On Today's Episode: The final showdown begins, with the spies chasing down Geraldine and Kandinsky's Deathbot before it can reach Beverly Hills and start wrecking everything in sight. Like most giant robots the spies have fought, Geraldine and Kandinsky have a few tricks up their sleeves, especially considering everything that's gone down before. Can the spies destroy the Deathbot before it levels their home?
Act 3: The Crawling Demise
3:27 P.M. – Outskirts of Beverly Hills
The Deathbot, naturally, made an immediate beeline for the spies when it saw they were chasing it.
"Man, this thing's fast for such a huge machine!" Nozomi exclaimed.
"Halt, evildoers!" May proclaimed, ready to hurl her anchor at it.
"You spies sure are persistent, aren't you?" Geraldine complained.
"Better get used to it," Britney emphasized.
"Just try and stop us now!" Kandinsky sneered.
"That's what we always do, isn't it?" Melissa quipped. "Why would this time be any different?"
"I'm with ya," Mat added.
"Well, how about this?!" Geraldine sneered.
The Deathbot had thrust a hand under the ground, creating a hole, and there was some rumbling under an unsuspecting Alex.
"ALEX, LOOK OUT!" Bridget screamed.
In a matter of seconds, the arm managed to come out of the ground like a shark eating a bird and took Alex by her feet.
"OH MY!" Dawn gasped.
The Deathbot even shook Alex like a baby's rattle in an attempt to kill her or scramble her brain. Seeing that immediately made Nick see red.
"Oh, you two shouldn't have done that, because now I'm gonna destroy you and your stupid-looking robot!" Nick proclaimed, his aura flaring around him.
"You're welcome to try," Geraldine cackled.
"I'll save her from a broken neck!" Haruka proclaimed, using her jet pack backpack to fly up and save Alex.
"What about the rest of us?!" Clover chastised.
"We better work fast," Nozomi proclaimed. "And I THINK I have something that just might work..."
"You'd better hurry, spies," Geraldine laughed. "Because I don't know how much longer your little friend has air to breathe."
Thankfully, with Geraldine and Kandinsky's attention focused on Haruka and Nick, Nozomi was able to slip in and throw a pair of Boomerang Buzzsaw Barrettes towards the hand that was holding Alex.
By the time the villains did notice, it was too late, the barrettes slicing through the arm and severing it cleanly from the machine. This allowed Nick to use a psychic blade to slash through the hand holding Alex and release her.
"You okay there, Alex?" Nick asked after he caught Alex in his arms.
"Mostly," Alex replied. "Nothing's broken, just a little dizzy from the shaking..."
"Trust me, sweetie, they're gonna pay for that," Nick proclaimed.
"Let me take a crack at that one for ya!" May exclaimed, flying away from the area, only to change course and start flying back towards the Deathbot.
"Pointless," Kandinsky laughed as the Deathbot aimed its laser cannon towards May and began to charge up.
"Oh, is that a fact?" May taunted as she wound up and threw her anchor towards the Deathbot, the added momentum from her flying giving the anchor enough speed to spin rapidly through the air and strike the laser cannon directly in its barrel, knocking it off course and interrupting its attack.
May flew upwards to catch her anchor, then charged forward and started bashing at the Deathbot's hull with it.
Though the laser cannon couldn't aim towards her, the machine gun could, but Nick raised a psychic barrier to protect May from the gunfire while she continued to attack.
Melissa and Dawn weren't to be outdone, firing Cyclone Blast Hairdryers towards any weak point on the Deathbot they could find.
The machine gun aimed towards Nick, but he responded by firing a Final Shine Attack into the machine gun, destroying it rather handily before it could start firing again.
The Deathbot answered by firing its laser cannon into the ground, creating shockwaves on impact that the rest of the spies had to fly into the air to avoid.
Nick saw his opportunity while the laser cannon had to recharge, flying in and firing a few psychic bolts directly into the cannon barrel, causing it to explode from the inside and break off from the arm.
"Welp, there go your attack options!" Britney shouted.
