Chapter 69: Perception

"Hey, look." Tommy held up his phone to Oliver's face, smirking. "The wunderkind from Central did it again."

Unamused, Oliver plucked the phone out of his best friend's hand. He brought his gaze downwards, frowning as he scrolled down the screen. "Bartholomew Henry Allen, better known by his nickname 'Barry', has been the leading trailblazer in quantum physics for the past five years. Now, with his latest discovery, he has made the dream of his mentor Harrison Wells, the owner and head scientist of the world famous S.T.A.R. Labs, a reality. A fully-functioning particle accelerator is currently being constructed in the heart of this research facility at this very moment thanks to his work, and when it activates, the world will never be the same."

"What a success story, huh? Hard to think that he started out some no-name kid from the suburbs." Tommy grinned. "Not to mention his wife…"

Oliver scrolled down, gazing at a picture of Barry and said-wife: the gorgeous Iris West-Allen, model and head-anchor for Central City Picture News. "Don't let Sara or Laurel hear you saying that. Wouldn't want them to think you have any ideas."

Tommy held up his hands in surrender. "Hey, I don't. Doesn't mean I can't look. Sara would understand anyway — hell, she'd probably be looking with me."

Oliver couldn't deny that, so he handed Tommy his phone back instead. Behind him, the sounds of hushed whispering grew in volume. Oliver couldn't help but turn around, seeing his beloved little sister Thea bickering with their mother about something.

"Now, mom? At the rehearsal dinner!?"

"Oliver will understand, dear. He always does."

"That doesn't mean you should do it! This is a really personal occasion! It's already bad enough you've invited half the city to the wedding!"

"Thea, sweetie, Oliver has always known what's been expected of him as a member of this family. He won't care."

Okay, that was enough for him. "I won't care about what?"

Both women turned to look at him, Thea frowning and crossing her arms while Moira plastered on her classically benign smile. "Your sister and I are having a dispute about a guest. They RVSP'd at the last minute, you see, and she's unhappy that we're still allowing them to come to the rehearsal dinner."

Oliver, having been raised as a Queen, read between the lines easily. They were courting an out-of-town potential investor/business partner and his parents had invited them to his and Laurel's rehearsal dinner to impress he or she. It wasn't the first time something like this had happened; more often than not Oliver found many of the charity events he held for the city crashed by such individuals for the sake of Queen Consolidated.

In his younger years, he would've agreed with Thea; he had no desire to make such special occasions like this vehicles for his family's advancement. It would have just been another reminder of how he was not seen as "Oliver Queen" so much as "Robert Queen's son". But he was older now, and while he still didn't like it, he could endure it. As long as he and Laurel had their time together, that was enough for him.

Nonetheless, he shot Thea an appreciative smile before responding to his mother. "It's fine. I take it they'll be here soon?"

BZZZZZ!

"That should be them right now!" Moira stated brightly, gesturing for her children to follow her. "You as well, Tommy!"

Tommy, who had been in the middle of stuffing himself with Raisa's famous cookies, audibly groaned and moved to follow.

By the time they arrived to the foyer, they could see Robert greeting a tall man with dark hair, peppered with a bit of gray. Judging by his accent, he was most likely Australian. Next to him was a petite Asian woman in a white dress and coat. Upon closer inspection, there was a bump protruding from her stomach, the slope of which suggested that she was carrying.

Robert glanced away from the conversation, perking up at the sight of his family. He gestured them to the couple, his pride pervading through his tone as he introduced them. "And this here is my family. My wife Moira, my daughter Thea, my son Oliver — who is getting married in just a few days — and my godson Tommy, whose father Malcolm you met a little bit earlier. Everyone, this is Slade Wilson and his wife, Shado Wilson. They're recent investors for QC that are visiting for the week."

Slade made his way towards Moira and Thea, while his wife started with the boys. Shado Wilson smiled sheepishly as she held out her hand in greeting. "It's nice to meet you. Sorry about crashing your wedding preparations like this, but your parents insisted."

Oliver took her hand first, giving her an understanding look. "It's nice to meet you too. As for crashing the party, don't worry about it. You aren't the first, and you won't be the last." His eyes flitted downwards, and he furrowed his eyebrows. "I'm sorry, this may seem rude to ask, but are you…?"

Shado's smile became more genuine. "Yes."

"Congratulations."

"Thank you. It's terrifying and exhilarating, waiting to be a mother."

Oliver blinked—

"Every light casts a shadow. Remember that, Oliver."

A baby gurgled happily as a slender finger wiped a bit of drool from the corner of his mouth.

