His best friend, suffering from amnesia, has been taken by the Secretary of Defense, back to Washington, after finding out that during his tenure at the CIA, he had helped several countries (considered enemies of America) in their illegal endeavors. In exchange for the government "looking the other way" as they traded children of all ages into slavery, they were allowed access to these countries, as well as information on other foreign governments. Now Eddie Fyers' plane is going down thanks to the Yakuza assassin called Shado. Luckily (or not, depending on your point of view) Green Arrow and the White King of Checkmate – King Faraday – have arrived just in time. With no other course of action left, Ollie is about to dive from the one plane to the next with a parachute in hopes of saving his friend.
Meanwhile, still in Star City, Connor has just given himself the code name Golden Arrow; and along with the D.E.O. agent, Chloe Sullivan, is trying to get a jet so that they can also get to Washington to save Eddie, and his daughter Mia, who has been retaken as a slave by the evil Asad Farah.
Yep, just another day in the life of Green Arrow and company...
*******
The pressure in the cabin was dangerously low as the wind whipped around Ollie hard enough to mangle his van dyke. His best friend's plane was going down, and there was nothing anyone could, or would do, except him.
"There's no way you can stop that plane from crashing," King Faraday said in a half-hearted attempt to talk him out of it.
"I don't give a fig about the plane! I just want to make sure Eddie's not on it when it hits ground!" Ollie shouted back.
Before he could be talked out of it (and truthfully, standing on the edge of oblivion as he was, it wouldn't have been too hard) Ollie leaped out of his own plane, diving head first toward the other aircraft now hurtling toward the ground.
Not for the first time did he recall guidance from Batman. He remembered Bruce telling him how to free-fall; using the arms as wings, to accelerate the dive by spreading his arms out or tuck them in tight to accelerate. He can't help but both thank and curse the man in one thought. In the end, though, he decided he couldn't wait to tell everyone he told them so when Bruce returns from the "dead".
His body slammed into the side of the private plane hard. He was barely able to hold onto the wing, his body screaming in pain from the abuse that it has taken over the last few days. He was determined, though. No matter what, Eddie was one of his best friends, and he'd be damned if anything was going to happen to him, no matter what the cost.
Green Arrow moved quickly, grabbing one of his steel tipped arrows and slamming it into the metal wing of the plane. The wind did more than whip him around, it tore at him like he was no more than a plastic bag in the middle of a hurricane. Still, even with the pain in his shoulder, he dragged himself inch by inch toward the window nearest the wing.
Eat your heart out, William Shatner, he thought to himself, then decided it wasn't as funny as he thought it would be whn his body slid sideways from the air pressure. Still, he continued to make his way up the side of the wing, grabbing another steel tipped arrow and punching small holes, one after the other, into the metal; pulling himself towards the body of the plane; fighting with every fiber in his being to ignore the way from his body begged to just give up.
As he moved closer to the window of the plane while it continued the downward spiral, he could see commotion from inside. Something was being played out in there – something pretty damn serious.
*******
The pilot struggled to gain any control over the plummeting aircraft, the situation made all the worse by a window just blown out by the fight in the main cabin.
Secretary of Defense Donaldson hid while his two remaining guards took cover behind chairs, guns drawn as they scanned the cabin, unable to see where the mysterious assassin had disappeared too.
Eddie Fyers, on the other hand, was slowly crawling up the far right aisle; the wind from the broken window caused anything that wasn't bolted down to swirl through the air as if it were in the middle of a cyclone. He had seen the female assassin slip into the front cabin. He also realized that as much as he detested the idea, he had to protect Donaldson, if for no other reason than to get a chance to reveal the truth behind the man.
