Happy New Year's Eve, peoples! :D Here's a quick update for ya, while you all countdown to midnight!
I would also like to give a special shout-out to Mr. Cartoon, who pretty much came up with this idea himself. Without his inspiration, this special wouldn't exist. (Happy New Year, dude, and may it be full of inspiration and awesome!)
Without further ado, The Shaggy Pugsy and Flip New Year's Eve Special! …with a new Guest Star!
d~b
~Episode 15~
Mayhem with The Mask!
(aka, the New Year's Eve that No One Forgot)
New Year's Eve in Toonopolis!
Like Christmas, the streets were full of excitement, as everyone was preparing to throw parties, go out on the town, and celebrate until midnight like the world was going to end once the night was over! Yeah! Bring it on, guys! Lets live it up!
*the narrator breaks out a stereo*
It's time to make life worth living! *hits play*
(the song I Gotta Feeling by the Black Eyed Peas begins to play)
*Story Interruption!*
Please pardon the paragraphs above. The narrator got a little TOO excited and had to be sedated.
Please stand by until he recovers.
*elevator music plays*
We now return to the episode. (Larry, for the love of our sanity, PLEASE contain yourself this time!)
*Back to the story*
(…sure thing, Bob… ugh my head…)
*ahem* Anyway… yes, everyone in the city was excited and making plans for the night.
All except our heroes at Paradise Towers, who were trying to figure out what to do. "Like, c'mon, Pugs. Why don't we go out to a party?" Shaggy asked as they walked down the hallway around noon, as Pugsy was now off work.
"We can't, Shag, who'd stay with Flip?" Pugsy reminded him.
"I'll be fine on my own," Flip replied.
Pugs gave him a look. "Yeah, right. Like I'd be dumb enough to leave YOU home alone for a night,"
"Alright, so why don't we just have a party ourselves, then?" Shaggy suggested.
"Ha! No way, the last time you guys threw a party, the cops got called,"
"Sheesh, are you still mad that we didn't tell you about it?"
"No, I'm mad because you threw it in my own house!"
"Well, lets do SOMETHING tonight!" Flip exclaimed. "It's New Year's Eve and everyone's going out… We have to go out, nothing ever happens around here!"
Shaggy and Pugsy gave him a look. "'Nothing' ever happens around here?! The first day we moved in, we dropped an air-conditioner on our landlord! We ended up switching bodies, then a baby ended up on our doorstep, we have a psychotic stunt-chick as a neighbor, some masked figure keeps running around, something explodes down in the basement almost every day… And that's not even half the list! And you still think nothing happens around here?!"
Flip pauses for a minute. "Well, apparently not today,"
Shaggy rolled his eyes. "Like, never mind. Lets head to the apartment, I have to get ready for my radio-show tonight,"
"You're working tonight? I thought the manager said we could take the night off and Vincent was going to take the slot!" Pugsy replied.
Shaggy shook his head. "Vincent said he couldn't make it, for some reason."
(Outside the window, we see the Black Alchemist swinging by on a zipline)
"HE probably had plans for the night…" Flip muttered.
"Flip, if you keep complaining, you can spend the New Year cleaning house- INCLUDING Shag's room!"
Flip's eyes widened. "Alright, alright, I'll shut up!"
"My room isn't that bad," Shaggy scoffed.
"Please, you could lose King Kong in that mess-"
"Hey, guys!" Shawn called from down the hall. "I heard that we're getting a new resident in the building!"
Flip looked at his watch. "I guess we're done with the filler," he said, then looked at Shawn. "Do you know who it is?"
"No, but they should be arriving down in the lobby any minute. Wanna go meet him?"
"Sure… at least it's something to do," Pugsy said, looking at Flip, who sneered at him.
The guys all took the elevator down to the lobby, where already a few boxes had been brought in, all labeled 'Kitchen stuff', 'Dog toys', 'Fragile', 'Don't Peek', and such and such… no really, there was actually a box labeled 'Such and Such'. In walked the new resident, carrying a box that covered his face, labeled 'More stuff'. With him was a little Jack Russel Terrier, who was carrying a tiny suitcase labeled 'Milo'.
"Well, Milo, that's the last of it." The man carrying the box said, setting it down to reveal his face. He was a lean young man with brown hair and eyes, somewhere in his late 20's maybe early 30's, Caucasian, blood type O+, currently single, often quiet and perhaps slightly repressed-
"Alright, can you just get to the part where we learn his name?" Shawn said to the narrator.
(oh, right.)
The man looked over, seeing the others. "Oh, hi there! Are one of you guys the manager?" he asked.
"Nope, we just live here." Shawn replied, shaking his hand. "I'm Shawn K, and these are my friends, Shaggy, Pugsy, and Flip."
"Nice to meet you," Flip said, shaking his hand next.
"You too. I'm Stanley Ipkiss," The man, now to referred to as Stanley, answered. The dog beside him gave a short yip. "Oh, and this is my dog, Milo."
Milo stuck out his paw, and Shaggy bent down and shook it. "Heh heh, nice to meet you too, Milo." He said.
"So what brings you to Paradise Towers?" Pugsy asked Stanley.
Stanley sighed. "Well, I couldn't afford the rent at my last apartment. I got fired from my bank-job, and I had to move since it was impossible to find a job in Edge City anymore. So, I landed a job here, packed up and Milo and I decided to settle here. It looks like quite a nice place!"
"GET BACK TO WORK, YOU IDIOTS!" came Robotnik's bellow from downstairs. "I'M NOT PAYING YOU TO TAKE BREAKS!"
"…which is run by a not-so-nice manager…" Pugsy muttered.
"THAT'S the manager?!" Stanley gasped, eyes wide.
"Speak of the grouch, and he'll appear," Shaggy whispered, as Robotnik stormed up the stairs.
"What's going on up here?! Why is everyone standing around the lobby?! There's no loitering allowed in here! And where did all these boxes come from?!" Robotnik was demanding. Milo growled and barked at him. "And who let in the dog?! …Did that Pugnacious girl visit ANOTHER animal-rescue shelter?!"
"Not this week, Robotnik. We've got a new guy moving in!" Flip exclaimed, motioning to Stanley. "This is Stanley Ipkiss,"
"Who?"
"I, uh, called you last week about renting the apartment in 214?" Stanley reminded him.
Robotnik walked over to his desk, looking at a clipboard. "Oh, right. The doofus who called me to ask if the apartment allowed pets…" he paused, then wrote on a note-pad. "(note to self, find a way to prohibit that rule)" He then stood up and walked over… not noticing ZIP pop up and rip up the note he made for himself, before sneaking out. "Alright, alright, just haul this junk up to your room, and try to stay out of my way!"
Stanley arched an eyebrow. "Is that really any way to talk to someone who will be paying rent here?" he questioned.
"Buddy, with the idiots I've got living here now, you should be thankful I'm even allowing vacancy!"
Shaggy looked around. "Who are the idiots he's talking about?" he asked Pugsy, who just gave him a sneer.
"You know, I might just take my business elsewhere," Stanley said to Robotnik, crossing his arms. (Milo doing the same while growling).
"Ha! Good luck with that, the only other apartment allowing vacancy is the Roach Motel- which, judging from some of your things here, would be a perfect place for you," Robotnik retorted, looking inside one box… and pulling out a wooden mask. "Just look at this thing! It looks like a carving a Boy Scout would make!" he then tossed it over his shoulder!
Stanley gasped, catching the mask. "Careful with that! This isn't how you should treat your residents, sir!"
"That's your problem to deal with, isn't it? I'll be expecting your rent upfront after tonight!"
"After to- I'm barely moved in!"
"Consider it a down-payment." Robotnik then smirked, walking off. "Enjoy your stay, heh heh."
Stanley only gawked. "What a jerk!" he turned to the others. "How can you deal with that creep?!"
"Well, it's not easy, but you get used to it after a while," Shawn sighed, then picked up a box. "Here, we'll help you get moved in."
"By the way, where'd you get that mask? I feel like I've seen it before," Flip said.
"Um, I just found it…" Stanley replied, as they all gathered his things, heading to his apartment.
d~b
"So, what's it like living in Pent Towers?" Stanley asked the guys later that afternoon, once they helped him get settled.
"Well, not too much happens… though you'll have to watch your back," Shaggy said. "We've, like, got a crazy-chick for a neighbor who jumps off the balcony when she visits!"
"Something explodes in the basement every five minutes," Pugsy adds.
