

### Cowboy Samurai X Badass Android

### By KuroKoneko Kamen

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2012 by KuroKoneko Kamen

Cover Design by GENZOMAN

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Other works by the author:

Young Adult:

Bitch Heiress X Samurai Butler

Bitch Heiress X2 Samurai Butler

Sir Genkaku Host Club: books 1, 2, 3 and 4

Coming Soon: 2013

Rockstar Ghost (a paranormal romance)

Adult:

Sanky Panky Pirate

Other:

How to make a guy fall in love with you on facebook

### Chapter 1: Truth, Porn, and the American Way

17-year-old Jake Lonestar was a typical lazy, perverted American teenager who lived in Amarillo, Texas. He liked to laze around his house and avoid doing his chores at the Lonestar Ranch just like any other rebellious teen. While listening to Galaxy Girl's latest hit song being blasted from his sister Bonnie's room, Jake would enjoy staying cooped up in his room while jerking off to naked photos of the now famous pop star.

Before Galaxy Girl had become really famous she had done these racy photos for _Playboy_ magazine - something that Jake thanked God for every day.

Yep, Jake was a normal, horny American teenager - except for the fact that if he so much as touched an electronic device or appliance something strange would happen.

The device would wig out and transform into an alien killer robot!

If that wasn't bad enough, there were other times when Jake's body produced random bouts of magnetism causing all metal objects in the near vicinity to suddenly fly his way.

When this happened while he was in the kitchen one day he ended up dodging kitchen knives and praying he wouldn't get skewered. _I feel your pain, Magneto._ Jake thought to himself as his back was pressed up against the kitchen door and knives surrounded his body. That had been close - too close.

Because of Jake's strange abilities, Jake's family and friends ostracized him. Jake sighed sadly as he remembered that when he was younger he and his tomboy sister, Bonnie, had always been glued together. But all that changed after the 'incident' - a memory that Jake kept buried deep inside of his psyche. He didn't want to remember what had been the cause of his strange abilities.

Jake had been 10-years-old when the incident occurred that resulted in three of Jake's classmates being killed. Jake remembered who they were but not the incident. Their names had been - Stuart, Joe and Jimmy. They had been the school bullies and Jake had been their favorite target. After Jake had been found with their dead bodies, Jake had supposedly come up with some unbelievable and outlandish story, which sent him straight to the Austin State Hospital - a nice name for an insane asylum.

For some reason the asylum only held Jake for a few months before they released him and Jake was able to go back to school. The rest of middle school was a blur and then Jake was entering high school. Everyone in Amarillo High School knew of the incident and because of this they all thought of Jake as a violent and crazy guy.

During his high school days, Jake Lonestar was avoided, openly ignored and shunned.

He was treated as if he didn't exist. As if he were a ghost, sitting in the classroom that no one else could see.

It really was like being dead.

Jake took it all in stoically and appeared to be unaffected by this harsh treatment. But the truth was that Jake was lonely and misunderstood. He wished he had friends... _could_ have friends like a normal teen, but...ever since the incident he was anything _but_ normal. His mere touch would turn electronic devices into alien robots and he had superhuman strength, which caused him to accidentally destroy things from time to time including his own desk or chair! The teachers thought Jake was a juvenile delinquent because of his destructive nature, and assumed he was playing 'pranks' when Jake's desk would suddenly fall to pieces.

Jake was labeled a troublemaker.

Jake was misunderstood.

Jake wouldn't hurt a fly. He was a coward. Afraid of his own shadow even if he possessed extraordinary abilities and superhuman strength. This change inside of him hadn't changed Jake's original personality from when he used to be a wimpy, lanky 10-year-old boy who had been bullied by kids stronger than him. Jake had always been weak and so even after the incident, Jake still considered himself weak even though that was far from the truth.

Even when, 17-year-old Jake saw his reflection in the full-length mirror in his room - that reflection was not the way Jake Lonestar mentally viewed himself.

The reality was that Jake Lonestar was a handsome young man - 6' 3", 130 pounds, zero percent body fat, muscular physique, 6-pack abs. He had chiseled facial features surrounded by shaggy brown hair, and his eyes were golden brown. He _looked_ tall, attractive, powerful, and confident, and because of his reputation of being a 'crazy murderer' he appeared 'threatening'.

If the teenaged girls in his school hadn't been so afraid of him they would have been drooling over him.

In his mind, however, Jake saw himself completely differently. He was still the lanky, wimpy, short, 10-year-old boy that used to get bullied. He was still weak...powerless...cowardly...harmless...

At this time, Jake didn't even remember the 'incident' since he had buried those memories deep within himself. He didn't know how his classmates had been murdered but he was certain he didn't do it. He would never have done such an awful thing! Just thinking about it made his stomach queasy.

He wasn't a crazy murderer...

If only he could get his classmates to see this...then maybe he could make some friends.

But to do this Jake had to be _super_ careful. He couldn't use his super strength no matter what and he would have to stay away from electronic appliances at all costs!

Over the next few months, Jake had been doing a pretty good job of 'acting normal', until one day...

Jake never ate his lunch in the cafeteria - it was too painful. No one would ever sit with him and everyone ignored or acted like he wasn't there. If Jake tried to join a table where some of his classmates were already seated, they would silently get up and walk away to go sit at another table, leaving him behind, alone.

Because of this, Jake was constantly walking around the school in an aimless manner during lunch break while trying to find a place where he could eat his lunch in peace. Jake found a nice spot under a tree and ate his lunch there. After he had finished he lay down on the grass and looked up at the blue sky as fluffy white clouds lazily floated past. It was the perfect day for cloud gazing - one of Jake's favorite pastimes. Jake could just relax and do absolutely nothing. It was something that he could do without bothering or hurting anyone. _Doing nothing is the best._ Jake thought to himself.

Jake looked down at his watch and realized that he had to get back to class. He stood up and dusted himself off of a few dead leaves, and headed back for the main school building. But just as he was passing the side of the building he spotted a few of the guys from the baseball club standing in a circle as if they were surrounding something.

Curious, Jake sneakily got closer to the group and peered over their shoulders to see what they were all looking at.

A pretty blonde girl (Jake thought he remembered her name as being Kimberly) with blue eyes and big boobs was in the center of the circle, giving the guys around her wary looks. Her shirt was low-cut and her skirt scandalously short...but that was the fashion these days, so Jake shrugged it off. Kimberly was one of the most popular girls in school and the captain of the cheerleading team.

The guys from the baseball club were in their uniforms and happened to have their baseball bats with them in their hands. Jake figured that they had probably been practicing during their lunch break. They were murmuring something amongst themselves, and some of the guys were chuckling darkly as they closed in around the girl. Jake didn't like the feeling of where this was going.

One guy (Jake recognized him as being Carl) stepped forward and using his baseball bat began to lift Kimberly's skirt up.

"Stop..." Kimberly begged softly.

Carl raised a blonde eyebrow at her. "Stop? You know you don't want me to. Going around dressed like that...like a whore. You're asking for it. We all know you want it, so let's have some fun. First, let's see what color your slut panties are." Carl continued as he raised her skirt a little higher...

The other boys were egging their friend on. Kimberly's pretty blue eyes began to fill with tears.

Jake had seen enough.

He _hated_ bullies.

"H-h-hey." Jake stuttered as he called out to get the boys' attention.

The boys all turned to see Jake - noticing his presence for the first time...

Their eyes widened like saucers as they realized that none other than Jake Lonestar was in their midst! Jake Lonestar - the crazy guy that was said to have gone berserk when he was 10-years-old and killed three of his classmates.

The crazy murderer...!

The fear shone in their eyes.

But Jake was probably more afraid of them than they were of him! His body was trembling with fear...he clenched his fists at his sides to stop his shaking, fearing that they would notice.

But to the boys in the baseball club it looked like Jake was trembling with _rage_.

"W-w-what do you think you're doing? Leave that girl alone." Jake stumbled over his words and they sounded weak to his ears. Jake gulped.

The boys in the baseball club put aside their fear of Jake for a moment to assess the situation. There were five of them and Jake was alone. They even had their baseball bats with them. Lucky.

"Well, lookie what we have here. If it isn't Jake Lonestar - the crazy murderer but what's this? He's all alone as usual, and there are five of us. I say we put this freak in his place once and for all!" Carl boldly started forward towards Jake, tapping his baseball bat across his shoulder blades casually. "You want us to leave her alone? Why do you even care, crazy freak?"

The other boys began to murmur in agreement. Their _hatred_ for Jake surpassed their fear of him. They truly believed Jake was responsible for the deaths of Stuart, Joe and Jimmy, and that the police should have locked Jake away for life or given him the lethal injection - not send him to some mental institution only to let him go free after only a couple of months.

"Yea, let's punish the murderer," another boy agreed.

"Let's get him!"

"Let's give him a taste of his own medicine. Pain." Carl swung his bat down off his shoulders, and letting out a yell brought his bat down upon Jake.

"H-h-hey...stop..." Jake stammered as his reflexes took over. He found himself catching the bat before it hit him and shoving Carl backwards with enough force to send him flying backwards and to the ground, where he sat temporarily dazed.

"I-I don't want to hurt you." Jake tried to explain.

"Bastard!" One of the boys came at Jake from behind and raising his bat high in a two-handed grip brought the bat down on the top of Jake's head.

BAM.

The baseball bat shattered upon impact with Jake's head and splinters flew at the boy's face and got into his eyes, blinding him.

"Ah! My eyes! Dammit!" The boy cried out.

Jake turned around, perplexed by what had just happened. He saw the boy rubbing his eyes in pain and frowned.

"You freak!" Another boy roared as he ran at Jake with his baseball bat raised.

Jake unconsciously brought his forearm up to block the attack and as the bat hit Jake's arm it was broken in half.

Jake watched this happen in shock and awe.

He had to get those baseball bats away from them before _someone_ got hurt.

As another boy attacked Jake with his baseball bat Jake made a grab for the bat and pulled it out of the boy's hands. Jake gripped the baseball bat nervously and accidentally shattered it to pieces in his bare hands.

The baseball players (except for Carl who was still dazed on the ground and the other boy who was still blinded) all took a step back, thinking that Jake was making some kind of violent threat towards them...

Jake sprinkled the pieces of baseball bat on the ground in front of him and wiped his hands off - not knowing in the least just how menacing his actions looked.

"Shit! He really is a monster!" "Let's get the hell out of here!" "He's a violent maniac! He'll kill us!" The boys cowered as they took several steps away from Jake. They then helped the dazed Carl and the temporarily blinded boy to their feet.

Jake frowned at their words wondering why they were suddenly so afraid. Jake took a step towards them, trying to explain. "Hey, wait. I-"

"RUN!" The boys took off running, helping to support their friends and planning to head for the nurse's office.

Jake scratched his head and turned to face Kimberly who the guys had forgotten all about.

"Hey, are you al-" Jake began to ask as he approached Kimberly.

But as soon as Kimberly realized she was alone with Jake Lonestar she screamed in fright and threw up her hands to rake her nails at Jake's face. Jake was completely caught off guard and her nails scratched deeply into his unprotected face.

"Stay away from me, you crazy freak!" Kimberly shrieked before running past Jake and towards the school.

"Ow...it hurts..." Jake sunk to his knees and covered his face in pain. The deep scratches began to bleed. Blood soon traveled down his face in rivulets. Blood...Jake saw red drops of blood on the ground...his blood...

Jake began to tremble in fear.

Why...why had she attacked him? He had just been trying to help her...and this was how she had repaid him.

Crazy freak...crazy freak...crazy freak...

Her cruel words echoed painfully through his mind. Jake let out a howl of despair as he began to cry.

Jake knew that because of this new incident that his chances of making a friend in high school had been obliterated. He knew that he'd have to spend the rest of his high school days alone and friendless.

And Jake was right. After what happened with the baseball club even more horrible rumors began to spread throughout the school about Jake and he was treated even worse than before.

Jake tried to seek solace at home but his family continued to shun him. At first, when Jake returned from the mental institution they had tried to act 'normal' but the Jake that had returned to the Lonestar Ranch was _not_ normal.

When Jake's father, James, had assigned chores for Jake to do around the ranch chaos ensued. Jake had tried to mend a fence and had ended up accidentally breaking it to pieces because of his uncontrollable superhuman strength.

His parents thought that Jake had destroyed the fence in a display of teenaged rebellion. They didn't believe him when he said that his unusual strength had caused it.

They also thought he was a liar now.

Feeling depressed about how his parents were treating him like some kind of criminal, Jake had gone up to his room to watch some porn. Jake had carefully used a pencil to turn the TV on and was enjoying himself when the video reached its climax.

Jake sighed as he watched the guy on screen let out a grunt of male satisfaction as he poured himself into the hot babe that was whimpering beneath him. "That's good for you buddy...but what about me?" Jake muttered to himself. He wondered if he'd ever get a girlfriend and have sex for real.

He had been so lost in his pessimistic thoughts that he absentmindedly touched the TV to turn it off and it began to transform. In seconds, a six-foot-tall alien robot was standing in his room. The robot's head was the TV screen. Upon the screen red glowing eyes appeared and then the robot began to rampage around Jake's room, destroying everything in its path.

When Jake tried to stop the robot things only got worse. He ended up accidentally touching other electronic devices that had been carelessly placed about his room, and ended up turning them into tiny vicious robots.

Ultimately, Jake had been forced to use his superhuman strength to bash and smash and destroy the alien robots before his parents came home.

When his mother Jessie saw what Jake had done to his room - she wept.

Jessie thought that Jake had done it on purpose or rather...in a fit of madness or rage.

Feeling desperate, Jake tried to explain to his parents and sister what had actually happened but they had looked at Jake like he was crazy....

A part of his parents must have believed Jake though because henceforth he was forbidden from coming anywhere near an electronic appliance.

Jake's TV, DVD player, iPhone and iPod were _not_ replaced. For entertainment his parents bought him books and board games. Jake thought the board games were an ironic choice because they were something one couldn't play alone...and Jake was always alone now...

Jake's collection of porn DVDs were useless now since Jake couldn't watch them. _What a waste._ Jake shook his head as he looked at his precious collection. He even had a copy of the infamous 'sex tape' that featured Galaxy Girl having sex with her manager when she had been only 15-years-old. Galaxy Girl was the same age as Jake but when the sex tape had ended up on the Internet it had created a huge scandal due to her manager's age and her being underage at the time.

The scandal and the sex tape had gone viral over the Internet until almost no one hadn't heard of 'Galaxy Girl'. The scandal had helped to launch Galaxy Girl's career and now she was the number one most popular singer in America. Jake would really miss getting to watch that particular video. He pouted at the thought.

But at least Jake still had the naked photos of Galaxy Girl that appeared in _Playboy_ magazine. That was some consolation, at least. His _Playboy_ magazines would have to do for his jerking off material for now.

Everyday after school since Jake's parents had determined that he could no longer help out with chores they simply ignored Jake when he got home, leaving Jake no choice but to just go up to his room - a room without TV, and with nothing but board games and books. His parents had even been cruel enough to get rid of Jake's _Playstation_. That had been a blow!

At least Jake had a nice comic book collection, which he would read and reread over and over again. His comic book collection featured titles like: _Spiderman_ , _Superman_ , and _Batman_. Jake looked up to those _man_ ly heroes. With Jake's short attention span he could handle comics a hell of a lot better than a classic book like _The Scarlet Letter_. What had his mother Jessie been thinking?

Jake could reread _Batman_ so many times though before he'd finally get bored, and so with nothing else to do he'd masturbate while looking at nude photos of Galaxy Girl. It was one of the few things that put Jake in a _very_ good mood.

Yea, so Jake Lonestar was a bit of a perv and had a huge collection of naughty magazines for masturbation purposes. But seriously what 17-year-old boy didn't have a least one dirty magazine hidden under his bed?

If he wasn't in his room jerking off, Jake would be outside in the cornfields...laying on his back and watching the clouds drift lazily by and picking out the round clouds that looked like breasts and laughing.

***

High school was rather boring when everyone was completely ignoring you...and acting like you were a ghost...

Sometimes Jake wondered if he really were invisible and decided to put this new theory to the test. Jake decided to sneak into the girl's locker room and began to watch them change.

It didn't take long for the girls to notice Jake though and they began screaming and covering themselves and throwing various articles of clothing at Jake.

Jake's reflexes kicked in as a girl threw a pair of lacy pink panties at his head and he grabbed them out of the air. "Huh?" Jake looked down at the pair of panties in his hands and grinned like an idiot.

Jake ran away with the panties and decided to take them home with him. When Jake arrived home, he immediately went up to his room and locked the door behind him. He threw his book bag on his bed and took out the panties he had slipped into his jeans' pocket.

He touched them and even smelled them. They smelled musky and the scent turned him on. For some reason he felt less alone and horny so he decided to jerk off for a couple of hours...one hand sliding along his throbbing erection while his other hand fingered the lacy underwear...

Jake recalled how the girls had reacted to his presence in the locker room. They had actually paid attention to him...acted like he was there...like he actually existed! Even if it had been _bad_ attention, it was at least _something_.

And they hadn't been mean per say, just embarrassed and freaked out.

The girls had screamed out of surprise and embarrassment - _not_ fear. And they had thrown harmless things at him...like articles of clothing. They hadn't really been out to hurt him.

Jake smiled to himself goofily as he thought about the encounter. He decided that he'd go to the girl's locker room again the next day!

When Jake boldly showed up in the doorway of the girl's locker room he smiled and winked at them to get their attention. "Howdy ladies. My, you're all looking lovely-"

"Kyahhh! Pervert!" The girls cried and began tossing hairbrushes and articles of clothing his way.

Jake caught another pair of underwear - this time a pair of strawberry panties! Jake thanked the girls and took off running.

Jake began to visit the girl's locker room frequently and so began to earn himself a weird reputation of being not only a 'crazy freak' but also a 'pervert' and a 'panty thief'.

Jake preferred the labels 'pervert' and 'panty thief' immensely! He quickly thought up new and inventive ways to steal the girls' underwear. With his superhuman reflexes and speed, Jake never got caught even if he were chased.

Jake began to spout pickup lines any time a girl passed him by and would wink and wag his eyebrows at her.

At first the girls acted afraid and would give him wary looks or glares. But as the year wore on and Jake's ridiculous behavior continued without real incident the girls began to laugh at his antics.

Their laughter - even if it was at Jake's expense - was Jake's salvation.

He kept his smile plastered to his face and acted like a fool. Being thought of as a perverted fool was much better than being thought of as a crazy freak or murderer.

***

Around this time, a plain girl with long dark hair and glasses named Sarah transferred to Amarillo High School. Her old school had been burned down in a lab accident and she had been forced to change schools because of it. Since it was already halfway through their senior year everyone already had their clicks and so Sarah was completely left out - friendless!

Because of her nerdy appearance she was also singled out for bullying. Her class had nominated her as 'Class President' but only because they didn't want to do any of the hard work themselves! Sarah was used to bullying since it had also happened to her at her old school, and so it didn't really bother her...

However, the kids at Amarillo High School had a tendency to get violent and take things too far.

One day, when the teacher had given Sarah a large stack of printouts to hand out to everyone, she was tripped up by one of her classmates on purpose! She fell flat on her face, scraped her knees and the printouts went flying out of her hands.

Everyone in the class began to laugh since the teacher had left the room for a moment and when Sarah tried to stand someone actually pushed her back down!

"Oh, what's wrong? Why can't you get up?" The boy who had pushed her mocked. "Are you really that clumsy, four-eyes?"

Sarah felt tears welling up in her eyes and knew she was being stupid. She should have been used to this by now...everyone in this school was so superficial and judged everyone by appearances. Everyone wore expensive designer clothes and had contact lenses. No one wore glasses anymore.

"Hey." Came a voice and Sarah looked up to see a boy in her class standing in front of her, though he wasn't talking to her. She had never noticed the boy before which surprised Sarah since now that she was looking at him...he was incredibly handsome. "What do you think you're doing? Did you just push her?" Jake demanded.

Jake hated bullies.

A heavy silence descended upon the classroom.

"So what if I did? What's it to you, freak?" Came the trembling voice of the boy who had shoved Sarah down with his foot.

"You shouldn't bully people. It's not nice." Jake insisted and turned his attention to the girl with glasses at his feet.

"Baby, you are everything I never knew I always wanted." Jake winked and smiled at Sarah before holding his hand out to her when she stayed stunned on the floor. "Hey, are you okay?"

Sarah blinked up at Jake and blushed. "Er, yea..." Sarah said as she took his hand and allowed Jake to help her up. Everyone in the class gasped at this unexpected turn of events.

No one had bothered to warn the new girl about Jake Lonestar...and they realized belatedly that this had been a mistake. The girl was most definitely doomed. But they decided that they didn't really care since she wasn't even their friend.

Jake then began to help Sarah gather the printouts. He handed Sarah the printouts - but that's when he noticed the glares everyone was sending his way.

Jake frowned and turned to the boy who had pushed Sarah. "Hey, dude, I-" Jake started forward and the boy fell out of his chair.

"Stay away from me! You freak!" The boy cried. "Don't hurt me! He's going to hurt me! Help!"

Jake stopped in his tracks and everyone began to mutter about how Jake intended to harm the boy...how Jake would beat him up...just like he did the baseball club...how Jake would kill him...

All the whispers and mutterings and dark glares - it was too much for Jake to handle.

"Sorry." He muttered to Sarah before he turned around and bolted for the door of the classroom. He ran out of the classroom, and down the hall and didn't look back.

Sarah watched Jake Lonestar go curiously. Her classmates' reactions to him had seemed weird...and Jake had helped her. She still needed to thank him. _Darn._ She mentally scolded herself.

***

Over the next couple of days, Sarah observed Jake Lonestar. She found it extremely strange how most of the school populace avoided Jake like the plague and when they were around him they completely ignored him as if he weren't there.

She could see hate and even fear in some of their gazes. _How strange._ She thought. Jake Lonestar seemed pretty harmless to her...and he was also very good looking.

The strangest was Jake's funny interaction with girls. Anytime he spotted a couple of cute girls walking past him in the hall he'd call out to them: "Howdy ladies!" Then he'd spout off a pickup line, ask them out on a date, compliment, wink at them, or ask them for their telephone numbers.

The girls had different reactions to Jake's strange behavior. Some looked scared...others wary. A few laughed at Jake's antics despite themselves but looked guilty afterwards as if it were forbidden to be nice to Jake Lonestar.

During lunch at the cafeteria, Sarah got a tray of food and looked around for Jake curiously, but she didn't see him seated at any of the tables. She kept an eye out for him during the following lunch break and then the next, but he still never showed up at the cafeteria.

Sarah wisely realized that he must eat lunch alone somewhere and decided to follow him after class and find out where he ate lunch.

This was how Sarah discovered Jake asleep on the school's roof during one lunch break. He was lying on his back with his hands behind his head. It looked as though he had been cloud gazing but had fallen asleep. His lunch bag sat next to him and appeared to be untouched.

Sarah walked over to Jake and sat down next to him. She watched Jake sleep for a few minutes - gazing at his handsome sleeping face that seemed so boyish and pure and innocent while he was sleeping.

Jake groaned and a leer spread across his face. "Galaxy Girl...mmmm...oh yea..."

"Galaxy Girl? The singer?" Sarah wondered aloud, thinking of the famous pop star and blushing when she figured out what kind of dream Jake Lonestar must have been having.

Sarah's voice woke Jake up. He blinked and sat up suddenly. He turned to see Sarah sitting next to him while eating her lunch in a blasé manner. Jake's jaw dropped. A girl was sitting next to him and eating lunch? _No, no, no, this must be a dream!_ Jake pinched his cheek. "Ow..."

"It's nice up here. Is this where you always eat lunch?" Sarah asked, breaking the awkward silence.

"Er...I...sometimes I eat under a tree..." Jake found himself saying.

"You don't like the cafeteria?"

"Not really."

"Neither do I. Do you think I could start eating lunch with you, Jake?"

Jake looked at Sarah in shock. "I...er...I guess..."

"I wanted to thank you for the other day, Jake. You were my hero." Sarah giggled with hearts floating in the air around her.

Jake knew he must have been seeing things and shook his head like a dog. "H-h-hero? Me?" Jake choked out.

"I really don't get why everyone treats you so badly. Either they treat you like you're not even there or they glare daggers at you. But you seem nice enough to me and you're very handsome...it doesn't make any sense." Sarah replied, tapping her chin in thought. "I've been trying to figure it out but I can't." Sarah shrugged.

Jake's spirits fell and he let out a heavy sigh. Sarah thought he suddenly looked like a dejected puppy-dog. "It's because of that incident..."

Sarah's ears perked up. "Incident?"

Jake let out another heavy sigh. As soon as he told Sarah about what happened she would probably run for the hills! "When I was 10-years-old...there was a murder. Three kids were found dead on the banks of Canadian River and next to them I was found lying unconscious. I don't remember what happened. But I remember being scared and telling the police _who_ killed them and then they shipped me off to an insane asylum for some reason...it's all kinda foggy now...they didn't make me stay there for very long however and then I returned home."

Sarah gasped and bit her lip. "Do you remember who the murderer was?"

Jake shook his head sadly. "No...I buried that memory so deeply in my mind I can no longer remember...but I didn't kill them. I swear. I know that that's the truth. Deep in my gut, I know that I didn't kill them, Sarah..."

Sarah smiled and put a hand on Jake's shoulder and squeezed it. Jake looked at her in shock and disbelief. "I believe you. I've been watching you...you may be a total pervert and a bit of a weirdo but you're no murderer! That's just ridiculous!"

"You...believe me?" Appreciative tears filled Jake's eyes.

Sarah nodded.

"Oh Sarah!" Jake cried before he threw his arms around Sarah and hugged her close...burying his face in Sarah's breasts...

Sarah was about to hug Jake back when she realized that Jake was nuzzling her breasts with his nose and smelling her!

Sarah shoved Jake off of her with a 'Kyahhh! Pervert!' and slapped him across the face more out of reflex than out of anger.

"Totally worth it." Jake said holding a hand to his red, throbbing cheek.

This was how Sarah and Jake became friends.

During their lunch breaks, Sarah would join Jake for lunch...usually up on the roof. They would eat lunch, chat and watch the clouds float across the sky together. Jake thought it was great and was having a total blast. He was happier than he'd been in a very long time.

_This must be what it's like to have a friend._ He thought as he looked at Sarah out of the corner of his eye. _Or maybe even a girlfriend._ A leer formed on Jake's face as he checked Sarah out.

Sarah was really cute - her geeky glasses hid her dark eyes and long lashes and her baggy sweaters hid her large breasts and slim waist. Yep, Sarah was a total babe. Jake knew - he had Grade A Babe Radar.

_Girlfriend._ Jake sighed wistfully and hung his head dejectedly. _Like that could ever happen._ Sarah only saw Jake as a friend. Jake had tried to put his arm around Sarah a few times and she had totally avoided it.

Sarah was definitely 'doable' in Jake's book. But even if Sarah turned out to be a slut and would sleep with Jake \- in all honesty Jake realized that he probably wouldn't sleep with her. He was still really worried about his uncontrollable superhuman strength, and about the potential danger he could pose to Sarah if she got too close.

_Superman I feel your pain!_ Jake moaned in his head. Thinking of how the original Superman was unable to sleep with Lois Lane as long as he had his powers.

But...that didn't stop Jake from imagining what sex would be like with Sarah. After school, once Jake was alone up in his room, he would picture Sarah in his head as he jerked off.

Since Sarah was a _real_ girl, the experience became more intense. He could imagine things like her laugh, her smile, even her touch. It made his fantasies seem that much more real.

He had the most intense orgasm yet while jerking off and thinking about his new friend Sarah. _Oh Sarah baby you're just so hot._ His rosy high school life had begun. Or so Jake had thought.

Jake didn't want to screw things up no matter what and so was extra careful not to use his full strength while doing anything. He treated everything delicately as if it were made of glass - especially his desk and chair and locker (it was already his twentieth locker).

Jake didn't want Sarah to witness one of his random displays of superhuman strength going out of control because he knew that he'd probably scare her.

Sarah had delicate sensibilities. And Jake understood this.

Jake was especially careful not to get too close to any electronic devices...which meant of course that he was failing C++ programming but he didn't care...

As long as he had his one friend, Sarah - nothing else mattered. He could fail all his classes and even have to repeat the grade.

His friendship with Sarah was very precious to him.

This was why he treated her preciously, and delicately.

He successfully protected his friendship with Sarah for several months...until one day...

Jake was eating a grilled cheese sandwich on the roof to kill time while he waited for Sarah to arrive. He was really looking forward to seeing her since people had been extra cold to him that day...more so than usual.

So when Sarah didn't show up at her usual time, Jake got worried. Surely, no one would do anything to Sarah because she was hanging out with him, right?

Jake had a sinking feeling in his gut. The hair on the back of his neck prickled in warning.

_My spidey sense is tingling. I'm going to go and find Sarah!_ Jake decided adamantly and tossed the rest of his sandwich to the rooftop as he bolted for the door to the roof. He ran down the stairs and began to search the school for Sarah. Students that saw Jake go by only saw a red blur streak past since Jake was wearing a red hoodie that day.

Jake checked the library first since it was another popular hangout for Sarah, but she wasn't there. As Jake was exiting, however, he caught sight of Sarah in the computer lab, which was directly across from the library.

Sarah's straight raven black hair was unmistakable.

Jake peeked in the doorway and saw that Sarah was hard at work in front of one of the computers. Her fingers flying over the keys in an impressive manner. "Mmm!" Sarah made a noise as she stretched her arms over her head with her hands clasped together.

Jake was about to go when Sarah looked over her shoulder while she was stretching and caught sight of Jake.

Her dark eyes lit up. "Jake! Come over here." Sarah called him over.

"Ah..." Jake hesitated.

The computer lab was like the number one most forbidden place in Jake's mind. No one knew this but Jake avoided this one room as if it harbored the plague.

One false move, one slight touch and chaos would ensue.

It was probably the most dangerous place Jake Lonestar could enter in the entire school! There were more than ten computers and people's CD players and iPhones and iPods were scattered all over the computer tables. Electronic devices galore.

"I really shouldn't. I'll just...go." Jake tried to say but then Sarah gave him this hurt look making Jake cave immediately. "Or not. Heh..." Jake crossed his arms self-consciously over his chest as he entered the computer lab.

_What the hell am I doing?!_ Jake moaned in his mind. _I really shouldn't be doing this! I'm crazy! This is so risky!_

Sarah's expression changed once Jake began to approach her and she smiled at him. "I'm glad you're here, Jake. I've been working on this PowerPoint presentation for my C++ Programming class and I'd like to get a second opinion on it. If you have the time?" Sarah gave Jake a hopeful look.

Jake couldn't resist Sarah. Jake shrugged while trying to appear nonchalant, but to Sarah Jake looked like a puppy-dog with his tail wagging rapidly behind him. "Sure. I'll take a look at it."

"Great!" Sarah declared and turned her attention back to the computer in front of her. "The theme of the presentation is 'family' so this is a collage of pictures taken of me and my family. I hope you like it." Sarah said as she tapped her mouse to start playing the presentation.

Jake kept his arms wrapped around his chest with his hands tucked under his armpits as he leaned forward slightly to look over Sarah's shoulder at the presentation.

The presentation began to show pictures of Sarah and her family and her little brother with added digital graphics and special effects.

Family photos...

A picture of Sarah's dad teaching her to ice skate and holding her hands while she tried to skate.

A picture of her mother and Sarah in the kitchen baking a cake together, and making an absolute mess. Flour was everywhere and all over them. But the smiles on their faces showed just how happy they were.

A picture of Sarah and her little brother, Sam, playing outside in the garden. Sarah was attacking Sam with the garden hose and spraying him with water while the little boy grinned from ear to ear.

A picture of Sarah and Sam making snow angels in the snow that had gathered in their front yard.

A picture of the entire family putting up Christmas decorations and decorating a Christmas tree...

Before the bloody massacre, Jake's family life had been similar to Sarah's. It had been warm and loving too.

He had been lov _ed_.

E.D. Past tense.

Jake's eyes burned as he watched the end of Sarah's PowerPoint presentation. The final photo - the Christmas one had digital graphic enhancements so that the lights on the tree were swirling around the tree and the star at the very top of the tree twinkled.

"It's beautiful." Jake said, his voice husky and raw with emotion.

Sarah looked back at Jake, saw his emotional expression, and smiled at him. Jake grinned back and the two friends just smiled innocently at each other for a moment, until-

They were rudely interrupted.

"Well, what do we have here?" Came a snarky voice.

Sarah and Jake's attention shifted to the doorway of the computer lab where a group of three teenaged boys were standing. The three boys entered the lab and made their way towards Sarah and Jake.

Jake inwardly moaned. _Oh no, not here. Please don't start trouble here! Anywhere but here!_

"You two have been spending a lot of time together, Sarah. So, what? Are you two a couple now? You were both looking very lovey-dovey just now..." Once of the boys asked. Jake recognized him as being Ben the captain of the Wrestling Team. He was tall, muscular and dark haired. Ben's two friends were also pretty muscular and Jake figured they were also members of the Wrestling Club. _Great, just great._ Jake inwardly groaned.

Sarah and Jake both blushed and both were quick to deny Ben's claims.

"No, it's not what it looks like." Sarah said quickly.

"You're wrong." Jake added, nodding his head vigorously.

The boys looked at each other and did not appear to be convinced by their denials. "Well, you both act like a couple. Even eating your lunch together alone on the roof..." Ben continued slyly.

Sarah's eyes widened. "How do you know about that?"

"I've been watching you, Sarah." Ben began and Sarah's expression quickly shifted to worry causing Ben to notice. "Don't get me wrong. I've been watching you for your own good, Sarah. Jake Lonestar is dangerous. He's a crazy freak. You could get hurt. But don't worry, Sarah. I'll protect you. I happen to think you're rather cute." Ben reached out and took a strand of Sarah's hair between his fingers and fondled it.

Sarah slapped his hand away. "Don't touch me. I don't even know who you are..." Her voice quivered.

"I'm Ben. I'm captain of the wrestling team. These are my friends Mark and Rob - they're also on the team." Ben explained with a wave of his hand towards his friends.

"Jocks...." Jake muttered to himself.

"Come with us, Sarah. It's for your own safety." Ben said as he offered his hand out towards Sarah, who flinched back.

Something inside of Jake snapped and his guard dog mode was activated. Jake smoothly stepped in front of Sarah and blocked Ben's path to her. It all looked pretty slick on the outside - on the inside Jake was an absolute mess. _Oh my God! What the hell am I doing? I'm going to get punched! But...I have to protect Sarah. But...oh my God, I'm in the computer lab. Oh noooo!_

"Leave us alone." Jake said, his body trembling.

Only Sarah realized Jake was trembling out of fear and not rage.

Ben's eyes narrowed at Jake dangerously. "You're in my way, crazy freak. Get lost."

"No." Jake said.

"Have it your way!" Ben said before punching Jake hard across the face. Jake stumbled backwards, shielding Sarah and crashing into her. His hand landed on top of the keyboard that was in front of the computer monitor that still displayed the Christmas photo of Sarah's family.

Uh oh.

Jake looked down at his hand in shock. He watched as an electric zap of green light traveled from his fingertips into the keyboard that lit up and sparked. The green light traveled on through the wire into the monitor and to the hard drive.

Jake's eyes widened in knowing horror. "Oh no..." Jake quickly removed his hand from the keyboard and took a step back. He pulled Sarah out of her chair roughly and turned to look at the others with an urgent look on his face.

"Everyone...RUN! Go on, get out of here! Run!" Jake yelled at Ben, Mark and Rob.

The three guys from the wrestling club didn't take Jake's warning as a warning but as a threat.

"What the hell, freak? Make me!" Ben snapped irritated, as he approached Jake.

Jake saw the computer begin to spark and wig out. "I said: GET OUT OF HERE! NOW! HURRY!" Jake insisted as he let go of Sarah so that he could give Ben a helpful little shove in the direction of the door.

However, Jake's 'little shove' sent Ben flying back into his two friends - sending all three boys crashing to the floor in a groaning heap. Jake's strength had been so intense all three had gone skidding backwards several feet across the floor.

The three boys all looked at Jake wide-eyed and with fear. No normal person could have done something like that.

"It's just like I thought...he really _is_ a freak!" Ben pointed an accusing finger at Jake.

"RUN!" Jake bellowed at them.

"Ahhh!" The three boys screamed as they scrambled backwards and got to their feet before taking off out of the computer lab.

"Jake, what the hell is going on? What's wrong?" Sarah asked Jake, worriedly.

Frantic, Jake spun to Sarah and looked at her beseechingly. "Sarah, you need to get out of here, before-"

But it was already too late.

The computer began to morph and transform into a 6-foot-tall robot with a radio antenna on the top of its monitor-shaped head. The hard drive had become a part of its torso, and wires made up the limbs of its arms and legs.

The computer monitor flickered to life and two glowing red eyes appeared. The digitized face frowned at Jake and Sarah.

An alien killer robot was standing before them!

It was unlike anything Sarah had ever seen and she was absolutely terrified. "What the hell is that?"

"Must kill...must kill all the humans...kill..." The robot spoke in a synthesized voice and it reached its hand out towards Sarah. Wires flew through the air towards Sarah and began to wrap around her arms to restrain her. As Sarah began to scream it wrapped its wires around her mouth to silence her.

"Sarah!" Jake cried and lunged at the robot. He grabbed the wires and ripped them off of Sarah using his superhuman strength. The wires easily snapped in two.

Sarah stumbled backwards once she had been freed.

"Go on, Sarah! Get out of here!" Jake insisted and didn't see the robot lunge at him.

The robot shoved Jake backwards into the computers that were sitting on the desks against the back wall. Jake was slammed into the computers and his hands touched the keyboards and also an assortment of electronic devices that students had carelessly left behind - smart phones, MP3 players and iPods.

Sarah watched in shock and fear as Jake touched the electronic devices, and how a strange green light seemed to shoot out of Jake's fingertips and enter the devices which began to spark, wig out, morph and transform into small alien robots!

Two more six-foot-tall robots were formed out of the two computers - their heads were monitors, their torsos made up of hard drives, antenna sat on the tops of their heads and their limbs were made up of wires. Their screens turned on and digital faces with glowing red eyes appeared.

The smart phones and iPods began to vibrate and fell off the computer desks. As they hit the floor they transformed into tiny, killer alien robots with glowing red eyes and sharp looking arms and legs.

"Must kill...must kill all humans...kill...kill...kill..." The robots chanted in their synthesized voices as they approached Sarah.

Jake was still grappling and wrestling against the first robot when Sarah started screaming.

The tiny killer robots had leapt onto Sarah and were pinching and stabbing her with their tiny, needle-like limbs. The two larger robots approached her next and began to restrain her arms and legs with more wires.

"Sarah!" Jake cried out as he caught sight of her predicament and punched the robot he was dealing with hard across its monitor face with such force that the robot's head came right off its shoulders.

"Yeehaw!" Jake cried as he launched himself at the two robots. "Get away from Sarah!" Jake rammed into the two robots that were flung sideways.

Jake quickly went to Sarah's aid. She was on the floor trying to take the tiny killer robots off of herself and screaming as they continued to bite, prick, and scratch her.

"Sarah!" Jake quickly knelt by her side and reached out to grab one of the vicious, tiny robots in his hand and clenched his fist - destroying the robot instantly. Jake began to do the same thing with the other tiny robots - grabbing at them with his bare hands and crumbling them to tiny pieces.

Sarah watched what was happening with wide, fearful eyes. Jake was some kind of monster. Everyone was right.

Jake wiped his hands off and turned to see if Sarah was alright. She was an absolute mess - her hair was tousled and in disarray, her glasses were eschew on her face, her clothing torn and there were visible scratches all over her body.

"Sarah," Jake said sadly, "Are you okay?" He offered her his hand.

"Ahhh! Stay away! Don't touch me! Freak!" Sarah screamed and batted Jake's hand away. She struggled to her feet and began backing away from Jake.

Jake's expression fell, and his eyes filled with sadness and visible pain. "Run." He reiterated.

Sarah turned around and did just that - screaming all the way.

The two remaining robots had gotten their bearings again and had stood back up. They were approaching Jake from behind. "Kill...must kill all the humans..."

The robots raised their arms and wires shot out at Jake and wrapped around his arms. Jake watched Sarah run away screaming and didn't fight back, until-

The robots sent electricity coursing through Jake in an electric attack. Jake cried out in pain and tears sprung to his eyes. He looked at the wires wrapped around his arms and legs and began to rip them off fiercely. _Could this day get any worse? Dammit!_ Jake screamed in his mind. Jake then turned around to face the robots.

"It's all your fault. I lost my only friend." Jake said before he launched himself at one of the robots. It crashed to the floor with Jake on top of it. Jake began to hammer the robot with punches and the robot began to disintegrate and fall to pieces.

The final and remaining robot moved to get behind Jake to grab the cowboy's arms as he attempted to pull Jake off of his companion.

Jake looked down at the unmoving pile of scrap metal before letting the robot pull him to his feet. Then Jake turned around and punched the computer monitor, breaking the glass - his fist exited out the other side and the glass cut into his skin deeply but Jake didn't care.

Jake removed his hand from the robot's head and the robot fell to the floor. Jake looked at his bleeding hand and began to tremble...blood...so much blood...

Jake's legs gave out and he sunk to the floor. He ended up sitting on his butt, surrounded by metal debris, and he brought his knees to his chest. He wrapped his arms around his legs and began to rock back and forth as sobs wracked his body.

It was all over. His friendship with Sarah. Everything was broken.

Blood...it was everywhere...

Just like back then...on the muddy ground of the riverbank...

Jake fell into unconsciousness and dreamed of an incident that he would have rather never remembered.

### Chapter 2: It's a bird, it's a plane, it's...?!

FLASHBACK.

"Woo wee! It stinks in here." Jake complained from his seat in a rickety chair that he was rocking back and forth in while chewing on a piece of straw.

"I don't think you have any right to complain, Jake." His sister Bonnie said as she wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand. "After all, you're the one who's supposed to be mucking out this here stall!"

Jake pouted. "You know I'm not cut out for physical labor, sis." Jake yawned widely. "I just want to take a nap...I'm so sleepy..."

Bonnie let out an exasperated sigh at her useless older brother. "You're always tired. Maybe you have some kind of disease or something. I bet they have a pill for it."

"Ma says I'm just lazy. I don't think they have a pill for laziness. Though they should make one." Jake yawned widely again and his eyes began to droop. In just a few seconds he was fast asleep in the tilted chair that was leaning up against the stable wall in a precarious manner.

Bonnie looked at Jake's strange sleeping position in disbelief. Her brother was _so_ weird. He could fall asleep just about anywhere. _He's such a lazy bum!_ Her brother Jake was ten-years-old and she was nine. He was supposed to be the older brother who was responsible and who looked after his little sister but really it was the other way around. Bonnie found herself looking out for Jake all the time instead.

For example, he was supposed to be mucking out their family's horse stalls right then, but Jake sucked at physical labor. As soon as he got blisters on his hands he'd end up crying. He was a total crybaby but...her brother was also kind and sweet, so she didn't really mind helping him out by mucking out the horse stalls for him.

Afterall, Jake kept all of her secrets. Her greatest secret being that Bonnie Lonestar was a total tomboy. Her mother Jessie Lonestar was under the (false) impression that her daughter Bonnie was an angel - who liked playing with _Barbies_ and baked using her _EasyBake_ oven.

But the reality was that Bonnie was a tomboy who liked doing all the adventurous things boys her age did - like climbing trees, going swimming in the lake, fishing at the river, horseback riding, and most of all bug collecting.

Bonnie was extremely proud of her bug collection which she had to keep in her brother's room. Her brother Jake, on the other hand, wasn't into anything 'adventurous' like that. Jake's biggest pastime was probably napping. Anytime he had chores to do at the Lonestar Ranch, Jake would sneak off past the cornfields and stare up at the clouds and nap. It was up to Bonnie to go find his lazy ass and bring him back to the ranch to do his chores.

Though he never did them. Bonnie would always end up doing them for Jake. All Jake wanted to do was stay in his room and read comic books and play video games on his _Xbox_ or his _Playstation_. It was funny how her brother had a superhero obsession but was such a cowardly boy. With a name like Jake Lonestar one would have thought he had the name of a potential superhero but that couldn't be further from the truth.

As if to prove Bonnie's point a mouse had been crawling up Jake's leg while he was sleeping. Jake slowly blinked his eyes as he began to wake up and had this dopey look on his face as he looked down at the mouse that was sitting on his knee and just staring at him. Jake blinked again and rubbed his eyes and stared down at the mouse that was still there. No, he wasn't dreaming, which meant-

The mouse was real.

"AHHH!" Jake cried out and caused his chair to rock forward in such a way that Jake was thrown forward and into a pile of horse shit that his sister had been piling up with a SPLAT!

Jake had landed face-first in the pile of horse shit and when Bonnie saw what had happened to her pathetic older brother she burst out laughing. "Ahahaha!"

Jake pushed himself up out of the horse shit and glared at his sister. "This is _not_ funny."

"Oh yes it is!" Bonnie shot back. Yep. Jake Lonestar was a pathetic, lazy, wimpy, coward and no superhero.

Every geek and comic book enthusiast knows that the beginning of every superhero starts with an unexpected event that turns the hero's life upside down. If Jake had known that today was going to be that day he would have stayed in bed.

Bonnie was helping to clean Jake's face of the horse poop with a towel when all of a sudden an explosion could be heard in the distance and the ground beneath Jake and Bonnie's feet quaked while the walls of the stable vibrated violently. The horses pawed their stalls nervously and let out little puffs of air in an irritated manner.

"W-w-what was that?" Jake asked nervously.

Bonnie's big brown eyes were already glimmering with interest and excitement. "Let's go find out!" She exclaimed.

"Oh no, count me out, there's no way I'm going to-" Jake was saying when Bonnie grabbed Jake's wrist and dragged him out of the stables of the Lonestar Ranch. They rushed outside, and brother and sister could see smoke rising in the distance from across the cornfield.

Then, Jake looked up and saw that something else seemed to have entered the earth's atmosphere and was heading towards the surface in the form of a gigantic ball of fire. Jake's eyes grew large as he watched the flaming meteorite hurtling towards the field. This second object looked like it was going to fall even closer to the Lonestar Ranch.

"A falling star? No...a meteor." Bonnie nodded to herself.

"Cool." Jake murmured to himself, chills going down his cowardly spine.

KABOOM!

The second meteor hit the ground and caused another explosion to rock the air. Jake nearly fell over as the ground beneath him shook from the force of the meteor's impact but Bonnie caught his arm and steadied him. Jake was already trembling from fear but Bonnie was curious about the meteor and so she took Jake's hand in hers and began to drag him towards the impact site.

As they got closer they were able to see a gigantic crater that was at least fifty feet wide with a glowing object in the very center of it. Jake hesitated before Bonnie pulled him into the crater causing him to stumble. Brother and sister made their way closer to the mysterious object. The object looked like it was beginning to cool off since steam was rising off its round surface and curling into the air. A sudden gust of wind blew away the steam that had been concealing most of the object from view so that it was suddenly revealed to Jake and Bonnie in its entirety.

Jake's eyes widened in shock. "A s-s-spaceship?! An alien spaceship?" Jake gaped, his jaw dropping to the ground as he eyed the object in front of him. It was a sleek, silver disk that was twenty feet wide, and with a slightly raised cockpit in its center. Jake stumbled backwards and landed on his ass as he continued to gape at the spaceship in front of him. He was about to have a panic attack when Bonnie thought of something and began to look around.

"Wait...they must be filming a movie around here. That must be it. Man, Jake you're so stupid to think that something like The Day the Earth Stood Still could happen to us!" Bonnie laughed nervously as she looked around the impact site expecting a camera crew and a director to just pop up out of their hiding places at any moment.

Jake let out a breath of relief at Bonnie's words. So that's what was going on. Jake pushed himself up off the ground, dusted himself off.

"Let's go take a closer look." Bonnie suggested as Jake warily followed her even closer to the spaceship.

_These are some really good special effects._ Jake thought as he suddenly tripped over a rock and stumbled forward. He put his hands out to stop himself from falling and his hands landed right on the metal surface of the spaceship. He looked up and realized he was touching the alien spaceship and that he had the perfect view of the cockpit which suddenly popped open.

Jake immediately leapt at his sister Bonnie and buried his face in the crook of her neck. Bonnie stroked Jake's head in a comforting gesture as she tried to remain strong for the both of them. They waited for a moment and when nothing happened (like aliens eating their brains) they slowing pulled away from each other and took a peek at what was inside of the cockpit.

Jake was immediately able to see that there was a woman seated in the pilot's seat. He was surprised to see that she was dressed in what appeared to be a Japanese _kimono_. The _kimono_ was dark blue and had the pattern of golden stars on it. The woman's head was bowed so that Jake was unable to see her face. She appeared to be unconscious and her long, blue-black hair was frustratingly blocking most of her face from view but Jake could see that she had an extremely pale complexion.

Jake frowned, thinking that it was odd to see an alien woman dressed in traditional Japanese clothing and a sudden idea came to him. "Hey, wait a minute, what if that is just a new type of plane that happened to crash land here at the ranch, Bonnie? What if that is just a prototype design or something we don't know about yet? I mean she looks pretty human to me. She must be Japanese or something."

"I dunno..." Bonnie said uncertainly as she chewed on her lower lip.

The woman's head remained bowed and Jake moved closer as he tried to catch a glimpse of her face. "She might be a normal human woman who might need our help, Bonnie. She might be hurt or injured." Jake's frown deepened as he grew concerned. "H-h-hey!" He called out to her, his voice trembling. "Come on, Bonnie, let's-" Jake turned to his sister but Bonnie was frozen stiff. _If she's hurt...I have to do something...come on body, move!_ Jake ignored Bonnie and pulled himself up onto the shiny metal surface of the flying saucer and began to crawl towards the cockpit.

Bonnie watched what her brother was doing in shock. She never would have expected Jake to act so bravely in this kind of situation where she suddenly found that she couldn't move or breath.

In seconds, Jake was directly in front of the cockpit when the woman suddenly looked up at Jake and her hair parted in such a way that Jake was able to get a good look at her face. Jake froze, all the blood draining from his face as he turned as white as a sheet because the woman before him-

Had no face.

The surface of the woman's face was as smooth, white, and round as an egg. She was _faceless_.

"AHHHH!" Jake screamed at the top of his lungs as he caught sight of the faceless woman and jerked backwards. The sudden movement caused Jake to fall and he rolled off of the flying saucer to land on the ground on his ass.

"AHHHH!" Bonnie also screamed at the top of her lungs as she caught sight of the faceless alien woman. That was no foreigner that was the real deal. "Jake! We have to get out of here! Come on! RUN!" Bonnie cried as she took off running for the Lonestar Ranch expecting Jake to follow her.

" _You sawwwww?_ " The woman moaned, in an eerie ghost-like manner, and raised a draping _kimono_ sleeve towards Jake. The sleeve was so long that it completely covered the woman's hand and trailed down to the floor of the cockpit.

"Epp!" Jake squeaked as he looked up at the faceless woman from his place on the ground. _I'm so going to die! I'm so going to die! This alien babe is going to eat my brain!_ Jake thought frantically in his mind. _Where's Bonnie?!_ Jake looked around for his sister and saw her running back towards the ranch. Jake felt a stab in his gut that his sister had just left him behind like that. Although she probably had expected him to chase after her, right? Which Jake would have been doing if he wasn't so scared stiff. _Come on body move! Move!_ However-

"Hold it right there, Nova Inara! You're under arrest in the name of the Galaxy Police!" Came a confident sounding female voice.

Jake whipped his head around to look up at the top of the crater where he saw a woman, who had blue skin, long orange hair, pointed ears, blue eyes, and who was wearing a skin-tight, blue, silver, and white bodysuit with futuristic high-heels. The uniform that she was wearing had the letters 'GXP' on her chest in large, bold, black letters. The alien woman was wielding a strange looking gun that looked like it was made out of white plastic. It also appeared to be glowing. It looked like a cheap prop for a low-budget sci-fi movie.

Jake's jaw hit the ground again and his eyes bulged. "Ehhh? A-a-alien?!" _Now I know they must be filming a movie...!_ Jake noticed the letters on the alien woman's uniform and remembered what she had just said. "Galaxy Police?" _This is crazy. Unreal. It can't really be happening. I must be having a nightmare._ Jake pinched his arm _._ "Ow!"

The alien woman's tight uniform was torn and singed in places. Jake could see blood seeping through her uniform and wondered if she was injured. Jake's pre-teen eyes couldn't help but check out her curvy figure. The uniform was so tight that it showed off the alien woman's impressive figure nicely. She had extremely large breasts, a thin waist and powerful looking thighs. Jake felt that familiar, strange, warm, tingling sensation that he sometime got deep down in his gut when he read the X-Men comics and looked at the voluptuous figures of Gene Gray, Rogue, and Lady Death Strike in their equally skin tight or revealing costumes.

Nova Inara struggled to get out of her spacecraft. She lifted herself out of the cockpit and began to crawl along the surface of the metal disc towards the edge. Jake shuddered as he watched her creepy, jerky crawling movement. It was something right out of a Japanese horror film. (Jake had watched the lousy American remake version of _The Ring_ recently too and she was reminding him of Sadako).

She reached the edge of the disc and hopped down to the ground. She landed a bit unsteadily on her feet and swayed from side to side. Jake noticed a strange silvery looking liquid dripping from the inside of her sleeves and wondered if it was her blood. The woman's faceless visage seemed to flicker and it reminded Jake uneasily of a busted computer screen trying to come back to life.

As Jake continued to watch her face he saw a stream of glowing green 1s and 0s running across the surface. It appeared as though it was trying to repair itself. _She's a machine?_ Jake realized. _No, she's an android. She looks damaged._ Jake watched as more silvery liquid metal goo dripped down onto the ground in a puddle. He cringed, whatever she was she was hurt. "You're hurt..." For some unfathomable reason his heart went out to the android woman.

In a synthesized-sounding voice Nova Inara addressed the Galaxy Police officer. "Hello Stellar." She nodded once.

"Hello Nova Inara." Stellar said once more before raising her blaster and firing it at Nova Inara. Red lazer beams shot through the air in Nova Inara's direction and Jake realized that whatever the Galaxy Police officer was wielding it was definitely no ordinary gun. The sci-fi sound of lazer beams being fired rang through the air with a series of _zschooms!_ Jake had watched _Star Wars_ enough times to know that this wasn't good.

"Look out!" Jake yelled in Nova Inara's direction.

Nova Inara lithely jumped out of the way.

[Stellar Vs. Nova Inara] Fight!

Nova Inara ran and Stellar pursued her, firing her blaster at the wounded android persistently.

Jake was sitting on his ass in the crater, trembling and scared out of his mind but...this was the coolest, most exciting thing to have ever happened to him. And it was real. This wasn't a figment of his imagination, a dream, or daydream. It wasn't a virtual world from the games he played on his Xbox. This wasn't TV or some reality show. This was reality.

He was scared shitless but...adrenaline was pumping through his veins. He wanted to see what happened between the two alien babes as they duked it out. Against Jake's better judgment he followed the two alien women in order to watch their ensuing fight.

Nova Inara stopped running and turned to face Stellar who stopped as well and faced off against the faceless android. Again, the android's appearance seemed to flicker momentarily before Nova Inara lifted her long _kimono_ sleeves in front of her. Her sleeves glowed with a green light before suddenly transforming into two gigantic silver scythes.

Jake's eyes nearly fell out of his head as he looked at those gleaming, deadly-looking scythes. _Cool._ Jake thought and a small silly smile formed on his face. _This is just like watching a 3-D movie._ Nova Inara and Stellar attacked each other. Stellar twisted a knob on the side of her gun before rushing at Nova Inara and firing her blaster. Nova Inara dodged the green lazer beams while charging at Stellar and swinging her scythes at the Galaxy Police officer, who lithely dodged.

As Stellar moved her large breasts bounced up and down and Jake's eyes were riveted to her. _Two hot alien babes fighting each other. It doesn't get any better than this._ Jake thought. "This is so awesome, dude." Jake grabbed his cheek and pulled. "Ow. Nope, this really isn't a dream."

Nova Inara nearly beheaded Stellar with her next move, but only managed to graze the officer's arm instead. Stellar managed to shoot Nova Inara in the android's arm and Jake watched as Nova Inara's arm became infected by angry green lines that seemed to spread throughout the _kimono_ sleeve that somehow must have been a part of the machine as well. _A virus?_ Jake wondered.

"You've infected me with a virus...damn you Stellar..." Her data was being corrupted and deleted. Nova Inara raised her other scythe and cut her own arm off to stop the spread of the virus to the rest of her liquid-metal body. Jake watched as her severed arm hit the ground and transformed from a scythe into a robotic arm with wires coming out of the top. Jake was now even more certain that Nova Inara was definitely some kind of humanoid robot.

With the way her existence seemed to be flickering she was beginning to resemble a hologram. Jake had been moved by her brutal, desperate action and saw wires sticking out of her shoulder where her arm used to be as well as more of that silvery blood that was dripping down onto the ground. Obviously this no-faced, alien, robot woman was losing this fight. There was a sinking feeling in Jake's gut at the thought.

She was a loser. Just like him.

A triumphant smile formed on Stellar's face as she looked at her handiwork. "Surrender yourself now, Nova Inara. There is no escape. I will take you to Galaxy Police Headquarters where you will be deleted for your crimes of wiping out entire planets and turning all of their inhabitants into robots. I especially cannot forgive you for robotisizing the inhabitants of Alpha 6 - my home planet. You are nothing but a virus yourself, Nova Inara!"

"A virus?" Nova Inara said in a monotone voice. "I am an energy goddess, you foolish woman."

Standoff.

Stellar approached Nova Inara while taking out a pair of futuristic handcuffs. Nova Inara was about to be arrested. For some reason Jake's heart went out to Nova Inara and he felt like he wanted to help her. But what could _he_ possibly do?

Jake knew he had a cool name but that definitely didn't mean he was actually cool. Quite the contrary, Jake was well aware of just how un-cool he really was. _Dammit...why was I the one to see Nova Inara crash land? Why didn't some really cool person find her? He probably could have saved her. Instead Nova Inara had to encounter me._ _This sucks. This is so unfair but...Nova Inara is the most interesting thing to have ever happened to me. I can't let her be destroyed!_

Without really thinking, Jake rushed out from his hiding place and stood between Stellar and Nova Inara with his back to the killer android.

Jake put his arms out to his sides, his legs were shaking, his knees knocking together, but he glared at Stellar who was kind of like a bully in his eyes. This thought had given him strength. Jake hated bullies.

"S-s-stay b-b-back! Stay away from her! D-d-don't come any closer!" Jake yelled, his voice cracking.

Stellar stopped and raised an eyebrow at Jake. She took out some kind of energy reading device and waved it over Jake. "Species: Human. Sex: Male. Age: 10. Strength: .0236. Weak. You're weak kid. Now, get out of my way...that woman behind you is a dangerous, Most Wanted, Galactic Criminal. She's no victim. She's a monster."

Jake frowned. "B-b-but...you attacked her when she was already injured and t-t-that's...cowardly. Y-y-you're nothing but a big bully!" And if Jake knew anything - it was about _bullies_.

And since Jake had experience with bullies and how to temporarily escape their grasp Jake took out a homemade flash grenade and threw it at Stellar unexpectedly managing to temporarily blind the skilled Galaxy Police Officer.

Because Jake was short for his age, lanky, cowardly, and weak...he had lots of experience with bullies at school. The boys in his grade would steal his lunch money, video games, X-men trading cards, and beat him up occasionally just for fun. But if it's one thing Jake got good at it was running away. This was one of Jake Lonestar's 'special skills'. Well, that and 'doing nothing' in order to not get noticed by people. So helping Nova Inara was out of character for him but...he simply hated bullies. Deep down, any time he was getting picked on by bullies he had always secretly wished and hoped for someone to magically come to his aid and save him.

Absolutely terrified, he grabbed Nova Inara's sleeve and began to pull her along as they ran away from Stellar. Jake knew the perfect place to take this alien robot woman. He would take her to his 'secret base' - a cave he had discovered and which served as the perfect hiding place from the boys in his neighborhood that liked to make Jake's weekends hell. His parents had no idea that when they sent Jake out to play on the weekends that they were sending him into the hands of Emerson Elementary School's bullies who liked to come up with strange ways to torture Jake.

Jimmy, Joe and Stuart would do cruel things to him for fun like stripping him naked and tying him up to a tree in a bear-infested forest while leaving him there to scream his lungs out until his voice would grow so hoarse he couldn't scream any more. They'd also strip him down naked and toss him into the crocodile infested river. Jake never saw any bears or crocodiles but he was still terrified when the boys did this to him because of the very possibility of there being such creatures.

Another time they dressed him up like a girl, took him on their bicycles several hours away from Lonestar Ranch and just left Jake in the middle of nowhere. He had to walk back to the ranch all alone and on foot for several hours not daring to try and hitchhike with the way he was currently dressed. He had gotten sick and nearly passed out by the time he had arrived home. His parents had been worried but Jake refused to tell them why they had found him in such a state.

Other times they would simply beat him up or give him painful wedgies. When they grew bored of this they tried to find strange things to force Jake to eat and drew enjoyment from Jake's funny reactions to eating things like worms with ketchup. Stuart, Joe and Jimmy let Jake experience his own personal _Fear Factor_ on a daily basis. Then there were times when they'd strip him down pour honey on his body and throw feathers or flour on him. Yep, the boys in his grade were sure creative when it came to ways to just make his life miserable. Other than that they were in reality a group of boneheads.

His parents didn't know about Jake's problems with bullies since he never told them. Jake never told them because he was ashamed. If he had super powers he would have been able to stand up for himself but...in reality Jake was just a wimpy little kid at the mercy of the taller, meaner, and stronger boys in his grade.

But then, one day, when Jake was running away from The Evil Trio he tripped and fell into a series of prickly thorn bushes and discovered a cave that existed behind them. He decided to make the cave his 'secret base' and on weekends when his parents forced him to go play outside Jake would run as fast as he could for his secret base and pray that the boys wouldn't find him first. Sometimes he made it, sometimes he did not. Because of this Jake practiced running when he could and had become really good at it. At this point, Stuart, Joe and Jimmy couldn't keep up with him. This frustrated the mean spirited boys though, so that the few times they _did_ catch Jake they _really_ made him pay for it.

And now, Jake was doing what he did best - running while holding the sleeve of the alien robot woman. She was running along with him and didn't resist his help. Jake led her to the mountain that was surrounded by thorn bushes and showed her the hidden entrance to the cave. They ducked down and entered. As soon as he was inside Jake immediately began to light the torches he had already hung up on the cave walls.

The cave was illuminated to reveal a ten-year-old boy's secret base. Jake was a wannabe Texas cowboy. He had a collection of horseshoes hanging on the walls, a ratty, old Stetson (his father had thrown it away and Jake had salvaged it) was hanging on a peg, and drawings were all over the walls depicting a cowboy riding, shooting Indians, and lassoing cattle. Jake wished he could be a cool cowboy like his father James but...he was terrified of horses. Well, not terrified of horses exactly, but of riding them. He was fine when he was just petting, grooming or feeding them but once he was sitting on top of one he just panicked. He was always getting bucked off or thrown off because he was so terrified. Horses could smell fear. Apparently, horses were a lot like bullies too.

Jake also secretly wanted to become a Rodeo Clown like his dad who was pretty famous in Amarillo. A Rodeo Clown was a performer who would gave exhibitions of roping, riding and bulldogging.

Nova Inara looked around the cave's interior and the way it was decorated curiously. "Is this where you live, human child?"

Jake blushed at the idea of him being some homeless boy that lived in a cave. "N-n-no. This is my safe-" He had been about to say something pathetic like 'safe house' but caught himself. "Secret base." He said instead and puffed up his chest with pride.

"I see." Nova Inara nodded and made her way over to a clear area to sit down. "You will allow me to stay here as I fix myself, human boy. I need to purge the virus that has infected a part of my data. I must also try and recover lost data. Yes, I will stay here and restore my data." She motioned to her missing arm.

Jake didn't really understand her sci-fi lingo. But he got the fact that she wanted to stay there so she could recover. He also noticed that it hadn't really been a request, but more of a statement. Jake swallowed thickly, he was used to getting threatened though. "Okay." Jake agreed, meekly.

The faceless alien looked at Jake curiously. "Aren't you afraid of me, human boy? Of my appearance?"

Jake nodded vigorously, truth be told he was about to piss in his pants, "I'm absolutely terrified."

The faceless android tilted her head at the human boy then. "Your actions do not compute. Why did you help me if you are afraid of me?"

Jake scratched the side of his face bashfully. "I just don't like cowardly bullies."

"Bullies? A person who deliberately intimidates or is cruel to weaker people. And you think that the Galaxy Police Officer Stellar is a bully and that I am the weak victim?" Nova Inara said in her synthetic tone and wondered if she should try and make her voice sound sarcastic. This young boy was incredibly foolish if he thought that she was a weak being.

Jake nodded. "Yea, I mean, she attacked you when you were already obviously hurt."

Nova Inara nodded in agreement. "I see."

The following morning, Jake returned to the Lonestar Ranch. His sister Bonnie was outside on the front porch waiting for Jake. Jake frowned when he caught sight of her.

"Jake!" Bonnie stood up from the porch swing and ran towards her brother. "You're back! You're alive!"

"Yea, no thanks to you..." Jake muttered in a low voice as Bonnie walked up to him and grasped his shoulders.

She peered intensely into Jake's eyes. "You're okay. What happened?"

Jake considered telling Bonnie the truth about what had happened to him. About how he had ended up saving the android Nova Inara and was now hiding her but even Bonnie didn't know about Jake's secret base. He was also still feeling hurt and betrayed that Bonnie had just left him behind. This is what led Jake to lie instead. "You're never going to believe it, Bonnie! A camera man popped out of nowhere and revealed that we were on _Punk'd_!" _It's okay. I don't need Bonnie. I can handle this myself._

Bonnie gave her brother a skeptical look. "Punk'd? I thought they canceled that show..."

"They did but...they're making a comeback." Jake stuttered. "Well, anyways I better go say howdy to Ma and Pa so that they know I'm alive at least..." Jake said as he turned to go into the house.

"Wait!" Bonnie called after Jake. "I know you're lying. You're an awful liar Jake. Why won't you just tell me the truth?"

"Why do you think?" Jake said in a low voice, without looking behind him and continued his way into the house.

Bonnie watched her brother enter the house sadly. She truly hadn't meant to leave Jake behind like that. She thought he was right behind her - like he always was. She wanted to apologize but the words just wouldn't form properly. "Big Bro...I..."

Over the next few days, Jake allowed Nova Inara to stay at his secret base while she recovered her lost data. He didn't really understand what it meant to be an android, however, and went about taking care of Nova Inara as best he could.

He didn't understand that Nova Inara didn't really need to eat, and went fishing since he was worried about Nova Inara being hungry. He thought that the alien woman was just too shy to ask him for something to eat. Jake loved fishing and that day managed to catch five nice looking trout which he put inside of a bucket that he had brought with him and filled with water. Unfortunately, the river was close to where his classmates Stuart, Joe and Jimmy lived and it wasn't long before they spotted him fishing. Jake was just getting ready to go, having decided that the five trout would probably be enough to make himself and Nova Inara a nice dinner when-

Stuart, Joe and Jimmy emerged from the surrounding woods and approached Jake. As soon as they caught sight of Jake mischievous, evil smirks formed on their dirty faces.

"Well, well, well, lookie what we have here, boys." Drawled the first boy as he ran his hand back through his sandy blonde hair probably thinking that the motion made him look cool. Stuart was the leader of the little gang of bullies and the tallest of the three boys. He was also the meanest and most intelligent.

A frown formed on Jake's face as he caught sight of the bullies. His body was already beginning to tremble in fear but he stood his ground. For once. This wasn't just about him anymore. "I-I-It's not _your_ river, S-S-Stuart." Jake challenged.

"What was that?!" Stuart demanded as he picked his nose and then stalked forward to wipe his booger on the front of Jake's shirt. Stuart towered over Jake by at least a foot in height. "Did you just dare speak back to _me_ , Jake?!" Stuart snapped as he glared down at the frightened boy.

Jake flinched and gulped. Stuart was always using him as a tissue. _Yuck._

There was an evil gleam in Stuart's icy blue eyes and he cracked his knuckles. "Boys, I think Jake needs to be reminded of who rules this here river..."

Joe, a fat kid with dark hair, who could always be seen with a can of Pringles in his hands, and Jimmy, a lanky but extremely tall, freckled, red-headed boy, both chuckled at Jake's plight. The three boys nodded to each other before approaching Jake who had frozen in terror. They grabbed Jake and proceeded to beat the shit out of him.

Stuart kicked Jake's bucket over and watched gleefully as the five fish spilled out onto the muddy ground. "These fish don't belong to you, loser!" Stuart said and stomped his foot down on one of the fish.

Bloody, bruised, broken, Jake spoke up, "NO!" Jake threw his body on the fish and covered the fish with his hands. But his hands ended up getting painfully stomped on in the process.

Stuart was shocked at first, before he grinned sadistically down at Jake. "Get out of my way, loser...those fish don't belong to _you_. They belong to _me_ which means I can do whatever the hell I want to them."

But Jake stubbornly refused to move and shook his head as his body trembled in fear. "NO!" Outwardly, Jake tried to put on a brave face but he just ended up looking constipated. On the inside, however, Jake was freaking out: _Oh crap! I'm so going to die! It hurts...it hurts...!_

Stuart frowned down at Jake's stubbornness, maybe even braveness and became pissed. He brought his muddy sneaker down hard on Jake's hand again and again until it was a bloody mess. Jake cried out, tears streaming down his face, and he ended up passing out from the pain. Several of his fingers had been broken.

"Pathetic loser...let's go, boys..." Stuart sneered as he spit on Jake's unconscious body and the three boys left the riverbank chuckling darkly and without looking back.

Jake woke up a few hours later alone on the riverbank with a few dirty fish around him. The fingers of his right hand were broken but it was a small price to pay since he had actually managed to protect the fish. Jake grinned goofily. _I did it...I actually did it...I managed to protect something. Me?! Pathetic me._ Jake picked up the bucket and stumbled over to the river to refill it. Jake walked back over to the fallen fish, picked them up, and wiped them off before placing them back inside the bucket.

Afterwards, he took the fish back to his secret base. Once inside Jake gathered up some tree branches and piled them in the center of the cave so that he could make a fire. Jake was confident in his ability to cook fish since he'd done it on his own before. It didn't take Jake very long to have a small fire blazing and he stuck the fish on sticks that he then stuck into the fire. The fish didn't take very long to cook and soon he was taking a fish on a stick over to Nova Inara, who had been watching his actions curiously but had been silent throughout Jake's cooking.

Nova Inara raised an invisible eyebrow at this strange human boy. She took in his battered appearance and broken-looking hand. "What's this, human boy?"

Jake immediately became embarrassed, and placed a hand (his uninjured one) behind his head, a blush forming on his cheeks as he looked away from the android, "I, err, I figured you must be hungry so I...caught you some fish..."

"Foolish human boy...I do not need to consume food. I am a collective group of billions of nanomachines that evolved to gain a single consciousness and a will. I am a highly advanced living-metal weapon." Nova Inara explained coolly.

"Huh?" Jake gave her a blank look.

"I am..." Nova Inara struggled to find simpler words to explain her existence to this dim little human boy. "An android that possesses artificial intelligence. An automaton that only resembles a human being. In fact, I was made to resemble an alien race." Nova Inara went on to clarify.

"You mean, you really are a robot? Cool!" Jake's light brown eyes sparkled. But then Jake's expression fell. "If you're supposed to resemble an alien then why...don't you have a face?" Jake tentatively ventured to ask. _I hope she doesn't eat my brains for asking!_

Nova Inara supposed that since she was just an android she shouldn't have been affected by such a question. But the fact of the matter was that she _was_ affected by it. And for some unfathomable reason she decided to tell this small human boy the truth. "I was designed by the most powerful alien race in the galaxy to be their ultimate weapon. They feared that with my vast knowledge and intelligence I would be able to easily assimilate and live among them if I ever escaped and so they programmed me from the very beginning not to have a face. I've tried to change the programming in order to have a face but the code that the dragons used is so complex that even I am unable to modify it. That is why I am faceless and will continue to remain faceless for all eternity. I will never smile. Does my appearance appall and frighten you, human boy?"

Jake vigorously shook his head in denial. "It's not...scary, just different. I think that even without a face...you're beautiful." Jake ventured with a bright blush on his boyish cheeks.

Nova Inara couldn't help the surprise she felt at the boy's words. He had just called her beautiful. Nova Inara placed a hand over her chest. Strange, she shouldn't be feeling such emotions. This human boy was having a strange effect on her. Nova Inara's attention was once again drawn to Jake's broken hand which he was doing a poor job of concealing. "Who did that to you?" Nova Inara asked in a monotone voice, making sure that it was completely devoid of emotion or concern.

But Jake had a vivid imagination and thought that there had been concern in Nova Inara's question. Jake became emotional, thinking that Nova Inara cared or was worried about him. "Don't worry...I'm okay." He gave Nova Inara a reassuring smile that quickly turned into a frown, however, as he remembered what had happened to him. "It was just Stuart, Joe and Jimmy - those jerks. They don't like it when I fish at the river. They claim the river is theirs..." Jake pouted.

"Foolish human boy, why do you assume I am worried about you? For I am not." Nova Inara inwardly frowned. _Am I worried about the boy? A human? Impossible._ "Is the river theirs?"

"No..." Jake scratched his head thoughtfully. "Well, what do robots eat?"

"Energy. Knowledge. I suppose." Nova Inara shrugged. "Knowledge can make me evolve. Come here, human boy." Nova Inara ordered Jake. Jake immediately complied, acting like a loyal puppy-dog. "Hold out your hand." Jake hesitated for a moment but then quickly moved closer. Nova Inara gripped his hand and injected some nanomachines into his hand using her finger.

Jake felt a painful prick that reminded him of getting his flu shot. "Ow!" Tears formed in his eyes. "What was that? What did you just do?" Jake questioned the android nervously.

"I injected some healing nanomachines into your body." Nova Inara explained in her synthetic voice.

"Nanomachines?" Jake asked but then his hand burst into pain as his bones were suddenly being healed and mended together by the nanomachines. Jake screamed but then the pain was gone. His fingers no longer hurt and he could move his hand again. Jake's eyes widened like saucers. "Cool. That was like magic..." Jake murmured as he opened and closed his hand into a fist.

"No, not magic, but science and advanced technology." Nova Inara droned coldly. "There is no such thing as magic, human boy."

But Jake was looking at Nova Inara with hearts in his eyes. She had just helped him. And no one had ever helped Jake before except for his tomboy sister Bonnie. Jake shook his head. He didn't want to think about Bonnie. He was still mad at her. _I think she's magical. She's like a galactic fairy._

"You live on a horse ranch, correct?" Nova Inara questioned.

"My parents own a horse ranch...yea..." Jake replied cautiously, wondering why Nova Inara would want to know about that.

Nova Inara let out a thoughtful hum. "Hmm. Hence the cowboy memorabilia. You like cowboys? I suppose you have your own horse and know how to ride, boy?"

Jake pointed a finger to himself, "Me?" He squeaked and then shuddered at the thought of sitting on top of a horse. "No way...I'm too much of a coward. I'm absolutely terrified of horses. Anytime I ride one I get bucked off...or I'm so paralyzed with fear that I just fall off...it's pretty pathetic." Jake felt his face flush out of embarrassment.

"You are afraid of horses and yet...pictures of horses cover the cave walls." Nova Inara looked around the cave curiously. "You like horses. And yet you cannot ride because you are a coward."

Jake nodded, a solemn look on his face. "And because I'm weak but...I want to be a cool cowboy. I wish...my dream is to be a cool cowboy and Rodeo Clown like my dad, but I'm too weak and too much of a coward..." Jake hung his head.

"So...you seek strength?" Nova Inara asked casually.

"Huh?" Jake looked up at the faceless android. "No...I know that despite whatever I do it won't change anything. It's better to not get my hopes up. It's a dream. I don't expect it to come true. I've learned that doing nothing keeps me out of trouble. I'll always be weak and I'll always be a coward. Nothing I do will change that..."

"So you _do_ seek strength. I compute. I mean, I understand." Nova Inara nodded to herself. _He does seek strength, and wishes to be stronger. He wishes to have courage but won't admit it. Perhaps I can help him._

Jake gave Nova Inara an expectant and hopeful look as he waited for her to try the fish he had cooked. Nova Inara inwardly sighed. But then decided why not humor the strange human boy. She ate the fish, which she could not taste and said: "Delicious." She did not know why she said this, nor could she comprehend her own actions, but when she saw Jake's reaction she knew that she had done the right thing.

Jake beamed at her, filled with pride. "Thanks!"

That was the first time anyone had ever thanked Nova Inara.

She decided to let Jake continue to take care of her even though she didn't need his care. Jake continued to fish for her and Nova Inara continued to eat the fish and pretend that it was delicious. After a few days of taking care of Nova Inara, Jake began to feel as though he had become friends with the alien robot. This gave him the confidence to voice a request to her one day.

After Nova Inara had finished eating one of the fish Jake had cooked for her Jake cleared his throat to get her attention. "Um...you know...we never properly introduced ourselves..."

"Is that so?" Nova Inara drawled in a bland tone.

"Yea...and so I was wondering..." Jake scratched the back of his head nervously. "If we could properly greet each other and introduce ourselves. I know your name but you never personally told it to me so I feel awkward using it."

"I see." Nova Inara nodded. Customs such as this one seemed to be important to Earthlings and so she decided to humor the human child. "Very well. How does one greet another here in Texas?"

Jake grinned triumphantly. _Alright! Yea! This is going to be so cool!_ "Well, first you just say 'Howdy'!"

"Howdy." Nova Inara tried the strange word on her tongue.

Jake pouted at her. "You have to say it more enthusiastically and..." A sudden idea came to Jake. He wondered if he could actually get Nova Inara to do what he wanted her to do and if he could it would be so totally awesome! "You have to put your index finger out like this and touch the tip of the other person's finger at the same time."

"Oh?" Nova Inara raised her hand and allowed her _kimono_ sleeve to fall down her arm so that a pale, thin-fingered hand was revealed. She stretched her hand out towards Jake.

Jake reached his hand out towards Nova Inara and let the tip of his index finger touch the tip of the android's index finger. "Howdy."

"Howdy." Nova Inara echoed as she touched the tip of his index finger. Inwardly, she smiled. What a strange human boy.

Jake grinned back at Nova Inara goofily. _This is some ET shit right here. I am so awesome! I just made first contact with a hot alien babe! If those losers Stuart, Joe and Jimmy knew about this they would be so jealous!_ "Howdy! My name is Jake Lonestar. It's a pleasure to meet ya, mam." Jake said again as he tapped his finger against Nova Inara's.

She soon followed suit, and inwardly smiling, tapped her finger against Jake's. "Howdy. My name is Nova Inara."

Jake began to laugh at the silliness of their actions and soon Nova Inara felt a strange sensation welling up inside of her as well. Before she realized what she was doing she was laughing right along with the strange human boy. "Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha." She laughed a bit mechanically but it was to be expected since it was her very first laugh. Ever.

This boy seemed to have a mysterious power indeed, the ability to move people's hearts, even metal ones.

After several days, Nova Inara was finally beginning to recover and restore her data. And in just a few more days when Jake next walked into the cave it was to see that Nova Inara had her arm back. A wide grin broke out across Jake's face. "You're healed!" He looked excited and pleased.

Inwardly, Nova Inara was smiling eerily. The time had come. "Yes, thanks to you, human boy. Allow me to repay your kindness." Nova Inara stood up and walked towards Jake before she flung her hand out and stabbed Jake's chest with it. _How ironic that this foolish human boy has saved the existence of the very being who seeks to destroy humanity. All of the humans on this pathetic mudball of a planet shall be robotisized except for perhaps Jake Lonestar._

Jake screamed out in pain and horror, Nova Inara had just stabbed his chest with her hand and there should have been blood and pain but...there wasn't. Jake suddenly shut his mouth and stopped screaming. "What? What are you doing to me?" Jake looked down at the hand inside of his chest feeling sick.

"Rewarding you, human boy. By giving you strength." Nova Inara informed him in her synthesized voice. _I will not only inject his body with the neo-nanomachines but I will also hide the D. Spark inside of his body for safe keeping._

"But I already told you that I don't want strength." Jake argued.

"You need strength to become a cowboy, do you not?" Nova Inara reminded him. "I'm rewarding you with strength, human boy. Be grateful." Nova Inara declared and began to inject the neo-nanomachines into Jake's body.

Jake felt something being injected into his body, and it felt like liquid fire, it hurt so damned much. He let out a bloodcurdling scream. He was so confused. Why did Nova Inara suddenly attack him? Why did she hurt him? Weren't they friends? Wasn't she his very first friend? The first person to worry about him? Besides Bonnie? (But he didn't need Bonnie anymore, right?) To help him or give a shit about Jake Lonestar? _Can a robot and a human being be friends?_ Jake wondered as he fell into unconsciousness.

The last thing that Jake remembered hearing was Nova Inara's monotone voice slithering over him like a deadly snake. "I'll also reward you by taking care of your enemies. Be grateful, human boy."

Several hours later, Jake woke up with a start and remembered what Nova Inara had last told him. He had a sinking feeling in his gut at her ominous words. _Take care of my enemies?_ Jake wondered. _She can't possibly mean..._ Jake's heart stopped in his chest as he thought of something. He had a really bad feeling about this.

Jake half ran, half stumbled, out of the cave and continued through the woods as fast as he could, heading towards the river. His shoelace broke causing him to trip and land smack on his face. Even though his nose was probably broken Jake pushed himself up off the ground and continued running as fast as he could. He ran wildly through the forest, stumbling over rocks and ignored the tree branches that tried to catch him as he passed and left deep scratches on his arms and legs. He was running so frantically that he didn't notice the log that was in his path before it was too late. Jake's foot hit the log and he flew forward over it and right smack into a tree trunk.

Normally, this would have hurt like hell. Heck, he probably should have died from the impact, but the tree broke in half instead. Jake looked down at the tree confusedly. _Weird._ But Jake didn't have time to figure out what the hell had just happened and continued his way to the river as fast as his short legs could carry him. He knew that he had to stop Nova Inara from whatever it was she had decided to do.

Unfortunately, Jake arrived at the riverbank too late. Nova Inara's _kimono_ sleeves, which had been transformed into two metal scythes, were already covered in blood by the time Jake reached the riverbank panting for breath. The bodies of Stuart, Joe and Jimmy were lying at Nova Inara's feet. The broken, bloody, and unmoving bodies of Jake's so-called enemies. Three ten-year-old boys.

Nova Inara turned around slowly, saw Jake, and he had to rub his eyes when he could have sworn he saw a smile stretch across her faceless visage. Blood and guts covered her scythes and bright red blood had also splattered across her perfect white face.

Jake felt bile rise up in his throat. "NOOO! What have you done?! You... _killed_ them! You monster!"

Nova Inara's inward smile quickly left her, and she became thoughtful. "You sound displeased, human boy. But that can't be right. These are your enemies and I disposed of them for you. They'll never pick on you again, Jake. Doesn't that make you _happy_?" Her synthesized voice held a note of hope in it.

Jake was trembling with his hands clenched at his sides into fists, "No! What are you? How could you possibly think that! Sure...they made my life a living hell but...I never wished them _dead_. No one has the right to take the life of another human being: that's what my mother told me! Life is a precious gift from God...you stole their lives! Their souls! I... _hate_ you!" Jake collapsed to the ground and began to throw up as Nova Inara approached his convulsing body.

Nova Inara looked down at Jake as he dry-heaved. She felt confused. "I do not understand. This does not compute. His behavior makes no sense. It's illogical. According to my research and data of Earth and its inhabitants...he is _not_ acting as most statistically would given his current situation. He is...unusual. I do not...I cannot understand him. Jake Lonestar does not compute. Jake Lonestar is an anomaly." Nova Inara decided in her monotone voice. She wondered if she could somehow make her face look sad. She thought that she felt sad seeing Jake suffer like that. He was injured too. But she was sure the neo-nanomachines would heal him quickly enough. Still, she found herself reaching her _kimono_ sleeve out towards him unconsciously.

But Jake thought Nova Inara was going to kill him and freaked out accordingly. "No! Stay away! You monster! I hate you!" Jake shrieked in horror and fear.

Nova Inara inwardly blinked at Jake in confusion. "No, I'm not-" She continued to reach her bloody sleeve out towards the human boy.

"Nova Inara!" Came Stellar's commanding voice. "Get away from that boy!" Stellar yelled and shot her blaster at Nova Inara without further warning. Nova Inara dodged the streaks of red light that whizzed through the air and felt inwardly pleased as she turned to face the Galaxy Police Officer once and for all.

"Goodbye Stellar." Nova Inara said as she raised her scythe and it shot out, extending through the air, a great distance, ten feet at least, and stabbed Stellar through the heart with deadly precision. Jake watched as the metal scythe pierced Stellar's body and exited out her back. Blood gushed and spurted through the air. Jake cringed. This was like a nightmare. No, this was worst than any nightmare he had ever had before. Worse than any horror film his brave sister Bonnie had made him watch in secret in his room late at night. The fully healed Nova Inara was invincible.

Jake didn't even realize that he was screaming as he watched Stellar being killed and his body began to tremble violently as it began to rain blood. The beautiful Galaxy Police Officer had just been killed right before his eyes and suddenly everything was real. This wasn't a movie or a comic book. This was reality. Once again Jake could have sworn he could see a smile stretch across Nova Inara's face but maybe he was just hallucinating. "I liked you better when you were faceless." Jake said.

Nova Inara ignored Jake as she allowed her scythe's temperature to rise so that the Galaxy Police Officer Stellar was instantly incinerated. She didn't want to leave any evidence behind in case Stellar's fellow Galaxy Police Officers somehow managed to track Nova Inara to Earth. "Since both our ships crash landed on this pathetic little planet and are now unable to fly I suppose I have no choice but to remain on Earth. There are too many living creatures here however. I suppose I will have to make plans in order to robotisize the inhabitants here. Therefore, I must travel to the appropriate linchpin city. My research has revealed that New York City is that city. If I carry out my plans there then the whole world will become robotisized." Nova Inara reached out and stroked Jake's head with her _kimono_ sleeve. "As a parting gift I promise not to put my real plans for this planet into action for another eight years. At that time you shall be eighteen-years-old, Jake Lonestar. You'll legally be an adult by most Earthling standards. When you are an adult we shall meet again. I will be curious to see if you've managed to gain control over the neo-nanomachines and become a cowboy, or not. Oh, and make sure to guard _it_ well."

Jake looked up dazedly at Nova Inara from his place on the ground where he had finally finished throwing up. Half of what Nova Inara had said didn't make any sense to him. "I...wait..." Jake tried to speak to the deadly android but passed out from the stress and shock his mind and body had just gone through.

A few hours later, Jake was discovered unconscious on the riverbank incriminatingly surrounded by the dead bodies of Stuart, Joe and Jimmy. He was taken to the Amarillo Police Station and asked about what happened. Jake naively told the cops everything - about the Galaxy Police Officer Stellar and about the robot Nova Inara. The cops thought Jake had gone crazy and he was immediately admitted to the Austin State Hospital, which was formerly known as the State Lunatic Asylum.

For the next several months, Jake was a patient at the Austin State Hospital. During Jake's stay at the psychiatric hospital any time Jake touched electrical devices of any kind they would end up short-circuiting and explode. Because Jake kept on destroying expensive medical devices and would occasionally accidentally free the other mental patients from their rooms, Jake was swiftly allowed to return to the Lonestar Ranch back in Amarillo with a clean bill of health.

Jake had turned eleven during his stay at the psychiatric hospital and was eleven-years-old when he returned to the Lonestar Ranch. At first, Jessie, James and Bonnie seemed happy to have Jake back until they realized that Jake truly had changed. He wasn't the son or brother they had known. Jake only had to touch a toaster and it would explode. His family didn't believe the story about Galaxy Police Officers or alien robots either. But Bonnie knew the truth and the fact that she avoided him like the plague hurt Jake.

