Here's the next chapter of "Nicktoons: The Final Countdown". Will they get Max to tell them the code to Platform or is he still a temperamental brat?

Find out and enjoy…

Chapter 10: Taming the Brat

Later that afternoon after learning more from Max about Platform and learning that he's the only other one who knows the code to unlock the machine, the kids were stuck on what to do about the bratty stubborn Max since he refuses to tell them the code or work together with them.

"Well, this is a big waste!" Tommy shouted. "Max is an all-time jerk! There's no way he can help us."

"Tommy, I'm sure there's a perfectly good reason why he's acting like this." Tammy said as she glanced at Darry, "Right?"

But Darry crossed his arms and glared. "I'm with Tommy on this one." He said in an irate tone. "I never thought someone like Max would grow up to be such a-"

Jimmy then cut in and said, "Guys, we need Max on our side if we're gonna find Platform. It wouldn't help if you're all calling him names."

"But they're right." Timmy said in agreement with the younger kids. "He doesn't even care about helping us. You heard the way he talked to you, remember?"

"Well, Jimmy's right too." Dani intervened. "We do need him if we're ever gonna find Danny."

"No point now." Timmy said, now looking sad. "Thanks to that fake Danny, we still have no idea where he could be. Not to mention all that stuff we said to him, thinking he really was Danny. No doubt that DarkEvil has the advantage over us now."

Hearing this, Darry got a distraught look and turned around, covering his face. Sam noticed this and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe not." Jimmy suddenly spoke up. "Maybe SpongeCog really was telling the truth about something. If you think about it, he's a robot from the future. He knows as much about Danny as Timmy and I do, yet he managed to fool Danielle and Sam, who know Danny better than any of us."

"Okay," Sam said, looking confused. "Where are you going with this?"

"What I'm saying is that they would need to have a way of knowing Danny's current appearance and characteristics. And for that to happen, they would need only one person to know all that."

Dani gasped, now fully understanding what Jimmy was implying, "So you're saying that Danny really is being held captive by DarkEvil LaserPants?"

"Exactly." Jimmy answered with a smile.

Darry and Sam both gasp in shock about this, while Timmy asked, "What about SpongeBob and Tak?"

"I can't say for certain about them." Jimmy responded. "But if we wanna save Danny and find them, we just need a way of locating where exactly they're being held."

Darry then narrowed his eyes and walked away into the kitchen with no one noticing. SpongeTron turned around and spotted SpongeBorg hiding behind the couch as he watched the group.

"Hey," SpongeTron said as his face lit up with an idea. "Maybe SpongeBorg can help us!"

He ran around the couch to try and talk to him, but SpongeBorg just squealed in fright and ran around to the other side with his treadmills, confusing SpongeTron as he stared at the little robot, cowering behind a lamp from afar.

"Hey, I'm not gonna hurt ya." SpongeTron pointed out as he eyed SpongeBorg. "We're friends."

Just then, the front door opened, and Jack and Maddie came in. "Hi kids," Maddie greeted. "Any news about Danny yet?"

Jimmy, Timmy, Dani, and Sam all stared at each other, silently agreeing that it was best not to tell them everything they found out or their encounter with the imposter Danny. "NO!" they all shouted in unison.

Jack and Maddie both stared in confusion until they saw SpongeBorg zoom past their legs, beeping in fright and startling them.

Meanwhile, Darry goes to the backyard and finds Max by himself, kicking a can at the fence out of boredom.

"Hey…Maxie?" Darry asked as he stepped outside, catching Max's attention as he stopped playing with the can.

But Max refused to look at him. "What do you want, Scottie?" he asked bitterly.

"It's 'Darry'." He corrected, trying to remain calm. "And I just wanna talk because we really need your help to rescue my dad."

"Yeah, and?" Max replied, still retaining his angered look.

"He's been captured by DarkEvil LaserPants, and we need you tell us where he is." Darry added as he looked down sadly to the ground. "I really wanna rescue him and I'm worried."

Finally Max turned around and answered, "Your dad is not my problem, Scottie. You worry about what's happening to you and I'll worry about what's happening to me."

"What's happening to YOU?" Darry questioned in annoyance. "You're out here by yourself. If SpongeCog sees you, he'll capture you and that'll be it."

"He can't catch me. I'm not stupid enough to let myself get captured."

Darry seemed to be seething with anger, but then he calmed down and spoke civilly to the stubborn boy, "Look, Max, we wanna help because we care about you. We may be from different times, but we're still friends. If you won't help my dad, then maybe if you tell us the code…"

"NO!" Max yelled out. "I will NEVER tell any of you the code! So leave me alone, Scottie!"

