Hey look, I'm not dead!
Sorry this took so long, but real life has been very demanding lately. Also, I added a little to chapter 7 to try to help things flow better concerning Claus's cyborg parts and Lucas's reaction, so that didn't help this chapter come any faster. Mostly it was due to the moving and stress of the new job though.
Hopefully the next chapter will be faster, but I don't dare to make any promises other than that I'll try.
Hope you enjoy the chapter!
OoOoOo
Lucas really didn't like this room.
He knew it didn't help to keep thinking about it, but everywhere he turned, he saw something about this room that he didn't like. The floor- so cold and hard- froze his feet.
Somewhat reluctantly, Lucas reached for a pair of socks. Even though they kept his feet somewhat warmer, they were also so tight they left marks on his feet when he wore them for too long. He glanced around as he put them on, but there was nothing to distract him. There were only the walls surrounding him, bare and white as sun bleached bones. It was such an empty, lonely room.
And there weren't even any windows! How had Claus lived all alone in this box for three years? Lucas could barely breathe in this place.
Lucas sighed and dropped back onto the bed. His elbow bumped against the teddy bear- who still didn't have a name yet, poor guy- Lucas sat up and rescued him, but his mind was still stuck on everything else he was worrying about.
To be honest, probably one of the reasons he didn't like the room because he was stuck here all the time and there really wasn't much to do. But the biggest reason he didn't like this room was because...
Lucas shuddered slightly. For a second, his hands gripped the bear tight enough that he could feel them through him. He forced them still- steady- and gently placed the bear back at the head of the bed.
He'd gotten started on making a list of everything that had led up to this point. He could link the chain of events together in his head, but when it came time to put it on paper for Claus to read… when it came time to write about Mom's death…
Lucas glanced over to where he'd left the paper lying on the floor. He doubted Claus would be able to read it, with all the tears and smudges. But as bad as the pain was (the pain from missing Mom, the pain from missing Dad, the guilt from not being able to stop Claus) as bad as all that was, that wasn't what really worried him the most.
They were finally, finally together again, but Lucas wasn't sure how to help his brother. He needed to find a way to bring Claus's memory back all the way, of course. But how? Just being told hadn't bought Duster's memories back, so it would probably work for Claus either. Lucas had tried it after Claus had recovered a little of his memories (it was better than doing nothing after all), but it hadn't really worked. The memories had seemed to stir a little, but ended up remaining where they were.
On the other hand, Claus did remember Lucas now, at least. He remembered that they were brothers, and he remembered Mom and Dad, and he remembered Boney and Grandpa.
And he remembered himself.
Lucas kept thinking about the fact that Porky had told Claus he didn't have a name. He didn't want to believe it (it was a horrible thing to tell anyone) but Lucas knew that that was what had happened. Claus wouldn't lie to him, and Lucas had seen the way that Porky treated Claus. That horrible way he talked to him, like he didn't even consider him a human being…
Lucas blinked, almost surprised by the hot tears that slipped through.
He shook his head angrily. He didn't have time for tears! He needed a plan. Except that Claus had always been the one who came up with their plans before.
No, not always, Lucas shook his head as he corrected himself. Claus had always been coming up with plans, but Lucas did come up with his own plans, had his own ideas. And maybe he had them more than he shared them, but if he heard somebody's plan and if he thought there was a chance his plan would work better, he would suggest it. Claus usually liked his own plans the best, but he always listened to Lucas's. And plenty of times, Lucas's plan had been the one they ended up doing.
And it wasn't like Lucas had done too badly so far, right? Except for the part where Claus had captured him, he'd actually done pretty well. And when you considered the fact that it was Claus, the fact that Lucas had lost to him was unsurprising.
Wait, did getting captured by Claus count as a good thing or a bad thing? The fact that they were stuck here was definitely bad, but on the other hand, they were finally together again. Claus wasn't alone in this place anymore. He had someone with him to support him and Lucas had his brother back.
Lucas thought about that a moment before slumping back on the bed. That was what he hated the most about this whole situation- how complicated everything was.
At least Claus wasn't alone anymore.
It had been bad enough for Lucas, and he'd only had to deal with being alone and sometimes running into Fassad. Claus had been hurt so much worse... just dealing with Porky made it more awful, but he'd also been hurt from trying to avenge Mom, and he'd been all alone- but not anymore.
Even though being stuck here was bad, being separated was so much worse. Lucas would put up with anything if it meant the chance to help his brother. When he thought about it like that, Lucas felt a little grateful.
And then he shuddered, thinking about how that confrontation at the Temple could have gone differently. All the times they'd ran into each other before, Claus had just run away. What if he'd done the same back then? They both would have just gone back to searching for the last Needle, and Claus probably would have tried to fight them again-
Lucas shuddered again before forcing himself to focus on the present. It was a horrible thought, but it hadn't happened. Lucas needed to focus on what was actually going on.
Okay… a plan. First, he needed to get Claus to remember everything. When Lucas could get Claus to remember everything, then he'd would realize why the Pigmasks were the bad guys. Once he understand that, then he'd leave the Pigmask army and the two of them could get out of here and find the others. And then they could go find Dad.
Things would be… they might be a little complicated, at first. They'd need to explain about what had happened to Claus, about why he'd never come home, about why he'd been with the Pigmasks. But once everything was explained, everyone would understand. Even after that, things wouldn't be the same as they'd been before- Mom was still gone. And Claus was different. He might never be the same as he had been, but that was okay. He was still Claus, and that was the important thing.
Having his friends and his family, together and happy- briefly, Lucas shut his eyes and allowed himself to dream.
Everybody would finally be home. Claus wouldn't be missing anymore, Dad would finally come home, and Lucas and Boney wouldn't have to take care of the sheep all by themselves anymore. Dad would fix up the sheep shed, and they could help him. After that was done, maybe Lucas could take care of the house, the way Mom used to while Dad and Claus and Boney could take care of the sheep. Although Dad used to do it by himself, with Boney just helping him herd them. Well, maybe Claus could help Lucas then. It didn't matter. They'd be safe, and they'd be together.
