With the new tracker created by Wesley, finding any survivors they missed and escorting them to the Military Outpost was quite an easy task now. However, there were locations that took a long while to get too and everyone had to hope that whoever they were trying to save was still alive.
Now, they were trying to find a small group of tubbies in some strange old facility. The survivors said they had escaped New Born attacks after retreating there.
"So, what makes the facility strange?" Po asked as the helicopter flew through the air.
Ron shrugged, even while he was piloting the helicopter because of his...experience when ramming the helicopter into Shadow's face and pissing the demon off.
Po thought long and hard before sighing. "Well, at least we're saving someone!"
"More than one someone." Walten added. "And hey, this is also our second mission."
Connor, who was much more healed and stronger now nodded. "Yeah. I'm impressed. You guys are rookies and already seem toi be great soldiers."
"Thanks." Walten said.
But then, the helicopter landed and everyone stepped out. But then Ron poked his head out of the helicopter. "This is as close as I can get you guys. You may have to speed walk."
They all nodded and then rushed into the old abandoned building. When inside, they saw it was some kind of factory, but old and rusty. And coated in nothing but dust. Po sneezed while walking through. She then wiped her nose.
Walten thought to himself as he looked around. But while he started to walk, he saw scratch marks on the walls. But they were rusty and dusty as well. Whoever or whatever made them was either dead or had been in this place for a very, very, very long time.
After many hours of traveling, the group landed in the only place that wasn't dusty, but the metal was still old. It was some kind of metal maze.
"A maze??" Connor asked.
"Who would hide in a maze? Wouldn't you get lost?" Po asked.
Walten shrugged. "I guess it's also a good spot because the monster might get lost too."
Po nodded before hopping down, Walten and Connor following soon after. They started to walk through the maze, Connor sliding his hand against the wall.
Walten looked back at the silver samurai. "What are you doing?"
"Well, when I was training, I was given a maze obstacle once and was timed. And while it did take me a while, I would sometimes slide my hand against either side of the wall and stuck to it, that way I would stick with my path and slowly find my way out. It had me fail the obstacle course, but got me out. Eventually, I got good at it and then passed."
"Huh. That's a good one." Walten said as he put his hand against the other side.
Po was constantly cupping her ear to try and hear someone. She eventually called out. "Hello?!"
A few seconds later, someone else cried back. "Who is that?!"
"We're the military! We received a distress call! Where are you?!" Po asked.
But then, they heard footsteps and two tubbies walked out. One was black and with a triangle antenna similar to Tink's, and the other was an aqua blue and with a bracket antenna. It was rare tubbies had antennas, but then again, it wasn't exactly uncommon either.
"Oh, thank god! We're saved!" The aqua tubby cried out as she ran over with the black tubby.
Connor nodded and then turned around, his hand still on the wall. "Okay, now we can go out the way we came in."
Walten then heard a faint growl and tensed. He then slowly turned to the aqua and black tubby. "...You weren't alone, were you?"
They both shook their heads.
Po grabbed her gun, Walten grabbed his chainsaw, and Connor took out his katana, while the two survivors hid behind them.
There were footsteps, and they grew louder and louder, and started to become more rapid. At first, it was one footstep every couple of seconds before it turned to one footstep every single second. Then, something hopped out in front of them. It was tall, slender, and orange. It's eyes were black and dead, and finally, it had an arrow antenna on its head.
Everyone stepped back, but Po shot at the orange New Born, while Walten and Connor charged at it, slicing their blades (and chainsaw) into its body.
The tubby roared out in pain, but roared back at them and swatted Connor against the wall of the maze and then suddenly had its fist burst into flames and it shot out a ball of fire at Walten.
The Guardian gasped and quickly dodged, his hat falling off his head in the process. He then sliced at its hand, swinging the chainsaw as swiftly as Connor would his katana.
Po shot at the orange New Born again before grabbing a knife and stabbing the thing in the back.
The Arrow Tubby roared and fell to its knees, but then it suddenly teleported in a puff of smoke.
"Where did it go?!" Connor cried out before the Arrow Tubby appeared right beside him and grabbed him by the neck and threw him at Po.
Po gasped as Connor fell onto her.
The Guardian growled and then sliced the blade of his chainsaw into the orange monster's face, creating a bloody scar.
The Arrow Tubby roared and stumbled backwards, covering its now bloody eye.
Po and Connor got up, both of them grabbing their weapons and getting ready to take down the evil creature before the monster teleported away again.
Walten sighed in relief. "Okay. Now we can go."
The two survivor tubbies sighed in relief. "Thank you. We weren't ever able to stand up to that thing."
Po smiled. "Of course! I think we're fighting these things all the time! What are your names by the way?"
