The Rise of Athena (An Arrow: Season 1 Fanfiction)

Chapter 24: The Hostages

Arrow's POV 

Athena shot a grappling hook and I did the same, then we swung in, landing on the floor perfectly as we walked over to the hostages, me holding my bow. 

'Where is he?' she asked one of the hostages as she cut the lady's ropes. 

'I don't know,' she wept. Athena met my eyes and I spoke to the hostages. 

'It's going to be okay. Follow me.' The hostages got up and followed Athena and I out of the building. We crept through the halls, me at the front, taking point, and Athena at the back, guarding the hostages. 

'Get up on the roof,' I commanded, and Athena helped me usher them through. The lady who had been on the recording stopped, looked at me and Athena, and spoke. 

'What about...' 

'We'll handle him. Move!' She turned and fled for the staircase with the rest of the hostages. Once they'd gone through, we kept walking through the halls, looking for the Dark Archer. Athena took point this time, and as we walked, she stopped dead in her tracks, holding up her hand. We turned, and there he stood. 

'Thank you for coming,' the archer said in a deep voice, cloaked by shadow at the end of the hall. 'At the warehouse, I knew I'd have to do something dramatic to get your attention.' 

'What do you want with us?' I yelled back. 

'What any archer or fighter wants... to see who's better.' The fight began. Arrows were loosed and we ran through a storage room, running on top of the rafters as the Dark Archer shot at us. I heard Athena hiss in pain through her teeth, but she kept running and swinging from the rafters with skill and ease. We jumped down and she loosed her daggers, and I my arrows. Then we were walking and all of a sudden, I was shot in the back and kicked through a wooden panel. I looked and saw Athena next to me, trying to grope for one of her daggers, but her hand was stepped on with a sickening crack, making her scream in pain. Then the bow of the Dark Archer twanged again, and I heard her let out an inhuman cry. I tried to reach out for the archer, but he grabbed my arm and dislocated my shoulder, then kicked me again. 

'First Hunt, then Ravich, and now you.' The words pulsated over and over in my mind. I heard Athena cry out briefly, but it was indeed brief, for another arrow was shot into her shoulder. I faintly saw another protruding from her side. He kept kicking me. Merciless. Over and over. 'I know about the list,' he said, 'and the man who authored it wants you dead.' He kicked me yet again. 'They call you the Hood. Let's see what you look like without it.' Not wanting him to reveal my identity, I reached up, pulled an arrow off of the pouch in my leg, and stabbed him in the leg, kicking him away. He fell away, and landed in a corner of the room, motionless. I dragged myself up, and I heard Evelyn's footsteps following me. Standing at a corner of the room, I snapped off the arrows on the concrete wall, making me yell in pain. 

I saw Athena holding her shoulder, the broken arrow shaft sticking out between her fingers, which were coated in blood. Her side was thick with blood now, and she looked like she was barely keeping it together. We ran, or rather hobbled, towards the window, and I opened it. We tumbled out the window and onto a dumpster, making Athena and I both let out screams of pain. She was nearly unconscious and fighting to stay awake. She met my eyes, slumping against the dumpster. I fell on the ground, then pulled out a radio. 

'Dig...' I coughed, and was met with coughing from the dumpster. 'Help... help.' I laid back on the ground, slipping into a deep sleep. 

Time skip 

I woke up, my eyes opening slowly. I tried to get up instantly, but cried out at the pain. Diggle was there, steadying me instantly, helping me lay back down. 

'Hey, relax. Relax. Just relax. You're safe. You're in the hospital.' I let out a deep sigh and leaned back against the pillows. 

'What happened?' I asked breathlessly. 

'I backtraced your signal. I cleaned you two up and got you out of there. You've got a puemothorax, three broken ribs and a concussion, but the doctor said you're going to be fine.' 

'What about Evelyn?' I choked out. 

'She had it real bad. She won't be able to move her shoulder for a good while, and she lost a lot of blood. She got a concussion too, and her hand is broken.' I looked over to the other bed. We were sharing a room, and I saw Evelyn sleeping in her bed. 

'Has she woken up yet?'

'No. Some people are here to see you.' 

'What?' Thea, Moira and Walter came to my bedside. 

'Are you alright?' My mom asked. 

'My God, you look terrible,' Thea commented. 

'Well, thank God you were wearing your helmet,' Walter chimed in. 

'I told them how you and Evelyn were on a bike and a semi pulled right in front of you,' Diggle offered. 

'What were you even doing out?' my mom asked. 

'You bailed on your party,' Thea said. 

'It seemed like the right move. I - I mean, like you said, it wasn't the best thing.' Thea sighed. 

'Okay, but when I was saying that, that was me being a bitch.' Mom wrapped her arm around Thea. 

'Oh, the truth is, I don't think any of us were at our best.'

'The real truth is, you wanted to have a party to bring us closer together,' Walter said. 'Well... here we are.' I chuckled, but winced in pain. 

'We're gonna let you get some rest,' my Mom said, touching my hand gently. I closed my eyes as she gave me a kiss on the forehead, then when she pulled away, my eyes opened again. I watched them as they left the room, all except Thea. 

'So... we never got to the exchanging presents part,' she said. I closed my eyes briefly, then opened them to meet her eyes again. 

'I don't think I deserve a present,' I said softly. 

'Look,' she replied, 'I know I've been hard on you, about being different from the way you were. But the truth is, Ollie, I'm not the same person I was five years ago, either.'

'So maybe we can just accept each other. Not for who we were, but for the - for the people we are now.' She showed me two candy canes. I let out a breath of nostalgia. 'No cheating,' I scolded. 

'You're on.' 

'Come here.' She leaned forward and embraced me.