North China Sea

Their departure from Lian Yu went by with no issue. Even so, as their days of sailing went peaceably by, there was tension between the two women and their male companion. Slade was content to forget the disagreement over Hendrik's death ever happened and interacted with them as he always had in-between his duties as the acting-captain of the ship. But neither of his friends felt the same; Laurel in particular was haunted by the image of the prisoner's headless body, another horrific scene to add to her nightmares.

Neither of them brought it up, however. Slade still seemed to be the same person outside of that one episode, and they didn't want to get into another argument. Not when they were so close to finally reaching the mainland and making it home.

Things changed one night, about a week after they sailed from the island, when Laurel and Shado heard a knock on their door. As the only two women on the ship, it was only natural they room together, and since Slade was the one in charge, they had the best accommodations on the freighter: Ivo's old quarters. A second cot had to be pulled in to accomodate for both of them, but other than that the space was open and clean, complete with its own private bathroom. No need to use the communal showers with everyone else.

Laurel rubbed out the sleep in her eyes as she went to open the door, Shado just waking up and stretching her arms behind her. Ivo's bed was considerably more comfortable than the cot, so they had agreed it was only fair for them to switch beds every night. Laurel had gotten it last night, so tonight it was Shado's.

The American blinked when she saw who had awoken them from their slumber. "Anatoly?"

"Laurel," her friend greeted her. As Anatoly had been the one to inform them where Ivo's location was and had been an effective assistant for Laurel as she helped plan their voyage to China, he had been given a degree of trust and some perks as a result. This included a cabin on the ship and access to the better showers. "There is a problem."

"One that requires you to wake us up in the middle of the night?"

"Yes," Anatoly confirmed. He was grim. "Some of the prisoners have started to go missing."

That statement caused her to stiffen. From behind her, Shado had clearly heard, because Laurel could hear her scrambling out of her bed to join the conversation. "What? Why?"

"I do not know exactly. However, there are… rumors."

"Rumors?" Shado asked.

The Russian grimaced. "You know how Ivo was experimenting on us, yes?"

Both women nodded.

"Well, the reason for his experiments is because of the Mirakuru," he explained. "Before he came here in search of the original formula, he tried to re-create it using notes on it that he found. The current rumor going around the prisoners is that someone else has restarted the experiments."

"Oh my God," Laurel said, wide-eyed as her mouth dropped open.

Shado cursed. "It has to be one of the pirates," she claimed. "They're the only ones who were in any position to learn any intimiate knowledge involving the experiments. The only ones that would have any reason to try and re-create it…"

"…so they can inject themselves with it and stage a mutiny against Slade," Laurel finished for her, following her friend's line of thought. It made sense. After all, it was no secret that the moment they made it to China, they were going to hand the pirates over to the Chinese authorities. The bastards would do just about anything to avoid that fate, but the only way to do that was to re-take control of the ship. And that meant going against Slade, and all his Mirakuru prowess. They needed a way to even the playing field.

She glanced back at Anatoly. "How long has this been going on?"

"I only noticed two days ago and was only able to confirm what was happening now. It's possible this been going on for much longer."

"When do the disappearances happen?"

"At night," Anatoly revealed.

Laurel and Shado exchanged looks. "Stakeout?" Shado suggested.

"Stakeout."

They chose one of the lower cells, one with a good vantage point but was also tucked away deep enough in the dark that they wouldn't be immediately noticed. Laurel took a dark blanket from Ivo's closet and used it to cover Shado and herself, throwing it over their bodies. Anatoly took another and did the same in another cell on the other side of the brig.

And then they waited.

Time passed. Laurel only had so many hours of sleep before she was woken up by this newest crisis, so it wasn't long before she began to doze off. Finally, just as she was about fall back into slumber again, Shado lightly touched her side to wake her up. Her friend pointed to one of the upper levels, where a pair of pirates were dragging away one of the prisoners. Judging by the massive bruise on his face, he had been knocked out to ensure his cooperation.

Once the pirates were out of earshot, they quickly got out of the blanket and exited the cell. Anatoly followed their lead as they headed in the direction the pirates had taken their new victim. Shado had brought her bow and quiver and was already drawing an arrow, while Laurel had her knife at the ready. It wasn't soon until they realized where they were going — the storage rooms, where they stored everything that wasn't some kind of perishable, such as toilet paper and towels. People hardly ever came here unless it was to restock on supplies. A perfect place to conduct new experiments under the nose of the ship's new overlord.