"It's DARRY!" the ghost boy yelled at the top of his lungs. "You know my name is 'Darry', so quit calling me that!"

"Like that'll ever happen, Scottie." Max snidely remarked as he turned around. "At least my middle name comes from someone famous. Yours is just stupid."

Darry became even more furious at his insults, and then clenched his fist and lifted his arm up as if he were about to punch him from behind.

But right as he swung his arm, Sam's voice called out, "Darrel Scott Fenton!"

He immediately turned around to see Sam standing at the backdoor with his her arms crossed and an angered look. "What do you think you're doing?" she asked angrily at what she just saw.

"Uh, I wasn't…" Darry stammered nervously. "It's not what it looks like."

But Sam stormed over to him and grabbed Darry by his ear. "You have a lot of explaining to do if you're gonna beat up little kids."

"But Mom, he started it!" Darry cried out.

Max just walked away from the scene with a dull look. "You bore me."

Meanwhile, in a large dark area, a large bronze metallic device was set in the middle of the room. Attached to the back was an elevated single red chair with a bunch of blank monitors and a large keyboard below it. DarkEvil LaserPants was sitting in the chair as he read the instruction manual that SpongeCog stole for him.

"This won't do!" DarkEvil shouted as he tossed the book aside and it fell all the way down below, hitting SpongeCog in the head as he watched his master from the ground.

"There is no code in there. Who told you that?" DarkEvil asked in annoyance.

SpongeCog didn't respond and instead got a guilty look over his failed mission.

"Now let me make this clear." DarkEvil said in a cold calm tone. "In order to get that code I need the Target! If I don't get that code, I can't operate this device and all will be for nothing!"

"Forgive me, Master." SpongeCog suddenly spoke in a humble tone. "But the Target is now in the hands of those squishies. He'll probably tell them everything, and they'll know of our plan…"

"Wait!" DarkEvil suddenly interrupted. "If that's truly the case, then maybe we don't have to worry about chasing the Target anymore."

Back at Fenton Works, Jimmy had come into the Op-Center, carrying a plate of food. "Max!" he called out. "Maddie made us all dinner, and I just thought you might be hungry so I brought you some!"

But he soon noticed that Max was nowhere to be found. He walked over to the back door and opened it a crack to see Max was sitting on the roof with SpongeBorg sitting next to him.

"Oh, SpongeBorg, I don't know what to do." He heard Max say as he hid behind to the door to listen to them. "I don't even wanna be here anymore."

SpongeBorg beeped in response and Max answered, "No, I don't wanna give them a chance. And if I did, they'd just hate me more."

SpongeBorg whirred sadly and beeped again. Max sighed and responded, "I'm beginning to feel weird again. You know what happens when I feel that way, what if it happens again? I don't know what I'll do if it happens and they're in the way, and then…"

When he was unable to finish, SpongeBorg places his right pincer on his shoulder and beeps in comfort.

Max smiled and said, "You're the only one who understands me, SpongeBorg. I don't what I'd do without you."

But SpongeBorg's left arm suddenly fell off his body and hit the ground with a 'clank'. Max giggled a bit and said, "Sorry, SpongeBorg, let me fix you up."

Max took a small screwdriver out of his pocket and began to reattach his robot friend's arm. "We're lucky that nothing happened to you when we were fighting SpongeCog." Max lightheartedly added.

As Jimmy continued to watch him quietly, Max suddenly frowned sadly and Jimmy heard him say, 'I just wish I had someone else to tell this to other than SpongeBorg. Would Jimmy or Scottie even accept me like this?' but Jimmy was surprised to notice, Max's mouth hadn't moved, so how was he even talking?

Then the door of the roof opened up and Jimmy decided to make his presence known. "Hey Max," he greeted with a smile. "I was looking for you everywhere."

"Well, you found me." Max responded with cheerfulness no longer in his voice or expression.

"I just wanted to bring you something to eat." Jimmy said, trying to retain his smile.

"Thanks, I guess." Max said as he continued to screw SpongeBorg's arm in. "But I'm busy right now."

Jimmy placed the plate of food on the ground and sat right next to the two. "It looks like SpongeBorg's brachial circuits might be coming undone. Maybe I could rewire the circuits, and it'll-"

"Forget it, Fudge Head!" Max acrimoniously replied. "I built him myself and I could repair him myself!"

"Really? You built him? That's fascinating."

Max then turned his head toward the genius, looking surprised by his comment. "You really think so?"

"Of course." Jimmy nodded with a smile. "With a little fine tuning, he might just be as sturdy as SpongeTron- or even my own robot, Goddard."

