Chapter 38: Opportunities

"An earthquake machine." Oliver slid his finger over the tablet, eyes narrowed. "That does not bode well."

"What could he possibly want with that?" Kara grumbled, sliding over her own tablet. "An invention like that would only lead to destruction."

Barry frowned. "Maybe that's his goal? He did start talking to Robert about how the city 'needed' this, and terminology like that is usually used for something unpleasant that needs to be done. Like pulling out a tooth…" He idly commented.

Oliver shook his head. "No maybe – it is his goal. He was Ra's' horseman at one point, remember?"

"The privilege of which would allow him access to League secrets." Kara's eyes widened. "The ritual of the Demon's Head, known only to those who wear the Demon's Ring, their prospective successors, and their horsemen."

Barry sighed. "He wants to destroy Starling City."

"Not Starling City. The Glades." Oliver corrected him. "That's why he tried to dissuade me from building our business here. He didn't want us to be stuck in the crossfire."

"Why the Glades, though?" Barry quirked an eyebrow. "They might be the worst-off part of this city, but all of Starling is infested with corruption on some level. No offense." He added as an afterthought.

"None taken. It's true. And as for your question, the answer to that is easy." Oliver stared outwards, lost in memories. "Aunt Rebecca, Tommy's mother and Merlyn's wife, ran a clinic here in the Glades, and it was here that she was killed; a mugger attacked her midday, shooting her in the abdomen. By the time help came, it was already too late – they found her dead, having bled out on the pavement. Merlyn was never the same, and there is no doubt in my mind that it was this event that eventually led to him joining the League."

"So, revenge?" Kara confirmed, mind reeling.

Oliver nodded. "He's probably deluded himself into believing its for a higher, greater purpose, but truthfully, it can't be anything else but revenge."

Kara pulled a face. "But how are we going to prove it to the League? All we have are recordings confirming his interest in the Markov device. While our logic is sound, they're going to want definitive proof."

The men in the room exchanged looks.

Robert and Moira Queen, having finished a strenuous board meeting together, hailed over their personal car for a much-needed break. They planned to dine at their favorite restaurant in downtown Starling for lunch, relaxing and enjoying this brief reprieve from the cutthroat world of business.

Robert opened the door for his wife, allowing her to step inside first, before following in himself. The windows of the vehicle were tinted so they could hide from the paparazzi and other less-than-desirable figures. Oddly, though, the window to the driver's side of the vehicle was closed off. Figuring their personal driver wanted them to keep their privacy, they didn't think much of it. As the car pulled back into the street, the Queens settled into a comfortable silence for the following few minutes.

Unfortunately, however, something was nagging at Moira's mind, and she couldn't hold it back any longer.

"He's getting more unhinged, Robert." Moira stated softly, almost like a whisper.

"I know. It's starting to scare me." Robert replied, just as solemn. "But there's nothing we can do about it. The Hood's a ghost, and no one we can hire has a chance of tracking him and figuring out who he is, let alone killing him. And the rest of Tempest is as lost as we are."

"And the same time, however, the Hood hasn't been sniffing around any of us, so that's something at least. Maybe he hasn't figured it out yet?"

Robert leaned backwards. "I doubt it, Moira. Whoever's backing the Hood, whoever it is that Malcolm fears so much – something tells me they already know, at the very least, who's involved. Why they haven't made any moves yet…it suggests they might have something big planned."

"Well, whatever it is, we'll handle it. We'll make it through." Moira said with conviction. "We have to, for Oliver and Thea's sakes."

"Agreed." Robert grasped his wife's hands. He then frowned, as if realizing something. "Shouldn't we be at the restaurant by now?"

Moira blinked, realizing that he was right. She sat up and rapped her fist lightly on the driver's window. When it failed to slide down, she rapped again, this time much harder. At the driver's failure to respond once more, she shared a look with her husband.

The couple immediately started budging the car doors, trying to get them open, but they were locked tight. They tried to slide open the car windows as well, but for some reason the button wasn't working. Moira looked outside the window, her eyes widening when she saw the sign that clearly said, 'YOU ARE NOW LEAVING STARLING CITY.'

"Robert…" she whispered in horror.

The car ride continued for another half hour, in which the Queens finally ceased their attempts to escape, realizing it was futile. When the car finally stopped, the thrum of the engine finally going silent, they immediately felt their anxiety levels hike up, and held each other's hands even tighter than before.