"You'd like to think that, wouldn't you?" Geraldine laughed, pressing a button on the Deathbot's control panel that caused the broken hands of its weapon arms to retract back into the machine, replaced by arms with gigantic pincers attached to them.
"Advice for heroes number two, Brit," Haruka sighed.
"So much for that bravado!" Kandinsky cackled, only to hold on to a nearby console as Nick blasted the Deathbot back with another Final Shine Attack.
"So much for that confidence," Nick taunted.
Nick darted back and forth to avoid the clacking pincers that were trying to dice him up before flying to behind the Deathbot and shooting it with another Final Shine Attack...
...only to see the blast harmlessly dissolve against the metal hull.
Naturally, Nick was confused, until he noticed Kandinsky waving his magic wand and looked back to see a bright sheen covering the Deathbot.
"Wait, what just happened?" Sam shouted.
"I think he's reinforcing the Deathbot with his magic!" Nozomi exclaimed. "Which means we're gonna have to KO magic man if we're gonna take this thing down!"
"Leave that one to me," Sortiliena proclaimed. "I'll distract them so that you guys can finish off the big bad bot."
"Go kick some keester up there, Liena!" May exclaimed.
"Naturally," Sortiliena giggled as she flew towards the Deathbot's cockpit.
"We have you in the palm of our hands now, spies!" Geraldine laughed as the Deathbot continued to stomp around the field, slashing its pincers at any of the spies who tried to get too close to it. "Why don't you just give in and spare yourselves any more pain?!"
"Fat chance, you little flop of a spy!" Clover shouted.
"What was that?!" Geraldine growled, that insult clearly having hit a sore spot. "Ooh, you're going to wish you never crossed blades with us when we're finished with you!"
"That's it, Geraldine, make them squirm!" Kandinsky laughed. "Make them rue the day they ever crossed us!"
"Um, excuse me?"
Kandinsky felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around just in time for Sortiliena to send him flying into Geraldine with a vicious right hook, the two villains crashing headlong into the other side of the cockpit.
"I'll take that, thank you," Sortiliena quipped as she plucked Kandinsky's magic wand out of his hand before tossing it to the ground and stomping on it to break it in two. This dispelled the protective magic surrounding the Deathbot, leaving it vulnerable.
"We hope you enjoyed the ride," Sortiliena chuckled as she snatched both villains and air-lifted them out of the Deathbot's cockpit. "All right, you guys, let 'em have it!"
"All over that," Nick proclaimed, spreading his hands out.
"You don't mind us letting you take the kill-shot for some of these bigger machines, Nick?" Alex asked.
"Hey, it's fun to blow these things sky-high," Nick quipped as his left hand was surrounded by a bright green glow, and his right hand was surrounded by a golden yellow glow. "Honestly, I'm starting to wonder if my powers are the reason so many of our rogues' gallery decided to start following rule sixty-one..."
Nick slammed his hands together, the lights around his hands joining together to form a bright silver glow around his hands.
"But hey, as long as I get to help wreck these things, I'm definitely not complaining," Nick laughed. "Now say goodbye to your Deathbot! SHINING STAR ATTACK!"
Nick wrenched his hands apart, a trail of silver light connecting them, before clapping his hands back together to unleash a massive wave of silver light that screamed through the air and blasted the Deathbot before exploding rather spectacularly, reducing the Deathbot to a steaming wreck.
Once that was over, Nick looked over at Geraldine and Kandinsky, who were still being restrained by Sortiliena. "Now what was that about shooting down our confidence?" Nick taunted before raising his right hand to encase Geraldine and Kandinsky in a psychic bubble, then flicking his hand upward to send them off to containment.
"And that's that," May proclaimed. "About time we sent them packing, eh?"
"Well, if we're all done here, let's head back to HQ, shall we?" Mat stated.
"I'm down for that!" Clover exclaimed.
4:49 P.M. – W.O.O.H.P. Headquarters
Jerry's Office
"Another excellent job, agents," Jerry commended. "The W.O.O.H.P. Containment Facility is also going to add extra protocols so Kandinsky doesn't escape again."
