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"Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha ha!" Cackled the raven haired boy from inside the mecha as it's gigantic foot bursted into his rival's laboratory, right through the ceiling.
Dexter, barely dodging a large piece of rubble, shrieked before taking refuge behind his flipped table, using the object as a barricade.
"FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE, MANDARK, WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE??!¿!!" The boy genius screamed frantically. Which was… actually a pretty unusual attitude for him. After years of repeated confrontations with his enemy, that was far from being the first time his lab was invaded by a giant robot.
"One would expect him to be a bit more prepared to the occasion...right?". Mandark quickly dismissed the thought. It was probably only his impression. He hadn't paid his much esteemed nemesis a visit in months, after all. He must have simply gotten unused to the other's stupidly squeaky voice, and that's it.
"As if it isn't obvious, Dexter: I SEEK REVENGE!" He answered, flamboyantly sneaking down from the mecha and into the secret laboratory. Boy oh boy, he really had missed the thrill of confrontation face to face with his nemesis.
"And the ownership of the neurotomic protocore, if possible." He completed sweetly, slowly pacing closer to his enemy's refuge.
"STOP! MANDARK, I'M WARNING YOU…" The shorter boy peeked from behind the large table. "How long has he been wearing that chemical suit?" The older thought in slight amusement, ignoring the other's increasingly hysterical tone.
"Oh my, he's warning me!" He mocked, continuing to approach. However, much to his surprise, instead of the usual sharp-witted remark, he was met by a large wrench, flying straight to his head. He narrowly avoided being hit by the heavy tool.
"GO AWAY!"
"Really, Dexter? I thought you and me would be beyond such archaic combat technics at this point. It appears- HEY!" The taller boy's discourse was interrupted as a series of objects were hurled at him. "DEXTER!" He exclaimed exasperated as a flask full of an apparently corrosive chemical shattered just a few inches away from him.
He looked back just in time to watch as the neurotomic protocore hit the floor by his feet, instantaneously imploding in a green flash. The Neurotomic Protocore. The. Neurotomic. Proto-fucking-core.
The raven haired genius turn back to his opponent in shock.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT, DEXTER! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND FOR GOOD?" He shouted.
Dexter had stopped in shock, wide eyes fixed at the ground where the protocore had fallen. He was still processing what had just happened. "Shoot."
"Shoot? Is that all you have to say???" Mandark reprimanded, only then realized how utterly whacked the other looked. Even Dexter's eyebags seemed to have eyebags, his hair looked unkept and utterly disheveled. The taller boy narrowed his eyes. "That's not right".
Now, Mandark rarely let compassion get the best of him but, just this time, he'd decided to let it pass. He had the rest of his life to be mean to Dexter, after all.
"Dork," He spoke more quietly, motioning to their ruinous surroundings "Did something happen?". At that, the redhead's unfocused eyes turned stern with exasperation.
"Y e s. Yes it did. Goddamn Sars-covid-19 happened, in case your clearly-not-socially-distancing-ass hasn't noticed." Dexter rambled, his russian accent strengthening as he got increasingly angrier. "And that stupid robot of yours is better be impeccably sterilized, by the way, or I swear to God I-" He stopped on his tracks as he noticed the clearly amused look he was getting from his rival.
Mandark, on the other side, really did feel kind of amused. He'd never heard perfect-boy-Dexter swearing before. The words just sounded comical coming from his rival's mouth and, honestly, he found it kind of adorable.
"You're the worst." Dexter concluded with an irritated sigh. He attempted to rub his temples just to be stopped by his own garment and then slump to the ground in frustration.
"Thank you, I try." Despite his sarcastic tone, Mandark stepped up to the redhead, stalling himself by his side.
"And you're dealing well with your germaphobia¹, I see." Spoke Mandark, earning a cutting glare from the other boy.
"I assume that means you are covid-free, at least."
"I wish I could say the same about you." Retorted the red head, moving a few extra inches away from his rival, as if to emphasize his point.
"For your information" Piped up the brunette, slithering closer to Dexter (now even closer than he'd previously been) if only to annoy the other "I am, in fact, 100% covid-free."
The younger genius raised an eyebrow skeptically.
"I tested myself before coming by." The other confessed. Then, after noticing the other's doubtful stare, he added: "I pinky swear."
Dexter snorted at that."What an attentive enemy I happened to find myself", He mused, "And that fool still calls himself 'Monarch of Darkness'".
"How considerate of you." The red head commented playfully.
"Pshh- Don't you misconstrue the meaning of my actions, clod. I simply cannot allow for a random pathogen to put an end to my arch-enemy before I do. You are mine to terminate with, Dexter."
"…"
It appeared Mandark had attempted to make the last sentence threatening but in the end his words just sounded rather…
"...KiNkY.²" The red haired boy teased, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
"-wHAT?" Now that caught the brunette off guard. He gaped for a moment, before blushing and averting his gaze. "Good Lord…" At least it seemed his nemesis had stopped freaking out, he thought, as he was already back to his usual annoying self. "You're insufferable, Dexter."
"And you" The shorter genius probed at his rival's side "are getting soft."
"Ha! You wish." Exclaimed Mandark, jumping on his feet. There's only so much flirting one's willing to take from their enemy. Also, the raven haired teen also feared if he stayed a single minute longer, he might not be able to keep himself from covering his rival's stupid face in kisses.
"Maybe I do." The red head chimed up and, honest to God, winked at him.
"That's it. That little bastard has no right to look so charming in a plastic hazmat suit." Mandark withdrew into his mecha, not giving the other the satisfaction of seeing him blush once again.
Dexter watched his flustered rival with joy. That is until he realized the other was making to leave.
"Wait! Are you seriously going to just leave me to clean this mess all by myself?!"
"Your lab, your business."
"Mandark!"
"Who's soft now, huh? Ha ha ha!" Mandark proclaimed over the robot's speaker as he triumphantly marched out of the laboratory, breaking through the wall as an act of sheer petulance.
Dexter sighed as he watched his moronic frenemy skip down the street.
"And I am the insufferable one…"