Kratogenesis

Still Counting (XXXIV)

Some hours had passed from the merciless execution of Loser. Golf Ball and Book were munching on the tuna salad Tennis Ball had prepared for the event. "Say, Golf Ball..." Book looked straight into Dimples' eyes. "You planned anything for the traitors?"

"Yes!" Golf Ball took out a blueprint and unrolled it on the table. The papers showed the plan for the construction of a gigantic robot. "This bad boy has machine guns mounted on its arms!"

"Oooh!" The presence of the guns made Book feel a wave of delightful evil going up her back. "How many rounds per minute?"

"Fifteen hundred!" Golf Ball couldn't stop looking at the blueprint. "We got this!"

"They'll end up looking like slices of Emmental cheese!" Book giggled in delight as she imagined Taco ending up like a slice of said cheese. "At least they won't need to go to the ophthalmologist!"

"Oooh, you really want to make things easier, then!" Tennis Ball looked at the blueprint and smirked.

Unbeknownst to the three who were dining, Blocky was observing from above, using a pair of X-ray goggles he had acquired from before. He noticed the plan and observed it. "Hm. Guns."

"Uh-oh. They mean it." Pen shuddered in horror as the thought of being mauled by the guns crossed his mind. "And they go very fast, apparently!"

"Yup." Blocky nodded. "Too bad their plan has a structural flaw!"

"Which is?" Eraser flailed his arms.

"I see no signs of stabilization for the eventual recoil from the guns." Blocky smiled. "When it shoots, it will fall over, making the robot useless."

"Oh, really?" Pen laughed. "Dimples wants to annihilate us, but can't figure out basic physics?"

"So, yeah. I wouldn't be too scared of the megabot."

Meanwhile, over at Beep, David caught wind of a possible full-fledged war. He sat down to his desk, worried that the conflict could damage Leafy, if not outright kill her. He stood up again and went to the lobby, where his teammates were sitting and wondering what was wrong with David. "Guys. We need to do something." He looked quite worried. "I have learned of a possible war between Golf Ball and the Familia."

"So what?" Nickel looked out the window. "You wanna fight?"

"It's deeper than that, Nickel." David sighed. "Leafy could die." Those three words attracted everyone's attention. Sure, she was no longer a member of Beep, but they would never let anyone related to their team, even a former teammate, bite the dust.

"You're right! We need to act!" Balloony was horrified by the thought of not seeing Leafy anymore.

"I'll ask Golf Ball about it." David went to Golf Ball's lab. He went down the metal stairs and knocked on the steel door.

Golf Ball opened the door. "Oh hey, David!"

"Golf Ball, I think it's time for some negotiations." David entered the lab. "Do you mind if we talk alone for a moment?" He noticed that Book was sitting by the table. "Hi Book."

Book waved back.

"Not at all." Golf Ball closed the door and followed David to an empty room.

Once the door to the room was closed, David cleared his throat. "I have caught wind of some conflict against La Familia."

"Correct!" Golf Ball smiled. "I will destroy Taco's clique!"

"And I noticed you want to restore order."

Golf Ball jumped in enthusiasm. "Also correct!"

David thought about how Beep should deal with the war. "Perhaps it would be beneficial for the two of us if we collaborated."

"Oh!" Golf Ball looked surprised. "So you too have been affected?"

"Well, not quite..." David scratched his head. "But we are trying to get Leafy back to our side."

Golf Ball picked up on David's hint of Leafy going back to BEEP. "Leafy is already part of my team!"

"Wha– Since when?!" David was shocked to hear the news for the first time.

"Yesterday!" Golf Ball looked smug. "She disbanded her once-powerful team."

"And now you tell me?" David was upset. His chances of getting Leafy back sank to zero. "Why didn't she tell me, either?"

Golf Ball realized that she had indeed left David out of the equation. "I thought you were still enemies!"

"Leafy and I patched things up, GB!" David tried not to grab Golf Ball and smash her against the wall.

"Oh? Well, you too should have told me that!"

"We let her ponder over going back to our team, and I think it's time for her to choose." David tried to calm down.

"She's agreed to join my team!"

"Oh, so you don't want her to go back to my team because you think she's doing better under your control!" David walked around the room.

"That's because she is! " Golf Ball did not consider dropping her cocky attitude.

"Have you asked her if that's true?" David was getting angrier by the second.

"I don't need to!" Golf Ball defended her actions. "She has agreed to join my team's mission to get Blocky back! She can also take her former teammates back in the meanwhile!"

"She only formed her own team because my team was stupid enough to allow that to happen!" David soon came to terms with the shortcomings of his own team.

"It happened. Get over it!" Golf Ball shook her head.

"Get over it? Fine, I'll see if Taco has a better proposal." David opened the door and left the lab, severely disappointed that someone as smart as Golf Ball would reveal herself as a stubborn despot.

Golf Ball smirked. "Oh, yeah, it's not like... You'll just..." but then the guilt of a missed chance to bolster her side bit her in the rear. "Form an alliance against us." She started to sweat.

David went back to his team house, still looking disappointed.

Nickel looked at him in curiosity. "How did it go?"

"A disaster." David sat on his armchair. "I want nothing to do with Golf Ball ever again."

"Huh?" Balloony had never considered that Golf Ball could disappoint David, or anyone else for that matter. "What happened?"

"She doesn't want to give us Leafy." David sighed, shaking his head. "Let's see if Taco has a better idea." He stood up again and went to La Familia's Pueblo house.

As Taco was setting up the table for dinner, she heard someone knocking on the door. She put the setup on hold and opened the door. "Ah, David!" She hugged him.

"Taco..." David exhaled as he let the short girl hug him. "Golf Ball won't let my team get Leafy back."

"You want Tía Taco to fix it?" Taco smirked.

"I'm ready to help you smash that bossy bot." David nodded and cracked his knuckles.

"Good choice, David!" Taco handed David a small bottle of beer. "Now why don't you sit down and wait for some delicious pizza?"

David obliged and sat down as Taco prepared a ninth place.

After a while, Blocky came home, holding a pile of pizza boxes. "The grub's in, boys!" Everyone who wasn't already sitting rushed to the table.

Everyone munched on the pizza. It was a delightful night...