Zazm and Jahanox entered the dark alley, the sun was shining but it rays weren't reaching the alley, giving it a creepy vibe. The air was filled with a stinking smell of garbage.
Jahanox hesitated, glancing down the alley. It was dimly lit, shadows pooling in the corners, and he felt a shiver run down his spine. "Are you sure about this? It looks... sketchy."
Zazm waved a hand dismissively. "Come on, it's just an alley. We need to find someone who won't be missed. Trust me, I have a good feeling about this."
With a reluctant sigh, Jahanox followed Zazm into the alley, his heart pounding in his chest. 'Why am I stuck with this psycho' Jahanox thought to himself.
They crept deeper into the shadows, and at the end of the alley, they spotted a figure--a fat man hunched over, engrossed in his phone. His expression creepy and worry etched on his face about something.
"There he is," Zazm whispered, excitement bubbling in his voice. "Our guinea pig."
Jahanox frowned, crossing his arms. "Guinea pig? Zazm, that's a human being! What if something goes wrong? He could be innocent!"
Zazm's expression darkened, the light in his eyes completely vanished, and he let out a low chuckle. "Innocent? You should take a closer look at his threads."
Jahanox squinted, trying to see what Zazm meant. "What do you mean?" Whenever Zazm's looked at anyone like that Jahanox knew it wasn't due to good intentions.
Zazm pointed at the man, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "His threads are darkish gray. That means he's not as innocent as you think."
Jahanox's eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you serious? How can you tell that just by looking at him?"
Zazm nodded, his gaze unwavering. "I've been studying threads for a while now. They tell a story, and his is one of ugly ones. I told you the grayish or blackish the threads the more tainted the soul. I saw his threads back when we were on bench."
Jahanox hesitated, glancing back at the man. "What should I do? How can I control his mind?"
Zazm leaned closer, his voice low and urgent. "So....Here's the plan." Zazm tied his shoelaces, "I'll distract him, and you sneak up behind him. Once you're in position, think about controlling his mind. Just focus on it as if he's under your control."
"Wait what? Think what? How?" Jahanox admitted, his heart racing. "Can't you just explain it to me?"
Zazm shook his head, a grin spreading across his face. "It's better to see it in action. Trust me. Just imagine yourself controlling him and it'll work."
With that, Zazm took a deep breath and strode confidently toward the fat man. "Hey, mister! You seem lost. Need some help?" he called out, his voice cheerful.
The fat man looked up, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. "You... you who-who are you, you saw it, didn't you?" His tone was filled with a mix of fear and aggression, a creepy smile creeping across his face.
Jahanox felt a chill run down his spine. He watched as Zazm maintained his composure, though he could see a flicker of unease in his friend's eyes.
"I don't know what you are talking about." Zazm shrugged and continued, "I saw nothing," Zazm replied, forcing a smile. "I was just asking if you needed help."
The fat man's laughter echoed through the alley, a maniacal sound that sent shivers down Jahanox's spine. "I'll kill you all! I'll kill you!" he shouted, suddenly lunging at Zazm with his hands raised, ready to strangle him.
"Zazm!" Jahanox shouted, panic rising in his chest. Zazm reacted on instincts quickly, throwing a punch that connected with the man's jaw.
The fat man stumbled back, blood trickling from his nose, but he quickly regained his footing, his eyes wild with rage. "You think you can hurt me?" he snarled, charging at Zazm again.
Jahanox watched in horror as Zazm dodged the man's grasp, but the fat man was surprisingly agile for his size. He swung a fist, catching Zazm in the side, and Jahanox winced at the impact.
"Zazm, be careful!" Jahanox yelled, feeling helpless.
Zazm grunted, his expression shifting from confidence to determination. He retaliated with a series of quick punches, landing a few solid hits, but the fat man seemed unfazed. Zazm tackled the man trying to throw him off but the man pushed him away.
With a roar, he tackled Zazm to the ground, pinning him beneath his weight. He started strangling Zazm.
Zazm held his hands trying to loosen the grip and kicked him in between the legs with full force. The man's grip loosened and Zazm took the chance and tightly grabbed him.
Zazm struggled beneath the man, his face contorted in pain. "NOX! Now's your chance! Use your powers!" he gasped, trying to hold the man still.
Jahanox took a deep breath, his mind racing. He remembered Zazm's instructions. He had to focus. He had to think about controlling the man's mind. He closed his eyes, trying to center himself, but the chaos of the moment made it difficult.
"Think about it, Jahanox!" Zazm urged, his voice"Think about it, Jahanox!" Zazm urged, his voice strained as he struggled beneath the weight of the fat man. "You can do this! Just focus!"
Jahanox opened his eyes, determination flooding through him. He took a step forward, his heart pounding in his chest. He could see Zazm's face turning red, the fat man's hands gripping him tightly.
He quickly rushed at him and touched his hand on his hand, "Okay, okay!" he muttered to himself, trying to calm his racing thoughts. "I can do this."
He closed his eyes again, visualizing the fat man's mind as a vast landscape. "I need to control him," he whispered, focusing on the idea of bending the man's will. "You are under my control. You will listen to me."
As he concentrated, he felt a strange energy building within him, a connection forming between him and the fat man. He opened his eyes, and to his surprise, the man's expression shifted. The wild look in his eyes dulled, replaced by a vacant stare.
"Yes," Jahanox breathed, feeling a rush of power. "It's working!"
"Keep going!" Zazm shouted, his voice strained but filled with encouragement. "You're doing it!"
Jahanox took a deep breath, feeling the energy flow through him. "You will do what I say," he commanded, his voice steady. "You will forget everything that just happened."
