The stampede of wildebeest thundered through the savannah without cease, pursued by a horde of Jack-Bots. The fast flying robots continued to fire their laser beams up into the sky; the sound of their gunfire was forcing the frightened animals to continue running.
Jack Spicer, carried by the bounding Shen-Ga-Roo, was pursuing the stampede. "Once they get to the river, they'll have to slow down! Then we can grab the Wu!" Tubbimura was in the magical vehicle's pouch as well, watching the skies for something.
"Xiaolin Dragons at lunchtime!" yelled Tubbimura, pointing frantically in the air.
Jack couldn't understand what his accomplice was saying at first. "You mean 'at twelve o' clock', right?"
The Shen-Ga-Roo was almost toppled over by Dojo, flying towards the villains head on. The vehicle was hopping on one foot for a few seconds before adjusting its balance. Jack was flailing his arms for a moment before he resumed a tight grip on the Shen-Ga-Roo's steering wheel. He could just about hear the dragon remark how he liked to 'spook the dumb kid'.
In order to get a good look at the situation, Kimiko got to her feet and walked across Dojo's back until she was standing on his head. She knelt and held the Falcon's Eye up to her face, using it as a telescope. The newly appointed Shoku Warrior saw that one of the wildebeest towards the front of the stampede had a chain around one of its horns, with a golden compass Shen Gong Wu attached.
"The Compass of Yujo's towards the front of the herd! Think you can fly fast enough to get to it, Dojo?" Kimiko asked.
Dojo turned abruptly to avoid laser fire from the Jack-Bots. "This is as fast as I can go under this much pressure!"
Raimundo was about to leap off and use his wind powers, but Omi sprang into action before he could. "Fear not, my two Shoku Warrior companions! I shall prove my worth by capturing the Compass of Yujo myself!"
Omi ran towards Dojo's head to join Kimiko while Clay and Raimundo fended off Jack-Bots with the Big Bang Meteorang and the Blade of the Nebula. Omi produced the Cannon Blaster from his robes and placed it on the end of Dojo's snout. The dragon covered his ears as the Wudai Warrior of water leapt into the magical cannon, launching himself forwards with a loud bang.
Transforming from a cannonball and back into his regular self in midair, Omi used the Tongue of Saiping to tell the herd of wildebeest to slow down. He assured the animals that they would come under no harm as long as he could retrieve the compass in time.
Omi's teammates were annoyed at how he had charged ahead at first without any discussion, but after seeing how well he had succeeded, the other Xiaolin Dragons cheered him on. Omi leapt across the wildebeest, now slowing down slightly, even as the battle raged on overhead. The eager warrior removed the Compass of Yujo from the horns of the wildebeest and held it up high for his teammates to see.
"You win some, you lose some," mumbled Jack as he turned the Shen-Ga-Roo in the opposite direction. Losing a Shen Gong Wu was not so bad for him now that he possessed a sizable number himself.
The monks were shortly back home at the Xiaolin temple, placing their Shen Gong Wu in their correct drawers in the vault, including the new Compass. The warriors were still talking about Omi's efforts, which made the young water Dragon feel very proud.
"That was some mighty fine cannoneering back there!" Clay said. "Pretty risky though, since we've hardly touched the Cannon Blaster since we got it."
Omi nudged Raimundo in the leg as they walked away from the vault to get some rest. "Did you find my efforts particularly worthy, leader Raimundo?" Omi asked cockily.
Raimundo smirked. "It was pretty cool, Omi, but we would've done that if we were in that situation too. Remember that discussion we had about stampeding animals with Shen Gong Wu we had a while back?"
Omi remembered clearly and frowned. In their discussion it had been Kimiko that had thought about using the Cannon Blaster and then the Tongue of Saiping. "Our discussion had been about a stampede of zebras though," Kimiko explained. Night had fallen quickly and Kimiko had to stop herself from yawning.
Raimundo patted Omi on the shoulder. "It was really impressive though. But I think you'd have to do something really unexpected to become a Shoku warrior, Omi."
Omi lagged behind for a bit, thinking about Raimundo's words. He looked back on how he had claimed the Compass all by himself. Raimundo, Clay and Kimiko carried on walking to their sleeping quarters.
"Get plenty of sleep, kids!" Dojo called out. "I feel like the next Shen Gong Wu can pop up at any minute. I have a hunch that their activations will be much more frequent now!"
Omi watched Dojo slink into the kitchen for a snack, which would be a whole meal in human terms. The water monk was suddenly struck with an uncharacteristically fiendish idea, following the dragon into the kitchen quietly.
Later that night, while the other three warriors were asleep, Omi remained awake. As his tiger instincts had predicted, Dojo came rushing into the sleeping quarters a few hours later, about to announce another Shen Gong Wu that had become active. To the little reptile's surprise, Omi's hand reached out and firmly held Dojo's jaws shut.
"As Clay would say, it is best to keep your trap firmly closed," Omi whispered.
