Chapter 5: What Shapes You
The afternoon sun hung low over the city of San Fransokyo, casting everything in bright oranges and deep purples, including the high-end neighborhood where Fred's house was. The Big Hero 9 were currently all gathered at the mansion, though instead of spending their time in the bunker beneath it, they had all gathered in Fred's bedroom.
Fred's bedroom was larger than entire levels of some people's houses. The most noticeable feature were the dozens of pieces of nerd memorabilia, such as statues the size of people in the likeness of various famous kaiju monsters along with dozens of models of sci-fi vehicles hanging suspended from the ceiling. A large, king-sized bed occupied a section of the room, as did a number of bookshelves along one wall that were stuffed with hundreds of comic books. Another one of the walls was dominated by a giant, flat-screen television with a plush, sectional couch facing it.
Currently, Tip and Hiro were seated on the couch, playing a video game being displayed on the television. Go Go sat on the couch as well, glancing between the television screen and the comic book she was flipping through. Fred, meanwhile, was standing by his bed, studying a tackboard that hung above it. A number of pictures and news articles had been attached to the board, connected to each other via pieces of red string, forming a makeshift web around a mysterious man named Gru. In a more open area of the room, Riley, Wasabi and Baymax were standing in a line, each in the loose stance of tai chi.
"Okay, Baymax," Riley said, "How about we try that new move Takahito-sensei taught us?"
"But Riley," Baymax argued, "The maneuver has already been stored in my new tai chi database. I have already mastered it."
"Humor us," Wasabi replied with a roll of his eyes.
With that, the three began to slowly move through a complex series of smooth and fluid motions, which included slowly turning in place and carefully controlling their breathing. After a few minutes, they finished the movements and returned to their starting positions.
"Man, I've got to say, nothing makes me feel more relaxed then when I do a little tai chi," Wasabi said as he rested his hands on his hips and let out a contented sigh, "It just puts me into such-"
At that moment, the doors to Fred's room swooshed open automatically, allowing Oh to enter, carrying a steaming plate of nachos with him.
"I HAS NACHOS!" Oh screeched at the top of his lungs as he entered.
"And there it goes," Wasabi commented with a sigh.
"Come on, Wasabi, he's not that bad," Riley chided as Oh made his way over to where Tip and Hiro were sitting.
"You never had to live with him," Wasabi replied with a snort.
"Eh, it's not that bad if you ask me," Fred spoke up as he walked over to where Riley, Wasabi and Baymax were standing.
"Easy for you to say," Wasabi retorted as he crossed his arms over his chest, "You live in a mansion. I live in an apartment."
"Fair enough," Fred replied with a nod.
"Hey, Fred!" Go Go called out, bringing the young man's attention to her as she held up the comic book, "You got anymore of these!?"
"Go Go, please," Fred said in a faux offended tone, "Surely you know I have an extensive and carefully maintained library of comics at your disposal."
"I didn't mean any comic, dope," Go Go replied with an annoyed look, "I meant more of this series."
Walking over to the couch, Fred took the comic Go Go had been reading and looked it over. The cover depicted a young woman with shoulder-length auburn hair dressed in a white and red spandex costume. Her features were obscured by the red, domino mask she wore and the picture depicted her riding a technologically advanced motorcycle while an explosion erupted behind her. The name "Elastigirl" was emblazoned above her head in bold, colorful font.
"An Elastigirl fan, huh?" Fred questioned with a quirked eyebrow, "Yeah, I think I've got a couple more issues of her."
"Elastigirl?" Wasabi mused as he, Riley and Baymax walked over as well, "She's a real super, right?"
"That's not a legit question, is it, Darron?" Go Go asked, looking at Wasabi like he had done something offensive.
"Whoa," Wasabi replied with a bemused smirk, "Touched a nerve there, huh? You a fan of hers or something?"
"Yeah, I guess you could say that," Go Go admitted with a sigh and a roll of her eyes.
"Elastigirl, she's the stretchy one, right?" Riley questioned.
"Yeah, stretchy limbs, can bend herself into weird shapes, the whole shebang, Fargo," Go Go answered, "But she's a lot cooler then just that."
"How so?" Riley inquired.
"She's a great fighter, had this super cool motorcycle," Go Go went on, a smile spreading across her features as she did, "There was even a period where she had a mohawk. I wanted to get one but I'm pretty sure my mom would have ritually sacrificed me in her hair salon if I had."
