This is part of 2023 Invisobang! Thank you so much Catmiint for the amazing cover art!
Trigger Warnings
Major:
-Manipulation
-Blood and Violence
-Poor/negative depiction of the American Foster Care System
-Mentions of physical child abuse
Minor:
-Depression
-Child Endangerment
-Bullying
Chapter 1: Wax Wings
"One mustn't look at the abyss, because there is at the bottom an inexpressible charm which attracts us." - Gustave Flaubert
The rain pounded on the window like the beats of a war drum. He could hear the roar of thunder coming closer with each strike. It trampled on his already fried nerves. Gabriel took another sip of water. They had put him in a fancy waiting room with plush red couches, dark wooden floors, and ceiling height windows. In between each of the windows stood a marble white bust of an old king. Alexander the Great looked up into the stormy sky, Julius Caesar hung his head high but level. An air of superiority hung about him, sustaining itself this long after his death. And in front of him sat Napoleon's bust. His bust with its carved wrinkles and polished medals, started down at him. Cold marble eyes meeting Gabriel's light blue ones. Gabriel stared back. In his mind he repeated the reason why he was here. Why he set the fire, why he faked that test, why he needed to rise up.
The door opened and he was invited in. The office of Vlad Master matched his waiting room. It was large with tall windows and a dark decor that summoned the image of greater people. Vlad Master himself sat at his black desk, with white hair pulled tight into a low ponytail and snake-like blue eyes. The man's black suit blended into his tall high back chair, cutting an imposing image. The thunder was getting louder.
"Good evening Mr. Masters. Thank you for agreeing to me today," Gabriel said.
"How could I not? A young boy comes to the front desk of my company and lies about his birthright? It is an interesting story," Vlad says.
"I know it sounds unbelievable but-"
"You have that test?" Vlad cut him off. "I don't need an expert to tell me that it's fake. I do not have any children. Nor did I have time to, I spent several years in the hospital battling an illness that almost killed me. Bed rest makes it quite hard to find love." Gabriel stood in front of the desk, and let the thunder speak for him. Vlad laughed. "I know what you are trying to do. You want money? Food? A sad old man you can scam out of his money. You need to learn how to choose your targets better."
"Is that what you did to the Dairy King?" Gabriel said.
"To who?" Vlad said.
"Mr. Joseph Black, president of the Dairy King company. A trusting man who never married but was once quoted in an interview saying, 'he would love nothing more than a loyal son to take over his company. Someone he can spoil and give all his love to.' Mr. Masters, was he the type of target I should be looking for?"
"What are you implying?"
"I'm not implying anything sir. I am asking an expert conman on how to help me with my next target."
"You have the gull-"
"I have more than that sir," Gabriel cut him off. "I know that you were just like me at some point and you made yourself into something. Now I ask that you show me the way."
"And if I refuse?" Vlad asked.
"Remember what it was like to lose what was yours. To be at the bottom of the world rolling in the mud. Remember what you did to get out of there. Now look at me. I will do what it takes to gain that same position. I am twice as stubborn and thrice as foolish. I will rise above, but it is your choice if you make an enemy of me right now."
"How humorous? You claim to know what I've been through? What I've done? You know nothing boy." He laughed.
Vlad master disappeared. Not in a cloud of smoke, nor with a bang. The man's form vanished from the world. Gabriel looked around the room, swiveling his head around and around. He saw that he was alone, but his nerves told him to run. scram. A million words could describe the feeling but none could describe why he stayed. Frozen on the spot as the lights on the walls went out one by one. Till the thunder was the only light in the room.
Gabriel's feet quietly moved towards the door in a backwards shuffle. Right before the door his heels hit something. Behind him was a tall blue skinned man, with blood red eyes, and a white cape. The edges of his body glowed like translucent smoke and he smelled of sulfur.
"You're-" Gabriel stumbled over his words.
"Me?" He chuckled. "I thought you knew everything about me. I guess you didn't do enough research." with a swipe from his hand, Gabriel flew across the room, and crashed into one of the statues. "Let this be your first and final lesson. Choose your targets wisely."
"What are you? Some kind of supervillain?" Gabriel asked.
"Maybe? and what would you do if I was?"
"I would ask what you needed help with."
"Excuse me?"
"I said," Gabriel rose to his feet. "I would ask what you needed help with, after all you can't be everywhere. And while one would imagine that you had everything planned in advance. If something went wrong and you were too busy to be there… it would be useful to have someone there."
"You can't be serious. You would want to join me?"
"Why not? You are a powerful man, hiding more power than anyone could ever imagine. Someone like that must have bigger plans than to just be the CEO of a cheese company. And, hypothetically if one wanted to gain a better position in life. It wouldn't be a bad idea to throw one's hand in with such power. After all, you've already seen how far I can get with a shoestring budget."
"Maybe I can find some use for you. Follow me boy." Vlad said.
Gabriel trailed after the floating man, walking deeper into the mansion's dark windowless corridors.