ink and fuel

writing

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The hero was feeling terrible. They should have just gone for an engineering or medical degree but instead they went for the most "glorious" job in the country. The TV show which glamorized this job was partly to be blamed. Neither did they get married nor do they have a stable pay. Life is most unfair to the best.

They slowly got back on their feet, unable to completely straighten their body due to the harsh punch which the villain sweetly gifted  them.

"You're so slow today that it's seriously getting boring. It's going to be 12 soon and I think I'll just wrap this up early and go home."

"Actually I've caught a cold. And you...you bastard you are in your top form today."

The villain laughed, walking leisurely towards the hero. "Your government really sucks. Even we have sick leaves." They clapped the hero's shoulder. "See, this is when you need to reconsider your career choices."

The hero took the chance to deliver a straight punch to the villain's guts but they were sadly blocked.

"My mom was correct, goodness is a thing of the past. Here I'm worried about you and you..." The villain tsked disapprovingly. "Now please let me do the honors of becoming the winner of this fight."

The villain's hand on their heart felt like a boulder. For a second, all hero could feel was complete darkness and panic as their heart rate decreased. They could taste death. In fact, they almost shook hands with the grim reaper before they were forcefully brought back to mortal world.

They wheezed and panted on the ground, their ears ringing and their hands shivering. Till date they had just heard about the villain's "superpower" and made fun of it. They were eating their own words now.

They were too preoccupied to notice that the villain was also in the same state. After stabilizing themselves and coming to their full senses, they understood the full gravity of the situation.

Nature had weird laws. One of them was that soul mates could feel each other's pain.

The hero looked at the villain's wide eyes.

"This means..."

"I think the fuck not. I'm out of here. I'm fucking out of here." The villain's screams echoed through the streets as they got farther and farther away while hero sat on the ground, dumbfounded at the turn of events.

Maybe the pay is terrible but they think, that at last, they'll be able to get married.

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The Hero wiped their blood on their sleeve, looking up at the villain with contempt in their face. They chuckled a bit. "Well, you got me there, I'm not going to lie, but you've not seen me in my ultra power form- the form which every villain in town is scared from.

"Good for me then, I'm from another count-"

"BEHOLD! MY ULTRA POWE-"

The hero's theatrics got knocked right out of them after the villain delivered a soul-crushing to the hero's gut.

The light emitting from the hero died down while they struggled to get back up from the punch.

"Why would I let you gain your ultra plus....whatever form if it's going to be a disadvantage for me?"

"B-but it's a rule! You're not supposed to attack when one is transforming!"

"I think you should work on your fighting skills instead of watching power rangers."

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"You're drunk." The villain sighed as they looked at the Hero tumbling on the deserted street.

"What do you mean? I'm just a little tipsy. Look, could I do this if I was drunk?" The hero started tap dancing around the villain.

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Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The hero had heard these words from their mentor. She was telling it to a senior who had apparently lost control of their power and blasted a huge hole through the wall for the sake of a dare. The hero had then thought that the advice wasn't applicable to them. They had, after all, controlled their powers pretty well from a young age- something which was practically unheard of.

But somehow their mentor's unreadable gaze had landed on them. It had unnerved and angered them because the gaze almost seemed accusatory. It seemed like their mentor felt that they were incapable of controlling their powers. Absolute bullshit.

Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The quote once again ran through hero's brain as they saw their hand lift. Their hand lifted, coursing with energy and went straight for their lover's heart. The hero was no more a hero with power but merely a puppet at the monster which resided within. It laughed and shrieked with joy, intent on blood and carnage.

Hero could not have done anything when their hand made contact with villain's, no, their lover's body.

The rumbling of thunder and the cacophony of winds came to a standstill. Hero looked at their lover's body, lying on the ground.

Lifeless.

No, that couldn't possibly be true. Villain was strong, much stronger than Hero. They of course weren't dead, that's not-

No, they aren't dead.

"Love, I'm so sorry. My powers- I don't know what's happening, my powers-" The Hero took the Villain's body in their arms. The Villain wouldn't respond.

Obviously they were blasted with so much energy at once. They must have suffered a shock and fainted from it. Villain might be strong, but that was too much power, ever for them.

