6:36 A.M. – Just Off the Coast of Beverly Hills
"Ugh, that still isn't fun," Raora groaned once the Arbiters had arrived on the nearest beach, not really minding the people giving them strange looks as they did so, having come from the ocean itself.
"You can swim now, Raora," Elizabeth chuckled. "It shouldn't still be a problem for you."
"That doesn't mean I like it!" Raora sputtered.
"Seriously, you act like a cat sometimes," Gigi giggled.
"Regardless, we should probably get down to business," Cecilia stated. "Is this where you picked up that trail, Raora?"
"Yes, this is the place," Raora answered. "It's faint right now, but I can still detect their scent here."
"Makes you wonder what exactly they're planning in a place like this," Gigi quipped.
"All the more reason to stop them before they can complete their nefarious plans," Elizabeth responded, causally twirling Thorn in her hands. "We absolutely cannot let them succeed in releasing that thing from its seal."
"...yeah, we've already seen what it did to that other place," Gigi sighed, remembering in very vivid detail what it had done to the last place they'd visited.
"Yet another example of creeps who only want more power playing with forces they have no hope of possibly comprehending," Raora stated.
"If they're still in this city, then we need to move now," Elizabeth proclaimed. "I don't know what exactly they're up to here, but it can't be anything good."
"Tell me about it," Cecilia replied. "We should hurry up, then."
"The chase continues!" Gigi laughed as she charged headlong towards the city, leaving the rest of the Arbiters to catch up.
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(The pages constantly turn, no matter how long the reader takes. When one story ends, another story will inevitably start. In the end, there is only a new beginning.)
Mat49324 and The Blue Time Ranger are proud to present:
Totally Spies: The New Adventures
Episode 118: Vicious Velocity
Story Rated: T for Teen
Story Created: October 23rd, 2024
Story Summary: The one-hundred and fifty-ninth co-op project between Mat49324 and The Blue Time Ranger, and episode one hundred and eighteen of our mission-based series Totally Spies: The New Adventures. The spies have a bit of an unorthodox caper on their hands today, as instead of dealing with another nutball from their rogues' gallery, they're taking on a biker gang! For the past couple years, a heist crew driving custom motor bikes have been causing havoc all across the country, and wouldn't you freakin' know it, this particular gang's next target is none other than Beverly Hills. It would seem like this gang might be easy pickings compared to the rogues' gallery, but they're no pushover, especially their leader Echo. Can the spies manage to beat back the Echo Gang before Beverly Hills falls to possible anarchy?
Author's Notes from Mat49324: We've reached our next project, and this one will deal with a lot of fast speed to say the least. Also, this synopsis was also relayed to me by Doc Fossil on Fanfiction, so kudos to him once again. This is his second one, and you can see the other one, Fight or Flight, also on my page. For now, we're moving forward as season 10 nears the halfway point. For now, here's The Blue Time Ranger for anything he'd like to say.
Author's Notes from The Blue Time Ranger: Season ten continues onward, and we have an original villain... brought in by Mat?! (dramatic gasp) Yeah, we both decided on having an original villain be the baddie of this piece, and I let Mat take that honor this time. I've brought in more than my share of OG villains, so it's only fair that I let Mat have a turn on the OG villain wheel. With that said, let's get to bikin'! ROLL IT!
And Now, the Obligatory Disclaimer: Mat49324 and The Blue Time Ranger do not own anything related to Totally Spies or any of its affiliations. It belongs solely to Marathon Media Group, Image Entertainment Corporation, Vincent Chalvon-Demersay, and David Michel. The only things of this story we DO own are any characters or locations created by us truly for the story. Any characters or things we don't own, we are just borrowing with no intent of copyright infringement, only for the entertainment of our readers. Besides, if we did own Totally Spies, which we don't, why would we be writing fiction on a fan site?
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Act 1: The Ride of Your Life
9:01 A.M. – Malibu University
The Spies' Penthouse
As the Spring term at Mali-U began to wind down, the spies were enjoying themselves after midterms and their last mission with Siren and Rei.
"Not sure about you guys, but I was waiting for the weekend," Melissa stated as she came out with Nick and Nozomi.
