The time for Hawkgirl's big exam was drawing closer. Sophist teleported back to Satanna's territory and welcomed himself in. The place was an overgrown zoo, abandoned years ago due to the invasion of the White Martians. Now instead of holding animals, it held animal-like war machines.
Sophist continued his stride up to a warehouse which was once used to store food supplies for the animals, but now it was covered in vines and insects.
"Showtime!" he muttered to himself before teleporting into the middle of the warehouse surrounded by anthropomorphic killers and leaning against a crate, Savanna herself.
In tune with his character, as soon as he appeared, using an emitter hidden in the back of his shoes, smoke swallowed the place around him before slowly dissipating around the warehouse. All eyes were on him.
Standing perfectly straight with his arms on a cane was Sophist. The cane was a nice little late touch.
Satanna immediately lit up with a grin. A predatory one. She was waiting for him to return; he couldn't get him out of her mind. After all, he left quite the impression the first time around.
"Back so soon, magic boy?" She called him, teasing him.
"Needn't dawdle, shall we?" he replied cheekily. With a click of his fingers, two large containers appeared on either side of him with a loud metallic crash.
"Oh, you shouldn't have." Satanna continued to tease, her slit eyes lighting up.
"Inside you'll find a range of equipment for you colourful bunch. We have wing snares designed for aerial targets and sonic grenades that, when thrown, generate a powerful sound wave, though I must warn you, they can be quite loud. Of course, most important of all, a luxury range of plasma guns for dessert." Sophist listed the equipment in the containers, quite pleased with himself. He was sure he didn't disappoint.
"I must say I do have a sweet tooth," Satanna replied. "Well, go on then, open the containers!" she ordered her minions. She gently and slowly stood up, and instead of focusing on the containers, her eyes were just on Sophist.
The minions grunted as they opened the metal doors that shrieked, revealing a tonne of weapons neatly laid out, just like Sophist had said.
"All good, boss," confirmed one of the minions.
Her eyes went from playful to serious as she strode with grace and confidence towards the containers, her eyes now focused on their contents. She examined them deeply, her fingers running across the crates and her tail flicking.
She picked up one of the plasma rifles and inspected it, trailing her hands all over the weapon. She gently pressed her finger on the trigger, not enough to shoot, and aimed it towards one of her goons.
"Boss?" He said, confused.
Satanna pulled the trigger, and a small beam of plasma left scorch marks all over the goon's skin from where he was shot as he fell to the floor, holding his burns in agony.
"I thought you wanted our little birdie dead?" she asked.
"My little birdie! You think I've spent all this time and money so someone else can pull the trigger? I thought you knew me better than that, Satanna," Sophist replied. "I enjoy playing with her, but soon she'll become just like the others...boring."
"Well then, how would you like us to go about it? These little toys are fun and all, but Hawkgirl is incredibly fast and brutal." She folded her arms.
"That may be true, but at the end of the day she's just like the rest. If civilians are involved, she'd prioritise their safety first; we'll use that to our advantage."
"We'd need a secure location but also somewhere closed off to limit her flying."
"You're breaking my heart. Here I thought you actually knew who I was and my style. I like the show, a performance! What would be the point of setting up a play just for no one to watch?" Sophist exclaimed with his arms spread wide.
Satanna purred, "Then an audience you shall have. You want to break her down in front of everyone, to crush her little wings and let everyone know just how worthless she truly is. Then you shall!" The thought alone made her excited beyond belief. She could imagine it perfectly. She could only hope for the final product to see Sophist's work brought to light. To see how he reacted when she gave him what he was craving.
Satanna walked towards Sophist, their bodies only a few inches apart, and circled him. She wanted to get close. To get personal.
"Your confidence is truly...inspiring. The way you talk about certain victory and the way you effortlessly fooled her into your plans. I watched the broadcast. I must say I was thoroughly entertained; it's been a long while since I've had something excite me like this. The way you talk is so alluring, so captivating. I must say our little meetings make me ever so happy." Satanna flirted with Sophist blatantly. She was coming on strong; she couldn't keep herself contained. Everything about him seemed amazing. She wanted to make him hers and hers alone, to see his face engulfed with pleasure and satisfaction. Satanna always got what she wanted.
Sophist was none the wiser to her advances; he just thought she was complimenting him for them to remain good business partners. So he would continue his support. So she could take advantage of him.
"Your capabilities are also very impressive; I'm looking forward to seeing them in action."
Satanna smiled and then laughed.
"It'll be done. I'll hunt down your little birdie for you and push her to her limits. However, if she breaks, that's on you," Satanna warned.
"She won't. " Sophist replied calmly. He spent months making sure of it. Every scenario, every game, was so she could win. Stand tall. Better than ever.
The confidence Sophist responded with was making Satanna even more intrigued. She never met anyone like him. She couldn't control herself anymore.
There was a weird silence; Sophist was unsure of what to do next and thought maybe now he should leave. Satanna stopped circling him and now stood right in front of him, maybe a foot apart.
"Most men who bring me gifts either want something...Or do it out of fear."
"Do I strike you as most men?" Sophist replied tilting his head.
That made her smile wider. Satanna stepped in suddenly with no warning and grabbed Sophist's lapel, pulling him in, and kissed him. It was confident and caught Sophist entirely off guard.
Sophist froze. His mind was incapable of understanding what the fuck was happening. He had no witty counter to this. He was as stiff as a nail.
Satanna kissed him long and hard before pulling away, a strand of saliva bridging their lips. She looked him up and down.
He didn't move or blink. He couldn't even breathe. He was completely shocked.
"You didn't even flinch," she murmured, studying his face.
Sophist swallowed hard, just once. "That," he said carefully, "was not part of the deal."
Satanna laughed. "Oh, don't worry, dear; that was free."
He stared at her again. His mind was frozen yet again.
Sophist cleared his throat and tried again. "Company romance always leads to disaster. I strongly prohibit physical acts like this in the workplace; it's not good for the work environment."
Satanna leaned back in. "Why? First time?" she asked.
There was silence.
Satanna leaned back again. "Oh, that explains everything," she spoke softly
"I'll have you know I've kissed many girls...women. Possibly thousands; I lost count ages ago! " Sophist proclaimed.
"No need to be embarrassed; everyone has a first. Though I must admit I'm happy I was the one to do it," she replied flirtatiously.
"This partnership is to remain strictly professional!" Sophist demanded while adjusting his top hat and taking a step back.
Satanna smiled as Sophist vanished right before her eyes. She lifted her fingers and caressed her lips before sucking them deeply. *I can't wait for our next meeting,* she thought.
Somewhere on a random rooftop appeared Sophist, his sudden presence scattering a small gathering of pigeons. He checked his mouth with his hand like he was checking for damage.
"Huh," he muttered to himself. All he could do was just stare at the moving cars below. In his old life he complained about being lonely, with no romance in his life to speak of, but what he didn't expect was for his first kiss to be with a villain he hired to bring someone to the brink of death.
Life sure has its surprises. But he'd had a few too many recently. He wasn't sure his blood pressure could withstand much more.