SLH Author Inc.

Based on this

🥨Training, not Flirting🥨

:another short comic by me

In case anyone was confused, the white bubbles are a convo they had prior 😗 Just kiss her already Damian, someone needs to take the initiative!! 😤 lol jkjk he’s trying his best to be a gentleman~

🔽EXTRA🔽

✨🎄Not so long after Dick’s first official evil(?) plan, Christmas rolls in and they have roles to play...🌲✨

Do his brothers know a thing called privacy? Personal boundaries, maybe? Not in this world 😂

Does Damian know other, maybe more efficient ways to warm up a shivering person? Of course 😂 But no one has to know 😏🔥

Do I love this cliche set up? WHOLEHEARTEDLY💕

Before I pass completely out. I'll feed you all some baby Damirae. Can you name the aus?

I had fun with these. XD

- Kent adopted raven

- prince dami and his favorite person

“You’re a family heirloom,” the protagonist said, immediately breathless and panicking at the thing invading their space.“Aren’t you supposed to listen to me?”

The demon laughed, curling a talon up the protagonist’s neck. “Oh no, poor thing, it’s not that I belong to your family- it’s that you and your blood belong to me.”

“I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t you,” Villain said.

Hero stood in front of him, holding the time of black magic.

They weren’t surprised. The last time they’d seen Villain, they were putting him in the grave he had just exited. All they said was, “you were right.”

Villain raised an eyebrow. “About what?”

“Humans are forgetful,” Hero said, staring blankly forward. “I stopped you. I stopped you for good.”

“But I’m here now, so obviously it wasn’t permanent.”

“And they forgot about it,” Hero continued, ignoring Villain. “You weren’t there and suddenly they started asking if you were the danger we thought, if I had any right to do what I did.”

Villain maneuvered himself around the room tentatively, looking around at the makeshift tent set up and the ripples of oblivion dripping from the book in Hero’s hands. “Didn’t take that too well, did you?”

“Fight me.”

Villain kept moving slowly towards the door, and Hero kept turning with him, just watching. Observing.

They hadn’t been like this when they killed him.

“Why? I’m not fighting without reason, and-” they nodded to the book in Hero’s hands- “I don’t think you’re going to be going after my morals anymore.”

“Make them suffer. You always said it’s what they deserve.” The words were low, but assured enough to make Villain wonder.

“I never said that,” he said. “And I’m honestly disappointed in you.”

Hero blinked, and took a step forward.

“I mean,” Villain said, not letting them start, “after all this, you’re still trying to get them to need you? To love you? Are you kidding me?”

“You want the adventure to go back to the beginning but you know exactly how it ends.” He laughed, and started towards the door with a swagger. “Can’t bear to change, can you? You’re just as much of a coward as you were before.”

“Stop,” Hero said, a layer of power lacing the words.

Villain stopped. He didn’t do it himself, his body just stopped moving. “That’s a neat trick,” he said, trying and failing to move his foot forward. “Perks of resurrecting someone?”

“I think you’re right,” they said. “But you see, I don’t want to repeat the story. I know the end if I kill you- if I save them. And so I know what not to do.”

A book thudded shut, and Hero walked up beside Villain.

“They need me to stop you, they let me back in. And then I make them realize exactly how much they should have loved me.”

Villain smiled. At least he could do that much. “Still chasing their feelings, then. Their hatred or their love, it doesn’t matter, you’re still a coward.”

“Stop talking,” Hero growled, and Villain’s mouth snapped shut. “All you need to do is make them need me.”

“Absolutely terrible things, you can be certain of that.”

“Anything… in particular?”

“I told you. Terrible, awful things. Blood-curdling things.”

Hero bit their lip. Of course they wouldn’t get a straight answer out of Villain, not when Hero was tied down and at their mercy.  

“I’m not going to kill you, if that’s what you’re asking,” Villain said, finally. They were busy somewhere behind Hero, and no matter how much Hero strained their head they couldn’t see what Villain was doing. 

“I know,” they replied. 

Villain wouldn’t kill them. Not when there was nothing they could do to escape anyway. 

“Remarkably sure of yourself, aren’t you?” Villain walked to Hero’s side, holding something out of Hero’s line of sight.

“Sure of you, more like.” 

Villain chuckled, a light, genuine sound that made Hero shiver. “That’s the spirit. Keep it up and you’ll still be throwing sass at me in a couple of months.”

