Chapter 5: Basic Training

(Intro)


Battle Force 10 were once again in a Battle Zone, ready to capture the Battle Key. But this Zone had a humungous Kraken in it. Battle Force 10 was coming close to the Battle Key while the Kraken was trying to ensnare them with its tentacles. "And the Battle Key goes to…" Spinner announced as the team drove up to the key and the Buster snagged it. "…the amazing Cortez brothers! Spinner to Sherman, take us home, little buddy." Spinner said. "Roger dodger, big buddy." Sherman said. Just then, as the team was making their way to the Earth portal, Zoom zipped ahead, passed a tentacle and snagged the Battle Key. "Own edge." He said as he landed. The Cortez brothers were caught by surprised, nearly crashing into the Tangler. "Keep your eyes on the road, Wide Load!" Agura exclaimed.

"Guys! Quit goofing off and work together or that thing will eat us for lunch!" Vert called. "Yeah! We're trying to save Earth, remember?" Olivia asked. "Correction. We're saving Earth. Agura's running over teammates." Spinner said. Agura drove the Tangler over Zoom and snatched the key from him. "Hey!" Zoom exclaimed. "Tough, Zoom. You snooze, you lose." Agura said. "Give me a K! Give me an E! Give me a Y! And what's that spell? Key!" Talia cheered as she sped up to the Tangler, snatched the key and sped on ahead. But suddenly, a thick fog covered her windshield. "Hey! Where'd this fog come from?!" She exclaimed in surprise. Just then, the Steaming Wok zipped up and snatched the key. The fog was coming from it. "My own concoction of homemade fog. You like?" Rayona asked tauntingly. "Okay. I'm getting you back for that one, Rayona." Talia said. "YEE-HAW!" Ivan yelled as he drove the Dune Cat over the girls, snatched the key from Rayona and landed in front of them. "That's right! Don't mess with a Dalton!" He cheered as he sped ahead. "Wow. What a man." Talia said, flustered. "You said it." Rayona said. "Make way! Winner coming through!" Horace called as he jetted over Ivan and snatched the key. "Later, chumps." He said, speeding ahead.

"Horace's got the key! Hit the turbo accelerator." Spinner said. Sherman activated the turbo accelerator. Unfortunately, they knocked Vert and Olivia off balance, causing them to spin out of control and crash. The Saber's front got jammed down into the road while the Jetray was stuck on its side behind it. "Uh, fellas?" Vert asked. "Well, this is cozy." Olivia said sarcastically.

Once the team reached the portal sight, Horace used the Battle Key to open the portal back to Earth and the team crossed through the portal. Meanwhile, Vert tried to pull the Saber free. "Come on! Let's go! Start!" He grunted. "Uh, Vert? I think we have bigger problems." Olivia said. Vert looked up to see that the tentacles were right on top of them.

"And the fastest one is…Horace Karpov!" Horace announced, grabbing the Battle Key and closing the portal, not noticing that Vert and Olivia were captured by the Kraken. "Uh, guys?" Stanford asked in worry as he was the only one to notice the Wheelers were accidently left behind before Horace closed the portal. "You should've seen your face when I drove over your turret." Agura taunted. "You should've seen your face when we shot past you with our afterburners! Burn!" Spinner exclaimed. But as he sat on the Chopper's wheels, he got a new definition of the hot seat. "ARGH! HOT WHEELS! HOT WHEELS!" "What can I tell you? My Chopper's the hottest ride around." Zoom said. "Uh, guys?" Stanford asked again, trying to get their attention. "Then maybe your Chopper should cool off and let my Steaming Wok take its spot as the hottest ride." Rayona said. "Hot? You call a homemade fog hot?" Talia asked mockingly. "Well, if you really want a got ride, try my Dune Cat after that excellent maneuver I made over you 2." Ivan said.

