Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize

Thank you to everyone who has favorited, followed, reviewed or viewed this fic so far.

Chaos Sorcerer: Thank you for the review. I guess bringing up LOTR anywhere is a talent of mine. I think I know what McKenna will try to do later. Yeah. Too bad about Tommy. I think Matt is a little bit of Tommy and a little bit of Diggle. Glad you liked the Stan Lee cameo. Let's see if I am able to include anymore. What's the idea for the Thor/Supergirl crossover? I'm all ears. That's one of your ideas I didn't think about. I have an idea about the Flash/Quicksilver thing you told me though. Tell me buddy. I'm interested. And by the way, I did something in this chapter that you had asked me to do twice.

Chapter 16- The Man Without Fear

In the lair, Dig was sparring with Matt. Only, Dig was punching while Matt was catching them with his thick pads as Oliver watched.

"You feel better?" Oliver asked him after he stopped.

"I'll feel better once we end Deadshot", said Dig.

"Amen", Matt agreed.

Later, Dig punched himself out and Oliver promised him, "We will. Diggle, we'll stop him. I promised you I'd help you take him down, and I keep my promises. But he's on the other continent."

"Not anymore", the three turned to Felicity, who was working on the computers, "I thought it would be helpful to track A.R.G.U.S.' manhunt for Floyd Lawton so I decrypted their communication logs. Which means I just hacked a federal agency", she paused, "Which kind of makes me a cyber-terrorist, which is weird because I really don't see myself fitting in well at Guantamo Bay."

"Don't worry Felicity", quipped Oliver, "They don't send blondes there."

"But you dye it, don't you?" Matt asked with a chuckle.

"I keep your secrets", Felicity said as she pointed at them in good humor.

"What'd you find?" Dig asked her.

"Deadshot is scheduled to meet with a potential new client here in Starling City", Felicity revealed, "Except the potential contract is bogus. Your friend Lyla is setting a trap for him. Lawton took the bait."

"Great", said Dig with a satisfied smile, "I'll talk to Lyla. See if I can suss any details out of her."

"Good", said Oliver before turning to Matt, "Come on."

"Yes", said Matt as the two walked out.

At CNRI, Laurel was working on her computer when Matt and Oliver walked up to her.

"Hi", Matt said to her as she got up and the two shared a kiss.

Laurel then looked at Oliver and the two greeted each other.

"We're really behind on some club paperwork since Tommy left", Oliver commented to them both.

"I'm still shocked he went to work for Malcolm", Laurel said to him as she walked to meet some clients as the two followed her, "You know, you were really understanding to let him take this opportunity. Tommy said you were cool with it."

Matt almost laughed humorlessly at that but instead it came out as a humorless chuckle.

"Why wouldn't I be? He's my friend", Oliver told them, "Like you two."

They stopped at the entrance where a family of three were standing.

"I'm sorry, are we early?" the man asked her.

"No, not at all", Laurel told them before making introductions, "Uh, Matt, Oliver, this is Eric Moore and his wife, Nancy. I'm prepping them for a deposition for tomorrow."

Matt and Oliver nodded politely before the latter pointed at the little child between them and joked, "And this must be your bodyguard."

"This is our son, Taylor", Nancy told them.

Oliver smiled at them all and said, "Well, it was very nice to meet you all. You're in very capable hands."

He then walked off as Matt shook hands with them and said, "Matthew Murdock."

"I think we have seen you on TV", Eric said to him as faint memories of Frank Castle's trial came to his head.

"Eric, Nancy, I want to make sure that you guys are up for this", Laurel told them, "Edward Rasmus isn't known for playing with kid gloves, so this could get rough."

"We invested our entire life savings with Rasmus and he stole it", Eric said bitterly, "Our retirement, Taylor's college fund. He stole our future, Ms. Lance. We want it back."

Matt clutched his stick tightly in anger at the plight of the small, innocent, happy family. But he knew about Rasmus. This could get really bad for them.

"Well, then let's go get it", Laurel said to them as she lead them inside.

"Laurel! Wait!" Matt stopped her by grasping her arm, "A word please."

"Fine", she said as she walked up to him.

"You're taking on a powerful person in court", Matt told her, "I think your clients should get some protection."

