The Bunker
Both John Diggle and Oliver Queen entered the bunker at the same time, stepping out of the elevator mid conversation.
"What's the emergency?" Oliver asked, grumbling and smoothing out his suit jacket as he walked out the doors.
"Lyla gave me this," John grunted in return, holding up a small drive with the ARGUS logo emblazoned on it in bright red.
Oliver nodded, walking up the platform and touching Felicity on the shoulder; she reached up and held his hand for a brief moment, giving him a smile as John joined them.
"I called Felicity on the way," John went on, handing the drive to her. "I figured she would be able to tell if the video is authentic."
"Let's go to the video tape," Felicity quipped under her breath, reaching out and plugging the drive into a terminal that sat on the desktop. After a few keystrokes, the drive began decrypting and opening up, the security footage appearing on the centermost screen and beginning to run.
"An ARGUS storehouse was hit late last night," Diggle explained, pointing out the video. "No one seriously injured but the techs flagged this and sent it up to Lyla."
The video continued to play on screen, showing the guard walk up to the open vault, then get taken down by a hooded figure.
"Oomph," Diggle grunted, folding his arms and face scrunching up. "That had to hurt."
"Felicity," Oliver butted in, stepping forwards. "Freeze it. Now pull up the cellphone video from that diner."
A few more keystrokes and the two videos played side by side.
"This is the same person," Oliver muttered, pointing and watching the movement the hooded figure made in each video. "He's fast, and league trained."
"But he's not wearing the league gear in this one," Felicity observed, pointing to the most recent video.
"Doesn't matter," Oliver shook his head, analyzing every frame. "The movement is the same, same fluidity."
"Wait," Diggle interjected, pointing up at the second figure. "Is that…."
"What the hell?!" Felicity burst out, squinting from behind her glasses and moving closer to the screen. "It's…"
"Sara," Oliver grunted, finishing both their sentences, picking up his phone and dialing as he did so.
"Hey, its Sara, leave me a message and ill get back to you," Sara's voice came over the phone; Oliver had reached her voicemail.
"You told me you weren't in Star City, you lied to me," he growled, pacing around the raised platform. "Now your helping someone break into Argus. Call me back, Now!"
"What the hells going on Oliver?" Diggle asked, frowning at him before looking from video file to file. "Who is this guy?"
"Felicity?" Oliver asked, shrugging and raising an eyebrow at the same time.
"Why are you asking me?" She frowned, holding up her hands. "All we have is a feather and a couple of videos. There's nothing to really go on. I don't even have a clean shot of his face to run. The only real lead here is Sara."
"And apparently she's lying to us?" Diggle asked in disbelief, face showing concern. "Man, this whole thing stinks."
"Where are you going?" Felicity asked, spinning her chair to follow Oliver as he turned to leave, heading for the elevator doors.
"I'm going to talk to Lance," he grunted over his shoulder, pushing the call button. "Maybe he has a few answers."
City Hall
"You wanted to see me?" Quinten asked, his balding head poking around the door into Oliver's office.
"Shut the door," Oliver grunted, nodding and standing up.
Quinten tilted his head in confusion but entered and slid the door shut behind him with a click.
"What's up?" he asked, walking in and looking around the room, feeling like he had just been called to the principal's office.
"When was the last time you heard from Sara?" Oliver asked, folding his arms across his chest and looking directly into Quinten's eyes.
"Well I don't know specifics, but I mean it's been a while," he muttered, shrugging his shoulders. "Why?"
"So, she hasn't called you lately?"
"Oliver what's going on?" He asked again, nervousness showing on his face, a bead of sweat dripping down.
"We have video of her and some other person, breaking into an ARGUS site, after I called her, and she told me she wasn't in town."
"So maybe it's a copycat?" Quinten asked, frowning.
"It's her Quinten," Oliver sighed, shaking his head. "She was wearing her old Canary outfit. What we don't know though is, who this person is with her."
"I can try and call her, see if maybe she'll talk to me," He nodded, pulling out his phone and dialing before Oliver could say anything.
"Do that," Oliver agreed, smiling as Quinten moved. "Felicity should be able to track her phone if need be."
