Chapter 12

Dorrek had always dreamed of what his life would be like once he had inherited the throne. He had often wondered of a life without the one man he knew better then anyone else. Would the throne be lonely without his father guiding him? Or perhaps would his mate fill the captains shoes, keeping the young king grounded and unafraid? These were the questioned that had always haunted the boy throughout his journeys in space. Captain marvel was, after all, the only guardian Dorrek had ever known. He had been the only man to teach the prince, the only man to show the boy love in a universe filled with hatred.

Dorrek had never known his mother. He knew traits about her. She was a fair princess of a race known as the Skrulls. He had always surmised that she had every intention of being there for him, of loving him. But while he and his father were off learning all that they could about the universe that they resided in, someone had to rule the two empires. Her death had rocked the boy five years ago. The story went that the queen was poisoned by an ancient plant, only traceable to a desolate planted in the outer-rim of the Galaxy. When Dorrek and captain marvel had arrived to investigate, they came face to face with the murderer. He had been a Skrull of royal descent, promised the hand of the princess before the war between the two species had broken out, before she and the captain were forced into a marriage in order to bring the two empires together. In his final moments, the Skrull had stated that if he could not have the queen, no one would be able to.

Dorrek saw a look of anger in his father's eyes that he had never seen before in all of his years exploring their Galaxy. He was sure that marvel would have killed the alien right there where he stood... If Dorrek had not done it first, shifting his arm into a sharp blade and stabbing the murdering bastard in his vile chest. There, as the man's body lay bleeding out on Dorreks sharpened arm, he whispered something that made the boy shutter. "Seconds not the same."

His mother's death had hit the boy hard. It was then he saw how truly desperate a man could become when driven by lust and greed. That day, Dorrek had swore never to come in second to anyone, he swore that he would never become like that man, that he would never fall to his vices. Dorrek had promised himself that he would grow and learn, becoming a more powerful ruler then any other could for his father... For his mother... For himself.

Dorrek had never sunk as low in his life as he had on that day. Now, these memories swelled in the back of his mind, growing and growing as he sat captive in the holding cells of his newly wedded husbands palace. Earth had always seemed like sure a primitively place to the young ruler. Even now he sit, bound to a steel chair with metal cuffs around his hands and feet. Breaking out would have been simple for the prince but one small thing held back the beast inside. Around his bare neck, a collar had been secured, holding back every power the alien possessed, making him unable to even form clothes over his bare body as he sat in front of a glass wall.

The boy had been in this cell for what had felt like hours now. At first he had screamed and yelled, struggling desperately against the cuffs that had held him to the chair. Every few minutes guards would pass by causing the prince to cry out louder and struggle harder, making a scene. They did not seem to notice his outburst, walking past until they were out of sight.

Hour after hour, the prince had become more docile until he had finally given up, excepting his fate as a prisoner. Never in his life had Dorrek felt so stupid, so oblivious to the workings of a rival race. In hindsight, it was so easy to see. The mutants had just used him, gained his trust just to snatch his kingdom from under him while he was left to rot in this cell.

He should have been dead, murdered just like his father had been right in front of the boy's eyes. The captain's blood still stained the princes bare chest, coating over the blonde hairs with drops of dried red. Dorrek had wondered why the tyrant Magnus had kept him alive, why Billy had jumped in front of the dagger before it had reached him. Just to toy with him, he supposed. After all, the mutants had gotten what they wanted. There was no reason Dorrek should have still been alive. He served no further purpose. All the boy was now was a forgotten prince, thought dead by his people. Leaving him here, naked in front of a glass wall like some kind of display, was Magnus's way of humiliating the boy, of breaking him. Perhaps him hopes that one day Dorrek would bend to his sinister whims. This would never happen. Dorrek may have been stupid enough to be fooled by Billy but he would not be weak enough to be broken.

As more hours past, Dorrek felt a rage boiling up inside of him. He had since given up his futile outbursts when guards would occasionally walk by. It never seemed to get their attention anyway. All the boy could do was sit there, reliving every vivid moment of his father's death. He imagined marvels throat being sliced open, the blood, spewing out onto both he and Billy. He remembered how warm it felt; he had never imagined it would be so warm. More so, he yearned to feel the fear of Magnus, see the panic in his eyes as the boy slit his own throat open before Billy. It was all he had dreamed about in these hours.

In the next, this urge, this dream, was diminished as the boy finally realized that no one was coming. He would never get his chance of escape or even to face his father's murderer. Magnus was too much of a coward to come down here, to face him. No, the king was perfectly happy up there on his throne while the boy had been left down here to rot with the rest of Magnus's prisoners.

"How ya holdin up?" A voice called out unexpectedly from behind Dorrek. It almost caused the prince to jump, but instead of exhibiting fear, the noble prince chose to remain silent and strong, pretending not to notice his roommate's question. How odd it seemed to Dorrek that this man would choose now to speak up after all his time in the cell.

"Oh don't be like that. I know you've been itching to talk to someone," the voice spoke quickly, drawing closer and closer with each would. Soon, Dorrek felt a hand on his shoulder. Another came around the side, grabbing onto the princes chin and stroking his thin beard slightly as he examined the boys face.

"Lotta hair on ya for a kid your age. What are ya? 18? 19? Your beards as good as mine kid..." The man came around to the boys front where he could now get a good look of the figure behind the mysterious voice. Before him squatted a tall, muscular man fitted with a rank top and orange jumpsuit that had been tired around his waist. He did not appear very old, perhaps middle age, but his hair was fully silver as well as his neatly groomed beard. From first sight, Dorrek had felt as if he had seen the man before. It took him a moment to place the face to the portrait he had seen of the Maximoff family a few days earlier. Though he was more muscular and distinguished now, there was no mistake that the man in front of him was indeed Pietro Maximoff. "... And I'm a lot older then you."

Dorrek scowled, turning his head from the traitor. He had heard the story of Pietro and his betrayal of his people. Dorrek detested the house of m but he as a prince could never condone such behavior, let alone associate with such a person.

"You're a traitor." Dorrek snarled.

"Traitor? Yes. Tell me you wouldn't try to overthrow that asshole if you had the chance." Pietro replied. "Look kid, you're no saint either or you wouldn't be in here with that fancy piece of jewelry around your neck and strapped to this comfortable front row seat. It doesn't look like the guards are coming around anytime soon either so it looks like I'm you're only hope of help in obtaining food and other things so I'd show a little respect."

After a moment of silence, Dorrek looked back up to the man apologetically. It was wrong to pass judgment on someone he did not know so harshly. "I am sorry my prince. Forgive me."

"Water under the bridge," Pietro replied, taking a seat against the glass wall to face Dorrek. "Well it looks like we'll be romping together a while... No reason in not getting to know each other. You first and don't you dare skip on the details.