Being a Hero

AN: This took a hellishly time because the next part of my job training involves typing. A lot. Of typing. Therefore, my fingers just don't wanna type at the end of the day.

At the risk of being predictable, this is the final showdown with Smiley as we know it. And really, isn't this something Dreamworks would do? No?

By the way, the next chapter will be kind of a tear-jerker. This is just to keep those getting BORED interested. Cheerio!

Chapter Ten: Ornery Odds

It was all so wrong. Going very, horribly wrong. His brain-bots were flawless; their one and only purpose was to obey every last one of his commands, right into the jaws of the most deadliest perils of all time! Megamind didn't know how his brain-bots had been captured the night before, or how they all managed to end up controlled by Smiley man in the short amount of time it took to hide them in his—his—signature doom clouds! However he was doing it, this man was a genius by means his own mind couldn't fathom. This realization was just...mind-boggling his mega-mind.

He had no time to dwell, because a swarm of red-and-blue brain-bots hovering over a nearby building suddenly exploded and scattered in all directions. Megamind shielding himself using an arm and part of his cape, and when he lowered them to look, he saw...

He saw a man flying towards him. Metroman? No, impossible—Metroman was retired now, not even the entire city at its very worst odds would ever—but no, it wasn't Metroman at all. The costume was all wrong; in fact, it was blue and silver rather than white. The design was utterly tacky beyond all means. And what was even worse was the face belonging to this new 'hero'. Megamind recognized it the instant the 'hero' shot overhead.

"Carson!" he yelled, much to his surprise and unexpected delight at having someone clearly abusing the powers of his stolen Superpower Infuser Ray Gun appear. Mayor Carson flashed by again, dipping low to the streets and blasting another cloud of brain-bots with his laser vision. Megamind extended his hands as the new 'hero' drifted back up to the top of the building where he met his blue-skinned nemesis face-to-face.

"Completely disregarding the fact that you're behind the theft of my Infuser Ray Gun," Megamind started deliberately. "Not even going near the fact that you're trying to steal Roxanne from me—you have no idea how happy I am to see you. The costume could use a little work, but that's not what we're here to discuss." He paused, looking up at the mayor suspiciously. "Why are you here?"

"To save Metro City," came the steely reply.

"Hey, that's great! That's wonderful news!" Megamind laughed.

"From you, Megamule."

The ex-villain's face fell. "Oh." Then he had a painful look. "Ohhhh."

Mayor Carson's face formed a confident smirk as he hovered above the street, several feet over Megamind's head. "There's a certain balance of right and wrong," he said gruffly, throwing the remains of a blue brain-bot onto the rooftop, the force of which cause it to leave an impact. "That needs to be adjusted in this town. The clock of justice has stopped ticking, and I intend to fix it."

Despite everything else occurring, Megamind couldn't resist. "Really? Then why are you wasting 'time', Mayor? Come on, bring me, the hero of Metrocity to his knees! Make this so-called 'clock' chime on my reign as the greatest superhero ever to grace this side of the planet!"

"It's called Metro City," the 'hero shot back, cracking his knuckles. "The fact that you can't even pronounce it properly after all this time is proof enough—you don't care about this city or the citizens. You can't even bring yourself to care about Roxanne."

All desire to exchange banter vanished then, as if stolen by the wind. "You know that's a lie"

"Then why ever would she be here instead of where she could be safe? Why isn't she with you?" The mayor pointed across the street towards another small flock of brain-bots. This time, a group of four Black and Whites were carrying a tied, bound and apparently consciously struggling Roxanne. The moment they came close enough for her to spot Megamind, she started to wriggled more and shouted his name, though it and several other frantic words (one of which he swore was 'Minion') were muffled by the gag.

"Roxie! You-" Megamind turned a seething glare on the mayor. "You're in league with the Smiley man. Is that your idea of justice, Mayor—teaming up with the villain for your own, selfish designs?"

"That method seemed to work for Miss Ritchi, didn't it? Roxanne?"

Roxanne lifted her head and shouted an incoherent message back at the mayor. It was probably for the best that the gag was there to filter it out.

"Now, before I finish eradicating what's left of your brain-bots terrorizing my city," Carson went on, crossing his arms across his broad chest. "It's time to pay the necessary toll for the protection of the citizens."

The way he said it held motives that were so apparently unhealthy, that Roxanne's eyes widened and she shook her head in terror. "Nrrghph, nrrrrgph, Crrrsphhn!"

"My name is Gladius," he shot back, slowly descending towards the building. Megamind sensed this wasn't going to go well for him, and backed away a few, insignificant steps. "But at this moment, I'm just a delivery man."

As soon as he said it, 'Gladius' shot downwards and seized Megamind by the front of his cape, lifting him into the air with him as the blue-skinned mastermind grabbed the captivating fist in vain and struggled to get free. The citizens standing around the rooftop, having listened to the entire exchange without a single clue as to how or why they were present, scattered to the edges. A woman screamed as the mayor flew skywards for a dozen yards or so, turned around and dove straight down into the solid roof.

