A Wolf in Sugar Coating
Chapter 1 - A Strange Encounter
Ever since she became the rightful ruler of Sugar Rush, there were only two ways for Vanellope von Schweetz to ever truly relax: Racing and hanging out with her friends; those friends sometimes being the other racers, but they were usually the ones outside of her own game. Wreck-It Ralph, Fix-It Felix Jr. and Sergeant Calhoun, to be specific; and not only was she looking forward to having fun with them again, but the satchel she took with her harbored a surprise for them that she made herself.
But when Vanellope went to go look for Ralph in Fit-It Felix Jr, she couldn't find him or the title character anywhere; she figured the only other places they would be is Tapper's or Hero's Duty—it was usually hard to keep love birds like Felix and Calhoun apart whenever the arcade closed. So, Vanellope made her way back through Game Central Station, where a few by standers and background characters bowed in respect. Becoming royalty never did sit right with Vanellope, but being a princess is just as much in her codes as being a racer is, so there wasn't really much she could do about it.
"Hey! Anyone seen Ralph?!" Vanellope called out, hoping that by random, someone would have an answer.
"Can't find him again, V?" Sonic the Hedgehog questioned, as he casually strutted up to the said Sugar Rush avatar.
"No," she sighed in defeat, and adjusted her satchel's strap to a more comfortable position.
"Well, Princess, I might've seen him, but my memory's a little fuzzy." The sly and trademark grin the blue ball of spikes gave her told her one thing, as he crossed his arms and put his weight against a wall.
Vanellope gave him a deadpanned look, "Is this gonna be a normal thing?"
"You bet'cha, Princess."
"Ok, one: Don't call me 'Princess', 'Your Majesty', 'Your Highness' or anything like that. And two: Do you know how expensive those candied chilly dogs are?"
"You're the princess/president of your own game. I'm pretty sure you can pull a few strings—unless you don't wanna find Ralph. If not, I understand. See ya, V!"
In the blink of an eye, Sonic darted away in a blue blur, leaving Vanellope dazed and annoyed because, although unusual, he was right.
"Alright!" Vanellope shouted at the top of her lungs while balling her ands into fists, and tilting her head back to further amplify her voice. Despite most likely being too far away, Sonic sprinted right back and stopped right in front of her, bringing a gust of wind with him that nearly blew Vanellope over, and smirked down at her again.
"How many are we talkin' here?" Sonic asked knowingly.
"Five?" Vanellope offered, but Sonic only shook his head and waved his hand in an upward motion.
"Ten?"
The upward waving transformed into a thumbs up that continued to jab the air.
"Fifteen?"
"You've got yerself a deal!" Sonic exclaimed in excitement before grabbing Vanellope by the arm, and carried her bridal style as he raced through Game Central Station. In mere seconds, he stopped at the outlet leading to Hero's Duty and set her down gently.
"Of course," Vanellope sighed matter-of-factly, but smiled back at Sonic politely, "Thanks, Sonic. When did you want those candied chilly dogs delivered to you?"
"Eh, don't sweat it. And I've got a boss fight comin' up soon, so I'd rather save them as a reward. I'll just come over and get 'em later," Sonic brushed off the gratitude while ruffling Vanellope's hair playfully, and finally dashed off in his famous blue blur.
Vanellope was once again agitated by the hedgehog's actions as she fixed her ponytail, but couldn't help but chuckle due to his hilariously arrogant reputation. And finally remembering where she was going, Vanellope straightened her bag and checked the contents of her satchel to ensure they were still in one piece, as she stepped onto the train to the dangerous game of Hero's Duty.
The weather in Hero's Duty was known to change from a bleak sky of dark clouds, to thunderous clouds that actually let down a heavy pour; the levels of the game that contained such weather most often was the free-roam tutorial level and the last few levels toward the boss, as to make it more difficult for the players.
When the arcade was closed, some of the cadets and even a few outside characters would visit the tutorial levels to learn how to kill Cybugs themselves, in case of another Cybug breakout. But today, the only ones in the tutorial level, which took place in ring in a stone pit and chains to cover the overhead opening, were Calhoun, her husband, and the only one that volunteered to be the best man at their wedding.
