The hinges on the iron gates of Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends creaked as Alice pushed one side open. Dawn had only broken half an hour ago, so there was no one up and running around; even the Timber Terrors patrolling outside the property were few in numbers. They became even fewer when some tried to attack Alice and she disposed of them. Although there was no sign of the Scribble Spawns, Alice made sure to keep an eye out for any movement as she crossed the distance from the gate to the door. Her attention was diverted to the construction being done at the top left corner of the property. She could see the Mandroids rolling around the area, and there was an electronic sign in front of the fence that defined the construction limits, but she couldn't make out what the sign said. Putting it to the back of her mind, Alice continued forward, moving up Foster's steps and stopping at the grand-sized doors. She hesitated her finger over the doorbell, wondering briefly if she would be interrupting the Imaginary Friends' sleep. She closed her eyes, breathed out through her nose, and pressed on the doorbell; Frankie had told her to ring the doorbell, so it had to be okay. She stepped back from the door, to give it room for when it'd open and released another stream of breath from her mouth. Alice was just overthinking it.
Maybe a minute later, the door opened inward, and Frankie stepped out, shutting the door behind her.
"Hey Alice, thanks for coming," Frankie said with a smile. "Sorry for making you wake up this morning."
Alice shook her head.
"I'm meeting my friends over at the Cul-de-Sac already, so this works out." Alice noticed the dark circles under Frankie's eyes and became worried. "Is this too early for you?"
Frankie brought a hand to her eyes, feeling around the area and then sighing. "Nah, I'm always up at this hour. This is just stress."
"Are things okay?" Alice asked, doing a survey of the house and the property. Aside from a few mild spots of corruption, everything seemed to be okay.
"Not really," Frankie responded, leaning against the door and crossing her arms. "I've been worrying more than usual. Coco ran off just a couple days ago, and Mac went to find her, but I haven't heard anything from those two so I don't know what's happening to them. Bloo's somewhere in Downtown causing who-knows-what kind of havoc. Jackie, who thinks he's the Mystery Inc kids, accepted some sort of detective work so he's run off to Downtown, too. I'm even worried about Cheese who's completely disappeared! The only two I don't have to worry about are Wilt and Eduardo, and that's because the former is at the cardboard fortress and the latter is here." There came a sound of metal hitting metal over where the Mandroids were working, and that caused the older girl to release an aggravated sigh. "And then there's those stupid robots."
"I...was going to ask about them," Alice said meekly, worried that it may cause Frankie to blow a gasket.
"Mandark Inds is building a research facility on the property to research Imaginary Energy," Frankie explained. "He heard about what the toothpaste did for that Cul-de-Sac fortress, so he decided he wanted to see what Imaginary Energy could do. Grandma agreed to let him build a facility even though I told her he's not to be trusted. Have you seen what he's wearing nowadays? Overalls and a cape? He's such a dork!" She was at this point ranting. Alice was too afraid to put in a comment, so she stood by silently and let Frankie vent; the older girl probably needed someone to vent to. "And to make this worst he's got Goo employed with him! I warned that girl not to work with him, but she's just too gullible and went to Tech Square. So, I have to worry about her, too, and what sort of experiments he's putting her through." She released a frustrated sigh and rubbed at her eyes.
"I'm sorry," Alice apologized.
Frankie released another sigh, but this one was more relaxing, like she was letting out all the negative emotions that had been bottled up inside. She smiled at the girl, looking normal again.
"No, you're fine. Sorry for that outburst. The stress, on top of the work I have to do around here, was just getting to me," Frankie said, her tone reassuring so as not to worry Alice more. "But I bet you're bored hearing about my problems." She fished into her pocket and pulled out five toothpaste tubes filled with imaginary energy. She handed them over to Alice. "A month's supply of toothpaste. I don't know what's causing them to run through their supplies so fast, but this should be more than enough to protect the cardboard fortress."
Alice accepted the items with a nod of gratitude. She placed the five tubes in her NanoCom.
"Miss Francis!" bellowed over the loudspeaker.
Frankie sighed, shooting the loudspeaker a silent glare. "Well, back to work." She opened the door again and gave the girl a final wave goodbye. "Stay safe out there, Alice."
"Stay safe," Alice repeated in parting, waving goodbye to the older girl.
Alice waited until Frankie shut the door. Turning, she left the property through the gate and walked toward Peach Creek Estates. When she reached the corner of the property, Alice looked over her shoulder, checking for anyone outside. When she found the area free of people, she lifted herself up into the air and flew for Peach Creek Commons.
She was still getting used to flying. Because she didn't want to fly in plain sight of others, she'd been going to the Junkyard at night and practicing her skills. She wouldn't consider herself on the same level as the Powerpuffs, but she was able to fly steadily and keep herself in the air no problem; the only thing she needed to work on was controlling the speed.
Because she didn't want any of the Urban Rangers to see her land, she went to her house and landed behind it. As soon as her feet touched the soft, Fusion Matter free grass, her NanoCom released a little chirp. She took out her NanoCom, finding it was a message from Nano Boomer. Pressing on the message, it took her to the Nano feature of the device, where she was able to see into the Nano's world. Although by default they lived in hyperspace, Alice, with Numbuh Two's help, managed to make a small world for her newest Nano so the space wouldn't look so empty. He lived on a tropical island with beach front property. His tiny house was single story and was a one room house containing a kitchenette, a table with a chair, a bed, a closet so he could change clothing (if she purchased any costumes for him), and some gaming consoles that played real-world games (his current favorite was Sumo Slammers Online where he went under the name "Small-Sized Boomer"). Currently, her Nano was standing on the porch, waving his hand over his head. He wanted out.
Softly smiling, Alice closed her eyes and thought about her Nano. A second later, the Nano appeared beside her with a pop. Nano Boomer stretched his arms over his head, letting out a little contented sigh.
"Morning Alice!" he greeted happily.
Alice matched his smile, finding it easier and easier to do so. Her prior concern for what kind of Nano he'd be was unfounded. His earlier shyness completely went away when he recognized he was around safe people, and he revealed his true nature: a ball of energy. He liked to be out of the NanoCom and fly around. He was very helpful, often trying to carry items too large for him simply because he wanted to help out Alice. His helpfulness was especially useful in fights with Fusion Monsters thanks to his power: Batter Up!
"Good morning," she greeted back. "Did you sleep well?"
"Noo!" the Nano whined a little, drooping onto her shoulder. "Omnitrixter keeps beating my score! That guy just won't let anyone else reach the #1 spot."
Alice gave the upset Nano a pat on the head.
"You didn't stay up all night, did you?" she asked.
"...Noooooooooooooooooo."
Alice held back a laugh, although it was hard. The hesitation and then attempt to deny it was too adorable. She wasn't going to call him out on it now, but she would force him to go to bed early to catch up on his sleep. For now, they had a job to complete.
The two made their way to the Cul-de-Sac's entrance, Nano Boomer taking a ride on her shoulder. Rangers Andy and Vicki nodded at her and her Nano in greeting, with Andy hiding a yawn behind his hand. Alice nodded a greeting back at them and slipped through the entrance. Since it was still early, the normally bustling Cul-de-Sac was scarce with fighters (their label had changed from volunteers to fighters since it made more sense). While there weren't many fighters running around the Suburbs, the Cul-de-Sac had become something of a hub for them to gather to. Since it had a guide, transportation, sellers and had sturdy protection from invaders, it made sense.
Wilt wasn't in his typical spot, so he was probably still asleep. She looked for Ranger Joey, but he also wasn't on the stoop he liked to hang at. She ventured further into the Cul-de-Sac. Joey, Jimmy, and Rolf were nowhere to be seen, and Double D didn't seem to be out and about. Unfortunately, Eddy was.
The self-proclaimed King of the Cul-de-Sac was standing behind his throne. He was issuing orders to some Urban Rangers, who were building some statue out of cardboard material. Alice didn't want to go and ask him, but he would know better than most. Taking in a deep breath, Alice approached the throne set and the statue behind it. She opened her mouth to call his attention, but she didn't get the words out.
