Chapter Ten- Found
A day had gone by since Mouse had given her update on the wayward Vanellope but since then, things felt like they were hitting a dead end. The Sugar Rush racers were doing their best to make things seem the norm for the players outside but they knew that if Vanellope would not return, they would get suspicious.
The players ALWAYS got suspicious when a character would go missing from the board for too long.
Taffyta tried her best to concentrate, her best not to worry but as time ticked on, it was starting to get harder and harder.
How could she concentrate on racing when Vanellope was missing? How could she concentrate on ANYTHING knowing that the girl was out there?
"I never thought I would feel like this…." Taffyta said to herself, looking up at the night sky "A few months ago, I would have WANTED Vanellope to just up and disappear. It's not like I can deny that…."
The crickets chirped their song around the girl, Taffyta feeling very much alone from the rest of the game. It was just so eerie but it was a feeling she could not fully explain. It was as if her mind was trying desperately to reveal an answer but no matter what she did, she still came up empty.
Empty.
That was a great way to describe the game at the moment.
Even with everyone else in the game, even with everything nearly returned to normal, the game still felt cold, incomplete.
"Why does this always happen?" Taffyta sighed to herself "Just when it feels like we're all going to be happy, the other shoe has to drop."
By the end of the week, Taffyta was much too upset to even race. She skipped the roster race and instead went home. She had to focus on something, something better to keep herself from going overboard but how could she not worry? It had been DAYS since Vanellope had been seen and although she now had the assurance that Ralph and Calhoun were on the racer's side….
"It still isn't enough….."
Taffyta flopped down on her couch; she felt exhausted but she was still restless. She didn't want to move but she didn't want to remain in Sugar Rush. There had to be something she could do. Something she could to take her mind off the….
She looked, she saw it.
The book.
The book was still there.
It had been a while since the racer had glanced upon its pages, her mind preoccupied with keeping up appearances in front of players. She had nearly forgotten about it but as she looked upon it, her entire body buzzed with a shock of excitement.
She had gotten so far with her reading and yet she still had so many questions, so many things to ask about the markings that Turbo had made, what was the purpose of the key that he had taken and where had he hidden it?
But more importantly….
What did the book have to say about HER?
She suddenly remembered the words that the other citizens of the arcade had said about her, how she and the rest of the racers were nothing more than brats and fill-ins, made only to spread out the choice as Vanellope was the only racer who truly mattered in the grand scheme of things.
How she was just a bully and she was programed that from the start.
That she could never be a good person, that she was always bad.
The thought of it made Taffyta's cheeks burn, reminding her so much of the things she hated about Litwak's, what she hated about so many of the people there.
But she couldn't let them know as the more then knew, the more they would have to say about her.
"Maybe I should just keep reading…." The girl thought to herself "I think that should do me good."
She had marked off the pages of the racers she had already gone through, making a few markings herself about things they displayed and things they didn't. As it was turning out, some of the things in the book were both true and false about the racers. While some things remained true to their behavior, there were so many things that they did outside what was in their backstories. They didn't fit everything to a T….
And that was something that Taffyta actually liked.
If only so many would stay and see that…..
"Why don't I try Citrusella?" the girl said "I haven't read up anything on her or the other…."
Recolors?
Was that what she was going to say?
There was an entire section based solely on her so Citrusella MUST have been more than just a recolor.
Motherly and calm…
"Yeah, already we hit a bull's-eye…."
Citrusella is the softer side of her twin, Jubileena….
"HA, so she is more than just some recolor!"
While Jubileena is always ready to dive head first into something, Citrusella prefers to think things through and weigh the outcome.
"YUP! That's Cissy!" the strawberry racer smiled, continuing reading.
She might come off as meek and a bit of a worry-wart, Citrusella is at her best on the track! Careful planning and calm thinking work to her advantage as when others rush in and spiral out of control, she can easily dodge and gain the lead!
Taffyta found herself getting pulled into the book more and more. Each racer had their own style, their own powers. There was more to them just than looking different. They were not all the same on the inside.
"We have so much we can do…." Taffyta said to herself "Why couldn't we do this much when Turbo was here?"
