Mia Smoak-Queen, William Clayton-Queen, Connor Hawke and Zoe Ramirez, our fta (OTA 2.0 if you will) deserved better. The potential spinoff should have always focused on them so on one hand I’m glad I don’t have to sit through Green Arrow and the Canaries....that being said imma miss the potential we had with these beautiful fresh faced characters.
On another note I’m pissed because Arrow really helped semi butcher it’s own ending to cater for a spin-off that never picked off. Arrow really could have done with a two part finale instead of a back door pilot. Also...William is just forever kidnapped I guess🤷🏻♀️
Request by @xiaolinweretiger : This comes in story, headcanon, or "If You" form: "Being from the Earth of Brandon Ruth's Superman and ending up on the Earth of Supergirl/with the Legends, where you join them. But you're also dealing with knowing about the upcoming Crisis."
A/n: The crisis is coming! Are you all ready? I’m not. I added my own twist to this request.
Warning: ...
Word Count: 2121
You and most of the League were in the watchtower. A wave of red absorbed and destroyed everything in its path, it was heading closer and closer to Earth. You and the League tried coming up with a plan but so far no use.
The Sector House Alpha, home to the Green Lantern Corps, went offline 10 months ago. Starhaven, Colu, Naltor, and Argo City followed after. Considering that they were light years away this wave was going fast.
When the wave hit you were with Clark in Metropolis to help him with Darkseid when he solar flared. Darkseid in search for his “Anti-Life Equation” has found it but was vaporized 30 city blocks away. You opened a portal to another dimension. Clark watched in horror as his city began to vaporize, they had screamed for Superman to save them but he couldn’t save everyone.
Superman started to gesture and cry for people around him to enter the portal.
“Watchtower to citizens of Earth. We can’t save the Earth but we will do everything to save you.”
“Glitch to Watchtower. I’m trying to make portals around the world. Get to your respective cities and get citizens there!”
As the member of the Justice League you made an oath to put your life in danger to save Earth. J’onn had wisely advised not to create a portal for the whole Earth, but with not many options left you had to. Your hands shook violently, blood percolated from you nose and you could taste the iron from it as you pushed further into your powers.
“Hope is the light that will lift us out of darkness!” Superman said to remind himself.
He closed his eyes and like a beacon of hope he felt his strength regain. A gust of wind flew past you. Clark sped around the remaining Earth and helped people get to portals.
You were losing energy and fast you could feel some portals dying and evaporating, taking your power with it. You pushed past your limits and collapsed onto the floor, all the portals you had started to disappear.
Clark flew back to your location before taking an inter dimensional extrapolator from his suit and portals himself and you to another planet.
“Put the girl down! Put your hands above your head!” Agents surrounded you and Clark.
He wasn’t afraid of getting hurt but your were a lot more vulnerable than you ever were having just solar flared, at least your version of it
“I mean no harm. My Earth has been destroyed, we were saving the Earth with portals, (Y/n)’s portals when she collapsed.”
“Alex! I heard the alarm is everything okay?” Kara flew in from the D.E.O balcony and spotted Clark! “Ray!”
“Kara! You’re alive!” He stood up and hugged the Girl of Steel.
“Yeah, I’m alive. And you’re Superman!”
“Oh well actually I’ve been Superman for quite a while. Does your Superman go by Ray? I’m Clark.
“Uh well our Superman is off world at the moment, but I have a friend named Ray and he looks just like you.”
Alex coughed to bring back the two super’s attention.
“Right, this is my sister Alex.
“Nice to meet you. This is...”
“(Y/n)!” Kara kneeled beside you. “She’s from the planet Ieilen (ieilen). Their planet shifts so much that it’s citizens developed powers to make sure they stay on their planet. And when she’s off her world, her Ieilen body structure glitches out making it hard for her to stay in one place. She was my best friend when I would visit her planet.
“So how is she here now?” Alex asked.
“She’s here because of you, well a version of you. You made her a chip to help stabilize her when she ended up on my Earth. She was able to concentrate her powers to teleport objects, people and herself and create portals for inter dimensional travels.”
“What happened for her to be like this?” Kara asked from concern.
“There was this wave of red the vaporized our whole universe. She was able portal some people into a different dimension. We don’t know who made it and who didn’t. She collapsed, solar flared, all the portals disappeared and I brought her here with the device Cisco gave me.
The D.E.O was packed with heroes from Earth-one from team flash, present team arrow, future team arrow, the bats, and the legends. Oliver and Barry were giving information on the incoming crisis. You were in the MedBay when you started to glitch.
“Director Danvers, we have a code blue.” Alex immediately ran into the MedBay.
“Supergirl don’t let anyone in!”