All three winced when they heard an inhuman scream. "Get ready," Laurel told her friends, as they neared the door where the scream came from.

She tensed, and then kicked the door open with a yell, the wood breaking in two. The three of them darted inside, preparing to attack—only to stop when they finally comprehended the scene. Laurel dropped her knife in shock while Shado slowly lowered her bow, in complete disbelief. Even Anatoly looked stunned.

The pirates were there, in stances to protect themselves. So was the prisoner, convulsing on the ground with tears of blood sliding down his face. But the true cause of their surprise was the man standing above him: Slade, holding a syringe in one hand, the liquid inside having already been injected into his victim. He was staring back at them in equal amounts of surprise and horror.

"Slade…?" Laurel said slowly, her gaze filling with equal and opposite amounts of her own surprise and horror.

Slade lowered his hand, swallowing. "What are you two doing here? Shouldn't you be asleep?"

Shado was staring at the syringe. "Is that the Mirakuru we stored in Ivo's old lab?"

They had left the box of Mirakuru there and locked it tight because they didn't know what to do with it and didn't want to give any of the pirates access to the drug. What was going to happen to it once they made it to China was unclear, however. While no one relished the idea of giving it to the Chinese government (or any government, really), it nonetheless would make a powerful bargaining chip to gain access to the mainland in case Shado couldn't convince the authorities to let them through.

The Australian didn't say anything. He just looked away. Laurel and Shado turned to each other, of one mind, before the former began speaking again. "Slade, don't tell me you're the one behind restarting the experiments," she all but begged.

Their friend grimaced. "I am," he admitted.

"What?" Shado was aghast, as was Laurel. "But why? What he did was wrong, you know that!"

"I KNOW!" Slade shouted, whirling around to face them. There was a dark intensity in his eyes that neither of them liked, and Laurel was instantly reminded of Hendrik's death. "I know, but we need more Mirakuru. Imagine something happens to you, either of you, and we can't access the original supply? Or we run out? I'm doing this to protect you both."

"But human experimentation?" Laurel cried. "Slade, this is cruel and inhumane. When we took over this ship, we promised everyone that the experiments would stop. Nobody here deserves to be a guinea pig!"

But her words fell on deaf ears. If she was hoping to talk some sense into him, it didn't work. Slade simply shook his head. "I don't care," he claimed. "As long as you're safe, Laurel, I don't care. I'll do whatever it takes to protect you."

Whatever retort Laurel had died in her throat as she comprehended Slade's words. She blinked in confusion as she looked up at her friend. "Slade…?"

"I'm in love with you, Laurel."

There was a moment of silence as those words sunk into Laurel's head. What…? Slade was in love with her? How? When? She turned to Shado for support, but her friend didn't seem to be surprised at all about learning about this. Instead, she was wincing, as if waiting for a bomb to drop.

Finally, Laurel found it in herself to speak. "You're…" she trailed off. She still couldn't quite formulate her thoughts yet.

"I said I'm in love with you," Slade repeated, dropping the syringe to the ground. The tube shattered upon impact as Slade forcefully cupped Laurel's face so their eyes could meet more easily. "I love you, Dinah Laurel Lance. You're beautiful, fierce, intelligent, passionate, considerate, kind — you're everything I could ever possibly want in a partner. I've been holding myself back from telling you for months, but now that we're so close to getting home, I can't hold it back any longer."

"But what about Adeline?"

He snorted at the sound of his wife's name. "Our marriage was on the rocks for years, even before I left for Lian Yu with Billy. I had already made up my mind I was going to divorce her; meeting you only cemented my choice."

Laurel still couldn't believe a single word that was coming out of his mouth. Slade was in love with her? He was already planning on divorcing his wife? But what about his son? Not to mention the fact that they lived on entirely different continents. Was this why he wanted to go back to Starling with her, to help her find the saboteur of the Gambit?

"Laurel, I'm doing this for you. I'm willing to damn myself to hell if it means protecting you," Slade declared. "That and so much more is how far I'm willing to go for you. So forget that dunce back home you call a boyfriend. How many times did he cheat on you? How many times did he take you for granted? He's not good enough for you, Laurel. He's not willing to go the lengths I am to make sure you're safe and happy."

