Siobhan sat watching Brickwell in his newly decorated penthouse, gone was the spartan decor, the rooms were now furnished with ostentatious furniture and decorations. He wore a fine black suit, and silk cravat, he wore as if they were normal clothes that you would wear when you were home instead of some ratty shirt and comfortable pants.
She kept wondering if she was right to kill Victor Zsasz all those years ago before she joined the army, and later The FBI. She had used her scream to impale him on a piece of rebar and use her power by delivering it straight into his ear canal. How she relished in the thoughts that his brain matter had been liquefied within his skull and dripped out of his ear.
Siobhan looked at her co-worker, "I will feed the animal, you get us some coffee."
The other agent snorted, "Your neighbors are still at it? Perhaps you should discreetly slip a marriage counseling brochure under their door. Don't worry, I've got you." He said as he handed her a tray of food and left the room to get them some coffee.
After her co-worker left, she turned off the recordings of the penthouse and quickly made her way to the apartment. She walked in to see the well-dressed man waiting for her at the head of his table. It made her feel like some sort of glorified waitress. She hated that. She had a superpower, a sonic scream. She was an FBI agent and a soldier in the army before that. Both jobs kept her on the straight and narrow, especially after she lost Charlie.
"I don't know what you were expecting when you pulled strings to have Charlie found, but they teach us how to avoid being entangled by the webs you are spinning at Quantico. So what?" She asked with a small snigger, "You have me followed for a few days and think you know me? Well let me save you the trouble, you don't." Brickwell only stared at her, in silence, her eyes twitched as she smacked his plate of food away, "Say something!" She needed to know why he was doing this! Why did he care? Why he found and delivered Charlie's body back to her.
"Before I became the man I am now, I killed the man who had beaten my wife within an inch of her life, she later succumbed to her injuries in the hospital. I was robbed of years of happiness and bliss with my beloved. And yet there I was, killing the man with my own hands." He then stood up, and though his once hulking, intimidating presence was not there, he was sympathetic, a gentle giant. "That moment of anguish, I sense a kindred spirit in you. You hid behind fictitious stories that allowed you to walk amongst the people of this world. A former patriot, doing her duty, worked as a team and grew close with a gallant man."
He then took a small, almost timid step towards her. "Society will never understand your convictions, your drive, how you avenged your man. It punishes misunderstood people like yourself. Like us. Society despises people like you. A person with powers. "
Siobhan shook her head; she couldn't believe what she was hearing. She wasn't like him, was she? She exhaled, avoiding eye contact with the man, and left the room as quickly as she could. Siobhan raced back to the surveillance room, going over her convocation with Daniel Brickwell in her mind.
As she did, she almost missed what her partner said, as she entered the room with the coffee, "Siobhan, it's on the news." He said as he gently placed the newspaper in front of her that had a picture of her, with the headline reading: 'FBI Investigates one of their own.'
"I'm sorry, Siobhan. It isn't right." It felt like the world around her was closing in, and Siobhan couldn't breathe. She needed something stable to hold on to, to guide her.
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Thea waited in front of Wildcat's gym when she saw Ted walk outside and was preparing to enter his car. "Ted?"
"What's up, Thea?" He asked as he sat in the driver's seat, and she quickly sat in the passengers. "Something tells me that you are not looking for training again?"
Thea looked at her sister's mentor, "You know how I asked you to keep an eye on Laurel? That's why you're here in Starling, right?"
"I'm a man of my word." He said as he put his keys in the ignition.
"I just really need to speak to her." She said, "I know that it is likely in your code or something to keep her safe, to keep where she is a secret because you consider her a daughter or a niece. But I really need to talk to her. I'm her family too."
"I don't know where she currently is, Thea." Thea nodded sadly; she had hoped that he would have known where she was.
"Oh, sorry to bother you, I just thought that was the reason you were in Starling." She said defeated, as she slowly climbed out of the car.
Before she could slam the door shut, she heard Ted. "Some bloody their fists to keep Starling safe. And others do it to protect those that they love because that is what families do."
"I said that. Family protects each other, I told her that when she came back to me..." Or at least something similar.
"I don't know how much you know about how she first came to meet me. But she was alone in the world, her boyfriend, your brother, at the time looked like he had a secret rendezvous, on the Gambit. Her mother had abandoned her, and her father was in no position to help her, so she fled. She came to Central City and started to get into fights. I had heard of this woman using a baseball bat to protect women at night. She was undisciplined and in her private darkness. One day, I followed her home, and watched her throughout the next few days, she pretended to be fine, she would study, hang out with friends and the like, but she was plagued by her thoughts, her grief and didn't know how to channel them."
