Behold the Green Arrow Chapter 3

BEHOLD THE GREEN ARROW
CHAPTER THREE: HOMECOMING, PART III

Oliver, dressed up in his Green Arrow garb, used a pair of binoculars to look over what at first sight looked like an ordinary shampoo company. “Are you sure this is the place, Bow?” he asked.

“I’m pretty sure. And believe me, it isn’t chamomile they are using in their shampoos. According to my sources, less legal plants are being processed here.” Naomi replied.

“Well, I have some frustrations to work out and I’m sure these guys don’t mind being a let out. Okay, they probably would, but they are the criminals, so who cares?” Oliver put his binoculars away and climbed down the building he was on to approach the factory.

An usual amount of guards patrolled the outskirts which should have given people enough of hints that it was not an ordinary factory. But people were afraid and didn’t dare to say anything. Oliver looked down from on top of a wall and pondered to himself: “Gotta be careful, I don’t have unlimited ammo…Now, to get as many mooks taken down in as little shots as possible…” he checked out the patterns in which the criminals patrolled. He waited until several got close enough…

He tossed a rock, and of course, being the paranoids on high alert they are, the guards converted onto one spot. When they found nothing and started to think it was just a small animal or something, an arrow headed their way and exploded in a burst of knock-out gas. Green Arrow jumped down on their level as they were lay down unconsious. “Late night shift, guys? Must get you tired. Take a nice rest, nighty-night!”

“They are asleep, they can’t hear you anymore.” Naomi sighed.

“Let me have this…this is the only fun I’m having since I’ve returned to Starling City.” Green Arrow responded quietly. He then snuck into the building. Of course there were more guards patrolling. The production line was still ongoing, but nothing that was being produced at the moment was going to be anti-dandruff or coloring shampoos. He saw a set of green and purple pills coming off the conveyer belt. “I never seen this type of drugs before…But the coloring scheme is somewhat familiar, but can’t put my finger on it…”

He didn’t dwindle on it too much. He needed to stop the production line, but he needed to do it effectively and quickly. Green Arrow decided to explore the facility a bit before he decided to cause a big ruckus.  He managed to evade some guards for a while until he found a facility where the guards and not move from their post. It means whatever is behind it is important. He saw only a few people in hazmat came in or out. “I think I found out where they hold the ‘good stuff’.” Oliver thought. He needed to get in undetected.

He was a man in a hazmat suit, completely by himself. “Perfect.” Oliver said with a smile. He moved closer, knocked the guy out with his bow. He then dragged him into a janitor closet and put on the hazmat suit. He also grabbed an old gym bag to put his bow and arrows into while ‘undercover’. “I wonder if this makes me look fat?” he thought to himself. He used his new guise to get past the goons whom guarded the door and inside.

Indeed, this is where the most important stuff was. He saw it…it was a greenhouse to breed plants...plants form which their drugs were made. But as soon as Oliver saw what those plants were he was stunned. Purple flowers, with the tip of their petals green. It was then that Oliver felt himself stressing. It was like his anxiety attack only a million times worse. His perceptions altered…He felt himself hallucinate no longer be at the factory…But the island. Those flowers were everywhere on the island. He started to hear things…

“Get to work! Those flowers don’t pick themselves!”
“You call that work? You don’t deserve to eat tonight!”
“Better get used to this, you’ll be doing this until the day you die!”

“Dude, are you zoning out?” one of the other guys asked. Oliver didn’t respond to him as he looked around as these guys were constantly checking if the temperature and humidity was right. The hazmat suit was done out of paranoia of bringing in diseases or germs that may hurt these fragile flowers. They were fertilizing and feeding them, planting them. “Dude? Are you feeling all right?”

Oliver tossed down the gym bag, and pulled out the bow and arrows from it. He didn’t hesitate as he fired one of the arrows at the flowers in a haze and the plants all were on fire. “Now I am...”

“Dude, what the heck?” the worker asked. Oliver removed the hazmat suit, revealing himself. He started firing an arrow at the climate controls of the place, wrecking them. “Oh shit! It’s the vigilante archer!” The people inside started to run, both from him and the flames.

The guards that were at the door came in to check out the commotion, only to see the flowers go up in the flames and the fire spreading, the Arrow standing before them menacingly. They pulled out their guns, but Oliver was faster and shot their guns out of their hands with the mini crossbows on the cuffs of his hands. “Dude, this place is going up in flames, it aint worth it, run!” one of the guards said as they ran for it.

Oliver ran out of the greenhouse and started firing arrows left and right. Hitting vital parts of machinery to shut the production down and breaking the machines. The workers didn’t know what was going on and panicked and ran. “Oliver, what the heck do you think you’re doing? What happened to ‘quiet and stealthy’?” Naomi screamed from the other side of the line. The fire has been spreading to the rest of the factory and everyone was more involved with escaping then trying to apprehend the vigilante.

It was only then that the realization caught up with Oliver. “Oh no…” Now, most of the people manage to run to the emergency exits, but others were tripping or being trampled, or stuck. “I have to put this right.” He thought. He quickly began running and swinging by his grappling arrows around the factory, helping the people get up and escape. Sometimes there were a few guards whom were stupid enough to try and take a jab at him, but he was quick to beat them and sent them running.

Only when he was sure everyone was safely out the building, he decided to run for it, as the police and the firemen arrived on the scene to investigate and deal with the fire. Oliver panted heavily as he ran, swung and jumped across the city to his hideout. Knowing Naomi, she would be ticked when he got back.

And he was right. “What the f***! No seriously what the actual f***! You put the place on fire! You could have gotten yourself and all those people killed, drug dealers or not! What had gotten into you?” Naomi screamed at his face.

