Chapter 10: The Hunt

' My ego is firmly in tact thank you very much. If you'd release your pet monkeys here I'll be happy to give the wicked witch a personal demonstration. ' – Oliver Queen , Season 1 0 , Episode 1 9: " Dominion ".

[GINGLE] "And we are back on CNN and the Congress has finally taken a decision, listen!"

The screen switched to the Congress' spokesman standing before cameras as his peers and the Superman stood behind him in a solemn wall of support. "The Congress has unanimously decided that the accusations brought against the Luthor administration are too important to be ignored." the man declared.

"Following the review of the first elements of proof brought to our attention we have voted for the impeachment of the President Lex Luthor and his administration. These people are no longer in charge of our country and are summoned to present themselves to Washington DC's trial court immediately. The prosecutor has been seized on the matter and the Congress will ensure the role of interim government until a date of elections is fixed and a candidate is chosen by the people."

The spokesman squinted, distracted for a moment by the waves of flashes invading his sight as the cameras clicked with fervor in front of him. "Lex Luthor is now a wanted fugitive."

June 1st 2012. 10:05 AM UTC-6. Darién Gap, Panama.

Rick Flagg watched an helicopter fly over the jungle of the Darién Gap. It hovered low above the trees and started its decent into the clearing where the soldiers were stationed. The renaming members of the Suicide Squad were gathered, waiting for the new arrivals to join them in the forest and take part in a large-scale manhunt operation.

The aircraft lowered its altitude, the pales of the rotor almost scratching the leaves of the palm trees surrounding them. The pilot managed to hold it straight when the wind blew, threatening to send the helicopter and its people against the trees.

It was a danger they had to deal with. The revelation that Lex Luthor was hiding in the Darién Gap may have been a surprise to most but it was clear this part of the world was one of the best if one wanted to disappear.

Totaling almost a hundred miles of hostile natural environment, dense forests and war-experienced militias, the Gap was the last place any sane human being wanted to go to, unless they had a good reason.

The helicopter touched ground, everybody fought against the air blowing around as its lateral door was pushed open. Flagg noticed the Justice League marching through his troops in his direction. J'onn J'onzz the walking miracle and the Superman were key additions to this hunt, their skills were a necessity if they wanted to find Luthor and capture him. These powerful crime-fighters were intimidating in their own right but they didn't come close to the Green Arrow leading them.

Oliver Queen walked straight towards Flagg and his tent, his hood down and a determined glint in his eyes.

Flagg held the tent's fabric wide open. "We weren't expecting you so soon." he greeted the vigilantes. "Anyway, we're not gonna complain."

Oliver gave him a glance as he walked past him. "We didn't want to be late for this party."

J'onzz and the Superman were more agreeable and stopped at Flagg's level. "Admittedly, we could have been here in a matter of minutes since we both fly." J'onn explained. "But we're carrying equipment."

"Good point." Flagg nodded. "Come on, let's get inside."

The four men gathered around a table on which a map of the Darién Gap was spread out. Oliver was already bent over the piece of paper, entranced with the information laid out before his eyes. "Tell us." he said.

Flagg pointed at a blue circle on the map. "We're here," he started. "On the Panamanian side of the forest and that's one of the only clear spots of the Gap. And Luthor is..." his hand traced over the forest before stopping at a red cross on the other side of the border. "here."

"That's Colombian territory." Clark stated.

Oliver nodded as Flagg stared at Clark in silence. "Is that going to be a problem?" J'onn asked, glancing in confusion at the other men.

"Well..." Flagg cleared his throat.

"There are international treaties between the U.S. and Panama that extends American jurisdiction to this country – mostly because of the canal. That's not the case with Colombia." Oliver explained.

"And the Colombian government hasn't allowed an American operation to take place on their ground, if I understand the situation." J'onn guessed.

"Who cares?" Flagg shrugged. "We're not the U.S. army anyway."

"I care!" Clark declared. "We are acting on behalf of our government, and it has to be a lawful arrest."

The United States were being governed by a special commission of the Congress until the next presidential election. This commission had appointed Sam Lane as the new secretary of defense, thus giving him the reigns over the military and secret services. The nomination had allowed Rick Flagg to demand of Lane to let the Suicide Squad and the Justice League arrest Luthor. Lane had accepted, knowing any movement of american troops could revive the international tensions that the former president had set off.

