Sorry for my long absence, guys. My parents and I were on vacation in Colorado, and there was no way I would get a full chapter out in that time.

It's Team Arrow vs villains 2.0, things go . . . a bit better than last time, the three former teammates come to a decision, and it's a really bad take on a man walks into a bar.

Enjoy!

***

"Charges are in place," Dig announced, bending down to pick up his bag.

"So are mine," Oliver nodded, walking away from one of the beams.

"And mine," Slade jumped down from the next level.

Dig pursed his lips, then asked, "Oliver, you sure about this, man?"

Oliver blinked, looking back at him. "You don't sound like you are."

"If we do this, Cayden James will bring his whole group here," Dig pointed out.

"And?" Oliver prompted.

"And Cayden will bring everyone, Oliver. I'm no place close to a hundred percent – "

"Which is why the wizard, Siren, and I will be here backing him up," Slade interrupted. "Not to mention Kara."

"Except if Cayden pulls out a dampener again, Laurel loses her biggest punch," Dig pointed out. "Look, the rest of the team – "

"There is no rest of the team," Oliver shook his head. "We don't need them. Slade could take all three of them at the same time, no problem, and that's not including what Malcolm is capable of – and you've seen them fight before, John. With Laurel and Kara? We pack a punch that Rene, Curtis, and Dinah could never hit. We've been over this before."

"I know, but we've also been over other things, like you and the League of Assassins, me with my secret," Dig shook his head. "Hell, you and Slade, you and Malcolm, after everything they've done to you. Oliver, the best partnerships are built on forgiveness, man."

"I earned mine by sticking to Oliver's side through Prometheus," Slade folded his arms. "I chose him and Kara over my own son. Malcolm has proven he has changed ever since Kara saved his life on Lian Yu. We have both had every chance to turn on Oliver again and again. We never have."

"Slade has a point, but you know what else, John?" Oliver narrowed his eyes. "I got arrested in front of my son, got dragged away in handcuffs because of something that Rene did. I don't know how to forgive it. I tried. John, more importantly, what's Cayden James been up to? He has known our identities for months, knows about my fiancée and Laurel, where they come from, and something I never would have concerned me like it does now – he knows about Slade and Malcolm. He has the ability to release to the public that two of the most infamous mass murderers in Star City's history are alive and back in the city. And yet, he hasn't outed us. Why?" Dig frowned thoughtfully, and Oliver nodded. "This started with you, with me, and with Felicity. Now we have the most powerful hero in our universes and three of the most skilled vigilantes that have existed on our side. Whatever comes our way, we can handle it. I believe that."

With nothing else left to say, Oliver headed out. Slade and Dig exchanged glances before Slade followed after Oliver, Dig sighing and rubbing his forehead before doing the same.

***

Rene returned to the living room, blinking when he saw Curtis take a bite from his snack. "Are you actually eating the old crogurt?" he asked in disbelief.

"Shut up," Curtis shot back, not looking up from his work. "Your old is my delicious. How's Zoe?"

"I don't know," Rene sighed. "I just . . . need her to feel like everything's going back to normal. I hope it is. It'd help if you could delete whatever the D.A.'s got."

Curtis paused, then looked up at Rene incredulously. "We just found out that Cayden James had the bunker bugged for a couple of months, so maybe we should just take a little break on saying incriminating things like that out loud!"

"All right, all right, I'm sorry," Rene winced, putting his hands behind his head and pacing. "I'm just anxious is all."

"I know," Curtis sighed. "But unfortunately, they have a backup of all these files, and even worse, the records are saying that they have hard copies."

"Damn," Rene seethed.

"Yeah, I know," Curtis nodded in agreement. "But I'm inside the system. I'm just trying to find – whoa!"

"Whoa what?" Rene asked when Curtis perked up.

"I think I just found something," Curtis answered with a grin, typing on his computer. "Yeah, there's a record on how Watson found out you were Wild Dog. There's an audio recording."

Rene's eyes lit up. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Well, that depends on if you're thinking that Cayden James leaked an audio file of you from the bunker to the FBI," Curtis grinned. "Is that what you're thinking? That's what you're thinking, right?"

