The Lewd Age of Superheroes Pt. 03

All characters are over eighteen years of age.

***

She pushed through the other students, past faces confused or sympathetic or cruelly smug. She stepped out the door and stood at the school gates, eyes darting around. She saw a figure walking off in the distance, shoulders tense with anger.

She ran after him. It took a while to catch up; he was taller and moved with a furious energy. But eventually she closed the distance to the point where he turned when she called out his name.

He waited for her to catch up before saying, "Why'd you come?"

It sounded like an accusation and her shoulders slumped. A moment later he relented. "I guess I should have guessed."

"Is it true?"

"Yeah." His taunt expression broke out into a grin. "The fuckers had it coming."

"You got expelled!"

"Yeah." The smile didn't waver.

"Why did you do it?"

"Because," he said, face entirely serious, "I was sick of their shit." He looked away. "They're always hassling me."

She opened her mouth to tell him they were doing their jobs; that the last time he'd fucked with the school's computer records or brought one of his inventions to school people had nearly lost their jobs, been seriously hurt; but then he smiled again and the words died in her throat. She settled for, "You really did it this time."

He shrugged. "Nah. I was kind of running out of stuff to learn there."

That was true. His grades were a bizarre mismatch of plunging scores for some subjects (English, Arts, Social Studies) and rocketing for others (Physics, Maths, Shop). The results from the last few subjects were the only reason that this hadn't all happened sooner. She knew that the teachers were frustrated, had heard them say that he'd get perfect scores all round if he tried; but he held most of his schoolwork in total contempt.

He held a lot of things in total contempt. She sometimes wondered if she made the list.

"You should come."

"Come?"

"Yeah." He reached forward and held her hand. Her heart skipped a beat. "Come with me."

"Where?"

"I got some friends. They're in with the cape scene."

You couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You mean, like...henchmen?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "Look, we don't need school, okay? I got my inventions. I become a henchman, I show off some of my stuff..."

"But." She struggled to find the words. "We'd be...you know." She whispered the word. "Villains."

He laughed. "Yeah. And villains get the best shit. Money, respect, fame..."

She didn't want money or fame or riches. She'd only ever wanted one thing in her life. "I don't know."

"Look. Don't worry." He took her hand and squeezed, and that warmth, clutching hard against her heart, was back. "Trust me, okay?"

***

Nathan woke with a start.

He waited while the fragments of the oracle dream swirled around in his mind, the Dark Gate pulsing in place of his long-lost heart. Rising from his solitary bed, he stepped into the shower.

The hot water rushed down his body while he pondered what he'd just experienced. That was the second oracle dream in a week. Both involving the same children, if years apart.

The Dark Gate was sending him a warning.

He went over the contents of the dreams. The school the girl had walked through didn't feel modern. The scene must have happened, he estimated, about twenty years ago. Both of the kids had midwestern accents. He could take a look at the list of known villains and henchmen, narrow down a list of potential suspects, ask Umma-

Umma.

He turned the shower setting to cold and stayed under for a long time.

***

"Sounds like a bunch of teenage drama."

"I suppose you would be an expert, hmm?"

"Hah! Not with you around, teach."

Grey Sentinel turned to look at his apprentice. "I have told you not to call me that."

She smiled back and he scowl deepened.

Tanya was in many ways an ideal apprentice. Smart, dedicated. Wise for her eighteen years. Instinctively attuned to the mystical and mysterious. Athletic and, in her own way, just as driven as he was to preventing evil from spreading across the globe.

If she'd just stop smiling so much.

There were other issues as well. The apprentice of the Grey Sentinel- master and jailer both of the dark powers- should be expected to maintain a certain mysterious and grim aura, so better to strike fear into the hearts of the damned and demonic. The Grey Apprentice at least wore her namesake colours- but with her long blonde hair out in the open, and in a leotard that he found far too tight for the dignity of the office that she held.

And she wouldn't stop smiling.

He'd complained to Umma once, only for the woman to laugh for a full minute.

Her smile did dip for a moment as they approached the meeting room. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

He shook his head. "No. But we have to. Endless and Exiled Prince are...they're not fit for duty right now."

Grey Apprentice sighed. "I can't believe the stories."

"Nor can most of the other heroes. That's the problem."

"What happens after the meeting?"

