Other Fan Fiction ❯ Atomic Galaxy ❯ Chapter 6

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Atomic Galaxy: Solar System VI

Planet 56: Her First Day in Outer Space

A loud crash was heard and the ship shook violently, almost spinning out of control. Maximus engaged the stabilizers and hit the breaks. "Are we alive?" Minimus was hiding under his chair.

"Of course you're alive," Maximus said. "We're here, now I just need to get the ship in there." He pointed to the space where he was supposed to park the ship. His piloting skills would improve greatly in the next few years and those who had seen him pilot a space ship in the future, could only imagine how he did in the past. Without accelerating too much, Maximus guided to the ship to the proper place with only a few scratches on the garage walls and ship. "That wasn't so bad." The young lynx left the ship, followed by his sidekick.

"Maximus IQ!" A furious voice came from the main building.

"I didn't think he would be back so soon!" Maximus analyzed the situation and any possible ways of escape.

"I told you we shouldn't have taken your father's new ship while he was at the super villain reunion," Minimus's normal face said. "You never listen to me!" His angry face complained.

"Shut up and get back in the ship!" Maximus kicked Minimus inside.

He saw his father opening the door that connected the ship's garage area with the main house. The reason he had decided to take his old ship along instead of the new one was because he had to pass by an area full of meteors and didn't wan to scratch it. His son was still a super villain in training and he didn't want to take him to the more professional villain meetings until he was ready, so he was to stay on planet Splatty. The problem was that he had taken his father's new ship while he was away and caused more damage than any meteor could have. "Get out of that ship right now!"

Maximus set the ship in reverse and crashed against a large tree, not before taking the fence with him. "You're supposed to go up!" He battled with the controls some more, until the ship took off and left Splatty's atmosphere. "There's no way dad will catch us in the old ship."

"But wouldn't stealing his ship twice in the same day make him even angrier?" Minimus asked.

"I'm not stealing it, I'm borrowing it because the one I got for my birthday is broken," Maximus hit Minimus on the head. His ship own was in fact very broken after the way he flew it. "Besides, dad only needs a little time to calm down and by the time we're back, he won't be angry anymore." It was the natural choice; procrastinate until there is no other choice.

Maximus continued pressing random buttons, trying to find which one was the radio, but instead sent the ship to hyper space, throwing it far away from Splatty. His first reaction was to hit the accelerator, which was probably not a good idea. "Your evilness watch out for that planet!" Minimus screamed as they approached Earth in a collision course.

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In a day care center in Moose Jaw Heights, Canada. A little girl about three years old with badly cut red hair and big green eyes approached the other children to play a game. Her grandmother was busy with work in a place far away. Her father was on a business trip and her mother was at a pet show. Betty's mother went to cat shows even before Sir Purrsefus was born and she didn't think she should take Betty along. She was too young to understand. But the little girl was a lot smarter than she was given credit for.

Another little girl of the same age pointed at her and laughed. She had brown hair and brown eyes, her name was Penelope. "Ugly hair," she let out a high pitched mocking giggle.

Betty touched her short red hair, which her mother had recently unevenly cut. She had tried to put her daughter's hair into pigtails and only a little of it was long enough for that. She still put two big bows on Betty's head, hoping to hide the problem. It looked truly like a nightmare. "Meany!" Little Betty retorted.

Two other little girls stood beside Penelope. "No like," Sarah pointed.

Megan nodded, "we no play with you."

Penelope laughed again. "Yucky!" She pushed the red haired girl.

Betty stumbled backwards but didn't fall. She wasn't going to let Penelope insult her. Without warning she tackled her, getting the attention of the adults in the day care center. "No! Bad Betty!" A woman picked her up. Ironically she hasn't noticed when Penelope was being mean.

Realizing that Betty was in trouble, Penelope decided to make it worse. "Wah!" She cried loudly in a voice that almost made glass shatter. "I got a boo boo!"

Soon Sarah and Megan joined in, claiming that they too had acquired boo boos and it was all Betty's fault. The result was that Betty got a time out in the corner, while Penelope got all the attention from the grownups.

"Meany head!" Betty called out from her corner, but gained nothing but an extra five minutes of time out. She sighed sadly, if only there was something she could do. Penelope loved attention. The best way to get back at her and make sure she didn't bother her about her hair anymore, was to have a hair style better than Penelope's that would get all the attention. But how was she going to achieve that?

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On Earth's atmosphere, Maximus' ship continued to plunge into the planet, trapped in its gravity. "We're going to die!" Minimus yelled. "It's all your fault!" His angry face added.

"I'm too perfect to die!" Maximus tried to get the ship under control.

The ship spun around and Maximus managed to hold on to the controls, but Minimus was thrown around the ship and landed on the controls activating the beam. They were flying above Betty's day care center when Maximus regained control of the ship, just as the beam was activated. They pick up a red haired little girl who had been sitting alone in a corner before they left Earth's atmosphere.

"I told you I had everything under control," Maximus started to regain his normal color. "I wasn't scared. You're such a coward Minimus."

Before the sidekick could communicate his sarcastic reply, another voice was heard. "Plushie!" A little human girl ran to Maximus and hugged him.

He looked at the strange creature, they must have picked her up by accident in that planet. "Since you're here I might as well keep you as a pet," he picked her up.

"But your evilness I don't think your father would like it if you kept that thing as your pet," Minimus warned.

"He doesn't need to know, I'll keep her hidden," Maximus replied. "But look at that hair, I need to take her to one of those places for pets so they turn her into a pet worthy of me." It was decided and while they traveled on autopilot, Maximus tried to teach his new pet some tricks. "Roll over and I'll buy some pet cookies for you when we arrive."

Betty simply stared at him. "My plushie," she pointed.

"Look it's like this," Maximus demonstrated what roll over meant by doing it himself.

Betty approached while he was still on the floor and patted his head, "good plushie." Minimus found it quite funny because it looked his he was her pet, but he stopped laughing when Maximus kicked him across the room. "Meany, time out!" Betty pointed to a corner.

Maximus didn't quite understand what she meant, but he didn't pay attention. To him those were only random words she said, after all, she was only a pet. He recognized her species as the same species as Beatrixo, but still he insisted on keeping her as a pet anyway.

The ship's computer announced they had arrived at their destination and after a short trip to the pet salon, Betty's hair grew back with a special shampoo and she was given a good haircut. Her hair was styled in a very different way from anything normally found on Earth but it looked good.

After some time walking around the mall where the pet salon was, Maximus and Minimus returned to pick her up. "This be no business of mine to intrude in where thou found this creature. But me has observed that the creature is not like most pets. Arth thou sure she be a pet and not a child of alien species?" The hair stylist at the salon had asked.

