#insectphobia

A cool rag gently wipes across Diana’s forehead as she sits slumped in her chair, trembling. Silent tears roll down her cheeks. Whatever Hive had injected into those wasps packed a punch, to put it lightly. 

Vision blurry, Diana watched as Hive moved the rag downward. He wiped the blood and yellowish pus from her arms. The burst stings split her skin open, leaving a small hole where the stingers had been. “You’ll start to feel much better now, love, I promise,” he cooed, his touch gentle. The sensation made her skin crawl. Occasionally, after a bad fight, her handler would help tend to her injuries. At the academy, doctors patched her up enough that she wouldn’t die.

That was different, though. Those touches had been clinical. Hive’s palm lingered, caressing her. It was strange, she thought, as the room spun around her. There was a deep ache in her bones…. Her stomach churned, threatening to spew bile. Through the haze, she could feel a sense of satisfaction, and even…. Lust. The feeling was strongest against her thigh, where Hive’s hand rested. 

His thumb traced circles against her skin as she panted, trying to stifle her tremors. “I know, I know,” he said softly. “It feels bad now. Just give it time….” Before Diana could realize what he was doing, Hive stood. 

He leaned down. His lips pressed against her forehead. Every aching muscle went taut in her body, but the kiss was left as quickly as it had come. This time. “I’ll leave you to get some rest. When I come back, we’ll move you somewhere more comfortable…” Damien seemed to consider something as he looked down at her, those empty pits in his eyes piercing her very soul. 

Was he going to kiss her again? Touch her? A beetle crawled up the side of his neck. She shivered. A long moment passed before he simply declared, “I’ll also bring you some food and water. Be good, love, try to get some rest.” Then Hive turned to walk away. As he moved, the swarms of creatures on the subway floor parted for their king. Somewhere, a door shut. Then Diana was left alone with the dozens of insects left behind. In Damien’s absence, the low buzz seemed thunderous. That little circle of space around her chair was left untouched, but they were everywhere else. Wasps and bees, cockroaches, freakishly large beetles, moths, and spiders…. If she moved, would they pounce on her?

It didn’t matter. So long as she acted quickly, they wouldn’t notice. Insects weren’t like…. Capable of complex thought or strategy. Apparently, their leader wasn’t either. 

By popping her stings, Hive extracted the venom that had been stifling her powers. Diana hadn’t been certain until she felt his emotions while he washed the pus off her limbs. Exhaling slowly, she closed her eyes. Her hands twisted behind her. They were bound by zipties. All of the laboratory-enhanced-heroes had enhanced strength and accelerated healing. Her limbs still felt heavy with venom, but Diana thought that if she could just….

Eyebrows knitting together in concentration, Diana gave a quick jerk. The zipties snapped. Around her, the insects began to stir. Shit. She froze, hardly daring to breathe as she watched. A few of them crept closer, but they didn’t cross that invisible line that surrounded her chair. Could Hive communicate with them? She didn’t know how his powers worked, and she didn’t want to be here long enough to find out. 

Her hands thrust outward. Water burst from her palms, crashing against the concrete before her. A hundred insects were washed away. She leapt to her feet, legs aching and cramped from being restrained for hours, but she pushed herself forward.

The turnstiles were to her right. Past them were escalators, frozen in time. That would lead her to the surface. She just had to make it.

Cockroaches, moths, and wasps descended from above. Diana waved wildly. Water shot out from all sides, trying to swat them away, but there were so many, and her powers were fading fast. She was too dehydrated. Crying out, Diana launched herself over the turnstiles and pumped her legs faster, because the escalator was right there….

A sewer grate before her exploded. A geyser of…. Hundreds, thousands, of insects erupted and descended upon her. Diana had no choice but to fall to the ground, screaming. Water burst from her hands in a halfhearted attempt to force the creatures away, but there were too many, and she was too weak. Diana curled into the fetal position when her powers finally gave out, bracing for pain that never came. They weren’t attacking her. The insects just…. Circled her. Humming, incessant, their little legs and wings and antennae brushing against her goosebump-covered skin, trapping her in place.

An eternity passed. Or only a second. Truly, Diana couldn’t decide which, if it passed quickly or too slow. But if asked afterwards, she would have preferred to stay trapped within the insects dome than face the demon who ordered the creatures to part.

Hive didn’t speak. At least, not in a language that Diana could understand. For now, it was undeniable that he could communicate with the insects. With a wave of his hand, the thousands of winged creatures flew away at once, retreating into their crevices and shadows. 

