"Ray!" Liz looked at him. "Hey, you promised us!" Shadow stepped forward.

Ray took a deep breath and sighed. "No. I didn't. I didn't change my mind." Swoops looked at him.

Ray stuck his arm out to Ariel. "I want you to have him." She gave a surprised look. Swoops flew onto her shoulder.

Ray sighed. "After years of being with you, being trained to be a hero and a brave eagle, he'll never feel that same joy just being a stunt bird. He belongs with you, Ariel, and it may have taken time for me to realize that, but that's where Swoops belongs. With you guys."

Ariel didn't even know how to react as she just stood there. Ray reached for Swoops' head. "So long, wonder-bird. I'll miss you, and I promise to come see you soon one day. They gave me the address to where you live, I'll come visit someday. I'll miss you, bud." He petted Swoops' head.

Ray soon started walking away with Liz, mostly upset but he knew he had to let go.

Swoops looked around at everyone, and they all started smiling.

"That's our eagle!" Shadow petted Swoops's head. Swoops screeched once.

Soon, it transitioned to Station 51 which was under construction. Even with the construction going on, the trucks were parked in the garage as workers worked around the building.

The station alarm was already active.

The Hyperjet and QR Jet were in an open-field area, with everyone around the landing gear. Swoops was standing in the grass instead of anyone's forearms or shoulders.

"Take it easy, rookie! That's my new toaster! Keep that up and I'm making sure your toast is extra crispy!" The Lieutenant said. "Don't worry, I got it!" The rookie carried the box.

"Not bad, huh?" One member looked at the garage entrance.

The station alarm went off.

"Second alarm, please respond. Engine 51, Truck 51, Ladder 8, Ladder 19, Engine 12, Engine 17, Truck 46, respond to grass fire in 261 Penn. Proceed with caution, heavy smoke reported, power lines are down."

"As much as I want us to join in on the fun, we have to get back to Hillwood." Shadow said while smiling. "Actually, very soon. The Militia network is back online, and looks like they're up to something." Phoebe mentioned.

"What?" Everyone looked at her. "Well, everyone's on the network except Haidra, looks like she's disappeared."

"What are we waiting for? Come on!"

Hours Later

The two jets' landing gear soon touched down on the ground.

"Boy, I really wish I could get a nap right now…" Spinelli yawned. "Believe me, I also want a nap but unfortunately, the Militia are peering their ugly heads." Shadow replied while yawning.

"I'm just thinkin' about bed right now…" Travis was slouching. "Phoebe? Are the Militia doing ANYTHING right now or are they planning right now?" Arnold asked.

"Planning?…" She replied, unsure of what they'll say. Everyone groaned.

"Alright, alright. I know it seems like we rushed here for no reason, but at least we're back home, no?" Arnold mentioned. Everyone mostly nodded.

"Ok. Now, let's just get some rest, Impulse will keep us updated on anything. Right, bud?"

"Of course, Sir." Impulse replied. "Let's wind down, guys."

Everyone agreed as they all started to head to the uniform lockers.

Shortly enough, Impulse stepped in.

"Sir, I'm sorry to report but-"

"Impulse, what is it?" Arnold asked. "Your mother-in-law… She was reported missing by her husband a few minutes ago… Mr. Lloyd is currently waiting for you upstairs." Almost everyone froze in their tracks.

"The Militia…" Arnold glared. Rhonda was wide-eyed as she felt her heart ripped from her chest.

"I want eyes and ears on the roads and in the skies! The Militia must've taken advantage while we were gone! Get out there and find ANY clues NOW!" Shadow ordered.

Rhonda clenched her chest. "H- HOW!? WH- W- What the hell does the Militia want with my Mom!?" She started gasping for air. Arnold held her up.

"Hey! Hey! Easy now! Easy! Just take deep breaths!" Arnold rubbed her back. "Montgomery, get an O2 tank from the PRT."

