SWAT KATS TO ARMS! (a.k.a. Ronin Warriors: The Radical Squadron)
Part Two: Unusual Houseguests
"Sorry about the bumpy ride, guys! We can't allow anyone to follow us!" Kat apologized to the Ronin Warriors as she steered the TurboCycle down the bumpy dirt road. Rowen was sitting behind her on the TurboCycle.
"That's understandable, Kat!" Cye shouted, who was riding on the Cyclotron on Kat's left, with Kento driving. Sage was driving the Cyclotron on Kat's right, with Ryo sitting behind him.
"We understand that you don't want anyone to find out about us or this secret hangar of yours!" Ryo shouted.
Kat nodded as she focused on the bumpy road in front of her. T-Bone and his shortcuts! Kat thought angrily to herself.
The three motorcycles soon arrived at a large deserted area with tall piles of scrap metal and pieces of helicopters, tanks, jets, and other military vehicles.
"This looks like some sort of military salvage yard," Rowen admitted as he looked around at the piles of metal surrounding him and his friends.
"That's because it is a military salvage yard, Rowen," Kat pointed out. She soon stopped the TurboCycle when she reached a huge space boxed in by three tall piles of scrap metal. Kento and Sage also stopped the Cyclotrons that they were driving.
"What's going on, Kat? Why did you stop?" Kento asked curiously.
"Because the entrance to the hangar is right here," Kat explained, pointing at the empty space in front of her.
"So, what happens now?" Sage asked.
"You'll see," Kat replied as she pressed a button on the panel in front of her. The Ronin Warriors gasped out of surprise as a metal door slid open, revealing a long underground tunnel.
"That was so cool!" Kento openly confessed.
"Come on, let's go," Kat instructed as she revved up the TurboCycle and sped down the tunnel with Rowen.
"You heard her. Let's move it, Kento," Sage announced as he headed down the tunnel with Ryo, followed by Kento and Cye. They followed the long lit tunnel until they reached a larger room with the TurboKat parked on top of a round platform.
"Razor, what do you want us to do with the Cyclotrons?" Kat asked as the TurboKat's canopy slid open.
"Just leave them down here for now," Razor replied as he and T-Bone stood up in the cockpit. "We're probably gonna need to use them later."
"All right, Razor. I'll leave the TurboCycle down here for now," Kat replied and she and Rowen got off of the TurboCycle, while Kento, Cye, Ryo, and Sage got off of the two Cyclotrons.
"Bring them over here," Kat instructed as she pushed the TurboCycle to the concrete wall.
"Okay, Kat," Sage replied as he and Kento followed Kat, each pushing a Cyclotron with them.
After propping the TurboCycle and the two Cyclotrons against the concrete wall, Kat announced, "This way, guys." The Ronin Warriors followed Kat as she led them to the platform that the TurboKat was on.
"Hit it, T-Bone!" Razor shouted as the two Swat Kats sat back down in the jet.
"You got it!" T-Bone replied as he flipped a switch on the jet's control panel.
Suddenly, the large round platform rose up like a freight elevator, carrying the TurboKat, the three Swat Kats, and the Ronin Warriors up to the upper level of the hangar.
"Well, here we are," Razor announced as the platform stopped moving.
"Whoa!" Ryo and his four friends gasped out of astonishment as they looked around the huge room that they were in.
"Amazing!" Rowen admitted as he looked around the hangar. "Surveillance equipment, advanced computers, high-tech weaponry…this is quite a place you got here. How did you ever find the time to build all of this?"
"Actually, the hangar and most of the equipment has been here since Mega War Two," Razor revealed. "Whoever originally built this place must have passed away without telling anyone about the hangar, otherwise this land wouldn't have been turned into a salvage yard."
"Mega War Two? What's that?" Kento asked curiously.
"It was the second of two major wars between certain foreign countries," Kat explained.
"If you don't mind me asking, what was the cause for this Mega War Two?" Rowen asked curiously.
"There was this crazy tomkat in Germany known as Adolph Hitler, who killed hundreds of innocent kats and forced many of them into concentration camps just because they were Jewish," T-Bone explained.
"He eventually spread his anti-Jew campaign throughout most of Europe," Razor continued. "The United States didn't get involved in the war until the Japanese…"
"Bombed Pearl Harbor, an important military base located in Hawaii, on December 7, 1941," Rowen finished, which caught all three Swat Kats by surprise
"That's right. How did you know about this, Rowen?" Kat asked curiously.
"We had two major wars on our planet as well under similar circumstances, only they were known as World War One and Two," Rowen explained.
"Whoa! That's just plain creepy!" T-Bone openly confessed. "Both our world and theirs having two major wars around the same time under similar circumstances…"
"Yeah, that's pretty weird. You have to tell me more about your planet's history, Rowen. Perhaps this is proof that our worlds are parallel universes to one another," Razor suggested.
