No More Castles

It didn't take long for Sora to return. He made sure to eliminate more aliens that crossed his path. Things didn't seem to be as hectic as before. It was still bad, but not as bad as earlier. A lot of heavy lifting was done until he came across Green Lantern and Flash.

Both heroes were leaning against the wall in exhaustion. Green Lantern was covered in blood, while Flash just seemed to be tired. The young Lockhart landed beside them with a nod.

"You guys alright? How goes the plan?" He asked.

"Hehehehe." Green Lantern and Flash chuckled together. It was a laugh without energy since they were so tired.

"...Hmm? What's so funny?"

"Give it a second." Flash responded.

At that moment, multiple boom tubes opened up. They each had a strong suction force. The parademons were pulled in like a vacuum. Cyborg was successful. All of the towers disappeared as if they were never there.

"I guess my question was right on time." Sora muttered.

"All in a day's work. Teamwork makes the dreamwork." Green Lantern spoke up.

"What about the big guy?" Flash asked. Sora scratched the back of his head.

"...Right. He shouldn't be bothering us anymore. I think."

"You think?"

"Ah…well, I beat him but something saved him."

"So he'll come back."

"Not necessarily. I think it took a big sacrifice to even get saved. There's no way he'll gain the freedom to return."

'He's probably already corrupted.' Sora thought.

"Huh. Whatever you say, uh…" Flash didn't know what to call him.

"Darkstar."

The trio made their way over to the rest of the heroes. Cyborg, Shazam, and Wonder Woman were still floating in the sky. All of them looked beaten and tired.

"We won." Sora called out. The amazon flew down to him.

"Victory is ours." She exclaimed with her hand out.

They grabbed each other's wrist, a show of comradery between warriors. Shazam's first question was about Darkseid. Flash made sure to answer those questions when Sora didn't respond.

"Booyah! As expected, you and Superman must've wiped the floor with him!" Cyborg assumed. The sleepy man couldn't help but chuckle.

"Not quite…you should probably go find him. He might still be unconscious. He took a nasty blow after all." Sora revealed.

The group searched for the kryptonian while having a relaxing conversation. It was unknown where Batman had gone. Probably back to his cave. Almost thirty minutes later, they found the man of steel.

Superman was buried under a pile of buildings. When the sun's rays landed on him, he woke up. He immediately grew battle ready.

"What happened? Where's Darkseid?!"

"It's over, Kal. We've won this war." Wonder Woman spoke up. Superman frowned in disbelief. His gaze landed on Sora.

"What about Darkseid?"

"Defeated."

"By you?!"

"...By me."

Superman didn't argue with him, but it was obvious that he was suspicious. It honestly just felt like he was embarrassed. The so-called strongest member of the Justice League was unconscious the entire time after all. It was hard for him to accept that he was no longer the most powerful hero.

He stared at the young Lockhart, using his x-ray vision. A useless action. The mask was lined with lead. Even then, this wasn't his true appearance.

"Well, I'm gonna go now. Take care." Sora gave his farewell.

"Darkstar, wait-" Wonder Woman called out.

DING

Before she could even finish, he was gone. If he'd stayed any longer he would've been interrogated. No thanks.

Superman immediately called for Batman on his wrist device. A grim conversation was underway. Wonder Woman and Green Lantern eavesdropped while standing to the side. The topic was obvious. It was about Sora.

…

…

…

Sora moved at a relaxed pace, making it home in under ten minutes. Alice wasn't waiting at the door this time. When he got to his room, he found her sitting beside the window. A canvas was in front of her. She'd been painting.

"I'm back." He announced.

Alice's gaze snapped over to him. A beautiful smile was revealed, her broken eyes slightly closing. She quickly got up and gave him a hug.

"Sora, look what I made earlier!" She pointed to the wall. Sora raised an eyebrow upon seeing it. It was finely detailed.

The picture was of himself lazing on a nice chair. Alice was behind the chair, her arms wrapped around his neck. They were both looking at where the camera would've been.

"...It's beautiful, Alice. You have great talent."

"Fufufu! I'm making one more." She announced while sitting back down.

As he took off his clothes, he watched the mistress resume her work. The lazy man was only in his shorts with a thin necklace. He plopped onto the bed and closed his eyes.

"What're you painting?"

"A castle!" She exclaimed happily.

"A castle…I see." He muttered in relaxation.

The realm of dreams slowly took him. Time passed as Alice painted on the canvas. About an hour later, she froze. A few more seconds passed before she started trembling. Tears fell as she struggled to finish the painting.

SNIFFLE

Eventually, Sora woke up to the sound of quiet sobbing. He frowned upon seeing the beautiful doll. Half of the painting was finished, but she was messing it up. The trembling of her arms was ruining the canvas.

"What's wrong?" He asked quietly.

"........................."

His arms wrapped around her delicate frame, bringing her onto his lap. Her whimpers grew soft, but the tears didn't stop. Alice's gaze hadn't left the painting. It seemed to be a specific castle, and not just any location. There was something unique about it.

"I'm sorry…urghk…I'm sorry…" She cried softly. Her quiet hums didn't stop. Sora kissed her on the cheek, showering her with warmth.

"It's okay. It's okay." He soothed.

"Please forgive me…I'm sorry for being a plague…" She whimpered. Sora frowned.

'A plague? What is she talking about?' He thought with confusion.

"You aren't a plague. Even if you were, then you're MY plague. Mine." He continued to soothe her.

Minutes went by as he showered her with affection. It took forever to take her gaze off of the painting. As soon as she looked away, Sora incinerated the canvas with a twitch of his finger.

"Look at me." He ordered.

"..........................."

His hand cupped her chin, raising her gaze to meet his. The sleepy man covered her lips with his. It was a gentle kiss. Upon pulling back, he wiped her tears. Alice's expression quickly returned to normal as if nothing had ever happened. Her eyes were hollow once more. The only evidence was the dried tears on her face.

"Alice, are you listening?" He looked into her broken purple eyes.

"Mnn." She hummed in response.

"No more painting castles…I won't permit it. Okay?"

"Okay."