"And a mysterious hero dubbed 'The Black Alchemist' sneaks around from time to time," Shawn threw in.
"There's a bully who always harasses us- targeting me mostly," Flip muttered.
"And you've already met our landlord," Shaggy scoffed, then turned to Flip. "And YOU still claim nothing happens around here!"
"Well, other than that, it's boring around here- especially tonight on New Year's Eve!"
Shaggy rolled his eyes, and looked at his watch. "Well, I'm heading back to the apartment to get ready for work. I've got a radio-gig to get to around 5,"
"Thank you, Mr. Exposition," Pugsy remarked.
Shaggy rolled his eyes, turning to Stanley. "…Forgot to mention- my room-mate's a real loudmouth, just so you know,"
Pugsy turned to Flip. "Are you going to let him insult you like that?"
"Alright, that's enough you two." Shawn said, standing up. "We should all get going, and get out of Stanley's hair for a while."
"It was nice meeting you guys, see you around!" Stanley replied, waving them away as they walked out. He then sat down on the couch, breathing a sigh, as Milo hopped up on his lap. "Well, I think we've got a few pros to outmatch the cons in this place. What do you think, Milo?"
Milo yipped, then dove into a box, popping up out of the Styrofoam pieces and holding a leash in his mouth.
Stanley smirked, rolling his eyes. "Of course, that's always your answer," he took the leash and hooked it to Milo's collar. He put on a coat (as well as putting a little sweater on Milo) and they walked out to take a walk, heading to the snow-covered backyard.
Outside, Horace and Grounder were building a snowman. "Shouldn't we be down in the lab?" Horace asked.
"We're just taking a break! We built, what four machines already?" Grounder replied. "Since, apparently, Robotnik wants a few spares just in case one of them blows up."
"You mean 'when' they blow up,"
"Hey, guys. Do you live around here, too?" Stanley asked, striking up conversation, while Milo looked at the snowman.
"Kinda-sorta. We work here," Grounder answered.
"Right, we're Robotnik's henchme- er, I mean, handymen." Horace replied.
"Nice to meet you. …Hey, uh, I forgot to ask the manager, but since he's a grouch, would you mind telling me how much the rent is here? I had gone through so many apartments, but couldn't find a room, and was so relieved to finally find one that the rent slipped my mind until your boss brought up that I'm supposed to pay…"
"Alright, alright, slow down there. The rent around here is $500 a month, plus $200 for pets… so that would be, ah, $700 for your account,"
"$700? I can't afford that yet, upfront! I'm going to have a word with that guy!" Stanley then stormed in the building.
Milo remained outside, sticking a carrot-nose on the snowman's face, before following his owner inside. "Looks like the boss has another complaint," Grounder said.
"Meaning we'll probably have another vacant room," Horace added.
Stanley walked into the lobby, finding Robotnik reading the novel 'Gone Girl'. "…good grief, this is messed up- no wonder they made a movie of it!" he was commenting to himself.
"Robotnik, I want to talk to you about my rent- I can NOT pay $700 dollars upfront by tomorrow! I simply can't afford it right now!" Stanley told him, firmly.
"$700? Why, there must be a mistake!" Robotnik set his book down and took out a calculator. "…There's still the matter of your utilities, such as water, heating, electricity, air-conditioning… as well as basement storage, that all would be totaled up to… lets see… $950.85,"
Stanley's eyes widened. "WHAT?! That's outrageous! I can't afford that at all!"
"Then I guess you'll either have to move out… or get rid of the dog,"
Milo snarled at this.
"You can't treat people this way!" Stanley snapped at him. "How can you be like this?!"
"Oh, simple- I hate people. Now either hit the bank and get the cash, or pack up and get out!" Robotnik snapped.
Stanley sneered and stormed off. Milo snorted at Robotnik, before following in the same manner as his master.
Jasper and Scratch walked over, upon hearing the argument. "Uh, you really think you should have treated him like that, boss?" Scratch asked.
"Why not? That man is nothing more than a scrawny, repressed loser! …Any more of a weakling, and he'd be Shaggy." Robotnik remarked.
Shaggy, who was walking by, turned and glared at him. "Hey! I heard that!" he snapped.
"BEAT IT!"
"Zoinks!" Shaggy then raced back up the stairs.
"Still, he seemed pretty outraged about- those two idiots!" Jasper began to say as he looked out the window. "We're downstairs busting our butts off, and they're out there playing in the snow!"
"Lets get them!" Scratch bellowed, and they stormed out. Through a window, we see them chasing after Grounder and Horace, trying to bury them under the snow.
Robotnik shook his head, returning to his novel. "Least they're the ONLY idiots I have to deal with,"
d~b
Back in Stanley's apartment, he was pacing around angrily. Milo sat on the couch with one of his squeaky toys, watching his owner vent. "Almost a thousand dollars a month to live in this place, I can't believe it! I've heard of exclusive hotels that don't even charge that much! I'm surprised anyone lives here at all, at that cost! It's… just… arrgh!" Stanley was ranting.
Milo grabbed his squeak-toy and handed it to his owner.
"Thanks, Milo," Stanley then started to rapidly squeeze the chew-toy, like a stress-relief toy. "The nerve of that man… why doesn't anyone do something about him?!"
Suddenly, he caught something in the corner of his eye- the mask that he had brought in with him, sitting on the nightstand.
"Yeah… 'someone' should teach him a lesson-" he slapped himself just then. "No! Stanley, you vowed to never put that thing on! Not unless the situation was dire!"
Milo walked over to the mask, sniffing it.
Stanley pointed at him. "Milo, you took the vow too!"
The Jack Russel Terrier whimpered, lying down.
"Just breathe, Stanley… there's got to be a better option. Maybe I could find someone who's looking for a room-mate at another apartment. …Agh, no wait, they could find the mask and put it on… Maybe I could get a loan from the bank- ugh, but then I'd have extra payments to make… Maybe I could try to reason with the guy-"
"You clods be careful with that, or I'll snap your necks!" came Robotnik's shout from downstairs.
Stanley looked back at the mask, then at Milo, who gave him a curious look.
He then picked up the mask, looking back at Milo, who gave him a look. "This will be the ONLY time! The guy's asking for it!"
Milo only scoffed and shook his head.
Stanley, slowly and hesitantly, brought the mask to his face…
The moment it made contact there was a flash of green light, as the mask began to infuse onto his face! Beneath it, Stanley let out muffled screams. "Augh! Wait! I changed my mind!"
He then began to spin like a tornado, crashing all around the room! Milo let out a whimper and hid under the couch, knowing who was going to show up.
Once the tornado stopped, Stanley Ipkiss was gone, and in his place stood a green-faced figure wearing a yellow suit and wide-rimmed matching hat, white gloves, black shoes, smiling a large smile and having a crazy look in his eyes that could rival… well, any psycho! "Somebody stop me!" he exclaimed, rushing to the door—
He rushed back, checking his teeth in a mirror, then rushed back out! "Look out world, The Mask is back!" he shouted.
From under the couch Milo peeked out, groaning and covering his face with his paws.
d~b
"See you after work, Shag!" Flip said to Shaggy as they walked through the lobby, the tall lanky young man heading out the front door while the tween was going out the back.
"Later, Flip!" Shaggy called back, and they both left.
Robotnik sat behind his desk, rolling his eyes. "Now if only I could get the loudmouth, psycho-girl, celebrity-nut, Ted, and the masked-weirdo out." He muttered.
The doors opened and a delivery-man, who had his hat pulled over his face, walked in with a small package. "Delivery for Doctor Robotnik," he said in a low-voice, holding out a clipboard. "Sign here, please."
"Ooh, it must be that new Ultraviolet-ray-powered wrist-laser I ordered last week!" Robotnik grabbed the clipboard, looking down and signing his name.
(As he signed, the delivery-man lifted his hat, revealing The Mask smiling and bouncing his eyebrows at the audience, before pulling it back over his face).
Robotnik handed him back the clipboard. "Thank you," the 'delivery man' stated before zipping out.
"Now to see my prize!" Robotnik declared as he pulled the string that held the package together-
*BOING!*
"SURPRISE!" The Mask shouted, popping out of the box and getting in Robotnik's face!
"AUGH!" Robotnik screamed, falling back in his chair, before standing up, furiously. "Who ARE you?!"
"Me? …Well, I'm just another poor soul looking for a friend!" The Mask said… then gave Robotnik a big, Looney-Tunes style smooch! "Mmmmmwuah!"
"ACK! PPTHH! BLECH!" Robotnik sputtered, wiping his lips while spitting repeatedly.
