The stubborn stubble, the melancholy eyes, the strong physique—despite being in Central City, the charm of Star City's notorious playboy, Oliver Queen, hadn't faded a bit. As Barry Allen sat there, waiting somewhat pitifully for an answer, Iris West approached with coffee, her eyes practically glowing.
"Barry, here's yours," she said, handing him his cup. "Mr. Queen, your black coffee," she added, her gaze lingering on Oliver.
"Thank you," Oliver replied with a polite nod.
"Iris, can we talk for a second?" Barry asked, noticing her demeanor.
"Sure," Iris responded, leading Barry to the side.
Once they were alone, Iris couldn't contain her excitement. "Why didn't you tell me you knew Oliver Queen?"
"I... I did mention it," Barry replied with a wry smile.
"You know? He's on my list," Iris whispered excitedly.
"List? What list?" Barry asked, a bit confused.
Iris glanced back at Oliver, still excited. "A list of three men Eddie would be okay with me sleeping with—men who are almost impossible to meet. Oliver Queen is one of them. Oh my God, I can't believe how close he is right now!"
Barry felt a pang of hurt as he watched Iris's enthusiasm. They had grown up together, childhood sweethearts under the same roof, and it seemed only natural that they would end up together. But after the particle accelerator explosion left Barry in a coma for nine months, he woke up to find that Iris had moved on with Eddie. Now, hearing that she had a list that included Oliver Queen only deepened the wound.
"I... I need to get back," Barry mumbled, turning to rejoin Oliver.
As soon as Barry sat down, Oliver spoke. "I'll help with this."
"What? No!" Barry, still distracted by Iris's revelation, blurted out without thinking.
Oliver looked at him, puzzled. "You said no?"
"Ah, sorry. I was thinking about something else. It would be great if you could help," Barry quickly apologized, feeling embarrassed. "Those three metahumans are really troublesome. Let me fill you in on the details."
"I looked into them before I came to Central City," Oliver said seriously. "But if you want to solve the troubles here, they shouldn't be our primary focus. Su Sheng is the source of everything!"
"But..." Barry trailed off, confused. Of course, he knew that Su Sheng was at the center of all the chaos, but even at full speed, he couldn't match Su Sheng.
"Having power doesn't mean you can't lose," Oliver replied confidently. "Isn't your team working on a way to help you regain your speed? Maybe we can use that to set a trap."
Though Oliver usually kept his identity as the Green Arrow a secret, the current situation required cooperation. And since Barry already knew his true identity, Oliver agreed to visit S.T.A.R. Labs at Barry's invitation. There, he met the rest of Team Flash and revealed his identity. Together, they began to design a trap for Su Sheng.
With Oliver's strategic and tactical abilities combined with Team Flash's technology, the trap was completed in just three days.
"Can this really trap him?" Barry asked, looking at the platform in the basement. Four pillars stood around it, appearing unremarkable, but once activated, they would generate an electronic fence.
"Of course," Sisko Ramon replied excitedly, launching into an explanation filled with technical jargon about supercapacitors, molecular isolation, and more. Oliver, however, looked completely lost.
"What he means is, yes," Caitlin Snow translated with a small smile.
Oliver nodded in understanding.
"Now, there's only one thing left—how to lure him into the trap," Barry said, the seriousness of the situation sinking in.
The room fell silent.
What did Su Sheng like? What did he care about? What did he want? They knew next to nothing about him.
Knowing your enemy is crucial to victory, but Su Sheng was an enigma. His behavior defied conventional analysis, making it nearly impossible to predict his actions.
"Reverse-Flash," Harrison Wells said suddenly, breaking the silence. "He's obsessed with Reverse-Flash. He believes that Reverse-Flash wronged him, so... using Reverse-Flash as bait might work."
"But where are we going to find Reverse-Flash?" Sisko asked instinctively, then immediately regretted it as all eyes turned to Harrison Wells.
"This is too dangerous," Sisko protested.
"Even though I don't know why he thinks I'm Reverse-Flash, it's our best chance to lure him," Harrison Wells replied, turning to Caitlin. "You contact him. Find a way to get him here."
"Everyone, get ready."
After a brief moment of hesitation, Caitlin made the call. Oliver carefully inspected the trap one last time before positioning himself on the roof. Bow in hand, he aimed at Harrison Wells, who was now seated in his wheelchair inside the trap. The plan was simple: as soon as Su Sheng appeared, Oliver would fire an arrow to pull Harrison Wells out, and then the electronic fence would activate.
Sisko moved to the upper level to monitor the surveillance feeds, while Barry stood by the switch that would activate the trap, waiting silently.
"He's here," Sisko's voice crackled over the intercom as he saw a streak of red lightning approaching. The rest of the team tensed, hearing the warning just as the red lightning streaked into the room.
The atmosphere grew heavy.
"I was in such a rush last time that I forgot to bring a gift. I'll make it up next time," Su Sheng said casually, glancing around at Barry and the others before fixing his gaze on Harrison Wells within the electronic fence. "Caitlin said you admitted who you are? That's not like you."
Harrison slowly removed his glasses, his usually calm and smiling expression replaced with a grim look.
His acting was flawless.
"You'll never be able to predict my actions, because I'm always one step ahead of you—whether it's The Flash or you!" Harrison Wells declared coldly.