"Maybe they are, Razor," Rowen admitted.
"Hey, where did Kat go?" Cye asked curiously.
Razor and T-Bone looked around and noticed that their third partner was no longer in the room. "Hey, Kat! Where are you?" T-Bone shouted.
"Right behind ya, T-Bone!" Kat announced.
The two Swat Kats and five Ronin Warriors turned around and saw Kat; only she was no longer in her Swat Kat uniform. She was now wearing a pair of turquoise mechanic coveralls, with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, and black work boots. She also had her long brown hair tied up in a ponytail, with a red baseball cap on top of her head that she wore backwards.
"What's with the costume change?" Sage asked curiously.
"We don't stay in our uniforms all day, you know. Don't tell me that you wear those metal suits all the time!" Tabby retorted.
"Of course not," Ryo replied.
"Come on. I'll take you upstairs to the garage, so Razor and T-Bone can have some privacy," Tabby announced as she walked toward a metal ladder leading to a wooden trap door.
"We'll be up in a few minutes, Tabby," Razor replied as the Ronin Warriors followed Tabby up the ladder.
"Tabby? Isn't that short for Tabitha?" Cye asked.
"Yeah, it is. You're good," Tabby remarked. She was the first to reach the garage, followed by Rowen, Sage, Kento, Cye, and Ryo.
"So, you guys have these secret identities where you're regular people, umm…kats, by day and you're heroes at night, like Superman or Batman?" Kento asked.
"You read way too many comics, Kento," Cye remarked jokingly.
"Actually, he's got the right idea," Tabby confessed. "We lead normal lives, just like anyone else would. But whenever the city's under attack, we Swat Kats will put a stop to it by almost any means possible."
"So, the Swat Kats are vigilantes, correct?" Rowen asked.
"Yeah, we are," Tabby replied.
"Vigilantes? What are they, Rowen?" Kento asked curiously.
"A vigilante is an individual or a small group of individuals that follow their own rules to control and punish crimes," Rowen explained.
"That's about the size of it," Tabby confessed. "I gotta get something in the kitchen. I'll be right back."
As Tabby headed to the kitchen, Ryo and Sage took seats in the two chairs, while Kento, Cye, and Rowen sat on the beat-up old couch.
"Hmm…what are these?" Kento asked, pointing at a bowl full of small red peppers on the coffee table in front of him, which looked a lot like red jalapenos.
"It's a pepper, obviously," Cye retorted.
"I don't think you should be doing that, Kento," Sage warned Kento as he picked up one of the red peppers from the bowl. "It's probably not a good idea to eat a foreign food from another world."
"Yeah, right, Sage. What's going to happen?" Kento retorted before popping the pepper in his mouth.
"Oh, by the way, guys! I almost forgot to tell you: don't eat any of those peppers on the table!" Tabby shouted from the kitchen.
Kento quickly swallowed the pepper in his mouth as Cye asked curiously, "Why is that, Tabby?"
"Those are mongo peppers. They're extremely hot!" Tabby explained. "Unless you want the worst case of heartburn you'll ever get in your entire life, I wouldn't recommend eating a mongo pepper!"
"Uh-oh! Check out Kento!" Ryo remarked as he pointed at Kento, whose face was bright red and completely drenched in sweat.
"Stand back! He's gonna blow!" Cye joked.
"Water! WATER!" Kento barely got out as he fanned his open mouth with both hands.
"What's wrong with him?" Tabby asked suspiciously as she walked into the living room.
"Kento ate one of those mongo peppers you warned us about, Tabby," Rowen explained.
"Here you go. A can of milk will put out that fire!" Tabby announced as she slid one of the unopened cans of milk down the table to Kento. Kento quickly picked the can up and flipped the can over, searching frantically for the tab to open the can.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot that you humans don't have retractable claws," Tabby apologized. She quickly extracted one of her claws and used it to poke a hole in the can's lid.
Kento quickly grabbed the can of milk from Tabby and gulped down the cold milk without even stopping for air.
"Man, that was hot!" Kento gasped loudly as he put down the empty can and took in several deep gasps of air.
"I warned you about those peppers," Tabby reminded Kento as Ryo, Cye, Sage, and Rowen snickered a bit over their friend's antics.
"What's going on in here?" Jake asked curiously as he and Chance came up through the trap door, both wearing the same mechanic coveralls and baseball caps as Tabby.
"We heard someone screaming," Chance added as the two tomkats entered the living room.
"No big deal. Kento just ate a mongo pepper. He couldn't stand the after burn," Tabby explained with a quick laugh…
Meanwhile, unknown to the Swat Kats, the elusive Dr. Viper was wandering through the maze of sewer pipes underneath MegaKat City. He was carrying two large flasks containing a strange pale blue liquid. Dr. Viper soon entered a large room in the sewers. In the back of the room was a throne with a mysterious large figure sitting on it.