One portion, looking like it was supposed to be the torso, wasn't placed on correctly. It wobbled forward and then fell over, heading downward for where Eddy, who was directly under it, was standing. The teen yelped in alarm and raised up his arms to protect his face. Inches from his head, the falling piece came to a stop midair. Alice's hand was outstretched, her hand outlined in a blue glow that had become familiar to her. She levitated the piece back to its place on the statue-in-progress. Nano Boomer zipped over to the construction piece and helped set it in the proper place. Satisfied with its placement, the Nano retreated back to Alice's side, hovering next to her face with a prideful look on his face, his little chest puffed outward. Alice released her hold on the chest piece, watching the Urban Rangers work to keep it in place. Moving her eyes downward, she met Eddy's eyes. Seeing the wide eyes of the boy had Alice retracting her hand to her chest, her other hand clamping on the wrist to keep it from moving.
It was easy to use her powers freely when she was with Junior and Suzy. Both of them encouraged her to use her powers. Junior had experience considering his ability to freeze opponents with a stare, and even Suzy acted like it was perfectly natural to have a friend who could levitate things on a whim. But what Eddy had said to her after the High Hydro Hammer incident sat at the back of her mind, and it was a constant reminder that she wasn't normal. Her powers were dangerous, and not everyone would feel safe around her.
"Ex-excuse me," she said softly, forcing herself to maintain eye contact. "Have you seen Double D? I have a delivery for him."
The mention of a delivery shook the ruler from his stupor. He shook his head left and right, and his stance denoted an air of uncomfortableness.
"That's the toothpaste, yeah?" Eddy asked.
His tone wasn't harsh, which is what Alice had been fearing. Alice nodded at the question, not trusting her voice.
"Oh, pass us a tube, would yah?" a Ranger by the statue requested. "Our supply is bone dry like the Nowhere desert."
Alice hesitated at the request. The instructions were to hand the tubes over to Double D, not to an Urban Ranger. Her Nano, sensing her rising tension, moved further in front of her.
"This delivery is for Double D," he stated firmly. "That's who we're giving it to."
"It's fine," Eddy countered, his voice airy. "We were running low due to this." He pointed his thumb at the statue. "Sockhead will just hand them one anyways."
Alice thought it over, and then slowly nodded in agreement. It did make sense. Imaginary toothpaste had become the Cul-de-Sac's go-to adhesive due to its ability to hold - in this particular case - cardboard together and repelled Fusion Monsters. Their supplies probably went low due to the upkeep of the walls, and now with a statue to be made, they'd needed more. She pulled out a toothpaste tube from her NanoCom, handing it over to the Urban Ranger. The Ranger flashed her a grin and turned back to his project.
"You've been running those to us, yeah?" Eddy asked her, looking curious.
Alice nodded. She didn't think she was the sole provider, but she did find herself being asked by Double D or Wilt or Frankie to deliver the imaginary toothpaste quite a bit.
"You're running errands then?" Eddy further questioned her. When she responded with a nod, he continued on. "Coop's got an item that came in. I need someone to take it to him. You up for it?"
Alice didn't immediately respond. She was stunned that he'd even ask. She figured he was still upset about learning she was an alien. He didn't seem upset with her, and he was asking for help. Collecting herself, she nodded at him again.
"Yes, I am," she answered him.
Eddy stared at her for a moment, and Alice wondered if he was weighing his options. However, he eventually relented and looked to the side.
"Hey, Joey, get your butt over here!"
Alice turned to the boy Eddy was calling to, relieved to see that it was Ranger Joey. Said boy was over by one of the merchant stands, helping a fellow Ranger set up. He looked over at the king in annoyance.
"What do you want?" he grouched back. "Can't you see I'm busy?"
"Get over here and give Coop's item to Alice," Eddy ordered.
Joey looked past the king of the Cul-de-Sac and spotted Alice. She waved at him, her Nano copying her motions. He stepped away from the merchant stand and approached Eddy and Alice. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a game controller, tossing it Alice's way. Her Nano swooped in and grabbed it before she could, staring at it with stars in his eyes.
"So beautiful," he whispered reverently.
"It's top of the line," Joey agreed. "Thanks for this, by the way. Eddy here was going to have me do it, even though I've told him a bazillion times that I don't run those sorts of errands."
"Quit your griping. You got another errand to run," the shortest Ed boy groused. "Take Alice to Sockhead's house. She's got the imaginary toothpaste."
Joey rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. You're lucky I like her." He beckoned with his head for Alice to follow him. "C'mon."
Alice plucked the controller from out of Nano Boomer's hands (ignoring his whines) and placed it in her NanoCom. She followed next to Joey, Nano Boomer hovering after her. She noticed the Ranger was heading back towards the entrance doors of the fortress. Living next to the Cul-de-Sac all those years and she hadn't properly learned where all the kids lived.
"Is Rolf in today?" Alice asked.
"Yeah, he's with Double D," Joey answered. "Double D and the other guides had some sort of voice call meeting earlier, and then Rolf was called in."
Alice nodded, relieved that Rolf was in the fortress. Aside from dropping off the imaginary toothpaste to Double D, she was picking up some items from Rolf that needed to be delived to a kid named Adam in Habitat Homes. She'd taken the job from Frankie as solo work because she was in the area and figured she could get the mission out of the way before she met with her friends in Habitat Homes.
Alice subconsciously smiled at the idea of her friends. It was a warm feeling that flowed through her. She had grown up believing herself too different from others that no one wanted to be her friends, but Junior and Suzy and even Double D had regarded her as a friend so easily it made Alice wonder if it was all in her head. The difference she felt between herself and her classmates had been her alien origin, but now that she thought about it, had she been the one exiling herself? Were others trying to reach out to her but she was pushing them away instead of the other way around? She wasn't sure of the answer, and her shyness was still a knee jerk reaction, but she told herself to work on it. She liked the idea of having friends, and didn't want to lose them.
Double D's house was the house to the left of the gate entrance, which was the house Joey liked to hang out at. It explained why Joey was stationed there; aside from being a second back up, the home belonged to a guide. As Joey and her neared the house, they were intercepted by another Urban Ranger.
"Alice!" Jimmy greeted her, running up and throwing his arms around her.
The hug was quick, and he pulled away from her so she could have her space. She smiled at him in greeting. Her Nano zipped forward, flying around the Ranger's head before settling on top of his head. Nano Boomer leaned down so that he could look Jimmy in the eyes.
"Hiya!" Nano Boomer chirped, sticking out a hand. "Got a cookie?"
"Nano Boomer," Alice warned, giving him the disapproving look she'd seen her mother give her uncle when he complained about dinner being late whenever they had a family dinner.
Her warning went unheard. Jimmy fished in his pocket and picked out a cookie. He handed it to the Nano, whose eyes lightened up like the sun. He shoved the cookie into his mouth, letting out a mumbled "Thank you" as he munched on the treat. Alice held back a sigh. Every time they came to the Cul-de-Sac, her Nano always made it a point to seek out Jimmy, who always carried around snacks to give to the Nanos; this made Jimmy his second favorite person.
"How have you been, Alice?" Jimmy asked.
"I'm doing well," Alice answered. "How have things been around the Cul-de-Sac?"
Jimmy shrugged. "Same old, same old. The Kankers were caught working with Fusion Blossom."
"A Fusion?" Alice asked, her voice jumping octaves. "Why?"
"They say they didn't realize it was a Fusion," the boy gossiped.
"Fusions are green," Joey stressed. "How did they not realize it in the first place?"
"They're not very smart," he answered.
Joey stared in silence at the brace-wearing kid for a solid thirty seconds before shrugging his shoulders in defeat.
"That's fair," he acknowledged. He turned to look at Alice. "Anyways, we're probably delaying you."
"Oh, are you here on a job?" Jimmy asked the blue haired girl.
"I'm dropping off imaginary toothpaste," Alice answered. "And I need to talk to Rolf. He needs me to take paint remover to Habitat Homes."
"Three jobs before noon?" Joey asked with an eyebrow raised. "Are you trying to make the rest of us look bad?"
