Lockjaw's Saga: a Pikmin Story

[Area 64]

   The two thieves were flying back from a superbly-executed heist in the forest.
   “I can’t believe it Barney,” said the thief from the night before. “How were you able to snag more than your own weight in those Clamp Clamp pearls!?”
   “It was... nothin’, boss,” said the other, straining to carry a sack of pearls while flying.
    While flying high over the cold ground, Sneed, the first thief, noticed someone inside his headquarters.
   “Hey, Barney!” said Sneed. “Look down there! Two suspicious-lookin’ guys are comin’ out of our H-Q! Go down there and rough ‘em up, but DON’T drop the pearls!” ordered Sneed.
   “No... prob... boss...” said Barney.

   “Gallon, wait!” called out Lockjaw. “Come back!”
   “Oh, what’s the use?” sighed Gallon. “The necklace is lost forever... I hope those thieves are happy...”
   “Let’s... just keep looking,” Lockjaw said, trying to coax Gallon back into enthusiasm. “Maybe the thieves just left for awhile... maybe they’ll come back to this spot!”
   “Lockjaw... now you are the one not thinking reasonably,” said Gallon. “What are the chances that the thieves will come right back to this spot just like that?”
   Shortly after Gallon said that, a sack of pearls came plummeting out of the sky, followed by a Bumbling Snitchbug.
   “Uh oh...” said the Snitchbug, ignoring Lockjaw and Gallon’s amazed and confused expressions. “The boss is gonna have my wings for this!” He then frantically began to pick up the pearls and stuff them back in the sack before his “boss” could notice.
   “Hey, Gallon,” said Lockjaw. “What is that?” He said, motioning up into the air. Just then, whatever the thing was swooped down from the sky in the blink of an eye to chastise the Snitchbug.
   “Barney, you idiot!” he said. “Didn’t I tell you NOT to drop the pearls?!”
   “S-sorry, boss!” said Barney. “I-I’ll make it up to you!”
   When the thing in the sky swooped down, Lockjaw quickly distinguished it as a Swooping Snitchbug. The Swooping Snitchbug then turned around to Lockjaw and Gallon, and then turned back to Barney.
   “DIDN’T I TELL YOU TO TAKE CARE OF THESE PELLETHEADS?!” he screamed.
   “Sorry, boss, I’m so sorry!” whimpered Barney. Calming down, the Swooping Snitchbug then turned to face Lockjaw and Gallon.
   “What’re you two nuts doin’ trespassin’ in Sneed’s hideout? NO ONE trespasses in Sneed’s hideout!” he yelled.
   “Well, SNEED, you were the one who stole my friend’s wife’s necklace in the first place!” accused Lockjaw. “Besides, what kind of hideout is this? It’s right out in the open!”
   “Hey, ya snooze, ya lose!” piped up Barney.
   “Shut up Barney. NO ONE talks bad about me AND my hideout!” said Sneed, balling up his small fists. “Barney, get over here! It’s knucklin’ time!”

[Area 64]

   Barney flew from picking up the pearls over to Sneed’s aid.
   “You picked a bad day to mess wit’ us!” said Barney.
   “Barney, shut up and just finish ‘em!” exclaimed Sneed.
   “Right, boss,” Barney said. “Finish ‘em! Leave it to me!”
   