And now that things were changing in the village, they should finally be able do something about Mr. Wess's house. Lucas didn't know much about fixing houses (although he'd helped out some when Mr. Lighter and Fuel had come over when his house got struck by lightening) but he was sure that Dad and Grandpa and Mr. Wess did.
They'd be together again, and things wouldn't be the same as they had been, but that was okay. They'd still be good.
Lucas opened his eyes and clenched his fists.
Who did Porky think he was, messing with people's lives the way he did? Who did he think he was, lying to Claus so hurtfully and telling him he didn't have a name or family?
The memory forced itself up again. Seeing the Drago skeleton in the research facility and hearing his dad's words echo through his mind, telling him about the weird soldiers wearing pig masks and their strange technology. How they seemed to be experimenting on the animals of the forest. How it appeared they were the ones who had turned that Drago into a cyborg.
Would Claus be as willing to work for Porky if he knew Porky was responsible for Mom's death?
Even as he asked the question, he could imagine Claus's horrified face...
Lucas shook his head. He couldn't do that to him, couldn't dump that on him like that. Besides, he didn't even have anything to use as evidence to show to Claus to prove that it was true. Claus might not believe him, might even think he was lying.
He needed to get Claus out of this place! He needed to get him home. Home, where they'd both be safe.
Since he couldn't force him (and forcing him would probably only hurt him in the long run anyway) he needed to get him to see why this place was bad, which was why he needed to help him get his memories back. Well, some of them had come back already. Lucas winced a bit as he remembered how they'd come back. He really hoped the other memories came back quicker and easier than that first time. Well, now that the door had been opened, maybe they would.
Come to think of it, Duster had recovered his memories when they'd found the Hummingbird Egg, something from his past.
Lucas sighed and flopped over in the bed. Too bad he didn't have anything from their past to show Claus. Actually, after Claus had brought him here, he said that all of Lucas's stuff had been destroyed. Was that really true?
Lucas would ask. It wasn't as if he'd been carrying anything really important, other than Ionia's vial and the Franklin Badge he'd got from Dad, but the Badge would be something. He could least show that to Claus and tell him about it.
"Hey Claus, Dad gave this to me. Since you're the one going into dangerous situations, you can wear it. Dad said he's had it since he was a kid…" Something like that, maybe? Lucas had never seen the badge before Nippoylete had handed it to him, so the badge would probably be unfamiliar to Claus too, although Claus had been closer to Dad than Lucas.
What would be best of course, would be if Lucas could talk Claus into leaving the base for a bit and they could go home. Just seeing it, just being there for a few minutes would help Claus's memory, Lucas was sure of it! Lucas had already asked about that though, and judging by Claus's reaction it wasn't going to happen anytime soon. Still, maybe once Lucas explained more, told him more about the village where they'd been born, maybe Claus would agree then. Of course, that led Lucas back to the papers lying on the floor...
Wait. Was that footsteps in the hall?
Lucas turned around just as the door opened, then beamed and flung himself at his brother. "Claus! You're back!"
"Hi Lucas." The greeting was spoken softly and the expression on his face wasn't quite strong enough to be called a smile, but there was a small slight happiness in his eyes and he returned the hug, just a little bit. It was just a soft squeeze, but it was enough to make Lucas smile even more.
Maybe it was just Lucas's wishful thinking, but he thought the smile in Claus's eyes was growing and the length of time he returned the hug was growing each day. Maybe he was fooling himself, but he didn't think so.
Claus sighed as he stepped back, breaking the hug. He looked a little tired.
Lucas felt anger bubble away beneath the surface at Porky but tried to shove it away, tried not to think about just how often Claus seemed drained. "You seem tired. Are you okay?" he asked as he followed his brother further into the room.
"Fine," Claus replied mechanically. His actions proved his words a lie as he collapsed onto the bed.
Lucas sat on the bed next to him. He was quiet for a moment, trying to pick his words carefully. "You shouldn't work so hard. You shouldn't work for such long periods of time. Not even Dad worked as long and hard as you, and he was the hardest worker in the village."
Claus didn't say anything, just watched Lucas as he lay very still. His eyes had flickered when he mentioned their dad, but they were back to normal now.
"…I know you don't really remember the village, but you know, it's true. People need to take breaks. It's not like anyone else is expected to work the same hours as you, right?"
"I'm different. I'm the Commander."
"So? You're still human."
Claus's eyes flickered again. "…human?"
Lucas was beginning to feel a bit exasperated. He squashed it down, making sure it wouldn't show up in his voice. "Yes, human. You know, strengths and weaknesses… a heart and a soul…" he tapped his brother's chest and Claus looked down at it curiously.
"What does the heart have to do with it?"
"Um… it's like the heart is in charge of love," Lucas tried to explain, although he wasn't sure how to explain something like this. "When we love someone, we keep them in our heart."
For a brief second, their eyes met before Claus pushed himself upright and got off the bed, turning away and scanning the room.
"Cla-"
"You didn't move anything this time."
"Huh?"
"Before, you moved the dresser and the bed. This time, you didn't move anything."
"Oh. Well, there really wasn't anything else to move. I already had the dresser and bed in positions like the ones at home, so there really wasn't anything else to do. But you really don't remember anything about home, huh? We shared a bed there and we shared a bed at Grandpa's cabin too. You used to complain that I'd move in my sleep and lay in weird positions and take up too much of the bed… you used to complain about that."
Claus looked away.
Lucas sighed softly. He started to reach for him, but then Claus moved and pointed at the empty space next to their beds. "If this was home… that's where Mom and Dad would sleep… where their bed would be."
"Yeah! Yeah, you're right Claus. If this was home, that's where they'd sleep."