"Would be nice to have a magic detector and zapper," Mat laughed.
"That's where I come in," RiCO replied, materializing in Jerry's office.
"Yes, in the meantime, I'll return you lot to your beach house so you can continue to enjoy your summer break," Jerry stated.
"Thanks, Jer," Sam quipped.
"Hold on though," Britney spoke up. "I know Alex said she's fine, but, Jerry, do you suppose you could run a scan on her since the giant robot used her for a baby's rattle?"
Everybody agreed that was a legitimate concern.
"Travis Pastrana's taken some nasty whacks to the head," Mat commented. "James Stewart, too. I think Alex's situation topped theirs by a long shot."
Alex eventually agreed to it, even though she did say she was feeling okay.
RiCO waved her hand towards the ceiling and a scanning device descended, shining a blue light over Alex. The office viewscreen scrolled through different lines of data for a few seconds before RiCO turned back.
"Well, RiCO?" Sam wondered. "Is Alex all right?"
"She's just peachy!" RiCO responded. "My scan showed nothing wrong with her."
"Oh, good, that's a load off my toad," Alex sighed in relief.
With that, Jerry pushed a button and the spies were out of his office before you could say "bye-bye."
"I'm gonna head out, too, Jer," Sortiliena quipped. "Got some combat classes to teach, after all."
"Show 'em how it's done!" RiCO proclaimed.
5:03 P.M. – The Spies' Beach House
Alex was sitting on the couch reading a magazine; she didn't mind that Mat occupied the TV again since the opening round of the 2008 Toyota Motocross Championship was beginning at Glen Helen; Mat was watching the Motocross (or 450cc) class, and right away, he was immediately disappointed that Yamaha's Grant Langston, the 2007 defending champ, was not going to be racing due to a collar bone injury, and that he was still dealing with the tumor in his eye from the Anaheim 3 Supercross in February. Other riders had returned like Suzuki's Mike Alessi and Michael Byrne, Kawasaki's James Stewart, and Honda's Ivan Tedesco and 2007 250cc runner up and 450cc rookie Ben Townley of New Zealand. Calling the race were announcer Leigh Diffey, multi-time Motocross champ Jeff Emig, and pit reporter Erin Bates. Currently, there was an interview between Erin Bates and defending champ Langston.
Grant Langston: At this point, it's a little tough to tell. With the collar bone, I had it plated...
"Talk about déjà vu," Mat chastised as Alex overheard.
"What's all that about?" Alex wondered.
"Defending champ Grant Langston's still on the sidelines thanks to a collar bone injury," Mat answered. "Not to mention the tumor in his eye."
"That's totally a bummer," Alex commented. "But what did you mean by 'déjà vu'?"
Simultaneously, Nick came in to sit with Alex, and he was in time to hear Mat's answer.
"Well, I said 'déjà vu' because Langston won the 125cc Motocross title on a KTM in 2003," Mat explained. "But for 2004, Honda, Kawasaki, and Suzuki were joining Yamaha for adding 250cc 4-strokes, while KTM would have to wait until 2005; so, basically, that meant if Langston was going to defend his 125cc title in 2004, he'd have to ride a 125cc 2-stroke... and the one guy who paid for it that summer... 2003 runner-up Ryan Hughes. So, if you thought Langston was going to ride in the premier class in Motocross, you were right; fortunately, KTM had a 450cc 4-stroke available."
"Talk about unfair," Alex commented.
"Tell me about it," Nick quipped.
"I wouldn't say 'unfair' honestly," Mat answered. "From what I'd heard, there's a development year each manufacturer has to go through for a new bike, and KTM used theirs when former pro Lance Smail tested their 450cc 4-stroke in Canada in 2002."
Nick and Alex hummed.
"Hopefully Langston is able to come back and run that #1," Nick commented.
Before long, the first moto of the 2008 Motocross season at Glen Helen Raceway was under way. Suzuki's Alessi got the early lead, but was quickly disposed of by Kawasaki's Stewart in his first race back since he pulled out of the Anaheim 2 Supercross due to his knee injury.