"GUYS!" Stanford shouted, finally getting the team's attention. They were shocked to hear that Stanford was able to shout like that. "Does anyone else notice something missing? Or someone?" Stanford asked. "Vert! Olivia!" Everyone exclaimed in realization. "But I thought they-" Horace tried to say. "Give me that!" Zoom exclaimed, grabbing the key and reopening the portal. A couple tentacles came through, surprising everyone. But then Vert and Olivia drove through the portal, but the Saber and Jetray were still trapped in the Kraken's tentacles. "Zoom, quick! Seal it! Now!" Agura exclaimed. Zoom reached out and grabbed the key, sealing the portal and cutting off the Kraken's tentacles in the process, freeing the Saber and Jetray.

Vert and Olivia hopped out of their vehicles, nearly slipping on the tentacles as the team walked up to them. "Vert. Olivia. You guys okay?" Agura asked. "Hey guys." Vert said. "Looking sharp." Olivia said. "They're mad." Spinner said. "Mad? Why would we be mad?" Vert asked. "Yeah. We won another Battle Zone, saved the Earth, right?" Olivia asked. "And, oh yeah, while we all had fun goofing around while Olivia and I had to fight an interdimensional squid, right?! Why would we be mad?" Vert asked as he and Olivia got back in their vehicles. But as they closed their doors, their madness set off like fireworks. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?! WHAT WAS THAT?! NOW THIS THING'S COVERED IN SQUID GOO! WORSE DAY OF MY LIFE!" Vert shouted. "UNBELIEVABLE! NOW MY JETRAY SMELLS LIKE A SUSHI BAR! I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS! THOSE GUYS ARE THE WORSE!" Olivia shouted. Then they both drove away, leaving the team in the dust. "Yep. Definitely mad." Horace said.

Later, Vert and Olivia, after cleaning the goop off their rides, pulled into the parking lot at Zeke's. The team was sitting in their usual booth. Except Stanford, who was sitting by himself again. "How long does it take to make a lousy pizza?!" Horace exclaimed with impatience. "Really. I used to make them in 5 minutes flat." Rayona said. Then the team heard the bell had jingled as they turned and saw Vert and Olivia walk in. They still looked pretty mad about what happened in the Battle Zone. "Vert, Olivia, about before…" Agura started to say as the Wheeler siblings walked over to them. "Guys, don't worry about it." Vert said. "Really?" Spinner asked. "Really. You see, after we finished washing all the squid goop out of our hairs, I thought 'Relax Vert'." Vert said. "What my brother's saying that the important thing is that we learn to survive as a team." Olivia said.

Just then, Grace and Zeke's septuplet grandkids, Evan, Lex, Daniel, Reggie, Thumbelina, Makena and Chrysella, walked over to the team with their orders. "Okay, we got a veggie special with pepperoni, a hold the pepperoni, an extra pepperoni, one nacho cheese and dragon breath sauce pizza, a triple cheese with pepperoni and mushrooms, a regular pepperoni, an olive and special sauce, a stuffed crust cheese and a club sandwich. Extra pickles." Grace said as the septuplets handed out the orders. "Hi, Grace. Hi, kids." Vert greeted. "Hi, Grace. Hey, kids." Olivia greeted. "Hey, Vert. Hey, Olivia." Grace greeted. "Hi, Vert and Olivia." The septuplets greeted. As the 8 walked to Stanford and gave him his order, Vert and Olivia glared at the team with disbelief. "You see what we mean? 1 meal, 10 different pizzas." Vert said. "And a club sandwich, extra pickles." Sherman said, taking a bite out of his sandwich. Olivia felt like throwing up. "We need to come up with some plans. Battle plans to be exact." Vert said, setting up the shakers, sodas and napkin dispensers like a formation. "The sooner we start working as a team, the sooner-" "Battle plans. Teamwork. Brilliant. Now can we please eat?!" Horace asked in annoyance. "Okay. But as soon as we've all finished eating, we're hitting the Salt Flats for some practice." Vert said. The team, minus Stanford, groaned at that as Vert and Olivia walked away. "You said after we've eaten, right?" Spinner asked. "Yeah?" Vert said, knowing what Spinner was doing. "Hey, Grace! We're gonna need some fresh za!" Spinner called. "Not for me. I'm ready for practice." Stanford spoke up.

