Chapter 37: The Thrill of the Game

Today at the Shane Hideout, the Shane Gang had just received a distress call from an unknown lady. "Help me Eli, Harley, Trixie, Kord, Vance, Mario, Lash, Shimei, Eliza, Watts, Dana! I've been captured! I'm being held at Land's End Cavern. Please help me!" The lady pleaded. "I snuck in here to send this message, but-" Just then, a door behind her opened. "Wait! No! NO!" That's when the call ended.

"Damsel in distress? Pronto's specialty." Pronto said. "I thought you said your specialty was power napping." Eli said. "Don't try to label me, sir! Pronto cannot be confined!" Pronto said, changing the subject before falling asleep. "Yeah, he can." Harley said. "Did she say Land's End?" Trixie asked, looking up Land's End Cavern on her computer. "Well, that's way, way out! There's gotta be somebody out that way who can help her." "No handoffs. She asked for us by name." Eli said. "Eli's right. We have to handle this ourselves." Eliza said. "But she didn't ask for Pronto." Kord noted. "I wonder why." Dana said teasingly. "My heroic reputation makes asking for me by name totally unnecessary." Pronto said before falling asleep again. "Oh yeah. Totally unnecessary." Harley joked.

The gang rode out to Land's End Cavern to where the distress call came from. There, they found a small building with a large satellite on the roof. "I'm guessing this is the place." Eli guessed. "Has to be. Only building for miles out this far in Land's End." Vance said.

The gang entered the building and looked around. "This place is kinda creepy." Watts said, getting a chill in his spine. Trixie found a camera on the floor, picked it up and played the same recorded message. "She must be where she transmitted her message to us." She guessed. "By the look of this place, it's probably no wonder she was so scared." Mario said. "But where is the distressed damsel?" Pronto asked. "Over here." The lady's voice said creepily, coming from another door. The gang got their blasters ready and slowly walked towards the door. Eli went to open it, but it opened on its own, revealing a man, flipping towards the entrance. "But I'm not a damsel. And I am certainly not in distress." The man said, sealing the entrance.

"Ambush!" Eli called. The gang took aim at the man. "If you're working for Dr. Blakk, you must be new." Eli said. "He's next week's contestant. You are the game today." The man said. "Game? What game?" Kord asked. "The one you'll play now that I've brought you here." The man said. "And you are?" Eli asked. "Yeah, never got your name." Harley added. "Isn't it obvious? I am the Master of the Game. And what's really cool about my game is that you don't lose points when you fail. You lose everything." The Game Master said sinisterly.

(Intro)

"I think we'll pass on your invitation." Eli said. "Let's slug him, bro." Harley said. Eli slung Rammer and Harley slung Matchstick. But the slugs passed right through the Game Master. That shocked the gang. "What just happened?" Lash asked. "He's some kind of an image. Like a hologram." Eli deduced. "And this is why I sometimes prefer more open field caverns." Shimei said, feeling a little freaked out.

The Game Master chuckled. "Did you really think I would make it that easy for you? You're playing against the best brain in the cavern." He said, kissing a hologram of his brain. Harley nearly gagged. "What a specimen. You should consider it a badge of honor that I chose you as opponents." The Game Master said. "If you're so great, how come we never heard of you?" Kord asked. "Because the losers of my games can't talk." The Game Master revealed. That shocked Pronto.

"We're not losing because we're not playing! We're leaving!" Eli said. As the gang turned to leave, the Game Master pushed a button, causing the entire room to turn. The gang all tumbled back into the wall and up on the ceiling. "What the heck just happened?!" Harley asked. "Now what are you doing up there? Oh, I must've pushed the wrong button. Sorry about that. Hang on and I'll get you down." The Game Master said. He pushed another button, turning the room back around and dropping the gang back on the floor. "Now which one is it? Eeny, meeny, miney, mo." The Game Master said, pushing another button. Unfortunately, that caused the wall to close in like a trash compactor! "Uh oh! I seemed to have pressed the squishier button!" The Game Master 'panicked', pressing more buttons. "Oh dear! I don't have the override password!" The gang all looked at the Game Master. "Quick! Do nothing! I'm going for help." The Game Master swam into the screen.

"Gotta figure a way out fast or we're gonna be turned into a Shane Gang cube." Kord said. "You think?!" Pronto asked as the wall got closer. Eli loaded and slung Burner, while Kord slung Bludgeon, Harley slung Shredder and Mario slung Crush. The slugs transformed and bashed through the wall, creating 4 holes. But then, the holes repaired themselves through a form of digital regenerating tech. That shocked the gang. "Well, that's just cheating!" Harley said.

"Yeah, about that help. It doesn't look like there's anyone around." The Game Master said, reappearing on the screen. "But I did find a DJ." A DJ booth appeared in front of the Game Master. "Yo, yo, yo! MC Mixmaster Game Master in the house! I was thinking of busting some sweet beats for you hepcats to get fit to." He started playing some hit tunes. "Smooth Jazz? I HATE SMOOTH JAZZ!" Kord screamed, pounding his head. "Seriously! Can't he put on something a little more tasteful?!" Harley asked, covering his ears. "What? This is the perfect kind of music to get squished to." Pronto assured, enjoying the music. "Maybe for you!" Harley shouted. "Make it stop!" Kord whined as Eli brought out Joules' barrel. "Trixie, fire Pounder at the seem. Joules will short out the motor." Eli instructed. "I don't care about the walls! Someone just make the music stop!" Kord cried, scratching the wall. "Just do it, Eli! My ears are bleeding!" Harley shouted. Trixie slung Pounder and Eli followed with Joules. Pounder bashed through the walls, allowing Joules to slip through. Joules latched onto the motor and shorted it out with Tazercoil, shutting the wall down.

