Chapter 12
In seconds, the U.G.C.V. reappeared in Dr. Grim's laboratory. "Ha ha! We did it! We went to the Neitherworld and came back with enough monsters to make an army. And best of all, we left Beetlejuice and his friends stranded there," said Dr. Grim gleefully as he climbed down to the ground. "Think again, skeleton man!" yelled Beetlejuice's voice.
"Huh?" said Dr. Grim as he turned around and saw Dr. Notrub and Lydia coming from behind the U.G.C.V. Dr. Grim yelled in frustration. He would have started to tear out his hair if he had any. "You are all getting to be thorns in my sides. That's it! You're not leaving this lair alive! Except for the ghost. I'll somehow extract him out of Dr. Notrub's body and drain him completely," stated Dr. Grim.
"What are you going to do? You left your Zombot army in the Neitherworld," said Beetlejuice with a cackle. "And it might be too risky to try and send the Neitherworld creatures on us. They might turn on you and tear you limb from limb," said Dr. Notrub with a sassy voice. "I can always construct more Zombots and I'll eventually find a way to control those creatures. But I don't need them right now because I've got my ultimate ghost hunter. Mecha-Reaper, shift to hyper battle mode and destroy them!" commanded Dr. Grim.
Mecha-Reaper stepped forward brandishing his scythe. "I've been wanting to try this for a long time. Initiate hyper battle mode!" yelled Mecha-Reaper. Then his red eyes glowed even brighter. And for that matter, so did his face. His face was horrifying. It was the face of a skull glowing bright red. Mecha-Reaper took his free hand and grabbed the top of his hood. He pulled it off to reveal what he was keeping hidden under his cloak. He looked like a black skeleton that was held together with glowing red muscles. His fingers and toes started to sprout sharp, curved claws. His arms and legs grew longer. His bat wings sprouted out of his back. Curved horns sprouted from the top of his skull.
Lydia and Dr. Notrub screamed in fear as Mecha-Reaper yelled a horrible battle cry. Then he charged toward the duo swinging his scythe. "Split up!" yelled Dr. Notrub as he leapt to the left behind the U.G.C.V. Lydia leapt to the right just as Mecha-Reaper slammed his scythe down. "You missed! Get the girl first! She seems to be very precious to the ghost," commanded Dr. Grim. "Yes, Master," said Mecha-Reaper as he turned his attention to Lydia.
"Lydia!" yelled Beetlejuice's voice. Then Dr. Notrub called to her, "Lydia, use the F.I.R.! Maybe it will have the same effect on Mecha-Reaper that it did on the Zombots." Lydia pulled out her F.I.R. and fired it at Mecha-Reaper. The beam hit the mechanical monstrosity and he started to shake and quiver. But a few seconds later, he stopped. "That was a strange feeling. But I'm afraid it wasn't too effective, was it?" roared Mecha-Reaper as he used his free hand and swatted the pistol out of Lydia's hand.
"Run!" yelled Beetlejuice. Lydia ran from Mecha-Reaper as he swung his scythe as her. Dr. Notrub tried to run to help. But Beetlejuice within his body held him back. "I can help Lydia if I can get my powers back and we have an opportunity to get them back," said Beetlejuice's voice. "Where did Dr. Grim put them?" asked Dr. Notrub. "They're in a generator that's on the front of this vehicle. We must do it now while Dr. Grim and Mecha-Reaper are distracted and we must hurry," said Beetlejuice as he took control of Dr. Notrub's body and ran to the front of the U.G.C.V. Dr. Grim had his back to them so he didn't see them. He was too busy cheering on his servant.
Dr. Notrub gazed at the glass orb that glowed with black and white light. "How are we going to get your powers back into you?" asked Dr. Notrub. "I think if I touch the generator, I can absorb them back," said Beetlejuice. "I hope you're right about this," said Dr. Notrub as he raised his hand and touched the orb. Then he started to scream and shake like he was being electrocuted. The power surged through his body.
