A/N: One more episode to go! It took a little longer than expected to get this chapter up and ready, but here it is at last!
Synopsis: Oliver is forced to face one of his biggest nightmare as Slade returns to Starling City and holds Felicity captive at QC. Meanwhile, Diggle finds himself in the middle as Lyla decides to stop Floyd Lawton at ARGUS headquarters.
3x22: Metamorphisis
"Never have a change of heart when it's already too late, honey," Malcolm sighed chidingly. "I've told you that. Ms Deleon had to die... so that your destiny could be fulfilled. And, well, there were past sins I couldn't overlook from her father's betrayal."
Thea slowly backed away from her father and the ghastly scene as she watched him in a whole new light. She felt as if the veil that had concealed the truth from her all these months had finally been pulled away and let the garish sun inside. Everything seemed crystal clear and she hated herself for having falling for the ploy in the first place. "... You played with my mind! And I believed in you! But the truth is... that you're the reason Tommy's dead. Tommy died in your Undertaking... and Walter? Did my step-dad die because you ordered Jane's death? It wasn't some random assassin, was it? He was hired by you, all along."
The implications of her words flashed through his eyes for a second before Malcolm raised his own walls sky-high. Whatever pain he felt in seeing his daughter distance herself from him, he masterly hid behind a growing scowl, "Those deaths were not intentional, Thea. But if we're playing this game; I also killed Robert Queen...That was intentional. Your father tried to oppose my plan of the Undertaking, I couldn't have him opposing me."
"The Queen's Gambit went down because of you..." Thea muttered as the truth hit her square across the chest like a punch. "... And all this madness because you lost your wife?"
"Her death was fuel for my soul, Thea!" Malcolm passionately declared. "I lived through a crucible, but I didn't let it break me! As you never broke after yours! We returned to Starling too soon, I think. Allowingthat boyto get to you... so now he has to die. Give me time and you'll see I'm right, Thea."
Roy stumbled back onto his feet as he saw Malcolm once more aim the gun at him. Roy swallowed past the bile in his throat and held his head high. For some reason his heart didn't race, and he didn't feel afraid. He felt ready to die if he had to, though he had no desire to leave Thea like this. Alone and distanced from everyone who loved her. His gaze trailed over to find Thea's wide, shocked eyes gazing back at him, a silent apology echoing in the bottomless pools.
Malcolm pulled back on the trigger. Fear brightened Thea's eyes and in that second, everything seemed to stop.
Before Merlyn could fire the weapon, however, the window next to them shattered as a dark, lean shape swooped into the room. A loud, metallic shriek pierced the silence that followed and several windows and glass walls in the office shattered due to the piercing noise. Malcolm, Roy and Thea all covered their ears and ducked to the ground.
Roy managed to raise his head towards the figure and sighed a breath in relief. Standing in the middle of the shattered glass, a few feet in front of him, was a black-clad woman with a long, blonde wig and a mask to cover her identity. The Canary had returned. In her steady left hand, the woman held a familiar sonic device that created the nasty, high-pitched sound that pierced their eardrums. With a flick of the wrist, the woman turned the device off and swirled her long Escrima stick to a defense position.
Thea was the first to recover as everything fell silent. She scrambled to her feet and threw herself towards her father before anyone could react. Malcolm stumbled and the gun fell from him hands, clattering loudly against the tiles.
"Thea!" Roy breathed and shot up from the ground. The Canary raised her hand and glanced back at the young man, willing him to stay behind for now.
Roy faltered as he gazed at the strong profile. That wasn't Sara. He frowned as realization slapped him hard across the jaw. "Laurel?!"
Laurel's pale eyes shone with pride as a sly grin swept across her lips. Within a heartbeat, the smirk was wiped from her face as she breathed, "We're about to have company," Laurel unclasped a baton that she had attached to her right thigh and held it out towards the younger man expectantly. "Can you use one of these?"
Roy nodded as he accepted the weapon. He weighed it in his hands and met the woman's eyes. "I've been expanding my arsenal."
He didn't have the chance to do anything else as several armed men barged into the large office, armed with semi-automatics trained at Roy and Laurel.
The pale corridor was eerily quiet and deceivingly calm as Oliver stalked through the abandoned QC. His bow was raised and at the ready, his hands steadfast and tense at the inevitable future before him. His feet moved determinedly towards his goal. One thing, and one thing only, occupied his mind; The safety of Felicity Smoak. He needed to find her and get her away from Slade. He'd already been too close to losing her to his nemesis twice in the past, and he'd be damned if anything happened tonight.
He rounded a corner and picked up his speed. He entered Felicity's old office and his gaze flew around the small, familiar room. Aside from all the computers and devices, the room was empty. On the floor before him lay Felicity's discarded tablet, cracked and broken down the middle. Oliver grimaced at the sight and sucked in a deep breath. Where the hell were they?