The gang hustled around the wall. "Joules? Burner?" Eli called. "Bludgeon!" Kord called. "Shredder, you there?" Harley called. "Crush!" Mario called. "Calling all slugs!" Trixie called. "Come out, come out wherever you are!" Dana called. Pronto peaked around a corner. "There!" He called, finding the 5 slugs in front of a door. But then the slugs transformed into 5 mini-Game Masters, shocking and weirding out the gang. The 5 then grew and merged together into the normal-sized Game Master. "Oh, thrilling, wasn't it? And that was your first challenge." He taunted. "And our last, Gamer Guy. Just give us back our slugs and we'll call it a draw." Eli said. "I've gone through considerable trouble and expense to match wits with you. I only choose the best contestants. And my research tells me, 11 of you are." The Game Master said. The gang looked at each other, then at Pronto, who was wide-eyed. "I didn't bother researching the molenoid." The Game Master said with disgust. "Ah yes. Pronto remains a molenoid of mystery." Pronto boasted. "Oh boy." Harley groaned.

"My rules are simple. Any slug you use, I take. Survive my challenges and you'll see them in the end." The Game Master instructed. "Babe, we could lose all our slugs." Trixie said. "We're not leaving without Joules and the others." Eli said, making his choice. "I'm with you, Eli." Harley said. "That's the spirit. Now, ladies and gents, step right up for your next challenge!" The Game Master said. A lever came up in front of the gang. "Pull the lever and win a prize!" The Game Master said, gesturing to the big prize wheel that appeared behind him. Eli stepped up and pulled the lever, causing the wheel to start spinning. "Here we go! Round and round it goes and where it stops is where you go!" The Game Master said. The wheel started to slow down. "Don't land on freedom. Please don't land on freedom! Please don't land on freedom!" The wheel slowly landed on the exit door, but then it jolted to the tree next to it. That shocked the gang. "That was really intense, wasn't it?! Let's take a look at what you won." The Game Master said. The gang glared as everything went dark.

The gang reappeared on a field in front of a dead apple tree. "Okay, I'm getting the feeling that that wheel was rigged." Lash said. "It was." Vance said. "I don't know what that wacko's game plan is, but we gotta try not using slugs to deal with it." Eli advised. As the gang walked towards the tree, Eliza looked around the place. "I don't know why, but this place and this whole situation kinda reminds of that one horror movie we went to see that Halloween when you boys were 13." She said. "You mean The Escape Room?" Harley asked. "Yeah, that one." Eliza said.

As they continued, a tree branch reached down and snatched Trixie's blaster. "Hey!" Trixie shouted as the branch pulled itself back to the top with her blaster. Trixie climbed the tree and took back her blaster. "This was a challenge?" She asked, finding it too easy. "No! This is!" Eli called. Trixie looked down to see. The others were ensnared by other branches. They struggled to get free. Kord broke off a limb and started whacking his branch. "I think it may be time to seriously rethink this 'no slug' rule." Pronto said. "I think you might be right." Eli said. He slung Buzzsaw, slicking through the branches with Throttlebite. But when he returned to his protoform, he fell through a digitized hole in the field. The gang landed on the ground hard as Trixie rejoined them. "Great. But now you lost Buzzsaw. I hope it was worth it." Kord said. "Oh, it was." The Game Master said, appearing on the top of the tree. "For me." Pronto growled and slung Bruiser without thinking. Bruiser just passed through the holographic psychopath. "PRONTO!" Everyone shouted as Bruiser landed on the ground and fell into another digitized hole. "Oh, goody! Another slug! It'll be a nice addition to my collection. But I can't just take something without giving something back in return. Here. Have an apple." The Game Master conjured an apple with a lit fuse and dropped it in front of the gang. "Go ahead. It's practically exploding with flavor." The Game Master taunted. The gang ran for their lives as the apple exploded.

The area suddenly switched to a desert region. The ground in front of them split apart as 2 bridges formed across a trench. One rigidity with rotten wood planks, the other perfectly constructed. "Ah. 2 bridges, but only one will get you safely across the quicksand pit." The Game Master said, gesturing to what's at the bottom. "Which will it be? Make your choice quick. That bucket of rotten apples is about to tip." The gang turned to see a bucket filled with more exploding apples slowly starting to tip over. The Game Master bowed and disappeared.

