Sorry for the delay in releasing, I'm getting bogged down with homework, Boy Scouts, and other things. I will try to release my chapters on the weekends from now on.
"TSSS Ow! Okay, ooh okay that stings!" Thomas squealed out.
"Would you just be quiet for just a second? I've dealt with kids more calm than you," Audrey remarked as she patted the cut on Thomas' cheek with a cloth. "I didn't even add the antiseptic yet."
"Yeah, uh, could we OW-... could we skip that?"
High Five Ghost remarked, "Come on Thomas, stop being such a big pussy!"
"Shut up man! OW!"
This erupted a chuckle from the others there. Thomas felt a little embarrassed, but at least Muscle Man was in the shower and not there to ridicule him.
Skips walked up to Benson and Pops saying, "Mordecai's been up in his room ever since we got back. Do you think maybe we should go check on him?"
Pops nodded at this notion. Benson however felt a little more pessimistic on it: "To be honest, I still think we should have left him out."
"But Mordecai is still one of us. We can't abandon our friend in his hour of need!" Pops objected.
Skips spoke, "Are you afraid of him?"
Benson replied, "A little... yes... I just don't want to see any of us get hurt..." he said as looked back at the others still joking around. How much danger were they really in with a ticking time bomb upstairs, ready to go off at any minute? Did they have any idea? ...But then again, what about Mordecai? What about his sake? "...but he is still one of us. Alright, let's just make sure everything's alright with him."
When the trio arrived in Mordecai's room, they found him outside on the roof, feet dangling over the edge with the crown fiddling around in his hands. His face wasn't visible, but it was easy to tell by his stature that he was depressed about something.
"Well, Benson, you going to talk to him?" Skips implied.
"What? Why me? Why not you or Pops? He actually likes you two and won't have the urge to kill you," Benson objected.
Skips replied, "Because for all he knows you would've thought it better if he was dead. You have to at least try restore some kind of trust!"
"Why?! By just letting my guard down until he hurts someone else? You saw Rigby too, don't tell me you want another one of those episodes!"
Pops intervened, "Things will only get more difficult. What you're saying will make it even more difficult."
Benson sighed, "Can't believe you're making me do this." He walked out through the window onto the roof. Pops and Skips were right behind him. He nervously said to Mordecai, "Hey, you feeling alright?"
"What do you care?" Mordecai bitterly replied.
"We're just a little concerned for you..."
"Really? It sure as hell seemed like it the other night... You think I'm some kind of monster don't you?"
"Regardless, you are still an employee of this park! I know I said some things, but I'm just looking out for everyone here; and that includes you."
"Does that include Rigby too...?" Mordecai responded fiercely. Benson had absolutely no idea how to respond. "Hmm, that's what I thought..."
Benson turned back to Pops and Skips. He wasn't getting anywhere with this. If anything, Benson was making it worse. Pop's stepped forward, "So why are you up here Mordecai?"
Mordecai changed his tone for the friendliest of the three, "I- I didn't... even get to say goodbye... I still had so much I wanted to say to her. If anything, 'sorry' would be a start. I just ran from her the other day. The way she looked at me... After everything I've done to her... Margaret... I'm- I'm sorry... I'm sorry! I'm so sorry my princess..." Tears started to form under his eyes.
Pops tried to comfort him, "I think Margaret understands." It wasn't any use as Pops was ignored.
Mordecai turned to them, eyes watery, "Do you know what this is like?! To always feel like something is working its way into your brain? To know how many people I could hurt?! It wants me to put it on! Every day! I have to get drunk just to stop it. It's getting harder to tell what's real and what's not! What do you want from me Simon?! Why are you torturing me like this?!" Skips' face turned pale upon hearing this. Mordecai continued, "Why?! Why won't you come back to me Betty?! PLEASE! I'm sorry! All I want is you to love me again-no I don't want to-please-just let me go-WHY IS MY HEAD ALWAYS HURTING!" Mordecai almost keeled over. He stood before the others, holding onto his head, crying uncontrollably.
