Not All Heroes Win Their Battles

Chapter One: Of Monsters and Martyrs

Heather wasn't sure when it'd happened. When she'd become the monster parents warned their kids about at night. All she knew was that at some point, some miniscule point in her existence, she'd gone from a sardonic teenager to a sadistic murderer consumed by her own lust. Lust for power, lust for destruction, lust for death. At this point, Duke didn't care, she was too far gone.
~
"Is that your best attempt, Stealth? I would've thought better of you." A silken voice purred. A panicked look flashed upon Stealth's face as she barely dodged the large, wooden staff crashing down at her. The hero was bloodied, her bandana barely staying in place, and her purple bob tangled and matted with crimson.
"Yeah, well I would've thought your owner would've pulled your leash already, so I guess we can't all get what we want." Stealth quipped, clenching her pale fists. Silver ninja stars seemed to melt into existence between her fingers, and it took her less than a second to send them flying at her assailant.
Dark cherry painted lips twisted into a vicious sneer, turning a beautiful face into something simply wrong. Envy didn't take kindly to being called Persephone's pet. Well, the super villain didn't take kindly to most things, but that was irrelevant. With an audible growl, she gracefully twirled her staff in front of her, the ninja stars colliding with a loud thunk.
Some might be wondering what's going on. See, earlier this night, a malicious group of villains, known as the Iron Trio, took hostage of an entire building. Inside said building a dinner was being held to celebrate the opening of a new children's hospital in Sherwood. The Iron Trio consisted of three women, all in their early twenties, who possessed supernatural powers. Persephone was their leader. She was a tall woman with sharp features, brilliant strawberry blonde hair, and the ability to grow plants out of her hands. At first glance she may seem harmless, but each flower she grew had a different ability. Some caused the victim to fall into a deep slumber, some made people feel overly giddy, or jubilant, and some flowers were deadly. One simple rose could rot the insides of whoever lay a finger to it, turning their insides into a bloody mess of organs and decay. In her white and red dress, and red masquerade mask, Persephone stood proud, beautiful, the poise of a true leader. Although, lucky enough for the heroes of Sherwood, she seemed to stay out of the spotlight. The villain preferred to send the other two in her group to do the dirty work. After the messy bits were over, then Persephone swooped in to take her claim on whatever her lackeys reaped.
The one currently attempting to maim Stealth, Envy, was undoubtedly the most blood-thirsty of the Trio. Standing at five feet three, the green-themed villain didn't look like much either. She had dark hair that framed her face, toffee skin, and wore a green & black Victorian themed dress. Masking her identity was an elegant green masquerade mask. Tall heeled boots hugged her legs up to her thighs, their metal spiked bottoms easily able to crush a multitude of things. Such as a human skull. Envy wielded a large staff (although cane could be used to describe it as well), roughly half her size, and used it also to crush a multitude of things. Yeah, she has issues. Although the sadistic woman's actual power was far more fatal. Envy could manipulate the negative emotions of others, hence her name. Anger, fear, worry, sadness, and anything that fell under the category of unpleasant emotions were hers to command. Some affected by her powers before claimed it to be like a tidal wave. One second they're normal, and the next an overwhelming tsunami of emotion clouded their vision. In some cases, the villain could even direct her victims' emotions to a particular point. For example, make a neglected wife suddenly become consumed by rage and kill her emotionally distant husband. Fortunately, Envy did have a limit to her horrid abilities. The more people under her influence, the weaker her hold on them. Twenty people was her maximum that the police and heroes were aware of. Envy believed she could do forty if she truly tried. Known for her dramatic theatrics, Envy was the one who usually headed the heists, and usually the one to accumulate the highest body count.
The last member of the Iron Trio was Cypher, a lean, willowy blonde who stood just an inch shorter than her more malevolent counterpart. Yellow was this member's prime color. Or at least, it was the most colorful thing she wore. Her ensemble included a white-ish gray pattered shirt tucked into a cheery yellow skirt, brown hiking boots, black legging that ended just above her knee, and a stylish leather jacket. A bird-like yellow and black mask covered her eyes. To tie the whole thing together, the blonde hooked an odd-looking whip to her side. It was made of some type of flexible metal, littered with barbed spikes, and didn't care about logic. Cypher was the only one who didn't seem to follow the Victorian-esc set-up the other two did. Instead she opted for a more biker look. Cypher was viewed as the lesser evil in the Trio. Don't get the wrong idea though. The woman would spill blood like water if the situation called for it, and she never lifted a finger to stop Envy from committing unnecessary bloodshed. Her power made higher-ups in the government blanch. Controlling electrical currents was Cypher's specialty. No limit to her range had been discovered yet, and in all honesty, she could take out all the electricity in the state of Ohio with the blink of an eye. Although an incident like that would drain her a tad bit. Still, that didn't change the fact that Cypher could do that much damage if she felt. From what the public had gathered, Cypher could also 'speak' to technology. No doubt, this had something to do with her powers over the currents, but no one could figure it out. During the heists committed by the infamous Iron Trio, the technology geek tended to stay in the background, casually draining the money from people online accounts as hostages fearfully sent the account numbers to one of the burner phones Cypher carried on her person. Occasionally, Cypher smiled at Envy and commented in a voice one wouldn't picture belonged to one of the most wanted villains in the world. The comments ranged from good lucks to warnings of police.