"Why don't we swim across?" Pronto asked, making the others glare at him. "Because it's quicksand." Trixie said. "Precisely." Pronto said. Trixie just sighed. "I can't even with this mole right now." Harley grumbled. Eli looked between the 2 bridges. "He wouldn't expect us to use the worse-looking bridge. Or would he?" He asked. "Quick, Eli! Make a choice!" Trixie said. "The apples are coming down!" Mario called as the bucket tipped, letting the apples drop. The gang ran onto the bad bridge as the apples exploded, causing the bad bridge to wobble. "Ooh! Bad choice." The Game Master said. "Jump for the other bridge!" Eli said, jumping for the other bridge. The others soon followed. But Pronto wasn't so lucky. The bad bridge gave out, causing him to fall. "I should've packed my bathing suit." He said as he fell. "PRONTO!" The gang called as Pronto dived into the quicksand.

The gang sadly looked down as Pronto disappeared in the quicksand. "Maybe he'll come back up." Kord said. "Not likely, Kord." Harley said. "He's right. Quicksand's a one-way trip. Down." Trixie said sadly. "GAME MASTER! DO YOU HEAR ME?! PRONTO BETTER BE BACK WITH US WHEN WE FINISH THIS!" Eli shouted. The Game Master appeared behind them. "There are consequences for failure. Pronto's challenges are over. Yours are not." He said. He bit into an apple. And that caused the bridge to start disappearing. "I THOUGHT THIS BRIDGE WAS BETTER!" Kord screamed. The gang ran for the other side as the bridge disappeared behind them. They jumped before it disappeared from under their feet, landing on top of each other. "What fun! You should've seen the looks on your faces! Oh wait. You can." The Game Master said, pulling up a picture of the gang when they jumped. "I should be mad, but that's actually a good picture of me." Harley said. "We don't even need slugs to beat your challenges! Have you had enough?" Eli asked. "Ha! Not even. You'll see." The Game Master said, disappearing into the ground.

"All the machinery seems to be below us. He's gotta be down there somewhere with our slugs!" Eli said. Then his thoughts shifted to their fallen comrade. "Pronto." "His digging skills would sure come in handy now." Trixie said. "Yeah. I can practically hear the little mole man now." Kord said. Suddenly, there was a tapping sound coming from their comms. "Hello?" Pronto's voice hollered, making the gang gasp. "Hey, did you hear that? He's talking to us from the super beyond!" Kord said. "What?! No! From the darkly below! Where someone doesn't understand the concept of a well-lit workplace!" Pronto said. "How did you survive the quicksand?" Trixie asked. "Why shouldn't I? Molenoids spend their summers bathing in quicksand. And also, I dug a hole through the bottom of the pit." Pronto revealed. "I should've known." Harley said. "That makes you our inside operative. Find where the Game Master is controlling all of this and report back. But keep it quiet. He can't know you're down there moleing around." Eli said. "Ah. Understood. Agent Pronto is on the move like a ghost." Pronto boasted.

The Game Master soon reappeared. "11 contestants still standing. You truly are the most impressive I've ever challenged." He complimented. "That's what I'm talking about!" Kord said, giving Trixie a high-five as the others did the same. But they dialed down from the stares they got from Eli and Harley. "Maybe we're not impressed going up against a lonely crackpot with too much time on his hands." Eli said. "Good one, Eli." Harley snickered. "I had some other fun games to play, but why don't we just skip ahead to a final challenge?" The Game Master offered. Eli, Harley and Burpy grinned at this. "And this one is personal." The Game Master said darkly. The area started to rumble and everything went dark.

Eli and Harley appeared in a train car. "Ah, Eli and Harley, our hero to slug and human. Can you save both? If not, who do you choose?" The Game Master asked. In the middle, Howard and Sylvia from Mr. Saturday's zombie invasion in Caverna Mall were tied to a couple of chairs with webs, while a canister of slugs hung by a different web. Eli and Harley hustled over. "We know you 2. From Mr. Saturday's zombie mall incident." Harley said, recognizing Howard and Sylvia. "What're you doing here?" Eli asked, trying to pull the webs loose. "Well, it wasn't my idea, I can tell you! We should've taken the cruise, Sylvia." Howard said. "You need to get out of your comfort zone, Howard." Sylvia argued. "Remember what the doctor said about my comfort zone!" Howard said. "Doctor schmoctor. Honestly." Sylvia groaned. "Do we have to really? Right here? Right in public?" Howard muttered. "I forgot what a couple of whiney complainers they were." Harley said.

Trixie appeared in a carnival tent. "Trixie, dear sweet Trixie, how about a little target practice, hmm?" The Game Master challenged. Trixie turned around to see a shooting game set up, with an animatronic version of the Game Master's head in the middle. "5 targets, 5 shots. If you can make them, that is." The Game Master taunted. "If you think I'm wasting my slugs on your silly little game, forget it!" Trixie said. "Then allow me to supply the slugs." The Game Master said, sending a barrel containing a Hop Rock down in an ammunition rack. "Though I doubt even that will help you." "What're you saying? I can't shoot straight?!" Trixie asked. "We'll see, won't we?" The Game Master asked. His head started spinning and the ghoul targets slowly spun the other way. The targets morphed into the ghouls' velocimorphs. First the Thrasher, then the Hop Jack, Grimstone, Nightgeist and finally the Attacknet. Trixie loaded the Hop Rock and slung it, hitting the Hop Jack target. But she never noticed the weight hanging over her head detaching one of its locks. "Lucky shot." The Game Master said.