His memories had begun to come back in short bursts since he had been confronted by the CIA – none of them pleasant. He was indeed guilty of aiding known terrorists and countries who were considered enemies of the state, although not intentionally. When he did discover what was going on, he planned on blowing the lid off the whole sordid affair. It had taken him a while, but he had obtained actual data from Donaldson's private computer that was more than enough to implicate him in the heinous criminal enterprise. What he hadn't ascertained was how far up the ladder the scandal went. If the President or Vice President were involved, then he wasn't sure who to turn to – except for his best friend... Ollie.
All those memories coming back to him had made his sick to his stomach. Then to discover that his own daughter, a young woman he had never even met, had fell prey to the activities that he had helped guide, had been too much to bear. Several times he had tried to tell Ollie what had happened, but each time, his attempt had been stopped by one crisis or another. Though now, he realized, he had hid behind those adventures as an excuse.
Still, he felt as though it wasn't too late. He could make up for his past mistakes. He still had the evidence. Although Donaldson hadn't said it, it was the
real reason he had kept Eddie alive. And as long as Eddie could continue to pretend that he had lost his memory, then the longer he was guaranteed to live; perhaps even long enough to derail the entire thing.
He reached the front of the secondary cabin, peeked around one of the chairs and found the area empty. The woman had slipped into the primary cabin. He wasn't sure why, but at that point it didn't matter. He had to stop her. Glancing to his right, he noticed an emergency kit and right next to it was a fire extinguisher. He took it and headed for the door.
*******
Connor Hawke, now known as Golden Arrow, sat in the chair of the private jet as it flew across the country. Next to him, Chloe Sullivan sat talking into her phone. She was tense, speaking in low but urgent whispers. When she closed her phone, she gave him an awkward glance and cleared her throat uncomfortably.
"You have news that you don't wish to tell me?"
She gave him an apologetic smile, her head bouncing slightly to the right and left. "Well, yeah. That was my boss, Faraday. It seems as though Green Arrow is on the wing of Secretary Donaldson's plane, trying to get inside to rescue your friend, Mr. Fyers."
He took in the news calmly, showing little emotion. Then he gave her his own smile, a warm, reassuring one. "He'll do it. I'm not concerned." It was a half truth. He knew his father would do it; but he had grown to truly respect and even love the man he was just getting to know as his father, so he was a little concerned. Still, if he knew his father as well as he thought he did, he knew that the man would want him to go after Mia, and that was exactly what he intended to do.
"One thing is troubling me, Ms. Sullivan?" he asked.
"Please, call me Chloe."
"Alright, if you call me Connor. From what my father has told me about the DEO, your organization is concerned with the meta-human community. Why are you so interested in this situation? There are no metas involved from what I can see."
"That's where you're wrong, Connor." She pulled out a large black and white photo from her brief case and handed it to him. "We believe this man has been one of the big players in this sick little game. His name is Brickwell, but on the streets of Star City he's known as Brick. He's a big time mob boss, and we've tied him to both the Lee brothers as well as Asad. You can tell by his rather unusually large build that he is not a normal human."
Connor studied the photo for a few minutes. The man did, indeed, look somewhat like the nickname that was given to him. "So you believe this crime lord has special powers?"
"Almost positive. We've got one of our best agents trying to infiltrate his organization for a while now. But once you and Green Arrow got involved, we had to move quickly. We're hoping we can help you save your friends, and in return, perhaps you can help us keep an eye on this Brickwell dude," she explained as she shifted in her seat, her extended belly was obviously bothering her at the moment.
"I think it can be arranged," he said with another warm smile. They sat in silence for a few minutes before he started to speak again. "If you don't mind me asking, how..."
"More than six months," she answered without looking at him.
"I'm obviously not the first to ask you that question."
"You're not even in the top one hundred." She gave him a wry look.
*******
Eddie kicked in the door to the forward cabin, the fire extinguisher raised in front of him, but the entire cabin seemed empty.
How could that be? Where were the CIA agents that had been up front?He stepped in, only to have his make shift weapon kicked out of his hands as Shado dropped from the ceiling and directly behind him. She kicked him hard, sending him flying forward through the aisle. The blow expelled all the air from his lungs and left him gasping, too stunned to move. Eddie looked up to see Shado nock an arrow.
