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From the moment they met as hero and villain, the rules had been set. Metro City was their battle ground, and their clashes more often than not ended with Megamind behind bars. And Megamind then escaping, of course.
And sometimes Metro Man was unable to apprehend him, and then Megamind could lurk in the proverbial shadows like doom looming over mankind, and that made the showdown after that even more awesome. As if the stakes were somehow higher. As if despair itself would rule the world if Megamind wasn't brought to justice.
They had an understanding.
Metro Man led a busy but fulfilling life. Saving people, and sometimes animals in need, be it from burning buildings or trees. Stopping gangs when they went to war with each other. Apprehending criminals when they had stolen something or hurt someone. Helping old ladies across the street. And of course there were the interviews and red carpet events and cameos in shows. There were often times he would take a few minutes to thank his fans, sign autographs and take pictures with the kids. Shake a cop's or veteran's hand or share a coffee with the homeless.
It all could get a bit much and tedious, Metro Man had admitted to his fellow alien in private once. But thankfully there was that one blue super villain to spice things up a bit every now and then. Megamind had rolled his eyes and had pretended he wasn't blushing when the hero had winked at him before flying off into the sunset, while the doors to Megamind's cell would be slammed shut and the evil mastermind was left to rot. For about a week or so, then he would escape again and the cycle would continue.
What Metro Man and Megamind had, was special.
This went on for a few years. And as much fun as it was to challenge the hero to epic battles, Megamind was haunted by the feeling that something was missing. Something he could only hide for so long from the aliens closest to him. One afternoon, he just hadn't been into it. And his off-put behaviour did not go unnoticed.
'You alright?' Metro Man had landed in his super hero pose a short distance away and had raised his eyes with concern before he even got to his feet.
'Yeah!' Megamind exclaimed with a little too much enthusiasm. 'Yeah, totally fine...' Obviously the hero didn't buy it. 'great day for evil schemes.' Megamind couldn't even convince himself. His frown had been aimed at the bank, whose front doors had been bolted by the people inside. Not that it would stop the blue alien and his death machine from getting in, but he appreciated it that the humans would put effort into protecting themselves.
'Ok, what's going on?' Metro Man put his fists on his hips, face stern but marred with concern.
'It's nothing.' Megamind, usually the epitome of positive villainy, had retorted with only the slightest hint of annoyance in his voice. But Metro Man knew him, and although they fought every time they met, there was no room for uncalled hostility. The villain swiftly realised he was in the wrong for snapping. 'I'll just...' That day just wasn't it. He wasn't feeling it.
And he couldn't stand the big puppy eyes Metro Man was throwing at him.
Startling the other Megamind had thrown his hands in the air and called; 'screw it. Just take me to jail.'
The feeling of something missing did not let up. And Megamind knew he had to be the problem, because Metro Man made sure his hair was groomed and his cape was wrinkle free every time they clashed. The hero had a whole speech ready for their anniversary even, and the army had gotten involved that day, and there were fireworks as well. Not that Megamind had seen the aforementioned fireworks as he had been in jail by then, but he appreciated the extra mile his goody two-shoes nemesis put in.
So no, it wasn't Metro Man. It was him.
At one point Minion opted for a vacation. Maybe a weekend stomping helpless victims in another country would do the blue alien good. Japan was especially beautiful this time of year, and those people would certainly appreciate a scary giant robot leveling their cities.
Megamind had declined almost immediately, as sure, the world had its fair share of super powered heroes protecting the people, Megamind also felt uncertain about going to another city to terrorise it. It made him feel something akin to dirty, and he wasn't sure how Metro Man would feel about his nemesis suddenly skipping continents.
A week off from evil in general then, Minion had asked, understanding his master's hesitation. Maybe just a solid week of sleep?
'Evil never sleeps Minion,' He'd responded, one leg in his jammies getting ready for bed. It took his usually quick mind a hot second, but he caught himself and his fish had laughed. 'you know what I mean!'
Still, weeks turned into months without the blue villain so much as robbing an old lady. He spent so much time away that the humans began to speculate about his dissapearance. Did he die? Did Metro Man manage to kill him? Or was he plotting his most evilist scheme ever, preparing to take the world in one final clash of good versus evil? It got so bad other super heroes were offering their services, fearing the absolute worst should Megamind rise from the shadows once again.
Things were honestly getting ridiculous. So one afternoon Megamind taped his biggest flamethrower to his shiniest tank and he rolled up to the Metro City Park with the intent to burn it all down. There would be huge festiveties during the summer, and how evil would it be if he cancelled them by setting the park on fire?
'You're so vile!' Minion, always so supportive of the blue alien's endeavours, had cheered from the backseat.
Flames and smoke. Chaos. Despair. People were scared and running. It was a great start of a Wednesday afternoon. What more could an evil genius ask for?
'What more indeed?' He lamented out loud, leaning on the console, schooling his face into someting evil and failing, watching the last few people scurry off in fear. Someone tripped over his own feet in his haste. He lay flailing about for a bit, until other people helped him up and away. That was funny. And a woman had fainted. Thankfully there was a brave cop who'd come back for her and now he was dragging her to safety while one of his colleagues had his gun aimed at the blue alien, as if that would deter Megamind from charging if he so felt like it.
Feeling a little playful, Megamind had aimed the barrel of his flamethrower at the cop, having decided he would make for good barbecue. He had to give it to the human though, he stood his ground trying to protect his buddy and the downed civilian.