Dojo made a few muffled noises and grabbed hold of Omi's hand. When Omi released his grip, Dojo spoke in a hushed voice. "What's the big idea? You know how these Shen Gong Wu rashes just make me want to squeal! If only you knew how I felt!"
"You must understand, Dojo," Omi hissed. "It would be rude to awaken our two Shoku warriors. At their greater level of proficiency they require all the sleep they can get."
"Six hours is enough sleep!" mumbled Dojo. "I'm going to ring the wake-up gong!"
Dojo suddenly froze in place as a tremendous groan sounded from his stomach. As he clenched his gurgling belly with his hands, the dragon knew that his discomfort was not a symptom of his Shen Gong Wu senses acting up.
"As you made your supper snack, I added a most unpleasant concoction while you had your back turned!" Omi muttered, staring into the quivering dragon's eyes. "I happen to have another concoction that works as an antidote to your discomfort. If you aide me, Dojo, I promise you that I shall spoon over the remedy!"
"Okay," whimpered Dojo, his aching becoming unbearable. "Tell me your big plan before I pop!"
"Raimundo's wise Shoku words of wisdom gave me a magnificent idea! I shall claim a new Shen Gong Wu as they sleep, on my own!" Omi's eyes seemed to sparkle with anticipation. "In the morning they will be in for a pleasant surprise! Raimundo and Kimiko, moved by my courage, will persuade Master Fung to make me the third to advance to Shoku Warrior level!"
"Extra credit, eh?" asked Dojo. "Do you think Clay should have a chance to shine too?"
Omi and Dojo paused briefly to look at the slumbering Xiaolin warrior of earth. The cowboy was evidently in the middle of a dream. "Is that teriyaki pork? Hmm…" he mumbled, smiling dopily. "Tastes just like…Granny Lily?!" Clay's face suddenly became a look of discomfort as his dream turned into a nightmare.
"Perhaps it isn't safe to wake him up right now," mumbled Dojo, continuing to watch Clay's struggling. "Just hand me that remedy already, or else this Temple's going to experience a real nightmare!" Dojo's stomach was louder than ever.
"We shall get going!" Omi announced quietly. "After we reach the Shen Gong Wu, I will hand you the antidote!"
Dojo immediately slithered into the Temple courtyard at a speed Omi thought the little dragon was incapable of. Dojo grew to his full size in milliseconds, twitching eagerly. Gathering up a pile of Shen Gong Wu he had kept ready at his side, Omi leapt onto the dragon's back and held on tight as he soared into the night sky.
After a few minutes in the air, Dojo's stomach had calmed down considerably. "Hold on a minute, I'm suddenly feeling a whole lot better! What gives?"
Omi chuckled softly. "I never added anything to your food. You eat far too quickly and unhealthily! It was natural that you would experience such stomach pains!"
Dojo mumbled angrily to himself. "It's too late to go back and wake up the others now! Let's just get this over with and head home as soon as we can."
"Perhaps if you temporarily switched to a vegetarian diet like mine, you would…" Omi suddenly held back a yawn. "Never mind; I am sure Jack Spicer will provide enough challenge for my promotion."
The boy and the dragon landed in a grey rock valley, dimly illuminated by the approaching dawn. The area was abundant in table landforms, some so narrow that they resembled slender towers. When Omi hopped off of Dojo's back as he shrank, the Xiaolin monk could not help staring at the gradually rising sun.
"There it is!" Dojo said, jumping onto Omi's shoulder to make him snap out of his stupor. "The Majutsu Wand!"
Dojo pointed towards the towering butte they were facing. Embedded in the vertical rock face was a black rod shaped item, topped by golden crown with a large blue crystal in the centre. "What does it do?" Omi questioned.
"The Majutsu Wand was Dashi's attempt at making artworks a little more interactive! One zap can bring a painted character or a statue to life, but it has a notoriously long cool down period," Dojo replied as Omi prepared to leap upwards. "Soon he forgot the whole idea and decided to just admire the paintings as they were."
Omi sprang into the air and managed to find nooks and crannies in the rock face for his hands and feet. He crawled up towards the Majutsu Wand like a spider, carefully calculating where he could hang without falling.
Just as he was about to reach for another handhold, Omi heard an ominous whizzing in the air. He leapt to a tiny ledge just below his former position just as a missile struck it, scattering chunks of rock and leaving a sizable crater.
Looking over his shoulder, Omi saw Jack Spicer hovering with the help of his trademark heli-bot. Accompanied by a fleet of Jack-Bots, each with a missile launcher mounted to their chest, the self proclaimed evil genius was grinning fiendishly.
"Two Wu activated in a day. Guess your friends were too tired to come out and play for a second time!" Jack said with a sneer.
"Jack Spicer!" Omi yelled, almost yawning again. "Once again I will effortlessly claim another Shen Gong Wu!"
