The N-4 looked up to see a Neotrak rounding the corner. It rolled over to him and beeped, "Levels 1 and 2 are clear as well."

They looked at each other blankly. "Well, NOW what?" beeped the N-4.

"Um, patrol it all again?" replied the Neotrak.

The N-4 sat down with a loud *CLUNK*. "This is SO pointless! Every night we wander around this ship, patrolling for hostile aliens, and we have NEVER encountered so much as a space rat!"

"Well, what else would we do?" asked the Neotrak rolling over towards the N-4. "We are programmed to protect the ship."

"Program-shmogram! Protect it from WHAT exactly? This is SO boring! I wish at least SOMETHING interesting would happen on this stupid ship," the N-4 flopped onto its back and stared at the light fixtures... which suddenly had begun to flicker. He looked at them curiously. "Why are th-" suddenly the ship lurched to the left , sending the two bots flying into the wall, then crashing back to the floor.

The ship's sirens began to wail. "RED ALERT! RED ALERT!" the speakers boomed. "WE ARE UNDER ATTACK BY EVIL SPACE FUZZLES! ALL BOTS REPORT TO THE BRIDGE IMMEDIATELY!" They heard the captain shout over the intercom.

The Neotrack looked at the N-4, "Well, looks like you're gonna get your wish!"

The N-4 looked at the other bot, wide-eyed, as they hurried to the bridge...

A Wheelie righted itself and rolled over to a computer console, emitting several beeps and whistles before it intoned, "possible Fuzzle infestation on levels 5 through 10, Captain. Please advise."

The N-4 and the Neotrack had just reached the bridge door as the Captain called his orders over both the sound of shorting electrical equipment in the bridge and the intra-ship intercom. "All bots, red alert! Spread on levels 5 through 10 and secure the area. Prepare for confirmed Fuzzle infestation. Repeat, Fuzzle infestation has been confirmed," it was then the Captain turned and regarded the two that had reported in, "You two- head to level 5. Once the area is Fuzzle free, back up the rest of the teams on through to 10."

"Yessir!" The N-4 and Neotrack replied in unison and headed for the lift to level 5.

"Fuzzle infestation..." the Neotrack murmured to itself as it set weaponry to 'recede'. "I heard that Fuzzles burrow into the walls of the ship and feed off the electrical energy of the computers."

The N-4 nodded gravely as it prepared itself, never turning away from the lift doors. "Yeah, they spread along the walls in intervals, and as they feed they grow until everything looks like once giant shag carpet. Walls, ceiling, floor, and anything they get their teeth into are covered in fuzz..."

The N-4 was going to say more, but the lift door opened and both bots stepped out onto level 5...

The Neotrack gasped. "Who could have done this? Level 5 is one of the most heavily guarded levels, and yet, someone or something managed to break through.." The Neotrack said.

The N-4 did not reply, but instead walked over to a nearby table. "Strange. Fuzzles only eat metal, they have no interest in papers, and nothing's eaten in here. Something else must have been searching this room, looking for a piece of paper that has important information written on it, maybe?" the N-4 said, thinking.

The Neotrack snorted. "Use your brains. A piece of paper is not worth it. A computer chip, perhaps?" The Neotrack suggested.

Suddenly, the door flew open. There stood a shocked captain, with a squadron of armed robots behind him. "What's going on? We noted something on the radar leave our area, then the Fuzzles suddenly left! I've never known them to do that before." The captain said wearily and sat on a chair. The Neotrack and N-4 explained to the Captain what seemed to have happened on level 5.

After the two of them finished their explanation, the Captain stood up and yelled, "Check all machines, computers and systems now! Report anything missing to me at once!" Immediately, all the robots, including the Neotrack and N-4, began scattering all over the room, operating each machine and checking to see if any data or mechanical parts were missing.

After a while, the Neotrack shouted, "Hey! There's something missing from this computer!" The Captain dashed across the room to reach the Neotrack. He examined the computer parts carefully and then gasped.

