Chapter Twelve- I Do
It was another beautiful Sunday morning at Litwak's. The arcade might have been closed but that didn't mean that the characters inside were lazing about.
No, who could be lazy when it was such an important day?
From Sugar Rush to Need 4 Speed, from Dragon's Lair to House of the Dead, the residence of Litwak's were gathered at Hero's Duty but they weren't there because something horrible had happened.
This wasn't a meeting on how to survive Cybug attacks or what to do if a virus were to show its ugly head in the arcade.
This was a day for celebration! This was a day for happiness!
This was the day Nicelander Gene and Nicelander Mary were to be united as one!
The church was beautiful. The warm rays of the golden sun radiated through the stained glass, painting a rainbow of color on all who stood at the altar. Gene himself was at the front, the little man looking sharp in his tuxedo but it was obvious to everyone that he was more than a little nervous, his entire face blushed with pink and his hands clutched behind him. He rocked a bit on his feet, almost as if he couldn't keep himself from running right to Mary and carrying her to the altar himself.
He just couldn't believe this day had finally come.
After so much hesitation, after so much doubt, after so much waiting…..
Gene was going to marry the woman he loved.
The little blue Nicelander felt that his life wouldn't be complete without Mary in it and he waited for the moment he could hear her say those two words.
Those two SWEET words.
The organ began to play, the music filling the chapel as everyone turned their heads towards the entrance, the large wooden doors opening.
Vanellope Von Schweetz entered first, the young girl dressed in a beautiful candy-themed gown with a small basket of flowers grasped in her hands. Grinning from ear to ear, Vanellope sprinkled rose petals on the ground, unable to keep her glee down as she looked up at Ralph who was standing with the other Nicelander men. The wrecker gave the little racer a wink as she got closer to the altar. Vanellope just continued to smile as she threw the last batch of petals on the floor before skittering off to join the others.
Rancis arrived next, the young boy looking prim and proper in his little suit. In his hands rested a red-velvet pillow on which lay two golden rings; Sonic could only WISH the rings in his game were as beautiful and bright! The peanut-butter racer couldn't help but give some of the ladies a cheeky grin, his eyebrow wiggling towards them as he flashed a smile.
"Ladies!" he chuckled, pointing towards another character his age, the girl swooning and landing right in the hands of one of the zombie characters.
Even when the event wasn't about him, Rancis STILL had to show off!
And then…
She arrived.
The organ began the familiar wedding tune as everyone rose to their feet, the entire room glowing brighter than ever.
There she was, standing right there at the door.
Nicelander Mary.
Gene could only look on in joy, his eyes glistening as he caught a glimpse of his bride.
Mary began to walk down the aisle, the tiny woman followed by Candlehead and Taffyta, the two girls holding onto her flowing train. Everyone was just so happy to witness what was happening.
It was like something that only could happen in a storybook.
Or the sought-after good ending of a game.
At the altar, the other Nicelanders were beside themselves in happiness. The bride's maids smiled, the groom's men beamed.
It was just too perfect.
Finally, Mary stepped up to the altar, her face still covered by her veil. As she approached Gene, even he could see that she was also a bit nervous, her head hung a bit. The man took his shaking hands and lifted the veiling, his eyes meeting with that of his bride.
Mary had never looked so beautiful. Her chubby cheeks looked so rosy and warm, her crystal blue eyes shimmering like jewels.
Gene was overcome by what he saw but he stood strong, biting his lip as a small smile formed on his face.
"A-are you nervous?" the man whispered.
"A-a little…" Mary responded, looking away a bit but she couldn't hide the smile curling on her lips "B-but I wouldn't change anything!"
The two Nicelanders held each other's hands and looked towards the priest, the man standing a few feet above them. He cleared his throat, opening the bible and began the ceremony.
"Dearly beloved…" the man began "We are gathered here today to join in wedding bliss these two Nicelanders, Gene and Mary."
From the crowd, a familiar fighter patted his teary eyes with a handkerchief.
"This…this is the most BEAUTIFUL thing Zangief has ever seen!" the man sobbed.
Deejay leaned on the man, patting his shoulders "It's alright big guy! Showin' your emotions is a GOOD thing!" The DJ's lip began to quiver a bit, unable to hold back his own feelings for the moment. "E-especially now!"