"Yeah," Rene nodded.

"Good. We're on the same page."

Rene's door suddenly flung open, and Rene turned, frowning when Dinah stormed in. "Don't you knock?"

"Don't you lock your doors?" she countered, dropping down into a seat.

"You look like you were just in a fight," Curtis frowned, seeing her rumpled clothes, then stood up quickly when he saw the bloody side of her face. "You were just in a fight!"

"With who?" Rene asked in concern.

"Vince," Dinah answered angrily. "I confronted him. He did this and ran."

"I'm so sorry, Dinah," Curtis swallowed.

"It was my fault for believing in him in the first damn place and for confronting him, exposing the fact that we know about him and Cayden James," Dinah seethed. "That's my fault, too. Sorry."

"Curtis and I were just talking about James and the bunker being compromised," Rene told her.

"Yeah, and how that might have led to Rene being compromised," Curtis added.

"You think Cayden provided Samandra Watson with her case?" Dinah's eyes widened.

"That's the theory," Curtis nodded.

"A good one, though," Rene pointed out.

"Yeah, but if Cayden had audio and video on all of us, especially Oliver, why would he just tee up, Rene?" Dinah frowned.

"It figures he'd go after the most handsome and charming," Rene quipped.

Curtis sighed, rolling his eyes. "Well, maybe when Oliver finally takes down Cayden James, we'll figure out al the details of his master plan."

"Why assume we're gonna wait for Oliver?" Dinah asked. "What are we gonna do here, we're gonna sit around and wait to see how this all plays out?"

"Hope it plays out, you mean?" Rene corrected.

"Are you guys serious about this?" Curtis looked between them. "About taking on Cayden James and his super posse?"

"I let Vince walk once," Dinah narrowed her eyes. "I'm not gonna make that mistake again."

"And I owe that son of a bitch some serious payback," Rene agreed.

Curtis looked around, slowly starting to grin. "If I'm reading the rom correctly, we're gonna form our own team, right?"

"Right," Rene confirmed.

"Right," Dinah agreed, standing up.

***

"What's going on?" Oliver asked as he, Dig, and Slade entered the bunker.

"Signal chatter from the Bertinellis' laptop," Felicity answered. "They're bringing in the Red Lions."

"Ah," Dig grimaced. "The Red Lions. Chechnyan death squad."

"Bertinelli's not gonna let the port go without a fight," Oliver remarked.

"Well, I'm thinking the enemy of Cayden James is my favorite death squad," Felicity said.

"They're not called a death squad for no reason," Slade scowled. "They liberated a town in Kizlyar last year. The result was they turned it into a wasteland."

"We can't let James' group go up against these guys," Oliver sighed. "Where are Bertinelli and the Red Lions holed up?"

"Storage facility on Fifth and Brockton," Felicity answered.

***

"Storage facility on Fifth and Brockton."

Evelyn frowned, watching the footage from the bunker replay from where she sat on the table. She heard her mentor click her tongue from behind her, then walk forward. "We can take the port without Bertinelli's say, but there are a lot of players in this city," Talia remarked.

Evelyn turned to look at Cayden, who was leaning back in his chair. "Maybe you should set a precedent for when you're in charge."

"I'm already in charge, Ms. Sharpe," Cayden answered.

"Even more reason to use his corpse as a message," Talia sneered.

Cayden tilted his head thoughtfully. "I concur," he finally said. "Mr. Bertinelli has his army . . . he should meet ours."

***

"Think Bertinelli's gonna show?" Felicity wondered.

"He better," Dig grumbled.

From his position in the rafters, Oliver's lips quirked up in a slight smirk. "He will."

"Got them," Laurel hissed from across the warehouse.

Oliver looked to the side, he and Malcolm exchanging glances, then Slade moved to get a better view of Bertinelli entering, his men behind him. "Well, let's get this over with," Bertinelli sighed.

"If keyhole satellite imagery is anything to go off of, it looks like Cayden James took the bait," Felicity added.

Bertinelli and his men walked to the center of the warehouse, and he looked around, only to jump when an explosion went off from the other side of the warehouse. "Go!" he shouted, pointing for his people to go, even as gunfire rang out. "Go!"

