This is it. The last chapter. "Stepping Out" took nearly three and a half years to complete, and I have had so much fun writing! And a lot of angst and agony as well, though I still found a great deal of satisfaction in it, even during those times I was wrestling with the plot, the characters, the dialogue, and worrying that I would never find a way out of the corners I wrote myself into. (Yes, I know that sentence ended with a preposition. It just sounds better and less pretentious than saying "a way out of the corners into which I wrote myself.") I sincerely hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it. I feel sad that it's come to an end. Even melon-cholly. A few tears have been shed.

Many thanks to everyone for reading, especially those who stuck through to the end, and thank you so, so much to everyone who took the time to leave reviews and who corresponded with me, it has helped keep me going.

Special fantastic glorious amounts of thanks to my beta readers ViridianVenus, Nora Salisbury, and Hunger4Righteousness, who patiently read and re-read my drafts and last-minute rewrites, who told me what worked for them and what didn't, who made tactful suggestions, and cheered me on. Without them this would be a far shabbier story.

"The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage." -Carrie Jones, Need

When Parker came into the juvenile hall visiting room, Blue bolted out of the corner he was slouching in. Halfway across the floor he remembered his dignity and slowed down, but his stride was still just under a run when he got to them, hands reaching for Minion.

"Yeah, take him," Parker said gruffly, adjusting the heavy bag of books. His arms were getting tired.

Blue hugged Minion to his chest. He ducked his head but not before Parker saw his eyes shining.

Minion bumped against the top of the containment unit. "Hey, Sir, it's me!"

Blue gave a choked laugh. "Yes, Minion, I can see that." Turning on his heel he walked swiftly back to the corner, wiping a quick hand over his eyes.

"You're welcome," Parker muttered, but he followed at a little distance to give them some space. Part of Blue's rudeness was embarrasment over the tears. Part of it.

Other families were there, visiting their wayward sons, nephews, brothers, boyfriends. A few girls held babies in their arms, or comforted fussing toddlers. Some of these young inmates were already fathers.

Some people cast curious and not entirely friendly glances at Blue and Minion, but they looked away from Parker's frown.

He turned his back on the room as he joined Blue and Minion at their table. Minion was deep into his explanation of everything that had been going on since their separation.

"I was on that detective's desk the longest time, Sir, and everybody kept looking at me, I told him I had to be with you, and he said 'no animals in the cells' so I just turned my tail on him, Sir." Minion whirled around to demonstrate, making bubbles float up.

"That showed him," Megamind said, his mouth stretching into a smile.

"Ha! Yeah, and then Mr. Parker took me to get an aquarium, Sir, it's a great big one. You oughta see it. Um." Minion gave Blue an anxious look.

Parker wondered what was up. Worried that the master wouldn't approve?

Blue nodded encouragingly at Minion. "I'll bet it is."

Minion perked up again. "Even bigger than the office one. The next day Mr. Johnson was giving me a cookie when Mr. Parker ran in and scooped me up, and I knew something was all wrong, Sir, I could just tell, and he was bringing me out to the car, and I asked, 'what's going on?' And he was all, 'there's something really serious going on here', and I was..."

I should be filming this, Parker thought. Hardly three words out of Minion all week, now he was chattering away. He should try to get Minion to talk like this in front of those scientists that Tolliver was lining up.

"...and I already knew that, but then I kind of lost my appetite after he told me about that judge...that... you know..."

"That bombastic, fat-headed, know-nothing, pompous ass who dared try to have you eliminated? Yes, him." Blue nodded sagely.

Minion wriggled with delight. "Yeah! Pompous fat-ass! But we went over to Mrs. Tolliver's, and I had this look on my face the whole time, Sir, look."

Minion made his eyes big and sorrowful. Blue laughed. Parker smiled. It was good to see Minion goofing around.

"Talked her into my defense!"

Blue chuckled. "Minion, you sly dog."

Minion looked at the warden, his smile fading into a little worried frown. "Um, well, Mr. Parker did it, really."

Megamind gave Parker a reluctant nod. "Thank you," he said quietly, trying to sound like he meant it. And he did, but...

He curled his arm possessively around the containment unit. If anyone is going to keep Minion from harm it ought to be me.

At least Corbin had been straightforward in his cruelty. Megamind would not stand helplessly by while petty officials decided Minion's fate with cold-hearted paperwork.

