Thank you all for reading Book SIX of Brooklyn Archer! Chapter 1 (along with the synopsis for Brooke Week) will be posted on FRIDAY MARCH 10, 2023!
3rd Person POV
"Guys, hurry up!" Mick yells as the timer beeps
The group runs out and then Gary shouts, "Egg!" And there's one on the floor. Mick rushes back into the room as the timer beeps rapidly
"Get back now!" Sara yells and the group follows. She throws her body over Brooklyn's who is sheltering Maddie. As the timer goes off, the device explodes and Mick is thrown into the wall by a fiery explosion
Sara rushes to close the door. "Mick, you okay?" She asks
"Charred. Nothing new." Mick answers
"At least this little guy's unharmed." Gary says, grabbing the egg gently from Mick
"Give me that." Kayla says, grabbing the egg from Gary. Sara helps Mick up off the ground as Maddie wiggles out of Brooklyn's hold. "You guys saved them. Why?" She asks
"Those are Mick's kids you're talking about." Sara says and Maddie taps on Sara's legs. Without pulling her eyes or the conversation away from Kayla, she picks Maddie up. "That makes them family."
"Look, I get why Bishop would break the ship, but why make such an elaborate prank out of it?" Ava asks
"He was stalling." Sara says
"And mission accomplished." Brooklyn says
"And now the bomb obliterated Gideon's mainframe, which means we are stranded." Gary says
"You're stranded. I still got my ship." Kayla says. A device beeps in her hands and she looks at th edevice. "That gyrating b*st*rd."
"Let me guess, Bishop stole your ship." Sara says
"I'm gonna kill him." Kayla growls
And then, there's a thud and the group gasps. A hand is on the window of the lab where the explosion had just taken place. Behrad is in there
"Oh, my God, B." Ava realizes
"Oh, hey, guys. What happened to my couch?" Behrad asks, looking at the blown up lab
***
"I knew something was up with John." Behrad says. "I shouldn't have gone home. I should've been here."
"What could you have done?" Ava asks him. "We were all fooled."
"I know a thing or two about addiction." Behrad says and then he shoots Brooklyn a look. Brooklyn gives him a small nod. "When we get John back on board, he's not leaving my sight." He promises
"It's too late, B." Zari says, walking in with Astra. "John is gone."
"Gone, what do you mean gone?" Sara asks. "Like he escaped?"
"He's dead." Zari says
"Oh, that's not possible." Gary stammers. "He... he's John Constantine. He can't be dead."
"How?" Ava asks
"He tried to control the Fountain of Imperium, which turns out is an ancient fungal network that's been keeping Earth safe from invasive aliens for eons." Astra says. "Bishop tricked John into poisoning himself to kill the Fountain, and I watched John die. He decomposed into the ground, and all that was left was this." She says, pulling a mushroom from her pocket
"Whoa. May I?" Behrad asks, grabbing the mushroom
"Wait a second." Sara says. "Where's Spooner?"
"Yeah, about that..." Astra whispers
***
= Odessa Texas, 1925 =
Sara and Astra had checked on Spooner and talked with Spooner's mother. Brooklyn waited with the rest of the Legends (besides Mick who was on the ship fixing it with Kayla) with Maddie sitting on the couch next to her and reading a picture book
"We should take her back to the ship." Nate says. "The med bay is... scratch that... totally broken.
"It wouldn't help anyway." Astra says. "Spooner is like this because of what's happened to the Fountain. The two of them are linked."
Something rumbles in the distance and the group runs outside. Brooklyn grabs Maddie, putting her on her hip, as she rushes out with the rest of the Legends. They look off into the distance
"Chances of that being a coincidence?" Nate asks
"You know our chances of coincidences." Brooklyn says. "It's us." She says, shooting Sara a look
"Slim to none." Sara answers. "Come on, let's go check it out." She looks at Brooklyn. "Do you wanna leave Maddie here so you can come?"
"You know the answer to that." Brooklyn tells her
"I know your answer is to take Maddie with you and come anyways." Sara says
"You're damn right." Brooklyn says
"Brooke–" Sara tries
"Sara, look at the size of the gun Ava has." Brooklyn says, gesturing to Ava's gun. "We'll be fine. Plus, Maddie has been learning combat skills."
