Fantasy "𝙳𝚒𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚎𝚕𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚘..."

[Corvus Corax]

"Didn't know where else to go..."

Bees

Writing Prompt

The Hero shows up at the Villian's doorstep one night. They're shivering, bleeding, scared. Looking up at the Villain, swaying slightly as they're close to passing out, they mumble "...didn't know where else to go..." then collapse into the Villian's arms.

Alex

Character info goes here!

Leo

Character info goes here!

​

 

[Bees]

If Leo had more nights like this one, he’d be happier. No contracts, no plotting, no time spent skulking in a nightclub tracking a target. Just him, his cat, old pajamas, and bad reality TV.

“A good night to stay in, Jack.” He mused, glancing out the dirty window. Rain cascaded in sheets, washing city grime down storm drains clogged with plastic. He’d been out gallivanting in weather like this, chasing down some poor soul with a price on their head. Some members of his faction declined contracts based on weather alone, but Leo couldn’t justify it. What’s a little rain good for, if not inspiring more fear?

He stretched his aching legs out, wiggling his toes to help release the tension. Yes, his night off was well deserved. Were he a Scooby-Doo villain, he’d shake his fist at Alex for being - what was it? - ah, pesky. Ruining his plans time and time again. Not that he didn’t frequently do the same in return. It was well known among his peers that he had a special rivalry with Alex.

There were times when he’d thought he’d beaten her for good. All he wanted, really, was to break her will to be such a damn Goody Two Shoes. Some went as far as to kill their rivals, but that wasn’t his cup of tea anymore. It was becoming more common for heroes to retire - too much evil, they’d say, before disappearing to some private island to drown their sorrows in the bottom of a bottle.

Until they wound up dead by the hands of some young upstart with a craving for fame.

But that wasn’t Leo’s style, not recently anyway. If he was going to kill, it would only be when his opponent was at their best. Where was the joy in killing those weaker than himself? Better to break their will and watch them fade into anonymity. Unless there was a paycheck for a kill, he’d rather just… play with people.

His apathy for evil-doing was a constant concern for his handlers, but his success rate for contract completions spoke for itself. He’d do anything, really. Intimidation, robbery, assassinations - you name it. Leo had made a name for himself - Widow Maker. He wasn’t the biggest fan of being named after a heart attack, but what could one do?

His cat perked up from his lazy slumber, ears forward, pupils dilated. Leo tensed - had his safehouse been found that quickly? Christ! He reached for that familiar rift inside himself and popped silently from the comfort of his couch to behind the kitchen counter. Without thought, he grabbed the 10’ blade taped to the underside of the cool marble and listened. Oh yeah, he’d been found. There was a light scuffling outside his front door, followed by three weak knocks and a thud.

Weird… usually there would be no warning before an attack. Playing it safe was the easiest bet. ‘I really thought I wouldn’t be in the rain tonight.’ He thought, cringing internally.

Picturing the roof of his apartment building was all it took for him to be there. He was immediately soaked, but that was far from his mind. Confusion reigned - who would knock on his front door, of all things? Maybe he was being paranoid, maybe it was just a nice neighbor stopping by to ask him to change a lightbulb.

He slid stealthily to the edge of the building and peeked over. His mouth dropped open, his mind splintering into a million little fragments at the sight of the bloody heap on his doorstep.

He collected himself quickly - there was no way this was a trap. She looked as if she had been mauled by a pack of feral hogs. He dropped from the roof onto the slick concrete of his step and stood, knife still in hand.

“Alex? What the fuck happened to you?”

 

[Corvus Corax]

The night was young as rain began to fill the once peaceful air. Alex had just departed from the Hero Headquarters, on an assignment to apprehend a small group of thugs. Strangely enough, these thugs weren't affiliated with either the heroes nor the villains. Still, it was her job to prevent anything bad from happening. That's what she signed up for, after all. The life of a Hero.

There was a leader to this group, who referred to himself as 'Null'. Not much else was known, besides the location they were last spotted at - an older part of town, specifically near the rusty old Shell Gas Station, which, ironically, now read hell.

A short walk later, the gas station came into view, and Alex was able to catch sight of one of the thugs heading into an alleyway at the end of the street. The telling indicator being that this group dresses up from head to toe with some sort of mask, choosing not to expose their skin in any way. Pulling her sleeves up, Alex ran to catch up, confident in her abilities. She'd fought villains before, many times. Mostly Leo, since he'd always managed to slip right past her fingers. Then again, she did the same to him. A seemingly endless game of cat and mouse. She was determined not to let it happen with these guys, and she felt a rush of energy overcome her.

It wasn't long before she was face to face with three masked strangers. One was the apparent leader, Null, and there were two others on either side of him.

After that, her memories began to blur. If there was one thing that stood out however, it was when Alex stuck her hand out and attempted to use her Lightning. However many times she tried, nothing happened. Caught completely off guard, she was attacked, and beaten to the ground.

Sparing the details, Alex chose not to relive that moment. She rolled over onto her back in the dark alley, catching her breath for a minute as the rain continued to fall. It all happened so fast, but the group was quick to disappear into the night, like nothing happened. How could she be so blind, so stupid, to run straight into their trap. And here she was paying the price.

But Alex couldn't stay there forever. Forcing herself to her feet, the young woman carried herself through some blood, a migraine, and possible broken bones. She struggled to come up with one cohesive thought - a location, somewhere to go. The first and closest thing that came to mind was an apartment complex nearby, so that's where she went, unable to do much else at this point.

It took her what seemed like ages, which in reality was a couple minutes, until Alex found herself on a rather barren doorstep of a small apartment. Hoping to see a familiar face, she willed her arm up and knocked three times. There was an attempt to lean on the doorframe afterwards, but her balance got the best of her. There was a loud thud as her shoulder rammed into the door, and she found herself propped up against the door instead, a slight shiver to her small stature.

Alex was in no position to question why a figure fell from the roof, but it definitely happened. Alex turned her head to get a good look at this stranger, her bloody nose and swollen, dazed eyes staring back at him. It took a second for the man to come into focus, and another second for the face to register. Leo? Leo. He was talking. What was he saying?

"...didn't know where else to go..." Alex interrupted, her voice mumbled and scared, desperate to stay awake. Pushing off the door frame, she took a step back, nearly tripping over nothing. Standing there wasn't going to accomplish much, and she didn’t have long before her body gave out. Or worse.

