Disclaimer: This fic is based on the cartoon "The Bots Master," which was produced by Saban International and Avi Arad & Associates. This story is just for fun; no profit of any kind is being made from it. If you have no idea what this show is all about, The World's Greatest Bots Master Page has some ep summaries that will help. Let me know if you have any comments, criticisms, whatever.

"Jungle Fiver, COMBINE!" Blitzy Zulander's voice rang out over the airwaves as she shouted the command into her helmet mike. Instantly, the five vehicles parked in the grass around her rose into the air and fused into a single form: Jungle Fiver. The towering bot launched into the sky, followed closely by VAS, Blitzy's small aircraft. "We're on our way, ZZ!" she called.

"Good," her brother replied over the radio. "When we get to RM Corp City, you start a diversionary attack on the main gate while the BOYZZs and I sneak into the city at Side Gate Three. We'll destroy the krang-ore convoy and then meet you back at home."

"Gotcha, ZZ! I'll be there in five minutes!"

Blitzy and Jungle Fiver sped towards RM Corp City. Meanwhile, on the ground, Ziv Zulander was headed for the city by car, accompanied by a team of BOYZZs.

"You all know the plan," ZZ told the BOYZZs over his radio. "First, Swang will sneak in and knock out the security cameras on the trucks. Then the rest of us will surround the trucks and attack. Hopefully, once we get the convoy's Greenbot escorts taken care of, there won't be any more coming. They should all be busy at the main gate."

"A wise man once zaid, 'Do not count your chickenzz before they are hatched'," Ninjzz told Jammerzz calmly.

"Yeah, yeah," Jammerzz retorted. "Ninjzz, you're too pezzimiztic for your own good. We're gonna beat the Corp like I zaid we would."

"All right, BOYZZs," ZZ admonished. "Save it for the Greenbots."

The ride continued in silence. Meanwhile, Blitzy had reached the main gate of RM Corp City and opened fire.

"We'll have this gate swarming with Greenbots in no time!" Blitzy shouted joyfully.

"Thissss convoy will provide usssss with enough krang-ore to upgrade asssss many assss two thousssssand 3-Assss," Dr. Hiss told Lady Frenzy in her office. "Withhhhh thhhhat many botssssss under our control, we can--"

He was cut off by his portable communications mike. "Greenbot 38-472 to Dr. Hiss. The main gate is under attack."

Hiss scowled and pressed a button on his communicator. "Hissssss to all Greenbotsssss," he barked. "Procccceed to main gate for defenssssse againssssst attack."

He turned back to Lady Frenzy, whose normally serene face wore a scowl almost as horrible as Hiss's. "It ssssseemsss our friend Zuuulander is bent on ssssstopping thisssss ssssshipment," Hiss commented.

Frenzy's reply was brisk. The core of her voice dripped with anger, though the edges were fringed with something more. "Just see to it that he doesn't make it past the gate."

Meanwhile, ZZ and the BOYZZs had gotten into RM Corp City without much trouble. Apparently, all security forces had been focused on defending the city from Blitzy's phony attack.

ZZ's team slowed to a crawl, then stopped at a corner. Scanners indicated that the krang-ore convoy was approaching on the main road. Twigg's cowling opened and a cat-sized BOYZZ jumped to the top of the car.

"All right, Swang, it's up to you," ZZ told the hyperactive little robot, who promptly bounced away. Swang crossed the street and hopped onto the roof of a truck that was making its way down the street, accompanied by four other trucks and two transports of Greenbots. She quickly walked up behind a security camera and tore out a handful of wires with her tiny claws. Satisfied, she hopped to the next truck and repeated the process, then on to the next truck.

Swang had just disabled the camera on the last truck when she happened to look up. The rooftops on either side of them were filled with Greenbots. Swang chittered in panic.

"All ready, Swang?" came ZZ's voice. He was obviously anxious to strike before the Corp lost interest in Blitzy's attack.

