58 - An Inkling of a Plan

“Do you want the good news or the bad news first, Understudy?” Rocko asked.

“Good news, please.” I tore my eyes from the camera drone. Sara-N-Dipity was still up, too. According to Milo, she couldn’t fight her way out of a wet paper bag, but she kept predicting the pursuing bot’s every move. It was searching for her in a wind tunnel lab in the Applied Sciences wing.

“The System’s willing to let you swap out Rainy Day for Lab Assistant Panic. The bad news is you’re gonna miss all of Act Two. Between the time to figure that out and Fursona’s fursuit repairs, either the heroes will get away, or the villains will finish them off before we can get you in there.”

They handed me a bottle of water—my third—and I opened it and downed it gratefully. I’d never spent this kind of time in Rocko’s studio before. Sweat dripped down my forehead, and I resisted the urge to check my armpits. Bee might’ve gone for it in the pizza line, but Magical Girl Understudy had to be dignified.

“Great. Can we get going, then?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Rocko escorted me to the door, where we met Pataki and a much-less-singed Fursona. The ilneat film executive nodded at us. “Hey, if you do get a win here, make sure you say something about Heroics 101. It’ll be good advertising.”

I gave him a thumbs-up and smiled. It felt fake and weak. We had everything we needed—or at least everything we could use—to win the Episode. But as we stepped through the door, I kept staring at the goggles.

[System Enabled]

“What’s the plan, Understudy?” Fursona asked.

I hesitated. Then I took a deep breath. “I need to be Lab Assistant Panic. But I don’t know if I can hold it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, I usually start at a pretty solid percentage toward a full-on villainous breakdown, so I don’t stay in the LAP costume for long. But I’m going to have to be Lab Assistant Panic. And I’m…probably closer to a breakdown than I was before Professor Panic dumped me, so that’s going to be hard.” I took another, even deeper breath. “I’m going to need you to be ready to fight me.”

Fursona looked as hesitant as a kangaroo fursuit could. “Have you ever had a break before?” They asked.

“No, but I was at 93% just after I got the Costume.” I really didn’t want to do this. “Just…be ready.”

“You got it, Understudy.”

I sighed, took a deep breath, and shut my eyes. Then I pulled the goggles on.

“ALRIGHT EVERYONE STOP! THE LAB ASSISTANT’S BACK!

TIME FOR THE GENIUS TO START HER ATTACK!”

I spun, the lab coat whipping against my legs. As the transformation finished, I wondered if I could do this. I hadn’t really focused on using the LAP costume before our break-up, and now that we weren’t together anymore, it’d probably be that much harder to use.

[Rejuvenation Activated: Hit Points 6/7]

Shockingly, though, I felt pretty…in control. I opened my eyes. Fursona was staring at me. So was TA-1LZ. But other than my stomach rolling at the thought of wearing Peter’s goggles, things felt mostly stable.

“Ahahahaha! Sorry. TA-1LZ. Breakdown check?”

“37%. It’s shockingly low, considering your previous performances. However, I predict that using your—“

“Good enough! Let’s roll,” I interrupted. “We’ve got a campus to conq—er, save.”

“Understudy, are you sure you can do this?” Fursona asked. The modulator wobbled with concern.

“I’m fine! Better than fine. I’m alive, and the campus is my oyster. Just remember the plan, okay?”

“Yeah, uh-huh. Fight you if you go crazy until you transform out. Understudy, I’m not so sure about this. I don’t know if I can beat you, and I don’t know if you can stay in control, and honestly? What’s the worst that happens if we lose this Episode? It’s just one Episode.”

[End of Act Two! Act Three in Five Minutes! No Skill Rolls Available!]

“It’s not just one Episode. It’s the moment we’ve been waiting for! A chance to prove we belong in the minor leagues, and we are not going to miss out on it just because you’re nervous,” I said. “Now, let’s get going. I have a shiny new power-set to play with!”

