Author: Collin Blake Title: Chance's Adversity Rating: PG13 (but I think it could be a PG, you decide) Copyright: "Swat Kats" is copyrighted by Hanna Barbara. Email: ncc_63549@hotmail.com. (You can try akira_class@excite.com, but I probably won't get it. Excite is under "new management".) Teaser: "Partner, RIO, Teammate, Best Friend No he's more than that and I never thought about it, but 'What if I lost him?' " Chp1. (This story is set before the character "Dr. Zyme" was killed in the show.) (The Swat Kats flying high in the TurboKat above MegaKat City around 9'oclock at night.) "Sure is quiet tonight," said T-bone. "Has been for a long time. I guess those bad guys finally learned their lesson. Not to mess with the Swat Kats!" He laughed. "Hold on buddy," replied Razor, "I'm picking up an interesting enforcer radio call." (Radio) "This is unit 351. I have responded to a possible 314 in section 3 of the northwest sector, but after arriving, there seems to be no activity at all. It's strange; there is no activity anywhere. It's like this place has been totally deserted . Hey! What the !?! Stop or I'll shot! (Rifle shots fired) Ahhhhhh!" (HQ. Radio response) Unit 351? Unit 351, come in please... Razor turned down the radio. "T-bone, we gotta find out what's going on over there," Razor said nervously. "Alright, some action!" answered T-bone as he pushed up to full throttle, heading towards downtown. When they arrived, they landed on the roof of the tallest building (It was one of the many MegaKat Hotels in the city). They leaped out and headed down through the hotel. As they moved down, they noticed that no one was in the hotel. "Where is everybody?" asked a dumbfounded T-bone as they sped down the stairs and hallways. "You got me, buddy, but this doesn't look good," answered a concerned Razor. When they reached the lobby, it was empty. They rushed outside to see the enforcer car still running and with its lights on. Razor walked over to examine the car and saw the microphone for the radio lying on the ground next to an empty rifle. The empty shells were all around them. "Looks like a nightmare," said T-bone as he picked up one of the shells. "Still hot ..," he added as he looked at Razor. Standing up, Razor announced, "We gotta find out what did this, T-bone." "Yeah, but this whole scene gives me the creeps, buddy," said T-bone as he dropped the shell. "I know, but all these people are missing. What could have done this?" asked Razor. "Dark Kat? Viper?" guessed T-bone. "No, I don't think so. This doesn't have the signature of our typical "bad" Kats. This is something different, and it's much worse," said Razor as he looked around the entire empty block. "Like what?" asked a scared T-bone. "I don't know .," answered Razor softly. Suddenly, they heard a crashing sound from across the street. Both turned their heads as quickly as possible. They saw a trash can falling over. Now, their hearts were racing. They both aimed their glovatrixes into the unknown. Back to back, they faced all directions. Their eyes searched for anything that might be coming at them. "Razor, we should get out of here," said T-bone, not taking his eyes off the unknown. "Yeah I agree, let's get our tails out of here before something bad happens to us too," replied Razor, glovatrix steady. They slowly moved back toward the hotel's doors. Never taking their eyes off alert. Right before they reached the door, Razor suddenly broke his concentration and ran back to the car. "Razor, what are you doing?!?" called T-bone. "I have to get a shell to analyze. Give me a sec," answered Razor, as he ran off. "Razor get back here!" called T-bone again. "Just cover me for a sec." Razor bent down to pick up a shell. He put it in a plastic bag, then got back up. As soon as he got up, he heard T-bone scream "Razor look out! Creature on your six!" Razor turned around to see a giant mass of black pounce on him. He flew back against the car and fell over the hood to land hard on the ground. He tried to get back up, but the mass jumped on him again and started to spread a acidic substance all over him. It burned his skin. "Ahhhhh"! he yelled. Right after he began to yell out, a mini gas grenade hit the mass and fell right beside him. Razor, knowing what to do, closed his eyes and mouth to avoid inhalation. After that, he felt the weight upon him leave and, when the smoke cleared, he opened his eyes to see T-bone there, looking over him. "Razor, are you alright?" asked T-bone. "Yeah," answered Razor as he got up slowly with T-bone's help. "What was that?" "I don't know, it appeared on the roof of the building behind you when you got up. All I could see was that it was huge, black and it had enormous claws. I couldn't make out any more. It left after the grenade, and I charged in to get it off you, answered T- bone. He looked around to still see nothing but emptiness. "And, I think we should get out of here before it comes back." "Yeah, you're right, buddy," Razor said, gathering his strength. With Razor supported over T-bone's shoulder, they went inside and headed up the stairs. When the reached the roof, T-bone kicked open the door. Letting go of Razor, T-bone jumped into the cockpit. "All right buddy, let's get outta here," T-bone said as he started up the engines. But, when he didn't get an answer, he looked back to see that Razor was not in his seat. He had not jumped into the cockpit. "T-bone!" cried Razor in pain from the ground. T-bone looked down to see Razor on the ground holding his right arm and right leg in pain. Shutting down the engines, T-bone jumped down from the cockpit. "Razor, what's wrong?" asked T-bone as he knelt down. "I suddenly felt this huge pain in my entire right side, and I can't