Team SuperArrow meets Athena, many conversations are had, and Curtis meets Nick.

***

"I can't sense anyone," Kara looked around as the large group entered the building.

"Overwatch, Telle, can you confirm?" Oliver asked.

"Always trust the Kryptonian," Felicity answered. "But yes, it is just all . . . well, all of you. You're too big of a group to count."

Nyssa had to agree as she surveyed how many had come. She had just been expecting Oliver and Malcolm; she had not realized Slade, Dig, Roy, Alex, Mon-El, and James would join them with gear for Laurel and Thea. "Be cautious," she warned as she and Malcolm took the lead. "My father would have laid traps to protect this place."

"Ooo, traps," Winn's voice sounded excited. "Now we're talking. 'Raiders' or 'Temple of Doom?'"

"Calm down," J'onn's voice broke through.

"Yep, calming down."

"Hey," Roy slid past most of the group to join Thea, who was shifting about anxiously. "You OK?"

"Yeah," she sighed. "I will be once this is all over with."

"Yeah," Roy agreed. "Me, too."

His foot landed on a plate, and Kara perked up. "Get down!" she yelled.

Nyssa, Malcolm, Thea, and Roy hit the ground as Kara and Mon-El shielded Oliver and Dig, James raising his shield to cover Alex, Slade maneuvering so he pushed Laurel out of the way and against the wall. Malcolm looked up first, taking in the arrows that peppered the wall around Kara, Mon-El, and James, then nodded shakily at her. "Thank you."

"Yeah, any time," she nodded back.

"A trap," Nyssa eyed the arrows. "Excellent."

"That's an interesting definition of excellent," Mon-El frowned.

"I think she means in terms of how close we are," Malcolm said, helping Thea to her feet.

"Oh," Mon-El nodded. "Well . . . excellent, then."

Dig pressed a button on the side of his helmet, looking around. "Thermal imaging is showing that what we're looking at is what we've got," he said. "No hallways, no doors."

"Looks can be deceiving," Malcolm shook his head, and Thea and Roy turned to see him eyeing the floor. "I had a secret chamber in my office to hide my gear when I was CEO. Where do you think I got that idea from?"

Kara looked down at the ground, then tapped with her boot. "Here."

Nyssa smiled. "Clever." She looked up at Kara. "May I?"

"All yours," she gestured, stepping back.

Nyssa took out a vial and smashed it on the ground, and Laurel and James flinched away from the small explosion it caused when it hit the ground. When the smoke hissed and cleared, Malcolm chuckled. "Oh, that's very clever."

"What is it?" Slade tilted his head.

"Iodine dixonium," Nyssa answered. "A component magnetically attracted to the same type of steel my father used to encase relics."

"A secret of the family, or a secret of the Demon's Head?" Oliver asked.

"Yes," Malcolm shrugged.

Dig snorted. "Just when you think you know everything about these guys."

"Welcome to the League of Assassins," Malcolm snorted.

Nyssa pulled out a knife and crouched down on the ground, digging it into the crack that had formed. "Al Sa-her?"

Malcolm raised an eyebrow. "You sure? I thought you hated me."

"I am more than happy to put aside whatever negative feelings I have for you while we uncover what control my father still has on both of us," Nyssa shot him a look. "Can you do the same?"

Malcolm smirked. "Well, since you asked so nicely."

"Look at that," Thea smirked. "Hell's frozen over."

"Shut up," both said at the same time as Malcolm crouched down to help Nyssa.

Slade snorted softly, but everyone watched as Malcolm lifted the concrete block Nyssa pried out of the ground. Nyssa carefully reached down into the ground, and Roy's eyebrows shot up as she lifted a metal box out. "Wow," Alex whistled.

"OK," Thea said slowly. "That's not a map."

"The map is inside," Nyssa examined the box. "It's an ancient League cipher."

"So it needs a code," Slade nodded.

"Guessing it's a bit more complicated than a birthday?" James asked.

"Considering it needs eighteen digits across three alphabets," Malcolm tilted his head side to side.

