"We've arrived in Leipzig, Germany, the most current location for Vandal Savage. And by the way, Captain, you are urgently needed in the MedBay." Gideon says, I immediately jump out of my seat and follow Rip to the MedBay.
"I thought she'd stabilized." Stein says running along with us.
"As did I." Rip responds sharply as we enter the MedBay to find Kendra spasming. I stand in the doorway not wanting to get in their way, but wanting to help if needed.
"Carter! Where's Carter?" she cries out in between whimpers causing my heart to drop. Stein's the only one brave enough to answer the question,
"He's gone, Kendra. I'm so sorry." Stein answers gently.
"Gideon, turn that bloody noise off!" Rip shouts referring to the annoying alarm going off.
"Yes Captain." Gideon replies immediately shutting off the alarm. Ray comes bursting into the Medbay asking--
"What happened?"
"Saunders appears to have had a complication." Stein answers the concerned billionaires question.
"Ye-- I know, what kind of complication?" Ray asks as I just stand there watching Kendra with eyes filled with worry.
"How could you leave him?" she wails and I bite my lip looking down at my feet, I don't pay any attention to the rest as I leave the MedBay to join the others in the bridge.
~~~
I pace around the room as Rip informs the rest of the team on Kendra's worsening condition,
"Pieces of the dagger have apparently broken off and are, as we speak, en route to her heart."
"Can't we just time jump into the future where they got the stuff to fix her?" Jax asks Rip.
"This ship is from that very same future and has, thus far, been unsuccessful in saving her." Rip answers, waving his hands up in frustration.
"Kendra wouldn't survive the time jump anyway." Snart states simply and we all look at him confused, "I pay attention."
"To sum up, Carter hall is dead, the girlfriends not too far behind--"
"Rory." I hiss but he just continues paying me no attention,
"Vandal Savage is sitting pretty in 1975, which we're all stuck in-- that how the plan supposed to work Rip?" Mick asks turning to the captain.
"Obviously not, but the mission is simple. We stop Vandal Savage here in the past and we save the future." he states firmly.
"Simple don't mean easy, Captain." Snart says and I shockingly find myself nodding my agreement with the cold criminal.
"Oh, I never said it was." Rip says with a shake of his head. "The benefit of being a Time Master is that the length of history gives one... perspective." he pauses looking towards the criminal before continuing, "I've seen darker days, I've seen men of steel die and dark knights fall, and even then I accomplished my mission no matter what." he says silencing us all-- then he walks forward, proceeding as if nothing happened. "Gideon, what is our status?" he asks the AI.
"When the Waverider was attacked by Chronos, the Jump Ship was damaged. Unless you make repairs, we will be unable to--"
"Wait, Jumpship?" Jax asks turning towards the captain.
"It's a small expediatory vessel at the belly of the Waverider-- you're a mechanic!" Rip exclaims excitedly. "You have a look at it."
"Uhh, auto mechanic." he starts gesturing to himself, then he moves to gesture to the Waverider as he says "Uh, spaceship."
Rip looks back at him, clearly having none of it, as he gives Jax a simple shrug and I stifle a laugh.
"Okay, if you've got a set of wrenches, I'll see what I can do." he reluctantly agrees.
"What about the rest of us? Do we just sit?" Mick questions Rip.
"Capital idea, Mr. Rory-- you're not nearly as thick as most people say." Rip says taking off to another area.
"Thick, does that mean stupid?" he asks and this time, I can't hold back my laughter earning myself an intense glare from the arsonist. "I will burn you alive."
~~~
Sara and I are walking by, when we see Rip sitting at a desk deep in thought as he studies what seems to be a picture in a pocket watch. She nudges me, gesturing with a movement of her head that we should go talk to him.
"Is that your son? He looks like you." Sara speaks gently and Rip immediately shuts the pocket watch.
"Sorry, we totally just snuck up on you there." I apologize.
"I'd like to be alone for a moment." he says, not bothering to make eye contact with us.
"You don't actually have a plan, do you?" Sara asks leaning on the desk. "And that speech wasn't about convincing us, it was about convincing you." Sara observes and I tilt my head studying Rips expression.
"It didn't work, did it?" I ask.
"Not particularly, no-- hence my desire to be alone." Rip answers.
"So, we can't kill Savage." Sara says standing up.
"Oh, I see you've grasped the concept of immortality-- well done." Rip states his hopelessness evident in his tone.
"Maybe we could slow him down." Sara says and I turn to her raising an eyebrow. "Now, Ra's al Ghul taught me a thing or two about fighting adversaries." The fact that Ra's al Ghul is involved, makes me more hesitant as I tilt my head. "If you can't kill your enemy, weaken him. If you can't cut off his head, take his heart." I think I'm finally catching on to what Sara's thinking.
"Mr. al Ghul was quite the poet." Rip says not understanding Sara's point yet.
"Back at the weapons auction, Savage was trying to sell his nuke." Sara continues finally getting Rip to catch on.