Jake put a hand to his chest and wondered for the hundredth time what Nova Inara had actually done to him. His chest felt heavy. Nova Inara had done something strange to him. He had been changed. He was different. He was no longer physically weak and started to accidentally break stuff. If his father asked him to help mend a broken fence...the fence would end up being completely demolished. If he was asked to wash dishes by his mother he'd break the plates no matter how gentle he tried to be. When asked to cook he accidentally bent the metal pans. And once when he was mucking out the stalls he somehow formed a gigantic crater in one of the stalls. His mere touch now caused destruction and chaos in its wake. He couldn't control his newfound strength. And he had no one to turn to for help. Bonnie continued to ignore him and act as if he didn't exist.

His parents refused to see these strange occurrences as evidence that Jake had been telling the truth about aliens and robots. They ignored his strange feats of strength and explained it away as Jake going through some kind of rebellious stage. They decided that he was just pulling crazy pranks on purpose and that Jake's bouts of unexplainable strength were just...hormones. They wouldn't believe that their son had somehow come to possess superhuman abilities. That just wouldn't make any sense in their normal, cookie-cutter lives.

The Lonestars strove to be a happy, traditional, American family and anything that contradicted with this ideal was ignored.

Jake was harshly told by his parents to do nothing, absolutely nothing. And so he did nothing. All the electrical appliances in the house were thrown out. And his parents and sister Bonnie were forced to live a life without electricity because of him. He had become a burden.

One day, he noticed that his sister Bonnie had thrown out all of her CDs of her favorite pop singer: Galaxy Girl. He wondered if it was because she was worried about having a CD player in her room that Jake would affect or because of Galaxy Girl's name...Jake had always enjoyed secretly listening to Galaxy Girl sing from behind his sister's door. Jake tossed the CD back into the wastebasket. He had even taken this simple pleasure away from his sister. It was no wonder she avoided him.

Jake recognized the look his parents were giving him and his heart sank. They were afraid of him. His own family was actually afraid of him. They didn't understand him anymore and so were afraid. Jake's life had changed dramatically and he found himself alone a lot more especially since he had lost his best friend, Bonnie. Bonnie distancing herself from him hurt the most. He only hoped she hated him for screwing up her normal life rather than the alternative which was fearing him like his parents. He spent much more time with the horses and they became his only friends. The horses were very good listening and Jake would feed them carrots as he poured his heart out of all its woes.

On one particularly sad day when his parents had forgotten his twelfth birthday, Jake had headed to the stables to chill out with the horses. He felt so sad and alone that he decided he needed a hug. And even if a hug from a horse was all he could get Jake decided that it would be enough.

Jake's favorite horse was a young mare named Patch. Patch was a sweet horse. And always let out a happy little puff of air when she saw Jake as if saying hello. Jake walked up to Patch and stared sadly into the horse's face. "I can't believe they actually forgot my birthday. But I guess...why would they want to celebrate the day I came into existence? I wonder when your birthday is Patch? I wish you could tell me because then I would celebrate it with you...you're such a good girl." Jake said before wrapping his arms around Patch's neck and burying his face in her neck as he felt hot tears stream down his face.

Jake unconsciously tightened his hold upon Patch's neck until a strange _crack_ rang through the air. Jake quickly pulled away from Patch and watched in horror as the horse fell lifelessly to the stable floor in front of him.

Jake backed away from the unmoving horse, eyes wide. _No...this can't be! This isn't possible!_

Jake had accidentally snapped Patch's neck.

He had killed Patch. His only friend. With his bare hands.

Now he was all alone again. His touch seemed to destroy anything it touched. For several hours, Jake contemplated whether or not he should just cut his own hands off. In the end he was too much of a coward and afraid of the pain he would feel to do it.

END OF FLASHBACK.

Five years later...Jake was seventeen-years-old now, a jaded, extremely lazy teenager. Jake had grown up all those years mostly alone, avoided, feared, without electricity, without love, without hugs or kisses and without birthday parties or presents. He had lived those five years trying to do absolutely nothing so that he wouldn't hurt anyone or anything. His days mostly consisted of fishing, taking naps, cloud gazing, or star gazing at night. Jake still loved comic books but now that he was seventeen he had also gotten his hands on some dirty magazines and issues of _Playboy_ to add to his collection.

What? He was a healthy seventeen-year-old boy with natural _urges_. Naw, Jake Lonestar had grown up to be a horny pervert. He had plenty of _Playboy_ magazines that he used when he felt like passing the time by just jerking off. Conveniently, masturbating counted as 'doing nothing' in Jake's book.

However, one night, when Jake had been half-asleep laying out in the cornfields and stargazing with one hand down his pants as he jerked off when he saw a bright light in the sky suddenly. An unusual looking, disc-shaped, blue-tinged light. His eyes widened when he realized it must be a flying saucer. "An a-a-alien s-s-spaceship!" Jake burst out, stuttering. He then noticed that the ship seemed to be heading towards the Lonestar Ranch. _Shit!_ _Ma! Pa! Lil Sis!_ Jake thought frantically as he ran through the cornfields to the house just in time to see his mother, father, and sister looking up at the flying saucer that was hovering directly above them with an awed look on all their faces. They were just standing there, frozen, eyes wide, as they stared up at the alien spacecraft.

Jake frantically called out to them. "Ma! Pa! Sis! Get away from there! That's an alien spaceship!"

James turned his head and met Jake's eyes, an apologetic look on his face. "You weren't lying...I'm sorry son. I should have believed you, I-"

However, a beam of blue light came down from the flying saucer and engulfed Jake's family in a blue light. Jake gawked at the sight before him, horrified. "NO!"

The beam of light grew brighter, and the light turned silver in color as his family was captured and teleported aboard the vessel.

"NOOO!" Jake ran to stand directly under the flying saucer and looked up, trembling, and afraid. "Hey! What about me?! Take me too! Don't leave me behind!" Jake yelled up at the spaceship.

The teleportation beam descended once more as if having heard Jake's plea and engulfed Jake. The beam glowed brightly, turning silver, and Jake could feel himself being lifted off the ground.

However, the beam began to react with Jake's neo-nanomachines and the teleportation device that was onboard the flying saucer short-circuited. The sound of an explosion rocking the ship above him was heard and the beam of light that had had Jake trapped suddenly disappeared.

The ship's hull was now smoking and the flying saucer decided to depart quickly - basically fleeing from Jake and his unusual abilities. Jake gawked after the flying saucer in disbelief. "Hey! Get back here you cowards and abduct me too! Shit!" Jake ran after the ship until his legs gave out beneath him. He desperately reached his hand out in the direction of the departing flying saucer. _Dammit!_ He thought before he passed out.

Jake woke up a few hours later to find himself in a cell at the local Amarillo Police Station. His family had mysteriously disappeared but he knew better than to tell the cops the _truth_ like the last time and so this time around just kept his mouth stubbornly shut when they took him to a small, claustrophobic room and began to interrogate him. This time maybe they'd think he had developed some kind of speech impediment. But regardless, he had decided to do and say absolutely _nothing_. Because of his stubbornness Jake remained in jail for several days having been accused this time of mass murdering his own family though there was no real evidence. Unfortunately, Jake had no other family that he knew of and so didn't expect anyone to come to get him out of jail or pay his bail. He expected to stay in jail indefinitely and thought maybe that was for the best since there were no electrical devices in his cell and locked away like he was he couldn't hurt anyone.

However, several days later, at the Amarillo Police Station Jake happened to be sitting on the bunk in his cell (wondering if he could get away with jerking off and wondering if anyone would notice) and thinking about the irony that he could simply bend the cell bars to pieces and escape if he really wanted to. These cops didn't realize how dangerous he actually was, or maybe they did and that's why he was locked up. Jake frowned in thought. He was just about to slip his hand inside his pants when one of the cops approached Jake's cell with a sneer on his face. "Yer bail has been made, kid." The man growled as he fished out his key ring and began to unlock Jake's cell.

Jake quickly pulled his hand away from the top of his pants and gave the cop a look of disbelief. "Huh? By who?" Had his parents returned? Hope swelled in his chest.

"Yer aunt. She flew down here all the way from New York City. So ye'd better be grateful. She's also going to be yer legal guardian until ye turn eighteen now. Everything has already been arranged." The cop drawled in a thick southern accent and in a bored tone.

Jake's brow furrowed. "Aunt?" _I didn't even know I had an aunt._ Jake reluctantly left the cell. Prison was a good place for someone like Jake to be because he couldn't hurt anyone or cause anyone any trouble while behind bars. Jake was almost sad to go. Except he hadn't jerked off for several days now and was feeling extremely horny.

The cop escorted Jake to the front desk where Jake spotted a stylish, city slicker woman dressed in a Prada suit consisting of a black jacket, and knee length skirt. She was carrying a designer GUCCI shoulder bag and had on a pair of three-inch high stilettos. It would be impossible to walk around the sidewalks here in shoes like that. She definitely looked out of place in the middle of the Amarillo Police Station where a bunch of hicks were whistling at her and trying to get her attention.

She turned around quickly, her long blonde ponytail whipping behind her, and spotted Jake. Jake thought that this woman was definitely attractive as he caught sight of her blue eyes that sparkled behind oval-shaped glasses giving her an intellectual look. She was obviously middle-aged since she was supposed to be his aunt but she didn't have a single wrinkle on her face. Jake looked down at her chest next and noticed she had large breasts.

_Big boobs._ _Sweet._ Jake mentally nodded to himself. He would definitely jerk off to her mental image later...wait. Jake stopped himself. He couldn't exactly jerk off to the mental image of his _aunt_ now could he? Since she was supposed to be related. _Kill joy._ Jake shook his head frantically to get such perverted thoughts out of his head.

His aunt eyed Jake curiously from head-to-toe as soon as she caught sight of him. "So this is my nephew, Jake...?!" Jake had grown much taller over the years and now stood at six foot, three inches. He was also incredibly muscular though Jake didn't know why since he didn't work out or anything. He wore his brown hair in a shaggy haircut and his aunt noticed his light brown eyes next. Jake hadn't been able to shave for the past several days and so there was a bit of stubble on his chin. Jake was wearing a pair of faded, torn jeans, a Batman t-shirt, and a pair of VANS on his feet. His aunt's eyes turned into two large hearts and she practically began to drool as she looked her handsome nephew over. "You're a real looker...come here and give your auntie a hug!" She spread her arms wide and gave Jake an expectant look.

"Er..." Jake stayed put. He definitely wanted to go and hug his busty aunt, and cop a feel of her large breasts while he was at it, but...he didn't want to hurt her with his unusual strength and so didn't move an inch. _Damn, I wish I could hug my hot aunt...and touch her breasts! This sucks!_

His aunt pouted before reaching out unexpectedly and grabbing Jake before slamming his head into her chest. "Don't be shy! We're family after all!" Here was a woman who always got what she wanted.

"Ack!" Jake went limp in her grasp since he didn't want to hurt her and realized his face was totally in her boobs. Jake swallowed thickly and felt a trickle of blood form under his nose. His aunt had nice boobs. A blush spread across Jake's face. This position was beginning to get a bit uncomfortable for him.

His aunt didn't seem to notice Jake's discomfort, however, as she kept both her hands on Jake's head and forcibly nuzzled his head between her breasts for much longer than was necessary or appropriate. She even grabbed his ass.

Jake blinked. "Isn't this sexual harassment, Aunt?"

His aunt pulled back and gave Jake an incredulous look. "Heavens no. We're family...this is how family shows _affection_. Haven't you ever been hugged before? Anyways, my name's Dr. Valery Dax but you can call me Auntie Val." She stuck her hand out for Jake to take.

Jake reluctantly took her hand, as lightly and gently as possible, and as a result his hand was practically a dead fish in hers.

Dr. Valery gave Jake a quizzical look before squeezing his hand in a vice grip. "Your hand is like a cold dead fish! What a wimpy handshake! _This_ is a hand shake!"

"Ah!" Jake cringed and tried to pull his hand away. "Ow! What the hell, Aunt Val!"

Dr. Valery let Jake's hand go and chuckled. "Wimp!" Dr. Valery then noticed that Jake's eyes had unconsciously lowered to stare at her large breasts. "Hey, my eyes are up here, nephew." She motioned with her fingers making a V-shape at her eyes.

"Ack, sorry I couldn't help it. My eyes were trapped in the gravitational field of your breasts!" Jake burst out and blushed at what he had just said. _Stupid stupid stupid!_

But Dr. Valery just burst out laughing. "Come on Mr. Comedian - we're late!" She turned on her stiletto heel and started off leaving Jake no choice but to chase after her.

"Late? For what?" Jake called after her as they exited the Amarillo Police Station. Jake's eyes bulged when he caught sight of the small private jet that was in the middle of the dusty street. Jake noticed that on the side of the plane in black letters was: _NeoTech Corp_ _._

"The NeoTech Corporation?" Jake recalled that this company made video games that he used to play on his Xbox before he had to stop playing them. It really sucked not to be able to touch electronic equipment. Jake raked his brain for anything else he had heard over the years about the NeoTech Corporation. He remembered one of his classmates at school telling him that seven years ago the NeoTech Corporation began to make other things besides just video games. They had begun to make personal computers that were shaped like human beings. Basically, androids and robots that served as computers too. They could surf the Internet and you could check your mail using them. You could even make phone calls using them.

The NeoTech Corporation also had a line of advanced sex toys and Sex Droids. Or so Jake had heard. At Amarillo High School it was every teenaged boy's dream to get his hands on a beautiful, loyal Sex Droid apparently. Jake had heard his classmates all talking about it though he hadn't really been a participant in the conversations. His classmates tended to avoid him like the plague, as if they could just sense that he was different and dangerous.

It all sounded like something crazy, like out of a sci-fi movie but...after having met Nova Inara, Jake wasn't a skeptic. He couldn't help but notice that it was an awfully big coincidence that the NeoTech Corporation started making androids and robots around the same time Nova Inara told Jake she was going to New York City in order to prepare for whatever plans she had for humanity.

The NeoTech Corporation's sudden advancement in technology and in the knowledge of how to make robots and Nova Inara's sudden appearance and disappearance from Texas was no coincidence. Of this Jake was sure.

Just who was his Aunt Val? Really?

Jake would die to get his hands on one of those Sex Droids he had heard about - except he knew that as soon as he touched one it would probably short-circuit and explode. The personal android computers as well as the Sex Droids were also incredibly expensive. Jake was sure that he'd never get to see one of them in his lifetime.

All this was flying through Jake's head as he read the words 'NeoTech Corp' on the private jet and his surprise showed on his face. "No way. What is one of the NeoTech Corporation's private jets doing here in Texas?"

Some of the NeoTech Corporations androids were supposedly so human looking that one wouldn't be able to tell the difference if it wasn't for the antenna that was on the top of every android's head and that had a small metal ball on the end of it making it look like a radio antenna. A human being could always identify a robot or android because of that antenna.

Robots were the cheapest personal computers one could buy since they were metal, humanoid, automatons and were easy to recognize as being just robots. The personal computer androids were a living-tissue model that could have passed for human if it wasn't for the single radio antenna on the top of the android's head that both robots and androids were required to have by law so that humans could easily recognize a robot from a human. It was illegal to cover a robot or android's antenna with a hat or other hair accessory.

A smirk formed on Dr. Valery's face as she watched Jake gawking at the jet. "I'm CEO of the NeoTech Corporation. Perhaps you've heard of us? Anyways, I have an important shareholder's meeting and so I need to get back to New York A.S.A.P. I'm a busy, independent woman after all!"

"A private jet plane. Dude, that is so cool." Dr. Valery grabbed Jake by the back of his _Batman_ t-shirt and dragged him to the plane. He went limp in her grasp so as not to hurt her. _CRAPPPP! I've been captured!_ Jake was taken aboard the plane and it took off before he really registered what was happening.

"Where are we going?" Jake looked out of the window and gulped as the plane began to move forward. He had never been on a plane before and was feeling nervous, okay, scratch that, he was scared out of his mind. Jake swallowed and clenched his hands. His palms were beginning to sweat.

"New York City." Dr. Valery declared happily from her seat next to Jake and turned her head to see that Jake was turning white next to her. "You can hold my hand if you want." Dr. Valery offered as she reached her hand out towards Jake.

Jake looked longingly at Dr. Valery's hand but resisted the temptation. _Dang, I wish I could hold her hand...but I'd definitely end up breaking it._ Jake settled for gripping his chair arms and smashing them to bits. He turned to look at his aunt, horrified, and thought that Dr. Valery would be mad at him but he was surprised when she just laughed loudly.

"Wow! You're quite the strong, growing boy aren't you?" Dr. Valery teased good-naturedly.

Jake gave Dr. Valery a sheepish look before keeping his hands nervously folded in his lap. He didn't want to risk breaking the plane while they were flying thousands of feet up in the air. It took three hours and thirty-five minutes to arrive in New York. Jake had fun looking out the window and admiring the city below. He even got to see a quick glimpse of the Statue of Liberty before the plane passed the city and headed to a more suburban area. They flew over a large stretch of forested land where Jake caught sight of a grandiose mansion. The plan flew past the mansion however and headed towards what Jake saw looked like a private landing strip.

"We're going there? To that mansion, I mean?" Jake asked.

"Yes." Dr. Valery nodded. "That mansion is my house. It's also the Headquarters of...well, there will be plenty of time to tell you about that later. Soon it will be your home too, Jake. _Mi casa es su casa_."

_Home?_ Jake thought and felt a pang in his chest as he thought back to his real home - the Lonestar Ranch and his family...his _missing_ family.

The pilot skillfully landed the jet plane on the private landing strip where a black and silver Mercedes was parked waiting to take them to the mansion. Jake and Dr. Valery got out of the jet plane and Jake watched as a butler got out of the driver's side of the Mercedes to open the passenger doors for them. Jake noticed that the butler was young. He had always expected a butler to be old like Alfred from _Batman_. The butler had pale skin, Caucasian features, gray eyes, short black hair and a cap on his head. Jake also felt this cold aura about him. This coldness unnerved Jake. It made him feel like this butler could be capable of anything like stepping on a puppy without flinching. Jake shivered as his cold gray eyes stared back at him for a moment before Jake quickly got into the Mercedes.

_This is crazy. This is like being in some kind of movie._ Jake thought to himself. _And how did my crazy aunt manage to get this amount of land in the suburbs of New York City!_

Jake looked out the car window as the butler drove them silently to the mansion. Jake watched as they passed through a nice esplanade with tall oak trees on either side. Soon they were driving up a pebbled driveway that lay directly in front of the mansion. As soon as they arrived the butler quickly got out of the car to open the car doors for Jake and Dr. Valery.

"Er, thanks." Jake muttered as he quickly followed his aunt up the stairs that led to the front door of the mansion.

"You're welcome." The man said softly in a voice that Dr. Valery probably didn't hear.

Dr. Valery laughed. "There's no need to thank him. He's an android. His antenna is hidden under his hat."

"He's an android?!" Jake looked back at the butler who removed his hat to show Jake that he indeed had a metal radio antenna on the top of his head. The android then put his hat back on and nodded once to Jake while a small smile played on the butler's lips. It almost looked like the butler had been amused by Jake's act of kindness. But...if he was an android could he feel such a thing as amusement?

"His name is Zee." Dr. Valery informed him offhandedly. "If you need anything just ask him."

Jake's head was already beginning to hurt and he hadn't even made it to the front door of the mansion yet. Jake quickly made his way up the stairs and stood next to his aunt. Dr. Valery reached out and grabbed the elaborate doorknocker before knocking twice. Jake eyed the doorknocker and noticed that it was in the shape of a beautiful woman.

"Welcome home, Dr. Valery." A synthesized voice rang through the air and Jake's eyes bulged when he saw that the doorknocker's lips had moved!

The door suddenly opened on its own. Unfazed, Dr. Valery only smiled and continued her way inside of the mansion. Jake stumbled after her and nearly ran into Dr. Valery's back as she suddenly came to a stop. Jake peeked over her shoulder to see what had made her stop and saw that a line of maids and butlers had gathered to greet Dr. Valery.

"Welcome home, Dr. Valery." The maids and butlers all greeted simultaneously before bowing at the same time to Dr. Valery. "Welcome home, Jake Lonestar."

"Er, howdy ladies." Jake tipped his hat at the cute maids and because he was so nervous and surprised to have been greeted Jake burst out with the first thing that came to mind. "I've been told I have the sexual prowess of a Romulan." Jake blushed at the cheesy pickup line that had just come out of his mouth and leaned over to whisper something into his aunt's ear. "Are these people...androids too?"

A mischievous twinkle formed in Dr. Valery's eye. "Who knows?"

Jake looked at the maids and butlers again and noticed that their uniforms either came with a butler's hat or maid cap so it was impossible to tell if all of these servants were human or not. The maids whether or not they were human or androids though were incredibly hot. They were all wearing black and white frilly and somewhat revealing maid outfits. Jake was sure that this was not normal for high society. Especially when the butlers happened to be shirtless for no apparent reason and wore nothing but, long black pants and bow ties. Yep, there was definitely something very strange about this crazy mansion and he knew that his aunt was responsible for it.

"We've arrived just in time for dinner. I'm starved!" Dr. Valery said as she made her way to the dinning room with Jake still tagging along behind like a puppy-dog.

"I thought you said you had a meeting to go to?" Jake asked.

Dr. Valery ignored him and approached the door to the dinning room clapping her hands together. "Open sesame." The door immediately opened of its own accord and Dr. Valery waltzed inside. Jake stared at the door curiously as he made his way into the dinning room and would have thought that it was magic if it weren't for the fact that the CEO of the NeoTech Corporation was supposedly some kind of technological genius.

Well, a _perverted_ technological genius then. Perhaps, being perverted ran in his family? Dr. Valery plopped herself down at the head of the dinning room table and motioned for Jake to sit next to her. He complied and Dr. Valery clapped her hands again. From an adjoining door several servants emerged carrying plates of steaming food, and a bottle of wine made their way over to Dr. Valery and Jake, and set the plates before them and poured the wine into thin-stemmed glasses.

Jake looked down at the delicious smelling plate of food that had been set down before him and openly drooled. Quail stuffed with fresh figs and _prosciutto_ , served with creamy _au gratin_ potatoes and green beans. It looked like Dr. Valery was into French cuisine.

"Well, eat up, don't be shy, nephew." Dr. Valery said as she began to dig into her own meal.

Jake nodded and using the silverware as gently as possible began to eat his meal. The food was absolutely heavenly. _I could get used to this._ Jake thought to himself. But then a sinking feeling settled in his stomach. Why had Dr. Valery really brought him there? He wondered. This was all just too good to be true. And things that were too good to be true usually were.

Jake decided to speak up about something that had been bothering him and he cleared his throat to get his aunt's attention. "Hey...about the damage I did to the plane. I'm sorry..." Jake trailed off nervously, with a hand behind his head.

Dr. Valery arched an eyebrow at Jake. "You're sorry? Well, it's not like you did that on purpose, correct?" Dr. Valery gave Jake a penetrating stare.

Jake looked up, met her gaze, and shook his head vigorously. "Huh? No way..." Jake let out a heavy sigh deciding he had better tell his aunt a little about himself in order to avoid future mishaps. "I should probably tell you this. I can't explain it but when I touch electrical appliances they suddenly act weird, wig out or explode. I know you probably won't believe me but...it's true." Jake grit his teeth. He wondered if his aunt would think he was insane.

"I believe you, Jake." Dr. Valery said with a warm, reassuring smile on her face.

This reaction surprised Jake and he blinked back at his aunt in confusion. "Y-y-you do?" No one had believed anything he said for the past seven years.

"Why, yes, of course..." Dr. Valery steepled her fingers in front of her on the dining room table and gave Jake an assessing look. "Now, tell me, do you know _why_ you are able to do this?"

Jake immediately thought about what had happened between him and Nova Inara. He remembered how Nova Inara had said she was going to reward Jake with 'strength' and how she had stabbed his chest with her hand and injected him with 'something'. He shuddered and placed a hand self-consciously over his chest. It had also felt like she had placed something inside of his chest, something heavy. "No..." Jake lied. He didn't want to end up in a psychiatric hospital again after all.

"Then...how about we find out. I happen to be a genius inventor, scientist, and a doctor, Jake. Not that I'm trying to brag or anything, but you're rather lucky to have me for an aunt. If you're unhappy with your current abilities perhaps I can discover a cure." Dr. Valery's eyes twinkled at the prospect of getting to examine Jake Lonestar.

Jake gave his aunt a surprised look and he seemed to notice that odd twinkle in her eye that made him swallow nervously. _Uh oh._

_This is going to be so much fun, but first._ Dr. Valery clapped her hands together after Jake finished his dinner and a couple of cute maids entered the dinning room bringing dessert. Dessert consisted of a bowl of strawberries and cream. Dr. Valery picked up one of the strawberries, dipped it into the cream and put it into her mouth and began to suck on the strawberry.

Jake's eyes widened when he realized his perverted aunt was trying to shamelessly flirt with him. Dr. Valery ran her tongue over the surface of the strawberry and Jake shuddered. Dr. Valery watched him intently with hooded eyes from behind her oval-shaped glasses. His jeans were beginning to feel a bit too tight. This was _so_ not good. Jake hadn't been able to jerk off in God knew how long and he was horny and vulnerable. He felt like he might cum just from watching Dr. Valery's sexy display. Jake gulped as he continued to watch his aunt sucking on the strawberry and watched as she twisted her tongue around the tip of the strawberry teasingly.

Then Dr. Valery took one of her feet out of her stilettos and began to play footsie with Jake under the table. She ran her foot up Jake's legs going closer and closer to Jake's crotch. She was just about to touch Jake's hard-on when Jake abruptly stood up from the table, his chair falling backwards to the floor.

"ACK! Just what do you think you're doing, crazy perverted aunt! I'm outta here." Jake decided as he turned to go.

Dr. Valery stood up from her spot at the table and casually walked after Jake as she reached into her cleavage to take something out. "Oh, you're not going anywhere, Jake." She said.

Then Jake felt a prick in his shoulder before the world went black.

### **Chapter 3:** **It's your friendly, neighborhood cowboy**

Jake had no idea what had happened, but when he came to he found himself strapped to an examination table. His clothes had mysteriously disappeared and he had been left in nothing but his _Superman_ boxers. He looked around realizing that he was in some kind of laboratory. It reminded him a lot of a mad scientist's laboratory from comic books since he recognized some of the various high-tech electronic equipment.

Jake spotted an impressive, towering Jacob's Ladder - a device that consisted of two wires rising up into the air and forming a V-shape. It was turned on so that sparking purple-colored electricity was flowing between the two metal wires continuously rising upwards and making a low humming sound.

Jake recognized a Tesla Coil next and flinched when an outburst of electrical discharge that looked like purple lighting went zooming directly over his head and he couldn't even move! His aunt was insane to have him this close to so many strange electrical devices.

Jake craned his head to see a massive super computer behind his aunt. He was almost positive it would be able to speak in a female synthesized voice. He also noticed piles of incomprehensible, metal, electrical devices, which looked like they had probably been Dr. Valery's failed experiments, or fault inventions. Jake shuddered thinking what could happen if he touched any of those items. Control panels and mysterious levers seemed to be everywhere. This was a place that he would have to make sure not to move in, maybe not even breath in, or else something catastrophic could occur.

Jake began to tremble on the examination table as his aunt Dr. Valery suddenly appeared at his side. He noticed that she was no longer wearing her posh Prada suit but was now dressed in an altered, sexier version of a doctor's lab coat.

"Oi! Hey! How the hell did I get here? Why don't I remember getting here? When was the scene change? Where are my clothes? This is sexual harassment, you know!" Jake groused, flushing. "And didn't you have a meeting?!"

Dr. Valery leaned over Jake while smiling down at him lustily and he saw that she had a rather large syringe held in her gloved hand. Jake eyed the sharp looking needle and gulped. "I injected you with a sedative in order to knock you out. It's a concoction I developed myself. It works really well on larger animals like elephants too. I've never used it on a human before, but it seems to work just as good."

"You WHAT?!" Jake burst out, turning red. His aunt was not only perverted, she was completely crazy. He had just been used as a guinea pig!

Dr. Valery pulled her rubber gloves on tighter and Jake noticed that there was a hungry gleam in her eyes as she leered at Jake's half-naked body. She ran her gloved hand over his muscular chest. "Such a fine specimen of a man...you're so muscular. Do you work out? You look so tough, strong and brave and yet you're a complete coward. What secrets does this body of yours hold, I wonder?" She tweaked one of Jake's nipples causing him to gasp in surprise.

"Oi! H-h-hey where do you think you're touching?!" Jake demanded nervously stuttering.

"Let's use my special full-body MRI scanning device to find out." Dr. Valery declared as a cat's paw smile formed on her face. She walked around behind Jake's examination table and began to wheel him in the direction of a strange, high-tech looking device. It was a cylindrical metal tube that was large enough that Jake would be able to be wheeled inside. On the outside of the metal tube Jake noticed strange symbols or glyphs.

"Special? How is it special?" Jake asked, beginning to sweat.

"Well, a normal MRI would merely show a 3D image of your body. It can reveal your body's internal structure...bones, muscles. But my MRI goes even further and can scan your body at a cellular level. It will be able to unlock any secrets that you body has, Jake. Any _technological_ secrets that you are perhaps keeping from me. I have used this device to scan cyborgs and androids before. It was fascinating really...what I discovered about the cyborgs..." Without revealing anything further Dr. Valery wheeled Jake inside of the device and closed the hatch effectively trapping Jake inside of the machine.

Dr. Valery walked over to a nearby table and picked up a pair of goggles, which she put on over her glasses. She then walked over to the MRI device and began pressing a few buttons on its control panel as she activated the machine. The machine began to hum and the glyphs on the outside of the machine illuminated with light.

"Oh, and feel free to scream." Dr. Valery said off-handedly. "This may hurt a little. I haven't quite worked out that little kink yet."

_Scream?_ _Hurt?_ Jake wondered as a blinding light flooded the interior of the MRI device. Jake shut his eyes against the light and then he felt a strange tingling sensation on his skin and then this sensation began to penetrate deeper until he felt tingles going up and down his legs, which felt like static electricity. This sensation began to grow until it became painful. Dr. Valery hadn't been joking when she said the procedure could possibly hurt. Jake began to feel like he was being shocked by electricity and cried out.

He saw stars as the pain became excruciating and promptly passed out. Jake Lonestar did not do well with pain. When he woke up he was still tied to the examination table but he was now outside of the MRI device. Or rather the MRI device no longer existed since it had exploded into several pieces and was now a smoking mass of metal debris. Jake frowned knowing that somehow his strange ability had caused the destruction of Dr. Valery's invention. _Whoops._

Jake was groggy, and his limbs felt stiff as he turned his head to the side to locate Dr. Valery. He spotted her standing in front of a giant computer screen where his MRIs were being displayed. Apparently, the machine had managed to take a few MRIs of Jake before exploding. Jake recognized the android butler Zee standing next to Dr. Valery and looking at the result too.

Jake saw a normal MRI of his internal bone structure and then saw another MRI that must have been of his cellular structure. The MRI was so intricate that Jake could see his entire circulatory system. Inside of the veins of his circulatory system he noticed that there appeared to be these strange floating particles. At first he thought they might be red blood cells, but then he noticed that they were a strange silver color. Jake shuddered. They were like bugs crawling around inside of his body. "What are those? What's inside of me?" Jake asked in a hoarse voice as his voice cracked.

"Nanomachines." Dr. Valery informed him simply, pushing her glasses up her nose. "How unexpected. These nanomachines are different from any I've ever seen. They don't appear to be controlling you either but awaiting your command. I've seen nanomachines inside of cyborgs before and it was...different. Since you have such a weak will it appears as though the nanomachines have been bullying you, Jake. What do you think about this, Zee?" Dr. Valery turned to face the android curiously.

"Those are not ordinary nanomachines at all but neo-nanomachines. You are indeed correct - the boy should be able to control them with his will. He should be put into intensive training immediately." Zee said in his droning voice.

"Neo-nanomachines huh?" Dr. Valery stroked her chin in thought. "How fascinating. If they were normal nanomachines they would be trying to make him follow _her_ will. Like the others."

Dr. Valery approached Jake, her high heels click-clacking against the cold linoleum floor. "Jake...how did these nanomachines get inside of you?" Dr. Valery reached out and touched Jake's chest.

Jake swallowed thickly and wondered if he should tell Dr. Valery about Nova Inara but...the last time he had told someone about Nova Inara he had been committed to a psychiatric hospital. He had even begun to doubt himself about whether it was all real or not. "Not telling..." Jake stubbornly declared, making an immature face.

"He's acting like a child." Zee stared down at Jake coldly. "I suggest we inject him with truth serum, Doctor."

Dr. Valery's blue eyes were sparkling with mischief, however, and there was a curious glint in her eye. "Oh? That's not a bad suggestion Zee. I'll consider it. For now though...leave us."

"Wait!" Jake gave Zee a panicked look. "Don't leave me alone with my scary peverted aunt. She'll eat me alive, Zee!"

Zee ignored Jake's plea and bowed towards Dr. Valery. "Yes, of course, Dr. Valery. As you _command_." Did Jake imagine the almost sneer in Zee's voice? The almost jealous look the android gave him as he turned to go without looking back as he left the laboratory.

Jake frowned wondering how he had managed to get on the android's bad side.

"Right before my machine exploded...it looked as though the machine had detected something else inside of you. The machine failed to recognize it or get a proper reading on it, but it was something that had a sort of energy signature. Perhaps a more complex kind of nanomachine is also inside of you. I can't say for sure...I'll rebuilt the machine and see if we can't find out what this other thing is that's inside of you." Dr. Valery informed Jake kindly. "Hmmm the MRI device told me a lot but...if I were to get a sample of your DNA it could possibly reveal much more to me about how you came to possess those strange nanomachines that are inside of your body and that are unlike anything I've ever seen until now...Jake..." She purred his name.

Jake swallowed, feeling nervous. He really didn't like the sound of that. "S-s-sample?"

"Yes, a sample..." Dr. Valery put her hand over Jake's boxers, right over his crotch, and his eyes widened. Dr. Valery grinned Cheshire-like before slipping her hand into his boxers and beginning to stroke his length.

"Hey!" Jake complained, his eyes going all swirly, and he tried to keep completely still, "Where do you think you're touching, perverted aunt! Stop that! Stop! I said stop! Arghhh!" Jake pulled at the metal restraints and broke them easily-!

Dr. Valery pouted and put a finger to her lips, "You actually broke those restraints. And they were supposed to be made out of an indestructible alloy that I invented recently too... _poo~_ Back to the 'ol drawing board I guess." Dr. Valery put her hands out in a helpless gesture.

Jake hopped off the examination table, and ran out of the laboratory in nothing but his boxers and with a raging hard-on. _That perverted, crazy woman...there's no way she can really be my aunt?! Right?_

Jake looked around the hallway frantically wondering if he could find some place to hide when he spotted the butler Zee. Jake let out a breath of relief. "Howdy, Zee...can you please tell me how I can get the hell out of here?"

Zee approached Jake with long strides and raised an eyebrow at the teenaged human. "You do not wish to stay here with Dr. Valery?" Zee seemed to give Jake an intense look for a moment before the android's lip quirked slightly in an almost smile. "I am under strict orders not to allow you to leave the mansion. Follow me. I will take you to your designated room." Zee turned around and started off down the hall not waiting for Jake's response.

"Hey, wait!" Jake called after the butler as he ran after him. Zee stopped in front of a door. He reached his index finger out and Jake watched curiously as a key emerged from the tip of Zee's index finger, which he used to unlock the door. Jake's eyes widened as he remembered that this stoic man was actually an android.

Zee led Jake inside the bedroom and motioned towards a tall, mahogany armoire. "You should find some suitable clothes to wear in there. I will return when it's time for dinner. Try and get some rest." That said, Zee turned around and began to make his way out of the bedroom.

Jake scratched the back of his neck nervously before he called out to the android butler. "Er, um, thanks!" Jake called out.

Zee turned around and gave Jake a surprised look. He nodded once before a slight smile came to the butler's lips. "No problem, Metaloid." The android's smile turned creepy and Jake shuddered.

_Metaloid?_ Jake wondered. _What the hell is that?_ But Zee left Jake's bedroom closing the door behind him without expanding upon what he had just said. Jake made his way over to the armoire and flung the wooden doors open to inspect what kind of clothes his aunt had provided him with. Jake's eye twitched when he caught sight of all the tight, revealing leather and snakeskin clothing. "Damn perverted aunt! There's nothing normal in here...gah!" Jake threw his arms into the air out of frustration.

Jake spent the next hour trying to find the most normal outfit in the armoire and ended up settling for a red snakeskin vest, a pair of black leather pants and a pair of combat boots. The sleeveless shirt showed off Jake's arm muscles and the leather pants were fitted and showed off his nice ass. Jake sighed. He knew the clothes must have been expensive, brand name clothing but they definitely weren't his style. Jake preferred more casual and less revealing clothes.

Jake made his way over to the king-sized, four-poster bed and collapsed on it staring up at the ceiling. His life seemed to have been turned upside down. Just like how a superhero's life gets turned upside down before he can become a hero. Jake frowned. But he was no superhero. He was a lazy, coward. Jake turned on his side as he couldn't help but think about his family. He wondered where they were and what they were doing at that exact moment. _Ma. Pa. Bonnie. Where are you? Why didn't that alien abduct me too? I'm so helpless. I can't do anything on my own...dammit...I'm so weak and pathetic...and what does this crazy woman really want from me? Can she get rid of these neo-nanomachines that are inside of my body? I also think my virginity is in danger at this house. Perverted aunt._ Jake fell into a troubled sleep and awoke when he felt a hand touch his arm lightly.

He blinked his eyes and focused on Zee's stern face. Jake sat up and stretched. "Time for dinner already?" Jake couldn't believe he had actually slept through an entire day! He must have been extremely jetlagged.

Zee nodded. "Yes, please follow me, Young Master Jake."

Jake nodded and hopped out of bed. Zee led Jake to the dinning room and he made his way inside. Jake spotted Dr. Valery seated at the head of the dinning room table while sipping a glass of red wine from a long-stemmed glass. She had changed clothes again and was now wearing a classy but low-cut black evening dress. Jake felt like doing a u-turn when he saw his perverted aunt but when he turned around he saw that Zee was blocking the doorway. _Damn android butler._ Jake sighed since he had no choice but to make his way over to the table.

Jake noticed that an elaborate dinner had already been laid out on the table and couldn't help but be impressed. In fact, the entire mansion was rather impressive. The dinning room table had to be made out of some kind of mahogany and the chairs looked like they were expensive antiques.

Jake decided to take his seat at the very opposite end of the table, as far away from his aunt as humanly possible. The maids who were nearby immediately began to move Jake's place setting and food to where he had seated without having to be asked.

Dr. Valery frowned at his action. " _Jake~_ " She began in a whiny voice, "You're so cold to _me~_ Didn't I say we're family? You're a healthy young man. I'm surprised you resisted that..." Dr. Valery gave Jake a thoughtful look. _It was the first time a young man actually rejected me._

There was the ghost of a smile on Zee's pale lips.

Jake blushed as he thought back to how Dr. Valery's hand had played up and down his length. Damn, that had felt good...and damn he had wanted to let her keep doing it but it would have been dangerous. He might have gotten overly aroused, and pounced his aunt for heaven's sake!

Instead, as soon as he had managed to find suitable clothes and he was sure that Zee wasn't going to return to his bedroom any time soon he had jerked off, vigorously, and almost tore his own dick off.

Jake's face was bright red as he remembered this. "You're supposed to be my _AUNT_!" He stressed the word.

"Hmm." Dr. Valery hummed thoughtfully. "I suppose you're right. It's a shame the others are all away on missions. I _so_ wanted you to meet them but I suppose you'll get to meet them soon enough."

"The others?" Jake raised a curious eyebrow.

"The nanomachines obviously give you an unusual amount of strength." Dr. Valery pushed her glasses up her nose in an intellectual gesture. "Strength that with the proper training you should be able to control. Your nanomachines seem to react to electrical appliances as well but for what reason I know not. Have there been any other unusual occurrences that you feel you were probably responsible for, Jake?"

Jake raised his fork and knife and began to cut into a piece of veal. "I sometimes randomly 'attract' metal objects. Like magnetism or something. This can be really scary when I'm in someone's kitchen...the kitchen knives suddenly go flying towards me!" Jake exclaimed before shoving a huge piece of veal into his mouth. His eyes widened at the taste of it. It was delicious! It had been lightly breaded and sautéed with lemon and butter. "This is delicious! Did an android cook this?" Jake was curious.

Dr. Valery raised an eyebrow at his question. "Yes...my chef Tekker is an android. I programmed him myself - he has the culinary skills and knowledge to cook almost any kind of cuisine: French, Italian, Greek. You name it. Most androids don't have the ability to taste but I specially made it so that he can actually taste food."

"Huh?" Jake said thoughtfully and a small frown formed on his face. "That's strange because...this food... _moved_ me. Ma always used to say that cooking was something that you could put your feeling into and that the people eating it could feel it. She said she always cooked us food full of her love for us and I...felt that. But this food...it's put me in a good mood. Why do you think that is?"

Dr. Valery blinked. So Jake was claiming that Tekker's food had moved his heart? Dr. Valery cut a tiny piece of veal and popped it into her mouth. She chewed slowly and swallowed. His cooking was definitely delicious but...did she feel anything? "Jake. Androids don't have feelings. They're machines." Dr. Valery felt she should explain. After all this was Jake's first encounter with androids having come to New York.

Jake thought about how he had made Nova Inara laugh saying 'Howdy' and touching their index fingers together in a parody of _ET_. "I dunno...how can you be so sure? Maybe you're wrong. Maybe androids do have feelings."

Dr. Valery shook her head. "I specifically program them not to have feelings, Jake. If any of my androids or robots were to have feelings then it would be an anomaly. Now, you were saying something about magnetism." Dr. Valery swirled her wine before taking another thoughtful sip. "How very interesting. I see... _she_ can do that too. Perhaps, there's some sort of connection."

Jake became distracted as his attention focused on the maids that were refilling Dr. Valery's and his own wine glass. The maids were definitely cute. A leer formed on his face as he eyed the cute, young maids, who had big boobs, and who were wearing racy, black and white maid costumes. The maid outfits weren't normal and had definitely been custom-made. The outfits had shorter skirts, lower cut blouses and more frills and lace than any maid outfit he had ever seen. Some of the maids were wearing high heels while other were wearing knee boots.

Jake gave Dr. Valery a suspicious look. This definitely had something to do with Dr. Valery's strange fetishes. Jake was almost positive. The outfits were very sexual and suggestive and those skirts left little to the imagination. Jake accidentally knocked his fork off the table and a maid instantly bent over to pick it up for him. Jake's eyes widened since he was completely able to see the maid's underwear. Jake's dick twitched.

The maid turned around and replaced Jake's fork with another clean one. "Would you like some more water, young master Jake?" The maid asked Jake in a bland sounding voice noticing Jake hadn't touched his wine glass yet.

Jake started. "Er, sure," Jake said awkwardly as he looked at the maids out of the corner of his eye. _Hot hot hot!_

Dr. Valery smiled a Cheshire cat smile, noticing Jake's interest in her Sex Droids even if he was trying to hide it. She suddenly clapped her hands together. "I think it's about time for dessert." _I think we need a little mood lighting._ Dr. Valery clapped her hands again and said: "Lights!" The lights immediately dimmed to romantic mood lighting.

From a side door two maids emerged, each carrying a plate with a chocolate covered banana on it. Jake's eye twitched. Yesterday night's dessert had been strawberries and whipped crème and now tonight Dr. Valery had chocolate covered bananas prepared for dessert. The maid set the chocolate covered banana in front of Jake and he felt like hitting his head on the table. _Damned perverted aunt...!_ He knew that she was testing him but how much could a man take before he cracked? And his aunt was hot!

Jake glared at Dr. Valery from across the table as she gave him an innocent look in return. " _Bon Appetit_." Dr. Valery said before picking up the chocolate banana and putting the tip of it inside of her mouth and sucking on it in a very suggestive manner. Jake gulped, and he could feel his pants tighten. Dr. Valery continued to look at Jake intensely as she began to lick the chocolate covered banana with her tongue in a teasing manner. The way she was licking that banana was a lot like how she might lick his...! Jake would not allow himself to finish that thought.

Jake felt a nosebleed coming and put a finger under his nose. _Crap! I want to screw my hot aunt. How sick is that? I have to get out of this crazy mansion and as far away from my aunt as possible before...gah!_ Jake gripped his head in his hands as he tried to get a hold of himself. This woman was his aunt. Jake reminded himself firmly. This was just _so_ wrong. So wrong, on _so_ many levels.

Jake looked down at his lap and realized in disbelief that he had gotten another hard-on. What the hell was wrong with him?! _Crap!_ Jake abruptly stood up from the table, flushed. "I gotta go. Thanks for dinner. Bye!" Jake hightailed it out of the dinning room and down the hallway in the direction of his bedroom with Dr. Valery's musical and amused sounding laugh trailing after him.

"Oh, Jake, dessert is far from over." Dr. Valery said to herself as she bit into the chocolate covered banana and licked her lips. "Mmm that's good."

***

Jake somehow managed to make it back to his room without incident and quickly shut the door behind him. Zee had given him his own room key and so he used this to lock the door as well as an extra preventive measure from perverted aunts sneaking into his room at night. He was panting for breath. _Whew! I made it!_ Jake looked down at his hard-on. He sighed. _I guess I got to take care of this._

Jake turned the lights off (using a pencil to push the light switch) and made his way over to his bed before reaching under the mattress and pulling out a _Playboy_ magazine that he had somehow managed to sneak along with him from Texas. He opened the magazine and stopped at the picture of a busty girl with platinum colored hair that reminded him of the famous pop singer Galaxy Girl. Jake held the magazine with one hand and fumbled with the top button of his pants with his other hand. He was just slipping his hand down his pants and into his boxers when-

"Young Master, do you need some assistance with that?" Came a dry female voice directly next to Jake.

"AHHH!" Jake yelled and turned to see that a maid was lying on the bed right next to him. How he hadn't noticed her presence before he had no idea. That in and of itself was incredibly creepy. It was like she was some kind of ghost.

But then Jake became captivated by her eyes...they were incredible. Deep pools of violet with long, dark lashes. Jake then began to inspect the rest of her face and discovered that it was a perfect oval-shape. Her skin was as pale as porcelain and her features were Asian. Jake wondered if she was perhaps from China or Japan. She had short black hair but it had an edgy hairstyle with long layers in front framing her face and shorter layers in back reminding him of _Aeon Flux_.

"Er, howdy, my name's Jake. What's your name little lady?" Jake was surprised he managed to get out.

The maid looked back at Jake and said simply: "I am to be your personal maid, Young Master Jake."

"Personal maid? Is that so?" Jake's eyes traveled down to look at the rest of her body next. He was disappointed that she wasn't bustier. She had a very petite and lithe build. She seemed almost childlike in appearance and couldn't have been taller than five feet. She was wearing a frilly black and white maid costume with a pair of black leather knee boots. Jake suddenly grinned at the maid. "Either those are your eyes, or you managed to make a contact lens made out of gemstones."

The maid did not respond to Jake's cheesy pickup line but merely quirked her head at Jake.

Jake had never seen a girl who looked quite like her before. Or at least that was living. She reminded him of his sister Bonnie's porcelain dolls that she sometimes pretended to play with. Though his tomboy sister usually ended up breaking those poor dolls. The image of a shattered head came to Jake's mind and he shuddered. Looking back at the doll-faced maid he decided that it was kind of creepy that she looked like a living doll.

There was something cold about her that reminded him of Nova Inara except this maid had a face and was obviously human. There was no smile on the girl's lips just a neutral expression. This unsettled Jake.

The maid looked down at Jake's crotch and he quickly tried to zip up his pants in a hasty move. Unfortunately, he accidentally caught his engorged dick in his zipper. "OW!" He turned, tears in his eyes, to glare at the maid. "What are you even doing in here anyways? I thought I locked the door...?" Jake turned to look at the door, which still appeared to be closed. That meant she must have already been inside when Jake entered but he was still surprised that he really hadn't noticed her at all. What was she a ninja?

"No room is off limits to the maids of this household." The maid informed Jake in a droning tone as if she were bored.

"Oh, I see..." _She must also have a key to my room. I guess that would make sense since she's my personal maid._

"Allow me to assist you with that, Young Master..." The maid began to crawl towards Jake on the bed.

"Eh? With what?" Jake questioned evasively as he tried to back away from the pushy maid.

"With that." The maid pointed directly at Jake's crotch.

Jake blushed. _She can't be serious...! Can she...?_ "Huh? Wait! No...!" Jake said as the maid roughly pushed Jake backwards with one hand and straddled him. She then began to strip Jake's clothes off of him. In seconds, Jake's snakeskin vest was flying across the room and he was shirtless. His well-defined, muscular chest was revealed to the maid who stared at him with a bland, unaffected expression on her face.

That cold look was a bit of a blow to Jake's male pride. Jake inwardly pouted. He knew it was because of some freaky nanomachine thing but his body was surprisingly buff.

The maid unzipped Jake's leather pants next and began to unceremoniously tug them off of his legs without further ado.

"Whoa...wait a sec...what are you doing?! Aren't you moving a little too fast?" It didn't take long until Jake was in nothing but his _Superman_ boxers. The maid grabbed Jake's boxers next and began to tug them off. Jake began to panic and grabbed the waistband of his boxers to keep them on...

Jake was torn. Okay, so he really wanted his boxers to come off and for this hot maid to do whatever she wanted to him but...he was afraid that he'd hurt her. If he was actually going to have sex he'd have to be on top of that petite little maid, thrusting inside of her and Jake was unsure he'd be able to hold himself back from thrusting into her hard. He shuddered. He'd break that poor girl in two for sure! Especially since she was so petite and he happened to be rather well endowed.

Jake gripped the sides of his head in indecision. _Oh man, oh man, I really want to let her keep going but...shit...I'll break this little maid for sure. Dammit...she's so fucking hot but...damn I can't do this!_

"No! Stop! Wait!" Jake objected and put his hands on the top of the maid's hands in order to stop her. And then-

_ZAP!_ An electric shock went from Jake into the maid who began to act strangely. Suddenly, her body began to spark and twitch and her head turned around in a three hundred and sixty degree circle. Jake was horrified until he realized what must have happened - no, she wasn't possessed - she was an android! And this was the result of Jake touching her. She had wigged out just like any other electrical device that Jake came into contact with.

His eyes widened. "She's an android, which means she's a machine. Shit! I probably broke her and she probably cost a fortune!"

He thought of Nova Inara suddenly and fear filled him battling with the worry he felt for the android girl he had just touched.

Jake was so shocked he was trembling and ran a shaky hand through his shaggy brown hair as he tried to compose himself. _What the hell was that? Did some kind of Sex Droid really just try to rape me? Damn, I think I broke her. That's too bad. She was kinda cute._ Jake pouted as a frown formed on his face.

However, the android maid suddenly rebooted and started back to life as a soft whirling sound filled the room.

"Uh oh..." Jake muttered as he looked down over the side of the bed to watch as the android girl rebooted.

The maid sat up blinked slowly and her eyes became an even deeper shade of violet than before. Her eyes appeared different to Jake now. It was almost as if her eyes held a spark that wasn't there before now. She stood up and dusted herself off and looked at Jake. She took in his half-naked state and then her eyes were drawn to his _Superman_ boxers where his raging hard-on was still evident. Her blank expression was immediately replaced by a disgusted sneer. She stalked towards Jake, balled her hand into a fist and punched Jake hard across the face with a _pow!_ "I'll sue you for sexual harassment, disgusting pervert!"

Jake was sent flying into the western wall of his room where he went crashing through the wall and into the adjoining room only to discover Dr. Valery sitting in a cushy chair while munching on some popcorn as she...?

Jake turned to see that Dr. Valery was able to see right into his room from behind a kind of holographic wall projection screen like in _Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol_. "Perverted Aunt! I can't believe this. You were watching as I...!"

The violent maid stalked towards Jake with purposeful steps entering the room through the hole Jake had created. Once she was standing right in front of Jake the maid suddenly took out a cigarette from her cleavage, lit it, and took a drag on it. She held it between her index and middle finger as she glared up at Jake and blew a ring of smoke into his face. "Pervert. I hope you rot in hell..." She growled.

Jake began to cough violently as he accidentally breathed in the smoke that had just been blown into his face.

Dr. Valery raised an eyebrow at the Sex Droid's new strange, badass behavior. "My oh my, what have you done to my obedient little Sex Droid, Jake? That's definitely _not_ the current response she's supposed to have for when she sees a man's arousal...how did you manage to give my Sex Droid that crappy personality?"

Jake blinked and looked down at the robot maid. "So she _is_ a Sex Droid? Hey, wait a sec - you sent a Sex Droid into my room so that you could watch us having sex?! You're sick! You're supposed to be my AUNT!" Jake balled up his hands at his sides.

"Perverted hag." The android maid drawled as she glared disapprovingly at Dr. Valery.

"Hag?!" Dr. Valery burst out, frowning at the Sex Droid. "That's not what I was doing, Jake. I was merely trying to get that sperm sample I wanted. Anyways, I don't understand how she could get like this all of a sudden. It's very strange. You see, I programmed Sex Droid 4567 myself and downloaded Mallanaga Vatsyayana's _Kama Sutra_ into her artificial brain, which means she is able to perform up to sixty-four types of sexual acts. She knows how to have sex in fifty-seven positions. And she also knows pleasure points on a man that when touched drive a man wild." Dr. Valery gave Sex Droid 4567 a befuddled look.

Jake blushed at the description of Sex Droid 4567's programming and capabilities and shook his head. "Were you even listening to me, Aunt Val?! This has got to stop!"

"Well, I guess I'll just have to dispose of this one since she's become...defective." Dr. Valery gave the robot a cold look.

Jake was suddenly thrown by Dr. Valery's words. "What? You're going to dispose of her? You mean, like throw her away?"

Dr. Valery hummed. "Well, first I'll have to erase her memory and then scrap her. I could recycle her for parts I guess or perhaps I'll just melt her down in an acid bath..." She tapped her chin in thought.

Jake looked horrified by this idea and turned to see how the android maid was reacting to this conversation.

The android maid was simply continuing to smoke on her cigarette while giving Dr. Valery a stone cold look. "I'd like to see you try, perverted hag."

Dr. Valery gave the android maid a shocked look and Jake's jaw dropped. "Sex Droid 4567?! How dare you threaten me! Androids aren't supposed to be able to do that...! You're definitely defective. Oh that's it - I'm calling the other maids to come and subdue you-"

"Are the other maids all Sex Droids too?" Jake asked curiously.

"Why yes, I don't know if you're aware of this but the NeoTech Corporation doesn't just develop video games anymore. I also invent elaborate, high-tech, sex toys. Originally, I helped to create the very first robots and fembots that replaced people's computers. The living-tissue maid and butler android series are just one of my many projects, but the maids and butlers of this mansion are all Sex Droids that have been programmed with special skill sets in order to give their masters the greatest sexual pleasures."

Jake looked horrified by this revelation. _Maid and butler series? Project? Oh my God...sex toys. Does that mean Zee is a Sex Droid?_ Jake rubbed his temples. _My perverted aunt invents high-tech sex toys and robots?_ _Someone just shoot me now since it seems like she wants me to be some kind of guinea pig to test her sex toys on!_ "But...it's my fault Sex Droid 4567, I mean, that the maid, went loopy. I...don't want her to be destroyed because of me."

"Oh?" Dr. Valery raised an eyebrow at him. "Why not? She's just a machine."

Jake looked at the badass maid. "She's an android and she's not really acting like a mere machine, now is she? Who am I to decide if _someone_ has the right to _live_ or not? I don't even understand how a robot is able to move, think or feel but...it's beyond my comprehension. They're - she \- is beyond me. I don't understand them. I can't really make a judgment on something I don't understand." Jake shook his head and put his hands out in a helpless gesture.

A frown formed on Dr. Valery's red lips. "They don't _feel_ Jake. They're androids. And they don't _live_ either - they exist." Dr. Valery corrected him automatically.

"How do you know if that's really true? Are you a robot? And who's to say that existing and living aren't the same thing...?" Jake argued in a tremulous tone.

Dr. Valery gave the maid a thoughtful look before sighing. "Alright fine, I won't dispose of her but I don't know what use I'll have for her now that she's not a Sex Droid. Shin is going to be incredibly displeased with me. Though I suppose you can use her as your own personal android computer, Jake. She's able to connect to the Internet via WiFi and make phone calls."

Jake let out a breath of relief. The Sex Droid wouldn't be destroyed. _Phew._

"Well, Sex Droid 4567 is your responsibility now. Maybe you should even give her a name." Dr. Valery said in a joking manner, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

However, a look of understanding came to Jake's face and he nodded slowly. "Yea...that's right...she doesn't even have a name." Jake looked over at the android maid. The maid was still smoking her cigarette and gave Jake an expectant look.

"So are you going to name me or not, shitty Master?" The android tapped her booted foot impatiently upon the floor. "You better not give me some lame ass name like Bertha!"

Jake chuckled and stared into the android's surprisingly beautiful, deeply-colored violet eyes. "No, don't worry. I won't name you something as uncool as Bertha. You look more like an...Ultraviolet." Jake finished, looking pleased. _She looks like some kind of hot battle maid with that badass attitude of hers. She needs an edgy name. I think Ultraviolet suits her._

Ultraviolet raised an eyebrow at Jake. "Ultraviolet hm? It's not that crappy...alright fine, you can call me Ultraviolet, shitty Master." A small smirk formed on the android's lips.

Jake smiled back at her goofily. If he didn't know better he'd say that Ultraviolet liked her new name. Jake's momentary happiness faded, however, as he remembered the stunt his perverted aunt had just pulled on him. He couldn't stand being in that crazy mansion any longer. Jake decided that he'd try and escape from there, maybe even that very night. He pondered if he should take Ultraviolet with him or if she'd be safer on her own. His mere touch had nearly destroyed her after all.

Dr. Valery looked back and forth between Jake and Ultraviolet. A small frown formed on her face. She didn't like the way Jake was interacting with Ultraviolet. He was treating her as if she were a human being - as if she were someone he was meeting and getting to know for the first time. Dr. Valery knew she had to correct Jake's misconception about androids before it was too late.

Dr. Valery stood up and approached Jake. She reached out and put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. "I know that ranch in Texas was pretty isolated but...here in the city robots and fembots are common now. They're nothing...special. They've replaced classic computers. Robots and fembots have the same features that regular computers had and then some: WiFi, Internet access, and data storage space. Robots live side-by-side with human beings in New York City but none of these personal computers have free will.

"That's unheard of. That's why they have the control antennas on the top of their heads - all owners of a robotic personal computer have a remote control device that sends a command signal to the antenna and into the robot's brain so that they can control them. Ultraviolet and the other android maids all have antenna too but I just hide them with their frilly maid caps and hair styles so that they look human. Ultraviolet, I order you to remove your maid cap and show Jake your antenna. He seems to be under the impression that you're more human than you really are." Dr. Valery ordered firmly.

"Yes, Dr. Valery," Ultraviolet said in a monotone voice as she removed her maid cap. Jake blinked when he caught sight of two tiny radio antennas on the top of her head. _They're kinda cute._ Jake thought.

Dr. Valery gasped at the sight of the two radio antennas. The android was supposed to have only one radio antenna. What was going on?

Dr. Valery quickly schooled her expression so that she didn't appear surprised by this revelation. She would unlock Ultraviolet's new secrets later. "I'll let you keep her, Jake. For now. And when you get bored of her we can just dispose of her." Dr. Valery was saying but Jake wasn't really paying attention to her since Jake was currently captivated by the android Ultraviolet. She was fascinating.

Jake shook his head, returned his attention to his perverted aunt, and took a deep breath. He opened his mouth wanting to tell his aunt off, but suddenly lost his nerve. How dare she sic a Sex Droid on him?! Jake rubbed his aching jaw. He had nearly been killed! Jake decided that he would leave Dr. Valery's crazy mansion that very night. He couldn't take much more of this.

That night, Jake pretended to go to sleep and waited until it sounded extremely quiet within the mansion. When he was sure everyone must be asleep Jake unlocked the door to his room and began to make his way down the hall. He was so freaked out and worried about his escape that Ultraviolet had completely slipped his mind. He exited the mansion and a tiny synthesized voice called out to him:

"Where are you going, Young Master Jake?"

Jake spun around, eyes wide and realized that the doorknocker had actually spoken to him. He gave the doorknocker an apologetic look and put a finger to his mouth. "Shhhh! What if my perverted aunt hears you? I'm really sorry but...I can't stay here. Please say you won't tell on me?"

The doorknocker blinked slowly at Jake. "I will not tell Dr. Valery that you have escaped, Metaloid. But be careful, New York City is a dangerous place. Especially now with the emergence of the cyborg criminals..."

Jake gave the doorknocker a surprised and grateful look. "Hey, thanks little lady! You take care too!" Jake said before running off down the graveled driveway. Jake then sneaked through the forest that surrounded the mansion. It wasn't long before he reached a high metal fence. The metal fence was more than twenty feet high and there was coiled barbed wire at the very top. There was also a warning sign which read: 'Warning High Voltage'. Jake shrugged and approached the wire chain link and grabbed it with his two bare hands. Instantly waves of electric shocks were sent coursing through his body. Jake cried out in pain but almost as quickly something somewhere exploded and suddenly the fence went dead no longer shocking Jake.

A wry smile formed on Jake's face. Apparently, his crazy powers could actually come in handy for something. Jake grabbed onto the wire chain link and began to climb up the fence. Once he reached the top he merely jumped right over the coiled barbed wire using his incredible strength and agility.

As soon as his feet touched the ground he took off running. Running away and not being found was one of Jake's greatest skills. Jake had no idea where he was going but he figured as long as he ran in one direction he would eventually reach something. Soon he reached a highway, which he followed into the city - New York City. The city was unlike anything Jake had ever seen.

It was the dead of night but there was so much artificial light that the city seemed alive. Skyscrapers reached for the sky, cars and people whizzed past Jake swiftly going God knows where at this hour of the evening.

Jake yawned widely and realized that all he wanted to do was to find a quiet place to sleep. He looked around and spotted a sign, which read 'Central Park'. Jake headed into the park and instantly his surroundings became quieter. Jake decided he liked Central Park. There were a few shaddy characters hiding in the bushes and watching Jake as he passed by but...Jake shrugged. If they tried anything he could just run away. Jake spotted an empty park bench and made his way over to it. He lay down on the park bench, folded his arms behind his head, and looked up at the night sky.

He was surprised by how crisp the air was in the middle of a park that was in the middle of such a large city. Jake took a deep breath feeling refreshed. He was free...free of his crazy aunt and her technological perversions. His eyes began to droop and he was soon fast asleep. Another of Jake's skills was being able to fall asleep just about anywhere.

Jake woke up the next morning to a pigeon pooping on his face. Jake felt something wet hit his cheek and was instantly awake. With a groan he sat up and stretched. "Ugh...what the?" Jake wiped his hand across his face and realized that a bird must have pooped on him. "Just my luck." Jake looked around the deserted park and suddenly realized something. He had no real plan. He had just decided to run away from Dr. Valery's mansion but...now he was in the middle of New York City. A place he had never been to before, a place where he knew no one. He had no money, no real skills if he was planning on trying to get a job somewhere, and he was a coward to top it all off. Suddenly, it felt like the walls were closing in around Jake. He felt suffocated and afraid. _Shit! What the hell was I thinking? How am I supposed to survive on my own but...I can't go back to that crazy mansion. I'll go insane._

Jake dragged his feet along the busy NYC streets and watched businessmen in slick suits with leather briefcases hurrying off to their desk jobs where they'd be forced to sit in a cubical for at least eight hours, typing in things on their computers, but really just spending time chatting with people on _Facebook_.

He saw beautiful women who looked like models dressed in expensive designer labels like _Prada_ , _Chanel_ , and _GUCCI_. When he wandered off the main streets he spotted homeless people and stray dogs. On other streets he saw street venders set up on the side of the roads selling anything from fake designer purses to sunglasses to bottle openers. And there was something else that Jake saw that he hadn't expected to see:

Robots.

In only seven years things truly had changed in NYC. With the NeoTech Corporation's creation of A.I. and the development of personal android computers things had totally changed. Now seeing people walking around New York City with robots or fembots next to them had become commonplace. At least for the people who could afford the expensive personal computers. He also noticed another strange phenomena. There were men and women with cybernetic limbs - metal arms and legs. He hadn't heard anything about this and frowned.

He stared at one cyborg man a little too long apparently because the cyborg turned to glare at Jake and began to crack his sparking knuckles. One of the cyborg's eyes glowed red and Jake stumbled backwards in fear with a squeak. He ran away and didn't look back.

A thoughtful frown formed on Jake's face as he ran. Seven years ago Nova Inara had left the Lonestar Ranch and left for New York City. Not long after that all of a sudden scientists possessed the knowledge of A.I. and were suddenly able to make robots and androids. That was no coincidence. Nova Inara had come to New York City and suddenly robots were real and no longer sci-fi. Jake wondered if perhaps Nova Inara had simply leaked the advanced alien technology over the Internet to set her plans in motion. Although he had no idea what she was planning to begin with. What did Nova Inara really want? Well, besides the destruction of humanity, probably. At least, that's what all evil alien invaders wanted according to his comic books, right?

It pissed Jake off that these people had come to accept the 'creation' or 'invention' of A.I. so easily, but that the cops back in Amarillo couldn't accept the truth about aliens when he had told them about Nova Inara.

And just where did these people think this advanced technology or technical know-how had really come from, anyways? That it had just fallen from the sky? That Dr. Valery was really a super-genius? Jake didn't believe it. Well, he supposed the technology _had_ sort of fallen out of the sky if he considered the fact that Nova Inara had crash landed on earth, so scratch that.

A few years back Jake remembered having come across an interesting newspaper article. He supposed that his family was probably one of the few in Amarillo who still subscribed to a newspaper to begin with but since the Lonestars were unable to have a TV in their home because of Jake's strange abilities the newspaper was the only way the Lonestars could keep up with current events.

Jake racked his brain for what the newspaper article had said:

... _leaked over the Internet...an amazing discovery of a sudden advancement in technology. The creation of A.I. - Artificial Intelligence. No longer is A.I. 'science fiction' or 'fantasy' but now a reality for mankind. This revelation brings endless possibilities in the fields of science and technology. A.I. will be sure to benefit mankind and help to make our lives easier. Through the advancements in cybernetic technology people who are missing limbs or are blind will be able to recover mobility and sight. Cyborgs are no longer a myth either now due to a new drug that..._

Jake was almost positive that this sudden advancement in technology had to be Nova Inara's doing.

Jake continued to wander aimlessly through the busy New York City streets when he spotted a 'Help Wanted' sign on the front door of a diner. He went inside and asked about the position, which happened to be a dishwasher. Jake immediately accepted the job and was taken to the kitchen where he was expected to wash dishes. Jake pushed his sleeves back and immediately began to wash the dishes, however, the dishes were so fragile they crumbled instantly in his hands. He was immediately fired.

That night as Jake was walking past some road construction workers he asked if they needed an extra hand. Jake was immediately hired but fired just as quickly when he ended up making a gigantic crater in the middle of the road when he had merely swung and hit the road using a pickaxe. Oops. Jake seemed to cause chaos and destruction in his wake while trying to do the simplest of tasks.

The next day, he somehow managed to get a job as an errand boy and for the next week this was working out well until his boss told him to enter some things into his computer. Jake told his boss he really shouldn't but his boss wouldn't listen. As soon as Jake's hands hit the keyboard the computer had exploded. He was instantly fired. Any electrical devices that came into contact with Jake would still wig out apparently.

Over the next few days, Jake tried to get another job but to no avail. Apparently, he was beginning to get a reputation for being a troublemaker. When he went to ask people about their 'Help Wanted' signs he was immediately turned away without even getting to try the job. Jake stumbled down the sidewalk and his stomach growled loudly. He hadn't eaten anything for three days. He was starving and he didn't have any money since he had never gotten paid at any of his jobs since he had always screwed them up, and causing damages that came out of his paycheck for repairs.

Jake scratched his head trying to think of a job that he would be capable of doing and came up with a big blank. It was hard enough trying to get a job where you didn't have to be around electrical appliances but to top it all off it was the middle of a recession and jobs were scarce to begin with.

His stomach growled loudly again. _I wonder if I'm going to die a homeless bum on the streets of New York City?_

Jake's footsteps slowed as he just felt all the motivation and hope leave him suddenly. What was the point in even continuing to move forward? _Is this it? Is this the end? I guess so...man, I'm so pathetic but I guess there's just no place for someone like me in this world. Maybe it's better if I die...maybe the world will be a better place without me in it._ Jake thought morosely as he sat down in an alley way and just closed his eyes and decided to sleep. If he slept he wasn't hungry. Jake knew he was being stupid and going off on a pity trip but he couldn't help it. It was times like this that Jake painfully realized that 'no man is an island'.

A man's strength was the sum of his friends, James had once told Jake. Jake had never really had friends - if he couldn't count his sister Bonnie - but not by choice of course. He would have liked to have friends just as much as the next guy. He didn't choose to be alone. He just was. _I can't believe I went through my entire life without meeting anyone who wanted to be my friend. That's just sad, man. Maybe I'll make a friend in my dreams._

Jake dozed off and slumped down against the grimy building wall.

Little did Jake know that his current plight was being observed by a superhero dressed in green...

***

Jake groaned and stretched his arms over his head as he began to awaken. The first thing he realized was that he was actually warm and felt comfortable. A feeling he hadn't felt for about fifteen days of sleeping on a park bench in Central Park. He also felt a wet towel on his forehead, which felt nice and cool against his feverish skin. Whatever he was sleeping on didn't feel like a hard, unforgiving park bench, which meant he must have been sleeping on a bed.

This realization startled Jake and he quickly sat up in bed to see where the hell he was. The sudden movement made Jake's head spin, however, and he felt dizzy. The towel that had been on his forehead fell to the floor. Jake put a hand to his forehead and felt that he was burning up. Apparently, he had come down with a fever. Probably from the whole sleeping outdoors and having no food thing.

Had someone kidnapped him? Was he going to be sold off as a slave and shipped off to some far away land? Was Jake good looking enough to be sold off as a sex slave? Did human trafficking really even exist in this day and age? These sorts of questions ran through Jake's head frantically and as he began to panic he forgot to breath.

Jake then considered the possibility that he had been captured by people who wanted to cut him open so that they could sell off his organs. Jake quickly eyed his surroundings as the dizziness finally left him. _Shit. Where the hell am I?_ _I've definitely been kidnapped by human traffickers or illegal organ sellers!_

Jake discovered that he was inside an extremely tiny house. The entire structure was only about twenty feet by twenty feet. The kitchen, living room, dining room, and bedroom were all in the same room. The next thing that Jake noticed was that something smelled _really_ good. Jake's stomach grumbled loudly in response. Jake's attention was drawn to the tiny kitchen where he spotted a plump, short, middle-aged woman at work at the stove stirring a pot of what smelled like chicken soup. The woman had black hair streaked with gray and that was tied up into a bun on the top of her head held there by two long chopsticks. This gave her an Asian appearance.

The woman seemed to feel Jake's eyes upon her and so turned around. Her eyes widened when she saw that Jake was awake. "Oh! You're awake, young man?" She wiped her hands off on her apron before approaching Jake's bed. She reached her hand out towards him and Jake flinched back. The woman frowned at him and gave him a sympathetic look. "I'm just going to check your temperature, young man. Don't tell me you're afraid of little old me?" She chuckled and reached out to touch Jake's forehead and this time Jake didn't pull back.

Now that he could get a closer look at the woman he realized that she definitely seemed to be of Asian descent. She had dark, narrow eyes and olive colored skin. _She's probably from Japan or China...or outer space._ Jake half-smiled at his own inside joke as he remembered how Nova Inara had strangely chosen to dress in traditional Japanese clothing.

"You're still a little warm." The woman frowned and Jake noticed that she had dark brown, kind looking eyes. "How are you feeling, young man?"

Jake blushed at her unexpected show of concern. The feeling of her hand on his forehead was such a simple thing but it made Jake infinitely happy. But also infinitely sad at the very same time. No one had showed him much concern or care like that for a very long time. "Mmm fine." Jake shyly mumbled and then at that moment his stomach took the opportunity to growl loudly. Jake's blush deepened out of embarrassment.

"Oh dear! You must be hungry! You poor thing. You look absolutely starved!" The woman hurried back over to the stove and quickly ladled a bowl of soup for Jake before walking back over to Jake with a bowl and a spoon. She handed the bowel of soup to Jake who took it gingerly in his hands. "Careful, it's hot...and try not to eat too fast. If you're suffering from starvation your body could go into shock if you eat too quickly and you could end up throwing up all that food. So please be careful."

Jake nodded, giving the woman a grateful look before he carefully spooned up some soup, blew on it, put the spoonful of soup into his mouth, and swallowed. Tears immediately sprung to his eyes. _So good! So delicious!_ Jake wanted to devour the soup quickly and he had to use all of his willpower to eat slowly like the woman had advised.

Jake was eating his soup quietly when the front door to the tiny dwelling opened and a middle-aged businessman stepped inside. The first thing Jake noticed about the man was that he was just as short as the woman who was kindly feeding him, but whereas she was plump this man was incredibly skinny. When he turned around Jake could see that the man also had Asian features and due to his closely cropped, salt and pepper hair must have also been middle-aged. He had a round face and kind eyes. Jake immediately figured that this man must have been the woman's husband. He had on a business suit and was carrying a briefcase but in his other hand he was holding a rather large fish.

" _Tadaimas._ I'm home, Questa." The man greeted as he quickly hung his coat and hat on a peg that had been nailed to the wall.

" _Okaerinasai_. Welcome back, Quentin." Questa greeted him with a fond look on her face.

Quentin's eyes widened when he caught sight of Jake and he grew nervous instantly beginning to wring his hands together.

"Oh, is that fish for dinner?" Questa asked.

Quentin nodded. "Yes, Green Avenger just gave it to me...um, honey, who is that...? We have a...guest?" Quentin asked hesitantly.

Jake frowned. The poor guy was looking at him like he was a robber or something. Though since Jake hadn't gotten the chance to bathe in several days he probably did look like some kind of dangerous, homeless thug. Jake hung his head dejectedly at the thought.

"Oh! Green Avenger brought him here. The poor boy was apparently starving to death in the city in some alleyway..." Questa explained, her eyes going a little misty.

"Green Avenger?" Jake looked up at Questa curiously. _That totally sounds like a superhero name. I must have misheard her._

Quentin's nervous look shifted to a compassionate one as he looked at Jake. "Starving? And he's so young." Quentin looked Jake over and took in his ragged appearance noting his hollow cheeks and the dark circles that were under Jake's eyes. "He's probably the same age as..." Quentin trailed off and coughed into his hand suddenly. "How could something like this happen? Where are you parents, young man?" Quentin asked as he walked over to take a seat at the small round table that was in the center of the home and that was surrounded by three rickety looking chairs. Jake wondered who the third chair was for. He hoped it was for their cute daughter.

Jake bit his lip to make sure he didn't speak. _My parents...are probably somewhere in outer space right about now. But there's no way these normal, kind people would believe that._ "Gone." Jake said instead.

"Gone?" Quentin blinked and he and his wife exchanged an emotional look. "That's so...sad." Quentin declared and Jake was incredibly surprised to see tears welling up in the man's eyes.

Questa was nodding vigorously. "How horrible...you poor dear! How you must have suffered!" Questa quickly joined in.

Jake slowly blinked at the couple in surprise. This hadn't been the reaction he had been expecting. The couple immediately began to fuss over Jake, who blushed and his own eyes began to sting with unshed tears. _Yes...yes it WAS hard! Dammit!_ Jake silently admitted to himself. He wasn't even eighteen yet and all these crazy things had happened to him. He was so close to being an adult and yet he felt like a useless kid.

"The Green Avenger should be just outside somewhere." Questa informed Jake putting a hand on Jake's shoulder. "He was really worried about you. Green is the one who brought you here. I'm sure that you'd like to meet him? Well, I'll go get him so that he can see that you're awake now." Questa finished before wiping her hands on her apron and leaving the tiny house.

_The Green Avenger...if I didn't know any better I'd say that sounds just like a superhero name. But...superheroes don't exist in reality. Right? Naw..._ Jake ran his hands through his oily hair. He _really_ needed a bath.

A few minutes later, the door swung open of its own accord and then suddenly three things that resembled grenades were suddenly tossed into the room. Jake's eyes widened in fear and he quickly grabbed Quentin and pushed him to the floor. "Look out, old man!" Jake cried.

The grenades exploded into clouds of green smoke and then a shadowy figure leapt through the smoke to enter the tiny house. "Evil that lurks in the night! Beware for the Green Avenger has come to fight! I am a mighty champion of Justice!" A skinny man who was dressed in a black and green spandex bodysuit began to strike cheesy superhero poses at Jake and Quentin. The man's face could not be seen since he was wearing a full facemask that had a black 'A' on it. He was also wearing a snazzy looking utility belt and a pair of shinny black boots.

Jake's jaw dropped. _This_ was the Green Avenger? _He's a real superhero? Or did he just escape from the Looney bin?_

Jake felt a trickle of sweat form on the side of his head. _This_ was the superhero that had 'saved' him? As the green smoke began to disperse Jake noticed just how lanky and wimpy the 'mighty' Green Avenger really was.

"Who the hell are you?" Jake asked as he stood up and held his hand out to help Quentin up off the floor.

"Ah, thank you, young man." Quentin said as he took Jake's hand and allowed himself to be helped up. "Such a polite young man."

"Er..." The Green Avenger seemed to be at a lose for words. "Didn't you just hear my grand introduction? Should I go back outside and do it again?" The Green Avenger turned back around and was about to head back out of the tiny house when Jake called out to him.

"No! Wait! I already heard your cliché introduction. I get that you're the Green Avenger but...I'm sorry, man. You look like you're supposed to be some kind of superhero but I've never heard of you."

It was the Green Avenger's turn to stagger backwards in surprise. "N-N-Never heard of me?!" He squeaked. "Impossible! How can you not know who I am, young man? I am the mighty Green Avenger!" The Green Avenger struck another pose, this time with one of his legs bent and both of his hands in the air forming a giant 'V'. "For more information see my comic book series..." He added in a tiny voice.

Jake raised an eyebrow at this so-called superhero. "Dude...did you just strike a superhero pose? You were way off from the proper execution. _Lame_..." Jake trailed off in a disinterested tone as he began to pick wax out of his ears.

Jake took his superheroes _very_ seriously. He of course only read comic books that had the word 'man' in the titles since Jake considered them to be the most manly: Batman, Spiderman, Superman and Ironman. But this green superhero before him was not manly. He was wimpy.

The Green Avenger bristled. "It's not _lame_! It's cool. _All_ superheroes strike poses when they're making their grand _entrance_! Didn't you know that?"

" _Dude_...superheroes aren't _real_." Jake put in. Now here was someone that Jake felt probably deserved to be taken to a psychiatric ward a lot more than he had deserved to be. Jake inwardly frowned at the thought. Being called crazy and a liar had not been fun. He got to find out firsthand just how Sarah Conner must have felt.

"Ah, that's where you're mistaken, young man. New York City is rampant with superheroes these days!" The Green Avenger explained enthusiastically to Jake. "You haven't noticed the masked heroes running around?"

"Masked heroes?" Jake questioned in disbelief and racked his brain for any time he may have seen one of these so-called superheroes.

"More like vigilantes." Quentin clarified and shook his head. "Young people have begun to take the law into their own hands...which sadly is only to be expected since NYC has become more and more lawless, and dangerous. The NYPD can't handle everything on their own anymore. The balance of power has shifted in this city. The cops and the government are no longer in control of NYC. The person who is really in control of NYC is the leader of the Noppera-bō Gang..."

Jake finished his soup off and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Ah! That was really delicious!" Jake turned to grin sheepishly at Questa and Quentin. "Thanks a lot. Y'all really saved me. I thought I was a goner."

Questa and Quentin both looked extremely pleased yet embarrassed, and both began to blush.

"It was n-n-nothing special," Questa took the bowl from Jake so that she could wash it.

"Your praise doesn't make us happy, asshole," Quentin said while looking totally embarrassed and he began doing a goofy kind of dance.

_He sure looks pleased..._ Jake shook his head ruefully.

"Ah! No! Don't compliment them! They'll get totally embarrassed and then they'll-" The Green Avenger tried to warn Jake as he waved his hands frantically in the air before him.

"Too late." The Green Avenger sighed and smacked a hand to his forehead.

With a _poof!_ Questa and Quentin suddenly turned into two strange raccoon-like creatures.

Jake's eyes widened in shock. "Racoons...?" _I must be dreaming._

The Green Avenger let out a dramatic sigh. "Now you did it..."

"Oh no!" Questa gasped as she stood on her hind legs and raised a hand in front of her mouth before shooting her husband a concerned look, "He's _seen_ us!"

"Damn..." Quentin frowned also standing up on his hind legs and shook his head. "This is why humans aren't allowed under the bridge, Green Avenger. We've been discovered by a human...if the Mayor finds out about this I don't know what he'll do." Quentin began to wring his hands together.

Jake's eyes had become swirly. "The raccoons are talking...is this a dream? Or maybe I smoked some pot...?" Jake decided to pinch his arm. "Ow! Nope, this isn't a dream..."

The Green Avenger was beginning to freak out. "Shit! Shit! Shit! If Mayor Stark finds out about this...he'll want to kill him! We gotta get him outta here...."

"Hey, what's going on? What's the big deal anyways? So you can turn into raccoons? So what? I've seen much stranger things..." _Faceless androids...hot, blue-skinned alien babes...feisty sex droids..._

The raccoons gawked at Jake in disbelief and so did the Green Avenger.

"What? Are you raccoons wizards or something?" Jake questioned, his eyes beginning to sparkle with the idea. "That would be so neat."

Quentin and Questa exchanged a look. "Maybe we should tell him..."

"Mayor Stark is definitely going to want to kill him." The Green Avenger shook his head and gave Jake a pitying look. "Maybe I should take his measurements for the coffin?"

_Coffin?_ Jake paled.

"We'll sneak him back out to the city. We can let him live above the store." Quentin suggested firmly.

"Oh honey, that's so thoughtful of you!" Questa's eyes turned into two hearts as she gazed at her hubby.

"Your praise doesn't make me happy, woman." Quentin said gruffly but he was blushing, well, as much as a raccoon could blush anyways.

"Fine, I guess he deserves the _truth_ , especially since it's my fault for bringing him here in the first place, and Mayor Stark may end up trying to kill him...hmmm..." Green Avenger stroked his chin in thought. "Alright, well, seeing is believing." The Green Avenger said before he suddenly removed his facemask to reveal to Jake that he had green skin, a mop of messy black hair, large eyes that were solid black, and a yellow beak-like mouth.

Jake blinked and said the first thing that came to mind. "You're a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle?" Because really, the Green Avenger almost did look like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle if his strange mouth had been green as well.

"No! I am not a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle! Why does everyone from America always think that! Geesh!" Green Avenger complained and stomped his boot upon the floor angrily.

Jake shrugged. "Sorry man, but you really do look like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. So...then what are you? Some kind of mutant? Or a monster?" _I wouldn't be surprised if a rat-like man showed up calling himself Shredder!_

"NO!" The Green Avenger bristled, "I'm an alien! Usually humans in Japan just get it wrong and think I'm a _kappa_. But you must be the dumbest human yet."

"What's a _kappa_?" Jake scratched his head thoughtfully.

"You don't know anything do you?" The Green Avenger sighed and rubbed his temples. " _Kappa_ is the Japanese word for water demon. The Japanese know all about our existence and even include us in their folklore. But what they don't know is that we're actually aliens."

"Yea, but we're not in Japan." Jake felt the need to point out.

"I _know_ that, _baka_! Okay, it looks like I should probably start from the beginning so your tiny brain can understand. Five hundred years ago during the Japanese Warring States Era, or Feudal Era, in Japan according to myths, legends, and folklore there were powerful _yokai_ (demons) living side by side with the _samurai_ and _geisha_ of that time...it was also said that the _yokai_ possessed powerful magic. But none of this was actually true.

"There's no such thing as _yokai_ or magic. The _yokai_ were really just aliens that came to Japan and their 'magic' was nothing more than advanced alien technology. In Japan the people there would take one look at me and say I'm a _kappa yokai_ but I'm actually an alien from the Planet Aqua 7. In Japan, the people there would see Questa and Quentin and think they were _tanuki_ (raccoon-dog) _yokai_ , but in reality they're aliens from the Planet Q." The Green Avenger finished giving Jake an exasperated look.

"So, basically _yokai_ or demons are really aliens, and magic is actually advanced technology? And you're all aliens, right?" Jake's mind was spinning.

"That is correct." The Green Avenger nodded.

"But that doesn't really explain why you're dressed up like a superhero." Jake said bluntly. "Is it some kind of fetish?" He asked.

"Gah, no! And I'm not just dressed up as a superhero! I _am_ a superhero, _baka_! I even have my own website in order to be able to take on superhero jobs!" The Green Avenger explained and he puffed up his chest in pride.

Jake began to pick wax out of his ear again and looked unconvinced. "Uh huh." He flicked the wax into the air. "So, big deal, you're all aliens...what's that got to do with me? Why would your 'mayor' want to kill me?" _It's not like you're the only aliens I've ever seen before...I already knew aliens existed before this._

The Green Avenger gave Jake a frustrated look. " _Because_ I took you to our secret community under the Brooklyn Bridge. Brooklyn Prime is protected by an invisibility hologram so humans can't even see our community here."

"If you aliens first arrived in Japan when you came to Earth what are you doing here in New York City now?" Jake asked curiously. _And this actually explains why Nova Inara was wearing a Japanese kimono._

"Ah, well, that's because the Demon Slayer Clan has become more of a threat to us than ever. Of course, what the Demon Slayers hunt aren't actual demons but aliens. They've stolen a lot of advanced alien technology and are now using it against us aliens. A lot of aliens are fleeing to other parts of the world. Many of us decided to move to New York because of its growing acceptance towards A.I., cyborgs and robots which remind us of our home planets where such things were commonplace."

Jake nodded. "I see. That sucks man."

"Tell me about it. The rivers in Japan are so nice." The _kappa_ alien said with a wistful note to his voice. "Not as polluted as the rivers here. _Tanuki_ like Questa and Quentin are a type of alien that has the ability to shape shift into a human form, making it easy for them to blend in with human society, however, all of the aliens here in Brooklyn Prime have trouble completely immersing themselves into human society for various reasons. Mr. and Mrs. Quark have a store in NYC but unfortunately can't stay there all day. They can only maintain their human forms for about eight hours. After that they return home, here to Brooklyn Prime before they change back into their true forms."

"Whoa, wait a second, so what you're saying is aliens already live among humans? The ones that can shape shift properly, that is?' Jake questioned, feeling floored by this revelation.

Green nodded. "Yep, aliens have been living among humans since five hundred years ago. Also, Questa and Quentin...if they get too embarrassed, shy, or emotional they turn back into _tanuki_. All of the aliens that live under the bridge have problems with their transformation or shape shifting abilities. Or they're like me... _kappa_ aliens don't have the ability to shape shift but we're humanoid enough that in full disguise we can blend in with human society. It's really exhausting though having to be in disguise all the time..." Green seemed to pout, or at least Jake thought it was a pout.

"So...the only job that a _kappa_ can get is being a vigilante since you can be in that costume?" Jake asked seriously.

"NO!" Green burst out. "Other _kappa_ s wear full human face masks. Geez. _Kappa_ aliens also need to live close to water or we'll die. That's why a lot of _kappa_ live in the city but still come back here at the end of the day to their secondary homes where they can truly relax. This community was created to protect aliens from humans, and to prevent humans from discovering our existence. The world may be ready to accept A.I. but it's not ready to accept us." The Green Avenger waved his hand at himself and at the two _tanuki_ aliens. "We're too...different. That's why it's forbidden for humans to enter this community because if they find out about us...everyone here will be put in danger. It's _forbidden_ for humans to enter here under penalty of _death_." The Green Avenger ended dramatically.

Jake swallowed thickly. He paled. _Death._ "Great, just great, and you brought me here _why_? Shit..." _I'm so going to die...!_

The Green Avenger shrugged. "You were already about to die of starvation...and as a superhero I could not just sit by and do nothing when I saw that someone was in need of assistance!"

