Hello readers! This is it! The final chapter before we enter the movie's plot with Billy the Kid. I have been ready to join the movie for a while after establishing Billy's relationship with The Bad Guys. I cannot wait to write how Billy's involvement with the plot will affect the story. For now, enjoy this last chapter of Billy's development as it sets the stage for the movie. I do not own The Bad Guys. The movie is owned by Dreamworks while the books are the property of Aaron Blabey.
Chapter 9: The Sky is Falling!
One Year Later
Nine-year-old Billy pressed the record button on his phone and set it down against the concrete wall of the underpass. The midday sun hung over the secret entrance to The Bad Guys' hideout as the child stood on his skateboard. He wore a helmet along with knee and elbow pads to protect him for his latest experiment.
The child faced the camera on his phone saying, "Alright, this is test number one-hundred and forty-five of the rocket board. This time, I enhanced the propulsion jets to allow my skateboard to go at a faster rate. Hopefully, it will be enough where I can outrun the cops when I'm not in Wolf's car. Plus, it will shoot me at a higher velocity from the half pipes so I can perform more sick moves. Okay, here goes nothing."
Since it was given to him for his birthday, Billy's skateboard has been augmented with various mechanical parts with a small pair of rocket engines at the back end.
Though the nine-year-old was determined to get his latest invention to work perfectly, his nerves shook like an internal earthquake; his heart rate increasing. If something went wrong, he could either be a big splatter on the wall or a jumble of broken bones on the ground. Either way, Billy knew too well the Bad Guys could not afford to take him to the hospital. Chief Luggins and the police would be on them like cats to smelly fish. Plus, it was not like any of the doctors or nurses would be brave enough to treat one of the Bad Guys if they checked into a hospital. They would probably scream and run away like everyone else.
Regardless of the risks, Billy closed his eyes and took a deep breath, steeling himself for whatever the outcome.
Using his right foot, Billy stepped on a big red button on top of the skateboard. The two jet boosters roared to life and slowly pushed the skateboard. The boy's fear slowly faded as his transportation gradually picked up speed. It was working! The rocket board functioned almost exactly how Billy wanted it.
However, his moment of triumph was short-lived as the board suddenly shot down the underpass like a bullet. The young engineer managed to stay on for a few seconds before crashing into the large pile of pillows he set up on the other end of the underpass. An explosion of feathers erupted before trickling down like snow.
"Ow!" groaned Billy.
He rustled through the pile of shattered pillows before popping his torso out to breathe. One of the feathers tickled his nose, making the nine-year-old sneeze. It seemed his experiment was still not perfectly adjusted. Billy let out a groan as he climbed out of the pillow pile. Luckily, he did not suffer any major injuries.
The nine-year-old picked up his phone and spoke into the camera. "Another failure. I guess I added too much propulsion flow to the boosters. If only there was a way for me to find the perfect amount of kinetic release. I want to go fast but not too fast that I lose control. Maybe I need to tweak the jets a little more and find another fuel source. Stealing rocket fuel from the space museum might not be the best source of energy for my rocket board."
Suddenly, the entire area around Billy turned a light shade of blue.
"Huh?"
The boy looked up from his phone, realizing that not only the underpass, but every building in the area, and even the sky turned blue. This was weird! As if that was not enough, there was a low rumble that slowly increased in volume, almost like a volcanic eruption or a tremor.
Billy looked around, trying to find the source of the rumbling, until he looked up in the sky. A bright blue light shined up above and grew bigger with every second. What was it?
Billy could only stare in shock and awe at the blue light as it got bigger and louder. Eventually, the nine-year-old realized whatever it was; the light was not growing but falling from the sky. What was worse, it was heading towards the city!
Before the child could act, the giant glowing blue object hit the city, erupting into a massive explosion. The young engineer screamed and was knocked off his feet as an immense shockwave pulsated throughout the surrounding area, blowing down trees and pushing cars. Billy was frightened, clinging to the concrete wall for dear life. Was this it? Was this the end of the world? Luckily, the immense tempest from the explosion quickly died down as a large column of smoke towered over the city where the glowing object landed. In the distance, Billy could hear screaming and sirens from police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances. Whatever hit the city was massive and caused a lot of destruction. Was it aliens? The young engineer was not sure.
Though he was grateful to be alive, Billy pulled himself out of his shock and screamed some more. He ran into the sewer pipe that led to the elevator.
Meanwhile
The Bad Guys sat comfortably in their hideout, playing poker with each other around the kitchen table. Each of them held their cards close so none of the others could peak. Eyes darted between players as each thief strategized in their head the best play for this round.
Snake smirked, pretending to cough in his cars, when he was regurgitating a trump card he hid from the rest of the group.
"Sorry, must have something stuck in my throat," said the safecracker.
After a few more seconds, Snake spoke up again. "Aha!"
He slammed his card down on the table with his tail, presenting a royal flush to the rest of the group. "Read 'em and weep, fellas."
The rest of the group groaned as Shark whined, "Again?"
"That's the third time today!" said Webs.
Piranha slammed his cards on the table making it shake. "That's it! I know you are cheating!"
"You can't prove anything," replied the limbless reptile.
