Star City, Starling General, Night, Earth 24

It was like he was underwater, the sound of everyone and everything around him was just muddled as Adrian Chase was still in shock over the death of his beloved wife, Doris. Less than two hours ago, the two were driving through the city; Doris was teasing him about something, he couldn't remember for the life of him what it was about. Suddenly, a car came out of nowhere and crashed into theirs. Struggling to stay conscious, Adrian managed to see a woman getting out of another car. His vision distorted, he could make out a woman ... she was Asian with a bob haircut. She was holding a submachine gun in both hands. The Driver from the car that crashed into them, managed to get out but collapsed on the ground, bleeding and in pain.

Seeing the infamous assassin of the Yazuka, Tatsu Toro, Rene Ramirez got up to his feet; almost all of the Scorpions were killed but if Rene was going to go down he was going to go down fighting. Drawing his gun, Tatsu immediately fired her pistols at Rene before he could even aim his gun killing him. However, what the hitwoman didn't see is that several of the bullets she fired hit Adrian's car injuring him and his wife; if Tatsu did see she did not care.

"Doris ... Doris," Adrian said weakly as he unknowingly watched his wife as she started to die.

"Adrian," Doris muttered as she eventually closed her eyes for what would be the last time.

Adrian woke in the hospital, he was lying in the bed. His head and chest covered in bandages from his injuries. His doctor came in to check on him and checked to see that he was stable for now. Adrian asked what happened to his wife, but the doctor just fell silent and his silence answered Adrian's question. Wanting to see her, the doctor told her what room she was still in but he refused to let Adrian go see her. But pain and angry give a man strength, enough for the patient to violently push his doctor aside and get out of bed to go see his late wife. It didn't take long for Adrian to find his wife's room, and the moment he did he fell down next to her bed; crying.

Several Months Later

Streets of Gotham City, Night

Throwing a Batarang at a thug with an AK, it impeded it into his hand. Gasping in pain, Batman then blitzed and then took down his prey by slamming his face on the street's floor. Looking around at all the criminals he incapacitated, thugs who were a part of Cobblepot's arms dealing operation, Batman could tell that there was one more person watching him; again. Batman decided to confront him, to confirm his suspicions about the man.

Observing him through the binoculars, Adrian was still impressed by the Batman's abilities. Some believed that he was a supernatural creature, a vampire, or something more absurd; but he wasn't he just a man, albeit a very skilled and impressive one. Watching him use some kind of grappling device, Adrian watched until Gotham's Dark Knight as he disappeared from sight. Putting his binoculars down, Adrian put them in his duffle bag and prepared to leave for his motel room. But just as he threw the bag over his shoulder and turned around, he saw that Batman was right there standing in front of him.

"How ... how did you." Adrian began to say in disbelief. He was there behind him just a few blocks away and now, he was here in front of him. Maybe there was something supernatural about him. "It's ... it's an honor to met you, I'm-"

"Adrian Chase," Batman said cutting him off, surprising Adrian. "Born October 6th, 1986. Although I suspect that's not your real date of birth, just like I know that Adrian Chase is not your real name. Your birth records are sealed and you changed your name, for reasons I don't know ... yet." He continued, both surprising and impressing Adrian as he continued. "What I do know is that you graduated high school two years early and attended Columbia; graduating with the highest remarks and have used your education to improve the quality of life of Star City."

"Until my wife died," Adrian said in a low and sad tone, the pain still fresh.

"Yes ... I'm sorry," Batman said meaning it. "Doris Chase, killed during the crossfire between the Yazuka when they were expanding their territory.

"That's why I came here, to you!" Adrian said getting emotional. "Please, please I need you to help me ... I need you to help me stop the mobs in my city. When you showed up in Gotham, you took down all mobs, crippled them."

"And then they were replaced by a different kind of criminal, a more dangerous kind," Batman admitted. "And even if I wanted to I can't, I can't leave Gotham."

"Then teach me, please," Adrian begged.

Batman knew that's the real reason Adrian was observing him, he wanted to watch and learn from him; gradually a plan began to form in the detective's mind. "One week from now, meet me here," Batman told him.