   Barney started off by swooping up into the air and headbutting Lockjaw with a lot of force.
   “Lockjaw, you okay?” asked Gallon.
   “Yeah...” said Lockjaw. “I’ll be fine.” Lockjaw then shrugged it off and jumped up to bite Barney. Barney quickly rose up in the air where Lockjaw couldn’t reach him.
   “Ha, ha! Too slow!” said Barney as he dangled right above Lockjaw.
   “Lockjaw, hold still!” said Gallon. Gallon then jumped on top of Lockjaw and got a hold of Barney’s arm.
   “Ahhhhhh!” screamed Barney, flying around madly with Gallon still attached.
   “Give me my wife’s necklace!” Gallon said through clenched teeth.
   “Never!” said Barney. Sneed had then decided to intervene.
   “This could ONLY happen to you, Barney! Hold still!” he said, grabbing Gallon. After many attempts, Gallon finally came off.
   “Alright, Barney,” said Sneed. “Since you can’t do anything right, I’m gonna have to help you! You get the one on the left and I’ll get the ugly one!” they both then flown high into the air, swooping down and ramming Lockjaw and Gallon.
   “Whoa...” said Lockjaw. “I think I got a headache...”
   “Lockjaw, stay with me!” encouraged Gallon. “We can take ‘em!”
   “Oh, yeah?” said Sneed. “Barney, let’s give ‘em another bombshell!” They both them flew back into the sky, ready to swoop.
   “Get ready...” said Gallon, paying close attention to the Snitchbugs’ movements.
   “I’m ready!” said Lockjaw, aware of Gallon’s plan.
   The two Snitchbugs then swooped down at lightning speed! Right before collision, Gallon and Lockjaw then got a tight grip on their arms! They then swung the Snitchbugs around, making them collide heads.
   “Ohhhhh....” moaned Sneed as he broke himself and Barney free. “Listen, Barney... I got a plan,” he then whispered the “plan” in Barney’s ear, with Barney nodding afterward.
   “Let’s do it!” said Sneed. Just then, Sneed and Barney both swooped down on top of Lockjaw, each grabbing one of his eyestalks. They then lifted him off the ground and threw him into Gallon.
   “Lockjaw, are you okay?” asked Gallon.
   “My eyestalks hurt, but... I’m fine...” said Lockjaw. “Hey Gallon, this time, you hold still!”
   “What’re you two talkin’ about?” questioned Sneed. Lockjaw then jumped off of Gallon and had gotten a hold of each of their arms. His weight was enough to slam them into the ground.
   “Ugh...” moaned Sneed, lying on the ground. “Barney, use the pearls....”
   “Right, boss!” Barney said. Barney then flew over to the sack of pearls and started flinging them wildly at Lockjaw and Gallon.
   “Lockjaw, I’ll handle him!” said Gallon. Gallon quickly dodged most of the pearls, getting hit by a few along the way, and was able to bite Barney’s arm and throw him into Sneed. The two thieves lied on the ground, moaning.
   Gallon then crawled up to Sneed. “Now where’s my wife’s necklace?!” he demanded.

[Area 64]

   “Alright, fine, you win!” said Sneed. “Barney, give ‘em the necklace...” Barney then dragged himself over to a hole in the snow that was covered by a leaf and pulled the necklace out of the hole.
   “Here... take it....” said Barney, giving the necklace to Lockjaw. “Take whatever you want!”
   “Shut UP, Barney!” said Sneed. Sneed then turned to Lockjaw and Gallon. “We’ll be back! Don’t you worry about that! Oh ho ho, we’ll be back...” he said as he and Barney weakly flew off.
   “Come on, Lockjaw. Let’s take that necklace back to the lake,” said Gallon. Lockjaw and Gallon then returned to the lake, and Lockjaw hung the necklace back up on the twig. Afterward, they both finally got to eat a lunch of Wogpoles and nectar.
   Looking at Gallon, Lockjaw had noticed that he had a slightly swollen sore on his side.
   “Ooh...” said Lockjaw. “That looks painful...”
   “It feels painful...” said Gallon. “That battle was pretty rough.”
   “Y’know, when I and some of the other Bulborbs were in training to lead the squadrons, we were taught simple remedies for combat wounds,” said Lockjaw. “Yours looks like it can be healed with the pollen from a Figwort mixed with water. Are there any Figworts around here?”
   “I don’t think so...” said Gallon. I don’t see many plants growing around here....”
   “Hmm...” said Lockjaw as he thought of a solution. “We’ll just have to go where there are some Figworts. Otherwise, the wound will get worse.”
   “You mean... leave here?” questioned Gallon.
   “We can come back as soon as we get that remedy,” said Lockjaw.
   “Who will guard the lake and make sure the necklace stays okay?” asked Gallon.
   “Don’t worry, I have an idea! Could you take me to that island again?” asked Lockjaw.
   “Okay... but I don’t see exactly where you’re going with this...” said Gallon. Gallon then took Lockjaw across the lake and back to the island. There, they saw Bubba sleeping as usual.
   “Hey Bubba!” said Lockjaw.
   “Huh...Yeah?” he said, waking up.
   “We have one more favor to ask you...” started Lockjaw. “Gallon and I are gonna be gone for a little while and we need someone to watch the lake. Do you think you could do it for us?”
   “Uh... alright. No problem!” said Bubba. Bubba then followed Lockjaw and Gallon back across the lake. Once across the lake, Lockjaw and Gallon went to the hole where Lockjaw first emerged out of the Crawmad Railroad and were about to enter.
   “See you guys later!” said Bubba, seeing them off.
   “Don’t worry,” said Lockjaw. “We’ll only be gone for a while!” He and Gallon then went down the hole as Bubba went back to sleep.

   “Lockjaw, are you sure about this?” asked Gallon.
   “Don’t worry,” said Lockjaw. “One of these tunnels has to lead to somewhere with Figworts.” Lockjaw and Gallon then began their search through the Crawmad Railroad.

