Vaudevillain

Dylan was enjoying himself against the Quli. Dr. Zlo hadn't been able to defend against the Quli back at his old mansion, so the novelty of the tower defense hadn't worn off yet. Not even after four hours of the minigame. Instead, Dylan had used it as practice for his upcoming scheme.

"Did you think you could attack Dr. Zlo's base and get away with it?" Dylan shouted at the walker.

It responded by stepping forward, its tentacled limb spiraling around a tree. The mech's chassis was similar to that of the four-legged walker but was only a bulbous head instead of a head and body. The three legs were the only weapons either player could see on the machine, and both wondered how it would attack.

"Hah! It was easy to infiltrate such a paltry base," Oro said, playing along with Dr. Zlo's antics.

Dylan switched his attention to Oro, happy that someone was there to join in on the fun. Dylan had inklings of it when the player tied up the heroes, but now he was sure that Oro was just as big a fan as Dylan when it came to trope-y hero nonsense. Right now, Oro was giving Dr. Zlo a chance to monologue. He pretended to be the captured hero that would somehow inevitably escape the villain's evil clutches. Sure, the two players weren't reenacting the trope exactly, but it was the spirit of the thing.

"But now you've fallen right into my trap, oh Oro!" Dr. Zlo continued. "In mere seconds, my alien helpers will reduce your body to a paste." Dr. Zlo threw a hand toward the walker.

"Not if I can help it!" Oro said, leaping onto the mech.

"Get down from there! Alien! Kill him!"

The Quli mech lowered its chassis to the ground and started using its three legs as appendages. Oro ducked and dove through the whipping tentacles, like a boxer weaving through punches. It was an impressive sight. But as the hero moved closer, the legs moved faster, eventually halting the golden man's advance.

Dr. Zlo swooped down while the legs were distracted, dropping one of his self-destruct patches onto the top of the chassis. A limb tried to swipe at him, but Dr. Zlo activated his teleport belt and jumped out of the way. He appeared a few feet away from the mech, hands fiddling with his cane.

"How dare my own creation try to strike me! Take this!"

Dr. Zlo fired a stream of adhesive gel out of his cane at the walker's leg joints. The gel stuck onto the machine like a spider's web, holding the leg still for half a second. That half-second of time was all Oro needed to dash into range. The hero grabbed the side of the mech and heaved himself upward onto the top.

The hero looked down at the self-destruct patch, "Ah-ha! I've found your weakness, Dr. Zlo!"

Dr. Zlo reeled back in shock, "What? Impossible!"

Oro slammed a hand down onto the mech's chassis, Dr. Zlo hitting the detonator in his hand at the same time.

"Ten seconds to self-destruct," A woman's voice intoned.

"You fool!" Dr. Zlo shouted. "Now, we're both going to die!"

Oro leaped off the mech, falling into a roll on the ground. He sprang up on both feet, leaning into a full-on sprint. "Better run then!" the hero called back.

Dr. Zlo rocketed off into the sky and back to the fortress. He fired off two more shots as he did, aiming for the walker's legs—the first of his quick shots smacking against the mech's windshield. The second connected with the limb but failed to land close enough to the foot to stick the mech to the ground. No time left, Dr. Zlo left the mech to its own devices while he flew away.

The sound of wood breaking made him turn. The mech had grabbed a tree with its appendage and uprooted it. Seeing what was coming, Dr. Zlo urged his boots to go faster. He kept his eye on the walker as he did. Sure enough, the mech hurled the tree at Dr. Zlo in an attempt to take the man out of the sky. The villain dodged with ease and turned around to taunt the mech.

"Ha! Did you really think–"

The explosion from his self-destruct button sent Dr. Zlo tumbling through the air, knocking his hat off in the process. It flipped head over end into the trees below. The same couldn't be said for Dr. Zlo. His rocket boots were still active. The force from his boots sent him looping around the sky in erratic directions, disorienting Dylan. To fix his issue, the player shut down his rocket boots, but that only solved part of his problem. He was still falling.

Dylan spread his arms wide in an attempt to right himself. It slowed him a bit, but not enough to correct his form. Dr. Zlo crashed into the trees below, branches and leaves breaking his fall. Luckily, the villain fell at an angle.

Oro jogged up to Dr. Zlo, who was face first in a pile of leaves and twigs. A human-shaped path led from the treetops to the ground at a gradual slope. Dr. Zlo groaned and pulled himself up, dirt staining his suit. Oro laughed.

"Talk about crash landings," he said.

Dr. Zlo stood and looked at himself. "I've ruined my suit," he said.

Dirt wasn't the only problem with the villain's suit. Despite being designed to take hits, the garment wasn't built to withstand several attacks from trees and leaves. Small holes poked through the suit material, twigs poking through the lining.

"You look like a porcupine," Oro joked.

"And we can't have that," Dr. Zlo replied. "Luckily, I have backup suits."

Dr. Zlo opened up his character sheet and moved one of the spare suits he had in his inventory onto his person. Instantly, his broken clothes were replaced with fresh ones. It was as dirt had never marred the villain.

"I guess you always come prepared," Oro said, still chuckling from Dr. Zlo's landing.

"Not always," Dr. Zlo said as he straightened his collar. "But if I can't plan for it, my genius intellect will think of something on the spot."

"Sure, sure. You ready to head back to camp?"

"Lead the way, my heroic adversary."

"Oh, hold up. Forgot to grab the loot."

Oro walked over to the wreckage formerly known as a mech, and picked up the dropped items.

"Got another piece of Alienite," he said in the comms.

"That leaves us with two more," Dextra said.

"One," Rampart chimed in. "Wait, hold on. Dream's pointing out another."

"Hell yeah, dudes! Seventy-five pieces of Alienite!" Riptide cheered.

"Yeah, now all we need to do is get the rest of the materials," Jack said.

"Let's meet up on the hill," Dextra said. "Dr. Zlo can go over the plan."

"You got it, Dex," Shizuka said over the comm.

Menagerie made their way out of the forest and back onto the hill, making small talk as they did. Oro and Dr. Zlo were still performing their act; the hero grilling the villain like a cop in a detective novel.

"We know you did it, Zlo," Oro said as they walked up the hill.

"Why, officer, I don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about."

"Don't get lippy with me," Oro snarled. "We know you're the one behind all the recent alien attacks."

Dr. Zlo placed a hand on his chest and gave an affronted look. "Me, officer? You must be joking. I'm only a humble scientist."

"Then what were you doing with all those space rocks!"

"You'll have to be more specific."

"Alright you two, can it with the act for a second," chuckled Rampart.

Dr. Zlo whirled to stare at Rampart. "Act? Act?! I assure you, I am always serious!"

"Yes, you're very intimidating," Sweet Dream said sarcastically. "That hat alone sends me to my knees in terror."

"As it should," Dr. Zlo nodded.

"Anyways…" Merla said, trying to push the conversation towards something productive.

"Right," Rampart said. "You've all come up with a plan I take it."

Dr. Zlo clasped his hands together, "Of course! And it is the most sinister plot you will ever hear!"

"Oh dude! Let me tell it!" Riptide said with a raised hand.

Dr. Zlo deflated. "I wish you wouldn't interrupt my speeches."

"Yeah, Rip," Sweet Dream said, elbowing her boyfriend in the ribs. "Don't you want to hear his master plan?"

"Sorry, dude," Riptide said sheepishly. "Got ahead of myself."

"Don't let it happen again. Now, where was I?"

"Announcing your diabolical plot," Shizuka said helpfully.

"Yes… It goes a little something like this…"

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