But as his hand had lowered towards the button, so had the mighty hero of Metro City descended from the skies behind him. At that moment Megamind could practically feel the other alien's furious glare burning in the back of his neck. And when Metro Man had growled; 'Megamind.' the deep, rumbling baritone had sent an involuntary shiver down his spine.
Now it was the blue alien's turn to say something, but Megamind's tongue had become a sponge and he had pretty much forgotten he was a super villain for a minute. When he had turned, eyes big and hand still hovering over the button, the angered stare Metro Man was throwing at him made his knees weak.
The hero, looking even more epic hovering in the air with the sun engulfing him from behind and setting his frame alight, lowered himself on the platform leaving only an arm's lenght between himself and his nemesis. Ready to grab the blue alien should he finish the move of pushing the button. 'Don't even think about it.' The command was so demanding, so heroic, Megamind had to grab onto the console behind him before he swooned.
He knew he was supposed to retort with something witty, but his throat clenched up and he had to press himself as far back into the console as he could when the furious looking Metro Man got in his face, their bodies inches from touching. The blue meanace spared a stray though at wondering when the other had gotten so big as he loomed over him. When Metro Man ground out through clenched jaws that the games were over and he was going to jail, the villain's knees felt like spagetti.
Megamind almost jumped into the hero's arms, he surrendered so fast.
That night he was so excited he couldn't sleep. And no, his problem was far from solved, but at least he was able to pinpoint the cause.
He escaped jail at the crack of dawn.
In hindsight, it had been so obvious.
Whenever Megamind would go on a rampage, he began causing chaos with a lot of noise and flipping cars, giving civillians ample time to make themselves scarce. When he would destroy things, their battle would be straight foreward. Materialistic items could be replaced. It's only when Megamind began to threaten and eventually hurt civilians that Metro Man would get antsy. It was an unspoken rule, an invisible boundry they had set up.
Sure, sometimes Megamind got a little carried away and caused phisical harm. But the disappointment and anger that it caused his nemesis were enough to deter the blue alien. Most of the time at least.
There's just something about a helpless victim staring down the other end of a laser and watching them as their life flashes before their eyes. In that split second, in the few heartbeats that may or may not be their last minute on Earth. Megamind would be a liar if he said he didn't find that exhilarating.
In all fairness, Megamind didn't want to actually upset the hero. But he would be lying if, whatever it was that they had, didn't need a little excitement every now and then.
And what better way to spice things up than getting someone else involved?
The very idea of taking someone hostage thrilled him to no end. Although he had no qualms when it came to hurting anyone, it didn't even really come to mind most of the time, as all he focussed on was Metro Man.
He was just going to kidnap someone. Threaten them with horrors beyond their imagination. Maybe have Minion slap them around a bit. And then Metro Man could save them and they could even have their five minutes of fame for surviving an encounter with one of the most dangerous super villains on this planet.
But that was it. Nothing too much.
The revelation eventually led him to this point in time.
Endlessly staring at several screens. Scanning the area for a potential victim. The party had been going on for a little while now. Snotty rich people gathered on top of the roof of one of the city's towers. The location itself is actually wonderful. An ugly steel cage with a row of windows overlooking each direction, and one perfectly placed glass window in the cieling that he intends to use as the door. The view itself is breathtaking, and the evening is alight with stars.
The very uninteresting billionaire that owned the building had bought a seemingly priceless artefact. Megamind had set his eyes on it because it was decorated with precious, rare gemstones that he could break off and use in his experiments and machines of death.
But he couldn't just go in and trash the place as a big middle finger to the guy who owned it and make off with the thing. No, Metro Man had to come and they would have to have a cool fight. It would be awesome at the top of the tower for sure, the view of Metro City by night is absolutely stunning.
'What about that lady?' Minion points at the screen, at the back of a small woman. However, the moment Megamind's eyes glide over to her she turns, displaying her big belly. A pregnant female is an immediate no no.
'Or that guy? He's famous isn't he?' The fish opts, eyes hopefully cast at his master. The young man is covered in tattoos and baggy clothing, wearing so many chains around his neck Megamind feels sore. But also, he's one of those one day flies, and to be honest Megamind doesn't want to give him any clout.
'But sir, don't you know who that is? That's Lil,-'
'Whatever, Minion!'
'You gotta stop being so picky,' the fish can have an attitude if he wants. The blue alien shoots him a pointed look which goes ignored. Surely Minion understands that the victim has to be perfect? 'that guy then?'
A long stretch of silence follows, one in which Megamind glares at his fish. 'You think I want to get cancelled?'
'Or you could just improvise?' Minion is ever loyal, but sometimes he gets a little tired of the other's bs, turning away from the other before rolling with his eyes. If Megamind sits here and stares at these screens for longer the party will be over.
His fish is right. He's often right. Where would he be without Minion? He tells his friend that, already turning away from the screens and missing the big grin on the other alien's face.
The night is warm for this time of the year, even at this height. His invisible aircraft silently hovers above his target. He can see the people inside move around. There's a little bustle happening on one side. People are dancing and filming near one of the windows. Someone just did a backflip and that did look pretty cool. There's a small gathering near one of the tables that has a big statue of ice on it. People are helping themselves to the snacks, and Megamind picks out the aforementioned pregnant female. Good, he can easily keep her out of the line of fire.
His eyes glide over to the prize. He recognises the owner of the building standing near the glass gage that holds his latest purchase. Someone holding a camera is walking around it while the billionaire is talking to a woman and pointing at his artefact.
Well, Megamind's artefact, if one wants to get technical. The villain can't contain his excitement as he jumps from his carrier.