"Now, if I we might have the rings?" the priest continued, looking over at Rancis. The boy walked up to the two Nicelanders, lowering the pillow towards them. Gene took the first ring off the pillow, his hands still shaking.
"Mary…" he began, his voice a little dry "I can only tell you how much I've waited for this day. Ever since 1982, I knew there was something special about you. I knew….I knew I loved you. And on this day, I can only thank the Programmers above for allowing us to be together!"
Gene's hand shook horribly as he continued to clasp onto the hands of his love.
"C-Come on! You've been waiting for this day!" the man thought to himself, his shaking getting even worse. The little Nicelander drew back a breath, trying his best to stay focused as well as on his feet as his voice quivered "A-and….with this ring, I-I…."
Gene faltered, much too bashful to continue. He looked up at Mary, his eyes wide and scared as he felt as if his words were caught in his throat.
What was happening? Why was Gene so terrified?
"I-I-! I-!"
"No, no! Don't stop now, buddy!" Norwood whispered, peeking over at the mayor "She's right there! Give her the freakin' ring!"
Gene swallowed hard, remembering that this was the moment he had waited for his entire life! He couldn't stop. He took one look at Mary again, the smile on her face making his heart swell with happiness. In that small moment, all the fear that Gene had was now gone.
There was no reason to be scared at this! He was in love! He was about to marry the woman of his dreams!
This was PERFECT!
"With this ring…" the man continued, placing the ring on Mary's finger "I do thee wed!"
A collective sigh of relief echoed throughout the chapel, a few characters wiping their brows. For a moment, they thought the poor Nicelander was going to pass out right then and there!
Now, THAT would have been something to see.
Mary took the second ring, her confidence showing through "Gene? Sweetie? I've known you for thirty-one years and the only thing I regret that it took us this long to finally get together. My love for you? I cannot describe it in mere words or even size. You give me a feeling that reminds me of how much I love life and…"
The woman peered into Gene's eyes, her cheeks glowing even brighter.
"And how much I love you…."
Gene let out a little laugh, almost as if he could not believe what Mary had told him. The woman held onto the man's hand even tighter, the ring held gentle in her tiny fingers.
"And with this ring…."
Mary slipped the ring on Gene, the mayor surprised that no one could hear his heart POUNDING in his chest.
"I do thee wed."
The residence of Fix-it-Felix Jr. just couldn't hold back their excitement. Lucy let out a small squeal, Don wiped a tear from his eye and even Roy, the man people RARELY saw smile, was just taken by the scene, his hand over his heart and his eyes filled with love.
And Calhoun and Felix?
The maid of honor and the best man couldn't have been prouder either. Calhoun looked towards her husband, giving the man a nod. Calhoun craned her neck up towards Ralph, the man trying his best to hide the tears that were forcing their way through.
"Am I really cryin' over those two?" the man laughed to himself "Who would have thought!"
"Now that the rings have been given…." The priest continued "I have but one question to ask. Is there anyone here in this chapel, this arcade….who thinks that these two should not be joined in wedded bliss?"
The two Nicelanders, their hands still clutched together, looked towards the massive collection of people, everyone smiling from ear to ear.
This was it. In a few short moments, Gene would hear Mary say the two words he had so long wait for her to say.
I do.
"M-Mary…" the mayor began "I-!"
"If you have anything to say, please say it now!" the priest shouted, rather loudly this time "For there are still questions as to why such a SWEET and WONDERFUL woman would want to marry such a man!"
Both Nicelanders looked at each other, a bit confused as to what was happening. They then focused their attention on the priest, the man hurling the bible towards Felix!
"HEY!" the repairman shouted, jumping away in the nick of time.
Ignoring the cries of the repairman in blue, the priest glared down at the tiny Nicelanders, his once soft and gentle face starting to harden a bit with anger. He pointed an accusing finger at Gene, the man jumping a bit.
"TELL ME GENE! WHY DO YOU DESERVE SUCH A WOMAN AS THIS?!"
Mary clutched onto Gene in fear, her hands gripping tightly onto his "Dear!?"
"N-now don't worry, Mary! I'll-!"
*WHACK!*
Without so much as a warning, Gene felt the painful sting of a hand SMACKING him across the face, the man flying a good yard out of the arms of his bride! The entire church gasped, looking up to see that it was the priest who had dealt the painful blow!
"GENE!" Mary called, running over to her injured love "A-are you alright!?"
