A car pulled up to a wooded area in the city. It wasn't nearly as big as the one right by Virginia Tech, but still expansive enough to be concealing. There were a few other cars there already as well, but their owners were nowhere to be found. The driver exited his car and entered the woods. Once he got far enough in, he looked around him to make sure he wasn't being followed and slipped on a mask over his head, a mask that looked like a blue hood with holes cut out from the eyes. He searched the trees until he found one with a small, rectangular ident in it. He knocked it twice and the indent slid open. A pair of eyes looked at him from inside the tree.
"Interesting mask," the pair of eyes said, "I see you are wishing to be part of something greater than yourself?"
"I would be blue if I wasn't."
A hiss of steam came out from the tree and part of its trunk slid open to reveal a doorway. The pair of eyes now had a body, one with an identical blue mask over their head. The doorkeeper motioned the guest to follow him into the trunk. The guest complied and found himself walking down into the ground through a staircase concealed by the false tree. A few seconds later, the door slid back and concealed the entrance once again.
At the bottom of the stairs, they walked into a giant underground bunker, packed with people all wearing the same mask as them and large machinery. The place was alive with people murmuring to each other like mad. Someone approached the doorkeeper and the guest.
"Are you serious? There's STILL stragglers? The leader's gonna talk any minute!" They said angrily.
"I know, right?" The doorkeeper complained. "This is the last one I'm letting in. I'll be damned if I miss the boss's speech. Anyway, go on, get yourself situated, and keep an ear out for the announcement." The guest joined the others and soon became completely unidentifiable in the crowd of blue-masked people.
Not too long later, a loudspeaker screeched to life.
"Attention, attention," a male voice said over it. Everyone stopped talking immediately. "It's time now, so gather in the presentation room. Go on, get over there."
The people did as they were told and uniformly marched to the presentation room, a large room with nothing in it but a theatrical stage. A white man wearing the same blue mask stepped out from the stage's curtains. In front of everyone, he took his hood off, revealing a sinister smirk. He tossed it out into the crowd, and the people it landed by came to blows over who would keep it.
"Settle down now," the leader spoke. The audience was back to being calm. "But yes, after tonight, I will no longer need that mask. Nor will any of you need yours. Because, esteemed followers, most loyal companions…"
He reached behind the curtain and pulled out a bucket of blue paint.
"I HAVE DONE IT!"
The audience roared with excited cheering and clapping. The leader let this go on for a while until he put his hand up and the excitement ceased.
"I have done what my father and his father before him failed to do! I have found all the missing ingredients! I have completed the formula! I have brewed the first true batch of our life-enhancing blue paint!"
He held the paint can up again and the crowd resumed cheering. This time, the leader let it die down on its own.
"And all it took was a few plants, minerals, and the one ingredient that had eluded my family for so long…" The stage's curtains parted to reveal a giant replica of the moon, shining brilliantly behind him. "...THE LIGHT OF OUR OWN MOON!" he triumphantly proclaimed. And before the day is done, each and every one of you will be covered head to toe in this amazing substance! Your bodies will be indestructible! Your power will increase tenfold! We will become an unstoppable army! And when that's done, we will invade the notorious 'impenetrable' Slusher Tower!"
"Yes, Slusher Tower, located nearby in this very state of Virginia. In all its years and all its invasions, it's earned a reputation for being impossible to successfully invade. But tomorrow, that reputation falls, gentlemen! For we shall make our world debut by invading the Tower and bringing it to its knees!"
The leader ceased his speech for a moment. "...Go on talk," he urged the crowd when he heard nothing from them. The audience murmured, a mix of worry and excitement. The leader looked at a clock while they spoke and cleared his throat when time was up. The crowd fell silent and attention was back on the leader.
"I know what you're all thinking. 'Oh glorious leader, how can you be so sure we'll be able to succeed?' First of all, I'm insulted that any of you would doubt me for even a moment!" About two thirds of the crowd hung their heads. "Second, everyone knows WHY Slusher Tower is so unbreakable. It's because of those persistent Slush Defenders!" Right after he said that, wooden cutouts of Andrew, Pedro, James, and Kyle sprung up behind him.