Just then, the entire house contraption Eli and Harley were in started to shake, sending the brothers into the back wall. "What was that?!" Harley asked. "Ooh, Howard. A thrill ride." Sylvia said, mistaking the entire situation. "Now, Sylvia, you know I don't like these things!" Howard said. "You're not the only one!" Harley said. "Who will it be? Slugs or people? Or do the heroes save themselves?" The Game Master asked, opening the back door to a safe edge for the brothers.

Vance appeared on a horse mecha overlooking a deep chasm surrounded by stone pillars. "Vance Volt, Slug Run champion, you have exactly 5 minutes to make it across the chasm before your mecha shorts out and explodes." The Game Master instructed. "Ok. This won't be a problem. I'm the 4-time winner of the Slug Run. I can make it across this." Vance said with confidence. A holographic checkered flag in front waved and he was off, hopping across the pillars.

Dana appeared inside an air duct with the Game Master appearing before her. "Dana Por, former thief turned friend and sister. Let's see if you're still good at getting out of tight spaces as you were as a thief." The Game Master said. Dana scoffed. "Please. To me, this is as easy as fishing for AquaBeeks." Dana said. "Then let's tune it up a bit, shall we?" The Game Master said. Just then, a red light blinked behind Dana. She turned to see a bomb counting down from 6 minutes. "Just try to escape before that bomb reaches 0, or you look even worse than your brother." The Game Master instructed, disappearing down the floor. "Oh boy." Dana muttered with worry.

Mario appeared of a replica of his old stage from his old show. "Mario Bravado, Slugterra's finest trick shot slinger. I must say, it's a real honor to have you here." The Game Master said. "Uh, thanks?" Mario said. "I've watched your show when I was planning my older games, and I can't think of a better challenge for you than a simple trick shot contest." The Game Master said as a series of targets lowered around Mario. "Try to trick shoot your way out of my special trick shot target set." "With what?" Mario asked, not wanting to risk losing Ricochet. "With these." The Game Master set up an arsenal of Speedstingers. Mario smirked and loaded his first Speedstinger. He slung it behind his back and it bounced off several targets.

Just then, several of the stone pillars started collapsing. Vance saw this and tried to pick up the pace. "What caused them to start collapsing?" He asked himself.

Watts appeared on a ship out in the water. "Mr. Watts, former pirate, and a very seafaring amphibanoid. I set up a series of targets out in the open water. Hit the targets with the slugs loaded in the cannons and impress me." The Game Master instructed. Watts looked out at the sea. Several ghoul targets floated upon several buoys. "Okay then. Been a while since I've done this, but when you've been at sea for as long as I have, you get good at remembering how to operate a cannon." He said, prepping one of the cannons.

Lash, Shimei and Eliza appeared in some kind of dojo, surrounded by hundreds of robots. "Lash, the son of a slug smuggler, Eliza, mother to the 2 young heroes, and Shimei, granddaughter of the legendary Unbeatable Master. You 3 are exceptionally skilled. Show me your skill by defeating my ninja bot army." The Game Master said. Lash, Shimei and Eliza took their stances. "So, how do these things start?" Lash asked.

Watts fired the cannon, hitting his target. But then, the sea floor started to crack from under the boat.

And just like that, the ninja bots came alive and attacked. "Oh! That's how." Lash said.

Finally, Kord appeared in a workshop loaded with tons of machine parts. "Kord, the brilliant engineer. You have 2 minutes to build me something amazing or your friends will have a nasty surprise." The Game Master said. Kord turned to several televisions, showing the others during their challenges. "Eli? Harley? Can you hear me? Trixie? Dana? Anybody?" Kord asked, calling into his comm. But all he got was static. Seeing no other choice, he grabbed some parts and started building.

Trixie loaded an Armashelt, aimed carefully and slung and hit the Thrasher target, loosening another claw.

The house contraption started to move again. This time it tipped towards the lava. Eli and Harley held on as best as they could. "These chairs are extremely well made. Just look at the joinery." Sylvia said. "Sylvia, I don't care about the cotton-picking joinery!" Howard argued. Eli and Harley watched as the 2 bickered. "Something's not right." Eli said. "Yeah, you'd think they'd be more concerned with what's going on rather than squabble about chairs and joy rides." Harley said. "Okay. Stink 'em, Gasser!" Eli said, slinging Gasser at Howard and Sylvia. Gasser unleashed Blorfball. "I knew bacon bits made you windy." Sylvia groaned. That shocked Harley. "Like she couldn't even smell a whiff of it!" He said. "So, that's his game." Eli said, figuring it out.

Dana crawled through the air ducts as quickly as she could, but noticed that the ducts were getting smaller and tighter as she continued. She stopped for a while to catch her breath. "This is not as easy as it used to be." She panted.

Then as Mario slung his next Speedstinger at more targets, more stone pillars collapsed, catching up to Vance. He then noticed a few sparks coming from the mecha's engine. "Oh, this is gonna be close!" He said.

Lash, Shimei and Eliza fought off the ninja bots as best as they could. "Good thing I took Krav Maga back home." Eliza said, kicking down one of the bots. "Not sure how long we can keep this up!" Lash called, punching down another bot. "He's right. They're just coming faster than we can knock them down." Eliza agreed. "I know you're both right, but we must try to hold our own without losing any slugs." Shimei said.