"Money is power." Rip says turning around to face us.
"Take away Savage's fortune and he's just a regular dude, with a really long lifespan." I observe.
"It certainly would set his plan for world domination back a few decades." Rip says standing up excitedly.
"So Rip, ya know where Savage would keep his money in the 70's?" I ask smiling, ready to rob Savage of his fortune.
~~~
Sara, Rip and I all gather around the table in the bridge.
"Gideon! Where's Savage's money now?" Rip asks and Gideon pops up on the middle of the table.
"Dr. Boardman theorized that Savage entrusted it to the Brüemberg Group, the oldest bank in the world." Gideon answers. How fitting, the oldest man in the world uses the oldest bank in the world.
"I'll go tell the rest of the team." Sara says starting to head off but Rip stops her--
"That won't be necessary, I'm going alone. I can't have any more blood on my hands." Rip says.
"No way Rip, you'll get yourself killed." I argue.
"Look, I brought you all with me under false pretenses." he says walking towards us. "Carter would still be alive if I hadn't have convinced him to come."
"No one's on this ship that doesn't want to be here." Sara tells Rip, it's true we all quite literally chose to stay after the incident with Carter.
"But I can't risk the whole team." Rip argues.
"Fine." she says dragging me over to stand right beside her. "Just us-- and if it helps, we aren't giving you a choice." Sara says and I nod.
"We're going to that bank with you, whether you like it or not." I tell the captain.
"Somebody say bank?" Snart asks as him and his partner enter the bridge. Of course they show up right when we mention a bank.
"Your services aren't required Mr. Snart-- this is purely reconnaissance." Rip tells the criminal.
"We know how to case banks, we're practically bankers." Mick says gruffly and I turn, raising an eyebrow at the arsonist.
"Cept we take the money out." Snart says swiftly.
"Yes, and when I need someone to steal something, you'll be the first to know, I assure you." Rip tells the two criminals.
"Listen, Englishmen." Rory moves to stand right in front of Rip and I stand up straight ready to break up a fight between the two if needed. "I'm getting bored being stuck on this tin can-- and when I get bored, I make bad decisions."
I take a step forward ready to stop Mick from pummeling Rip, however Snart steps in before I get a chance.
"Now, now, now, we're all on the same side here." Snart interferes standing in between the two. "My hot-headed friend and I just want to be helpful, that's all."
"Duly noted." Rip says staring down the arsonist before heading out with Sara and I at his heels.
~~~
We head to the Brüemberg bank, I try to walk in with confidence which is hard considering this large leopard fur coat I'm wearing is really itchy. We enter the building and approach the blonde receptionist.
"Excuse me, we'd like to deposit some family heirlooms." Rip tells the woman.
"I'm sorry, we're a private bank-- we don't secure valuables worth less than 10 million." she replies.
"Well, I'm sure this will suffice." Rip says smugly as he opens up a black briefcase, revealing 6 gold coins. "Doubloons from the wreck of the 'Esplinade', they've been appraised at 10 million dollars... a piece."
The lady flashes us a small smile before we're guided to a different room, where Rip shakes the hand of a gray haired man in a fancy suit.
"Such a pleasure." the man says. "You won't regret your decision." he insists as he snatches the briefcase and it's contents. "The Brüemberg group is known for its discretion." Something about his words makes me shift uneasily.
"I'm sure there'll be a fair deal of paperwork to sign." Rip says to the man.
"Not too much, we like to cut through the red tape here." the man says and I glance at Sara who is carefully studying the man. "Let me get this to one of our safe deposit boxes and I'll get my secretary to move in on this paperwork." The man says and with that he leaves the room.
The second the man is out of sight Rip sits down at the computer and begins typing away.
"Interesting, there are records here referring to something called the 'vessel'" Rip says focused on the screen, yet I can't shake the feeling that something isn't right.
"Something doesn't feel right." I murmur.
"Abby's right we have a problem." Sara says turning to Rip who's still typing furiously.
"Yes, I know, none of Savage's funds are in this bank." He spares us a quick glance before continuing to browse the records. "I'm working on locating this 'vessel', but I'm not sure I'll do so before our new friend returns."
"To kill us." Sara states bluntly and Rip gives her his full attention as she elaborates, "The receptionist had a silenced Beretta under her desk." Wow, even the receptionist is in on this-- I guess I misjudged the blonde. "The guards-- South African mercenaries, you can tell by the initiation burns on their necks." Sara explains before continuing, "And our new friend here has calluses on his right hand consistent with being a Kuruda-trained swordsman." Now that one doesn't surprise me, however Rip seems to be in need of more convincing.
"How do you know?" Rip asks the assassin.
"Because I have the same calluses, which means they've probably figured out that we are not Rockefellers who just came into their inheritance." Sara tells Rip.
"Oh, don't be so alarmist." Rip says focused back on the computer screen. "Calluses are hardly definitive proof of anything."