"This feels familiar, doesn't it, kiddo?" Slade's voice drawled over the earpiece and Oliver stalked out of the office.
"Where are you keeping her?!" Oliver growled as he proceeded to kick down office doors in search of his personal demon.
Slade chuckled over the open comm line. "First time I held your Felicity hostage, I realized she was a very lovely creature." Oliver's grip tensed around his bow as he heard a faint whimper follow the sentence in the background. Oliver picked up his speed as he searched the IT-floor. "When I had her in Lian Yu, I finally saw the true allure to her. Her strength... in body and soul. You've found quite a rare flower, brother."
Oliver was running down the corridor now, his fast strides echoing in rhythm to his increasing heart beat. He tried listening for any sounds to reveal Slade's location, but the corridor was dead silent. Wherever they were, it wasn't in the IT department. Panic clutched at his chest and heart, tightening its grip a little more with each breath. "Let her go, Slade! It's me you're after!"
"She's not a pawn anymore, kiddo," Slade's raspy voice clarified and the raw emotion made Oliver falter. Slade's voice dropped an octave as he continued, "Blondie's just as much a player as you are... And you are both about to lose."
Oliver ran over to the door at the end of the hall and kicked it open. He entered the staircase and ran upwards as he tried to suppress the dark thoughts that threatened to overtake him.
Lyla fastened the Kevlar west around her midriff as John approached her. A gentle hand on her elbow and he guided her away from the small mass of A.R.G.U.S agents preparing for the fight. A strange determination spread across her soft features as she gazed up at her partner. John could tell her mind was focused on the task ahead, a face he'd seen so many times before in Afghanistan all those years ago. She was a soldier, through and through. But there was something different about her gaze these days. Her movements were sharper and the gleam in her eyes suggested a shadow John had barely glimpsed outside of A.R.G.U.S. He hated the implications of what this place might have done to her over the years they'd been separated. The things this place might still do.
"Are you ready?" Lyla asked in a brisk tone as she checked her Sig Sauer.
John turned the table back on her. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Lyla brushed off his concern with a feigned smile. "But we have to stop the Suicide Squad before they can do any irreparable damage."
"Lyla..." John trailed off, uncertain what he wanted to say or ask. There was a wall between them suddenly that he knew Amanda Waller had helped create, and he wasn't certain how to climb over it. "What's wrong?"
"This happened on my watch, John," Lyla replied tersely and John couldn't help but be relieved she wasn't shutting him out. For him, she wore her heart on her sleeve. "Waller's dead and now everything might collapse. Everything she worked for."
"Maybe that's not such a bad thing," Diggle suggested in a low voice. "Waller wasn't exactly good of heart, you know. Questionable, at best."
"She was still my boss," Lyla argued fiercely. "The one giving orders. And this is me... giving you an order, Johnny. We have to stop Lawton and the rest of Task Force X from getting out."
John frowned as his eyes trailed over the agents in the room around him, minding their own business with cold exteriors. "By what means? You clearly don't want to kill them or you'd just have pulled the switch on the chips in their spines. You're not Waller, honey."
"The only reason I haven't made that order yet is because I know the explosions would endanger everyone else in this building," Lyla hissed in response and John did a double-take at the sincere tone in her voice.
Lyla's gaze fell to the floor for a second before she spun around to face the armed team before her. The men and women awaited her command and Lyla sharply nodded her head, "Let's do this. Head out."
Laurel activated the sonic device again and the armed men covered their ears in pain, some even dropping their weapons in the process. As the metal clattered against the tiles, Roy flew forwards. He wielded the black baton at two of the closest men and nearly caught them unprepared. Laurel shut off her device and threw herself forward into the fight as well.
The enemies seemed somewhat dazzled by the effect of the piercing noise, but recovered quickly enough to duck out of the way from her Escrima staff. Laurel was prepared for it, however and swiftly crouched down to swipe their legs out from under them. As the two men fell to the ground, she turned around to the next set of men.
Roy threw himself out of the way as one of his opponents opened fire in his direction. He crouched low behind a desk and ducked as the bullets flew above his hideout. Seconds later he heard a stunned shout as the bullets seized and Roy dared to peek out from behind the desk. Laurel had knocked out the man and Roy hastened to return to the fight.
He grabbed hold of one of the men and vaulted over the man before he could react. Coming to stand behind him, Roy used the baton to strike at the man's ribs and back, ending the fight with a firm kick.
As the battle raged on before them, Malcolm pushed away from Thea and onto his feet. His blue eyes shimmered with something dark and mysterious. Pride blended with disappointment, his heart as always in conflict. Thea slowly rose as well and held her dad's gaze firmly.
At length, Malcolm shook his head. "So this is how it ends, Thea? You back down?"
