by
Magpie -- Prelude | Act One | Act Two | Act Three | Act Four | Act Five | Act Six
Act Six: All's
Well that Ends Well...
"Tim Curry was actually responsible
for the boost to Tom Cruise's career. If you will recall he played "Darkness" in the movie, Legend, opposite Cruise's character "Jack". It could easily have been the other way around, except the director didn't
think Tim Curry's earnest playful accent suited a hero."
Cheddar stared at Tina for a full minute, before
taking a quick drink, as if the conversation left a bad taste in
his mouth. Cheshire filled the parrot's mug, sliding a fresh bowl
of trail mix onto the counter, "Well, how does it feel to be the hero of the day? You defeated Vixen Twobits,
stopped the Permanent Solution, and... I heard something about
an action figure. So why are you moping?"
"I'm not... Just tired, I guess. I
just... "
Cheshire nodded, patting the parrot on his shoulder.
Opening her mouth to say something, the cat was interrupted by
Tina squealing out, "Vicky!" Leaping off of her stool, the porcupine stretched her arms wide, intent upon
glomping the lioness as she entered the karaoke bar.
Dressed in a fresh cream colored silk dress, the
lioness managed to look demure and regal for a split second before
she panicked in the face of the charging serial hugger, flailing
back as she fell on her ass to avoid the vicious snug, "STOP! What did we discuss, Tina?"
Pouting, Tina clasped her hands in front of herself,
repeating sullenly, "... no hugging unless you're in your suit." Cheddar shook his head, trying his damndest to ignore the pair. Necro-Filia
was on the stage as usual, singing cheerfully for her dead boyfriend,
who was also in his usual seat. It seemed to Cheddar that nothing
much had changed...
Well, that wasn't true. Things had changed. He
had interviews tomorrow, as well as a number of signings... Barnaby
had talked to him about a movie deal, which he was considering.
Strange how much things could change in a single week.
He was part of the hottest superhero team since
The Men-Men had first hit the city. Big change. But he was single...
and that wasn't anything new. Looking up as someone took a seat
next to him, he smiled wistfully at the cowgirl, "Hey, Bleu..."
"Hey, Cheddar..."
They sat quietly for a while, neither one saying
a word. Cheshire set down a white Russian in front of the cowgirl,
then made herself scarce, moving to the other side of the bar to
discuss a running tab with another customer.
"You have to pay for the first five,
you know that, Magpie."
The blackbird dug about in his pockets, coming
up with a pair of large cigars and a single kiwi buck, "Fookin' furry... ah'm good for it, what?"
Bleu and Cheddar both kept quiet, trying to decide
what to say. At the same time, they blurted out "I just came to say..."
"You first, Bleu..."
"I'm... I know you didn't mean any
of it. But I think you were right. It wouldn't work out between
us."
"Why not?"
"I'm not a superhero." Bleu
explained simply, taking a sip of her drink, so she didn't have
to watch Cheddar's face. Cheddar shook his head, refusing to accept
that for an answer, "Bleu... You beat Vixen Twobits for christ's sake! You ARE a superhero! You could
join the Offenders! Hell, they'd probably even take you with Furr
Force Five!"
"What if I don't WANT to be a superhero?
I free snack foods from their confinement, but... I like chocolate.
I don't really like people... I don't think I could save them day
in and day out, Cheddar."
"So? Don't be a superhero... just stay
with me! I'll move out of my parents house, you can move out of
that dumpy apartment."
"It was actually a nice apartment before
I met you..." She muttered, folding her arms over her chest, "Which is the point, Cheddar. You can't keep your work away from home. Besides,
I'm 26. You're four years younger then me... and a parrot. That's
just... not right. What would the kids look like? I'm just afraid
you're more concerned about your job then with me, Cheddar."
"I'm not more concerned with...look,
I'll make you a deal. Take a couple of days to think things over.
I'll call you... and... well... we'll see. Okay?"
Glumly looking into the depths of her white russian,
Bleu finally nodded once, "Alright, Cheddar... So how's the big time?"
"Not very good. I wish you'd taken
credit for beating Vixen Twobits."
"Did they find her?"
"... no. There was a lot of wreckage.
Brinkly Bros. was closed, so we've probably seen the last of her."
Watching Filia on stage, Bleu suppressed a snicker,
murmuring softly, "It's been a strange week..."
"It has, hasn't it? Well... at least
everything was wrapped up in the end, huh? Not a single loose end..." Cheddar laughed, lifting up his mug in a little toast, as the far wall exploded
inward with a loud BOOM, a voluptuous cow girl stomping into the
karaoke bar dressed in jeans and an unfastened straight jacket.
