Chapter 2:

Where is Rookie?

Rico and the crew searched high and low for Rookie.

"Hmm, where is that lil' idiot? Maybe he wandered off?" Rico said out loud.

"Where the heck is he?" Jet Pack Guy said, coming out of the Virtual Reality room.

"We've searched everywhere." Dot proclaimed. But from the corner of his eye, Rico saw Gary 'contemplating' something. But he didn't know what.

"Gary...? Is there something you haven't told us yet?" Rico asked slowly.

"You haven't checked everywhere..." Gary replied in a slow and low voice.

"What!" Jet Pack Guy said.

"I think I know where he is... follow me." Gary said. He waddled to the Elite Penguin Force closet and typed in a code on it. Then a door opened inside.

"What the heck?" Rico asked.

Gary waddled in. The agents followed to see the weirdest thing - the old Elite Penguin Force Command Room!

"The Director said we needed to keep a Virtual Reality version of this room." Gary replied. "Rookie? Are you in here?"

"Yes, and I'm so amazed!" Rookie appeared from behind the Command Coach area.

"Rookie! Why didn't you tell us you were coming in here? We searched two minutes for you!" Jet Pack Guy said relentlessly.

"Sorry! I was just too excited, okay?" Rookie said with a little smile across his face.

"Whatever, we have to go stop the Proto-Bot!" Rico ordered. He entered the same code Gary used and the doors opened. But the new Command Room wasn't there! It was just snow. And then there was a cage.. and in that cage laid nothing but a note that read, as best as Rico's eyes could read it, "Total Domination".

"Where is the Command Room, Gary?" asked Rico, quickly.

"Oh my, it's gone!" Gary said, shyly.

"Well, no point sitting here. To the Coffee Shop!" Jet Pack Guy said.

"I'll take a MochaFrappeWhippyChino, thanks." said a penguin at the Coffee Shop to Barista. The place was a mess!

"Whoa! Barista! What in the name of Zippo the Penguin happened here?" Rico asked, shocked.

"Sorry, guys. The Proto-Bot came in and destroyed the place. It headed to the Dock, but what's the point in stopping something that can't be stopped?" Barista said in sorrow.

"You didn't try to stop it?" Rookie asked.

"Like he said, Rookie, you can't stop something that can't be stopped." Dot piped up.

"But it can be stopped!" Rico reassured.

"I... I don't think so anymore." Gary was turning on Rico.

"What? I don't mean for you to take offense but, are you crazy!" Rico asked.

"He's not the only one that's crazy..." Rookie said. Gary started walking away.

"What do you mean...?" Rico asked, hoping Rookie wouldn't quit.

"I don't have hope... he's too powerful." Rookie said. He started to slowly waddle away.

"At least I have..." Rico saw Dot waddling away, too. It seemed as if nobody had faith.

"Jet Pack Guy - do you believe?" Rico asked, hoping.

"I believe..."

"You do? Great! Let's-"

"That we'll lose to a robot..." and with that, Jet Pack Guy flew away. Rico was not with his crew anymore. They weren't even his crew! What did the Proto-Bot do to my crew? Rico thought. This isn't my crew, my team, my group, my posse. These are penguins that don't know me and I don't know them.

Rico started thinking himself. With the Proto-Bot out there, smashing the Lighthouse and ripping the Advent Calendar out of the Forest... would they be able to? Yes. Yes, we can. Rico thought. He was the only one with confidence. I'll show them! I will show them. And just then, the floor of the Coffee Shop below him fell through the snow that fell into the ocean. And with it, Rico went plunging into the ocean.

*dun dun dun*