"Why?"

"Just meet me here one week from now," Batman ordered and then left, leaving Adrian confused about what his plan was about.

One Week Later

Gotham Rooftop, Night

Arriving back on the rooftop, Adrian waited for the vigilante to show up again. The moment he turned around, however, Adrian heard a huge thud sound hit the ground and Adrian turned around and saw that it was Batman and on the ground; a woman bound and tied up. "What the hell is this?" Adrian stated in confusion.

"Giving you what you truly want Adrian," Batman answered and as the woman lifted her face from the ground, Adrian saw that it was the woman who killed his wife, the Yazuka assassin, Tatsu Toro.

"You." Adrian could mutter in surprise.

Stepping forward to the widower, Batman pulled out a handgun and gave it to Adrian. "Here, make it quick," Batman stated.

"I know for a fact that you don't kill or use a gun for that matter, so what trying to pull here?" Adrian asked hotly.

"Your right that I don't use guns. But I believe in a quick death, so don't make her suffer." Batman told him and reluctantly Adrian took the gun moved to his wife's killed and knelt down to remove the gag from her mouth, she looked furious at him.

"Do you know who I am? Do you know ... what you took from me?" Adrian asked.

"No, no I don't," Tatsu exclaimed and huff in anger as Adrian continued to give her an angry stare. "What? What did I kill someone you knew? Someone you loved?"

"Yes." He said lowly.

"Well? What are you waiting for an apology?" She scoffed at the notion. "You won't get one, not from me. I'm a professional, if I killed someone I can assure you it wasn't personal."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" He said, his voice choking with anger.

"No ... just stating a fact." She clarified and Adrian fed up with her apparent callousness, struck her in the face with the but of the gun causing her to hit the floor. Kneeling on the ground, Adrian grabbed the assassin by the collar and then pressed the gun up against her face. Looking at her face, Adrian didn't know what he wanted at the moment. Did he want her to suffer, to die, ... yes; that was something he couldn't deny, no matter how much wanted too. But this woman, she didn't care about whether or not she lived or died and also ... she was just a cog in the machine known as the Yazuka. And that's when it hit Adrian, on what he truly wanted.

Letting go of her, Adrian threw back on the ground as Batman continued to watch him from behind. "Since you clearly don't seem to care about living, I'm gonna make you suffer instead. I'm gonna tear down the Yazuka, I'm gonna cripple every single one of you pricks until there's nothing left." He proclaimed. "Because I want you to lose everything ... to suffer complete despair. So, for now, you get to live with the knowledge that one day soon I'm gonna take down everything you've ever worked for." He finished and put the safety back on the gun. Then in a brief flare of angry, punched the Yazuka in the face and then walked away.

"Aw, I believe he's passed your test ... wouldn't you say, sir?" An unknown British voice said out in the open that startled Adrian causing him to turn around. He then saw the Yazuka assassin, get up and remove the cuffs from behind her. He then saw her remove her face; a disguise, that hid the face of an older man with graying hair and a small mustache.

"What-what the hell is this?" Adrian said out loud, confused, and out of his mind.

"A test. To see if you had the right mentality for this line of work." Batman stated. "Your very intelligent, Adrian. And resourceful. I make it an effort to make sure that no one follows me, and you've managed to do it almost every day during the last two weeks. The only thing I didn't know is if you had the right temperament, showing you your wife's killer ... the person responsible for all your pain was the only way to know for sure."

Realizing he had been played, Adrian began wondering about several things. "Wait-wait-wait, what ... what if I shot her, him I mean." He corrected himself.

"Check the ammo," Batman told him and Adrian did just that and realized the ammo with empty; and then immediately looked at the Dark Knight himself. "We have a lot of work to do but for starters." He went on and removed his cowl mask, revealing a very famous face. "My name is Bruce Wayne, any other questions?" He asked the dumbfounded widower.