"Yeesh, someone's been laying off the mouth-wash! Yech! I hope you don't kiss your mother with that mouth, you might kill her!"
Robotnik was now boiling mad. "GET OUT OF HERE!"
"Awwww, but I just got here! C'mon, why so tense? It's New Year's Eve- lets have a night on the town!" The Mask grabbed Robotnik, swinging him around. "Go out dancing-"
*CRASH!*
He let go of Robotnik, making him crash in the wall. The villain sat there with a dazed expression, including now-crooked teeth, unfocused eyes, and his tongue hanging out. The Mask zipped over and put his arm around him, holding up a camera-phone. "Or we could take selfies and post them all over our profiles-!"
*CLICK!*
A picture of a smiling Mask and still-dazed-and-doofy-looking Robotnik suddenly appeared on Robotnik's Fakebook page, with the caption, 'Best Buddies' posted on it.
The villain shook off his daze, growling and seething with anger- steam literately rising from his head as he glared at The Mask. "OR, we could throw a party!" The Mask shouted, sticking a party-favor in Robotnik's mouth, a party-hat on his head, and a noise-maker in his hand, then threw confetti in the air. "We could jam out, invite a million people over, gorge ourselves… and I'd list the rest, but there could be kids reading this,"
By this point, Robotnik's rage was so high his whole body- clothes and all- turned into a fiery red color… then he burst into fire himself! "THAT'S IT!" he bellowed.
The Mask was casually standing next to him, roasting marshmallows. "Aw, but we were just getting started! WHOA!" He jumped to the left, as Robotnik swung an axe at him. "Easy, lardo, you could really hurt someone with that!"
Robotnik then started chasing after him, running all around the lobby, the Mask managing to outrun him. "Get back here, you clod!"
After 20 high-speed laps, The Mask stepped off to the side, watching as Robotnik kept running in circles. The Mask was leaning against the wall, having his legs stretched out. "Should you REALLY be running with that? If you're not careful, you could…"
"Gah!" Robotnik yelped, tripping over The Mask's outstretched foot and falling on the ground, the axe he held flying up and sticking to the ceiling above him.
"…do that."
The villain groaned, lying on his back, then gasped as he looked up, just in time for the axe to fall!
*Skish!*
…Luckily, the axe was off a few inches, only chopping off one side of his mustache. "Whoa, talk about a close cut!" The Mask commented.
Robotnik paled, then passed out.
The Mask shrugged, then looked at the clock. "Hmm, that was only five minutes… I guess I could go out- been a while since I've had a night on the town!" he then walked out the doors.
…coming back and sticking a 'This Space For Rent' sticker on Robotnik's stomach.
d~b
"…and that was Avicii with their song, 'The Nights', to help everyone get into the New Year's Eve jive tonight," Shaggy was saying in his radio-voice. "We're going to be taking a few calls now from our listeners, to see what they're doing as they count down to midnight." He then pushed a button. "You're on the air now. Who's calling?"
"Hey, Case, this is Duke- just wanted to say that I love your show. Having a party in my best friend's sisters' lab, and was wondering if you had some advice on how to talk your friend into NOT messing with lasers?" came the voice of Dukie, the mutt who hangs around with Johnny Test.
"Duke, my only advice would be to get your friend out of the lab, because if he's as reckless as I think he might be, he's not going to listen to any kind of reason until his life is at stake,"
"That's what a figured."
Shaggy laughed. "Alright, next caller,"
"Oh my gosh, I'm finally on the air! I totally love your radio-voice, I didn't think it would be that awesome-" came the voice of the writer.
"(Dude, we already had a cameo! Hang up!)" came the co-writer's voice in the background.
"Er, I mean, wrong number!"
Shaggy shook his head. "(First the narrator, now the writer…)" he mumbled to himself, before going back to the radio. "Well, looks like everyone's pumped for tonight. Lets take one more call, and get back to the music." He pushed another button. "You're on the air with Case Rogers. Tell me who you are, and what you're up to tonight,"
"Well, I can't use my real name, and I'm hoping the cops ain't listening!" came The Mask's voice! "Because this is the night where insanity hits- and I'm going to be hitting harder!"
"Wow, man, you're really pumped! What are you doing tonight that's so crazy?"
"First off, dropping by the radio-station!"
"That doesn't sound too- wait, what?"
Suddenly, The Mask came through the door, holding a cell-phone. "Lucy, I'm hoooome!" he exclaimed in a 'Ricky Ricardo' expression.
"Like zoinks!" Shaggy exclaimed, though cleared his throat and went back to his radio-voice. "Whooaa, seems like we've got a surprise guest on the show!"
"Really? Who is it? Jim Carrey? Rob Paulsen?"
Shaggy chuckled. "Take a seat, man,"
The Mask pointed at his rear. "No thanks, already got one!" he then leaped into the air, landing in a spinning chair and doing a few spins, before propping his feet up in a cool manner.
"Nice to meet you Mr…? What's your name?"
"Just call me, 'The Mask'; women call me 'hansom'… or they would if they returned MYcalls,"
"Ha, you're a riot, aren't you? …By the way, how'd you get in here?"
"How else? Through the door! …Those security guards were a hassle to get through, by the way."
"Alright, so now that you're on the air, is there anything you want to say? Any shout-outs, song requests, new year's resolutions…?"
"Actually, I was hoping I could do some voice-impressions, give the listeners something really entertaining!"
Shaggy rolled his eyes. "Very funny. Alright, lets hear what you got!"
"First, a question for the listeners…" The Mask then did an impression of Pinky. "Gee, what are you going to do tonight? Narf!"
Shaggy laughed. "Like, that's pretty goo-"
"Please! I'm not done!" The Mask then did an impression of Donetello, "Gosh, I don't know what I'm doing tonight- maybe work in the lab, practice my ninja-skills… maybe April O'Neil is free tonight…"
He then did an impression of Yakko, "Helloooo Nurse! If she doesn't take you, Donnie, think she'll have me?"
He then did an impression of Johnny Bravo! "No way, Warner- if anyone's going to be going out with any babes tonight, it's going to be me! …What do you think, little lady?"
He then did an impression of Marge Simpson. "Oh, goodness Johnny, I don't think so, my husband wouldn't like it!"
He then did an impression of Homer Simpson. "Why you rotten- get away from my wife!"
*BAM!*
He got too into the role, and punched himself in the face. "Whoa, talk about a knock-out performance!" Shaggy commented. "That's pretty good, man!"
"You haven't heard nothing yet!" The Mask said… then did an impression of Shaggy's (real) voice! "Like, this guy's awesome! I wish I had as much talent as his!"
Shaggy chuckled. "Well, now I've heard everything-"
But the Mask kept going with his impression. "Man, if I had his charm, I wouldn't have gotten stuck in so many spin-offs!"
Shaggy gave a weak chuckle. "Alright, nice joke…"
"Heck, maybe if he had my part, he could have gotten us a better writer for that stupid live-action movie! …And like, how come Freddy gets the hot-chick? I'm the one with the most fan-girls!"
Shaggy blushed. "Hey! Watch it, man!"
"And, like, don't even get me started on this lame gig I got at the radio-station-"
"Well that's enough, give a hand for our guest, and here's some Black Eyed Peas for you!" Shaggy quickly switched it over to the music, before turning angrily to the mask. "Like, what was that all about, man?! You can't just go insulting a guy on his own radio-show like that!"
"Really? It seemed pretty easy!" The Mask laughed.
"THERE HE IS!" came a shout as two security guards- who had cream all over their faces- burst in. "There's the guy who pied us!"
"Get him!" the second security guard shouted.
"Whoop, guess my fifteen minutes of fame is up!" The Mask exclaimed, before leap-frogging over the guards, taking out a mini-motorcycle, and zipping down the hall! The guards pursued.
Shaggy blinked. "I knew having the night-shift would mean I'd meet all the nuts…" he groaned.
d~b
Back at Pent Towers, Robotnik had come to and was down in the lab (a bandage wrapped around the severed-half of his mustache) standing by one of his newly-built machines, which happened to be a new missile launcher. "Well, boss, it's all set up!" Jasper said as he put his hammer down.
"It's about time! I've been waiting all day to launch my Nuclear-Reactor-Missile 2.1. Soon, the city's largest building, and anything else in a five-block radius, will be reduced to one, massive crater!" Robotnik declared, pushing a button that opened a pair of secret doors located in the backyard. "Once we've provoked fear within the people, they shall-"
*SPLOT!*
A pile of snow, which was sitting on top of the doors, fell through and landed on the villain. Grounder quickly turned his drills into snow-shovels and, acting as a plow, cleared the snow away.
