Vaudevillain

Chapter 171: Mad Scramble

Quartet started his search for their kidnapee by directing the Jacques through the front door in a quick smash and grab. While the minions did that, Quartet would sneak in through the various windows and find Constantine when he started to run. With a quick hum, Quartet split into four, spreading out around the villa to find windows. With vision shared between his copies, the minion felt it would be an easy capture.

He didn't think Cass would appear to ruin his plans.

Cass, ever the loyal butler, couldn't sit still while Quartet tried to usurp Dr. Zlo. So when the minion infiltrated through the windows, Cass made sure the Jacques performed the wrong task.

"Instead of a smash and grab, infiltrate the area," Cass told the Jacques.

The minions saluted, their perceived hierarchy listing Cass higher than Quartet. A few Jacques despondently put away sledgehammers and other tools they pulled from behind their backs.

The lead Jacques walked up to the front door and gave a polite knock.

"Yes? What do you need?" A guard answered.

The lead Jacques pulled out a clipboard and pointed to it. Confused, the guard leaned in to get a better look. The Jacques struck, bringing the clipboard forward to smash the guard's nose. The minion kept the clipboard pushed against the guard's face to keep his sounds muffled while the other Jacques stepped into the building. After the group saw the coast was clear, the Jacques knocked the guard out and sat him on the ground.

A second Jacques came up, slapping the lead on the back and gesturing at the guard. From what Cass could tell, the minion had an issue with leaving the unconscious guard where others could find him. Other Jacques agreed, forcing the leader to begrudgingly lift the guard over the minion's shoulders.

The lead Jacques carried the guard over to a small chair next to a coat and shoe rack further down the hallway. The Jacques sat the guard on the chair with a grunt of effort, the man slumping forward as if asleep. The lead turned to the Jacques that slapped it, gesturing to see if the location was alright. The second Jacques thought about it, then pointed a finger to the air as if it had an idea.

The minion turned to another Jacques, pulling a hat the minion somehow collected during the earlier fights. It ripped the hat from the Jacques' hands and gingerly lay the hat on the guard's head. The minion gave a satisfied nod, though Cass couldn't see the difference. The guard still looked like an unconscious man laid onto a chair, only now he had a hat.

However, it wasn't worth the time for Cass to start a debate. He needed to get Quartet to fail his plan and succeed with his own. With the smash and grab foiled, Cass silently instructed the Jacques to fan out and take out any guards they could.

While this all went on, Mabel had finished putting the guards outside under her control. Her plan was fluid, as she knew Cass would fight to ruin Quartet's plans. The Jacques would muck things up as well, their built-in nature unable to hold a serious tone for long. Yes, Mabel would wait for the first big reaction, then send in the guards to "protect" Constantine.

Mabel commanded her forces forward when the first sounds of fighting echoed out of the villa's windows.

"Alright, dears. I need y'all to make sure Constantine is safe and untouched by the others inside. Can you do that for dear old Momma?"

Her controlled minions nodded, then rushed off towards the mansion.

It was a Jacques that ruined the element of surprise. Of course, Dr. Zlo could have told anyone that would be the case once they were a part of the operation. His base minions didn't have much going for them in the way of intelligence.

Idly, Dr. Zlo watched from his viewpoint in the villa as guards rushed towards the source of the noise. Turing had found the security room while his other minions infiltrated, letting Dr. Zlo see everything after taking out the guards inside.

"What ever would Quartet do without me," Dr. Zlo mused as he watched the minion enter through four different windows. "He should have known that a place like this , crawling with guards, would have some security cameras. But no, the man gets overeager and tries to be the sole kidnapper."

Dr. Zlo looked down at Turing, the mouse scuffling around the security desk on a mission. "That's why he can't get past lieutenant," he told the mouse.

Turing looked up for a moment and squeaked, then went back to his task. Dr. Zlo wanted him to find the controls to the safe room and prematurely close the doors. It wouldn't be fun if Constantine locked himself into one spot. Dr. Zlo's minions needed the chaos that came from chasing a prey.