"She sounds like you," Riley observed with a chuckle.
"What? No," Go Go rebutted, though Riley could sense that the young woman's heart wasn't in it even without her powers, "I'm not-"
"Oh my God," Wasabi commented with a large grin, "She's totally your idol, isn't she?"
"So?" Go Go replied, giving Wasabi a death glare that was undercut by the blush that was coloring her features, "What of it?"
"Nothing," Wasabi replied with a chuckle and a shake of his head, "You're just so independent that it never occured to me that there would be someone you looked up to."
"How did you become a fan of Elastigirl anyway?" Fred questioned as he leaned against the back of the couch and folded his arms, "You never struck me as a supers fan."
"I'm not," Go Go clarified with a sigh, "But, when I was little, I remember my parents watching the news and a story came on about how Elastigirl had saved a bus full of kids or something. I saw the footage of her in action and, I don't know, something just clicked. At that moment, she was everything I wanted to be, and I guess that never really went away."
"Well, now that you're a superhero yourself, maybe you'll get the chance to meet her," Riley suggested.
"Hopefully we all will," Fred added, "I'm always down for a good superhero team up."
"Speaking of all of us," Riley said, "Where's Honey?"
"Working late in the lab," Go Go answered with a sigh.
"Again?" Riley questioned in surprise.
"Girl practically lives there these days," Wasabi commented.
"I need to get her out of there," Go Go replied, "She can't keep going like this."
"Why don't you take her out or something?" Wasabi suggested, "Make a girls' night of it."
"Yeah, that's a pretty good idea," Go Go agreed with a nod, before a sly smile crossed her features, "Maybe we could bring along that new girl we met the other day?"
"What new girl?" Riley questioned with a furrowed brow, not noticing as Fred's eyes went wide at the comment.
"We met her a few days ago," Go Go answered nonchalantly, "She's a new student at SFIT and she seemed pretty cool."
"What was her name again?" Wasabi questioned, seemingly picking up on where Go Go was going, "It was like a flower, right? Lily?"
"No, I think it was Daisy," Go Go replied.
"Rose, maybe?" Wasabi suggested.
"Petunia possibly?" Go Go asked.
"It's Violet guys, come on!" Fred snapped in agitation.
At this, both Wasabi and Go Go turned to smile knowingly at Fred.
"That's right," Go Go said with a facious grin, "You would know, of course."
"Why would Fred know?" Riley questioned.
"Oh, because Fred totally has a crush on the new girl," Hiro commented, his eyes focused on the game he was playing.
"Wait, what!?" Tip exclaimed as she whipped her head around to look at Hiro, causing the game to let out a few sad sounds, prompting Hiro to sigh and throw his hand up in defeat.
"Fred has a crush on a girl?" Riley questioned with a broad grin.
"How does one has a forceful reducing of size on anothers?" Oh asked in confusion.
"Aw man, that was a trick, wasn't it?" Fred said with a groan.
"Yeah, duh," Go Go replied with a chuckle.
"Don't change the subject," Tip said seriously as she looked over at Fred, "You have a crush on some new girl?"
"I don't know, I guess?" Fred replied with a sigh, "Like, she's pretty yeah, but I don't know anything about her. I mean, we only talked for like, five minutes."
"Well, I'm sure you'll bump into her again," Hiro said, "SFIT isn't that big of a place. You'll run into her again and maybe you guys will hit it off?"
"I doubt it," Fred argued with a sigh as he leaned against the back of the couch, "I practically shoved my entire foot into my mouth while talking to her. I doubt she'll ever want to even look at me again."
Meanwhile, somewhere over the United States,
Violet sat in a white upholstery chair in the passenger area of the private jet she was traveling in with her eyes glued to her phone. Displayed on it was the picture of Hiro and his friends she had taken after meeting them. Her face screwed up in a thoughtful expression, Violet slid her thumb across the screen, changing the image to a blurry photo of the Big Hero 9.
"Penny for your thoughts?" a voice asked, snapping Violet back to reality.
Looking up, Violet watched as Mirage stepped out of the cockpit and walked over to her.
"Oh, just thinking about that thing you guys asked me to look into," Violet replied with a smile before glancing around, "Thanks for sending the private jet to come pick me up, by the way."