Before the assassin could fire the weapon, however, she was struck from behind and also stumbled forward. Standing in the doorway was Green Arrow. He was pale and he looked as though he was about to collapse, but his bow was out and he was drawing an arrow from his quiver.
Shado turned to him. "You should be dead."
"Yeah, I get that a lot," Arrow mumbled, the sweat pouring down his face as he struggled not to pass out.
"You don't look well," she said with amusement in her voice.
"You should see me when I roll out of bed, first thing. It's a helluva lot worse than this."
"Freeze!" the CIA agents yelled out from behind Ollie. "Drop the bow, pal!"
"You idiots, if I drop it, then she gets the
drop on us. You two won't last a second."
"We said drop the bow," one of the CIA agents ordered again.
Everyone stood there, locked in the moment. It was as close to a Mexican standoff as it could have been. Then the plane suddenly came out of its descent, causing everyone to lose their footing. It was the opening Shado needed to try and gain the upper hand.
She brought her own bow up, grabbing three arrows at once, and so quick, that they seemed to just suddenly appear out of no where. She fired them all, even as Eddie cried out in warning.
The arrows shot forward, but the shifting of the plane had caused all of them to become unsure on their feet. The first arrow grazed Green Arrow's left shoulder, the second struck the first CIA agent in the stomach, and the third arrow went straight into the second CIA agent's throat.
"That was unfortunate," Shado said casually. "I still do not want to kill you, archer. I actually feel a kindred spirit with you. Allow me to pass, and I will leave you and your friend alive. My only purpose is to eliminate the man named Donaldson."
Green Arrow shook his head. "Can't let you do that, sweetheart."
"Are you aware what he has been doing? How he has brought dishonor to your country?"
"Fully aware of it, but this is still America, and everyone gets a chance to defend their innocence in a court of law."
"Noble, but unrealistic. Your antiquated laws do not pertain to the rich and powerful. He will never get the punishment that is deserved. His enemies are many, including the powerful Yakuza."
Ollie was having trouble standing. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Eddie slowly getting back up. The idiot was going to get himself killed! He had to keep the assassin's focus on him.
"Yeah, I know this country has a pretty crappy reputation when it comes to our politicians, I ain't going to arguing with you on that one. But you have my word, not only as a member of the Justice League, but as a proud American, that Donaldson and everyone else involved will be punished."
"Forgive me if I do not accept your word. It is nothing personal." She reached back for another arrow and Ollie's own hand flew up, but his body had been beaten so badly in the last few days that his reaction time was way too slow.
There was a low growl from behind Shado as she felt her hand touch the tip of a shaft. Eddie grabbed her arm and pulled it with such force that she not only felt, but clearly heard, snapping as her arm broke in two different places.
She let out a cry that was part rage and part pain. She spun with leg out, kicking Eddie in the gut. The blow propelled him backward, striking the emergency exit with such force that the latch snapped in two and the door opened, only to be sucked out into the air.
Once again the cabin pressure shifted, causing the plane to take another dive. Everyone lost their balance a second time, and Eddie, closest to the open hatch, felt his body lift off the floor and out into the blue sky. He thought of Mia for only a second before he felt a sudden pain his leg as a grappling hook dug into his flesh.
Eddie's body stopped so abruptly that his leg popped out of its socket, blinding him in pain. Then his body slammed into the side plane, causing him to understand the phrase "he began to see stars".
He felt himself being dragged back into the plane, slowly as the plane once again leveled off. For a split second he looked up to see a second plane right above them. Now he knew where Ollie had come from. He wasn't afraid to admit that he was grateful to have Oliver Queen as his best friend.
Still, he thought to himself,
I'm not going to actually tell the old buzzard.When he made it to the hatch, a green gloved hand reached out and pulled him back onto the deck. Both of them were still fighting the pressure inside the cabin as all the unsecured items rushed past them into space.