"(ahem) As I was saying, once the people have been filled with panic, they shall meet our demands, and the city will be ours! …And then afterwards, the world!"
"Of course!" The Mask exclaimed, standing beside him, dressed as M. Bison.
"What the…?! YOU!" Robotnik clenched his fists. "I thought I told you to beat it!"
"You did? Huh, I guess I didn't hear… but if you insist!" The Mask took out a large sledgehammer and started whacking away at the missile-launcher! He struck the control panel, slammed the stand, and stood on the missile, denting it in all places!
"STOP! What are you DOING?!"
"You told me I could beat this thing!"
"That is NOT what I meant, and you know it! You'd better be out of here in FIVE SECONDS, before I have my henchmen beat YOU!"
"…how come we always have to fight his battles?" Horace asked the others.
"Five seconds? I can beat that time!" The Mask exclaimed, then threw his hammer and hit the 'Launch' button!
"3… 2… 1… 0!" The computer counted down!
"NO-" Robotnik screamed.
*FWOOOSSSHHHH!*
The missile launched out, leaving behind a blast of flames, which fried the villain and his lackeys. Shaking off the soot, Robotnik turned on the tracking-screen, seeing the missile heading right for the city, and he smirked. "Ha! That fool's joke backfired! He'll be blown up along with the first building he- WHAT THE WHAT?!"
On the screen, the missile changed directions! The Mask was sitting on it, riding it while wearing a cowboy hat! "Yeeeeeee-HAW! Giddyap ya nuclear-bronco! WOO-WEEE!" He exclaimed, as the missile started to 'buck' as if it were a mad-bull! "Whoa, nelly! We've got a wild one here! Time tah send this bull back to the corral!"
With that, he steered the missile back at Paradise Towers!
The villain and lackeys' reactions were typical: "AAAAAUUUUUGGGH!"
"IIIIINNNN…COOOOOOMMMM…MMMIIIIIIIIINGGGG!" The Mask screamed as the missile was within two feet of the building!
…However, rather than blowing the whole place up, he managed to 'squeeze' the missile in through the basement window, as if it were a rubber balloon, before leaping off it.
*KA-BOOM!*
Smoke billowed out after the missile went off, blowing up Robotnik's lab!
On top of the roof, the Black Alchemist heard the explosion… and went over to a chalkboard, which had the word 'Explosions' underlined, and several tally-marks underneath. "Chalk up another explosion for Paradise Towers," he said to himself, making another mark.
The Mask walked into the building and opened the basement door, seeing a crater where Robotnik and his lackeys lied. "…I can't feel my body…" Robotnik groaned.
"Alright, you guys take a break. I'll be back in five!" The Mask called, walking over to the desk and sitting down.
*Ding!*
He looked over, seeing someone coming down in the elevator. "Oh, goody- a new sucker!" he then ducked underneath the desk.
Out of the elevator stepped out Pugsy…
(Pray for this man, people. PRAY.)
Pugsy looked up at the above sentence. "…Something tells me I should've stayed in the apartment," he said to the audience. He looked around the lobby. "Hey, Robotanik! What exploded this time?!"
The Mask then popped up- wearing a gray suit, glasses, tie, and just looking nerdy. "Oooh, Robotnik had a little fall-out, so the agency sent over a new manager." He rapidly shook Pugsy's hand. "I'll be your landlord for the rest of your stay- the name's M. Ask."
Pugsy looked at him, then at the audience, and crossed his arms, unconvinced but willing to play along. "Alright, 'M. Ask', how much rent am I expected to pay, now that you're my 'new landlord'?"
"Lets see… with the utilities, vacancy, insurance, and storage… that'll be $700 a month…" The Mask was calculating on a large register, hitting one more button. "…plus 54-cents tax."
*Ching!* A little 'Sale' tab popped up on the register.
"Heh, cheaper than what my last landlord started me out with," Pugsy retorted. "Alright, so what kind of joker am I dealing with?"
"Depends," The Mask said, pulling out a poster with every Joker from every Batman comic and movie pictured on it. "Which one do you prefer?" he then leaned in and whispered, "Word of advice: The Season 4 'Brave and the Bold' joker ain't the same guy. I'd go with the Heath Ledger one,"
Pugsy arched an eyebrow. "Because he gave a great performance, or because you might be related to him?"
The Mask laughed. "Ooh, looks like we've got another jokester in town!" he then threw off the nerdy attire, revealing his cowboy outfit once more. "This room ain't big enough for the both of us!"
"Maybe it would be… if you traded in for a smaller mouth,"
"It may be big, but it's not as loud as yours!"
"Hey, I'd rather be the loudmouth comedian than the straight-man in this act,"
The Mask put his arm around him, whispering. "Don't say that too loud, the fan-base might hear ya,"
"I'm not the one playing dress-up," Pugsy whispered back.
An off-stage audience busted out laughing, and Pugsy and The Mask took a couple bows. "Hey, it's nice to finally meet a guy with a sense of humor! Put her there, pal!" The Mask said, sticking out his hand (revealing an electric joy-buzzer strapped to it).
"I prefer the fist-bump," Pugsy said, sticking out his fist.
The Mask slouched, but went along with it, bumping his fist against Pugsy's-
*BZZZZZT!*
Getting electrocuted! "Electric ring!" Pugsy laughed, holding up his hand and showing the ring.
The Mask coughed out smoke. "Nice trick…" he wheezed.
Pugsy shrugged. "When you've been harassified as long as I have, you learn all the tricks."
The Mask smirked. "Yeah? Even THIS one?" He then took off Pugsy's hat… revealing a mini-bomb underneath!
Pugsy looked up, shocked. "How the-?!" he gasped.
*BOOM!*
The bomb went off, leaving Pugsy charred. (Up on the roof, The Black Alchemist chalked up another explosion). "Well, it's been a real 'blast', buuuut I gotta get going!" The Mask stated, before giving Pugsy a big, Looney-Tunes styled smooch, and taking off, whooping like Daffy Duck.
Pugsy shook off the soot, then chased after him. "Now you're in for it!" he shouted.
"Going up!" The Mask declared, diving into the elevator and shutting the doors!
Pugsy ran over, hitting the button to open the doors…
A realistic scene of a train coming at him appeared!
"Augh!" Pugsy screamed, shutting the doors, then ran over to the other elevator, opening the doors-
Getting run over by a train!
He groaned, standing up, covered in train-tracks, and stumbled away. "…guess I'm taking the stairs…" he said, dazed. The off-stage audience then laughed, and he turned and glared. "Would you people go home already?!"
d~b
A few floors up, The Mask walked out, though the hands grabbed hold of the edges of the mask, and Stanley Ipkiss pulled it off, resuming his less-insane identity. "That was more than enough chaos for tonight!" he gasped, panting and wheezing. "Time to lock this thing away…"
He went around the corner, quickly…
*Thud!*
Too quick, as he slammed into Shaggy! "Oh! Sorry, Shag!" he stammered, after they fell back. "I-I was in a bit of a hurry…"
"Trust me, man, after the night I just had, running into you is actually a bright side," Shaggy replied, his tone sour. "Some green-faced nut-job came into the radio-station, and pretty much took over my show! For the rest of my shift, everyone was calling and asking me to 'bring back that crazy guy'- heck, the manager even claimed, if security ever finds him, he could probably have my job! …Until he found a boxing-glove on a string inside his drawer, got a concussion, and forgot the whole thing."
"Oh… I'm sorry to hear that…" Stanley replied, cringing.
Pugsy came running up the stairs, furious, as he looked around. "Alright, I know that ignorpotamas is up here somewheres!" he snarled… still having train-tracks on his shirt. "Soon as I find him, I'm going to murdify him!"
"Who are you talking about?" Shaggy asked.
"Some green-faced weirdo who pulled one joke too many!"
Stanley quietly gulped.
Shaggy's eyes widened. "You too?! Geez, that guy's been messing with everyone!"
"I-I haven't seen him… maybe he left?" Stanley said, trying to hide his nervousness.
"Yeah, well I ain't taking any chances," Pugsy retorted, then stormed down the hall towards his apartment, heading in. "Flip! Ask ZIP if she's got any weapons she can loan!"
"I'm, um, going to head back to my apartment. See you guys around!" Stanley said, then quickly ran down the stairs, heading to his own floor.