He looked back up at them, "There's someone in my head, but it's not me..."
Skips made up his mind. He couldn't keep speculating what might or might not happen if he did or did not take the crown. But this can't keep going on! "Mordecai," Skips said calmly, "Mordecai, I think it would be best if you gave us the cro-"
"NO DON'T TOUCH IT!" Mordecai screamed as he backed up. He was standing at the edge of the roof, Crown raised above his head; ready to put it on.
"Woah, woah, just take it easy!" Benson said as he and the others took a step back. "We don't want anything to happen."
"NO, I NEED IT! It's mine! It's my crown! You can't have it!"
Skips calmly said, "Mordecai. Look at yourself... just take it easy... no one here wants to hurt you... No one's taking anything... I'm just asking, would you like us to take the Crown off your hands?"
"I-... I don't know... I'm- not sure. Just please, promise me it'll make the voices stop..."
Skips nodded. Mordecai lowered the Crown from the air, everyone relaxed a little. Benson held out his hand. Mordecai slowly put the Crown into his hands.
Everyone took a sigh of relief. Mordecai spoke, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Benson said struggling to stay calm, "It's, uh, it's alright. No one got hurt at least. Do you want to come back downstairs and join everyone else?"
"Yeah. Yeah I think that would be best..."
They all went out of the room to head downstairs. Benson stayed behind though.
"Pops, Skips, could I talk to you for a second?" Benson asked from the room. The two came in to see what Benson wanted. He was holding a half-empty bottle of whiskey. "So this is what he's been taking? I'm not so sure this is the best thing for him now."
Pops asked, "Didn't you go to the hospital? Is there anything you acquired that we can use?"
"Maybe a couple pain pills. But I don't know if drugs are a better replacement. But maybe... I don't know. Anyway, Skips: get rid of this thing as soon as you can." Benson ordered as he handed the Crown over.
Skips said nervously, "Well... maybe we shouldn't get rid of it..."
"Skips? What the hell?"
"What I mean is, what if something starts happening to Mordecai without the Crown? What if he gets sick or loses his memory... or even dies? We have no idea what could happen. Plus, you saw what he did with that bomb! What if Gene pulls something again, something worse than a wall. Maybe he could use the Crown if something happens. All I'm saying is that we shouldn't just plain get rid of it without thinking about these things," Skips said trying to convinced them. Though what he said was true, there was still another threat he was terrified of. Something lurking in the depths of some poor soul's mind.
Benson thought about it. He didn't like any of his. Mordecai, Rigby, this whole magic shit, the world in chaos around them. He had to think for a moment. "So... where would we keep this?"
Skips replied, "I've got a few places in mind."
"And you can guarantee Mordecai will never get it?"
"Trust me Benson, he'll never find it."
"... I trust you Skips, do what you think is right..."
As the three walked downstairs, the atmosphere was more anxious than when they left. Everyone who was there had a nervous look on their faces. Mordecai felt a little guilty being the object of their thoughts.
"Everything's fine, there's no need to worry," Skips tried to reassure everyone.
Audrey approached Benson. She took him to the porch where no one else would hear. "Benson... I'm scared. I'm scared of this whole mess. This war, Mordecai, Gene, everything. I don't know how to handle it! I just kinda wish I would wake up in my apartment like nothing happened!"
Benson gave a comforting hug, not the kind you'd give a lover but just a friendly, comforting hug. "Hey, don't worry. I'll make sure nothing happens to any of us. I promise."
"But what about you? Don't you feel anything? Sad? Worried? Frightened? Anything? I just want to hear something from you Benson."
Benson dodged the question saying, "Right now my only concern is keeping everyone here safe."
Audrey spoke, her eyes started to water a little, "My parents were up in New York City and my brother has a job in Chicago. I know the're gone, but I can't help but feel like they're out there... somewhere... alive... I know, I know it's stupid." she dried her eyes before asking, "What about you? Don't you have any family?"