All in all, the Iron Trio weren't people you'd want to run into. Such occurrences typically in a gory fashion. So, it was a good thing that heroes existed in the large city of Sherwood as well. They ran their base out of an old lawyer's firm smack dab in the middle of the city. The actual base, Super Central, lay beneath the firm, and inside worked about a dozen people who'd committed their lives to keeping Sherwood safe from the Iron Trio and any other villains who dared attack it. Two of the more prominent members were Stealth and SheWolf. At least, they seemed to be the most active when it came to Iron Trio related problems.
Stealth, the young woman currently trying not to die, was evidently very mysterious. She wore a black hoodie, grey shorts, and combat boots. Not the outfit most would imagine belonged to a hero, but she pulled it off. A dark bandana, miraculously held in place by sheer luck, wrapped around her pale skin, covering the hero's mouth and the bottom of her nose. Stealth had a streak of getting into one on one fights with Envy, yet always escaped them alive. It was more than most could claim. Her abilities were kind of all over the place, going from creating ninja stars when she closed her fists to mind controlling birds.
The second hero at the site of the crime tonight was SheWolf. SheWolf fought evil in a silver and blue skin-tight suit, simple silver mask, and kept her auburn hair up. Surprisingly, SheWolf wasn't a Super. The only weapons the quick-witted woman fought with were her words and her dart guns.
Now back to the present events! The Iron Trio had taken a building of innocents' hostage, the frontal attack being Envy charging in with Cypher close behind. The two threatened that if the hostages didn't send a hefty sum of two million dollars to a designated account by the time the clock turned to midnight, they'd blow the building to bits. The heroes Stealth and SheWolf infiltrated the building and had confronted the villains. That leads us back to the fight currently taking place.
Envy bit the inside of her mouth in anger, twirling the staff to a stop next to her. She gave the pointed metal poking out of it a brief glance, disgusted, before glaring up at Stealth. Fury burned like coal in Envy's dark eyes. Without a word, she felt around Stealth's emotions. Ha! How utterly pathetic. There was no resistance at all! No anything to keep her from fucking Stealth over. Play time was done. It was probably better that she got over playing with Stealth soon anyways, especially since Cypher was giving her THAT look. The look that meant it was time to wrap things up or Persephone would be pissed. Not that Envy cared much about what Persephone thought. She just didn't like getting yelled at for something as trivial as being late. Yeah, that was it.
"Sorry Stealth, guess we'll have to finish this another time." Envy purred. Stealth only had time to take a step back before a paralyzing fear overtook her. It shot down her body like ice water. Cold, painful, and quick. Instantly, she froze. Stealth's limbs began to shake uncontrollably as the emotion took over. Wide green eyes fearfully stared up at the woman who had done this to her. Stealth tried to resist it, she really did. It's not real, she assured herself in her head, it's just Envy messing with you. But the assurances were swept away by the waves of terror almost instantly after they were thought.
Envy grinned.
Monster leaned down and locked eyes with Hero. Evil looking into the soul of Good. So much fire burned in Envy's eyes. So much hate, and so much sadistic pleasure. Suddenly, Cypher gave a quick shout of warning, and then Envy was gone in a flash of black and green, leaving Stealth to pick up the pieces of the emotional havoc Monster leaned down and locked eyes with Hero. Evil looking into the soul of Good. So much fire burned in Envy's eyes. So much hate, and so much sadistic pleasure. Suddenly, Cypher gave a quick shout of warning, and then Envy was gone in a flash of black and green, leaving Stealth to pick up the pieces of the emotional havoc wreaked upon her mind.

~
"Hey Cypher!" Envy called as the pair ran from the building, somehow evading the police outside, towards their inconspicuous get-a-way car. It was a nondescript grey truck that blended in nicely with the area. The perfect vehicle for escaping crime scenes.