"I have the exxxperimental ssserum that MegaKat Biochemical Labsss wasss working on," Dr. Viper announced as he held up the flasks. The huge figure stood up and stepped into a patch of pale light, revealing himself as Dark Kat.
"Excellent work, Dr. Viper. With this serum, MegaKat City will be ours for the taking!" Dark Kat boasted.
"Of courssse," Dr. Viper hissed a bit uncertainly, recalling the last time Dark Kat promised to split the city with him but ended up double-crossing him in the end.
"This serum should increase the strength of my Creeplings by tenfold, correct?" Dark Kat asked as he took one of the flasks from Dr. Viper.
"Indeed it will, Dark Kat. And it shall do the sssame to my alliesss asss well," Dr. Viper muttered out loud.
"What are you talking about, Viper?" Dark Kat asked curiously.
"You will sssee, Dark Kat. You will sssee," Dr. Viper replied as he headed towards a separate room that had been converted into a makeshift laboratory for him, followed by Dark Kat and two of his Creeplings. "But firssst, I'll need to tessst thisss ssserum out before we can continue with our plan to take over MegaKat Cccity."
"Of course, Viper," Dark Kat agreed. He turned around and looked at the two Creeplings that followed him into Dr. Viper's lab. "So…which one of you wants to be the guinea pig?" The two Creeplings both let out short growls as they pointed at each other.
"In that case, you'll do!" Dark Kat muttered out loud as he grabbed the Creepling closest to him with his huge purple paw and carried it to a heavy wooden table with metal chains connected to the side. After Dark Kat placed the Creepling on the table, Dr. Viper secured the chains tightly around the Creepling.
"Are you sure this serum will work, Viper?" Dark Kat asked as Dr. Viper filled a syringe with the pale blue liquid from one of the flasks.
"We'll sssoon sssee, Dark Kat," Dr. Viper replied as he turned around and approached the table with the Creepling tied securely to it.
The Creepling let out a pain-filled squeal when Dr. Viper inserted the needle in its arm and injected the liquid into its body. As soon as Dr. Viper removed the syringe from the Creepling's arm, the small pink-winged creature broke out into severe convulsions, restrained by the chains holding it to the table. Dark Kat, Dr. Viper, and the other Creepling watched in astonishment as the Creepling's scrawny build started to slowly increase. About a minute after they started, the Creepling's convulsions abruptly ended. After a few awkward moments of silence, the Creepling quickly opened its eyes and ripped the chains apart effortlessly, as though they were just pieces of cheap rope.
"It worked!" Dark Kat exclaimed as he watched the Creepling in astonishment.
"Exxxcellent!" Dr. Viper hissed gleefully as he rubbed his paws together. The now stronger Creepling let out a louder, more menacing growl as it slammed its fists in the center of the table, nearly breaking it in half.
"Not only does this serum increase their strength, it seems to have affected their aggression as well," Dark Kat muttered thoughtfully. He turned around and looked at Dr. Viper, who was on the other side of the lab. Dark Kat noticed that Dr. Viper had pulled out two more flasks, which both contained a mysterious dark green chemical that was labeled "Katalyst 96."
As Dr. Viper placed the flasks of Katalyst 96 next to two large jars full of insects, Dark Kat asked curiously, "What are those extra chemicals for, Viper?"
"You won't be the only one with an army of powerful creaturesss, Dark Kat," Dr. Viper replied.
"You wouldn't be planning on double-crossing me, eh, Viper?" Dark Kat asked suspiciously.
"Of courssse not, Dark Kat," Dr. Viper remarked. "Even if I wasss, it would ssserve you right for what you've done the lassst time we agreed to work together."
"Calm down now, Viper. That's all in the past," Dark Kat tried to convince Dr. Viper.
"You were the one who tricked me and nearly had me dessstroyed by the Metallikatsss!" Dr. Viper shouted angrily as he quickly turned around to face Dark Kat. "You would have sssucccccceeded if I haven't removed the neuro-ssscramblersss from their necksss."
"Take it easy, Viper," Dark Kat replied as he held up his large purple paws in front of him. "I promise you, I will not deceive you again. With your army of insects and my army of Creeplings, no one will be able to stop us this time, not even those meddlesome Swat Kats!"
"Even with that newessst member of theirsss?" Dr. Viper asked.
"Even with that pesky she-kat helping them, the Swat Kats won't be able to stop us from ruling MegaKat City!" Dark Kat boasted with a deep sinister laugh. Dr. Viper and the two Creeplings soon joined Dark Kat by chuckling sinisterly with him…
"Did you guys enjoy those pizzas?" Tabby asked curiously. The Ronin Warriors were all sitting at the kitchen table, with a couple of empty pizza boxes in front of them.
"It was…interesting," Rowen replied.
"I honestly never had pizza with tuna on it before," Cye confessed.
