Chapter Seven – Underfoot
"What is it with you and Blissing people?" asked an annoyed Morrigan "You seem to be doing it much more than you used to back in the day as well?"
"I find it that it is the least violent way to shut 'CERTAIN' people up." Demitri replied, his eyes on his tea and not on his partner before him. A smaller succubus crept forward, the wings on her head twitching in annoyance.
"Oh, poo. You just do it because you think it's funny! You're just bein' MEAN!"
"Mean?" laughed the vampire, patting Lilith on the head "Oh-ho-ho, are you not the sweetest thing. Acting all worried about the well-being of the arcade from lil ol' me."
"This is why people think you're a jerk, Demitri." Morrigan scoffed, rolling her eyes.
"'Scuse me?" came a voice from the entrance of the game, the three monsters looking over "Is this a bad time?"
Felicia and Roxie arrived just in time, looking about awkwardly at the fight that appeared to be brewing before them but Demitri stood, bowing gracefully before them.
"Evening LADIES." He smirked "I take it the past few days were an EVENTFUL one, no?"
Roxie growled, puffing her chest out "Funny, DIMMY. FUNNY."
"Don't call me that."
"Look, Demitri…" Felicia began "We really don't want anythin' but ta be turned back okay? Tha joke's run its course so…."
"Where is that wife of yours?" the vampire asked, looking around "Don't tell me that I made her such a small Nicelander that she is now POCKET-SIZED."
Felicia blushed in anger, crossing her arms "Tammy is fine but no thanks ta ya, she had a rough start with tha whole Nicelander thing."
"A start? What about the finish?" the taller man asked "Why do you think I asked you about her whereabouts?"
"She's back at home with tha others…." Felicia said "She'd come with us but she said she wanted ta stay an' help tha other Nicelanders with their NPC Network meetin'."
"Ah, such a noble woman that Calhoun is…." Demitri purred, making Felicia even more uncomfortable than she already was "Always helping those who need it the most. No wonder she found such love and connection with a being such as yourself, Fix-It."
Now the heroine was REALLY blushing but she stood her ground. She knew that the vampire was just bluffing, or at least she was sure that was his reason for such an act.
"Will you stop screwin' with 'em, and just turn them back?" huffed Morrigan, Lilith peeking her little head around the corner as not to miss a moment of the action that was going on "They already went through enough as it is thanks to you!"
"Before I do…." The man began "I want to ask something."
"Yeeees?" Roxie frowned, a brow arching "What is it, DIMMY?"
"What did you two think?"
"About WHAT?"
"The Bliss." smiled the vampire "Had I gotten the chance to talk to those neighbors of yours, I would have asked them how it felt to be more, for the lack of better terms, BUILT in the bits, but what about YOU fine HEROES? What did you think about all of this?"
"What did we THINK?!" roared Roxie "THIS WAS EMBARRASSIN'!"
"Oh?"
"Yeah it was!" the woman continued, grabbing Demitri by his collar "I don't care HOW powerful ya are, ya just can't go around zappin' people an' turnin' 'em into whatever pleases ya!"
"Heh…." The man chuckled to himself "Even if you're outward appearance has changed, you're still the hot-headed wrecker you have ALWAYS been, RALPH."
Roxie dropped the man, reminding herself not to allow him to play with her. Urgh, Demitri; he had ALWAYS been like this since the moment the game was plugged in and he wasn't letting up now.
"I-I don't know…." Stammered Felicia "I-I guess…."
Roxie peered down at her partner, noticing the look of uncertainty on her face.
"Felix?"
"I guess…I guess it wasn't THAT bad."
Roxie nearly fell to the floor at the confession; Felix didn't think being swapped was THAT BAD?
"It was still a rotten trick on your part, sir…." The little repairwoman continued "But….but I guess in the end….I still felt the same inside."
It was beginning, Roxie could see it in Felicia's eyes.
"I guess it was odd ta get a few looks from some of tha guys who didn't recognize me but….through it all, I still felt tha same love for everyone I hold dear."
"Felix! AURGH!" Roxie moaned, putting her face in her hands "This is no time ta get sappy."
"Oh, r-right…" Felicia replied, adjusting her hat as she looked back up at Demitri "Alright, funny as I am sure it was ta ya Mister, we need ta be turned back."
"Fine, fine, fine…." Yawned the vampire "But where is your wife again?"
"Does she hafta be here in order for ya ta turn her back?"
"No, I can do it from a distance but I still find it rather odd that after all of this, she is nowhere near you."
