Hey, readers! This chapter references the episode 'Robo Camping.'

Foreword:

Foreword? What foreword? We've no time for a foreword! On with the action! XD

Amain [uh-meyn] – with full force.

« « « « « ж » » » » »

Things were about as I'd expected in the Control room when Becky got us inside. The crew was still bustling around frantically dealing with my robots, too busy to pay us any mind, but that couldn't last much longer. Through a huge window that gave an impressive view of the space outside I could see a swarm of Lexiconians engaging my robots, and the battle was depressingly one-sided.

"Where did these things come from?" a female crew member shouted as her fingers flew across a control panel. The whole place shook once more.

"Just keep those stabilizers running!" yelled the man working the panel beside her. "There's only a few of them left!"

I wasn't surprised. Since Becky by herself could dispatch a dozen of them without breaking a sweat, I knew I couldn't expect them to provide more than a temporary distraction. The element of surprise was really all they had going for them, but it was enough to give me the few minutes I needed.

Ignoring the chaos all around, I turned my eyes to the center of the room, where a massive glowing orb pulsed softly in blue and orange hues, suspended in midair over a bowl-shaped machine. That could only be the power core. Just one problem, though. It was protected by another of those confounded force fields—one that emanated from way up on the highest point of the ceiling that arched over the massive room.

"Put me down," I instructed.

Becky dropped to the ground and released her hold on me, though she seemed reluctant to do so. I pulled out two breaching charges and handed them to her.

"Push the buttons on both sides to activate them," I explained, then pointed up to the top of the force field. "Fly up there and take out that shield."

"What about you?" Becky asked.

"Don't worry about me," I said urgently. "Just go!"

She gave a pensive nod and was gone in a flash. I in turn ran over to the base of the power core and pulled the doll-sized robot from my belt.

"Hey, who's that?" I heard someone shout in my direction. Apparently the robot problem had been dealt with. Perfect timing.

I braced myself against the railing around the power core, and there was a loud explosion directly above me. The force field dissipated, and I lifted up my robot. However, a strong hand seized my wrist before I could throw it into the basin of the power core. I turned my head to see Darix standing right in front of me. There were tire marks across his livid face, and in spite of the situation I almost laughed.

"You vexatious little—!" Darix fumed, looking like he was about to smash me like a bug.

I was blinded for a split-second by a bright flash, and then Becky appeared between Darix and I. She hoisted her feet up against Darix's chest and kicked hard, sending him reeling into the wall several meters behind him with a loud slam.

I heard a familiar bestial shriek, and Becky looked up just in time to catch Bob as he fell down to us. Apparently he hadn't been holding onto her tight enough. He immediately shook off his daze and clambered onto Becky's back.

An irate growl called my attention back to Darix. He climbed out of the mold his body had made in the wall and coiled to attack us again. There was no time to lose.

I tossed my robot into the basin under the power core, slipped in front of Becky, then skipped my last charge across the floor toward Darix. He gasped and feinted to the side. The room convulsed from the explosion, and every Lexiconian present retreated to the walls.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Becky grabbed hold of me and zipped straight up. "Now what?"

I took in the panoramic view of the area as we ascended, and saw a platform situated near the ceiling at the focal point of the room. Perfect.

"Land there," I said, pointing to the platform.

Becky unquestioningly obeyed, and when we set down on the platform and looked back into the Control Room, at least a dozen Lexiconians, including Darix, had us surrounded.

Becky stood resolutely in front of me. Hidden behind her back, I got out my computer and opened the command prompt of the program I already had running.

"Be careful not to injure her," instructed a portly brown-haired Lexiconian wearing something similar to a lab coat. "She's a valuable resource."

When I heard that, something snapped inside of me. A resource? He dared call Becky a resource?! A rage the likes of which I'd never felt boiled over, and I pushed past Becky, taking my place between her and the gathered blackguards so I could face them head-on. Drilling into Darix's eyes with a piercing glare, I threateningly held my computer up over my head for all to see.

My anger, pride, and desire to protect Becky all surged within me in unison, and I bellowed in the most vengeful voice that had ever escaped my throat, "Never—underestimate me—AGAIN!"

My fingers tingled with excitement, and a thrill that I hadn't felt in years rushed through me at the touch of a button.

« ... »

The lights flickered when Tobey pressed the button on his computer, and every Lexiconian present flinched, including me. Huggy screamed and pointed down at the ship's power core. There, a metallic form that could only be one of Tobey's robots was expanding rapidly, smashing up against the glowing sphere so that it began to crack and strobe.

"No! The core!" screamed one of Darix's thugs. He blasted over to it, but too late. The robot had already grown to the size of a small car, and the power core shattered against its domed head. The hum of energy throughout the station dulled to silence, and the pull of artificial gravity released completely. A few emergency lights flicked on—just enough for us to see the enemy ranks scattering in panic while the robot filled up the room, too quickly for them to prevent.

Then, I heard Tobey start to chuckle. While the whole station quaked from extreme stress, he progressed to a mischievous cackle. Metal bulkheads groaned and snapped balefully all around us. The foundations of the station were torn asunder. Starlight poured through giant ruptures in the walls. And as he gradually drifted higher, Tobey broke into a full-blown evil laugh.

A tremble ran down my spine. I hadn't heard him laugh like that in years, and never without his accent before. It probably would have been scary even if a space station wasn't crumbling to pieces all around us.

"That's right!" Tobey shouted, vigorously pumping a fist, "You'll rue the day you messed with Theodore Tobey McCallister the Third!"

The sound of creaking metal in my ears reached critical mass, and I shook my stupor in an instant.

"Okay Tobey, that's enough," I interrupted, grabbing him by the shoulders.

"Oh, but," he moaned, wilting like a kid leaving a candy store. The transition was so abrupt I wanted to laugh. Instead I carried my friends through a gaping fissure in the ceiling and out into space.

I jetted ahead, trying to put as much distance as possible between us and the enemy, but I hazarded a glance behind. I could see massive pieces of space station breaking loose and drifting away as the robot's body erupted from within, wearing what was left of the place like a deflating life preserver. It was fully conscious now and had begun flailing its limbs about, purposefully smashing corridors and crunching bulkheads left and right. The irony was enough to make me smile. Never had I thought I'd be so happy to see one of Tobey's robots being as destructive as possible. Fixing my eyes ahead and ignoring the din of the chaos behind me, I shot further out into the surrounding space with Huggy on my back and Tobey in my arms.

"We need to get to the ship," I said, looking nervously around, hoping our escape vehicle hadn't been destroyed along with the station. Thankfully, I spotted it drifting away from its docking port, looking relatively undamaged.

I pointed to it and announced, "There it is!"

I was about to fly over to it, when a solid form forcefully blew past me, and Tobey was wrenched from my grasp. I heard him scream as he was carried away, and I caught a glimpse of Darix as he flashed ahead of me.

A familiar fearful dread seized my heart, but this time accompanied with righteous fury and fierce determination.

"TOBEY!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, blasting after him faster than I knew I could.

« ... »

Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.

— Luke 21:28

Author's Notes:

- Magic Growing Robot— In case anyone's scratching their head about how Tobey's robot was able to suddenly Godzillify itself, I refer you to the episode 'Robo Camping,' which established that Tobey can make robots that have this ability. In fact, I suspect that he builds this feature into most if not all of his robots, which would explain why he's sometimes able to pull 50 of them practically out of thin air.