Swang whistled back a sharp negative. If ZZ and the BOYZZs attacked, they'd never be able to beat the Greenbots.

"It's Laser Time, BOYZZs! Let's get 'em!" ZZ shouted enthusiastically. Splitvan and Twigg surged forward and out of the dark alley.

Twigg had no sooner cleared the alley than a high-pitched series of whistles, like the language of dolphins, assaulted ZZ's ears. ZZ squeezed the steering wheel hard as he struggled to interpret Swang's coded shrieks. Usually the translation came effortlessly, but usually ZZ wasn't driving, enduring ear-splitting noise, and trying to talk to Swang at the same time.

Finally Swang's panicked exclamations began to make sense.

Gobackgobackgobackgobackgoback . . .

Swang must have blown a circuit, ZZ thought. There's no reason for her to say that. Out loud he shouted, "Splitvan, split! Surround the convoy!"

ZZ steered Twigg into position as Ninjzz, the Street BOYZZs, and the Sports BOYZZs did the same with the four vehicles that were Splitvan. Swang continued to warble worriedly.

"Be quiet, Swang!" ZZ snapped, without even bothering to listen to the little BOYZZ. If he had, he would have heard, There're Greenbots on the roof ZZ there're hundreds of them go back go back . . .

"Let's blow this krang-ore!" ZZ shouted. Laser beams sprang forth from Twigg and Splitvan, searing into the Corp trucks. Almost instantly, Greenbots jumped from the transport trucks, poised to fire. Other Greenbots hurried to man the guns mounted on the tops of the trucks.

"Greenbot 723-91 to Doctor Hiss," one of the Greenbots said into its microphone.

"Hisssss here," came the reply.

"The convoy is under attack," the Greenbot informed its superior calmly. It didn't care what happened to the krang-ore, or itself, for that matter. Only the bot's controlling krang-chip demanded that it report the incident at all. Doctor Hiss, on the other hand, was far from calm.

"It musssst be Zuuuulander!" he squawked in rage. "Dessssstroy the attackers! Protect the krang-ore at all cosssssts!"

As if shot from a gun, all the Greenbots in the transports began firing on Twigg and the Splitvan sections.

"It's now or never, BOYZZs!" ZZ shouted, jumping out of Twigg even as he spoke. ZZ rolled as he hit the ground and came up firing, sending flashes of laser fire into the midst of the Greenbots.

Ninjzz, Bats, Ace, All-Ball, and the Street BOYZZs did the same as Twigg transformed and Bogey manned the airplane section of Splitvan. The street was soon ablaze with laser fire as the BOYZZs advanced toward the trucks and the Greenbots defended their precious cargo.

Swang, meanwhile, was trying her best to reach ZZ. She had to warn him about the extra Greenbots. After looking around for a moment, Swang spotted ZZ in the melee and launched herself off the truck, jumping toward ZZ with all of the considerable bounce in her tiny body. She landed short by ten feet, a nearly infinite distance in the heat of battle for anyone else her size. Swang,however, cleared the distance easily with another leap and landed on ZZ's back.

ZZ, there are about fifty Greenbots hidden on the roof! she whistled.

This time, ZZ listened. He looked up and saw the Greenbots Swang had been talking about. They stood in neat rows along the edges of the rooftops, and they all had weapons trained on the scene below.

"Thanks, Swang," ZZ said. "I'm sorry I didn't listen before. You go back to Splitvan and wait for us. We'll blow this convoy yet!" Swang bounded away obediently.

"Bogey, Twigg, focus on the cargo trucks," ZZ ordered. "We'll handle the Greenbots!"

Twigg focused his considerable firepower on one of the trucks while Bogey fired on another from his Splitvan section. One after another, they exploded, showering the road with debris. There were only two trucks left. ZZ continued firing at the Greenbots. The ones on the roof hadn't started firing yet, but ZZ knew they would at a moment's notice.

"I can't get in cloze enough," Bogey called over the mike from the plane section of Splitvan. "It'z thoze lazer cannonz on top of the truckz."