As was becoming a norm, Mat took the TV for the 450cc broadcast of the 12th round of 17 of the 2010 Supercross season from Jacksonville, Florida. Mat was sitting on the couch and hoping Team Kawasaki's Chad Reed would FINALLY make his long-awaited return to the Supercross series.
The usual team of Ralph Sheheen, Jeff Emig, and Erin Bates were calling the race, and heat #1 was just beginning.
"What's going on?" Mat asked when he saw Melissa, Nick, and Nozomi in their swimsuits.
"Melissa wanted a pool day this weekend," Nick replied.
He then looked to see Mat watching his race.
"I'll catch up after the 450cc broadcast is done," Mat stated as if to beat the three of them to the punch. "250cc class is later this week."
They nodded before Mat reacted at something.
Ralph: Is that an ad... OH, GETTING SHOVED OFF!
Jeff: That looks like Rivas who had that 3rd place start...
It was a crash from privateer Manuel Rivas of Mexico on a #921 Kawasaki; he remounted on his bike near the back of the pack.
"...oof, that looked like it hurt," Nozomi quipped.
"No kidding," Melissa noted.
"Racing incident all around," Mat chuckled.
Surprisingly, Kevin Windham on his #14 Factory Connection Honda was moving through the pack quickly.
"I have to say that last week at Dallas in the 250s was a feel-good story though," Melissa commented as Clover and Dawn came into view, too.
"Yeah, no doubt," Nick replied. "I'm glad Bridget, May, and Haruka got to see that before they left for their next road trip with the Water Polo team."
The first heat ended with Honda's Davi Millsaps #18 winning it.
12:30 P.M. – Malibu University
The Spies' Penthouse (One Week Earlier)
All of the spies had joined Mat for the Lites broadcast from the new Cowboy Stadium in Dallas, Texas on TV. Currently, the main was moments away from starting after seeing a red flag in the Last Chance Qualifier, and Brett Metcalfe on the #24 Factory Connection Honda was able to win it with Suzuki Lites rookie Blake Baggett #66 finishing in the final transfer spot in 2nd to round out the 20-man field.
"What happened to Dean Wilson was a major bummer though," May commented.
Before the first Lites heat, it was reported that Pro Circuit Kawasaki rookie Dean Wilson #108, who sat 3rd in the East series, was a no-show for Dallas due to immigration troubles upon re-entering the country following the last race in Toronto, and it was undetermined when or if Wilson would return.
"Tell me about it," Mat replied. "I'd hate to be the team boss Mitch Payton right now after Christophe Pourcel gave up his win streak – willingly mind you – at three with a 3rd place ride."
Ralph: First Lites Main Event in the new Cowboy Stadium set to go!
The first turn saw a MASSIVE pileup that claimed well over half the 20-man field.
"MY GOODNESS!" Mat exclaimed.
"...holy crapbaskets," Bridget quipped.
"That's an understatement," Dawn replied.
Ralph (continued): 1, 2, 3... FIVE RIDERS BREAKING AWAY! BARCIA IS IN SIXTH, STROUPE IS IN SEVENTH, POURCEL STILL HASN'T GOTTEN GOING... THIS IS REALLY GONNA SHAKE THINGS UP IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP! STROUPE IS ONLY SEVEN POINTS BEHIND POURCEL COMING INTO THE NIGHT! WOW! WHAT A CRAZY ONE WE'VE GOT HERE IN TEXAS ALREADY! IT'S THE 46 OF SIPES OUT FRONT!
Jeff: And look, just behind Pourcel, you've got Metcalfe, who was down in the second turn!
"So I guess the perfect season wasn't going to happen anyway," Blaine remarked, still shocked by that massive pileup.
"I was just thinking that," Mat chuckled.
A replay showed Suzuki's Stroupe had cut off Pourcel and Yamaha's Martin Davalos #577, and Davalos had nowhere to go except the tuffblocks and down.
Sipes led the way followed by 3 Suzukis in Troy Adams on the #65 BTO Sports Suzuki, Jake Moss #40 on the Rockstar Canidae Suzuki, and his teammate Blake Baggett in 4th. Factory Connection's Justin Barcia on the #17 Honda was in 5th. Just then, Moss went for a pass on Adams for 2nd place, but their Suzukis locked, and they both crashed hard, which made everyone react.
