Disclaimer: All rights belong to CW, Warner Bros, and the DC comics. I own nothing. (Check bottom for longer Author's Note)
Oliver is sitting down. Slade says this doesn't change anything between them. It takes two men to complete the mission.
"What does he expect Oliver to do?" Thea asked. "He's not exactly a fighter." She grimaced at the screen before turning and glancing at Quentin out of the corner of her eye. The man was staring at the screen, leaning in further with every sentence that Slade spoke. Quentin had been coming after her brother ever since he got home, well, more like ever since Oli had started dating Laurel. And, Thea had a sneaking suspicion that whatever this mission was, it wasn't going leave Oliver with clean hands. Any misstep that he saw Oli do on this screen would likely not be forgotten when they got back. If they got back.
"He's better than nothing." Glancing over, Thea made eye contact with Laurel as she spoke. The two shared a look, both of anxiety, before they glanced back towards the screen in a synchronized motion.
Slade says if Oliver compromises the mission, he will kill him.
"I'm pretty sure if the mission is compromise they'll be dead anyways," Tommy scoffed. This Slade guy was rubbing him the wrong way.
He has had his second chance. Oliver says they need each other equally. Oliver then asks what the next step is. Slade says to turn Oliver into something that won't get them killed.
Thea couldn't help but let out a little laugh.
"I think that's going to take a little more than ten days." Tommy said, looking over towards Thea, trying to give her a little smile in return. She wasn't paying attention to him. He turned his head, glancing at Quentin, who had uneasily met his eyes. Lance almost looked conflicted underneath his stoic cover. Tommy rarely saw anything but disdain directed towards Oliver from the man. He wasn't sure how he felt about this change.
Slade tells him to choose a weapon and Oliver is incredulous that they are starting now.
Thea bit her lip a little, avoiding letting loose the retort that graced her lips.
Slade gives him a look and Oliver stands up. He sees the mask that the man that tortured him wore. Slade says it's his.
"What the hell?" Tommy said, his legs tensing as if he were about to stand up. Turning around, clenching the top of the couch tightly between his fingertips, he faced Barry. "Why didn't you tell us Slade was the guy who tortured Oliver?" Barry shook his head.
"He wasn't." Tommy watched as Barry muttered something else under his breath, his eyebrows narrowed. Making a dramatic motion to the screen, Tommy kept his eyes on Barry.
"Then what is this?"
"Watch it," Barry said. "You'll find out. I'm not going to tell you things that Oliver wasn't gifted in knowing either." Tommy's lips twitched downwards as he held eye contact with Barry for a few more moments before he turned back around, leaning back in his seat.
Oliver says it belonged to the man who tortured him. Slade says that was another guy.
Tommy let out a huff of air. Could Slade have given a more half-assed answer than that?
Oliver doesn't believe him. Slade says its an operational equivalent to a balaclava.
"Who is this guy?" Quentin muttered to himself.
Slade says him and his partner wore them on missions.
"So is his partner the guy that tortured Oliver?" Laurel asked, turning back to Barry. He just motioned towards the screen again, shaking his head. Sighing, Laurel turned back around. Barry was getting less and less talkative as the videos went on.
Oliver says Fyers told him that the man who wore the mask was a prisoner on the island. Slade points out that Fyers is not to be trusted. Slade says he and his partner came too free Yao Fei and that they were ASIS, or Australian intelligence.
"What did Oliver get himself into?" Moira whispered, shaking her head as she did so. Her hands were balled up in fists. They shook slightly. Her boy was being asked to aid in an intelligence mission. That he had no training for. For a country that he wasn't even from, for a man he didn't even know. The guilt was back. God, she could have stopped this all.
Slade tells him to find him a weapon and to consider a sword. Slade likes swords.
Diggle let out a little laugh but stopped immediately. This wasn't a man Oliver had ever talked about. Not that he talked about many people from his past. But the people from Oliver's past tended to either be dead or someone Oliver wished were dead.
The scene changes and Slade and Oliver are fighting in a field. Oliver has not improved. Slade beats him badly.
Tommy grimaced at the sight. He had been so used to knowing Oliver could fight, that it was almost odd seeing him in a time where he couldn't. And, this was his Oliver. Not the one that had returned, but the one that had died out there.
He was watching his friend die, maybe not literally, but a piece of Oliver was dying each day that he was out there in that damn jungle.
They fight with bamboo sticks. Oliver holds his own for about five seconds before Slade hits him in the head.
Diggle frowned. Slade's training had a big impact on Oliver. He had seen Oliver do the same training session with him.
Obviously, Oliver had improved a little since then.
Slade questions how Oliver survived there for six months and that he had seen girl scouts with more fight in them. Oliver retorts something and Slade hits his hand. Oliver cries out and Slade says they only have ten days to turn Oliver into a soldier. Slade tells him to take it seriously.
Tommy frowned a little. He knew Oliver was taking it seriously, he could see it. So, what if he threw in a little humor as a coping mechanism? Why did everything with this Slade guy have to be frowns and bitch fits?
Beside him, Diggle could only sigh in response. It was strange seeing Oliver smiling and trying to make light of his situation. Especially compared to the man he knew now.
