Megamind stayed back as Roxanne ran to her mother, both of them weeping and holding on to each other for dear life.

Quietly, he slipped away to his room-to their room-and lay down, feeling the numbness of exhaustion, but he was unable to sleep.

Finding Roxanne's mother alive was a good thing, of course, but that left her father still unaccounted for, and he hadn't nearly enough nerve to ask Mrs. Ritchi what had happened to her husband. Not on top of the impending revelation of her daughter's new status with her kidnapper.

Former kidnapper.

He pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. From a parental perspective, indeed, from a number of perspectives, it sounded sleazy as hell.

It had all been a grand game, the kidnapping of the damsel, the challenging of the mighty hero, followed by epic battle. He hadn't meant any harm, not to Roxanne in any case, but one could hardly expect Mrs. Ritchi to shrug it off and be okay with it.

Mrs. Ritchi probably thought he'd coerced Roxanne into sharing his bed, or even worse, that he...

Evil gods, he couldn't bear thinking any more about what Mrs. Ritchi was thinking. Roxanne would tell her the truth, and the older woman would either believe her, or not.

He could think of no better course of action than to keep out of Mrs. Ritchi's sight to let her come to terms with the matter. Perhaps it was just as well that he was going out of town for a few days.

The alternative pressing matter, one which arguably was of more importance to the city at large and probably should have been uppermost in his mind, was Destruction Worker.

What on earth was that contemptible halfwit doing? A cash grab, obviously, but for what?

Destruction Worker's last battle against Metro Man last year hadn't gone well, indeed, it left the other villain's operations in ruins.

Possibly Destruction Worker was attempting to revamp his illegal gambling dens. Zombie apocalypse or not, people were still people and could only take so much mind-numbing terror before they started looking for distractions, especially with TV down and the movie theaters closed.

Money, as Bernard once shrewdly noted, still worked. Megamind could foresee a bartering economy gaining prominence at some point, but for the time being, people, being people, clung to what was familiar.

And Destruction Worker most definitely would have both the means and the ability to build defenses against zombies.

He would question Hot Flash. She might have some idea of Destruction Worker's agenda.

Perhaps the Doom Syndicate had made an attempt to pull together in this time of crisis, and had fallen out with each other, which might also have helped Hot Flash along on her road to burn-out. She wouldn't necessarily volunteer that information.

He had no recollection of falling asleep.

One minute he was conscious, the next minute, Minion was apologetically shaking his shoulder. "We're ready to go, Sir."

"No, Minion," Megamind said, drawing himself up to his full height. "I am ready to go. You will stay here."


Eventually the tears and the hysteria tapered off, and Roxanne, her mind racing ahead, was anticipating her mother's questions.

Best to tell her right away that she and Megamind were a couple.

Which she did. As if from a distance, she watched her mother's eyes grow round with dismay, but to her surprise, instead of peppering her with questions, Mom simply heaved a sigh and stared off into the distance across the noisy Lair.

"What happened to your arm?" she asked. "One of his death traps, I suppose."

"No, Mom, he doesn't do death traps anymore. A zombie bit me. But it's healing, I'll be fine."

Her bitten arm had been aching for some time, all the way up to her shoulder and neck, and she could feel a headache coming on. She rubbed her temple.

Mom fidgeted with Roxanne's hair, smoothing it back. "You need a trim," she muttered, then bit her lip. "Is it...consensual? I mean...with him? Because if..."

Roxanne reached out and gripped her forearm. "Yes, it's entirely consensual. You don't have to worry."

Mom puffed out a sigh and her shoulders relaxed a little, but she frowned as she ran her eyes over the bustling Lair.

"But is this really what you want, Roxanne?" she asked in a low voice, leaning close as if afraid of being overheard. "I don't understand what he's doing. He's been trying to destroy the city for years but now he's trying to save it?"

"Not destroy, Mom, but become its ruler. And he succeeded. I guess."

"What does that make you?" Her mother's worried eyes searched hers.

Roxanne opened her mouth, but shut it again. Well, if he's the Overlord, I guess I'm his...consort? Queen? Either title sounded pretentious.