"Of course she's a pet," Maximus assured. Soon after that, they headed back to Splatty with little Betty and many bags full of pet food and pet toys.

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Maximus' father was of course still angry when his son returned and letting him keep a pet was out of the question, especially one that reminded him of Beatrixo. "Put that creature back where you found it, or better yet destroy it! I don't want you bringing filthy animals to the house, it's enough that I let you keep Minimus around."

"But father, she's my pet and Minimus is my sidekick! I'm keeping her no matter what you say!" Maximus originally planned to sneak in, but his father saw him and discovered Betty.

"Absolutely not!" Maximus Sr. yelled.

"Why not? I'll feed her, I'll walk her, I'll play with her. You won't have to do anything!" Maximus complained.

"Sure you're attached to her now that she's little, but you'll probably get bored of her when she grows up. Besides, she looks like a child of Beatrixo's species more than a pet," Max Sr. pointed out.

Maximus stopped to think about it. What if his father was right? He knew that the creature was in fact of Beatrixo's species, but he thought he could still get away with keeping her for a pet. She was small, like many pet creatures are, and she didn't speak many words. But what if she got older and became his enemy? What if she grew up to be like Beatrixo? No that wouldn't happen, "I'm keeping her!" Maximus picked up his pet and went to his room.

Minimus followed, carrying the bags. "Wait for me, your evilness!"

"Fine, but if that thing leaves your room, it's going to have an unpleasant encounter with my light saber. Don't come out of there till the next century, you're grounded!" Max Sr. angrily yelled.

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Betty spent a while playing with the pet toys while Maximus watched TV. He still kept an eye on her during the commercials. She had seen her reflection in a mirror at the pet salon and knew Penelope would be jealous if she saw her now. Maybe the plushie would take her back later. He couldn't really be keeping her as a pet, right? He must be kidding. She decided to give it some time and continued playing for a while until she had something to say, "hungry."

"You have food over there," Maximus pointed at a can of pet food, but little Betty didn't move.

"Your evilness I don't think she can get the food out of the can by herself," Minimus reasoned.

"Well don't just stand there, go get a can opener and feed her!" Maximus kicking Minimus out of the room.

"Ow! But I thought you were going to take care of her," Minimus complained. "Just as I thought, I'll end up doing all the work," his angry face complained.

"Hurry!" Maximus yelled.

Minimus ran off in search of a can opener. After he returned and put some pet food in a dish, he waited for Betty to eat it. "She's not eating your evilness."

"I thought you said you were hungry," Maximus recalled. "Well go on Maxine, eat your food."

"Maxine?" Minimus asked.

"That's her name," as usual, Maximus named everything after himself. "That reminds of something," he searched inside the bags until he found her collar and put it around her neck. It had diamonds and a golden tags with something written in symbols used in Lynxia and Splatty.

"Thank-yu plushie," Betty said. Then she curiously looked at the food. It didn't look anything like what she normally ate. She didn't know that in a few years, she would have to get used to the occasional cat food for lunch when her mother was distracted. "Yucky!" Clearly she didn't like the food. Her eyes started to water thinking, that she would have to eat the food she didn't like. Her mother made her eat her cooking even if it didn't turn out very well. But the plushie wouldn't do that, would he? No, he was nice. He even gave her a pretty necklace.

"Now what?" Maximus asked.

"I think she doesn't like it and she's going to cry," Minimus said.

"What? I don't want some crying creature here," Maximus realized that having a pet was a lot more work than he expected. Maybe he wasn't ready for the responsibility. "Maybe I should leave the pet experience for later..." Maybe her food was only found on her planet and that's where she needed to be to survive. "C'mon Maxine, I'm returning you to your wild uncivilized world." Maximus didn't know the name of the planet, but he remembered its location.

Once again he stole his father's ship while Max Sr. yelled at him that he was supposed to stay in his room because he was grounded, but Maximus didn't pay attention.

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Maximus returned to that place he had almost crashed into. That was where she belonged. "Goodbye Maxine."

"Bye bye plushie, see you again!" Betty waved.

Maximus didn't think he would see her again, but he didn't say anything about that, he was surprised she managed to speak a complete sentence.

Betty was beamed down back into the day care center where she was ignored and Penelope got all the attention, that was why no one noticed she was gone.

It was time to eat and the people in charge of taking care of the children realized there was one missing. "There she is. C'mon little girl time out is over you need to eat now." 'That's odd I don't remember her having such nice hair and such a cute necklace,' the babysitter thought. "Your mommy must be excellent with hair."

As Betty sat at the table all the children looked at her and Penelope looked surprised. That hair! How did she get better hair than hers? She had a necklace too. How could she have better jewelry?

It was Betty's first victory against Penelope and her first trip to outer space. It was the start of a rivalry between Betty and Penelope and it was also the day Betty started to look forward to exploring the universe she only briefly saw. Her grandmother had told her she would take her to far away places when she was old enough; she hoped the time came soon.

When the time came and Betty became a galactic guardian, the events of that day were long forgotten. Betty didn't remember that she had claimed Maximus as her plushie years ago and Maximus didn't remember that he had captured Betty and briefly kept her as a pet before she became galactic guardian. Maybe some things aren't meant to be remembered, but none the less they happened.

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Planet 57: Goodbye Smile

Noah's Point of View

When the time comes to say good bye, I want to say good bye with a smile. But how can I possibly smile? If I do, it will be fake, because smiling is the last thing I feel like doing.

Now you're better,
Now you're free,
I want me to be,
Happy for thee.

It was quite unbelievable when she told me the truth, but then she showed me proof. Her alien and robot friends showed me their space ship and took me for a ride around the Earth. She was so exited to be leaving. Just before coming to her house on her request, I was thinking about how hard things would be if everyone I knew moved on with their lives away from mine. I was thinking about how I would miss her if she left for a college away from the one I was going to attend.

I wanted to ask her where she was going with her life, then I could attend that same college and we wouldn't drift apart too much, but this is more than I expected. She's not moving to the other side of the country, she's not moving to the other side of the planet, she's moving out of Earth to live at a space station and pursue her career of Galactic Guardian full time.

But I cannot smile a real smile,
'Cause I've been missing you all the while,
Wondering if you're moving away,
Thinking that you're not the same way.

She's so exited and happy about it, this is her dream, it's what will make her happy. She doesn't appear to be concerned about how busy her schedule will be if she becomes a full time Galactic Guardian. She told me about all the places she would visit, all the people she would help, but I think she is completely missing the fact that she will hardly have any free time at all.