Jack did not stay to make a snarky comeback. His heli-bot carried him upwards at full speed towards the Majutsu Wand. Dodging more fire from the formidable Jack-Bots, Omi activated the powers of the Lotus Twister to turn his arms into rubber bands.
Like a slingshot, Omi used his elasticity to launch himself upwards. Losing momentum, Omi deftly used the missiles fired towards him as stepping stones, carrying him to the Shen Gong Wu. Predictably, Omi found his hand touching the wand at exactly the same time as Jack Spicer's. The mystic item began to glow with reality warping energy.
"A showdown at sunrise! If I had bought some camera-bots, this would've made a great picture!" Jack exclaimed.
"The game is tilting towers; last person standing is the victor!" Omi readied himself, but for a split second his eyelids felt heavy. "I shall wager the Tangle Web Comb!"
"I'll wager my Monsoon Sandals! Just hold on a second…" Jack gingerly removed his feet from his boots and stepped into the mystic foot wear. The villain's tedious actions were making Omi feel even sleepier. "I think there's a stone inside one of them!"
Before the whining boy genius could get ready, Omi raised his voice. "Let's go! Xiaolin Showdown!"
The two combatants were enveloped in a bright light emitted by the Majutsu Wand. When the light faded, Omi and Jack found themselves standing on two separate stone towers that were a great distance apart from each other. All around them were similar stone towers, but they were all too far apart to allow the two competitors to jump between them. Beneath them was a foreboding white abyss, stretching hundreds of metres.
"Gong Yi Tanpai!"
Omi felt the stone tower quaking beneath him until it began to tilt forwards, cracking loudly. Omi clung to his tower as it fell, jumping off at the right time when it was close enough to another tower. The remnants of his former location crumbled into the nothingness below.
Jack laughed and used the power of the Monsoon Sandals, extending his legs to ridiculous lengths. He stepped from tower to tower almost effortlessly, each one crumbling down as he left them behind. The number of platforms in the showdown space was gradually diminishing as the contestants moved about, unable to stand on each tower for too long.
"Ouchie!" whined Jack, "I knew it!"
Towering above the playing field on his long legs, Jack took the time to precariously balance on one foot. He took off the sandal that was causing discomfort and took out a tiny stone, but the leg he removed it from shrank to its original length. Jack squealed as he lost his balance, but luckily for him, the villainous redhead landed on his backside on another tower.
Omi saw that Jack was toppling the towers at an alarming pace, destroying a greater number than Omi had. The Wudai Warrior was caught by surprise as Jack's long leg extended horizontally towards him, attempting to kick him off his platform. Omi dodged by leaping upwards, but found that Jack had knocked down his former tower.
Luckily for Omi, the young monk managed to grab onto Jack's leg. The villain squealed angrily, telling Omi to get off. Jack thrashed around wildly, but this only triggered the toppling of his tower. Jack hastily leapt to another tower when he came close to one, while Omi found a suitable platform for himself.
As Jack continued to strut from platform to platform, Omi aimed his Tangle Web Comb. Planning to tie up Jack's long legs, Omi envisioned the boy genius hilariously falling to his doom. However, as Omi called out his Shen Gong Wu's name, he paused momentarily for a tiny yawn.
As the sticky webs shot forth from the teeth of the Tangle Web Comb, Omi's concentration wavered momentarily as his head nodded. To his horror, Omi saw the strands bend backwards towards him. The Tangle Web Comb required maximum focus from the user, and Omi's fatigued state lead to his downfall. The water monk was wrapped up by his own weapon, tumbling helplessly as his tower fell.
There was a flash of light. Omi felt like he had actually been asleep for a few seconds, opening his eyes to see Jack Spicer's feet. As his eyes met with Jack's, Omi saw the Tangle Web Comb, Monsoon Sandals and Majutsu Wand in his arms.
"And that's a wrap! Get it?" Jack yelled with glee. Omi was about to speak, but he almost yawned again, much to his embarrassment. "Oh! Are you a little tongue tied?" Jack slapped his thigh loudly. "I'm on a roll here! Can't wait to boast about my victory on the world wide-"
"We get it Jack. Forced jokes aren't funny," said Dojo, preventing the boasting villain from making another cringe worthy pun.
"Yeah, you're right," mumbled Jack, flying away with his swarm of robots.
Eventually, Dojo flew back in the direction of the Xiaolin Temple with Omi clinging loosely to his back. The little monk kept almost falling asleep, but Dojo's undulations prevented him. "Look on the bright side; Jack Spicer doesn't strike me as the kind of person interested in art! He'll grow bored of the wand in no time."
Dojo's words failed to cheer Omi up. "Raimundo will be most disappointed. He may even request Master Fung to knock me back down to Xiaolin Apprentice level!"
"If we get back to Temple before anyone wakes up, it'll be like we never left!" Dojo added.