Benson answered, his eyes avoiding Audrey, "My- my parents died in my twenties. I have a sister who lives in Pittsburgh, but we grew distant. We haven't spoken in years though. I know she's dead but, I don't know, I don't feel sad for her. Right now this park is my family."
"Is that why you're so determined to keep everyone safe?"
"..." Benson remained silent as he felt the guilt creep up, now invading his mind. He couldn't repress the thoughts as they blotted out everything else. Benson backed from her as he turned away. The memories were becoming too much to bear.
"What's wrong? Did-did I say something?"
Benson struggled, to remain alright, "It's nothing. Don't worry, I'm alright."
She sensed something was wrong, "No, I want to know why you're upset. Don't worry, you can tell me. I'm here for you, Benson."
Benson sighed before saying, "Don't worry, I'm not sure I want to talk about it yet. But I am fine."
Audrey seemed a little aggravated with his lack of a response. Benson spoke again, "Thanks though. For being concerned at least."
"Well we're both trapped in the same house, so I kind of have to be," she joked. She spoke more seriously, "But in all honesty, you know I'm here for you Benson."
All of a sudden the lights inside the house went off. "Aww, what?! Are you serious?" Fives complained from inside.
Audrey and Benson ran back inside. There was still light outside so the house wasn't in complete darkness. Pops informed them, "It appears the electricity has malfunctioned."
Muscle Man came down the steps with a towel around his waist, "Bros, the freaking water shut off!"
"Why'd it take so long for the power shut off? Shouldn't it have done that the first day?" Audrey inquired.
Thomas spoke, "Every power plant, at least modern, can temporarily run by itself for a day without human interaction. Ours is nuclear, so it can last around two or three before the core blows out the pressure in the generator." Everyone stared in complete surprise a at Thomas' knowledge. "...What? I read things..."
Fives switched the topic back, "So how are we going to go to the bathroom?"
"Or shower? I'm still not finished yet!" Muscle Man said.
Benson was caught off guard, "Well... uh, for going the bathroom, I guess we should get a bucket or a shovel. As for showers, well, we don't want to waste any of the water we already have, so I guess we'll just have to use the lake."
There were general groans of disapproval. "That's sick! I don't want to be washing my clean bod in any filth water? Do you know who you're talking to bro?!" Muscle Man argued. The irony levels were through the roof.
"Well that's all we have for now, and who knows how long we'll be stuck with it."
"Fine! But don't any of you ladies come outside while I'm in the lake!"
"Trust me, we wouldn't want to," Thomas said as Muscle Man exited the house.
"Hey Benson," Mordecai called from the kitchen, "We still have stuff in the freezer. And we still have everything in the meat locker."
Skips turned to everyone, "What do you say? How about a grill fest before everything goes bad?"
There was a unanimous agreement for a bar-be-que. "What the hell, let's fire up the grill!" Benson concluded.
Audrey stumbled a little as she headed up the steps.
"Hey, you alright?" Benson asked her as she shuffled up the steps.
"What? Oh yeah. I just need to take my insulin. Don't worry about me, the most I'll get is a head ache for the night."
Benson felt a little worried for her. About them. How's everyone else going to react to the lack of power? What about Gene?
No one else had this in mind though as they all enjoyed their grand bar-be-que.
He needed to be silent, cautious, careful.
In the clearing a few deer were grazing. It didn't seem like any of them knew the world outside.
He would have to be quiet not to alert them yet.
A smell in the air, a thick scent of dried blood hung overhead. The deer were more alert now, looking around every edge of the woods.
Still hidden. Only got one shot.
Aiming, stealthily hidden.
One bullet...
*BANG*
One of the deer in front fell to the ground, dead. The rest fled in terror.
From a nearby bush, Rigby emerged. He scanned around, checking if there was any other dangers. All clear, he made his way over to his fallen prey.