"She got the whole thing cleared up," said Parker. "She's going to get Minion defined as an endangered species. Now, it may not be ideal," he said at Blue's frown. "I know he's not an animal, and she knows it. This will be a temporary measure so no one can have him disposed of out of hand. Having said that, it would be a big help if you didn't bite anyone else," he added to Minion with a stern look.

He reached into the paper bag and pulled out the brownies on the paper plate, within a plastic zip-lock bag. Blue sat up a little straighter. "Melanie made these for you. She's sorry she couldn't come, but she couldn't miss work. She'll come next time."

Blue got the bag open and devoured one before Parker finished talking.

"They feeding you?" Parker asked.

Blue snorted and reached inside for another. "And Sammy?" he asked. "I suppose he's just dying to visit me as well."

Parker cleared his throat. "Well, he wants to be called Sam, now." What his teenage son had to say about Parker's decision to adopt the two alien boys did not bear repeating. He pulled the books out of the paper bag. "I brought you some things to read."

He set the books on the table, Advanced Physics, Our Cosmic Neighborhood, and A Brief History of Time. Nothing that had anything to do with electronics and would keep the boy's mind away from thinking about picking locks or hacking into computer systems, hopefully.

Blue's face was neutral as he scanned a few pages, but Parker saw the brief twitch of a lip before he closed the book. "The evenings will fly by, with reading material like this." He opened A Brief History of Time at random. His eyes darted back and forth, and his eyebrows rose slightly. He began to flip to the front when he seemed to remember he had company. "I guess this one looks all right," he said, setting it aside.

As the end of the hour neared they got quieter and quieter. Minion kept glancing at the clock on the wall, which was covered by a cage.

All around the room the mood grew heavier as everyone got ready to say their goodbyes. There were outbursts of strained laughter, and a few tears.

Blue lay his forehead on the containment unit. Minion leaned against him. Parker looked down at his folded hands and waited.

"Time, everyone," a guard announced. "All visitors to the north exit."

People shuffled to their feet, exchanged hugs.

Parker got up, reluctant to take Minion away. Blue still lay with his head down, whispering to Minion. Parker couldn't tell what he said but Minion's fins quivered.

Blue stood, picking up Minion, and shuffled around the table. Parker seized him and crushed him in a proper hug, sideways since the bowl was sort of in the way. He was tired of all this awkwardness, he was going to be a father whether Blue liked it or not, and that included embarrassing hugs.

Parker kept it short, only held him close for a couple of seconds. The boy stood rigid in his embrace until it was over.

Blue coughed, and his cheeks were pink. "So, where are you staying?"

Minion piped up. "He brings me to the office in the day, then home at night. Aquarium's on the first floor, next to the kitchen."

Parker glanced from one to other. They both had faces devoid of guile, innocence, or any emotion whatsoever.

Years of parental suspicion kicked in, the feeling that something was going on under those blank surfaces. Especially with these two.

"Time, people! It's time!" a guard bellowed.

He sighed. "Time to go," he murmured, taking Minion from Blue's hands.

At the door he half turned so he and Minion could have one last look. Blue looked very small. Parker raised his hand and Blue gave a brief wave, and dropped his hand quickly. Parker left him, in that lonely place among strangers.

At supper time there was only place left to sit, but Megamind managed to put a few seats between himself and the blowhards.

The calculating looks from the other boys were increasing. For the first few days everyone had kept their distance, and he'd been too depressed to take much notice, other than to be glad that they left him alone.

He was too strange, and they didn't know how he fit in or if he was poisonous or what, but they were losing their fear of him.

Many had seen him with Minion. Since most inmates had families, there was a general amnesty for wussy behavior on visiting day.

Megamind suspected that he was a special case. He didn't give a rat's ass about their opinions, but he could tell that now they thought him a weakling, a real weirdo who got all mushy over a fish. There would be no compensation for him.

Soon one of these power-hungry gorillas would get it into his head to show a little dominance by knocking the weird alien kid for a loop. Or maybe a whole bunch of them would attack.

His ribs gave a little twinge as if to remind him what happened the last time he'd gotten a beating. He wasn't looking forward to enduring another, but he'd survived Corbin and his goons, he'd survive these bastards, too. He wasn't cuffed and helpless this time. They would find out he wasn't such easy prey.

Still, he'd avoid it if he could. The penalty for fighting was ten days in solitary confinement, and he knew that the guards wouldn't cut him any slack. He had places to go.

His circuit overloader was almost complete. It was in two separate pieces at the moment, in different hiding places, and only needed to be combined. Then he could get out of here. He didn't plan on spending even one more night in juvie.

