And we're back!
I don't think I've ever been this consumed by my own piece of writing before, but over the past few days, I've literally been having dreams about this chapter. I've put a tonne of effort into every line in this installment, to the point where I've been sitting in college absolutely shattered from writing, so I really hope you do enjoy it.
Should also probably mention that some parts of this one do get pretty intense, so just a heads-up.
Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter. Got some really kind words so it's extremely appreciated :)
Chapter Ten:
A Bit Of A Pickle
"...and so, as it sprayed a tonne of water in my face, all I could do was look down at the floor and yell 'curse you tiny toilet'!"
A chorus of laughter rose up around the kitchen table, all of which Vector was soaking up graciously. He had originally seen the idea of sitting around at a table with three bratty children, one psychopath teenager, a loud energetic man-child, and a creepily-cheerful redhead as something very avoidable, but after realizing he didn't have much of a choice, he was slowly beginning to enjoy it.
The past twenty minutes or so had simply consisted of general conversation and the occasional funny joke, but for whatever reason, it felt kind of special. Like it wasn't just a simple uneventful chat amongst human beings. Like there was something more behind it that he simply couldn't pinpoint...
He found the whole experience to be weird. Extremely weird. It gave him an unidentified feeling he hadn't felt in some time, that he just couldn't place a word upon. However, though it may be odd and kind of uncomfortable in its own sort of way, Vector could see no reason to complain about being here...
"Tiny toilet! Haha, dat's hilarious!" Dru guffawed, uncontrollably bumping into Jack in a fit of laughter. The teen turned to him and frowned, but in order to avoid interrupting the laughter, didn't say anything...
"Yeah, so...now there's no toilet in my lair, and I have to go to the gas station down the road every time," Vector continued, as the laughter in the room gradually died down. "But whatever, it was still fun shrinking everything."
"Yeah, that sounds so cool!" Edith exclaimed, before crossing her arms in a sulk and giving her brother a frustrated frown. "Why did you have to leave the shrink ray in that big underground base thingy?"
"'Cause I was unconscious," Jack replied, smirking a little humorously. "It's pretty hard to remember stuff when you're unconscious..."
Instead of giving a verbal response, Edith simply rolled her eyes, as if being knocked out cold by the psychotic boss of an insanely evil corporation wasn't a good enough excuse.
"Why don't you just get a plumber to replace the toilet?" Lucy asked, talking while wiping all the kitchen cupboards. She had been sitting down at the booth table with everyone else for a little while, but after realizing how uncomfortably upset she was getting without the distraction of cleaning, she immediately stood up to wash every single nearby surface for the umpteenth time.
"They're all too scared." Vector replied, shrugging and setting his head down for a moment. "Probably because I fired missiles at them the last time they came to fix the plumbing."
Margo's combined expression of fear and anger rose once again with that admittance. She hadn't said a single word yet, mainly because she was focusing hard on Vector and what he was doing, ensuring he wasn't thinking about causing harm to anyone.
Unsurprisingly, she was totally uncomfortable with this situation. The man who kidnapped her and her sisters and almost caused their needless deaths was sitting at the same table as them, and yet, nobody but her seemed to have a problem with it. She couldn't comprehend why, and for that reason, her mouth refused to open, purely out of utter confusion.
Up to this point, he had made dozens of villainous references, continuously mentioning the things he'd stolen, the heists he'd perpetrated, and all the people that feared him. But, for whatever reason, none of her family batted an eyelid when he did, apart from her of course.
She really wished Gru was here. He would never ever stand for this. He would've already kicked his butt and locked him away in jail long before now. She was a little surprised that Lucy wasn't doing the same, but considering how concerned and afraid she clearly was, she would never blame her for not thinking straight.
"Pajama man?" Agnes spoke up suddenly, not receiving a response for a few seconds, since Vector hadn't initially realized that she was actually referring to him.
"Oh...uh, yeah?"
"Why did you fire missiles at the plumbers?"
"Oh, well...I guess..." The young man attempted to respond, but yet, no words came to mind. He could possibly tell the little girl that he was an evil villain and he didn't need a reason for firing missiles at people, but for some reason, that just didn't feel appropriate.
And when he came to that realization, his mind was clouded with a new question. When did he ever care about things being appropriate? When did that suddenly become a concern? He had never cared about that sort of thing before, so why would he now?
And for that matter, why was he even sitting here? Why had he agreed to this? Why had that teenager even invited him to be here in the first place? Why hadn't he punched him unconscious yet? Why was he treating him with actual human decency instead of just disposing of him?
As more and more questions flooded his head at a rapid rate, Jack interrupted the odd silence that had built up and answered for him, since it was obvious that Vector was having trouble doing so.
"Because that's what he had thought was right, Agnes." He slowly turned to Vector as he spoke, who was giving him a look of total bewilderment. "He just...wasn't thinking straight."
Vector continued to stare blankly at the teen for a moment, unsure of what to say or do, before putting his head down and remaining completely silent.
"Because he's a villain, Agnes." Margo stated suddenly in a bluntly aggressive manner, looking at him with a harsh frown. Her voice was very quiet, yet infused densely with a thick layer of anger. "He likes hurting people because he's an evil, evil man."
Not expecting her venomous, deadpan tone, Vector lifted his head somewhat and looked at the girl glumly, before again, dropping it in a sorrowful manner.
"Margo..." Jack muttered angrily, signaling for her to be quiet.
"And now he's sitting around our table..." The eldest girl continued, as if she didn't even hear her older brother. "Even though he should be on the moon and away from everybody so he can't cause any harm to anyone."
With that, a very uncomfortable silence fell upon the table, all forms of eye-contact being ceased. The only sound that could be heard in the room was Lucy's barely audible cleaning, which had also slowed and quietened down a bit.
At this point, that joyous unidentifiable feeling that the table contained had completely vanished, to be replaced with that same old feeling that Vector had gotten so used to. The young man frowned and balled his fists a little, the feeling of the paralysis serum signaling itself in his back pocket again...
"Pajama man?" Agnes spoke up again, this time not having to wait for a response.
"Yes?"
"Did you...kidnap my daddy?"
