Chapter 3: Birth of a Villain

"Tell me, Beastly…How familiar are you with No Heart's library?"

"Eh…Not a lot. I sometimes had to clean it up, but I never read the books. No Heart would have gotten angry if I did."

"Of course. I have been studying his notes and books, and scanning everything…Fascinating, I must say. A History of nearly a century of villainy – the ravings of a madman. A pity that his intellect is so limited, which shows in his writings. Nevertheless, I have found many interesting things…Information on magic, which completes and corroborates the data I have accumulated from my study of Artifact X. Valuable details on the Care Bear Family and its modus operandi. Hints on…"

"Artifact X? What's that, boss?"

"I'm afraid you are not authorized for this information, Beastly. But tell me…Have you heard of someone named 'Control'? There are multiple mentions of him…"

"Uh…It's No Heart's brother. Shrieky's dad!"

"That's what I've come to understand…And that's truly fascinating, because, over the course of my criminal career, I've come across that name a few times. There are rumors stipulating the existence of a secretive, far-reaching criminal mastermind who goes by the name of Control. I'll have to remember to take care of him as soon as the world is mine…"

"Auntie Freeze, Frostbite, it's time to pack up. We're leaving the castle for a while."

"What? Why?"

"Business, my dear. My latest plot must be launched from a specific location, and we're going to have to remain on site for some of its duration."

"So you have a plan, boss?"

"Of course I do! Look at this picture!"

"It's really ugly, boss."

"I took the picture with a microscope. It's a new kind of germ I just created with the new knowledge in genetics; it infects people, and freezes their feelings from the inside. I call it – the Freeze Germ!"

"Wow! So we're going to freeze feelings all over the world with it?"

"It's not that simple. I can't just release the Freeze Germ – it takes time to spread, and not only do we risk getting caught during that time, but somebody might develop a cure!"

"In that case, how do you plan to proceed, Professor?"

"This is where Villain-dot-com comes into play."

"That society of evil that wanted to work with you?"

"Correct! They have ideas, plans, and equipment of all kinds! I gave them the genetic code of the Freeze Germ, and they agreed to help me spread it!"

"Just like that? What do they gain from it? Are they out to eliminate feelings too?"

"No, they're in it for power and profit. They agreed to help in exchange for some of my inventions' blueprints. It was worth the price, though – with the strategy they've come up with, and the Freeze Germ, this new plan cannot fail!"

"What is it, Good Luck? You look worried."

"I am. It was my turn on star-o-scope duty, and I saw trouble."

"What was it?"

"There are several people on Earth who lost their feelings. They've just stopped caring about anything, and they look…Cold. Almost as cold as Professor Cold Heart. And here's the interesting part: They all live in Rainbow City."

"Rainbow City? You think that uncaring crystal is doing this?"

"That's the simplest explanation I can think of. We have to tell the others."

Soon enough, a group of Care Bears and Care Bears Cousins (Bright Heart, Wish, Gentle Heart, Cheer, Harmony, and Loyal Heart) was sent down to Rainbow City. There they met the mayor – the same one they had met twenty years ago. Apparently, he had aged well.

"It's good to see you here. We never thanked you people enough for saving us when we had become Drab City."

"No need to thank us – it was a pleasure. But you know why we're here…"

"Yes, I know. The people who lost their feelings. There are already forty of them, and several new ones each day. It's becoming faster and faster – I'm afraid it will eventually engulf the entire city!

We've been trying to find the common element – in many cases, it happened to entire households, and very often, different victims knew each other well, but there are victims in many different parts of the town, some of which are far away from each other."

"Considering this town's history, I'm particularly worried about the uncaring crystal" said Bright Heart. "Has anything happened to it? To the pit where it was pushed? To its vicinity?"

"Nothing that I know off. There's that big construction site that opened recently, and they do dig a lot, all the time…But it's two hundred feet away from the pit, so I don't think that's the reason."

"Well, we'll keep looking. We promise to do everything we can to solve this problem, Mr. Mayor."

"Thank you. The people of Rainbow City still remember losing their feelings all those years ago, and the last thing we want is for it to happen again."