[Area 64]

   Lockjaw and Gallon were searching through the Crawmad Railroad, looking for a tunnel that led to Figworts. After searching for 15 minutes, Gallon began to lose hope.
   “Lockjaw, how much longer is this going to take?” asked Gallon.
   “Let’s just try one more tunnel, and then we can take a break,” said Lockjaw. “How about that one over there?” he said, motioning to a nearby tunnel.
   Lockjaw and Gallon had crawled through the tunnel and found that they had emerged in the middle of a patch of Figwort flowers.
   “How lucky is this?!” exclaimed Lockjaw. “We’ll be out of here in no time! I’ll just see if there’s any water around...” he said as he picked some Figworts and went to look for some water.
   While walking through the spacious, brightly-lit cave, Lockjaw came across a puddle of water.
   “All right!” he said. “Now I just need something to carry it in.” Lockjaw dropped the Figworts and went looking for a container. Not before long, Lockjaw found a bowl-shaped black and yellow shell that he could use as a container.
   “This’ll do,” he said as he dragged the shell back to the puddle. Lockjaw then dipped the shell in the puddle, and was beginning to grind up the Figworts when an Anode Beetle walked by.
   “What’re you doing?” asked the appalled Anode Beetle.
   “Who... me?” asked Lockjaw as he looked around, seeing the Anode Beetle.
   “You picked those from the gardens, didn’t you?” accused the Beetle
   “What, these flowers?” asked a confused Lockjaw. “I’m sorry, but my friend needs these. I didn’t know that these were garden flowers.”
   “We’ll, you’d best apologize,” said the Beetle.
   “Uh, I’ll do it later. My friend is hurt and needs the pollen from these flowers, so... bye!” said Lockjaw as he quickly dragged the shell back to the garden where Gallon was.
   “Sorry it took so long back there, Gallon,” said Lockjaw. “Someone was holding me up. Now, I need you to hold still; this might hurt a little at first...” Lockjaw then poured the pollen water from the shell onto Gallon’s sore.
   “Ow! Ow! Ow!” said Gallon. “Ah, it stings! It hurts so... actually, it doesn’t hurt that much, anymore,” Gallon said as he looked up at Lockjaw. “Where did you get that Anode Beetle shell?” he asked.
   “That’s what this is?” said Lockjaw, looking at the shell and then tossing it away. “Well, it doesn’t matter; let’s just get out of here.” Lockjaw and Gallon were about to go back down the hole and return to the Crawmad Railroad when the Anode Beetle from before came marching up to the flower garden, with two other Anode Beetles by her side.
   “That’s the one!” she said. “That’s the guy who picked the flowers!”
   One of the other Anode Beetles then interrupted Lockjaw and Gallon’s attempt to escape by entering the garden and blocking the hole to the tunnel.
   “Sirs, are you aware of the fact that defiling the gardens in this village is strictly prohibited?” he sternly asked.
   “What do you mean by ‘defiling’?” said Lockjaw, backing up. “My friend was hurt!”
   “Look at him!” said the female Beetle. “He continues to trample the garden!”
   “Sirs, I’m going to have to ask you to step out of the garden,” said the Beetle standing next to the female Beetle.
   “C’mon, Lockjaw,” said Gallon. “We don’t have to take this! Let’s just push him out of the way and leave.”
   “Sirs, make one move and you will be incapacitated,” threatened the Beetle standing in front of Lockjaw and Gallon.
   “We’re on a schedule, here,” said Lockjaw, stepping closer to the hole. “So, if you don’t mind--”
   “Stun him!” the Anode Beetle yelled from the garden. Just then, the Beetle in the garden made a charge that connected with the Beetle standing next to the female, and the current shocked both Lockjaw and Gallon, knocking them out.

[Area 64]