"I'm a morning person," Alice answered, averting her eyes to the side. "Mom worked a lot at night... so we spent the majority of the time together in the morning."
Nano Boomer left Jimmy's head and sat himself on Alice's shoulder, resting his head against hers to express his sympathy. Jimmy frowned in sympathy, patting her on the arm.
"Come on, I have to talk to Rolf, too," Jimmy said.
"I'll let Jimmy take you the rest of the way. I have to head back and continue set up. See ya later, Alice," Joey said, turning around and heading back for the end of the cul-de-sac.
Alice waved at the boy, and then followed Jimmy to the doorstep. Confidently, like he's done it a million times before, Jimmy knocked on the door. They waited for a few seconds until it was opened by the kid of the house. Standing behind him was the leader of the Urban Rangers.
"Oh, greetings Jimmy, Alice," Double D said, opening the door further. "Please, come in."
Jimmy led the way inside, saluting his superior officer when he approached. Alice followed behind the boy, and Nano Boomer waved at Double D as he and Alice passed the boy. The house was immaculate, which was to be expected.
"Ranger Jimmy, what is your status?" Rolf asked of his subordinate.
"I have placed the Kankers' listening device in the public toilet at the Park n' Flush as instructed, sir!" Jimmy reported.
Seeing the bewildered look on her face, Double D quickly explained to Alice, "Some fighters sympathetic to the Kankers planted a listening device to spy on us. Sarah discovered it and went to confront the sisters while Jimmy removed the device and put it somewhere else."
Alice frowned at the explanation. She understood, but found the new location to be a rather disgusting place to situate it. Her Nano didn't agree, because he giggled a little and gave out an approving, "Nice!"
"Excellent work, Ranger Jimmy," Rolf complimented his subordinate. "Now, head to Sector V Treehouse. Numbuh Two requires Urban Ranger assistance. Report immediately!"
"Yes sir!" Jimmy said, hustling out of the house.
"Now then, what brings you Alice girl?" Rolf asked, turning his attention on the girl who was still in the house waiting.
"You have a delivery for my team to take," Alice answered. To further clarify, she added, "To Habitat Homes."
"Ah yes! For Lyon boy," Rolf answered. He dug into his pocket, searching it for a few seconds, and then pulled out a gallon aluminum can of paint remover and a set of scrappers. "Here we are."
Alice accepted the items and placed them in her NanoCom, mildly wondering how all of that fit inside of Rolf's pockets. She didn't bother questioning it since it would probably be more confusing than helpful.
The mission, as it was written on Help Wanted, was that Billy painted over some Re:Fuse posters down in Habitat Homes. Because of that, the Fusion Monsters in the area went on a frenzy and started attacking the school and the surrounding homes. Adam had reached out to the Urban Rangers for help, and Rolf had put forth the job for someone to deliver the items to the boy and to help him remove the paint.
"It was Wilt who told us that the posters were made by Imaginary Friends. They were made to demoralize the monsters, and I guess it worked. At least until they were painted over, and then the monsters became even more violent," Double D remarked. She could almost see the gears in his head working as he followed his logical thought. "It is astounding how Imaginary Energy works when in the vicinity of a Fusion Monster."
Alice thought back to Foster's Home, and the Mandark research facility that was being built. Frankie had her reservations about Mandark learning about Imaginary Energy, but maybe Mandark was right. Maybe there was something there to study and follow. Since its completion, the Cul-de-Sac fortress has withstood attacks from the Fusion Monsters and it's even repelled them from attacking. Nanos had their Fusion Matter purified with imagination. Now there were the posters in Habitat Homes which determind the mood of the invading aliens. Maybe it was important to see the effects of imagination on Fusion Monsters and see if they could use it to stop the war.
Alice's NanoCom beeped, breaking her thoughts. She glanced at it and found that it was a message from Junior. He and Suzy were already at Habitat Homes, waiting for her.
"I'm sorry, I -"
"It's alright," Double D reassured her. "It's more important to get those posters back in working order. I don't think Charles Darwin Middle School can take more hits."
Alice nodded her head in agreement, and said her goodbyes to the two. She exited the house, and left the fortress, heading for her home. She could take the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. or the bus slider to Habitat Homes, but she wanted to continue practicing her flying skills. It was still early enough no one would notice. She put Nano Boomer back in the NanoCom with the order to get some sleep. Although the Nano had been upset, he ultimately complied with only a pout. Checking left and right to make sure no one was in the area, Alice launched herself into the air and made for Habitat Homes.
Suzy and Junior were waiting for her at the tennis courts in front of the heavily infected Charles Darwin Middle School when she touched down. The Skyway Monkeys were already set up, too enthralled with their game to notice her flying in. Alice's friends were accompanied by who Alice guessed was Adam and, surprisingly, Billy. The cap wearing boy had Runty sitting on his head, and the boy didn't look very happy.
"Hey Alice," Suzy greeted. She extended a hand at Adam. "This is Adam."
"Uhh, hi," he greeted.
"Hello," she greeted back, before looking to Billy. "Uhm..."
"I brought him," Junior answered the unspoken question. "He caused this mess, so he can help clean it up."
"I didn't cause this though!" Billy argued.
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Junior said sarcastically, rolling his eyes for good measure. "It was an elephant."
"It was!" Billy cried. "He said he'd pay me five dollars for every poster that was messed up, so I had it done! I'm a victim."
"No, I'm a victim of your stupidity," Junior retaliated. He rubbed at his forehead in an attempt to stave off a migraine.
"Where did you see this elephant?" Suzy asked.
"Well, I was just minding my own business when he came to my house! He offered me the moneys and even gave me a hall pass so I could go into the school and use his place, but some monsters took it while I was messing up the posters!" Billy explained.
"Wait, was this elephant green?" Adam piped in with his questioning.
"Uh-huhs!" Billy answered with a rapid nod of his head. It was a wonder Runty didn't fly off. "He was green and stood on two legs."
"I've seen him around here," Adam remarked. "It's a Fusion."
"Hmm..." Suzy muttered to herself, a fist at her lips as she went into deep thought. "I didn't know Raj had a Fusion."
"Who?" Junior asked.
"You know hims?" Billy asked, already hoping he could somehow shift the blame.
"Not the Fusion, but I know who it's based on. He's a Bean Scout," Suzy explained.
"Do you just know everybody?" Junior asked sarcastically.
"Almost," Suzy teased back.
"Well...it makes sense a Fusion would do this," Adam commented.
"We'll deal with that after," Suzy said, taking charge. "Right now we need to fix the posters and get things back under control here."
"That means all of us," Junior stressed to his cousin. "You had a hand in this mess, so you're going to have a hand in fixing it too."
Billy crossed his arms and huffed in indignation. Runty, not being able to cross his arms due to lacking those appendages, simply mimicked the huff.
"Alice, you have the things, yeah?" Suzy asked.
Alice nodded, pulling the items from her NanoCom.
"Excellent," the redhead complimented. Taking the can and scrappers from the blue haired alien, she handed out the scrappers to the team. "There's four posters that are effected, and Adam's already identified where they are. What I'm thinking is we'll split up into teams of two. Junior, you have Billy. Alice, you have Adam. I'll be on my own team."
"Isn't that dangerous?" Adam asked. "These monsters have been in a frenzy since the posters were defaced."
Suzy winked at her fellow redhead and called on her Nano. Nano Numbuh Five appeared next to Suzy, doing a little backflip in the air before settling down on the girl's shoulder.
"Nano Numbuh Five's special ability is sneak, so I'll stay under the radar," she explained, earning nods from her two teammates. "Now then, since Adam knows where these posters are, we'll give him the paint remover." She handed the container to the boy, who held it with both hands. "He'll go to each poster, and we'll come through and start peeling them off. When we're finished, come back here. Understood?"
The group, even the reluctant Billy, nodded in agreement. Suzy clapped her hands together and grinned.
"Great! Let's get going then. Lead the way, Adam!"