The blonde rolled her eyes at her friend's bragging tone.
"Yeah?"
"Did you see how Stealth looked? Hilarious, right?" Envy snorted, sliding into the truck quickly. Once Cypher had jumped into the driver's seat, and started the car, she responded with a small smile. Neither of the two spoke the rest of the drive. They just sat there in a peaceful silence. A silence that would be broken as soon as they reached their own base of operations and were confronted by Persephone. Cypher enjoyed the silence, the calm. It allowed her to muse over things. Like what she'd have for breakfast tomorrow. Simple things that didn't have anything to do with heists, or murder, or chaos. Plus, a quiet Envy was a happy Envy, and that meant a happy Cypher who didn't have to listen to her partners complaining. Really, it was super annoying! Envy could and would complain about anything and everything, and since they were badass supervillains she couldn't do it to anyone else but Cypher. Well, Persephone too, but she'd sooner rip their heads off than offer support. Shaking that messy image from her mind, Cypher glanced over at Envy, who was smiling happily as she looked out the tinted windows of the truck. What was it like? Being able to take pleasure in what they did. Cypher wished she knew, wished she wasn't so out of the loop. The other members of the Trio would have no problem laughing over the mangled corpse of a puppy, but Cypher sometimes felt queasy and weak-kneed around stuff like that. Sure, she'd killed before, but she didn't take the same perverse love in it as her friends. Did that make her a bad villain? Hopefully not.
Twenty-eight minutes later saw the truck slowly coming to a stop in front of a nondescript warehouse. This was the base for the Iron Trio. It was just a standard looking warehouse amidst multiple other warehouses. The lot that held the many warehouses lay next to a small man-made lake and more in the suburbia of Sherwood. Just outside out the main, bustling parts of the city, and abandoned for the most part, it was the ideal spot for the Trio to hide. No, not hide, to plot their dastardly plans whilst staying out of the reaches off the Super Central Heroes. Parking the truck just outside the large grated door, Cypher stepped out, waited a second for Envy, and then pulled open the grate with a surprising amount of strength. The two women entered it casually, and slammed the grated door behind them. They weren't worried about the truck being spotted by any random bystander, for it was just some car Cypher had stolen off a dealership earlier that week. Envy would probably wreck it later that night to cover their tracks, anyways.
The grate hit the concrete floor with a resounding bang, and the warehouse was pitch into darkness. Cypher waved her hand with a cheerful hum, and multiple lightbulbs flicked to life, illuminating the warehouse dimly. The inside of the warehouse had a unique look to it, courtesy of the Trio's remodeling. About thirty feet in length, and forty feet across, the (ironically) iron building wasn't small. The ceiling stood twenty feet high, with beams going in between the space in the pointed roof. In the very back was a tall metal wall that separated ten feet of floor space from the rest of the building. This small section was cut off into three rooms, or offices, one for each of the villains. Off to the right wall off the warehouse stood a ginormous white board. One of those stand-up ones on wheels. And next to that lay a long table littered with an assortment of odd things. Knives, empty Starbuck's cups, a box opener, duct tape, papers, and what looked to be a bomb in the making were just a few of the things on the wooden table. Near the grated door, boxes of all shapes and sizes were stuffed into a dark corner. On the left side of the warehouse, torture devices were strapped up to the slightly rustic wall. There was everything from an electrical collar to a pair of tweezers. These items mostly belonged to Envy, and she took immense pride in her collection. Shit like that wasn't cheap, you know. Also adorning the left wall was an oaken chest filled with clothes. It was open, clothes hanging out of it haphazardly, and some of them had crimson stains. From the ceiling hung multiple wire cords, tied to the beams, a single lightbulb hung from each cord, shining a dim yellow light. Eerie shadows stretched out ominously from behind boxes and corners.
Taking a step forward, Envy set her beloved staff next to a metal coat holder by the door, and strode into the warehouse. It had a damp feeling, the warehouse, and smelled like metal, coffee, and a sickly-sweet perfume. Envy loved it. At this point, it was like a second home to her. As she walked deeper into the musty building, the villain slid her elaborate green painted mask off her face. The black vine designs glinted, metallic, in the light. Tilting her head back to the yellow clad woman behind her, Heather Duke smirked.
"How much do you want to bet Stealth is pissing herself with fear right now?"
~
Stealth was not, in fact, pissing herself in fear right now.
No, she was too busy suffering from the lingering effects of Envy's mental attack for trivial things like that.
