The Villain

Part 3: Unrequited Feelings

Things were changing around the base. Mercury could sense it. There was a tension brewing, and she suspected she knew the cause, though there might be agents at play that she hadn't been able to factor in.

Electron looked almost smug, draped across the couch as he watched TV. Mercury couldn't help but notice that he'd taken to walking around, even lounging, wearing no shirt and only loose boxers. It was the salt in her wound, the insult to injury. She knew he'd started having sex with Memnos and Lioness and, for all she knew, Twin Gun and Photon as well. If he hadn't with the later two, it wasn't for want of trying. After all, even Mercury, as socially awkward as she was, had noticed the pointed suggestions that he could rock their worlds.

She had no doubt that was true. Ever since the team had formed, she'd looked up to the highly charismatic electrical manipulator. He was as fit as Scourge or Daedelus, but something about his youth had particularly attracted the middle-aged heroine. She felt like a cougar every time her thoughts drifted to the promises of his body.

Now that he'd changed his fashion habits, Mercury couldn't deny it. Just the sight of his firm chest began to moisten her underwear. The glimpses of his equipment, stolen when the fly hole shifted just right, made her positively squirm. The first time she'd spotted the impressive sight had been enough to force her to the nearest bathroom to relieve the sudden pressure and heat that had sprouted between her hips.

Through his whole emboldened attitude, however, he had never once made a suggestion in her direction.

Mercury stormed out of the room and towards the kitchen. If Electron had noticed, there wasn't any sign. It wasn't far enough and she felt almost unsatisfied with the miniscule tantrum, especially when he hadn't even acknowledged it.

"Unsatisfied." Mercury mumbled. "Yeah. That certainly describes my life right about now."

"If I were lucky enough to be with a woman like you, I would do whatever I could to make sure you -

she

- had no reason to complain."

Mercury's pulse spiked. She spun, her hands and back pressed against the island counter. Instinct drove her skin to harden into the shiny metal that gave her her name. It wasn't so much a danger to her body that she worried about but, rather, her pride!

She knew she'd see Daedelus even before her eyes could fully focus on him. With a team as close as they were, it would have been impossible to have mistaken the voice of any of her companions. Unfortunately, that didn't make the fact that she'd been caught bitching about her sex life any less mortifying. She transformed herself back from her metal form and was relieved she wasn't blushing too much.

"Daed! Sorry, I didn't realize you were there. You don't need to hear about my problems. I think I'll head to my room instead."

"No, wait!" The conjurer responded. When he held out his hand, palm forward, a traffic stop sign flashed partially into existence for the briefest moment behind him. It was a sign of how flustered he was that he subconsciously manifested an object that related to his thoughts. "Mary, you know you can talk to me."

He was right. That he knew her given name was proof of that. Of all of them, she had connected most with David "Daedelus" Lusk. She'd opened herself up to him more comfortably than anyone in her life other than, maybe, her third-grade BFF. He was a nice guy, someone safe she could talk to.

"You're right. Sorry. It's just..." Even with him, it was difficult to really explain what Electron made her feel. That was the one area in which she'd never really confided in him. It didn't seem right, for some unknown reason.

"It's just that Electron and Memnos, and probably Lioness as well, have been going at it in every spare moment." Daed supplied for her.

Mercury nodded glumly. "In all fairness, Lioness was only the few days she was in heat."

"Huh." Daed offered thoughtfully. "Is that why she locks herself in every couple of months? I'd kinda wondered, but I guess that makes sense. Probably for everyone's good, in that case. Though I'm not sure about Electron sneaking in, in that case."

"I'm sure if there was a problem, Twin Gun would step in." Mercury suggested a bit uncertainly.

"I dunno." Daed returned. "It could be considered taking advantage when she's mentally or emotionally compromised. Kinda like when someone's drunk?"

"I'm sure Twin Gun has it under control." Mercury growled. It was hard to hear anyone disparage Electron, even if she had thought of the same concerns herself. Daedalus picked up on her souring mood and quickly turned the conversation elsewhere.

"So you were feeling kinda frustrated. Physically, that is?"