"Just about everyone calls me Miss Ritchi. I'm sort of a...co-ruler," she said briskly, hoping her mother would drop it. Truthfully a part of her was uneasy with the idea. She'd never been particularly interested in public office, and she was sure that Megamind never had been, either. Not as such.

They'd never discussed it, but she suspected that his regular declarations of becoming Overlord had simply been part of the supervillain package, along with the grandstanding and outlandish outfits.

Actually becoming the ruler of the city was another matter entirely. He took leadership because someone had to. And Roxanne supposed that some of it was bound to rub off on her whether she liked it or not.

She steeled herself for the question niggling at her, a question she was dreading. "Mom, what happened to Dad?"

Mom's face became carefully blank and she cleared her throat. "He's fine. I imagine."

Not an answer Roxanne was expecting. "What..."

"He's in Los Angeles. Or near there. In California."

Roxanne felt completely lost. They didn't know anyone in California.

Mom cleared her throat again. "He left before the quarantine."

"Before the..." Roxanne shook her head. "Mom, you have to tell me. What happened?"

She sighed in an exasperated way. "Well, Roxanne, he... he's at a religious camp."

Her mother made a face and flapped her hand as if wanting to sweep away the very notion. "He wanted me to come along, but it's absolute nonsense, Roxanne. One of those Rapture groups. The dead are rising so they think their savior is going to come around and judge everybody or something like that."

"A cult! Dad's at some cult camp out in Los Angeles?"

"Near Los Angeles."

"When in the world did he...?" She shook her hair out of her eyes. The thought of her dour father getting sucked into a cult was unthinkable. Dad never even went to church unless Mom asked him to go. "Why didn't you tell me this was happening, Mom?"

"I didn't think it'd last, Roxanne, I thought it was just one of his phases. You know how he's always reading. Remember when he was sure going to Tibet and becoming a monk was the thing to do? Then about a week before the army closed off the city, he tells me he's got two Amtrak tickets and we have to go now before it's too late. I told him no way was I getting involved in some ridiculous scheme like this."

Mom looked at her hands lying in her lap. "I never thought he'd go through with it. Or maybe he'd get it out of his system and come back. Then the quarantine happened. I went to the Meyers' place and the three of us went to pick up Miss Holly and her foster children and we all went to my bank."

She shook herself, and gave Roxanne a brightly determined smile. "You know, I think I could use a shower after all. Where are the facilities again?"

Roxanne made sure Mom got a dry towel and soap, and left her friends Pilar and Agnes to keep her company. She also located her mom's neighbors to talk to them and see that they were all right.

She was glad Mom had her neighbors to turn to in this crisis. That's often how it worked now, groups of people banding together and finding shelter, looking out for one another.

Satisfied that they were settled in, she went to find Megamind.

Strange how personal matters could turn a person's world upside down as thoroughly as a zombie invasion.

She needed Megamind. She just wanted to lie in bed with him and not think about much of anything for a while. Her mother was alive and safe, and that would do for now. They could sleep and finally get some rest.

As she approached the room, she could hear Megamind and Minion talking. She didn't think anything of it until Megamind's voice rose.

"Minion, please," he said, a desperate edge to his voice. "I can't fight both of you."

Minion let out an odd strangled noise. Megamind heaved a sigh, and began talking in a steady murmur, in a language she didn't know.

She stood frozen in the corridor for a little longer, dread rising within her. Forcing her feet to move, she strode forward and went in, closing the door behind her.

They had, indeed been touching foreheads, but they drew apart from each other as Roxanne entered.

"What's going on?" she asked.

Minion looked away. Megamind gazed back somberly as he stepped toward her. "Roxanne," he said in a low voice, reaching for her.

She pressed her lips together in a thin line and crossed her arms, already not liking where this was heading.

He let his hands fall to his sides. "I'm heading outside the quarantine. Food is imperative, and I will collect those materials that are owed to Metrocity."

It was as if a fist closed around her throat. "How long will you be gone?"

"Two days, by my best estimate."