“Keeping me alive that long? Seems like a bit of a liability.” 

Villain raised an eyebrow. “And here I thought I was the predictable one.” 

Hero finally caught sight of what was in their hand. It was a nasty looking scalpel- though, if Hero was entirely honest, every scalpel looked nasty to them. “Are you going to tell me what you’re planning on doing with that?” 

“Surely you can guess.”

“You can tell me just as easily.”

“Ah, but guessing is so much more entertaining.” Villain brought the scalpel up, tracing up the line of Hero’s arm. “What do you think I plan to do to you?”

“Terrible things.”

Villain laughed again, pressing harder into Hero’s arm. “I knew I liked you.”

Hero gasped softly at the pain.

“And you’re correct. I have plans for you, Hero, and- as I’m sure you’ve guessed- the first step is easy.” Villain leaned over, hair falling to brush over Hero’s cheek. “I’m going to make you love me.”

Every reaction was carefully measured, every emotion checked and rechecked before Hero allowed it to cross their face. 

Villain watched, ravenous. 

“I should warn you, I’m not very good at it,” Hero said.

“You don’t need to be.” Villain captured the droplets of blood rolling down Hero’s arm, bottling them up in a small vial. “All you need to do is be predictable.”

The door opened with a blast of frozen air.

“I’ve put a lot of thought into how I’d break you, you know,” Villain said, walking up to Hero, who was chained standing to the wall. 

Hero straightened, levelling their signature glare at Villain. “Why are you here?” they demanded. “Is it a slow day in hell?”

“Adorable,” Villain deadpanned. “No, I’m here because I’ve actually come up with the perfect way to finally get you to snap.” 

“Really?” Hero scoffed. “I hope this attempt is more creative than your last ones, I’ve been getting bored.” They tilted their head. “And thirsty. You don’t want me to die of dehydration, do you?” 

“You know what,” Villain said, “You’re absolutely right.” They walked into the side room just off of Hero’s cell. The room generally held various torture devices, but instead of some sort of unwieldy hammer, Villain walked out with a glass of water.

Hero sighed. 

“Open wide, dear,” Villain said, tilting the glass against their lips. They moved it too quickly, and water dribbled down the corner of Hero’s mouth, dripping onto their neck. When the glass was empty, Villain took it away, setting it on the table in the corner. “All better?” they asked, mockery dripping from their voice.

Hero twitched their finger, and the drops of water on their face flew off. “I hope that’s not your grand torture plan,” Hero said. 

“Oh, no,” Villain assured them, and clapped their hands. 

The door slammed open, one of Villain’s henchmen walking in, dragging a struggling figure with a bag over their head.

Hero’s blood went cold. They’d wondered when Villain would resort to torturing civilians instead of Hero- even if they could last the first one, they had no idea how long they could last. Villain torturing innocent people, their friends… 

“I don’t know what you think is going to happen,” Hero said coldly. “Unless your torture methods have gotten better since you killed Friend, this won’t work.”

Villain didn’t say respond, but their eyes glinted maliciously… expectantly. 

“Leave,” they ordered the henchman, who released the civilian, sending them crashing to the floor. Villain reached down, pulling off the hood. It frosted at their touch, and Hero suddenly noticed their breath. 

Then they looked at Civilian- bloody, mangled locks, a dirty, thin face- 

Hero couldn’t find any air. “Friend,” they gasped. 

Friend looked up, haggard, gaunt. How long had they been here? Oh, shit- 

“Are you okay?” Hero asked, frantic, trying to reach them. “Friend- shit, I thought you were dead, how- what- are you okay?”

Villain grinned. “So sure that my plan isn’t going to work?” they said.

Hero wanted to tell them to go to hell, that if they touched Friend they’d kill them- but that’s what they’d said last time. Before watching Villain stab them in the stomach and kick them into a pool, dragging Hero away. 

“Whatever you’re planning, I’d give it up,” Hero said, trying to sound more confident than they felt. “It didn’t work last time. None of your ploys have worked, why resort to old ones?” Villain didn’t answer, instead pulling Friend over to the far corner, chaining them to the ground. “It didn’t work last time, you’re right. But I just figured out how to do something different!” they turned back to Hero, walking closer. “Have I ever told you about when I first got my powers? I froze for days, but couldn’t feel anything. It was terrible.”