The jokers at the other end whispered and snickered. Blue watched them out of his peripheral vision as he ate. He didn't feel hungry, but he needed to keep up his strength.

Brown gravy with an unpleasant reddish tinge covered lumpy mashed potatoes and what might have been a turkey sandwich. Oversalted and one-dimensional. It was poor fare after the tasty treats he'd enjoyed on the outside. Had prison food always tasted this bad? Or was it just the juvenile facility's special blend?

One of the jokers began calling, "Meg. Hey, Meg. Me-e-e-eg," in an annoying sing-songy voice.

And so it began. First the belittling of the target by likening him to a girl, thereby reducing his status, because no self-respecting male wanted to be identified with those lowly girl-creatures who existed within the macho sphere as objects to be conquered and ridiculed.

It might be a precursor to a physical attack. But perhaps he could give them pause.

He finished eating and picked up the tray. As he strolled by the group he stopped, slowly turning his head and locking eyes with the head jerk.

Eye contact in itself was a threat to this neanderthal, whose smirk turned into a scowl. The hulking boy straightened up, making his shoulders strain against the gray uniform. There were a few snickers of anticipation, and one of the thug's buddies cracked his knuckles.

Megamind ignored them, focusing all his attention on Knucklehead. "If anyone calls me Meg one more time, I will put something in your food that will give you diarrhea for the rest of your life."

Snorts of disbelief met his announcement. "Nothin' can do that."

"On the contrary. A rare worm from the Amazon rainforest can do exactly that. Of course, you would no longer enjoy a normal life span. It would be considerably shortened. And there's no antidote. The worm is microscopic. It attaches itself to your lower intestine and stays there, multiplying. Imagine, dying of the runs. Dehydration, loss of enzymes, malnutrition. What a way to go."

The table had grown silent. Knucklehead narrowed his eyes. "You don't have no worm," he said, but there was a note of uncertainty in his voice.

Megamind smiled.

The boy turned red. "Gonna get all of us, Einstein?"

Megamind cocked his head. "No, jerkface. Just you."

The sneer on the chump's face wavered.

As Megamind went to dump his tray, he heard someone call out, "Hey, Me-e-g. Me-e-..." Followed by the sound of a fist thumping somebody's arm and a yelp of pain.

At least he wouldn't get called that anymore.

Minion drifted back and forth in the tank.

The house was dark and quiet. Everyone had gone to bed, Melanie only an hour ago.

He was pretty tired. He didn't sleep well in this strange house with its strange shadows and funny noises. Though it was a very nice aquarium, and the warden had provided a big rock formation behind which Minion could hide when he wanted a little privacy.

Minion used it whenever Sam walked by. He didn't like the way Sam looked at him, when the teenager bothered to acknowledge Minion's presence at all.

Melanie at least tried to make him feel welcome. He liked it when she studied in the kitchen, all those papers spread out. It reminded him a little of Sir. She would put him in his containment unit and let him roll around the floor or put him on the table so he could see what she was working on. It was a lot of complicated medical stuff that he didn't understand, but he appreciated the effort.

He mouthed a few pebbles, scooping them up from the bottom and spitting them out one by one. He probably shouldn't have talked so much, there at the end. He'd almost tipped the warden off. Minion didn't know how or when, but he was sure that Sir would come for him.

"Be strong," Sir had whispered, and given him the hand signal for 'soon.' So Minion was trying to be strong, and to be ready, though his heart ached with missing him.

It wasn't absolutely essential for Sir to know the exact location of the aquarium. He was certain that Sir remembered the layout of the house and would be able to find where they'd put the aquarium pretty quick anyway, but Minion had wanted to do his bit to make the transition as smooth as possible. It was best if Sir didn't spend too much time fumbling around in the dark.

He dozed.

He started awake with a jerk, heart fluttering. He thought he'd heard a soft wooden sound. The front door closing? A footstep on a floorboard?

He swam to the end of the aquarium. Someone was moving through the living room. It could have been one of the family coming downstairs for a drink of water, but why didn't they turn on the light? Too much bother? Maybe they were walking so stealthily so they wouldn't bump into furniture.

Minion drew a breath of water and let himself open to the bond. To his delight there was the familiar tingly feeling in his forehead.

"Sir!" he whispered. "Here, over here, quick."

Megamind stepped around the corner, eyes glinting in the light from the window and a huge grin on his face. "Miss me?"

Minion bit his lip so he wouldn't squeal, but he did a backflip of joy.