"I'll take care of that!" ZZ replied. He touched a button on his uniform front and rose into the air until he was hovering above the truck.

"Yea-ha!" ZZ destroyed the laser cannon with a sharp blast from his helmet.

"Thankz, ZZ!" Bogey yelled. He brought the plane down low and opened fire, tearing into the truck with a series of laser beams. The truck exploded in a ball of flame as ZZ descended to the ground.

"All right!" ZZ yelled encouragingly. "One more!" As if ZZ had uttered magic words, the Greenbots stationed on the roof opened fire, turning the tables completely.

"I can't get at the lazt truck!" Bogey shouted. "There's too much fire from thoze Greenbotz!"

"Concentrate on the Greenbots, Twigg!" ZZ ordered. "Cover Bogey so he can blast that truck!"

Twigg complied quickly, sending a volley of blasts onto the roof. As the first row of Greenbots exploded in flames, another row stepped up to replace them. On the ground, ZZ, the Street BOYZZs, Ninjzz, Bats, Ace, and All-Ball were still fighting the Greenbots that had escorted the trucks. ZZ was blasting Greenbots right and left, and could see the BOYZZs doing the same all around him. Suddenly, the Greenbot directly in front of ZZ raised its weapon and pointed it at him. ZZ waited until the bot pressed the firing mechanism. Then he touched his anti-grav activator.

"Surprise!" he yelled at the Greenbot, expecting to soar above the deadly laser beam. Nothing happened. ZZ dropped to the ground just in time, the beam passing harmlessly over his head.

I must not have pressed it hard enough, ZZ thought as the Greenbot took aim again. With no time to get to his feet, he pressed the button again. On the other hand, he thought, the battery could be dead. As the Greenbot fired, ZZ thought bleakly, And so am I.

"Greenbot 386-47 to Dr. Hiss," came over Hiss' personal mike as he sat in Frenzy's office.

"Hissssss here," he replied.

"I have shot terrorist Ziv Zulander," the bot reported.

"Issss he dead?" Hiss asked excitedly.

"No," the Greenbot replied, "he is wounded and unconscious."

"Terminate him." Dr. Hiss was smiling from ear to ear as he gave the order.

"Noooo! Executive override of that order!" Lady Frenzy exclaimed.

"What are you doing?" Hiss asked incredulously. "We can't passss up thisssss opportunity!"

"Exactly," Frenzy said. "This is an excellent opportunity to test your new mind-control device. We can turn Zulander back to the Corp."

"Assss you wissssh," Hiss said unhappily. He turned back to his microphone. "Bring Zuuuulander to my lab." He gave Frenzy a look that could fry concrete. "We're going to have sssssome fun."

"A hole in one!" Bogey yelled as the last of the trucks exploded. Just then, a stray laser blast caught the edge of his Splitvan section, rocking it violently.

"I'm hit!" he exclaimed. "There're too many Greenbots, ZZ!"

It was Ninjzz who answered. "I think ZZ'z batteriez are drained," he explained to his fellow BOYZZ. "He can't hear uz."

"Well, we're getting blazted on the ground here too," Jammerzz shouted. "We're gonna get buzted if we don't move!"

"We've done what we came to do," Ninjzz said. "Let'z pull back."

"What about ZZ?" Toolzz asked.

"Twigg will ztay here to pick him up," Ninjzz replied. "Now let'z get going."

The BOYZZs scrambled back into Splitvan, which joined into one vehicle as they sped away, leaving Twigg behind. Twigg dropped into car form and backed into the alley, where he was both protected from enemy fire and hidden from view. Being the patient BOYZZ that he was, he had no objections to waiting.

"Ah, welcome, Lady Frenzy," Dr. Hiss greeted his colleague. "We were jusssst getting sssstarted."

Frenzy stepped into Hiss' lab (not her favorite place) and proceeded to the center of the room. There, on a table usually reserved for bots, lay the unconscious form of Ziv Zulander.