Except she wasn't safe and happy right now. She was the farthest thing away from safe and happy. Now that Laurel could see Slade upfront, close and personal, she could see the growing insanity in his dark eyes. Something was wrong, deeply wrong, and she had a feeling she knew what it was.

And as for his feelings… Laurel closed her eyes and sighed, gently pulling away from Slade's hands and shaking her head.

"No, Slade," she said, opening her eyes so he could see the honesty in them. "I love you too, but it's as a friend or even a brother. I'm not in love with you, and even if Ollie weren't in the picture, that wouldn't change."

"But Laurel…" He stepped forward and grabbed her again, this time by the arms. His grip was firm, and getting firmer by the second. "He doesn't deserve you. He's just some rich idiot getting by on his parents' money. You deserve someone strong, someone with drive, like me."

"Slade…"

"Please, just reconsider. Think it through. You'll see once you've had time to think it over."

Now Laurel was really beginning to struggle. That only caused him to hold onto her tighter. "Slade, please. You're hurting me."

"Laurel—"

"Okay, that's enough."

The conversation stopped. Shado, determined and resigned, had finally decided to intervene. "Slade," she said softly, "let her go. She said no. She doesn't feel the same way you do."

"She will once she thinks it over," Slade stubbornly said back.

"Slade," Shado said again, moving to grab one of Slade's hands to pull it off Laurel. "Just let her—"

SMACK!

Laurel gasped as Shado tumbled to the ground, clutching her cheek. The older woman's eyes were wide in surprise as she landed on her side, and she looked up to see an equally stunned Slade. The man still had his hand up, from where he had backhanded her away. His grip on Laurel's other arm loosened, and the younger woman quickly used the opportunity to rip away from him and go to Shado. "Shado! Oh my God, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Shado told her, cringing as Laurel slowly pulled away her hand to reveal her cheek. The American winced when she saw it — a red welt was already beginning to form. It was definitely going to bruise in a few hours.

"We need to get you some ice," Laurel said, gently checking the injury over. She then moved to wrap around an arm around Shado's waist, helping her friend get back on her feet. But before they could leave, they were met with Slade once more.

The man, to his credit, looked genuinely guilty and ashamed of his actions. "I'm sorry, Shado," he apologized. "I don't know what got a hold of me."

"If you're sorry, then stop the experiments, Slade," Shado said in return, scowling. It was clear she was no longer in the mood to be charitable to him. "You know they're wrong."

For a moment, he looked tempted to acquiesce to her demand. That's how guilty he felt. But then there was something else in his eyes: resolve. The wrong kind. "No," Slade decided. "What I'm doing is what needs to be done, just like on the island. I'm sorry you two aren't willing to accept that yet."

He turned to one of the pirates. "Escort them back upstairs to their room, and lock them inside."

That caused the eyes of both women to widen. "You can't do that!" Laurel exclaimed.

"I can and I will," Slade told her, face grim. "I can't afford to let you two stop me. Don't worry, you'll still get food and water, and whatever else you might need. But from now on, I, and I alone, will be running this ship."

"Slade—!"

But he didn't bother to give them even that much. "Take them away."

Hours later, the atmosphere in their cabin was tense as Laurel treated the growing bruise on Shado's cheek. Before they were let inside, their room had been plucked clean of everything and anything that could be used as a weapon. Shado's bow and arrows had been confiscated, as had all of Laurel's knives and her emergency handgun. In addition, Slade had issued an armed guard in front of their door just to make sure they wouldn't be able to leave. They were effectively prisoners, and there was nothing they could do about it.

"It's the Mirakuru," Shado said as Laurel finished the bandages. "Has to be. An experimental super soldier serum with regeneratives properties…."

She closed her eyes, and shook her head. "We should've known there would've been side effects. It was too good to be true."

"That must be why the Japanese never made any efforts to recover it themselves," Laurel mused quietly as she packed away the spare medical supplies back into the first-aid kit. "Something like that isn't something you just leave behind. Either they thought the benefits that could've come from researching and perfecting the serum weren't worth the potential costs to find and locate it, or…"

"…there was something about it that didn't make it worth finding at all," Shado finished.