As shaken and broken as Alex was, her instincts told her to trust her nemesis. Not a moment later, she fell unconscious for a brief moment, falling forward.

 

[Bees]

Leo ran a hand through his hair, tucking his knife into his back pocket. Welp, this was happening. He barely caught what she said as she began to fall forward. He jumped to catch her as her eyes rolled back into her head. He gave her cheek a few small slaps and grimaced. Yikes.

He took a furtive look around to see if anyone was watching. Whoever did this to her was likely not far away, it didn’t look as if she could have travelled for more than a few blocks in her state. He’d have to keep an eye out.

“Do not throw up on me, this will be disorienting.” He said, imagining his bathroom. The tile was way easier to clean than the hardwood. Plus, he wanted to get the deposit back on this apartment.

He shook his head at the sudden drain of energy as they appeared in the bathroom. Moving himself through the fabric of spacetime was one thing, but it was no small feat for him to move two people. He stood back and put his hands on his hips. Was Alex’s life really so bad that this was the only place she thought of to turn? How bleak.

The thought occurred to him, albeit briefly, that this was a dream come true for most of his colleagues. It would be too easy to slip his blade in between her ribs (his signature move) and end her. He could dump her body on the doorsteps of good ol’ Heroes Inc. and head out for some frozen yogurt or something.

He palmed his forehead. “Oh my God, that’s why they call me The Widowmaker!” Leo exclaimed. How had it taken him this long to get that?! He needed to read a book more often.

Leo returned his attention back to the heap on the ground. She was hurt, and badly. He’d take no pleasure in killing his biggest annoyance while she was barely conscious and bleeding all over the tile. No, if she was going to die by his hand, she’d need to be awake. Plus, his curiosity was overwhelming. How had this happened?

He swiped a towel off the wall and applied pressure to the most grievous wound she had. With his free hand, he rummaged under the sink to spill the contents of his med kit in front of him. He had taken a very detailed first aid course, courtesy of his bosses. It had come in handy all those times he was nursing second and third degree burns Alex inflicted upon him.

“Uh, do you want me to do this? Or are you good?” He gestured to the various supplies littered on the floor. He was wary to be as close as he was to Alex already. Her fun little lightning abilities could disrupt his ability to teleport. One of the smarter scientists at his work explained it had to do with charged ions, or something. He hadn’t been paying attention.

Leo removed the knife from his back pocket and sat back to wait for her response. Now what?

It dawned on him then that this was Very Bad. He shouldn’t be helping her. In fact, this was a fireable offense, as in they would kill him. Kill him dead. He fiddled with the blade as the cogs turned in his head. He could think of two people who wouldn’t immediately turn him over for being a traitor, but he couldn’t be absolutely sure.

Moreover, Alex probably had some friends who would come looking for her eventually. Thanks to the rain, there was a high probability any tracks she could have left would wash away. It was almost impossible, however, for nobody to have seen her drag herself to his doorstep. One way or another, everything about what was happening was bad news.

 

[Corvus Corax]

A couple of small slaps later, Alex's eyes shot open, and a groan escaped her lips. A hangover would have been way better than this. However, judging by where the group targeted her, this wasn't the group's first rodeo.

When traveling through the fabric of spacetime, disorienting was an understatement. Poor Alex, who'd never experienced it before, came out of it feeling utterly nauseous, not to mention miserable. How did Leo pull this off all the damn time? Thank God he managed to pull the two into the bathroom, because she nearly lost her last meal. Somehow, it managed to stay down, for now at least. "No promises about the puking." Alex joked, a slight grin tugging at her lips as she willed herself to stay awake.

"I'm glad you're having your epiphany, Widowmaker, but I feel like the incarnate of death itself right now." If there was one word to describe Alex, it would be sarcastic. Sarcasm was fun, and she couldn't live without a little bit of fun in her life. It made her life as a Hero exciting, and besides, she wasn't a fan of serious moments.

As Leo shuffled around the small bathroom to grab a towel, Alex shifted to a comfortable sitting position. Feeling the pressure of the towel against her wound, she grimaced slightly, but it was worth it. "I'll get you a new towel later on." She promised, feeling obligated to, as the towel had been completely soaked in crimson. No amount of washing would be enough to get it out. Despite her sarcastic nature, she still had her Goody Two Shoes moments as well.

"I should be fine, I don't want to ask too much of you." Alex began, nodding mostly to reassure herself. Slowly but surely, she was starting to gain her energy back. "Although, a change of clothes would be nice." Alex gave Leo a sheepish grin, as a sort of 'Sorry haha, I'll return these too. Or not, who's to say'.

Once Leo departed, presumably to grab her some new clothes, or not, she began to mess with the first-aid-kit. Grabbing everything she needed, Alex got straight to work. While dressing the wounds, she had time to think about the situation as a whole, and decided to address Leo, er, Widowmaker about it. Had he encountered the group, encountered Null before?

More importantly, the whole thing about a Hero going to a Villain's house. She was in the same boat, with it being forbidden and consequences stacked on top of it. She'd put the both of them in a very, very bad situation, but coming here was the only option she had left.

 

[Bees]

He heard his phone chime as he stood slowly. The adrenaline of finding his nemesis was starting to wear off. He’d never been this close to Alex without trying to stab her before. It was odd. He padded through the apartment to grab his phone before heading to his closet, noticing Doris hadn’t moved from the spot he left him before this debacle. He chuckled as he checked his messages.

“Need u in an hour, all niter probably. Xo, P.”

“‘It’s my one night off, dude!!”

“Not my call. Xo, P.”

“Ugh ugh ok pls bring coffee, and you know
you don’t have to add a signature to
yr texts, right?”

“ fu. Xo, P.”​

He rummaged through his pile of clean-ish laundry for something that’d fit Alex. The message he’d gotten from his usual partner-in-crime likely had something to do with whatever happened to Alex. Had Paula done this to her, and was calling him to celebrate? No, that wouldn’t make sense. Paula was powerful, but being telekinetic didn’t exactly help against someone who bent lightning to her will.

He tossed the loaner clothes on the bed while he changed, replacing his comfortable clothing with the kevlar-like pants he wore when on the job. He quickly threw a thermal over his white T-shirt and strapped on his handy leather utility belt. A quick inventory check assured him that all of his weapons were accounted for, plus the little pouch full of trail mix.

