Chapter 5: Thomas Arthur Merlyn AKA Yad Alqadar AKA Blue Hand

When I started this project, I needed to research DCU!Tommy. Arrowverse!Tommy was fairly well developed, but inconsistent with some of his life choices. Which made great FanFic fodder. I wanted to do the character justice. I wanted to fully develop AU!Tommy to reflect how traumatized he was with is mother's death… with his father's abandonment. How the Queens stepped into those vital roles and further shaped the boy into the man he became.

One aspect I HATED about Arrowverse!Tommy was his reaction to learning about Oliver's nightlife. It was sheltered, hypocritical, selfish, and only served the purpose of driving the plot. It was how the Arrowverse touted their comic morality. It didn't fit with the darker, grittier version they tried to portray. If anything, it made most viewers discount Tommy altogether.

AU!Tommy was mostly inspired by Arrowverse!Tommy. Without Arrowverse!Tommy's penchant for flawed morality. I shaped AU!Tommy to have more trauma from the death of his mother and deep and abiding anger at his father. He replaced his dad with the Queens. He adopted Oliver, Laurel, Sara, and Thea as his siblings. His anger at Malcolm made him take legal steps to notify his father how deeply angry he was. Without confrontation.

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ORIGIN:

Thomas 'Tommy' Arthur Merlyn was born to Malcolm Arthur Merlin and Rebecca Abigail Swann Merlyn. Rebecca was the sole inheritor of the Swann Estate. She changed her will to reflect the desires of her parents to ensure that only Swann blood would have Swann money. The entire estate went to Tommy in a trust until he came of age. Malcolm would not be able to benefit from the money unless it directly benefited Tommy, but Malcolm never touched it and didn't bother to tell Tommy about it. Which led to additional anger from Tommy at his father when Jean Loring informed him of his inheritance.

In 2000, Rebecca was brutally murdered in the Glades while leaving Angel's Rest Free Clinic where she practiced as a physician. Malcolm was distraught and fled the country leaving Tommy behind. Tommy sought comfort from Moira. Custody was granted the Queens while Malcolm was nowhere to be found. Malcolm had appointed a temporary CEO of Merlyn Global Group before he departed. He didn't even take the time to decide how to handle Tommy. With the Queens as his godparents, the decision was easy to make in court.

Tommy felt abandoned by his father. He sought and found comfort in the Queens. Oliver took it upon himself to ensure that Tommy was never alone and knew how much he was loved. Oliver told his mother to get bunk beds for one room, despite Moira's protest about image. Robert and Moira stepped up to ensure that Tommy was included. They considered him their adopted son. A son of their heart. Oliver and Tommy are never apart for that first year. Tommy finally started to believe that he was not worthless and alone.

At the start of school, Oliver introduced Laurel to Tommy. With the persistent attention of Oliver and Laurel, Tommy started to break out of his shell. He wouldn't trust others with his heart easily. His father taught him that lesson. He formed a small group of people he trusted. Oliver, Laurel, Sara, Robert, Moira, Quentin, Dinah, Raisa, and eventually Thea.

Tommy knew that Oliver was smitten with Laurel from their first meeting. He went out of his way to tease Oliver and include Laurel in everything they did. He welcomed Sara to ensure Laurel was present. Tommy saw Laurel as his adopted sister. He accepted that family was who you want in your life. Not blood. Blood had to prove their worth. His blood had failed him repeatedly.

In 2006, Malcolm returned to Starling. Tommy was forced to leave his true family to be with Malcolm. He was 14 and he fully embraced the teenager hostility towards his father. He resented his father for the move away from Queen Manor. He despised Malcolm for making him move back to Merlyn Mansion. The new Malcolm was cold and uncaring. He was nothing like the father Tommy remembered and refused to forgive. He told others that his father died with his mother. He refused to have anything to do with Malcolm.