"You're teaching your almost four year old combat?" Nate asks as the group begins to walk into the woods
"I was younger when I learned how to defend myself." Brooklyn says with a shrug as they near the area where the rumbling occurred
"That's it?" Nate scoffs at the small ship. "So much for an invasion."
"It's a scout." Sara says. "They're watching us." Something growls in the woods. "You need to run now." Sara tells the group with her. She looks at Brooklyn. "You and Maddie, get to cover." And with that, a few aliens emerge from the woods and start attacking
Brookyln quickly manuevers Maddie onto her back, tucking her daughter under her jacket and forming a baby carrier on her back. She tosses the hood over Maddie's head and makes sure she is secure. Maddie holds onto her mother's shirt and straps, the two having done this many times and Maddie knowing what she needed to do: hold on tight and stay hidden
Doing that only took a few seconds – since it was very practiced – and Brooklyn jumps into a fight with an alien. As she fights, she keeps all the combat in front of her, never turning her back to the alien in order to protect Maddie. She keeps an eye over her shoulder as Nate, Ava, and Sara also fight
"Shoot it!" Sara yells
"I don't have a clear shot!" Ava yells
"Well, then shoot us both!" Sara yells
Nate shoots the alien Brooklyn was fighting and then shoots through Sara to get to the other alien. The aliens fall to the ground dead and Sara coughs, her wounds healing
"Sara, you okay?" Ava asks, rushing over
"Thanks, Nate." Brooklyn says, helping him off the ground
"Any time, Brooke." Nate promises her
"Where's the other one?" Sara asks. And with that, a blast is heard and the group looks over to see a beacon of light shooting into the air
"If they were the scouts, then..." Nate starts
"That was them ringing the dinner bell." Sara finishes. "There's more coming."
"We are so screwed." Nate whispers
***
"The Zagurons know the Fountain's dead, and they're coming." Sara says as her, Nate, Ava, and Brooklyn (with Maddie still on her back in the makeshift carrier) walk into the waverider
"The Fountain isn't dead." Astra says, rushing over to them. "It's dying. Those things are here to finish it off and take over what's left. Spooner translated the Zag' thoughts. The power is still inside her, but it is fading fast."
"Well, that means there's still hope." Gary says. "You know, we just have to save the Fountain/Spooner before the armada of carrion lizards overwhelms our planet and kills everyone in sight. Easy-peasy."
"All right, guys, let's brainstorm." Nate says. "Let's figure out a way to heal this Fountain." He says, him, Gary, and Astra leaving the room
"We're gonna figure it out, babe." Ava says but Sara is staring off. "What is it?"
"I think this is Bishop's plan, for me to watch you and everyone I love die, for me and him to be the only two left." Sara whispers
"Well, it won't happen. We won't let it." Ava promises
Sara turns her attention to Brooklyn. "You and Maddie okay?" She asks
"Where is Maddie?" Ava asks
"Doing what she's supposed to. Staying hidden." Brooklyn says before turning around and Sara helps Maddie out of the makeshift carrier. Sara puts Maddie on the ground and Brooklyn gives Sara a small smile in thanks. "I think we're going to go get cleaned up and take a rest, yeah Maddie?" Brooklyn says before repeating the exact same sentence in Russian. Brooklyn takes Maddie's hand. "Keep me updated." She says before leaving with her daughter
***
"I'm back!" A voice exclaims on the screens and Brooklyn looks to the screen in the hallway right outside of her room and sees Bishop on the video. She quickly and quietly leaves the room (Maddie still asleep on the bed) and runs into Sara and Ava who are watching the screen as well. "Hello, Legends. Did you miss me? By the time you see this recording, I expect John will be dead. The Fountain will also be dead, and my Zaguron friends should be on their way to destroy you. I hope I've got that right. Otherwise possible egg on my face, ooh. And because I can literally think Sara's thoughts, about now is the time that Sara Lance has figured out my plan for us to live together forever after everyone else has died as the new Adam and Eve. Sara, your mind must be racing, realizing that the only one who can save the Fountain is me. And, spoiler alert, I'm not gonna." He says before turning off the video message
Nate had called a group meeting in the library shortly after that and the group arrives. Brooklyn walks in with the baby monitor from her room, keeping an ear on Maddie
"All right, so his message gave me an idea." Nate begins the meeting. "He said he's the only one who can save the Fountain. So maybe he should."
