[center][b][color=red][sup][h1]A R S E N A L[/h1][/sup][/color][/b][/center]
[COLOR=red][INDENT][B][SUP][SUB][H3]Star City, California[/H3][/SUB][/SUP][/B][/INDENT][hr][/COLOR][INDENT][INDENT][sup][color=darkgray]January 1[sup]st[/sup], 2052  |  10:00am |  Queen Mansion[/color][/sup][/INDENT][/INDENT]


Roy Harper, awoke to the sound of his alarm, groggily looking over to the clock on the right side of his bed. Instinctively, he reached for the snooze button, but found himself unable to press it at first. The scarred stump poked out from beneath the comforter, and the scarlet archer gave a small sigh. He propped himself up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, pushing past the fog of sleep as he turned the alarm off with his left hand. On his feet, Roy was a rather imposing figure. He stood at 6’ exactly, and remained in near peak physical performance. He slowly made his way to the bathroom to shower, shit, and shave.

Everything seemed a little more difficult once you lost a significant part of yourself, but you learn to adapt. Roy was a testament to that. With the same ease as someone with twice the number of working arms, he was able to complete the most basic tasks of the day. After a quick application of aftershave, Roy made his way to his closet. He chose a simple outfit: A matching Red and Black sweatshirt and sweatpants, a white t-shirt, and fuzzy slippers with a Superman logo on them. The last of these was a Christmas gift from the apple of his eye, a traditional “jab” of a gift to remind him that he was a man with a bow and not a man of steel.

Arsenal shuffled his way out of his room, and was not surprised to find no one else stirring in the house. Stanley Wilson, the butler of the Queen family, was forced to take the day off by Oliver himself. And so it was only Roy stirring in the house. Well, except for the Tabby Cat with tiny reindeer antlers on its head that brushed up against Roy’s leg. The Tabby was the gift he had gotten Lian for her birthday earlier in the year, and she was awful with names. Roy scooped up Dragon and let the cat rub its face against his as he made his way down the grand staircase of the Queen Mansion and to his study.

Roy’s study was one of two in the mansion, the other belonging to Oliver himself. Both were outfitted similarly, though Roy’s was only a story tall. A bookcase covered the entire wall opposite the door, and contained everything from the translated [i]Art of War[/i] to [i]Art of the Grill[/i]. Roy made his way over to one specific, unremarkable book on his shelves, an old copy of [i]Moby Dick[/i]. He placed his thumb on the spine and lowered his head, causing a red laser to scan over his left eye. After a couple seconds, the bookcase began shifting and revealed the stereotypical hidden compartment, namely a walk-in armory. Various guns, swords, explosives, and other weapons lined the wall, the small room being entirely lit with the white panels that lined the floor, walls, and ceiling. On the far side was his costume, the red and black sleeveless kevlar jumpsuit he had worn for years. No reminiscing smile graced his lips as Roy looked over the arsenal before him. He simply liked to check to make sure everything was still in place, since he was far too familiar with heroes having their equipment stolen and used against them. To Roy’s pleasure, the arsenal remained intact, and he exited the room.

For an hour and a half, whilst everyone remained asleep, Roy simply exercised in the indoor gymnasium. It helped to clear his mind, and he needed to work off the calories he had gained from the dinner with the rest of the Queen family the night before. Once finished, he wiped the sweat from his brow and mad this way to the kitchen. It was nearly noon, which meant Oliver and Lian would be down any minute. Roy maneuvered his way about the kitchen, assembling a simple breakfast of bacon, eggs, and toast with ease. He had just finished plating everything when he heard quick, hurried footsteps approaching. With his back turned, Roy braced himself as Lian Harper rushed towards him and tried to kick out his legs. With a deft dodge to the left, Roy swung his good arm down to catch her fist as she struck. The two went at it for a minute, Lian desperately trying to get a hit on the body of her father. In an effort to humor her, the scarlet archer missed blocking her right leg as it impacted against his side. He gave an exaggerated cry as he slowly fell to the ground. [color=red]“No, I have been defeated… AGHHHH.”[/color]