"They've always been the key to keeping that building locked up, safe from those who would bring it down. But thanks to the efforts of our brilliant spies, we now know some very interesting things about them! Recently, three of their members have left the campus and another was discharged from the team! They're splintered! Small! The weakest they've been since their very founding! And their first adversaries didn't have our sheer numbers…" The leader destroyed the standees of Pedro and Kyle with a few kicks, "...Nor the power this paint shall give us!" He backfisted James's head off and ripped off Andrew's entire upper body.
"Our success, guaranteed! Our plan, foolproof! And it all begins with this!" A rope dropped down from above and the leader grabbed it. "THE FIRST BLUE-ING!"
The leader yanked the rope and gallons of blue paint crashed down on him. The crowd gasped and watched in horror as their leader seemed to be drowning in the paint, struggling against it as it submerged and suffocated him as if he was swimming in a sea of quicksand. Then, the paint dried and hardened into a firm pile, the leader nowhere to be found.
Then, suddenly, a blue fist broke through the top, followed by the rest of the leader, victoriously breaking through. The crowd went wild as they saw their new leader, completely covered in blue. Even the color of his eyes had changed to the same shade as the paint.
"Gentlemen! I am no longer just your glorious leader! I am now Big Blue! A name the world will come to know and fear! Give me a few minutes to prepare the rest of the paint and soon the rest of you will know this power as well! That is all. Thank you, and goodnight!" Big Blue bowed and stepped behind the curtains as they closed again, letting them muffle the audience's cheers.
Backstage, he sat down at a table in his lab, accompanied by only an orange person and their skunk.
"That was an amazing presentation, boss! I'm so excited our plan is finally coming to life!" The orange person told him.
"Yes yes, it's all very exciting, Uno, isn't it?" Big Blue dismissed. He set down his can of paint from the presentation and turned his attention to a few glowing, dried, purple flowers. He crushed them up in a mortar and pestle and dumped them into the paint. Within seconds, they spread throughout the whole thing, turning it from a radiant true blue to a dark, dull navy. Big Blue smiled and looked over at Uno, who was hugging his skunk.
"Who's a good skunky? You are, yes, you are!" Uno cooed. Big Blue rolled his eyes.
"Kid loves that skunk more than anything," he mumbled to himself before letting his face slowly break out into an evil grin. "...Which is why he'll make the perfect guinea pig. OH, UNO!" He called. Uno perked up and faced Big Blue.
"What is it boss?" Uno asked.
"Uno, come here," he does so, "You've been with me since the very beginning. My very first follower, and by far my most loyal one at that. You're a shining example of what I look for in this army."
"Aw gee, thanks boss," Uno blushed.
"So that's why I want you to be the very first Blue."
"Oh my gosh! You really mean it!?"
"Yep. But of course, you could always refuse and let the offer go to someone else-"
"NO, I'LL TAKE IT! MAKE ME A BLUE!"
Big Blue grinned and launched the contents of the paint can all over Uno. The paint dripped down, slowly enveloping his whole body as Uno doubled over in pain.
"Boss… I'm getting a really bad headache…"
"Good! That means it's working!"
Once the paint covered the rest of Uno's body, he stood up to attention like a soldier.
"I hereby dub thee, 'Blue Uno'," Big Blue said. "Now tell me, Blue Uno, how do you feel?"
"Amazed to be in your presence, master!" Blue Uno replied.
"Hmm, seems good so far…" Big Blue watched Blue Uno pick his skunk up and start petting it. Big Blue grabbed the skunk away and held it by its pelt.
"Hey Blue Uno, how do you feel about THIS?" He punched the skunk in the gut. Hard. Repeatedly. Right in front of Blue Uno. The skunk looked miserable when it was all over.
"Relieved. You are my all-knowing, all-powerful master. You must know what is best for my beloved skunk."
"Good… Very good…" Big Blue then opened a drawer, grabbed a handful of the purple flowers, and gave them to Blue Uno. "Crush these and put them in the paint mixers in the main lobby. Make sure the color changes completely before coming back to tell me. I only want the best for my followers."
"As you wish, master." Blue Uno took the flowers and headed out into the lobby. All that was left for Big Blue to do was look at the clock and wait for him to come back. Five minutes later, Blue Uno returned to him.
