#31 Welcome/Introductions
"And this is my monitoring center. I ask that you not enter unless I call for you; a lot of sensitive material is in here and I'd hate to blame you should something get damaged."
"Oh, uh sure! No problem. Totally can do that."
"Good." The tall, slender man who spoke first forced a smile and turned away to roll his eyes as he gave a tour to his newest underling, a gelatinous mutant named "Globby," who seemed more than happy to work for him at a fairly cheap rate (all things considered). His employer Obake, was currently leading him through his mostly underwater lair, which he informed the shapeshifter would be his new place of residency for the duration of their agreement.
Despite the cold, metallic base for the structure, Globby couldn't help but have his mouth agape as he saw the grandiose scale of everything. There were many long corridors lined with sleek security doors that when he peered into one, seemed to house a grey-looking toilet, sink, bed, desk, chair, and cabinet. Huh? Seems like a fancy sort of jail ce-
"We mustn't doddle if we wish to see everything Globby," Obake lightly scolded with a tsk, interrupting the mutant's train of thought.
"Sorry. Yes. Coming," Globby rapidly fired off as he quickly got back behind the scheming genius.
The duo had already entered through the cliffside entrance, meaning that the pink and purple man already saw the modest kitchen that looked untouched; they also passed a workshop area where a bench was sprawled with a few robotic parts, wires and a large collection of various tools. Good thing none of those bits moved on their own because darn it, that is classic sci-fi horror right there, Globby had internally remarked once they moved on.
The transmogrified thief was soon escorted down a hallway filled with much larger rooms that contained giant machinery, blue glowing lights and a rectangular box with some weird arm dangling inside. All around as they walked, a low hum was always present along with an occasional metallic groan, only ever interrupted by Obake's rhythmic footsteps and Globby's squishy ones.
Once they passed another open area containing multiple cells on different levels, the shapeshifter couldn't help but comment, "Sure got a lot of empty rooms here. You plan on eventually renting this place out or something because with a little friendlier décor, people would love to pay for a night at an underwater hotel."
The well-dressed man's face let a sly smile slip as he turned away from the mutant and replied, "An interesting notion, but this place is a special project of mine. I like to think of it as an ark actually rather than a potential business venture."
Globby shrugged and merely said, "Eh, whatever floats your boat."
Obake managed to keep himself from laughing at the expression the other one used, wondering if Globby had used it because of his "ark" remark or if it was unintentional, but eventually decided it was most likely the latter.
About 20seconds later, the scheming genius stopped in front of one of the cells, turned around and informed the criminal with authority, "Here is where you'll be staying. Decorate it however you feel. I don't care. While you are staying here, anytime I request your presence, you are to meet in the monitor room unless I say otherwise. Understood?"
Globby nodded enthusiastically before watching Obake calmly walk away to attend to other matters, leaving the shapeshifter to explore his new living space. Inside, it was lit by a single dim source in the center and contained everything the previous cells had except the added space and a small closet next to the bed. The aesthetic was sadly the same dull grey design as the other rooms as well, prompting Globby to add a little color to the place. He first fabricated a thicker blanket for the bed and made it purple in color. He soon followed it up with some fluffy pillows in the same shade as well as a red lamp to stick on the desk since the overhead light wasn't bright enough to his liking. The gelatinous mutant then looked left and right, checking for no one watching out of habit before he made a small photo of Felony Carl to place next to the lamp. I'm sure I can chat up Carl later and tell him about how much I'm crushing it as a villain, but just in case I can't do it right away, the gelatinous mutant thought to himself as he defended his actions.
Globby then went to lie down on his modest-sized cot and put his arms behind his head, letting out a contented sigh as he stared at the metal ceiling. It's official. I'm finally in the big-time villain league.
"Globby. Report to the monitor room. Now," Obake's commanding voice ordered over the loudspeakers in his lair.
