Author: Harper Kingsley
Series: Heroes & Villains trilogy (Heroes & Villains, Allies & Enemies, All That Remains)
Genre: superhero, science fiction, action, mm
Rating: Teen+ (violence, language)
Summary: Vereint Georges has spent his entire life dreaming of being a superhero and making a difference in the lives of the people around him. Unfortunately, his first venture into heroing doesn't go quite the way he plans and he earns himself an undeserved reputation for incompetence. From there, the recriminations start rolling in.
Is it any wonder that he might just chuck all the good and go for the bad? Because if people are going to treat him like he's crap, why should he go out of his way to save their lives? It's a lot easier being rich.
Read: Chapter Six
CHAPTER SIX
Warrick wasn't quite sure how he had ended up in this situation, but he had a feeling it might possibly be karma from some crimes he had committed so far in his past he didn't even remember them. He'd probably cooked and eaten babies or something, 'cause that's the only thing he could see as being bad enough to make him deserve this hell.
He was sitting on a dilapidated couch in an abandoned building with a supervillain lounging on an old mattress in the corner. "This is definitely not how I expected to spend my day," he said.
Darkstar was amazingly young and good looking for someone that had decided to devote his life to evil. He was lying on his back with his arms folded behind his head, not even the overlarge and unattractive clothing able to detract from his superhuman beauty.
More than anything, Warrick wanted to hit the guy. There was no way anyone should be that good looking without even having to try.
"I'm sorry the accommodations couldn't be more up to your exacting standards, but really, this whole situation was just kind of thrust upon me." Darkstar said. "I was in the bank to do normal bank stuff. It's just that the minute I was recognized, it all of a sudden became the scene of my crime, even though I was just a hapless bystander."
"Wow, you get all talky when you don't know what the hell you're doing, don't you?" Warrick sniped.
He was half-tempted just to leave, but he knew he couldn't break his word. There was no way that Darkstar was going anywhere, and he really didn't want some future situation where he would really need some trust and goodwill from the supervillain, only not to have it because he threw it away just because he could.
"So I didn't have time to plan this all out, that just goes to show that I wasn't really doing anything wrong in the bank until the cops decided I was a criminal just for being there," Darkstar said.
"You are a criminal. Sure, you weren't doing anything this time, but what about all the times before? They saw you there, and you're a wanted criminal. Of course they were going to call the League to get you," Warrick said.
Darkstar growled in frustration. "If I'm always a criminal, then how come I don't get more trouble when I'm going around my daily business?"
"Because you're also an Omega-class metahuman and most cops are just normals. Still, if they see you using your powers and they for sure know you're you, of course they're going to come after you."
"That's stupid," Darkstar said. "And by the way, I have never been convicted of any crime. In fact, I have never been arrested in my entire life. I even pay all my parking tickets."
"Which makes you the most model citizen in the world, ever," Warrick said sarcastically.
Darkstar huffed loudly. "God, but you're kind of fucking annoying, you know?"
"You're the one that brought me here," Warrick pointed out. "If it were up to me, I would definitely not be caught dead in a dump like this."
Darkstar sat up, looking around. "I don't know. This place is really not that bad, considering I don't have to pay rent on it or anything."
"And how can you lie on that mattress? It's filthy. And probably loaded with hobo urine." He hadn't been able to help that last. It had just kind of slipped through on him.
Darkstar looked at him in shock for a moment, then gave a surprised laugh. "I always thought you had a complete stick up your ass, but you're actually pretty funny."
"Uh, thank you?" Warrick said.
Darkstar laughed again, a strangely bright sound. "You're welcome. And now that I've had time to think about it, I've figured out what we're going to do for your visit here."
"Oh yeah, and what's that?" Warrick asked, trying not to be nervous.
"We're just going to hang out for awhile, get to know each other," Darkstar said, wrapping his arms around his knees.
"And why would we want to do that?" Warrick asked.
"Simple," Darkstar said. "We've never had a very good relationship. But now that we're going to be arch-nemesises, nemesi, well, best-enemies forever, we need to get to know each other better. Because there's no reason we have to be so negative toward each other just because we try to kill each other all the time."
Warrick snorted. "I have never tried to kill you. It's against League rules."
"Whatever," Darkstar said. "We at least try to beat the crap out of each other on a regular basis. And if we're going to have a long-term antagonistic relationship, well, we might as well know each other a little better. Don't you think?"
"Actually, I've never really thought about it," Warrick said. "But, I don't think you're quite the guy I want to be trading recipes with. No offense or anything."
"No offense taken," Darkstar said, sounding terribly amused. "Still, we are going to get to know each other."