18 months Later

The Batcave

It had been over a year since Adrian was recruited by Bruce Wayne for training, he knew it would be difficult but the training was grueling. Training under Batman was like being trained by a Marine Corps Boot Camp Instructor who was also a Fitness and Health Food nut; who didn't sleep. It had taken six months, but Adrian had finally managed to feel like he was starting to get a feel for fighting. Every once in a while, Adrian felt like he hadn't made much progress as a fighter considering he lost every single sparing session against Bruce. But when Adrian hit the streets of Gotham for field experience, he found out otherwise. Gotham always had a group of thugs always hassling somebody and although it made for poor quality of life in the city; for vigilantes in training it was a godsend. Every now and then, Adrian took out groups of scum, and with each time it got a little easier; which meant he was getting better at this. Not bad for a guy armed with a standard recurve bow and handcrafted arrows.

Archery was one of the areas, scratch that, the only area, where he outshined Bruce. Although Bruce taught him how to use many weapons, he wanted to help Adrian find a weapon that he was the most comfortable with and eventually excel at it; which he did in time. Other aspects of Bruce's training came easily to Adrian, as Adrian proved to have an aptitude for investigation. Training him in forensics, computer science, and criminology; Adrian quickly picked them up fast. Bruce even made him try to solve cases on his own, Adrian hadn't failed a case yet. However, Adrian was beginning to grow restless. He thought he was ready, and the fact that the gang violence in Star City was beginning to escalate added to his uneasiness.

"What do you mean I'm not ready?" Adrian said angrily as Bruce was just sitting in his chair working on the Bat Computer.

"I mean you're not ready," Bruce answered flatly reviewing facts about a particular case that had a certain "sadistic sense of humor".

"Bruce, it's been a year and a half since you started training me. I handle criminals on my own, I can do this!" Adrian assured him.

Getting out of his chair and turning to face him, Bruce made his reasons clear. "No, Adrian your not. When you go back to Star City, you'll be on your own." He clarified. "I'll be in Gotham and I won't be able to come and bail you out if it gets to be too much for you. You are ready to fight this kind of war ... but you're not ready to fight it alone." He stated and gradually, Adrian began to calm himself down. Eventually, Bruce then gave him a ticket, a plane ticket.

"Hong Kong. You trying to get rid of me?" Adrian asked after giving a quick look at the ticket.

"During my years of training, I heard stories about a man, Yao Fei Gulong. He was a general in the Chinese Military, wrongly imprisoned for war crimes on some island in the North China Sea. Eventually, he managed to free himself from captivity and proved his innocence." Bruce told him and showed him a photo of Yao Fei on the Bat Computer.

"Why are we going after him?" Adrian asked stepping forward.

"We're not, he's not a target. He's your next teacher." Bruce proclaimed surprising Adrian.

"What?"

"Yao Fei is a master archer, one of the best in the world. He can teach you more about the art of Kyūdō more than I can; I believe he can also teach you other things as well." Bruce stated and he looked at the screen further.

Hong Kong, Yao Fei Gulong's Loft, Daytime

Arriving in China, Adrian quickly made his way to Hong Kong. Asking around, he eventually found Yao Fei's apartment. Entering the building outside his home, Adrian noted that Yao Fei was living pretty comfortably; some kind of compensation for being wrongfully detained on a deserted island, he thought. Adrian tried to set up a meeting but Yao Fei's security prevented him from doing so, that is until he dropped Bruce's name. Eventually, the hired guns calmed down and a beautiful Asian woman came to greet Adrian. "My name is Mei, I'll escort you to my father." She said and together the two entered the building with Adrian being silently grateful that she spoke English; his Chinese sucked.

Going up the elevator, the two exited it once they reached the top floor. Looking at his surroundings, Yao Fei's loft was much nicer than he imagined. Catching up to Mei, the two entered her father's bedroom, where Adrian got a look at the old General. His hair was gone now, all that was left was a goatee that was long and starting to gray. He was also bedridden, with his IV tubes hooked up to his arm. Cancer, Adrian guessed. "Yao Fei Gulong." Adrian addressed the sickly general.

