The Storm After

Chapter 10: Truth and Liberation

The Dragon had entered. He had made his way to Star City after leaving Oliver Queen for dead. His infiltration was met with ease as his allies within the system paved the way for him. Those that tried to resist were taken down. He ascended City Hall, all the way to the mayor's office and forcibly removed Thea from her position. The first stage of his takeover was complete and he had more to do. But before he could do anything else, he had one final thing he had to do. Dragon made his way to the SCPD, in order to see a person that was being held there. The police captain who was under his payroll cleared him for access and Dragon proceeded to meet the person. He reached the door and had opened it. Cayden James was sitting inside, handcuffed. Dragon turned to look at the camera and waited for it to turn off. Once it did, he entered the room.

"Hmm... Mr. Diaz?" Cayden asked inquisitively, he was surprised at Dragon's appearance before him. Dragon stared back at him.

"Hello there, Cayden..." Dragon said back to him. He proceeded to walk in, closing the door behind. What happened inside, there were no witnesses.

[X]

{2 Days Later...}

After being thrown out of Star City Hall, Thea and Quentin decided to meet up with the remaining members of Team Arrow. They had no idea what was going on, but there was definitely a change within the city. Most of the SCPD became turncoats and aligned themselves under Dragon. Whether it was due to blackmail or bribery, Dragon had accumulated his army. The minor percentage that did not align themselves with Dragon had to go into hiding. In just a few days, Dragon had completely taken over Star City and he had just begun to implement his rule. The members of Team Arrow were still in the foundry, remaining hidden as they watched things unfold.

"How the hell did this even happen?" John asked. He looked around to other people in the room. They were sat at the meeting table.

"I-I don't know... they just came in all of a sudden. Next thing we knew, we were on the streets." Quentin answered.

"And now... they have the SCPD on their side. If it was just Dragon and his men, we could probably have taken him. But the entire police force of Star City? That's just too much..." Thea said. The others looked down, the situation at hand seemed pretty hopeless. The current state of Star City was on a transition, one towards the era before Oliver had first made his appearance. The time, where crime was the most rampant and corrupt individuals were in power. The time, where Oliver's entire crusade was meant to save it from.

"Well... we can't just sit here and let them reign free. We have to do something..." John said.

"How?... Oliver's in a coma and holed up in Central City. And even if Curtis and the others were to join us, we'd still be outnumbered." Felicity said.

"That may be so. But John's right, we can't let them roll us over. If we just gave up without a fight, then I couldn't even begin to forgive myself for letting this city fall." Thea said, her eyes gave a firm look to everyone else. They saw the conviction she had.

"But... didn't you say, you were done with all of this?" Quentin asked.

"Yeah... I did. But knowing that I had the ability to help and didn't even do anything... I would probably hate myself for it... This city is my home. It's all of our homes. Oliver's worked so hard and endured so much more than any of us. We owe it to him, to protect this city, his legacy, with everything we've got!" Thea shouted with tenacity, a fire lit in her eyes. Everyone could feel the depth of her words and it gave them the boost they needed. She rose from her seat and had taken out her phone.

"W-What are you doing?" Felicity asked, puzzled at Thea's sudden action.

"I'm calling for help," Thea answered. She turned her head back to face her phone. She stared at the name that was displayed. Roy Harper.