"I knew bits and pieces, less than Ollie but more than the others…" Thea revealed.
"Dinah is one of the good ones. Willing to put her life, her body, and soul on the line in order to keep someone else safe. Even if others don't understand, she will stand up for those that can't protect themselves. A blessing and a curse, especially as a parent."
Thea closed the door and watched Ted drive away, knowing there was no point in tracking the car, as he would have dumped the car before he made contact with Laurel. The old man could be cunning when he wanted to or needed to in order to protect Laurel. That is where his loyalty will always lie, with Laurel. Thea supposed that despite the fact that Ted was obviously either bending the truth or lying to her about not knowing where Laurel was, she should be happy that despite the schism of Starling's vigilantes, Laurel had someone other than herself and Roy to protect her, and hopefully talk her out of some of her more Lance gene induced impulsive decisions. She idly wondered if Ted was trying to get Laurel to make the first contact with them before they could work together?
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Siobhan sat in front of Agent Talos and the OPR agent, as they spouted nothings and false promises. They made an oath to her that they would find whoever leaked the information. It didn't change the fact that she was being pushed aside, pushed aside for doing the right thing. A small voice whispered in her ear, that perhaps Daniel Brickwell was right all along. People like them were always to be shunned. Perhaps they could look after each other from these backstabbers and conniving shits.
"Think of it as a paid vacation, Smythe. Many would kill to be paid to relax on a pacific island, perhaps the Canary Islands? Vanuatu, or Trinidad and Tobago?"
She reluctantly handed her badge over to Talos, followed by her Glock. Silently, she walked out of the room, and down the hall and down past the bullpen, feeling all the eyes of her colleagues on her, looking at her with false-pity, condemnation, and distrust.
She heard his cockney accent in her mind, "Society will never understand your convictions, your drive, how you avenged your man. It punishes people like yourself. Like us."
Us.
Siobhan walked past the bullpen to see Samanda walk around the corner, she stood in front of her, and lowered her voice, "Do you have a sec?"
Samanda looked around nervously, before speaking, "Uh…Yeah, Sure Siobhan." She then took her to an office that was empty and locked the door behind them."
"They are putting me on leave, Sam. They—Uh…." She stammered trying to find her words.
Watson put her hand reassuringly on Smythe's shoulders. "First things first, breathe. In and out. Everything will be OK," she said as she looked at the door, to see if anyone was behind the frosted glass doors.
Smythe squared her shoulders, "Look me in the eyes when you say that to me."
Samanda looked her in the eyes, "Listen, I'm on your side."
She couldn't have this job, she needed to keep out the memories of Charlie being tortured, and killed, as well as her killing Zsasz. She needed this job to keep her mind straight, "I can't lose this job. Please, there has to be something that you can do."
"I commended you on your report. You have nothing to worry about." Watson tried to assure her.
No. She had everything to worry about. And she had no in the Beaurau that would have her back.
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Arsenal looked down at the derelict building in The Glades, a known crack den. Word on the street was that Joe Chill frequented the area to get his daily high. While Laurel didn't have the idea that he should find Chill, she should have anticipated that he and Thea would have done something more than play an auxiliary role. He would get his hands dirty to protect their family. Laurel would have done the same if the roles were reversed. If Oliver was here, he would be leading the charge.
Arsenal slowly descended from the building, and with a grapple line, he slowly entered the drug den, thanking God for the fact that Laurel had saved Thea from a similar fate.
Empty cans, and bottles of beer, and liquor were littered around the various rooms, eventually, he was stopped by a man who looked completely out of it, "You lost, Red?"
"Depends." He said as he slammed the guy against the wall. "Where is Chill?"
"Upstairs somewhere, Discount-Robin Hood." Arsenal sent a sharp jab to the side of his head, and walked up the stairs, looking at all the people who were coked-up, a few who had blue lips and their skin gray.
The Ruby Archer made it to a small living room that had a man that looked at him calling him an angel. He smirked, and knelt down to his level, "I need to know where Joe Chill is."
"Why?" Asked a cold voice from behind him, Roy turned and rose to his feet. "Everyone out!"