Watts prepped his second cannon and slung a Rammstone, hitting the second target. The sea bed cracked again. As more ninja bots came online, Shimei heard the rumble from the wall behind her, getting an idea of what was going on.

By then, Kord had just finished his machine. "Alright!" He said, turning it on. It had a propellor of some kind and a small chicken mecha. It was then, did he realize that he had no idea what he built. "What the heck is this thing?" He then looked back at the screens. Trixie had just shot down the Grimmstone target and caused the house to move again. "This isn't at all what we signed up for." Howard stated.

Pronto sniffed and zipped through the tunnel, until he finally found the real Game Master operating his challenges from a control console. He reported to Eli and Harley through his comm. "Handsome Devil to Top Twin Dogs. I have eyeballs on the package." He reported. "And I have found the slugs." The slugs were locked inside a giant glass tank with some kind of cable connecting to the Game Master. "Looks as if they're connected to the package. It's really creepy." Pronto reported. "That's why he's stealing them! He's somehow using their energy to power himself and this game." Eli deduced. "Boy, that Game Master's gonna be fuming for not researching Pronto." Harley said.

Trixie fired another Hop Rock at the Nightgeist target, causing another claw to loosen and the house contraption to move again. Kord saw this and figured everything out. "That's it! I've figured it out!" He said, taking apart his earlier machine and building something else as quick as he could just as Trixie aimed for the final target. By the time he finished, the Game Master appeared on the screen. "So, Kord, what did you make me?" The Game Master asked. Kord had just built a jetpack. "A jetpack. But it ain't for you." He said, activating the jetpack. He zipped up and out of the room and headed for Trixie's challenge area. Trixie fired one more Hop Rock, but then Kord zipped in and fired Spitz, stopping the Hop Rock with Wrappler. Both slugs fell into digitized holes as they landed. "Thanks. But you made me miss my target!" Trixie said angrily. "And that target would've sent your fiancé and his brother into the drink and turned you into paste!" Kord said, loading and slinging Glint into the air, lighting up the weight with Flashbang. "Oh. That would be bad." Trixie said as Kord got up. "Is that a jetpack?" She asked. Then the jetpack activated again, sending Kord crashing into the wall, completely destroying it. "Was a jetpack." Kord groaned.

Dana continued to struggle with crawling through the vents. Problem was that the bomb was almost out of time. She stopped, completely out of breath. "I'm *pant* not *pant* gonna *pant* make it." She panted. Just then, she heard a blaster being fired. She looked down through a grate and saw Mario trick shooting. "Mario!" She cried. But as the Speedstinger hit the targets, a rumbling sound rang through the vents. Dana listened hard at the sound. "That sounds like crumbling rocks. But where would that-? Vance!" She realized. "But how can I get to him to help?" She asked. Just then, she remembered something. She reached behind her back and pulled out her Shadow Walker. "Almost forgot I still had this." She said as she activated it, disappearing in the shadows as the bomb finally it 0, engulfing the vents in flames.

Vance was almost out of time himself. His mecha beast was ready to blow and the collapsing stone pillars were almost on top of him. "I'm not gonna make it!" He cried. "Oh yes you are." Dana said, appearing on the mecha. That surprised Vance. "Dana! How did you-?" He started to ask. "No time to explain. Just hold on to me." Dana said. Vance grabbed onto her as she activated her Shadow Walker again, both disappearing just as the mecha beast exploded and the stone pillars crumbled.

Mario loaded his last Speedstinger and prepared to take his final shot. But then, Dana and Vance appeared and surprised him, causing him to shoot the slug into the air. "Mario, are you okay?" Dana asked. "Yeah, I'm fine. Except for the part that you messed up my shot!" Mario shouted. "That shot would've sent me on another trip down to the Abyss." Vance said. Mario took this in with surprise. "Oh. Well then…whoops?" He said, smiling innocently.

Shimei, Lash and Eliza kept fighting back the ninja bots, but they were starting to run out of breath. "It's no use! We can't beat them all! And more just keep coming!" Lash said. Another rumble shook the room, activating more bots. "And what was with that rumbling?" Eliza asked. Shimei looked at the wall. She then picked out Kaz's barrel and looked at her Grenuke. "Do not fret, my dear slug. For you will be rescued from your fate soon." She said. Kaz chittered and nodded. Shimei loaded her Grenuke in her blaster. "Guys? Get clear!" She called as she slung Kaz at the wall. She, Lash and Eliza hid behind a column as Kaz exploded, destroying the wall and causing water to flow into the dojo and hitting the ninja bots.

Watts prepared the last cannon for firing. That's when he heard a boom. He looked down at the water, seeing that it was flowing towards a big hole in a digital wall. Watts braced himself as the boat floated with the water towards the hole at a rapid speed. The boat crashed and Watts tumbled into the dojo. "Watts?!" Lash and Eliza said in surprise. Watts groaned from hitting the floor so hard. "Hey mates. What did I miss?" He asked as Shimei helped him up. "Not much. Except your cannon target practice nearly caused an army of robots to eliminate us." Shimei said, using a light tone of anger in her voice. Watts went wide-eyed, noticing the robots lying around from being shorted out by the water. "Oh. I see now." He said.