   When Lockjaw and Gallon came to, they found themselves surrounded by a ring of Anode Beetles, all perched on stones and looking down at the two.
   “Ugh...what are we doing here?” moaned Lockjaw.
   “You two KNOW why you’re here!” said one of the Anode Beetles. “You disrespected one of our treasured recreational flower gardens!”
   “Who are all you guys?” asked Gallon.
   “We are the Anode Beetle committee,” said another Beetle. “We run this village.”
   “Yes, and we keep scofflaws like YOU out,” said another Beetle. “You two have been charged with--”
   “We know, we know! The flowers!” said Lockjaw. “How do you all even know we uprooted them?”
   “You take us for fools?” said the first Anode Beetle. “We have an eyewitness that testifies that she saw you with uprooted Figworts.” The Beetle then turned to a Beetle whom Lockjaw recognized as the one who held him up at the puddle. “Volt, would you care to recapitulate?”
   “I certainly would,” said Volt, giving Lockjaw and Gallon a smug look. “I saw the orange one pick the flowers and grind them up.”
   “And, uh... you... orange guy...” said the first Beetle.
   “My name’s Lockjaw!” Lockjaw said, annoyed.
   “Right, then, ‘Lockjaw’, how do you plead?” asked the Beetle.
   “Look, if those flowers really meant that much to you, I’m sorry,” said Lockjaw. “I just needed some so I could help my friend Gallon’s sore. Had I known about the flower law thing, I would’ve asked first. Can we go now?”
   “Hmm...” the Beetle thought after hearing Lockjaw. He then discussed it with the other Beetles gathered at the ring. After whispering amongst themselves, they came to a ruling.
   “We have decided to let you two go free,” started the Beetle.
   “Yes! Finally,” said Lockjaw enthusiastically.
   “You didn’t let me finish,” said the Beetle. “I was going to say, ‘we’ll let you go free after two weeks of community service. You two will be helping to replant the gardens, maintain a food supply, and since you were so blatantly rude to Mrs. Volt here, you will be helping her with whatever tasks she might need.”
   “Oh, come on, two whole weeks?” spoke up Gallon.
   “Would you rather be stuck in the lawbreakers’ net for two weeks?” asked the Beetle, pointing to a net that was hoisted up against the ceiling.
   “Wow, these guys really have a harsh judicial system...” Lockjaw muttered to Gallon. “Okay, we’ll take the community service,” he then said to the Beetle.
   “Fine then. Enjoy your two-week stay here,” said the Beetle as he and all the other Beetles in the committee left. Lockjaw and Gallon then stepped out of the ring of stones and looked around aimlessly.
   “Now what do we do?” Gallon asked Lockjaw.
   “Now, you come with me!” said Volt as she walked up behind the two. “I have a lot of stuff I need help with and the sooner it gets done, the sooner you two can leave!”
   “Really?” asked Lockjaw.
   “No,” replied Volt. “You still have to stay two weeks.”
   “Alright, but this doesn’t mean that we’re your slaves or anything!” said Gallon.
   “Quiet on the way to the house!” yelled Volt.
   “Sorry, sorry, sorry,” said Gallon as he and Lockjaw followed Volt to her home.

[Area 64]

   Lockjaw and Gallon followed Volt until they reached a large, circular area, occupied by fairly large huts made from sticks with leaves draped over the openings.
   “What is this place?” Lockjaw as he looked around in awe.
   “This is where the community lives,” said Volt. “My house is right over here,” she said, leading them into the leftmost house.
   Lockjaw and Gallon had entered the mostly empty hut, with colorful leaves on the walls for decoration. There were also two rooms in the hut, separated by a wall with a small opening.
   “Alright, you two,” said Volt. “I’m going to be gone for a while to get some food and other stuff. You two stay here and watch Amp while I’m gone,” she finished as she walked out of the hut.
   Lockjaw and Gallon looked at each other and shrugged.
   “Who’s Amp?” asked Lockjaw. “Do you know?”
   “How should I know?” replied Gallon. “I’ve never been here either.”
   “Maybe we can try to sneak out,” said Lockjaw. He and Gallon then carefully walked toward the leaf curtain. Lockjaw poked one eyestalk out to see if Volt was still there.
   “The coast is clear,” whispered Lockjaw as he and Gallon quietly stepped out of the hut.
   “Get back inside!” yelled Volt from an indeterminable place. Lockjaw and Gallon gave each other a confused look and went back inside.
   “Well, I guess we’re in this for the long haul,” Lockjaw said.
   “.... Who’re you?” questioned a voice form behind them. The startled pair then swiftly turned around, seeing that the voice came from another Anode Beetle, only this Anode Beetle was half the size of all the other Beetles.
   “Uh... who’re you?” awkwardly asked Gallon.
   “I’m Amp!” chirped the young Anode Beetle. “Who’re you?”
   “Oh, I get it,” said Lockjaw. “You must be Volt’s kid. She wants us to watch you.”
   “I’m Amp!” repeated the Anode Beetle. “Who’re you?”
   “I’m Lockjaw and this is Gallon,” said Lockjaw. “We’ll be spending the day with you, I guess...”
   “Great, great, great!” said Amp. “Let’s play something! Something FUN!” she said as she hopped up and down excitedly. “How about... ‘twirl-around’?”
   “’Twirl-around’? What?” said Gallon.
   “I’ll show you,” said Amp. “Get on your back!”
   “O... kay...” said Gallon, hesitantly rolling over. “Now what do I d--”
   Before Gallon could finish, Amp began to spin him wildly by holding onto his fin and running quickly in circles. Lockjaw watched amazed at Gallon's rapid spinning.
   “And now... push!” Amp said as she pushed Gallon and made him slide across the floor. Gallon then rolled back over, dizzily.
   “I’m gonna be sick...” he weakly said as he walked toward Lockjaw.
   “Where’re you going?” said Amp. “We’re not done playing yet!”