There was blood. So much blood, and it was from her chest and nononononononono, he wasn't ready for this, he wasn't ready for this at all, she couldn't leave them, she couldn't—!

"Ollie?"

Oliver blinked, and regained his bearings, ignoring the concerned look Tommy was giving him, and the racing beat of his heart. He kept his eyes on Shado, making sure to meet her eyes, to be sincere. "I think you'll make a wonderful mother, Shado."

Shado flushed at the unexpected compliment, and was barely able to stutter out her gratitude.

"Great." Barry said dryly as Kara entered the hangar with Astra hot on her heels. They had made a quick stopover so Astra could change into a more appropriate outfit — she was now wearing a black suit not dissimilar to the one she wore when plotting for Myriad, just with more pockets and provisions. "You're here. I've already programmed the coordinates into the guidance system. Now we just need the pilot."

"Which would be me." Astra said haughtily, standing next to her niece.

Barry nodded and tossed her something, which she just barely managed to catch. It was a small device with a screen on it. "I know. Here's a little something in case the guidance system, God forbid, goes out. It'll act as a homing beacon, either to Earth or to where our agents are, whichever destination you need to get to at the time."

"Useful." Astra commented, placing the device into one of the compartments of her suit. "And who might you be?" He looked very familiar, for some reason.

"The middle sibling."

"Middle sibling?" The older woman turned to her niece. "You failed to mention you had more than one brother."

Kara shrugged. "It's not my fault you aren't connecting the dots yourself. You've done enough homework on my civilian identity to figure that out on your own."

Her aunt frowned, only for realization to dawn on her immediately. "Ah yes, the two boys who were with you and Kal-El on the island." She turned to Barry. "I knew you looked familiar. Barry, correct?"

Barry said nothing, and a woosh! later he had an arm around her neck and a knife at her throat — one whose blade was glowing a disturbingly familiar green color. Astra silently gulped, trying to keep her voice steady as she spoke.

"You're also the Flash, I see."

"You try anything, I'll carve you up like a fucking turkey. Got it?" Scowling, Astra managed to shift her head a little into something that resembled a nod.

Kara sighed. "Bare, I've already made my own threat. Let her go."

Her brother reluctantly did just that, crossing his arms while Astra tried to regain her bearings. "I'm just making sure she knows it's a mutual thing, Kara."

"Yeah, yeah." She turned her attentions back to her aunt. "C'mon. It's time for us to go."

Astra rubbed her neck, and shot a glare at Barry before going to enter the front of the spaceship. Guns from various agents were trained on her the entire time. Meanwhile, Barry went up to Kara, and whirled her around for a hug.

"You be careful, alright?" He murmured into her ear. "I don't want to be the one to explain to Slade how he lost two kids in a single day."

"I'll be fine, Barry. Me and Ollie will be back before you know it." Kara whispered back. She gave him one last pat on the back before going to follow her aunt to the ship.

Silently, she strapped into her seat, helping pull down the top cover. Simultaneously, the A.R.G.U.S. agents outside opened the front of the hangar, revealing the runway for take-off. Outside the window, Kara saw Barry hold up a hand in farewell as they sped away.

After meeting the Wilsons, Oliver and Tommy had opted to hit up town and run a few errands. As they drove through the newly-renovated Glades, among which included QC's new outlet mall, Oliver spotted a tall new building he hadn't seen before. On it was the familiar logo of S.T.A.R. Labs.

"They're opening a new lab here?"

"Yup." Tommy answered, keeping his eyes on the road. "The wunderkind is going to be in charge. It's in the article I showed you."

Oliver immediately took out his own phone and looked up the article in question. As he flicked down the screen, another image caught his eye: it was a picture of Barry Allen and his mother, Nora.

"Queen? As in the Queen family of Starling City?"

"You have a family to get back to!" The other boy screams, and Oliver can't understand the rest of his words, because why doesn't he see—!

"You're going to change the world! Me, I'm just some useless rich kid! I'm not going to let you die here, not if I can do anything about it!"

"Ollie!" Oliver turned to see Tommy gazing at him in concern again. "Are you okay man? You've been spacing out a lot today."

"I'm fine, Tommy." Oliver waved him off. "Just… there's just a lot on my mind."

Tommy was still frowning. "You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

"No." His friend replied instantly. "Never. It's just… I'm just stressed about a couple things. You know, with QC and all. Nothing I can't work through."

"Alright man, if you say so." Tommy parked the car and turned the engine off. "Now c'mon. We got to get this stuff done soon. If we're late the girls will kill us."