"Funny thing!" Diaz snarled, storming in with his men. "You guys don't look like a Chechnyan death squad!"

"We have Ricardo Diaz in the house, but no Cayden James," Felicity reported.

"We'll take it," Oliver decided.

"After you," Malcolm smirked.

Oliver dropped down from the rafters, Malcolm with him. The archers fired in unison, downing two of Diaz's men at the same time. Slade and Laurel propelled down as well, working from the other side. She kicked out one thug's legs from underneath him, Slade firing over her, double tapping the thug aiming at him. Laurel rolled on the ground, hooking her leg around another's ankles and yanked, toppling him. A quick somersault forward, and she screamed, knocking a wave of thugs back, right into Oliver's and Malcolm's bows, knocking them out hard.

Oliver approached Diaz, reaching for another arrow, when a loud scream hit him in the back, knocking him away. Malcolm quickly spun around, firing another arrow, and Evelyn quickly ducked behind cover. "You were saying?" he shouted.

"Oh, no," Felicity gulped. "We have a very large problem!"

"Guys, get out of there!" Dig shouted.

Kara plunged through the ceiling and dove, plowing through the thugs getting back up. At the same time, some of Curtis's spare T-spheres flew down, electric shocks coming out of them and making sure Diaz's men stayed down. "So how does this compare to Halo?" Felicity quipped.

"So much better," Dig answered in satisfaction.

Evelyn jumped up from her hiding place, only to yelp when Oliver shot another tripwire arrow at her, knocking her down head over heels. Malcolm spun when he heard the light sound of boots hitting concrete, and he narrowly avoided Talia's sword swing. He drew his and quickly deflected her next swing, Talia drawing him away from his teammates. Oliver drew another arrow to find the rest of the men, and he whipped around when he heard boots behind him. "Stand down, Oliver," Anatoli warned, aiming in his face, guarded by three Bratva members. "You are vastly outnumbered."

There was a snarl behind him, and Oliver turned to see Vincent get tackled by Slade, the two vigilantes crashing to the floor together. "Slade!"

Kara smashed into the three Bratva members, Anatoli turning to see her toss one through the hole in the ceiling. Laurel pounced on another, leaving Anatoli to Oliver. As Oliver rushed his former friend, Slade rolled to his feet at the same time as Vincent. The two stared each other down, Vincent from behind his visor, Slade behind his mask. Slade drew his sword at the same time Vincent whipped out a combat knife, and the two men were at it again, blades clashing, sparks flying.

Kara landed in the middle of the floor, looking around, trying to decide who to help. On the one hand, Vincent could heal from his metahuman powers. On the other, any upper hand Malcolm could get against Talia would be helpful. Then again, the chance to get the better of Anatoli again would be worth it –

Then from speakers in the building came a piercing sound, one that cut right into Kara's head. She wailed in pain, sinking to the ground, reaching up and clutching her ears. "Supergirl!" Laurel spun around, eyes wide.

Kara gasped, eyes watering as she tried to block the noise out. She struggled to her knees, heaving and bending her head, closing her eyes. "I can't find where that's coming from!" Felicity panicked. "Supergirl?"

Kara felt a boot kick her in the back, and she collapsed on the ground, wearily looking up. "Guess your super senses have a downside, eh, girlie?" Diaz smirked.

The smirk was quickly gone when a green arrow sank into his calf, making him collapse with a yell. Kara rolled over to see Oliver standing over Anatoli's unconscious form, and he ran over to her. "Are you all right?" he asked in concern.

Kara cautiously took one hand away from her ear, swallowing when she saw blood smeared on her skin. Oliver growled when he saw it, carefully taking her in his arms and looking around. Malcolm had started to lose ground due to the noise from the speakers, and Talia was taking every advantage she could get. Kara took a few deep breaths, then shot her heat vision at the assassin. Talia went flying through the air, crashing down by Evelyn, who was slowly getting to her feet.

On the other side of the warehouse, Slade and Vincent were still fighting. While Slade's many years of experience showed in how he dodged Vincent's attacks and found openings he never gave, Vincent's metahuman powers kept him up and moving. Both had several marks on their suits where they had hit the other, but neither was giving the other the chance to get the upper hand.