"We appreciate the concern, Mr. Murdock, but don't worry", Eric said to him, "If Rasmus kills us tonight, then he will be suspected. He's not that stupid."

Laurel walked off with them as Matt stood alone, thinking what to do. This family wasn't thinking about the consequences of their actions and that could lead to disaster as going against Rasmus wasn't child's play.

At night, Daredevil crouched on an apartment building in front of the apartment of the Moores. He had a feeling Rasmus would try to kill them, including their little son.

There was a knock on the door of Eric's apartment. Eric approached and called out, "Hello?"

"Mr. Moore", said the blurry figure of a man from the other side of the frosted door, "I have some documents for you from Ms. Lance related to tomorrow's deposition."

Eric opened the door and a tall, dark man with a well-tailored suit walked in, carrying a briefcase.

He looked around in approval and complemented, "What a nice home you have here."

He held the case in one hand and opened it, reaching inside, "You can really….. feel the love."

At that moment, a figure crashed through the window behind Moore and tackled him to the ground as the man fired two shots with his silenced revolver through the lid. The shots missed Eric due to Daredevil's intervention. Daredevil then got up and running up to the man, gave him a flying kick, sending him flying back by a few feet as the gun and the case fell down. Daredevil kicked the gun away and said to Moore, "Call 911! Go to your room with your family, and lock the door!"

Eric ran off as Edward's assassin, whose name was Mr. Blanks got up.

"Devil of Hell's Kitchen", Blanks said to him, "This is where I send you to the real Hell."

"Let's see who is punished today", Daredevil said to him.

The two then prepared to fight. Blanks tried to spin kick Daredevil but he ducked and jumped to a side. Blanks tried to kick again but Daredevil blocked with his elbow. Blanks tried to punch him but Daredevil blocked and punched him on the face. Blanks tried to punch again but Daredevil again blocked and gave him two more punches on the face.

Blanks tried to punch him twice on the face but he blocked both times and punched him on the face, making him stagger back. Daredevil tried to punch again but Blanks dodged. It had been a long while since Daredevil had been in a full-on boxing fight.

Blanks tried to kick him again but he dodged. Blanks then tried to punch him which he dodged by ducking. Blanks tried to spin kick him again but he ducked and spun around, blocking another kick with his hands and then leaning backwards to avoid another one.

He ducked again to avoid a spin kick and then flipped to avoid another. Getting up, Daredevil punched Blanks hard on the face, making him stagger back in pain and then Daredevil leapt in the air and gave him a hard flip kick, making him smash into the wall and fall down.

He got back up with a roar and tried to kick Daredevil who ducked again and then blocked with his elbows. He tried to kick Blanks who managed to grab his leg but Daredevil had wanted him to do that. Daredevil then gave him a left hook and a right hook and then tried to spin kick him which he avoided by ducking. With a flip, Daredevil freed his leg and then gave Blanks a backward kick on the face, making him stagger back.

Daredevil could end the fight any moment but he was enjoying a good boxing match after a long time. Plus, the family was safe and he had the fight in his bag. Daredevil then ran up to him and with a frontal flip, kicked him on the chin, making him spit out a wad of blood.

He then landed and gave Blanks two spin kicks in quick succession before flipping in the air and flip kicking him, making him fall down.

Blanks managed to get up again somehow. He ran up to Daredevil and tried to punch him again but he ducked and punched him in the abdomen and then on the face. He leaned backwards to avoid a punch from Blanks. He then grabbed Blanks' hand to block another punch and twisted it to restrain him. Daredevil then kneed him twice on the chest before pushing him away.

Daredevil then grabbed his head with his hands and putting him down, kneed him repeatedly on the chest, cracking his ribs. He then pushed Blanks away again. And then in a rotatory motion, Daredevil kicked Blanks in the abdomen, making him fall down.

Blanks got up again, but he was in too much pain to do anything. Daredevil grabbed him by the waist and lifted him into the air before slamming him down hard.

Daredevil then climbed on top of him and punched him repeatedly on the face very hard. Blood started pouring out from the wounded man's mouth as his vision blurred and he finally lost consciousness. Daredevil then slowly stood up and gave a satisfied sigh.

At the docks, some cars pulled up as men got out of them. Their leader was a Russian who called himself the Chechen. A truck stopped in front of them as some men got out of them but one man remained inside and watched them from the darkness.