move. The pain is too much," explained Razor. His eyes squinted in pain. "Ahhhhh." "Hold on, buddy, I'll get you outta here," answered T-bone as he picked Razor up. Then, he leaped up with Razor in his arms and set him into his seat. After that, he jumped into the pilot's seat and took off. As they left, T-bone called out a warning to all enforcer units that section 3 of the northwest sector was a hostile zone and should be sealed off. He never got an acknowledgment . Chp2. (Back at the garage.) Razor's condition had not gotten worse, but he still was unable to use his whole right side. (except for the head and neck) His fur on the right side had lost its color and was now white. He had T-bone place him in a wheelchair that was modified to move both wheels by just pulling on the left side. His strength had left him too. For the days after he had very little energy and had been awake for a maximum of 8 hours a day. T-bone was trying to nurse his friend back to full health, but couldn't, and could only bring Razor comfort with food, water and company when he was awake. And T-bone couldn't get any sleep. He stayed awake all during the night, worrying about Razor. He had been flying solo around MegaKat City, trying to locate the creature but without success. T-bone tried to keep his concentration focused, but he constantly worried about Razor's condition. And, every time he went up, he was reminded of the horror. That empty seat haunted him; he was so worried about what might happen. What if he were to lose Razor?!? He couldn't live with himself... When Razor was awake, he did try to work. He studied the shell and the evidence it contained on it. The shell itself was bent back, as if it had been shot against a thick metal of some kind. But, under the microscope Razor found some organic matter on the end. He studied it as best he could, but couldn't even come close to a possible conclusion without the proper equipment. He decided that the only place he could really analyze and understand this mystery was at MegaKat Biochemical Labs. He called Doctor Zyme and asked if he could come in to use some of the equipment. Zyme agreed and was curious to see what Razor had found. After Razor called Zyme, both T-bone and Razor got into the TurboKat and headed for MegaKat Biochemical. "You alright back there?" asked T-bone He got no answer He looked back to see Razor out cold "Save your strength, buddy," said T-bone softly. Then, he turned his attention back to flying, but with a very depressed look on his face. Chp3. When they arrived, T-bone woke Razor. They met Doctor Zyme on the roof. When the doctor saw T-bone carry Razor down and place him in a wheelchair, he looked puzzled. He was even more disturbed by the white fur up and down Razor's side. "Oh my, what happened to you?" he asked Razor with concern. T-bone suddenly glared up at the Doctor with a stern protective instinct for Razor. Then, noticing he scared the Doctor, turned his expression to gloom. "Sorry That's what we are here to find out," he finally said. "I need some of your equipment to find out what has been causing all of the "disappearances" in MegaKat City, " said Razor to the doctor. "Ohh. Well, by all means, come inside," invited the Doctor. The three of them headed down to the Laboratory. The Doctor had everything they needed. "Why don't we start with a molecular analysis?" asked the Doctor. Razor agreed, and they put the shell under the electron microscope. The data from the analysis showed the creature was closely related to the Kat species, but its cells had a high concentration of hydrogen, fluorine, and chlorine. "You say that, when you were attacked, this creature dripped a kind of acidic substance on you?" asked Zyme. "Yes," answered Razor. "May I have a sample of your white fur for analysis, Razor?" asked Zyme "Okay," answered Razor. Zyme took out a small pair of scissors and cut of a piece of white fur from Razor's arm. Placing it in a small petri dish, he took out a eyedropper full of a clear, bluish liquid. "What is that?" asked Razor. "Squeezing 5 drops on the hair, Zyme said, "It's a fluid that measures the amount of chemicals in any substance. I'm testing a theory I have about what happened to you." They all looked down at the dish in silence. Within a few moments, the blue turned to a reddish- orange. "Aha, just as I suspected, " said Zyme. "What?" asked T-bone. "The color change into red and orange shows the hair contains a very high level in hydrogen and fluorine. That explains your loss of movement; the acid that was dripped on you is Hydro-Fluoric. You're quite lucky actually, if it had been any other acid you would have been dead - if not horribly scared within seconds. Hydro-Fluoric acid isn't known for skin deformation, however, it does eat away at the bone and muscle tissue inside the body," explained Zyme. T-bone and Razor looked at him in an awe and horror. "And, the chlorine we detected must be why your fur turned white, you were bleached." After a long pause, while both Swat Kats took in the doctor's words, T-bone asked, "Is there anyway to reverse it?" "Well, if Razor has lost mobility in his left side it means that his muscle tissue has been damaged. (Turning to Razor) Your skeletal structure on both sides seems to be fine, so the damage is not worst case scenario. There have been cases of muscular reactivation in patients, but few. Most cases end up permanently physically disabled," answered Zyme. Razor's head went down in sadness. T-bone, with gloom on his face looked at Razor, then back at Zyme, "You mean there is nothing I can do?" he said in a frustrated voice. "I'm sorry, the acid acts like a wall to Razor's muscle cells. It destroys the connection between the cells