"It was pretty good, though," Kento added as he stuffed the last piece of his slice of pizza into his mouth. Just then, the Ronin Warriors and Tabby heard loud laughter coming from the living room.
"Sounds like Chance is watching his favorite show, 'Scaredy Kat,' " Tabby remarked.
"Scaredy Kat? What's that?" Sage asked curiously.
"It's a cartoon show that Chance watches every day," Tabby explained. "I think it's pretty stupid, but I guess you'll have to be the judge for yourself."
"Let's check it out," Ryo suggested as he, Sage, Cye, Kento, and Rowen got up from the table and left the kitchen, followed by Tabby. They arrived in the living room just in time to see an animated kat on the television set open a door with a ghost popping out, causing the kat to scream loudly out of fright, his eyes bugging out of their sockets.
"Ha, ha, ha! You go, Scaredy Kat!" Chance laughed out loud, who was sitting on the couch with Jake.
"That is pretty funny!" Kento admitted with a quick laugh. Just then, an alarm went off.
"It's Callie," Jake replied as Chance turned off the television with the remote control.
"Who's Callie?" Ryo asked curiously.
"I'll explain later, but now, you all have to be quiet," Tabby whispered as Chance removed a small hand-held radio from his pocket.
"Yes, Miss Briggs?" Chance asked through the radio.
"Swat Kats, Puma Dyne Labs is being attacked by Dark Kat's Creeplings," Callie explained over the radio.
"We're on our way, Miss Briggs," Chance replied as he turned off the radio.
"So, who's this Callie?" Ryo asked again.
"Callie Briggs is MegaKat City's Deputy Mayor," Tabby explained. "She supports us and helps us out when she can."
"Oh! Kinda like how Commissioner Gordon helps out Batman, eh?" Kento asked curiously.
"Yeah…I guess," Tabby replied uncertainly, since she never heard of Batman or Commissioner Gordon.
"Come on, bud! We're out of here!" Chance shouted.
"Yeah, we're out of here!" Tabby agreed as she ran for the trap door.
"Hold on there, Tabby," Jake interrupted as he stood in front of Tabby, blocking her path.
"You have to stay here and keep an eye on these guys," Chance added as he jerked a thumb over at the Ronin Warriors.
"What for? I'm sure they're capable of taking care of themselves for an hour or so," Tabby pointed out.
"Tabby, what if someone comes to the garage and sees them, like Burke and Murray? You know those two won't keep a secret like this!" Chance retorted.
"I see where you're going with this," Tabby reluctantly admitted. "I'll stay here while you two go kick Dark Kat's tail."
"Sorry to do this to you, Tabby, but you do understand, right?" Jake apologized.
"Yes, I understand, Jake. Now, get going before those Creeplings get away!" Tabby complained.
"Come on, Jake. Let's hit it!" Chance shouted as he moved the throw rug and opened the trap door leading to the hangar.
"Coming, Chance," Jake replied as he followed Chance down the ladder.
As Tabby closed the trap door, she murmured under her breath, "I can't believe this! I'm no babysitter!"
As Tabby slid the throw rug back over the trap door, Cye approached her from behind. "Tabby, we're sorry about this. We don't mean to be any trouble."
"Hey, it's not your fault you ended up here," Tabby pointed out. "Besides, they're right. It'd be bad if someone else spotted you here. Not only would that expose our vigilante operation, but that would also be putting your tails on the line as well."
"Are you sure about that?" Sage asked curiously.
"Let me put it this way: How would the other humans on your home planet react if they saw me?" Tabby asked curiously.
"They would definitely freak out!" Kento remarked.
"After that, the military would probably capture you, study you in an isolated environment, and eventually dissect you to see what makes you tick," Rowen reluctantly added.
"That would be the same case here. That's why we brought you here rather than turn you in to the Enforcers," Tabby pointed out…
"Ready, buddy?" Razor asked T-Bone as they put on their Glovatrixes.
"Let's hit it!" T-Bone shouted as they jumped out of the TurboKat's cockpit and ran towards a door on the roof of Puma Dyne Labs. They quickly ran down the flight of stairs until they reached the ground floor, where all the laboratories were located.
"Looks like those Creeplings were just here," Razor muttered out loud as he and T-Bone entered the main research laboratory.
It was clearly obvious that someone was looking for something. Several glass beakers and bottles were shattered, leaving puddles of chemicals all over the floor and lab tables, papers were torn up and scattered around, and broken chairs were thrown all over the room.
"They sure made a mess of the place!" T-Bone remarked as the two Swat Kats cautiously stepped over the spilt chemicals. "What were they after, anyway?"
"I'm not sure, T-Bone," Razor replied as he picked up a folder from one of the tables and started flipping through the contents. "As far as I know, Puma Dyne hasn't been developing any new weapons that Dark Kat would be interested in."
