"Simple, Lucien Luthor. I want you to kill my father."
Blackfire raises a brow as Grail's words hang in the air. After all, she'd been outside of the cell with everyone else while Lucien had been interrogating Grail back on Black Site Zeta. She'd heard, just as they all heard, as Grail swore the only thing she wanted was to make babies with Lucien strong enough to one day challenge Darkseid.
So in one way, her request now made sense. However, it came with a rather distinct difference didn't it? This wasn't Grail asking Lucien to knock her up like she had before, this was her asking him to outright kill one of the strongest, most vile monsters in all the cosmos.
Even Blackfire knew who Darkseid was after all and while she knew for a fact that Lucien was incredibly powerful, she admittedly couldn't say for sure that he would be able to defeat Darkseid. Not easily anyways.
"Hm. You don't seem too surprised."
Grail's words ring through the silent office space as the kneeling woman stares up at Lucien with his cum still drying on her face. Her lips are twisted into a wry smirk. From what Blackfire can see, she's also right… Lucien isn't surprised, at least not outwardly. But Blackfire also knows the man better than most by this point and she doubts he's surprised inwardly either.
After another heartbeat, Lucien chuckles and shakes his head, confirming it.
"I knew you were holding something else back from me. It being this makes sense. Though I have to admit… hiding your true desire to commit immediate patricide behind a false desire to commit delayed patricide is… certainly something else. Confident of you, I suppose."
Grail's smirk grows into a full blown grin as her tongue darts out to lap up the cum from around her lips.
"It worked, didn't it? Why make the falsehood something complex when a simpler half-truth will do? Those weak morons would have complained so much more if they knew that I wanted you to personally help me kill Darkseid. But by making it all about the Amazons' lost purpose and my desire to follow in my mother's footsteps, they don't have any sense of urgency. They don't suspect a thing."
Hm. Blackfire wasn't entirely sure that was true. The Justice League were not as stupid or foolish as Grail thought they were. Some of them might have bought her story, but not all of them. And yet… Lucien was still the best person to take custody of her. He was the strongest defender Earth had at this point, after all.
Lucien tilts his head to the side, making a noncommittal hum for a moment.
"I see. So that's your true purpose. To find someone strong enough to put Darkseid in the dirt. And you think you've found that individual… in me."
Grail's lips curl into a wicked grin.
"I know I have, Lucien Luthor. Master~"
She shakes her head.
"Nobody else has the power that you do. But more than that, nobody else has the potential that you do either. I could feel it in our fight. You were already strong when you stopped me from massacring the Amazons on their pathetic little island. You were strong when you drove me into space and fought with me all the way to the Sun. But then you got stronger. You adapted to my power. You became something even greater. My Omega Beams can't even hurt you now, can they?"
Lucien huffs.
"They sting."
That draws a bark of laughter from the kneeling Daughter of Darkseid.
"They sting! Yes, I imagine they would! And while my Omega Beams don't hold a candle to my father's and my power is not his power… you are still the best example I've found so far of someone capable of destroying him. Even if you aren't strong enough at first, I have no doubt in my mind that you will survive long enough to grow stronger in the face of his power. Strong enough to end him once and for all."
… Interesting. Grail thought she had Lucien completely figured out. She thought she knew what he was capable of.
She apparently had him pegged as some sort of Adaptive Regenerator, the type who grew stronger and stronger in the face of adversity, until things that would have killed him only hurt him and then ultimately could no longer touch him. But then what did she think he did when he healed her after Blackfire busted her kneecap? Or when he knocked her out with a single touch?
Regardless, she was wrong of course, even if Blackfire can see how Grail came to the conclusion she did. In reality, Lucien had already told Blackfire what really happened… Grail's DNA was so complex and intricate that it had taken him longer than normal to decipher and incorporate it into his biology.
Given her lineage, that made sense to Blackfire. His actual power, which allowed him to alter the biology of anyone he wanted, including himself, was strong… but it did have its limits. Kryptonian DNA, for instance, once Lucien had finally gotten his hands on it after becoming CEO of LexCorp, had taken a bit for him to fully decipher as well.
Of course… Grail might be right even if she was wrong. Sure, Lucien couldn't just continue adapting forever to Darkseid's strength, but there was every chance that he wouldn't need to. Not when he had her. All he needed to do was give Blackfire some of what he'd taken from Grail and she would easily be able to support him in battle. Hell, give Claire, Tea, and Kara similar boosts and the five of them together could likely kill Darkseid as a team.
… If one really wanted to make sure of it, Lucien could also make the likes of Hippolyta, and even Grail just as strong. With seven of them, Darkseid really wouldn't stand a chance. But at that point, one had to question whether he was spreading that power of his TOO far…
Silence has fallen over the room as Lucien contemplates Grail's words. Still staring up at him, Grail cuts through the silence with a wry chuckle.
"You know, it was smart of you not to give me over to the Guardians despite that arrogant Green Lantern's demands."
Lucien raises a brow, prompting Grail to giggle instead.
"Oh, I'm sure you did it because you wanted a piece of me… and a piece of me you've now gotten. But still… you saved a lot of lives."
The Daughter of Darkseid's red eyes flash as she grins evilly through the cum still drying on her face.
"After all… I can summon my father any time I want. And while he and the Guardians DO have something of an… arrangement, I know he would most happily take advantage of finding himself in the heart of their power."
Blackfire's eyes narrow, even as Lucien's face goes blank. That… was bad. Grail had just revealed she was even more of a threat than originally thought. If she could summon Darkseid at the drop of a hat, then Earth was in a lot of danger. And if Lucien didn't do as she asked, she could just bring her father here out of spite.