"Definitely more complicated than a birthday," Alex sighed.

Splattering on one of the large drums nearby made everyone look around, then Laurel's gaze was drawn upwards. Her eyes widened as a body dropped down, hung by their ankle. "Tigressa!"

Kara spun around, scanning the entire building. "We've got incoming!"

"The daughter of the demon and Al Sa-her." Both got to their feet and turned as a black-clothed woman with a scar down the left side of her face emerged, drawing her sword. "I want both of you and the map." She smirked. "I'm always merciful when I get what I want."

"I know you better than that," Nyssa scowled.

"Stand down," Oliver ordered as Dig drew his gun, Slade his sword, Alex reaching up and turning her collar on. "Not gonna ask twice."

Athena smirked, and Mon-El spun around. "Heads up!" he barked.

Thea and Roy joined Laurel in aiming at the assassins that landed on the ground behind them, Oliver, Slade, and Dig doing the same with the assassins behind them. "Come with us, and we will let your friends continue to draw breath," Athena told Malcolm and Nyssa as Kara, Alex, James, and Mon-El stood back to back, looking around at their many opponents. "Stay where you are, and blood will be shed."

Malcolm eyed Athena, then looked at Nyssa. "You said she was your rival, right?"

"Yes," Nyssa confirmed, a smirk forming on her lips. "May I?"

"By all means."

Nyssa handed the box off to him, drawing her sword. "Supergirl!" she barked.

Kara shot her heat vision at two of the assassins on Malcolm's other side, providing an opening for her brother to run. Those closest to him – Laurel, Thea, and Roy – took off to cover him. Athena tried to run after him, but Nyssa got in her way, swinging both her sword and her bow. Kara maneuvered herself to catch the sword swung at her, and the blade shattered where it hit her. The assassin balked in shock, then collapsed when Mon-El punched him in the side of the head. James and Alex shifted to watch each other's backs, Alex grabbing a fallen sword and alternating between dueling with the sword and jabbing with her claws, James using his shield's strength to good use and blocking her from being attacked.

Dig shot two of the assassins down, then yelled in pain and staggered when he got a sword slice to the back. A snarl came from behind, then a pained gurgle. Dig turned to see Slade withdraw his sword from the assassin who attacked him, then the Australian held out a hand towards him. "Your Kevlar held," he said grimly. "Barely. Watch your six, Spartan."

"No kidding," Dig grumbled, accepting the hand up.

Oliver was taking three assassins on at the same time, blocking strikes with his bow and using the assassins' momentum against them. Kara zipped in to help, crashing into one who was about to stab Oliver from behind and throwing him into a pile of crates. Oliver nodded gratefully, firing an arrow into another assassin, letting Kara use her heat vision on the third.

A yelp from Nyssa made Alex turn, and she saw Nyssa on the ground, Athena sneering at her. "You've had the same footwork since you were eight years old."

Alex growled, then screamed in her direction. Athena looked up in time and quickly rolled out of the way, and Nyssa plastered herself to the ground to avoid the sonic waves; instead, Alex hit the three assassins coming to back their master up. "Well, that works, too," Alex grumbled.

***

Laurel spun behind Malcolm and launched a throwing knife, the assassin approaching from behind grunting when it got stuck in his jugular vein. More assassins jumped in their path, and Malcolm dropped his bow and drew his sword, disarming the two around him easily. Thea used her sword and her bow, smacking her opponent in the face and disorienting him before sticking her sword through his side. Roy ducked under one assassin's sword and did spinning kick in midair, his foot connecting with another assassin's head with a sickening crack. Laurel veered to the side, and one assassin struck the other with his sword; while he was distracted, Laurel propelled herself off the wall and wrapped her legs around him, bringing him to the ground and shoving her knife down into his chest.