[Area 64]

Sorry I could'nt update earlier, I had to type a 5-page paper on Egypt.

   Lockjaw sighed. “Okay,” he said. “What do you want to do now?"
   "Let’s play...” said Amp as she thought of a game. “Hide-and-go-seek!”
   “I hate that game,” Gallon muttered to himself.
   “Well, alright..." said Lockjaw. “But only if we get to be the hiders.”
   “Come on, Lockjaw...” moaned Gallon. “Do we have to play this game?”
   “Don’t worry,” said Lockjaw. “I have a plan...” Lockjaw then turned over to Amp.
   “Alright,” he said. “Count to 20, and then start looking for us!”
   “Oh, Goodie!” squealed Amp. “Um, okay, I’ll close my eyes and you hide.” Amp began to close her eyes and count. Lockjaw and Gallon then hid themselves in the other room of the hut, closed the leaf curtain and went to sleep.
   “...nine...ten...um...uh...uhhhhh...” said Amp, trying to remember what came after ten. “Uh... 20! Ready or not, here I come!” Amp then turned around in a circle to see if she could see Lockjaw and Gallon. Not seeing them, she walked up to the curtain that led into the other room. She could clearly hear snoring coming from the other side.
   “Hmm...” she said. “Where could you be?” she said as she was about to open the curtain.
   “We’re not in here!” said Gallon, waking up from his sleep.
   “Are you SURE?” playfully asked Amp.
   “Yes! Go look somewhere else!” yelled Lockjaw. Disappointed, Amp left the house looking for Lockjaw and Gallon.
   “Now, where could they be?” Amp asked herself as she wandered across the village.
   After about 15 minutes of sleeping, Lockjaw and Gallon woke up and left the room. They then noticed that Amp was nowhere to be seen.
   “Lockjaw...” said Gallon. “Where’s Amp?”
   “I can’t believe this!” said Lockjaw. “We let HER look for US and she STILL manages to get lost?!”
   “Well, what’re we gonna do now?” asked Gallon. “If word of this ever gets out, we’ll never get out of this place!”
   “Looks like we have to find her,” said Lockjaw. “Let’s go!” Lockjaw and Gallon then rushed out the hut and discreetly searched for Amp.
   
   “Hmm...” said Amp. “Maybe Daddy knows where they are...” She then crawled toward another hut across the village.
   Lockjaw and Gallon were franticly looking for Amp all around the village.
   “I’ll take the east, you take the west!” Lockjaw told Gallon. They then split up and ran to their respective locations.
   Gallon had burst into a random hut and terrified the two Anode Beetles inside it.
   “Eeeeek!” one of them screamed the one of the Beetles. “What do you want from us!?”
   “I’m just looking for someone!” Gallon said, manically. “Maybe you’ve seen her; she has a black shell...uh, yellow spots... antennae...” The two Anode Beetles just gave Gallon a confused look as he went on.
   Lockjaw had ran out of the hut area of the village, and had seen Amp about to walk into a hut near the far end of the village.
   “No, Amp!” Lockjaw yelled out. “It could be dangerous in there!”

[Area 64]

WoOoOoOoOoOo... this story is back, from the graaaaave...

Nah, I was just on a hiatus. I won't be taking another one until a good amount of this story is written!