The door finally opened, and Robert was the first one to step out, warily checking out for any threats. A mass of military men surrounded them, guns at the ready. Robert felt himself sweat, only avoiding the voiding of his bowels due to the simple fact that none of the weapons were aimed at him. He silently beckoned his wife to exit, and together they stood, completely on their lonesome in unknown territory.

Through the pervasive stillness, only steps could be heard. The duo turned to watch a slim, African American woman in a blue business suit approach them. She would've been attractive, especially to Robert, had it not been that cold, ruthless look in her eye that reminded them so eerily of Malcolm.

"Robert and Moira Queen." Her devil's smile pierced their defenses, fear coursing through them. "My name is Amanda Waller. We have much to talk about."

Amanda clicked a button on the screen, revealing live feeds of Thea, who was currently at Balliol Prep for school, and Oliver, who was at lunch talking with a potential investor for his business. The Queens stiffened at the sight of their children.

"I have snipers trained on them right now." Amanda told them, idly checking her nails. "You don't tell me everything you know, they die."

Robert and Moira gave slow, understanding nods.

"Good. Glad we've reached an understanding. Now – tell me, how did you get involved with Malcolm Merlyn's little plan to destroy the Glades?"

Moira swallowed the small lump in her throat. "Our children."

Amanda narrowed her eyes. "That much I can surmise. Elaborate."

"It was my fault." Robert confessed, closing his eyes guiltily. "When I first opened my steel mill in the Glades, a city councilman tried to extort me, telling me that's how things worked there. We got into an argument, and I – got a little too handsy and pushed a little to hard. He fell into a cement mixer, and, well." The businessman sighed. "Malcolm was still my best friend at the time, and he helped me cover it up."

"And so, you joined in on this plan, this… 'Tempest,' out of guilt for what you did?"

Robert shook his head. "Tempest, yes, I joined because of that. But the plan…I never approved of it. And when I told Moira, she convinced me that I needed to act against him." Moira felt tears well up in her eyes, knowing what that action would cost them. "I had planned to go to China, touch base with contacts there, mount up resources to combat Malcolm, but before I could go, some business came up at Queen Consolidated. I was about to cancel the trip…"

"…except your son saw an opportunity to have the entire boat to himself with no parental supervision." Amanda finished for him, already knowing how this story ended.

"After the sinking of the Queen's Gambit and Oliver's disappearance, Malcolm revealed to us the truth about what happened, and threatened a similar fate for Thea if we did not comply with his plans." Moira concluded the tale, fisting her hands in her lap. "We've been under his heel ever since."

Amanda nodded slightly, her face showing no emotion. And then, she smirked, causing the hair of the other two people in the room to stand on end.

"How would you like to get out of it?"

"…What?"

"You don't want the plan to go through, truly? You want to protect your children, protect your family, protect yourselves, right?" Amanda's teeth were pearl white and razor sharp. "Then let's make a deal."

"The recordings have been sent to the League." Barry announced from behind his laptop, closing it. "We'll probably get confirmation for to pursue Al Sa-Her's termination within the next few days."

Kara, sitting across from him, nodded. Oliver, completing the triangle, said nothing, eyes still trained on the screen showing his parents ironing out their deal with Amanda. Both the Kryptonian and the speedster noticed this and sighed in unison.

"You're still not blaming yourself, are you?" Kara demanded.

"If I hadn't gotten on that boat, they wouldn't have been in that position." Oliver stated quietly.

Barry leaned back into his chair, frowning. "Then he would've done something else to secure your parents' support, Ollie. What happened to you was just convenient to him."

"I know, I know." Oliver exhaled as his parents were finally escorted outside of the conference room. Amanda waited until they were long gone, before leaving the room from a different exit.

A minute later, she appeared in their own room, her smirk still wide.

"Contact Miss McCabe. I think I've just devise the perfect opportunity for your team's debut."

May

Quentin Lance frowned as he and his partner Lucas Hilton entered the estates of one of Starling's most prominent business family's. For whatever reason, they had been called here to watch the upcoming, impromptu press conference that had been called. Looking around, he could see cameramen and news anchors alike, clustering around a safe distance from where a podium had been set up. A hush suddenly fell over the crowd as footsteps were heard, and distantly he could hear people starting to run their cameras.

"Everyone, welcome. My name is Frank Chen…and I have failed this city."

Three more chapters and then this arc is done. I was struggling to figure out a way to make sure the Queens got off without exposing their involvement in the entire crisis when I was planning this out back in the winter. Then I realized that Chen was still around, and that he hadn't gotten his comeuppance for what he did to the Queens, so, I found a use for him here. Next, chapter, we get everyone's reactions to the press conference, and how exactly Frank got into this situation.