Dimension One...
"Okay, we think we've got it the way Dark Kat and Hard Drive had built it." Razor came up to the three.
T-Bone had been drowsing, Felina and Feral were watching the late news when the Professor and Razor finally finished. Feral tapped T-Bone carefully on the shoulder and the tabby jerked awake and into a defensive posture before relaxing when he woke enough to remember where he was.
"So now what happens?" Feral asked mildly, standing up.
"We need a nuclear isotope to complete it." Hackle said seriously.
"Ah, just how are we to do that? It's not like we can walk up and ask nicely." T-Bone grumbled getting up and stretching.
"Even if it wasn't so very late, I would be questioned closely before being given such a thing. It's not too unusual a request for me to make but it is when its nearly midnight." Hackle said unhappily.
"Then we will have to break in and borrow one." Razor said grimly.
"I can't sanction such a thing. That's blatantly breaking the law!" Feral said sharply. Felina was about to say something when Razor interrupted.
"Do you want to stay here? Your only way home is that isotope!" Razor snapped at him.
Growling unhappily, Feral had to concede that was true. "Fine, then I'm going along!"
"So am I!" Felina interjected firmly.
"Hold it! This is a nuclear isotope. You are both of breeding age. You sure you want to take the chance of becoming sterile?" Razor said in concern.
Blanching, Feral swallowed at that reminder but said tautly, "The same goes for you two!"
Felina wasn't too happy about that reminder either but agreed with the Commander.
"Do not be worried. I have radiation suits for the SWAT Kats to wear and a capsule to contain the isotope." Professor Hackle said quickly to forestall an argument.
"Alright! Feral, you can be our watcher on the inside that way you won't get exposed but can insure no one spots us and Felina can be the outside watcher." T-Bone said decisively.
"That will work." Feral agreed. Felina wasn't real happy about that arrangement but didn't argue.
"Good! Then let's get busy. SWAT Kats follow me and I'll get you suited up." Hackle said as he led them to another lab.
The SWAT Kats pulled their cyclotrons out of the Turbokat and tossed the Ferals a helmet. T-Bone indicated Felina would ride with him and Feral with Razor. Within minutes the four were flying down the road to the Megakat Nuclear Power Plant, the silver suits the SWAT Kats were wearing glinting from the headlights.
'Wow! I gotta get me one of these things. Maybe my Professor Hackle has something similar or might be willing to build one for me. The SWAT Kats certainly won't. I'll have to ask him when I get back.' Feral thought exhilarated at the smooth ride and speed of the bike under him.
The SWAT Kats halted in a small copse of trees a mile from the plant. There was no cover for a mile around the plant, fortunately there was also no moon. Razor handed the Ferals some night goggles and they began a quick run hugging the ground to the front entrance of the plant.
They dropped into a small ditch and watched the guards for about a half hour. When they got the timing down, Felina stayed put while the other three crawled away from the entrance to a side of the fence where a building was sitting about ten yards inside. They waited for the guards to pass then T-Bone tossed Razor over the fence. He then eyed Feral, the Commander looked a bit dubious about trying to leap that high. T-Bone made a gesture of booting him up. Feral nodded and prepared himself. With T-Bone's strong lift, the big tom cleared the fence and landed a bit inelegantly on the other side.
The tabby tom gathered himself and leaped over easily landing firmly on his feet.
They froze behind the small building and waited a moment longer before making a quick run for the main doors of the plant. Hiding within the porch of the entry area, T-Bone and Feral pressed themselves against each corner to stay out of view as Razor carefully disabled the cameras and unlocked the door.
A nod from the cinnamon tom and they were quickly opening the door and entering the building. It was quiet except for the sound of loud humming from the generators and other equipment. No one was in sight as they cautiously headed for the reactor. Here was where Feral would wait and watch while the SWAT Kats entered the reactor room.
Moving quickly, they ran to the storage area near the core. Unlike what the creeplings had done,
they had no intention of taking any isotopes from the active reactor. There were plenty in a secure storage vault nearby. Razor studied the vault critically before using his glovatrix to jimmy it open. Using heavy tongs located nearby, Razor gingerly took out an isotope from its nesting place and quickly placed it in the container T-Bone was holding. Closing it tightly, T-Bone slung it by its strap back over his shoulder while Razor resealed the vault.