Meanwhile, inside the construction site, some questionable characters were lurking:

"Isn't it brilliant, Frostbite? Because we put our new temporary base of operation in Rainbow City, those fuzzy-wuzzies won't realize we were behind this epidemic until it's too late – since they'll think it's all happening because of the uncaring crystal! I'm a genius!"

"Yeah, boss, but…Wasn't it an idea of Villain-dot-com?"

"Silence, you fool!…Yes, has been most useful. And it is a good thing that they provided everything and started this construction site, which hides our HQ."

"True, Professor" said auntie Freeze. "But do they have to keep their digging and drilling all night long? I have trouble sleeping, even with my earplugs!"

"Their last e-mail insisted that if they stopped, people might get suspicious. And we can afford to lose some sleep, if that means we get to destroy feelings!"

"Maybe…But maybe they could work only during the day?"

"I'll ask them in my next e-mail."

"Why not just ask the construction workers?"

"I don't think they're even aware of the true purpose of all this. It looks like they're normal workers who were hired by Villain-dot-com.

Anyway, auntie Freeze, I'd like you to do a little job: Now that there are Care Bears and Cousins in town, it would be most unfortunate if they did somehow discover the truth. I'll need you to use your invisibility to spy on them…"

"Okay," said Bright Heart, "I'm stumped. If the problems here were caused by the uncaring crystal, I'd have expected the victims to be people living near the pit. But it looks like the thing is spreading like a disease. It just doesn't make any sense."

Just as Bright Heart finished his sentence, a toy remote-controlled car with a paper taped to it rushed toward the group, and stopped in front of Gentle Heart. She hesitated for a while, then picked up the message.

"What is it, Gentle Heart?"

"It says that if we want to know the cause of the recent problems around here, we have to meet someone on the small island in the middle of the lake."

The bears and cousins hesitated. It could have been a trap – why not just come and speak to them? But since they had no other lead, decided to follow that one.

Soon enough, they found the lake. It wasn't very big – Just a quarter mile wide. In its middle there was an island, and on the island a house. And on the lake's shore, there was a row boat, with a piece of cardboard on which it was written: "For the caring mission".

A short while later, the group was rowing toward the island. And on the shore, the invisible auntie Freeze muttered: "Wonderful. I can't follow them. How am I supposed to spy on them if they're so far away I can't hear them?"

When the bears and cousins reached the island, they went to the house's door – where another message said "Come in. That means you." They did as they were told, and entered the house – only to be flabbergasted at the sight: From the outside, it looked like a little wooden cabin; but inside, it was full of computers, surveillance systems, and high-tech of all kinds. And among all the machines, a chair, with somebody in it – but with his back to them, they couldn't see who it was.

"Um, excuse us? Did you want to tell us something?"

"Quite." Said the man as he turned to face them, revealing himself to be no other than Checkmate Warren.

"You!" exclaimed Loyal Heart, preparing for a fight.

"Now, now", said Warren, "you don't really believe I'd ever put you in a position where you could defeat me, do you?"

"So you're behind all this!"

"Wrong. I have no interest whatsoever in causing the epidemic you've witnessed. But I do know what its true cause is."

"Why did you bring us here?"

"To show you this." And with that, he made an image appear on one of his computers' monitors.

"This…This is some kind of germ" observed Bright Heart.

"Indeed. And look at this simulation of what happens when it infects a human host: In a short amount of time, no more feelings. That's what's been happening to the people of Rainbow City – an epidemic, not a resurgence of the uncaring crystal."

"Of course! That explains the way it spreads – it's an infectious agent, not radiations!"

"You're catching on. And take a look at this: The germ's complete DNA sequence, as well as the formula for a cure."

"I…How did you get this?"

"The formula for a cure was easy to develop after I had obtained the DNA sequence. As for the sequence itself, I…swiped it from its creator."

"Creator? You mean…"

"I mean this germ was designed as a biological weapon. By no other than Professor Cold Heart himself!"

"Hold it," interrupted Loyal Heart. "How do you know all that?"

"I'm a genius. I have my ways. I have my information sources. I know nearly everything I need to know. For example, I know the new construction site is actually a cover – Cold Heart is hiding there with Frostbite, and there's also auntie Freeze, who had followed you up to the shore. That's why I wanted to meet you on this island – she couldn't follow you here."

