Chapter #12: Taking Action
In AnimaCity, everything was silent. There was no wind blowing, and no lights were on, by the order of the occupying robots. Nothing stirred outdoors or in the villagers' homes. That is, until the door of the heroes' house creaked open. Opening the door enough so they could slip out, six of the heroes—Sonic and Tails, Spike and Jimmy, and Ratchet and Clank—tiptoed out of the house. Just as they shut the door, they heard fast footsteps. They whirled around and saw K.K. Slider. The dog stopped in front of them and put his paws on his knees to rest. He had a worried look on his face.
"K.K. Slider? What're you doin' here?" Sonic asked, bewildered by the sight of him.
The panting dog explained, "I'm glad that I…found you dudes. I just got word that…the village police is goin' to…search the Museum for…any Alliance equipment."
"That secret basement is hidden pretty well. I don't think they'll find it," Ratchet said with a shrug. "If we couldn't spot it, then they can't."
Slider shook his head. "You can never be too careful in this business, Ratchet. If they find anything, they'll take Blathers away, and he's really important, ya know."
"I hate to add to your worry, K.K.," Sonic butted in, "but that search must be some kinda distraction for you, 'cause the ACSP is gonna arrest Tom and Tortimer tonight."
He groaned. "Oh great! And those 'bots are coming in half an hour! I can't hide the stuff and warn Nookmeister and the mayor!"
"We can help. Why don't Tails and I go look for Tom and Tortimer?"
Spike caught on to the hedgehog's plan. "Yeah! And Jimmy and I can help you smuggle the equipment out!"
"What about Ratchet and Clank?" K.K. asked with a glance at them.
Clank replied, "Ratchet and I will be occupied infiltrating the hidden base of the Secret Police."
"You're gonna rescue Copper and Booker?! You guys are nuts! They'll catch you!"
With the same grin he had given Sonic moments earlier, Ratchet said, "They'll hafta work hard to nab me!"
He shrugged. "Okay, I'll trust you, but don't say I didn't warn ya. Anyway, I appreciate your help, Spike and Jimmy. Meet me at the Museum in the aquarium section!" He turned to Sonic. "Good luck finding Tortimer and the Nookmeister, hedgehog. Try Tom at his store. If he isn't there, he's probably with the mayor. They like to talk at the Wishing Well when there aren't any 'bots hangin' around. See ya, dudes! …And try not to be seen."
The dog ran away, and the six returned inside to tell SpongeBob and Patrick their new plan. (Thankfully, Patrick was silent and caused no delay in the explanation.) Now Spike and Jimmy would smuggle Animal Alliance gear out of the Museum. The rest of the plan remained the same; Sonic and Tails would go look for Tortimer and Tom Nook, and Ratchet and Clank would bust out the captive Allies. With that settled, the heroes marched out of the house again and crept away in pairs into the night on their missions.
Fifteen minutes later, in the heroes' house, while they were waiting for their friends to return, SpongeBob and Patrick played board games they had found in the game room. They were working on Monopoly, and SpongeBob rolled the dice. "Yes! I can purchase Broadway! Hand me a hotel, Patrick."
"Mmm…tastes like chicken. Try one, SpongeBob."
The sponge stared at his best friend in horror. "Patrick! You're not supposed to eat those!"
The starfish burped, and a hotel came out of his mouth. "S'cuse me," he mumbled.
SpongeBob shrugged. "Oh well, so much for that game. Let's check on Resetti."
The pair walked upstairs to the crowded second floor. They found the mole still tightly tied to his chair, fast asleep. The sea creatures couldn't help but giggle at the sound of his snoring.
Suddenly SpongeBob picked up the sound of the door opening.
"Someone's back! C'mon, Pat!"
"Alpacas!"
SpongeBob and Patrick raced downstairs; that was their first mistake. Their second was calling out to their visitors.
"Hello down there! We're coming!"
"Merry Christmas!"
Their third error was screaming at the sight of a squad of robots in the house.
"Aayyyeeeeeee!"
"Pancakes!"
Their fourth mistake was running back up the staircase to hide. "After them," droned one robot, and the squad followed them onto the second floor. They turned the lights on and scanned the room. Luckily, SpongeBob and Patrick had hidden under a bed, out of sight. The robots didn't bother looking for them; they only wanted Resetti.
The robot that had spoken turned to the rest and ordered in its monotone, "Fetch the Chief. Tell him that we have recovered our missing agent." With a clicking of its heels and a salute, another marched downstairs.
There was silence for a few moments. Then a small figure cloaked in black stepped into the room. No matter how hard SpongeBob tried to get a better look at him, he couldn't see his face. But he didn't need to; the person's voice was scary enough.
"Excellent work, Officer #309. Wake him up."
Resetti's gag was taken out and he was untied, and the robot called Officer #309 shook him awake. He woke up with a snort. "Eh, what?" he mumbled drowsily. Then he came to his senses and stared at the cloaked figure. "Chief! Am I glad to see you! Did ya get those punks that tied me up?"
"No one is here except for two strange sea creatures," was the ominous reply.
SpongeBob gasped and whispered to himself, "The Secret Police Chief!"
Patrick thought he was talking to him, and he cried loudly, "Is he Mr. Rogers?!"
