One, two, three, four, five. Five miraculous users, almost all of them. From where he stood in the science building, all the way across the school, Clair felt a twinge of smug satisfaction. Badger, Raccoon, Spider, Armadillo, and Eagle. The only one missing was Dragonfly, but they could be found easily enough. He closed the door to the science lab, locking it and blocking the door. He'd be safe in here, everyone would be too busy looking at his puppet. Watching the destruction that ensued.
The science room was an excellent location. It was remote, connected to the rest of the school through one lonesome hallway. The school building was shaped like a T when viewed from above, with the library on the other end. This room in particular had tall windows covered in canvas curtains, preventing onlookers from peering within. There was a constant battle raging over whether or not to destroy the 100-year old chalkboard and replace it with a new electronic white board, and so for now, the chalkboard stayed. So the room was rarely used, only twice during the morning periods. For the rest of that time, it was locked. But Clair had already planned that morning that no matter who he found to possess, this room would be his head quarters.
Breaking into it had been pitifully easy. He had gone to the second period class to ask the teacher some questions about his future science choices, and slipped a piece of scotch tape over the locking mechanism. The door would click like it had been locked, but the lock itself would still be jammed back into the door. After that, it was an easy matter of slipping inside amidst the chaos at the library. With so many people running away, no one would take notice of one boy slipping into a classroom. From there, is was a simple thing to remove the tape, let the door lock, and then bar it with a chair. If he was caught, he could always claim innocent and say he was hiding from the monster. Not that he ever intended to be caught, though.
He thought about waiting to see if the Dragonfly miraculous would show, but as the Raccoon wrapped her whip around Almaniac's wrist, he decided against it. She was becoming cornered, if the next phase of his plan was to be successful, he needed her out in the open. With that in mind he closed his eyes, reaching out to Almaniac. It seemed his puppet needed some hands on help from her master.
As the various heroes all gathered around her, the Almaniac grew suddenly still. Books dropped from where they flew through the air, hitting the floor with a clatter. She closed her eyes, and for a moment, all seemed quiet. The whistling of the air stopped, along with her laughter. For a moment, it seemed like all was well.
That moment soon passed.
The Almaniac opened her eyes once more, their red glow even stronger. The books picked themselves up off he ground, continuing their gyroscopic spins even faster now. She smiled, but there was something off in her smile, something foreign. If Ms. O'Neil seemed off before, she was completely alien now. There was something in her stance, in her smile, in the cold, sadistic gleam in her eye, that did not belong to her at all. They belonged to someone else entirely.
The unknown cold eyes scanned over all the heroes, the unknown smile growing only wider. When she opened her mouth and finally spoke, the voice was her voice, but the words very clearly not her words.
"So these are the heroes of this generation. How very quaint. You know, you're quite right. It is very inappropriate to be doing this to a library. So let's find a better place, shall we?" she asked, her eyes focusing on the Raccoon. With a sudden lash of her arm, she swung Corrine up and into the air, sending her flying, along with her whip.
Raising her arms and accelerating the books gyroscopic rotation, The Almaniac floated above the ground, before lifting up the tables nearby, using them to shield herself from any attacks the heroes might launch. The windows rattled in their panes, before finally bursting free of them, making way for her escape. With a few timely leaps, she leapt through the window, floating out high above the parking lot. Then, with a flick of her wrist, the tables flew to the windows, barricading them with untold strength and preventing them from following her.
"Lets make this a fight that everyone can see. I'll be seeing you "heroes" very soon." she called. And with a flick of her wrist, she floated higher, heading towards the Jefferson Memorial.