Calhoun kept one eye shut tight while aiming with the other, keeping her beloved gun pointed strictly at the numerous large, metal doors within the cold and wet ring; Ralph and Felix stayed safe behind bright electric bars that acted as a barrier between the seats for an audience, and the kill ring that trapped the game's famous villains.
"Be careful, Hon!" Felix called with great concern, nearly grabbing an electric bar to get closer, but Ralph luckily grabbed the collar of her shirt and effortlessly sat him back down.
"Easy there, Romeo. This Sergeant Calhoun we're talkin' about—she could take down an entire Cybug swarm, and then some if it ever came ta that," Ralph reassured confidently while placing his massive hands behind his head and relaxed back in his seat.
"But she's also my beautiful, delicate wife."
Just as Felix said that, three of the doors opened and Cybugs burst forth; their bright green wings and pincers glowed brightly, as they exposed their saw-like teeth at Calhoun and lunged for her. But the said sergeant didn't flinch, and instead smiled maliciously while shooting them with precise aim. One after the other, each virus exploded into a goofy pile of green goop that landed with a splat.
"Delicate, huh?" Ralph repeated mockingly.
Felix didn't answer at first, which quickly caught Ralph's attention; the said wrecker leaned forward and realized Felix wasn't even watching his wife anymore, but instead focusing on one of the ring's entrances. Ralph's eyes widened when he saw a familiar little girl clad in a green jacket and ebony hair with candy strewn through it, and she skipped towards Calhoun, whose back was turned towards her.
"Hiya, Calhoun!" Vanellope exclaimed as she approached the said blonde sergeant; the only reason she entered the ring was because she immediately noticed that Calhoun was effortlessly handling the Cybugs, so she figured it was perfectly safe for her to enter—but she failed to notice the one Cybug that clung to the chains above, as it clung to the metal before it was directly above the unsuspecting racer.
"KID, LOOK OUT!"
Ralph's warning was one second too late. By the time Vanellope turned around, the Cybug dropped down on top of her, ripping the satchel's strap and sending it sliding across the floor as Vanellope remained trapped underneath the killer virus.
Calhoun was quick to act as well, and pulled out a grenade before yanking the safety pin out with her teeth; she then tossed the grenade into the Cybug's mouth when it opened its jaws to begin devouring Vanellope. Calhoun ran and dove down to grab Vanellope, sliding out from underneath the Cybug before it exploded mere seconds later.
The impact of the explosion was strong enough to create a crack in a stone cropping nearby, where Cybug eggs awaited in some piles for the players to select; the purpose of the eggs was so that the players could practice either shooting them before they hatched, or practice their aim on the smaller and more agile hatchlings.
The edge of the cropping soon split, and most of the eggs spilled onto the stone floor below, some of them even surrounding Vanellope's satchel. Surprisingly, though, none of them hatched despite only needing a light nudge to trigger them. And even though she knew they contained little immoral monsters, Vanellope was only concerned about one thing.
"Oh, no!" the racer gasped as she ripped herself from Calhoun's grasp, and sprinted towards her satchel.
"Vanellope, wait!" Felix warned when he and Ralph finally managed to enter the ring, but his plead fell upon deaf ears. She carefully dodged and darted around the eggs while keeping a quick pace, and eventually managed to reach her bag without setting off any of the eggs. But she was devastated when she not only saw that the strap was ripped, but that the gifts for her friends had fallen out and broken.
As Vanellope sadly picked up her bag and tied the strap into a knot to throw it over her shoulder, the others watched in fear as she hunched over to pick up the three broken cookie heart necklaces, much like the first one she made for Ralph, and carefully walked back through the scattered eggs with them.
"What were you thinking, Kid?! You know you can't turn your back on a Cybug, let alone enter a room without checking for any!" Ralph scolded while getting down on one knee to get eye level with Vanellope; the said racer only looked up at him in defeat, as she presented the broken cookie charms to them, each of them frosted with their favorite colors and respected little shapes of decorative frosting. Felix's cookie had blue frosting with little yellow hammers, Calhoun's was decorated with grey and neon green bombs, and Ralph's had bright red frosting with pink bricks sprinkling it; the three couldn't help but feel guilty for getting so upset, considering all she wanted to do was give them a meaningful gift.