Maybe the answer was obvious. After all, he had hidden their memories from them to keep in control. Maybe he had kept other things hidden from the racer to keep things more 'even' for himself.
And by even, what it really meant was making sure the racers could not use their own special skills and talents to win one over him.
But if they had special skills, why couldn't Taffyta remember them. She thought hard, her mind going through all the memories she could to bring up a SPECIFIC special move she had pulled during Turbo's regime.
She could think of nothing. Her mind was at ZERO.
Obviously, there were many things that had yet to be discovered.
"Maybe if I keep going….."
Citrusella lights up the track with an electrifying ZING, leaving all other racers too shocked to even see what happened.
There was something to those words that sparked Taffyta interest. Could that be a sign of something connected with the blueberry racer? Something ELECTRIFYING?
Taffyta turned the page after Citrusella's bio, the book of course filled the black markings.
"Darn it Turbo…." The girl scowled.
This was insane. What was the point of looking at a book if there were so many things missing from it? She flipped through the pages, skipping over the racer bios and seeing more and more black marks.
"Were ya really THAT bored?"
Taffyta reached the end of the large book, feeling frustrated over how badly it had been vandalized.
"Creep…." She growled "Betcha there are OTHER books in worse condition than this. I thought the reset would fix all of-!"
She stopped, noticing some weird gaps between the pages. She narrowed her eyes, looking closer and closer…
"What the….?"
Pages had been TORN.
Taffyta turned white as a ghost as she threw the book open again and sure enough, torn edges were dotted throughout the book. It wasn't enough that Turbo should mark things out but to rip out pages as well? What in the arcade had the man been doing?
"This is UNBELIEVABLE!" Taffyta gasped, thumbing back to the beginning of the book to find just what was missing. She looked at a few numbers and darted to the back, then flipped back to find.
SHE was missing.
"W-what?!"
Her entire bio page was missing.
It couldn't have been. All this time, she had been so nervous, so scared to see what the book had to say about her that she dreaded looking at the pages but to now find out they were gone?
This was something Taffyta had never expected to find out.
But it was more than that. She looked at the index again only to find that VANELLOPE'S section was missing as well!
"Oh my gobs…." The girl meeped "First MY section, then the key….now Vanellope's?"
That couldn't be the end. The girl knew Turbo's tricks, she knew of his treachery.
She now knew how far he would go to ensure that things went his way.
She flipped back to the index then back to the missing pages.
CONCEPT ART!
Missing.
TRIVIA!
Missing.
DROPPED CHARACTERS!
Also missing.
KART SECRETS!
…
"Missing….." the girl said "Everything….EVERYTHING is MISSING!"
Taffyta felt flushed, she felt slightly sickened. MISSING seemed to be a running CURSE in Sugar Rush. If memories weren't missing, if code wasn't missing, something was missing.
And it all connected back to one person.
The little racer sighed; she couldn't go on like this.
"I…I hafta do something!"
It was about time Taffyta did something, especially as the mystery of the book and its contents were driving her up the wall. She was too far down the path of curiosity to just push this aside but at the same time, if any word had gotten out that she had taken the book…..
"Taff, things are TERRIBLE right now…" the girl said to herself "Some stupid BOOK isn't worth all this worry!"
Her mind was made up then and there. No matter what happened, she was going to get the book FIXED.
And who was going to fix it?
None other than Litwak's own handyman….
"Yeah." Taffyta said, trying to reassure herself "I'm sure he'll understand."
The girl then reached for her coat and strawberry satchel, placing the book inside. She could trust Calhoun, she could trust Ralph.
"Why SHOULDN'T I trust Mr. Felix?" the girl said "He always has an ear for EVERYONE."
Taffyta began the trek from her cottage to the rainbow bridge, hearing the sounds of the other racers going about their roster challenge. She smiled a bit, feeling somewhat good to know that they were enjoying themselves.
"They deserve it…." She sighed "Would be a bummer if EVERYONE in this game were gloomy."
