"Well, I'd say that's the end of Dark Kat..." said a cautiously optimistic Razor as he lowered his hand from his eyes.
"And the jet," said a sulking T-Bone as he did the same.
Razor sighed. "Yeah," he admitted. He was gonna miss the Turbokat. But once again, if he had to choose between the jet and the citizens of Megakat City, Megakat City was going to win out every time. And he knew deep down T-Bone agreed. Smirking, he added, "Oh well, she went out with a-"
"-if you say "bang," I'm gonna..." threatened T-Bone, making a fist. Suddenly he realized something and his eyes widened. "Bang!" he cried, looking back up at the sky. "What about that, uh, y'know..."
"Fallout?"
"Yeah, that. Isn't that gonna be a problem...?" T-Bone looked a little worried.
Razor shrugged. "No, I don't think so. The bomb exploded in outer space, not in the atmosphere."
T-Bone sighed in relief, leaning back in his seat. After a moment, he sat back up. "Now what...?" he asked.
The other SWAT Kat beamed. "Why, we go greet our adoring public, of course!"
The two whooshed around in their Ejektor seats and flew back down to earth. Despite his jovial disposition, Razor had a nagging feeling that somewhere among that adoring public was Commander Ulysses Feral with two pairs of handcuffs with their names - their real names - engraved on them. But like he'd told T-Bone earlier, the SWAT Kats weren't cowards. They wouldn't run. They would hold to the deal they'd made with Feral and return to face the music. Razor just hoped it was a tune he and T-Bone could dance to. The two Ejektor seats swooped down and came in for a landing outside of Enforcer Headquarters, their parachutes deploying. The citizens, Enforcers and the Army troops came out of hiding as the two Ejektors touched on the asphalt in the middle of the street, and suddenly the two SWAT Kats found themselves surrounded by a cheering crowd, including, to the vigilantes' surprise, a few Enforcer commandos and even one or two Army soldiers. The SWAT Kats unbuckled themselves, removing their flight helmets and stood up, heads held high. Whatever happened, they were determined to bask in the moment.
Ann Gora pushed through the crowd to shove her microphone towards them. Cameraman Jonny K. was at her side. "SWAT Kats, how does it feel to finally have destroyed your greatest enemy?"
T-Bone looked a little uneasy, tracing an imaginary line on the pavement with his big toe. It was a fair question, but one he didn't feel like answering. On the one hand, blowing that purple-furred psychopath into his component atoms felt pretty good. But on the other, generally, he and Razor were only comfortable with killing monsters as opposed to other kats. He decided to let Razor answer. The shorter SWAT Kat always seemed to know the right thing to say and didn't have the tendency to put his foot in his mouth that his partner did. "I'll let Razor take this one..." he said at length.
Razor nodded. Turning to Ann, he said, "I wish there'd been some other way, Ann." He meant it. "But the safety of Megakat City came first. Dark Kat left us no choice." He shrugged. He hadn't enjoyed causing Dark Crud's death, but at the same time, if there was one kat in this world whose death wasn't going to give him any sleepless nights, it was that big, black-cloaked megalo.
Ann Gora nodded. "Well, this crowd certainly seems excited! It seems you have a lot of fans!"
"Yeah," said Razor, momentarily forgetting his earlier apprehension about being arrested upon their return, "talk about a warm welcome!"
T-Bone stiffened. "Yeah, but it's about to get pretty cold." He pointed. "Look."
A slender, elderly kat in a military uniform and peaked cap approached them. General Boggs. Ann Gora briefly considered interviewing him, but one chilly glare from the cadaverous general made her think better and back away. Jonny stayed where he was, however, filming Boggs as he walked over to the SWAT Kats. General Boggs stood stiffly before the pair, arms straight at his sides. After a moment, he snapped his heels together and gave a prim salute. T-Bone and Razor looked at each other.
"The famous SWAT Kats, I presume. I'm Lieutenant General Finlay Boggs," he said, introducing himself, lowering his hand. "My congratulations. I don't agree with what you do, but the way you handled Dark Kat and saved the city has earned you my..." he trailed off, as though searching for the right words before settling on "grudging admiration."
"Thanks," replied T-Bone, a little hesitantly. He wasn't sure if he should be offended or not. "I think."
Razor nudged him. "Jeez, take a compliment, why don't you."