   Amp had scurried into the hut at the end of the village. She had entered into a dark room with lots of various glowing things, leaves with writing on them, and etchings of various plants and creatures. Sensing her presence, an Anode Beetle, who was behind a curtain in the adjacent room, walked out to see who was in his hut.
   “Amp?” he said, surprised.
   “Daddy!” joyfully squealed Amp. “Daddy, Daddy!” I need help!”
   “Help with what?” asked Amp’s father.
   “The two big guys!” she began. “I’m it and I have to find them! There’s one who’s orange and the other is blue, and they’re bigger than me, and I need to find them! Do you know where they are, Daddy?”
   “Amp, I'd love to play with you, but I don’t have time right now,” said Amp’s father. “I’m very busy with this research.”
   Just then, Lockjaw, who was panting heavily, fumbled into the dark hut.
   “Amp!” he said. “There you are!”
   “No, no, no, no, NO!” Amp yelled in protest. “I’M supposed to find YOU!”
   “Amp, come on... I’m tired... let’s just go back to the hut,” he sighed.
   “Ahem,” Amp’s father spoke up. “Can I help you?”
   “Who are you?” Lockjaw asked, confused.
   “I’m this girl’s father,” he said sternly. “And who might you be?”
   “Oh-ho, sorry about that...” said Lockjaw. “I just had lost track of -- wait, you don’t know who I am?!” he said, surprised.
   “I’m not supposed to, am I?” replied Amp’s father. “I mean, you don’t look famous...”
   “My friend Gallon and I were forced to stay here to work off damage we did to your village’s garden,” began Lockjaw. “They assigned us to tend to your wife’s every need! There was a big meeting and everything! How could you not know who I am?!”
   “Uh... sorry... I don’t get out much...” said Amp’s father. “I get swamped in my research.”
   “Research?” questioned Lockjaw.
   “Yeah. I’m a scientist,” Amp’s father replied. “I specialize in the research of spores and fungi, and sometimes I leave the village for small periods at a time to find fungi specimens. During those times, Volt looks after Amp.”
   “Oh,” said Lockjaw. “That sounds like an interesting job, Mr. uhh...”
   “Oh right, I’ve been so caught up in my work I forgot to introduce myself,” said the beetle. “I’m Ion.”
   “My name’s Lockjaw,” Lockjaw stated. “I’ve already told you about my friend, Gallon. Speaking of which... where is he?” Lockjaw then stepped outside, only to see Gallon crawling toward him as fast as a Dumple can crawl.
   “Lockjaw,” he said, exhausted. “She’s nowhere to be found! I have a plan though, so hear me out: we take an empty Anode Beetle shell and stick some twigs under it, then all we gotta do is -- hold on. What were you doing in there?”
   “Why don’t you come inside?” said Lockjaw. Gallon then followed Lockjaw back into Ion’s hut. Gallon looked around and let out a sigh of relief when he saw Amp.
   “This is my buddy, Gallon,” introduced Lockjaw. “The one I mentioned earlier.”
   “Glad to make your acquaintance,” said Ion. “I’m Ion and this is my lab. I specialize in the study of fungi. Right now, I was looking through my notes to try to find a location where a rare Glowcap grows.”
   “Oh,” said Gallon. “Lockjaw and I were looking --”
   “Uh, Gallon,” Lockjaw interrupted. “I already told him about that.”
   “Well, no offense to you and the other Anode Beetles,” started Gallon, “but, the sooner we can get out of here, the better!”
   “Hey... I have an idea...” said Ion. “You guys need to work off your punishment, and I need a rare Glowcap...” Lockjaw and Gallon just gave confused stares.
   “How would you two like to fetch this rare Glowcap for me as part of my research?” proposed Ion. “I could tell the council that it counts as your punishment. It would also take up half the time you guys are supposed to be here. What do you say?”
   “Hmm...” Lockjaw thought it over. “Okay!”

[Masher101]

Meh, I read half of it. But I'll finish tonight, gotta go somewhere

Nice story by the way, I can't wait to see where it goes.

[Area 64]