Roy watched as all the druggies vacated the area, in an almost zombie-like state. "Joe Chill?" Before he could make her move, he was pulled back and received several jabs to his side, Arsenal launched his elbow backwards, and used a spin kick to send his attacker back, when Roy looked back at Chill and saw Laurel in her makeshift suit, she was The Canary of Starling City.
Roy fought alongside Laurel as they both ducked and weaved, defending each other. "Long time no see, Canary." He then noticed her old bird locket was hanging from her neck. "I see that you haven't completely abandoned your family." He said with a gesture of his head.
"Now's not the time, Arsenal," Canary grunted as she flipped a man over her shoulder and into the mantelpiece, before tucking her medallion necklace back beneath her jacket.
Roy shot an arrow at a fleeing man, as Laurel hauled Chill up against the wall, and without seeing, she reared her elbow back, knocking out someone trying to flank her in an attempt to save Chill. "Calm down!" She growled, before kicking him behind his knees and kicking him in the side of the head, knocking him out.
Arsenal looked at Thea's sister and she certainly hadn't lost her touch, after being away from the good fight. "Alright, the team has decided to help you. Speedy and I convinced the others, but…"
"You want me to turn myself in." Laurel finished off her friend's thought. She sighed, "I don't like it. But if that's what it takes, I will do it."
"What if they figure it out about… Everything else?" Roy asked. " I mean they haven't shown themselves to protect their wards very well. Brick was attacked in the motorcade. What if they can't protect you?"
"I've been thinking, this mask hasn't been doing me any good. The duality only works when only The Canary has a target on her back, not both her and Laurel. Besides, if I do get imprisoned, I will find a way to get Brick. If he can bribe and manipulate people…"
He didn't like the thought of Laurel doing anything dangerous or ordering a hit on Brickwell from behind bars. And he didn't doubt that within time, she would be able to do so. But that wasn't who she was. Laurel didn't murder people.
"It won't get that far; we will solve it legally. I know the old saying about a fool for a client, or whatever, but Thea has already decided to be your second, and will be talking on your behalf, or helping you build your case."
Laurel didn't say anything for a few moments, only looking at the unconscious form of Joe Chill. "He can't be interviewed here; Brick and his lawyer will claim coercion." She finally said, breaking the silence.
"Makes sense, Iris has come from Central City and is waiting at Verdant. We will get him on record in front of witnesses." Roy then watched as Laurel told Chill to wake up and haul him to his feet, before tossing him into a bean bag.
"You must have won the lottery, Chill. I'm going to give you a choice. Option one: I call the FBI, and your pal, Danny Brickwell, will have you killed before you can utter a word, about how you escaped Iron Heights. Option two: You willingly cooperate with this nice man in red, and he will take you to a journalist, and you tell the truth about everything regarding Brick, then I will let you run off to go hide in some backwater ditch where Brickwell will never find you."
"I can't." He rasped.
Arsenal snorted, "Guess he picked the mystery box, Canary."
"Option one it is, Mr. Chill," The Canary said in a dark tone.
Chill recoiled backwards, looking at both vigilantes in absolute fear, "No, if I talk, Brick kills my son!" He then looked over at the teenage boy who was passed out on a nearby couch. "I used to live in a place like this, in Gotham. I killed a rich couple and their son. They were old money. I left my son without a father. And this is what he did with his life, If I go back inside, he will be sharing a cell with me or worse."
Laurel looked at the boy and saw Connor. She looked like she was imagining this was his future without her, without Oliver in the picture, She closed her eyes and shook her head, as if reminding herself that in the worst-case scenario, Thea and he would protect her baby.
Arsenal knelt down in front of the man. "You have uncaged a monster, Mr. Chill. Now, you can either come with me, and prevent more families falling apart, and withering away, and have the ability to disappear, look after your son, atone. Or you can say nothing, and since I already recorded this nice talk, I will give it to my reporter friend, and she will publish it anyway. They don't need to adhere to the pesky rules a court does."
He looked between the two vigilantes, "I thought you were supposed to be good guys? The Birds of Prey? You would truly get us both killed?"
"You have hurt people I care about with your actions, regardless, you have a choice." Arsenal then looked at Laurel, who seemed slightly amused at the fact that he was assumed to be Thea. "What? People seem to confuse me and Speedy all the time, I think it may be the bow." He said with a wry smirk. "I enjoyed working with you, Canary. Hopefully, we can do it again."