Fursona kept glancing at me as we rode the elevator down to the tunnels. I didn’t see why. I felt great. My stomach wouldn’t stop churning, and I wanted to take Peter’s goggles off, but aside from those minor inconveniences, I was ready to make my mark on campus.

“TA-1LZ. Odds of victory?”

“Calculating.” The robot cat hummed as the door opened, and we started jogging down the tunnel. “Odds of victory are 13%. If your plan works, that percentage will jump to 27%, increasing if Springlock and Sara-N-Dipity are willing to follow the plan and decreasing to less than 1% if they read you as a villain. I calculate a draw at 25%, 42%, and less than 1%, respectively.”

[TUEAS Dogpile:Act Three Beginning]

“Showtime!” I burst out of the tunnel and right into the unmoving dog-bot. Its cannon didn’t even track me as I walked around it. I shook my head pityingly. Whoever designed these hadn’t fixed the limited range control problem. Peter had solved it with the Panic Pal 1.1 model.

If this was a minor-league villain, I hoped they were ashamed.

[Speed Hack] wasn’t very powerful; it was only level 0. But it'd probably be enough if the bot’s controller wasn’t in range. I started up the hack. For a few moments, my goggles filled with ones and zeros. Then its red lights flickered pink.

[Good Thinking! +1 Cunning Point]

I grinned. “Alright, Pink Panther, we’re heading back to the TUEAS Building, saving our friends, and conquering the Student Supervillain Society once and for all!”

“Understudy, recalculations after that power usage show an increase in breakdown to 52%. Recommendation: Switch costumes back to Understudy.”

“Not happening, TA-1LZ,” I said. I pointed back toward Weber Quad. “If we lose the bot, our odds of success drop back to, what’d you say? 13%? Not acceptable. And I’ll do whatever I can to win.”

“Very well. Just be judicious in your power use.”

"I don’t think this is a good idea,” Fursona said.

“Okay, I’ll be careful.”

“Who are you talking to? Me or your cat?”

“Uh, yes.” The dog-bot was striding across the Weber Quad toward the TUAES Building, and I jogged to follow it. A few student Extras, curious about the robot and brave—or stupid—enough to risk it, had reeled up some of the taser shots’ wires. They looked at the robot and clearly-powerful villainess and started running.

I let them flee. I had bigger fish to fry than a handful of insignificant Extras.

The bot crashed back through the twisted and shattered steel-and-glass doors, with me just a step behind. I had just enough time to reflect on the déjà vu feeling of entering in the order we’d left in before Fursona hopped through the doors, too. “Where are Sara and Springlock and the rest of the team?”

“They probably got captured.” I shrugged and headed straight for the stairs. “We’ll check for—“

Wham!

A metal bench slammed into me from the engineering wing. It knocked me off my feet and into a plexiglass wall.

[HP 5/7]

[Gritty Recovery: +1 Grit Point Pending]

As I picked myself up, the dog-bot sprinted toward Springlock’s already-retreating form, Fursona in hot pursuit. “Springlock, stop!” They yelled futilely, rounding a corner just behind the dog-bot, which opened fire with its tasers.

“Shit,” I muttered, picking myself up and dusting off my lab coat. If the bot attacked Springlock, we’d either lose it or Springlock. Either way, I’d probably lose the Episode shortly after that. Peter must have built some way to control his Panic Pals in these damn goggles. And if he did, maybe I could use it to call off the dog-bot.

I peered into the goggles’ corners and was rewarded with…a rudimentary set of commands. ‘Attack,’ ‘Defend,’ ‘Scout,’ and ‘Patrol’ didn’t seem helpful right now, but ‘Stand Down’ looked promising. Three others—‘Seek,’ ‘Point-to-Point,’ and ‘Overdrive’—were all grayed out with a number under each: 1, 3, and 5, respectively. I smiled a devilish smile and selected ‘Stand Down.’ My plan was coming together.

“Villainous breakdown increased to 58%,” TA-1LZ said.

The bot clomped back, with Fursona actively scolding it. I laughed. Heroes were so stupid! Then I took a cautious step into the engineering wing, hands up like I was surrendering. I wasn’t. It was all a trap for Springlock.

