Vaudevillain

Chapter 151: Down With the Ship

While Mabel busied herself with her followers, Oro and Icarus were staring each other down, the two having made a few quick exchanges since the start of the fight. Oro stood on the walkway in his golden form, looking up at Icarus. The Menagerie recruit stood on the air, keeping out of Oro's reach while he thought the next move. The golden hero looked up at his foe, wondering how he could combat someone who didn't have to fight.

The Jacques' cheers of Mabel's victory reached the other players' ears, and both took a moment to glance over at the fight. Oro looked just in time to see the Trollstomper fall, the enemy player's body dispersing from the last attack. Oro smiled, turning back to Icarus.

"There goes your help," the player taunted.

"I didn't need his help anyways," Icarus shot back.

Oro leaned against the walkway railing, knowing he had all the time in the world now. "It's only a matter of time now," the player said to Icarus. "Mabel will be back with the minions soon, and you'll have nowhere to go."

"You could join me," Icarus said. "Aren't you supposed to be a hero?"

"Got hit by Dr. Zlo's 'morality ray,'" Oro said, making finger quotes as he talked. "I've been turned to the dark side."

Icarus jumped up a bit higher, stepping off the air like he was climbing steps. "So if I break the gun or something, you'll turn back?"

Oro shrugged, "Probably."

In truth, Oro didn't know how Dr. Zlo wanted to play it. The morality gun was nothing more than a spare hairdryer sitting inside the villain's inventory. No one inside the Zloppelin had their morality swapped; they only acted like it happened to keep up the charade. The golden hero didn't expect the idea to last for long, however. There were too many players around, and all of them would have their own ideas about how the gun worked. In that case, it probably didn't matter how Dr. Zlo envisioned his scenario.

"You're pretty laid back for someone who's supposed to be evil," Icarus said.

Oro shrugged again, "Dr. Zlo said the gun makes you the opposite of what you are. I used to be serious about things, I guess. Now I don't much care."

"Lucky for me then," Icarus said as he started running toward the observation deck.

"Oro!" yelled Dr. Zlo over the intercom. "Don't just stand there! Stop that hero!"

Oro sighed exaggeratingly, "Fine."

The golden hero started making his way down the walkway, idly searching for anything he could throw at Icarus.

"Don't know how he thinks I'll stop him," Oro complained. "It's not like I can grow wings or something."

Still, Oro kept up pretenses. Right now, the player was a villain under Dr. Zlo's control, which meant he had to put at least some effort into acting the part. So as Oro made his way across the walkway, the player grabbed a few scattered pipes and wrenches and lobbed them in Icarus's direction. None of them landed even remotely close to the flying player, but at least Oro could say he tried.

The golden hero stopped his chase as Icarus dove into the observation deck, stopping to lean against one of the levitation generators. It was up to Dr. Zlo now, the player decided.

Dr. Zlo ignored Icarus as the hero crashed into the observation deck, keeping his focus on the Zloppelin's control panel instead. The villain needed to studiously ignore the hero until he recovered, to show the hero he wasn't worth the villain's time. Only when Icarus recovered completely did Dr. Zlo acknowledge the player.

"Well, well, well," the villain said, turning in his chair as he spoke. "It seems someone in my army isn't doing their job. I'm amazed riff-raff like yourself made it into my sanctuary."

"Hand over the morality gun, Dr. Zlo," Icarus demanded.

Dr. Zlo chuckled, stroking Einstein as the mouse hopped onto his lap, "How quaint, a hero who thinks I would hand over my inventions. Cass, show our guest the door, would you?"

"You got it, boss," Cass said.

The butler stepped out of his place in the shadows, appearing in front of Icarus with his drink tray at the ready. "Don't make this hard on yourself," the butler said.

Icarus took one step back from Cass, keeping both him and Dr. Zlo in his vision. Tauntingly, Dr. Zlo held out the hairdryer he was using as his morality gun, shaking it a bit as if Icarus was a pet who would lunge at the slightest provocation. The hero didn't take the bait, deciding to stay focused on Cass. The butler was moving forward, his drink tray resting in his hand as he prepared to toss it.

Icarus jumped to the left as Cass threw his tray, the razor edge passing just under the hero's legs. The tray bounced off the wall, returning to Cass. The butler snatched the disc and twisted, using the momentum to send the projectile twice as fast. Icarus activated his power, stepping off the air and running onto the wall. The drink tray bounced again, Cass catching the shot this time.

Icarus ignored the butler, instead making a grab for the object in Dr. Zlo's hand.

"Oh, no you don't," the villain said, firing their monocle laser.