She nodded and took a deep breath. It wasn't like she hadn't suspected this was coming. "Take care of him, Minion."

The nervous flutter of Minion's fins and the twitch of his toothy jaw gave off a guilty vibe.

Roxanne gritted her teeth. "Tell me."

"He's staying here. To look after things."

"To look after me, you mean."

"Yes. And everyone else." His eyes held hers, steady.

"And you're going to let him," she said to Minion, unable to keep the accusatory tone out of her voice.

"Some others're going," he mumbled. "Henchmen. One of the prison guards. And Nina, 'cuz she knows her way around army bases."

She regarded them as they stood there, Minion at Megamind's shoulder.

They had been together all their lives, always had each other's backs, and right now they were united against any angry retort she could come up with.

But that didn't mean she would automatically agree without comment to whatever decision they decided upon.

"I want to know why," she said.

Megamind's face was a picture, his brows wrinkling and reforming into different patterns as he struggled to put into words his feelings. "My heart," he said, pressing his hand flat to his chest. "You two are... pieces of my heart. I almost lost both of you in one day. I need both of you here, in relative safety."

"So Minion can look after me, is that it?" She was unable to feel very angry about it.

"That's right." His eyes burned into her. "And this city needs someone in charge. Minion will help you."

For a moment she felt dizzy and swayed where she stood.

Oh.

She would be in charge. Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown. Henry the Fourth Part Two, came the well-remembered line from her college Shakespeare class.

Minion stirred, shifted his weight. "You care about this city, Miss Ritchi. As much as he does. We'll keep doing what we've been doing, holding down the fort basically. And Sir can be...you know...'resting' or 'working on secret projects.'" He made air quotes.

She frowned. "So it's not going to be common knowledge that you're gone? I don't know if that's..."

"Oh, it'll be fine," Megamind interrupted. "Minion can put in an appearance as me once in a while. He has his own disguise generator, as part of his wrist comm."

"Is that really a good idea?"

"Better than telling everyone their Overlord has taken off for a few days. Think of the consternation it would cause among the denizens. Why, there might be panic."

Roxanne doubted that there would be panic, but the anxiety curling in her stomach was for him, and the dangers he would undoubtedly face. Having Minion impersonate Megamind once in a while out of some slightly skewed judgment, well, it wasn't an argument she felt like having, not when he was about to leave.

She put her arms around him, draping her injured arm lightly over him while hugging him tight with the other, striving to memorize the feel of his narrow back, the curve of his cheek and angle of his jaw against her face. "Come back safe," she whispered.

He squeezed her, firm and warm. "Always," he said hoarsely.

Roxanne, Minion, Nina's girlfriend Gabby, and the wife of one of the men gathered on the roof next to the greenhouse to see the scavenging party off.

Megamind dehydrated his co-conspirators, put them in his pocket, and walked to the stealthbots. He looked over his shoulder, his eyes meeting Minion's and then hers one last time before he disappeared into the invisibility field. There was a whisper of machinery as the stealthbots lifted off that she would have missed if she hadn't been listening for it, and then silence.

Megamind and his little task force had gone.


Despite her exhaustion, Roxanne barely slept the rest of the night.

She staggered from bed around dawn, checked on her mother, chatted with her friends, talked with various members of the police, the henchmen.

No new refugees arrived over night, which wasn't surprising, but there could be more now it was daylight.

She called the water treatment plant to see how they were doing, checked the fire station, checked the progress of the ad hoc police station a block down from the Lair. While she knew what she was doing was necessary, she felt superfluous, as everything seemed to be proceeding as normally as could be expected.

The brainbots continued to stoically erect the wall around the peninsula, a great jigsaw puzzle of a wall made of girders, brick, concrete, and occasional oddities. Roxanne spotted a park bench crammed into one spot, and in another place the top of a dining room table secured with fresh cement filled another gap. The brainbots were inventive.

She prepared another round of interviews, and added more names of the dead to their broadcasts, all the while feeling as if she were shouting into an uncaring void.

On the lookout for Destruction Worker, Minion and a small horde of brainbots accompanied her to the broadcast station by the railroad tracks. He insisted on going with her whenever she left the safe zone.