"Even if that someone happened to be a _human_?" Jake raised an eyebrow at the _kappa_ alien.

The Green Avenger nodded. "Yes, even if that someone is a human."

Jake really didn't want to cause the kind _tanuki_ couple or this _kappa_ alien any trouble. They had been kind enough to help him when he had been about to die. He needed to leave before they got in trouble for his sake!

Jake nodded in understanding. "I'm thankful for your help...but I should leave before any of you get into trouble because of me. You said bringing a human into the community was forbidden. What about _aiding_ a human? Will this Mayor Stark guy punish you too?"

Quentin and Questa exchanged a worried look.

Jake's expression became one of bleak acceptance. "That's what I thought. Thanks for the soup Mrs. Quark it really was quite delicious. I'll be going now..." Jake headed towards the door with heavy footfalls.

The Green Avenger put a hand on Jake's shoulder to stop him. "Wait. You'll never be able to sneak out of here on your own. I'll help you get out of here. It's the least I can do."

Jake gave the _kappa_ alien a thankful look. "Thanks, buddy."

Quentin and Questa looked at each other before nodding. "We're coming too!" Questa exclaimed. "We have to at least make sure you get out of here safely."

"A second or third pair of eyes is always helpful. We'll play lookout." Quentin said firmly.

Jake gave the _tanuki_ couple a surprised look. They really were just so cute and cuddly. Though Jake figured it would probably be rude to tell them that. "Mr. and Mrs. Quark...why are you helping me? I'm a human." Jake's voice was thick with emotion.

Questa walked over to a humble cupboard where she stored her dishes and removed a tiny framed photograph that had been sitting upon one of the shelves. She walked over and handed the photograph to Jake. Jake looked at the photo and saw that it was a picture of Questa and Quentin while they were in their human forms. Standing between them was a young man who looked to be around the same age as Jake. They were all smiling in the picture.

"Is that your son?" Jake asked softly. They made a nice family.

Questa nodded with tears in her big brown eyes. "Yes...he...was taken from us.."

"Taken? I'm sorry." Jake said sadly. _Dang, I can so relate to that._

"He got into drugs. Fell in with the wrong crowd. We haven't seen or heard from him since." Quentin began to explain in a gruff voice. "We believe he may have been taken by the Noppera-bō Gang. That gang distributes the drug that our son became addicted to...a nanomachine drug simply known as NANO."

"NANO?" Jake asked.

"NANO is a drug that is actually a tiny nanomachine. The user consumes it and gets a similar effect to a drug like cocaine for instance - they get that same rush, high, or addiction. It's all the same. However, since it's a machine the drug can be cheaply produced. It's become a very popular drug here in NYC but has some odd side effects..."

"Side effects?" Jake asked.

"The more NANO a person takes the more addicted they become to the drug but also their body begins to transform and become robotisized. Hands...arms...legs...eyes...all turn to metal and become cybernetic parts. The drug slowly turns human beings or aliens into cyborgs. Ultimately, if you keep taking the drug you will one day become a complete robot."

Jake's eyes widened in shock. A drug that slowly turned people into cyborgs and ultimately robots?! "Robots?!" _Nova Inara...was this your plan all along?_ "But...why doesn't someone do something to stop this? At this rate...we're losing our _humanity_."

Quentin shook his head sadly. "The drug addicts don't see it like that. And the drug lords only see the potential profits that can be made from such a drug that doesn't need to be grown or harvested, but simply and cheaply made in a factory. They also don't see the whole 'becoming a cyborg' thing as a negative side effect. The drug addicts and drug lords think it's 'cool'. They're gaining strength, confidence, power. I don't think they realize that they'll eventually become completely robotisized.

"Our son Quinn...didn't realize it either...Quinn became hopelessly addicted to NANO. And it's _expensive_. He was becoming more and more cyborg and less _tanuki_. He became addicted and joined a gang to get the money he needed for the drug. We wanted him to stop taking the drug because we were losing our son. He was turning into a robot but he wouldn't listen to us no matter how hard we tried to reach him.

"Then he...got into a fight with some pushers who wouldn't give him the drug because he didn't have the money and they took him. The Noppera-bō Gang has probably killed our son..." Quentin finished with his fists clenched at his sides. Jake noticed that his body was trembling.

"What does Noppera-bō mean?" Jake asked suddenly, a sinking feeling in his chest.

"Faceless ghost." Quentin informed Jake.

_Nova Inara._ Jake thought as he grew pale. _She must be the leader of the Noppera-bō Gang. The gang that supposedly controls NYC from the shadows now. Shit._

Questa was sobbing into a handkerchief. It broke Jake's heart. "I'm sorry...I didn't know." Jake said. _There's a lot of stuff I don't know about apparently. In just seven years Nova Inara was able to turn the world upside down: robots, cyborgs, A.I. and NANO._

"You remind us of our son...Quinn would be about the same age as you." Questa said sniffling. "If he's still alive..."

"I see." Jake said.

"I never did ask your name." Questa suddenly realized, looking abashed.

"It's Jake. Jake Lonestar." Jake informed them.

The Green Avenger's eyes sparkled with interest. "Jake Lonestar? _That_ 's your name? That's so cool. It's just like a superhero name!"

Jake gave the Green Avenger a surprised look, before a sad, lopsided smile formed on Jake's face. "Yea...that's what my sister Bonnie said."

Japanese Word Key: (Because Otaku like to throw in random Japanese words)

_Tadaimas_ : I'm home!

_Okaerinasai_ : Welcome home!

_Baka_ : Idiot!

_Yokai:_ Demon

_Kappa_ : water demon

_Kitsune_ : fox demon

### **Chapter 4:** **Teenaged Mutant Ninja Kappa**

Jake exited the Quark's home to discover that night had already fallen. He looked up to see that a full moon was out and decided this was lucky since it gave everyone plenty of light to see by. Jake and the others began to put operation 'sneak out of Brooklyn Prime' into action as soon as the Quarks had returned to their human forms. As Green began to lead the way Jake was able to see the entirety of Brooklyn Prime, which was illuminated by the moonlight. His eye twitched as he realized how complex this community truly was. _Hey, hey hey! This is a hell of a lot of illegal construction going on under this bridge!_ Jake mentally complained.

Small, humble dwellings made of cement blocks or entirely out of wood, and that had tin roofs were scattered along the riverbank. Jake spotted a building that looked like a church in the process of being constructed. He noticed other small huts that looked like a mini grocery store, a fresh fish market, and even a clothing store. It really was like a tiny fanciful village. Jake realized that these people, err, aliens were living completely off-grid. Jake even spotted solar panels and windmills that were producing the electricity for the tiny homes.

The group headed towards the Brooklyn Bridge stealthily. However, as they began to pass through some kind of vegetable garden Jake couldn't help but stop and look around curiously. He was impressed by the expansive garden of vegetables, which probably provided vegetables for the entire community that was living under the bridge. He spotted some pumpkins but realized upon closer inspection that the vegetables were actually gigantic tomatoes. _Cool!_

Jake's eyes bulged. "Whoa. Are those really tomatoes!?" _They're like mutant tomatoes!_

The Green Avenger turned to see that Jake was lagging behind. "Hurry up slowpoke, don't fall behind. It's not safe." Green was looking around the vegetable garden nervously, as if he expected a zombie to pop out at them at any second.

"Uh, right, sorry." Jake turned around and continued to follow the Green Avenger, Questa and Quentin, however, a vine suddenly reached out and wrapped itself around Jake's ankle. Jake looked down quizzically. "What the?" Suddenly the vine yanked Jake back and he fell to the ground where the vine quickly began to drag him backwards.

"AHHH!" Jake screamed and was a bit embarrassed by how high-pitched his scream had sounded. Jake looked behind him and saw a gigantic plant that resembled a mutant Venus flytrap. The Venus flytrap was large enough to be able to consume a horse if it wanted. Its leaves were neon green and the interior of its mouth was a bright orange color. Jake's eyes nearly fell out of his head. "AHHH! A man-eating alien plant! I'm going to die! Green Avenger! Help me!" Jake cried as he was pulled up and off the ground until he was dangling over the mouth of the ferocious looking plant that appeared to be drooling purple goo.

The Green Avenger looked behind him and saw Jake's predicament. "Shit! Zoe's plants are at it again! Don't worry Jake! I - the mighty Green Avenger - will save you!" The Green Avenger charged the man-eating plan bravely.

However, a vine whipped out, smacked the Green Avenger in the chest and sent him flying back, comically through the air.

"AHHHHH!" The Green Avenger screamed while in flight.

Jake's eye twitched in irritation. _Weak! The Green Avenger is super weak!_

The Quarks went to Jake's aid next. "Jake!" Questa cried as she rushed towards the plant but a vine wrapped around her waist and easily lifted her up into the air ripping a scream from her lips.

"Questa!" Quentin charged at the plant recklessly next, waving his fist at the plant angrily. "Let go of Questa, you overgrown houseplant!" But the plant quickly captured Quentin too. The vines began to constrict around Questa and Quentin and with a _poof!_ the nervous and afraid couple both turned into their _tanuki_ forms.

_Shit!_ Jake watched as the vines were constricting around Quentin and Questa's bodies even more tightly. He could see their expressions shift from fear to pain, and noticed that they appeared to be about to pass out. "Stupid plant! Stop hurting them! I thought that it was _me_ you wanted to eat, dammit! Get off of me!" Jake reached down and yanked at the vines easily managing to rip them off of himself. The plant shrieked in pain and surprise before Jake fell to the ground with a thud. Questa and Quentin were still being held hostage by the plant, however, and Questa let out a loud cry of pain.

"Questa!" Quentin called out worriedly to his wife.

Jake was sitting on the ground looking up at the two _tanuki_ aliens in the plant's grasp. He was afraid, no, absolutely terrified. This was a gigantic, man-eating plant for God's sake! But...the _tanuki_ couple had saved him. They had been kind to him and Mrs. Quark had even cared for him like a mother...

_I'm so going to die!_ Jake balled his hands into fists, and looked up at the scary alien plant. _I can't believe I'm about to do this! That plant is frickin scary, dude. I'm so going to die!_ Jake stood up and letting out a cry as he haphazardly charged the plant, closing his eyes before letting his fist fly forward towards the base of the plant. "AHHHHH!"

Jake's fist connected with the plant with a _BAM!_ uprooting the plant and sending it flying backwards as the plant let out an unnerving, piercing shriek. The plant released Questa and Quentin who fell to the ground. The Green Avenger shakily got up and dusted himself off. His eyes bulged upon seeing Jake punch the alien plant and send it flying back across the riverbank. "Cool." The Green Avenger's eyes sparkled in admiration.

Jake looked down at his fist in shock. "I did it...I actually did it..." Jake's legs were trembling like jelly and he sunk to his knees. "I think I'm going to be sick..." Jake's face turned green and he put a hand over his mouth.

The Quarks and the Green Avenger rushed to Jake's side.

"Jake! That was amazing!" The Green Avenger began to gush. "You're really strong! Why didn't you tell me you were a superhero?!"

Jake gave the Green Avenger a confused look. "Me? A superhero? Get real..."

"What the hell is going on here?" Came an irritated, high-pitched female voice.

Jake looked up and saw a young woman who was obviously an alien. She had yellow-gold skin, emerald green eyes and bright red hair that was tied up into two long pigtails. The alien babe had pointed ears and slanted pupils. She was wearing a bra top that looked like two giant sunflowers and a skirt made entirely of flower petals. She was also wearing a pair of futuristic green boots and matching gloves. She currently had her hands on her hips and was giving Jake and the others a very disapproving look.

_Strike!_ Jake's eyes had immediately turned into two large hearts. _Another hot alien babe makes her entrance._ Jake thought to himself. "You must be from outer space because I see stars in your eyes." Jake said to her. _Why else did Captain Kirk go into outer space if not to screw hot alien women with gold, green or blue skin?_

Zoe raised an eyebrow at Jake. "Who's this freak?"

"Zoe!" The Green Avenger burst out nervously as soon as he caught sight of the golden-skinned girl, but then he quickly tried to pull himself together and look cool. He ended up looking slightly constipated. "Your plant tried to eat me again!" He complained.

Zoe laughed. "Well, it's your own fault for trespassing into my harmless little vegetable garden. I don't know why the plants always attack you...they're perfectly sweet." Zoe said as she reached her hand out towards the mutant Venus flytrap who reached a vine out towards Zoe and began to stroke her arm lovingly. "You see? Now...how about buying some of my vegetables while you're here? I'll give you a discount." An innocent smile formed on Zoe's face.

Jake gave the alien plant girl an incredulous look. She was _so_ not innocent. She reminded him of a mischievous pixie. Well, a _hot_ mischievous pixie anyway. Jake stood up on shaky legs and ran a hand back through his hair as he tried to make himself look presentable. "Hey, Green aren't you going to introduce me to the hot alien babe?"

The Green Avenger frowned and looked around the vegetable garden with a serious expression on his face. "Hot alien babe? Where?"

Zoe swiftly hit the Green Avenger over the back of his head with her fist. "He meant me, dumbass! Geez! At least some guys have good taste..." Zoe gave Jake a scrutinizing stare before skipping over to him. She began to poke his cheek and stared up into his handsome face. "What planet are you from, handsome?"

"Er, Planet Earth?" Jake said.

Zoe's pleased expression faded. "Earth? You mean...you're an Earthling? A disgusting human?" She instantly backed away from Jake with a repulsed look on her face. She then whirled around to face the others and pinned them with an accusing look. "What is the meaning of this? You let a filthy human into Brookly Prime? What will Mayor Stark do when he finds out? Shit...oh my Goddess...you have to get him out of here before-"

"Before what, my dear Zoe?" Came a drawling voice.

Zoe jumped at the sound of the male voice.

_Uh oh._ Jake slowly turned around to face the newcomer and gulped. The man standing before them was an intimidating figure. And definitely an alien. He had extremely pale skin, short white hair, pointed ears, and bright, intelligent golden eyes with slanted pupils. He was wearing an all-white suit and a pair of matching shoes. He had a white top hat on his head and a matching cane.

"Oh crap, it's the mayor!" The Green Avenger exclaimed loudly.

"The mayor?" Jake looked at the white-haired man curiously. He appeared to have an almost luminescent glow surrounding his body.

Mayor Stark coolly ran his eyes over Jake. "Green Avenger would you mind explaining to me who our guest is? What planet is he from?"

"Er...well...you see...he's from..." The Green Avenger stammered nervously, his eyes darting around as if seeking an escape route.

Jake didn't want the Green Avenger, Questa or Quentin to get into trouble for his sake. "I'm from Planet Earth, Sir. And these people have nothing to do with me. I snuck in here on my own. I was just leaving when they tried to detain me...they were yelling something about my needing to see the mayor. But I guess that's you, right?" Jake crossed his fingers behind his back and hoped that Mayor Stark would believe his lie.

"Jake..." Questa gave him a worried look.

_I'm so going to die! Somebody please help me...!_ Jake inwardly cried while he tried to keep a calm expression on his face so that he wouldn't worry the others.

Mayor Stark's eyes narrowed dangerously at Jake. "A human...and you've _seen_ us." He looked over at Questa and Quentin who were both in their _tanuki_ forms and over at Zoe, who was obviously an alien woman with her glowing gold skin. Mayor Stark held his cane horizontally before him before pulling on one end of it revealing that the cane contained a hidden sword. "Well, it's nothing personal human but...you're going to have to die now. No offense meant." Mayor Stark gave Jake an apologetic look.

Jake shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets in a casual gesture. "None taken. Rules are rules, right?"

Mayor Stark pointed his thin but deadly looking sword at Jake. "Indeed. Prepare to die, human."

"Hey, wait - huh? Can't we discuss this for a little while longer?" Jake began to back away nervously from the creepy alien man. Mayor Stark lunged his sword at Jake. "Epp! I'm so going to die!" Jake dodged the attack. _Rules are meant to be broken, dude!_

Mayor Stark looked surprised by this. "You actually dodged that, human? I'm impressed. But it was probably just a fluke. A mere human cannot keep up with my _alien_ speed." A smug expression formed on Mayor Stark's face.

[Jake Lonestar VS Mayor Stark] Fight!

Mayor Stark ran forward and thrust his sword towards Jake in a forward jab. Jake quickly and frantically dove out of the way. As Jake was struggling to his feet Mayor Stark attacked Jake again and Jake was forced to roll out of the way. Jake quickly scrambled to his feet and just in time to sidestep another deadly attack from Mayor Stark. Mayor Stark frowned and decided to increase the speed of his attacks and let loose a series of forward jabs at Jake. Jake didn't even allow himself to blink as he concentrated on dodging all of those attacks.

_Ack! I'm so going to die! I'm going to die! He's really trying to kill me! Someone help me!_ Jake cried in his mind.

Trembling, Jake successfully ducked and dodged out of the way of Mayor Stark's sword as he tried to run Jake through mercilessly. Mayor Stark blinked at Jake in surprise. "Impossible...he is no mere human to be able to keep up with my speed." Mayor Stark lowered his sword and gave Jake a wary look. _Is he a Demon Slayer? Or maybe he's one of Nova Inara's Nemesis Zeros?_

"That's right! Jake Lonestar is a superhero!" The Green Avenger declared loudly.

Mayor Stark arched a white eyebrow at Jake elegantly. "A superhero?" He echoed doubtfully.

Jake felt a trickle of sweat form on the side of his head at the Green Avenger's words. "Geez...I'm not a superhero, Green. Why did you have to say that?" Jake put his hand behind his head in a bashful manner.

"Jake- _san_!" The Green Avenger blurted. "Take Mayor Stark down. I know you can defeat him. Just go ahead and fight him!"

"San?" Mayor Stark gave Jake a quizzical look wondering what had made the Green Avenger come to respect Jake enough for him to add 'san' to his name, which was the Japanese equivalent to basically saying 'Sir Jake'.

Jake gawked at the Green Avenger. "Huh? You can't be serious! You want me to fight that guy..." Jake looked at Mayor Stark and his thin but deadly looking sword. He swallowed thickly and shook his head frantically. "No way! He's too strong! He'll kill me!" Jake argued.

Mayor Stark gave Jake a disgusted look at his sudden cowardly behavior. It really made no sense. Just moments before Jake had displayed incredible skill and now he was trying to avoid the confrontation altogether and run away. "Are you really such a coward? Even though you obviously possess strength and skill? Human beings like you who don't appreciate their gifts deserve to die." Mayor Stark pointed his sword at Jake again and narrowed his golden eyes at him.

"Epp!" Jake put his hands up before him and tried to look harmless. "Hey, wait, don't attack me yet." _Damn it...I have to do something, but what? I know, I'll just run away! It's what I do best after all and it's what Mayor Stark said I was intending to do anyways!_ Jake smiled suddenly before taking out a homemade ninja blinding egg and throwing it at Mayor Stark's face. It hit his face and exploded n a cloud of flour and pepper.

"Ack! What the hell is this...? Pepper...oh shit...ah...ah...AH-CHOO!" Mayor Stark sneezed loudly.

_Poof!_ Suddenly, Mayor Stark transformed into a fluffy, white fox with two tails that was about twice the size of a cat. Jake, who had been about to take off running, turned back around to gawk at the mayor's _true_ form. " _This_ is what you really look like? You look so...darned cute! Can I pet you?" Jake asked tentatively. "What kind of alien is he, Green?"

"Mayor Stark is a _kitsune_ or fox alien. _Kitsune_ aliens like _tanuki_ also have the ability to shape shift." Green quickly explained for Jake's benefit.

Mayor Stark stood up on his hind legs and brandished his sword at Jake. "Shut up, human! I can still take you out even in this form!"

Jake snorted at the sight of the fox wielding a sword and standing on his hind legs. _It's just like Puss in Boots!_ Jake thought before he burst out laughing. "Hahahahah...it's Puss in Boots! You're so...so... _cute_!"

Mayor Stark's eye twitched. "Cute? Cute! Did this human just dare to call _me_ \- the great swordsman known as Silver Fox - cute?! The insolent whelp. Oh, he's dead." The fox alien charged at Jake with his sword raised.

Jake was laughing so hard that he was gripping his sides which were beginning to hurt. He was completely distracted and so didn't even notice that the fox alien was attacking him again.

"Jake- _san_! Look out!" The Green Avenger called out a warning.

Jake looked up just in time to see Mayor Stark lunging at him. The fox had leapt up into the air and was flying towards Jake.

"Holy crap!" Jake panicked and instinctually batted the sword away from him with his bare hand. Mayor Stark and the others watched mystified as Jake's hand temporarily became covered in liquid metal which protected Jake's hand from the move.

The Green Avenger watched this strange phenomena occur with wide eyes. He blinked and rubbed his eyes. For a second there it had appeared as though Jake's hand had turned to metal. _Naw..._

_POW!_ Mayor Stark and his sword were sent flying backwards through the air-

And Mayor Stark's sword broke in half with a loud crack.

But Jake was _not_ pleased. "Oh shit!" He rushed to the fallen _kitsune_ alien's side. "Are you alright? I didn't mean to do that!" Jake cried as he reached out and cradled the small two-tailed fox in his arms gently.

Mayor Stark's eyes were all swirly as he looked up at Jake in shock. "Just what are you? You're not a normal human are you? Are you taking NANO? Are you a cyborg?"

"No...or at least I don't think I'm a cyborg. I just have these weird neo-nanomachines in my body that freak out sometimes." Jake gently set the two-tailed fox down before standing up and offering his hand to Mayor Stark to help him stand.

Mayor Stark gawked at Jake in disbelief. He had just tried to kill this human and now he was showing him concern while trying to help him up? Mayor Stark batted Jake's hand away and stood on his own. He gave Jake a curious look. "Jake...I'd like you to tell me your story. After that I'll decide if you can stay here under the bridge with us. I have a feeling _you_ can't find it too easy blending in with normal human society either. Am I right?"

Jake's heart clenched in his chest painfully at the fox alien's words. Mayor Stark was absolutely right. He didn't fit in with normal human society. "Yea..."

Mayor Stark nodded in understanding. "Come with me. I'll have you tell me your story but don't worry I will keep it confidential. As the mayor and protector of this community, however, I feel I have the right to know the truth about you. I also know that the Green Avenger and the Quarks tried to help you. Depending on your story I may have to punish them. It's funny that they would risk getting thrown out of Brooklyn Prime in order to aid a human. Interesting indeed." Mayor Stark stroked his furry chin.

This was how a white fox standing on his hind legs and who was wearing a top hat began to lead Jake down the riverbank. A bemused smile formed on Jake's face as he looked at the little furry alien walking in front of him. _Makes me think of the white rabbit in Alice in Wonderland._ Jake thought. With a _poof!_ Mayor Stark soon returned to his human form. They had reached a small white house with a tin roof. "This is my home. Please come in." Mayor Stark said kindly as he opened the door and motioned for Jake to follow him inside. Jake entered the small house.

"Please take a seat. Would you like some coffee or tea?" Mayor Stark offered as he made his way into the open kitchen and over to the stove.

"Coffee would be great." Jake said absentmindedly as he took a seat at the only table that Mayor Stark's house had and looked around the mayor's house curiously. It was small but extremely neat, tidy and well kept. Jake couldn't spot a single speck of dust. The décor was art deco and most of the furnishings were white or made of glass.

Mayor Stark walked over to the stove and put a pot of water to boil before getting out a French Press. He put four scoops of coffee into the glass container and once the water was boiled he added it. Stark waited for three minutes before pressing the lid down that separated the coffee grounds from the coffee. He poured the coffee into two white porcelain coffee cups that he then picked up and carried over to the glass table that Jake was already seated at. He set the coffee cup in front of Jake before still holding his own coffee cup in hand and taking a small sip. Mayor Stark hummed appreciatively at the taste of the coffee. "Mmm, coffee one of the greatest things about Earth. So, tell me Jake Lonestar - are you really human?" Mayor Stark gave Jake a pensive look.

"Yea..." Jake scratched his chin feeling awkward. He reached out to hold the coffee cup. It had a warm comforting presence between his two hands.

Mayor Stark frowned and set his coffee cup down on the glass table with a clink. "But you're not a _normal_ human are you?" He pressed.

For some reason the _kitsune_ alien's words stung. "No." Jake admitted.

"Why don't you tell me how that happened, Jake?" Mayor Stark offered as he steepled his fingers in front of him on the table.

Jake sighed and rubbed his temples. "It's a long story..." He warned.

"I've got time." Mayor Stark grinned. "Sugar?" The _kitsune_ alien pushed the sugar jar closer to Jake across the table.

"Oh, err, thanks." Jake began to nervously spoon sugar into his coffee.

_No one has ever believed my story but here goes._ Jake took a deep breath before telling Mayor Stark EVERYTHING. From his encounter with Nova Inara when he was only ten-years-old, how she 'changed' him, how at the age of seventeen his parents were abducted by aliens, how his 'aunt' had suddenly appeared and gotten him out of jail. How she was unexpectedly none other than Dr. Valery the CEO of the NeoTech Corporation.

Mayor Stark listened intently to Jake and only made a few exclamations: "Nova Inara? Dr. Valery the CEO of NeoTech Corporation!"

Jake finished his story and awaited Mayor Stark's judgment and for the mayor to call Jake crazy and a liar. And-

Mayor Stark took a sip of coffee calmly before speaking. "I see. That must have been very hard on you. So Nova Inara injected you with these neo-nanomachines seven years ago. As a result you have superhuman strength you can't seem to control...you make electrical appliances explode randomly...and have unexplainable bouts of magnetism. Then out of the blue your parents were abducted and Dr. Valery the CEO of the NeoTech Corporation shows up posing as your aunt-"

"Posing?" Jake interrupted the _kitsune_ alien, "You think Dr. Valery is impersonating being my aunt? But...I don't get it. For what purpose?" _Though that would explain how she certainly doesn't hesitate to sexually harass me any chance she gets._

"None of these events which occurred are mere coincidence, Jake. There is no such thing as coincidence in life, only _hitsuzen_. Inevitability. Fate. There are some things you should probably know if you intend to live here in NYC.

"Nova Inara did indeed come here seven years ago and is probably the one who 'leaked' the A.I. technology over the Internet. She formed a criminal organization called the Noppera-bō Gang. Or Faceless Ghost Gang. She's currently a well renowned and feared Drug Lord. She manufactures NANO and manages its distribution. She's a very dangerous individual....

"She not only controls the trafficking of NANO, but holds illegal, underground, cyborg death matches, sometimes Death Cube matches that people bet on. She also sometimes sponsors car races where people use advanced alien technology. The Noppera-bō Gang is also in charge of loan sharking and technology theft. She has hundreds of cyborgs and robots under her command. The NYPD was having a hell of a time trying to stop her cyborgs from committing crimes until a special police force was created called the Samurai Superheroes Force or SSF for short.

"Their commander is Dr. Valery CEO of the NeoTech Corporation. She apparently got her hands on some advanced alien technology...what we refer to as E.T. Tech...and that rivals Nova Inara's although only us aliens know about this. The humans think Dr. Valery came up with the Tech all by herself. This Tech is weapons technology that enables the SSF to be able to face the cyborg criminals that are trying to take over the city."

Jake's head was spinning and his eyes had gone swirly. Jake had unwittingly put six spoonfuls of sugar in his coffee and absentmindedly took a sip. "Gah! That's sweet! Aunt Val is the Commander of the SSF...? A special police force that fights cyborg criminals? But...what does any of that have to do with _me_?" Jake squeaked.

Mayor Stark took another sip of his coffee slowly before speaking. "She must have wanted to recruit you for the SSF because of your super strength and because of those unusual neo-nanomachines Nova Inara injected you with."

"Recruit me? To fight criminal cyborgs?" Jake paused before he burst out laughing as if it were the funniest thing he'd ever heard. "Hahahaha! Me? Fight crime? That's just crazy! Impossible! I would never be able to do something like that. I...I'm a total coward!"

"That part I got." Mayor Stark stroked his chin as he eyed Jake thoughtfully. "But you can't deny that you are _strong_."

"Pfft." Jake snorted. "It's not strength - it's a curse. I can't control it. I'm always causing trouble, chaos, and destruction. And I even accidentally hurt people like...how I hurt you." Jake clenched his fists out of frustration. "Dammit...people can't even use electrical devices around me because I might blow them up! I'm a walking disaster zone! I'm nothing but a nuisance just like how I've caused trouble for the Green Avenger, and Mr. and Mrs. Quark. Even though they were so kind to me I couldn't help them and I can't do anything to repay their kindness." Jake hung his head sadly.

Mayor Stark frowned. "If you want to help them, then help them. Stop being such a coward." The mayor sighed. "After hearing your story I've decided to let you live here at Brooklyn Prime - that is, if you want."

Jake's eyes widened in surprise. "You'll let me live here? But...I'm _human_ and everyone else who lives here is an alien. What will they all think about having a _human_ in their midst?" _Not to mention I'm pretty sensitive, what if they pick on me or bully me...I don't think I can really handle that._

"Hmm that's a good point but...what they don't know won't hurt them." Mayor Stark walked over to a white dresser and pulled open one of the drawers. He reached inside and pulled something out. He then walked over to Jake and handed him the item. "Here. Put this on."

Jake blinked down at a headband that had two antennas and that had glittered green and silver balls attached to the tops of the antenna. His eye twitched. "You can't be serious..." _He can't seriously want me to wear these TeleTubby antenna things!_

Mayor Stark gave Jake a bland look. "Dead serious."

Jake swallowed nervously before putting on the _TeleTubby_ headband. Whatever was left of his male pride crumbled to dust and was blown away by an invisible wind.

Mayor Stark nodded approvingly. "Alright, good. When you're here at Brooklyn Prime you're a Martian and when you're in the city you're yourself...got it?"

Jake nodded. "Yea..." _Is this stupid headband really going to be enough to fool the aliens living here into believing I'm one of them? Aliens must be really naïve..._

Mayor Stark stood up from the glass table and made his way towards the door of his small home while motioning for Jake to follow him. "Come. I will arrange a community meeting so that you can be introduced to everyone here. The Green Avenger and the Quarks already know that you're human and seem to be okay with it so that shouldn't be a problem. Who I'm worried about is Zoe." Mr. Stark frowned thoughtfully. "She _really_ hates humans. I guess I'll just have to personally tell her not to tell anyone. That will be for your own protection, Jake."

"Why does she hate humans so much?" Jake asked curiously.

"Zoe is a plant alien, Jake. I don't know if you realize this but...currently human beings are doing a bang up job to destroy Mother Earth. 27,000 plant and animal species go extinct every year. That's at a rate of three per hour. This is attributed to _human_ factors - population growth, chemical use, and over-hunting and trading. The rainforests once covered fourteen percent of the earth's land surface - now they cover six percent. Experts estimate in less than forty years the remaining rainforests will be consumed. Experts also estimate that the ocean's fish could disappear by 2050."

"Wait...what?" Jake questioned, baffled. "I've never heard about any of this."

Mr. Stark gave Jake a bland look. "What do they teach human kids in schools these days? Obviously, nothing of import. Humans no longer know how to appreciate the gifts that God has given us in nature. Teenagers today would prefer to buy a plastic and metal phone than discover a plant in the rainforest that can cure a disease. You humans are losing Earth's greatest biological treasure just as you humans were beginning to appreciate its true value. Experts agree that by leaving the rainforest intact and harvesting its many nuts, fruits, and oil-producing plants and medicinal plants the rainforest has more economic value than if it's cut down to make grazing land for cattle and for timber.

"The latest statistics show that rainforest land converted to cattle operations yields the land owner sixty dollars per acre and if timber is harvested the land is worth four hundred dollars per acre. However, if these renewable and sustainable resources are harvested, the land will yield the landowner two thousand four hundred dollars per acre. If managed properly the rainforest can provide the world's need for these natural resources on a perpetual basis, but human beings seem to be too stupid to realize this fact."

"Er, I'm sorry...for being human." Jake apologized.

Mayor Stark's eyes widened at the sincerity in Jake's voice and he shrugged. "Don't apologize. Perhaps, if there were more humans like you Jake the world wouldn't be in its current state."

Jake shook his head. "Even if I wanted to help...there's nothing I can really do."

"It's that kind of thinking that's going to cause the ocean to be devoid of fish by 2050." Mayor Stark shot back.

"Good point." Jake scratched his head. "Gee, why are humans such morons?"

"We've been trying to figure that out for some time and have yet to come up with an answer." Mayor Stark grinned in amusement to Jake's self-deprecating behavior.

"Thanks for the lesson, Teach. I guess I'll start with just not eating fish that's been caught in gillnets." Jake nodded dumbly as he stood up from his chair and chugged the rest of his coffee before following the fox alien outside.

"Well, you can start out by not consuming fish that's becoming endangered because of over-fishing like Bluefin tuna, Red Snapper, Atlantic Cod, Chilean Sea bass, Orange Roughy, and Spiny Lobster." Mayor Stark informed Jake helpfully.

It didn't take long for a large group of aliens to gather before Mayor Stark's house for the Brooklyn Prime community meeting. Jake watched intrigued as _kappa_ aliens began to emerge from out of the river. They were all green-skinned, had messy mops of black hair on their heads, beak-like mouths, turtle shells on their backs and were all wearing similarly green colored bodysuits.

_They really do look just like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles._ Jake nodded to himself knowingly, but wisely decided to keep this observation to himself.

Soon after, the other inhabitants of Brooklyn Prime began to emerge from their tiny homes - the _kitsune_ and _tanuki_ aliens were all in their human forms, but Jake noticed that they all had Asian features. Jake supposed this was probably because they had originally lived in Japan and learned to mimic those kinds of facial features first. Jake could see the occasional set of fuzzy ears peeking out from their hair or tail swishing behind them. Apparently, these _tanuki_ and _kitsune_ aliens had a hard time keeping their human transformations in check.

Jake then caught sight of the golden-skinned alien babe. A wolfish smile formed on his face as he waved over to her goofily. She noticed and glared back at him with a condescending expression on her face before flipping her long red pigtails over her shoulder in a snobby gesture.

As he was obliviously waving in Zoe's direction a man passed him by and slammed into Jake's shoulder on purpose. "Ow!" Jake complained and rubbed his hurt shoulder. "Hey man, that hurt-" Jake was saying before he caught sight of who was passing him. Jake swallowed and laughed nervously. "Nevermind."

The man who had bumped into Jake smiled in a feral manner before continuing on his way. The man was definitely an alien and he really stood out. He appeared to be some kind of cross between a tiger and a man. He had orange fur on his face and cat ears. He had an eye patch over his left eye, and was wearing a flashy, long, red and black trench coat. He wore a three-pointed hat on his head that Jake thought looked a lot like a pirate hat. The man was wearing a pair of black combat boots and Jake also noticed a blaster strapped to his side that looked exactly like the gun that the Galaxy Police Officer Astra had used in her fight against Nova Inara.

"Hey, there's Jake!" The Green Avenger, Questa and Quentin had arrived for the community meeting and quickly made their way over to Jake. As soon as the Green Avenger was close enough Jake inconspicuously pointed to the half-man half-cat. "Hey Green, who's that furry guy?"

The Green Avenger followed the direction Jake was pointing with his eyes. "Ah, that's Linx - he's an ex-space pirate captain. He was chased all over the galaxy by Zoe. However, she suddenly stopped chasing him and decided to retire here on Earth for some reason. Apparently, he tracked her down here though I'm not really sure why."

"Zoe...?" Jake blinked slowly.

Green leaned forward conspiratorially. "Yep, Zoe used to be a Galactic Bounty Hunter! She was pretty famous."

Jake's eyes grew wide. "A bounty hunter?! No way."

"Linx is completely gaga over Zoe, but she won't give him the time of day. It's pretty sad really." The Green Avenger put his hands out and shook his head in a helpless gesture.

"Zoe- _channn_!" Linx exclaimed. His eyes were currently two gigantic pink hearts. "Look what I got you!" He spun dramatically in her direction and offered her a gigantic fish that looked like some kind of salmon.

Zoe gave Linx a disgusted look. "How many times do I have to tell you - I only need to consume sunlight, _baka!_ " Zoe hit Linx over the head with a _BAM!_ and he dropped his fish, which Zoe began to stomp on cruelly. Linx sniffled, and looked up at Zoe all teary-eyed. "Zoeeeee~" He moaned pathetically. However -

_Zchoom! Zchoom! Zchoom!_ Red lazer beams flew through the air in Linx's direction all of a sudden. Jake recognized that ominous sound of a blaster being fired and which sent a chill down his spine. He was also able to instantly recognize the dangerous lazer beams that were flying through the air.

"Look out, dude!" Jake called out a warning to the cat alien man.

However, in a fluid and graceful motion, Zoe whipped out an energy saber and blocked the lazer beams easily. The energy saber had been strapped to her upper thigh and had been concealed beneath her petal-skirt.

"Tsk." Came a disappointed sounding voice and another alien babe made her grand entrance. She had short, dark blue and white highlighted hair that had been cut chin length and that flipped out at the ends. She had straight bangs, which gave her a serious look and drew Jake's attention to her dark blue eyes. She had extremely pale, powder blue skin, but he noticed that there appeared to be blue gills on the sides of her face. This young alien woman was much taller than Zoe at six feet one inch. Apparently, she was some kind of aquatic alien or fish alien. She also had a few shimmering scales on her face. She was wearing a tight blue, black and silver bodysuit that Jake recognized as a Galaxy Police uniform since it had the letters 'GXP' in black across her chest. The tightness of her bodysuit showed off the young woman's voluptuous curves.

"A Galaxy Police Officer!" Jake blurted and staggered backwards in shock. _What the hell is she doing here? Is she looking for Nova Inara?_

The Green Avenger shot Jake a curious look. _I wonder how Jake-san knows about the Galaxy Police. Isn't he supposed to be human?_

"Tsk. Stop getting in my way, Zoe." The young fish-woman growled.

"Just stay out of mine, Astra. Linx's head is _mine_!" Zoe spat back with her hands on her hips.

"No, it's mine!" The female Galaxy Police Officer argued and the two young women glared at each other with lightning seeming to flash between their gazes.

Linx was looking back and forth between the two women with a worried expression on his face.

The ex-bounty hunter and Galaxy Police Officer began to duke it out.

"Cat fight. Or should I say alien babe fight." Jake's eyes turned into two hearts as he watched the two alien girls fighting and a leer formed on his face. There was just something about two girls fighting that was _hot_. _Now, if only they were naked and there was some mud._ "It seems to _me_ that they're both fighting over Linx. Wouldn't that mean that both girls like Linx but are just in denial?" Jake stroked his chin in a thoughtful manner.

The Green Avenger looked horrified by what Jake had just boldly stated. "Jake...you can't say that...they'll...uh oh...oh shit..." The Green Avenger spotted something behind Jake and was now backing away from him.

The hair on the back of Jake's neck prickled in warning. Jake turned around and felt this aura of malevolent intent directed his way suddenly. _Uh oh. This is so not good._

Both the alien ex-bounty hunter and the Galaxy Police Officer had turned to glare at Jake fiercely. Lock on.

"What did you just say?" Zoe demanded.

"How dare he?" Astra raised her blaster and pointed it at Jake. "Let's kill him."

"For once, I couldn't agree more, Astra." Zoe raised her energy saber and took a fighting stance.

Jake raised a trembling hand at Astra. "Howdy, I don't believe we've met yet. My name is Jake Lonestar." Jake began to hastily greet Astra. "You must be from another planet because your body is out of this world."

Astra gave Jake a look of disbelief before she frowned at him. "He's not only a busybody but he's a pervert too!"

The two alien women continued to stalk towards Jake menacingly with their weapons raised. _Epp! Mommy!_ Jake took off running down the riverbank. The two alien girls looked at each other in disbelief before chasing after Jake.

"Hey! Get your ass back here, you coward!" Zoe shouted after him.

"You! Stop! You're under arrest!" Astra joined in.

As Jake - the newest resident of Brooklyn Prime - was being chased by two hot alien babes and dodging lazer beams and energy saber jabs while wearing a dorky, TeleTubby headband that made him look like a gay Martian, Mayor Stark cleared his throat to get everyone's attention and began to speak:

"Denizens of Brooklyn Prime! May I have your attention please? I have gathered you all here tonight to introduce you to a new addition to our fair community! I'd like you all to meet Jake Lonestar - he's a Martian!" Mayor Stark swung his cane (he had a spare back at his house) in Jake's direction.

The attention of the inhabitants of Brooklyn Prime turned to Jake who was currently being hunted by Zoe and Astra. At first everyone felt trickles of sweat form on the sides of their head until they began to watch as Jake managed to avoid lazer beams and saber swipes, and then they all became impressed. The people of Brooklyn Prime began to 'Ooo' and 'Ahhh' and clap at Jake's feat of actually managing to avoid Zoe and Astra's deadly, skillful attacks.

The Green Avenger watched Jake being chased by the beautiful Astra and pouted. "No fair...I wanna be chased by Astra too. He really is a superhero. They always get the girl." The Green Avenger's eyes turned into two stars as he admired Jake and his romancing skills. The Green Avenger nodded to himself knowingly and decided to take notes. _Yep, Jake-san is sure popular with the ladies!_

While on the inside Jake was currently flipping out: _I'm so going to die! Why me?! Such misfortune! So troublesome! I'm so unluckyyyy! Someone save meeee!_

Even Linx let out an impressed whistle. "That kid's pretty agile. He'd make a good pirate. If it's one thing us space pirates are good at it's running away!" Linx chuckled to himself before he realized that he had just complimented the man who was currently getting _chased_ by the lovely Zoe and the lovely Astra. Link frowned feeling jealousy well up inside of his chest from Jake stealing the attention of the alien girls. "Pfft. What's so special about that stupid Martian...Zoeeee~" He moaned dramatically while trying to get her attention. Linx was ignored. "Grrrr Jake Lonestar...you'll pay for taking Zoe's eyes off of me!" Linx began to chew angrily on the sleeve of his pirate jacket.

***

Astra tripped over a rock on the muddy riverbank and cried out as she hit the ground. Jake immediately stopped running and turned back around to see if Astra was all right. He walked over to her and held his hand out to the Galaxy Police officer that had been pursuing him only seconds before. "Are you alright?" Jake questioned.

Astra looked up at the strange Martian in surprise and allowed Jake to help her up.

"I'm fine. Thanks." She declared before slapping a handcuff on his wrist. She grinned triumphantly. "Gotcha."

"Oh crap." Jake frowned as he realized he'd fallen right into Astra's trap. That's when he caught sight of something silvery out of the corner of his eye and spotted a pendant that Astra must have dropped when she fell. Jake stooped to pick up the pendant and noticed that it was a diamond shaped piece of metal with a strangely familiar symbol on it. The symbol was a circle with a line piercing through it vertically while a curved line pierced through the middle of the circle horizontally. It kind of looked like a horned demon with a sword piercing through it.

As soon as Jake saw the symbol however he gripped his head in pain as he remembered having seen the symbol somewhere before, but it had been buried so deeply within his memory that he couldn't recall it.

Jake dropped to his knees and gripped his head in pain as his hand clenched around the piece of metal. The fiery image of the symbol was burning brightly in Jake's mind.

Astra knelt by Jake's side with a concerned expression on her face. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Jake looked up at Astra. "Astra...what is this symbol? What does it mean? Where does it come from?" He held the pendant out to her.

Astra took the pendant from Jake and blinked at the symbol on it. "Ah. This? This is the symbol of the Dragon Aliens. They're the Most Wanted Galactic Criminals. Why?"

"Dragon Aliens?" Jake shook his head. "No reason...but why do you have such a thing with you?"

A dark expression crossed Astra's face and she let out a sigh as she responded. "The Dragon Aliens killed my family and conquered my home planet. They left this behind...it's a reminder for me of who my real enemy is."

Jake's eyes widened in surprise at this revelation. He opened his mouth to say he was sorry he asked something so personal, but by that time Zoe had caught up to them.

"Astra! Get away from my prey!" Zoe declared as she leapt up into the air and whipping out her energy saber brought it down upon the handcuffs that had still been linking Astra and Jake together. The energy saber easily cut through the handcuffs and Jake rubbed his wrist as he realized that he was free again.

Jake grinned. "Thanks babe!" Jake declared before running off down the riverbank once more.

Astra gaped after Jake in shock. "Ah! Zoe! You just let him get away!"

"I did not." Zoe huffed, hands on her hips. "Hurry up! We need to catch him." Zoe took off after Jake once more.

Astra let out another sigh but then she took off running after Jake too. She was curious though about Jake's reaction to the symbol of the Dragon Aliens. _Just what are you hiding, Jake? Whatever it is, I'll find out._

***

This is how Jake Lonestar came to be living under the Brooklyn Bridge with a bunch of crazy aliens in a secret community called Brooklyn Prime. As it so happened, Questa and Quentin owned a comic book store on Canal Street in the heart of New York City. The _tanuki_ alien couple was graciously letting Jake stay at their home and sleep on their only couch. Questa was also feeding him, so essentially he was getting free room and board from the Quarks. He really wanted to do something in return and told them so. The _tanuki_ couple immediately decided to put Jake to work at the comic book store that was called: _Mom and Pop's Comics_.

The next day, the Green Avenger offered to accompany Jake to the comic book store where he would start working. As the Green Avenger led Jake through the busy NYC streets cyborgs, androids, and robots also passed them by, as well as nicely dressed businessmen and women. The androids and robots were easy to spot because they all had a single metal antenna on the top of their heads that had a round metal ball on the very top.

Jake looked at the Green Avenger out of the corner of his eye and took in his green, spandex bodysuit, full face mask, the black letter 'A' that was on the center of his forehead, his shiny black boots, utility belt and shook his head. Sure, the cyborgs got people's attention, but New Yorkers were used to seeing cyborgs and robots now, so had already been de-sensitized to their metal arms or metal antenna poking out of the tops of their heads.

But as for the Green Avenger's unique fashion statement? Jake was quite sure humanity wasn't ready to accept _that_ just yet. "Dude...do you really walk around dressed like that all the time?"

The Green Avenger frowned. "Yes, I'm a superhero, I have to be in disguise at all times in order to protect my real identity."

"Pffft." Jake snorted. "Superhero...you're weak man..."

The Green Avenger blushed beneath his mask and was glad Jake couldn't see the face he was making. "So?! You don't need to be strong to be a superhero - you just need to be able to _help_ people...!"

Jake appeared to be unconvinced. "Uh huh."

The Green Avenger frowned. "Besides this city is full of them." The Green Avenger crossed his arms over his chest and gave Jake an expectant look.

"Full of what?" Jake asked absentmindedly as a cute android and her master passing them by on the street distracted him. It suddenly reminded him of the android maid that had almost raped him back at the mansion and Jake's eyes widened. _Ah! Ultraviolet! I completely forgot about her! Damn, I should have taken her with me. I hope she's okay..._

"Superheroes of course, you _baka_. See, look over there." The Green Avenger pointed.

Jake looked over to where the Green Avenger was pointing and his eyes widened when he spotted a man dressed in a black bodysuit, red cape, and who had a domino mask on his face. Walking with the man was a woman dressed in a similar outfit. She had on a skintight, black bodysuit, and had a domino mask on her face, and was wearing an extremely tall pair of high-heeled shoes.

_Superheroes...? No way...Dude..._ Jake almost fell over as he continued to turn to look at the superhero couple as they passed Green and him by.

A cocky smirk formed on the Green Avenger's face. "You see, I told ya. Ah, we're here." Jake and the Green Avenger had arrived at the comic book store.

Jake looked up at the storefront curiously. The building wasn't very large and only had two floors. A simple sign that read: _Mom and Pop's Comics_ hung directly over the front door. Colorful superhero memorabilia could be seen in the two front store windows that were on either side of the main door. Jake could see cardboard cutouts of superheroes such as: Spiderman, the Green Lantern, Batman, Superman, and Captain America. There were also posters of these comic book series on the walls, and the comics themselves were displayed in the window and on bookshelves inside of the store. It was any teenage boy's paradise on earth. Jake's eyes sparkled as he caught sight of all those comic books.

Jake loved comics. After the Lonestar's TV had to be thrown away due to his 'condition' the Lonestars had gotten into reading classic American literature - while Jake and his sister Bonnie had gotten into comic books. Comic books had been there for him, in good times and bad, through thick and thin, when Jake was alone and friendless because he was such a freak...comic books had been there. They had provided Jake with a necessary escape from his crappy reality.

Jake got to read tons of stories about guys who due to a strange series of circumstances inherited 'super powers', learned how to control their 'super powers' and then became _superheroes_ themselves.

Jake could really relate to characters like Spider Man who hadn't had a _choice_ about their powers - it had just _happened_. He could relate to the Hulk about how incredible strength could be nothing but a burden. He could relate to Static Shock when he accidentally made electrical appliances explode. He could relate to Magneto when he accidentally produced magnetism that made kitchen knives go zooming his way. Jake shared a special bond with these comic book superheroes.

Jake shook his head. His _own_ powers made no sense. They were just stupid, useless and dangerous. Deep deep down though, an idea, or the seed of an idea had been forming due to reading these comic books. Jake wondered what would happen if he actually learned how to control his powers? Could he become a superhero? And if so what kind of a superhero would he be?

If the impossible were possible, and he could actually become a superhero he would want to become one with a cowboy theme. He could picture an ideal version of himself as a superhero clearly in his mind: he'd have an awesome horse that would come when he whistled from miles away. He'd wield a rifle and a whip, kinda like a young Indiana Jones. He could also fling horseshoes at his enemies. He'd definitely have a nice, new Stetson hat and a pair of cowboy boots with spurs that shone in the sun blinding his enemies.

But in reality, he'd probably accidentally kill a real horse. He didn't even know how to shoot a rifle. Or use a whip. He was bad at throwing things. He didn't have a cool hat or boots. He was just Jake Lonestar. And Jake Lonestar was a loser with no job and no money. He was a cowardly, lazy, unmotivated, not very smart, kind of a pervert, and cursed with destructive strength. Jake Lonestar was always blowing up electrical appliances or making sharp, dangerous objects zoom his way every once in a while.

He was no superhero. He was a natural human disaster.

But even so, Jake still loved comic books. "Cool." He said breathlessly before he and the Green Avenger entered the comic book store.

Quentin was currently standing behind the checkout counter. "Welcome - ah, Jake, Green Avenger. You made it." He walked around the counter and approached. "I have some errands I need to go do so it'd be great if you could watch the store for me. Now, there's no electrical register...so that shouldn't be a problem. The cash box is right there...you can use the calculator to figure out the sales. You can't blow up a calculator can you?" Quentin raised an eyebrow at Jake questionably.

Jake grinned and shook his head. "I don't think so, Sir. I'll try my best not to."

Quentin nodded and gave Jake a warm smile. "Good boy...I'll be back in a few hours. Have fun boys. Make lots of sales!"

" 'kay." Jake agreed.

Jake and the Green Avenger shared a surprised look that they had been left to watch the store just like that. Quentin sure was trusting. Jake looked around the comic book store and smiled. He just couldn't wipe off the grin that had formed on his face. This was like the _perfect_ job for him. He couldn't break a comic book. And there were barely any electrical devices in the place for Jake to screw with. Jake would also get to read as many comic books as he wanted, all day long or for as long as he liked. He would also get to read the latest new releases of current comic series he was reading for _free_. Comic books were also something that Jake actually knew something about, so any questions costumers had related to comic books, well, Jake had ALL the answers. This could very well have been Jake's dream job.

Jake was scanning the shelves and slightly salivating when his eyes landed upon a comic book he had never seen before. Curious, he pulled it out and looked at the cover, which read: _The Great Adventures of the Mighty Green Avenger!!!_

Yes, there were three exclamation marks in the actual title.

"That's quite a mouthful." Jake's eye twitched. _The Green Avenger? No way._ He looked at the drawing of the Green Avenger on the cover and was surprised that it did in fact resemble the _kappa_ alien's costume almost perfectly.

"Dude...no way..." Jake hurriedly began to flip through the pages and saw that in the comic the Green Avenger could kick some serious ass using his martial arts skills, high tech gadgets, and inventions. He was also able to spit stuff at villains that looked like some kind of slippery, liquid goo or slime that the Green Avenger used to trip up the bad guys who were chasing after him. "This is pretty cool...how much is this thing?" Jake turned the comic around and his eyes bulged due to the price, which read: $45.00. "Forty five dollars?!" Jake exclaimed loudly. "What the hell...?!" Jake ran over to the Green Avenger to show him the comic book. "Dude...tell me what the deal is with this comic book? Is that really you? And why is this comic so damned expensive?"

The Green Avenger blushed under his mask. "Ah, err, you see...yes, that's really me and the comic is so expensive because it's self-published. I wrote, illustrated, and published the comic myself. I know it's not much, ah..." The Green Avenger trailed off in an embarrassed manner.

But Jake was impressed and his eyes sparkled. "You actually drew this comic book? Wow...the illustrations, character designs, and backgrounds are actually really professionally drawn. It's really high quality. I'm surprised you couldn't get it published with a real publishing house."

"Really?" The Green Avenger had a hopeful look on his face.

"Although the plot itself is cliché and predictable. And it's not very believable that this lanky guy is a babe magnet...they never even get to see his face. Why would all the ladies be swooning after him?" Jake thought he should point out.

The Green Avenger hung his head, dejected.

"But it's really cool nonetheless. So, you like comics too? Well, I guess you'd have to since you decided to be a superhero..." Jake trailed off beginning to sound excited.

The Green Avenger looked up and gave Jake a lopsided grin as he nodded. "Yea." He could tell that comic books were something that Jake- _san_ seemed to be really passionate about.

The boys began to discuss all of their favorite comics and comic book characters. Ah, male bonding. "My comic has a small cult following..." The Green Avenger revealed proudly as he took out a mini laptop, flipped it open and began to connect to the Internet via WiFi. "Stand back so you don't make my laptop explode. I'll bring up the comic book's website so I can show it to you. Damn, if I wasn't so poor I'd get myself one of those fembot computers, maybe even an android computer though those are even more expensive. Some of those androids can be really hot." The Green Avenger said shyly and looked nervously out of the corner of his eyes for Jake's reaction. Not everyone accepted such comments about A.I.

Jake thought about Ultraviolet and grinned goofily. "Yea...they can be really hot..." He agreed immediately.

The Green Avenger let out a breath of relief, glad that Jake hadn't judged him for his android fetish and brought the comic book's website up on screen. The Green Avenger then began to navigate around the site so that Jake could check it out without having to touch his laptop. Jake noticed a section that was labeled 'videos' that looked interesting.

"What's in the video section, Green?" Jake asked the Green Avenger curiously.

"Ah~ videos of my heroic exploits in real life, of course!" He quickly clicked on the 'videos' button and several YouTube videos popped up. "Like this time I saved this woman's cat..." The Green Avenger clicked open the video and it began to play on screen.

Jake watched as the Green Avenger began to climb a tree to get to a cat that was sitting on a high branch. The cat clawed at the Green Avenger's face as soon as he got too close and once the Green Avenger finally managed to grab the cat he ended up falling right out of the tree where he hit the ground with a painful sounding THWACK. Jake cringed. _Ow. That had to hurt._ He was having sympathy pains. He was slightly impressed though as he continued to watch when he saw that the Green Avenger quickly stood up as if nothing had happened to him and struck a heroic pose with the cat in his grasp while trying to look cool for the camera.

Jake burst out laughing. The effect may have worked if it hadn't been for the leaves stuck to his bodysuit or the visible tears on his costume from the cat's razor-sharp claws. With blood gushing down the side of his head he handed the cat back to a worried looking, little old lady who had been waiting close by on the sidewalk.

"Dude...you fell." Jake felt the need to point out. " _Lame_." Jake finished in a singsong voice.

"No, I didn't!" The Green Avenger burst out, aghast. "I did that on purpose. That was me _jumping_ out of the tree, not falling, and that was my _special_ landing."

"Uh huh." Jake spotted another video labeled 'ass whopping'. "Hey, what's that?"

"Hmmm I don't know..." The Green Avenger frowned suddenly. "It's a member posted video." The Green Avenger clicked on it and the video began to play:

The Flip Video was of a teenaged girl, who was being cornered in a dark alley by some cyborgs. On the ground were the unconscious bodies of several New York Police officers. But then the Green Avenger suddenly appeared and demanded that they leave the girl alone. The cyborgs approached him and he spit some slippery goop at their feet so that they all slipped and fell flat on their faces. The Green Avenger grabbed onto the girl's wrist and quickly ran with her out of the alley. He then ran back to the alleyway and blocked the exit so that the cyborgs would have to go through him first before being able to pursue the girl. The high school girl didn't look back as she ran down the sidewalk.

Jake held his breath as he watched the Green Avenger blocking the exit with his body and as the Green Avenger raised his fists before him, prepared to actually fight those scary looking cyborgs. Jake was impressed, the Green Avenger was brave standing up to those guys. Jake would have run a long time ago. Jake licked his lips as he leaned forward, closer to the screen, ready to watch the Green Avenger kick some serious ass.

The Green Avenger swung his fist at one of the cyborgs - and missed spectacularly. The cyborgs turned to look at each other with amused expressions on their faces before they began to laugh menacingly. They cracked their knuckles before approaching the Green Avenger, who even though Jake could see his legs were trembling continued to stand his ground.

"Shit..." Jake muttered as he watched the video. "Why didn't you just run away...I would have just run away..."

And then the cyborgs grabbed the Green Avenger and proceeded to beat the SHIT out of him. _BAM! POW! KA-POW!_ Jake flinched and cringed and was again having sympathy pains. "Ooo~ owww...damn. That had to hurt..." Jake turned to give the Green Avenger an incredulous look. "Dude. Why didn't you just run away?"

The Green Avenger puffed out his chest. "A true superhero never runs away from a villain. That would be cowardly."

Jake frowned at that. "So what? You could have been _killed_! You could have _died_!" Jake argued.

"So?" The Green Avenger shot back, beginning to sound angry. "I'm a superhero Jake. Fighting evil villains is what I _do_." The Green Avenger crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yea, right...more like you let your ass get kicked by the evil villains and for what?" Jake argued while giving the Green Avenger a skeptical look.

The Green Avenger's attention was on the screen once again. The video had a single comment left from an anonymous visitor. 'Thank you.' It simply read. The Green Avenger smiled to himself. That simple thank you made all those punches and kicks he had taken all worth it. "You just don't get it." The Green Avenger challenged with a strange smile on his face.

"Yea...you're right. I don't." Jake frowned at the green superhero. "So why 'The Green Avenger'? Superheroes with 'green' in their name is a bit over done, don't you think? I mean there's already the Green Hornet, the Green Lantern, the Green Arrow and the villain the Green Goblin."

"Bro...don't dis the classics. Obviously they were all very smart to chose their names because there is just something cool about the word 'green' and the color too." The Green Avenger nodded knowingly to himself.

"Pfft." Jake snorted. "What's wrong with the word 'red' for instance. You would have been the Red Avenger."

"Jake, Jake, Jake..." The Green Avenger shook his head at Jake and gave him a pitying look. "Red is a villain color."

Jake raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? Then what about Iron Man or Hellboy, huh?"

The Green Avenger's eye twitched. "Uh...no comment..."

A few hours later, Quentin returned and the three of them continued to watch the store together. Jake even got to help out a few customers, _and_ didn't blow anything up - all in all it had been a perfect day, until:

The bell above the entrance door jingled when five men dressed sinisterly in black suits with dark Ray-Ban wayfarer sunglasses on their faces entered the comic book store.

"Wel-" Quentin's words died on his tongue as he caught sight of who had just entered the store, and he gulped.

"Mr. Quark. I hope that today you have the money that you owe us..." One of the men, who had a dark goatee, stepped forward and gave Quentin a scrutinizing look while rubbing his hands together expectantly.

Quentin suddenly looked nervous and wrung his hands together. Jake noticed he was sweating bullets and to Jake's horror he saw the fox alien's tail pop out into existence behind him. _Uh oh. So not good._ "I, err, if you could please just give me a little more time..."

"Time?" Goatee drawled, "You've had more than enough time to pay back the loan you took to keep this pathetic little store running. It's like you don't know how to make sales, old man." Goatee picked up a comic book and gave it a disgusted look before tossing it aside.

"Ah, it's because of the recession my sales have slowed down...high school kids don't have as much money to spend here these days." Quentin hastily began to explain, hoping to appeal to the loan shark. "It's greatly affected our business but...I'm sure we'll pull through. December is just a few months away. If only you could give us more time..." Quentin gave the loan shark a beseeching look.

But the loan shark's expression remained as cold as ice. "You have until tomorrow to pay me back the money you owe me or I'll have to get the money from you some other way..." Suddenly a vicious smile formed on the man's face. "It's a real shame about Quinn. We could have put him to work for us." Goatee laughed evilly. "But I suppose if we harvest your internal organs we might be able to come up with what we need." The loan shark raised his hand and Jake watched in horror as a gigantic dagger erupted from the palm of his hand.

Jake's eyes widened. _He's a cyborg!_

The loan shark approached Quentin and ran his dagger over the frightened man's chest. "And if your organs aren't enough we'll harvest the organs from your little wife too...got it?"

"I...I...yes, I understand..." Quentin wrung his hands together. "So please..."

The loan shark laughed as he pulled back the dagger. "Until tomorrow Mr. Quark. You had better have my money or else. Let's go boys."

"Right boss." The other loan sharks responded gruffly.

The Green Avenger was pissed, and had his fists clenched at his sides. "Damned cyborg loan sharks...shit, someone should teach them a lesson. I'm going after them!" The Green Avenger declared and headed for the door.

"Ack!" Jake reached out and grabbed his shoulder in order to stop him. "Where do you think you're going?! You're no match for those guys! You'll just get your ass kicked and Mr. Quark might get punished for your actions. Do you want to cause Mr. Quark trouble, Green?"

The Green Avenger turned around and looked conflicted. "No..." He began in a frustrated tone.

Jake let go of his shoulder and turned to face Mr. Quark. "Old man, what do you intend to do?"

Quentin had a pair of fuzzy brown ears now to go with his tail, he was so nervous. "I...I don't know." Quentin put his head in the palms of his hands and sighed heavily. "I knew it was stupid to borrow money from them. They work for the Noppera-bō Gang...the very same gang that is responsible for my son's disappearance. But...the recession has hit our business hard. We couldn't pay our rent and I needed a loan. None of the banks would give me a loan either...for some reason. And then I remembered about these guys...maybe if I could somehow sell the business but...I would need a buyer...and no one has that kind of money right now...I'm doomed..." Quentin sunk to his knees as his strength suddenly left him.

Jake frowned at the broken man. What the Quarks needed was a superhero. A _real_ superhero. He, on the other hand, couldn't do jack shit to help the Quarks. He was completely useless...

Jake was angry and frustrated. He felt powerless but at the same time he was afraid of those scary lone sharks. They weren't even _normal_ scary loan sharks but _cyborg_ loan sharks! It couldn't get any worse.

Jake told Mr. Quark to go home and that he would watch the store with Green until closing time. Jake walked behind the counter and banged his head against the counter repeatedly. _This totally sucks!_ His sweet ass job was about to be ripped away from him. He sighed. He should have expected this. Good things never last forever. He knew deep down that there had been something fishy with his current luck and happiness. Of course, it hadn't been destined to last. Jake was not surprised. He should have expected this. Happiness had become such a foreign feeling that he almost hadn't recognized it. But things were already returning back to normal. His happiness would be snatched away from him very soon.

And once again Jake Lonestar would just watch from the sidelines and do nothing as it happened because Jake Lonestar was a lazy coward.

The Green Avenger gave Jake a concerned look but was at a loss for words. After 6 PM rolled around the two boys closed the comic book store and headed back to Brooklyn Prime in a depressed silence. The Green Avenger walked Jake to the _tanuki_ aliens' house and dropped him off.

"Night Jake- _san_." The Green Avenger said in a listless tone.

"Night..." Jake replied back, just as lack-luster, before opening the door to the _tanuki_ 's house. Jake walked inside and the smell of fried fish and mashed potatoes wafted to his nose. "Mmmm that smells really good Mrs. Quark!" Jake declared, grinning from ear-to-ear as he entered the tiny dwelling and closed the door behind him.

A blush spread across Mrs. Quark's cheeks as she continued to stir the garlic mashed potatoes at the stove. "Oh no, it will probably be just sufficient." And _poof!_ she turned into a _tanuki_ since she had been so pleased by his praise and embarrassed by it.

Jake chuckled. He looked over to see Mr. Quark silently sitting at the table while reading a newspaper, and trying to appear calm and at ease. But Jake noticed that the newspaper he was reading was upside down. Fail.

These _tanuki_ aliens...these people...had been so kind to him. They had taken him in, no questions asked, fed him, given him shelter, a roof over his head, food, and a place to sleep. He owed them.

_I'm no superhero but I won't let anything happen to these kind people. I won't let the people I care about be taken away from me right in front of my eyes again. This time I'll make it clear and say: Take me instead._ Jake silently vowed to himself.

Jake ate a peaceful dinner with Mr. and Mrs. Quark. It reminded him with a pang how family dinners at the Lonestar Ranch had used to be. After dinner Jake went to lay down on the couch so that he could sleep and stared up at the tin roof of the simple dwelling. He would have liked to help Mrs. Quark with the dishes, but he knew he'd have ended up breaking them.

Once Jake was sure that Mr. and Mrs. Quark were fast asleep in their shared bed Jake stood up and walked over to pick up the framed family photograph of the Quarks that was sitting on the kitchen cupboard. Jake looked down at Quinn and frowned. _These kind people have suffered enough. I may be a lazy coward but there's something that even I should be able to do..._

### Chapter 5: Holy, Battle Maid!

A few days later, Quentin was at the comic book store while awaiting the arrival of the Noppera-bō Gang's loan sharks while wringing his hands together. A habit that Jake had noticed the _tanuki_ alien had formed. "What should I do? What'll I do? I couldn't find a buyer on such short notice. I'll have to ask them for more time..." Quentin stammered in a low, hushed voice to Jake and the Green Avenger who were at the comic book store helping out.

Jake frowned at the frightened _tanuki_ alien. "You should run away, old man. Live to fight another day." He suggested.

"Jake- _san_!" The Green Avenger gave Jake an aghast and disappointed look. "Quentin and Questa have had this store for years. It's like their 'baby'. This store means a lot to them...it has sentimental value too...Quinn used to work here with them. Quentin planned to have Quinn inherit the comic book store when he turned eighteen."

"What's the point in fighting a battle you know you're going to lose?" Jake asked.

"There are more important things than winning, Jake." The Green Avenger declared fiercely.

Jake and the Green Avenger glared at each other and lightning flashed between their gazes. However, at that moment the door of the comic book store was flung open and the cyborg loan sharks strutted inside. "Mr. Quark, I hope you have good news for me. Do you have my money?" Their leader with the goatee began.

Quentin was trembling slightly. "N-n-no."

Goatee raised an eyebrow at Quentin. "No? Then how do you intend to pay me? By giving me this crappy store?"

This had been the plan but for some reason Jake heard Quentin's trembling voice go: "N-n-no."

"No?" Goatee turned to look at his fellow loan sharks, "Did you hear that, boys? He said 'no'. I suppose we'll have no choice but to harvest his organs..."

Quentin suddenly got down on his hands and knees, and looked up to give the loan sharks a beseeching look. "Please! Have a heart! Just...give me more time! I'll get you the money! I'll make the money I need to pay you back in December! I...can't give up this store..." The raccoon-dog alien's voice cracked.

"Why do you cling so desperately to this pathetic little store?" Goatee sneered as he knocked over a nearby pile of comic books with a careless wave of his hand. "This pathetic store is worthless - it's worth absolutely nothing!" He stressed as he gave his companions an expectant look. The loan sharks nodded and began to knock over display stands, stacks of comic books and knock over shelves.

Quentin staggered to his feet, and looked horrified by what the loan sharks were doing. "No! Please stop! Please! This store is all I have left of Quinn!" He blurted out desperately.

The Green Avenger was pissed. "He said STOP!" The Green Avenger rushed at one of the cyborgs and began to grapple with him and try to shove him away from the comics.

The loan shark just shoved the Green Avenger off of himself easily and then punched the Green Avenger hard across the face with a _POW!_ "Grab him!" Goatee ordered and his companions grabbed each of the Green Avenger's arms to restrain him. Goatee approached the Green Avenger and punched him in his gut.

"Oof!" The Green Avenger grunted in pain.

Goatee removed his sunglasses and put them into his jacket pocket, so that Jake could see that Goatee's eyes glittered with malice. "Don't get in our way, kid. This is between us and the old man...stop trying to play the hero..."

"What's with his outfit?" One of the other thugs snickered. "He really thinks he _is_ a superhero..."

"What a freak." The cyborg loan sharks all chuckled at the Green Avenger's expense.

Quentin had sunk to his knees and was once again on the floor bowing and begging when Goatee stomped over to Quentin and stood in front of him. A nasty sneer stretched across the man's face before he kicked Quentin right in the face with his booted foot. Mr. Quark cried out and cowered on the floor but the loan shark didn't stop there and walked over to stand next to Quentin's trembling form before bringing his booted foot down mercilessly upon Quentin's back with a sickening crack. "How dare you try and make fools out of us Mr. Quark! We're going to get that money out of you one way or another! I personally think it will be easier once you're dead!" Goatee brought his leg up, prepared to bring his boot down upon Quentin again, however-

Jake was trembling with fear and anger, his fists clenched at his sides. He couldn't stand to watch anymore of this despite his cowardice. "Outside." He said softly.

Goatee turned to give Jake a quizzical look. "HUH? Did you say something, punk?"

Jake looked up, still trembling, but with a determined look in his eyes. "I said...let's take this outside."

The head loan shark gave Jake a look of sheer disbelief before he burst out laughing. "Who the hell does this punk think he is? Did you hit your head somewhere, boy? Fine. Let's take this outside." Goatee looked Jake Lonestar over, taking in his shaggy brown hair, light brown eyes, _Superman_ t-shirt, torn jeans and VANS. _He's just some punk kid. Some punk kid who's about to die._

Meanwhile, inwardly, Jake was freaking out: _I can't believe what I just said! I'm so going to die but...I bet I looked cool just then!_

Jake and the cyborg loan sharks went outside of _Mom and Pop's Comics_ with Quentin and the Green Avenger following close behind. Jake faced off against the cyborg loan sharks. There were five of them total. All five were dressed in black suits, had _Ray-Bans_ on their faces and were wearing black fedoras. They made an intimidating sight. The loan sharks formed a circle around Jake and began to close in on him.

"I don't know who you are, punk, but you're going to get hurt if you try to stand up for these people..." Goatee warned Jake.

"You're wrong - you're the ones who are going to get hurt." Jake stated firmly.

"Cocky punk!" Goatee shouted before rushing forward and swinging his fist at Jake.

Jake saw the fist coming. _Is this guy really this slow?_ And easily dodged it. _I don't even know how to throw a punch...do I?_ Jake thought back to all the comic books he'd read where the superheroes would sometimes use martial arts or street fighting skills to take down the villains - like Batman and Robin, who would usually start taking bad guys out with a: _POW! SMACK! KA-POW!_

Jake also thought back to all of those martial arts movies he used to watch as a kid before they had to get rid of the TV back at the Lonestar Ranch - the classic Bruce Lee movies.

Jake realized that he had strangely vivid memories of all this. As if it had been stored away in some kind of data bank in his head. Jake clenched the fingers of his right hand into a fist, raised his fist and sent it flying into the side of the cyborg loan shark's face with a _POW!_

Jake's fist connected solidly with the loan shark's jaw and cheek - his face kinda comically caving in and then the loan shark was sent flying sideways and into a telephone pole. His half-metal cyborg body created a visible dent in the pole as it was bent in half.

Quentin's eyes were wide in shock. "Jake..."

The Green Avenger's eyes had turned into two stars. "Freakin awesome, dude!"

Now, there were four loan sharks left.

Jake looked down at his fist in astonishment. _It worked. It actually worked. I guess it's because of my superhuman strength._

A crowd of curious bystanders was beginning to form on the street as the four other loan sharks closed in on Jake while looking pissed. The tech-savvy New Yorkers began to take out their smart phones, iPhones and Flip Video cameras and began to film Jake's encounter with the cyborg loan sharks.

Jake had strength but he still didn't really know _how_ to fight. The four loan sharks attacked Jake - fists flying, and Jake ducked and dodged. Jake balled up his fist again and sent it flying into the gut of one of the thugs. However-

One of the loan sharks grabbed Jake's arms from behind, managing to restrain him while the other two thugs approached him head on. One punched Jake across the cheek and the other punch Jake in the gut.

Inner Jake: _OW! Ow that hurt like a bitch! Shit!_

"Let go of me, dammit!" Jake gathered his strength and he opened his arms wide and broke free from the loan shark's hold. "Ahhh!" He charged one of the loan sharks, recklessly, haphazardly, and grappled with him. It had turned into an all-out street fight.

Jake continued to exchange blocks and blows with the loan sharks. _BAM! POW!_ Because of Jake's incredible strength when he landed a hit against the cyborgs they literally went flying into nearby telephone poles and trashcans.

It didn't take long before all of the bruised and bleeding cyborgs were on the ground unmoving, sticking out of trashcans with their feet comically up in the air, or stuck in a bent over telephone pole. Jake was also battered and bruised, but still standing, though he was panting for breath.

Had he won?

Did I actually win?

The crowd of spectating New Yorkers began to clap and applaud Jake's feat. "Oooo~!" They whistled and cheered loudly. The oblivious Jake, finally noticed that there were actually people filming _him_ and blushed. He probably fought like a complete idiot. _So not cool._

Jake was looking at the crowd of bystanders curiously when he noticed an Asian man in an ultra-modern suit wearing a domino mask, and who looked completely out of place within the crowd. Jake did a double take as he took a closer look at the young man. The black suit had silver lines on it that resembled the circuits or wires on a motherboard. The Asian man had short black hair that had stylish white highlights, and he was wearing a pair of high-tech, green-tinted sunglasses over his domino mask. Even with the mask and the strange sunglasses, Jake noticed the man's dark eyes. The man had a tall, lithe, physique and Jake noticed that he had what appeared to be a _samurai_ sword strapped to his waist.

_I wonder if he's one of those superheroes or vigilantes that the Green Avenger told me about. He looks pretty cool. I bet he's a lady killer. A regular Asian James Bond or something._ A half-smirk formed on Jake's face at the thought. However-

One of the cyborgs had recovered and snuck up behind Jake with a lead pipe hitting Jake over the back of his head with it. Jake saw stars and dropped to his knees. _Fuck that hurt! I think I'm going to pass out...shit...! So much for my cool victory. I suck but we all knew that. I'm no superhero...what was I thinking? Idiot...idiot...idiot..._

It was Goatee who had hit Jake over the back of his head. He had finally recovered and was now chuckling menacingly. "Did you really think you'd won, cocky punk. No one wins against us. We're cyborgs who work under the protection of Nova Inara! And the Noppera-bō Gang! We're untouchable! We're unbeatable! Buwhahaha!" The man began to laugh maniacally.

The other four cyborgs were recovering as well and began pushing themselves up and off the ground or pulled themselves out of trashcans. They were all battered, bruised and bleeding, but these men were half machine, and uncannily tough.

The five cyborgs reached inside of their suit jackets and each of them pulled out an oval-shaped, white faceless mask. They put the faceless masks on and turned to face Jake again. The effect of the faceless masks was creepy and Jake shuddered.

The loan sharks all had cybernetic components, which they decided to now reveal. They began to activate their individual cybernetic parts simultaneously. Goatee took his gloves off to reveal his solid metal hands before revealing a large dagger that could emerge from the palm of his hand.

The second cyborg let his wrist bend backwards in an unnatural way and Jake watched as this revealed a hidden barrel in his arm that a chainsaw began to emerge from with a whirling sound.

The third cyborg bent both his wrists back to reveal hidden compartments in both of his arms that two long metal chains emerged from to clank as they hit the ground.

The forth cyborg removed his gloves, revealing solid metal fingers that he pointed at Jake. The tips of the thug's fingers opened to reveal that each of his fingers was a single gun barrel.

The final cyborg opened his hand up at the wrist with a twist to reveal a large barrel that a small rocket began to emerge from.

Jake gulped at this intimidating display of advanced weaponry and began to tremble. _Holy shit._ _So, Goatee has concealed knives...then there's Mr. Saw, Chain-Man, Gunner and Rocket-Man._ Jake began to give the cyborgs nicknames in his mind.

The cyborg loan sharks approached Jake, and prepared to finish him off for good using their more powerful weapons.

The Asian man in the smart-suit took out a cigarette, calmly lit it, and took a drag while contemplating Jake's situation. _I wonder if I should save the idiot?_

"We'll kill this punk and make an example of him to those who think they can actually oppose the Noppera-bō Gang!" Goatee approached Jake and put his dagger directly under Jake's chin in a menacing way.

Jake's vision was going in and out of focus. _I'm going to die! I'm a goner! Someone please...save me...!_

Jake Lonestar, the hero of the story was about to be killed? _Tch, how pathetic. Guess it's time for me to make my move._ The man in the smart-suit was about to intervene, however-

BOOM. Goatee was forced to leap backwards and out of the way as Ultraviolet suddenly appeared, having jumped down from the roof of the comic book store with two _tonfa_ in her hands, which she had tried to bring down upon the thug. The _tonfa_ were metal sticks that were twenty inches long and that had handles on them. The _tonfa_ hit the ground instead and formed a huge crater where Goatee had been standing only seconds before. The crater was five feet wide.

Jake's vision was swimming but he recognized the Sex Droid that had been given the name 'Ultraviolet' by him. His eyes widened. _Ultraviolet._ He recognized her instantly taking in her petite build, short black hair, violet eyes, and pale skin like a dying man. Man, she was a sight for sore eyes. She was still wearing the custom-made, black and white, frilly maid outfit complete with the maid cap that was on her head and which hid her antennas. She was wearing a pair of black knee boots that had straps and buckles on them, however, making her look like a badass battle maid.

"Ultraviolet?" Jake weakly called out.

The man in the smart-suit looked completely thrown off by the appearance of Ultraviolet and the cigarette that was between his lips fell from his mouth and landed on the ground, unnoticed. "What's _she_ doing here...?"

Ultraviolet turned to look back at Jake and a sneer formed on her lips. Jake noticed there was a lit cigarette in her mouth. "I finally fucking found you, loser. And you were about to get your sorry ass killed. F.Y.I. Why didn't you fight back? You're stronger than these pathetic assholes, Jake. Or are you such a coward you wanted to make it easy for them and just roll over and die without putting up a fight. I guess it looks like I'll have to save your sorry ass, perverted cowboy. This sucks." Ultraviolet turned her attention back to the five cyborgs and spun her _tonfa_ in her hands, a cocky smirk forming on her face. "Let's do this, assholes." She charged forward at the cyborgs and they in turn charged at her.

[Battle Maid Ultraviolet VS Cyborg Loan Sharks] FIGHT!

Ultraviolet's metal _tonfa_ clashed against the Goatee's dagger, and she used her free hand to bash her _tonfa_ across the cyborg's face and didn't hold back. A hard smacking sound cracked through the air.

Ultraviolet leapt backwards to avoid getting a chainsaw through her gut. She then charged forward and Mr. Saw charged at her as well. He raised the chainsaw high overhead and brought it down upon her in a downward slash. "Die you bitchy little maid!"

Ultraviolet raised her _tonfa_ and crossed them, and they successfully blocked the chainsaw. Metal grated against metal as the metal teeth of the chainsaw tried to cut through Ultraviolet's _tonfa_ \- sparks flew up into the air.

And then Ultraviolet began to simply push back - pushing the chainsaw towards the cyborg, using her incredible android strength.

"No! What the fuck!? You're too strong to be human...!" Mr. Saw spat at her.

Ultraviolet ignored him as she simply pushed the spinning chainsaw into the cyborg. She watched with a blank expression on her face as it began to slice his head open. "Ahhh!" He let out a bloodcurdling scream.

The man in the smart-suit paled as he watched Ultraviolet's feat. "An android just killed a human. Well, a cyborg, but still, someone who was originally human. How can this be?" The young man fumbled with getting out another cigarette and lighting it up. He took a long drag and held the smoke in his lungs for a moment before breathing out the smoke. "Shit."

Jake watched as blood splattered across Ultraviolet's pale face and cringed. He swallowed thickly and wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans. He was glad that for the moment Ultraviolet seemed to be on his side.

The crowd of New Yorkers had begun to see things that they hadn't been mentally prepared to witness and began to cry out in horror and flee. Several dropped their expensive smart phones and filming devices as they made their escape.

The man in the smart-suit was the only one who remained in the street as he calmly continued to smoke his cigarette. He shook his head at Ultraviolet. "So crude."

Jake suddenly gagged and put a hand over his mouth. He felt like he was going to be sick. Ultraviolet's expression was blank, emotionless. Jake shuddered. She was so cold. It reminded him of Nova Inara when she had killed Jake's classmates.

Gunner fired his cybernetic hand-guns at Ultraviolet, who niftily dodged out of the way. The bullets impacted the ground where she had been standing only moments before. Suddenly, two chains wrapped around each of Ultraviolet's wrists, restraining her.

"Fucking asshole..." Ultraviolet swore, looking pissed. Jake noted Ultraviolet definitely had a mouth that could peel paint.

Gunner and Rocket-Man approached her, prepared to finish her off.

"Oh no...Ultraviolet!" Jake yelled out in concern.

Gunner and Rocket-Man opened fire upon Ultraviolet.

"I can't watch!" Jake covered his eyes with his hands. However-

Ultraviolet had jumped high up into the air doing a kind of back flip and so the bullets hit the Chain-Man instead instantly filling him full of holes.

_Like Swiss cheese._ Ultraviolet thought as she finished her back flip and landed on her feet nimbly once more. She rushed forward at the two shocked cyborgs, dodging bullets and mini rockets.

Jake had opened his eyes just in time to get a nice panty shot as Ultraviolet landed and the back of her maid skirt flipped upwards. She was wearing black underwear with purple polka dots on it. Jake felt a trickle of drool form at his chin as he wondered if Ultraviolet had on a matching bra.

Ultraviolet rammed her _tonfa_ into Gunner's chest and leaving her _tonfa_ imbedded in his chest as the cyborg began to spark, she turned her attention to Rocket-Man.

He raised his mini rocket launcher at Ultraviolet. "Die, you crazy bitch!"

Ultraviolet dropped her other _tonfa_ and rushed forward grabbing hold of his wrist with her two hands and pushed upwards so that his first shot was released at the sky instead of her with a _BOOM!_

"You crafty maid bitch!" Rocket-Man shot repeatedly into the sky out of frustration. "Let go!"

Ultraviolet maneuvered his rocket launcher into his wide-open mouth and kicked Rocket-Man's shin next making him accidentally blow his own head off. This caused brains and pieces of metal to fly through the air in a gruesome manner.

Ultraviolet casually walked over and pulled her _tonfa_ out of Gunner's chest, and went over to pick up her other _tonfa_ before going over to Jake. She put her two _tonfa_ into a holster she was wearing around her waist, before taking her cigarette out of her mouth. She then let out a cloud of smoke in Jake's face. "Pathetic wimp...those guys were small fries too."

Jake struggled to stand and then to speak. "I...I...."

Ultraviolet raised an eyebrow at Jake. "Yea? Spit it out, dumbass."

A wide shit eating grin formed on Jake's face. "I saw your panties."

Ultraviolet immediately got pissed. "Fucking pervert!" She punched Jake hard across the face with a _POW!_

_So worth it._ Jake thought as his body lay twitching on the ground.

The man in the smart-suit gave Jake a disgusted look. "That pathetic loser is Jake Lonestar? You have got to be kidding me." However-

"AHHHH!" Came Quentin's panicked yell.

"What the?" Jake turned to see Quentin on the ground, scooting backwards across the ground as he tried to get away from-? Jake's eyes widened dramatically. A robot.

But it wasn't just any ol' run of the mill robot - this was no cyborg either, but a humanoid-looking robot. It was six feet tall, all metal, and its hairstyle had been turned to metal, as well as a strangely familiar looking unibrow. The robot was stalking towards Quentin while its eyes glowed red.

"A fully robotisized person...he's under Nova Inara's complete control now. Poor soul." The man in the smart-suit shook his head sadly as he puffed on his cig.

"Hello Father. Why are you running away from me? I'm hurt. Don't you want to give your only son a hug?" The robot said in a synthesized voice as he approached Quentin.

Quentin looked up at the robot in shock and took in its spiked up metal hairstyle and the unibrow. "Quinn?"

Quinn opened his arms wide. "I've really missed you, old man."

Quentin stood up on shaky limbs and approached Quinn warily with a look of disbelief on his face. "Quinn? Is that really you, son?" Mr. Quark reached a trembling hand out towards the robot.

"Yes Father..." Quinn responded in a monotone voice.

Jake looked at the robot Quinn and Mr. Quark confusedly wondering what the hell was going on. _Is this a good thing or a bad thing?_

"That foolish old man is about to get his heart ripped right out of his chest. F.Y.I" Ultraviolet drawled in an apathetic manner as she took a drag from her cigarette and blew a few smoke rings into the air.

Jake turned to look at Ultraviolet in shock. "HUH? What are you talking about? Why would Quinn kill his own father...even if he's been turned into a robot." Jake's mind was spinning.

Ultraviolet gave Jake an incredulous look. "Dumbass...he's been completely robotisized. That means he's under Nova Inara's control now and has to follow her will. And Nova Inara probably wants Mr. Quark to die so that his organs can be harvested. Mr. Quark owes money to the Noppera-bō Gang. Nova Inara's done this kind of thing before. She likes to make examples of those who dare to oppose her."

"Nova Inara wants to harvest his organs? Shit! Mr. Quark! No!" Jake spun around and yelled frantically at the _tanuki_ alien.

Quentin was about to step into Quinn's embrace and the teen robot was about to rip the old man's heart out, when-

Jake ran using his extreme speed and tackled Quentin out of the way, so that they both crashed to the ground.

Quinn's hand shot out where Quentin had been standing only moments before and his hand shot straight through the front door of the comic book store punching a hole straight through it. Quinn removed his hand that was now holding a piece of wood from the broken door. He opened his fist, looked down at the piece of wood as if he couldn't understand why he didn't have Quentin's beating heart in his fist, and turned to face Quentin and Jake.

Quentin was looking up at Jake confusedly. "Jake? What's going on?"

"Phew, that was close! You okay, old man?" Jake grinned at him as he stood up and put his arms out to his sides. He glared at Quinn. "I won't let you harm your Father, Quinn. Because...I know it's not something you really want to do. Snap out of it, Quinn...don't let Nova Inara control you."

But Quinn seemed unaffected by Jake's words and continued to approach them with eerily slow steps. _Epp!_ Quinn began to scan Jake with his electronic eyes. "Scanning target. Scan complete. Results...unable to be scanned...unable to be scanned. Error...error...abort...abort. Target will be designated as Anomaly X. Anomaly X...shall be...eliminated."

Quinn reached out and picked Jake up by the collar of his _Superman_ t-shirt and tossed him into a nearby building with a _WHAM!_ Jake smashed through the front windows and actually entered the building.

"Jake!" Ultraviolet called out, "Shit...that _baka_!" She scowled, looking pissed.

Quinn's eyes glowed red. "I'll be taking your organs to Nova Inara now...Father..." He reached his metal hand out towards the fallen Quentin.

Quentin looked up in horror at his son. "Quinn?" However-

Ultraviolet suddenly appeared in front of Quentin and blocked Quinn's metal fist with her _tonfa_.

Quinn immediately began to scan Ultraviolet next to determine her amount of threat. "Scanning target. Scanning complete. Model...Sex Droid...serial number 4567. Threat: Minimal. What is a Sex Droid doing participating in combat?" The robot's unibrow raised.

Ultraviolet glared back heatedly at Quinn. "Don't call me a 'Sex Droid' you shitty robot. I have a name and it's Ultraviolet!" Ultraviolet growled before she whacked Quinn hard across the face with her _tonfa_ with a _WHAM!_ Quinn's head snapped to the side but he slowly turned his head back to look at her. A mechanical sound was heard as he did so. He appeared to be unaffected by her vicious attack. "This can't be good." Ultraviolet's expression darkened.

"Attack: Ineffective." Quinn smiled and raised his hand to wrap it around the _tonfa_. "Goodbye Sex Droid 4567." He lifted Ultraviolet up and sent her flying.