Meanwhile, as Eli and Harley stood by the bar, the Game Master's hologram appeared before them once again. "Standing idle while they drop to their doom? You 2 need to brush up on your strategic thinking." He taunted. "Actually, our strategic thinking is perfectly fine." Harley said. "Those 2 didn't react to Gasser's stink. They're more of your robots. And we know you won't harm slugs. You need them for their energy." Eli said. "Oh, yes? What else do you know?" The Game Master asked. "That you're just a clever geek living a basement who's hooked to a slug energy machine to power his fantasy world." Eli revealed, shocking the Game Master. "How could you know that?! Nobody researches me!" The Game Master said with frustration. "Oh, we've had someone on the inside spying on you the whole time." Harley said. "The molenoid!" The Game Master guessed. "Bingo!" Harley said. "Why don't you stop playing games with robots and holograms, and match wits with us in the real world?!" Eli challenged. "Come and get me!" The Game Master said. He pushed a button, deactivating the entire hologram of the challenge.

Eli and Harley looked over to see the others safe and sound. "Eli! Harley!" Trixie called as she, Dana and Eliza ran over and hugged the brothers. "Thank goodness!" Eliza said. "We thought you guys were goners." Dana said. Just then, the entire cavern started to rumble. It was caving in! The Game Master's hologram appeared once more. "I'll even show you the way." He said, gesturing them to an elevator door at the end. The gang ran for the door as rocks fell from the cavern roof. But when they got to the door, it opened to a small elevator. "We can't all fit! It's another challenge!" Trixie said. "What do we do now?" Lash asked. "Harley, Mom and I'll stay! You lot get in!" Eli said. Kord tried to get in, but he couldn't even fit through the door. "Don't worry, guys. I made a call." Harley said.

The Game Master grinned as the elevator reached his floor. The door opened, but the elevator was empty. "Oh, friends till the end. Such noble losers." The Game Master said, thinking that the gang had perished. "We're not that noble!" Kord said, revealing their survival. "We just found a better way down." Trixie said. "On the Pronto Express! Whoo-whoo!" Pronto boasted, revealing that he dug another tunnel for the gang. "I should've researched that molenoid." The Game Master grumbled. "Yes, you should have. That's the one mistake you bad guys always make. Never underestimate any of the Shane Gang." Harley said, slapping Pronto a high-five. "It's checkout time, Game Master! Hand over our slugs!" Eli demanded. "You think I'm beaten? Guess again. You still have one last challenge. To get past me. And with the slug energy I've accumulated, you're not going to exist to play another game. Ever." The Game Master said, taking aim at the gang with a cannon on his arm.

"Handsome Devil to Top Twin Dogs! The package is locked on us!" Pronto said into his comm, forgetting that Eli and Harley were beside him. "Eli to Pronto! We know!" Eli said. The Game Master fired a Hop Rock attack, but the gang jumped out of the way. The gang looked at the Game Master in shock as he chuckled. "Get under Crystal!" Eli called. The gang gathered around him as he slung Crystal into the ground and created a Domenator, protecting them against the Game Master. The Game Master fired more shots at the dome, completely destroying it. Crystal fell through a digital hole and into the slug tank. "This was supposed to be a legitimate competition." The Game Master said, firing a Tazerbolt. The gang ducked out of the way. Eli and Harley ducked behind some crates as the Game Master fired a Lava Blast at them. "That extra slug energy packs a punch!" Eli said. "I should say so!" Harley said.

"But you ruined it with your rule breaking and your cheating!" The Game Master continued. Kord, Vance and Watts slung Sploder, Chill and Rush, but the Game Master was protected by a shield created from the slug energy. The Game Master then turned and slung another Hop Rock blast at the 3, sending them crashing into some pipes. "Did not!" Kord argued. "Then you barge your way into my home and make demands!" The Game Master shouted, blasting Trixie with several different slug attacks. "Leave her alone!" Dana shouted, slinging Nemo. But the Game Master shot a web, catching the AquaBeek. Poor Nemo then fell into another digital hole and into the tank.

Eli and Harley peeked out from behind the crates and slung Rocky and Masher at the tank. Unfortunately, the 2 slugs didn't even make a crack on it. The dazed slugs fell through 2 more digital holes and into the tank. "Nice try! But you'll need more than that to stop me!" The Game Master said, walking towards the brothers. "Uh-oh." The brothers said, running to find better cover. The Game Master took aim at them as they ran. Then he fired, slightly missing them. But then he caught sight of Pronto trying to hide behind a little rock. "And you, my nosy mole, were the WORST offender!" He shouted. "I'll fill in the tunnels." Pronto tried to bargain as the Game Master blasted the rock with Tazerbolt. "In 10 minutes, tops." "Pronto!" Eli called. The Game Master fired another Tazerbolt to finish Pronto. But then, Kord slung Pincer and Eli slung Suds. Pincer dove in front of Pronto and blocked the Tazerbolt with his hard shell. Suds burped out Foambaloo at the Game Master's feet, causing him to slip and fall, misfiring another Hop Rock blast at the tank, cracking it. Suds and Pincer fell through 2 more digital holes and into the tank. The gang grabbed Pronto and took cover behind a wall. "Go ahead! Keep slinging! It just makes me stronger!" The Game Master said.

