A Mistake Gone Haywire

by dragonshark173

It was 5:00AM when they called. Griffin was in bed, fast asleep from his last mission. He didn't get home that night until one AM from a Chia rescue. In case you didn't know, Griffin is a young, male fire Lupe, dedicated to saving Chias. Many of his adventures have been posted in the Neopian Times, including one on how he saved an entire clan of Chias. On the weekdays, he was on the job, staying in forests, patrolling the areas to make sure the Lupes wouldn't overhunt the Chias.

In a deep snore, his red bandana around his neck and his cowboy hat only staying on his head by the pull-string, the phone on his nightstand let out a deep ring. Startled, Griffin yelled out loud, standing in fighting stance on top of his bed, his dagger in one hand. He heard the phone ring again and relaxed, letting out a deep sigh. Griffin jumped off the bed and pawed at the phone, sending it to the ground.

"'Ello," Griffin said into it.

"Griffin, you're on your next mission," said a fuzzy, female, familiar voice.

"Double-o seven? Is that you? I can't go on a mission at this hour," Griffin said. He knew the new double-o seven, a female silver Poogle, rather well. They were distant cousins of some sort.

"Yep. You have to go, thirty-three seven. Take your motorcycle to the next teleport station. There should be the next flight to the Space Station and--" She was cut off by Griffin.

"THE SPACE STATION? SLOTH'S LAIR?" Griffin shouted. Double-o seven moved her phone away from her ear.

"Yes, Griffin. Sloth finally decided he needed a smarter species to team up with the Grundo's strength. And so, he chose Chias He created this potion to change a NeoPet into a mutated Chia, but it would make them stronger, faster, smarter. We need to free the Chia slaves and change them back to normal. Your part of the mission: Get the Chias back to Neopia."

Griffin sighed. Then nodded. "All right, all right. I'll be there," he said, and hung up the phone. He straightened out his bandana and made sure his hat was on right, and zoomed downstairs, bolted into the library, and lifted out one book. The entire shelf came up, and Griffin casually went through. This brought him to the garage. From there he got on his jet-black motorcycle, placed his helmet on his head, and stomped on the gas. The engine roared and before anybody knew it Griffin was zooming down Aisha Avenue.

It was there, Aisha Avenue, when Griffin noticed a Faerie Kougra following him on a purple motorcycle. Griffin just smiled and showed a thumbs up sign to the Kougra The Kougra gave a thumbs-up sign back.

The Kougra was Frightful, Griffin's brother and partner. He was almost wondering what took him so long. At last, they got to 354 Main Street, a broken-down, shack-of-NeoHome. Griffin knocked three times quickly, and a blue, scraggly-looking, smelly Acara came at the door. "Whad now? Solicitors at dis owa?" he said in a gruff voice. Griffin slit his eyes slightly and smiled, Frightful right next to him smiling as well. Griffin whispered something into the Acara's ear. The Acara perked up a bit. "By awl meens, c'min!"

Griffin and frightful smiled as the walked into the broken-down NeoHome and sat on a highly stained couch. The Acara looked out the door and slammed it shut, locking it with all the locks he had. The Acara then took a hairbrush and combed his fur again and again, seemingly taking hours, then covered himself in soap and put a black bow tie on. When he turned around, he seemed to have transformed. His fur was sparkling and he didn't smell anymore, and looked very proper. "Why Griffin, Frightful, a delight to see you two again. Shall the transporting begin? I have been expecting you two," he said, and properly walked over to what seemed like a blank wall. He pushed on it, and the two found out it was really a door.

Griffin and Frightful got up and walked into the door, the blue Acara, Monocole, showing them in. The entire room itself was very small. A large, metal platform stood in the middle of it, with red, blue and green wires coming from the bottom of it. Buttons of all shapes and colours were scattered on the walls of the metal-enshrouded room, and a single light hung from the ceiling, reflecting off the platform. Griffin and Frightful cautiously walked in the center of the platform, and stood there. Monocole walked up to the control panel and looked at the two.

Griffin shrugged. "Beam me up, Scotty!" he said. Monocole smiled, holding back giggles and pressed a big blue button. The platform shimmered a little, and a searing light surrounded the room. When the light was gone, Griffin and Frightful were not on the platform anymore.

Another platform, from high above, shimmered a little, and Griffin and Frightful stood there, dazed but okay. "Whoa..." Frightful said. "What is this place?"

"I dunno..." Griffin said, looking around. What seemed like thousands of metal cages surrounded a room. Griffin got up and started cautiously walked down the isle, looking at all the cages.

"Griffin...I don't think we should do this..." Frightful said.

"Come on. We need to free these poor pets...stolen from their owner..." Griffin looked through all the cages. Little Chia cubs yelped and waddled about in their tiny cage, looking down at the visitors. Guilt pain struck Griffin like a knife in his heart. He looked down a little in woe.

"Griffin...if you hurry up, we can be done with this mission in time for lunch."

Griffin jolted up, glaring at Frightful. "Is that all you care about? Get the job done in time for such and such? These poor pets have been here for weeks, months, maybe even years. You wouldn't know how it feels," Griffin paused and sighed. "Frightful, do you got the rock?"

Frightful nodded, and handed it to Griffin. "Good," he said, and looked at the main controls on the other side of the aisle. If he could crack the code to the lock, all the cages would open, symmetrically. Griffin started hammering at the control, hoping he would get it right this time.

***

Unfortunately for Griffin and Frightful, a tall, green, cloaked figure watched a window from a different room. A mutated green Grundo walked in and bowed.