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Al Sah-Him, Sarab, and a small contingent of foot soldiers converged around the small villa in Corto Maltese. As several masked men entered the villa, they were skewered by arrows.
Sarab looked towards The Heir to The Demon. "Ra's wishes to see how you deal with Al Saher. The man has been able to flee from The League, and has been able to survive death at the hands of guerrillas, the vigilantes of Starling."
"He will be captured and sentenced for his crimes." Al Sah-Him said as all the soldiers converged on the mansion at one point, allowing Al Sah-Him to enter the mansion through a side window. The assassin crept along the wall and halted at the doorway. He took a deep breath, to listen to his target.
Swiftly, Al Sah-Him pulled his bowstring and aimed it at Malcolm Merlyn. "Al Saher, Ra's Al Ghul order's your return."
Malcolm's lips moved into a sinister smile, "I have no intention of going anywhere, I'm not sure that you, Oliver, would like the consequences of forcing me to do something against my will."
"Oliver Queen is dead."
"I always thought of you as a son, Oliver. That's why I acquired your help, Oliver. I am proud of you, as a father would be for his own son. You know what that is like, don't you? To be proud of your son?"
"I have no offspring as of yet. No future heirs to replace me when I ascend to Ra's Al Ghul."
"Then you are truly lost." Malcolm let out a guttural growl, as he tried in vain to defeat his many foes. Several men fell to the traitor, Al Sah Him moved in slowly unsheathing his blade.
"Are you going to kill me, Oliver? Get justice for your wife, Laurel? For her sister? For Tommy?"
Al Sah-Him ducked under Merlyn's blade, slicing the older man's hamstring. Malcolm fell to the floor, crying out, not before pulling out a small tactical knife and slicing the Heir to the demon just below the neck.
The man that was once Oliver Queen grunted and sent a forceful kick into Malcolm's side, and tossed the knife away, and wielding his sword with both hands cut off Malcolm's sword hand. His opponent cried out in pain from his injuries. Malcolm's teeth clenched as he glared at Al Sah-Him with teary eyes. "Knock him out and bind his wounds. Ra's Al Ghul wants him alive."
He felt a small amount of relief as if he had performed a task that was beyond Ra's' commands. It felt like he was delivering justice to the man at his feet.
"Your revenge will be short-lived, Oliver. Your son, your sister, and your wife will not live to celebrate my death. Their days are numbered without me. I can help you! I will shoot an arrow into Daniel Brickwell's eye."
A figure of a well built dark-haired man with an eye-patch appeared suddenly in his mind. The face brought many emotions and feelings; Anger, respect, regret. And yet the face was once of a stranger. It was curious that mentioning an arrow into someone's eye would evoke such an image.
Sarab, using the tang as a concussive weapon, hit The Magician on the back of the head knocking him out before several assassins started to staunch the bleeding and prepare him for travel back to Nanda Parbat.
"You are injured, you should have it tended to."
Al Sah Him touched the gash below his collarbone. The wound felt like a reward, a symbol of him not just following his Liege's will but something that he couldn't quite explain. He wanted to wear the future scar with pride.
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Thea sat in the FBI conference room, in her best court clothes, she pulled her phone to look at a photograph of her family, all of them standing in front of the mansion, Laurel standing next to Ollie, who held onto baby Connor, their mother and Quentin on the other side of Oliver, and she and Roy kneeling in front of the four of them.
She pocketed her phone as the agent walked in. "Special Agent Watson."
Agent Watson looked at Thea with a skeptical glance, before shaking her hand, "Miss Queen. I'm glad to see that you have decided to help us, with your sister-in-law."
"I'm here to speak on Laurel Lance-Queen's behalf." She was then handed a document that she had signed in Laurel's hand, a trick she had learned during her time with CNRI.
Watson sighed, as she took a seat at the head of the table, a power play, "So when I asked about her contacting you…"
"I didn't lie. I was contacted by her this morning; my sister-in-law is willing to be questioned."
"Miss Lance is technically not married, she and Oliver never filed for a marriage license." She then cocked her head, "As to your Miss Lance showing up, that is the best news I have heard today." She then looked around the room, and towards the door, "Where is she?"
"Safe. I will bring her to you tonight. After you have heard the statement from a second witness, who shall convince you of Laurel's innocence"
"Led on a wild goose chase, you mean?"
Thea gave her an almost proud smile, "You will wanna hear what Joe Chill has to say."
