| Blüdhaven: The Smuggler | |||||
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| What: Team Arrow is ridiculously low on gear. But if they want their Smuggler to be able to bring their goods past VSG mercenaries, they're going to have to give him a hand. | |||||
"I can't believe that I'm doing this..."
Oliver Queen has said that many times over the course of his life, and he's meant it each time that he's said it. But this time the tone of his voice indicates that he thinks this might actually be in the running for his Worst Idea Yet.
Having finished stashing the (knocked out) body in the dumpster, he takes inventory of the equipment the VSG mercenary had on him right before Ollie so unceremoniously knocked him out. Reaching up to activate the bud in his ear, he sends the first radio communication of the evening to his Ersatz Oracle.
"Okay Felicity, I found one around my size. I'm going to need you to walk me through the VSG radio protocols though, or my cover will be blown as soon as I open my mouth. Remember, if I can't get the patrol to reroute down Adams Avenue, Dig is going to be stuck like Chuck."
Less than a minute later, a fully-geared up VSG mercenary emerges from the alleyway holding an AR15 and wearing his balaclava pulled completely down to conceal his face. The fact that an entirely different person is inside the uniform manages to go unnoticed by any of the other VSG mercs for the time being.
"Sorry guys, took me a long time to piss. I think I might be turning pee-shy or something... had to blow on it to get it started."
Surprisingly, the VSG Mercs seem to buy this excuse, and even laugh about it.
Fel, from afar, gives Ollie the down and dirty, giving him the information she thinks he'll need without, for once, being too chatty. The longer she talks the more of a chance something can go wrong. When she's done she falls quiet for a while, keeping the chan on so she can hear him even though she won't be saying anything for now, herself.
Now, the truth of the matter is that Felicity is abso-freaking-lutely scared for Oliver and yes, there is a general concensus going on here. She agrees that this is the stupidest thing he has done but she keeps that to herself as she does not want to mess up his confidence. Nope. Not going to do that. "Alright... I am tracking you," she eventually whispers. "Stay safe for me."
Diggle was on his way to Bludhaven at that same moment, driving a van procured by Lyla and some of her friends in the intelligence business. It and Diggle's paperwork should be good enough to pass by the checkpoints... provided that Oliver can intercept him and take the gear that he was bringing his brother-in-arms. His Green Arrow costume and his bow and arrows.
The tension was high for the man and in his deep drawl he mutters, "Come on Oliver... make contact man..." He scans the highway for any sign of Oliver as the checkpoint starts to loom large in the windshield.
"This blows."
Some variation of the sentiment is repeated many times by the various VSG mercenaries, all of whom are more interested in chain-smoking cigarettes and trading stories about sexual conquests than actually patrolling the street. Still, a roving mounted patrol through the city is enough to keep the citizens of Blüdhaven in line, whether the troops in the back of the APC (Armored Personnel Carrier) are actually paying attention or not.
As Oliver rides along in the back of the APC, he stays as quiet as possible to avoid giving himself away. After all, the voice changer on his throat isn't exactly foolproof, and he didn't get the best sample from the VSG merc before he conked him over the head...
But eventually they're getting close to the coordinates, and Oliver has to make his move. So he prays silently that his online Tech Support is still awake behind her laptop.
"Hey guys, did you see that? Look at that building across the street..."
Fel is not asleep thanks to the high levels of caffeine she keeps in her system during ops. Seriously, the only risk there is is her having to AFK for a 'bio-break', to use the gamer jargon. But she is where she is supposed to be and is on the job. "One diversion coming up," she quips under her breath while hacking into the city's power department. Not difficult at all, really. It is to her what coloring in those damn adult coloring books is for others. She can do this with her eyes closed. Kinda.
A few seconds pass before the lights in and around that building start to flicker on and off as if that part of the grid's experiencing some kind of weird surge-slash-outage, that causing something of a remarkable light show. Hopefully that'll be enough to buy him time.
