REVIEW TIME!
Guest #1: Thank you very much, friend! Writing for Boxman and his robot children is always such a blast, what with their clashing personalities and unruly demeanors. Speaking of blasts, I can agree that things certainly will blow up in their faces… ;)
Mister Enigma: That was the intention, actually! Darrell being a Fortnite player somehow seems like a thing that makes sense in my mind. :)
Okay, so I lied when I said that this chapter will be the second-to-last chapter, only because I actually had so much fun writing this story that I extended this story from four chapters to five, meaning that the next chapter will feature the party getting set up instead. Regardless, I hope you all don't mind the extra content!
Right now, let's see what hijinks occur when the BoxMore 'Bots decide to go shopping…and fail miserably... ;)
OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes is owned by Ian Jones-Quartey and Cartoon Network. (I do not own any of its characters nor its properties. This is purely a non-profit fanfic made for fun).
A BASH AT BOXMORE'S
CHAPTER THREE: IN WHICH YOU NOW KNOW WHY BOXMORE ROBOTS AND SHOPPING DON'T MIX
Ernesto and Shannon's job of purchasing decorations for the party had gone underway. They both made their way downtown and found a large, colorful, warehouse-sized building called "A-Party-Calypse Now". The two 'bots stood in front of the large building and gazed at the massive fortress of a party store before them.
"Yeesh, are party stores normally this big?" asked Shannon, "This place makes our factory look like anthill in comparison…"
"Well at least they'll surely have the supplies we need to help liven up our party!" encouraged Ernesto in a positive manner, "Come along, let's pick out some stuff…" He waltzed towards the entrance, with an unsure Shannon in tow.
"With the luck we've been having, I can probably tell this'll be just peachy…" she droned apathetically as they went inside the store.
Stepping inside and feeling the whoosh of the air conditioners above cooling both robots down upon entering, both BoxMore 'Bots gazed in wonder upon that A-Party-Calypse had to offer them.
The interior of the building proved to be as overwhelmingly gigantic on the inside as it was on the outside! Hundreds of shelves packed with party costumes, bunting, wrapping paper, streamers, confetti, banners, and balloons were lined up across the store as far as the naked eye can see.
Shoppers scattered and dashed all around the store, their hands and carts filled to the brim with party supplies. Cashiers were working overtime to make sure everyone got their stuff paid for and not hold up any lines. Shannon looked at this spectacle with wide eyes.
"Yikes...I never knew humans were this much into parties…" she admitted, as Ernesto went ahead and snagged a shopping cart from the corral.
"All the more reason we should hurry up and get our decorations before they may run out, so let's make haste, dear Shannon!" rallied Ernesto. Shannon shrugged and soon, both she and Ernesto plunged deep into the store to fetch their bounty.
'Well, this is really happening…' thought Shannon to herself, 'But hey, what's the worst that can really happen?'
Meanwhile, Darrell and Jethro had just arrived at the local grocery store to pick up food for the party. Darrell swooped down the aisles with a cart in-hand, with Jethro nestled in the baby seat. They whooped and wailed happily as they ran down each aisle, trying to pick out what snacks to buy for tomorrow's event.
"Hmm, let's see now…" mused Darrell thoughtfully, scanning the shelves, "Oooh, I know!" They glided past the chip aisle and Darrell managed to swipe a bag of chips in his hand.
"Double-Dip Lazer Chips!" he cheered, "Perfect and delicious!" He placed the chips in the cart and continued his way down the aisle.
"I AM JETHRO!" went Jethro from his seat. Darrell chuckled.
"Well, of course I'm gonna pick up dip, Jethro! You can't have a party without dip!" he reassured.
As the afternoon went by, Darrell kept filling their cart with snacks upon snacks. Bags of salty, greasy, fatty treats and bottles of fizzy soft drinks lined the cart as the two had finally completed their mission and began strolling towards the cashier area.
"Welp, that was easier than expected, eh, Jethro?" smiled Darrell.
"I AM JETHRO!" agreed the small, blue 'bot.
They made their way towards one of the registers, and despite their rather long line of waiting people it produced, Darrell kept his spirits high and smile bright as he waited patiently in line.
"Boy, I hope Shannon and Ernesto are having as much fun as we are!" he exclaimed.
"I AM NOT HAVING FUN IN THE SLIGHTEST! ERNESTO! HELP ME!" shrieked Shannon as she tore down the long streamer aisle like a supercar on steroids.