"I'm not backing down, dad," Thea disagreed vehemently as she moved into a fighter's stance. "I'm taking a stand. For myself."
For a second, Malcolm merely gazed at his daughter as emotions swirled through his open gaze. Thea kept her chin high, hoping he couldn't read the conflict in her own heart. As he threw her one final smirk, she knew she hadn't succeeded however. With a flick of his wrist, Malcolm whipped a small item out from his sleeve. In a heartbeat, he'd thrown it to the ground and thick, dark smoke rose from it, hiding him from Thea's sight. The room quickly filled with the dark curtain of smoke and Thea heard Roy cough in the distance.
After a couple of seconds, the smoke settled over the office. Thea glanced about. Malcolm was nowhere in sight. Thea felt a tug at her heartstrings. This wasn't how she'd wanted things to go down, nor how she had ever expected herself to act. Still, she felt no remorse as she turned towards Roy and Laurel. The two of them towered over their opponents that had all been knocked out.
"Are you guys alright?" Thea asked, her voice more frail than she'd been prepared for.
Roy nodded in her direction as she stumbled towards him. "You?"
Thea gripped onto his elbow as her eyes lingered on the unconscious men scattered across the floor and the glass shards that seemed to frame them. "Yeah... Yeah."
Laurel stepped towards them then, pulling them both back to reality and the moment at hand. "We have to get out. We shouldn't linger. We have to get to the lair and regroup. Find out where Merlyn went."
"He won't be returning to the hotel, that's for sure," Thea muttered.
Laurel grimaced. "Let's go."
"Come on, let's go, let's go!" Quentin ordered as he waved his hands at the troops behind him.
Ten police men and women dressed in heavy combat gear gathered around the hood of a ground vehicle situated just outside the skyscraper of Queen Consolidated. A police line kept the large, curious crowd at bay as they gazed up at the illuminated building. Quentin gazed at each one of his soldiers as he pointed out the plan for them.
"Remember, we do not want to alarm people," Quentin explained. "Most people here already believe there's been an anthrax attack on QC today, let's not add fuel to the fire, people."
"Captain?" a woman asked as a frown settled on her face. "The STAR Team already have the chemical attack under control, don't they? And the building's been evacuated."
"The anthrax wasn't real. My sources tell me it was all a scheme to cover up a hostile takeover," Quentin growled and decided to settle for a half-truth. "Simon Cross already confessed and we know the STAR team inside the building is made up of his people. None of them actually work for the fire department. They're trying to take over Queen Consolidated and that's why we have to move quickly. By my estimation, they already have about twenty men within the building. Possibly more. We have to stop them from taking control."
"What about the Arrow, Captain?"
Quentin pursed his lips as he glanced up at the tall, proud building not far behind the patrol car. "He's already on it. Come on, let's move in."
Oliver opened the door to the 13th floor and held his breath. The whole floor was dark and seemingly abandoned, but there was something about it that didn't seem right about it. His gut was telling him he was onto something and so he listened. Faintly, he thought he could make out a low whimper in the distance. He listened another second and heard the noise again. He shut the door behind him and stalked onto the floor.
He stepped firmly down the corridor in the direction of the sound, following the bread crumbs to his target. He raised his bow as he slowed down his steps. He could make out the sounds more clearer now. A low, distant growl intermingling with whimpered sobs. Oliver had to push down hard on the beast in his chest that wanted nothing more than to jump forward and claw at his enemy. He couldn't let himself lose control like that, not unless he wanted to lose Felicity forever.
Instead he tried to keep a tight rein on his emotions as he deliberately walked forward. It didn't take long for Oliver to realize where he was heading. He was walking straight towards his new office, where he worked for the charity foundation. It seemed fitting for the trap to lead him straight to the den like this, but still he pressed onwards.
He stopped in the open doorway to the office and gazed into the sea of darkness inside. Long shadows stretched and spread across the room as the lamps above remained dead. Lights from the city outside gave him just enough light to see the shapes ahead, though. By the window furthest away from him, he saw two shadows and he could clearly make out Felicity's quiet sobs now. Oliver's fingers flexed on his bow as he aimed straight.
The lamps fluttered overhead and the room once more bathed in the light. The brightness startled Oliver's eyes momentarily, but he soon adjusted.
The first thing he saw was Felicity's frightened eyes gazing back at him across the abyss. Oliver quickly took in her disheveled, shocked appearance. She seemed unharmed. Her blouse and pants were whole, but something about her still seemed quite roughened up. There was a small cut on her lips, and a glaring red trail of blood just beneath her mouth that nearly drove Oliver over the edge.
Slade had done this to Felicity for a reason, Oliver knew. It was meant to entice and provoke him into acting irrationally. It took more willpower than expected for Oliver to keep himself from fulfilling Slade's every wish right then and there and reveal the monster that dwelled within.