"See ya man, and watch out for that whack-job!" Shaggy called, then turned and began walking. His foot hit something just then, and he looked down, seeing the wooden mask on the floor, no doubt dropped by Stanley after their collision. The lanky coward picked it up, looking it over. "Hey, Stan, you dropped this!"
But Stanley didn't reply, possibly out of earshot. Shaggy looked at the mask. Talk about a kooky-looking mask. I wonder why he was carrying it around? He thought. He looked, seeing a mirror in the hallway, then jokingly held the mask over his face.
"Heh heh, not much of a Masquerade option-" he began to say, until the mask latched onto his face! "AUGH! HELP! IT'S EATING MY FACE! AARRGH!"
In a spin, Shaggy transformed- in his place stood a tall figure wearing a leather jacket, torn jeans, still having messy hair… but a bold look on his face, grinning wildly. He looked into the mirror, smirking as he pulled on the folds of his jacket, then walked off. "Time to make this life worth living!" he exclaimed in a 'cool' tone. He looked over at a window, running forth and leaping out, taking out a grappling-hook gun and shooting it onto the roof, swinging up-
*CRASH!*
…landing on the Black Alchemist. They both stood up, facing each other. "Well, well, well, who do we have here?" Mask-Shaggy asked, slyly. "The Black Alchemist, I presume?"
"You presume correctly… and who might you be?" The Black Alchemist questioned, as they began to circle each other.
"Me? I'm just a guy looking for something to do- something fun… something… dangerous,"
"Then you're going to have to look elsewhere, because I repel danger,"
"Ooh, someone's playing the bold-faced card… How about a duel, then? See how tough you are,"
The Black Alchemist whipped out a bo-staff, swinging it over-and-behind his head, before fiercely pointing it at Mask Shaggy. "Bring it. I've been itching for a good fight, lately."
Mask Shaggy smirked, whipping out a pair of nun-chucks, spinning them over and around himself before taking a stance. "Then get ready to scratch!" He then lunged!
A ninjitsu-type battle then began as the two dueled, both dodging and deflecting each other's strike. Mask Shaggy then leaped overhead, grabbing onto some phone-lines and stretching them back, then whipping forward; The Black Alchemist dodged, and Mask Shaggy went towards the wall, angling himself so that his feet hit first, and launched himself back at The Black Alchemist, turning himself into an air-kick position.
The Black Alchemist caught him by the foot, swinging him over the edge. A Grappling Hook shot back up, latching onto a passing helicopter, and Mask Shaggy swung up, knocking over the masked-figure and pinning him onto the ground. They both soon had each other in arm-locks, glaring at each other.
*Rumble!* The building shook just then. "Time out," The Black Alchemist said, then peered over the edge, seeing that the secret doors in the backyard opened, and a laser-ray was sticking out!
"Huh, never knew we had lasers in the basement," Mask Shaggy stated.
The Black Alchemist turned to him. "…Still feel like doing something dangerous?"
Mask Shaggy only smirked. "Call it."
The Black Alchemist pointed down. "That laser's about to go off. Swing down with that grappling-gun of yours and deflect that beam so it shoots back at the machine- think you can handle that?"
"Easier done than said." Mask Shaggy took out his Grappling Hook gun and shot it over to the ledge of the building across the street, swinging down just as the beam shot out! He whipped out a large mirror, holding it in front of him and catching the beam, reflecting it back to the machine.
Meanwhile, The Black Alchemist swooped down and threw a shuriken at the switch that opened the doors, forcing the machine- in the process of exploding within seconds- to sink back down, and the secret doors to close. There was a muffled *BOOM!* as the ground shook. "BLAST IT! HOW DID IT EXPLODE THIS TIME?!" came Robotnik's shout, which- as everyone noticed- was louder than the explosion itself.
Mask Shaggy leaped down in front of The Black Alchemist, both of them shaking hands. "How long before anyone comes out here to figure out what the heck happened?" Mask Shaggy asked with a smirk.
"My guess: 30 seconds." Vincent then took out a little ball. "See ya around, beatnik." He threw the ball to the ground, and in a flash of smoke, disappeared.
Mask Shaggy coughed, waving away smoke. "Hey! This is a non-smoking section!" he shouted, then noticed someone coming. "Wuh-oh, time to lay low…" he then reached and pulled off the mask.
Shaggy, back to his normal self, gasped and blinked. "Where was I the last ten minutes?" he asked, his mind a bit foggy. He looked at the mask, slowly remembering the daring stunts he did… then paled. "Never mind. I don't want to know…" he began to walk back to the building. "That run-in with that whack-job must be getting to me… Wait! The green-faced guy…" he looked at the mask. "So that's how he does it!" He then ran into the building, heading up to his apartment. "Pugs! Pugs, I figured it out!"
As he ran up the stairs, Stanley Ipkiss came out of the elevator, frantically looking around. "Oh man, where is it?!" he stammered, panicking.
Vincent walked in just then. "Hey, man, what' s up? You lose something?" he asked.
"Yes… have you've seen a wooden mask, anywhere? It's REALLY important that I find it!"
"I'll keep my eye out for it. Why are you so upset? Is it valuable?"
Stanley wiped sweat off his forehead, still panicking. "Lets just say I don't want it in the wrong hands…"
"Alright, I'll help you look. Where did you have it last?"
"I took it off in the elevator, and must have dropped it after I ran into one of the guys who live here… Shaggy! That was his name!"
"Shag? He's my neighbor! We can ask if he's seen it," They then rushed to the elevator, heading up.
The basement door opened seconds later, and out walked a burned-up Robotnik- the mustache gone off his face. "That's the second machine tonight!" he was grumbling, as he reached into his drawer and pulled out a spare mustache. "Next time, we double-check to make sure the area is secure, and keep watch for any green-faced nut-jobs!"
"Sir… with all due respect… can we lay off the evil schemes?" Jasper asked. "It's New Year's Eve, after all…"
"Yeah… just for tonight… or until the smell of sulfur is out of my nostrils?" Horace added.
"Just get back to work setting up that other machine, and open up the secret doors!" Robotnik ordered.
"We can't boss… that last explosion welded them shut."
"Then get Scratch and Grounder and fix them- wait, where ARE Scratch and Grounder?"
"They're still scattered all over the lab," Jasper answered, bluntly.
Robotnik groaned. "Fine… take five, sweep them up, then get back to work!"
The two lackeys only moaned, heading back downstairs. "We might as well just blow up the last machine, it's bound to happen the way HE'S running things,"
"I HEARD THAT!"
The lackeys yelped and rushed back downstairs.
d~b
Meanwhile as all this was going on, Flip was sitting at the counter across from Pugsy. "Pugs… are you sure you're feeling okay?" Flip asked.
"For the 15th time, Flip, I'm fine- just so long as that green-faced creepo doesn't come around," Pugsy replied.
"He must be pretty freaky, if you were desperate enough to ask ZIP if you could borrow her machete."
"He's not so much freaky as he is annoying and dangerous- like a ZIP 2.0!"
Flip looked out the window. "Well, at least it gave you something to do tonight…"
"Look, Flip, if you want to go out so bad, why don't you see if Holly wants to hangify out?"
"I would… but Derek's been lurking around, and I don't want him to spoil New Year's Eve for me and Holly, if we're together."
Pugsy shook his head. "We've really need to get cracking on your self-defense…" he pulled up a box, full of barb-wire, laser-grid security systems, bear-traps, and other things that would cause everyone to deem him as a retired war-veteran defensive of his property. "In the meantime, I'm going to set up a new security system." He then walked out.
Flip shook his head, sighing. By this time, Shaggy ran through the door, looking around. "Where's Pugsy?" he asked.
"He's going over the edge of his sanity, why?"
Shaggy set the mask on the counter. "I gotta tell him something!" he then ran through the apartment. "Pugs! Hey, Pugs! I figured it out…!"
As he ran into another room, Flip looked at the mask. "Hey, this is Stanley's mask… what's Shaggy doing with it?" he curiously put the mask on…
It latched on and in a spin, we see a green-faced Flip… with messy hair, wearing a punk-outfit, and his hair is smoothed back like a miniature, Chinese Fonze. He then looked at his watch. "Hmm. Still New Year's Eve… time to head out!" he then walked out coolly, heading inside the elevators.
"…and then it was latching onto my face, and I turned into some tough, daredevil of a dude!" Shaggy was explaining to Pugsy as they walked out.
"Okay… so where's the mask?" Pugsy asked.