“What’s a code blue,” Mick grumbled while Zari smacked him.
Kara grabbed Clark’s arm to prevent him from entering the MedBay
“I have to see if she’s okay.”
“I can’t let you cuz. She’s in good hands with Alex. If she says not to let anyone in, you don’t get to go in. You are more than welcome to fight me.”
“Kar! Get Caitlin! Lena too!
Team flashed look at Frost before she rolled her eyes and sighed. “I’ll get Caity.” Her silver hair dissolved into brunette as her blue lips reverted back to its pinkish color.
Caitlyn ran up the stairs from the control center to the MedBay as Lena exited Alex’s lab. Lena froze in the entrance of the MedBay as a pinkish-purple portal like thing flickered towards an unknown place before it disappeared.
“She’s in respiratory distress and her temperature is spiking. Her heart rate is faster than normal.”
You began to convulse and a whole commotion was heard from the D.E.O as a pinkish-purple portal opened on a highway with a car skidding towards the portal.
“Barry! A little help here!” Cisco called as he braced himself against the control panel.
Barry does the family out of the car as Nate steeled up and both Supers stood in front of the portal. Before the car could slide through, the portal closed as Frost lowered your temperature. The back end of the car hit Kara and Clark as it stopped in place.
“What the heck was that?” Connor asked as he stared at the backend of the car.
“My guess, our little friend upstairs is the cause.” Kate Kane pointed.
The same portal opened twice before portals emerged in its wake, throughout the whole D.E.O. Agents and heroes alike took cover as objects flew through portals and energy zapped in between them. You continued to glitch, tremor and convulse before Lena mentioned you potassium levels and Alex ran to get the injection, that subdued you.Slowly but surely the portals began to disappear as the D.E.O began to quiet down.
“Dang, that girl can give Sara a run for her money.” Ava said as she dusted off her pants suit.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Sara got defensive.
“You destroy everything you touch.”
“I do not,” Sara balanced herself on an office chair and it broke apart. “To be fair most of the stuff I break, is you landing on furniture.” Sara argued as Ava blushed.
“Sara,” Ava said through gritted teeth. “I meant any mission you and the Legends go on, end up in a disaster. Like this,” Ava gestures around the D.E.O.
“I’m glad I’m not them,” Kate smiled.
“You went back to Gotham for a woman who is married.” Luke commented.
“Luke!”
“Does this happen every year?” Mia asked her father.
“Yeah, around every December.” Kara smiled.
“Immortal tyrants, aliens, Nazis, a change in reality. You would think you would get used to it by now.” Diggle crosses his arms
“Yes but this crisis is the worst of the worst. The multiverse will crumble, all life will cease to exist.” Oliver said. “Laurel lost her Earth, Clark and Glitch lost theirs.”
“Her name is (Y/n),” Clark interrupted.
“The point is that these are the only Earth’s we know to have disappeared. More could’ve disappeared and as each second passes another Earth can be gone.” Oliver continued.
“How do we fight something that can wipe us all out?” Nia asked.
“It’s not like we can punch our way through the antimatter,” William agreed.
“We can’t but if we can defeat the man behind it, the Anti-Monitor” Barry started.
“Then we can defeat this crisis.” Kara finished.
“Anyone good with a computer, find a way how to track this Anti-Monitor,” Alex said from the stairs.
“Everyone else, suit up and work with people you don’t normally fight with to know their skills and how your abilities can improve each others” Oliver commanded.
“Alright team! Let’s save the multiverse!” Sara clapped as the heroes began to disperse into locker rooms and training rooms.
The whole day was spent training, and surprisingly you were paired with Sara, Nia and Conner when you woke up. Team Genius were able to track bits and pieces of the Anti-Monitor. And now Barry, Oliver, Sara, Kara and Kate were coming up with a plan, a plan that wouldn’t necessarily be a win, but was a plan that could get them answers.
No matter how much you had trained you were not ready to face this enemy. Your breathing stiffened, there was obvious tension in your shoulders, and if that was no indication the scowl on your face did.
The plan was already in place, left and right heroes were ready for battle. You took the perfect opportunity to escape the room, which didn’t do unnoticed by Clark.
“(Y/n)?” Clark had followed you.
“Clark,” your voice fell to a whisper of regret. “I can’t go out there again.”
“Your powers aren’t back?”
“They’re fine. I can’t go out there knowing what I know. I ...” you paused to retain your composure. “I couldn’t save our Earth, how can I save the multiverse?”
Clark knew what to say, but he knew you needed a new voice to hear. You hadn’t even knew he left until two female voices entered the room.
“Okay I heard someone was having performance issues!” Sara clapped.
