Red Arrow collapsed to the sound of Shadow Thieves screaming.
He was on the roof, and Green Arrow was nearby. Their grappling hook- combined with the weight of the two able-bodied men- had torn a hole in the structure.
Now, sunlight was pouring in on the furious Shadows below.
"We can't rest here," G.A. informed him, "They're gonna send bounty hunters. And I have a feeling it won't take them long to find us now."
Red Arrow wanted to believe in what his former mentor was saying, and will himself up.
But he couldn't.
His ribs were broken. His wrist was broken. His leg was bleeding heavily.
And Roy was pretty sure he had at least a minor concussion.
"I can't," the ginger half-grunted.
"You can't?"
"I can't get up. Leave without me."
"Roy, you know 'I can't' do that."
Red suddenly lifted his head up. "Why? Because it isn't the morally 'right' thing to do? Is that it?"
G.A. seemed taken aback, "Why are you so combative?"
Red let his head drop. "I'm not," he lied. "I'm just stating why you're doing this."
"How do you know why I'm doing this?"
"Because," Red stated stubbornly, "You only care about that. You don't care about anything else. Anyone else."
The ginger could hear his former mentor crouch beside him. But he kept his gaze on the bright blue sky, and smelled the remnants of rain.
"Roy, I care about you."
Red snorted.
"No, I do- I'm sure of it."
"Then why didn't you stand up for me at the meeting, then? Why did you replace me?"
G.A. sighed, "It was a tough decision, Roy. I was only doing what I saw work. Not just for myself, but for the community."
"Artemis isn't good for the community," Red half-growled under his breath.
Just then, G.A.'s head peeked into the edge of Roy's vision.
"Roy, I need you to come with me. If something were ever to happen to you, I don't know what I could do. You're special to me Roy. I saw you grow up under my roof and become the person you are. I need you."
Red put a hand to his chest and turned to the side.
But his head fell into a shallow puddle of water. He lifted it and looked into the water.
His reflection showed a young man with a bloodied face. He had bruises and cuts and he looked tired and worn. There was pain etched into every line.
I look like hell, he thought.
Then he remembered G.A.'s reaction back in their cells.
"This is serious, Roy. You can't take them on again. I know you're mad at me but you have nothing to prove…"
He winced remembering his reaction: He had screamed at Green Arrow.
Then he remembered the green scarf that had saved his life.
"Was it you…?" he finally spoke, still mesmerized by his own broken reflection. "Was it you…who gave me the scarf?" he asked quietly.
Green Arrow hesitated from behind him,
"Yes. I got it when I teamed up with Batman and Robin to fight Mr. Freeze…After you left."
Red Arrow paused.
"Alright, help me up."
Green Arrow came from behind him and supported the younger man while he attempted to stand again.
A Shadow appeared from the fire escape on the other side of the roof.
It was the one that had taken down Red Arrow and his G.A., as well as the one Red had fought in the arena. Once more, it now had an apparent force field of sorts around its body, to protect itself from the sunshine.
The Shadow grinned, "Hello, Little Arrowssssss," it hissed with obvious glee.
Red Arrow felt Green Arrow's support fall away suddenly.
Ollie stood protectively in front of him, "You should know when to leave well enough alone," he called out sternly.
"Why don't you make me?" The Shadow taunted.
Red Arrow then realized that G.A. had no arrows. Heck, he didn't have a bow or anything to fight with. He stood there; practically bare, willing to take down the bounty hunter without protection.
"G.A.!" Red's dry voice wracked his throat as he barked at the man.
But before he could say more, a deafening sound filled the air.
The ginger looked up to see a helicopter fast approaching.
Green Arrow was looking up in its direction as well.
"That's our ride!" he shouted over his shoulder to Red.