With his impatience growing more, Piranha ran across the table, grabbed Snake by the throat, and squeezed out all of the contents he swallowed. Sure enough, a few more playing cards fluttered out on the table.
It was Webs and Shark's turn to glare at the safecracker.
"You are so dead!" shouted Shark.
Before you knew it, Shark, Piranha, and Webs tackled Snake starting a huge brawl in the hideout. Wolf could just sit back and chuckle to himself as he fixed the cuffs on his jacket while watching the fight.
Snake was already coiled around Shark as the master of disguise struggled to pull him off. The large fish rolled around on the ground, but the safecracker's grip was strong for an old reptile. Piranha punched Snake in the face while the limbless reptile punched back with his tail. Webs held onto Snake's head while pulling back on his eyelids.
The four continued to fight until they heard a massive explosion that shook the whole hideout. Everyone froze, with shock on their faces. Some of the loot trickled down from the piles while the lights flickered once or twice.
"What the heck was that?" said Webs.
"An earthquake?" said Piranha.
"I don't think that was an earthquake," said Wolf.
Their focus turned to the elevator after hearing the familiar mechanisms that brought it down. The Bad Guys let go of each other and stood up to see who it was. Hopefully, it was not the police, the hideout was supposed to be a secure location where Chief Luggins and her army could not find them. When the elevator had come to a halt, the door slid open as a frantic Billy darted out.
"Billy?" said Webs.
The nine-year-old jumped up and grappled onto Shark's torso in a tight hug. Billy started crying as he smothered his face into Shark's shirt; tear stains splotching the fabric.
The master of disguise wrapped his fins around the child in a gentle comforting manner. "Hey, what's the matter, little buddy?"
The rest of the Bad Guys crowded around the little engineer in concern, except Snake.
"We're dead! We're so dead!" cried Billy.
"Billy, what are you talking about?" asked Wolf.
"It fell from the sky and blew up the city!"
Webs quirked a brow in confusion. "Wait, something fell from the sky?"
"And blew up the city?" said Piranha.
The group began to put two and two together as they remembered the explosion that shook the hideout earlier.
"Turn on the news!" ordered Wolf.
Snake grabbed the remote with his tail and turned on the TV.
The news channel came on as Tiffany Fluffit stood in front of a large crater with smoke rising out. "I'm here down at what used to be the city park, where a large mysterious object crash landed from the sky and decimated the entire area!"
All of the Bad Guys stared at the screen with their eyes open and their mouths agape.
Tiffany continued, "Little is still known as to what it is, but first responders are already on the scene to investigate as well as treat any injured. I shall remain on the air, reporting any updates."
As the news report continued to shoot footage of the obliterated park, the Bad Guys continued to stare in disbelief. Though all they cared about was planning the next valuable thing they stole, the thieves could not help but share the horror the rest of the city suffered.
Billy continued to cry in Shark's fins, making the group turn their attention back to the nine-year-old. None of them knew what to do. Even though they were uncertain how this was going to affect their lives, they did not want to make Billy feel worse. It was easy if it was the police or when the public said terrible things about them, but none of the Bad Guys were prepared to comfort their engineer during a cataclysmic event like this.
Shark could only stare sympathetically and tightened his grip on the boy while gently patting him on the back.
He spoke in a gentle tone. "It's going to be okay, Billy. We're here with you."
Wolf joined in and placed a comforting paw on the boy's shoulder; his ears folded back. "We're not going to let anything happen to you, kiddo."
Webs crawled up and perched on Billy's other shoulder. "As long as we live"
Billy pulled his face away from Shark's chest. "But what's going to happen to us as Bad Guys?"
The leader smiled and gently ruffled his head. "Trust us, Billy. Whatever happened today, it's not going to change a thing. We're still going to be The Bad Guys, whether through thick and thin."
"And there will still be plenty of stuff for us to steal while we're still bad," said Piranha.
At that point, Billy's crying ceased as he wiped the remaining tears from his eyes. "You…you think so?"
"We know so," replied Shark.
"Hey, nothing is going to get in our way from doing what we do best as long as we stick together," said Webs.
"You know what we say," said Wolf.
The leader held up his fist to the boy. "Go bad?"
Billy gave a small smile and fist-bumped Wolf along with the rest of the group. "Or go home."
Snake also joined in the fist bump with a wry smile.
Even though Billy was still shaken by the calamity that fell upon the city, he felt much better knowing he had his family there by his side.
While the Bad Guys continued to comfort Billy, the news showed footage of the smoke clearing to reveal the object in the crater. It was a peculiarly shaped rock pulsating with a blue glow.
That's it for all of Billy's growing-up scenes! Now we get into the meat and potatoes of the story, which starts the Bad Guys' unknowing journey to being good. What do you think? Will Billy help his family turn good? What was that strange rock that landed in the city? Will this strange phenomenon affect the Bad Guys in the future? (Obviously, you know the answers to all of these questions considering a hundred percent of you have probably seen the movie). Toon in next time as we venture into the movie with Billy the Kid as part of the main cast. Thank you for your patience. As always, feel free to leave a review expressing your thoughts on this chapter. Until next time! Also, don't forget to wish your mother a Happy Mother's Day!