Oliver attacks. Slade beats him. Oliver then asks what the point is. He says the soldiers don't have bamboo, they have guns.
"He's not wrong," Thea said, making eye contact with Tommy, expecting his agreement. He hummed out a light response. And, once again felt as if he were lying to her. He had seen Oliver take down gunned men without any sort of weapon, let alone a bamboo stick. At this point, what was he lying to her for? She would see it soon anyways. He knew Oliver didn't turn into the Hood on the fishing boat from the island.
Slade pulls out a gun and tells Oliver to jam it in his face. Oliver hesitates then does so. Slade quickly disarms him and throws him to the ground.
"Holy shit," Tommy whispered to himself. He had seen Oliver fight a few times, sure, and his dad once or twice, but there was something fascinating about watching someone fight. The dance between the people, it was almost an artform. A violent artform, sure. But, an art.
Oliver says he gives up. Slade picks him up and says that there is no giving up. Slade says he can either escape or die. He tells Oliver to choose, who quickly says escape.
Quentin felt a pang in his chest as he watched. His eyes softened in sympathy and he glanced over towards Moira, whose eyebrows were turned downwards in worry. He couldn't even imagine what. He would do if this were Sara. Would he even be able to watch?
Slade says he will show him how to not die. The scene shifts and Oliver and Slade are looking at a map. Slade says Lian Yu, and Oliver says that that is the island's name. Slade gives him a look, and says 'it is, wonderful'.
Tommy, despite himself, found himself smiling a little at the man's comments.
Oliver asks if the image is the air strip. Slade says ASIS took imagery of the island.
"I don't get it, though. If they're a part of ASIS, why isn't anyone else coming to look for them?" Thea asked, directly turning her attention towards Diggle. He glanced over towards her.
"Their plane went down. ASIS most likely assumes they're dead." Thea's eyes dropped downward. They had stopped looking for Oliver and dad when the boat went down. She guessed it really wasn't that different in the end.
He then points out a camp on the map. Oliver asks if that's where Yao Fei is and if they can get a message to him. Slade tells him to forget about him.
"What?" Laurel breathed out. "But Yao Fei saved Oliver? And wasn't it Slade's mission in the beginning to save him?"
"In the long run," Diggle said, narrowing his eyes at the screen a little, "It would probably be better for Slade to inform ASIS about the operation and to bring in reinforcements later on than it would be for Slade and Oliver to try and save Yao Fei on their own."
Slade says there are about ten soldiers guarding the airstrip at a time. Oliver jokes about that being too many. Slade says no. He says his problem is the guy in the tower. He says he can't take him out because the glass is bulletproof. He says if the man suspects anything is wrong he will radio Fyers and they can't get off the island. He says it's up to Oliver to take him out.
"This isn't going to go well," Tommy said, chuckling a little.
"Can Oliver actually pull that off, though?" Thea asked
"He'll have to," Laurel answered.
He asks if Oliver is ready. Oliver asks if Slade thinks he is ready. Slade says the plane only comes every three months, so they need to get on it tomorrow. He tells Oliver to get some sleep and they will leave at 0600.
Tommy snorted a little. He could only imagine how old Oliver would have felt about that. It would have been a rarity for him to get up before noon.
Oliver sits and looks at the picture of Laurel.
Laurel shifted a little in her seat. Her hand reached towards Tommy's, and she wrapped her fingers around his. He didn't reciprocate. Looking over towards him, she saw that his jaw was set, and his teeth grinded a little back and forth. She didn't have time for him to be jealous of the past. Letting his hand go, she strung her fingers together, facing the screen once again.
Slade tells him not to worry and that he'll be back with her soon. Oliver goes to sleep. He is dreaming. He is in bed with Laurel.
"I don't want to see this," Quentin said. He turned his head a little away. He preferred it when he wasn't aware of his daughter's personal life. Even if this was just a dream. Or, god forbid, a fantasy.
He asks her not to too hate him for sleeping with Sara. She asks if it hurt. He is confused. She asks if it hurt when they killed him.
Okay, Quentin thought, so this isn't a fantasy.
A bullet appears in his head. Oliver jerks awake.
Moira tasted salt. Dragging her hand up out of Thea's grasp, she wiped the corner of her eye. Her finger came back stained black from the mascara that had once coated her eyelashes.
Pain knotted in her stomach, climbing to her lungs, squeezing all of the air out of them. A simple phone call would've saved her son's innocence. A simple phone call would've saved him a lifetime of pain he was never meant to experience.
Author's note: I'm so sorry this took so long, I've been super busy. I'm going to try and continue this! I hope everyone has been doing well! Also sorry this is fairly short, I'm currently working on a ton of projects at the same time but I'm so sorry this took so long! Special thanks to SandorthienLiza, Speedsters and Arrows, TheHoodedAssassin, Stonerguy420, white collar black wolf, Evy 47, JoeyDe, SakiOkami, IceBlueRose, ceara1888, Zenny0, cmtaylor531, Blackest of the Soul and all of the amazing guests that commented!
Anyways, have a good week guys!