Later, the team gathered at the race track to practice. "We call this the Flying Wedge." Vert said, pulling up a holographic diagram of a plan he and Olivia put together from his visors. "Say either me or Vert captured the Battle Key. But there's a wall of angry Sark in front of us. All we have to do is form a wedge and push right through it." Olivia explained. Stanford listened entirely, but the rest of the team barely paid any attention. "What's with the X's and O's?" Zoom asked. "Hugs and kisses. What're we gonna do, guys? Love the Sark to death?" Spinner asked mockingly as he cuddled Sherman, before he pushed him off. "Stanford." Vert said. Stanford immediately stood at attention. "You got the Battle Key-" Vert tried to explain. "Hey! Why does he get the Battle Key?! I want the Battle Key!" Horace exclaimed. "Why you?! I should get a chance to have the Battle Key!" Talia exclaimed. "Why are Sherman and me on the end?! We should be in the middle!" Spinner exclaimed. "Hey! Let them talk, guys." Agura said. "Thank you, Agura." Olivia said. "Stanford-" "I thought it was the Flying 'Wedgie'! That's why I didn't want anyone behind us." Spinner said. Everyone, except Vert, Olivia and Stanford, chuckled at that. "Will you guys just focus for a few minutes?!" Olivia exclaimed. "She's right. When the peddle hits the metal, we can just follow the playbook." Vert said. "There's a playbook?" Spinner asked. Sherman shrugged. Olivia face-palmed herself.

"Um, Vert? Olivia? I probably already know the answer, but wouldn't this training be more affective if we train in one of the Battle Zones?" Stanford asked. "Sorry, Stanford, but we have to train in a safe environment." Vert said. "Yeah, a real Battle Zone is too dangerous." Olivia agreed. "But what if it's a Battle Zone we already secured? I…talked to Sage and TRINA while you guys were setting up your plan, and they gave me the Battle Key to Apocalypse City Zone." Stanford explained, holding up the Battle Key to Apocalypse City Zone. "Why there?" Olivia asked. "Because the surrounding areas with all the rubble in the roads would make practicing teamwork more effective." Vert realized. "Oh, yeah. Good idea, Stanford." Olivia said. "Alright, guys, prepare to leave for Apocalypse City Zone." Vert said.

Later, the team had arrived in the Apocalypse City Zone. Unfortunately, it had started to rain. Olivia got a good look around the city. "I remember this place, Vert. We cleared it of Sark, months ago." She said. Suddenly, her eyes started to glow amaranth purple and the Zodiac symbol of Ophiuchus appeared on her forehead, glowed amaranth purple. Then she was shown a vison.

[Vision]

A factory of some kind, using Sark technology to create some type of Sark Drone.

[Vision End]

As the vision ended, Olivia fell on her knees, panting heavily. "Liv, you okay?" Vert asked in worry as he and the team helped his sister. "I…I was shown a vision…of a Sark Factory." Olivia panted. "Sark Factory? Where?" Sherman asked. "I'm not sure. Couldn't tell." Olivia said. "Hey, isn't that the Zodiac symbol of Ophiuchus?" Stanford asked, noticing the symbol on Olivia's forehead before it disappeared. "Then that means your Zodiac powers are awakening." Talia said. "Except I didn't see my past self like Vert did." Olivia said. "Maybe it takes time for your past self to reawaken your full powers." Sherman said. That actually got Vert thinking. He closed his eyes and recalled a distant memory of his past life as Aries.

[Memory]

Aries was flying across the Sentient home world with wings of fire. Sage was in his arms. They were on a romantic flight. They smiled at each other before they started kissing.