"Yeah, he's not gonna do that." Astra says
"Not that guy, but a younger version of him." Nate says
"Time-napping." Gary exclaims. "I love it."
"Gang, he wasn't always a supervillain, but he's always been super smart." Nate says. "We got the stuff he poisoned John with. Maybe, just maybe, the younger version of him can reverse-schmience it and get us an antidote."
"It goes against every instinct you have, which means Bishop would never expect it." Ava tells Sara
"If we only ever do what makes sense to you, he will always be one step ahead." Astra tells Sara. "There's only one way to wage a war against yourself."
"And that is to have a what Would Sara Never Do Day!" Nate exclaims
"It is a really bad idea." Sara agrees
***
Ava and Nate brought a time-napped Young Bishop back to the waverider where he is currently looking over the poison
"Wow." Young Bishop exclaims. "Whoever made this is a certified genius... an evil genius, but a genius."
"Yes. An evil genius who is not like anyone in this room." Nate says
"I mean, there's some bioengineering in this poison that... I'm the only one I've ever met that could think of anything this diabolical." Young Bishop says
"Exactly why we came to you." Ava says. "Now, can you please help us?"
"Of course, I can." Young Bishop says. "I just need some space to work and no distractions."
"I spoke to John!" Behrad exclaims, running into the room. "He is in the mushroom. He wants to talk to us... and we all got to eat him." He says and then he runs out of the room to the bridge where the rest of the Legends follow
"So you ate a strange mushroom, and you thought you heard John's voice?" Ava asks
"I know I did." Behrad says. "It's proof that John's alive inside the mushroom. John wants us to eat the mushroom and talk to him. He wants to help us heal the Fountain."
"John thinking about someone other than himself?" Zari questions with a scoff. "Not a chance. We have a plan. That plan is crazy, but it still makes more sense than talking to a mushroom." She storms out
"Zari, wait." Behrad calls after her but she is gone. "Just consider it." He tells the other Legends
"So are we gonna do this?" Nate asks
"Communing with a spirit while in an altered state." Astra sums up. "It's pretty on-brand for us."
"Guys, I'm sorry, but no." Sara says. "No, definitely not. The last thing we need to be doing is tripping on mushrooms."
"Hm, yeah, well, isn't it What Would Sara Never Do Day?" Ava asks. "I'm just saying."
"We already played that game." Sara says. "And now it's time to prepare for an alien invasion. So please everyone just go make yourself useful, okay?"
"You're right." Ava says, her and the others leaving the room
"Hey, I'm gonna go check on Maddie." Brooklyn says, putting a hand on Sara's shoulder. "You gonna be okay here?"
"Mm-hmm." Sara hums, staring at the mushroom
***
"Guys!" Sara yells, running down the hallways of the waverider. Brooklyn rushes out of her room, following Sara into the lab. "Guys, I know the answer! I know the answer to all of our questions. It's the meaning of life."
"You ate the mushroom, didn't you?" Astra asks
"Yes, and I saw John." Sara says
"What?" Astra whispers
"Yeah. He told me what this is about. He told me what everything is about." Sara says. "He said...We are all connected."
"I think I saw that on a bumper sticker once." Nate whispers
"It was really profound in the moment." Sara says
***
Young Bishop injects Spooner with the syringe and she wakes up with a gasp. She looks around at her teammates. "Whoa." She whispers, looking at Young Bishop. "That's some strong juju."
"Spooner." Sara sighs in relief, sitting down on the bed. "Good to have you back."
