Rise of the Supervillains

by Jaron Lee Knuth

  Carmen walked up next to her, taking in the view of the domain with her. “It is beautiful.”

  “Is that your pitch? Are you going to try to sell me on this by telling me about the silver lining of the land deal attached to the marriage?”

  “No. No, I-”

  “Forget it,” Zana said. “You don't have to talk me into anything. It's not like I have a choice. I have to marry some beast-man and give birth to some beast-child and rule over a domain that smells like a wet dog. Fine. I accept that. But if you expect me to do it with a smile, then you might as well sentence me to a treasonous death right now. I refuse to be anything more than a reluctant slave to this Dominus.”

  “Does it need to be so dire? Does it need to be the slavery you think it will? You've never even met the man-”

  “And that makes it better?” She threw her hands into the air and let out a groan. “I thought you, of all people, might actually understand where I'm coming from. I didn't exactly see you glowing with excitement after your wedding to my uncle.”

  Carmen glanced back toward the doors to their room. “That's... complicated.”

  “Seems pretty simple to me. My grandmother offered you an ultimatum more than a choice. Marrying my uncle was the lesser of two evils, so you closed your eyes and spread your legs.”

  Carmen reeled back from the girl's vicious tongue. “I didn't... that's not... how dare you?”

  Zana spun around, both glaring and grinning. “How dare I? This is my family. You think you can just marry into the Zharkovs and have power to throw around? Trust me, bitch, you'll figure out soon enough that the only power you have is between your legs. Now go back inside and stand quietly next to your husband like they teach all the women in this family to do. You're not going to talk me into anything.”

  “I wasn't trying to talk you into anything,” Carmen snapped back.

  When Zana didn't respond, she gave up and turned back toward the room, but out of the corner of her eye, something caught her attention. In the distance, a cloud of dust was being kicked up from a herd of hyena-men running across the plains. There was no leader, no alpha to direct them. They moved more like a school of fish, swerving and turning as one cohesive unit.

  “This is a different world, Zana.”

  “Not different enough.”

  Carmen turned back toward her, reinvigorated to reach out to the girl. “In my old life, I never felt like I belonged. I never felt like I was in the right place, nor the right time. I hid from the outside world, dipping in my toes only when boredom overwhelmed me. I thought that was it, that my life would continue down that path until I died. I felt like fate had dealt me its one and only hand.”

  “And then you were snatched up and swept away into the magical world of the Fatherlands to marry your prince. Is that seriously what you're going to try to convince me of right now?”

  “No,” Carmen said, still watching the herd move across the horizon. “Of course not. What I'm trying to tell you is that when my life changed so drastically, I realized that fate doesn't end. Fate doesn't do its job and move on. Your life continues until you die. This hand I was dealt? This is not my forever. This is my now. The future has yet to be written. The only way I am damned to this existence is if I give up.”

  Carmen stepped in front of Zana. “What I'm trying to tell you, what I'm asking you to promise me is this...” She spoke softly, but firmly, with genuineness soaking every syllable. “Don't give up.”

  Zana stared at her for a moment and Carmen expected her to react the way she always did, with a quick, dismissive turn and a sharp retort. But the girl surprised her. Zana's eyes fell away from Carmen's gaze, but there was no defiance in her. Instead, Carmen glimpsed an extreme sadness that gave way to failure. For the first time, Carmen saw the fight drift away to reveal the girl's true feelings: Zana felt defeated.

  “I have to give up. It's the only way to accept this,” Zana said in little more than a whisper. “If I am to let this man inside me, then I must reject who I am. I must give up the life I want, for the life I'm forced to live.”

  Tears dropped from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks, but she made no move to remove them or hide them from Carmen.