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Laurel slowly put on her suit jacket, feeling her entire upper body protest at the movement, once it was finally on, she heard Ted speak to her, "It's a miracle, Dinah can actually dress like a human being, and not a street urchin, or a hoodlum."
"I have my moments." She replied with a smile tugging at her lips, as she tucked her canary pendant beneath her blouse.
Ted tossed her a pair of clean socks, "This about Thea coming to visit me?"
"Her, and Roy. Yeah, they had been working in the background apparently. I'm going to meet Thea soon."
"She certainly is a fiery one. A stubborn girl to boot, I wonder where she learned that?" He asked with an amused smile, happy that she was no longer working alone. "She loves you know. And it goes to show that you were being an idiot when you said that your friends and family were a hindrance to you, your hubris. It's your strength, Dinah. I didn't train someone who could be forged into a weapon that I could aim at thugs. I trained a girl with a gentle heart, a woman that I am proud to see as a daughter or a niece. A woman who gave me a family after I had lost my own."
"I love you too, Ted." She said as she wrapped her arms around him, feeling like perhaps she was finally making strides in the right direction. "Thank you for giving me the push in the right direction."
"Where are you headed to, then?"
"The FBI."
"You have to be yanking my chain, Dinah." He said, sounding unamused as if it were a sick joke. "And you need to dress up in a lady suit for that?"
"I have been falsely accused, Ted. I need to clear my name."
"The Canary's name or Dinah's?" He asked, "If you are leaving Dinah behind, then what does it matter what people think about her?"
"Something Roy said, he said that we are a family. My actions reflect on them…. On Connie. He doesn't deserve that, and my life is more than messy enough to also be a wanted fugitive."
Ted smiled slightly, he was testing her, she realized. "I'm glad that you are finally seeing it this way." He then pulled out a chair and started cleaning his old boxing gloves from his ring days. "Keep your head on a swivel, Dinah. The FBI has shown itself to be less than satisfactory in protecting their own, let alone people in their care."
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Samanda listened as her boss told her of her promotion, that her hard work and diligence with Daniel Brickwell had paid off, and trumped their concerns about her credit debt. She was over the moon and smiled proudly.
"That's not why you are here though?"
"Lance's sister-in-law promised to hand her into us tonight." Talos looked up and waited for the other shoe to drop, "Only after we listen to the testimony of a witness who claims can vindicate Lance's innocence and prove that we have been manipulated by Brickwell."
Talos looked up, face not exhibiting emotion, "She's gotta be pulling your leg?"
Samanda shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe, but she claims the witness is Joe Chill. The guy who shanked Brickwell, the man that according to the books is in solitary confinement."
"That proves that she is making shit up, Watson." Her Supervisory Agent said with a proud, almost smug smile, as he reclined in his office chair.
Agent Watson shook her head and pressed the palms of her hands onto the desk. "I said that the book said that. I called the warden. Chill is MIA. They searched the prison from top to bottom, making sure that he wasn't hiding in the walls, or pulling some sort of Shawshank shit. Someone let him out and hid it."
"Damn." Talos sighed, as he leaned forward. " If Miss Queen is correct, do you think that Mr. Chill will prove anything?"
"It has to be bullshit." Watson said, "Brickwell's intel is clean, and we have twenty-four-hour surveillance on him." It had to be some sort of wild goose chase that Dinah Laurel Lance was leading them on. She is a lawyer. Her father was a police detective, and her grandfather was a fellow FBI agent. She knew how to play the game and run loops around them, and made it seem like she was innocent.
Perhaps Joe Chill was one of those red herrings that Ms. Lance released into the wild. If Ms. Lance was truly innocent that meant all this, Brick's intel and the loss of fellow FBI agents were all for nothing. She would be the laughing stock of the FBI and wouldn't have enough money to provide treatment for Georgie.
"Which means it has to be a bluff. It wouldn't be the first time that an accused person attempts to grasp for straws to save their hide."
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Siobhan Smythe was contemplating what she should do, her life was ruined, she would never be accepted in the world She was alone, and under siege, no one to guide her or protect her. No one understood that.
Her thoughts broke when her phone vibrated. She picked up her phone to answer it. "Hello?"
His oddly comforting cockney accent was heard on the other side. "People like us are not truly alone. I accept you when no one else does. I will not shame you like everyone else. You are not alone, Siobhan. I have sent you a gift, an opportunity to become your true self. If you accept this gift that I had fashioned for you, know that you have made a friend for life, someone who will never abandon you."