"What's the matter?" The N-4 asked the captain awkwardly.

"NO! This can't be! They've stolen the...

The N-4 looked stunned. "But, what would a bunch of evil Fuzzles want with the most powerful computer chip in the world if its not even guaranteed to work?"

"Use your brains!" the captain said, "It does work! If it didn't our ship would not be able to function properly! All of the computers run off of that one..." A look of horror slowly spread across the captain's face.

"What is it?" the Neotrack asked, puzzled.

"If we don't find a landing space soon..." the captain began.

"What? What will happen?" the Neotrack demanded.

"All the other computers will crash, including the main controls that keep this ship from crashing into a hostile planet's atmosphere, or worse, into a sun or black hole." the captain finished in a dramatic whisper.

Everyone in the room gasped, but someone said, "Lighten up will ya?"

"How long do we have?" an N-6 asked.

"I'm not sure but I know that each computer has a battery of its own. That battery was there in case the chip didn't work. I figured that the chip was functioning perfectly so I let us go a little too far out into space. The main control computers that keep us from losing control only have enough power to keep us in space for at most a couple of hours."

"Only a couple of hours? But we're light-years away from the nearest known planet!" N-4 beeped excitedly.

"Then we'll have to try and land on the planet nearest to us... known or unknown."

Suddenly the whole ship shuddered.

"Captain! The main controls are down! The Fuzzles must have eaten the batteries!" an excited crew member shrieked. "We're about to shut down!"

Then, with no warning, the ship's lights went out. Everyone aboard the ship was left in total darkness. No one breathed, no one moved. Suddenly the ship lurched forward, still in utter darkness, as though someone, or something, was pulling it to an unknown destination...

"What's going on?"

"What'll happen to us?"

"Oh no! Help us!"

"Everyone be quiet!" the captain boomed. Slowly the noise ceased. "Everyone just stay calm. Panicking won't help anyone." Then, speaking to himself, the captain added, "Since when did robots get programmed to panic?" He then stood up straight. "All right, I'm heading to the bridge. I want a dozen bots with me, the rest are to report to the cargo rooms and shut down. I want you all to conserve your batteries since you can't recharge." He flicked on the intercom. "Bridge! Bridge, please respond." There was silence. "Great! Communications are down, too. When you get to the cargo bay, set yourselves to turn on in one hour. Everyone understand? All right then. Move out."

Everyone headed to their designated places. Many were quite willing to head to the cargo bay, but N-4 was the first to head after the captain to the bridge. If his Neotrack companion had been nervous about it at all, the N-4 made sure he had no time to act on it.

"Come on!" he beeped excitedly. "We might finally get to see some action!" His friend followed reluctantly.

Soon they arrived on the bridge and gathered in the darkness. The only light came from the stars on the viewing screen. They all huddled together, whispering among themselves, waiting helplessly for what would happen next. They watched the stars gliding by as some unknown vessel towed them along.

Soon, however, they saw something new on the screen. The captain was about to ask for it to be magnified, but then he remembered that the main power was out and only life-support was working, and the elevators, though they would only last a few more minutes without the main power source. They could eventually see that the object they were heading for was a planet. There weren't any signs of life on it, and there was no atmosphere, but the thing towing them was definitely heading there.

They were soon orbiting the mass of gray rock, full of craters of all sizes, and getting closer by the second. When they were several kilometers above the ground, the ship lurched as if finally released from the grip of whatever had pulled them here. They touched down with a surprisingly gentle thud, then everything was quiet. The captain knew they would be boarded. But by what, he had no idea...

"Wha-huga loch! Nom koko golo asket rabo inco!" some voice exclaimed outside. The door banged and slowly it moved upward, as if a button had been pushed. The passengers of the ship held their breath as they caught a glimpse of the aliens' multi-colored feet. The natives appeared to be furry, and they shuffled around nervously.