"Lady Frenzy, meet Ziv Zuuuulander," Hiss said mockingly.

Frenzy glanced at the blood on the shoulder of ZZ's uniform. "Shouldn't you have someone check that?" she asked.

"It'ssss merely sssssuperfisssssial," Hiss replied. "Unfortunately, the laser blassssst that ssssstruck him was not at full power."

"Due, no doubt, to the fact that your Greenbots can't stand up to a real attack," Frenzy replied dryly.

"And what do you call a real attack?" Hiss asked.

"A real attack is the kind Zulander can dish out," Frenzy told him.

"If I wasn't assss intelligent assss I am," Dr. Hiss retorted, "I'd sssssay you have feelingsssss for thissss pitiful weakling!"

"I admire him," Frenzy said angrily, "as I would anyone who had managed to elude us for as long as he did." She chose to ignore the accuracy of Hiss' statement.

There was a moment of complete silence in the room as the full impact of Frenzy's statement sank in. Ziv Zulander had been the RM Corp's biggest enemy, and they had captured him. It was an awe-filled silence, an almost unbreakable silence. Lady Frenzy broke it.

"Let's get on with it," she said.

"You did what?!" Blitzy was furious.

"We had no choice," Ninjzz said. "Bezidez, we didn't juzt abandon him."

"It's a good thing you didn't," Blitzy shouted, "because if you had, I would be very, very ANGRY!"

"Calm down, Blitzy," Toolzz told the frothing ten-year-old. "Twigg ztayed to pick ZZ up."

Blitzy looked dangerously close to exploding when Cook walked in from the hallway, carrying a covered dish.

"Zuppertime!" the exuberant BOYZZ announced. Blitzy sat down to eat, thus ending the conversation.

"That'ssss the lasssst connection," Doctor Hiss said as he fastened an electrode to ZZ's right temple.

Lady Frenzy looked at ZZ, who was still unconscious amidst a mass of wires. We shouldn't have to do this, she thought sadly. Why did you have to betray us, Ziv?

"Let's test your machine, shall we?" she said out loud.

Dr. Hiss slipped a disk into a nearby machine and activated it.

"Thissss will take about an hour," he said. "Perhapssss you should ssssstudy the program parametersssss." He handed Frenzy a folder. It was labeled "Mental Re-programming Subject File: Ziv Zulander."

"I'll be in my office," Frenzy said.

"I zearched the area," Twigg told Ninjzz. "He juzt dizappeared."

"I heard that," came a voice from the hallway.

"Blitzy!" Ninjzz said in surprise. "I thought you were in bed."

"I got hungry," Blitzy said. She had obviously been getting a midnight snack, for she had a milk moustache and there were crumbs stuck to the front of her pajamas.

"Now, what happened to ZZ?" she asked.

"I don't know," Twigg replied honestly. "I waited in the alley for twenty minutez, and ZZ never zhowed up. I zearched the area, but I didn't find anything." "Except this," he amended quickly, holding up a scrap of yellow cloth.

"Recognize this?" Twigg asked.

Blitzy hesitated, then took the scrap from Twigg's outstretched hand. She spread it out against the wall, noting the ragged edges. Ninjzz and Twigg watched her nervously. Suddenly Blitzy gasped and pointed to the edge of the cloth, where there was part of a white design, badly torn: two interlocked letter 'Z's.

"It's ZZ's uniform!" Blitzy shrieked. "Where'd you find this?"

"At the battle zite," Twigg told her. "It was stuck to some wreckage."

"ZZ must have fallen, and the cloth tore when he got up," Ninjzz deduced for Blitzy's benefit.

"Was picked up, you mean," Blitzy said angrily. "If ZZ fell down, that means he's hurt!"

"Not necessarily, Blitzy," Ninjzz reassured her. "He probably got down in order to avoid being hurt."