“I…I lost control…I saw…” Oliver sighed. He rubbed his temples. “Those plants they were growing. They were on the island.”

Naomi softened down, but she hadn’t completely cooled down yet. Oliver had told her bits and pieces on what transpired on the island. “You said there were other people on the island, doing bad things. They grew those flowers too?” she asked.

“More than then that…they forced people…shipwrecked like me, to cultivate them. They forced us into slave labor. I was among them. Men, women, children…an actual pregnant woman they forced to work.” Oliver said.

Naomi had calmed down by now, but she was cross. “So those flowers triggered bad memories for you?” she said. Oliver’s silence was an answer. She sighed. “Look Ollie, I believed in what you did, becoming some kind of symbol of hope. I trusted you because I trust in your family. But this will not look good on your resume. But if you don’t get this sorted out, it will ruin everything we are working towards…You are clearly having PTSD. And I didn’t push it before, but now I have to insist, you need to see someone.”

“I can’t risk it, the psychologist may be smart enough to figure out my identity if he or she…” Oliver said.

“But is that as important as all those lives we are supposed to save? Is that what you really want, Ollie? Or were you lying to me and it is not about saving people? Is it just about looking cool?” Naomi asked.

“No it’s not! It’s…I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking straight. Of course I want to help people.” Oliver said. “What happened at the factory is not something that should have happened.”

“You can’t help people if you can’t help yourself, Ollie. So please…do it for me? For the people…For Walter too, he still cares. We both worry.” Naomi asked.

Oliver sat down and hung his head. “You’re right. I thought that once I would be home again, everything would be over. But the nightmares haven’t ended. I can only be the hero this city needs if I get myself straightened out.” He raised his head up again and turned to Naomi. “What do you have in mind?”

“I know a woman…Anne Green. Runs a therapy group for people whom had severe PTSD. War veterans, hostage situations, disasters, you name it. She is good at what she does. She’s a friend of my family. You’re safe with her. You’ll see, she works wonders.” Naomi said, patting his back.

“It sounds like you speak from experience.” Oliver noticed.

“You are not the only person whom has suffered, Oliver.” She noted.

“Well, do you have her phone number or something?” Oliver said, resigning himself to Naomi’s suggestion.

Naomi smiled. “I knew you’d make the right decision.”

“I have made enough bad ones as it is.” Oliver noted

“It shows that you are getting better. But we shouldn’t have expected for things to keep going smoothly from the start. That would be too good to be true. It’s definitely going to be a long way.” Noami said.

“I always took the easy way before. I had everything handed on a silver platter; But now I really need to work, with my own hands, on something better. And I’m glad that at least, I’ve made one real friend. Not like those fake friends I had years ago.” Oliver said.

Naomi looked a bit flattered. “Anytime, buddy.” She said.

Somewhere else, at the HQ of the Triad, a barely alive, bleeding and hurt guy named Conklin had been suffering at the hands of Chei Na Wei. “You have endured greatly. But nothing can last forever. I can still have one of my private doctors come over and save you…If you tell me what I want to know.” She said, her voice and her eyes cold as white.

Conklin breathed heavily, and it sounded raspy. “B-B-B…” he stammered.

Chei moved in closer to hear his whisper. “Yes?”

“Brick…” he whispered before he went limp.

Chei checked his pulse, and found none. “Ugh… ‘Brick’? What does that even mean?” she growled angrily. “Our only lead, and he’s dead and all he talks about is bricks. What is he talking about? Construction? Was he trying to mock me until the end?” Chei kicked over a nearby table.

“Maybe it’s a code, or some slang…I can have our people check out if it has some significance. Maybe they’ll be able to come up with something…” Hackett suggested.

Chei sighed sadly, a bit disappointed. “I guess. It’s all we have. But I won’t be deterred. My father will be avenged one way or another, even if I have to start the search all over again. I will not give up!”

“Spoken like your father’s daughter. He would have done the same. You don’t have to take what Conklin said seriously, I believe that you could do great things for the Triad.” Hackett said.

Chei didn’t smile, but her expression changed into something softer. “Thanks Hackett…Now let’s start the search, shall we. We have to find out what ‘brick’ means…”

Somewhere else, more precisely in the sky, on a private aeroplane, someone was enjoying his champagne and caviar. He had a neat green suit, with purple accents. He had short greyish blonde hair and a beard, and he looked like he came from nobility. He was being approached by one of his servants. “Yes, Ankov?” he asked, stroking his dirty blonde beard.

“Sir, one of our facilities in Starling City has been destroyed, burnt to the ground. Most of the crew has been apprehended by the police. The few whom got out, spoke about it being caused by an archer.”

“An archer…Just like Lian Yu. It is time we deal with the problem for good. Is the Embassy in Starling City ready?” he asked Ankov.

“Almost. We are ready to move in soon. We’ll be able to manage your American compounds more easily. Though if I may ask, what one measly guy would be worth our attention, we can always replace the compounds.”

“It’s a matter of pride. And it may be one measly guy, but you can be surprised how one single guy can amass a lot of power and prestige…I have not come this far by leaving no stone unturned. So you must understand I can’t just leave that archer shooting arrows at my property. Besides, there are many other things in Starling I want to arrange and everything would work out fine if the Embassy is done. Tell our people to put some haste behind it.”

“As you wish, Count Zytle. It will be done.” Ankov said as he left the scene.

The Count rubbed the tip of his cane with his thumb as he started to ponder. “I’m seeing you soon, old friend. And this time we’re going to end it.”