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snaillamp · 1 year ago

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Jod - day 28

I’m gonna spam it out today. Expect more soon >:)

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Masterlist

Day 28: “You’ll get used to it.” | Knife | Hostage | Surrender |

Villain thrashed as they were dragged along the hallway under flickering fluorescent lights. They screamed, tugging at their restraints. “LET ME GO!”

The guards tightened their grip on the wiggling Villain, bruising their already injured arms. Villain howled, writhing even more. “Let me go!” They screamed an almost inhuman noise escaping them as they fought against the two large guards. A third guard was walking in front of them. When they reached a white metal door with a small barred window at the top, they unlocked it with a large set of keys.

Villain thrashed as the guards attempted to hold them still. “You’ll never keep me here! Never!” Their arms were already bruised from the fight before, but the iron grip of the guards was rapidly adding to the amount of bruises they had. Villain could feel them forming as they panted, beginning to tire from fighting this impossible battle.   With a heavy clank, the door unlocked. Villain couldn’t help themselves, imagining the huge mechanism inside the door that made the sound.

They growled as the guards moved them towards the opening, attempting to bite one. They received a gut punch from the third guard for their attempted attack. Villain folded as they were dragged over the threshold, thrown hard at the concrete floor, before the door was pulled shut with a thud. Villain shot up and grabbed the bars in the window. “You can’t keep me here! YOU CAN’T KEEP ME HERE!” A baton met their fingers, forcing them to let go of the bars.

Villain staggered back, listening to the footsteps of the guards as they disappeared down the hallway. They sighed, turning to look at their new home. The cell had been painted white, at least from what they could tell. The concrete floor had once been polished and smooth. Now, the walls were covered in chipped white paint, stained red and black. The thought of how it got there made Villain shiver. The polished floor was stained as well, and both the floor and walls were chipped, sizeable chunks of concrete missing from the corners of bricks or sections of floor.

There where two beds on either side of the room, taking up most of the space, with a shitty metal toilet in the corner, next to an even shittier sink. It looked like someone had actually tried to rip the sink off the wall, it sagged a little on rusted screws that had been reattached to the wall without much thought. A small barred window let light into the room. If it hadn’t been occupied by two beds, it may have been a nicely sized cell, certainly when compared to others Villain had been in.

They took in a shaking breath, trying to calm down. Their mind was still reeling from being captured so suddenly, they had to control it enough to think of a plan of attack to escape this god forsaken hell hole.

Walking over the the bed on the left side of the room, which they realised carried a cheap, stained, uncomfortable mattress. A gross pillow and a thin, moth eaten blanket were thrown over the top. They collapsed down and stared at the ceiling.

The thought crossed their mind that it was weird there were two beds but no cellmate. It certainly wasn’t the first time that had happened, but still… That was when Villain finally shut their eyes, taking a long, deep breath in and out, listening to the sounds of the cell.

The sound of water dripped above them, they could hear their heart pounding in their chest, and a sigh. Opening their eyes, Villain sat up, listening again. They heard another sound, coming from near the door. Looking over the foot of their bed, finally seeing their cellmate for the first time.

“Woah.”

The words escaped Villain before they even realised they had said it. The person was facing towards the bed, but was so close that Villain couldn’t see their face. They were dressed in the same clothes as Villain, dark grey sweat pants, stained with who knew what, black socks covering bruised feet and a dark grey t-shirt.

Villain rose from the bed and walked around to check the person. They were crumpled on the floor, shaking like a leaf. A quiet moan, barely audible came from the person as the grimaced. Villain kneeled down beside the person, running their eyes over them. They were a quivering mess, sweating as they lay against the cold concrete. Bruises, cuts and scars covered their body, they were definitely a fighter like Villain then. The person’s hair was long and matted, so they must have been in this cell a while. “Hey.” Villain said quietly, reaching out and touching the person’s shoulder. They raised their eyebrows in shock as they touched the prisoner’s skin. They were burning up. A sound, barely a whimper escaped the prisoner at the sensation of the touch.