Jack Spicer had already returned to his evil lair, but despite his victory, the villainous redhead was not pleased. He twirled the Majutsu Wand in his fingers, dropping it on the floor multiple times in the process. Without anyone who had any expertise on the Shen Gong Wu, the evil genius had no idea what the wand did and how he could use it to his advantage.
Jack began to tap a wall repeatedly with the mystical object, followed by a piece of metal from a broken Jack-Bot and a couple of glass beakers. The ceaseless noise was getting on Katnappé's nerves, and when Jack began to accompany it by blowing raspberries, the lady thief decided she had had enough.
"That tears it!" she screeched, slamming her cat themed laptop shut. "I'm done with trying to search for information on stupid magic wands!"
"But you're the only one of us with a decent enough attention span to do that!" whined Jack.
"Tough luck," she mumbled, walking to the exit.
Jack sat on the floor with his arms crossed, scowling into space. A few seconds later he angrily pulled out a cardboard box, full to the brim with comic books. He took one from the top and lied down on his stomach, wriggling his feet in the air behind him.
As she left the room, Katnappé turned off the main lights, leaving Jack in dim illumination. Jack demanded that he wanted the lights back on immediately, but Katnappé had already left. Jack noticed that the Majutsu Wand's blue crystal was glowing faintly, but he also noticed a tiny button on it that was lit up slightly too.
"Maybe it's just some dumb magic flashlight," he said to himself, pointing the wand at his comic book and pressing the button with his thumb.
He shrieked in surprise as a beam of light shot out of the Shen Gong Wu, illuminating a panel of the comic book. Jack bit his lip as he saw a glowing shape rise from the page, solidifying into a corporeal form. Stood in front of him was a tiny superhero, dressed in a silver suit and cape. The miniature man had been brought to life from the panel on which he had been drawn and was now glancing all around the lair.
"Which deadly dimension has that dastardly Perplexo imprisoned me in now?" the superhero thought aloud. Evidently, the living drawing was still in character.
Jack's eyes widened. "I've done it! Every evil genius's dream! I've created life!"
At those words, the tiny superhero turned and faced the boy genius, readying his ray gun. "Prepare to be atomized, titan of terror!"
The hero fired his lasers at Jack's nose, but the villain did not feel a thing and only remarked how precious the tiny man was. Jack lifted the struggling superhero by his cape and placed him inside a hamster cage. He then attempted to use the Majutsu Wand again, this time on a picture of an alien beast in the comic, but the Shen Gong Wu refused to work.
"Stupid thing needs to recharge!" Jack muttered. But soon his disappointment turned into glee. "But when it's done, I think I'll try using it on something a little bigger..."
Back at the Temple, the sun had not fully risen, and the three other Xiaolin warriors were still slumbering. As Omi wearily lumbered to his sleeping quarters, he saw that his pillow looked extremely inviting. However, as soon as he laid his head down, peace was shattered by the buzz of an alarm clock.
"Rise and shine everyone!" yelled a fully recharged Raimundo.
The warriors of wind, fire and earth rose to their feet and began to perform their morning stretches, but the warrior of water opened his bloodshot eyes with a loud groan. At breakfast, Omi tried hard to prevent himself from falling face first into his bowl.
"I don't know anyone else who gets a craving for teriyaki pork in the morning," muttered Kimiko, glancing at Clay's strange breakfast choice.
"Just wanted to check if it wasn't...spoiled," Clay said after finishing the plate in moments. "Hey Raimundo, tell everyone what you've got planned today!"
Raimundo chuckled and placed a piece of paper in the centre of the dining table. "There's a drive-in theatre showing all the old movies I liked to watch as a little kid!" Clay and Dojo seemed interested, but Kimiko raised an eyebrow and Omi stared sleepily into space.
"Oh how wonderful!" Dojo said with a sigh. "Master Fung and I went to a drive-in cinema a few weeks after we first met!"
"So romantic," Raimundo whispered with a chuckle. Dojo had heard what he had said and was glaring at him.
"I don't know," Kimiko said, "It's nice you want to go on a fun trip, but couldn't we go somewhere more interesting?"
"Aw c'mon Kimiko!" Raimundo groaned. "They're showing The Terror from Uranus!"
Kimiko seemed to perk up at the mention of the cheesy movie. "Hey! My dad knows the guy who was in the monster suit! His son plays a lot of monsters in Japanese TV shows today."
Soon the Xiaolin Dragons were ready to climb onto Dojo's back, but Kimiko noticed that Omi seemed dreadfully tired. "Did you not have a good sleep last night, Omi? Maybe you should stay at the Temple and have a longer snooze."
Omi smiled wearily. "A most excellent idea, Shoku Warrior Kimiko! Perhaps save some popped corn for me."
After soaring through the sky, Dojo landed amongst the parked cars in front of the outdoor movie screen. He remained enlarged while the three Xiaolin warriors sat upon his head. The drive-in theatre had been built in a vacant downtown parking lot, attempting to recreate the charm of the drive-ins of old.