Vector quickly turned to look at the small girl in surprise, definitely not expecting her to ask that. She seemed very saddened by her own question, to the point where tears looked very close to surfacing, and he didn't have a clue on how to respond or act. He was hoping either Jack, Dru or Lucy would step in to do so for him, but on this occasion, they stayed silent, with Lucy's cleaning coming to a quick halt.
Additionally, the other two girls' expressions had quickly changed, however, not to the same extent of which Agnes's had. It seemed they were trying to keep up a brave front, one that was very easy to see past.
This also gave him another unique feeling, one of which that differed from the last, but at the same time, felt very similar...
"No...I...I haven't." He replied timidly, suddenly feeling very nervous under their intense gazes. "I swear...I don't know where your dad is."
Agnes's head fell quick, and with her, so had Margo and Edith's. He suddenly felt very bad. Not only because these girls looked even more fearful now than they had when he'd kidnapped them a year back, but also, because he knew very well that he was lying to them.
His father had Gru. He was going to be using him for that unexplained plan. Of course, he'd found that out yesterday over the phone, but there wasn't a chance on earth that he was going to tell them that. Not only would it destroy his and his father's relationship even more, but he was also very afraid of how the family would react.
There was a very high chance that they would respond negatively. They'd say it was him that kidnapped Gru and gave him to his father. They'd say it was him that caused all this mess. All the blame would be placed on him yet again.
It seemed he was stuck between a rock and a hard place, and no matter what choice he made from here on in, the outcome was going to be the same.
Things were about to end badly...
Silence.
For a little while, that's all he could hear. Nothing but a brisk cold air could be felt upon his skin, with even that feeling as fake as plastic.
He could remember a harsh sound. One inside his head that felt as vibrant as vivid as his surroundings. He didn't know what it signified, or what created it, but he did know that he didn't like it one little bit.
Finally, he creaked his eyes open, realizing that he was back in that black, empty void. Unfortunately for him, the demon was once again stood there, it's mouth bent into a terrifying grin. For every moment that he stared at it, was another hair that stood up on the back of his neck. Defeated, he put his head down, not gracing the devilish thing with any form of eye-contact.
Gru was now completely void of energy.
His muscles ached. His head stung. His will had vanished. There was no escaping this now. He knew it very well. All of his being had been stolen in an instant, and now, his sense of concern had dissipated. It seemed his prior plan of 'playing along' was going to go ahead in a very different fashion from this point on.
It seemed he had no choice but to follow every command, without complaint...
The demon grinned poisonously, letting the former villain leave its grasp. The procedure was officially complete. It had broken the barrier.
Now...it had control.
This world that it had once dominated, this world that it had cruelly lost, this world that it wanted back so dearly, was now in its control again.
It just couldn't wait to get started...
"I am not doing this for me Felonious, but for you." It spoke, it's voice echoing loudly, even though there were no surfaces for the sound waves to bounce off of. "This world has become so lost, so void of hope and prosperity, that my guidance is the only savior that can fix it now. You will thank me for this. Trust me, it may take time...but you will."
Gru didn't respond. Not because he didn't want to, but because he couldn't. It was like his voice box no longer existed. Like it had fallen into disrepair and was no longer responding to his signals. It frightened him, since without the gift of voice, how could he ever continue?
There really would be no point...
"This world will no longer be plunged into darkness. No longer will it drown in this sea of uncertainty. I will come to its rescue. I will save it..."
The demon pointed directly at Gru, grinning evilly as it did so.
"...from you."
A strong rush of air suddenly surrounded him, and with it, accompanied an equally strong sense of fear. Immediately, his whole head shook, spinning him violently out of cohesion and befuddlement. A smell crossed his senses, one of which he was very familiar with, yet couldn't place a description upon.
Eventually, a voice tore him out of the void, bringing him back into reality...
"GRU!"
Gru's eyes opened to the sight of Perkins and Bandit, as they stared him down at him with a malicious grin. Behind them, buildings, vehicles, rockets, and a lone forest covered a large distance, with the horizon very clearly visible. Below his feet was a metal plain, one of which that mirrored the walls of his underground lab. However, he certainly wasn't underneath the ground...
It appeared he was on top of a roof...
"Do not disappoint me..." Perkins uttered dangerously, staring the director down with a darkened expression. Gru gave him a look of total confusion, unsure of what question to ask first. "NOW!"
Before Gru could open his mouth to respond or at least say something, Bandit harshly grabbed a hold of him and threw him forward, right through a hole in the roof of the large metal building. He began falling at such a speed, that he simply couldn't hold back the violent screech of fear that exploded from his voicebox.
Right before he hit the floor in what would definitely be a fatal fall, a harness tied to his back, that had now registered its presence, pulled upwards and allowed him to gently press his feet down on the marble floor below. Once he had, the rope fell from the ceiling, landing with a 'clang' right beside him.
In complete confusion, Gru spun his head around the very large room before him, not expecting to see around one-hundred suited employees staring back at him from behind their computer monitors, totally shocked and fearful. Even though they were in his gaze, he hadn't noticed them while he was falling, since he was way too concerned with his seemingly impending death to do so.
He also never noticed the massive set of screens littering the walls, each one showing the insides of what appeared to be rocket ships. Many co-ordinates and seemingly random numbers were sprawled across them all, giving Gru a countless amount of questions that needed answering.
Finally, he noticed the 'NASA' logo implanted in the corner of one of the screens, clarifying one of those questions...
At that point, he looked back up into the hole in the roof, trying to yell up at Perkins with an ominous threat. But, the large man wasn't anywhere to be seen. Clearly, he and that spiky-haired thug had ditched the scene after dropping him inside, leaving him stranded in a very sticky situation. How had they even broken into the NASA headquarters in the first place? Surely, they would've been noticed, at least by a security camera...
Turning back to the employees, a few of which were now standing up from their desks, Gru opened his mouth and started babbling the first words that emerged into his head, trying desperately to provide some form of explanation.
"Please, please, dey've keednapped me! Some...some beeg guy punched me and...and he threw me through de ceiling and...now I'm here and...yoo've GOTTA help m-"
"Security!" One of the employees yelled, pointing at Gru as he gathered the attention of a few muscled men that were now entering the room through a set of double doors. One of the employees must've alerted them of his breaking in just after he'd entered. "This guy!"