As T-Bone looked around, he noticed something unusual on a large safe door. "Hey, Razor, look at this!" T-Bone announced.
Razor turned around and approached the safe door to see what T-Bone was pointing at. "No way! These are claw marks!" Razor gasped as he ran his paw over the long indentations in the thick steel door of the safe. "This is very strange."
"What's so strange about it, Razor?" T-Bone asked curiously as Razor continued to examine the deep scratches.
"This safe door is a solid foot of reinforced steel, T-Bone. Under normal circumstances, a Creepling trying to scratch this door would be like someone trying to scratch a diamond with a hunk of glass!" Razor explained.
"So, what did make these scratches, buddy?" T-Bone asked.
"I'm not exactly sure, T-Bone. That is, unless…" Razor muttered thoughtfully.
"Unless what?" T-Bone prodded.
"Unless Dark Kat somehow made his Creepling stronger, which might tie in with those experimental chemicals that Dr. Viper stole from here!" Razor theorized.
"You mean that scum snake's in cahoots with Dark Kat again? That's all we need!" T-Bone retorted angrily.
"Be quiet, T-Bone," Razor whispered.
"Why? What's up, Sure Shot?" T-Bone asked curiously.
"I thought I heard something," Razor whispered as he slowly looked around the laboratory.
"I don't hear anything," T-Bone whispered. Just then, the two Swat Kats heard a loud metallic clang from the other side of the room.
"I definitely heard it that time!" T-Bone confessed as he and Razor slowly crept to the back of the room, prepared to fire their Glovatrixes at whatever they may encounter. When they reached the back of the laboratory, Razor and T-Bone found nothing out of the ordinary.
"There's nobody here!" T-Bone complained as he lowered his Glovatrix.
"We might as well head back to the hangar, T-Bone. There's nothing more we can do here," Razor suggested as he and T-Bone headed for the door. Before he reached the door, Razor let out a startled yell as something grabbed his leg, causing him to fall face-first to the floor.
"Razor, are you all right?" T-Bone asked as he turned around. He gasped loudly when he saw Razor struggling with a pair of Creeplings.
"What the…" T-Bone was interrupted when two Creeplings tackled him down to the ground and pinned his arms to the floor. He tried to knock the Creeplings away, but their grips were like a pair of vices.
"Exxxcellent work!" a familiar voice hissed from the shadows. Razor and T-Bone looked up and recognized the glowing yellow eyes in the far corner of the laboratory.
"Well, what do you know? It's old Snake Eyes himself!" Razor retorted under his breath as Dr. Viper emerged from the shadows and approached the two Swat Kats.
"Looksss like you Ssswat Katsss fell right into our trap!" Dr. Viper hissed sinisterly.
"Our trap? So, you are working with Dark Kat!" T-Bone realized.
"That'sss absssolutely correct. Looksss like there'sss only two of you. No matter. There'sss no way that your new friend can ssstop us from taking over MegaKat Cccity!" Dr. Viper exclaimed gleefully. He then turned his attention to one of the Creeplings that had T-Bone pinned to the floor.
"Tie them up and bring them with usss to Dark Kat'sss lair!" Dr. Viper ordered as he produced a coil of thick rope from his lab coat…
"WAHOO!" Kento shouted loudly out of excitement. He and Cye were trying out the centrifuge in the Swat Kats' hangar, while Tabby, Ryo, Sage, and Rowen stood by and watched.
"What a hot dog!" Sage retorted under his breath as he watched the centrifuge spin around at incredible speeds.
"How fast are they going, Tabby?" Rowen asked curiously.
"They're up to Mach Four," Tabby reported.
"Mach Four? That's four times the speed of sound!" Rowen exclaimed. Just then, the centrifuge started to slow down.
"What's going on?" Ryo asked curiously.
"I didn't do anything, so either Kento or Cye pressed the panic button I told them about before they got into the centrifuge," Tabby explained as the centrifuge came to a complete stop.
"Aww, man! Why did you stop this thing, Tabby?" Kento complained loudly as he undid his safety harness.
"It wasn't me, Kento, so it must have been Cye," Tabby pointed out. "Something must have happened if he had to press the panic button. Come on!"
Tabby, Ryo, Sage, Kento, and Rowen soon reached the other side of the centrifuge, where Cye was still strapped in.
"Hey, Cye, how are you feeling?" Ryo asked curiously when he noticed Cye's pale face.
"Not so well, I'm afraid," Cye mumbled weakly as he slowly undid his safety harness.
"You gonna be okay, Cye?" Kento asked out of concern as he helped his friend out of the centrifuge.
"Yeah, I'll be fine, Kento. I just need to sit down for a bit," Cye replied as he sat down on the floor away from the centrifuge.
"Okay, so who wants to be next?" Kento asked Ryo, Sage, and Rowen, who exchanged slightly panicked looks with each other. Just then, the alarm went off and a red light started flashing above a telephone in the centrifuge room.