Diggle peers out of the open window and says, "That must be the signal... nice work guys." He pulls off of the highway and speeds underneath the underpass, smashing through a barrier put in place to deter such things and then rejoins the highway out of sight of the checkpoint. He stops where the coordinates Felicity gave him are and parks and reaches for his pistol and activates his helmet, waiting for Oliver to show.
"That's my girl. Going silent until I rendezvous with The Smuggler."
The diversion is enough to pull the VSG's attention away from their patrol route. The patrol leader reports the situation and calls for backup, while the rest of the patrol dismount from their vehicles and begin searching the perimeter of the 'malfunctioning' building.
Suffice it to say this gives Ollie the perfect opportunity to disappear, though he takes the uniform and equipment with him.
Let's just hope they don't have a tracking device installed...
Sneaking stealthily through the ruined city, Oliver makes his way to the rendezvous coordinates. Climbing over some rubble, he remains out of the light until he's able to confirm that the area is secure. But having done that, it's time to call out the password.
From somewhere in the dark, his signature voice-changer calls out:
"What is vodka for?"
Diggle grips his pistol when he hears something behind him and then relaxes when the code phrase is spoken and replies, "Vodka's for wimps anyways man, get over here already Oliver, I had to lean on Lyla's contacts to get me this far with the stuff you needed."
He reaches into the van and pulls out the case containing Green Arrow's persona and says, "I hope you have a plan... this city doesn't like people like us very much. It's a LOT worse then Star City even when Damien Darhk and HIVE were trying to destroy it." He then grins and reaches the grab Oliver in a big hug, "But damn is it good to see you again after 6 months, how's Felicity? Have the two of you finally tied the knot yet? Little Sara's constantly wondering when the two of you are going to give her someone to play with." He grins at his best friend and comrade.
Having taken the final safety precaution, Oliver steps out into the comparatively well-lit area near the van. Still holding his rifle like a professional, he pulls back his balaclava to reveal his face. In the past six months his beard has gone from 'scruffy' to 'full-on homeless.' It probably helps him blend with the citizens of Blüdhaven though...
"What? You mean coming up with the plan was MY job? We're all screwed then..." Oliver returns the hug, holding it just as long as Man Code allows for, though he pointedly avoids answering any Felicity-related questions in the meantime.
"Awesome. You managed to get the entire Shopping List. We had a last-minute change of plans though: It isn't safe to leave the van here. We've got to get it across town before the next shift change or we're going to spend the rest of our evening getting waterboarded by some of Wintergreen's fascists."
Diggle releases the hug and nods, "Get in then, I trust you've got us a place we can stash it? I borrowed it off of an old friend from my Ranger days and I'd like to get it back to him in some sort of one piece." He gives Oliver a crooked grin, knowing how unlikely that usually is. He then turns serious, "Lyla's getting us some intel on Wintergreen as we speak, at least managing to talk to some of his old co-workers, at least we'll know who and what we're dealing with.
Diggle starts the van and drives it quickly through the streets and says, "Is the whole team here yet? We're a little outmatched if it's just you, me and Felicity, no matter how badass we all are."
"I can promise that we'll be able to send him back at LEAST one piece..." Oliver likes to keep his promises as reasonable as possible. After all, Dig already knows just how dangerous this mission is going to be.
Strapping himself in when Diggle makes a particularly nasty turn, Oliver does his best to avoid playing Passenger's Seat Driver. He clearly misses zipping through the city on one of his nimble Arrow Cycles, but it would take an entire fleet of Arrow Cycles to haul the load the cumbersome van is capable of bringing in.
"Well... the 'whole team' isn't exactly... what I mean is..." Oliver fumbles a bit while trying to explain the situation, but it's hard to paint things in a positive light when the entire 'team' consists of three people and a van.
"It's like this: We're building a grassroots movement. Right now, Team Arrow is just the first seed. But don't make any mistake about it, our army is out there, just waiting fort people like us to step up and lead the charge. If we give the people of Blüdhaven just a taste of the life they could lead... our seed is going to spread to every man woman and child in this city."