The men approached at frightening speed, almost knocking over a few employees as they did so. It was clear that they were excited by the possibility of apprehending and beating the hell out of the former villain, something Gru didn't particularly fancy right now.
"NO! Please! I can expl-"
However, just before he could finish his exclamation, one of the nearer employees swiftly ran up and kneed him in his side, obviously attempting to make him an easier target for the security men. Stumbling back and yelping in pain, Gru spun around and narrowed his eyes darkly at the man, feeling his fists subconsciously clench tight.
He didn't know why, but when he looked into the eyes of the employee, who seemed a mix of terrified and determined, all he could see was an enemy. Someone who disliked him. Someone who wanted to hurt him. Someone who wanted him dead...
He was so sick and tired of people wanting him dead. He was so sick and tired of having so much responsibility. He was so sick and tired of the endless amount of pressure and dependence and paperwork and fighting and hostility and missions and...
NOW...he'd reached the end of his tether...
Lunging forward, Gru grabbed the employee around the neck and threw him strongly to the floor, sending a nearby desk toppling back. He yelled in pain, clearly trying to utter some form of plea, but was quickly interrupted by the strong fist of Gru, that slammed painfully into the side of his head a multitude of times.
In retaliation, more employees lept from their desks and ran forward, trying to stop the AVL director before he could hurt anyone else. But, they didn't manage to make it very close, since before they could, Gru spun their heads with a sharp right hook and sent them to the ground in a sprawling mess.
Finally, the first securtiy man made it to him, and with a quick lunge, attempted to rugby tackle Gru to the floor. However, unbeknownst to him, the former villain had anticipated it and maneuvered to the left at impressive speed, leaving the muscled man to fly head first into a computer monitor. The collision was certainly enough the knock the man out cold, as electric sparks spluttered out everywhere.
Now, overtaken by the need to go on a complete rampage, Gru was sprinting around punching anyone and everyone in his sight, whether they posed a threat to him or not. The majority of the employees were now running around frantically, trying to make it to the exits to make an escape. But, overcome by the need for revenge, Gru was not content with letting them do so.
People were now being thrown left, right and center around the room, either into desks, computer monitors, or walls. Some were lying on the floor, calling out in pain, while others were lying around silent, since they were completely unconscious.
With determination coursing through his veins, the second security man sprinted over in a rush, trying desperately to stop the rampage before it got out of hand. He grabbed Gru in a strong headlock and began strangling him, trying to suffocate the crazed man to the point of unconsciousness. However, he didn't expect the director's surprisingly good agility, as he managed to punch himself free and send the muscled man to the ground in less than a second.
As he laid helpless on the floor, the man desperately tried to cover his head as he was pelted with punch after punch, Gru sitting on top of him going insanely nuts. He was yelling loud pieces of gibberish, curse words, and all forms of violent language. After a while, he knocked the muscled man out cold, but before Gru could realize and stop punching him, the next member of security came and tackled him to the floor.
This time, it was Gru being punched over and over, but unlike his victim, the AVL director managed to quickly slide under his legs to get free. Once he'd realized that Gru had escaped, the muscled man turned at speed to try and get him to the floor again. But, he had no time to react before the former villain threw a nearby monitor at his head, knocking him out cold instantly.
Now, with all three security members knocked unconscious, and with all the employees either escaped or on the floor, Gru directed his anger to any nearby pieces of furniture. He threw desks, computers, chairs, printers, pretty much everything in sight...
That was, until his senses returned and his anger dissipated, which was when a very sudden question crossed his mind...
What was he doing?
Breathing heavily out of rage and fatigue, Gru looked down upon the destroyed furniture and the men littering the floor, and couldn't help but shake his head in rejection. For a few seconds, he refused to believe the sight before him, hoping that the past few days had all just been a lengthy dream. Soon enough, he'll wake up inside his bed, with his beloved wife right beside him and his three children just down the hall.
But, he knew full well that this was all happening, and once he'd passed the short phase of denial his head fell into, his legs began to wobble with fear...
Looking down at his shaking hands for a second, which were red from all the punching, Gru fell to his knees and grabbed a hold of his head, his whole body shivering uncontrollably. Pain surrounded his chest, abdomen, and limbs, but as he got lost in his own thoughts, he didn't even register its presence.
Was this even happening? Where did that come from? Was that even him punching all those people?
More and more questions crossed his mind at speed, and more and more damning answers accompanied them.
Yes, this was all happening. No, he had no clue where that came from. Yes, that was him that just punched all those people.
Yes, he clearly was going absolutely insane...
Closing his eyes and gripping onto his head even tighter, a lone terrified tear trickled from Gru's eye, his whole body now shaking even more. For the first time in a very, very long time, he truly felt helpless. Perkins was trying to ruin his life, his family thought he hated them, and now, he couldn't even trust his own brain to not go absolutely crazy.
Looking up again, Gru watched as Perkins and Bandit entered through the nearby double doors, the two of them holding victorious smirks. A part of his mind told him to stand up and take them down as well, but as they got closer and closer, every ounce of hope inside him faded away even more.
The end was near. This was a battle he simply couldn't win.
There was no point anymore...
As their hostage stared up at them dejectedly, the two large men came to a stop just in front of Gru, looking down on him like he was a worthless bug. Their grins continued to grow in size, even when they looked like they couldn't get any bigger. Clearly, they were lapping this moment up happily, admiring how helpless the former villain was.
"Very well done, Gru. That was absolutely brilliant." Perkins commented, raising his head valiantly. "Now, for your...reward."
Yet again, Bandit lunged forward and punched him across the head violently, knocking him to floor in a state of complete unconsciousness. The thuggish man cackled a little after doing so, clearly beyond elated with the number of punches he was getting to serve.
"Everything is falling into place." Perkins said contentedly, nodding as he stared down at Gru's inanimate form. "Soon, I will have my long-awaited revenge."
Reaching into his suit pocket, the burly man took out his phone and dialed in an unusually short phone number, before holding it up to his ear with excitement. An elderly man responded on the other end, giving him a very formal yet suspicious greeting.
"Fullbyte, it's me." He stated quickly, casting a look up at a nearby surveillance camera. "You can transfer the footage now..."
SCANNING...SCANNING...SCANNING...
ERROR: SEARCH FAILED.