When Oliver's gaze finally travelled to Slade's, it was only to find the man smiling back at him victoriously. "I see you found us at last, Oliver."
Diggle had his gun at the ready as he hurried in Lyla's footsteps down the grey, dull corridor to the holding cells in section B. Up ahead, they could make out sounds of a commotion from around the corner. Knowing Lawton, Diggle had a feeling the man was already fighting as if his life depended on it. John had no idea what was going on or why Lawton had decided to act like this. He wanted to know, but the same didn't seem as important to Lyla.
Her face was set in stone as her shoulders tensed and she ordered them to a halt.
"Remember," Lyla breathed as she turned around to face her small group of agents. "Do not try and throw a smoke bomb into the middle - they've already thrown it back at our troops twice. It won't work. They're expecting it. Keep your distance and aim straight."
One of the agents - a young man Diggle didn't know the name of - shuffled forward. "Aim to kill, ma'am?"
Something diffuse shot through her vivid eyes then, but was soon covered behind the cold exterior she tried to uphold. "No. I'm ordering you to keep them here. Lawton, Turner, Quinn and Harkness have all gotten out of their cells thanks to Lawton. They have to be detained once more."
"But ma'am-
"That's an order!" Lyla growled and her tone left no room for debate.
The young man flinched and cowered back to his position in the line. There were no questions after that as tension settled over the small team.
Lyla pressed a hand to her earpiece and nodded at whatever information she received. "Okay. Let's move in."
Lyla held her gun at the ready as she led the group towards the battle field. Diggle didn't waste a breath as he hurried to keep by her side, reluctant to leave her this time. Something came flying towards them through the air and Lyla threw herself at John, pulling them both to the ground as Captain Boomerang's sharp weapon flew inches above their heads.
Lyla's breathing came quick and startled as she gazed down at her man. "I love you, Johnny."
She leaped from the ground and joined the rest of her crew that had gotten past in the commotion. John watched as Bronze Tiger and Captain Boomerang managed to keep most of the agents at a distance, and sounds of the battle filled his ears. He heard pained cries and shouts as the boomerangs slashed into the bodies or the metal claws ripped flesh from bones.
John watched as Lyla engaged Harley Quinn in hand to hand combat. The young, mad woman with two high pony tails giggled madly as she acrobatically danced around the A.R.G.U.S agent. Lyla managed a strong kick to the woman's stomach and Harley stumbled backwards in fright.
A sharp noise behind him caught John's attention and he flew to his feet, his gun at the ready, prepared to fight. Several feet before him, away from the battle field in the corridor behind him, John saw Floyd Lawton stand before him. Much like his accomplices on the Suicide Squad, the man wore the yellow prison outfit and blood on his hands. As Floyd held John's eyes, a wicked grin spread across her face.
John could but frown back in response, but before he could utter a word, Lawton suddenly sprinted down the corridor. He knocked down two guards with ease and John hurried after. John willed his body to move as fast as Lawton's, cutting the corners sharply as he moved towards the exit.
John rounded a corner when something suddenly connected with his jaw. His head spun as he tried to orientate himself after the punch, but Lawton was quicker. Floyd grabbed hold of John's leather jacket and threw him into the elevator close by. Lawton entered to and the doors closed behind him.
As John pulled himself onto his feet, he moved into a fighting stance but refrained from an attack. Opposite him in the small space, Floyd glared back with suspicious eyes glinting. With a lazy hand, Floyd reached for the control panel and pressed the STOP button. The elevator rocked gently before it stopped moving in its ascent towards ground level.
John felt tension and confusion fill his every fiber. There was something not right about this. "What are you doing, Lawton?"
Floyd grimaced. "What I was hired to do."
John kept his pose at the ready in case the man turned on him. His gut feeling was telling him something was about to go down, and he'd be damned if he lowered his guard with Lawton of all people. "What the hell are you thinking? That you can just escape and walk out of A.R.G.U.S without consequences?"
"Well... No," Floyd shrugged.
John did a double-take at the simple admission. "... Who helped you escape? Who gave you the key to your cell? And why?"
"It's all connected, John," Floyd sighed with a pointed glare. He visibly held back as he searched for the right words to his confession, "There are leaks everywhere. Even among those who follow orders without questioning..."
"What are you talking about?" John snarled viciously.
"Think, John." Floyd drawled bitterly.
John exhaled tersely as he pondered the man's infuriating lack of answers. "An inside job, is that what you're suggesting? Whom?!"
Floyd shrugged. "Maybe you should ask your ex-wife."
Felicity trembled as Slade held her close in front of himself, like a human shield against the arrow Oliver was currently aiming in their direction. Oliver could tell she was heading into shock as nightmares and memories replayed in her eyes. She was so far gone she hardly seemed aware of his presence anymore.
