Vaudevillain

Dr. Zlo arrived at his mansion with a spring in his step. He had the materials he needed for his engine and was preparing himself for his next crimes. He decided that his next outing would have him grabbing the diesel engine and the polycarbonate together. He would nab the suit of armor last, maybe making a show of it for the stream.

However, Dylan still needed to figure out how to avoid a mob of players that would inevitably chase him when he left Skyline. Too many wanted to be a part of Dr. Zlo's story, despite the villain's obvious disdain. That only made them try harder, thinking the revulsion was part of the act.

Oh well, he would think about it later.

Right now, Dr. Zlo had an engine to create! The villain arrived in front of his mansion, Cass, Mabel, and Quartet in tow. A few villains were starting to crowd around the area, but not menacingly. Most seemed to be fans of Dr. Zlo, wanting to see the man in the virtual flesh. Saul stood near them, the man flashing his trademark smile and sidling up to anyone who looked like an easy mark.

The minion had met Dr. Zlo near the teleporter, the man going over the system he set up to keep players off Dr. Zlo's back.

"All in all," Saul stated, "it's a very simple system. See, the whole thing acts like a fan club. Except, people in the club can make requests to ya, which first go through the others in the club. If the request doesn't reach a fifty percent ratio, the motion fails. If it succeeds, I let them send a message to me that I hand off to you. I hope you have a phone or something."

Dr. Zlo looked at his minion quizzically, "You expect a villain to be on the grid?"

"Nah," Saul shrugged. "Was a bit of a joke. I'll make sure to hand things off to you in the mansion ya?"

Dylan thought it over, "I can refuse the requests, I assume?"

"Of course you can!" Saul said hastily. "I made sure to make no promises on the success of their proposals!"

"Good," Dr. Zlo said. "I'd hate to replace you."

"I'd hate to be replaced," Saul ribbed.

The man took out a few letters, "Now, I already have a few proposals for you, mostly the same thing actually. People want to interact with you beyond events. Maybe something like an autograph session?"

Dr. Zlo made a face as he opened his front door, "You expect a villain of my caliber to hold an autograph session? Like some celebrity?"

"You kind of are," Saul pointed out. "All these people want to interact with you and treat you as some larger-than-life figure."

"Well, it's nice to know that they have good judgment," Dr. Zlo said as he stepped into his mansion. "After all, I am the greatest criminal mastermind."

"Which is why they want some sort of meet and greet," Saul said. "You know, to exchange tips or something."

"And get autographs," Dr. Zlo said.

"And get autographs."

"I'll think about it," Dr. Zlo said as he descended into his lab. "I'm currently busy, but I'll put some thought into the whole thing."

"Hey, that's more than I expected!" Saul said cheerily. "I'll talk to ya later. I got a meeting with a local bigwig, and we're going to work out a deal to make us all rich!"

"Don't bite off more than you can chew!" Dr. Zlo cautioned. "I'd hate to find another press agent."

"Hey, you know me. I'm great at working a crowd!" Saul said as he left.

The doors closed, and Dr. Zlo turned back to his laboratory.

"Zat man iz a menace," he heard Brunhilde say.

"Ah, but he's a menace on our side," Dr. Zlo said. "How were things while I was gone, Brunhilde?"

"Zere vere zix attemptz to enter ze building, three of vhich were to plant bugz."

Dr. Zlo raised an eyebrow, "And the other three?"

"Attempting to zteal zomething from you, Herr Zlo," Brunhilde explained. "Zey vere all dizpatched. Anozher group appeared to help, breaking the intruderz zpiritz."

"Good to know you've kept the place running," Dr. Zlo said.

Brunhilde saluted, a gesture that shook all the Jacques in the room to their cores, "It iz an honor to rezeive praize from you, Herr Zlo!"

"By the way, let me know what we need in the way of defenses. I'll acquire the pieces during my next outing."

"I vill endeavour to lizt Everyzing!" Brunhilde exclaimed.

"Get Cass to help. If you need it," Dr. Zlo said. "He's a bit banged up from our crime, but I'm sure he would love to assist."

"Yes, Herr Zlo!" Brunhilde said. With that, she saluted again and made her way out of the laboratory, a few Jacques on her heels.

"Hon, if you need me, I'll be in the facilities," Mabel said. "I've got to start on my hair now, or it will never get tamed."

"I'll call you if I need you," Dr. Zlo said.