"No Windham and Reed?" Nick asked.
"Nope," Mat answered. "They're under Supercross-only deals."
Meanwhile, at the pool, Haruka was showing Sam the up-and-over move she and Nick had done on Mat and Sam herself. As it turned out, they were doing the trick on Clover and Blaine.
"Believe me, Sam," Haruka giggled. "This is totally fun!"
"HEY!" Clover yelled as Sam put her hands on her shoulders while Haruka put hers on Blaine's.
"Take a dunk, Clover," Sam smirked.
"Follow me, Sam," Haruka quipped.
Clover and Blaine only had time to gasp in surprise as Sam and Haruka flipped over them to do a handstand on their shoulders, dunking them into the pool at the same time.
"Never gets old," Haruka giggled as she and Sam flipped back to their feet.
"Ooh, you're gonna get it now!" Clover mock-growled as she and Blaine resurfaced.
In the meantime, Britney, Nozomi, and Bridget were tanning poolside with bottles of water in hand and had seen what Sam and Haruka were doing; May was in the pool as well waiting for Nick.
"Ooh, that's a nice change," Bridget commented.
"You seem to be a natural, Sam," Nozomi added.
"I almost want to be dunked that way," Britney giggled as Clover and Blaine resurfaced. Britney didn't get a chance to respond when she felt Haruka's hands on her shoulders.
"Be careful what you wish for, Brit," Haruka laughed as she did another up-and-over to dunk Britney. "Because you just might get it!"
Back indoors, the first moto had just ended with Kawasaki's Stewart winning it; Suzuki's Alessi finished 2nd and Honda's Davi Millsaps on the #118 took 3rd. Between motos was a piece with Erin Bates finding the newly-crowned Supercross champ Chad Reed as a spectator and reportedly looking for a ride for the 2009 season, much to Mat's surprise.
"Shopping for a ride?!" Alex replied in shock.
The three listened in, and Mat was optimistic at Reed saying his plans for 2009 were "coming along."
Chad Reed: I know where I wanna go and where I wanna be...
"I'm sure he'll find somewhere for Anaheim 1 2009," Mat replied.
"Knowing him, I'm pretty sure he will," Nick responded.
"You gotta believe!" Alex proclaimed.
May came inside just as moto 2 was beginning. Alessi got the early lead in moto 2, but like moto 1, was overtaken by Stewart after the first turn.
"What's going on?" May wondered as she looked to see the Glen Helen race on TV.
"Chad Reed's looking for a ride for 2009," Mat replied, a tiny hint of worry in his voice.
"Is it that tricky? He was the Supercross champ this year, wasn't he?" May asked.
Jeff: Wow, what a great start for Stewart and Alessi! Both these guys have the opportunity to win the O/A [Overall].
"Uh oh..." Mat stated.
Leigh: Andrew Short down, and getting back on the bike very gingerly.
A replay showed Short was in 5th and lost the front wheel before he was run over by at least two riders.
"Ouch," May quipped.
"Oof," Alex stated.
"No kidding," Nick agreed.
During the second moto was when Clover came inside – towel and orange bikini on and all – and feeling a little ticked off.
"Clover, what's with you?" Alex wondered.
"Sam and Haruka used your up-and-over trick on Blaine-y and me," Clover groaned. "I just came in for a bottle of water."
Nick got a bit of a laugh out of it, as did Mat until he reacted with another "uh oh..." at what was going on. Honda's Townley was on the sidelines trying to restart his CRF450R.
Jeff: What a disappointment for the 101 Ben Townley – no points in the second moto!
Leigh: A crash and a 6th in the opening one, it's a DNF in moto 2.
"Too bad for him," May replied as Britney and Bridget came in – bikinis on, too. They came in to see the remainder of the second moto.
James Stewart went unchallenged for the second moto when the white flag came out later on.
Leigh: Just to get back to Alessi for a moment as we enjoy watching James Stewart. To say that he was the revelation of last season is maybe a little disrespectful since he's been around for so long, but Mike was definitely the standout of the 2007 AMA Toyota Motocross Championship. We'll see how far he can take it in 2008. Will there be times where he can challenge James Stewart, or is this going to be a lonely season for bike #7?