“That’s how you’re going to start that?” Kara asked with her hands on her hips.
“I run a ship full of children. I know what I’m doing.”
Kara rolled her eyes before she wrapped her arms around you. The moment she did the tears began and didn’t stop. You remembered the way your Kara had wrapped her arms around you, all the memories you shared. Unlike the rest of the League you pulled away and isolated yourself when the person you loved had sacrificed herself to save the world, only to have it fall in your hands. Now having scene her again, you wished it could go back to how things were before. But they wouldn’t because this was not your Earth, nor was it your Kara.
~Time Skip cause I can’t write the Crisis Part~
The multiverse was saved. Oliver, Barry and Clark were gone. Many had followed and life would never be the same again. Vanished Earths would not be repaired and you didn’t have a home. You were watching the city when Sara approached you again.
“Hey, there’s an extra room on the ship if you want to join.”
“I wouldn’t want to-“
“I insist. I could use someone like you on the ship.” Sara saw you hesitate and knew you were dealing with a loss greater than hers. “You’re not letting them down, you’re continuing their legacy. Your Earth, your team, your family, your friends and your Kara live inside you. You keep their legacy going. And we would too, you’re a legend now.” Sara smirked. “We’re making our final goodbyes. We will meet you back on the ship.”
You said your short goodbyes with Kara being the last one.
“On your Earth we were something more than friends right?”
You smiled and nodded.
“That’s why you were willing to lay down your life for me. What happened?” Kara asked.
“She is a hero.”
“And now you’re joining the Legends.”
“I have you to thank.” A comfortable silence came to the both of you before you built up the courage to ask. “Kara, I know it’s not the same but can I kiss you?”
The two of you shared a slow kiss, you didn’t want to pull away, it felt as if the moment you would you would be different. When you did pull away your forehead lingered on hers.
“Ask Lena out, you never know when it’s gonna end.”
“Goodbye Kara.”
You entered the Waverider with Sara smirking at you.
What an emotional episode Arrow gave us with 8x04 and we are here to break it down and discuss our most favorite bits (and there's a little ranting because, come on, it's US) and mostly, we thought it was a great episode (though it might have been better had they included more Felicity into it, just sayin').
Worlds collide as the future Team Arrow are brought into the present. All of the team members wrestle with what happened in the future and whether it can be changed as Oliver seeks to know his kids, now adults, in the knowledge that he was not there for them due to his death.
Oliver, Mia, and William
The opening scene is heart-breaking as everyone is in various states of shock. As William hugs Oliver and he recognizes his children, a broken up version of the slow Arrow theme plays in the piano. This is played in many intimate, emotional moments for Oliver, but to have it play three notes at a time emphasizes the shock and depth that this goes. As they all try to make sense of it all, a theme plays, originally from 7x10 in guitar harmonics over high strings and a synth shimmer. This theme was used three times in the future for regrets by the older members (Dinah, Rene, Felicity) and how they disappointed or failed each other and the kids. Dinah reminding Rene that they had promised to be there for each other, Zoe asking Rene what happened to the hero she remembers, and most importantly, Felicity admitting to William that they made a mistake that she will always regret in not bringing him back home (7x21). All the emotions of regret, loss, abandonment are present for the kids as Zoe just had died, Mia and William are seeing their dead father, and Connor is trying to connect with a Dad who doesn’t know who he is. Oliver tells the team that they had a daughter named Mia and that these are his kids. It is a theme of mistakes and a call to second chances. Future electronics play as the Future Team Arrow realize that they are in the past.
Oliver takes the kids to the old apartment only to find out that William and Mia never grew up together. As he hears this, violins play the opening part of “Everyone Left” (5x02). This theme was also used in 7x22 as Felicity, William and Mia were looking at Oliver’s gravestone before Felicity leaves. Mia grew up without a father and William never saw again after he left at age 13. For Oliver to hear that the sacrifice he has been making and will make results in this separation breaks his heart and Mia is not willing to forgive him easily for abandoning them. For in this case, it was Oliver who left. After Mia goes to her room, Oliver plans on calling Felicity with guitar harmonics play a new melody as William warns that they should figure out what is going on with their time travel situation. Oliver reconnects with William as he shares that he is a tech mogul and comes out while strings play underneath, turning to a happier major resolution with Oliver’s response to William’s coming out. The guitar harmonics play again as William promises that Mia will come around, hinting at how similar she is to Oliver. What I love about the new melody is that it uses one of Oliver’s instruments and the opening two notes of “Big Mistake,” their melody throughout the series when William is a kid. It makes sense that they would have a new one with William as an adult but beginning the same. This melody returns later in the episode as William tells Oliver that he needs to push harder with Mia and that he wished Oliver had done the same when he chose to live with this grandparents. He wanted him to try harder.