I will try to be happy for her, but I honestly don't think I can. She kept this hidden for so long, I can understand she had to be professional and keep everything in secrecy, yet I feel like slowly she has been becoming someone else. Now eighteen, she's not the girl I once knew. She's been changing slowly, preparing herself to leave the Earth. I didn't want to believe how much she has changed, but I guess I have to face the truth, she feels her place is not on Earth.

Am I the only one to stay?
Am I the only one who may,
Forever stay the same way?

It feels like everyone is changing one way or another. Everyone is perusing their dream on Earth or in Betty's case beyond Earth. I feel like I'm being left behind, that everyone changes and evolves, but I don't. I haven't changed much over the years, sure I've grown up and all, but I'm basically still the same person on the inside.

Why do they all move on?
I don't like what's going on,
Cannot hear the call from beyond.

Why does she have to leave? I know it sounds selfish, but I wish she could just be happy living here. Why can't she just stay and forget all about space adventures? Why must everything keep becoming more complicated, why can't we just go back to the way things where? Back then when I knew I would see her the next day at school, back then when even if she was constantly late, and now I know why, I knew she would eventually arrive.

I wish I could go with her, but I'm not even going to try, I know I couldn't possibly handle the situations she faces everyday. Maybe I'm not as brave, or smart, or strong, or maybe I was just meant to be one of those humans who lives his entire life on Earth. The truth is space scares me, strange creatures, aliens and what not. I think I was better off thinking humans were alone in the universe.

Nothing special, nothing big,
I don't really want what they seek,
I found a place, I won't let it go,
Your life's a maze, you might not know.

I know I could never get used to life in outer space. It's too unpredictable for me. The truth is I'm happy just living on Earth, appreciating every small detail that this planet has to offer, but that's not enough for her. She'll grow quickly bored if she stays, she has made a choice, she made up her mind and I know that her decision is final. My place is on Earth, I can't follow her anymore, I finally realized that.

If you can find your way around,
Then I admit you won the round,
Go to the next step, keep moving on,
Before you know it I'll be gone.

If this is what makes her happy, then I need to let her go. She deserves to find her happiness and maybe someday I'll find mine. She moved on to a new part of her life. A part that I can tell by the look in her eyes she's been looking forward to for all her life. Who am I to stand in her way? I should have realized we weren't as close friends as I thought.

She has her alien friends now. She doesn't need me around anymore. Then again she never did, I was the one who always needed her help in one way or another. I guess it's time that I grew up and did things by myself. It's time to forget her like I know she'll forget me.

Selfish I shall be no more,
I won't be waiting at your door,
And for once I'll smile to thee,
Just one smile, real as can be.

No, I shouldn't think this way. Even if we never see each other again, even if we never even speak to each other ever again, I will always think of her as I friend. I will not try to stop her and I will not try to forget her. She's my best friend and I will be happy for her. I truly am happy for her. When the time comes to say goodbye, I will say it with a smile, a real smile, the most sincere smile of my life.

End POV

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Planet 58: Mistletoe

Kiss 01: Abundant Mistletoe (MomxDad, BeatrixoxJim, BettyxSparky, IcicleaxSolovem)

Mistletoe can be found where you least expect. They could be hanging from the lamp of a couple's room, even if she was certain that it wasn't there when she fell asleep. "Look mistletoe. I wonder how that got there," her husband said.

"I don't know, but we should honor the tradition," She replied. The kiss was worth his efforts the previous night to put that mistletoe up without waking his wife.

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Far from there, another couple was up early at a farm. "Bea, do you remember?" Jim held mistletoe above her head.

Beatrixo kissed him. "How could I forget?"

It was the perfect romantic moment in distant planet years ago. They had found a place to be alone in a far away paradise. The view was beautiful, everything was quiet and peaceful and they had each other. It was a very nice planet with its tall trees with those green flowers that were still closed. She had heard the flowers opened at sunrise now she would find out. As the green flowers opened, their leaves began to take a familiar shape. The red berries in the center of the flowers greeted the light of the sun as the leaves continued to change until they were thousands of mistletoes. "Is this way you wanted to come here?" Beatrixo asked.

"I was thinking maybe I could have a kiss under the mistletoe," Jim confessed.

"For every mistletoe on the planet and even more," Beatrixo replied. It was good to remember those times at Christmas. It was even better after that Christmas when they were reunited after so many years.

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Later, mistletoe was placed above the captain's chair on Betty ship just for her. That way Sparky would have an excuse to kiss her every now and then. Not that he needed one, but it felt more like a Christmas kiss if there was mistletoe involved.

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Mistletoe can be found anywhere if you want to find them. Even in a castle made of ice, magical mistletoe floats in mid air and below the mistletoe, an ice queen and a dark wizard.

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There's mistletoe hanging from the ceiling,
There's mistletoe and there is also singing,
It's the only green and red in a palace made of ice,
There's a mistletoe in space, I see it in your eyes,
There's mistletoe on the door frame, I said,
Don't look now, it's right above your head.

Kiss 02: Classic Mistletoe (BettyxRodger, DegillxPontifadora)

He had to try one more time, even if deep down he knew his efforts would be in vain. The red haired girl standing in front of him shook her head. "That's not how it works Rodger."

The boy with the blond wig smiled, as if hanging on to one last hope that he would receive the kiss he wanted. "Why not?"

"Because you're not supposed to hold the mistletoe over my head. You're supposed to hang it somewhere and wait until I accidentally walk under it," Betty explained.

Atomic Rodger lowered the mistletoe. His arm was getting tired anyway. He placed it on a tree branch and went to help the other galactic guardian with the headquarter's decorations. The mistletoe slipped from the Christmas tree and fell on the floor. Betty picked it up and placed it on the doorframe instead.

"You should see the tree Admiral Degill has in his office," Rodger returned.

"I will but first, look up," Betty pointed. Rodger looked up and found the mistletoe above his head.

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Degill stopped at the door as Pontifadora approached. "Did you put that mistletoe there?" Pontifadora looked up at the mistletoe on the doorframe.

"I didn't, but I thought it was very convenient that someone did, so I left it there," Admiral Degill replied. "As the admiral of the galactic guardians, I give you the mission to uphold the law of the mistletoe!"

"I'm not a guardian Gilly, but I guess I could follow the law every now and then." Pontifadora saluted then took Degill into her arms and kissed him.

Kiss 03: Mysterious Mistletoe (Maximusx?)

"You can put the star on it," Maximus handed her the star.