"Status?" Eli asked. "1 slug left." Trixie said. "Same here." Kord said. Pronto held up 2 fingers, saying he had 2 slugs left. "Down to 1 too." Vance said. "Me too." Mario said. "I'm out." Lash said. "I am as well." Shimei said. "I've got 2 slugs left." Eliza said. "Last 1." Watts said. "Still have Webby." Dana said. "So, any ideas?" Lash asked. "Use Jammer, Eli. That'll stop him cold." Trixie suggested. "Yeah, but it'll stop us too. And I need blaster power for a different idea. Right Burpy?" Eli said. Burpy chittered. "Does he mean a-" Watts started to ask. "Fusion move. Yes!" Kord finished. "Use what you have left for a diversion. And make it count." Eli said, equipping the double-barrel.

Kord slung first with Trip and Pronto followed with Stinky. The Game Master zapped Trip down with a Tazerbolt, but then Stinky came in at his feet with Blorfball. The Game Master coughed from the smell. Trixie slung Slicer, Mario slung Porky and Watts slung Scourge. Slicer attacked with Throttlebite, Porky with Chortlesnort, and Scourge with Razorstorm. The Game Master blocked their attacks with his shield. Eliza slung Tink into the air, blinding the Game Master with Flashbang. Vance slung Bloom, getting the Game Master with Itchypants and causing him to start itching. Dana slung Webby, launching her web at the Game Master's face. Pronto slung Doozey and Eliza slung her own Slyren, Midnight, swarming the Game Master with a double Whistleer attack. As the slugs fell down more digital holes, with the Game Master distracted, Eli aimed the double-barrel at the slug tank and slung Burpy and Rammer. Both slugs spun back-to-back until Rammer's horns were wreathed in Burpy's flames, creating their fusion move, InfernoSlam. Rammer bashed into the tank with a single punch, shattering the glass and freeing the slugs. "NO!" The Game Master cried.

The gang regrouped with Eli. "Nice shot, bro." Harley said, patting his brother's shoulder. The Game Master tried to shoot the gang, but his cannon was out of power. "You keep cheating!" He growled. "We can live with the shame." Eli assured sarcastically. "But you will not live through this!" The Game Master said. He slammed a button, disconnecting him from the shattered tank and starting an alarm. "I've started a meltdown that will destroy this entire cavern in a matter of minutes!" He said as the roof started to crumble. "You might have just enough time to capture me or save the slugs. But not both." The gang just glared. "Make your choice." The Game Master ran for the elevator, making his escape.

Kord ran for the control panel. "He's right. It's gonna blow!" He said. "Forget about him! Grab the slugs!" Eli called. He slung Digger, creating a tunnel back up. The gang huddled around the slugs, grabbing as many as each of them could carry. "I think we got 'em all!" Trixie said. "We're out! Now!" Eli called, slinging Spinner. She flew up the tunnel and created an elevator out of her web. The gang got on with the slugs. But Eli stopped upon hearing a slug crying for help. He saw a Hoverbug trapped under the rubble. "Get going!" He said, letting the slugs onto the web. The web took off as Eli ran back to help the Hoverbug. He cleared the rubble off and picked him up. He held up a barrel and the slug hopped in. Eli then loaded and slung the Hoverbug. The slug transformed, turned around and carried Eli up through the tunnel.

Digger finally broke through back above ground. Spinner followed, dropping the gang and the rescued slugs back on the ground. Both slugs gave a high-five. "Eli!" Trixie cried. Just then, Eli and the Hoverbug shot out of the tunnel and landed gently back on the ground. The slug then popped back into Eli's hand. "Thanks for the lift, little guy." Eli said. The Hoverbug chittered back. "You know, we could really use a great slug like you on the team. How about we call you Bugby?" Eli asked. Bugby chirped yes. "Glad to have you, Bugby." Eli said. Bugby flew up and nuzzled Eli's cheek.

"The Game Master is still free. Guess we'll have to worry about fake rescue missions from now on." Trixie said as the gang looked back at the damage the Game Master made. "Yeah. Next time I see that psycho nerd, I'll make him swallow a Grenuke." Harley said. "But this wasn't a fake. We rescued them." Eli said, gesturing to the happy slugs they saved.

Well, that was scary. The Shane Gang are lured into a trap by the infamous Game Master and forced to play through a series of challenges under his control. What other surprises await our group of heroes? Leave a review if you want.