For the fourth time in a row, Dr. Nefario's phone signal scanner had failed to locate Gru's location, leaving both him and Jack with frustrated and exceptionally worrisome expressions. The teen proceeded to bury his head in his hands, sighing deeply as he did so.
"Just...please." He begged quietly under his breath, taking a moment before turning to Nefario with a look of despair. "Make it search again."
"Jack, this machine uses a heck of a lot of electricity." Nefario replied, giving the teenager a frown. "If we do it again, it could shut off the power for the whole neighborhood."
"I don't care, just...DO IT AGAIN!" Jack exclaimed, slamming his fist down on the desk, startling the elderly man a little. The two silently stared at each other in ire for a few seconds, before the eighteen-year-old sighed and dropped his head, giving in. "Look, I'm...I'm sorry, Nefario. I'm just...really worried."
"Hmph...well, that's understandable," The scientist replied, nodding as he turned back to the computer system. "But you really have nothing to be worried about. Gru's a tough fella, he'll be fine."
"But you don't know that..." Jack responded, leaning back in his chair to stare dejectedly at the ceiling. "If it can't find his phone, then he might be...dead."
"Or...maybe...his phone's off." Nefario rebutted, trying his best to use the most reassuring voice he could conjure. He clearly wasn't very good at it, since Jack's worry didn't seem to subside one bit, based purely on the strong look of doubt on his face alone. "Look, I've known Gru for a very long time, longer than any of you guys. He's a very hard worker, and when he gets himself burnt out, he can get kind of crazy. He's gone off at me dozens of times when he gets knackered. Things have probably got a little too hectic with this director thing and he just needs a break, that's all."
"But that's not enough to make him file for divorce, Nefario! Crazy or not, that's something you just don't do lightly!" Jack replied, spinning his gaze around the room as he wracked his brain senseless to find some form of solution to this. "Something's just not right here, and I...I can't figure out what it is!"
Nefario huffed and went silent, deducing that he simply wasn't skilled enough at this consoling thing to proceed any further. Jack picked up on that quickly, and with a long and sorrowful sigh, stood up and left the room, making his way for the elevator.
Dru, Vector, and the girls were all in the living room, using toys as a method of distracting them from Gru's disappearance. Just behind them, Lucy was wiping down even more surfaces, to the point where her wrist was beginning to severely ache.
Originally, Vector could never see the fun in playing with toys shaped like animals or vehicles, but now that he was giving it a go for himself, he was beginning to understand the appeal. He couldn't deny it, it was exceptionally fun to pretend drive some miniature car around a room, no matter how childish and immature it may be.
After rising up from the floor, Jack stepped out of the elevator with a sigh, ashamed of himself for still not finding Gru. He moved through the room at a slow pace and parked himself down next to his sisters, falling onto his knees with a huff.
"Deed yoo find Gru?" Dru inquired instantly, inviting the girls and Lucy to stop what they were doing and look at him hopefully in unison.
"Sorry, guys..." Jack answered, dropping his head sorrowfully, something the rest of them couldn't help but do as well. "But no..."
After receiving the response that they didn't want to hear, the family sighed sorrowfully and returned to their individual distractions, whether that was a form of toy or cleaning utensil. All apart for Margo, who just couldn't distract herself, even if she tried.
Not only was Vector's presence still frightening her, but the ominous question of what Jack, Dru, and Lucy were hiding from her was bugging the twelve-year-old to no end. Something bad had happened, that she was certain of. The extent of what had happened must also be pretty significant, since Lucy was never the type of person to cry hard over something, or the type to require cleaning to refrain from going insane.
Staring at her teenage brother with a frown, all Margo wanted to do was stand up and yell at him until he finally revealed what was happening. But, at the same time, she was fearful of bringing up something that would severely upset Lucy, since that would in turn also upset her sisters.
Racking her mind for a solution, Margo put her head down and thought very hard, trying to find some way to extract the answer without treading in a sore spot.
And then, it hit her...
Margo had plenty of experience with manipulating answers out of Edith with careful questioning, a technique that was very useful against her when she had done something wrong and was hiding it. And since her eighteen-year-old brother was practically a physical clone of her ten-year-old little sister, surely the same technique would work on Jack as well, right?
Looking up at him with a small mischievous smile, Margo took a few seconds to devise a foolproof plan. Once she'd developed one inside her head, she slowly began with the questions...
"So Jack, what were you doing in the lab?" She questioned suddenly, replacing her frown with a fake, innocent smile. Not expecting the question, Jack looked up at her inquisitively, seeming a little surprised and confused. "You never said."
"I was...uh...using that phone signal scanner that Dr. Nefario has..." He replied, narrowing his eyes at her suspiciously. "I'm...pretty sure I told you th-"
"Ahhhh, I see..." Margo interrupted, nodding. "How does that work then?"
"Um...it...it looks for someone's phone signal and then tells you where it's coming from..." Jack replied, becoming more and more puzzled. "It's...pretty self-explanato-"
"So, how come it didn't work? Surely, that must find out where Gru is."
"Uhh...I guess...it...it just couldn't find a sig-"
"Why? I mean, surely if his phone's on, then it can find the signal, right?"
"Well...yeah...but I guess his phone must be off or somethi-"
"Hmm...strange." Margo was now seeing truly how befuddled Jack was becoming, and after a moment's silence, proceeded with the closing question. "So...why's all this happening, then?"
For a few seconds, Jack didn't know how to respond. Not only was he confused about the onslaught of questions he was suddenly receiving, but he also hated the answer to that last one. Getting upset, the eighteen-year-old put his head down and turned away a little, his defense unknowingly beginning to break down.
"Well, y'know...because...I did something stupid and...said all those horrible things to Gru and...made him really angry." He explained, getting lost in his own damning thoughts, to the point where everyone around him seemed to vanish for a little while. "And now, he's ran off and gone missing, all because of what I did. And you girls might lose your dad. And everything's my fault. Thing is, I don't even understand what happened. Like, he just went freaking crazy out of nowhere, and...it just doesn't make any sense. Like, there's just something that doesn't add up, and I can't figure out what it is. I mean, who gets divorced over one silly argument?"