It didn't take long for Taffyta to make it to the main station hub, many people milling around and talking as usual and as always, Taffyta kept an ear open. She actually WANTED to hear if anyone else had gossip about her and the racer, having grown so used to it by now. Thankfully, the flapping lips said nothing of the racers and the girl continued on.
"Well, hopefully he's there. I don't know where else he could b-!"
"MOUSE, HURRY!"
Taffyta meeped as she heard the powerful yell of one Sargent Tamera Jean Calhoun, the space marine running as fast as she could with her cadet next to her. Had Taffyta not jumped out of the way in time, she would have been road-killed by FEET!
"What was THAT about?!"
The two women hopped on the Fix-it-Felix Jr. Trolley, nothing more heard or said.
Something must have happened! Something BIG!
"Sh-should I follow them?" the racer asked herself "I-I was already on my-!"
There was no time to dawdle; she knew she HAD to go.
Taffyta stood tall and strong, her brows furrowing together.
"Aw, FUDGE IT. Let's go!"
"WE FOUND HER!"
Everyone in Niceland froze in shock, Mouse standing before the lot of people with her hands in the air, a triumphant look on her face.
"You FOUND her?!" Ralph gasped, a smile on his face "YOU FOUND HER!"
"Yes!" Mouse said as she SLAMMED her laptop on the dining table, nearly breaking the thing in two "An' she's a lot closer than I could have imagined!"
"Great, then let's go!" Ralph said, ready to rush out but Mouse grabbed him by his collar, the man stunned at how strong the little woman was.
"Hold up there big guy! 'Less ya got tha proper equipment stored in dem pants of yours, you ain't goin' NOWHERE, baby!"
Calhoun said nothing, looking over at her cadet with a bemused look "Ya DID hear what ya said, RIGHT?"
"AW C'MON!" Ralph bellowed "I have a present waitin' for whoever pulled this stunt in tha form of my FIST an' there is no way I'm gonna-!"
"Ralph, simmer down brother." Ralph said, waving his hands towards the man "Let tha Cadet speak."
"It took a bit of time, we all know, but whoever laid the original trace made sure that we would follow all sorts of paths, not the right one!" Mouse said as she typed away.
"Too bad their wild-goose chase didn't last long…." The big wrecker growled "Neither will their LIVES for that matter!"
"Hey Big Guy, have ya forgotten?" Mouse said, looking angrily at Ralph "We're dealin' with bonified VIRUSES here. Not some snot-nosed petty crook!"
"Yeah, so?" the wrecker growled "We've dealt with VIRUSES before, thanks to Candy Bu-!"
"No, no, no, no, BABY NO! CANDY-BUG ain't got NOTHIN' on this!" Mouse said, pocking Ralph in the middle of his forehead, the man feeling a sudden shiver up his spine.
"Geh!"
Felix moved over, looking up at the woman "Ma'am? Can ya drop a lil bit more information on tha, ahem, hi-tech illiterate here?"
"Listen here, Junior. That Candy-Bug thing? Yeah, sure. It was a CORRUPTION but that thing wasn't a TRUE virus. That was just our Cybugs doin' what they do best; eatin' an' assimilate!"
"Cybugs have a PURPOSE in our game." Calhoun nodded in agreement "We call 'em a 'virus' because of our STORY but they BELONG to the Hero's Duty program!"
Calhoun then looked over at Ralph "Don't take this the wrong way, Big Fella, but like you're needed here, we NEED the Cybugs in order for our game to continue runnin' smoothly! If they disappear, well. Unplugged we go! Tha people who put them in our game MIGHT have described them as a virus ta make 'em sound scary but open 'em up, an' their programmin' runs just as perfectly an' healthy as any other character around here. They are not TRUE viruses!"
Ralph blinked, surprised at what he had been told "But Turbo said-. He said he WAS a virus, that he was gonna spread or SOMETHIN'!"
A smirk came upon Mouse's face, one that showed forth mockery.
"Pffft, I'm certain SALMON-BOY said a lotta things…" Mouse said "But trust me on this one guys. Turbo wouldn't have lasted a SECOND with a real virus. Had a virus done to him what that Cybug did?"
The woman pushed up her goggles, the lenses on them shining.