Jeff: Well, I would say that Stewart right now, he looks very strong, very confident, and he's hungry! Thing with Stewart is that he hasn't finished a complete season without any injuries, so that I think is going to be the real challenge for him. If you're Mike Alessi, you're gonna hope for a little mistake.
Mat was nodding his head repeatedly in agreement with Emig, knowing that was likely the case for the entire 2008 Motocross season.
Stewart uncorked a double fist-pump over one of the many Glen Helen doubles.
Leigh: There it is! The knee is strong! "Bubba" is back! There is no doubt about that! James Stewart, he's back at a great fitness level. The riding, the rhythm today, has just been superb! Checkered flag out for James Stewart! Two from two! The overall victory, and he is here to win his first AMA Toyota Motocross Championship in 2008!
Mike Alessi came home in 2nd place in the moto and overall with a 2-2, and Davi Millsaps finished 3rd overall with a 3-3.
Overall, Mat seemed to not be too concerned; it was just the opening round, so it was okay. With that, the Motocross Lites broadcast followed. Simultaneously, Melissa and Dawn came downstairs after they were finished Smashing, and the rest of the spies came in for a break from swimming in the pool.
"Melissa has an urge for a pizza," Dawn told everyone.
"Sounds good to me," Alex quipped.
"STUFFED CRUST!" everyone nearby shouted.
"Hey, can we actually get pineapple on the pizza this time?" Alex asked.
"Oh, you would," Sam retorted.
"I-It's not a crime to like pineapple, is it?" Alex shot back.
"Well, what about mushrooms?" Dawn wondered.
"HEY!" May shouted.
"Oh, come on with this! What's wrong with mushrooms?!" Dawn exclaimed.
"You know at least one's gotta be meat lovers," Melissa giggled. "I know Nick."
"Do they have Canadian bacon as an option?" Bridget asked. "I've never actually tried it."
"Anchovies!" Sam proclaimed.
"Seriously, Sammy?!" Clover shouted.
"Well, looks like the Third Great Beverly Hills Topping Debate is in full swing," Nick quipped, deciding to stay out of this one.
Haruka and Nozomi volunteered to go get everyone's pizzas.
Mat listened in to the current race going on while Britney and Melissa came to him.
"I sure hope Ryan Villopoto can rebound after how Supercross went for him," Mat told Britney and Melissa.
"He's a fighter," Britney stated.
"He's got this, for sure!" Melissa proclaimed.
Sam overheard the conversation going on and came behind Mat.
"I hope so, too since you seem to like his riding," Sam quipped.
The first Lites moto of 2008 had just gotten under way.
Jeff: Very long start. Who will grab the holeshot? Wide open on these 250Fs!
Leigh: It's Lawrence! Jason Lawrence aboard his Yamaha, and it looks like Ryan Sipes going with him!
Mat reacted at a big pileup in turn 2.
"Yikes, that looked like it hurt," Nozomi quipped.
"It's always the little things that seem to cause these crashes, eh?" May laughed.
Leigh: This is a jam!
Jeff: [Broc] Tickle... looks like [Tony] Sherman's in there... [Michael] Willard, [Matt] Goerke! You see Sherman get back up and going, but no problems at all for number 3-3-8, Jason Lawrence.
Leigh: Awesome start as well from Ryan Sipes, and you may have noticed in that traffic jam, Villopoto was caught up on the side. He has a lot of catching up to do!
Jeff: Definitely not a good start for the defending champion, but if anybody can ride through the pack in this Lites division and get up into a good spot, it's Villopoto...
Mat sighed again in frustration as Villopoto's troubles seemed to never end.
The moto continued with Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Brett Metcalfe #123 battling with KTM's Sipes while Lawrence, the reigning Supercross Lites West champ, started pulling a gap. As for Villopoto, the timing and scoring had him listed in 10th place.
"10th place..." Mat chastised. "I sure hope this won't be another long summer for him!"