The first poster was on the house next to the tennis courts. Ramcycles patrolled the area, but thanks to Nano Numbuh Five's sneak power, the group went unnoticed. Adam poured some of the liquid on the poster and Suzy began peeling it off. With the first poster being taken care of, he led the group of now four to the next poster. Alice was reluctant to leave Suzy on her own, but she had to tell herself that the girl would be okay. They, as a group, have separated on missions to fight off monsters before; this was nothing new.
The second poster was towards the south, sitting on a business' wall. Because they were no longer protected under Nano Numbuh Five's ability, the monsters zeroed in on the group of four. The reports on their manners were correct; the Motorillas were aggressive in their attacks, striking at Alice's protective force-field until being put to sleep by Junior's Nano Megas' special ability. With their monsters sleeping, it was easier to turn them into Fusion Matter. They reached the poster and Adam poured the remover on it. Junior and Billy took this poster; or, more accurately, Junior had Billy start taking off the paint while he and Nano Megas stood guard.
The third poster was on a house next to a Burger Frenzy. Motorillas were next to the poster, and Alice had to dispatch of them before Adam could pour the remover. Alice began working on peeling off the paint, pleased to see that it was coming off easily.
"Do you want me to continue on?" Adam asked her, giving their area a look around.
"No, stay with me," she answered him. "It'll be safer if we're-" She cut herself off as her hair on her neck stood at attention.
"Alice!" Adam's warning came in, although it wasn't necessary.
Alice spun, preparing to throw an energy shield up, but the sucker punch from the Motorilla was faster. It sent the girl flying, before she hit the ground and skidded to a stop. She got to her hands, noting that Adam had rushed to her side, asking if she was alright. She didn't answer him, her focus given solely to the Motorilla who had some buddies coming to join it. Having some backup, the three Motorillas charged for the two of them.
Alice's energy bubble came up around the two of them, protecting them from the initial hit. The Motorillas bounced off of the bubble's wall. They righted themselves and roared, pounding and smashing against the bubble in an effort to make it crumble. Alice forced it to stay in place, but she couldn't remain in a defensive position forever.
"Adam, do you have any weapons?" she asked.
"Y-yes," he answered frightfully. "B-but I'm not very good with it!"
Alice nodded to herself. That's all she needed to know. "When I drop the bubble, please run for cover."
Adam hesitated, but nodded quickly. With the knowledge that Adam understood her directions, Alice dropped the bubble just as the Motorillas were striking it, catching them off-balance. Adam ran as soon as the bubble dropped, like he had been instructed to do. Alice sent out an energy projectile in the shape of an arc, hitting all three Motorillas and pushing them backwards. Before they could stabilize themselves, Alice formed energy spheres in her hands and threw them at the three monsters. She didn't let up, but when the Motorillas started swiping at the energy balls she knew she had to change her strategy. Bringing her hands together, she formed a larger energy sphere than the smaller ones she'd been using. Once it was half the size of her body, she threw it at the Motorillas, who had been approaching her in the absence of her striking them. The super-sized sphere hit all three of them, dissolving the trio into Fusion Matter. Alice released a sigh, her muscles loosening up.
"Whoa," Adam whispered in amazement, stepping out from his hiding spot. "That was cool."
"Are you okay?" Alice asked her partner.
"I should ask you that. You took the monsters down," the boy responded. "Jake's usually the one scaring the monsters off, but he's at Camp Kidney visiting his cousin."
"Have you had trouble with them before?" Alice asked, continuing her work on the paint.
"I've mostly been in my house," Adam admitted sheepishly.
Alice didn't make a comment about the admission. She wasn't in any position to judge, since she spent the early days of the war bunkered down in her home. She removed the last of the paint, amazed that the poster underneath it was basically unscathed.
"Okay," Alice said, stepping away from the poster. "Ready, Adam?"
Alice and Adam continued for the fourth and final poster. It wasn't far from the third; it was on the final building on the street. This one was unprotected from the surrounding monsters, but Alice still stood guard with a force-field protecting the two while Adam took the paint off. When they completed their job, the two returned to the tennis courts where Billy, Junior and Suzy were waiting. Junior and Suzy were in the middle of a conversation, while Billy was sitting on the floor, playing with Runty. A tendril from Junior's back was wrapped around Billy's body, keeping the boy from running off.
"Hey you two! Welcome back," Suzy greeted them. "Ready for part two?"
"Part two?" Adam parroted in surprise.
"Yep. Junior and I went looking for the hall pass while we waited."
"It was easy," Junior answered. "The third one had it."
"Since you're not a fighter, we're thinking you and Billy should head home where it's safer," Suzy told the boy.
"Yeah, that's probably for the best," Adam agreed.
"I was hoping you'd actually head back to Billy's house," Junior put in. "To make sure he doesn't screw something up again."
"Uhh, would that be okay?" Adam asked, looking from Junior to Billy. "I don't really kno-"
Billy hopped to his feet, getting into a Adam's face. The boy released a surprised yelp at the sudden intrusion to his personal space.
"Oooh! We can play Sumo Slammers Online! You gots an account, yeah?" Billy asked, brightening at the idea.
"Well yeah, but-"
"Great!" Billy cheered, wrapping an arm around Adam's shoulders. The tendril that had been around the boy's body disappeared. "Let's get going! C'mon Runty!"
Billy's little buddy hopped behind, keeping stride with the two boys.
"Alrighty, let's go get this Fusion!" Suzy declared, heading for the Dexbot that guarded the entrance to the infected zone.
Junior followed, but Alice waited. She wanted to make sure the two weren't going to be attacked. Once she lost sight of them, she joined her friends on the Dexbot pad. The Dexbot accepted their NanoCom IDs and teleported them inside the infected zone. Like with every infected zone, the gravity inside was on the fritz, having lifted large sections of land to be left hovering in the air. A large, Fusion Matter lake existed in the middle of the zone, separating the two land masses. Surprisingly, no monsters were on their side of the zone. This gave the group of three a little breathing room, without having to worry about being attacked.
"Time to check the inside of the school, yeah?" Junior asked his teammates.
"I thought about that, but let me try something," Suzy said. She held out her hand. "The hall pass, please?"
Junior handed the hall pass, which was burned because of its contact with Fusion Matter. Suzy accepted the hall pass and held her NanoCom over it. Pressing the surface of the NanoCom, a blue light ran over the pass for a second. A moment later, the NanoCom released a beep, and Suzy's face brightened.
"I can lead us right to the Fusion," Suzy declared, handing the hall pass back to Junior.
"You can?" Junior questioned, eyeing her skeptically.
"Of course. Because Fusion Raj handed this to Billy, it has its DNA all over it. I scanned it, and I've honed in on it," she answered, holding out her NanoCom so Junior and Alice could inspect it for themselves.
Suzy's NanoCom had the map feature opened, giving a detailed picture of the infected zone. On the map was a red dot that was blinking in and out of existence.
"Since when was this a thing?" Junior asked, pulling back from the NanoCom.
"Since forever," Suzy remarked, looking between her NanoCom and the infected zone. She was clearly attempting to map out the pathing. "Okay, this looks like it's on the upper flooring, so we should probably get up there."
"Since you can fly, you should scout on ahead of us," Junior instructed Alice.
Alice hesitated to comply. While it did make sense for her to go on ahead with her flying abilities, she had something else in mind.
"A-actually, I wanted to try something."
It sounded easier in concept. After getting their agreement, Alice had erected a bubble around Suzy and Junior and levitated them up into the air. She then flew with them, flying above the bubble she had made. She had been thinking of doing this sort of transportation for a while. Holding them like the Skyway Agents did was too difficult for her; she had neither the strength nor the upper body build to do so. So she had turned to her bubbles, which would be easier to carry more than one, and it protected them on the chance they encountered a flying Fusion Monster. While it was easy to start, the process eventually took its toll since Alice had to A.) concentrate on the bubble, B.) levitate said bubble, and C.) fly herself.
They crossed over the large lake of green Fusion Matter that separated the Dexbot from the school, and even snuck over the Cylomanders that were running around on the ground. Suzy pointed her to the roof on a building at the back. She managed to safely deposit her travelling partners on the rooftop with no incident, but the energy drain caught up with Alice. She lost her ability to keep herself airborne, and would have hit the roof hard had Junior not caught her.