"Aww, shoot!" Kento complained loudly as Ryo, Sage, and Rowen all let out silent sighs of relief.
Tabby silently warned the five humans to be quiet as she pressed a button, turning off the alarm, and picked up the telephone. "This is Kat. What's the problem, Miss Briggs?"
"Kat, I found out more about those experimental chemicals that Dr. Viper stole from MegaKat Biochemical," Callie announced.
"What about them?" Tabby asked curiously.
"Apparently, those flasks contained an experimental serum that they hoped to use on military personnel," Callie explained. "The serum had been tested on lab rats, and according to their reports, the rats showed an increase in strength by at least tenfold!"
"Whoa! I can just imagine what Viper plans on doing with that stuff!" Tabby remarked. "Don't worry, Miss Briggs. We can handle it."
As Tabby hung up the phone, Rowen asked, "Any idea what Dr. Viper plans on doing with the serum he stole?"
"Not a clue!" Tabby confessed as she walked into the main hangar, followed by the five humans. "Honestly, this serum sounds more like something Dark Kat would be interested in. Either way, I gotta let Jake and Chance know about this."
Tabby picked up the hand-held radio that Chance left behind and turned the dial slightly before speaking into it. "Razor, T-Bone, come in. I got some new info about those chemicals Viper stole from MegaKat Biochemical."
Tabby paused for a few moments, but got no response. "Razor, T-Bone, please come in! This is important!" She sighed out of frustration when she still got no response from either of the two Swat Kats.
"Maybe they're too busy fighting to run to the radio," Ryo suggested.
"That can't be, Ryo. All our helmets have a radio link in them. Even if they were busy fighting, they would at least take a second to let me know that," Tabby pointed out. "Something's wrong, I just know it."
"Well, how about we go over to that Puma Dyne place and see what's going on?" Kento suggested.
"That may not be such a hot idea, Kento. What if someone sees us?" Cye asked.
"Well, I don't wanna risk leaving you guys here, so I guess we have no choice," Tabby muttered out loud. "You'll have to come with me to Puma Dyne."
"All right!" Kento cheered. "It's party time!"
"Chill out, Kento! We're only going to investigate, not to fight," Sage retorted.
"Aww, man!" Kento complained.
"Sorry, Kento, but we're only going to see what happened to Razor and T-Bone," Tabby explained as she put the hand-held radio back. "We'll see where it goes when we get there, all right?"
"You're worried about your friends, aren't you?" Rowen asked as he, Ryo, Sage, Kento, and Cye followed Tabby to her locker.
"Of course, I am. Razor and T-Bone have been doing this much longer than I have. Normally, they'd have no problem taking care of a bunch of Creeplings! That's what worries me!" Tabby revealed as she opened her locker and pulled out her Swat Kat uniform…
"Welcome to Puma Dyne Labs!" Kat announced as she pulled alongside the metal chain link fence surrounding the military research facility, along with the Ronin Warriors.
"Hey, isn't that their jet up there?" Ryo asked, pointing at the roof of Puma Dyne. Kat looked up and noticed the black fighter jet that Ryo was pointing at.
"That's the TurboKat, all right. Hopefully, Razor and T-Bone are still inside," Kat muttered out loud as she and Rowen climbed off of the TurboCycle.
"But how are we gonna get inside, Kat?" Sage asked curiously. "There are guards all over the place!" Kat looked up and noticed the Enforcers patrolling around the building.
"Then we'll just have to go around them. Come on!" Kat instructed as she approached the chain link fence and proceeded to climb it.
"Well, you heard her. Let's go," Ryo announced as he scaled the chain fence, along with Sage, Cye, Kento, and Rowen.
As Rowen hurdled over the top of the fence and landed on the other side, Kat whispered, "This way, guys!" She quickly ran across the stretch of bare ground separating the fence from Puma Dyne Labs, with the five armor-clad humans following close behind. They soon reached the side of the building and hid behind an emergency power generator just as an Enforcer turned the corner. Seeing nothing suspicious, the Enforcer turned back around and continued his patrol.
"That was close. That officer almost spotted us," Cye whispered as Kat peered around the power generator to make sure the coast was clear.
"How are we gonna get inside with all those guards patrolling the place?" Sage asked curiously.
"We'll get in through the roof," Kat muttered out loud as she looked around and noticed a metal ladder attached to the wall leading to the roof. "This way!"
Ryo, who was closest to the ladder, was the first to climb up to the roof, followed by Sage, Rowen, Kento, Cye, and Kat. Once Kat reached the roof, she pressed a button on the side of her helmet, causing a black visor to appear over her eyes.
"What are you doing, Kat?" Kento asked curiously.
"I'm scanning for Razor and T-Bone's footprints. That'll give us an idea where to look for them," Kat explained as she looked towards the TurboKat. She noticed two sets of footprints leading from the jet to a door not far from them.