And whatever that something was, it was now affecting their friend. Slade had always been the most cynical out of them, brutal and vicious in battle, but he had never been truly cruel, and at heart he was a good man. The man they had come to know over the past several months would've never stood for Ivo's experiments. He would've destroyed the lab equipment himself.

"What are we going to do, Shado?" Laurel asked her friend, feeling lost for the first time in a long time. "What he's doing is wrong, and even without that, even if we decide not to stop him, that's still not a guarantee he won't harm us."

It's something that she never thought she would ever say about Slade, at least not after fully befriending the man and forming something of a surrogate family with him, but reality had figuratively hit her in a face hours ago in the middle of that little makeshift lab they found their friend in. He had struck Shado outside of a spar, something Laurel had never imagined he would ever do, and it was proof that the man she had befriended and come to see as family was not the man he was now. Whoever Slade was now, she wasn't sure, but it was someone that needed to be stopped, whether by them or someone else.

Unfortunately, it wasn't that easy, and they both knew it. "I don't know, Laurel," Shado replied, rubbing her forehead in exhaustion. "Neither of us are strong enough to stop him, not with the Mirakuru in his veins. If we were still near Lian Yu, I'd suggest we just escape back to the island, but we've been out at sea for days now. And right now, the Amazo is still our best shot at getting back home."

"So you're saying that we're stuck," Laurel summed up for both of them.

"Yes," her friend admittedly honestly. "Unless Slade changes his mind, all we can do is just wait until we make it back to the mainland and tell someone what he's doing, probably the government. They'll probably have to send in an army to stop him, though."

"Right," Laurel sighed. She leaned back, her head resting against the wall of their cabin. "Honestly, considering the situation, I'm beginning to wonder if we really escaped that island. All we've done is just trade one hell for another." Except this time, it was their best friend as the tormentor.

Shado shrugged, but didn't disagree. It was clear she felt the same way.

Another week passed by. True to his word, Slade sent someone to give them food and water three times a day, along with any other supplies they needed. But not once were they allowed to step outside their room. Occasionally, he showed up and tried to talk to them, to turn them to his side. He even once tried to appeal to Shado's time as a medical student. Unfortunately for him, it didn't work — neither of them could bring themselves to agree to any of his actions.

Now bereft of responsibilities, they struggled to find different ways to fill their time. Ivo's cabin was reasonably big, but not big enough for sparring, so they had to settle for basic workouts and take turns practicing katas. It did have a bookcase with a solid selection for its size, so they began raiding that for reading material. At one point, one of the pirates even loaned them a deck of cards so they could play a few games. All of it did well enough to pass the time.

And then there were the times where they just talked. And for Laurel, she had one specific subject in mind.

"You knew he was in love with me."

Shado cringed when she heard those words. She wanted to deny it, but it was clear that whatever denial she made, Laurel wasn't going to believe. The younger woman had her arms crossed and was giving her that stubborn look, the one that said she wasn't going to budge for anything. Lying was pointless. "Yes, I did," she admitted.

"And you encouraged him to pursue me? Even though I had a boyfriend waiting back home?" Laurel sounded betrayed.

"Yeah, because like him, I thought your boyfriend was a jerk who didn't deserve you," Shado responded, getting a little defensive. "Look, Laurel, I'm sorry. But can you blame me for wanting my two closest friends to be happy? When I realized he had feelings for you, I didn't support it at first because of his wife and even confronted him over it. But then he confided to me about his marriage troubles, so I thought it over some more. And when you revealed how Oliver treated you…" She trailed off, then shrugged helplessly.

Maybe she shouldn't have gotten involved at all. But Slade was her friend, and it hurt her seeing him so forlorn over Laurel pining after a guy that had constantly taken her for granted. So she had done her best to support him, to give him some hope that one day, Laurel might return his feelings. Shado should've realized it was never going to be that simple, and that was without adding the Mirakuru into the mix.

Her friend gave her a beady-eyed look before sighing. "I know, and I forgive you. You were just trying to be a good friend." She moved to sit down next to Shado, leaning her head against her friend's shoulder. "I've been repeating my memory of his confession in my mind for days, Shado. And I stick by what I said back there — I love him, but not like that. I don't want to hurt him, but I can't lie to him either. And I can't control how I feel, no matter how much I want to." If it were that easy, they wouldn't be having this conversation at all.