"Whether I like it or not?" Warrick asked, raising an eyebrow over his mask.
"Exactly," Darkstar said, laughing. "You being here against your will actually kind of adds to the thrill of it all for me. You're my newest acquisition in my rise to owning this town completely."
"You do not own Megacity," Warrick corrected. "And you certainly don't own me."
Darkstar didn't say anything, just gave him a smirk.
Warrick growled and crossed his arms, leaning back on the couch. This was starting to be one of those days that never ended.
* * *
Finding an abandoned building in the bad part of town hadn't exactly been difficult, but that really didn't help him figure out what he was going to do next.
Holding a world-known superhero hostage probably hadn't been his smartest idea, but it was all he could come up with in the few seconds he'd had to decide what he was going to do. And from there he was trapped in a situation where he didn't quite know what he was supposed to do next.
This is kind of ridiculous, he thought. Then wrinkled his nose when he realized the mattress he was lying on smelt kind of bad. Not that any diseases on it could do anything to him; his invulnerability pretty much protected him from any kind of mundane viruses or germs. He could probably sleep in a waste treatment center and not experience anything but disgust at the smell.
"So..." He rubbed his face, honestly wondering what he was going to say next. "Why have you always hated me so much?" he finally asked, turning his head to glance at the other man.
Blue Ice's lips formed a disbelieving moue. "Why the hell do you care so much?"
"Because you made my life hell and never bothered to tell me why you hated me," he said, then grimaced when he realized just how pathetic he sounded.
"What are you, a high school girl with a weight problem?" Blue Ice snorted. "You completely changed every bit of your life and became a criminal all for the sake of hurt feelings? That's the most stupid thing I have ever heard of."
"It's not dumb. And your being mean to me is not the reason why I became a supervillain," Vereint said. "I simply realized that I had been lying to myself for years when I thought that what I wanted was to be a superhero. Being a bad guy has done so much more for me, not the least being that it has made me happy, whereas being a hero was nothing but grief and misery."
"Wow. You really are a high school girl."
Vereint scowled. "You are a jerk, you know that?"
"I'm not the one holding you hostage," Blue Ice said. "I might have to stay the night here, but that doesn't mean we're suddenly going to become best friends forever."
"If you feel like that, then why didn't you just fly off the minute we got here? Or when I went to find the couch and mattress?" he demanded, hating how petulant he sounded.
"Easy," Blue Ice said, "I'm smart enough to admit the fact that you have a superior power level. It wouldn't be very hard for you at all to go on a killing spree and destroy large chunks of the city. We both know that the only thing keeping you from complete anarchy is some semblance of right and wrong."
"Plus, blood is icky," Vereint quipped, smirking a little at the nasty look Blue Ice gave him.
"Yeah, whatever. But that sense of right and wrong isn't anything I want to mess with. I would rather you had some kind of sense of honor, so you don't completely lose your mind at some point in the future."
"Are you always this honest with the other supervillains you Leaguers go up against?" Vereint asked.
"No. But all the times I've talked to you have pretty much given me the idea that other than your stupid idea to be a supervillain, you're not that much of a threat to the city at large."
"True," Vereint said. "It's still nice to hear that you don't think I'm a complete monster or anything. And I've never really had that much of a taste for mayhem and madness and orphans crying in the street. That kind of stuff is always so depressing."
"Uh huh," Blue Ice said, crossing his arms. "And now, just because you have me here, that doesn't mean we're suddenly going to be friends. I still think that you're too wishy-washy for reality."
"Wishy-washy? How so?" Vereint asked, feeling a bit offended.
"Please. You wanted to join the League of Superheroes, then the minute you thought you weren't going to make it, you did a complete one-eighty and decided to make yourself the biggest douche villain in the city. That's not exactly the kind of thing that would ever make me want to respect you."
"Look, my being a supervillain has nothing to do with you!" Vereint yelled, then more reasonably, "I just woke up one day and realized that rather than being a second-class hero..."
"Third-class," Blue Ice interjected.
"I would rather be a first-class villain," Vereint continued. "Besides, I wasn't having that good of a time at my regular job. When some middle-management dil-hole thinks that he can make me do his shit work, that's when I say goodbye to all that and find something else do to."
"So this is basically your midlife crisis?" Blue Ice asked doubtfully.
"No! I simply came to the realization that I was wasting the gifts I was born with. There are tons of superheroes in the world to protect all the people, so I'm not really needed for that. And just because I have powers doesn't mean I have to use them to take care of a bunch of ungrateful people that would rather see me as a joke than a savior, even when I'm saving them," Vereint said. "And FYI, I'm not even thirty yet. So how could my becoming a supervillain be any kind of midlife crisis? Please." He rolled his eyes.