"Get away from that!" yelled Dr. Grim. He had heard Dr. Notrub scream and turned around. He tackled him and pushed him away from the generator. Dr. Notrub landed on his back and slid across the floor. He collided with the wall and groaned in pain. But he was still alive.
Dr. Grim tapped his walking stick on the ground and a sharp blade poked out of the end. "I shall enjoy ending your life quickly, Dr. Notrub. This will be revenge for what your father did to me," said Dr. Grim as he advanced toward the good doctor with his blade pointed toward him.
Then Dr. Notrub's mouth opened wide. "I see you're already ready to scream in intense pain. I won't keep you waiting," chuckled Dr. Grim. But instead of screaming, a white mist emitted from Dr. Notrub's mouth. It started to take shape and Dr. Grim stopped in his tracks. His face wrenched in fear as he saw what he was facing. From the mist came a gruff voice saying, "It's show time!"
At the same time, Mecha-Reaper was standing over Lydia laughing maniacally. "You and that ghost are about to be hanging around together a lot more. In the afterlife!" cackled Mecha-Reaper as he raised his scythe. Lydia covered her eyes and waited for the impact of the blade.
Suddenly, Dr. Grim came sailing through the air across the lab and hit the floor hard. Mecha-Reaper looked in the direction at where he had fallen. "Master?" he asked.
"LEAVE HER ALONE, REAPER!" a familiar voice boomed throughout the lair. Rising into the air from behind the U.G.C.V was Beetlejuice. He had fire in his eyes. Literally. Flames danced around in his green eyes.
"Beetlejuice! You're back to normal!" exclaimed Lydia with joy. "The ghost with the most is back in business, Babes. And I feel like crushing a certain evil machine," said Beetlejuice as he cracked his knuckles. "I beat you once! I can do it again!" yelled Mecha-Reaper as he leapt into the air.
"That was then. Now I know what I'm up against so I can have a ton of fun cleaning your clock," said Beetlejuice as a black and white striped grandfather clock with a sign on it saying 'Mecha-Reaper's' appeared next to him. Beetlejuice pulled a feather duster from out of nowhere and started dusting the clock. Then he picked it up. "Time flies when I'm having fun!" cackled Beetlejuice as he threw the clock at Mecha-Reaper. The clock hit Mecha-Reaper right in the head and he fell to the floor.
"Way to go, Beetlejuice! That's giving him what he deserves. Now turn up the juice and really let him have it!" cheered Lydia.
Beetlejuice knew just what to do. He floated to the ground in front of Mecha-Reaper. Then he started to change into a favorite form of his. The top of his head changed into an umbrella shape. Little ghoulish mobile figures dangled from it as it started to twirl like a merry-go-round. Beetlejuice's arms started to stretch and his hands turned into mallet heads. He lifted one of his arms and brought it down hard on Mecha-Reaper. Then he used his other arm and sideswiped Mecha-Reaper across the floor.
"Now for a double slam," said Beetlejuice as he raised both his hands. A tall, ring-the-bell carnival game rose up behind Mecha-Reaper. But just before Beetlejuice brought down the powerful blow, he suddenly stopped and changed back to his regular form. He looked rather tired.
"Beetlejuice, what's wrong?" asked Lydia. "Obviously, my powers aren't back one hundred percent. Dr. Grim interfered before I could absorb the whole of my powers," said Beetlejuice. "Well, isn't that too bad?" said Mecha-Reaper as he got up and swung his scythe at the ghost. Beetlejuice backed away.
"Your little tricks didn't hurt me. I'm not programmed to feel pain," said Mecha-Reaper as he struck at Beetlejuice again. Beetlejuice backed up against the U.G.C.V. with Mecha-Reaper.
"Prepare to experience the feeling of a painful death. The worst part about it is that you're already dead so the pain will linger!" laughed Mecha-Reaper as he prepared to deliver the blow with his scythe. But just before the blade made contact with Beetlejuice, Dr. Notrub rushed in and pushed Beetlejuice out of the way. The both rolled away while Mecha- Reaper's scythe embedded itself in the side of the U.G.C.V.