A possible attack from Destruction Worker wasn't really on her mind, though. She was sure he wouldn't stand a chance against Minion and the 'bots. She couldn't shake the worry that Megamind might be tempted to cause mischief among the soldiers at the barricades, or even outright attack them, so she asked Gabby to take her on a hovercraft for a brief visit to the perimeter.

Gabby was as eager to go as Roxanne, and she remembered that Gabby was anxious for Nina. Somehow it felt better having something to do, even if it was only to scowl at the army.

Roxanne shaded her eyes against the sun's glare and squinted across the no man's land.

There was no change at any of the distant barricades as far as she could tell, no flurries of activity, no alarms or smoke or gunfire, so she supposed that was good.

What the outer world's reaction would be when it was discovered that a small cadre of infected citizens from a quarantined city were at large and possibly spreading contagion, she had no idea.

It tied her stomach in knots.

At midnight she and Minion went up to the roof to meet with returning stealthbots bearing sacks of dehydrated cubes.

They read the hastily scribbled note Megamind provided. '15,000 pounds of MREs and other rations. MASH unit. Re-hydrate in largest open area available,' and another note written on the back of an order form for spare parts for a jeep,

'Situation sickeningly normal, except for army checkpoints on highway. However, getting to Chicago docks problematic. Word is that Chicago making bid to become isolated city-state, Apex backing them. Might need extra day.'

Roxanne met Minion's worried gaze over the paper. "Has he ever confronted Apex before?" she asked. She didn't know much about the hero who was Defender of Chicago, other than that he was a weapons expert.

Minion shook his head. "No, but he'll be fine. It'll be fine."

"Minion," she said, putting her hands on her hips. "What aren't you telling me?"

"No, really, I'm sure he'll be all right! It's...well, for a while, I just feel like Sir's been spoiling for a fight. I hope he doesn't give in to temptation. But I'm sure he won't," he added quickly.

So her uneasiness hadn't been for nothing. Given the opportunity, Megamind might decide a brief return to the good old days of fighting a hero would be time well spent. She flung her hands up in the air. "Ugh, I knew you should have gone with him."

But invading Chicago needed to be done, if that's where the supplies owed to Metro City were being stored. She hoped Megamind invaded quietly.


She wondered how in the hell Minion would explain the sudden arrival of boxes and bags stamped with 'U.S. ARMY' all over them, but he simply announced that the Overlord had opened a supply line. Other than a few puzzled glances exchanged among the henchmen and cops, people seemed satisfied.

"How long's that explanation going to last?" Roxanne asked him when they were alone. "Because there isn't actually a supply line."

"But there will be one, Miss Ritchi," Minion said, holding up a huge finger. "Soon. Very soon."


The simple fact that Megamind had left her in charge weighed on her, although nothing had really changed in the routine of the Lair or the safe zone, except for the usual headaches of accommodating the steadily growing numbers of refugees.

Even the zombies were laying low.

But the knowledge that Megamind wasn't there to back her up made her shoulders tight, and she had to consciously allow her muscles to relax.

Had he and his task force found a good place to hide? To rest? Blending in wouldn't necessarily be a problem, not with Megamind's disguise generator, but they'd need a safe place to rest, to hide from nosy authorities.

Could he really trust the people he'd brought with him? Would they desert him now that they were free of the city?

She kicked herself for not thinking of that sooner, and she wished again that she'd insisted Minion go along. Minion would never leave Megamind's side, and he could've helped keep Megamind's task force in line, if need be.

Later that day, Roxanne went around a corner and stopped short at the sight of Dr. Plant deep in discussion...

...with Megamind.

Her heart leaped but she stifled the gasp that threatened to come out of her.

It wasn't Megamind. Of course. He wasn't due back yet.

It was Minion using the disguise generator, and this was confirmed when 'Megamind' motioned her over.

Despite the sweeping gesture, which had Megamind written all over it, the eyes that turned to her were the warm, slightly nervous brown eyes of Minion.

"Ah, Miss Ritchi," he said.