  “This world... this Empire... does not allow me to be who I am. Only because who I am might never produce offspring. Because I might not offer another weapon to the Imperator. If I'm forced to accept this? If I'm forced to follow their rules of gender and sexuality and all the other barbaric constructs we've devised in order to keep men in power... then I have failed. And as a warrior? There's no coming back from that. So thank you, Carmen, for trying to help me. I believe that you do care, but I will not be holding onto any kind of hope for my future. The only way for me to survive this, is to die inside.”

  Carmen opened her mouth to say something as Zana turned away and lifted off from the floor of the balcony, but no words escaped her lips. The girl twirled into the air, her arms outstretched, as if she was trying to feel the rush of air for the last time. She rocketed into the sky even higher, disappearing among the gathering storm clouds.

  Carmen reluctantly turned back toward the room, pushing aside the thin curtains that blew around in the slight breeze. Maksim stood up from where he sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes opening wide.

  “Well?”

  Carmen shook her head.

  Maksim look at her with confusion and asked, “What does that mean? Does she refuse to marry the boy?”

  Carmen closed her eyes. “She'll marry him.”

  Maksim let out a gasp of air. “Thank you, Carmen. Perhaps we won't have to return to the Fatherlands empty handed after all.”

  “Please. Don't thank me. I didn't do anything that deserves thanks.”

  Maksim struggled through his confusion and finally offered, “I'm not thanking you because I'm proud of what we're doing here, Carmen.”

  “Then what are we doing, Maksim?”

  He gripped onto her shoulders with his large hands and said, “We're doing what we always do. What everyone in this world is doing. We're surviving.”

  Carmen nodded, unable to react to what was happening with any kind of feigned happiness. Instead she just stared at the floor, feeling empty inside. The process had been sick enough to begin with, but when she had looked into Zana's truth, her disgust had been tripled.

  Maksim held out his hand and said, “Come. A servant had asked for our attendance while you were outside. Dinner will be commencing shortly and we will hear the Dominus's decision.” He smiled and pulled her closer. “With any luck, this war will be over soon.”

  Carmen silently followed him out the door, where a servant led them down the labyrinth of hallways, toward the main dining chamber. The humidity inside the castle walls swelled against Carmen's skin, making her feel more sick than she already was. As they neared the dining chamber, she heard the sounds of celebration. Large drums pounded out a trance-like beat, accompanied by howls and screeches. The sounds grew louder and louder until they finally stepped inside the room.

  The scene was overwhelming. Giant fires blazed inside pits, with racks of meats and vegetables being spun above the flames. Animal-hybrids of every species laughed and poured wine and ale down their throats, watching the others either fight each other with claws and fangs bared, or mount each other in a wild orgy of unabashed sex that appeared to Carmen as nothing more than socially-accepted rape. This was primal behavior on a scale that Carmen had never seen before, nor would ever want to again.

  Maksim clutched her hand and leaned in to whisper, “Do not show disdain for their culture. We are not here to judge. They are animals, not people.”

  “They were people first!” Carmen hissed back under her breath. “Look at them. This is-”

  “This is not our world,” Maksim reminded her.

  “But this is what you're handing your niece over to. You're throwing her to the wolves, quite literally.”

  Maksim flashed a look at her and said, “I'm not a monster.
If I didn't think she was strong enough to handle it, I wouldn't be here.”

  The servant led them to a table where she pulled out the heavy wooden chairs for them both. When they were seated, another servant shuffled over and shouted her question over the music and frivolity.

  “Herbivore or carnivore?”

  Carmen was confused for a moment by the question. Before she could answer, Maksim answered for her.

  “Carnivore.”

  When the servant nodded and shuffled away, Maksim leaned over to explain.

  “The weakness you show as a herbivore is much worse than the insult you would make to any species by eating one of their kind.”

  “I didn't think you knew much about this culture.”

  Maksim stared across the room as a rhinoceros-man and a shark-man circled around each other, preparing to battle over the right to mount a scorpion-woman.

  “I only know the type. They are warriors.”

