Loonatics: United

Episode 76: Wild Mall

Inside the lab, Tech was standing before the main computer, having already transferred Derek´s files into the filesystem. "So, this is the one we already got rid of." Tech opened the first file, making a window to appear on the screen which displayed a rotating 3D model of the monster they fought first. "He called it RedStrike, it seems."

Ace and the rest were behind him, looking at the screen. "What´s the next one, Doc?" Ace asked.

Tech pressed the right arrow key on the keyboard, then the next model loaded. "LaserTooth." He started to read the information chart at the side. "A modified sabretooth, as you might have guessed. It has spines, like a porcupine, laser vision and improved speed."

"And its blue." Lexi shrugged. "Big deal, I bet it can´t match my boy´s power." She placed a hand on Ace´s shoulder. "Right?"

"Well, let´s hope that." Ace chuckled slightly. "Got a plan for this thing, Doc?"

"Kind of..." Tech switched to the previous model. "This big guy was so resistant because his skin was modified to be stronger, bulletproof, as the chart says...but..." He pressed the right arrow key again and returned to the sabretooth model. "There´s no sign of that with this one." He looked at Ace. "All we gotta do is corner it and shoot to kill."

"Simple..." Ace nodded with hesitation. "...alright. Then, we just wait?"

"I guess." Tech responded.

Ace nodded again. "Okay, thanks Doc." He looked at the rest of his comrades. "Stay ready, the attack could happen anytime. We must be alert."

"Yeah, nap time then." Duck teleported and disappeared.

Ace grunted and sighed. "I´ll be training." He began to walk away.

"I follow you." Lexi also started to leave. Slam left afterwards, grunting silently.

Tech sighed. "Rev, did you finish the updates for Jack?"

"Sure I had absolutely nothing to do last week so I spent five nights in a row writing the scripts and rebuilding the firmware to be honest I think I deserve some kind of recognition as I worked very very very hard on that." Rev responded.

"Thank you, Rev." Tech replied, opening a new program in the computer, one that displayed a digital drawing of Jack. "That´s all I can offer."

"I´ll take it." Rev said with conformity.

Meanwhile, Derek Dune was standing in front of one of the many computers he had in the dark warehouse, putting commands with the keyboard. He looked over his shoulder and pressed the Enter key. The big tube that held the sabretooth started to drain, making the monster to fall when it did so completely. The glass of the tube slid downwards, exposing the creature, which was trembling over the platform. Derek smirked and headed towards his creation. "Welcome, my child." He chuckled and crouched before it, carefully stroking its spines, the creature´s red glowing eyes were locked on his. The sabretooth growled and tried to stand up without success. "Easy, there." Derek began to scratch the creature´s neck. "You need a few minutes to acclimatize. Then, you´ll take a walk." Derek started to laugh.

Lexi was hitting the boxing bag in the training room´s hand to hand combat area. Ace was holding the bag strongly while she hit it with precise kicks and punches. "Is that all you got?" Ace joked.

Lexi gasped. "Wanna fight and find out?" She punched the bag´s middle strongly, making Ace to gasp as the hit´s strength reached his belly.

"I´m good at the moment." Ace said while chuckling. "Come on, keep it up." Lexi kneeled the bag then punched it several times, then she began to throw flying kicks at it. "Woah. Save some energy for the real thing!"

Lexi chuckled and sighed. "I´m barely startin..." Slam´s sudden, monstrous laugh got their attention. He was sitting on the couch of the small lounge at the entrance of the training room, watching the TV, which was a bit smaller than the one in the main lounge. He laughed again, stronger. "Uhm, Slam, couldn´t you just watch your show at the lounge?"

Slam growled while raising his shoulders, arguing that he was actually doing so.

Lexi sighed and looked at Ace. "Well, technically, he is." Ace said, shrugging and smirking at her.

She let out another brief sigh. "Whatever, what were we o..?" Lexi got interrupted by Slam´s growl of alert, he had also gotten onto his feet while pointing at the TV. "Big guy?" She and her boyfriend rushed towards the small lounge rapidly, adopting faces of astonishment when glaring at the breaking news segment on the TV.

A female lioness was narrating the live events that were being displayed on the superimposed video feed, which showed the horrific scene of the blue sabretooth destroying everything in its path, inside the mall called 'Mirage', as the banner stated, the beast was killing people with its laser vision as well as incinerating the stores around it. "The prehistoric animal is wreaking havoc at the new shopping center, the security personnel hasn´t been ab..."

"Off." Ace commanded and the TV shut down. He looked at Slam and Lexi with a shared look of worry and conviction. After a few moments, he nodded at his girlfriend. "Call the others."

The Mirage mall was a drastically different concept for a shopping center, it was divided in dozens of areas, each one of them emulated a natural environment, the ceiling could mimic day and night, depending on the area and the floor was actually a gigantic, resistant, black screen that displayed different types of natural ground, also, referring to the respective area. The stores were located in random spots of the place, along with props like trees, rocks, caves, mountains, igloos, among others. The sabretooth was in the 'Forest' area, where night time was being emulated, it was eating a pair of people it had killed, the stores were on fire as well as the artificial trees and bushes, several corpses were scattered over the floor, which still simulated dirt and grass.

