Choices
Drakken had never been so picky on choosing a lair than he was in finding one in Greece. Normally, the lab and features had always been the selling point for him and he wouldn't even look at it without knowing about the lab. However, despite seeing three lairs with labs that were more than breathtaking...he had to remind himself that the lair was less about what he wanted and more about... Well, he wanted Shego to stay, so it really was about what he wanted. He rolled his eyes at his internal thoughts as Shego flew the hover car to yet another lair.
She'd seemed accepting of the others but since they'd gotten to an underground one and he'd asked her if she liked it...it had seemingly opened up a door he hadn't known was there. By the third lair, she was nitpicking everything from the window locations, to the lab's layout... Through which he then noticed, she was right... It turned out Shego actually kept more opinions to herself than he'd ever known.
"It was like the underwater lair. Who needs that many windows in a lab? One wrong mixture and suddenly half the lab is exposed," continued Shego as Drakken leaned on the side of the hover car.
"Shego?" asked Drakken.
"The layout was...what?" Shego trailed off and looked at him.
"How come you never complained about all our other lairs before?" he mused. "I may have never asked you before, but that never stops you from forcibly sharing your opinion."
Shego's face was unreadable as she shrugged and looked ahead of them.
"Well it's your lair. You're the mad scientist... I mean if you want the windowed lair, it's your money," grumbled Shego. "Stupid choice but whatever."
"No, you're correct. The windows were a bad choice... Though in fairness, you seemed rather hostile towards the realtor at the one prior more than the lair," responded Drakken. "Wonder where she went?"
"Why?" asked Shego. "Miss the blonde flirting with you already?"
Drakken rolled his eyes and thought back to the realtor who had spent most of her time talking to him, if only to try to make a sale. A tactic Drakken was familiar with, and unfortunately...sometimes got the best of him.
"She wasn't flirting. She was trying to make a sale." He heard Shego snort. "And if she was, what does it matter?"
"Listen, you're internationally known now." She waved off his open mouth to argue. "You were broadcast everywhere for saving the world... Most importantly, everyone knows you got money from the award... There's gonna be a lot of bimbos coming out of the woodwork...and as the token gold digger in this partnership. I am not sharing."
It was Drakken's turn to snort.
"Bold of you to assume I'm sharing," he replied. Shego's side-eyed smirk made him want to laugh.
"It's as if you don't think I have your accounts memorized." There was a silent moment before they both laughed.
"I mean...I would expect nothing less," finished Drakken. He looked at the approaching woods as they flew closer to the ground. "So, where exactly are we going now?"
"Another lair." Shego held up a clipboard and papers.
Drakken's smile slightly faded into a curious smirk.
"Shego... What happened to Stephanie?" Drakken looked at the keys on the seat.
"According to the printout this lair has shark pit availability, a double-decker lab with weapons storage, fifteen rooms for storage or henchmen living space, a common area, and a living space with three bedrooms," Shego read off. A grin spread across her face. "Oh...a pool? That would be nice."
Drakken raised a brow at Shego's obvious avoidance of his question. He looked around as Shego flew over the trees and off the cliff of a U-shaped massive cove of mountain. Drakken only saw water and a small island in the middle that might have just been general land at one point.
"Shego, I see trees and water. I don't see a lair—oh." Shego flipped the hover car around to show the U-shape of the cliffs.
A white structure was built into it, the bottom forming a narrowing colander into the ocean below. Above, it grew wider so it was almost shaped like a giant missile. Various glimmers on the white structure showed windows scattered about. The top half reminded him of the mountainside Greek homes they'd flown over a few lairs ago. Drakken saw the pool Shego had mentioned but the hover car dropped down as Shego fiddled with a key fob of some sort.
A part of the cliff opened up and they entered what must have been a parking garage. Another door farther off might lead to an actual road for driving vehicles. Shego was out of the hover car before Drakken realized they had stopped.
"Okay, do you want to start with the lab or end with it?" smirked Shego. She gestured to a wall. "Would you look at that...it already has an elevator."
Drakken noted the white doors Shego indicated to.
"Well since you're playing the realtor, you choose," Drakken shrugged as he hit the button for the elevator.