"Back in the old days, folks were a little more awestruck by mystic dragons coming into their theatres," Dojo mumbled, looking around at the numerous people who had their eyes glued to the silver screen.
The dragon winced as he felt Clay walking up his tail, noticeably heavier from the huge pile of food from the concession stand he was carrying. "Sure was nice of them to play that little song reminding us about the snacks," he said.
When Clay finished sharing out the food, the four of them began to enjoy the poor dubbing and low budget special effects of 'The Terror from Uranus'. Raimundo remarked that he wished winning Shen Gong Wu was as easy as shouting 'reverse the polarity'; a phrase the characters in the film seemed to yell whenever they got into a sticky situation.
The Xiaolin heroes had neglected to notice that amongst the parked cars, Jack Spicer sat in the Tunnel Armadillo. Eventually, the titular Terror from Uranus appeared on screen, eliciting a great cheer from the audience and a great big evil grin on the boy genius's face.
"Normally I find watching movies by myself boring, but today's an exception to that rule," he chuckled, aiming the Majutsu Wand at the screen and pressing its activation button.
The magical beam illuminated the image of the rubbery monster. Resembling a humanoid lobster crossed with an octopus, the Terror of Uranus stepped off the screen as though it was climbing through a window. The black and white monster stood still, gazing dumbfounded at the numerous cars in front of it.
"Ugh," Raimundo grunted in disgust, "Why does every film have to be 3D these days?" He stood up and shouted in the direction of the film projector. "You're ruining the authenticity, guys!"
The wind warrior's anger subsided when he saw the staff members clambering out of the projection booth, fleeing for their lives. The people at the snack bar were doing the same, wailing in terror. Raimundo looked back at the monster just in time to see it kick several cars aside as though they were toys; their occupants evacuating just at the right moment.
"I reckon this is literal movie magic at work!" Clay exclaimed, jumping off Dojo with Kimiko and assuming a fighting stance.
"This is strangely embarrassing," Dojo said, noticing the theatre was now completely empty except for the four of them. "People are more scared of that overgrown rubber suit guy than they are of me?"
Nevertheless, Dojo shrank down to his usual diminutive size and hid under Clay's hat. The alien monster's lobster claw swung down at the three Xiaolin dragons, which all effortlessly leapt out of the way. The giant monster's movements were slow and clumsy, just like in the film.
"Mikado Arm!" Raimundo yelled, activating the power of the Shen Gong Wu to endow his arms with bulging muscles.
The Shoku Warrior of wind leapt forward and began to pummel the monster's feet with a barrage of super strong punches. He attempted to topple the space creature with his tremendous strength, but found himself kicked away like a soccer ball.
"Cannon Blaster!" Evoking the weapon's name, Clay fired himself at the creature's chest, but only bounced off of it and reduced several cards to scrap metal as he crash landed.
Kimiko placed her special elemental Shen Gong Wu to her arm and readied her Wudai weapon. "Cats Eye Draco! Arrow Sparrow!"
The combined power of the two magical items unleashed a blast in the shape of an enormous fire bird. The Shoku Warrior of fire anticipated that the monster would be reduced to ash, but was alarmed when the Terror from Uranus merely roared in anger as the phoenix dissolved into smoke against its body.
"This varmint's immune to a full powered Wudai weapon?" Clay asked, wearily getting up from the wreckage he had caused.
"And Shoku Warrior strength!" added Kimiko as Raimundo resumed his position next to her, deactivating the power of the Mikado Arm.
Raimundo was far from crestfallen; it seemed that the Xiaolin leader had a plan in mind. "Not even the army can defeat the Terror from Uranus, but there is one thing that can!"
To his comrade's surprise, Raimundo activated the power of the Moby Morpher Shen Gong Wu. The strange item twisted and warped his body into an entirely new species; a rough collie dog. The canine Raimundo began to bark at the towering monster, and to Clay and Kimiko's amazement, the creature began to make its retreat.
The Terror from Uranus clambered back inside the silver screen and faded from sight, replaced by an image of deep space. The hammy narrator of the film announced that in the end, man's best friend had proven to be humanity's greatest ally, driving the monster back into the depths of space. A big and bold 'the end' appeared in the centre of the screen, just before the credits began to roll.
"Good thinking, Lassie," Clay laughed as Raimundo reverted back to his original shape.
Jack Spicer was understandably furious, standing up in the Tunnel Armadillo. "Darn it! Just when it looks like the bad guy's going to win, the writers come up with some stupid solution in the last minute!"
The Xiaolin warriors took notice of Jack's exclamation and turned to face him, noticing he was holding the Majutsu Wand; a Shen Gong Wu that they had not seen before. Jack hurriedly resumed control of the mystical tunnelling machine, digging deep into the earth before the heroes could pursue him.
"I knew that magic was involved!" Clay said. "Seems like Spicer had his dirty hands on a new Wu!"
"A Wu that can bring movie monsters to life," Raimundo thought aloud, "How come I don't remember something like that being activated?"