"But Slade's not going to accept that," Shado couldn't help but point out. "Not with the Mirakuru in his veins. And if you keep on rejecting him too many times…" She shuddered. The man Slade was now… she didn't want to think of what he would to Laurel the moment he got fed up with her constantly rebuffing his advances.

"I know that too. But I can't lie to him Shado, not just because of my own principles, but also because he'll see right through it." Laurel screwed her eyes closed. "Whatever happens… we'll just have to figure out a way to get through it. Like we always do."

"Yeah."

It was the only option they had, if it could be considered an option at all.

A week after learning about Slade's Mirakuru experiments, deja vu struck Laurel as she found herself once again awoken in the middle of the night by a knock on the door. The feeling only grew when she found Anatoly on the other side of it, this time considerably more disheveled. Even though he was only acting out of concern, Slade hadn't taken his decision to inform Laurel and Shado about the missing prisoners well, since it led to them discovering his secret. So he had been kicked out of his cabin and was forced to reside back in his old cell in the brig.

"Anatoly?" Laurel said in surprise, as Shado got up from her bed and walked up to join her. "What are you doing here? Where's the guard?"

"Right here," her friend told her, jabbing his thumb to the side, where the guard was standing. The man gave her a small wave. "He's helping me."

She blinked. "Why?" The pirates and the former prisoners only worked together out of necessity. Otherwise, they still pretty much hated each other.

Suddenly, an alarm started sounding throughout the ship. There was a chorus of voices echoing through the hall, coming from the direction of the brig. Anatoly nodded towards that direction. "That is why. Mutiny."

"Mutiny?" This time it was Shado who spoke. "You're all rebelling against Slade?"

He nodded once more. "After he locked you two up, he decided he no longer need to hide his activities. He started taking people in the middle of the day for his experiments. First the prisoners only, but then he started taking some of the pirates as well. His way at playing 'scientist'."

That caused both women to blanch. If that was the case, then no wonder everyone decided to mutiny. A crew only mutinied when they believed that their captain could no longer properly safeguard them and lead them. As hated as the pirates were, they were the most experienced seamen the Amazo had — without them, this ship wasn't going anywhere, and everyone knew it. If Slade had been in any right mind, he would've never used those pirates for his experiments. But with the Mirakuru completely addling his thoughts, only further reinforced by Laurel and Shado constantly refusing to abide by his wishes, he wasn't thinking things through at all.

"We need you two with us," Anatoly continued. "You are the ones he is most unlikely to harm. You can distract him while the rest of us try to take him down."

It was a simple enough plan. And considering how many people were on the ship and the sheer desperation they were all feeling, it just might work. But still. "He's our friend," Laurel said, conflicted. Even with all the disagreements, all the pain, she hadn't forgotten that.

"He is," Shado agreed.

But Anatoly didn't. "He is not your friend," he insisted. "Whoever your friend was, he died when he was injected with Mirakuru. All left behind is a monster with his face."

The words hurt to hear, and Laurel desperately wanted to deny them. But memories of everything Slade had been doing since he got injected with the Mirakuru, from slaughtering their attackers to murdering Hendrik to the experiments, all played throughout her mind. None of those actions were of the good man Laurel had thought of as a brother. Anatoly was right — whoever Slade used to be was gone. All that was left was a monster.

The two women exchanged another look. At Shado's nod, Laurel released another sigh and turned back to Anatoly. "We're in."

For the first time in a while, she saw the man smile. "Good. You need these then." He held up a bag, and took out Shado's bow and arrows, followed by Laurel's knives. Laurel took her weapons and strapped them to her side, as Shado slid her quiver over shoulder and tested her bow string.

Once they were properly armed, with their bags strapped to their backs in case they needed anything else, Anatoly beckoned them over towards the direction of the brig. It was time to get this show on the road.

When they got to the brig, chaos had already erupted there and presumably all across the ship as the mutineers and what little of Slade's loyalists there were left clashed. Laurel had already drawn a knife when they entered the fray, while Shado tried to clear a path from the back using her arrows. There weren't any clear targets, beyond attacking anyone aiming for them or for Anatoly.