"Did you find something, Kat?" Rowen asked as he followed Kat's gaze to the door.
"Their tracks lead to that door. Let's go," Kat replied as she approached the door and opened it, revealing a long stairway.
The female Swat Kat cautiously walked down the stairs, followed by Rowen, Kento, Cye, Sage, and Ryo. The group of six eventually ended up in the main laboratory.
"Whoa! This place is a total mess!" Kento admitted as he looked around at the spilled chemicals, broken glass, torn papers, and busted chairs scattered on the floor.
"Looks like your room!" Cye muttered sarcastically.
"What was that about my room?" Kento shouted angrily.
"Can you two settle this later?" Kat asked as she studied the several footprints with her visor. "We got more important things to take care of."
"What do you see, Kat?" Rowen asked curiously.
"It's not good. From what I can see, it seems that Razor and T-Bone were ambushed by four to five Creeplings…and Dr. Viper!" Kat revealed. "Looks like I was right after all. Dr. Viper and Dark Kat are working together again, and they must have used that serum on the Creeplings."
"Hey, don't worry, Kat. We'll help you get your friends back," Ryo assured Kat.
"Yeah, we'll pound those Creeplings for you!" Kento announced as he slammed his fist into his other hand.
"Thanks for your help. We just need to follow the tracks that Dr. Viper and the Creeplings left behind. Hopefully, their tracks will lead us to where they're keeping Razor and T-Bone," Kat explained.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Ryo shouted.
"All right. The tracks lead down that hallway," Kat announced, pointing at a hallway ahead of her.
As the group of six headed down the hallway, with Kat in the lead, Sage spotted a shadow coming towards them from a bend in the hallway.
"Guys, someone's coming!" Sage whispered loudly.
"Shh!" Kat whispered to the Ronin Warriors as the shadow came closer.
A few grueling moments later, a female Enforcer with tan fur and shoulder-length black hair with noticeable white streaks turned the corner. Startled by the five strange-looking creatures in the metal armor, she quickly withdrew her weapon.
"Hold it right there…whatever you are!"
"Lieutenant, relax! They're with me!" Kat shouted as she stepped in between the Ronin Warriors and the female Enforcer.
"Kat? What's going on here?" the lieutenant asked as she cautiously put her weapon back in her holster.
"That's what I'm trying to find out. Razor and T-Bone came here before me, but now they're gone and the TurboKat's still on the roof. We've been following their tracks until we bumped into you, Lieutenant," Kat explained.
"I see. So, who…or what are those guys?" the lieutenant asked curiously.
"They call themselves humans, from a planet called Earth. This is Rowen, Sage, Cye, Kento, and this is their leader, Ryo," Kat introduced the five humans.
Ryo stepped forward, held out his hand, and asked, "And you are?"
The lieutenant hesitated for a moment before she held out her paw and shook Ryo's hand. "Lieutenant Felina Feral," she stated.
"Now that that's settled, we should get going. Dr. Viper got a good head start," Kat announced.
"Dr. Viper? Are you sure?" Felina asked.
"His footprints are all over the place, Lieutenant, and he wasn't alone! Dark Kat left his calling card as well," Kat revealed as she continued to follow the footprints, along with the Ronin Warriors and Felina.
"Dark Kat and Dr. Viper are working together again? I should have guessed. That stuff that Viper stole from MegaKat Biochemical, it doesn't seem to fit his M.O. But, from all the information I gathered about the stolen chemicals, it's definitely something Dark Kat would be interested in," Felina explained.
"Yeah, definitely, and the proof's in the lab!" Kat remarked. "Claw marks left in reinforced steel…those were definitely not made by normal Creeplings!" Suddenly, Kat came to an abrupt halt.
"What's the matter, Kat? Why did you stop?" Rowen asked curiously.
"This is where the tracks end," Kat explained as she pressed the button on her helmet, causing the visor to disappear into her helmet.
"Maybe they went through there," Cye suggested, pointing at a metal grate on the floor.
"Any idea where that goes, Lieutenant?" Kat asked.
"There should be a ladder that leads down into the sewer system underneath the building," Felina revealed.
"That's just like a snake to slither down into the sewers," Kat muttered under her breath as she lifted the metal grate, revealing a long dark tunnel with a ladder attached to the side of it.
"We'll go down first, Kat. No telling what's down there," Ryo insisted.
"All right, then," Kat agreed as Ryo climbed down the tunnel, followed by Kento.
As Cye started his descent into the dark tunnel, Kat announced, "You should stay here, Lieutenant. It could be very dangerous. Since Dark Kat and Dr. Viper have that stolen serum in their possession, no telling what else we're going to come across down there."
"Forget it, Kat! I'm going with you!" Felina insisted as Sage started climbing down the ladder after Cye.