Trailing behind Shannon and Ernesto, a ravenous pack of sale-hungry shoppers came stampeding through the store, giving chase to the two frightened androids, all while screaming like banshees. Shannon's cart was already filled with a good amount of party supplies, but at the high speed they were going, they were almost ready to lose their items before they could even purchase them!
"HOW DID THIS EVEN HAPPEN!?" cried out Ernesto, before getting bopped on the head by a lady's umbrella.
"I WAS JUST ONLY GETTING SOME STREAMERS WAS ALL AND THEN THESE MONSTERS TRIED TO AMBUSH ME! HOW WAS I TO KNOW THAT THERE WAS A BIG SALE GOING ON!?" she screeched, managing to avoid someone throwing a shoe at her.
"GIVE US THOSE STREAMERS!" screeched one of the crazed bargain-hunters, "MY SON HAS A BIRTHDAY PARTY TOMORROW!"
"YOU SHOULD HAVE NOT WAITED 'TIL THE LAST MINUTE THEN, YA OLD HARPY!" retorted Shannon back at her.
"I NEED THAT CONFETTI IMMEDIATELY!" went another shopper, "HAND THEM OVER, YA BUCKET OF BOLTS!"
"OVER MY DEAD CIRCUITS, MISTER!" Ernesto shot back, before getting bashed in the head with a rock.
The two groups kept throwing insults, threats, and items between each other as they all charged down each and every aisle and section of the store, but even during all of this, Shannon and Ernesto were still very determined to get their task done.
Soon after what felt like hours of running around, the robotic duo soon made their way through the do-it-yourself party kit aisle, as they seemingly have left behind their predators. Shannon sighed in relief.
"Phew! I think we lost 'em…" she confirmed, looking back and cracking a relieved smile. Ernesto fanned himself with his top hat, feeling quite exhausted.
"Oof, most excellent indeed!" replied Ernesto, "Now let's pay for our supplies and let's vacate this area immediately…"
Shannon then began to chuckle smugly. "Heh-heh...stupid fleshbags! Thinkin' they can get the drop on us!? HA! Yeah, right!" she cackled.
However, just as she kept bragging and strolling down the aisle, Ernesto looked up ahead and stopped dead in his tracks, quivering in fright at the sight in front of him.
"Uhhh, Sh-Sh-Shannon?" he warned to his colleague.
Sadly, Shannon was too in the moment to bother what was ahead of her. "Once we get this party started, we'll finally have the entirety of Lakewood under our metallic hands just like we dreamed of!"
"Shannon!" Ernesto cried out again desperately.
"Daddy'll be so proud of us once our plan goes off without a hitch! Maybe he'll even give us a promotion or-"
"SHANNON FOR COB'S SAKE LOOK IN FRONT OF YOU!"
Shannon finally came to a stop and now, breaking away from her boastful demeanor, she scanned towards the end of the aisle to see the horde of stubborn shoppers that had tried running away from had finally returned and were blocking their path.
They all gave the two 'bots such menacing and determined glares, ready to pounce on them like bloodthirsty panthers. Shannon eeped and shuffled back towards Ernesto, her legs quivering and her metal skin paling at the sight of these leeches before them.
"I-I-It's no use, Ernesto. W-We can't keep running away like forever! What're we gonna do now!?" whimpered Shannon, actually feeling more scared than she ever did in her life.
Ernesto stared at the crowd before him and quickly devised a plan. Suddenly growing very serious, he positioned his top hat, cracking his fingers, and gave the crowd a hard stare from his single eye.
"Just worry about getting to the cashiers, Shannon, I'll deal with this crowd myself…" he growled. Shannon gazed awestruck at Ernesto's bravery.
"B-But what about you, Ernesto!? What are you gonna do!?" she gasped worriedly.
"Raymond's party is top priority, dear sibling. A distraction shall get these humans to think twice about messing with the likes of us. Just leave it to me, I'll be fine…" answered Ernesto, not breaking away from his glare towards the shoppers.
After some seconds of thought, Shannon nodded in confirmation, turned her heel, and went the other direction with her cart of decorations. This didn't go unnoticed by the crowd, however.
"Hey, she's getting away!" shouted a portly shopper. The crowd began to angrily advance through the aisle and towards Ernesto. Ernesto readied his stance and gripped his hat tightly.
"If you want to get to her...then you better get through me first!" boomed Ernesto heroically, his firm and loud tone echoing clearly across the whole store.
Ernesto suddenly retracted his head, arms, and legs into his spherical metal body, leaving only a large purple ball in the crowd's wake. Amazingly though, this did not deter the horde as they kept marching ominously down the aisle, shouting and swearing like mad dogs.