[Memory End]

Vert quickly snapped out of it when Agura shook his shoulder. "Vert, you okay?" She asked. "Yeah! Yeah, yeah, I'm good." Vert said. "What's wrong, bro?" Olivia asked. "I just recalled something from my past and I need to go figure it out." Vert said. "But what about training?" Stanford asked. "Olivia, you're in charge of training while I go figure out my memory." Vert said. "You can count on me, Vert." Olivia said. Vert walked over to the Saber, hopped in and drove off. "Alright, you heard him, guys. I'm in charge now and we came here to work on our teamwork." Olivia said. "Which play are we practicing?" Sherman asked. "The Wedge. It's all me and Vert came up with." Olivia said, feeling embarrassed.

Suddenly, something zipped down the streets. "Sherman, what are those things? They seem familiar to me." Olivia said. Sherman looked through his visors. They were little one-wheel Sark drones. "Definitely Sark technology." Sherman said. "I thought you and Vert secured this zone." Agura said. "We did." Olivia said. "Well, it looks like you 2 missed a couple strays." Rayona said. "Who's got the Battle Key?" Olivia asked. "I still have it." Stanford said, holding up the key. But then a lone drone, snuck up on Stanford from under the Tangler and swiped the key from him. "Correction. I had it." Stanford said with guilt. "Get it back or we'll be stuck here forever." Olivia said as the team got back in their vehicles. "Hey, bug-eye, give me back that key!" Zoom exclaimed, speeding after the drone. "Zoom, wait!" Olivia called. "Zoom will catch it." Spinner assured as the team drove after Zoom. "Yeah, but I've got a hunch that if it's Sark…" Olivia started to say. Just then, the drone signaled dozens of its buddies to group up and join in, making Zoom skid to a stop as the team caught up. "…it's not alone." Olivia finished.


"Keep your eyes on that key." Olivia said. The drone hid the key behind its back and began reversing itself. Unfortunately, the key still kept up its glow, giving it away. "Got it. Got it. Got it!" Zoom said, keeping his eyes on the glow. But then all of the drones grouped up and copied the key's glow. "Lost it." Zoom groaned. "Clever little toys. Mimicking the Battle Key's luminescent glow." Ivan said. "Okay, guys, this is where our training comes in. Ready, team?" Olivia asked. "Ready." Stanford said. Just then, the drones peeled off into several groups. "They're getting away! Stop them!" Spinner exclaimed. The team all started peeling off after each group of drones. "Guys! Wait! What happened to our…" Olivia tried to say, but the team was already gone, leaving her and Stanford behind. "…plan." Just then, Stanford saw the drone with the key appear on their right. "Olivia, to your right." He said. Olivia turned and saw it. "The key." She said as it rolled away. "Where's it going?" Stanford asked. "Don't know. Let's follow it. But keep low, Stanford. We don't know what we're up against." Olivia said. The 2 then started to follow the drone.

Meanwhile, Agura searched around for her group after she lost track of them. "Need to get to higher ground." She said, climbing the Tangler up a pile of rubble and readying herself under a bridge just as the drone group showed up. "That's it. Right into my trap." Then the Tangler detached from the bridge and landed on top of the drones. Then it spun around, scattering the pieces. But one drone was trying to escape. "Don't tangle with the Tangler!" Agura exclaimed, using the Tangler's grappling claw to snatch the drone and drag it back towards her, shattering it on impact. She then searched the debris for the Battle Key. "No Battle Key." She said, not finding it. Suddenly, she saw 6 more drones heading towards her. But then Zoom leapt over the Tangler and skidded into the drones, destroying them. "Own edge." He said, catching the one of the drones' eyes. "Nice move, Zoom. Thanks. Any luck?" Agura asked. "Negative on the Battle Key." Zoom said, holding the eye over his and imitating a robot voice as a joke.

Meanwhile, the drone Olivia and Stanford were following was joined by 2 of its friends as it came up to a door hatch. Olivia used her visors to look closer. The hatch opened allowing 6 more drones to exit while the 3 with the Battle Key entered. "Looks like a popular party, Stanford. Too bad we're gonna have to crash it." She said, driving off the bridge towards the hatch. "Right behind you, Olivia." Stanford said as he followed. "Hold the door!" Olivia called as she and Stanford passed through the hatch before it closed. The 2 drove into what looked like some kind of Sark facility. The 2 got out and looked over the edge. "What is this place?" Stanford asked.