"So Cold Heart is the one behind this mess!"

"That's what I just said. By the way, I also know that Cold Heart has a freeze machine in that fake construction site, and that if he thinks you're coming for him (which he will after we leak information to auntie Freeze), he'll have it aimed through the main entrance. So if you go around the place and come from this angle, he'll be forced to come out in order to aim his machine in your direction – which will leave him a lot less time. Simple but effective tactics."

"But even if he has less time, that'll still be enough to freeze us!"

"Not if you take these with you" Warren held up several identical small gadgets. "These are heating units. Enough to protect you from a blast or two from the freeze machine. Enough for you to win."

"Why are you helping us?" enquired Loyal Heart. "You're an evil mastermind. You've said it yourself."

"Listen up. I have plans for this world. I have plans for this whole planet. And people like No Heart and Cold Heart – are troublemakers who make it harder for me to implement my plans. I need them out of my way."

"Plans? What plans?" worried Harmony.

"I intend to conquer the world, and set myself as its supreme ruler. Not original, I know, but that's what I want."

"But why would you want such a thing?" insisted Harmony. "Having power won't make you happy, and having control over people won't mean you'll get along better with them. Why not make friends with them instead?"

Warren snorted. "You'll need to do better in the speech department in order to convince me. I like being in control, but that's not the point. As for making friends with people…As a general rule, I start to dislike people after talking to them for a few seconds. Many of them have repulsive personalities (not as much as mine, but repulsive nonetheless), and even more of them are idiots."

"But you don't even know what you're missing!" exclaimed Cheer. "There's nothing better than having a good friend – except having many, that is. If you open your eyes and give friendship a chance, you'll see it's true!"

Warren snorted again, more loudly this time. "You people just don't get it, do you? Well, it's story time." And with that, he activated a program, and old pictures started appearing on the screen.

"This is me, at age twelve. I lived with my family in Salvation Town at the time."

" 'Salvation Town'?"

"Yes. You see, that town was founded (and inhabited exclusively) by people who believed in the legend of the Perfect Book. It's an old story – but it said that the original founders of this city were given this book as the greatest of all gifts, and that, if somebody managed to understand its mysterious language, it would explain how to easily solve all the problems in the world."

"That's a nice story."

"That's what I used to think. You see, everybody in Salvation Town spent much of their lives trying to understand the Perfect Book. That's what our lives were about. I was a child prodigy – incredibly smart for my age. My parents hoped that one day, I'd be able to decipher the Perfect Book. They were proud of me.

Then, about the time I turned thirteen, I started examining the book. Remember how I said I was incredibly smart for my age? Apparently, I was already smarter than anyone else in town (which wasn't saying much, as I discovered): After a not-so-long study, I found many indications, and even proofs, that the book was a fraud – it didn't explain how to solve any problem whatsoever. It was nothing but a scam – some con man or some such had tricked the founders into buying this forgery. All the people I knew were wasting their lives for a lie."

"Are you completely sure it was a fraud?"

"Oooh yeah. I didn't want to believe it at first – it seemed too horrible to be true. But I kept checking – and there were many undeniable proofs. No matter how much I wanted the legends to be true, the Perfect Book was nothing but a waste of time. I tried to find evidence that I was wrong, and the book was genuine…But eventually, I realized I had to choose between believing in the Book – or being honest with myself. I chose honesty."

"That's sad – the part about everyone's hopes being a lie, I mean. So what then?"

"Well, I didn't want everyone in town to waste their lives like that. So I made a big announcement, explaining to everybody how the book was a lie, and giving them all the needed proofs. But they didn't care about my proofs – they were so angry at me for saying they were wrong about this, they all became my enemies overnight! When I refused to 'admit' the legends were true, they all hated me – the neighbors. My siblings. My parents. My classmates. Even my teachers. Everyone in town was suddenly my enemy. Everyone wanted to hurt me – sometimes physically.

My father, who used to be so proud of my intelligence, was now ashamed of my heresy. Just a few days after my announcement, he tried to have a talk with me – well, he yelled, mostly. He kept yelling the legends were true, and that we had to believe in them. I kept explaining my proofs. Finally, he snapped, and started spanking me."

"Y…Your father spanked you for disagreeing with him?"