At that point, two high-pitched gasps brought him back into reality, cutting off his thought process in an instant. He lifted his head in confusion, where he was met by the deeply shocked expressions of Margo and Edith, the terrified expression of Dru, and the bewildered expression of Agnes.
At first, he didn't even realize what he had done wrong, but once he had, his whole face fell with regret.
"Oh...I...probably shouldn't have said that..."
"Dad's getting a DIVORCE!?" Margo exclaimed loudly, turning to Lucy out of pure fear and sorrow. The redhead's cleaning had accelerated tenfold, proving how hard she was trying to block out the conversation.
"What's a 'divorce'?" Agnes asked innocently, cocking her head to the side. Before anyone could grace her with a response, Dru jumped in, interrupting with an exclamation of ire.
"Ugh, Jack, are yoo really dat stupeed!?" He boomed, frowning deeply. Jack switched his gaze between him and Margo in slight shock, baffled at how that even happened. For someone who used to spend the majority of their time dealing with manipulative villains, he sure was easy to manipulate.
"That isn't true, right Jack!?" Edith butted in, shaking her head in complete rejection of that proposition. "Tell me that isn't true!"
Her brother looked at her helplessly for a few seconds, his head void of solutions. He tried to think of something, anything, that would appease her and make her less concerned. But, he knew he couldn't lie to her. If he did, that would simply be prolonging the inevitable...
Turning to his uncle for a moment, who seemed saddened and frustrated, he sighed and gave him a look of total despair. Dru mirrored it, knowing this admittance just had to happen. Huffing sorrowfully, Jack turned to Agnes, who seemed both confused and scared, and spoke as carefully and reassuring as possible.
"Agnes, a divorce is something that happens when someone doesn't want to be married anymore," The small girl's face fell very quickly, quicker than Jack ever thought possible. She turned and momentarily glanced at Lucy, using her eyes to plead to her, waiting for her to exclaim that it wasn't true. Lucy's cleaning accelerated even faster, to the point where the paint on the wall was beginning to grade away. "And yes...it's true."
Utterly shocked and upset, Margo and Edith dropped their head in unison, the latter dropping her hat over her eyes, something she only did when she was trying to hide tears. Slowly, Dru scootched over and consoled the two of them, trying to cuddle away their sadness. Unfortunately, it was proving to be an extremely difficult task.
Instantly after hearing those words, Agnes jumped up and ran over to Lucy's leg, where she began roughly tugging on it, desperately attempting to gather her mother's attention. Lucy's lip started to tremble, her defense weakening.
"Mommy...?" Agnes mumbled weakly. After a few painful seconds, the redhead finally decided to face her, her fists balling together subconsciously as a method of keeping the breakdown inside. The little girl didn't say anything else. All she did was stand there, tears building up in her eyes, every morsel of her being wanting Lucy to assure her differently.
Lucy closed her eyes for a moment, trying her hardest not to cry. She knew that there was nothing to be worried about. She knew that everything was going to be fine. She knew that, soon enough, Gru will return and profess his love to her, scrapping the divorce idea and spending the rest of his life with her.
She knew that, without a doubt, all of that was a lie...
Finally, she kneeled down and pulled her youngest daughter in for a hug, a few tears seeping into her eyes. Utilizing every piece of her AVL training, particularly the hiding your emotions part, she tried desperately to hold herself together. To keep up a brave face for her kids...
That was proving to be an arduous feat.
Vector, who was watching the scene with a downcast expression, felt a mix of empathy and befuddlement. He was internally surprised at himself for feeling even the slightest bit empathetic, since he really couldn't remember the last time he felt genuinely upset about someone else's pain. But, though he was confused about his saddened feelings, he was even more confused about Jack's confession.
Gru was getting divorced?
Even though he'd only yesterday found out that Gru had gotten married, it still confused him somewhat to find out that he was planning on getting divorced. Of course, he would never actually know the relationship he had with his wife, since he'd never seen them together. But, what was confusing him, was how this tied together with his father's plan.
Had he forced them to get a divorce? Was that the plan? Or was the divorce part of the plan? Obviously, sitting here thinking about it wasn't going to get him the answers, so he needed to try and get in contact with his father. He knew it would be a dangerous decision, since the family may catch him and start accusing him of things, but he knew he had to give it a try.
He didn't know why he had to, but for whatever reason, he just needed answers.
Standing up slowly, Vector tried to very carefully slink himself into the corner of the room, where he could quietly contact his father without being noticed. Since everyone was way too consumed by feelings of shock and sorrow, he initially believed it was going to be an easy task. That was until Lucy lifted her head at speed and stared the young man down venomously, a look of irritation spread across her features. She must've been very on-edge, since the moment he stood up, her gaze threw itself to look at him.
Vector quickly turned his head away and acted as innocent as he possibly could, but after Lucy let Agnes go and started walking very slowly towards him, he realized that he was just making himself look even more suspicious.
"What are you doing?" She questioned quietly, yet extremely aggressively. Vector nervously laughed and rubbed the back of his head, attempting to think of an excuse as quick as possible.
"Uh...well...I was just-"
"What are you even doing in my house?" Lucy muttered in a demonic like fraction, sending Vector's heart-rate through the roof. "Why haven't you been tied up and locked away yet?"
"I...I...uh..." Vector was now subconsciously trudging backward, trying to get as far away from the AVL agent as possible. "I don't kn-"
Since he couldn't see where he was going, he accidentally bumped into Margo, almost tripping over her as she sat on the floor. Caught a little off-guard, Margo spun around to send him an aggressive glare, but as she did so, her eyes were instantly caught by the serum vial in the back of his pocket.
Vector spun around instinctively and gave the twelve-year-old an apprehensive glare, who frowned and stood up.
"What's that in your pocket?" She questioned. Vector's heart practically jumped into his mouth, making a small drop of sweat glide slowly down his forehead.
"N-n-nothi-"
While he was turned away from her, Lucy reached forward and snatched the serum out of his pocket, startling Vector to no end. He swiftly spun around to try and steal it away from her again, but by the time he'd managed to face her, she'd already read the label.
"Paralysis serum, huh?" Lucy read-aloud, her frown growing ever stronger. Immediately, the whole family turned to look at Vector aggressively, making him insanely uncomfortable. "Now...why would you have paralysis serum in your pocket?"