The mouse found the controls a moment later, around the same time Dr. Zlo found Constantine on the screens. He was an old man, the engineer, with silver hair tied up in a ponytail to keep it from draping over his eyes. Despite the noise coming from the villa, Constantine seemed hard at work on a small device on the desk in front of him. Dr. Zlo barely made out small motors and servos, the security camera's resolution a tad fuzzy.

"There's our target," Dr. Zlo said to Turing. "Are the doors closed?"

Turing squeaked an affirmative.

"Then let the game begin!" Dr. Zlo cackled.

Dr. Zlo watched eagerly as the group of Jacques with Cass walked into a kitchen. A maid seemed hard at work cooking in front of the stove, headphones over her ears as she stirred a soup pot. Cass tried to urge the Jacques forward, but the minions halted and gathered around behind the maid.

They stood in a line, looking over the maid's shoulder at the soup. When the maid looked left, the Jacques leaned to the right. And when she looked right, the leaned left. When she turned around, the Jacques split into groups, hiding behind the counters and staying out of sight.

One brave Jacques kept to the maid's back, getting full access to the soup while she danced over to a cupboard filled with bowls. The Jacques leaned over the soup, inhaling lungfuls of the aroma like some character from a cartoon. It turned to the others hiding behind the counters and pointed appreciatively at the soup.

Then it saw the ladle.

The other Jacques all shook their heads no, but the temptation seemed too great. The minion next to the soup picked up the ladle and spooned a bit of it up. The Jacques motioned to cool the soup off, then brought the spoon up to its nonexistent lips.

The maid turned around at that moment. The bowls clattered to the ground as the woman screamed at the top of her lungs, the sound carrying throughout the villa. The shrill noise alerted the few patrolling guards, Quartet, and even Constantine.

"Turing," Dr. Zlo said after the scream finished ringing in his ears. "Remind me to check the Jacques for a comedic timing switch or something. They're quite good at picking the perfect moment."

Turing nodded in agreement.

With their cover blown, Cass rushed over to the maid, bashing her over the head with his drink tray. Dr. Zlo winced a little at the action.

"A good move by Cass, but I can see he didn't like the idea," Dr. Zlo said, watching as his butler's face scrunched in pity. The Jacques all looked shocked; their fingers pointed at Cass in surprise.

A guard rushed in a moment later, pausing at the bizarre scene in front of him. The moment was enough for a Jacques to react and tackle the guard, knocking the stun baton he carried out of his hands. Another Jacques picked it up, admiring the weapon for a moment before using it on the tackled guard. Both the guard and Jacques spasmed for a moment before going still.

The Jacques with the baton nodded acceptingly at the weapon, hooking it on his belt loop and picking the shocked Jacques up. The minion shook off the stun, its plastic body keeping the electricity from hitting core components.

"Oh, looks like one of the Quartets found Constantine," Dr. Zlo said as he looked at another screen.

Sure enough, a lanky man, taller than Quartet but still resembling the minion, stepped through the door to see Constantine looking curiously at the vent above him. Dr. Zlo saw his minion's mouth move, followed by Constantine's.

"A conversation with the captive," Dr. Zlo said. "That's going to cost him the capture."

Sure enough, a group of guards burst into the room during the talk, surrounding Constantine and pointing their weapons at Quartet. The minion was forced to back away and wait for his other bodies, which were rushing through the house as quick as they could.

It was unfortunate one of them met with Mabel's crew and another with Cass.

"Dissention in the ranks!" Dr. Zlo laughed. "You see, Turing, this is how you play your troops against each other. Dangle what they want in front of them and let them interfere with the others. You don't have to make any moves yourself, despite being the one to start the fight!"

Turing nodded, seeing the results. A plan formed in his head to try and take control of the other mice. He might be able to grow a team larger than Einstein's if he played it right. He'd have to contend with Tesla first, though. Perhaps if he got Edison on his side

"Well, we should get going," Dr. Zlo said, breaking Turing from his thoughts.

The mouse squeaked and jumped back into Dr. Zlo's pocket. The villain opened the door and made his way out of the security room. Mabel, Cass, and Quartet would all meet up soon, and Dr. Zlo had to be there to steal victory out from under their noses.