T-Bone smiled. "Oh, uh, sure thing. Thank you, uh, General, sir." He toyed with saluting Boggs, and even halfway raised his hand, but ultimately thought better of it. It'd been so long since he'd been an Enforcer that he was unclear of the rules for saluting uniformed servicemen, and whether it was appropriate for civilians to do so. Instead, he offered Boggs his hand.
Boggs studied the hand as if it had come from Mars, but after a moment, the skeletal general took it and gave a surprisingly vigorous shake. Then without another word he turned stiffly and headed off. One by one, his men began dispersing and following him. The Army presence gradually departed. The soldiers piled into the troop trucks and staff cars and drove away. The Enforcer jet containing Commander Feral flew overhead, doubled back and landed in the street, the crowd parting to give it room. The one flown by Felina followed suit and landed behind him. Their canopes popped open and the two Ferals climbed out and hopped down. Seeing the SWAT Kats at the center of the crowd filling the street, Feral made a beeline for them, Felina hurrying after her uncle.
He was met halfway by General Boggs, flanked on either side by Captain Pomeroy and Lieutenant Scoleri. "Commander, forget what I said before. I won't be pressing any charges against you. I should, but I won't." He jerked a thumb back at the vigilantes. "From what I heard, you might be stuck with those two a little longer. If I were you, I'd consider myself fortunate. They're quite skilled at what they do."
Feral smirked. "I thought they were vigilante scum. Enforcer washouts."
Boggs smirked back. "They still are. Just ones that've impressed me greatly." Turning, he nodded respectfully to Felina Feral. "Lieutenant," he said, "good to see you safe and sound." Then, to Pomeroy and Scoleri, he said, "Let's go."
The Army officers went and got into their waiting helicopter. Feral and Felina watched its rotors start up, and a moment later it lifted into the sky and flew away. Turning, Commander Feral marched purposefully through the crowd of admirers encircling his former subordinates turned longtime rivals. His niece hurried after him, concerned. They were joined by Lieutenant Commander Steel, who'd emerged from the front entrance of Headquarters, spotted the Ferals moving through the crowd, and hurried after them.
"Uncle..." she said, a little warily.
"Don't worry, Felina," he assured her.
Steel, for his part, was grinning ear to ear. He enjoyed seeing people besides himself get what was coming to them, and was eager to see the Commander finally slap the cuffs on the SWAT Kats and lock them away where they belonged, especially since he'd missed it the first time around. Without the SWAT Kats, he knew, or hoped, that Feral's usual dismal performance would continue, and that Acting Mayor Callie Briggs - or Manx whenever that pathetic coward decided to show his face again - would remove Feral, and he, Steel, could achieve his dream of commanding the Enforcers at long last! And for longer than an afternoon this time!
Ann shoved her microphone in his face. "Commander Feral-"
"Not now," growled Feral, who was tired of being intercepted, interrupted and having things shoved in his face.
Ann pouted but didn't press her luck.
"Well," said Razor with a heavy sigh, "looks like it's time to pay the piper."
"Yeah, yeah, I remember," grumbled T-Bone, deflating. So much for the celebratory atmosphere. "So, Commander, what's it gonna be? You gonna cuff us out here or inside?"
Here, pleaded Steel silently. Here.
"Inside," Feral said with surprising gentleness. "And no handcuffs. After all, you rescued my niece." He turned and gestured to the steps leading up to the Enforcer Headquarters entrance. "I believe that's more than earned you two a more dignified march up those steps than last time."
Felina smiled. She decided not to bring up the fact she'd actually rescued herself from captivity, at least for now.
Steel scowled. "But Commander!"
"Shut up, Steel," Feral grumbled, taking T-Bone by the arm and steering him towards the steps and up them. Felina did the same with Razor. Neither SWAT Kat resisted. Steel followed them as a line of commandos kept the crowd back, who'd begun to boo. Feral ignored them. He hadn't gotten into this line of business to be liked. "I've made my decision," Feral said over his shoulder to a dejected-looking Steel as the group climbed the steps, "and Furlong and Clawson are going to be treated fairly without any humiliation this time."
Steel sighed and nodded. At the top, they were met by Callie Briggs who stood with her arms folded behind her back, with D.A. Mills beside her. Suddenly Steel remembered the proposal put forward by Briggs and slowed, trying to remember what it was and whether she'd elaborated on it or not. A lot had been going on at the time. He said nothing, figuring that they were all going to find out in a minute anyway.