"Pretty sure they made us." Sara says and I turn around slowly to see all the bank employees facing us ready for a fight.
"This should be fun." I mutter as Rip walks in front of us.
"Well, if this is how you treat your customers, we might just have to take our business elsewhere." The former time master speaks calmly as Sara storms forward launching a knife right into the blonde receptionist. "I thought I specifically said no weapons." Rip scolds Sara.
"You can thank me later." Sara says patting his shoulder and I charge forward at a-- according to Sara-- South African mercenary. He goes to swing at me but I crouch down sweeping his legs out from under him. When he hits the ground I kick him in the side of the head before looking around for another opponent. I look over to see Sara about to kill the gray haired man, I recognize the look on her face as she holds a sword to his neck. I can't let Sara fall victim to her bloodlust, not again.
I run forward allowing my eyes to shift to blue as I yank Sara off of the man and she faces me, bloodlust still burning in her eyes. She goes to slash me but I grab her wrist forcing her blade to a halt.
"Sara, snap out of it." I state firmly in a desperate attempt to get the assassin back to reality. It takes a second, but fortunately the blonde snaps back to reality. But when she does her eyes go wide at the realization of what she almost did. I hear the man laugh from behind us and I turn around to find him still laying on the ground sporting a cocky grin.
"Shut it." I say kicking him in the side of the head knocking him out.
~~~
I walk alongside Rip who is chasing after a speeding Sara.
"What the hell happened back there?" Rip questions harshly.
"Rip." I whisper a warning to the captain, knowing exactly what's wrong with the blonde assassin.
"You know I'm a killer, that's why you put me in your little group." Sara says continuing to rush down the hall of the Waverider.
"I didn't witness just a killer at work, Sara-- what I saw was an animal." Rip states sharply clearly not heeding my warning.
"Rip, shut up." I tell him, but it's too late Sara turns around hurt evident in her voice.
"You are the last person on this ship to judge anyone!" She exclaims her voice wavering before she continues down the hall.
"This is not judgement Sara, it is concern." Rip continues to push and I watch as Sara pauses at the doorway before turning to face us. I bite my lip anxiously as Sara speaks,
"I thought you knew how I was resurrected and-- and what it did to me."
"I know you were restored by something called the Lazarus Pit." Rip says.
"Well, apparently there's a downside to being brought back to life." she starts and I look at her sympathetically knowing what she's going to say next. "My friend Thea calls it a bloodlust, and I think that's being too generous, and so is calling me an animal." Sara says tears glazing over her blue eyes. "I'm a monster."
"Sara." I call out after her as she storms off leaving Rip speechless, I turn to him sending him a glare. "I told you to shut up." And with that I chase after Sara.
I hurry through the halls of the Waverider to Sara's room, and I stand in the doorway knocking lightly on the frame. I see Sara look up from where she had her head in her hands before responding,
"Now's not the time Abby." she says putting her head back in her hands and I just ignore her sitting beside her on the edge of her bed.
"Sara, you're not a monster."
"How can you say that Abby when I almost killed you?" I look at her sympathetically as she doesn't even lift her head up.
"Almost doesn't count, you stopped yourself and a monster wouldn't do that." I state simply. "Sara a monster wouldn't be sitting here, beating themselves up for losing control and hurting people-- in fact I think they'd be laughing about it, maybe even drinking in celebration."
"You saw what I was like when they brought me back to life." Sara looks up at me and I think back to that traumatizing day.
~~~
I had been in my dorm room studying for an upcoming test, when I got a call from Laurel. I found it odd seeing as we haven't talked since the day I left for school.
"Abby, I need your help." Laurel said and I immediately closed my book standing up from my desk.
"With what?" I asked nervously.
"Bringing Sara back to life."
I remember digging up Sara's grave with Laurel and Thea, and the silent trip to Nanda Parbat. The stress of lowering Sara's body into the Lazarus pit ignoring Nyssa's desperate protests. I think of the anxiety while waiting for Sara to come out of the bubbling water, but then I remember the horror when she did, when it did. Whatever that was wasn't Sara, it wasn't Sara for a long time until Constantine restored her soul.
~~~
"Sara, what came out of the pit wasn't you, it wasn't you until Constantine restored your soul."
"Abby, it fought like me and spoke like me."
"It didn't think like you though-- in fact, it didn't think at all." I say seriously. "Which proves my point-- that thing was a monster, but Sara Lance is not." Sara looks up at me and nods slightly. I go to hug her and I feel her flinch slightly before hugging me back. I pull away seeing the assassin crack a smile and I look at her puzzled by her sudden change of mood.
"Look who's playing the sister role now." she says and I laugh lightly.
"Figured it was about time I returned the favour." I remark as I hop onto my feet. "Now come on, I think Rip needs our help interrogating a certain swordsman." I say with a bit too much pep.
"God, you've spent too much time around Ray." Sara says shaking her head as she follows me out the door.