Claus stared at the empty space for a moment, then turned back to Lucas. "Why did you move them?"
"I miss home."
"…miss it?"
"I want to go back there," Lucas admitted.
"…you want to leave?" The question was asked coldly, and for a brief moment Lucas was confused before figuring it out.
"Yeah, I want to go home, but I can't go back- I won't go back- not until you're ready to go home with me."
The coldness disappeared and Claus's eyes flickered.
"You left me behind once before and then vanished for three years," Lucas said softly. "I won't let that happen again. This time, let's stick together, okay?"
"…okay," Claus said even more softly, smile flickering ghost-like in his eyes before hiding again. "We'll stick together. We'll definitely stick together. But this place is where we have to stay. Soon that village you keep talking about won't be there anymore. They're all moving to New Pork City."
"Dad won't go," Lucas said confidently. "Dad won't leave the place where we all lived together, and he won't leave Mom's grave, and there's no way he'll leave with both of us missing."
Claus got his thoughtful look, the one that said "I'm putting together a plan".
"Claus?"
"We are to wait. That was the order given, that we were to wait a week. After that time, everyone who has remained in the village will be moved to New Pork City."
Lucas stared at him, horrified.
Claus tilted his head down, looking away from Lucas. And the planning look came back.
"Claus? What are you planning?" Lucas really hoped it was a way out of this mess.
"… planning?"
"You've got that planning look on again."
"What planning look? I don't have a planning look."
"Yes, you do. Your forehead gets all furrowed like this," Lucas said, pushing folds of skin together on his forehead. "And then you tilt your head like this and sometimes you smile really big." A wave of sorrow hit Lucas. He wanted to see Claus's mischievous smile so bad, but he pushed the feeling away and smiled at Claus. "You look kinda like that. Mom used to call it cute."
Claus looked away.
"Claus? Are you embarrassed?" Lucas asked, trying to get his brother to meet his eyes.
"No." The answer came too quickly to be honest.
"It's okay Claus. All my emotions show on my face."
Claus looked back at him, slightly irritated. "I'm the Commander."
"…you may have forgotten this, but we're the same age." Lucas said, slightly irritated himself now. "You're stronger than me and everything, but I'm not a weakling. I took care of myself and Boney and the sheep for three years. I might not be as strong as you, but I'm still strong."
Claus seemed to consider that. After a moment, he nodded. "You're stronger than some of the men."
"See? I'm no weakling." Lucas said with a bit of a smile.
Claus nodded. "You're not," he agreed, smiling a bit too. And then a bit of the planning look returned. "…should I have them bring him here?"
"Huh?"
"When they find him, should they bring him here?"
"…are you talking about Dad?"
Claus nodded. "I can give the searchers the badge that reflects lightening. He'll recognize that as yours, right?"
"The Franklin badge?" Lucas said slowly, relieved that Claus hadn't sent it to be destroyed after all, but deciding that it wasn't the time to comment on that. "Yeah, he's the one that gave it to me. But Claus-"
"… he'll… he'll be happy to see us, right?"
"Of course he'll be happy to see us!" Lucas said, flinging his arms around his brother and hugging him as tightly as he could. A part of him hated Porky that much more, that he'd left Claus questioning something so simple, but now wasn't the time to be thinking about that. "And Dad will be so happy that you're alive and okay. But he won't like this place."
"Why not?"
"Dad doesn't like enclosed spaces. He likes wide open spaces. Mom used to tease Dad about having cabin fever, remember? He didn't like staying inside for long periods of time… he said it made his head hurt, remember?"
Claus shook his head, but he looked thoughtful.
"Claus… can't we go there, you and me? We don't have to stay if you're not ready, but we should at least go home for a little bit. We need to go find Dad and show him that you're alive. And we need to let everyone else know we're okay, and go visit Mom's grave, and check on the sheep-" Lucas had to stop and breathe for a moment. There was so much he wanted to do, so much that needed to be done. Even though he'd seen how Claus had been acting, knew how unlikely it was that he'd say yes, for that moment he couldn't stop himself from hoping.
But his brother was just staring at him, mismatched eyes open wide and conflicted.
"Can't we do that Claus?" Lucas asked, softer now.
Claus stared at Lucas for a second longer, then slowly shook his head. "I can't. The Commander can't leave the base unless his mission orders take him away. And even then he has to go straight to the mission, complete it as efficiently as possible, and then come back." His head tilted forward. Was that actually regret in his voice?
Lucas hugged his brother tighter for a moment. "It'll be okay, Claus. We'll find a way." He wanted to protest, but Claus was already hurting. The last thing Lucas wanted to do was make his brother feel worse.
Claus was still for a moment, then dropped his head forward, touching Lucas's shoulder. "It'll be okay," he whispered and then broke away again. "Come on, time to go. We need to eat. And then I need to go organize search parties for the Ultimate Chimera again."
"Alright, if you want to," Lucas said as he followed his brother to the door.
At least he now knew the way to the mess hall. Even if it was the only part in the base that was familiar, at least it was something about the base that he knew. The walk was quiet, but Lucas did notice a slight difference when they passed Pigmasks in the halls. They still seemed curious, but they didn't seem to be staring as much. That was probably a good sign, right?
They reached the mess hall. Senior and Junior were on duty again, and they chatted just a bit as the food was dished up, then waved goodbye when it was ready and the brothers left to go eat.
"I do like them. They're nice," Lucas said as they reached the table where they always sat.
Claus didn't say anything, but he gave him a thoughtful look.
"Commander!"
Claus shut his eyes, sighed and turned to face the colonel Pigmask. "Yes?"
"I need to talk to you about something." He fidgeted a bit, and Lucas wondered if he was nervous.
Claus turned to Lucas. "I'll be back."
