Perfect Enemy

"You're not going one step further Doctor" Said the mysterious 'superhero' only known as Rydder.
Rydder was always seen in a dark-blue cape, a tight red silk-shirt and black pants.
His belt had an insignia on it, which depicted a dragon around the letter R.
His face wasn't covered at all, but no one knew who he really was.1

When he mentioned my title, I turned around.
I smiled at him, before I started running.
He was right behind me, and seemingly equally fast.2

"Just surrender yourself Doctor" He shouted behind me.
I laughed at him.3

"Never" I answered, my voice being even more electronic than usually as it was converted through the new transistor box on my chest.
The transistor was of my own invention, and made an extra twist to my evil characteristics.4

I ran up towards a wall, and jumped over it with the kind of jump only a 'supervillain' like myself could have.
But as superheroes tend to be even better, Rydder had no problems following me.
He was right behind me the whole time, but I am willing to bet that he never even considered to fire one of his customized silver desert-eagles.
The guns were for the lower scum, the thugs that killed over drugs and the like.
Serial-killers and supervillains were treated more respectfully by Rydder, they always had been.5

In all my days as a supervillain, I had never met a worthy adversary.
Not until Rydder.
The last ones were all just jokers in masks, mimicking cartoons, just because I looked straight out of a cartoon also.
But they are all dead now, all of them.6

"You can't escape me Doctor" Rydder shouted behind me.
I admired his courage and his respect, and I respected him equally.
At any time, he could have shot me from behind.
At any time, I could have turned around and done the same.
But none of us even considered it, we just kept running.7

As I ran into an alley, I realized it was a dead end.
After a brief look around, I found a way out.
I ran over to a fire-escape ladder, and climbed up, up to the roof of the house.
I could hear Rydder climbing behind me, catching up.8

"Go ahead Doctor, the roof is the easiest place for me to catch you" Rydder shouted.
I laughed at him with my electronic voice.
Then I ran across the roof, towards a large gap between the roof we were on and another roof.
Once again I jumped an extraordinarily long jump, and barely made it across.
I never doubted that Rydder would make the same jump.
But what I did do was wait, as I noticed he had fallen slightly behind.9

I watched him run towards the edge of the first roof.
I stood there watching as his cape fastened itself to a sharp piece of metal just before he jumped.
The cape stopped him too early in the jump, and he fell straight down between the two houses.
As he landed, I could hear bones crack in his body.
None of us though that it would happen... The fun was over.10

Quickly after his fall, I jumped back to the other roof and climbed down the ladder to the alley again.
I ran out of the alley, and into the one where Rydder had landed.
He was unconscious, and he was barely breathing.
His nose and left arm seemed broken, and he was bleeding from his mouth, nose and ears.
He made a squeaking noise every time his chest moved, probably indicating a punctured lunge.11

I turned him face up, and tried to wake him up.
But the attempt was futile, he was not waking up.
The scarlet blood from his mouth colored my white suit as I tried to lay him in a comfortable position.
Then I picked up my cellphone, and yes, even superheroes and supervillains has those, and I called 911.
When I heard the sirens from the ambulance, I ran away.12

*13

The next day, I had left the transistor-box at home, as I didn't really need it to speak.
I was also out of costume, and looked only like the normal student I usually was.
As fast as I was allowed to, I visited Rydder at the hospital.
I told the doctors I was his cousin, and as no-one knew his identity, and I refused to tell them, they didn't argue much.14

The doctors told me he was in a coma, and that they didn't know when or even whether he was ever going to wake up.
Then I was allowed to see him, and he looked awful.
Broken hip, some broken ribs, a broken left arm and nose and both lungs were fractured.
His eyes were darkened, and he seemed very uncomfortable in his bed as hundreds of wires and tubes led into his fragile body.15

"But, he is going to recover, isn't he?" I asked the young doctor I was talking to.
Young, but still not as young as I was.16

"We hope so" The doctor said, leaving the answer hanging in the air as he walked out of the room and left me alone with Rydder.17

I kept looking at my enemy, the perfect enemy.
We could have kept up our game for years, like in a comic that never ends.
I could have been the perfect villain, with the perfect hero opposing me.
But now, he was barely breathing, and not by his own.
Maybe he would jump up at any moment, recognize me, and kill me at the spot.
My body briefy shivered at the thought, and I smiled.
But no, he was lying there, cold and pale.18

"Wake up now Rydder" I said, briefly shaking his shoulder.
"The fun is over, ha-ha" I said, smiling at him.
But he was lying there immovable.
And with that as the last words of the day, I left him.19

*20

The very next morning I returned to the hospital.
The doctors approached me as I was about to enter the room of my enemy.21

"Something happened during the night" The young doctor told me.
He could see I was eager to find out what it was.
"It's... weird" He said, "Rydder suddenly woke up... But he..."22

"Yes, what?" I asked.23

"He's dead... inside" He said, "Completely catatonic and gone"24

"And tell me, is he never going to recover?" I asked, with a faint hope that he'd return once.25

"No" The doctor said, before heading back into his office, leaving me to go see Rydder.26

As I entered Rydders room, I saw it at once.
The doctor was telling the truth, this wasn't fixable.
Rydder barely looked at me with emotionless glassy eyes, as his gaze kept going across the room.
He ended up staring at the wall, as he was standing there, not moving at all.27

As I walked out of the room I spoke softly and probably for the last time to my nemesis.
"You're probably better off this way" I said, "but you disappoint me".
And as I walked away, I knew I'd never see any rival like Rydder ever again.
It should have encouraged me, but I was only let down.
"You disappoint me"