Once Max finished screwing SpongeBorg's arm back, Max shook the stunned expression on his face and glared, "Of course he will." He smugly replied as he tapped his fist on SpongeBorg's chest. "I can build him better than anybody." Then he stared Jimmy in the face. "And if you just came up here to get the code from me, then-"

"No, Max, it's okay!" Jimmy quickly mentioned. "I understand why you won't tell, and I respect that."

Max got a perplexed look at his past father's sudden acquiescent. But he shook his head and glared, "I don't buy it. It's obvious Scottie put you up to this."

"No, he didn't." Jimmy tried to explain. "And you shouldn't be so hard on Darry. He's a nice kid, and he only wants to help you."

"Well, I don't want it." Then SpongeBorg beeped and whirred which Max replied, "No, I don't. Now stop it!"

SpongeBorg yelped a bit at Max's tone as his treadmills squeak as he takes a step back. Max slaps his forehead in annoyance as he groans; "Now I have to repair that too."

"Well…" Jimmy began trying to explain, "Maybe if you took your time when fixing SpongeBorg, maybe he won't malfunction as much."

But Max just glared at him. "Will you mind your own business? I know I'll never be as great as my dad. He's a genius and he can invent anything, but nothing I make ever comes out right. Even SpongeBorg isn't fully functioning."

"You shouldn't talk like that, Max." Jimmy said in a consoling tone. "I'm sure your dad thinks you're a great inventor like he is; I know I do. Besides, he made his share of mistakes when he was your age. You wouldn't believe all the things he thought he could accomplish with his intellect, only to have it backfire in his face. Plus if it weren't for his friends being there to back him up, he probably wouldn't be who he is. I'm sure of that."

"I don't get it." Max said as he turned away from him. "Mom always told me about how you messed things up, put everything in danger, and wrecked everything with all your inventions." Then he faced him with a furious scowl, "So how is it that everyone likes you?"

But Jimmy seemed confused by this question and startled by his expression, "What?"

"You heard me, big head!" Max yelled in his face. "You messed EVERYTHING up! Everyone had a reason to hate you, and yet you have a bunch of friends like Carl, Sheen, Libby, Mr. Turner…Scottie's dad." Then he closed his eyes as if he were about to burst into tears. "…and Scottie…it's even easy for an idiot like him to make friends! You're a genius, everybody likes you, and you can make friends with ANYBODY!"

Jimmy stared in agape at his future son's odd behavior, and he began to try and inch closer to him. "Max...I…" he whispered as he reached his hand out to him.

But Max slapped his hand away and furiously yelled, "Just leave me alone!"

Then he ran through the door into the Op-Center, Jimmy stood up and raised an eyebrow as he stared at where Max left. He then glanced down at SpongeBorg, who yelped and picked up the plate of food before rushing away.

Later that night, everybody decided to go to bed in order to rest up to find where DarkEvil is tomorrow. Max was given the same room as Jimmy and Darry since it was thought that the two leaders would be able to handle him better than Timmy and Tommy would.

But Max wasn't doing anything irrational at the moment. He was just lying on a blanket spread out onto the floor in the far corner of Danny's room, with his head resting on a pillow as he wore the same scowl.

Darry peeked down at Max from the bed and asked, "You need an extra blanket, Max?"

"I'm fine." Max answered as he sat up. "But I want SpongeBorg with me!"

"We already told you, Max." Jimmy explained in an annoyed tone. "He'll be comfortable in the basement with SpongeTron."

"So you think you can cool your head and go to sleep?" Darry asked irritably as he threw the covers over himself.

For once, Max resisted a comeback and instead retorted, "Just stay on your sides of the room and DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT CROSSING!" before burying his face into his pillow.

Jimmy stared haplessly at the two, and hoped Max's outburst didn't disturb the others. He soon switched off the lamp before going to sleep.

A couple hours later, in the darkened bedroom, Jimmy was sleeping soundly on his left side while Darry was lightly snoring in the bed.

After a while, Jimmy suddenly opened his eyes slightly for some reason and lied there. But then, he suddenly widened his eyes in surprise as he felt something next him. He quickly sat up and removed his blanket to see what was underneath. But to even greater shock, it wasn't quite what he was expecting…

On his right side, Max curled up next to him, with his backside resting as close as it could get to Jimmy. It was apparent that the boy had, at some point in the night, went from his side of the room over to Jimmy's, and crawled under the genius's covers to sleep with him.

Jimmy stared at the sleeping boy, baffled by this, but soon noticed that Max had a disturbed and frightened look on his sleeping face.

The genius sighed with a look of pity as he lied back down on his left side and whispered, "I don't think I'll ever understand you, Max."

Complex issues, much? Please review what you think of the chapter and keep an eye out for the next chapter.