Lucas wanted to protest that those guys got Claus all day and Lucas only got him for a little bit, but the guy did seem like he needed help. And Lucas didn't want to argue with Claus over such an unimportant thing, so he nodded, reluctantly.
Claus put the tray down on the table and left, following the colonel as he moved further away. He was probably trying to make sure that Lucas couldn't hear whatever it was that he wanted to talk to Claus about. Still, he couldn't stop Lucas from watching them until they finally reached one of the corners of the room and stopped there.
It was only then that Lucas put down his own tray. He sighed as he sat down. He didn't understand people, no matter how much he wished he did.
"Hey!"
Lucas started slightly at the unfamiliar- but cheerful- voice, then turned to see a Pigmask walking up to him.
"Hello?" he answered, slightly uncertainly. All these guys looked the same, and it certainly didn't help that this guy was wearing the pink uniform which was the most common. Only the aprons and the fact that they were behind the counter made Junior and Senior stand out.
The Pigmask gave a friendly looking wave. "You may not recognize me, but it's me, Sheep! We met at Thunder Tower, remember?"
"Oh!" Lucas said, then smiled. "You were the guy in the room with the Mr. Generator thing. Your outfit's different though."
"Yeah, I got demoted because I didn't try to stop you guys," Sheep answered with a careless shrug. "But you guys took out Mr. Generator himself, so it's not like I'd have gotten very far if I tried, right? But what are you doing here?"
Lucas flushed. "I got captured. By C- by the Commander."
"Oh," Sheep tilted his head slightly (Lucas guessed that he'd noticed the collar). "Well, if anyone could pull it off, it'd be the Commander. But why aren't you locked up in a cell somewhere or something? I mean, I'm glad you're not. You're the type of guy that shows mercy to enemies and doesn't want to fight if you don't have to. That's very admirable. But I can't see the Commander letting you hang around just because you're nice."
Lucas opened his mouth then shut it again. He wanted to try to explain, but he'd promised Claus he wouldn't tell anyone they were brothers. And while Sheep was nice, sometimes bad guys acted nice to fool people. Lucas was pretty sure Sheep was just a nice guy, but he wanted to be careful.
"And come to think of it," Sheep said thoughtfully, "it's been a long time since I've seen the Commander without his helmet-"
"Oh, his helmet got broken," Lucas answered, happy for a question he could answer. "He's going to get another one, unfortunately, but it hasn't come in yet." Hopefully it wouldn't come for a long time, but Lucas doubted they would be that lucky.
"Oh really? How did that-" Sheep broke off suddenly.
"Lucas." He turned to see Claus glaring as he walked up to them. It was directed at Sheep, but it made Lucas hunch his shoulders guiltily too.
"Good afternoon Commander," Sheep said, slightly nervous.
"This is Sheep," Lucas said quickly, "We met at Thunder Tower. He was nice to us." Struck by a thought, he turned back to Sheep quickly. "Are you going to work here now? Since Thunder Tower isn't- well-"
"Isn't working anymore, thanks to you?" Sheep asked cheerfully, "Yep! Starting today, this is my new workplace! Thanks for that, by the way- Fassad came and poked his nose around there too much anyway. It was supposed to be Trooper Hayes's responsibility, but anytime he wasn't there, Fassad came and bugged us."
"Oh." Lucas wasn't quite sure what to say to that. He was kind of glad that Sheep was here though. It was nice to have a friendly face around, even if it was hidden by one of those stupid pig-like helmets.
"So where's your friends?"
"They're still out there. I'm the only one who got captured." Lucas felt more than heard Claus stepping closer. He turned to look at him and try to meet his eyes, vaguely aware of Sheep trying to do the same thing behind him.
Claus folded his arms and looked at them, still not saying anything.
Sheep twitched slightly. "Do you want me to leave now, Sir?"
"… do you need anything?"
"No. I was just- well, I remembered Lucas from before and I wanted to see what was up and talk to him a bit. That's all."
Claus didn't say anything, but he looked thoughtful before turning to look at Lucas.
"Sheep was nice back at Thunder Tower," Lucas repeated. "It was kinda nice to talk to him again."
Not quite happy, but seeming to understand now, Claus nodded, and walked to the table and sat down next to Lucas.
"Hey Cla- Commander. Are you done helping that other guy? If you're not done yet, can Sheep sit here until you are done?"
"Only if you remember to call me Commander," Claus answered, then twitched as if he hadn't meant it to come out quite like that.
"Really? You don't mind?" Sheep asked, surprised and maybe a bit hopeful, but then he shook his head. "Actually, I got to go. I just finished eating anyway, and I'm supposed to be heading to the personnel office right about now. If I don't hurry, I'll be late, and they'll scold me for being late on my first day at my new workplace."
"Go report in then," Claus said quietly.
Sheep saluted and made the oinking noise. "See you later, Commander. Bye Lucas!"
Claus nodded in response (which seemed to make Sheep happy) and Lucas waved.
Sheep left and the brothers were left alone again.
Claus began eating, and so did Lucas. The hamburgers were very greasy and the fries were too, but they weren't too bad. Lucas wondered if at the next meal, he should try to talk with Junior and Senior about that. Maybe they just liked it greasy? Everybody had different tastes, like how he loved cheese and Kumatora didn't really care for it. Still, starting a conversation about food might be a good idea. It would give them something else to talk about, if nothing else.
The chattering Pigmasks gave the mess hall a sound of its own, filling up the silence that should have been filled by Claus talking.
Lucas was growing used to it, but it was still weird for Claus to be so quiet, so stiff.
Sometimes Lucas was tempted to try a tickle attack just to see if it'd work. But he stopped himself. Claus wouldn't understand right now. He'd forgotten about that sort of thing. It was Lucas's job to help him remember. Once Claus was more used to hugs, then they'd start on other things.
They had plenty of time- at least, they should. Lucas wanted to get out of here, but Claus was more important. Claus had been hurt, and healing took time. That was okay, Lucas could put up with this place for as long as he had to, even if it took another three years- for Claus's sake.
