Thanks to everyone! I own nothing except for Kit and Diesel, all else belongs to their rightful owners! Enjoy!
Note: I know the time jump is nuts, but it'll make sense in future chapters.
1 Year Later...
"Spinner, would you hurry up? Lucas is waiting!" Kit yelled, elbowing Sherman out of the way. The taller, younger boy looked down at her and rolled his eyes. "I swear that kid has ADD, Sherman! Bust the door down, would you? Nobody takes that long in the bathroom!" The brunette had one issue with Spinner: His morning routine. The boy would get up and feed Bigfoot, and then he would go to his dresser and pick out his clothes. Afterward, he would go to the bathroom, and he'd be in there for at least half an hour. He did everything super slowly in the mornings.
"Just give him a minute, Kit," Sherman replied, waiting. He was annoyed with his brother's pace, too, but he did have an inkling of patience, unlike the brunette standing next to him. "He did have a lot of pizza last night…" Kit grimaced and sighed, folding her arms across her chest. She was already dressed, because she had taken the bathroom while Spinner was feeding Bigfoot. Sherman was dressed as well, as he had taken it while his brother was getting out his clothes.
"I'm not the most patient person, Sherman," Kit responded in annoyance. "I just want to get down there before I get caught! We've worked hard for the past year trying to keep my presence here a secret, and I don't want a year's worth of work to go down the drain just because of your crazy older brother." Kit was not a morning person, either. Sherman patted her on the shoulder, and in response she just gave him a deadly glare. Finally, the door flew open, and Spinner stepped out…wearing a pair of Kit's shorts and one of Kit's shirts.
Since all Kit wore during the hot summer months were basketball shorts and t-shirts, it didn't look too bad on Spinner. Except for the fact that the shorts went down to the middle of Spinner's calf, and the shirt was a little too big as well. "Dude! Those are my clothes! And they don't even fit you!" Kit said, a little mortified that Spinner had raided her things.
"Yeah, because they're too big!" Spinner snorted. On Kit, the shorts would've reached just a little past her knees, and the shirt would be loose yet comfortable. On Spinner, it made him look like a skinny hobo with nice clothing. "I guess I should change." Kit nodded and smacked him on the back of his spiky haired head. He gave her puppy dog eyes and then walked back into the bathroom.
"This is just pitiful," Kit muttered under her breath, folding her arms across her chest.
When Spinner finally emerged from the bathroom, the three got out of the base, managing to keep Kit unseen. The brunette jumped into the Clockwork and listened as it purred to life. The Buster Tank started up a few moments later, and the group drove out of the garage. In the distance, a yellow car with white racing stripes could be seen. Someone was sitting on the hood.
"Hey," Lucas greeted as Kit pulled up, followed by Sherman and Spinner. She popped out of the top of her vehicle and looked his car over. "Ready to go? Or are you three afraid that you'll lose to the magnificent Lucas Hardigan?" The boy with the curly, muddy brown hair smirked as Spinner popped out of the Tank.
"Lucas, you're going to get your butt whooped! The Buster Tank is the best vehicle there is!" Spinner declared, as he and Lucas had a stare down. Both boys were the same age, and they were rivals nonetheless. Kit waved her hand as Sherman appeared next to his older brother.
"Alright, boys!" Kit said, stopping the stare down. "Let's get this show on the road." Sherman and Spinner nodded and slid back into the Buster Tank. Lucas opened the door and shimmied into his car, as Kit dropped back into the Clockwork. "Whoever reaches the diner first, wins!" Kit explained. She took a moment to glance out at the pink, purple, and orange streaks in the sky. It was dawn, or daybreak, as some people liked to call it. It was the perfect time for a race. The brunette closed the top and put both hands firmly on the wheel.
"Ready?" Lucas asked, smirking slightly. "Set…Go!" Everyone put the pedal to the medal as they sped off through the dark desert. Kit pressed a gray button and grinned as her car melted away, the cloaking device coming in handy at that moment. Spinner spotted the car just as it disappeared. He nudged Sherman, who nodded once. They sped through the desert, dust specks flying up around them. Lucas had taken the lead, but of course no one knew where Kit was, so they didn't know if she was ahead of Lucas or not.
"Should we use the turbo boosters?" Spinner asked Sherman. The younger boy shook his head.
"We should wait until we get closer to the finish line," Sherman replied, speeding up as Lucas slowed down. The boy seemed to be looking at something in front of them, and they didn't know what until they saw Kit reappear and Sherman heard Spinner yelp. Something thumped beneath the Buster Tank.
"Was that a skateboard?" Spinner asked, a little worried. The smaller boy opened the top of the Tank and peeked out. Lucas had one hand cupped over his mouth as he squinted in the darkness. Kit came around to the side of the Buster Tank and got down on her stomach. She looked under the Tank and gasped, crawling under. Spinner jumped down and waited, as Sherman followed suit. Kit crawled back out with a mess in her arms, however, that mess was a dog.
"You hit a dog!" Lucas exclaimed.
"What's a dog doing in the desert?" Sherman asked, rubbing the back of his neck. The dog was a mess, but whom or what wouldn't be after getting hit by the Buster Tank? It was such a bloody (literally) mess.
"Sage!" Kit suddenly gasped, running back to the Clockwork.
"What do you mean?" Spinner asked, looking after the brunette.
