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

Chapter 33: The Undertaking Part 2

'Oliver?' I heard Felicity ask through the communication devices we were wearing. 

'Are you okay?' He was supporting Diggle. I'd long pulled the blade out of me, and was holding onto the roof rails for support, watching the whole of the Glades fall in on itself. 

'Yeah,' she said. She seemed to have been crying. 'The damage seems to be contained on the east side, past Wells Street.'

'Laurel.' He let go of Diggle. 'Are you going to be okay?' 

'Go, go, go, go.' He looked at me. 

'Athena?' 

'I'm coming,' I replied, pushing away the pain of my wound and running out of the building with Oliver. 

Time skip 

We sped through the city and into the Glades on Oliver's motorcycle, me holding on for dear life. 

In the Glades (Third Person POV) 

'Help! Please, help me!' Laurel screamed as she was trapped beneath the concrete beam. Just then Tommy ran in to lift the beam and free her. She opened her eyes and looked at him. He strained to pull it up. 

'Tommy! What are you doing here?' she sobbed. 

'I kinda figured you might come back to CNRI,' he groaned, straining again to lift the beam. He yelled out. 

'You came here for me?' she gasped. 

'I love you.' He strained again and lifted the beam. She breathed a sharp intake of air and ran for the door. 'Get up! Go! I'm right behind you!' She ran outside. Her friend, Joanna, was running frantically, but the one thing that caught her was the voice of her father. 

'Laurel! Laurel!' 

'Dad! Dad!' she screamed as she leaped into his arms, sobbing. 

'Oh, thank God,' he said, holding his daughter tight. But then something crashed within the CNRI building, and a flood of dust came out. The two jumped back, startled by the crash as the building kept falling in on itself. She pulled out of her father's grasp. 

'NO!!' she screamed. 

'No, Laurel!' he screamed, grabbing his daughter tight. 'No, you can't!' 

'Tommy!' 

'You can't! It's too late, it's too late.' 

'Tommy!' she screamed again. Tears continued to flood her eyes. 

We sped into the Glades on the motorcycle, taking a turn off of a ramp and sliding to a stop. Oliver and I pulled off our helmets and ran into the collapsing building. We saw Tommy there, on the ground, buried by a mound of collapsed concrete. 

'Ah, Tommy,' Oliver said. 

'You're going to be fine,' I said to Tommy, as I helped Oliver move the boulders that were there. 

'Another thing... we got to disagree on,' Tommy gasped. 

'Tommy, please don't. Don't go,' I urged, pulling up another boulder. Oliver and I pulled up another one, and it revealed the worst. A shard of metal had impaled Tommy straight through his chest, blood pooling there. He gasped and coughed. 'Oh, my God,' I whispered, but managed to steel myself. Oliver and I knelt by his side. 

'Is - is Laurel safe? Is Laurel safe? I tried to get her out of here.'

'Yeah, yeah, you did. You saved her,' Oliver replied softly, looking down with tears in his eyes at his best friend. 'I'm going to get you out of here. You're going to be fine.' 

'Stop,' Tommy gasped out, softly. 

'He's not gonna make it,' I said softly to my brother. He looked at me, almot trying to convince himself that he could save Tommy. 

'I'm sorry...' Tommy said. Oliver shook his head furiously. 

'No. Don't apologise.'

'I was angry. And I was jealous. I - am my father.' A tear rolled down his cheek. Oliver leaned closer to his friend. 

'No. No, you're not.'

'Did - did you kill him?' 

'No,' I said. 

'Thank you,' he said and closed his eyes, his head rolling to the side. 

'No! No, no, no!' I broke down in tears, as did Oliver. He shook his head slowly, trying to shake him awake gently.

'No, no! Tommy! It should have been me. Open your eyes, Tommy!'

'Open your eyes, Tommy!' I sobbed, screaming in pain as my wound burned, but I paid no mind. 

'Open your eyes.' Oliver whispered softly. But there was nothing. No sign of life, no breathing. Tommy Merlyn was dead. I slumped against Oliver, exhausted and grieving. He wrapped an arm around me numbly as we continued to weep.