"But, Lieutenant…" Kat started to protest.
"I don't take no for an answer, Kat! I'm surprised Razor and T-Bone didn't tell you that!" Felina remarked.
"Looks like we got something in common, Lieutenant," Kat confessed with a small smirk.
Just then, there was a beeping noise coming from Felina. She removed a hand-held radio from her pocket and replied, "Lieutenant Feral here."
"Felina, have you made any progress at Puma Dyne?" a deep tomkat's voice asked over the hand-held radio, who Kat recognized as Commander Feral.
"Yes, uncle. I think I know who's behind all this. I'm going to investigate further," Felina reported.
"No, Felina! I'm ordering you to stay where you are!" Commander Feral ordered.
"Sorry, what was that, uncle? You're breaking up!" Felina shouted as she intentionally turned a dial on the side of the radio, causing static to build up over the radio's frequency.
"I…stay…you…Felina…" Commander Feral's broken up voice garbled over the radio before Felina turned off the hand-held radio.
As she put the radio back in her pocket, Kat asked suspiciously, "What was that all about, Lieutenant?"
"Sometimes, I just can't stand it anymore, Kat! My uncle's so overprotective of me!" Felina complained.
"So I noticed!" Kat remarked.
"I know my uncle's just looking after me because I'm family and he doesn't want to see me get hurt, but he knows as well as I do the risks involved with being a MegaKat City Enforcer," Felina revealed.
"You two ready to go?" Rowen interrupted.
"We're coming, Rowen. Go ahead, we'll meet you down there," Kat replied. Rowen nodded his head as he climbed down the ladder, disappearing in the darkness of the tunnel.
"I'll go first, all right, Lieutenant Feral?" Kat asked.
"Be my guest, Kat," Felina replied. Kat nodded as she climbed down the ladder, followed soon by Felina. They eventually found themselves in a wide metal sewage pipe up to their ankles in water.
"Now what?" Kento asked a bit impatiently.
"It's too dark in here. We need a light," Sage confessed as he looked around at the darkness surrounding them.
"Hold on. I've got a flashlight," Felina revealed as she pulled a large metal flashlight out of her pocket and turned it on.
"And I can shed a little more light on the subject," Kat added as she pressed another button on her helmet, causing the red triangle on her helmet to shoot out a beam of white light.
"Geez! Is there anything that helmet can't do?" Kento remarked.
"I don't know, Kento. I'll get back to you on that. Let's get going," Kat suggested.
"Lead the way, Kat," Ryo insisted.
"All right," Kat agreed as she, Ryo, Sage, Cye, Kento, Rowen, and Felina headed down the dark sewer tunnel. They were unaware of the laser beam that they walked through, which activated a small security camera attached to the ceiling of the tunnel…
"Welcome to my parlor, Swat Kats!" Dark Kat announced with a sinister laugh as his Creeplings dragged Razor and T-Bone into his secret underground lair in the sewers, followed closely by Dr. Viper.
"Yeah, good to see your ugly puss again, Dark Crud!" T-Bone retorted loudly.
"Still as cocky as ever," Dark Kat remarked as he shook his head in disappointment. His yellow eyes narrowed slightly when he noticed that someone was missing. "Where's the third Swat Kat, Viper?"
"I'm not cccertain, Dark Kat. She wasssn't at the lab with thessse two," Dr. Viper explained.
"No matter. She'll surely come looking for her friends when she realizes they're missing, and when she does, that's when we'll capture her as well," Dark Kat pointed out.
"So, what do we have planned for thessse two Ssswat Katsss?" Dr. Viper asked with a sinister chuckle as his yellow eyes glowed menacingly. Before Dark Kat could answer, he was interrupted by a loud siren coming from a large control panel with a large television screen.
"What wasss that?" Dr. Viper asked suspiciously.
"Just my security alarm, Viper. There must be intruders nearby," Dark Kat explained as he approached the control panel and pressed a button.
Instantly, the siren turned off and the television screen turned itself on. Razor and T-Bone gasped slightly when they saw Kat running down a sewer tunnel, followed by Felina and the five humans they found in MegaKat Swamp yesterday.
"I guess your friend found out about your disappearance sooner than I've anticipated," Dark Kat muttered out loud. "She's with that meddlesome Enforcer, but what are those things?"
"Why should we tell you, Dark Creep?" Razor remarked.
"No matter. They'll never get in here alive. Viper, why don't you send out our little welcoming party?" Dark Kat ordered.
"Cccertainly, Dark Kat," Dr. Viper agreed as he headed off into another room.
"Chain them, my Creeplings," Dark Kat ordered the four Creeplings. The Creeplings growled in response as they chained Razor and T-Bone against a nearby wall.
"Now, just sit back and enjoy the show. I promise you that this will be very entertaining," Dark Kat muttered sinisterly as he laughed evilly…