"I admire your tact, Commander," Callie said with a smile. "You and I have some things to discuss inside as well." She looked at Mills, then at the SWAT Kats. "We all do."
Later, the group had retired to Commander Feral's office for privacy. The crowd outside was quite noisy. Even here, they could be heard dimly outside, chanting for the SWAT Kats to be set free. Feral sat at his desk, hands folded before him, glowering. Beside him was Felina, helmet tucked under her arm. Occupying the visitor's chairs were Callie Briggs and the District Attorney. Behind them, an unmasked T-Bone and Razor - Chance Furlong and Jake Clawson, now, for all intents and purposes - stood guarded by Sergeant Talon and two commandos. All three were armed. The commandos held heavy duty laser rifles at the ready. Talon was wearing a laser pistol in a holster on his belt.
Feral broke the silence. "So, how are we going to handle this, Briggs?" He frowned and coughed. "I mean, Ms. Mayor?"
Callie smiled. "Well, District Attorney Mills and I were talking and we've reached an agreement that we think will make everyone happy."
Feral raised an eyebrow. Chance and Jake exchanged glances.
"One that means no jail time, right...?" asked a hopeful Chance.
Callie and Mills turned in their seats. "Well, yes, obviously," said the D.A.
Chance was getting annoyed now. "Well, what is it? Come on, you guys, spill it! Quit keepin' us in suspense!"
Mills got up. He coughed. "In return for dropping all charges against the two of you, you two are going to, well..." he trailed off, then looked at Callie, who nodded, urging him to continue, "...come back to work for the Enforcers."
Feral shot out of his chair so fast it tipped over and fell. "What?!"
"No way!" cried Chance.
Mills flinched.
"Ms. Briggs, how in the world could you-" began a shocked Jake.
Smiling, Callie got up, smoothing out her dress. "Relax, all of you, and let me explain." She waited a moment. "The SWAT Kats can't be everywhere at once. And the Enforcers could benefit from having their new recruits trained in your methods, armed with your weaponry and vehicles."
Chance and Jake blinked and looked uncertain. Feral frowned, stroking his chin.
"You mean... we'd train Enforcer pilots?" asked Jake, starting to somewhat like the idea. "Share our tech with them and show them how to use it?"
Chance looked down at the floor. He had to admit, he too was liking the idea of teaching their methods to others. "I, uh, I guess that sounds reasonable." He glowered and looked up at Feral, pointing at him. "But we want our own squadron! And this joker-"
Callie chuckled and cut him off. "Feral stays."
"How magnanimous of you," Feral said, oozing sarcasm.
"Whatever else you, or I, think of him, he's a good commander," Callie continued. "You'll answer to him... but any decisions he makes concerning you will have to go through me." She turned and looked at Feral. "Agreed?"
After a moment, Feral frowned and nodded. "Agreed. But I want some sayso!"
"And you'll get it, don't worry," Callie placated him. She turned back to Chance and Jake. "So how 'bout it, you two? You join forces with the Enforcers. We all, all of us, work together, officially, to protect our city, as friends and allies. Not rivals and enemies."
Chance and Jake mulled this over. "I want final word on weapon systems," Jake said after a moment. "At least in the jets Chance and I will be commanding." Callie looked at Commander Feral for confirmation. He nodded after a moment. Jake was started to get excited at all the possibilities. Unlimited funds! Access to state of the art tech instead of junk! The Enforcers' high-tech laboratories! "And I've already got some ideas forming in my head for upgrades to the Enforcer jets-"
Chance interrupted excitedly. "Forget that! Why not just build more Turbokats? Yeah! Imagine it! A whole squadron of Turbokats!"
Jake looked a little doubtful.
"Come on!" Chance insisted. "It'll be radical!"
Feral palmed his face. Felina gently stroked his shoulder. Callie just laughed.
"And one more thing!" Chance went over and got in Feral's face, glaring up at him. The two commandos tensed, but a look from Sergeant Talon made them back down. For a moment, Chance and Feral glared at one another eye to eye without blinking, and then the shorter kat said, "We want our debt against the city forgiven, and we want outta that dump and into some real places! Nothin' fancy, but somewhere that's actually livable!"