   “Fantastic,” said Ion. “Let me just show you what we’re after...” Ion went into his back room, fumbled through some records, and brought out a leaf with a picture of a golden Glowcap on it.
   “Is that what we’re after? A golden Glowcap?” asked Gallon.
   “It’s very elusive,” said Ion. “I’ve been studying it for a while now.” Ion then turned the picture over and began to read the notes on the back.
   “Fungi luminarium aurum,” Ion read out loud. “Hmmm... prefers warm climates, such as warm, moist caves, and grows in extremely dark atmosphere...” Ion then thought to himself, then rummaged through his notes once again.
   “Oh, I got it!” he said, pulling out another leaf as he began to read. “The Eastern Wetlands... let’s see, let’s see, let’s see... lots of vegetation... moisture... darkness! Aha!”
   “Huh? We’re doing what?” asked a confused Lockjaw.
   “Wait...” started Gallon. “These ‘Eastern Wetlands’... are we supposed to go there?"
   “Well, I’d figure you’d have a good chance of finding Fungi luminarium aurum if you started there,” answered Ion
   “Can I go, Daddy? Please, please, please, please, pleaaaaaase?” Amp begged.
   “Sorry, Amp,” said Ion. “It would be too unsafe for you.”
   “Okay, how do we get there?” asked Lockjaw.
   “If you’d just follow me...” Ion said as he exited the hut. “Amp, come along. It’s dangerous for you to be in my lab alone.”
   “Coming, Daddy!” Amp said as she ran after her father with Lockjaw and Gallon.
   Ion had led them to the other edge of the village to the tunnel that led out of it.
   “Alright,” he started, “you wanna follow this tunnel to the seventh sub-tunnel, go all the way to the end, then emerge and walk east for about two hours. You’ll literally walk right into the Wetlands.”
   “That sounds like a long way!” said Gallon. “How long will this take us?”
   “Hey, you have two weeks...” Ion shrugged.
   “Good-Bye, Mr. Lockjaw! Good-Bye, Mr. Gallon!” Amp said, waving to them. Just as they were about to leave, two village officials ran in front of them.
   “Where are you two headed?” one of them asked.
   “Don’t worry, it’s part of our community service,” assured Lockjaw.
   “Section 27, Article 2 of the ‘Anode Justice Code’ states that Acts of community service must be supervised by an Anode Beetle at all times,” said the other official.
   “It’s okay,” said Ion. “I gave them permission to fetch me a Glowcap.”
   “Even so,” said the first official, “rules are rules.”
   “Hmmm...” Ion thought. “It can be any Anode Beetle?” he asked.
   “Only Anode Beetles who are residents of this village,” spoke the official.
   “Alright,” said Ion. “Amp, looks like you can go with Lockjaw and Gallon after all.”
   “Wait, she can’t go!” said the other official. “She’s too young!”
   “Correct me if I’m wrong, gentlemen,” started Ion, “but I believe there are no age restrictions in the Anode Justice Code.”
   “What?! But... Aw!” said the official. “Stupid loopholes... I guess I’ll allow it.”
   “Hooraaaaaaaaaaaaaay!” shouted Amp. “Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU, Daddy!” she said, hugging her father’s leg. She then ran beside Lockjaw and Gallon.
   “Guess we’ll be going, then,” said Gallon. “Don’t worry, Amp is safe with us!”
   “Yes, please bring her and the Glowcap back unharmed,” said Ion. “Well, I’ll see ya...” he said, walking off.
   “Good-Bye, Daddy!” Amp said as she turned around. “Good-Byyyyyye!”

[Area 64]

Oh, and thanks for the compliment, Masher101!

[Masher101]

Ah, your welcome. I read the rest, It's pretty good.

[Area 64]

Thanks. Sometimes I doubt if anyone reads this story. I'll still keep writing it, though.

   Lockjaw, Gallon, and their new companion Amp had been walking down the path for slightly over an hour. Lockjaw and Gallon had grown tired and bored, though Amp was still excited and optimistic.
   “Ugh, I’m so tired...” moaned Lockjaw.
   “I’m so bored...” said Gallon. "I’ve completely lost all sense of time, and this tunnel always looks the same...”
   “I got an idea, Mr. Gallon!” spoke Amp. “Let’s play a game!”
   “A game?” asked Gallon. “It won’t be twirl-around, will it?”
   “It’ll be fun! I promise!” assured Amp. “Okay, let’s play ‘I Spy!’” Amp then looked around the tunnel to see if she could find anything to “spy”.
   “Okay, I spy with my little eye...” started Amp, “something that is brown...”
   “Is it the walls of this tunnel?” asked Lockjaw.
   “Yeah! You win!” said Amp. “Your turn!”
   “No, that’s alright... I’ll sit this round out,” said Lockjaw.
   “I’ll give it a shot,” Gallon spoke up. “I spy something --”
   “No, Mr. Gallon!” Amp interrupted. “You’re supposed to say, ‘with my little eye!’”
   Gallon sighed. “Fine...” he said. “I spy... ‘with my little eye’... something that’s tired, annoyed, and blue. Can you guess what it is?”
   “Uhhhhh...” Amp said as she pondered what it was Gallon was “spying”. “Hmmmmm...” she hummed, turning around, then back, then around again. After doing this about ten times, Gallon finally spoke up.
   “...Amp, it’s me,” He said bluntly.
   “I know who you are, Mr. Gallon!” said Amp. “Can I get another hint? Please?”
   “No, the thing I was spying was me,” said Gallon.
   “Hold, on! Wait!” interjected Lockjaw. “You can’t spy YOURSELF; that’s against the rules!”
   “Rules?!” confusedly asked Gallon. “There are no rules in ‘I Spy!’”
   “Are you kidding me? Every game has rules!” stated Lockjaw. “And the most important rule in ‘I Spy’ is, ‘you CAN’T spy yourself! You can only spy what you can see!”
   “What are you, the little kiddy game referee now?!” questioned Gallon.
   “Umm...” quietly spoke Amp, who was intimidated by all the yelling. “Is it my turn now?” The other two just ignored her question while walking and arguing.