Until another sonic scream sounded, and Vincent was propelled yards away from Slade, landing hard on his back. "Boom, bastard," Laurel sneered, walking over, fully intending to make good on her promise.

An ebony arrow sailed through the air and punctured her injured shoulder, and Laurel staggered, mouth opening to scream. Then she stumbled again, eyes blinking in shock, and she toppled over as she tried to reach for the arrow in her arm. Slade quickly caught her as she fell, carefully shifting her. "Siren?" he asked, only for her to moan softly as her eyes slid closed. "Tranquilizer!" he shouted.

Oliver turned around, only to see Evelyn stagger back up, her bow drawn. "I'm disappointed, Mr. Bertinelli," Cayden remarked, and Oliver looked up to see him approach the man, whose hands were in the air, his men dead behind him. "I truly am, but not unreasonable. Must unnecessary bloodshed continue when you can make the correct choice?"

Kara tried to rise to her feet; Cayden didn't even look her way before holding up a small remote and pressing a button. The piercing sound came again, making everyone cringe. Kara jerked back as if physically punched, screaming and reaching for her ears again. Oliver gritted his teeth as Cayden's men started to regroup, then turned to see Malcolm slowly reach for his bow, reaching behind him for a grappling arrow. As Bertinelli turned to Oliver, reaching under his coat, Oliver tapped his gauntlet, watching a light blink green before flaring red.

The charges they set up earlier went off, stunning everyone for just long enough. In that time, Oliver and Malcolm fired their arrows, Oliver holding Kara as they grappled off. When Vincent turned to find Slade and Laurel, he saw Slade climb into the rafters, Laurel over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. Evelyn aimed her bow around, trying to find any sign of them, but they were gone.

Cayden slowly turned to Bertinelli as Evelyn helped Talia up, the Bratva men checking on Anatoli. "Mr. Bertinelli," he began.

"Fine, relax, all right?" Bertinelli spat. "Just take the port. Just take the freaking port."

"Oh, thank you," Cayden smiled. "Although you elected to betray me this evening, you ultimately made the right choice." Evelyn and Talia walked up just as Diaz limped up behind Bertinelli, aimed his rifle at the back of his head, and fired twice. Cayden watched in satisfaction as Bertinelli collapsed dead, then smirked. "Which is why I won't have your daughter killed." He looked up and raised an eyebrow at Talia. "I expect you can find the most effective use for this corpse to . . . how did you put it? Send a message."

Talia smirked.

***

"Ah!"

Oliver winced as his fiancée hissed in pain. "Sorry, angel," he whispered, gently wiping the rest of the blood from her neck, peering into her ears to check and make sure the bleeding stopped. "Sorry."

"It's OK," Kara rubbed the back of her neck, watching Slade rebandage Laurel's shoulder, the metahuman grinding her teeth to avoid making a noise. "It's not the first time someone made my ears bleed."

Oliver kissed the top of her head as he finished and stood, looking over at Malcolm as he returned from one of the side rooms, moving stiffly. "How are the rest of you holding up?" he asked.

"Nothing broken," Malcolm answered, rolling his shoulders. "Think there might be a slight loss of dignity."

"No change there," Slade muttered, making Laurel smirk.

"Hey," Malcolm scowled. "We all were knocked off our game in some way when James pulled that speaker stunt."

"Laurel?" Oliver asked.

"I plan to sleep in tomorrow," Laurel grumbled. "Other than that, I'm just peachy."

"So on the plus side, we get the bunker back," Malcolm folded his arms, leaning against the railing. "I like to think we did a number on Diaz, Vigilante, Anatoli, and Talia, too."

"On the negative side, Cayden James now has the port," Oliver growled. "And everybody got away."

Felicity had been silent up until that point. "Have you seen that movie 'Bull Durham?'" she asked suddenly.

"Hmm," Dig raised an eyebrow, absently rubbing his hand.