In 2010, Tommy graduated from High School. He immediately went to Jean Loring to create a Last Will and Testament to ensure that his father could not receive any of the Swann Estate. He moved out of Merlyn Mansion as soon as possible into a condo. He set up provisions for Thea to get the entire Swann Estate with Oliver, Laurel, and Sara receiving a Trust from him. He left a statement in his Will for Malcolm that displayed how much he resented his father.

In 2012, Tommy learned of the summer trip planned by Oliver and Laurel to accompany Robert on his yacht. Tommy suddenly felt bereft. He didn't know how he would handle himself without them. Tommy decided to accompany Oliver and Laurel on their trip. He figured that he could bond with Robert over business during the trip. Tommy showed up at the dock ready to go. This was the first time that Tommy chose to push himself into the world because he was afraid of being alone.

DISTINGUISHING FEATURES:Tommy was considered handsome, but not painfully handsome. Attractive and good looking. He had black hair and ice blue eyes.

Scars:Bullet Scar (Lower Right Abdomen-Amazo)

Tattoos:Brand: Outline of Hand (Upper Right on back) [given by LoA to demonstrate acceptance of new life with the League], Outline of a Triangle (Upper Left on back) [given by LoA to denote bonding with Oliver and Tommy],

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FAMILY:

RELATIONSHIP-FATHER:

Malcolm Arthur Merlyn (Arthur King) (Blood):

Pre-Rebecca: Tommy had a good, loving relationship with his father. His father would make sure to spend time with him and help him develop. Tommy felt valued by his father.

Post-Rebecca: Malcolm left Tommy to disappear for six years. Tommy felt abandoned. Oliver and Laurel and the Queens were there for Tommy. He developed a deep love for the Queens. He resented his father's abandonment. When his father returned, he resented and hated his father for forcing him away from his found family. Robert stepped into the role of father for Tommy because of his hatred of Malcolm. He hated that his father demanded he leave the Queens to return to Merlyn Mansion where he was only tolerated, not loved. Tommy decided to lash out at his father in his will and spend all his time with the Queens.

RELATIONSHIP-MOTHER: Dr. Rebecca Abigail Swann Merlyn (Blood): Tommy had a very loving relationship with his mother. Even though his mother was extremely busy, she always would make time for Tommy. Over the years, after her death, Tommy came to hold an ideal image of his mother.

RELATIONSHIP-SIBLINGS:

Athena 'Thea' Dearden Queen (half-sister): Tommy had a very caring and loving relationship with Thea (unknown half-sister). He worked with Oliver and Laurel to include Thea in everything. Despite the age difference.

Oliver Jonas Queen (Adopted): Tommy had a deep connection to Oliver. He saw Oliver as his adopted brother-in-life. They did everything together.

Dinah Laurel Lance (Adopted): Tommy had a deep connection to Laurel. He believed that Oliver and Laurel belonged together, but felt lost without them. He frequently included himself on their outings. They loved having him with them. Regardless of why they got together.

Sara Marie Lance (Adopted): Tommy had a sibling connection to Sara. Even though Sara was tagging along for most of their adventures as a child. He saw her as a sister.

RELATIONSHIP-GRANDPARENTS: Tommy is the only grandson of the Starling Swanns. They were the second richest family in Starling, second only to the Queens. His grandparents made his mother swear to only allow a Swann by blood to inherit their fortune. They died after Rebecca married Malcolm, but before Tommy was born. He never knew his grandparents.

RELATIONSHIP-OTHER FAMILY: Tommy has no relations on either the Merlyn or the Swann side of his family. His father never told him about any Merlyn relations. The Swanns had his mother late in life. She was an only child.

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MOTIVATION:

BELIEFS POLITICAL: Generally, Tommy has business and conservative views because of how he was raised. Tempered with a deep passion to help people from his mother and reinforced by Moira with her charity work.