The glass screams delightfully when he crashes through it and the shards glitter in the light. There's gasps and shouting of surprise and people pushing each other and falling over one another in their haste to back away. Megamind lands in the middle of the room with a noisy thud, and the glass starts raining down around him a full second later. As it all comes down he straightens himself, and he just knows that this entrance was definitely in his top five most spectacular entrances ever.
He'd prepared a greeting. Something witty and evil. But the words get stuck in his throat and his breath hitches when their gazes meet. Locked. Her blue eyes sparkle in the lights of the lamps. Her expression is the perfect mix of shock, because duh Megamind, and excitement, because this has been a terribly forced and boring evening for her and look, suddenly Megamind. She looks very classy, a dark dress that reaches below her knees and petite jewelry, a stark contrast to the flashy and skimpy outfits the other women here are wearing. She doesn't belong here, that's for sure.
She's wearing an earpiece and holding a microphone. A voice in the back of his mind calls out a name he isn't sure is really hers. He's certain he's seen her face in passing.
Her arm's outstretsched at her side. Megamind wonders what she sounds like, but he can't hear what she whispers. By reading her lips he can tell she's asking the man next to her if he's getting this. Megamind can't see her friend's face as it's hidden behind the camera he's holding.
In Megamind's rational, hyper active brain, he knows that this moment lasted under two seconds.
He feels as though he stared into her eyes for an entire evening.
Whatever trance she captured him in is broken when a woman to his right begins to scream like a banshee. Someone exclaims his fear when Megamind's toxic gaze darts over in that direction. The villain knows that his own eyes catch more light and softly glow, and it frightens some of the people. They stand and stare like deer in headlights.
Megamind has an anti-gravity device attached to his right glove. It works a charm, as of course it does, when he raises his hand and the table the people are cowering around lifts. A few get knocked over as he intentionally, but not roughly, bumps it into them, freeing it from the confines of human bodies.
His heart painfully skips a beat as he snaps his head back into the direction of the artefact. The woman with the blue eyes is still standing there, and she's looking at him with such an intense gaze it almost stops the blue creature in his tracks.
Almost.
Her reaction time is astonishing. Megamind draws his lips back over his teeth in a feral grin and turns, meaning to throw the table into the glass cage of the artefact. The woman jerks and slams herself into the man next to her, drawing him and the camera out of the line of fire. The large display explodes and the glass flies around violently, and the table slams through the wall behind it with the most beautiful noise. It goes flying into the void countless stories down. It will be a matter of seconds before it hits the road, and if the authorities and Metro Man hadn't been alerted that something was going on yet, they were certainly aware now.
The villain glares at a few people for good measure, and sure enough someone decides to be brave.
'You're not taking my artefact!'
'Uhm, excuse you!?' He retorts with a snarl, unholstering his death laser from his belt with his left hand and aiming it at the billionaire. Being ambidextrous has its perks, it had to look mighty cool that he could arm and aim while only having to turn half a step. The guy shrieks and trips and begins crawling backwards as the villain begins advancing. 'You mean my artefact!' Megamind growls out with bared teeth, schooling a malevolant grin on his face. The billionaire stutters and crawls out his way, and the alien lowers his gun and marches the last few steps towards the ruined display. His laser still in hand, deterring anyone from trying anything.
So far so good. The laser is designed to harm the near well indestructible Metro Man. If he were to fire it at a human, they would simultaneously explode and disintegrate on the spot. And the mess that will make is such an insane hassle to clean.
The glass crunches beneath his boots and the wood protests as he climbs the display. And of course his calculations are correct, as he ascends the short height, the wind from the busted windows is making his cape flutter gently but dramatically behind him.
Still unsure, but also uncaring for what it is exactly, Megamind finds the jewels on the artefact to be quite lovely and weighty. Knowing that there are people filming him he makes a little display of lifting it to his face for inspection, arrogantly taking a moment to look it over as it glitters in his hand. His appreciative smile lasts only a second, because as he lowers it and his eyes fall on the oncoming white dot outside, he puts on a mask of displeasure. 'Always such a spoilsport.' He makes sure to snarl loud enough for the people closest to him to hear.
Every shot he takes serves its purpouse. The first one is head on to deter Metro Man from charging, forcing him to break off to the left as Megamind predicted. The second shot fired was also not meant to hit, but to force the oncoming hero to stop midair. Only the third shot was meant to connect, grazing the other alien and forcing him to make a decent, out of Megamind's line of fire.
A handful of people have made an exit already. But the majority is too frightened to move, which is understandable.
If Megamind were to move the fight however, it would light the fire under their behinds and force them to escape. Because at some point the villain will become violent, as he's only warming up now, and he will start claiming victims if they're stupid enough to stray.
Megamind is entertaining the thought of taking the whole tower down.
And it's the perfect opportunity to put his damsel to the test. See how she will handle herself during their first meeting. If the villain was going to hold her for at least a few hours, he would want to know how well she can handle the stress.
Megamind can do many things. Reading minds isn't one of them. Yet.
But as he snaps his head off to the side, poisonous gaze landing back on the woman with the blue eyes, he can almost hear her think the proverbial; Oh no. She doesn't even flinch as he turns towards her and begins advancing. Her cameraman screams and trips under the weight of his gear. He's down just as fast as that Megamind has closed the distance between himself and the woman.
There had been a split second somewhere. Wedged in between the moment he grabbed onto her wrist with his free hand, and the cameraman tumbeling. A single heartbeat of a moment he took his eyes off of her. In that window of time he'd turned his head slightly away, and the smack she gave him had resonated in his ears and the heat had slashed through his cheek.