"You're right. The pool first," snickered Shego as they walked into the large elevator.
Drakken raised a brow at the labeled buttons and scoffed.
"Who labels the buttons... How nice to let your enemies know your locations." Drakken crossed his arms and Shego rolled her eyes at him.
"Ohm, it's called labeled for ease of showing. They're stickers." She sighed and hit a button. "Had to believe you're a globally recognized genius now... How little the public knows."
Drakken's amusement at the earlier antics fell and he hit all the buttons and looked away from Shego in retaliation.
"Feel better?" scoffed Shego as the elevator went back down. "Guess it's the lab first."
"You know Stephanie recognized my genius," muttered Drakken. He heard Shego scoff.
"She recognized your wallet and your attraction to shiny knobs," replied Shego.
Drakken couldn't come up with a better snap back so remained quiet as the door behind them opened.
The lair was interesting to Drakken's mind; while it was large and white, it was also partially built into the cliff so it was even more spacious in the lower half of the lair. There were in fact plenty of rooms for the henchmen, and a double-decker lab that Drakken couldn't help but feel giddy about. The equipment was dated but was easily replaceable, clearly not having been updated since the late sixties...and he rather liked the aesthetic if he was being honest.
'Very old-school villain...'
Shego's words echoed in his head. She'd meant it as an insult he was sure. The living quarters were vastly different in the fact that they were entirely disconnected from the cliff, even the part built against it. It was far more modern in this area, if still not attempting a retro theme. The three large bedrooms were overly spacious with equal closet space.
Shego had been a bit miffed by this as she'd wanted to claim the largest closeted room to pester him. Drakken leaned against the stone half-wall of the giant balcony and looked up at the living space of the lair. It was seemingly domestic and less of a lair up there, more like a summer home for the wealthy elite. The setting sun's light gave the place an eerie but warm glow. It didn't feel...evil.
Neutral.
Drakken nodded. It felt a tie between the villain world and...not. His brow furrowed as his mind began racing with the question he had been desperately avoiding for the last week as they'd searched for lairs. All his efforts had done was add more questions. He'd received many offers and some...some he'd be a fool to pass up. He glanced over to where Shego was looking at the pool that had a clear end to it so that one might feel they would float off the cliff. Drakken cringed at that. Shego looked content as she paced the patio area back towards him.
"All right Doc, what'ya think?" Shego gestured in a vague direction. "Evil inspiration or keep looking?"
Drakken swallowed and looked around more than he needed to at Shego's words.
Evil inspiration?
The sinking feeling in his stomach as he watched Shego looking at the sunset made him clear his throat to focus.
"It will do... What do you think?" He watched the faint hint of a smile on her face.
"It's your lair—"
"If I remember correctly in your speech from earlier, not only are you the token gold digger, but you are also my partner...so?" Drakken scratched at the stone as Shego seemed to focus on him.
There was curiosity in her eyes but he saw the smile flicker before she let out a snort and looked towards the lair.
"Well, guess I should go let Stephanie out of that underground storage room and tell her we're taking it," sighed Shego. "Though I think I should get the commission... Sold it and didn't even have to flirt."
"Well can't say I'm not a little disappointed," Drakken smirked. Shego nudged him with her shoulder. "Didn't even try to up-sell me on getting a hot tub installed."
Drakken tried not to laugh at the devious expression on Shego's face.
"Well...if I bat a few lashes and call you handsome...that up-sell still good?" asked Shego. She leaned against him as he leaned over the balcony.
"Hmm, seems a little forced," shrugged Drakken. He saw her eye-roll out of the corner of his eye.
"All right... Let's go get the realtor before she runs out of air and then buy this thing with your 'shiny metal' money." Shego swatted his arm as she headed back towards the lair. "I'm sure we're going to have to get you new evil toys for inspiration... She might get us a deal if I can sway it."
Drakken pushed off the wall and watched Shego head back inside as he looked around the lair. The images of new long-wanted lab equipment and devious devices he'd always dreamed of...wasn't as enticing as he wanted it to be. He narrowed his eyes and debated on bringing this up to Shego.