"I guess." For some reason, it was a little weird talking to Daed about the subject. Still, she felt more comfortable than she would have even with the other women of the team. Of course, when half of them were having sex with the man she desperately wanted that might not mean as much as it would otherwise.

"Then, the answer is easy! Go out and find someone." Daed responded. He quickly held up his hands in a placating gesture to hold off the complaint he knew was forthcoming. "I know, it's not really that easy. You're not the type of person who can go out and hook up with a stranger.

"Still, there's got to be some friends who you would feel comfortable with? They won't even have to be a formal relationship. Friends with benefits, as they say. You've got to have someone who you feel comfortable enough that you could trust just to relieve your physical needs."

He said it so mater-of-fact-ly that she almost missed the gleam in his eye. She made certain not to stare but instead looked off into the distance like she considered his question. In reality, she suddenly had a very different realization.

The glint had been the slightest hint of hopeful desperation. That much she was sure of. What she contemplated was how long it had been since

Daedalus

had made love to anyone. They'd been a team for years now, and while all of the others had minor flings with people away from the team, he'd always refrained.

Had it really been

years

for him? If so, no wonder there'd be desperation! He was probably a bit like her, in the respect that he couldn't just hook up with a random someone at a club. After all, he always seemed to understand her.

"There...might be someone." Mercury offered a bit more coyly than she ever had around Daed. He was right. There were a few guys that she could turn to. Unfortunately, it seemed that Daedalus didn't have the same luxury. She certainly trusted him not to hurt her. Beyond that, it had been his idea that she find someone, no strings attached. Now that she noticed, it was his way of offering himself. Besides, if they did it here, in the kitchen, and now, with Electron in the next room, maybe it would be enough to turn him jealous and drive him to her.

"Just...friends with benefits?" Mercury asked as she pushed off of the counter. "It's the kind of thing that two people can share, if they don't get too emotionally dependent. And, maybe, who better than a teammate? After all, I have to admit, it would be nice to be able to come back from a mission and break the tension. Reaffirm life and all that."

There it was again. This time, Daed wasn't able to simply push the hopeful desperation out of his eyes. His mouth opened a couple of times, while she stalked towards him, but he couldn't manage to speak. Instead, he nodded his response.

Mercury smiled and allowed a little more sway to her hips. She was rewarded by the way his eyes began to flitter down, very much against his will. Try as he might, he couldn't keep his focus on her face. Other times, that might have offended her. Now, however, it was a compliment to her efforts to retain her youthful figure and complexion, despite the forces of nature.

Maybe there was something to the suggestion. Sure, she'd initially targeted him out of pity but it seemed that she could gain a little more than just physical satisfaction. In her fantasies with Electron, she still felt a bit the cougar, given the roughly two decades difference in age. Daedalus was less than ten years younger than she. And if he thought she was worth ogling, while surrounded by four other women, all of whom were younger than he was, it would certainly perk her ego a bit.

"Yeah." Daed stammered. "It's not really sex in violence, but it does kinda turn me on when..."

Mercury put a finger to his lips to keep him from prattling too much. No. He was perfect. Here was someone she trusted enough to be intimate with but would never see herself falling for. The next time he opened his mouth, it would remind her of the impossibility of a relationship beyond sex.

"How about other things?" Mercury asked in a whisper, leaning it to breath the question directly into his ear. "Is it just the fighting that turns you on, or is it something else?"

She could practically hear his throat working as he gulped a couple of times, trying to swallow past the nervous lump that had formed. After a couple of tries, he managed to build up enough saliva to open his mouth and answer. "There's other things, mostly." He admitted.

"Might those other things be this?"

Mercury stepped back until the counter once more brushed against her back. She kept her arms loosely outstretched at her sides, to indicate her body, as she moved. Daed finally lost the battle entirely and his eyes drifted downward and failed to return to hers. His breath was so short she feared he'd hyperventilate.

Yes. Definitely good for the ego.

"Or, wait." She added, not bothering to try to drag his attention away from her body. "This isn't quite right. This might be enough to titillate," he nodded almost comically fast, "but it's not the full effect, now is it?"