Someone in the back of the bar shouted out, "It's
the Mad Masked Cow! RUN!" Panic ensued as the non-superhero clientele rushed for the door, while the super-patrons
of the Screaming Possum ran for the bathrooms to change into their
uniforms.
Eyes swirling with madness, the villainess mooed
balefully at the small W.C.S. gathering, "VICTORIA!" Choking on her drink, the lioness sputtered out, obviously surprised, "Mignon? ... are you off your medication?"
Pointing to Tina, the cow girl began twitching
violently as if having a conniption fit, "Who the hell is that? You could at least cheat on me behind my back! But OH NO!
I get to see it on K-FUR News!"
"Oh it's not like that, honey... I
just... well, yes, I suppose it is. I didn't think you watched
the news. It's so blue collar." Victoria admitted, nervously rubbing the back of her head, wishing she'd remembered
to bring the Titan amulet to this after dinner mixer.
Stomping her foot down, as if gearing up to charge,
Mignon mooed, "This place is hereby condemned... WAHAHAHAHA! No one will be spared my bovine
wrath! DESPAIR!"
Cheddar began rolling up his sleeves with a sigh.
The Mad Masked Cow. He'd researched her before. A straightforward
brawler, with the strength of madness. No match for Goth Cheddar.
Getting out of his chair, he was stopped by Bleu's hand on his
arm, "... you want to get out of here, Cheddar?"
"... but. She's... a villain, you know.
I really should... you know." He looked from the fuming super villainous cow, to Belle, then to Cheshire who
shook her head at him. Shoulders slumping, Cheddar watched the
assembled drunken heroes pulling themselves from their seats to
dog pile on the evil doer. The parrot looked back at Bleu, finally
nodding to her, "Yeah... I guess I do. Work can wait, right?"
"Come again." Cheshire
waved to the couple as they pushed their way through the crowd
towards the neon lit exit of the Screaming Possum Karaoke Bar. "You know... there's nothing as cute as two people in love."
Hanging his head over the side of the bar, Magpie
hacked out a weak little cough, "Ach... ah think ah'm gonna be sick."
"Oh, you're not even half the bad ass
grouch you play. You've got a little bit of a romantic buried under
all of that tar."
Pecking at his armpit to relieve an itch, he mumbled, "Uh
huh... romantic. Right. Did yer mole just move?"
"It's a beauty mark, and no." She
sighed, watching the couple as the door closed behind them, ignoring
the sound of a hyper-mad cow banging superheroes together like
cymbals, "I think we're going to see more of the W.C.S. soon."
"Yeah, right... Furr Force Five is
back in town, so is Buxom Gal. Who needs a buncha second string
wannabes?"
"Well, you'd better hope we see more
of them. Because otherwise you're out of a job, hero."
Ruffling his feathers to make himself look as
menacing as possible, Magpie cawed out, "Oh fook' ye, ye moon yowling litter-box trog..."
Cheshire turned up the volume of her television
to avoid listening to the bird ranting at her, catching the end
of K-FUR nightly news with Pamela Panda, "...wanted in connection with a number of break-in's to styling salons across
the city. A bizarre case indeed, we'll keep you posted on the "Pedicure Bandit". In our closing story tonight, we'd like to again send a warm thank you from
the hearts of the people of Supermegatopia to the Worst Case Scenario
team members, those known... and those who remain in the shadows.
Members of the W.C.S., including Goth Cheddar, the Titan, Necro-Filia,
Captain Cadaver, The Publicist, Cuddles, and even the reclusive
Magpie will be at the Tri-Kiwi Mall tomorrow morning to sign autographs,
and we are expecting record number turn-outs. This is Pamela Panda
with K-FUR news... Good night everyone."
Turning off the set, Cheshire Muggs checked her
watch, before shouting over the brawling heroes, "... okay, everyone. Last call! You don't have to go home, but you can't stay
here! Meow... Filia, what did I tell you about public indecency?"
The End...
Cast: (In Order of Author's preference)
Bleu Belle
- The Dark Chocolate Knight
Magpie
- Henchbird for Hire, the most offensive creature on the planet
Hurley Quinn
- The clown mistress of... well, hurling.
Ratchet Cordova
- A lemur who meant to say what she meant (The Reverse-Psychologist)
Vixen Twobits
- A barber who delved too far into darkness (The Stylist)
Cheddar
- The straight parrot. (Goth Cheddar)
Chesire Muggs
- Bartender kitty extraordinare, and the only sensible person in
the city. She seems to have a wandering mole and a secret...
(not revealed in this story. sorry.)
Shag
- The shower hair clog from hell.
