Demiurge

chapter four

Billy's POV

My eyes blinked open slowly, my eyelids feeling as if they weighed one hundred pounds each. I groaned, rubbing my sore head as I sat up, taking a look around. I was still in my bed chamber but something felt...off. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but it felt as if I was moving through water, thick sludgy water.

A knock on my door stirred me from my confusion.

I went to answer it, still feeling as if I was moving in molasses. When the door swung open I was very shocked to see my missing twin standing there with Klarion by his side.

"T-tommy? What are you doing here? I thought you had abandoned our cause..." I mumbled, rubbing my eyes to make sure I was still seeing things clearly. Sure enough, Tommy was still smirking next to the witch boy.

"Please, this is the most fun I've had in a long time." He chuckled, walking into the room and pulling me into a quick hug. "I know you're still in there, Billy, and I am going to save you." He whispered quickly and quietly in my ear before pulling away, his smirk still planted easily on his face. "So, Klarion has told me that you have made great strides in your lessons?"

I blinked, unsure of what exactly was happening here. Tommy seemed as if he were going to betray Klarion somehow, yet here he was acting buddy buddy with him. I was about to question this when my forehead began to burn and everything got a little fuzzier. I moaned lowly, stumbling into Tommy before catching myself.

Standing up straight, I nodded at Klarion with a smirk of my own, although my actions felt as if they were not my own, as if I were not in control of myself. "Why yes, Klarion here has been teaching me wonderous things. Did you know there is a multiverse? And I'm destined to rule it?" Klarion cleared his throat, giving me a pointed look. "Sorry, we are destined to rule it."

"That sounds great, Billy. Perhaps you can show me some of this multiverse business over dinner? Klarion, you are invited of course-"

"That is alright, I have better plans." Klarion snapped his fingers, disappearing from in front of us like he was never there.

The second Klarion was gone Tommy's smirk fell and was replaced by a look of complete concentration. I was about to question this when he grabbed me and tossed me on his shoulder, sprinting out of my chambers and to the far side of the island in under two seconds, leaving me very disorientated.

Dropping me on the ground unceremoniously, Tommy began to pace and mumble to himself, wringing his hands as he did so. I sat and watched, curious as to what this was about. When I went to ask, Tommy shot me a look that made me rethink my question.

"What's for dinner, Tommy? Doesn't seem like there is a lot of options way out here-"

Suddenly I was engulfed in a bone crushing hug from my twin brother, one that took me so much by surprise I didn't have a chance to return it before he was pulling out of the embrace. "I knew you were still in there."

"Still in where? What are you talking ab-argh!" My brain suddenly felt like it was on fire, all my thoughts jumbled as the world swam around me. A group of figures emerged from the surrounding woods as I floated into the air, a familiar scarlet glow encasing me. I glared down at my old teammates, an unfamiliar feeling of murderous rage suddenly filling my body. "You! You tricked me, Tommy? How could you? Never mind that, set me f-"

"Zatanna, now!" Wanda screamed before Zatanna cried out one of her backwards spells, making my world descend into darkness.

Wanda's POV

"Was that really necessary?" Tim glared at me with crossed arms as we flew back to the mountain, Billy suspended in a comatose state in the rear of the ship. "I mean, I can see rendering him unconscious due to his powers, but the amount of restraints seems a bit...redundant?"

"Tim, my pal, the dude can snuff out stars like a candle and you don't see this as necessary?" Jason scoffed, gesturing to Billy, who was admittedly very restrained.

He was already unconscious and would be for the foreseeable future, but on top of that he had his hands and feet chained to the table he was resting on, an inhibitor collar on, his whole body wrapped in chains, and then he was encased in a magic-nullifying bubble curtesy of Zatanna.

We aren't taking any chances here.

"There is no way he can break free of the chains with the inhibitor collar on, so why bother?" Tommy questioned, leaning back in his chair.

"I did it to remove my mind controlling tattoo and I was at half the power level Billy here is at." I shrugged. "Besides, we are almost at the mountain. There we will be able to remove the spell Klarion has cast on our friend and then we can take the bastard down."

"I still can't believe we got him this easily. It seems a bit...too easy." Dick narrowed his eyes at Billy's slack face, the red mark on his forehead pulsing.

"Feel like sharing your thoughts?"

Dick was silent for a moment before he shook his head in disappointment. "No theories yet, just a bit suspicious that Klarion accepted Tommy back so fast and gave Billy to us."

"Hey, woah, nobody gave Billy to us." We all stared at Garfield, who shrunk back in his seat. "Yeah okay, it was pretty easy. But we caught him off guard!"

"Or did we?"

Just then Billy started shaking in his restraints, the mark on his forehead glowing brighter and brighter with each passing second. He was covered in sweat and looked as if he was in a lot of pain as he continued to violently tremble, his eyes moving rapidly behind his eyelids.

"What the hell is happening?!" Tommy shrieked, trying to run towards his twin only to be restrained by Pietro. "Let me go to my brother!"

"No! We don't know what is going on, it could be a trap."

Billy began to convulse even more intensely, the bioship moving with the force of his shaking. His hands started to glow a dark blueish black color as his eyes flung open to match the color of his hands.

"Impossible! With all the dampeners on him, he should not be able to use his magic!" Zatanna cried out, calling out another spell to strengthen the bubble surrounding Billy. "Wanda, a little help?"

"The Demiurge will not break free of our bonds!"

Billy screeched a horribly agonized scream, more sweat pouring off his body as the mark on his forehead glowed even brighter. The glow spread from his hands and eyes to encase his whole body, growing in intensity before it burst outwards, sending all of us flying through the walls of the bioship as it exploded.

We were now free falling to the ground just outside the mountain, with nothing to break our fall but a sandy beach.

Great, thanks Billy.