1.10
Missy was bewildered.
She didn't know why the Wards had been sent to handle a kidnapping situation. Apparently, the kidnapper had been declared a low level threat, but it was still a kidnapping, and weren't those serious?
But here they were, standing in front of a crumbling apartment building.
"The note left behind said in a post script that they'd be in the basement." The com informed her and the rest of the Wards who'd been on standby. Her, Clockblocker, Gallant, and Browbeat. Basically everyone but Shadow Stalker, who was on a school field trip, and their leader, who had finally gotten to the top of the list of the people who could see Panacea. He wasn't in danger of dying any time soon, but it was kind of hard, fighting, when he didn't have any legs. He'd been caught in the periphery of one of Oni Lee's suicide bombs. Kid Win himself had recently broken arm falling from his hover board during an E88 brawl, and was seeing Panacea with Aegis.
They marched inside and down the stairs. They didn't need to plan ahead, they would just do their usual thing. Missy would slow down the enemy and divert their attacks, and help the Wards move faster and dodge, and get their hits to land. Clockblocker would tag anyone within his reach so that they could be handled when they had time, Gallant would distract with his beams as much as he could, and Browbeat would punch everything that moved.
Browbeat took the charge, slamming the doors open.
"Wait a minute-" Clockblocker said as he saw the room.
What they saw was a big throne room, torches mounted periodically on the wall, and (now Missy knew why only the Wards had been sent) armed Techno Bots were standing at guard positions around the room. Grue's darkness was covering the room, but only in a way that looked aesthetic instead of being able to blind them. Bitch's dogs were middle-sized and prowling around the room in a menacing way. And at the other end of the room there was a throne with reed cushions. In it, lounging wickedly, sat the Techno Queen. Her teammates were standing around her, looking cool and composed. And on the floor in front of them…
Dinah Alcott (Missy recognized her from reading about her kidnapping in the news) was tied up with rope, lying on the floor. Although she could probably struggle to her feet as they'd forgotten to tie her anything below her waist. Someone had put a pillow under her head at some point. She was lying on a little miniature train track, and some feet away from her was a miniature train. The Techno Queen was holding a remote.
"Ah, so my life-long enemies, the Wards, have found me at last. But little good will it do you! Will you be able to defeat my DASTARDLY TECHIES before Dinah Alcott is lost from this world? Attack!"
At that, the Dastardly Techies charged towards the Wards. The Techno Queen pressed the single red button on the remote she was holding and the train began moving along its looping, bendy tracks… very slowly.
"Ah, no, help, help me, please." Dinah Alcott said in a calm monotone.
"MWAHAHAHA!" The Techno Queen laughed evilly.
Browbeat opened with an uppercut to the jaw of one of Bitch's dogs, and the counter to that was one of the other dogs charging into him like a bull. The third dog leaped to dog pile their newest member, but Missy bended the distance between the dog and its target so that it fell short. Gallant tried to blast Tattletale, who was pretty much just running around and rabbit punching people, but Regent jerked his arm off course and then Bitch herself tackled him. Clockblocker had managed to freeze Grue, which was the only reason why Vista could still see, and he was now in the process of tying him up.
This general state of affairs continued for five minutes (the train was halfway from its starting point) until Clockblocker finally managed to tag the last Dastardly Techie. Of course they'd won, the Dastardly Techies were a team carefully crafted to make escapes, not win head on fights. And they all knew it too.
He then jogged over to the miniature train and tagged it too and began untying Dinah.
"Blast! Foiled again!" The Techno Queen said, punching the armrest of her throne. She then reached behind her back and retrieved a card and then punched a hole through it. She handed it to a Techno Bot, who handed it to Dinah. She read it.
"Frequent Kidnappee Card?"
"After five kidnappings, you get a prize!" The Techno Queen said.
"I thought you discontinued that promotion?" Clockblocker said, before bursting out into laughter.
Missy then heard a poof behind them and turned around. The Dastardly Techies were gone, dissipating smoke all that was left behind. She gasped and the others turned to see as well. And then, another poof went off behind them. They swiveled around and the throne was now empty.
"… I think that's our cue to leave." Gallant said.
AN: And that's the end of the first arc. What should I call it? Also, Megamind references! This movie probably wouldn't have been made on world Bet, but watching Aleph movies is totally a thing! And of course Taylor would have watched and loved it, honestly. And Clockblocker watched it too because EXCUSES.