Disclaimer: I do not own Fusion fall, or any of the Cartoon Network characters. Wish I did though.
Author notes: OK, I love this game and this story is in response to LadyLyre's challenge on the FF forum. Hope I kept within the rules for your challenge, and just to tell you, flames will be used to roast Fuse. Now on with the story.
A/N: I now have a person willing to beta for me. Special thanks to Lightning Bird for going over this for me. Hopefully I'm not annoying her too much with my bad eye for details or grammar.
Dexter knew that his friend from the past was staring after him in disbelief as he ran back the way they had just come. As he turned the corner he stopped to listen; he could hear her murmur several choice words regarding his intelligence, before a sigh was heard. Dexter knew what she were thinking; he had seen the doubt and concern cross his friend's face just before he had turned away, but he had no other choice. Dexter couldn't take the chance of Fuse getting his hands on any of technology from his lab. To do so would cause the destruction of their side of the war. After another minute, Dexter heard his friend's footsteps going towards the warp pad, and as the familiar sound of it activating reached his ears, he breathed out a sigh of relief grateful that she had decided to listen to him. As he started deeper into the lair, his com unit went off.
"Dexter! Come in, do you read me?" came the very familiar voice of Number 2.
"Dexter here. What is it Number 2?"
"We can't hold Tech Square any longer; areas are already starting to sink! What should we do?"
"Get out now! My time-traveling friend will be there shortly. You need to find Mandark, and I cannot believe I am saying this, get him to help you get started rebuilding the time capsule. Do not worry, I will be along shortly. Dexter out!"
Knowing his friends would be furious with him for going on by himself, Dexter raced further down the twisted paths of Fusion Buttercup's lair, looking for the technology he knew had been stolen from his lab. Just as he found the room where the Fusion had piled it (probably so it could go back to steal more), the ground once again began to heave and shake under his feet. Knowing that his time was up, Dexter contacted Computress and had her recorded a message to give to the others. In it he told them that he would be fine and to just get his time-traveling friend back to the past. Ending his message, Dexter couldn't help the small part of his mind that wondered if his statement about being fine would turn out true.
Quickly shaking off such thoughts, he pulled out three proton grenades from the pack at his side, primed the timer, and threw them into the middle of the stolen technology. Standing there for a moment, he looked calm as ever on the outside, but on the inside he was raging at the lost of so much of his work. He was also worried; certain that this setback would cause problems for their side's plans for winning the war. Dexter was determined, promising himself that Fuse would pay for all he had done. Turning, he started to run back the way he had come hoping that the warp pad was still at the lair's entrance, wanting more then anything to keep his word to his friends.
Confident that he could reprogram the warp pad to take him to Genius Grove, he let himself imagine the chewing out that his friends were going to give him. Dexter quickly realized that for once he would enjoy every minute of it as long as it meant that they were all safe. Coming around the last corner near the warp pad, he skidded to a stop and quickly backpedaled. Looking back around the corner, Dexter's eyes narrowed in frustration.
The room with the warp pad was filled with Fusion mechs. There was no way for him to safely reach the pad and reprogram it with so many in the room. Pulling back, he found a small alcove in the wall, and ducking in began to pace. As he walked, several plans ran through his mind, each one discarded faster then the last. Just as he was about to give it up as hopeless, a large explosion knocked him off his feet and into the wall. Blinking in surprise, he tried to remember if he had seen anything in that pile that would cause such a large blast, but quickly disregarded that line of thought as every Fusion mech that had been in the warp pad room rushed past his hiding place, towards the direction the explosion had come from.
Waiting a few seconds to make sure they were out of sight, Dexter rushed out of his hiding spot and ran toward the warp pad. Kneeling down, he started to modify the warp pad's programming to take him outside the now-destroy Tech Square to Genius Grove. So engross was he in his work, that he failed to hear the footsteps approaching him until it was too late. Even as he started to turn, Dexter felt something collided hard with the back of his head. Falling to his side on the ground, Dexter could do little as the person grabbed him by the front of his lab coat and lifted him onto his knees.
Trying to focus through the dizziness and pain, Dexter felt his stomach plummet as he realized that he was looking at a red version of his own lab coat. Pushing back the darkness that hovered at the edges of his vision, he slowly lifted his head until he was looking into the red eyes of his doppelganger. Seeing those eyes filled with a merciless glee, Dexter knew that he would not be making it back to his friends. As Fusion Dexter lifted his wrench, Dexter could only hope that his time-traveling friend would make it back to the past and help stop this future from ever happening.
Then Dexter knew only darkness.
