Takeover

Takeover is the second chapter in the Wombles Four.

The person who had been at the door of the gym was explaining to Steed and Cathy that they got the words: Intruder! Only French people allowed in here! You must be killed! mixed up with the words: Hello! You haven’t paid! There is a bill! Then they asked what their names were. “Je m’appelle Cathy Steed, il est John Steed.” Replied Cathy. The French person blinked. She didn’t recognise the name Cathy as French, and yet she had been told that Cathy was French. She didn’t have a French accent either. “Tu n’est pas francais!” they said. “Oui je suis.” Replied Cathy, rather worried. Suddenly the French person remembered seeing wanted posters of people named Cathy Steed and John Steed. They quickly untied Cathy’s hair and held up a picture of birthmarks in front of where Cathy had hidden hers with make-up, then held up a piece of paper that said, “Criminals! I am taking you to the police!”  Steed and Cathy tried to run, but got caught before they could. They were knocked out.

Later they woke up. Cathy was tied to her own conveyer belt with the circular saw and Steed was tied to a matching one. Steed whispered to Cathy, “Quick! Use AEIOU!”  Cathy replied, “But I’m not an idiot!”  “I know but you are an agent. In fact you and I are in charge of the avengers!”  “Oh yes I suppose.” Said Cathy, so they both escaped with AEIOU. But they were back in London! Suddenly Cathy heard something. “Listen” she said. Steed did. This is what they heard:

Female Voice: Remember me?

Male Voice: Aaaggghh! A ghost!

Female Voice:  Ha ha ha ha ha!

A noise like a machete being used.

They rushed round to where it had come from. They saw someone moving like a shadow. “Hello?” said Steed. The person turned round. It was Mrs Peel!

“Grrrrrrrrr”  Mrs Peel turned around to see Freckles biting her leg. “Good boy Freckles! Kill!” said Steed. Freckles did try to kill Mrs Peel but somehow she couldn’t die. She laughed evily. Freckles whimpered and ran. Mrs Peel turned back to where Steed and Cathy had been, but they were already running off. “Come back!” said Mrs Peel and chased after them.

“Quick get in a boat and… wait a minute… Lucy and Thomas are still in France!” said Steed.

The twins were not in France. They were in Germany where deep in the Black Forest a strange face waited for Thomas and Lucy to wake up. The face looked like a womble. The body looked like a womble. One arm looked like a wombles. The other was a metal robot arm. Half the body was a motorised wheelchair.

Thomas woke up first. “Where am I?” he asked the strange womble. “Du bist tief in meinem Bau. Bald wird mein Körper mit deiner DNA repariert!” (You are deep in my burrow.  Soon my body will be repaired using your DNA!)

Steed and Cathy arrived back in France. “Thomas! Lucy!” they called. There was no response. They went all over the country, but couldn’t find them anywhere. Suddenly Cathy remembered something. She went around to the wall of the gym, and took the tracking device off of it. “Perhaps we could set this to track people that it’s not with?” she said, and made it track the twins. They found them and said, “What happened?”  They saw the strange womble. They knocked him out and later he woke up on the conveyer belt with the circular saw.

Suddenly Mrs Peel burst in. “I’ve got you!” she said, and swung the machete at Cathy. She dodged. She grabbed the machete and swung it back, but Mrs Peel didn’t die. Cathy was desperately trying to fend off Mrs Peel. Steed couldn’t get near because the machete was swinging so wildly.

Bungo had just returned from tidying up. He went to the workshop where Patrick was busy sorting out all of the things that everyday folk left behind. Tobermory now lived in Womble Manor so Patrick had taken over as number two womble. Bungo handed over his full tidy bag to Patrick. He patted his apron pocket as he walked down to SWWO (Super Womble Wellington’s Office). He knocked, slipped his resignation under the door then ran off.

Wellington came out and saw the letter. Next he heard an engine. Wellington rush to the garage but it was too late. Bungo had already driven off in the Lotus Elan. He was returning it to Cathy. Everyone had been stealing it and it was Cathy’s birthday soon.

As he drove towards Steed Manor as they now called it a beep started. Bungo pulled over to check it. The beep was coming from a tracking device. There was a screen with a C moving on it and an L. “Hmm the L must be for Lotus” thought Bungo. He then realised that the C was Cathy. So he turned around and raced towards the C. He ended up in a dull side street in a dull part of north London.

There was a factory. Bungo walked in to find Cathy fighting a scary looking, crazy Mrs Peel. The machete was being swung all over the place. Steed was trying clunk Mrs Peel on the head with his armoured hat but she wouldn’t stay still. Suddenly Bungo remembered the shiny thing he had tidied up on the common that morning. He took out a whistle and blew into it.

“Woof!” said Mrs Peel and wagged her imaginary tail. “Thank you Bungo!” chorused Steed and Cathy. “Why is she not dead?” Bungo asked. “We don’t know” replied Cathy. “But we do know that we are both wanted for murder!” added Steed. “Oh that” said Bungo. “Ho hum do the Avengers want to arrest you?”  “We don’t know” replied Cathy “meet Thomas and Lucy!” Thomas and Lucy waved and wahed. “Don’t be silly” said Steed. “You can talk to Bungo he’s one of us!” “Hello Bungo!” Lucy and Thomas said together. Lucy added “Bonjour!”.