Thea crashed into the wall behind her, and Laurel looked up in surprise to see her fall to the ground, the assassin facing her putting his sword to her throat. Roy raised his bow to fire an arrow, but another assassin crept up from behind and knocked his aim off, kicking Roy's feet out from under him and dropping him just like Thea. Laurel took her knife in hand and stood up, opening her mouth to scream when her hair was pulled, and her head jerked back. She yelped in surprise, then swallowed when a sword was pressed against her throat. "Make a choice, Al Sa-her," Athena hissed, and Laurel saw Malcolm look up from the assassin he had just killed, the box still under his arm. "Come with us and give us the map, or she dies."

Laurel managed to shake her head, telling Malcolm know, then hissed when Athena pressed her sword harder. Malcolm swallowed, his eyes flickering around. "Telle," he finally said. "In case you were still wondering . . . it's 'Raiders.'" His foot came down on a plate similar to the one Roy had stepped on. "On the ground!" he shouted.

Thea and Roy immediately rolled over onto their stomachs, and Laurel twisted as best as she could, putting Athena in the way of the arrows shooting out. She saw assassins jerk and fall out of the corner of her eye, then Athena stiffened and her grip loosened. Then she was shoved away, and Malcolm's arm was around her instead. "You OK?" he asked.

"Fine," she nodded, looking down to see Athena on her knees, grimacing in pain. "I'm fine."

Malcolm nodded in response. "I've still got the map," he said, watching Thea and Roy scramble to their feet.

"Let's move!" Oliver answered sharply.

The four ran off, leaving Athena behind as the rest of the team followed them from where they were scattered around the room.

***

"Here," Roy hurried over to Thea, taking hold of her quiver and sword sheath. "Let me help you."

"OK," Thea winced as he took both off her back. "Ow. God, that bitch has a really powerful kick. I think she might have broken one of my ribs."

"She has a sharp sword, too," Laurel winced.

"Which I do not want to see you on that side of again," Malcolm scowled, helping her press a wet cloth against her throat. "You sure you're OK?"

"It's the same answer as the last God knows how many times, Malcolm," Laurel huffed. "Yes."

"That's Black Siren code for thank you," Slade smirked.

"Well, I agree with Thea," Alex announced. "What a bitch."

"That's technically my line," Winn held up a hand.

"I assure you that will be the last time you have to face her," Nyssa said.

"Yeah?" Dig raised an eyebrow. "You'll get no complaints from me."

"Except Athena doesn't seem like a type who will give up easily," Slade frowned.

"I intend to take the choice out of her hands," Nyssa told him. "By taking my father's map far from here." When Malcolm looked up sharply, Nyssa shook her head. "If the map stays with me, Athena will assume that means I can open it. She will leave you alone, Al Sa-her. That is what you want, isn't it? This was a burden left on us by my father. It should be mine, not yours."

Their stare-down was interrupted by Felicity grunting as she held up the box. "You didn't tell me this was the box from Hellraiser!"

Nyssa nodded respectfully to Malcolm. "Thank you for not attacking me, Al Sa-her."

Malcolm was still blinking as Nyssa made to leave. "Wow," Roy blinked as well. "That was a lot easier than I thought it would be."

"No," Malcolm suddenly shook his head, standing up from where he was tending to Laurel and moving towards Nyssa. "No, that is not how this is going to work, Nyssa. You need someone to unlock the cipher!"

"No, no, no," Felicity shook her head. "Not this type of mathematics."

"I can always just break it," Kara offered.

"League relic," both Nyssa and Malcolm said at the same time.

Kara wilted a bit. "Well . . . OK."

"Nyssa, Athena was able to take you down," Malcolm turned back to her. "Do you really stand a chance against the entire Thanatos Guild? And that's no guarantee that I'm going to be safe, either!"

Nyssa frowned. "You made it clear once we acquired the map you wanted nothing to do with my father or the League."

"You also made it clear that this map leads to something ancient and powerful," Malcolm countered. "It's like you said, the legacy of Ra's al Ghul is something neither of us can run from." He sighed, shaking his head. "I'd rather see this through completely than have any doubts that there's any part of this burden left . . . for either of us. Besides," he pointed to where Felicity was examining the box. "We have one of the world's greatest mathematician here. Two, including Kara, and quite frankly between her and Mon-El, that's more than enough protection for us while that box gets opened, let alone the rest of the team."