Banaby Tull
- The shallow side of the Tull gene pool (The Publicist)
Filia Tull
- Cheerleader by day, superbunny by night (Necro-Filia)
Patrick Patriech
- Deceased Partner of Necro-Filia (Captain Cadaver)
Tina Quills
- The Serial Hugger (Cuddles, The Snugglebug)
Victoria Wainwright
- The inheritor of a great destiny in need of repair (The Titan)
Mignon Fillete'
- The over-medicated Mad Masked Cow (The Mad Masked Cow)
Single Scene Extras:
"Expendable Kitty"
- The Worst Sacrifice of Vixen Twobits' occult career
Mailguy
- A weasel avenger with postal tendancies
Vanessa Tull
- Proud mother, and C.E.O.
Mach Ten Tabby
- A cat who's just too fast for his own good.
Dr. Frink
- Head Psychiatrist at S.M. Asylum
Madrox Blanc
- S.M. Asylum orderly and fetcher of coffee
Timmy
- A dog good down to the last bite
Cabbie Camel
- Yes, it's a stereotype... but it's good for a laugh.
Baroness Munchmausen
- The pun makes my teeth ache, but it seemed like a good idea at
the time.
Frequently Mentioned but never appearing:
Tres Leches
- An eccentric genius of sweet confections, this bee's theories
are the basis of Bleu Belle's own study of the life of the chocolate
bar.
FURR FORCE FIVE!
- Away on a publicity tour, there's Lance the pretty boy, Ace the
strategist, Dirk the mechanically inclined, Natasha the explosives
expert, and Phoenix the rough and tumble fighter. They're campy,
old-school, and competent... thus they do not appear in this
story.
Buxom Gal, Ferret Man, Post Man, Mail Man, Creepy
Guy, and others
- Not my property, but it wouldn't be Supermegatopia without them...
Afterword :
I don't know what it is about disreputably powered
superheroes that's so damned appealing... Sure, Superman sold the
comics back in the day, but who wants to follow the adventures
of an invincible yutz who wears his underwear outside his pants?
So what if Lois Lane is being held hostage by a gang of thugs?
He can punch through a planet! Who can feel bad for the guy?
But Buxom Gal with her alien... enhancements.
Ferret Man with his decidedly avant guarde' crime fighting techniques
and hair trigger. Weasel Boy with his... well... I guess he doesn't
have much, but he at least puts on the spandex every night. I've
only briefly dealt with furry mucks before. (Infact some older
Furtoonia players may recognize a cast member in the W.C.S.) But
when I heard about Supermegatopia, I really went a little spastic.
(My favorite character happens to be Ferret Man. He's got the vigliante
homicidal gun-toting sex appeal mojo thing going for him, even
if he is married. You have to respect someone THAT violent.)
A friend (Power Girl's player) told me about the
comic-strip and accompanying mucks. I spent the next two days trying
to think of a cool power, and coming to my rescue... the Discovery
Channel had a piece on marlin fishing. Apparently they will vomit
their own internal organs up to dislodge a hook. (Yes. This is
Hurley Quinn's origin,) I was thrilled! I had a character idea!
But then I also had final exams... then summer vacation... and
forgot. Somewhere between then and now I passed over the Hurley
character to Power Girl, and forgot about the muck for a couple
of months. But everytime I visited Power Girl we'd get on the subject
of Supermegatopia, and ideas would pop up. A person who could hypnotize
candy bars, a serial hugger, a diabolical reverse-psychologist,
and a few others...
I'd finally decided to join, but... what bothered
me was that I had about fifty character ideas, and a maximum of
three character slots. And I wanted to just have ONE main character
starting out... Narrowing it down to four characters was the easy
part. After that, Magpie was shelved, if only because if people
didn't realize I was just "in character" I'd probably be lynched. Which left Vixen Twobits, Ratchet Cordova, and Bleu
Belle.
Anyways, before I bore the crap out of you anymore,
I finally decided to play Bleu Belle for the lamest of all reasons
(She's a good guy!), and I look forward to meeting everyone. I'm
still new to the muck, and still trying to figure out what the
heck is in the kiwi burgers.
As for this story, I figured I had to do something
with the glut of characters, and this is the easiest way to figure
out who I did and didn't like. What was the point of this afterword?
I don't really know... I suppose it's my way of saying hello, and
nice to meet you all.
Any comments, feel free to page me, or email me.
Also, as I said, I've got a bunch of characters laying around,
as well as a set of characters I'm planning on using on the sister
Supermegatopia muck (Their adventures are usually under the heading "Counter-Intelligence", and it's more of a Read or Die/James Bond/Danger Mouse flavor then Worst Case
Scenario's Mystery Men style)
- Magpie
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