‘MERCY! SHOW ME MERCY!’ Came the gut-wrenching plea, followed by incoherent screams and the clinks of chains straining.
The Villain closed their eyes and turned away from the desperate cries, sickened by what they had done.
‘PLEASE!’
They had caught the Hero at last.
The Villain clenched their jaw as the Hero’s struggling cries penetrated their mind. Nausea crawled inside them. The Villain couldn’t stand the horrific sounds.
‘STOP IT!’ the Villain roared, rounding on the Hero and shutting them up. The Villain visibly deflated. ‘Just-Just stop it.’ Fear slithered beneath their skin and their breath hitched in their throat as they took in their nemesis: all bruised and bloody and bound to the ground.
‘Please.’ The Hero’s plea was quiet and broken and made the Villain’s gut clench.
The Villain looked away.
There was a final clink of chains as the Hero sat back on their heels, and then silence crept around the room. The Villain shivered. The silence was almost worse than the Hero’s cries.
The Villain looked back at the Hero. They were still; head bowed and face concealed behind hair damp with sweat and blood.
Why,’ asked the Villain, their voice quiet, ‘Why should I grant you mercy after everything you’ve done to me?’ Desperation weaved its way through their words as they urged the Hero to answer. They watched the steady rise and fall of the Hero’s chest.
‘Everything I do is to protect the people,’ the Hero said slowly.
The Villain folded in on themself, crossing their arms against their chest and clenching their arms. ‘We both know that’s not true.’
The Hero didn’t say anything. They just breathed, in and out. In, and out. Until eventually, they lifted their head.
The Villain froze as the Hero’s eyes pierced theirs.
‘Listen, kid,’ the Hero said, ‘I know we’ve had our disagreements…’ The Villain flinched as the hero paused to spit blood out their mouth, ‘But you don’t need to do this.’
The Villain stayed silent.
‘You’re young,’ the Hero said, a small smile blossomed on their face, ‘you still have your whole life ahead of you.’ The Villain bit their lip and glanced away. ‘You can still do the right thing,’ the Hero urged, ever so softly.
The Villain clenched their fists to hide their shaking hands. The Hero’s words dug into the darkness in their heart and caused the back of their eyes to burn.
The Villain wiped the tears away before they could fall. ‘I can’t.’ Their voice dropped to a whisper, ‘I’ll be imprisoned for life for what I’ve done.’
‘I’ll vouch for you,’ the Hero said.
The Villain jerked their head back to the Hero. ‘What?’
‘You’ll only get a short sentence and I’ll help you when you get out,’ the Hero said. ‘You can live a good life,’ they urged, ‘There’s still time. It’s not too late.’
The Villain stared at the Hero. They’d been told they were a lost cause ever since they were born. They didn’t even know what a good life looked like, they’d been in the dark for so long.
The Villain looked deep into the Hero’s eyes. They were bright blue with trust.
The Villain narrowed their eyes. ‘Why would you do that for me?’
The Hero smiled and shrugged. ‘I’m a hero, it’s what I do.’
And the offer was so tantalising the Villain hardly dared believe it to be true. The Villain’s tongue trembled in their mouth. ‘Do you promise?’ They whispered, trepidation shaking their words.
The Hero smiled that heroic smirk the Villain had been fighting for so long. And despite the blood and the sweat, the smile gleamed and warmed the room.
‘I promise.’
Relief flooded the Villain’s body so suddenly that tears rose in their eyes and their legs weakened beneath them. They swiftly unchained the Hero and knelt before them. Sickness swirled once more inside them as they took in the blood and the bruises.
‘I’m so sorry,’ they whispered, honesty shining through their words.
The Hero didn’t look at the Villain as they rubbed their sore wrists.
‘I’ve handled worse,’ the Hero said quietly. ‘Besides, it won’t happen again.’ Something in their words made the Villain turn cold.
The Hero raised their eyes. The Villain froze.
Before the Villain could even make a sound, the Hero grabbed them, twisted them around, and slammed them into the ground.
‘What are you doing?’ The Villain cried as the Hero pinned them down.
The Hero bent over and spoke in their ear. ‘You truly are weak.’ They hissed, a smirk in their voice, ‘You thought I’d actually help you?’ The Hero laughed and it was ice down the Villain’s spine.
The Villain struggled beneath them but the Hero twisted their arms until they screamed with pain.
There was a clinking of chains and the Villain cried out when they realised what the Hero planned.
‘No, no, please!’ they begged, tears thick in their voice.
‘You’ll never change!’ the Hero snarled as they clasped the Villain down.
‘I can!’ the Villain sobbed, tears blurring their vision.
‘You’re all the same,’ the Hero continued, ignoring the Villain's cry. ‘You all think that you’re good deep down. HAH! What a joke.’ The Villain held down their sobs as fear flooded their veins. ‘You’ll n e v e r be good,’ the Hero hissed. ‘It’s in your bones.’
‘Please!’ The Villain cried, ‘PLEASE!’ they screamed. ‘Give me a chance! You promised!’
The Hero stepped back to admire their handiwork. The Villain strained at the chains. They yelled and pulled and the clinking was deafening.
‘Stop it,’ the Hero said.
The Villain stilled. Tears streamed down their face and loose strands of hair hung in their eyes.
‘Please,’ they begged softly through trembling lips and gazed up at the Hero standing over them.
The Hero’s expression was unreadable.
‘You think I’m going to forgive you for what you did? For all that you’ve done?’ The Hero’s voice cracked with pain. Dread crept down the Villain’s spine when they saw tears glint in their eyes.
The Hero glanced around the room before landing their gaze back on the Villain.
‘You’ve picked a good place,’ they said. A sad smile danced on their lips. Their voice dropped to a whisper, ‘No-one to hear you scream.’
‘No, NO!’ The Villain shook their head, ‘NO, PLEASE!’ They scrambled back as the hero advanced; horror curled in their gut and fear clawed its way through their throat, coming out in a gut-wrenching plea: ‘MERCY! SHOW ME MERCY!’ they screamed. ‘PLEASE!’
~~~
I’ve been wanting to do another Hero and Villain piece for a while and @alexprompts prompt Show Me Mercy gave the much needed motivation! So thank you!