He had a single thought raging over the others. He began wondering if what he needed was a lab to focus him. He hadn't had access to a working one since the Lorwardians... Perhaps it wasn't a lack of evil desire, but instead a lack of focus. He tossed out the idea of talking to Shego.
He would wait.
Just an evil break, perhaps.
He was wrong. Drakken slumped on his new desk in his new lab, with all his new equipment...and nothing. Papers were blank, doodles had no shape. He was supposed to be focusing on his mutation, but his mind was too much of a jumble to know where to begin. The offers had become more tantalizing, and the projects...made his body itch with excitement. But he'd said nothing...not replied nor acknowledged any of them. He was certain there was a time limit but he wasn't about to take an offer away from evil and not tell Shego. He couldn't do that...
Can I?
Drakken shook the thought from his head and let out a muffled growl as he let his face fall on the desk.
"You know..."
Drakken nearly fell off his chair at Shego's voice, suddenly interrupting the silence. He tried to grab fallen papers as he gained his balance, the chair rolling away.
He looked over his shoulder as he hastily stood. Shego was on the platform above and looking back at the elevator. She hadn't seen.
"When you suggested we cultivate your monstrous flowers and plant them around the lair...I was a little concerned how fast they climbed everything including the cliff." She began walking down the metal steps. "But now... Semi-sentient guard flowers adds a little something to the— What are you doing?"
Drakken had knocked more papers off the desk in his quick haste to hide his lack of work.
"Ohm..." Drakken searched for an excuse.
"Are you throwing a tantrum again?" sighed Shego. Drakken narrowed his eyes and wanted to argue.
"I..." He stopped himself and tossed the papers. "Yes."
Shego raised a brow at him.
"First time I've ever heard you admit it." She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes.
Doodles!
Before he could say anything Shego snatched a sheet of paper off the ground that he'd missed. His eyes shot open as he saw the logo on the back as one of the more tantalizing offers he'd received.
"The Centurion Project?" She raised a brow and looked up. "That bracelet armor thing?"
"Not exactly...well yes." Drakken went to snatch the paper from her but Shego walked away. "It's nothing... I haven't even decided—"
"Revamping into self-powered energy armor?" Shego smirked. "That might be interesting."
He finally managed to snatch it from her.
"Yes, well...it might be." Drakken looked at her as she snatched it back. She seemed...accepting. "You're not...opposed to it?"
"I mean you're known for your plants. Might as well embrace it." Shego sat on the desk as she continued looking over the notes. "So tinker and mass produce?"
Drakken was shocked at how well she was accepting this. He felt like a weight had fallen from his shoulders. He grabbed his chair and wheeled it back to his desk with renewed excitement at the prospect. He snatched up the rest of the document.
"Eventually. First it would be harnessing solar power and making it less bulky than the original armor. Apparently they haven't been able to get past where we came across it years ago. That bracelet fed off the wearer, but feeding off another source would make it more durable. People wear out and are unstable...but harnessed energy—"
"Yeah, yeah, rant to me on the way." Shego jumped up from the desk. "If you got the location it's only a matter of time before someone else gets them."
"On the way?" Drakken raised a brow. "Where?"
"Uh, doy, to steal it." Shego rolled her eyes and pocketed the paper. "I'll be in the hover car."
Drakken watched her disappear up the metal steps and slowly processed her statement. He looked down at the rest of the document regarding the contract and let out a slow breath.
"This doesn't bode well."
There was none of the excitement a caper normally held for Drakken. He felt nauseous, sweaty, and fidgety as they walked the halls of the secret holding base. He'd spent the better part of the flight there picking at his gloves and rambling with self-doubt, as if trying to sway Shego out of the break-in. Unfortunately, whatever renewed belief in him she had had only made her try to boost his confidence—something he would have usually unapologetically basked in. However, it only fueled his unease. Shego's hand hit his chest to stop him from walking. He leaned slightly on the wall as she peeked around.
"Security," he heard Shego mutter. He bit his lip knowing she was about to plasma blast the guards. "Let's...find another way."