After that, everything seemed to happen all at once…
Ernesto's body began to suddenly charge up and spin in place, peeling on the ground like an angry car tire. A terrible screeching noise filled the air and was enough to bring the furious crowd to a standstill. The shoppers looked at Ernesto with hesitant and baffled looks, uncertain of what was to follow.
Then, with his spin dash attack all primed and ready to go, Ernesto tore down the aisle at supersonic speed, and right in the path of sea of shoppers before him. The crowd screamed in horror, and without question, they all turned around and jolted down the other way, trying to get out of the path of Ernesto's path of destruction.
It seems that they now got the hint to never mess with BoxMore now, eh?
After a half hour of waiting in line, it was nearly Darrell's turn to pay for his products. Darrell shimmied with glee as the person before him had purchased their own items, meaning Darrell was next to buy his snacks for the party!
However, just as he was ready to place his snack items on the conveyor belt...
"OUTTA MAH WAY, YE WANKER!"
"Hey! What are you-"
A familiar, burly, purple biker pushed through the line and shoved Darrell on the ground, cutting in front of him in the process. He then placed his own items on the belt instead. Darrell groaned and shook away the soreness, now glaring at the behemoth biker towering above him. Jethro looked down at Darrell with concerned eyes.
"I AM JETHRO?" asked Jethro, surprised of this occurrence as well.
Darrell huffed crossly at this line-cutting brute. How dare this chump to get in the way of Raymond's party! He picked himself up, dusted off his body, and marched next to the biker, looking rather stern.
"Excuse me, sir?" countered Darrell, giving the biker a firm poke on the shoulder, "I believe I was next in line here, thank you very much!" There was no response however, as the biker kept stacking his items on the belt.
Darrell grew infuriated. He rapidly poked the man's shoulder again and again, harder this time.
"I said 'excuse me, mister'!?" he shouted, "I was next in line! Don't you know it is not polite to cut in line!?" This kept going on for nearly a full minute, until…
*SNAP!* *CRUNCH!*
"EEEEK!"
The biker quickly and roughly grabbed hold of Darrell's arm and slowly craned his neck towards the pain-stricken robot, a deathly look in his large, sunken eyes.
"Ye' think ye can mess wit' Mad Sam, don'tcha?" he growled through his grizzled British accent, "Ye really wanna go toe-to-toe with 'de most feared outlaw te' ever live…?"
He then turned around and leaned in closer to glare directly into Darrell's eye, leering at him like a cougar ready to hunt down its next meal. Mad Sam snorted right into Darrell's face and without breaking a sweat, he lifted Darrell off the ground from his arm, which was ready to snap off because of the forceful grip the biker had on it. Jethro tembled inside the cart, unable to do anything to help out his friend.
"Now, I may 'ave seen many ugly creatures 'dat hang around 'de Danger Zone, but ye' might be 'de most ugliest thing I've seen in mah entire life…" he mocked in a low voice. Darrell swallowed thickly and jittered uncontrollably.
"Pl-Please, sir. I-I-I-I didn't m-mean to intrude. I-If you'll just let me go, I-I-i'll leave you and your groceries alone, s-simple as that!" offered Darrell fearfully, in hopes to let him go.
However, much to Darrell's rising fear, Mad Sam began to chuckle...lowly and darkly.
"Ohh...I'll let 'ye go alright, punk…" he smirked.
And without warning, Mad Sam tossed Darrell into both his hands, and with the almighty power of Zeus and Hercules combined, he cabertossed Darrell into the air and across the supermarket like a pole vault stick.
Darrell screamed horrifically as he soared above the aisles and shoppers below him. Before long, he landed down onto the other side of the store, more specifically, the frozen food section.
Poor Darrell roughly landed into an open freezer with a metallic clank and lay inside the freezer full of dents, dings, and a busted right arm. He groaned painfully, hoping the worst was over...
"AND TAKE 'YER JUNK WIT' YA, TRASH HEAP!"
Sadly, it wasn't.
Just as Mad Sam's yelling had processed into Darrell's audio receptors, he then noticed something else flying towards him: a shopping cart full of snacks gliding across the store, with a familiar blue drone stuck inside the cart as well.
"IIII AAAAAMMM JEEEEEETTHHRROOOOOOOOOOO!" came the echoing call from the young 'bot as he and the cart descended down from the air and came hurtling towards Darrell.
Darrell gulped and nearly sprang a leak. "...Daddy?"
