NAME:MALCOLM ARTHUR MERLYN | AL SA-HER | DARK ARCHER

I used much of the Arrowverse!Malcolm for this character, but… totally messed with the timeline. I didn't really like the DCU version of this character. I did incorporate some of the historical elements of the DCU character, but he was mostly the Arrowverse version.

Likewise, he was not as skilled as he wanted to have other people to think he was. He was out of practice and had NOT had anyone with any skill to practice against since he left the League. Like any skill, if you don't practice it, you lose it. AGE was a factor.

ORIGIN:

Malcolm Merlyn was born Arthur King, son of Jasper King. He was privileged and wealthy in London. His father's collection of ancient artifacts led him to seek out treasure in his youth. He lied to a secret group called the Hidden to find a lost temple based on artifacts in his father's collection. The Hidden was being hunted by the League (of Assassins). They knew this and actively sought to hide from the sight of the League. Once they found the temple, Malcolm betrayed the Hidden and sacrificed the woman he was sleeping with (Hidden loyalist) to defend against the temple guardians. He escaped and took on a new name to hide from the Hidden.

While reinventing himself, Malcolm met Robert Queen and formed a friendship. Robert fell for Moira and Moira introduced him to Rebecca. Malcolm and Rebecca were married and had a son. Thomas Arthur Merlyn was born in Feb 1992. Malcolm was able to successfully grow his new company the Merlyn Global Group while enjoying his family, thanks to initial startup cash from his friend Robert.

In 2000, Rebecca was murdered on the way home from Angel's Rest Free Clinic in the Glades where she was one of the main emergency physicians. Malcolm was shattered and enraged. He decided to seek out the League to better learn how to get revenge on those who took from him. He left immediately after Rebecca's funeral. He simply ensured that his company was in good hands while he was gone. He only left a note for the Queens regarding Tommy.

Malcolm initially was evaluated by Ra's al Ghul. He had watched another evaluation before his own. The man had claimed that he wanted revenge. He was slain by Ra's. Malcolm knew that if he wanted the training, he would have to lie about his reasons. But he told enough truth (becoming stronger, preventing another tragedy like Rebecca's) to weasel his way into the training the League offered. After his initial training period, Malcolm was identified as having leadership qualities. The League trained these abilities and enhanced his own skills. Malcolm flourished in the League, but he longed to return to Starling and seek his revenge on the Glades.

Malcolm spent six years in the League. His first six months in basic training and learning basic martial skills. Then he was assigned to the Shawka al Ghul, the Demon's Spine, to learn more about his leadership skills. He was trained as a Qayid. A commander. He was then assigned to the Daghan al Ghul, the Demon's Venom, to work that area of the world under the Horseman, Fasir, who was assigned as its leader, al Owal. He learned all about various poisons, potions, stealth, diversion, and magic while assigned to this branch of the League. While he had no magic himself, he learned all about its strengths and its limitations.

During his last year with the League, Malcolm began to resent all the time he was wasting in the League. He wanted to return to Starling to exact his revenge. But first he had to earn release from the League. Ra's al Ghul told him that he would have to work for one year as the Fasir of the Makhlah al Ghul, the Demon's Claw, to earn his release. This was his last year with the League. The Demon's Claw mostly utilized martial skills and stealth. He was focused on training the newest of the League to proper martial standards. However, it did allow him closer contact with Ra's al Ghul. He was finally able to convince Ra's al Ghul to release him from his oath to the League for the sake of his son, Tommy. After six years, Ra's al Ghul allowed Malcolm a to be released. However, Malcolm was still beholden to the League Code.

Upon his return to Starling City, Malcolm immediately re-secured his presence at Merlyn Global Group. He insisted on Tommy's return to the Merlyn Mansion. He was confused as to why his son was angry with him. But he felt that letting Tommy continue to seek out the Queens, for duties that he had to time for, was well worth a little distance between himself and his son.

Malcolm was able to reconnect with Robert under false pretenses. Their shared interests in business assisted him in breaking through to his old friend. Malcolm assumed that he had reassured his friend after his return. But Robert never voiced his concerns with Malcolm. Malcolm no longer had the same interests as Robert. He only wanted revenge. But his skill with bending the truth and using lies and subterfuge served him well. Skills trained and honed in the League.

After he settled into his home in Starling, Malcolm began to recruit members to his newest plan. His storm. His Tempest. This was a multi phased plan to bring his anger and revenge on the Glades for robbing him of his wife.

Ironically, Robert was his first recruit. Robert needed assistance in covering up the accidental death of a Councilman of the Glades. Malcolm had heard Robert's story and reassured him that 'those people' deserved to die like the Councilman had. He illustrated that this Councilman was a prime example of the attitudes displayed by the people in the Glades. He refined his pitch with Robert. Robert felt that getting criminals to assist in defending the city from other criminals was a worthy endeavor. Frank Chen was his second recruit. He got lucky when he discovered that Frank's daughter was raped and the men responsible were getting off without being charged. Men from the Glades. He used that to manipulate Frank into joining his Tempest. Malcolm planned on using his ties to the Triad to assist in cleaning up the city from the filth of the Glades.