"Sounds like you like his riding," May told Mat.
"I do," Mat replied. "You can have more than one favorite after all..."
"True," Blaine stated.
Leigh: Here's Villopoto, and he has his teammate in front, Branden Jesseman. Another one he needs to get by.
Jeff: And that looks like Jesseman, the 30...
Leigh: That's Jake Weimer.
Jeff: Weimer and [Nico] Izzi was just in front of them, so some very talented riders that our champion's gonna have to work his way though if he wants to get up into the top 5 in this moto. A lot of time left in this moto and Villopoto definitely strong, and I really think that he has something to prove after the way the Lites Supercross Championship worked out this year. Motocross, this is his last opportunity for a championship on a Lites bike.
"If he's going for another title, 10th place won't get the job done," Nick replied.
"No, it won't," Mat replied. "Three titles in this class in Motocross, you're a legend. Carmichael's done it, as has Mark Barnett in the early '80s."
Sometime later, Haruka and Nozomi returned; Villopoto had only advanced two positions to 8th and was battling for 7th with Suzuki rookie Nico Izzi on the #341.
"Ah, sweet pizza!" Nick proclaimed.
That was when Metcalfe and teammate Austin Stroupe had closed in on race leader Lawrence; Stroupe even made the move on Metcalfe to take 2nd place. Defending champ Villopoto had fought up to 5th. Lawrence took the moto win with Stroupe and Metcalfe behind him. Villopoto finished in 5th behind Suzuki's Ryan Dungey, who came in 4th.
Mat wasn't too happy about Lawrence winning, and Villopoto finishing 5th as the second and final Lites moto got under way.
"Hopefully this race will be different," Sam commented.
Suzuki's Dungey got the early lead in moto 2.
Leigh: ...and Stroupe is into 2nd, Villopoto's in the mix as well!
Jeff: J-Law's back in 4th, then it's Metcalfe, Weimer, and Tommy Hahn all with good starts...
Mat started feeling better as Villopoto ran in 3rd, which was much better than the first moto when he was as far back as 10th.
"This is more like it," Mat commented, until he reacted at a VERY close call between Dungey and Stroupe, who nearly swapped into Dungey while going for the lead.
Leigh: ...he still had a top 4 finish at Delmont – LOOK AT HIM! ALMOST TAKES BOTH OF THEM OUT!
"Holy geez!" Melissa exclaimed.
"I'd certainly have waited to make that pass," Mat laughed.
"That's what you call 'anxious' there," Britney quipped.
"Yeesh, that had me on the edge of my seat!" May proclaimed.
"You're not the only one, May," Nick answered.
Eventually, Stroupe DID get around Dungey, and Villopoto wanted to get around Dungey, too.
Leigh: What an awesome second moto here at Glen Helen! And can... maybe... Stroupe and Villopoto keep Kawasaki's winning streak intact? Villopoto on the inside, makes quick work of him!
Jeff: I'm not sure if Dungey made a mistake there or Villopoto just forced the issue, but Villopoto up into 2nd! The Kawasaki boys are all over Ryan Dungey, our early leader!
Moto 1 winner Lawrence was running in 5th.
"Win streak?" Clover wondered.
"Kawasaki's won here every year in the Lites class since 2002," Mat answered. "James Stewart twice, Mike Brown, Grant Langston, Ryan Villopoto, and Ben Townley."
Stroupe continued to lead all 40 riders until...
Jeff: Stroupe right now... 2nd place in the first moto... leading the 2nd moto, that would definitely give him the overall! Villopoto...
Leigh: OH! HE'S DOWN! AUSTIN STROUPE HAS LOST IT COMING DOWN OFF THE MOUNTAIN!
Jeff: There goes the overall for him. Whoa, he's back up very quickly... keeps the engine running. We'll see what Austin Stroupe is made of at this point as that hands the lead over to Ryan Villopoto!
A replay came up.
Jeff: Just gets on the brakes and slides the rear wheel – starts to lose the front wheel, then both wheels hook – almost high-sides him. He wrestles the bike down and gets right back up. Could have been worse but nice soft landing for Austin Stroupe. That's really going to mix everything up...
