#cheytac m200 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

fanatichistory · 2 years

Text

The Dark Within Part 12

*Edited

Masterlist1 Masterlist2 Part20

Behold Part 12 in all of it's continued domestic glory lol Don't get me wrong I'm partial to the action in HeroxVillain stories but I can't get past the character building of the dynamics between these two! They are so cute and in need of some hugs and just...yeah ^.^

CW: Mentions of past abuse, hurt/comfort, Deimos is villain caretaker, Maven Sidekick/former hero,

Deimos had finally managed to hide his smile away and pull out his serious business face before the doors to the elevator opened up to the penthouse.

His little sidekick was lounging on the couch, feet kicking up in the air carefree, paging through one of the many magazines Supervillain had stashed around the side and coffee tables.

He was about to reprimand her for the cheek kiss when he paused to look over her shoulder to see which magazine she chose. He found the weapons magazine was the one and that she was practically petting a rather mean looking gun. By the picture alone, he could tell it was almost as long as she was tall and it was fitted with one of those night vision scopes.

"It's a sniper rifle." Maven said without turning to look up at him as she sensed his presence behind her, leaning over the back of the couch. Instead she continued to pet the picture lovingly while she continued.

"The CheyTac M200...they named it Intervention and it's said to be the most accurate sniper rifle with a grouping at a 2122 meter range! That's huuuuge."

"Looks a lot... bigger than you...How would you go about carrying such a beast? How would you conceal your 'Intervention' until you get to your little bird nest to pick off the other big birds?" Deimos lightly but thoroughly questioned her, trying not to smile proudly as he remained in his business mode. It was getting rather hard to do with her if he was being honest but he couldn’t help but be intrigued by her train of thought.

A sniper rifle?

"Hmm...That's true..." Maven conceded almost reluctantly.

"Besides isn't the rifle only as good as it's shooter? Or whatever?" Deimos was trying to conceal as much as his confusion as possible. This was, more or less, Supervillain’s area of expertise as he relied more heavily on his shadows to produce his bladed weapons when needed.

"I just wanna start picking off some of the heroes...as soon as possible..." She was so quiet he almost didn’t hear her answer while she blushed guiltily.

Deimos blinked down at her in shock before throwing his head back in a laugh. He practically doubled over the couch as he tried to contain himself while she just grumbled at him and kept thumbing through the magazine.

"Why the sudden urge to kill may I ask?" He asked her when he finally calmed down his laughter and walked around the couch to join her.

For what seemed like a long while she didn't answer and he was debating with prompting her further when she finally did.

"Some of them are as bad as Leader...as Jason...there are other teams out there like mine. Other people who are hurting...like me...if there's a chance I can pick off the bad ones I'm want to take it." She refused to look up at him and preferred to hide behind her long hair. Her hair succeeded in hiding her face from him but he knew her face already like the back of his hand and what was expressed on there.

Guilt. Shame.

Pain.

He was half tempted to give her the warning nickname 'little hero' that he would call her when her old life cropped up. But she broke no rule he had established with her. He could only get back up and kneel beside the couch, brush aside that long hair of hers and have her look at him.

"I understand." He stated simply. Because he did understand. He was like Maven at one point in his life so he knew the confusion and mix of emotions she was still going through as she processed her career change.

After all it had only been a week.

"I understand you know other heroes like Jason and want to put a stop to them. I feel the same way, that is why I chose to take down the Academy of Heroes. They are the ones kidnapping gifted and non-gifted children alike for their own purposes. They are the ones creating the monsters of today." He stood back up and her gaze followed him as he stared sadly down at her.

"They created me."

Maven blinked in shock, assuming like the others that he had always commanded the shadows. Had always been this scary. Intimidating sure, Deimos knew he was. He was raised by his parents to be so, considering the style of life and family business they ran, but never scary scary. Not unless you were the enemy of the family.

Maven sat up on the couch and really looked at him. As if to weigh his words and tell if he was being truthful or not. "You were trained at the Academy?" She asked quietly.

"As was Villain2. And Supervillain back when she was younger, as are the other villains in this area Supervillain rescued and brought here with her. All but one villain back home in our city are from the same Academy."

"All but one?"

"Yeah, some fan with a dark side who's into Villain2. Thought he could join up with him but Villain2 isn't much of a team player per se? So the poor fan gets knocked around a lot by them. I'm not sure why he chose villainy as a career other than to get closer to Villain2. Bit creepy really...and dangerous."

"More like very. You should check in with Villain2 more...you know, just in case..."

"Why?" Deimos almost smiled at her concern for Villain2. She was such a team player that it was going to take awhile for her to grasp that such concepts don’t exist outside of heroism.

"Well, because you're villains!? Because you're on the same side?" Maven answered exasperated and taken aback by his question. Clearly confused.