"Master..." the Grundo said in a deep, evil voice. "Intruders on level nine. They got hammer and try get to cage control."

The cloaked figure only raised a claw-like hand. "So be it. Send in the troopers," he said. The Grundo bowed again and walked out of the room. Sloth pressed a button and the window immediately turned into a screen. It showed Griffin and Frightful hammering at the controls without sound. "I have heard much about this Griffin..." Sloth said. "And if he truly wants those pathetic Chias, he'll have to face the consequences!" Sloth said to himself, clenching his fist, and let out an evil laugh.

***

Griffin hammered in the very last joint. "There," Griffin said. A tiny metal door about an inch (two centimeters) in diameter popped open in front of Griffin's face. A big red button stood there, and Griffin raised a paw and pressed it. All the doors flung open, and the little Chias raced in every which-way.

"Hey!! Stay in this aisle. I have your ticket to freedom!" Griffin shouted. The Chias listened and staying in the aisle, loudly, talking. "Now everybody move towards that pla--" Griffin was cut off by a blow in the head with a basher from a mutated green Grundo

Griffin rubbed his head, but the Grundo showed no mercy. Griffin howled and rammed his head into the Grundo's stomach, sending him across the room. The angered Grundo growled and grabbed Griffin's leg, spun him around, and was about to release but Griffin bit his arm! Griffin fell to the ground but quickly got up, as the Grundo held his injured hand. "Gimme my attack fork!" Griffin shouted, and Frightful tossed Griffin his red attack fork. He roared, his teeth baring, and shoved the fork into the Grundo's stomach. Flaming, he took the attack fork out of the Grundo's stomach, and shaking, looked back at Frightful. The Grundo was still fighting, but on its last breath, flipped a button on his Hypno-helmet, sending a beam of rainbow across the room. Griffin jumped out of the way, but instead it hit Frightful.

From the room above, Dr. Sloth pounded his fist on the keyboard, angered. "How DARE he DEFY ME!" He shouted. Sloth boomed down the hall, his Trident of Poseidon clenched in his claw. When he got down to the ninth level, Griffin had Frightful in his hands, trying to make him snap out of it. Frightful was in a trance, his eyes widened. Sloth had a disgusting, smelly goo-like mixture in one hand. He looked at Frightful. "Mastar..." Frightful said to Sloth, bowing.

"Frightful, no!" Griffin shouted. Griffin put his paw on Frightful's shoulder, but Frightful slit his eyes and bit Griffin's paw. Griffin was taken back by this behavior, and looked at his paw. A single tear rolled down Griffin's eye. "Frightful?" Griffin whispered.

"Drink," Sloth said, handing Frightful the smelly potion. Frightful took it and uncorked it. He held it out in front of him, and slowly tipped it. Griffin, angered, saddened, bolted after the bottle. The bottle tipped. Griffin ran. A drop dripped from the bottle. Griffin hit Frightful in the side, but a single drop dumped on frightful.

The bottle broke on Sloth's hand. Sloth's body began to twist and curl, and he shrank slower and slower, down, down...then, standing there, was what looked like a mutated piece of dung form Tyrannia with two yellow, beady eyes and a disgusting-looking fang filled mouth. "MINIONS!!" Sloth gurgled. "GET ME TO THE LAB RAY AND TURN ME BACK!" The Grundos hesitated, but dragged him to a different floor. "You have not seen the last of me, Griffin Kingsley!" Griffin laughed a little and barked.

Griffin looked down at Frightful. What was happening? He was turning an ugly brown colour...and...where were his angelic wings? They weren't there anymore...and...where were his ears? his skin began to bubble and shrink, and soon, he was in no better case than Dr. Sloth's. "Frightful?" Griffin said.

"I'm hideous..." he said, sadly, looking at his mutated paws. "I'm ugly and disgusting...and wingless!" Frightful started to sob.

"We'll change you back, I promise, soon you'll be a Faerie Kougra again..." Griffin tried to say, comforting him.

"I'm horrible..." Frightful said.

Griffin hugged his brother. "Let's get on the platform...Come on, Chias, get on, too...come now..." A very depressed Griffin said. The giddy, excited Chias waddled on happily. Griffin smirked a tiny bit when a little purple Chia with wide eyes had a flower in her hand, giving it to Griffin. Griffin smiled, took the flower, and patted her head. Griffin pressed a button, there was a shimmering light, and before they knew it, they were back in Monocole's home.

"Monocole?" Griffin said. "Frightful had a little accident and well...he's a mutant Chia"

Monocole's eyes filled with concern and he patted Frightful's back. "It's okay, fella..." he said. "We'll run you down to the lab. They'll find something. Griffin, I suggest you bring the Chias back to their rightful home." Griffin nodded, and led the Chias to the door. About a thousand little Chias ran out the door, their little hands in the air.

***

All that rest of the day, Griffin led the Chias back to their homes, their owners, their families. A glint of pleasure rushed through him when he saw the little Chias rush up to their parents, hugging their parent's leg. It was about ten at night by now, and Griffin had just brought the last Chia home. He began the long ride home on his motorcycle down a long, abandoned road, the star-speckled night sky gazing down at him. It gave him time to think, though, without a baby Chia tugging on his ear or telling story to the little group.

Frightful will always be Frightful...his thoughts won't change, his eyes will still light up when I ask if he'll go out for ice cream with me...he will always be Frightful the Kougra at heart, always have been always will be, no matter what his form... Griffin thought that, and his heart felt warm inside. He smirked a little and was ready for all the changes that might possibly come in his way, all the challenges, all the faces...Frightful would be with him, ready with his Ice Sword handy. That made him feel good.

The End