Chapter Text
Blood, Crimson river, scarlet nova, Bloody Bonnet.
You stand in the middle of a red blazing horizon. The dying stars exploding in the background did little to obscure the dark red that stained everything. You were lit on fire with how the light bounced across your bloody appearance. Your own glow was scarlet as it touched the shadows lovingly like a blood moon. He shuddered as the sight captivated him. He could feel it building like an overflowing inferno inside his chest and pooling into his limbs as it pulled at the strands of his sanity. He needed you. He craved you. He will destroy you. He will corrupt you. He will devour you.
Drool leaked out of his fanged maw as his body shivered with aftershocks reminiscent of the time when. Blackhat woke up, panting, choking on his own acidic spit. CURSES he was so close, of course it was a lie, that memory always slips from his mental grasp.
It was the usual hour BlackHat would begin another evil day. He groaned upset with himself and his subconscious. He tore the bed apart in his initiated rage to temper the buzz still stinging deep down inside him. It was a frustrating itch he could never scratch and it infuriated him to no end. Like a splinter inside his bones, every shift and willful thought to ignore it made it all the more present and annoying.
Composing himself, he manifested his dapper attire and straightened his tie. Smoothing the rim of his hat he indulged one final thought back to his nightdream. Oh how he craved to find you, his notorious Bloody Bonnet. BlackHat never entertained the thought of you having perished at the hands of another, he wouldn’t allow it. He marked you as his arch nemesis, his cheeky equal, his subconscious obsession. No he couldn’t allow those thoughts to fester once again.
He was BlackHat for evil’s sake, he didn’t crave anything but destruction. L-ugh, love was for the weak, he’d seen countless villains done in by the bothersome manifestation. It was a disease, one of which he was positive couldn’t infect him. Ah, but the sin Lust was a different matter altogether. It took him centuries to discern it’s wicked roots, and thoroughly come to terms with what he desired. It was a dangerous dance, one of which BlackHat welcomed now and then, needing the challenge.
His mind wasn’t stable, so much power he was practically omniscient, yet he had a singular ego. He fought all his existence not to fall back into that same mindless state where he never enjoyed anything, because he was truly empty. Tugging at his monocle clad eye he dug into the rim of the socket just underneath the glass. A scant reminder of something he forgot long ago, he knew he had lost his eye to the one thing that awoke him from that empty expanse. But he could never remember any details beyond the fact he regained consciousness and stopped devouring the universe. Oh and became his own person once more. A singular ego from the eternal emptiness his origins are doomed to return to someday. He flicked his tongue in annoyance.
It wasn’t so much his purpose for existing, as the universe existed to begin with for him devour it. His ancient race was… complicated. From what he could remember it was normal for him, why should he deny his true nature then? Because it was boring as fuck. The rush that came with having his eye stolen away from him, the thrill, the anger, the euphoria as he devoured a piece of his salient in return. He shuddered holding himself as he dragged his claws down tearing into his face. He craved it again so badly the dull pain a scant reminder.
No one knew of his origins, or of the true threat he posed. His name had always been BlackHat, of course back then when he was just darkness his name would have varied from black, to darkness, to world destroyer. It didn’t matter. Bonnet however, was the one formidable opponent he ever faced, drawing the closest to erasing him from the universe. He smiled darkly as he felt the phantom pains of your burning light eating away at him. It could be he had a twisted sense of lust, or he was a really depraved creature that craved whatever stimulus to save him from absolutions end, that dare he say it almost being defeated titillated his subconscious, to keep replaying the memory in such an obscene light. It wasn’t really portrayed obscenely, but he was aroused every time.
What was he missing? It shouldn’t be that hard to find a single anti hero, or ex hero? Whatever you were. BlackHat breathed a big sigh, not that he needed to breath it was redundant but a relaxing action. Right that’s enough of that. He thought. There’s no need to keep going in the same circles that led nowhere.
If only your legend survived the carnage of that day. He left his room to brood in his office before his first appointment. Captain hook, good devils why does that man keep coming back here? Black rolled his eye, looking out the red tinted windows he mused about alternate realities. If you hadn’t been completely ghosted from history villains and heroes would still whisper your name. Of course… you never had an actual name, perhaps that’s why you’re not in the records. Sad really.