Before answering or continuing further, Deimos lowered himself to sit on the coffee table across from her so they could stare face to face.

"I need you to understand something, and understand it fast little Maven, villains are not like heroes. We do not watch each other's back unless it is for our gain. We do not team up unless we get something out of it. We see to our own needs and goals first and foremost because we are the only ones who care enough about it to carry it out. Do you understand me?"

Maven looked down and nodded guiltily.

"Do you?" He prompted again, curious if she was agreeing to simply agree given her submissive nature or if she did truly hear him.

"Yes." She responded much more firmly that he was satisfied.

"Then what is bothering you?" He asked next with his head tilted as he leaned in trying to read her and figure out why she withdrew back into herself. He was trying to help her, to make her see how the world really worked when one didn't have an ally to watch their back.

"It's just really sad...always being alone...and never trusting anyone. It's...it's like being back with the heroes...I thought at least that part would be different you know? That I'd finally found someone to watch my back...." She mumbled through most of it and it was only because he was leaning forward while sitting across from her that allowed him to actually hear all that she was saying to him.

"You can trust me Maven." He said finally, knowing as soon as the words left his mouth that he meant them. Deimos struggling with himself as he wondered how she didn’t hear it before when he already told her that she could. When he showed it to her.

"You basically just said I can't." She argued, frustration flashing in her eyes as she sat up straighter and openly challenged his words. "You literally just said-"

"-I know what I said little hero." He interrupted as Maven went quiet as soon as she heard the warning nickname. Deimos took the moment to rake a hand through his hair and take a breath. Technically she didn’t break a rule, she was just getting on his nerves by raising her voice and challenging him when he struggled to communicate what he wanted to say.

"You're not making sense anymore...if we only serve ourselves first then how are we going to work? We can't take the Academy down with just the two of us...You're going to need a small army, trained and prepared like those at the Academy...You're going to need supplies and cash for all the soldiers' gear, equipment, medical supplies for the survivors, food to feed them all...You're going to need to be a leader, one that all the other villains can look up to and follow like I do." Maven sighed and leaned back into the couch in a huff, looking off to the side as she laid her thoughts out.

"I guess what I'm asking is...are you ready? To change that is, because the current style of villainy isn't going to get you what you want... I don't think at least..."

Deimos leaned forward and propped his arms on his legs as he digested her worries. She was not wrong in her assessment as he had come to the same or similar conclusions not so long ago.

He always figured he could just show up at the Academy, lay waste to the guards and older heroes who were in charge of security and training the newer generation, and just...corral all of the younger ones away so they wouldn't interfere as he went for the administration and Board of Heroes at the top of the corruption there.

But hearing Maven voice the concern out loud, having had no strategic preparation or inclusion to his private plans, raised some major alarm bells for him.

She was right, they were going to need an army of sorts. One of former heroes like her who were just as sick of the system as the villains were.

"Alright, I hear you. " He said finally, gaining her attention once again. "But what is your plan for acquiring the said little army? How would you suggest I recruit them? Do I let all the little heroes in on our personal dynamic?" He was teasing her a little but his questions were sincere and serious. He supposed he was being a little naïve in his plans to outright slaughter the Academy and all it stood for, including the people held within.

Maven frowned as she thought awhile.

"Well...Not everyone wanted to be a hero, like me they were forced...unlike me they might not want to be a villain either, they probably just want to be normal citizens if given the chance..." She sighed again as she continued to think out loud. "Personally, I want to give them that chance if I can. Freedom for all."

"So that is your goal then?" He mused curiously, finger tapping his chin.

"One of them..."

"Go on then..." He murmured gently to her, trying to ease the tension of their conversation as much as he could.

"Well, yes I want the heroes free. Heroics should be a choice, like villainy is. I don't think anyone should be forced to do anything like that."

Deimos kept his face passive at that.

Personally, he felt they were a lost cause and only the younger ones still at the Academy stood a chance at returning to a normal life in the city. This goal of hers in particular could pose a problem further down the road...

"I also want to learn how to help you with this, er, little army of yours? Like to be your second or something?" Maven posed it as a question just in case she was out of line as a Sidekick, not quite sure how promotions worked under him.

"You want to give orders too?" He chuckled at the thought. He pegged her for shy and submissive but after her teasing down in the training gym when they were sparring he couldn't outright deny the image.

"Most definitely." She nodded eagerly, then paused and cocked her head in thought. "Well, maybe...I would like to try though. See what it's like?" He chuckled and shook his head. She wasn’t ready and he couldn’t trust her like that yet.

She was better suited to healing and intelligence, not combat strategy. She was more about putting people together and not in tearing them apart. As much as Deimos enjoyed the idea of having her as a partner, a little Sidekick, in truth her abilities as healer and battery made her a better prisoner and friend.

To avoid having her secret found out and having her fall into enemy hands.