“Shhh, it’s okay.” Villain comforted the person as they quivered. “I’m Villain, I won’t hurt you.” They frowned as they let their hand rest on the shaking person’s shoulder a moment longer. ‘What happened to you?’ They thought, staring at the person quaking beneath their hand. Gently, Villain leaned forward, “I’m gonna roll you over okay.” A soft moan came from the person as Villain placed their other hand on them, rolling them over to see them properly.

Villain gasped in shock.

“Hero?”

They looked at the familiar face, scrunched up in pain before them. Hero gasped, their eyes remaining shut at the convulsed violently. “Holy shit, what happened to you?” Villain’s eyes scanned Hero’s body in horror, taking in all the injuries with a new light.

Hero had gone missing months ago. Villain had celebrated, all of a sudden it was much easier to carry out their own plans. Now, they knew what had really happened…

Placing a hand of Hero’s forehead, Villain felt their temperature. The hero was sweating profusely beneath their hand and seemed to unconsciously lean into Villain’s colder touch. It then occurred to Villain that Hero was probably so out of it they didn’t realise what was happening. Another soft moan emerged from Hero, strained and rasping. Villain felt sick. This was too far, even for them. Sure they had kept prisoners, even Hero at one point, but they had always given them the basic necessities, food, water and medicine. It seemed Hero had become Supervillain’s punching bag, which made Villain wonder if they were the replacement.

“Hero, I’m going to move you a little, alright?” Villain slid their arms beneath Hero’s body. It was light, sending a pang of fear down Villain’s spine. Years ago they had managed to knock Hero out. They had decided to take them prisoner, dragging them down a flight of stairs to a waiting truck. Hero had been so heavy it had taken three people to lift them up. Now, Villain rose with ease.

They carried the limp hero to the bed on the right, placing them softly on the mattress. Hero’s arms hung limply as the were carried, their head lolling as Villain lifted them. Once on the mattress, Villain pulled up the sheet, covering the shaking Hero as their sweat already began to stain the pillow and mattress beneath them. They were sweating enough to fill a lake. Villain turned back to where they had picked up Hero, looking at the puddle of blood and sweat on the floor.

Staring back at their new companion, they cringed as they watched Hero curl up weakly, shuddering. Their teeth were chattering as they gasped, taking in shaking breaths and letting out even shakier ones. Whimpering quietly, a shaking hand gripped the thin blanket, trying to pull it higher.

Villain adjusted the blanket over the hero. They sat by their head, stroking Hero’s sweaty hair with a gentle touch. They didn’t like Hero. They hated them, but they could use Hero’s help escaping this place, escaping Supervillain.

Besides, they may be enemies, but seeing Hero like this made Villain feel things inside that made them uncomfortable. Sympathy? Empathy? They didn’t know, but Hero had been sick around them before, and Villain had never felt anything for them then. It was pathetic really, Hero had shown up to a fight a groaning, slow, doped up, shivering mess more than once before. But this? Villain had never seen anyone, let alone Hero this sick before.

Hero became warmer, their skin going pink as Villain watched them jerk and twitch, thrashing their head from side to side. They gasped, sighed and moaned quietly as they slept, making Villain shiver themself. Hero looked like they were in agony.

Villain fell asleep on their bed to the sounds of Hero twisting in the blanket. They couldn’t hold their eyes open any longer, sliding into a restless sleep. They awoke suddenly in the middle of the night, thirsty. The guards had not come with food, so they slid out from under the blanket and shuffled to the sink. They turned it on, listening as the pipes started making a grating, shuddering, groaning noise as a small amount of water dribbled from the rusted tap. Cupping the freezing water in their hands, they drank the it, gagging at the taste. It tasted almost like pool water. They shut off the noisy tap, enjoying the silence they left in their absence.

‘Wait...’ They thought, turning to face Hero.