Bloody Bonnet was the title BlackHat came up with based upon the encounters he had with you. You wore a hat the majority of the time he knew of your existence while curious, he took to naming you Bonnet. Since everyone called him Hat more or less Bonnet was acceptable, mainly because it was a female’s hat choice and you were a girl last he checked.
He had met you previously in other situations where you viciously killed other villains, or brutally demolished a hero. You were a chaotic neutral yet you leaned towards the good side, but Black could sense the darkness brewing inside you. He had made advances to pull you to the dark side, but you were an elusive coward. A confusing mystery.
It was beguiling to know you’re capable of so much, yet you’re a complete coward when it came to his involvement. It sent a satisfactory thrill to his ego to be so revered yet despised.
As nice as his sadistic side enjoyed that little truth, he reminded himself never to underestimate you ever again. Because you did manage to trap him and came so close to killing him. If your little suicide mission hadn’t been interrupted by the heroes, who didn’t want you dead, he never would’ve survived. Also, he never would’ve seen you snap and turn those heroic traitors into a galactic sized slushy of pulp. He chuckled darkly to himself, it always brightened his mood to remember that.
He craved the chance to push you over the edge again, to see that ravishing, magnificent darkness. Really he just wanted to corrupt you with his own hands. To wring that blazing light from your eyes and see your bloody soul mirror within the same madness that drives him to incomprehensible frustration every night. He had it bad. Which was good, since he was a villain and wouldn’t accept anything less.
He will find you. He's found you before and chased you to the ends of the universe. You disappeared without a trace and it angered BlackHat to leave any hunt unfinished.
Yes, he will find you. It was his sole purpose under everything else, he could always rely on that promise.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Blood, everywhere, sinking into your skin darkening it, turning it black. You clawed at your flesh trying to tear off the infestation. Talon tipped, black, velvet hands shackle your own. No. You refuse to look. His eyes, and his gaping maw flash before you anyway, unable to look away as that hypnotic gaze twists his pupil into the same lava churning nightmare you remember from oh so long ago. Visceral images flashback to his wicked and menacing form, his tendrils and oozing dark presence. The suffocating madness of all your senses being assaulted. Your entire being, being invaded by his own as he loomed over you dominating. Unable to do anything but stare into those eyes, you stare as they stare back.
He had many eyes, many limbs, so many everything, all around, all consuming. But that single eye that was trained on you, so close it devoured you, and twisted in such a way it made your gut churn unfamiliarly. Everything about the horrifying situation was inviting now for some reason. You screamed out silently in defiance, don’t be fooled! You will yourself to look away.
It was too late, he opened his mouth his teeth shifting between needles and shark teeth drooling green and purple poison. Eager, and anxious, and another unknown, unwelcomed feeling burned under your skin. ‘Devour me, devour me!’ Your mind was going haywire. This isn’t what you wanted, but it felt so good, you were on fire. Shaking and gasping you pushed one final time lashing out. Renewing your vigor to fight back, you woke up in your trashed room. FUCK.
FuckFuckFuckFuck.
“HAWK!!” you meant to bellow, but still in the throes of that nightmare you screeched it instead. How unsightly.
Your roommate called from the other room “Don’t include me in your sex fantasies! Wait, never mind, include me in your sex fantasies!” She came in after that with a smile, but dropped it when she saw the state of the room. “Jesus I dunno whether to be turned on or concerned that I’m in your sex-
“They are not fantasies. Why the fuck didn’t you wake me up when the alarm went off?”
Hawk shrunk into herself hiding behind the door. You didn’t mean to use your scary voice, but dammit right now was not the time. Caving into yourself holding your knees you remembered the dream and the haunting images and emotions of being trapped. You hated everything, anger was a close and dear friend, but anger would unravel everything you've built.
“Oh honey I’m sorry, just tryin to lighten the mood ya know. I didn’t mean anything by it, though you are fucking hot can’t deny that. Also, uh, I really thought you were having a nasty dream, ya know nasty as in, yeah. I figured you’d wanna take the day off so I called in ahead.”
Great another useless lazy day. “I’m not a porcelain doll.” you reply.
“Really cause you sure look like one.”
You glance around the room pointing to the detail that you destroyed everything, again.
“I can rip a metal desk into ribbons Hawk.” honestly why you two were friends made no sense, you met at a bar so maybe that explains it.