Jeff: Oh, and Moss is grasping his left hand there as both riders came together...
Ralph: Oh...
Jeff: Moss tried to get under the 65 of Adams. Adams is remounting...
Upon viewing a replay, they were very shocked at how quickly both Adams and Moss came to a stop.
"That didn't go too well, did it?" Britney stated.
"That's what I call a major bummer," Bridget remarked.
Sipes still led the way while Pourcel had yet to break the top 10 yet just several laps in, and Stroupe was running 4th. Baggett and Barcia were battling for 2nd behind Sipes.
On lap 9 of 15, Pourcel had finally broke the top 10 and was running 10th while a later replay showed Stroupe had crashed while running 4th.
Jeff: OH, HIS FEET COME OFF THROUGH THE RHYTHM SECTION!
Stroupe had indeed crashed in the upcoming left-hand 90-degree turn, but it wasn't a bad crash, fortunately.
"Wow, he's lucky that wasn't a lot worse," Mat commented.
Jeff: And look at Stroupe's helmet! HE IS MISSING THE VISOR ON HIS HELMET from when he went down earlier! So, this main event just FALLING APART for Austin Stroupe.
Ralph: Stroupe is now shown in 7th, and Pourcel is in 8th...
"What a wasted opportunity," Nick commented. "He's really not having a good day, is he?"
"Yeah, and he might just lose the points lead if this crap keeps up," Nozomi quipped.
Sipes still led the way until he caught up to a group of lappers and got held up by Tyler Wharton on a #196 privateer Honda.
Ralph: ...DOESN'T GIVE HIM ANY HELP WHATSOEVER, AND BAGGETT'S YOUR NEW LEADER!
Jeff: UNBELIEVABLE, Ralph! ONCE AGAIN...
Ralph: Lap traffic!
Jeff: LAP TRAFFIC! WEEK AFTER WEEK, IT'S LIKE... COME ON!
"I'm with you!" Mat chastised.
"Damn, I really hope Sipes doesn't lose any sleep over that..." Britney commented, knowing that was a Yamaha win right out the window.
Jeff: ...Here we go, last qualifying position...
Ralph: Coming to the checkered flag... BAGGETT IS GONNA WIN IT! HE'S DONE IT! HE GETS HIS FIRST CAREER SUPERCROSS LITES EAST WIN! BLAKE BAGGETT WINS IT IN COWBOY STADIUM!
"Really stoked for Baggett," Mat replied with a grin.
Sipes came home 2nd, and Barcia rounded out the podium in 3rd. As for Stroupe and Pourcel, they came home 5th and 7th respectively, which meant Stroupe only took 2 points out of Pourcel's 7-point lead. It was also reported that Sipes, who was still satisfied with his 2nd place finish, had tweaked an ankle in practice and was undecided on whether he'd even race that night; Barcia had also lost a front brake in that first turn pileup, too.
"He came back from a tweaked ankle to get second place," Bridget chuckled. "I'd say that's pretty dang tough of him."
"I know, right?" Haruka answered. "Even if it wasn't first place, coming from possibly not racing at all to that, that's gotta count for something."
Back in the present, Mat was immediately wide-eyed at a big development in the 450cc class regarding Team Kawasaki's Ryan Villopoto #2 before heat 2. He had crashed hard in practice and had a small fall again after that. It was later revealed that he was riding with a chipped bone in his left big toe and ligament damage to his same ankle. Amazingly enough, the second head highlights showed Villopoto STILL competed in and WON the second heat over points leader Ryan Dungey on his #5 Rockstar Makita Suzuki.
"It's like he saw how Sipes came back from a tweaked ankle and said 'hey, I can top that'," Nozomi giggled.
"And boy, did he ever," Nick chuckled.
Again, Kawasaki's Chad Reed had STILL not returned yet, and Mat just sighed out of frustration.
The rest of the spies (aside from Bridget, May, and Haruka) came out ready for another pool day.
"Well, pool's not going anywhere," Nick remarked. "I'll keep you company, Mat."
"Same," Sam giggled.
The rest of the spies decided to do so.