"I'm Coral." The aqua tubby introduced. "That's Ben. We didn't know each other until running into this place to hide."
Ben waved. It seemed like he didn't talk much.
The group started to head out before suddenly Walten stepped on something and it crumbled. He looked down and then saw...a piece of paper with a drawing on it?
He picked it up and then looked at it, clearly confused.
Po turned around. "What is it, Walt?" She asked as she stepped over to him.
Walten was about to speak before snorting. "Walt? Already shortening my name?"
"Fiona taught me that was something we should do." Po said with a giggle before picking up the drawing and then looking at it.
There were three tubbies on the drawing, but badly drawn as if whoever made them was a cute tiddlytubby. One was brown and had some kind of cross antenna. One in the middle was a light blue and with white coats of fur matching their blizzard blue fur.
"Hey...That looks like the Master thing we saw in the mountains!" Walten realized, pointing to the one in the middle.
"You're right!" Po realized. "Maybe this is what he looked like before he was infected...Wait, who would have drawn this?"
Connor shrugged. "I'm not sure...Wait, there's three on that. Who's the third?"
Walten looked down at the drawing again and then saw an orange tubby with an arrow antenna. The same as the monster.
"Wait...That's-"
Suddenly, in a puff of smoke, the Arrow Tubby returned and forced the drawing out of Po's hands and then stood back, holding the drawing to its chest, as if it were the most precious thing it owned.
Connor was about to attack before Po stopped him. "Wait. Let me try something."
The Arrow Tubby snarled at them before looking at the drawing...Suddenly, he grew red pupils in his black eyes and they started to water with tears. The Arrow Tubby suddenly fell to his knees and sniffled.
Po's heart clenched and she slowly walked over. "Are...Are you the one who drew this?"
The Arrow Tubby looked at her, but did not attack. He just began to cry as he nodded.
Po knelt down and wiped the monster's tears. "Are the others your friends?"
Arrow Tubby nodded again, growling slightly. It seemed it still had a mind deep down. The orange tubby then showed Po the drawing, and pointed to the brown and blizzard blue tubby.
"You don't know where they are...?"
Arrow Tubby nodded before seeing a crayon nearby and then grabbing it, beginning to write something down. He then showed it to her again. 'Brothers to me' was what was written down.
"Oh, you poor thing..." Po whispered as she held the creature's shaking hand.
Arrow Tubby sniffled and squeezed it.
Walten walked over. "We ran into one of your brothers."
Arrow perked its head up and then gave a very worried look before quickly writing and scribbling down something and then showing it to him. 'Are they ok?'
Walten and Po looked at each other before facing the creature. "They're like you. Infected, I think."
Arrow sighed sadly, and then nodded, as if saying he knew that. He then rapidly pointed his finger against the brown tubby drawing, as if asking where he was.
Po shook her head. "We don't know him."
Arrow hung his head a little low before he then wrote something else down. 'My body and head hurt...More than what Coat Men do...'
"Coat Men...?" Po asked.
Arrow thought for a long moment before drawing his best memory of the coat men and then showed it to them. It was...humans? But they had lab coats and masks on. Like human doctors or something.
"Wait...Those are our creators." Walten said. "They made the machines."
"Your curators?" Po asked.
Walten nodded. "Yeah! But they passed away a long time ago. When you and I were really young. I remember one named Victor was really nice to me."
Arrow then wrote something down. 'Coat Men wouldn't let me and my brothers go.'
"...I'm so sorry..." Walten said as he knelt down too.
Po gave the creature a hug, letting the poor thing cry.
Arrow sniffled and sobbed in a monstrous tone since he was still infected. Suddenly, he broke the hug and then wrote something. 'Coat Men made something scary...Something mean and scarier...'
"Can you draw it for us?" Po asked.
Arrow Tubby nodded and then grabbed a black and red crayon and started to draw it, doing the best he could with his shaking hands. He then showed it to them, and Walten and Po gasped.
It was a black tubby with a bracket antenna. One red eye, bloody mouth and claws, and finally, a glowing red screen.
Arrow then quickly wrote something down. 'Eye and belly white when happy. Red when mad.'
"That's...That's Shadow..." Po breathed.
Walten's body was frozen at the realization of pure terror. His creators made Shadow. They MADE him INTO the custard. They created a manmade Satan.
The Tubby Devil.
Arrow then wrote something down and then left it on the floor before teleporting. Po was about to run after the creature before seeing what he wrote.
'Sorry for hurting and hunting....Brain is not thinking good thoughts...Thank you for letting me know one of my big bros is somewhere I can go...My brain is becoming evil and I don't wanna hurt anybody.
Signed, The Arrow Tubby.'