In the dim moonlight, they saw Hero splayed on their back in bed, blanket twisted around their legs and torso. They seemed almost deflated as they lay still, skin gleaming with sweat. “Hero?” Villain stepped forward, looking at them. “Hero?” They got more worried, their voice getting higher with panic. They rushed to Hero’s side, shaking them, eyes widening at how hot their body was. Hero’s head fell to the side as their body was shaken, they remained still and limp, taking tiny, barely audible breaths. Villain shook them harder, whispering at Hero. “Come on Hero. Don’t give up now, you stubborn prick.”

They dragged Hero’s limp figure from the bed, placing them on the cold floor. Ripping off Hero’s shirt, they let their burning, pale skin touch the freezing concrete. Running to the tap Villain wet the shirt, soaking it well. They returned to Hero, who was drawing in rasping breaths, twitching as they cooled against the floor. Villain laid the shirt over Hero’s chest, pressing the cool fabric into their skin, hoping that the water would cool them down. They stayed up all night, until Hero’s body was much cooler and they began groaning again. “I guess that’s a good sign.” Villain said out loud, maybe to Hero, maybe to themself, they didn’t know.

Right on the crack of dawn, Hero opened their eyes properly, blinking as the soft light broke into the dark cell. They felt like hell, too hot and yet too cold, their body tingling and aching. Their throat was raw and their wounds hurt. Something wet was laid on their body, it felt nice, that didn’t know what it was.

Slowly their eyes moved around the room, their head too tired to move. Their vision was jerking suddenly sometimes. Grunting quietly at the effort of looking around, they noticed that something stirred at the sound they made. Even though their ears felt like they were blocked, they could still hear a shuffling sound, before a blob came into view. It was black and swirling, a strange sound emanating from it. Hero was too tired to deal with it right now. They would rest up and see what they could do about it later, all they really wanted was stop feeling so weird.

Villain stirred as Hero made a strange sound, looking up from the bed leg they were slumped against. It was a strained gasp, like Hero had almost drowned. They looked over to see Hero’s glassy eyes open. Crawling over, they stared at Hero as they watched their eyes lazily travel around the room. They came to a stop at Villain’s figure, half-lidded eyes unfocused and glazed over.

They mumbled something incoherent, before their head fell to the side once more with a sigh. Villain was left frowning at the unconscious Hero, feeling their temperature. It had gone down, by a lot but was still way too high. In the light they could see more of Hero’s body too. They were covered in bruises and infected wounds. Nothing looked broken that they could see, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t there.

Lifting Hero into their arms, they carried their floppy nemesis back to the bed, before beginning to wipe clean the wounds that they could. Hero seemed to wake briefly a couple of times throughout the morning, mumbling incoherently but only for a few seconds as their eyes fell shut almost immediately. Villain stared at the leaking wounds and ran their hand through their hair, ovewhelmed, they couldn’t save this. Hero was too sick and their wounds too infected for them to make it.

“Come on Hero.” Villain wiped Hero’s pale face with cool water. “I’ve known you forever, you don’t give up… You’re a stupidly stubborn asshole who gets in my way. Just this once, I need you to pull through for me. We have to get out of here, Supervillain….” Their voice caught in their throat. “I’m scared. Supervillain is taking over everything. They got you, they got me? Who’s next?”

Villain looked at their hands. Placing them on Hero’s face, they forced Hero’s eyes open, finding a massively blown out pupil. “Shit Hero.” Their thought was broken by a clang. Two trays were slid under a flap at the bottom of the door. Villain rushed forward, gripping the bars.

“Hey. The prisoner in here is dying. You have to get them medical attention.” They hissed at the guard, staring at them with their deadly, angry eyes. The guard laughed, “Yeah, we don’t care. Hero’s finally got what was coming to them, in my opinion.” They laughed, walking off. Staring at the tray, Villain felt sick. It was a feast.

Supervillain’s slick cursive writing danced across the small card on the tray. “My dearest friends. Enjoy your feast! Get well soon <3” Villain read out loud. “So Supervillain is mocking me now? Great!” Villain screamed at the door, their voice echoing into nothing but an empty hallway. They grabbed the trays, dragging them to Hero.