He returned to the bathroom, where Alex was finishing up her patch-job. He tossed the clothes towards her and leaned on the door frame.

“Please, Leo is fine. I didn’t choose the nickname, it’s kind of corny. And, uh, don’t worry about returning the clothes.” As if they were old friends who could casually return things to one another over brunch mimosas.

He absent-mindedly fiddled with one of the blades hanging from his hip - a dagger, really.

To Leo, Alex was still dangerous. He wasn’t fully convinced this wasn’t some sort of elaborate trap. His heroic counterpart wouldn’t be the first to seek vengeance for her fallen comrades, or worse - to stick him in an underground lab somewhere for study. Besides that, he didn’t really know her. He had enough scars from her to know what she was capable of, sure. Oddly enough, he didn’t mind most of them. Some, like the one on his right palm, looked like arcs of lightning. Others were still raw and healing, painful reminders of mistakes he’d made - or lucky shots on her part.

He turned around to give her some privacy.

“So, what happened to you?”

 

[Corvus Corax]

To be fair, it was kind of...different, with her nemesis in the same room, not trying to kill her. Leo is terrifyingly skilled when it came to sharp objects. Daggers are one thing, she'd hate to see him with anything more. Besides that, at the very least Alex had tried once or twice to get him to at least act friendly, not that it worked. Except this once, where he did help her. How ironic.

Appearing out of nowhere, Leo leaned against the door frame. Speaking of sharp objects, in true Leo fashion, the man was twirling his prized dagger around like it was a toy. Perking up, Alex caught the clothes with one hand and set them aside. She was just about finished tending to her wounds; some were bandaged up, but the bruises she couldn't do much about. Alex would just have to deal with being sore for a few days. On top of that, the blood mostly washed off in the sink, so for that she was thankful.

"Not that Volt is any better. Who comes up with these nicknames anyway?" Shrugging, Alex placed everything back into the first-aid kit and closed it up before returning it to him. She looked in much better condition than she'd arrived in, and the smug grin proved it. "If you insist, guess the clothes are mine now." Alex waited for Leo to turn around, before rushing to change into the clean pair of clothes. With the old ones, she folded it neatly, waiting to dispose of them. Preferably at a different location, and not in Leo's house. That wouldn't look great for either of them.

"Oh! Right." Alex ran a hand through her long dark hair, a nervous habit. "I had a run in with an individual by the name of Null." Before she went on to elaborate more, she had to check one thing, making sure she still had her power. Raising a palm, she created a very small, controlled ball of lightning, before it disappeared a second later. With a sigh of relief, she shook her head to herself. "The name should be pretty self-explanatory, I presume. The main guy can nullify powers, and he had two goons with him. Unfortunately I was caught off guard, and they ran off, leaving me like this." Motioning to herself, she winced slightly, regretting it immediately.

"What's with you, hm? Eager to find this Null also?" Leo was going somewhere, based on the change of outfit, and figured it was for the same reason. Frowning, Alex knew she'd better head out also, back to the headquarters. "You may need another dagger." Teasing him, she could guess he probably had multiple on him already.

 

[Bees]

N U L L ​

Waiting, watching, waiting, watching. The time stretched on, dull and monotonous for Null. Every day was a horror, anyway. He slept little, and in fits, always waking up to some nightmare or another. Things that had been done to him, the people he loved. Things that he’d done to people, and the people they loved. It’d all be worth it, though. If only he kept to his strategy, it’d all be worth it.

He was moving up the chain now, getting to the real tough ones. He’d been using the heroes and villains’ plottings against one another. Lay one low to set the trap, and kill the other when they showed up. It looked like they were wiping each other out, and Null was getting none of the credit. That was exactly how he wanted it for now. All he had to do was tip the balance. One side would wipe the other out, and then he'd have half his work done for him. It was already beginning.

They were arrogant, walking around alone thinking their abilities could protect them. Who were they when Null pulled that rug out from under them? Nobody. They were nothing more than scared children playing games, and reaping none of the consequences. No, they thought nothing of those who got caught in their crossfires.

Those with powers stuck together, and the same could be said for those without. He lived so long thinking he was without ability, without merit… until he met Sandra.

Sandra was beautiful. Her laughter filled his world with light, and it was the only thing he wanted to hear. Null had no idea what she saw in him, but after their first date he vowed to do the best he could in this life. If his only drive were to make Sandra happy, he could move mountains. She was his whole world.

They took that from him. They took that, and so much more.

In those months of grief, something broke open in him. He found something inside himself that had been hiding. His power. He hated it. Hated that he was one of them now. Null didn’t know the exact workings of it, but he knew what he could do. It felt like a blanket that he could extend with his will, and it dampened the powers of those in its web. He’d been working on pushing that through physical barriers, with limited success. Open spaces, for now, were his best bet.

His internal monologue was broken when the figure tied to the chair in front of him groaned. Ah, yes. He’d nearly forgotten! This broken, wretched man was as close to death as one could get. His body was battered and bruised, his ability to heal having been taken from him. Null had been waiting for his rescue to come for three long days - it wasn’t as if he didn’t leave a trail. Apparently, the villains didn’t care enough to track him down. Or was it the heroes? It didn’t matter.

“Nobody is coming for you.” He said, hooking his foot under the leg of the wicker chair. He pulled, and the chair fell backwards, breaking. His captive’s hands fell free of their bonds, but still he did not move. He was too weak, and no use to Null.

Null bent and placed a hand on the man’s chest and took a deep breath. He cleared his mind, and exhaled. This man, close to death, was still so full of life. He could feel it, and he was hungry for it. He drew it towards him, into his palms, up his arms. The figure under him shuddered violently as his skin shrank back from his bones.

Minutes later, Null stood. He felt full of energy, absolutely buzzing with it. He decided to leave the body there for his comrades to find. He was on to his next target now, the teleporter with the stupid name. He, quite especially, was on his list. Conveniently, so was his hero counterpart. Eliminating people with abilities that were a threat to him had to come first, but it had to be done right. Order was key.

 

[Bees]

Null. Now that was a cool name. Why hadn’t he heard it before? Or had he, and not been paying attention? No, that’s something he would remember. He popped onto the couch, making a broad gesture for Alex to join him. Doris sat up, peeking at the newcomer while climbing onto Leo’s lap. He gave him a scratch under the neck.

