Chapter 7: Trapped
During the evening at Shady Shoals, SpongeBob was wearing his Masked Sponge outfit while he was sitting at a table with Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy.
"Isn't this great, Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy?" SpongeBob told them excitedly. "Now that I'm a superhero, we can team up and take on all the bad guys that come our way."
"That's…interesting, kid." Barnacle Boy unenthusiastically said. "But you do know that being a superhero is no day at the beach."
"Oh, I already know that." SpongeBob replied. "There's the whole chasing down bad guys, keeping up with your normal life, and let's not forget making sure your secret identity stays a secret."
"Well, that's not entirely what I meant, probably because we don't have secret identities."
Then, Mermaid Man suddenly woke up and gasped once he saw SpongeBob, "Huh? Who is that masked man?"
SpongeBob giggled and assured, "Don't worry, Mermaid Man. It's me." He then lifted his mask up a bit to show his face and winked.
"Oh…" Mermaid Man responded, vaguely remembering the sponge. "Who are you again?"
"He's the sponge kid that bugs us all the time." Barnacle Boy reminded.
"I know when it's time for pudding!" Mermaid Man snapped.
SpongeBob sighed dreamingly as he smiled. "…It's so great when great heroes like us can get together like this." Then he looked at Mermaid Man. "Any tips a great superhero master like you can pass on to a rookie."
"Why of course there, Sonny." Mermaid Man replied. "The biggest thing to know about being a hero is that with great power, comes great responsibility…and to always crush the enemy by the fingers that way he can't grab or punch you."
"Wow…" SpongeBob responded, amazed by this advice.
"How about giving him some useful information, you old coot." Barnacle Boy suggested, mildly annoyed.
"Oh right. And never give up on your duties even when things look horrid, and…huh? What was I saying?"
Barnacle Boy just frowned in annoyance, and then turned to SpongeBob, "The most important thing to remember about being a hero is that it can get dangerous, so you always have to be careful. Also, it's best to have someone helping you along the way."
"Ooh…" SpongeBob awed, taking in all the wisdom. "You're absolutely right, Barnacle Boy. Maybe someday I can get a great sidekick like you."
"Keep dreaming, kid."
Then SpongeBob got up from his chair and said, "Well, it's been nice chatting with you guys, but I have one more nightly patrol to do." he ran off, waving to them. "Thanks for the tips, gentlemen!"
"Who was that hideous masked creature?" Mermaid Man asked Barnacle Boy.
When the Masked Sponge was walking down the street, SpongeBob took out his grappling hook from his belt. "Might be a lot easier if I take to the skies." He considered and giggled to himself, "Just like a jellyfish."
But when he was about to shoot at the top of a building, a cry went out, "HELP!"
"Sounds like someone's in trouble," SpongeBob realized and narrowed his eyes in determination. "I'm on it!"
Then he shot his grappling hook at the top of a building and flew toward the sky. He landed on top of a building and started running and jumping across buildings to get to his destination by following the sound of the yelling. SpongeBob soon spotted the Krusty Krab up ahead and smiled.
"HELP!" the voice called out from the Krusty Krab.
"That must be where trouble is calling!" He aimed his grappling hook toward the sign. "Gotta aim this just right."
Then SpongeBob jumped from the building and swung down toward the Krusty Krab. SpongeBob started screaming as he swung faster, and it wasn't long until SpongeBob fell to the bottom and rolled across the ground.
"Oh…" SpongeBob groaned as he held his head. "Will I ever stick a perfect landing with this thing?" he asked as he put his grappling hook away. Then he looked around the area. "Now where is that troubled citizen?"
"Help! Help! Help!" the voice continued calling out.
SpongeBob looked around as he listened to the voice, and then he spotted the doors of the Krusty Krab where a krabby patty was sitting there in front of the doors.
"What's a krabby patty doing out here?" SpongeBob wondered as he ran over to it and picked it up. "Don't you worry, you poor thing." He told the krabby patty in a gentle voice, "We can look for the troubled citizen together."
But the krabby patty started to oddly vibrate in his hands. "What's the matter, krabby patty? Are you cold?" he asked until the krabby patty suddenly opened up with green gas squirting into SpongeBob's face.
SpongeBob got a dazed and tired look. "Ah…Good night…Gary…" he said in a dazed tone as he fell on the ground now unconscious.
With the Masked Sponge now passed out on the ground, from the side of the Krusty Krab, Plankton walked into view, smirking evilly as he held a microphone in his hand. "Oh…help, help." He said sarcastically into the microphone, revealing that he was the one behind the trap that successfully captured the Masked Sponge.
Later on, groaning was heard as someone's eyes began to open up. They belonged to the Masked Sponge, who was just starting to regain consciousness.
"Huh…" he wondered as he looked around to see he was now in an upside-down science lab. "Where am I?"
Then his eyes widen to notice that he was tied up in chains and hanging upside-down from a hook attached to a crane. SpongeBob gasped as he tried to shake himself loose. "What's going on here?"
"Struggle all you want, Masked Sponge." A voice called out as SpongeBob looked down to see Plankton on the ground, walking over to him. "Your super strength won't do you good here."
"Uh…I actually don't have super strength." SpongeBob pointed out.
"Whatever." Plankton scoffed as he stepped on a platform and pulled a lever which lifted him up to SpongeBob's face. "It won't matter now because you're my prisoner."
SpongeBob got a nervous look as he asked, "Why are you doing this, Plankton? I'm supposed to be a hero."
"Exactly!" Plankton replied as he poked SpongeBob's nose. "I offered you the chance to join me in domination, and what did you say to me? 'Oh no, Plankton, but I can't join you.'" Plankton recounted, mockingly imitating SpongeBob's voice. "'I'm a hero, and us heroes must always keep mankind safe from evil and blah, blah, blah!'"
"Well, Plankton, maybe we can work something out." SpongeBob offered with a smile.
"Oh, we can work something out alright." Plankton retorted with a smirk. "We can work out on who you really are."
"What?" SpongeBob asked with a scared look.
"That's right, Masked Boob." Plankton evilly responded, "I can remove your mask therefore revealing your identity to me, and then using your secret to my advantage, I can force you to aid me in ruling the world!"
"NOOO!" SpongeBob shouted in defeat until he suddenly became calm and asked, "Wait. Couldn't you have just removed my mask while I was knocked out?"
Plankton had a dumbfounded look as he stammered, "Uh, I-I…That doesn't matter now!" then he smirked, "Besides, I'd get more pleasure of seeing the reaction on your REAL face after I remove your mask!"