"We were in the neighborhood," Mirage replied with a shrug as she stopped next to the chair that was facing Violet, "Mind if I sit?"
"Go ahead," Violet answered with a smirk, "It's your plane."
"Technically, it's the League's plane," Mirage said with a smirk of her own as she took the seat, "Now, do you have any new info for us?"
"Not really," Violet replied with a tone of disappointment, "I think I have a lead, but nothing solid yet. Sorry."
"Please, don't apologise," Mirage said with a dismissive wave of her hand, "You're not one our agents. You're doing us a favor. I'm sure you'll find something, given time."
"Thanks," Violet replied, a small smile growing on her face, "You know, it's still kind of weird seeing you again. Like, I know my mom said you were working for Rick now, but still. I mean, it's been what? How many years?"
"Five," Mirage answered, and Violet couldn't help but notice her stiffen slightly, "It's been five years since we last saw each other."
"If you don't mind me asking, what have you been up to since then?" Violet asked, "How did you go from the right hand woman of a supervillain to an agent of the Anti-Villain League?"
"Well, as you imagine, after everything that happened, the AVL had more than a few questions for me," Mirage explained, "Even though I willingly turned myself in and your father vouched for me, I was still complicit in the deaths of a number of superheroes. So, I ended up spending an awfully long time locked up alone in a dark cell."
"What changed?" Violet inquired.
"Agent Rick Dicker," Mirage answered with a smirk, "He had been the one who was carrying out my interrogation. During our many talks, Rick realized I wanted to turn over a new leaf. Add in the fact that by working for Syndrome, I had gained insider knowledge about other, still at large villains, and he figured I could be a valuable asset to the League. So he pulled some strings and gave me a chance."
"Just like that?" Violet asked in surprise.
"Well, no, not just like that," Mirage replied, "Director Ramsbottom was never keen on the idea of me working as an agent. Rick was able to convince him by saying it would be a more beneficial use of my sentence to have me work for the League instead of locking me up."
"So, you worked for your freedom?" Violet surmised.
"Still am," Mirage corrected as she held up her right hand. As she did, Violet noticed what she hand previously thought was a white smartwatch on Mirage's wrist. On closer inspection though, Violet could see that the device was locked close.
"Is that a…." Violet began to ask.
"Tracking device?" Mirage provided as she lowered her arm, "Yes, as well as an inhibitor."
"Inhibitor?" Violet inquired with a confused expression.
"Let's just say that if I tried to make a run for it, things would get unpleasant for me," Mirage explained, "So I spend my time either in my little apartment at Home Base or exactly where the League tells me to be. Nowhere else."
"That sounds pretty rough," Violet observed.
"It's the price I have to pay," Mirage commented with a shrug as she turned her head to look out the jet's window, "It's worth it for the chance to do some good in the world."
A silence fell between the two as Violet looked at Mirage, an apprehensive expression on her face.
"Mirage?" Violet finally spoke up, bringing the woman's attention back to her, "Why did you work for Syndrome?"
"Because he wanted the same thing I did," Mirage explained, her expression becoming unreadable, "He wanted to destroy superheroes and their legacy."
"Why would you want that?" Violet questioned, clearly taken aback.
"Because I felt that people had grown too attached to the idea of superheroes," Mirage elaborated, "Even after the Supers Ban, they had grown too used to the thought of someone coming down to save them when they needed help. I felt that people had forgotten how to take care of themselves."
"That's why you worked for Syndrome," Violet concluded, "His end game."
"When everyone's super, no one will be," Mirage recited.
"But why?" Violet pressed, "Why would you want that?"
"Because relying on superheroes got my parents killed," Mirage answered simply.
"What?" Violet asked in shock.
"I grew up in San Fransokyo, you know," Mirage said nonchalantly, "My mother's family had lived there for generations. My father was an immigrant from Japan."
Violet said nothing, but her brow furrowed in confusion at the information.
"I think I was about ten when it happened," Mirage went on, a wistful look on her face, "It's funny how an event came be one of the most important of your life and yet you can forget things about it. We were down at the pier, but I can't remember why. I suppose that's not the important part."
"What is?" Violet inquired.
"When the fight between Excelsior and Dr. Nefario reached us," Mirage answered.
"I'm not familiar with them," Violet admitted.