"Look, I...I can explain." He began, switching his gaze between everyone. "I...I was trying to...trying to stop this guy who...who had broken in and-"
"You were going to PARALYZE us!?" Jack exclaimed, standing up at speed and balling his fists together. "Why you piece of...I was wrong, you really ARE evil!"
"No, no...I swear, I wasn't going t-"
However, before he could finish, Lucy grabbed him by the neck and lifted him into the air, staring deep into his eyes with one of the most fierce gazes the man had ever seen. Vector tried to squirm free, but no matter how much he tried, she was just too strong.
"I KNOW YOU'VE HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH MY HUSBAND!" Lucy bellowed at a huge volume, as she began shaking and strangling him in the air. "YOU'VE GOT FIVE SECONDS TO TELL ME WHERE HE IS BEFORE I BREAK EVERY BONE IN YOUR WHOLE BODY!"
"I...my...my dad...he..." Vector tried to confess, but every single time a word left his mouth, Lucy's entrapping grip got tighter, cutting off his airway. "He...he...he's..."
"DADDY!" Agnes screeched suddenly, before proceeding to sprint across the room towards the TV. Confused, the whole family turned around to look at her questioningly, where they finally noticed what she was looking at.
Somehow, the television had been turned on. They didn't have a clue how it did, or who had done it, but nevertheless, it was displaying a slightly grainy feed of Gru, as he went around swinging punches at frightened, innocent men. Everyone's attention was instantly consumed, even making Lucy drop Vector to the floor in a painful mess.
They stood there watching intently as Gru continued to go absolutely crazy, a look of concentrated anger spread across his whole expression. Finally, right after witnessing him aggressively throw a computer monitor at a very muscular man in a suit, the camera turned to face the huge NASA logo being displayed on a massive monitor, as if someone wanted the location to be known.
After a few seconds, the feed cut out, to be replaced by static.
"Oh my god..." Dru muttered under his breath, his mouth agape. "Gru's attackeeng NASA."
"I don't believe it," Jack added, his eyes still glued to the screen. "It's actually true..."
"He's a villain again." Lucy clarified out loud.
A very uncomfortable silence fell upon them all. There wasn't many words to describe what they were feeling. They'd just witnessed Gru perpetrate a heist on the NASA headquarters, which not only confirmed the villain theory, but also proved that he really did hate them all. One thing was for certain, that thought certainly didn't make them feel very good...
Slowly, Vector got back to his feet, fearfully watching the whole family as they stared at the static screen in a solemn manner. As well as them, he was also quite shocked to see Gru attack the NASA headquarters, but obviously, not in the same way that the family were.
Primarily, his thoughts were flooded with questions. This had to be a part of his father's plan. There was no doubt about it now. Maybe the whole idea was to forcefully bring Gru back into villainy, so the AVL would fall apart. Maybe the whole idea was to try and kill Gru in a fatal heist, so that he would no longer be a problem to them.
Maybe the whole idea was to destroy Gru's relationship with his family, the same way that his and his father's relationship had been destroyed...
Finally, after about a minute of total silence, Jack turned to Dru and Lucy at speed and sent them a frantic frown of uncertainty, looking like he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him.
"We've gotta stop him."
"You're right..." Lucy replied, nodding in agreement, though looking like that very proposition disturbed her to no end. "At least...we know where he is now."
"Who's gonna look after de gurls though?" Dru butted in, giving the three sisters a glance, who looked so unbelievably shocked and saddened, that he just wanted to hug all the pain away. "We can't leave dem alone."
"I'll do it." Vector stated aloud, his proposition being completely genuine. But, right after offering, his thoughts regathered, and he had to question why on earth he just proposed to do that. It was like some sort of chemical reaction that practically forced his mouth to open. Either way, it was a little bit frightening...
"Do you really think we're THAT stupid!?" Lucy boomed in response, grabbing him by the arm harshly. Vector yelped loudly in pain, fearful for a moment that one of his limbs had just been torn off. "You're coming with us! Dr. Nefario can look after the girls!"
"No way! We're coming as well!" Margo exclaimed suddenly, inviting surprised looks from Dru, Lucy, and Jack. Surely, that was some sort of joke, right? She should understand that they couldn't come on a dangerous mission, for very obvious reasons. However, it was very clear she was being deadly serious, based on her expression of determination alone.
"Yeah! We ain't staying here!" Edith added, stomping her foot on the floor demandingly. "I wanna go kick some butt!"
"Yayyy!" Agnes cheered with a much more hopeful smile, lifting her arms in the air in a celebratory manner. "Let's get daddy back!"
"Don't be silly, girls. It's too dangerous." Jack stated, trying to hide his impressed grin. He had to admit, he admired their spirit. "You could get hurt."
"So could you!" Margo rebutted, crossing her arms defiantly. "How come you get to go!?"
"Because we're all adults!" Dru argued. "We've had experience weeth dangerous stuff, so we won't get hurt!"
"So have we!" Edith argued back. "We've been kidnapped loads of times, and we've never got hurt!"
"The answer is NO, girls!" Lucy exclaimed in a very authoritative and harsh manner, catching the three of them off-guard a little. She was clearly pretty stressed, and right now, the last thing she needed was another family-based argument. With Vector in tow, Lucy marched over to the rhino chair and slammed her palm on the button, summoning the lift at speed. "Go down to Dr. Nefario and stay there until we get back, alright!" The three sisters refused to move, instead opting to cross their arms and stare at Lucy in a resistant manner. "That means NOW!"
Realizing that they were fighting a losing battle, the three girls slowly trudged into the elevator, all the while giving their mother an aggravated stare. Lucy held firm and returned the exact same expression, watching profusely until the lift disappeared and swallowed them into the floor. At that point, she let out a sigh of relief.
"Okay...there we are." She turned back to Dru and Jack, who were giving her a very concerned look, something the redhead was finding weirdly reminiscent, before letting out a loud announcement. "Now, to quote Agnes...
"Let's go get daddy back!"
Barrelling down the roads at an unsafe speed, sending pretty much every oncoming car into a swerving frenzy, Dru, Lucy, Vector, and Jack were making their way to the NASA headquarters, completely unsure of what they'd find when they arrived. They couldn't deny it, they were afraid. Not only by what Gru had already done, but what he may end up doing next.