The minion left, leaving Quartet alone with the villain. Dr. Zlo paid the minion no mind, opening his power tab to his earlier invention. He made his way down into his garage, the workbench calling to him.

The Rejuvenator!

Dr. Zlo's (patent pending) engine! Using the power of Science, this engine can accelerate a car from zero to sixty in two seconds no matter the vehicle! A distinctive nitro boost that injects PURE POWER into the engine gives it that extra oomph to outrun any enemy, except maybe speedsters.

Nitro Coffee (1 liter)

Jet Engine (2)

Fusion Reactor (1)

Fuel Cell (5)

Five by Five Steel Sheet (3)

Fluorescent Corundum (1)

Piston (5)

Alienite (2g) or Sciencium (16g)

Dylan pulled out the needed materials, placing them all together on the floor. He didn't have enough space to set everything on his workbench, the jet engines too large for the table. Once he had it all in a pile, Dr. Zlo activated his power, watching as the pieces came together.

The reactor started to hum, rising into the air like a balloon. The fuel cells followed after it, placing themselves around the reactor in a ring. The pistons came next, linking to the fuel cells and each other with a flash. The pistons came together, forming into a cone over the reactor as the Flourescent Corundum attached to the cup of nitro brew coffee. The steel plates followed, forming into cylinders that held the entire structure together. Finally, the jet engines broke into pieces, exploding like a parts diagram in a magazine. The useless bits melted to form a solid frame, the two bare jet engines linking to the pistons. Finally, the Sciencium rose into the air, laying in a ring around the entire device. The material pulsed a blue glow every few seconds and started to spin. The flashing grew brighter and brighter, so bright Dr. Zlo had to shield his eyes.

It ended a second later, and Dr. Zlo marveled at his newest creation.

It was sleek, nothing like the blocky engines he saw on cars. No, this resembled the jet engines with their fluid designs. The machine looked something like a rocket, a conical frame merging with two flared ports on the back. The whole thing stood like a rocket as well, looking as if it would launch after a ten-second countdown.

Proud, Dr. Zlo stored his design.

He heard a whistle behind him. The villain turned to see Quartet standing there, watching.

"Man, I bet that'll cause all kinds of destruction," the minion said.

"It might. If I connected it to something destructive," Dr. Zlo admitted. "But I will use this for a grander purpose. Our getaway vehicle."

"You don't want to give it a test run?" Quartet asked. "I'd love to use it and pilot a mech or something, maybe a jet?"

"In due time," Dr. Zlo said. Though Quartet's question did give Dylan an idea. He might need to make his car transform into various vehicles. Like a boat or plane. Just in case. After all, his first foray into true villainy had him assaulting an underwater hideout.

Before he could think more on the matter, Jack sent him a message.

JackOLeen:

Yo need your help

Or at least some mad scientist's help.

Got a project I want to do.

Superfan39526:

Whatcha need?

JackOLeen:

Going to nip this money problem in the bud.

Dylan's eyes widened with interest.

Superfan39526:

Be right there.

"I'll be right back," he said to Quartet. "Don't burn down the mansion."

Quartet looked affronted, "I would never!"

Dr. Zlo took the stairs two at a time, reaching his front door in a moment and throwing it open. A few players watched his hideout, some admiring the design while others tried to get his attention. He ignored them in favor of traveling to the crafting hub.

Fixing the money problem wouldn't be easy, Dylan knew. Everyone was taking advantage of the money creation power to buy whatever they wanted, their purchases not even flooding the market for NPC goods. However, it was a different thing for the player crafters. Jack had complained more than once about the power, declaring it alone was the reason everyone bartered their equipment. Dylan wasn't sure, but he didn't know enough about money to say otherwise.

But Dylan did know that infinite money meant a lot of the game broke. Many of the factions inside cities used the power to swipe everything they could, working together to carve out swathes of territory. What should have happened was months of small factions fighting against each other, making alliances, and slowly building funds. Instead, it became large groups rushing around to buy what they could before it all got taken.

Of course, that was only in the cities. The wilderness still required players to fight to claim territory. However, the infinite money made it impossible for players to take anything after the first faction claimed it. Factions could hire an unlimited number of mercenaries for the job, drowning players under the assault.

Dr. Zlo was still thinking about the issue when he arrived in front of Jack's office. He pushed the door open to see the woman nose deep in a blueprint.

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