and his brain. So, his muscles never receive the signal to move, and their ability to gain energy is cut off as well... The acid also has lasting effects that don't allow those connections to grow back," explained Zyme, trying to calm down T-bone. Razor raised his head and asked the doctor," What kind of creature could have done this?" "I don't know," pondered Zyme. "A creature that can carry such a high level of acid is not heard of." He took a couple steps, then stopped and turned around with a sudden worry over his face, but then dismissed it just as quickly. T-bone noticed the Doctors quick transformation and cautiously asked, "Hey, Doc, are you alright?" Zyme, noticing T-bone, looked up, puzzled, "Well.. I was doing some experiments in the laboratory about a week ago, involving the reactions of highly "Basic" organisms when introduced to very acidic substances. Most of the experiments went well. But, when I got to bacteria sample #16, a small single celled amoeba from deep in the Amazon. It took in the acid I introduced into it and harnessed its power, then killed all the other bacteria. After I gathered enough information about it, I poured a solution on the bacteria to knock out the acid, but it caused a terrible explosion... I was knocked off my feet and back against the wall. When I came to, I walked back over to the experiment table to find the amoeba was gone. Blown up? Escaped? I don't know, just gone....." T-bone and Razor looked at Zyme, who looked back at them, puzzled. "I had forgotten about it, but what happened to you, it might be related to my experiment..." "Wait a sec, Doc," interrupted T-bone. "How could a single-celled bacteria get to the size of a monster?" "I don't know," answered Zyme. "And, how could it survive that explosion?" asked Razor. "Again, I don't know...," answered Zyme. "It could be related... But, for now, I think it's best if Dr. Zyme and I research this sample to better understand this creature. T-bone, you'll need to keep an eye out of it's still lose in MegaKat City, and always keep in radio contact," said Razor. "Alright, we can get started by determining how this creature can hold such a strong yield of acid, and why it is attacking Kats...," said Zyme. "Wait, hold up!" interrupted T-bone. Both Zyme and Razor stopped and looked at T- bone. "What about Razor? We're not gonna give up on him!" demanded T-bone. "It's okay, Buddy. The more we understand about this creature, the better chances are that we can find a way to reverse my condition," answered Razor, understanding T-bone's concern. "And, he will be safe here," pointed out Dr. Zyme. "You two can stay here until we figure this out. There is more than enough food, beds, and necessities here for you," he added. "Alright, thanks, Doc... So you want me to go out there solo to try to find this creature AND capture it?" asked T-bone. "Don't try to capture it until we know how you can do that. It wouldn't be safe for you to try without knowing how to do it. Just keep tabs on it and try to help evacuate people from its path of destruction. There haven't been any more huge disappearances since that night. It's probably due for another attack soon. You have to make sure you get there to help those people," said Razor. T-bone, more calm now, walked over to his partner and bent down so he was eye level with him. "Alright, but you get better, okay?" Then, turning to the Doctor, he added, "And, you take good care of him while I'm gone." Zyme nodded. Then, T-bone got back up and ran out the door. Before he made it out, Razor called to him. "Start with the residential sectors first!" "You got it!" said T-bone as he left the room. After T-bone was gone, Zyme smiled. While still looking at the door, he said to Razor. "He is very protective of you, huh?" But, when he got no answer, he looked over at Razor to see him passed out asleep in his wheelchair. When T-bone got into the cockpit, he stopped and looked back at the Razor's seat. The past times and adventures were running thought his head so quickly, and also the thought of it never happening again. He looked forward again, head down. His eyes looked though the rear view mirror to once again lock in on Razor's seat. He stayed there for a couple of seconds, lost in time. Then, he took off. He rose up in hover mode, then, right before he engaged the flight engines, he looked back at the seat one more time. And, in the mirror he could see a tear running down his face. He then looked up and pushed the throttle up to full and flew off... Chp.4 Razor woke up around 6 o'clock at night. He had been in and out of sleep, working with the Doctor when awake. The Doctor had shown him what and how to use certain instruments that could be helpful. And, he had started to fix up something that had possibilities before he fell asleep... He looked around for the Doctor and noticed a small piece of paper beside him on the desk. It read... "Razor, I have gone for something to eat, be back later," signed Dr. Zyme. After he read the note, he noticed he was quite hungry himself. He rolled over to the fridge in the laboratory to see what was available to snack on. (The fridge for Kats, with actual food in it, not the fridge used for experiments) When he opened the door, he was amazed to see a huge amount of food. "Wow, these scientists eat great," he said to himself. Taking one of the already made sub sandwiches, he closed the door, and rolled back over to the table to eat. Right before he took his first bite, he looked back at the fridge, then to the sandwich again. "I wonder why Dr. Zyme went out for something to eat, when he has all this food here." After he thought about it again, then dismissed the thought and started to eat his sandwich. -----------------------------------------meanwhile------------------------------------------- (Flying over MegaKat City.) 