Meanwhile, Vert had parked the Saber and climbed up to the top of a building to ponder his memory. "I knew those wings. They were the Crimson Wings. I used to use them to take Sage on romantic flights across her home world as Aries." He said to himself. "But I forgot how to access them. There's gotta be a way." He sat down and started to think. Then he noticed the long drop from the building's height. "Oh, that is such a bad idea…and it's the only one I got." He said.

Meanwhile, the team regrouped. "You find it?" Zoom asked. "No Battle Key." Sherman said. "None of those Mini-Sark had it." Rayona said. "It was like finding a needle in a haystack. And I try to avoid haystacks due to my allergies." Talia said. "Has anyone seen Vert since he took off?" Agura asked. "Probably off making one of his master plans or something." Horace said. "There he is. On top of that building." Zoom said, pointing up to the building. The team looked up and saw him standing on the edge. "What's he doing up there?" Ivan asked. Just then, Vert raised his arms. "Wait. Is he…?" Spinner started to ask in horror. Then Vert dived off the building. "VERT!" The team screamed in horror as they rushed to save him. But Vert kept cool to focus his powers. 'That's it. Clear your mind, Vert. Believe.' He thought. The moment he got very close to the ground, a flash of bright red appeared on his back, and then a pair of large phoenix wings sprouted. They quickly flapped and Vert started to fly into the sky. The team stared in awe as they watched Vert fly through the sky. "Wow! Now that's impressive." Agura said. Once the test flight was a success, Vert flew towards his team and gently landed in front of them. The team rushed over and looked over his new wings. "Whoa! How did you do that?" Ivan asked. "I recalled something in my past memories that Aries used to have these wings called the Crimson Wings." Vert explained as the wings disappeared. "You gave us a heart attack when you jumped off that building, you know!" Agura exclaimed, scolding her leader. "Yeah. Sorry about that." Vert apologised sheepishly. "Well, now that we've found Vert, where're Olivia and Stanford?" Talia asked. "I got a beacon on them. They're signals are weak. Like they're coming from inside a structure." Sherman said, tracking the beacons on the Jetray and the Reverb. "Maybe they're tracking the Battle Key." Spinner guessed. "Let's hope so. Because the enemy can use the key to break through to Earth." Agura said.

"Olivia? Come in, Olivia. Stanford? You guys there?" Vert called over the com-link. But Olivia and Stanford were busy watching as hundreds of Sark Drones were being built. "Whoa. A Sark Factory." Stanford said. "This is the factory I saw in my vision." Olivia said. Just then, she saw the drones with the key going down to the lower levels. "The key!" Then the drones used the key to open the portal to the Sark world. And then, the Zelix drove through the portal. "Zemerik! I should've known he'd show his ugly face soon." Olivia said. The drones bowed before their master as he stepped out of his vehicle and walked towards a platform. "Ah. Just like I remember it. This Battle Zone is our path to Earth. We have the key! PREPARE TO ATTACK!" He shouted. Just then, the Jetray and the Reverb drove off the edge, getting Zemerik's attention. "It's the humans!" Zemerik exclaimed. Olivia snatched the Battle Key, closing the Sark portal as she and Stanford landed and drove off. "Organics! YOU SHALL PAY!" Zemerik shouted as he hopped back in the Zelix and drove after them.

