(Black Forest, Germany, 3 years ago)
Nikita stood obediently by her Master. Slater was bent over the metal gurney with a knife in his hand. A man was tied to the bed, his arms outstretched from him with metal cuffs securing his arms and legs. There was a small metal tray placed on the floor underneath each wing that held his arm in place. Blood slowly dripped down into them.
"Listen, mate, this isn't personal. Just following orders. " Slater said nonchalantly as he dug the knife into the man's arm. "I mean...I don't really believe in angels and all but...see.." He moved to the other side of the bed and began carving into the man's other arm, "My boss ..he's a believer, ya know. Says he needs your blood for some voodoo shit or something."
Nikita lay down with her head on her paws, sighing lightly and closing her eyes. She couldn't stomach watching her master torture this man any more. She was surprised that the man had yet to call out in pain. On the table, Slater's phone buzzed. He glanced over to the table, "Excuse me, mate, I have to take this." He placed the knife down on the bedside table and, grabbing the phone, stepped outside. Nikita's ears swiveled as she tracked her master's presence. He had walked a little away from the cabin. Slowly, stiffly, she rose to her feet and trotted over to the gurney. She carefully sniffed the man's ear causing his eyes to crack open. **Good. Still alive.** She dropped to her feet and walked to each of his limbs, carefully placing the metal in her mouth and snapping the metal. She could tell that the man was surprised by her actions. As he stumbled off the bed, Nikita walked over to him, using her tall frame to steady him as she moved towards the back door in the master's bedroom. As they walked, she could feel the man growing stronger. By the time they reached the door, he was standing on his own two feet. He glanced down at Nikita.
"Thank you." He told the wolf,"I am Emmanuel. You have surely saved me from a terrible and torturous death." He reached a hand down and placed it on her head. "You have much darkness in you but I can also sense much light. You are in perfect balance, neither side greater then the other. Your natural form is the perfect conduit to release the darkness within, to control the shadows of the world. I have now unlocked the light within you as well. And I offer you a gift. Should you ever need something, say my name and I will grant it but beware, I can only grant this favor once and only if your request is deemed worthy."
Nikita felt a soft warm glow transfer from the man's hand and into her, traveling slowly down her body and warming anything that it touched. As the sensation fades, the man walks to the edge of the clearing past the cabin and spread large eagle wings. He launches himself into the air and was gone.
"WHAT THE HELL!"
Nikita lowered her head, her eyes going to the direction of her master. She knew not what the man mean but she would hold the words close to her heart and guard them until she understood.
# # # # # #
How many nights had passed since she had answered Darhk's summons. She had lost count, lost in the never-ending pain of her punishment. She was not released from the pain until he was sure that her will had been once more crushed. Like many of his prisoners and captives, there was a point that she could endure no longer and would do anything she was told, just to make the pain stop...even for an instant. Now, she was once more laying on the stone floor of the cave, half cloaked in shadow, watching Dahrk play with his daughter. Her stare did not waver. She would never be able to take on Darhk ...but she could make him suffer. His daughter had yet to grow in power ..if she could just...just what? She was fooling herself thinking that she would raise a tooth against his family. Even the thought brought a slice of pain through her. She knew that if he had even thought she was looking to attack his daughter, she would suffer badly before she died. The punishment in the bunker was child's play to what he could actually do.
"I don't like this place." The girl stated as she snuggled closer to her dad, her doll clutched to her chest. "It's scary."
Darhk kissed the top of his daughter's head, wrapping a protective arm around her. "It's just a little bit longer, sweetheart."
"I miss mommy." she said softly into her doll.
Pain flashed across his face as he pulled his daughter tighter against him. "I do too." His eyes went to the doorway. "But we're going to see her soon.."
Nikita raised her head, her nose twitching. She could smell the heavy scent of fire and smoke, fear and panic. Darhk had made good on his promise to remake the earth and the time must be drawing near. There were shouts and screams but she couldn't understand what they were saying. They were muffled by the stone and she wouldn't have been able to hear them at all if it hadn't been for her sensitive hearing. She also heard the approach of familiar footsteps. She raised her head, her gaze not leaving the door.
"DARHK!" Oliver, dressed as the Green Arrow, walked through the door. His bow knocked and ready.
Nikita rose to her feet, moving silently over to Darhk's side as he twisted to face Oliver. "What does a guy have to do to end the world in peace?" he moved over to his idol, placing himself between Oliver and his daughter.
"Why is he here, Daddy?" She asked as she started to comb out the hair of her doll.
"Oh, " He grinned, "He came here to die sweetheart." He turned to Oliver. "15 minutes until the end of the world and you want to spend them with me. I'm touched." Darhk flung his hands, using the force of his magic to grab Oliver and sling him out of the doorway. He hit the small square of brick concealing the secret door hard enough to break it. Darhk made his way outside, Nikita following closely on his heels. "Even if you could stop me. even if you could.." He stopped and watched Oliver struggle out from under the piles of brick and concrete, pain lacing his body language, " Those missiles are finding their targets. This is a Mercy killing on a global scale."
Oliver runs at Darhk, kicking out only to be once more flung away by his magic. Darhk just stood over him. "I'm sparing my daughter the pain of growing up without her mother." He once more slings Oliver, this time into the side of a car. "Or Mr. Lance living without Laurel." He walks over to the prone vigilante, looking down at him as Oliver struggled to rise. "And don't get me started on your pain."