"the Darién Gap is dense and deserted enough, it's going to be a piece of cake to make people think we've arrested him on the Panamanian side." Oliver countered. "Besides, we can always play the card of 'we didn't know we were in Colombia' it's not like there's a line painted on the ground back there."

Clark shook his head, taking a step back. "I can't agree with these methods. I'm sorry, I can't." he insisted when Oliver sighed. "If he's to be arrested, it has to be done by the letter of the law."

"Look, Superman," Rick Flagg intervened. "He's the only president of our country to be accused of crimes against humanity, everybody back home wants him caught and tried. Nobody's going to argue if we have to break a few rules to do so."

"No, no!" Clark insisted. "I won't be part of this," he turned to J'onn. "Come on, it can't be done that way!"

J'onn looked almost pained as he breathed out a sigh. "A year ago I would have agreed with you Kal-El but..." he shook his head.

"What changed?"

"I experienced Lex's torture." J'onn replied. "It's one thing to be empathic with his victims but even with my abilities, I would never have though this ordeal was so unbearable." He evaded Clark's gaze, as if he felt guilty. "Lex Luthor needs to be arrested, even if we have to take a few liberties with the law."

Clark looked at J'onn as if he saw a stranger. "I never would have thought you could change so much."

"Neither would I, Kal-El, but there are scars even we can't get rid of."

The two men stared at each other for a moment Oliver felt went on for too long. He glanced at Flagg, impatient. "Back to work." he declared aloud. "Show us the route you've mapped."

Rick obliged, sharing Oliver's anticipation. He detached his gaze from the two aliens and focused on the map. "So as you said, Queen," he started. "The Gap is a dense forest and there are few reliable maps about the area so I decided to keep it simple and trace a way through the trees from our starting point..." his finger started at their base of operation and trailed over the jungle to reach a segment of road in the middle of the forest. "To this path which will lead us towards the villa."

Oliver shook his head. "Let me stop you right there." he took a pen lying on the table and started drawing patterns on the map. "Okay first things first," he started. "The first part of the trip through the forest is impossible – except for those two of course," he nodded towards Clark and J'onn. "There's actually a river crossing your way right here. It's not pictured on the map because as you said, there are only a couple of them reliable and even then, they don't show you everything. This river is hidden by the trees which, in that area, are the tallest of the Gap so you can't see much from above."

He drew the river on the map. "Don't even try to cross that thing, the current is too strong and it's filled with alligators." he warned. "Also, that road you want to join? Forget about it. It's nothing more than the old path of the Pan-American project. They started digging that section but never finished it. Nowadays it's a huge wetland and the snakes' playground."

Oliver traced a large red X on the segment of road. "Now look." he changed his pen for a blue colored one as the three other men bent down on the table. "Here's what I propose: we walk straight ahead for seven or so miles. There's the largest hornet nest farm around here" The blue line stopped and Oliver circled the dangerous place before tracing another path trailing towards the left side of the obstacle.

"We stay on that path until he hit the moving sands pit then it's just a little flick to the right, follow that line and we find the abandoned residential camps where Lex should be hiding."

Rick Flagg scratched his temple as he stared at the map. "Is there something you're not telling us, Queen?"

"Just to you." Oliver's smirk disappeared when he glanced at J'onn. "Hey, where is he?"

J'onn whirled around, looking towards the exit. "Kal-El? Kal-El!"

"Seems like he left on his own. Quite the boy scout, isn't he?" Flagg commented.

Oliver sighed. "Come on let's wrap this up and get everyone ready. Now that he's gone we can't lose time."

The clearing became filled with noise when Rick Flagg came out of his commanding tent and ordered his agents to prepare themselves. These men and women, the surviving members of the Suicide Squad assembled their weapons, cleaned an adjusted them to make sure they wouldn't miss their targets.

The voices rose, excited at the knowledge of their imminent start. Oliver could see them becoming restless. Some argued, other shared the details of the special kind of torture they reserved for the soldiers they would catch and, a few were sitting alone by the trees. They twitched, looked left and right and scratched the back of their necks.