"Let her go," Oliver snarled and tried to find a clear shot to kill Slade.
The Australian shook his head slowly as he readjusted his stance behind the woman, raising his blade towards her neck much as he had months earlier. The cold blade against her skin made Felicity whimper and she closed her eyes tight.
Slade gazed down at her with a dark delight manifesting in his eyes. "Do you see that, Oliver? Do you see what I've done to her? You might not be trapped on Lian Yu anymore, Oliver, but what about her...?"
Felicity's voice trembled as she shook her head. "I... I don't..."
Slade put his mouth close to her ear as he cooed, "Did you ever tell him about our time there? What you suffered through, what you lost? Or are you still lying to yourself, Felicity? Are you hiding the truth even from yourself? That the woman I took to the Island... wasn't the woman who returned. "
Felicity shook her head more firmly as she fought to regain control of herself. "I-I was."
"You threw yourself down a waterfall!" Slade disagreed and his eyes rose to meet Oliver's across the room. "You killed yourself."
Felicity opened her eyes, too, and they immediately sought out Oliver's. Oliver's heart broke at the beaten expression in her azure eyes and his bow lowered a fraction. He had never seen her like this. He'd never seen her this afraid or broken, and it was all his fault. Slade had told him about how the Island had devoured Felicity's soul, but he hadn't wanted to believe in it - he couldn't believe in it - not until now. Not until now when her eyes screamed with pained memories from her days in purgatory, a mirror expression of his own eyes during the time he'd spent on Lian Yu. She'd kept all of this locked up somewhere deep inside, but her pain was overflowing now with no wall to protect her.
Slade reveled in the moment as his voice continued to fill the void, "You'd surrendered all hope of being rescued... and let the Island win. I could feel you fade away with each cut of my blade... scraping away your humanity. Your innocence's lost now, Blondie, and there's no regaining it."
"... No." Oliver's voice was low and raw, pain filling his lungs with each breath of air. Without hesitation he lowered his bow and pulled back his hood and let his mask fall to the ground. He needed to do this, say this, as Oliver not the Arrow. He held Felicity's gaze as he tried to convey all of his emotions for her in one single look. "You are the strongest person I know, Felicity. You are innocent, and you are not broken. He didn't break you."
"...I told you he got to me," Felicity meek voice was barely audible, but Oliver heard the whispered pain as if she'd shouted it from the top of a cliff.
Oliver shook his head firmly, refusing to believe in it himself. "You are still here, Felicity. With me. One step at a time, remember?"
A reminiscent flicker of light passed through her pale eyes as she nodded without uttering a single syllable. Still, it was enough for Oliver and he managed a slight grin in return, hoping it was enough in this dim night.
"This ends tonight, Slade," Oliver snarled in a calm, controlled voice.
"You think it ends here?!" Slade laughed and his voice reverberated between the walls as Oliver and Felicity remained quiet. "There's no end to this! Your demons are just beginning to catch up to you, Oliver. Oh, you'll suffer long after I'm gone and you haven't even realized the toll this will have on your souls. I've won."
"N-no... You haven't," Felicity breathed, bravely swallowing back on her fears. In her eyes, Oliver could see a fire rekindle within her soul. Felicity glared back over her shoulder as she continued. "We're not defeated. You are. You have nowhere else to turn to, no other purpose in life unless you can do this. You can't ever defeat Oliver. And you're too afraid to figure out what that might mean for your life if you were to stop this quest. You've got nothing else... You've lost."
Slade's mad eyes glared at the shorter woman with an unmistakable fire and loathing. Without wasting a breath, Felicity suddenly tugged the blade from Slade's hand and elbowed him hard in the guts. His protective vest stopped most of the damage, however, and Slade easily twisted her hand. Felicity cried out in pain as she dropped the blade and it clattered against the floor.
Oliver flew forward without thinking. He used his bow as a bat as he swung at Slade. The man dropped his hold on Felicity, and she tugged her injured hand close to her chest as she ducked out of the way for their duel.
Slade blocked most of Oliver's punches, but Oliver got in a strong kick to the man's chest. Slade fell backwards over the desk, but hauled himself onto his feet with ease. Though he did not have the strength of the Mirakuru in his veins, Slade was by now means a weak man.
"She's right. You know how this will end, Slade," Oliver growled as threw another punch in the man's direction. Slade parried the blow and got in a solid punch to Oliver's ribs. Oliver stumbled back as pain invaded his side momentarily, but he soon blocked it out in order to keep a focused mind.
"No prison can hold me!" Slade growled in response as he threw a punch to Oliver's jaw. "Your only solution will be to kill me, kid. Prove I was right, after all!"
Oliver blocked an uppercut and focused all his energy on keeping the strong man at a distance. Slade merely grinned, however, as he managed to reach out with his free hand to grab Oliver's neck in a choke hold. "Prove you're still the monster I helped create!"