"Major oof on that one," Bridget quipped.
"Like he said, though, it could have been a lot worse," Nick stated.
Stroupe was still running 3rd, but made another mistake in the ruts and that allowed Metcalfe to get by and send Stroupe to 4th, possibly giving away the overall.
A while later, GEICO Powersports Honda's Trey Canard on the 48, the East Lites Supercross champ managed to get by Jason Lawrence for 5th place.
"That's surprising unless Lawrence wasted all his energy on the first moto," Mat observed.
"Somehow, I don't really think so," Nick deduced.
Lawrence started picking things up again and battled with Canard to get 5th place back; simultaneously, Stroupe started to make a move on Metcalfe to take 3rd place back.
Leigh: Look at this! Look at this! Through across the line they go, running out of time... THEY ALMOST TOUCH – THE TEAMMATES!
Stroupe had muscled his way past Metcalfe for 3rd.
Jeff: Very close racing! Austin Stroupe has just been on a mission... has already been on the ground once this moto, but working his way back into 3rd place. If we do the math here, that's gonna give him... 22 from the first moto and 20 for this moto, that just puts Austin Stroupe in the position to win the overall here today at Glen Helen! That'll give him 42 points, Villopoto would only have 41 with his 5-1.
Leigh: That would be his first – his VERY FIRST AMA Toyota Motocross Lites National win!
"Talk about crazy!" May exclaimed as a replay came up.
Jeff: Both riders coming up a little bit short on that obstacle, but Stroupe on the inside, has a clean line – no braking bumps – and he actually gives a little tap there to Metcalfe. Purely incidental from my viewpoint.
Leigh: First time around I said they almost touched, that was pretty clear they did touch!
"Well, you must like this then," Haruka told Mat, who nodded in response.
As the final lap came, Jason Lawrence had gotten back around Trey Canard for 5th, while Villopoto lapped his teammate Branden Jesseman on the #77.
Leigh: It's his final year in Lites competition, and he's gonna light up the Motocross – the senior division – next year. Can he go out a three-time champion?
Jeff: I believe it's going to be a tough fight this year. Not that last year or any other years were any easier – last year one of the toughest-fought championships that I've ever witnessed. Villopoto coming out on top, but you got a whole new group of riders once again, and just as a champion does, he has what everyone wants, and so, every year, somebody's gonna be there to challenge him. This year, it's looking like Austin Stroupe, Ryan Dungey, Jason Lawrence, Brett Metcalfe... they're all for real.
"Your take, Mat?" Nozomi wondered.
"I thought Ben Townley was easily Villopoto's arch-rival from 2007 since Townley took 6 wins to Villopoto's 5," Mat replied. "Now, with Townley jumping to the 450, I don't know if anybody can touch Villopoto if he's proven he's back by winning this moto."
Jeff: ...Metcalfe hinging on a 3-3, but Austin Stroupe has totally spoiled the party for everyone by stepping up here late in the second moto with a 2-3... half a lap left to go and he's gonna win his very first overall. What a special day!
Villopoto took the honors by winning the second moto for 2nd place overall. The real winner was Stroupe, who crossed in 3rd to take the overall with his 2-3 performance; moto 1 winner Lawrence finished 5th place for 3rd overall, but his 3rd place overall interview did answer a lot of questions.
Jason Lawrence: ...I spent all my energy in that first moto trying to win it. I was trying to eat some food back at the bus afterwards, and my adrenaline was so high and I was trying to force food down and I got really bad stomach cramps. We went out there... I didn't even really want to ride, but it's the first round – you can't give it up already. We rode and about halfway through, I threw up a little bit in my mouth and swallowed it, and then I felt good...
"Oh, geez," Bridget grimaced.
Leigh: Oh my! What an adventure from Jason Lawrence!
Jeff: Classic J-Law style there, but that 1-5's gonna be good enough for 3rd.
Fortunately, nobody lost any appetites over that interview. As for Stroupe, he had said he surprised himself that he won the overall with his 2-3. The final points standings put Stroupe as the points leader by 1 point over Villopoto and Lawrence 42-41.