"That was $%@# close!" Eddie gasped as he gripped a nearby seat. He reached down and pulled the hook out of the lower part of his leg, gritting his teeth so not to scream out.
"You owe me a new hat," Green Arrow, on his hands and knees, also grasping for breath.
"That hat sucked. Why don't you just wear a hood or something?" Eddie retorted.
"I see a near death experience hasn't helped you with your taste in clothing apparel."
It was Eddie's turn to respond, but as he looked up at his friend, he saw Shado behind Ollie, fighting the roaring wind, her one arm dangling and an arrow in the other. She was raising it over her head.
He didn't think, he just reacted. Eddie grabbed the rope with the grappling hook and stood up, not caring about the danger he was now in. With nothing to brace against, he was once again sucked toward the outside, but as he went he swung the rope over his head and threw it. His aim was true and the rope wrapped around Shado, with the hook bearing itself into her stomach. She cried out in pain as she was violently pulled off the floor and towards the hatch.
Green Arrow watched in horror as his best friend was sucked away, followed by the female known as Shado. Ollie made one last ditch effort as he leapt up, but the damage to his leg caused it to give out from under him and he hit the floor hard. Then he began to slide toward the opening himself.
He caught the door frame at the last second, wrenching the already damaged shoulder. Looking behind him, he saw, if only for a brief second, his best friend and his nemesis disappear into a low cloud. They were gone.
Ollie struggled to pull himself back up into the plane, even as the plane itself began to lose more and more altitude. He wanted to live. Wanted to be with Connor, to talk to Dinah, hold her in his arms. He wanted to save Eddie and Mia. He wanted to make sure Donaldson and everyone involved got what was coming to them. But even for a hero who struggles to the very end, no matter how much pain his body is in, he is still only human, and eventually the body cannot handle any more. This was that moment for Oliver Queen, and he finally lost his grip.
From the private plane above, King Faraday had watched the events unfold. He screamed for backup and demanded emergency status as the White King of Checkmate; yet, when he saw Ollie plunge toward the ground, he knew there was nothing else to do. He sat down hard in his chair, lit a cigarette and told the pilot to head towards Washington D.C. while he radioed for a clean up crew.
*******
The plane that carried Agent Sullivan and Connor Hawke was coming up on Dulles and Chloe had been on the radio non-stop for the last thirty minutes. She had every field agent surrounding the area, all eyes searching for Kemel Asad or Mia Dearden. Not only was the main airport covered, but all air fields within a hundred mile radius were also under surveillance. She wanted this man as desperately as Connor did, though for entirely different reasons. For Chloe, it was the chance to get to the man called Brick, but for Connor it was personal. He had come to care very much about Mia in the short time they had gotten to know each other. They had been through a lot together, and he was not about to lose her now.
"Are you absolutely sure about that Agent Barker?" The excitement in Chloe's voice brought Connor out of his reverie. "All right, both of you keep your distance, call for back up, but do not engage the target unless you see them trying to leave, understood?" She looked at Connor and gave him a nod. "We should be there in minutes. Agent Sullivan out." She hung up the phone and turned to Golden Arrow. "We got him. Asad and a few of his men were spotted heading for a small private landing strip just outside of Manassas."
"Was Mia with them?" he asked anxiously.
She shrugged her shoulders, unable to give him a clean answer. They both stared out the small windows at the ground below as the jet took a hard left, circling back from where they had just come. A couple of minutes later they could see the airfield in question with several cars surrounding a private jet. It appeared that every man was out of their cars, guns drawn, flashes appearing like disco strobe lights on a Saturday night.
Chloe cursed as she pulled out her phone, screaming for the pilot to land immediately. She hit one button and began to shout into the phone as the person on the other end picked up. "What the hell is going on down there? I told you not to engage the target until we arrived." A pause, another curse and then, "I'm sure there was another way of keeping him on the ground, Agent, but we will discuss that later. We're coming in hot, so be prepared."