"My mom made me watch that movie all the time," Felicity explained. "I mean, it is the best baseball movie ever, but she used to say that Susan Sarandon was her fictional life coach. Anyway, there's a line in this movie where she says 'sometimes you win, sometimes you lose – '"

"'Sometimes it rains,'" Oliver finished with her.

Felicity nodded. "You can't control the weather. You couldn't control Bertinelli betraying you."

"You know what else I can't control?" Oliver scowled. "Their numbers advantage."

It was Kara of all people who snorted at that. "If you'd been going solo against them, you would have a point."

"We had them, Oliver," Malcolm agreed. "We had them until James used that sound system against Kara. It was just like we were winning against the Nazis until their Metallo showed up and took Kara out."

"There's only so many tricks the devil will have until he runs out," Slade nodded. "We'll keep fighting until that happens."

"Even if he does have an army, we'll just keep picking them off," Laurel smirked. "The five of us are like a five-man army anyway."

Oliver pursed his lips, then turned to Kara. "Will your team be able to spare time to help?"

"Just the team?" Kara smiled. "Why just the team when we could have a legion?"

Felicity grinned widely, and Dig blinked. "Think they'll help?"

"They'll think of it as a get more on our good sides motivation," Oliver said dryly, making Malcolm cackle as Laurel grinned smugly. "But yes, I think they will." He grimaced a bit. "There's just one thing we need to do first."

***

Awkward silence was broken by Curtis, who grinned nervously. "I just want to say that I, for one, think it's great that we're all back in the same room together."

"Trust and forgiveness," Oliver began, pacing behind an invisible line between himself, Dig, Felicity, Kara, Slade, Malcolm, and Laurel on one side with Curtis, Rene, and Dinah on the other. "For the past few weeks, I have been really struggling to square that circle. Rene," he turned. "As a father, I understand why you did what you did. I also recognize that you might be taking me away from my son and my fiancée." Rene winced, nodding his understanding. "I reacted to that, and I got angry. We decided to put the three of you under surveillance. I take responsibility for that. It was without question a breach of trust. So was lying to the team about Vince, and I'm not trying to point fingers, Dinah. I am simply trying to illustrate that there is blame on all sides here, but we don't have time for grudges or recriminations. We don't, not with what this city is up against." He held up a hand when he saw Dig about to open his mouth. "And it's up against a lot. Cayden James. Anatoli. Evelyn and Talia. Vigilante." Dinah tensed at the name. "Diaz. This city isn't just mine, it's all of ours in some way, whether it's where we've made our home or is home to the people we love. That being said, do I think things will go back to the way they were before? No, I don't." Slade smirked when he saw the surprised look Dig gave Oliver. "I will keep fighting. Kara, Slade, Malcolm, and Laurel will keep fighting with me, they've made that remarkably clear. My question is, will the three of you do the same? With or without us?"

There was stunned silence in the room. While Kara was smiling up at Oliver, Slade and Malcolm exchanged proud smirks. The trust issues caused by the fallout of Rene's betrayal went both ways, which Dig seemed to be missing. It wasn't like Oliver could forgive his former teammates and expect them to come back into the fold. And even if he did, if they didn't forgive him and trust him in return, there was no way they would work. It was like Slade had said earlier – he and Malcolm had earned Oliver's trust after so much hard work, and even then, they didn't consider their ledgers wiped clean. There hadn't been any real work to rebuild the trust between the divided team members. They could guess what the answer was.

Sure enough, Rene confirmed it. "Without," he answered Oliver. "Not after what you did."

"This city needs us, and we know that," Dinah stood up, taking her place with Curtis and Rene. "And we're not shirking that responsibility. We decided to go our own way."

Felicity balked. "Wait a minute – "

"Leave it, Felicity," Kara spoke up, voice slightly loud. When the three others looked at her in confusion, she pointed to her ears. "Sorry, Cayden used a sound system to knock my hearing out of whack." She stood up from her chair, Oliver's arm automatically going around her waist. "Things happened on both sides . . . some of us did more than others. I acknowledge I was part of that. But when the man I love was put in this situation by someone he believed he could trust, and in return was arrested in front of his son and is now in jeopardy of being taken away from him . . . I fight back. And I know two of you over there remember the last time there was a traitor on the team." Rene and Curtis nodded reluctantly, remembering Evelyn. "That being said, I wish you good luck in whatever plans you have," Kara nodded back.

