My Idea - AI

Unmasking

The room was cold. The walls, grey and featureless, made it feel more like a tomb than an interrogation chamber. A single flickering fluorescent light buzzed overhead, casting sharp shadows across the metal table at the center of the room. The villain—*Paradox*—sat slouched in the chair, his wrists cuffed, his head tipped back, staring at the ceiling. His eyes were closed, but the slight quirk of his lips betrayed his amusement.

Across from him, *the Hero*—Captain Justice—stood at attention, hands folded behind his back, his jaw clenched tight. Every inch of him screamed authority and control, from the perfectly pressed uniform to the rigid posture. He had been trying to break Paradox for the last hour, and he was getting nowhere. Frustration crept beneath his calm exterior, his brow furrowed, his gaze steely.

Paradox had refused to give up anything useful—his motivations, his plans, his network—nothing. Not even a hint. Every time Captain Justice tried a new angle, Paradox simply leaned back, unbothered, like he had all the time in the world. Every word he spoke was wrapped in layers of sarcasm or veiled humor, designed to provoke but never give in.

"I'll just wait until you come to your senses," Paradox had said earlier, smirking as he casually fiddled with his cuffed hands. "You'll crack first. They always do."

Justice, having heard this line more times than he cared to count, didn't react. He just steeled himself for the long haul. But now, after an hour of fruitless back-and-forth, his patience was wearing thin. He could feel the tension in his muscles, the way his fists clenched tighter with every sarcastic remark, every dismissive chuckle from the villain.

The silence stretched between them like a taut wire, waiting to snap.

Captain Justice finally spoke, his voice low, almost a growl. "I'm not going to waste any more time with you."

Paradox chuckled, as if Justice had just told the most amusing joke in the world. "I know you don't like losing, Justice," he said. "But I'm afraid it's a habit you'll have to get used to when you're dealing with someone like me."

That was it. That was the last straw. Justice's fingers twitched, and without another word, he turned and walked toward the door. He didn't even look back. His boots echoed on the floor as he exited the room, leaving Paradox alone.

The door slammed shut with a dull thud, leaving the villain in eerie silence.

Paradox blinked, his amusement fading. He leaned forward, his gaze following the hero's retreating steps. *That was unexpected.*

As the minutes ticked by, the silence grew heavier. He could hear his own breathing, slow and deliberate, but it wasn't the same. The room felt... different now. The presence of Captain Justice was gone, but something remained. Something almost... familiar.

It was then that Paradox's eyes narrowed, realization dawning on him. He tilted his head and smiled, a dark, knowing smile that played at the corners of his lips.

"Wait a minute," he muttered to himself. His memory flickered, diving back to the night of the charity gala. That extravagant party hosted by the mayor, where *everyone* was dressed to the nines. He'd slipped in unnoticed, of course, because Paradox never entered a room without a plan. He'd mingled among the rich and the powerful, making connections, sowing chaos under the polished surface of a night meant for charity.

And there he had met *him*.

That sharp jawline. Those piercing eyes. That icy calm that barely hid the simmering intensity beneath. The way the hero had danced around the room, always poised, always in control. The way they had talked—just two people, a glass of champagne between them. They'd exchanged pleasantries, had a laugh about the mayor's terrible taste in décor, and Paradox had almost found it all too *normal* to be suspicious.