As the Supercross main got under way, Ivan Tedesco on his #9 Valli Motorsports Yamaha got the holeshot, but he was quickly overtaken by Kawasaki's Villopoto after that. As for the points leader, Dungey, he was listed in 4th. Trey Canard rounded out a 7-rider train running 7th.
On lap 5, it was also reported by Erin Bates that this would be Trey Canard's last ride for the Red Bull Honda team on the 450 in 2010 Supercross.
Ralph: I got news for you... Davi Millsaps is not going to be bothered to see him leave.
"You got that right," Mat laughed. "But watch out for Trey Canard in 2011, though..."
"Yeah, I have a feeling that Canard's gonna have some fun with whatever team he goes to next," Blaine chuckled.
"And Millsaps is probably gonna regret those words next time Canard comes in and whoops his keester," Nick noted.
As the main went on, it was Villopoto, Windham, and Dungey the top 3, but Dungey wanted 2nd place.
Jeff: Dungey, does have the line on the inside...?
Everyone reacted as Dungey cased the last jump in the rhythm section and crashed at the top of the corner berm after his handlebars twitched. Windham continued on in 2nd.
Ralph: ...Windham continues on! Ryan's able to remount the motorcycle and hold on to 3rd!
Jeff: That was close! He was charging there and got a little wheel on Kevin...
"Yikes, that was way too close, wasn't it?" Alex quipped.
"I'm just glad Dungey's doing all right," Sam admitted. "That could have been bad."
In terms of the win, Ryan Villopoto had shut the door on that, but Dungey had made up the time he lost to Windham and was fighting for 2nd place again.
Dungey did get around Windham on lap 12 of 20 and began to pull away. After that, Windham came under fire from Trey Canard for 3rd place with 4 laps to go.
"Bets, anybody?" Mat asked. "I say Canard's going to get Windham."
"I think he's gonna get it, too," Melissa quipped.
"Yeah, same here," Dawn responded.
On the final lap, Canard had STILL not passed Windham, but he was VERY close!
Ralph: Meanwhile, Villopoto on his way to another CHECKERED FLAG AND A WIN HERE AT JACKSONVILLE! WHAT A DAY FOR RYAN VILLOPOTO! Here they all come to the checkered flag... Canard just beats Windham back to the line... and Tedesco beats Millsaps!
Jeff: Wow, what an effort by the 38! Another podium finish for Honda's Trey Canard! That was impressive! What an effort! He just never gave up!
For Ryan Villopoto, it was win #6 of 2010 Supercross with a weekend off (for Easter) next, followed by the next round in Houston. A replay of Trey Canard's last-second pass came up.
Ralph: It was by 0.02 seconds – the difference between Canard and Windham!
The points standings still had Dungey as the points leader with his 2nd place finish, but the gap had shrunk from 24 to 21 (261-240).
"Lites broadcast will be later this week," Mat sighed. "But I sure hope Chad Reed comes back before Motocross begins..."
"I know the feeling, bro," Nick remarked. "I'm sure Reed's coming back eventually if it's a broken hand."
With that, the spies decided to start their pool day with the 450cc class over.
As expected, Mat was able to put his frustrations on the afterburner and enjoy this pool day with the spies present.
"So, who lost the bet?" Mat then asked and looked at Sam.
"I think we all actually won it, since we all picked Canard," Melissa answered.
"Time for the up and over on you..." Sam giggled.
Before Sam could do the up-and-over, though, they heard the really loud sound of what felt like a bunch of motorcycles riding through.
"Really?" Sam groaned. "A bunch of idiots are gonna do this right now?"
"But why so close to Mali-U, though?" Alex wondered. "If they were in the city, we probably wouldn't even hear them, right?"
"Eh, probably just some idiots trying to act cooler than they actually are," Nozomi quipped.
However, after doing a psychic radar scan to check things out, Nick wasn't so sure.
"I don't know, Nozomi," Nick responded. "I'm not entirely sure what's going on, but I'm getting bad vibes from these biker peeps."
"You think it might be someone from our rogues' gallery?" Blaine asked.
"Not unless they suddenly started propagating an interest in motorcycles or something," Mat quipped.
"...uh-oh," Melissa gasped.
"What's wrong, sis?" Nick wondered.
