A/N: Hello Everyone, looks like we are near the end. Next week's chapter will 'hopefully' give Olicity their HEA. Thank you all for the comments and words of encouragement. They are a huge part of what makes me want to share my stories.

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"Daniel? Are you okay?" Oliver asked, as he rushed towards the man who stumbled into the attic; whose face was covered in blood splatter and camouflage grease.

"We must go, now! We've been compromised,"

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"Marie," Oliver said in surprise when he saw her standing guard at the entrance of the bar's loading dock as several of her men pushed the kitchen's stove to one side exposing a tunnel entrance.

She turned to look at Oliver, her face a mask of anger and concentration, then shook her head in response. She looked back out the door of the kitchen with her rifle at the ready. Blood saturating her pants from a wound on her leg.

Whatever happened tonight, it was bad Oliver thought.

"Collaborators. It hurts when your own country men become traitors," Daniel whispered as he came up from behind and lined up the crew by the mouth of a tunnel.

"This tunnel will take us across the street to another building. We must go,"

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Daniel led Oliver, his crew and two other resistance fighters through the tunnel that was connected to the city's sewage system. They surfaced behind a fake wall in an old deserted building and waited while Daniel and his men secured the perimeter and their awaiting vehicle.

In the thick of the night they were once again loaded into the back of a truck, with Daniel sitting guard, as it started and eased into the alley. As they made it a block away, gunshots could be heard from the direction of the bar.

Oliver could see Daniel's entire body tense as he quickly raised his rifle in reaction to the danger. Return fire could be heard as the truck picked up speed and they were forced to leave Marie, friends and fellow fighters behind.

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The discovery of the mysterious crucifix shaped object had been sent up the chain of command and within days, Felicity and her department were briefed on what they helped find.

British ground intelligence had been deployed to the area Felicity had pinpointed, Peenemunde, a German research site where they identified what would later become known as the V-1 unmanned flying bombs.

The "Mother" and "Genesis" of modern day long range cruise missiles.

The destruction of the V-1 facilities and infrastructure was prioritized and command ordered the commencement of a massive strategic bombing mission called "Operation Crossbow."

Allied forces would cripple the V-1 project, but not a year later the Germans resurrected the project and terrorized and killed over 40,000 Brits and made over two million homeless. Over 9500 flying bombs were unleashed upon Great Britain before the last V-1 site was overrun.

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"It is taking too long," Daniel whispered with concern from where he sat looking out the back of the truck. They had driven north of the city, towards a small fishing village, where they now sat waiting for one of Daniel's men to make contact with the captain of a vessel that would smuggle the crew out to sea. Plans were in disarray and they could only hope Marie's network could adapt.

When the resistance had been compromised the original plans to get Oliver and his crew out of Rotterdam had been forced up by two days. The Germans would assume the Americans would be taken south towards Belgium and then on towards Spain and so this is how Oliver found himself in the North.

A distinctive whistle came out of the night and Daniel whistled back.

"Let's go,"

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As the crew boarded the fishing vessel, Daniel pulled Oliver to the side and explained, "The captain of this vessel is a hero, Oliver. Once his boat hits British waters you are all spies. The plan was to rendezvous with a British Naval ship on Thursday, not tonight. They will not be expecting you. Do you understand?"

"Yes...I understand what you're saying. Daniel we can never repay you, Marie, all of you,"

"Survive. That is payment enough,"

####

Once the boat made its way towards open waters a wave of fog settled over them. No moonlight could be seen and the captain was forced to use his compass and detailed water maps.

Oliver could not stay below deck any longer. His dog tags burned where they lay nestled against his chest. He had briefed his men on the British not knowing about their arrival. They could only hope whoever they encountered would not shoot them on sight. American soldiers were instructed to keep their dog tags on their persons at all times. If they were caught by the enemy they would be considered prisoners of war and not spies if they had their dog tags and papers. The thing was, now Oliver was coming from enemy borders. Would the Allies talk first instead of fire upon a foreign ship entering their waters?

"Captain, may I sit with you?" Oliver asked the old man at the helm of the boat.

"For a while, then you must go down. Too dangerous up top," the man said after a moment's hesitation.

Oliver sat down on the worn stool that rested to the right of the captain's chair. The old man stared at him before looking back out towards the dense fog.

"My son used to sit in that stool,"

Oliver could hear the emotion in the man's voice and didn't know if he was meant to respond...

"He was all I had left after my wife died. The ravages of war is hard on all of us. I will try to get you home to your family. To your mother. Your father,"

Oliver had to look away as he tried to blink the tears from his eyes. Images of his mother, his family...ruby red lips and soft blonde curls...cascaded through his mind and he finally broke.

In the privacy of a stranger's boat Oliver fell apart. All the stress of keeping his hopes up in front of his crew and for himself...it overwhelmed him. They were so close to getting home. He was almost too scared to hope.

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Captain Tommy Merlyn and his crew were given a replacement plane and a new mission. "Operation Crossbow" was called early that morning and after the mission briefing everyone was ready to do some damage. He placed a small black and white photograph of Laurel, beautiful in her military uniform, on his dash and smiled as his crew went through their checklists and he started the engines of his flying fortress.

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"I have decided to travel towards the coordinates of my last handoff. Perhaps the Naval ship that patrols there recognize my boat," explained the captain as he turned his boat northwest.

"I'll bring my crew up, maybe if they see we have no weapons,"

"We can try,"

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Several hours later the fog had lifted and Oliver and crew watched the horizon for both enemy and allied vessels. The captain had hoisted both white and mariner distress flags up the mast of his vessel. If they did come across any ships they would consider the fishing vessel was in distress.

"Look!"

Oliver could see a boat coming from the British side of the channel. As it drew closer the old captain turned off his engines and walked out to stand with Oliver and his crew.

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A/N: Operation Crossbow was the actual name of the bombing campaign against the V-1. If you wish to know more about the incredible woman I based Felicity's character on, please look up Constance Babington Smith.