He was about to reach down and yank Oliver up by his jerkin when a crumpled can slams into the back of his head. "Let him go!" one man yells as he chucks a beer can at Darhk. "Get Out!" another man yelled. Nikita turned to face the gathering crowd, a low rumbling growl vibrating through her chest as her eyes skim over the groups of people that were gathering. "Really?" Darhk turned to look at the gathering crowd that was hollering threats at him and throwing stuff at him. Seeing that his attention was preoccupied, Nikita lowered her ears and silently backed away from him, moving to Oliver's side. She gently pushed her head into his arm, encouraging him to get to his feet. She held herself steady so that he could use her for support. "This heartwarming display would mean a whole lot more had I not just seen you all tearing yourselves and your city apart." He turns to Oliver and holds out his hands to present the gathering crowd behind him. "That is why I did this. Humanity is feckless and I wanted to cleanse it of a millennia worth of rot it has been infected by. And I WILL do it!"
"No, you won't." Oliver's voice was steady. He didn't portray the pain that he was in.
Darhk grinned. "Ok." His gaze going from Oliver to the wolf standing beside him. "Just for fun? How are you going to stop me?"
" It won't just be me who's going to stop you." He reached back and drew an arrow from his quiver, placing it on the bow.
"What? You and the Wolf?" He raised his hand and pain blinded Nikita as her bones started to crush. "She is Mine and she WILL do as I say." With a flick of his hand the pain ceased. He nodded lightly and she turned to face Oliver, her head bowed, a low growl in her throat. Pain was pulsing through her. She couldn't fight it anymore. She had to do as her new Master wished.
Oliver raised his hand, his eyes flashing a brilliant gold and suddenly the hand of force that was crushing her bones vanished. Surprise crossed Darhk's face as he tried to throw Oliver into the car again. Nothing happened. "It's not so easy without the magic, is it?"
Darhk straightened the cuffs of his jacket. Oh, I don't need magic. I'm a former member of the League of Assassins," He met Oliver's gaze. "Or have you forgotten?"
"Remind me."
As if a signal went off, both sides clashed. The citizens of Star City attacked with whatever they had at hand. Baseball bats and metal pipes met cold steel and metal. It was a cacophony with very little space to move about. In the center of the chaos, Oliver and Darhk were trading blows...seemingly equal in skill.
Nikita dodged an attack from one of Darhk's goons. She dodged his attack and twisted in the air, her jaws snapping down on his heel as he stumbled past. The man dropped with a scream of pain and she quickly finished him off by ripping his throat out. Before she could pull herself from the man's still form, something hard slammed into her shoulder. She felt warm blood flow freely as one of the townies pulled a baseball bat with a nail hammered into it back for another strike. She dodged to blow and turned, launching herself at the man. Her weight drove him to the ground and the impact caused the baseball bat to tumble from reach. Her jaws carefully closed around his throat, sinking slightly into the soft flesh as she applied pressure. As soon as the man fell still, She released her hold. Hopefully the man would wake with nothing more then a scarred throat and a headache. She twisted around, trying to locate Oliver or Darhk. She could see neither. She fought her way through the crowd, snapping and biting as she come close to Darhk's cronies. Finally the crowd parted and she saw Oliver standing over Darhk with his bow pointed at him.
"What are you going to do now, Oliver?" Darhk asked, as calm as if he were discussing the weather. "Stop the posturing, we both know that you can't do it." He laughed "You spared the life of the man who killed your mother."
"And you killed a friend of mine." Oliver said steadily. "You killed tens of thousands of innocent people." he pulled back on the bow string as he said this. "With Slade Wilson, I had a choice. This time, I don't." He released the bowstring. The arrow plunged deeply into Darhk's heart. His ice blue eyes dulling as he fell onto his back. Oliver looked down at him, slowly lowering the bow.
Behind Oliver, one of Darhk's men raised a knife. **NO!** Nikita flew through the crowd, going over or diving under anyone who stood in her way. She pulled up short as she met Oliver's gaze. He slumped to his knees, shock and pain in his eyes, before tumbling face first into the street. A large bowie knife sticking out of his back, his blood quickly soaking through his leather.
Nikita shifted into her human form as she reached his side. "No...no..no..no..no..no" She whispered as she dropped to her knees and pulled him onto her lap, careful not to drive the knife deeper. "Oliver. No.." She could already feel his blood slowing as it ran over her hands and the hilt of the knife. He weakly opened his stormy grey eyes. She could see the light in them dimming. "I'm so sorry.." she whispered as tears rolled down her cheeks. "If I had been stronger..if I had fought Darhk harder.." Her voice cracked. He raised a hand to her cheek to wipe away a tear. She could feel the strength leaving him as he struggled to speak. "Not..your...fault..." People were gathering around her and Oliver but she was oblivious. She kept her eyes on him as his hand fell from her cheek and his breathing stilled. "NO!" She carefully pulled the knife from his back and flung it away. Easing him onto his back she slid her hands underneath his shirt. The heat from his body was already starting to cool. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and concentrated. The runes along her body started to glow as she whispered the incantation that rose in her mind. Pain seared through her, hot and burning as the tattoos glowed. Blood started to drip from her nose but she ignored it, only focusing on the body beneath her.
Her life force bled into Oliver as she willed his body to heal. She could feel the strength leeching from her limbs, her vision blurring and still she concentrated. Still she fought through the pain, feeding her life force into Oliver until there was nothing left to give. Not having the strength to support herself anymore, she collapsed onto the ground. Despite her efforts, Oliver remained unmoving.
As the darkness began to take her away she did the only thing she could thing of.
** Emmanuel. Help Us. **