"The paint has been altered to your liking," he said. Big Blue nodded and leaned into a microphone.
"Loyal followers, the time has come!" Big Blue said, his words echoing over the loudspeaker. "Gather in the lobby to receive the gift of the paint!" He leaned back and smugly listened to the stomping of hundreds, if not more, pairs of feet, all moving in one direction. Once it stopped, he left the lab himself and entered the lobby. Big Blue's followers parted where he walked, letting him go wherever he pleased even among the sea of people. He finally stopped by one of the paint mixers, his hand on a latch facing the crowd.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome…" He pulled it and opened a hatch on the mixer, causing the contaminated paint to flood out along the crowd, "...to your new life!"
The paint splashed on the followers, covering them and turning them into Blues. They took their hoods off and, like Uno, stood in mindless attention at Big Blue. Big Blue himself ran to another mixer and opened that one too, getting more of the crowd painted and being very careful not to get any on himself. By the time he was heading for the third mixer, some members of the crowd were attempting to leave, but were stopped by other Blues.
"Do not be afraid," Big Blue heard one of them say, "This is our grand reward." Then the gushing of paint drowned them out. When it was all done, finally, everyone in the bunker was a Blue.
"ALL HAIL BIG BLUE!" They chanted in unison. Big Blue smiled and let out an evil laugh at his success.
"My first command to you all…" Big Blue began, "Is to get some sleep already! We're going to need all the strength we can get to raid Slusher." The Blues collectively burst out into laughter. "...But seriously, get some rest," Big Blue clarified after it died down.
The next day, Big Blue woke up in his lab and peeked out into the presentation room to see the Blues, packed like sardines around the bunker, sleeping. He took his microphone and held it towards the loudspeaker before clearing his throat into it, producing a horrible feedback that woke the Blues up.
"Blues, it's time."
The Blues got dressed in clothing that hid their new, blue skin and left the bunker slowly, and in different directions so as not to arouse suspicion. A few of them had to leave their cell phones behind because their families kept calling them. Big Blue was the last to leave, carrying a small, mechanical ball and an ID card, making a beeline for Slusher. Once he arrived, he noticed the other Blues starting to arrive. Big Blue waited for a good number of them to arrive on the campus before swiping the card. Rejected. He slid it again. Rejected.
Slightly frustrated, he looked to the ball in his hand and pressed the button on it. A red beam of light shot out from the button and slowly, a very large person emerged from the ball.
"Big Boy," Blue Blue said, nodding his head toward the locked door, "You know what to do."
Big Boy took his giant leg and kicked the door in with ease. They set off some of the alarms, but they were in.
"Nicely done!" Big Blue praised before pressing the button on the ball again, recalling Big Boy back inside. "Now, gentlemen…" He cast off his clothes, "LET THE INVASION BEGIN!" The Blues cast off their concealing clothes and ran inside, swarming both the campus and the building within seconds. Big Blue waited outside Slusher's doors, observing the chaos from there. He looked up and into a window above. He saw James look at the invaders, panic, and punch a button on the wall. A deafening klaxon rang out, but Big Blue just put his hand to his ear to get a better listen to it. The only thing that broke his calm was when he saw a rocket crash into the side of the building, but even that he quickly shrugged off.
Shortly after that, he peered into the hallway and found Andrew, trapped by the Blues. Big Blue stretched himself out and walked into the building, cool and collected even while his Blues flooded in and ransacked the place.
"MOVE!" Big Blue heard Andrew yell, "I'LL MAKE YOU IF YOU DON'T!"
"Oh, how very threatening," Big Blue taunted. Andrew turned around to face him with death in his eyes. "You must be Andrew, right? Oh, I've heard so much about you!" Big Blue said. Andrew responded by getting into a fighting stance. "What, you're not going to ask me MY name now?" Big Blue asked, acting mockingly insulted.
"Who the hell are you?" Andrew growled.
"Me?" Big Blue chuckled and bowed, keeping his eyes locked with Andrew's. "You may call me Big Blue..."
"...Or, if you prefer, the new owner of this building."
The End.