He knew. Oliver knew they were anticipating just as much as him the capture – if not the death – of the man responsible for their disrupted lifestyles and the pain of losing their friends. The hunt for Lex Luthor was about to begin and even in the thickest and most dangerous jungle in the world, the odds were firmly stacked against him.

For once, Lex was the fleeing victim and not the perpetrator. But even stuck at the bottom of the deepest pit, Lex Luthor wasn't a threat to be taken lightly.

By Oliver's side, J'onn tapped a foot against the grass in a rhythmic fashion. "Worried about Clark?"

The manhunter glanced at Oliver, as if taken by surprise. He stilled. "Do you think he could get past the militia and capture Luthor on his own?"

Oliver pursed his lips, looking back at the amassed troops in the clearing. "The FARC aren't gonna be a problem for him," he replied. "But if Lex isn't stupid he'd have packed kryptonite with him and knowing Clark he's-"

"He's going to walk straight into a trap, I know. I know..." J'onn sighed.

Oliver couldn't quite concede his cynical smirk. "Even you aren't surprised." he remarked. "In the end his training hasn't changed him at all, it's only made him more stubborn than he already was."

"In many ways, you are right, Oliver." J'onn looked at the sky for an instant. "But even if Clark only came back very recently, I can assure you he has changed."

"Question is... has he changed for the better?"

J'onn's head whirled towards him. "Oliver!" he started in outrage.

"It's alright, buddy. I know what you're gonna say." Oliver pacified.

Still, the martian insisted. "The differences you two may have had in the past do not give you the right to talk about him this way!" he put a hand on the other man's shoulder. "In the end we're all on the same boat."

The Green Arrow wanted to push the conversation further, he was about to open his mouth when he caught himself. A voice in his head told him his companion wasn't ready yet to hear what he wanted to say. J'onn was a good man, and a loyal friend who wasn't about to use telepathy on him without his consent. Oliver simply hoped that if his assumptions were to be proven correct in the future, the martian would be on his side.

Then again, it would be better if he was wrong entirely.

"You're right. You're right." he smiled and patted J'onn's shoulder then stood straighter when his ear buzzed. "Excuse me, a call from the boss." he motioned towards his ear, prompting an amused smirk from the other man.

"What's up, honey?" Oliver asked as he moved to a less crowded area.

"Honey? Are we changing codenames now?" Chloe's voice filtered through the connection.

"Consider yourself lucky I didn't get more creative." he smirked. "You know, I could have gone with something like..."

Chloe made a noise over the line. "Don't even think about finishing that sentence, Arrow!" she chided. "Besides, I'm not exactly alone on my end..."

Oliver grinned. "Say hi to Tess for me!"

Her laugh echoed in his ear. "She's not amused, I tell you." Chloe chuckled.

"Okay, seriously now, what's new on your end?" he asked.

"Well..." she said. "For starters Lois went back to the Planet to work on a story so we were finally able to work quietly."

"That's always a plus."

"Yeah don't start mocking me," she retorted in a dry tone. "Mia's been pouting for hours because you didn't bring her with you. It's not easy to get things done when a 17-year old keeps glaring daggers at your head, you know?"

He sighed. "It's too dangerous, she's not trained yet. She knows that."

"She knows." Chloe replied. "Doesn't mean she's happy about it, or with you for that matter... I'm guessing you'll have a lot of apologizing to do when you get back."

"Yes, yes, yes, yes..." He shook his head and plopped down on the ground, his back against a tree. "So, exuberant cousins and angry teenagers aside, what did you find?"

"Nothing new, really." she revealed. "Tess communicated all that we found to Flagg. Lex's still hiding in that old residential complex and it's heavily guarded by the FARC. They do have quite a lot of men, though."

Oliver grunted. "They also happen to know the jungle like the back of their hand." he said. "It's not gonna be easy."

"You guys will win." she whispered in his ear.

He felt a small smile pulling at his lips. "I like your faith in our capabilities, Sidekick."

"Are you doubting, Arrow?" she asked. "The FARC may have been fighting in this jungle for decades but they're heavily outnumbered and the Squad isn't exactly full of amateurs either. Besides there's you, J'onn and Clark-"

"Nope, No more Clark."

"What?" He could hear her confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Let's just say Boy Scout decided to try to slain the dragon by himself."