"I know this useful trick, a pressure point technique. If you perform it correctly, you can slow down someone's pulse enough that if anyone were to check it ... they would appear to be worm food." Yao Fei explained groggily. "Bruce Wayne came to me learn this technique, paid me a small fortune for it. If you asked me he overpaid, possibly for charity."

"Maybe but when you have a no-kill policy, knowing a move like that comes in very handy," Adrian remarked.

"Hmph. So you do know him." Yao Fei remarked as did know Bruce to some degree. "One can never be too sure these days. So how do you know Bruce?"

"He's been training me for over a year now, but he sent me to you so that you can teach me the things he can't," Adrian answered.

"What can I teach you that he cannot?" Yao Fei inquired.

"How to master a bow and arrow for that matter; I also wouldn't say no to that technique you were talking about earlier," Adrian suggested.

"Ah. Archery. I taught him as best I could but despite Bruce's many talents, he lacked the true spirit of an archer." Yao Fei explained. "Do you possess it?"

"I guess you'll be the judge of that," Adrian remarked.

"I am not so sure how much a disease-ridden man can teach you." Yao Fei admitted regretfully.

Approaching his bed, Adrian took a seat next to him. "Bruce told me that you're one of the best archers on the planet. Even if ... even if your bed-ridden, I imagine there's plenty you could teach me even if all you could is just watch and speak." He assured his new teacher respectfully.

6 months Later

Star City Docks, Night

Tatsu Toro took cover against the wooden crates from the gunfire she and her fellow Yazuka were receiving from goons from the Drakon Crime Family. They had managed to up their game by stealing military-grade firearms, which were currently destroying the crates causing the Japanese mobsters to retreat; including Tatsu. Running while firing off a few rounds from her handgun, Tatsu eventually began to notice that the gunfire was dying down. As she ducked down in a boat, she looked and saw someone taking out Drakon's men. He was wearing a dark green uniform, a mask, and a hood of a lighter shade of green and he was armed with a recurve bow, that he was using to disarm the Drakon's of their weapons.

One of the thugs fired off his gun just as Adrian deflected it with his bow, before kicking him on the ground and stepped hard on his knee, cracking it. Firing one arrow after another, each one going in-between their shoulders or their knees. Looking forward, Adrian saw the woman who killed his wife, Doris. This wasn't some butler disguised as her as a test, the was actually her. It had been two years since then and Adrian still felt the angry festering inside him, but he knew he had to do this first; he wanted to get this out of the way as soon as possible before it became an obsession for him if it wasn't already.

"You have my thanks for your assistance." Tatsu expressed his gratitude by rising up from the boat.

"I wouldn't thank me just yet," Adrian replied bitterly and then notched and fired an arrow into her shoulder.

Wincing in pain, Tatsu removed the arrow from her shoulder and pulled out her gun, and fired her at the green assailant as he ran down the docks towards her. Dodging the gunfire, Tatsu ran out of ammo and cast the gun aside. Leaping over the boat, Tatsu ran to the enemy and pulled out two knives; one of which she threw at the archer which he easily deflected with his bow. Closing the distance between each other, Tatsu took a big swing with her knife but the archer ducked and spun around to deliver a sidekick. Trading strikes between the two, Adrian then managed to knock the knife from her hand and then proceeded to strike her into her shoulder, where he shot her earlier. The pain being too much, the Yakuza hitwoman fell to her knees and Adrian then used his legs to perform a maneuver that Yao Fei had taught him to take her down. Standing over his wife's murderer, Adrian looked over her. "Tatsu Toro you have failed this city!" He proclaimed and proceeded to punch her in the face repeatedly until she was unconscious. Getting back to his feet, Adrian wondered if the day might ever come if he decided he had enough. If his personal need to see his wife's killer dead but for right now, his mission had to be about cleaning up this city as a vigilante, later to be known as the Hood, and eventually as the Green Arrow.

Author's Notes: I took elements of the comic book version of Adrian Chase who became The Vigilante after the death of his wife and kids due to gang violence caused by the Mafia. Based on Adrian's comment in 8x01, it seems he knows Bruce Wayne; so I thought it would be cool if he trained under him for a while.