“And I can take down baddies like it’s no ones business.” she comments
“Don’t you mean go down on.” you tease back
“Sure ya don’t wanna talk”
“No” you interrupt her again.
Your past will always come back to haunt you. And you have such a vast history to aide the torment. Who says immortality is awesome? You hate life... sometimes. No one understood, not even the other immortals... they never lived long enough to understand. No one could understand the horrors you've seen and continue to know that those horrors still exist, hidden behind fake smiles and false personas tricking everyone.
You go to work despite Hawk’s persistence for you to spend the day lazing about. It’s a routine, something of which you welcome these days. Ignorance is bliss, but you couldn't afford to stay ignorant all the time.
Strangely a tear falls as you ride the train. You’re not overwhelmingly sad about the lives you sacrificed, or the gruesome death of your friends, you’re not even sad it was all done by your hands. You’re certainly not sad about your broken relationship with Titan. Closing your eyes you focus on your breathing to quell that unbridled fury. He betrayed you. He used you. He never cared for you, it was all a lie.
You were sad because. Fate was a cruel bitch. You were doomed from the start and it wasn’t until that fight that you realized it. You don’t have any control. You never stood a chance, and now BlackHat will find you and finish the job before you can even deliver Titan an eternity of punishment. God you hope Blackhat hates Titan, the over exaggerated hero of heroes. The world conqueror, you wanted to punch him in his stupid face, BlackHat was more deserving of that title… Although universe destroyer was probably a better title. Ugh, what were you even going on about again? Sadness, Blackhat, everything sucks, boohoo.
No, no you weren’t even supposed to think about him. BlackHat was always in the back of your mind, locked behind the same door of horrors you’re afraid of getting answers to.
It was terrifying, and there were so many questions, so many speculations, so many questions, so, so many questions. You notice you were breathing faster, the sense of your own fear tickled your senses. You’ll never get over the fact that was drilled into you in the aftermath of that fight. BlackHat was right, you were like him. No, you’re not dark… a little shady sure, but not dark. You’re nothing like him… right?
A beep on your smartphone alerted you to a new commercial airing in ten minutes. You despised the eldritch fuck with every fiber of your being, but you admired his work, even if it was a front. You got off the train and pulled into a deserted alleyway to rip open a portal to your own personal void space. A nifty little trick you learned after years of practice.
Entering the safety of the familiar swirl of madness you sat in the floating egg chair that curved ever so perfectly around you, the furniture piece was a steal heh, heh. Feeling secure you watched the commercial, BlackHat wasn’t on screen again he’s been skipping them as of late. You were fine with that, smiling at the sight of the genius taking center stage.
So you had a crush on Doctor Flug, who didn’t? Right, he showed some less than favorable quirks on screen, but that was only because of BlackHat. Who could be composed next to death, destruction and absolution? That’s what made Doctor Flug your hero, of sorts. He worked with Blackhat! He wasn’t an absolute mess (half the time) and was still so insanely smart and confident in his villainous lifestyle you admired him. Eventually that harmless admiration developed into thoughts about how good he’d be in bed. You’re only female, everyone has the thought once or twice in their lifetime, and you've lived many lifetimes.
Dementia on the other hand was just plain confusing to you, but you admired her as well for her fearlessness around BlackHat. Doctor Flug was the only person (probably in the whole universe) who understood how terrifying BlackHat is... to an extent. There was the nagging suspicion that no one would ever know BlackHat like you do. You’ve seen- Oh the commercial’s ended and with it's abrupt static you head off to work. There's no need to dwell on thoughts about him and his followers. What did it matter, your eye twitches in retaliation to another tear of hopelessness trying to fall. Nope, you won't have any more of that.
You decide to take a shortcut jumping through the void directly to your workplace. Singing was a small joy of yours, so long as you never got famous. The Last Ember Club was the best place to take your mind off serious universal questions and put your midlife existential crisis on hold. Like you did everyday. Routines are fun that way.
You manifest your classy, tight fitting, sparkling, pink, sleeveless, turtleneck, cream dress. The slit up the leg was a bit daring, but you pull it off with some rather cute white lace thigh socks and slip on some long matching fingerless gloves.
