Vaudevillain

Chapter 136: A Change of Plans

The ninja turned to the rest of the crowd, "Okay, listen up! We've got a few people around her that don't like us having some fun in their city! Are we going to take that?"

"No!" the crowd shouted back.

Shizuka nodded, "That's right! So here's what we're gonna do! Players always respawn near stores, so you're all going to transport sticky fingers here to places! Anyone that gets in your way, you kill, got it? Our goal is to stop enemies from respawning in our area. Then we can get back to having some fun!"

The crowd cheered in agreement.

"Good! Now, split into three groups."

The crowd shuffled a bit, becoming three blobs instead of one. Once done, Shizuka pushed one of the players on them.

"You protect this guy with your life! If they go down, you lose all the power you had, got it?"

The recruits all nodded.

Shizuka nodded back, "Alright! Let's get this party started!"

The crowd whooped in agreement and split up to complete their task. Shizuka watched with pride.

"It's enough to bring a tear to my eye," she said.

Rampart rolled his eyes. "Are you sure they don't need better directions?" he asked.

"Whatcha mean?" the ninja replied.

Before Rampart could elaborate, Shizuka's communicator buzzed.

"This is Shizuka, sole heir to the ninja throne speaking."

"I do wish you would think things through sometimes," Dextra said. "While I do like the plan, we can't send the players out like that."

"Oh, hey Dex. Long time no talk," Shizuka said.

"Don't try to deflect, Shizuka."

Shizuka puffed her cheeks, causing Rampart to flinch back. "Dex, you know your announcement wouldn't fix everything."

"I was working on a solution."

"And I came up with something just as good."

"I'll admit that your idea has merit," Dextra said, "but you aren't coordinating your groups. How large of an area will you cover? What will you do to keep the players from targeting the same place?"

"It's not that big a deal," Shizuka replied.

"Shizuka, the person interfering has better strategic power than most others. We can't be blas about this."

Shizuka jumped off the small platform she was on and followed the last group. "So get down here and help coordinate. Call up Zlo-roll and Candy Queen or something. We'll make this whole thing the final battle."

"Shizuka, you know I'm busy."

The ninja rolled her eyes, "Puh-lease, you're sitting in your chair in that skyscraper of yours, making sure everything is working correctly. You can do that anywhere." Shizuka looked over at Rampart, who was following behind with his new hero friends.

"Ramp-stamp agrees with me. Isn't that right?"

"I hate to say that I do," Rampart said through his teeth.

Shizuka smiled into her communicator, "You hear that? He agrees with me!"

The other end of the communicator was silent for a second. Then, Dextra spoke, "Alright. I'm going to make a group call, and we're going to discuss this. I dislike that you went over my head, but your plan is better than what we currently have. I'll have Nikola come and join you in a minute."

Shizuka shook her head, "No need. I got my own squad of helpers. Ramps and his new pals are gonna help me put the hurt on whoever's messing with us."

"I would argue we're the ones doing the messing," Dextra said.

"All the better!" Shizuka cheered. "You just make sure that Dr. Zlo, MD MC, hears about this."

"Oh, don't worry," Dextra said. "I'm going to make sure everyone in Menagerie understands what's happening."

Dr. Zlo was watching the newly formed groups of players on his screen when his communicator buzzed.

"Who dares interrupt me!" the villain said as he answered.

"Come now, Dr. Zlo. Who do you think?"

"Ah, Dextra Black." Dr. Zlo leaned back in his chair, "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"We've come across a rather large problem in Haven City," Dextra said.

"Yes. I'm watching it now. How dare Shizuka usurp my plan to build her own."

"Desperate times, Dr. Zlo," Dextra answered. "An enemy has appeared that matches my intellect."

Dr. Zlo sprang to his feet, "Impossible!"

"I'm afraid so."

Dr. Zlo stomped over to Cass, taking the offered drink. "Who could possibly match wits with you?"

"At the moment, I'm unsure. But I shall figure it out. In the meantime, Shizuka has devised a rather nasty plan that involves sticking our enemies to the ground."

Dr. Zlo pointed his cane into the air, "Excellent! Soon, we shall be back on track to unleash our power!"

"Yes, which is why I need you to start collecting the others. I have a feeling we'll need everyone here once we secure our footing."

"Fret not!" Dr. Zlo said. "I shall ensure our companions arrive at exactly the right moment."

"Much appreciated, Dr. Zlo." With those words, Dextra hung up the communicator, leaving Dr. Zlo and his minions alone again.

"Boss, are you okay with being a taxi service?" Cass asked.