As for the Needles, the Pigmasks still didn't know how to get into Ionia's temple and anyway, Lucas had faith in Claus's heart. Even if the Magyspsies couldn't sense it, Lucas knew it was there. Even if had been hurt, it was still there, still real and still good.
Duster and the others were smart. They'd be able to stay safe, right? But they didn't know that the "Masked Man" was Claus, so they were probably worrying about Lucas. Lucas wished he had some sort of way to get a message to them, tell them he was okay and he was with Claus. But they were smart, and Lucas was sure they'd find a way to stay safe.
Which meant the only real worry they had was Porky. So far, he'd been content to ignore them. If things continued like that, they'd be fine… but Porky seemed to be a mean person. What if he wasn't content just to wait and see?
Lucas shook his head. As Grandpa would say, they'd burn that bridge when they came to it. There really wasn't anything Lucas could do right now but worry, and worrying never helped. It just made you feel worse. So he wouldn't worry, he'd just be careful. And he'd be sneaky, and not give Porky an excuse to stick his nose in.
Lucas nodded before sticking the last bit of hamburger in his mouth and chewed defiantly.
He noticed that Claus had turned to look at him.
Lucas turned to return the look.
Claus returned to looking at his food and eating.
"…what is it Clau-Commander?"
"…nothing."
"Really?"
"Yes. Just thinking."
"About what?"
Claus opened his mouth, then shut it. His eyes darted around the room, and the thoughtful look vanished as the emotionless Commander mask slid back on. "Various things. The best way to keep you out of trouble."
Lucas was curious now and he really wanted to get rid of the stupid Commander mask, but he was pretty sure he understood what Claus was doing.
Whatever he'd been thinking was something he didn't want anyone else to know about. Whatever it was, it must be important, so Lucas was perfectly happy to wait until they were alone to ask about it.
Lucas nodded understandingly, and both twins went back to eating.
Hey, maybe Claus had decided it would be a good idea to go home and visit the village and everyone after all!
…Na, probably not. Lucas wasn't that lucky. And there was such a thing as being too optimistic. He didn't want to get his hopes up too high and then have them crash down on him after all.
Still though, things were looking good. If Lucas did this right (and he had to do this right- couldn't mess up and fail everyone again) if Lucas could just pull this off, everybody could end up happy.
Those people who wanted to move to New Pork City? Let them go! Lucas felt a sting at the thought of some of them going- Miss Caroline and Angie, Miss Tessie, Mr. Ed and Miss Nan and Allie, and he really hoped Mr. Lighter and Fuel didn't go- but it wasn't like the end of the world. Maybe they'd even come back and visit sometimes. That would be nice. And without Mayor Pusher and the other people who thought like him, things could finally change in the village. So they could all be happy.
And surely Porky wouldn't care if Claus left. It wasn't as if Porky actually cared about him- he just wanted someone to boss around. So once Claus was gone, Porky could just promote one of the colonels to the post of Commander, and everybody would be happy, right?
…Lucas wasn't sure. He wanted to think that, but…
It wasn't just that Porky didn't seem to care about Claus- he seemed to delight in tormenting him- to find it fun to be mean to him, the big bully-
If what Porky found fun was being mean (and Lucas certainly didn't know of any time he'd been nice) then when Lucas and Claus finally left, maybe he'd chase after them just to be a jerk?
That, or maybe he'd do to someone else what he'd done to Claus. It was true that Claus might have lost his memory the same way that Duster had, but the fact still remained that he either would have found his way home or Flint would have found him, had it not been for Porky. Lucas didn't want to think of that happening to anyone else- but Porky couldn't be that cruel, could he? Wouldn't he be satisfied just to boss people around?
"You're not eating."
The quiet observation made Lucas jump, then laugh sheepishly as he turned to look at Claus. "Sorry, I was thinking too."
"About what?"
"Lots of things. Mostly about what to do next."
Claus didn't say anything, but understanding appeared in his eyes before he turned back to his food and finished it up.
Lucas turned back to his food too and began hurrying (but not rushing) to finish it.
Claus stayed next to him, waiting silently as he studied. It was almost like the first day, but not quite. The first day they'd been here together, Claus had looked at him like he was a child who was misbehaving by not eating his food. Now, he still watched him, but from time to time his lips would try to twitch up in a smile, and if one of the Pigmasks drifted too close Claus would switch his gaze to them until they drifted away again.
Once Lucas finished, the twins gathered their trash and tossed it, then stacked their trays with the other dirty ones. Lucas waved to Senior and Junior as they left and the Pigmasks waved back.
The hallways were surprisingly empty as they walked out. Lucas guessed that all the Pigmasks must be busy at this time. Busy doing what? part of his mind worried-
"Lucas," Claus said suddenly.
"Uh huh?"
"…it's …good …that you want to get along with the soldiers. But you shouldn't- you can't bother them when they're working. Don't be a distraction."
Lucas only paused for a minute before responding. "I don't want to bother them. I don't want to get them in trouble-" especially not with that fat pig Porky, he added to himself, then felt guilty for the mean thought, even if Porky was pretty mean himself. "It's just nice to talk to people sometimes."
They turned into another hallway and came upon a group of chattering Pigmasks. They stopped as they saw the brothers approaching, then lined up and saluted(complete with the silly oinking sound) as they went past. Claus raised his fist in the air to acknowledge them and they walked on.
Claus waited until they were a good, safe distance away to respond and even then he seemed to hesitate before opening his mouth. "You can't get into trouble." His shoulders twitched, and Lucas couldn't help but wonder if he'd meant to say that.
"I don't want to get into trouble either and I really don't want to get you in trouble."
"…you're a good boy, Lucas."
A good boy? Lucas was both amused and irritated by the compliment. What was he, a baby or something? Claus was only five minutes older than him.