"Well, the boys will be running it a little close, but it looks like they'll be here on time." Sara informed her sister, reading the text her boyfriend sent her.

Laurel let out a breath of relief. "Oh, thank the Lord. I can't handle all these people by myself." She lightly flourished her arm towards the swathes of guest that were milling around Queen Mansion. The dining room where the rehearsal dinner was to take place was currently being set up by the mansion's staff (directed by the ever-so-efficient Raisa) in one of the building's largest dining rooms, those left untouched save for the biggest and most important of functions.

Sara chuckled. "Better get used to it, sis." She teased. "You're marrying Starling City's first son in a couple of days."

"This coming from the girl who's dating Starling's second son?" Laurel pointed out in turn, taking a sip of her drink.

"Touche."

"Miss Lance!" Both women turned around to see one of the staff rushing towards them. "The live entertainment have arrived. Their director wishes to speak with you." The man directed himself towards Laurel, making it clear which Lance was needed.

Laurel shot her sister an apologetic look before following the man to one of the anterooms. There, a group of men and women in black formal wear were carrying cases into the dining room where the rehearsal dinner was being set up. Instructing them was a tall, Middle Eastern woman with brunette hair. She was wearing a dark maroon dress with a black cardigan and heels.

When she turned around, Laurel immediately stopped, and her breath hitched in her throat. She's beautiful, the lawyer couldn't help but think.

"Miss Lance, Director." The staffer introduced her to the woman.

The newly-revealed director held out her hand. "Hello. I am Nyssa Raatko, Director of i demoni della musica, the Demons of Music. I take it you are the bride?"

"Yes." Laurel confirmed, surprised at how calmly she was speaking. "I am Laurel Lance. My fiance, Oliver Queen, is currently out running some errands with his best man, and won't be back until later. So for now, if you have any questions, either direct them to me or to his parents."

"I will." Nyssa smiled, and Laurel was struck by how nice the expression looked on her. "If it is not too presumptuous of us, we'd like to extend to you the same courtesy. While we already have the set you and your fiance requested, please do inform us if you wish to make any changes as soon as possible. Make no mistake, my company is fully capable of improvisation, but we do prefer to have some preparation beforehand."

Laurel smiled back. "Of course, though I doubt that it will be necessary." She then hesitated for a moment, before mustering up her resolve. "I do have one question, though: the 'Demons of Music'?"

Suddenly, Nyssa looked sheepish, rubbing her arm absentmindedly. "It was my father's idea. When it comes to naming things, he is not what you would call subtle, so to speak."

"Ah. I empathize. My dad can be a little on the nose too — Ollie still shivers about the time he greeted us with a shotgun after our first date."

Her companion laughed, and Laurel drowned in the sound—

"No, no, like this." Her teacher lightly grasped her arm, slowly moving it to the proper position. Her other arm snaked around Laurel's waist, gently guiding her hip to the side, and the student bit her lip, momentarily distracted by the unexpected softness of her mentor's hands.

"I do not understand the appeal of this." She gestured to the meal, the fries, burger and shake, and Laurel snickered. "It is all junk."

"Maybe, but it's good-tasting junk, and that's all that really matters right now." Laurel countered. She still looked reluctant, but Laurel wouldn't be swayed. "C'mon, live a little!"

She finally acquiesced, dipping her fry into her shake like Laurel had, and couldn't help the moan she released when she finally popped it into her mouth. Laurel's snickering evolved into full-blown laughter, and her companion's humiliation over her reaction succumbed to her own mirth as well.

"Miss Lance?" Laurel felt her gaze shift back into focus, and saw that Nyssa was looking at her, confused.

"Sorry. It's just your laugh was pretty. Musical." She smiled awkwardly. "Must be a result of your job."

Nyssa's perplexity melted away, and she blushed. "Why, thank you." The sound of something dropping cut through the moment, and she sighed. "I must get back to work though. It was nice meeting you, Miss Lance."

"It was nice meeting you too, Director Raatko." She looked down at her drink as Nyssa returned her attentions to her people, and downed it in one go.

What was that?

The moment they arrived back at the mansion, Oliver left Tommy to handle settling everything back in while he took a walk through the Mansion's gardens, claiming that he needed time to clear his head. His best friend was reluctant and skeptical but had accepted the excuse easily enough, allowing Oliver to go with nary a protest. Oliver was grateful, and absentmindedly reminded himself to do something nice for Tommy later.