"Wait, since Spooner and the Fountain are connected, does that mean the Fountain is restored and we stopped the invasion?" Nate asks
Rumbling is heard outside. "Oh great." Brooklyn mumbles as she grabs Maddie from the bed and runs outside with the others to see more and more alien pods falling to the ground
"Ugh, there are thousands of these scattered around the area." Ava says as the group surveys the area. "I mean, even if we could destroy the pods, there are too many of them. You know, they're too spread out."
"This is classic Zaguron perimeter technique." Gary says as Brooklyn looks closely at one of the pods, studying it. "They land, wait for dark, and then they eat anyone who isn't smart enough to get out of their way."
"What?" Ava asks
"Which is something we should be doing." Gary says
"No, we're not running." Nate says. "It's 1925. They'll destroy the entire human race before we're ever born. We got to hold the line."
"All right, we have about four more hours left of daylight, so we've got to gear up, hydrate, and prepare for the fight of our lives." Ava tells the group
"Ava, will you marry me?" Sara asks
"What? Babe, we already did the proposal thing." Ava says
"No, no, I mean, marry me now, today, before the apocalypse." Sara says
"What are you talking about?" Ava asks. "We can't just–"
"Why not?" Nate asks. "We're gonna have to fight those things anyway. We're as ready as we're ever gonna be, and four hours is totally doable."
"Ooh, we can get the whole team on board." Gary says. "We've produced much crazier miracles in far less time."
"No, I would rather save the miracles for the actual fight." Ava says. "You guys, we may not survive the night."
"Then let's go out on our own terms, do things our way, do what we've always wanted to do." Sara says. "Babe, we've got our friends, we've got our vows, and we've got four hours. What else do we need?"
"I don't know, maybe for the world not to be ending." Ava says
"Hey, John told me the most important thing in life is loving someone and being loved, and if getting married is the last thing that we do together, then damn, I will be just fine with that." Sara says
"You have really gone to town with this 'what would Sara Lance never do' thing." Ava says. "Um... okay, let's do it! I don't... let's get married."
"Yay!" Sara exclaims
"Wedding before war!" Nate exclaims and Brooklyn laughs happily
***
The wedding ceremony begins with Maddie walking down the aisle, spreading flowers on the ground. She walks towards Nate on the altar and Brooklyn who is next to Nate. With Maddoe halfway down the aisle, Mick escorts Sara down the aisle. Maddie finishes, Brooklyn picking her up and carrying her to a seat where she puts her daughter down
And then, Ava is escorted down the aisle by Gary. He leads her up to Sara and then Ava and Sara take teh altar in front of Nate
"We're gathered here today on what may very well be our last to celebrate the union of these two amazing people." Nate says. "I fondly remember the moment they met. She had a gun." He says about Ava. "She had a glare." He says about Sara. " Destiny was at work. We've all been through a lot since that day, and on that journey, you've challenged each other to be the best versions of yourself possible. This moment, this wedding, this is exactly what the world needs. We're facing insurmountable odds, but even during the darkest of times, when hope seems lost, love. Love is what matters most." Brooklyn wipes a tear from her eye, listening
"Ava, the perfect woman, what could a mess like me ever have to offer someone as special as you?" Sara begins her vows. "I can't exactly say it was love at first sight, but you did look really good in that pantsuit. But the more that I got to know you, and I got to feel your kindness and your honesty, well, this heart, once so cold and guarded, it just... it just melted. And Ava, it's because of you that I get to know what true love feels like. And so, today, here in front of all of our friends...I want to make these vows to you. I will always be your champion, your lover. I will always be your family, and I will listen to you even when the words are hard to hear, and I will let you in even when I'm afraid, and I will support you. I will fight for you. And above all, Ava Sharpe, I will love you."
"Wow." Ava whispers with tears in her eyes
"Your turn." Nate whispers to Ava
"Oh, oh, man." Ava whispers before beginning her vows. "I... Sara, I... my life before you was a perfect fabrication, and then you came into my world, and everything just became a whirlwind, you know? You brought chaos into my tidy, predictable existence, and you pretty much brought me to life, so I vow to you to live this life together. Co-captains forever, baby. ♪ ♪ I love you so, so much, Sara Lance. I love you. I love you."