Dojo sheepishly came out from under Clay's hat. "There was a new Wu that activated while you guys were asleep. Omi was the only one up!"
Clay grabbed hold of Dojo and held him up to his face. "Then why didn't you wake us then? What was going through your minds when you two went after a Shen Gong Wu alone?"
Dojo squealed. "I couldn't help it! The kid fed me false information, almost literally! We thought Jack wouldn't be interested in a Wu that could bring artworks to life, but it seems that the power works on artistic media that didn't exist fifteen hundred years ago!"
"I think we better get back home and have a little talk with Omi," said Kimiko.
Jack Spicer was back at his basement lair, but this time he had assembled his lackeys Tubbimura and Vlad, as well as Katnappé. They were seated on four folding chairs; Tubbimura occupied two. With the tripod projector screen in front of them, Katnappé thought they were going to watch another one of Jack's tedious slideshows.
"This better not be the one about the 'cool crab' you found on the beach that one time," the bored thief said with a sigh.
"This is something entirely different!" Jack said with a hint of anticipation in his voice. "And you know that crab was awesome. He was like a crusty little pirate!"
A Jack-Bot with a film projector mounted on its chest hovered into the room. Another Jack-Bot arrived, holding a comic book in its claws. After turning to a certain page, the robot handed the comic to the projector and a panel was projected onto the screen. The image was of a formidable looking villainous character. He wore a mask and horned helmet that made him look like some sort of gargoyle, as well as purple armour and a matching cape.
"Meet Lord Devastatron; emperor of the Demon Nebula!" Jack announced.
"I can read his word balloon, Jack," Katnappé said with a sigh.
Jack ignored her comment and continued to explain his plan. "When the wand brings a character to life, that character acts exactly as they did in whatever comic or movie they came from! That unfortunately includes whatever weaknesses they had." Jack paced for a moment before suddenly tapping the image with his pointing stick. "Devastatron here has no weaknesses! The comic he appeared in was never concluded, so the heroes never found a way to beat him!"
Tubbimura sheepishly raised his hand. "Are you sure it is a good idea to bring such a formidable fiend to life?"
"Tubby has good point," added Vlad. "The emperor of Demon Nebula' sounds like a scarier title than 'ninja henchman', 'cat burglar', 'boy genius' and 'vendor'."
"Yeah, I know!" Jack exclaimed, vibrating with excitement. "He's much more powerful than we are! He'll make the ultimate lackey!"
His comrades cringed and cowered in unison as he pointed the Majutsu Wand towards the projector screen. Devastatron strode out of the image, standing well over seven feet tall beside Jack. The otherworldly villain gazed at the peons who had summoned him into their world.
"Lord Devastatron; it is a pleasure to have you working with us today!" Jack was cheerful while his henchmen seemed ready to jump out of their seats and vacate the premises.
At that moment, the tiny superhero that Jack had locked in the hamster cage a few hours ago managed to break free. The silver suited man ran up to Devastatron as fast as his miniature legs could and pointed a finger at the towering villain, striking a heroic pose.
"The cosmos will soon be free of your evil wrath, titans of terror!" These were the hero's last words before Devastatron's mighty boot came down upon him, accompanied by a tiny 'poot' sound.
Jack Spicer gulped audibly. "Wow, it's a nice surprise to see you're more ruthless than I imagined!" He looked back at his teammates to see they had fled. Before he could turn around, Devastatron approached Jack with a deep evil chuckle as the lone boy genius stood cowering in fear.
Back at the Xiaolin Temple, Omi faced the gazes of his three disappointed teammates. "I thought you would be proud of me, leader Raimundo," Omi mumbled with a frown. "I thought I was only trying to save you the hassle of retrieving the Majutsu Wand."
"But really you were just trying to score extra credit," interjected a stern Clay.
Raimundo knelt and placed his hand on the water warrior's shoulder. "You were pretty brave, honestly. It wasn't too different to something I would've done when we first became dragons in training. But we're a team, Omi. When the time comes, you'll be rewarded for thinking about the wellbeing of your teammates instead of your own promotion."
"But I think about you all the time!" whined Omi. "I do the chores for all three of you!"
"It comes across like you're trying to outshine us in front of Master Fung," Kimiko added.
Omi did not want to accept it, but it was true. The young monk silently hung his head for a while as the attention of his comrades shifted to Dojo's spasms. "Kiss and make up later! These Shen Gong Wu are beginning to pop up faster than acne on a fry cook's forehead!"
"At least Jack Spicer is only using the wand to wish villains to life," said Raimundo. "The villains it creates have the same weaknesses they do in the movies they came from!"
"And villains always lose!" Omi added, cheering up at a second chance to retrieve a Shen Gong Wu with his friends.
It was not long before they were excitedly soaring towards a bustling city, with Dojo eyeing the skyline for the location his senses were taking him. "The Memo Emerald isn't a very big Shen Gong Wu at all. It creates an interactive recording of yourself to remind you of stuff, sort of like a sticky note you can have an argument with."