*SMASH!*
The cart and all its contents (including Jethro) came smashing down on poor old Darrell, leaving the two BoxMore 'Bots in a pathetic, painful slump. Chip bags, soda bottles, and pieces of a destroyed shopping cart lay everywhere, as the supermarket employees came scurrying towards the scene to see what just happened.
To say the least, this was just not Darrell's day…
Shannon bolted down multiple aisles of the party store to try and weave her way towards the cash register. With Ernesto rolling around every part of the store, going all Sonic the Hedgehog on a crowd of scared shoppers that were once chasing them down like a horde of zombies, this was certainly something Shannon had not expected to occur during this outing!
'I'm really starting to think that this party isn't worth all this madness!' Shannon gasped internally as she sprinted past the balloon aisle.
After zooming through the store and managing to avoid Ernesto's ball form and the tsunami of shoppers that he was chasing, Shannon finally reached the check-out aisle and skidded to a halt next to one of the registers, with a bored-looking, pimply-faced cashier manning said register.
Shannon panted and wheezed exhaustively. She sweated like a pig and her knees buckled and trembled from all the running around. She took in the deepest breath she ever inhaled and suddenly regain her normal, shiny, and relaxed composure, as if nothing happened at all!
"Hello, I'd like to make a few purchases, please?" she asked sweetly to the cashier.
The cashier lazily compiled and began scanning her items one-by-one, with Shannon patiently standing by for him to do so.
Meanwhile, Ernesto continued his rolling rampage around the store, dodging patrons and shelves as best as he could. The shoppers then decided to abandon their post and fleed out of the store altogether, much to the shockingly nonplussed reactions of the bored store employees.
Ernesto chortled victoriously as he kept thundering down the aisles...and to his unacknowledgement, towards a fallen pile of wrapping paper tubes blocking his way!
"HA-HA! FOOLISH HUMANS! NOBODY CAN ESCAPE THE AWESOME WRATH THAT IS ERNESTOOOOOOOOOO-"
Ernesto rumbled over the large stack of tubes with enough force to throw the metallic sphere out of control! He banged and bashed against the shelves like a reckless pinball, smashing through everything that was in his crosshairs until he neared the check-out area of the store.
"Alright, your total is $30.25, ma'am…" said the cashier, handing Shannon her bags of supplies. Shannon grinned and gave him a friendly nod.
"Thank you, kind sir!" she thanked calmly. She reached into a small compartment on her chestplate and pulled out her wallet. She was about to pay for her wares when a familiar, frightened voice rang out.
"SHANNON STOP THIS CRAZY THING!"
Ernesto uncontrollably plowed out of one of the aisles and thundered past Shannon like a rocket sled on rails. He tried his best to stop and go back into his normal robot mode, but nothing seemed to work as Ernesto came rolling towards a large display at the one side of the store…
...which unfortunately turned out to be a display of fireworks…
Shannon and the cashier's reactions weren't fast enough to process what was to happen, as just when Ernesto collided with the firework stand, all hell suddenly broke loose!
*CRAAAAAASH!* *POP!* *WHOOOOOOOOOSH!* *CRACKLE-CRACKLE!*
Firecrackers spontaneously shrieked and whistled upon impact, sparklers fizzed and shot sparks everywhere, and rockets soared and whizzed in the air before exploding mid-air into a massive implosion of bright lights and colors. The fireworks even managed to damage a whole ton of party supplies in midst of their explosions. Embers and gunpowder sprinkled everywhere from all the exploding fireworks, covering everything in the store with dusty, dirty ash and practically setting some of the items alight!
It was complete chaos as A-Party-Calypse Now was being trashed as we speak!
At long last, the fireworks stopped flying and shooting off, leaving behind thick plumes of intoxicating smoke in the air. Party supplies were all dirtied and destroyed beyond repair, the shelves were busted up and burnt, and all those who were left in the store were two BoxMore 'Bots and a group of frightened, but uninjured store employees cowering in the corner.
The place looked less like a party store and more like a war zone, so to speak!
Shannon stared at the burnt-out sphere that was Ernesto, who in question was groaning from all the spinning around he had done. She then stared back at the cashier, who had dropped his bored demeanor in place for a shell-shocked expression.
A still silence hung in the smoggy air before an embarrassed Shannon decided to speak out, as if to try and lighten the mood.
"So, do you guys take cash or credit?"
"I seriously can't believe we had to pay them that much money for the damages…" moaned Ernesto dejectedly as they walked their way towards home, "Lord Boxman's going to have a heart attack once he finds out about this…"
Shannon exhaled tiredly as she hiked up her bags of supplies over her shoulders. "I'm sure he'll get over it…" she dismissed, "At least we managed to get some of our party supplies for Raymond though…"
"Yeah...which we nearly burned to bits from those wayward fireworks…" sighed Ernesto.