After strapping herself in, she pulled her gun, checking the clip to make sure it was full before placing it on her lap in front of her. She saw the disapproving look on Connor's face and stared right back; they may have had different approaches to a situation, but she was not about to let him make her feel as though hers was a weaker choice. He finally gave her a brief, but terse nod, as if acknowledging what she had been thinking. Then he prepared his own weapon of choice.
Rubber tires hit the runway, as their own jet began to taxi. Chloe was already out of her chair, calling the cockpit and giving them instructions to take the private plane directly into the middle of the firefight.
"Ram this thing down their throat," she nearly growled into a mike.
Golden Arrow was also out of his chair at this point, headed toward the emergency exit of the plane, planted in a kneeling position as he waited on her signal. Chloe Sullivan watched through the oval window as the aircraft barreled down upon the firefight.
"Hard right and cut engines!" she shouted into the microphone, bracing herself for the sudden turn.
As the small jet suddenly made the sharpest right it could, Chloe signaled Golden Arrow, who threw the door open. He could hear the shouting and gunfire even over the roar of the engines before they were cut. The turn put them right in the middle of the gunfire, and he fired three arrows at the same time, aiming carefully as his father had recently showed him. Two of the arrows hit their mark and two of Asad's men went down with the shafts sticking out of their thighs; the third missed its mark by a hair. Still, for having been the first time he had tried that particular shot, he felt he had done well.
Golden Arrow leaped out of the private plane, hitting the tarmac with a roll before jumping up and letting loose with another two arrows, one after the other.
Both of those hit the mark; the shafts flying through the windows and striking two more men in the shoulders.
He didn't stop as he fired, though. He was already running toward the enemy, having slung his bow over his shoulder so he could flip and leap through the air, the bullets flying all around him. From the plane, Chloe was screaming into her radio to cease fire on their end. The last thing she wanted was to explain to Green Arrow how his sidekick had been struck down by "friendly fire".
Reaching the first car, he vaulted over it easily enough, landing hard on top of a bodyguard and slamming him into the ground. He whirled around, still on the cement, his arms bracing him as he pin-wheeled his lower body, tripping up the last two men. Both of them fell onto their backs; Connor used those brief seconds to roll his body into the first man, knocking him out with a blow from his elbow to the man's jaw. He continued the roll over the unconscious man and onto his friend who was just starting to get up. The man lost his breath with the sudden weight of the young hero suddenly on top of him.
"Where is your boss?" Golden Arrow asked in almost a whisper. "He is the only one we seek this day."
"I'm not telling you nothing," the guy shouted in his face.
"Connor!" Mia Dearden's scream came from one of the other cars that were several feet away from him. He looked up to see her being shoved into the back of the vehicle by Asad. Her face had been badly beaten and for the first time in many years, the inner balance that Connor Hawke had always maintained seemed to waiver.
He heard Asad yell to his driver to take off, but Connor was already on his feet and running, pushing his legs to move faster than they had ever ran before. He reached the car just as its tires were screeching for the fast getaway. He leapt onto the trunk of the Buick and landed hard. He saw Asad turn around in the backseat, his face full of rage, a gun in his hand and pointed right at Mia's head.
For Connor, there was no more thinking, just doing. He didn't even bother with the bow, just reached back, grabbed an arrow in his hand and flung it like a dart into the back window. It shattered the glass and hit him in the wrist, causing the gun to fly from his hand and onto the car floor.
The driver began to steer the Buick erratically to shake the young man, but Connor wasn't about to be tossed so easily when he was so close to his goal. Grabbing a hold of the window frame, he took a moment to grab another arrow and fling it hard enough to penetrate the driver's right shoulder, causing the man to cry out in pain and slam the brakes. This was unexpected for Connor who suddenly found himself diving head first into the back seat of the car; broken glass cutting into his uniform and his skin.
