Marvel : Homelander [Rewrite]

9 years from present

A white room.

Cold. Empty.

Silent, except for the steady beep... beep... beep... of the machines.

On the hospital bed lay a boy.

Blonde hair messy against the pillow. A hospital gown draped over his thin frame.

His blue eyes—vacant. Staring at nothing.

He didn't move. He didn't blink.

He barely breathed.

Two figures stood over him. White coats.

Surgical masks. Gloved hands. One held a syringe filled with a thick, purple liquid.

The other pressed a hand against the boy's arm, feeling for a vein.

"Alright, here goes dose three."

The needle pierced his skin. The plunger was pressed. The liquid vanished into his bloodstream.

At first—nothing..

Then something changed

His eyes seemed to regain their lusture as his pupil dialated.

Awareness. Clarity. Fear.

Huh? Where am I?

The thought barely formed before a new one slammed into his mind—

PAIN.

His entire body burned.

Like lava coursing through his veins, scorching every nerve, setting his insides on fire.

His muscles seized. His jaw clenched so hard his teeth threatened to crack.

He wanted to move, to scream—to do anything.

But his limbs were dead weight.

He couldn't even twitch.

Somewhere—above the blinding, unbearable agony—he heard voices.

"I wonder how strong he'll get after the third dose?"

A chuckle.

"How would I know? He's already bulletproof and stronger than Captain America ever since he turned five."

The second man sighed.

"Honestly, I just hope he doesn't get too strong. We need that paycheck to keep coming in."

The other snorted. "True that."

They laughed.

The boy screamed inside.

---

The room was grand.

Tall, gilded ceiling.

Dark mahogany walls lined with centuries-old paintings.

A massive chandelier hung overhead, its golden light casting a soft glow across the polished marble floor.

Niklaus Vought and Nick Fury sat at a table draped in velvet.

The kind of place where kings and world leaders would shake hands over fine wine and signed treaties.

The meal before them was as extravagant as the setting.

Aged wagyu steak, perfectly seared, its juices pooling on the plate.

Beside it, black truffle mashed potatoes, creamy and rich.

A side of roasted asparagus and baby carrots, drizzled with a sauce that probably cost more than a middle-class mortgage.

A glass of deep red wine sat beside each plate, its scent alone reeking of wealth.

Niklaus cut into his steak, taking a slow, bite.

He chewed thoughtfully before speaking.

"Fury, I never got to know—why did you never marry?"

Fury didn't even look up from his food. "That's actually false. I am a married man."

Niklaus stopped mid-bite. "For real? Who?"

Fury replied. "You really think I'm gonna tell you?"

Niklaus leaned forward, grinning. "Come on, don't you trust me?"

Fury finally glanced up, raising an eyebrow. "No. Not at all."

Niklaus laughed, shaking his head. "Fair. I'd be surprised if you did. Hell, I don't trust myself either."

Fury just sighed, cutting into his steak. "Glad we understand each other."

Fury cut into his steak silently after that.

Niklaus watched with mild amusement, twirling the stem of his wine glass between his fingers.

"So why did you ask me over for lunch?" Fury finally said, leaning back in his chair. "There must be something you wanted to talk about, cut to the chase."

Niklaus chewed thoughtfully before responding. "Well, actually, yes. I was wondering if S.H.I.E.L.D. could loan me the Tesseract."

"You know I have the best research team under my company," he continued. "I think I'll be able to crack its code."

The shift in Fury's demeanor was instant.

His muscles tensed, his grip on the fork tightening just slightly. He set it down, his gaze sharp as he silently reached for some sort of button in his jacket.

"How do you know about that?"

Niklaus didn't answer right away. Instead, he let the silence stretch, savoring the tension in the air.

Then, he took a sip of his wine.

"Come on, Fury. No need to be so hostile." His lips curled into a light smirk. "Do you really think it's hard to spy back?"

Fury didn't react outwardly, but Niklaus could see the flicker of irritation in his eye.

"But let's not go there," Niklaus continued smoothly. "I'm here to make a deal. You've been building that Helicarrier for some time now, haven't you? You hand me the Tesseract, and I'll assign the brightest minds in Vought to that project."

Fury's stare remained unreadable.

"You know Hank Pym, Reed Richards—big names," Niklaus added, tilting his head. " I have plenty of minds to offer. They might not be famous like them, but they're absolute geniuses."

Fury finally exhaled, sitting back. "If S.H.I.E.L.D. wanted help from an outside source, we could ask other companies."

Niklaus laughed. "Like what companies? That asshole in human form, Stark? Or maybe you'll go to Oscorp?" He let the words hang for a second before snapping his fingers. "Oh wait—I forgot. Oscorp is a Vought subsidiary so is Roxxon"

Fury remained still, but Niklaus could feel the man's frustration beneath the surface.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "You know it fully well, Fury. There's no other company left in the market besides Vought and Stark Industries."

He let that sink in before delivering the final blow. "And when it comes to research and development, there is no competing with Vought."

Niklaus smiled. "That's entirely our business model, after all."

Fury rubbed his temples in resignation. "You're right. The amount of antitrust violations Vought has is unimaginable."

That was true.

Vought is a complete monopoly in the healthcare sector, driving down prices and eliminating almost every competitor.

The same thing happened in R&D—most companies were either bought out and turned into subsidiaries or had their top talents poached.

Niklaus simply smiled, swirling his wine.

Fury continued, voice laced with frustration. "Almost all top universities that conduct research have Vought sponsoring 80% of their projects and then later on recruiting most of the graduates."

" There's no denying the talent pool you've gathered. And the results speak for themselves—the company's explosive growth in just five years…"

He let the words hang in the air, as if it physically pained him to admit it. "And let's not forget where that starting investment came from—the U.S. government. The same government you strong-armed into making a deal."

Niklaus chuckled. "Oh, Fury. 'Strong-armed' is such an ugly word. I prefer 'mutually beneficial agreement.'"

Fury shot him a flat look. "Yeah, sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night." He sighed, rubbing his face. "You're never fun to deal with."

"I try."

Fury clicked his tongue. "Fine. I'll talk to the higher-ups. There's a heavy chance you'll get access to the Tesseract."

Niklaus didn't even hesitate and said. "I know." and extended his hand with a smirk. "Good doing business with you."

Fury eyed him for a moment before reluctantly taking the handshake. "Hope we never do business again."

Niklaus chuckled. "Aww, that's cold, Fury. Well, I hope I keep getting the chance to bully you from time to time."

Fury said nothing and turned to leave, but just as he reached the door, Niklaus called out casually.

"Oh, and uh… you can take your little spy, Susan, with you on the way out. Tell her she's fired."

Fury froze for half a second before sighing and continuing out the door without a word.

=========================

Stones and Reviews please