Siobhan wiped her tear-stained face and moved towards the door after someone knocked. She slightly opened the door, to see a finely dressed man. "A town car is waiting for you, madam. If you will follow me?"
"Who are you?"
"Josiah Beckett, Ma'am. A mutual acquaintance of ours would like me to escort you to get your gift."
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Thea sat beside her sister in all but name, glad to see her out in the light of day, and looking like Laurel, and not The Canary of Starling City. "I missed you," Thea said as she wrapped her arm around her sister, enjoying the feeling of having her back. The woman that has had such a profound impact in her life was back.
Laurel smiled, handing her a small box. Thea opened it, to see a cheap plastic purse with Speedy Gonzalez on it, in a plastic sleeve and sniggered, to which Laurel followed suit, "I was going to put money in it, but if you lift the wallet, you will see an IOU."
Thea sniggered again, remembering what she said to Ollie when he had asked her how she got her code name when they didn't know he was The Hood. "I think I have enough money not to worry about a few hundred dollars. I have been rebuilding Queen Consolidated, under a new name, using both Malcolm's inheritance and what Mom and Dad left me." Thea looked back at Laurel, who looked like she had been through the wringer. "You sure you wanna do this? We can find another way?"
She had started to get influence in the more affluent parts of town, with Walter's help. She had acquired some hotels and some other businesses that were about to go under. With Walter's help, she had managed to buy out Kord Industries. She also had her sights on getting her father's applied science division back into her family's hands. It's what her Mom and Dad would have wanted."I had to use what Mom left both me and Ollie… I know that you had a right to that money… Mom had said that you and Connor were entitled to if anything happened to Ollie..."
She watched as Laurel's bruised lips inched upwards a little. "Does Connie have any rights to the business or money when he comes of age?"
Thea scowled slightly, did she really believe that she would leave Ollie's only son, Laurel's son, out to dry? Even if Connor was just Laurel's son she would give him a stake in the business when he came of age they were family. "Of course. I wouldn't disinherit or steal from him."
"I'm sorry. I'm just tired." After the year that Laurel had endured, particularly the last few months, Thea wasn't surprised and granted that it entitled Laurel to be a little snippy. "We will think of it as moving assets rather than stealing or whatever."
Thea nodded and rubbed Laurel's back in small circles. "You confident that this FBI agent is clean?" Laurel asked.
"She's a bitch but seems to genuinely want to see the truth. I trust her."
"I'm sure if you are."
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Roy walked in with Joe Chill into Verdant to see Iris and an older man waiting for them, near the manager's office. Iris looked at the man, before looking at Roy, "I got your message, and my editor, he wanted to hear this for himself. He thinks this will be important coverage that could back Central City Pictures, a national paper.
The man shook Roy's hand and gave a slide glance to Chill. "Larkin. Eric Larkin. Why am I missing my wife's office party? And had to come to a different city?"
"This is Joe Chill, he's here to go on record," Roy said, pushing Chill slightly towards the two reporters.
"And you, son, what's your name?" The senior reporter asked, looking at Roy.
Roy looked at several of the new waitstaff that were around Verdant learning the ropes, "Jason." He then looked at Iris, who promptly helped him,
"Jason was just helping me; Chill is the guy who shanked Daniel Brickwell in prison," Iris added quickly.
Chill nodded, looking between the two reporters praying that he was doing the right thing. "Brick made me do it."
Iris' boss seemed to believe them. They then walked up the stairs, to where the interview was to be recorded. Iris sat down, as her boss took notes, "How do you know Daniel Brickwell?" Before Chill could answer, the lights died, as if someone had turned off the power supply.
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Laurel turned her head and she could hear screaming from somewhere above them, as they were in the old bunker of Verdant.
Thea quirked her brow, "What is it? Did you hear something?"
"Screaming." Laurel murmured as she cocked her head to the side.
"How?" Thea asked, sounding amazed and intrigued.
Laurel bit her lip, "Ever since…. Since I have been gone, my hearing has improved. I can hear things."
"Maybe another part of your meta-gene, according to Cisco, Barry is learning new things about his physiology, makes sense that you would have more than a high-pitched scream." Thea then added. "I wonder if Connor will inherit his courageous mother's gifts?"
Laurel cocked her head and instead of joining in with her sister's banter could hear more screaming, "Speedy, get Iris and Roy out of here."