"Ugh, that's-" Feral began.
"Uh, well, sure, why not...?" said Mills suddenly. He was, after all, Megakat City's D.A.
Feral growled. "Aghh! You two better know I'm only agreeing to any of this because you saved my niece!"
"Actually, she saved herself," Jake mumbled. "Just ask her."
Feral looked at Felina, who just shrugged and smiled. The Commander smiled a little and nodded, then the smile vanished and he turned and glared at the SWAT Kats. "No more masks," he commanded. "No more flagrant disregard for my authority! And I warn you, you two and your hypothetical 'radical squadron' had better impress me!"
Chance waved him off. "Sure, sure, we'll knock your socks off, Commander."
Suddenly the phone rang. Feral answered it. "Commander Feral."
It was Mayor Manx.
On a lone stretch of desert highway, Mayor Manx's white limousine, covered in dust, sat on the side of the road, hood up, smoke pouring from underneath it. There was nothing but sand and cacti as far as the eye could see. "Hizzoner" sat in the back of the limo with all the doors open, sweaty and disheveled, toupee askew, speaking into his car phone. "Feral, I, uh, I need your help..." he said meekly. "My limousine broke down. Can, um... can someone come get me...?" There was an audible click. Manx frowned. "Hello?"
Three months later, Megakat City was undergoing the process of rebuilding following Dark Kat's attack. Feral did eventually send Steel to go and rescue Manx, but in hindsight, Manx would've rather remained stranded. He returned a pariah, once word spread of how he'd abandoned the city in its time of need, and no amount of schmoozing could get him back into the voters' good graces. He was booed at every venue he attended and every speech he gave. His statue in the park was pushed over and smashed. Finally, in a fit of childish rage, he'd resigned, leaving Callie as acting mayor for the indefinite future. She set immediately to work, doing her best to get the damaged city up and running again, working closely with Commander Feral to expand the new "Radical Squadron" program the Enforcers were instituting, headed by Chance Furlong and Jake Clawson, amidst all the acerbic Enforcer Commander's usual grumbles. The crashed Fear Ship was stripped under the supervision of the Enforcers so that it could be studied and its metal parts recycled. Dark Kat's surviving technician Mortimer Zeckis was given a suspended sentence in exchange for his help in bringing the Fear Ship down, and he retired to a quiet life away from the public.
Jablonsky and Lyman both survived their attack by the Creeplings, but needed to take some time off due to their injuries. As for former Mayor Manx, he was rarely seen except at golf courses and a few society functions, and he mostly tried to keep a low profile. Gradually, the vitriol against him died down, but never went away entirely. Meanwhile, Burke and Murray toured the talk show circuit bragging about how they'd always known their friends Furlong and Clawson were the SWAT Kats, insisting that the Enforcers' new program headed by the two former vigilantes was all their idea and that ratting them out to Feral had just been them giving their friends the "push" they needed to come back to the side of law and order.
In Enforcer Headquarters, Chance and Jake got off the elevator wearing finely tailored gray uniforms with red trim on the collars and shoulders. Although they bore the "M" emblem of the Enforcers on either bicep, in lieu of the gold diamond above the M there was the red triangle symbol of the SWAT Kats, and their collars sported a blue kat head with red trim. Both bore lieutenant's insignia.
As they proceeded down the hall, Chance frowned and pulled at his collar with his finger, uncomfortable. "I've changed my mind," he joked, "let's go back to being vigilantes. Prison is better than these stuffy suits!"
"Relax, Chance," said an amused Jake. "We're only going to be in these things for formal occasions."
"Doesn't mean I gotta like it," growled Chance. "Agh, it's so itchy! It's Feral's revenge, I swear!"
Jake laughed and they approached a large set of double doors. They stood before them, hesitant. Jake sighed, turned, and adjusted Chance's tie. "Well, time to go in there and knock 'em dead."
"Yeah," said Chance. "Hey, Jake, can I ask you somethin'? Did we, y'know..." he trailed off, rubbing the back of his head, "when we became the SWAT Kats, did we do the right thing for the wrong reasons, or the wrong thing for the right reasons?"
Jake shrugged. "I'd say both."
Chance nodded. "Yeah, I kinda figured." He looked at the doors. "So, uh, you think we got a lot of volunteers?"
"Only one way to find out."