"Thanks doc," said Beetlejuice getting up and helping Dr. Notrub to his feet. "Don't mention it, Beetlejuice," said Dr. Notrub. Then they heard a voice say, "Oh my aching noggin." They turned and saw Dr. Grim raising up and rubbing his head. "What happened?" he asked. Then he saw Mecha-Reaper pull his scythe out of the side of U.G.C.V. "Mecha-Reaper, you fool! You've broken the containment unit! Patch it up now!" yelled Dr. Grim angrily.
But it was too late. A blob of blue slime oozed out of the crack and landed on the floor. Mecha-Reaper quickly pressed a button on his scythe and a small welding flame ignited at the top of his scythe. He used it to seal the crack before anymore slime leaked out. In the meantime, the blob of slime started to grow bigger.
"Terrific! Now one of the creatures I've captured has gotten loose. My technology broke it down into gelatinous ooze and my containment beams kept it that way. Now that it's loose, it's resuming its normal form," said Dr. Grim angrily. "Ah stuff a sock in it, Grim," said Beetlejuice as he snapped his fingers. A bad smelling striped sock appeared in Dr. Grim's mouth that he promptly spat out. "How bad could it be? I'm sure whatever it is will be glad to kick your butt," continued Beetlejuice as he, Lydia, and Dr. Notrub watched the blob grow.
The blob started to grow even bigger and take shape. The color changed from blue to black and white stripes. The blob grew longer and bigger. Suddenly, Beetlejuice's expression changed from his smirk to pure fear. Then the blob stopped changing.
It had taken the form of a giant black and white striped snakelike worm with red eyes and sharp teeth. Its mouth opened and a smaller white head with yellow eyes emerged with a loud roar. "Sandworm!" yelled Beetlejuice in panic.
"What kind of creature is this, Mecha-Reaper?" asked Dr. Grim who was expressing an equal amount of fright. "This is one of those fierce monsters that we found in the lower depths of the Neitherworld I was trying to tell you about," replied Mecha-Reaper backing away from the sandworm.
The sandworm proceeded to attack. It lunged at Beetlejuice and his friends. They quickly ran out of the way. The sandworm swung its tail destroying everything it hit. "Mecha-Reaper, do something! It's destroying my laboratory!" yelled Dr. Grim. Mecha-Reaper lunged at the rampaging sandworm and swung his scythe at it. He missed and the sandworm grabbed the scythe with its teeth. It swung Mecha-Reaper around and let it go. Mecha-Reaper slammed into the wall. "Mecha-Reaper, no matter what, save the generator!" yelled Dr. Grim.
"Beetlejuice, you have to do something," said Dr. Notrub. But Beetlejuice just cowered on the ground. "It's no use. When there are sandworms around, Beetlejuice gets too scared to use his powers. Sandworms are the only thing in the Neitherworld that scares him," said Lydia. "Then we'll just have to escape. Head for the elevator!" commanded Dr. Notrub. Lydia grabbed Beetlejuice's hand and pulled him in the direction of the elevator with Dr. Notrub running with them. The sandworm had its attention toward Dr. Grim and Mecha-Reaper who struggled to detach the generator from the U.G.C.V.
"Wait! We didn't get all of Beetlejuice's power back," said Lydia. "It'll have to wait, babes. It's best that the three of us get away with two lives and one afterlife," said Beetlejuice. They gathered into the elevator while Dr. Notrub tinkered with the circuit board to make it go up.
"Just get me and the generator into a safe place and then take care of this monster!" yelled Dr. Grim at Mecha-Reaper. The sandworm momentarily turned to the three in the elevator and lunged at them. Beetlejuice screamed just as the elevator doors closed. The sandworm's teeth left marks in the door as the elevator rose up. The trio sighed with relief.
Once the elevator had stopped and the doors had opened, the three of them rushed down the hill toward Dr. Notrub's hearse. They all got in and Dr. Notrub started it up and stepped on the gas. The hearse sped off into the night.