“What, are you going to try and freeze me out? Crystallize the water in my veins?”

“That would be lovely,” Villain said, “but I’ve been wondering-” they grabbed Hero’s arm, pulling the sleeve down- “exactly what would happen if I gave them to you.”

Hero jerked. “That’s impossible,” they said, “that’s-”

“Theoretical, I know,” Villain said. “Which will make this even more fun! What with your water and all. Tell me, is it true that when you got yours, you destroyed half your city?”

“Is that what this is? A desperate attempt for a new weapon?” “The only one of us desperate right now is you,” Villain said, drawing out a needle and syringe. 

Hero flinched, and squeezed their eyes shut. Villain hissed in pain, then their hand was on Hero’s cheek. 

“Eyes on me.” they had the syringe, but now it was filled with red liquid- blood, glowing with an unnatural white light. 

Slowly, Villain injected it into Hero’s arm, filling their veins with ice. The cold didn’t stop in their arm, though, it spread everywhere else, turning their limbs into lead, then cold, then fire. 

“No-” they gasped, muscles starting to twitch. The room grew colder. 

“Better get it under control, Hero,” Villain said. 

Hero grit their teeth, trying to find some sort of grip on this force- but it wasn’t theirs, it didn’t belong to them, it was alien and cold-

“Stop this,” they said. 

“Can’t do that, dear,” Villain said. “Only you can.” they tapped Hero on the nose once, and walked out of the room.

“No, please, no,” Hero muttered, screwing their eyes shut. “No. No.”

“Hero?” A voice croaked, almost too quiet to hear. 

Hero’s head jerked up. Frost was beginning to form on their fingertips, but they couldn’t feel it. At least they still had their water under control- the ice hadn’t reached it yet, somehow. 

“Friend?” they asked, voice wavering on the edge of breaking. It was happening again. It was happening again. 

“It’s good to hear your voice again.”

“Yeah,” Hero said, tears forming in their eyes- they froze the moment they touched Hero’s cheeks, though. “I’m going to get you out of here, okay?” their voice broke. “You’re going to be okay. I swear, I’ll get you out of here-”

“It’s not your fault,” Friend said, and Hero could hear them shivering. “You didn’t know. I don’t- I don’t blame you.”  

“Don’t say that,” Hero said, a fogginess starting to overtake their brain. They weren’t cold, but their limbs were lead, and… there was a beast trapped under their skin. “Please, don’t say that.” 

The freeze reached their water, and the beast burst out. Ice ripped out of their fingertips, out of every pore in their body, covering the room. Something roared in their ears, maybe their heartbeat, maybe a scream, but they couldn’t tell who was screaming or whose heart was bursting, whose blood pounding…

And then it was quiet. Sleepy, even. 

Compeltely fine if you don’t !! up to you ! Thank you !

sorry if its weird~

“W-what?” Hero stared at Villain, confusion written across their face. 

“You heard me,” Villain said, expectant. “Kneel.” 

Hero didn’t move, frozen in shock, the eyes of the massive crowd on them. Subdued. Silent. It was eerie, to have the eyes of so many people- but have them all silent. 

They wondered if they had any friends out there, still. If any of them escaped, if any of them still had the will or the courage to resist. 

Villain backhanded them, making them stumble back. 

“I said, kneel.” 

Hero swallowed, touching their split lip with the tip of their tongue. 

“Or,” Villain said, “I could let one of your friends take your place. If there are any left.”  

That made Hero’s breath catch. Villain’s eyes were calculating, even smug. Triumphant. It made Hero’s throat close up, their pulse start to race. 

  They knelt. First down on one knee, then the other, till they were glaring up at Villain, face crimson.

“That’s better,” Villain said, stepping closer. One hand wound through Hero’s hair, jerking their head back. 

Hero balled their hands into fists.

The grip on their head grew tighter. “By all means, try,” Villain said. “But remember that everything you do affects your friends.” Villain held eye contact with Hero until Hero relaxed their hands. 

“Good,” Villain praised. “Now. do you want these people-” they gestured to the crowd- “to live? Answer clearly, now. I want them to hear your sweet voice.”

“Of course,” Hero spat. 

Villain raised an eyebrow. Then, they snapped their fingers, and one of their henchmen grabbed a civilian- and the first scream pierced the air.

“No!” Hero shouted, surging to their feet. “Don’t hurt them!” 