No, no, no,
No, no, no, no, please,
No, no, please stop-
I'm sorry, I'm so, so sor-
I didn't mean it, sorry, sorry, no please, I didn't-
No, no, no, please,
No, no, sorry, stop

"Stealth!" Bright and clear, the southern accent cut through her thoughts like a knife. Senses started to flood back into her body. They were warm. They were welcome. Yes, they were very welcome. Latching onto the voice and the warmth, she pulled herself back to reality. Light shone behind the empty void, someone was calling her name, people were yelling in the background. Detachedly, she realized she was on the ground. The floor was cold and hard, but someone's arms were frantically shaking her. Did something happen? She couldn't remember...In the distance a siren blared, the police? What were the police doing here? Opening her eyes, she blinked at the familiar face above her. And then everything came rushing back. The plan to stop the Iron Trio, her duel with Envy, getting a face full of fear-
Oh. Oh shit.
Somewhere along the line she must've been overwhelmed by the sheer amount of terror brought upon her, and passed out. Resisting the urge to close her eyes, block out the florescent lighting of the banquet hall, and sleep, Stealth stared at her partner, SheWolf. The mortal hero glared back down at her. Still dazed from being unconscious, Stealth just continued to stare, not speaking. SheWolf's defined jaw-line was clenched in anger, but her hazel eyes blazed with worry behind a silver mask. Strands of auburn hair hung in front of her face from where they'd come out of the high ponytail on the back of her head. Sun-kissed skin shone with sweat, subsequently a side-product of the skirmish with the sinister supervillains.
"Stealth, you okay?" SheWolf spoke again. Her voice was the epitome of a southern belles. Rich, silky, smooth. Brushing a strand of light purple out of her face, Stealth responded in a small voice,
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." But both heard the quiver in the last word. Stealth gulped, trying hard to ignore how clammy her skin felt, sticky with fear-induced sweat. A ball of residue horror lay in her stomach. It twisted and turned, and Stealth tried her best to ignore that too. Damn, Envy had really done a number on her this time 'round. Usually, after a squabble with the sadistic criminal, Stealth would either be feeling exhausted, numb, or frustrated that Envy had gotten away again. This was something new, the feeling of sickening biliousness. A though suddenly rammed its way into the hero's mind. What if Envy had been holding out on them? Oh god, what if the Iron Trio were more powerful than they portrayed, and were just toying with them? Wolves playing with their food. That would be bad. That would be very, very bad. The Trio was already powerful as is. If the group could do more damage, if they could kill the Supers at Super Central, Sherwood was screwed. Hell, the world would be screwed. Images of fire and destruction played out in Stealth's imagination. People hiding in their homes, anarchy in the streets, blood coating the streets, and to top it all off, the villains ruling it all.
Stealth shuddered. That was a world she refused to let come into existence. The sole reason she'd decided to take up the mantle of "hero", and become Stealth was because she never wanted anyone to feel helpless. She knew it was a hefty goal, yet she was still going to try. Even if she couldn't take out all the bad guys, even if she died trying, Stealth was going to protect the innocents. Hope was her true weapon. That, and her determination. No one would ever have to feel the way she felt if the hero had her say. Ha, if only Matt could see her now...
SheWolf noticed her shudder (of course), and quirked an arching brow.
"You sure you're fine, Stealth?" It was evident her partner didn't believe her flimsy assurances. Instead of answering, Stealth just nodded slowly, muttering a quick,
"I'll tell you back at Central." There was a pause, and then SheWolf stood up, offering an arm to Stealth. Taking it, the bandana-wearing woman wobbled. The two stood there for a minute as Stealth balanced herself. All around them police swarmed the building like ants. Blue and black uniformed men and woman escorted out panicked hostages. A elegant lady in an expensive red dress was arguing with an officer a few yards away. Something about if they were going to get their money back or not. Stealth adverted her eyes from the scene. They didn't have the time to bother with consoling the hostages. That was the polices' job. Besides, Stealth felt light-headed, and black spots danced in the corner of her vision. Adding the rich complaining about being robbed a few thousand dollars wouldn't help.
Her arm on her partner, SheWolf led the pair out of the building. She helped the shorter hero into a black Altima borrowed from a friend, and started the short drive to Central. Like the villain's, the heroes sat in silence. Yet this time it wasn't peaceful. No one was enjoying the void left without words, and neither partner commented on what had happened. The atmosphere felt heavy with defeat, worry, and regret. It grew, a fungus, rapidly. Allowing Sherwood's prime defenders to sink deeper into their negativity.