In seconds, the U.G.C.V. reappeared in Dr. Grim's laboratory. "Ha ha! We did it! We went to the Neitherworld and came back with enough monsters to make an army. And best of all, we left Beetlejuice and his friends stranded there," said Dr. Grim gleefully as he climbed down to the ground. "Think again, skeleton man!" yelled Beetlejuice's voice.
"Huh?" said Dr. Grim as he turned around and saw Dr. Notrub and Lydia coming from behind the U.G.C.V. Dr. Grim yelled in frustration. He would have started to tear out his hair if he had any. "You are all getting to be thorns in my sides. That's it! You're not leaving this lair alive! Except for the ghost. I'll somehow extract him out of Dr. Notrub's body and drain him completely," stated Dr. Grim.
"What are you going to do? You left your Zombot army in the Neitherworld," said Beetlejuice with a cackle. "And it might be too risky to try and send the Neitherworld creatures on us. They might turn on you and tear you limb from limb," said Dr. Notrub with a sassy voice. "I can always construct more Zombots and I'll eventually find a way to control those creatures. But I don't need them right now because I've got my ultimate ghost hunter. Mecha-Reaper, shift to hyper battle mode and destroy them!" commanded Dr. Grim.
Mecha-Reaper stepped forward brandishing his scythe. "I've been wanting to try this for a long time. Initiate hyper battle mode!" yelled Mecha-Reaper. Then his red eyes glowed even brighter. And for that matter, so did his face. His face was horrifying. It was the face of a skull glowing bright red. Mecha-Reaper took his free hand and grabbed the top of his hood. He pulled it off to reveal what he was keeping hidden under his cloak. He looked like a black skeleton that was held together with glowing red muscles. His fingers and toes started to sprout sharp, curved claws. His arms and legs grew longer. His bat wings sprouted out of his back. Curved horns sprouted from the top of his skull.
Lydia and Dr. Notrub screamed in fear as Mecha-Reaper yelled a horrible battle cry. Then he charged toward the duo swinging his scythe. "Split up!" yelled Dr. Notrub as he leapt to the left behind the U.G.C.V. Lydia leapt to the right just as Mecha-Reaper slammed his scythe down. "You missed! Get the girl first! She seems to be very precious to the ghost," commanded Dr. Grim. "Yes, Master," said Mecha-Reaper as he turned his attention to Lydia.
"Lydia!" yelled Beetlejuice's voice. Then Dr. Notrub called to her, "Lydia, use the F.I.R.! Maybe it will have the same effect on Mecha-Reaper that it did on the Zombots." Lydia pulled out her F.I.R. and fired it at Mecha-Reaper. The beam hit the mechanical monstrosity and he started to shake and quiver. But a few seconds later, he stopped. "That was a strange feeling. But I'm afraid it wasn't too effective, was it?" roared Mecha-Reaper as he used his free hand and swatted the pistol out of Lydia's hand.
"Run!" yelled Beetlejuice. Lydia ran from Mecha-Reaper as he swung his scythe as her. Dr. Notrub tried to run to help. But Beetlejuice within his body held him back. "I can help Lydia if I can get my powers back and we have an opportunity to get them back," said Beetlejuice's voice. "Where did Dr. Grim put them?" asked Dr. Notrub. "They're in a generator that's on the front of this vehicle. We must do it now while Dr. Grim and Mecha-Reaper are distracted and we must hurry," said Beetlejuice as he took control of Dr. Notrub's body and ran to the front of the U.G.C.V. Dr. Grim had his back to them so he didn't see them. He was too busy cheering on his servant.
Dr. Notrub gazed at the glass orb that glowed with black and white light. "How are we going to get your powers back into you?" asked Dr. Notrub. "I think if I touch the generator, I can absorb them back," said Beetlejuice. "I hope you're right about this," said Dr. Notrub as he raised his hand and touched the orb. Then he started to scream and shake like he was being electrocuted. The power surged through his body.