Nyssa tilted her head, then nodded. "Very well," she said, extending her hand. Malcolm did the same, the two grasping each other's arms in a warrior's handshake. "Can you do it?" she asked Felicity.

"Well, in my experience, anything locked can be hacked," Felicity confirmed, grunting as she picked up the box again. "Usually by me."

Malcolm nodded, then turned to where Thea was sitting on the platform, giving him a look. "No," he immediately said, shaking his head. "Thea, no."

"Thea, yes," she countered. "I'm staying, Dad."

"What?" Roy shot her a look.

"Thea, the only reason you're involved in this is because my decisions leading to me becoming Ra's al Ghul are coming back to bite me in the ass," Malcolm told her. "You should have nothing to do with this."

"Once a daughter of the demon, always a daughter of the demon," Thea stood up, coming face to face with him. "That's what Nyssa is, too, right? That's the legacy Ra's passed to her. I'm part of your legacy, too. And I am not leaving until this is figured out."

Malcolm sighed, closing his eyes. "You shouldn't have to be here."

"Well, tough," Thea folded her arms. "I want to be here. I've spent the time since Lian Yu helping you put the League behind you. I'm gonna be here fighting it off while I can, right by your side."

Malcolm swallowed, then nodded. "Thank you."

"Thea, he gave you an out," Roy said quietly.

"I know," Thea turned to him. "But . . . it's hard to explain. Just . . . I need you to trust me."

Roy sighed, but nodded as well.

***

"All right," Dinah told Curtis as they approached the evidence building. "You ready?"

"To go to prison for stealing evidence?" Curtis grimaced. "No, not really."

"I'm doing the stealing," Dinah pointed to herself. "You're doing the hacking."

Curtis snorted. "Look, something tells me the police don't make that distinction." Still, he followed Dinah into the building and towards the lockup where the evidence from Dinah's last crime scene was stored. "This could be the last time I'm here not as a suspect."

"How long is this gonna take?" Dinah asked as Curtis pulled out a handheld device and held it up to the lock.

"My worry is twenty-five to life," Curtis answered.

"Come on," Dinah rolled her eyes. The electronic pad lit up green, and the lock clicked open. "Keep watch," Dinah ordered, opening the door.

"What?!" Curtis's eyes widened. "I thought you said no one else was gonna be here!"

"We're here, aren't we?" Dinah pointed out, stepping inside.

Curtis gritted his teeth as Dinah moved through the room, her flashlight beam hitting every shelf . . . several shelves, actually, full of evidence. A door opening caught his attention, and Curtis balked, looking towards the doorway. "Crap." He turned back around, trying to find Dinah. "Come on . . . "

"This is police access only," a voice said, and Curtis turned, eyes widening further when he saw the same officer he'd been staring at on a computer walk into the room, frowning at him. "What are you doing here?"

"Nick Anastas!" Curtis grinned nervously, making his eyebrows shoot up. "Hey! It has been a while."

"Do I know you?" Nick asked in confusion.

"Yes, of course," Curtis nodded, gesturing to himself. "Curtis Holt. We met through Dinah Drake. She's my friend and your sergeant or lieutenant . . . or was it just detective?" Nick tilted his head, still confused, and Curtis cleared his throat nervously. "Uh, either way, I'm meeting her here for dinner, but I kind of lost in this new building. I mean, I really haven't seen this place since . . . since it got blown up."

"Well, I could give you a tour if you want while you're waiting for Lieutenant Drake," Nick offered with a kind smile. "She usually doesn't show up for her shift for another hour."

"Totally Dinah," Curtis nodded. "She's, like, a major slacker."

Both chuckled, and Nick gestured to the door. "Come on."

"Yeah," Curtis smiled, following him.

When they were gone, Dinah popped up from where she'd been hiding in the shelves, opening a cardboard box on one of them. She aimed her flashlight inside, and she grinned when she found what she was looking for. "Gotcha," she declared, pulling out the evidence bag from the crime scene.