The gelatinous mutant was currently playing solitaire in the hangout section near the kitchen when he heard the order. Oh well. I'll finish this up later, he neutrally thought as he got up from his chair and made his way into the heart of his current living place. Globby passed through a few sets of security doors that went whoosh as they opened, followed by glancing at the numerous cells he found surrounding him as he reached his destination. Finally, he stood in front of the double doors that slid apart automatically, revealing his slender, well-dressed boss standing there as he waited for the shapeshifter to arrive.
Obake maintained an unreadable expression as he stated, "Ah, good. You're here. Come forward if you would. I need to introduce you to someone."
Globby's eyes got wide in surprise as he took a few steps closer, looking from side to side in search of this mystery arrival. Once he was 12ft away, his boss held a hand up to indicate for him to stop. "That's good. Now, I've summoned you here so you could greet your new teammate," Obake informed the other.
The pink and purple man couldn't help but quirk a gelatinous eyebrow and excitedly ask, "Wait, really? Who?"
Restraining himself from rolling his eyes, the calculating genius reprimanded with, "Patience Globby, patience." He then turned to his left and ordered, "You may come out now."
A moment later, the former purse thief heard the sound of metal footsteps echoing on the floor and mechanical whirring as they approached. What emerged from the shadows was certainly not what he expected as a cute robot, who had a noodle burger for a head and was dressed as an old-timey boy, walked out and extended a hand to shake.
"Howdy and hello burger buddy. I'm Noodle Burger Boy and I'm a new addition to this tasty combo meal," the peppy robot greeted the criminal, who held a confused expression on his face.
The shapeshifter stared at the hand for a few seconds before saying, "Uh, I'm Globby," finally taking a hold of it to give a decent handshake. When he stopped a couple seconds later, Globby found a bit of something stuck to his hand instead of the other way around and noticing it was red, he hazarded a guess with, "Ketchup?"
"Yep!" the food mascot exclaimed, followed by emphatically telling the other, "I am capable of delivering a variety of flavorful moves to serve up against those heroes!"
The gelatinous mutant was bewildered again, prompting Obake to step forward and explain, "This robot here was in the food service industry, but has been repurposed to suit my needs. He has a variety of functions such as predicting his opponents moves as well as is fairly durable to boot; sadly, his overly peppy demeanor and enthusiasm for food remains intact as part of his core programing, but rest assured, I'll be adding to his skill set to make him even more valuable."
Globby nodded slowly and went, "Uh-huh," followed by inquiring, "So, do I need to share my bedroom with him or…"
The slim man condescendingly chuckled as he shook his head and told the slime monster, "Of course not. He'll stay in one of my labs connected to his charge port."
"Right, right. I was just joking," Globby quickly corrected himself with a small nervous laugh.
Obake quirked an eyebrow skeptically and replied, "I'm sure. Now go show him around or whatever to keep him occupied until I need either of you again." He gave a shooing gesture to both of his henchman, who looked at each other before doing as they were told and left through the sliding doors.
Once they were shut, Noodle Burger Boy proceeded to happily declare, "It sure is swell that Mr. New Boss Man is going to help me become even more super-duper to fulfill my new purpose."
"Ooo. Any idea what those are going to be?" Globby asked in curiosity as they walked.
"I have no idea," the metal man replied with a can-do attitude and not elaborating further.
The shapeshifter just blinked in response before shrugging and confidently informing the other, "Well NBB, in case Obake there didn't tell you about me, I can turn into just about anything." He then stopped moving so he could show the titanium being his powers. Globby simply lifted up his left hand and changed it from his normal gelatinous self into ice, acid, wood, and finally chocolate, prompting him to take a bite out of himself.
Although his expression remained unchanged, Noodle Burger Boy put his hands to his mouth and gave a gasp. "Golly Mister. If I could do that, then I would be able to dish out all kinds of flavorful condiments, mainly to squirt in the faces of those do-gooders!"
Globby smirked as he and his new teammate resumed their stroll through the giant base and remarked, "Sure learned to not like those heroes really quick, didn't you?"
NBB nodded and angrily replied, "They already messed with my order before and I'm supposed to provide excellent customer service!"