'Okay, Razor... I've been out here for 6 hours. I just refueled back at the garage, and still... nothing... Where am I supposed to check now?' T-bone thought to himself. 'Hey' he thought, 'Maybe I can use the x-ray scope to locate that monster... but I would need to recalibrate it to search for acid deposits....' ... "Ah, Crud, who am I kidding. I'm not Razor, I don't know how to do something like that," he said in frustration. ..."I wish he was here." ... Then, over the 911 radio band came a distress call from a resident, "Hello! Help! We need help! I live in PurrKat Homes on the corner of 127th and 15th street. There is something down here that is capturing everyone. I am locked in my room, but I think it's coming up the stairs. Help!... Hello?" An enforcer came on the other line and tried to calm down the citizen. "It's okay, madam, the enforcers are on their way..." T-bone turned down the radio, and pushed up to full throttle toward PurrKat. 'Hang on Lady, I'm on my way,' he thought, 'Just hope I'm not too late'. When he arrived at the home complex, he landed on the roof and headed down the stairs as fast as he could, Glovatrix ready. He heard screams from the first floor he reached. Jumping off the stairs, he ran down the hall. He ran to the room where he heard the screams and, once he got his head in the door, he saw the creature closing in on an old lady crouched down in the corner (holding a phone to her ear). "Close your eyes and cover your mouth!" yelled T-bone to the old lady. Suddenly noticing him, she complied. He launched a mini gas grenade right at the beast as it turned to notice him. When it hit, the creature shrieked and tightened up. T-bone, with his visor engaged, ran past the dazed creature and picked up the old lady and ran her out of the smoky room, and back down the hall. As he was running down the hall, he could here the yell of the monster regaining its composure. When he reached the end of the hall, he noticed he had gone the wrong way. The smoke had made him lose his sense of direction and, instead of a stairway to his right, there was a wall. But, noticing a elevator to his left, he frantically pushed the button to open the elevator. After he stopped pushing the button, he looked back at the smoke, and the creature appeared from out of the cloud. T-bone, scared for his life, dropped the old lady behind him and faced the monster, glovatrix ready. The creature paused, noticing that T-bone had him locked on. Looking deep at the creature, T-bone suddenly had a weird feeling of familiarity. It was the creature's eyes. 'Those eyes. I know those eyes, they are much darker, but I know I have seen those eyes before... but... Where?' he thought to himself. Knowing that the device was a threat, the creature suddenly charged full speed at T- bone. Coming closer and closer with every leap... Suddenly, the elevator door opened. T-bone turned and tossed the old lady inside, then turned back and fired a mini missile at the feet of the monster. With a hole blown in the floor, the monster slipped and caught its foot. T-bone jumped into the elevator and hit the roof button as fast as he could. The door closed, and the elevator headed up while the creature screamed out for retribution below. The old lady told T-bone that she didn't see much, but she did see one person on her floor get attacked. She said it put this "liquid stuff" on him, then threw him down the laundry chute. "They all went down the chute." The lady, still in shock would not say much more. After dropping her off at Enforcer Headquarters, T-bone called Razor on the radio. "Razor, come in, we've had another attack," called T-bone. Razor was asleep when T-bone called over the radio. He woke up, startled, and switched on the radio in his hand. "T-bone?" he answered. "Razor, you there?" "Affirmative. What's up?" asked Razor. "We've had another attack. This time it took place in the western residential part of the city. I managed to save one old lady, but I didn't get there in time for the rest. She said something about it possibly taking all of its victims back to its lair. She said they all went down the laundry chute, but the enforcers checked that out and no one was there. So, I don't know where to go next. Do have any idea where a thing like that could hide?" T-bone said. "I don't know," answered Razor. "What about the Doc?" asked T-bone. "The Doc's not here." "Where is he?" "He went out for dinner. I have a note from him saying he'll be back soon." "Okay." There was puzzlement in T-bone's voice. Then, it changed back to concern, "What about you? You alright?" "Yeah, I'm alright. I have been going in and out of consciousness, but, while awake, I managed to come up with a highly basic protein enzyme that, I think, will help me regain some muscle control. It should counteract the acid. But it's a 12 on the pH scale, so my body can only take a little amount at a time. I injected a small dose into my shoulder. With some time, and luck, it hopefully will work to rebuild my nervous system. But, at best, the chances of it working are 18%," answered Razor. "Well, when the Doctor gets back, have him take a look at it. Maybe he can improve those odds." said T-bone solemnly. "Hey, buddy, I'm on my way back to you right now. I need your help to recalibrate the X-ray scope. So, I should be there within 5 minutes. See you then." "Affirmative. See you then, buddy," answered Razor. Chp.5 The TurboKat landed on the roof of MegaKat Biochemical. T-bone got out and headed down to meet up with Razor. He called out as he opened the door. "Hey, Razor." Razor was asleep on the desk