***

"Nyssa," Oliver nodded as the dark-haired woman passed him and Kara by.

"Husband," she responded promptly.

Kara did a double take, and Oliver glared after her, only to see her give them both a small smirk. "Does that mean I would win the mortal combat thing?" Kara asked.

"Believe what you will, soon-to-be sister-wife," Nyssa answered.

Kara gawked after her, and Malcolm snickered where he sat on the stairs leading to the other exit of the bunker. "You're joking with someone. The world is ending."

"I approve of Kara," Nyssa told him, leaning against the railing and examining him. "As I approve of Laurel."

Malcolm's eyebrows shot up. "I beg your pardon?"

"I am fairly certain we both know I don't need to repeat myself, Al Sa-her," Nyssa said dryly. "I do possess eyes, and they have seen quite a lot recently."

"Have they?" Malcolm snorted, looking away from her.

"They have," Nyssa confirmed. "They saw Laurel's reaction to when Tigressa said she wasn't surprised you found her. They saw Laurel immediately run to cover your six after you took the box with the map. They also saw how panicked you were when Athena began to cut her throat."

"Don't remind me of that," Malcolm snapped.

"And I imagine for that alone, you wish to gut Athena until all the blood is drained from her body," Nyssa continued.

"So what if I do?" he grated out. "She hurt someone I care about. That's asking for an enemy out of me."

"She hurt someone you love," Nyssa corrected his statement. "That is asking for you to kill them."

"I don't love Laurel," Malcolm glowered at her.

"I think you do," Nyssa shook her head. "I think you also don't wish to admit it."

Malcolm palmed his face. "Nyssa, she is the doppelgänger of the woman who dated my son – not to mention the same woman who despised me ever since Tommy's death."

"I think she has made it very clear that she is not this Earth's Laurel Lance," Nyssa told him.

"I know that!" Malcolm growled.

Nyssa held out her hands. "I see no problems here."

Malcolm shook his head. "I can't believe you of all people are giving me relationship advice."

"What would you like me to do instead?" Nyssa tilted her head.

"Stop discussing this, for starters," Malcolm muttered.

"Very well," Nyssa nodded. "Thea, then."

"OK, not this, either," Malcolm scowled.

"You do not want her here."

"How very perceptive of you, Nyssa."

"Why not?"

Malcolm growled. "She's dealt with enough of the League because of me. I've made several mistakes during my life with it, and I dragged her through it during its final years. She should not be here risking her life while I'm trying to right those wrongs."

"I've dedicated the rest of my life to righting my father's wrongs," Nyssa frowned. "I can understand why she would want to stand with you while you try to right yours."

Malcolm snorted. "Thea doesn't have to be here. She doesn't owe me anything. If anything, I owe her because of what she's been through because of me."

"I think Thea's life is her own," Nyssa told him. "Would you say she has earned your support for her actions?"

"Yes," Malcolm frowned.

"Then let her choose what she wishes to do with her life, whether it is to remain here and aid you or to leave."

Malcolm sighed, averting his gaze to stare at a blank spot on the floor. After a few seconds, he blinked once, then twice. "Wait."

"What?" Nyssa frowned.

Malcolm finally looked at her, a disbelieving expression on his face. "Did we just have a decent conversation with each other?"

Nyssa scoffed. "You sound surprised, Al Sa-her."

"That's it," Malcolm declared, getting to his feet. "The world really is ending."

"My apologies," Nyssa drawled with a smirk.

"Nailed it!" Felicity whooped from over by her station. "I nailed it! I got it!"

"You go!" Winn high fived her.

"You've unlocked the map?" Nyssa asked, hurrying over with Malcolm on her heels.

"Actually, no," Winn shook his head.

"Then what you do you mean you 'nailed it?'" Slade frowned.

"Well, I figured out how to unlock the Hellraiser cube," Felicity answered, looking at Nyssa and Malcolm. "I just thought one of you should do the honors."

"Oh," Malcolm blinked. "Thank you."