The Chechen's men pulled out a man from their car who was mumbling uncontrollably and shaking with fear.

"Look what your drugs did to my customer", the Chehcen said to the man in the darkness.

The man then walked out of the truck. The Chechen and his men gasped at his horrifying appearance. He wore a burlap mask that showed only his eyes and mouth while topping it off with a hat and a cloak.

He seemed to look like a scarecrow. But that was his alias after all.

"I said my compound would take you places", he told the Chechen, "I never said they'd be places you want to go."

"My business depends on my customers", the Chechen argued.

"You don't like my stuff", Scarecrow said to him, "Find another buyer. But wait! There are no sellers of my stuff in Starling City. And Vertigo was the next best thing but it has been ended unfortunately."

The Chechen suddenly pulled out a gun on him and said, "Make this compound better. Men should only go places they want to go."

"Oh!" Scarecrow said to him as he slowly raised his hands. He suddenly activated the fear-inducing hallucinogen on his wrist and sprayed the entire thing on the Chechen and his men, making them cough and splutter around in confusion.

They looked up and screamed in horror at what they saw.

"THERE'S NOTHING TO FEAR!" said a giant demonic scarecrow to them as he towered over them and looked down on them. His hands elongated like vines and the tips of his fingers had claws protruding from them. Bats spluttered around his head.

"BUT FEAR ITSELF!"

Next day, Oliver walked out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist as the man on the TV spoke the news.

"Starling City is expected to be host of this year's Festival of Lights exhibition. In other news, a man tried to kill Mr. and Mrs. Moore and their son who were being represented by attorney Laurel Lance of CNRI in a lawsuit against financier Edward Rasmus but were saved by Daredevil who defeated the man and now he has confessed that he was there to kill them on behalf of Edward Rasmus, whom the police have now arrested."

Oliver gave a satisfied smirk at his friend's heroism but was disturbed by what the anchor said next.

"A Russian gangster known only as the Chechen and his men were found yesterday night, gasping and shuddering on the docks. It seems they have had a traumatic experience. Their behavior is eerily similar to the ones affected by Vertigo. But the symptoms they are showing resemble those of people who have been poisoned in the past by the fear-inducing hallucinogen developed by Doctor Jonathan Crane aka the Scarecrow, a dangerous criminal from Gotham City who uses the drug to scare people to death."

Oliver had heard of all the nutjobs in Gotham City. That place made Starling City look like a vacation spot in comparison. Matt had already faced two of their heavy hitters- Two-Face and Killer Croc.

But Scarecrow was really dangerous with that hallucinogen.

Later, Matt and Oliver walked into the lair where Felicity and Diggle were working hard.

"What's this?" Oliver asked them.

"Lyla's mission profile on the trap they've set for Deadshot", Felicity told him.

"Lawton is set to meet his new employer and get his new assignment tomorrow at 8 P.M.", Dig told them, "Only, his new employer will be an A.R.G.U.S. agent, and then, Lyla will swoop in with her team and arrest him."

"Do you want Lawton arrested?" Matt asked John.

Dig considered the question for a few second before answering, "No."

"Then tomorrow night, we cross Lawton's name off your list", Oliver told his friend, "But did you watch the morning news?"

"I did", Felicity told him, "You rock, Matt!"

Matt gave a flattered smirk at that but he knew what Oliver was referring to, "I think he is talking about the incident at the docks."

"Oh!" said Felicity.

"So are we going to try to stop Scarecrow instead?" Dig asked them in a neutral tone.

"No!"

All the heads in the room turned to Matt. He looked very confident and calm. If he could use his eyes, there would be determination in them.

"Go with John, Oliver!" Matt told his friend and fellow vigilante, "Leave Crane to me."

"You think you can handle him alone?" Oliver asked just to be sure.

"I have handled 2 nutjobs from Gotham City", Matt said but then he felt all of them looking at him as he was missing something.

"Okay!" said Matt, "Spider-Man helped me. But Dent was a crime boss with an army while Croc was a giant, man-eating, superhuman crocodile. Crane is neither."

"He has the fear toxin", Oliver pointed out.

"I'll handle it", Matt said confidently, "You two need to get Lawton."