"No!" Oliver snarled and back-whipped the man with his bow. Slade fell to his knees and spat blood onto the carpet.
"Impressive," Slade snarled in amusement. Oliver growled as he raised his leg for a kick to the head, but Slade reacted quicker. He grabbed hold of Oliver's foot and glared up at the man. "But too enraged and unfocused!" A solid punch on the right side of Oliver's knee, and Oliver's leg buckled under him. Oliver cried out in pain as he felt something dislocate and he fell down. A sharp pain invaded his senses and he tried to scramble to his feet, but his leg wouldn't hold him up.
Oliver watched as Slade pulled out a gun from the holster on his hip and aimed it at the wounded man on the ground. With a smirk, Slade commented, "Too easy."
With that, he turned and fired at the glass window behind him. The entire window shattered and glass fell everywhere as the cold air invaded the room at once, letting the familiar embrace of night and darkness enter the small corner office. Slade stalked over to Felicity and pulled her up from the ground by gripping onto her jacket. He hauled her towards the open space where the window had been and held her towards the opening.
"No!" Oliver cried in panic and once more tried to stand, but his knee buckled and he fell back down.
"Stop!" Quentin hissed in a low, urgent tone as he heard footsteps coming from the staircase above his troops. The policemen at his command ducked low and raised their guns as three figures came around the corner and stopped on the plateau above them in the narrow staircase. Roy and Thea blinked in surprise at the troop of policemen and tensely froze as the third figure stepped forward.
Quentin blinked at the unexpected sight and he stumbled up onto his feet and came to a halt in the middle of the steps. "...Sa- Eh, Canary?"
Roy and Thea exchanged a weary look as they let the black-clad vigilante step around them to greet her father.
Laurel grimaced apologetically and activated a voice filter to hide her real voice as she replied, "Not exactly."
A shadow flashed across Quentin's face as he put both his hands on his hips. He could recognize his eldest daughter anywhere even with the mask that covered half of her visage or the altered voice. This was not how he'd expected to see his daughter again after all these months separated, and he wasn't entirely pleased with it. At length, he found his voice, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
"You can call back your troops, Captain Lance," Laurel explained and nodded at the ready men and women behind him. Her gaze was firm and serious as she turned back to her father before her. "The hostile takeover is over. I was just about to take Ms Queen and Mr Harper, who unwittingly found themselves caught in the crossfire, out of the danger."
"The Arrow?" Quentin asked.
Laurel's face was grim as she shook her head. "Haven't seen him."
Quentin exhaled slowly as he turned back to his team and ordered them out of the building once more. The sound of feet shuffling down the staircase filled the void and Roy glanced at Thea beside him. The young brunette was tense and her eyes were staring into the distance as if she was far away from the staircase already. There was a haunted look in her gaze that betrayed her heart as clear as day.
Roy took advantage of the sudden sounds around them as he shuffled closer and whispered, "Are you okay, Thea?"
She visibly flinched and her eyes darted up to meet his. Something frightened illuminated her eyes as she shook her head. Her voice trembled with unshed tears close to the breaking point, "What have I done, Roy? Jane's dead because of me and..."
As her voice trailed off, Roy reached up and pulled her into a hug. She stiffened beneath his touch momentarily before she melted into his embrace. "It's not your fault. I promise, it isn't. Malcolm brainwashed you, Thea."
Thea pulled back as she sighed deeply, letting the guilt weigh her down. "That doesn't mean that what I did wasn't despicable, Roy..."
"Hey, hey..." Roy breathed softly. "One problem at a time, alright? You may have faltered on the road, Thea, but you did good, too. Don't forget that."
Beneath them on the steps, Quentin gazed back as the last of his troops disappeared out of earshot. As soon as he was certain they were far enough away, he turned back to his daughter and breathed, "Laurel, we're going to have a talk about this later!"
Laurel grinned and patted him on the shoulder tenderly. "I would expect nothing less, Dad."
Quentin squeezed his daughter's cheek in turn and grinned. "I am glad to see you, Sweetie. But the three of you should probably head out. And you're sure the situation is handled up there?"
"It should be," Laurel said vaguely.
In the quiet elevator, John had a hard time keeping check on the thoughts that swirled through his mind at the implications presented before him. It didn't help as Lawton remained at the other end of the small, enclosed space, with a pointed glare that suggested more were coming. Somehow, John feared, this was the calm before the storm.
"Lyla?" Diggle questioned at last, when his mouth caught up with his mind. "What the hell does she have to do with any of this?"
"Not her in particular," Floyd drawled without missing a beat. "Any of Waller's agents. Don't you see it, John? How they all followed Waller's orders without blinking. She created heartless monsters. She put chips in her prisoners' spines to kill them if necessary... It's part of why I was asked to stop her in the first place. Her tyrannous rule couldn't continue."