Gene moaned, rubbing his sore cheek, the surface even redder than before. He moaned, looking forward to see the much larger priest walking towards the two. The Nicelander let out a gasp as he quickly leapt to his feet, an angry look on his face.
"G-get behind me Mary, I won't let this-!"
Before Gene could get another word out, the priest made a dive for the little man, grabbing him by his throat and lifting him off the ground!
"NICELANDER GENE!" the now monstrous man screeched "YOU DO NOT DESERVE THE LOVE OF THIS WOMAN! YOU DO NOT DESERVE THE LOVE OF ANYONE!"
Try as he might, Gene just couldn't wriggle himself free from the hold of the larger man, his stubby legs kicking furiously in the air. The Nicelander managed to open an eye, glaring angrily forward.
"Y-you MONSTER! LET GO OF ME!" the little man spat, trying in vain to claw his nails into the priest's flesh.
The priest sneered, showing forth sharp crooked teeth and a wicked smile.
"Monster?" he cackled, his eyes turning black and drawing the terrified Nicelander closer "It is not I who is the monster, Mayor Gene…."
Gene's face paled a bit, fearing that in that moment the other man was about to DEVOUR him whole!
"W-why isn't anyone helping?! Why isn't anyone helping Mary?!"
A sickly blue glow began to radiate from the priest, everyone ducking in shock at the sight. Gene was helpless as he hung from the man's boney hand and before he could do anything else…
A shock.
A scream.
Everyone in the church ducked for cover as Gene was subjected to a horrid electrocution, the Nicelander screaming in agony as he felt as if every pixel in his body were being cut and mangled but somehow, someway….
He was still whole.
The man groaned, falling limp in the priest's hand, his mind clouded and his entire body sore. Mary picked herself up from the ground, her hands held out before him.
"Stop! STOP HURTING HIM!" she pleaded, tears falling from her eyes "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO HIM!?"
The priest focused his cruel gaze on Mary, his evil smile becoming even more frightening. He raised Gene higher in the air, his grip around his throat even tighter.
"To show you my love….THE REAL MONSTER YOU ARE ABOUT TO MARRY!"
The man then tossed Gene towards Mary as if he were a dirty rag, the Nicelander crashing into his love roughly but as soon as the Nicelander had left his hand, the priest erupted into a wave of blood-curdling laughter, his form floating off the ground before finally EXPLODING and disappearing into a flash of light! Everyone in the church was left stunned by what happened but their focus quickly went to that of the two Nicelanders on the ground, Mary shaking Gene in a feverish attempt to wake him.
"Gene! GENE!" she cried "Oh programmers, WAKE UP!"
"M-Mary?" the man moaned, finally coming to.
The sight of her love brought a smile to Mary's face and she quickly embraced him, her face going into his chest.
"Oh dear, I thought that man had done something horrible to you!"
Gene shook his head, still trying to put together everything that had happened in those short moments "B-But wh-what happened? I don't-!"
BA-BUMP!
Gene felt the sudden pain as if someone had stabbed him in the middle of the chest, the feeling instantly bringing him back down to the ground.
"AUURGH!
"
"Oh my goodness, GENE!" Mary cried out, reaching out for her love "What's wrong?!"
Felix looked over towards the two, panicked at what he saw "Oh mah land, is he alright?!"
BA-BUMP!
The pain was only getting worse! Gene shut his eyes and clenched his teeth, hoping that he would be able to somehow force the agonizing pain away!
"Gene! GENE! PLEASE ANSWER ME!" Mary yelled, shaking the man.
Gene wanted to say something. Oh, how he wanted to ask for help but he found that he could not. His voice was gone, his body unresponsive.
His dream day was quickly turning into a nightmare.
He couldn't breathe, he couldn't even think straight. The only thing he could feel was the strange buzzing that was going throughout his entire body, his limbs feeling heavy and his breathing becoming much more rapid!
"Yes, Gene…." Hissed the voice of the priest, the taunting tone swirling in Gene's mind "How does it feel now? HOW DOES IT FEEL?!"
"Gene! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!"
Gene!
GENE!
GENE!
Mary took ahold of her lover's face, trying to see if she could reach him "Darling! Darling, please stay with me! I-!"
As Mary cradled the mayor's head in her arms, he could suddenly feel some of the paralysis that had befallen him fade a bit. He still felt weak but he managed to lift a hand up, placing it gentle on his love's cheek.