"Afterwards," Grey Sentinel said, "We go and talk to my master."

That wiped the smile off her face.

He opened the doors to the meeting chamber and swept into the room. He nodded to the assembled heroes. "Thank you all-"

***

"-for joining me," said Mocking Mistress.

She eased back upon her chair and eyed the other villains gathered around her. Her hands were clasped in front of her, perfectly manicured fingernails clicking together. She was dressed in her standard outfit; a pale business suit- made with the best technology her organisation, Shrike, could manage, of course, and brimming with technological additions and potent enchantments. A dark mask, carved into an ironic half-smile, sat upon her face.

Right now her own lips matched it perfectly as she surveyed the other villains in the meeting.

"Why have you summoned us?" murmured the figure to her immediate right. Tommy Deadlord relaxed back against the chair, his tattooed chest and tattered jeans at odds with the spectral crown atop his head. A woman dressed all in black, slivers of bone-pale skin showing here and there, stood behind him. "You promised revenge against the Bright Lovers."

"You promised advantages for us all," spoke the figure next to him, a hulking grey-furred monster with one eye lost to a hideous scar. Grendlekin Jack all but slavered as his long claws cut grooves into the surface of the table. "Fimbulwinter beckons, and with it, the right for my people to rule."

"I came solely for news of the Black Gate," said Barrow Witch, running one hand through her red hair and narrowing her jet-black eyes. "Do you have any such news, or am I wasting my time?"

"I am sure," said a dark-skinned, buxom woman, clad only in strips of pale leather marked with eldritch runes, "that Mocking Mistress would never dare waste our time. Certainly not the time of the Hellfire King's emissary on this little world."

The man next to her- dark-skinned with a fetching goatee and dressed in a suit of pale blue armour- said, "Pitfire Mistress. Calm yourself. I'm sure Mocking Mistress will explain herself in good time." He did his best to smile at the assemblage of monsters. "Right?"

Mocking Mistress waited a few moments before responding. "Of course, Mad Maker. I'm so happy that you were able to attend our little gathering."

"Well," Mad Maker gave a nervous laugh, "it's an honour-"

"I'm glad the kids stopped bullying you long enough to make the time."

Chuckles from the other villains as Mad Maker tensed. "They're a meddling nuisance. Nothing more."

Enough fun. She had business to attend to. "I brought you here to discuss a significant opportunity for all of us."

"Oh?" Barrow Witch chuckled. "So kind of you to share."

"It is the sort of opportunity that must be shared in order to be capitalised upon. We have a new player in the field."

Tommy Deadlord grunted. "Villain or hero, babe?"

Mocking Mistress pointedly ignored the 'babe'. "They're identity remains a mystery- but their actions speak of villainy most...delicious." She pressed a button. The screen behind her flickered to life.

Grunts and pants filled the air as the villains stared in shock at the sight of Exiled Prince- naked and sweaty- as he roughly fucked a screaming, moaning Chain Devil.

"What is this blasphemy?!" Pitfire Mistress rose, green flames gathering in her eyes. But Mocking Mistress merely pressed another button.

This one showed a dusky skinned woman, half-naked, as she approached Grey Sentinel. They watched, entranced, as the grey-clad hero fled the room. The dusky skinned woman turned back to watch something else, hands darting into her pants. The camera panned up to show another pair coupling.

"Is that Endless?" Mad Maker all but choaked out the words. "Seriously?"

There was an amused growl from Grendlekin Jack. "The eternal teacher of heroes is a slut, apparently. How did you obtain this footage?"

"Shrike was able to breach their security. This is from their own cameras. It may interest you to learn that Exiled Prince and Endless are now quarantined, along with some others. They will not be threatening your plans for the immediate future."

"Interesting as it is," said Johnny Deadlord, "What is the point of this?"

"A curse," Mocking Mistress said. "One designed to turn heroes and villains alike into mindless fornicators. You can see the results here. Endless, the eternal sage, reduced to pimping off heroines to villains. The girl you saw earlier is Windshear coupling with none other than Neon Hound."

"What are you suggesting?" said Mad Maker, looking faintly sick. "That we stop it?"

"Stop it? No. I'm suggesting we capitalise on it."

"Go on," Said Pitfire

"You saw what happened to Chain Devil," Mocking Mistress said. "She was defeated by Exiled Prince, and now she is his devoted slave. While Windshear was apparently beaten by Neon Hound and is now, to all intents and appearances, happy to service his cock."