Not even a sliver of anger is what he gives her when their stares meet again. He's once again caught in the blue web of her glittering eyes. Her face twists from fury to shock, and then the fear bleeds in when she realises the alien is a lot tougher than he looks. 'Well now madam.' He purrs and smiles at her.
It drains some of her bravery. She yelps and trips forward when the alien ducks through his knees while pulling her down. Even her weight is a surprise. Megamind had estimated she was heavier, but she's surprisingly light on his shoulder. And her scent is absolutley devine. He's reminded of an autumn morning, chocolate in his coffee, a soft breeze over wet leaves and moist earth.
Minion would be amazed at his poetic prowess.
'Were you not made aware?' He playfully taunts, keeping her in place by holding on to the back of her legs. Her beautiful long dress is now a curse, restricting her movement somewhat and keeping her from kicking him freely. With a wave of his now free right hand Megamind lifts one of the other tables. It crashes through the other side of the building, down it goes, and the wind this high up in the sky is relentless.
It's raining fists on his back. She's quite tough, not just lying down and taking anything without a fight. His victim is quick to figure out what he means to do as he marches towards the new hole. People throw themselves over one another out of his way, too scared to intervene.
'Party's over!' He calls out and using the last bit of momentum to throw her out the window. Her gasp of horror sounds wonderful, and one more time her glittering eyes catch his, in just a fraction of a second.
His cheek feels warm. Hotter than the rest of his body. She definitely had her nails done before coming here because they were quite sharp and left their mark on his face. As the villain takes a step away from the ledge and turns, he knows he will give the people a good look at what she did to him.
His heart playfully flutters as the sudden shock of power flies past behind him and over the edge. There is no way that this did not look super cool. With Metro Man distracted for a few long seconds Megamind retreats.
He spots the cameraman out of the corner of his eye. With all due respect, the guy understands his job. His frightened brown eyes are darting between the villain and the open window that his colleague was just thrown through, but he's moving back against the wall with the camera aimed at the blue meneace.
Precious, precious seconds are ticking by. Megamind swiftly finds his way back to the roof through the hole he made, signaling to Minion to keep his distance for now. He will need discretion if he wants a chance at escaping. Because as sure as he finishes waving the fish away the people inside begin to cheer.
Metro Man has returned, damsel in his arms no doubt.
The blue villain raises his death laser near his head, straightening his back and slowly turns, letting the wind catch his cape. It flutters at his side chaotically, adding another layer to the upcoming drama. He lowers his gaze, face set in a sneer, barely containing his excitement. The mighty hero of Metro City slowly floats up through the very same hole on a wave of cheering from the people on the floor beneath them. The wind starts playing with his hair and his cape billows, there is a frown of determination on the other's face. He's the epitome of heroism.
'You were not on the guestlist.' Megamind teases, taking on a very relaxed stance, mocking the other.
'Neither were you.' Metro Man grinds out, slowly gliding closer, careful, weary of the weapon his nemesis carries. His shoulder is singed. A very clear indication the laser will be dangerous to him.
'I'm in a public space,' the blue villain jests, waving the fingers of his right hand at his side, using the anti-gravity to slowly move the huge table with the ice sculpture beneath them. 'can't arrest me for minding my own business.'
'Your business is terrorizing people,' the hero retorts, frown deep and fists balled at his side in anger. 'downstairs has your signature all over it.'
'I don't have a witty comeback for that,' the blue alien admits with a sly smile. Metro Man raises an eyebrow in question, because usually their banter goes on far longer. The hero knows something is up, the villain can tell by the way his big shoulders square up. 'but I do have this!'
With a wave of his arm the ice sculpture and table crash upwards through the already damaged roof. Metro Man had been expecting his nemesis to shoot him no doubt, because his eyes had been on the weapon and not on Megamind's free hand.
The look of surprise on his face is priceless as he's hit from below. There is no way that the attack will hurt the tough hero, but Megamind has just the thing for that.
Several shots fired in rapid sucsession. The first one grazes the hero's cape as he twists in the air. The second one blasts a hole through the table, once again missing Metro Man when he keeps using his momentum to move out the way. In midair he grabs onto the huge chunk of ice that remained of the sculpture, throwing it at his nemesis.
It explodes when the third shot connects. Shards start to rain down on the roof, pelting the villain. He's forced to turn his head away lest he gets something in his eyes.
That is all the time Metro Man needs as he descends and charges from the side. His hero is so clever, Megamind spares a thought, charging from the right so the villain is forced to switch his gun to his right hand. Metro Man is incredibly fast though, and he's on the blue alien within a second.
Years of antagonising humans has taught Megamind he's a lot tougher than them. Metro Man grabs onto the wrist holding the gun with so much force it would have crushed a human. The blue villain snarls in pain as the bones grind together and he automatically grabs the offender without thinking about it. The other pulls the arm down and the weapon fires, blasting a hole through the already unstable rooftop.
The spikes on his outfit are there for two reasons.
First reason is to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. They make the villain look even more villainous, evil incarnate and all that. They are very scary.
Second reason is so he can defend himself up close against attackers. Metro Man has to take a step back to avoid the blue alien's swipe with his free arm. Megamind couldn't hope to cause any damage with his fists, but the spikes are made of a material that can.
How beautiful and ironic would it be if he could land a scratch on that handsome face?
Pain shoots through his arm when he twists it in Metro Man's grip, but it serves to loosen the hold when the spikes dig into the other's hand. The hero hisses and lets go, blood seeping from his fingers and surprise flashing over his face when the villain closes the distance instead of backing away like he usually does.