The voice was also flawless, and the inflection, albeit just a bit exaggerated. She sucked in her lip to hide her amusement, and wondered how she would fare if she tried to imitate Megamind as Minion was doing.

"Grave news, Miss Ritchi," Minion said.

No, Megamind. She must think of him as Megamind. It amazed her, however, that no one else was fooled. Now that she knew it was Minion, it was difficult not to see it.

Dr. Plant turned toward her, clearly disturbed, and that squelched any more amusement on Roxanne's part.

"Typhus," she said. "The zombie baby died of typhus. I examined the body."

"What's the treatment?" Roxanne asked.

"Doxycycline, which the MASH unit was stocked with, fortunately, and we've begun treating the rest of the child's family. The disease flourishes in crowded, unsanitary conditions. We need to keep an eye out for more outbreaks, especially with the folks still at the water treatment plant."

"We better notify Hot Flash," Roxanne said. "Symptoms?"

"Sudden onset of fever, headache. A rash appears in five to seven days, starting on the torso. Fatalities are typically high, and spread by body lice."

Roxanne did her best to smile reassuringly back at the doctor. "Excuse us a moment, doctor," she said, and seized the elbow of the pseudo-Overlord, pulling him off to the side.

Some part of her mind boggled at the very real feeling of Megamind's leather-clad elbow under her hand rather than Minion's huge hairy arm.

And how does the disguise generator make him shorter? she wondered, but pushed aside her curiosity.

Once they were around the corner, she demanded in as loud a whisper as she dared. "Do you really think that was a good idea? Pretending to be Megamind?"

"Well, sure, Miss Ritchi. I've done it before," he said, smiling brightly. "The doctor wanted to talk to the boss, said it was urgent, and there ya go. She's happy, I'm happy, we're all happy. Well, except for the whole, you know, typhus thing."


The next morning, Minion was overseeing the brainbots installing a biodiesel fuel engine into a semi-truck when there was a shout.

He looked up.

Tony, recently liberated from his cane as his leg had healed up enough, called out again. "Overlord! Anybody seen 'im?"

Denizens shrugged and shook their heads, and Tony hurried over to Minion. "Minion, where's the boss? He ain't in his room."

Minion barely stopped himself from saying 'he's resting', which had become his go-to response over the past couple of days. "Oh, he must've stepped out."

"Can you call him? On that?" he asked, pointing agitatedly at the comm on Minion's wrist.

"He's pretty busy," Minion said, scowling. Internally, however, he felt alarmed at Tony's agitation. Several people were drifting over, wondering at the disturbance, including a few cops, Rupert the henchman, and Luke, probationary henchman.

"Psycho Delic's at the border!" Tony cried. "Says he wants to talk to the Overlord."

Oh shit.

Minion bristled. "He attacked?"

"No, just said he wants to talk, but only with the Overlord. Want us to shoot him?"

"'Scuse me a sec," Minion said, hurrying away into the Lair and away from the staring crowd. For the look of the thing he pretended to speak into his comm.


And so it was that few moments later, Minion disappeared into the lab and the Overlord came out. No one noticed that Minion hadn't come out again, mainly because they were busy worrying about Psycho Delic.

The Overlord flew to the border of the safe zone on a hoverbike, with extra brainbots overhead, and armed henchmen and cops jogging up from behind as backup.

Minion set down next the fidgeting guards, feeling he'd done a pretty decent entrance.

He strode past the growling brutebots hovering in a half circle by the abandoned real estate office across the safe zone's border.

Psycho Delic and half a dozen men were backed against the wall, hands raised.

All of them, Minion noticed, armed to the teeth but bedraggled and shabby. One man slumped against the wall, sweating, eyes closed, a dirty bandage tied inexpertly around the hand he hugged to his chest.

Almost against his will, Minion felt a twinge of sympathy.

He did his best to harden his heart and fixed Psycho Delic with a haughty glare. "Well, here I am. As requested."

Psycho Delic slowly lifted his head and looked at him from under his hat brim, his glowing red eyes muted and hollowed within his purple face. Carefully, he took his hat off his head and held it in both hands, taking a cautious step forward whiile his eyes darted around at the multitude of 'bots.