"So if there's no objections..." Nate starts before he's cut off by a spaceship flying through the air
"That's my ship!" Kayla exclaims
"You've got to be kidding me." Nate mutters
"What a darling setup you've got here." Bishop says from inside the ship. "Pre-apocalypse nuptials are all the rage, but you know it's gonna be you and me for all eternity, Sara Lance."
"Is that me?" Young Bishop asks. "Am I the villain?"
"Wait, is that my younger self down there?" Bishop asks. "Wow, that's embarrassing. I did not see that coming. Well played, but I'm afraid It's all for naught cause you know what your little party is missing? Wedding crashers." He says and with that, the alien pods all open up and aliens step out. "Ta-ta, you crazy kids."
"All right, anybody without steel skin or regeneration fall back and barricade the house." Sara orders. "Brooke–"
"I'll get Maddie into hiding." Brooklyn says. "But then I'm coming out here to help you fight."
"I expect nothing less." Sara says. "Go." And with that, the some run for the house, but most stay out to fight. Brooklyn grabs Maddie, giving her a kiss before telling her to hide for a game of hide and seek under the bed
Brooklyn runs out of the house and over to the others, the Legends ready to fight. Aliens rush towards them. A lot of aliens
"Guys, we might want to rethink our stance on running." Sara says
"Uh, yeah, we gotta go!" Spooner exclaims and the Legends run inside the house
"Reinforce the entry points, use anything you can find!" Ava orders and they all get to work on barricading the house. "Go, go, go!"
"What's happening?" Young Bishop asks
"You need to hide." Sara tells him, pushing him into a room
"Should I help?" Young Bishop asks
"You've done enough!" Sara exclaims, closing the door
As the others continue to barricade the room house, Brooklyn takes up a defensive position outside the room where Maddie is hiding. The aliens start breaking through the barricades, trying to get in
Behrad is hurt. "Spooner, we need your mom's medical supplies!" Zari yells
"I'm on it." Spooner says
"Come on, Behrad. Hey, just stay with me, okay? I'm not losing you too." Zari tells her brother
"Oh, no. It's spreading too quick." Spooner says, examining the wound. "We need a tourniquet."
"That's not gonna help." Sara says, grabbing an axe. "Zari, hold him down. B, close your eyes."
"Wait, what are you doing?" Zari asks
"Saving his life." Sara says. "That venom is gonna kill him like it kill me. There is no cure. We have to stop the spread. Now, hold him down."
"Hey, you are not touching him with that thing." Zari tells Sara. "And Brooke found a cure, she can make another cure."
"I wasn't poisoned to the extent that Sara was." Brooklyn calls across the room. "And...it's spreading way too quickly on him. There's no time."
"Exactly." Sara says. "I'm trying to save him."
"Not with that, you're not." Zari protects Behrad
"He's gonna die." Sara argues
"Stop fighting!" Spooner yells and as she yells, a blast of yellow comes off of her, ricochets off of Sara, and goes into Behrad
Behrad's arm heals itself. "You guys seeing this?" He asks
"You gave him my powers." Sara realizes, looking at Spooner
"It's the Fountain." Spooner says. "I can feel it. It's waking up."
"It's like... it's like John said, we're all connected." Sara says
As they fight, Sara orders Spooner to transfer powers between the Legends in order to help them stop the aliens. And it works
"I need a weapon!" Mick calls
"Spoons!" Zari exclaims
Spooner transfer's Zari's powers to Mick and he blasts an alien backwards
"Ugh, damn it!" Astra exclaims as she is hurt
"Sara, you're up!" Spooner calls, transferring Sara's healing to Astra
"What's happening?" Astra asks
"Just go with it!" Spooner yells to her
"We're not gonna make it." Sara says
"At least we got to get married before the end, right?" Ava says
"Wait, you're not married." Nate says. "We didn't do the 'I do's'."
"I'll buy you some time." Kayla says
"Everyone, huddle up!" Behrad yells. "We're getting these two hitched even if it's the last thing we do."
