Yay on your trip by the way! What about a hero sidekick who is doing actual harm, and both the villain henchman and the hero are trying to stop them, while the Villain is intrigued and trying to convince them to switch sides?
The timing for that ask has been crazy because I actually head off today. I’ll be at the airport when this gets posted. I hope you like what I’ve come up with. I did my best to keep with what you’re ask requested but I fear I didn’t quite stick to it ^^’ I think a continuation would serve this one well.
Hero cornered Villain’s Henchman and gave them no room for escape. What Hero didn’t understand was why they didn’t seem to be that afraid, if anything, they were more worried about whatever was behind them. They kept looking over Hero’s shoulder and biting their lip, but no one was there. Hero had come alone tonight.
“I’d like an explanation,” Hero said simply. “Why do you all keep running away from me? Are you really that scared of me?”“Don’t flatter yourself,” Henchman scoffed, clenching their fists. “Not one of us fear you. You’re soft… Where’s that sidekick of yours at? Wherever you go, [Sidekick] is never far behind.”
“Sidekick?” Hero said softly. “You’re afraid of them?”Henchman blinked. “Are… are you telling me you have no clue about what they’ve been doing?”“They’re rougher than me, but to the point where you all run away?”“Are they here?” Henchman asked again.“No. I asked them to keep an eye on-” Hero stopped themselves before they gave away tonight’s plan. “They’re not here.”
Slowly, Henchman began to talk, and for every person they talked about, their confidence grew that Sidekick was not around. “[A] had their legs and arms broken, [B] wound up paralysed from the waist down, and [C]… They tied them up in a warehouse and used them as target practice and a punching bag. Needless to say, they didn’t survive. That’s only the tip of the iceberg, [Hero]. [Sidekick] doesn’t deal with us like how you deal with us…”
Hero froze, thinking things through. Henchman’s face fell at whatever sickening realisation Hero had come to. “What?” Henchman asked quietly, “What is it?”
It had taken Hero far too long to realise what kind of person Sidekick was. “I asked them to watch [Villain]… I was going to meet up with them later and make an arrest.”
Henchman’s blood froze in their body. “They’ll kill them,” they breathed. Hero didn’t have time to react as Henchman grabbed them by the collar and turned them around, pressing them against the wall. “You have to stop them! Get in contact with them now, please. They’ll kill them!”
Hero, wary of deceit, slowly took out their phone and called them, waiting for a response. For a moment, Hero thought they weren’t going to answer. Once they picked up, Hero decided to put them on loudspeaker. Henchman’s grip eased, but they did not let go entirely.
“[Hero], what are you doing?” Sidekick hissed. “You trying to get me caught?”
“Sorry,” Hero said. “I thought I’d seen [Villain] creeping about. I had to make sure you were alright.”
“I’m fine.” Their tone suggested they were so much more than fine, happy, perhaps. Had they really made a move and grabbed Villain? Were they dead? Henchman’s grip tightened again. They wanted to know if Villain was alright.
“So you still have eyes on [Villain]?” Hero asked, raising their chin ever so slightly as Henchman’s knuckle pressed into it.“Oh yes… They’re not going anywhere.”Hero and Henchman exchanged nervous glances. “I’m going to come and meet you now, I’ve got a bad feeling about tonight and I don’t want us getting jumped.”
Sidekick sighed heavily. “Alright. Same spot as before.”Hero decided not to point out the fact that Sidekick was not meant to have moved from where they’d left them. That’s certainly what it came across as.
Hero was about to hang up when they heard a strangled cry, it sounded like someone shouting through a gag, but the phone immediately went dead.A few seconds later, they got a text. I’m ok.
“They’ve got them,” Henchman breathed. “They’ve got them!”“Not for much longer… Come with me, I won’t let anything happen to you, but if you want to help your boss, you’re going to have to trust me.”“I don’t trust you as far as I could throw you, but I have to help [Villain].”
Hero looked down at Henchman’s hands, still wrapped around their shirt. “Right,” Henchman said quickly, letting go. “Right…”“Let’s see if we can find them, alright? Then we can find [Villain].“
Sidekick kicked Villain until exhaustion stopped them. Villain lay curled up and defenceless, their breathing shallow and weak and coming out in the sound of shakey whimpers. “Please,” they rasped.
“I’ll be back,” Sidekick growled, dragging them into the corner by their shirt and tying them to a metal ring secured to the floor. With their hands tied behind their back and their legs tied together in two places, there was no way for them to stop a final stomp on their stomach. Villain cried out but their body stayed mostly limp.
“You should be careful doing that,” Other Villain spoke up. Sidekick turned sharply to see Other Villain standing by the doorway, two well-built bodyguards at either side. “Breaking ribs so carelessly, it can lead to internal bleeding… and I don’t think you’re ready for our dear [Villain] to die yet, are you?”“Help me,” Villain wheezed, “Please. [Other Villain], you have to help me…”
Villain choked on a mewl as Sidekick’s hand retreated back to their belt for their gun. Other Villain raised a calming hand, “Oh, there’s no need for that. I’m not here for conflict, only… I’m curious.”“About what?” Sidekick ground out, starting to pace from side to side.“Why someone with so much power, so much influence, would hide behind [Hero’s] shadow?”
Sidekick shrugged, “Hiding means I can do it all the more.”“And restrict yourself,” Other Villain grinned. “[Sidekick], I’d like for you to think very hard about what I have to say: I want you to join me, help me irradicate vermin,” Other Villain cast a long glance to Villain’s motionless form, “like them. Clean up the streets once and for all.”
“You’re vermin just the same,” Sidekick retorted, “why would I side with you?”“We have a common cause, destroying my competition would benefit both of us. In return, I can give you resources, much better places for you to do your dirty work in secret, and promise you safety. A temporary arrangement, I’m sure you’d understand, but a good one.”
Sidekick was hesitant to speak, but their pacing stopped. Other Villain smiled, “How long do you intend to keep up this charade? It’s obvious that you’ve a thirst for blood. Most would call you evil for it, a villain.”“And you?” Sidekick wondered, furrowing their brow.“I say you’re… effective in what you do. You already have the masses cowering in fear, why stop there? You could finally regain control of your city. All I want is a finger in a few pies, and for [Villain] to survive long enough to tell me a secret or two.”
“Money,” Sidekick tutted, “It always is money with you.”“And with you, it is always bloodlust- vengeance!” Other Villain withdrew a contract from their blazer pocket. “These scum fill you with so much anger, don’t they? Unleash it! All you have to do is say yes. Hand [Villain] over to me, and suddenly all of your work will be made so much easier.”
Other Vilain offered them a quill but no ink. Another glance down to Villain and Sidekick understood. Their blood…
“You’re not getting [Villain]. They’re mine to kill.”Other Villain laughed, “Oh, I’m not protecting them. Far from it. All I want is information. If you can draw it from them, then be my guest to be the interrogator. But for now, all I want is for them to be alive and able to speak.”
Other Villain leaned forward, “Do we have a deal?”