The taller kat heaved a deep sigh. "Well, in we go."
He turned and threw open the doors. They entered a large auditorium rather like a classroom at a university. Rows upon rows of seats ascended upwards towards the back, arranged in a semicircular pattern around a large floor with a desk, a briefing table, and numerous charts, diagrams and other miscellaneous odds and ends. The most prominent thing in the room besides the seats was a large viewscreen, currently turned off. On the table there were an overhead projector, also turned off, and a scale model of the Turbokat with the Enforcer logo on it. As Chance and Jake entered, numerous cadets, seated, got to their feet, the sound of scuffling shoes filling the vast room.
Chance and Jake stared at them as they stood rigidly at attention. They were of ages ranging from late teens to early twenties to thirties and even a few in their mid to late forties. There were men as well as women. They were all dressed in uniforms like Chance's and Jake's, but without officer's insignia. Commander Feral stood to one side.
"Wow," said Jake, amazed. "A lot."
Feral walked over.
"Hi, Commander," said Chance, doing his best sound cordial. His animosity towards the Enforcer Commander had been slowly but surely fading over the last several months. "So where'd you dig all these guys and gals up?"
"Here and there," replied Feral. "At Mayor Briggs' insistence, I sent out a bulletin regarding membership in the new squadron. I was surprised so many came from within the Enforcers." He frowned. "It seems you two have had fans right under my nose the entire time." He fidgeted, as though feeling awkward. "Anyway, I'll leave this in your capable hands."
He strode out, slamming the door. Chance and Jake turned to address their audience.
"First thing's first," said Chance. "You can stop standing so rigid and formal. That's fine for parades and stuff, but in this squadron, we like to have a... relaxed attitude."
The cadets relaxed a little, some more reluctantly than others, and Jake motioned for them to sit.
"For one reason or another, you all have applied to join the new Radical Squadron of the Enforcers. But it's important that you see this position not as a shot at stardom or some easy, fast track to promotion... but as the right thing to do. The best way to serve not only your fellow Enforcers, but Megakat City itself."
The cadets nodded.
"With that in mind, we're proud to have you here, and delighted to see so many people here. You've got a fierce training regimen ahead of you. Even those of you with basic Enforcer training are going to have to be re-trained by Lieutenant Furlong and myself. Basic training is fine, but this is a specialty squadron. Now, then, as it so happens, recent events mean the Enforcers have to be extra vigilant, so we need this new squadron out without delay... which means a good chunk of your training is going to be on the job training. So, let's-"
Jake was cut off as an alarm sounds. The cadets looked excited.
"Sorry, buddy, the rest of the speech is gonna have to wait," Chance said, laying a hand on his friend's shoulder. He addressed the cadets. "Now, we'd love to take your guys out with us for some of that on the job trainin' he mentioned, but that'll come later." The cadets were understandably disappointed. "Now, now, no grumblin'! You'll get your chance." He grinned. "All of you."
With that, he and Jake turned and ran out.
The rebuilt Turbokat was being prepped for flight by the runway crew. It was emblazoned with a red version of the Enforcer logo, gleaming brilliantly. The door to the runway opened and Chance and Jake come out dressed in their familiar blue and red flight suits, which sported the same Enforcer logo as the jet. They were maskless. Felina Feral greeted them, bringing them up to speed as they approach the jet, helmets tucked under their arms. Despite being unmasked, when on duty they were going to be known by their old SWAT Kat callsigns.
"What do we got?" asked T-Bone.
"A robbery in progress!" Felina said.
"Great," said Razor, cracking his knuckles. "That should really impress your uncle."
He and T-Bone plunked their helmets on and hopped in. The canopy slid shut. Felina and the Enforcer crew stepped back as the engines fired up, the Turbokat shooting off down the runway and flying into the air.
The First Bank of Megakat City was a large prestegious-looking building with turn-of-the-century style architecture. The day had started normal enough. Fussy middle-aged bank manager had told his assistant manager that he was leaving for lunch, when a group of armed kats had entered and swept him up by the arms, making him drop his briefcase. Two of them were carrying a large black case between themselves. The guard at the door tried to intervene, but was pistol-whipped by the obvious leader, Scarlatti, a handsome kat with short blonde hair wearing a business suit and tie in contrast to his henchmen's black bodysuits and tactical gear.