Still, it was nice to get a compliment from Claus.
"Be careful. Don't get in anyone's way."
"I won't," Lucas promised easily, Porky's voice telling Claus he'd punish him for Lucas's actions ringing through his brain.
'Be careful' was an odd way of phrasing it though. Maybe Claus, subconsciously at least, was aware of what was wrong- the danger they were in, the danger Porky was?
Even though he didn't really believe Lucas about their past, about where they'd come from, maybe part of him- the part deep down inside of him that still remembered everything- was aware of the danger they were in.
They reached the hallway where the Commander's room was and Claus sped up. By the time Lucas reached the door, Claus had started to open it.
Lucas took a deep breath, part of his brain reaching for the right words, the words that would help Claus remember-
The door swung open and a screeching noise made both twins spin around.
A brown blur darted past both of them and shot under the beds. They stared after it, startled, and then Claus strode into the room. Lucas followed.
"What was that?" Lucas asked as Claus crouched in front of the beds.
Without answering, Claus reached under the bed- there was an angry hiss and the sound of something hitting something metal. Claus withdrew his arm, looked at the torn sleeve, and sighed.
"Whoa! Are you okay?" Lucas dropped to his knees next to his brother.
"Fine."
"It ripped up your jacket though. What about the skin underneath?"
"Skin?" Claus looked away from the ripped sleeve and blinked at him. "I don't have skin. Not there."
…what?
Lucas stared at him, then reached for his brother's arm. Claus let him, and Lucas held the arm with one hand and pulled the torn cloth away with the other.
Metal hit his eyes, the light reflecting off it with a painful glare.
"Commander!"
Both twins looked up to find a young woman in the doorway. She was dressed like a scientist, with the lab coat and everything, and her brown hair was long- pinned in a bun, with hairs escaping. She also looked worried.
"I'm sorry to bother you- have you seen my monkey? Dr. Misbin was going to borrow him for one of his own experiments and he got scared and escaped and-"
Claus pointed wordlessly to the bed.
"Oh, he hid under there?" The scientist hurried over. She knelt close- not next to them, but close enough that Lucas saw that her name tag read "Skye"- and clapped her hands. "Mr. Bubbles," she called out in a singsong voice. "Come out. We have treats back at the lab."
There was the sound of the monkey moving underneath the bed. Lucas caught a brief glimpse of dark eyes peering at them suspiciously before the monkey pulled back further underneath the bed again.
"Oh, Mr. Bubbles! I'm sorry, he's usually not like this. He's just scared of Dr. Misbin- like everyone else." The woman- Miss Skye- laughed nervously, then looked guilty at Claus. "Um- Commander, I-"
Claus turned from the bed to look at her and she flinched.
"Maybe we should give her some room?" Lucas suggested and they both turned to look at him. "I mean, the monkey doesn't know us, so he'll probably feel safer if only the lady he knows is the one waiting for him to get out."
"That's a good idea actually," the woman mused, looking thoughtful. "Mr. Bubbles is nervous around strangers…"
"We could go stand over there," Lucas suggested, pointing to the other side of the room.
Claus looked at him, then at Miss Skye, then at the monkey still hiding under the bed. He frowned thoughtfully. "No."
"No?"
"By the door," Claus gestured to the door leading back to the hallway.
"Oh, you're right. It wouldn't be good if he escaped out there, huh?"
Claus nodded, and both twins stood up and walked over to the door. Lucas pulled it shut, just to make sure.
"Here Mr. Bubbles," the woman began calling the monkey again, and it took a while, but finally the monkey crawled out and attached itself to the woman, chattering at her. "Good Mr. Bubbles," she cooed, petting it. "Good boy, coming out for Mommy-"
Standing side by side, shoulder to shoulder as they were, Lucas couldn't help feeling it when Claus flinched.
"Are you done?"
The woman turned back to face them. Lucas could see that she was flushed slightly. "Yes, Commander. I'm sorry for bothering you."
She stood up and began walking towards them.
"Just don't let it happen again." Claus said quietly, still tense.
Miss Skye nodded, just as tense. Lucas guessed that she felt bad about Mr. Bubbles running loose and interrupting them. Still, she seemed awfully tense for such a small thing. He was wondering about saying something to try to reassure her, but she walked out, and Claus shut the door behind her.
Lucas breathed out, then focused on the most important thing and turned to face Claus. "Show me your arm."
Claus looked at him, slightly surprised, then nodded. He walked over to the bed, sat down and held out his arms.
Lucas walked over and gently pulled the jacket off - Claus just sat there, docile and motionless. Lucas carefully folded up the jacket and placed it on the bed before turning back to his brother. He'd avoided looking at the arm- half afraid of what he'd see.
He'd seen the cannon Claus used in battle, of course. It was kind of hard to miss it, especially when it was being used to attack his friends. But when he'd first woken up here- well, his brother's whole body had been covered by the uniform, arm included- and at that point, it had been the same shape as his other arm. At the few points where Lucas had allowed himself to think about it, he'd assumed it was some sort of cannon that was small and light enough to be carried. Something that Claus carried and used when he might end up fighting someone, and then took off and put away when he was done with it. That's he'd told himself even after seeing his brother's face and being confronted with the blood red eye-
Gently, gently Lucas picked up his brother's hand. He felt the cold metal before he opened his eyes and allowed himself to see it. The hand rested in his, unresisting. It was also cold and heavy. Lucas ran one hand over it. The knuckles were jointed, but heavy and hard. The whole arm was the same, lines and grooves deeply engraved, like holes so deep no light could reach the bottom… the metal finally ended at the shoulder, where flesh and metal met.
Lucas traced it with one hand- the line that divided his brother's poor scarred skin from this strange heavy metal attached to him. Lucas wanted to rip it off- this heavy thing that Porky had saddled Claus with- but for now, Claus still needed it, and there was nothing that Lucas could do.