And it worked. A minute passed, and a worse-for-wear Springlock stepped out of one of the labs. Her blue bodysuit had a big tear on one arm, and her helmet was dented.

She pointed pointedly at the steel crate she’d suspended behind her, ready to launch, then pointed off to the side, then at the floor in front of her.

I remembered that one from the barbecue, and I walked over until I stood a couple of feet before the heroine. She held a hand in front of her face, fingers spread, then repeated it.

I cleared my throat. She’d said lip-reading was tough at the barbecue, too. “We’re going to win this. Where’s Iron Fist?” Springlock shrugged, and I repeated the question.

Springlock touched the side of her head and angled her palm toward me. Then she pointed back at the hall we’d come in through.

I nodded and walked the dog-bot over to the stairwell. Then I looked at Springlock and Fursona. “I’m sending the dog-bot in first. Fursona, find the heroes and free them. Springlock, you and I are support for the bot and a distraction. Stay back.”

She shook her head pointedly and made a mouth-closing signal with her hand, glaring at me. At me! This was my evil plan, and she was going to follow my lead, dammit. I thought about using my [Maniacal Reveal], but I needed that for later.

Besides, she’d already disappeared down the stairs.

I selected ‘Defend’ and headed down too. The bot and Fursona dashed down behind me.

Springlock kicked open the first door, shook her head, and froze another bench. Then she threw it through the next door, which crashed in and hung, squeaking, from one hinge. Before she could rush through it, an identical bot to mine, glowing red, rushed out instead.

“Fursona, stick with the plan!” I screamed as another bot and Iron Fist rushed out. I counted to five as Fursona hopped down the hall. Hopefully, that’d be enough time. Then I started laughing. Maniacally.

“Ahahahahaha! I have a [Maniacal Reveal], Iron Fist! Just by attacking, you’ve fallen into my trap! Even now, my lieutenant is freeing our allies. Soon—“

“Actually, whoever you are, I’ve got a [Maniacal Reveal] of my own,” Tearjerker yelled from inside the door.

[Showoff! +1 Flamboyance Point Pending]

“[Beep!]Shit, shit, shit!” Tearjerker had [Maniacal Reveal], which must’ve been powerful enough to override my own. I’d never had that happen before, and I made a note to ask Rocko or TA-1LZ about it later.

[Rating Warning #1! Episode Rating - PG-13! Limited Censor in Effect]

“The reveal is me! I’m the reveal! Ahahaha!” She pointed at me, ready to make me cry uncontrollably again, but Springlock clobbered her in the face with a fake plant planter.

With all the [Maniacal Reveals] broken, Iron Fist roared and chased off after Fursona. Hopefully, her head-start would let her find the heroes before Iron Fist found her. Springlock tried to close the gap to Tearjerker, but before she could, the red dog-bot fired its Gatling-taser, and the blue-suited heroine had to duck and dodge instead.

I gave my pink dog-bot the order to ‘Attack.’ It complied, though it flashed red briefly as it did. I paused, concerned. Was that going to be a problem?

Not right away, at least.

The pink bot slammed into the red one, disrupting its Gatling taser and stabbing with its vibrating blade. Springlock also piled in against the bot, throwing chairs, a backpack, and herself at it. And Tearjerker started retreating.

That didn’t work for me. I charged up my [Hypercompression Cannon].

Bang!

[Dramatic Damage! +1 Drama Point Pending]

My airburst slammed into Tearjerker, knocking her to the ground, but a red glow filled the room and hallway before she could get up.

“I’ll never stop ‘til I’ve won, and I’ll step over any too weak to stop me. My minions will crush TUSSA, take over the university, and propel me into the major leagues. This I swear!”

I froze as my pink bot’s glow flickered, then faded. A moment later, it flashed red, glowing a brilliant scarlet. I couldn’t see the newcomer, but I recognized an oath when I saw one.

Was the ‘dealer’ a Dark Magical Girl?

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