The three gave her long looks, then Rene nodded. "Let's go, guys."

Dinah followed him to the door, but Curtis walked forward. "I may have solved the glitch in my chip," he said, holding out a black box to Dig. "I hope it helps," he added as Dig took it, stunned. "I, um . . . really do."

He walked back to the others, and Rene held open the door, letting the others leave first before following them. Oliver took a deep breath, then put a hand on Laurel's uninjured shoulder. "Go home," he said quietly. "Get some rest. Let that shoulder heal, OK?"

Laurel nodded, standing up, readjusting the sling holding her other arm. "You all will be OK?" she asked.

"We'll walk it off," Oliver nodded.

Laurel nodded. "See you tomorrow, kid," Slade nodded, he and Malcolm following Laurel to the door.

***

"When you said you had something to show us, didn't you think lights would be useful?" Rene scoffed as Curtis led him and Dinah out of the elevator and into a pitch black room.

"One second, guys," Curtis grinned. "It is all about the reveal." He tapped a blinking green circle on his phone screen, and Rene and Dinah watched the lights in the building turn on, as well as several large screens. "What does it look like?"

"Some . . . place," Rene answered, following Curtis down the stairs.

"No," Curtis grinned. "It's . . . it's our new lair. Helix used to operate out of here, but it's not like they're using it anymore, so . . . "

"Curtis, it's genius," Dinah grinned, turning around and looking at the room.

"Seriously," Rene nodded, examining the sleek screens. "Nice work."

"I'm glad you guys like it," Curtis smiled proudly, walking over to a tray nearby and picking up a few glasses filled with alcohol. "Now, I don't suggest we make this a regular thing, seeing as how I'm a lightweight and all, but this event warrants a celebration."

"Well, I am just glad that I found partners who I can trust," Dinah smiled, taking her glass.

"That's what I'm talking about," Rene tilted his glass to her in agreement.

Curtis nodded, and the three clinked their glasses together. "Salud," he toasted, all three taking a drink.

***

As soon as Malcolm closed the door, Laurel flopped back on the couch, groaning. "Oh, you could have cut that tension with the world's dullest knife."

"It's over with for now," Slade shook his head. "But this won't be the last we hear of it."

"I'll eat my arrowheads if it is," Malcolm snorted.

Laurel laughed, pinching the bridge of her nose as she did. "I'd actually pay to see that."

"Agreed," Slade smirked.

Malcolm just rolled his eyes, taking a crystal bottle of alcohol from the fridge and a few tumblers. "So, on a similar topic," he said as he poured drinks. "Still think you can get through to Evelyn? Even though she shot you with a tranquilizer?"

Laurel licked her lips, readjusting her position on the couch. "Look at the three of us," she gestured around. "Former Ra's al Ghul and mastermind behind Tempest, responsible for the sinking of the Gambit and the deaths of 503 in the Undertaking, including your son. Oliver's worst enemy after taking the mirakuru, murdered his mother, tried to tear his entire life apart. Former second in command to the speedster who murdered Barry's father, tricked the team into thinking I was their Laurel, worked with Chase. Somehow, despite our rather dark history with him, Oliver trusts us to watch his back. Compared to us, Evelyn has a chance. She's young, but hasn't had anyone to give her another way."

"And you think you can do that?" Slade asked.

Laurel shrugged her uninjured shoulder as Malcolm walked over with the tumblers. "Carpe diem."

Malcolm smirked as Slade took two tumblers, handing his spare to Laurel. "Well, with our records, I think we know a better path when we see it."

"We'll hope it's not too late for Evelyn," Slade nodded at Laurel.

Laurel nodded, then snickered. "Who'd have ever thought it'd be the three of us making the majority of Team Arrow's fielders?"

Malcolm laughed as he sat. "Never," Slade admitted.

"To think we got here because of trust issues," Malcolm shook his head in disbelief. "For once, not our fault, too."

"We have our ledgers to wipe clean," Laurel sat forward, looking between the two men. "Oliver trusts us, and I know I trust him. We need to make sure we trust each other, too."