"They were before your time," Mirage replied with a shrug, "Excelsior was a tech based hero who protected the city. Dr. Nefario was your typical mad scientist type. They had fought each before."
"What happened?" Violet asked.
"What always happens during these battles," Mirage explained, "Collateral damage."
Mirage paused as she turned to look out the window again.
"The two had been fighting over….something," Mirage continued, "I don't remember what, but it had spilled out onto the pier. Nefario had some kind of laser weapon. He attempted to use it against Excelsior, but Excelsior deflected the attack….right into the pier. The resulting explosion tore the pier in half and lit the rest on fire. I watched people plummet twenty feet into the water and never come back to the surface. I heard people scream as they caught fire."
"What did you do?" Violet asked, her eyes wide.
"I did what any child would do," Mirage answered, "I looked to my parents. My mother wanted to find a way off of the remains of the pier but my father was insistent that we stay put. He was sure that Excelsior was going to save us."
"Did he?" Violet inquired.
"No," Mirage answered as she looked back at Violet, "The rest of the pier collapsed under us and we fell into the water. The next thing I remember was being resuscitated by an EMT. I had broken my leg in three places and had suffered a concussion. My parents weren't so lucky."
"They died?" Violet inquired gently.
"Yes," Mirage replied, "Along with twenty-seven other people. It caused quite an uproar. It wasn't the straw that broke the camel's back, that was your father's incident with the train a short time later, but looking back on it, you can see that it was one of the events that led to the Supers Ban. But none of that really mattered to me. All that mattered was that my parents were dead."
"And you blamed Excelsior for that," Violet observed.
"Why wouldn't I?" Mirage questioned with a snort of amusement, "Dr. Nefario hadn't been trying to blow up the pier. He hadn't been trying to kill my parents. It was Excelsior who deflected the blast into the pier. It was Excelsior who got my parents killed, especially because my father was foolish enough to believe that he would save us."
Mirage paused as she let out a tired sigh.
"At least, that's what I told myself during those long years of growing up in the foster system, becoming more bitter with every passing year," Mirage went on, "It wasn't long before I fell in with the wrong crowd and started committing petty crimes. That's when I found out I was good at being a criminal. That's how I became Mirage. One thing led to another and I ended up being approached by Syndrome to help with his operation. As you can imagine, I was eager to sign up."
"So, what changed?" Violet inquired, "What made you turn against him?"
"It was when he tried to kill you, your mother and your brother," Mirage answered, "When he fired a missile at your plane. Do you remember?"
"I don't think I'll ever be able to forget that," Violet replied as she repressed a shiver, "I almost died."
"That was the point I realized that Syndrome had lied to me," Mirage explained, "When he fired on you, we were with your father. Your mother said that you were on board, but he didn't care. He just wanted to see your father hurt. He wasn't crusading to try and make the world a better place. He was out for petty revenge."
"Isn't that what you wanted?" Violet inquired hesitantly.
"What?" Mirage asked, looking taken aback, "No, of course not. I had wanted people to stop depending on superheroes. I blamed Excelsior for my parents deaths, but that never meant I wanted to hunt him down and put a gun to his family's head. I had hoped you thought better of me then that."
"I do!" Violet quickly apologized, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."
"It's fine," Mirage replied with another sigh, "I just feel foolish looking back on it. Especially with what happened after."
"What happened after?" Violet asked as her brow furrowed again.
"You don't know?" Mirage questioned in surprise, earning a shake of the head from Violet, "I'd have thought your father would have told you. Though, I suppose he might have been too ashamed of it to tell you."
"My dad?" Violet parroted in confusion, "What happened?"
"After your plane was destroyed, your father fought against his bonds enough to grab me," Mirage explained, "He took me hostage, demanding that Syndrome let him go or he would, as he put it, snap me in half like a twig."
"My dad said that?" Violet asked in shock.
"It was a bluff," Mirage reassured her, "Even after thinking he had just heard his family die, I don't think your father had it in him to kill someone in cold blood. And Syndrome called him on it. But I could tell that it didn't matter that your father was bluffing. Syndrome would have let him kill me. To him, I was nothing but a tool."
"So, you decided to switch sides," Violet observed.
"I did," Mirage confirmed with a nod, "Which ultimately leads us to today."
"Look, I know I asked, and I really appreciate you sharing this all with me, but why are you telling me all this?" Violet asked.