She took the star and smiled, pretending she didn't see the surprised look of the sidekick behind him. Maximus always put the star on the tree himself, while Minimus did the rest of the work. But this year it was a little different, because she was there. This year she helped decorate the Christmas tree and the rest of the lair. Because she was decorating, Maximus also helped.

She stretched, trying to reach the top of the tall Christmas tree. Finally she jumped and put the star on the tree, thought another ornament slipped off, landing softly on her head. Maximus grinned, it was mistletoe.

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Planet 59: Brain Killer

"Your brain activity is very irregular," X-5 revealed after examining Betty. She a blank expression on her face, as if her brain had gone missing.

"It's still there?" Betty asked in disbelief.

"What is?" X-5 was a little confused.

"My brain, is it still there?" Her head felt as if it would explode or implode, she wasn't sure what the difference was between the two at the moment. She didn't know much of anything at the time. Every last bit of knowledge had been drained right out of her.

"Yes captain, I am quite certain that it is still there. You can not be functional without it," X-5 assured.

"Chief, what have they done to you?" Sparky looked scared.

Atomic Betty, drained as she was, still had enough common sense to know she should not worry Sparky. She certainly didn't want him to go into a panic, "I'll be okay."

Sparky nodded, not quite convinced with her unenthusiastic sounding answer. He looked so helpless and worried. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'll be okay. It's just that that test killed me dead," Betty used a common expression in her planet.

"What?" Sparky slammed on the brakes of the Starcruiser.

"No, I mean, I'm alive, but it was bad," Betty tried to explain.

"I believe she is referring to an expression not to be taken literally," X-5 clarified.

"Who cares about literature? How can you think of math at a time like this?" Sparky argued.

"Literature is not math," X-5 pointed out.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Betty held her aching head. Yes, they had somehow combined literature with math to crate ultimate evil. Then again, the pure math was more evil. It was more evil than Maximus could ever hope to be. If Minimus ever saw that test, he'd be calling it 'your evilness'. "Please don't say math."

"I won't, chief! I promise!" Sparky left the controls to rush to his 'dying' captain's side in a dramatic way. "From now on I'll call it mango."

Betty only nodded. If it weren't for her futuristic knowledge, she was certain she would have gotten a big fat zero on that test. Were human beings who knew nothing of life beyond their planet actually capable of passing such a test? Her brain felt injured and abused, overheated and on the verge of disintegration. "What was our mission again?"

X-5, who was now piloting the Starcruiser while Sparky bit his gloves as if he was biting his nails and forgot he had gloves, replied, "our mission is to recover a stolen microchip from Maximus."

"Oh, yes," Betty muttered.

"Chief, are you sure you'll recover?" Sparky insisted.

"It's okay, Sparky, I'll be fine. Just continue the mission normally," Betty forced a smile. She was too exhausted to produce a real smile and her brain hurt too much.

Sparky nodded and returned to his seat, which he had to recover from X-5 who wasn't sure he could be trusted with the Starcruiser at the moment.

As they approached the lair, Betty's memories from earlier that day began to surface. The test started early in the morning.

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'Who invented this word? It doesn't sound like anything,' Betty had wondered upon read or attempting to read an odd, long word. She needed to know what that word meant in order to answer the question. But she didn't know what the question was, let alone the answer. Taking a deep breath she remembered her training: how to decipher alien languages. All species, even humans as random as they were, had some sort of pattern in their written communication. If she could figure out that pattern, she would know what that super long word meant.

'Naruto, I feel your pain!' She suddenly remembered an anime about ninjas. There was an early episode where they had to take a written test. Poor Naruto, he really had a hard time and couldn't answer any of the questions. At least he didn't give up. He panicked, he felt his world crumbling around him but he didn't cheat and he didn't quit.

'I wonder if anyone has tried to commit suicide during a test.' Betty's brain and eyes couldn't take it and she had to look out the window if only for a split second, that was all the time she had to spare. They were on the third floor. She could somehow feel the tension in the room and it made her wonder if someone would attempt to jump out the window.

After two hours and fifty minutes of torture, in which they had to answer two hundred questions, half of which were in English and half in their chosen second language, plus fifty math problems, the students were given a ten minute break. However, they were not allowed to leave the classroom. They just sat there trying to give their injured brains mental first aid.

When the little recess was over, Betty wasn't sure if she wanted to hear the melody of her bracelet and be beamed away into another world, or if she wanted to stay and get the next part of the test over with. If she left, she would have to sign up to retake the test several months later from the beginning. Forget the galaxy! She wasn't going to put up with that torture again. She was more than halfway done. 'Please let the galaxy stay at peace until I'm done,' Betty silently prayed.

Another two hours later, with her empty stomach begging for food and her emptier brain begging for mercy, Betty finished the torturous test and was allowed to leave. 'If I were a light bulb I'd be broken and burned,' she thought as she made her way down the stairs.

She was heading home to take a long nap when her bracelet chimed. In an automatic movement Betty rushed to a private area of the test center and answered the call. "Betty Atomic, duty for report!" She attempted to salute and threw her hand over her head missing her forehead by several inches.

"It seems that the sound system is not working properly. Can you understand me? Tell X-5 to have a look at your bracelet after your mission," Admiral Degill spoke.

Betty tried to get her brain to jump start again. "I will admiral, what's the mission?" She wasn't going to admit that the strange order of words was her fault unless, the admiral asked her directly and she knew he wouldn't.

"Maximus has stolen a microchip with vital military data. You must recover it immediately before he has a chance to decode it," Admiral Degill explained.

"I'm on my way!" Betty was beamed up to the Starcruiser.

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This brings us back to the present with Atomic Betty, Sparky and X-5 about to arrive at Maximus' lair. Tired, hungry and more mentally exhausted than she had ever been, Betty was in no mood to deal with Maximus. "Beam me down, I'll be right back."

"You're not thinking about going alone, are you chief?" Sparky asked with great concern.

"I'll be alright," Betty assured.

"Until your brain activity is back to normal, I suggest that you do not push yourself," X-5 advised.

"If I'm not back in ten minutes, you can rush in after me." Knowing Betty wasn't going to change her mind, they beamed her to Maximus' lair. She was their captain for a reason, she knew what to do, they just had to trust her.

The few guards spotted her took a fighting position, ready for battle, but Betty ignored them and ran past. They looked at each other confused, wondering why the galactic guardian was doing things so differently from the way she usually did.

Maximus was focused on decoding the microchip's data when Atomic Betty opened the door without making a sound. Minimus noticed her and tried to warm Maximus. "Your evilness Atomic Betty's here. She's standing right in front of us!"

