Padding along parallel to the team, Oliver watched as they moved cautiously back to the stairs. While he was sure this wasn't a trick and that they were actually leaving, he refused to lower his guard until they were long gone As he had already expected, the group immediately cursed and reported on the radio the moment they opened the door to the stairwell.

“S-2 is MIA. Smart-ass must have done something with them.”

“Check on S-3, double time!”

The tension in their commander's voice fell on the team like a ton of bricks, but they gritted their teeth and moved on quickly. Jogging their way along the wall, Oliver was forced to move faster than he liked to keep sight of them. Just as the man he assumed lead the team put his hand on the door handle, a shot rang out and startled the group. Spinning in place, sweat glistened on on his shaven head as he warily scanned the room.

Fury and fear warred across his face as he turned to towards the one Oliver aptly nicknamed Twitch. “You need to get your shit together. What the hell was that!?”

Twitch nervously adjusted his grip on the gun. “I swear I saw something! It was over there, moving through the shelves. Might have been that guy.

The remaining two scanned the shelves alongside their leader before sharing a glance and Spider spoke. “Should we check it out?”

Without a seconds hesitation, the leader shook his head. “No. It could be him, but he could just be fucking with us still.”

Turning around, he opened the door to the stairwell and stepped through. With a sigh, he grabbed his radio once more. “S-3 is gone as well.”

Red was silent for several seconds after receiving the news that at least two of his teams were unaccounted for. At this point, he was fairly confident the situation would be the same for the other two stairwell teams. Gritting his teeth, he barely managed to grind out his question into the radio.

“Where the hell are my men you asshole!?”

Oliver almost wanted to laugh at the absurdity of the situation... If it wasn't for the searing pain, he probably would have. Pulling a first aid kit from the warehouse, he was quick to dab antiseptic on the wound before slapping a bandage across it. It may have only been a graze, but it still hurt like hell.

He silently cursed himself for getting complacent. Taking the job too lightly, not preparing enough, and now underestimating Twitch. The little bastard may be close to panicking, but somehow he was still the most observant of the group.

'I need to do better. Over powered system or not, it doesn't help me if I don't use it.' Oliver scolded himself mentally.

Oliver ignored the demanding question for a moment as he went over the area around him, cleaning up any spots of his blood. Seeing a book on the shelf behind him with the bullet deeply embedded in it, he tossed it into the warehouse along with his cleaning supplies, figuring it would make a good reminder of his stupid mistakes.

With a deep breath, he cleared his mind before once again letting himself slip into the smart-ass persona he used when talking to the leader of the attackers.

“Now where did I put them? It's been such a busy night, I seem to have lost track of my toys. Will you help me find them? I'm not done playing with them yet?”

Taunting laughter echoed in Red's head as he forced himself to unclench his fist before he broke the radio he held. “I swear, if you don't return my men right this instant I'll-”

“You'll what? Send more men in? Maybe come after me yourself? Really, how many bad action movie cliches are you going to throw out tonight? I mean, I'm no John McClane or anything, but you did send a bunch of armed goons into a large building they had no hope of effectively covering. Maybe I should call you Hans? Honestly, Alan Rickman was brilliant in-”

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Red finally snapped at the taunting humor of his opponent, his face flushed as brightly as his call sign. “I don't give a fuck about your movie trivia bullshit! When I find out who you are...”

Dark laughter and an amused voice made his men flinch, and Red gritted his teeth to keep from lashing out further.

“Another cliche response. Seriously man, watch a movie sometime. Or at least read that evil overlord list. Lots of good advice on that one. You're starting to bore me.”

Bore me.

Red silently mouthed those words with a stunned look on his face. This madman took out so many of his men... And was getting bored? He wanted to believe that it was a bluff. Needed to believe it.

But it wasn't worth the risk.

“Teams S-1 through S-4 are MIA. Everyone pull out. NOW!”

Oliver sighed in relief as the team he was watching bolted down the stairs and away. But despite the relief he was feeling, he knew he wasn't done yet. Quickly double checking that he wasn't leaving any trace behind of him being shot, he swapped the bloody gloves he was wearing for a fresh pair from the warehouse.

He definitely needed to expand the warehouse. And stock up on more supplies.

Hustling over to the closest window, he stared down at the milling group in front of the entrance. Moments later, the team he had been stalking came rushing out to join them. Just as they were about to leave, on of them turned and glance up at the third floor window, his eyes instantly locked with Oliver's. He wasn't the biggest or most impressive of the group. If anything, he was on the smaller side. Short and lean.

But there was an air about him, something the rest fell well short of.

When the man brushed back his shockingly white hair, Oliver could see a twisted scar running along his cheek and jawline. The scar twitched with barely restrained fury as Red glared daggers at Oliver.

Without another word, Red turned and lead the group away at a run.

“I could really go for a pineapple and jalapeno pizza right now.”

The couch cushion flew across the room as Sophia quickly wiggled her way out. Her relief and excitement at being out of her hiding place faded the instant she laid eyes on her protector. Dirty, bruised, and bloody; Oliver looked a mess.

“Oh my god! Are you ok?”

Rushing to his side, she started checking him over, worry and regret radiating off her in palpable waves. He could easily tell that she blamed herself for the state he was in. Waving her off, he smiled easily. “Ah, I'm fine. Just not a fan of the Joker act. It feels a little too comfortable sometimes, even if it isn't really me.”

He watched, bemused, as she stood there flabbergasted. It took her several seconds before she could formulate a response. “Joker act? What are you talking about? You look like you got the shit kicked out of you! Is everything ok? Will you be all right?”

Oliver cut off his chuckle quickly, as it made his wound flash and throb with pain. Seeing the mounting panic in her eyes, he shrugged before waving for her to follow him. “Yeah, I'm fine. This isn't the worst beating I've had. Not even top ten, really.”

Hurrying to keep pace with him, she shot him a skeptical look. “Not even top ten? I thought this was your first job. And is everything really ok now? Or are we running again?”

Thinking over what to say for a second, he shrugged. Hiding the grimace of pain the shrug caused, he answered her carefully. “Short answers before we need to get a move on. I took a lot of beatings when I was younger, please don't ask me more about it. And we're not running, but we are leaving quickly. I'm pretty sure they're gone, but I also don't want us to get caught up with the cops.”

“They strike me as the sort that would happily bribe a cop if it got the job done.”

Quickly peeking out the window in the door leading to the parking lot, Oliver confirmed no one was left nearby before leading Sophia out. Darting between the few cars and trees present, he double checked before moving each time as he lead her towards the edge of campus.

Sophia followed silently, though he could see the questions in her eyes as they cross the nearly empty street and into the commercial area closest to campus. They bypassed multiple fast food place, all of them locked down because of the chaos on campus, as well as small storefronts that were closed for the night.

Despite it being her hometown, Sophia was started to feel lost as he lead her on a winding path through empty parking lots, dark alleys, and small open parks. Breathing hard and struggling to keep up, she nearly slammed into his back when he came to an abrupt stop. Finally taking a moment to look around, she was surprised to recognize the cheap motel he had lead her to, though only because she had seen the sign numerous times in passing. Never having actually stayed there, her lip curled in distaste as she took in the faded exterior and poorly maintained parking lot.

“What are we doing here?”

With a smile, he lead her straight to room number 42. Surreptitiously pulling a key card from the warehouse, he unlocked the door and waved her in.

“We're hiding out until things settle down.”