"AHHHH FUCKKK! You shitty robot!" Ultraviolet went flying into the same building that Jake had been thrown into. "OOF!" She landed on something soft but that was also slightly hard. She looked down to see that she was straddling Jake Lonestar. And that her crotch was pressed up against his face...his nose was practically in her panties...

Jake was all swirly eyed and dazed from the impact of his landing, but then looked up to see Ultraviolet's crotch in his face, those lacy black underwear with the purple polka dots were unmistakable. His eyes widened when he realized she was basically straddling him and that he could completely see under her skirt. "Hey, I can see your-"

BAM. "Ow!" Jake cried out as he gripped his head in pain from where Ultraviolet had hit him.

Ultraviolet got up and carelessly dusted herself off. She then offered Jake a hand up, which he took gratefully, that is until Ultraviolet closed her hand around Jake's in a vice grip causing him to cry out in pain. Ultraviolet ignored his cries and complaints for her to loosen her grip. He needed to be punished.

Jake managed to pull his hand away and with tears in his eyes he felt that he should still thank the violent android. "Thanks..." But then Jake paled when he realized something. "Hey, if we're both in here and that Terminator Robot is out there then who's protecting Mr. Quark?!"

Ultraviolet shrugged as she reached into her cleavage to pull out a new cig. She lit it and took a drag. "Like I give a fuck. Why do you care so much about that shitty old man, anyways?"

"Mr. Quark is a good person and he helped me out. I owe him." Jake started forward and his legs collapsed out from under him. _Shit...I'm so freaking scared I can't even move...!_

Ultraviolet raised an eyebrow at Jake's predicament and sighed. She bent down in front of Jake, with her back to him. "Come on, I'll give you a piggyback ride, you big baby."

Jake frowned but then grinned. "Thanks Mom!"

Ultraviolet's eye twitched. "Don't call me 'mom', dumbass!"

***

Meanwhile, Quentin was about to get his heart ripped out for the second time, when-

CLASH. Suddenly the man in the smart-suit was standing in front of Quentin with his _samurai_ sword drawn and was blocking Quinn's fist.

Mr. Quark must have had the devil's luck since this was the second time he'd been saved that day. Maybe saving Jake had given him good karma and now the universe felt like paying him back.

"Yet another busybody gets in my way." Quinn said in a dull tone as his eyes glowed and began to shed their light upon the man in the suit. "Scanning target. Scanning Complete. Identity confirmed. Samurai Superhero: Mr. Suit. Cyborg warhorse: Pinstripe. Threat: Moderate. Preparing to eliminate."

Mr. Suit gave the robot a surprised look. He threw his cigarette to the ground and put it out with his shiny _Ferragamo_. "You figured out who I am, robot. I'm impressed."

[Mr. Suit VS Robot Quinn] FIGHT!

"You robotisized humans used to be a lot more 'brainless'." Mr. Suit let out a thoughtful hum. "I suppose Nova Inara has made some recent upgrades."

Quinn leapt backwards to put some space between himself and the Samurai Superhero Mr. Suit. They faced off and sized each other up. Then Quinn charged forward and threw several punches Mr. Suit's way. Mr. Suit dodged and blocked the metal fists with his _samurai_ sword skillfully and without breaking a sweat.

Jake and Ultraviolet had crawled out of the building's broken front window just in time to see what was going on. Jake was getting a piggyback ride from Ultraviolet and guiltily enjoying every minute of it.

"Whoa...who's that?" Jake's eyes bulged as he watched the man in the smart-suit pulling some real kick-ass moves against the robot Quinn.

Ultraviolet looked over and spotted the man in the suit and her eyes widened slightly. Jake even thought he saw a flicker of surprise in her violet-colored eyes before it was gone. "That's Mr. Suit. He's a Samurai Superhero. A member of the Samurai Superhero Force...he works for Dr. Valery. Your aunt." Ultraviolet informed Jake in her monotone voice.

"Samurai Superhero Mr. Suit...dude...that name is a little gay..." Jake stuck his tongue out.

Mr. Suit had extremely good hearing and was momentarily distracted by Jake's tactless comment long enough that Quinn almost managed to punch him successfully. But Mr. Suit managed to block the blow with the flat of his blade at the last second. However, the force Quinn was putting behind the blow was enough to make even Mr. Suit skid backwards across the ground. _That bastard!_ Mr. Suit thought, incensed. _How dare he insult my superhero name. I think that Mr. Suit is a cool name...stupid American..._

Jake shrugged. "Well, at least it's not something like 'Tuxedo Rose'." Jake added on an afterthought loudly and chuckled. "That would be even gayer!"

Mr. Suit's eye twitched in annoyance. "My superhero name is _not_ gay." Mr. Suit suddenly exploded, his temper getting the better of him. "Ōkami!" Mr. Suit shouted his sword's name. "I summon your power! Evolution One...Two!" He called out as he raised his _samurai_ sword high into the air. Jake watched as the Samurai Superhero's sword was suddenly bathed in a green-tinged light, and how it began to pulse with energy.

Next to Mr. Suit a demonic-looking wolf with white fur and silver eyes materialized like a mirage. The wolf was at least two times larger than a normal wolf. But the strangest thing of all was that the white wolf was standing on its hind legs and was wearing a tuxedo while smoking a cigar.

Jake's eyes widened like saucers. "What's going on...what the hell is that wolf?! Is that _real_?!"

Smoke curled into the air from the cigarette that was between Ultraviolet's pale lips. "Mr. Suit wields a living-metal sword. It's the latest in weapons technology throughout the galaxy. Living-metal swords are indestructible, can cut through anything and are made up of zillions of tiny nanomachines that are made of an indestructible alloy. All living-metal swords have an A.I. consciousness and the sword has the ability to produce a holographic image of its residual self image."

"I don't get it..." Jake scratched his head.

The robot Quinn and Mr. Suit continued to face off.

"Silver-" Mr. Suit began as he got into a fighting stance and moved his _samurai_ sword through the air.

"So long Mr. Suit." Quinn charged forward, and Mr. Suit followed suit. They passed each other and Mr. Suit's sword flashed through the air.

"Wolf." Mr. Suit finished and sheathed his sword in a fluid maneuver.

Quinn turned around and laughed. "That attack didn't even touch me!" However, Quinn's right metal arm fell to the ground and wires began to spark from his armless shoulder socket. The arm that was on the ground sparked and writhed due to being disconnected from its main body. "Impossible!"

Mr. Suit turned around to face Quinn, and prepared to finish him off. Mr. Suit took a stance with one hand on the hilt of his sword as he prepared to release his living-metal sword from its sheath once more.

Quinn frowned and backed away from Mr. Suit. "I'm outta here."

_VROOMMM!_ Suddenly, an extremely modern and high-tech dark blue and silver motorcycle pulled up in front of Quinn. The person riding the motorcycle had an unexpected appearance: she was wearing a dark blue and silver _kimono_ , and her long, sky blue hair was styled up into a _geisha_ topknot that had several long, deadly looking silver chopsticks sticking out of it. Her face was covered with a white faceless mask. However, the mask seemed to have holographic capabilities because Jake saw a _kanji_ symbol flash for a moment upon the mask before it was gone. The _kimono_ had a modern style and only went to her knees. The blue-haired _geisha_ was wearing a pair of futuristic, black and silver platform boots that were several inches high.

Mr. Suit, being of Japanese decent, was able to understand the _kanji_ symbol that flashed upon the faceless mask. " _Shee_." Mr. Suit murmured to himself. ' _shee_ ' was the Japanese word for the Number Four. "She must be the forth member of the Noppera-bō Gang's special elite unit called the Nemesis Zeros. Zero Four." Mr. Suit stroked his chin in thought. "That's right...she must be the infamous Geisha Assassin Sheego!"

"Get on." Sheego told Quinn.

"Sheego! Thank God! I thought I was a goner!" Quinn declared, acting strangely human, as he hopped up behind Sheego and wrapped his arm around her waist. He then whipped out a white faceless mask and put it on his face as he turned to look back at Jake and the others one last time. Another _kanji_ symbol seemed to flash upon the faceless mask.

" _Go_." Mr. Suit read the _kanji_ symbol that read ' _go_ ' for the Japanese Number Five. "And he must be the fifth member of the Nemesis Zeros - Zero Five."

"Hold on." Sheego said and accelerated the bike. She zoomed past Jake Lonestar and looked him over curiously. Jake gazed back at the faceless white mask wondering what the woman looked like beneath the mask.

_I bet she's hot._ Jake thought to himself as a goofy smile formed on his face. Before he realized it a pickup line was once again emerging from his mouth: "You look just like a blue-haired Lois Lane and I'm wearing my Superman t-shirt today. It's either fate or the menacing hand of Lex Luthor at work." Jake waggled his eyebrows at Sheego as she rode past him.

"Who's the idiot?" Sheego asked Quinn.

Quinn shuddered. "He was unable to be scanned. But maybe he's a part of the SSF."

"Geisha Assassin Sheego...shit." Mr. Suit swore as he watched her drive by and was unable to do anything about it.

"Unable to be scanned? I wonder if he's Jake Lonestar...the Anomaly X that Nova Inara warned me about." Sheego spoke aloud to herself in thought.

"Aren't you going to go after her, shitty swordsman?" Ultraviolet asked Mr. Suit.

"A gentleman doesn't fight a lady," Mr. Suit declared with a superior look on his face as he looked down his nose at Ultraviolet. "And whether or not you should be considered a lady with that foul mouth of yours remains to be seen...Sex Droid 4567."

"Wuss." Ultraviolet shot back.

Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet continued to stare at each other and exchanged an intense look.

_Strike!_ Jake's eyes had turned into two large pink hearts as he watched the mysterious, blue-haired _geisha_ depart on the motorcycle. "Geisha Assassin Sheego...so that's her name, huh?" _I think I'm in love._ "What a cool superhero name. She's really beautiful too..."

Ultraviolet swiftly hit Jake over the head. "She's _not_ a superhero, idiot! She's a _villainess_! She's _your_ enemy! And how do you know that she's beautiful when her face was covered up..." Ultraviolet groused.

"My enemy?" Jake blinked. "What are you talking about?"

Ultraviolet put her hands on her hips and glared at Jake expectantly. "She's an enemy of the SSF...which you're going to be a member of." Ultraviolet finished matter-of-factly.

Jake frowned. "Says who?"

"Dr. Valery." Ultraviolet said.

"My crazy perverted aunt!" Jake gave Ultraviolet an incredulous look and began shaking his head. "Tell her I said: no way Jose!"

Mr. Suit scowled darkly at Jake. "How ungrateful. Who do you think just saved your sorry ass? The Samurai Superheroes Force - that's who. Are you really such a coward that you won't join us?" He challenged.

"Yep, I'm a complete coward." Jake agreed with a serious look on his face.

Mr. Suit's jaw dropped.

"Jake...I've been searching for you for weeks." Ultraviolet was scowling at Jake. "Dr. Valery sent me to find you. She wants you to join the SSF. She didn't have a chance to explain anything to you the last time about the _real_ reason why she brought you here to New York City. The SSF is-"

Jake cut the droid off. "A special police unit that takes on cases having to do with cyborgs, E.T. Tech, and NANO right? They handle cyborg criminals that the NYPD can't handle on their own."

"Yea...that's right." Ultraviolet gave Jake a surprised look, that he was so well-informed. "So, you'll join us, right?" Ultraviolet asked.

"Hell no!" Jake clarified.

Mr. Suit was pissed. "It's not like you have a choice, idiot. We're not _asking_ you - we're _telling_ you. And besides how long do you intend to rely on and burden _others_? According to my information network you're mooching off of this poor old man right now...and you couldn't even protect him!" Mr. Suit clucked his tongue at Jake.

"But I-" Jake sputtered, only to be cut off by Mr. Suit.

"Nova Inara will be back...and what then? Do you expect me to have to save your sorry ass again, coward? I have better things to do than to save the likes of you. Like...train, meditate and go on dates with beautiful women. But...if you come back with us to SSF Headquarters and get some proper _training_ you may actually be able to learn how to control that monstrous strength of yours. And then you may actually be able to put it to some good use instead of causing nothing but destruction in your wake." Mr. Suit finished with a sneer while giving Jake a disgusted look.

Jake glared back at Mr. Suit _. This guy is a total narcissistic jerk._ He totally took back his earlier thoughts on this guy looking cool. He was so _not_ cool. "I never asked for your help..." _Though I did need it. Dammit...I'm so weak...wait no, just cowardly. He's right. This sucks._ "Training you said? What kind of training?" Jake decided to ask.

"Martial arts training, combat training, and how to control your neo-nanomachine powers. Dr. Valery has assigned me with the task of training you so that you can become a superhero and..." Mr. Suit swallowed looking a little ill. "My new partner."

"Partner? I'm not gay." Jake waved his hand back and forth.

Mr. Suit's pale face reddened in outrage. "Not that kind of partner, dumbass! We'd take Samurai Superhero cases and missions together since my other partner..." Mr. Suit trailed off.

"Ran away?" Jake piped up helpfully. "I know I would..." Jake muttered.

"No! He was _murdered_ , okay! Asshole..." A haunted look crossed Mr. Suit's face before he quickly composed himself.

Jake looked back at Mr. Suit in surprise. "Geez, sorry, I didn't know, Mr. Sensitive."

Mr. Suit just frowned at Jake.

"No, really, I'm sorry. How did he...?" Jake prodded.

"That's none of your business, lazy ass!" Mr. Suit shot back.

Jake pouted. "Fine! And...fine, I'll go back to SSF Headquarters to 'train' but I'm not going to live there. I already have a home. I just want to be able to protect it and those I care about."

Inner Jake: _Damn~ that sounded cool. But who am I kidding? Me? Learn how to control my nanomachine powers and gain strength? I'm still such a coward._

Mr. Suit gave Jake a surprised look. "Well said."

"But I doubt I can really do this..." Jake sighed.

Mr. Suit's eye twitched. "What's with the pathetic attitude change?!"

"Maybe, I have very little faith in my so-called teacher." Jake suggested giving Mr. Suit a once-over and shaking his head with a disappointed look on his face.

"Why you...are you trying to pick a fight?" Mr. Suit clenched his fists at his side and grit his teeth. His eyes widened when he realized what he was doing and concentrated on unclenching his fists. What the hell was wrong with him? He was Mr. Suit - cool, unaffected, suave, debonair. Nothing ever fazed him or emotionally affected him, but this guy...really knew how to get under Mr. Suit's skin.

"Hey, so what's with the snazzy suit? Does it have some kind of special power or something?" Jake asked out of the blue.

Mr. Suit's anger seemed to deflate at Jake's sudden interest in the smart-suit that he had created himself. A smug look formed on Mr. Suit's face as he pushed his green sunglasses up his nose. "As a matter of fact, yes. This is a smart-suit - it is made out of a special nanomachine material that is composed of billions of nanomachines. It can serve as protective armor, among other things. However, the nanomachines that make up my smart-suit aren't indestructible like the nanomachines that compose my living-metal sword Ōkami. That is the only drawback. A living-metal weapon could theoretically cut through it, but it's bulletproof."

Jake rubbed his temples as he tried to understand what Mr. Suit was saying. He decided to just nod and pretend he understood. "Uh huh, that's cool man."

_VROOMMM!_ The sound of a motorcycle approaching them was heard and Jake watched as Ultraviolet pulled up in front of the two of them on a cutting-edge black and purple bike. "Dr. Valery made this for me, isn't she a beauty? Anyways, move it or lose it boys. Hop on."

Mr. Suit looked at the bike and shook his head. "I'll take my horse, thanks." He brought his fingers to his lips before letting out a loud whistle.

"Horse?" Jake raised his eyebrow at Mr. Suit as he hopped on behind Ultraviolet and wrapped his arms around her waist - tightly. This of course earned him a black eye.

From around the corner of a building a stunning, black horse came galloping their way. The horse had a striking white marking down the center of its face. But that wasn't the only strange thing about the horse - it had four futuristic looking, metal legs, and was wearing some kind of high-tech visor over its eyes that looked like it was made out of a see-through green plastic material. The warhorse also had on silvery battle armor that really stood out against its glossy black coat.

"Cool." The Green avenger stated enthusiastically as he saw the cyborg warhorse round the corner.

"What the hell kind of horse is that?" Jake asked, his jaw dropping. _Wow...just wow._

"He's a genetically engineered cyborg warhorse." Ultraviolet explained to Jake. "All of the Samurai Superheroes have them. If you join us Dr. Valery will give you one too."

Jake watched jealously as the black stallion approached Mr. Suit obediently and he reached out to pat the horse on its nose. "Good boy, Pinstripe." Pinstripe let out a happy little puff of air. Mr. Suit then mounted the warhorse in a fluid motion by grabbing the horn of the saddle and hoisting himself up.

"I'll get a horse?" Jake's eyes lit up like a little kid's on Christmas day before he remembered what happened to his last horse. "I don't think...that would be such a good idea." Jake's expression fell and Mr. Suit gave Jake a curious look. "Even riding this motorcycle...I may make it explode, you know."

"Just don't touch it with your bare hands, dumbass." Ultraviolet warned. "Let's ride." She said, sticking a cancer stick between her lips and revving the engine before tearing off down the rode.

Jake chuckled. "What's with all the smoking anyways? You know...you're an android...can you even get a buzz."

"Shut up, asshole."

"Green, I'll be back after I've gotten a bit of 'training' in - tell the Quarks for me. Bye!" Jake called over his shoulder to the Green Avenger.

"Ah! Jake! Wait!" The Green Avenger called after him. "Who's going to watch the store?"

"You do it! Good luck!" Jake shot back.

Mr. Suit found himself chuckling at the strange pair before he kicked Pinstripe's sides to get the horse to trot and then swiftly gallop after the two.

### Chapter 6: Great power, great responsibility

Jake had his arms wrapped tightly around Ultraviolet as she rode her motorcycle in the direction of the SSF Headquarters, which happened to be none other than Dr. Valery's mansion. Mr. Suit followed close behind on Pinstripe although he could have passed the fool and the Sex Droid if he had really wanted to.

At the speed they were going they managed to reach the Samurai Superheroes Headquarters in only thirty minutes. Jake couldn't help but be impressed that Mr. Suit had actually managed to keep up with them while riding a horse! But he'd never tell Mr. Suit he was impressed to his face. Jake could just tell that the guy was a pompous jerk. Dr. Valery was waiting for them at the front door of the mansion when they arrived. She was once again dressed in a custom-made, sexy doctor's coat. "Jake!" Dr. Valery cried with tears in her blue eyes as soon as she spotted him. "My beloved nephew!" She then launched herself at Jake for a hug and probably a grope.

Jake somehow managed to dodge out of the way as he dismounted from Ultraviolet's motorcycle. "Ack! Perverted aunt - don't touch me and...you're not really my aunt are you?!" Jake accused while pointing a finger at her.

Dr. Valery stopped trying to pounce on Jake as her expression turned serious. "How did you find out?"

Jake could tell that the cougar looked put out. "A _kappa_ alien told me...so is it true? You're not only the CEO of the NeoTech Corporation but also the commander of the SSF...and the real reason I'm here is because you want me to join the SSF because I have these unusual nanomachines inside of me...?" Jake held his breath as he nervously waited for her response. He'd never admit it but it had been kinda nice having family still around even if his so-called aunt had been nothing but a pervert.

Dr. Valery sighed and rubbed her temples. "I'm sorry Jake but...that is correct. Mr. Suit's partner was recently murdered by one of Nova Inara's Nemesis Zeros during a mission, leaving Mr. Suit without a partner. It's too dangerous to carry out a SSF mission alone. All Samurai Superheroes carry out their missions in groups of two though Mr. Suit has made it quite clear that he's okay with handling missions on his own, still..." Dr. Valery frowned and shook her head. "I just can't allow that. He's the best we have - our very best living-metal swordsman. I want him to have backup. Personally, I can't risk losing him. I don't think he can handle a mission alone no matter how invincible he thinks he is."

A dark scowl formed on Mr. Suit's face. "Keh, you're telling the loser too much, Dr. Valery. And you're wrong. I can perfectly handle a mission on my own. I don't need the help of a lazy coward." Mr. Suit turned to glare at Jake.

Jake merely glared back and frowned. "Who said I wanted to help you, Mr. Narcissistic Prince." _Ugh, this guy really gets on my nerves! He thinks he's better than everyone else!_

Lightning flashed between their eyes as they glared at each other.

Dr. Valery frowned at the behavior of the two young men. "But Jake...I thought that the reason why you're here is because you've agreed to join the Samurai Superheroes Force?"

Jake shook his head. "No - I'm here because I want to undergo training. Mr. Suit said he could train me to control the nanomachine powers I have...I merely want to be able to control my powers so that I can protect those I care about, and so I won't cause anyone problems with my powers."

"Training?" Dr. Valery gave Jake a surprised look. "Well, it is true that with the proper training you will probably be able to control your nanomachine powers. That's what makes you such an interesting guinea pig, Jake. People who have taken NANO for example slowly become addicted to the drug and the nanomachines slowly gain control over that person. The user slowly robotisizes, and becomes more and more machine, and less human. The more nanomachines inside a person's body the less control they have over their body. But as for you...you're special. Your blood is swimming with nanomachines and yet you retain your freewill. Your will is not becoming Nova Inara's. You have full control over the nanomachines in your body...

"Or at least this would be possible if you exerted your _will_ upon the nanomachines and forced them to listen to you. The reason you can't control your powers Jake is because you lack _will_ and _motivation_ and _bravery_. You also have no fighting experience...Mr. Suit can help you with both of these things but...this will come at a price Jake. Nothing is free in this world. Mr. Suit will train you but you have to help out with his missions in return, understand?"

Jake's frown deepened as he looked over at Mr. Suit. He knew that he needed Mr. Suit's training if he was going to learn how to control his nanomachine powers, but he had very little interest in joining the SSF. "Alright fine. I'll help the pompous jerk with his missions but he better train me properly. And I won't live here...I already have somewhere to live." _There's no way I'm going to live close to my perverted aunt._ "Oh and I want a kick-ass warhorse too!"

"Pompous jerk?" Mr. Suit growled and stalked towards Jake only to have Ultraviolet reach out from behind Mr. Suit and put him into an arm lock. Mr. Suit looked back at Ultraviolet in surprise. "You...?" Mr. Suit sagged in Ultraviolet's grasp.

Ultraviolet smirked.

Dr. Valery pouted when Jake said he didn't want to live at the mansion but then a grin formed on Dr. Valery's face. "Deal. But if you want a kick-ass warhorse you have to wear the uniform that I make you."

"Uniform?" Jake shrugged carelessly. "Sure." After all, how bad could it be? Mr. Suit's smart-suit was actually pretty cool, although he'd never tell the egotistic bastard that. "Deal. Ah, and there's one more thing. I was just wondering..." Jake scratched his head nervously. "If I could keep on calling you 'aunt' even though I know you're not really my aunt..." Jake asked hesitantly.

Dr. Valery gave Jake a surprised look before her expression turned touched. She smiled warmly at Jake. "Of course you can keep calling me 'aunt'." Dr. Valery then clapped her hands together, looking excited. "Then it's settled. For now you'll be considered an 'honorary member' of the force. That is until we can convince you to join up full time. And I still have a few tricks up my sleeve to get you to want to join, Jake Lonestar." A cat's paw smile curled Dr. Valery's lips.

A lopsided grin formed on Jake's face as he looked back at Dr. Valery. He was glad that she had allowed him to keep on calling her his aunt. It just felt so lonely knowing that his only family on Earth could be anywhere in the galaxy by now.

Dr. Valery then turned her attention to the Sex Droid. "Ultraviolet, good work in bringing Jake home. You may have lost your purpose as a Sex Droid but apparently you still have your uses as a Battle Maid. Henceforth, I assign you with being Jake's personal bodyguard. A cowardly, lazy, unmotivated guy like him _needs_ a bodyguard to keep him out of trouble. Think you can handle that?" Dr. Valery gave Ultraviolet an expectant look. _Ultraviolet is one of the aces up my sleeves. I saw Jake's interest in her. It won't be long before Jake becomes an official member of the Samurai Superheroes Force._

"Pffft." Ultraviolet snorted as she put her hands on her hips and gave Jake a once-over. "You want me to be this loser's bodyguard?" She took the cigarette from her lips and waved it in Jake's direction. "Bite me." A pissed and slightly unhappy expression had formed on Ultraviolet's face.

Jake had been giving Ultraviolet a hopeful look but his expression fell at her harsh words and he hung his head dejectedly. _This sucks...of course she wouldn't want to have anything to do with a loser like me._

Mr. Suit couldn't stop the smile that formed on his face at Jake's plight. "I feel your pain, Ultraviolet." Mr. Suit gave Ultraviolet a sympathetic look. "I can't believe I've been assigned to be this idiot's trainer."

Jake's head snapped up and he glared at Mr. Suit. "Well, SORRY for being such an idiot." Jake frowned.

Mr. Suit gave Jake a surprised look. "Heh, you're not arguing the fact that you're an idiot?"

"I really hate you." Jake shot back.

Mr. Suit just smirked.

Dr. Valery watched the two young men with amusement. "As fun as it is to watch you two boys verbally spar why don't we head on over to the _dojo_ so that Jake can meet the rest of the SSF." Dr. Valery turned to Jake. "We have four other members in the SSF. They should be training right now so you'll get the see what the SSF is capable of."

"Heh, I already showed him that." Mr. Suit declared, looking smug.

Jake decided to ignore Mr. Suit. "There are just four other members? This is a really small force..." Jake told his aunt.

"One Samurai Superhero has the strength of an entire police squad." Mr. Suit drawled as he pushed his high-tech sunglasses up his nose.

Jake turned towards Mr. Suit. "I didn't ask you, you wannabe James Bond!"

Dr. Valery laughed loudly as she grabbed both young men by the backs of their shirt collars respectively and began to drag them off towards the _dojo_. Mr. Suit liked the _dojo_ that Dr. Valery had constructed within the mansion immensely. A lot of research had gone into its creation to make it as authentic to a real Japanese _dojo_ as possible. The result was that the _dojo_ really looked like one that you would find somewhere in the woods below Mt. Fuji in Japan.

The _shomen_ 'front' of the _dojo_ had the _dojo_ 's name displayed above the doorway on a wooden plank in _kanji_ letters. Inside of the _dojo_ was a _dojo kun_ or list of the _dojo_ 's rules. There was also a _kamidana_ \- an area for Shinto Shrine artifacts, large _Taiko_ drums off to the sides and decorative suits of ancient Japanese _samurai_ armor sitting in the corners for decoration.

The group entered the _dojo_ and Jake noticed that the floor was highly polished wood. The walls were decorated with an impressive collection of living-metal weapons: _katana_ ( _samurai_ swords), _shuriken_ (throwing stars), _sai_ , _naginata_ , and _tonfa_. Jake could tell right away that these weapons were not 'normal' weapons at all but more of those out-of-this-world living-metal weapons like the one Mr. Suit wielded.

As Ultraviolet, Mr. Suit and Dr. Valery also entered the _dojo_ along with Jake, he noted that four people were training but his eyes were instantly drawn to the two ladies who were sparring against each other first. Jake was a pervert after all and his eyes instantly turned into two pink hearts.

"Young ladies in skintight superhero outfits...any nerd's wet dream come true." Jake murmured to himself as he focused on the two female _samurai_.

The first was wearing a blue and silver, space dress along with a pair of silver platform boots and matching gloves. Jake's eyes traveled up the girl's perfect figure, long milky white legs, thin waist, bodacious breasts and then finally to her face - a perfect oval-shaped face, with large dark blue eyes and long, straight platinum blonde hair. Jake's eyes widened when he suddenly recognized the girl whose body he had been ogling. His jaw dropped. "It can't be...Galaxy Girl? What's she doing here?!"

Dr. Valery gave Jake a surprised look. "Ah, so you're familiar with Galaxy Girl?"

Jake nodded dumbly. "Yea...my sister Bonnie was a big fan of Galaxy Girl and was always playing her CDs. I used to listen to Galaxy Girl sing from behind my sister's bedroom door but...I thought Galaxy Girl was a famous American pop singer...not a superhero?" Jake asked, feeling confused.

Dr. Valery nodded. "You're right about her being a famous American pop star but she is definitely also a Samurai Superhero. She was chosen by a living-metal weapon and so had to become one of us. She didn't become a member by choice really." _Galaxy Girl is my next ace up my sleeve. Jake won't be able to resist being able to be close to Galaxy Girl._

Jake was in awe. _Galaxy Girl...is really standing in front of me right now. Someone that I thought was so far away...so untouchable. This is amazing._ "You think I could get her autograph later?" Jake asked Dr. Valery in a sheepish manner.

Dr. Valery grinned triumphantly. "I'm sure that can be arranged."

Galaxy Girl was wielding a long, metal, pole-like weapon that had a large, curved blade on the end of it.

"What kind of weapon is that?" Jake asked, having never seen anything like it before.

"That is a _naginata_." Dr. Valery informed him. "During the Feudal Era in Japan the _naginata_ was a popular weapon for female _samurai_. The _naginata_ is an ideal weapon for a woman because it enables her to keep her opponent at a distance. It has good defensive and offensive capabilities. Male samurai would normally be able to overpower a female _samurai_ in close hand-to-hand combat which was why the _naginata_ was perfect for allowing a female _samurai_ to keep her opponent at a distance. The best weapons for women are usually long-ranged weapons. Black Fox - the young lady she's currently sparring against is also using a long-ranged weapon."

Jake's attention turned to Black Fox next:

Whereas Galaxy Girl was an American blonde bombshell - Black Fox was a dark, mysterious Asian beauty. She was incredibly thin and tall but had nice curves. She had long, thick black hair and dark, narrow eyes. She was wearing a black fox mask on her face and a black leather, skintight bodysuit that had a zipper from the top of her neck all the way down to her naval. She had a pair of stiletto heels on her feet. She had this serene yet calculating expression on her face as she faced off against Galaxy Girl.

Galaxy Girl was looking noticeably less serene. She had a small frown on her pouty pink lips and appeared to be frustrated with something. "I can't believe I'm missing _Cougar Town_ for this!"

Jake, Dr. Valery and Mr. Suit all felt sweatdrops form on the sides of their heads at Galaxy Girl's words. Apparently, Galaxy Girl was displeased because she was missing her new favorite sitcom.

Black Fox was wielding an impressive looking _katana_. Jake noticed that the blade of Black Fox's living-metal sword appeared to be solid black and he shuddered. That was one creepy weapon. The two young ladies faced off. _Naginata_ vs. _katana_. "Ah!" Galaxy Girl let out a battle cry as she charged Black Fox and Black Fox raised her _katana_ to block easily. Galaxy Girl continued her haphazard assault but Black Fox easily blocked all of Galaxy Girl's attacks gracefully and with minimal effort.

Galaxy Girl stumbled forward, tripping in her fashionable platform boots, and Black Fox whacked her on her butt with the flat of her sword as she stumbled by. Jake thought that had been HOT for some reason. Galaxy Girl frowned and decided to take things to the next level. She raised her _naginata_ and it began to glow with a green-tinged light. "Nekomata, Evolution One!" Galaxy Girl cried and the blunt end of Galaxy Girl's _naginata_ began to morph until a second, deadly, curved blade emerged. Jake blinked, he had just seen a weapon transform as if it were alive.

A small smile curled Black Fox's lips. She raised her _katana_ into the air and said in her deep, mature voice. "Tamamo-no-mae Evolution One!" Black Fox's sword glowed with a green-tinged light before her _katana_ began to transform. The sword became like liquid metal and extended until it reached the ground. For a moment the sword looked as though it had transformed into some kind of metal whip until it began to solidify. The whip turned into nine curved but connected blades. Her _katana_ had transformed into a whip-sword. Jake shuddered again, it was like she now had nine swords in one.

"Cool." Jake murmured. _But still really creepy._

"Ahhhh!" Galaxy Girl yelled as she attacked Black Fox again in a frantic manner spinning her _naginata_ at Black Fox. Black Fox stood calmly and used her whip-sword to block the deadly attacks. The way Galaxy Girl slashed her _naginata_ down to then spin it down again using her second blade was like being able to dish out two attacks at once. But Black Fox had nine blades at her disposal and used them skillfully to block Galaxy Girl's attacks.

Galaxy Girl was still looking frustrated while Black Fox appeared amused. "You've improved somewhat, Galaxy Girl. But you're still nowhere near my level. You need more training. You're full of openings and your stance is unsteady as always." Black Fox informed Galaxy Girl as she swung her whip-sword at Galaxy Girl.

The whip-sword wrapped around Galaxy Girl's _naginata_ and Black Fox yanked back on her hilt so that Galaxy Girl's _naginata_ went zooming out of her hands. Galaxy Girl stumbled forward and Black Fox lashed her whip out at Galaxy Girl's platform boots next.

Galaxy Girl tripped and landed splat on her face with her butt in the air. Jake leered unabashedly at her fine ass thinking to himself: _Sexy_.

Black Fox looked down at Galaxy Girl with that same creepy smile plastered to her face. "Maybe if you didn't wear those ridiculous shoes you'd have better balance." She suggested.

Galaxy Girl glared up at Black Fox heatedly. "I love these boots. They're _Christian Louboutins_. They cost me a thousand dollars. If I didn't have to do something as stupid as this training I wouldn't have to worry about damaging my _Christian Louboutin_ boots!"

Mr. Suit noticed the perverted leer on Jake's face and gave him a disgusted look. "Pervert. Stop looking at Galaxy Girl like that. It's inappropriate."

Jake ignored the comment. "Are Galaxy Girl and Black Fox partners? That would be hot." Jake stated.

Mr. Suit felt his eye twitch. "No, Galaxy Girl's partner is-" Mr. Suit was saying before he was interrupted by a loud male voice.

"Galaxy Girl! How could you let Black Fox trip you up so easily? You're completely useless. Why do I have to have such a useless woman as my partner? Argh!"

Jake turned to see who had dared to insult the beautiful, talented Galaxy Girl and noticed a man dressed in a black and red bodysuit that was similar in style to a spacesuit with a matching full facemask. There were two tiny red horns on the top of the man's head attached to the facemask and a jet pack was attached to the man's back.

"Red Dragon." Mr. Suit finished with a thoughtful frown on his face.

"Red Dragon, huh?" Jake looked over the young man's superhero outfit and wondered if his suit was a smart-suit like Mr. Suit's. "He doesn't look so tough..." Jake groused, feeling jealous that this man got to be by Galaxy Girl's side 24-7. Jake's eyes were drawn to the living-metal _katana_ that was strapped to Red Dragon's waist next.

Galaxy Girl snapped her head up to glare at Red Dragon. She pushed herself up off the floor and began to dust herself off while inspecting her boots with a concerned expression on her face. "Shut up, Red Dragon. Who asked you for your opinion? My poor boots...I might have to go on a shopping spree today. Red Dragon. You'll be accompanying me to carry my bags." Galaxy Girl finished in an imperious manner.

"Like hell I will, woman! You can carry your own damn bags!" Red Dragon spat.

Mr. Suit took out a cigarette, lit it and took a long drag from it before speaking. "That is no way to address a lady, Red Dragon."

Jake nodded vigorously in agreement. "Do you have any idea who she is?! She's Galaxy Girl! She needs to be treated with respect and um, well, much better than you're treating her!" Jake burst out.

Galaxy Girl turned to give Jake a surprised look. "Well, at least someone around here gets it." A pleased and somewhat smug expression formed on Galaxy Girl's face.

Red Dragon's attention was turned to Mr. Suit and the newcomer. "Mr. Suit...don't think you can tell me what to do, you damned pimp." Red Dragon turned his attention to Jake next and looked him up and down. "And who's this scruffy kid? Is he going to be a new servant here or something? Kid, why don't you help out and polish my sword?" Red Dragon declared as he took his sheathed living-metal sword and threw it at Jake.

Jake immediately tried to catch it but the sword hit him in his chest with such force that he was knocked backwards onto his ass with a cry. "Ah!"

"Pathetic." Mr. Suit said shaking his head at the fallen Jake. "That kid is none other than Jake Lonestar." Mr. Suit decided to inform Red Dragon.

Red Dragon's posture showed his surprised as he looked down at the fallen Jake. "This kid is Jake Lonestar? No way."

"I'd look out behind you - if I were you, Red Dragon." Mr. Suit drawled in a casual tone.

"Keh, I don't need your help, shitty swordsman." Red Dragon twisted his arm behind him and stabbed the shadowy figure that had come up behind him with his hand that had turned into a _clawed_ hand momentarily. As the figure came into view, Jake's eyes widened upon seeing that it was a metal robot.

"What the hell is that?" _Ahhh! It's a Terminator! Run!_ Jake inwardly cried.

Ultraviolet put a hand on Jake's shoulder. "It's just a Battle Droid. Red Dragon uses them to train." Ultraviolet leaned over Jake and grabbed Red Dragon's living-metal sword before straightening and then tossing the sword to Red Dragon. "Here, catch, asshole."

Red Dragon easily caught his sword as it was thrown to him by Ultraviolet though he did skid back a few feet from the force of her throw. "Thanks, bitchy android." Red Dragon sneered at the Sex Droid before returning his attention back to the Battle Droids he was now facing. There were five of them. They were humanoid-shaped robots with metal bodies and glowing red eyes. Jake noticed that each of the robots had a single radio antenna on the top of its head.

Red Dragon pulled his clawed hand out from the torso of the Battle Droid that was behind him. Jake watched as the robot sparked and fell to the floor twitching. The five Battle Droids began to close in on Red Dragon and he took a fighting stance. Jake watched curiously as the robots attacked Red Dragon and the superhero unflinchingly charged the robots. Red Dragon blocked the robots' kicks and punches with his living-metal sword.

Jake watched as a stray punch from one of the robots hit the wall of the _dojo_ and left a gaping hole there. Jake gulped. The strength of the Battle Droids was unreal. The Battle Droids started shooting red lazer beams at Red Dragon. Red Dragon ran but as he did he muttered something to himself while holding his sword. "Nure Onna Evolution One." He then turned back around to face the robots and was now able to block the lazer beams with his sword.

Jake frowned thoughtfully and Ultraviolet decided to inform him about what was going on. "Red Dragon just connected to his living-metal sword via his psy-link in order to increase his reflexes and reaction time."

Jake couldn't help but be impressed by the bastard. He stuck his tongue out slightly while feeling jealous.

"Time to kick things up a notch." Red Dragon growled to himself. "Nure Onna!" Red Dragon called out the name of his sword before it began to glow and then transform until the tip of the sword resembled a snake's head with a pair of large fangs. Red Dragon faced the Battle Droids with his transformed sword and attacked. He slashed his sword at the droids and Jake watched as the sword sunk its fangs into one of the robots. "Virus Attack!" Red Dragon cried.

Red Dragon made sure to let his sword bite each and every one of the robots before he leapt back to put some distance between them. All of a sudden the robots began to start acting strangely. Their metal bodies began to shake and spark, and Jake noticed angry, bright green lines running along the robots' bodies before the robots began to explode one by one sending sharp pieces of metal flying dangerously through the air.

"Ack!" Jake dived down to the floor and covered his head with his hands. "Talk about overkill." Jake waited for the explosions to end before pushing himself up on unsteady legs. "So, if Red Dragon is Galaxy Girl's partner then who's Black Fox's partner?" He piped up curiously. _I still can't get over the fact that that asshole gets to be Galaxy Girl's partner. That just ain't fair, man._

"Bulldozer." Ultraviolet jerked her cigarette in the man's direction. "He's a cyborg and is incredibly strong. He concentrates on training his stamina and building up his brute strength. Look."

Bulldozer was standing in front of a gigantic boulder that was ten feet tall by seven feet wide. Bulldozer seemed to be in a meditative state, which was probably why he wasn't distracted by the others' antics. Bulldozer was huge. He was at least seven feet tall and had a hulking body. He was shirtless and wearing nothing but a pair of board shorts and a pair of combat boots. There was a large tattoo of an angry looking bull on his chest. He had two robotic arms and Jake figured his legs were probably robotic as well. He had an orange Mohawk, several piercings in his ears and was wearing an orange domino mask. Despite his strange fashion sense he was still noticeably good looking.

Jake's eyes widened as he looked at the gigantic living-metal sword that Bulldozer was wielding and that was beginning to glow with a lime green light as Bulldozer took a deep breath and concentrated. It was almost as huge as Bulldozer and had an incredibly long blade.

"What kind of sword is _that_?" Jake breathed. "I've never seen anything like it, not even in comic books."

"That is a zanbatō, or 'horse-slaying sword'," Ultraviolet informed Jake. "It was made for _samurai_ during the Feudal Era to be able to take down a rider and his horse with one swing."

Jake paled at Ultraviolet's words. "A horse and its rider at the same time? The poor horse..." Jake's expression fell before he gave Ultraviolet a curious look. "How do you know all this anyways, V?"

Ultraviolet gave Jake an expectant look as she tapped the side of her head. "I have WiFi capabilities remember? I can instantly connect to the world's greatest online encyclopedia. I know everything and you...know nothing." She teased while giving Jake a smug look.

Jake stuck his tongue out at the feisty android in a rather immature fashion.

"HAH!" Bulldozer let out a battle cry as he swung his _zanbatō_ down upon the gigantic boulder and cut it in half.

"He's already in Evolution One." Ultraviolet explained in a low voice to Jake.

"Woo doggie!" Jake whistled through his teeth. "That was awesome, man!"

Bulldozer raised his eyebrows as he turned to see who had said that and his eyes landed upon a newcomer. Bulldozer grinned back at Jake in a friendly manner. "Thanks bro. Wait till you see this! Droids...bring out the..." Bulldozer paused for dramatic effect. "Cube." He finished.

"Right away, Samurai Superhero Bulldozer." Came the monotone response of a few metal robots with antennas on their heads that had been standing off to the side of the _dojo_ and merely awaiting orders. The droids exited out a door that mysteriously appeared when they touched a part of the wall of the _dojo_ then returned carrying a solid-metal cube that was ten feet by ten feet between them. It took ten droids to carry the gigantic cube over to Bulldozer and set it down in front of the cyborg.

Bulldozer's grin widened and he raised his sword, "Watch this, bro! HAH!" He swung his sword, one-handed at the gigantic metal cube and it appeared as though the metal cube had been unaffected by Bulldozer's blow until it suddenly split and both sides of the metal cube fell to the wooden floor with a loud thud.

Jake applauded Bulldozer, thoroughly impressed. "Sweet."

"Thanks bro." Bulldozer's smile stretched across his entire face.

Mr. Suit began to rub his temples. He could feel a headache coming on. "Oh no...the idiot birds of a feather are beginning to flock together..."

Jake frowned back at Mr. Suit. "Bulldozer's not an idiot - you're just jealous of his mad skills. Booyah!"

Everyone laughed at that and Mr. Suit blushed. "What was that? You picking a fight, lazy-ass?"

"No..." Jake said lazily picking wax out of his ears. "Watching all that physical exertion has made me really tired. I think I'll take a nap." Jake stated as he laid down on the floor and promptly fell asleep, snoring loudly.

Mr. Suit's jaw dropped in disbelief. " _Nani?_ What?! That lazy bastard...! Get up! We're going to spar!" Mr. Suit raised his sword and swung it at Jake's torso, hitting Jake with the back of his sword and sending him flying across the _dojo_ 's wooden floor.

Galaxy Girl's expression shifted to concern. "Hey, don't hurt my new pack mule!"

Black Fox raised an eyebrow at Galaxy Girl's comment. "Pack mule?"

A sly smile formed on Galaxy Girl's face. "I think Jake Lonestar will easily be put to some good use. Just look at those muscles...they're perfect for carrying my shopping bags!"

Jake groaned as he began to push himself up off the floor.

"He's actually getting up." Red Dragon spoke out, the surprise evident in his tone. Red Dragon knew from experience that Mr. Suit's blows were fierce, even when the superhero was holding back.

"Eh, will you look at that!" Bulldozer chuckled. "Maybe he's not as wimpy as he acts."

Everyone was in shock because any normal person would have been dead, seriously injured, or at least knocked unconscious by the crazy blow. But Jake stood up and gripped his side where Mr. Suit hit him. "Ow...dammit! What the hell was that for, Mr. High and Mighty?!"

"This is a _dojo_. It's a place for training, not a place for napping." Mr. Suit drawled in merciless tone. "You damned lazy-ass. You're here to train, remember?"

Jake pouted back at Mr. Suit. "But I don't _wanna~_ " Jake said in whiney voice. "I really have no interest in learning how to fight. I don't like physical exertion, or pain, and I can't stand the sight of blood. I just want to learn how to control my nanomachine powers. So troublesome..." _Then if I can control my nanomachine powers...maybe...just maybe I can finally get laid! Booyah!_

The real reason why Jake Lonestar wanted to train was finally revealed: as long as he possessed his crazy strength due to the nanomachines Jake couldn't touch a woman without the fear of hurting her.

But Jake knew that as soon as he was able to control his nanomachine strength that he'd be able to touch women...and there were endless _sexual_ possibilities.

Mr. Suit's eye twitched in annoyance in response to Jake's childish attitude. "You have no interest in learning how to fight? Arghhh!" Mr. Suit tugged at his flawlessly styled hair.

"Ah! Be careful with your hair!" Galaxy Girl exclaimed, watching the beginnings of a fashion emergency!

Black Fox chuckled softly in amusement before she noticed Bulldozer taking out a beer. Her eyes widened and she slowly licked her lips as she watched Bulldozer open the can of beer and begin to chug it.

Bulldozer felt an intense stare upon him and turned to see Black Fox watching him intently. Bulldozer's expression turned smug. _She's so checking me out._

_I would really love to have a beer right about now. But drinking beer doesn't go with the superhero image I've created. Dammit._ Black Fox inwardly complained.

"How am I supposed to train this useless idiot! That's it...he's dead! Ahhh!" Mr. Suit raised his living-metal _katana_ and charged Jake-!

[Jake VS Mr. Suit] Fight...err, Spar!

Jake raised a hand in front of his mouth as he yawned. He really had no motivation. He didn't want to fight. He had no interest in it. Jake knew that Mr. Suit was right about him, but he couldn't help who he was. Yet at the same time he still wished he could protect his friends (and get laid) anyways. But what the hell was he supposed to do? You can't just change from a lazy coward to a brave hero overnight. Right?

He just wanted to take a nap. Mr. Suit was fast but to Jake his movements seemed almost slow. Jake yawned again and frowned at Mr. Suit as he easily began to dodge the superhero's attacks and sword swipes. This caused him to raise an eyebrow at Mr. Suit. Surely, the superhero was holding back. "Dude, can't we do this later or something? Even you're not taking this seriously." Jake stated.

Mr. Suit scowled at Jake's comment and deigned not to respond since Jake was incorrect - Mr. Suit _was_ fighting seriously. What was strange was that the fool was actually able to keep up with his attacks. What the hell was happening?

The Samurai Superheroes also seemed to be surprised by this turn of events. "He's actually managing to dodge Mr. Suit's attacks...what the fuck?" Red Dragon questioned aloud.

"Watch your language, you crude barbarian." Galaxy Girl complained as she stood next to Red Dragon and watched Jake and Mr. Suit sparing.

"Apparently, it looks like we've all underestimated, Jake Lonestar." Black Fox crowed, amused.

_He will become a useful manservant._ Galaxy Girl inwardly cackled to herself.

"Woo. Look at 'em go at it!" Bulldozer whistled as he opened another can of beer. "So he's the new guy, huh? That's Jake Lonestar."

"Yes, he is our new member." Black Fox informed Bulldozer while eyeing his beer.

"New _honorary_ member." Red Dragon felt the need to correct. "Let's see how long that wimpy kid lasts. Who'd like to make a bet? I bet that kid doesn't last a day once he actually has to face a cyborg criminal. I bet he'll go running home to mommy!"

"I'll take that bet." Black Fox's dark eyes glittered with mischief. "I'll bet a hundred dollars that Jake Lonestar won't quit the SSF." _When I win I'll have the money to buy a lot of beer._ A creepy smile formed on Black Fox's face. _Beerrrrr._ She mentally drooled.

"You're on, Black Fox." Red Dragon smirked at the creepy superheroine.

Mr. Suit was getting pissed at Jake's cowardly behavior. "Stop running away and face me like a man, geeky loser!" Mr. Suit walked over to the _dojo_ wall and pulled down a random living-metal sword. He then tossed the sword at Jake. "Use this."

Jake absentmindedly caught it and frowned down at the sword, perplexed. He'd never even held a sword before, let alone a high-tech living-metal sword. Jake ran his hand thoughtfully over the silvery blade when- "Ow!" Jake exclaimed as the sword bit him. "Hey! I think this damned sword just bit me?!" Jake's expression turned fearful.

Mr. Suit merely nodded and appeared calm. "Of course it did, idiot. That is a living-metal sword. It just implanted you with a psy-nanomachine that will enable you to have a psy-link with the sword, which should enable you to be able to control the sword. You'll be able to bring it into its evolutions and then be able to transform the sword. Living-metal swords not only have the ability to be able to cut through just about any substance they can also change their shape. This is how they received the name 'living' metal."

"Control it? How?" Jake asked, feeling dumbfounded. He didn't understand a single thing that Mr. Suit had just said.

"By using your _will_ , idiot." Ultraviolet informed Jake helpfully.

"My will..." Jake scrunched his eyebrows together in thought. _I totally...don't get it! Geez! I'm doomed._

"Ahhh!" Mr. Suit yelled as he rushed forward. Suddenly, Mr. Suit's smart-suit began to glow with a blue light and then Mr. Suit was suddenly moving at an incredible speed. Jake barely managed to get his sword up in time to block Mr. Suit's deadly attack. Mr. Suit gave Jake an impressed look but attacked him again. Jake concentrated with everything he had and blocked the next attack. Everyone was impressed.

Mr. Suit began to get angry. This was like a bad joke. This loser who had no interest in becoming a living-metal swordsman was incredibly skilled. "What the hell, Jake Lonestar? Are you making a fool out of me? So far you've been able to block or dodge all of my attacks and even though you've never even handled a living-metal sword before you've been able to use it to block my sword attacks. And yet you say you have no interest in learning how to fight when it's obvious that you're incredibly skilled! I've trained so hard...for so many years to get to my current level." Mr. Suit gripped his hands around the hilt of his sword until his knuckles turned white. "And you just waltz in here and..." Mr. Suit trailed off and hung his head. _This can't be possible...I've trained so hard to get this far and this stupid hick is besting me? Impossible. If that's true, what have I been doing all this time?_

Jake lowered his sword and gave Mr. Suit a confused look. What the hell was he talking about? Saying that Jake was skilled. That was crazy. Mr. Suit was the one who was incredible. But Jake would rather die than say this out loud.

Suddenly, Mr. Suit looked up and gave Jake a determined look. "I get it. You're testing me aren't you? You want to see if I'll make a worthy partner. The fact that you are able to even keep up with my movements means you have a high skill level. I can't really be this weak. I won't lose to someone who doesn't even seem to realize his own strength. Or his incredible potential. Ōkami Evolution One!" Mr. Suit yelled and his sword was bathed in a green-tinged light.

_Uh oh...he's getting serious. Maybe I should too? Or just pretend to get serious anyways. Yea, that should be enough. I don't really want to be here fighting anyways._ "Living-metal sword Evolution One!" Jake raised his sword into the air. "Transform!"

Everyone gave Jake and his sword an expectant look but - nothing happened.

"Aw man..." Jake groaned. "This sucks..."

Mr. Suit's sword on the other hand began to morph before it transformed into a gigantic metal claw. He attacked Jake with it and the claw wrapped around Jake's sword. He then pulled back and ripped Jake's sword out of his hands. Mr. Suit tossed Jake's sword aside and in seconds the claw-sword was at Jake's throat. Jake gulped and his Adam's apple hit the blade.

Mr. Suit was furious. "Your connection to the living-metal sword was weak. It could sense you were only halfheartedly fighting me. To control a living-metal weapon...or the nanomachines inside of you - you need to _strengthen your will_." Mr. Suit growled at Jake as he lowered his claw-sword from Jake's neck. Mr. Suit's sword transformed back into a normal _katana_.

"How?" Jake asked bluntly.

" _How?_ " Mr. Suit sneered wondering if Jake was pulling his leg but then he noticed the serious expression on Jake's face and sighed. "You..." Mr. Suit faltered for a moment. "Need to become stronger first. I'll start you out with some physical training and then we'll spar. With strength comes confidence and gaining confidence should strengthen your will." Mr. Suit declared as he pushed his green-tinted sunglasses up his nose.

Jake sighed. "That sounds troublesome...I'd rather nap..."

Mr. Suit abruptly grabbed Jake by the front of his _Superman_ t-shirt and glared into his eyes fiercely. Jake was surprised by how much anger and hate was in Mr. Suit's gaze. "What did you say? How dare you. I can't stand people like you. You have so much strength and potential but you don't care. If I had your special nanomachine body I would use it to become the greatest living-metal swordsman in the galaxy! You lazy idiot!"

"The greatest living-metal swordsman in the galaxy?" Jake blinked. "Well, let's not set the bar low or anything now, egotistic prick."

Mr. Suit puffed his chest up and gave Jake a superior look. "To become the greatest living-metal swordsman in the galaxy is my dream, or should I say my ambition. I _will_ accomplish it. You'll see. It'll just take me some time...dammit if I had your special body I would become an unbeatable swordsman that no cyborg could defeat, in no time. Once I've become stronger I'll defeat Zippo a.k.a Zero One the most powerful of Nova Inara's Nemesis Zeros, then I'll defeat Nix Duo a.k.a Zero Two, and then I'll kill _him_." Mr. Suit's voice was dripping with hatred as he remembered the man whom he held a grudge against and who he trained everyday for in order to get strong enough to kill him.

"Him?" Jake asked curiously. _Mr. Suit has someone he wants to kill._ Jake shuddered. _I sure hope I don't get myself on Mr. Suit's shit list._

Mr. Suit ignored Jake since he hadn't really meant to mention that man. "Once I defeat Zippo and Nix Duo there will be nothing standing between us and Nova Inara. The rest of the Nemesis Zeros are small fries compared to those two. I hate people like you who have no dreams or ambitions. You have no goals or motivation. You're just floating your way through life. You won't be able to accomplish anything worthwhile like that. Your life won't even leave a footprint behind. You won't be able to protect anyone like that either, idiot." Mr. Suit glared at Jake who just glared back and remained silent.

Jake couldn't think up a proper comeback for that cocky swordsman because... _Mr. Suit was right_. The way Jake was he wouldn't be able to accomplish anything on his own - nor protect anyone. But what could he do? It all seemed so... _troublesome_. He just...wanted to be able to protect the people he cared about without having to put any real effort into it. He wanted an _easy way_ out. However, he would have to keep depending on Ultraviolet and Mr. Suit if he did that. But wasn't there an easy way to gain power that wasn't really his own? Like a temporary loan or something?

"That's what I thought." Mr. Suit gave Jake a disappointed look before he turned and walked out of the _dojo_ with long strides.

Jake watched him go and let out a deep sigh. As soon as Mr. Suit was gone Jake was suddenly surrounded by the other members of the Samurai Superheroes Force.

"Hey, we were never properly introduced. The name's Bulldozer. Pleased to meetcha." Bulldozer stuck his gigantic robotic hand for Jake to shake.

"Er, uh, nice to meet you too...I'm Jake Lonestar." Jake put his hand into Bulldozer's and they shook until Bulldozer suddenly clenched his fingers around Jake's hand more tightly. "Ah...owowowow...dude you're squeezing my hand too hard!" Jake complained.

Bulldozer gave Jake a surprised look before quickly letting go of Jake's hand. "Oops, sorry about that, bro. It's just I thought you could probably handle it since you were even able to hold your own like that against Mr. Suit. That was pretty cool. No one can keep up with Mr. Suit, especially once his smart-suit is in supersonic speed mode. How did you do it?"

"Uh, err, I...suppose it has to do with the nanomachines that are inside of my body. They increase my speed." Jake tried to explain.

"You see, it's not his own strength. It's a borrowed strength that comes from the nanomachines that Nova Inara injected him with. He's going to be completely useless." Red Dragon complained.

"Mr. Sunshine over there is Red Dragon." Bulldozer introduced the other superhero.

"Did you know that red is actually a _villain_ color?" Jake shot back.

Red Dragon's temple throbbed in ire. "Why I oughta..." Red Dragon was saying as he approached Jake while cracking his knuckles. However, he was suddenly shoved out of the way as Galaxy Girl and Black Fox walked over to introduce themselves to Jake.

Galaxy Girl shoved Red Dragon aside and he surprisingly went flying. "So, you're the infamous Jake Lonestar? It's a pleasure to meet you. You probably already know who I am. I'm-"

Jake interrupted her. "Galaxy Girl. Yea, I know. I'm a..." Jake blushed. "Fan."

Galaxy Girl blinked back at Jake in surprise before her expression became pleased. "Well, of course you are! Who isn't a fan of me? I'm just that awesome! They're even listening to me in Texas hmm?" Galaxy Girl reached out her hand for Jake to take.

Jake hesitated and took her hand as gently as possible but quickly dropped it. Galaxy Girl gave Jake a perplexed look before he grinned goofily at her and said. "You must be from the future because you've just beamed my heart away, baby."

Galaxy Girl raised an eyebrow at the cheesy pickup line and began to laugh nervously. "You think so?" Galaxy Girl looked Jake over and decided that he was definitely handsome. The only problem was that he was a complete idiot. "Hmm, I've decided that you can be the SSF's eye candy, Jake."

"Eye candy?" Jake asked.

"Yes...but do you know what eye candy does that's similar to real candy?" Galaxy Girl questioned as she reached out to stroke Jake's cheek teasingly.

"No? What?" Jake trembled nervously beneath her slight touch.

Galaxy Girl pulled her hand back. "You are to remain silent. Your idiotic ramblings ruin the whole effect of your handsomeness."

Jake blinked. "I think that was an insult but I can't really be too sure..." Jake said in a hushed voice to Bulldozer.

Bulldozer chuckled and whacked Jake hard on the back. "She totally insulted you just now, bro."

"That's what I thought." Jake hung his head.

"You are really quite amusing." Came a sultry voice and Jake looked up to see that Black Fox was standing in front of him. She put out her hand for him to take and didn't seem to be offended when he only took it for a moment. "You're afraid you're going to hurt me with your incredible strength, aren't you? That's why you pulled back."

Jake's eyes widened and he nodded dumbled. "Yea...how did you know that? Are you psychic or something?"

Black Fox chuckled softly. "Oh heavens no. But what about me? Don't I get a chessy pickup line? I'm beginning to feel left out." Black Fox gave Jake an expectant look.

A grin broke out across Jake's face at the unexpected request. "You, me, here..." Jake motioned to the _dojo_. "This couldn't be any better if I programmed the holodeck myself." He winked at her.

Black Fox let out an amused chuckle. "He really is amusing."

Galaxy Girl was giving Jake a pout. "If he was afraid of hurting me...then why didn't he just say so?"

Jake turned to look at Galaxy Girl and his eyes nearly fell out of his head at what he saw next. From out of nowhere, Galaxy Girl suddenly had a lounge chair, which she was currently reclining in, and a small table was now sitting next to her. Surrounding her were three men dressed in silver and blue spacesuits that had space helmets on their heads with black tinted visors, so that you were unable to see their faces. One of the spacemen was doing Galaxy Girl's manicure, while another was giving her a foot massage and the last one was setting out some lemonade for her on the table.

Jake did a double take. "Who the hell are those guys?"

"Those are Galaxy Girl's managers." Black Fox informed Jake simply.

Galaxy Girl reached out to pick up the glass of lemonade that even had a tiny blue umbrella in it. "Make sure you polish my _Christian Louboutin_ boots after you're done with my foot massage, Number Two."

"Understood, Galaxy Girl." The spaceman responded in a monotonous sounding voice.

"You must be exhausted after all that training, Galaxy Girl. Please take your time and relax." Number One said in a monotone voice as he continued to file her nails.

Number Three began to massage Galaxy Girl's shoulders. "You're so tense, Galaxy Girl. After this you have an interview to go to and after that you have a photo shoot. You really need to be more careful not to injure your face. I can see a slight scratch on your nose. _"_

"A scratch?!" Galaxy Girl exclaimed and held out her hand. "Number One, mirror."

"Yes, Galaxy Girl." Number One swiftly handed Galaxy Girl a hand mirror.

Galaxy Girl gazed at her reflection and her eyes widened in shock and horror. "My face...my nose...it's all red! Argh! That must be from when I fell flat on my face! Black Fox how could you do this to me!? My face is important - I'm a celebrity!"

"Why don't you wear a full facemask then. If you're so worried about injuring your face." Black Fox suggested in a bland tone.

Galaxy Girl began to fume. "What I _should_ do is quit the SSF...but I can't. My father will never allow me to. This sucks..." Galaxy Girl complained.

"Why wouldn't your father let you quit?" Jake asked curiously.

"He happens to be the living-metal swordsman who trained the entire SSF." Galaxy Girl sighed. "He was so happy and proud of me when I was chosen by a living-metal sword, but to me...it was like a nightmare. All I've ever wanted to do since I was little was sing and now...I'm forced to fight disgusting cyborgs. It's awful."

"I understand." Because really Jake could understand Galaxy Girl's not wanting to fight cyborgs when all he wanted to do was take a nap.

Galaxy Girl gave Jake a surprised look. "You understand...oh Jake!" Galaxy Girl reached out and grasped Jake's hand making Red Dragon suck in a breath. "You're on my side, right? You'll help me out with things that Dr. Valery makes me do that I don't want to do, right?"

"Er...sure." Jake quickly agreed.

"Looks like Galaxy Girl has gotten herself a new slave." Black Fox said in a low voice to Bulldozer.

"Looks like you're off the hook, Red Dragon." Bulldozer teased.

"Like I give a damn!" Red Dragon exclaimed before stomping out of the _dojo_ suddenly.

"He must be jealous." Black Fox declared, smiling brightly.

Bulldozer gave Black Fox a surprised look. "And how do you know that? I can't even see his face?"

"His wearing a mask can't hide his feelings from me." Black Fox said.

Bulldozer shivered. "You know, you can be kinda scary, Black Fox."

Black Fox merely continued to smile. "Is that so?"

Even though Jake was having fun getting to know the members of the Samurai Superheroes Force he still felt like he needed some time alone. The things Mr. Suit had said to him were still echoing through his mind so Jake snuck out of the _dojo_ and began to wander down hallways in the mansion at random while deep in thought.

Now, being deep in thought was very unusual for Jake Lonestar. But he couldn't stop thinking about Mr. Suit and what he had said to him. The cool living-metal swordsman was the polar opposite of himself: motivated, ambitious, hard working. Mr. Suit had dreams and an ambition. He was strong, skilled, and popular with the ladies. Mr. Suit almost seemed too perfect and this pissed Jake off.

Life just wasn't fair. Jake decided. Some people like Mr. Suit were born skilled and talented...whereas Jake had been born a lazy coward. Though he'd been given strength he still couldn't use it due to his cowardice.

_I know it's selfish but...I want to be able to protect my friends without having to really do anything about it. I want strength without having to really earn it._ Jake thought to himself.

**An easy way out? You want strength without having to earn it? And I need a body if I am to accomplish my goal. I think a suitable agreement can be reached, shounen. Come to me.** A deep, rumbling voice called out to Jake in his mind.

Jake gripped his head in surprise and looked around the abandoned hallway frantically as he instantly became afraid. "Oh my God! There's a voice in my head! Where the hell did it come from?! Was it a-a-a g-g-ghost?!"

**I am not a ghost, bakayaro!** The now angry sounding gruff voice shouted in Jake's head.

Jake let out a breath of relief. "You're not? Phew...but then who are you?"

My name is Orochi. I am an ancient, yokai, samurai warrior. And I can help you, baka. Now, hurry - come to me and set me free from this prison.

Jake shrugged. _An ancient samurai? Set him free?_ "Where do I go exactly? Where are you?"

Continue down the hallway and take a left. Then continue on until you come to a solid metal door...

Jake shrugged and nodded. _Ah, what the hell._ Now he was listening to voices inside of his head. Things had gotten uber weird since he had arrived in New York City.

Jake shuffled his way down the hallway, took a left and continued on until he came to a towering metal door. Jake craned his neck to see the top of the door. It was at least ten feet wide and fifteen feet high. "Now that's a big door." There was a large sign on the door, which read: DO NOT ENTER. Jake gulped. "It says 'do not enter'. What should I do?"

Do you want my help or not, pathetic human weakling?!

"Alright already, geez...no need to yell at me, meanie. Now, how do I open this thing..." Jake scratched his chin before spotting the high-tech, fingerprint identification pad that was directly next to the door and that had the glowing image of a hand on it, which probably meant that was where Jake was supposed to place his hand. "There's a fingerprint identification thingie next to the door." Jake explained.

**Then you'll need to defeat someone who is allowed access to this room and cut their hand off. Then bring their hand here and enter.** The voice said coolly.

Jake paled at the _samurai_ 's swords. "Violent tendencies much? But don't worry I got this covered Mr. _Samurai_. Things like this happen to be my specialty." Jake smirked and cracked his knuckles while approaching the fingerprint identification pad.

**Ah, are you a hacker?** The voice sounded impressed and surprised. **So you can be capable on occasion?**

"Damn straight." Jake dramatically put his hand over the fingerprint identification pad and waited while whistling a little tune. "Any second now..."

The _samurai_ had a mental eye twitch. **What are you doing, bakayaro?**

"Just wait...this should work...it always does...probably..." Jake stated with very little confidence.

**What are you talking about, you fool?** The voice of the _samurai_ barked in Jake's head.

Suddenly, Jake's touch began to react with the electronic fingerprint identification pad, which began to spark before it blew up with a small _boom!_ The impressive metal door slid open with a whoosh. Jake's expression turned smug. "See? Told _ya~_ " Jake said in a singsong voice.

Impressive, you pathetic human. Proceed.

Jake entered the room hesitantly with his legs trembling slightly. As he entered several bright lights automatically came on to reveal: a cylindrical metal stand in the very center of the room that a sword was imbedded into. A dome of glass covered the sword. Next, Jake curiously looked around the chamber that the sword was being kept inside. The room resembled the interior of a gigantic metal cube and was thirty feet by thirty feet. There were glowing lines of energy running across the metal floor that resembled the complex circuits of a motherboard. Jake figured that the floor would probably be able to detect his presence right away and that the floor itself was like a booby trap. Off to the side of the cube, was a super computer that was linked to the floor and to a built in security system.

"What the hell is up with this place? And Orochi where are you?" Jake asked as he looked around the interior of the room that he began to think looked like the interior of a gigantic Rubik's Cube. "I only see a sword in the middle of this room..."

That's me, bakayaro! I am an A.I. living-metal katana known as Orochi...the Dragon Alien Warrior Race programmed me themselves. I am their ultimate creation...their ultimate weapon...

Jake's eyes widened like saucers as he stared at the _samurai_ sword that was in the very center of the room. "You're a living-metal sword? Huh. What is this place? Why is there so much security here...to protect you...or to keep you here...?" Jake was beginning to feel nervous.

**This is a Death Cube. It's said to be the best holding facility in existence. The walls, ceiling, and floor are all touch-sensitive. The slightest touch to any surface of this room will activate the security system, which consists of deadly accurate, lazer beams. The entire thing is electronic. Boy, you've heard of the legend of Orochi, correct?** The living-metal sword asked quickly, with a note of pride in his voice.

Jake shook his head. "Actually...no..."

No?! Where have you been living, pathetic human? Under a rock?

"I've been living in Amarillo, Texas. On a horse ranch called the Lonestar Ranch." Jake explained.

Ah, a foreigner...I thought we were still in Japan. So you're an American. Well, perhaps you've heard of the legend of Excalibur then?

"Hell yea...King Arthur's magical sword. The Sword of Kings. The most powerful sword in the world...forged by Merlin using a dragon's breath." Jake enthusiastically explained.

Well, I, Orochi, am like Excalibur - I am a legendary Japanese sword said to be the most powerful sword in the world. There is a folktale that is an account of my legend. I will narrate it to you.

Over five hundred years ago...somewhere in Japan...

An alien prince known as Susanoo had pursued a Galactic Most Wanted criminal to Earth. As he closed in on the alien criminal he encountered a grieving human family in Kunitsukami. A man named Ashinazuchi was the head of the family. When Prince Susanoo inquired of the man what was going on he explained that his family was being ravaged by a powerful yokai wielding a sword that appeared to be possessed by an eight-headed dragon.

Now, I don't know if you already know this, boy, but yokai are actually aliens and that sword happened to be me. Anyways, the alien criminal posing as a yokai had already killed eight of Ashinazuchi's daughters because they had refused the alien's advances. But the criminal wanted to propose to Ashinazuchi's final daughter, who was named Kushinada-hime. Kushinada-hime was the most beautiful and most kind of Ashinazuchi's eight daughters. I remember her well...

There was a sad, almost wistful tone to Orochi's voice as he spoke about Kushinada- _hime_. And Jake did not fail to note this.

_He sounds...sad. How can an A.I. living-metal sword feel sad about anyone though? I thought these weapons weren't supposed to be capable of human emotions._ Jake's head was spinning.

Prince Susanoo fought against the alien who wielded me and was defeated. But Susanoo didn't give up and instead devised a plan to kill my Master. He asked Ashinazuchi for Kushinada's hand in marriage in return if he happened to be successful in slaying the Most Wanted alien criminal. This was agreed to. Susanoo spied upon my Master for several days before discovering his weakness.

Then Susanoo prepared a lavish banquet that had a tempting amount of sake. While my Master was incapacitated due to the sake, Susanoo managed to defeat us using his own living-metal sword that was called Worochi no Aramasa. He then managed to cut me in two pieces, and a piece of me formed a sword called Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi, which was presented to the Alien Princess Amaterasu to settle a debt.

Several generations later, during the reign of the Emperor Keiko, the sword that had once been a piece of me was given to a great human warrior named Yamato Takeru by his Aunt, who happened to be a shrine maiden of Ise, in order to protect her nephew from a peril she had foreseen...

Later, during a battle Yamato was lured into an open grass field by a treacherous warlord. There Yamato made good use of the sword that used to be a part of me, otherwise known as Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi. The warlord ordered his men to loose flame arrows in a circle around Yamato, so that the grass would ignite and trap Yamato ensuring his death.

But Yamato whipped out his sword and slashed it through the air, only to discover that it was no ordinary sword but a living-metal sword. He discovered that it could emit plasma attacks, which acted much like wind, so that the fire was blown away.

Yamato used the power of the sword to blow the fire in the direction of the warlord and his men. Because of his victory Yamato renamed the sword that was a part of me: Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi to commemorate his narrow escape and victory. Kusanagi is said to be the most powerful living-metal sword in existence, but it is merely a small part of me. In reality, -I- am the most powerful living-metal sword in existence...

That is why there is so much security here...if I were to fall into the wrong hands...the world could be destroyed. But that's assuming I allow that person to be my Master. I am not weak like the other living-metal swords. No wielder can control MY WILL! That's also why I am considered a dangerous living-metal weapon.

There is no samurai who exists who is willing to submit their will to me to help fulfill my objective. Except perhaps you, foolish human.

"And what is your objective exactly?" Jake asked nervously and licked his lips.

For now...to defeat Nova Inara.

"Nova Inara?" Jake asked out loud and in surprise. "The leader of the Noppera-bo Gang that seems to be the cause of all this chaos? I guess we have a common enemy then. And they say the enemy of my enemy is my friend so...yea, _samurai_ I don't think I'd mind submitting my will to yours as long as you give me the strength to protect my friends in return. So, what do you say?"

Then, we have reached an accord, pathetic human. Now...you'll have to figure out a way to disable the security system of the Death Cube.

"Piece of cake..." Jake declared as he reached down, took his _VANS_ off, and then his socks. He then began to walk towards Orochi with his bare feet touching the floor of the Death Cube.

The floor, walls and ceiling immediately began to react to Jake's touch. Round, hidden compartments opened and blasters emerged which aimed themselves at Jake. The blasters fired but instead of aiming accurately the blasters began to aim at random and began firing all over the Death Cube. Jake smirked, since the security system obviously wasn't acting the way it was supposed to. The blasters then began to spin rapidly, sparking and shooting in all directions before they began to explode one by one.

Jake decided this was his chance to sprint the rest of the way to Orochi. "AHHHH!" He screamed in fear as he ducked and dodged errant lazer beams. "This plan seemed a whole lot easier and less dangerous in my head! I'm so going to die!"

**Hurry up, coward!** **You're almost there!** The sword urged.

Jake reached his hand out towards the glass, which seemed to lower as Jake's hand neared it. Jake placed his hand around the hilt of Orochi-

Just as several lazer beams sped Jake's way. Jake shut his eyes awaiting the inevitable pain.

_I'm so going to DIEEEE!_ Jake inwardly moaned. However, _Huh?_ The pain didn't come. Jake opened his eyes but realized that he was no longer in control of his own body. Someone else was in control. _Crap._

Orochi, who was now in control of Jake's body, was wielding the living-metal _katana_ before him. Orochi tied Jake's hair up into a ponytail to keep the hair out of his face and then quickly used his sword to deflect the lazer beams that were still coming at him with little effort.

Orochi grinned triumphantly. **"I am samurai Orochi! All who stand in my way shall be cut down!"** Orochi looked towards the exit of the Death Cube, raised his sword, and charged for the exit while the blasters continued to go haywire dangerously shooting at random. Red lazer beams went zooming towards Orochi but he raised his living-metal sword, which glowed with a green-tinged light and easily blocked the beams while moving his sword gracefully through the air.

_Wow! The samurai Orochi has MAD skills...!_ Jake thought. He was definitely impressed.

" **This is nothing, for an advanced piece of alien technology such as myself."** Orochi successfully escaped the Death Cube as a loud explosion went off behind him within the Death Cube. Sinister flames burst out from the exit of the Death Cube as Orochi casually walked away with his sword held at his side and at the ready. It almost looked like the flames had been trying to reach out and grasp Orochi.

The super computer, which was linked with the entire mansion, was immediately alerted to the destruction of the Death Cube. " _WARNING. WARNING. THERE HAS BEEN A SECURITY BREECH IN THE DEATH CUBE. DEATH CUBE HAS BEEN DESTROYED. SAMURAI SUPERHEROES ARE TO PROCEED TO THE SCENE IMMEDIATELY."_

This booming message was broadcast throughout the entire mansion via the various speakers that had been set up everywhere. The SSF as well as Ultraviolet and Dr. Valery hurriedly made their way to where the Death Cube had previously been located. They arrived just in time to see 'Jake' exiting the Death Cube and holding a living-metal sword at his side at the ready as flames erupted behind him in a dramatic fashion. Everyone was completely in shock that _Jake_ of all people had stolen Orochi!

Inner Jake could see that the SFF and the others had assembled and thought the timing couldn't be better: _Damn, I bet I looked so cool just then. I hope Galaxy Girl was impressed!_

"Jake...what the hell are you doing? How did you get your hands on Orochi? Are you in control of your mind?" Dr. Valery asked quickly, worry etched into her features.

" **Stand aside, lowly human woman. I have a mission to accomplish."** Orochi declared as he strode past Dr. Valery with purposeful steps. **"Oh and woman, go change into some more appropirate attire. Your attire is shameless."** Orochi declared as he looked back at the doctor's bare legs.

Mr. Suit's eye twitched. "He's not in control of his body at all...that's Orochi's A.I. personality. Shit."

Red Dragon had an amused posture. "That idiot got himself possessed by a living-metal sword! Huh! How pathetic is that?! Just how weak willed is that loser...?" He sneered.

Inner Jake: _Hey...I agreed to let Orochi have control._ Jake mentally stuck his tongue out at Red Dragon in an immature manner.

Galaxy Girl watched as Jake passed her by while completely ignoring her. "He seems so different now. So manly." Galaxy Girl gushed to herself as her eyes turned into two large hearts. "Wow. He looks like he could take on the world. He looks so confident and handsome."

"That's not Jake, Galaxy Girl - that's the A.I. consciousness, Orochi." Black Fox warned the superficial pop singer.

Galaxy Girl's eyes widened at what Black Fox had said before she glared at the other woman. "I totally knew that."

"Jake got his hands on Orochi all on his own?" Bulldozer said aloud before smiling. "That's cause for celebration, I think." Bulldozer pulled out another can of beer, which he quickly opened and began to chug. "Ah! That's the stuff! That kid is one unpredictable guy. I like him."

Black Fox gave Bulldozer a jealous look. _He has to keep drinking beer in front of me. This is torture._

Bulldozer noticed Black Fox's look and grinned. "Don't worry, babe, I like you more than I like him."

Black Fox hung her head. _No one gets it!_

Dr. Valery frowned as her blue eyes trailed after Jake. "Someone stop him. We can't have that rogue living-metal sword doing whatever the hell it wants." She pushed her glasses up her nose and actually looked serious for once, which was unnerving.

"You can count on me, Commander!" Mr. Suit immediately went to stand in front of Orochi and unsheathed Ōkami to point it at Orochi.

Orochi raised an eyebrow at Mr. Suit's daring actions. " **You think you can defeat me, lowly human? But you are mistaken. You are weak. I will easily defeat you, so why even bother standing in my way? What is your purpose?"**

_I can't believe it! Orochi...the legendary sword that I've been seeking for years is finally in front of me. I've been waiting for this moment._ Mr. Suit thought to himself as he took a deep breath. "My purpose is to duel you, Orochi. I will defeat you and then you will acknowledge me as your new Wielder. I am the man destined to become the greatest living-metal _samurai_ in the galaxy. I will defeat you and then I will defeat Zippo, Nix Duo, and then _him_."

" **You wish to duel me, living-metal samurai? You are weak and unskilled. If you were strong, you would be able to sense our difference in strength. You must be incredibly foolish and perhaps reckless to challenge me. You will regret this."**

"Evolution Two!" Mr. Suit cried as his living-metal sword Ōkami glowed with a green-tinged light before the holographic image of a white wolf wearing a tuxedo and smoking a fancy _Romeo and Julieta_ cigar appeared next to him.

" **Two can play at that game, Evolution One...Two!"** Orochi roared raising his sword high into the air before him as it was engulfed in a green-tinged glow. Slowly beginning to materialize next to him was a gigantic creature that began to form eight heads that were swaying back and forth in a menacing manner. As the holographic image became clearer everyone was startled to see an majestic eight-headed dragon, with shimmering emerald green scales and piercing golden eyes.

Inner Jake: _Cool~ what a kick-ass looking dragon...so that is the holographic projection of Orochi's true self...neat. Mr. Suit doesn't stand a chance. Hah!_

[Mr. Suit VS Orochi] Fight!

The two living-metal _samurai_ charged each other executing their attacks as they swiftly passed one another-

Blood spurted from a slash wound that opened up on Mr. Suit's chest and he dropped his sword. He looked down at the wound in disbelief. His smart-suit should have offered himself some kind of protection from the attack although a living-metal sword could cut through anything and Mr. Suit's nanomachine suit was not made out the same indestructible alloy that living-metal swords were. Mr. Suit's smart-suit began to spark dangerously.

"Mr. Suit!" Galaxy Girl cried out as she spun to glare heatedly at Orochi. "How could you? He's your partner and...you've totally ruined his whole fashionable ensemble. Red is definitely _not_ Mr. Suit's color."

Inner Jake: _Orochi, dude...don't you think you went a little too far? These guys are our allies._

**Allies? How so?** Orochi spoke directly into Jake's mind.

_They're also enemies of Nova Inara._ Jake explained quickly, mentally crossing his fingers.

I see...you should have spoken up sooner if you had wanted these people unharmed.

_Gah! Then...don't hurt them!_ Jake stated to clarify his intentions. _Moron._

**Understood...I won't harm them. Just incapacitate them.** Orochi agreed.

"This is a fashion emergency!" Galaxy Girl charged Orochi recklessly with her _naginata_ , a fierce look in her large, dark blue eyes.

Red Dragon watched Galaxy Girl's actions with wide eyes. "If only she'd get serious like that when training was involved."

Orochi raised an eyebrow at Galaxy Girl and her sexy space dress. **"What era is this? Women's clothing has become so shameless. And female samurai never belonged on the battlefield to begin with. They only served to distract men during the heat of battle."** Orochi easily disarmed Galaxy Girl and punched her in the stomach to knock her out cold.

Black Fox cringed. "That had to hurt."

"Galaxy Girl!" Red Dragon shouted loudly. "Shit. You fucking bastard...how dare you touch my partner. The only one who can bully Galaxy Girl - is me! Arghhh!" Red Dragon was the next one to foolhardily charge Orochi. "Evolution One!" Red Dragon's sword transformed until its tip resembled the head of a snake with large fangs once more.

Red Dragon and Orochi's swords clashed. Orochi easily blocked Red Dragon's attacks but Red Dragon waited patiently before he finally saw an opening and took it. Red Dragon's sword bit into the side of Orochi's neck-

But Orochi had trapped Red Dragon having managed to imbed his sword in Red Dragon's shoulder.

"God damn bastard..." Red Dragon grit out.

Orochi pulled his sword out of Red Dragon's shoulder and put a hand to the bite wound on his neck quizzically.

Though Red Dragon sunk to his knees from the pain he still wore a triumphant look on his face beneath his mask. "Aha! I did it - I defeated you! I just infected your body's nanomachines with a powerful virus!"

Ba-thump. Ba-thump. Ba-thump.

Orochi could feel the virus attacking the nanomachines that flowed through the veins of the body of Jake Lonestar. Orochi stumbled forward as a searing pain suddenly filled his entire body. Orochi cried out as he sunk to his knees.

Even though he was trapped in his own mind Jake was somehow able to feel the pain too and screamed.

Orochi glared at Red Dragon defiantly. **"You think this pathetic attack is enough to stop me? Think again, pathetic human!"** Orochi staggered to his feet and raised his sword as it glowed with a green-tinged light, before this light then engulfed Jake's entire body. "Virus Purge!"

The angry green lines that had appeared up Jake's arms and legs began to disappear. Orochi straightened and pointed his sword at Red Dragon who was gripping his bleeding shoulder. **"Prepare yourself for retribution, samurai."**

Inner Jake: _Don't kill him!_ Jake reminded the ancient _samurai_. _He may be a bastard...but just don't._

Orochi ran forward using incredible speed and knocked Red Dragon out with a quick blow to the back of his head. Orochi looked at Black Fox, Bulldozer, Dr. Valery and Ultraviolet next. **"Are any of you humans foolish enough to stand in my way?"**

Black Fox put her hands out in a helpless gesture and shook her head. "I know when I'm outmatched."

"Is it really necessary to stop him?" Bulldozer asked while scratching the back of his head.

Dr. Valery chewed on her thumbnail. "Tsk. Ultraviolet! Stop him! That's an order!"

Ultraviolet took a drag on her cigarette before blowing the cloud of smoke right in Dr. Valery's face. "You ordering me around, old hag? But as Jake's bodyguard I guess I need to get him un-possessed by that damned living-metal sword. Shit." Ultraviolet took out her twin metal _tonfa_ and attacked Orochi. "HAH!"

Orochi raised an eyebrow at the Battle Droid as she attacked him. **"You're a Battle Droid? Whose orders do you follow? Dr. Valery's or Jake Lonestar's?"**

"Keh, I don't follow anyone's orders but my own, shitty sword. Now - release Jake Lonestar!" Ultraviolet demanded.

Orochi's eyes widened at Ultraviolet's bold declaration. **"An android with free will? You're like me...Ultraviolet. We're special."**

"I'll show you special - HAH!" Ultraviolet attacked Orochi with the _tonfa_ and Orochi was hard pressed to block the swift attacks with his sword. "I've already read your profile that was on file. I already know your number one weakness." An evil smirk formed on Ultraviolet's lips.

Orochi raised an eyebrow at the feisty android. **"Oh? Is that so, woman?"**

Ultraviolet dropped both of her weapons before grabbing the front of her shirt and ripping it open, buttons flying through the air, to reveal the lacy purple bra that she was wearing underneath her maid outfit.

Orochi's eyes widened as he took in the sight of Ultraviolet's petite breasts and her lacy purple bra. **"So shameless...what is wrong with this era's women...?"**

_You haven't even gotten to see Girls Gone Wild yet, dude!_ Jake said enthusiastically in his mind.

Orochi abruptly passed out and fell flat on his face in a dead faint. "Ugh..." Jake groaned as he stirred, beginning to regain consciousness. Jake then sat up and blinked around owlishly at the others. "What happened? I feel like I just got hit by a truck."

"You were possessed by the legendary living-metal sword Orochi, idiot." Ultraviolet (kindly?) informed him.

"Oh yea! _Ah~_ why did you scare him off, Ultraviolet?! Orochi and I have a deal!" Jake began to explain to the pissed off looking android.

"A deal?" Dr. Valery questioned as she approached Jake, her heels click-clacking on the floor. "What kind of a deal could a human possibly make with an artificial intelligence weapon?" Dr. Valery pushed her glasses up her nose and stared at Jake keenly.

Jake gulped as Dr. Valery's glasses seemed to shine with an eerie light. He could tell that his aunt was pissed. "Er, that I'll let him use my body so that he can defeat Nova Inara and in return he'll give me the strength to protect my friends. So you see - it's a win win situation." Jake grinned goofily at his aunt with his fingers crossed behind his back.

"Wait a minute." Dr. Valery stared at Jake in disbelief. "You mean to say that you actually willingly let Orochi possess your body?" Dr. Valery began to rub her temples. "I need a drink. A nice glass of red wine."

"Here you go, Dr. Valery _._ " Zee had suddenly appeared at Dr. Valery's side and was pouring her a glass of red wine, which he swiftly handed to her.

"Ah, thank you, Zee." Dr. Valery thanked the android butler absentmindedly as she took a sip of the wine.

"That was AWESOME!" Bulldozer made his way towards Jake and suddenly flung his arm around Jake's shoulder. "That deserves a drink! Here, have a beer, buddy!" Bulldozer handed Jake a can of beer.

Jake looked back at the cyborg with wide eyes before hesitantly accepting the beer. "Er, thanks?" Jake took a sip of the beer and smiled. He liked beer but his parents had never let him drink. "That's good. Thanks dude." _Bulldozer is being...friendly. Is this what it's like to have a friend? It'd be nice to have a friend._

"No prob, bro." Bulldozer said as he ruffled Jake's head affectionately in a big brother manner.

Apparently, Bulldozer had an unlimited supply of cold beers on hand. "To think he altered his body to contain a mini fridge." Galaxy Girl put out her hands and shook her head. "I'll never understand how boys think."

"Yes, who would do such a ridiculous thing?" Black Fox agreed but was giving Bulldozer an envious look.

Jake looked at the fallen form of Mr. Suit, lying in a pool of his own blood and his expression became aghast. "AH! Mr. Suit! Isn't anyone going to help him?! Someone call an ambulance!" Jake immediately began to panic. _Why isn't anyone panicking?! Good thing I'm here for this._

"Oh, that's right..." Dr. Valery began casually as she looked down at Mr. Suit. "He gets himself injured all the time it's become almost normal." Dr. Valery clapped her hands loudly. "Computer! Send the Nurse Droids here immediately. They have a patient."

"Roger that." Came the synthesized voice of the super computer that was linked to the entire mansion. Hidden doors immediately began to appear in the hallway and from them several Nurse Droids and fembots emerged dressed in cute, custom-made, nurse outfits complete with white caps on their heads with red crosses on them, and sexy, red high-heeled shoes.

"Whoo~" Jake wolf whistled and howled as soon as he caught sight of the smokin' nurses, but then Jake noticed their blank expressions and stiff movements... _androids._ He pouted. "Aw man, and here I thought some _real_ hot babes had shown up for a second there..." He frowned.

BONK. Ultraviolet whacked Jake over the back of his head for his callous comment.

Jake gave her a scandalized look, "Oi! What the hell was that for, V!?"

"Clueless idiot." Ultraviolet sneered.

The cute nurses quickly began to take care of the wounded Mr. Suit and Red Dragon.

Jake looked at all that blood on the floor and swayed on his feet. "Did I mention that I'm bad with the sight of blood?" He declared before passing out in a dead faint.

Dr. Valery shook her head at her Samurai Superheroes' antics. "Ultraviolet, take Jake to his room for now. He deserves a good night's rest. Tomorrow, we'll decide what we'll do about Orochi and whether or not we'll allow the sword to stay in Jake's possession or not..."

Mr. Suit sneered down at Jake's fallen form. "Pansy-ass...I can't believe he actually fainted at the sight of a little blood..."

