Chapter 12:

As Rene Ramirez walked along the dark, litter-filled streets of uptown Starling City, he longed for the heavy breeze and the smell of salty water of the docks around the Navy Yard in Annapolis. He much rather he lived in a city with a real body of water instead of the stinky reservoirs that flooded germ-filled water into every home and alleyway in the Glades. Ever since he returned to the Glades in Starling City, he faced scorn from his family. Even six years later; his family would remind him of his mistakes.

He wasn't surprised; he ruined his own life when he had beaten down a fellow Navy Seal. He just couldn't help himself. The white fucker had thought himself so above reproach, just because he had a Sergeant in the army for a father and a CIA agent for a mother. The man had been stealing ammunition. Rene had only wanted to help. Instead, Rene lost his job, and the rich thief got promoted to a targeting officer.

It didn't help that he had crippled a prisoner who had bragged about brutalizing little girls a few days earlier. Two strikes, and he was out.

His mother cried about how he ruined his life. His father hit him for disappointing his mother. His Uncle Pedro asked him how he could be such an idiot to be discharged from the Navy. His cousins Marta, Angelo and Juan poked fun at his failure and gloated about their success as small business owners of a crappy convenience store.

Luckily, he had his wife Laura and five-years-old daughter Zoe. While Laura had a delinquent past too- she was a former drug addict - she grew from it and had refrained from drugs for almost one year now. He was so thankful for a wife who could understand his struggles. Unfortunately, Zoe had recently broken an arm while playing hockey and the hospital had charged him a ton of money. He had been unable to get a job with health insurance. Without health insurance, Rene needed to find someone to lend money.

Rene had first tried his father. When Rene visited his father last week, his father was furious.

"All you had to do was reign it in. Be a good little soldier. You would have been set for life. But you had to ruin it." Rene recalled his father saying those words repeatedly as he punched him in the gut, in the forehead, basically all over his body. His head had been throbbing so badly, and blood had poured from his mouth. Rene had fought back, but his father overpowered him. "No. I'm not giving you my hard-earned money because you're too pathetic to keep a job."

Afterwards Rene had wandered the streets of the Glades, trying to figure out a solution. Out of nowhere, Prometheus appeared, asked him about his injuries and how he could help Rene. Prometheus was more than willing to pay the bills. All he asked in return was for Rene to join his team that aimed to fight against the wealthy who continued to harm the poor. As a child, Rene had wanted to escape a life of poverty. He kept watching the rich, white kids get away with being druggies while several of his cousins were arrested for buying drugs. He remembered multiple days of going to school with a fever because the only other choice was doing chores for his father. Chores that always led to a beating at the end. As a Navy Seal, he had a little taste of success. He joined a team that worked to keep the harbors safe from sex traffickers and foreign terrorists. As a member of Prometheus's team, Rene had the chance to keep the people of the Glades safe from a terrible threat. A chance to be more than his cousins and his deadbeat parents could ever be.

He had said, "Sign me up." without a second hesitation.

As he led three teenagers to a trap, Rene wondered if he made the right decision. Maybe his wimp of a partner was right to have doubts about this. How was harming three innocent teenagers going to fix anything? They were the daughters of someone.

But the S man wanted this to happen. S man was in charge. Rene owed him.

Rene hoped Laura would understand. He wasn't a bad guy. He was only taking a beneficial night-time job that would help give Zoe all the opportunities she deserved. He was stopping a madman from destroying the Glades, goddammit. He could sacrifice three girls who would never give any thought to helping him or his family if they were in trouble.

The two uptight teenagers were chatting together as they walked past several crowded and well-lit bars. The busty girl, who had insisted on coming along, was trying to join in on their conversation, but the other girls kept pretending to not hear her. Bitches.

Finally, they reached the border of downtown Starling and the Glades. That damn reservoir. It looked even worse than he remembered.

"Really, your hotel is near the Glades? What were you two thinking?" The mousy brunette gripped.