Mercury brought her arms in and slowly reached up to the top button of her blouse. Carefully and sedately, she popped each button free and worked her way down the shirt. She made sure not to allow it to fall open as it loosened. That would be for the final reveal.

Even without the revelation of any additional flesh, Mercury could easily determine the effect she had on him. The bulge of his slacks began to pulse. Each time, it failed to fade a little farther forward. By the time she was ready to drop her shirt, she judged, he was nearly hard.

Her shirt fell away to reveal the pink lace bra she wore beneath. She knew that the delicate fabric would offer tantalizing glimpses of her nipples and areola if one looked hard enough to notice. From the way he stared at her, there was no way he'd failed to spot them.

"I don't generally wear a skirt either, do I?" Mercury teased.

Her fingers slipped to the waist of the long, somewhat form-fitting, skirt. One of her friends in college had joked that she dressed like a librarian, and not the naughty kind. If he could only see her now, he would probably be kicking himself for his stupidity. All that a real woman had to do in order to add naughtiness to an outfit was to add attitude.

The skirt dropped dramatically to pool around her feet. Daedalus dropped his eyes to follow the obvious motion and only managed to raise them to the newly revealed treasure. His breath had frozen in his lungs and his pants must have been painfully tight.

Mercury put her hands behind her, on the edge of the counter, and leaned back slightly. The motion drew her breasts away from him, the arch of her back thrust her hips forward nearly the same amount. Daed staggered forward a step, apparently without even a conscious decision. She felt her body respond with the first hint of warmth that she could still cause such instinctive lust with nothing more than her physique. After a moment, she relaxed her body and rested against the counter.

"You're overdressed." Mercury pointed out. Daedalus jerked in surprise. After a moment to process her statement, he quickly began to tear off his clothes. It was all she could do not to snicker at his enthusiasm. It would probably hurt his ego and the whole point of this was to give him an outlet as much as see if she could get Electron jealous.

When he was done, Daedalus stood before her clad only in his boxers. She appraised him openly. The tent of fabric suggested a respectable length, if not any larger than average. The way it sprang up, nearly parallel to his fit stomach, would certainly be beneficial to standing or missionary. Though it wouldn't do much if he tried to sit her on the edge of the counter or, heaven forbid, bend her over it. The latter she wouldn't let him do, no matter how bad she felt for him. She'd only let the real catch show her any dominance.

"Have you ever wondered what my metal body feels like?" Mercury purred and transformed.

His eyes widened. Somehow, the sight of her in her underwear wasn't nearly as fascinating as her metal body in the same. Personally, she always thought she looked like a silver mannequin like this, but clearly he thought differently. Maybe it was because the contrast of colors emphasized the lingerie where they blended against her pink skin normally.

Whatever the reason, Daed nodded so fast and hard she was almost afraid he'd get whiplash! Rather than openly state her invitation, Mercury once more arched her back. As if magnetized at the hips, he staggered forward. Before their bodies could collide, he managed to bring his hands up to rest around her firm waist.

Daedalus gasped, a good sign that he managed to breath occasionally. Mercury smiled. He was surprised by how soft and warm her body was. If anything, her temperature actually rose a couple of degrees in this form. She leaned into his light caress, encouraging his hands to wander.

Through slitted eyes, Mercury could see warring desires in his expression. Part of him wanted to savor the feel of her body. He seemed to want to memorize every curve. While she appreciated the sentiment, there'd be time for that if and when she decided to take him up on this again. For now, she wanted to get going before Electron slipped out of the next room and ruined the whole point of the show.

"My underwear's in the way. I think you should cut it off." Mercury suggested.

She had thought it might give him a hint of some aggressiveness in a perfectly harmless way. Daedalus, however, just looked at her blankly. After a moment of consideration he finally realized she was being serious and began to look around hurriedly. Mercury rolled her eyes.

"You don't have to

find

a knife. Make one."

Understanding dawned. Daedalus could conjure any object he desired from thin air, provided he knew the exact workings of it. Simple objects, like knifes, clubs and stop signs, were easy. He could call forth complex mechanical or chemical machines but only if he understood their form and function to the slightest detail.