Slade was in the middle of the wild throng, fighting with abandon. None of the men present stood a chance against him and he was making it abundantly clear. Already there was a wide berth around him as the mutineers encircled the target of their rebellion, searching for an opening. This was the scene Laurel and Shado came upon. "SLADE!"

The man in question whipped his head upwards, staring at them in shock. "What are you two doing here!"

"We're here to stop you, Slade," Laurel said, knife at the ready, Shado by her side. "What you're doing is wrong, no matter your reasons."

"Laurel, I'm doing this to protect you!"

"No, you're not! You're doing this because the Mirakuru is telling you to!" She shouted back. Her face fell into a pleading expression. "Please, Slade, stop this. You need help."

Slade looked away, clenching his eyes closed. He almost seemed to be listening to something, but what it was Laurel couldn't hope to know. Finally, he opened his eyes and was about to say something back, but before he could say anything, he was attacked once more by another pirate, hoping to take advantage of the opening Laurel had unintentionally gave him.

The brawl started anew as the loyalists and the mutineers fell upon each other. Many of the latter were focusing on Slade, knowing taking him out almost guaranteed victory, but the Mirakuru was quickly proving to be too much, even with the numbers game. Then there were those from both factions that had opted to attack Laurel and Shado, forcing the two women to defend themselves.

For the loyalists, it was obvious that Laurel and Shado were going to turn on Slade if they believed there was no choice, so they wanted to preemptively get rid of two potential opponents before they could attack. For the mutineers, they knew Slade still cared for his two friends (Laurel especially), so they hoped to destabilize and distract him from his own battles so someone could get a lucky shot in. Whatever the reason, both women found themselves in the middle of an increasingly chaotic quagmire that did not look to be ending any time soon.

Laurel didn't know how long the chaos lasted as she stabbed anyone who got too close to her and Shado. It could've been minutes, it could've been hours. But the fighting was endless and she was increasingly getting tired. Even with the better provisions Slade had given to them during their imprisonment, the reality was Laurel had been malnourished for months while residing on Lian Yu. Damage like that wasn't going to recover that quickly thanks to a mere few weeks of better nutrition.

Eventually, however, things came to a head. The mutineers were beginning to realize that the Mirakuru was simply too much for them. There was no way for any of them to overcome it. Some began turning on their allies, while others tried begging for mercy. One broke off entirely from the crowd to flee through the corridors. Laurel had thought nothing of it, until the ship began to lurch.

Shouts and screams were heard as people began to slide away, hitting the cell doors or falling into the corridors, unable to stop their descents. Thinking quickly, Laurel stabbed her knife into the metal floor, all the way to the handle. She held on tight, and when Shado began to slide away, grabbed her friend's hand before she could fall.

The sound of rushing water reached her ears as the ship lurched again to the other direction, before eventually straightening itself out, though wobbly. It wasn't going to stay like this for long.

"What's going on!" Shado shouted towards Anatoly.

Anatoly grimaced. "Backup plan. If we cannot kill him, then destroy the engines and sink the ship. Better to die a quick death by drowning then a slow one by experimentation."

Laurel cringed. The logic was sound, in a morbid kind of way, but the reality was awful. She had almost died by drowning once and had no desire to repeat the experience.

It seemed, however, she wasn't going to have much of a choice. The ship was already beginning to take water. Many were already fleeing, trying to get to the main deck to avoid their fates for as long as possible. Others were once again trying their luck at Slade, hoping to get a final revenge on their tormentor before they were forced into a watery grave. Either that, or a quick death.

As the ship began to literally fall apart around them, Laurel and Shado struggled to stay on their feet, hanging onto different poles and other structures throughout the brig. Anatoly had long since disappeared with other prisoners, having been caught by the waves. Another bad lurch saw Shado ripped away from Laurel's arms and sent falling once more towards the other end of the ship. Laurel called out her name with a scream, only to stop when Shado was saved.

By Slade.

The man used his inhuman strength to easily pull her up to where he had anchored himself. He had his arm around her and held her tight. Once the ship righted itself again, the two stood together, breathing hard. Laurel walked on unsteady legs toward them.

Only to stop when Slade tightened his arm around Shado, near her neck. The other woman began wheezing as she struggled to breathe, while Slade met Laurel's eyes. This time, there was no flicker or anything like that; the madness the Mirakuru had inspired in her friend was in full display.