"Don't you play that card with me, Lawton," John snarled and pointed a finger in the other man's direction. "Don't you try and play me."
"I'm trying to explain here!" Lawton retorted hurriedly and irritation flared in his eyes. "I am doing a hired job."
The words finally registered in John's head and he frowned. "You said something similar after you killed Amanda Waller. This is about her death, too, isn't it?"
Floyd seemed to debate with himself whether or not to open up, but in the end admitted, "Yes. All of this was part of the job; to get into A.R.G.U.S in order to kill The Wall, to create a diversion with the Suicide Squad..."
"Wait...!" John breathed and his eyes gleamed with disbelief. "To get into A.R.G.U.S in the first place, you needed Felicity... The only reason you got close to our team was because of that ruse that suggested Felicity's dad was in Starling. I thought that was a Waller's ruse?"
"It's more complicated than that," Floyd shrugged his eyebrows.
"So what are you, Lawton?" John questioned bluntly. "An agent for H.I.V.E, A.R.G.U.S or a member of the Suicide Squad?"
"Told you. I'm a freelancer these days... But some works are too important to overlook," Floyd explained himself with a hesitant gleam that seemed uncharacteristic. "I knew that I had to take this work in order to give you a piece of the puzzle regarding your brother, and give Ms Smoak some information on her father. Besides... Waller needed to die one way or another. I was more than happy to oblige with that."
"That's not the whole truth, is it? You did it for yourself, too, man. The only reason you helped the Suicide Squad get out of their cells tonight was to cover up your own escape, am I right? That was your prize, wasn't it?" John asked as he read between the lines.
"We both know the others won't get out of this building. Not alive, at least," Lawton said pointedly.
"Lyla isn't Waller. She would never use the explosives in the chips," John vehemently disagreed and felt himself pushed to his limitations.
"Maybe not," Floyd shrugged with disinterest. "For killing Waller, one of H.I.V.E's lesser agents that have infiltrated A.R.G.U.S gave me the key to my cell. That was always the deal. My freedom."
"... Who wanted Waller dead, Floyd? Who hired you?"
"Yes. That's the missing piece of the puzzle, isn't it?" Lawton drawled with a humored chuckle.
Diggle felt fatigue wash over him at every twist and turn this conversation seemed to provide. He could tell Lawton wanted to come clean about this, but the hesitation was almost palpable. Whatever remained unspoken had to carry some weight then, or Lawton wouldn't have gone through all the trouble of trapping them both in the elevator for a brotherly heart to heart. John knew he trusted Lawton on some level, and now depended on the man to reveal the truth. "Just tell me."
Floyd's blue eye danced with trepidation and concern almost, as he held his friend's gaze. "Franklin Crandall. Or, as I suppose you also know him... David Smoak."
John felt his mouth go dry at the revelation. He managed to shake his head as he searched for words, "That can't be. Waller told Felicity that he's dead. Her dad's dead."
"I don't know the details," Lawton admitted. "But I've met him. Recently. I thought he was dead, too, so when H.I.V.E contacted me with the contract to kill Waller and how it was connected to Crandall, I refused to take the job unless I met him. He is alive, John. I swear."
"I don't know what to believe..." John breathed as his mind felt about ready to implode.
"I had to tell you all of this, Johnny. I felt I owed it to you," Lawton smiled as he reached for the control panel of the elevator once more. "Now, the question is... Will you let me leave A.R.G.U.S? I've given you all the information I have... Will you set me free or will you take me back down to your Baby Mama?"
Oliver held his breath as he watched Slade balance Felicity precariously close to the edge. The night breeze made her coat and pony tail dance in the cold air as she tethered close to the fall. Pure fear filled her clear eyes as she met Oliver's gaze and she clung to Slade's arm as the lone lifeline that it was.
Oliver didn't feel fear right then, all he helt was pure and unadulterated fury pulsate through his veins like the blood to give him strength. With pure will power, he pushed off the ground and staggered on his left leg. He tried to put weight on his right leg, but a sharp pain only shot up the length of his limb at the mere attempt and he inhaled sharply.
Slade curiously watched his nemesis struggle to even remain standing up. "It's anger, kiddo. That fuels you now. That fuels The Arrow. It's all you have left. The monster inside."
"H-he is so much more," Felicity managed despite the increased panic that was evident just beneath the surface. "He isn't you. He's not afraid to live."
"Isn't he?" Slade questioned and turned back to the woman in his grip.
"No..." Felicity breathed. "Every obstacle he's faced, he's overcome! Even when it seemed unthinkable to go on, he found a way. You didn't."