Olivia and Stanford continued driving through the factory, but they didn't know where the exit was. They turned a corner, only to find a dead end. "Great. Dead end." Olivia said. "Not the best choice of words, Olivia." Stanford said. They turned around to leave, but they got a bad surprise. "Uh oh." Olivia said. They were trapped by Zemerik, who chuckled as his drones drove and blocked all possible exits. "Organics, you cannot win." Zemerik said. "That's what you said the last time my brother and I were in this zone when…oh yeah, we won." Olivia said. "I stayed and built this factory from the rubble of my defeat, waiting patiently for the possibility that you might return." Zemerik said. "Great. The one time I make a good suggestion and we played right into his cold steel hands." Stanford said, feeling guilty. "Don't sweat it, Stan. Zemerik doesn't really have much of life." Olivia said. "Give me the Battle Key and I will allow you both to witness the magnificently officious Sark invasion of Earth." Zemerik offered. "A tempting offer, Chrome Dome, but…" Olivia said as she and Stanford readied their vehicles' artilleries. "…I just don't see you and me hanging out." "Me neither." Stanford agreed. Zemerik just grinned, readying his Zelix's blades as his drones charged. Olivia smiled as she and Stanford stepped on the gas and charged through the drones. Then as they charged for Zemerik, Olivia turned to the left and used a hidden blade on the Jetray's wing to slice the bottom of the wall. Stanford turned right as she did this. When they were clear, the wall fell on top of Zemerik. "Later, Tin Man! Say hi to Scarecrow for us!" Olivia called. But Zemerik managed to break free and continue after them.

As Olivia and Stanford continued to navigate through the factory's maze, more drones came out of nowhere and latched onto the vehicles. "They're all over us!" Stanford exclaimed. "Yeah. Determined little guys, aren't they?" Olivia asked. She then used the Jetray's speed to spin and shake the drones off. Stanford used a sound jump to shake the drones off his ride too. As they re-entered the assembly room, Zemerik appeared out of nowhere and surprised them. But they managed to pass him and drive up to the upper floors. Zemerik chuckled as he got out of the Zelix. "You cannot escape me." He said, using his plasma whip to hit a button and trigger a trap door. Olivia and Stanford tried to stop, but they fell through and landed in a trash compactor. The compactor then proceeded to start crushing them. "Come on! Come on!" Olivia exclaimed, trying to drive the Jetray out. Stanford tried to do the same. But no avail. "A crushing defeat." Zemerik stated.


"I will have the Battle Key now." Zemerik said, using his whip to snatch the Battle Key from the Jetray. "Our team will stop you!" Olivia exclaimed. "Team? You are incapable of acting together. How can you stop millions of Sark who work with one single purpose? We are the ultimate team." Zemerik said as he climbed back into his Zelix. "A real team is more than that, Zemerik!" Olivia exclaimed. "Remember when I said that I would allow you 2 to witness the invasion? I lied." Zemerik said, driving away. When he was gone, Stanford saw that things were about to get tight in the compactor. "Oh, I hoped I wouldn't have to do this." He said as he closed his eyes and started to concentrate. Then the compactor started to push back. "Huh? What's happening?" Olivia asked, noticing this.

Meanwhile, the team had just driven up to the hatch door to the factory. "You sure these are the right coordinates?" Horace asked. "Hey, if my brother says it's here, it's here!" Spinner exclaimed. "You sure it's here?" He asked just to be sure. "We need to pull it together, guys." Agura said. "She's right. If Olivia and Stanford are in there, we need to help them." Vert said. "But how? Looks like the door's sealed up tight." Ivan said. "Hey, Sherman, Talia? Why don't one of you knock on the door? See if anyone's home." Zoom said. "You want this one, Talia?" Sherman asked. "No, this one's all yours, Sherman. I'll get the next one." Talia said. "This is the fun part." Sherman chuckled. He fired one of the Buster's chains and smashed down the door.

Meanwhile, Olivia was trying to use her jets to get out. "Jets engage! No go! Come on, Jetray! Don't do this to me, girl!" She exclaimed. Stanford struggled to keep his concentration on holding back the compactor. His nose started bleeding from using so much of his powers. "Olivia! Come in, Olivia!" Vert called over the com-link. "Vert! Good to hear you, big bro!" Olivia exclaimed. "Is Stanford with you too?" Agura asked. "He's here. But he's doing something. I think." Olivia said. "So, what's the plan, coach?" Sherman said. "Stop Zemerik! He has the Battle Key! We can't let him open the portal to his home world or he'll lead his armies to Earth!" Olivia exclaimed. "Alright, guys, time to put teamwork to the test. You guys stop Zemerik. Agura, Talia, Rayona and I will find Olivia and Stanford." Vert said. Both teams drove off in separate directions.