"Sorry, Guys. That was a dumb move, I know that now," Vanellope shamefully apologized, but Ralph quickly yet gently set a hand on her shoulder.
"We're sorry, too, Kid," he softly pointed out.
"But next time, just be a bit more careful, ok?" Felix added worriedly.
"Sounds good ta me." Vanellope glanced down at the cookies. "If you guys don't want these, can I just give them to the Cybugs?"
"Do you want another swarm of candy-armored Cybugs?" Calhoun asked dryly.
"Touché." With that, the racer put the necklaces back in her back to bring them back, and she thought about feeding them to Wynchel and Duncan's devil dogs later.
"Well, I think I'm a little Cybugged-out. All in favor of going to Tapper's?" Ralph suggested with a smile, to which the others instantly smiled and raised their hands.
After an hour or so of having fun at Tapper's, Vanellope eventually left since she had to prepare for the Random Roster Race before the arcade opens back up. She entered the private garage in the Sugar Rush's candied castle, and set her bag down to marvel over her hodgepodge of a unique go-kart.
Memories of the first time she ever drove it came flooding back, and she felt incredibly nostalgic when she remembered he first real race, which reset Sugar Rush and her codes entirely. Vanellope was suddenly ripped from her thoughts when she heard a bizarre noise nearby; glancing around, she couldn't find anything and the noise seemed to cease.
But just when she went back to examining her go-kart, the noise returned, this time louder and quicker, as if there was a struggle. Vanellope looked around again, trying to find the source of what sounded like a cross between a hiss and a gurgle—it actually sounded a little cute.
Vanellope's gaze soon fell upon her once still satchel, as a faint white light emitted from inside, and what ever was inside tossed around the fabric of the pouch. With caution and curiosity, Vanellope slowly approached the satchel, never taking her eyes off of it in fear of something jumping out at her.
However, when she was finally close enough to grab it, both the noises and the movement stopped abruptly; she pulled back one of the flaps to look inside and found shards of an egg shell scattered within the bag. The hexagonal patterns on the egg pieces were familiar, and Vanellope instantly recognized them as Cybug egg pieces—but this shell was different. For one thing, all Cybug eggs were black and green, but the color of this shell was flawless white, sans for a few vibrant orange and purple patterns.
But what really caught Vanellope's attention was the obvious fact that pieces were—well, in pieces; this could either mean that an egg broke and the pieces landed in her bag when they fell in the kill ring, or an egg fell into her bag and she just didn't notice. Either way, Vanellope feared that there might be a Cybug nearby, and hatchling or grown up, neither one of them were short of being extremely dangerous.
Just as Vanellope's fear grew, she felt something small prick her hand in a curious way, instantly making her yelp and yank it away. She checked her hand for any cuts or bites, to which there luckily wasn't any, and she looked back into her satchel to find the tiny, bright orange, insect-like limb that had just touched her.
Following close behind the limb were three more matching orange-striped legs, a magenta tail that split like that of a silverfish insect, and the obvious body of a Cybug hatchling as it sloppily tried to crawl out backwards. But it lacked the natural black and green colors of a Cybug, and was instead coated with chitin of bright orange on its underbelly and dark purple down its back.
Vanellope was in true awe of the Cybug's unique appearance, and nearly forgot she was in the presence of one in the first place. But when the hatchling finally pulled itself free from the satchel and landed helplessly on its back like a turtle, Vanellope discovered the true identity and severity of this certain Cybug.
Instead of the tiny, adorable head of a normal Cybug hatchling, there was a thin neck of stringed candy, and at the end was the bulbous head of none other than King Candy himself. But the evil and fang-filled grin he wore during his short time of being a virus was completely gone, and replaced by an expression of pure innocence and confusion; although, due to her past experience with him, Vanellope knew there was nothing innocent about him.