Drakken's eyes shot open as Shego yanked him back down the hall they had come through. He was relieved that she hadn't hauled off and blasted the guards. This feeling further confused Drakken as he again took to the wall away from the security cameras. He'd been doing that since they got there. Landing further away than needed...avoiding any visual that showed them there whatsoever. He thought about that a little harder as they found a different entrance. His stomach was flipping as Shego melted the door lock. He felt his heart begin to pound as his hand grasped at his chest, as if grabbing an invisible medal. Images of flashing lights and smiles...congratulations...all swam around his head. Stark comparisons to the laughter and mockery he'd become accustomed to over the years.
He felt a tug at his sleeve and Shego was pulling him back down the hall, bracelet armor in her hand.
"That was easy," laughed Shego. "Honestly, no muss, no fuss... Kind of disappointed, aren't you?"
"No," he shook his head and slowed his pace. "Easy...yes."
Shego stopped walking and turned towards him.
"Dr. D., are you okay?" She was looking at him in concern.
Drakken looked from her, to the bracelet, down the hall, and then back to her. He was searching her bright green eyes for something...he wasn't sure of, maybe memorizing them as his eyes fell back to the bracelet.
"Put it back," he muttered. Shego's posture shifted. "I need to put it back."
"The armor?" asked Shego as she held it up. "We flew all this way to steal it...and now you don't want it? I suppose we could hawk it—"
"No. It needs to go back, Shego." Drakken felt his chest ache as he waved at it. "We weren't supposed to steal it."
"Well then how were you planning on getting it?" snorted Shego. "Asking them nicely for it?"
"Yes," he barely whispered. Shego let out a laugh.
"Okay, you won an award, but they're not just going to give you this for fun," she giggled slightly. "Come on, let's go, Doc."
"They offered to give it to me!" yelled Drakken. Shego's eyes went wide and he let out a defeated breath. "They...and others... They offered to let me have it...to improve upon it and be paid for it."
Shego's expression became unreadable and Drakken felt all of his nerves bubbling as he expressed what he'd only just accepted.
"It's not the only thing... Offers to make weapons of chaos for defense...with everything I need provided. I can make anything I want...and no one can drop in and take it away. This armor... I don't have to beg, borrow, or steal for it... I can walk in and pick it up."
Drakken's ranting continued. He wasn't even sure he was making sense as he spouted on. He thought he may have even brought up how they skipped lunch, but he wasn't sure. Shego remained silent as the minutes of his rambling ticked by. Her brow became narrowed and he knew he was annoying her, but he didn't stop until her fingers pressed his lips together to silence him. He froze.
"Let me get this straight." She took a deep breath and looked away. "You want to go good and you didn't want to tell me?"
"More neutral," he muttered. He saw the anger in her eyes and he continued. "I don't want to hold you back, Shego."
"That'd be a first," she snorted. He knew it was out of anger but it still stung. "So what...this is it? We part ways—"
"No!" Drakken's shout of protest must have set off his subconscious. A vine wrapped around Shego's arm. "Sorry...I meant no, I don't want to part ways."
He frantically swiped at the plant but Shego seemed unfazed by its appearance. This unnerved him as she simply ignited her hands and the plant scattered back behind him. Shego's eyes were fixed on his but still concerningly unreadable. The fact she hadn't blasted something or tore off in the hover car gave him a small glimmer of hope as he continued.
"Shego. You're smart, powerful, and I know you'd make a great solo villain and... I think... I think maybe I should give being a regular scientist a try," said Drakken. He waved his hands frantically. "But I don't want to keep you from doing what you want. World domination or global enslavement. Do what's best for you. I can transfer money into your private account. The lair's perfect for whatever you need it for."
Her face shifted to something softer as she spoke.
"Is that why you had us look at lairs in Greece?" He watched her arms cross in a protective stance. "How long have you been planning to end our partnership?"
Drakken knew she was reading this the wrong way.
"I don't want to end our partnership—"
"Really? Funny, I'd think if you still wanted to be partners...you maybe would have brought this up." She looked less angry and more... Drakken couldn't place it.
Shego shook her head and turned. He felt a familiar forgotten anguish run through him. He was imagining her leaving like she had years ago, him begging her to stay and blocking the door; a more desperate and darker time in his mind than now, but it didn't stop his reaction. Except this time he wasn't blocking his lair door or ready for fear of a plasma blast. He moved around her so he stood in front of her.