"M-Mary?" the groom managed to finally say, his voice still weak.
The woman let out a small elated laugh, relieved to see that her love was alright, at least for the moment. She reached down and grabbed his hand, kissing it lovingly.
"Oh thank Programmers! I thought you had-!"
"N-no…." the man moaned, much too weak to pull his hand away "I don't-…."
GLITCH!
"H-HUH?!"
GLITCH!
Gene's eyes widened in horror as he looked before him, his hand twitching even worse than before but this time, he knew the reason why.
It had returned.
"Please….NO!" the man pleaded, though he knew he was begging in vain.
There was no way he could stop this.
Mary's face was once again wrought with worry, her hands still holding tightly onto his "G-Gene? Wh-what's wron!?"
GLITCH!
The woman turned, looking at Gene's hand in fright as it suddenly hit her that something was off.
VERY off!
For some reason, Gene's hand looked…larger?
"W-What?!" the woman stuttered, still holding onto the man though she began to shake in fright.
GLITCH!
Gene let out another agonizing cry as he felt his body and mesh being pulled painfully outwards but that wasn't the worst of it.
No, the worst of it was seeing Mary, the terrified look on her face as she suddenly sprang up, backing away from the man.
"W-what's happening to you?!"
With Mary looking on, Gene watched in horror as his hand began to GROW before him, his fingers growing much too large for the wedding band that still rested around his finger.
"G-Gene?!"
The mayor said nothing, only able to look on in horror as he watched his own hand grow and grow….
Until the wedding ring SNAPPED off, the thing flying off who knew where.
In that moment, everything had come crashing down. In that split second that the band had broke from Gene's fingers, he knew all his hopes, all his dreams, even his love, were broken.
In fact, the only thing that had broken even worse than the small strip of gold was the man's heart.
"N-no!"
BA-BUMP!
Another wave of pain went through Gene, the man shutting his eyes as he gripped his body.
"Please! No! I DON'T WANT THIS TO HAPPEN AGAIN!" he pleaded, the flickering light of his glitching mesh showing through almost every second.
The mayor then heard the loud screams of all the characters inside the chapel, the masses running over each other as if they were trying to escape. From his perspective, it still felt as if he were on the floor so for the moment, it felt a bit odd that they were trying to run away from him at this point. He might have been a BIT larger so why run? He was sure he posed no danger to them.
At least, that's what he thought.
"W-wait!" the man said, struggling to get back onto his feet "Th-there's no reason to run! I'M-!"
Gene attempted to stand but as he did so, his head hit the ceiling of the chapel, the man crying out in pain!
"OW!"
But how?!
He was SURE he was still small enough to STAND in the church but considering he had hit his head on the celling, which was a good FIFTY FEET above him, he knew things had made a turn for the worst.
"Holy PROGRAMMERS!" shouted Calhoun, scooting the Nicelander ladies out of the way "THE GROOM IS A MONSTER!"
"Everyone, RUUUUN!" shouted Felix, leading the others to safety, not even giving the mayor a second glance "If ya fall back, he could STEP ON YA!"
"LET'S GET OUTTA HERE!"
"PLEASE DON'T LET HIM GET ME!"
"HE'S A DANGER TO US ALL!"
"W-wait!" Gene said, reaching out for his friends "DON'T LEAVE ME! I'M NOT GOING TO HURT YOU!"
There was no use in asking for help now as everyone around the mayor was fleeing for their lives, wanting nothing to do with the huge Nicelander. Character ran in every direction, their screams and shouting doing nothing to put Gene at ease. He once again tried to reach out for his friends, taking Felix by the back of the collar. The little repairman let out a shocked yelp as he turned around, eyeing the enormous Nicelander in fear.
"Felix! PLEASE! Its ME!" Gene pointed to himself, Felix still frozen in fear "You can't tell me you're scared-!"
Suddenly, Calhoun rushed in and pulled the smaller man away from Gene, a look of pure hatred on her face.
"BACK OFF!" shouted Calhoun, pulling out a massive gun from whatever space dwell within her dress "You lay a single digit on him an' I'm blowin' a new hole through your skull!"
Gene backed away a bit, accidentally breaking a few pews under his feet "Ms. Tamora! Y-you can't-!"
Without another word the woman pulled the trigger, giving off a warning shot that sailed dangerously close to Gene's head. She scowled at Gene, her finger just itching to pull on the trigger once more and this time for a kills shot!