"He left? On his own?!"

"Yup."

She sighed. "Damn it, Clark! I swear his head got thicker than steel in that fortress of his. What was he thinking?"

Back towards the northern part of the clearing, a series of shouts erupted, prompting Oliver to his feet. "Hang on, Watchtower." he said. "There's something going on there."

Some of the men were forming a tight group at the far end of the camp. Oliver hurried towards them even as an officer yelled at an order. "Call the commander! And a medic! Medic!"

"Seems like someone's injured." he breathed for Chloe as he jogged towards the scene.

He pushed his way through a few people, catching sight of one of Rick's men moaning on the ground. His partners were telling him not to move, an instruction the man had trouble following. His arms had to be pinned down to prevent him from touching his wound.

Oliver's breath caught in his throat when he noticed the source of his pain lodged in his right shoulder. An arrow. There was a piece of paper wrapped around it. Oliver knelt beside the wounded man.

"What are you doing?" Another soldier barked.

Oliver ignored them and carefully pulled the paper lose. The man didn't feel a thing. The letter's words looked blurry for a minute. Oliver's heart beat so loud he felt it in his ears, muffling his environment. The familiarity of the handwriting was a surprise he wasn't expecting. Neither were the words greeting his sight.

Oliver,

It's time to honor your oath.

-The Brotherhood.

He closed his eyes, blowing out a long breath. Ahead of him one of the soldiers became agitated. "Hey I saw something!" he shouted, cocking his weapon in the direction of the forest. "Who's there? Identify yourself or I'll shoot!"

Oliver jumped to his feet and forced the man's weapon downward. It was useless as he was soon imitated by his peers who all aimed at the figure hiding in the shadows of the trees. "No! Don't shoot!" he yelled.

"What's going on here?" came Rick's wary voice behind them.

"Flagg! Have your men stand down! Now!"

The new commander looked taken aback by the request, noticing the beads of sweat on Queen's face. He was silent for a moment, watching him in confusion. "Alright, hold your fire, boys. Hold your fire."

The soldiers lowered their weapons slowly. Oliver saw the hooded figure disappear behind the trees and blinked. "Oliver what's going on?" Chloe's concerned voice shook him out of his trance.

He touched his ear and faced Flagg. "Change of plans." He announced and cleared his throat. "The shooter's after me. It doesn't concern you."

Flagg narrowed his eyes. "What are you singing to us now, Queen?"

"Oliver, is it what I'm thinking it is?"

He huffed. "You," he pointed at Flagg. "get everyone going, follow the plan as we decided but leave that guy to me. It's my business."

"Splitting is not a good idea, Oliver." J'onn intervened, appearing behind Rick.

"Ollie, don't do anything rash!"

He shook his head. "I don't have much a choice." he said. "This guy? He's got me in his sights and he won't let go until I face him. This doesn't concern any of you and he won't get in your way if I do as he says."

"Do you really want us to leave you behind?" Flagg raised an eyebrow.

Oliver took a deep breath. "I'm asking you, Flagg. Follow the plan without me. Let me deal with this on my own."

The commander shrugged. "Whatever you say, Shamrock." he looked at the wounded man. "Get that one in my tent. Everyone finish packing up. We're leaving ASAP."

The leaves brushed him as he tried to make his way through the jungle. The light barely filtered through the tall trees that made a natural roof, maintaining a damp, heavy hue over the forest. Oliver felt the change of scenery through his bones as he remembered the times he spent hunting and training around the same trees.

Rick Flagg should have left by now, effectively leaving Oliver alone to face his past. Something that had been waiting, dormant, for over ten years.

His ear buzzed. "Oliver you have to think about the consequences. Why do you have to risk yourself like this?"

He paused and closed his eyes for a moment, hearing the birds singing from afar. "This is the consequence, Chloe." he explained. "It was meant to happen from the moment I confronted him all these years ago."

"But you could be killed, Ollie! Do you think about that?"

The catch in her voice had him swallowing. "I'm sorry."

"It's not enough." she sniffled. "Why do you have to do this?"

He shook his head. "It's a chapter of my life I have to close. I know you're scared, Chlo. I get it, but-"

"But why does it have to happen this way?"

