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He remembered there had been better days where he wouldn't have to think about having to get food, a place to sleep or being in a good place in general. But he was not that lucky, for he never had a real job in his life. All he did his whole life was a one-time chance where he would either hit or miss, with the latter being more common. He didn’t want to think about anything at all anymore, so he sat on his motorcycle and drove off in the sunset.
Paul Phoenix was what people would refer to as dandy. He wasn’t the brightest type of person, nor was he famous for having a good reputation, but he always liked to boast about being the best in the whole universe. His ego was as big as his flat top haircut and it was only beneficial when he would emerge victorious from a fight, which has become a rare sight nowadays. Law has become distant to him, as well as Forest, and all he had now was his street-roaming lifestyle and fighting for survival. He had a home, but the mere sight of it has become unbearable to the hot-blooded fighter. Everything made him gloomy nowadays.
Except for a particular someone he met not too long ago.
He drove into the alleyway and stopped to explore the place. His senses were telling him he had to be here somewhere. And it was proven by a sudden punch in the face that sent him flying and a sinister laughter that followed after that. The blonde in the red gi got up to see a half-naked man in blue military trousers with bullets and pistols attached to them and a body full of scars grinning at him with cold blue eyes.
“What the hell, Bryan. Again?” The undead cyborg laughed.
“Missed me, Phoenix?” He loomed over the blonde.
“In your dreams”, the other man got up and cleaned the dust off his gi. “What are you doing here anyway?”
"Oh, you know that alright", the silver-haired man cracked his knuckles. "Wanna do it?"
A smirk appeared on Paul's face. "Bring it on."
He was standing in an open space of a deserted city rotting in ruins. He had lost sight of Law when explosions fired at them and there had been no signal available. Something was piercing him through his chest - a feeling of guilt for not being able to help or seek out his life-long comrade who had always been stuck with him through thick and thin. Marshall was a skilled warrior and even if he’s been cornered already, he was supposedly fine taking out opponents on his own. However, this whole place was one big death cage and they had to get out of it. Now or never.
Something that got to Paul’s ears was a sinister laughter and only then he noticed a pale white-haired scarred man, naked to the waist, in blue military trousers, girded with grenades and combat knives, armed with a gun. The man’s cold blue eyes stared through him, their dead glow reflecting the state of man’s degrading body that still lived somehow. The man smiled sadistically and pointed the gun at the blonde. Paul’s primal instincts kicked in and he quickly sent the gun flying in the air. He pushed the mad cyborg back away with a simple punch-push-punch series of strikes, but that was nothing to the monstrous man who shook his head and raised his fist. The two men clashed their fists with all their might, creating a powerful shock wave of energy that sent everything off into the air, turning the battlefield into dust. Paul was frightened and paranoid, as this man was clearly a murderous psychopath, but at the same time, he felt great excitement and adrenaline rush flow through his body. For the first time in his life, after Kazuya, Paul knew this man was worthy of being his rival.
Ever since he met Bryan, Paul felt as if his life gained a sense of purpose that was lost some time ago - he couldn’t recall when - and that this psychotic criminal, once a cop, was ironically what kept his fiery spirit up. Hot-blooded Phoenix did not like people like Fury, and no matter how much trouble he would get in because of some rather dishonourable decisions he made, he still had a sense of justice, right and wrong. Bryan, on the other hand, was pure evil, destructive and sadistic for his own amusement, yet it was something that attracted Paul. It reminded him of his old rival from his early tournament days, Kazuya Mishima, but the dreadful devil of the Mishima line was a different type of evil - cold, collected and determined, paying no attention to Paul or his demands. It rubbed him the wrong way, but now he found a new sparring partner and a rival who replaced Kazuya, except that this one was a criminal wanted and chased by Interpol. Nothing was able to stop the mad cyborg - tanks, armies, nor bullets. But was able to do so, and he smirked when he blocked the latter’s elbow strike and pushed him away before he got swept by the quick leg work of the white-haired man. He got up and set his fist on fire, yelling out his mighty battle cry just like in the good old days when he and Law would beat up their opponents and emerge victorious. But nothing lasts forever, neither their glory nor the illusion of victory that Paul had in this moment; Bryan had taken advantage of the situation before the judoka could deliver the finishing blow and ended it with a swift throw on the ground and holding his rival tightly locked down.
“You lost again”, he sneered. “Punk.”
“Yeah, I know. But it was fun”, Paul smiled. He wasn’t so gloomy now that he realised he needed to train more.
The two got up and cleared the dust off the clothes.
“I think that’s enough for this round.”
“Oh? The mighty Phoenix is tired? Did years get to you already?”