"These people were completely crazy about their legends. But anyway, at that moment, my brain raced like it never did before – and I found a way out. I slid out of my father's grip, dived toward the ground, and pulled on the carpet he was standing on. He fell backwards, and knocked his head against the wall. Nothing serious, but he was too shocked to get up. I looked down at him – and at that moment, there are no words to describe the contempt I had for him. Too fanatical to consider evidence! Willing to beat his child for disagreeing with him! Outwitted by a thirteen-years old! I never considered him as a father anymore – he was just someone who shared some DNA with me, and nothing more.

But if you think my father was bad, wait till you hear about my classmates. You know how kids often get bullied by another kid or two, sometimes more? Well, I now studied in a school where everybody hated me, students and teacher alike. Believe me, it was not fun. I got beaten up by entire gangs of kids, and the teachers wouldn't lift a finger to stop them. Eventually, I realized that if I was to survive, I had to fight them back – not with muscles, but with my brain. I had to become the king of dirty tricks and clever strategies."

"There it goes" interrupted Loyal Heart. "You had to use dirty tricks? What happened to fair fights?"

"Fair fights! They were all against me. It wasn't about fairness – it was about survival. And I was determined to win, no matter the cost – both for my sake, and for the sake of showing them all.

I spent my nights thinking up new ways to defeat them. I came up with hundreds of tricks – poking the eyes with my fingers; climbing on the toboggan's ladder when they were following me – and then jumping on them; throwing sand from the playground in their eyes…I even started designing all kinds of gadgets to hurt anybody who'd attack me. When they tried to hurt me, I'd hurt them even more – but they were so many, and they'd just keep coming.

Another realization formed in my mind: If I wanted them to leave me alone, I had to hurt them – or at least some of them – so much that they'd be too afraid to ever attack me again. So I used the monkey bars.

That day, during recess, there were eight bullies pursuing me – which had, sadly, become rather typical. This time, to escape from them, I ran to the monkey bars, and climbed on them. The bullies were stupid enough to try to climb too – but then, I jumped down the other side of the monkey bars. So now, all eight of them were hanging on one side of it, while I was standing on the ground at the other side – it was easy for me to push the metal construct upwards, and with the bullies as a counterweight, it just…Fell on them."

"How awful!"

"From your perspective, maybe. But I was rather glad – all of them had broken something, and after that, everybody was too afraid of me to attack me! I was now left alone, and could spend my time thinking about new ideas and inventions. That's how I began my journey to become an evil mastermind."

"You became one because of…"

"No. My traumatic youth in Salvation Town didn't turn me into a villain – it merely turned me into a psycho. Becoming a criminal overlord bent on world domination was my choice and mine alone. But back to the story…

After that event, five years passed without much happening. People still hated me, but they left me alone. On my 18th birthday, I told my parents I had been accepted to a university in California, left my home, and took the bus for the East Coast, where I studied at Princeton. I've never heard again from anybody from Salvation Town, and I consider this to be one of the better aspects of my new life."

"And you've never had a friend since then?"

"Only my college roommate, Isaac. He was as logical, and nearly as smart as me, and we got along fine. I haven't seen him since I got my degrees, though – my criminal career has required for me to put some distance between myself and other people.

Anyway, after finishing college, I was already forming strategies for taking over the world. I started paying the bills as a computer network administrator, but soon enough, I was blackmailing management, patenting inventions, and cashing enough money to start working as an arch-villain. That's my story."

"That's the saddest story I've ever heard" said Gentle Heart, almost crying.

"It is sad" conceded Harmony. "But you shouldn't give up on friendship because of it. If you could make friends with that Isaac, then surely you can make friends with other people! If you'll give love, you'll receive love!"

"It's not about love. It's about efficiency. I may be a strategist, but I remain a technician at heart. It's in my nature to fix that which malfunctions."

"What do you mean by that?" enquired Bright Heart.

"Never mind. Story time is over. It's time to crush Cold Heart's plans. You'll have to call for the rest of the family to help you."

As the staff of the caring mission got out of the house, Wish turned to Checkmate Warren one more time: "I just wanted to tell you…I hope things will get better for you, and you'll be happy again."

Warren gave her a creepy grin, and replied: "Trust me, you might want to save up on your wishes…You will need them soon."