He immediately regrets taking the 'grassroots' metaphor too far.
Diggle closes his eyes and says, "You know Oliver... once... just once I'd like things to be easy. Nothing's ever easy with you, is it?" He then turns and grins at Oliver, "Just to be clear, there will be no spreading of my seed anywhere but if Felicity's ok with you spreading your seed around, who am I to judge?" Yes, Diggle finally got the opportunity to stick the needle in.
Diggle then turns serious again, "I got all the stuff we need to at least make a good start, Lyla's going to set us up with a supplier who can keep us in weapons and ammo, if Felicity can get us the tech, we should be good to go. Do we have an Arrowcave yet? Or at least someplace to store all this stuff?" Diggle is checking everywhere carefully as he drives, there's always the possibility of random patrols picking them up.
"Who Felicity? She's not even okay with me mentioning old girlfriends, but I'll come up with a different metaphor when I talk to her... oh shit. Sorry Felicity, I forgot you were still listening in..."
As they make their way through the city, Oliver provides occasional directions, which he is no doubt receiving in his earpiece from Felicity.
His directions might seem ridiculous, but they gradually push them toward the Bay. Still, the VSG patrols force them to turn a twenty minute drive into one that takes nearly two hours.
When they pull into the parking lot of a seemingly-abandoned structure, Oliver gives the signal to kill the engine.
"This is the area that was hit hardest by Deathstroke's goons. Explosions rocked the bay so badly that they haven't been able to bring cargo in ever since. So I had Felicity buy up some real estate here for virtually nothing, and Queen Ventures is going to foot the bill for a massive cleanup. But in the meantime... all of these demolished buildings will make an ideal place to set up shop. Nobody will look for us out here, and we shouldn't have any stragglers wandering by: There's nothing left to steal here."
Diggle cuts the engine the instant they stop and listens, nodding and says, "Sounds good man, let's get this stuff out of the van and under cover." He climbs out of the van and heads to the back, opening it up and exposing that Diggle and Lyla have been very busy since Oliver asked him to smuggle stuff in for Felicity and himself.
Most of the equipment that was in the Arrowcave is there, including Oliver's infamous salmon ladder and the cases where all the Team's costumes can be put. Diggle says, "I hope you know how much trouble it was to get all this stuff from our old lair without being seen. Next time you want to pull up stakes and move somewhere else, give me a little more time to prepare." He grabs the first thing in the front and says, "Let's get it done."
"Now you're just being modest, Dig. I knew you guys would be able to come through for me, I just figured you'd have come through for me a few weeks ago..."
Anyone who happened upon the two of them now would probably think it was extremely suspicious to see a fully-armed VSG mercenary helping a bucket-helmeted smuggler unload crates from a cargo van. But working swiftly and silently, they're able to get the van unloaded in record time. "We'll have to get Felicity to help us unpack. I'm not going to risk setting her keyboard up too many millimeters away from her monitor again..."
Oliver grunts as he sets one last case down, and admires the truckload of gear with obvious appreciation. The sun is beginning to come up behind him, casting light through the open warehouse door.
"Feels like we're back in business, finally. Give me a minute to ditch this uniform and we'll head back to town. I figure you're probably exhausted, and you'll want to check out the suite Felicity scored for you."
Diggle quirks a smile, "Hopefully it's got good locks and security... I'm bringing Lyla and Sara here after I get settled in, so you and Felicity will have to be Aunt Fel and Uncle Ollie again soon. Sara was a little put out that you guys left without a word even though Lyla and I knew why." He says with an ironic twist to his lips as he helps Oliver put the last of the crates down. He says, "Anyways, I am exhausted, that was a long drive from Star City to here. Once I get a little shut eye and some food, what do you say we go and remind the citizens of Blüdhaven that justice still exists, and it's not the kind of justice from martial law?"