"Shut up Minimus, I told you not to interrupt!" Maximus needed his full concentration. With so many numbers, equations and letters, one hundred percent of his brain was needed to focus on the task at hand.

"But she really is here," Minimus insisted.

"If Betty was here, we would have heard some fighting by now." Maximus didn't look up from the computer screen.

Betty noticed the look Maximus had, he was concentrating very hard. Right now his brain was vulnerable. "Maximus," Betty called softly, just loud enough for him to hear.

Trying to keep all the numbers he was working with in his head so he wouldn't lose important information on the verge of discovery, Maximus looked up. There she was, Atomic Betty.

With a slightly evil looking grin that caught Maximus completely off guard, Betty recited the hardest math problem she could remember from the test.

That threw Maximus over the edge. He sat there staring at her with a blank look. Maybe he was trying to figure out what she said, organizing the data and making calculations in his head. Maybe he was confused wondering why she was telling him all that gibberish. Or maybe the information was just too much for him to take in when his brain was already working so hard.

Smiling in satisfaction, Betty removed the microchip from Maximus computer, the screen going blank. She made it back to the Starcruiser in ten minutes flat.

xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox

Planet 60: Minions

"Your evilness, wait for me," Minimus struggled to keep up with Maximus, who was leaving in quite a hurry.

It was the middle of the night and the artificial day and night system made that fact apparent, even if they were in space. The light inside the lair didn't look like it came from everywhere and nowhere like it did during the day and it wasn't as bright. Instead it concentrated in one point of origin in the center of the ceiling of each room, leaving the corners in darkness and making the light purposely look artificial.

What possessed Maximus to get up in the middle of the night and prepare to leave in an unplanned extended trip? Minimus did not know and obviously Maximus wasn't telling. He had made that clear when Minimus tried to ask and the lynx hit him on the head without saying a single word.

"Stay here," Maximus ordered suddenly, as he arrived at the lair's hangar and threw a large suitcase inside his ship. He didn't even bother telling Minimus to pack for him or carry his luggage. He was obviously in a big hurry if he did all of that himself.

The sidekick nodded and backed way. He was used to following Maximus everywhere except the bathroom, so it was quite strange that he would leave and not take the sidekick along. Minimus was like his second shadow, but this time Maximus' tone made it clear he wanted to go alone and there would be no arguing about it.

"If anything happens, send the robot army to defend the lair. Other than that, keep a low profile for now and don't get the attention of the galactic guardians while I'm away. Don't call me, don't ask where I'm going or when I'll be back, and my lair better by alright when I return." The platform Maximus stood on was closed and he was alone in his ship.

Minimus backed away, knowing that the ship would soon take off and it wasn't wise to stand so close. Just as he thought, the ship took off in a hurry and sped away into the depths of space.

xoxox xox xoxox

Maximus examined a map of several galaxies as his recent dream replayed in his mind. The dreams he had been having were similar to what happened only a few days ago. Each dream took place on a different setting, but every time the basic story was the same. He had Atomic Betty cornered. He was about to win, but then his army betrayed him. They attacked him instead of Atomic Betty and she claimed victory from where she should have received defeat.

He could simply offer a large amount of money and intergalactic treasures to his ex-minions and they would become his minions again, yet somehow that didn't feel right. He wasn't going to sit there and tolerate being betrayed and laughed at. A bribe wasn't the best solution to this situation, revenge was. Maximus would find a much stronger army and those who betrayed him shall pay. He laughed evilly at the thought of it. Yes, everything would go according to plan.

He chose a galaxy known for its strong warriors as his first destination. He decided he would visit many places accepting as his minions only the best and most skilled of each planet. He parked his ship in an area designated for space ships and went to look around. Everyone there carried a weapon no matter how young or old. They were all skilled warriors, the best in the universe. They were also known for taking orders from no one; however, Maximus thought they should be honored to work for him.

As he made his way around the city, people of different species paid him no mind. It was as if he was invisible to them, almost insignificant, and it was starting to annoy him. "Fight!" He heard someone yell. It wasn't unusual for many fights to form in this planet. Suddenly he was pulled away by a large crowd that didn't appear to notice his existence, as they ran towards where the fight was taking place.

Maximus hated being pushed around and just when he thought he had enough and was about to put his light saber to good use, he noticed he had been pushed towards the front of the circle that formed around the two that were fighting. The battle caught his attention. There was a fox alien and a reptile. The fox looked very confident, maybe too confident, and the crocodile alien looked arrogant. It was as if the reptile was sure he could crush the fox in only few seconds without even trying.

"I'll give you one more chance to take back what you said and beg for mercy. I might not break all your bones if you do," the crocodile alien said.

"You should be the one begging for mercy, you low life lizard. I don't permit for anyone to insult my people or my allies without paying the price!" The fox, a kitsune type alien, didn't look one bit scared.

"You have guts, I'll give you that. Unfortunately your guts will be all over the ground by the time this is over. I'll say it again, all your race the kitsune and your little friends the lynx and tanuki are worthless weaklings!" The reptile repeated.

In a moment of anger, Maximus thought that if the kitsune didn't kick that lizard's tail, he would do it himself. Foxia and Tanukia had been allies of Lynxia and Splatty for a long time. The cat, fox and raccoon aliens had one of the most long lasting alliances in the universe and shared a certain pride.

The crocodile looked like he was about to attack. He raised both hands, formed into fists, but before he could punch the kitsune, he received an accurate kick to the stomach that left him without air. The kitsune kicked the back of his legs in a fast moment, making the reptile fall. "Changed your mind about begging for mercy?"

Maximus wondered how in the world that kitsune had managed to do that. He looked strong, but the reptile was twice as big as him, yet he made him fall so easily. Maybe he had a future minion standing right in front of him right now. Maximus continued watching the battle, just to make sure. If it turned out that the reptile only slipped, then the kitsune was in big trouble. He didn't notice the odd looks he was suddenly getting, as if the fight had gotten the crowd all worked up and they were looking around for a potential punching bag.

"I slipped, don't you dare think that had anything to do with you. You're nothing but a worthless insect! You're-" The crocodile didn't finish, a jump and punch in the neck was all it took to keep him quiet. He coughed and glared at the kitsune.

"Fight first, talk later. It's a common mistake for idiots like you," the kitsune sounded amused. The crocodile roared in anger. Good, the kitsune had him right where he wanted him. If he lost his concentration, he would lose the fight. The crocodile jumped at the kitsune, who ducked at the last moment. The crocodile alien went crashing into a dinosaur-like alien who was quite upset about it. While the crocodile and the dinosaur aliens fought, the kitsune slipped away from the crowd and Maximus followed him. The kitsune saw him and recognized him. "Hey you're Maximus IQ. aren't you?"