It was almost as if she were taking PLEASURE in thinking Turbo's fate in front of such a terrible program.
"Let's just say that being a CYBRID would have been tha better outcome believe it or not…."
"Then….then what is the difference?" Felix gulped, feeling nervous "I-I mean, what can a REAL virus do?"
"Yeah, what can they do?" whispered a little voice from behind the corner.
Taffyta had done her best to make sure she wasn't spotted and at that moment she lay crouched on the floor outside Felix and Calhoun's apartment, listening in as best she could.
"Trust me, a Cybug wouldn't even make it when a virus hits them, especially with all the kinda that are out there."
"Ya mean there are different KINDS?!"
"'Fraid so…." Mouse said "An' accordin' ta my readin's, what got Vanellope was one of tha higher ones."
"Higher?" asked Ralph "What does that mean?"
"We got us a virus that can act, think, move, an' talk just like ya an' me big guy…." Calhoun frowned, making it clear her disdain and disgust of the creatures "But those slimy beast? They all think tha same anyway! All hide tha same!"
Calhoun cocked her gun, her fury very much clear now.
"SCREAM tha same once some lead it up in 'em."
"Don't underestimate 'em, Sarge. Ya know what they can do…." Mouse said.
"They can do a lot…." The woman growled "BUT WHEN THEY MESS WITH MY FRIENDS-!"
"Tammy, don't aim that thing in tha house!" Felix shouted, trying his best to pull the gun from his wife's hands.
"So where did this virus or whatever it is take Vanellope?" Ralph asked "That's all I wanna know so I can get her!"
"That's tha BAD part of this, big fella…"
"Bad?" gulped Taffyta "Just how bad?"
"It can't be any worse than what has happened, just tell us!"
"This thing, whatever class it is, it took Vanellope to the CORDS."
Felix nearly dropped to the floor when he heard those words but outside, Taffyta was more than confused.
"THA CORDS?!" gasped the repairman.
"The CORDS?" whispered the confused racer.
"Yes…" Mouse continued, typing away "This thing, whoever or WHATEVER it is, they had plans for tha kid. They wanted ta get outta town as fast as possible!"
"An' with all tha time that's lapse, they're probably ta tha next arcade by now!" Ralph blanched, not sure what to do.
"Don't bust your overalls big guy, there's more to this!"
"Wh-what! Tell me! Any good news, please spill it!"
"I've managed ta track in on a beacon. The virus left us plenty of clues around an' when I tracked tha same source ta tha cords, it seems that it stopped right in tha middle of it! Tha thing is still there!"'
"IT IS!?" Felix said, hoping to his feet "Then we can-!"
"We can go get Vanellope!" cried a delighted voice from outside the door.
THAT wasn't anyone in the room!
The group turned towards the door, realizing they were watched.
"Okay, I know what wasn't one of tha Nicelanders…." Ralph said, stopping a few inches away from the door. A few moment went by but not a word was said though it was clear as day that someone was hiding outside in the halls. Ralph cleared his throat moving back.
"Ahem, it is much more polite for guest to show themselves rather than hidin' out, ya are aware of that?"
A few seconds passed before Taffyta walked slowly into the room, head low once she realized that she had given away her position.
"Taffyta?!" Felix said in surprise "What are ya doin' here?"
"Yes, what ARE ya doin' here?" Calhoun said, not looking too happy to see the girl there.
The racer knew it was a risk to come to the apartment at such a time but with the way things had now turned there was no point in trying to hide it anymore. She had heard much more than what the group wanted to get out and even if she hadn't, she knew they would be curious as to why she had come at such a late hour in the first place.
Ralph looked down at the girl as he took notice of her packed bag "Taffyta? What's that ya got there?"
The girl shuffled back, holding a hand on the top of her satchel protectively. She knew it would only bring more suspicion upon herself but with the way things were going, it no longer mattered.
What DID matter more to her though was that she was well aware that Vanellope had been found!
"Eh-heh. Well…." The girl began, shrugging her shoulders "I diiiid have a lil favor to ask of Mr. Felix?"
The repairman pointed to himself "Me?"
"But as I see, there are much BIGGER things happening now!"