Daed surprised her when he caught up to her intent. Rather than a simple knife, he fashioned a full-blown katana from nowhere. She felt a slight thrill of danger. Her metal body should be strong enough to resist even such vorpal a blade but there was always the possibility she was wrong. It was that unknown that caused her breath to catch and her muscles,

all

of them, to clench when the blade came to rest against her metal body.

Apparently he wasn't sure whether or not he'd crafted such a weapon either. The fist cut began slightly under her arm and was angled so severely that it barely managed to cut the strap of her bra. It didn't even leave a scratch, which gave him more confidence. The figure eight that deftly stripped her of the cups of her bra actually tickled and elicited a slight shudder of sensation. A flick of his wrist spun the sword into a back-handed grip, pointed at the floor.

Mercury had never really considered, before, that weapons could be used as aids in foreplay. When she felt the blade nestle between her legs, she had an instinctive blaze of fear and felt her body seize. Intellectually, she knew the weapon couldn't hurt her but her body couldn't help but respond.

Daedalus jerked his hand upward and her body responded in a completely different manner. Mercury moaned as the solid length of the blade rubbed firmly against her tender, if invulnerable, bud. She may have overstated her response, in the hopes that someone particular might hear, but it was genuine, if less than she let her lover believe.

The blade vanished. Daed dropped a hand between her legs and brushed aside the now-torn lace. Even with the proof of her body, he seemed amazed when his fingers dipped into the hot, damp, folds of her lust. To encourage him, she rolled her hips and drove the questing finger slightly inside of her. She emphasized another moan when he took the hint and drove it deeper.

Daedalus had just begun to slide his finger in and out when she thought she heard motion from the other room. Electron wouldn't

have

to pass through the kitchen in order to reach the other rooms but it would take much more effort to navigate around it. If he was about to leave, she wanted him to witness more than just third base.

Mercury reached out to grip Daed's shoulders. The sudden and unexpected shift caused her to drop backwards harshly against the counter. With his shoulders firmly caught, he lurched forward with her. Her eyes drooped closed and her gasp was in no way faked when his hand faltered and shoved three fingers forcefully inside her.

"I need it." Mercury gasped. The desperation came naturally given the increased sounds of commotion from the other room. She refused to speak loudly enough that Electron might hear, however. "Please. Now!"

Daed's eyes widened in wonder but he nodded firmly. His hand fumbled out from between her legs and yanked at his boxers. She glanced down and confirmed her suspicions, firm, average and heavily angled. If she was lucky, that angle might work in her favor and hit her g-spot but otherwise he'd have to be incredibly skilled to do more than frustrate her further.

Mercury closed her eyes and allowed herself to lean back and rest her weight more firmly against the counter and Daed's hand. Despite the lack of girth, she was vaguely surprised by how good it felt when his tip caressed her. When he slowly worked his way deeper there was enough to feel, even if not to stretch her open. She moaned to show her appreciation for what he had.

The simple sound caused him to swell slightly. Mercury felt a little hope blossom that it might get better. Unfortunately, it shrunk back just as quickly. Undeterred, she continued to encourage him with loud moans and groans. She made a point to emphasize when he did something that especially titillated her. Unfortunately, he never seemed to pick up on her cues and she feared outright demands might begin to sound too contrived.

Daedalus pressed his body against hers as he began to pump harder. Mercury felt a fresh excitement that his solid chest began to rub against her nipples. Heat began to build between her hips and her core provided fresh lubrication for his efforts.

Mercury slowly began to feel a second accident. The odd angle at which he pounded himself into her had begun to rub his groin against her pearl. While his thrusts offered little to excite her, she felt herself climb steadily towards her pleasure. It became easier and easier to feign her responses until only the volume needed to be amplified.

She could feel his rhythm begin to falter and knew at once it would be a race against time. Although difficult to concentrate, she tried to shift her hips back and forth. She just needed a little longer.

"We need to stop!" Daedalus gasped out and suited his actions to his words. He left himself buried to the hilt, as if anything else would inspire him to continue, or maybe bring about his climax. "Any more and I'm going to finish!"