"So you know who I am. I must be famous." Maximus feet his ego get bigger by the second.

"Everyone's heard of you and a few other super villains, but the latest news I heard wasn't the best." The kitsune revealed as they walked away from the fight, no one cared to notice, since they were all too focused on the battle.

"What would that be?" Maximus was curious.

"I heard your army turned on you. Is that true?" The kitsune inquired.

"They'll pay for that," Maximus growled. "I'm looking for a new and better army right now. You could be one of my new minions. What's your name?"

"Kentarii, I'm traveling all over the universe learning many different skills and techniques. That's why I can't be your minion, I need to continue my training travels and besides, I kind of like the galactic guardians. Sorry, I'm not much of a villain," the kitsune explained.

"What? You dare to side with the galactic guardians?" Maximus was angry.

"Watch out for the tail!" Kentarii warned.

However, the warning made no sense to Maximus at first. "What?" Then he tripped, but he regained his balance quickly and didn't fall. "Idiot," turned around to see whose tail he tripped over.

It was a tall lizard-like alien with metallic scales that covered his entire body, forming a strong natural armor. He had four arms, a long tail, sharp looking claws and glowing red eyes with a thin yellow line in the middle. "It's that filthy insolent brat from Foxia," He spoke more to the aliens around him than to Kentarii. "This time he brought a little friend from Lynxia."

"I'm from Splatty actually," maybe it was the lack of sleep or the rush of sugar from all the ice-cream Maximus ate to pass the time while he couldn't sleep, but he was talking without thinking about the consequences of his words.

The lizard alien let out a high pitched laugh that made Maximus cover his ears immediately. "So you are as foolish as the Foxia trash?"

"You're the foolish one, Squeaky," Kentarii knew the lizard hated that nickname. "You're looking at a real live super villain right here. You show him who's boss, Maximus!" Kentarii gave Maximus a friendly pat on the back, almost making him fall forward. Maximus looked back and forth from Kentarii to the angry lizard alien the kitsune had nickname Squeaky. Sensing that Maximus wasn't so sure of himself anymore, Kentarii decided to say something before the lizard crushed them both. "C'mon, you looked like you wanted to rip my head off a second ago when I didn't become your minion. If you're brave enough to fight me, I'm sure you can beat Squeaky here, no problem."

"Of course I can! It's just not worth my time. I usually get my minions to do this kind of easy jobs." Maximus would have continued his speech, if not for the fact that a bright light caught his attention. The lizard breathed fire too? He quickly jumped out of the way and Kentarii jumped in the opposite direction.

"Running away, little lynx? You are a total coward. All of your kind are cowards. You're all worthless trash that should be eliminated from this universe!" The lizard would have continued with the insults if not because Maximus made him literally eat laser. With a well aimed shot, the laser hit his open mouth and got him to shut up. Of course, it didn't cause too much damage as it is to be expected from an alien that breaths fire.

"Fight first, talk later is good advice," Kentarii was amused. He knew very well that Maximus' high tech weapons were much more efficient than anything they used on this planet.

"Shut up! I'll deal with you later," the lizard angrily yelled. "As for you, I'll finish you off first. I'm surprised you're still standing there. Your anyone else would have already ran away, but I guess you're more stupid."

"Why should I run away when I'm going to win?" Maximus shot many lasers at the lizard. The lasers bounced off his scales and Maximus quickly jumped out of the way. He was thankful that felines were naturally agile; otherwise he probably would have been killed by his own lasers.

"I don't think you should be playing right now. You do know how to beat him, right? They all have a specific weak point," Kentarii revealed.

"Yes, I know how to beat him, but what is your opinion?" Maximus had no idea how to win this battle. Right now, he thought his best chance would be to run for his life, but he wasn't going to do that. It could be the lack of sleep, the rush of sugar, or something else, but Maximus had enough.

"Actually, I have no idea how to beat this guy. I always run away when I think it's the healthier thing to do. I was hoping you could figure it out so I could do the same thing when ever I found one of those mean aliens in my travels," Kentarii was so calm about it that Maximus thought he was only kidding.

"Sounds good to me, I'll see what I can do," Maximus agreed only because Kentarii's overly calm attitude towards the situation made him think the kitsune had everything under control. If he couldn't figure out a way to beat the lizard, Kentarii would step in at the last moment. Not that Maximus would ever admit to needing help.

Jumping out of the way of the lizard's fire blasts clearly wasn't helping to make any progress, thought it kept Maximus alive. Lasers were out of the question and if lasers didn't work, then a light saber probably wouldn't work either. One detail Maximus noticed was that the laser was more powerful when it came back at him than when he originally fired it and that the scales changed color after receiving the impact. Maybe he could send the lasers back at him before he could recover. Maximus wasn't sure if it would work or not, but he recalled doing something similar in a video game and it worked then.

Kentarii watched as Maximus ran away and stopped at a good distance then fired his laser gun. He wasn't sure what the lynx was trying to do, but it looked as if he had an idea. As it happened before, the lasers bounced back towards Maximus and he used his light saber to send them back at the lizard like a bat. The lizard received the impact being taken by surprise and fell back.

"So that's how it's done," Kentarii observed. Now that he knew how it worked, he would have to come back and kick his tail after he recovered from the fight with Maximus, just to see if he could do it too. Now that Kentarii knew how it worked it didn't look all that hard.

Angry that a lynx had discovered his weakness, the lizard got up as fast as he could and started shooting fireballs at Maximus. Maximus ran in a circle around him avoiding the fire. But the fire hit a few aliens it wasn't meant to hit. Soon, those who were watching the battle became a part of it as they all jumped to the attack against the lizard.

"That's the problem around here, they never let you finish a fight in peace," Kentarii didn't notice the irony in his words.

"It's too bad; because it was kind of fun. So was that what you had in mind?" Maximus asked as they walked away from the action.

"Like I said, I didn't know how to win," Kentarii admitted. At Maximus's surprised look he added, "what is it? Are you wondering why I was so calm even if I could very well be standing in front of my doom? Well if I'm going to die, I might as well be brave about it." Kentarii spoke with such a calm and casual tone that it was beginning to bother Maximus. "This comes from being in near death experiences so often."

"Then you had no idea and if I haven't figured it out then..." Maximus didn't finish, he didn't want to think about it.

"We would have both probably died. Squeaky looked very angry and I'm sure he wouldn't have let us escape, not after I dried his patience the other day," Kentarii admitted.