in the middle of the room. T-bone walked over to him and saw Razor asleep. He was a half-working Kat. While his left side seemed fine, the right side of his body lay lifeless. A broken Kat. The site of his friend made T- bone feel so bad. Never again would he be able to challenge his buddy to a match of G forces, or the Reflex room. He would now only sit by and watch his friend miss out on everything he had enjoyed. It broke his heart. In the silence of Razor's slumber, another tear ran down T-bone's face... Eventually gaining his composure, he woke Razor. "Is the Doc back yet?" asked T-bone. "Nope," answered Razor, waking up. "How long does it take to get food?" T-bone said out loud. Just as T-bone finished his sentence, the door crept open and there, coming in, was Dr. Zyme, exhausted and limping. Both the Swat Kats turned and looked at him in shock. "Doc, are you alright?" asked T-bone as he rushed over to his aid. "Yes, I think so. My foot is hurt, and my head aches," answered Zyme. T-bone put Zyme's arm over his shoulder and carried him over to sit in a chair. After he sat him down, he went to get him some water. Razor rolled over to him, and asked, "Doctor, what happened?" "I don't know, I went out for a pizza ," started Zyme. "But, you have all this food here," interrupted Razor. "Yes, I know, but I wanted something... not as healthy. The food here is good, but very healthy. I wanted to treat myself to something special. That's all," answered Zyme. "Alright." Razor nodded understanding. T-bone got back and gave the Doctor a glass of water with some aspirin. "Go on doctor," urged Razor. "Well, I was on my way to "Pizza Kat," and, when I got out to go out of my car, I was stopped by this gang of Kats..." He paused... "And, the next thing I knew, I woke up in the back seat of my car with my foot in immense pain and my head aching," explained the doctor. "I had the most difficult time driving back here." "You got mugged?" asked T-bone, astounded. "I don't know... maybe... I don't remember those Kats attacking me...," said Zyme. "It's all seems like a faded dream." "Well, since you didn't get anything out there, would you like something to eat?" offered Razor. "No thank you, I'm not hungry," answered Zyme. "C'mon, Doc, some food will do you good," urged T-bone. "No, T-bone, it's probably best not to put anything in that shocked system for a while," cautioned Razor. "I think I better get some rest," said Zyme. "Yeah, let me help you," offered Razor as he moved over to assist the doctor. When he within physical contact, the doctor suddenly jumped back. "Aw, what is the smell?" he said putting his hand over his nose. "What smell?" both Swat Kats answered at the same time. Letting his hand off his nose for a sec, Zyme smelled the air, then he looked at Razor, "It's coming from you," he said pointing to Razor. "What did you do?" he asked. "What are you talking about?" asked T-bone. "I don't smell anything." He walked over to Razor and smelled him to try to find what the doctor was talking about. "I don't smell a thing... wait." He stopped at Razor's limp shoulder. "I smell something, but just barely. What is that, Razor?" "It must be the enzyme I injected into myself. The smell must be from that," answered Razor. "Ahhhhh, the smell is horrific. Can't you smell it?" asked Zyme. After seeing blank faces on both Swat Kats, he started his exit. "I am going to go to bed. Goodnight. There are plenty of cots and blankets available in the storage cabinet to your left. Well, goodnight. I hope you can sleep through that smell." He turned and headed out the door. "Thank you for letting us stay here," called Razor. "You're quite welcome," he said as he turned to look at them one more time, then circled back, and walked out of the room. The entire time his hand was over his nose. "What was that about?" asked T-bone to his partner. "I mean, it doesn't smell good, but you can barely notice it. I can't even smell it anymore..." He turned to Razor to see him with a curious look on his face. "Razor, you listening to me? Hello?"... "T-bone!" Razor said all of a sudden. "What?!?" T-bone asked, a bit frightened that he was caught off guard by Razor's outburst. "It smells...," said Razor "Yeah, we've been over this already," answered T-bone. "No, don't you get it? If it smells, that means there is a chemical reaction happening in my muscle. I don't know exactly what though, but what if the enzyme is working?" Razor said. "Holy Kats!" T-bone was astonished. "I know! ...and this means..." "You're right! It's Right There!" pointed T-bone. "Wait... T-bone what's 'right there'?" asked Razor, a bit scared now. "Your fur! On your upper shoulder you can see that the roots of your fur have color. Like it's growing new again," raved T-bone. "T-bone! Are you serious?!?" said Razor, overjoyed. T-bone bent down to get face to face with his buddy. He was overjoyed. "Razor, you're going to be okay," he said with a huge smile on his face. "Well, this is just a step in the right direction, I am not there yet." "I know, but I thought I was going to lose you," he said, as he gave Razor the biggest hug he could. As he was hugging him, tears ran down his cheek, and when he let go, Razor saw his friend's emotion all over his face. Razor understanding his buddy's hardships said warmly, "Buddy, it's okay." T-bone looked up at him. The tears had stopped, but his face was still wet. He had a smile on his face. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you, Buddy," he admitted. "I know... I wouldn't know what to do either. This job just has its risks sometimes," sympathized Razor. T-bone bent back down to Razor's level to see a tear now running down Razor's face. He high-fived, then held Razor's paw as he said, "We're gonna get though this. Cause in the end the Swat Kats always Kick Some Tail!" "Yeah, you're right, T-bone," Razor said. "Now, c'mon, get up, and let's go work on those modifications you asked me about on to the TurboKat. Besides, I don't think you want to stay here pouring all your emotions out. What if Callie walked in? And, she saw you with tears all over your face and how much of a "Sentimental Kat" you are," he joked. T-bone smiled at the humor, and, soon, they headed up to the roof to fix up the TurboKat. Chp.6 Razor and T-bone worked through the night, and, by morning, they both were exhausted. Razor had slept throughout the night. T-bone still didn't get any sleep, but he felt a bit better. T-bone did the repairs. When awake, Razor supervised and told T-bone how to make the modifications, and, whenever T-bone got stuck, he would wake Razor up and ask for assistance. In addition to recalibrating the x-ray machine, T-bone also loaded up 8 mini grenades full of the enzyme Razor had come up with in his glovatrix, plus 2 missiles full on the TurboKat... 3 days had passed since the last attack on PurrKat homes. T-bone patrolled by the air every day and night, without sleep, and nothing had shown up. Razor's condition was getting better, so T-bone was feeling better, Razor's slow process of injection and healing was working. He had full color in his fur from his shoulder to waist and partial color from waist down. He could now move his arm, but only to the degree of up and down, and he had regained the sense of feeling in his arm and chest (on the right side). His progress was amazing, but he still didn't know how much of his mobility he would regain. The Doctor was overjoyed to see the scientific marvel at work and helped Razor with his progress, but only when he had a pin or cloth over his nose. At times, the stench was so much that he couldn't even be in the same room as Razor. Both T-bone and Razor still smelled it, but didn't notice it. The night of the 3rd day T-bone was out on his patrols. The sky was full of high-flying clouds. Nothing shown through; no stars, no planes, no moon. T-bone flew low, under the cloud cover. 'This thing should be working,' T-bone thought to himself. 'I know I did what Razor said, but, since "Ugly" hasn't shown up since, I can't tell if it is working like it should.' He looked at the X-ray screen, then at the city below, and then straightforward. He turned the emergency radio up to see if anything was going on... nothing... Then, he heard a small beep, and he looked down to the source. It was the x-ray screen. It was registering some high level of closely concentrated acid to the southeast of his position. "Alright, Ugly's back!" T-bone said out loud, and, without hesitation, he looped the TurboKat around and flew off full throttle toward the creature's position. "Razor, come in," called T-bone over the radio. Razor, passed out at the time, was startled at T-bone call. He picked his head up and answered him, "Yes, T-bone?" "Razor, 'It's' back. It looks like it's heading for MegaKat Hall." "Ohh No!" exclaimed Razor. "What?!?" "That's where Doctor Zyme is tonight." "He's not there at the Lab?" "No, tonight he is attending a meeting of the MegaKat Scientific Department." "Crud!... I'll be there in a minute. I'll watch out for him." "Be careful, T-bone." "You got it, Buddy." The TurboKat arrived over MegaKat Hall. After landing, T-bone got out and looked down through the giant glass dome in the center of the roof. He saw a huge meeting going on, where hundreds of Kats were assembled and listening to a speaker in the front of them behind a lectern. He started to look for the Doctor... Then, all of a sudden, the creature blasted out of the right wing and started to attack. T-bone engaged his saw on his glovatrix and cut a hole through the dome. He leaped through it and fell down toward the creature. After he was a safe distance from the roof, he engaged his Delta pack and glided down to the floor. He tried to fire a grenade at the creature, but he couldn't risk hitting the huge mass of fleeing Kats. When he touched down, he disengaged his pack and sprinted over to it. Weaving through the panicking Kats, T-bone got the creature, which was standing over a motionless Kat. T-bone, furious at the monster for hurting the Kat, aimed his glovatrix and fired a grenade with a cold hate in his eyes. The grenade hit center mass, and the enzyme splattered all over the monster. It let out a huge scream of pain and backed up a few steps. "THAT was for Razor!" yelled T-bone, furious with revenge. The monster regained its footing, and started forward again, but T-bone launched another grenade. This time, he hit the monster in the knee. Again, it screamed and moved back, but before it could regain it's footing this time, T-bone ran and kicked it back against the wall. "And THAT was for ME!"... "It's time to finish you off," he said as he aimed his glovatrix one more time to kill the monster. He walked slowly closer to the creature, which seemed very injured. But, suddenly, its head turned and it spit a huge amount of acid at T-bone's head. T-bone engaged his shield on his glovatrix, put it in front of his face, and kicked up his feet to fall under the acid. He had barely gotten out of the way. The shield had, however, been diminished into nothing from the acid (but none of it had spilled on T- bone). After the fall, he got back up to see that the monster had gone. "DAMMIT!" he screamed in frustration. He looked around to see if it possibly was going to attack from a different angle, but, when he took out the miniature acid tracker Razor had helped him make, and it showed that the creature was not in the building. He looked back to where the monster had been and noticed a small puddle of what looked like blood. When he bent down to examine it, he noticed that right above it was a small peg that was sticking out and dripping the same blood substance. 