"Why, Cass! How could you even think that?" Dr. Zlo responded. "We aren't becoming a taxi service. We're collecting our forces for the final confrontation."

"Seems a lot like we're picking up men, hon," Mabel said.

"Et Tu, Mabel?"

Dr. Zlo sighed. "I guess some people don't understand unless you explain it."

Mabel sipped on her tea.

"It's like this," Dr. Zlo started. "Villains like myself need minions. Minions like the Jacques are fodder, made to fall in waves as heroes come at us. Then we have the more specialized minions like Sill and Jawbreaker. They're smarter than minions below them but don't hold special powers. Then we have those like you, Mabel. Minions with power that work for a goal. Now, I am the mastermind of this whole plot, and as such, I need a veritable army of minions below me. Currently, that army is spread across the cities. However, some rival is trying to stop my final plans with an army of their own. That means I need to match him."

"Whatever you say, hon," Mabel said. She had stopped listening as soon as her employer started speaking.

"Oh, I see, boss," Cass replied with admiring eyes. "You plan to crush your enemies with your entire might."

Dr. Zlo pointed his cane, "Exactly that, Cass!"

Dr. Zlo turned to his controls and slammed his fist down on the panel. "Computer! Take us to Cartis! We have some friends to pick up!"

Psy-Ops was incredibly glad that World of Supers didn't cause fatigue. Or else the player would have been wheezing as he attempted to follow Shizuka around in her convoluted route. The ninja hopped over fences, scrambled up buildings, and even ziplined across a powerline once to move between the three groups of playersall to get them moving in the right directions.

Yuppie flew over Psy-Ops as the group crossed through a small park built in an old lot, Fursation not far behind in his eagle form. Psy-Ops grumbled inwardly as the two kept up with Shizuka, and for the first time, the hero started to question his choice of power. It wasn't fun to run around everywhere, especially when the person you followed created clones to boost her over a fence at the drop of a hat. The only consolation Psy-Ops felt was that Rampart had the same issues.

"Coming up to the next group," Yuppie said from his vantage point in the sky.

"Thanks for the heads up, Yupster," Shizuka replied.

The party arrived as the players shot down a squad of enemies that holed up in a nearby building. It would have been some decent cover if not for the concentrated fire from multiple players. The building in question now had a melted roof, complete with glowing rainbow gunk that dripped slowly down the walls. Psy-Ops heard a hissing noise as the ooze dripped.

"Rainbow radioactive waste," Shizuka said. "I wonder if I can put it in a cup and convince someone to drink it on a dare?"

"Hey!" Rampart called to the group, ignoring Shizuka's pondering. "We're taking over the Financial district in the city, got it? The other two groups are already on their way. You guys are the last, so you're getting the south side!"

"Sounds good!" a player called out.

Shizuka clapped Rampart on the back, "Good going there. Didn't think you could keep up."

"You'd be amazed how many quests in this game make you run down a villain," Rampart answered.

Psy-Ops nodded his agreement. He remembered having to chase down at least twenty villains in Mutatholis. Though his power made it easy to tail enemies, which meant chasing was one of his best strengths.

That gave him an idea. Psy-Ops looked over at the assaulted building, trying to see if anything from the attacking enemies had escaped the rainbow sludge. The glint of what might have been a sword reflected off the roof, leading Psy-Ops to interrupt Rampart's and Shizuka's conversation.

"Hey, I think I see a sword on the roof. If someone can get it for me, I can probably track these players to their base. We could find out who's behind all this."

Shizuka turned to look at him, "And here I thought you were a pretty face. Why didn't you say you had a power like that?"

"Because we were enemies until a bit ago," Yuppie huffed.

"Come on," Shizuka threw an arm around the armored hero. "Haven't you heard the enemy of my enemy is my friend? We're all friends here now."

"I'll go get it," Fursation answered Psy-Ops.

The hero flapped his wings, kicking up some litter as he lifted off the ground. With a few powerful pumps of his wings, the hero arrived over the crumbling building. He looked down to see a dagger laying on the ground, the rainbow gunk about to make contact. In one quick swoop, the hero grasped the blade with his claws and flew back to Psy-Ops, where he deposited it in his friend's waiting hand.

"Thanks," Psy-Ops said.

Psy-Ops pulled the dagger out of its sheath and gave it a quick once over. It was a modern combat dagger, designed for useability and not decoration. It probably meant whatever player used it had a similar power.

"Well? Who do we have to fight?" Shizuka asked.

"Hold on," Psy-Ops said. He placed his hand on the weapon and activated his power.