Slug Arsenal:

Eli Shane: Burpy (Infurnus), Joules (Tazerling), Noodle (Flopper), Banger (Armashelt), Bolo (Polero), Rammer (Rammstone), Rocky (Hop Rock), Chiller (Frostcralwer), Burner (Lavalynx), Suds (Bubbaleone), Goober (Jellyish), Sparky (Grenuke), Larry (Lariat), Gust (Tormato), Buzzsaw (Thresher), Digger (Crystalyd), Spinner (Arachnet), Mucky (Dirt Urchin), Tangles (Vinedrill), Spooker (Frightgeist), Charger (Fandango), Stunts (Speedstinger), Glimmer (Phosphoro), Mo (Enigmo), Dazer (Hypnogrif), Urchin (Sand Angler), Dozer (Slyren), Jinxer (Hexlet), Torch (Forgesmeltor), Yang (Negashade), Beeker (AquaBeek), Mimkey (Mimikreas), Jaws (MakoBreaker), Gasser (Flatulorhinkus), Crystal (Geoshard), Foggy (Neotox), Jammer (Xmitter), Bugby (Hoverbug)

Harley Shane: Matchstick (Flaringo), Squirm (Flopper), Frostbite (Frostcrawler), Webs (Arachnet), Gels (Jellyish), Zipper (Hoverbug), Ivy (Vinedrill), Masher (Rammstone), Frights (Frightgeist), Shredder (Thresher), Smelly (Flatulorhinkus), Claws (Armashelt), Splatz (Lariat), Twister (Gust), Lucky (Hexlet), Sizzle (Grenuke), Quill (Dirt Urchin), Ping (White Boon Doc), Bubbles (Bubbaleone), Polo (Polero), Skitter (Speedstinger), Flasher (Phosphoro), Gem (Geoshard)

Trixie Sting: Bluster (Tormato), Blizzard (Frostcralwer), Spider (Arachnet), Twirl (Polero), Balloon (Bubbaleone), Haunter (Frightgeist), Pounder (Rammstone), Slicer (Thresher), Rocks (Hop Rock), Jelly (Jellyish), Blossom (Vinedrill), Spotty (Flopper), Dunes (Sand Angler), Zaps (Tazerling), Roller (Armashelt), Scorcher (Lavalynx), Nighty (Slyren)

Kord Zane: Bludgeon (Rammstone), Sploder (Hop Rock), Jolt (Tazerling), Trip (Polero), Flycatcher (Arachnet), Floatie (Bubbaleone), Iceberg (Frostcrawler), Scorch (Flaringo), Jetstream (AquaBeek), Spitz (Lariat), Chuckles (Gazzer), Floppy (Flopper), Pincer (Armashelt), Glint (Phosphoro), Throttle (Thresher), Quicksand (Sand Angler), Silv (Slicksilver), Pollen (Vinedrill)

Pronto Geronimo: Stinky (Flatulorhinkus), Slimey (Jellyish), Soapy (Bubbaleone), Bruiser (Rammstone), Flame (Flaringo), Loogie (Lariat), Windy (Tormato), Squeaky (Flopper), Blocky (Hop Rock), Freezie (Frostcrawler), Doozey (Slyren), Zappy (Tazerling), Stripey (Polero), Planty (Vinedrill), Shelly (Armashelt), Sharky (MakoBreaker), Bitey (Thresher), Zippy (Skitter), Molty (Firenzar)

Vance Volt: Blast (Hop Rock), Bloom (Vinedrill), Crust (Lavalynx), Legs (Arachnet), Swimy (AquaBeek), Hardcase (Armashelt), Squish (Jellyish), Blow (Tormato), Cheep (Flopper), Punch (Rammstone), Chill (Frostcrawler), Swallow (Bubbaleone)

Mario Bravado: Ricochet (Speedstinger), Slide (Frostcrawler), Crawler (Arachnet), Echo (AquaBeek), Mess (Jellyish), Breeze (Tormato), Kate (Flopper), Porky (Dirt Urchin), Dunk (Rammstone), Crush (Armashelt), Razz (Thresher), Pinkie (Bubbaleone)

Lash: Zing (Tazerling), Speedy (Speedstinger), Hopper (Hop Rock), Bubba (Bubbaleone), Stinx (Flatulorhinkus), String (Polero), Goat (Rammstone), Sleepy (Slyren), Webber (Arachnet), Ice (Frostcralwer), Spark (Flaringo), Winger (Tormato), Witch (Hexlet), Phlegm (Lariat), Peep (Flopper), Melt (Lavalynx), Clash (Armashelt), Shroud (Frightgeist), Oxide (Gazzer)

Shimei: Mong (Hop Rock), Jin (Rammstone), Zeng (Vinedrill), Leng (Polero), Kaz (Grenuke), Hindo (Flaringo), Huong (Phosphoro), Hei-Hei (Hoverbug), Yung (Armashelt), Mai (Arachnet), Fong (Bubbaleone)

Eliza Shane: Ellie (Flaringo), Min (Jellyish), Tink (Phosphoro), Pimpy (Bubbaleone), Jimbo (Hop Rock), Jason (Frightgeist), Fitz (Tazerling), Flick (Grenuke), Griff (Hypnogrif), Midnight (Slyren)

Watts: Scourge (MakoBreaker), Polly (Hoverbug), Rush (Rammstone), Sinker (Hop Rock), Maelstrom (Tormato), Tidal Wave (AquaBeek), Preserver (Bubbaleone)

Dana Por: Webby (Arachnet), Willy (Frostcrawler), Tailwind (Tormato), Rosie (Vinedrill), Jinx (Hexlet), Nemo (AquaBeek), Poppy (Bubbaleone)

The Universal Slug