Walking through the gardens, Oliver barely took note of the greenery, his mind on overdrive. He was seeing things, visions, whatever. Of another life. Maybe he was drugged? That bachelor party last night was pretty wild, he would've have put it past some of the people there to slip something in his drink when he wasn't looking. But if that was the case, why had it taken so long for the drugs to take hold? A designer drug, perhaps? The people at the party were certainly rich enough for something like that…

So stuck in his head, Oliver jumped back a bit, tensed, when he bumped into something. He looked up to see that it was a metal railing, and sighed. He looked up to see large white crystal with a bluish tint, situated in the center of his family's gardens. Oliver had vaguely remembered it being one of the family's crown jewels, a priceless fixture that his family had lobbied millions for at one of Starling's most exclusive auctions.

Another wave a pain hit his head—

"Hey, hey, it's alright!" Oliver waved his arms around, trying to convey some of his peaceful intentions. It was futile however; the girl continued to cry, and she set off the baby in her arms too.

"You need to relax your hold a bit. Grip it too tightly and you'll strain yourself." He placed a comforting hand on the much smaller arm, smiling as the young boy loosened his hold.

"Look at me." She stifled her tears and did just that. "I said it once and I'll say it again: it wasn't your fault. If you hadn't done what you did, all of us would be dead, and if he were here, he'd say the same thing. So please, stop blaming yourself. Because we never will."

Oliver heaved, clutching the metal bar in front of him. What the hell is happening to me?

It felt so real. But he had never seen that girl before. He had never met Barry Allen. He had only met Shado today. But…but…

Laurel. I need to see Laurel.

"We're coming up on the fleet. Activating stealth cloaking." Astra announced fifteen minutes after they had taken off.

Kara blinked as she saw the metal and glass shimmer briefly. Other than the glass taking on a blackish tint, there had been no change as far as she could see. Then again, she couldn't see much, so she could only assume the cloaking had worked.

Astra, ignorant of her niece's thoughts, continued her announcements. It seemed she was taking this piloting gig seriously. "We're coming up on their position. I'm searching for an entry point right now."

If that was the case, then she'd be in the throes of combat very soon. Kara tensed, readying herself.

Wait for me, Ollie, Laurel. I'll be there soon.

Oliver navigated through the crowd of well-wishers, giving short, robotic greetings as he desperately searched for his fiancee. He needed Laurel. He needed to feel her in his arms, needed her understanding words, her comforting presence. He knew that the moment they were together, everything would make sense.

Finally, after a quick inquiry with his sister, he found her. She was getting dressed in their room, changing into more appropriate attire for the dinner. He didn't bother knocking, instead choosing to barge right in.

Laurel, who had been observing herself in front of the mirror, turned around in surprise. "Ollie?"

"Marry me." He gasped, gathering her into his arms. "Marry me right now."

Laurel lightly pushed on his chest, causing a small separation between them. She looked up at her fiance in concern. "Ollie, are you alright? Tommy was saying earlier that you were acting weird—"

"I don't know." Oliver blurted out, cutting her off. "I don't know what's happening with me, what's going on — I just know that I love you, and I want to marry you, right here, right now. Please, Laurel."

But Laurel shook her head, denying him. "Ollie, as pleased as I am to hear that, we can't. Not with all those people down there, not to mention your parents. They'll kill us." She smiled understandingly. "If you want, just stay here. Skip out on the rehearsal tonight. Everyone will understand. As long as you're at the ceremony, there to greet me and Dad at the end of the aisle, no one will care."

Oliver stared at her, looking to argue, ready to go on his knees and beg for her to leave with him, because he couldn't stay here in this city, where he didn't know what was real and what wasn't—

A knock sounded on the door. Laurel patted Oliver on the arm and went to open it, revealing a tall woman with dark hair. "Miss Lance, one of the staffers told me you were here. Pardon the intrusion, but I need to talk to you about the placement of the stage at the reception."

"That's fine." Laurel perked up. "Here, come in for a bit, I'd like to introduce you to someone—" She turned around to gesture to Oliver to come over, only to stop when she realized his attention wasn't on her.

Oliver gazed at the woman, his heart clenched. "Nyssa." He breathed.

"Heir to the Demon? What do you mean by that?" Oliver asks, and she doesn't answer, simply barking at her men to take them.

A clash of metal rang through the halls, and they separated, both hardly winded. She smirked, he smirked back, and the battle began anew.

There is a kiss on his cheek, and Oliver froze, allowing her to embrace him. "I think it is you I will miss the most." She says, and he can't help but smile at that.

"Laurel is every bit of amazing as you said she was." She murmured as they watched the sunrise together from one of the rooftops. "Both as herself, and as Black Canary. You two are lucky to have each other."