You form a particularly stylish hat to cover your head so it isn’t inconspicuous to your wardrobe. Smacking your lips they appear red, then blue, and finally pink. Shrugging you decide to do a dazzling pink gloss shade. Perfect. Poking your cheeks the blood flushes to the surface mimicking a natural blush, and you blink your white lashes to fill in a gold rose colored eyeshadow. Perfect. Rearranging your form and manifesting the way it appears was another trick you learned over the years, you had to adapt. Of course you never really changed your pure glow and main color trait, you had your dignity. So what if others called you vampiric or angelic just because you chose to appear albino.
Preparations done you take to the stage. Here you could pretend you’re in control. You were a mistress of mystery and elegance.
The skillful pianist begins the somber melody scheduled for the evening and you walk up to the microphone. You breathe and adjust your vocal cords and other symbiont noise makers to prepare for the performance.
“Everybody knows that the dice are loaded,”
“Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed.”
“Everybody knows the war is over,”
“Everybody knows the good guys lost.”
“Everybody knows the fight was fixed,”
“The poor stay poor,”
“The rich get rich.”
“That’s how it goes~”
“Everybody knows.”
(People begin quieting down in favor of listening. The whole club was silent save for your voice and the small band.)
“Everybody knows that the boat is leaking,”
“Everybody knows that the captain lied.”
“Everybody got this broken feeling,”
“Like their father or their dog just died.”
“Everybody talking into their pockets.”
“Everybody wants a box of chocolates,”
“And a long-stem rose~”
“Everybody knows.”
(This verse reminds you of your ex, and you take joy in knowing where the song will go in terms of emotion. This wasn’t about scorned love or even a love song at all.)
“Everybody knows that you love me baby,”
“Everybody knows that you really do.”
“Everybody knows that you’ve been faithful,”
“...oh-”
“Give or take a night or two.”
“Everybody knows you’ve been discreet,”
“But there were so many people you just had to meet,”
“Without your clothes~”
“Everybody knows.”
(This song wasn’t about revenge either, it was more or less a point to the obvious reality. But people are so quick to ignore the truth of the matter, that taking such a soft approach tricked them into accepting it.)
“Everybody knows~”
“Everybody knows~”
“That’s how it goes~”
“Everybody knows~”
(the base gets faster now, just a half step rushing the song, causing the heartbeats in the crowd to speed up along with it as you get lost in the melody pouring your heart out into the lyrics)
“And everybody knows that it’s now or never.”
“Everybody knows that it’s me or you.”
“And everybody knows that you live forever,”
“When you’ve done a line or two.”
“Everybody knows the deal is rotten.”
(This verse didn’t quite fit your ex, but it did vaguely remind you of BlackHat)
“Old Black Joe’s still picking cotton,”
“For your ribbons and bows~”
“And everybody knows.”
(Faster now, you feel your own pulse excited to sing with your voice)
“And everybody knows that the plague is coming,”
“Everybody knows that it’s moving fast~”
(In your mind BlackHat was the plague)
“Everybody knows that the naked man and woman,”
“Are just a shining artifact of the past~”
“Everybody knows the scene is dead,”
“But there’s gonna be a meter on your bed,”
“That will disclose~”
(the pace was slowing down now, lulling everyone into a sense of security)
“What everybody knows.”
(the light swell in the strings section signifies the song isn’t over yet. You hush your voice to sound sultry. Catch them all unawares.)
“And everybody knows that you’re in trouble.”
“Everybody knows what you’ve been through,”
“From the bloody cross on top of Calvary,”
“To the beach of Malibu.”
“Everybody knows it’s coming apart.”
(this verse spoke volumes about yourself, it was too relatable for your wounded heart not to sing it so serenely and genuine.)
“Take one last look at this sacred heart”
“Before it blows~”
“Everybody knows.”
Except no one did, not really. You’re a ticking time bomb. Those words really do sum you up pretty well. This song was your best one, every night people requested it. You didn’t mind, it was a pleasure to sing such a heart screaming, hush song that had the right amount of swing and blues, plus the overall disdain for good and evil mixed in did well for your neutral regard. What’ll you sing next?
Unbeknownst to you and your advanced senses, you didn’t pick up on the ancient artifact 'lens' capturing your performance and broadcasting it for live entertainment. You stray from fame, and standing out for a reason because he,
Sees Everything