Next, Malcolm recruited Carl Ballard, a real estate mogul. Carl owned many of the properties in the Glades. But had an issue with people paying or criminals using his housing. He was more than willing to join a group that would blackmail the criminals into better behavior. But he was a coward. Carl depended on Tempest's Enforcer to strong arm his clientele.

Finally, Malcolm recruited Councilwoman Emily Pollard and Councilman Kullens. Both were looking for an easy path to votes and political sponsorship. Neither aspired to become mayor themselves. He easily brought them in with promises to help them stay elected and to eliminate their competition.

While he was recruiting them, Malcolm was compiling a list. He used his skills at infiltration to hack into various criminal enterprises to gain blackmail material. When he had the material, he used it to 'encourage' these criminals to donate large sums of money to various organizations. It was during this time that his Dark Archer persona was most active. Within two years, he had a completed list of all the high-level criminals in Starling City. Next, he recruited various city officials to ensure the will of Tempest was strong. He ensured the mayor, the commissioner, the District Attorney, multiple city judges, and lawyers were in the pocket of Tempest. Most of the city officials didn't see Tempest as being a bad thing until they were in too deep.

Malcolm gave a complete copy of the list to each member of Tempest. He told them how to read the list if needed. Then he told them to use these people for the good of the city. He encouraged his Councilmen to generate legislation to push the criminal element into the Glades and encourage businesses to leave the Glades for the rest of the city.

In 2012, Malcolm found a scientist, Dr. Brian Markov, that could provide a 'clean' way to eliminate the threat of the Glades. This was the solution that Malcolm had been looking for. The device wasn't even built yet. It was just an idea. But Malcolm was determined to ensure its completion. He presented this solution to his Tempest. He was surprised at their resistance to the Undertaking. He had done all the work for them. All they needed to do was to push the criminals into the Glades while getting businesses out. This was what they had all been working for the last seven years. The main dissenters to this plan were Robert, Frank, and Carl.

Of all people, he felt most betrayed by Robert. Robert knew Rebecca. How could he not see how this would benefit the city? That this was right? That the Glades had pushed him to committing murder? It was all the Glades fault. He immediately put a plan into place to kill Robert. If Robert couldn't see how this would help the city, then Moira would. Rebecca was Moira's best friend. She would be better without Robert betraying her constantly.

After the sinking of the Queen's Gambit, Malcolm was all set to bring Moira into Tempest. She would want revenge on the scum that had killed Rebecca. Rebecca was her best friend. It was with surprise that Malcolm learned of the death of Tommy and Oliver. He had no intention of hurting either of the young men. He had miscalculated. Moira did not want revenge on the scum for killing Rebecca. She wanted revenge on him for killing her son.

Malcolm dismissed Moira's feelings for Robert and Tommy easily. Tommy was not her son and Robert was unfaithful to her. But Oliver was her son. Moira could not join Tempest. She would only work to bring it down because it was Malcolm's idea. He couldn't allow that. The Undertaking would do too much good to stop.

Malcolm couldn't even blackmail her into compliance with Thea's health. He knew Thea was his child. He had no time for a 11-year-old girl. Until Tommy died, he had a son. He didn't need a daughter. But now Thea was his only child. He needed to preserve her. What Tommy said in his Will, stuck with Malcolm. It festered on his mind as he started his plans for the Undertaking.

Malcolm finally decided to cut Moira and the Queens completely from Tempest. He would advise Moira to stay out of the Glades, but he would reassure her that he had no intention of revealing his status to Thea. That would protect her. Moira would protect her, as she had Tommy for those years. After all, Thea was her child too.

FAMILY:

Malcolm has a very specific impression of family. To Malcolm, only blood relatives are family. Family was not to be trusted any more than non-family. But they could be used in the right context. Much like he used his father's artifacts to find treasure.

RELATIONSHIP-FATHER: Jasper King (blood): Jasper King was minor nobility in England. He had a mansion in London, UK. He had retired from business and preferred to collect historical artifacts. Arthur (Malcolm) always resented his much older father. He felt entitled to riches. He used the historical artifacts to discover treasure. This led him to the Hidden.

RELATIONSHIP-SPOUSE (AFFAIR):

Dr. Rebecca Abigail Swann Merlyn (spouse): Malcolm married Rebecca in 1991. He found that she would be the perfect spouse. Her family was wealthy, even if her parents did not particularly like him. Rebecca did. That was all that mattered. Malcolm threw himself into the relationship and found himself entranced by her compassion.

Moira Ann Dearden Queen (affair): After the brutal murder of Rebecca, Malcolm was shattered. He sought a sympathetic ear in Moira. They had an affair the night of Rebecca's funeral. When Malcolm realized what he had done, he fled Starling. He couldn't deal with the horror of the murder of a man and an affair with his best friend's wife.