Black Fox looked at the large puddle on the floor. "You think this is a _little_ blood? Nurse Droids you should examine Mr. Suit's head while you're at it." She suggested in a serious no-nonsense tone.

"Hey!" Mr. Suit objected.

Ultraviolet picked Jake up as though he weighed nothing and slung him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. She then stalked her way towards his room.

Japanese Word Key:

_Nani:_ What?

_Shounen:_ Boy

_Bakayaro:_ Idiot

### Chapter 7: My pervy cowboy sense is tingling

Jake groaned as he stirred awake and flung his arm out. It landed on something surprisingly soft. Jake clenched his hand around a soft mound and squeezed.

A pleasured moan was heard next to him, " _Mmm~_ "

Jake's eyes shot open and he turned his head to look next to him. His eyes widened when he caught sight of Dr. Valery sleeping next to him. He looked down to where the covers were around their waists and realized that they were _both_ naked! Jake's eyes bulged when he caught sight of Dr. Valery's ample breasts and saw that his hand was on one of her breasts-!

He nearly internally combusted at the sight, "Aunt Val?!"

Dr. Valery stretched languidly, like a cat, letting out a groan as she turned her head and opened her eyes to stare at Jake. "Hello handsome," Dr. Valery purred while looking down to notice the hand on her left breast. A sly smirk formed on her lips. "My aren't we bold this morning? You're up for _another_ round?" She teased as she slid her hand over his chest and headed for-!

"ACK!" Jake quickly removed his hand from Dr. Valery's breast. Now, Jake was in total conflict. He was a healthy, seventeen-year-old boy with urges. He liked women. He jerked off to _Playboy_ like any normal young man...but...he had once killed his own pet horse Patch because he had embraced her too tightly! He was afraid of what his superhuman strength was capable of. He was afraid that if he touched Dr. Valery that he'd hurt her.

But _damn_ he wanted to touch her _so_ badly, he couldn't believe it. But his fear of hurting Dr. Valery overrode his lust, and also wasn't she supposed to be his pseudo 'aunt', his 'family'?

Jake leapt out of the bed like a madman and looked down seeing that his dick was slightly hard. He gawked down at himself before hastily grabbing a pillow from the bed to cover himself with it.

"Aunt Valery! Why am I naked?! What are you doing naked in my bed?! You're supposed to be my legal guardian - my _Aunt_!" Jake stressed the last word.

Dr. Valery casually sat up in the bed, and propped her chin in her hand as she watched Jake in an amused manner. She had totally noticed his semi-hard member, so knew Jake wasn't unaffected by her advances. A cat's paw smile formed on her face, and her glasses glinted mischievously. " _Oh~_ you don't remember what happened last night?" She purred suggestively.

Jake paled, _Last night?_ He furrowed his brow and really concentrated on remembering the events of the previous night...he remembered sparring against Mr. Suit...finding the legendary living-metal weapon Orochi...Orochi possessing his body and taking out the SSF and then a lacy purple bra and then...nothing. Jake began to drool as he remembered:

Ultraviolet.

Ultraviolet had somehow scared Orochi off, allowing Jake to regain control of his body and Ultraviolet had taken him back to his room. He distinctly remembered how she had easily tossed all one hundred and eighty pounds of his sorry ass onto the bed unceremoniously, saying, 'Goodnight idiot - try not to have perverted dreams' sarcastically before slamming the door and stalking off. A goofy little smile formed on Jake's face as he thought about Ultraviolet's antics and her badass attitude.

Dr. Valery noticed Jake's smile and instantly became curious. "Oh ho, so you do remember something."

Jake turned to glare at Dr. Valery, "Yea...falling asleep in my bed and waking up to my perverted aunt sexually harassing me!" He pointed a finger at her accusingly.

Dr. Valery pouted. "Sexual harassment? It's only sexual harassment if you don't want it too, and I distinctly saw that you had a hard on-"

"Ah!" Jake raised his free hand to stop her from saying more. "Say no more perverted aunt! This stops now!" Jake said firmly but his tone was tremulous.

Dr. Valery pouted as she lay back down on the bed. The movement caused her breasts to bounce up and down. " _Ah~_ but I thought it would be okay for us to have sex now since you know I'm not really your aunt. We're not related by blood, so we can have sex, Jake. Yay!" She clapped her hands together and gave Jake a girlishly excited look.

Jake gawked back at Dr. Valery in disbelief. He sure had one crazy, perverted legal guardian! He looked at Dr. Valery's sexy, sleep-tousled state in the bed with the covers around her waist, her blonde hair cascading loose around her shoulders, freed from her usual ponytail, her bare breasts and gulped. His dick twitched.

He _so_ wanted to have sex with a hot babe like Dr. Valery but...

He'd just hurt her.

"Fuck! I thought you said I could still call you 'aunt'. You perverted Aunt!" In desperation, Jake ran from the bedroom while clutching the pillow to his crotch. He was going to go back to Brooklyn Prime A.S.A.P! Jake looked down at his other hand and blinked in surprise when he saw that he had the sword Orochi in his grasp. _When did I pick up the sword? Weird._ "Orochi..." Jake looked at the sword's sheath and noticed the symbol of the Dragon Aliens. The _clavicula nox_. Orochi had told Jake about how he had been made by the Dragon Aliens. Jake frowned as his head began to pound with an oncoming headache. _Where have I seen that symbol before? Why can't I remember?_

"Oi Jake! Wait up idiot!" Came a familiar female voice.

Jake turned around to see Ultraviolet running up to him. He instantly grinned at the pretty android. "Howdy Ultraviolet." He almost raised his hand in greeting before he remembered that he had a sword in one hand and a pillow in the other. He gave Ultraviolet a sheepish look instead.

Ultraviolet shoved a pile of clothes into Jake's arms without further ado. "Here are your clothes, _baka_ flasher. I mean, really, no one wants to see that so early in the morning." Ultraviolet fished out a cigarette, lit it and took a drag from it as she gave Jake a disgusted look.

Jake just grinned broadly at her in return, "Thanks Ultraviolet! You're a lifesaver! I knew you cared!"

Ultraviolet's cigarette fell from her mouth.

His smile was so dazzling.

***

Jake was surprised to discover that Ultraviolet had provided him with a _Spiderman_ t-shirt, a pair of faded blue jeans, some cowboy boots and even a pair of simple black boxers. Jake couldn't help the goofy smile that came back to his face. Ultraviolet really seemed to know him well. _She really does care._

Jake could run a mile in only two minutes when he used his superhuman speed. And since Brooklyn Prime was only a few miles away it had taken Jake ten minutes to return to the Brooklyn Bridge. He arrived at the riverbank, covered in sweat and panting for breath, but in one piece. _Safe!_ Jake thought, exultantly. _My perverted aunt won't find me here._ Jake took out his Martian antenna headband and put it on his head.

An orange hued sun was rising above the horizon as the Green Avenger sat at the riverbank fishing. He caught sight of Jake as soon as he arrived. "Hey, Jake- _san_! Over here!" The Green Avenger called out loudly as soon as he spotted Jake and began to wave overenthusiastically in his direction.

Jake caught sight of the Green Avenger fishing and quickly walked over to his strange alien friend, "Howdy Green, sup? You fishing?" Jake looked on with interest since he also enjoyed fishing immensely.

The Green Avenger noticed Jake's interested look, and a proud look formed on his face, "Yep! Everyone who is a part of the Brooklyn Prime Community has to have a 'job' or 'role' here to help out. I'm one of the fishermen here. Our job is to provide enough food for the entire community. What kind of job will you choose, Jake- _san_?" The Green Avenger gave Jake a curious look.

Jake blinked, "I need a job? How troublesome..."

At that moment, Mayor Stark decided to appear at Jake and the Green Avenger's sides as if he'd appeared from out of nowhere. " _Ohayo minna!_ Good morning everyone!" Mayor Stark greeted loudly causing the two young men to jump. "So, Jake have you thought about what job you'd like to have as a part of this community?"

Jake blinked back at the white-haired man in shock. He really had just popped from out of nowhere like a ghost or maybe a wizard. _Creepy._ Jake shuddered. "No."

"Well, what skills do you have?" Mayor Stark asked Jake while impatiently twirling his white cane next to him.

Jake scratched his chin in thought, "Skills?" _Do I have anything I'm good at besides causing trouble? Nawwww._ "Don't have any." He deadpanned.

Mayor Stark's jaw dropped and he stopped twirling his cane. "Eh?"

The Green Avenger threw an arm around Jake's shoulders effectively putting Jake into a headlock so that he couldn't say anything else stupid. "Ahahaha." The Green Avenger laughed nervously as he shook Jake. "You're such a kidder, Jake- _san_! Jake was just telling me how he enjoys fishing. I believe he wants to be a fisherman too."

"Ah." Mayor Stark nodded in acknowledgement, "Well, you boys had better hop to it-" He looked inside of the empty bucket that was on the ground next to the Green Avenger. "You have several mouths to feed."

"Er, right! Thanks Mayor!" The Green Avenger said as Mayor Stark sauntered off swinging his cane, and the Green Avenger waved goodbye. As soon as he was out of sight, the Green Avenger whirled around to face Jake. "Jake- _san_! Why did you say you have no skills? Mayor Stark won't let you stay here if you can't help out the community in some way."

Jake shrugged. "What are you talking about? I was just being honest..." Jake frowned.

The Green Avenger stared at Jake in disbelief. "But...you're strong! I saw you defeat those cyborg loan sharks! You were amazing. You're my hero!"

Jake sighed and ran a hand back through his greasy hair. He needed a bath. "That...was a fluke. I'm not strong...and I'm definitely no hero." He clenched his hand more tightly around Orochi's hilt.

The Green Avenger noticed and caught sight of the _samurai_ sword. "Hey, is that a living-metal sword? So, did you really join the SSF?!" The Green Avenger's eyes were all starry.

Jake waved his free hand frantically in front of him from side to side, "No way...I'm like some kind of honorary member for now though. They'll help me learn to control my nanomachine powers and in return I'll help them with their missions."

"I see." The Green Avenger gave Jake a long look before he grinned at his new human friend. "Let's get fishing!"

Jake smiled back. "Alright!"

The Green Avenger gave Jake a spare fishing pole and the two young men began to fish. Jake loved fishing. He could just sit and stare aimlessly at the river and do absolutely nothing. It was the perfect job. He also enjoyed getting to watch the clouds pass by. Fishing was soothing. All his worries seemed to just fade away.

A few hours had passed when the Quarks stopped by the riverbank to see how the boys were doing. "Oi! Good morning boys! How are you both doing? Caught anything yet?" Quentin greeted them warmly.

Jake looked behind him and grinned at Quentin. He noticed that Mr. Quark was dressed professionally in a suit and tie and wondered why the man thought he needed to dress in a tie for a job at a comic book store. "Howdy, old man - we're good, and no we haven't caught anything yet-"

Questa popped out from behind Quentin holding a tray of muffins in her hands that were in oven mitts. She had on a white apron that had little raccoons on it, and Jake could see that there were patches of flour on her face, but she wore a pleased expression. "Have you boys eaten breakfast yet? I made muffins!" She gave them a hopeful look.

"Mrs. Quark's muffins? _Lucky~!_ " The Green Avenger exclaimed with stars and hearts in his eyes. "Thanks!" The Green Avenger reached out and took a still-warm blueberry muffin. "You are going to love these, Jake- _san_. Mrs. Quark is very good at baking human desserts. It's a special hobby of hers."

"Is that right?" Jake reached out and took a blueberry muffin in his hand. He was surprised to find that it was still warm.

\--a flash of memory. Jake suddenly remembered how his own mother Jessie used to bake him and his sister Bonnie chocolate chip cookies. Bonnie would always share the last cookie with Jake and when she broke it in half she always gave Jake the larger half.

Jake took a bite out of the muffin and groaned in pleasure. "Woo doggie, that's delicious, Mrs. Quark! You're really good at baking."

Questa blushed and fidgeted, " _Ah~_ your praise does not make me happy-" Questa was saying before with a _poof!_ she turned into a _tanuki_.

Jake just chuckled as he plopped the entire muffin into his mouth, chewed and swallowed. He tried not to cry, though his eyes were burning, and his chest felt heavy. The taste of 'homemade' - that nostalgia - it reminded him of his Mother Jessie...of his sister Bonnie...of his family...

He looked up at the clear blue sky overhead. He spotted a disc-shaped cloud that looked a little like a flying saucer and felt a pang in his chest. His family was out there, somewhere - in space. And he would find them one day. _Count on it._ Jake silently vowed to himself.

Being around the Quarks was painful, and Jake didn't want to impose upon their hospitality any longer. He looked at the makeshift houses that lined their way along the riverbank. Some were made from cement blocks and had tin roofs, while some of the dwellings were simpler and made out of wood with thatched roofs. It was getting colder out. Christmas was just around the corner. Jake wondered what would happen to these people, err, aliens once it started to get really cold out or when it started to snow. Would they be warm enough in such simple dwellings?

Several more hours passed and Jake accidentally fell asleep while fishing. The Green Avenger didn't mind though and let Jake sleep until late afternoon. He shook Jake awake and showed Jake the tiny lone fish that he had managed to catch that day and that was swimming in the bucket.

"Ah, I fell asleep?" Jake asked with a hand behind his head in a bashful gesture. "Sorry about that, buddy. Hey...I have a question for ya, Green. Would it be possible for me to build my own house here on the riverbank? I don't want to impose on Mr. and Mrs. Quark any longer." _And besides it's kinda hard to jerk off if two old people are sleeping in the bed right across the room._

The Green Avenger gave him a surprised look. "Oh? I'm sure they don't mind..."

Jake frowned. "I just...want to be independent."

" _Oh~_ you mean, you can't jerk off with Mrs. Quark watching." The Green Avenger nodded knowingly to himself as he began to gather up his tackle box, the two fishing poles and the bucket that contained the lonely fish.

"Oi!" Jake blushed. "Although, that's kinda true..."

"You'll have to ask Mayor Stark." The Green Avenger said.

Mayor Stark popped up out of nowhere again with a _poof!_

_What is he? Some kind of magician?_ Jake mused.

"I've already made preparations for that, Jake Lonestar. Follow me." Mayor Stark declared as he started off down the riverbank.

The Green Avenger and Jake exchanged a questioning look before they both shrugged, and took off after Mayor Stark. The Green Avenger was struggling with all the things he had to carry but Jake was feeling lazy and so didn't ask Green if he needed any help. Mayor Stark stopped in front of a conspicuous pile of logs, and two large pieces of tin that were both twenty feet by twenty feet.

"I already took the liberty of acquiring the needed materials for you to make yourself a new home here, Jake Lonestar." Mayor Stark informed him pointing his white sword-cane at the logs and pieces of tin.

Jake looked at the pile of materials in surprise. "Whoa...thanks Mayor Stark."

"You're very welcome. The materials mysteriously appeared here, so it's convenient to have you use them. Have the Green Avenger help you. Good luck." Mayor Stark said as he walked off and then went _poof!_ as he just disappeared.

Jake shook his head at the fox alien's antics. "...so Green do you know anything about building a house?"

"Hell no." The Green Avenger quickly admitted.

Jake shrugged and the two young men set to work with organizing the materials. First, they needed to move the logs closer to where Jake would be building his home. Jake was able to carry an entire log all on his own, and so the Green Avenger decided to attempt this feat as well. He struggled with lifting one of the logs up and spun it around without looking where he was going and accidentally ended up hitting Jake hard on the back of his head with a loud _THUNK!_

Jake was instantly knocked out cold. His body appeared to turn to jelly as it just collapsed to the ground. "Jake!" The Green Avenger rushed to his side and knelt next to him concernedly. "Shit...what have I done? I've killed Jake Lonestar! Oh no!" The Green Avenger began to lament dramatically.

However, Jake suddenly sat up and opened his eyes. He then stood up and tied his hair into a ponytail. When Jake spoke it was in a low, gruff tone. **"I am Samurai Orochi!"** The Green Avenger watched in awe and noticed that the sword at Jake's side was glowing and pulsing with a green light. **"Kappa! Am I to understand that a dwelling is to be made out of these materials?"** Orochi asked the Green Avenger.

The Green Avenger nodded dumbly. "Yea..."

" **Very well."** Orochi nodded as he unsheathed his living-metal sword and pointed it at the pile of logs in one fluid motion. **"This challenge is all too easy. I will accomplish this task in a moment."** He stated in a booming, confident voice.

The Green Avenger felt a trickle of sweat form on his brow as he looked at Jake. "Er...Jake...what happened? Are you okay?" _Shit! Shit! Shit! I must have hit his head harder than I thought! I gave Jake brain damage! And he didn't seem to have a lot of brain cells to begin with. Nooo~ I need to get him to a hospital!_

The Green Avenger gripped his head in worry and began to pull and tug at his green spandex mask.

Orochi took a stance before the pile of logs, " **Silence, lowly kappa - I need to concentrate and center my chi."** Orochi took a deep breath and let it out slowly. His gaze narrowed fiercely at the logs. "HAH!" Orochi moved his sword skillfully through the air, and chopped and cut the logs that soon went flying through the air. Orochi hit the logs with the back of his sword to send them flying into the desired positions.

The Green Avenger's eyes widened like saucers as he watched Orochi work, "Cool." He murmured as slowly a well-built log cabin began to take shape right before his eyes. _I knew this guy was cool and worth following...he's a true superhero._

A little ways down the riverbank, Zoe was sitting outside of her tiny house reclining in a lounge chair. She was dressed in a skimpy green bikini and sunning herself. Being a plant alien it was very important for her to get lots of sunlight. Her golden skin seemed to glow as the sun's rays hit her exposed flesh.

Linx sniffed the air curiously as he made his way down the riverbank. There was a tantalizing smell wafting through the air that was making him feel frisky. He wasn't too surprised when he ended up at Zoe's house. He sniffed the air in the plant alien girl's direction and only confirmed that it was Zoe's scent that seemed to drive him wild. " _Zoe~_ my love! How are you doing, this fine day?" Linx greeted before launching himself at Zoe for a hug.

Without even looking up from the human _Cosmo_ magazine she was reading she snapped her fingers and vines instantly began to wrap around Linx in order to restrain him. The deadly alien plant didn't stop wrapping vine after vine around Linx until he was completely unable to move.

"I have you now, Space Pirate Linx!" Came a confident female voice.

"Ugh, it's that busybody." Zoe complained as she looked up to see Astra approaching the tied up Linx with her blaster raised. "Can't a girl read a human fashion magazine in peace?" Zoe exclaimed before snapping her fingers again.

Vines shot out towards Astra who instantly reacted by firing her blaster at the vines. She managed to hit the vines and with a piercing cry the vines retreated.

Zoe put her magazine down and angrily glared at Astra. "How dare you hurt my plant, Astra! What are you even doing here?"

"I'm here for Linx's head, you know that!" Astra declared loudly.

"Oh? I never knew you were such a slut to make such a bold comment like that." Zoe said teasingly. "But if you haven't noticed...Linx is interested in _me_ not _you_."

Astra blushed. "That's not what I meant! I'm here to arrest him! Stop getting in my way, Zoe!" Astra pointed her blaster in Zoe's direction.

Zoe immediately hopped up from her lounge chair in order to face Astra, "Bring it on, you smelly fish!"

Astra's expression turned indignant. "Smelly fish? I am _not_ a smelly fish, you...you...pesky WEED!"

"Weed?!" Zoe shouted back.

"Hey, Zoe, if you need help putting sunscreen on your back just let me know." Linx said but his voice was slightly muffled from the vines that were trying to strangle him.

The two alien girls were about to attack each other when they noticed the commotion going on a little ways down the riverbank. The girls both turned to look at what was going on and their eyes simultaneously widened as they saw Jake flinging logs into the air using a sword and slowly building a log cabin.

"What's that crazy hu- err, Martian doing?!" Zoe exclaimed.

Astra gave Zoe a penetrating look before shrugging. "Hell if I know. We should go check it out."

"Definitely." Zoe agreed and snapped her fingers. The alien plant instantly released Linx who had been dangling several feet above the ground. He fell to the ground with a loud thud. The girls ignored him as they made their way down the riverbank towards Jake and the Green Avenger.

"Hey! Wait up, ladies!" Linx called after the ex-bounty hunter and Galaxy Police officer as he pushed himself to his feet and stumbled after them. Linx's eyes were drawn to Astra's nicely shaped butt and he began to drool. Why was it that he always grew hungry if he stared at Astra a little too long?

Zoe's eyes widened as she drew closer to Jake making his log cabin. "Impressive. It looks like Jake is really good at construction work..." Zoe stroked her chin thoughtfully as a sudden idea came to her. Her expression turned mischievous. "I should get him to make some alterations to my house. Maybe I could have him add a pool or even a Jacuzzi." _Usually this foolish human is repulsive and stupid, but right now he seems...different. Cool, confident, powerful. He seems attractive._

Astra gave Zoe a displeased look. "And how do you intend to get him to do that for you?" She raised an eyebrow at the plant alien.

A sly smile spread across Zoe's face. "Why, how else? I'll use my feminine wiles, of course." Zoe ran her hands over her petite curves.

Astra rolled her eyes at Zoe. "Shouldn't you put some clothes on, you exhibitionist?"

"You're just jealous of my zero percent body fat, chubby." A cat's paw smile curled Zoe's lips.

"Chubby?!" Astra's eye twitched. "I am not chubby! This is pure muscle." Astra argued as she ran a hand over her arm muscles self-consciously.

"Uh huh." Zoe didn't sound too convinced.

Linx drew closer and watched Jake's feat becoming grudgingly impressed. "He's not half bad...for a lazy idiot." But then Linx overheard Zoe's comment and his heart sank at the same time his expression turned horrified. "Eh? Zoe! What do you intend to do exactly?" As Linx distractedly spoke with Zoe - Astra was trying to put a pair of handcuffs on the space pirate, but he suddenly leapt out of Astra's grasp using his catlike reflexes.

"Tsk." Astra chewed on her thumb nail in irk that Linx had escaped her grasp yet again.

" _Nooo~_ Zoe my _love~_ don't do it. I'll help you build a Jacuzzi. You don't need to ask that creepy Martian." Linx moaned.

Zoe ignored Linx as she approached Orochi, who had just flung the tin roof up onto the finished foundation for the log cabin. Orochi sheathed his sword and turned around just in time to see Zoe sashaying towards him, a playful smile on her face.

Orochi raised an eyebrow at Zoe as she approached him, taking in the sight of her scantily clad form and the emerald green bikini she was wearing. His eye twitched. **"Woman...what kind of shameless attire is that?"** He questioned in a growl.

Zoe ignored Orochi's words and continued to approach him until she was standing directly in front of him. She then wrapped her arms around Orochi's neck and pressed her pert breasts against Orochi's chest. "It's my bikini..." She purred. "Do you like it? It's _Chanel_."

For a moment, Orochi appeared to be unaffected by Zoe's bold advances. **"Woman...do you wish to bear my children that badly? Very well...do as you wish."**

Zoe began to draw teasing circles with her finger on Orochi's chest. "Neh...if we make love will you help me to build a Jacuzzi?"

Orochi's brow furrowed at the unfamiliar term. **"What is this thing you call a Jacuzzi?"**

"I'll take that as a yes. I wouldn't normally be so forward, but right now you seem incredibly irresistible..." Zoe purred as she leaned forward and pressed her lips to Orochi's.

Inner Jake pouted: _What the hell is that supposed to mean? That normally I'm not irresistible?_

Linx staggered backwards in astonishment as he watched Zoe making out with that loser Martian Jake Lonestar. "Grrrr...Jake Lonestar! How dare you kiss my Zoe!"

Inner Jake: _Ah~ Orochi you pervert! Let her go! You can't kiss Zoe like that in my body! We can't have sex with her...she'll get hurt! Ahhhh!_ Jake began to panic and Orochi finally appeared to become overwhelmed since he had merely been putting up a tough front.

" **Too shameless..."** Orochi muttered before he passed out.

Jake's body fell to the ground at Zoe's feet and she looked down at his fallen form in surprise. Jake started to regain consciousness and pushed himself up off the ground only to look up and notice Zoe, Astra, Linx and the Green Avenger all gathered around him staring at him with concerned looks on their faces. He looked over at the sultry Zoe stalking towards him again, and at the furious looking space pirate Linx that seemed to have an aura of flames around him, he was so angry. Jake swallowed thickly. _Uh oh...that can't be good!_

"Jake Lonestar! You will pay for having sullied my love's pure lips! Arghhhh! Die!" Linx took out a blaster and aimed it at Jake's head.

_Oh crap! Samurai...you can come back now!_ Jake moaned in his mind as he was forced to dodge red lazer beams.

"Die pervert!" Linx growled as he took off after Jake, who had taken off running down the riverbank.

Inner Jake: _Ahhh~ why did that perverted samurai have to unpossess me now and leave me to face Linx all on my own?! Damned perverted samurai_ : **Woman...do you wish to bear my children that badly...very well.** _Ah! Who says stuff like that?! I'm so going to dieeeeee!_

Jake ran down the riverbank with Linx hot on his heels. Astra noticed that the Martian was in grave danger and decided to arrest Linx. "Linx - wait! You're under arrest!" Astra took off running after Linx.

"Hey! Linx! Don't hurt my new carpenter! _Mou!_ Geez!" Zoe took off running after the group.

The Green Avenger watched all the commotion and felt a trickle of sweat form on his brow. "Man, Jake sure is popular. He's so lucky. He's so cool." The Green Avenger said with a wistful note to his voice. _If only Astra would chase me, I could just die happy._

***

After giving the slip to the space pirate, ex-bounty hunter and the Galaxy Police officer Jake snuck his way back to his new log cabin. Jake sighed heavily and looked around to see if anyone was watching before he lifted his arm and sniffed under his armpit. Jake made a disgusted face. "Phew! I stink! God, I need a bath...but how am I going to take one around here?"

"Jake- _san_! You're back!" The Green Avenger had suddenly appeared next to him, making Jake jump about a foot in the air.

_Did Green just see me smelling my armpit? So not cool._ "Err, yea, hey Green, how does a guy take a bath around here. I stink, dude."

"Oh, that's easy. I'll show you." The Green Avenger declared before he ran off down the riverbank. Jake watched him leave with a baffled look on his face before Green returned a few minutes later rolling a gigantic metal barrel across the muddy ground.

"Hey, what's that for?" Jake asked but the Green Avenger ran off again before answering to return about a minute later with an armful of sticks. When the Green Avenger returned, however, Jake noticed that he looked like he'd put on a ton of weight all of a sudden. His stomach was as big as Santa Clause's! The Green Avenger set the barrel on top of the pile of sticks, opened his mouth and suddenly released a stream of water, which he used to fill the entire barrel. He then bent down to set fire to the sticks using some matches. Wiping the sweat from his brow the Green Avenger stood back to watch as the water heated up.

"Wow." Jake said. "Thanks."

"No prob." The Green Avenger grinned back at his human friend before sticking his hand into the barrel of water and checking out the temperature. He nodded to himself. "The water should be alright now. You can get in now but-"

"Yahooo!" Jake cried as he quickly stripped off his clothes and even his boxers, and leapt into the barrel, causing the water to splash out of the barrel and hit the Green Avenger right in the face.

"You shouldn't bathe naked." The Green Avenger finished with a sigh as he wiped the water off his facemask. "Astra will arrest you for indecent exposure and maybe even sexual harassment if she sees you like that. She's a real stickler for the rules. She'll throw you in jail." The Green Avenger shivered at the thought.

Jake raised an eyebrow at his green friend. "This community has a jail? Huh...better hand me those boxers, Green."

"Right." The Green Avenger moved to retrieve Jake's boxers, however-

At that exact moment, the sound of two horses galloping down the riverbank approaching them was heard. Jake and the Green Avenger turned to see that surprisingly Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet were both on horseback. Jake's attention was immediately focused upon the horse that Ultraviolet was riding. The horse had a glossy, orange-brown coat that was similar in color to Jake's hair. He then noticed the cybernetic legs, battle armor, and high-tech visor that the horse had. It was a cyborg warhorse. Jake sucked in a breath at the horse's beauty as they drew closer.

Ultraviolet rode up until she was right in front of Jake's barrel. She pulled back on the warhorse's reigns to stop the horse and Jake watched impressed as the horse stopped on a dime. _That horse would make a good polo horse,_ Jake thought. Ultraviolet's lip curled back as she took in Jake's current state. "What are you doing naked in that barrel, pervert?"

Jake blushed and wondered if Ultraviolet had x-ray vision or something. Jake decided that he'd rather not know. "I'm taking a bath - what does it look like I'm doing, V!?"

Mr. Suit stopped Pinstripe a little farther away from Jake's barrel and began to look around the mysterious community that had appeared out of nowhere underneath the Brooklyn Bridge. " _This_ is where you _live_? Here under the Brooklyn Bridge like a homeless person? How pathetic. You really are a loser. You have absolutely no taste." Mr. Suit looked down his nose at Jake with a haughty expression on his face. "And bathing out in the open like some kind of brainless Neanderthal? Please. There could be _ladies_ present. This behavior is completely inappropriate, Jake. Tell me you're not naked in that barrel, at least?" Mr. Suit pushed his green-tinted sunglasses up his nose as he peered at Jake intensely.

Jake's eye twitched. Mr. Suit _really_ knew how to get under his skin. "Hey! Oi! This place isn't that bad \- you don't even know anything about it. So don't insult it! And-" Jake blushed. "Most people are naked when they bathe so..."

Mr. Suit gave Jake a disturbed look. "Disgusting..."

Ultraviolet nodded in agreement, "Yep, disgusting..." She fished out a cigarette from her cleavage, lit it and took a drag.

The Green Avenger was looking at the newcomers curiously and wanted to introduce himself but his shyness was getting the better of him. They were obviously from the SSF - real superheroes! The man in the technological suit seemed really cool and the battle maid seemed tough.

Mr. Suit gave Ultraviolet a surprised look and a strange, almost wistful expression came over his face before he shook his head and seemed to gather his thoughts. "Hey, Ultraviolet, do you happen to have an extra smoke?"

"Sure." Ultraviolet reached into her cleavage, pulled out another cigarette, and handed it to Mr. Suit.

"Thank you." Mr. Suit said as he put the cigarette between his lips. "Got a light?" Ultraviolet maneuvered her warhorse to get closer to Pinstripe, and then leaning over so that she was practically falling out of her saddle she closed the distance between Mr. Suit's face and her own.

Jake's eyes widened in shock and he wondered what the hell they were up to until he watched Ultraviolet using her own cigarette to light Mr. Suit's. As their cigarettes touched, their faces were only about two inches apart, and Jake saw that they stared intensely into each other's eyes.

Jake's face turned red with embarrassment, humiliation, and now anger as he watched the closeness between Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet. Jake decided to do his best to spoil their moment. "Oi! What the hell are you two even doing here anyways? Geez!"

Ultraviolet pulled her face away from Mr. Suit's with a blank expression on her face before moving her horse away from Pinstripe. She then dismounted from the horse and approached Jake with a backpack held in her hand. "We have a case - or rather Mr. Suit and you have a new case. Dr. Valery sent me to make sure you got your new uniform and to ensure that you wear it." There was a mysterious twinkle in Ultraviolet's eye.

"My new uniform?" Jake asked.

Ultraviolet tossed the backpack close to the barrel Jake was in, and then she caught sight of the pile of Jake's other clothing. She walked over to the pile of clothes, and gave it a thoughtful look before taking the cigarette out of her mouth and tossing it right onto the pile of clothes, which immediately caught on fire and began to burn spectacularly.

Jake's eyes widened in horror. "Oi! What the hell did you do that for?! Those were my clothes and...boxers. You are a very _mean_ , android! Did you know that! Totally uncute!" He pouted and frowned at the spunky android.

Ultraviolet grinned. "You won't be needing them anymore, idiot. Hurry up and get dressed. Well, I'm waiting." Ultraviolet gave Jake an expectant look and began to tap her boot upon the ground in an impatient manner.

Jake flushed. "Fine! Just - just turn around and give me some privacy would you guys? Geesh."

Mr. Suit dismounted from his horse and then the three all turned around obligingly, so that Jake could get out of the barrel and change into his new SSF uniform. Jake hopped out of the barrel and quickly wrapped a towel around his waist before opening the backpack to inspect the clothes that Dr. Valery had provided for him. He had to admit that he was curious about what kind of a uniform Dr. Valery had designed for him. The other members of the SSF had told Jake all about Dr. Valery's superhero fetish during their encounter at the _dojo_. Dr. Valery took it upon herself to design everyone in the SSF a costume, err, uniform and even chose everyone's superhero name.

Jake took the clothes out and immediately groaned in despair. He should have known better than to get his hopes up. They were pretty flashy but...maybe they weren't so bad. Jake just wasn't sure he could pull them off without looking like a clown. Jake quickly dressed and coughed loudly once he was done to alert the others that he was decent. "You bums can turn around now."

The Green Avenger, Mr. Suit, and Ultraviolet turned back around to see Jake in his new uniform as an honorary member of the SSF. The three were instantly rendered silent by the sight of Jake in his new uniform.

Jake was wearing a black leather, cowboy hat, and black domino mask that instantly made his face look more sinister, but in a good, tough-guy, badass sort of way. He was wearing a black _haori_ (wrap shirt) that was still slightly open in front enough to reveal Jake's tan, muscular chest. He was also wearing a pair of tight blue jeans along with a pair of leather chaps. The jeans were too tight and made Jake feel uncomfortable in them. He was pretty sure a guy had to be gay to wear such tight pants. Dr. Valery had somehow managed to find him an awesome pair of Western-style, cowboy boots that had shiny silver spurs.

Jake flushed as the others stared at him silently with their jaws hanging open. That was either a good reaction or a very bad one.

Jake would never believe it but he looked incredibly handsome and cool in the outfit Dr. Valery had designed for him.

"I knew it...it's too much." Jake hung his head like a dejected puppy. "I probably look like a complete idiot. I'll just go and find a hole to crawl into now..." Jake said before he turned around and dragged his feet as he began to walk down the riverbank.

The Green Avenger was the first to recover from his initial shock. "Wait! Jake! Come back! You look freaking awesome, dude. You look like a real superhero! I'm sure everyone was just caught off guard by how great you look, like I was."

"He _is_ a real superhero." Mr. Suit decided to inform the Green Avenger as he pushed his green-tinted sunglasses up his nose as he peered at the strange vigilante that seemed oddly familiar. "He's a member of the SSF now and my partner." _At least I won't be embarrassed to be seen with him. He actually looked pretty tough now. Wow...clothes can really create quite the illusion. It's even better than a hologram._

Jake slowly turned around to face the others but froze at Mr. Suit's words. Had Mr. Suit just accepted Jake as his partner? _Wow. People sure are superficial._ Jake thought to himself.

The Green Avenger was looking excited as he was practically jumping up and down on his feet. "What's Jake's superhero name? The one Dr. Valery came up with for him?"

"Cowboy Samurai," Ultraviolet revealed with a smirk.

"Cowboy Samurai Jake Lonestar? Dang, that's so cool!" The Green Avenger gushed.

Jake blushed at all the attention he was suddenly getting.

"It's not horrible..." Mr. Suit conceded with a nod. "You don't look...awful."

Jake gave Mr. Suit a surprised look at the backhanded compliment. He grinned. "If I didn't know any better Mr. Suit I'd think you just gave me a compliment."

"Yea, well, you must be hearing things..." Mr. Suit groused, turning to look away and taking a long drag from his cigarette. It was almost down to the filter now.

Ultraviolet lit up another cig, which Mr. Suit eyed enviously, "Yea, you don't look half bad, pervy cowboy _samurai_."

"Today is a momentous occasion, my friends!" The Green Avenger stated as he unexpectedly threw his arms around Ultraviolet's and Mr. Suit's shoulders, and brought them into a sort of hug. "The day superhero Cowboy Samurai Jake was born! I'm going to go and mark this on my special superhero calendar. Oh, and I should probably make an announcement on the Green Avenger website. Maybe make a Tweet."

Ultraviolet shoved the touchy-feely kappa alien off of her. "I was sent here by Dr. Valery for one more reason. This cyborg warhorse is yours, Jake. Her name is Ginger." Ultraviolet informed Jake coolly and watched his reaction closely. This was going to be so good.

Jake's expression shifted to surprise as he turned to look at the cyborg warhorse. "Ginger, huh?" A goofy smile formed on Jake's face and he reached his hand out to pet the horse, however, his expression suddenly fell. He shook his head and lowered his hand, balling it into a fist. "I can't...ride a horse. I can't...even pet her."

Ultraviolet gave Jake a confused look. This was not the reaction she had been expecting. Dr. Valery had informed her that according to her research Jake Lonestar loved horses. "You don't know how to ride? But Dr. Valery said that you grew up on a ranch..."

"It's not that...I...because of my inhumane strength I can't ride a horse. I could accidentally kill her..." Jake hung his head, and his cowboy hat shadowed his eyes making his expression appear dark.

"You really _are_ an idiot," Mr. Suit began as he tossed his finished cigarette on the ground and snuffed it out with his _Ferragamo_ , "Ginger is a genetically engineered warhorse and a cyborg. She can handle even your monstrous strength. Dr. Valery made her specially for you. So, there's no way you could hurt her even if you tried." Mr. Suit wondered if he should give into his craving and ask Ultraviolet for a cigarette. He shook his head and decided against it. He was trying to quit after all.

Jake looked up with a hopeful expression on his face. It reminded Mr. Suit of the expectant look a puppy gives its Master when it's about to be fed. "Really?"

"Dr. Valery assured me that this horse would be able to handle your monstrous strength." Ultraviolet reaffirmed.

The Green Avenger was looking at everyone with a confused expression on his face. "Hey, why would Jake think that he could hurt a horse?"

"Because he's an idiot." Mr. Suit supplied helpfully.

Jake shot a glare Mr. Suit's way. "I'm not an idiot. I...back when Nova Inara first _changed_ me I...I accidentally killed my best friend...my horse named Patch...I killed her. I was really depressed and went to hang out with Patch at the stables. I was crying. I hugged Patch and accidentally broke her neck." Jake related his sad tale to the others brokenly, with his fists clenched at his sides. His eyes burned as he remembered his beautiful horse Patch. "I'm a monster...a murderer..." Jake murmured and didn't even realize he had said this last bit aloud.

Ultraviolet and Mr. Suit exchanged a concerned look. Ultraviolet blew a cloud of smoke into the air. "Idiot...that wasn't your fault. It was an accident."

"Indeed." Mr. Suit hesitated before reaching out and squeezing Jake's shoulder in a reassuring gesture. "There's no use beating yourself up over it. What's done, is done. You are not a monster."

Jake looked up and gave Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet a surprised look. "Thanks guys."

Mr. Suit quickly released his hold on Jake's shoulder and noticing that Jake was watching him he decided to make a show of wiping his hand off on his pant leg. "Come on slowpoke. We have a case to solve. The NYPD contacted us this morning with a DOA. There's been a murder and they think E.T. Tech is involved, which is why they naturally called us. We need to go and investigate immediately before the killer's trail grows cold."

Jake hurried up to Ginger and greeted her for the first time. "Howdy little lady, I guess you're going to be my new horse." He reached out and stroked her muzzle tenderly. Ginger nuzzled her nose against Jake's hand and let out a happy little puff of air as if to say 'pleased to meet you too'. Jake grinned and walked around to her side before gripping the horn of the saddle and swinging himself up. _I can't believe this beautiful horse is actually mine. I can't stop smiling. If this is a dream I hope I never wake up._ "Yee haw! Alright!" Jake took his cowboy hat off and whirled it through the air excitedly. "This is so awesome, dude!"

Mr. Suit chuckled at Jake's antics. "Let's ride!" He said before snapping his reigns and urging his horse into a swift gallop down the riverbank. "See if you can keep up, idiot!"

Jake clicked his tongue at Ginger and lightly squeezed his legs around her in order to get her trotting and Ginger immediately responded. Jake quickly shot off down the riverbank after Mr. Suit and Pinstripe as Ginger began to transition into a gallop, leaving the Green Avenger and Ultraviolet to watch them go with wistful expressions on their faces.

"Aren't you going to go with them?" Green asked the android curiously.

Ultraviolet shook her head. "No...I'm not an official member of the SSF. I'm Jake's bodyguard..."

"Yea? I wish I could be a _real_ superhero." The Green Avenger confided to Ultraviolet. "Then I could go with them."

Ultraviolet raised an eyebrow at the _kappa_ alien. _And I wish I could be a real woman. Then maybe they wouldn't have left me behind._ "Yea, me too."

Mr. Suit rode up the sloping riverbank and emerged on a side road that he took to the Brooklyn Bridge. Soon, Mr. Suit and Jake were riding across the Brooklyn Bridge on their cyborg warhorses and zipping through traffic. It wasn't long before they had entered the city. Jake was impressed by how easily the warhorses were able to keep up and merge with the traffic.

Jake was also extremely happy. Jake thought that he'd never get to ride a horse ever again. And now he was riding this genetically engineered cyborg warhorse that could keep up with a Porsche Boxster. "Whoo doggie!" Jake was grinning from ear to ear. "What's the fastest a cyborg warhorse can actually go?" He called out to Mr. Suit.

"Two hundred miles per hour!" Mr. Suit shouted back.

"Cool." Came Jake's stunned sounding voice.

Galloping through traffic and swerving around cars, Jake felt free for the first time in a long time. He also felt genuinely happy and felt closer to his Father James.

Father...when I grow up I want to be a cowboy just like you!

Another thing that Jake found to be extremely strange was that he wasn't afraid. Back at the Lonestar Ranch he had been extremely afraid the few times he had been on horseback, but...there was something about Ginger. He didn't feel afraid on her, instead he felt safe, and protected. Ginger was an awesome horse. Jake reached out and patted Ginger's neck affectionately.

Ginger was a genetically engineered cyborg warhorse. A _war_ \- horse. A horse designed to be able to participate in battle. That could and _would_ be put in danger. Jake frowned suddenly and gripped his hands tighter around the reigns. This time, he'd make sure nothing would happen to his horse, even if it cost him his own life.

***

Ten minutes later, Jake and Mr. Suit arrived at a slightly dilapidated apartment building where Mr. Suit informed Jake that the murder had taken place. Mr. Suit quickly led Jake inside of the building and they took the rickety elevator to the forth floor. Mr. Suit then led the way to the victim's room where several cops were waiting for them. Mr. Suit flashed them a special badge as he entered the room as if he owned the place. Jake looked over Mr. Suit's shoulder at the special badge curiously: it consisted of a bronze-colored _samurai_ helmet with a domino mask over the top. Beneath the icon were the letters SSF in black.

"SSF. Where's the body?" Mr. Suit greeted curtly and in a slightly impatient tone as if he didn't have all day.

A New York cop's eyebrows rose as he caught sight of the special badge Mr. Suit had flashed and took in Mr. Suit's smart-suit and Jake's flashy cowboy _samurai_ outfit with wide eyes. "Oh, you guys are from the SSF...yea, the body's over this way..." The cop stuttered as he began to lead the way.

"Hey, look, _real_ superheroes." Jake heard one of the cops mutter to his partner who was standing next to him.

The star-struck cop led Jake and Mr. Suit over to the body of an overweight man, who was laying face on the floor in a pool of his own blood. Mr. Suit quickly put on a pair of rubber gloves and unflinchingly knelt down by the body in order to get a closer look.

Jake moved to get closer too but quickly ended up putting his hand over his mouth as he began to feel a bit queasy. A dead body was a gruesome sight. Jake looked over at Mr. Suit and couldn't understand how someone could be so emotionally unaffected by something like a dead body. Wasn't anyone going to act sad? Cry?

"His throat was slashed by some kind of knife or blade, but the wound appears to be cauterized. Which is why we called you guys." The cop began to explain. "We've been trained to spot wounds caused by living-metal weapons, so we knew as soon as we saw this to call the SSF to take over this case. The person who did this...had to have been some kind of cyborg, right?" The cop asked in a slightly excited tone.

"This is no time to be impressed, officer." Mr. Suit said as he inspected the wound around the man's neck. Mr. Suit reached out and poked the wound slightly and Jake cringed. Mr. Suit confirmed the officer's findings and noticed that the wounds were slightly burned. Living-metal plasma burns. "These are plasma energy burns alright. The perpetrator probably possesses a living-metal weapon and is most likely a cyborg since most normal people wouldn't be able to handle a living-metal weapon without the enhanced reflexes cybernetics can provide. What's the vic's name?" _Maybe if I know who he is I can figure out who would have wanted him dead. The perpetrator tends to be someone who was close to the victim. Spouse, friends, family._

"The victim's name was Henry Carter. Twenty years old. He was an online Harvard University Student." The cop informed Mr. Suit. "The other tenants who live in this apartment building said he barely left his room. He didn't have any known friends. And his family is dead. It doesn't leave any suspects."

"Henry Carter, huh..." Mr. Suit suddenly spotted something on the back of the victim's neck. Mr. Suit bent over to move the man's shirt collar down so that he could take a better look. What he saw was a tattoo of a red scorpion. "A red scorpion...I think I know who this man really was."

"Who?" Jake asked, wondering how Mr. Suit could have possibly figured things out so fast.

Mr. Suit straightened and took his rubber gloves off before throwing them away in a nearby trashcan. "This man was a cyber hacker. His Internet identity was Red Scorpion. I've chatted with him online before. He was...a nice guy. I can't believe Red Scorpion is dead. He was one of the _best_ hackers out there." A dark scowl formed on Mr. Suit's face at the thought. "There's a lot of demand for E.T. Tech right now people are paying big bucks for it. Red Scorpion would hack into people's computers steal the Tech and then sell it to the highest bidder, all online. I think I know why the Red Scorpion was killed." Mr. Suit said and paused for dramatic effect causing Jake and the New York cop to hold their breaths. "He must have gotten his hands on some really valuable, E.T. Tech. I'd like to know what it was." Mr. Suit declared and pushed his green-tinged sunglasses up his nose in an intellectual gesture.

The cop looked thoroughly impressed. "Wow...that was some pretty fast police work right there. I'll leave you boys to it then." The cop said before he walked away to handle keeping snoopy tenants away from the crime scene.

Mr. Suit approached Jake and spoke in a low voice. "There's something you should know about all this Jake...what do you think E.T. stands for?"

"Huh? Extraterrestrial, right?" Jake blinked.

Mr. Suit gave Jake a surprised look. "You are indeed correct. Most people wouldn't have guessed that, but considering everything you've been through it makes sense. E.T. Tech actually stands for Extreme Tech. You have to remember Jake that only select individuals who are a part of a secret society actually know the truth about how magic in Japan was actually produced by advanced alien technology and about how most of the advanced technology we're seeing right now, including cyborg technology, came from aliens.

"To those that know that aliens actually exist E.T. Tech means just that - Extraterrestrial Tech. The aliens who live among us here in NYC have recently begun to leak their technology over the Internet. It's really beginning to stir things up. For the rest of the people in NYC who are still living in ignorance to the existence of aliens, but who have accepted that there now exists advanced forms of technology, we created the term 'Extreme Tech'. As a member of the SSF you have to make sure not to stupidly talk about aliens to the New York cops, okay Jake?"

"Don't worry, I understand." Jake nodded but Mr. Suit didn't appear all that assuaged. "Hey, stop looking at me like that, geez. Anyways, what kind of E.T. Tech did the Red Scorpion steal, do you think?" Jake asked.

"Only one way to find out." Mr. Suit walked over to the victim's metal computer desk and took a seat in front of the computer. He cracked his knuckles and waggled his fingers to gain flexibility before he put his hands on the keyboard and began typing at a furious rate. "When aliens leak their technology over the Internet skilled hackers can trace the source so that they can steal even more technology. I bet they'd piss in their pants if they actually realized they were hacking into _aliens_ ' personal computers!"

A window popped up on the screen and Mr. Suit frowned. "His computer is encrypted and password protected. But then again, I would have been surprised if it wasn't. This will just take a moment to hack." Mr. Suit began to type swiftly again as he began to try various passwords that he thought his friend Red Scorpion would have used.

Jake peered over Mr. Suit's shoulder curiously as he watched him work. "Think you can really figure it out?"

"Oh, there's no doubt. Online I'm known as Cufflink. I'm an Alpha Class Hacker. This is nothing." Mr. Suit's fingers continued to fly over the keys and Jake was beginning to get dizzy just from watching Mr. Suit hack.

The window suddenly said 'password accepted' and disappeared. Mr. Suit instantly had access to the Red Scorpion's desktop and entire computer. "I'm in...let's see what you were up to Red Scorpion..."

Jake watched in awe as the hacker brought up several different windows that had streaming lines of numbers, data, and various information related to E.T. Tech. Jake couldn't make heads or tails of all the information that Mr. Suit was currently looking at.

"Shit!" Mr. Suit suddenly swore, "It looks like he recently deleted a whole bunch of files. Or maybe those files were stolen. I'll see if I can recover anything. Or maybe I can figure out where he hacked into last...that may give me a clue." Mr. Suit brought up a few more windows and then his eyes widened in surprise. Mr. Suit pushed the swivel chair back and spun around to face Jake with an incredulous look on his face. "It appears the Red Scorpion hacked into the super computer of the NeoTech Corporation."

Jake blinked. "NeoTech Corporation? You mean Dr. Valery's super computer that's connected with the mansion? No way!"

***

Jake and Mr. Suit left the ratty apartment building and quickly mounted their cyborg warhorses. They rode back to the SSF Headquarters (a.k.a Dr. Valery's mansion) immediately. It took them twenty minutes to arrive at the mansion. As soon as they had put Ginger and Pinstripe safely away into their stables (Jake was a little jealous of their automatic feeding troughs) they entered the mansion and made their way to the CIC (Combat Information Center) where Dr. Valery and the rest of the SSF were currently.

The CIC was a large room with a rectangular shaped table in the center with several computers. Towards the back of the room was a gigantic super computer, which reminded Jake of the other super computer he had seen within Dr. Valery's laboratory. Monitors were hung up on the walls and displayed all kinds of various data regarding cyborgs.

As soon as Mr. Suit and Jake entered the room they immediately realized that something was wrong. Alarm sirens were going off and red lights were flashing.

"WARNING. WARNING. SECURITY BREECH. SECURITY BREECH. I'VE BEEN HACKED INTO AND SOME DATA HAS BEEN STOLEN. INITIALIZING EMERGENCY SHUT DOWN AND REBOOT." A synthesized voice was saying loudly.

"Go right ahead, Computer." Dr. Valery commanded and instantly all of the computers and screens that were in the CIC Room went dark and for a moment it was pitch-black inside of the room. However, only a few seconds passed before everything began to come back on. Jake was a little disappointed by how short that blackout had been and had to quickly hide his hand behind his back that had been reaching out towards Galaxy Girl's tight butt.

Mr. Suit noticed and quickly hit Jake hard over the head with the hilt of his sword.

"Ow! What the hell?" Jake shouted, while giving Mr. Suit an incredulous look. "You're just jealous you didn't think of it first."

Mr. Suit just snorted.

Jake noticed that Galaxy Girl, Red Dragon, Bulldozer and Black Fox were all seated at the center table in front of a computer. Jake thought that they were probably hard at work on some top-secret complex matter and walked over to them to peer over their shoulders and see what they were up to.

Galaxy Girl was on Facebook chatting, uploading new pictures of herself on her fanpage, and updating her status as 'chilling in the CIC'. Jake noticed that Galaxy Girl had 5,000 friends - the maximum number of friends and that her fanpage had 30,571,321 likes! She had an iPod plugged into her ears and hadn't even noticed that Jake had been sneaking up behind her during the blackout.

Red Dragon had noticed however and as Jake was passing by his computer where he was doing research on the latest model cyborgs and their latest weaponry when he put his foot out to trip Jake up. Jake tripped over Red Dragon's booted foot and hit the floor with a _splat!_

Jake quickly pushed himself up off the floor and glared at Red Dragon. "Hey, what was that for?! Jerk."

Red Dragon just ignored Jake as he continued to type at the computer as if the incident had never happened.

"Hey, don't ignore me!" Jake said.

"Huh? Did you say something loser?" Red Dragon sneered.

"NO!" Bulldozer cried out, getting both Red Dragon's and Jake's attention. The two looked over to see what Bulldozer was doing at his computer and saw that he was watching a UFC fight on YouTube. "Don't let him get you on the floor...no....get up fool!"

Bulldozer was making a LOT of noise as he watched the UFC fight. Black Fox was seated at the computer next to him and pretending to do research on the current emergence of vigilantes in New York City. She had come across and interesting website: http://www.greenavenger.com. The Green Avenger was poorly skilled but he had his heart in the right place. Black Fox thought it wouldn't be so bad for someone like that to join them, however, he would need to be chosen by a living-metal weapon...out of the corner of her eye Black Fox was also watching the UFC fight intently. When the fighter that Black Fox and Bulldozer had both been rooting for lost Bulldozer burst out:

"NOOO! This is so NOT awesome!"

Black Fox had a pen in her hand which she snapped in two. _Nooo!_ Black Fox inwardly moaned.

Bulldozer turned to look at Black Fox and noticed that she had actually managed to snap her fountain pen in two and that ink was running down her arm. His expression turned concerned. "Hey, Black Fox, you okay? Your pen..."

Black Fox looked down at her pen and realized what she had done unconsciously and blushed. Getting ink everywhere like some kind of slob so went against her image!

Galaxy Girl was giving Black Fox an appalled look. "What are you an Amazon? How could you break your pen like that...you're getting ink all over your uniform! You better put some club soda on that stat."

"Club soda?" Black Fox asked.

"Club soda?" Bulldozer echoed before he grinned and suddenly opened his chest up to reveal the inside of his mini fridge that was stocked up with cold beer, rum, coca cola, and club soda. Bulldozer took out a bottle of club soda, shook it, and opened it in Black Fox's direction, directed at her stained bodysuit.

The club soda hit Black Fox and completely soaked her.

Galaxy Girl's eyes widened in surprise before she burst out laughing.

Black Fox calmly reached out, took a can of beer from Bulldozer's mini fridge, shook it and opened it at Bulldozer. The beer squirted him right in the face.

Bulldozer gave Black Fox a shocked look before he broke out into a grin. "BEER FIGHT!" He grabbed another beer can, shook it and stood up to attack Black Fox with it-

Black Fox shook the remaining beer in her can to attack Bulldozer with it-

The two Samurai Superheroes began to run around the CIC shaking exploding beer cans at each other and getting beer everywhere, until:

Black Fox and Bulldozer had run out of beer and were both soaking wet, standing in front of each other, and Bulldozer was grinning like an idiot while Black Fox's mouth was twitching as if she might smile. They moved closer, staring into each other's eyes and were about to...?

"Ahhh! You idiots got beer on my Christian Louboutins!" Galaxy Girl sudden shrieked. "Number One! Number Two! Number Three!"

Galaxy Girl's managers appeared out of nowhere and bowed in Galaxy Girl's direction.

"You called, Galaxy Girl?" Number One asked.

"Number One. Clean my boots. Number Two and Number Three clean up the mess that Miss Piggy and Mad Bull have made of the CIC."

"Roger that, Galaxy Girl." The managers sprang into action.

Jake was giving Black Fox and Bulldozer a bemused look. "Hey, it looks like you two are about to kiss or something."

This comment made Black Fox and Bulldozer spring apart from each other.

Black Fox - red faced - couldn't believe what she had just done. Run around like an idiot, spraying beer at Bulldozer. She was Black fox. Sophisticated, mature fashionista. Not...Miss Piggy! She glared angrily at Bulldozer. "Look what you've done."

"I'm sorry. I was just trying to help..." Bulldozer reached out and grabbed Black Fox's arm and touched the fading ink on her arm with his thumb. "The ink looks like its coming off..." He ran his hand down her arm unconsciously.

Black Fox shivered at his touch. "Don't touch me!" Black Fox batted Bulldozer's hand away. "Idiot."

Bulldozer lowered his hand and looked crestfallen. "Sorry, babe."

But Black Fox could no longer resist Bulldozer especially covered in beer. Black Fox grabbed Bulldozer's hand and pulled him out of the CIC. "Come with me. You need punishment."

"Eh?" Bulldozer grunted as Black Fox dragged him out of the CIC. "Punishment? Jake...save me!"

Jake just watched them go with a goofy smile on his face. He knew that he didn't need to save Bulldozer.

"REBOOTING SYSTEM. REBOOTING SYSTEM." The same monotone voice informed everyone.

Dr. Valery nodded. "Welcome back, Computer." Dr. Valery was seated before the super computer and her fingers were flying over the keyboard at a rapid rate. "Bastard sure covered his tracks...I'd like to know who he is. He's skilled. Maybe I could try to recruit him." A crooked smile formed on Dr. Valery's face at the thought. "Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer."

"It was the Red Scorpion, Commander." Mr. Suit said as he stalked over to stand at Dr. Valery's side. "He's the victim of our murder case."

Dr. Valery turned around to look at Mr. Suit and noticed Jake lagging behind. "Welcome back, boys. So he was the Red Scorpion, huh? Weren't you two friends, Mr. Suit?" Mr. Suit stiffened at the question and did not reply. "I see...I'm sorry. I know how much you admired the Red Scorpion, Mr. Suit."

"Do you know what Tech was stolen?" Mr. Suit asked Dr. Valery curiously as he peered over her shoulder at the large computer screen and at all of the open windows.

Jake peered over Dr. Valery's shoulder too but was quickly distracted by Dr. Valery's nails which Jake noticed were about one inch long, painted blue and had little yellow stars painted on them. He wondered how women could actually type with those plastic daggers attached to their fingers. Jake decided to look up at the screen next and tried to have a smart look on his face similar to the one that Mr. Suit was wearing.

Dr. Valery's delicate hands flew across the keyboard once more and she began to bring up various windows, which revealed different data. "Give me a moment to find out...what's missing...shit...the blueprints for an E.T. Accelerator Device has been stolen as well as Aerocraft and hover technology. All of these Tech are illegal.

"Whoever stole this Tech is probably going to want to sell it as soon as possible. Perhaps if you boys work fast enough the selling of my Tech can be intercepted. Mr. Suit - do you have any idea where a skilled hacker would go to find a buyer for illegal E.T. Tech like this?"

Mr. Suit smirked as he ran a hand back through his silky hair. "Of course, I do. Buyers of E.T. Tech usually hang out at the V.R. Club called _Salamander_. It's a popular hangout for cyborgs, robots, and people into E.T. Tech in general. Doors don't open until eleven o'clock, so we should still have a chance to intercept the selling of the Tech tonight..." Mr. Suit stroked his chin in thought.

Dr. Valery stood up and pushed her glasses up her nose as she looked at her SSF. "Samurai Superheroes - you have a new mission: I want you to all go to _Salamander_ undercover as cyborgs and Tech freaks, and find that E.T. Tech thief! Mr. Suit, Jake, Galaxy Girl, Red Dragon, Bulldozer, and Black Fox - we can't let that E.T. Tech fall into the wrong hands! The consequences could be dire, understood?"

"Understood, Commander!" The SSF cried in unison.

"Could you please repeat that and like way more slowly?" Jake said seriously.

Mr. Suit hit Jake over the back of his head with his fist. "Idiot."

Japanese Word Key:

_Ohayo minna_ : Good morning everyone

### Chapter 8: Samurai Superheroes Slash!

11:00 PM, club _Salamander_ , NYC...

For their mission, Dr. Valery designed everyone cyborg-themed outfits to wear so that they would easily blend in with the E.T. Tech-lovers crowd at club _Salamander_. After Jake, Mr. Suit, Galaxy Girl, Red Dragon, Bulldozer and Black Fox were all dressed they waited outside of the mansion for their transportation to arrive. After a few minutes, a high-tech, silver and black, stretch limo that was driven by Zee pulled up right in front of the mansion and everyone quickly got inside. Without speaking, Zee drove the Samurai Superheroes Force to the Discotheque _Salamander_ within minutes using his incredible driving skills.

During the drive to the club, Jake was feeling a bit hot and bothered since Dr. Valery had insisted on dressing him herself and had groped him unabashedly while doing so. Jake's face flamed as he remembered how Mr. Suit had walked into his room to find him in a rather embarrassing situation:

FLASHBACK

Mr. Suit knocked on the door to Jake's bedroom only once before he opened the door and stalked inside. He immediately caught sight of a fully dressed Jake laying on the floor with Dr. Valery straddling him and rolled his eyes towards the heavens. "Pervert...we don't have time for fun and games. We have a _mission_." Mr. Suit reminded Jake coolly.

Jake was flushed and teary-eyed when Mr. Suit found him. He knew he probably looked incredibly pathetic but he didn't care. Screw his pride. He needed help. "Mr. Suit! Please get her off of me! Help me!" Jake begged in a whiny tone.

"Pathetic coward..." Mr. Suit effortlessly grabbed Dr. Valery by the back of her white doctor dress and sent her flying off of Jake. Jake would have been worried for Dr. Valery's safety if she hadn't proven to be so uncannily tough already.

Mr. Suit looked over Jake's outfit as the cowboy stood up and dusted himself off while giving Mr. Suit a grateful look. "Thanks dude..." Jake was wearing a pair of uncomfortably tight, black leather pants, a gold, shimmery, silk shirt that was unbuttoned half way down his chest, a pair of shiny _Ferragamos_ , and a black cowboy hat. "You look like a _gay_ cowboy." Mr. Suit sneered.

"Oi! Hey!" Jake argued as he took in what Mr. Suit was wearing. Instead of the superhero's usual silver and black smart-suit he was wearing a modern, black and neon green Matrix-style suit. Instead of having stripes like a pinstripe suit would have the suit had moving columns of green 0s and 1s running down the nanomachine fabric. "Hey, that's not fair! You got a cool outfit...!" Jake pouted. Instead of his usual white highlights Jake noticed that Mr. Suit's hair now had green highlights. He was also wearing a pair of flashy silver cufflinks.

Mr. Suit smirked. "That's because I'm too sexy for this suit, dumbass."

Jake ignored the comment with a roll of his eyes. _More importantly,_ _I wonder what the ladies will be wearing?_ Jake thought enthusiastically to himself as his eyes turned into two pink hearts.

"Come on, slowpoke..." Mr. Suit raised his leg before kicking Jake right in the ass to get him moving forward. "Let's get going." They met the others outside of the mansion waiting for the transportation that Dr. Valery mysteriously said she was going to provide them with. This gave Jake a few minutes to check out the females of the Samurai Superheroes Force.

" _Ooo~_ " Jake exclaimed as he caught sight of what Galaxy Girl and Black Fox were wearing. "You girls look HOT!" Jake began to drool.

Galaxy Girl was wearing a black tube dress that had the pattern of silver stars on it. However, it was no ordinary material but holo-material, and the stars on her dress literally sparkled making her dress truly resemble the night's sky. Her silky platinum blonde hair was loose around her shoulders and she had a large, silver star-shaped hairclip in her hair. She also had on a pair of star-shaped earrings and a matching choker. She was wearing a pair of silver gloves and a pair of matching platform knee boots. Galaxy Girl ignored Jake's drooling as she continued to listen to music on her iPod and filed her nails in an indifferent manner. She wished she were anywhere but there at that moment. The last thing she wanted was to go on any kind of 'mission'. A few hologram shooting stars were shooting around Galaxy Girl giving her a sort of artificial aura. Galaxy Girl just gave Jake a not too subtle glare and he noticed her pretty silver eye shadow.

_Too cute!_ Jake thought as he looked Galaxy Girl over.

Black Fox was wearing a high-necked, floor length, Chinese-styled dress with slits going up the sides to her mid thigh. The material was black holo-material and the image of a golden dragon chasing and fighting with a silver tiger could be seen on her dress. Jake was mesmerized as he watched the two creatures curling and twisting their way around Black Fox's curves and felt instantly jealous. Black Fox had her hair up in a sophisticated ponytail and was also wearing a pair of futuristic, gold gloves. She had a pair of gold _Christian Louboutin_ shoes that had bright red soles on her feet that had heels so high Jake was sure Black Fox would be unable to walk in them. _Crouching tigress, has definitely found her hidden dragon._ Jake thought with a dopey grin on his face. _Very sexy._ Jake stared into Black Fox's dark eyes and noticed her shimmering, gold eye shadow.

Mr. Suit instantly grew irritated by the perverted leer that Jake was giving the two girls and hit Jake over the back of his head with the hilt of Ōkami. "Behave you cretin! That is no way to address the ladies!"

Jake rubbed the back of his head and pouted. "Owww...what'd I do? I just tried to say that the girls look _nice_. Geez. Who shoved that stick up your ass, asshole?"

Mr. Suit's eye twitched. "What was that you foul-mouthed, idiot?!"

Black Fox demurely took Jake's statement as a compliment. "Thank you, Jake- _kun_. You look really nice as well." She complimented in her usual sophisticated manner.

"Oh? Really? Thanks." Jake blushed and scratched the side of his face with his finger in a bashful gesture.

Galaxy Girl noticed the exchange and instantly grew irritated. Why had Black Fox complimented Jake? She didn't even like that pervy cowboy! Galaxy Girl had also noticed that Jake was looking incredibly hot that night but chose not to say anything. After all it probably would have gone right to that idiot's head. Galaxy Girl was inwardly seething when Black Fox gave her a knowing look. Galaxy Girl's eyes widened when she realized she had played right into Black Fox's hands. _That sly fox! Well, two can play at this game._

Galaxy Girl sauntered up to Jake and curled her arm around his. "I agree, Black Fox. Jake does look incredibly handsome tonight. He almost looks good enough to be my escort. I'm sure it would be his honor."

Jake stiffened up at Galaxy Girl's touch and tried hard not to move. He knew he'd have to shove her off of him eventually since he didn't want to accidentally hurt her but decided if he was very careful and didn't move a muscle he could enjoy the feeling of Galaxy Girl's arm linked with his own for a little while longer. Jake turned to just grin goofily at Galaxy Girl without saying anything and as usual when Jake kept his mouth shut Galaxy Girl was surprised that the butterflies in her stomach began to flutter again.

Red Dragon noticed that the cowboy _samurai_ and Galaxy Girl were totally having a romantic moment and gnashed his teeth from the inside of his robot costume. _Damn that Dr. Valery!_ Red Dragon inwardly swore. Dr. Valery had designed him a ridiculous looking robot costume that made him look like an outdated robot. The body was square shaped and the head was like having a large box on his head. Worst of all was that Dr. Valery had programmed the holographic face of the robot to have this stupid smile plastered there at all times. Smiling was the last thing Red Dragon felt like doing as he watched Jake and Galaxy Girl interact...She had never once looked at him the way she was looking at that _human_ Jake Lonestar now. If only Red Dragon didn't need to hide his true appearance from the world he wouldn't have had to wear this pathetic costume.

Jake felt the hair on the back of his neck prickle in warning. Jake looked around to see where this feeling of killing intent was coming from when his eyes landed on the funny looking robot with this huge smile on its face. Jake scratched his head since a smiling robot with such a hateful aura made no sense. Jake shuddered, he didn't know why but that robot was giving him the creeps. "Hey, why are we bringing a robot with us?" Jake asked.

Mr. Suit snorted as he tried to hold back a laugh while Bulldozer just burst out laughing loudly in response.

Jake gave the two a confused look, quirking his head at the two superheroes, and blinked, "What?"

"That's not a robot. That's Red Dragon in disguise." Black Fox informed Jake simply, in her serene, mature manner.

"Oh...Ohhhhh, sorry man. But I'm not the one who chose you such a LAMEASS costume." Jake shrugged and put his hands out in a helpless gesture.

"Grrrr....you picking a fight, gay cowboy? I'll kill you!" Red Dragon took out his sword and lunged at Jake.

"EPP!" Jake cried out as he ducked and Red Dragon's sword sailed over his head, taking a chunk out of his cowboy hat. "Oi! That was dangerous. You could have decapitated me!" Jake gave Red Dragon an aghast look.

Red Dragon smiled inside of the square robot head. "That was the general idea, idiot. I want you dead, pathetic human!" Red Dragon took a stance and attacked Jake again.

"Epp! Mommy! I'm too young and handsome to _dieeee~_!" Jake moaned as he dodged and evaded Red Dragon's attacks.

"Coward," Mr. Suit sneered as he watched Jake and Red Dragon fight.

Bulldozer's laughter increased in volume at Jake's antics. "Man, he's a funny guy!" Mr. Suit's attention was drawn to Bulldozer and he was surprised to see that the man was actually wearing a shirt for once, though the orange, black and silver shirt was left unbuttoned and the sleeves were rolled up to make sure his cybernetic arms were visible. He was wearing a pair of orange leather pants and a pair of black and silver combat boots. Bulldozer's red bull tattoo was visible on his chest, but Mr. Suit noted that Bulldozer must have been wearing a holo-accessory since the bull now seemed alive and was pawing the ground with its hoof, and snorting as it glared at anyone who so much as looked in Bulldozer's direction.

Black Fox sighed softly. "We don't have time for this nonsense." She took out her living-metal _katana_ and held it before her. "Tamamo-no-mae Evolution One!" Her sword transformed into the nine-bladed whip-sword. She then swung her sword at Red Dragon and Jake's feet successfully tripping them both up. They both landed face first on the ground with a splat.

"Dammit...!" Red Dragon swore. "Meddling bitch...!"

"Owie...my bruises have bruises now...I don't like pain..." Jake moaned before he suddenly realized something that took his mind off the pain. "Hey, wait a second, if Galaxy Girl is Red Dragon's date and Black Fox is Bulldozer's date then who's _my_ date?"

"Who do you think, fag? Mr. Suit is your date." Red Dragon teased in a snarky manner.

Jake's eyes widened in horror since he was gullible enough to believe Red Dragon's lie. "Is that true?!" He spun around to gape at Mr. Suit in shock. "Are we..." Jake swallowed. "Going to have to pretend to be a couple?!"

Mr. Suit's expression soon mirrored Jake's horrified one. "What? Hell no! Red Dragon's just messing with you, idiot. We're both going to the club as two straight, single guys on the prowl for lovely _ladies_ \- got it?" Mr. Suit grabbed Jake by his shirt collar and glared fiercely into his eyes.

Jake just glared back. He wondered how many times a day Mr. Suit actually called him an idiot and frowned. "On the prowl? That doesn't sound very gentlemanly, Mr. Narcissistic Prince."

Galaxy Girl put her hands on her hips and pouted since the guys were now totally ignoring her and that just wasn't acceptable.

An amused smirk formed on Black Fox's face. "Well, it looks like you two are getting along _quite_ well now."

Mr. Suit seemed to realize his mistake and immediately shoved Jake away from him so that he went flying. "No, we're not! I hate that guy!"

"Mommy!" Jake cried as he flew backwards and landed on his butt. Jake glared up at Mr. Suit. "You are such a dick."

"Bite me." Mr. Suit snarled back.

Jake was just about to respond when Zee pulled up in the stretch limo. With Zee's crazy driving, it only took a few minutes for the Samurai Superheroes to arrive at the futuristic, high-tech, virtual reality discotheque _Salamander_.

END OF FLASHBACK

Jake was feeling pretty excited since he'd never been to a virtual reality club before but also a bit wary since the place was undoubtedly filled with high-tech gadgets and electronic appliances that with one mere touch Jake could end up making explode or changing in strange ways. Jake made sure to shove his hands in his pockets to reduce the risk of touching anything. Zee pulled up right in front of the club and Jake got out with the others. There was an enormous line to get into the club but the Samurai Superheroes just bypassed the line and headed directly to the entrance with Jake jogging quickly behind them to catch up. The club's building was solid black and was the perfect backdrop for the holograms that were crawling up the club's surface: pink salamanders, bright orange frogs, blue lizards.

Directly above the main entrance door was a large sign that flashed in neon green letters: _Salamander_. Jake was so distracted by the flashy exterior that he missed the others going inside. He quickly rushed to follow them but the bouncer put one hand on Jake's chest to stop him. Jake thought that he was going to be told to make the line when the bouncer - a buff guy dressed all in black - gave Jake a lopsided smile. "Hey, don't forget your VR 3D glasses, kid. Have a good time." The bouncer shoved a pair of strange looking sunglasses into Jake's hands. The glasses looked like a pair of black _Oakleys_ with green-tinted lenses.

Jake fumbled with the glasses as he was shoved unceremoniously into the club. Jake stumbled forward and looked up. Jake's jaw dropped. The club _Salamander_ was amazing. Jake had never seen anything like it. It was enormous. There was a large dance floor that had a green and black checker pattern and already the dance floor was filled with people: cyborgs, robots, fembots, and androids. The robots and fembots were easy to differentiate from the humans because of their metal bodies and the single radio antenna on the very tops of their heads. In metal cages that were hanging from the ceiling Jake saw fembots and androids dancing suggestively. The club had two bars on either side of the room and Jake could see that there was a second floor that might be a VIP section. There was a runway stage set up in the center of the club that had several poles on it but the stage was currently empty. Towards the back of the club Jake spotted a robotic DJ that had eight metal arms and that had eight turntables in front of him that he was using to beatmatch, phrase, scratch, and slip-cue the music that was playing. He also used other electronic equipment to add synthesized sounds to the music.

"Sweet." Jake murmured.

Next, Jake discovered why the club _Salamander_ was called a virtual reality club. Things that shouldn't exist...couldn't exist...were floating through the air, crawling up the walls and dancing around the poles. Blue butterflies flew through the air, pink salamanders crawled up the walls, and a golden monkey was pole dancing. Jake wondered for a moment if he had smoked some marijuana before coming and shook his head at the thought. Jake decided to put the special glasses the bouncer had given him on and as soon as he did the holograms became even more real and 3D. It was as if the holograms were alive. A yellow unicorn galloped across the dance floor and it looked so real that Jake dove out of the way.

A deep chuckle was heard as Mr. Suit began to laugh at Jake's plight. "Are you really that much of an idiot? That unicorn is just a hologram."

Jake lowered his head to hide his blush as he picked himself up off the dance floor. "Stop calling me an idiot, jerk."

A flock of glittering golden butterflies flew across the dance floor and the girls all 'Ooed' and 'Ahed' appreciatively.

"Cool." Jake murmured before catching sight of a particularly cute looking fembot that had impressive cone-shaped breasts and smirked. "Hey Red Dragon, I think I found the perfect girlfriend for you..." Jake joked as he pointed at the pole dancing fembot.

Red Dragon followed the direction that Jake's finger was pointing towards and caught sight of the fembot who was gyrating her hips in a very suggestive way. "Do you have a death wish, pervy idiot cowboy?" Red Dragon clunked towards him sounding like he had a pair of frying pans strapped to his feet. But this funny sound made Red Dragon no less threatening to Jake.

"Epp!" Jake squeaked and hid behind Mr. Suit. "Save me, _Darling~!_ "

Mr. Suit's eyes widened at the endearment as he shoved Jake off of himself harshly, "Be serious! We don't have time for this tomfoolery. We have to find the Tech Thief." Mr. Suit's sharp eyes were already scanning the dancing crowd. "Shit. It's too crowded in here."

Galaxy Girl pointed to the second level of the club. "Think we can charm our way into the VIP section?"

Mr. Suit smirked. "Charm won't be necessary, my dear. I believe you're all forgetting just who you're here with." Mr. Suit pushed his glasses up his nose. "On the Internet I'm known as: Cufflink. I'm a member of _Salamander_ 's VIP list since I'm an Alpha Class Hacker...anyways, come on, follow me." Mr. Suit headed for the stairs, which led to the VIP section with purposeful strides.

"Isn't my _honey~_ the greatest." Jake gushed comically as he tried to sound gay.

"Shut your trap or I'll shut it for you, pervy cowboy." Mr. Suit warned over his shoulder.

Jake gulped. " _Ooo~_ scary." _Damn, it's a shame I didn't just ask Ultraviolet to come with me and be my date...even though she's actually an android...she's still cute._ Jake sighed. _I wonder how she felt about being left behind. What am I saying? She's an android. She doesn't feel anything_.

Mr. Suit was already heading up the stairs and Galaxy Girl quickly followed only to end up tripping in her incredibly high platform boots. " _Ahhh~!_ " Galaxy Girl screeched since she feared landing on her face. Luckily, Jake had decided to walk behind Galaxy Girl so that he could try and look up her tube dress as she climbed her way up the stairs, and was there to instantly catch her before she fell using his superhuman reflexes.

"You saved..." Galaxy Girl looked up at Jake in surprise, who had Galaxy Girl's hand in his and one arm wrapped around her slim waist. "My new nose job. Thank you Jake. That was a close one."

"No prob." Jake managed to croak out and froze. He tried not to harm Galaxy Girl in any way as he just cradled her in his arms and gazed down at her. She really was beautiful. A dazed look came to Jake's face as he began to zone out. _If I had a time freezer device I would freeze this moment for all eternity._

Mr. Suit turned around to see what the commotion was and saw Jake with Galaxy Girl in his arms and neither of them were moving. A scowl instantly formed on Mr. Suit's face as he wondered why Jake hadn't let go of Galaxy Girl yet. Equally pissed off by this turn of events was Red Dragon, who had been walking up the stairs just behind Jake, and now had a front row seat to Jake and Galaxy Girl's current predicament. Jake had frozen up completely not knowing what to do.

Mr. Suit decided to lend Jake a helping hand. "Jake! Unhand Galaxy Girl at once, you perverted cowboy! Your disgusting touch will only sully her purity!"

At Mr. Suit's harsh words Jake seemed to snap out of his stupor and realized how he was clutching Galaxy's Girl's hand and how his arm was wrapped rather tightly around her slim waist. Jake immediately sprang back away from Galaxy Girl as if her body had burned him. "AH!" He stumbled down a few steps away from Galaxy Girl in an almost fearful manner that made Mr. Suit curious about his strange reaction.

Jake gave Galaxy Girl a worried look, "Are you alright Galaxy Girl? I..." Jake swallowed. "Didn't hurt you, did I?"

Galaxy Girl gave Jake a confused look and felt slightly hurt that Jake had sprung away from her as if she had the plague or something. No guy had ever reacted to her that way before. Was what he was saying now just some sort of excuse for his behavior? Did she somehow disgust him? What if she forgot to put on deodorant?! Galaxy Girl immediately began to freak out inwardly and wondered when she could sneak to the bathroom to check if she smelled. "Are you retarded? There's no way you could hurt me." Galaxy Girl absentmindedly replied, as she distractedly looked around for the bathroom.

Jake opened his mouth to explain his actions further but Red Dragon, who roughly shoved Jake out of the way, so that he could look Galaxy Girl over, interrupted him. "You're not hurt are you, you stupid woman? What were you doing almost tripping on mere stairs?"

Galaxy Girl raised an eyebrow at the smiley-faced robot. "What? Are you actually concerned about me, Red Dragon? That's _so_ not like you."

"Keh, I'm not concerned. I'm just...worried for your fans. What if you smashed your face in like a pancake? I'm sure your fans would have to find someone else to worship then. You should really be more careful walking around in those ridiculous shoes. Why can't you women just wear normal shoes? It's unfathomable, the shoe fashion of these _human_ women..." The robot shook his head from side to side.

"I believe Galaxy Girl has made it abundantly clear that to her _fashion_ is more important than _safety_." Black Fox drawled.

Galaxy Girl glared down at Black Fox. "Hmph! And well, what about you then? Those _Christian Louboutins_ are at least five inches high! That can't be too safe!"

"Well, I'm not as clumsy as some people..." Black Fox said.

"Why you, poser...!" Galaxy Girl accused. "I know that you really don't like fashion even though you claim you do, Black Fox. You would never be able to understand the need to keep up an image. I'm a public figure. I have fans. I have to look my best at all times for the paparazzi. If they catch me with even one hair out of place it could be the end of my career!"

"A hair out of place would be better than a smashed-in face." Red Dragon decided to point out.

Jake found himself nodding but quickly stopped when Galaxy Girl sent a heated gaze his way. A heated gaze that Bulldozer chose to misinterpret.

"Jake is sure the lady's man." Bulldozer chuckled. "He's even smoother than Mr. Suit. I bet Galaxy Girl and maybe even Black Fox have fallen for him already..." Bulldozer looked at Black Fox out of the corner of his eye in order to watch her response to his words intently.

" _NANI?!_ WHAT?!" Both Mr. Suit and Red Dragon burst out in outraged unison.

Black Fox turned to Bulldozer and met his eyes. "Oh, I wouldn't say I'm falling for him. But I can't say the same for Galaxy Girl. It's a shame though that it seems to be unrequited. I feel sorry for you, Galaxy Girl. But there are many fish in the sea." Black Fox said in her serene manner.

Galaxy Girl's jaw dropped open and she opened and closed her mouth in shock but no words were able to come out.

Jake was just looking confused since how could Galaxy Girl have an unrequited love? Who wouldn't love her? She was amazing.

Red Dragon was coming up behind Jake ready to strangle him when Mr. Suit started walking up the stairs again. "Hurry up, morons. We don't have time for this nonsense." Mr. Suit walked right past the bouncer who had been busy stopping some other club goers from just wandering into the VIP section, when the bouncer noticed Mr. Suit and chased after him.

"Hey, wait! Where do you think you're going? This is the VIP lounge. If you're not on the list you can't be up here." The bouncer, who was dressed in a silver jumpsuit, was saying.

Mr. Suit spun around and flashed the bouncer a charming smile. "Oh, I believe I'm on the list." Mr. Suit ran a hand through his slicked back hair in such a way that the club lights reflected off of the silver cufflink on Mr. Suit's shirt cuff. The cufflink was round and resembled the interior of a watch with jeweled, spinning gears.

The bouncer's eyes widened as he caught sight of the cufflink. " _Cufflink_..." He murmured in a soft voice before his attitude did a 180. "It's truly an honor, sir. Please go right ahead. You and your friends." The bouncer waved for the rest of the Samurai Superheroes to make their way into the VIP lounge.

"Show off." Jake groused, hands in his pockets as he followed Mr. Suit to a table.

Mr. Suit chose a glass cube that had a crushed _Ferrari_ inside of it for their table. Having a table that had a crushed car in it that had been salvaged from a junkyard was the latest craze in NYC. The table also had several fancy, black leather chairs and couches situated around it.

In less than a minute, a cute cyborg waitress came to take their orders. Jake immediately checked her out running his eyes over her faux-leather, hot pink tube dress, white boots and gloves and the shock of pink hair that was on the top of her head. "Hi! My name is Pink and I will be your waitress for the evening! Would you all like to see a menu or do you know what you wish to order?" Pink asked in a bubbly manner. Jake noticed she had a cybernetic arm and a cybernetic leg.

_Strike!_ Jake thought before he interrupted Mr. Suit who was just about to speak. "Your name is Pink? I thought it was Campbell's, 'cause you are mmm...mmm good." Jake waggled his eyebrows at the cyborg. That's when Jake noticed her eyes - her irises were unusual because they were blue with yellow flower petals surrounding her pupils. _Colored contacts?_ Jake wondered.

"Er...?" Pink quirked her head at Jake and smiled. She looked him over deciding he was handsome and was about to respond when Mr. Suit elbowed Jake right out of the couch so that he landed in a twitching heap on the floor.

Mr. Suit ignored Jake's moans of pain as he placed his order. "We already know what we want, my dear. Bring us the House Special - the Flaming Salamander Set." Mr. Suit steepled his fingers before him and gave the waitress an intent look managing to effectively capture the complete attention of their waitress.

Pink's eyes sparkled and she became even more excited. " _Ooo~_ right away, sir!" She sped off to place their order. The carpet literally smoking with the speed with which the girl had run off.

Jake gave Mr. Suit a curious look as he pulled himself back onto the couch, "What's a Flaming Salamander Set?"

A haughty expression formed on Mr. Suit's face as he looked down his nose at Jake. "You'll see, wimpy cowboy." Mr. Suit then shook his head realizing that the happy-go-lucky atmosphere of _Salamander_ was distracting him. He needed to concentrate on their mission...

Mr. Suit began to resume his scan of the dance floor from their higher vantage point, searching for any suspicious looking characters, people he knew were hackers or previous buyers of E.T. Tech.

As Mr. Suit was doing this, Pink returned with a black drink tray arranged with various alcoholic drinks - all of which looked very interesting as each drink had been presented in a different style of glass and the drinks were all different colors. Some of the drinks looked strong like a simple scotch on the rocks while others resembled the fancy, fruit flavored drinks that women usually ordered and that had pink umbrellas stuck in them.

"Here you go! One Flaming Salamander Set! Enjoy!" Pink said before she skipped off.

Jake watched her go morosely, wondering if he could somehow manage to get Pink's telephone number if he asked for it and wondering if he'd have the courage to call her afterwards if she actually did give it to him. "Hey, Mr. Suit is she wearing colored contacts do you think?"

"Colored contacts?" Mr. Suit pushed his VR glasses up his nose. "I think not. Her eyes have been genetically altered. It's the latest trend with the girls since the process was leaked over the Internet."

Mr. Suit soon caught sight of a few people he recognized. "Hey...isn't that Flash, the leader of the _Solar Flares_? And who's that next to him?" Mr. Suit's face paled as he suddenly recognized the man standing next to Flash. "What's Nix Duo doing here? That _bastard_." Jake was surprised by the hate that was dripping from Mr. Suit's voice. Mr. Suit felt Jake's eyes on him and turned to offer some kind of explanation. "He's the leader of the _Metalheads_ , the rival gang of the _Solar Flares_. It's strange that they would be seen together. They hate each other. They're in the middle of a violent turf war too." Mr. Suit stroked his chin thoughtfully as he tried to recompose himself.

Although Mr. Suit appeared calm now Jake hadn't failed to notice Mr. Suit's odd reaction to Nix Duo. He had grown pale, almost as if he were afraid? Jake shook his head. _Naw, impossible, Mr. Suit isn't afraid of anyone. And if he was...then I should be very very very afraid of said individual._

"Who? Who?" Jake asked as he looked over Mr. Suit's shoulder and spotted two men dressed up like bikers. One of the bikers was dressed in black leather from head-to-toe and had a biker helmet on his head with the visor shut effectively hiding his face. The man standing next to him was dressed in a yellow leather bodysuit and had on a yellow and black biker helmet. His visor was also down blocking his face from view. The man in yellow seemed normal enough but as for the man in black...he had silver chains wrapped around his entire body and Jake shuddered. There was something just not quite right about that guy.

Black Fox followed Mr. Suit's line of sight and her eyes narrowed as she caught sight of the two gang leaders. "You're right. That's Nix Duo and standing next to him is Flash. The _Metalheads_ and the _Solar Flares_ are both _cyborg_ biker gangs." Black Fox turned to inform Jake.

Mr. Suit's eyes shifted to a fat cyborg that was standing next to the two gang leaders and who had golden cybernetic limbs. Mr. Suit's eyes narrowed - those had been custom-made. But custom-made cybernetics were still illegal. Mr. Suit's eyes widened as he realized who the man must be: "Ah! It's Gold Fist! He owns several casinos in New York City and arranges for illegal gambling events like cyborg martial arts tournaments where participants use the E.T. Tech as they beat the shit out of each other and sometimes kill each other."

"Cyborg martial arts tournaments?" Jake raised an eyebrow. "Have you participated in anything like that before, Mr. Suit?"

Mr. Suit gave Jake a bland look. "I'm not a cyborg but...I plan on participating in Nova Inara's Death Cube Matches this year. Cyborgs challenge Nova Inara's Nemesis Zeros and request a Death Cube Match - a one on one fight, the challenger versus Nova Inara's chosen fighter. People bet on the outcome of the match. In fact, Dr. Valery intends for all of us to participate. It will give me the chance to fight against the Nemesis Zero's strongest fighter - Zero One a.k.a Zippo. Nova Inara's top henchman. That guy down there...Nix Duo is also known as Zero Two."

"Zippo?" Jake asked, his head spinning with all the information Mr. Suit was unloading on top of him. "Wait a second. Dr. Valery intends for us to participate in some kind of Death Cube Match?" Jake paled as he remembered the Death Cube that had housed Orochi. "I really don't like the sound of that and you're saying that guy in the chains is one of the Nemesis Zeros? Shit. I want to leave now."

"Right now, Zippo holds the title for the greatest living-metal swordsman in the world. Once I defeat him I'll be the Alpha Class Living-Metal Swordsman in the world and then I just have to think about winning the Galactic title next." Mr. Suit stroked his chin in thought. "Just have to get my hands on a spaceship somehow..."

Jake was giving Mr. Suit an incredulous look. Mr. Suit was insane to want to fight these strong guys. Jake watched dazedly as a yellow and purple spotted shark swam right over their glass table.