Defeat. Defeat and a sick sense of worry. That's all SheWolf could focus on. Her worn hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, causing her knuckles to turn white, and she kept glancing over apprehensively at Stealth, at Aliza. Aliza who laughed in the face of death, Aliza who dyed her hair different shades of purple to match the months, Aliza who stayed up until four in the morning playing video games instead of writing their reports, Aliza who kept her secrets, Aliza who was injured, Aliza who she loved. It had shaken her that she'd almost been too late. That she had been too late. That she couldn't stop Envy from messing with Stealth's mind. But most of all, SheWolf was shaken that she didn't know what to do now. Now that the damage had been done, she had no idea how to fix it. Suddenly, SheWolf became acutely aware of the locket around her neck. The silver pendant hanging heavy against her skin, as if reminding her it was there. One of her biggest secrets. That's what the thing was. Sure, at first glance the jewelry looked normal, with its single chain and humble pendant. SheWolf knew better than to belittle its power, though. Without the locket, SheWolf wouldn't even be SheWolf. She'd just be Kimberly Hart, cowgirl extraordinaire, the most stubborn shit this side of Sherwood City. Giving a small sigh, the blue-and-silver-themed hero took solace in the token and tried to banish the feeling of uselessness festering inside.
The regret was all Stealth. Untying her bandana from her face, she tried to gather her jumbled thoughts. She regretted not being able to stop Cypher and Envy from robbing those people, and regretted being a liability for her partner. What she needed now was order, and the mess Envy had left was the complete opposite. Okay, thought Stealth, what do I know? And what did she know? She knew that the Iron Trio were crazy bitch's intent on making her life a living hell, and that they may be more powerful than they appeared. Envy had taken her out like she was the trash on a Tuesday night. Stealth also knew that her partner, SheWolf, was upset. Whether that frustration was directed towards her herself or Stealth, the purple-loving Super wasn't sure. Last, but not least, Stealth knew that she felt like someone had bulldozed over her soul, doused her in ice water, and then threw her body to the metaphorical wolves. Her hands trembled, and her heart felt heavy. Positive she'd get absolutely zero sleep tonight, Stealth suppressed a groan. The residential fear would be keeping her up. To top this entire shit-on-Stealth's-wellbeing fest, she had a shift early tomorrow morning. Joy.
So that's all she knew at the moment. First off, that the Iron Trio were psychotic (surprise, surprise), and that Super Central needed to properly gauge their power. Stealth would definitely feel better if the possibility of world domination was off the table. Second, that SheWolf needed consolation about...things. Things that Aliza would be figuring out through arguments later tonight. Oh boy, that would be fun. Note the sarcasm here. Third, and lastly, Stealth would need a lot of coffee tomorrow. Good thing she worked at the local Starbucks as a civilian. She didn't work register, and she wasn't a barista. Stealth, AKA Aliza "Ali" Deservante, was the security guard for the morning shift at the coffee shop. Normally, Starbuck's wouldn't have, or need, a security guard. But this was Sherwood City, the Super capital of the U.S.A. Nothing was 'normal' here. Plus, with the increase in villains, the popular place had thought it wise to hire some form of defense. This defense was Aliza. She spent the majority of her civilian work hours sitting in a dank back room behind the counter where the barista's made the beverages. Obviously, none of her fellow Starbucks employees knew that she was the famed hero, Stealth, but maybe if they did she'd get more respect. Anyways, Stealth would need an extraordinary caffeine boost to survive the next day.
What felt like hours later, yet was only eight minutes, the truck came to a stop in front of a small brick building. It was dinky compared to the looming, fancy buildings surrounding it. The dark of the night did little to help it look better, and you could barely make out the words, "Susie & Co. Law", written in bold black on a medium sized plaque next to the single door. Sluggishly, SheWolf and Stealth exited the truck and walked to the front of the law firm. A cool breeze chilled the air, blowing leaves from nearby trees across the lot. The two partners stood side by side, eerily mirror to their arch-enemies position in front of their own base.
It was time to report to Central.

------------------------------------------------------
A/N: Hey y'all! It's wowzaKy from the SuperHeathersAU, and I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of our new fanfic! This fanfiction & AU is run and written by group of us. Each characters' POV will be written by their creator & all the open ended POV's will be written by me. Today's chapter was written by me, and credit to Cypher, Persephone, Stealth, and SheWolf go to their respective creators! :D Sorry guys if I botched up your characters personalities-
If you want to learn more about the SuperHeathersAU, check out the Heathers Amino, and look up the hashtag, #SuperHeathersAU to find art, head-canons, non-canon-complaint one-shots and more!
Not All Heroes Win Their Battles will also be posted on the Heathers Amino Community and on AO3.
( Art Above Is Mine, Please Don't Use Without Permission )
Well, have a good day, and thanks for reading!!