“Hey, buddy. We have food, you gotta eat something, kay?” Hero didn’t move. “Hero, wake the fuck up, or so help me I’ll…” Villain realised that it didn’t matter. They ate their food in silence, enjoying the taste of the sweet bread and strong orange juice. They happily wolfed down the steaming chicken breast, rice and raspberries in front of them until they lay back against Hero’s bed, sighing in content. “You know, maybe Supervillain isn’t so bad.” They mumbled, finally feeling full and sleepy.

Villain awoke to a moan, looking up and watching Hero’s eyes open slowly. They rolled in their sockets before Hero blinked, trying to stay awake and sighing as they lifted a hand to their forehead, feeling the temperature. “Wait… what?” They asked as they realised their shirt had been wet and placed against their skin. “How…?” Their eyes met Villain’s, and they sighed, lying back, poison in their tone.

“You.”

Villain rolled their eyes. “If I hadn’t done all this, you’d be dead you know.” Hero’s weak sigh left their chest with a rattle, as they looked at Villain, eyes unfocused. “Did you want a standing ovation? Cause I don’t think I can do that right now…”

Villain scowled, lifting the tray from the floor. “No, but you can eat this. You need strength to fight off your infections.” They sat Hero up, smiling when they realised Hero’s fever was finally going down.

Hero felt their body shake as Villain lifted them up. They barely had the energy to lift their head, let alone sit up. Villain leaned them against the cold, concrete wall, sending a wave of chills ripping through Hero, making them whimper unexpectedly. Villain tensed as they looked at Hero with worry. “Just cold…” Hero brushed it off.

Villain wrapped them in the thin blanket, before sitting beside them and feeding them the cold food. Hero hadn’t eaten in days and the taste of the food was like nothing else they’d ever had. Villain gave them water in a bowl, letting them drink until they were full. Meaning back, Hero felt more energised, at least enough to hold up their head.

“So why are you helping me Villain?” They finally asked the question that was spinning around in their pounding head. “Because we need to get out of here, and the only way we can do that is together. Besides, I can’t leave you like this.” Villain gestured at Hero’s body. They had lost muscle and looked gaunt, which was understandable. Villain was practically holding them up as they rested against the wall, enjoying the feeling of being full for the first time in forever.

It was weird that Supervillain had sent such good food, but Hero pushed the thought from their mind. 

The door flew open at that moment, and three guards came in to the cell. Grabbing Villain and Hero they dragged them from the cell. Villain glanced at Hero, who gave them a look, a warning, what was coming was going to be bad.

“I see you managed to make your little friend a bit better? That’s wonderful to hear.” Supervillain cooed at Villain who was handcuffed to a table. “Hero isn’t my friend.” They spat. “Oh, of course. But you still helped them right? I’d practically given up on them, but well…” They paused as the distant sound of Hero screaming broke their train of thought. “They might still be able to give up the information I want. And if you get it from them, I might find you useful enough to let you go. On the condition of your loyalty to me, of course.” Villain glared, “I was already loyal to you. You broke that trust. I’ll never work for you, you son of a-” Supervillain slammed their fists down on the table, their panting face inches from Villain’s.   

“You don’t get it do you? I’ll leave you to rot, just like that god-forsaken Hero, if you don’t tell me what I want to know.”

They head butted Villain so hard that Villain flew back, their wrists being yanked hard as the chair tipped out from under them, leaving them awkwardly hanging from the table. Supervillain yanked them up by their hair, smashing them into the table until Villain was left gasping, blood pouring from their face.

“Hero has hidden an item I would like to have in my possession, find it for me and I’ll…” They trailed off as another agonised scream from Hero ripped through the wall, before it was cutting off awkwardly with a choked sound. “Looks like they just went night-night... Don’t make me move on to you.” Supervillain purred before they nodded and the guards, who returned to the room, dragging Villain back to the cell.

A few minutes later, a barely conscious Hero was dragged back and thrown onto the floor at Villain’s feet. Villain managed to rush at the door, but it was shut before they reached it. They pounded on it with their fists, screaming at the guards. “LET ME OUT!”