"It's right…" Shaggy began, then noticed the mask was gone! He looked under the counter, stools, and along the floor. "It was right here!"
"Great. The only clue to who the green-faced goon could be ends up missing! How do you expect us to figure out who it is now?"
Shaggy snapped his fingers. "Stanley! HE owns the mask! Maybe it's him!"
Pugsy arched an eyebrow. "The new guy, who was as cool as a cucumber about everything and whom we did nothing horrifyable to?"
Shaggy paused, rubbing his chin. "You're right, too obvious. …Maybe he still could help! He might know-"
*Knock Knock Knock*
Shaggy walked over and opened the door. "Stan! Like, we were just talking about you!" he ushered him inside. "We need your help. That mask you gave us, did you know it had powers?"
"P-Powers?" Stanley repeated.
"Shag claims that the green-faced weirdo had it on, and when he put it on, he transformed too." Pugsy explained, then whispered. "Honestly, I think that run-in with the goon left him a little delusional,"
"Um… n-nope, I don't really know anything about it. Whoever that green-guy is, he should be gone… But, um, I have been looking from my mask. I'm… um… selling it on Amazon. Vincent told me you had it,"
"Well, we can't find it." Pugsy sighed, then looked around. "So, where's Vincent?"
Shaggy's eyes widened as a theory just dawned on him. "Wait… where's Flip?" he gasped.
d~b
Holly was walking down the sidewalk, Derek being a pest and walking beside her. "C'mon, Holly, why don't we hang out? It's New Year's Eve, the last night of the year!" Derek was stating.
"I'd rather start the New Year with a wild badger than with you, Derek." Holly sneered.
*ZIP!*
Mask Flip zoomed up to Holly, holding her in a bent-back, romantic way. "How about me? I may not be a badger, but I AM wild!" he stated suavely.
"Oh!" Holly slapped him in the face, squirming out of his grip. "Who the heck are you?!"
"In your case, your dream come true,"
"Oh yeah?" Derek snarled, grabbing Mask Flip by the shirt. "Well then I'M your worst nightmare!"
Mask Flip looked at the audience, giving a chuckle as he thumbed at Derek. "If you're my worst nightmare, I must not have many fears."
"That can be easily changed!" Derek threw a punch.
Mask Flip caught it, flipping him over and onto the sidewalk! "You know, violence never solved anything," he remarked.
"We'll see about that!" Derek lunged again, but Mask Flip caught him in a headlock. "Gack!"
"Ever heard of the term, 'bully one person, and they become a bully to you'?"
"No…"
"That's because I just made it up… which reminds me…" he then grabbed Derek's underwear and yanked it high into the air. "Atomic wedgie!"
"AAIIIIIEEEEEE!" Derek shrieked at a high-pitch. "Not… cool…!"
Mask Flip dropped him then took off… zipping back and giving Holly a kiss. "Catch ya later, babe," he then shot off.
Derek stood up, taking chase. "Get back here you green-faced dork!"
Holly stood there, sighing as she walked back to her apartment. "Why are the creeps always attracted to me?" she muttered.
d~b
Mask Flip lost Derek around the corner, before pulling off the mask. "Geez… this thing's nothing but trouble!" Flip gasped, walking back into the apartment. "I'd better find Stanley,"
He walked in the lobby, seeing Robotnik sitting behind the desk, back to reading his novel. "…Is there a chapter that doesn't involve the readers getting confused?" he muttered.
"Hey, Robotnik, have you've seen Stanley around? I need to return something to him,"
"Oh that whiner is running around here somewhere! Just leave it on the desk, that sniveling weakling keeps coming here complaining about something or other every five minutes,"
"O-Okay… just make sure no one else takes this," Flip set the mask down. "I'm going to go see if he's in his apartment," he then took off.
Seconds later, Pugsy, Shaggy, and Stanley came running down, just as Derek came running in. "Derek! Have you've seen Flip?" Shaggy asked.
"No, the only dork I've seen is some green-faced creep who gave me a wedgie!" Derek snapped, storming off. "He'd better hope he'll be dead before I find him!"
"Oh no…" Stanley gasped quietly.
"FLIP!" Shaggy cried out, taking off out the doors. "Wherever you are, don't do anything dangerous!"
"Wait up!" Stanley ran after Shaggy.
Pugsy looked over at Robotnik. "…I take it you're not going to be much help to us?" he guessed.
"Correct," Robotnik then stood up and walked off.
Pugsy rolled his eyes… then noticed the mask on the desk. He picked it up, looking out the door. "Hey guys! I found it!" No reply. He looked back at the mask, shrugging. "Well, might as well test Shag's theory," he brought it to his face.
Immediately it latched on, and he cried out, suddenly regretting his choice, as he spun around.
In his place stood a figure with messy hair, fangs, wearing a backwards red cap, and having a crazy look in his eye… and let out a wolf-howl! "Where's ZIP?! Where is she?" he exclaimed gruffly.
"Speak of the awesome and she'll appear," Zippy stated, walking down the stairs… then noticed who called her name. "Who the-?"
*WHAM!*
Mask Pugsy tackled her! "Ooh, ooh, I've got you now, ZIP!"
"Okay, okay, you gotcha'd me… but who the heck are you?!"
"Just someone… who's been wanting to do THIS for a while!" He then grabbed Zippy and gave her a swift kick out the door!
Zippy re-entered, shaking snow off her head. "Alright… forget the introduction. You're going down!" she then whipped out a baseball bat.
"Depends… Do you feel lucky?" Mask Pugsy whipped out two large tommy-guns! "Well? DO ya, punk?!"
Zippy paused, awaiting his move…
*Boing! Bang!*
Two signs that read 'Bang' and 'Pow' popped out of the guns, and he snickered. "Gotcha,"
Zippy scoffed. "I saw THAT gag coming," she commented.
"Did you see THIS one coming?" Mask Pugs took off her hat, revealing a keg of dynamite!
"What the-?!"
*BOOM!*
The Black Alchemist was outside, then sighed and made another tally-mark.
Mask Pugsy stepped up to the now-charred Zippy, putting his arm around her. "You know, the blackened soot and burned skin REALLY brings out your eyes!" he commented.
Zippy glared, then took out a chain-saw!
Mask Pugs looked at his watch. "Oh, look at the time! I've gotta run for my life now! Buh-bye!" he then took off up the stairs.
"Come back here and fight!" Zippy chased him up the stairs, and they ran through all the hallways until they reached her floor, and he ran into his apartment. "Ooh, if Pugs doesn't strangle that guy, I will!" she burst through the door…
…seeing a cannon aimed point-blank at her face! Mask Pugs stood on the other side of it, smirking.
Zippy turned to the audience, gulping.
*BLAM!*
One cannon-ball to the gut later, and Zippy went through the wall across the hall… lying in Shawn and Ted's living room. "Whoa… I figured the ball was going to drop on New Year's Eve, not fly through the wall!" Ted commented.
"ZIP, what's going on?" Shawn gasped.
"Just getting acquainted with another bozo. Pardon me," Zippy muttered, rolling the cannonball off her and storming out.
Mask Pugsy was waiting her… sitting in the chair in a robe, fez, holding a pipe and reading a book. "Ah, so you've finally returned, have you, young girl?" he asked in a British accent.
"When I'm through with you, all that's going to be left is that fez and an accent!" Zippy then charged at him!
Mask Pugsy dodged and opened the balcony doors, standing up on the railing. "Stop! One more step, and I'll jump!"
Zippy gave a deadpanned look, and took a step.
Mask Pugsy looked to the audience. "Tough crowd. Alright, see ya!" he then jumped-
*Whoosh!*
Shooting back up with a jet-pack! Zippy watched him shoot off into the sky. "Hey! Jumping off the balcony is MY thing, bub!" she shouted, then stormed back in.
Mask Pugs continued to fly around the sky. "Ah, what a lovely night! Clear skies, bright lights, a bomb flying right at me- WHOA!"
*KA-BOOM!*
Zippy was now standing at the top of the building. "HA! Got him!" she exclaimed.
Mask Pugs was now in a sitting position as he fell through the sky, pretending to be wrestling airplane controls. "Mayday! Mayday! We're going down! …Better switch to co-pilot!" he then took off the mask!
(Apparently, even Pugsy's mask-ego likes messing with him!)