The Clocktower
Sara woke up suddenly, blinking sleepily as the light shone through the glass windows, Jacob still laying soundlessly asleep beside her. With a smile she leaned down and planted a gentle kiss on his forehead, watching as he mumbled something. She stood up, stretching and feeling the warmth on her naked skin. She walked over to the table, flipping open her phone and groaning when she saw the screen. Blinking rapidly up at her, were 11 missed call notifications, their tiny bright letters standing out against the dark background.
Wonderful, she thought to herself as she flicked through the number listed. She shook her head in frustration, clearing the list before scrolling down to her voicemail notification. Ah shit, she thought as she clicked on it and held the phone up to her ear. She waited for a few seconds before entering the pin number and hearing Oliver's message play again. With a scowl on her face, she hit delete and proceeded to dial her father's number instead.
"Hi baby," Quinten answered after only a few rings. "When did you get back into town?"
"Hi, Daddy," she replied, smiling happily and walking over to the glass windows. "Ill tell you about it over lunch?"
"Sure, sure," how about that Asian place you like so much?"
"Absolutely," she agreed, walking over to where her clothes ended up and bending down to pick up her pants and shirt. "Ill see you in an hour?"
She heard him agree and clicked the phone shut, ending the call. Turning around, she was surprised to see Jacob sitting straight up right, silent and staring at her.
"What's wrong?" she asked, standing up and pulling on her pants.
"Nothing," he said through a grin. "Just enjoying the view."
"Shut up," she laughed, blushing and buttoning her pants. "Are you hungry?"
He nodded, standing up and searching for his regular clothes. As he bent over, she rushed forward and smacked his ass. Jumping slightly and spinning around, he caught her by the arms and pulled her close.
"We don't have time," she groaned as he grabbed her ass and kissed her neck. He made an irritated sigh before kissing her cheek and pulling away, snatching up his pants and pulling them on.
"Listen," she started, pulling down her shirt and flipping her hand out behind it. "I need you to hang back, let me talk to him, try and ease him into this. I'm not really sure how he's going to handle this whole thing."
"Ok," he said simply, following suit with his own shirt and running a hand through his hair, attempting at smoothing out the wild strands.
"Really?" she shot back, gathering up her socks and slipping them on, raising an eyebrow at him as well. "You're not going to argue?"
"I trust you," he replied in a simple and matter of fact tone.
The Jade Emperor
Sara and Jacob arrived at the restaurant first, standing across the alleyway and watching who came and went for a few seconds before crossing the street. A sign handing in the front glass window was lit up in green neon. The Jade Emperor stood out bright against the increasing dark, with a smaller neon sign that said Chinese restaurant beside it. A little bell at the door jingled as they entered with a small lady waving at them. Sara walked over to the bar alone, and sat down, ordering a cup of oolong tear in perfect mandarin. Jacob walked past her and took up a seat in a both, looking out the way they had came in with a clear view of both the front door and the kitchen. After taking Sara's order, the same lady who had waved them in, brought over a menu and sat it In front of him. After almost a half second looking at it, he ordered a small quick dish, matching the same mandarin that Sara had used. The poor woman looked at Jacob with a startled look before bowing and shuffling off to the kitchen.
"Show off," Sara whispered, barely lough enough for him to hear it; she watched as Jacob grinned and blew a kiss to her.
The door opened again, the tiny bell above it jingling, and in walked Quinten. As soon as he saw Sara, his gruff face lit up.
"Hi baby," he beamed, Sara standing up and giving him a huge hug.
"Hi daddy," she giggled, squeezing him and almost being lost in his arms as they wrapped around her.
"Sweetie, what's going on?" he asked sitting down at the bar beside her. "Why are you back in town, why didn't you call?"
"It's complicated," she replied, taking a sip of her tea from the tiny cup in front of her. "I've been trying to help a friend."
"A friend? Honey, Oliver told me you broke into ARGUS…"
"Like he's one to talk," she snorted, rolling her eyes in the process. "My friend, he's…. well he's not from around here.'
"What? Is he one of those League of Assassins people you were running around with a few years ago?"
"Yes, but also no," she sighed, searching for an easier way to explain it to him. "Dad, do you remember Black Siren?"
"That psycho who looked like La…" he started before she cut him off.
"Yes, her," she quickly butted in, eyes flicking over to where Jacob sat to make sure he hadn't heard.
"She was from some alternate earth of something," he went on, raising an eyebrow and looking in the direction she was, finding nothing out of the ordinary before turning back around to face her.