"I said! BACK! OFF!"
Gene was complexly taken away by what had just happen, his heart beating a million miles a second as he took in just how close he had come from being on the receiving end of the blast. He tried to remain calm in the moment but he knew Calhoun much too well by this point. She saw him a THREAT and when a threat got in her way, she didn't stop until it was taken care of!
But he wasn't a threat! He was just Gene! A Nicelander! He couldn't hurt a fly!
At least, that's what he WANTED to tell everyone but before he could say another word….
GLITCH!
Another spurt came through, the mayor once again hitting the ceiling HARD and causing a large section of the ceiling and glass to come raining down on everyone below! The sharp cries of a child rang through Gene's ears and he looked down just in time to see Vanellope, the poor kid too scared to move even move, or GLITCH, as a huge section of the ceiling came careening towards her!
"YOUNG LADY! LOOK OUT!"
BOOM!
A cloud of dust was kicked up from the crash but as Gene saw, a certain wrecker in a tuxedo had grabbed onto the child in the nick of time, grabbing her just a hair away from where the massive piece of ceiling had landed.
"You okay kid?!" Ralph asked frantically, checking to see if his friend was okay.
"H-he almost got me!" the child cried, pointing and accusing finger and shooting an angry glare at the Nicelander that towered over her "THAT STUPID NICELANDER ALMOST CRUSHED ME!"
"Don't even mention him!" the wrecker growled in anger, his eyes cutting into Gene "I won't let him hurt you!"
"BUT I DIDN'T MEAN TO HURT HER! I DIDN'T MEAN TO HURT ANYONE!" the mayor cried, feeling as if he were on the verge of a nervous breakdown!
"KEEP AWAY!"
The man looked down, seeing Mary glaring up at him, a furious look on her face.
"M-Mary?!"
The woman ripped the veil from her head, her hair blowing in the wind "I said, KEEP AWAY you giant FREAK!"
Those words bore into Gene's heart like a drill, the man nearly falling over as he heard his love say such terrible things to him.
But what about their promise?
What about Mary's promise that she would always love him, always be there for him….
No matter what?
The man knelt down, his hand reaching out for the woman "M-Mary, I thought-!"
The Mayor hadn't even gotten an inch from the woman when she violently smacked his hand away, her eyes filled with hate.
"Don't you even THINK of coming near me!" she snarled "Look at all that you've done, you-! You MONSTER! What makes you even THINK I would want to love a FREAK like YOU!?"
Gene's face turned pale, his eye twitching "B-B-but-!" he stuttered "I…I love you!"
Mary stood before the massive Nicelander, tears of anger rolling down her cheeks. She sniffed back, looking down at her finger as she reached for the ring.
At that moment…everyone froze.
Silence filled the chapel as Gene continued to look down at Mary, his heart still pounding loudly. All around him, he could see the still figures of his friends and the other arcade residence locked into place, as if someone had hit a pause button.
Some bore the faces of people in fear, others were twisted in anger.
But they didn't matter to the man.
The only face Gene was focused on was that of Mary.
And she was less than pleased.
Gene looked down at the woman, trying once more to reach towards her "Mary, sweetie! Think about this! THINK OF WHAT YOU'RE SAYING!"
The tiny woman scowled up at Gene, plucking the ring right off her finger.
"NICELANDER GENE!"
Gene tried to reach the woman but somehow, she remained too far away from his grasp.
"Mary, NO! PLEASE!"
"I HATE YOU!"
And with that, the woman THREW the ring at Gene as hard as she could, the object hitting the giant man right on his chest but to him, the ring made no impact. It just bounced off as if it were nothing.
The thing that affected him the most. Even where he stood, he could still hear the shrill, sharp tones of Mary's voice echoing around the room, almost as if it weren't enough that the Mayor heard her the first time.
I HATE YOU!
I HATE YOU!
I HATE YOOOOOOU!
Gene staggered on his feet, his face turning as white as a sheet as all the color drained from him. The frozen characters slowly began to move once more, their screams filling the room once more but Gene couldn't hear them. His mind was swamped and blank. As everyone ran for their lives, Mary stood her ground, the little woman glaring up at Gene, tears rolling down her eyes.
"Y-you don't mean that…." Gene finally managed to say, his body feeling weightless "YOU DON'T MEAN THAT!"