The Hero noticed that the Villain's chest was not rising anymore. They desperately checked for a breath but the Villain's body was completely still.

"I'm sorry, baby. I'm so sorry. So sorry. I just- I...I lost control. I'm sorry. I'll take you to a medic. Yes, that'll do. They'll treat you and you'll be perfect in no time. When you're fine, I'll teach you how to make pasta. God, for a villain like you, you sure are a mess in the kitchen, huh? I'll teach you for sure this time. OK, baby? Just wake up and I'll teach you how to make pasta, I'll-" The hero's broke due to loud sobs.

Villain just wouldn't wake up.

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The villain was known to be a silent killer at their agency. They would creep in silently, kill the target and return without leaving any traces akin to a snake. But unfortunately the snake, at last had been trapped.

The sidekicks forced them on their knees in front of the hero. They glared at the puppets, promising revenge once they were freed, but the sidekicks remained unfazed.

"What a delicious sight! I had never thought that that one day I'd see you on your knees." The hero was a sleazy bastard. There was a time when they were lovers but that was all in the past.

"Is it safe to admit your weakness so freely?" The villain mocked, spitting at hero's feet. "You always knew you could never catch me."

The hero's eyes changed. The villain from 7 years ago would have thought that the change in hero's eyes were the feelings of a lover but they wouldn't make the same mistake twice. Betrayal had a bitter taste which is difficult to sweeten even with the most intense feelings.

"Of course, I would have never caught you if not with force. Anyways, let's get to the more pressing matters. The government is planning to completely eradicate your organization."

A chill went down villain's spine, their heartbeat booming in their ears.

"I cannot let you die out there due to your feelings of loyalty, so you have no choice but to stay here."

The villain then properly looked at hero's face, set in a grim line with no ounce of the usual mirth. This was the face of complete resolution; no matter what they say, the hero will not be swayed. This was also the face they had made 7 years ago when they had chosen their duties over their love.

"No" The villain's short answer left the hero as well as their minions uneasy. The sidekicks aimed their weapons, looking out for any signs of retaliation in the villain.

"Weapons down. I will say this once and you better remember it. No one aims a gun at villain." The hero's voice struck the room like a whiplash. The sidekicks lowered their weapons and retreated to the corners of the room.

The hero approached the villain cautiously, just how one would approach a wounded animal. They got on their knees, right in front of villain and reached for their bound hands behind their back. The handcuffs fell to the ground with a loud clank. With that, they left the heavy weight of making a decision in villain's hand. They couldn't say they were forced by hero anymore.

"Please"

Was it a prayer? Or was it an apology? The villain would never know. They refused to look at that face because they knew that they would be faced with the same brown eyes they fell in love with. They will be faced with the same lips they had kissed a thousand times and it would probably be a sin to kiss them again.

"Please, mon chéri"

The villain scattered into a million pieces in that white, sterile room.

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The hero was in a precarious situation. The cupboard was not very roomy and the coat hangers kept digging into their body.

"Will you stop moving?"

Did they mention that they were stuck with their worst enemy?

The plan was chalked out by hero themselves and their plans never failed. But they had forgotten to take into account that they were not taking down the government with their pleasant and amiable co-workers. They knew they were making a deal with the devil when they joined hands with villain and now they were facing the consequences of their ill decisions.

"What will we do now?" The Villain seemed close, in fact too close to the Hero's liking.

"Firstly get your stupid mug away from my face, I don't need a heater in this cupboard. And if you had just followed my plan, we would have never been caught here."

"Are you talking about that stupid plan of yours where you'd play dress up and attend parties and I become a bloody snack for insects? In my agency, the janitor could come up with a better plan."

The government could go to hell but the Hero had more important matters to deal with.

"Oh yeah, the janitor could come up with better plans, why don't you go and kiss your janitor's ass then?

"I'm not kissing anyone's ass. You're stupid and I don't know how you became a hero."

"Oh, but you weren't calling me stupid when I beat your ass in the fight."

"Fight? Which fight did you ever win?"

"The one in front of E.G.H Bank?"

"Huh, what?"

"What, what? Now you can't remember? I remember, I just kicked you once in the crotch and-"

"That's unethical."

"A villain talking about eth...."