Standing in front of the unlikely allies was a young woman dressed up completely like a _ninja._ She was dressed from head-to-toe in black leather, had a face mask covering half of her face, and two large cases were strapped to her back that Jake couldn't help but think were concealed weapons of some kind. How she had managed to get those past security Jake had no idea. Although the Samurai Superheroes had all managed to get their own weapons past security too using Dr. Valery's invisibility holograms and anti-metal detectors. The _ninja_ looked Asian with her pale skin, dark narrow eyes, and pixie haircut of dark, emerald green hair. Jake also noticed that she had a metal arm. _She's a cyborg_ , Jake thought with a shiver. _Are there no normal human girls in this entire club?_

Almost as if the young woman could sense eyes upon her she suddenly looked up and Jake's eyes met with hers. Jake pressed the zoom button on his VR glasses. She had the most unusual looking eyes that were green, blue, yellow, purple and red. Her irises were rainbow colored. Jake realized her eyes must have been genetically altered like Pink's.

"Is that a _ninja_?" Jake blinked, "Is she one of those vigilante superheroes that Green Avenger told me about?"

Mr. Suit's eyes narrowed at the cyborg _ninja_ and he noticed a tattoo of a rainbow colored diamond on the top of her hand. His eyes lit up with recognition. "Tech Thief...Prism...it must be her! Shit!" Mr. Suit swore as he watched Prism hand the men three different USB flash drives.

One by one Nix Duo, Flash and Gold Fist swiped their credit cards across her iPhone. Their payments for the E.T. Tech were automatically transferred into Prism's bank account. The whole transaction took mere seconds.

"Dammit! Prism just sold the stolen Tech to Nix Duo, Flash and Gold Fist! We have to stop them before they leave the club. We also need to arrest Prism. Galaxy Girl, Red Dragon - you both go after Nix Duo. Black Fox, Bulldozer, you two go after Flash. Jake and I will go after Gold Fist and try to arrest Prism. Samurai Superheroes - MOVE OUT!" Mr. Suit commanded the force.

The SSF leapt into action. Jake was incredibly surprised when Bulldozer picked Black Fox up into his arms and suddenly jumped right off the second floor to land in the center of the dance floor below with a loud thud. Bulldozer set Black Fox on her feet carefully before they both turned to block Flash's escape route.

Black Fox whipped out her _katana_ and deactivated the invisibility hologram so that the living-metal sword revealed itself. "Tamamo-no-mae Evolution One!" She declared as her sword glowed with a bright green light and then transformed into the whip-sword.

At her side Bulldozer followed suit, taking out his once invisible _katana_ as well, "Ushioni Evolution One!" Bulldozer said as his _katana_ glowed with a green-tinged light and transformed into a gigantic _zanbatō_. He hefted the sword up to rest across his shoulder blades in a cocky pose.

"Hurry up, dumbass!" Mr. Suit took off running for the stairs with Jake following close behind. Not too far behind them were Galaxy Girl and Red Dragon. Though Galaxy Girl was holding Red Dragon back since she couldn't run as swiftly as the others in her slippery yet stylish platform boots. Once the group reached the dance floor they split up. Galaxy Girl and Red Dragon headed towards Nix Duo while Jake and Mr. Suit pursued Gold Fist and Prism.

Galaxy Girl and Red Dragon ran forward to stand in front of Nix Duo. Galaxy Girl took her _naginata_ down from her back and which became visible as she deactivated the invisibility hologram. She swung the _naginata_ over her shoulders spinning it before she pointed it at Nix Duo. "Nix Duo, you're under arrest for possession of illegal E.T. Tech!" Galaxy Girl declared.

Red Dragon shot Galaxy Girl a surprised look from within his robot head. Usually, Galaxy Girl acted incredibly reluctant to face the cyborg criminals they had been ordered to arrest.

Nix Duo looked Galaxy Girl over from head to toe, letting out a low whistle. "I wouldn't mind if you locked me up somewhere and threw away the key, babe. But I can't let my ass get sent to Cyborg Prison just yet. I'm in the middle of a war after all and I just got my hands on some Tech that will give my gang a new _edge_." Nix Duo looked down at his nails in a bored manner. Galaxy Girl noticed his nails were metal claws that had been attached to his bodysuit. The lights in the club reflected off of the claws giving them a sinister gleam. "So, I suggest you get out of my way, girlie, before you get hurt."

Galaxy Girl stubbornly stood her ground, "No. It's time for you to come quietly and stop resisting arrest." _Hopefully, he'll come quietly so I can hurry up and get back to the mansion. I'm missing my favorite shows on E Entertainment television because of this freak._ _I want to see who becomes America's next top model!_

"Resisting?" Nix Duo drawled. "I haven't done that yet. But there's a time for everything, I suppose. It's a shame to kill a beautiful woman...but, oh well." Nix Duo raised his hand at Galaxy Girl and the metal claws that had been attached to his bodysuit suddenly detached and flew through the air towards Galaxy Girl.

"Epp!" Galaxy Girl spun her _naginata_ in front of her haphazardly to block the attack.

The metal claws were ricocheted off of Galaxy Girl's weapon and went zooming into the club goers and dancers who were on the dance floor. Panicked screams ripped through the air and Galaxy Girl watched as several people threw their arms up in an attempt to protect themselves from the deadly metal claws.

"Oops." Galaxy Girl muttered to herself as she watched the chaos that the dance floor had become.

"Shit! What is that bimbo doing?" Red Dragon moved quickly and unsheathed his living-metal _katana_ as he rushed for the club goers. He protectively stood in front of them and moved his sword through the air cutting through the metal claws instead of deflecting them so that they fell to pieces all around him. "Galaxy Girl you _baka_! Just what the hell do you think you're doing?! These pathetic _humans_ almost got killed!"

Galaxy Girl put her hands on her hips and frowned back at Red Dragon. "Hey, I didn't mean to. I mean, it's not like I did it on purpose, geez. Way to blow up and make a big deal about something so small. No one even got hurt, did they?"

Red Dragon was about to respond when he caught sight of Nix Duo running off towards the club exit.

"Shit! Nix Duo is getting away because of you, _baka onna!_ Foolish woman!" Red Dragon snarled.

"Hey, don't call me a ' _baka onna_ ' you...freak!" Galaxy Girl shot back as she spun to face Nix Duo only to find that he was no longer there. Her eyebrow twitched. "Shit...he really is getting away!"

"This is all your fault for distracting me, woman! Hurry up and pursue him!" Red Dragon commanded imperiously.

"Don't order me around, freak! Hey, you! Wait right there...you're under arrest!" Galaxy Girl shouted as she chased after Nix Duo while Red Dragon followed right behind her. However-

Galaxy Girl tripped and fell flat on her face. Red Dragon tripped over her and they ended up on the floor in a tangled heap. Deep deep down Red Dragon didn't mind this precarious position all that much, but seriously now was definitely not the time!

"GALAXY GIRL!" Red Dragon roared in frustration. "I'm getting really sick of your wardrobe malfunctions!"

"Ow! Hey, don't yell right in my ear like that you freak! And get off of me! You're heavy and that better be your sword jabbing into my stomach or you're dead, you hear me?!" Galaxy Girl declared as she shoved Red Dragon off of her. "Geez...I'm sorry."

"You are?" Red Dragon questioned as he pushed himself up off the floor and gave Galaxy Girl a surprised look.

"Not." Galaxy Girl smirked.

Red Dragon's temple throbbed. "BAKA ONNA!"

***

Meanwhile, Bulldozer and Black Fox faced off against the cyborg biker Flash. Black Fox got into a fighting stance before whipping her long sword towards Flash, but he lithely dodged out of the way. _He's fast...too fast. Illegal accelerator cybernetic implants, maybe? Shit._

Bulldozer tried to attack Flash next swinging his massive sword Flash's way, however, Bulldozer's movements were so slow to Flash that he actually hopped up onto Bulldozer's sword blade! Flash then ran along the blade towards Bulldozer while the cyborg's hands turned into sharp metal claws.

"Crap!" Bulldozer swore.

"Bulldozer!" Black Fox yelled before quickly slashing her whip-sword in Flash's direction.

"Tsk." Flash was forced to leap off of Bulldozer's sword, doing a few impressive back flips through the air. "I've had just about enough of playing with you two...see you!" Flash said before holding up his hands in the Samurai Superheroes' direction with his palms facing them. From out of the very center of his palms a metal nozzle of some kind emerged.

Suddenly yellow flames shot out towards Black Fox. "GET DOWN!" Bulldozer cried as he shoved Black Fox to the ground and shielded her with his hulking body.

Flash laughed and cried out with psychotic delight at their plight as he decided to continue raining flames down upon them mercilessly. "Burn! Samurai Superheroes!"

Bulldozer's orange shirt began to set on fire and Black Fox began to panic. "Bulldozer! Get off of me. You need to put out the flames!"

Bulldozer obediently got off of Black Fox standing up, but as soon as he was standing Black Fox shoved him roughly to the floor. "Roll and put out the flames. You may be a cyborg but you're still part human. You need to take better care of yourself Bulldozer." Black Fox chided in a stern tone with a frown on her face.

Bulldozer obeyed her and rolled across the floor successfully managing to put out the flames. He stood up and faced Black Fox, his shirt was smoking, and put a hand behind his head in a sheepish gesture, "Yea but...whatever I lose Dr. Valery can just replace it, right?"

Black Fox slapped Bulldozer hard across the face. Bulldozer's eyes went wide. Black Fox's expression turned frigid. "Don't you ever say that again, Bulldozer. Human beings are not replaceable. Don't forget the reason we're fighting against Nova Inara in the first place. We're trying to protect our _humanity_." She finished in her cold, mature tone.

An ashamed look came to Bulldozer's face. "Er, yea, I'm sorry Black Fox. I guess I forgot. Thanks for reminding me. I'd really be lost without you, Black Fox. Heh."

Black Fox's lip twitched as she almost smiled. "Indeed."

"But...at least I didn't lose anything important." Bulldozer placed a hand over his crotch and felt to make sure everything was still intact. "Thank God."

Black Fox used her whip-sword to trip Bulldozer up so that he fell flat on his face before she looked around to see where Flash had gone and realized that he had managed to escape during the commotion. "Tsk." Black Fox bit down on her thumbnail in frustration. "He escaped. Dr. Valery won't be pleased..."

Bulldozer managed to push himself up off the floor again and gave Black Fox a worried look. "Think she'll punish us?" He shuddered as he remembered having received Dr. Valery's somewhat perverted punishments before - like testing out some of her new high-tech sex toys...

Black Fox raised an eyebrow at Bulldozer's strange reaction. "Maybe."

"I should have let my shirt stay on fire."

***

Simultaneously, Jake and Mr. Suit pursued Gold Fist. "Um, who's this guy we're chasing again?"

"His name is Gold Fist, you idiot. He's one of the most dangerous cyborg Crime Lords in New York City. Focus!" Mr. Suit shot back as he finally closed in on Gold Fist who merely turned around and smiled at them as his robot bodyguards suddenly materialized around him.

Inner Jake: _Ah~ why am I following Mr. Suit?! This Gold Fist guy has robot bodyguards - shit! They look like golden Terminators!_

Five humanoid shaped, golden robots with radio antennas on the tops of their heads moved to stand in front of Gold Fist. Without fear, Mr. Suit unsheathed Ōkami and pointed the sword at the gold robots. Mr. Suit took a deep breath and activated his psy-link to communicate with his sword. _Okay, let's do this Ōkami!_ Mr. Suit summoned the sword's power and it began to glow with a green-tinged light. "Ōkami Evolution One! Wolf Claw!" Jake watched as Mr. Suit's sword morphed into a clawed paw.

Mr. Suit let out a battle cry as he charged the golden robots and slashed the gigantic claw through the air. Jake watched, thoroughly impressed, as Mr. Suit's sword sliced through the robots like a knife through butter. The living-metal swords really _could_ cut through anything. Jake realized as he felt like clapping or eating popcorn or something.

The robot bodyguards fell to pieces at Mr. Suit's feet. Gold Fist frowned and began to back away from the two Samurai Superheroes. Perhaps, he had underestimated them. At the same time, Prism was making her own escape out the back exit of the club but Mr. Suit noticed.

"Jake! Go after Prism! Don't let her escape! I'll handle Gold Fist - now, go!" Mr. Suit ordered firmly.

"Er, yea, right...!" Jake took off running after Prism. _Why am I taking orders from Mr. Narcissistic Prince again?_ He exited the club into a dark alleyway that existed right next to the club between the club and another building. As soon as he entered the alley Jake had to dodge a dagger attack.

"Epp!" Jake nearly had his head chopped off and he scuttled sideways across the wall like a crab and as far away from Prism as he could.

And then he realized something. _Doh! Why the hell did I obey Mr. Suit just then?! Why the hell did I actually pursue Prism? I'm no match for some kind of female cyborg ninja! What was I thinking? No...I wasn't thinking...I'm so going to die! Someone help me! Save me! I'm too young and handsome to dieee~!_ Jake inwardly moaned in his mind.

[Jake VS Prism] Fight...?

Prism and Jake faced off. "You must be a brave _samurai_ to come after me despite my reputation. I'm impressed." She purred at Jake as she held her twin daggers up before her in a stance that reminded Jake of Ultraviolet except Prism was much taller and had those mesmerizing rainbow colored eyes...

_Reputation? Good thing I don't know about it or I'd be even more afraid than I already am!_ "Your eyes glow like binary stars, babe." Jake complimented before shaking his head as he tried not to get distracted by her eyes. "Yea, well, you know," Jake put a hand behind his head bashfully. "That's me alright, brave hero Jake Lonestar...ahahahaha!" He laughed nervously.

"Prepare to die, my brave _samurai_ ," Prism said as she rushed forward and attacked Jake with her long twin daggers. Jake noticed that her daggers appeared to be glowing with a green-tinged light. _Are those living-metal daggers? Where did she get them?_ Jake wondered.

"Epp!" Jake squeaked as he ducked and dived and dove out of the way. "Mommy!"

Prism frowned, the _samurai_ was actually managing to _avoid_ her attacks and she couldn't land a single hit on him. Was he skilled? She wondered. And yet...he was acting like a complete cowardly fool and had such strange movements. She had never seen a human being move quite like _that_ before.

Prism threw five _shuriken_ Jake's way. Jake let his superhuman reflexes take over and he moved his body this way and that and bent his body back - in half - Matrix-style and a shuriken flew over his chest. "Whoa. I totally just pulled a _Matrix_ move, baby! Go me! Booyah!"

"What the hell?" Prism was beginning to get frustrated. "I've never fought anyone that moves like you do before. Stand still!" Prism complained.

Jake grinned. "No way. Catch me if you _can~_!" Jake decided to make a run for it, as Prism took off hot on his heels.

"He's running away?! Grrr! Gah...get back here you cowardly _samurai_!" Prism sheathed her two twin daggers on her back and raised her hands towards Jake, palms facing him and then released several razor wires Jake's way. They wrapped around Jake's ankle and effectively tripped him up. Jake landed with a hard smack on his face on the cold, hard, lonely ground.

"Owwww..." Jake moaned, tears forming in his eyes. "That was mean..."

Prism approached Jake and began to wrap her _ninja_ wires around his body like a cocoon. Like a spider wrapping up her prey. _Epp!_ In seconds, Jake was completely covered by metal wires.

Prism smiled triumphantly. "Caught you, you insect. And now, you die. My _ninja_ wires are razor sharp." Prism slowly controlled the nanomachine wires to constrict around Jake's body using her psy-link with the wires, and a wire slowly began to cut into Jake's ankle drawing blood. She had barely gotten started when Jake began to panic. "Ahhh! No! Don't! It hurts! Please stop!"

_Ahhh! She's really going to kill me! I hate the sight of blood...especially if it's mine! I hate pain too!_ Jake internally moaned.

"I haven't even started yet and you're already like this? Are you really a Samurai Superhero? I heard that when Nix Duo captured Mr. Suit and his partner that they were tortured for hours and that Mr. Suit never broke."

"What? Mr. Suit was tortured?" Jake looked up at Prism with teary-eyes. "But I don't want to be tortured...I'm not a hero like Mr. Suit." Jake looked up at Prism and gave her his most pathetic, puppy-dog face making his eyes appear to be as large as possible.

Prism was just about to have her nanomachine wires constrict around Jake further when she caught his look. That look...those eyes...he was...just too damned cute! "I was just going to scare you a little but this is too pathetic to even watch. I'll just put you out of your misery, pathetic Samurai Superhero." Prism took out her dagger and walked towards the trembling Jake. He was pretty close to hyperventilating at this point. "Say goodnight." She said before hitting Jake over the back of his head and knocking him out cold. Prism sheathed her dagger on her back and turned to go. "Pathetic. That was just _sad_." However-

Orochi instantly took control of Jake's body as soon as he was knocked out cold.

" **What did you just call me, insolent woman?"** Came a fierce sounding voice.

Prism turned around wide-eyed to see Jake standing up but with the metal wires still completely cocooning him. All of a sudden 'Jake' the _samurai_ seemed different. Prism noticed the glowing _samurai_ sword in his hand that was pulsing with power and energy. There was something different about Jake suddenly, he exuded confidence and strength and raw power. Prism was instantly on guard.

" **Argghh! Hooryah!"** Orochi let out a battle cry as he stretched his arms out and ripped the metal wires off of his body with his bare hands. The wires had cut deeply into his flesh but Orochi had managed to get the wires off though streaks of red blood could be seen through Jake's torn gold shirt. Once Orochi's hands were free he tied Jake's hair into a ponytail.

"No way..." Prism gawked at the bloody _samurai_. _Is this really the same sniveling coward I just faced? Impossible._

Orochi wasted no time in charging Prism, sword raised, and in one second Orochi was in front of Prism and had his sword pressed to her throat-

_Epp! I didn't even see him move!_ Prism thought as she swallowed nervously. Suddenly, the tables had turned.

" **What is a beautiful woman like you doing out here on the battlefield? A woman's place is not to fight but to create a place of peace and comfort for her man at home. A woman's role is to put a man at ease and make him feel comfortable, so that he can protect you. Let me protect you, Prism. Allow me to protect you. You don't need to fight. Let me be your faithful samurai."** Orochi looked at Prism intently as he began to lower his sword, willing the female _ninja_ to surrender.

Inner Jake: _Ehhh? What is Orochi doing? Is he actually flirting?_

Prism's eyes widened like saucers and she began to tremble slightly. For some reason Orochi's words hit home and she found herself snapping. "What?" Help? He wanted to help her? She didn't need anyone's help. She had always been alone...fighting on her own and now someone wanted to help her? Get real. She could do everything on her own, just like always. She was a survivor. In a man's world she had found a way to come out on top. She was the best Tech Thief in New York City! She would rather die than to surrender. However-

At that same moment the cyborg Crime Lord Gold Fist went flying through the side wall of the club _Salamander_ and into the alleyway shifting Orochi's attention away from Prism. Prism seized her chance and shot a grappling hook that went to the roof of the building that was next to the club. It safely attached and then Prism pressed a button on the grappling hook so that she shot up into the air making her escape as the cord retracted.

Orochi turned around only to realize that Prism had escaped his grasp. " **Tsk. That slippery woman managed to escape. She's in over her head though. I sense powerful enemies closing in on her."** A dark scowl formed on Orochi's face. **"It's a shame, she was a beautiful woman...she reminded me a little of..."** Orochi shook his head as he stared down at Gold Fist who was lying in a heap of rubble. Then Mr. Suit leapt out into the alleyway next through the hole in the wall and pointed his sword at Gold Fist.

"Surrender yourself, Gold Fist, you have nowhere to run. It's over." Mr. Suit smirked.

Gold Fist just grinned revealing that he had replaced all of his teeth with solid gold ones. "Over? I think not...this show is just getting started!" He raised a remote control device and pressed a button on it. You guessed it - the red button.

All of a sudden more gold robot bodyguards poured into the alleyway. "Shit...there's too many of them..." Mr. Suit looked around worriedly at the twenty robots that were now closing in on him.

" **Too many? Too few, you mean. I'll take those nineteen over there and you can take that other one. Sound good?"** Orochi declared in a confident drawl.

Mr. Suit turned to look at Orochi in shock, noticing his confident posture, expression and his murderous aura, "You're not Jake are you? You're Orochi."

Orochi nodded once.

Mr. Suit gave Orochi a challenging stare. "Nineteen? Let's just go fifty-fifty on these hunks of scrap metal. I can handle whatever you can handle, Orochi." Mr. Suit grinned, his white teeth gleaming.

Orochi let a small smirk form on his face in return as he nodded in Mr. Suit's direction. **"Just don't get in my way, Samurai Superhero."**

"Heh, same goes to you." Mr. Suit shot back.

"Hooryah!" The two _samurai_ let out a battle cry and charged the golden bodyguard robots.

[Mr. Suit and Orochi VS Bodyguard Robots] Fight!

" **Evolution One!"** Orochi cried and raised his _katana_ into the air as it began to glow with a green light. The sword then began to morph until it had transformed into a blade with sharp teeth like a saw. **"Let's do this!"**

Mr. Suit nodded, and they attacked the gold robots with their living-metal swords in their second form. The two living-metal _samurai_ were able to control their swords' shape and size - increasing or decreasing it when they saw fit. Claws wrapped around metal and crunched down while huge metal teeth sliced through solid gold. Mr. Suit and Orochi fought side-by-side, back-to-back, in perfect harmony.

Inner Jake: _What the fuck? Why are Orochi and Mr. Suit getting along and being so chummy all of a sudden?! Gah!_ Jake mentally stuck his tongue out.

It seemed as though Mr. Suit respected Orochi as a warrior, and fellow _samurai_. It didn't take long for Mr. Suit and Orochi to make quick work of Gold Fist's bodyguards. The two _samurai_ turned towards the cyborg Crime Lord next. The cyborg was fat, Jabba the Hutt fat with a disgusting triple chin.

Gold Fist gulped as Mr. Suit and Orochi approached him.

Mr. Suit pointed his sword at Gold Fist while Orochi did the same and both men smirked. "Show's over, Gold Fist." Mr. Suit drawled.

"What did I tell you before _samurai_ \- this show's just getting started. In fact, it's time for the grand finale!" Gold Fist declared as he pressed another button on his remote control.

A gold bodyguard robot exited out from the hole in the side of club _Salamander_ and Mr. Suit and Orochi both turned to see that the robot had someone held hostage-

It was Galaxy Girl. She had tears in her bright blue eyes.

"Mr. Suit! Jake! Help!" She cried out. "He's wrinkling my dress!"

Gold Fist pushed another button on his remote control and the robot's eyes were replaced with black screens that displayed a numerical count down. The numbers were neon green. "You better hurry up and go save her, Samurai Superheroes because I've just set my robot to self destruct." Gold Fist chuckled darkly.

10...9...8...

"Shit!" Mr. Suit rushed towards the robot and Galaxy Girl while Orochi moved to pursue Gold Fist who was running towards the exit of the alleyway and towards the street where a long, stretch limo had just pulled up - a shiny gold one - and it was waiting for him. However-

Inner Jake: _Orochi?! What the hell? We have to go back and save Galaxy Girl!_

_No need. That is not really Galaxy Girl but a hologram. We need to capture Gold Fist. He is our primary objective._ Orochi responded to Jake within his mind via their psy-link.

Inner Jake: _But...is the robot a hologram too?_

6...5...4...

Inner Jake: _Will it really explode?!_

The robot is real and the ensuing explosion will be real.

Inner Jake: _But what about Mr. Suit? Why didn't you tell Mr. Suit he's running into a trap?!_

No time...I calculated it. I thought you didn't like him anyways so why do you care if he's blown up!

Inner Jake: _Blown up! I don't like the guy but...I don't want him dead! Dammit! Mr. Suit's life is OUR PRIMARY OBJECTIVE, YOU IDIOT SWORD!_

Orochi stopped dead in his tracks, eyes wide with surprise. **Master? Alright then...but we'll suffer damage.**

Inner Jake: _I don't care. Hurry up and save Mr. Suit!_

Understood.

Orochi changed direction and rushed towards Mr. Suit and the robot that was about to explode.

3...2...

Orochi pushed Mr. Suit out of the way, and he went flying in the alley wall. Orochi then reached his hand out to touch the robot with Jake's bare hand. Orochi grabbed onto the robot and flung the robot high into the air - it immediately flew twenty feet up. The robot began to short circuit, the hologram of Galaxy Girl disappeared and then-

KABOOM. An explosion rocked the alleyway.

"Jake?!" Mr. Suit yelled out, concern in his voice, as he was blasted backwards by the explosion. Orochi was blasted back by the force of the explosion as well and his head hit the ground hard.

Jake regained consciousness. He was back in control of his body and... "Ahhh! It hurts! It hurts!" Jake began to freak out due to the pain of the wounds he had received while Orochi had been in control of his body.

A few minutes later, Mr. Suit also regained consciousness and struggled to his feet. He saw the injured Jake rolling around on the ground, crying out and twisting in pain.

A dark frown formed on Mr. Suit's face. _He got hurt because of me. Why? Why did that idiot cowboy do that?_ "Sorry, Orochi made you save me. I know you wouldn't have gotten yourself hurt for my sake, Lonestar."

Jake, tears in his eyes, was in soooo much pain. "Er, yea...because of you and Orochi I just want to die! God, it hurts! Hurry up and call an ambulance or something, smart-ass!"

"No need for that, crybaby," Came a drawling female voice.

Jake turned to see Ultraviolet stalking towards him and as she did so her maid outfit morphed until she was wearing a white nurse's outfit complete with a little white cap with a red cross on it that sat on her head and concealed her two antenna. She was click clacking towards him in a pair of sexy red heels.

_Is she a sight for sore eyes or what?_ Jake felt a trickle of sweat form on his brow as the sexy nurse approached him. "Um, this isn't really the time for sex games, Ultraviolet. I really need an ambulance here. Oh my God, is that my blood. I'm going to pass out..." Jake swayed backwards.

"This isn't a game, pervy cowboy," Ultraviolet declared taking out a gigantic syringe. Jake gulped. She stalked over to Jake, turned him over onto his stomach, and stabbed his ass with the syringe.

"AHHHH...oh hey...I suddenly feel a whole lot better...what the hell was in that? Ladedadaaaaa~ Oh! Home home on the range...where the deer and the antelope play~" Jake began to sing in a loud and out of tune voice.

Mr. Suit raised an eyebrow at Jake's horrible, tone-deaf singing. "Gah, what did you give him, V?"

"Morphine. I gave the idiot enough for a wounded elephant so the crybaby shouldn't be able to feel a thing. Now I can see to his wounds without him bitching and moaning and crying like a wuss! How did the idiot end up like this anyways? He really must be a sucky swordsman." Ultraviolet shook her head at Jake with a look of disgust painted on her face.

Mr. Suit's voice caught in his throat. _He got like that saving me. Dammit...now I owe the idiot one._

Ultraviolet began to unceremoniously strip Jake's clothes off. Mr. Suit turned away with an awkward cough. Luckily, Ultraviolet had a first-aid kit with her that Dr. Valery had given her for emergencies and cyborg attacks. First, she used a disinfectant (that came in a bottle and looked like rubbing alcohol, and had a picture of Dr. Valery's smiling face on the label which read: 'Wound Cleaner. Dr. Valery Approved.') to tend to all of the cuts that the living-metal _ninja_ wire had caused Jake.

She stitched up his deeper wounds before applying a healing salve to all of the wounds. The salve came in a small plastic container that had a twistable lid. The label on it also had Dr. Valery's smiling face on it and read: 'Wound Sealer. Dr. Valery Approved.' As Ultraviolet applied salve to Jake's wounds she couldn't help but notice his muscular physique. His body was definitely attractive. She absentmindedly began to run her hands over his back muscles before she caught what she was doing with a start. Furious with herself, she then began to wrap white cloth bandages around Jake's body. She used lots and lots of bandages until Jake ended up looking like a mummy.

Ultraviolet's expression had grown dark as she took in all the damage that Jake had endured. "Shit...how did he let this happen? That stupid dumbass. No...it must have been Orochi, that reckless idiot _samurai_. Putting Jake's body in danger like this! Damn him...I need to keep an eye on that shitty sword. Oi! You can turn around now, useless asshole."

Mr. Suit figured the 'lovely lady' (sarcasm) was referring to him. Mr. Suit turned around only to gawk at Jake who Ultraviolet had transformed into a mummy. Jake still had his leather pants on but his entire torso, his arms and part of his face were completely wrapped in white bandages. Mr. Suit's eye twitched, _Overkill, crazy android girl..._

"This is what happens when I let Jake out of my sight." Ultraviolet shook her head, a frown on her face. "I'm going to babysit him from now on! Mr. Suit." Ultraviolet spun around to face the _samurai_. "I'm assuming you know our target's current location so that we can continue the mission."

Mr. Suit raised an eyebrow at Ultraviolet. "How did you know, my dear? I placed a tracking nanomachine bug on Prism just before she escaped." Mr. Suit took out small high-tech tracking device that had a touch screen. On screen a grid map was displayed as well as a moving, flashing dot. "That dot is Prism. She's on the move."

"Where's the slippery snake headed?" Ultraviolet drawled, cracking her knuckles in a menacing manner.

"The South Street Sea Port." Mr. Suit informed her.

Ultraviolet nodded. "Right. Let's wake Jake and then let's go nab that Tech Thief!"

"Uh...how do you intend to wake him up?" Mr. Suit asked.

Ultraviolet took out another gigantic syringe, flipped Jake onto his stomach, and injected his ass with a smack.

"YEE-OW!" Jake cried out as adrenaline was sent coursing through his veins.

"Remind me to never pass out around you." Mr. Suit said in a bland tone.

***

Ultraviolet had brought the cyborg warhorses Pinstripe and Ginger with her, and so Mr. Suit mounted Pinstripe while Jake mounted Ginger. Jake was surprised when Ultraviolet hopped up behind him. Her nurse outfit had morphed back into her maid outfit and Jake wondered what kind of material it was that could do that...some kind of nanomachine material similar to Mr. Suit's smart-suit, probably. Apparently, Ultraviolet was his personal nurse if need be. _Man, that's hot._ Jake thought to himself as a goofy grin formed on his face. He then tried to concentrate as he noticed that Mr. Suit had already ridden off into traffic. _Shit!_ Jake urged Ginger forward and took off after Mr. Suit.

It didn't take the two Samurai Superheroes very long to arrive at the South Street Sea Port, located on the East River, which was New York City's original port. The seaport had an eight vessel historic fleet, including ships dating from 1885. The vessels were open to the public but Mr. Suit and Jake weren't there to sightsee.

Several minutes earlier, Prism had arrived at the seaport to see her boyfriend Zak speaking with several men dressed in black suits and that had white, faceless masks on their faces. Prism's eyes widened when she saw just whom her boyfriend was speaking to next. Her face filled with fear. _Oh no...it can't be._ A man dressed in a black leather, trench coat and a pair of combat boots with a white faceless mask that had the number '01' flashing on it occasionally was towering over Zak as he stood in front of him. The man could only be Zero One, a.k.a Zippo, the strongest of the Nemesis Zeros. The African-American man had a mass of black dreadlocks on his head, several gold chains around his neck, and Prism spotted a fancy gold watch on his wrist that was probably a _Rolex_. His faceless mask was special and had a hole in it for his mouth so that he could smoke pot and fight adversaries at the same time. Pot relaxed Zippo. Prism's eyes darted to the living-metal sword that was strapped to Zippo's waist. Zippo's living-metal sword was already legendary...

"Zippo. What the hell is he doing here? Zak has only ever dealt with the pushers before....ZAK!" Prism called out to her boyfriend. However-

Zippo unsheathed his sword and stabbed her boyfriend Zak through the heart with it in one merciless motion.

Prism's pupils dilated in horror and she paled. "Zak...no...it's not possible! I'm too late...I can't be too late...we had the money for the NANO! DAMMIT ZIPPO! I'll fucking kill you!"

Prism unsheathed her twin daggers from her back and rushed at Zippo. Zippo turned around and gave Prism a bored look from under his faceless mask. "Prism...you're too late. Zak is ours. Enen-ra Evolution One!" Zippo raised his _katana_ that glowed with a green-tinged light before bursting into what appeared to be a cloud of smoke. This smoke cloud swallowed up Prism's daggers and then the smoke began to attack her causing her to cry out.

She thought she could see the smoke moving like a living thing and even thought she saw a gaping hole for a mouth and glowing eyes within the smoke. It reminded her of some kind of smoke demon. A chill went down Prism's spine as the cloud of smoke leered at her. She frantically tried to think about what was really happening. _It must be a cloud of infinitesimal nanomachines...his sword actually dematerialized to its smallest form and he's still able to control every one of those nanomachines. It's amazing._

"Ahhh!" Blood spurted through the air and Prism fell to the ground where she lay unmoving.

Zippo took a drag on his joint as he looked down at Prism coldly. "She's such a hot babe. It's a shame she can't live. We could have had some real fun together. Men...chain her up. I'm sending her to meet the fishes. Nova Inara said she didn't want Prism left alive. Said she knew too much of _the truth_."

"Right boss," The Noppera-bō thugs took out some heavy chains and began to wrap them around Prism's body.

"Zak...my love..." Prism murmured sadly. She was about to be tossed into the East River when Jake and Mr. Suit arrived upon the scene.

"Hold it right there, Zippo!" Mr. Suit galloped towards Zippo and pointed his sword at the cyborg.

Jake followed, galloping close behind. _Epp!_ He thought in his mind as he looked at the scary looking thugs... _mafia maybe?_ He was glad he was on a horse so that they couldn't see his trembling legs. Jake felt Ultraviolet embrace him more tightly and Jake's trembling suddenly ceased.

Zippo looked up and recognized Mr. Suit, brows raised beneath the mask, "Mr. Suit...what are _you_ doing here?"

"I could be asking you the same thing, Zippo. Why are you trying to kill Prism? What'd she ever do to you? And who's that young man you just killed?!" Mr. Suit demanded.

"My aren't we a curious cat? You know, curiosity killed the cat, Mr. Suit. But if you must know, the young man I just killed was Prism's boyfriend, Zak. He was a NANO addict. He called me today saying he had the money to buy more and so I came. Only to discover the little shit actually had the balls to lie to me. Well, no one lies to Zippo and gets away with it, mon. I gave him just what he wanted...and as for the Tech Thief Prism," Zippo shrugged. "Apparently she was on her way here with the money to save her boyfriend but sadly she arrived too late. I guess love doesn't always conquer all."

Mr. Suit was positive that Zippo was smiling beneath that creepy mask. "But why kill her?"

Zippo shrugged. "Orders from above, you need not concern yourself, Mr. Suit. Though I would have enjoyed fucking her before I had to kill her."

Mr. Suit clenched his fists around the hilt of Ōkami. This was why he hated Zippo the most - he was known for being a notorious womanizer who treated women like playthings. He was the worst kind of man in Mr. Suit's book. "Let her go asshole, or else." Mr. Suit growled.

"Or else what? You'll fight me? Good. I haven't had a good workout for a while!" Zippo cracked his neck loudly from side to side. "But let's make things more interesting first, shall we, mon? Boys - toss her in the river!"

"Roger boss." The Noppera-bō thugs picked Prism up and tossed her into the river.

"No!" Mr. Suit and Jake both cried out.

Jake hopped off his horse and ran to the river's edge. He hesitated for a few seconds before he dove in after her with a loud _splash!_

Ultraviolet dismounted Ginger and looked around the seaport for Jake. "Jake?!"

"Jake...that coward...he actually..." Mr. Suit was staring at the surface of the river in shock.

Zippo let out a cruel laugh, "What an idiot! The jokes on you Mr. Suit. Those chains were _not_ normal chains but indestructible living-metal chains! He'll never be able to break them! Once he reaches her he'll realize that horrible truth - that he'll have to leave her and that he failed to rescue her! And if he realizes this too late he'll drown too!"

Ultraviolet rushed to the water's edge and was about to dive in when Mr. Suit called out to her in warning. "V \- no. You're an android, you can't get wet."

"Fuck...sucks to be me." Ultraviolet's hands were shaking as she reached into her cleavage to pull out a cigarette, which she quickly lit and then took a long, frustrated drag.

Zippo raised an eyebrow at Ultraviolet's nervous behavior. "She's funny, for an android. Now, where were we?"

Mr. Suit pointed his living-metal sword at Zippo and it turned into a wolf claw. "About here, I think."

"Oh, right." Zippo agreed as he turned his sword into smoke.

[Mr. Suit VS Zippo] Fight!

Meanwhile, without really thinking about what he was doing, Jake dove into the river after Prism. _What the hell am I doing?! What the hell was I thinking? Oh right - I so wasn't thinking - again. I really have to stop doing that! Ahhh~ it's dark and scary down here! I can't see a thing! Shit!_ But then-

Suddenly, Jake's eyes began to glow with a green-tinged light and lit up the space in front of him so that he could see clearly in the water. Jake blinked. _Well, that's convenient._ Jake caught sight of the sinking form of Prism ahead of him and kicked his legs as he swam down after her but...

She was sinking fast because of the chains and the water pressure was putting painful pressure on Jake's bruised ribs. _Ow._ Jake felt like he couldn't hold his breath for much longer.

Oh my God...what am I doing? I can't do this! I can't save her...I'm going to run out of air and die! Shit! I'm no hero! I'm so not cut out for the superhero biz, dude!

Freaked out and afraid, Jake kicked even harder, wanting to get this nightmare over with and he shot through the water like a bullet! Jake was suddenly at Prism's side, and he noted that she was unconscious. Jake grasped the chains and began to yank and pull them.

The chains glowed brightly with a green-tinged light before they began to freak out and spark. The chains broke away and burst apart.

_Yeehaw! Alright!_ Jake gave himself a mental pat on the back. _I did it. Now to get her back to the surface._ Jake grabbed Prism and kicked hard. _Ahhh!_ He shot up towards the surface like a dolphin cutting through the water.

Meanwhile, Mr. Suit was facing off against Zippo.

The two living-metal _samurai_ charged each other before passing each other. Zippo turned to face Mr. Suit, who sunk to his knees as multiple wounds opened up all over his body.

Zippo, on the other hand was untouched. Zippo sheathed his sword with one fluid motion, "I'm impressed. You managed to block 6,453 of my nanomachines - it was the other 1,324 that did you in, Mr. Suit. Better luck next time, _samurai_. Let's go boys." Zippo ordered as he stalked over to a black BMW that had been parked nearby and got in the driver's seat. The other thugs picked up Zak's body and piled into two other black BMWs swiftly.

Mr. Suit began to drag his body in Zippo's direction. "No...wait...come back here Zippo. We're not done yet...this isn't done...this isn't finished..." Mr. Suit coughed up blood onto the ground.

Zippo poked his head out of the driver's side window. "Since it would be boring to kill you now, I'm letting you live, Mr. Suit. Try and be more of a challenge for me next time." With that Zippo stuck his head back into the car and sped off with the other two BMWs following close behind. Zippo's cars tires screeched and burned against the pavement as he drove off at high speed.

At that moment, Jake surfaced from the river and immediately began to panic. "Someone help me with Prism! She's not breathing!"

"Jake, calm down, you moron. Bring her over here first so that I can help you. You are such a spaz." Ultraviolet sneered.

"Oh, yea, right. Sorry." Jake swam over to the dock and pulled Prism up onto the dock before pulling himself up right behind her. His whole body was trembling.

Ultraviolet smirked. "You saved her - that was very brave of you, Jake."

"Don't remind me." Jake shuddered and wrapped his arms around his body. "That was a momentary loss of my sanity! So, Nurse, how is she?"

Ultraviolet took Prism's vitals. "She's not breathing. She needs CPR."

"CPR?" Jake's eyes turned into two pink hearts. "I know how to perform CPR. I believe I can assist you, V. Let me do it."

"This isn't a game, Jake." Ultraviolet gave Jake a stern look but noticing his puppy-dog look she caved. "Alright fine, I'll press on her chest and you blow air into her lungs when I say to, got it?"

"Got it! Aye aye boss!" Jake gave the android a salute.

Ultraviolet and Jake began to perform CPR on Prism. After a few minutes that felt like hours, she came too while Jake's mouth was pressed up against hers and his tongue was in her mouth. Prism's eyes grew wide and then fierce as she sent a hard slap to Jake's face.

Ultraviolet sighed and rubbed at her temples. "Serves him right...pervy _samurai_ cowboy."

### Chapter 9: This looks like a job for, Mr. Suit!

Jake was dreaming about what _really_ happened that fateful night when his family was abducted by aliens...

He had been out in the cornfields, laying on his back and stargazing when he caught sight of the silver flying saucer. Unlike, Nova Inara's spaceship this one was not on fire and seemed to be perfectly fine. That alone sent a chill down Jake's spine. Jake froze and held his breath as he watched the flying saucer head in the direction of the Lonestar Ranch.

The ranch...his family! Jake quickly pushed himself up off the ground and ran, tripping through the cornfields, towards the ranch. As he approached he saw that the flying saucer was now hovering mere feet above the ground directly in front of his house. The cockpit was open and a being in a silver space suit and helmet was visible. This alien being was currently talking to his father. Even though Jake was dreaming he felt surprised that he was remembering this new scene.

The memory of this alien had been so terrifying Jake had buried it deep within his mind. This alien man had an intense battle aura and the force of his raw power made the air around Jake feel heavy. This force could easily flatten a normal person to the ground if used to do so.

The alien in the space suit suddenly exited the flying saucer and stalked over to stand in front of James. Jake could see that the alien was at least a foot taller than his father. The alien grabbed Jake's father by the front of his shirt and lifted him up off the ground. James was not a light man either; he weighed about a hundred and eighty pounds. "Where is he, human? Where is your son? We know he has the D. Spark that was stolen from us. We know it's here on this pathetic mud ball of a planet."

James shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about. I have no son..."

Jake felt hurt by his father's words not yet realizing that his father was just trying to protect him.

"Don't lie to me, human. We can smell lies...if you don't tell me where your son is I'll kill you and your family..." The alien threatened and then he began to release some of his power.

This burst of the alien's raw power was like a shock wave. The air became heavy and his mother Jessie and sister Bonnie were flattened to the ground instantly while Jake was crushed to the ground in his hiding place.

Jake's father actually spit on the alien's helmet and grinned. "I'll never tell you...where he is..." James felt guilty that he hadn't believed his son about the existence of aliens.

... _Father?!_ In that moment, Jake realized his father was trying to protect him.

The alien tossed James to the ground roughly. "If you won't tell me where he is...I'll take you and your family hostage. You all will be our bargaining chip for when we find and locate your son!" The alien then spoke into some kind of high-tech wristband communication device. "Beam us up." The alien man unconsciously put his hand over the hilt of what appeared to be a _samurai_ sword strapped to his waist. Jake definitely didn't remember that detail before either.

Jake looked up to see that the flying saucer had flown higher into the sky. For the first time in Jake's memory the flying saucer was completely visible. Jake could see its smooth metal surface. There was something elegant about the alien spacecraft. Another interesting detail surfaced in Jake's dream and he was able to remember seeing strange symbols on the surface of the metal disc. One of the symbols became burned into his mind: it was a round circle with a single vertical line running through it and a curved line cutting through the circle horizontally. This made the symbol look like a horned face with some kind of sword piercing through it. There was a single star within the circle.

Jake's eyes were fixated upon that strange alien symbol in fear. He had wanted to forget ever seeing that symbol.

The flying saucer glowed with a blue light before the bottom of it began to glow brighter and brighter until the light concentrated into a beam that engulfed the alien man who was beamed up first. The beam then captured Jessie and began to beam her up.

James began to freak out upon seeing his wife being taken from him. "Jessie!"

"James! Help!" Jessie called down and reached her hand out towards James.

The next to be captured by the beam of light was Bonnie. She too stretched her hand out to her father for help. "Pa! Save me! Help!"

"Bonnie!" James called out. "You bastards! Taking even women and children!" James shook his fist up at the alien spacecraft.

Jessie and Bonnie had already been beamed aboard the flying saucer until only James remained. Trembling, Jake stumbled out of the cornfields into his father's line of sight. James turned to look at his son and his eyes widened.

"Jake..." James' expression turned sad and regretful. "I'm sorry we didn't believe you, son. We treated you like a freak, but you were right. Aliens do exist. I'm sorry, son. I should have believed you - my _own_ son. If you can't count on your family to have your back, who can you count on? We _never_ should have doubted you. Family means believing in each other until proven _wrong_. I won't lose any more of my family, good bye, Jake." James threw a horseshoe at Jake's forehead and knocked him out cold.

And then James was beamed up.

Jake came to a few minutes later and ran after the alien spacecraft as it was flying over the cornfields. It tried to beam Jake up but the teleportation device blew up inside of the ship causing a huge shockwave that blasted Jake off his feet knocking him out cold for a second time.

This was what _really_ happened. Apparently, the aliens had been after Jake and his family had protected him.

***

Inside of the newly constructed log cabin in Brooklyn Prime, Jake woke with a start. He was covered in sweat, was pale, panting for breath, rattled, trembling - the dream had been so real. No, Jake's eyes widened as he realized that it hadn't been just a dream but that it had been real. A buried memory.

Jake felt a sinking feeling in his gut as he suddenly remembered the alien symbol, the _clavicula nox_ that had been on the side of the alien spaceship. The same symbol was on Orochi's sheath and Orochi had already told Jake that the Dragon Aliens had made him. Did that mean that it was a Dragon Alien who had abducted Jake's family...a member of the most powerful warrior race in the galaxy? Jake felt like he was going to be sick.

It was them...the Dragon Aliens. They kidnapped my family.

Jake also began to remember how the dragon alien had been after him for some reason that he couldn't remember and that his father had protected him. His family hadn't been _randomly_ abducted at all. They had been abducted _because_ of him.

Jake frowned as he tried to think about what else he knew about the Dragon Aliens. How could he find them? He wondered if he should ask Orochi about the mysterious alien race.

Jake was currently all bandaged up like a mummy. He leapt out of bed (which was a mattress Mayor Stark had provided him with along with a bed sheet), tripped over his bandages and fell flat on his face with a SMACK! He stumbled over to the sheathed Orochi. He looked at the scabbard that had the sinister _clavicula nox_ symbol on it. Orochi had already openly told Jake about how the Dragon Aliens had made him...but that was all the sword knew about the race, or was it?

Jake unsheathed the living-metal sword and grasped the hilt. _Orochi...wake up! Orochi! Speak to me! Dammit! Tell me about the Dragon Aliens! Shit..._

There was no response from his sword.

Jake suddenly remembered his encounter with Astra and how she had a pendant that used to belong to a Dragon Alien that had supposedly killed her family. If anyone possessed information on the Dragon Aliens it would be Astra, Jake realized. Jake decided to head on over to the alien woman's house so he could ask her more about the Dragon Aliens. Dressed in nothing but a pair of frayed jeans, his Martian headband, and with his torso still bandaged like a mummy, Jake approached the front door of Astra's small home and called out loudly: "Howdy! Astra! Are you home?"

However, the door suddenly burst open and a blue blur hit Jake knocking him to the ground. Jake looked up to find Astra straddling him and pointing a blaster into his gaping mouth.

"Prepare to die, Mummy Monster!" Astra cried.

"EPPPP!" Jake squeaked in fear, tears in his eyes. Astra had mistaken Jake for some kind of monster. "Mommy!"

But Astra quickly realized that it was just the Martian Jake since no one could look _that_ pathetic or cowardly except for him. "Jake? What the...? What are you doing dressed like a mummy? Are you celebrating some kind of human holiday? Although I thought that Halloween was celebrated in October." She took her blaster out of his mouth and got off of him.

Jake inwardly pouted and regretted that he hadn't gotten to enjoy Astra straddling him suggestively like that for a little while longer since he had been scared out of his mind.

"I was injured and now that you just reminded me..." Jake suddenly remembered that he was horribly injured! His painkillers had worn off too and he was in a lot of pain. "Ow...it hurts... _whaaa~!_ "

Astra gave Jake an incredulous look and sighed heavily rubbing at her temples. "Get a hold of yourself, Jake. Why did you come to see me so early in the morning?" _It better not have anything to do with a morning wood...or I'll sue him for sexual harassment_.

"I wanted...to ask you about...the Dragon Aliens..." He managed to get out between pained pants.

Astra's eyes widened. "The Dragon Aliens? Why would _you_ need to know about _them_?" She gave Jake a suspicious look as she narrowed her deep blue eyes at him.

However, at that moment Ultraviolet had arrived upon the scene. "JAKE LONESTAR _NO BAKA!_ " Jake got a flying sidekick his way courtesy of Ultraviolet. Jake went flying. He painfully lifted his head and saw that Ultraviolet was dressed in her sexy nurse outfit once again. Jake gulped since Ultraviolet looked pissed. "Where were you, you shitty bastard?! I was worried Nova Inara had kidnapped you or something!"

Jake was pretty tough so he managed to get up unscathed, with a hopeful, puppy-dog look forming on his face, "Aw, you were worried about me, V?"

Ultraviolet's jaw dropped, "In your dreams, cowboy." She lit a cigarette and took a drag. "Anyways, you look like shit..." She declared as she looked him over with a critical eye.

"I feel like shit." Jake agreed. " _Ultraviolet~_ it hurts. Can't you give me something for the pain? Pretty _please~_ " Jake begged.

"Che. Weak, pathetic, cowardly, _baka_!" Ultraviolet took out a huge syringe, "Fine. Come here." There was a glint in her eyes.

Jake swallowed and took a step back. "On second thought, I'll just make a run to CVS and get some Advil...Ehehehehe..." Jake began to laugh nervously.

Ultraviolet attacked Jake and pinned him to the ground before he could escape. "Oh, you're not getting away!"

"Mommy!" Jake cried.

The feisty android flipped Jake over onto his stomach and injected his ass with a large dose of morphine.

"Ow! _Ahhh~_ " Pain quickly turned to a martini high and Jake's painful expression transformed into one of pure bliss. A goofy grin also formed on his face. "So V why are you here? Besides the fact that you obviously missed me and can't stop thinking about me." Jake's eyes had turned into two large pink hearts. He was obviously delusional.

"Idiot. You have a new mission. Haven't you seen this morning's paper?" Ultraviolet asked.

"No..." Jake admitted sheepishly. Being responsible was _so_ not his thing. That was Mr. Suit's thing.

Ultraviolet flung a newspaper in Jake's face. Jake took the newspaper off his face and unfolded it so that he could see the front page, which read:

20 KILLED ON BROOKLYN QUEENS EXPRESSWAY

RESULT OF GANG WARFARE BETWEEN RIVAL CYBORG BIKE GANGS

Last night, the biker gang known as the Metalheads and their rivals the Solar Flares took to the streets of New York City and fought over turf. The bikers were reported to have been going at a speed of 900 MPH! 845 MPH over the legal speed limit. A few of the bikers died from the g-force their bodies experienced from going 900 MPH when their bodies exploded gruesomely over the streets.

They were recorded to have experienced an average of 75 gs. The cyborg bikers caused multiple car accidents last night as innocent bystanders were caught up in the bloody gang war. The NYPD has reported that they will not be handling this case because the perpetrators are cyborgs and this case also deals with illegal E.T. Tech. The NYPD will be handing this case over to the Samurai Superheroes Force and it will fall to them to apprehend and arrest these dangerous cyborg bikers ASAP so that the streets of New York City can be safe once again.

Jake's eyes widened as he read the article. Well, that explained what the stolen Accelerator Tech had been used for - but why? Jake had a sinking feeling in his gut. "SSF...you don't mean Mr. Suit and I are already expected to go after these guys? That's crazy...!"

"You don't have to go with me, lazy coward." Came Mr. Suit's chill voice and Jake turned to see Mr. Suit riding Pinstripe down the riverbank towards him and Ultraviolet. Close behind Pinstripe, Ginger was galloping down the riverbank and towards them on her own. She was one smart horse. "You'd only get in my way anyways. Although you can feel free to give me your living-metal sword Orochi." An evil smirk formed on Mr. Suit's face. "He'd be better suited in my capable hands."

_Grrrr!_ Jake inwardly growled. "Who would want to help you anyways, pompous bastard? I could care less about what happens to you. If you think you're _soooo~_ great and powerful you should handle this mission alone because you don't need my shitty help." Jake challenged in a rather petulant manner.

Lightning flashed between their gazes.

But then Ultraviolet whacked Jake over the back of his head. " _BAKA!_ There's no way Mr. Suit can handle this case all on his own. It's too dangerous. But...even you won't be much help. I had better tag along and keep an eye on you two." Ultraviolet lit up a cigarette and took a long drag. "Make sure you two work together and make sure Mr. Suit doesn't bite off more than he can chew. He's always pushing himself too hard..." Ultraviolet gave Mr. Suit a worried look.

Jake noticed the look Ultraviolet was giving Mr. Suit and frowned. She always seemed to be looking out for Mr. Suit. Maybe Ultraviolet had a crush on him. That bothered Jake for some reason.

As soon as Jake had mounted Ginger and Ultraviolet had hopped up behind him Mr. Suit rode off down the riverbank expecting Jake to follow him. "Giddy-up, Ginger!" Follow him Jake did and soon the Samurai Superheroes were riding on busy New York highways, swerving through traffic and passing Porsche Boxsters and Ferraris on their cyborg warhorses.

Jake was a little afraid since Ginger was so fast. He was trembling but then without saying some sarcastic or smart-ass comment Ultraviolet wrapped her arms around Jake's torso and slightly squeezed, and in that moment Jake knew he was not alone. He stopped trembling and took a deep breath. He was with Ultraviolet and Ginger, and so he didn't need to be afraid...yet.

He hoped that Mr. Suit wouldn't notice that Ultraviolet was practically hugging him in order to calm him and give him strength. I mean, how pathetic was that? He didn't want Mr. Suit to think he was a total pussy.

While Jake clung to Ginger's reigns until his knuckles turned white, Jake thought about how strange his life had become and how strange all this was. Samurai Superheroes on horseback riding through modern-day traffic, and battling cyborg criminals. Well, Dr. Valery had genetically altered the horses so that they could keep up with cars but it was still bizarre. Dr. Val sure had some odd fetishes. It was totally weird for futuristic _samurai_ to be going after souped up bikes on horseback. It was ludicrous, crazy, unreal, impossible. The bikers they were going after were no normal bikers either - they were cyborg bikers that had the reflexes to be able to handle a motorcycle that had been altered with E.T. Tech to be able to go up to 900 MPH. Usually, Jake would be pissing his pants right about now, but with Ultraviolet and Ginger so close by he actually felt safe.

Jake was pulled from his musing by a sudden commotion on the road ahead of them. A group of bikers dressed in all black leather and another group of bikers dressed in yellow leather outfits and matching helmets were zooming through traffic at such an incredible speed that Jake could barely see them. They were just black or yellow blurs. Jake squinted at them and their movements seemed to slow down and he saw that they weren't just flying through traffic but fighting one another. The two groups were shooting blasters, slashing energy sabers, shooting normal guns and even clashing cybernetic limbs against each other.

A _Metalhead_ took out a _Solar Flare_ and the _Solar Flare_ 's bike tipped and began to skid across the road right into the path of an oncoming car. The car hit the bike and flipped into the air and crashed down upon the unforgiving pavement. The car began to set on fire. The cars that were behind this car tried to skid to a stop but one of the cars hit the overturned car and soon there was a domino effect as the cars began to slam into each other, causing a pile up.

Jake and Mr. Suit were forced to use all of their concentration in order to avoid flaming, crunched cars. As Jake passed the cars he began to feel worried about the people who were still stuck inside the vehicles. "Hey! Mr. Suit! Shouldn't we stop and help those people?"

"Already way ahead of you, cowboy." Mr. Suit shouted over his shoulder. "I dialed 911 and gave them our GPS location - multiple ambulances are already on the way to the scene. Remember, our primary objective is arresting those cyborg criminals. Those are obviously the _Metalheads_ and the _Solar Flares_ ahead of us. But they won't get away. Come on!"

Jake frowned as he spotted entire families inside of the cars. He really wanted to stop and help those people, but instead he had to chase after these crazy cyborg bikers?! Unreal. What the hell was _Jake_ supposed to do against them anyways? Jake put his hand on the hilt of Orochi. Would he need the sword's help again? And how could he get it?

In retaliation for their fallen comrade the _Solar Flares_ pulled a risky move. They aimed their blasters at the front tires of an oncoming semi-trailer truck. One of the tires was blown out and the truck driver began to lose control of the vehicle. The truck began to swerve across the road and almost entered the wrong lane. This was about to put not only the _Metalheads_ but also innocent bystanders in danger as well. Mr. Suit pursued the _Solar Flare_ who pulled this nasty stunt, but got cut off from Jake and the rest of the _Metalheads_ as the back trailer of the truck swung into the opposite lane.

_Shit!_ Jake began to panic.

Ultraviolet did not. "Jake! Ride ahead of the _Metalheads_ and get in front of them. Then raise your sword and cut the truck in two!" The android directed.

Jake looked back at Ultraviolet and gave her an incredulous look. "Um, you do realize I'm the only other person with you on this horse, right? And that I'm _not_ Mr. Suit. You can't actually think I can do something like that, do you?"

Ultraviolet sighed heavily. She was quickly losing her patience, " _Baka!_ Don't think or feel! Just do what I tell you to do! Because I _know_ you can do it! I'm an android - I've already calculated your odds."

"Don't think or feel, just do it?" Jake stuck his tongue out. "Fine, but we're so going to die!" Jake wouldn't say it aloud but he trusted and believed in Ultraviolet. _I can't believe I'm about to do this but..._ Jake kicked Ginger's sides and galloped through traffic passing the _Metalheads_ gang.

He stood in front of the _Metalheads_ in position, directly in front of the huge semi-trailer truck that was skidding across the road and heading for Jake now. Jake was completely terrified, "Okay, now what, robo chick?"

"Now, just use the living-metal sword - it can cut through anything. This will be a piece of cake! Easy peasy!" Ultraviolet claimed.

Jake's entire body was trembling and as he raised his sword he realized his arm and hand were shaking badly. He hoped this wouldn't affect what he was about to do. Ultraviolet put a hand on his arm in a comforting gesture.

Her touch steadied Jake and he stopped trembling, but he still felt like he was about to hyperventilate. "I can't do this V...I'm not a superhero...I think I'm going to piss myself..."

"Disgusting _baka_...don't even think of pissing yourself or I'll kill you. If you're such a coward just close your eyes...I'll guide you. I'll be your eyes, cowboy." She almost purred, though Jake was sure he imagined it.

Jake's eyes widened. "You'll do that? Alright, fine..." Jake closed his eyes and suddenly his fear just _vanished_. He couldn't fear what he couldn't see. _Heh. Now I know how Daredevil felt!_

Ultraviolet quickly gave Jake instructions. "Okay, now, connect with Orochi via your psy-link and summon the sword's power using your will. And go into Evolution One. Do it now, _baka_ cowboy!"

Jake concentrated on connecting with Orochi...and it just like happened and the living-metal sword glowed with a green-tinged light in his hand. "Orochi Evolution One!" Jake murmured as if in a trance and Orochi transformed so that its blade now had a deadly ridge of triangular-shaped metal teeth. The sword then increased in size until it was ten feet long.

"Charge!" Ultraviolet commanded Jake.

Jake obeyed. "YEE HAW!" He galloped forward towards the truck, sword raised and attacked.

Meanwhile, Mr. Suit's living-metal sword Ōkami was clashing against a cyborg biker's energy saber. He looked behind him and caught sight of Jake charging the semi-trailer truck with his eyes closed, glowing living-metal sword in Evolution One form in his hand and also noted the sword's increased size.

Mr. Suit nearly fell out of his saddle in shock. "What does that idiot think he's doing?! He doesn't even know how to communicate with his sword...does he?"

"Do you really think you should be taking your eyes off your opponent, _samurai_?" The cyborg _Solar Flare_ biker slashed his energy saber at Mr. Suit, and the Samurai Superhero barely managed to block the attack as it grazed, cut, and burned into his side painfully.

"Shit!" Mr. Suit was forced to turn his attention back to the _Solar Flare_.

The _Solar Flares_ realized that Mr. Suit had become separated from his partner and as one they decided to take advantage of the situation. Without even having to signal it the _Solar Flares_ all began to surround Mr. Suit on their bikes, planning to overcome him using their numbers.

Mr. Suit sensed the tight pinch he was about to be in and raised his sword. "Ōkami Evolution One!" Mr. Suit's sword glowed with a green-tinged light and then transformed into a gigantic wolf claw. "Bring it! You cyborg bastards!" Mr. Suit challenged.

The _Solar Flares_ smirked at each other and chuckled darkly, raising their blasters, cybernetic limbs, and energy sabers Mr. Suit's way before they charged.

***

Jake's living-metal sword Orochi sliced through the truck and both halves went careening past Jake on either side of him as he rode forward. One by one the _Metalheads_ rode after Jake and escaped collision with the truck because of the escape route that Jake basically created for them to follow. Because of Jake the _Metalheads_ had been saved.

Nix Duo rode ahead on his bike so that he could see the face of the Samurai Superhero who had just saved his life and saw that Jake was gripping his reigns with white knuckles and that he clearly had his eyes shut. Beneath his faceless mask Nix Duo's dark eyes widened and he laughed. "My brave hero! Thanks, cowardly _samurai_. I guess, I owe you one. Come on, guys, let's get the hell out of here before Mr. Suit decides to try and arrest all of us!" Nix Duo cried and revving his engine spun around to ride off in the opposite direction that they had originally been heading.

"Alright, Nix Duo!" The _Metalheads_ cried as they all turned their bikes around and rode after Nix Duo. They became black blurs speeding through traffic.

Jake was blushing with his eyes still closed, not used to praise. "Aw shucks, it was nothing, really."

Ultraviolet became pissed. "Jake! Open your damned eyes, you _baka_ cowboy! The _Metalheads_ are getting away! We're supposed to capture and arrest them, you fool!"

Jake reluctantly opened one eye and then the other - just in case that scary truck was still in front of him, but it really wasn't there. _Phew._ What was in front of him, however, was the sight of Mr. Suit facing off against what appeared to be the entire _Solar Flare_ gang.

Jake watched as the cyborgs attacked Mr. Suit with deadly attacks aimed to kill, but Mr. Suit was skillfully managing to block and evade all of their attacks. He was also managing to disarm the cyborgs without hurting them. Jake realized that it wouldn't be long before Mr. Suit would have the entire Solar Flare gang subdued and arrested. Jake frowned, grudgingly admitting to himself that Mr. Suit was pretty good.

"Cool." Jake murmured before he realized he was acting all starry-eyed for Mr. Suit of all people! For that narcissistic asshole! He shook his head and turned to see that Ultraviolet was right - the _Metalheads_ and Nix Duo were getting away! "Ack! The _Metalheads_ are getting away!" Jake paused for a moment. "Mr. Suit needs to go after them!"

BONK. Ultraviolet bonked Jake over the back of his head. " _BAKA!_ You're a Samurai Superhero too, remember? _You_ need to go after them!"

"Me...?" Jake questioned hesitantly.

As one, the _Solar Flares_ realized that it would only be a matter of time before the skilled Mr. Suit defeated them and knew they needed to come up with some kind of plan to defeat the Samurai Superhero stat. That's when one of the _Solar Flares_ caught sight of a pretty female driver in one of the cars that had been forced to stop in the middle of the road because of the biker gang war. The _Solar Flare_ smiled underneath his helmet. She would do perfectly. Mr. Suit had a reputation for being extremely chivalrous, therefore, his weakness was women.

The _Solar Flare_ biker stalked over to the car and opened the driver's side door. He grabbed the young woman's arm and yanked her out of the car beginning to use her as a hostage. "Hey! Mr. Suit!" The _Solar Flare_ called out loudly in order to get his attention.

Mr. Suit turned to see the cyborg with a young woman in his grasp. The cyborg raised his hand and it transformed into a series of wiggling, razor-sharp, metal tentacles that converged into a sharp point that he placed beneath the young woman's neck. The biker was pressing the weapon against the young woman's neck in such a way that a thin cut was produced and began to bleed slightly. Mr. Suit froze at the sight of the woman's blood.

... _a drop of blood trickled down her pale neck and Shin was unable to do anything to stop it_...

The cyborg's expression turned triumphant and he smirked at Mr. Suit's unease. "Good, it looks like I have your attention, Mr. Suit. Now...I want you to drop your sword or else this little lady will get hurt..."

Mr. Suit didn't hesitate to drop his sword and tossed it aside. Mr. Suit's living-metal sword hit the pavement and lost its aura of green-tinged light. There was an ominous clanging sound as his sword hit the pavement.

"Rough him up, boys." The leader of the _Solar Flares_ ordered.

Mr. Suit didn't resist when the _Solar Flares_ pulled him off his horse Pinstripe and tossed him to the pavement. Pinstripe immediately went wild and began to kick his hind legs at the cyborgs sending a few of the cyborgs flying before Mr. Suit called out to him. "Pinstripe. No."

Pinstripe let out a frustrated huff, pawed angrily at the road, but the horse did not resume his attack upon the cyborg bikers.

Now that it was safe to approach Mr. Suit again the bikers then began to beat the shit out of Mr. Suit. Their punches and kicks had a force that was ten times as strong as that of a normal man because of their cybernetic enhancements with brutal effects.

A sickening crack rang through the air as a metal foot came down hard on Mr. Suit's ribcage.

Jake watched everything that was happening in shock. "Mr. Suit!" _Why...why is he letting himself get beaten up for some girl he doesn't even know?! I don't know if I could be such a Saint! Why did he toss his sword away! Shit! And I'm so scared I can't even move...he's not expecting me to help him is he? That would be dumb..._

Flash, the leader of the _Solar Flares_ , watched Mr. Suit allowing himself to get beaten up and his expression turned dark. "I heard rumors about you, Samurai Superhero Mr. Suit - the gentleman _samurai_ who won't fight against a woman even if it means his death. Who'll risk his life for a woman even if he doesn't personally know her. Unreal. Allowing yourself to get this badly beaten up or even killed to save that young woman. You don't even know her...she won't care if you die...how does that make you feel?"

"I don't care...as long as she's alright...as long as she stops bleeding..." Mr. Suit panted out.

Jake had a funny feeling that Mr. Suit wasn't talking about the young woman in the cyborg's grasp when he said those words.

"I hate hypocrites like you." Flash sneered. "I think you need to learn a lesson. I'll teach you that you can't save everyone no matter what you do - even if you sacrifice yourself - this world isn't that kind!" Flash reached out and wrapped his large metal hand around the young woman's neck. He then lifted her up off the ground and began to carry her to the side of the bridge. Then without saying anything he simply threw her right off the bridge.

The woman's shrill scream as she fell through the air pierced the night coldly.

... _her screams of pain could be heard in the next room and Shin covered his head with his pillow knowing that he wouldn't get any sleep again that night_...

A fierce glint came to Mr. Suit's eyes and he suddenly pushed all of the cyborgs off of him with a cry and they went flying. He picked up his living-metal sword and rushed for the side of the bridge. Mr. Suit ran past Flash ignoring him and jumped off the bridge with his living-metal sword glowing green.

"MR. SUIT!" Jake cried, seeing Mr. Suit jump off the bridge after the young woman. However-

[Mr. Suit's POV]

Mr. Suit's body ached all over. He had a couple of broken ribs that were making it hard to breathe. Hopefully, they wouldn't puncture one of his lungs. But he focused on his mission. He straightened his body like an arrow and freefell through the air after the plummeting young woman. He soon reached her and put his arm around her waist. He then raised his living-metal sword. It glowed with a green-tinged light. "Ōkami Evolution One." The sword began to shoot upwards; the tip of the sword resembled a small claw. The claw grabbed the top of the bridge and Mr. Suit and the young woman's descent was abruptly stopped.

The jarring stop caused the woman's scream to be cut off abruptly. "Ahhh-mph!"

Mr. Suit looked up at the bridge, and found that his vision was going in and out of focus. He could barely breath. He knew he needed to gather his remaining strength and will in order to command Ōkami to pull him and the young woman to safety but...he just couldn't do it. He was in so much pain. He was about to pass out, but he knew he couldn't let go of the bridge whatever the cost. "Don't worry mademoiselle I won't let go. I won't let go..." _I won't let go._ Mr. Suit began to chant in his head over and over as he struggled to remain conscious.

The pretty young woman looked at the battered and bruised Samurai Superhero with worry etched in her features. She knew he wouldn't last. She looked down at the river below them. The water was gray, swirling, and rushing past at a rapid pace.

[Jake's POV]

Flash ran to look over the side of the bridge. "Idiot just killed himself..." But as he looked over the side of the bridge he saw Mr. Suit and the woman dangling from the bridge from what looked like some kind of metal rope. Flash's eyes widened when he realized that Mr. Suit had actually managed to stop their descent using his living-metal sword. "Bastard! He actually managed to save her. He used his living-metal sword...dammit!" Flash saw the 'claw' of the living-metal sword holding onto the top of the bridge and it wasn't that far away from him. A sly smile curled Flash's lips. "Die cunning bastard!" Flash raised his cybernetic dagger and brought it down upon the living-metal claw of Mr. Suit's sword-

A clashing and then shattering sound filled the air which worried Jake immensely until he saw that as the cybernetic limb clashed against the living-metal sword the hand was shattered into pieces and metal whizzed through the air.

"Shit! My hand!" Flash swore as he cradled his destroyed hand. "This tentacle hand cost a fortune!" The remnants of his hand were sparking.

Jake let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. _Phew._ Mr. Suit was still alive.

But now Flash was even more pissed. He quickly used his other cybernetic tentacle hand to cut a huge piece of the pavement away from the road and lifted it up over his head with one hand. Flash then carried the gigantic slab of pavement over to the side of the bridge and looked down at Mr. Suit and the young woman while grinning psychotically. "I'll flatten you, Mr. Gentleman Samurai! You and that pretty woman!" Flash declared.

_Why isn't he coming up yet?_ Jake thought frantically. _Why hasn't he retracted his sword_? That's when with a sinking feeling in his gut Jake realized that Mr. Suit wasn't coming up yet because he couldn't. Something was wrong and so Mr. Suit was in danger. Jake began to panic. _No!_ His body went into autopilot. He urged Ginger into a gallop and headed towards Flash while raising his sword. "STOP!" Jake slashed his sword down upon the large cement slab-

Jake managed to cut the slab in two and somehow accidentally knocked the slab in such a way that it fell right on the top of Flash's head knocking him out cold. Jake gripped his sword, trembling, afraid, and still feeling oddly angry at Flash.

Jake pulled Ginger's reigns to turn her around so that he could face the remaining _Solar Flares_. Jake dismounted Ginger and stalked towards the _Solar Flares_ with his sword held out to his side. He didn't know if he was trembling from fear or from anger anymore. "You bastards! Leave my partner alone! Can't you see he's busy being a true hero?" Jake said before letting out a yell and recklessly attacking the _Solar Flares_.

Jake began to slash his sword at the _Solar Flares_ at random and the cyborg bikers were able to easily evade Jake's attacks. They raised an eyebrow at his lousy fighting skills. Jake was so freaked out and angry that he didn't even use his superhuman reflexes to the best of his ability. One of the _Solar Flares_ shrugged his shoulders before walking up right behind Jake and knocking him out with a quick blow to the back of his head.

Jake stumbled forward on woozy legs before he hit the pavement face first.

The other _Solar Flares_ chuckled once Jake was knocked out. "What the hell was up with that guy? Trying to act all cool when he was scared shitless?"

"Pathetic," Another biker agreed with a sneer.

"Jake!" Ultraviolet called out with worry. She was about to go to his aid, however-

Ba-thump. Ba-thump. Ba-thump.

Orochi possessed Jake's body and a shockwave of power manifested itself spreading outwards and knocking the _Solar Flares_ off of their feet as they were blasted back.

Jake's body twitched and then Orochi was quickly standing up and tying his shaggy, orange-brown hair into a ponytail. " **I am Samurai Orochi. Fear me for I am your worst nightmare.** " He got into a fighting stance, his living-metal sword held out before him and glowing green. " **Foul-mouthed** **Onna! Retrieve Mr. Suit and that other pathetic onna.** " He barked out the order to Ultraviolet.

"What was that, asshole? Did you just try to give _me_ an order?" Ultraviolet shot back in a sassy manner, hand on her hip. Orochi was a sexist and Ultraviolet a feminist, so they reacted like oil and water.

" **Fine, let them die then, baka onna. I do not truly care. My main objective is defeating these pathetic opponents first.** " Orochi declared as he turned to face the _Solar Flares_.

"Tsk." Ultraviolet scowled realizing she had no choice but to help Mr. Suit. She hopped down off Ginger and rushed to the side of the bridge and peered over it. She looked down and spotted Mr. Suit and the young woman who were still suspended below by Mr. Suit's sword.

"Mr. Suit! What the hell are you waiting for, you shitty _samurai_? Pull yourself up _baka_!"

Mr. Suit looked up and frowned at Ultraviolet. "So unlady like...I...I'm trying..." Mr. Suit grit his teeth.

"Well, try harder! I didn't think you were this weak, Mr. Suit! After all the hours you train I would think you'd be stronger than this. Now come on - hurry up and get your ass up here so I can kick it into next week for being such an idiot!"

"Shut up...V..." Mr. Suit concentrated on his living-metal sword and slowly he began to cause the sword to retract, which caused Mr. Suit and the young woman to begin to get pulled up into the air and back towards the bridge.

While Ultraviolet was 'helping' Mr. Suit to get back up on the bridge, Orochi, with fierce green glowing eyes, looked at the cyborg bikers with a pissed expression on his face, " **You pathetic cyborgs won't even be a challenge. What a pity."** Orochi charged forward, using his superhuman speed. He moved so fast that even the cyborgs couldn't follow his movements.

Orochi's sword flashed through the air in a green blur, and Orochi passed the _Solar Flares_ before turning around to face them - the _Solar Flares_ appeared untouched for a moment but then all their clothes - their yellow leather jumpsuits - fell off of the bikers in shreds. The _Solar Flares_ were now completely buck-naked.

Inner Jake: _Aw man, I so did NOT need to see that, man! Now...if you want to cut all of Ultraviolet's clothes off I could hardly complain..._

The _Solar Flares_ immediately freaked out and covered themselves with their hands. Orochi approached their leader Flash and placed his sword at the man's throat. Orochi smiled creepily. " **You think you're naked? You still have your skin, pathetic human...what if I decided to remove it?** " Orochi trailed his sword down the cyborg's body thoughtfully.

The cyborg Flash began to panic. "P-p-please don't hurt me! What do you want? You're just supposed to arrest me...you're an SSF officer! Right? You can't kill me!"

Orochi raised an eyebrow at the cyborg. " **You are mistaken, fool. I am not Jake Lonestar. I am Samurai Orochi. I can kill you if it pleases me.** "

"What do you want?" Flash asked tremulously.

" **Information."** Orochi jabbed his sword into the man's gut almost playfully. **"Why did you and Nix Duo purchase the illegal Accelerator Tech from Tech Thief Prism? I know she had other Tech available so why the Accelerator Tech specifically?** "

Flash sighed in defeat. "It's time for the next E.T. Tech Race. This year Gold Fist will sponsor it and he's also acting as the bookman. The prize this year is five million dollars. And it's a recession so..."

" **E.T. Tech Race? And Nix Duo will be entering?"** Orochi stroked his chin thoughtfully.

Inner Jake: _E.T. Tech Race? What's that?_

Jake was ignored.

Ultraviolet grabbed Mr. Suit's wrist as soon as he was at the top of the bridge and using her android strength she pulled Mr. Suit and the young woman easily up and back onto the bridge safely.

The young woman's eyes were wide that this petite girl had just displayed such an incredible feat of strength.

Mr. Suit approached Orochi and Flash while slicking his hair back and smoothing the wrinkles out of his suit with his hands. "Jake is probably curious about what the E.T. Tech Race is, so I'll explain...

"The E.T. Tech Race started seven years ago. It's an illegal underground race held here in New York City. It used to be just bikers, but now there are drivers too since other types of vehicles other than just souped up bikes are now allowed to participate. Everyone participating in the race is using illegal E.T. Tech: hover tech, accelerator tech, nano tech, and weapons tech. It's a no rules, anything goes, race to get to the finish first in order to win millions of dollars, reputation and turf.

"Last year the Noppera-bō Gang won...again...Nova Inara's biker gang is the _Metalheads_. I've already mentioned that their leader is Nemesis Zero, Nix Duo. You've probably already guessed this but Nix Duo and I...have a history. He hates my guts and he holds a grudge against me since I single-handedly almost succeeded in stopping the _Metalheads_ from winning the race last year.

"The SSF have been trying to find out the specifics of this year's race so that we can stop it. The where, when, how." Mr. Suit pushed his green-tinted sunglasses up his nose and gave Flash a knowing look. "And I'm guessing you know all this. Am I right, Flash?"

Orochi and Mr. Suit both cornered Flash. They made an intimidating pair. Flash sighed in defeat. "Yea...I know...this year's E.T. Tech Race is scheduled to happen this Saturday at midnight. In order to enter you need to sign up at the VR club _Kaleidoscope_. The password to be allowed entry into the VR club _Kaleidoscope_ is: 'Beam me up, Scottie'."

"The VR club _Kaleidoscope_." Mr. Suit murmured with interest. "We never could figure out where _Kaleidoscope_ was located. Even with my vast information network. It's the usual hang out for all those participating in the race. The _Metalheads_ are probably there..." Mr. Suit gave Flash an expectant look.

Orochi pressed his sword beneath Flash's chin. The cyborg swallowed and his Adam's apple rubbed against Orochi's sword blade. Flash's eyes darted psychotically from Orochi and Mr. Suit and began to laugh. "It's been right under your noses all this time! _Kaleidoscope_ is beneath club _Salamander_. And I know the SSF are all regulars of _Salamander_ too!"

"Beneath _Salamander_?" Mr. Suit gave the cyborg a surprised look. " _Uso_ , no way, I'm such an idiot. So...I just have to tell the bartender the password and he'll take me to the secret entrance of _Kaleidoscope_ , then? You better be right about this Flash or else you're so dead."

Flash nodded vigorously. "I'm sure although...I'm not sure how they'll react to the SSF trying to get into _Kaleidoscope_ but..." Flash shrugged. "I guess you'll just have to try and find out."

A steely glint formed in Mr. Suit's eyes. "Count on it."

Inner Jake: _Awww man!_ _I hate it when he gets that look!_

### Chapter 10: CYBORG SMASH!

Mr. Suit, Jake and Ultraviolet now knew where the secret VR club _Kaleidoscope_ was located _and_ how to gain access. Mr. Suit considered this to be a lucky day.

"Thanks for the information, let's go, Jake...err, Orochi." Mr. Suit was saying as he headed for Pinstripe. However, Mr. Suit was just trying to act all cool and tough, and he suddenly sunk to his knees, coughing and grasping his chest in pain.

"Mr. Suit, you reckless bastard!" Ultraviolet rushed to his side and her maid outfit morphed back into the nurse's outfit. She then began a medical examination of Mr. Suit and poked him right in one of his cracked ribs.

"Ow! That hurt!" Mr. Suit shot her a fierce glare.

Ultraviolet glared back, unaffected, "Well, it doesn't look like any of your ribs are broken but...some of them are cracked. You should go back to Headquarters, and let Jake and I handle this..."

Mr. Suit gave Ultraviolet an incredulous look, "Let Jake and you handle it? Let that lazy coward go up against the Noppera-bō's biker gang the _Metalheads_ and that sadomasochist freak Nix Duo? Not a chance. I'm going. Besides, I've wanted to test the steel of my blade against Nix Duo's for a while now. I've been training hard for our rematch."

Ultraviolet sighed. She knew that all of this stubbornness stemmed from Mr. Suit's goal to become the best living-metal swordsman in the galaxy but it was still annoying. "Tsk. Keh, fine...but let me wrap your ribs at least..." She approached Mr. Suit with a roll of bandages.

Mr. Suit tried to back away from her, scuttling across the ground, "No need..."

Ultraviolet became pissed. "I wasn't asking for your permission, stupid shitty _samurai_!" Ultraviolet tackled the injured Mr. Suit to the ground and began to strip his smart-suit off.

Mr. Suit began to panic and flushed. "Ah! Ultraviolet! What the hell?"

"You're really lucky that your smart-suit also serves as protective armor or your injuries would be much worse." Ultraviolet told Mr. Suit with a frown on her face.

"Yea, yea..." Mr. Suit groaned.

"Reckless idiot." Ultraviolet said softly.

Orochi raised an eyebrow at what was going on between Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet, **"Such shameless behavior..."** Orochi passed out without further ado.

Ultraviolet began to wrap white cloth bandages around Mr. Suit's torso tightly and he cried out in pain. She soon finished and Mr. Suit quickly put his smart-suit back on, smoothed his suit out, and straightened his tie while glaring at Ultraviolet heatedly. The bandages were now hidden beneath his suit.

Jake stirred awake, groaned, and sat up, blinking owlishly. "Huh...oh crap! I'm awake! Shit! Why did I have to regain control of my body right when we're about to infiltrate _Kaleidoscope_?! I can't do this. I can't go there. Orochi come _backkk~!_ " Jake gripped his head in a panic and moaned.

Ultraviolet pulled a cig out of her cleavage, lit up and took a drag. She blew a cloud of smoke in Jake's direction, "Cowardly idiot...why did _you_ have to come back." She let out a heavy sigh. "But we still have no choice but to go to _Kaleidoscope_ , arrest the _Metalheads_ and take them to the Cyborg Prison. Come on, let's go, idiots."

Jake dragged his feet as he made his way over to Ginger and reluctantly mounted her. Ultraviolet easily jumped up right behind him in the saddle.

Mr. Suit followed suit and mounted Pinstripe cringing at the pain this movement caused, but he quickly schooled his expression when he noticed Jake was looking at him questioningly. Jake frowned. Mr. Suit was not at 100% and he was just plain 'ol Jake Lonestar again. If Mr. Suit ended up needing some actual help they were screwed - big time.

Jake shuddered at the thought. And they were actually going to try and arrest Nix Duo...a man who had apparently captured and tortured Mr. Suit at one point. Jake looked over at Mr. Suit again but now he had a stoic look on his face. _How can he do it? How can he act so calm and composed when he's going to face that guy? I would be pissing my pants right about now._

Mr. Suit led the way back to club _Salamander_ while Jake and Ultraviolet followed. Ultraviolet had brought Jake's cowboy _samurai_ uniform and Mr. Suit's uniform with her, and Jake had already changed back into it. He was wearing his black domino mask, cowboy hat, black _haori_ wrap shirt, jeans, and a pair of cowboy boots. Mr. Suit was wearing his usual black and silver smart-suit again.

Mr. Suit and Jake walked into club _Salamander_ as if they owned the place and Ultraviolet followed close behind. She ran her hands over her nurse outfit and the outfit began to transform into a sexy clubbing outfit, which consisted of a sparkly, sequined, purple tube dress, and a pair of shimmering, silver, high heeled shoes. So that she fit in with Jake and Mr. Suit she was also wearing a domino mask on her face.

Jake couldn't help but ogle her. _Smokin~ for an android. Doable...for an android._ He found himself saying and then amending in his head.

Ultraviolet walked ahead of Jake and Mr. Suit, sashaying her hips as she approached the bar, "Oi idiots, stay back, you're both way too conspicuous. Let me handle this and watch how it's done, boys."

Jake looked at the two metal antennas that were visible on the top of Ultraviolet's head and wondered between the three of them who was _really_ the most conspicuous.

Ultraviolet approached the bar and leaned over it, showing off her petite cleavage to the bartender - a powerful looking cyborg who was wearing a black tie with a multi-colored _Tetris_ pattern on it. "Neh, hey, there big fella, could you please tell me where this wonderful scent of money is coming from?"

The bartender gave Ultraviolet, Mr. Suit and Jake a calculating look as he stroked his goatee. "You kids need to make some money? But aren't those two with you, SSF?"

Ultraviolet shrugged. "Anyone in this freakin expensive city could use a little extra pocket money in this recession as well as some extra street cred. So, what do you say, big fella? Will you beam me up, Scottie?" She winked and Jake noticed that her eyelashes were silver colored now.

The bartender's eyes went wide at Ultraviolet's use of the password and he stopped wiping the glass beer mug in his hand. He gave Jake and Mr. Suit a disbelieving look. "I don't know how you kids managed to find out about the password, but rules are rules so I have no choice...reckless hotheaded youths." The middle-aged cyborg shook his head. "But you should know SSF you're going into the lion's den...don't expect to come back out _alive_. And whatever you're about to see is a secret you need to take with you to your graves...that's the _only_ rule."

Ultraviolet nodded in understanding. "We understand the risk we're taking, Tetris. But we're decided."

Tetris nodded and walked out from behind the bar, "Follow me, kids..." Tetris shook his head at the two SSF and their little android girl companion. Tetris noticed her two antennas, which was unusual. "I've never seen an android with two antennas before. What series are you?"

"She's just a regular Sex-" Jake was about to helpfully inform the cyborg when Ultraviolet stomped hard on Jake's foot with the heel of her shoe.

"OW! Son of a-!" Jake cried out.

Tetris raised an eyebrow at this display, shrugged, and then chuckled in amusement. "Kids these days are into some odd kinks." Tetris led Jake, Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet to a black door that was splattered with paint in a rainbow of colors. It was so dark past the door that Jake and the others couldn't see inside. Tetris just shoved the three teens inside and closed the door behind him. Immediately, bright green florescent lights switched on revealing a long, tubular shaped, metal corridor that led down.

Mr. Suit's eyes were sparkling with interest as he looked at the corridor. "Fascinating...I never knew this place existed." He pushed his green-tinged sunglasses up his nose. "Until now."

"This is as far as I go." Tetris informed them. "You kids watch your step. Make sure to use the password at the end of this passageway. And good luck."

Mr. Suit nodded at the cyborg. "Thanks, Tetris."

Tetris shook his head as he watched the Samurai Superheroes heading down the hall. "Into the lion's den...the fools..." Tetris exited the rainbow colored door and closed it behind him.

Mr. Suit led the way down the futuristic passageway while Jake lagged behind clinging to Ultraviolet, who rolled her eyes at Jake's cowardly behavior. The passageway must have had some kind of automatic, built-in sensors because the passageway continued to light up as they continued down it.

In just a few minutes, the exit was visible and Jake and the others caught sight of a seven-foot-tall Battle Droid standing next to the exit. As they approached a series of hidden compartments suddenly opened up on the robot's metal body and several high-tech weapons were being aimed their way.

"Epp!" Jake squeaked and hid behind Mr. Suit. "Save _me~!_ "

Mr. Suit's expression grew serious and he put a hand on the hilt of his sword, prepared to draw it-

But Ultraviolet walked past the two boys and put a hand on Mr. Suit's wrist, stopping him. He raised an eyebrow at her but removed his hand from his sword's hilt and watched as Ultraviolet sashayed past to approach the robot with a smile, "Hey, no need to get so hostile, bro. Why don't you just...beam us up, Scottie?"

At the sound of the password behind spoken the robot immediately disarmed and deactivated all of its various weapons. Guns and rockets were hidden back inside of the robot's body as the hidden compartments closed shut and vanished so that the robot's body appeared completely seamless once more. "Password received. Welcome to Kaleidoscope. Remember that what you see within the walls of Kaleidoscope stays within Kaleidoscope under penalty of death _._ " The robot droned in a synthesized voice as he opened the door for Jake and the others to enter.

The door opened and the mysterious VR club _Kaleidoscope_ was revealed. Jake became starry-eyed as he looked at the impressive interior of the club that in his mind resembled the interior of a spaceship. The entire space was a gigantic silver dome with multiple levels. There were high-tech moving walkways everywhere.

Mr. Suit noticed that the club had a teleportation platform on each floor that patrons could use to get to the other levels. The center of the establishment was an open atrium so that you were able to see the different levels of the club. One level was obviously a restaurant and eating area, another level appeared to be specifically for dancing, and one looked more like a lounge. A fembot with cone-shaped breasts handed Jake and the others a pair of 3D sunglasses and they put them on. Jake whistled as the holograms that were floating inside of the club began to look even more realistic than before.

Jake looked up and saw a massive holographic projection of the solar system. All the planets were rotating around the sun right beneath the domed ceiling. Jake saw the moon next, and hundreds of yellow star holograms with faces that were smiling as they danced and floated around the club. Miniature galaxies spun and floated around the entire establishment. Silver flying saucers with little green men who were wearing trendy sunglasses flew around the club and waved at club goers. Holographic images of pyramids with all-seeing eyes sprouted up from the floor occasionally. Yellow cornfields sprung up only to have strange symbols appear in their midst. Just when Jake didn't think it could get any better a Chinese dragon with a long, red serpentine body floated right over Jake's head - its body seemed to continue on and on.