"Exactly, my friend is from another earth and is sort of stuck her," she explained. "He's more like family."
"He's…what? Honey your not making sense," he blustered, taking a drink from his own cup the lady had sat for him.
"He's…" she stopped, sighing before shaking her head. "He's your grandson."
"What?! What do you mean?" he gasped, tea going down the wrong pipe and causing him to momentarily choke.
"He's…look, would it be easier if you met him?" she asked, hesitating. "I know your heart isn't…"
"Don't you worry about me," he grumbled, taking another drink and waving her away with a large hand. "Now where is this guy?"
Sara smiled and discretely waved to Jacob, who got up and settled on the other side of Quinten as he looked around.
"Mother of…." He grunted, looking him over as he took of his rockets hat. "You look just like…"
"Laurel and Oliver," Jacob smiled, sticking his hand out. "I know, I get that a lot. My names Jacob."
"Lance, daddy," Sara smiled, watching her father stare.
For the first time in a long time, Quinten Larry Lance was at a loss for words, shaking the man's hand and continuing to just stare at him.
"Quinten Lance," he finally managed to get out. "I'm sorry…I just can't get over the resemblance."
"I get that a lot," Jacob laughed, letting go of his hand.
"So, let me get this right," Quinten started, shaking his head and trying to wrap his mind around the complexities. "Your Laurels son?"
"In a way," Jacob nodded. "Yes, she was my mother."
"How old are you kid?"
"Mid-twenties by the way time went on my earth," Jacob explained, stopping a second to think about it. "It's a long story…"
Several hours later.
Several plates filled with various food sate in multiple states of empty in front of the three, with the small lady coming out with another pot of tea. Quinten sat between the two, staring ahead in silence, a cup of tea halfway to his lips.
"Daddy, are you ok?" Sara asked, laying a hand on his arm and leaning over to look at his eyes.
"Yea, yes, I'm fine," he sighed, setting the cup down and rubbing his face with the palms of both hands. "It's all just…I can't even begin to understand all of this."
He took a minute, letting out a long slow breath before looking at the two of them, one by one.
"So, why'd you two break into ARGUS?" he asked finally.
"It's complicated," Jacob answered, taking a drink from his own cup. "But it's not something that's going to be a reoccurring thing."
"Id hope not," Quinten grunted. "I might not be a cop anymore, but id still not be ok with it. Why could you just talk to Diggle?" Isn't he married to the boss or something?"
"If Diggle knew I was here, then Oliver would know as well. And Oliver can't exactly know right now," Jacob replied, his fingers beginning to tighten on the cup he held.
"I'm not even going to ask why that is," Quinten chuckled, eyes flicking to Jacobs hands before looking up to him. "But you should really talk to him about it."
"Dad," Sara cut in. "Oliver didn't exactly take it well when Jacob talked to him. It's best you don't tell him either."
"Alright, on one condition," Quinten went on, holding up one grisly finger at Jacob. "You keep yourself out of trouble, young man."
"Ill do my best," Jacob grinned, nodding his head.
"Alright then," Quinten nodded back, grinning and laughing as he stood up and reached for his wallet. "I hate to eat and run but I need to get back to the office."
"Dad, no," Sara objected, stopping him and shaking her blonde hair around. "Ill take care of it."
With a sigh, Quinten relented, letting his wallet settle back down into his pocket.
"My little girl," he laughed, touching her cheek lightly with one of his hands. "Used to be a time I was taking care of you."
"Love you daddy," Sara said standing up, hugging him and giving him a strong squeeze.
"Love you too sweetheart," he replied, kissing her forehead before turning to Jacob. "And you, I don't know whether to shake your hand or to hug you."
Jacob just smiled and held out a hand.
"Alright then," Quinten laughed, gripping his warm hand and shaking; Kids got a hell of a grip, he thought. "Don't be a stranger, ok kid?"
"Yes, sir," he answered, grinning and nodding.
Again, Quinten nodded, smiling at Sara before walking towards the door. Laughing to himself, he pulled open the door, the little bell jingling again.
"I'm a grandfather," they heard him laugh just before the door shut behind him.
"We need to go," Sara sighed, glancing down at her phone as it lit up with Oliver's name and phone number blinking back up at her.
