"If I assemble this here and that over there, and with that thing... Yes, yes, it'll work!" Professor Kuang muttered to himself as he frantically worked on his new technological masterpiece. His hands moved with surgical precision, placing components and adjusting connections with an enthusiasm bordering on obsession. Finally, after securing the last pieces, he began laughing as if possessed by some maniacal spirit.
"That's good, right, Chip?" Paris asked upon hearing the professor's chilling laugh, its intensity seemingly capable of shaking the laboratory walls.
"Well, whenever the professor creates something new, it usually works," Chip replied with a shrug, though his expression hinted at cautious skepticism.
"Alright, everyone, this new invention will help us," announced the professor, still wearing that unsettling smile that inspired more fear than confidence. "It's time to test it, and I need a test subject. Any volunteers?"
Chip and Paris exchanged glances, and without hesitation, they said in unison: "No, we're good."
"Pity," murmured the professor, feigning disappointment. But just then, the monitor in front of him began to flicker. It was an incoming call, and Ban appeared on the screen, looking bored in Reedalia with nothing to do.
"Lord Ban, how fortunate I see you… well, on the monitor. I need your help," said the professor with a sly smile, seizing the opportunity.
"No, don't warn him," Paris and Chip whispered simultaneously, making frantic gestures to dissuade the professor. But it was too late.
"Of course, Professor, anything for you," Ban responded cheerfully, unaware of what awaited him.
Paris and Chip exchanged a resigned look. "There goes our Lord Ban," they muttered under their breath.
"Excellent!" exclaimed the professor, rubbing his hands together in excitement. "Alright, Professor, what do I need to do?" Ban asked, oblivious to his impending fate.
"For now, approach the Kbot in the area," instructed the professor, whose intentions remained a mystery to everyone except himself.
Ban, feeling bored, decided to follow the professor's orders without question. "Alright, and now, Professor, what's next?" he asked, eyeing the Kbot curiously.
The professor let out his trademark unhinged laugh and pressed some buttons on a dome-like device in front of him. After pressing the final button, he said with a sinister smile: "See you soon, Lord Ban."
Ban didn't understand what that phrase meant. Suddenly, the Kbot in front of him began to glow intensely, and a message appeared on its face screen: "Program update. One moment... receiving instructions."
"Hey, Professor, should I keep touching the robot or not?" Ban asked, slightly confused.
"Yes, keep going, lad," the professor replied, barely containing another malevolent chuckle.
On the Kbot's screen, another message appeared: "Update complete. Teleportation initiated."
Suddenly, metallic hoses emerged from the Kbot's body, and one of them, equipped with a device resembling an inverted saucer, firmly attached itself to Ban's head. The robot quickly backed up a few steps, and a bright light enveloped Ban entirely. In the blink of an eye, he vanished from the spot without a trace.
"Lord Ban! Where is he?" Ludra exclaimed, rushing in to look for him. However, all she could see was the now-motionless Kbot and the professor attentively observing a screen on the dome in front of him.
On the dome's screen, a message appeared: "Loading process initiated... 5 percent... 10 percent... 90 percent... Loading complete. Package received."
A dense smoke began to pour out of the machine, and as it dissipated, a familiar figure appeared inside the dome.
"Hey!" exclaimed Ban, blinking in confusion as he looked around.
"Welcome back, Lord Ban," said the professor with a triumphant smile, while the others exchanged looks of amazement and relief.
"What? Lord Ban, what are you doing here?" Chip and Paris said in unison, rubbing their eyes as if they couldn't believe what they were seeing. Just moments ago, Ban had been in Reedalia, and now he was standing before them, alive and seemingly unharmed.
"It was a complete success!" exclaimed Professor Kuang, bursting into an unhinged laugh that echoed sinisterly through the lab.
The professor proceeded to briefly explain his experiment, but as Ban listened to the details, he frowned with concern. "So, if this hadn't worked, could I have ended up as particles?" he asked, crossing his arms.
"Well, in the worst-case scenario... you might have reappeared in pieces," the professor replied indifferently, as if it were completely normal. Then, trying to downplay it, he added: "But well, that's how science works." To top it off, he gave Ban a couple of pats on the back, as if congratulating him for some minor achievement.
"How is that supposed to be good?" Ban retorted, annoyed, stepping toward the professor with every intention of arguing. However, before he could say anything more, Paris and Chip quickly stepped between them.
"There's no time for this, Lord Ban," said Paris urgently. "Karpi is in danger. You need to go help her."
Without a second thought, Ban ran out of the lab. Before leaving, he turned to the professor and shot him a glare. "This isn't over. You'll see when I get back," he said, pointing a finger at him before disappearing through the door.
"How can he be so calm?" Paris and Chip muttered in unison, watching as the professor casually sipped his coffee as if nothing had happened.
The professor, ignoring their comments, approached his invention and began examining it enthusiastically. "Alright, now I'll need to make some adjustments so it can transport more than one living being at a time and make it larger," he said, scribbling ideas into a nearby notebook. "I think I'll call it the KTeleport."
"Why does he have to put a 'K' in front of everything?" Chip and Paris asked at the same time, rolling their eyes.
"Well, obviously, it's for my name!" the professor replied proudly. "Besides, that way no one copies my inventions. And it also makes it sound nice."
"Of course it does," they both responded sarcastically, watching as the professor burst into another fit of uncontrollable laughter.
Meanwhile, Ban was running through the building's hallways. As he moved, he noticed several people looking at him curiously. No one recognized him; they had never seen him there before. Some seemed surprised that he entered so freely, as if he owned the place. Others, however, noticed that he was wearing the same clothes as their leader 'X,' which struck them as odd.
But Ban had no time to worry about that. He had only one thing on his mind: finding Karpi and helping her with whatever she was facing.
At that moment, Karpi, disguised as 'X,' was attempting to give a motivational speech to the soldiers. However, Alcho, unsatisfied with the speech, decided to intervene. With the best intentions but without measuring his strength, he gave her a friendly pat on the back that, though well-meaning, was enough to make Karpi lose her balance and fall to the ground.
As Karpi got up, her disguise came undone, revealing her true identity to everyone present. Murmurs began to rise, filled with indignation and confusion.
"What is this? Some kind of bad joke?" one of the soldiers protested.
"Why bring Technician Karpi disguised as our leader? Do they look down on us?" added another, his tone laced with resentment.
The atmosphere quickly turned hostile. Voices grew louder, and some soldiers began arguing among themselves, escalating tensions to the point where it seemed inevitable that words would turn into blows.
Just when everything seemed lost and the situation was about to devolve into a fight, someone burst into the room, pushing the doors wide open with both hands. Everyone froze and turned toward the entrance.
"Wait! Don't fight! I'm here now! Your leader, 'X', has arrived!" announced a familiar voice.
Karpi, still nervous but visibly relieved, looked at the newcomer and exclaimed: "My lord! How good that you're here!" But at the same time, a question arose in her mind: How did he know I was in trouble?