There is a split second, a hair's length of time, in which Megamind is able to raise the barrel in between the hero's eyes. But Metro Man is fast, so unreasonably fast, he's ducking through his knees and the shot fires into the roof once again. The larger alien slams his shoulder into the other.
Then Megamind goes flying with a not so manly yelp. In a wave of panic the hero grabs onto his lanky frame and throws him over and onto the badly damaged roof. It breaks under the force and the blue alien goes down. A table, one of the few still intact, breaks his fall. The crash does knock the air out of his lungs and he gasps, sparing only half a brain cell on aiming up and firing at the hero who twists out of the way. His cape is now scorched for sure and maybe his side got hit, but Megamind isn't sure.
With clenched jaws he rolls onto his feet. The laser needs to cool down. It's overheating and will start to malfunction if he isn't careful. He moves towards the emergency exit and slams through the door. This stairwell leads all the way down. Quite a distance. And to his dismay, there's people still on their way down evacuating.
Now, one super villain doesn't care much for straggelers if people decide to linger about. But these people have clearly made an effort to flee. Throughout the clamour he can hear the high pitched whining of the pregnant female, and of course she's the reason people are slowed down.
The noise of him bursting through the doors at the top has alerted the humans too, because several people peek up to see what it was about. Seeing their carefully sculpted faces all twist to fear when they spot him is of course always wonderful.
What these people do provide is a window of escape.
Megamind activates the timer on one of the bombs he brought. With countless people still inside the tower, Metro Man will have no choice but to deal with this first. There will be ample time before it goes off, but how long, only he knows. He turns his head back and gives the hero, who's turned up at the entrance, a toothy smile before dropping the device, simoultaniously firing his gun once to deter the other from advancing right away.
Seeing that handsome face contort into despair is so delightful. Because the hero knows damn well what Megamind has in his arsenal, and that the villain honors their silent agreement in giving innocent bystanders some time to escape.
But those minutes are precious, and at some point the gloves will come off.
'Get through the door!' One of the men floors below calls out. The bomb is designed in such a way that it will beep slowly, but the noise will increase in tempo in rapid sucsession. He can hear the humans exclaim their fear as he himself descends a few stairs, bursting through a door into a hallway several few floors down.
And oh, fate, to some she's ruthless.
Not to Megamind. He can't fight off the laugh that rumbles in his chest.
'You have got to be kidding me.' Her lips are pulled back over her teeth in a feral snarl. She's anything but the helpless damsel it seems. The fall has ruffled her appearance but hasn't broken her spirit. Her beautiful blue eyes are wild, pupils still dilated from the rush of adrenaline she went through.
But she's still standing. 'Uhm, Roxanne,' Ritchi! That's her name. She works for the news station. That's why she's so familiar. Her partner however, Megamind doesn't know, or care for as much. Although he's still holding onto the camera, because it contains some very juicy footage of this evening, he's barely standing. Cowering partially behind her. Wanting to be a man but so very frightened too. His big eyes are darting between the back of the woman and Megamind. 'why don't we just bounce?'
Bounce where, exactly? There's only two ways for them to go, and one of them is through the alien.
There's also no way for them to outrun him. Especially not for the man holding the heavy camera. He's not the most in shape looking specimen either. And she, Roxanne, is restricted by her dress.
The villain's intentions are probably clear in his expression, because Roxanne straightens herself and wow, she's armed herself too. 'You wanna try me?' She threatens, threatens the super villain, with a small canister of pepperspray. Her stance falters swiftly after, because Megamind's smile grows a couple of sharp teeth and he begins advancing, not even raising his gun at them.
She's holding the canister aloft, hands shaking. 'I'm warning you!'
'Don't threathen me with a good time.' He snarls right back, and that throws her off completely. His boot falls eerily echo through the empty corridors.
She, oh how wonderful, stubbornly stands her ground. He grabs his cape and uses it to shield his eyes as she sprays. He counts barely a second and the distance between them is closed. With a swipe of his cape he slaps the canister out of her hands.
The irritating air serves to remind him that she scratched him because the cuts in his face flare up.
Her gasp sends a thrill down his spine. He catches her fist that comes down and blocks an attempt at a kick because her dress is still very much in the way. Even her shoes betray her, because her heel gives in and she stumbles in his arms, actually handing him the oppertunity to restrain her. It's a good thing he's so much tougher than he looks, because she tries to wriggle free and because he's still holding his laser he only has one arm to keep her in place.
Roxanne suddenly screams at the top of her lungs, and it's his turn to be surprised. 'He's here!' Echoes through the hallway, bouncing along the concrete. A very long, very awkward silence follows. One in which Megamind is very aware of the woman in his arms. Of her lovely autumn smell. Of her eyes that are still sparkling, even in these awful, unflattering lights. Of the cute frown that makes her look oh so fierce and so, so beautiful.
'Oh.' Is his epic response. His ears are perked as the air falls quiet around them. The alien is hyper aware of her heartbeat slamming in her chest, vibrating with so many roiling emotions he wonders if he could name them all if he could just stare into her eyes and hold her long enough.
They stand here, helpless victim caught in the embrace of the super villain, gazes darting as if that would somehow help them see the sounds better.
'Think he heard that?' Roxanne whispers, curiosity clearly getting the better of her, minty breath stroking his neck. Her shiny lips inches away from his skin, is that cherry he smells in her lipgloss? They stand in a moment of quiet, and Megamind wishes it could last a lot longer. Alas, fate is a cruel misteress. Even, it seems, to the blue alien.
'Oh yeah,' He replies, voice soft and definitely not as strong as he would have liked. She notices it too, her beautiful blues are searching his face for any hint of what his next move might be. 'yeah he heard that.'