The teenager rolled her eyes at her father, making her way towards the kitchen counter to wolf down her simple brunch. She wore a sweater and black jeans, one of her usual casual outfits during winter break. The two bantered for a few minutes as they ate, talking about nothing in particular. Roy didn’t remember much of their conversation, his mind fading elsewhere. from the news he was watching as he was working out. Bangkok was in shambles, the city nearly wiped off the map by “rebel” forces. He had seen these stories far too often, and knew what it really meant. But that was not his concern at the moment. He almost missed the arrival of Oliver Queen into the kitchen, looking as sharp as ever. He was in a white shirt, tie, and black suit pants. He had always insisted on dressing up for nearly every occasion these days. Roy had just finished eating, and gave a smile as he embraced his adoptive father. [color=red]“I’m surprised you actually woke up in time, Ollie.”[/color]

[color=00a651]“Please… I’ve fought aliens in the Sahara Desert. A little hangover isn’t going to keep me down.”[/color]

The two gave a brief chuckle as Oliver broke the embrace to hug his granddaughter, who herself had finished breakfast a few minutes prior and happily hugged the old hero. Those two were incredibly close, perhaps because Lian looked up to the elderly archer for his past exploits as a member of the Justice League. Though, it was more likely because Oliver Queen treated his granddaughter like a princess and spoiled her like most grandparents tend to. Roy began clearing the dishes with his only arm as the other two began to excitedly go over their plans for the day. A movie and a trip to the mall in town was a tradition since Lian had entered their lives, but Roy often stayed behind so the two could have something for themselves. Besides, Roy had to prepare the New Years Turkey he always made, and it took quite a bit of time when working with only one good arm.

Within a few minutes, the two had made their way to the lobby already and Lian quickly put on her beanie. Roy had hung back, making himself a cup of coffee before moving to join them. The two were peas in a pod, and Roy was always worried because he ended up having to be the responsible one when they got together. And yet, he was happy that things were normal around this time of year. They could act like a family without having to worry about the war or politics. Of course, the normality could never last that long. The League always made sure of that.

A soft hum emanated from the mansion's holo-projector near the grand entryway. After a moment, the digital form of Albert Luthor manifested. He was dressed casually by his standards, in a button down shirt and tie with a violet vest. It was clear Albert hadn't slept all night by the bags under his eyes, marring his otherwise immaculate appearance. Albert seemed pleasantly surprised to see Oliver and Lian, [color=purple]"Mr. Queen, pleased to see you. We missed you at the New Year's party on the Watchtower. I hope you and your family had a wonderful time."[/color] 

Albert smiled at Lian and nodded his head courteously, [color=purple]"Ms. Harper, charmed. I've heard great things from the instructors at Titan's Academy. Perhaps they'll put you as a sidekick in one of the patrol teams soon?"[/color] 

Finally he inclined his head to Roy, [color=purple]"Roy. Good to see you. It's been too long since we've had you up here."[/color] 

Albert turned back to Oliver and Lian, [color=purple]"I hope I'm not interrupting something?"[/color]

Oliver gave a slight nod of his head, his more traditional two piece black suit fitting the older hero well. He gave a quick stroke of his signature goatee, though a bold silver that comes with age. [color=00a651]“I’m getting too old to knock back drinks with you kids, but I hope you haven’t been working through your holiday, little Luthor.”[/color] His eyebrows raised at the last remark, a sign age had not taken away the archer’s edge.

Lian, a rather lean and tall girl for her age, gave a small formal bow. While the daughter and granddaughter of Leaguers, she was far from used to interacting with those she deemed to be her idols. Her blue eyes rose to meet the projection of Albert’s, and her nervousness would be instinctively apparent despite her usual behavior. [color=f7941d]“I.. Thank you, Mr. Luthor. I doubt my father will let me see combat ever.”[/color] Her combative and arrogant demeanor began to return as she eyed up her father, who returned the gaze with a small smile.