"Because we have a history and we're going to be working together, so I thought you deserved my whole story," Mirage explained, "Besides, I already told it to the rest of your family, so I couldn't go leaving you out."
"I suppose not," Violet replied as a small smirk appeared on her face, "Though I can't help but notice you didn't tell me what your real name is."
"Funny that," Mirage commented with her enigmatic smile while she glanced out the window, "Looks like we've arrived."
Looking out the window, Violet could see that the jet was now flying low over a large forest, with a lonely, rocky mountain directly below them. As they passed over the mountain, a loud, mechanical noise caught Violet's attention. Looking out at the jet's wing, Violet watched as the turbine attached to the wing pivoted in place so that it was pointed up, causing the jet to hover in the air.
Catching sight of some motion out of the corner of her eye, Violet looked down at the ground below. As she watched with wide eyes, the top of the mountain opened up like a blooming flower, revealing that it was hollow and apparently constructed out of metal. As the mountain finished opening, the jet began lowering itself into it, entering a large metal shaft that was hidden within the mountain, which was illuminated by flood lights placed at strategic intervals.
A few minutes later, the jet emerged from the shaft into a large hanger, where a number of similar jets, as well as a variety of other aircraft sat waiting. One side of the hanger was dominated by a large doorway that seemed to lead into another dark shaft. Looking down, Violet saw that the jet was descending towards a circular mark on the ground, directed by flight crewmen with glowing batons.
Suddenly, a monstrous roar shook the hanger. Snapping her head up, Violet let out a gasp as she saw Insectosaurus come barreling towards the jet. Before the giant insect could ram into the jet, the pilot jerked the aircraft to the side, avoiding Insectosaurus but sending the vehicle into a flat spin.
Letting out a cry of panic, Violet quickly gripped the arms of her chair to keep from being thrown out as Mirage did the same. Thinking rapidly, Violet prepared to create a shield around the jet to blunt the impact of the crash. Before she could though, the jet violently jerked and came to a halt, the force dislodging Violet from her seat and knocking her to the floor.
Picking herself up, Violet looked out the window, and was caught off guard by the sight of Ginormica's head taking up most of the view.
"Is everyone okay in there?" Ginormica questioned as she looked at the occupants through the windows.
Gently, Ginormica lowered the jet to the ground before stepping away. As the doors to the jet opened up, she shrunk to her smaller stature and quickly ran over to the aircraft.
"Are you all alright!?" Susan questioned again as Violet and Mirage descended uneasily from the jet.
"Yes, Susan, I think we're okay," Mirage replied as she and Violet finished descending, "What happened?"
"Insectosaurus is still getting used to this place," Susan explained with an anxious expression, "She got spooked and ran in here."
Looking over, Violet saw that Insectosaurus was now at the center of the hanger, her eyes darting around like a nervous rabbit. An number of agents had surrounded the massive creature, doing their best to keep her calmed and corralled. A few moments later, a large drone came flying into view. Stopping in front of Insectosaurus' face, the drone began flashing a bright light at the creature. As Insectosaurus focused on the light, her eyes went wide and she began moving towards the drone, her posture relaxing. The drone, in turn, slowly flew away from her, prompting Insectosaurus to follow it.
"Well, at least we have that handled," Mirage observed as their pilots exited the jet.
"Yeah," Susan agreed, watching as Insectosaurus was led away before she turned her attention towards Violet and offered the younger girl her hand, "I'm sorry, we haven't been introduced yet. I'm Susan."
"Violet," Violet replied as she shook Susan's hand.
"Right, you're Bob and Helen's daughter," Susan commented with a look of understanding, "The one who's going to school in San Fransokyo."
"That's me," Violet answered with a friendly smile, following along behind Mirage as she signaled to them to follow her out of the hangar.
"I'm actually from the area," Susan explained, "I grew up in Modesto."
"Really?" Violet questioned with a smile, "Well, maybe you can come out sometime and show me around?"
"That sounds great!" Susan agreed with a grin, "It's been forever since I've been back to California."
"Awesome," Violet stated, "I'm already looking forward to it."
A/N: Another chapter done! I have to admit, I struggled a little with this one at first, but I found my groove as I went along. Definitely had fun writing up the bits with Mirage. As always, feedback and critiques are more than welcome, so please review! Later!