As Gene took another step back, the floor he was standing on suddenly gave way, shattering under his great weight as if it were made of glass. The man let out a horrid scream as he felt himself falling, only to look down and see that he was heading straight for an endless abyss. He gave one final look upwards, seeing Mary standing at the edge of the great hole, still angry, still filled with hate, still looking as if she regretted every moment of love she shared with the man.
"I WOULD NEVER LOVE ANYONE LIKE YOU! NEVER!"
The man reached out for his love but it was too late; he had fallen too far.
"BUT I LOVE YOU! I'VE ALWAYS LOVED YOU, MARY!"
Even with all the words of love had to tell Mary, they had fallen on deaf ears.
No one heard him but at this point, no one wanted to hear him.
They just wanted him gone and now, they had all gotten their wish.
Gene continued to fall and scream, the hole he had found himself in seemingly endless. The darkness surrounded him but in a sudden flash, he found himself surrounded from all directions by a strange unearthly bluish glow. The man was blinded for a moment from the light but as his vision came to, he began to notice that the flashes of light were actually composed from another source but given how fast he was moving, he couldn't see what they were.
"W-what are those things?!"
And then-!
He stopped!
Gene yelped in shock as he felt the sudden stop from his fall and a sharp pull back. He froze, waving his arms and legs in the air as he found he was somehow frozen in place but as he looked around, he got a good glimpse of what the objects that surrounded him.
They were images.
Countless images!
The man tried his best to look around, his body still hanging in the space but as he got another look, he began to realize that the pictures weren't just of anyone.
"Is…is that-?!"
They were images of HIM!
Gene was astounded to find himself facing what seemed to be millions upon MILLIONS of photos of himself. Some of them were just of the man alone but most of them showed him with another man.
A large wrecker in red.
"RALPH?!"
The mayor focused in as close as he could and saw another detail that tied the pictures together, that being that in each photo Gene looked less than pleased. In fact, NONE of the photos showed Gene with a smile on his face or in a situation where he looked pleased.
And most damning of all were the photos of him with Ralph.
In each and everyone one of those photos, the little Nicelander looked as if he were bickering with Ralph, just as they had been those many years ago.
It was a painful thing for Gene to face but he couldn't escape it. No matter how much he wanted to blocked out the images, no matter how much he wanted to change the view ahead, he could not escape from his past.
Sweat beaded from his brow as he looked forward, unsure HOW to react to what was going on.
"Wh-why is this happening?!"
WHY DO YOU HAVE TO MESS UP EVERYTHING?!
Gene turned and squeaked in shock, surprised to hear his own voice echoing loudly throughout the space. He looked around, almost as if he were trying to convince himself that the voice was not his own but someone else.
"W-what?! WHO!?"
CAN'T YOU DO ANYTHING RIGHT?!
The man scrabbled in his place, his little arms reaching upwards "Who's there?! WHO'S DOING THIS?!"
LOOK AT THIS MESS YOU'VE DONE!
YOU CAN NEVER BE ANYTHING BUT THE BAD GUY!
KEEP AWAY FROM ME YOU BIG BRUTE!
YOU DON'T BELONG WITH YOU, YOU MONSTER!
Somehow, Gene was able to free himself a bit and the first thing he did was curl himself into a little ball, his ears covered and his eyes shut tight. He was desperate to drown out the screeching sounds of his own voice not because he couldn't stand the sound….
But it was the words.
The WORDS are what hurt the most because he knew that they were things that HE had said.
Things that he had said that hurt Ralph, that shunned him, that painted the man as nothing more than a monster.
But with the way things had gone in the church, the only person everyone viewed as a monster was Gene.
The man twitched and kicked, his teeth clenched as if he were in pain.
"Stop, stop, STOOOP!" Gene roared, trying his best to cover his ears "STOP IT! STOP IT! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME?! WHY-!?"
YOU'RE JUST THE BAD GUY WHO WRECKS THE BUILDING!
YOU'RE JUST THE BAD GUY WHO WRECKS THE BUILDING!
YOU'RE JUST THE BAD GUY WHO WRECKS THE BUILDING!
Those words.
Those horrible words.
Those were the words that had more or less defined Gene for so many people and as he continued to hold himself, he knew just how useless it was to escape.
"No…I was different back then…." He quivered, as if he expected someone to come to him "I was a terrible person! I admit that!"