"Do you always go around picking fights with people bigger than you?" Maximus asked.

"That, my friend, is called being brave," Kentarii smiled.

"That, my minion, is called being suicidal," Maximus corrected.

"I still think it's bravery and I told you I can't be your minion, but I know where you can find some people that might be interested in the job. Last time I was there, they said they wanted to be part of some sort of army, but the galactic guardians had too many regulations for their taste. I'm sure they'll find being part of a super villain's army very interesting." Kentarii revealed, as they walked into the areas where the ships were.

"That sounds like it's worth looking into. What are the coordinates to this place you speak of?" Maximus asked.

"I'll tell you if you give me a lift. My ship was destroyed and I was planning to buy a new one with the money from one of the tournaments they often celebrate in this planet. But it would be a lot easier if you give me a ride since I left my second ship in that planet, then I won't have to buy a new one, I don't like the selection they had here anyway and space taxis don't stop on this planet." Kentarii offered.

"Very well, you have a deal," Maximus agreed and they both headed inside his ship.

xoxox xox xoxox

The trip to this new planet wasn't too long at top speed. They landed near a large mountain. The planet was a little dark, but not too dark. The light of a sun could be seen in the sky, but it wasn't enough to create the bright sunny days of other planets. "We're here. You'll find your possible new army inside the cave, but I should warn you, they won't take anyone's orders," Kentarii warned.

"I'm the great Maximus IQ, they will be honored to work for me!" Maximus replied, as they entered the cave. "How much further are they?" The cave had many torches on the walls, burning with blue fire. It was obvious there were people here, since several items were left all over the place, supplies, weapons and random things.

"Usually I don't have to go too deep into the cave before someone comes to greet me. How strange that we haven't seen anyone yet," Kentarii sounded concerned for the first time. "I have a bad feeling about this, it's too quiet here and usually by now it's possible to hear the echo of Samsumo's bad jokes."

"So you're saying something could have happened to them?" Maximus thought the cave was eerie, but he tried to ignore that fact. It appeared that he would have something more important to worry about anyway. "Aren't they supposed to be expert warriors or something?"

"They are not like the ones we saw on that planet," Kentarii admitted. "They are not as big, but their skill makes them stronger, plus they are all excellent pilots, unlike those idiots who have more chances of crashing than landing."

"Even better, I was going to look for warriors then look for pilots, but if I can find them all in the same place my army will be complete faster. That is unless they already left." Maximus give Kentarii an annoyed glare.

"I somehow doubt it. They wouldn't leave their hide out without taking all this stuff with them." They reached a large cave room with two tunnels. "To the right is the rest of the hide out and to the left is the area where the ships are kept. There's tunnel large enough to get them outside from there, but it's sealed and can only be opened from the inside, which is why we couldn't land in the hangar area. Let's head to the right and see if they're sleeping or something. But it's very unusual for them to go to sleep without leaving a guard," Kentarii's concern increase despite his carefree nature.

Kentarii and Maximus journeyed deeper into the cave. The torches of unnatural blue fire reflected their shadows on the cave walls. It was so quiet you'd think the entire universe had been left without any sound, if only it was this quiet when Maximus wanted it to be quiet. Then again, too much silence could be unsettling.

The east side of the cave appeared to go on forever, with endless maze-like corridors that must have taken many years to form. Up ahead, there was a bright light and the atmosphere felt hot. Approaching the end of the tunnel, Maximus saw that the source of the bright light was the burning lava below the cliff in which he stood. A rope bridge that looked quite unsteady connected the two cliffs together.

He watched as Kentarii continued walking just as he would do if he were stepping on solid ground. A board broke under his feet and he had to hold on to the two ropes on the sides to avoid falling into the deadly boiling lava bellow. As if it never happened, he pulled himself up to the next board on the bridge. This one appeared to be solid in comparison to the last.

Kentarii continued crossing the bridge while Maximus watched from the cliff. As far as Maximus knew, Kentarii wasn't too sane. That or he had an unhealthy obsession with danger, or maybe both.

The kitsune stopped when he was about two thirds to the other side and looked back at Maximus. He smiled amused, seeing that the super villain was still standing there. He waved his hand signaling for Maximus to follow, but the lynx only shook his head, he was not going to step on that rope bridge. The bridge looked as if it was going to collapse any second, yet Kentarii stood on it as if it was a solid a rock. He had almost fallen not too long ago, yet not even that appeared to concern him as much as the silence did.

Maybe this is what people call a true adventurer. He lived to travel all over the universe, having one adventure after the other. Every day he lived it as if it was his last and with this behavior it very well could be. Kentarii crossed his arms and began to tap his foot impatiently, as if he didn't plan to move from where he stood until Maximus began to cross the bridge.

Maximus looked at Kentarii then at the hot lava below. He didn't even get too close to the cliff just in case. He could feel the heat of the lava as if it was inches away, even if it was about fifty feet below the cliff. The lava flowed under the rocks of the cliff and went underground. A few large rocks floated in the river of boiling lava, but that didn't make him feel any better about crossing the bridge. The lava displayed a blend of hot colors. There was red, orange and a little yellow when the fire balls jumped from the lake. Burning rocks and balls of fire came close to reaching the old rope bridge, which would surly be turned to ashes very quickly if it caught on fire.

Maximus wondered if Kentarii would scream at the moment that he fell or laugh because he was about to have the death of a true adventurer. 'Such a fool,' Maximus thought.

"Maximus, I'm waiting," Kentarii finally broke the silence that had been present since before they reached this fiery chamber. "I'm not going to stand here all day," he added with less patience than before.

"Of course you're not going to stand there all day," Maximus replied sarcastically. "That sad excuse for a bridge is going to give out and you'll fall into the lava!"

"No it won't, it's perfectly safe," to prove this, Kentarri jumped three times on the same spot. "You see? It's safe, c'mon let's not stand here all day!"

"I'm not going," Maximus suddenly had a strange feeling, as if there was some one coming up behind him. Kentarii had the strangest smile on his face.

Maximus blinked and looked behind him. There was a kitsune girl with light pink fur and green eyes. "You should tell your friend to get off that bridge. There is another way to cross the cliff. A cave tunnel that leads around it can be found not to far from here. That way is a little bit longer, but I'm certain it's a lot safer."

"There's another way?" Maximus was a little surprised to hear this, but he thought he shouldn't be. "Why didn't you say so, Kentarii? You fool! Must you always do things the hard way? I knew this bridge was a bad idea, that's why I didn't try crossing it. Get back over here before it breaks you idiot. Kentarii? Are you listening?" Maximus didn't quite understand what had gotten into the adventurer. He continued to stand there with the most idiotic look on his face.

