" asked Oliver, curious to see Smith's reaction.
"We're working on it," replied Smith inexplicitly, "He's a professional, we know that for sure. He didn't leave much behind for us to look into. That'll be all from me."
"Thanks, Smith. I appreciate it," said Quentin, as he stuck out a hand for him to shake.
"Always a pleasure, Quentin," he replied, as he shook Quentin's hand before turning to Oliver. "Queen."
Smith didn't shake Oliver's hand, instead choosing to just shoot him a slight nod before waltzing past him towards the exit. As soon as he was gone, Oliver couldn't stop himself from throwing an insult his way.
"Prick," he said to himself, as he grabbed a chair to place next to Quentin's bed.
"He's a fine man and great Captain though," chimed in Quentin.
"Never said he wasn't," replied Oliver, as he sat down on his chair. "How are you?"
"Feeling better. I haven't been shot in a while, so just getting used to this type of pain again."
"What do you think?"
"Of the transport plan? I think it'll work. I do want you in on it though," said Quentin.
"The route?" asked Oliver.
"Smith is being scarce with the details. I'll see if I can get him to budge, then I'll pass it on to you."
"Just keep this in case he doesn't," said Oliver, as he passed a small circular chip to Quentin. He knew what it was, a tracking device.
"Sure."