Oliver sighed. He was hurting her. Worse, he was doing it knowingly. She would be wearing herself out worrying about him while feeling absolutely helpless about the situation. "Chloe... I..." It took a long moment for him to voice the feeling that took hold of him the moment he saw that hooded man in the forest.

"When I heard Lex was hiding in the Gap, I knew there was something sketchy going on. What happens now, it's not a surprise to me. I was expecting it." he said.

"Don't tell me you're going there for answers, Oliver..." she countered.

"I need to fight him, Chloe. I can't lie to you, the answers to my questions are secondary." he replied. "He's the Green Arrow's father. I may have been chasing criminals and saving innocent people in the streets these last few years but deep down, I'm still a member of the brotherhood... and he's still my master. I've been carrying this heritage with me for the last ten years. I need to free myself from it and I have to do so following the tradition."

"A fight to the death."

His heart skipped a beat. She sounded hollow to him even through the radio. "Yes." he confirmed. "But don't worry."

Chloe laughed in derision. "Oh really?" she asked. "Why shouldn't I? The man I love is going against common sense and purposely risk his life for an old feud that took place a full decade ago!"

Her voice rose with each word. Oliver licked his lips. "I'm gonna win, Chloe."

"Ollie...you may have hacked his hand off but he would have time to get used to it." she replied quietly. "You never stopped telling me about how strong of an archer he was, how he taught you every trick. What makes you think you'll beat him?"

"Because he groomed me to become his successor." he explained. "He doesn't want me dead. He wants me to kill him." She said nothing and for once, he knew she was at a loss of words. There was no humor in him and yet he smiled. "I'm going radio silent now. When I get back online... will you... uh... feel different about me?"

Her breathing was erratic. "No." she whispered. "You are who you are, Oliver. There's always been a dark part of yourself and I've accepted it a long time ago. So long as you do good by your values, the way I feel about you won't change."

His eyes teared up. I really don't deserve that girl, he thought. "Thank you." he breathed in deeply. "Green Arrow, going out."

"Ollie, wait!" she called over the comms. "Just... good luck."

He smiled. "I love you too, babe." His murmur was followed by the characteristic beep telling him he was now alone, for real, with the demons of his past. Oliver looked towards the crafted arrow on the tree sitting on his right.

He nodded to himself and set about to produce a fire by smoldering two dry pieces of wood together. When the flame came to life, he coated one of his titanium arrow in grease and lit it up. The projectile was surrounded by flames when he lifted it up in the air and drew back the link of his bow, aiming high enough to reach the skies.

He remained immobile for a moment, taking the time to choose the right spot, a patch of light flickering through the trees. The arrow shot up and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

There. The message was sent. The Green Arrow was coming home.

June 1st 2012. 11:12 AM UTC-6. The Brotherhood's camp, Darién Gap, Panama.

One step after another, Oliver walked closer to the place where he would meet his fate. He couldn't miss it, the chants grew as he approached the Brotherhood's camp. He did not stop to take a calming breath behind the last trees still hiding him from their view. He didn't need to.

Unlike his old self, Oliver had gained enough control over his emotions to prevent them from hindering him in crucial moments like the one he was about to live. Ten years earlier, he had left, a troubled young man trying to prove himself he still had some worth still left in him. Today, he came back, an accomplished hero.

The males voices singing Joseph's March rose again as he walked out into the open. The camp hadn't changed at all. The same walls made of wood-trees stood as tall as ever and the towers in each corner of the perimeter looked as bare as the times he were in them. The gates were wide open, on each side the archers of the Brotherhood formed a line facing him.

They sang at the top of their lungs when they saw him coming. A fervor most of these young men had never known before in their lives seized them in that moment. Some heads poked up the walls, eyes widened and soon, the entire camp was at the gates watching him, their former brother, marching their way.

He stopped when the last verse was sang, its echoes giving way to a tense silence. Oliver watched each of their faces. They were young, some even, were teenagers. There was no anger, no ill-will on their faces. There was no joy either.

They knew his return could mark a change of paradigm in the camp, in their lives. Perhaps, even, in the entire region. And so they watched the Emerald Archer. Some were expectant, others, fearful but all knew the inevitable was about to happen.