When the row boat reached the shore, auntie Freeze was waiting for it. She could see the bears and cousins now had a walky-talky with them, presumably taken from the house in the middle of the lake. She also managed to hear the voice coming out of the walky-talky: "Let's recapitulate: Cold Heart and co are hiding in the construction site. You'll have to strike them as soon as possible."

"Wonderful. I have to hurry to warn the Professor."

"So, the fuzzies intend to strike? I'll deal with them appropriately. We'll position the freezing ray so that we can get them easily, and villain-dot-com said they're sending in air support – whatever that means."

After a while, the denizens of the Kingdom of Caring reached the construction site – but instead of coming from the main entrance, they circled the site, and approached from behind.

"Curses! I won't be able to freeze them from here! Frostbite, help me carry the freeze machine outside!"

Soon, the icy trio was facing the bears and cousins in the street, with some passer-bys watching from afar. Chuckling evilly, Cold Heart activated the 'careless ray contraption device', sending a beam of frost toward his enemies – and was unpleasantly surprised when some gadgets they had on them protected them from the cold. That gave them enough time to coordinate their stares, destroying the freeze machine.

"Noooo! Not again!"

"It's over, Cold Heart!" shouted Brave Heart. "Your plan to destroy the feelings of Rainbow City has failed!"

"Not so quick, you fool! Air support is coming!"

And indeed, they could see a huge, menacing helicopter flying in their direction. It had "Villain-dot-com" emblazoned on its hull, and attached to its bottom was something that looked like a combination between a ray gun and a satellite dish. It positioned itself above the Care Bears and Cousins.

"What on Earth is that!"

"Help from Villain-dot-com! When I told them about my Freeze Germ, they helped me establish my base of operation here! And now they are going to destroy you!"

As if to confirm the Professor's saying, the huge device underneath the helicopter moved, aiming itself toward the bears and cousins. It then started making menacing noises and emitting strange lights when the battle-cry came out: "3, 2, 1, Stare!"

The powerful Stare hit the device head-on – but instead of destroying or neutralizing it, it was just somehow absorbed by it. That had never happened before! The Care Bears and Cousins didn't know what to do, and the Professor was laughing manically, when four of the construction site workers, wearing decontamination suits, came out of the site, holding a big box containing the uncaring crystal!

"What the…" was all the Professor managed to utter before a cable was lowered from the helicopter, and the workers fastened it to the box. The helicopter then lifted the huge crystal up in the air.

"What do you think you're doing!" yelled Cold Heart toward the helicopter. That's when someone stuck his head out of it – Checkmate Warren!

"Allow me to explain, Professor Cold Heart. You see, villain-dot-com was a front I created in order to manipulate you. It allowed me to not only ruin your Freeze Germ plan, but also obtain a few useful things which I'll know how to take advantage of. Now, Farewell! Mua-ha-ha-ha-ha !"

As the helicopter began moving away, Champ surprised everybody by quickly jumping on a nearby tree, then moving from it to a house's roof, then jumping at the box containing the uncaring crystal – and barely managing to catch it in mid-air. As he struggled not to fall, the rest of the families began forming cloudmobiles to follow him and the helicopter.

Cold Heart, looking defeated, turned to the construction workers: "How…How did that crystal get there?"

"Are you kidding? We've been digging tunnels from the basement day and night to reach that pit over there" he motioned toward the pit where the uncaring crystal had been laying for all those years. "The boss said we had to get a radioactive rock from there, so he provided us with those suits. He told us to attach the rock to the cable when the helicopter would show up. We just did our job. Why's everyone looking at us funny?"

Champ was hanging with all his strength to the big box. In retrospect, what he did was probably more reckless than was necessary…But after the last two times, he wasn't letting Checkmate Warren get away with this! Not after he had manipulated them all like that!

With all his strength and determination, Champ hoisted himself on top of the box, then began climbing on the steel cable. He quickly glanced downward – they were a good height above the lake. He glanced backward – his family was following in cloudmobiles. He glanced upward – still a short way to go. He kept climbing, finally reaching the helicopter's door. He hoisted himself inside – and faced Checkmate Warren. The mastermind seemed rather annoyed.