The green dragon suddenly yelped as he saw a startling sight on the horizon; Devastatron was gliding towards him. The comic book villain had sprouted devil wings and was followed by an angry red thundercloud. Jack Spicer's face was being grasped in the evildoer's mighty hand, his body dangling uselessly as his cheeks turned bright purple.
Raimundo was quick to spot the strange sight as well. "Uh oh, that's Devastatron!" He mumbled.
"Who?" asked Clay. "Is he one of those comic book bad guys?"
"Yeah, but this dude's different to most. He was created especially to get rid of some superheroes the writer didn't like. The writer suddenly decided he didn't like comic book readers and decided to give his comic an unresolved cliff hanger ending just to make them sad," Raimundo explained. "Some writers are weird like that."
"So this guy was made unbeatable, and the writer never included any weaknesses for the heroes to exploit?" Kimiko questioned, sounding increasingly worried.
"We either throw everything at him to see if he's weak against something, or hunt this writer down and tell him to resolve the comic!" Dojo added. "Maybe we'll tell him to put in a handsome dragon to beat the bad guy."
"Or we challenge him to a Xiaolin Showdown!" said Omi. "One formulated in such a way that both sides have an equal chance of victory."
Dojo circled around a towering skyscraper. At the very top of the building's spire, the monks managed to come close enough to see a small green crystal attached to a tiny golden tripod stand; the Memo Emerald. Before they could grasp it, Devastatron used his laser eye beams to set Dojo's tail alight.
The dragon yelped in surprise. "I'm going down, kids!"
"Abandon dragon!" yelled Kimiko as she and her three comrades leapt off Dojo's back and onto the roof of the skyscraper. Dojo spiralled down gently to the pavement far below, shrinking down to his diminutive size and dunking his burning tail in the drink of an annoyed cafe patron nearby.
The heroes approached the spire, but Devastatron landed heavily behind them. The devilish villain stomped towards them, swinging the complaining Jack around like ragdoll in his hand. "No evil gloating? The writer didn't characterize you too well, did he?"
Attempting to act before Devastatron could, Kimiko and Raimundo both performed a graceful leap up towards the tip of the spire where the Memo Emerald was perched. To their dismay, Devastatron performed an even more graceful leap, as though the writer who created him had given him the power to outperform any superhero.
Kimiko, Raimundo and Devastatron touched the green Shen Gong Wu at the same time, triggering the beginning of a Xiaolin Showdown. Bathed in the glow of the activated Shen Gong Wu, Raimundo began to devise a plan for the game.
"My servant shall fight by my side," boomed Devastatron, pulling a limp Jack Spicer towards him. "As the one who bought me into this weak world, he will be spared until I grow tired of him."
"That's awful nice of you," Jack muttered sheepishly.
Raimundo looked at Kimiko and they both grinned; Omi raised an eyebrow, realizing that the two Shoku Warriors had something planned.
"Devastatron and Jack; we challenge you to a Wei Zhi Surprise!" Raimundo said confidently.
Omi's jaw dropped. "A Wei Zhi Surprise can only occur if a Shoku Warrior is involved!"
"Allow me to explain," added Kimiko. "We each wager a Wu; but instead of announcing what it is at the start, we keep it secret until we use it!"
Devastatron tilted his head like a bemused dog as Raimundo continued. "First one to reach the bottom of the building wins it for their team! Let's go; Xiaolin Showdown!"
The entire skyscraper began to twist and shake, as though it was a tree caught in a strong windstorm. Raimundo and Kimiko were suddenly dressed in their blue showdown armours, as were Clay and Omi while they watched from the sidelines.
The four competitors almost lost their footing as the building surprisingly inverted itself; they were now standing on a small platform gazing up at the 'bottom' of the skyscraper. Numerous platforms sprouted from the sides of the unreal tower, spiralling upwards.
"That's probably not what they had in mind," said Clay.
"Gong Yi Tanpai!" yelled the combatants except Devastatron, feeling unsure of his surroundings for the first time in his fictional life.
Raimundo and Kimiko immediately performed a superhuman leap to the nearest platform and continued upwards, but Devastatron simply levitated upwards rapidly. Instead of revealing the Shen Gong Wu he had wagered, the super villain used his own powers, launching deadly lightning bolts from his fingers. The dark powers he unleashed were strong enough to disintegrate any platform in his way, and the two Shoku warriors had to think quickly to avoid falling.
Jack followed Devastatron, hovering behind him with the help of his Heli-bot. "How do you beat the unbeatable, Shoku losers?"
"Shoku Astro Wind!" yelled Raimundo, sending a powerful blast of air down towards the pursuing villains. Devastatron was completely unaffected, but the full force of the attack caused Jack's helicopter blades to creak and bend as if they were going to snap.
"Too much turbulence!" he squealed, suddenly revealing his wagered item. "Silk Spitter!"