  The drum beat hit a crescendo, then stopped abruptly. The growling and screaming faded away as the volatile party calmed. The beastly bodies turned their attention to the front of the room as Dominus Mastodon entered with the Domina by his side. Behind them, Zana entered alongside their son. The boy was an elephant-man, like his father, with the thick, gray skin, trunk, and tusks of the species, but his head was surrounded by the mane of a lion, and his paws bore the claws of his mother's species. Without context, Carmen would have found him magnificent looking.

  Dominus Mastodon threw his hands into the air and shouted, “Greetings, fellow Therians, and guests from the Fatherlands. Thank you for joining us tonight, for this feast and celebration. We have gathered to witness a most glorious moment in Therian history, one that will change the face of the Empire... and the world.”

  Roars and growls and screeches and howls echoed throughout the room as the beastly crowd cheered with excitement. Maksim clapped his hands proudly together, expecting the acceptance of the marriage proposal. Carmen lightly tapped the palms of her hands together, not wanting to appear rude, but also unable to take her eyes off Zana's face. The warrior spirit that used to pulse through every muscle in the girl's body was gone, replaced by the ghost that inhabited her frame.

  “As Dominus of Therian, I hereby accept the offer of the Zharkovian Empire... the gift of an heir to my throne!”

  The howls and screams erupted again. This time Maksim stood up, clapping his hands with his super-strength so loud that it sounded like thunder rumbling inside the room. He grabbed onto Carmen's hand and led her toward the Dominus and his family. As they approached, Carmen bowed down onto her knees and Maksim offered a gracious bow of his head.

  “Thank you, m'Dom,” Maksim said with an easy smile that showed relief, “for accepting this partnership. Both between our next of kin, and our families.”

  “And thank the Imperator, for offering such a powerful woman to produce my heir. The Therian domain will be a formidable member of the Empire from this day forward.”

  The Domina smiled back at Zana and her son and then shouted across the room, “And may the war be ended by this union, for the sake of all our children!”

  With the cheering that erupted, the drums kicked back in, and the celebration returned to its heightened state. The sound was so loud, that Carmen and Maksim were forced to step closer to the Dominus in order to continue talking.

  “The next thing we need to discuss is when and where you would like this union to take place,” Maksim said. “We would be honored to hold the celebration at the Grand Citadel. My mother assured me that no expense would be spared for such an occasion.”

  The Dominus looked at Maksim with utter confusion. “I do not understand, Guardian. We have gathered here tonight for the celebration.”

  Maksim's eyebrows raised in surprise. “You want them to marry tonight?”

  Dominus Mastodon glanced at the Domina, still confused, then when the realization of what Maksim was asking finally struck him, he burst out laughing.

  “Marriage?” The laughter continued as he sputtered out the explanation. “That is something that humans do, Guardian. Not Therians. I don't require this girl's marriage to my son.”

  Maksim glanced back at Carmen, then to Zana, who did not meet his gaze. Finally, he returned to Dominus Mastodon.

  “I'm sorry, m'Dom. Then what exactly are we celebrating?”

  The Dominus stood up from his chair and shouted across the room, his voice booming over the pounding drums. “We are here to witness the great mount!”

  The words slapped across Carmen's face as her breath escaped her lungs. She turned to Zana, but the Domina was already leading her and the lion-elephant-man hybrid down the stairs, toward the center of the room. The crowd of animal-people spread out to the sides, ending their fighting and fornication. They indulged in the foods and wines that filled the tables, their eyes large and piercing, gazing upon the couple that stepped into the center of the room.

  The Domina left them there as the drums lowered into a constant, steady rhythm. Carmen's heartbeat matched the beat of the drums as Zana untied the belt on her robe and let the cloth drop from her body, leaving herself naked in front of the crowd. The boy did the same as Zana knelt down onto her hands and knees in front of him.

  Carmen turned toward Maksim, who looked frozen in shock at what was happening. He turned away when his niece bared her body to the crowd, but said nothing.

