Chapter Twenty-Four:

Battling the Beast

Vermis's mind raced as he scurried away from Ralph and Vanellope. He had to find a way to deal with these characters quickly, lest they interfere any further in his plans.

They're really very irritating. Covering my tracks and those of the racers with my claw marks didn't slow them down, and neither did those worthless goons. And my wound-

He winced as pain flared across his stump.

I can't grow back my tail without feeding a good deal more- and feeding is slower without it. Fortunately, I still have some resources up my sleeve to buy time. There are a lot of NPCs in the town. And I think I can manage a couple more flesh blasts before I need to recharge…

He entered the town, paying no heed to the stunned reactions of the various denizens. Instead, he simply launched dozens of the millimeter long bits of green flesh into the thickest crowds. And then he launched even more…

…And Cannonshot's characters ceased their struggling as their code was replaced by Vermis's flesh. Their eyes glowed green as they gathered in the town square, over a hundred strong.

Surely this will be enough to kill those pests. Then I can leave with dearest Vanellope, and do what I was meant to do.

And if Wreck-It catches up to me again…

Vermis laughed as the NPCs began to head for the fort, weapons in hand.

I think what you don't know can kill you after all.

As soon as she was free of the chains and the gag, Taffyta climbed slowly and painfully to her feet. After briefly surveying the other racers, who had also been freed, and who looked as bedraggled and sore as she felt, she looked Sergeant Calhoun in the eyes. The Sergeant's gaze was stern, piercing, and Taffyta had to look away as she began to cry.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I let you all down. I just wanted to help and…I just caused a bunch of problems and…"

She felt a sudden pressure around her aching body, and looked up to see that Calhoun had embraced her.

"Uh…Sarge?"

Calhoun let go. "You're alive," she said. "That's what counts." She stood up. "But if you really want to apologize, do it by staying alive."

Taffyta turned to the hollowed out corpse of Louis. "I wonder who he was," she said, "and what Vermis was talking about when he was referred to merchandise."

Gale knelt down beside the corpse and examined the face. "So," he said after a moment, "it was him."

"You knew him?" Rancis asked.

"Knew of him," Gale replied as he stood up. "Caught a glimpse of him a couple of times. I think I won't tell you what Vermis was talking about. There are some things not meant for anyone's ears. And besides, I get the impression he'd had a glimmer of remorse before the end. Perhaps it's for the best if you remember that, and don't let his worst crimes overshadow whatever hint of goodness he had."

At that moment, Ralph arrived back at the fort, Vanellope on his shoulder. He set her down and beckoned to Calhoun. "Get those cuffs off her, will you?"

Calhoun knelt down beside Vanellope and used her lock pick to remove the cuffs from around her wrists and ankles. Then she gave Vanellope a quick hug, before standing back up.

"We need to settle with that virus, right away," said Felix. "You got a plan, dear?"

Calhoun turned to Gale. "Your antivirus can eliminate him?"

"I only get one shot," said Gale. "But if I'm right, one shot is all we'll need. Based on what he said about his bits of flesh, they're still technically a part of him, not all new viruses. So if we take out his main body-"

"-Any remaining loose pieces die with it," Gene said, finishing his sentence.

"Correct, Mr. Mayor," said Gale. "There's just one problem- we need to catch him first."

"I think I can help you there," said Ralph. "I found something out- he can't transform if you've got him pinned. If I can grab him when he's in his human form, he won't be able to change, and you can inject him."

"He won't be wanting to let you grab him a second time," said Calhoun. "And how do you get him back in his human form anyway?"

"Easy," said Vanellope. "He knows that form bothers me. So I get to be the bait."

"Hey, Vanellope," said Ralph. "I just got you back. No way I'm going to lose you again."

"We don't stop him now, none of us will be safe," Vanellope replied. "You can catch him, Ralph. I know I can trust you with my life."

Ralph smiled. "You really have grown up," he said.

At that moment, Gene, who had turned towards the shattered gates, turned back towards the others. "Whatever you're going to do, do it fast," he said. "He's back with a horde of newly possessed corpses. And they all look like they mean to kill us."

At once, Calhoun gestured towards various stacks of barrels. "Everyone, pile those under the archway, make a barrier!" she barked. "Grab whatever weapons you can and prepare to make a stand behind these walls." She nodded towards Ralph, Vanellope, and Gale. "Go!"

"We'll lead him away from the battle, towards the town," Ralph told Gale. "When his attention is on us, follow us there. We'll trap him there and you can delete him."

"Got it," Gale replied. "Now go you two, over the wall."

Perched on Ralph's massive shoulder, Vanellope peered over the edge of the battlements at the mass of weapon-toting characters. "All of them," she breathed. "He killed them all."

Spotting Vermis was easy enough. He was standing atop a low hill, urging the crowd onwards towards the fortress. "No time to waste!" Vanellope said. "Ralph, let's go!"

"Alrighty," said Ralph. "Hang on tight, little buddy!" He heaved himself over the edge of the wall and quickly clambered down. Running in a wide arc away from the crowd and then back towards the hill, he paused to let Vanellope call out to Vermis.

"Hey you!" she cried. Vermis turned towards them, his bug face eying them carefully.

"Yeah, you!" Vanellope continued. "You want me? You gotta come and get me!"

Vermis continued staring.

"Or are you too afraid?"

Vermis charged then, racing towards them on six of his eight clawed limbs, the other two held in the air before him. Ralph turned and ran as hard as he could for the town. He didn't slow down until he had reached the outermost set of buildings. He ducked between two of them and crouched down behind a stack of large crates. He and Vanellope heard the virus scuttle in onto the cobblestone street.

"Afraid?" he hissed. "Afraid of you? Dearest, sweet little Vanellope- it was my flesh that let Turbo take your game and give you that glitch that caused you so much pain. You could almost say that I made you what you are."

Vanellope felt her body tense up, but she said nothing.

"I was there for your beginning, Vanellope," Vermis said. "I will be there for your end. Your soul is mine, always has been, always will be." He laughed then, and his devilish tones echoed into the alleyway. "You will watch as I become everything. And at the last, I will be the final thing you ever see- dearest daughter!"

Vanellope could restrain herself no longer. Summoning her reserves of energy, she leaped atop the crates and then towards Vermis. Landing in the street in front of him, she faced him down.

"You're not my father!" she cried.

"Oh, but in a way, I am," said Vermis. "I've already told you- I molded your history, your life!"

Ralph came smashing through the crates then, fists raised, heading straight for Vermis. The virus lashed out with two of his limbs, sending Ralph crashing into the wall of one of the buildings. He then paused, listened for a moment, and suddenly slammed himself into the nearest building with great force. A figure tumbled over the edge of the roof, which Vermis caught in one of his claws.

"Gale!" Vanellope cried. She activated her power once again, ramming herself into Vermis's bleeding stump. He cried out in pain and dropped Gale, but not before Gale's shoulder bag snagged on his claw. He tossed the bag aside and spun to face Vanellope, who was clawing the sticky green blood from her hoodie. He shifted back into his human form. "Come here, dearest," he said, spreading his arms as he stepped towards her. "Captain Morgan wants a hug!"

At that moment, Ralph leaped forward and seized Vermis in one massive fist. "Got you!" he said. "Try transforming now. Oh that's right, you can't."

Vermis smiled. "That's what I wanted you to think," he said. Before Ralph could blink, he had transformed into the bug once again, forcing him to let go. And mere moments after that, he had buried a clawed hand in the wrecker's stomach.