When a tall silhouette emerged from the crowd to appear at the gates, everyone watched, still and silent as the man drew back his hood to reveal a satisfied smile behind dark facial hair. He watched Oliver from afar, laughed, then threw his arms up the air. One of them, a plastic prosthesis, sliced through the air.

"Archers!" he shouted in Spanish. "Your long-lost brother has come back, honor him!"

The men wailed a long-drawn yell rhythmically interrupted as they hit their right fist over the chests, a process they repeated seven times.

"Welcome back, Oliver." The master addressed him in a quieter tone. "We've been waiting for this moment for a long time."

Oliver narrowed his eyes. "You summoned me here, Vordigan. I only came to settle this once and for all."

Vordigan laughed and motioned for one of the men by his side to walk up to the guest. "And we will, Oliver. After ten years, this Sereptia is long overdue, don't you think?"

The Sereptia, an old celtic term used to designate a fight to the death between the leader of the Brotherhood and one of his pupils who dared challenging him. One of them had to die, or both would be executed by the Brotherhood. Such were the rules.

Oliver said nothing. He watched the emissary, a tanned young man with two uncertain eyes fixated on him. The latter approached him and extended his hands. "Your bow, brother."

"Give it to him, Oliver." Vordigan called. "Forget your gadgets and fancy tools, today you will fight with your old bow. The one you carved from wood."

The fight had to be fair. The two assailants had to use the weapons they'd made as per the brotherhood's rules. Oliver's light aluminum and electronically-equipped bow was forbidden to be used in the walls of the camp.

"Javier will take care of it and give it back to you, should you live." Vordigan continued. "Come on! The sun won't wait for us, there's a fight to be had and we need to get prepared. Come with me, Oliver." With these words, he turned back and headed to his cabin.

Oliver looked at Javier. "I trust you with it." he said, handing his bow. "if anything happens to it, I'll come for you."

The archer nodded, his eyes sweeping over the piece of metal with awe. "Si, hermano!"

Oliver walked past the gates and into the camp under everyone's eyes. He felt their gaze on him, they never stopped watching him even as he rejoined Vordigan who held his door open for him.

"They're all fascinated with you." the master slipped as Oliver entered the cabin. "It's been a long while since the last Sereptia. For all of them, it's the first they will ever see."

Once the door closed, both men went silent. Vordigan motioned for him to seat at the table by the center of the cabin and went to retrieve a bow and a set of arrows from the closet. The master's severed hand had been replaced by a prosthesis tailored for archery.

He hooked it to the bow and used his remaining hand to stroke the wooden arc, almost tenderly. Vordigan approached the table at a slow pace, his eyes never left the object in his hands. A small smile played on his lips.

Oliver watched him, uneasy. The conflicting emotions brought by his former mentor were not something he wanted to deal with at the moment. Still, there was an undeniable sense of sadness around the two men and it made the task ahead of them so much more difficult.

Vordigan set the bow and the arrows on the table, slowly pushing them towards Oliver.

"All this time I've kept it in here, hoping I could give it back to you one day." Vordigan finally dared to speak. "Go on, take it. I took great care of it. You'll feel I kept the wood smooth, tightened the rope whenever it started to let loose. It's as good as new, like you only left it yesterday."

Oliver looked down. "Stop it. Stop it."

A small, sad laugh left Vordigan. "It's too much, isn't? Because of what happened?"

The younger man sighed. "I couldn't let you get away with what you've done. I hope you see that."

Vordigan tapped his prosthesis on the table a couple of times. "And so you gave me this." he nodded towards the piece of plastic attached to his arm.

"You sent me to kill a man." Oliver stared at him, straight in his eyes. "You lied about the purpose of the Brotherhood, you indoctrinated me into believing I was doing good but I was only taking part of a criminal gang."

"What I made you do was a good thing, Oliver."

"Oh, come on!" he rose to his feet and started pacing around the room. "You turned me into your personal hitman, do you think after all this time I'd have forgotten? Or that I'd be as gullible as I once was?"

"Oliver!" Vordigan's tone held a warning edge. "You haven't changed on that front. You're still as hotheaded as you used to be. You never let me explain why I did those things."