Thea gave her a proud look at seeing Laurel being the leader she had been when they were partners, she missed not working side by side with her sister. "You got it, Sis and be safe." She said as she sprinted out of the basement and upstairs.
:-: :-: :-: :-:
The waitstaff turned as the doors opened from the main doors. "There's no nightclub tonight." The bouncer said, only to be hit with a tonfa and having his neck snapped.
The dark figure then threw their knife into another person's neck, killing them instantly.
Roy peeked out from the window to see the woman, who looked like Black Canary repeatedly slam a woman's head into the side of a table. Even though the person was dressed as Laurel did, coattails and all, the way she moved told him that it wasn't their Canary.
As he rushed over to Thea's office desk and pulled out a pistol, he heard Iris tell her boss that anything he saw in regard to the identity of anyone but themselves and Chill was to be forgotten. Those lives were at stake.
The man agreed, with a rapidly fearful nod of his head.
Thea ran up the stairs as the killer framing Laurel finished killing another member of her waitstaff. The woman gave a cruel smirk before opening her mouth to use her cry, as she did, it clashed with another, Laurel's.
The clashing of the two cries made every loose item in the nearby vicinity fly away from the Black Canary and her evil twin.
Thea turned around beaming at her sister. Laurel was in her makeshift Canary suit, ripped black jeans, combat boots, and a black hooded leather jacket over a blue tank top. Her lower face was concealed by a lower face mask.
For a long few seconds, both Canaries were silently mad dogging each other, waiting for the other to make the first move, while they circled each other.
Thea took that moment to run around Roy, and up the stairs, to help them down into the Bunker. Ollie had designed it to be a safe-room as well as a headquarters, between herself and Roy, along with Laurel distracting the bad-canary, she raced in, telling them to follow her, she looked at Roy, not needing to explain what she had in mind.
By now, Laurel and the Canary were circling each other over near the stage, far from the Bunker.
Laurel glared at her imposter, "Who are you?"
"I'm surprised you don't know, I'm Black Canary." She said with an amused smirk. The way the woman said it sounded like a sick joke to her ears.
Laurel ran in, sending jabs and elbow strikes, to which The Copycat-Canary returned with more ferocity than Laurel was expecting. Each blow Laurel received made her long for the protective suit that her doppelgänger was wearing.
Laurel ducked under a roundhouse kick and swept her leg at the copycat, putting her off balance and stumbled back into the tables and chairs. Laurel advanced upon her, kicking the closet chair at her evil twin, only for Faux-Canary to roll backwards, and tossing plates and cutlery at her so that she could regroup, and to keep Laurel on her toes.
Laurel blocked them, receiving the majority of the cuts and hits on her forearms, Laurel bobbed and weaved and sent a snap kick, sending the woman to the ground.
The woman spat out blood, giving her a bloody smile, before hitting Laurel with a cry, sending her back towards the stage, Laurel managed to take cover behind the heavy tables, only for them to be removed by more screams from the evil canary.
Laurel rolled behind a cement column, knowing that she would be safe for the time being. Laurel then used her own scream to knock down more tables, to allow her to get closer, the second thing she did then used her cry, shattering all the lights, making the entire club almost too dark to see a few feet away, in any direction.
She ducked as low as she could to use the cover, to sneak up on the other woman, only for Laurel to be flung back, hitting the side of the bar, and felt something sharp pierce her chest, she was knocked out.
Siobhan panted and pulled out her small flashlight, spotting the bloodied, unmoving form of the Black Canary. In the distance, she could hear the sirens wailing, it was showtime. She would prove to Daniel Brickwell she was someone to trust. That his faith in her wasn't a mistake.
Down in the now-empty bunker, sans the couch, pushed up against the door on the stairwell, was flung off its hinges, sending both the door and the piece of furniture flying, the couch moved so fast, that Roy didn't have time to shove Iris out of the way, that he dived in front, taking the sheer force, knocking him out, and a piece of the debris hit Iris in the arm.
Thea watched her boyfriend save Iris, and by the time her eyes returned to Laurel's twin, the woman used her cry, stunning them, allowing this Fake-Canary to twist the gun from Thea's hand, and shooting Iris's boss, and shooting Joe Chill point blank between the eyes with no hesitation.
Thea glared at the woman who had blood splattered on her face, both from her duel with Laurel and from Iris's boss and Chill. Thea squared her shoulders, drawing herself to her full height that her petite frame allowed, and stood in front of Iris.