"You ready to blow this pop stand, you fantastic fish? Where's your bowl?"

"Cupboard, under here, Sir!" Minion squeaked, pointing down with his nose.

The next morning Parker stood looking at the aquarium for a long time. There was a blue rubber duck in it.

He was too tired to get very upset. He made some coffee before he called the police.

It was tough to get a hold of them, as most everyone at the station was dealing with the fact that someone had blown a hole in the wall to the evidence room, stolen an unknown number of pieces of evidence, and then filled the place with flame retardant foam. The cops were still digging out.

"I think I can tell you what's missing," said Parker with a sigh. "Megamind's dehydration gun and Minion's robot suit, right?"

"How do you know that?"

"Lucky guess."

Epilogue

The news that at least a third of DPI agents across the country were involved in criminal acts ranging from theft to human trafficking was a serious blow to the current presidential administration, who had won on the platform of rooting out corruption. Measures were swift.

The national director of the Department of Paranormal Investigations in Washington resigned in disgrace, though it later came out that he had been manipulated by a psychic and therefore wasn't entirely responsible for the fact that he hadn't noticed his agency was overrun by crooked employees.

The agency was dissolved, and its duties reabsorbed by the FBI.

Corbin went to an asylum, too far gone to be charged with any crime since he was catatonic.

Corbin's partner Agent Bates escaped the carnage at the Federal Building but was arrested trying to board a plane for Canada.

Ulrich Hofstetter, dubbed "Wolfman Jack" by a newpaper wag, was extradited back to his native Austria to face trial for murder.

Freezer Burn was picked up by Metro Man for robbing a jewelry store and sentenced to ten years in the new super-villain prison in Grenville, Florida.

Sparkle and Hot Flash teamed up with Lady Doppler for a while, forming the gang called the Femme Fatales, but Sparkle wasn't really made for a life of crime. It gave her an ulcer. After she discovered she was pregnant with Corbin's child she spiraled into a depression.

She was captured by the Kansas City police. The feds offered her a deal, to dismiss all charges if she would testify against the disgraced agents of the Department of Paranormal Investigations. She was only too happy to comply.

She refused to name the father of her child, though. If Corbin ever got his mind back, she didn't want him to have any claim over her little boy.

Metro City drug lord Bruce Otto was found face down in his swimming pool, along with two of his entourage.

And so Psycho Delic oozed his way into Metro City's underworld.

Wayne Scott again appealed to the family lawyer, and she got Curly and Reg released without much difficulty, as Corbin's credibility was shot to hell.

Though the warden was highly irritated that Harry Chambers had hidden Megamind and Minion, he was still grateful that he'd given them shelter when they needed it. Though Harry received a two-year sentence for violating parole and harboring fugitives, Parker's testimony got it changed to a six-month stint in the county jail.

Roxanne tapped her foot, impatiently waiting for her parents to finish reading the brochures. "So can I go?"

Dr. Ritchi glanced up. "Awfully far away."

Roxanne rolled her eyes. "Yeah, because it's at Penn State, Dad. Two whole weeks! It's one of the best journalism camps around. This'll be perfect! You're always saying I have to think about my future."

He exchanged looks with his wife. "This'll be a good experience for her," she said.

He looked at the brochures again, thinking. The police seemed incapable of holding onto that alien for any length of time. He would breathe easier if she were out of the city for a little while. Who knew, maybe she'd become a journalist. "All right, you can go."

"Yesss!" Roxanne pumped her fist. She gave them both a hug and ran to call her best friend.

Julian 'Drive By' Franzetti received a surprise visit from the aliens everyone was talking about. Megamind insisted on paying off Harry Chambers's debt.

Franzetti guessed that he'd be dealing with some hot cash so he tacked on an extra handling charge along with the late fee.

Megamind gave him a long, slow look, but Franzetti had been in the game a long time, and was used to such staring contests.

Megamind's trenchcoat hung open and Franzetti could see a gun at the freak's hip. He let his hand slip under the desk to rest on the shotgun.

Megamind's eyes followed the movement, then around to the corner where one of Franzetti's men sat. The man moved in his seat to show his own sidearm.

Megamind gave Franzetti a steely look. "How about a receipt?"

Franzetti snorted and shook his head. "Don't do receipts."

"I will need some assurance that this is the end of it. That my uncle won't find one of your thugs calling on him to collect a 'bookkeeping' charge, or any other type of extra 'fee.'" The way Megamind said 'fee' almost made it a dirty word.