Red light illuminated the room, blending in with the other blinking lights from the control panel. Icarus rolled out of the way, using his power to stay in the air as the laser passed by him.

"Blast you, stand still!" Dr. Zlo commanded. The villain brought his cane to bear, pointing the end at the incoming hero. Icarus twisted out of the way, avoiding the spray of adhesive just in time. The white goo landed in the corner, sticking to the walls like paint. Dr. Zlo stomped a foot, standing to meet the incoming hero.

The two clashed, Dr. Zlo's cane meeting Icarus's plunging fists. The hero locked hands with the villain, struggling to pull the cane out of Dr. Zlo's grasp. The villain rapidly fired off a spray of lasers, only for Icarus to dodge each one with some deft footwork. Red light pierced through some of the surrounding walls, alerting a few Jacques to the fight. Knowing Dr. Zlo's flair for the theatric, a few of the mice activated the projector and communications system.

Dr. Zlo's struggle with Icarus appeared over the battle below, causing a few distracted heroes and villains to fall under assaults from their more focused counterparts.

"Think he needs help?" Sweet Dream asked Riptide as the two pushed back another group of Trollstompers.

"Nah," Riptide answered. "I think Dr. Zlo wouldn't want someone interfering in his fight."

"Cass! Get off your lazy carcass and give me a hand!" Dr. Zlo shouted.

Sweet Dream and Riptide looked at each other, the former giving her boyfriend a smirk.

Back up in the Zeppelin, Cass rushed at Icarus, rolling up his suit's sleeves for a round of fisticuffs. Icarus glanced over at the incoming minion, trying to think of a plan before he was sandwiched. Red lasers singed the player's hair, adding unneeded stress to the hero's thoughts.

As Cass neared, Icarus reacted in desperation. The hero threw himself back, pulling Dr. Zlo along. The villain, unprepared for the move, stumbled forward, the hand holding the morality gun swinging forward. Icarus twisted the cane, activating his power to give him some bracing. Dr. Zlo felt his body swing out from under him, and the villain instinctively threw his hands over his face to block the floor. The hairdryer posing as the morality gun went flying into the air, and Icarus instantly jumped at it.

"No!" Dr. Zlo screamed, his eyes tracking the falling weapon. "Not my greatest invention yet!"

Icarus ignored the plea, catching the falling prop like a receiver. The hero then dashed the morality gun against the ground, stomping on it for good measure until it fell to pieces.

"How dare you break my morality swapper!" Dr. Zlo cried. "Now, all of my converted heroes will be free from my control! Don't you know how long I spent slaving over that gadget!"

"I think you have bigger problems now," Icarus replied.

A rumbling from the Zloppelin shook the observation deck as if to give credence to Icarus's words.

"Mabel!" Dr. Zlo shouted into his communicator, "What was that!"

"That hero you nabbed is breaking the levitators, hon," Mabel replied.

"No! Stop him!" Dr. Zlo shouted.

"Too late, hon. He got two of them. We're going down."

Dr. Zlo growled in frustration, turning to Icarus and firing off another laser. The hero jumped to the side, only for Cass to catch the hero with a toss of his drink tray. Icarus winced in pain as his health dropped from the tray's razor edge raking over his legs. A blast from Dr. Zlo's monocle followed after, catching the hero on the shoulder. Icarus grunted, stepping off one of his air platforms and jumping toward the door.

"You aren't getting away!" Dr. Zlo boomed, activating his rocket boots.

"Boss!" Cass cried. "Don't leave me behind!"

"Get the Jacques to help you!" Dr. Zlo replied. "I've got a hero to catch."

Cass tried to speak, but Dr. Zlo was already out the door. The villain shot after Icarus, even as the Zloppelin around him sank. Without the levitation generators, the gigantic canvas covering was too heavy for the meager support beams. The groaning of metal filled the area, followed by ringing snaps as the canvas broke the support beams. The black and white fabric fell inward, giving the Zloppelin a lumpy look from the outside.

The walkways were falling apart as well, their previous position held up by the generators. Jacques scrambled across the falling pathways, their hands thrown into the air as they desperately ran to the last generator. Mabel stood near the final levitator, directing Suitor to grab various Jacques as they made their mad dash. Dr. Zlo noticed a couple of the Jacques as he flew past, running the opposite direction with wrenches in their hands as if they could fix the mangled Zloppelin.

Icarus kept up his run through the falling dirigible, making his way toward one of the openings he used to get in the machine. Dr. Zlo kept on him, firing lasers whenever he had a charge. The hero deftly maneuvered around the shots, letting them sail past to burn holes in the collapsing canvas. Finally, the hero dove through a collapsing girder, exiting the Zloppelin and arriving outside.