The fat man blinked slowly, his grip on Zazm loosening slightly.
"Now, stand up," Jahanox instructed, feeling a surge of confidence. The fat man obeyed, rising to his feet and stepping back from Zazm, who quickly scrambled to his own feet, breathing heavily.
He held his neck in pain, it had turned red from the pressure, if he hadn't kicked him, he would've died for sure.
"Whoa, you did it!" Zazm exclaimed, his eyes wide with disbelief. "You actually did it!"
Jahanox felt a mix of exhilaration and disbelief. "I can't believe it! I just controlled his mind!"
"Now, let's see how far you can take this," Zazm said, a grin spreading across his face. "Make him do something... that'll satisfy me."
Jahanox turned to the fat man, who stood there with a blank expression. "Alright, um... start dancing!" he commanded, a laugh bubbling up inside him.
To his surprise, the fat man began to sway awkwardly, his arms flailing as he moved to an imaginary beat. Jahanox and Zazm burst into laughter, the tension of the moment dissipating as they watched the man dance like no one was watching.
"Look at him go!" Zazm chuckled, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. "This is amazing! But this isn't enough do something more extravagant."
"Okay, now make him do the chicken dance!" Jahanox shouted, unable to contain his amusement.
The fat man immediately switched to the chicken dance, flapping his arms and clucking like a bird. Jahanox doubled over with laughter, and even Zazm couldn't help but join in.
"This is incredible!" Jahanox exclaimed between fits of laughter. "I can't believe I'm controlling him like this!"
After a few moments of hilarity, Jahanox decided to take it a step further. Zazm noticed this and whispered in his ear.
Jahanox laughed at the idea and commanded the man, "Ok you'll act like a fish out of water while singing twinkle twinkle star."
The fat man laid on the ground and started moving his hands and legs in sync while jumping on his fat stomach.
The fat man cleared his throat dramatically and began belting out a ridiculous rendition of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," his voice off-key and exaggerated. Jahanox and Zazm were in stitches, tears streaming down their faces as they watched the spectacle unfold.
"Okay, okay, that's enough!" Jahanox finally said, raising his hands in surrender. "Let's see if I can wipe his memory now."
"Nah just ask him to go home and jump off a building or something." Zazm spoke in a mocking tone, still laughing.
"Let's not become murderers." Jahanox spoke in a low tone and walked towards the man. He focused again, feeling the energy within him shift.
"You will forget everything that just happened," he instructed, his voice firm. "You will remember nothing of this encounter."
The fat man blinked, his expression returning to a blank stare. The man nodded while sitting on the ground.
Jahanox felt a wave of satisfaction wash over him. "Did it worked? I think It did it! I actually wiped his memory!"
Zazm clapped him on the back, grinning widely. "You're a natural! This is incredible, Jahanox. We've only just scratched the surface of your abilities."
'How the hell?' though Zazm was smiling on the outside his thoughts raced trying to figure out how did Jahanox managed to use his powers this quickly.
Jahanox noticed it and looked back at Zazm with a smile and asked, "what's up? You wanted to do something else?"
Zazm shook his head, "You know it's just weird..." Jahanox confusingly asked, "What is?"
'I think it's because he didn't have to learn to use his powers on his own..' he thought to himself before his smile reappeared. "Nah, nothing... Just talking to myself."
Jahanox looked at the fat man, who stood there, completely oblivious to what had just transpired. "What should we do with him now?" he asked, feeling a twinge of guilt.
Zazm shrugged, his expression a little angry. "We could just leave him here. He won't remember a thing, and he'll probably just wander off."
"Yeah, but what if he wakes up and causes trouble?" Jahanox replied, glancing nervously at the man.
Zazm smiled and started walking towards the man who still under Jahanox's control. "Zazm?" Jahanox called out to Zazm. But his eyes widened the next second.
Thuckk
The man fell down as Zazm had kicked him straight in the stomach. Zazm got on top of him and started an assault of punches. "HEY, STOP WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Jahanox ran towards Zazm and got him away from the fat man.
Jahanox looked at his face and his eyes widened, his face was nearly unrecognizable. He laid there covered in blood, his mouth remained open. He looked back at Zazm who was smiling like usual, blood flowing down from his fists.
Zazm waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry about that... Trust me he deserved every single one of them. I wish I could kill him!" He exclaimed nearly losing his calm.
"I trust you... I'll release the mind control and disappear." Jahanox let out a sigh and put his hand back on man's head, "Mind control, release."
Zazm and Jahanox quickly ran away from there and got out on the streets. They can see the lights and can hear the murmuring and laughters of the crowd.
"Stop Zazm take this." Jahanox put his hand in his pocket pulling out a small towel. Zazm took it and quickly wiped out his fists and the blood on his face, he threw the small towel in the trashbin.
"Who the hell carries a small towel like that around? But anyways thanks" Zazm spoke in a funny tone and Jahanox simply shrugged.
"Anyways why were you shouting things like.. 'Mind control release', you know we aren't in some videogame where we have to shout our attacks." Zazm spoke in a mocking tone.
"Wait, I don't have to?" Jahanox face flushed red from embarrassment. Zazm started laughing at his words, "No, you idiot, just imagine the power there is no need to shout it.*
Jahanox started walking faster and shot Zazm a glare that stopped Zazm from laughing.
'Im sure that glare mean he will kill me if I laughed' he thought to himself and continued to walk while his hands stayed in his pockets.
They both got out on the streets, they didn't really cared about what they just did. Though Jahanox felt a little guilty, Zazm didn't looked guilty in the slightest. They continued walking through streets, their shadows faded in the crowd, unaware of the things fate has in store.
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