"You are saying-" said Grendlekin Jack.

"I am saying that victory seems to be the key. The curse makes the heroes vulnerable. Weak. Merely defeat them and claim them..."

"Rape them, you mean." said Mad Master, while Barrow Witch muttered something under her breath.

"Yes. Do this- and gain them as a devoted slave. Eager for your affections. Imagine them, if you would. The heroes of this world, broken. Naked. Yours."

Silence, as the villains gathered pondered the possibilities.

"Or," Mocking Mistress continued, "don't imagine. Just watch."

She clicked the button again.

The villains leaned forward to stare at the screen.

***

"Wake her up."

There was a beep and Electro Singer woke. She blinked in the bright light of the room.

She was bound to a bed, her limbs securely fastened by steel manacles. A collar- a power inhibitor- pressed tight around her neck. She realised with mounting horror that she was naked other than her mask, her toned, slim body bare to anyone who wanted to see.

And there were plenty of people to see. She was surrounded by a dozen men, of varying ages and ethnicities and sizes. All brutal looking. And all naked. And in the centre, video camera in hand...

"Mocking Mistress. Have you finally gone mad?"

"Hardly." The woman stepped closer, camera panning over the Asian girl's slim figure, her perky breasts, her neatly trimmed bush. "I would like to thank you. You're going to be the first, you see. The first precious hero to fall. The first of my new army."

"Army?"

"Of slaves."

Electro Singer couldn't believe what she was hearing. "This is insane. When people find out what you did-"

"By the time, my dear little girl, that people find out what happened to you...well. It will be too late. But don't worry. If it's any consolation- this is for science."

Mocking Mistress gestured and the men closed in on Electro Singer as she kept talking. "Now, I'd suggest you relax and enjoy yourself- and, if I'm right, you almost certainly will shortly enough- but until then...Gentlemen. Begin the experiment."

She laughed, while hands found Electro Singer's body, gripping her breasts, her face, her legs. The men crowded around her.

***

The villains watched the scene unfold in front of them. Mad Maker stood up, shaking his head. "I won't take any part of this."

Grendlekin Jack laughed. "Afraid of getting your hands dirty? Or other parts?"

"This is a step too far." Mad Maker walked away. A moment later Barrow Witch stood up as well.

"You too?" Asked Mocking Mistress. "I thought you'd be made of sterner stuff."

"This is," she said, "nothing to do with the Great Abyss. I will not release my masters through such...unsubtle means." She departed.

The remaining villains chuckled. Johnny Deadlord looked up at the scene still playing out, as the first of the men lined up to claim the heroine. He said, "So. A fun little experiment. What was the end result?"

Mocking Mistress laughed. "I thought you'd never ask." She raised her voice. "Come in, Pet!"

The door opened.

An Asian girl walked in. She was naked, apart from a tiny domino mask and a leather collar. Her hair was long and straight, and her eyes were downcast. She stood in the centre of the room, hands demurely clasped together. "Yes, Mistress?"

"Come here."

The girl gracefully dropped to her knees and, in front of the assemblage of villains, crawled over to Mocking Mistress. The supervillain reached down and cupped the girl's chin, raising her face up and smiling at the crawling girl. "Who are you, Pet?"

"I am your pet, Mistress." The girl murmured, worship in her eyes.

"And who were you?"

"I was Electro Singer, mistress. And Xiao Hua Lang."

"Good girl." Mocking Mistress gently stroked her face, and the girl shuddered. "What is your purpose in life, Pet?"

"To please you, mistress."

"Good girl," the villainess repeated, and the girl shuddered again, whimpering with pleasure. She turned to the others. "You see? Every hero we defeat will be a hero to add to our ranks as a slave. We are so close- so close to finally overthrowing the stagnant world order, where these arrogant, jumped up do-gooders can finally learn their place."

"At our feet," murmured Pit Mistress. "Bowing to their betters."

Grendlekin Jack rumbled in agreement, his eyes on the slim, naked body of the fallen heroine. "Imagine my people reborn from the wombs of the very champions that nearly once wiped them out."

Johnny Deadlord chuckled. "You know, I used to think that no revenge would be good enough for Beacon and Bright Blade, after what they did. But breaking that woman in front of her worthless husband...hmm. Yup, that'd do." He leaned forward. "What do you need from us, babe?"