*SPLOT!*
Pugsy landed in a pile of snow, sitting up and groaning, rubbing his head. "…ugh… what hit me?" he moaned, then looked at the mask. "Alright… so apparently Shag was right. Time to find Stan and get rid of this thing!" he then stormed back inside the building. "Soon as this thing is rid of-"
"What is going ON around here?!" Robotnik demanded, storming in. "I keep hearing crazy laughter, yelling, and explosions that are coming from OUTSIDE my lair!"
"…So far we've got 19 chalked up," The Black Alchemist stated, walking by while pushing the chalkboard.
Robotnik then turned to Pugsy. "And what are you doing with that mask?!"
"I found it on the desk, and was going to return it to-" Pugsy tried to explain, but Robotnik swiped it from him! "Hey!"
"If something is on my desk, YOU don't remove it!"
"But that's Stan-"
"No exceptions! Now beat it!"
Pugsy clenched his fists, storming out. "One of these days…"
Robotnik watched him leave, then looked at the mask. "Hmph. All this fuss over some dumb wooden mask. It's not like it's the cause of all this! …Those idiots are probably just toying around with it," he then pulled it over his face, talking in a mocking tone. "Ooh, look at us, we're being idiots and goofing arou- AUGH!"
The mask latched on once again, and in a spin Robotnik transformed… now wearing a shirt like Uncle Ted's, sunglasses, swim-trunks, and grinning. "Whoooaaa… what a trip! 'Bout time this laid-back dude could finally break out!" Mask Robotnik stated.
The lackeys then came upstairs. "Hey, boss, we got the next machine up-" Horace began, but paused when he saw Mask Robotnik. "What the…? Who are you?"
"I'm your boss for this evening, man… your other one kind of split,"
"Really? Where'd he go?" Jasper asked.
"No idea… but he said he got tired of explosions, so we could all party in the lab!"
"And why should we believe you?" Scratch asked, suspiciously.
"Uhhh… you don't have to man. I'm just looking to party,"
"Fine by me!" Grounder exclaimed, and all the lackeys pulled on party-hats!
"ALRIGHT! Lets jam!"
They all ran into the basement, where the next machine was set up- possibly an atom-bomb launcher from the looks of it- though they pushed it aside to set up a buffet table, punch bowl, stereo, and games.
[Now Playing: "The Nights" by Avicii]
Mask Robotnik proved to be quite more laid-back and fun than his original identity, as he and the lackeys had a limbo-tournament. Jasper fell back, Grounder couldn't bend back, Scratch only made it before his head fell off, and Horace got stuck when the bar was too low. Mask Robotnik won by deflating himself and slipping under the pole, the lackeys cheering him on.
They then had a dance-competition on a flattened box, doing hip-hop moves and breaking down… and I said that correctly, because halfway through, Grounder literately broke down after spinning on his head too much.
They then had a competition on bobbing for apples. Horace got 5, Jasper got 3, Grounder got 2 (impaling one with his nose), and Scratch got 4. Mask Robotnik stuck his head in… and pulled out a whole apple-tree!
Next was a game of Twister©, with Grounder calling out the colors. "Right hand green!" he called.
The others were already tangled up, collapsing on top of one another.
[End song]
"What should we do now?" Jasper grunted.
"Lets get out of here. There should be something going on in town!" Scratch exclaimed.
"Sounds cool! Lets go!" Mask Robotnik replied before quickly chugging a soda, then tossing the empty-can over his shoulder… where it hit a red button on the machine.
They all ran out, as the words, "Self Destruct in T-minus 1 minute" sounded from the machine.
Outside, they all walked down the sidewalk, until Mask Robotnik paused. "Whoa, dudes, check out the chick down the walk!" he exclaimed.
They all looked, seeing Katrina Stoneheart standing on the corner. "…yeeeesssh…" the lackeys all cringed.
Mask Robotnik, however, took out some breath-freshener, sprayed it in his mouth, then ran over to Katrina. "Hey, good-looking. Wanna party with the animals tonight?"
Katrina barely looked at him, taking out pepper-spray and blinding him with it!
"AUGH! OW! NOT COOL, WOMAN!" he rubbed his eyes, then grabbed some snow, packed a couple snowballs, then shoved them in his eyes. "Ahhhhhh… that's better."
"Next time you want to hook up with someone, lose the mask!" Katrina scoffed, leaving.
"Oh. Alright," Mask Robotnik then pulled off the mask…
"Hey, Boss, where you want to go ne- uh oh," Jasper began to ask, until he noticed that Robotnik was back.
"I want to go and see YOU all get back to work!" Robotnik shouted, waving the mask at them as he ushered them back into the building and down to the basement. "Honestly, what makes you think we can just-"
"3… 2… 1…" the machine counted down.
"What the- again?!"
*KA-BOOM!*
(The Black Alchemist stood by the chalk-board. "I'm going to run out of room soon," he sighed).
The blast from the basement launched the mask through the air. By this time, Shawn was walking in carrying grocery bags. "Of all the nights we run out of chips- oof!" he gasped, as the mask landed right on his face. "What in the… mmf!"
Latching on, the mask caused Shawn to transform…
In his place stood a green-faced figure wearing a baggy shirt, baggy pants, having messy hair… and an insane look in his eye to match the original Mask's! He grinned, turning and looking into a mirror… which also reflected smoke billowing out of the basement.
"Sah-mokin'!" Mask Shawn exclaimed, then ran out the door…
Right in front of Katrina Stonehart. "EEEEK!" she screamed.
"EEEEEEEK!" Mask Shawn shrieked. "Dang, woman, I don't know who your beautician is, but I hope you didn't leave them a tip!"
"Oh! Creep!" Katrina then smacked him with her purse, and took off.
Mask Shawn stood up, brushing himself off. "Ah well… someday she'll find love- with her own species," he rubbed his hands together. "Now then… what to do tonight?" he then turned, looking across the street, seeing Shaggy, Pugsy, Flip and Stanley walking. He then turned to the audience. "And now… for something typical!" he then rushed off!
Across the street, Shaggy, Pugsy, Flip and Stanley were looking around. "Okay, so apparently the mask IS powerful… question is, who's the guy wearing it that's been annoying us?!" Pugsy was questioning.
"Are you SURE you've never worn it before, Stanley?" Shaggy questioned Stanley.
"Well…" Stanley began, awkwardly.
"STAN MY MAN!" Mask Shawn exclaimed, popping up right behind the guys.
"YEOW!" Shaggy, Pugsy, and Flip yelped, shooting up into the air.
Stanley whirled around, eyes wide. "Oh no!" he groaned.
"Oh YES! Time for a night on the town, guys! What should we do?" Mask Shawn draped his arm around Stanley, taking out a camera. "Take selfies?" he dumped a ton of junk-food on Shaggy. "Pig out?" he stuck a party-favor in Pugsy's mouth as well as a party-hat. "Party?" he then turned to Flip, bouncing his eyebrows. "Pick up chicks?" …he then placed a baby chick in Flip's hands.
"Peep!" the chick chirped, before hopping out and running off.
"You! You're the guy who's been tormenting us!" Pugsy guessed.
"…wait, I thought his suit was yellow… and wasn't he bald?" Shaggy said.
"You have clearly misjudged me! And to prove my innocence, I will go find the real culprit!" Mask Shawn declared… then suddenly stood in a defendant's box as if in court. "I will not rest until I prove my case, and catch the one-armed man!"
The others looked at him, confused.
He blinked. "Whoops, wrong guy… Oh well! You guys like pie?"
"No!" Flip, Stanley, and Pugsy all replied quick, knowing what gag would be coming.
"Sure!" Shaggy replied… until he quickly caught on. "Wait-"
*SPLOT!* Mask Shawn pied him in the face. "Oh man, I can't believe you FELL for that! That gag's older than the first joke, man!" he laughed.
"Huh boy…" Pugsy groaned.
*SPLOT! SPLOT! SPLOT!*
Three cakes hit Pugsy, Stanley, and Flip in the faces. "What the heck…?!" Flip sputtered. "Why'd you do that?!"
"Well, you said you didn't want pie!" Mask Shawn replied. "Who says you can't have your cake and eat it too?"
"That's it, you're done for now!" Pugsy snapped, charging at him.
Mask Shawn spun, now wearing a bull-fighter's outfit and waving a red cape. "Torro! Torro!" he exclaimed… then took a large step to the side and caused Pugsy to run into a mailbox! "Ole!"
An off-scene crowd cheered, as roses were tossed to Shawn. He blew kisses to the audiences, taking a bow, then took off.
"After him!" Stanley cried, and they chased him back inside Paradise Towers.
