"Looks like Isabel has gone out of town" Oliver announced to the team after reading a message she sent out. He sighed deeply; this was the last thing he needed.
"At least we know Felicity doesn't have her." said Roy entering the Canary's old hide out. Absentmindedly he rubbed his head recalling the last time he was there. "Is this our new place?" asked Roy "Is this why you wanted to meet here?"
"I don't know why we are here…Sara?" asked Oliver.
"I was with Laurel when I got a message from you?" she said crossing her arms, walking towards him.
Digg raised his hands pleading innocent "Don't look at me. I came with him."
As the realisation that somebody wanted them all there hit them, the lights over six blocks north and eight blocks south of the clock tower shut down with no warning. They stood in the darkness looking over the city.
"Ollie?" whispered Sara into the dark.
Oliver's instinct took over, he stepped back until he felt the cold wall press against his back. They all followed suit one by one, eyes wide open, struggling to adjust to the sudden darkness that befell them.
The threat of danger made Sara's world slow right down until everything became a fluid dance. She learned to control her breathing, to concentrate on her surroundings, every noise, scent, movement an edge on her opponent, a clue.
Roy on the other hand was more a get out alive ask questions later kind of guy, he was ready to beat the shit out of anything that moved, the Mirikuru made it almost impossible react differently.
"The whole grid is out." Said Digg cautiously looking beyond the clock face, he needed eyes on the threat. His eyes darted and his ears strained to hear what was coming, he was ready to protect his team from anyone…just not Felicity, the thought ran through his head in a flash but it never formed a question. If she was behind this he would have to find a way to protect her from herself.
"Felicity?" Roy asked what everyone was thinking.
Digg shook his head.
Faint noises coming from downstairs had Oliver's attention. He stepped forward towards the bow and arrows Sara had under her makeshift table. As the moonlight hit his face he heard a soft gasp in his ear followed by Felicity's voice. The sound of her voice so close momentarily glued his feet to the ground.
"Oliver, don't speak, they can hear you, get back against the wall." her voice was calm. Oliver's frown carried a million questions but those questions didn't stop him from swiftly following her instructions.
"Q&A later ok." Felicity assured him. Oliver lips twitched upwards for a split second as he recognised how well she knew him. Without hesitation he nodded because he knew her just as well, well enough to trust her with his life, even if she had given him every reason not to. Oliver signalled to Digg, Sara and Roy to remain in place and wait for his signal to move.
Digg glared at Oliver, not liking their exit options and still unsure of what or who they were up against.
The noise grew louder as the threat grew closer. Marble stairs leading up the clock towers reverberated as they carried the full weight of what sounded like an army approaching.
Adrenaline flushed their bodies as they watched the door bulk, slowly being beaten down. Sara pushed off the wall towards the window looking for a way out but Oliver grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
"No" he growled.
"What are you doing? We got to get out of here" she said
"No, just wait, trust me" he said.
The triad devised a plan to obtain the Amazonian truth extractor. The Canary reportedly stole it from the man known only as Death Stroke.
China White was a business woman and it was her business to know everything that happened in Starling City.
She had heard reports of Death Stroke, another madman behind a mask seeking revenge. The Canary worked with The Arrow which provided China with enough incentive to strongly dislike her.
She would not let the Arrow leave with such a valuable object. The chump would only hand it over to the authorities. He never saw the dollar value in anything, the do-good-er types never did.
The triad's saw this job as an opportunity. They would not only obtain the extractor but also capture The Arrow or Mr Diggle, either or, it didn't matter, preferably alive. They were the only known leverage to gain another high value item currently on every crims wish list, Ms Smoak. It was no secret Smoak wanted revenge over her team; China was in the business of getting people what they wanted.
Their intel led them to the clock tower, China White led thirteen of the Triads best men, she knew what she was up against.
Not long after closing hours they took out the guards downstairs and replaced them with two of their own. They entered the elevator but it only carried them to the nineteenth floor when the elevator stopped and the lights went out. Forcing their way out they decided to stay on mission as it looked like the lights was a city wide problem and incredibly bad timing. They marched loudly up the marble stairwell to the 22nd floor. Normally they would be in and out without making a noise; the plan changed so did their strategy. The marble would echo no matter how quiet they tried to be so they used that to create fear.
They were met with a reinforced door, unable to kick it down they prepared to blast the lock. China instructed two men to climb out the windows one on each side, they were to surround them by entering through the clock face.
They stood back as the small explosive was attached to the lock.
"Oliver, there is an air vent behind you near the floor, get to the 18th floor. You will find your way down from there. You need to move now." Felicity's voice rose a little as she watched the two triads preparing to swing around both sides of the clock face.
"Roy, the air vent" said Oliver his voice full of urgency.