Demitri wouldn't have had to look far for Calhoun had he been out I the station at the moment for the little Nicelander was tearing through the crowds as fast as she could, moving as best as she could to avoid being SMASHED underfoot.
"G-Geeze!" she gasped, nearly missing someone's leg "I-It's like a forest of trees here! I can barely make it through!"
Calhoun had spent very little time as a Nicelander outside the game so it was no wonder she was having so much trouble navigating herself through the mass of larger characters but either way, she had to get to Dark Stalkers, she had to turn back.
She had no idea that her troops, let alone her NPCs, were having such troubles and that they honestly felt they could not and had no right to talk to her about their problems. Everyone in the arcade had gone on and on about how important it was to help others but it seemed that there were some groups in the vast place that were still not receiving the help they needed or were still afraid to even ask for it.
It hurt Calhoun a little; it hurt her to know that the people she worked so closely with considered her to be an obstacle to talk to, as if they were afraid she would not listen or understand.
"No, no! I gotta tell tha guys tha truth!" she said to herself "I HAFTA tell 'em what I will do for OOOF!"
*BOOM!*
And then came the sudden stop
Calhoun fell hard on her rump, luckily NOT her back, as she ran into something sturdy.
"Ugh, nice…" she moaned, rubbing her sore forehead "Here I am, top-class Cybug hunter and I can't even keep my eyes open when I need to!"
"Watch it, ya lil shrimp!"
The marine-turned-Nicelander shuddered at the voice, the person sounding MUCH bigger now that she was much SMALLER. She looked up, seeing a group of large characters hovering over her, none looking at all pleased to see her. She could smell trouble brewing already but her inner soldier kept her from cowering down. In fact she sprung to her feet, hands resting on her sides.
"Excuse me, but what was that?" the Nicelander said, a sharp glint in her eye. The larger character, some sort of fighter or something similar, scowled deeply at the miniature munchkin.
"I said WATCH IT, you lil shrimp. Did it require that I repeat it for you?"
"Hmmph, well sorry then." Calhoun snapped back "I guess we all have place we need ta be but there's no need ta get so ROUGH, less you're askin' for trouble!"
The fighter looked shocked that Calhoun had talked to them in such a manner, a few of their buddies reflecting the sentiments.
"Whoa! Hold on there, partner!" said the fighter "Are you REALLY going to use that tone with me? REALLY?!"
Calhoun refused to back down, a little too angry for her own good with the various things that were on her mind.
"I don't have time for this!" she shot back, trying to move her way through the crowd "This is an EMERGENCY an' there is no time for fi-!"
"GET BACK HERE!"
A hand shot out and took Calhoun by the back of her dress, the little Nicelander squeaking in shock as her feet left the ground. The fighter was not looking at all pleased as he held her in her grips, frowning horribly.
"A Nicelander…" they scoffed "I should have known…."
Kicking her little legs, Calhoun attempted to wriggle herself free but the character held her too tight and too far for her to reaching anything.
"Eungh! Ya shudda known WHAT?"
The group of characters began to surround each other, forming the perfect inescapable circle around Calhoun before she was dropped in the middle of it.
"Of all the little NPCs in this place, why do YOU guys always have to cause the most trouble?"
It was obvious by now to Calhoun what EXACTLY she had fallen into. She knew of the trouble that NPCs could get into should they cross a larger character when they were in a bad mood but she never expected to feel it firsthand.
Granted, she never expected to feel what it was like to be a NICELANDER firsthand…
The former marine got back on her feet but she was of course surrounded, unable to escape from anywhere as the legs of the characters served as perfect jail bars to hold her in. She looked up, eyes looking at her from every angle but she had to keep her wits up, she had to face these threats like the soldier she was.
The problem with that?
They had no idea that they were facing off against a soldier.
To them, Calhoun was just another NPC and they were going to treat her as such. She growled, balling her tiny hands into fist.
"Guys, listen! I don't have time to play ball or whatever ya wanna do with this! I hafta get ta Dark Stalkers!"
"An' what would a little useless runt like you need in Dark Stalkers?" asked one of the characters.
"That is none of your BUSINESS!" Calhoun shot back, pointing at them "Why would ya ask somethin' like that ANYWAY?!"
"Simple. Because we know that the crew in Dark Stalkers have better things ta do than hang out with Nicelanders." Said another voice, pushing Calhoun hard. Again, Nicelander anatomy went against the woman and she found herself teetering clumsily on her feet. She caught herself before she went down on her back and got back up, smacking the hand away.