"Take a look at this," Melissa responded as she showed the other nine spies her phone, which was displaying an article titled Echo Gang Bikers Strike Again. "There's this group of bikers calling themselves the Echo Gang. They're a heist gang who drive custom-made motorbikes, and they've been attacking places all over the country in the past couple years."
"I'm honestly surprised we haven't heard of them, given how much traveling we do with W.O.O.H.P.," Clover admitted.
"According to this article, they've struck New York, Houston, New Orleans, Chicago, Detroit, Miami and even Las Vegas," Melissa explained.
"And if that was the Echo Gang, then it looks like they're gonna try attacking Beverly Hills next," Britney gasped when she made the connection.
"That settles it, then," Sam proclaimed, shifting into 'leader mode'. "Let's head into the city and head them off before they can try anything scummy."
Nothing more needed to be said as the ten spies all headed out to find the Echo Gang before they could strike again.
"Any sign of them right now, Nick?" Alex asked.
Nick quickly pointed towards the downtown area, towards the Second National Bank.
"I think we might be able to catch them if we hurry," Nick stated.
A short distance away, in front of the Second National Bank of Beverly Hills, a group of what appeared to be at least two dozen or more bikers stood in front of the bank, like they were preparing for some grand scheme.
"Well, well," the gang's leader proclaimed. "Will this bank finally prove a worthy challenge? Or will they fall just like all the rest of them?"
"Stop right there, you little punks!"
"...or maybe some wannabe heroes will try their hardest to stop me," the leader laughed as the spies all approached her. "That's actually pretty cute."
"I don't know who the heck you think you are, lady, but if you're planning to hit that bank, then tough cookies," Alex proclaimed.
"You're going to have to go through us if you want to go anywhere near that bank," Sam stated quite clearly.
"Really? You all honestly think you're going to stop us with just your wits and your bravado?" the leader cackled, and the spies were finally able to get a good look at her.
The gang's leader had brunette hair that faded into black at the tips, brown eyes, and was wearing what appeared to be a purple, leotard-like top with black fishnet stockings.
"...okay, gotta say, I was not expecting that," Clover admitted.
"I'm gonna take a wild shot in the dark and guess that you're Echo, the leader of your little gang?" Melissa stated.
"It seems that our reputation precedes us," Echo chuckled. "You must have pretty good deduction skills, or you've heard of our exploits."
Echo's grin suddenly turned sinister as she glared at Melissa.
"And just for that? You get the privilege of getting run over first."
One of the bikers whooped and hollered before driving their bike directly towards Melissa. Thankfully, Nick raised his hand to project a psychic barrier in front of Melissa, causing the biker to crash into and bounce back away from the barrier.
"Aw, man, you ruined my new paint job!" the biker groaned.
"I'm going to ruin a lot more than just your stupid paint job if you drive that broken-down jalopy anywhere near my sister again," Nick growled, his psychic aura exploding to life around him to emphasize his threat.
"You know, I don't know what's going on with that, but it looks like this city is gonna be a lot more enjoyable than the others were," Echo laughed. "The other places we hit really couldn't handle our combined might at once. But the lot of you... you might just be the first challenge I've had in a long time."
"We're also gonna be your last," Nozomi taunted.
"Oh, you want to try me, little girl?" Echo retorted as she jumped forward to strike out at Nozomi, only to find herself easily blocked.
No matter what move Echo tried to land, Nozomi effortlessly countered each one before leg sweeping her off of her feet, then taking a step back before running forward and going into a sliding kick to the face that sent Echo skidding backwards.
"H-Hey, these punks are actually hurting our boss!" one biker exclaimed.
"They won't be for long," another biker chuckled. "Let's run 'em all over. They can't possibly dodge all of us at once."
"Take your best shot, you sons of bitches!" Nick shouted as the spies prepared themselves. "You'll find out pretty quickly that we're much more than meets the eye."
"These kids ought to be easy..." another biker sneered.
"You don't underestimate us..." Nick warned and fired a psychic shot at the first biker that came for them.
The biker moved over, but Nick used his powers to ensure his psychic shot did not miss the motorcycle. His shot was good enough to slash the biker's front tire.
"WHAT THE HELL DID HE JUST DO?!" The biker shouted when his motorcycle came to a screeching halt.