"I hope you're right," Blitzy said. Her tone conveyed a clear message: You'd better be right! "I'll keep an eye on Mirrorzz just in case." Blitzy sat down in ZZ's chair and turned on the computer screen. Her anxious eyes were greeted by a tired-looking Lady Frenzy, who was reading some papers at her desk. Blitzy settled down in the hard chair to wait.

Lady Frenzy looked up as the elegant double doors of her office opened and Doctor Hiss walked in.

"What is it, Hiss?" she asked irritably. She was very tired, and the technical jargon she was reading had given her a headache.

"I'd like you to meet - " Hiss was abruptly interrupted by someone in the corridor.

"Frenzy? Oh, I'm so glad to see you!" Frenzy stood up in surprise at the familiar voice. She was even more shocked a moment later when Ziv Zulander walked into the room, wearing the simple garb of a Corp scientist.

"Zulander?!" she exclaimed in puzzlement.

"Since when have we been on a last-name basis?" the RM Corp's arch-enemy said with a laugh. As Frenzy stood speechlessly, he crossed the room and embraced her passionately.

"Nice work, Hiss," she told her colleague, who was watching the scene with a smirk on his grotesque face.

Very nice work, she thought, melting into Ziv's arms.

"Are you quite finissssshed?" Hiss said irritably after about fifteen seconds. It was not a question. They reluctantly parted and sat down on the sofa.

"We need to disssscussss how we will deal with the issssssue of Doctor Zuuuuulander'sss ssssissster," Hiss explained. Frenzy eyed Ziv cautiously. This would be the biggest test of Hiss' device: whether or not Ziv would willingly betray his little sister.

"Wait!" Ziv said suddenly. "Don't say anything yet. There's an audio-visual receiver in Frenzy's computer."

Frenzy and Hiss looked at each other. "The security leak!" they chorused.

"How do we deactivate it?" Frenzy asked.

"We can't," Ziv explained. "There's a security program to prevent it from being downloaded. The only way to get rid of the leak is to get rid of the computer."

"I'll have a worker-bot come to remove it," Dr. Hiss said as he walked toward the computer. He opened a panel in the back of the computer and made a few adjustments.

"I've dissssconnected the power," he said. "We can sssspeak freely."

"How did you know about the security leak?" Frenzy asked Ziv.

"What do you mean? I . . . my sister put it there," Ziv answered confusedly.

Frenzy and Hiss exchanged glances. The slip had been tiny, but it was still a slip. Perhaps the mental re-programming hadn't worked as well as they had hoped.

After all, Frenzy thought, getting Ziv to fall for me shouldn't take too much brainwashing.

The house was all quiet as Blitzy rolled over.

"Ow!" She awoke with a jolt. I rolled out of bed, she thought groggily. But where is my bed?

Blitzy stood up and saw the computer. Oh yeah, she remembered. I was watching Mirrorzz. Then she looked up at the computer screen, which was dark.

Somebody must have turned it off when I fell asleep, Blitzy thought. She flicked the power switch a couple of times, but the screen remained black.

"Gen-e-SIX!" Blitzy's shout brought everyone running. Everyone, that is, except Genesix.

"Where's Genesix?" she asked the room in general.

"Probably in the BAL room," DeNerd replied.

"Go get him." DeNerd hurried down the hall and returned a few moments later with his fellow Science BOYZZ in tow.

"What'zz the problem?" Genesix asked.

"There's something wrong with Mirrorzz," Blitzy told him. "Something's really messed up."

"What zeemzz to be wrong with it?" Genesix inquired.

"It just doesn't work! It's not even like the time it broke down! There's no static, there's just nothing!"

Genesix switched the computer on and off a few times while checking for loose power cords with another hand.

"I already tried that," Blitzy said, exasperated.

"Maybe the zyztem izn't loaded properly," Genesix said. He typed a few commands into the keyboard and waited a moment. Nothing. Blitzy waited impatiently as the BOYZZ muttered to himself and tried every computer trick he knew.

"It'zz completely dead," he said after a few minutes. Blitzy cringed at the last word. "Zomething muzt have interrupted the tranzmizzion at the zourze."