"Slade," Laurel said slowly, as calmly as she could manage, which was not by much. "Let her go."

"I will, Laurel, as soon as you accept my feelings and come to my side," Slade told her, tilting his head in a disturbing manner. His eyes were wide, the pupils completely blown out. Laurel could barely recognize him as he was now. "I love you, Laurel. Why can't you accept that?"

"I do accept that, Slade. I just don't feel the same way." Laurel didn't even bother trying to lie. She didn't have the time or energy to sell it, and she couldn't trust him to be sincere with the Mirakuru in his veins. Better he hear the truth instead, whatever the consequences might be. "I'm sorry. I truly am."

Slade pursed his lips, snarling, before moving his arm to grab Shado by her neck, holding her up in the air. At the sight of this, Laurel began to panic. "No, Slade, no! Let her go!"

"This is all your fault!" The Australian accused her other friend, no longer paying attention to Laurel. "You lied to me about her! You said she would return my feelings one day if she was just given time! Well, time's passed, and she still doesn't feel the same way!"

Shado gagged as she tried to speak back. "No… Slade… I really thought she would…" Her gagging got worse as the grip around her neck tightened, and she began to struggle, reaching back and grabbing an arrow from her quiver to try and use it to get Slade to back off. But she couldn't find the strength or wherewithal to fight back.

Laurel slogged her feet through the water, trying to get to her friend to free her. But the moment she got there and tried to pull Slade away, he shoved her aside. Shado's struggling began to slow as her face turned blue and her body limp.

As Shado began to close her eyes, something in Laurel snapped.

"Let! Her! GOOOOOOOOO!"

Her scream reverberated throughout the entire brig, drowning out all other sounds. Something, some kind of energy, escaped her mouth, striking everything with a powerful force. The metal of the cells began to buckle as the entire ship lurched again at this unexpected turn of events.

More importantly, the energy struck Slade, causing him to drop Shado as he clutched his ears in pain, trying to block out the sound. Shado in turn grabbed her chest, heaving in deep breaths as she tried to regain her wits about her. She rapidly blinked her eyes as consciousness slowly returned to her. Against all the odds, she was alive.

Eventually, Laurel's scream stopped, and the energy along with it. She bent forward, using her knees to hold herself up as she panted in exhaustion. What was that?

Unfortunately, she didn't have time to think about it. The ship lurched for the final time, before finally beginning to sink. More and more water rushed through the brig as Laurel began to slide away to God knows where. She reached her hand out to Shado, calling her name once more. "SHADO!"

"LAUREL!" Shado, voice still a little hoarse, tried to half-run, half-swim towards her. However, her efforts were stopped.

Slade, now recovered from whatever Laurel did, had managed to grab onto Shado's leg and was trying to keeping her away from the object of his affections. Whatever semblance of control and mental coherence was gone, leaving behind a mad, raving animal in its place.

"No, no! If I can't be with her, then neither can you!"

Reluctantly, Shado turned away from Laurel for a brief moment, and towards Slade. Then, she lifted her hand, the one with the arrow in it. Laurel was frozen in place, or as much as she could be in her current circumstances, as she watched one of her friends stab the other in the eye.

Even Slade couldn't shake something like that off. His grip on Shado's leg went slack immediately, and he was carried off by the water, disappearing into the darkness. Laurel barely had any time to process what was seemingly his death before another hard slap of water reminded her of her current situation.

"SHADO! OVER HERE!" She called out once more, one hand stretched outwards toward her friend. Shado, hanging onto one of the cell doors, grimaced. She then maneuvered her body horizontally, and then used what little leg strength she had left to launch herself towards Laurel's hand. Laurel met her halfway, and just barely managed to catch her hand before she was lost beneath the sea.

Laurel pulled her friend, her only remaining friend, towards her, and wrapped an arm around her. Their gazes met, and they nodded at each other. Whatever happened next, they would face it together. No matter what.

And finally, the ship capsized. One final massive flood came barreling down towards them. Laurel let go of the knife she had been using to anchor herself and wrapped her remaining arm around Shado, as Shado did the same with her. This was it.

As the ocean began to completely fill her senses, Laurel closed her eyes, and blacked out.