Party's over.
The walls rumble as if outing their displeasure. Violence erupts as the concrete explodes behind the villain. Too close, definitely too close for comfort.
Roxanne gasps and she automatically grabs onto the alien as he pulls at her and then drags her as he turns, meaning to use her as a shield, arm outstretched and firing. Metro Man grunts as the beam grazes him as he turns out its way, damaging his arm but not enough to stop him. He can't close the distance though, because Megamind starts backing off and fires again. This shot is a hit, through his shoulder. It won't be lethal. Far from it. But Metro Man's face contorts with pain and it puts the villain in the advantage.
He's aware of the cameraman that can most certainly do something, but the poor guy cowers and he looks so deeply lost for purpouse. Desperately wanting to do something, anything, but unknowing what he could do to help without making things worse.
It's Roxanne that, ultimately, ironically, is his downfall.
She doesn't take getting dragged around too lightly. The alien is strong, but with his attention on the oncoming hero and his grip on her faltering as she struggles, she manages to break free.
Roxanne is not a trained fighter. She balls her hand and throws all she has into striking his face. He hadn't seen the smack coming and his grip on her loosens slightly, more out of shock than actual pain.
Her face, contorted in anger, flips to terror when he turns his attention to her, his eyes set ablaze in fury.
Metro Man is so unreasonably swift.
The second his laser needed to cool down after the shot fired, the second he took his eyes off the hero, the second he saw her fear and his heart did a summersault in his chest, was all the hero needed to close the distance and take hold of him.
A scream gets stuck in his throat as pain explodes in his lower arm. By sheer willpower he doesn't drop the gun.
He laments a heartbeat, having to release Roxanne in order to defend himself. The spikes on his lower arms serve their purpose once more as he throws the now free arm up to block a punch the other throws at his face. Metro Man gasps as Megamind then twists his arm down, catching the hero's lower arm in the process, the spikes dragging though the impecable white suit and the skin beneath it.
Man of steel. Not used to pain at all. Especially not in the way Megamind delights in it.
With a snarl the villain throws his free arm up once more, and the hero has to block it before it swipes across his face. That is all the distraction Megamind needs as he twists his upper body, gun aimed down at the hero's leg. Their gazes meet and the villain throws him a feral grin. Metro Man's stance falters and his grip on the blue alien breaks when he needs to step out of the way. Again the laser barely grazes, but it's still damage that's adding up.
Megamind wonders what will happen if he fires it at the other's handsome face.
Scorched flesh and rich blood and Metro Man's favorite musky cologne. His sensitive nose picks it all up when he steps forward. Metro Man, indestructable and oh so powerful, isn't used to fighting in close quarters. He usually fights machines of death and giant monsters.
Having Megamind this close, and this feral, throws the hero off his game and the villain knows it. His arm connects with the hero's neck, and it's a good thing he has big muscles there too or Megamind would have cut through vulnarable arteries.
In this distraction the blue creature pushes the piping hot barrel of his laser against the other's chest. He can't fire it. Calculations always swim through his mind and the chance of the weapon backfiring is too great as of right now. And he desperately needs it to defend himself. It needs a minute to cool down, just one meager minute, now less than a minute, that might as well be taking the rest of the night.
But the nozzle is burning through the hero's suit and skin and the larger man groans, and as he fights the other off Megamind throws his other arm up, striking the other underneath his mighty chin and scratching the other with the spikes. He throws a long leg out to trip his nemesis with the momentum, and Metro Man falls backwards and that is all Megamind needs.
Precious, endless seconds start ticking down. The weapon slowly readying to be fired once more. But Megamind is an expert in stalling for time, too.
A quiet falls around them, with only their ragged breaths disturbing it.
Metro Man grunts and their eyes meet. The hero is defiant, as always, and the corner of his mouth twitches upwards as he thinks of something cool to say. 'What, no speech? No final words?' Megamind wants to punch that cheeky smile off of his handsome face. 'No kiss goodbye?' Oh his hero has his way with words.
Megamind chuckles. 'I'll gladly say a few words at your funeral.'
This was the moment. This right here, the clock ran out and his death laser was once again ready to fire.
Had it not been for the weight suddenly landing on his back. An arm snakes around his throat, uncaring if she will hurt herself, and Megamind's heart painfully flutters in his chest.
'Miss Ritchi,' He growls. Her weight alone is not enough to stagger him. He throws his free hand up and manages to grab onto the neck of her dress. 'the adults are talking.' He'd planted his feet and braced himself, ready to throw her off. But his sight of Metro Man is suddenly blocked by her free hand, and the bright yellow canister from earlier.
When she whispers hoarsely in his ear a tremor crawls down his spine followed by a hot feeling he can't name. 'Think you can handle a real woman?'
The moment he laid eyes on her, he knew she was the one.
Now, that is confirmed to the absolute. Without any regard for herself she presses the button and fire explodes in his eyes. She cries out in pain herself, and Megamind snarls in agony and anger. The grip on her dress tightens and her arm around his neck loosens. She goes flying over his shoulder, and he screams in fury, unable to see, feet uncertain as he backs away from her.
There is no inkling of satisfaction for him, because her body did not smack into the ground as he'd meant it too.
A thought cries out that he should be thankful for how gallant Metro Man is, catching her, breaking her fall, and putting her to safety.
But now he'd much rather see what exactly happens if he shoots her with the laser.
'You little wretch!' The blue creature screams, beyond himself in anger, aiming his gun at her, making the grave mistake of shifting his rage.