The taller of the two nodded, pointed to himself and smugly stated, "Yeah, they gave me some trouble too, but I sure showed them not to underestimate me." He proceeded to look at NBB as they passed through another set of metal doors, finding himself getting an idea at the fact he now had some company in this mostly empty place. Globby then extended his left arm and patted the former food mascot's head as he realized they were back in the semi-living room area and innocently asked, "So, you're a smart robot, right? Capable of learning new things, not just meant to destroy all heroes?"
Noodle Burger Boy gave a salute and cheerfully answered, "Yes sir Mister Globby! Whatever I can to do swell well!"
A large smile now appeared on the mutant's face as he nonchalantly inquired, "I was just wondering then if you ever heard of a little game called…poker?"
The smaller one tilted his burger-shaped head and replied, "No I haven't. Is it a fun game?"
Globby smirked and slyly thought to himself, Well, I am supposed to keep him occupied.
"Yep. It's loads of fun. Want me to teach it to you?" he enthusiastically asked.
"Sure! This will be better than a fresh hot noodle pie," NBB responded with a small clap.
"If you say so," Globby simply told him as he guided the robot to the table of cards, where the two certainly had a lot to go over.
Globby knew it was risky to bother Obake, but he really had to ask him about being allowed out in the city more; sure, he wanted to see Felony Carl more (despite not actually having permission to see him), but he also needed to get more successful crimes under his metaphorical belt to help beef up his villain résumé since he still didn't have many in his mutated form. As he searched a few labs and found no one, he approached the monitor room as his last hope of finding him.
The shapeshifter was almost to the door when he heard two muffled voices: A man who he only could assume was Obake, and a woman one that he couldn't place. He then found the metal panels sliding open despite thinking he wasn't close enough, taking him be surprise. Inside the green, ominous room, Globby saw his boss standing next to a slender woman in an orange jumpsuit with black and blue hair. The duo was now staring at him with the man merely quirking a brow at his arrival while the sushi chef next to him looked visibly more disturbed by his presence.
"Good. I won't have to fetch you. Momakase, meet one of your new teammates, Globby," Obake stated unemotionally as he gestured towards the aforementioned mutant. "Globby, this is Momakase. Professional chef, thief and ninja."
The pink and purple man shook his head to free himself from his still position and stepped forward upon realizing he was being introduced. He gave a small wave and nervously said, "Uh, hi Momakase. That's cool you can do all those things and stuff. I'm Globby, the longest serving member on this team and resident monster. So yeah, welcome." The shapeshifter offered his malleable mitt to shake in politeness only to see the ninja stare at it with noticeable disgust.
"I'm not big on handshakes," Momakase snidely remarked, making the other retract his hand almost sheepishly.
Okay, ouch. Tell me how you really feel, Globby thought to himself, now feeling a little anger at being dismissed so quickly.
Obake let out a rare chuckle of amusement as he slyly chimed in with, "Consider yourself lucky she didn't say that with her knives; not that it would have caused any permanent damage."
Lifting a gelatinous eyebrow, the purse thief finally noticed one of the monitors glitching and had cracks on the screen, followed by glancing at the holster on Momakase's leg. Globby then gave a small cough in trying to change the subject and asked, "So, do I need to give her a tour or go fetch NBB for ya to meet her or…"
"That won't be necessary. Now, whatever it was you actually came here to talk to me about, I'm afraid it'll have to wait. Very busy you know and I need to go over some things with Momakase," his boss flatly but firmly told him, leaving Globby little choice but to leave.
"Alright then. I'll catch ya later," he replied disheartenedly, believing their chat would be a long time from now. He then turned to exit as he retreated through the sliding doors once more and walked back into the hallway.