Oliver, touched, places a hand on her shoulder, feeling his heart lighten a bit at the compliment. "Thank you."

Nyssa smiled at him, and shook her head. "No. Thank you for allowing me to meet her, for asking me to be her teacher. It was one of the best experiences of my life, and I will never forget for as long as I live. Just promise me one thing, Oliver."

"Anything." He'd do anything for her, like he would for his family. Like he would for Barry. For Kara and Kal. For Slade.

For Laurel.

"Promise me, that no matter what happens…" She looked back at the horizon, taking in the brightening sun. "… you two will never let each other go. That you'll always be by each other's side. Because I can see that, no matter what happens, you and her will always need each other."

Was that it? "Of course, Nyssa. I couldn't imagine my life without her." Because that life was a distant dream that he no longer cared to reach for again.

She was smiling again.

It was breathtaking.

Laurel, forgetting Nyssa momentarily, reached back to her fiance. Oliver was standing there, first staring at Nyssa and then into space, as if he were in a trance, or, at the very least, lost in deep thought. "Ollie…?"

Suddenly, he reacted, clutching at his chest. His eyes flickered up towards Nyssa, then at Laurel. He walked towards the door, asking the other woman to give them a minute, then closed it, turning back to her.

"Laurel, I want you to do something." He said, his face oddly serious.

Laurel blinked. "Okay…" She said awkwardly. "What is it? If it's about eloping again, Ollie, we can't—"

"No." He cut her off. "No. It's not about eloping. As much as I want to marry you, I can't, not right now. I want you to think back to the last thing we did before we woke up this morning. The last memory you had of last night."

Hesitatingly, Laurel nodded, and closed her eyes. She tried to think back to her bachelorette party, trying to remember Sara dragging her out of the club like she said she had—

"Hey there, pretty bird." And there he was, the Hood, Green Arrow, whatever he was calling himself these days, standing right there. She could feel him smirking, and flushed.

Laurel stared at the black, leather suit in awe. "Where'd you get something like this?" She asked her mentor, who smiled knowingly.

"Again."

Laurel grumbled, but thrust the tonfa towards the dummy, blinking as it caved in the material at the point of impact. "I did it!" She cheered.

It's been ten years, and oh God, what was she going to say? 'Hey, I'm glad you're not stuck on an island anymore!' would definitely not go over well. She was panicking, she was panicking…!

"Hey." She turned around. He was there. He was smiling at her. She felt like she could cry.

But she wouldn't cry. He'd probably seen enough tears already.

"Hey." Laurel smiled back.

"The Dominators…!" Laurel choked out, looking at her fiancee, no—boyfriend, with wide eyes.

Oliver grimly nodded.

"This isn't real, Laurel."

Laurel turned her gaze towards the door, where she could hear the sounds of the party below. It was wrong, all of it, all of this—!

"None of it is real," she stated somberly. "We need to go, Ollie. We need to go now."

"Agreed."

And with that, he took her hand, fleeing the room post-haste.

Sorry this chapter took longer than usual. A combination of writer's block and distractions delayed me. As compensation, this chapter is about almost two thousand words longer than my average chapters.

As for this chapter, we now see the visions and the hold the Dominators have over Oliver and Laurel breaking. The final stab to the heart are their feelings for Nyssa. Oliver is in love with Nyssa, almost as much as he is in love with Laurel. Laurel isn't quite in love with Nyssa (yet), but she does have strong feelings for her. So, for Oliver, nothing makes sense until he sees not just Laurel, but Nyssa as well. Because if there is anything his mind knows subconsciously, is that he's in love with them both.

As for other aspects of the illusions, in this reality: Barry's parents were never killed so Barry became an award-winning scientist who will one day succeed Harrison Wells as the head of S.T.A.R. Labs. Iris became a model and journalist here, and without his insecurities, they started dating and got married earlier.

Slade, after the death of his first wife, met Shado, who was doing a residency in Australia after completing medical school. They got married, and now Shado is expecting their first child. Yao-Fei is alive as well, of course, as a venerated member of the Chinese military.

The bluish white crystal is a small piece of the Fortress of Solitude that broke off. The Fortress is still in dormancy, because Krypton never blew up. Both Kara and Kal are middle-aged Kryptonians living normal lives. Kara is a judge like her mother; Kal chose to join the military. They're both married to people by now, and have their own families.

Nyssa is a musician, because the al Ghuls (Raatkos) are an old music family instead of being assassins. Nyssa took over as Director of the company after Ra's got too old and Talia decided to start her own company.

Well, that's it for now. Wait for the next installment. I should have it out by the end of the week.

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