"You see what I mean?" Nick proclaimed to them. "Now... who's next?!"
The rest of the bikers didn't look fazed one iota and gladly took Nick's bait.
"I think it's time we embarrass them, ladies," Sam quipped and got out her Laser Lipstick.
Clover, Alex, Nozomi, and Britney also got out their Laser Lipsticks.
"Time to put you bikers out of commission!" Clover proclaimed.
Before long, the five selected spies used their Laser Lipsticks to make the bikers' bikes inoperable by slashing or puncturing tires, even making one of them bail off their ride.
"Looks like we're gonna be in the shop for a while..." Echo chastised.
The worst was still to come for them.
Blaine shot his Laser Chapstick at one of the bikes, and the bike seized, which sent the rider off onto the pavement.
"Boss, they're makin' fools out of us!" one biker exclaimed.
"Not for long, they aren't," another biker laughed as three bikes charged at once.
"So sorry you had to slip your schedule," Dawn laughed as she sprayed the pavement ahead with Ice Queen Perfume just as the bikes rode over it, causing all three of the bikers to slide across the ice and crash.
"I hope you're shaking now..." Sam remarked to the biker gang.
"My bikers couldn't stand up to these people?!" Echo chastised.
"If I were you, I'd be shaking yourself since Blaine could possibly pull a 'David Pingree' on you, too," Mat proclaimed at Echo.
Echo growled at things, but she knew the writing was on the wall for now.
"Fine, I'll let you scrubs have this one, but this is far from over..." Echo warned.
With that, she restarted her motorcycle, created a cloud of smoke, and sped off.
"Call me crazy, but I'd have liked to see how this battle would've gone if Bridget were available at least," Mat commented.
"My thoughts exactly," Dawn remarked.
"But we'll have to do with what we got until they come back," Alex sighed. "But ten of us should be more than enough."
"Exactly," Britney agreed.
"Now, for the 'elephant in the room...' what'd you mean by 'pull a David Pingree on her,' Mat?" Blaine wondered.
"Phoenix 2002," Mat replied. "When the motorcycle seized, but in Pingree's case, his KTM seized over a big triple jump, and his bike broke in two; fortunately, he walked away with just a sore shoulder that night, but his title hopes were ultimately ruined."
"It's always when you don't want your things to break that they break, huh?" Nozomi quipped.
"But Jerry and RiCO can analyze this clue I found," Melissa stated. "It looks like some kind of grappling hook."
"You think it might be something those little punks use a lot?" Blaine wondered.
"Also, I left a notice to RiCO to let Bridget, Haruka, and May know of our mission if they come back home in time," Nick added.
With that, Sam gave Jerry a call on her X-Powder.
"What seems to be the problem, spies?" Jerry wondered. "I wasn't aware one of the villains had escaped."
"Probably because these weirdoes aren't actually from our rogues' gallery," Mat answered. "They're a notorious group of ruffians called the Echo Gang who have been messing with things all over the country, and apparently, they decided to make Beverly Hills their next target."
"We just sent them running for the moment, but one of them dropped a grappling hook that we wanted you guys to analyze," Nick stated.
"We're on it," RiCO responded. "And we'll let Haruka, Bridget and May know what's going on if they come back before this is over, 'kay?"
"Hey, you guys, where'd you run off to all of a sudden?" Michi called out as she finally caught up with the spies. "I was just coming back from getting a snack and... well, you weren't there."
"That's a bit of a story, Michi," Britney chuckled. "Basically, we're dealing with some trouble."
All of a sudden, multiple flashes of eerie green light surrounded the spies. When it stopped, a crowd of Collective goons were surrounding them.
"Oh, wonderful, it's you again," Alex groaned. "Don't you know that we're in the middle of something more important than you?!"
"You will return our puppet to us this instant," one goon retorted.
"Um, excuse me, I'm nobody's puppet, even if I'm only like this because of whatever you did to me," Michi growled. "Now how about I just send you away again? We've got more important things to do right now, ya know."
"This is not up for discussion, puppet," another goon chuckled. "You will come back with us and you will fulfill your duty."