Laurel came awake suddenly, coughing up sea water for what seemed like forever. Finally, as the last of it in her throat left her, she allowed herself to fall back on the hard surface she was on, staring up at the bright, blue sky. What happened? Where am I?

And then she remembered.

The Amazo. The mutiny. Slade.

Shado.

She suddenly sat back up, searching around frantically for her friend. A sob of relief escaped her throat when she saw Shado laying somewhere else on the floor, unconscious but breathing. Laurel rushed to her, gently tugging away at her shoulders. "Shado. Shado! Please, wake up!"

It took a moment, but soon Shado was coughing up sea water like she was. She clutched away at her chest for a moment, inhaling deep gulps of air, probably trying to resettle her mind. But when she saw Laurel, her eyes widened and then she threw herself at her friend, pulling her into a strong embrace.

"We're alive," Shado said, relieved. "We're alive."

"And we're together," Laurel added, hugging back. "Thank God. Oh, thank God."

They stayed like that for as long as they could. It was the least they deserved.

Eventually, however, the rest of the world had to take priority. They reluctantly separated and looked around, trying to figure out where they were. Unfortunately, there wasn't much to go on. The room was sparsely decorated, with only mats and some blankets. A small table with a lamp sat in the corner. The ebb and flow of the floor beneath them and the sounds of the ocean from the small window one of the walls had indicated they were probably on another ship of some kind, but not much more than that. And they couldn't get out, either. The door was locked.

"Do you remember anything?" Laurel asked her companion.

Shado shook her head. "Not much. Just the water hitting us and then blacking out. You?"

"The same. I guess we'll just have to wait."

They didn't have to wait for long. A few minutes later, a man entered the room. He had dark hair and eyes, and was wearing some kind of strange armor. One look at them, and then he was gone again, this time shouting something in another language. If Laurel had to guess, it was something middle eastern. Maybe Arabic?

Soon, the door opened again, this time with both the original man and another man with blond hair, wearing the same armor. They were accompanied with a beautiful woman with brunette hair and mocha-colored skin. She was wearing armor like the other two, except hers was more distinct, with violet and red accents and a more feminine touch.

"I'm glad to see you're awake," she spoke, her voice accented. "Might I know your names?"

The two castaways exchanged another look. "My name is Laurel," Laurel finally said, seeing no reason to lie.

"And I'm Shado." Shado frowned. "And you are…?"

The woman smirked. "My name is Nyssa al Ghul. Heir to the Demon."

Extra long chapter, but I couldn't find a good place to split it and I've been waiting to write this chapter for a long time. A lot happens, and a lot has changed.

So, Laurel and Shado finally realize just how insane Slade has become, and figure out it has to do with the Mirakuru. In turn, Slade finally confesses to Laurel, only for Laurel to try to gently let him down. Of course, Slade, being crazy pants, can't really take no for an answer.

But because he loves Laurel and still cares for Shado to some extent and hasn't completely lost it yet, he doesn't torture them or anything just because he didn't get what he wanted and instead just leaves them locked up in their room. It's only when it becomes clear that Laurel doesn't really love him back even when he's threatening Shado's life that he finally snaps, and of course, he deflects the blame on Shado for 'lying' to him.

Which leads to Laurel awakening her Canary Cry! There's a lot of factors that caused that to happen. First, Laurel's been on Lian Yu, a mystical convergence, for several months, so she's been absorbing some weird energy there. Then there's the fact that she's also been in contact with some weird chemical stuff, both in the Japanese submarine where the Mirakuru was housed and in Ivo's ship (because that place did not look like it had been kept well). All of that together, combined with the emotional trigger of watching Shado slowly being choked to death before her eyes pretty much caused her metagene to activate and give her the Cry.

Finally, they're saved by Nyssa and the League. In the original notes Arlyss and I made together, Laurel was rescued by ARGUS like Ollie was in canon while Shado effectively took Sara's place in the League. However, here I wanted to do something different because I felt like rehashing China wasn't really interesting or worth the effort. So I opted to have Laurel be saved by the League alongside Shado.

Note that, unlike To Hell and Back, Laurel is not going to stay the rest of the five years with the League. She's only going to stay with them for Year 3 before leaving. How she's going to do that without getting hunted down and killed… well, you'll see.

Next Chapter: The beginning of Year 3.