Arrow: Survival Part 2.5

Twice as Lucky

The dirt around the device was swept away as Oliver very carefully used his hands to gently inspect the explosive. The loose dirt brushed away revealing a metal paneling with multiple warning messages printed on it, twisting at Oliver's gut as the deadly situation took hold of him. Felicity nervously kept her eyes focused on Oliver's worried expression as he closely inspected the landmine beneath her foot. Every muscle in her body began to tense at the thought of displacing enough of her weight and setting off the device, killing herself and Oliver. She quickly pushed the thought out of her mind and focused on Oliver's instructions of not moving, despite how nearly impossible it was.

"Tell me you can disarm this one." Felicity hopefully pleaded as she waited for a hint of relief in Oliver's face. Oliver gently uncovered more dirt around the mine, getting a better look at the design of the explosive. He inspected the outter frame and looked for the weak spots that Slade had once explained to him on Lian Yu, in the case that he ever found himself standing on a landmine again. Oliver timidly peeked up at Felicity, sharing a concerned glance with her.

"Awesome. Well why don't you start a fire and grab some food since we'll be here for awhile." Felicity began, attempting to sidetrack her own mind with humor.

"I'll set some placemats." She added, failing at calming herself. Oliver easily noticed Felicity's fear as he gently grabbed ahold of her free leg and with it her attention.

"It's gonna be okay." He calmly said, his smile enough to take her mind off of the large explosive device below her. A shuffle of bushes in the distance caught their attention as Oliver snapped around and saw three soldiers moving toward them. He paused, searching for a way to free Felicity and flee the area before they were noticed but coming up with nothing.

"Oliver, go." Felicity ordered, clawing at his shirt to push him toward safety.

"No." He replied, disgusted by the idea of leaving Felicity in such a dangerous situation.

"Just go. If you stay they'll kill us both." She explained, hating that her own mistake would now claim the her life and that of the man she loved.

"I am not leaving you." Oliver firmly stated, making it very clear that he wasn't going anywhere as he turned to face Felicity. The soldiers rounded the clearing and spotted the two targets ahead of them, prompting each man to raise their weapons.

"Don't move!" The first man ordered, as the heavily armed men all moved in quickly around Oliver. They kept their weapons trained on him as he stood with his back to the men and his eyes on Felicity's worried face.

"Hands up!" They ordered, stepping closer. Oliver complied and raised his hands, his backpack dangling from one. Felicity quickly did the same, lifting her shaking hands upward as she watched the men move beside Oliver.

"Both of you on the ground." The man demanded, motioning toward the dirt with his rifle.

"I can't." Felicity instantly replied, glancing helplessly down at her feet. The soldiers followed her gaze to the ground and all hesitated at the sight of the active landmine beneath her foot. Oliver quickly glanced from side to side and created a mental map of the mens' positions around him, creating a strategy as the explosive device briefly distracted them.

"Oh shi," One man began to remark as Oliver cut him off by slamming his backpack into the man's face. The two other soldiers reacted just in time as Oliver kicked the gun away from one man and struck the other with a few well placed punches. Felicity kept as still as possible as she watched Oliver switch back and forth between the two remaining men, successfully defending himself from both. The next soldier to be taken out of the fight received a blow to the face from Oliver's boot, knocking the man unconscious. The final soldier leapt onto Oliver's back and managed to wrap his arms around Oliver's neck. Felicity stopped herself from jumping into the fight as she remembered the landmine beneath her feet, adding to her dread of watching Oliver being choked. The last amount of oxygen struggled to reach Oliver's brain as he searched for a way to end the fight and escape the soldier's grasp. He reached behind himself and grabbed ahold of the soldier's weapon and yanked it down, hoping it was still tethered to the man. The jolt of the weapon harness snapped the soldier over Oliver's shoulders and onto the ground where he looked up in time to watch Oliver's boot stomp down. Felicity released a sigh as she watched Oliver move back up to his feet and scan for anymore enemies. The surrounding area seemed quiet as the tall saplings beside Oliver caught his attention, sparking an idea in his mind. He moved over to a fallen soldier and collected a small rope from his gear pouch before jumping onto a nearby sapling and climbing it.

"What are you doing?" Felicity asked, watching as Oliver pulled himself up the rapidly bending tree. The young tree stretched downward as Oliver secured the rope around the bark and held the tree at it's current angle. The sapling arched to the ground as Oliver tied the other end of the rope to another nearby tree, holding the sapling from returning to its upright position. The young tree shook as Oliver returned to it and attached another small section of rope to the top of it and moved back toward Felicity. He quickly moved back to the soldier and collected a metal clip from the man's tactical vest before returning to Felicity.

"Are you okay?" She asked, reaching out to inspect for any wounds on Oliver. His hands caught hers and held them at bay as he explained.

"Don't move." Felicity nodded as Oliver dropped down and went to work, attaching the rope to a specific section of the landmine with a few knots and a metal gear clip. He double checked the rope's connection before jumping back up to his feet and inspecting the entire layout again. Felicity looked over the rough design of Oliver's makeshift catapult and instantly began.

"No!" Oliver stopped beside the rope holding the sapling down and paused as he looked back at his partner. Felicity's wide eyes and warning glare caught his gaze as he pulled a knife from his belt and moved it to the rope.

"Oliver I am warning you." Felicity said as she saw the determined look in Oliver's eyes and knew there was no changing his mind.

"Trust me." He ended, slicing through the rope and jumping to Felicity. The sapling instantly snapped away from the ground and whipped back toward the sky, dragging the landmine with it. Oliver quickly and gently pushed Felicity to the ground as the device exploded above them in the treeline. The force of the explosion struck Oliver's back as he did his best to shield Felicity from the blast, feeling her holding him close as he moved up to inspect her.

"You okay?" He asked, hovering over her. Felicity pulled him close and kissed him, saying more than she could with words. She finally broke away from his lips and replied.

"You're really sweaty again." Oliver laughed as he kissed her again.