"Oh, and another thing," Michi shot back, her hand beginning to glow a bright green. "I have a name now. My name is Michi Mochievee, and you'd better not forget it."
"Oh, that's cute, the puppet actually named itself," a third goon laughed.
"Okay, you nut loafs are seriously starting to remind me of the Society and how they treated Henya, and I am not having a repeat of those clucks," Nick retorted, his psychic aura flaring to life around him. "So how about you all line your cultist asses up so we can get to kicking them?!"
Nick didn't get a chance to make good on his threat, due to a large ring of blue flames suddenly surrounding the Collective goons.
"Wh-what is this?!" one goon gasped.
"Ugh, not them again..." the goons' leader groaned. "Looks like we have no choice but to retreat for now. Make no mistake, this is not the last time we will meet."
And so they did, warping away in another flash of green light.
"...okay, I have several questions," Melissa quipped. "The Collective's about to throw down with us, and then they just get surrounded by fire and book it?"
"I think we can answer them for you."
The spies and Michi all looked to the southwest, where that voice had came from, and saw four figures approaching them.
The lady that appeared to be their leader had red eyes and long red hair that has a blue-ish tint underneath, and was wearing a black and white outfit fastened with belts and red pauldrons. She was also carrying a mostly black and red sword that was engraved with a symbol of the scales of justice.
The younger-looking girl in the hoodie had pink eyes and two-tone light brown and dark brown hair tied up in bunches, and was wearing a bright orange hoodie decorated with fans, black cycle shorts, and one striped black and orange knee-high sock on her right leg.
The woman with a spear in her hand had green eyes and shoulder-length pale green hair, was wearing a Victorian era-style dress of green and white with some yellow accents, and her hair was tied up in the back with a brass bow resembling a clockwork key.
The woman who looked like she had cat ears had bright yellow eyes, long pink hair with a white strike, and wore a pink cat ear headband on her head, and was wearing a white and black outfit with a pink off-shoulder coat, white stockings, a round black hat, a pair of silver tinted goggles atop her head, and a single glove on her right hand, alongside an enigmatic amulet with a blue gemstone around her neck.
"I assume you've all scrapped with the Collective before this?" the leader asked.
"You know those creep-a-zoids?" Clover gasped.
"Something to that effect," the cat-ear lady responded.
"Perhaps we should introduce ourselves first, if only to put your minds at ease. I am Elizabeth Rose Bloodflame, the Harbinger of Order and leader of the Arbiters of Justice," Elizabeth proclaimed.
"My name is Cecilia Immergreen, the Arbiters' combat specialist," Cecilia stated.
"I'm Gigi Murin, the Arbiters' splendid chaser!" Gigi laughed.
"And I am Raora Panthera, the Arbiters' tracker," Raora quipped.
"As you have no doubt figured out, the Collective is a rather nasty bunch, especially considering what their goals are," Elizabeth explained.
"Yeah, goals that apparently involve me for some reason," Michi quipped.
As Elizabeth continued to explain things, Gigi suddenly sniffed the air, having picked up a very peculiar scent nearby. And then, she realized that it had been coming from Michi.
And it was the same scent of the Collective that Raora had mentioned multiple times during their recent endeavors.
"So, you've dealt with these nutballs before?" Dawn stated.
"Multiple times, really," Raora answered. "They're trying to..."
"Ooh, I smell something on you, little lady!" Gigi cackled as she bent back slightly before propelling herself forward with surprising speed, summoning her clawed gauntlets to her hands as she attempted to strike at Michi.
"Gigi, stop!" Raora exclaimed, having had a feeling that Gigi was going to do something like this.
"She's got the Collective's stink all over her!" Gigi responded as Michi quickly jumped back to avoid her, only for Gigi to pounce again. "I'm just getting rid of the problem before it becomes a problem!"
Just before Gigi could strike, though, Michi was surrounded by a psychic bubble that Gigi just bounced off of.
"You may be 'Arbiters of Justice' or whatever, but I'm only giving you one warning," Nick growled. "Nobody tries to hurt my friends and gets away with it!"
"Oh, you wanna go?!" Gigi laughed. "Okay, then, I'll knock your lights out, too!"
But just before Gigi could jump at Nick, too...