“Hey. There’s plenty of other things I wanna do. If you’re up for it, of course.”
“Like what?”
“Hmm. Wanna go motorcycle riding with me?”
The cyborg crooked his head before he smiled.
“Sure, why not. Sounds fun.”
“Alright, but don’t touch anything if you aren’t sure what it is”, the judoka said as he and his rival approached the bike.
“Oh, please, Phoenix. I’m a part machine already. What makes you think I’ll break something unknowingly?” Bryan said as he hopped on the bike without a warning.
“It doesn’t take a genius to come to that conclusion after seeing everything you’ve done already”, Paul replied as he started the engine. He sat on the bike and felt Bryan wrap arms around his waist unexpectedly tight as he got closer.
“Here we go”, the judoka lifted his leg and kicked off in the distance, leaving a great cloud of dust behind them.
They arrived at an abandoned scrap yard. Paul parked the bike outside and got off. His cyborg partner seemed unamused at first, but then he grinned as soon as he got inspiration. Phoenix noticed that and scoffed off at that notion. “If you think about destroying shit and going on your usual rampage, don’t expect me to get you out of trouble.”
“You? Help me? Ha! Don’t make me laugh. You couldn’t even beat me once for the last couple of times”, Bryan sneered.
“I’ve got… a lot of stuff going on in my life right now”, the judoka replied quickly. “This period just ain't great for me, like I’m in a sorta downfall phase, that's all.”
“Then what’s bothering you, Mr. Number one in the universe?” The cyborg approached the blonde and placed his hands on Paul’s hips. “Care to share it with me, partner?” He accented the last word with his tongue out, making Paul cringe.
“Dear God, for someone who is technically undead you sure are horny”, he said as he tried to gently push Bryan away.
“Oh, come on, Phoenix, I know how much you love it when we’re at it…”
“Yeah, but now’s not really the place nor time, and I’m not in the mood either.”
To that, Bryan scoffed and let go of Paul, wandering into the scrap yard. And the blonde followed after him. He had no idea what they were going to do.
Panting and muffled moans echoed through the abandoned smeltery. There were two figures present, close to each other, with their bodies pinned close, no space left between them. The repressed sounds that came from the inside were gradually fading away when they finished the violent exchange of passion and desire, along with a sealed kiss. The two men exchanged short glances and untangled themselves, giving each other room to recuperate and rest for a while.
"You know, Phoenix", a gruff voice called, "for someone as dim-witted and clueless as you are… you do get one thing right."
Paul smirked. "Well, it was never easy being the best in the universe." But he quickly took the words back when Bryan eyed him questionably. "Umm… Never mind."
A gentle kiss on the forehead and lips surprised the blonde who saw the cyborg smiling at him gently. "You're still my number one."
The hot-headed fighter smiled and returned the gesture, feeling reassured once again. He pulled out his partner and laid back on the old torn sofa they found somewhere in the dark chamber, giving the other space. The cyborg snuggled up to Paul and rested his head on his chest, carefully listening to the beat of Paul’s heart. He did this often after their rounds of “durability test”, as they liked to call it. It freaked the blonde out for the first couple of times, but then he relaxed and let his undead lover do it whenever he felt like it. He often thought about it as Bryan’s form of coping with the loss of his humanity and dignity he deserved when he was deceased, and it made him feel sorry for the cyborg. But Bryan was still Bryan. Ruthless, aggressive, insane, bloodthirsty, sadistic. Paul had always hated bullies and criminals, but there was something Bryan possessed that made him attracted to the man, both as a rival and an intimate romantic partner. He didn’t know what it was, but it made his heart race madly in adrenaline and in love. Looking at his significant other who rested on top of him, Paul brought a hand to Bryan’s cheeks and gently stroked them, earning a silent hum of happiness from the cyborg. Bryan knew Paul wasn’t the smartest person around, but it was the blonde’s fortitude and boldness that made him interested in the man initially. He knew a lot of his foes were intimidated by just a mere sight of him walking towards them, but not Paul. And that’s what he loved about him.
“You like doing that often, don’t ya?” Bryan looked up to see his partner petting his head.
“Yeah. It’s… sorta calming.”
“I see.”
He placed a kiss on Bryan’s forehead and pulled his gi over him.
“What did you wanna do next?”
“...Nothing in particular. This feels nice. I… wanna stay like this for a bit longer.”
“Okay.”
There was a silence for a few minutes before Bryan spoke again.
“Paul.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re an idiot.”
“I know that.”
“But you are mine and only my idiot.” Bryan poked Paul’s forehead. “You dumbass.”
Paul simply smiled at the gesture and wrapped an arm around his partner before they dozed off into sleep, sound and satisfied.