Unfortunately, everyone in the room heard Patrick. Officer #309 went over to the bed and lifted up the blanket, revealing the hidden duo under it. The robot picked them up. "Those are two of 'em!" Resetti yelled, pointing an accusing finger at the pair.
SpongeBob whimpered and shivered; he could feel the eyes of the mysterious Chief on him. "Please don't hurt us!" he wailed.
Curling his lip (which the sea creatures couldn't see), the Chief ordered Officer #309, "Leave these two here. The Boss won't have any use for them." The soldier dropped SpongeBob and Patrick obediently.
"What?! Chief, they could have useful information!" Resetti protested.
"What information would a pair of clowns have for me—the location of the circus?" he replied scornfully. "I'll tie them up and leave a warning note to their friends, but nothing more."
"But…"
He lost his patience and raised his hand as if to strike the mole. "Silence!"
Resetti winced and backed away, submitting to his superior's wishes. But as he walked down the stairs, he mumbled under his breath. The Chief and Officer #309 tied up SpongeBob and Patrick with tight, thick cords and gagged them with washcloths, and the squad went back down the stairs and left the house, leaving the two terrified sea creatures in the dark of their own home.
Sonic and Tails had been searching everywhere for Tortimer and Tom Nook. They weren't in the store or the Post Office. The only place left was the Wishing Well. By the time they got there, even Sonic was panting heavily. But they were in luck; both the mayor and Nook were there; Timmy and Tommy were also present.
"Well, I'll be! If it isn't Sonic and Tails!" exclaimed Nook.
"Hello, Sonic! Hello, Tails!" Tommy cried with a wave.
"Sonic! Tails!" his brother said as the twins hugged the fox's and the hedgehog's legs. Sonic grinned and patted the head of the young raccoon attached to him.
Tortimer walked over to them. "Good evenin' to you fellers! Whatcha doin' out here at this time o' night?"
After getting his second wind, Sonic replied, "We came here to warn you."
"You need to come to our house right away!" Tails said, worry plainly written on his face.
Tom Nook's smile vanished. "Warn us? About what?"
The blue hero began to explain. "We caught Resetti, and—"
"Really?!" interrupted Tortimer. "That was fast! I thought it would take weeks to catch 'im!"
"Yeah, but we found out the ACSP are going to arrest you tonight!" Tails blurted without thinking about the Nooklings.
Tom's eyes grew wide. "What?! But how…?!"
"Shh! Daddy! Not so loud! Robots might hear us!" Tommy said, and he and his sibling clung to their heroes a bit tighter in fright.
Sonic continued, "We also found out where the police are holding all of your friends, and Ratchet and Clank have gone to rescue them."
Nook shook his head. "That's suicide!"
Tortimer had to disagree. "Not if you have the weapons Ratchet does."
"That's true…"
Sonic quickly grew impatient. "We can't just sit here and talk! The Police are looking for you!"
They suddenly heard footsteps and voices. The group ducked into some bushes close by the Wishing Well and waited for them to pass. A squad of robots marched into the acre, and they were led by a figure dressed in black with a hood over his face. To Sonic and Tails' surprise, Resetti was next to him, yelling angrily.
"And one of 'em kept hittin' me with his stupid garage tool! Can you believe that, Chief?! If I ever see that weirdo again, I'm gonna…"
"Keep your voice down, mole, or shut up altogether," hissed the cloaked person. "I'm not here to listen to your yelling and complaining."
"That guy must be the Secret Police Chief!" whispered Tails.
"Yeah, but how did Resetti escape?" Sonic wondered aloud.
"All right, all right, I'll turn my voice down!" Resetti said, his tone a bit lower. "Anyways, remember that report Phyllis gave me the other day? The one about that strange blue hedgehog?"
The hooded figure nodded, not sure where the mole was going with it. "Yes…"
"Turns out she wasn't lyin'. That Sonic guy was one of the punks that kidnapped me! He admitted who he was, that cocky little rat!"
"Are you sure it was him?"
"I'd bet you a million Bells on it if I had them!"
Tortimer and Nook glared at Sonic, who gave a nervous smile.
"You think he's a threat?" The Chief seemed to believe Resetti.
The mole shrugged. "Yeah, he's got some brains. He seemed to lead his buddies, and he tricked me into squeakin' about our hideout." He hadn't meant to say that last part, but it was too late to take it back.
"You did what?!" It was obvious that the Chief was furious.
"He tricked me, I tell you! It's not my fault!"
"You idiot! Now they can find us! I'll have to call headquarters and warn them to prepare for an assault!"
As he reached into his cape and pulled out what appeared to be a walkie-talkie, the squad of robots disappeared into the trees. The animals waited for a few more seconds before creeping out of their hiding place.
Sonic immediately began apologizing for his smart-aleck act with Resetti. "Sorry about blowing our cover. I made a pretty stupid move."
"We've forgiven you already, Sonic," Nook told him with a wave of his hand. "But please, try to be more careful!"
Tortimer noticed that Tails appeared to be worried, so he asked, "What's the matter, son? Somethin' wrong?"
The fox nodded. "Very wrong. SpongeBob and Patrick were supposed to be guarding Resetti, but the robots rescued him. What happened to them? They weren't with the robots. I hope they're okay."
"We'd better go check on them!" Sonic said urgently. Tortimer and Nook agreed, and they raced for the hero gang's house.