The Hero trailed off when they noticed the door to the cupboard open. A frightened maid looked at them.

"Shit"

"That's exactly how I'd describe the situation." The Villain said before jumping out like a cat. The Villain was the most insufferable person they'd ever met.

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The Hero felt the most accomplished after a long period of time. They had managed to negotiate with the Villain and both of them had, at last, come to an agreement.

The villain took out a pen to sign the paper, humming happily.

"Is that...is that a glitter pen? A pink glitter pen?" The hero was baffled at the villain's antics.

They were signing a document of national importance with a pink glitter pen. The Villain giggled endearingly up at the Hero.

"What can I do? I'm a Barbie girl!"

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The hero looked around the alley and startled as they saw two amber eyes staring right back at them. They cautiously backed away, hoping that the villain would at least give them a chance to explain.

"I've been waiting." The low rumble of the villain's voice brought goosebumps on the hero's arms. They were truly in trouble. The villain's usual jovial mood and happy demeanor were nowhere to be seen.

Oh no, they were truly in trouble.

"Look, I-" The hero fumbled, wringing their fingers nervously. "I know I messed up. It was just too nerve-wracking. Going against my mentor...I tried but honestly the pressure caught up to me. I was thinking that I was all alone but I was still trying, but then the media showed up which meant it was live and everyone was-"

"How is your leg?"

"Huh?" The hero stopped blabbering and looked at villain's face. The villain's face did not give away any signs of anger but it almost seemed...worried? No, the shadows from the street lights must be messing up villain's face.

"Your leg. I watched the broadcast and you took a terrible fall. Let me look at it."

The hero hurriedly stepped back as the villain reached for their leg. Was this some other kind of punishment for messing up? The hero had often heard rumors of the villain's brutal methods. Was this one of the tortures?

"Hero" The Hero stilled, shaking in fear as the Villain stood in front of them, daring them to take another step. They flinched as the villain bent down to observe their leg. They felt a warm hand rest on their knee. Oh lord, were they going to snap their knee?

The hero relaxed as they felt warmth seep into their leg from villain's palm. Right, they had heard about villain's ability to heal. The warmth seemed to be pressing a comforting hand to their back as if beckoning them to take rest.

The hero felt their body hit the ground but felt no pain. No, they felt as if they were in heaven, floating through clouds while angels sang in their ears.

One such angel looked down at them and shook their head. They ruffled hero's hair and whispered, "What am I supposed to do with you?" The angel was truly beautiful.

Oh, the hero must be in some kind of trouble.

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"Kneel, peasant!" The villain's voice reverbated amongst the ancient columns, temporarily disturbing the silence of the night. Their purple cape gleamed in the moonlight and they sat atop their golden throne, face dripping with arrogance.

"Um, excuse me, whom are you calling a peasant? I only arrived at foot at your castle because the roads wouldn't accommodate my Porsche." The hero rolled their eyes, irritated that someone would even dare to call them a peasant.

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"I'm tired. Get out of my house."

The villain stilled and then gingerly closed the window. "Well that was a warm welcome, wasn't it?" They grinned at the hero, quickly crossing the distance between the two. "It's just 10 and you're already in bed?"

The hero groaned and threw a pillow at the smiling bastard. "Leave me alone."

"Where were you? You did not go to office today too." The villain huffed. Now some may get the wrong idea that villain was dying to meet hero everyday but that was far from the truth. Not too far away though.

"I had plans with a friend." The hero mumbled drowsily, the villain's presence preventing them from passing out.

"Friend?"

"Yes"

The villain could almost taste the raw and bitter jealousy on their tongue.

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"I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you, I'm straight so your seduction won't really work on me." The hero almost apologized once again when they noticed the villain looking like a kicked puppy.

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The villain gaped at the screen mortified as they saw themselves get absolutely thrashed by the hero. The hero's fist bashed their nose in the video and it almost felt like they were in that moment once again. What's worse is that godforsaken little shit had uploaded the video on YouTube.

After another two minutes and forty seven seconds of torture, the footage finally cutoff to hero sitting in a basement like space. "So that's it for today guys. Special thanks to villain for being a special guest on our channel. I'll see you in my next video. Peace out."

Peace? The hero will not be having peace for some time now.