Oliver decided there was no point in arguing with Matt anymore and said, "All right. Just be careful when you face them."

"I will", Matt said to him, "You two be careful too."

Matt and Oliver then shook hands firmly as John nodded at the former.

That night, Daredevil jumped from rooftop to rooftop, stopping occasionally to save someone from being mugged or to stop any thieves or robbers. But he did not know at the time that he was going to be put through a test.

Scarecrow was in the docks with his men. He had managed to get a few customers. These were the men who had worked for the Count and had managed to escape when he had been arrested.

The drug had been given to the Count's former thugs and they were paying the money. Of course, illegal activity in the docks now regularly attracted the attention of vigilantes. This time was no different.

Daredevil was crouched on top of a crate, hearing the thugs. Their heartbeats, their breath patterns, their voices. Being in this position reminded him of 2 years ago, when he had crouched on the top of a crate in the docks of Hell's Kitchen. He had worn a black suit back then. He had fought Turk Barrett and his men and saved some women who would have otherwise been sold for sex trafficking.

That had technically been the second time he had solved things like a vigilante. But that had been the first time he had gone up against a bunch of thugs and prevailed. So that had been a test for him.

Little did he know that he was going to face another test now, just not a physical one. Like on that night, Daredevil leapt down from the crate and punched one of Scarecrow's men on the jaw, knocking him out as some blood flowed from his mouth.

He then rose and heard the footsteps of another thug rushing towards him, his heart beating fast due to adrenalin. Daredevil ducked to avoid a punch and then punched him in the abdomen instead before punching him on the knee, making him kneel. He then gave him a flip kick on the face and he was out.

The Count's men had seen him in action on the night the SCPD had arrested the Count. They knew that fighting him would make them get a piece of what their fellow thugs had received that day. Or what Scarecrow's thugs were receiving now.

They bolted and drove away in their cars, not wanting to face the Devil, even if he was not in Hell currently.

Two men attacked Daredevil from both sides. He ducked to avoid their punches before he swept one's feet from under him and turning around, gave the other one a spin kick, knocking him out. He then kicked the one whose feet he had swept and he was out too.

He then heard a thug cautiously try to approach him. He rapidly withdrew his club and threw it on his face, knocking him out due to the blunt force trauma. The club returned to him and he put it back inside.

He could hear someone else running to him, ready to punch. Daredevil spun around and quickly blocked the fist. He knew who the man in front of him was.

"Crane!"

"I am not Crane. I am fear", Scarecrow said. His other hand was already raised, even before he had ran up to Daredevil to punch him. All part of the tactic. He slammed his head on the device on his wrist and then it happened.

The fear toxin had been activated. And it hit Daredevil point blank. The vigilante involuntarily loosened his grip and the maniac was freed. But he was the kind of maniac who liked seeing how his extraordinary work affected the people it was used on. So he just stood there, watching its effects on the Devil of Hell's Kitchen.

Daredevil could feel his senses overload after getting the toxin. He was shaking, swaying, coughing, gasping and shivering, all at the same time. He felt like he was drowning in an ocean. His head felt like it was about to explode from everything it was receiving through his senses.

He was on his knees know. He tried to crawl away, thinking somehow it will grant him reprieve. As his hands fumbled on the ground, they touched someone lying there already. A human.

Matt then crawled till his face was above that of the person on the ground. As he touched the figure's chest, he felt a warm liquid flowing from the person.

Blood!

The man was not moving. Not one bit. He was dead. No heartbeat.

But suddenly, he shook violently. Matt removed his hand in shock. Matt couldn't see but he felt that the man's eyes had snapped open.

"Matty!"

The man spoke with a voice Matt recognized as clearly as his own heartbeat.

"Dad!"

"Matty!" Jack said as he gasped for breath, "Using your fists to solve all your problems, huh? The one thing I told you to never do. And that's the one thing you DID."

"I had to do something, dad", Matt said, as he crouched on the ground, "I had to."

"Then why didn't you do anything to save me?" his father asked, "You could have. You didn't kill the man who murdered me either. I am ashamed of you."

"I am not a killer!" Matt defended himself again.

"Really?" asked a Japanese voice which Matt hated with every fiber of his being.

"Nobu!" Matt said angrily.