Malcolm and Slade exchanged glances, then nodded. "I do," Slade said.

"Ditto," Malcolm nodded.

Laurel smiled and held up her tumbler. "To the battles to come."

Malcolm and Slade raised theirs as well. "To making sure we win them," Slade added.

"The better path," Malcolm nodded.

The three of them clinked their tumblers together and drank at the same time.

***

Vincent didn't acknowledge the man walking into the room where he was working on his weapons. He didn't acknowledge him when he spoke, either. "I'm concerned . . . . and the feeling doesn't suit me well."

Vincent didn't even look up. "You got the port like you wanted."

"Sorry if I was unclear," Cayden walked forward. "My concern relates to you. Your continued association with Ms. Drake wouldn't worry me if this surveillance didn't suggest that she knows about our association."

Vincent scowled when he saw the footage on his tablet. "Don't worry," he told him. "I can handle Dinah. There's not a button she has that I don't know how to push."

He clicked a new magazine into his handgun and stood up, turning to leave, letting his words sink in.

***

"I feel like this is the beginning of that very bad joke. How did it go?"

"A man walks into a bar?"

"Yes, that was it. Except . . . this is a more serious version of bad."

"And it's not a joke, so if you could focus?" Kara raised an eyebrow.

Querl blinked, then cleared his throat and turned back to help Felicity with Dig's arm. Mon-El chuckled and turned to Oliver. "So it's a master hacker, a traitor of your team, your former trainer and assassin, a Bratva pakhan, a criminal-killing meta who's had romantic connections to another former teammate, and a drug lord form a criminal cabal?"

"That's not so funny," Querl mumbled.

"Brainy!" Imra hissed.

"That's the gist of it," Oliver ignored the Coluan.

"Well, that won't do," Mon-El shook his head, holding out his hand to Oliver. "You need us, we'll be here."

Oliver smiled a bit, shaking his hand. "Thank you."

"All right, new chip is in," Felicity announced, Querl backing away from Dig's arm. "Just . . . one . . . second." She, too, stepped back, putting her wire down and peeling off her latex gloves.

Dig pulled his arm back, examining his hand. "Doesn't feel any different," he remarked.

"Maybe it'll take a minute?" Kara tilted her head.

Dig, however, curled his finger into a fist. Oliver watched carefully, then started to smirk when he noticed something key, backing away and towards the weapons table. Dig's jaw dropped as he made a fist without a single tremor, and Kara started to grin. "Or not!"

Oliver reached for a handgun on the table, looking at Imra with a raised eyebrow. "It worked?" he asked, holding up the gun.

Imra got the hint and held out her hand. Oliver released his hold on the gun, letting Imra telekinetically throw it to Dig. Felicity quickly ducked, Querl backing away, and Dig snatched the gun with his formerly injured hand, yanking the safety back and aiming.

All done with a completely steady hand.

Kara laughed giddily as Oliver walked up, a smile on his face. "Looks like that five-man army is now six."

"Yes!" Felicity cheered as Oliver clapped his friend on the back.

"Congratulations, John," Imra smiled happily.

"Thank you," Kara added to Mon-El, smiling gratefully.

"It's like Imra said," Mon-El told her. "We help people. It's what we do." He smirked, looking at a tablet on the table, displaying Cayden's cabal. "So, when do we start?"

***

And the Legion is onboard. :)

I hope the battle was believable. I fully believe Kara could have kicked everyone's asses unless she was taken out. She has super senses, which Cayden used against her. Such a tactic also affected everyone else, throwing them off their game.

That being said, Oliver has so many other allies to turn to instead of Curtis, Rene, and Dinah. Dig just seemed way too optimistic that everything could return to normal with a snap of the fingers. I knew that wasn't going to work, so Oliver didn't sugar coat anything here.

Lol, Brainy. I love you, and thank you for being a series regular next season.

Also, due to a few bits of my writing here and in the chatroom, some people are liking the idea of Malcolm and Laurel becoming a thing. Dark Siren, yay or nay?

Anyway, hoping to work on The Daxam Four next, and then after that, it'll be "We Fall!"