The kitsune girl giggled and waved at him. Kentarii waved back and started walking, not watching his steps. It was as if he had no idea where he was anymore. Maximus looked from Kentarii to the girl, back and forth. "Great, two idiots in love. What about my army?"

"Hey, Maxi, aren't you going to tell me who this pretty lady is?" Kentarii's smile couldn't possibly get bigger.

He reminded Maximus of that time when Iciclea still needed the montigo berries to look young and she used so many that her face was stretched into a permanent smile. That gave him nightmares for weeks. "I don't know her," Maximus snapped, but it didn't look like anyone was listening, so much for getting any information about his soon to be army out of Kentarii.

Maximus turned back to the tunnel that led him there. The girl said there was another way across near by, so it shouldn't be too hard to find. He had only walked a few steps when he heard Kentarii yell, "medusa!"

Maximus looked back for a moment and saw the shadow of someone coming. The head of this person had long things that moved around. Snakes? He knew the way to defeat a medusa was to make her look at her own reflection, but he didn't have a mirror so he ran as fast as he could. Of all the days to forget to bring a mirror despite being a narcissist, why did it have to be today? Maybe there was a mirror in this cave or another exit. Which ever he found first would do.

Maximus turned a corner and looked back. Since he just turned and he couldn't hear the medusa too close by, if she was still chasing him he would see her shadow before he saw her. As long as he didn't look at her, he wouldn't turn to stone. He was in such a hurry he ran into someone. He immediately closed his eyes just in case the medusa had taken a shortcut and came up in front of him.

"Are you alright?" The voice belonged to a woman, but he wasn't certain if she was the medusa or not. It's not like he could run around with his eyes closed. The floor of the cave was irregular with many stones. He would trip and fall a million times if he didn't watch where he was going.

Maximus looked at the ground and slowly opened his eyes. She was standing right in front of him. He looked forward a little bit. He would be alright as long as he didn't look at her head. Then he saw two feet and the end of a golden tail beside them. This was not the medusa. Maximus breathed relieved and looked at the person in front of him. She was a lynx girl with golden fur and bright blue eyes. "You look like you saw a ghost."

"A medusa," Maximus explained.

"You saw a medusa? But how can that be? If you saw a medusa then you would be a stone statue by now," The lynx girl replied.

"I didn't see her. Someone else saw her. I heard him and when I looked back I saw her shadow. She was following me," Maximus looked back at the way he came but there was no one there.

"It appears that you lost her," the lynx girl spoke. "But if she's still here I think we should leave. There's a village not too far from here. Near the village there is a magic potion shop where you can find a cure for those who had been turned to stone. I'm sure your friend you say saw the medusa will recover with that."

"Do you know the way out?" Maximus asked.

"Yes, I'll show you the way I came. By the way my name is Yudisha, what's yours?" She asked sweetly.

"Maximus," he followed her around the cave.

"It's nice to meet you," she gave him a friendly smile which hid an evil grin. 'Foolish mortal I like to play around with my victims a little before turning them to stone. Your stupid friend looked like such an idiot I had to eliminate him quickly. But maybe you're not so smart either after all,' Yudisha thought.

"It's nice to meet you too," Maximus gave her the best fake smile he could manage. 'I'll play along for now until I find a mirror. Stupid Medusa, she changed her appearance but she still has that bracelet,' Maximus thought. He remembered that the shadow of the medusa had many snakes, but one was shorter than the others, as if it was cut off. Maximus had heard something about it before, if a medusa could remove one of her snakes, make it bite its tail then turn it into stone, she could wear it as a bracelet or necklace and be immune to her own reflection, that must be what gave her the advantage, not many knew of that legend. Now all he needed to do was get that bracelet off her and find a mirror.

The next area of the cave was very dark. There were no blue fire torches, but Maximus could still see well enough. He saw what appeared to be a platform for a large torch. Another thing he noticed was water on the floor possibly, from a river or lake that passed above the cave in the surface.

"It's so dark in here," Yudisha sounded a bit frightened, but it was all an act.

'She may look like a lynx but she's not a true shape shifter,' Maximus thought. Clearly she couldn't see in the darkness as well as a real lynx could. "I'll hold your hand so you don't trip on anything."

"That would be nice thank you," Yudisha agreed.

Maximus took her hand and quickly pulled off the snake bracelet. He tossed a little Maximus shaped lighter at the large torch then threw the bracelet into the fire and closed his eyes.

"You knew all along didn't you?" Yudisha yelled angrily as she changed back into her true form. Maximus backed away and tripped, falling on the floor. Yudisha was forced to look down in order to look directly at him and saw her reflection on the water.

Maximus stayed perfectly still with his eyes closed. Everything was quiet, but for all his knew the medusa could be staring at him right now, waiting for him to open his eyes. He took a deep breath and tried to calm down. He didn't feel like there was danger anymore.

It was as if he could sense he was safe now, but just to be sure he reached forward and touched cold stone. He opened his eyes to find the ugliest statue he had even seen in his life. He quickly moved away from the petrified creature. She may not be able to turn anyone to stone while she was a stone statue herself, but she was still something right out of a nightmare.

Maximus noticed that behind the large torch there was another cave. He walked to the end of that tunnel and found hundreds of stone statues. So that's where Kentarii's friends were. The stone that covered them began to break and they started to return to normal. Apparently turning the medusa into stone was enough to get them back to normal.

Kentarii soon returned, a little upset that he had fallen for the medusa's trick, women were his weakness. Of course Maximus didn't mean to do something good. He had to defeat the medusa, otherwise he would be a tone statue and stone was not worthy of him. If he had to be a statue, he would be a golden statue.

Tired from all that happened, Maximus decided to return to the lair along with his new minions. Kentarri's friends decided to follow Maximus after recognizing him as the one who freed them of the medusa's curse. He knew his past minions wouldn't like how quickly he replaced them and would probably come back, so his army would be twice as big. Though Kentarii continued his travels, he would sometimes come by to see how everyone was doing and was willing to go on a few secret missions for Maximus.

End of Solar System VI

Disclaimer, I don't own Atomic Betty or Naruto. I wrote the poems included in the stories. Most of these stories were written when I had only watched season 1, so the events of season 3 are not taken into consideration. For Planet 58, credits to Barry for the BeaxJim idea in Kiss 01, Kiss 03 is for Julayla. Planet 59 was inspired by a college entry exam made of pure evil, but I still passed with a high score. Planet 60 is based on the episode "Bracelet Yourself" and on a review from Christine.