Villain wrapped a hand around their throat, bearing down close on Hero. “Then beg me to spare them.”

“Please,” Hero said, “Please let them go, they’ve done absolutely nothing.”

Villain tsked. “So disappointing. I know you can do better than that. Beg me. And don’t forget to address me correctly.”

“A- address you? Villain? What are you talking about?” A sinking feeling in the pit of their stomach told them exactly what to expect, but they had to be sure. 

An easy smile drifted across Villain’s face, shadowed by their obvious self-satisfaction. “I’m your master now.” 

They were going to vomit. Slowly, they went back to their knees, eyes on the ground. On Villain’s boots. 

“Please,” they said again. “I’m begging you…” they squeezed their eyes shut.

Two fingers tilted their chin up. “Eyes on me, now,” they said, mocking. “I want you to look at me.”

Shaking, Hero forced their eyes up to meet Villain’s. “I’m begging you, let them go,” Hero said again, “Please… Master.” 

Villain smiled, wiping a thumb across Hero’s cheek. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen you cry,” they said.

Hero blinked, and flushed. They hadn’t realized they were crying. 

Villain motioned to their henchman, and Hero saw them release the civilian. 

“Thank you,” they said, exhaling in relief.

“Thank you?” Villain responded, jaw clenching.

“I- thank you, Master,” Hero corrected. Their face burned. 

“Better.” Villain waved to their men once more, and two came up behind Hero, securing their arms tightly behind their back.

“What- what’s happening?” Hero stammered.

Something was wrong. 

He cracked his eyes open, willing his body to move. Every joint shuddered, muscles sore from fighting, but at last he managed to roll to his side. 

“The hell…” he muttered, wondering for a brief moment what the gray lines in his vision were- until his brain cleared and he realized they were polished steel bars. He snapped awake.

“You’re awake,” A voice behind him said, smooth and deep. 

Hero got to his feet unsteadily, noticing the floor move ever so slightly. “A birdcage?” he rasped. “Really?”

“There’s water to the side,” Villain said. They stood next to the cage, looking oddly short for someone who towered over everyone else. They took a step forward and tapped one of the bars, propelling the cage back and forth with that eerie, effortless strength. “And yes, it’s a birdcage. Fitting, isn’t it? Where better to put you than where the rest of the birds go?”

Hero grit his teeth, deciding not to point out that he lacked the wings to qualify as a bird. “So your plan is what? Keep me here as some kind of twisted trophy? Are you that desperate for an audience that you would imprison me?”

Villain swung the cage again, making Hero stumble, knees hitting the cushioned ground. They were passive, not fazed in the least by Hero’s outburst. “Tell me, Hero, how long have I been chasing you?”

“Too long,” Hero snarled. Months, years. 

“Exactly! And now, I have you all locked up- perfect. Mine. Just as you should be.”

“As if you could keep me here forever,” Hero scoffed. “It’s never worked for long.”

Villain shook the cage for real this time, making Hero fall into the bars. Instantly, Villain had their hand in his hair, forcing Hero’s face up, looking into their own.

Hero scrabbled at their grip, but Villain was unyielding. 

“You know,” Villain said, “you’re right- but in the past, every time you’ve escaped or evaded me, you had help. I’d take this seriously if you told me your friends were coming to save you, but as it stands…”

Tears pricked Hero’s eyes that had nothing to do with the tug on his hair.

“Go on,” Villain said, a malicious glint in their eye. “Tell me they’re coming for you. Tell me that you still have help. That you’re not completely and utterly alone.”

“You can go to hell,” Hero spat, struggling. “You can go straight to hell.”

Villain smiled and threw Hero back to the floor. “We’re already here, darling. And you’re never getting out.”

Hero glared up at them, trying to get back to his feet. 

Falling into Tartarus

-

-

Soooooo, I’m alive guys! sorry for the lack of posting!  I’l try to be more active again on tumblr!!!!!  by the way,  let’s start the year with…a Solangelo mini-comic ( an old one that my lovely Patrons already saw)! I’ve kept this comic as much as generic as possible, so I don’t spoil anything from the Trials of apollo saga. - -

- - ‼️‼️‼️ SO, if you haven’t read the books you should skip the explanation below ‼️‼️‼️👇:

SO BASICALLY HERO OR VILLAIN (IDK U CHOOSE) IS BEING TORTURED IN FRONT OF THE OTHER AND THEY HAVE TO WATCH (BUT THEYRE IN A 😼SECRET😼 RELATIONSHIP) SO OFC THE OTHER IS SAD AND ANGRY AND WHATNOT HAHAH

❤️❤️😩

The villain would have never thought their entire world could be torn down to a few pieces, left for them to pick them up in a matter of seconds.