"You okay?" he asked, keeping a hold on her so she wouldn't sway.
Alice closed her eyes for a moment, forcing back the weariness and quiseaniess. Her body was warning her she had over extended her power. When she felt the moment pass, she opened her eyes and nodded to the question she hadn't yet answered.
"I'm okay," she assured the two. "I guess I overdid it."
"You did great," Suzy assured the other girl. "You got us here faster, and landed us next to the Fusion portal." Suzy used her hand to beckon at a stack of green tendrils swaying to and fro from an invisible wind. Looking at it closer, Alice could see that the tendrils were protruding from some sort of vine-like ring that even had some green-tinted bulbs growing out of it. "No one has figured out how this works, exactly, but this operates like Dex's warp pads, and it'll bring us into the Fusion lair."
"Considering this is a Fusion, it'll be like Fusion Boomer. It's going to be tough," Junior pointed out. "Are you good to fight it?"
Alice didn't immediately reply. She was definitely not up to full stamina, but she felt like she could still throw out some energy spheres, maybe even an energy blast. She couldn't do much more than that. She didn't mention any of this out loud, but Suzy took one look at her and easily read her thoughts.
"Stick close to Junior," she issued the order, still maintaining her friendly tone. "Rely on Nano Boomer, and do what you can. Don't push yourself."
Alice nodded at the order. The three moved to the Fusion portal and found their vision obscured by the tendrils. A moment later, they found themselves in an underground cavern. Suzy pulled out her NanoCom again, giving it a nod.
"I can still track it," she informed her team. "Pull out your Nanos."
Alice and Junior complied. At the same time Suzy called on Nano Numbuh Five, Junior and Alice called on Nano Megas and Nano Boomer, respectively. The miniaturized Rowdyruff looked around his area in excitement.
"Are we kicking a Fusion Monster's butt?!" the Nano asked. His blue eyes were lit up in excitement at the very idea.
"Yep! Keep up that attitude, kay?" Suzy told the Nano. "I'm sneaking us by the majority, but there may still be some that we'll have to fight, so that's where you come in, got it?"
Nano Boomer pumped his fists in excitement.
"Let's go!" he declared.
Suzy took point, leading the group into the lair. Turned out that lairs were designed to be a maze, with strange mushrooms and plants growing along the rocky walls. Nano Numbuh Five and Nano Boomer floated next to Suzy; Nano Numbuh Five was using her special ability Secret Agent to keep the group masked, and Nano Boomer was waiting for his chance to attack. The Ramcycles were patrolling in the lair, but they were doing so individually. Nano Numbuh Five's Secret Agent was able to get them past the monster, but Alice always felt like they were still being tracked.
They were probably halfway through the maze when they encountered a problem. Nano Numbuh Five's special ability was a passive ability, which meant it was in use for every second she was out of the NanoCom. Keeping three people and three Nanos was taxing, especially because she had used her powers earlier in Habitat Homes. The poor Nano hovered hunched over beside Suzy, releasing tired huffs.
"You did a good job. Get some rest," Suzy consoled the Nano, recalling it into the NanoCom. She glanced over her shoulder to Junior. "How's Nano Megas?"
Junior looked at his NanoCom, and nodded.
"He's still good," Junior answered. "We should be able to put them to sleep all the way up to the Fusion."
"Yeah, but since we're in an enclosed space, I don't want to leave them there sleeping. We'll have to fight them," she explained. She looked at Nano Boomer and winked. "You ready for this, little man?"
Nano Boomer made a hyper noise from behind closed lips, hopping up and down in midair to release some of that excitement. Suzy grinned at his enthusiasm, then looked over at Alice.
"You still good?" she asked.
Alice nodded. "I'm doing better."
"Great. Let's get going team!"
It was almost unfair how easy it was to get through the rest of the lair. Nano Megas used his Garden Gate Slam to put the Ramcycles to sleep and then Nano Boomer went in with his Batter Up. A shot from Suzy's Crayon Cannon or Alice's energy spheres or Junior's tentacles had it dissolved into Fusion Matter. They repeated the process all the way through until Suzy held up a hand to stop her team.
"The Fusion is just around this bend," Suzy announced, putting her NanoCom away. "Are we ready?"
"Ready," Junior and Nano Boomer answered back. Nano Megas nodded his little car head.
Alice hesitated. The hair on her neck was standing at attention. She extended her senses and found that the Fusion Monsters were closer than Suzy's radar was picking up.
"Something's coming," Alice announced.
Junior and Suzy tensed up, having worked with Alice long enough to know that her warnings were always on point. A moment later, a set of three Ramcycles climbed up over the cavern wall and slid down, appearing in front of Junior and Alice. While Nano Megas put them to sleep and Nano Boomer went in for the attack, Fusion Raj used the distraction to come around the bend and sneak up on Suzy. Luckily for the girl, she had seen his appearance in her peripheral and managed to spin around in time to get the first hit on the Fusion with a shot from her Crayon Cannon.
The Fusion-ized elephant roared at the hit. It made for another swipe, but Suzy was able to duck under it and get out of its range. She switched her weapons since she was in closer combat, pulling out her Camp Oar and delivering three strikes - one to the neck, one to each knee cap - before the Fusion had a chance to recover.
Alice threw up her shield, blocking the incoming strikes from two Ramcycles. Although Nano Megas' strike had knocked them out, they were stronger than the other Ramcycles the group had faced in the cavern. A strike at the motorcycled monsters had them waking up and attacking Alice and Junior. Nano Boomer zoomed past the girl and used his special ability to hit one of the Ramcycle's in the head. The injured Ramcycle growled out in frustration, shaking off the hit and ramming Alice's shield again. Alice pushed her shield so that the two Ramcycles were caught between her shield and the cavern wall behind them. With the two Fusion Monsters trapped, she pushed her shield into the wall, crushing the two monsters until they turned into Fusion Matter.
Alice looked over her shoulder, first pinpointing Junior facing off with the third Ramcycle. Nano Megas was nowhere to be found, so he was probably put away. Junior was doing fine on his own, so Alice sought out Suzy. The redhead was in battle with the Fusion, managing to dodge the Fusion's swipes. It was clearly getting angry, and threw gooey balls at the redhead. While Alice didn't recognize who this Fusion Raj was supposed to be based on, it seemed like it didn't have any special abilities like Fusion Boomer had.
"Nano Boomer," Alice called to her Nano, and then pointed to the fight.
Her Nano glanced at the Fusion, grinned, and zoomed forward at the Fusion. Calling on his special ability once more, he gave the Fusion a good whack downward on the skull. The Fusion's hands went to the injured spot, shaking its head in pain. Suzy sent a thumbs up to the Nano. She then switched out her Camp Oar for her Crayon Cannon again and fired at it three more times until the Fusion cried out in pain. It dissolved into Fusion Matter, being picked up by Suzy's NanoCom. An item fell to the ground, bouncing once before landing. Nano Boomer zipped down to it, circling it in curiosity. Suzy bent down and picked up the item, revealing it to be a retainer.
"What is that?" Nano Boomer asked, hovering next to her hand.
"An item to create Nanos," Suzy answered. "Just like you."
Nano Boomer frowned at her skeptically. She looked over at her two teammates, who walked over to be next to her. Alice put Nano Boomer back into the NanoCom since vitals showed he was at 48% stamina. Junior was eyeing the retainer skeptically.
"You're thinking of making it into a Nano?" Junior asked.
"Sure. NanoComs can hold a max of three, and Nano Numbuh Five could use a partner," Suzy answered. "Unless you want him?"
Junior shook his head. "You fought the Fusion, so you can have him."
"Alice?" Suzy asked the girl.
Alice shook her head. "I'm with Junior."
"We'll stop by the station at Billy's house," Suzy explained, putting the retainer in her pocket. "We'll also let Adam know we've handled it."
"We'd better get out of here before those Ramcycles regenerate," Junior said.
"Won't we have to encounter them on our way back to the portal?" Alice asked.