The concrete gave way and erupted, sending the pair of the down through a sizable hole and into the uppermost floor of the abandoned building. Hacking and coughing as the dust overwhelmed them, Megamind waved his hands in front of his face, trying to get a look at what was going on around him. He was immediately aware that there were dozens of glowing red eyes on all sides, indicating an irrational number of brain-bots with their own arsenal of sharp teeth and claws.

"Greetings, Mayor Carson. How nice of you to—please, excuse the cliche—drop in," a voice said from somewhere amidst the gathered minions. It was exactly the same as the one inside the Smiley masks, only it had lost its tinny effect. Somehow, the voice disturbed Megamind on a whole new level. Besides the fact that he was being manhandled by someone who could easily break him in half, he hadn't really felt really disturbed until that voice hit his ears unfiltered for the first time ever.

Behind them, the captive brain-bots lowered Roxanne into the room and into the midst of the waiting armada. Mayor Carson set Megamind down with a bewildering gentleness as finally, a figure in a yellow cape and cruelly twisted smiling mask appeared from the musty darkness of the room.

"I am the real 'Smiley' man," said the Smiley man, pacing to his right as the expressionless eyes of the mask glanced them over. "It's only a persona I adopted recently. Most other villain names had been trademarked...much to my chargin."

"Chagrin," Megamind corrected without thinking. Well, that felt odd.

"Indeed." Smiley man stopped pacing, and then beckoned with a slender, gloved finger at the brain-bots. "You can bring the female over here, little ones. She is going to play an integral role in the next phase of my—excuse me, our plan."

"It's 'integral'," Mayor Carson corrected this time, and Megamind risked a glance behind him to see that the mayor's face was twisted by skeptical confusion. "And that's not part of the bargain. Roxanne goes free. I've proved that Megamope doesn't feel anything for her. That was our deal."

"Unfortunately, the most troubling obstacle I've had to overcome begs the difference," said a clearly unamused Smiley man. If the mask could frown, it would have, ironically. "If it weren't for his 'feelings' for this woman, I wouldn't have had to don this ridiculous disguise and play this game. I will admit, however—it has been quite fun."

"Roxanne goes free," growled the mayor, stepping forward. Several of the brain-bots sprung to the masked villain's defense, making a wall between him and their 'master'. "As does this city. If you refuse to comply, I'll be forced to take down two supervillains today instead of just one."

"Ha!" barked the Smiley man. "I'm afraid I could not hear you, 'Gladius', over the sound of the citizens of this city screaming in terror. In fact, if I'm correct, there is an entire building filled with orphans down the street surrounding by these ingenious little robotic minions."

The latex of the mayor's suit creaked as he balled a fist tightly in front of him. "This was a setup all along. You want the city for yourself."

"The city would be a decent start, yes. I feel disinclined to care what you do now. I would hurry—these brain-bots don't discriminate. And these children are the perfect targets; the smallest ones don't even run that fast."

Carson growled angrily as the entire building trembled under the force of his rage. Then, without another word, he launched himself into the air and crashed through the ceiling a second time. Megamind managed to jump forward just in time before a chunk of debris smashed into the floor where he had been standing.

An uncomfortable pause occurred between the opposing sides still inside the building. Now with the gloomy light of Megamind's cloud of doom cast down on them from above, it was easier to see everything in clearer detail. There was actually not much more to see, other than the full extent of the brain-bots and the sparkling veneer Smiley's mask.

"It's taken a long time to get this far," said the masked villain, lacing his fingers together. "True, I was forced to act out against you, Megamind, when my only intent was force some sense into the gifted brain. In some cases, I improvised. Irrelevant now, since we're both here and I can at last speak to you face-to-face without all these pawns and minions getting in the way."

"How loosely you use that term; it may come as a shock to you, but this big blue mug isn't a mask," Megamind shot back. "They've tried to replicate its charming sophistication and failed miserably, might I add."

"Mphhgamgpht!" scolded Roxanne, struggling in her bonds.

"Right. Sorry. As I was saying, if you knew anything about being a supervillain, you'd realize that that only true element is presentation! Which leaves you falling short at the level of an ordinary, everyday villain. Which means, you've already lost. There will always be one hero and/or supervillain of Metrocity, and that is Megamind!"

Smiley man stepped forward as the brain-bots slowly began to float in circles around them. "You speak as though you miss the old life, Megamind. Don't deny it; it is only natural, considering it is your heritage. Your birthright. You don't know what it is your mother and father worked so hard to create."

"How could anyone possibly know what my parents wanted? My mother and father died a long time ago, when I was an adorable baby!" Megamind said angrily, pointing at the masked villain.

"Wrong, Megamind," said the 'Smiley' man, putting a hand on his wrist. The image of the smiling mask and in fact, the entire yellow ensemble wavered and melted away. "I am your father."

And on the topmost floor of a building rigged with a thousand pounds of dynamite and other explosives—standing in the center of a swirling mass of red, purple and blue robotic minions, was a being with a large, blue head that Megamind had not seen for twenty-six years, nine months and eighteen days.

Dad.