Steed, Cathy, Thomas, Lucy, Bungo and Pickles got into their yellow Bentley and Cathy’s white Lotus. They raced to the Dreemy Kreem Dairy (now Avengers HQ). Mrs Class greeted them. “Steed! Cathy! Babies! Bungo! We thought the police would have you by now. So the Milkman has just blown up their HQ but it’s OK because you’re all fine!”

“I think it’s best we take over London” said Cathy decisively. “OK” agreed Steed. “I’ll start planning the coup” added Mr Class “Bungo are you ready to be a Classy window cleaner again?”  “Yes Mr Class!” replied Bungo clicking his heels.

“What about the weirdo?” asked Thomas. “Put her in the butter machine!” suggested the Milkman. Thomas and Lucy did put Mrs Peel in there and cranked it up to full power.

Back in the factory the evil German womble had reached the saw blade. He just stopped it with his robot arm. He ripped off the blade and cut himself free. “Now to find my babies to extract their DNA!” he said evilly. As he drove out of the factory the light glinted on the back of the motorised wheelchair. The name Yuma Von Vomble lit up for a second as he left the building.

“How exactly are we going to take over London?” asked Steed. “I’m not sure” replied Cathy. “Do you have any ideas John?”  “No, do you?” “No”  “Oh”  “How about drugging the milk?” suggested the Milkman. “Or we could hyptonise the Government when we clean their windows!” suggested Mr Class. “Maybe I could turn all the leaders into dogs like pickles?” suggested Bungo. “Roooovvveeeerrr!” suggested Rover.

They decided that Rover would chase the Queen out of Buckingham Palace and then Bungo would sit on the throne and declare Steed and Cathy in charge of London.

As Rover came in the queen was polishing her sword. She accidentally poked a hole in Rover with it. He deflated. “Oh no!” said Bungo from outside, and burst in, followed by Steed, followed by Cathy, followed by Thomas, followed by Lucy. “What is it?” asked Steed, then realised the queen was staring at him. “Does one’s Lord Sir John Steed realise that one is wanted for one’s murder?”  “Uh” said Steed. “And what murder are you referring to?”  “Of Emma Peel.” Replied the queen. “Well that wasn’t me.” Said Steed. Cathy gave him a worried face. “Then who was it?” asked the queen. Steed hesitantly said, “It was Cathy.”  “What?” said Cathy. “How could you?”  Steed quickly changed the subject, “How did we get in here?”  Cathy just looked at him. Steed sighed and said, “Well it is true!”  “I know but “  “Oh nevermind let’s just get out of here.”  Unfortunately the police had found them and were scattered around the palace.

Mrs Peel was taken out the butter machine in a great big lump of butter. She leapt out of it. They had unfortunately made the mistake of putting the machete in the machine as well so she still had it. Mrs Peel was carrying the machete in her mouth for the Milkman to throw. He did. He threw it at Mrs Peel’s head. She leapt up and caught it with her mouth. The Milkman tried for about an hour but she just kept on catching it. He put her back in the butter machine and left it locked on full power.

At Buckingham Palace Steed, Cathy, Thomas, Lucy, Bungo and Rover were getting desperate. Cathy grabbed the Queen’s sword and held it at her throat. Steed made her sign over the Monarchy to the Steeds. Once it was signed he clunked Her Ex Majesty on the head with his armoured hat. She was knocked unconscious. Thomas and Lucy dragged Anna (who was no longer the Queen) into the servant’s quarters and locked her in the broom cupboard.

Cathy sat the throne wearing her new crown. Steed put on his crown and mounted the abdication document on the wall for the police to see. Just then the police burst in. “I am arresting you in the name of the law for murder most foul!” shouted the policeman. “No you’re not!” said Cathy. “You are going to kneel before King Lord Sir John Steed, you can call me Your Majesty, and Queen Lady Catherine Steed!” The policeman looked at the abdication document and groaned. “Yes your Majesties!” he said before kneeling.

They made him clean their shoes whilst he down there before sending him out to tell all the other police they were fired. “Who is going to keep the law now?” asked Queen Cathy. “Window cleaners!” replied King Steed. Bungo had just finished repairing Rover with strong glue and thick tape. Bungo leapt onto Rover to go out to tell the window cleaners all around London. Somehow he managed to knock the royal sword and became Sir Bungo Womble on the way out.

The former police were angry. “If they can take over, we can!” said one. “And THEN we will arrest them!”

They marched into Buckingham Palace, and took the royal sword, then pointed it at Steed’s throat. Cathy was just getting away when another former police member leapt on her. Then they made her and Steed resign like they had made Anna resign, then there were a lot of former police members who became kings and queens. Amount of kings: 10  Amount of queens: 8  Then they marched Steed and Cathy into court.

Ten seconds later the court exploded. Everything went black.