"There's two portals," Suzy explained, taking the turn round the bend and leading her team. "The second one is at the end, where the Fusions are located."
"That's not a good design," Junior pointed out.
"No, but it is useful for us," Suzy countered, approaching the swaying tendrils of the portal, which was tucked up in a little nook.
Taking the portal, they were returned to the school's roof. Almost as soon as they stepped away from the portal, their NanoComs chimed in unison. Junior pulled his NanoCom off his hip, checking the screen.
"It's from Jimmy Jones," Junior told his two female teammates.
"Oooo, a guide mission," Suzy cooed, pulling her own NanoCom out. "We haven't had those in a while."
Alice silently agreed as she looked at her own NanoCom.
Subject Line: Nuclear Haste
Greetings! Kids Next Door operatives stationed with Mr. Tennyson are in need of a radioactive isotope that can only be found in the nuclear power plant. You will need to be quick about collecting it because of the possibility of radiation poisoning. Once you have the isotope in your possession, deliver it to Numbuh Two.
-Jimmy Jones
"He's got to be joking," Junior grumbled.
"If that's what the KND need, it must be for something important," Suzy reasoned.
The redhead brought a hand to her lips as she fell into thought. From the way her eyebrows knitted together, Alice could tell she was pondering on whether they were going to accept the mission or not.
The nuclear power plant was a dangerous place before the Fusion invasion. Now it was extra dangerous thanks to the Fusion Matter that heavily infected the area. Between radiation poisoning and Fusion Matter poisoning, it was deemed unsafe to enter unless absolutely necessary. And Suzy was right; if the KND needed something radioactive, it had to be for something important.
Shifting her weight from one foot to the other in apprehension, Alice spoke up. "I-I can do it."
"No way," Junior put in immediately. "They can't expect us to go in with no gear. The radiation-"
"May not affect me," Alice cut in. She gulped and averted her eyes away from them. "I'm...I-I'm an alien, so I may not be as susceptible to poisoning as humans."
"But we're not sure, so it's still dangerous," Junior pointed out, arguing the point vehemently. "We'll-"
"Do it," Suzy finished, lowering her hand. Her normal smile was missing, replaced with a grim thin line.
"What?!" Junior asked, looking at Suzy like he'd been betrayed.
"We'll do this. Or more accurately, Alice will," Suzy answered, looking to her blue-haired friend. "Alice can fly, and if she puts a shield up around her, she should be safe from the toxins. She's the best person for the situation, and if the Kids Next Door are asking for this, then we need to be as helpful as possible." She turned to look Junior in the eye. "That's why we're here."
Nothing was said. After a tense moment, an unhappy Junior released an aggravated sigh.
"I don't like this," he stressed.
"That's fine," Suzy answered, brightening her tone to lighten the mood. "But I have faith that everything will turn out alright."
The walk from Habitat Homes to Endsville was silent and tense. Junior's aggravation had yet to let up, and although Suzy was trying to keep up a cheery mood, it was clear she was struggling. Alice didn't dare say a word in fear that she may further upset the two. She was just as scared to do the mission, but a voice in the back of her head that sounded like her mother's told her she had to. She was the only one in the group who could.
They stopped by Billy's house to make Nano Raj at the Nano Station situated in Billy's front yard, and they also let Adam know that he could return to Habitat Homes. The boy was extremely grateful and practically ran out of the house. Him was thankfully not around to freak out the kids even more, so with even more silence they journeyed up the short hill to the nuclear plant.
"Last chance to turn back," Junior stated just within inches of the DexLabs' warp pad.
Alice gulped, but shook her head.
"I-I can do this," she said, wincing internally at her stuttering. How was she supposed to show confidence if she couldn't keep from stuttering?
Suzy smiled at her in sympathy, giving the girl a hug. "You'll do fine. We're be here waiting, okay?"
Alice nodded, forcing her breathing to be steady. She glanced uncertainly at Junior, but he wasn't looking her way. Pulling herself from the embrace, Alice turned and stepped on the warp pad, showing her NanoCom to the Dexbot. Just as the Dexbot was activating the warp capabilities, Junior jerked his head upward and said, "Good luck." The bright light consumed Alice's vision, dimming down when she was on the other side of the infected zone. She glanced at the barrier separating her from her team, and then turned to look at the Reactor Works' layout. A few Ventilators near the warp pad turned her way, interested by the new addition.
Placing herself in a protective bubble, Alice lifted herself off the ground. The Ventilators rushed up to where she had been, hopping on their hind legs in an attempt to reach her, but she was out of their reach. Without having to worry about being attacked, Alice pulled out her NanoCom and looked at the map. The indicator was saying that the isotope was located to the east of her position. She flew over the land, looking between the area and the map. The map indicated she was close, and a look at the land beneath her showed that there was a container right where the map was indicating the isotope to be located. She lowered herself to the ground, keeping her bubble up. The container was a full head taller than Alice, but she could see the isotope, no bigger than half the length of her arm, sitting inside, hovering in space. The control panel had a slot for NanoComs, which was probably how she was to carry it.
There was two options Alice was faced with. Option one: lower her bubble completely and test her theory that her alien DNA would protect her from the plant's radiation. Option two: find a way to open a small part of her bubble to extend her hand and her NanoCom out. Closing her eyes in concentration, Alice went with option two. She imagined a small opening, just big enough for her hand and NanoCom. Alice opened her eyes, finding that the opening was exactly where she had willed it to be. Pulling out her NanoCom, she fit it through the hole and placed it on the container's control pad. A few pushes of the button, and the isotope was transferred from the container into the NanoCom, dinging when it was done. She pulled the NanoCom back into her bubble, sealing up the hole. With a few quick swipes of her NanoCom, she sent the isotope off to Numbuh Two in an email. With the mission complete, Alice looked around, finding that a second warp pad was near her. She stepped up and teleported out of the infected zone. When the light cleared, found that she was back on the outside, but not from where she had entered. Apparently, there were two Dexbots for this infected zone. She dropped her bubble, taking in a breath of fresh air.
"Alice!" Suzy called, rushing over to the girl.
Junior reached Alice first, doing a quick look to see if she had any signs of poisoning. Suzy came up next to him, also giving the girl a glance over.
"How do you feel, Alice?" Suzy asked in concern.
Alice took a moment to answer. "I don't feel any different."
"You don't feel sick? You can still see clearly?" Suzy asked.
"I'm okay," Alice answered.
Suzy and Junior both sighed in relief. Then, collecting herself, Suzy used her elbow to nudge Junior in the ribs.
"And you were worried about her," she said teasingly, her spirits raised once again.
Junior sputtered, his eyes dipping in annoyance. Alice smiled lightly at the antics, feeling warm inside that they had been worried about her. Alice's NanoCom released a chime, and she checked to see an email from Numbuh Two.
Subject Line: Good job
Thanks for getting this! I've got a special container to put it in before I send it down to Ben. If you ever swing by Sector V, the pizza will be on me!
-Numbuh Two
Her NanoCom, and the other two NanoComs chimed in unison with an email from Jimmy Jones.
Subject Line: Nuclear Haste
Awesome! The isotope was really important to get. Mr. Tennyson and the Kids Next Door are trying to get spacecrafts lifted off from Space Port, and this isotope will help with that. Mr. Tennyson says thanks as well!
-Jimmy Jones
Suzy visibly brightened after reading the email. Whatever concerns or doubts she had about accepting the mission was chased away. Alice felt her own doubts disappearing as well; if they could get some spacecrafts up into space, they may have a better chance on ending the war.
"Good job everybody," Suzy said, pocketing her NanoCom. "Especially you, Alice. I think we all deserve an ice cream break."
"Actually, I have another job to do," Alice broke in. "Eddy needs me to deliver an item to Coop. I can go by myself if-"
"No way," Suzy cut in. "Compared to what you just did, delivering an item sounds easy." She looked over at Junior. "What do you say, Nergie?"
The half-demon sent the girl a glare. "I thought we agreed you wouldn't call me that," Junior grumbled.
Suzy shrugged. "Force of habit. So, want to join us to your favorite place?"