Hero groaned, pushing themself from the floor, before their body gave out. They rolled over with a gasp, looking at Villain pounding against the door. They were covered in blood. “…hey…” Hero called out weakly. Villain didn’t hear, so finding any strength they had, Hero managed to stand on shaking legs, reaching for Villain’s shoulder. Waves of nausea washed over them as the gripped it with their shaking hand. “Hey...” They tried, a little louder. Villain turned as Hero felt the world slide beneath them.

Hero’s eyes rolled back in their head as they collapsed against Villain, who grabbed them, dragging them back to the bed. “God damnit Hero.” After a few minutes, Hero woke with a cough, cringing in pain at the new wounds they had acquired. “Must be Tuesday…” They muttered. “What?” Villain looked at Hero, angry. “Tuesday. They always “interview” me on Tuesdays.” Hero gripped their side, the electric shock they had received there burned a little. “Guess…” They coughed, “They wanted you to... get the information from me…” Hero weakly shivered as Villain pulled the blanket up their body.

“Yeah.”

Hero snorted, snuggling under the thin blanket. “I won’t tell you shit. Don’t trust you as far as I can throw you.” Villain’s heart sank a little, ‘Why did that hurt? They’re right, I don’t trust them either.’ They pushed it aside, sighing as they sat next to Hero. “If I tell you, it’ll put you in more danger anyway... I can’t do that. The less you know... the less you’ll... be hurt... ’s the least I can do...” Villain shook their head, “Hero, quit that self sacrificial bullshit. I wouldn’t tell Supervillain anyway. How can I trust someone who’s done all this?” They gestured at the room. Hero nodded, eyes closing, ��Valid point…” 

Over the next few days, Villain worked to help Hero overcome their sickness. Hero was delirious, calling out in their sleep, trying to protect invisible people from things that weren’t there, crying out for them to run. Villain spent most of their time cooling Hero down and holding their shaking hand. It seemed to comfort them as their eyes glanced around at things visible to only them.

Their fever broke after about four days and Hero stared to gain strength. Even some wounds were looking a little less infected. Villain smiled as Hero gasped in pain, “You’re smart…” They moaned, gasping through gritted teeth as Villain washed their wounds. “I have no idea what I’m doing you know, I’m just washing this shit off you.” Hero shook their head. “Well it’s smart using the water… Supervillain puts… chemicals in it that… kill bacteria. Drinking… too much of it will make you sick, but it’s working wonders on…” They jerked in pain as Villain jabbed their ribs. “Shut up, your talking makes you move too much.”

Hero woke that night to a sound. Villain was twitching and moaning in their sleep, laying on their front with their arms wrapped around them. At first they thought they had given them their sickness, but then they realised it was a nightmare. Villain had hardly been sleeping, it made sense they’d be having strange dreams. Hero stood from the bed, their legs feeling stronger, and shuffled to the side of Villain’s bed.

They sat by Villain’s side, just as Villain had done for them, and gently rubbed their back. “Hey. Villain. It’s a nightmare.” They drew circles on Villain’s back, trying to rouse them. “Hey... hey, hey. Hey!” Hero’s voice grew slightly louder. “Villain!” They called out to the thrashing Villain, who’s eyes shot open with a gasp.

“Fucking…hell…”

They breathed, glancing at Hero as their heart pounded in their chest. “You had a nightmare, Villain.” Villain rolled over, cheeks burning with embarrassment, not wanting to look at Hero’s softly smiling face illuminated in the moonlight.  “Go away.” They mumbled, untangling the blanket and pulling it over them properly.

“Okay.”

Hero patted their shoulder and walked back to bed.

Villain actually really wanted to talk about their dream, but Hero hadn’t argued like they expected they would. “Let me know if you need anything.” Hero rolled into their own bed, pulling the blanket up to their chin and shivering. They still felt a little sick.   Villain rolled over and stared at Hero’s back, enjoying the sound of their breaths going in and out. It made Villain feel… calm.

