El ídolo
Darkness. That is all she saw.
Rope. That is all she felt as she struggled against a cold chair.
Light. Finally, light. Charlotte looked down at herself in the cold room. Her clothes were in tatters and her body was covered in small cuts and bruises. She could feel the rope cutting into her wrist and she could taste the blood pouring from her lip. They’d pay for this.
“CHARLOTTE!!” The scream was blood-curdling. It was raspy. It was scared. Most of all, it was familiar. Charlotte could almost hear the inevitable tears streaming down the girl’s cheeks. Becky.
Charlotte’s head shot up. Another light, a spotlight actually, was shining on her. Becky’s face was scraped and her nose was gushing. She was bound to a chair, too, but not like Charlotte’s. It looked like some sort of modified dining room chair. The exposed wood was obviously splintering from age, and unlike Charlotte, Becky was strapped in. A leather strap wrapped around her midsection tightly, along with one around her shoulders. Leather cuffs pinned her wrists to the arms of the chair. In a similar way to her wrists, her ankles were bound to the leg of her chair. Becky’s body writhed against the straps, trying her best to break free. But to no avail. A shadowy figure seemed to appear out of thin air to grab Becky’s face and strap some sort of bowl looking thing to her head.
“BECKS!!!” Charlotte called out to her, the scream ripping through her raw throat. Just as Charlotte had given up hope of saving her best friend, Becky’s eyes locked with hers. Tears welled in her relieved chocolate eyes. Charlotte felt a sigh of relief let out from her chest. Suddenly, the expression in her eyes changed from relief to absolute pain. Her eyes never moved from Charlotte’s as the shrill shriek left her mouth as her body convulsed. Charlotte watched as Becky’s veins popped out from beneath her skin. Becky continued to writhe as vibrant orange stripes begin to spread throughout her body where her veins were. Her eyes never left Charlotte’s; well, not until Becky slumped in her chair. Her body stopped writhing. She stopped moving in general.
Becky was unstrapped from the chair by burly men in hazmat suits. Charlotte felt her throat swell impossibly as she screamed for Becky again.
“Char.”
“Charlie.”
“Charlotte!”
Charlotte awoke drenched in sweat and trembling. Strong arms were wrapped around her; that wasn’t exactly a rarity now. What was rare, was that they weren’t Becky’s arms. Becky had gone home that night. Charlotte insisted that she didn’t want to trap Becky here and Becky wasn’t one to argue with Charlotte. The arms and soft coos weren’t Becky’s, but they were still familiar; Daria.
Charlotte wanted to hate the embrace. Charlotte wanted to pull away and scream at her for coming into her room. Charlotte wanted to want all of that. But she didn’t. She just curled into Daria as sobs wrung through her body. She felt Daria rub comforting circles along Charlotte’s back.
“It’s alright, Charlie, no one is going to hurt her. I promise.” Charlotte couldn’t help the choked sob that wrung through her body at the word ‘promise’.
“Oh geez, I guess that wasn’t the best wording was it?” Daria gave a humorless chuckle. Charlotte sniffled as she lifted her her face from Daria’s shoulders to look at her. Her face was twisted in a panicked expression and her hair was in a messy clump atop her head. She must’ve just woken up.
“Dar-Sonya, you didn’t have to come, I’m fine.” Charlotte tried to reassure Sonya, but faltered with a hiccup.
“Oh yeah, you sound stellar, She-Ra.” Paige made her presence in the doorway known with the cheeky remark. Charlotte couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her lips.
I am glad they are here. That scene was not favorable. And eerily detailed. Today will show to be a challenge. It may be time.
Time? Time for what?
Time to finally show them all what will transpire when you piss off The Queen.
Charlotte felt a grin spread across her face at Queenie’s words. She could taste the venom on her tongue. Sonya was right, no one would hurt Becky. No one would hurt Bayley or Sasha. Not if she had a say in it.
Charlotte begrudgingly departed from the embrace, which Paige piled into, and grabbed a few things from her closet. She snickered as she looked at the acid wash tank top in her hands. Paige and Sonya, who were still on her bed, let out a few giggles too when they saw She-Ra depicted on the red fabric.
“Nice!” Paige called out as Charlotte closed the door to her bathroom. Time to scrub away that wretched dream away. Quickly, she undressed and stepped into the cool spray of the shower. She let out a sigh of relief as the water padded against her tense shoulders and tight back. Today was definitely going to be a long one.
・・・
Charlotte chewed on her lip as she killed her engine in front of The Labs. She slipped her helmet off and hung it on the handlebars for the time being. She was the only one here; there was no sign of Sasha or Bayley’s cars in the lot. She was first. Wow. What a shocker. She might as well check her messages.