This Banshee, disguised as The Canary, quickly disassembled the gun in a few seconds, dropping them carelessly on the ground. "Hello, Thea, a pleasure to see you two again after my time away."
Samanda Watson ran through the doors of Verdant to see a few waitstaff flee, she called out to them asking what they saw, but these men and women were too scared. Lance was finally showing her true colors.
She pointed at a colleague, "Debrief them," She then looked at the other two agents, "You two, on me."
Laurel groaned as she came to, she crawled out to the side alley, a knife protruding from her shoulder. Why was it always her shoulders?
She hauled herself behind a dumpster, only for Thea to find her, "Jesus, Laurel…" She whispered frantically, "Are you…?"
"Roy…Iris?" She groaned, feeling woozy.
"They're fine, worry about yourself for one goddamn minute Laurel. The world will keep spinning if you worry about yourself for a few minutes."
Laurel shook her head, licking her coppery tasting lips, wincing at the touch, "Chill? He's dead, isn't he?"
Thea sighed, lowering her sister's mask to make her breath easier, "He's gone. I'm sorry."
Thea helped her sister stand, as watched Laurel roll her eyes back in frustration. "I have to find my doppelgänger, you…you make sure that Iris and Roy are safe."
"Laurel… I can't leave you in this state…" She said pointing at the knife lodged deep in her sister's shoulder. "You will bleed out, you need medical attention!"
Laurel shook her head and waved away Thea's hand from the embedded blade, "Roy…Iris…Don't need a pissed off speedster on top of everything else. Tr—Trust me, Speedy." She had already seen what a pissed off speedster was capable of, she wouldn't be able to deal with him, Brick and her evil twin.
Thea gave a hesitant nod and ran back to help her boyfriend and Iris. Laurel would also need as many witnesses in her corner to say that it wasn't the actual Black Canary that had killed all those people.
Laurel hobbled down the alleys hearing the FBI behind her, she cursed internally that Brick had turned people, cops, agents that would have been in her corner into an army hellbent to stop her. She hid in an alcove, seeing a beam of light just miss her.
:-: :-: :-: :-:
Thea sat down on the ground, with an unconscious Roy on her leg, as if it were a pillow, Iris sitting on her other side, looking pale, Thea supposed that despite the people with powers over there that has been dubbed as meta-humans in Central City. It seemed that they were never this bloody and dangerous. He eventually woke up, reluctantly instructed him to take the back entrance, and head home. Roy couldn't be seen here.
Samanda Watson walked down the steps, spotting the to women near the two bodies of Joe Chill and Eric Larkin, and once she made it to the duo, she knelt down in front of Thea and looked at who was staring at the last hope she had to prove her sister's innocence. Joe Chill. The basement of the nightclub had broken furniture and tables strewn about, splinters of wood decorated the floor.
Watson studied the body of Chill, when a different agent walked in, "Who did this? Who could do this?"
Watson turned slowly, "It was the Black Canary." She said with anger, ignoring Thea and Iris' protests, the women were unreliable and too entrenched in their friends and family's innocence, despite evidence to the contrary.
:-: :-: :-: :-:
After hearing the agent's radio, about a violent crime in Verdant, a nightclub that was under the management of Miss Thea Dearden Queen, after the agent left in a hurry, Brick walked up the stairs to his room, and into his bedroom, and finally into his walk-in closet.
He had the penthouse specially designed to have a secret passageway to the apartment below, he pulled the secret lever, and hauled the shoe rack to the side and descended the stairs to where he had his computer and televisions.
He didn't need to be out in the world, he had as much influential reach as he needed within the confines of this hotel.
He flicked on the television to the news,
"…rushed to the emergency rooms of two hospitals, one person is in critical condition. But what we do know is that according to eyewitnesses, the brutal attack on Verdant, a local nightclub that is involved in the gentrification of The Glades, was carried out by no other than the Black Canary."
Brick then switched to another channel. His smile grew wider.
"The former heroine hadn't been seen for almost a year, the woman that had put her life and body on the line to keep the streets safe has now become the city's enemy. The city leadership has begun to question if putting their trust in vigilantes was a ticking time bomb, this comes after the Green Arrow was also arrested and later killed in prison ..."
Brick couldn't suppress his massive grin, he had turned the cops and the public against her, Detective Lance and Hilton were not alive to try to prevent the manhunt for the avian thorn in his side now. She was a dead woman she just didn't know it yet.