Gene then looked at the images, the photos starting to swirl around him and driving him further into insanity.
"BUT I'VE CHANGED! I'M A BETTER PERSON NOW! I'M NOT A MONSTER! I AM NOT A MONSTER!"
And in that moment, Gene felt the pull of gravity once more, his body sailing towards the ground at top speed. The Nicelander screamed at the top of his lungs, looking everywhere for any sort of object he could grab onto but he only continued to fall, his body sailing towards the ground like a rock all before hitting the ground with a terrible THUD.
Gene moaned horribly as the pain rippled through his body, surprised that he was somehow still alive despite taking on an impact like that. He rolled over on his side, every movement even more agonizing than the next.
"P-please…I can't take this…." he sobbed, bitter tears rolling down his cheeks and pooling on the floor "I just want to go home. I-I just want to be myself again…."
The man shook, biting his lip.
"I just want to be with Mary…."
*Clink*
The man forced open an eye, looking before him to see a small item rolling before him. It took a moment or two for his vision to come into focus but as he gazed ahead, it was all too clear what the object was.
The ring.
Mary's ring.
Seeing the thing shine brightly before him only brought about more pain to the man and he let out a frustrated cry. He didn't even want to see the thing but there it was laying before him, as if to remind him of how much he had lost in such a short amount of time.
Why was this happening?
"I-I'm sorry…"
Boom.
The ground shook slightly, Gene feeling the vibrations from his place on the floor.
Boom.
"H-huh?"
Though he was still in a great deal of pain, Gene managed to twist his body a bit, his neck moving just enough for him to look around. For all he could see, he was in an empty hall, the only light being that above him.
Everything else was shrouded in black.
"H-hello?"
Boom!
Once more, Gene tried to force himself to sit up and even though it was terribly painful, he managed to sit up a bit, his back and legs hurting the worst. His head felt like it was spinning on his shoulders but he forced himself to focus, looking around to find just where the booming was coming from, especially since it felt like it was coming closer!
He peered behind himself; nothing.
To the right? Again, nothing.
He then looked forward.
Boom!
There….
That's where the sound was coming from!
BOOM!
The entire area shock, Gene bouncing a bit as he let out a shocked yelp. He could only dread what was awaiting him but as he was unable to move, it wasn't as if he could run and hide.
"W-who's there?!" the man called, his voice shaking.
Boom!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Gene looked forward at the darkness and there before him glowed two BLUE eyes.
Two ANGRY looking blue eyes!
The man managed to push himself backwards but even he knew it was pointless now. Where could he run? Where could he hide?
He was trapped and sooner or later, he was going to come face to face with whatever or WHOEVER this beast was that was staring down at him.
BOOM!
A shadow began to loom over the man, his eyes growing wider as he shook with fear.
It couldn't be!
It just COULDN'T be!
"N-no!"
There before Gene stood a huge figure, one that seemed to be even larger than the apartments of Niceland! The sight rattled Gene to his very code and he found that he couldn't even will up the energy to scream.
He wanted to scream, he wanted to run but he knew he couldn't.
He wanted to escape the figure because the figure he was looking at was HIMSELF.
A towering, sneering version of himself.
Once again, Gene was faced with the crushing feeling of being small and insignificant compared to someone but to see that the thing that had so scared him was HIMSELF? That made things even more painful.
Was this how everyone viewed him now? Did they feel this terrified and threatened?
Everyone was right.
Gene HAD become a MONSTER.
Why would anyone want to be around such a horrible creature?
The giant figure chuckled evilly in his throat as he looked down at the tiny, helpless Nicelander below him. His soulless eyes glowed blue, the color filling the entire area as he took a threatening step towards the real Gene, the man unable to do anything but scoot back but he had nowhere to go.
"W-what do you want with me?!" Gene called up to the towers apparition "I-I HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING!"
The giant Gene snorted evilly, gazing down at his miniature copy, his sneer becoming much more frightening.
"Useless thing…."
Those were the only words the huge Nicelander said but in those words, Gene knew what was about to happen. And in that realization, the man could feel his soul leaving him.
Giant Gene lifted a foot and slowly made his way towards the tiny man.
"No…" the small mayor managed to force out, huddling in fear "PLEASE, PROGRAMMERS NO!"
The huge shadow of the giant's foot fell over the trembling Nicelander and as it loomed closer, Gene turned away and-!
DARKNESS.