"Cool." Jake murmured, taking in all of the impressive holographic images and special effects that were inside of the club. All over the surface of the metal dome a kaleidoscope of colors manifested, true to the name of the club. Bursts of rainbow colors appeared and disappeared like fireworks.

Mr. Suit was also impressed by the club since he was a bit of a Tech Freak himself but his attention was on the people there. His sharp eyes were taking in the gangs that were there, which consisted of aliens, cyborgs, androids and robots. Yes, aliens.

Mr. Suit pushed his 3D glasses up his nose. This was the most notable difference between the clientele of _Salamander_ and _Kaleidoscope_. The aliens and alien criminals. _Salamander_ 's patrons were only humans, robots and androids, who didn't know of the existence of aliens or that aliens in fact lived among humans secretly. The SSF, of course, was part of the secret society that knew of the existence of aliens, so this wouldn't be a problem. If, however, they hadn't already been a part of this secret society, and he and Jake left _Kaleidoscope_ and tried to reveal the existence of aliens to the public...they would have been eliminated.

Mr. Suit began to realize that a hush had come over the club's patrons at the sight of them. Mr. Suit frowned realizing that it was pretty obvious because of their domino masks that they were a part of the SSF - a special police force known for being in charge of pursuing cyborg criminals but also alien criminals on occasion. This was probably making everyone nervous and all eyes were on them.

Mr. Suit's hand twitched and he had to resist the urge to put his hand on the hilt of his sword when he suddenly felt a lot of murderous intent directed his way next. _This could turn ugly real fast._

However, Ultraviolet once again came to their rescue. She stepped up in front of Mr. Suit with a superior look on her face and unabashedly eyed everyone there. She lit a cigarette and took a drag while a haughty smirk formed on her face. "Why'd the party stop, tech freaks? It's not like we're here to arrest you. Can't the SSF participate in the E.T. Tech Race too? We already know of the existence of aliens so there's no need to get your panties in a bunch. We have the best E.T. Tech at our disposal and we'd like to prove it to you. We want to challenge you - not arrest you. This time. So, do you accept our challenge, tech freaks?!" Ultraviolet's voice echoed throughout the entire VR club. Jake didn't know how she was doing it but somehow she was managing to project her voice throughout the entire club. "Or are you all just a bunch of cowards?" Ultraviolet put a hand on her cocked hip and gave everyone in the club a challenging stare.

A heavy silence descended upon the club but then-

"HELL YEA! WE ACCEPT YOUR CHALLENGE!" The gathered aliens, cyborgs, robots, and androids all roared. They had accepted Ultraviolet's challenge hook, line and sinker.

Mr. Suit removed his hand from the hilt of his sword and Jake stopped trembling. They had been saved by Ultraviolet once again with her quick thinking. Mr. Suit had to admit he was impressed with the feisty android girl. _Ultraviolet's pretty slick...for an android._ Mr. Suit was surprised at his own thoughts and shook his head.

Ultraviolet began to electronically scan the faces of the cyborg gang members and aliens that were present in the club, some of which were seated at the tables on the restaurant level. Ultraviolet spoke to Jake and Mr. Suit in low tones. "There are a lot of cyborg biker gangs here, but also some...aliens. Over there is Mayor Stark's gang: the Silver Fox Gang." Ultraviolet pointed them out to the two Samurai Superheroes.

"Mayor Stark?" Jake asked as he followed the direction Ultraviolet's finger was pointing, and his eyes widened when he caught sight of Mayor Stark and five other people - one of which he instantly recognized - it was the Green Avenger. "The Green Avenger? What the hell is he doing here?" The other four who made up the gang's representatives were slick and well-dressed individuals. Two men and two women. One of the women was tucking stray strands of bright orange hair back into her bun. She had piercing golden eyes with slanted pupils and was wearing a designer red dress. Her partner was dressed in a complimentary red suit. He laughed at something she said and ran his hands through his shortly cropped orange hair while his red eyes glittered with mirth. The other woman was smoothing the nonexistent wrinkles out of her black and white _Chanel_ dress. Both she and her partner had black hair and the same golden eyes with slanted pupils. The man who was with her was looking slick in a tuxedo.

Ultraviolet continued to electronically scan the club's patrons until she caught sight of the _Solar Flares_. "It's the _Solar Flares_ but...we just defeated them, so they must be imposters. Just who are they really? Scanning...unable to scan. That's strange." Ultraviolet frowned and turned her attention next to a group of space pirates. "Over there..." Ultraviolet began in a low voice to Jake and Mr. Suit. "They're space pirates. Space Pirate Captain Linx, he's a two-tailed _Nekomata_ Alien. His galactic bounty is 120,000,000 space credits."

"Space Pirate Captain Linx?" Jake shoved past Ultraviolet to get a closer look and he eyed the half-cat half-man alien. Linx was dressed in a flashy, red pirate coat that had gold tassels on the shoulders. On his head sat a three-corned hat and Jake saw that he was wearing his eye patch. Jake then noticed that both a blaster and an energy saber were strapped to his waist by a large black leather belt. One of the individuals with him Jake immediately recognized as being Zoe, the ex-bounty hunter. She was dressed in an emerald green, faux leather tube dress and a pair of gold _Christian Louboutin_ shoes were on her feet. There were also four other individuals with them: one cute cat-girl and three half-man half-cat aliens.

These were obviously the members of Linx's space pirate crew. Jake realized. The cat girl seemed to have a bubbly personality and as she spoke with Linx and the others her pink curls bounced up and down. She was wearing a futuristic pink and silver dress, gloves and boots. He noticed her furry-looking ears and had the urge to run over and touch them. She had two blasters strapped to her waist - which made Jake rethink his first impulse.

One of the cat-men ruffled the cat-girl's hair with his large hand and chuckled. This caused his large gut to jiggle. The brawny cat-man was shirtless and Jake could see various kinds of ammo strapped across his chest. The guy even had a bazooka strapped to his back. He was wearing leather pants and a pair of combat boots. All three of the cat-men had golden eyes and brown hair.

The other cat-man, who was standing next to Ammo Man, was a lot skinnier and had only an energy saber strapped to his waist.

Then, Jake noticed there was a small cat-boy who had a pair of glasses on his face giving him an intellectual look. The boy looked to be around twelve-years-old.

***

"That Zoe..." Jake grinned to himself. "She must be protecting Linx from the other bounty hunters. She's _so_ into him, though she tries to deny it."

_Whoosh!_ A dagger suddenly flew past Jake's head, seemingly coming out of nowhere, and imbedded itself into the wall just behind Jake's head. Jake gulped knowing that the dagger had to have been flung by Zoe, but she...was now looking in a completely different direction. _Women are scary..._

Ultraviolet continued to scan the club goers until she locked onto another biker gang she had never seen before. She began to try and scan their leader who was seated at one of the tables on the restaurant level with his boots up on the table in front of him. He was dressed in a green, blue and silver bodysuit that resembled a space suit and there was a full helmet on his head, which shielded his face from view. With him was a group of five robots that were dressed in silver bodysuits without helmets. The robots had single radio antennas on the tops of their heads.

Ultraviolet raised an eyebrow as she watched one of the robots giving the leader a shoulder massage while another was using a rag to shine the man's space boots. The leader's helmet visor was slightly open, but only enough so that he was able to drink a glass of wine using a straw.

"Scanning...unable to be scanned. That's funny. I can't scan that man's identity either. Gee, a lot of people brought anti-scanning devices here." Ultraviolet pouted as she nodded in the man's direction for Jake and Mr. Suit's benefit.

"I wonder what he's trying to hide." Mr. Suit gave the man a suspicious look.

There were several empty tables around the mysterious biker as if the other gangs could inherently sense that this guy was bad news.

He had this powerful aura...it made the hair on the back of Jake's neck prickle in warning, but then Jake noticed something else - the man moved to set his glass of wine on the table and a silver medallion on a thick chain fell out of the man's bodysuit to dangle down over his chest. Jake noted the medallion was round and had the _clavicula nox_ symbol on it with two small stars within the circle. Jake's eyes widened as he recognized the symbol of the Dragon Aliens. _A Dragon Alien!_ He thought to himself. He immediately wanted to confront this Dragon Alien about the whereabouts of his family. It was a reckless, foolhardy, idea.

"I'm going go to talk to him!" Jake suddenly declared.

Ultraviolet and Mr. Suit both gave Jake a baffled look. "Huh? What for?" Mr. Suit demanded but Jake ignored him and stalked off.

Mr. Suit sighed, "Whatever. Ultraviolet where are the _Metalheads_?"

Ultraviolet began to scan the gangs. "Scanning...searching for the _Metalheads_."

Meanwhile, Jake was recklessly stalking towards the Dragon's table. Jake was about to reach the table, and his mouth was already slightly open as he began to speak - the Dragon had even turned towards Jake and stared at him through his helmet. The Dragon Alien immediately began to use his smart-visor to scan Jake, but discovered the same thing that Dr. Valery had - that Jake was unable to be scanned and that he was some kind of anomaly. This caused the Dragon Alien to stand up and approach Jake.

However, before Jake could reach the Dragon Alien a woman dressed in a yellow and black leather jumpsuit stepped into his path. She took off her yellow helmet to reveal-

"Astra? What the heck are you- Ack!" Jake began to speak, but was cut off.

"Jake!" Astra hissed in a low voice as she latched onto Jake's arm, and began to drag him away.

The Dragon stared after them before shrugging and returning to sit at the table. He put his space boots back onto the table and waved his hand through the air in an imperious gesture for his robots to resume their earlier tasks of polishing his boots and giving him a massage while pouring him more wine.

"Whaaa?" Jake complained as Astra led him away from the Dragon Alien.

Astra dragged Jake around a corner, shoved him up against the wall and kissed him fiercely in order to _shut him up_! Jake immediately melted into the kiss, his eyes turning into two hearts, however, he remembered how close Astra was and that he could hurt her and so he shoved Astra off. "GAH! Astra?! What the hell?"

Astra looked back at Jake questioningly. She was a bit surprised he had pushed her away since he had seemed to be returning her kiss so enthusiastically only seconds before. But she shrugged it off. "I had to shut you up somehow, you _baka_ cowboy! You were about to give my identity away!"

"Riiight, what are you even doing here?" Jake scratched his head beneath his cowboy hat.

Astra leaned in close and spoke to Jake in a low voice, "I'm in pursuit of a Galactic Most Wanted Criminal! A Dragon, Jake." To those who were watching it looked as though Astra and Jake were having an intimate conversation.

"I _knew_ that guy was a Dragon..." Jake frowned and began to distractedly try and spot the Dragon again. "I need to talk to him."

"Huh?" Astra blinked back at Jake in confusion. "You _knew_...wait, talk to him?!" Astra grabbed Jake by his shoulders and began to shake him back and forth. "Are you insane?! Why? What could _you_ possibly have to say to a Dragon like Ryuuji! He'll kill you before you even open your mouth...Dragon Aliens are dangerous Jake...extremely volatile..."

"Oh? You seem to be well informed, Astra. Tell me more. About the Dragon Aliens, I mean." Jake said suddenly, trying to look determined. "Or else I'm going to go over and talk to Ryuuji myself." _I'm not being brave. If that Dragon is the one who abducted my parents maybe I can get him to free my parents in exchange for me._

Astra sighed, rubbing her temples and wondered why Jake had a sudden interest in the Dragon Aliens. She relented though and began to tell Jake more about them. "The Dragon Aliens are the most powerful alien race in the Galaxy. The Dragon Aliens are a fierce warrior race. They live and breathe fighting. They live to get stronger and seek power. Their society respects strength the most. They are a bloodthirsty race though. Once they reach adolescence they have been known to attack and kill their own family...

"The Dragon Aliens have conquered countless planets in our galaxy. The Dragon Aliens conquer planets by sending only one Dragon Warrior to challenge the planet's top fighters to a battle, sometimes a tournament, to the death.

"If one of the planet's fighters can defeat the Dragon the planet will be spared conquest. However, if the Champion fails to defeat the Dragon then the entire planet is conquered and taken over by the Dragon and the Dragon Aliens.

"As you already know, Jake, aliens have come to Earth. There are millions of aliens living among Earthlings but the Earthlings do not know of our existence and will not until their science and technology has reached the same level as ours.

"There are good aliens, but sometimes there are hostile aliens that come to Earth and occasionally try to take it over! It is up to the Galaxy Police to protect the Earth from such threats...the SSF has helped us out occasionally as well...

"As for Dragons...they were not allowed entry to Earth because one Dragon is capable of conquering the entire planet in just a few days. That Dragon...Ryuuji is illegally here. He is to be apprehended and arrested by the Galaxy Police." Astra finished.

Jake had paled at Astra's words. "So, then Ryuuji is here to conquer the Earth? Is he going to challenge the Earth's top fighters? If so, why's he entering the E.T. Tech Race?" Jake asked.

"Those are surprisingly smart questions coming from a _baka_ cowboy _samurai_ like you! We - the Galaxy Police - do not know what Ryuuji's intentions are or why he's really here. But we plan to arrest him before he gets the chance to make his challenge!" Astra declared, puffing up her chest and looking confident.

"So, you don't know..." _Is he looking for me...?_ Jake felt guilty for some reason.

Astra put her biker helmet back on. "We plan to take him out during the race - hence our need for a disguise. I know you and Mr. Suit took out the real _Solar Flares_ earlier today, which makes them the perfect cover. Ryuuji won't know who we really are and his guard will be down allowing us to take him. So, you can't go blabbing out our real identity, got that Jake, you _baka_! Don't blow our cover." She said firmly.

Jake pouted at the pretty blue-haired Galaxy Police officer. "I won't blow your cover. I'm not an idiot." Jake frowned before he swallowed nervously. "Astra...do you think you can really take out Ryuuji by yourselves?"

"Yes, we have a plan." A sly smile curled Astra's lips.

Jake nodded. "Okay, if you say so. If you do manage to arrest him...would you mind letting me ask Ryuuji a question? Just one. It's very important." Jake gave the fish-alien a beseeching look.

Astra narrowed her eyes at Jake's serious expression, but after a moment she nodded. "Alright."

Around the same time, Ultraviolet had finally located the _Metalheads_. "Scanning vicinity... _Metalheads_ located. There." Ultraviolet pointed to one of the lower levels of the club. "That's the _Metalhead_ gang, Mr. Suit. Nix Duo's lackies."

Mr. Suit nodded and stalked over to their floor's teleportation platform. Ultraviolet followed after him. Mr. Suit stepped onto a circle and stated the level he wanted to be teleported to. "Level three, please." Mr. Suit said and he was instantly teleported to Level Three.

"Level three." Ultraviolet echoed and she was teleported after Mr. Suit.

Ultraviolet and Mr. Suit had both materialized on Level Three which was the Restaurant Level of club _Kaleidoscope_. Four of the _Metalheads_ were seated at one of the tables while dinning. As Mr. Suit approached their table all he could seem to notice was that they all had their faces painted white, were wearing heavy black eyeliner, black lipstick, and had several metal piercings.

There was a sudden crash as an empty bottle was thrown on the floor. Mr. Suit's eyes were drawn to a hulking, seriously ripped, skinhead cyborg with tattoo sleeves that had _koi_ fish on them. He was wearing a sleeveless shirt with an ace of spades on it, jeans, hipster shoes, and Mr. Suit noticed the several silver piercings in his ears. The cyborg was chugging back a newly opened bottle of rum and Mr. Suit noticed the pile of empty rum bottles on the table. Apparently, this cyborg could handle his liquor. His chair seemed to be creaking under the cyborg's weight - he was twice the size of Mr. Suit at least.

"Scanning target. Target identified. He's in my database. That's the ex-UFC Champion Thrax." Ultraviolet informed Mr. Suit in a low voice.

Mr. Suit nodded. He had heard about Thrax. Thrax had been unbeatable and _now_ he had cybernetics. He wouldn't be an easy guy to take down. Mr. Suit's attention turned next to a man dressed all in black leather from head-to-toe, and who had a high-tech, red electric guitar in his lap that he was lightly strumming. Most electric guitars needed to be plugged into an amplifier in order to work but this guitar had a built-in amp. The man had a listless expression on his face and Mr. Suit noticed the dark circles under his eyes that could have been from insomnia. He had long black hair, several piercings and there was a cigarette dangling between his lips. Mr. Suit eyed his cigarette jealously. He could use a smoke himself.

"Scanning target. Target identified. That's Tempo. According to my database he can create deadly sound waves with his voice." Ultraviolet cautioned Mr. Suit.

Mr. Suit scrunched up his nose when he suddenly smelled smoke. He looked around the restaurant to see where it was coming from until he realized it was coming from the table of _Metalheads_ in front of him. One of the cyborgs must have been bored because he was piling up the paper napkins onto a plate in the center of their table and setting the napkins on fire with his finger that was his own personal zippo lighter. The others didn't seem to be too concerned by their comrade's antics however. Mr. Suit raised an eyebrow as he noticed the man's hairstyle, which he had dyed red and orange and that was spiked upwards on the top of his head in such a way that his hairstyle resembled a lit match. He had a pair of aviator sunglasses on his face, a black button up shirt, a pair of camo shorts, and a pair of comfy skater sneakers on his feet that were tapping against the floor showing the cyborg's pent up energy and nervous personality.

"Burn...burn...burn...!" The cyborg murmured in a soft, excited voice as his eyes glowed eerily making Mr. Suit notice his genetically altered blood-red eyes.

"Scanning target. Target identified. That's Blaze. He has the latest, state of the art, built-in fire cybernetics. He obviously enjoys setting things on fire."

_Crazy-ass strength. Sound wave attacks. Fire._ Mr. Suit made a mental note in his head of each cyborg's capabilities.

Mr. Suit caught a flash of light out of the corner of his eye and his eyes were drawn to a female cyborg who was currently filing her long metal fingernails in such a way that sparks were being sent up into the air. She was wearing a red leather bodysuit and had shocking curls of red hair that had spirals of metal coils throughout. Two tiny metal cone-shaped horns had been implanted into her forehead. Mr. Suit's eyes traveled down her curvy body to rest at her hip where he saw a coiled metal whip. There appeared to be dried blood on it.

"Scanning target. Target identified. That's _Solis_." Ultraviolet informed Mr. Suit with a disgusted sneer. "She's a sadistic bitch who specializes in interrogation. You better stay away from her. I know you're against violence to women, but she won't show you any mercy. She'll chew you up and spit you out, so you better let me handle Solis. You can handle the rest of these shitty cyborgs."

"What about Jake?" Mr. Suit asked.

Ultraviolet let out a heavy sigh as she took out a cigarette. She lit it up and took a long drag from it. "He's himself right now so he's completely useless. Maybe if Orochi comes back he can help us - right now he's just dead weight. He'll only get in our way." Ultraviolet held the cigarette between her index and middle finger as she waved it at Mr. Suit.

Mr. Suit nodded in agreement, trying to ignore the tasty looking cigarette. "Good point. I guess we'll have to handle this on our own." Mr. Suit approached the table and whipped out his badge. "SSF - you're all under arrest for illegal use of Accelerator Tech." Mr. Suit had a determined look on his face.

The _Metalheads_ looked up at Mr. Suit before turning to look at each other thoughtfully before they all burst out laughing. Obviously, they weren't taking Mr. Suit seriously at all.

Solis leered at Mr. Suit. "A Samurai Superhero dares to try and arrest us here - in the lion's den? Don't you realize you're completely outnumbered, _samurai_? It's not just you against us. It's you against everyone here. Besides, I thought you losers were going to enter the race?" Solis asked in a voice as smooth as black silk.

"That was a lie. My mission is to arrest your gang - nothing more. I suggest you come quietly or else." Mr. Suit threatened putting a hand on the hilt of his living-metal sword Ōkami.

A heavy silence descended upon the _Metalheads_ ' table.

Thrax finished chugging his bottle of rum before throwing it to the floor so that it shattered loudly. He gave Mr. Suit an incredulous look as he began to crack his knuckles, which began to spark. "I think this guy is actually serious about taking us on. He's either really brave or high." Thrax began to chuckle darkly.

"Oh, I know him." Blaze began suddenly, his red eyes glinting with interest. "That's Mr. Suit! He's the one who gave us trouble during the last E.T. Tech Race, remember? He sliced Duo's bike in two! Remember Nix Duo's face! He was _sooo_ pissed! Let's set him on fire and bring his charred remains back to Nix Duo. I'm sure that will make him smile."

Tempo looked up from his guitar in a lazy fashion. "I could sing him a little song." A creepy smile curled the man's colorless lips.

"I say you boys let me play with him." Solis put her hand on her whip. "He has such perfectly pale white skin...it will look beautiful dyed red."

Ultraviolet moved to stand in front of Mr. Suit protectively and glared at Solis with her hands on her hips, cigarette between her lips. "Back off, freak. You're not getting anywhere near, Mr. Suit!"

"What was that, you little android bitch?" Solis snarled standing up from the table and slamming her hands down upon the tabletop.

Ultraviolet and Solis were glaring fiercely at one another when-

Jake suddenly landed right in front of Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet. As his cowboy boots hit the floor two small craters were formed there from the force of the impact. Mr. Suit looked up realizing that Jake must have jumped down to their level from the one above them and he felt his temple beginning to throb.

The _Metalheads_ began to come to the same conclusion as Mr. Suit and their expressions all shifted to surprise when they realized this young man had just jumped down several levels and appeared to be unharmed. He looked human but a normal human's legs would have broken upon impact.

Jake raised a hand at Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet, grinning goofily. "Howdy! I finally found you guys. I've been looking everywhere. You just disappeared and left me alone." Jake gave them a pouty look.

Ultraviolet couldn't help but think that Jake resembled a lost puppy that had happily found his Masters. She could even envision Jake's tail wagging behind him.

Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet simultaneously let out a groan at this new development. The last thing they needed was the _baka_ cowboy appearing just when they were about to confront the _Metalheads_.

Ultraviolet quickly bonked Jake over the head, "Jake _no baka!_ Why did you jump down here? Why didn't you just teleport?"

Jake blinked at the feisty android as he rubbed his head. "Teleport? But I can't teleport, V. I'm not a magician or Harry Potter!" Jake began to laugh.

His laugh irritated Ultraviolet immensely so that she grabbed both of Jake's ears and began to pull. "There's a teleportation platform up there, dumbass! It would have beamed you down here...idiot..."

"Owowowow!" Jake complained as Ultraviolet pulled his ears. "I'm sorry! I won't do it again."

Mr. Suit shook his head at Jake. "What an idiot."

Jake flushed, before he glared back at Mr. Suit. "Well, excuse me, Mr. Know-It-All Smart-ass, for finding a shortcut! You're just jealous you didn't think of it first, ha!"

Mr. Suit's eye twitched. Jake really knew how to get under his skin. "What was that? Pervy cowboy?!"

"Who's the fool?" Solis drawled as she gave Jake a once over, raking her dark eyes over Jake's muscular body. "He's very handsome...but obviously a complete idiot. I'd like to flay his clothes off his body until he bleeds..." Solis licked her black lips.

Jake's attention was captured by Solis and as he took in her skintight, red leather bodysuit his eyes turned into two large pink hearts. "Howdy, pretty lady. If I said you had a mint, first-edition, still-in-box, action figure, would you hold it against me?" Jake excitedly moved towards Solis. However, he tripped over the broken glass from the rum bottle Thrax had smashed so that he stumbled forward and his face somehow ended up right between Solis' breasts with his nose right in her cleavage.

Jake was so surprised by his good fortune that he inhaled deeply the sweet scent of Solis. Solis looked down at the Samurai Superhero sniffing her breasts in sheer disbelief.

The other three _Metalheads_ abruptly stood up from the table while giving Jake furious looks. Thrax cracked his knuckles and then his neck from side to side as he gave Jake a murderous look. "No one touches Nix Duo's woman and gets away with it."

"I'll compose the cowboy a requiem." Tempo smiled softly as he began to pluck his guitar strings and hum to himself.

"No, let's build a nice funeral pyre." Blaze suggested, rubbing his hands together excitedly. "I wanna watch this cocky son-of-a-bitch burn!"

Upon hearing all of the death threats directed his way Jake quickly pulled himself together and sprang away from Solis. His face grew pale as he realized the deep shit he had somehow managed to get himself into. "Requiem? Funeral Pyre?" Jake swallowed thickly. _Epp! I'm so going to die! Help! Someone! Mr. Suit! Ultraviolet!_ Jake turned to give Mr. Suit and the android a beseeching look.

The _Metalheads_ began to approach Jake but Mr. Suit smoothly stepped in front of Jake while unsheathing Ōkami. He pointed Ōkami at the three _Metalheads_. "Resisting arrest, I see. I guess I'll have to take you cyborgs in by force."

Jake let out a breath of relief and decided to take this opportunity to hide under a nearby table.

[Mr. Suit VS the _Metalheads_ ] Fight!

Thrax stomped towards Mr. Suit with thundering steps and the ground beneath Mr. Suit seemed to quake. Thrax flung a punch at Mr. Suit who used the flat of Ōkami to block the blow. However, there was such sheer force behind the punch that his sword vibrated violently in his hands and Mr. Suit was pushed back across the floor.

Just as Mr. Suit was regaining his balance Thrax suddenly began to rain punches down upon him that he was hard pressed to block. Thrax was definitely physically stronger. Mr. Suit knew that he wouldn't last much longer, and realized he needed to wound Thrax or he was screwed.

Mr. Suit closed his eyes and allowed himself to fall into a meditative state, centering himself while gathering his chi and mental energy. His sword glowed with a green-tinged light as he communicated with his sword via his psy-link. He opened his eyes and charged Thrax, slashing his sword through the air in an arc and then quickly passing the cyborg.

Thrax turned around to face Mr. Suit, chuckling, "What was that? You didn't even scratch me, pathetic _samurai_!"

Mr. Suit turned around to face Thrax and arched an eyebrow at him. "Is that so?"

However, Thrax's cybernetic arm suddenly fell off where Mr. Suit had successfully severed it. Wires at the man's shoulder sparked dangerously. Thrax grasped his shoulder, pissed. "My arm! You bastard!"

Mr. Suit felt a trickle of sweat slide down his back and wondered if it was just him or was it suddenly getting hot in there? Mr. Suit was forced to dodge out of the way from a sudden blast of flame directed at him. Mr. Suit turned to face Blaze who had one of his hands raised and pointed at him. Mr. Suit could see the flamethrower nozzle that had emerged out of the palm of his hand. _He has build-in flamethrowers, huh. Great, just great. Here I go out of the frying pan and into the fire._

Blaze's red eyes were dancing with mischief as he raised both of his hands and aimed them at Mr. Suit. There was an ominous clicking sound as the cyborg did this. "That was some nice dancing around, _samurai_! Let's see you avoid this, twinkle toes!" Blaze activated his flamethrowers and fire shot out towards Mr. Suit.

"Shit." Mr. Suit was forced to dodge and dance out of the way of the flames. He executed a couple of impressive back flips and cartwheels as he tried to stay out of reach of the flames.

Tempo stalked over to the table that Jake was hiding under and using his steel-toed boot he kicked the table over to reveal Jake hiding underneath it. Jake looked up at the creepy guitarist and swallowed. "Er, howdy?" Jake raised his hand to greet the cyborg.

Tempo just smiled eerily at Jake and began to strum his guitar. He then opened his mouth to begin to sing and the hair on the back of Jake's neck prickled in warning. All of his instincts were telling Jake to flee and so he did. Jake quickly pushed himself up off the floor, and ran and just in time too.

Tempo opened his mouth and let out a shrieking howl. "YEOWWW!" An invisible sound wave hit the table where Jake had been hiding and it was blasted to pieces.

"Mommy!" Jake fled Tempo but the goth cyborg faced Jake and opened his mouth again, aiming his sound wave attacks in his direction as he screamed. Jake wanted to plug his ears with his fingers the guy's singing was so bad. "Hey, you should forget about entering _America's Got Talent_ because you suck, dude!" Jake said as he used his superhuman reflexes to dodge and evade the invisible attacks. His body contorted oddly and in funny, comic ways.

Tempo frowned darkly at Jake due to his comment about his singing. "Some people have no ear for talent. Now, stay still and listen to my performance." Tempo groused as he opened his mouth to sing in Jake's direction again. "YEOWWW!" Tempo headbanged slightly as he sang, and his long black hair swished from side to side making Jake think of a KISS concert.

"Pfft!" Jake snorted. "Do any of your victims ever actually stop running away? Yea right! I bet you have zero fans on YouTube!" Jake continued to run and duck and dodge the invisible sound wave attacks. _Man, this guy has a set of lungs! When's he going to run out of air?_ Jake panted.

"YouTube?" Tempo suddenly stopped singing and gave Jake a thoughtful look. "That's not a bad idea...I should put up a few videos. I might just get discovered. I hear that's how Galaxy Girl got discovered." Tempo stroked his pointy chin.

Jake rolled his eyes at the _Metalhead_ cyborg. "Glad I could be of help." Jake said sarcastically. _I didn't know that about Galaxy Girl..._

"Oh, right, I need to get back to trying to kill you now. Sorry. Yeoowww!" Tempo strummed his guitar and resumed his horrible screaming, err, singing.

Meanwhile, Ultraviolet noticed how Solis was still sitting at the table while filing her metal nails to wicked sharpness. The female cyborg was watching the ensuing fight with a hungry gleam in her eyes. Ultraviolet thought her predatory look was similar to a panther waiting to pounce upon her prey. Ultraviolet knew she couldn't let this wildcat get her hands on either of the boys though and that she had to protect them. Especially Mr. Suit since he wouldn't fight against a woman.

Ultraviolet whipped out her two metal _tonfa_ that had been concealed by an invisibility hologram, pointed them at Solis, and rushed forward. She leapt up into the air and smashed the table that Solis was sitting at to bits using her extreme android strength. Solis was forced to leap out of the way, but did so gracefully.

Solis looked at Ultraviolet pensively but then eyed the two antennas on the top of her head with distaste, "Some kind of crappy Battle Android thinks she can challenge _me_? The audacity..." She unattached the metal whip that had been strapped to her waist and let it uncoil to the floor. This revealed a long metal whip that had sharp looking barbs attached to it that would provide extra damage and pain to her victims.

"At least you're an android and not a robot. I'd be disappointed if I couldn't at least whip the flesh from your metal endoskeleton." Solis purred as she looked Ultraviolet over. "Some androids can even feel pain and pleasure...though those are usually the Sex Droid Models. Battle Droids aren't usually programmed to feel pain since it'd only be detrimental to battle. Pity, I won't be able to make you scream for me."

Jake flung himself to the floor as a sound wave flew over him. It blew his cowboy hat off of his head and Jake was forced to reach out and grab his hat, quickly putting it back onto his head. He then pushed himself up off the floor and ran away from Tempo's next attack. However, he had heard everything that Solis had said to Ultraviolet, and now he was worried. _Shit...Ultraviolet was originally a Sex Droid so does that mean that she can feel pain? Pleasure too?_ Jake was so distracted he failed to sense the next sound wave attack until it was too late and he barely dodged. The attack hit his shoulder dislocating it. Jake cried out and gripped his arm in pain. "Ow! Shit!" Tears sprung to Jake's eyes from the pain.

At that same moment, Ultraviolet lit up a cigarette and put it in her mouth. "Flay the skin off me? You are one sick bitch..." _Metal endoskeleton...metal endoskeleton..._ the words spun around in Ultraviolet's head. She quickly shook her head while trying to rid her mind of such thoughts. Ultraviolet scowled and attacked Solis. "You talk too much, freaky bitch!"

Solis lashed her whip out at Ultraviolet, however, and the android was forced to block the attack with her _tonfa_. She just couldn't get in close enough to land a blow on Solis. The whip had too long a range while her _tonfa_ had too short a range of attack, Ultraviolet realized in disappointment.

Ultraviolet knew she needed to get in close somehow, but getting in close would be hard. Sacrifices had to be made. Ultraviolet made her decision and charged forward. Solis' whip lashed out and Ultraviolet moved slightly sideways but continued rushing forward - Solis's whip sliced into Ultraviolet's upper arm painfully flaying some of her skin off on her upper arm and from her metal endoskeleton. The android began to bleed.

Ultraviolet ignored the pain, grit her teeth so that she wouldn't cry, and concentrated on smashing her _tonfa_ into Solis' gut. "Oof!" Solis let out a cry and coughed up a bit of acid from the force of the android's brutal attack. But Ultraviolet wasn't through with the sadistic cyborg yet and hit the woman over the back of her head knocking her out cold.

The mental adrenaline rush faded and Ultraviolet looked at her upper arm. Her eyes widened when she saw that her metal endoskeleton was visible and there was blood dripping down her arm. Ultraviolet gripped her arm in pain, her hand covering her wound from sight, and she sunk to her knees. "I really am just an android...I keep forgetting...but how come it hurts so much?"

Jake saw what happened and called out worriedly to Ultraviolet. "V!"

Ultraviolet looked up at Jake with a fearful look in her violet colored eyes. "No! Don't look at me!" Ultraviolet shrieked out emotionally. _I don't want him to see the truth...to see that I really am just a robot. I'm a monster!_

Jake was shocked by the android's strange reaction and gave Ultraviolet a confused look. "V...?"

Tempo became equally distracted by the android's emotional outburst. "Is she really an android? She can feel pain and she can feel...shame? That's no ordinary android. I bet you could search this entire city and not find one like her. Perhaps, even the entire galaxy..."

Elsewhere on the Restaurant Level, Mr. Suit was turning to face his enemy, holding Ōkami in a two-handed grip before him, "Ōkami Evolution One." Mr. Suit declared as his living-metal sword began to glow with a green-tinged light - but instead of transforming his sword's shape Mr. Suit continued to command the sword's power. "Evolution Two." Mr. Suit cried and the holographic image of Ōkami suddenly appeared next to Mr. Suit - a white wolf standing on its hind legs while wearing a tuxedo, smoking a fancy cigar, and that had gleaming silver eyes. "Evolution Three!" Mr. Suit continued gathering even more power and his living-metal sword began to pulse with a bright green light. Mr. Suit's living-metal sword began to transform and tiny metal tubes that acted like air ducts began to form all along the blade of the sword. These tubes began to suck in oxygen at a tremendous rate and began to convert the oxygen to plasma energy, which Mr. Suit would be able to use for his next attack.

A glowing plasma cloud began to create a green aura around Mr. Suit and his sword. This aura began to take shape until it resembled a wolf head. Mr. Suit faced Blaze, who confronted him, before smirking in a cocky manner and raising his hand at Mr. Suit. "Goodbye Mr. Suit - it's time for a _samurai_ flambé!" He unleashed a stream of searing hot flames Mr. Suit's way.

Mr. Suit didn't move but stood his ground, taking a deep breath and centering himself, "Ōkami Plasma Energy Attack!" Mr. Suit swung his sword forward and unleashed a huge plasma attack Blaze's way that as it flew towards the cyborg transformed into the shape of a leaping wolf with snapping jaws.

Mr. Suit's attack snapped its jaws through the flames, and not one to miss an opportunity, Mr. Suit rushed forward, his sword still raised and was in front of Blaze in seconds. Mr. Suit changed the grip on his sword and swung his sword at Blaze's chest - using the back of his blade so that he wouldn't kill the cyborg. He was a Samurai Superhero, a special police officer that was charged with upholding the law and justice. He wasn't supposed to kill criminals unless it was absolutely necessary. Best-case scenario he was supposed to bring the _Metalheads_ in alive. Even Nix Duo despite how much Mr. Suit wanted to pay the bastard back for what he did to his partner. Mr. Suit was going to be the greatest living-metal swordsman in the galaxy so this was good training for him - trying not to kill his opponents when killing them would have been so much easier.

Blaze fell in a heap to the floor, knocked out cold.

"Ah!" At the sound of Jake's pained cry, Mr. Suit spun around to see that the cyborg Tempo had cornered Jake with his back against the wall. Tempo was strumming a rock song on his guitar and slowly opening his mouth as he prepared to sing.

Blaze had been successfully defeated but it had taken a lot of energy out of Mr. Suit and he was panting for breath. His ribs hurt. Evolution Three was a hard form of the living-metal sword to control and took lots of will, energy and power to do so.

Jake turned his head and gave Mr. Suit a pleading look, "Mr. Suit, help!" Jake decided he'd throw his pride right out the window if it meant that he could live to see tomorrow...the latest issue of _Playboy_ magazine was coming out after all...

Mr. Suit sighed.

Tempo gave Jake a tired look. "Now that I finally have you cornered, you won't be able to pull any more crazy acrobatics. You won't be able to escape me this time. This time you'll be forced to stay and listen nicely to my performance, idiot cowboy." Tempo opened his mouth and began to sing. It was more like a shriek that came out of his mouth and headed Jake's way. Jake could feel the intense pressure of the invisible sound wave attack as it flew towards him. He knew that once that attack hit him it could very possibly just blast him apart like the table. But Jake's dislocated arm hurt so much he just couldn't find the strength to move. This was it. Jake put his hands over his eyes in a cowardly gesture and awaited the inevitable pain.

Inner Jake: _Mommy! I'm so going to die! There's no use so...I'll just do nothing!_

Jake wished he could plug his fingers in his ears because the cyborg rocker's howling voice was really awful. Then Jake realized the man was still singing and that he wasn't in excruciating pain yet. "What the?" Jake risked opening his eyes and was surprised to see that Mr. Suit was standing in front of him and that his entire body seemed to be surrounded by a green-tinged light.

Mr. Suit's sword was raised before him and engulfed in plasma energy, which he was using to create a shield to protect himself and Jake from the invisible sound wave attack.

Tempo glared back at Mr. Suit angrily, pissed that his grand performance had been interrupted. Tempo leapt backwards, executing a couple of back flips to give himself some more room to plan his next attack on Mr. Suit. If Mr. Suit was able to block his point blank attack that wasn't much of a surprise, but if he attacked Mr. Suit from a distance the _samurai_ shouldn't be able to see the attacks and would be hit. The foolish cowboy had surprised Tempo with his battle-honed reflexes but only time would tell if Mr. Suit's own reflexes were good enough to block invisible sound wave attacks.

"Don't underestimate the power of rock music!" Tempo declared as he strummed his guitar and loud rock music made the floor of the Restaurant Level vibrate. Tempo then opened his mouth and unleashed a series of notes Mr. Suit's way, causing several smaller individual sound wave attacks to go flying towards Mr. Suit that if Mr. Suit could see them would have looked like giant bubbles heading his way.

Mr. Suit couldn't see anything but could vaguely sense the attacks that were heading towards him. Mr. Suit decided to shut his eyes and did so. Now he could sense the invisible attacks clearly and was able to block the sound waves with his sword as he ran.

An impressed look crossed Jake's face as he watched Mr. Suit skillfully blocking the sound wave attacks with his eyes closed. _Unreal. Maybe Mr. Suit really is going to be the greatest living-metal swordsman in the galaxy!_

"Invisible attacks won't work against me." Mr. Suit wore a haughty expression on his face. "Especially if the idiot cowboy can dodge them. Your attacks are barely a challenge when compared to Zippo's deadly attacks."

Tempo was looking at Mr. Suit warily now and took a step back. "Impossible...no regular human could do something like that. I thought you weren't a cyborg. Just what are you, Mr. Suit?"

"I'm no cyborg." Mr. Suit drawled as he ran a hand back through his slicked back hair. "This skill is simply the result of all my hard work. Besides, if I can't even perform a little feat like this how can I hope to become the greatest living-metal swordsman in the galaxy?"

"The greatest living-metal swordsman in the galaxy?" Tempo scoffed and tossed his head back as he laughed up at the domed ceiling. "Get real. You're a human. There's no way a human can win the Galactic Living-Metal Tournament! And a human has never been allowed to participate either."

"I will..." Mr. Suit couldn't resist pulling out a cigarette and lighting it up. Mr. Suit took a long drag and enjoyed the feeling of the smoke filling his lungs before he let out a long stream of smoke. "One day. I'll win that tournament." That said, Mr. Suit ran forward and brought the back of his sword up under Tempo's chin in a fierce uppercut sword blow.

"Gahhh!" Tempo groaned as he went flying up into the air, his back arching, before he hit the floor with a thud.

Jake felt elated by Mr. Suit's victory over Tempo but could tell that this had taken a lot out of the Samurai Superhero since even with his back turned to Jake, he could see that Mr. Suit was panting for breath. Jake watched as Mr. Suit got his breathing under control before turning around to face Jake while wearing a cocky grin. "Guess how many times I've saved your sorry ass now, cowboy."

"I've lost count." Jake shrugged and stuck his tongue out at the egotistic prick.

At that moment, Thrax had recovered from the initial shock of his arm being sliced off, and decided to attack the distracted Mr. Suit charging him from behind with his body slightly bent forward as if he planned on heat butting Mr. Suit. "AHHHH!"

Jake's eyes widened in fright as he looked behind Mr. Suit to see a cyborg rampaging like a bull towards Mr. Suit. "Holy shit. Mr. Suit! Watch out, dude!"

Too late. Thrax barreled into Mr. Suit shoving him forward and into a wall with such force that a hole was created in the concrete and soon Mr. Suit and Thrax found themselves in another room.

Jake approached the hole in the wall and reluctantly climbed in after Mr. Suit. As his cowboy boots touched the floor his eyes widened in horror at the sickening sight before him:

Dead bodies littered the floor of the room and Jake almost slipped since the floor was completely slick with blood. Jake put a hand over his mouth as he looked at the bodies and noticed that the bodies weren't whole...arms...legs were scattered around the room. Jake swayed on his feet. He felt like he'd just been sucked into some kind of horror movie and that he'd entered a madman's torture chamber. "What is this...? All these people..."

"Jake, get a hold of yourself. They're not humans. They're just androids." Mr. Suit explained coolly, also trying to keep his composure at the gruesome, cold-hearted sight.

"Androids." Jake frowned as he took a closer look at the dead bodies on the floor. Then he realized that Mr. Suit was right. The severed arms and legs had wires poking out of them and the broken bodies had their flesh torn away to reveal metal endoskeletons.

"He's exactly right. They're just androids so there's no crime." A sinister voice made Jake's skin crawl.

Jake's attention was drawn to an imposing, solid iron throne. The throne was incredibly elaborate with curls of thorny metal vines weaving their way around the throne's arms and over the throne's back in an artistic, decorative pattern. Seated on the throne was a man with spiky black hair, dressed from head-to-toe in black leather with chains wrapped around his body. There was a faceless mask on his face and a holographic image of '02' occasionally flashed on it. The Nemesis Zero was also wearing a spiked collar, his ear piercings were visible, and Jake noticed the living-metal sword that was strapped to his waist.

Jake paled when he realized just who was seated before him. "Nix..."

"Duo." Mr. Suit finished for him and Jake was surprised to hear his partner's voice dripping with venom.

_Crap! It really is him! Nix Duo!_ Jake paled. _Didn't someone say that Nix Duo tortured Mr. Suit!_ Jake looked over at Mr. Suit and wondered how he could possibly look as calm as he did given his current predicament.

Nix Duo was seated languidly on the throne with a pretty young woman seated in his lap. She was dressed in a white leather bodysuit, and had a head of white curls that had metal spirals throughout the do. She looked exactly like Solis but dyed white. Nix Duo was fondling her right breast through the white leather of her skintight outfit, not in the least self-conscious that he was being watched.

Jake swallowed trying to get rid of the dry feeling in his throat as he approached the iron throne. "Not a crime? Are those all...were those all...Sex Droids?" Jake asked tremulously.

"Why yes, you have a good eye, cowboy. They were all indeed Sex Droids." Nix Duo admitted and a knowing smile curled his lips behind the faceless mask, but Jake knew that evil smile was there. He could feel it.

Jake clenched his hands at his sides. "Then...there's really no difference. Those poor androids - they experienced pain as you tortured and killed them. That should be a crime. In my eyes...it is a crime. You're a murderer and one sick son of a bitch!" Jake stated loudly, his voice trembling.

A few Battle Droids that were standing behind the iron throne looked at Jake and slowly shook their heads at him as if to say 'say no more'. Jake knew that those droids agreed with what he had said.

Mr. Suit was surprised that Jake would be trying to stand up to Nix Duo of all people. Even he had to admit to himself that he was a bit freaked to be in the very same room where Nix Duo had once tortured him and his partner. But, if even Jake was showing such strength of character, then he should too.

"Oh? You think so?" Nix Duo laughed and turned his attention to the pretty young woman in his lap. "What do you think, Lunae? Was what I did abominable?" Nix Duo took out a piece of leather and began to wrap it around Lunae's neck slowly.

Lunae smiled at Nix Duo and licked her lips. "Mmm, no, I had fun watching. I was envious of those androids...all that delicious attention they received from you."

"Don't worry, my pet, I'll give you the attention you so desire..." Nix Duo said as he began to tighten the leather cord around Lunae's neck and began to cut off the girl's breathing.

"What the fuck is he doing?! He's going to kill her!" Jake exclaimed in shock.

"It's called erotic asphyxiation." Mr. Suit explained to Jake, pushing his green-tinted sunglasses up his nose. "Theoretically, if the young woman enjoys pain she can find such treatment...stimulating. She must trust Nix Duo a lot to place her life in his hands though because it's up to him to stop asphyxiating her before..." Mr. Suit choked on the words.

"What if he doesn't stop?" Jake asked, shaking.

"Then she'll die." Mr. Suit informed Jake simply.

"Fuck that!" Jake started forward. "That's sick, man! Let the girl go!"

Mr. Suit reached out and grabbed onto Jake's shoulder to stop him. "There you go acting without thinking again, Jake. People might misunderstand and think you're actually brave. But I know better. She's not in any immediate danger. You see...she's smiling. That poor masochistic woman is actually enjoying it." Mr. Suit's expression was both sickened and disturbed.

Jake's gaze shifted to look at Lunae more closely and noticed that Mr. Suit was right. Lunae's eyes were glazed with lust and she had a pleased smile on her face. Jake couldn't get over how similar Lunae and Solis looked. _Twins?_ Jake wondered.

As if Nix Duo could read Jake's mind he spoke aloud. "No, not twins, clones. Solis and Lunae are clones that I had specially made for my enjoyment. Aren't they beautiful?" Nix Duo oozed in a slippery voice that reminded Jake of dripping black tar.

"Clones?" Jake echoed thinking about Solis and how she seemed like a total sadist where this girl in front of him seemed like a masochist. A sadist and masochist set of clones. How much weirder could things get? Welcome to the Twilight Zone. _Can I leave now?_ Jake wondered.

Nix Duo's attention focused on Mr. Suit again and he stiffened in response. "Mr. Suit. I've been expecting you. Thank you for escorting him to me, Thrax. Though it could have been done with a bit more finesse. I'll take it from here." Nix Duo waved his hand at Thrax in a dismissive gesture.

"Sure thing, Nix Duo." Thrax said gruffly and nodded before walking over to the side of the room.

Mr. Suit gave Nix Duo a disgusted look. "Really, Nix Duo, is that any way to treat a lady? Unhand her and fight me. We have a score to settle, after all."

Nix Duo squeezed Lunae's breast causing the girl to cry out. "Fight you? Aren't you here to arrest me and read me my rights, Samurai Superhero?"

"Scum like you..." Mr. Suit shrugged. "Has no rights. Even if it's true you've committed no crime butchering these poor androids that doesn't mean you haven't committed any crimes. You're a murderer just as Jake said. And it's time to pay for your crimes. It's time for _justice_ to be had."

Nix Duo abruptly shoved Lunae off of his lap as if angered by Mr. Suit's words. The female cyborg clone fell to the floor but looked up at Nix Duo with an excited look on her face while she licked her lips. "Mmm. Nix Duo."

"Hey! Watch it you bastard! You could have really hurt her. Would it kill you to be a bit more gentle!" Jake burst out.

But Lunae stayed on the floor and moved her limbs into a sexier pose. "Ooo Nix Duo...throw me down harder next time. It makes me so hot when you rough me up a little." Lunae ran her hands over her body sensually.

Jake blushed and turned his head away before it looked like Lunae started to pleasure herself in front of everyone as she tweaked her own nipples through her leather bodysuit.

Nix Duo stood up and unsheathed his sword to point it one-handed at Mr. Suit. "I've been waiting a long time for this Mr. Suit...you're finally just where I want you - at my mercy. You'll pay for what you did. Not only did you interfere in the last E.T. Tech Race and nearly cost us our victory, but you also destroyed my precious smart-bike - slicing her in two like that. To a biker - a bike is not just a bike - that bike was my baby, Mr. Suit. You'll pay for having destroyed her and taking out my bike's personality chip and destroying her too...that was going too far."

Mr. Suit arched an elegant eyebrow at Nix Duo. "Your baby? I didn't think you cared about anyone, let alone any _thing_. It was just an A.I. personality chip - it's not like your bike was _alive_. That bike wasn't alive like my partner was!" Mr. Suit suddenly shouted and then shut his mouth as if he hadn't meant to say that last part. Mr. Suit shook his head. "I'm not the same man you knew a year ago, Nix Duo. I've gotten stronger. This time you'll be the loser when we fight."

_Epp!_ Jake looked back and forth between Mr. Suit and Nix Duo, they both had really fierce battle auras but...Mr. Suit was injured. _Can he really defeat Nix Duo in his current condition?_

"Just two more cyborgs to go..." Mr. Suit said to himself in a low voice while trying to pump himself up for the ensuing fight. He needed to somehow find the energy to keep on fighting, to keep on moving forward. "I can do this. Jake." Mr. Suit turned to face Jake briefly and his expression softened. "I want you to remember something...if...quitters never win and winners never quit." Mr. Suit turned his attention back to Nix Duo. "Yosha! Let's do this."

### Chapter 11: Never fear, Cowboy Samurai Jake is here!

[Mr. Suit VS Nix Duo] Fight!

"Evolution One." Both swordsmen cried and their living-metal swords glowed with a green-tinged light and transformed. Nix Duo's sword, like Mr. Suit's transformed into a claw. They charged each other and their swords clashed-

They leapt back from each other and raised their swords to command, "Evolution Two!" Both swords glowed and Ōkami's holographic image appeared next to Mr. Suit while the holographic image of a _tengu_ _yokai_ (crow demon) materialized next to Nix Duo.

"Karasu-Tengu." Mr. Suit murmured the name of Nix Duo's living-metal sword. According to Mr. Suit's Intel, it was a living-metal sword that had the ability to send painful electric shocks into its opponent. The _tengu_ demon was a crow-like human sized creature that was standing on its clawed feet and dressed in the robes of a Buddhist Monk. It had glossy black feathers, a sharp looking beak and glowing red eyes.

Mr. Suit and Nix Duo transformed their swords back into their _katana_ forms and charged each other and engaged once again. They danced around each other exchanging blocks and blows with grace and skill. Mr. Suit had to admit that Nix Duo had gotten faster, but through training like Mr. Suit had or by using illegal Accelerator Tech, he didn't know for sure. Nix Duo had actually become a challenge.

They leapt backwards again to put some distance between themselves before they held their swords up before them: "Evolution Three!" Both Mr. Suit and Nix Duo's swords transformed until tiny metal tubes sprouted on the swords' metal surfaces - air ducts that began sucking in oxygen and transforming it into plasma energy to be able to attack with. An aura of green plasma began to swirl around both of the living-metal swordsman and their swords.

Mr. Suit swung his sword forward releasing a gigantic plasma energy attack. "Ōkami Plasma Energy Attack!" The energy attack transformed in midair to resemble an attacking wolf.

Nix Duo swung his sword through the air and unleashed his own plasma attack that transformed into a crow in flight. "Karasu-Tengu Plasma Energy Attack!"

The Plasma Wolf leapt into the air at Nix Duo while the Plasma Karasu-Tengu flew towards Mr. Suit - the attacks clashed in midair and fought each other for dominance.

However, Mr. Suit had used up a lot of energy in his fight against the _Metalheads_ and was already having trouble keeping up with Nix Duo, when Lunae latched onto Nix Duo's arm, and gave Mr. Suit an angelic smile. Mr. Suit realized that if he continued with his attack Lunae would be hurt. Mr. Suit hesitated and his energy that was already wavering began to falter entirely. This was all Nix Duo needed to increase the power of his attack and simply cut through Mr. Suit's attack as he ran forward towards the now unprotected Samurai Superhero.

Mr. Suit barely managed to block the downward slash of Nix Duo's sword, which suddenly moved like a snake and coiled around Mr. Suit's own sword.

A wide, psychotic smile formed on the faceless mask. "Gotcha." Nix Duo said before he sent thousands of volts of electricity coursing through Mr. Suit's body.

"Ack!" Mr. Suit stumbled backwards in pain, his body enveloped by crackling silver energy.

Nix Duo took advantage of Mr. Suit's stunned state and swung his sword down in a deadly arc, slicing through Mr. Suit's smart-suit and cutting deeply into his chest. Only a living-metal sword could cut through Mr. Suit's smart-suit that in other situations acted as protective armor.

SPLURRTT! Mr. Suit's blood spurted through the air and he fell backwards, losing consciousness.

"Mr. Suit!" Jake yelled out in horror as he watched the Samurai Superhero being cut down in front of him.

Ultraviolet, with a white cloth bandage now wrapped around her arm, suddenly arrived upon the scene. She entered the room through the hole in the wall and took her _tonfa_ down from her back. "Mr. Suit!" she cried as she caught sight of the fallen Samurai Superhero. Nix Duo was approaching Mr. Suit - a psychotic holographic grin on his mask - he raised his sword, prepared to stab Mr. Suit through the gut to finish him off. "NOOO! Get away from him, you shitty bastard!" Ultraviolet charged Nix Duo and leapt up into the air at him and as she descended brought her _tonfa_ down upon Nix Duo.

Nix Duo used his living-metal sword to block Ultraviolet's _tonfa_. Nix Duo smiled up at Ultraviolet beneath his mask. "A Battle Android...how quaint...acting like you care about that Samurai Superhero and acting as though you have feelings...pretty little android..." He purred his last words.

"I _do_ care about Mr. Suit!" Ultraviolet shouted in Nix Duo's face. "And I do have feelings, you shitty bastard!" Ultraviolet spit in his direction.

Nix Duo gave Ultraviolet a quizzical look. "I think you're forgetting something, my dear - you're an android. A robot, an A.I. unit, and you know electricity can be extremely dangerous to an android...you may just blow up if exposed to too much at once." His malicious holographic grin was still on the faceless mask widening even more.

Ultraviolet furrowed her brow at Nix Duo. "What?"

However, Nix Duo's sword suddenly wrapped around Ultraviolet's _tonfa_ so that she could not escape and then through his psy-link he caused thousands of volts of electricity to shoot through Ultraviolet's body. Ultraviolet screamed - eerily like a real person would - before she fell to the floor in a twitching and sparking heap.

Jake was wide-eyed in his fear. "Mr. Suit...Ultraviolet..." He sunk to his knees in despair. "It's over..." _There's nothing I can do...there's no one here that can save us..._

Nix Duo looked down at the sparking android and frowned to himself. He then turned his attention back to Mr. Suit. He walked over to the unconscious Samurai Superhero before grabbing Mr. Suit's ankle and dragging the _samurai_ over to the center of the room. Nix Duo then walked over to a sort of control panel and pressed a button on it. This caused a circular part of the floor in the center of the room to glow with artificial light before the floor opened up and a large wooden cross emerged, rising upwards.

Jake gulped at the sight of that cross. He had a bad feeling about this but was frozen in his terror and couldn't move. Nix Duo walked back over to the fallen Mr. Suit, picked him up and slammed him against the wooden cross. Nix Duo then placed his sword against Mr. Suit's smart-suit and sent thousands of volts of electricity into the smart-suit specifically. Jake watched as the smart-suit began to spark and suddenly the strangest thing happened. The suit began to remove itself from Mr. Suit as if it were a living thing, appearing like liquid metal.

The smart-suit completely removed itself from Mr. Suit, sliding down his body to puddle on the floor, leaving him clad in only his boxers before the smart-suit returned to its original state, which was a silver ball about the size of a soccer ball. A holographic frowning face appeared on the metal ball and it was still sparking.

Jake realized that Nix Duo had somehow managed to short circuit Mr. Suit's smart-suit and that now he was completely vulnerable before the sadistic cyborg. Jake also couldn't help but notice Mr. Suit's red and blue Nintendo boxers that had a picture of Mario on them, a plus sign, a mushroom, and an equal sign that pointed to a larger version of Mario a.k.a Super Mario. The phrase 'Bigger is better' was also on the shorts. Jake knew that Mr. Suit would probably die of embarrassment if he knew everyone was now looking at his geeky...or perhaps 'geek chic' boxers.

Zero Two looked at Mr. Suit's boxers and sneered before he held his hand up. Jake watched as a gigantic metal spike began to emerge from out of the palm of the cyborg's hand with a sinister whirling sound. Nix Duo held the spike up to Mr. Suit's shoulder before he suddenly let the spike staple Mr. Suit's shoulder to the wooden cross.

Due to the excruciating pain, Mr. Suit suddenly regained consciousness and began to scream. Nix Duo paid him no heed however and didn't hesitate to secure Mr. Suit's other shoulder next. He then drove metal spikes into Mr. Suit's thighs and his forearms to keep him completely pinned to the wooden cross. A total of six metal stakes had been used to crucify Mr. Suit.

Jake covered his ears but even that couldn't block out the sound of Mr. Suit's ragged screams. Jake shut his eyes and wished it would stop. Why wouldn't Nix Duo just stop and leave Mr. Suit alone? Hadn't he made Mr. Suit suffer enough? Jake was trembling and absolutely terrified. Would Nix Duo torture him, next? Just the thought made Jake nearly piss in his pants.

Nix Duo's holographic psychotic grin was back as he looked at Mr. Suit and licked his lips beneath the mask. "Mmmm." Nix Duo made a groan of pleasure and Jake wondered if causing pain turned the sick fuck on. "You have a delicious scream, Mr. Suit. I want you to scream for me even more before I break you and then finally kill you, nice and slow."

Mr. Suit was panting for breath, pale, and sweaty, but he gathered his strength to look up and spit on Nix Duo's mask. "Fuck you! I won't let you hear my screams again, you sick bastard!"

"Hmm." Nix Duo hummed as he walked over to the control panel and pressed another button on it. Another section of the floor glowed before a table with sharp medical instruments on it emerged from the floor, rising up on a sort of platform. "We'll see about that, Mr. Suit. What was that you said earlier? About scum like me not having rights?" Nix Duo stabbed Mr. Suit in the stomach with a twisted piece of metal and began to prod and dig at Mr. Suit's wound.

However, Mr. Suit bit down on his lower lip so that he would not cry out. Jake watched, feeling bewildered as blood trickled down Mr. Suit's chin. _He said he wouldn't scream and then he doesn't. He has such a strong will. I on the other hand am a cowardly, spineless wimp. Why doesn't he just give up? Ask for mercy? Why is he still trying to be strong? Fighting for what he believes in. Fighting as a chivalrous Samurai Superhero until the very end...Mr. Suit..._

_A cool guy like that...would never want to be friends with a coward like me who watches and does nothing as someone's being tortured._ With those thoughts in mind, Jake somehow managed to stand on wobbly legs and began to make his way over to Nix Duo and Mr. Suit, sword in hand, that was also trembling. "S-s-stop!" Jake managed to shout.

Nix Duo turned to face Jake curiously and looked amused as he took in Jake's trembling legs and trembling hands. His knees were knocking together Jake was so scared. "You're frightened out of your mind right now aren't you, cowboy _samurai_?"

"Hell yea..." Jake admitted as he swallowed. His throat felt dry.

Nix Duo tilted his head thoughtfully at Jake. "And yet...you still seek to save your partner. That's very admirable of you...brave even..."

Jake shook his head. "I wouldn't call it 'brave' - I would call it stupid. I know I can't win against you."

Nix Duo sauntered up to Jake and flung his arm around Jake's shoulders amiably, "Or perhaps it's smart." Nix Duo chuckled. "I like you, Jake Lonestar. You know you can't win against me and yet here you are. I owe you one, you know. You saved my gang from that semi-trailer truck and so, guess what? I'll let you off the hook just this once...I won't kill you." A wide holographic grin formed on the faceless mask and Nix Duo paused expectantly as he awaited Jake's response.

Jake was too shocked to respond however, and so Nix Duo simply released him sauntering back to his metal throne. Nix Duo sat down comfortably and held out the palm of his hand. Jake watched as a metal wine cup emerged from the palm of Nix Duo's hand, which he held out to his side as if expecting someone to fill it. Lunae immediately appeared with a bottle of red wine at his side and filled the metal cup for Nix Duo, placing a straw in it. Nix Duo swirled the wine thoughtfully, but didn't try to drink it. "Tell you what, Jake, I'll even offer you a deal. I want the SSF to participate in this year's E.T. Tech Race. If you win, Jake, I'll spare Mr. Suit's life. If you lose then, well, Mr. Suit's life is mine. Do you accept this challenge, cowboy _samurai_?"

Legs still trembling, knees still knocking together, a fierce look came to Jake's eyes. "Hell yea! You're on Nix Duo! I'll win this race!" _Maybe..epp! Someone please help meeee!_

Nix Duo nodded. "Then it's settled. Now go before I change my mind and decide to kill you." Nix Duo waved Jake away with his hand in a dismissing gesture before a tiny hole opened up on his faceless mask and he began to drink his wine with the straw.

Jake swallowed and nodding vigorously began to stumble his way out of the room. He was just about to climb out of the hole in the wall when he realized he had forgotten Ultraviolet.

"Don't forget to take that piece of scrap metal with you," Nix Duo drawled as he looked at the fallen android pensively.

Jake felt angry at Nix Duo's words for some reason as he walked back over to the fallen Ultraviolet. Jake took out a pair of leather gloves and began to put them on. "She's not a piece of scrap metal." Jake found himself defending Ultraviolet and wondered if Nix Duo would kill him for his insolent remark. Jake carefully picked Ultraviolet up into his arms bridal-style and with such care that Nix Duo and the other cyborgs that were present began to snicker at Jake's strange actions. She was just an android after all. But to Jake this was simply a necessary precaution. Dr. Valery had warned Jake not to touch Ultraviolet with his bare hands because it could have unforeseen results similar to when Jake touched other electrical appliances. His mere touch could theoretically destroy Ultraviolet.

Nix Duo raised an internal eyebrow at Jake, the gloves, his gentle treatment of Ultraviolet, and the fact that he could even pick her up to begin with. Since she was an android and had a solid metal endoskeleton she had to weigh at least two hundred pounds. Or more. "I'm surprised you're able to pick that android up so easily - she must weigh at least two hundred pounds because of her metal endoskeleton."

"She's as light as a feather to me and if Mr. Suit were conscious I'm sure he'd say: you're never supposed to make a comment about a lady's weight." Jake raised his eyebrows at the cyborg.

Nix Duo felt amused. "You speak of that android as if she were a person...you do know she's just a robot, an A.I. unit? To treat her with such _care_ and respect is unnecessary..."

Jake glared at Nix Duo heatedly. "She _is_ a person. She's...Ultraviolet. She's not just an android, she's...special. She also _deserves_ my care and respect. She risked her life to save Mr. Suit and was hurt doing it..."

"Risked her _life_?" Nix Duo let out a thoughtful hum. "If that robot is destroyed it's not like she has a soul that will continue on. That's what separates us from them Jake \- that's what separates humans from androids - our immortal soul. When Ultraviolet 'dies' she merely ceases to exist..."

Jake frowned. "Do you really know that for sure? I think...it's all up to God in the end. Maybe God is looking down from heaven on Ultraviolet right now and maybe he'll decide to give her a soul too. The only thing we know about the great mystery of this universe, Nix Duo, is that we don't know shit."

Nix Duo raised his wine cup at Jake at his final parting comment. "Touché. I'll have one of my Battle Droids take you to Gold Fist. You have to sign up with him in order to participate in the E.T. Tech Race since he's acting as the bookmaker."

Jake nodded silently and watched as Nix Duo snapped his fingers and one of the Battle Droids began to walk out of the room with the intention that Jake was supposed to follow it. The Battle Droid led Jake to Gold Fist's office that was located in one of the upper levels of _Kaleidoscope_. They stopped in front of a metal door and the Battle Droid punched a code in the keypad that was attached to the wall next to the door before the door slid open and Jake was able to enter. Jake gave the robot a quick 'thanks' before stepping into the office.

Just as the metal door was sliding shut behind Jake he swore he could have heard the robot say 'Your welcome, Metaloid'. Gold Fist - the wealthy billionaire and Crime Lord sat in a swivel chair behind a well-polished mahogany desk. His bushy white eyebrows raised when he saw Jake with Ultraviolet still in his arms enter his office.

"Samurai Superhero...Jake Lonestar." The billionaire steepled his fingers together on the desk top before him just like a cartoon villain and grinned at Jake revealing his gold teeth. "What can I do for you, boy? You're not here to try and arrest me are you? That would be unwise..."

There was a clunking sound as several golden robots revealed themselves from the shadows of the office to stand a bit closer to Gold Fist in a protective manner.

Jake frowned at the golden robots and shook his head. "No, Gold Fist - I'm not here to arrest you. This time." Jake gave the cyborg a cocky smirk. "I want to sign the SSF up for the E.T. Tech Race and Nix Duo told me that you're the bookmaker."

Gold Fist nodded, "Indeed, I am. I'm also the one who's offering the three million dollars to the winner."

"Three million dollars?! Woo wee!" Jake whistled. "But why? And why did you buy the illegal Accelerator Tech from Prism?"

"I'm well over sixty, Jake, have no heir, and I have billions of dollars that I don't know what to do with. But most of all I'm bored. So very bored. I want entertainment. And the E.T. Tech Race provides me with that. It amuses me to see people compete in this race and try to kill each other in order to reach the finish line first. I bought the illegal Accelerator Tech from Prism and gave it to random participants of this race in order to stir up the odds. I like things being...unpredictable. In this race...anything can happen." A pleased smile curled Gold Fist's thin chapped lips.

"You just gave the Tech away...unreal." Jake shook his head in disbelief. "Well, as I've already explained I'd like to sign up the SSF to participate in your race."

"Indeed." Gold Fist's beady black eyes glittered with interest. "May I ask why? I mean, Dr. Valery is a billionaire herself so I don't think that the SSF lacks money..." Gold Fist stroked his chin in thought.

"Nix Duo has Mr. Suit hostage. If we win the race he'll let Mr. Suit go...if not..." Jake trailed off, not even wanting to think about it.

"I see." Gold Fist nodded in understanding. "Now, that's very interesting. I love twists like that. Of course you can sign the SSF up for the race, Jakey boy. You will need six members in order to participate in the race. The rules are simple...reach the finish line first and you win. Taking out opposing teams is permitted along the way. The only thing that is not permitted is for participants in the race to reveal the existence of aliens to those citizens of New York who are not a part of the secret society that knows of their existence."

"Six members?" Jake frowned. "But Mr. Suit..."

"What about that pretty little android girl with you?" Gold Fist nodded with his head in Ultraviolet's direction.

"Ultraviolet?" Jake was surprised by Gold Fist's suggestion. "But she's an android...would that be allowed?"

Gold Fist chuckled. "I have no rule against robots participating in my race. In fact, several of the gangs competing have robot drivers. Now, I'm assuming you know the pass phrase?"

"Er, beam me up Scottie?" Jake tried.

"Yes, mere formalities, you see." Gold Fist put his hands out in a helpless gesture. "Are there any bets you'd like to place on the other teams? The Linx Space Pirates are a favorite in this race." Gold Fist informed Jake as he slid the entry list in front of Jake. Jake noticed there were several other names of gangs already signed up on the list. Jake picked up a pen and wrote in: _Samurai Superheroes Force_. "Bets? Naw..."

Gold Fist opened one of his desk drawers and pulled out an interesting, high-tech metal bracelet and tossed it to Jake. "Here, catch, boy." Gold Fist fished a cigar out of his pocket, struck a match against his desk and lit it up.

He began to take deep puffs from his cigar as Jake caught the metal bracelet and looked at it curiously. "What's this?"

"That is a holo-map bracelet. Put it on. Tomorrow at the appropriate time the race's starting point will be revealed to you. Once you reach the starting line the bracelet will automatically reveal the location of the finish line."

Jake snapped the bracelet on his wrist and nodded. "Got it."

"Before you go, I'll give you one piece of advice, kid. I'd recommend not trying to take out your competition, but heading straight for the finish line. There are some real monsters competing in the race this year. Compared to them you're just a little mouse and they're hungry lions. Well, good luck. You're going to need it!" Gold Fist blew a cloud of smoke out in Jake's direction and chuckled with amusement. "I can already tell that this year's race is going to be anything but boring...I'm especially curious to see what that little android can do."

"Er, thanks, I think." Jake nodded his thanks to Gold Fist and left the office. This time Jake used the teleportation platform to get to the appropriate level with the secret passageway that led back to club _Salamander_. Jake was completely oblivious to the sound of the explosion as the teleportation platform exploded a few seconds later.

Jake had no problems with entering the passageway, getting back to club _Salamander,_ moving through the club unhindered, and exiting back out into the night. Ginger and Pinstripe were still tied up right outside of the club to a lamppost. Jake walked over to Pinstripe and untied the horse that seemed to be eyeing Jake warily as if asking Jake 'where's Mr. Suit?'

Jake shook his head sadly at Pinstripe. "He's not coming. But we'll come back for him. I promise." Jake said as he patted the side of Pinstripe's silky black neck.

Pinstripe let out an unhappy little puff of air and pawed at the ground in an uneasy manner.

Jake mounted Ginger with Ultraviolet still in his arms. "Hyah!" Jake snapped the reigns and urged Ginger to merge into traffic and whistled behind him so that Pinstripe would follow after them. Pinstripe hesitated a moment before galloping after Jake. Jake was heading to the SSF Headquarters a.k.a Dr. Valery's mansion first.

He felt a heavy weight on his shoulders since he had to somehow convince the SSF to enter the E.T. Tech race so that they could save Mr. Suit. What if they refused? What if he had made a bad decision by entering them all into the race? Jake was beginning to panic with worry. He had acted again without thinking, something he was doing a lot lately.

Unbeknownst to Jake, the Samurai Superheroes were all currently undergoing special training regimens given to them by Dr. Valery. This was her way of punishing the SSF for their failure on their last mission.

Jake galloped up the road that led to the mansion but took the horses to the stables first. After he had gotten Ginger and Pinstripe safely into their stables he picked Ultraviolet back up into his arms and approached the mansion with her. The house greeted Jake in its synthesized yet female sounding voice: "Welcome back, Jake _._ " The house greeted and then the front door swung open as if Jake were entering a haunted house.

"Er, thanks." Jake absentmindedly thanked the house while humming 'Hotel California' in his head, and wondered if he should keep doing that. Thanking robots and androids for stuff.

Jake walked into the living room and set Ultraviolet down on a fancy silk settee. "House, err, Computer? Where are the SSF?" Jake asked loudly and felt kind of silly speaking to thin air.

"They're all undergoing Dr. Valery's special training regimens...Galaxy Girl is currently in the West Wing hallway...Black Fox is in the library...Bulldozer and Red Dragon are both in the _dojo_..." The house explained.

Jake nodded. "Thanks babe, err, house!" Jake took off, heading for the West Wing where Galaxy Girl was apparently. A goofy grin formed on Jake's face as he thought about getting to see Galaxy Girl. He had a bit of a crush on the famous pop star. She was extremely beautiful and had the voice of an angel. It made Jake wonder: _Can androids sing? What would Ultraviolet sound like if she sang. Would her singing move me? Or would I feel nothing?_ Jake quickly shook his head of such thoughts.

Jake turned a corner and spotted Galaxy Girl. She was dressed in a light blue and white maid outfit that must have been made by the perverted Dr. Valery since the dress was HOT. It was extremely lowcut and had a short frilly skirt. Galaxy Girl was currently doing three things at once: listening to her iPod, reading a fashion magazine and dusting with a powder blue feather duster. She was absentmindedly dusting a vase when she knocked it over and it shattered as it hit the marble floor. Galaxy Girl didn't even notice since she was listening to music until she accidentally stepped on a porcelain shard.

Galaxy Girl looked down, spotted the broken expensive vase, and swore. "Shit. Dr. Valery is going to kill me." Galaxy Girl whipped out a dustpan and bent over to begin to sweep the broken shards of porcelain into the dustpan. "I wonder where I can hide this..."

_Panty shot!_ Jake was suddenly gifted with a glimpse of Galaxy Girl's lacy pink panties. Jake's eyes turned into two large pink hearts. _There is a God!_ Jake thought to himself as Galaxy Girl continued to bend over and pick up the broken pieces of the vase. _Ultraviolet would never wear pink underwear that looked like that...Gah...who cares about what kind of underwear a robot would wear! Galaxy Girl is real. A real young woman._

"Ouch! Dammit! A delicate flower like me shouldn't be made to do such menial tasks!" Galaxy Girl exclaimed when she cut her finger on a piece of porcelain and watched as a bead of red blood formed on the very tip of her finger.

Jake immediately leapt into action and went to Galaxy Girl's side. "Are you okay? Here." Jake, not thinking, took Galaxy Girl's finger and stuck it in his mouth and began to suck on it. Galaxy Girl gasped, her eyes widening as her cheeks turned pink beneath her silver domino mask.

Jake turned his head, his eyes met with Galaxy Girl's, and he realized in that exact moment that he had Galaxy Girl's finger in his mouth! What had he been thinking - oh, yea, right, he hadn't been thinking - again. Yep, he really needed to stop doing that. "Ack!" Jake quickly released Galaxy Girl's finger and scuttled backwards across the floor.

Galaxy Girl found herself doing the same thing as she scooted away from Jake out of surprise. "Epp! Who does that? That was gross!" Galaxy Girl complained to hide her embarrassment. Jake's mouth had felt hot and wet around her finger.

Jake put a hand behind his head in a sheepish gesture. "Uh, err, I'm sorry..."

Galaxy Girl sighed and shook her head, "No, it's okay...you were just trying to help, right?"

Jake nodded, "Yea."

Galaxy Girl's expression suddenly turned concerned as she noticed the absence of Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet. "Where are Mr. Suit and Ultraviolet? Did you both complete your mission successfully?"

Jake's expression turned grim. "No...that's why I'm here. I need to talk to all of you. Er, I thought you were doing some kind of 'special training regimen' for Dr. Val?" _Not cleaning..._

Galaxy Girl blushed, "Yea...this _is_ my 'special training regimen'...it's to work on my 'clumsiness'. Dr. Valery ordered me to dust the entire mansion. Isn't she a slave driver? How can she actually expect me to do something like this? Besides, I have way better things to be doing...like practicing my singing and doing yoga. I need to keep my body in shape after all for my fans. And Dr. Valery has my poor managers locked away somewhere in this mansion and I can't find them!"

Jake gave Galaxy Girl a sympathetic look. "That sucks...oh, hey, I might have something that might cheer you up." Jake reached into his jean pocket and pulled out a Snickers. "Here." He held the candy bar out to Galaxy Girl.

Galaxy Girl looked at Jake as if he'd just pulled a toad out from his pocket. "A candy bar! Get that thing away from me!"

Jake looked crestfallen. "You don't want it? You're not hungry after all that dusting?"

Galaxy Girl's stomach grumbled at that exact moment and she blushed. "Of course I'm hungry but I have to watch my weight...dammit give that candy bar to me!"

Jake brightened and handed Galaxy Girl the candy bar. She took it, quickly unwrapped it and began to quickly eat it as Jake just watched her. Galaxy Girl glared back at Jake. "Stop staring at me, weirdo. It's creepy."

"Sorry." Jake immediately said though he was still grinning at Galaxy Girl. _Galaxy Girl ate my candy bar_. For some reason that made him happy. "Hey, where are the rest of the Samurai Superheroes?"

Galaxy Girl shrugged as she finished the candy bar and began to lick her fingers of the left over chocolate. "Dunno...I think Black Fox is in the library. That's where she always is anyways. Did you know she used to be some kind of famous linguist before she became a part of the SSF? She knows more than six thousand different languages. Though most of those languages are only spoken by fewer than a thousand people." Galaxy Girl informed Jake excitedly. She _loved_ to gossip.

"Wow. That's impressive." Jake continued to smile at Galaxy Girl before he snapped out of his daze. "Well, let's go get Black Fox and then we'll find the guys." Jake stood up and dusted himself off before offering his hand to help Galaxy Girl up.

Galaxy Girl hesitated before accepting Jake's help and putting her hand in his. Being extremely careful, Jake helped Galaxy Girl to stand and she wondered why he was treating her like glass. "Alright, fine." Galaxy Girl grudgingly agreed and the two of them headed for the library.

Jake entered the library with Galaxy Girl lagging behind him. He caught sight of Black Fox seated at one of the many large wooden tables that had been set up in the library. She was dressed in a provocative, black leather maid's outfit that consisted of a lot of straps and buckles. She also had a lace-up corset and a pair of fishnet stockings. Whereas, Galaxy Girl's maid costume was definitely cutesier Black Fox's was definitely sexy. Jake immediately suffered a massive nosebleed from the sight of the sultry Black Fox and sunk to his knees as he put a hand to his nose to try and staunch the blood flow.

Galaxy Girl rushed over to Jake's side out of concern for his sudden nosebleed, not knowing that men suffered from nosebleeds when they had a painful erection. "Jake! Are you okay?" She questioned.

Without looking up from her book Black Fox shook her head. "Pervert." Apparently, Black Fox knew why Jake had gotten such a massive nosebleed.

Jake pinched his nose as he tried to get a hold of himself. He didn't have time for this silliness. Though, he decided he'd give his perverted aunt a piece of his mind later for all this trouble. Jake struggled to stand and wiping the blood from his nose he walked over to Black Fox's table. "Howdy Black Fox. So, your special training was, let me guess, cleaning the library?"

Black Fox looked up from her huge book (it must have been at least five hundred pages long) and arched an eyebrow at Jake. "Dr. Valery told me to put all these books away." Black Fox motioned to the pile of books on the table. "But...they're much too interesting to not read first. As you know I'm Japanese and a lot of these books are about Japanese folklore. They contain tales about _yokai_ , Japanese demons. Dr. Valery has some very rare and hard to find books on _yokai_ in her library. These books are utterly fascinating. I'm hoping to find out more about the _Makai_ World...where the demons live."

Jake scratched his head in confusion, "Makai World? But aren't _yokai_ really aliens...so where they live would be outer space, right?"

Black Fox nodded. "Indeed. And magic is really just advanced alien technology. Knowing this secret has caused so much pain..." A dark shadow fell over Black Fox's face for a moment before she quickly shook her head to clear it of sad thoughts. But not before Jake noticed her look. Jake wanted to ask Black Fox about it but he didn't want to be too invasive. "Dr. Valery even has books that contain alien languages. Each alien race has their own language, of course. I intend to learn them all if I can." Black Fox's dark eyes glittered with interest at the thought of learning even more languages.

Jake blinked. Ms. Hot Dominatrix was actually a nerd! She was totally a bookworm, and the bookish type despite her ultra sophisticated appearance and style. "Oh my God...Black Fox is a Closet-Nerd!" Jake burst out.

This caused Galaxy Girl to start cackling. "Like you totally pegged it! Before Black Fox came to the mansion her name was Hana, she was a linguist back in Japan, and apparently a total nerd. She used to dress in thick sweaters, baggy sweatpants, and had this awful pair of thick-rimmed glasses! She was a walking fashion emergency." Galaxy Girl shuddered as she remembered Black Fox's original state before Dr. Valery got a hold of her. "Now she's just a poser, of course." Galaxy Girl sneered with her hands on her hips as she looked Black Fox over from head-to-toe. "She may pretend to know about fashion but it's all just an act."

Jake was surprised when he saw a light pink blush spread across Black Fox's cheeks. "Was it really necessary to tell him all that, Galaxy Girl?" Black Fox glared at the pop singer.

"Thank God Dr. Valery got her hands on Hana...if she hadn't helped Black Fox then I would have!" Galaxy Girl exclaimed with a passionate look on her face all the while ignoring the death glare that Black Fox was currently giving her.

"I probably would have ended up in something pink." Black Fox shuddered at the visual image that had formed in her head. "At least Dr. Valery lets me wear black...even if the outfits she creates for me to wear are somewhat ridiculous."

"Well..." Jake cleared his throat. "I think you ladies both look really nice." He offered.

Black Fox's attention was suddenly drawn to Jake. "Why have you returned to the mansion? You were on a mission with Mr. Suit, were you not? Where is he?" Black Fox's expression was subtly shifting to concern. It wasn't like Mr. Suit not to report to the others as soon as he returned from missions after what happened with Nix Duo and his last partner...

At the mention of Mr. Suit Jake's expression turned grim. "That's what I need to talk to you all about. But I want to find Bulldozer and Red Dragon before I tell you what happened."

Black Fox nodded stiffly sensing the worst had occurred. "Very well. Then, what are we waiting for?" Black Fox stood up from her place at the library table. "Let's hurry and find the others."

"Right." Jake immediately agreed.

"I, err, need to go powder my nose really fast. I'll meet you guys there." Galaxy Girl declared before she took off down the hall.

Jake blinked. "Powder her nose?"

"She had to go to the bathroom." Black Fox explained bluntly.

Jake blushed. "Oh. Don't you girls like to go in groups to the bathroom or something?"

"Hmm." Black Fox let out a thoughtful hum. "I think you're right. That is the proper social protocol in this kind of situation. I believe I will go accompany Galaxy Girl to the bathroom. We shall meet you at the _dojo_ , Jake."

"Okie dokie." Jake agreed.

Black Fox stalked down the hall and made her way to the bathroom. She entered and was immediately met with the sound of Galaxy Girl throwing up within one of the bathroom stalls. She raised an eyebrow at this before turning to the row of sinks. She stood in front of a sink and turned the tap on deciding to splash her face with water since she felt tired after all that reading she had been doing.

The sound of Galaxy Girl flushing the toilet was heard before she exited the bathroom stall. Galaxy Girl looked up and started when she caught sight of Black Fox splashing her face with water at the sink. "Black Fox? What are you doing here!?"

Black Fox moved to grab a paper towel, which she began to use to dry her face off. "What does it look like I'm doing? Are you feeling alright, Galaxy Girl?"

"Peachy," Galaxy Girl shot back giving Black Fox a suspicious look. "I wasn't throwing up on purpose if that's what you think. I don't need to do that kind of disgusting thing to keep my perfect figure the way it is. Although, I bet _you_ throw up. Don't you, Miss Dominatrix?"

Black Fox tossed her paper towel in a tin garbage can and gave Galaxy Girl a bland look. "Who said anything about throwing up on purpose? Ah, so you were throwing up on purpose because you're worried about your weight. You're bulimic."

Galaxy Girl turned red. "What?! I am not!" Galaxy Girl stalked forward and grabbed Black Fox by the front of her black leather bodysuit. "If you so much as tell anyone...I swear Black Fox. You're _dead_."

"Now, if only you would treat our cyborg enemies with as much hatred as you just showed me then perhaps you would be a skillful warrior." Black Fox smiled.

Galaxy Girl gave Black Fox a disgusted look before letting Black Fox go with a little shove. Without another word Galaxy Girl exited the bathroom and took off in the direction of the _dojo_.

A frown curled Black Fox's lips downwards. _Galaxy Girl is bulimic? That's not good. She'd never accept help from me but perhaps I can get Jake to somehow help her._ The wheels in Black Fox's mind were already beginning to turn as she began to formulate a plan to help the pop star.

Jake, Galaxy Girl and Black Fox met in front of the _dojo_. Jake had been waiting for the girls to arrive before he nodded at them and opened the door to the _dojo_. The first thing that met his eyes, however was-

"Oh! Gah! I really didn't need to see that!" Jake covered his eyes with his hands and stumbled backwards. He ended up running into Black Fox and could feel her boobs pressing into his back. Jake immediately began to blush.

In front of Jake were Bulldozer and Red Dragon. Both men were dressed in nothing but a pair of tight fitting _Speedos_! Bulldozer was currently bent over the floor with a wet towel in his hands that he was using the clean the _dojo_ floor with as he ran across the room. The cyborg's _Speedo_ was a bright orange color. Red Dragon was in a black _Speedo_ and was also cleaning the _dojo_ floor in a similar manner until he noticed Jake and the others entering the _dojo_. His eyes darted to Galaxy Girl and he froze.

_Oh my God, I so did not need to see that! Dude! My perverted aunt and her fetishes!_ Once Jake got over his initial shock of having to see two men bent over with their asses in the air, dressed in nothing but skintight _Speedos_ , the next thing Jake immediately realized was that this was the first time he was getting to see Red Dragon without his full bodysuit on.

Jake's expression shifted from horror to surprise as he took in Red Dragon's true appearance. Now it made perfect sense why he was called 'Red Dragon'. Red Dragon's entire body was covered in shiny, red scales. He had spiky black hair and golden eyes with slanted pupils.

With the way Black Fox and Galaxy Girl's eyes widened at the sight of the practically naked Red Dragon, Jake thought it was perfectly possible that this was the first time the girls were seeing Red Dragon without his bodysuit too.

Abruptly, Red Dragon snapped out of his stunned stupor and wrapped his arms around his torso and screamed like a girl: "Ahhhh!"

"Why does he look like that?" Galaxy Girl asked aloud. "He's all... _scaly_."

"Red Dragon's father was a Dragon Alien and his mother was a human. He's a _hanyou_. Or half-breed. When aliens mate with humans their offspring sometimes turn out...not looking entirely human." Black Fox informed Galaxy Girl helpfully.

"You sure seem to be well-informed on this subject, Black Fox." Red Dragon snarled at her.

"I'm well-informed about a lot of things, Red Dragon." Black Fox answered simply.

"Smart-ass, fox." Red Dragon spat.

"Hot-tempered fool." Black Fox drawled.

"ANYWAYS." Jake said loudly. "Now that we're all here, there's something I really need to tell all of you..." Jake swallowed. _This sucks._ It wasn't like he was even an official member of the SSF and yet he had signed them up for the E.T. Tech Race without their permission. _Oh crap, I'm so screwed! This is never going to work! They're going to be so pissed that I signed them up for the race without their permission!_

"Aren't you forgetting about the most important person being present, Jake?" A silky voice purred in his ear as Dr. Valery draped her arms around Jake's neck from behind and began to draw seductive circles on his chest while her other hand made a beeline for...?

"Dr. Val! Hey! Let me go! I'm not your personal teddy bear that you can just hug anytime you want to!" Jake cried out in a panic.

Dr. Valery raised an eyebrow at Jake's comment. "Personal teddy bear? How juvenile. I want you to be my personal sex slave." She winked and tried to make a grab for Jake's crotch again.

Black Fox shook her head at Dr. Valery's crass display, but her mouth twitched in amusement. "Cougars."

"Ack! Get off of me you crazy, perverted aunt!" Jake cried as he shoved Dr. Valery off of him so that she went flying comically leaving Jake red and panting for breath.

"Jake, wasn't there an _urgent_ reason why you needed to talk to all of us?" Black Fox reminded him swiftly.

"Um, yea...it's about Mr. Suit..." Jake went on to recount what happened while on his mission to arrest the _Solar Flares_ and the _Metalheads_. How Jake and Mr. Suit managed to take care of the _Solar Flares_ , but how Mr. Suit was injured because of a female hostage...

"That idiot!" Bulldozer burst out loudly once Jake came to this part of his tale. "When's he going to get over that gentleman code of his? He's going to get himself killed. Really, women will be the death of him!" Bulldozer opened a can of beer and began to chug it.

Black Fox eyed Bulldozer's beer enviously.

"Poor Mr. Suit." Galaxy Girl frowned. "Letting himself get beat up like that...his smart-suit must be all wrinkled. The dry cleaning bill for that will be astronomical." She shook her head sadly at the thought.

"Evil witch." Red Dragon muttered.

"What was that, Scaly?" Galaxy Girl shot back quickly.

Red Dragon grit his teeth angrily, unable to respond.

"Mr. Suit has his reasons for why he won't hurt women." Black Fox stated mysteriously.

Jake shot her a curious look. "Oh yea, like what?"

Black Fox met Jake's eyes with her own dark ones. "It's not my place to say. You'll have to ask him yourself."