Jacob nodded, drinking the last of his tea before standing up. Sara waved to the waitress, the little woman coming over to them fairly quickly, letting out a string of mandarin before handing the women a few bills. The lady bowed, taking the money and walking back behind the counter to the cash register. Sara's phone lit up again, as they started for the door, waving to the little woman before the sound of the bell was left behind them.
"You know they're going to track it as soon as you pickup right?" Jacob asked as they walked down the street, passing several streetlights.
"I know," she confirmed, thumb hovering over the answer button as she bit her lip. "If they're not tracking it already."
They paused underneath the next streetlamp, phone blinking back at them in the night. Looking around, they searched the shadows and alley ways, looking up to the rooftops as well to make sure no one was following them.
"You go high," Sara said, nodding to a nearby fire escape. "Chances are they'll come after me first."
"You sure?" he asked hesitating, looking from the phone to the rooftops again.
"Yea, ill be fine," she replied, smiling back up, trying to reassure him. "I've handled Ollie before. Ill meat you back at the clocktower."
"Be careful," he warned, finding his hand in hers as he started to walk towards the alleyway.
"You too," she said, not wanting to let go till the last second.
Jacob turned away, scaling the fire escape easily, several squeaks and the rattling of metal on metal filling the alleyway. Sara watched as he climbed, smiling to herself as he disappeared from sight. Taking a deep breath, she counted to ten and finally answered the phone.
"Hi, Oliver," she half sighed, her voice coming out irritated.
"Where are you?" he asked, the sound of wind rushing by creating a crackle of the speaker. He must be trying to find me already, she thought quietly.
"The corner of," she paused, looking around for a street sign. "Kelburn and Scott. I just had a late lunch with my dad."
"Stay there," He ordered, the sound of an accelerating motorcycle hitting her. "We need to talk."
With a click, Oliver hung up, leaving Sara staring at her phone with an intense scowl across her face.
"Diggle," Oliver called, touching the communicator attached to his chest. "You catch all that?"
"Corner of Kelburn and Scott," came Diggle's voice over Oliver's com unit. "Copy, on my way."
Minutes later, Oliver pulled into the alleyway behind where Sara was standing, turning off the headlamp on the front of his motorcycle.
"Do you have eyes on the target?" He asked, voice low and tapping his chest.
"Eyes on, copy," Diggle replied, peering down over the ledge of a building overlooking Sara's position.
"Keep an eye out incase she tries to run," Oliver went on, flicking the kickstand down with his boot before leaning the motorcycle over slightly and dismounting.
"It's Sara," Diggle shot back. "I don't think it'll be a problem."
"She's not who I'm worried about," Oliver grunted back, taking his bow off the front of the bike before walking through the alley.
Diggle shook his head, lifting his eyes up from where Sara stood to scan the rooftops around him.
"What the hell are you doing, Sara?!" Oliver growled, walking up to her but staying slightly shadowed.
"Is that all necessary?" she asked, waving at the bow and the Green Arrow suit he was wearing. "Let me guess, Digs watching me from up above?"
"Told you," Digs voice crackled over Oliver's comm, sounding like he was laughing.
"You lied to me Sara!" Oliver went on, ignoring Diggle's comment. "Plus breaking into ARGUS? What the hell?!"
"First of all," she retorted, folding her arms over her chest and scowl getting deeper. "You don't get to lecture about lying, especially not to me. Secondly, how many times have you broken into Argus, or even Kord?"
"Damnit Sara, that's not the point!" he grumbled, switching his bow to the other hand.
"Then what is?" she asked, a smirk starting to replace her scowl.
"Who is that person you were with?" he asked, pacing. "I've seen the security footage."
"None of your concern," she shot back, unflinching and unmoving.
"Then why was he in Thea's hospital room?!" he yelled back. "Why was he breaking into Argus? This city is my concern!"
"Again, not your concern," she repeated, shaking her head. "No one is in danger. Thea is perfectly fine."
"Damnit Sara! You have to give me something."
"No, I don't Oliver," she laughed, turning away from him and starting to walk away. "I'm leaving town."
"Ill have to hunt him down!" he yelled after her as she went.
"You'll never find him!" she laughed, rounding a corner.
Oliver let out an irritated grunt before turning around and heading back towards his motorcycle.