“I found them in a back street. They were already completely limping and bleeding. Kind of sad, don’t you think? I almost feel sorry.” The villain couldn’t turn to the supervillain next to them. Their eyes were on the hero and they knew they would never be able to get this image out of their mind. Not like this, not when they were coughing and whimpering from their fifth round of waterboarding.

Their hair was wet and their eyes bloodshot, here and there filigree blood vessels in them had already popped. Before the hero could gasp anew, a henchman smashed their head back into the water, holding them down. The hero was struggling but the villain could tell they were too weak to fight back. Only then, the villain turned to the supervillain next to them.

“Almost sorry, though,” the supervillain said, giving the villain a quick glance. “It’s a shame to see competent people go to waste.”

“Let me handle them,” the villain blurted out. “I can get the information out of them in less than an hour. You know I am excellent.”

The henchman only let the hero’s head appeared from under the water surface when the kidnappee lost their energy to a point of near death. The rough wheezes and raw retching which came out of them probably made their throat burn. They couldn’t even hold themselves up anymore, their body betrayed them as their arms gave out under them.

The villain wanted to fall next to them, to embrace them, to kiss them and whisper that everything would be fine. They wanted to take them home with them and tend their wounds. They wanted to fall to their knees and beg them for forgiveness.

Above all, they wanted to kill the supervillain.

“Are you kidding? You have so much other stuff going on. I won’t certainly bother you with another project.” The supervillain laughed quietly.

It wasn’t evil and it wasn’t disgusting. It was a humane laugh which made the supervillain so much worse. Because they were an atrocity without being a monster.

They were human. And that was enough of an excuse to be vicious. They didn’t need claws to be a nightmare.

The supervillain’s hand landed on the villain’s shoulder and squeezed it in a friendly manner.

“No, my friend. Let me have a bit of fun with this one. It’s been a while since I have laid a hand on an interrogatee myself,” the supervillain continued. “It would be very sad if I lost my efficiency. Besides, if I get to break a hero, then it might as well be this one.”

“I really wouldn’t mind,” the villain said. “I’ve been hunting them for a while now. We can trade. You get one of my projects that you can hurt and I get them in return. Either way, you get a bit of fun and the information you need.”

The henchman who was working on them threw the hero back to the ground, leaving them begging quietly. At one point, the hero managed to turn to the villain and when their eyes locked, the hero recognised them despite their broken state.

And the villain’s innards ripped apart. A hot knife pierced through them and twisted and twisted and wouldn’t budge — instead, it rammed until there was no resistance. But all the villain could do was watch it happen.

“You can also watch me torture them,” the supervillain suggested. “That way, you’ll get your satisfaction without putting work into it.”

The henchman kicked the hero, so they were on their back.

“I’d prefer to see the fruits of my own work,” the villain said, shifting.

Negotiating with the supervillain wasn’t new. It wasn’t something they had to fear. The villain had always been welcomed by them to speak their mind. But now, the supervillain seemed to be obsessed with this idea. The idea of breaking the hero.

The henchman crouched to the level of the hero and took their hand.

“You’ve always been overly ambitious. I’ll give you the opportunity once you have a new nemesis.”

With one horrible crunch, the henchman broke one of the hero’s fingers and the villain stared in horror as the hero screamed with their sore throat.

“Thanks, boss,” the villain mumbled. “I should return to my own work.”

“Don’t overwork yourself, my friend,” the supervillain said. Another laugh escaped their mouth.

The villain did, in fact, not return to their own work. In reality, they went to the restroom and threw up the semi-digested breakfast they had enjoyed with their hero that morning. As they bawled their eyes out, their thoughts went back to the hero and their helpless stare.

Even as they had gotten the shit tortured out of them, the hero hadn’t revealed a hint of their relationship. The hero hadn’t begged the villain to make them stop.

As the villain wiped their own tears with trembling hands away, they swore to destroy the supervillain and everyone in this very building. All they could do for today, however, was to lay down low and let the events pass by, waiting and scheming to make the supervillain bleed.