"Lucas, are you wounded?"
"No." Only a small word, but it hurt his throat coming out.
"You're crying."
"Your poor arm."
Lucas was bent over, trying not to sob. He felt Claus shift and the flesh and blood arm came around and gently touched him- slightly awkwardly embraced him.
Lucas released the tears and dropped his head, resting it on the poor flesh and metal shoulder, cleaning it with his tears and hugged his brother.
"What hurts?" Worry had definitely entered the voice now, and Claus hugged him even tighter, as if he was afraid that Lucas was going to disappear.
"Just my heart."
"Your heart?"
Lucas turned and looked at the arm once more. It didn't even look like his- it wasn't his- but Claus used it- Claus needed it, until they were free of Porky. "Did it hurt?"
"Did what hurt?"
"When they put that thing on you."
Claus glanced at his arm, puzzled. "I don't know," he said, sounding slightly disconcerted- or was that still worry for Lucas in his voice? "I don't remember." Then he looked back at Lucas. "My arm wasn't always like that?"
"No. We used to match- both your arms used to be flesh and blood." The crying had slowed now. Lucas pulled back, just a little bit, and reached out and traced around Claus's mechanical eye. "This used to be different too. It used to look just like your other one…but they took that away too."
Claus didn't respond. His eyes met Lucas's then moved away- avoiding him or thinking or both.
"You don't remember that either huh?"
"…no." Claus gave his mechanical arm another confused look. "…it used to be different," he repeated. He didn't just sound puzzled now, he sounded disturbed- and then he shook his head. "Doesn't matter. This is how I am now." He started to move, but Lucas hugged him tighter. "…Lucas."
"That's not true," Lucas muttered, then shook his head. "It's true that this is how you are now and as long as you're the one using that arm, I'll accept it, but it does matter, Claus, it does. Why did they do that to your arm and your eye? Had you been hurt? Why did they do that? It does matter, Claus, it does. I mean- it's not like you can't find the future by denying the past, right?"
Claus looked away, uncomfortable.
"Claus-"
"I don't know. I don't remember." There was a trace of irritability in his voice now. "I've had this arm and this eye for as long as I can remember." And then he stopped, blinking.
"Claus?"
"…my memory…it does have gaps in it. But I do remember the past two years pretty well. I definitely was like this for the past two years." The mismatched eyes met his, and Lucas searched them.
"You're sure?"
He nodded.
"Well, that narrows it down I guess. Makes sense…they probably did it shortly after they found you." Lucas's throat threatened to choke up.
"…found me?"
"Yeah…they probably did it when they found you. It's possible that you were hurt, and that's why they did it…that might be it, but…" Lucas realized that hadn't been what Claus was asking about. "Oh, after you left home to go avenge Mom- Dad found your shoes lying on the Drago Plateau, so we knew you made it that far… at some point after you reached that place, the Pigmasks must have found you and that's why you never came home."
"…ah." Claus said softly, very softly. He was staring into space now, thoughtful.
Lucas waited a moment, wondering what he was thinking about. It used to be that he would know exactly what Claus was thinking, but now… he was probably thinking about the past, probing his memories. Lucas waited.
Claus sighed, then looked up at Lucas. "How's your report coming?"
It took Lucas a moment to realize that Claus meant his attempt to come up with a good and easy to understand way to sum up their past. "Uh, could be better," he cast a guilty glance at the failed attempts he'd crumpled up, "but I did get started. Do you want to see?"
Claus nodded and Lucas left the hug. He descended from the bed and gathering up the papers that he'd actually gotten somewhere with, then returned to the bed.
"Okay, I figured the best place to start would be with our birth. We were born at home and Grandpa had come down from his cabin- he lived kinda far away from the village, remember? He'd come down to help Mom and Dad out, because giving birth isn't easy for moms. They didn't know there was going to be two of us at first. When you came out, they thought that that was it, and they focused on you and getting you cleaned off- but then Mom told them that it wasn't over- and after a while, I came out too." Lucas hesitated. He wished he could remember - wished he could remember the looks on Mom's and Dad's faces when he came out into the world for the first time- has they been surprised? Had they been happy? What about Claus? Had he been happy that his companion had followed him into the world?
Lucas looked up to meet his brother's eyes and found Claus focused on him. Waiting for the rest of the story. The hints of longing that floated in his eyes made Lucas feel better and worse all at once. He reached for his big brother and hugged him as he continued.
"Mom liked to tell us this story… she said that, for a while after we were born, she and Dad had two separate cribs for us. They'd borrowed mine since they hadn't known I was coming. We were sleeping next to each other, but not together-and because we'd been born earlier than we'd been supposed to, we weren't doing so well for a while. Me more than you. I was kinda sick- and Mom and Dad and everyone were worrying- and then Mom had a brilliant idea. She put us both in the same crib. And even though we were just little babies, couldn't talk or crawl or anything, we knew each other and cuddled up to each other. You even hugged me. And after that, I started to get better, and you got even stronger. That was one of Mom's favorite stories to tell us. And then she'd always remind us that we were stronger together."
"…ah." Claus said softly, his eyes looking far away. Lucas wished he'd look at him but he knew it had to be difficult. Sometimes Duster had talked about what it was like to not remember anything, so he kinda got it. "So… you've always needed me?"
…oh boy. How to respond to that? Lucas kinda resented the implication that he couldn't do anything by himself, because that wasn't true- but at the same time…
"We're stronger together," Lucas repeated. "And yeah, you're stronger than me- you've always been able to run just a little bit faster, hit a little bit harder, be a little braver than me. But sometimes I notice things that you don't, and I think of things that you don't- so we make a good team. Always have."
"Ah," Claus said thoughtfully, then nodded to himself. "Like how you remember things that I don't."
"Well, I guess- but I think that was more to do with the fact that you got hurt than anything else." Lucas was unable to keep his eyes from the mechanical arm and Claus followed his gaze.