They'd dragged the manager and guard in, and Scarlatti closed the door, turning the sign to say "Closed." The customers and employees looked shocked, and Scarlatti yelled for everyone to get down. Everyone screamed and dropped, and the manager and the guard were made to lie down on the floor with everyone else. At one point, Scarlatti paused to dial a number of his mobile phone.
"Pickup in two minutes, and step on it," he said, and hung up.
One brave-looking teller eyed a nearby alarm, but stayed where she was. She and the others were being held at gunpoint by two of the robbers. Carrying their black case, the third and fourth robbers ran downstairs followed by the leader, Scarlatti. When no one was looking, the teller activated the silent alarm, praying that the Enforcers got there soon. In the underground vault, Scarlatti and his men rushed into a room with a massive metal vault door at the opposite end. A desk for a guard, unoccupied, was the only thing in the room. Working quickly, the robbers set their case down and opened it, removing and assembling a massive drill. As Scarlatti watched, they began drilling through the door.
"Hurry!" Scarlatti urged them impatiently. Despite himself, he was grinning. He knew there was no way the Enforcers could get there in time to prevent their escape, and last he'd heard, the SWAT Kats were out of commission. He'd been planning this robbery for months and there was no way he was going to get caught. Nevertheless, there was no sense dawdling.
The drill bored completely through the vault. Stuffing some plastic explosive into the hole, the three robbers dived behind the guard's desk. The plastic went off, annihilating the lock with a muted explosion. The door slowly creaked open, revealing stacks upon stacks of crisp money. Peeking out from behind the desk, Scarlatti grinned.
"It's like taking candy from a baby! Start gathering up everything you can carry!"
Back upstairs, the two robbers guarding the prisoners heard sirens approaching. They tensed, scanning the group, looking for the culprit who'd activated the silent alarm. They were unsure of what to do, looking at one another worriedly. Suddenly, their leader Scarlatti and their other two cohorts came rushing up from downstairs laden with bags of loot.
Hearing the sirens, Scarlatti snarled, "You idiots! You let one of them hit the alarm!" He sighed. "Nevermind, let's go! Our ride should be hear any moment!"
The five turned and hurried off.
Outside, Enforcer cruisers drove up, screeching to a halt. Getting out of his car, baton in hand, Commander Feral went to where several Enforcer commandos had erected a hasty barricade. "Report," he said.
"We're not certain of the situation just yet, Commander," said one of the commandos.
Feral scanned the skies. "And no sign of the new 'Radical Squadron.'" He grumbled, gesturing with his baton. "Well, we can handle this situation! Prepare a breach! There's innocent people in that bank that need rescuing!"
The commando saluted. Suddenly they heard the noise of approaching rotor blades and turn as a sleek black helicopter appeared overhead and flew over the top of the bank. The helicopter touched down on the roof. Scarlatti and the other four robbers emerged onto the rooftop and piled aboard. Scarlatti sat up front with the mean-looking pilot, two duffels of loot in his lap. His four henchmen were squeezed in back with all their bags of money. At a motion from Scarlatti, the pilot took off.
Feral and the commando he was talking to watched as the chopper lifted up and flew. Feral pulled out a walkie-talkie. "This is Commander Feral, requesting immediate chopper intercept at the First Bank of Megakat City!" He paused for a moment, considering, then added, "And the Radical Squadron if they're not too busy doing anything important!"
"Jeez, Feral," came Chance's voice over the radio, "keep your tail on! We're comin'!"
The Enforcers fired after the black helicopter, but it climbed rapidly in altitude and speed and was soon up and away between the skyscrapers. In the escaping chopper, the criminals are laughing joyously at their heist. "Sit back and enjoy the ride, gentlemen," jeered Scarlatti as he loosened his tie.
"Yeah," said the pilot, "we're home free!"
Scarlatti laughed, unable to contain his excitement. "I told you this was going to be easy! The Enforcers can't catch us, and the SWAT Kats are history! Megakat City belongs to the criminal element from now on!" The roar of powerful jet engines filled the air. Scarlatti tensed. "What the heck...?"
There was a shuddering jerk and the helicopter's rotor blades suddenly gave a whine of protest and stopped spinning, grinding to a halt. Something was tangled up in them. The chopper continued forward a few feet, then hung in midair for a couple of seconds. Then the robbers all screamed as the aircraft dropped.