Lucien's hand suddenly lashes out and curls around Grail's neck. She chokes as he slowly but firmly drags her up off of her knees and then off of the floor entirely, holding her aloft with one hand.
"I do not appreciate threats, Grail."
Blackfire smirks, taking a step forward and lifting her hands as she curls them into fists. A single word from Lucien and she'll help him end the bitch right here and now. Never mind whatever happened before this, if she was threatening them or their world, then she had to fucking go.
But to Blackfire's utmost disappointment, Lucien flashes her a single look and a minute shake of his head, making it clear he expects her to stand down. She huffs and lowers her hands just as he's doing the same, setting Grail back on her feet and releasing his hold on her neck.
"Fortunately, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you were NOT threatening me just now."
Grail gasps for air, even reaching up and rubbing her throat with a hand. Then, she flashes Lucien a wide grin.
"Fuck if you hadn't already fucked me so hard I'm definitely going to be sore for the rest of the day, I'd be on my hands and knees begging you to make me your bitch."
Blackfire scoffs at that. Of course Darkseid's Daughter gets off on pain and death threats. Unable to hold her tongue any longer, she finally breaks her silence.
"You already are his bitch, cunt. He owns you and don't you forget it."
Looking back at her, Grail almost looks like she wants to try and pick a fight again. Blackfire wishes she would go for it, she really does. But after destroying her leg earlier to the extent that Lucien had to heal it, it seems the other woman doesn't want to try her. In the end, she turns back to Lucien and huffs.
"I see you have a type, Lucien Luthor. I suppose I can't be too angry about that, I seem to fall right into it, don't I? You like us bad girls, after all. You like to… bring us in line. Dominate us. Control us."
Oh this bitch. Blackfire's eyes narrow, but Lucien is the one who actually speaks.
"Behave, Grail."
"Yessir. If you need to bend me over and spank me, just say the word~"
Scoffing, Blackfire takes another step closer.
"He wouldn't waste his time with you bitch. He'd have me do it. And I'd make sure it hurt to ensure you learned your lesson."
Before Grail can respond, Lucien sighs and puts an end to it.
"Enough, both of you."
Blackfire falls quiet, smiling smugly at getting the last word in. But then of course she did, Lucien made sure of it.
"You want me to kill Darkseid for you. You can summon him to your location at will apparently, which will allow you to separate him from his armies at least. However, I will not countenance to you summoning him to Earth. We would need to do this elsewhere… and we would need to do it right."
Grail perks up, looking excited. Blackfire on the other hand, frowns. Surely he wasn't actually going to do this for her, was he?
"However, I'm not sure I've heard a reason why I SHOULD try to kill Darkseid for you yet."
The Daughter of Darkseid licks her lips again, this time to wet them. Lucien's cum has long since dried on her face, what remained after her licking and lapping up as much as she could earlier. Regardless, she stands there naked as the day she was born and clenches her hands into fists at her side.
"If the glory of being Darkseid's Killer isn't enough… then I can offer you much more. My body, as your pet Tamaranean put it, already belongs to you. You 'own me' according to her."
Pet Tamaranean was clearly meant to piss Blackfire off, but little did Grail know, it didn't even stung. She LIKED being Lucien's right hand woman. Even if Mercy Graves had stuck around to gobble up whatever scraps of power Lucien deigned to throw the human woman's way, it was Blackfire who had been with him for the longest. It was Blackfire who had benefited from their association the greatest.
"But I can give you more than that. Kill Darkseid and I will conquer Apokolips in your name. I will carve it into pieces and give it to you, inch by inch, foot by foot, mile by bloody mile. All of its resources will be yours to do with as you please. You are rich and powerful here on Earth… but you are nobody out there in the wider cosmos. You could be somebody though with my help. Starting with killing the biggest, baddest villain around."
… Prison rules, but on a much larger scale. Though Blackfire had to admit she wasn't fully buying it. Darkseid had more children than just Grail. In fact, he had acknowledged sons and heirs last time Blackfire looked. Grail couldn't just give Lucien all that belonged to Darkseid. Not without fighting for it. But that's probably what she meant by conquering it and carving it into pieces in his name.
Still… she just wasn't sure she believed Grail. And apparently Lucien agrees because he suddenly reaches out and places a hand on Grail's shoulder. Without pause, Grail suddenly slumps forward, knocked unconscious by Lucien's powers and held aloft only by his grip.
As she dangles there limply in his hand, Lucien looks to Blackfire and it becomes obvious he knocked the other woman out so they could have a private conversation.
"What do you think Blackfire? What is your advice?"
Now that… was a good question. Blackfire's lips thin as her mind immediately flits back to her earlier thoughts. Her and Lucien fighting together at full power… could maybe killed Darkseid so long as Grail didn't betray them immediately after summoning the bastard. Lucien, her, Tea, Claire, and Kara combined could do it even more so, but it would be a lot of power to be trusting to those three.
Trusting that same level of power to Hippolyta and Grail as well would further secure things, as well as ensure that Grail was actually strong enough to give Lucien what she was promising afterwards… but it was also rather risky, wasn't it?
It wasn't a question of whether they could kill Darkseid… it was a question of how much firepower they would need to kill Darkseid. And maybe it was also a question of whether it was worth killing Darkseid for Grail in the first place.
Killing Darkseid would be putting a target on Lucien's back, plain and simple. Brainiac was one thing, but one could say that was a combined effort by the defenders of Earth. This though… this would be putting Lucien center stage on a galactic level. It would become a question of whether people thought Lucien was too dangerous to go after… or too dangerous to leave alone.
Blackfire hesitates for a moment more… before opening her mouth and giving her advice.