How'd this freak know so much about his business? He glared at Megamind, then at Minion, standing half in shadow by the door, a little too close to Franzetti's other man, who was forced back against the wall by Minion's bulk.

He supposed he could let Chambers go. He had other sheep he could fleece, sheep that didn't have overprotective nephews with laser guns.

"Fine. Pay now, and Chambers is free and clear. You got my word."

Megamind lifted one eyebrow on his blue forehead as if he was calculating the value of his word, and Franzetti began to bristle at the insult, but then the freak nodded and held his hand out. "Then we shake on it."

Franzetti hesitated. Normally he would've done that anyway, but this was an alien. Megamind's eyes and sinister smile seemed to make fun of him. He stood up and stuck out his hand. He wasn't scared of no freak.

At least Megamind was wearing gloves. Franzetti shook the strong, narrow hand quickly and let go, half expecting some trick, and almost felt mad that there wasn't one.

Megamind gestured at Minion, and the henchfish stepped forward, taking a bundle of money out of a zippered leather bag.

"You're a real business man, Mr. Franzetti. Very pragmatic," said Megamind.

Franzetti grunted as he counted it out.

Megamind wasn't done. "You might want to remember this. I may not look it now, but one day I will rule this city, and when that day comes, rest assured I will remember who is my friend, and who is not."

Some resonance of evil in Megamind's voice worked its way into Franzetti's crusty soul and he glanced up uneasily, but the door was already closing behind Minion's back.

The street people eventually returned to populate the old fish market neighborhood. The potholes that Sparkle had left all over the place didn't really make the area all that much worse, though rumor had it the city was thinking about razing the street.

For now, at least, Reg and Curly had a familiar place to hang their hats. Curly installed fresh pyramids on the ceiling.

One evening they came home to find two cardboard boxes sitting in the middle of the floor with an envelope taped to one. 'With eternal gratitude, Code Blue and Minion' was scrawled across it.

"Hey, it's from Code Blue," Curly cried. Excitedly he began tearing at the first box.

Reg saved the note before it got accidentally shredded. The envelope felt kind of thick. He peeked in and almost dropped it. Along with a folded letter, there must have been at least a couple hundred dollars in there. Nervously he jammed the money in his pocket. If Curly saw that loot now he'd holler. It wasn't like Reg didn't trust their neighbors, but...that was a lot of money.

Reg would dole it out for the two of them gradual like, so Curly wouldn't get too excited. He'd make it last.

He took a look at the second, much bigger box, and saw that it was full of gourmet camping food, all in neatly sealed packages with instructions for cooking, stuff that could keep for months. One looked like beef stew. Reg's mouth watered.

Curly's big grin faded and his mouth turned into an 'O' of horror. He flung his box aside with a cry.

Reg looked up from his examination of a package of hermetically sealed apple pie. "What'sa matter?"

"Soap," Curly said, outraged. "It's full of soap. Somebody's impersonatin' Code Blue, man, and havin' a go at me!"

Reg picked up one of the paper-wrapped bars. It looked like a plain old bar of Ivory soap, no chemicals or perfumes added, but just try telling Curly that.

He unfolded the note and read aloud. "Dear Curly, I have news of the utmost urgency. The U.S. Government has perfected its mind-reading ray. It is dangerously potent. Aluminum, tin, and, indeed, all types of foil are powerless against it."

Curly clenched his pyramid hat close to his head. "Oh no, oh no, oh no..."

Reg made a soothing gesture with his hand. "Hold on, there's more. He says, I have discovered the antidote. Here are a dozen slabs of a secret substance known only to myself, made of solid isotopic particles. Take these to the nearest mission, homeless shelter, or rest room. Remove all clothing, get completely wet, and scrub a slab vigorously over your skin, including your head."

Reg hesitated. His buddy was listening intently. Reg cleared his throat and continued. "Rinse off the resulting foam, which is a completely harmless side effect. The isotopic matter will be absorbed into your skin on a molecular level, thus producing an impenetrable layer of protection against the mind-reading rays. Isotopes fade over time, so you will need to conduct this procedure twice a month. Also good for clothes, for extra protection. Share with Reg."

Curly exhaled. "Aw man, that's a relief. For a minute there I thought he was gonna tell me to wash."

Tanaka Industries, having suffered two break-ins within a half year period, was extremely keen on not letting it happen again. They added two super-powered security guards to their team, a lizard man and a woman with laser vision.