His form was even more intimidating where she lay crumbled before him. Diana planted her hands on the ground, trying to push herself up, but his hand fisted in her hair first. A sharp cry escaped her. “No, no, no—”

Electricity shot through her, spearing through her neck into her very core. The woman ignored EI427’s screams. “When you are punished, you accept it with dignity,” she snapped. Diana was thrown into her cell, where other guards were waiting. They chained her arms above her head, facing the wall. Someone tore off her shirt to leave her back exposed. 

She couldn’t stop her whimpers, or how she shook her head. “Pl-”Agony coursed in her veins. It stole her breath. She doubled over, teeth gritted as the collar continued to shock her, unrelenting. Without mercy. When the whipping began, every scream that escaped her lips was met with a shock. 

The cycle continued until EI427 blacked out. When she came to, she was still strapped to the wall. Her lesson wasn’t learned yet. 

Diana clamped her mouth shut as she was dragged across the concrete. Her arms and legs scraped against stone, and all she could do was try to crawl after him enough to limit the searing pain in her scalp. Between their proximity and the contact, Diana could feel his utter fury, and a strange sense of…. Betrayal. A fierce sense of protection—no, not protection. More twisted than that. What he felt was closer to possession. 

He finally stopped when they reached a room down the tunnels. Originally, it was surely a supply closet, or maybe a break room, but it had since been turned into a bedroom. He threw her on the bed, and began to tie her limbs down. 

No. No, no, no…. Diana whimpered, shaking her head furiously. A scream begged to be released from her throat. Pleas for mercy. Cries that she couldn’t do this, didn’t know how, don’t, don’t, anything but that please…. Damien looked down at her. While his expression was stone-cold, his emotions were anything but. They were raging. Ever-changing, a fucking hurricane of feelings. Slowly, Diana grasped a sense of pity. His anger had turned to something softer, now that he saw her strapped down before him, unable to scream.

The mattress creaked beneath her as Hive perched on the edge. One rough hand reached out, caressing the line of her throat. Specifically, the burns left from years of wearing that cursed collar. 

“We will work on this,” he said softly. His thick eyebrows knitted together as he made the vow. “But we can’t yet. Not when you’re so insistent on leaving me.” The empty pits met Diana’s wild, sapphire gaze. He leaned down, teeth grazing at her earlobe. His breath was hot on her skin. 

Off. Get off, get off, get…. Get off…. Every muscle went taut, and she was tied down but she could pull free, she could, she had the strength. She could fight him. He would punish her, sting her again, but she could at least try it was just….

Diana couldn’t make herself. There was nothing stopping her except her own mind. But how could you fight your mind? 

She squeezed her eyes shut as Damien nipped her ear, then kissed and bit his way down her throat. Sucking. Teeth sinking into skin. Claiming her, even more than the burn scars already had. And she said nothing. Did nothing except lie there, shaking. “You know you belong here,” Hive crooned. 

There was mint on his breath.

“Why would you try to leave? I’ll just find you again…. Or the REIA will first. Do you really want that?” His hands were rough, groping her breasts through her bra and t-shirt.

No one had touched her like this. 

But he didn’t go lower. Didn’t take off her clothes. Hive stood, the bed shifting as his weight lifted, and a little, broken sob spilled from her lips. She didn’t cry, though. She felt like a dried-out grape after using her powers.

“I didn’t want to hurt you again, baby….” 

Something heavy hit the ground, then there was the sound of digging around in a drawer or box. Diana pried her eyes open and craned her neck to see. She didn’t want to see. But she needed to.

A bright red toolbox was in the center of the dirty, stained floor. Damien dug around in it until he pulled out a large hammer. 

It was hard to tell from across the room, but she thought he felt pity. Intermingled with that, though, was a sense of determination. “This won’t kill you,” he said softly. “You’ll heal fast, we both know that. As long as you’re a good girl, and don’t try anything stupid, it won’t completely cripple you.” Her eyes widened. She couldn’t make herself pull at the restraints, but she did lick her lips, trying to force out sound. “What…. Do you….” The words were so quiet. Her voice broke.

A shadow crossed over Damien’s face. Keeping the hammer in one hand, he turned around and dug in another drawer until he withdrew a washcloth. His shadow loomed over her as he returned to the side of the bed. “Open your mouth.”

She obeyed without thinking. He shoved the cloth inside. “Just for a moment, baby. I don’t want you to bite through your tongue.” Damien’s hand caressed the side of her face.

Then that same hand joined the other as he slammed the hammer down on her left foot once, twice, three times, until it was nothing but a demolished sack of bones and flesh.

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