Travis nodded while Phoebe was at the main monitors.

"Sir, we have the target." The Militia network was active. "Won't Shadow and those Vigilantes come looking for you?"

"They won't find me unless I want them to." Alastor replied. "Lock her up in the meantime."

"Yes, boss."

"Looks like the Militia is answering to Alastor with Haidra disappearing." Phoebe noticed.

"JUST GET AWAY FROM ME, ARNOLD! IF WE NEVER LEFT, MY MOTHER WOULD BE WITH ME RIGHT NOW! FUCK YOU, YOU DIRTY SON OF A BITCH! GO TO HELL AND FUCK YOURSELF! " Rhonda yelled at him. She shoved him off and started crying her eyes out while heading upstairs.

Arnold stood there extremely upset. He looked over at Phoebe.

"Phoebe, PLEASE tell me you have an answer!" Arnold begged. "I'm picking up the coordinates of where the Militia network is broadcasting from. I can relay the coordinates but-"

"I'm heading over there. Get Spinelli and Gerald to meet me there." Arnold started walking away.

"But Arnold, there's one more thing! Those coordinates land at an abandoned strip mall, and those coordinates lead UNDER that mall!"

"How so?" He looked back. The blueprints displayed for the building. "So I have to find a way to get the Hybrid all the way down there, huh? I accepted bigger challenges." Arnold started walking away.

"Good luck…"

Later

"Get in the elevator!" A Militia soldier shouted.

"When he comes for me you're gonna need your entire army to take him down!" Brooke exclaimed. "Shut the hell up and get in the damn elevator!"

"She's right, to be fair. Have you seen that car-tank of his? That thing is worth billions of dollars!" A soldier admitted. "Where are the other guys?"

"In the briefing room going over how to take down Shadow and the others."

"Open the shutter door. Now!" Haidra ordered.

"You got it, boss." The soldier replied. "You see? She wasn't going to abandon us! Alright, get ready."

"WHAT THE?!" All the Militia soldiers were shocked to see the Hybrid awaiting on the other side in battle mode.

"QUICK! TAKE IT OUT!" Every soldier started firing their rifles at the Hybrid. The bullets did no damage.

The Hybrid started firing rounds of the riot suppressor at them, knocking them out. The bullets were specifically designed to K.O. soldiers. Getting hit by one of them felt like getting punched by an angry gorilla.

After all the soldiers were now lying on the ground, Scarlet hopped out from a floor grate.

"Nothing this little voice synthesizer can't do." She stored it in her belt. The Hybrid rolled over along with the Stealth Cycle.

"Shadow, Scarlet Claw, and Trickshot have arrived ahead of schedule, lock down the elevators and find them." Alastor said through the intercoms.

"How did he know Gerald was here?" Spinelli asked. Gerald walked alongside the Hybrid. "That doesn't matter here, what does is finding out what they're planning." He said.

"Looks like I'm gonna have the Hybrid in Impulse's hands, we got a spinning fan down there, blocking our only entrance to finding out where my mom-in-law is." Shadow was looking down.

The Hybrid fired up and launched its power winch to a strong hook point. The Stealth Cycle would have to wait to have a clear path.

While Shadow kept looking at the spinning fan, his visual soon popped out of nowhere. He was currently sitting on the ledge.

"So I was wondering, where do supervillains head after getting beat up by you?" He started. "I wouldn't know 'cause I'm probably a figment of your imagination or whatnot!" He laughed. "But you think Haidra is at some tacky dive bar right now, splashing glasses of cheap whisky all over that masked face?" He started to laugh again.

Shadow quickly shook his head. "Alright, path is clear, move it down, Impulse."

The Hybrid turned around, the wheels started hanging off the ledge, and soon the entire vehicle was now hanging off the side.

"Looks like a spider hanging upside down from its web." Spinelli looked down.

The Hybrid slowly lowered itself down to the bottom where the next step awaited.