"GIGI, KNOCK IT OFF!" Elizabeth bellowed, causing Gigi to immediately stop in her tracks. "I do not know who this girl is, but she is clearly not the enemy."
"Then why does she smell like the Collective?" Gigi wondered.
"All I know is that they're the reason why I'm like this, and that they need me for something," Michi admitted.
"We... might know what that is," Cecilia answered. "The Collective is an evil cult that worships a destructive being known only as Null."
"A long time ago, Null began consuming alternate dimensions to satisfy its endless hunger and hatred for all of existence," Raora explained. "Null's rampage was only stopped when the very first generation of the Arbiters of Justice managed to seal it away in the void between the dimensions, hundreds if not thousands of years ago."
"But about nine months ago, that seal began to weaken, and the Collective took that opportunity to begin rituals to resurrect Null," Gigi stated now that she'd calmed down.
"...wait a minute, did you say 'nine months ago'?" Mat wondered, realizing something about that date. "If I remember correctly, that was the date of the 2009 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship and the Monster Energy Triple Crown. And that was right after..."
"Right after Emperor Terrence," Nick gasped when the pieces clicked together.
"You know something about why Null's seal weakened?" Raora asked.
"I think I have a pretty good idea," Nick answered. "Around that time, my friends and I were dealing with what could only be called a dimensional cataclysm. This psychopath named Emperor Terrence, a dictator from another dimension, stole the Dimensionator, essentially a large gun that can open Quantum Rifts to other dimensions, and he used it very liberally, so much so that we almost thought reality itself would collapse if he kept overusing it."
"Wait, so that was what caused all those Quantum Rifts back then?" Gigi gasped. "It wasn't Null trying to escape?"
The spies all remembered that particular event, where Nick's dimensional counterpart Ashley had destroyed the original Dimensionator to keep it out of Emperor Terrence's hands, inadvertently kickstarting that whole chain of events.
"Null... didn't break out itself, did it?" Melissa wondered.
"Thankfully, no," Elizabeth responded. "But thanks to that, its seal is weakened. The Collective aims to destroy the rest of that seal and allow Null into the worlds to consume all that exists again, which is why they must be stopped at all costs."
"We're gonna keep on the trail of those goonies that hit the bricks," Gigi stated. "Let us know as soon as you can if you see anything that looks out of place, like any signs of tears in the dimensional fabric."
Gigi tossed Nick a small communicator device.
"We must go now. May our paths cross again," Elizabeth proclaimed as the Arbiters of Justice all leaped away to other parts.
"I swear, if it's not one problem with us, it's another, isn't it?" Blaine sighed.
"I'm pretty much used to it by now," Nick quipped.
"There's still one thing I'm confused about, though," Michi admitted. "If these Collective loonies are trying to break the seal on this 'Null' creature... what exactly do they need me for?"
"Guess we'll have to figure that one out ourselves," Sam stated. "But for now, let's go after Echo and her gang. They're the more immediate threat at the moment."
With that, Michi and the ten spies all set off back into the city to start tracking down the Echo Gang before they could cause any further mischief.
To be continued...
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Next time...
Clover: Any sign of those weirdo bikers?
Dawn: They couldn't have gotten far while we were dealing with the hooded wackos, could they?
Nick: Wait, I think I sense them, and they're coming our way fast!
Echo: Surprise, you little bitches!
Nick: Um, I think that's my line, lady.
Biker: H-Hey, man, what did you do with our rides?!
Michi: Oh, I just sent 'em to a landfill. They're gaudy, anyway.
Echo: You should know that you insult my peeps at your own peril, little missy. I don't care what kind of powers you freaks have, there will be consequences for insulting us like that.
Melissa: And what, exactly, are you going to do about it?
Mat: ...you wouldn't dare.
Echo: Ah-ah-ah, I wouldn't try any unnecessary heroics if I were you.
Michi: Welp, readers, this is a pickle we're in, isn't it? It's gonna be a doozy, next time on Totally Spies: Vicious Velocity, "Ride Or Die"!
Echo: Oof, this is weird, acting like this. I'm not used to roles where I'm playing a villain.
May: Sometimes, you've just gotta have fun in your role. You should have seen me filming for the next movie.
Nick: Yeah, you were clearly having fun there.