"Pull up!" screamed Scarlatti.
"I can't!" whimpered the pilot. "The rotor blades are stuck!"
They fell like a stone. They were seconds from smashing into the street when the chopper jerked to a sudden halt and swung nose down so that it was dangling by the tail. Scarlatti and the pilot were smushed up against the windshield. Behind them, the other four robbers babbled and yelped as they were jostled against the backs of the front seats, money flying everywhere as they struggled to hold onto their loot. Suddenly, the chopper lifted up as if being raised by a crane. Scarlatti, gritting his teeth, managed to turn in his seat and look over his shoulder, up and back along the length of the helicopter. A Bola Missile was tangled in the rotor blades and the helicopter's tail was being held by the Sky Claw. He blinked and his eyes followed the line up to the hovering black and red fighter jet bearing a red version of the Enforcer logo hovering several feet above.
"The Turbokat!" he cried.
In the cockpit sat the maskless T-Bone and Razor. They looked down at the captured chopper.
"We were on these guys before we knew what hit 'em!" said Razor "What I wouldn't give to see the looks on their faces!"
"Or Feral's when we deliver our catch!" added T-Bone with a chuckle. "We btter set 'em down. I think all the blood's rushing to their heads by now."
The jet turned and set the helicopter down safely down in front of the approaching Enforcer cruisers which screeched to a halt. The Enforcers piled out and aimed their weapons at the robbers in the helicopter who all immediately surrendered. T-Bone hmms and checked a stopwatch.
"Mission accomplished, bad guys apprehended, and justice meted out, all in less than a minute."
Feral emerged from his car and walks over. He watched as the robbers were being pulled out of the helicopter and cuffed, then glowered at the SWAT Kats who grinned and wave at him cheesily. Razor popped the canopy so they can talk to Feral.
"Maybe Briggs was right about you two, but you'll have to do more than catch a few bank robbers to-"
He was cut off as Sergeant Talon came running up, walkie-talkie in hand. "Commander, we've got a Code 406 at a pizza parlor downtown!" He eyed the SWAT Kats. "A certain... slithery friend of ours has decided to order out."
"Well," said T-Bone, "surely stopping Dr. Viper will be a little more impressive, eh, Feral? Race ya there!"
Before Feral could reply, the canopy slid closed and the Turbokat rocket off.
The sky was gently sliding into a reddish-hued evening. At a local pizza parlor now far from the bank, a giant pizza monster was terrorizing several customers. The creature was an enormous slice of monstrous, living pizza with arms and legs. Dr. Viper was sitting at a patio dining table, a plate of anchovy pizza in front of him. As he ate the pizza and watched the monster wreck the place, he looked like someone in a movie theater. People ran this way and that in an effort to escape. Three Enforcer choppers fly into view, hovering over the vicinity.
"What is that?" asked King, sitting in the lead chopper.
"A giant slice of pizza, I'd say!" said his co-pilot, Burge, pointing out the obvious.
The monstrous food creature swatted the chopper down. Burge and King bailed out before the crashed aircraft explodes. The remaining vehicles turned and veered away. Viper laughed. The pizza monster grabs the down copter and began eating it hungrily. Burge and King fired at it uselessly with their sidearms, then turned and fled.
"Yesssssss! Eat, my pet!" Viper said in between bites of pizza. "Eat!" He burped and took another bite of pizza and continued talking with his mouth full. "And then we'll go to the chemical factory ssso that I can obtain the newessst shipment of Sssuper-Katalyssst B-46! Now that Dark Kat is out of the picture, Megakat City will be mine!"
He stopped as he heared the roar of jet engines and turned in mid-chew, one cheek bulged out, to see the new Turbokat come flying in low. In the cockpit, T-Bone and Razor in shock at the creature.
"I guess this place isn't open for business!" said T-Bone.
"Well, what say we cancel Viper's order...?" suggested Razor with a grin and a thumbs up.
He locked in on the beast. He pressed the firing mechanism, launching a missile, which sailed towards the monster. The missile flew over Viper's head, whooshing his hair wildly, and flew directly toward his creation. The SWAT Kats as Megakat City were no more, but the new versions of them, the Radical Squadron, would endure. The criminal element received a very harsh lesson that day that Megakat City was, as it always had been, protected.
The End.