“Thanks.” They mumbled, genuinely touched, “Turns out they have a ‘calming’ presence too. Fucking perfect Hero.” Villain grumbled as Hero sniffed and rolled back over. “Did you say something?” They asked sleepily. “No, you’re dreaming.” Villain shut their eyes until they drifted off. Hero rolled their eyes, they had heard what Villain said, but they wouldn’t push it.

Tuesday came and went, another spectacular meal was served before Villain was forced to watch as Hero was beaten ruthlessly by Supervillain. They still refused to surrender the location of the mystery object. Villain again tried to escape, managing to wrench themself from the guard’s grip, taking off down the hallway, only to be met with another locked door.

“Damn it!” They smashed their fists against it, noticing dents in it. Hero had also punched it in the past apparently. They were tackled and hauled back to their cell, howling and screaming, as the door shut on them. “Fuck you, Supervillain!” They hollered in agony.  

“You know, you could just be quiet.” Hero mumbled, covering their ears as they slumped against the wall on their bed.

“How can we get out of here then?” They turned to the weak Hero, looking at them in annoyance. “Maybe try being quieter.” Hero retorted. Villain scoffed, “At least I know you’re getting better then, your sass is coming back.”

Hero rolled their eyes. Villain sat next to them, head in their hands. Hero sighed. “I’ve been here for months. I’ve tried everything. Supervillain is keeping us locked up better than Fort Knox would.” A gentle hand rested on Villain’s shoulder but they shrugged it off.

“Whatever.” Villain mumbled, walking to the other side of the cell, they flopped down in their own bed, staring at the wall. Wracking their mind their mind for ideas, they didn’t notice the sound of Hero’s padding feet moving across the cell. “You can’t escape from here. I’ve tried everything.” Hero spoke, their heart pounding in their chest. “Everything you’ll come up with will fail, trust me. You k-kinda get used to it af-after a while.” Sighing in defeat, Hero gripped the side of the sink as pain shot through their side. They grunted, before crying out, their head spinning.

Villain looked up at the sounds of Hero in pain. Sitting up, Villain frowned at them leaning over the sagging sink. They were gripping each side and shaking, then their right hand crossed their stomach to grip a wound at their side. “What are you doing?” Villain groaned, crawling forward.

 Hero was shaking, trying to hold themself up on the sink, which strained under their weight. “I don’t know, just suddenly… hurts…bad…” Hero gasped through shaking breaths. They sank to their knees, sobbing, the tears flowing from their eyes as pain wracked their body. “Help me…” They gasped, looking up at Villain with pained eyes. Villain felt a twinge of sympathy as they walked to Hero’s side, picking them up and laying them on their bed. Hero waited for the pain to subside, sweating as the tears ran out. They cried out as they began to feel lightheaded, the pain taking over.

Villain sat by Hero’s side, stunned. They had never seen them cry in pain before. Hero was the toughest of the tough, so they must really be hurting. An agonised scream emerged from deep within Hero before they went still with a shaking exhale. At least Villain would have quiet to think now.

They heard a guard walk by, obviously to check in on the screaming, and Villain glared at them. “What do you want? Come to gawk, huh?” The guard continued to walk, but Villain grinned, a thought stirring in their mind.

Looking up at the sound of Hero stirring, Villain went to their side. Hero’s eyes flew open with a gasp, looking around at the cell in panic. They were panting hard. “Shit…” They gulped, sitting slowly. “Nightmare. I was being…” They shuddered, holding their stomach, thinking about their dream. Villain leaned back with a smirk, causing Hero to sigh. “What?”

“Nothing!” Villain was smirking even harder. “I’ve been thinking and I’ve had an idea.”

“You really think this will work?” Hero asked, wincing as they sank to the floor. “It will. They need you, if I try and kill you, they will have to stop me.” Hero looked up at Villain skeptically. “What’s stopping them from just shooting you in the back?” But Villain tapped the side of their nose. “That bullet would go straight through me and into you. They need you alive.” “That’s comforting.” Hero remarked sarcastically, rolling their eyes.