He felt the first blow to the head as Asad struck with all his strength. Golden Arrow could do nothing else as he tried to defend himself from the ferocious blows, so he tried another tactic. He snapped his leg out toward Asad's head, but Kemel quickly dodged the blow.
The villain struck him again, this time in the back of the neck, causing Connor Hawke to see stars. It had been a long time since he had felt that kind of an attack. The top part of his body was still wedged between the passenger seats and the back of the front seat, so all he could do was try again with his legs, this time attempting to strike lower – with better success. He caught Asad in the midriff and heard the air leave the man's lungs. Perhaps that would give him enough time to...
His eyes caught two movements at the same time. Asad picked up a rather large piece of glass that was lying on the floor-board just inches from his face, while Mia's hand had darted down where the metal weapon had been laying. Although he couldn't actually see it, he knew what was about to happen and he knew there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.
Before Connor could even get Mia's name out, the sound of the gun went off, causing his own ears to ring as the recoil from the weapon seemed to fill the small space. Then he felt the warm liquid strike the back of his head and his arm. He saw Kemel's hand, the piece of sharply edged glass still in it, fall limply next to him. Then, just as he was able to start pulling himself out of his most undignified position, he heard Mia scream for the driver to stop the car; using language that would have made Ollie blush. The car halted again, this time for good.
Connor pulled himself up to find what he had feared he would see. Half of Asad's face was practically gone; Mia still held the gun on the driver, though her shaking hands were an indication that she was about to lose it.
"It's all over, Mia," Connor whispered gently. "Let go of the gun, please." He gently pried the weapon from her hand.
The young girl looked at him for a second with a horror so deep in her eyes that he knew it was also buried somewhere just as deep into her soul. Mia had already been through more than anyone knew in her young life, and this was the rotted cherry on top.
Finally she seemed to really see him – recognize him. "Connor..." she whispered his name before letting out a shrieking scream that let allowed for the months of torture and abuse she had suffered at the hands of Kemel Asad, the first time, to come pouring out. She flung herself on him and began to sob hysterically. It was finally over for her.
*******
Green Arrow still had his parachute on when he lost hold of the plane, and made a semi-soft drop to the ground. He did not see Eddie or Shado anywhere as he floated downward. It also took him a few minutes to see clear enough through his pain to realize that he was falling close near the Hoover Dam.
Was that irony? he wondered.
When he hit the ground, his legs folded under him, the pain in his body overwhelming. The wounds from his last battle with Shado had opened again and blood seeped through his costume. He counted himself lucky; he was in Nevada, close enough to summon the Outsiders, he realized as he blacked out hitting his alert.
When he woke, he was staring at the most beautiful face he had ever laid eyes on. She was an angel that had been sent to him, and gazing into those warm, caring eyes made him realize that there was such a thing as love at first sight.
"Hey there, Pretty Bird," he mumbled with a very small smile. Even attempting that was painful.
Dinah gazed down at him with a sad look. "You really are one tough bastard, aren't you, old man?"
"Long time no see. Thought I'd drop in for a second."
"I see your jokes are just as stale as ever."
"How long have I been out?"
"Two days. The first twelve hours we weren't even sure you were going to make it."
"We?"
"The team has been taking turns keeping an eye on you. And of course there's these two..." She gestured over her shoulder as a young couple walked up to the side of the bed.
Pain or not, his smile grew wider and warmer as he saw Connor and Mia standing there. Although there was obvious relief on their faces, it was mixed with obvious sorrow, and he knew why.
"He's gone, isn't he?"
Tears began to fall from the young girl; Connor laid his hand on his fathers shoulder and nodded solemnly.
Ollie bit his bottom lip.
"I'm going to let you three be alone for a bit," Black Canary said as she squeezed Ollie's hand before leaving the room.
"Did they find him?"