  “Maksim. You have to do something! You can't let them do this!”

  The Dominus must have heard her, because he stepped behind the two of them, placing his thick, gray hands on both their shoulders.

  “As soon as we can verify that she has been impregnated, you will have my army. We will end this war for you, and with the lives of my men, we will give your Empire the peace it desires.”

  Maksim glanced at Carmen, who silently begged him with her eyes. He stayed there, in her gaze, showing her that he wanted to give her everything she was asking, but ultimately, his gaze fell to the floor.

  “We all must sacrifice.”

  Carmen shut her eyes as tight as she could, but she could not hide from the building drum beat that accompanied the animal-hybrid's cheering for what they were witnessing in the center of the room.

  24

  ANDRE

  Even with the extensive rebuilding effort, the neighborhood hadn't changed that much. The streets were all the same. The faces were all the same. Even the businesses were the same, albeit most of the mom-and-pop stores were closed and replaced with newer, shinier franchises. Andre could still feel that general sense of despair among the locals, that hopelessness that kept everyone grounded in their day-to-day slog through life. It was the unseen haze that hung over the neighborhood, the haze that Andre had dedicated his life to get out of.

  When he reached his destination, he let out a groan of despair to see Bobby's Bar where Cleo's Place used to stand. It looked bigger than the original, and a bit cleaner, but when he pushed open the door, the place looked more or less the same. There was the usual afternoon crowd, two or three retired supervillains sitting in the shadows, but there wasn't any of the memorabilia on the walls, or the photographs and newspaper clippings heralding the biggest supervillain capers of the past. Cleo was still slinging drinks behind the bar, and when she turned to see who had entered, her eyes grew large.

  “Andre?”

  He smiled back at her as he sauntered toward the first stool, slapped his hands down on the bar, and said, “I'll take whatever beer is coldest.”

  She stood there for a few moments, staring at his face, but soon her eyes grew worried and she glanced around the bar with a nervous twitch. The other men didn't pay any attention to him, but she hurried over and talked to him in a hushed tone.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I'm thirsty,” he said with a grin.

  “Damn it, kid. You know what I mean.”

  Andre shrugged and leaned back. “Look, I'm out, okay? That's all that matters.”

/>   She pushed one of her chubby fingers into the wooden bar. “And how the hell did you manage that? They don't just let you out of a place like The Pit.”

  “I mean, that's the only possible answer right? No one can escape that place right?” He ended the sentence with a wink.

  “How the hell-”

  “Not the point. I'm here, okay?”

  She nervously glanced around again. “Kid, if you're a wanted supervillain, you can't be in here. Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to get this place up and running after you botched our plan?”

  Andre leaned back, holding out both his hands. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. First of all, it looks to me like Bobby the Bull got this place up and running, not you. And second... 'Botched our plan?' That safe was empty, Cleo. The info we got was bunk.”

  “That info told you where the bank was, right? That info told you where the safe was and-”

  “That info got Victor killed!”

  His voice was louder than expected, his emotions getting the better of him. His outburst drew the attention of the other men at the bar, but they returned to their drinks when Cleo glared at them.

  “Okay. I get it, kid. I do. Things went south. Real south. And as much as I hated that Victor boy, he didn't deserve what they did to him. None of you deserved what you got.” Then she stopped and tilted her head back and forth as she said, “Though I suppose Carmen ended up doing pretty well for herself, didn't she?”

  “Her situation ain't any better than Vic's.”

  “You got a twisted sense of things, kid.”

  “I'm just saying-”

  Cleo held up her hand to stop him. “It doesn't matter. You still can't be here. I'm sorry, but I have to look out for my livelihood. This place might not have my name on it anymore, but I'm still responsible for it.”

  Andre shoved himself away from the bar and said, “Fine. I only came here cause I'm looking for Mickey. You know where he is?”

  The look in her eyes filled Andre with a sense of dread. She looked down at the floor, afraid he would see the truth in her eyes.