"Seriously, one wrong turn and you might run into an undesirable," her gorgeous blond friend chimed in.

A group of homeless men passed. The two girls wrinkled their noses in disgust.

"Let's get going. We're almost there," his partner injected.

They reached the meeting place a few minutes later. The brunette and the blond teenagers rubbed their hands together. Such fools. The bulky girl glanced at Rene. "Isn't this hotel abandoned?

"We bought it for the night." Oh, how much Rene loved saying those words. For a moment he could pretend to be a rich man.

"Cool!" The blonde cheered.

The heavy-set girl shook her head. "Why buy this place?"

"We hope to invest in renovating it into a new bar. They're all the rage these days." His partner explained. He would know; the younger man had told Rene about how he used to go to bars every night with his friends. Apparently, his friends had died recently and that had made his partner realize he wanted to do more with his life than be another failure.

Rene hoped they weren't making a mistake. What would Zoe think if she knew her father was willing to put minors in danger? Zoe would never know. He needed to stop doubting himself, and to stop feeling guilty. He had to trust S man's words that what they we're doing would revolutionize the city.

"The city would be, like, so much better without the Glades." The blonde snickered. "Wouldn't it be lovely if someone destroyed it outright."

That's it. Rene was doing the right thing. These girls deserve this. The blonde just showed that she would have no problem following through with Malcolm Merlyn's plan to destroy the Glades. Rene remembered when Adam Hunt shared the plan to S man's team. The bald guy with his doofus grin had said proudly, "We were going to fix the Glades by first destroying it with a man-made earthquake, and then rebuild it to a better place. At least that's what Malcolm said to convince me to be involved. I know now that it's wrong and not something I want to be involved in."

"We will be more than happy to oblige." To Rene's disgust, S man had patted the despicable fool on the back. Rene knew that Hunt was only helping the S team because he wanted to get revenge on Merlyn for throwing him out of the Terrorist Billionaire Club. Rene was so happy the Hood guy took most of the nitwit's money. Laura had cheered with a large glass of champagne after she received the thousands of dollars that the man stole from her.

"Jose, are you alright?" Both his partner's concern and his use of his pseudonym brought Rene back to the present. Rene was far away from Hunt. While he would likely see him again during the next S team meeting, he wouldn't tonight.

"Fine." Rene said shortly. He wanted to get this over with. "Come on, let's show these girls a good night."

The two friends talked cheerfully as they followed Rene's partner inside. The bulky girl beckoned Rene to go in, but he shook his head. "Ladies first."

The girl shrugged but walked in first. Before Rene walked inside, he twirled the lock on the outside. He remembered making it earlier. As soon as he walked in, he would be trapped until the S man arrived. Rene breathed in a long breath of fresh air. He was doing what was necessary. He had to be.

Rene stepped inside. He heard the door slam behind him. He checked the doorknob and found that it didn't budge as planned. He saw his partner lock the door to the vacant hotel's basement.

"They're in place," his partner rubbed his eyes and his feet shuffled on the floor. He stared directly into Rene's eyes. His request for Rene to make him feel better went unspoken. "Time to call Simon. He'll take this from here."

Adrian Chase admired his costume in the mirror. Wow, he outdid himself. He would surely use Hunt family's fashion designer in the future. The dark green hood looked exactly like Oliver's. It even had some frayed edges from overuse. With the pine green paint that he scrubbed over his face, he was the very image of the Hood. Perfect.

He heard a knock on his door. "Simon, are you ready? The girls are now screaming downstairs."

"In a minute," Chase shouted. God, if the sister's ex-boyfriend wasn't useful to his plan, Chase would kill him already. This was the fifth time the man interrupted his preparation.

Chase needed this to work. Oliver and his sister already disrupted the swift death of Diggle and the fiancé. He needed no more screw ups. Oliver needed the worst reputation possible before his team propped him up as a so-called hero.

After a few finishing touches, Chase slung his quiver of arrows over his shoulder, grabbed his bow, and went downstairs. He heard the delightful sounds of yelling and distress beyond the locked room that kept the sister's teenager friends and the random straggler.