Outside Feral waited tensely. They had been very lucky so far. A sound coming down a corridor near him made him squeeze back into the small alcove he'd found to hide in. Breathing shallowly he waited to see who was coming. A minute later a guard came casually from around a corner and headed toward his hiding place. He really hated doing this but the guard would see the SWAT Kats as soon as he came to look into the door of the reactor room.
He waited tensely as the guard got closer and closer. Just as the unknowing tom came abreast of him, Feral reached out swiftly and pulled the guard against his chest hard, one arm across the helpless tom's throat. He held the body tightly until the guard passed out. Releasing his choke hold, Feral held the tom's body gently and waited. Finally, minutes later, the SWAT Kats came out of the reactor room. The Commander sighed softly in relief and carefully laid his burden down on the floor, hiding it in the shadows.
The SWAT Kats eyed him but no one spoke as they reversed direction and made their way quickly out of the plant. They had to wait at the doors for a harrowing ten more minutes before they could safely open them and run out. They made for the fence quickly and jumped back over. They only had a very short time to race across the distance again before the guard gained consciousness and sounded the alarm. Collecting Felina, they had just made it to the shelter of the trees when the alarm shrilled into the still night air. They jumped on their bikes and high tailed it out of there before the enforcers were notified. They would be looking for Feral soon after this and the right one had to be here for that.
Dimension Two...
Feral was napping in a comfortable chair while T-Bone watched a late night showing of a Scaredy Kat cartoon. He was careful not to laugh too loud knowing the Commander really needed to rest. He had made sure the pregnant tom had eaten something despite having no real appetite. T-Bone had to remind the distraught tom that he had to take care of himself for the sake of his unborn kitten. It made the tabby tom feel odd wanting to take care of this more fragile version of Feral.
It was just shy of midnight when Razor and the Professor finally came to them. T-Bone gently shook Feral awake. Blinking owlishly, the Commander yawned then woke quickly when he saw the pair waiting.
"Well we've pretty much got the thing the way those two omegas built it but we need one more thing to make it work." Razor said grimly.
"Okay, what is it and do we need to go get it?" T-Bone asked, standing and stretching out the kinks in his body.
"We have to go get it and it's not going to be easy. We need a nuclear isotope." Razor said.
"Woah! You don't want much do you!" T-Bone said stunned.
"That's what they used to power the device." The smaller tom said shrugging his shoulders.
"If it was daytime, I could request the use of one but this late...out of the question." Professor Hackle said apologetically.
"But that's stealing!" Feral blurted in shock.
"Hey, you want to go home then this is what we have to do to accomplish it." Razor said bluntly.
Sighing, Feral realized he was right but it made his shoulders tighten to think he would be an accomplice to a theft. "I'm going along then."
"Oh no! Not happening!" T-Bone said sharply. "You are pregnant and that is a nuclear power plant. You shouldn't have been near it in the first place and you're certainly not going near one again. It's bad enough you're going to get exposed again to get you home. You are staying here." He said adamantly. He wasn't going to be responsible for anything happening to his double's mate.
Scowling angrily, Feral growled, "You are not my mate. I have to put up with his over protectiveness as it is, I will not put up with yours. I need to do this. I will not attempt to go into the plant but I can watch your backs." He snapped.
T-Bone began to growl back, some part of his mind struggling with the thought of his double putting his foot down with his powerful mate. Before he could snarl back, however, Razor interrupted.
"Hey, we don't have time for this. Let him be out backup, we may need it. Now the Professor has some radiation suits for us and a container to put the isotope in so let's go." He ordered and led them to another room in the Professor's lab. T-Bone bristled but complied. Satisfied, Feral followed after him.
Since the SWAT Kats had arrived there on their dual cyclotron, Professor Hackle lent Feral a modified motorcycle he'd been working on. It kept up with the cyclotron as they raced for the plant. In very little time they were waiting for the guards to pass so that the SWAT Kats could leap the fence. Feral hid in a small culvert where he could watch the doors of the plant.
A few minutes later, T-Bone and Razor were inside the plant and making for the core. Feral waited tensely outside. Some fifteen minutes later, the SWAT Kats were racing across the ground for the fence. One of the guards spotted them and was about to raise the alarm when Feral hit him with a stun beam knocking him out. Now they didn't have much time before getting the heck out of there. They ran for the bikes and raced quickly out of sight.