Chapter 5

In HQ, the ex-Loonatics, the triplets, and Austin were watching the Loonakids and their gang go through the game.

"They're doing good, aren't they?" Wendy smirked.

"A little too good," Tech said in a panic.

Rev looked at him. "What-do-you-mean?"

"I think they woke up the Programmers."

"WHAT?!"

"That's bad?" Duck asked.

"Really bad," Tech answered.

"Well, pull them out of there!" Sophie snapped.

"It's too late!"

In the game…

The gang was walking along a platform bridge in an obviously virtual track.

"Well, this is cool, we'll get there in no time," Benny smirked.

Suddenly, the radiance sparks around them began to emit an energy signature.

Greg traced it. "Uh oh! Programmers!"

"'Programmers'?" Brenda asked.

"The braniacs who wrote the book for the game."

"So they work for the Toymaker?" Michael asked, nervously exchanging looks with his teammates.

Rick sighed. "They're the reason you found us on Level 1: they caught Greg cheating on the Mega-Race. If they think we've been cheating now, they'll bounce us back to Level 1 when they catch us."

"'Level 1'?" Robert asked, "We don't have time for that!"

Ryan confirmed that by showing that their timer read 3:27:28.

Suddenly, the lights around them shut down.

"Split up!" Rick cried, rushing off.

"Don't split up! It never works!" Ryan cried. Unfortunately, no one heard (or just plain didn't listen). He was left standing there alone. "Great." He groaned and started off.

"Psst!"

"AAAHHH!"

Demi scoffed at him. "Could you at least try and act like a Loonakid?"

Ryan shook himself off. "I am."

"Prove it." She held up an info disk. "Use your powers to open this."

"What is it?"

"The reason the Programmers are chasing us right now."

"This is a game cheat?!"

"Do you wanna beat this game or not?"

Ryan groaned and pulsed a burst of his technopath power through the disk.

Instantly, a hologram layout of the game appeared before them.

"OK, so we're in Machine City. If we cut across here over Level 3, we'll go right into Level 4. Then if we run by Lava Mountain, we'll be right at the door of the unwinnable level."

Ryan smirked. "Shortcuts. You're good." He deactivated the disk—

"Game cheats?"

Ryan and Demi gasped.

There were two of the Programmers, dressed in leather and glaring furiously.

"That's against the rules," the second one said.

The first one then started poking Ryan until his life count fell to 4. "We're gonna have to bounce you back to Level 1."

"You can't do that!" Demi snapped, slapping his hand away, "He's a Loonakid."

"KELLY! BRENDA! HELP!" Ryan cried.

Demi glared at him.

The Programmers just scoffed at him.

"Look, buddy. One of the Loonakids is calling for his girlfriends."

"Come and get me, girls."

"What are they gonna do?"

Suddenly, two fingers poked them on their shoulders.

There behind them stood Kelly and Brenda. Brenda quickly kicked one of them down at the same time Kelly Vamped and held off the second.

"You were saying?" Brenda smirked.

The others then came up.

"WHOA!" Greg jumped back into Rick and Artie when he saw Kelly in Vamp form and Brenda showing off her Slayer strength.

"Hold that thought, boys," Kelly growled before throwing the Programmer in her grasp over the ledge into a pile of junk.

Brenda then looked at the one she held down and grabbed him by the coat, lifting him off the ground. "You wanna try?"

He jumped from her grasp and fell off the ledge on top of his buddy.

"Good choice!" She then looked at the others and nodded in the direction they were to take. "Come on, people, look alive." She then led them off.

In the Toymaker's lair…

Toymaker was watching the whole thing with his virtual selves.

"They're good," his soldier self stated, "The little Loonakids are very good."

"But they've gotta keep going," his smart form pointed out, "We run the risk of discouraging them if the next levels are too challenging."

"But only by seeking challenges can we hope to find the best in ourselves," said his hippie half.

"Can't we help him?"

"Absolutely not!" his soldier self snapped as he pulled them to the other side of the room, "It's against the rules of the game!"

Toymaker then snapped. "This isn't a game! IT'S LIFE!" He cooled himself off. "Sorry. I don't mind talking to myself but when I cut myself out of the conversation, I start to snap." He then realized something. "That's it. We'll give them a gift: the gift of life." He went over to the programming station…

Back with the kids…

They were now making their way out of Machine City to Level 3.

"Alright, if this madness keeps up," Jack groaned, "I'm gonna hit myself in the head with a frying pan just to wake up from this—OOF!" He bounced back when something solid appeared in front of his head and he didn't see it in time to stop walking.

Brenda caught him. "You alright, Jack?"

"Hey!" Artie said, "He found a life pack!"

"That's rare," Rick said, "I've never seen on up close before."

"What's it do?" Robert asked.

"Crush it and your life count will reload," Artie explained.

Naturally, the Loonakids gang looked to their teammate with the least life count: Ryan.

Ryan sighed and took the pack…walking over to Demi. "I want you to have it."

Demi looked at him. "You need it more than I do."

"I'm the gamester here, I can handle myself. Your life's one lower than mine!"

"I can't!"

Ryan didn't listen. He crushed the life pack and flung the resulting powder at Demi.

Demi's life count appeared, going from 3 back up to 9.

"I owed you from Robo-Con. This one's on me."

She looked at him…and smiled. "Thanks."

Twenty minutes later…

By the time the timer hit 3:00:00, the gang had made it to Level 3.

Artie looked around at the moving puzzle pieces that formed the platform they were walking on. "I wish my family could see this place."

Ryan looked at him. "What are you doing in the game, Artie?"

At that, everyone froze. And everyone but Artie and Ryan stepped back.

Artie looked at Ryan…and took his goggles off for the first time to look at him. "Well, actually, I'm here on a Beta tester trial but I'm really here for the great prize of Level 5. It'll save my family from poverty."

Ryan gave him a sad, sympathetic look and exchanged such looks with his teammates.

"Do you really think it's true? Untold riches? What do you think waits for us behind those doors?"

Ryan sighed, making his decision. "Artie, you should know. When we reach Level 5—"

"No. Don't tell me yet. I want it to be a surprise."

"…I'm sure it will be."

"Attention, gamers!" the Toymaker's voice sounded through the Level, "Stand on the red line."

The puzzle pieces forming the platform formed together into another yard of it, separated from what they'd already been standing on by a red line that the gang quickly stood on.

"Choose your best player."

Naturally, everyone looked at Ryan.

Ryan smirked and walked onto the game-stand.

"Choose your strongest player."

Kelly looked at her friends. "You thinking Brenda?"

"Actually, that'd be Artie," Rick corrected.

Artie smirked and got onto the other game-stand.

Suddenly, the stand moved like a lift from the platform to the center of the abyss before it. Each of the two boys was then given a fighting staff.

"Survival of the fittest! Face your opponent!"

The two game-stands turned to face the two boys to each other.

"WHAT?!" Ryan cried, "I'm not fighting Artie!"

"I don't wanna crush Ryan!" Artie said.

"The winner shall proceed with the others to Level 4. The loser shall be given a Game Over and be evacuated permanently from the game."

Ryan looked at Artie in panic. "Look, me and my friends—"

Artie cut him off as he put his goggles back on: "Sorry, Ryan. But I have my own family to think about."

"Artie, I can't beat you!"

Artie answered that with a few flips and spins with the staff. "I know."

"FIGHT!"