Chapter 8
"Ok, hermano, test time!"
"Test time? I'm Max at N'Tek, not Josh in class!"
"I know, I've got a mission for you, but it's a small one, so if you blow it, it won't be the end of the world."
"Ok, what've you got for me?"
"A mayday call came in from the Amazon on our frequency. We don't know exactly how whoever it is got our frequency in the first place, but it's not one of our agents, because everyone's accounted for. Kat and I will be going with you, so I'll be there in case you have any...troubles."
"The Amazon? Oh, Kat's gonna just love that," Max said, laughing. "I', sure she's just been dying to go back to where she was stranded for six weeks." (Six weeks? A little help, UKHoneyB?)
Berto winced. "I forgot about that. You're telling her."
"No way."
Berto popped the oh-so-dreaded Simple Plan CD into the CD player. Max was unaware of what the scientist was doing until it was too late.
"I'm trying.
To forget that,
I'm addicted to you,
But I want it,
And I need it,
I'm addicted to you..."
"BERTO!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"Who's telling Kat, Max?"
"Who's telling me what Martinez?"
Berto jumped and turned slowly around in his swivel chair to see the third member of Team Steel standing behind him, arms crossed. "Um...nothing! Nothing at all!"
Kat took a step toward him. "Berto..." she said in a warning tone of voice.
Berto backed away from her and bumped into his console, causing the CD to skip. "We're, um, going to a certain place that you don't like so much."
"And which certain place might this be?" Kat took another step towards Berto, glaring at him.
"It could be...somewhere in South America."
"What part of South America?"
"Um, northeast?"
"Martinez!"
"Ok, ok, we're going to the Amazon Rainforest!"
"No we are not!" Kat lunged for the younger agent, who ducked out of reach, and ran towards the door, crashing into Max, who had just arrived on the scene.
"Max! Help!"
"TURN OFF THE MUSIC!!!!"
"I can't, Kat's blocking the way!"
"I'll get her, you fix it!"
"YOU'LL GET ME?!" Kat was raging now. "YOU'LL GET ME?! DO YOU WANT A REPEAT OF THIS MORNING, STEEL?!"
"I wasn't in Max mode before." As he said this, Max flung himself at Kat's ankles, but Kat jumped up and landed standing up on his back.
"Hah!"
"Hah nothing!" Max rolled over and Kat leaped off of him, but he swept his leg behind her as she landed, and connected with her heels, knocking her feet out from underneath her. She landed on her back, but sprang back up and landed on her feet. Having succeeded in drawing Kat's attention from Berto to himself, Max grabbed the CD Berto now held in his left hand, threw it against the wall as hard as he could, and was out the door with Kat in hot pursuit before the shattered pieces hit the floor.
"Hey," Berto yelled after him, "you owe me $14.50!"
"Hey," Max yelled back over his biolink, "you owe me your life! Are you seeing Kat right now?" Max turned his head and looked over his shoulder to give Berto a view of Kat, chasing her partner down the hall, a smirk on her face. "She is so gonna kill me..." Max groaned.
Berto took his time getting down to the equipment room, where the fight had been continued. He paused outside the door for a minute, listening. Silence. Uh oh, he thought, silence with Max and Kat in the same room? Definitely a bad thing.
He pushed the door open cautiously and saw that the room was empty. He took a few steps forward until he was in the center of the room, standing on the blue matted floor.
"Max?" He turned around, searching the room. "Kat? Where are you guys? We're supposed to get-AHHHHHHHHH!"
Berto hit the mat as Max and Kat dropped on him above, where they had been sitting on top of pull up bars suspended from the ceiling. Max landed on his legs and Kat landed on his back.
"Gotcha!" she cried gleefully, rolling off of him.
"Not funny," Berto whined as Max pulled him up.
"Oh, come on, Martinez, you know that one was a classic!"
"Yeah, you know what else will be a classic?"
"What's that?"
"You're face when you encounter piranhas."
"Not if you encounter them first..." Kat lunged towards Berto again, who ran out the door. "YOU CAN RUN BUT YOU CAN'T HIDE, MARTINEZ!!"
Max sighed. "I wish you guys would just go out together already."
Kat spun around to face him. "WHAT?!"
"Nothing!" Max ducked a pair of boxing globes she flung at his head and ran out the door, following Berto's lead.