What if he had truly gone crazy? What if, when they arrive, he attacks them with the intent to actually kill? Surely not. There was no way he would ever think about killing his wife, son, and brother, right?
Well, only a few days ago, they thought he would never run away, file for divorce, and then rejoin villainy, but they were certainly wrong about that...
After a long and fearful drive, they arrived at the headquarters, pulling up to the front gates apprehensively. To their surprise, they had been left completely open, with no members of security anywhere to be found. Watching their surroundings carefully, Lucy drove the tank into the employee parking lot at a slow speed, all of them keeping a very keen eye out for Gru.
Coming to a stop at the nearest empty parking space, the four exited the large metal vehicle and gave each other false determined looks, all while Vector was being unwillingly dragged out by the still livid Lucy. As they slowly trudged their way towards the entrance, not a single sound could be heard anywhere around them, that is apart from the light waft of the breeze and the occasional squawk of a bird.
There was a very clear sense of nerve in the area, as if it had been left behind by the last people that had come through. Something inside told them that Gru most likely had something to do with that, since judging on the anger laced in his face from the footage, he must've been striking some intense fear into people.
Entering the building, the four expected to see the main reception in a disgruntled state, something that was usually the case when a villain-based breaking and entering had occurred. But, to their surprise, the lobby was totally undamaged, with not a single trace of destruction to be found. What made the case even more questionable was the fact that there was absolutely no-one around, so how did they know that he'd gotten in?
"Wh...what gives?" Jack questioned aloud as they entered, spinning his gaze around the large room with befuddlement. "Everything looks totally fine in here."
"God knows." Lucy muttered irately, as she strutted forward with clear malicious intent. Her hand was still grasped firmly around Vector's arm, now beginning to cause the man considerable pain. "Gru's a clever guy when it comes to villainy, so..."
Cutting off her own sentence, Lucy said nothing more and continued on ahead, refusing to make eye contact with anyone. Jack and Dru shared concerned looks as she did so, since she hadn't even looked at any of them since they'd left the house. Was she just really angry? Or really stressed? Or afraid?
Maybe it was all of the above.
Paying hefty attention to their surroundings, the four carried on through the building, traipsing through different hallways and checking inside the different rooms they passed. Up to this point, there was still not a trace of human presence, but obviously, based on what they'd just seen Gru do on their TV screen, that wasn't too much of a surprise.
There were still no signs of a breaking and entering, but based on the pieces of furniture that had been carelessly barged out of the way in some places, there had clearly been some form of a commotion.
Eventually, they made it to the very large room with all the massive monitors that Gru was inside, left in the exact same terrible state. Unconscious bodies, broken chairs, shattered tables, and the occasional shard of glass lined the floors, revealing just how much damage the AVL director had caused.
For a little while, they never even noticed the large man sitting down in a nearby chair with his back to them, but once they'd caught sight of him, Dru, Lucy, and Jack all widened their eyes in slight surprise.
They had been expecting Gru...
"Uh...hello?" Dru called out, taking a few steps forward. The man didn't move an inch, as if he didn't even hear the blonde's loud, high-pitched voice. "We're...lookeeng for my brother. His name's Gru. He's bald, and quite tall, and has a theeck European accent. Have yoo seen heem around anywhere?"
After a few seconds of silence, Perkins slowly turned in his chair to face the four of them, his fiery grin catching them all off guard. Instantly, they knew something was wrong, but decided against questioning it just yet...
"Why, yes...I do believe I have." He stated ominously, crossing his legs together, as if this was some sort of very strange business meeting. "He was somewhere around here earlier, punching innocent people and giving me complete access to the entire NASA vicinity, but...he's not anymore."
"So...where is he?" Lucy questioned darkly, narrowing her eyes at the man. Before responding, Perkins cackled a little, momentarily glancing at the floor.
"That...is none of your concern." Lucy and Jack shared befuddled, yet very angry looks. This entire time, they had a deep, hidden feeling that something about this divorce, villainy thing just wasn't right. Was this man the source of that feeling after all? "Now, since you three have made it here safely, I would just like to thank my son for fitting the final piece of this puzzle in a very efficient manner. Nice job, Victor."
Dru, Lucy, and Jack turned to Vector in unison, each one of them having the exact same malicious expression. Vector could only look between them and his father apprehensively, totally unsure of his next move.
"I suggest you let go of him..." Perkins continued evilly, staring Lucy down with a look of complete rage. "Right this second..."
"And what if I don't!?" Lucy challenged, grabbing Vector around the neck hard, obviously threatening to strangle him.
But, at that moment, a strong push from behind sent the redhead flying through the air at a sudden and unexpected speed, toppling Vector to the ground and Lucy into one of the large monitors hung on the wall.
After that, she fell head-first into a pile of broken computers, tables, and chairs, producing an extremely loud impact. The fall looked so painful, that it would be a miracle if she was still conscious...
"LUCY!" Dru yelled frantically. He raced over to her at speed, leaping over the broken pieces of furniture in front of him like he was a professional athlete. Perkins watched him carefully as he did, his smirk growing ever wider.
Both confused and extremely, extremely angry, Jack spun around at an insane speed to face and punch whoever just pushed Lucy. But, catching him totally off-guard, the teen didn't have a single second to analyze the person's face before they clocked him around the head with unbelievable power.
Jack went crashing to the floor, destined not to get back up...
Once he'd made it to her side, Dru shook Lucy's figure, hoping for her eyes to open up or at least signify that she was still okay. However, after a lengthy amount of time, her face still hadn't moved in the slightest, and Dru could feel every muscle in his body tense up in terror.
"Lucy...come on, please wake up..." He whispered pleadingly, as the speed of his shaking began to rise quickly. "Please...please...PLEASE wake up!"
"Give it up, squeaky blonde man." Perkins stated in a candid manner, after quietly coming up behind him. Startled, Dru let out a small shocked squeal and turned around, staring deep into the large man's eyes. "I can assure you, she won't be waking up anytime soon."
Growling with pure, concentrated anger, the blonde villain clenched his fists and turned his expression downwards, handing him one of the most threatening looks he'd ever conjured.
"Yoo...will...regret dat..." Perkins cackled once again.