The more he got to talking with his little hero though, the more he saw her struggling with the darkness she had buried inside. And that worried him.

Battles with ones inner darkness had a way of making or breaking a person. And she was getting very eager to kill her enemies and having less and less reservations about it. Not that he particularly minded as he didn’t have many himself but it was still disconcerting to watch the change take place.

"Well then...let's focus on our little army first." He leaned back and stretched as he directed the conversation. "Who is first up on your little recruitment list?"

"Well...funny you should ask..." She gave a nervous ‘heh heh’.

"Am I not going to like the suggestion?" Maven nodded in response and instinctively shrunk smaller as she waited for a reprimand or a punishment, still expecting pain like the ones from her former Team Hero. "Go on and tell me, little Maven. We are in this together.” He pressed her gently.

"Maelstrom..."

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised it's someone from your former team." Deimos got up suddenly and walked to the kitchen so she didn’t see the glower overtaking his features, though not quite dismissing the idea as she must be suggesting the Hero for a reason, but also signaling her to continue and explain her reasoning.

"Well, she was Leader's second in command and she is really good at it. She achieves the mission 9/10 times, she doesn't take unnecessary risks and is patient, well at the mission at least. Not so much elsewhere. She also keeps an eye on her team, seeing to their care and not just physically. If a member had a mental breakdown or was going through a lot of stress, she saw to it that they recovered." Maven chuckled at whatever memory surfaced in her mind. "Come to think of it, she'd boss me into getting the needed medications and such."

"And you didn't mind her ordering you around? She didn't partake in abusing and bullying you?" Deimos was still skeptical, particularly of anyone from Maven's former team. Maelstrom might be all what she was implying but the Hero had to have known what was going on and was either party to it or stood by.

He still had some doubts about Maven herself in terms of trust but it was mainly due to her experiences and not at all herself as a person. She needed healing, hell all the citizens in that corrupt city needed healing.

"No, she was very straight forward and to the point about it. She'd also check in with me when Leader wasn't around, make sure I ate that day and that I had enough bandages." Maven turned to face him on the couch so she could watch him move in the kitchen without having to get up.

"I remember Leader getting really really mad at her just for asking for me. She was training with Leader and was hurt so it was only natural she asked for me since I was in charge of all the medical supplies and all. But Leader...he took it the wrong way cause he though she knew about my healing ability and the others had to pull him off her. She had to go to the Academy Clinic and was there for a few months to recover. Leader made sure I didn't use my ability for anyone else but him, being a secret and all, and the whole time she was recovering he thought I was sneak healing to the others too...that they all knew my secret..."

"And so he took it out on you as well." He finished for her, having a feeling that was where she was going to go with it. She nodded to confirm he was right. A little unnerved by just how much of her he saw. " I thought you only got along with the Sidekicks, for survival you said, or did I misunderstand earlier?"

"You didn't. I might understand Maelstrom and why she chose to survive the way she did...but she still didn't have my back. She only asked about me out of pity or guilt. I don't feel bad or good about her, rather I feel neutral. She's a survivor like me, so she will make the survivor's move." Maven was gazing off in his general direction as he made dinner but he could tell she was lost down memory lane by the way her eyes were glazed over.

"Do you trust her little Maven? In war you need to trust you're soldiers, so do you trust her?"

"I don't trust anyone." Maven deadpanned.

Deimos laughed at that though he made sure to keep it light and teasing as he gauged her. He heard truth in her voice and knew she really didn't but he was still working on getting her to at least trust him.

"Not even me?"

"To a point. I trust you as my boss but that's about where it stops."

"Thank you for being honest." He said, making sure to lock eyes with her when he said it. She merely blushed and ducked into the couch with just her eyes peeking out. "I mean it little Maven, it's hard to trust anyone. And I've put you through the wringer so to speak, it would be a little weird if you trust me enough to put your life so completely in my hands this soon."

"I do hope to earn that, though. Despite everything I did to you when you were Supervillain's prisoner..."

Maven remained silent, her eyes owl-like as they just watched him. He cleared his throat and focused back on dinner and the conversation they were having earlier about Maelstrom.

"So...this Maelstrom, you want her as my second?" Maven blinked her owl eyes before shaking her head.

"Not specifically her, just...someone with her skills. I wouldn't mind it if it was her, because she's familiar to me, but I'm still on the fence about what she wants. I never got to know her well enough to find out if she's like me and never wanted to be a hero at all or if she wants out of the game for good.. to be a civilian or what have you. That's a big important chunk."

Maven stretched and stood up from the couch as she continued on. "I just think she's a possibility is all. And her skills would fill in the need for a second in an army. Everyone liked her well enough when Leader wasn't around and she's smart enough to get the job done."

"No matter what?"