Oliver scoffed. "What's there to explain? What? Echevarria was a terrible guy, I know that, you know that but it doesn't make what I did better." he said. "And Rafael, his son? The guy who comes back into my life years later, calls himself Merlyn and avenge his dad by killing one of my closest friends. This, is all, on you!"

"I've heard about that boy." Vordigan pursed his lips. "I'm very sorry about what happened in America, Oliver. I am truly sorry."

Oliver smiled mirthlessly. "Oh so it wasn't you? You didn't sent him after me?"

Vordigan looked taken aback for an instant. "Oliver come on sit down, now. Sit down!" he ordered.

Both men froze and stared at each other in silence. Outside, the people had quieted down, they probably heard them quarreling, their discussion so heated their words pierced through the walls.

The older man sighed. "Sit down and I'll tell you everything."

Oliver's jaw was tight and he had half a mind to tell him to go to hell but he listened nonetheless. His desire for answers outweighing his anger. He crossed his arms on the table, staring at him with a harsh, unwavering gaze.

"I'm listening."

Vordigan nodded, looking down and around to find his words. "When I arrived here from Ireland, years and years before you even set foot past the Mexican border, the region was riddled with petty thieves and drug addicts. The law was inexistent and everyday people would tell these stories of whatever event happened recently. Each story was more terrible than the old one. There wasn't a day that went by without an atrocity being committed, sometimes for no reason at all."

"I get it, the place was hell." Oliver interjected, having had his own experiences with crime in this part of the world.

"These people needed order and stability." Vordigan said with a firm tone. He waved a finger around for emphasis. "They needed to feel like the future would be better. Since the authorities were all corrupt, incapable and unwilling to change anything, I decided to do something, I founded the Brotherhood. I made it a secret and closed society on purpose. That way, people would speculate about us and distort the reality, giving us a reputation that would make criminals fear us."

"Well, it worked."

"It did. It was better than I had expected." Vordigan agreed. "I started recruiting these lost kids wandering around with no future ahead of them. I gave them values and discipline and in exchange, they helped me set order around the place."

"You had them kill, you demanded the villagers young girls in exchange for your protection. That was also meant to give them values?" Oliver challenged.

"You know what we're fighting against, Oliver." Vordigan's brow furrowed. "On the other side of the border there's a civil war that's been going on for half a century and it's been spilling over to here for almost as long. These are lifelong endured criminals, monsters, psychopaths. No prison would accept them, what else could we do?"

"And the girls?"

"The girls?" Vordigan asked. "My pupils are all young developing men, I can't control them all the time and ask for more discipline. They'd blow up! Boys are like pressure cookers, you know. Sometimes they need to let out some steam to calm down."

"So you set up a prostitution ring for their benefit, great."

There was an cynical grin on Vordigan's face. "Oliver... call it what you want but most of these women are choosing this life on their own because they know life in the camp is much better than outside. At least here, they're safe, there are rules. Outside? Rapes, murders, torture are frequent. Especially for lone women."

"Right, you have an answer for everything," Oliver shook his head. "So I guess it's the moment you start talking about drug dealers."

"Echevarria was the last criminal lord who stood in my way. I had you kill him to prevent a drug-war." Vordigan started to work himself up. "You do want me to say it, don't you? Yes I became a criminal, a drug-lord just like them. I did it to control crime. It's easier than to eradicate it." he explained.

Oliver snorted and shook his head but Vordigan pressed on. "Tell me something, Oliver. Since you came back, have you seen or heard of any crime or any act of violence in the area? You know why that is? Because you killed Echevarria. You heard me right. The region started to stabilize once he was dead. I was able to assume control of the market and regulate it. These days, kids are kept out of this system, I was able to redistribute the money we earned to the locals. They built schools, there's even one hospital a few miles from here. These things happened thanks to you."

"If you walk in these villages, alone at night." he continued. "You'll find nobody to attack you because all of the dealers you would meet are working for me. There is no one to fight and the quality of life is starting to rise. Slowly but it rises anyway."

Oliver watched him, suspicious. "Are you trying to tell me that my killing the last drug boss standing up against you brought peace around the place?"

"Believe it or not, that's what happened."

He looked down, uncertain whether or not to believe the older man's words. "And you want me to believe you didn't take anything aside for your personal gain?"