Metro Man had ducked to his left, and in that long second Megamind saw, through watering, burning eyes, the hero prepare himself. 'No...' He snarls through clenched jaws, eyes wide and crazed, turning on his heel back at the other. Not fast enough. The hero charges, slamming a shoulder into his nemesis. Not only does it knock the air out of his lungs, it happens with so much force the wall behind him crumbles as his back slams through it. He can feel something, no, several somethings, snap inside of him and well, that's never good.
His death laser clatters... somewhere beyond his reach.
Dust and debris go flying, and that combined with the pepper spray to the face a moment before draws a couple of painful coughs. It takes him, he doesn't know how long actually, it takes him a while to regain his bearings.
The distance he's traveled is quite impressive. He's in the middle of a fancy penthouse, staring at an expensive chandelier that softly glitters as it sways.
Her blue eyes flash before his own. The alien gasps for air. Clutching his chest. Agony with every breath. His mouth is wet.
The hero closes in, his footfalls echoing over the wooden floor. 'You're done Megamind. It's way past your bedtime.'
'Ugh... I don't wanna,' He rasps put, metal coating his tongue.
There's hands on him. Metro Man makes quick work of restraining the other alien. Normal cuffs are for normal people. The villain is restrained with a pair of far bigger, far stronger metal and chains. Blood pours from his lips faster than he can swallow. 'you're such a partypooper.' He grinds out, voice rough. Despite the hate, his nemesis is careful as he wraps the chains around his arms and body, tightly securing him. Very much aware of the damage caused when he slammed the blue alien through the wall.
Megamind has escaped stronger bounds, but this will have to do.
'Sorry buddy,' Metro Man's soft voice, yet so very manly, is such a stark contrast to the loud, heroic boasting of before. With a gentle hand the hero lifts the other, dragging the smaller alien to his feet. Megamind has trouble finding his footing, white flashing before his eyes from the pain. He has to blink a few times and steady his breathing, nothing is in focus anymore. Metro Man has enough honor for the both of them, holding him up instead of letting him fall.
Their eyes meet and the hero gently runs a thumb over the side of his blue face. The cuts there burn up, making themselves known once again. 'you need your beautysleep.'
It takes Megamind an insane amount of effort, with all of that blood splattering all over the place, and his insides screaming, but he schools a look of horror and disbelief on his face, as if Metro Man had just thrown the ultimate insult at him.
'That was just mean, even for my standards.' His hero doesn't dignify it with a retort. He just laughs softly.
Party's over.
Megamind is unsure if he could manage anything else anyway. He's pleased Minion has kept his distance. Things would have been a lot worse if the fish would have been captured too. Now Minion can bust him out when the time comes, and that alone is the reason why Megamind surrenders.
A serious effort had been made to lock him away for all eternity.
He's out again a month later.
'I would've come sooner, but your injuries were severe and at least they took good care of you.' Having literally every limb strapped to a bed while hooked up to aggressively beeping machines, all the while staring into bright lights that were never turned off while being sedated out of his wits wasn't his idea of being treated well, but to be fair Megamind had expected nothing less from the humans.
'Well, that was one of the reasons I didn't come sooner.'
'What do you mean?' He doesn't question Minion's loyalty to him. Not even for a second. His voice remains gentle.
'Well, you put on quite a show,' His brows had furrowed in confusion.
Instead of explaining himself, Minion had just shown him.
Because of course, there was plenty of footage of that fateful evening. People had filmed on their phones, and there of course had been Roxanne and whatever his name was, and wow, did they do their job.
'This is the uncut version,' His fish said. 'they had to censor a lot.'
The news station had done a whole special on that evening, because apparently it had been insanely spectacular. And Megamind hadn't even blown up the building. If anything, the amount of damage he'd caused had been near nonexistent, it was a little embarrassing.
But his embarrassment had swiftly melted away the moment he saw her again. Roxanne and her cameraman sitting on one couch, the two hosts of the show on the other. She was, like he remembered, absolutely stunning. No longer wearing that cursed dress but clad in a beautiful blouse with small ruffles, and dark pants that hugged her curvy frame. So very classy. Her eyes still sparkled and her smile made something in his chest flutter, but he blamed it on the drugs the humans had pumped into his system.
They speak about the evening while reviewing footage, going through it step by step without missing even one juicy detail.
It started off absolutely brain dead boring, because of course, but they had to let the viewers know they were there for Mr. Too Much Money and his artefact.
'And then, disaster struck.' The female hostess jokes, and they move to footage of the villain's entrance.
It came from someone who had been filming his friends. Someone does a backflip. It shows the people having a good time until one of the guys pointed up. 'Eyoo what is that?' The camera had raised to the glass ceiling. It was very unclear what they were looking at, until the black dot rapidly grew in size and Megamind had come crashing down in a hailstorm of glass. The floor had shaken under his landing, and the glass rained down around the villain and wow, Megamind knew it would look cool, but just wow.
'This is probably the best entrance you've ever done, if I may say so.'
'Thank you Minion, that's very nice of you.'
The show continues, footage shown and the hosts and their two guests commenting. Although the scratches had healed long ago, Megamind feels them ghost along his cheek when he watches Roxanne slap him.
'I can't believe you did that,' the hostess commented, while the footage played of Megamind taking hold of his hostage. 'I think I would've been crying.'
'Oh I would definitely be crying,' her male co-host jokes. 'I think I'd start right about now.' On screen, Megamind throws Roxanne out the window and turns away. Indeed, the marks on his blue skin are red and clearly visible, and so is the flash of white that flies past him to catch the falling victim.