'My kick impaled him on that post' thought T-bone to himself. 'How could I have hurt him that bad, when he took all those bullets back then?' he thought to himself. 'I must have got him in his soft spot.' He looked again at the puddle, and this time noticed a smaller puddle next to it, and then another next to that one, etc. etc. ... 'A trail!' he exclaimed to himself. He got up and aimed his hand high toward the ceiling. He fired a grappling hook up through the hole in the dome and pulled himself out of the room. Once he got in the TurboKat, he called Razor. "Razor, come in." This time Razor was not asleep. "Yes, T-bone, I'm here." "Razor, I just had a battle with the Monster. I wounded him. He retreated, but he is hurt, and he left a trail of blood for me to follow, but I need to know how to recalibrate the x-ray scope to now track the blood," said T-bone. "Okay, first go to the lower compartment of the jet, and find the scanner in there. You remember? The one you used to scan the acid?" "Yeah." "Well, just input a sample of the blood and program the scope to search for the 'new sample'," explained Razor. "Affirmative. Thanks, buddy." "Hey, is the Doctor alright?" asked Razor. "Well, when I first got here I looked for him, but I didn't see him. I don't think he's here. Even in the panic I didn't see him. And, I know 'Ugly' didn't get him. ...He only got one," answered T-bone. "That's strange. I think I am going to go and look for him around here. Maybe he didn't leave and he is in another room or something?" "Alright, I'm going to do these modifications and keep searching," T-bone said. "Roger that." T-bone jumped down and started on the modifications. It took him only a few minutes to do it, and soon he was up in the air scanning. "Okay, let's see where you are," said T-bone to himself. The scope picked up the trail, and it lead back to the largest concentration of the blood... MegaKat Biochemical Labs... Chp.7 T-bone was stunned. 'How could that be right?' he thought. The scope also picked up something very interesting to T-bone. It showed the creature's bio enzyme trail. So, all the places where it had been now glowed on the screen. Section 3, PurrKat Homes, MegaKat Hall, Pizza Kats... "Wait a minute!" T-bone said out loud. "Pizza Kats?.. ...Dr. Zyme? ...Wait a sec.. No... it makes perfect sense... Being out when the creature strikes, coming back with a busted leg, and being so affected by the enzyme Razor came up with... Holy Kats! Razor! He has no idea!" T-bone exclaimed. He pushed full throttle back to MegaKat Labs. He immediately got on the radio. "Razor, come in Please!" he called out. But, there was no answer. Razor had gone out looking for Dr. Zyme and had forgotten to take his radio with him. T-bone figured Razor was already in trouble. He hurried as fast as he could back. T-bone thought to himself, 'Why hadn't Zyme attacked Razor? He was the easiest target imaginable... NO, it was the enzyme, Razor smells horrible to Zyme. He wouldn't want to eat sour food. But, with one shot of that acid, Razor would be dead... and it wouldn't matter... I got to hurry! I'm not going let him down twice!' ------------------------------------------Meanwhile----------------------------------------------- Razor looked all over the building for Dr. Zyme. From top to bottom. He was about to give up when he remembered the basement. He took the elevator down and, when the door opened, it was black. He tried to flick on the light switch, but it didn't work. He called out, "Dr Zyme?" and got no answer. But, after a few seconds, he heard a rustle. The only light available was the light form the elevator itself, and from a window letting in the streetlight. He looked down at his belt and searched for a flashlight. The noise came again, and a scared Razor looked up at it... In the dark, two bright yellow eyes appeared out of nowhere. Razor suddenly found his flashlight and shined it to reveal the creature and a huge collection of Kat bodies hanging from the ceiling. All ripped up. Razor looked on in horror. The creature stood up and walked toward Razor, but soon stopped and smelled the air. It let out a cry of disgust. Then, it just seemed decide to ignore the smell and proceeded again toward Razor. Razor tried to back up into the elevator, the door of which he had left open, but he moved very slowly. The creature got closer and closer, and it started to open its mouth. It hissed and screamed as it did right before it spit acid. Razor still moved slowly backward with the light fixed on the creature. He was scared stiff, with only his hand locked on the throttle backward. Right then, a crash came from the window and in flew in a dark figure. The creature turned and launched its acid at the figure. Razor, now able to move, shined his light over to the figure. It was T-bone. T-bone rolled to avoid the acid, and then launched two grenades at the creature. They both hit center mass, and the creature fell over in pain. T-bone, not wasting time, fired the last four at each limb. Then, he launched a mini missile with a needlepoint at the mouth of the monster. The creature now lay silent and not moving. T-bone ran over and tied it up the best he could. He then turned to Razor. "Sorry I'm late. I had to switch glovatrixes. All the weapons on mine got gummed up." "Glad you're here... How did you know?" asked Razor. "It was Zyme... He was everywhere the creature had been, and the trail of blood led back here. Plus, when I was staring at it in the