Blue Ice made sounds of disbelief, but seemed to have given up the argument.
Vereint smirked a little to himself. It was dumb, but he was going to take that as a sign of victory.
* * *
The couch was fairly lumpy and uncomfortable and more than anything he wanted to be back in his penthouse apartment, lounging on his king-sized bed with the astronomically high thread counted sheets cradling his sleepy body. This little sojourn in misery was going to make him more grateful for all that he had.
He turned his head to look at the mattress Darkstar was sleeping on so peacefully.
In the dimness, he could just make out the outline of Darkstar's body, his face illuminated by a slash of brighter light.
His skin was perfect and unbroken, his vibrant eyes closed, but not taking away from his perfect beauty. He was almost sickeningly good-looking, no single flaw in his appearance and the sprawl of his body unconsciously sensual. The man didn't even snore; his breath puffing smoothly from between his lips.
Warrick blew out his breath and crossed his arms tight across his chest in discontent. It was unfair that he was having such a hard time getting to sleep while Darkstar had just kind of fallen off the minute he'd laid down.
He stared up at the ceiling, wondering what he was really doing here.
If Darkstar hadn't been such a monster in the power department, he might have tried to take the guy on while he was passed out, but he knew that would be a bad move. The guy would wake up, get all enraged, then Warrick would just be a smear on the wall. Or less.
It was kind of frustrating to be an Alpha-class metahuman and to know that he was so unbelievably outclassed by someone.
The fact that the guy didn't even take it seriously just made it worse. Though it was kind of nice to almost have proof that Darkstar wasn't crazy enough to just go on a murderous rampage or something.
There was nothing like having someone that theoretically had the power to destroy the world be completely insane. So it was a relief to know the guy wasn't about to completely nut out any time soon.
It was kind of scary to think that someone might steal Darkstar's parking space, and the guy would just completely lose it and vaporize a huge chunk of the city. That anyone could have that amount of power, and be a real bad guy...
Warrick shivered a little.
Darkstar looked so peaceful in the dimness, nothing of the monster inside showing. He was just an amazingly handsome man, his beauty enough to take the breath away. It was hard to believe that he had risen to power in Megacity, becoming one of the most powerful and well-known villains.
Thinking about it, the guy had become one of Warrick's biggest regrets. Maybe if he had been nicer to him, things would have been completely different. They might have realized a connection, become friends, fought to save the world together.
But there was nothing to be done about it now.
Darkstar was a supervillain. Blue Ice was a superhero. And even if they could rest peacefully in the dark, that really didn't change anything. They were on opposite sides and when this momentary peace was over, they would go back to trying to beat the crap out of each other.
And Warrick would just be grateful that for some reason Darkstar had decided not to kill him.
He sighed deeply and forced his eyes to close. He didn't think he was going to be able to sleep tonight, but he would pretend in the hopes that it would somehow happen.
They had a strange breakfast of bagels with cream cheese, orange juice sipped out of Styrofoam cups, and stilted conversation. It felt somewhat like an awkward morning after.
"So..." Darkstar pulled a chunk off the lip of his empty cup. "What are you going to tell the rest of the League?"
"What do you mean?" Warrick asked.
"Well, are you going to say what really happen, or are you going to lie and say I abused you and starved you and did all the things they probably think I'm doing to you right now?"
Warrick rolled his eyes. "I'll tell them the truth. They might think I'm lying, but I'll tell them the complete and utter truth."
Darkstar looked at him for a long moment, then suddenly grinned, his teeth almost blindingly white. "All right then. You should finish up and I'll drop you off."
"I can go myself."
"I know. But I said I would deliver you to your headquarters and that's exactly what I'll do," Darkstar said. "Besides, if I just let you go by yourself and something terrible happened to you on the way there, they'd probably blame me."
"Huh." Warrick popped the last bit of bagel into his mouth. He hadn't asked where Darkstar had gotten breakfast from, though he'd seriously wondered what was going on when the guy had flashed off to return less than five minutes later wearing different clothes and carrying a plastic shopping bag.
The thought that the supervillain was out wandering around dressed as Joe Normal was actually a little strange. And somehow exciting.
Warrick decided that he wasn't going to question his motivations when dealing with Darkstar. It was better not to borrow trouble without a fairly good reason.
He glanced across the room at Darkstar casually leaning against the wall, civilly picking apart his Styrofoam cup. His eyes were half-lidded as he gazed off into the distance, not really looking at anything.
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