"So how do you unlock it?" Kara asked.

"The Fibonacci sequence!" Winn grinned.

"The who's what?" Mon-El blinked.

"The Fibonacci sequence," Alex repeated.

"Yeah, it's a mathematical pattern dating back to Pingala's formula in 450 B.C.," Felicity nodded.

"Wow," Roy gawked.

"Guess it's a good thing I didn't try and break it open," Kara winced. "Because when you said ancient . . . you weren't kidding."

"I never kid," Nyssa snorted.

"In the Fibonacci sequence, every number is the sum of the previous two numbers," Alex continued to explain.

"So all we need to do is find the two starting numbers," Winn said.

"And how hard is that going to be?" Laurel frowned.

"Ten and thirteen," Nyssa said promptly.

"Is that correct?" J'onn asked.

"1013 was the year that the League was founded," Nyssa explained.

"That makes more sense than my birthday," Malcolm mused.

"So it kind of was that simple?" James frowned.

Nyssa gestured to the box. "Since it is your birthday."

Malcolm shrugged, then sat down at the table, working on the box. "Ten," he mumbled out loud as he worked. "Thirteen, twenty-three, thirty-six, fifty-nine, ninety-five."

The top of the box whirred, and Laurel smiled as it opened. "Nice work."

Malcolm took the lid off and looked into the box, then took out a scroll of parchment. "I opened it," he held the paper out to Nyssa. "You open this."

Nyssa took the scroll and unrolled it eagerly. "What's it say?" Oliver asked.

Nyssa just scowled in frustration, holding it up. "Nothing," she answered grimly.

"Seriously?" Winn asked incredulously.

Malcolm just turned to Felicity. "You have a burner here, don't you?"

"Yeah," Felicity turned, pointing. "Right over – " Kara quickly flew over to the cabinet she pointed at and returned, holding out the burner. "Here," Felicity finished, running around the table to plug it in.

"What do you need a burner for?" J'onn asked, eyeing it warily.

"Simple," Malcolm answered, taking the scroll back from Nyssa as Felicity ignited the burner, and he held the paper up to the flame. "This."

"Why are you burning it?" Roy asked.

"He's heating it," Nyssa corrected. "The League writes in hidden text that can only be revealed through flame."

"Didn't you know that?" Malcolm raised an eyebrow.

"I don't want to," Roy retorted, turning on his heel and walking away.

Malcolm's other eyebrow shot up, and he cleared his throat, turning back around to check the other side of the parchment. "I don't know what's going on with him, but . . . " Thea sighed. "Just keep working on it."

"Well, I think it's safe to say fire's not working," Malcolm pushed away from the table.

"Why not?" Nyssa scowled.

"Well, option one is that Ra's used a different type of invisible ink," Malcolm answered.

"Or?" Nyssa prompted.

"Or there's nothing on this and everyone is wasting their time."

"Or maybe we should try something different," Felicity suggested.

"Such as?" Malcolm asked.

"New school instead of old school," Felicity answered, holding up a thin device which shone a white light when she turned it on. "May I?"

"Please," Malcolm spread the paper out next to the burner.

"What's this?" Nyssa asked curiously.

"This scanner can make a 3D voxel-based recreation," Felicity answered, running the scanner over the parchment.

"I didn't start using a computer until I was 25," Nyssa frowned.

"Well, basically, if we can duplicate this map digitally, there could be some hidden markers on it that we can trace," Winn explained.

"Sounds complicated," Nyssa frowned.

"Which means we should probably let you do this," Malcolm stood up.

"Yes, please," Felicity nodded.

***

Thea found Roy where Malcolm and Nyssa were just moments before, sitting on the staircase to head out of the bunker. "OK," she sighed, sitting down beside him. "So somebody's grumpy."

"I'm sorry," Roy closed his eyes. "I'm – I'm trying to be supportive."

"But," Thea prompted.

"But . . . " Roy sighed. "It's still hard to comprehend you wanting to stay here for Malcolm after everything he's done in the past."