Mia had her own moments with Oliver including letting out all her feelings about how he abandoned her to be a hero as he stood in her way to prevent her from going by herself to check out information while impatient and emotional. Guitar harmonics play a repeated upward 4-note pattern “Everyone Left” (5x02) (used throughout the seasons, often in strings, guitar, harp) over strings and the scene is punctuated with toms (drums) to add tension to the scene especially as she threatens to fight him. The strings play his slow Arrow theme as she leaves and he is left hurt and frustrated.
Later on, Oliver and Mia fight side by side against Grant Wilson and some of his Deathstroke gang. As they do so, Mia’s Blackstar theme plays in the violins and electric guitar (7x08). In the end, Oliver stops her from killing Grant as violins and the drums (toms) accompany the scene. Again, the drum punctuation help to emphasize and heighten the tension as Oliver stood in front of Mia’s arrow, stopping her from killing. The ascending violin pattern begins with the first two thirds that is in the melody in 7x16 when Felicity reunited with William and Mia. The order is different and it continues up but I love the possibility that the tension that Mia has with both her parents being vigilantes and choosing heroism over her family (and her) comes to a head in a new way with a similar theme. In 7x16 she refused to join Felicity’s crusade to save Star City, still angry with her mom, and here she is thwarted in vengeance for Zoe by her father that she never knew. But Oliver is able to reach her and to stop her from following through, to become more of a hero.
Later on, Oliver shows Mia his father’s grave, bringing it all full circle to unknown fathers and how to live with guilt. The slow Arrow theme returns in strings with harp playing the pattern the guitar harmonics played earlier in their fighting scene as she asks whether the guilt will go away. Horn (used for heroism) plays the first half of the Arrow theme as Oliver answers that he can help her deal with it even though it never fully leaves.
The Rest of the Team
Throughout the episode, different motifs and soundscapes return with returning characters or important interactions starting with the electronic descending Deathstroke motif “Deathstroke” (1x05) once the Deathstroke mask is shown after the bomb in the hospital.
Curtis returns to the lair and team with his electronic motif: two alternating notes that reminded me of a T-sphere “New Tech” (4x03). Oliver asked Curtis to help find a way to stop a god (the Monitor) as hammered dulcimer (one of Oliver’s instruments) plays in unison with harp. It’s a cool little theme that may return later as things unfold trying to stop the Monitor.
The future Team Arrow try to stop the Deathstroke gang and end up in a trap. After they were rescued, they share the horrible news of everything that happens in the future, such as JJ being a leader of the Deathstrokes. As Connor shares this to John, a repeated electronic noise (almost like a chirp) plays over strings but stops as Williams tells them how horrible Star City becomes and what happens to Zoe. Drum rolls and percussion begin as Rene hears this news. The drums continue over harp for tension (in a similar way that it did for Oliver and Mia) as Rene and John are in shock and yell at each other about hearing what happens to their kids, while John suggests that maybe they can change things now. Connor follows John and shares that he believes that he stole their love from JJ and that it is his fault while piano and strings play (the same instrumentation used for Diggle and his brother Andy in Season 4). Diggle’s horn motif plays as he tells Connor that all he has done is lie to him and leaves. He doesn’t know Connor and he just heard that his son becomes a murderer, following in the path of his brother.
Rene and Dinah try to process what will happen to Zoe as current Zoe is present joking about ice cream. While Rene asks Dinah how he is supposed to deal with knowing how long she will live, “Rene’s Loss” (5x13) plays. This theme was used for their separation in Season 5 with foster care and most recently, Zoe’s death. Dinah then talks to John about his family as he shares that he blames himself in seeing family patterns repeated as horn (one of his main instruments) plays. Dinah tells him that they have seen their worst and now to be their best.
At the end, Diggle reaches out to Connor, telling him that he is part of his family while the Diggle theme plays in the piano, a lovely combination of family instrument with his honorable hero theme (usually in electric bass or horn). Rene gives a speech to the Glades “We make our future now” with strings, harp and higher electronics and horn is added while watching the Diggle boys spar.
The episode ends with a return of the Monitor and his themes (solo violin, choir, string theme) as he tempts Laurel to betray Oliver in order to have her world returned.
Extra Notes:
- I probably rewatched the opening scene a million times before I could actually pay attention to the music. I kept being distracted by all the emotions.
- Today happens to be the last day of filming for Arrow. It’s a bit surreal to look back at the journey of these characters and for myself immersing myself into the music for over 4 seasons. Thanks to all who continue to read these and for those who are newer starting to enjoy them.
