Author's Note: Chapters 1-10 have been revised and updated. This necessitated me deleting several chapters (since the beginning of this ordeal I've recently only had to delete one chapter at a time). You may have to go back a bit to return to where you left off. Sorry for the inconvenience. It might be easiest to make note of the title of the chapter you're on in the future.
"Okay, we're here.." Ralph said impatiently as they entered the castle, "So what is it that you wanted?"
"Follow me, Ralph," King Candy said, "Vanellope, you wait here a moment. We won't be long." King Candy led him down to the code room.
Vannie sighed. What is he having Ralph do down there? Why shouldn't I go along?
"Should I be worried?" Ralph said as he looked around at the glowing white-tubed hallway leading to the code room.
"I should hope not," King Candy said with a laugh, "I don't mean to be rude, but it's been bothering me. And I'm almost certain it's been a bother to you as well." He entered the code to the code room, causing the door to roll open. The door itself was more vault-like than the one in the first Sugar Rush game. And several times thicker.
"What are you talking about?" Ralph asked seriously. Should I be taking offense to something?
"Ralph.." King Candy said with a sigh as he grabbed Ralph's arms, faced downwards and closed his eyes, "I don't know how to tell you this.."
"Just say it then," Ralph said, getting agitated, "What's the problem here? You're just drawing it out."
"You stink.." King Candy said finally, "You've been bathing regularly, that much I'm happy to know.. But it's not enough, is it?" There's that uncomfortable stretch of time between then and when the arcade closes.
"Oh, now that hurts.." Ralph said bitterly and sighed. He clenched his fists a few times. Don't wreck anything. "But you're right." He sat down, leaning against the wall near the door. "I thought about asking you.." Think calmly. You don't need to wreck anything.
"Look, Ralph," King Candy said with a sigh, "I know it's frustrating, but I can fix this for you. All I need is your go-ahead. I didn't want to embarrass you in front of anyone so I've been holding it in. But it has to change." We may be game characters like everyone else, but we have to project an air of dignity and stability here.
"Well go ahead," Ralph said with a look of sadness, "It's not like I enjoy smelling like I've never taken anything other than a mud bath." I also thought about asking him to change a few other things too, but that wouldn't be right.. He looked down as his right hand as he clenched and unclenched it. I wouldn't be the same otherwise. These wreckers are all I've ever known..
"Thank you, Ralph," King Candy said sincerely, "And I'm sorry that it had to come to this." He sighed in relief. "Well, come along."
"What? You want me to go in there?" Ralph asked reluctantly, "You sure that's such a good idea?" I've only ever been in one code room before, and really all I did was the simplest of tasks after it was explained to me.
"I just assumed you would want to be here," King Candy said, "It shouldn't take but a moment.."
Ralph sighed and followed him into the code room. Let's get this over with.
"Your code's shortcut would be around here somewhere," King Candy said as he floated off to the left in the darkness, to a cloud of dimly lit code boxes.
"L-look, I'm not so sure I should be here," Ralph said nervously as he looked around. I'm a wrecker, not a coder.
"But aren't you curious about what your own code looks like?" King Candy asked. Isn't everyone curious about their own code?
"I could break something.." Ralph said worriedly.
"I'll be the judge of that," King Candy said while rolling his eyes. He tapped on Ralph's soft orange code box twice, making it expand to twice its size and turn transparent, revealing several files. "What do you see, Ralph?"
Ralph sighed and peered inside, reluctantly. Of course I'm curious.. But I'd rather not wreck myself. "I see my skin, that's appearance, right?"
"Uh huh," King Candy said, "What else?" It's the fastest way to learn about yourself. For instance why I am the way I am.. I never would have known otherwise..
"Can't you read?" Ralph asked with a bemused expression on his face. Why are you asking what I see anyways?
"Just tell me," King Candy said while rolling his eyes again. Do you even realize the opportunity you have right now?
"I see.. Food I've eaten recently?" Ralph said, "Why is there a file for that? Uh.. Spill protection? What's that? Look, this stuff doesn't make any sense to me.." You're the expert here..
"Oh fine," King Candy said with a sigh, "I'll open it for you since you're so worried." From what I heard you repaired your own memory before, what's the big deal? He tapped on the 'Spill Protection' file twice. "By the looks of it this is what makes mud and select other things roll off of you rather than get stuck. I suspect that comes in handy since you're always getting thrown into mud."
"But why would that even be there?" Ralph asked, "Wouldn't it be easier to just regenerate me back at the starting position of the game afterward?"
"You seem to be misunderstanding the fundamentals of how this all works, Ralph," King Candy said, "No. I suppose that's not your fault.. You see, not every single aspect of our games or lives is written in code, per se. I don't know how to explain this any other way, but when we're programmed, the developer's ideas and feelings themselves flow into the game and form a center.. a core for your very being."