"He's changed, Roy," Thea told him.

"I trust you saying that," Roy assured her. "It's just . . . it's still hard for me to wrap my head around. I guess I just haven't seen enough of it yet."

"Fair," Thea admitted, sighing. "It's not like I want to be dealing with the League again. That's the last thing I want. But after everything my dad's done to try and put all of that behind him . . . I can't just run away from that and not help him."

"OK, you see, that's where we're different," Roy told her. "You see this as us running away from something, but I see this as us running towards something, something way better." He sighed. "You know, I just . . . I don't know. I just feel like recently, you've just been finding any excuse you can for us to stay here."

Thea raised an eyebrow, then smiled and slipped her hand into his. "Unlike all my boyfriends in the past . . . I do find it kind of cute when you're being insecure."

Roy's lips twitched upwards as Thea leaned her head on his shoulder. "I just don't want to lose you again, Thea."

Thea smiled warmly. "This Guild and whatever it means for my dad is not my future. You are."

***

Dinah pinned Hill's picture up among others in their team's base, then smirked. "I love a good old murder board."

"Yeah," Curtis grinned. "Feeling very Alan J. Pakula." Dinah gave him a quizzical look, and Curtis cleared his throat. "Sometimes I forget you're not Felicity." He hurried back over to his computer as Dinah rolled her eyes fondly. "Now, look, I know this has probably already occurred to you, but all Hill did was take the evidence from your hands. That's not necessarily proof. Not to mention her name didn't pop up at all when – "

"She's dirty," Dinah interrupted him.

"Are you asking me or telling me?" Curtis frowned.

"You tell me," Dinah answered. "If these drugs are the same kind Diaz pushes – "

"And Hill took it off your hands, that would be pretty damning," Curtis nodded.

"And the fact that so much of the department is so crooked would make a lot more sense if it was rotten from the top down," Dinah agreed. "So, are they Diaz's drugs?"

"I don't know yet," Curtis shrugged. "Maybe we should just try it." Dinah smirked, then Curtis perked up when his computer beeped. "Or we can read the analysis," he offered, sitting down at his computer. He pulled up the results, then blinked. "Oh."

"What?" Dinah asked, walking over.

"It's Vertigo," Curtis answered.

"Vertigo?" Dinah echoed, looking over his shoulder. "I heard of this back in Central City. It's a hallucinogenic, right?"

"Yeah," Curtis confirmed. "But, I mean, the good thing is that this isn't Diaz's drug of choice."

"So Hill is clean," Dinah frowned thoughtfully.

"Looks like," Curtis nodded, looking up at her as she sighed. "You actually look disappointed."

"Well, just because it means we are back to square one," Dinah smiled sarcastically.

"Yeah," Curtis sighed in agreement.

***

Kara hesitantly approached where Nyssa was examining her sword, then politely coughed. "I, uh . . . don't suppose you'll stop calling Oliver 'husband' if I politely asked you, would you?"

"That depends," Nyssa answered, not turning around.

"On what?" Kara asked.

"If you've earned my respect."

Kara's mouth opened and closed repeatedly. "Oh."

Nyssa turned around, a small smirk on her lips. "You've fared quite well with me calling him such."

"Well, I mean, I knew you called him that before," Kara scratched the back of his head. "And I know it was a . . . thing . . . a few years ago. What was it again, it was to fool your father?"

"Yes," Nyssa's expression soured. "While Oliver was Al Sah-him and my father's new heir, he decided he would marry his new heir to his former one."

"Right," Kara winced.

"I tried to stab him during the ceremony."

"Oh," Kara cringed.

"I was not pleased," Nyssa said unnecessarily.

"You don't say," Kara sighed. "And yet you still call him husband."

"Because by the League's laws, we are still married," Nyssa shrugged.

"But you disbanded the League," Kara frowned. "Wouldn't that mean you . . . I guess divorced?"

"Not quite," Nyssa shook her head.

"Ah," Kara nodded, fidgeting a bit. "Uh . . . if by any chance I have earned your respect, is there any way you could find a way to make that happen before I actually marry him?"