"Black Fox and Mr. Suit knew each other back in Japan." Galaxy Girl informed Jake. "I bet they were going out but it seems like Black Fox dumped Mr. Suit as soon as she laid eyes on Bulldozer."

Bulldozer and Black Fox immediately looked at each other before blushing and looking away from each other with guilty looks on their faces.

"Idiot gentleman _samurai_...che..." Red Dragon sneered but even Jake could tell that he was worried about Mr. Suit.

Jake then continued his tale recounting how Ultraviolet helped Mr. Suit out, and then how Orochi awakened to take care of the _Solar Flares_. Next, he told them about how Mr. Suit had discovered the location of the secret VR club _Kaleidoscope_ and how they had confronted the _Metalheads_. But then Jake went on to explain how Nix Duo defeated the already injured Mr. Suit although Ultraviolet had fought to protect him. Then, with difficulty Jake went on to tell the others how Mr. Suit was tortured and how he tried to fight. Lastly, Jake revealed that Nix Duo had decided to make Jake a deal since he felt he owed the cowboy _samurai_ one for saving the _Metalheads_ from a semi-trailer truck. A deal that if the SSF were to compete in this year's E.T. Tech Race instead of trying to stop it like they did last year and if the SSF actually won - Nix Duo would release Mr. Suit.

"And I, err, kinda agreed...without asking or consulting you guys first. I know, really dumb, but..." Jake suddenly got down on his hands and knees before the SSF. "Please. Won't you please consider participating in the E.T. Tech Race so that we can save Mr. Suit? Together?" He looked up at the Samurai Superheroes and begged.

The SSF were all giving Jake wide-eyed looks, surprised at his display of loyalty to Mr. Suit - for one of them. The SSF turned to give Dr. Valery an expectant look.

"It's really Dr. Valery's decision if the SSF is to participate in the race or not..." Black Fox informed Jake slowly.

"What?" Bulldozer snapped. "Of course we're going to participate! Right? Right?!" Bulldozer whipped his head around to look at all of them. "We have to save Mr. Suit! He's one of our own! A Samurai Superhero!" He finished loudly.

"This can't be good for our rep...if we back down from this challenge we'll only look like cowards." Red Dragon said. "Only a coward would run away from a challenge."

"Do you think Nix Duo is torturing Mr. Suit, right now?" Galaxy Girl questioned, looking worried. Everyone gave her sympathetic looks before she continued. "His suit is going to have blood all over it. Do you know how hard it is to get blood out? It's like next to impossible!" The Samurai Superheroes gawked at Galaxy Girl in disbelief at her heartless comment.

Jake turned and gave Dr. Valery his best puppy-dog eyed look.

Dr. Valery stood and gazed at her SSF for a moment and took in their almost pleading expressions. She evilly made them wait a little longer before a grin broke out on her face. "Of course, we, the SSF, accept Nix Duo's challenge! We're no cowards! The SSF will hereby participate in the upcoming E.T. Tech Race and not only that - we'll win this thing. It's also not everyday that we get to have an excuse to go after one of Nova Inara's Nemesis Zeros. We'll take out Nix Duo if the opportunity arises. I mean, arrest him of course."

Jake let out a breath he had been holding, feeling relieved but worried at the same time. He had been unsure if he was going to be able to convince the SSF to participate in the E.T. Tech Race and was surprised they had agreed so easily. Jake was caught by surprise by how loyal the Samurai Superheroes Force seemed. _These are good people...people I'd like to become friends with...maybe even comrades with but I don't know how to fight. I'm a coward and lack motivation and am a lazy ass. Orochi is their comrade but what am I? Their mascot?_

Jake frowned, "But Dr. Val the _Metalheads_ are going to be using the stolen illegal Accelerator Tech...their souped up bikes can go up to nine hundred miles per hour when our genetically engineered cyborg warhorses can only get up to two hundred miles per hour."

Dr. Valery's blue eyes gleamed intelligently as she pushed her glasses up her nose, "Not to worry, Jake. The E.T. Tech Race isn't until tomorrow night. I have an entire day to upgrade the horses of the SSF, specifically their cybernetic legs using some of our own Accelerator Tech."

Jake was suddenly interested in something. "You came up with the Tech yourself, Dr. Val?"

Dr. Valery had a mysterious look on her face. "Well, actually...I have a little bird that whispers Tech into my ear from time to time. She gave me the highly advanced Accelerator Tech that will surely help us to defeat the _Metalheads_. However, there's something I want to make very clear to all of you." Dr. Valery pushed her glasses up her nose as she eyed the Samurai Superheroes seriously. "Even if I'm able to get the horses to go up to nine hundred miles per hour...I don't want any of you going that fast. At that speed the G-force that your body is experiencing would be similar to a car crash and your body will explode."

Jake paled at Dr. Valery's cryptic words. "Dr. Val could you please take a look at Ultraviolet? She's downstairs on a couch in the living room. Nix Duo shocked her pretty badly with his living-metal sword Karasu-Tengu and she hasn't woken up since..." Jake gnashed his teeth in worry.

Dr. Valery was intrigued by Jake's apparent worry for the android. "Sure, don't worry, Jake, I'll see what's wrong with your Sex Droid." She teased.

Jake blushed and immediately gave a look of disbelief to Dr. Valery. "What? She's not my Sex Droid!" Jake looked over to Galaxy Girl and gave her a look as if to say Dr. Valery was clearly crazy.

Galaxy Girl merely gave Jake a disgusted look while Black Fox muttered. "Pervert." Under her breath.

"So, she was shocked by Karasu-Tengu?" Dr. Valery stroked her chin, "Nix Duo's living-metal sword is able to produce millions of volts of electricity. I'm sorry Jake but any normal android who's been hit with that amount of electricity would be done for..."

Jake paled at Dr. Valery's words, "What? You mean she's _dead_..." Jake swallowed, his throat suddenly felt very dry.

"That's not what I said. I said there's the possibility that she may not wake up. And that a _normal_ android wouldn't even have a chance but..." Dr. Valery trailed off sadistically.

"But? Ultraviolet is not a normal android though is she, Dr. Valery? Ultraviolet is...special. Isn't she?" Jake gave Dr. Valery a hopeful puppy-dog look.

A cat's paw smile formed on Dr. Valery's face. "Perhaps, we shall see, Jake, but I wouldn't get your hopes up."

_Nooo~ Ultraviolet!_ Jake moaned in his mind and a tear came to his eye.

"Just kidding!" Dr. Valery laughed loudly at Jake's distraught expression. "I'm a genius so of course I'll be able to fix your Sex Droid, Jake! No worries! You'll be able to get it on with her very soon!"

Galaxy Girl shook her head at Jake. "You are _so_ disgusting."

Jake's expression fell. "You don't actually believe her, do you? Ultraviolet is not my Sex Droid...she wouldn't let me touch her inappropriately anyways without hitting me over the head first!"

"So, what you're saying is you'd like to touch her inappropriately but because she'll hit you over the head you don't get to." Black Fox decided to clarify to everyone present.

"Exactly." Jake found himself nodding before he caught himself. Ack! He had fallen right into Black Fox's trap. "I mean, no!" Jake was glad Mr. Suit wasn't here to hear this conversation since he would have loved to make fun of Jake for it...and then Jake remembered just why Mr. Suit wasn't there and took it all back.

"Yep, you were right about him Black Fox, he's a total pervert." Galaxy Girl was nodding to herself.

"He should be locked up." Red Dragon suggested happily.

Jake put his face in his hands and moaned. "Why me?"

Dr. Valery made her way down to the living room and found Ultraviolet on one of the couches just as Jake had said she would be. Dr. Valery snapped her fingers and several android butlers appeared to help Dr. Valery carry Ultraviolet back to her laboratory. As soon as the android butlers had deposited Ultraviolet down on one of the medical beds she immediately set to work with finding out what was wrong with the android.

Apparently, Nix Duo's sword had caused several fuses to blow in the microchip in Ultraviolet's A.I. brain but these were easy enough for a genius scientist like Dr. Valery to fix. After that she had to concentrate on upgrading the cyborg warhorses for the E.T. Tech Race. Dr. Valery immediately set to work with making the horses new and improved cybernetic legs using advanced E.T. Tech. This took her the remainder of the night and most of the following day. It was 7:00 PM by the time Dr. Valery had completed the new cybernetic legs for the horses. She used a kind of assembly line that consisted of several high-tech machines to help replace the old legs on the horses for the new ones.

Dr. Valery made an announcement over the intercom that the Samurai Superheroes were to dress in their uniforms and meet outside of the mansion and that she would arrive momentarily with their newly improved cyborg warhorses. The Samurai Superheroes Force - Cowboy Samurai Jake Lonestar, Galaxy Girl, Red Dragon, Bulldozer and Black Fox - had all dressed in their official SSF uniforms with domino masks on their faces and their living-metal swords strapped to their sides. They were quite a sight as they stood waiting for their warhorses to arrive. Suddenly, the ground in front of the mansion opened up and a ramp that led from the laboratory to the outside was revealed and five horses began to emerge at a gallop.

Ginger ran up to Jake and he inspected her new high-tech legs. They looked awesome. He ran his hands over her hind legs and noticed that it appeared as though she had rocket boosters attached to them. Jake whistled through is teeth in appreciation.

"Sweet." Bulldozer grinned as he looked over his own horse.

"Yea." Jake agreed softly, still feeling like his new life in New York City had to be a dream.

"Very impressive, Dr. Valery." Black Fox nodded in acknowledgement of Dr. Valery's skills.

"Che...they had better work or we're screwed, or I guess Mr. Suit is screwed. Heh. That makes me feel better, actually. Who really cares about that cocky bastard, anyways?" Red Dragon snarled.

Galaxy Girl was actually dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief. "Poor Mr.Suit's...suit!" Apparently, Galaxy Girl was still worried about bloodstains.

Dr. Valery stood in front of the Samurai Superheroes with her hands on her hips as she gave her team a serious look. "Attention, Samurai Superheroes, these are your new and improved genetically engineered cyborg warhorses. They can now travel up to eight hundred miles per hour. You should be able to keep up with the _Metalheads_ ' bikes now. However, it is not recommended to exceed a speed of four hundred miles per hour. The stress that would have on your bodies as well as on the warhorse's body is..." Dr. Valery shook her head, looking grim.

Jake patted Ginger's neck and frowned. The last thing he wanted was to injure or kill Ginger. "Are you sure it's safe for the horses to run that fast?" Jake asked.

Dr. Valery pushed her glasses up her nose and nodded. "Yes, their bodies are different from normal horses Jake. So don't worry. You'd blow up long before they did."

"That's comforting." Bulldozer groaned.

Galaxy Girl was looking pale. "I don't want to blow up...if I did..." Her lower lip was trembling in a cute manner.

Red Dragon started to comfort Galaxy Girl. "Don't worry I won't let that happen I-"

"What would become of my poor fans! They'd be so sad! I'm sure my funeral would be bigger than Whitney Houston's. I wonder if New York could afford it?" Galaxy Girl finished.

"I take it back. I hope you get blown up, pop _princess_." Red Dragon sneered.

Jake mounted Ginger and thought about the possibility of blowing up if he went up to nine hundred miles per hour and swallowed. "Um, Aunt Val, you know what? I think I just developed 'I can't race on a cyborg warhorse without dying painfully disease'. Think I should just sit this one out...maybe go take a nap somewhere or maybe stargaze. Yea, that sounds nice and not life threatening..." Jake suddenly got a crisp visual image of himself exploding on Ginger's back, his guts spewing everywhere and he shuddered. His face began to turn green. "I think I'm going to be sick..."

"No, Jake, you're going and you're going to be the team leader tonight as well. You got everyone into this mess, cowboy, and I intend to see you get everyone out of it!" Dr. Valery stated firmly.

" _AW MAN~!_ " Jake moaned.

"However, I'm not sending you into battle one member short. SSF I would like to introduce you to our newest member." Dr. Valery made an extravagant hand wave to her right and Ultraviolet stepped out from behind Dr. Valery.

Dr. Valery had apparently designed Ultraviolet her very own superhero costume. The android was wearing an edgier version of a traditional Japanese high school girl uniform. The shirt was white, sleeveless, and had a purple tie to go with it. The skirt was pleated and made of a silver and dark purple material. Ultraviolet also had purple and silver sleeves that attached to her elbows to complete the outfit. Her hair had been dyed a deep violet color, which brought out her eyes in a stunning manner. She was also wearing a black domino mask on her face. To complete her badass look she was wearing a pair of black leather knee boots that had lots of buckles.

"This royally sucks..." Ultraviolet was complaining to herself as she fished a cigarette out of her shirt, lit it, and took a drag on it.

"Ultraviolet!" Dr. Valery finished excitedly.

_Yay! Ultraviolet...she's better! A sexy new super heroine is born. Can you fall in love at first sight with a robot? After having already seen her before?_ Jake wondered as his eyes turned into two large hearts. _Naw._ "Ultraviolet! You're all better! Yay!" Jake bounded over to Ultraviolet and made a move as if he'd hug her.

Ultraviolet swiftly sent a flying sidekick Jake's way that sent him flying. "What are you trying to do, you touchy-feely bastard! Keep your paws to yourself, perv! _Mou!_ " Ultraviolet's black painted lips curled down in a frown.

Jake was on the ground twitching. _It's not like I would have really hugged her anyways since it's too dangerous. This sucks._ Jake mentally pouted. _But...Ultraviolet...she's okay and she still has her badass attitude._ Jake grinned goofily.

Ultraviolet gave Jake a disgusted look as she took a long drag from her cigarette and the smoke curled off into the starry night sky. " _Baka_..." _Why does he look so happy just to see me?_

_So cool~_ Jake thought as he took in her badass superhero look.

"Now, Ultraviolet is our newest member. I thought it was appropriate that she join us as an official member since she risked her life to save Mr. Suit. Any objections?" Dr. Valery gave the SSF an intent look.

"A fucking Sex Droid is going to be a Samurai Superhero? What the fu-" Red Dragon was saying, however-

Black Fox whipped out her sword, evolved it, and lashed the whip-sword out at the half-alien man, so that it wrapped around Red Dragon's body and covered his mouth, effectively shutting him up. "No, there are no objections."

Jake snickered at Red Dragon's plight and wondered if Dr. Valery had been that far off after all concerning Black Fox's dominatrix tendencies. Black Fox could definitely be a little scary and dark sometimes...

_Ultraviolet makes a kickass superheroine..._ Jake thought to himself as Ultraviolet walked over to Ginger and hopped up behind him into the saddle effortlessly. She had done the motion so easily it made her appear weightless though Jake knew that in reality she was rather heavy for such a petite looking girl. Two hundred pounds heavy.

"Ultraviolet will assist you during the race, Jake. I gave her a few upgrades too. You're in for a few surprises..." Jake didn't like the twinkle he caught in Dr. Valery's eye. "Since Jake is the team leader that means he's the one that needs to reach the finish line first. The rest of you will be backing Jake up and protecting him. Jake has proven that he has exceptional riding skills so I'm certain he won't let you all down."

"No pressure, dumbass." Red Dragon sneered at the cowboy.

"Shut up, scaly." Jake shot back, sticking his tongue out at Red Dragon in a rather immature fashion.

"Why don't you make me?" Red Dragon challenged cracking his knuckles.

"Sure." Jake shot back in a cocky manner. "Go get him Ultraviolet!"

Ultraviolet hit Jake over the head in response. "Quit fooling around. Gah, I can't believe I got stuck babysitting you again. Why is my existence cursed? We're so going to lose because of you..." She began to complain in a pessimistic manner.

Jake pouted. "Harsh dudette, harsh..."

The Samurai Superheroes all mounted their respective cyborg warhorses and then waited for Jake's holo-map bracelet to activate. They only had to wait a few minutes before the metal bracelet glowed with a green-tinged light and a holographic image was projected out of the bracelet and in front of Jake and the others. Everyone looked at the hologram that was being shown and recognized it as the Brooklyn Bridge. This meant that the bridge was the starting line for the E.T. Tech Race.

"Let's ride. Hyah! Giddy-up Ginger!" Jake snapped his reigns and headed off in the direction of the Brooklyn Bridge.

Ultraviolet hit Jake over the head. "Other way, dumbass."

"I knew that." Jake turned Ginger around and began to take off galloping in the other direction with the rest of the Samurai Superheroes following close behind on their cyborg warhorses. Dr. Valery had already informed them that once they reached the starting line the holo-map bracelet would then reveal the finish line to the gathered participants signaling the start of the race.

In ten minutes, the Samurai Superheroes Force had arrived at Brooklyn Bridge to discover that the competing gangs had already gathered at the starting line - this was a true testament to their incredible speed.

Jake spotted Mayor Stark's gang - the Silver Fox Gang and the Green Avenger. Jake noticed that they were standing on what looked like futuristic skateboards, but the skateboards were floating two feet above the ground. "They're like Marty McFlying! That is _so_ cool." Jake exclaimed. "Just what are those?"

Ultraviolet turned to see what Jake was looking at and saw the floating boards. "Hoverboards, duh."

"Yep, that's the Silver Fox Gang...they're _kitsune_ aliens and they're known for riding hoverboards. We'll see just how fast those hoverboards can go, though I think they'll soon be eating our dust." Bulldozer chuckled.

The Green Avenger caught sight of Jake and his eyes widened beneath his green mask. "Jake! Oi! Jake, over here!" The Green Avenger enthusiastically waved at Jake trying to get his attention while Jake mentally concentrated on becoming invisible.

Bulldozer raised an eyebrow at Jake, "You know that _kappa_ alien, bro?"

Jake sighed, "Yea, he's my friend." _Best friend maybe...?_

Riding his hoverboard, the Green Avenger approached Jake and floated directly next to him. "Oi! Jake! What are you doing here? I didn't know you were going to participate in the E.T. Tech Race!?"

Jake sighed. "Er, yes, I didn't know I was going to be participating either...but...I really need to win this thing..." A visual image of Mr. Suit being tortured by Nix Duo entered Jake's mind and he shuddered wondering how Mr. Suit was doing. Mr. Suit had apparently been captured and tortured by Nix Duo once before only to fall into his sadistic hands again. Jake knew that Mr. Suit had been putting on a brave front even though he had been screaming his head off in the beginning.

The Green Avenger seemed impressed by Jake's declaration and his eyes sparkled. "So, you decided to enter the E.T. Tech Race _and_ you intend to win Jake- _san_? You are just so cool. I know you'll win! You're awesome!"

Mayor Stark floated over to Jake and the Green Avenger, and Jake saw that the fox alien was riding a white hoverboard. "What was that Green Avenger? I believe you're forgetting that you're on _my_ team." Mayor Stark grabbed the Green Avenger by his ear and began to drag him off. "See you out there on the battlefield, Jake. Be sure to watch your back. Things can get extremely...tricky out there."

"Thanks, I'll be sure to watch my back, Fluffy!" Jake called after him.

"Fluffy!?" Mayor Stark exclaimed in outrage and his fluffy white tail popped out behind him. "Oh bother..."

"Hey, I thought you said you defeated the _Solar Flares_ , Jake, but look there they are!" Bulldozer said loudly as he pointed in a certain direction.

Jake's eyes followed where Bulldozer's finger was pointing and spotted the Galaxy Police officers that were currently all disguised as _Solar Flares_.

Jake kicked Ginger's sides to get her to sidle up right next to Bulldozer's horse so that he could slam his hand over the cyborg's mouth. "Shhh! Dude, keep it down! Those aren't the _Solar Flares_ \- those are Galaxy Police officers that are participating in the race undercover. One of the officers is a friend of mine and she'd appreciate it if we didn't blow her cover."

Bulldozer nodded in understanding and Jake removed his hand from Bulldozer's mouth.

Black Fox raised an eyebrow at Jake. "Galaxy Police? Do you know why they're here, Jake? They must be thinking of arresting someone during the race, but that would be incredibly dangerous..."

Jake nodded. "They're after a Dragon Alien who's apparently participating in the race for unknown reasons."

Black Fox's eyes went wide. Bulldozer went as white as a sheet. Galaxy Girl's expression turned fearful. Red Dragon looked angry. "A Dragon Alien...here? Do you know which one the Dragon is, Jake?" Black Fox quickly asked.

Jake nodded and pointed the Dragon Alien out to the rest of the SSF. The Dragon Alien was still dressed in his silver and blue bodysuit with full-face helmet. Five robots on futuristic bikes surrounded him. They were obviously Battle Droids of some kind.

Black Fox scowled, her expression darkening. "A Dragon here on Earth...that's not good. Our primary objective is to win this race to save Mr. Suit, but after we win we should pursue that Dragon."

Jake nodded. "Fine with me. I needed to ask that Dragon a few questions anyways..."

Red Dragon snorted. "Like you'd be brave enough to talk to a Dragon face to face. You'll probably piss yourself."

"He's nothing to be afraid of..." Jake glared back at Red Dragon.

"Ha! Ignorance must be bliss! You just can't sense his battle aura or else you'd run for the hills!" Red Dragon countered.

Jake frowned. _Battle Aura? Is that what that was...?_

"Jake, you're pretty brave, wanting to speak with a Dragon." Galaxy Girl complimented while giving Jake an admiring glance.

Red Dragon gave himself whiplash as he turned his head to gawk at Galaxy Girl. "Gah! No, he's not! He's a spineless coward! Galaxy Girl stop looking at him like that!" He moaned.

Bulldozer gave Jake a curious look. "Why do you want to talk to a Dragon anyways?"

"I'm sorry Bulldozer, if I tell you..." Jake paused for dramatic effect. "I'd have to kill you." Jake struck a pose, grasping his chin with his hand and tried to look...err, dashing and mysterious...maybe.

Bulldozer burst out chuckling. "This guy is a riot!"

Next, Jake spotted the Linx Space Pirate Gang, which consisted of Captain Linx, Zoe and the rest of the _nekomata_ aliens. They were all piled into a sleek, red hovercar that looked a little like a futuristic _Ferrari_.

"Cool." Jake murmured as he caught sight of the hovercar.

Bulldozer's eyes had gone starry as well. "Sweet ride!" He exclaimed catching sight of the hovercar. "I gotta get Dr. Valery to make me one of those! I love cars. Though I love monster trucks even more. Wait, just think, dude, how cool would a monster hovertruck be?"

Jake nodded vigorously in agreement with Bulldozer. "That would be sweet, man."

"I bet Mr. Suit could handle the programming. He's frigin smart, bro." Bulldozer suggested before realizing that Mr. Suit was currently being held hostage by a sadistic cyborg and his expression fell.

Black Fox shook her head at Jake and Bulldozer. "Boys and their toys."

"That's the Linx Space Pirate Gang-" Bulldozer began to explain to Jake, but Jake raised his hand to stop him.

"Yea, I know that guy...Space Pirate Captain Linx and that golden-skinned babe next to him is the Bounty Hunter Zoe."

Bulldozer's eyes widened and his mouth gaped open. "Eh? You mean, _the_ Bounty Hunter Zoe?!"

"Bounty Hunter Zoe was one of the Galaxy's top Bounty Hunters before she retired." Black Fox began to explain to the rest of the SSF. "I can't believe it. She must have retired to earth. Jake, how do you know all these aliens? You know, humans aren't supposed to even know of their existence. Of course, the SSF is a part of the secret society that knows of the existence of aliens but still...we're not even personally acquainted with any of the aliens here..."

Jake blinked at Black Fox in surprise. He would have thought that Mr. Suit had told everyone about the secret community of aliens living in Brooklyn Prime but apparently he hadn't said a word. "If I tell you...I'd have to kill you." Jake said dramatically and put his hands out in a helpless gesture while shaking his head. "Sorry babe."

"There seems to be more to you than meets the eye, Jake Lonestar. How very curious." There was a mysterious twinkle in Black Fox's eye. She always loved a good puzzle to solve.

Jake's attention was drawn to the other biker gangs that all had souped up bikes, or hovercars. He also made sure to check out their riders that were a combination of cyborgs, aliens and robots.

Just then, a golden fembot walked out into the center of the bridge right in front of the gathered gangs and raised a gigantic white and black, checkered flag over her head. She then prepared to lower it.

At that exact moment, everyone's holo-map bracelet suddenly activated, glowing with a green-tinged light, and then from out of the bracelets came a holographic projection that revealed the finish line. Jake held his bracelet out before him and the holographic image of the Statue of Liberty flickered to life before him.

"The Statue of Liberty." He said as he looked around to see if the other gangs' holo-map bracelets were displaying the same image and saw that they were. This was it. The finish line had been revealed to be the Statue of Liberty and now the fembot would only have to lower her flag and the race would begin.

Jake watched as the fembot raised the flag a little higher in the air before bringing it down with a whoosh signaling the start of the race. Immediately, biker gangs, hovercars, and hoverboard riders began to zoom past the fembot on either side of her.

The E.T. Tech Race had begun.

### Chapter 12: Hi-ho Ginger, Away!

Jake and the rest of the Samurai Superheroes Force rode off after the departing gangs, not wanting to be left behind. Gangs immediately began to go their separate ways, as they chose to take alternate street routes to the Statue of Liberty. Almost as soon as the race started Jake watched in shock as bikers, hovercar drivers, and hoverboard riders all began to attack one another using advanced weapons: blasters and energy sabers. The hovercars had hidden weapons under their hoods that they began to reveal and use against their opponents. With red lazer beams, rockets, and grenades flying through the air all of a sudden it was instant chaos.

Jake watched as a biker gang armed with blasters targeted a hovercar. The hovercar's engine was hit making the driver lose control of the hovercar so that it flew off and impacted with a nearby building only to explode in a flashy display of whizzing metal and bursting flames. Jake cringed.

Jake then watched as two biker gangs engaged in battle against each other on the road ahead of him. They picked off members of the opposing gang, one by one - it was brutal. Jake winced as he watched one biker get shot right in the chest and fall off his bike, hit the pavement with a loud smack, and roll across the road. All of the gangs were suddenly trying to take each other out like it was some kind of battle royal. It was like everyone had gone crazy.

Was this what Gold Fist had wanted all along? This bloodshed, chaos, and insanity? It was amazing what the sum of three million dollars could drive people to do. Since Jake had a bad sense of direction he was allowing Ultraviolet to direct him since she had a built in GPS anyways.

"Jake, turn left up ahead. Now right. Left." She continued to direct him as they navigated through the busy New York City streets.

As soon as the golden fembot had lowered the white and black checkered flag the _Metalheads_ had zoomed off on their high-tech, ultramodern bikes and headed directly for the finish line single-mindedly. They didn't intend to waste their time trying to take out their competition, and this earned them quite a head start. The _Metalheads_ were fast, and Jake found himself being impressed. But the SSF's own upgraded, genetically engineered cyborg warhorses were equally fast - they would be able to keep up. However-

At that moment, the Galaxy Police officers that were disguised as the _Solar Flares,_ decided to target the Dragon Gang. The jig was suddenly up when the Galaxy Police officers pulled out their standard issue blasters and targeted the Dragon Gang. They rode their bikes into a V formation with Astra in front, and pursued the Dragon Gang that was also riding ahead on the road in a V formation with the Dragon Alien in the front of the formation. The Galaxy Police officers opened fire upon the Dragon Alien Ryuuji, getting his attention when the energy shields flared to life around his five robot lackeys.

"Tsk." Astra clicked her tongue. "The robots have energy shields...that's some fancy Tech alright." Astra whipped out her GXP badge and held it in the air to show Ryuuji, who was looking back at the Galaxy Police officers curiously. He still had his helmet on that was shielding his face. "Halt! You are under arrest Dragon Ryuuji! In the names of Justice and Peace for the galaxy!"

Ryuuji raised an eyebrow at the feisty Galaxy Police officer. The Dragon wasn't one for being 'prey' and so he decided to turn the tables. Dragon Alien Ryuuji abruptly stopped his large bike and moved it sideways on the road in order to block off as much of the road as possible creating an instant roadblock.

"Shit!" Astra swore as she and the other Galaxy Police officers were forced to swerve out of the way and try and miss Ryuuji on his bike, and were forced to ride around him.

The Dragon Alien smirked to himself beneath his helmet. Now he was exactly where he wanted to be. Behind his prey. Ryuuji faced his bike forward on the road once more and rode off in pursuit of the revealed Galaxy Police officers. Ryuuji had instantly recognized their blasters as being those of the Galaxy Police and so knew exactly who they were. Ryuuji whipped out a living-metal _katana_ and communicated with the complex nano-sword telepathically through the psy-link, and the sword began to glow with a green-tinged light. He held his arm and sword out as he was approaching one of the Galaxy Police officers that was in the rear of their formation and neatly sliced through the bike and the rider's legs with one merciless slash. The bike exploded, and pieces of the bike and rider flew across the road.

Astra looked behind her and watched as the Dragon Alien took out Reebo easily. "No! Reebo! Shit!"

"I want their leader. You robots take out the other four Galaxy Police officers." Ryuuji directed as he waved his hand forward and the five robotic bikers rode off after the remaining four Galaxy Police officers while the Dragon Alien rode towards Astra.

The Galaxy Police officers engaged with the robot bikers firing their blasters and defending themselves against the robots' deadly attacks. The lazer beams were deflected and effectively blocked by the robots' energy shields leaving the Galaxy Police officers virtually defenseless. They became sitting ducks for the robots' attacks. The robots began to take out the Galaxy Police officers one by one using a combination of physical and long distance weapon attacks.

Jake had been watching all of his happen with his mouth hanging open, when he realized that Astra was in deep shit. _Holy Crap! The Dragon Alien Ryuuji is after Astra! I...I've got to do something!_ Jake inwardly decided as he watched Ryuuji close in on Astra on his bike from behind.

Jake yanked his reigns to the right and galloped off course and towards Astra now instead of staying on course. Ultraviolet swiftly hit Jake over the back of his head with her fist. _BONK!_ "Idiot! _Baka_ pervy cowboy! Where the hell do you think you're going? The proper route is the OTHER way, dumbass!"

"Ow! V! I...I want to go help Astra!" Jake explained as he fumbled to unsheathe his living-metal sword and held it out in front of him in an awkward manner.

Ultraviolet's eyes widened in surprise. "You want to go save her...what are you CRAZY?! _You_ can't possibly save anyone and besides we need to concentrate on winning this race. Think about _Mr. Suit_ , you selfish bastard!"

Jake frowned when he thought about Mr. Suit's predicament. Jake didn't answer as he continued to gallop after the Dragon Alien who was getting even closer to Astra. Ryuuji was raising his sword and preparing to take Astra out, when-

Cowboy Samurai, Jake Lonestar, on his faithful warhorse, Ginger, was suddenly right next to the Dragon Alien. Jake gathered his meager courage and swung his sword haphazardly at Ryuuji's head.

Ryuuji turned swiftly and effortlessly blocked Jake's attack, but was still surprised that Jake had managed to catch up with him, let alone attack him. _Who is this cocky human punk?_

Jake and the Dragon's Alien's sword clashed as Jake galloped next to the bike as they continued their way down the road at high speed.

Meanwhile, the rest of the SSF were extremely confused about why the heck Jake had suddenly gone off course.

A worried expression crossed Black Fox's face as she rubbed her temples. "Where does the cowboy think he's going? We don't have time for his foolishness. The _Metalheads_ are already way ahead of us."

"AWESOME!" Bulldozer grinned in amusement. "I think he's going to go kick someone's ass! He's a crazy kid! I like him!"

"You would." Black Fox shook her head at Bulldozer with a sigh.

Galaxy Girl watched as Jake rode off and frowned. "Jake? I wonder what's wrong. He better not be expecting us to help him with anything unnecessary. What if I chipped a nail?"

"That idiot." Red Dragon sneered as he shook his head at the cowboy _samurai_. "He managed to get lost on a one-way street. And we made him our team leader, why?" And then Red Dragon turned to face his partner Galaxy Girl and saw that she was on the phone with someone and putting lip-gloss on while riding her cyborg warhorse through traffic. His eyes nearly fell out of his head. "Galaxy Girl! Pay attention with what you're doing! Women drivers!"

"What?" Galaxy Girl snapped back. "My lips felt chapped and my friend just found out that her boyfriend was cheating on her with some stripper...it's crazy!"

Red Dragon plugged his ears with his fingers. "I don't want to hear your nonsense woman!"

Galaxy Girl shrugged and began to apply some _Maybelline_ mascara.

Red Dragon nearly fell off his cyborg warhorse at the sight.

Meanwhile, one of the Dragon Alien's robots took out another Galaxy Police officer in front of Astra and the officer flew off his bike. The bike tipped and skidded across the road sending sparks into the air. "No! Lazlo!" Astra called out and was forced to swerve on the road while trying to avoid the fallen bike. However, Astra lost control of her bike and it tipped beginning to skid across the road sideways with her still on it.

Jake and Ryuuji continued to fight. Inner Jake: _Ahhhh_! _What the heck am I doing?! Facing off against this scary Dragon! I can feel his glare burning a hole into my skull. Ah! Scary! I'm so going to die!_

However, the Dragon Alien was impressed by Jake's supposed 'courage' and 'bravery' to face him, and that he was holding his own against a Dragon in a match of strength because as Ryuuji pressed his sword against Jake's - Jake simply pressed his sword back with equal force. A very simple act - however, most human weaklings would have been completely blown back and off their horse or bike...any normal _human_ that is...

Ryuuji stroked his chin through his helmet and gave Jake a curious look as the gears in his mind began to turn. He took in the flashy superhero outfit and the cyborg warhorse. _Ah, he's a Samurai Superhero. Perhaps he's a cyborg. Do they also know that I'm here? Did the Galaxy Police tell them?_ Ryuuji knew about the SSF - a special police force formed to deal with the more dangerous criminals of New York City - cyborgs. The mayor had decided to form the force in order to fight fire with fire.

"Who are you, human?" Ryuuji questioned as his curiosity finally got the better of him. The Dragon Alien's eyes were suddenly drawn to the living-metal sword in Jake's hands that looked strangely familiar. Ryuuji's eyes widened suddenly. _That sword...it can't be...?!_

Jake was opening his mouth to respond, however, he saw Astra's bike tip and begin to skid across the road to the side and instantly became distracted. Not really thinking, he immediately galloped off in the direction of the fallen Galaxy Police officer, leaving the Dragon Alien in the dust.

Ryuuji's eyes widened in disbelief and he felt a large sweatdrop form on the side of his head. A mere human had just ignored _him_ \- Second in line to the throne of the planet Draconia, Prince Ryuuji! This was entirely unacceptable.

Jake pulled back on his reigns as he reached the fallen Astra and hopped off of Ginger. He rushed over to Astra and saw that the bike had somehow ended up on top of her. Jake grabbed the bike with his two hands and flung it aside as if it weighed nothing. He then knelt by Astra's side and giving her a worried look he held his hand out to her. "Are you alright, Astra? Can you stand?"

Astra groaned as she looked up and blinked at Jake in surprise. This _idiot_ had just saved her life. Her eyes had wanted to turn into two pink hearts for a moment there, but Astra quickly shook her head to stop herself. Astra put her hand in Jake's and allowed him to help her up. "Er...yea...thanks to you, Jake." She thanked him shyly and blushed. Astra was surprised at herself since she _never_ blushed. "You can let go of my hand now..."

"Ack!" Jake quickly let Astra's hand go, "Sorry!" He put a hand behind his head in a bashful gesture and laughed nervously.

Meanwhile, Ultraviolet had hopped off of Ginger at the same time and had reluctantly followed Jake over to help this Astra person with slower steps. Ultraviolet then watched as Jake lifted the bike off of Astra, how he helped her up and then how they stared at each other having a freakin romantic moment! Ultraviolet pulled a cig out of her shirt, lit it and took a long irritated drag. _Grrrr...who does Jake think he is?! Acting all...cool and suave like he's some kind of superhero, when he's just an idiot! He's just Jake!_ Her eye twitched in annoyance as she puffed on her cigarette while trying to calm herself down. It was times like this that she wished she could actually _feel_ the nicotine running through her veins. Ultraviolet sighed in defeat.

Ultraviolet stomped over to Jake angrily and reached out grabbing Jake's ear once she was close enough. "Come on, _baka_ pervy cowboy - we have a race to win, remember?" Ultraviolet had to resist the urge to stick her tongue out at Jake in an immature fashion and began dragging Jake away by his ear back to the cyborg warhorse Ginger.

Ginger seemed amused by what was going on and let out whinny as if she was laughing at Jake.

Astra looked after Jake with a wistful expression on her face. "Cowboy Samurai, Jake Lonestar...my hero? Naw." An amused smile curled Astra's lips.

Jake waved back at Astra excitedly, "Bye Astra! Be safe! Be careful, okay! Bye! Ow! Ow! Ow! V - do you really need to pull my ear so hard...yeooowwww!"

Jake remounted Ginger and Ultraviolet hopped up behind him - just as the rest of the SSF reached them on their warhorses. The Samurai Superheroes had all witnessed how Jake had protected Astra from the Dragon Alien Ryuuji.

"Jake, you're so heroic. You saved that girl." Galaxy Girl complimented. "Just like how you'll save me, if I'm ever in trouble, right?" Galaxy Girl gave Jake an expectant look with a flip of her hair.

Jake put a hand behind his head and gave Galaxy Girl an embarrassed look. "Of course I'd try..."

"Even if you have to act as a human shield and take a hit for me, you'll do it, right?" Galaxy Girl insisted.

Jake swallowed and scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Er, sure..."

"The woman he just saved was a Galaxy Police officer who was pursuing that Dragon Alien. Jake, do you really think it wise to make an enemy of a Dragon Alien? The odds of you surviving an encounter against that Dragon Alien again are 3,720 to 1." Black Fox stated.

"Never tell me the odds, Black Fox." Jake stated firmly. _Dang, she just went C3PO on my ass..._

"That idiot just picked a fight with a Dragon. He's dead meat." Red Dragon smiled happily to himself.

Bulldozer chuckled. "Or maybe Jake's already scared him off! Look! He's riding off already!" Bulldozer pointed at the Dragon Alien and sure enough it appeared as though he was taking off down the road on his bike.

"Either that or he has bigger fish to fry. I wonder what the Dragon's true objective really is for having entered this race or...who his target really is...?" Black Fox mused. "All I know for sure is that more people will die at his hands before this race is over."

Jake shivered.

"Kind of makes it exciting, huh?" Bulldozer grinned.

"Exciting!?" Galaxy Girl burst out. "So help me God, if I end up breaking a nail because of that Dragon I'm so suing his ass!"

Red Dragon shot Galaxy Girl a look of disbelief. "You're worried about your nails when you should be worried about your neck, stupid woman."

"What did you just call me, scaly." Galaxy Girl snapped, glaring at her partner.

"Stop calling me that, WOMAN!" Red Dragon snarled.

"ANYWAYS." Bulldozer interrupted them loudly. "I guess we'll find out what the Dragon is up to as this race continues. Come on. We lost a lot of time back there with Jake's knight in shinning armor routine. We need to get a move on."

Jake gave the SSF a bashful look. "Sorry guys...let's go! Hyah!"

The SFF all nodded to each other before guiding their warhorses back on course and heading once again for the Statue of Liberty. New York City passed them by - towering glass and steel skyscrapers, bright artificial lights, fancy cars, eclectic people, gray smog. Jake looked up and saw that no stars could be seen in the gray sky overhead because of all the artificial light within the city. It was so different from the Lonestar Ranch where Jake had grown up. But Jake thought that the city had its own charm too.

They passed by the new park where the Twin Towers used to be. Jake wondered what would happen if terrorists ever got their hands on E.T. Tech and what might happen. No. Jake shook his head. He wouldn't let that happen. He would protect his country if he could...just as any proud American would.

"Look! There goes the Dragon Alien, Linx!" Zoe shouted loudly as she spotted Ryuuji riding his bike past them at about four hundred miles per hour. "After him! Do you know how much fertilizer I could buy with the bounty that's on his head?"

Linx felt a trickle of sweat form on his brow at Zoe's unexpected order. Now it suddenly made sense why she had convinced him to enter this race...she was after the Dragon Alien's bounty. Linx slapped a hand to his forehead and groaned. He should have known. Zoe was an ex-bounty hunter known for only going after those with the highest bounties because...Linx frowned when he realized he didn't really know why Zoe did this. But when Linx had heard about this he began to rob more spaceships in order to increase the bounty on his head so that the infamously beautiful and deadly bounty hunter Zoe would come after him. She was a lovely rose covered in thorns. It had been love at first sight.

Linx loved Zoe even if she had a strange hobby of nurturing deadly alien plants and finding ways to make them even more deadly. Love was blind obviously. But Zoe also had this divine scent...it drove him wild. Linx looked over at Zoe and spotted the space credit signs in her eyes.

Zoe was smiling to herself thinking of the Dragon Alien's bounty and feeling giddy. Astra had showed her the Dragon Alien's Ryuuji's Wanted Poster. Apparently, Ryuuji was second in line to the throne of the Planet Draconia. According to the poster his bounty was 800,000,000 space credits dead or alive.

"Just how much is his bounty, anyways, babe?" Linx asked curiously.

"Oh just 800,000,000 space credits." Zoe informed Linx casually.

Linx's expression fell. That was several times higher than his own bounty. Linx frowned, feeling jealous that Zoe was after Ryuuji. He didn't want to help her capture this guy...also Linx didn't want to go after a _Dragon_! But Linx had no choice because Zoe had asked him. And how could he refuse Zoe? "Alright, babe. Let's get this guy, if that's what you want." Linx cooed at Zoe as he floored his hovercar after Ryuuji and his robot bikers.

"Launch the rockets!" Zoe commanded waving her hand at Ryuuji.

Linx really didn't want to piss off a _Dragon_ but...he had no choice. He pressed down on a red button on his dashboard and the front hood of the red hovercar rose to reveal a hidden rocket launcher device that contained three rockets. The rockets were fired at Ryuuji simultaneously went zooming through the air towards the Dragon Alien with deadly precision.

However, the rockets hit the energy shields that immediately formed around the robot bikers and were deflected. The three rockets bounced off of the energy shields and dangerously zoomed off in three random directions. One of the rockets hit a nearby building, another exploded in the street sending pavement up into the air, and the third went straight up into the air and exploded like a gigantic firework, showering the road with red sparks.

Ryuuji looked behind him and noticed that now a hovercar filled with a bunch of idiots were after him. His eyes narrowed when he spotted a red-haired woman whip out an energy saber and point it in his direction. _Wait, that woman looks familiar._ Ryuuji pressed a button on the side of his helmet to activate his visor's scanning mode. The visor scanned Zoe and easily identified her.

"Scanning...target. Target identified as Bounty Hunter Zoe. Threat: Extreme. Proceed with caution." A synthesized voice intoned in Ryuuji's ear.

"Ryuuji! Your head and bounty are mine!" Zoe yelled loudly at him with a cat's paw smile on her face.

" _Nooo~_ Zoe, you can have my head and bounty instead!" Linx moaned dramatically.

Both of Ryuuji's brows rose at this discovery. _Bounty Hunter Zoe? What's she doing out here in the boonies? I thought she looked familiar. So, she really is the infamous plant alien and bounty hunter. Heh. She must have gone crazy after seeing my latest Galactic Wanted Poster._ A pleased smirk formed on Ryuuji's face. _And also my handsome face. The ladies just can't seem to get enough of me. And who can really blame them, after all I am incredibly handsome, a prince and powerful. But this time Zoe has made a mistake of targeting me. Hunter will soon become prey._ His smirk twisted into an evil grin. Without fear, he turned his bike around and headed straight for the hovercar, whipping out his living-metal sword and holding it out before him as he essentially charged the hovercar.

Linx and the other _nekomata_ aliens began to panic at the Dragon's bold move. "Ack! He's heading straight for us! What do we do?!" Linx's hands gripped the steering wheel tighter until it cracked.

"He's playing chicken with us." Zoe's eyes sparkled when she came to this realization. "But we won't be the chickens! Keep going straight ahead!" Zoe demanded loudly.

Linx frowned at Zoe, who was sitting in the passenger's seat next to him and practically bouncing up and down in her seat in excitement. He just couldn't figure her out. He shrugged before he continued to drive straight ahead and towards the approaching Dragon Alien.

"Epp! He's not going to back down! Captain!" The cat-girl cried out worriedly.

"Shit! We're going to hit him!" Linx swore.

Zoe raised her sword, prepared to fight, "Cocky bastard! He's so going down."

However, Ryuuji merely evolved his sword so that it increased in length and glowed with a green-tinged light. He then held the sword out before him and sliced through the hovercar when it would have otherwise collided with his body. The hovercar was neatly sliced in two and the pieces of the car flew past on either side of the Dragon. Ryuuji had made sure to cut the hovercar in such a way that Linx nor Zoe would be hurt since that would have ended the fun all too soon.

The two pieces of the hovercar went zooming through the air out of control and crash landed on the street. The pieces of the hovercar, which still contained Linx, Zoe and the other _nekomata_ space pirates, skidded and sparked across the street dangerously until finally coming to a stop.

Ryuuji chuckled at Zoe's indignant expression, and watched as she raised her sword and shook her fist at his departing form. "Ryuuji, you coward! Get your ass back here so I can kick it into the next galaxy!"

Ryuuji gave Zoe a salute. Zoe was hot. Maybe he'd make her a part of his Royal Harem. Though she wasn't as beautiful as himself. _I'm too sexy for this planet...too sexy for this planet~_ Ryuuji sung in his mind to the beat of an old Earthling song.

Jake had witnessed what had happened to Linx and Zoe, and wanted to stop in order to make sure that they were okay. "Zoe! Linx! I need to go and see if they're okay!" Jake said.

"No you don't!" Ultraviolet grabbed Jake's ear and twisted it.

"OW!" Jake cried.

"We have a race to win! Don't worry about them. They can take care of themselves." Ultraviolet stated firmly.

"But _V~_ " Jake whined before he caught sight of the Silver Fox Gang and more specifically the Green Avenger and a sudden idea struck him. Jake galloped towards the Green Avenger, who was on his hoverboard. "Hey! Green!"

The Green Avenger turned around and saw Jake galloping towards him and his eyes widened. "Jake?" The Green Avenger maneuvered his board towards Jake while the rest of the Silver Fox Gang headed for the finish line. He was soon hovering next to Jake as they continued forward on the road at a fast pace. "What's up?"

"Green - Linx and Zoe were just taken out by the Dragon Gang. The dude actually cut their hovercar in half with his living-metal sword! It was crazy. It looked like they survived but I'm worried about Zoe...can you go make sure they're all okay? I can't continue this race with that worry in the back of my mind..." Jake quickly explained.

Ultraviolet rolled her eyes heavenwards, "Soft hearted idiot...he barely knows those weirdos and yet he's actually _worried_ about them. Keh." She stuck her tongue out.

The Green Avenger's eyes turned into two large stars. "Jake- _san_! You're so compassionate! Of course I'll go make sure they're okay and provide any assistance needed. That's so like you Jake- _san_ \- even worrying about your competitors!"

Jake blushed. "Er...naw...not really." Jake pulled his hat down low over his eyes out of embarrassment. "Anyways, I need to keep moving forward!"

The Green Avenger saluted Jake. "Don't worry Jake - you just leave this to me!" The Green Avenger headed for the wreckage of Linx's hovercar.

At that moment, Mayor Stark noticed the Green Avenger leaving the main route, "Oi! Green Avenger, where do you think you're going?"

"Duty calls! Zoe and Linx may need my help...the help of a hero! I sense a damsel in distress... _yosha!_ " The Green Avenger declared loudly while striking a corny superhero pose.

Mayor Stark sighed and rubbed his temples at the overly enthusiastic _kappa_ alien. "When will he ever grow out of that hero fixation? My compatriots - let us go offer our assistance to Linx and Zoe. Then we'll continue the race. Come on, let us go!" Mayor Stark ordered the two _kitsune_ couples, and the hoverboard Silver Fox Gang left the main route going to help the Linx Space Pirates.

Jake watched as the entire Silver Fox Gang left the main route and headed off to help the Linx Space Pirates from the burning wreckage of the hovercar and let out a breath of relief. He could suddenly breath a whole lot easier.

Ultraviolet smirked. "That was very devious of you Jake...eliminating the competition like that."

Jake's eyes widened, "Huh...that's not why I did that, V!"

" _Surreee~_ " Ultraviolet crowed, not convinced. "No one can actually be as kind as you Jake. It's a statistically impossibility in this world. The odds that you did that out of the kindness of your heart are 5,654 to 1."

Jake blushed. That had almost been a compliment. Almost.

"Don't blush you idiot! That wasn't a compliment! Gah!" Ultraviolet complained as she gave him a noogie.

"Owowowow! V!" Jake complained but was feeling lighthearted all of a sudden.

A temporary bridge that reached Liberty Island where the Statue of Liberty was had been newly constructed specifically for the E.T. Tech Race. Four gangs had managed to reach this last stretch of road that led to the Statue of Liberty. An unknown cyborg biker gang, the _Metalheads_ , the Dragon Gang and the Samurai Superheroes Force. Jake watched as the _Metalheads_ approached the biker gang that was in front of them before ruthlessly taking them out in a matter of seconds. It had been a battle between cyborg bikers using E.T. Tech with energy sabers slicing through the air and red lazer beams shooting through the sky. The NANO addicts had been no match for the _Metalheads_.

Now nothing stood between the _Metalheads_ and victory, or so Jake thought until he noticed that the Dragon Alien had somehow managed to pass not only that unknown cyborg biker gang but the _Metalheads_ too. Burning rubber, Ryuuji spun his bike around to face the _Metalheads_. He then stood up on the seat of his bike in the middle of the road as his five robot bikers road around him as they awaited the _Metalheads_ to approach.

In this manner, the _Metalheads_ and the Dragon Gang faced off. The robots that were with the Dragon Alien immediately engaged the rest of the _Metalheads_ in battle as both gangs rode towards each other and clashed while Ryuuji whipped out his living-metal _katana_ and rode forward to attack Nix Duo. His apparent target.

Nix Duo followed suit and whipped out his own living-metal _katana_ and blocked Ryuuji's attack as the biker was suddenly upon him. Ryuuji eyed Nix Duo curiously. He was a Nemesis Zero - one of Nova Inara's top fighters - a living-metal _samurai_. "You pathetic humans playing at being living-metal _samurai,_ using Tech you stole from my race...it sickens me. Nix Duo - where is Nova Inara? Where is the D. Spark she stole from us?!" Ryuuji demanded in a fierce tone.

A holographic, maniac grin formed on the faceless mask Nix Duo wore as he realized what was going on. "A Dragon? I always wanted to cross swords with one of the legendary Dragon Aliens. I'd like to hear your scream, Dragon. I'd like to see your blood Dragon." A psychotic laughter bubbled up within Nix Duo that he suddenly released in Ryuuji's face. Nix Duo began to viciously slash his sword at Ryuuji, who easily blocked the wild swings.

His 'interrogation' was not going too well. Ryuuji frowned to himself. _Insolent humans!_

Jake and the rest of the Samurai Superheroes had frozen at the sight before them and watched as the _Metalheads_ and the Dragon Gang were savagely trying to take each other out.

"What should we do?" Jake asked.

Ultraviolet sighed and rubbed her temples. "Isn't that obvious _baka?!_ Let's make a break for the finish line!"

"Oh...right! Let's go, guys!" Jake agreed loudly.

"Roger!" The Samurai Superheroes all cried.

Jake and the rest of the SSF galloped forward intending to pass the _Metalheads_ and the Dragon Gang and make their way to the Statue of Liberty.

However, as Jake was galloping past the _Metalheads_ and swerving to miss them, Solis caught sight of Jake galloping past her and a sadistic, predatory smile formed on her face.

"And where do you think you're going, Lonestar?" Solis whipped out her long, barbed metal whip towards Jake and the whip wrapped around Ginger's front legs.

Solis roughly pulled back on her whip and Ginger faltered and fell hard on the pavement. Jake went flying over the front of his saddle, flipped in the air, and landed on his back. The back of his head hit the pavement with a sickening _crack!_ Ultraviolet had lithely jumped off as Ginger as it became apparent that the warhorse would fall and landed gracefully on her feet (but not before giving everyone a nice panty shot as she back flipped through the air and her short skirt flipped up).

Ultraviolet looked around frantically and spotted Jake's prone form on the ground, a pool of blood forming around his head. "JAKE!" Ultraviolet exclaimed as she rushed to Jake's side. "That _baka_ why didn't he just jump off and land on his feet? He should have been able to do that, unless he was paralyzed by his own fear? That coward..." Ultraviolet grabbed Jake's shoulder and shook it. "JAKE! Wake up!"

Jake abruptly sat up and then stood stiffly on his feet. Jake then tied his shaggy brown hair into a ponytail and a fierce gleam came to his light brown eyes. " **I am...Samurai Orochi!** " Orochi whipped out his living-metal sword.

Ginger tried to stand and let out a pained whinny as the barbed metal whip continued to cut into the front of her chest and grated against her cybernetic legs.

Solis cackled gleefully at the warhorse's plight. "Aw you poor creature. How about I put you out of your misery!" Solis pulled her whip back, removing it from the horse's front legs and then lashed her whip out again intending to bring the whip down upon the warhorse's body, which was still actual flesh and bone.

_Orochi! Save Ginger! Please!_ Jake shouted loudly in his mind.

Without responding, Orochi charged forward, and stood in front of Ginger as the whip came slashing through the air. Orochi then simply grabbed the whip with his bare hand and pulled back on it. Solis cried out as the whip was wrenched away from her by Orochi's powerful grip. Orochi then tossed the whip aside. Jake could see that his hand was bleeding and was glad that he couldn't feel the pain that injury must have been causing him. Although he knew that as soon as he regained control of his body that he'd feel the pain. _Aw crap._

Now free, Ginger was able to stand once more and let out an angry puff of air as she pawed the ground in Solis' direction as if she wanted to attack the sadistic female cyborg.

Jake let out a mental breath of relief that his warhorse seemed to be okay. She was one tough cookie. He smiled inwardly at the thought.

"How dare you steal my whip, cowboy!" Solis was shouting at Orochi but Orochi's attention had turned to focus on where Nix Duo and Ryuuji were fighting.

Jake noticed this as well. _Oh hell no, don't even think about fighting them you stupid sword! It's way too dangerous!_

" **Target detected. Target identified as Nix Duo. Preparing to eliminate. Evolution 1...2...3!** " The holographic projection of an eight-headed dragon with shimmering emerald green scales, and glowing yellow eyes appeared next to Orochi. " **Eight-headed** **Dragon Energy Attack!** " Orochi's sword was glowing and pulsing with a green-tinged light, and he swung his sword forward unleashing a plasma attack that turned into the form of an eight-headed dragon as it flew through the air towards Nix Duo and Ryuuji.

Nix Duo looked up to see a huge, green eight-headed dragon flying towards him and his eyes widened dramatically behind his faceless mask. "Holy shit!" Nix Duo quickly maneuvered his bike to avoid the attack.

Ryuuji simply turned his bike to face the attack instead. He arched an eyebrow at the familiar looking attack. "That attack...it can't be..." Ryuuji raised his living-metal sword and summoned its power so that it began to form an energy shield to block Orochi's attack. The eight-headed dragon clashed against Ryuuji's shield and the Dragon Alien was being hard pressed to block the attack.

But then Orochi was suddenly in front of Ryuuji as if he'd teleported. " **I will kill all those who oppose me! I am Samurai Orochi!** " Orochi roared as he slashed his sword down upon Ryuuji.

Jake was shocked that Orochi was managing to hold his own against a Dragon. Inner Jake: _Hey, Orochi is kicking some serious ass! Hey Orochi! Ask the Dragon about the symbol with the single star! Let's beat the shit out of this guy and find out where my parents are!_

Ryuuji raised his own living-metal sword and blocked Orochi's attack. He eyed the sword and thought back to the _samurai_ 's earlier statement. "No...it can't be...my family's lost heirloom - the sword destined to be in the hands of the most powerful warrior in the universe...the Dragon King! The one destined to rule the universe is fated to have that sword in his possession. That sword belongs to the Dragon Royal Family. Why...what is the sword doing here in the hands of a pathetic human no less? Orochi! What are you doing in the hands of a _human_? You belong to my brother, Prince Ryuuzaki! He is your rightful master!"

Inner Jake: _Legendary Sword...no duh. Family heirloom? Now that's new info._ _Most powerful warrior in the universe? Well, that can't be me._

Orochi raised an eyebrow at Ryuuji. " **My 'rightful' master? I think not. Your brother is weak, just as you are weak. Your guard is full of openings. I have a mission to accomplish Ryuuji. I won't let you get in my way, conceited prince. Nova Inara is my prey. HA!"** Orochi slashed his sword through the air and cut Ryuuji's helmet off.

Ryuuji's face was revealed to all. The Dragon was incredibly handsome with long, cyan-colored hair, and shinning golden eyes with slanted pupils. He had a beauty mark under his left eye and long lashes giving him a somewhat effeminate appearance. Ryuuji put his hands on his exposed face and began to freak out. "Orochi! How dare you do that!? I am Prince Ryuuji - I can't be expected to breath the same air as these lowly humans! Ugh. I feel sick." Ryuuji's face had indeed turned an interesting shade of green. Ryuuji was a racist who thought humans were a weak, dumb species that should only serve as slaves to Dragons.

However, Orochi gave Ryuuji a disgusted look. " **You're still full of openings, your highness...allow me to teach you a lesson about where your conceit and vanity will get you. There is something much more important that you should be worrying about than oxygen right now your highness: ME.** " Orochi rushed forward and slashed his living-metal _katana_ down through the air.

Inner Jake: _Hey, don't kill him! He may know where my parents are!_

Orochi cut Ryuuji's cheek just under his left eye. Ryuuji's eyes widened in horror as he watched his own blood splatter through the air. He put a hand to his bleeding cheek and collapsed to his knees, as his immense strength suddenly seemed to leave him. "My cheek...you cut my cheek!" He murmured and looked up at Orochi with wide, beseeching eyes. "How could you Orochi? How could you deface me? My face...my beautiful face...!" Ryuuji whipped out a hand mirror and examined his reflection fretfully.

Orochi shook his head and looked down at Ryuuji while giving him a disgusted look. " **And you call yourself a Dragon...you are an eyesore to your entire race...** "

However, Nix Duo was getting pissed that Ryuuji and Jake were ignoring him. No one ignored _Nix Duo_. Nix Duo decided to take advantage of Ryuuji's vulnerable state and attack him. Nova Inara was sure to reward him handsomely if he managed to take out a Dragon.

"HA! Die Dragon Alien!" Nix Duo leapt up into the air and brought his sword down upon Ryuuji.

Ryuuji looked up, sniffling, and saw Nix Duo attacking him. A pathetic human thought he could take Prince Ryuuji out? Think again. Ryuuji moved swiftly, in the blink of an eye, and Nix Duo's living-metal sword came down upon the pavement and created a gigantic crater where Ryuuji had been standing only mere seconds before. "Keh...where did that bastard Dragon Alien go...?" Nix Duo whipped his head around.

"Looking for someone, Nix Duo?" Came Ryuuji's angry sounding voice. Nix Duo turned to see Ryuuji standing straight and looking extremely pissed as blood trailed down his cheek.

"I'm in a _very_ bad mood right now, Nix Duo. That was not a good idea attacking me while I was having a personal moment. Did you - a lowly, pathetic, disgusting _human_ really think that you could kill me? Such audacity! I'll destroy you! I'll cut you into tiny little pieces, Nix Duo! Your mere _appearance_ offends me..." Ryuuji noticed the several piercings in Nix Duo's ears and shuddered. Most likely, Nix Duo had more facial piercings that were hidden behind his mask. "I _hate_ piercings - they're disgusting. I would never deface my beautiful body like that. Qinlong Evolution One...Two...Three!" Ryuuji's sword glowed with a green-tinged light. The holographic image of a blue-scaled dragon with bright golden eyes appeared next to him, and then little tubes formed on the living-metal sword as it began to suck in oxygen to create plasma for his up and coming attack.

Nix Duo followed suit, "Karasu-Tengu Evolution Three!" Nix Duo's living-metal sword glowed with a green-tinged light and the holographic image of a _tengu yokai_ dressed in the clothes of a Buddhist monk appeared next to Nix Duo.

Both living-metal _samurai_ prepared to unleash their energy attacks at each other. Ryuuji swung his sword forward and unleashed a plasma attack that resembled a dragon flying towards Nix Duo. "Qinlong Energy Attack!"

"Karasu-Tengu Energy Attack!" Nix Duo cried as he swung his sword forward and unleashed a plasma attack that resembled a gigantic crow, which flew towards the dragon shaped attack Ryuuji had sent his way.

The two energy attacks collided and clashed in the air, battling for dominance like two fierce beasts.

Meanwhile, Ultraviolet ran towards Jake, "Jake! Jake snap out of it! We have a race to win!" Ultraviolet grasped Jake's shoulders and stared into his light brown eyes searchingly.

Orochi blinked down at Ultraviolet, a scowl on his face, " **Such shameless behavior onna...** "

"Shameless? I'll show you shameless you _baka_ sword!" Ultraviolet declared. _I guess I don't really have a choice - I need to get Jake back._ Ultraviolet thought before she stood up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips passionately to Jake's.

Jake began to freak out inwardly. _Ack! Ultraviolet is kissing meeee~!_

Orochi's eyes widened in shock, and he became swirly eyed before he passed out cold and fell backwards landing on the pavement with a heavy thud.

"Jake!" Ultraviolet crouched down by his side.

Jake stirred awake and blinked back up at Ultraviolet. "V...?" A blush spread across Jake's cheeks, "You kissed me." He decided to state the obvious.

Ultraviolet blushed and slapped Jake hard across the face _Latina_ style. "I DID NOT! I kissed Orochi - remember? How could I kiss a pathetic loser like you! Ha!"

Jake pouted, "Oh, yea...right."

"Anyways, we need to hurry and finish this race. We should take advantage of the fact that Nix Duo and Ryuuji are distracted!" Ultraviolet stood up and held her hand out to help Jake up.

Jake took her hand and allowed her to help her up, while giving the feisty android a goofy grin. "Right!" Jake mounted Ginger and patted the side of his warhorse's neck. "Just a little bit further girl, and then I'm going to reward you with some nice oats. How does that sound?"

Ginger let out a happy neighing sound at the mention of oats as Ultraviolet hopped up behind Jake in the saddle. "Good, now that that's settled. Let's ride." Jake snapped his reigns and Ginger began to gallop down the temporary bridge towards the Statue of Liberty. "Let's win this thing, ladies! Yeehawww!"

However, Nix Duo noticed Jake galloping past him and the Dragon Alien and scowled. "Metalheads! After him! Don't let Jake Lonestar reach the finish line alive!" Nix Duo shouted the order to his gang members.

"Roger that, Nix Duo!" The _Metalheads_ cried out before they began to pursue Jake on their high-style bikes.

However, the SSF rode their horses to stand in the _Metalheads_ ' way in order to protect Jake. The SSF and the _Metalheads_ were suddenly facing off.

Galaxy Girl charged Lunae on her cyborg warhorse and swung her _naginata_ at the female cyborg that Galaxy Girl thought was a fashion emergency. There was a pair of tiny metal wings on Lunae's back and metal coils throughout her curly white hair. "The wings are kind of cute but those metal coils in your hair are a total fashion _faux pas_. Can we say Medusa?" Galaxy Girl was caught off guard however when Lunae didn't make any effort to dodge or avoid the deadly swing of Galaxy Girl's _naginata_ and Galaxy Girl was forced to stop her blade a mere inch away from Lunae's throat.

Lunae licked her lips and smile innocently at Galaxy Girl. "What are you waiting for, Samurai Superhero? Aren't you going to stab me? Aren't you going to hurt me? Aren't you going to draw my blood?" Lunae leaned forward on her bike so that Galaxy Girl's _naginata_ slightly pierced her throat. "Mmm." Lunae moaned. "Cut me more. Hurt me more. Make me bleed more...more...more..." She urged the Samurai Superhero in a low husky voice.

Galaxy Girl pulled back on her reigns causing her warhorse to back away from Lunae. She blinked back at this odd cyborg woman in shock. She frowned as she rode forward and swung her _naginata_ at Lunae again but once again the cyborg didn't even try to dodge the attack. Galaxy Girl was forced to stop her blade from slicing into Lunae's arm, this time around. "Like oh my God...there is something messed up with this woman..." _Maybe I should just take out my handcuffs and arrest her? Yea right. That will never work._

Galaxy Girl reached into her pocket just for the hell of it, and pulled out a pair of high-tech cuffs. "You're under arrest, cyborg Lunae."

"Ooo handcuff me, please." Lunae said putting out both of her wrists obediently for Galaxy Girl to handcuff.

Galaxy Girl felt a sweatdrop form on the side of her head. "Or maybe it will work. Works for me." Galaxy Girl grinned.

***

Meanwhile, Galaxy Girl's partner Red Dragon was engaged in battle against Tempo. Red Dragon watched curiously as Tempo approached him on his bike with an electric guitar in front of him. He began to strum his guitar and opened his mouth preparing to sing. "What's this fool going to do? Serenade me to death?" Red Dragon sneered.

However, Tempo opened his mouth and sang sending an invisible sound wave attack Red Dragon's way. "YEEOWWW!"

Red Dragon sensed the attack and quickly pulled on the reigns of his cyborg warhorse to dodge the oncoming attack. "What the hell?" Red Dragon stated as the road next to him was torn up from the invisible attack. "Some kind of sound wave attack. His voice definitely isn't normal. Which means the guy is definitely a cyborg." Red Dragon smirked to himself as he evolved his sword. "Nure Onna Evolution One...Two!"

Red Dragon said as his sword glowed with a green light and the holographic image of a serpentine woman appeared next to his warhorse. She had the head and torso of a woman with long, scraggily wet hair that shielded her face and the tail of a yellow and black spotted snake. The woman's tail was snapping back and force in a menacing manner. Red Dragon concentrated on changing his sword's shape via his psy-link and the end of his sword began to resemble a snake's head. _Perfect._

Red Dragon kicked his warhorse's sides and charged forward towards Tempo. Tempo stayed put and opened his mouth to shriek at Red Dragon again. Red Dragon yanked his warhorse's reigns first to the left and then to the right as he avoided oncoming invisible sound wave attacks that successfully destroyed the road sending pieces of asphalt and pavement up into the air. Finally, Red Dragon managed to get in front of Tempo and he let his sword shoot forward towards the cyborg, so that the tip of his sword bit into Tempo's neck. "Nure Onna Virus Attack!" Red Dragon stated. "It's time for you to shut the hell up."

As soon as Red Dragon successfully shot the virus into Tempo he quickly galloped out of the way.

Angry green lines began to form on Tempo's neck as he grasped his neck with his hands as he was suddenly in excruciating pain. His high-tech voice amplification device that was inside of his throat was suddenly acting strangely. Tempo's mouth opened up of its own accord and suddenly Tempo couldn't control where he was unleashing sound wave attacks. "Yeeow! Yeeow! Yeeow!"

The sound wave attacks crashed into whatever was nearby destroying it instantly. Red Dragon watched the cyborg in amusement since it appeared as though the cyborg was head banging while singing rather than losing control of his own power. Abruptly, Tempo coughed up a great deal of blood before passing out and falling right off his bike.

Red Dragon looked down at the fallen Nemesis Zero smugly. "That's what you get for not paying attention to what you were doing and trying to play guitar and have a solo-concert, Tempo. It's what I'm always trying to tell Galaxy Girl: concentration is key. Tempo. You are under arrest."

***

Bulldozer was facing off against Blaze. Keeping one hand on the handle bar to control his bike Blaze raised his free hand to allow the nozzle for his flame thrower to emerge with a whirling sound. He then rode his bike forward towards Bulldozer while unleashing a stream of flame the Samurai Superhero's way. "Burn, Samurai Superhero! Burn!" Blaze cackled.

Bulldozer raised his brows at the pyromaniac cyborg and shrugged. He supposed Black Fox wouldn't get too mad at him for cutting loose since he was going up against a Nemesis Zero. Bulldozer grinned as he raised both of his cybernetic arms and allowed his wrists to open up revealing that the barrels of his arms were rocket launchers. The tips of two rockets emerged slowly before Bulldozer fired them at the matchstick-head. "Time to fight fire...with something better than fire."

Bulldozer aimed for the ground just in front of the Nemesis Zero and released the rockets. The rockets whizzed through the air and exploded directly in front of Blaze sending the bike and the Nemesis Zero flying through the air in the explosion. Bulldozer whistled at the destruction he had just caused. "Sweet! When in doubt - blow things up."

***

At the same time, Black Fox and Solis were facing off. Black Fox looked over the female cyborg's strange red leather outfit complete with metal horns on her forehead and wondered briefly what Galaxy Girl would say about such a fashion statement. Probably something clever about the she-devil look being _so_ last year. Black Fox had her living-metal whip-sword Tamamo-no-mae in hand while Solis had her barbed metal whip in hers. Black Fox kicked her cyborg warhorse's sides and galloped towards Solis while the female cyborg revved her bike before taking off in Black Fox's direction. They raised their whips simultaneously and flicked their wrists allowing their whips to slash violently through the air at their opponent.

"I believe that's a _normal_ metal whip and not a living-metal whip. Am I correct?" Black Fox observed stoically.

"Yea, so what?" Solis snapped.

"So...your whip can't do things like this." Black Fox concentrated on her psy-link and commanded her living-metal whip-sword to come alive and wrap around Solis' whip like a slithering snake.

"What the hell...?" Solis said as she watched Black Fox's whip-sword act as if it were alive and wrap around Solis' whip. "Hey...!"

Black Fox then yanked her hand back and Solis' whip went flying out of her grasp. At the same time the nine curved blades of Black Fox's sword cut through the pathetic normal metal of Solis' whip and destroyed it to pieces.

"My whip! You destroyed my beautiful whip! You bitch!" Solis cried out in outrage. "I'll make you pay for that, Black Fox!" Solis leapt off of her bike, got into a fighting stance with her hands raised before her, and showed off her long, deadly metal nails. She beckoned Black Fox to her with a hand gesture.

Black Fox accepted the challenge and dismounted from her cyborg warhorse to face Solis on the road. Without further ado Solis charged at Black Fox and slashed her clawed hands at the Samurai Superheroine.

Black Fox elegantly dodged the attacks and blocked them with her whip sword. "Long nails are _so_ tacky." Black Fox said mimicking Galaxy Girl's know-it-all tone of voice as she flung her sword out and it wrapped around Solis' body. She then yanked back and her whip-sword began to constrict around Solis' body. Solis screamed in pain as the nine blades began to cut into her skin. "You like to inflict pain on others but it seems like you don't like to be on the receiving end. Am I right, Miss S?"

"No! Wait! Please!" Solis objected, while giving Black Fox a beseeching look.

"I'm sorry. I didn't quite catch that. My ears must be dirty." Black Fox looked at Solis with an emotionless expression on her face as Solis passed out from the shock of the pain she was feeling as Black Fox tightened her grip around the female cyborg one final time.

Black Fox removed her sword from around Solis' body and watched as the female cyborg fell to an unconscious, bloody heap upon the ground.

Bulldozer had watched Black Fox win her battle effortlessly and shuddered. "Dude...you can be really scary sometimes, Black Fox."

"Why thank you." Black Fox turned to smile at Bulldozer. "I try."

***

With the help of the Samurai Superheroes Force Jake was able to gallop past the _Metalheads_ unhindered and make his way towards the Statue of Liberty flying across the bridge at over 200 MPH.

However, Ryuuji noticed that Jake was heading towards the finish line and wanted Jake's sword Orochi. "Battle Droids! After Jake Lonestar! I want that sword!"

"Yes Master," The Battle Droids responded in their synthesized voices as the five Battle Droids rode after Jake and Ultraviolet on their bikes.

Jake was galloping down the bridge when he looked behind him to see that the five robot bikers were riding after them now.

The Battle Droids raised their hands and began to fire deadly, red lazer beams at Jake. Jake began to panic. "Holy Shit! They're firing at us! We're doomed! We're going to die!"

Ultraviolet smacked the back of Jake's head, " _Baka!_ Idiot! Pull yourself together! We'll be just fine...light shield activate!" An light shield suddenly flared to life around Ultraviolet, and as the red lazer beams were about to hit Jake, Ginger, and herself the beams were deflected.

Jake was impressed. "Cool. You have an light shield now? Is that one of the upgrades Dr. Valery did on you?" His light brown eyes were sparkling with interest.

Ultraviolet smirked. "Just concentrate on the goal Jake. I'll protect us from the droids."

Jake grinned back at Ultraviolet in such a way that it made her heart skip a beat. Ultraviolet put a hand over her fluttering heart with a confused look on her face. _That smile just made my heart flutter but I'm an android and so I don't have a heart._ "Right! Yeehaw!" Jake took his hat off and waved it through the air enthusiastically.

Ultraviolet spun around in the saddle so that she was sitting with her back to Jake's and removed her two newly upgraded _tonfa_ -blasters from the holster that was around her waist. She raised both her _tonfa_ -blasters simultaneously and pressed down on the triggers. She hadn't had the opportunity to try out her _tonfa_ -blasters in this manner yet. Theoretically, her _tonfa_ -blasters were able to send energy blasts her opponent's way. Ultraviolet fired and round blasts of green plasma energy the size of soccer balls flew through the air at the droids.

Jake continued to gallop towards the statue of Liberty while Ultraviolet literally watched his back and protected him with her light shield. Jake urged Ginger closer to the statue and as he passed it Jake whacked the side of the statue with his hand. "We did it! We made it to the finish line first! We won!" A triumphant grin stretched across Jake's face.

Standing next to the Statue of Liberty was a golden fembot with cone-shaped breasts. "Attention. Attention. Participants of the E.T. Tech Race - Jake Lonestar and the Samurai Superheroes Force have won. I repeat, the winner of this year's E.T. Tech race is the SSF. Congratulations." The fembot said in her droning voice that was being projected all over the city via intercoms that Gold Fist had set up.

Jake may have been imagining it but he thought the he saw the fembot smile at Jake and wink. Jake rubbed his eyes with his hands and when he looked at the fembot again he saw that she wore an emotionless expression on her metal face once more.

However, the Battle Droids didn't have orders to stop pursing Jake just because he won the race and were still closing in. Ultraviolet's light shield was beginning to flicker and then suddenly Ultraviolet closed her eyes and fell off of Ginger. Jake's eyes widened as he felt Ultraviolet's presence leave the saddle and turned to see her fall to the ground and lay in an unmoving heap. He quickly hopped off of Ginger and rushed to the android's side. "V?!"

The Battle Droids circled Jake and Ultraviolet on their bikes menacingly as they looked for an opening to attack. Jake looked down at Ultraviolet's prone form and felt pissed. "You bastards!" Jake stood up and glared at the droids. "What did you do to V! Arghhh!" Jake brashly charged one of the Battle Droids which fired a lazer beam at Jake. Jake dodged the lazer beam and whipped out his living-metal sword at the same time bringing his sword down and slicing the robot in two.

Jake was afraid but he was just so pissed that Ultraviolet had been hurt that he was beyond reason. The four remaining Battle Droids all raised their hands and began to fire a barrage of red lazers Jake's way. But Jake leapt up into the air and brought his sword down upon another robot - slicing it in two and causing it to explode with a _BOOM!_

Jake quickly swung his sword and in a blind rage he sliced through the remaining Battle Droids and their bikes \- his incredible superhuman reflexes enabling him to dodge the lazer beams, and his powerful living-metal sword enabling him to cut through anything in his path. Jake had fallen into a sort of zone where just he and the droids existed.

Panting for breath, Jake turned to make his way back to Ultraviolet. As the gravity of what he had just done began to sink in he became weak-kneed and stumbled forward dropping to his knees. "I can't believe I just did that. That was so freakin scary. I just took out a bunch of frickin Terminator robots! Dude! Booyah!" Jake trembled with a combination of fear and excitement. He couldn't decide if he wanted to smile or cry.

Jake struggled to stand back up on his two feet again and stumbled his way back towards Ultraviolet. Once he reached her he found the golden fembot kneeling by Ultraviolet's side almost concernedly. Jake knelt by her side next and frowned as he looked down at Ultraviolet's unmoving form. "Shit...what's wrong with her? She can't be sick, right? I mean, she's a robot..." Jake trailed off uncertainly.

"Ultraviolet is running out of energy. Her internal battery needs to be recharged immediately or else she will reboot." The fembot explained in her synthesized voice.

Jake blinked, brow furrowed, it was times like this that he wished he wasn't such an idiot. "Internal battery? Recharged?" Jake looked around the Statue of Liberty and wondered if there was an outlet where he could just plug Ultraviolet in...?

"Yes, didn't you know that you are supposed to keep your personal android computer charged at all times? It is the owner's responsibility. This way Jake Lonestar...you should be able to recharge her over here..." The fembot stood up and began to lead Jake over towards a power outlet.

Jake nodded and with his gloves still on he picked Ultraviolet up and began to carry her over to where the fembot had detected an outlet. The fembot directed Jake to lay Ultraviolet on the ground and he did so. The fembot then went to Ultraviolet's side and took one of her hands in hers. She then opened up the tip of one of Ultraviolet's fingers to reveal a plug which she plugged into the outlet that was connected to the same power grid that the Statue of Liberty drew power from. Ultraviolet began to draw power from the power grid and all the lights on Liberty Island began to flicker ominously, until-

A strange _schoooom_ sound filled the air and then the sound of some sort of an explosion was heard. Apparently, the entire power grid had been blown out as Ultraviolet managed to cause a blackout for Liberty Island.

Jake frowned as the lights around himself and the two robots suddenly went out. "What the hell happened?"

"Ultraviolet must be a very complex computer, one that needs an incredible amount of energy to recharge. Apparently Ultraviolet requires more energy to recharge her internal battery than can be provided by this grid..." The fembot explained to Jake.

Jake scratched his head. "Um, can you please speak _English_? What does that mean exactly?"

"You'll need to plug her into a grid that can handle the draw of power that Ultraviolet needs to consume. Perhaps the laboratory where this model android was made would be able to handle the draw of that kind of power..." The fembot suggested.

"Dr. Val's lab...hey, Fembot what happens if Ultraviolet's battery dies? I mean, it's not like she dies, right? I mean, she's an android, right? So...once she's recharged she'll just come back to life, right?" Jake asked the golden robot while giving her a worried look.

"If Ultraviolet's battery dies...she'll have to completely reboot. Once she is fully recharged and restarted this will cause a memory and personality wipe. This feature is standard in most androids because some owners wish to start their androids from scratch. She will turn on again but any memories she created with you and her personality will be lost..." The fembot gave Jake what he thought was an almost apologetic look. The fembot reached out and placed a hand on Jake's shoulder and squeezed.

Jake's jaw dropped in horror. "Whaaa? Her memories will be lost? And her personality is at risk too? Shit!" Jake whipped out his iPhone and dialed Dr. Valery's number. "Pick up, pick up, dammit..." As Jake waited for Dr. Valery to answer, Jake thought back on the memories he had made with Ultraviolet - how they had met in his room at the mansion and how she had been trying to seduce him. How he had almost caused her to blow up and then she had somehow developed freewill and a strange, badass personality.

He had given her the name Ultraviolet and she had become a chain-smoking, foul-mouthed, feminist android. He thought back to all the times she had protected and saved him. She had been so cool during those times. He thought about how she had really helped him out during the E.T. Tech Race. Just feeling her arms wrapped around him had given him courage and strength. Half of the time he had forgotten to be afraid because of her presence. It was soothing, comforting. Just the fact that she was there had been enough to make a coward like him act brave even if it was only for a little while.

Lastly, she had protected him from the Dragon Alien's Battle Droids so that he could win the E.T. Tech Race and ensure Mr. Suit's safety. She had used that new light shield of hers to protect him and had drained her battery power doing it. _She drained her battery in order to protect me._ Jake thought.

" _Hello~_ you have reached the Love _Shack~_ " Dr. Valery had finally answered her iPhone and Jake noted that she had made their call a video call so that he could see Dr. Valery's image on his phone's screen now.

"Dr. Val!" Jake shouted at her. "I need your help! Ultraviolet's battery is dying and I need to recharge her! What should I do!? She just blew out the entire power grid of Liberty Island when I tried to recharge her here!"

"Jake. First things, first. Take a deep breath and calm down." Dr. Valery spoke firmly as her personality did a 180. "Now, Ultraviolet's battery is dying? That's strange...she must have been using a _lot_ of energy for that to happen since I designed her with a battery that has an impressive life. Just what happened to cause her to need to use so much energy?"

"She..." Jake swallowed. "Protected me. She was using the new light shield you provided for her."

"Light shield? I didn't install a light shield in her." Dr. Valery frowned at Jake's baffled image. "That's even stranger. Jake, you need to get Ultraviolet back to Headquarters, right away. I need to run some tests on her." Dr. Valery instructed.

"But...what will happen to her if her battery dies? If I don't get there in time?" There was a note of panic to Jake's voice.

"Then her system will reboot. She'll lose the memories she's made with you and her personality will most likely be lost, so...that foul-mouthed, sassy, sarcastic, pessimistic, crass, chain-smoking robot personality will be erased...well, that may be a good thing, don't you think? She'll go back to being a cute, obedient little Sex Droid." Dr. Valery gave Jake a reassuring smile.

It made Jake want to toss his iPhone on the ground and stomp on it.

Ultraviolet's 'crappy' personality would disappear? Jake's heart clenched in his chest at the thought. "No - that wouldn't be better. She may have a crappy personality but that's who she is! She's Ultraviolet! I don't want her to change or to lose who she is!" Jake shouted into his iPhone.

Ultraviolet's eyes opened at that moment and she looked up at Jake with wide, deep purple eyes. "Jake...?" _He wants me to stay the same...why..._

Dr. Valery was surprised by Jake's outburst. "Alright, I understand how you feel Jake, so hurry up and get your ass over here. I can't save Ultraviolet over the phone."

"Right! Bye!" Jake turned his iPhone off and walked over to pick Ultraviolet up into his arms. He then made his way back over to Ginger. He looked over his shoulder at the fembot. "Hey, Goldilocks, can you tell my friends - err - the SSF why I had to go back to Headquarters without telling them?" Jake had decided to give the cute fembot a nickname.

The fembot nodded, "Do not worry Jake Lonestar I will tell your companions what has happened. Good luck with saving Ultraviolet _._ "

"Thanks, Goldilocks." Jake mounted Ginger with Ultraviolet in his arms, and cradled her protectively against his chest. "Alright Ginger, let's go! Giddy-up!" Jake snapped the reigns and kicked Ginger's sides and Ginger took off at a fierce gallop of over three hundred MPH.

Jake tightened his hold around Ultraviolet with his one arm as he galloped through the busy New York City streets and made his way back to SSF Headquarters. He didn't know that Ultraviolet was watching him. She looked at his serious and worried expression. She noticed his protective hold upon her. It appeared as though he didn't want to lose her. Ultraviolet and her strange personality, which she had been sure he hated. She didn't understand Jake Lonestar at all. He did not compute.

Ultraviolet rested her head against Jake's chest. She could feel her battery draining. Jake was trying so hard to get her back to Headquarters in time but...she knew he wouldn't make it. There wasn't enough time. "Jake...thank you...for trying to save me..." She said in a soft voice.

Jake looked down at Ultraviolet. "V? What's wrong?"

Ultraviolet smirked at Jake but her eyes held a sadness that was unmistakeable. "Jake...do me a favor...remember me?" _If Jake remembers me - I'll stay alive in his memories. That's enough._

Jake's expression shifted to concern as he looked down at the android. "V?! What's wrong? Just hang in there!"

" _Sayonara_ , pervy cowboy _samurai_ ," Ultraviolet said as her eyes began to flutter close.

"Shit!" Jake pulled on Ginger's reigns and stopped the warhorse abruptly. "V! Don't! Don't do this, V! Stay with me! Shit! What do I do?!" Jake looked around him helplessly, wishing that someone would suddenly pop out of nowhere and save the day. What he needed right then more than anything - was a hero.

The gray sky was beginning to lighten as the sun began to rise. It was the dawn of a new day, but Jake didn't feel at all happy to greet this new day as the sun's rays flickered through the treetops of some nearby trees that Jake had stopped Ginger under. A few rays of sunlight landed on Ultraviolet's pale face.

"V!" Jake cupped V's cheek with his gloved hand. But she did not stir. She did not wake. "Shit!"

... _don't touch Ultraviolet with your bare skin, Jake...there's no telling what could happen_...

Dr. Valery's stern voice was suddenly ringing through his mind.

Jake quickly took his gloves off and placed his bare hands on Ultraviolet's face, cupping her face almost lovingly in his hands.

"V!" He shouted into her face. "Ultraviolet, don't leave me! I want you to stay the same...V...you're my courage. You're my strength. I can't do this superhero shit without you!" Jake cried but there was still no response. Jake looked down at Ultraviolet's porcelain face and his expression softened as an unknown force seemed to draw Jake's face downwards until he was lightly pressing his lips against Ultraviolet's in a gentle kiss. And then-

As the sun's rays hit Ultraviolet's skin, her skin began to glow brightly with a golden-tinged light until her entire body was glowing brightly as if her body was soaking up the sun's rays. Apparently, Jake's touch to Ultraviolet's skin had indeed done something. But the real question was - what had he done to her? Had he saved her? Or had he destroyed her?

Jake looked down at Ultraviolet unsurely while feeling confused and wary about what was happening. "Ultraviolet...?"

Then, her finer twitched. And then Ultraviolet slowly began to open her eyes. She looked up at Jake and blinked owlishly.

Jake stared into her violet-colored eyes with a hopeful expression on his face. "Ultraviolet?"

Ultraviolet gave Jake a confused look and spoke in a synthesized voice. "Hello Master. How may I serve thee?"

Jake paled and his jaw dropped. He had failed, he had lost Ultraviolet! Tears filled his eyes as he looked down at the android forlornly. "Ultraviolet... _whaaa~!_ " Jake began to cry loudly. "Please come _backkkk~!_ " Jake hugged Ultraviolet tightly to his chest.

"Ack! Let go of me, you pervy cowboy _samurai_! You're suffocating me, you pawsy asshole! Gah!" Ultraviolet complained as she shoved Jake off of her.

Jake looked back at Ultraviolet in shock. "V?! You're back! You and your crappy personality are back! Yay! I never thought I'd be happy to say that! Ultraviolet's back!" Jake hugged Ultraviolet and nuzzled his face against her neck happily.

Ultraviolet blushed. _What's wrong with me? I'm an android...I shouldn't be able to blush!_ "Gah, get off of me, pervert!" Ultraviolet shoved Jake back, so that he went flying off of Ginger and landed on his ass.

Jake just grinned up goofily at Ultraviolet from his place on the ground. "Ultraviolet! I'm so glad you're back!"

"Keh, idiot," Ultraviolet took out a cig, lit it, and took a drag. Curls of silver smoke traveled upwards into the clear blue sky that was becoming more and more blue as the sun rose. It was going to be a beautiful new day.

"But...how is this possible? Shouldn't your battery be dead?" Jake asked. "This better not be a dream." Jake pinched his cheek and pulled. "Ow."

"Idiot." Ultraviolet shook her head at Jake's antics before frowning at his words. "But, you're right. I shouldn't be fine. Let me run a quick diagnostics check. Running diagnostics...new tech detected...battery has been upgraded to solar powered." Ultraviolet's voice took on a strange monotone voice while she was performing the check. Her eyes then widened at her discovery. "I...I'm a solar powered android now. It's like I've evolved or something. I mean, it's like I was upgraded or something. What did you do to me Jake?"

It was Jake's turn to blush. "I, err, I just touched your cheeks with my bare hands and then I..." _Kissed you, my sleeping beauty._

Ultraviolet blushed too, her lips were still tingling. _Did he...?_ "I see...you better put your gloves back on. We need to go and get Mr. Suit out of _Kaleidoscope_. He's probably pissed and thinking we completely forgot about him or something, the idiot." _If he did kiss me...why did he kiss me? Does he like me? But I'm an android. Can a human like an android? Can I like him?_

"Ack! Mr. Suit! I totally forgot about him!" Jake gripped the sides of his head in horror.

Ultraviolet felt a trickle of sweat form on her brow at Jake's admission. "You idiot."

T.B.C...in Book 2 of the _Samurai Superheroes Saga_!

Geisha Assassin

X

Smartass Hacker

###

Questions? Feedback?

You can reach the author via Facebook and YouTube

Add her as "KuroKoneko Kamen"

Visit her artist website:

http://kurokoneko-kamen.deviantart.com

Please visit cover artist Genzoman's webpage:

http://genzoman.deviantart.com