"Hey!" Ace screamed enraged, standing among his team. The beast looked back and let out a growl, it walked away from the corpses it was eating and started to head towards the Loonatics with a menacing look, its red eyes began to glow, Ace rapidly activated his power, making his eyes to turn red. "What are you waiting for!" He decided to shoot first, the sabretooth roared beastly and also shot its laser vision at Ace. Both powers began to collide with each other, making a great glow of red light to appear at the meeting point of the lasers.

"Duck, attack him!" Ace exclaimed after a gasp of exhaustion.

"Alright!" Duck teleported to a spot that faced the side of the sabretooth. "Take your catnip, bad kitty!" He formed two orbs and threw them at the beast, hitting it right at the side, exploding and sending the beast several meters towards a wall, the monster growled then hit the wall, strongly groaning and falling to the ground. The sabretooth roared with great anger and started to run towards Duck, almost reaching him with its open jaws, but Duck teleported to a safer spot, leaving the creature angry and confused.

"How about this?!" Lexi shot her brain blast at the beast, hitting its side, the beast roared and crouched a bit, but it didn´t have a great impact on it. The monstrous, blue sabretooth growled and roared at them, who were surrounding it.

Tech attracted a broken tube with his magnetic powers, not looking back but glaring directly at the cornered beast, Slam did a brief tornado and growled at the beast menacingly, Ace was preparing his laser vision again, Duck had one orb ready behind his back, Lexi had her brain blast fully charged and Rev was in a ready position. The feline, thorny beast looked at them all, enraged. Ace was focused on the red glowing eyes of the creature, and right when he saw a minimal increase of their brightness, he activated his jetpack, knowing the others would mimic him, as they did. "Up!" He hovered in that direction along with his comrades, right on time, as the beast started to shoot while turning, looking in all directions, standing on the same spot, glancing up and down, desperately trying to hit the flying heroes.

"Lexi! Look out!" Ace warned as the monster aimed the laser dangerously close to her.

Lexi gasped and maneuvered leftwards, but the laser hit her jetpack, disabling it completely, she screamed then fell to the ground, groaning while standing up and raising her hand. "I´m fine, guys." She informed, having already gotten onto her feet.

The team landed on the floor again then deactivated their jetpacks. The beast had stopped using its power, it roared strongly and started to run towards Slam, who reacted quickly when the beast jumped towards him, Slam punched the beast and sent it a few meters away, the monster collided several times on the ground, laying next to a tunnel. The sabretooth stood up with effort and with a less aggressive roar it started to run away, getting inside the tunnel.

Slam groaned while rubbing his hand, which was bleeding, the spines of the sabretooth had cut the cloth in that area and also managed to cut through Slam´s skin and fur. Tech approached him with worry and Slam grunted, stating he would manage. Tech nodded with doubt and all the team looked at Ace.

"After it! Go!" Ace ordered, running towards the tunnel, followed by his comrades.

The tunnel was dark, a star filled sky was also being simulated there, as well as a forest at the sides, that virtual landscape started to fade into something different, nighttime turned into daytime and the trees, the grass and the bushes turned into light brown rocks, gorges, cracks, and mounds, the tunnel ended and they arrived at an area that simulated a canyon, as the tunnel had teased. There were displayed props as well as real ones, with a very realistic finish. The stores there were also on fire, as well as some of the props, there were also bodies over the ground. "Where did you go?" Ace spoke as if he was talking to the beast, walking cautiously, looking around just as the rest. They walked down a fake rocky path between two walls.

The team reached a lower level, encountering with more burning props and an incinerated electronics store at the right. They stood there in silence, waiting for the slightest sound. Duck looked up and his eyes widened when seeing the beast jumping from the top of one of the walls. "Ace!" Duck teleported to the spot where Ace was, pushing him to safety. Ace fell with a groan and his eyes widened with fear when seeing the beast tackling Duck with its jaws open. "Duck!" The beast bit Duck´s shoulder strongly, making him to scream by the intense pain, he managed to teleport after that, appearing on the upper level, laying down while rubbing his wound, the ripped cloth revealed his bleeding shoulder, severely hurt and open. "Gah!" He exclaimed desperately.

"Rev, help him!" Ace commanded and Rev headed rapidly towards his comrade.

Rev gasped when seeing all the amount of blood that came from Duck´s shoulder. "Come on, man, we must find an infirmary here or something" He tried to carry him in his arms.

"No..." Duck gasped. "I can..." He tried to stood up but the pain on his shoulder was so strong he didn´t have the strength to do so. "This sucks..." Duck finally let Rev carry him, the speedster exited the area with a red blur behind him. On the meantime, the other heroes resumed the fight with the beast.