“Oh shush.” Villain rolled their eyes as Hero lay down against the cold concrete. “How do I know I can trust you to get us both out of here?” Hero asked suddenly, causing Villain to stop. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend. I need you and you need me. I have to take you, my friend.” Villain made a face cringing slightly at the though of Hero and themself being friends. They had become fond of Hero over the years. They were a worthy adversary, but friends? Never.

“Ready?” Villain straddled Hero, placing their hands around their neck. Hero nodded, taking in a large breath of air and screaming. Their voice echoed in the cell and reverberated down the hall. “Good job…” Villain exclaimed, mildly impressed. Hero grinned, “Thank you.”

They snapped back into character as the guards shoes came pounding down the hallway. Villain gripped Hero’s throat a little, pretending to choke them as Hero screamed and thrashed in their grip. “Die! Die Hero!” Villain yelled as the guards fumbled with the key to their cell. Hero cried out again, gripping Villain’s arms in a faux attempt to get them off. “Please!” They made a dramatic gasping sound, their thrashing growing weaker, “I’ll never tell you…” they whimpered, their hand falling from Villain’s arm and hitting the floor.

Villain felt a rough hand pull them from Hero, who lay limp beneath them holding their breath, still and 'dead’. “God-damnit!” One of the guards swore as they went to Hero’s side. “They aren’t breathing.” Villain thrashed and cackled, pretending to be insane. “They wouldn’t tell me where it was! They doomed me top death, so I doomed them instead!”

They broke down into a fit of cackles as they strained against the guard’s grip. The guard felt Hero’s pulse, looking up to say something, but Hero took that moment to grab their arm, pulling them down and smashing the guard’s head against the floor.

One of the guards holding Villain became their next target, Villain focusing on the other. They worked together to tackle the guards, knocking them unconscious against the wall. Hero grabbed the keys from the belt of the guard the took out, as well as their gun. Glancing at them for a second, they handed them to Villain. “Let’s go.”

They nodded at each other, Villain grabbing Hero’s wrist and pulling them along the hallway.

They reached the locked door, where Hero stepped forward, Villain placing their arm around their neck as they opened the door slowly. They guided Hero through the hallways, until they reached a new door. Unlocking that, they were met with a couple of guards, who drew their guns.

“Oh, hello.” Villain remarked, their suave ‘Villain’ voice snapping them into character. Hero gripped Villain’s arm, whimpering as they gasped in “pain”, feeling a cold gun barrel rest against their temple. “One more move and Hero here will be that wall’s new paint job.” They grinned maniacally as the guards stepped aside.

“Very good. Don’t set of any alarms now...” Villain nodded. They made their way down some stairs, getting through a third door and making it to the ground floor, right as an alarm went off. Every guard in the floor seemed to turn to the door as it opened, drawing their guns.  

“Now, now, fellas. Let’s be rational. You don’t want to lose your information in Hero’s precious little head do you? Hero here wouldn’t tell me either, and now I have half a mind to kill them where they stand. But then you won’t know where they hid the damn thing Supervillain wants either! What a pickle that would be.”

Villain backed towards the sliding front door of the building, eyeing an idling car. They held Hero against them as they made their way through the door and towards the car. They were in a compound not far from the city, Supervillain’s business quarters that doubled as a prison apparently.   They had been to the business quarters before, but never the secret prison until now.

Villain gestured with the gun to the driver of the car, who handed them their keys. “Thank you!” Villain smiled cheerfully. Hero shivered slightly, becoming slightly heavier to carry suddenly. “Woah.” Villain murmured as they forced the driver from the car, before opening the back seat and throwing Hero in. Hero landed heavily with a grunt, shaking.

  As the car began to speed down the road away from the compound, Villain whooped and celebrated. “Hell yeah Hero! We fucking did it!” Hero didn’t reply. “Hero?” Villain looked in the rear-view mirror at Hero, slumped in the back seat. “Hero, we’re free. You can quit the act.”

Hero didn’t stir.

“Fuck.” 