"She's protecting someone," he grumbled, tapping his comm. "Follow her."
"Copy, moving out," Diggle responded, holstering his weapon and turning around.
Out of nowhere, a little black dart whistled through the air and struck him in the neck. His hand instinctually snapped up to the point, pulling the dart free and staring at it.
"What the…." He started, eyes squinting at the thing in his hand before beginning to crumple to the ground.
"Can't let you do that, Uncle John," Came a voice out of the darkness and coming towards him.
Diggle tried to respond, his words barely making a sound as his eyelids closed, finding himself quickly slipping into unconsciousness.
Jacob slipped through the window of the clocktower, in time to see Sara picking up her Canary suit and heading towards the elevator. Moving in without so much as a sound, he saw her hesitate, holding the suit in hand and staring at the table, a frustrated look on her face.
"You're leaving again," he stated flatly, feet touching down on the floor.
"I have to," she sighed, turning around to face him. "Oliver's going to track me till he finds you."
"I know," he grunted, walking towards her. "I had to tranq John."
"Wonderful," she groaned, her hand meeting her forehead and brushing her blonde hair back. "That's not going to help matters."
"Will I see you again?" he asked, standing closer to her.
"Of course," she said smiling up at him, taking his hand. "I have a time ship."
He laughed grimly, pulling her into a hug.
"I even left you a phone," she went on, thumping her fist against his chest playfully. "You better call from time to time."
"I will," he agreed, looking down and kissing her gently. "I promise."
A few moments passed between them in silence as she snuggled against his chest, Jacob just holding Sara in his arms.
"I have to go," she groaned, burying her head against his chest and muffling her voice.
"I know," he sighed, letting go of her and turning around.
She turned towards the elevator, her face showing how much she didn't want to go, before she stopped. Looking down at the suit in her hands, she turned back around towards Jacob. Walking back over to where he stood, she dropped the suit on the table.
"Hang onto this for me," she told him, pointing down at the suit before getting up on her tiptoes and whispering into his ear. "Ill wear it again for you next time."
With a nibble on the earlobe and one last kiss, she turned around and half ran to the elevator. Calling it and stepping inside, she descended down to the base of the clocktower and disappeared into the night.
Jacob sighed to himself, resisting the urge to go after her. I have to let her go, he thought to himself, have to find something else to focus on. Walking away from her suit, he picked up his laptop and began to access the SCPD database, starting with the police scanner. As it went off, filing the air with cop chatter, he sat it down and walking over to where his League Jacket hung once again. Pulling it off, he tossed it onto the table before rooting around through his bag for a needle and thread. After a short search, he found the pouch it was in and started working on his Jacket.
Diggle walked out of the garage elevator, ripping his face covering off and shaking his head. Damn that shits strong¸ he thought to himself as he walked farther into the bunker, blinking a few times.
"Did you figure out where she was staying?" Oliver asked as soon as he spotted John, frowning as soon as he got closer.
"Nah man," Dig grunted, wiping the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. "There was someone else up on that rooftop."
He reached back behind his back and carefully produced the dart that had struck him in the neck, holding the black cylinder out to Oliver.
"What's this?" Oliver asked, picking it up and examining it.
"From my experience," Diggle grunted, rubbing the spot on his neck where he pulled it out from. "Tranq dart. Came out of nowhere and dropped me faster than anything I've experienced before."
"And you think that It was the person with Sara?" Oliver asked, raising an eyebrow and rolling the dart between his pointer finger and thumb.
"It makes sense," Dig agreed nodding. "They knew Sara was being watched somehow and was close enough to hear you."
"We need to find this person," Oliver groaned, gently setting the dart down on the desk in front of Felicity.
"How?" she burst out, glaring at the dart and looking up at the two men. "Every way I know how to track someone has come up empty. So if either of you have another idea, I'm all ears."
"I don't know either Felicity," Oliver admitted. "But when he makes a mistake we'll catch him."
"What worries me is what'll he do in the meantime," John added in.
Before everyone gets up in arms about Sara leaving, I can promise You this isnt the last time we'll see her. As much as i love the dynamic between the two, Jacobs progress wasnt going how I wanted. But i do hope you all enjoy, the wheels are going to be moving faster here shortly. Like usual, please leave a review or any construction critisms. The contest is Still in delevopmental stage so keep an eye out!