Prince Pizza: i cant believe bayley payed for your pizza cuz you and becky were too horny for each other.
daddy: mornin! we should prolly talk about this um...later after the whole bonding thing
daddy: not like in a bad way though! we dont need to talk in a bad way
daddy: i mean unless you need to talk to me in a bad way ;) in that case you can talk to me however you want
daddy: not that you couldnt say what you wanted before! your an independent woman and i totally respect that! its hot ;P
daddy: well uh see you at the labs xx
mom mcfuckhuggy: you owe me 12 bucks you horny bastard
Charlotte shook her head and giggled at the texts. It was adorable how Becky somehow stumbled with her words in her messages. It brought warmth to her cheeks and butterflies to her stomach. This girl was going to be the death of her.
“Hey, Adora~”
Charlotte’s eyes shot up from her phone as she heard the sultry tone of an Irish accent. Charlotte slid her phone into her back pocket with a huge grin on her face. Becky was quick to throw her arms around Charlotte in a tight embrace. She glanced down at the shorter girl, her shirt catching Charlotte’s eye. Upon first glance, it was just a plain white tee. Charlotte pulled away slightly, looping her arms around the back of Becky’s neck leaning slightly on her bike. Charlotte got a good look at the shirt, seeing a doodle of a tea bag on the shirt.
“What on Earth are you wearing?” Charlotte laughed as she saw the girl pout.
“This, Charlie”, Becky rested her hands on Charlotte’s waist comfortably as she spoke, “is my tea-shirt!” Charlotte snorted. Of course. Of course Becky had a tea shirt. Of course hearing her laugh at her own pun made Charlotte giddy. And of course Charlotte’s breathing hitched as Becky leaned into her ear.
“I don’t regret it.” she whispered, her breath tickling Charlotte’s ear.
“Regret what?”
“The kiss.”
“Oh, uh, I don’t either.”
“I really liked it, actually.”
“So did I, Bex.”
“Do ya think we could make it like, I don’t know, a regular thing?”
“Is this your way of asking me out? Pinning me to my bike and whispering in my ear?”
“Maybe.”
“Then yeah, I think we could make it a regular thing.” Charlotte pressed a small kiss to Becky’s cheek. Her heart fluttered. Becky had asked her out. Sure it was in her own Becky way, but she had asked Charlotte out nonetheless. Sweet.
“Are you horndogs done fucking yet?”
“Sash!” Bayley scolded as she slapped the girl’s midsection. Charlotte’s head shot up to look at the pair in front of them with a glare. Becky tore herself from the embrace to give Sasha her own choice of looks and gestures. As soon as Becky lifted her finger of choice at the purple haired girl, Sasha erupted into a fit of giggles. Soon, the four find themselves huddled together in a fit of laughter.
“Are you four done? We have business to attend to.” the shrill sound of Stephanie’s voice caused the group’s laughter to cease completely, a scowl forming on Charlotte’s face. It melted away almost immediately, as Becky laced their fingers together, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze.
Stephanie lead the four girls through the warehouse they had grown accustomed to. The Horsewomen shuffled behind Stephanie, a sense of nervousness between them. They had no idea what was to come. They just knew it would hurt. Stephanie had said so on Charlotte’s first day. Paige had been in pain. Charlotte had needed stitches from Sonya when she and Queenie had bonded. Whatever was going to happen, the four just wished it would be quick.
“I’m afraid this is where Charlotte departs from the group.” Stephanie stated as they arrived the second building of the labs. They had a second building? When did that happen? Charlotte felt a strong hand on her shoulder. She flinched a little and looked back, seeing that it was Hunter; the man who took her vitals. The one who caught The Queen’s Court. He motioned for her to follow him into the mysterious second building. She looked at her friends. They all had the same look on their faces: Good luck. Charlotte nodded and reluctantly let go of Becky’s warm hand. She had to be honest, Charlotte was scared. What were they going to do to her?
Do not fear, Charlotte. We will get through whatever they throw at us.
That was slightly reassuring. What was reassuring, though, was that this second room was set up like a Pokèmon Battle Stadium toy from the ’90s. The middle was sunk in, presumably for easier battle with less destruction. Walling the battle pit (I mean there was nothing else to call it), were metal slabs, holding what looked like benches above it. Was this really a stadium!?
“Alright, Miss Flair. We’re going to run a few tests on you just, be prepared for a fight.”
Charlotte heard Hunter’s words from what she assumed was an intercom because she hadn’t seen him around her. A fight? Was there something else in here with her? Someone else? She heard the telltale sound of metal scraping against metal. She whipped around to see a piece of the wall lifting slowly. Soon, a figure could be seen waiting for the wall to finish lifting. When it did, Charlotte made out the figure of a man. As he stepped into the light, Charlotte saw him clearly. His skin was the color of salted caramel, his jet black hair pulled back into a neat topknot.