SOCIAL:Tommy has abandonment issues. He was certain that everyone would leave him. Abandon him eventually. To this end, he did his best to safeguard himself from their eventual abandonment. He eventually created a mask of humor and deflection to hide his true feelings. This was exacerbated by his schooling, where his classmates only wanted to know him for his family money (Swann). The only people who had earned his true devotion were Oliver and Laurel. Sara and Thea have earned his trust, but not to the extent of Oliver and Laurel. He respected the Queens and the Lances and knew that they are there for him, but he was hesitant to trust parental figures because of Malcolm.

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PERSONALITY:

INTELLIGENCE:Above average. Introverted. Friendly mask. Very intellectual. Tommy spent a great deal of time in his own head. It allowed him to play out scenarios without facing reality. Tommy had an active mind and was constantly working out scenarios and how they would play out. This made him appear clever, when he had just anticipated their actions. How people will act in each set of circumstances. Post Gambit: This trait was strengthened in Ivo's cell.

CLEANLINESS:Clean and Tidy. It helps him to have control over small parts of his life. Things he can rely on.

FORGIVENESS: Tommy does not have a good method for forgiving anyone. Once you have betrayed his trust, he defaulted to reject every comment made to work toward forgiveness. Tommy felt things deeply. Because he expected rejection, he did what he can to shield himself from how deeply that rejection affected him. Only Oliver and Laurel had broken through to him and got him to share his feelings with them.

RESENTMENT: Tommy easily resented those who broke his trust or demonstrated how they would if he let them into his circle of trust. He seldom let people into his circle of trust. To break it, incurred his anger and resentment. He lost his sense of justice when his mother was killed. He harbored resentment for the loss of his mother. Tommy was deeply affected by his father's rejection at a young age. When Oliver and Laurel finally got him to start to interact with the world again, Tommy deeply resented his father for his actions. He was able to focus on the pain his father had put him through and use his pain to spite his father.

EXPECTATIONS FOR SOCIETY:

Outside World: He was expected to behave like any other Billionaire Scion. Laws were expected to be loosely followed. He generally put up a front to disguise how he really felt.

The League: He was expected to behave like any other member of the League. To instill in himself the core values of the League. To protect the League at all costs. If necessary, to die for the League. The League has no value for any of the laws of the outside world. Tommy found that he preferred this outlook on justice. He preferred to be judged on his merits.

EXPECTATIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS: Tommy followed all the ethical values for the League. If necessary, die to protect those ethics. However, he expected individuals to behave in accordance with the League values. He also expected individuals to reject him. He preferred his position in the League to be anonymous. A role he did not have in the outside world.

ETHIC VALUE: He adopted the League values as his own. They matched some of the values that Robert taught him as a child. He refused to use any values that Malcolm taught him.

The balance must be served.

If necessary, replace evil with death, but make sure the person is truly evil.

Do not take revenge. Serve balance.

Accept responsibility for your actions.

Ensure the secrecy of the League. This ensures the safety of your League family.

PERSONALITY TRAITS:

MANNER TYPE: Very well-mannered, and refined. Tommy expected to be rejected and tried to mitigate the damage to himself by presenting his manners as a shield. He used his bold attitude to mitigate the rejection of others.

STYLE TYPE: Pre-Gambit: Elegant and educated. Perfect image of Billionaire Scion. He presented a very cultured mask to the public. However, in private, Tommy was not cultured. He loved to dive into trivia, television, and pop culture. Post-Gambit: Firm and confident. Educated.

FEARFUL:Fearful and Anxious. Tommy was always anxious that he would be rejected by everyone. He had come to only rely on Oliver and Laurel as his touchstones. With them, he could face whatever rejection came his way. He was not apprehensive. He expected to be rejected. It allowed him to accept the results of their rejection more easily. More often he was surprised when he is accepted for himself.

SHY:Shy. Outgoing mask. Tommy was very shy and afraid of being rejected. He had built an outgoing mask to wear in the public, but he only showed his true feelings to his circle of trust.