"I doubt that." He replied, not a trace of doubt in his voice. "You see, the only one who'll be regretting anything...is your brother."
Before Dru could respond with whatever threat he could think up first, Bandit appeared from seemingly nowhere yet again and punched him unconscious, sending him crashing into the pile of broken furniture, right next to Lucy. Perkins, as he looked down upon his inanimate victims, grinned and nodded his head, beyond elated.
"We're almost there. This all just...too perfect!" He uttered happily, as he turned towards his muscled associate with an expression of pure determination. "Now...you know what to do."
Bandit nodded and left the room without another word, his fists still balled together. Giving him a deathly threatening look, the huge man strutted past Vector and through the double doors, forcefully kicking every piece of furniture out of his way.
"Dad, what the hell is going on!?" Vector questioned, stepping over Jack's unconscious form to make his way towards his father. "What is this all about!? And for that manner, why are we at the NASA headquarters?"
"All part of the plan..." Perkins replied simply, as he absentmindedly strolled through the room, smiling to himself with glee.
"What plan!? You still haven't told me what the plan even is!?"
"Oh for god's sake, come on, Victor! Use your brain for once!" Perkins exclaimed, turning to face him in frustration. "The REVENGE plan! We're getting our REVENGE! Because of Gru, you almost spent the rest of your miserable life on top of the god-damn moon! Do you seriously think I'm gonna let him get away with that!?"
Caught a little off-guard, Vector simply couldn't help but smile a little, appreciating that confession. His father was getting revenge on Gru on his behalf. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe his father did love him, but he just showed it in his own unique little way.
"Really?" Vector replied, unable to hide how touched he was in his voice.
"Of course." Perkins confirmed, nodding. "I mean, I need you alive, otherwise my bank's done for."
But, as quick as Vector's faith was built up, was as quick as it was broken down.
It wasn't about his love for him, but rather, his love for that stupid bank. He already knew that as well. How could he be so stupid as to think otherwise? Frowning, Vector dropped his head sorrowfully, casting a small sideways look upon the unmoving expressions of Lucy and Dru.
"Now..." Perkins continued, grinning evilly yet again. "Come with me, Victor. You really don't wanna miss this."
Vector replied, but decided against making eye-contact, simply because he was sick and tired of his father's face. "Miss what?"
"Something very...very special." Perkins cackled. "You see, Gru's about to watch his whole family...
"Leave this planet."
Down in the lab, the girls were sitting in the minion's recreation room, sulking vigorously with their arms individually crossed. Obviously, they were beyond angered by the fact that they were denied permission to go on the rescue mission, since after all, it involved their very own father. They should be allowed to help get him back.
Not only that, but they were also undeniably frightened. Terrified, in fact. Not only have they most likely lost their father forever, but they may also end up losing their mother, uncle and brother as well. If that happens, they'll be carted back off to Miss Hattie's, where they'll spend the rest of their childhood without parents...
They wouldn't even want to be re-adopted. No mom and dad could ever weigh up against Gru and Lucy, not even in the slightest.
Additionally, this whole waiting around in the minion recreation room for their parents to return from a life-threatening mission brought back some very haunting memories. Since, of course, this exact same occurrence happened when they left to take down the IVB.
Then, thankfully, they had returned. But what if this time, their luck had run out...
Saddened by their upset state, a few of the minions were surrounding them in groups, attempting to find some way of lifting their spirits. A few of them were purposely getting into fights and accidents, in the hopes of making them laugh, but unfortunately, it just didn't seem to be working. There was just way too much on their minds...
"I told you Vector was bad news." Margo muttered out of nowhere, casting a frustrated look on Edith. The tomboy returned the expression, except in a much more offended fashion.
"Hey, I wasn't the one who set him free! Go blame Jack!"
"I do blame Jack, but maybe if you weren't so accepting, he would've got rid of him instead of trusting him!"
"Just...shut up, Margo!" Edith turned away and walked off, creating some distance between her and her older sister. "I'm so sick of your voice!"
Her feelings slightly hurt, Margo huffed and also walked away, leaving Agnes sitting all alone. Feeling her fear rise substantially, the six-year-old moved over and cuddled the nearest minion, which happened to be Dave, searching for some form of comfort.
Both saddened and touched, Dave cuddled her back, trying to use the most calming gibberish words he could conjure.
"Akwai can..." He sang softly. "Akwai can..."
Momentarily looking away from his newspaper, Dr. Nefario rolled his eyes at the sight of their argument and turned away, trying his best to ignore it. He couldn't be dealing with bratty children right now, especially when his former partner and current best-friend was going insane. He had to admit, though he was happy to see him return to villainy, watching him throw away his life like this was a difficult thing to comprehend.
Getting back to his newspaper, the elderly scientist returned to the article he was currently reading, which was detailing the account of some motel receptionist who had apparently been held at gunpoint, when he heard a very familiar sound catch in his ear.
The elevator...
Slowly turning to look out of the door, the doctor kept a very keen ear out for any further noises, being met by complete silence. Since his hearing was certainly not the best, it was probable that he'd just imagined the 'whoosh' sound that he was so accustomed to, but for safety reasons, he thought it a good idea to go out and check.
Wandering out of the room, Nefario trudged carefully through the lab's hallways, listening out closely for anything suspicious. There was not a single sound. Only silence. Something that was freaking the scientist out even more...
Finally, he made it over to the elevator, his gaze analyzing every inch of it. It was empty, but judging on the fact that it was wide open, must not have been for long. With that sight, he felt a trickle of fear flow down his spine, his muscles all tensing up in unison.
Slowly and carefully, he moved over to the nearest weapons shelf, where he went to pick up the knockout ray. As he reached to grab it from it's usual position, he was surprised to see it missing, it's spot completely empty. Confused, the doctor turned around, trying to remember where he could've misplaced it.
However, he certainly didn't have to think for long, since when he saw an unknown spiky-haired muscular man pointing it directly towards him, he was provided with an answer...
"Well...this is a bit of a pickle..."
ZAP!
As always, sincerely hope you enjoyed. Clearly, things got pretty crazy in this chapter, and the next will probably be even crazier. Don't have a clue when it'll be released, but that's pretty much always the case with me anyway.
Obviously, all reviews are very much appreciated. Will return ASAP.