His fur was still coated with dry blood. He was absorbed in an aroma of death. In a way, Rigby thought it was kind of nice. It gave him a certain aura of being an agent of justice. After all, those men were the ones that sinned, not him. Rigby didn't mess up, he never messed up. It was those low-lives that killed those people, not him. Not even for a second was Rigby ever even sorry. They deserved their fate... all of them...
And on top of that, the blood gave him character, almost like some sort of badass movie hero. At least the Lich thought so too.
When he approached the deer, he noticed something wrong: patches on its leg and chest were balding and there were light burn marks. Radiation poisoning. Rigby knew not to eat it, but the grumbling of his stomach was giving him a different response.
Rigby formed a plasmid knife, ready to carve out the deer. He never field stripped a deer before, but now was a better time then never. He raised it up and-
"Don't eat it,"
The Lich made him freeze for a second.
After a little bit of thinking, Rigby reluctantly concluded, "Alright, fine. I-I don't need it now. I can wait..." But the pains in his stomach were still unbearable.
Suddenly he heard a rustle in the bushes behind him.
Rigby raised his 1911 in his right hand and formed a fireball in his left. It seemed a fitting combination.
Before Rigby could shoot, Doug came out of the bushes, hands raised. "Woah, take it easy. Do you always greet guests like this?"
Rigby relaxed a little, but still held his gun raised, "What do you want?"
Doug began, "Well, since you ask... Yesterday, a couple guys from the gang, the Blood Syndicates, got wiped *KILL* out and their kingpin, Dominic, got his hand chopped off," Doug eyed the blood on Rigby's fur, "I'm guessing you wouldn't happen to know anything about it now would you?"
"Never heard of them," Rigby replied.
"Rigby, this is serious. They want revenge. I'm trying to convince them otherwise, but they might come after you." *Kill*
"Good," Rigby replied, almost with a type of enthusiasm.
Doug got a little frustrated, "I'm trying to keep things under wraps! I'm not a bad guy, I know what you think they are and I understand where you're coming from, but right now *He's lying, Kill* I'm just trying to keep everything out here from going to complete shit. And there's something worse going on! The Blood Syndicates are one of the biggest gangs in the country, yet something's pushing them out of the city! Something big is going on the North side of town. Whatever it is, I don't want it to reach here, but you can't just slaughter people like this!"
Rigby objected fiercely, "I'm not the one slaughtering people! They were the ones killing! They shot a bunch of innocent people! I only did what was right! I fixed it!"
"...What...? What are you talking about?" Doug seemed stunned, confused even.
"I found the bodies. I followed the trail and it led straight back to their camp!"
"Rigby... they never even touched anyone. They didn't kill those people."
"Yes they did! I saw them! Don't lie to me!" Rigby replied, his M1911 now tightened in his grip. "Besides, why should I trust you? You threatened to hurt people if I didn't leave you alone yesterday!" *Kill them all*
"I never said anything like that! I have no idea what you're talking about! I don't know where you're coming up with this from?"
Rigby spoke angrily, "I'm NOT making this up! I know what you said! You're all just a bunch of liars and murderers!" *Kill*
*Kill*
*KILL!*
It required every ounce of Rigby's strength not to pull the trigger. After a minute, Rigby finally said, "I think it's time for you to go..."
Doug backed away slowly, Rigby's gun still traced on him. "Just be careful Rigby, you don't want to do anything you want to regret." With that, Doug left.
Rigby stood alone now. His gun was still tightened in his palm.
"He's lying, I know he is. He's probably with those murderers."
"You're right, they're all guilty"
"I'm not the one whose doing this, they are. They're all messing up. And I'm going to fix it... even if I have to cut through every one of them..."
Sorry for the long wait, major writer's block + school. Will get chapters out more often now. What do you think so far? Things are getting complicated for Rigby and Mordecai. And how about Benson and Audrey? Any thoughts? Suggestions? Predictions?
Also, don't forget to read my new Silent Hill Cross-over AND "You and Me" chapters will also be coming out sooner. (Pretty soon, things that will be coming up are going to be covered in "You and Me")