Meanwhile, Zemerik used the Battle Key to open the portal to the Sark home world. Then Zug's Zendrill came through with a couple of Zurk. "The legions are waiting, Zemerik." Zug said. Zemerik grinned.

Meanwhile, Stanford couldn't keep the compactor back anymore as he started bleeding from both his nostrils now. He let them go, panting heavily, and they continued their crushing. "I was meaning to downsize anyway." Olivia said. But then the compactor stopped again. Olivia and Stanford looked up to see the Tangler and the Pom-Pom Pouncer holding the compactor. "We got you, guys." Talia said. Olivia and Stanford finally managed to drive out of the compactor. Olivia got out of the Jetray as the Saber, Tangler, Pom-Pom Pouncer and Steaming Wok drove down to their floor. Vert leapt out of the Saber, ran over to Olivia and wrapped her in a big sibling hug, which she returned in grateful. "You okay?" Agura asked. "Yeah. Yeah, I think we're okay." Stanford said, trying to hide his nosebleed from her with tissues. "Where's the Battle Key?" Olivia asked immediately as she and Vert broke their hug. "You know, a 'thank you for saving our lives' would be nice." Talia said. "Sorry. Thanks, guys. Now who's got the Battle Key?" Olivia asked. "The others are on it." Agura said. "Let's hope so." Vert said as everyone looked up at where the portal was.

"Ready yourself, Sark, for the Earth invasion." Zemerik said. But then Horace, Zoom and Ivan came speeding towards the portal. "Ready yourself for the Ukrainian invasion!" Horace exclaimed. They bashed through Zug and the Zurk, sending the Zurk back through the portal and making Zemerik angry. Then as they turned around, Horace started firing his laser blasts at the Zendrill, sending Zug over the edge. Zemerik dodged as Horace did the same to the Zelix. Then Zoom latched his grappling cable onto the Dune Cat and activated the Chopper's Glider Mode. Ivan then slammed on his brakes, skidded to a stop and swerved the Chopper around to knock the Battle Key loose, which caused to close the Sark Portal again, sending it towards Vert, Olivia, Agura, Stanford, Talia and Rayona. "Well, will you look at that?" Vert asked, picking up the key. But then Zemerik leapt on down and lunged at Vert, snatching the key back with a chuckle. "Hey handsome!" Olivia called. Zemerik turned to face her as she drew her blaster and slung Shockstorm, shorting him out with Tazerbolt. Then Sherman drove in and bashed Zemerik with the Buster's chain, knocking the key out of his grip and back into Vert's.

Just then, about a thousand of the Sark Drones surrounded the team. "These odds just keep getting better and better." Vert said. "And the forge keeps making more." Sherman said. "So, how do we stop them?" Stanford asked. Vert then got an idea. "We blow the forge. We blow the forge and we even the odds. Then we pull together as a team and form the Wedge to get out of this place." He explained. "Well, count me in for getting out. I hate exploding." Spinner said. The drones started closing in around the team. "Horace, some covering fire please." Agura called over the com-link. "Coming right up!" Horace exclaimed, firing his laser blasts at the drones. Zoom fired his arrows towards the incoming Sark Drones that were coming his way. Talia then used her spiked pom-poms to swat away the drones surrounding her. "We're so outnumbered here!" She exclaimed. "How are we gonna blow the forge?" Stanford asked as he fired his sonic blasts at the drones. "Spinner, you have any concussion contrages?" Vert asked. "Like this?" Spinner asked, bringing out one of the Buster's concussion bombs. Just then, Mini, Spinner's Blastipede, hopped up, chittering. "You wanna help out with your bombs too, Mini?" Spinner asked. "That's probably a good idea. Using Mini's bombs might help ours blow this place for good." Sherman said. "Here! Use my blaster to shoot Mini into the air, Spinner!" Olivia called, tossing Spinner her blaster. Spinner caught it, loaded Mini and shot her into the air, spreading her bombs all over the factory. Just then, Zemerik recovered from the shock. "Throw the bomb into the forge!" Vert exclaimed as Spinner set up the bomb and tossed it at the forge. But Zemerik leapt off the Buster and reached out to grab the bomb. But his arm was snatched by the Tangler's grappling claw. "Gotcha." Agura said, slamming Zemerik down. The bomb latched onto the forge and started counting down. "Guys? We got about 60 seconds until KA-BOOM!" Spinner warned. "Let's roll team!" Vert called. The team all started driving back up towards the exit.