"I mean, Sage can do something!" Kit replied, putting the pedal to the medal. The three boys stared after the retreating, burnt orange car.
"She's always had a soft spot for German Shepherd dogs," Lucas explained, a serious expression gracing his face. He got back into his yellow camaro as Sherman and Spinner climbed back into the Buster Tank. "Ever since we were kids, she's always had a soft spot for them. But she wasn't allowed to have a dog." They drove to the base, where Kit had parked the Clockwork in its usual hiding place. They parked their vehicles and walked down to the secret underground base.
Sage was nowhere in sight, but the brunette was sitting on the Reverb. The rest of the group was still zonked out in their rooms, so it was all clear for her and Lucas to hang around. Even after a year, Sherman was pretty sure that Kit still had feelings for Stanford. "What could Sage possibly do?" Lucas asked, going and sitting next to her.
"I dunno… It's worth a shot, y'know," Kit replied. "I can't just let a dog die in the middle of the desert! That's inhumane!"
"But it's a dog," Lucas replied.
"Lucas, if it was a dang turtle you'd be peeing your pants right about now," Kit snorted in annoyance. She gave him a sideways glance, gaining a small smirk.
"Hey! I would not be peeing my pants!" Lucas defended himself. "I would be spazzing out and asking Sage to help the poor little guy." The two shared serious looks and rolled their eyes.
"I guess," Kit grumbled. "Just hope the poor pup is OK. He still had his puppy fur…"
"You're making me feel really guilty over here!" Sherman finally piped up.
"Ah, it's alright, Sherman," the brunette replied, waving off his comment. Lucas and Spinner traded curious glances, before shifting away from Kit and Sherman. The two walked a few yards away and watched Kit and Sherman talk for a while. They must've been joking around, because they were both grinning and laughing every so often.
"I have an idea!" Spinner declared.
"Usually, that's a bad thing," Lucas replied, grinning. He laughed at Spinner's expression.
"Not cool, dude," Spinner said. Lucas quieted down. "Listen, we should try and hook Sherm and Kit up! It would be really good. I know Sherman has some weird crush on her or something. So it would work out, we could have them meet up at the diner!"
"They'd never go for it," Lucas replied.
"We don't have to tell them that's what they're going to the diner for. We could lie about it," Spinner replied. "You know, trick them!"
"Well… What if Grace and Zeke see Kit?" Lucas shot back.
"Well…" Spinner started, trying to think for a moment.
"There's a hole in your almighty plan," Lucas replied.
"Shut up, turtle boy! I know what we can do," Spinner responded. "All we have to do is make sure Grace and Zeke aren't around. We can send them into town or something! And then Kit and Sherman would have time to themselves. Anymore questions?"
"Yeah. What if the rest of the Battle Force 5 walks in on their little "date", huh, Spinner?" Lucas answered, folding his arms across his chest.
"You and your "what if's"… All we'd have to do is make sure they don't walk in. Simple as that," Spinner replied, a light shrug given. Lucas sighed in defeat.
"Alright… Let's do it!" Lucas replied. The two did a fist bump and then walked back over to Sherman and Kit. The two were now talking about atoms and molecules, so Spinner and Lucas didn't understand any of it. "Umm…dudes? In English, please!" Lucas cut in. However, the boy was ignored.
"Yeah, yeah, I totally understand," Kit replied. "So the molecular structure must've gotten messed up!" She face palmed. "Smart boy." Sherman smiled proudly.
"ENGLISH!" Spinner and Lucas shouted in unison. Kit and Sherman looked at them curiously. Before anything else could be said or done, Sage reappeared. A table was floating at her side, with the dog on it. He was lying on his side, motionless. Spinner's face fell – he didn't wanna see a dead dog. Kit slid off of the Reverb as Lucas and Sherman traded glances.
"I have managed to repair his injuries. But I had to replace the right half of his body with Sentient technology. It is much like the armor used on the Buster Tank. There is artificial fur on his right side, so that people will not get suspicious," Sage explained. The dog stood up and sniffed around. His right eye was a red optic, and the pads on the bottom of his paws were a sliver-pinkish color. "Since he is equipped with such technology, he now has a sonic bark." The dog barked and it sounded robotic and hollow, yet with the liveliness of an organic dog mixed in. After all, he was still half organic. "He also has enhanced sense, and his intelligence level is double that of a regular dog's. Now all he needs, is a name, and a master."
"Diesel!" Kit suddenly yelled. The dog perked his ears up and jumped off of the floating table, pounding over to Kit. He licked her face. "Good boy, Diesel!" She rubbed behind his ears and his tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth. "Can we keep him?"
"He'll eat my turtle!" Lucas complained.
"No he won't! You won't eat Lucas' turtle, Stephen, will you, Diesel?" Kit asked the cyborg dog. Diesel barked and shook his head. His tail wagged back and forth vigorously. "See! This is my dog!" she replied. The brunette continued by saying, "Sit, boy!" Diesel's butt hit the floor instantly. "Good boy!"
"Aww… I wanna pet him!" Spinner said, walking over. He patted Diesel on the head and pretty soon Sherman was playing around with the dog as well. Lucas couldn't help but cave, as he ran over and joined the other three.
"Thanks, Sage," Kit called to the retreating Sentient. Sage smiled and disappeared.
Review! Tell me what you think!