The gelatinous mutant proceeded to slump his shoulders for a moment as he let out a loud sigh at being shut down, but soon straightened up and refocused on what he could do next. Well, I've got a new teammate and sure, she's giving me the whole "Come near me and you die" vibes right now, but we're on the same side so we'll probably get along eventually, he thought optimistically. Globby then furrowed his brow as he planned further, something he admittedly wasn't used to doing. Obake certainly doesn't seem interested in my request and it was going to be a gamble on him saying yes anyway; but then again, if I do go out, it's not like he's gonna fire me after all the work I've done for him. I can handle myself too on the off chance I run into those heroes and I seriously doubt they can capture me, so Obake won't have anything to really be angry about, Globby smugly worked out as he made his way back to his room, already deciding to go ahead and risk being scolded at later so he could have a little fun outside of this metal base.
While the slime monster was walking down the corridor however, the other two criminals were engaged in their conversation. "You certainly like to keep interesting company, don't you?" Momakase snarkily replied as she turned to face her new boss.
The tall man scoffed, "Physically yes, but intellectually no. He's a simple-minded fool who wishes to prove himself a real villain, so I tell him what I want and he does it without realizing the greater game at play."
Momakase smirked and told him, "You should consider yourself lucky then to have such a useful tool as him at your disposal."
"Quite. Now, let's get back to business, shall we?" Obake all but ordered to the professional chef, both of them turning to the illuminated screen as images of Big Hero 6 and a young girl were sorted through.
Globby yawned and gave himself a good stretch as he woke up in his room (or rather cell) in Obake's lair. It had more in it now than when he first started as his petty thefts of purses and small trinkets he'd impulsively grab were displayed on the desk or hanging in the closet. He proceeded to get out of bed as he rubbed some sleep out of his eyes and began making his way to the base's kitchen. True, he could make whatever he wanted to eat out of his own hand, but this gave a greater chance of interacting with some of his coworker since this place was mostly empty; admittedly, Momakase still hadn't warmed up to him, but she at least didn't insult him now every time he was in the same room.
The shapeshifter took his usual route through several long, vacant corridors and passed a few labs filled with various robotic experiments that eventually led to his destination. Once he came to the metallic sliding doors and stepped through to the other side, he stopped in his tracks as there was an unfamiliar young girl sitting at the table he'd normally use off to his left. She had long dark brown hair that was kept under a purple hat as well as wore black fingerless gloves, a pink shirt and jeans to complete the ensemble. This possible intruder was currently leaning on her propped up left arm while she used her right to scroll through her phone and had yet to notice his arrival; it was only after Globby actually took a few squishy steps in her direction that his presence was registered.
They both gave surprise expressions once their eyes locked before the teen exclaimed, "Oh, you must be Globby."
"Uh, yes?" the gelatinous being uneasily replied with a wince as he looked left and right. "Are you…lost or something because I don't think just anyone's allowed in here," he added.
The smaller of the two gave a smirk as she set her phone down and stood up to get closer to Globby. "Oh, I'm not lost. This is my home now too. The name's Trina," she informed him while offering her hand.
Globby stared at it warily for a moment before sticking his own out to shake hers. "Well, I guess you already know who I am."
Trina gave a small shrug as she pulled her hand away and told him, "Eh, for the most part. I know you can shapeshift and work for my dad."
The pink and purple man stared blankly, followed by blinking in bewilderment at what she just said. "Wait. I only work for Obake, so that would mean…" Globby slowly stated as he couldn't believe what he just heard.
The teenager nodded and slyly said, "Yep, he's my dad…only not in the traditional sense." With a knowing smile, she proceeded to hold out her right hand again, only to use her left one to expertly remove the other and reveal the mechanical insides she kept hidden.
Globby couldn't help but take a step back as he exclaimed in surprise and horror. Trina simply put her hand back on and gave an amused expression to his reaction. The mutant quickly regained composure and let out a small, clearing cough before he responded with, "Sorry for that. Not really used to robotic kids around here…unless you count Noodle Burger Boy…although he's really more noodle burger than boy."
The beanie-clad android gave a snort at his statement and replied, "True enough."
With a touch of nervousness, Globby then felt the need to ask, "So, I'm guessing you're what I saw Obake working on in one of his labs, right?"
Trina shrugged her shoulders again and replied, "Among other things. He said something about needing me as both his progeny and because I'd play a critical role in his plans."