After two minutes, the Hybrid was at the bottom, with the power winch still attached.

Shadow shrugged. "Minus well, no?" He decided to jump onto the power winch rope and slide down.

"Doesn't that burn through his gloves or damage the winch?" Scarlet asked. Gerald shrugged. "Only one way to find out." He decided to jump onto the rope and slide down as well.

"Boys will be boys." Spinelli shrugged. "Screw it." She decided to follow behind.

The stealth cycle revved up and soon drove off following them.

The cycle soon landed near the Hybrid, with no damage done to the wheels or anything.

Soon, they heard shouting.

"Must be the briefing room they were talking about." Spinelli mentioned. "How about we crash that party?" She twirled her Sai.

Shadow and Trickshot soon followed behind her.

They were right at the entrance of the room, but Shadow decided to use detective mode to scan the area for any threats. He found a major one.

"Their leader is wearing a bomb vest, we have to neutralize him first before you guys start dealing with the others. Come on!" Shadow found a way above them.

"Boy, this room feels like a dream, a bunch of punching bags for my fists." Spinelli looked around. Gerald and her were awaiting the go signal.

Most of them were arguing.

"No way! You put me in a room with Shadow, Trickshot, or Scarlet, I'd rip their heads off!"

Shadow crashed through the video board and immediately grabbed the leader with the bomb vest and started to defuse it.

CRACK

CRASH

Scarlet and Trickshot dropped down and crushed two soldiers' skulls. Everyone immediately got into fight stances.

"What do you think, ladies? My money is on Shadow and the Vigilantes. Though you could say I have a VESTED interest." Arnold's visual briefly appeared for a moment and soon got into a fighting position.

Arnold defused the vest and soon fell backward, smashing the soldier's skull into the ground.

"We trained for this moment! Prepare to die, Shadow!" One soldier yelled.

"Your dreams don't count!" Scarlet turned around and uppercut one of them.

One Militia soldier tried charging at Trickshot, but he immediately tackled his legs and soon broke his leg.

"Time for some reinforcements!" One soldier tried going for the gun rack but was electrocuted when he tried to open it.

SHATTER

CRASH

Scarlet had shoved a soldier's head through an electrical box while Trickshot broke a guy's arm.

After a counter kick, Shadow yanked a soldier's arm, tossed him to the ground, and bent his arm the other way, essentially breaking it.

"Heads up!" Shadow shoved a guy with his shoulder. Trickshot kicked him up into the air while backflipping, and Scarlet grabbed the guy in midair and slammed his skull against the ground.

CRACK

Shadow hit a soldier with his pipe, knocked him down, and broke another arm.

SHATTER

CRASH

Scarlet had shoved another soldier's head into an electrical box and electrocuted him.

After 30 more guys were taken down, a triple-team takedown was performed to take out the final guy.

Shadow elbowed his face, Trickshot launched him into the air, and finally, Scarlet finished him off by slamming him onto a glass table.

SHATTER

CRASH

"Now wasn't that fun?" Spinelli dusted off her hands.

"You got to shove more heads into an electrical box than us." Arnold snickered.

"Man, these boys REALLY do their homework! Where do you think they're getting their information? Did your mother-in-law tell them? Those friends of yours? A teeny bit of torture and they're like 'Please make it stop! I'll tell you everything, just stop!" Arnold's visual was coming back more frequently, but why?

"Yo, you good?" Spinelli noticed Arnold staring at a wall… "Huh? Wh- I'm fine. Let's just keep going." He shook his head fast.

"I'll be released when the time is right." His visual started to whisper in his ear. "And when I'm free, you'll be in the passenger seat watching all the chaos I'll unleash."

After they bust down a door, they saw a weak wall ahead of them.

"Alright, according to what Phoebe just sent over," Gerald started. "Looks like Mrs. Lloyd should be ahead. You can use the 60mm cannon to break down that wall." He finished.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Shadow headed over to the Hybrid.