“I haven’t heard of him, but being able to take people’s abilities away…” He shivered. He’d seen Alex’s little spark, so at least it wasn’t permanent. The idea of not being able to teleport spooked Leo. It was his safety net on many levels, and the base of his fighting techniques. He was pretty good with weapons alone in close combat. In his early years with the villains, they’d insisted he learned not to rely on his teleporting alone. He’d largely ignored that.

“No, I’m off to go do something I know nothing about. I’m supposed to be off tonight, but since Paula texted me, I’m going to guess it has something to do with Null.” A nervous feeling bloomed in his chest. “Why didn’t he kill you?” Leo asked, then regretted that. For starters, she probably wouldn’t know, and that was a rude question. It didn’t feel right to agitate Alex when she was sitting in his apartment, wounded. Plus, she was being nice.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean-” He halted. Someone was coming up the metal steps to his apartment. He felt… weird, all of the sudden. Even Doris tensed. He quickly plopped the cat into his monogrammed cat bed and looked wide eyed at Alex.

“We have to go. Now.” Almost as an afterthought, he pushed one of his blades into Alex’s hand. He focused intently and tried to jump by himself. It was like reaching for something and not being able to wrap his fingers around it. He could feel his body vibrating in and out of his living room, disappearing and reappearing in rapid succession. It felt like rolling through barbed wire and nail polish remover, like reality was trying to rip him to shreds.

He stopped, overwhelmed with nausea. “Fuck, that hurt. Okay, uhh...” He wracked his brain. If Null’s power was telepathy based, then maybe a little distance would help, even if it was only a few extra feet.

He scooped Doris up and hauled ass towards the back of the apartment. His plan was to climb out to the fire escape and jump them all to safety.

A hand exploded through the window leading to the fire escape. The goons. Leo stopped dead in his tracks. He looked over at Alex, reaching out to her with his free hand. It was up to her if she wanted to go, or face Null alone. If he couldn’t teleport, he wasn’t sure the two of them could take on three people with murderous intentions.

“Do not throw up on me.” He said, squeezing his eyes shut. He focused intently on a location, reaching for it with every ounce of his will. It was if the process of jumping was moving slow, and it was agonizing. Used to the instantaneous appearance at the location of his choosing, he never gave thought to the in-between. All three of them were experiencing it now.

It was painful, and Leo was screaming from it, dragging the trio through what felt like hell. The floors groaned under his feet, and the drywall cracked, spraying dust into his mouth and nose. He could feel the cold reach of Null’s powers, trying to bind him to one place. He felt as if he was being pulled in two opposite directions.

With a bang, they dropped into Alex’s living room. Pictures rattled and fell off the wall, a lightbulb exploded, and Doris jumped out of Leo’s arms looking no worse for wear. Leo collapsed like a sack of rocks, shaking. He’d never felt this awful before. He was so tired, down to the very marrow of his bones. He had never gone so over and beyond his limits like this before.

“Alex? Alex, are you okay?”

 

[Corvus Corax]

Alex was invited to sit on the couch, following Leo over to where he was. Taking a seat beside her nemesis, her gaze turned to him, and the cat that had jumped on his lap. She tentatively reached out a hand for the cat to smell, making an attempt to pet Doris.

Admittedly, Alex relied on her powers a bit too much as well. She was taught self-defense, learning how to hold her own in a close-combat situation, but not much else. This encounter had been more of a wake-up call than she imagined, and she hated it. Her eyebrows were furrowed, and she buried her face in one hand while Leo spoke, trying to think of a way to approach this. And the worst part is, she still didn't learn anything about Null. Not the extent of his powers, not his plans; hell, she didn't even learn anything about the goons.

Once again, Leo's voice broke through her thoughts, and she lowered her hand, raising her eyebrows at him. "Why didn't he kill you?"

"I...don't know." Alex paused, "Maybe I was meant to escape, to lure others out." It was the only logical explanation at this point. Just a couple hours ago in that rainy alley, after a couple hits to the face, Alex remembered taking off. If she wasn't able to fight, the least she could do was run. Putting up a defense, she shoved past the three, running as far as her legs could take her. Sparing a glance behind, she distinctly remembered nothing. There was no chase, no sign of Leo and his gang. After getting as far as she could away, Alex collapsed on the asphalt for a quick minute, catching her breath. In the end of course, here she was.

"Null didn't chase me. The goons didn't seem to care either." That still didn't give them clues. If anything, it backed them into a corner.

"It's fine." Alex waved it off. She wasn't dead, so she tried not to let it bother her. It wasn't the first time she'd had close calls with death before, but this time was different. Suddenly, Leo's head angled towards the door, and so did Alex's. "What-" Her breath caught in her throat, the faint sound of footsteps seemed almost loud.

A dagger was shoved into her hand, and Alex shot up, panic starting to settle in. It was Null, and she knew it. He followed her here, the bastard.

While Leo attempted to teleport without succession, Alex ran to barricade the door, grabbing the nearest chair and shoving it against the doorknob. Even if it was just a second, the extra time was needed. C'mon, think. Do something, dammit!

After that, everything began to happen at once. The sound of glass shattering from the back of the apartment to the sound of someone trying forcefully to get in from the front, and Leo holding out his hand towards her.

Alex wasted no time in barreling towards Leo, freaking the fuck out while she reached for him. Her hand made contact with his, and she gripped it tight, bracing for any sort of impact like the first time. However, that wasn't the case.

Alex was also beginning to experience the hellish pain that Null brought with him. Her mouth was hanging open in a scream, but she still held on. Instead of her body feeling like it was being torn in two, it felt as if she was burning. It was like her powers were turning against her. It was undoubtedly the worst few minutes of her life, but the chair she set seemed to be holding up. Until it didn't.

The bang echoed through the room, and Alex fell onto the carpet, her breathing heavy. Patting her body, there were no burns. She was fine, aside from the mental aspect of it all. Sprawling out on her back, she lifted her head to make sure Leo and Doris made it in one piece as well.

"Fine," She spoke between breaths. "I'm fine." Her heart began to calm as the adrenaline began to wind down. She laid in silence as the familiarity of the room settled in, and upon further inspection, she realized where she was. Home.

It was the first time she was truly relieved to be home, aside from when she first bought the apartment. It was a small, cozy home. Unlike Leo's place, it was decorated with color and pictures and everything. A relaxing change of pace after coming from Leo's apartment, she thought.