hallway, I noticed the eyes were familiar." He looked down at the creature. "Yep, those are his..," explained T-bone. Razor thought for a sec, "Hmm, you're right, it makes sense now... We have to come up with a way to reverse his condition," Razor said. "I have no idea how to do that." "Well, I'll see what I can do. Can you carry him?" "Yeah, of course I can handle it," T-bone answered as he picked up the creature. He almost fell back cause the weight was so much, but he bit his lip and carried the creature into the elevator. T-bone and Razor the creature down they so they could examine it in the lab. Razor concluded that the amoeba that had exploded actually went into Zyme, and took control of him. Razor analyzed a sample of his blood but found nothing that could lead him to a way to separate the two. After about 2 hours, the creature changed back into Dr. Zyme. He awoke strapped to the examination table. "Oh, what happened? Where am I?" he asked. Razor rolled up beside him and explained the Doctor's condition. "How strange, all this time to think it had been destroyed, but in fact it was growing inside me... Razor, I had no idea that this was happening to me." "I believe you," said Razor. "How much damage did it do, or I do?" he asked. "Well, the basement is full with bodies, all dead." "Oh, my God," Zyme said as his face went pale white. "I know, but it wasn't your fault." "Those poor people." "Doctor, you didn't kill those Kats, 'It' did. Don't blame yourself." The Doctor went silent for the next 3 hours. Razor, instead of pushing the doctor into conversation, let him think and sulk in peace. Then, while Razor was looking under the microscope the doctor spoke again, "Razor, I can't smell you. I don't smell that awful stench." "Really. that's strange. I don't know why," Razor said. "Possibly my body has adapted to it," Zyme pointed out. "Maybe... I am going to need a sample of your blood please, Doctor," said Razor. "No problem," answered Zyme. Razor took the sample from Zyme, then placed it under the microscope with the sample from the creature. Both showed the connection of the two cells (Creature and Kat), but in Zyme's blood the connection was much weaker. Some basic compound was attacking the connection itself. It looked very familiar to Razor... 'Hey' he thought to himself. "That's my enzyme compound," he said out loud. "What is?" asked Zyme. "The reconnection enzyme I came up for myself is in your blood stream and it is working to sever you from the amoeba's cells... I wonder how they got into your blood... Wait, it must have been that mini missile T-bone launched at you... I'll have to congratulate him when he gets back," chuckled Razor. "Where is he?" asked Zyme. "T-bone? He is were he should be, in bed. He hasn't gotten any sleep through this whole mess, and he needs it," answered Razor. "Hey Doc, I'm sorry about having to keep you restrained, but it's only a precaution." "It's alright. I understand," Zyme said. "Hey, Doctor, do you remember what, if anything, the amoeba was vulnerable to? asked Razor. "Um, well I almost killed it during an experiment with a certain leaf I collected in the Amazon. I forget what the name was..." "Do you have this plant with you?" asked Razor. "Yes, I should have some leaves left in the cabinet to the back left of the room. The one marked 'Amazon plant life.' The leaves are in a bag with the name of the plant on it. I'm pretty sure it's starts with S... sh..." Razor rolled over to the cabinet and picked out some bags. He looked at the names and came across a bag named "Shuclotia." He repeated the name to Zyme to see it if was the correct one. "Yes, that's it," called Zyme back. Razor rolled back over to the main lab and asked, "Doctor, could a Kat digest these leaves?" "Yes. As I remember, they contain no toxins, or diseases," answered Zyme. "Alright, thank you, doctor." Razor kept the amount of the enzyme high in Dr. Zyme's blood stream until the connection of the cells was gone. After that, he put the doctor on a diet of water mixed with the plant Shuclotia. Within 12 hours, the doctor was back on his feet with the amoeba eradicated from his body. "You make quite a good biologist," said Dr. Zyme. "Thanks, Doc, but none of it could have been done without your help. And, I'll take fixing up the TurboKat any day," Razor replied. "Thank you again for saving my life," said Dr. Zyme. "And you mine," said Razor. "Thank you for everything." T-bone had slept for 15 hours straight. He woke up to the site of Razor standing over him. "Razor, you're walking!" he exclaimed as he sat right up. Once he did, he could see Razor holding a cane to support his right side. "Almost, buddy," said Razor as he smiled. "While you have been out, I managed to regain the use of my arm and most of my leg. In a few weeks, I'll be back to making you eat my dust in the Reflex room." T-bone laughed. "I'm still waiting for that day... Where's the Doctor?" "He is in the lab writing up a report to the Scientific Department about what has gone on. He's back to his normal self. The amoeba cells in his body are gone," answered Razor. "Thanks to your idea of injecting my enzyme into his bloodstream. You did use a very high amount though. If he had been any normal Kat, it would have killed him. But, it was the only way to save him. Good job, buddy. And now, we can go home..." "Alright," said T-bone with a feeling of warmth. T-bone and Razor headed up to the roof and got into the TurboKat. Dr. Zyme walked up with them, thanked them again, and waved goodbye. The TurboKat lifted up, and, after their waves, the Swat Kats took off into the sunset. The End To Reader: Questions, Comments, Requests, Whatever Let me know what you think. (ncc_63549@hotmail.com)