As Wild Dog and Thea's ex stood in attention, Chase waved them away. "Stick to the door. Make sure they don't escape. Drag them back in if you must." He then spoke to Hunt's videographer who had a Camcorder in hand. A closed Tripod lay on the ground next to his feet. "Keep to the entrance and keep the lights off."

"But the lighting …" The lackey started.

"Do what you can. It must stay dark. Adam told me you're the best. Now show me or I'll make certain your son is dealt with properly."

The man stared at him, glorious fury in his eyes. Chase hoped he would talk back. He was eager to follow through with a threat. His plan involved too little life-ending punishments for his taste.

Instead, the coward stayed silent. Pity.

Chase unlocked the door, and the three teenage girls immediately ran out. So predictable. He stuck two arrows in both knees of the pretty blonde girl and knocked a second girl in the head with his bow. Both girls yelped in pain.

The fat girl was surprisingly fast; she already reached the front door of the abandoned hotel. His lackeys were failing to capture her. Idiots. After a few missed shots, he simply ran over and knocked her out cold. Sighing, Chase sniveled, "They just couldn't let me do this the easy way." While he lived for the chase, he still hated the predictable nature of mankind. He glared at his henchmen. "Do better next time. Our enemies won't always be teenagers. Ramirez, I expect more from you. You're an ex-Navy Seal after all. I'm beginning to question choosing you for my team. I might need to get your little girl involved if you fail again.

Wild Dog gulped. "S man, I'm sorry. She surprised me, that's all. I won't fail again."

"I would hope so, for Zoe's sake. And call me the Hood, remember." Chase hated Wild Dog's nickname. So simplistic. Chase then gestured to the girls lying helplessly on the floor. "Bring them into the room. It's time for the show."

After a few more delays (Chase was really beginning to wonder why Oliver accepted Wild Dog to his team; the man was so slow), the stage was set. The girls' hands and legs were tied up- the blonde girl yelping, and whining was so annoying. Did she think she was a dog? Hunt's videographer had his camera ready on his Tripod at the entrance.

Chase laughed as he straightened his quiver on his shoulder and turned his voice modulator on. "And a one, and a two and a, go." He couldn't tell if the videographer started. "Ready?"

"The video's on," the videographer answered. "Do you want me to start the tapping again?"

"No. We can edit this out." Chase loved the way his voice echoed deeply.

"Hello, Starling City. I'm sure you heard of me by now. I'm the new hero of the Glades. I'm the Hood, and I will make sure the rich that used the poor for their own gains suffer as much as my people. Behind me I have three daughters of Starling City's elite. I'm here to speak directly to the man who calls him Prometheus. The man who told me to stop my good work. I won't. If you don't meet me at the docks where the church stuck down a statue of your disciple at dusk, I will kill two of these girls." He liked a riddle that required Oliver to trust a time traveler. Who knows, maybe Oliver thought his sister and Samantha were his enemies. That would be excellent.

Now it was time for the best part. Chase drew out his bow and struck the yelping blond girl in the throat. She dropped to the ground as blood dripped to the floor. "It's too late for Miss Shelby of Shelby's International. But not for Ms. Weinberg, daughter of pro-football star Michael Weinberg, and Ms., oh, who cares, you don't want her to die and be a bigger failure." Chase liked that part; it planted the seed for Oliver to feel guilty about each girl' death. He just needed to give him half a day to feel like he had a chance to be a hero.

As his henchmen stared at him in shock, the two girls screamed as the blond girl slowly died. Her blond hair became matted with red. Pools of glorious blood swirled around the floor.

"You didn't say someone would die!" Chase ignored Wild Dog's criticism. He would eventually fall in line like a good minion or die.

He had more important things to do. He grabbed the Camcorder from the videographer to watch his performance. He grinned. He looked so menacing. After years of watching Oliver's vigilante videos, it was nice to have one of his own.