"Guess we'll follow behind in the Stealth Cycle." Spinelli shrugged. "We really gotta get two of them." Gerald added while raising an eyebrow.

POW

CRASH

The Hybrid soon broke down the weak wall but revealed a closed door up ahead.

"Come on!" The Hybrid rolled over the door. The Stealth Cycle was right behind.

Shadow soon hopped out. He tore off the door of an electrical fuse box and started to rewire it to open the door.

Sparks flew, Shadow soon rewired the cables and the door lifted.

After Shadow got back in the Hybrid, a projection came up. "It appears you guys are getting close to Mrs. Lloyd's location." It was Phoebe checking in.

"We're close but this tunnel is leading in the wrong direction. Dig up any schematics you can find." Arnold replied. "I'll do my best, and try not to get lost in the meantime." Phoebe replied.

Soon, the roar of the Hybrid's engine sounded as it drove off into the tunnel which had construction signs all over the place. The Stealth Cycle followed behind.

"Looks like this place was a construction area before being abandoned." Gerald looked around.

"No kidding." Spinelli replied.

Soon after, the Hybrid and Stealth Cycle jumped over a ramp, but a loud drilling excavating sound was heard.

Both the Hybrid and the Stealth Cycle faced where the noise was coming from.

A large excavating drilling machine came out from below. A bunch of drilling saws around the massive vehicle, tank wheels underneath it, a weapon that was specially designed by who? The massive drilling-like machine made the area tremble with lights focusing on the two vehicles.

A robotic voice spoke up."I did ask if it came in black, but then I thought… Nah, you'd all get jealous." It was Haidra. "What? You didn't really think I was gone, did you? No, you KNEW better!" She started. "You get knocked down, you pick yourself up again. See, I learned that from an old friend…" She pushed a lever forward.

The Stealth Cycle drifted into facing the other way, getting ahead of the Hybrid. The Hybrid immediately turned around and raced off behind the Cycle, with the massive excavator drilling machine racing behind them.

With obstacles in the way, they had to avoid them at high speeds, while the excavator drilling machine could simply ram right through as it could destroy ANYTHING in its path.

After a minute of racing through the tunnel, the Stealth Cycle and Hybrid raced off a ramp while explosives on the walls awaited the excavator.

KA-BOOM

POW

"D'EUGH!"

POW

KA-BOOM

POW

CRASH

The excavator drilled downward to hide itself, while a bunch of dirt crashed down, blocking off the exit of the tunnel.

"Guys, I'm afraid there's no way out. The exits are being remotely controlled by Haidra and Impulse and I can't access them right now." Phoebe soon radioed.

"Then we have to fight her." Shadow replied.

"Arnold, the armor and weaponry of the Hybrid are no match for that massive drilling machine! If the Hybrid doesn't stand a chance, the Stealth Cycle's chances are literal NEGATIVES!" Phoebe replied.

"But we are. We'll find a way, just trust us, Pheebs." Shadow replied as the communication cut out.

"You can't stop me! You're all gonna die down here! FORGOTTEN! IN THE DIRT!" Haidra yelled over the Militia network.

"I'm afraid you'll have to tag along, Scar. You guys are too exposed to be sitting around!" Shadow looked over to the Cycle.

"I wasn't planning on sitting back and kicking my feet up. I want in!" After Scarlet replied, the entire tunnel system started trembling again. The excavator drilling machine soon came out again.

After a shot was fired from the 60mm cannon, the excavator soon saw where they were.

"You're just GIVING yourself away! I found you!" The excavator started racing to them.

After the Hybrid and Cycle sped off, "Is it alright if I'm terrified at how FAST that stupid vehicle is?!" Gerald asked.

"Uh yup! And I don't think I'd ever find anything that TERRIFIES me!" Spinelli replied as the Hybrid and Cycle took a sharp turn into another tunnel, with the excavator following behind.