One ducked down and everyone in the room gasped silently. It had two eyes with slit-like pupils and a wide mouth. "Whan-huga?" the thing tried. "Aloha? Hola? Hello? Deka? Fensha-hay?" it rapidly switched languages. The bots stirred when it spoke their language. "Um-pah!" the alien exclaimed when it heard them.

"He heard us!" whispered the captain when he deciphered what the being's movement meant.

"Oh! Are you trying to speak with us?" hissed the alien when it heard that. "Please, we don't mean any harm!" It had a strange sort of accent to its voice.

In response, a rather foolish bot rolled forward. "Hi! I'm a bot here! Who are you, and why did you suck us in?"

"Oh, we noticed that you needed help," explained the creature. "Our traction beam is very weak, and if you had any power at all, you would be able to escape!"

"Well, who are you?" asked the bot curiously.

"We're the Jahlbakalunics, but if that's too much of a mouthful in your language, call us the Kaluns. I, myself, am Haru Dal. Who are you?" he asked.

"We're the crew of this ship," answered the bot, for it didn't know any better. "I don't know why no one else is coming, but I can find the captain, if you want!"

"Yes, please. I will wait here," said the Jahlbakalunic politely. The bot, being foolish, thought that the captain would have looked for another place to hide, so he rolled off to level 5, where the control rooms were. Haru Dal signaled to the other Kaluns to close the door, and the door closed.

"We will kill the captain!" Haru Dal told the other Kaluns quietly, but the bots hidden nearby could hear. "Then we'll ta- Oh, in Kalunian. Akusha retutil bot exnitom molill!!" The Kaluns cheered excitedly as the bots and the captain shuddered in fear...

"What did they say? What did they say?" asked the captain, fear spreading in his voice.

"And how are we supposed to..." The Neotrack's voice was cut short as another bot spoke up.

"I know what he said."

They all looked at the bot, their faces full of confusion yet relief at the same time. It was their translation bot.

"You're not going to like this." His face dropped suddenly. "He said that with their superior powers they would overrun this ship and control it as their own."

The bots all gasped, and tension grew high as the panic between them was just too much. However, this dreadful information was nothing compared to what he would say next. He spoke, his voice wavering.

"He also said that he would kill us all, and would ensure that each and every one would die a slow and painful death."

"My goodness!" shouted the captain. "We must do something!"

"But what?" asked the N-4. "What can we possibly do? And anyways," he asked the Avabot who had told them this news, "How can we escape when we can't even power the ship?"

However, he failed to receive an answer as the captain and the bot were suddenly interrupted by a huge bang that ripped through the whole ship. They all fell to the floor. Suddenly the bots could see a green gas oozing through the doors. It began to slowly corrode the steel wall panels.

"An acid cloud!" shouted one of the bots. They had no choice but to flee from their hiding spot..

"Are you the captain?" Haru Dal asked calmly.

"I am," the captian replied, looking up at the beast. "What do you want of me?"

"As I have said, we mean no harm," Haru Dal said. "All I request is permission to repair your ship. I thought it would be... hmm... proper? Yes, that's the word... proper to ask you first, captain..."

"Captain Jaden," the Captain said.

"Why's he telling that monster?" the N-4 whispered to the Neotrack.

"So he can show him he's not afraid," the Neotrack said. "Duh."

"I await your answer, Captain Jaden," Haru Dal said.

The bots knew what their captain's answer would be. The captain stared at Haru Dal for a moment, and the tension grew. The N-4 and Neotrack exchanged glances. The captain opened his mouth to give a reply.

"I will not allow you to see the inner workings of this ship," Captain Jaden said.

"...I understand," Haru Dal said, his voice sinisterly quiet.

"Systems scrambling..." a nearby bot choked out. "Shutdown imminent..."

"The acid!" Captain Jaden cried.

"Uh-oh," N-4 and Neotrack said in unison.

The acid drifted silently through the air...