As Jack continued to slowly climb the skyscraper with the help of the sticky webbing, Devastatron was beginning to reveal a lot more powers in his repertoire. He extended his arm forwards and transformed his hand into a huge sword before picking up flying speed, slashing at Kimiko and Raimundo as they ascended.
"Shoku Mars Fire" yelled Kimiko, launching a stream of flame from her hands towards the villain, trying to avoid her partner. Devastatron simply enveloped himself in a silvery force field to nullify the attack.
"I'll see how we can get through this!" Raimundo revealed his Shen Gong Wu, the Crystal Glasses, and placed them over his eyes. Raimundo gasped; the vision of the future that the spectacles granted him showed him complete darkness except for the glowing eyes of Devastatron, looming out of the black smoke.
The wind warrior quickly removed the Crystal Glasses and focussed on the present, but Kimiko could see the grave look on his face. In the blink of an eye, it appeared that Devastatron had vanished. He suddenly reappeared above Raimundo, conjuring a rain of flaming skulls.
The Shoku Warriors avoided the cackling projectiles, but Jack was not so lucky. As his shrieks were drowned out by a multitude of 'clunk' noises, Jack's Heli-bot began to release a trail of fumes. Glimpsing it for only a second, Raimundo was struck with an idea as he remembered what he saw in his vision of the future.
"We gotta combine our powers, Kimiko!" he yelled to his partner.
Devastatron was now moving with alarming speed, as though he had been lulling them into a false sense of security before. The comic book character noticed that both Raimundo and Kimiko were readying their elemental powers once again. "The forces of nature are nothing compared to my wrath! I can crush the cosmos in my hand."
The two Xiaolin warriors unleashed the power of wind and fire, but Devastatron merely activated his force field and boastfully folded his arms. However; it became apparent that Raimundo and Kimiko wanted this to happen. Nullified by his force field, the streams of wind and fire began to converge around Devastatron, forming a thick black cloud of ash.
Once the villain's glowing eyes were completely obscured by the smoke, Raimundo shouted to Kimiko. "Now's your chance; he's distracted!"
Kimiko nodded and flipped into the air; activating the Longi Kite she had wagered. Affixed to her back, the flying Shen Gong Wu carried her swiftly upwards as Omi and Clay cheered for her from below. Raimundo was busy eyeing the cloud of ash, knowing that Devastatron would not be blinded for much longer.
He gasped as he was suddenly faced with the image from the Crystal Glasses, somewhat glad it had not been depicting a dark future. Devastatron's glowing eyes became clearer and clearer, and it became apparent that he had his sights on Kimiko.
Instead of trying to hold him back, Raimundo looked up at Kimiko and used his wind element once again. The gust he unleashed gave the kite riding warrior of fire a dramatic speed boost, sending her further than Devastatron would ever hope to reach. The villain knocked Raimundo out of the way, but it was too late for him to prevent Kimiko from attaining victory.
The skyscraper and the surrounding city returned to their natural state, but the monks and the villains were now standing on the ground. Kimiko held the Longi Kite, Silk Spitter and Memo Emerald in her hands as her friends gathered around to congratulate her.
Bruised from Devastatron's powerful strike, Raimundo held his Crystal Glasses and the Shen Gong Wu that Devastatron had wagered but never used; the Majutsu Wand. Jack quickly noticed the Xiaolin team leader pointing the wand in Devastatron's direction.
"You idiot!" Jack yelled. His rage had overwritten the previous fear he had of the comic book villain. "Why the heck did you wager that?"
"So the object that bought me into this world would be a symbol of my victory," Devastatron boomed, surrounding his body in a crackling aura of lightning. "Enough! The outcome of this pathetic game means nothing! I shall begin my reign of terror by reducing those foolish enough to doubt my intelligence to mere atoms!"
Jack began cowering once again, but Raimundo activated the Majutsu Wand just before the villain could unleash his wrath. The beam of magical energy struck Devastatron before he could do anything, affecting the villain strangely. Devastatron appeared to shrink and flatten until he was nothing more than a life size painting on the pavement.
Removing his hands from over his eyes, Jack sheepishly looked towards the Xiaolin warriors and grinned. "Who knew it'd have a 'cancel' feature!"
Raimundo smiled and dropped the Majutsu Wand into Omi's hands, winking mischievously. Omi nodded with glee and called out the Shen Gong Wu's name, pointing it somewhere behind Jack's back. The boy genius turned around to see the billboard behind him come to life, his eyes widening in terror.
The billboard had been advertising a movie based on the very same comic book superhero that Jack had bought to life as a tiny man the first time he used the Majutsu Wand. Now far taller than any human being, the silvery suited hero loomed over the cowering villain.
"You must be a minion of Perplexo!" the superhero bellowed courageously.
"I must be on my way!" squealed Jack Spicer, flying off as fast as he could with the gigantic hero following closely behind, ray gun at the ready.