Roy set his “World’s Greatest Dad” mug on a nearby decorative table in the lobby of the great Queen Mansion, walking over and giving his daughter a brief side hug with his remaining arm. He looked down at his daughter, a coolness in his voice as he spoke. [color=red]“You’re nearly there, kitten. But as we promised…”[/color] The father and daughter spoke the next bit simultaneously, a clear sign to even Percy that this discussion had occurred many times before. [color=red][b]“When you can get a hit on your old man with his arm on.”[/b][/color] The two smiled at each other and broke the embrace.

Oliver spoke up at this point, fetching his coat off the rack near the door. [color=f7941d]“Lian and I are going to see a movie in town, and then go shopping. It’s a bit of a tradition, so I am sorry we must leave you, Mr. Luthor.”[/color] Within a few moments, the Roy’s father and daughter exited the front door, leaving the semi-retired, one-armed Leaguer standing alone with the projected image of Albert Luthor.

Roy’s voice had more of an edge, one that was built up over years of fighting and not dulled by the presence of his family, as he addressed Albert. [color=red]“What’s so important that you’re calling me on New Years Day, Al?”[/color]

Albert nodded with a smile at Oliver Queen and winked playfully at Lian before turning back to Roy, [color=purple]"The Justice League is very concerned about the recent invasion in Thailand. Thailand isn't a signatory of our charter and the coup is superficially an internal Thai matter, but the Legion is getting more and more bold. I wanted to tell you personally that the higher-ups are going to be taking even more of an interest in the education of the Titan teams. Making sure they're ready for the threats they'll face out in the field. And that reservists like yourself are going to be on call more and more often."[/color]

Luthor continued, [color=purple]"For example. A Leaguer in New Mexico got a lead on a massive Miralco smuggling operation. Intel suggests that hundreds of civilians have already perished due to experiments they're doing with the formula and that the lab is helping distribute Miralco to mercs and thugs all over North America. We're putting together a mission to knock it out. I know you're not normally up for missions like this but many of our Leaguers are either on leave or engaged in active assignments and time is of the essence. We need to act on this intel now."[/color] It was left unsaid that Albert was a polarizing figure in the Justice League and many in the roster disliked working with him. Albert needed people who could be professional in his team and he needed them urgently.

[color=purple]"I know it's New Year's Day, but I could really use you out there Roy. You're one of our best combat operatives and this is going to be a fight."[/color]

Roy sighed, picking up the coffee as he hesitated to answer. He would have jumped on this opportunity years ago, but things were different for him now.  [color=red]"I appreciate you coming to me, Luthor...but my position is clear. I'm not an operative anymore, and the higher-ups have let me train the Titans here because they saw this coming."[/color] The archer looked to the ground for a moment before turning his gaze back towards the protection of Albert. [color=red]"I can't help you on your operation today. The New Mexico Peacekeepers are solid combatants, trained a few of them myself... I just don't think I'm ready to get into the fray again right now, Al. Besides, I'd only be able to offer you and your boys a hand, not two."[/color] Roy, with the shit-eating grin that marked his younger years, raised his stump to accentuate the point.

[color=red]"Please send me the details of the operation, and keep me updated on your progress. If things escalate and change in the future, I may be able to offer my services. But right now, Lian needs her dad to do her laundry and cook dinner. And those things take a bit more time these days."[/color]

Albert smiled grimly, nodding, he had anticipated this, [color=purple]"I understand Roy. If I was in the same position, I don't know that I would do differently. I'll send you the mission briefing and the AAR once it's done. Please give my regards to Mrs. Queen as well as Connor and his family. Mia and Emiko also."[/color]

Albert moved to stop the transmission, pausing, before saying, [color=purple]"You're a warrior Roy. You sacrificed and suffered enough, I know. You gave up the fight and if you manage to stay out of it, more power to you. But now the war's coming. And you're going to have a choice.  It's not fair. But that's the job."[/color]

Roy gave a curt nod, the smile and sarcasm fading from his expression. [color=red]"I know, Al... Happy New Year."[/color]

He smiled sadly one last time, [color=purple]"Happy New Year Roy."[/color]