Pushing herself to her feet, Alex made her way over to Leo, staring down at his exhausted self. That jump through space was one thing for her, but a completely different story for him. He was shaking, for crying out loud. This time, she was the one to offer her hand, leading Leo over to her couch so he could lay down on something a little more comfy, whether he liked it or not. Walking around to the other side, she rested her head on the back of the couch. "Enough about me. I'm worried about you, Leo."

 

[Corvus Corax]

V O I D​

Void was the name given to him by Null. Before, he was nothing. A nobody. But now, after finding someone to follow, he had a purpose in life. And that purpose was to cause chaos. He too had his life ruined by both the Heroes and the Villains. He had been caught in the aftermath of their battles, having been in the wrong place at the wrong time. These stories you would never hear, to keep a clean reputation for both sides, so they can keep doing what they do. Fight, and fight some more.

Void had stepped out from the gym that night, finishing his usual routine he had going on. Like he'd said, a nobody. Void took his usual way home, taking the main streets until he came up to his residence. Just before he got there, some minor hero/villain duo came out from somewhere in the night. They weren't well-known, haven't made a name for themselves yet. The villain happened to control poison, the the hero was a metal bender. Metal was flying everywhere, while poison had clouded the air. A large piece of metal debris flew Void’s way, pinning him down. It hadn't been on purpose, it was just a part of the crossfire. He tried to shout, but not before poison filled his lungs.

Luckily for him, a masked man made his debut, claiming that powers should be erased for good. Just as he said, the poison was gone, and the metal had reduced to nothing. The poison villain and the metal bending hero were the first victims, two of many to come. Null was kind enough to take Void in, him being an easy enough catch as they shared the mindset that powers didn't define a person. From that day forward, the two began to eliminate those one by one, regardless if they were hero or villain.

-

The night was absolutely disgusting. The rain wouldn't let up, and the man clicked his tongue with disappointment. "Ey boss, shouldn't we head back to that guy we have tied up? Y'know, see if he's dead yet?" The answer was no, they were trying to stake it out and see if anyone came for the man, using him as bait. During those three days, nothing interesting happened. Void just made a stop by the local gas station, the one that read hell (It was Void's idea to knock the 'S' down so it no longer read Shell), because he was getting impatient, and hungry. Stealing a bunch of snacks unfortunately lead to the police being called, and he had to pick up his pace before anyone noticed him.

Picking up the pace, Void had to jog a little ways to get back to their temporary hideout. Everything was going well until, speak of the devil, a certain hero decided to show her face. He'd recognized her from Null's little hitlist, and he turned a sharp corner into a back alley where Null was waiting. Either one of two things would happen, Null would try to kill him for being spotted, or Null would be happy because she was on the list.

It was the latter, as Void had the pleasure of beating the living daylights out of this so-called hero. Sure she'd put up a fight, but Void was very tall, and very terrifying. It took a little struggle, but the hero slipped past them, running off. The rest was up to Null.

-

"Are you sure we're heading to the right house?" Void questioned Null, wondering how he'd came up with this sorry place. An apartment complex, a boring one at that. Void was instructed to go around the back and make sure no one escaped. That was his only instruction.

Skip a few long minutes of trying his damn hardest to quietly climb up a fire escape, waiting for the commotion to happen.

“Fuck, that hurt. Okay, uhh...” A voice from inside spoke, and that was good enough for him. Void took a deep breath and smashed his hand through glass to make a hole for him to get in. After struggling just a little, he stepped inside the apartment, to find...nothing.

"Null! They're gone." He shouted, standing amidst the broken glass in the middle of the room. All he could do now was await further instructions.

 

[Bees]

Leo graciously accepted a spot on the couch, collapsing into a cushion, still shivering. He needed to replenish his energy before his body gave out. He unbuckled the pouch on his belt and crammed handfuls of trail mix into his mouth, barely chewing.

“I’ll be fine. I can jump to Paris and back by myself, but bringing others with me is… taxing. Should have just left you there and kept this place to myself.” He crammed more food into his mouth and winked at her. He didn’t have to tell her that if she decided to stay and play hero, he would have left her there.

It was clear that Null’s target wasn’t Alex, it was the two of them. That meant he was unaligned with a vendetta. Judging by the fact that he was inhibited by physical barriers, he was new to having abilities. Or that was merely the extent of them, which Leo doubted. Rage was a powerful fuel.

He was beginning to recover some of his energy, although he was in no shape to go off gallivanting with Paula on whatever adventure she had in store for them - not that he could say no. They had been partners for years, but Paula had seniority and was more or less his boss.

He checked his watch. He had a half an hour until he had to show up. More than enough time to regain some modicum of composure and figure out a cover story for his exhaustion. He closed his eyes as the shaking subsided. Now came the hard part.

“I know we’re not necessarily… friends, but I need to ask a favor of you. Can you hold onto Doris for a night?” He grinned sheepishly. Alex didn’t seem the type to harm animals, or hold them hostage for ransom. It was true that Leo would pay anything to ensure the cat’s safety, and maybe that was a little overboard, but it was what it was. He and Doris had been through some rough shit together.

His phone buzzed, but he didn’t need to check it to know it was Paula, calling him in. He’d have to make it through tonight with what little energy he had left. It was of little comfort to him that he’d been in rougher shape. Just five more minutes, and he’d be able to pop on over. He already had an idea of where they were headed.

“This goes without saying, but I can’t go easy on you when I see you out there. It’d be bad for us both. Sorry.” With a shrug, he grabbed his dagger and teleported out of the living room.

He reappeared next to Paula, in their unspoken meeting place. She didn’t even look up from her phone, so used to him appearing out of thin air next to her. She took one last long drag from her cigarette and flicked it into the street.

“Jesus, you look like shit. I thought it was your night off.” She brushed a bit of plaster from his shoulder, and he shrugged.

“Went to the corner store, ran into a familiar face, it got ugly. Usual shit.” That was his cover story and he would stick to it. Paula sighed, clearly not too happy to be out and about tonight either. At least the rain had stopped.

“Well, listen. Joey is missing and I managed to trace him to this general area. He’s been gone for three days, which wouldn’t be unusual except he missed his evaluation this morning and you know he has a huge crush on Gina. Also… his house is a mess. Blood everywhere. Best guess? He’s there.” She pointed to an abandoned KFC across the street.