Barely being half the size of Vanellope, this hatchling version of virus King Candy appeared far less scary, but she frantically scampered to her feet and backed up until she put a good distance between them. Hatchling King Candy gurgled and tilted his head in confusion, as the purple and orange stripes on his forehead bent when he furrowed his bushy grey eyebrows. And his eyes, which once harbored nothing but greed and hunger for power, were now bigger and shined with wonder.
Ok, Vanellope, think! You're alone with a Cybug-King Candy-Turbo hybrid, so just…stay calm? …Yeah, stay calm, Vanellope internally panicked while flashing little King Candy a fake smile…wait.
King Candy, Turbo, this Cybug, whatever! One in the same or not, he's still alive! But that can't be possible; they killed him and the rest of the escaped Cybugs with the explosive hot springs of Diet Cola Mountain. And since he wasn't from Hero's Duty or Sugar Rush, there is just no way King Candy or Turbo could've survived.
But here he was, albeit a strange reincarnation of him, sitting right there and staring right at her, with a sudden smile of all expressions. He seemed to take a liking to Vanellope, as he clumsily turned over onto his legs; he was significantly wobbly at first, and struggled greatly just to travel the few feet from the bag to Vanellope.
The said racer rapidly shook her head and wanted nothing to do with the brightly-colored hatchling, and quickly continued backing up to get away from the little monster. Hatchling King Candy/Turbo suddenly gained momentum, for he was unable to stop himself on his four nimble legs. Vanellope jumped out of the way when he tumbled over and turned into a little ball, and he rolled across the floor until he violently crashed into a wall.
Vanellope stared in bewilderment, still unable to believe that the infamous game jumper of Litwak's Arcade was right in front of her, as this new infant Cybug form of him uncurled after slamming into the wall—and then something else Vanellope never would've expected happened.
With his back towards her and his face curled into his tiny body in embarrassment, King Candy started sniffling and weeping softly. Something deep within Vanellope told her to come to his aid, even though a voice in her head screamed to run and get help. Infant or not, this creature was the combination of two of the arcade's most dangerous threats—yet Vanellope couldn't help but feel guilty. The sight of this reborn version of King Candy reminded her of when she was all alone, and no one ever wanted to help her or give her a polite glance; she knows exactly what it's like to feel helpless, what it's like to have no family or friends, and what it's like to be different.
With her mind made up Vanellope quietly crept closer to the sobbing hatchling, getting down on her knees and reaching a hand out to gently pet his side; he froe and went silent the mere second he felt her gentle touch, and quivered when he dared not to look back at her in fear of getting hurt again.
"Hey, it's ok. I won't hurt you," Vanellope reassured, her voice smooth and barely over a whisper, and it convinced the colorful virus enough to turn and look over his shoulder at her, "I promise."
A few agonizing seconds past by before little King Candy slowly adjusted himself to face Vanellope, but he collapsed when he tried to stand again. Vanellope searched him for any injuries, and instantly discovered the scrape on his front left leg; it wasn't too bad, but it was definitely noticeable. Vanellope reached her other hand out to grab the hatchling's leg and examine it more closely, but he yanked it away and whimpered loudly while looking up at her with big and fearful eyes.
"It's ok, shh, it's ok. I just wanna look at it," she comforted softly while gently cupping his head, which was barely bigger than her hand. Hatchling King Candy seemed to understand enough to shakily outstretch his injured leg, wincing when Vanellope gently grabbed it and leaned down to get a closer look.
Vanellope soon came to a conclusion and smiled reassuringly, "Aww, it's not that bad. It'll heal really quickly, but just to be safe…"
King Candy's eyes widened and his neck stretched, as he watched Vanellope stand and walk up to a work bench, where she opened a first-aid kit and pulled out a small band-aid; she then walked back and got down on one knee, removed the protective plastic and gently placed it over the scrape. He wiggled his leg from the strange new feeling on it, but cooed when he realized it made him feel a little better.
Vanellope chuckled and smiled warmly when he looked up at her with that naïve, innocent look again; it was truly adorable, despite his horrific origins. Which begged the question: Does he remember who he is? Thoughts of him remembering his past and evil intentions flooded Vanellope's mind, for she knew it would mean danger for the entire arcade again. But before she could imagine the worst case scenario, there was a knock at the door, followed by Spur Bill's voice on the other side.