"Hey, Overlord," he said hoarsely, and ducked his head and hunched his shoulders.

With some amazement, Minion realized he'd just bowed. Psycho Delic's trenchcoat lay on the ground, showing how the purple man's red button-up shirt hung loose over his skeletal frame.

At an impatient signal from Psycho Delic, his men began to reach for their belts and pockets.

"Hold it," Minion snapped. The bots' snarling went up a notch. The cops and henchmen raised their weapons.

But Psycho Delic's men were holding up their hands again, revolvers held slack and upside down. Despite the increased sweating and darting eyes, it was clear they were surrendering.

Psycho Delic had his hands raised, too, had dropped his purple hat. He licked his lips. "Need sanctuary," he muttered, in a tone that was almost deferential.

Minion narrowed his eyes, his Megamind mask adopting the same look of skepticism. "Drop 'em."

The weapons clattered to the ground.

Psycho Delic tried to adopt what was probably meant as a pleading expression, but he wasn't very good at it, managing more of a resentful, sullen look instead.

"So you want sanctuary," Minion said, to buy time. What would Sir do? Minion hadn't expected this.

"Look, Megamind." Psycho Delic opened and closed his mouth. "Uh. Overlord," he amended, ducking his head again. "I need help. Can't touch these fucking zombies, my smoke don't work on 'em at all. They don't feel nothin.' Almost out of ammo. Haven't eaten for..."

He pressed his thin lips together, as if angry at his own wheedling voice, and he shuffled closer, turning his hat around like a steering wheel in his hands. Desperation oozed off him.

"Look, I know you got morals and shit like that. I promise there won't be any trouble. I'll do whatever you want, just let us stay." His eyes darted around. "If any of my guys steps outta line, I'll cut off their balls myself." He turned a savage scowl on his henchmen.

Minion worked his jaw.

Psycho Delic blinked rapidly, became more agitated. "Please," he whispered. "Jesus Christ, waddya want? I got some money, it's in a locker at the Greyhound station on 67th, you can have it. I got nothing else. My girls're gone, you never wanted to sleep with 'em anyway, drugs are..."

"Drugs!" Minion shouted.

Psycho Delic was startled into silence.

Minion coughed. "Uh, I mean, yeah, maybe you could be of help. We need medicine. Real medicine, not meth," he said, fixing the other villain with a stern look.

This might be a mistake. For a split second, it seemed as if one problem had been resolved, but already Minion was having second thoughts about using anything procured by Psycho Delic.

Psycho Delic's face broke into a relieved smile. "Yeah. Sure. Medicine. I'll figure something out. You need me for anything, I'm your man."

The smile turned into a leer as, a dealer to his core, Psycho Delic edged closer and said in a conspiratorial murmur, "But seriously, when I'm back on my feet, I can sniff out the goods, if you know what I mean. No problemo, Overlord. Whole city's goin' to pot, but I can..."

His voice faded as he peered at the Overlord's eyes more closely, his eyebrows pinching together. "What's wrong with your eyes? You wearing contacts?"

Minion whirled. "Take their weapons," he ordered the astonished henchmen. "Find them a place. Not in the Lair."

As he strode to the hoverbike, Minion glanced back over his shoulder.

Psycho Delic watched him, his skeletal features developing into a sly grin, a knowing gleam in his red eyes.

A warm flush passed over Minion's cheeks and set his fins a-quiver as he got on the hoverbike and flew back to the Lair.

Damn, damn, damn! He shouldn't have let Psycho Delic get so close. But Minion let his empathy get the better of him. He'd never seen Psycho Delic so pathetically submissive before, the other villain must've had a tough time of it, to come crawling to Sir for help, and one of his men was injured, and...

Minion set down in the courtyard and leaped off the bike with a frustrated growl, startling several denizens hanging up laundry.

Psycho Delic knew.

The other villain couldn't have known it was a hard-light hologram projected over Minion, but he wasn't stupid, either.

Psycho Delic knew that whoever he'd been talking to, it wasn't Megamind.