   After about two more hours of arguing about “kiddy games,” Lockjaw, Gallon, and Amp were at the end of the sub-tunnel and had emerged to the surface. None of them had noticed, except for Amp.
   “Well, try this one!” Lockjaw shouted. “I spy with my little eye something that’s blue and brainless!”
   “Oh ho ho, that’s reeeeeeeeeal clever!” Gallon said, sarcastically. “Well I spy with my little eye a big, orange, walking --”
   “STOOOOP!” Amp screamed at the top of her lungs. “It’s MY TURN!!” Gallon and Lockjaw then dropped their petty argument and looked toward her.
   “I spy... with my little eye...” she began, “something fuzzy and green!”
   “Amp, seriously,” said Lockjaw. “You can’t just go spying obvious things, like grass... wait, grass?” Lockjaw then started to notice his surroundings. He, Gallon, and Amp were standing in a grassy, empty meadow, with the sun shining brightly up ahead.
   “I don’t get it,” said Gallon. “When did we leave the tunnels?”
   “All that pointless fighting must have taken our minds off of how long we were traveling for...” suggested Lockjaw. “Sorry about that, by the way.”
   “No problem,” said Gallon. “I’m sorry, too.”
   “Good! Now everyone’s friends again!” said Amp. “Alright... I spy... with my little eye... something that’s big and brown...” Lockjaw and Gallon then looked around, and saw a big, brown, boxy creature waddling around in the distance.
   “What is that?” questioned Gallon.
   “Let’s get a closer look,” suggested Lockjaw. With that, he ran toward the big creature, with Gallon and Amp following not too far behind.

[Area 64]

   Lockjaw and the others had gotten closer to the large creature. They were staring at it as it just waddled around.
   “Let’s go introduce ourselves. Maybe he’s friendly,” suggested Gallon.
   “Good idea,” Lockjaw said as they walked over to in front of the creature. After spending a few seconds staring in awe of the strange-looking, big-nosed creature, Lockjaw finally spoke up.
   “Hello, there!” he said, cheerfully. “I’m Lockjaw, and these are my friends, Gallon and Amp.”
   “Hmm,” said the creature. “Sure don’t get a lot of visitors in these parts...”
   “Wow, mister! You’re BIG!” squealed Amp. “Are you a mountain?”
   “A mountain? Oh, no,” chuckled the creature. “I’m just a Giant Breadbug.”
   “Giant Breadbug, eh?” said Gallon. “Are there many of you around here?”
   “No, not that I know of,” said the Breadbug. “In fact, I’m the only one who lives around here.”
   “Wow... this meadow is so clean and the air is so fresh...” said Lockjaw. “I’m surprised no one else lives here!”
   “Yeah, it’s nice, but there’s not much food...” said the Breadbug. “That’s why I have to travel to other places to get food most of the time. Say, where are you three headed?”
   “Us? We’re headed to the Eastern Wetlands,” answered Lockjaw. “Do you know of it?”
   “I think I know that place...” said the Breadbug. “Hmmm... vegetation, moisture, and darkness. Is that the place you want?”
   “Yeah! I think that’s it!” said Lockjaw. “Do you know which direction it’s in?”
   “I’ll do you one better!” said the Breadbug. “I’ll take you and all your friends there! Hop on!” he said as he knelt down. Lockjaw, Gallon, and Amp then climbed up his nose and onto his back.
   “How long do you think it’ll take us to get there?” Gallon asked, once on the Breadbug.
   “Don’t worry,” answered the Breadbug. “It shouldn’t take more than 45 minutes.” He then began walking off, with Lockjaw, Gallon, and Amp curious about where they would end up.
   After 15 minutes of riding the Breadbug, the sun was starting to go down. Lockjaw and the others were amazed at the view of the sunset atop the Breadbug’s back.
   “I’m getting sleepy...” Amp yawned.
   “Yeah, me too,” said Gallon. “It has been a long day...”
   “You guys can go to sleep if you want,” assured the Breadbug. “I’ll wake you up when we get there.”
   “Thanks,” Lockjaw said. He then yawned and stretched. “Good night, everyone,” he said as he and the others curled up on the Breadbug’s back and went to sleep.

[Masher101]

Aw... so sweet. *falls asleep* ZzZzZzZzZz...