"Vanellope, what's taking so long? The Random Roster Race needs to start soon," the green sour ball pointed out in his trademark voice, and Vanellope panicked as his struggle to reach the high-up doorknob when it jiggled violently. But she knew he would reach it soon, and she can't let him find little King Candy.
Glancing around in terror, Vanellope's gaze eventually landed on her satchel; King Candy was cooing in curiosity and wobbly walking once again to get to the door when Vanellope suddenly picked him up and ran over to her bag. It wasn't until the door finally opened that she successfully stuffed the hatchling into her bag, and Sour Bill seemed oblivious to the situation as he stepped in.
"Oh, h-hey, Sour Bill! What brings ya here?" Vanellope inquired nervously, as she put the strap over her shoulder and closed the bag to ensure her unique guest wouldn't pop out.
"I just told you. They're waiting for you to start the race." The look on Sour Bill's face, which is usually the same deadpan look, was a far more cold and unimpressed expression.
"Right…that."
Vanellope's bag suddenly shifted and growled, to which the said racer tried to hide by shifting it behind her back and closing the bag even tighter. But despite her efforts and fake smile, Sour Bill easily caught on.
"What's in your bag?" he asked in suspicion.
"O-Oh, uh, you know, just some…jumping beans," Vanellope lied with a nervous chuckle and nod; although Sour Bill found it hard to believe, he thought it best to just leave it at that instead of postponing the race even more.
"Ok."
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I've gotta, um…change my jacket! I'll be right out after that!"
With that, the princess of Sugar Rush darted out of the garage in search of her bedroom, which left Sour Bill behind in silence and puzzlement.
"But you always wear the same jacket," he muttered under his breath before rolling his eyes, and headed back out to wait for Vanellope at the starting line.
Meanwhile, Vanellope sprinted down the salmon-colored halls of the castle until she eventually reached her room; she was also fully aware of the occasional Oreo cookie guard within each hall, so she made sure that that the coast was clear before entering her room. But once inside, Vanellope noticed the strange lack of movement and sound in her bag.
Worried she might have dropped him, Vanellope frantically opened the bag, only to let out a huge sigh of relief when she found him safe and sound inside—and that the cookie charms of her friends' necklaces were now nothing but crumbs. Little King Candy looked up and squinted when brighter lighting entered the bag, but that didn't stop him from munching on the last piece of cookie.
Once again, Vanellope found him rather adorable, for his face was covered in cookie crumbs as he searched the satchel for anymore treats. When he couldn't find anymore, he sadly looked back up at Vanellope with a disappointed whine.
"Look at you, you're a mess. C'mere, Silly," Vanellope chuckled softly as she set the bag down on the floor, and scooped the hatchling out with one hand; she then cradled him as she carried him over to her bed and set him down near her pillows. King Candy obviously took a liking to the softness of the blankets when he cooed and smiled, and even turned over onto his side to snuggle deeper into the softness.
Soon enough, the feeling of being full after those cookies took over, and King Candy yawned and blinked his droopy eyes before curing up into a little ball to let sleep take over. The sight of someone so dangerous almost made Vanellope completely forget about their horrible past; she knew good and well to avoid Turbo and anyone else who game jumped, as well as the power-hungry King Candy. But despite it all, this creature just couldn't possibly be him. Not mentally, at least. And Vanellope wouldn't let anyone or anything hurt him.
But that's when something else came to mind…
"Oh, no! The Race!" Vanellope gasped in realization, knowing everyone must be so confused by now. And she can't just go out there and tell them she can't race because she's keeping a baby version of Virus King Candy/Turbo as her personal guest, let alone never show up without an explanation.
She hoped she didn't accidentally wake up the sleeping hatchling, but he luckily remained in his little ball of dreaming. Knowing this was her chance, Vanellope backed out of her room and closed the door as quietly as possible. And making sure to lock it before heading off to the race, Vanellope hoped and prayed that King Candy would be safe and out of trouble.
I won't lie, I'm making my own heart melt. But, of course, there's still the mystery of what King Candy is doing here in the first place. What do you think?
Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!