"FIGHT ME!" Haidra yelled.

The Hybrid and Cycle raced through the tunnel while avoiding the obstacles in their way and using the afterburner to help them get more speed.

Zipping around sharp corners, the vehicles soon found their way out, with explosives planted at the exit.

"Like they say," Arnold started. "Pedal to the metal!" Arnold and Spinelli said together as both engines revved while racing toward the ramp.

After they jumped the ramp, a chain reaction of explosions followed.

KA-BOOM

BOOM

KA-BOOM

KA-POW

KA-BOOM

BOOM

KA-POW

Dirt came collapsing down, forcing the excavator to tunnel down again.

"If we want to take that thing down faster, I think this should do the trick…" Shadow said while programming something on the Hybrid.

"Whatever you have in mind better be fast 'cause I don't think we'll have long." Gerald replied.

"Stop this, Haidra! Everything is in hand!" Alastor said.

"We're done, Curls! I owe them!" Haidra replied.

"We had a plan, they're going to suffer." He said.

"They're going to DIE!" Haidra replied angrily.

"Alastor's right about one thing, the world should see you for the WORTHLESS things you pieces of shits are! And I already know, and I'm not waiting anymore…" Her voice trembled at the end in anger.

Soon After…

After the excavator found them, they raced through another tunnel that contained more obstacles. Only this time, Shadow had something in mind.

"FACE ME, COWARD!" Haidra yelled.

"Face this, you freak." The Cycle jumped from the ramp. The Hybrid dropped something from the rear before jumping off the ramp.

KA-BOOM

CRASH

POW

KA-POW

KA-BOOM

BOOM

KA-POW

POW

BOOM

The Hybrid had dropped an explosive device. The excavator had run over the explosive device along with the exit explosives. TNT essentially. The excavator started drilling down with the tunnel exit being blocked off by collapsing dirt.

"Nice job, Arnold!" Gerald and Spinelli looked over.

"How about we all thank Phoebe and Impulse once we're out of this maze?" He replied.

"Guys, I remotely unlocked the door lock! May I suggest you get the hell out of there?!" She soon radioed to let them know.

"No asking me twice." Spinelli replied and immediately revved up the Cycle's engine.

Soon after, the Hybrid and Stealth Cycle drove past the exit but faced one last obstacle.

"Ugh. Hang on." The power winch fired at a fan blocking off their exit. Scarlet and Trickshot got off the Stealth Cycle.

The exit was essentially a dead end, with a fan above them blocking off their only escape. Meaning they would have to leave behind the vehicle. Or would they?…

The trembling came back. The Excavator had came back despite the machine being crumbled up with minor fires around it.

"I did it, I cornered you three bastards! Done what NO ONE else could! All these years, ALL your enemies. But none of them understands you like I do, Shadow. We grew up together, so I understand you better than your pathetic wife!" Haidra started. "You think Alastor found your mother-in-law on his own? I'm the one who told him! ME! I told you I know everything about you, didn't I? Don't worry, Arnold, I kept some secrets to myself..." The excavator started moving forward slowly.

Arnold's heart jumped at the end. Spinelli and Gerald immediately grappled up to their only escape. Shadow immediately ejected from the Hybrid, with the excavator drilling machine barely missing him, but clipped something else instead.

The excavator drilling machine had pulled the Hybrid and Cycle into its grasp, starting to shred it apart like paper in a paper shredder as the massive vehicle was ramming forward to the wall.

BANG

CLANG

CRASH

PEW

POW

KA-BOOM

BOOM

CRASH

The Stealth Cycle was shredded into pieces, blowing up and destroyed, and the Hybrid was also shredded to pieces, blowing up and being destroyed.

The excavator had rammed up against the dead end, and soon reversed and crawled into the hole it came out of. The Hybrid and Stealth Cycle were no more. Now just shredded pieces of metal on fire with tires lying around in a mess of oil fluids…