It was less than a mile from his apartment, which made him nervous. Was Null around? How much of his story could he share without telling Paula that he had given aid to the enemy? Could she be trusted?

“Listen, P… I lied about the store. I had a run in with this dude. I don’t know how to explain it, but he can take away abilities. I barely made it out of my own apartment. We need to be really careful here.” A pigeon strutted across the parking lot they stood in, pecking at the ground around it. It postured, stared at the pair, and flew away. Leo paid no mind to it.

“Well, that sucks, but we have to go figure this out. I’m trying to get home before my wife goes to work in the morning, so let’s get on with it.” She took off towards the abandoned building and Leo trotted along with her.

The plywood blocking their entrance bent and pulled away from the door. The scene behind it was grisly. Blood spatter, old and new, decorated the pictures of Colonel Sanders. Paula stepped in, glass crunching under her boots. Leo followed cautiously, stepping around the trail of blood that lead to… the basement.

“Oh great, a basement.” Leo muttered, pulling his weapons out. Paula shushed him and opened the door with a wave of her hand. It creaked open ominously, and with a nod from Paula, Leo crept down the stairs.

A gruesome sight met them at the bottom of the last step. Joey’s shriveled body lay crumpled on the opposite side of the basement among the remains of a broken chair. Paula gasped, stumbling and falling to her knees next to the mummified remains. Joey had healing abilities, but this husk of a body was more than even he could come back with. Leo’s mind was rattled. This… had to be Null’s doing. He had literally sucked the life out of someone.

Leo joined her, putting a hand on her shoulder. Joey had been Paula’s protégé, and she had always been fond of him. “Paula, let’s get him out of here, we need to-”

“Aw, who knew you two were into pickling?” A voice cut across the dank basement. Leo whipped around, brandishing both daggers. The fucking shapeshifter! One of Leo’s least favorite people, whose ass he had kicked two or three times over the course of his villainous tenure. He had a lot of nerve.

Paula was the first to react, tossing a metal shelf without so much as a peep. Of course, the shifter shrank himself to the form of a fox and skittered up the steps. Paula stood to give chase, but Leo grabbed her. “Get Joey and go, I’ll handle that asshole.” She nodded, and scooped the brittle mass of bones up.

Leo jumped back to the parking lot, where the shifter was waiting. "I'm gonna kill you tonight, you're fucking annoying." Leo wasted no time, and what followed was a blur. Ironically, Leo felt most at peace when he could let his instincts take over. Fighting was what he did best. The shifter disappeared and reappeared, using the shapes of various small animals to elude the teleporter, who was trying his best not to rely too much on his abilities.

Leo got lucky when he reached out and slashed the shifter’s forearm, causing him to pause. He followed that with a knee to the ribs that knocked his opponent flat on his back. Scowling, Leo unsheathed a wickedly sharp knife and moved in to permanently end the shifter. He paused, feeling a familiar charge in the air.

He leapt back just in time to avoid a bolt of lightning that missed his chest by inches. He looked over, green eyes blazing fury. The shifter was down for the count, but he didn’t anticipate Alex being his backup. It complicated things, but he stood by what he said to her earlier. He turned towards her, heart pounding, waiting for her move.

 

[Corvus Corax]

"As if you'd leave me. Wouldn't want all that help to be in vain, hm?" To be fair Leo probably would have, leaving Alex to deal with her own problem. As much as she wanted to play hero, Alex needed time to plan this out. Where she stood now, she had nothing. It was going to take more than mere punches to take down a man who'd been picking heroes and villains off for fun.

Rolling her eyes at her nemesis' wink, Alex walked over to grab the fallen pictures, hanging them up in their proper place. Keeping a watchful eye on Leo, Alex made sure the shaking calmed down. Heading back over, she took a seat opposite Leo, burying herself in the chair. If she were to be there for a while, making herself comfortable was her top priority. "You can stay for a little while, as long as you don't touch anything." If Null found them and trashed this place like they did Leo's, she would go ballistic. No one wanted to mess with Alex when she got in a mood.

"A favor?" One eyebrow raised in curiosity as she leaned forward. "Sure! I'll take care of Doris, just this once. I owe you one, so this should even it out, hm?" She folded her hands together, waiting for his approval on the matter. Alex loved animals, she just hadn't had time for pets unfortunately. Hero work was time consuming, and it was only going to get worse from here.

After a while, Leo popped up, about to head off to deal with some undisclosed matter. Nodding at his words, she bid him farewell. "I'm not planning on going easy either, you know." Alex had put up a friendly demeanor because he helped her, but it went without saying that Leo was still her nemesis. Once Leo disappeared from the room, Alex went to go make herself some food, because she was starving. An egg sounded good right about now.

It didn't take long for Alex to get a notification, her phone going off where she'd left it in the front hallway. It was from her good shape-shifting friend, Bernard.

-

"Your lover and his gal pal are out by the old KFC."

"They're onto something shady, get your ass over here."

"Copy that. Don't do anything stupid, I'll be there soon."

"Also, I thought I told you to stop calling him that."
​

-

Shoving her phone into her back pocket, Alex threw her shoes on, grabbed her key, and ran out the door. Parked outside was none other than her motorcycle, and she hopped on, speeding over to the abandoned KFC. Leo, you dumbass, I swear to God.

Forcing her motorcycle to a stop, Alex hopped off and nearly tripped in the process. Running a little ways to get to them, the timing couldn't have been better. Leo had brandished a knife, standing above Bernard. Any later and it would have ended badly.

"Don't you fucking dare!"

The air immediately surrounding her crackled as lightning began to form at her fingertips. Before Leo had a chance to plunge the knife down, Alex released the energy inside her, sending a bolt of lightning straight at Leo.

She expected nothing less as Leo dodged it, continuing to advance while forcing Leo away from Bernard. Death was the last thing she wanted right now, especially the death of a fellow hero. The one he should be after was Null.

Bending down, Alex make sure Bernard was alright after being hit point blank in the ribs. "I swear to God, you can't go around doing this!" Alex propped herself up on one knee, climbing to her feet. The initial anger was gone, leaving a bad feeling in her stomach. Shaking her head with clenched fists, Alex broke off into a run. Pointing a finger gun towards Leo, she prepared to fire another bolt of lightning. Closing the gap between the two, Alex made eye contact, took a breath, and fired off another shot.

