CH: 136 - Friendship Rating

{Chapter: 136 - Friendship Rating}

The Green Lantern paused, letting the weight of his words settle into the silence.

"But I'm not here to frighten you. I'm here because… the storms are coming, Oliver. Bigger than anything you've ever faced. The streets of Star City are no longer the edge of your battlefield. The threats are evolving. Some won't come wearing masks or carrying guns. Some won't care about your bow, your arrows, or the walls you've built to protect your people. Some will come from above. From beyond."

Aiden stepped forward, close enough for Oliver to see the faint scars beneath the suit. The haunted look of someone who'd watched too many good worlds die.

"And that's why I'm here. Because I've been watching. And I see something in you. You, Oliver Queen—the Green Arrow—are more than a vigilante. You're a leader. A symbol. You're what happens when pain is transformed into purpose."

He placed a hand gently on Oliver's shoulder.

"I didn't come to recruit you," he said. "I came to understand you. To see if you're ready to rise above the shadows of this city, and join something greater. Not to abandon your home… but to defend it in ways you never thought possible."

Then, with a wry smirk that reminded Oliver of Diggle on one of his rare good days, Aiden added, "Think of this as a cosmic job interview. I just happen to be HR for the stars."

A laugh escaped Oliver. Dry. Disbelieving. "You're serious?"

"Deadly," Aiden replied, smile fading. "Because the stakes are."

Aiden gave a quiet nod.

"You fight with heart, Oliver. But your vision has been boxed in by city walls. It's not your fault—it's how most heroes begin. But if we don't begin expanding that vision—uniting instead of standing alone—then when the true storms come, and they will come… we'll fall. One by one."

He looked up at the stars, then back to Oliver.

"That's why I've started visiting heroes. One by one. Not to judge. But to invite. We need to build something greater. A coalition. A circle of guardians who can stand when the skies quake. A force where you, I, and many others can rise together—not just for our cities, but for the fate of Earth."

Silence fell.

Oliver turned away for a moment, staring up at the sky. The stars looked different now. Closer. More dangerous. And more alive.

---

Oliver Queen stood silently, the words Aiden had spoken still tumbling through his mind like a broken arrow refusing to find its mark.

A universe of questions swirled inside him. Why him? Why now?

He looked down at his calloused hands, hands that had pulled bows in darkness, snapped necks in alleyways, and carried burdens heavier than any man should have to bear. All he had a quiver full of arrows that barely made a dent when gods and aliens walked the Earth.

"I still don't understand," Oliver finally said, his voice low, edged with uncertainty. "You've got the entire galaxy at your fingertips, Aiden. An army of Lanterns. Why me? I'm just… just a man with a bow. No powers. No bloodline. I can't lift a continent or punch through time."

His tone wasn't bitter. Just honest. Tired. Weary like a war veteran staring at the stars, wondering if they ever stopped burning.

Aiden, dressed in the swirling emeralds of the cosmos, stepped forward with a patient smile, one that radiated understanding far beyond Oliver's years of torment.

"That's exactly why I chose you," he said softly, like a breeze in a battlefield. "Because when the powers fail—when the sun is blotted out, when magic fizzles, when speed isn't fast enough—do you know who still stands? You."

Oliver narrowed his eyes, cautious. Aiden continued, undeterred.

"I've studied you, Oliver Queen. The man beneath the mask. I've seen your journey, from the blood-soaked island to the shadows of Starling City, to begin working as the Green Arrow—a symbol."

Aiden paused, then added with deliberate clarity, "I didn't come here looking for perfection. I came here looking for resolve. Conviction. And, if I'm being blunt… a darker shade of justice. The kind the galaxy doesn't want to acknowledge, but needs desperately."

Oliver looked at him sharply. There was something raw in those words, something that dug deep into who he had become.

"You know, I've read files from the Guardians," Aiden went on, now pacing slowly as he spoke. "They label Earth as volatile. Unpredictable. But they also whisper about its protectors—flawed, stubborn, brilliant. You, Oliver… you're not like the others. You don't wear the cape of hope or the mask of optimism. You wear the scars of truth. And that's exactly what this universe needs right now. Someone willing to do the ugly work when everyone else hesitates."

There was a beat of silence. The wind stirred through the open window behind them. Oliver's eyes dropped, jaw clenched.

"I'm not a hero," he said finally, firmly. "I never claimed to be. I don't want to be. I just… I want to protect my city. That's it."

"And you've done it well," Aiden replied, folding his arms. "But what happens when your city isn't the only thing under threat? When the darkness that destroyed Argo City or consumed Xudar comes to Earth next?"

Oliver looked up.

"You're saying those things are coming here?"