RELATIONSHIP-CHILDREN:

Thomas 'Tommy' Arthur Merlyn (blood): Before Rebecca's death, Malcolm loved to spend time with Tommy. He found that the boy was a perfect mix of himself and his beloved Rebecca. He was curious and longed to gain the attention of his busy parents. After Malcolm returned from his sabbatical, Malcolm found an angry teenager in the place of his son. He tried to stress the importance of blood to the boy, but was constantly disappointed. Regardless, he would enact his revenge on the Glades. Then Tommy would understand why this had to be done. For the audacity of harming Rebecca when she was only trying to help that scum.

Athena 'Thea' Dearden Queen (blood): Malcolm suspected that Thea was his child. He secreted a sample of her hair and had it tested. But Moira and Robert maintained the fiction that Thea was Robert's child. Malcolm was content. He had no use for his heir. A girl child would we useless. He let them maintain their fiction.

MOTIVATION:

Malcolm's primary motivations were greed and revenge. As a young man, he allowed his greed to rule his mind. He sought out and eventually had to hide from the Hidden after he betrayed them. He never regretted betraying them. He felt that it was to his own benefit. This incident did reveal the existence of the League to him.

Under his new identity as Malcolm Merlyn, he used cold and ruthless business practices to expand Merlyn Global Group. He married Rebecca initially because she was the sole heiress of the Swann Estate. He felt that this could only enhance his social standing and his finances. However, Rebecca made sure to leave the Swann Estate to Swann blood. The entire Estate was placed in a trust for Tommy with special conditions on it. This ensured that Malcolm would not use it, except for Tommy. Malcolm shielded his resentment by hiding the Swann Trust from Tommy. He would make sure that boy understood that his loyalty was only to Malcolm.

After Rebecca's death, Malcolm was consumed with rage. He felt that the only way for him to purge this rage was to vent his anger at the people in the Glades. He was certain he had killed the specific man responsible for Rebecca's death. Now he just needed to take revenge on the rest of the people in the Glades. He figured that the League would teach him how to fight. How to extract his revenge. He didn't understand the foundations of the League and its true purpose to ensure balance. In his mind that wasn't important. But he could justify that by ignoring Rebecca's plight all the people in the Glades were evil. Thus they must all be eliminated. The fact that he could reason well enough to get businesses to move out of the Glades spoke to a very special kind of break with reality.

PERSONALITY:

Malcolm was a very slick-talking man. He was smooth and cool in business. He was ruthless to those he saw as against him. He could be very personable when he wanted to be. He could make complex plans. He specialized in strategy but failed in tactics.

INTELLIGENCE: Malcolm had a very high level of intelligence. He could easily see how to manipulate and motivate different people in different ways towards a single goal. This skill was refined in the League. It focused on leadership and motivation as well as utilizing the skills available.

CUNNING: Malcolm had an abnormal level of cunning. He exhibited this ability from an early age. He was able to successfully cheat the Hidden from their treasure while he used them for their resources. He was then able to successfully craft a new identity to conceal his presence at a new location from the Hidden. He continued to utilize his cunning in business as he rapidly expanded his startup company Merlyn Global Group. His practices were so successful that Stellmoor International adopted them for hostile takeovers.

RESENTMENT: Malcolm resented everyone. He resented his father in his youth for not giving him everything he demanded. He resented that his father was blind to his wants. He resented the Hidden for their ability to operate in the world under the scrutiny of the League even while he used them. He resented Robert for being able to freely use his inherited family estate while Malcom had to remain separate from his own inheritance. He resented his employees for demanding more than he was willing to give. He resented Rebecca for dying when he was not ready to lose her yet. He resented Tommy for failing to be the kind of son he desired. He resented Thea for being a girl.

TRAINED SKILLS:

WEAPONS (PREFERRED): Compound Box (Expert). Short sword (Expert), Knives (Skilled),

SKILLS: Manipulation (Expert) [Skill to craft people to do what you desire and make it think that it is their own idea]

ABILITIES: Leadership (Expert) [received enhanced training with the League], Cunning (Expert) [natural ability to find and exploit the weaknesses of others to get what he desires]

NOTES:

The Arrowverse had many flaws. One of them was in displaying the level of martial skill that Malcolm displayed. First, he achieved this awesome level of martial skill within two years. Apparently he was so awesome that Ra's al Ghul appointed him as a Horseman. Then gratefully allowed him to return to his son. THEN he maintained that level of skill for 19 years. Sorry, but he had no one with even close to that skill level to practice against. Boxers who don't spar, lose their edge within months. I'm not buying that Bridge.

That doesn't mean that he couldn't have achieved that level of skill with several YEARS of practice (like Oliver). But to stay post-League fit 19 years later is a no-go SINCE HE AGES FOR THOSE 19 YEARS. No, not happening. I had him losing his edge after the sex years he had been back from the League. He practiced at archery and fencing. Not exactly how you keep League-level skills sharp. That was like jogging around the block and thinking you were fit for a 10K marathon. He will be less fit when Oliver, Laurel, and Tommy finally come home from the wreck. They would be League-fit and able to spar against each other. Remember, he terrorized criminals with al Sa-her the first few years he came back. When his skills had not atrophied too much. After that, he just had to show his mask to instill terror in them. That made him lazy.

~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~