Whether it hit or not, she didn't let up, continuing to fire quick bursts of lightning with one hand. The other hand went to her pocket to clutch the dagger he'd given her earlier, whipping it out when she got close. Alex hated to do this, but Leo messed with the wrong person.

 

[Bees]

Leo leapt to and fro, dodging Alex’s attacks. She wasn’t joking about not going easy on him either, he was beginning to sweat. Despite this, he was having a bit of… fun. This was the level on which Leo was comfortable with Alex. Them helping one another felt wrong, necessary as it may be. Bernard could bite it, though.

He noticed that Alex was advancing with each lightning strike that whizzed by him and saw an opportunity. He could have just teleported away from her and come at her from a different angle, but he decided on another course of action. Unfortunately for him, Alex was on top of her accuracy game that night. The last bolt of lightning hit him in the knee cap, buckling his leg. His knee hit the ground as he lost his balance. He looked up as Alex whipped out a dagger. ’I shouldn’t have given her that…’ he mused.

He reacted without thought. The teleporter lunged at Alex, his boots finding enough purchase on the cracked concrete for a powerful spring. He pushed aside her weapon - his weapon - with his left hand while his right elbow jabbed her in the abdomen where she had been kicked by Null’s little friends just hours before.

A shrill whistle cut the air and Leo teleported out of the range of the blade she wielded. He scowled, his leg burning furiously. One blow would have to do tonight. He teleported again to Paula’s side, where she cradled Joey’s body against her chest. She was looking at him expectantly, and he knew he’d have to jump the pair of them back to headquarters.

Paula knew his limits, but she didn’t know that he had already jumped another person with him that same night. It was a once-a-day kind of thing, but if it meant hiding his earlier rendezvous, he’d have to pull through. He put a hand on Paula’s shoulder and willed them away from the parking lot of the KFC.

For the second time that evening, he collapsed upon arrival, absolutely spent. The shaking was worse this time, and he could feel his heart trying to beat its way out of his chest. Everything hurt. He looked around, vision blurry. Paula was depositing Joey’s corpse onto a gurney, which was immediately whisked away.

Leo groaned as Paula helped a medical team transfer him from the marble floor to a gurney of his own. She looked down at him, and he could tell she had questions. They moved him quickly to a medical bay, talking in hushed tones about how he was going into shock. He raised his arm in protest and promptly lost consciousness.

When he awoke, the sun was shining through the window. Paula was sitting next to him in a chair, doing a crossword puzzle. Her eyes were red, as if she had been crying. No doubt due to the loss of Joey. and not on his account.

“Glad you’re awake, hope you enjoyed your rest.” She said, in a way that suggested that she was not, in fact, glad he got rest. The crossword book closed with a snap, and she angled her chair to sit inches from his bedside, leaning close. He kept his face blank, not wanting to give anything away.

“I’m giving you the benefit of this little chat because we’ve worked together for a long time, and you have very rarely disappointed me. I’m going to ask you some things, and you are going to answer me with absolute honesty, or I will pull the plug on your little ’please don’t experiment on me’ clause, and you’ll never see daylight again.” Her voice was steel. She was not fucking around.

“I wasn’t the only person you jumped that night, was I?”

“No.”

She leaned back, seeming pleased about his honesty. “Who did you jump with?”

’Shit.’ He thought. His brain was too foggy to come up with a lie elaborate enough to fool her. She had him. “P, listen, this is not what you should be focusing on. The guy that did this to Joey is still wandering around out there, and I barely made it away from him.” He sat up, pulling the thin hospital sheet around his shoulders.

“It was Alex, wasn’t it? She had your favorite dagger.” Paula returned to her crossword, which was eerily more threatening than her attention being directed at him. Leo winced.

“Okay, yeah, it was. She showed up at my place and Null followed. I got us out of there, and here we are.” Now he was well and truly fucked, but at least that was the truth… or, most of it.

“And you didn’t kill her because you’re a masochist with a fascination for people who can actually hurt you.” She muttered softly, as if it were something he wasn’t supposed to hear. He grunted, nonplussed. Okay, that wasn’t entirely untrue. He had few hobbies, but who could blame him? His schedule was full.

“I will keep your dirty secret, but you will do this. Work with her discreetly. Find everything you can on this Null character, and deal with it. It would be helpful if you could grab some dirt on the heroes, as well. Not field players, but their auxiliary workings.” Paula stood, silver hair glowing in the morning sunlight. Leo knew better than to protest, but he was shell-shocked.

“Keep me up to date, and do not fuck this up. I’ll be in touch about accommodations.” With that, she left the room. Leo threw himself back and covered his eyes with his palms. Had she really just given him the go-ahead to work with a hero?

He delicately got out of bed, carefully removing the IV and leaving it behind as he dressed in fresh clothes. His leg still killed, but it was significantly better. He’d have to take that up with Alex though.

Once he was dressed, he imagined her living room in his mind, and appeared there moments later. Doris bolted to him and weaved between his legs, purring happily.

“Hey.”

 

[Corvus Corax]

This is why Null seemed so powerful, when in reality, he was just as normal as anyone else. Because Alex relied on her powers. It was the one thing she was comfortable with. It had taken her until Leo jabbed her with his elbow to cease her lightning. Alex jumped back, clutching her stomach while giving herself time to catch her breath. Her final attempt at bringing Leo down was using his own knife. Swinging it towards him, she thought she had him, but he teleported over to Paula. Paula was holding something, a shriveled body?

Alex watched, bidding him one last look before he jumped the two of them out of there. Alex stood in place, knowing her limit was near. Her skin began to burn, as if her own lightning was used against her. Thankfully Leo was gone, because she wanted to go home. It had been a very long day. Turning her back to the abandoned building, Alex rushed over to Bernard, dragging him over to her motorcycle. She’d needed to check in with her own headquarters as well, let them know she wasn't dead.

-

Walking through the elaborate hall of the hero headquarters never got old. Even on a night like this, Alex was thankful to be around familiar faces. Speaking of, Bernard was still a little out of it, but the injury didn’t accommodate to anything. He was fine. And so was Alex. Thinking back, she could almost say that Leo was going easy on the pair, ironically. After all, he refused to teleport until the very end.

Alex helped Bernard to a room, where he could lay down for a while. She waited until they were alone before pulling a chair up to his side.