"Eh...she puts the team above all. If they are to injured or not present to finish the mission she will call it off and send everyone home to rest. She's a...well she's a firm believer in taking care of you're team and they will take care of you kind of thing."

"I see... and how does that benefit me?" He asked and she huffed in response and leaned forward on the counter with a teasing glint in her eye.

"You're not exactly a people person."

They both laughed at that as the oven beeped to confirm it was preheated and ready to cook as he placed the chicken casserole he had made during their conversation inside and set the timer.

"I have no problem with you...little Maven..." He trailed off shyly, hoping the color didn't show on his face as he felt the heat rise and hoped it was just the oven.

"That's because it's just the two of us and it's me." She waved dismissively. "Tell me, how would you handle a group of me's gathered all around this room waiting for orders?"

He knew his hesitating silence told her what she know. In reality he was remembering all the times he watched his father and the lessons he was given by both parents on how to lead a group. Well more like mafia family but "to-may-to" "to-mah-to" kind of thing.

In truth, his parents raised him well in the criminal industry and how to find and lead a crew. He just has to do it is all and his little hero was not far off in her assessment of him not being a people person. Deimos much preferred being a loner with only his shadows for company.

Being responsible for anyone, especially a criminal family, was a huge risk and responsibility to head.

"Well, with the right second in command, one you trust to have your back at all times through the thick and thin...one that wouldn't betray you or you're goals and get the mission done, they can give the orders and command the gatherings." Maven continued on speaking while twirling a finger through her long hair in deep thought, taking his silent thinking as confirmation that he needed the advice. It was rather cute that she thought to look out for him in such a way.

"I have no problem giving orders little Maven, as you well remember. My parents trained me to lead, to take over the family business one day. I was a villain before the Academy ever got their hands on me." He elected to inform her.

"Welp, I guess there's no need to play this scenario game anymore if you already know what you want for your second and your future army." Maven couldn't but shiver a little at the dark glint in his eye when he spoke of his family. It was only a glimpse but she knew there was more to it. More to his past that he wasn't willing to share with her.

"Do you miss your old team?" He asked her after they had settled themselves back on the couch and turned the television on. The question caught her off guard at the sudden shift back to the earlier conversation.

They were going back and forth between the two topics and normally it would bug her but seeing as they were such emotionally charged topics, and not just for her if she was reading him right, she was grateful this time.

"Honestly I'm just worried about Maelstrom. With Leader gone who knows who they let take over the team now. And Hero2 is just like Leader so they can go bye-bye for all I care but it's also why I'm worried about Maelstrom."

Deimos smiled at the 'bye-bye' part. In truth he knew she would like demolish or drain the energy from Hero2 but the carefree way she talked about them concerned him. Those with healing abilities were naturally submissive in nature, as Maven showed distinctly since day 1. But her ability to drain was rearing it’s head and he was finding new sides to her than what he find when he initially watched her back at Team Hero.

"I...I want to save her..." She watched him give a nod as if he knew that was going to be her answer all along. Deimos just wanted her to hear it for herself.

"Is Maelstrom villain material or do you just want to save her?"

Maven could see the seriousness in his eyes, that she should not only answer carefully but honestly.

"And how would saving her benefit you're boss?" She was aware he was separating himself by calling himself boss and Maven knew in her gut she was walking a thin line.

Nothing would stop Deimos from achieving his goal and he pretty much admitted a few days ago to locking her back up in a cell somewhere and use her like a tool to do so. He may be gentle with her now but he was still a dangerous villain.

But so was she now.

"Well...I'm not sure yet..." Maven frowned as her brain took over and she began thinking again trying to find a way to make it work for the both of them. "I was hoping she'd join up and take down the Academy for you but because I don't know her that well... I'm not sure if that's something she'd do. But she's the only one left I actually kinda sorta care about.”

Deimos didn't mention the contradiction that she wouldn't trust this Maelstrom but yet still be worried enough about her safety or whether or not the Hero would be team up material.

He wondered if she knew how much she cared for the former teammate or if she was just trying to reason through her previous ties in an attempt to continue moving on.

Whatever the reason one fact remained clear if they were going to get answers.

They needed to pay this Maelstrom a visit and see what she had in mind about the city and her place in it before going forward and testing her.

He had doubts, lots of doubts, about recruiting Maelstrom and wondered if he could say no to his little hero after all.

If their assessment of Maelstrom proved false and she betrayed them, hurt Maven in any way...He shook that thought away and looked down at Maven who was settled next to him on the couch, not quite touching but close enough to share heat without a blanket as he felt himself cave in.

"Alright." She looked up at him as he spoke. "We'll pay you're Maelstrom a visit."

#hero x villain #whump community #the dark within series #my ocs do not steal #consider me unblocked #mwahahaha #villain x sidekick #former hero #whump writing #hurt/comfort #villain caretaker

4 notes · View notes