"Okay, wait. Just.. Hang on," Ralph said, "This doesn't make sense to me at all." Can you say that all again, but more slowly?
"This, is your core, Ralph. Your soul, if you will." King Candy swiped his hand along the surface of Ralph's code box and a few files whirled around. He delicately tapped on a pitch black file that stopped in the forefront. It had no name or icon. It expanded to reveal one more file which amounted to a text document. "From here, any aspect of your being can be altered, this is why I had you come along. You can learn a lot from yourself like this. Things you never would have known otherwise."
"That.. That's a lot of responsibility.." Ralph said with a sigh as he examined the text which was parsed into paragraphs, "It's like a story.."
"You got lost in the woods one day," King Candy said, "You and your parents were on a camping trip when you were a child.. Perhaps you should read this yourself.."
"Y-yeah.." Ralph said as he ever so slightly floated closer to the core of his being.
"Mom? Dad?" little Ralph yelled. It was already nightfall in the woods, they'd been hiking all day and they'd been separated for hours. Ralph wasn't concerned at first, he was 12 years old, he could handle hiking alone no problem. Where did they go?
A few days went by, he had taken to eating berries he found while trying to find his parents. Where did they go?
More time went by and he had taken to hunting the warthogs that for a while were plentiful. He was no good at using tools so he was forced to rely on his growing strength and agility. He decided to make a tree stump his home. Where did they go?
Over the years his arms became powerful wrecking machines as he was forced to move onto more dangerous prey for food, there was still no sign of his parents. He had been over every inch of the woods and found nothing, not even remains. Where did they go?
One night as he went to sleep, a bulldozer moved his stump into a pile of bricks and destroyed a large section of the woods, building an apartment complex dead in the center. The one reminder he had of his parents was gone. Where did they come from?
"Hey! You moved my stump!" Ralph yelled angrily at this so-called 'Mayor'.
"Look pal," Gene said narrowing his eyes, "I own this place." He handed him a piece of paper showing it was his through eminent domain. "So I suggest that you beat it. You're trespassing."
That night Ralph went to his relocated home surrounded by bricks. He rapidly pounded some into smaller pieces to at least make a slightly softer bed than what he was used to and laid down, looking at this new building that took the place of the beautiful woods he had grown accustomed to. Look at them.. What's 'eminent domain' anyways? They just come here and steal my land.. I've been here for 18 years.. No.. They can't have this place. He got up angry.
[You can skip this section if you want to, it's just a rewording of gameplay from here until the next scene.]
"I'M GONNA WRECK IT!" Ralph yelled as a warning. Get out now, this place is coming down. He climbed the building, smashing windows in his rage, throwing the 'Mayor' out.
"Fix it, Felix!" the inhabitants of the Niceland apartments yelled from their windows. Who is this scary man?
That's when 'Fix-It' Felix Jr. the handyman showed up with his magical golden hammer inherited from his father, 'Fix-It' Felix Sr. I don't know who this guy is, but I have a job to do. Maybe we can talk this over later.
"I CAN FIX IT!" Felix shouted to reassure his employer and neighbors. He began quickly fixing the damage done one window at a time, climbing the building along the window sills dodging bricks.
They eventually climbed to the top of the building.
Felix smiled as they congratulated him and handed him a pie. Now maybe we can finally come to an understanding. But then the Nicelanders grabbed Ralph and threw him off the building. He landed in a mud puddle, years of toughening himself paid off as he easily got back up to try again.
"So that's how it was.." Ralph said, tears filling his eyes, "But where did they go?" I can almost remember..
"Keep reading, they might have considered that," King Candy said solemnly as he rested a hand on Ralph's shoulder.
"There's a bunch of lines here, a conversation by the looks of it," Ralph said sadly with a chuckle. How was all of this added in if not by code?
[[Oh, but what about the mud?]]
[[Let's just say it rolls off of him. He wouldn't want to contaminate his drinking water by bathing, right?]]
[[Yeah, he probably hasn't bathed since he got lost there.]]
[[But what about his parents? I feel bad about that.]]
[[Well if we ever make a sequel we can turn him into a Good Guy, right? Let's make him and Felix brothers.]]
[[That's good! But his parents are probably dead by now, right? It's been 18 years.. And wouldn't they know each other?]]
[[True, how about we say that their parents split up when Ralph was born and his mother left with him and remarried. Their father kept Felix who was 2 years old at the time so he wouldn't know. Felix took the job there after his father told him on his deathbed about the place Ralph was lost. Felix would totally do something like that.]]
[[Good point. What about that hammer of his though? And how would Felix's father know where Ralph was lost, but not know where he is? Or go looking for him..]]
[[It's magic, we don't have to explain that. Let's just say they're descended from wizards or something. But they're not skilled since their wizard blood is diluted. And their mother told their father what happened years later.]]
[[Wizards? That's stupid. Wouldn't it make more sense that his parents were archaeologists or something and that they discovered the hammer somewhere?]]