"HANDS OFF!" she barked "Ya guys are pushin' your luck treatin' people like this!"
"Oh, what are ya gonna do, pie-baker?" jeered another "Go an' sob to your HERO? Typical behavior of the wussiest NPCs in the arcade."
Of course, Felix.
Everyone knew he would do ANYTHING to help the Nicelanders.
Right now however, Calhoun felt she didn't need her husband's power to get her out of this mess. She stood her ground even if the characters around her were nearly three times her size.
"Typical, eh?" she huffed, brushing her bangs out of her eyes "Say that again, boy. Ya won't be smilin' like that for long!"
The laughter continued around Calhoun, the group finding it odd that this time around a Nicelander they had caught wasn't going down as easily as they were used to. Most of the time, they would round up one of the shyer ones but this one? This one seemed to be a little feistier than normal.
This time, the little unfamiliar blond wasn't given them the satisfaction of watching her crumble. She might have been small but she kept her feet planted on the ground and her head up. She wasn't going down anytime soon.
"Oh, didn't know that there were some of ya guys that could PRETEND to be brave!" laughed one of the characters "Felix never told us about YOU!"
"Don't bring Felix into this…." Calhoun said, the anger clear to hear in her voice "Tha last thing he needs ta deal with at tha moment is a buncha chuckle-heads like ya causin' ruckus! Now, can I PLEASE get through? I'm sure ya have better things ta do than mess around with me."
"An' don't ya have better things ta do than wander around this place an' goin' ta games that don't want ya?" spat the leader of the group.
"Who says I'm not welcomed?" Calhoun frowned, trying to suppress her voice as best as she could "Not everyone in this arcade has their heads shoved up their butts like you!"
Yeah, this WAS a feisty little Nicelander!
"Look here who's talking like they actually contribute something!" cackled the voice "I mean, aside from those worthless pies ya bake."
Her face was turned away but the blush was starting to flash on her face as her anger rose. Calhoun had spent enough time trying and failing, trying and failing, and trying again to understand that NICELANDER PIE wasn't 'worthless'.
"Don't have time for this…." The woman said again, strutting rather arrogantly towards a little break in the group's hold "Think of some better insults boys, because I need ta deal with somethin' else."
"Deal? Deal with WHAT? What do ya fat blobs DO that require you to deal with ANYTHING?"
Fat Blobs?
Calhoun had heard the insult being flung towards the others, just never towards HER. She looked down at herself, remembering WHY.
"Guys, look! This is STUPID!" the little Nicelander shot back "You're gonna tell me you're gonna get this worked up because I ACCIDENTALLY walked inta ya?! REALLY?! Why get this upset over a MISTAKE?!"
"Because ya lil bytes still don't recognize your place…." Hissed the leader of the group, clearly still very angry with the Nicelander.
"Place?! What PLACE?!" Calhoun shot back, standing on her tip-toes "Sorry, I don't understand tha language of bullies an' all this placement junk!"
"Then maybe I should make it easier for you to understand…." The character growled, pulling Calhoun back once more "You act so sure of yourself, so care-free and innocent. But after what you did to Ralph? Do you think we're gonna let you and the rest of those stupid cowardly Nicelanders get off scott-free?"
"What does THAT-?! What does RALPH have to do with any of this?!" the Nicelander shouted, her patients wearing very thin "I don't recall him bein' in any of this when I RAN INTO YA BY ACCIDENT?! Should I remind ya of that lil tidbit?!"
"Sorry shorty but tryin' ta play angry with us won't save ya this time!"
Calhoun got into a fighting position, a few of the others snickering at the tiny chubby "Oh-ho-HO! You're gonna need a LOTTA savin' once someone catches wind of all this bullyin' junk!"
"Aw cut it! Do ya think we're scared of some pity-party no-bullyin' junk put up by some Hero's Duty lady?! DO YA?!"
Hero's Duty Lady?
Her?
This was starting to twist more and more around Calhoun, the woman realizing that the bunch were now complaining about the very rules that SHE had tried to enforce around the arcade to stop characters from attacking each other. She didn't know WHAT was worse in the matter at the moment, the fact that the group were going out of their way to excuse their own actions against her or that they wouldn't have listened to her in her normal form ANYWAY, possibly finding some way to slip around her words to bully anyone in the shadows.
This could not have been happening. This could not be going this way.