"No. King Faraday and others from the DEO checked everywhere in the area, but figuring out the trajectory of their fall, they feel it would have put them right in the middle of the Hoover Dam. I'm sorry."
Ollie nodded, biting down harder on his bottom lip for a second before going on. "What about Donaldson?"
The uncomfortable silence was all Ollie needed to put two and two together. The slime had gotten out from underneath his little mess. The question was how, which he asked out loud.
"Not enough concrete proof. Both Lee and Asad are dead, so the only big fish left in the scheme is the one called Daniel Brickwell. I promised Agent Sullivan that we would investigate him as soon as we returned to Star City. She informed me that he's a meta with big connections."
"Sometimes I hate this stickin' country," Ollie spat. "I'm so sick of all the bull. Good people are hurt or killed while the men who make the decisions just keep pulling us into one hellish nightmare after another."
"You really should rest now," Mia said, taking his hand.
Ollie squeezed it. "I'm sorry Mia. I'm sorry I couldn't save him."
"You were there with him in the end, and although I didn't know Eddie long, I'm sure that's how he'd have wanted it. When I first met him, I could tell that something bothered him bad – something that he had done. I just hope he knows that thanks to him, and to you guys, that ugly little business has at least been closed down."
Ollie tried to give her a comforting smile but it came out as unbelievable as it felt. "Listen sweetheart, do you mind if I talk to Connor alone for a moment?"
"Of course, I'll be right outside."
After she had gone, Connor leaned closer to his father.
"I'm not going back to Star City," he stated. He expected the reaction he saw, held up his hand to stop his son from speaking and continued on. "Listen to me. This isn't over yet. It's just shown me exactly how corrupt and morally bankrupt this country has become. I'm heading out, when I can leave here. I'm taking a trip cross country, to D.C., and along the way I'm going to do my damndest to get my finger back on the pulse of this country. I owe it to Eddie. I want you to go back to Star City for me, and watch over it. Now that Queen Industries is back in my hands again, I want you to start learning the business as well. Keep an eye on this Brickwell guy, but most of all, watch over Mia. I'll be back as soon as I can."
It was a personal journey and deep in his heart, Connor understood that. So he nodded his approval, gave him his own solemn smile, and sat with him for a while longer, listening to his father talk about the old days and his best friend, Eddie Fyers. Connor also understood that for his father, this was the beginning of the mourning process, and he was determined be there for him. As he listened, he realized what a good man Oliver Queen was. He also knew that he, Connor Hawke, was a fortunate son.
Epilogue
Swirling blackness that seemed to last for days, but in reality was only a couple of seconds; when it was over, Eddie Fyers was lying in a wooded area retching into a pile of soft wet leaves. Next to him lay the woman called Shado, doing the same.
"Give yourselves a second and you will recover. It is always a jolt for those who have never traveled through the darkness," the man standing above them said with slight contempt in his voice.
"Who are you?" Eddie finally asked.
"You can call me the Shadow Thief. Then you can thank me for saving your lives."
Eddie's mind went back to those last seconds as he was falling through the air, then the blue sky had turned completely black before he had found himself where he was. He had to admit, he was grateful that he was alive.
"Not that I'm not happy about it and all, but exactly why did you save us, and where are we?"
The Shadow Thief helped the woman named Shado up. She hadn't spoken at all, but it was no matter to him. "You were both saved because you have a purpose that has yet to be fulfilled. The two of you, and two more, were chosen many thousands of years ago to be part of a much larger war that is coming soon to our dimension. The four of you are to be the ones to both mentor...the Champion."
From behind a tree a young boy walked out. He was dressed in garb that seemed to harken back to the days of the middle ages. Strapped to waist was a belt that a rather large sword hung from.
"Who is that?" the one called Shado finally asked.
"He is the Champion," Shadow Thief replied.
"Champion of what?" Eddie asked skeptically.
"He is the Champion of St. Dumas."
The End... for now...If you wish to comment on this issue, please
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