"I never said I was a saint, Oliver." Vordigan laughed. "I won't lie to you, I'm no hero, I'm a hunter. I like the chase against crime and the reward at the end. I'm not like you, Oliver and I'm not a role-model but despite everything my teachings made you who you are today." he gestured at his uniform. "Look at yourself: the great Green Arrow! The sound of your name makes the criminals shake in fear."

"If I had the chance to do it all over again," Vordigan continued. "I wouldn't change a thing."

Oliver raised an eyebrow. "What even that?" he pointed at his prosthesis.

"It's a testament of your strength and the bond between us. No I wouldn't change that either and you won't believe it but, I got used to missing a hand. It doesn't hinder my handling of the bow at all."

"I'm not sorry." Oliver said after a moment.

Vordigan nodded. "And neither am I."

They looked at each other with newfound respect for, in that instant they understood their motives and their differing natures. Despite their tumultuous history, the bond between them resurfaced even just for that moment.

"Come on," Vordigan breathed. "It's time."

Oliver nodded and rose to his feet, following his former mentor. The older man grabbed his weapons and watched him do the same. When they reached the door, they shared one last glance before Vordigan turned the knob.

"Let's give them something worth remembering."

When Clark Kent materialized in the middle of the camp, he faced a puzzling scene. A crowd of bowmen had gathered by the open gates leading to the jungle. They all seemed to wait for something in silence.

From time to time, a sound would come out of the forest, a crackle, a shout, people shouting to each other and everytime, they would perk up and listen intently to what was happening.

Unsettled, Clark stepped forward in the direction of the crowd. "What's going on? Where is Oliver?" he asked.

The people, young men and women, watched him quizzically and shared words in Spanish. Clark frowned.

"Do you understand me?"

One of them, a young man carrying a metallic bow with him, nodded. "A little bit." he said.

Clark's eyes widened. "That bow, where did you get it? What happened to the man who carried it?"

"He is there." the young man pointed in the direction of the forest where the shouts came from. "With our master."

"What are they doing?"

The teenager smiled. "Deciding our future."

A loud yell came from the forest, everyone gasped and speculated in the local language. Clark swallowed. "That's it, I'm getting him out of here."

"No!" the teenager replied harshly. "One cannot put himself between them. There are rules."

"But I cant..."

"This is their fight." he said with an air of finality.

Clark was about to overlook the suspicious glances sent his way by the crowd and zoom past them to rescue Oliver when one of the young people erupted in a fit of shouts, pointing towards the forest. The crowd watched in awe as a figure emerged from the darkness of the jungle.

The man moved slowly and seemed to carry something on his shoulder while a bow poked out of his back. The figure got closer and Clark started to outline the man's features, he noticed him carrying another person on his shoulder.

"It's..."

"Green Arrow!" the crowd called.

Oliver Queen walked towards the gates at a slow pace, his eyes shining as they met with Clark's. The alien shook his head and watched him walk past him, the crowd tagging at his heels. "Oliver what's this-"

His friend ignored him, he headed towards the center of the camp where a flat rock had been put. He deposed the unmoving body of a dark-haired man on it with care. Clark saw an arrow protruding from the man's belly.

"What have you done, Oliver?"

His angered question drew the other man's attention towards him. "What are you doing here?" Oliver asked.

"I can't believe you killed a man!"

The crowd, however, seemed to have a different reaction. One of them started to shout the word 'master' and they all lowered on their knees, bowing in Oliver's direction. The man in question seemed less than thrilled by the situation and glanced at the dead body on the rock.

"Honor Vordigan as you honor me." he said. "Without him we wouldn't be here. He is your leader. I am merely a second-in-command." Oliver caught Clark's gaze and let the crowd to bow before Vordigan's body.

"What's going on, Clark?"

"You dare asking me this after what I've just seen?" the alien countered. "I should be the one asking what's going on because what I see right now isn't pretty and I'm not willing to involve you into yet another fight. Who knows what you're going to do."

Oliver sighed, shaking his head before walking away towards a quiet part of the camp. He touched his ear.

"Green Arrow online." he said. "I'm alive, Sidekick. Yeah I'm okay. I'm okay." he pacified Chloe on the other end of the line for another moment before the next question left his lips. "Listen Clark's over here, did you send him? Yeah? Why? What's going on?"