Oliver's day started with the usual coffee, then an errand before finally returning back to the office for a bit of time off. He opened his laptop and decided to look through the news and info available on the Wayne Enterprise. His last encounter with Bruce Wayne left him somewhat of a bitter taste in his mouth and they started off with a wrong start under difficult circumstances.
He has been chasing after some new drug cartel that has been dealing with drugs that mutate normal humans into a superhuman for a limited amount of time. However, with such immense power comes great risks. Once the effect runs out, the person that uses them becomes a ticking time bomb, causing the user to overload with excess power and then blow themselves to pieces...
Well, if you think that's worse, the worst is yet to be mentioned... No one knows when will the bomb explode... The effects can start after half a minute or a week later. He really needs to think of a way to bring down the Cartel leader or find the secret formula behind the creation of these drugs so that he can come up with an antidote or countermeasures before more people turn into ticking time bombs.
His lead pointed him toward Gotham. A new batch of drugs was supposed to arrive at the harbor where he could catch them and bust the drug operation there. But the presence of Batman hindered his plan. He couldn't move as freely as he wanted to in Gotham, where the masked hero lurks. He wanted to work together with him, but for some reason, he wanted to do it with his team... A sense of rivalry and stubborn pride.
However, things went haywire when his informant got shot and almost kidnapped Bruce Wayne which led them into a brief confrontation with each other. Bruce almost killed his informant and his guard in a catsuit almost killed Diggle. But what surprised him most was that Bruce somehow healed the girl and the bullet wound disappeared in an instant. Later he heard that Batman took down the cartel or more like annihilated them.
"Magic?! Or Alchemy?!" Oliver wondered as he tapped his fingers on his table deep in thought. "Regeneration like that is not possible without magic."
There are few ways to achieve such power.
First of all, is some sort of enhanced physiology from the ground up that makes the cells stronger, faster-working, and therefore, regenerative capabilities and even anti-aging or even complete immunity to sickness and injury. Secondly, Alchemy or other means to stimulate or force the regeneration process using chemicals, manipulation, or mind-triggered methods that could even enhance a normal body to something in between the enhanced physiology and magical means of healing, further, a mind can push itself further than the limits of what the body is capable of, making the person invincible or cell manipulation for a period, but would it even work on someone other than that person himself?
Oliver has seen his share of mystic magic or dark magic. Damien Darhk can even absorb other's life force and can heal himself almost instantly after getting injured... But he is a former member of the League of Assassins, so his power is understandable, but what about Bruce? Where did he acquire such power from? Does he have a connection with the League? Or, could it be some kind of technology in play?
Too many questions without answers! He wondered to himself, before coming back to the present.
The public information on Wayne Enterprise isn't a complete profile or true reflection of the inner workings, but through this, he will get a general idea of how the company runs and what they have been up to lately. He tried to do business with them, but for some reason, they have always rejected their advances and haven't contacted the Queen Industry back even once, no matter how hard he tries. Even Walter tried several times and failed as well.
That's not all, the Waynes expanded their business rapidly in the last four years... Metropolis, Star City, Coast City, Bludhaven, Central City, Jump City, etc... They have businesses and a branch company almost everywhere... Which means they are spread out far and wide! What a huge organization!!
What are the ways the Queen Industry can work with the Wayne Enterprise? Besides, with Lex Corps' steady rise for the last few months, Queen Industry may have found it too late to invest in a single company to try and enter the market again with new products, only to have them ripped apart by their competitors, Lex Corps, in no time... The idea still stood, but the chance of succeeding and giving Queen Industry another big boost just by this wasn't guaranteed.
Queen Industry can buy other companies under their wings or even be bought themselves. That's if their competitor company would ever accept that... It's hard enough for a CEO to agree on being bought by one company, much less a group of companies that already has its hands tied across the globe!
Oliver almost gave up and leaned back with an annoyed expression on his face, after reading the latest articles about the Wayne Enterprise and the charity parties they hosted. Those reports seemed like praises rather than just the general information he wanted to gain on the company. New cars, electrical goods, computers, and almost everything a guy can think of were all under the Wayne company's wings. Even food chains, shopping malls, studios, etc, etc... There wasn't a place the Waynes haven't touched in recent years!
Suddenly, his laptop's screen turned black with a message displayed on the screen, [SURPRISE!]
He looked at the screen surprised at first but he soon collected himself, looking at the screen curiously, waiting to hear the next lines.
Another line appeared on the black screen, like the old, white, letters on the screen with a font style similar to Windows 95. This person was quite nostalgic for the old ways it seemed.
The following message arrived soon:
[Your life has been hacked. Good Luck.]
This was what followed right after...
A pixel gif of a middle finger was blinking on the screen...
Smoke began to rise from his laptop.
"Fuck!" Before he could throw it to a safer distance, the laptop exploded! He was somehow able to kick the desk and push the chair he was sitting away from the impact which threw him back as the desk and chair flew a few meters forward... Thankfully the office was big, empty, and soundproof, so no one else heard the explosion.
He got up with a groan... His ears were ringing, and his clothes were burned slightly at the front. He stumbled but balanced himself on the wall behind him.
Who in their right mind would want to kill him in the Queen Industry's office...
With an almost drunken stupor, he stood against the wall behind him, glancing around the destroyed desk. He shook his head in wonder at the destructive power of that explosion and could only thank his reflex and luck that saved him from taking a direct hit and avoiding being burned further.
"Great..." He groaned and stumbled forward but stood in a daze, glancing around to make sure that the situation wasn't dangerous for the time being.
It took a few minutes for him to recover.
[Ring!] [Ring!] His phone suddenly started ringing, making him take a peek toward it, cautiously. He got it out slowly from his pocket to find an unknown number trying to call him, with the words 'Blocked Caller ID' on the phone...
His brain worked its fastest to try and come up with all possible and impossible ideas of a culprit.
He picked up the phone, "Who is this?" he asked in his Green Arrow voice.
"That was a good reflex. Good job, Mr. Queen..." Came a foreign and metallic-sounding robotic voice.
"Do I know you, creep?" Oliver glanced around.
"Now, now..." said the metallic voice. "Starting this point, I am going to put you through many hardships, for which I am terribly sorry."
"What the hell do you want, and stop playing mind games with me!" He gripped the phone tightly, narrowing his eyes at a faraway corner. "Otherwise..."
"It's too early for those idle threats. The game hasn't even started and you already seem flustered."
"Say what?"
"Queen Industries are declining at a rapid rate. Everyone has closed their doors to your company, which will soon become defunct. Queen Consolidate is nothing but a massive weight and a burden upon your company... Don't you agree?"
He felt anger and dread build up inside him, while his mind struggled to unravel what this was all about.
"Survive for 48 hours. Use your experience, your wit, and your senses to see through this difficult phase... Who knows, maybe I'll grant you the long-awaited redemption. Besides, it's a test to see if you are worthy..."
"Worthy of what?" He shouted angrily into his phone but the other side only beeped.
The phone started sparking before shorting out completely in his hand.
"Shit!"
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Ch: 85: Oliver Queen pt2