"ZUG!" Zemerik shouted. Zug drove the Zendrill close to the edge. Zemerik wrapped his whip around the drill and Zug pulled him up by spinning the drill. "Lord Zemerik, pursue?" Zug asked. "No! Block the exits! Do not let them escape!" Zemerik ordered. The drones all started piling up, blocking the exit. The bombs went off, destroying the factory. "A temporary setback. This war has just begun." Zemerik said as he retreated back to the Sark home world.

"Okay, team. We gotta stick together if we ever want to see Earth again." Vert said. "Vert! Up ahead." Olivia called. Vert saw the drones piling higher and higher to block the exit. "You guys see what I see?" He asked. "A bunch of Sark about to get wedgied?" Agura asked. "Oh, this is gonna be fun." Ivan said. The team sped up and took position as the explosions were starting to catch up to them. "Okay, everyone, let's do it. The Flying Wedge!" Vert called. The team moved into position and readied their weapons as they got close to the drone barricade. "Pull those tighty-whities hard!" Olivia exclaimed. Then the team bashed through the entire barricade and escaped the factory as it blew up. "Yeah! Way to go, team!" Vert called as he used the Battle Key to open the portal back to Earth. The team drove right through the portal.

Later, the team celebrated at Zeke's diner. And this time, Stanford sat with them. "Man, kicking Sark butt really makes me hungry." Zoom said. "Tell me about it." Agura said. "Listen, guys, we just wanted to say-" Vert tried to say. "Thank you for being the most awesome team in our latest and greatest Battle Zone smack down." Spinner interrupted. "Yeah. That and you have pizza sauce, right there, on your mouth." Olivia said. Spinner wiped it off as the others chuckled. "Thanks, guys." Vert said. The team raised their drinks for cheers. "You're welcome. So, what's next? A nice vacation in Tropical Beach?" Horace asked. Then the bell jingled and he saw that the others were gone. "Guys?" Grace came up and handed him a piece of paper. "What's this? The bill?! Ugh!" Horace groaned. "Last one here always has to pay, pal." Grace said with a wink. "Nice teamwork. Debily." Horace groaned.

Later in the evening, Sage came outside to meet with Vert. "Vert, why did you want me to meet you out here?" She asked. "I was wondering if you were up for a romantic flight tonight." Vert said. Sage was confused. Vert then sprouted out his Crimson Wings. Sage gasped at this, remembering that Aries had the Crimson Wings before he died. "The Crimson Wings! You've regained them!" She exclaimed happily. "So, shall we fly, my love?" Vert asked. "Yes. Yes, my beloved." Sage said. Vert picked up Sage in his arms and took off into the air. Sage looked around at everything as they flew through the night sky. "I've missed our moments like this, Vert. Just you and me, flying through the skies." She said. "And we'll still have them every now and again, Sage." Vert said with a loving smile. Sage smiled and kissed her lover on the lips as they continued to fly through the night sky.

Wow! Wasn't that cool? The team return to Apocalypse City Zone to do some training, but Zemerik had built a factory there from his last defeat and almost stolen the Battle Key. But with a little bit of teamwork, the team successfully destroyed the factory and resecured the Battle Zone. And now Olivia's Zodiac powers are starting to awaken. And Vert just unveiled another of his hidden abilities, the Crimson Wings. But what other powers do the Wheeler siblings and their team have hidden? And what are Stanford's psychic powers? Leave a review if you'd like.

Special thanks to my partner, FoxyKhai0209, for the Crimson Wings.