"Slade..." Oliver's voice was a low breath, emotional and close to breaking. "Release her, Slade. Don't do this. Do whatever you want to me, but let her go. You've done her enough harm. You're angry about Shado... What I did. She had nothing to do with it. Killing her won't prove or solve anything."
"No, it might," Slade disagreed and leered down at the blonde woman before he turned back to face Oliver. Passion and gratitude filled his dark voice suddenly as he explained himself, "I never had a better weapon to destroy you than I have now, Oliver. I glimpsed it the first time I captured her, I see it plainly now. Killing your mother created an impact, for sure... But taking Felicity from you was the game changer. You think I'm going to give up on that now? Not after everything the two of you have done to me."
"Y-you want to know what impact we've really had?" Felicity breathed and tried to keep her voice calm and even, but the notion of a 13 floor drop below her took an unmistakable toll. "W-why n-not ask your family? After our talk on Lian Yu, after I got home... I-I contacted them. Well, I sent your wife an email with news paper articles and numbers regarding your war against Oliver and Starling City."
Slade's expression faded into disbelieving anger in a heartbeat and his grip tightened on her coat until his knuckles turned white. "What?!"
From the sidelines, Oliver could see how the situation threatened to escalate out of hand by this admission. In a gentle whisper, he pleaded, "... Felicity."
"Too afraid to live, too afraid to die," Felicity spoke and her voice increased in strength as she ignored Oliver. "I-I had to do something. They deserved to know."
"Not your choice to make!" Slade growled and pushed forward a step, making Felicity balance precariously on the edge.
"Hey!" Oliver snarled as he staggered one step closer. "Let her go!"
Slade glared back at the man over his shoulder. "Poor choice of words."
"No, no!" Oliver contended frantically. "Don't do this!"
"I'm not," Slade replied tensely and held the other man's gaze. "This is your doing. You can't stop me now, Oliver. I could wreak havoc on the city again, if you prefer? Save her... if you can. Your choice. Save her, or save your city."
"Don't let him get to you," Felicity breathed, her voice barely audible. Oliver only managed to shake his head in response, his throat clogging up by everything that remained unspoken in the tense air between them. Felicity's voice trembled as Slade's grip tightened around her shoulder. "He has the strength... to believe in himself. And he knows the true meaning of honor..."
"Quiet!" Slade growled hoarsely. He turned his glare back to Oliver and a sinister smirk slowly spread across his features, casting the once kind face into eternal darkness. "The choice is yours."
"I-it's my life!" Felicity managed and the words reverberated in the silence as both men turned back to her. Felicity's gaze danced with determination mingled with so many other emotions it was hard to discern them all. "It's my life! It should be my choice! You once... said I possessed courage. Let me prove it now."
Oliver felt his heart go numb inside his chest at her words. He took a wobbling stride forward as memories of last year flashed through his mind and threatened to paralyze him entirely.
There's only one way this night can end, and we both know that, don't we, Mr Wilson?
Mom!
Please tell me both my children will live.
Mom? What are you doing?!
Thea, I love you. Close your eyes, baby.
No!
You possess true courage. I am truly sorry ...you did not pass that onto your son.
"No!" Oliver cried as everything around him blackened by intruding fear. His fury had left his body entirely now, and left only panic and fear in its wake. He couldn't live through this again, not with her. He couldn't lose Felicity...
His eyes met hers across the space once more, and this time everything else seemed to fade into the distant background. Nothing else made sense, and nothing else mattered. The pain of her suggestion was clearly evident in her eyes, but there was a morose smile that seemed to make a brave attempt at outweighing the severity of it all. Oliver attempted to intervene once more, but his leg buckled and he collapsed onto his knees. He sat up and felt his eyes burn with unshed tears at his helpless state.
"I'm afraid it's still his choice, Felicity," Slade smirked as he heard his enemy's anguished breathing and held Oliver's gaze another second before he turned back to Felicity.
"You did it again..." she whispered and her breath trembled with emotion. Before Slade could decipher the true meaning of her words, she withdrew something small and sharp from her pocket and stabbed him in the shoulder with it.
Slade growled as pain invaded his limb and forced him to release his hold on the woman's coat. Felicity, who'd been balancing precariously as it was, started to fall backwards over the edge.
"NO!" Oliver cried loudly as he watched the inevitable happen before his eyes and he threw himself forward. It was too late, however. It was all too late.
Felicity's sapphire eyes widened in realization, but not a single syllable or frightened scream crossed her lips as she fell over the ledge and out of the building. Within a heartbeat she was gone from sight and the room empty and desolate.
Oliver fell to the floor as she disappeared out of his line of vision, his entire body aching from the unexpected twist. Shock clutched at his heart and his wide-open eyes stared out at the night air, calm and quiet despite what had just happened.
Oliver slowly shook his head as tears ran down his cheeks and he tried to find the strength to breathe. "...Felicity."
To be concluded.