INSECURE:Insecure. Tommy was very insecure emotionally. This went back to how his father abandoned him. He had gained confidence to face the world again from Oliver and Laurel. When they were around, Tommy could easily put up the confident mask. Without them he began to withdraw from social situations. Tommy was filled with self-doubt. He didn't trust himself to do anything properly. He depended on the opinions of Oliver and Laurel to determine if he was capable.

COMPLIANT:Compliant. Tommy didn't want to aggravate a person. He was more likely to comply with their demands or requests unless he felt a strong moral objection.

LAZY OR AMBITIOUS:Not lazy or ambitious. He would move, but seldom went out of his way to complete a task that was not set for him.

EMPATHETIC:Kind. Generally, Tommy was kind. He didn't have time to be rude or arrogant. He refused to be like his father. He would often use his father to show him how NOT to act. His mother's example and Moira's encouragement helped him cement his drive toward empathy.

PASSIONATE or APATHETIC:Neither. Because Tommy was afraid to be rejected, he had never become passionate about any one subject. He was not completely apathetic, but if the task did go against his values, he saw no need to become passionate about it. Generally, Tommy was indifferent. His only focus was on the few people in his life that matter to him. That saw the real him.

AVOIDS CONFLICT:Tommy expected rejection and had no passionate pursuits. Because of these two things, he avoided conflict with others. He strove to avoid rejection by having nothing to be rejected for.

EASY-GOING:He expected to be rejected. It made him accept anything presented to him.

HONEST:Honest and sincere. He hid his feelings, but told those who cared for him how he really felt. He disliked dishonest people who present themselves one way, but really felt another. Those people reminded him of his father and his lies about caring for Tommy, only to abandon him. Tommy was honest with the people he was closest to, but he hid and was dishonest with everyone else for his public image.

LOYAL: Tommy had been hurt by his father's attitude. To this end he usually withheld his trust of others. The few people he had come to trust, he did so completely. Oliver and Laurel are closet to him. He had become their biggest supporters and believers.

OPEN-MINDED OR FANATICAL:Not open-minded or fanatical. He could keep an open mind, but he was certain that he would be rejected. He had no solid opinions that he felt a need to take a stand on, but he seldom went out of his way to think of new things.

RELIABLE:Consistent and reliable. Tommy was consistent, but has no real goal. He was very reliable in his actions. His motivations were to assist Oliver and Laurel. He usually followed what Oliver and Laurel were doing. He was attending college for a business degree because it was expected.

INNOVATIVE OR TRADITIONAL:Neither. Tommy was passive in his adventures. He usually relied on Oliver or Laurel to draft him into adventure.

PLANNER OR IMPULSIVE:Passive planner. Tommy was very passive. He relied on Oliver and Laurel to get him to move out of his comfort zone. Oliver was the risk taker. Laurel tempered Oliver with passion, but restraint. Both took Tommy with them to participate in life. When Tommy was alone on the Amazo, he kept his mind active by creating scenarios and plans, but he never executed them.

PEACEFUL OR VIOLENT:Neither. Tommy was not violent by nature. He didn't have the passion or drive it required, but he was not peaceful either. He just wanted to protect himself from other people's passion and violence.

SELFISH:Tommy was all about trying to protect himself. To this end, all his actions seemed selfish.

SUSPICIOUS:Suspicious. Tommy expected rejection. He was suspicious of everyone outside his circle of trust. He expected them to betray his trust. Therefore, he was not surprised when they do betray him.

ETHICAL: Tommy was very ethical. He had been the victim of his father's apathy and he tried not to perpetuate the pain by committing unethical acts on others. He could justify some unethical actions by using his ethics.

HUMOROUS: Tommy constantly relied on humor to mask his true feelings. He used trivia. He learned to lighten the tone and ensure the world is not a serious place.

GENEROUS: He expected rejection and didn't bother to put himself first. He was generally generous with how others feel to avoid conflict. This served in concert with his empathy.

CALM: A sense of peace filled him when he expected rejection. He had less stress if he knew and expected to be rejected. Because he expected it, he was not surprised when it happened. This gave him a calm exterior.