"Man, that was an epic race, wasn't it?" May laughed.
"No kidding on that one," Nozomi answered.
As the spies all discussed the race, Nick glanced out the living room window, and once again he saw a seemingly random owl's feather floating down from the sky.
And just like the other times, no one else seemed to notice it, and when Nick blinked, it was gone.
I'm seriously curious about what that could be, Nick thought. But it doesn't look like I'll be getting answers anytime soon.
So, for now, Nick joined his friends in discussing the race, knowing he'd figure this out sooner or later.
Totally Spies: Competitive Counterparts
~The End~
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Final Author's Notes from Mat49324: And that's that for Competitive Counterparts. We hope you enjoyed this one with two villains not from the LAMOS taking a crack at taking down the spies again. We hope you stay tuned for our next project, Lucky Number Seven, and that'll be posted on The Blue Time Ranger's page. For now, here HE is with his final thoughts.
Final Author's Notes from The Blue Time Ranger: And that's all she wrote, everybody! Yeah, just because we've got a brand new containment facility doesn't mean that the LAMOS are done for just yet. In fact... nah, I'll save that for another time.
You may have noticed the random owl feathers that only Nick has been able to see popping up in this story. Well, that's actually a small bit of foreshadowing for our third movie! I promised I'd tell you a little more about it at the end of this story, so here we go! Our third movie project is Totally Spies the Movie: A Crack in Time, and it's gonna be a doozy. In this one, Boogie Gus is up to his usual shenanigans when it comes to messing with history, but this time, he actually seems to succeed, and the spies are seemingly erased from history... all except Nick, who was saved at the last second by a mysterious figure (hint: the owl feathers). Basically, Nick has to jump through different fudged-up times to bring the spies back and restore their memories so they can go stomp Boogie Gus... but, is Boogie Gus truly the only person to blame for this? That's about all I can say without giving away stuff, so look forward to that sometime around probably February, depending on how long it takes us to finish season four.
And finally, here's what's coming up next on The New Adventures! It's been quite a while since May's favorite band has been seen, so let's bring back both them and a villain that we haven't actually seen at all in The New Adventures yet! Next up is Lucky Number Seven, which will be posted by me. So, until next time, have a fantastic day, don't listen to the screeching morons, enjoy this preview of Lucky Number Seven, and we'll see you mission!
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"All right, everyone, how about we get this show on the road?"
A chorus of cheers resounded as the members of J-pop band Idol Opportunity got into position in order to practice their routine for their upcoming concert appearance. They had recently begun their second Idol Travels World Tour, and they'd made a quick pit stop back home to prepare for their next cross-country performance...
...as well as to pick up their special guest for the next leg of the tour.
And that special guest looked a little nervous from what Marnie could see. She wasn't sure if it had to do with her being nervous about this leg of the tour...
...or if it was that other thing she'd been dropping hints about lately.
"Hey, Seven, can I ask you something?" Marnie asked as she approached her fellow idol.
"Oh, what's up, Marnie?" Seven answered as she smoothed down her idol outfit.
"Is everything okay?" Marnie responded. "I noticed you're kinda nervous."
"...nothing gets past you, does it?" Seven admitted, glancing around at the other members of Idol Opportunity before looking back at Marnie. "Have you noticed how I've been looking around a lot lately?"
Marnie had noticed, in fact.
"This may sound strange, but... I'm worried that I've got a stalker following me," Seven proclaimed. "At first, I thought it was just the typical paparazzi, but this one's persistent. I don't want to worry the others, but..."
"Can you tell me anything about him?" Marnie wondered, an idea already coming to mind.
"Well... I think he was an older guy with a... metal arm?" Seven quipped.
And that was all the convincing that Marnie needed, as despite not knowing the exact identity of this stalker, she had heard of someone matching that description before.
Marnie reached into her pocket to retrieve her cell phone. "Let me call someone," Marnie stated. "They can help us."
To be continued in Totally Spies: Lucky Number Seven...