"Sometimes I regret teaming up with you," he mumbled.
A sly smile spread across Suzy's face. "No you don't~" she said in a singsong tone, her eyes briefly flitting over to Alice and then back to Junior.
Alice didn't understand why Junior's face heated up into a bright pink color, but she chalked it up to Junior feeling embarrassed for being teased. Having her fun, Suzy smiled like a Cheshire and clapped her hands together.
"To the junkyard!" she declared theatrically, leading the way back to Endsville.
As the trio neared the junkyard's entrance archway, the clear sounds of an argument filled the normally empty air. The group shared a surprised look with each other, but continued further until they reached the archway. They found Kiva and an unidentified robot having a full-on argument near the Dexbot. Coop and a man in a blue beanie were watching from the sidelines, looking amused by the showing.
"That robot wasn't here last time, was it?" Junior asked his friends.
Alice shook her head, looking just as surprised. The robot didn't look familiar, and wasn't in the normal color schemes for DexLabs or Mandark Inds. Its metal was greyish-brown, making it blend in with the rest of the junkyard. The robot was moving its arms around fluidly, which made Alice believe it to be more advanced than the droids employed with Dexter and Mandark.
Coop turned his eyes away from the argument, spotting the three on the other side. Grinning, he raised a hand over his head and waved at them. Encouraged by the greeting, Suzy led the way into the clearing, keeping a wide berth from the two arguing individuals.
"Hey kids," Coop greeted. "What brings you back this way? Here to help get Megas out?"
"Not today, sorry," Suzy answered. "We do have a delivery for you, though."
"Seriously? Is it the game controller I asked for?" When the group nodded at him, the hefty man pumped his fist into the air. "Awesome! I haven't been able to play any games in so long."
Alice pulled out the game controller and handed it off to Coop, who looked ecstatic to see it.
"Thanks for this, kids," he said. "Now I can finally kick Jamie's butt in Ninja Space Patrol."
"Not with those two making a racket," Jamie, the man in the beanie, pointed out, pointing a thumb at the verbal battle still being held between Kiva and the robot.
"On that note, what is that?" Junior asked. "I don't remember you having another robot in the place."
"That is Coop's latest project," Jamie answered, taking a gulp of his drink through the straw.
The "project" heard the comment and swung around, its metallic eyebrows dripping in annoyance. It raised a digit, pointing it straight at the guy.
"I am not a project," the robot argued. "I am Larry 3000 of Time Squad."
"I found him in pieces and fixed him up," Coop added, pointing a thumb at his chest. "He's as good as new."
"Must you bring this up with every local that happens by?" Larry questioned indignantly.
"It's not every day you find a robot from the future," Coop replied. He paused before adding, "Although I'm two for two, so far."
"You're from the future?" Alice asked, staring at Larry in surprise.
"That would be correct," Larry answered, puffing out his chest piece.
"Though he's not nearly as cool as Megas," Coop piped in.
"Excuse you!?" Larry sputtered. "Are we having this discussion again?"
"I'm just saying, dude," the hefty man responded with a shrug. "You're also from the future, but Megas is easily 10,000 times cooler than you." He was trying to make it sound like what he was saying was absolutely logical.
"I am not having this again!" Larry shouted, throwing his hands up. "We will not discuss this!"
Jamie opened his mouth, perhaps to say something in retaliation, but the future bot raised a digit at the man.
"Shut it, Jamie!" Larry snapped.
"Hold on. What the heck is Time Squad?" Junior questioned.
"Time Squad is a task force designed to ensure history is maintained and the future protected. You see, time is like a rope. It is our job as Time Squad officers to ensure that this rope does not unravel," Larry explained.
"So if you're here, something went wrong?" Suzy guessed.
"Correct," Larry answered. "I detected an anomaly in this time period, and was dispatched to handle it. Unfortunately, things went wrong. My timepod malfunctioned, and I arrived in this backwaters time period in pieces. Furthermore, I've been separated from my partner, Officer Buck Tuddrussel, and have been unable to re-establish communication with him."
"And so he's been here slouching off," Jamie remarked sarcastically.
"I am here to fix the historical inaccuracy," Larry explained, and he threw a glare over his shoulder at Kiva. "And to deal with temporal criminals."
"For the last time! I wasn't trying to go this far back in time. I was going back two years!"
"You're a time traveler?" Suzy gasped, her eyes brightening in excitement.
Kiva sighed tiredly, rubbing at the spot between her eyebrows.
"Can we please focus?" Kiva asked in exasperation. "There are actual more important things going on than me going to the wrong time period."
"While the statement is true, don't think that your actions will be overlooked. Once I complete my assignment and return to my time period, I will return to have you arrested," Larry argued with her.
"Excuse me?" Alice spoke up, getting the attention of everyone present. She was a little proud of herself that she didn't wilt under the attention. Maybe that was because she had something important on her mind. "What are you referring to as a historical inaccuracy?"
"This invasion," Larry answered, waving his arm outward in an arch. "Records indicate an alien invasion wasn't to take place until the year 3012." Kiva tensed at the mention of the year, but it went unnoticed by everyone except Coop and Jamie, who gave Kiva a look. "Somehow, this timetable has been sped up."
"You're saying Fuse isn't supposed to be here?" Junior questioned.
"Among others," Larry said, not even making an attempt to be subtle when he glanced over his shoulder at Kiva. She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes, challenging him. He turned back to the kids.
"How did this happen?" Suzy asked, looking and sounding curious.
"We clearly have a war on our hands," Junior added snidely.
"Hush your tone, young man," Larry responded sharply. "I am still working on that."
"You mean you don't know?" Junior demanded incredulously. "Wasn't that the point of you being here?"
"What did I just say about your tone? Honestly, you could learn some manners, young man," Larry lectured. "And if I already knew what caused this, I wouldn't still be here, now would I?"
"Don't lie to the kids. You're still here because your time pod is busted," Jamie corrected.
Larry spun around and pointed at Jamie, looking so angry Alice thought she saw steam coming from out of his circuits. For his part, the beanie-wearing man didn't look disturbed.
"Not another word out of you!"
"I'm just saying," Jamie defended himself, raising his arms up in a surrender position.
"Don't worry, dude, we'll get it working before you know it," Coop added in.
Larry released a tired sigh, indicating that this was probably a topic of discussion on numerous occasions.
"Can we help?" Alice spoke up, getting Larry's attention.
"With this? No. I am afraid I will have to rely on Mister Cooplowski's assistance on my time pod," Larry answered, his tone less harsh. "However, I require my communicator. On top of getting in contact with my team, I would be able to figure out where exactly these creatures were supposed to be. Last I recall, this Fuse fellow was supposed to be on the other side of the universe. My communicator is still in my time pod, but some monsters have been hanging around getting their grubby hands on it. If you can retrieve it for me, I'd be grateful."
"Sounds easy enough," Suzy remarked, looking at her team to gauge their reactions. Alice and Junior nodded in agreement, although Junior's was a little more reluctant. "Which way is the time pod?"
"Inside the infected zone," Larry answered.
"I found him near Megas," Coop supplied further.
"Perfect," Suzy chirped with a clap of her hands. "We'll get your communicator no problem."
"Welp. This is a problem," Suzy commented.
The group had ventured through the infected zone, removing whatever threat passed them. They came upon Larry's time pod, and searched it for the communicator. Larry had given them a basic description of what it looked like, but they found nothing matching the description in the time pod.
"A monster probably swiped it," Junior contributed.
"But which one?" Alice asked, looking around her.
The time pod was a rock's throw away from Megas, and Scrap Tyrants and Scrap Scrappers were patrolling close by to the wreckage. It could have been any of them.
"We'll just have to take them all down until we find it," Suzy remarked, bringing out her Camp Oar. "I'll look to the south. Junior, take the east. Alice, go north."