"Must you make things more complicated than necessary?"

"Stop this helicopter, Checkmate Warren!"

"Don't hold your breath. I'm afraid this crystal is to play a vital part in my master-plan, and if you think you're going to stop me, then you've got another thing coming."

"You'll never get away with this!"

"Oh, drop that tiresome cliché, will you? Now, if you'll excuse me…"

Champ was pretty fast, but he was completely taken by surprise by Warren's attack – perhaps the mastermind had learned how to fight back in Salvation Town. Regardless, the man's fist hit him with surprising force in the tummy, knocking the air out of him, and knocking him into the air. Champ was thrown backward by the strength of the punch, and fell a long distance downward before hitting the water.

"Champ!" came the cry from several members of the family, as they rushed toward him in their cloudmobiles. While they rescued him, the helicopter kept going…

Somehow, Cold Heart and his two associates managed to flee. The mayor was a bit confused by all the events, but nonetheless happy that the crystal was gone, that the cause of the uncaring epidemic had been found, and that a cure had been provided. The people of Rainbow City thanked the Care Bear family again – but the family members weren't so sure there were reasons to be happy. Whatever Warren's plans were, it looked like they were progressing…And Champ had had to be rushed to Take Care's infirmary in Care-A-Lot.

"Another near-perfect day! Two more of the elements necessary for my master plan! Unfortunate bit of unnecessary violence toward the end - but that fool Cold Heart and those naïve Care Bears played right into my hand. I will be able to remake the world to my liking soon enough!"

"Gee, sounds good, boss. But what does that mean?"

"I have…plans for the world. Too many parts of it today are sorely dissatisfying. I believe that, within a reasonable number of years of administration, I can get this planet running far more smoothly. However, before we get there, I'll still have to deal with a few details…I'm going to put on a little show for the world next month."

And with that said, he pulled a switch.

In Care-A-Lot, Tender Heart, Noble Heart, True Heart and Cheer were visiting Take Care's infirmary.

"Is he all right?"

"He will be all right. For now, he needs a few days of rest, and his right leg will stay in a cast for at least two weeks."

"How did he break his leg? I mean, he fell into water, right?"

"At that speed, hitting water isn't all that much different from hitting solid ground. You can come in, if you want."

Camp was in bed, inside. "Oh hi, sports fans!"

"Champ! Are you okay?"

"I guess. Well, actually, I guess it could be better…But I'll manage."

"What you did was very brave, Champ," said Noble Heart. "But it was also very reckless."

"I know. I didn't stop to think. It's just that…Usually, that works."

"Against Shrieky and Beastly, maybe. This time, you were up against a very different foe."

"You're right. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Champ," said True Heart. "But be more careful in the future."

In another part of Care-A-Lot, Harmony was helping Wish on star-o-scope duty.

"You know, there's something odd about Warren."

"A lot of things, I'd say."

"Well, there's this one thing that's been bothering me…He just doesn't seem like our other enemies at all."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know how to explain…Well, can you imagine Professor Cold Heart having a talk with us on his childhood? Or helping us against another villain?"

"He helped Cold Heart start this Freeze Germ thing in the first place."

"But still! He didn't have to help us in the fight against the Professor. He could have let him freeze us. Our other enemies…Our other enemies hate us. He doesn't seem to."

"Maybe you're…Oh my stars!"

"What?"

"Look!"

Harmony watched through the star-o-scope: Above several large cities, big hot-air balloons had risen, dispersing millions of flyers. On the flyers, it was written: "MATE IN TWO."

"Well, Professor, why aren't we returning to the castle already?"

The professor gave her an enraged look. "Because, Auntie Freeze, it turns out that while we were away, Checkmate Warren raided Cold Heart Castle, took out everything that he could use, then turned the castle and surrounding area into a mine field! We can't return!

That neophyte will live to rue the day he opposed Professor Cold Heart! He will pay, and pay dearly!

My plans for the Freeze Germ are ruined. But I haven't said my last piece yet! The world will shiver as I unleash my greatest plot ever – time enough for games! This time, the gloves will come off!"

Author's note: While Villain-dot-com doesn't exist, of course, it was inspired by VillainSupply-dot-com – a humorous website that supposedly sells equipment and lairs to evil overlords.