"Get married quick before I change my mind!" Kayla tells, morphing into her alien self and fighting the other aliens
The group runs into a huddle by Brooklyn. "Sara, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife till death do you part?" Nate asks
"I do." Sara answers
"Do you, Ava, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife till death do you part?" Nate asks
"I do." Ava answers
"Then by the power vested in me by the World Wide Web, I pronounce you wife and wife." Nate says and the two kiss. ANd with their kiss, an eruption of glowing glittery yellow explodes... And all the aliens are killed...The group runs outside. Brooklyn grabs Maddie from under the bed, the young girl running outside and seeing yellow sparkles everywhere
Everything is safe...
"So that was the Fountain of Imperium." Kayla says as the group walks outside, Maddie running around and trying to catch the yellow
"And it saved us." Zari breathes
"It decided we were worth it after all." Spooner says
"Guess getting hitched at the end of the world wasn't such a bad idea." Ava says
"Damn right, wifey." Sara says and kisses Ava
"The fountain loves love!" Behrad exclaims
"Stupid Zags and their stupid mushroom allergy." Bishop's voice says from behind the group and they all turn to see him with a gun. "Well, if you want something done right, you got to do it your damn self."
"Maddie!" Brooklyn yells to her daughter who is running around. "Hide!" She yells in Russian and Maddie (without giving it a second thought just like it was practice) dives under the stairs to hide
"Give it up, Bishop." Sara tells him. "You lost."
"Never!" Bishop yells
"I'll give you one last chance to leave and never come back." Sara says. "I found your younger self once, and I'll do it again, end you before you become the sad, little, deranged man you are now."
"I will blast each and every human on this stupid planet to bits, starting with all of you." Bishop says. "I don't care how long it takes. You and I will be the only two left."
The alien babies run out of Mick and Kayla's bags and run to Bishop. And then, they start attacking him and eating him
"Oh, yeah. Necrian babies wake up very hungry." Gary explains. "They'll typically devour the first thing they see. Did I not mention that before?"
"No." Everyone says
"Safe!" Brooklyn yells in Russian and Maddie runs out to Brooklyn
An alein baby runs to Mick. "Hey little guy or girl. Either way, I love you." He says
"Oh. Guys, you got married." Nate says. "You became parents. Mazel tov, everybody!" He exclaims
***
"Life's crazy, isn't it?" Sara says, her, Mick, and Brooklyn sitting on the stairs. "Imagine if our first day on the Waverider, we travel to this moment to this house, and we saw me, a captain with a wife, you with a daughter..." She says, looking at Brooklyn. "...and you with 48 kids." She says with a laugh to Mick
"49 and a grandbaby on the way." Mick says
"I don't think we would have recognized ourselves." Sara says
"Not at all." Brooklyn says with a small laugh, watching Maddie play in the yard in front of her
"No, got to move forward, I guess, to the next job." Mick says. "A new partner."
"Yeah, I had a feeling that was coming." Sara says with a sigh. "You know you'll always have a home on the Waverider. But I guess you'll be busy taking care of punks."
"Well, I've learned a thing or two about handling punks." Mick says. "Watched you do it for six years." He says, playfully rubbing his fist on Brooklyn's hair
"Hey!" Brooklyn exclaims with a smile
"There you go." Sara says, handing Mick a bouquet of flowers
"What's this?" Mick asks
"It's a bridal bouquet." Sara says. "That means you're next."
"Maybe we should be giving it to Brooke." Mick says, looking at her. Brooklyn whips her attention over to Mick. "Jax loves you, Brooke. You may live separate lives but your love is multiversal." And with that, Brooklyn smiles
***
The Legends walk towards the waverider
"Well, that's that." Nate says
"Yeah, I'm kind of nervous." Ava says. "Things rarely wrap up in a neat little bow for us."
"No, come on, babe. Don't be paranoid. Life is gonna start going our way." Sara says
And then a duplicate waverider swooshes through the sky, blows up the team's waverider, and then flies away
"What the hell?" Astra questions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you all for reading Book SIX of Brooklyn Archer! Chapter 1 (along with the synopsis for Brooke Week) will be posted on FRIDAY MARCH 10, 2023!
-MC