Roy ripped it out and threw it to one side as if it weighed nothing. They slipped out the vent and found one of the triad had landed on the edge of the clock face. Sara's instincts kicked in and she simply pushed him of the ledge before he could fire his weapon, it was almost comical.
Oliver's brows narrowed at her; there was no need to kill. They could have knocked him out but now wasn't the time for another discussion on right and wrong. Instead he fired his grapple arrow attaching it to one of the decorative columns.
"18th floor. Go" said Oliver throwing the bow to Sara.
Sara and Roy landed safely. Digg was about to make his way down, he stopped taking a couple of steps back to see what had caught Oliver's attention.
Through the vent they could see themselves standing in the middle of the clock tower and just as they exchanged a look of disbelief the door was blast open. They both grabbed hold of the bow attached to the grapple and swung down to meet Sara and Roy.
"What happened?" asked Sara
Gunfire and glass fell from a few floors above them; SWAT helicopters lights flooded the clock face as they ordered China and her team to get on the floor.
"No, no, no, damn it" yelled Felicity
"What?" Oliver asked Felicity but she didn't reply.
Sara looked at him confused so he told her he would explain later.
Roy was about to break into the building when he heard Oliver say "No, this way."
They skidded down a slanted scaffold trash shoot that got them to the ground floor. They kept their backs to the wall before running to the side street, keeping out of sight as the siren cries grew louder.
"Felicity?" asked Digg
Oliver nodded and turned to face Digg.
"She sent the Triad after us?" asked Sara
"NO, she helped us get out of there." Said Digg
"What…." Sara was confused but stop midsentence as Oliver turned around and started running down towards a white van.
They chased after him, and slowed down as they saw somebody standing next to the van. Black hoodie and fitted black jeans, the stranger's head was down. Sara took out her staff and Digg put his hand behind his back ready to remove the safety on his gun.
Oliver didn't stop his pace; the mystery person removed the black hoodie uncovering blonde waves and glasses. He slammed into her wrapping his arms around her. He kissed the top of her head, she seemed smaller than he remembered. For a long moment he just held her, breathing in her scent. She stood there motionless holding on to her tablet.
"I am sorry" her lips trembled. She was finally home. It had been days where her only friends were fear, anger and hurt. She was wrong and she didn't care who knew it, from the very beginning all she wanted was to be wrong.
The sharp pain that now shook her body, the numbness and cold that choked her was worth it, perhaps she even deserved it. It didn't matter because here, like this, surrounded by his warmth, this was home. It was just for a brief moment but all she could think about was how in this moment, in the middle of a dark city, on a dark street, she could let go because she made it home.
"Shhh" Oliver's voice brought her back to him.
"He didn't.. Oliver… Slade must have realised…." Felicity gasped the words out as the moonlight started to disappear taking the world and everything with it.
"Slade what? Are you ok?" he held her tight and then pulled back when he felt her full body weight fall against him.
"Felicity?" he didn't understand what had happened. He cupped her face with his hand. She looked so pale and pained, her eyes...her eyes watery like the deep blue sea. She tried to talk but words failed her.
"Oliver" his name managed to crawl out of her lips before her eyes closed pushing out tears as her head slumped against him.
"Felicity no! No, no…open your eyes. Please Felicity." Oliver begged her as his legs gave out and he crashed to the ground holding her tightly.
"Fe..Felicity?" said Digg seeing them both on ground.
Slade had shot an arrow at her back and he wanted to make sure Oliver knew it. "Oliver because we were once brothers I will make you another promise. The Arrow that ends you won't hurt as much as this one." Slade laughed through their comms.
They moved quickly, Roy and Digg stood in front of Felicity guarding her and Oliver from an enemy they could not see.
"Ollie" Sara's voice was a murmur in the edge of his consciousness. She shook him but he didn't see her.
His eyes were set on Felicity's face. She lay limp in his arms and he couldn't…couldn't understand. He couldn't function, tears blinded him, there was no air, he was only barely aware that his body trembled in pain.
'Go' he heard Felicity in his head. 'Move now' he heard her say again. Gasping he came back to a world of cold air, dark skies and Slade. He obeyed Felicity, even now lifeless she was still his lighthouse. He placed her in the van. Roy drove them to the nearest hospital while Sara and Digg worked on her.
"She wouldn't want to go to the hospital" said Digg shaking his head. He let out a little laugh as he could imagine her arguing with them, before he fought back tears.
"She is not wearing heels" said Oliver, that's why she seemed smaller.
"Oliver, Oliver" Sara yelled at him until he finally looked at her.
"Ollie, she still has a pulse. Do you hear me?..." She smacked his shoulder as hard as she could. "We need you. Ok? She needs you." her eyes pleaded with him, and she let out a deep breath when she saw her words finally registered in his mind.