Mocking Mistress smiled.

***

Grey Sentinel stepped out of the meeting room. Grey Apprentice trailed behind him.

"That went. Well, it went..."

"It went," said Grey Sentinel, "About as well as I expected."

"Damn, that bad?"

"They don't understand." The owner of the Dark Gate continued, hands clenching. "They want Endless and the others released from quarantine."

"We have three days, at least."

Grey Sentinel shook his head. "Three days to understand how two of our best have fallen into depravity."

Tanya twirled one finger around her blonde hair. "Depraved? Look, they've obviously got some rewiring going on, but..."

"But?"

"They aren't, you know, evil right now. Really, really, um, libertine, but they're still heroes. They haven't been hurting people."

"Chain Devil-"

"Um, hurting people that aren't obviously into it. I mean, maybe letting them get back into service...it wouldn't be the end of the world?"

"What if," said Nathan, "it might? Can we take that risk?" He sighed. "It's time to ask him."

Tanya nodded. "Cool. Uh, you go and ask and I'll-"

"You're coming with me."

"Cool."

***

Mocking Mistress smiled as she eased back onto her chair.

It had finally come. After years of humiliation. After defeat after defeat. Carefully building her mighty corporate empire and her just as mighty secret organisation. Deal after deal made with demons and aliens and madmen for every scrap of power she could find. All for this.

Victory.

This time it would work. She'd finally show those would-be gods, those false idols, that they weren't her superiors- weren't her heroes- weren't her betters.

Still, there was plenty to do. More villains to meet, heroes to identify. Her loving little pet had so generously provided her with a list of names, some of which she had already shared with the others. But there was so much to plan, to prepare-

"Mistress?"

Hands on her shoulders, soft and gentle. A breathy murmur in her ear. "You seem tense."

She frowned. Her new acquisition had been...entertaining, to say the least. After the girl had broken, she'd all but thrown herself into the role as her happy, devoted little sex slave. And Mocking Mistress, as loathe as she was to admit it, had found the girl's happy attentions...adequate.

More than adequate. She'd had a busy couple of days.

Which meant she was behind schedule, and behind in running her empire too. So she said to the slim young slave, "Mistress has a lot of work to do, little Pet."

"Mmmm." The Asian girl smiled dreamily at her as she moved around to ease the corporate villainess's jacket off her shoulders. "But it's my job to please you, Mistress." She pouted as she eased herself onto Mocking's lap. "Surely you wouldn't be so mean as to stop me from making you feel better, would you?"

Mocking Mistress took in a deep breath, even as Pet began to unbutton her shirt. She had too much to do. She'd indulged herself for a few days- understandable, given the reward she'd reaped- but now she really, really needed to...

She blinked, dizzy. Was she sweating? Did the world just shudder for a second? Never mind, she was about to...about to...

She felt Pet's lips on hers, soft and sweet and warm, and decided whatever it was could wait.

***

Grey Devil floated in the black void, his apprentice by his side.

They moved through the realm of nightmares and things worse than nightmares. From time to time the inky abyss around them shifted as titanic horrors dreamt uneasily.

After some time- minutes, hours, days- they glimpsed something ahead. A stone platform, upon which sat an ancient temple. And sitting at the front of the temple...

A man. Tall and regal, his body still strong despite his grey hair. He was wreathed in darkness, with a pulsing shadow over his left breast.

He smiled as the two heroes floated down to land atop the temple. "Sentinel of the Earth-Realms."

Grey Sentinel nodded. "Jailer of the Dark Realm. We seek your wisdom."

"You brought your apprentice, I see." He smiled at the blonde teenager. "It's good to see our legacy in such good hands."

"...Gosh." Said Grey Apprentice, blushing. "Thanks for training my boss. Um, bigger boss."

"Hah." The dark-shrouded man laughed. "All I did was give a grieving child some direction. I remember how he was after his parents were murdered." He shook his head. "So angry."

"Oh, he's completely mellowed out since then. Practically a hippie."

Grey Sentinel coughed. "Well. We have come to seek your wisdom." He explained the situation to his master.

The Jailor of the Dark Realm nodded. "You have three questions, then. What this is, who caused it and how to stop it. Correct?"