"So the streamers have some burn marks on them, it's no biggie! Party decorations are still party decorations!" waved off Shannon, trying to keep her chin up.
"But what about Raymond!? He'll go ballistic if this party doesn't go as planned!" cried Ernesto. Shannon scowled bitterly.
"Then let him go ballistic!" snapped Shannon grouchily, "I nearly got my face ripped off by carnivorous shoppers and almost got blown to kingdom come just so this dumb party can happen! If he doesn't like it, than he can kiss my firm, shapely, yellow as-"
"Hey, guys...how's it going?" came a sudden voiced as the sight of Darrell lugging both Jethro and a bag of food items came into view.
Shannon and Ernesto gasped in surprise at the state of the two young 'bots. They were both covered in dents and scratches from head to foot. Darrell's glass brain cover was cracked and his arm was significantly damaged. Jethro's smokestack was snapped off and he was missing one of his treads.
Basically, they both looked like they were mauled by a bear...or a shark...or a...shark-bear hybrid monster…
"What in ever-loving heck happened to you guys!?" cried Shannon in shock. Darrell spat out a tooth and groaned painfully.
"I can almost say the same thing about you guys…" replied Darrell, "You guys look like you jumped inside of a toaster or something. What happened?"
Ernesto and Shannon looked at each other worriedly. Their once-shiny exteriors were now layered in soot, ash, and scorch marks. Shannon looked back towards Darrell.
"Let's just say that there was an interesting light show at the party store. What about you guys, did ya get the food for the party?" she asked.
"Yeah…but we ran into a very mean customer and he tossed us onto the pasture. All these chips are probably crumbs at this point…" sighed Darrell sadly.
"I AM JETHRO..." replied Jethro, feeling just as glum.
"Oh my…" fretted Ernesto, "This certainly wasn't a swell day for any of us then…"
"Oh, ya think? Considering that while all this was happening, Raymond's probably back at home lounging and dolling himself up like the foppish twit he is!?" retorted Shannon roughly. Even optimistic Darrell began to look down in the dumps.
"Yeah, to be fair, he ain't exactly the most tactful robot in our group..." replied Darrell. Then, in a more melancholy tone, he began to voice his opinion on the matter.
"Maybe this party wasn't such a great idea after all..."
"I AM JETHRO." agreed Jethro. Ernesto looked at the group, his single eye looking sad and disappointed.
"Look, guys, I know our missions didn't go as swimmingly as planned, but let's just try and keep our heads up. I'm sure in the end this party will be worth all the trouble and we'll soon earn our right to be feared and respected by our peers. Just trust me on this, okay? At least for Raymond's sake?" beckoned Ernesto calmly.
The others looked away, feeling unsure of how to feel about all this, although from what Ernesto was seeing, he noticed they didn't seem as convinced to agree with him.
"Please, guys? I know Raymond is a major handful at times, but he is still family, and regardless of our moral compass, even our family should still still together, no matter what life throws at us…"
An uncertain silence fell before them all for a few seconds, with only the evening winds whirling around them being the only sound being said. Ernesto stood there with baited breath before Darrell finally broke the stillness.
"Okay...if it's for Raymond, then...I'd say we'll give it another shot! Let's try and get this party train a-rolling!" he confirmed, managing to give Ernesto a positive smile.
"I AM JETHRO!" belted Jethro encouragingly, bouncing in Darrell's arm.
Ernesto nodded proudly at the two, before turning towards Shannon with an expecting look on his face. Shannon stood there motionless and tired before after another few seconds, she scoffed and crossed her arms.
"...Fine…" she mumbled, "...we'll still do the party...for Raymond…"
The three 'bots gleamed with pride as they all sauntered down the sidewalk leading to BoxMore HQ, with Shannon trailing behind them. It seemed like nothing nor nobody was gonna stop this BoxMore bash after all!
"But once we get home, I'm gonna have a stern talking with that 'bot about what happened today!" declared Shannon as they walked nearer to the purple, skull-designed factory that was their home.
TO BE CONTINUED…
That was certainly an explosive chapter to say the least, but the fun ain't over yet! Next chapter will feature Raymond's reaction to his siblings' misadventures, and how it'll affect the upcoming party.
Will the infamous BoxMore Bash commence as planned? Stay tuned to find out, same BoxMore time, same BoxMore channel!
~Thunderbyrd