Blitzy digested this information for a full five seconds before saying, "You mean we've completely lost Mirrorzz?"

"It appearzz that way," Genesix replied. "There'zz no way I can fix it from here."

"How could this have happened?" Blitzy asked.

"Zomeone dizconnected the power zourze to Lady Frenzy'zz computer."

"You mean it's just unplugged?"

"Bazically," Genesix agreed.

Blitzy's face began to turn very, very red. Most of the BOYZZs backed away.

"You're telling me," she intoned angrily, "that there's absolutely nothing wrong with Mirrorzz except that it's not plugged in?"

Genesix nodded nervously.

"And there's nothing we can do about it?"

"Zorry," he told her. "I can't fix it."

Blitzy was livid. "Do you realize that we've just lost our best and only chance of finding ZZ?!" With that, she stormed off to her room, where she wouldn't have to face the BOYZZs.

Where are you, ZZ? was her anguished thought.

"Good evening, Lady Frenzy, Doctor Hiss," Sir Louis Leon Paradim greeted his top executives cordially. The chairman of the RM Corp stood gazing out his office window, hands clasped behind his back in a dignified manner. "And it's wonderful to have you back, Doctor Zulander."

"It's wonderful to be back, LLP," Ziv said, and shook Paradim's hand. Paradim watched him carefully as they all took seats at the conference table. He was looking for anything, any sign that Zulander was not really under the influence of Hiss' programming. He found nothing.

Oblivious to the scrutiny, Ziv said, "It's great to see you all again. I didn't think I'd ever get out of that terrible house."

The real Corp executives exchanged meaningful looks. Ziv was talking about his own secret hideout, the hideout that the Corp had never been able to find.

"I know it must have been horrible for you," Lady Frenzy said, "being kidnapped by your own sister and her bots. How did you manage to keep your sanity?"

"Believe it," Hiss said dryly. "Blitzzzy Zulander doessssn't know the meaning of the word loyalty." "No offensssse," he amended quickly. He wasn't used to having polite conversations with Zulander.

"None taken," Ziv replied amiably. "After all, it's true. Blitzy didn't get the guidance that I got at her age."

"It's really a shame," LLP said. "She's a bright girl. I saw a great future for her with the Corp. Before she ran away, that is."

"Oh, well, enough about Blitzy," Ziv said. "What's been going on here while I was gone?"

LLP was suspicious for a moment. Zulander had come up with many ingenious tricks in the past. Could this be an attempt to get the Corp's plans? LLP looked at the honest (too honest, he had often thought in the past) green eyes and decided to take a chance.

"We've almost completed the new krang-ore refinery," he told Ziv. "It should be ready to begin operation in two weeks."

"Good," Dr. Hiss said. "I have ssssseveral upgradessss to perform. Will you be asssssissssting me, Dr. Zulander?"

"Sure," Ziv replied. "I've got nothing better to do this week."

"As a matter of fact," LLP said, "you do. I want you and Frenzy to come up with a plan of action concerning your sister. We need a way to stop her next attack before it starts."

"Understood. I guess I'll have to take a rain check on that upgrade, Hiss." Ziv and Frenzy left the room.

"Excellent, Hiss," LLP said as soon as the door closed behind them. "You've outdone yourself." Which isn't too difficult, he thought.

"Thank you, LLP," Hiss replied with satisfaction.

"Is the mental re-programming permanent?" LLP asked.

"I can't sssay for sssure," Hiss replied, "but it'ssss sssafe to sssay that nobody who isssn't exssssperienced in the use of my device could reversssssse the programming without caussssssing major damage."

"In other words," LLP said with satisfaction, "even if Zulander's sister and bots managed to rescue him, he'd still think of them as terrorists."

"Correct," Hiss told him. "And if they tried to undo the programming, they'd probably kill him."

The two laughed, content in the assurance that no matter what happened, they wouldn't have any more problems with Ziv Zulander.

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