Alex explained to him about Null and the close encounter she had, Null's power, where he was ‘supposedly’ last seen, (Maneuvering around the mention of Leo, of course), and the body she saw Paula with.

“Leo jumped with Paula, and that was the end of it.” Alex sighed, exhausted beyond words. She spoke while applying ice packs and fresh bandages to her skin.

“You failed to mention why you had a knife, Alex. His knife.” His voice was calm, a hint of grogginess still with it. Bernard knew Leo's knife when he saw it. Especially after he'd almost been killed with one.

Alex also had her 'Oh, shit!' moment. The shifter was perceptive. He’d been there for the fight, and he had questions.

“After my first encounter with Null...Leo’s place was the closest. I couldn’t afford to wait any longer for here or an ambulance, so I opted for that. I’m still alive, at least?” Hoping it would lessen the consequence, she gave Bernard a sheepish smile. Bernard rolled his eyes, propping himself up to a sitting position.

“That man, you know how dangerous he is.” Bernard also had a grudge on Leo, it was a mutual thing. “But, I understand. And I’m glad you’re alright.” Sighing, Bernard laid a hand on Alex’s shoulder, meeting her gaze.

“So, about this Null guy. I don’t, under any circumstance, suggest you take him on alone again. It would be better if you had someone along. As for me, I've got other things to take care of.” Bernard didn’t mention it, but Alex knew was he was hinting at. It was unspoken of to partner with a villain, but in this case, it was what it was. The hard part would be getting Leo to agree on it.

“Go get some rest, I’ll be fine here. You know where to find me.” Shooing Alex off, she left her superior, heading home for the rest of the night.

-

Alex arrived home and checked on Doris, petting her while she grabbed something for the cat to eat. After that, Alex collapsed on her bed, trying to get that well-deserved rest.

The next morning as she finished her usual routine plus Doris, Leo appeared in the living room in front of her, and she instinctively brought her arms up defensively from where she was on her couch. “God, I hate when you do that.” She knew he'd come, she just didn’t know when.

“About last night...” She trailed off, trying to find the right words. “Sorry about your knee.” Alex apologized, looking down at where the lightning had struck. Alex reached in her pocket to grab something, pulling out Leo's knife. She flipped it to where the handle was pointed towards him, and she held it out. "This belongs to you." One of these days she needed to get one of her own, but for now it felt wrong to hold onto one of his.

“Hey, I was gonna ask you something,” She paused, her blue eyes meeting his green eyes. “Just this once, and nobody has to know, how do you feel about teaming up to fight Null?” Taking a breath, Alex tilted her head in question, expecting a hard no.

 

[Bees]

Leo accepted the knife carefully, giving it a few tosses in the air to make sure it was still well balanced before sheathing it. He met Alex’s eyes as she proposed working together on Null, glad she had brought it up. It would have been grating for him to ask for help, even if it were more or less a command from Paula. In bold lettering on his training evaluation, ’DOES NOT WORK WELL WITH OTHERS’ was prominently written.

“Don’t worry about the knee, this one isn’t that bad.” He bent and rolled his pants up to show Alex the burn that wrapped around his knee, complete with singed leg hair. It still stung, but it would heal.

“I’d say sorry about punching you, but you got off easy. You and Bernard, or whatever his name is.” He waved his hand in the air as he rolled his pants back over the wound. He really didn’t like the shifter.

He joined her on the couch, pulling Doris onto his lap. He would have to find a safe place for him, and soon. First things first.

“I… agree. I can’t take Null down on my own, or I would.” It pained him to admit needing help. He was a solo creature with his own set of morals and rules, no matter how twisted they may seem.

“Null… did something to Joey. You saw his body, right? It was like he sucked the life out of him. I think he can do more than we know.” His mind went back to the desiccated, empty corpse Paula clutched in her arms. It felt like nothing to teleport Joey back to headquarters, like Leo was pulling a husk from one place to another.

“Someone knows something about him. I’d say we find those people and get them to talk.” He leaned back and returned his gaze to her. In truth, he didn’t think Alex would be that difficult to work with. As long as she didn’t ask Leo to play by her rules, it would be no different than working with Paula.

Except that Alex was 20 years younger, and way less patient with his antics. Also, she would suffer no consequence from doing him grave harm. She’d more than likely get a nice little bonus for getting rid of him. His powers alone made him a nuisance, and a risk.

He wondered if she would betray him. Working together meant placing, at the very least, a small amount of trust in one another. Would there come a point where hamstringing one would bring great reward to the other? Was Alex the type of person to put her own gain over the safety of others?

’No, she… probably wouldn’t do that, even to me.’ He thought. A splash of guilt bloomed in his chest, but he kept his face free of it. Alex probably wouldn’t do something like that, but Leo knew he… probably would. Even to her.

 

[Corvus Corax]

Alex inwardly winced at his knee. Despite what Leo said, it still had to hurt. Lightning was a dangerous element after all. "Bernard's a good man," Alex reassured him, "Glad you didn't kill him." She added with a mutter, giving him the side eye. Leo did deserve the lightning to the knee for that one. "Oh I know that much, the gut punch is the least of my problems. It's Null that we have to focus on, not Bernard." Once Leo joined her on the couch, she gave his shoulder a light punch.

"I know you'd try and take him down alone, but we can't afford to lose anyone else. Even you, dumbass." She teased, grinning at him. Alex did care, nemesis or not. She even thought somewhat highly of Paula, who Alex saw once in a blue moon. They were good people who chose the wrong path in life.

Speaking of, Leo confirmed what she'd seen Paula with last night. It was Joey's body with the life sucked out of him. "I'm sorry about what happened to Joey." She shared her condolences with a frown, a moment of silence between the two. It was terrifying to think that could have been her, if she hadn't booked it out of there. "How are we going to fight this man if he can suck life out of people?" She mused, rubbing her temple with her index finger.

"Sure, but how do we find these people?" She was sure not many others would be alive to tell the tale of Null, besides her. The goons, maybe? If they could somehow separate them, they could probably get him to talk. Unless Leo had someone else in mind.

Alex was pretty alright with the idea of working with her Nemesis. She'd go along with his plans so long as they were morally acceptable. There would be no unnecessary killing. She hadn't a second thought to betray Leo, unless he made a move to betray her. She'd keep a close eye on him just in case, but he was a capable man. She trusted him enough to know he wouldn't do anything stupid without reason.

The big question was, where do they start?