SOCIOLOGY:

RELATIONSHIP-ROMANTIC PARTNER:

Pre-Gambit: Not in a relationship. Focus was on friends. Playboy. Tommy sheltered his heart and did not expect anyone to care for him. Tommy decided to get his sex from other women that he didn't care about to protect his heart. Oliver and Laurel were together, but he couldn't see himself with anyone else long term. This made Tommy seek sex in the form of one-night stands. He couldn't have what he wanted, so he would take what he could from random women.

Post-Gambit: Focus was on Laurel. Deeply committed to taking care of Laurel. Tommy didn't expect to have a relationship with Laurel. He was surprised to find alternative relationships in the League. When Oliver made the first move, Tommy found that he was not totally against it. Only if it was Oliver.

RELATIONSHIP - SOCIAL PARTNER:

Pre-Gambit: Oliver and Laurel were his closest companions and were with him constantly.

Post-Gambit: Tommy ached with the loss of Oliver. He rededicated himself to Laurel to ensure her safety. He considered Oliver to be his brother-in-life and desired to be with him constantly. He was surprised to find that Oliver and Laurel both wanted him in return.

RELATIONSHIP-CLASSMATES: Tommy was always distant with his classmates. They were often trying to curry favor with him to get on Oliver's good side. Because of this, Tommy stopped trying to make friends with his classmates. Only Oliver was his honest friend and later Laurel.

Carter Bowen: Tommy was dismissive of Carter Bowen's achievements. This was likely due to how Moira Queen and Malcolm had always referred to Tommy's classmate.

Max Fuller: Only mention when Tommy drags Oliver to Max's club. Tommy was more focused on Oliver. He mostly ignored Max in favor of teasing Oliver.

RELATIONSHIP-FRIENDS: Tommy was dedicated and loyal to Oliver and Laurel. He held a secondary place for Sara and Thea. Oliver would often goad Tommy into taking greater risks. He followed Oliver on grand adventures. The inclusion of Laurel changed their adventures, but also added the wild Sara into the mix. Oliver and Sara would push Tommy out of his comfort zone and force him to enjoy life in the moment. He learned to temper his adventures with caution.

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POWERS/ABILITIES:

Skills: Developing scenarios (Skilled) [Isolation on Amazo], Planning (Mastered) [League Leadership Training], Leadership of groups (Skilled) [League Leadership Training], Negotiation (Skilled) [League Leadership Training], Management of Resources (Mastered) [League Leadership Training]

Weapons:

Weapons (Preferred):Short Swords (Expert), Long Swords (Expert), Knives (Expert), Throwing Stars (Expert), Darts (Mastered)

Weapons (Mastered):Crossbow (Mastered), Throwing Stars (Mastered), Darts (Mastered), Short Swords (Expert), Long Swords (Expert), Knives (Expert), Kukri (Mastered), Pike (Mastered)

Abilities: Leadership (Expert), Persuasion (Expert), Charisma (Mastered)

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NOTES:

As you can see, AU!Tommy was mostly inspired by Arrowverse!Tommy. He is different. He was not as judgmental and was very passive. His life throw him under the bus and then backed up again. Malcolm returned to Starling six years later. Making Tommy an angry teenager when he returned. Cold Malcolm meet hostile, angry teen. Yeah. Tommy never forgave him and then grew instantly hostile when his dad was so different.

My research into DCU!Tommy basically found a thin character. DCU!Tommy was mostly plot driven. One DCU!Tommy was on a different yacht with DCU!Oliver. When DCU!Oliver got stranded on Star Island, DCU!Tommy had half his face burned off and was in a coma on the coast in a Spanish speaking town. When Green Arrow meets the Dark Archer later, it is to stop him from assassinating someone. Not a good reunion.

I think that I was able to cherry pick the Arrowverse!Tommy character traits that I like, while giving him depth. I hope you like how I portrayed him.

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