Far Out!

A Dark Little Headcanon

[Content alert: graphic violence; erotic heat level]

~1965

Scarlet and Herb are married and live in their castle fortress, recently finished. Scarlet is well on her way to becoming the world's first female supervillain, but a new obstacle awaits her.

Under the dark of night, Scarlet embarks on a heist. Wears a sleek red cat suit. She's stealing artifacts from a museum in London. A big one, like a museum of fine arts. Herb is there assisting, carrying items to their jet, using his Stretch Suit and other inventions for the big, bulky items.

Unexpectedly, a large number of guards show up to stop her. Scarlet is shocked—she'd taken out the handful of night-shift guards and had disabled the alarm system. Where had these new guards come from?

She hopes Herb has enough sense to stay hidden, something she'd requested should they ever be ambushed. If Herb entered the fight she'd worry so much she'd be driven to distraction. And he'd possibly get hurt, something she intends to prevent at all costs.

The guards attack. Scarlet fights back. She defeats guard after guard, but they keep coming. They punch her and use their batons in attempts to overpower her. Scarlet is a skilled fighter, but not quite where she'll be three years from this time. So every now and then, a guard's attack strikes home, leaving bruises and causing lacerations. Nothing is safe just because she's female. She takes hits to the face, stomach, back, head. It's brutal.

Herb arrives at the museum after loading the latest batch of paintings, only to discover Scarlet under attack. His heart nearly stops beating. This part of their partnership is never easy to endure.

From the shadows, he watches in horror as a ring of burly guards surround her. The fighting has been going on for nearly fifteen minutes and his wife is showing signs of tiring. But he stays put in deference to her wish that he'll never engage their opponents in combat. He knows she made the request for his protection, but nevertheless he's worried sick.

Scarlet beats the last guard with the man's own billy club. Crack! The sound of the club hitting his skull echoes throughout the vast room. He goes down.

But so does Scarlet. She clutches her midsection and topples over.

With a cry, Herb rushes forward, fearing for her very life.

Upon reaching her position, he drops to his knees. Whispers her name. There's no response. He reaches out, touches her hair....

And then she pushes up from the floor, gasping for breath. It's time to go, she says. Time to call it a night.

Herb helps her to her feet. With adrenaline still pumping through her, Scarlet maintains a quick pace on the way to the jet.

Herb glances frequently her way, but it's too dark to properly gauge her condition.

He helps her up the boarding steps. He offers to fly them home, but Scarlet refuses. This is her job. If she can't handle a short flight home after a fight, she has no business trying to be a supervillain.

Herb sighs in frustration, but concedes. After Scarlet takes her place in the pilot's chair, Herb gets his first good look at her injured face. It's all he can do not to explode with anguish upon seeing the blood streaming from her forehead. He finds a cloth and gently wipes it away lest it interfere with her sight. Thank you, babe, she whispers.

After landing in the hangar of their fortress, Herb asks if she needs him to bring the stretcher. No, Scarlet says. She can walk.

Herb provides a steadying hand as they head to their bedroom suite. Once there, Herb runs a hot bath and sets out all manner of first aid supplies. The Overkills always keep their kit well-stocked. It's been a while since Scarlet needed more than a band-aid or two, but villainy is dangerous business and they always need to be prepared.