August 10th - 2014
Speed, agility, strength, Slade is my equal in every category, at least as far as physical enhancements. I've gotten better, but I'm still not a match for his skill and experience as a mercenary. My arm hangs limply at my side, numb from the first of many powerful strikes, my leg barely holding up my form as my body burns, the fire surging as it tries to repair its self. I could feel the exhaustion seeping deep into my bones as I dodged another strike deflecting and throwing him against a wall, our battle having moved from that rooftop into a small parking lot alongside a warehouse, thunder crackling above as the sky threatens to downpour.
"You have a lot of potential, six months of training, and you're able to stand against me." I'm hit by a powerful kick to the chest, my ribs bruising but not breaking this time as I'm sent backwards onto the ground, rolling as I tried to push through the pain of the impact.
"But it won't be enough, you can never stop me, Oliver certainly can't, the kid doesn't have the drive to kill, he lacks conviction." I manage to deflect another strike, but quickly take one to the gut, knocking the wind out of me again. His speed is unbelievable, it makes me wonder if he was holding back before against Oliver. I land hard against a truck, the tailgate shearing with the impact of my body against it gasping for breath, something shiny catches my eye and I grab it, desperate for some kind of weapon to give me an edge. Yanking it free from the box on top of it, I find myself holding a 1 1/2in wrench as big as my arm, the weight decent but not something I'd normally use other than that one time back home.
"You're right Slade, I don't have the experience to take you on, but there is one thing I have that you don't" I swing hard smacking the open end against his skull staying just out of reach.
"Science, engineering, ability, I'm not a fighter, I don't break things, I make them." I swing hard this time smashing against his arm at full force, the bone making a loud crack with the wrench vibrating like a bell in my hands making my sore arms hurt more.
"Anything you tear down I can build back up, stronger, better, more powerful!" I strike again, this time cracking several ribs. The battle seemingly turned in my favor, but it only lasted for a moment before he grabbed the wrench on my next swing, yanking me forward and grabbing me around the neck.
"All that bravado, all that spirit, it amounts to nothing!" I continued grabbing at my neck, my physical abilities keeping him from outright crushing my windpipe before he throws me to the ground, pinning me with his boot on my chest.
"First I will destroy this city that Oliver holds dear, his family, his friends, the place he protects, then I will find your family, your loved ones, and show you what it really means to face the dark as I did, you'll be just like me, stronger, more powerful, darker." I felt my ribs begin to buckle, the sharp pain in my chest making it incredibly difficult to breath. But I still had one ace up my sleeve as the rain began to fall around me, the sky filled with the very energy I needed to save myself, the power of science, the power that makes the entire world work. I began laughing, a manic grin on my face as he seemed confused, an arrow then strikes his shoulder and explodes, throwing him off me, the fire coursing through my body as I tapped into that endless well of energy reviving me, making it easier to stand again.
"You've forgotten something, Slade, I'm not just an uber like you, I don't just have enhanced physical abilities." I began to glow, the energy more powerful as the surrounding air became charged, lightning striking the ground and channeling toward my body.
"You think the only thing I did over there was train for control over my strength, my precision? No, I learned to do more than simply strike with electrical energy in my hands. I learned how to control the other half of my abilities, beyond strength, beyond agility, beyond everything you can throw at me." The energy collecting around my body began illuminating the surrounding area, energy condensing like a cloak around my entire form.
"The difference between you and I? You stared long into the abyss, you chose to let it consume you. Me? I illuminated it." Slade began backing away, unsure how to deal with this new threat, his sword was struck by electricity as I reached out my hand, quickly beginning to glow red-hot as he was forced to drop it.
"Even if you could reach them, You won't take my family, my friends, I won't let you!" I threw a condensed ball of plasma, the impact vaporizing the sword and turning the area around it into molten tar. I then reached out and felt the metal in his tools, his weapons, and began pulling on them, the force stronger than even his efforts at anchoring himself. I could feel Oliver ready to step in, the composite metals in his bow and arrows standing out amongst the industrial materials in the surrounding buildings.
I reached out, magnetizing the wrench and summoning it to my hand, the entire surface arcing like a tesla coil. Then I pulled again on Slade harder than before and swung the wrench again, this time discharging thousands of volts across his body while striking his arm as hard as I could, launching him into a solid steel beam. The entire thing bent with the impact weakening it as I felt my rage simmering, the energy had nowhere left to go since my target was now unconscious. Suddenly, lighting struck me from the sky, the energy shooting outward and discharging into the clouds as I collapsed onto my knees before falling unconscious. The next thing I knew, I was waking up in the arrow cave a few hours later, the others waiting for me to wake up as my body continued to repair the battle damage thanks to the mirakuru's abilities.