Nobu kicked him on the chin and he was thrown away. As he lay on the ground, Nobu stood over him and he twirled his Kyoketsu-shoge.

"You threw me off the roof in a fit of rage, remember?" Nobu reminded him, "One might say you were the Devil in that moment. Playing judge, jury, executioner. You didn't care if I lived or died."

And with that, Nobu roared and brought down the Kyoketsu-shoge on his abdomen, making him roar in pain.

"I told you, Red", Frank roared as he walked over to him, "You are just one bad day away from being me. I told you. But you didn't listen. I was right."

Matt grabbed his head in agony and screamed loudly. He wanted this to stop. All the guilt, all the shame, it was hitting him more than it had ever before.

"I am so disappointed in you, Matty", Stick said to him, "You are a failure!"

"Still haven't come to your senses, have you Matthew?" asked Elektra as she stood over him, "You abandoned me and you did not take the life of your father's killer. And you left me because I wanted you to kill him. I wanted that so that you could make your peace with that incident."

"ELEKTRA! STOP!"

"AND YOU LET ME DIE!" she roared at him, "NOBU KILLED ME AND YOU DID NOTHING!"

"YOU WERE TAKEN FROM ME!" Matt told her, "HE KILLED YOU!"

And then adopting a softer tone, Matt said with tears in his eyes in a shaky voice, "I couldn't do a thing to save you. I am sorry, Elektra. I am so sorry."

"You could have saved her, you know?" said a voice exactly like his, just more cruel and vindictive in tone.

Matt smelt blood. The figure who shared his voice now stood over him.

"You are afraid!" the figure said to him, "You lack the will to do what is necessary. You are a coward! Hear me! I am you, just without those stupid morals! I can kill without remorse, I am the one who can make a change, not you!"

"No", Matt argued as he shook, "I'll never be you. You're a monster."

He didn't get any retort. This time, he heard a thud.

Someone had fallen right in front of where he was kneeling. It was a woman. She was gasping for breath. Matt smelt blood and realized she had been stabbed brutally.

"Matt!" her voice said.

"Laurel?!" Matt said in shock as his voice trembled. He stroked her cheek and asked, "H-How?"

"Because you failed!" she said in a weak, dying voice, "You didn't do what you should have."

"You are weak!" the killer Matt said to him, "You are pathetic!"

Laurel then passed out in his arms. Not moving one bit. But at that moment, he felt something in the back of his head. Something that had been pushed to the back of his head ever since Elektra had died. Something that he had heard.

"Sometimes, even when you get knocked down, you can still win."

Matt slowly clenched his hands into fists. He lifted his face up. Turning it to where the killer Matt was standing, he said, "I might reach my breaking point one day. I might snap. I won't deny it. But I'll never be you. You are a monster who enjoys murder. You kill them because you are pleased by their death throes. You are even pleased by the sounds of their bones cracking. I am not that person. If I ever do it, I will never enjoy it. I am not a murderer."

Turning to Frank, he simply said, "I still have one day at least."

Turning to Stick, he said, "You wanted to make a soldier out of a boy who only wanted the love of a father. Like the father he had lost. Just because I am not what you wanted me to be doesn't mean I am a failure."

Turning to Nobu, he said, "I may have tried to kill you, but you have killed millions without remorse. Children! You do not get to judge me for my righteous anger."

Turning to his father, he said, "I was a little child back then. I couldn't have done a thing. I didn't even understand what was going on. And I didn't kill him, because that would make me no different from him."

Turning to Elektra, he said, "We fought him together. You chose to stand by me. You chose to sacrifice yourself. And in your last moments, you said, 'This is what it feels like…. to be good. This is not the end.' I am sorry I could not save you. I will forever be haunted by your death. It was my failure. But I am done blaming myself and thinking of 'what-ifs.'"

And then finally, he turned to Laurel and said, "I will never let you down. I promise. I won't fail you like I failed the others."

And with that, he rose up, slowly, until he was no longer kneeling, but standing. He took a deep breath and now stood still. The hallucinations were gone and his senses were back.

"No! No!" Scarecrow said in a maddened rage, "How? What are you?"

"I am Daredevil", said the vigilante in a tone laced with deadly calm, "The Man Without Fear."