Nyssa smirked. "Perhaps."

"That's all I'm gonna get, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"OK," Kara cleared her throat awkwardly. "Good talk. At least you're a better conversationalist than your sister."

Nyssa blinked, then narrowed her eyes. "What about my sister?"

Kara smiled nervously. "Have we not mentioned yet?"

***

"You're brooding."

"I am not brooding."

"You forget I live with the wizard. I know brooding."

Laurel glared up at Slade, then mumbled "Magician" under her breath as she returned her gaze to where Malcolm was speaking with the group from Earth-38, explaining more about the League.

Slade snorted. "You're brooding."

"Congratulations, Slade, you can still see with one eye."

"All right," Slade sighed, leaning on the column next to her chair. "You're not just brooding. You're moping. You and Kara have something in common – it's not a good look on you."

Laurel sighed, rubbing her temples. "I just have a bad feeling about this, Slade."

"Hold onto that bad feeling, Siren," Slade patted her on the shoulder. "It often keeps us alive."

***

"That's what I'm worried about," she mumbled.

Oliver watched Thea fiddle with her suit in its case, absently clicking his fingers. "Think you might take that thing with you?" he asked.

"One hundred percent no," Thea answered immediately.

Oliver snorted in amusement. "You OK?" he asked.

"And why wouldn't I be?" Thea asked, sighing and turning around. "I mean, Roy only thinks I'm gonna leave him to stick with my dad, who is being pursued by a bunch of crazy assassins Ra's hid away in their own little organization, and they want to kill him and probably want to use me to get to him, so . . . my life is just great."

"Malcolm was right, though," Oliver told her. "You don't have to do this. We have plenty of manpower here to stop Athena. You can go. You can live your happily ever after with Roy."

Thea raised an eyebrow. "Here I thought you were supposed to go live yours." Oliver looked at her in confusion. "Or did I imagine the time when you stopped being the Green Arrow?"

"Yeah," Oliver sighed. "That was the plan. Life interfered."

"John got hurt," Thea nodded.

"He did."

"He's not hurt anymore," she pointed out, then looked around the room. "And you can't exactly use the 'in over his head' excuse because he definitely wouldn't be alone."

"No, I can't," Oliver agreed with a sigh. "I don't know. I . . . I gave it up because I wanted to be a better father, but William accepts the idea that I'm the Green Arrow." He hesitated. "Plus, I don't want to give it up. I don't know why."

"I do," Thea smiled, making Oliver tilt his head inquisitively. "Because being the Green Arrow's what makes you feel complete." Oliver hummed, considering that as Thea nodded. "For some reason, when you put that hood on, it enables you to become the best version of yourself."

Oliver blinked, focusing back on her. "We're supposed to be talking about you."

"Maybe we are," Thea admitted with a small chuckle. "I don't know, maybe that's why I can't seem to give this life up. I – I don't know. Maybe I'm hoping that somehow I'll get the same thing and find the best version of myself, whoever she is."

Oliver nodded, then a yelp came from Winn. "Hello! Hey, guys? Problem! I found the Guild!"

"Where are they?" Oliver asked, hurrying to join Winn.

"The Star City gas plant," Winn answered, gesturing to security footage of the Guild attacking workers.

"They can cut off the city's entire supply," Dig swallowed.

"Or worse, they could blow it up," Roy added.

"Why?" Mon-El frowned. "I just heard of these guys, and it doesn't sound like their M.O."

"It is if they're using the plant to leverage us into giving up the map," Oliver pointed out.

"It's like they don't know you, kid," Slade snorted.

Malcolm frowned, looking down at the map Felicity had abandoned to check the security footage. "Maybe we can keep them thinking that."

"What?" Nyssa frowned.

Malcolm held up the map and looked at them. "I have an idea."

***

I had to put the "decent conversation" line in there. I had to. XD Honestly, Malcolm and Nyssa are now two of my favorite people to write together. Why do they have to be so hilarious?

Final chapter will either be up tonight or tomorrow!