"Get away from that!" yelled Dr. Grim. He had heard Dr. Notrub scream and turned around. He tackled him and pushed him away from the generator. Dr. Notrub landed on his back and slid across the floor. He collided with the wall and groaned in pain. But he was still alive.
Dr. Grim tapped his walking stick on the ground and a sharp blade poked out of the end. "I shall enjoy ending your life quickly, Dr. Notrub. This will be revenge for what your father did to me," said Dr. Grim as he advanced toward the good doctor with his blade pointed toward him.
Then Dr. Notrub's mouth opened wide. "I see you're already ready to scream in intense pain. I won't keep you waiting," chuckled Dr. Grim. But instead of screaming, a white mist emitted from Dr. Notrub's mouth. It started to take shape and Dr. Grim stopped in his tracks. His face wrenched in fear as he saw what he was facing. From the mist came a gruff voice saying, "It's show time!"
At the same time, Mecha-Reaper was standing over Lydia laughing maniacally. "You and that ghost are about to be hanging around together a lot more. In the afterlife!" cackled Mecha-Reaper as he raised his scythe. Lydia covered her eyes and waited for the impact of the blade.
Suddenly, Dr. Grim came sailing through the air across the lab and hit the floor hard. Mecha-Reaper looked in the direction at where he had fallen. "Master?" he asked.
"LEAVE HER ALONE, REAPER!" a familiar voice boomed throughout the lair. Rising into the air from behind the U.G.C.V was Beetlejuice. He had fire in his eyes. Literally. Flames danced around in his green eyes.
"Beetlejuice! You're back to normal!" exclaimed Lydia with joy. "The ghost with the most is back in business, Babes. And I feel like crushing a certain evil machine," said Beetlejuice as he cracked his knuckles. "I beat you once! I can do it again!" yelled Mecha-Reaper as he leapt into the air.
"That was then. Now I know what I'm up against so I can have a ton of fun cleaning your clock," said Beetlejuice as a black and white striped grandfather clock with a sign on it saying 'Mecha-Reaper's' appeared next to him. Beetlejuice pulled a feather duster from out of nowhere and started dusting the clock. Then he picked it up. "Time flies when I'm having fun!" cackled Beetlejuice as he threw the clock at Mecha-Reaper. The clock hit Mecha-Reaper right in the head and he fell to the floor.
"Way to go, Beetlejuice! That's giving him what he deserves. Now turn up the juice and really let him have it!" cheered Lydia.
Beetlejuice knew just what to do. He floated to the ground in front of Mecha-Reaper. Then he started to change into a favorite form of his. The top of his head changed into an umbrella shape. Little ghoulish mobile figures dangled from it as it started to twirl like a merry-go-round. Beetlejuice's arms started to stretch and his hands turned into mallet heads. He lifted one of his arms and brought it down hard on Mecha-Reaper. Then he used his other arm and sideswiped Mecha-Reaper across the floor.
"Now for a double slam," said Beetlejuice as he raised both his hands. A tall, ring-the-bell carnival game rose up behind Mecha-Reaper. But just before Beetlejuice brought down the powerful blow, he suddenly stopped and changed back to his regular form. He looked rather tired.
"Beetlejuice, what's wrong?" asked Lydia. "Obviously, my powers aren't back one hundred percent. Dr. Grim interfered before I could absorb the whole of my powers," said Beetlejuice. "Well, isn't that too bad?" said Mecha-Reaper as he got up and swung his scythe at the ghost. Beetlejuice backed away.
"Your little tricks didn't hurt me. I'm not programmed to feel pain," said Mecha-Reaper as he struck at Beetlejuice again. Beetlejuice backed up against the U.G.C.V. with Mecha-Reaper.
"Prepare to experience the feeling of a painful death. The worst part about it is that you're already dead so the pain will linger!" laughed Mecha-Reaper as he prepared to deliver the blow with his scythe. But just before the blade made contact with Beetlejuice, Dr. Notrub rushed in and pushed Beetlejuice out of the way. The both rolled away while Mecha- Reaper's scythe embedded itself in the side of the U.G.C.V.