Megamind blocked all communications, disabled the security system, disabled the second system they'd sneakily hidden within their innermost room and which had tripped him up the last time, and dehydrated all the guards. He left them in a little pile with a cheery note of encouragement.

"And then I told them it was from the Amazon and there wasn't any antidote," Megamind said, chuckling. "That put the head jerk in his place quick enough!"

Minion laughed. "What a bunch of dweebs!"

With a happy sigh, Megamind leaned against the bright blue Dodge Charger he'd recently liberated and looked out over the park, drinking in the sight of the lights that glittered and twinkled on the skyscrapers of Metrocity.

He was free, he had his best friend and loyal companion at his side, and they'd successfully, finally, and with perfect aplomb pulled off the Tanaka heist.

The Tanaka executives would have to learn that simply because some people possessed super powers did not necessarily make them effective guards.

He scratched his jaw. This was his first attempt at growing a devilishly handsome beard and it was kind of patchy. Hopefully it would grow out more evenly.

It was high time he conquered another adolescent milestone. The consumption of alcohol. Whoever heard of a tee-totaling super-villain? Even if he wasn't quite there yet. He was a super-villain-in-training, that was it.

He twisted the cap off the beer bottle and wrinkled his nose at the odor. Maybe people just dared each other to drink it. He took a cautious swig but his face scrunched up as the bitter liquid burned his tongue.

Minion watched the rise and fall of the bottle. "How is it?"

"Not bad," he said hoarsely, and glared at the label. "I thought this type was supposed to be sweet. I'll finish it later." With a slight shudder he handed it to Minion, who set it on the ground.

"Should we head back to the lair?"

Megamind nodded. Their new lair was in an ideal location on the northwest side, with a nice view overlooking the lake. "Yes. And there I will formulate my plans," he said, stepping away from the car. He held up one hand and clenched it into a fist. "For the ultimate takeover of this entire..."

A figure in white flashed through the air on the far side of the park, making the trees bend in his wake, branches creaking and leaves rustling.

Megamind flung himself over the hood. Minion dashed around the bumper. Cautiously they peered around the car.

Heart thumping, Megamind's eyes darted back and forth, scanning the skyline, but Metro Man was gone. "Must have been heading for some emergency," he muttered. Sirens wailed mournfully in the distance.

"Think he saw us?"

Megamind bared his teeth in a grimace. "Hard to say. Let's go."

There was a brief wrestling match over the steering wheel.

"It was one sip, Minion, one sip!"

"Even caffeine sends you over. You get loopy if you get too much chocolate!"

"That only happened once," Megamind snapped. Dodging Minion's arm he feinted right, then, when the henchfish leaned over to block him, he scrambled around Minion's side and planted himself behind the wheel. "Ha! Get in."

"Sir, until we know how the beer will affect..."

"In." He revved the engiine.

With a sigh Minion tromped around to the passenger side and got in. Megamind pulled onto the parkway, leaving tread marks on the asphalt.

"So, taking over the city," Minion said. "Pretty big order, isn't it, Sir?"

"It will not happen tomorrow, nor next year, but this city will be mine." He cast an evil scowl at the sky. "Once a certain obstacle has been removed."

As a general rule, Megamind was loathe to take life, even the life of an enemy, preferring to mock, impede, and humiliate instead. An objective observer might have questioned him on his desire to eliminate Metro Man, commenting on the scars left by abusers and bullying, and the wisdom of looking within and healing the self rather than lashing out at the perceived source of pain, and citing the power of forgiveness and letting bygones be bygones, but Megamind would have advised an objective observer to shove it, so it's just as well there weren't any in the area.

He bit his lip and drummed his fingers on the wheel. Visions of robot armies, battle suits, artificially intelligent robots that would obey his every whim, laser guns of all makes and sizes, filled his head and he thought he would burst. This miserable metropolis would feel his wrath, and its golden boy defender would bear the brunt of it.

Minion braced himself as they tore around a corner. Getting rid of Metro Man was about as likely as putting out the sun by spitting water at it but if this was what Sir wanted... "What do you wanna do next?"

"The next item on my agenda is the acquisition of air power."

"Oh. Really? That'll be kinda tough, Sir. How will we find a flight instructor?"

"For what?"

"To teach you to fly a plane."

"Pfft! Anybody can fly a plane. I'm going to make jet packs."

"Ooo! Does that mean I get one too?"

He punched Minion's shoulder. "Of course, you fantastic fish, you!"

They drove on into the glittering night.