"Shego, I was on the fence this entire time," he snapped, more aggressively than he intended. "The lair was... If you want the lair...that's why it's there."
Shego took a step back and appeared to be trying to read his motives and actions. Drakken felt his shoulders fall.
Her foot's at the door.
He bit his lips inside his mouth and nodded. His mind was silent for only a second before it went spiraling in a mess of everything. The images of the award and the offers all spun in his head as he looked at Shego, the bracelet grasped in her hand. He felt as if there were only two choices. No middle ground he'd so pathetically and desperately had hoped for. It should have been a harder choice to make, but it never was with Shego. A curse really. He grabbed the bracelet from her hand.
"Come on, before security catches us." He cleared his throat as he headed towards the exit. "I can improve upon it without their help... Perhaps a blend of my original armor but with controlled armor instead of formulas. The bracelet could be used— Shego?"
He looked over his shoulder to see Shego had not moved from her spot. She was smirking and shaking her head, looking at the ground before she started slightly laughing. He was confused by this until she looked at him.
"The moment we get back to the lair, it's gonna collect dust as you wallow in excuses like you've been doing since we moved in," sighed Shego. She walked to catch up with him. Each step made him more nervous. "In a few weeks you'll want to take an offer because it's all you've wanted.
Drakken's brow furrowed.
"I wanted world domination—"
"You want world recognition more," Shego smiled. "And you got it...and you'll want it even more after a few weeks of trying to climb back up the villainy ladder."
"I think I can make that an elevator easier than you think," Drakken argued. Shego shook her head. "Maybe," he said.
"If you're going to give this whole neutral thing a try...I think it's in your best interest to get a body guard. We both know how evil mad scientists try and kidnap or break in on regular scientists." Drakken raised a brow at her words. She was right. "Now, personally I know you'd drive a bodyguard to madness so fast that they'd hand you over to whatever mad scientist was trying to break in or kidnap you."
"Shego, this whole scenario is highly unlikely," Drakken grumbled. Shego ignored him.
"I'm sorry, weren't you just kidnapped?" scoffed Shego. Drakken muttered under his breath.
"Abducted."
"Fancy word for kidnapped," smirked Shego . "Lucky for you my villain partnership just ended and I am in need of new employment."
Drakken was even more confused as Shego grabbed the bracelet from his hands and began walking down the hall as she continued talking.
"I mean I guess for extra I could be your assistant. I do have a background in this in particular area. First, probably not a good idea to steal the project you're supposed to be working on. It doesn't paint a good image. We'll have to work on that," Shego continued as she turned the corner. Drakken tried to understand what was happening.
He looked at the door behind him and to where Shego had turned the corner, processing her words slowly and trying to find a motive behind them, similar to how he knew she'd been doing only a few minutes prior when he'd wanted her to stay. He scratched his head and tried to see her reasoning. He wanted to say it was because she too didn't want their partnership to end, but that was simple wishful thinking.
His mind ran back to the months prior to the Lorwardians. Shego's seemingly aloof attitude towards villainy, her small impish antics at crime that seemed almost forced...
Has she considered—
His thoughts on Shego's reasoning for wanting to stay were cut short by her voice.
"Oh, how nice. You waited here." She walked past him, rolling her eyes. "Come on, let's go before the cameras come back on. Wouldn't want your new contract to be taken away... I need that money for my hot tub."
Drakken rolled his eyes as he turned to follow her out the door.
"It's going outside," he stated. Shego looked over her shoulder at him. "Shego."
She continued walking to the hover car in silence. Drakken narrowed his eyes.
"Shego. I'm serious. No hot tub in the lab."
He saw the devious smirk on her lips as she started up the hover car.
"Shego. I mean it," he said, glaring now. "Not in the lab."
"Mmmhmm," she nodded as he got in.
"...No," he whispered. Shego's smirk turned into a devious grin.
Drakken suddenly wondered if it would go over well if he fired his new...whatever she wanted to call herself. As she flew the hover car, his concerns about the hot tub in the lab faded away as he looked at Shego. A relieved smile spread across his face.
Shego was staying.
*Deep Breath* You do NOT want to miss the next chapter!