Junior and Alice nodded at the orders. Alice moved northward, encountering a Scrap Scrapper almost immediately. She felled it, but it didn't have the communicator. She repeated this process twelve more times, all of them coming up empty handed. She was starting to have flashbacks to the earbugs, wondering why she had such terrible luck with items dropping from monsters. The thirteenth monster she encountered, however, was the winner. She sent an energy blast through its chest, dropping the monster into a pile of Fusion Matter. Falling to the ground was an item that was the exact description of Larry's communicator. She picked it up and placed it in her NanoCom before informing her teammates she'd found it.
"Great job!" Suzy congratulated her teammate when they regrouped by the S.A.C.T. agent. "I was starting to worry someone else came in here and found it, mistaking it for something else. Larry's going to be so thrilled when he sees it."
"Do you trust him?" Junior asked, looking contemplative.
"What do you mean?" Suzy asked.
"About the future. About Fuse not even supposed to be here," Junior elaborated.
Suzy shrugged. "I don't know why he'd lie about it. If you think it's too fantastical, I'll have to remind you that our world has encountered far more fantastical things than time travel."
"Yeah, I know," Junior said flatly. "It's just...the thought that this wasn't even supposed to happen just doesn't sit well with me."
Suzy looked at him and nodded in agreement.
"I know, but we don't get the luxury of thinking about 'what ifs'. Fuse is here, and we have to deal with that. We'll leave figuring out where things went wrong to Larry," Suzy explained.
Junior nodded with a sigh. "Yeah, you're right."
"Of course," Suzy grinned. "Now come on. Let's get this back to Larry and go to the Cul-de-Sac. I heard the Urban Rangers got a new shipment of ice cream from the Kids Next Door!"
They exited the infected zone, appearing back in the clearing in front of Coop's trailer. Coop, Kiva, and Jamie were missing. Larry was standing next to the warp pad, almost like he was waiting for them.
"All done, Larry!" Suzy told him, stepping off the warp pad.
Alice stepped off and handed the communicator to the robot.
"Oh, wonderful work!"
"Some monsters had it, but Alice here found it for you," Suzy explained.
"Oh? How did you obtain it?"
"We destroyed them," Junior responded.
"...I see," Larry said curtly, somehow looking disturbed despite being a robot.
"So where's the others?" Junior asked. "Did you arrest them?"
"Ha-ha," Larry sarcastically said, turning his communicator on. "You must be a relative of Tuddrussell's. No, Coop and Jamie are inside playing some barbaric game. Kiva Andru departed to some place called Tech Square for reasons unknown to me."
The kids all shared a quick look with each other, but kept quiet about it. If they had to guess, she was probably going to ask Dexter, a leading mind on robotics, about how to shut Larry up. Larry didn't notice their looks, too busy fiddling with his communicator. It was on, but it was showing that there was a time anomaly right next to him, which wasn't possible. Kiva had left shortly after the kids went into the infected zone, Megas was stuck in said infected zone, and the Fusion Monsters were not as close to him as his communicator was indicating.
Seeing that they were being ignored by the future robot, the three kids decided it was a good time to leave.
"Well, we'll be off. Good luck with the time fixing!" Suzy said in departing, heading off.
Larry released a distracted sound, not acknowledging their departure. He was busy trying to fix his communicator, which was indicating that the anomaly was on the move. Deciding that his communicator was simply on the fritz, he gave it a good thwack, and the unknown anomaly disappeared.
"There we are," Larry purred, pleased that the problem had been fixed. "I'll have to give this a thorough diagnostic later before I try to get in contact with Tuddrussell."
Suzy, Junior, and Alice were in the Cul-de-Sac, sitting in the shade of a tree, having ice cream. The Cul-de-Sac was busy with fighters running around, purchasing new armor and weapons. Urban Rangers were moving about, restocking supplies or purchasing food from Mung Daal's Catering Stand. It was strange watching everyone moving around with so much energy, but all Alice wanted to do was take a nap. Granted, their day had been long.
"Soooo, I've been thinking," Suzy said out of the blue, drawing her teammates' attention. "I think we should head into the Wilds."
"The Wilds?" Junior parroted in confusion. "Why?"
"I think we've done all we can for the Suburbs. The number of Fusion Monsters here is dramatically lower than in other areas. Plus, the Wilds has seen an increase in Fusion Monster activity," Suzy explained. "I just think it's a good time for us to move onward."
"I guess that makes sense," Junior mused.
"Alice?" Suzy asked.
Alice didn't answer immediately. Aside from travelling to her aunt and uncle's house, she hadn't spent a lot of time in the Wilds. Like the Darklands, it was regarded as unruly and dangerous. However, Suzy was right. They couldn't stay in the Suburbs forever.
"Okay," Alice agreed. "Let's do it."
"Alrighty! Team Super Stars, let's meet up at the outskirts tomorrow morning," Suzy declared. She hopped up to her feet and pumped her fist in the air. "To the Wilds and beyond!"
Thank you for reading another of my chapters! I've been going around reading other FusionFall stories, and that kicked me into gear to get this chapter worked on. I highly recommend, if you haven't done so already, that you go and read some of the recent stories posted and updated.
Goo working for Mandark is a headcanon of mine. Considering her ability to conjure up Imaginary Friends on a whim (which was toned down in her later appearances, but still), she seemed like a good fit for Mandark, who is studying the effects of Imaginary Energy. (And maybe I feel bad for the kid and want him to have another friend aside from Robot Jones, okay?) I guess she just wasn't well remembered by the OG Team to add her in, or they were just running out of spaces and had to cut down. Either way, I think her being a guinea pig for Mandark's experiments would be a good storyline for her.
I didn't recall mentioning what Nano Boomer looked like, but his Nano version is the one that was intended for FusionFall Legacy. His attack name and power is totally made up because nothing was known about what power set he'd have. Also, I just really like the idea that he conjures up a baseball bat to whack Fusions around. You may have noticed that he has a lot of personality, especially a personality that conflicts with his cartoon portrayal, but remember, he's a Nano. A Nano's personality won't always reflect back upon what their original is like, and plus I like the idea of a Nano being super bonded with their person.
The statue referenced in the chapter is a nod to Worlds Collide's WC Teaser: 08, which can be found on YouTube. It's a really cool idea for someone as egotistical as Eddy, and I wanted to add it in (plus it ties in to the imaginary toothpaste).
The mission Eddy gives to Alice is totally made up. The mission Rolf gives to Alice, however, isn't. The mission is "Beautification Mutation (Part 5)", and the group going into Charles Darwin Middle School is the follow up mission "Beautification Mutation (Part 6)" but with a tweak. Instead of Fusion Father, it's Fusion Raj. Suzy was going to get his Nano in the next chapter, but I decided to move it up one. The mission Jimmy Jones is also a game mission, "Nuclear Haste." This was also given a twist. Instead of having to go to Numbuh Two, I just had them go straight to the Nuclear Plant and then send it off via NanoCom. It seemed slightly ridiculous that they tell us to hurry because of radiation, but then are okay with us walking around with a radioactive isotope in hand. On top of that, the S.A.C.T. agents were removed from the Infected Zone. The mission was timed, stating that the player had to be quick because of radiation, so I just went with Reactor Works being so dangerous that not even S.A.C.T. agents could be inside. Larry's inclusion is based on his appearance in FusionFall Legacy. So is the mission, which is "First Contact."
Speaking of Larry, in Legacy, he mentions in "Time Run Amok" that the Earth wasn't to be conquered until 56, 897 AD, but I couldn't find any source on who this was referring to or to why. The FusionFall wiki stated it was in relation to the Glorfts, but I still found nothing in the Megas wiki to account for this, so I changed it so instead of conquer it was invaded, and put the date for 3012, which is the date the Glorfts invaded Earth (that's my guess, anyways, considering that's the year the Earth Coalition formed, and they formed in response to the Glorft invasion). Also, Larry being snippy with Kiva is because, technically, Kiva time-travelled illegally. I didn't get a chance to mention it in here, but the "others" Larry referred to was in reference to Kiva, Jack, the Scotsman, Demongo, and Professor Paradox. Of them all, Larry would probably be the most furious with Paradox since that man plays with time like it's child's play.
I've gone back to chapters two and three to add in references to Captain Planet and Titan. It's nothing important, but I put them in to be consistent with their future appearances.