And with that, he roared and leapt into the air, giving Scarecrow a flying kick. Scarecrow flew back by a few feet and his back crashed against a crate. He fell down, unconscious.

Daredevil exhaled sharply several times and then stood still, satisfied with himself. Like that night from 2 years ago, he had passed the test laid in front of him again.

Next day, Matt sat quietly in the lair, deep in thought, contemplating the events of the previous night.

"Matt!"

Felicity's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, "You okay?"

He had told her about his battle with Scarecrow, but he hadn't told her about being sprayed by the toxin.

"Yeah", Matt assured, "I'm fine."

"Okay", said a convinced Felicity.

Matt then heard two familiar footsteps and heartbeats.

"Oliver and John are back", he said as the two rose.

The two walked in.

Matt shook hands with them and asked, "So? Did you get him?"

Diggle, for some reason, grunted at his question.

"No", he said finally.

"Lawton got away", Oliver said grimly, "Barely."

"I am sorry, John", Matt extended his sympathies.

"No problem, Matt", John assured him, "He came prepared. We couldn't have known."

"I promise you, John, one day, we'll get him", Oliver said to him sincerely and John nodded, knowing that Oliver would never go back on his word.

Turning to Matt, Oliver said, "I heard you got Crane last night. Congratulations, you're the hero again."

Matt accepted with a humble smile, pushing the hallucinations to the back of his head.

Oliver and John seemed to be in a bad mood so he felt a pang of guilt at what he said next.

"Crime rates are increasing in Hell's Kitchen again", Matt said with a guilty sigh.

"Oh!" said Oliver in a neutral tone.

"So you're gonna go?" Dig asked.

"Hell's Kitchen needs me", Matt said to them.

"You're right, Matt", Oliver told him sincerely, "It does need you. Go."

Matt nodded gratefully and made a sincere promise of his own, "I will help you in stopping this archer from destroying the Glades. I promise!"

Oliver and Dig accepted with nods and then Matt walked out of the lair.

The Dark Archer stood alone in a dark warehouse. Hearing footsteps behind him, he realized the one he had contacted had come.

"Mr. Yamura", he said as he turned around.

Yamura gave him a short bow as a sign of respect. The Dark Archer returned it.

"So I take it you have decided to accept my offer", the Dark Archer said to the Blue Talon.

"I have", the Blue Talon said, "I am not a fan of killing random targets. I am like my master- Damon Dran. He likes destruction, so do I. So this is something I will help you with. And Mr. Merlyn knows what he has to do, right?"

"He does", the Dark Archer told the Blue Talon, "After the Glades are destroyed, he will give the blueprints of the Makrov device to you which you can give to Mr. Dran. I think he will like destroying something with it."

"Good", said Blue Talon.

"And you know", the Dark Archer said, "He has decided to send another person with you for the job. You'll like him.

Arkham Asylum, Gotham City

The Dark Archer easily used his stealth and evaded all security. He then reached a medical facility inside it. In there was a giant man, with a luchador mask on his face. There was a storage tank on his back and there were tubes connected to it.

"Wake up!" the Dark Archer said and the man's eyes opened.

"What do you want?" he asked the Dark Archer.

"I want you to do something for me", the Dark Archer said, "In return, you are getting something you crave for. So I hope we have a deal, Bane!"

Hope you liked this. I tried to do my best here. It was pretty hard to write but I hope I did a decent job.

I think that the best way to give Matt his other famous title was to bring in Scarecrow himself. The hallucinogen affects different people in different ways. I think Matt's greatest fears are- becoming a heartless killer, facing the loved ones he failed and losing someone else close to him.

But I read an old Batman comic in which he managed to overcome it with his will power so that's what I did here. Daredevil is 'The Man Without Fear' because he overcomes the fear and masters it with courage.

And I would like to tell Chaos Sorcerer that I used a fight scene of Boyka from 'Undisputed 2: Last Man Standing' in the fight between Matt and Blanks.

I know Deadshot still escaping sucks and the fact that I didn't cover it makes it worse but let's just say I have reasons for that and I could not think about writing a way of his escape which makes perfect sense to everyone. Hope you don't mind.

I hope you liked the fight scene between Matt and Mr. Blanks.

Next chapter will include 1x21 and some incident in Hell's Kitchen.

Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.