"…you're saying I was wounded- and that's why my arm and my eye were replaced and why I have problems remembering things?"
"… that's probably part of it at least… but…"
"What?" Claus asked when Lucas didn't continue.
Lucas looked up and met his brother's eyes. Mismatched though they were, they were still Claus's eyes- the same soul stared out at Lucas through both of them, the red one as well as the green one. "If it was just you getting hurt… then wouldn't you remember all of these past three years and not just the last two?"
Claus blinked, then frowned, considering. "…maybe it took me a long time to heal?"
"Even if it did, wouldn't your brain have healed well enough to start storing memories again, even if it couldn't remember what it had already stored, before the rest of the body healed completely? I think there's something else going on."
"What?"
Lucas shut his eyes- Porky had told Claus that he didn't have a name or family- why? "I don't know," he admitted softly. "Maybe you're right, and it's just because you got hurt that you have problems remembering… but…"
Claus patted Lucas's head. "It's okay. The past isn't important. We're here - we'll stay here together. If we're good, Master Porky will allow us to stay together."
Lucas shook his head as soon as his brother's hand left, and it wasn't just because he didn't trust Porky as far as he could throw him. "The past is important Claus- not as important as the present or the future, but it's still important. The past is how we learn, and that's how we get stronger. You can't find the future without knowing the past. Otherwise, how will you know if you're going backwards or forwards?"
Claus looked like he wanted to protest. He opened his mouth- shook his head- opened it again-
"Claus-" Lucas hesitated only for a moment. He wanted to do this right, needed to do this right. He had to comfort him, but he was determined not to lie. "It's okay Claus. We can go slow. We don't need to dig up the truth all at once. But we can't forget, we absolutely, definitely can't forget, okay? We can't forget about Mom and Dad and the people we love and the place that we came from, even if it is abandoned. We can't forget about any of that, because that would mean forgetting who we are. Do you understand, Claus? We gotta remember- we can't forget- otherwise we could lose ourselves."
Claus was still staring at him. He hadn't protested, hadn't even moved at all. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? Lucas pressed on. "I- I'm definitely going to find the answers- but don't worry. I'll be smart and I'll be careful. I'll be so careful, no one will even notice I'm searching for answers."
"…Lucas…"
Lucas put on a smile for his brother. "It'll be okay Claus. We'll find the answers- and our way- in the end. It'll be okay in the end." Now that the smile was there, it didn't mind staying- not Lucas thought about about what would happen once Claus got all his memories back and they finally got out of here.
Claus was still just staring at him, but his expression had changed a little. He looked confused, but less so than before and more like he was thinking- like he was putting things together, like he was thinking things through. He looked up at Lucas and met his eyes again, briefly. "You'll… be careful?"
"I'll be very careful," Lucas promised, and thrust his fist forward. Claus copied it, sending his fist forward to meet his- then stopped, blinking.
Lucas waited a moment, as Claus stared at their touching fists, then asked "We're making a promise. Do you know what to do next?"
Claus frowned thoughtfully, not taking his eyes off their fists. "…promise?"
"Uh huh, it's a promise. When we promise we're going to do something, we're absolutely going to do it- and every time we make a promise, we do the same thing. Do you remember what it is?"
Still frowning, Claus remained still for a moment before he hesitantly lifted his fist, Lucas following him- and swung it up and down- Lucas matching him each time- then they thrust them into the air and gave a battle cry.
"Brothers forever!" Both twins yelled.
Claus lowered his hand -still fisted- and stared at it like he was searching for answers.
Lucas quickly hugged him again. "You remembered!"
"Yeah… yeah, I did, didn't I?" His hands touched Lucas's back in a sort of half hug. "It was… our secret handshake. Mom and Dad knew, but no one else- not even Grandpa."
"Yep," Lucas said happily, contently. Even if it was a small thing, it was still something that Claus had remembered. Lucas had prompted him, but Claus had remembered on his own. His memories were there and they would come back, with a little help. And Lucas was more than willing to help.
For now, he was content just to sit here, with his brother.
"Lucas," Claus said after a while.
"Yes Claus?"
"We should go to sleep now. I have lots of things to do tomorrow."
"You always have lots of things to do," Lucas sighed. "Are you sure you don't want to stay up and tell ghost stories? I learned some good ones from Fuel and Grandpa."
"No, we need to rest and recharge," Claus insisted, getting off the bed and heading towards the dresser to get his pajamas. Once he had them out though, he turned and gave Lucas a puzzled look. "Ghost stories?"
"Yeah, sometimes we'd tell each other ghost stories to try to scare each other. You more than me, but I could tell some scary ones. We didn't do it much, because Mom and Dad slept close by, but sometimes they'd be off doing something while we were in bed and we could do it then."
"…we'd try to scare each other? Why?"
Lucas shrugged. "It was fun. If you don't wanna do it now, that's okay, but can we do it tomorrow?"
Still looking somewhat puzzled, Claus nodded.
Lucas grinned as he jumped off the bed and joined his brother at the dresser.
Even though he'd been here long enough to get used to the pajamas, they still bugged him. Lucas frowned slightly as he pulled the shirt over his head. If it weren't for the fact that he really didn't want to attract Porky's attention, he'd ask Claus for a new pair- two new pairs, one for Claus and one for Lucas. Actually, maybe he could do that- it was a little thing, maybe Porky wouldn't care. Lucas would ask Claus- but not now. One thing at a time.
"Good night Claus," Lucas said, climbing into bed.
"Good night Lucas."
Lucas couldn't help but smile. Only a few days had passed since that first lonely night here, with Claus so close and yet so far, not even able to wish him goodnight, but already things were changing. Claus was still tangled in Porky's strings, but he was beginning to wiggle free.
Hand on hand, next to each other, the brothers drifted into peaceful sleep.