"Thanks doc," said Beetlejuice getting up and helping Dr. Notrub to his feet. "Don't mention it, Beetlejuice," said Dr. Notrub. Then they heard a voice say, "Oh my aching noggin." They turned and saw Dr. Grim raising up and rubbing his head. "What happened?" he asked. Then he saw Mecha-Reaper pull his scythe out of the side of U.G.C.V. "Mecha-Reaper, you fool! You've broken the containment unit! Patch it up now!" yelled Dr. Grim angrily.
But it was too late. A blob of blue slime oozed out of the crack and landed on the floor. Mecha-Reaper quickly pressed a button on his scythe and a small welding flame ignited at the top of his scythe. He used it to seal the crack before anymore slime leaked out. In the meantime, the blob of slime started to grow bigger.
"Terrific! Now one of the creatures I've captured has gotten loose. My technology broke it down into gelatinous ooze and my containment beams kept it that way. Now that it's loose, it's resuming its normal form," said Dr. Grim angrily. "Ah stuff a sock in it, Grim," said Beetlejuice as he snapped his fingers. A bad smelling striped sock appeared in Dr. Grim's mouth that he promptly spat out. "How bad could it be? I'm sure whatever it is will be glad to kick your butt," continued Beetlejuice as he, Lydia, and Dr. Notrub watched the blob grow.
The blob started to grow even bigger and take shape. The color changed from blue to black and white stripes. The blob grew longer and bigger. Suddenly, Beetlejuice's expression changed from his smirk to pure fear. Then the blob stopped changing.
It had taken the form of a giant black and white striped snakelike worm with red eyes and sharp teeth. Its mouth opened and a smaller white head with yellow eyes emerged with a loud roar. "Sandworm!" yelled Beetlejuice in panic.
"What kind of creature is this, Mecha-Reaper?" asked Dr. Grim who was expressing an equal amount of fright. "This is one of those fierce monsters that we found in the lower depths of the Neitherworld I was trying to tell you about," replied Mecha-Reaper backing away from the sandworm.
The sandworm proceeded to attack. It lunged at Beetlejuice and his friends. They quickly ran out of the way. The sandworm swung its tail destroying everything it hit. "Mecha-Reaper, do something! It's destroying my laboratory!" yelled Dr. Grim. Mecha-Reaper lunged at the rampaging sandworm and swung his scythe at it. He missed and the sandworm grabbed the scythe with its teeth. It swung Mecha-Reaper around and let it go. Mecha-Reaper slammed into the wall. "Mecha-Reaper, no matter what, save the generator!" yelled Dr. Grim.
"Beetlejuice, you have to do something," said Dr. Notrub. But Beetlejuice just cowered on the ground. "It's no use. When there are sandworms around, Beetlejuice gets too scared to use his powers. Sandworms are the only thing in the Neitherworld that scares him," said Lydia. "Then we'll just have to escape. Head for the elevator!" commanded Dr. Notrub. Lydia grabbed Beetlejuice's hand and pulled him in the direction of the elevator with Dr. Notrub running with them. The sandworm had its attention toward Dr. Grim and Mecha-Reaper who struggled to detach the generator from the U.G.C.V.
"Wait! We didn't get all of Beetlejuice's power back," said Lydia. "It'll have to wait, babes. It's best that the three of us get away with two lives and one afterlife," said Beetlejuice. They gathered into the elevator while Dr. Notrub tinkered with the circuit board to make it go up.
"Just get me and the generator into a safe place and then take care of this monster!" yelled Dr. Grim at Mecha-Reaper. The sandworm momentarily turned to the three in the elevator and lunged at them. Beetlejuice screamed just as the elevator doors closed. The sandworm's teeth left marks in the door as the elevator rose up. The trio sighed with relief.
Once the elevator had stopped and the doors had opened, the three of them rushed down the hill toward Dr. Notrub's hearse. They all got in and Dr. Notrub started it up and stepped on the gas. The hearse sped off into the night.