“Soy Andrade. Pido su perdón.”
Charlotte hadn’t even had time to register what was said as she heard a resounding thud and felt a large fist connect to the muscle of her stomach. She was sent soaring through the arena at a pace rivaled only by her trusty bike. Her back hit the metal, neither masses showing any give at all. Her head crashed against the surface of the metal with a loud bang. She slumped in a pile shortly after. Charlotte tasted the familiar copper in her mouth. She rose, breath ragged, and quivering only slightly. The pain in her head was the last thing on her mind at this point. She looked at the ground beneath her, spitting out the red pouring from her mouth and wiping the remaining bits from her lips.
“You fucked up big time.” Charlotte spoke, but it wasn’t her. It was The Queen’s voice. She looked down at herself as she felt something climbing up her body. Black sludge streaked with royal blue covered her legs and arms. Soon, the sludge, or symbiote rather, covered Charlotte’s body, adding height and muscle mass. The symbiote pooled behind her in a dramatic sort of cape. Atop her neck frilled tendrils jutted out, almost like a frilled neck lizard or the fanciest collar you’ve ever seen. Finally, the symbiote’s head came to three peaks, symbolizing a crown. This was The Queen.
The Queen looked in the direction of Andrade, only to find he had been replaced. He was rather plain looking, almost a carbon copy of Venom with gold streaks. The Queen recognized him immediately: The Idol. He had gained a following on Klyntar when he began slandering The Queen and her court. He led these lesser symbiotes into a raid on The Queen’s Palace. Of course, this failed miserably. The Queen’s Court cut through the enemy hoard with little to no effort. The Idol proved to be a bit of a challenge, but he was defeated and banished nonetheless.
The Idol charged at Queenie. This should be fun. The Queen sidestepped the charging symbiote, giving him a kick to the back of the leg on his way out. The Idol stumbled only for a moment, quick to jump right back on The Queen, landing a strong knee strike on the side of her jaw. She stumbled backward, cradling her throbbing mandible. Anger bubbled in the monarch as she watched the hostile reel for another kick. As his foot lifted from the ground The Queen caught his ankle. She turned her whole body in a corkscrew motion, bringing The Idol and herself to the floor. Seamlessly, she transitioned from clutching his ankle to sitting atop the symbiote’s chest, a hand tightly wrapped around his neck and the other raised in a fist.
“Do it! Prove me wrong! Prove that you are a worthy leader! Or are you weak like our stupid court!?” The Queen squeezed her eyes shut and let out a scream. She could feel her raised hand become a sharp tendril, almost like a blade. Just as swiftly as she pinned him down, she drove the tendril into The Idol’s chest, hoping he would submit. But she didn’t hear him. She didn’t feel him breathe. She didn’t feel his pulse from his neck that she was so tightly grasping. When The Queen finally opened her eyes, she didn’t see The Idol. She saw Andrade.
“What!?” It was Charlotte’s voice. The Queen had retracted back into her body. Which meant that the tendril was gone too. Charlotte looked at the man before her. His mouth was agape and his eyes were wide. His white shirt was soaked with blood from the gaping hole in his chest. When had The Idol retreated? Had he done so in submission? Had Charlotte killed this man in cold blood?
Charlotte looked at herself now. She had rolled off of the man once she was herself again. Her tank top was covered in blood, much like Andrade’s shirt. The only difference was that it wasn’t her own blood, it was his. She put her hand on her head, the one that killed Andrade, to feel for a bump. There was no such thing, but there was a warm liquid seeping from the back of her head. She pulled her hand out of her hair and held it in front of her; her entire palm was covered, and from the corner of her eyes she could see her blonde hair becoming red. Not good. She tried to stand, but she felt a sharp pain in her back preventing it. Great.
“Charlie!?” Charlotte looked at the arena’s door as she hears the familiar accent grace her ears. There stood her friends, drenched in sweat and struck with horror. Bayley looked like she as going to cry. Sasha looked sick. And worst of all, Becky’s eyes were wide in fear.
“I-I didn’t mean to!” Charlotte let out a sob. The three rushed to Charlotte’s side, enveloping her in a comforting embrace. They all just say there for a bit, letting Charlotte cry. Until finally, Charlotte flt herself be lifted from the ground by strong arms. She buried her face in Becky’s neck, unknowingly covering it in her blood. The ride home in Bayley’s car was filled with worried glances, choked sobs, and quiet coos. What were they going to do?