"Oh, okay," the shapeshifter slowly nodded, unsure really what plans she was talking about or rather why they would require a robotic girl.
Scratching the back of his transparent head, Globby inquired, "Trina, do you uh, have any interests yet or was everything predetermined by your dad? I ask because you seem very different from the ones I've seen; granted, they've mainly been drones, Noodle Burger Boy and that Big Red from Big Hero 6."
With a small chuckle sounding eerily similar to Obake's, the teenager smoothly answered, "There are somethings I know I was made to do, but I'm an advance AI system with my own preferences that'll develop the more I explore and exist. I've already added all kinds of data to my system from just browsing the internet."
Globby proceeded to get an uneasy look on his face as he cautioned, "Yeah, just be careful on there. Not everything on the internet is true; I learned the hard way when trying to buy something online and let's just say, the picture did not match what I received."
Trina nodded politely, but didn't ask any more details and instead said, "Well, I guess this means we'll be working together."
"Yeah, I guess so," he agreed with a small nervous laugh, unsure of what to say next. He then caught sight of the teenager's phone and an idea popped into his head. "Hey Trina," Globby started with an optimistic smile.
"Huh?" she replied, quirking a brow.
"Well, I was just thinking, since there's so many of us now and we're all on the same team, maybe we should get a group photo to make it official; us vs the heroes you know, just something to showcase to everyone and what they bring to the table," he suggested with his hands now clasped in anticipation.
Trina's expression went from curiosity to enthusiasm as she slowly nodded, getting more and more behind it with each second. "Yeah, that actually might be pretty cool."
Hearing her say that, Globby excitedly said, "Sweet! I have a feeling NBB will be onboard too, which means even if Obake and Momakase say no, they're outvoted."
The young android smirked at his statement and replied, "That would be true. Want me to go get them? They may be more willing to listening if it comes from me."
"Why would you say that?" he inquired with the tilt of his head.
Trina was silent for a second, but quickly covered up her previous sentence by telling him, "Why, because I'm the newest member and it'd only be polite; plus, Obake's my dad, so he'll at least hear me out." She didn't actually believe what she really said since her duty as daughter was to obey and serve out her creator's orders, but it was best not to make enemies so soon after activating.
Globby seemed to buy it though as he said, "Oh, that makes sense," making Trina feel a wave of relief at the other's acceptance of her logic.
She proceeded to put on a charming grin and informed the purse thief, "I'll just go find them then and we can get the ball rolling on this."
"Oh! Okay. Best of luck. I'll uh, just be waiting here if you need to find me," Globby responded with a bit of shock that this was actually happening. He gave a small wave of good bye as he watched the teenage robot go pick up her phone and head for one of the other exit doors, briefly turning around to acknowledge his gesture was received.
The gelatinous mutant let out a contented sigh once she was gone, followed by happily thinking, Wow. A new teammate and she seemed nice enough. Things sure can get exciting on a dime. Now, where was I? Oh yeah! Breakfast. He then went to the fridge to begin working on making the most important meal of the day, eagerly waiting for the group photo or at least for something else to transpire as nothing stayed boring for long in this villain lair.
NOTES
I think introducing anyone to Globby would undoubtedly be met with a little awkwardness, especially with it only being a short time since he appeared on the scene. Also, when you look at Obake's base, I'm sure many of you picked up on it, but it very much was like an ark with jail cells in place of more homely accommodations. :/ In addition, since we saw Globby and Noodle Burger Boy playing poker in "Countdown to Catastrophe," I felt it likely that Globby taught him how to play. ;)
Sad as it is, given how openly Obake insults Globby to his face, he's definitely dissed him in private as well. ;_;
I hope you liked all the different interactions and it only felt right to put them all in one instead of just giving you 4-3-page stories. :)
I'll be taking another break as I thought I'd have a hand at making a Meganiper story, which will have Megan formally meeting Barb at their apartment. I should resume the "Cutscenes" again 3 weeks afterward as is the standard pattern, but will put an update on the new story in case things change. :)
The next story will be a shorter one with Hiro and Karmi having another video chat. :)