Mask Shawn looked around. "Hmm… now where to hide?" he asked slyly, his eyes falling on the basement door. Bouncing his eyebrows at the audience, he ran down to the basement.
The others ran in, looking around. "Split up and search!" Pugsy ordered, and they did so, going up the stairs, in the elevator, out the back door, and down another hallway.
d~b
Downstairs, Robotnik's nerves were just about shot, as he stood by his final machine… which looked like just a giant pistol. "Okay… so you're absolutely POSITIVE this one can't explode?" he asked his lackeys.
"Yep, made sure that it won't boss!" Jasper said.
"And we set up a new security system!" Scratch added, pressing a button, and several laser-beams criss-crossed around the room, several bear-traps were set up around the floor, barb-wire lined up in rows all around, and… why do I get the feeling we've mentioned these things already?
"No one will even THINK about stepping a foot in here now!" Horace exclaimed.
"We've pulled out all the stops!" Grounder exclaimed… not noticing Mask Shawn standing by him.
"Impressive! …Though, one question- how do you get to the bathroom?" Mask Shawn asked, pointing clear across the traps to the restrooms.
Robotnik took one look at him and practically had a heart-attack. "AAAIIIIIEEEEEE! NOT ANOTHER ONE!" he shrieked.
"…oh, forgot about the bathrooms…" Horace whispered, rubbing his chin.
"GET HIM!" Robotnik ordered his lackeys.
Immediately the lackeys grabbed lead pipes, baseball bats, and any other blunt instrument they could find and chased after Mask Shawn, who only whooped and laughed. He then dove into the laser-grid, moving over, around, under, and across every beam with ease! Scratch tried to go after him, at first appearing to get through… though once they reached the other side, the robotic stooge fell to pieces!
Mask Shawn then donned a leotard, prancing over and around the bear-traps as if he were dancing in a ballet, humming a tune from 'The Nutcracker' as he did. Jasper ran after him, but tripped and-
*SNAP!*
"Ow!"
*SNAP!*
"Ouch!"
*SNAP! SNAP! SNAP!*
"YEEEEOOOWWWW!"
Mask Shawn reached the end, returning to his baggy clothes…while Jasper crawled over, covered in bear-traps. Mask Shawn merely took a bow as an off-stage audience cheered, then continued running as Grounder and Horace chased after him-
*SPROING!*
"OOWWWWWW!" the two henchmen cried as, somehow, they became tangled up in the barb-wire!
"You just can't find good help these days, can you?" Mask Shawn asked the audience.
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Robotnik shouted, at the controls of his giant gun and having it aimed at Mask Shawn! "One more move, and I'll pump you full of lead!"
"Oh now come on, can't we talk about this?" Mask Shawn casually asked.
*BANG!*
He jumped to the side, as a bullet struck the spot he was just in! "I guess not… Well, in that case… HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT!"
*BANG! BANG! BANG!*
Robotnik shot like a madman, but Mask Shawn kept dodging- even acting like a salsa-dancer, moving this way and that as he avoided the shots! "Areba!" he exclaimed, striking a pose.
*BANG!*
"Agh!" he cried out, Robotnik finally striking him!
"YES!" Robotnik exclaimed, pumping his fists.
"Ooh… Eee! …Ah! ..Oh!" Mask Shawn stumbled, paused, stumbled, paused, and stumbled until he fell in Robotnik's arms. "Ya got me… ya finally got me… *cough cough*" he gripped Robotnik by the shirt collar. "Before I go, send this message… to all the girls I used to know- tell them I won't be sending them Valentines this year… *cough cough*" he then paused, inhaling. "Tell Little Timmy that I'm sorry I couldn't save him from the well… *cough cough* …and tell my grandma that I'll tell grandpa I said hi…" he took a deep breath… then got in Robotnik's face. "*COUGH!*" he then tilted his head, dramatically. "Better… to have lost a life… than to never have lived at all… ugh…" he then fell limp.
Robotnik gawked, while the lackeys all sniffled, wiping tears…
Suddenly a tiny silhouette of a cheering crowd appeared at the bottom of the screen, applauding wildly. Mask Shawn then stood up, as a random-hand handed him an Emmy Award. "Oh, thank you! I'm so proud! Thank you all!" he said to the cheering crowd.
"WHY YOU…!" Robotnik bellowed, ready to strangle him!
"Ah, hold it! Is your machine running?"
"Of course it is!"
"Well then…" Mask Shawn then kicked the machine… which apparently was on wheels… having it roll across the room! "You'd better go catch it!"
"AUGH! No no no no no no no!" Robotnik and his lackeys ran over, grabbing the machine, being dragged along as they all tried to force it to stop!
*Bam!*
It hit the wall… but remained intact. Robotnik wiped his forehead in relief.
Mask Shawn walked by…
"ATCHOOO!"
…then sneezed wildly toward the machine, which fell to pieces!
Robotnik gawked, falling on his knees. He then turned, ready to take his rage out on Mask Shawn… but he already fled the basement.
Upstairs, Mask Shawn removed the mask, letting out a sigh, then shrugged. "Well, that was fun," he then tossed the mask aside, picking up his groceries and walking over to the elevators, going up.
In the other elevator, Zippy walked out. "I wonder if that nut-job left a crater in the street…" she was wondering aloud, when she noticed the mask lying on the ground. She picked it up, looking it over. "Hello…? What's this?" The already-crazy girl brought it close to her face…
It was suddenly yanked out of her hands by The Black Alchemist, who gave her a stern glare. "Don't even think about it." He told her firmly.
Zippy sneered, stuffing her hands in her pockets and trudging off.
The Black Alchemist watched her leave… then put the mask on himself. In a spin, he was now wearing a green-hat, orange shirt with a black vest, black pants… and had buck-teeth and a bit black nose. "Hyuck!" he laughed, walking over to the desk. "Golly, so this is what wearing the mask feels li- whoop!" he gasped, having been leaning against the desk… but, as it was on wheels also, accidentally shoved it down the stairs! "Wuh-oh! Look out below!"
On the basement stairs, Robotnik was trudging up. "This night couldn't possibly get any- AUGH!" he screamed.
*CRASH!*
The desk crashed into him, smashing him into the wall. "…I say this would be a good time for us to head out," Jasper whispered to the lackeys, who all ran off.
d~b
Stanley sat on his couch around midnight, watching on TV as everyone in New York watched the ball drop, cheering 'Happy New Years!' …though he didn't feel very happy. He and the others had no luck in finding the mask or whoever was wearing it, and he was starting to lose hope. Milo sat by him, whimpering. "Guess this is what I get for letting a grudge get to me, huh Milo?" he said.
The dog only licked his face in sympathy.
*Knock Knock*
Stanley arched an eyebrow, opening the door… and seeing Vincent standing there with the mask! "Hey, I found your mask," he said.
"The mask!" Stanley exclaimed, taking it as relief washed over him. "Thank you! But… how did you get it?"
"Lets just say a 'goofy' guy wanted to return it," With that, Vincent walked off.
Stanley sighed with relief, then walked over and locked the mask in a drawer. "Alright, from now on, we don't open this drawer unless it's an emergency- right, Milo?"
Milo panted, nodding as he did. He then let out a yip and leaped into his owners arms.
"Ha ha! My thoughts exactly! …Thank goodness nothing ever happens around here, right?"
Milo looked at the camera, giving a wink as the scene panned out.
d~b
Back in Shaggy, Pugsy, and Flip's apartment, the guys were sitting on the couch, watching TV. "Well, I guess we won't have to worry about that Mask character anymore," Flip stated.
"Yep, we're definitely safe now," Shaggy agreed.
"Totally," Pugsy added.
The camera zooms out, showing that the guys had their apartment armed to the teeth- traps everywhere, barbwire strung all over… there was barely room to walk!
"Lets see anyone get in here-!" Flip began.
Uncle Ted walked by just then. "Hey, you guys mind if I borrow some salsa? We ran out," he asked.
The guys looked at him, stunned. "Uh… top shelf in the fridge," Shaggy answered, surprised.
"Thanks." Ted walked through the minefield of traps, barely setting a single one off! He grabbed the salsa from the fridge, and walked out. "By the way, Happy New Year!"
The guys all blinked. Pugsy face-palmed. Shaggy fainted. And Flip shook his head.
"…all because you guys didn't want to go out tonight," Flip muttered.
d~b
A/N: …3… 2… 1…
*KA-BOOM!*
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
(The Black Alchemist makes another tally. "Last explosion of the year" he states).