He felt so powerful. Soon everyone would watch this and heed his words. Soon criminals across Star City will fear his justice. This must be what it felt like to be the Green Arrow.

Thea Queen ruffled through her duffle bag; mismatched socks and sweaters were piled on her bright red ottoman. She tucked a few switchblades in the duffle's various pockets. She had enough bandages, gauze pads and Neosporin to prepare for possible injuries. Besides clothes and magazines, she had one more item she wanted to bring on her trip. Thea glanced around the top of her dresser; past her dusty archery trophies and old receipts was the book she dropped on it the night before- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. She opened the well-read book and smiled at the familiar font; she couldn't wait to read it out loud to William.

A sudden screech caused Thea to drop the book. Mom. What was going on?

She ran into Oliver, whose chin was half-shaven as she exited her room. "Do you…," Thea began to say.

"Stay there. I'll help mom." Oliver growled, before running to their still screaming mother. She could hear Walter deafening swearing in surprise. That meant something was wrong; Walter hardly swore.

Seriously Oliver. She wasn't going to hide while her mom and Walter were likely in trouble. Thea raced after Oliver, her heart beating wildly. The siblings eventually reached the TV room where they found their mother's and Walter's eyes glued to the screen.

It took Thea a moment to comprehend what was happening. For a second, she felt like she was watching Oliver speak as the Green Arrow. But he would never kill anyone on camera. It was pure Prometheus.

Thea froze as the room burned like an overheated sauna. No. No. No.

Five years ago, way before she knew that Oliver was a vigilante, she had helplessly run to Oliver for help after Roy was kidnapped. She had doubted that he could do anything, but she had needed to feel like she was doing something. A few months later, she had found herself kidnapped by fake vigilantes; she had been certain they would kill her before the Arrow saved her. Again and again, her life had turned into a horror story of near-death experiences. She never wanted anyone to feel as helpless as her. But now innocent teenagers - former friends of hers - were in the crosshairs of their own horror nightmare. Aliza was dead. She would never dance, drink and party with her friends ever again. It wasn't fair. All her high school friends had moved on from Star City and the terror it brought.

What was the point of a second chance when you made life worse for people who survived? People who never suffered before. She never wanted her old friends to experience what she experienced. She wanted them to remain ignorant, happy and selfish. But that couldn't be. Not with Prometheus out there. It was on her and Oliver to save them.

Her burner phone buzzed. Dammit, Samantha. She declined the call. She didn't have time to make her feel better. Thea ignored the woman's next call - let her phone vibrate until Samantha got the message- as her mother and Walter noticed the siblings behind them.

"Thea," Walter walked towards her; his eyes glazed over. "Follow me. You don't need to see this."

"It's fine. I'm fine." Thea's voice shook. Prometheus had frozen the video on the image of Aliza's dead body. What did the madman do to her legs? They looked completely broken.

Her phone vibrated again. "Do you want to take that call?" Her mother nodded to Thea's phone. "We can discuss this in another room afterwards."

Thea rolled her neck backwards. "You don't need to worry about me. I can handle this." As she stared at Margo and the other girl, who were screaming and struggling to get near the dying girl, Thea felt tears drip down her cheeks.

The blasted phone sounded again. Enough was enough. She pressed the green button to accept the call and shouted, "Now's not a good time Samantha."

"But Thea," Samantha cried in distress. "The news says …"

"Not now." Thea repeated. "I'll call you later. Just stop calling. I can't deal right now, okay."

She turned off the call before Samantha could answer. Her mother was now staring at her, her annoyance was clear.

"Please tell me you're not talking to Miss. Clayton still."

"I can talk to whoever I want, mom." Thea had enough. She grabbed Oliver's arm. "Come on, Oliver, we wasted enough time here."

As they exited the room, Oliver whispered. "You need to leave the city now."

Thea sighed and said softly. "I thought you would say that. But no, Oliver, we're going to you know where instead. I'm not leaving with unfinished business."