Pulling over, Villain leaned back and shook Hero, who moaned quietly. “Wakey, wakey, Hero.” Hero looked up, shaking, their groggy voice barely a whisper. “Did we do it?” Villain nodded, looking back at the way they came. “We aren’t out of the woods yet though.”

 Hero felt the car speed up, racing towards the city as night began to fall. They soon began to recognise the trees by the sides of the road, as they pulled themself into a sitting position. “You’re still with me?” Villain asked hearing them move. “Yeah, yeah I’m here…” Hero mumbled, staring at the familiar houses.

They car took a sudden turn racing towards a new direction, one Hero didn’t recognise. Glancing behind them, Hero noticed a black car hot on their heels.

Villain drove through the streets erratically as they tried to escape the car. Suddenly they pulled to a side street, parking in front of a house. Villain glanced back watching the chasing car speed past. “Good.” They sat idle for a few minutes, Hero shivering, growing paler and paler. “What’s wrong with you?” Villain asked curiously. “Tuesday… They must have broken something… My lungs feel weird...” Hero cried out in pain. “Hang in there.” Villain replied, taking off again.

Hero watched the houses fly by as Villain drove to a street they knew well. They sighed as the car pulled up to a driveway, stopping next to a fountain. The headquarters, where Superhero, Hero and Sidekick all worked. Villain ran from the car, ripping open the door and catching Hero as they fell into their arms. They dragged Hero onto the concrete driveway, laying them there.

“So long, Hero.”  

Hero tried to move, “Wait, you’re leaving me here?” Villain nodded.

“I’m not doing any of this for you, I did it for me. Best thing I can do, is dump you somewhere you will at least survive. Plus, now that I don’t have you, Supervillain won’t come after me.”

Hero began to laugh dryly. “You don’t get it do you?” They gripped their side wincing in pain, “Even after all this time… I knew this would happen… And I was… naïve enough to think… you’d changed…” They stared at Villain, disappointed.

“I didn’t need your approval Hero. You should thank me I got you out of there. Me! My idea!” Hero could only laugh again, or at least attempt to. It ended up being more of a strained wheeze.

“Supervillain told me why they wanted you… They are getting rid of their competition. Getting me to tell you where the item was was a last ditch attempt to make you useful before…” Hero coughed as a yell echoed through the compound.

“Supervillain is coming for all of us. You’re not safe… None of us are… Not until we take them down…” They glared at Villain, “But I suppose you will only ever think of yourself.” Hero lay back with a smirk, shuddering as they gripped their side in and cried out, the security guards flying towards Villain and Hero. Villain tried to run, but the guards tackled them to the ground.

“Wait…”

Hero rasped, “Let them go.” The guards looked at each other, nodding before picking up Hero’s weak form. Hero steadied themself, looking at Villain with a look that made them want to curl up and cry, before they uttered their final words to their nemisis. “You better start running, Villain. You’re never going to stop now… Don’t worry though…” Their eyes met Villain’s one last time, cold and slightly betrayed.

“You’ll get used to it.”

Villain turned to go, Hero’s words echoing in their mind. They grimaced, staring at their reflection in the car window. Hero had given them a chance. They had to take it.

Hero awoke with a start, staring at Superhero beside their bed. For a brief second, panic wracked them as they through they were still in the cell. “Hero.” Superhero whispered, their voice shaking. “You survived… They didn’t know if you would.” Hero shook their tired head. “I almost… didn’t…”

Superhero nodded, glancing nervously in the direction of a figure shrouded in shadows. “I guess we have them to thank for that.” Their voice was one of suspicion and apprehension. Hero winced as Villain stepped forward, timidly. “I thought about what you said. I’m tired of running from shit, Hero.” Hero reached out a hand, weak and shaking, towards Villain.

“You said it best. The enemy of my enemy…” Villain hesitated before gently holding Hero’s hand, shaking it a tiny amount. “Is my friend?” Nodding, Hero lay back, tired from the brief movement. “Is my friend.” They confirmed.

#whump #Hero whump #villain whump #JOD 2023 #day 28 #broooo we are so close wtf #nearly done #Woooo!#snaillamp #original post

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