"They always come. Whether in a year or a decade. The truth is, the universe doesn't care if you're ready. It moves—with or without your permission. And when it does, the line between cities and planets will blur. I'm not asking you to abandon Star City. I'm asking you to prepare. To become more than just a vigilante with a hood. To join something bigger."

Oliver crossed his arms, still processing.

"Even if I wanted to help," he said, guarded. "I work alone. Always have. Trust is… not something I give away easily."

"I know," Aiden nodded, a grin forming. "But you should know something else. I didn't come empty-handed."

Oliver's brows furrowed as Aiden took a step closer.

"In fact," Aiden said, "some of your actions… your more brutal methods… they've raised eyebrows in more polite circles. They call you dangerous. Unstable. Not 'heroic' enough. But I call that honesty. You kill when others hesitate. You eliminate the rot instead of chaining it. That kind of resolve… that's what I need. Not a poster boy for heroism. I need a war general."

Oliver blinked. He hadn't expected that. Not from someone tied to an intergalactic peacekeeping force. Most of the so-called 'greater good' people turned their noses up at how he operated.

"I guess I should be flattered you want a killer on your squad," he muttered.

"You're not a killer," Aiden countered. "You're a realist."

Oliver didn't respond. The silence hung between them—thick, heavy, not awkward but lived-in, like warriors sitting in the same foxhole.

Then Aiden's ring pulsed.

A message blinked into his mind:

[Green Arrow: Oliver Queen, Friendship Rate +5% → 10%]

He smirked internally. So appreciation works. Noted.

Aloud, he said, "I know trust isn't cheap for you. So don't think of this as recruitment. Think of it as… collaboration. Let me help you. I know you've been running your operation solo. You're overworked, outnumbered, outgunned."

Oliver exhaled slowly. He hated to admit it, but Aiden was right.. The war hadn't stopped, but the support had.

"A base," Aiden continued, tilting his head. "A proper one. Shielded. Hidden. Equipped. You won't have to risk Felicity or Diggle anymore. You'll finally be two steps ahead instead of three behind."

Oliver hesitated.

He didn't trust easily. That came with the territory of being hunted, betrayed, and nearly broken for most of his adult life.

But the offer…

It was tempting.

Still, he couldn't let that show.

Aiden clapped his hands together. "Alright. I can see you're still chewing it over, so I'll make this easy. I know a place. Time is of the essence. Let's go. You'll like it."

Before Oliver could reply—before he could even refuse—Aiden's ring flared with brilliant green light. The same emerald glow enveloped Carol, standing silently beside them, and then wrapped around Oliver like a second skin.

"Wait—" Oliver's reflexes kicked in, but it was too late.

They rose.

Out the window, into the night sky, wind slicing past as the green aura held them steady in the air. Oliver's instincts screamed, but his senses remained alert. He didn't panic. Instead, he observed.

The energy didn't burn. It hummed. It felt alive. Adaptive. He studied it, the same way he studied every new opponent or weapon.

"Willpower energy," he muttered, feeling the pulse of it.

Aiden glanced at him, impressed. "You learn fast."

"I had good teachers," Oliver replied, his voice a little tight, still unused to flying.

Soon, the city lights began to shrink beneath them.

They were heading somewhere unknown—somewhere far from Star City's grimy alleyways and rooftop battlegrounds.

—

"This is… my father's factory?" Oliver Queen's voice wavered slightly as he looked around the barren lot, the sight stirring old, buried memories. The cracked concrete, rusting scaffolding, and time-stained walls—all of it brought back images of a man he had loved and lost, along with a life that felt like it belonged to someone else.

Aiden nodded as he stepped forward with casual certainty, his boots echoing lightly off the dusty floor. "Yes. Queen Consolidated owned it decades ago. It's been abandoned since your return—quiet, forgotten, completely off the radar. It's exactly what you need."

Oliver followed him with narrowed eyes, the gears in his mind already turning. "No one's been here since the shutdown. How do you even know about this place?"

Aiden glanced over his shoulder with a faint smirk. "I do my homework. You may have a mask, but your past leaves breadcrumbs."

The two entered the dim interior of the decrepit factory, the only light filtering through slits in the boarded windows. Carol, silent until now, trailed behind with a curious look as if inspecting the bones of the building.

"Just open this area up," Aiden said, spreading his arms. "Should be empty down below. You can refurbish the top layer into a flashy nightclub to throw off suspicion, and beneath it... well, the perfect bunker for Green Arrow operations."

Oliver raised a brow. "A nightclub?"

"Come on," Aiden said with a grin. "You're a billionaire playboy with a mysterious reappearance, who just so happens to be throwing parties and club events to distract the public. Nobody would suspect you're also running missions at night from underneath the dance floor. Classic misdirection."

******

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