Calhoun wanted to stand up against the bullying that had happened against Ralph and Vanellope in the past and she thought that by making such a pledge, she would protect EVERYONE but she was starting to see that her WORDS did not mean a thing to some people, that they were not scared of facing off against her even as a soldier if it meant they could get away with treating people any way they wanted.
"Ya know, I don't care what ya think tha Nicelanders did in tha past…." Calhoun growled "Ya can't treat people like this, no matter who they are! Ya have no right!"
"We have EVERY right when to tell you lil bugs!" the larger character shouted back, trying their best to send Calhoun down but she continued to refuse "Ya wanna do somethin' to help everyone here?! Then back off and keep your butts back in your game where you belong! People with ACTUAL things to do don't need to be associated with NPCs that don't contribute anything to ANYONE!"
The little form of Calhoun wanted nothing more than to slug the character the face, finding it harder and harder to keep her composure with the way they were threatening her. Even if they were talking a hard game with her, she had a feeling that they wouldn't DARE say such things to her in her normal form but seeing as she was in a form where only those closest recognized her, the anger she was facing was something she had never expected to face in her life.
At least, not at the size she was in.
Right now, they did not see Calhoun as a soldier or as a character on footing with themselves. They saw her as a useless, pesky NPC and they were determined to show her where exactly NPCs stood in their line of respect.
Calhoun couldn't let these guys push her around, whatever her form was. She remained strong on her feet and looked them right into the eye.
"Listen here, bucko. I can tell ya have some 'issues' that could use some ironin' out but lemme tell ya this. If you DARE try touchin' me again like that, or anyone else for that matter, you'll see what this 'lil NPC' can do!"
"Lady, I would LOVE ta see ya try." the character laughed, placing a hand roughly on Calhoun's shoulder but she swatted him away.
"I said don't touch me!" the faux-Nicelander cried out "Don't TOUCH me, don't TALK TO ME like I'm nothin'!"
"But you ARE nothin'."
"Shut up!"
The character placed a hand on Calhoun's head and shoved her down, enjoying watching her roll upon her bottom "As if your voice matters in all of this, chubster."
The little Nicelander was BURNING red now, rolling to her side and attempting to charge the character but he managed to get to her first, snatching her off the ground by the back of her dress.
"Ah, ah, AAAH! Wouldn't want things to get messy would we?"
"STOP!"
The group turned, looking down in shock to see another small figure before them. Calhoun paled, her eyes widening.
"M-Ms. Mary?!"
Ms. Mary indeed.
The little woman ran up to the group, arms up in an attempt to help the dangling Nicelander.
"Young lady!" cried the Nicelander in pink "Are you okay?!"
"Ugh, I'm FINE!" Calhoun growled, freeing herself from the clutches of the group. She dusted herself off tartly, giving the lot a snide look "Well, I was fine until SOMEONE decided to start some mess in tha halls."
"Young lady, this isn't the way to go about such things." Mary sighed, feeling a might frustrated "If you needed help with anything, you could have just come to me with-!"
"Against these guys?" Calhoun laughed "Why? They're just a lil LOUD. There's no need ta get your hair in a twist over THESE guys."
"Hey, ya lil runt!" the leader of the group said "Don't act like we're not here!"
"That is ENOUGH!" Mary said as she got in-between both groups "Now, I do not know what fueled this drama but both of you! DROP IT! The last thing we need to happen right now is a needless skirmish for EVERYONE to-!"
"Oh, don't you start too!" moaned the larger character "Lil Miss Muffett was enough to deal with! We don't need to hear the yabberin' of ANOTHER Nicelander!"
"I'm just trying to keep everyone from doing something they're going to regret!" Mary replied "You can understand that, right?"
"Oh, I understand." The larger character nodded but their look turned sour "I understand that there are two characters who are gonna get a nice view of the arcade once I toss 'em!"
That was the final straw for Calhoun, the woman reaching up and grabbing the character by their collar.
"Let's try that again, bucko. You're gonna try doin' WHAT?!"
"LET GO OF ME!"
"So you'll do it?" grumbled Roxie "You're gonna turn us back?"
"Sure, sure. Whatever…." Waved Demitri, growing tired of the Wrecker's griping "So long as it gets you out of my hair."
"DIMMY!" Lilith fumed, walking over to the larger vampire and pinching his nose "You self-centered, bat-head! Just turn 'em back! They've suffered long enough due to your 'prank'!"
"I wouldn't call it SUFFERIN'…." Said Felicia softly "But it would make me happy ta know that Tammy is back ta normal. I know she's said it's been FUN but she needs ta get back ta her Hero's Duty size, okay?"