The camera cuts to a close-up of Roxanne, and whatever is discussed after that is lost to the villain. He just sits in his chair and stares, studying her face, noticing her glossy lips, wondering if they smell like cherries or if this is a different one. She has a cute wrinkle in her nose when she smiles.
He doesn't even hear what she says, as footage from the newsstation shows Roxanne walking down the corridor where he'd run into them. Her visage is wild and she still upholds as if she'd just been on a thrill ride in an amusement park. Megamind is once again struck by how well she carries herself, and he can't name the nauseating feeling in his stomach when she turns to the camera and laughs, all giddy and beautiful and maybe it's the drugs and he should try vomiting again to empty his stomach because he's starting to feel hot.
That's when Megamind realises the camera guy had been filming the entire time. 'You have got to be kidding me.' He watches himself burst through the door they were nearing and their happy little bubble pops.
Minion and he watch the scene unfold, and Megamind only half registers the comments made about how scary that must have been and how dangerous the villain is. 'So no one has seen you actually go toe to toe with Metro Man like this,' Minion speaks up when they reach the point where Megamind had been aiming his gun at the floored hero. 'like, people are actually scared of you now.'
'As they should be Minion!' He doesn't know if he should be insulted or worried that people have not been terrified of him before this.
'No but you went in on Metro Man. I mean look at you,' They watch the final moments of the conflict, in which Roxanne sprays him and herself with the pepper spray. Admiration flutters through his chest and he can once more feel her weight ghost on top of his back. Her breath on his neck. Minty and warm and cherries. An involuntary shiver rolls over his spine.
For a moment his breath catches in his throat as he watches himself stumble with Roxanne on top of him. A flash of worry when she goes flying. Now that he's thinking straight again, he feels a sharp pang of guilt cutting through his chest for losing himself like this. There had been a window of time in which he had meant to kill her. Damn, he looks absolutely demented by the end of the fight.
He's very thankful Metro Man was there to save her.
'that's why I left you in the facility. Let you cool off for a bit.'
He really doesn't know whether to be furious or not. His chest is roiling with unnamed emotions and his head has yet to clear up from the drugs. He stares at himself, at the downright deranged look in his eyes as he turns towards the hero. The flash of realisation that defeat was iminent. And then the fight is over as Metro Man slams him through the wall.
He can still hear the muffled sounds of bones snapping inside of himself. Can feel them give way under the force.
She smelled like autumn morning and mint and cherries. Her eyes were so bright and sparkly. They still are. Minion's talking to him again, maybe, but he doesn't hear what he says because Roxanne is talking. He doesn't register what she says either, he's staring at her eyes and he decides the screen isn't doing her any justice. She's so much more interesting in real life. He vividly remembers just how blue and glittery her eyes were and how they looked after the rush of adrenaline and he wants to stare into them again and feel her minty breath against his neck and what the fuck was in those drugs they gave him?
'Yeah, they really got you good huh?' Minion sounds concerned, eyes darting between the screen and his master for a few long moments.
'I'm gonna fix you something to eat. Just... stay away from any machinery until this wears off.' The robot turns away and makes heads for the exit, looking back only once to see the blue meneace once again enthralled with the woman on screen.
The fish has an inkling it wasn't the drugs.
'Wow, I just can't believe it, what a night!'
'You carried yourself so well Roxanne, I would've had a meltdown by the end of it.' They're laughing. The audience is laughing. Megamind is staring at the sceen and a smile pulls at the corners of his mouth because Roxanne is laughing.
His eye twitches, when her gaze suddenly breaks away from the hosts and fondly falls on her cameraman as he jokes;
'Oh don't you worry about that. I did enough crying for the both of us.' It earns him a roar of laughter from the audience. The male host comically uses the extra space on the couch to turn away, fall on his face and laugh. The female hostess theatrically grabs a handkerchief and wipes her eyes.
And Roxanne's eyes sparkle and she's laughing. Her hand finds the lower arm of her cameraman who's also laughing. He carries himself well despite looking out of place, a professional guy for sure, probably really nice too.
Unreasonable fury is broiling in the villain's chest. The healing bones inside of him flare up in pain despite the medication. He'd grabbed something small earlier to have something in his hands while he watched the screen, but the nameless device now gives way under the crushing force he applies to it. Something sharp cuts through his gloves, through his skin, and the blood feels hot but the villain is suddenly so angry he doesn't feel it. So sick of jelousy that the painful protesting from his still healing bones only anger him more when he climbs to his feet.
Because he sees the look in the guy's eyes when he looks at Roxanne. He's drinking in her laughter like a man in a desert thirsting for water. More jokes and comments are made, of which he doesn't even hear half of it.
'Well luckily you were there to film it all Hal.'
'Hal...' The villain hisses through clenched jaws, lips pulled back over his teeth in a snarl. A deafening silence falls around him when he presses the pause button. Screen freezing of a shot in which Roxanne is looking back at the female hostess, her hand now hovering inches from Hal's arm.
And Hal is sitting there, big smile on his stupid face, a man that's still a bit uncomfortable with all of this attention, a man that's kind of quiet and laid back, a man who could actually be a perfect fit for the outgoing, wonderful Roxanne.
A man that is a walking corpse, Megamind decides. His snarl finally pulls back into a laugh.
Roxanne can wait. She is his perfect damsel for sure. His damsel in this endless battle of good versus evil.
But Hal is going to be his next victim.
---
Like I mentioned, it got a bit out of hand. I hope I was able to keep them at least somewhat in character. Hope it was a fun read regardles. I'm not sure what people like. Feel free to share your thoughts, I'd love to hear them. :)