Too late, the Kaluns realized that something had gone horribly wrong, and attempted to flee from the acid cloud. In a matter of seconds it completely overtook them. Nothing but dark shapes could be seen within the cloud, but the screams and shouts of the furry invaders were quite clear. The room was filled with chaotic shouts, and the sounds of small alien bodies as they collided with walls, doorways, and each other. The Kaluns attempted to escape the cloud that painfully caused their hair to fall out and their eyes to water and sting, but their efforts were in vain.

One of the Kaluns must have found a doorway that lead outside the ship. With a shout, Haru Dal (his body covered in a pathetic scatter of furry patches) pointed towards the excruciatingly slow opening door. Half-covered by the acid cloud, the creatures fled towards the promise of fresh air, leaving the Captain and crew to comprehend what they had just witnessed.

The Neotrack looked at the N-4 "Did you just see what I saw?"

"How could I miss it with an eye this big?!? That acid cloud went after them like it was alive!"

"It... it protected us..." At the barely audible whisper, the bots turned towards the captain.

The N-4 blinked slowly and answered him. "Yes captain, but why?"

Before the captain could reply, a loud voice interjected. "Because I controlled it..."

The trio turned in unison towards the source of the voice. The N-4's eye went wide. "It can't be, you're..."

From behind the mass of muscle-bound steel, a smaller rust-ridden Wheelie peeked out and intoned, "And his trusty sidekick, OXI!"

The entire crew stood in wide-mouthed astonishment as they took in the sight of superhero and sidekick. It wasn't long, though, before questions began among the group in hushed voice, beeps, and squawks.

"How'd they get on the ship?"

"Where'd they come from?"

"Who is that masked bot?"

"When did bots grow muscles?"

The captain silenced them all with a clearing of his throat and a wave of his hand. "Corrosion man! Of course! Who in the galaxy could ever lose faith that the greatest superhero around would come in our darkest moment? I only wish you had time to stay for dinner..."

"Before I had to kill you!!" With a piercing, rebel yell, the captain leapt at the great green bot, eyes flashing in an anger and hatred far greater than any the others had ever witnessed.

The group could do little but watch in silence, a collective dramatic gasp being the only sound that came from them.

Corrosion man, however, was nonplussed by the captain's reaction, and was quick to draw and fire the Reflux 9000 with a hearty, "Ha ha!"

The captain screamed in utter agony, flesh and clothing melting away to reveal fuzz beneath. Another astonished gasp escaped the dumbfounded crew as they realized the terrible truth.

"He was an evil space Fuzzle all along!" The N-4 cried loudly.

The newly captured Fuzzle sneered at the crew, and the superheroes in general, and complained, "And I would've gotten away with it too, if it wasn't for you bots and your hero Corrosion man!"

He was detained and led to the brig by a series of D-block unit guard bots, mumbling and grumbling all the way.

The Neotrack was a bit more skeptical after all was said and done, and turned to study the superhero and its sidekick with a critical eye. "Corrosion man, eh? We'll just see about that..."

A gale of belly-rich laughter came from the great green bot as he set his hands on his hips and turned his square, cleft chin to the ceiling. "I'm not really Corrosion man," He quickly reached up and removed what appeared to be a mask, and before the crew's eyes, their captain magically appeared. "This is your captain speaking. Corrosion man is actually over here," and he gestured to Oxi with a grin.

"You?" The Neotrack exclaimed, more than just a little awe-struck.

"That's right, sonny." With a loud clank, the small, but straight postured bot suddenly slumped over and sighed. "Well, I was back in the good ol' days."

Between the group, they all looked at each other and laughed in sheer joy. Glad the ship was alright, glad the captain was safe, and glad there were still heroes like Corrosion man to save the day.

As they all went back to their respective posts, the N-4 turned to the Neotrack and said, "Those were the biggest space rats I ever saw."

The Neotrack clapped his buddy on the back and replied with a chuckle, "Sure thing, kid. Sure thing."

The End