Demitri smiled. He was playing coy enough but Felicia could tell that after everything that had happened, he had never meant any real harm to the heroes. He lounged back in his chair, swirling a glass of wine in one hand (or for all that Roxie knew it was blood) while he lifted the other.
"What do we say?"
"Turn us back of I'm sittin' on ya?" huffed Roxie.
"I will pretend that is YOU'RE way of saying 'Please, turn us back oh prince of darkness.'"
And with one spark and a poof….
"Don't think I'm gonna let ya get away with this, ya bully!" growled the blond Nicelander, getting into position to fight but even with her knowledge of combat putting them to use in her Nicelander form still presented a problem, made even worse when her combatant began using this to their advantage.
The former marine threw a punch but the large character dodged it, reaching down and picking Calhoun up by the back end of her skirt which resulted in the little woman crying out in a way that even her own soldiers had never heard before.
"Tamera!" Mary called out, finally having enough of the rough-housing "You better put her down now, or I'll-AUURGH!"
And then Mary was picked up, Calhoun forgetting about her own embarrassment as she reached out towards the Nicelander.
"Stop! STOP! Don't drag her into this, she has nothin' ta do with it!"
"Me?!" shouted Mary "What about YOU?! I can take care of myself against these bullies!"
"But Ms. Mary-!"
"You can cry and whine all ya want!" said the character "But until you finally get the clues through those thick skulls of yours, we're not lettin' up! Not till you an' every other pathetic NPC remembers where their place is!"
Calhoun swung her fist in the air, missing every time "Urgh, there is no 'PLACE', ya bully! It doesn't matter WHO I am! I can go anywhere I want! Enjoy tha arcade anyway I-!"
"Oh drop the tone with us! Blah-blah-blah, I'm an NPC! I'm too weak to defend myself even though I get in the way of everything! I need to compensate because the developer didn't give a crap about me!"
The little marine was BURNING from the very insides of her core, completely astonished that people could behave in such a manner and get away with it.
"You're diggin' your own grave, MISTER." The woman snarled "Keep talkin', just KEEP. TALKIN'!"
"Maybe it would be better if we returned you little dust mites back to your own game? Ya know, ta keep you safe while the REAL characters do their business!"
"I mean it! STOP!"
"MAKE ME, you lil pie-muncher!"
"Young lady, don't fight him!"
"But he-!"
"STAY IN YOUR PLACE!"
"I CAN HANDLE THIS!"
"NO, DON'T-!"
And then….
*POOF!*
An explosion of smoke!
A bright flash!
"AAH!"
Surging energy!
"What was that?!"
And...
*SHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIP!*
Ripping clothes?
All who were near coughed at the smoke but it quickly died down, leaving those in the middle to wonder just what had happened. The leader of the ruckus knelt down on the floor, his eyes still stinging and his throat a little scratchy but it seemed that no real harm had been done.
"Paf! W-What was th-!?"
A strong pair of hands gripped the man by his collar, lifting him off the ground.
"UP!"
"GWARK!"
The smoke finally gone, the character got an eyeful of just WHO had picked him up and it wasn't a Nicelander…
Mary rolled over on her side, rubbing her eyes. That was when she saw the figure as well.
"Calhoun?!"
Yes, Sargent Tamera Jean Calhoun.
She had returned!
And….her clothes were in shreds.
The character was still in her grips, a few on-lookers gawking but the Marine didn't care.
At least not that much.
She looked down, taking another glance at her ill-fitting dress.
At least it covered up what was important, anyway.
She sighed but her grip remained strong "Now….what was all of that 'bout puttin' me in my place, LIL MAN?"
Their feet dangled above the floor, hands holding tight to the marine's arm "U-Uh! W-what I meant about that was-!"
"Ya were gonna show Ms. Mary an' MYSELF where we should go?" the woman scowled deeply "Ya were gonna teach us some lessons?"
The figure's face paled as they looked into Calhoun's eyes, the fire burning clear within it. There was no way they could talk their way out of this one.
Just as Calhoun had thought; the moment she returns to normal, their lips were sealed.
"Such brave young fellows, aren't we?"
"I-Is this some kind of JOKE?!" the character gasped "Because if it is-!"
"Ms. Mary?"
The little Nicelander got to her feet, standing cautiously before the marine "Y-Yes, young lady?"
"How about ya join me for a lil 'TALK' in Hero's Duty?" said the larger woman, her grip tightening around the character as she carried them off "I need to pick up some clothes anyway…."