[[No that's stupid. What's a handyman doing digging up ruins? With handyman relics being there?]]
[[Alright, fine they're wizards, whatever. A wrecking wizard and a handyman wizard, seems legitimate. There's no point in arguing over this. We don't even know if this game will sell enough copies to warrant a sequel.]]
[[You have a point.. Anyways I'm done here.]]
Ralph laughed. A tear rolled down his left cheek as he said, "Felix really is my brother.. They couldn't really decide anything about our parents other than that they're dead wizards.." This is ridiculous. Descended from wizards..
"I'm sorry, Ralph," King Candy said solemnly, "The answers we find aren't always the ones we want.."
"It's fine," Ralph said wiping his eyes, "How's all this here?.. Nevermind, it's not important. So how would I fix this?" He laughed softly. Felix would get a kick out of this.
"Lightly tap the line you want to change. A keyboard display will appear for you," King Candy said, "It's your code. I'm giving you the choice of how to change it.." It's better that he do it instead of me.. I have absolute faith in him to make the best decision for himself..
"I'll see you later, Jet, Crumbelina.." Charley said with a smile and his arms crossed, "I'll see you guys later too. Or should I say 'earlier' since I'm going check out the other Sugar Rush?"
"Alright, just make sure you don't cause any trouble," Jet said, "I imagine that the surge protectors will be watching you." Not that I think I have to worry.
"I'm not going to cause trouble," Charley said dismissively as he rolled his eyes, "I just want to put all that behind us. So don't worry so much about it. I'm not like your brother. Or Turbo." If anything I'm more like you..
"Just making sure," Jet said warmly, "Go get 'em."
Charley waved at the group and ran off, headed straight for the other Sugar Rush.
"We should be going too, right?" Jet said with a laugh. To the beach.
"Did you all remember to bring your swimsuits?" Taffyta asked sweetly, "Ours is in my kart."
"Yep!" Minty said excitedly, "I've been waiting for this!" Minty Zaki is probably just jealous because we're always on the roster. That has to be it.
"What's taking him so long?" Calhoun asked sternly, "He's never been one for being punctual, but this is ridiculous."
Ash slowly walked out of the tunnel mumbling to himself, "Takes getting used to.." At least I can leave now..
"Ah, you must be Ash!" Felix said with a grin, "I'm Fix-It Felix Jr., from the game Fix-It Felix Jr."
"And I'm his wife. You can call me Tamora," Calhoun said, "There's the stare of disbelief.. Did I say that out loud?" She looked down to Felix. I did. Great..
"Sorry," Ash said, "It's just.." I didn't mean to..
"Oh don't worry," Felix said cheerfully, "We get it all the time. Ralph is a friend of ours, but he seems to be running late so we may as well head into Sugar Rush 2 to collect him. That's likely where he's at right now."
"Alright.." Ash said. I wonder what is keeping him..
On their way they crossed paths with Jet and the others at the gateway.
"Going to the beach, hmm?" Calhoun said as she noticed them carrying white bags with a pink T on them. You were in a hurry because of that, right?
"Ah.. Yeah," Garret said with a nervous smile. Don't ask to come along, Jubileena will flip. Well she probably won't, but you'll make her uncomfortable.
"Well, have fun," Calhoun said with a sly grin, "Ralph still in there?"
"We saw him and Vanellope headed to the castle with King Candy," Leon said, "The older Vanellope I mean." Not the one from the other Sugar Rush.
"Just call her Vannie," Taffyta said, "That's been decided for a while now." You're behind the times, Leon.
"Why thank you," Felix said while tipping his hat happily.
Felix, Calhoun, and Ash went inside Sugar Rush 2 and headed to the castle.
Vannie was still standing around the entrance when she heard them knock. She opened the door to let them in, much to Sour Bill's relief.
"Hey guys, sorry we're late.." Vannie said sincerely, "Dad wanted Ralph's help with something before we left." At least that's what I gather from it.
"Well I was able to leave my game on my own," Ash said with a satisfied smile, "That's all I'm really concerned about.. I see you're a fan of pink." Not the color choice I would go with.
"We call it salmon here," Vannie said jokingly, "But yes, it's pink. Just don't tell my dad that." He gets defensive.
"So where did they go?" Calhoun asked, "Wouldn't more hands get the job done faster? Or is it heavy lifting?" I can handle that..
"Dad didn't say," Vannie said, "They went to the code room though, I think."
Author's Note: So I wanted to try justifying all of the random things found in the game worlds and came up with this, lol.. Basically the 'Black Box' files are 'souls' for characters, as King Candy describes. For places, it's more along the lines of interior designs of buildings that otherwise would have nothing. Bathrooms, stores, etc. are all included in the Black Boxes. They're basically filled with the developers' headcanons while being programmed. As for how it happens? As one of the developers said, "It's magic, we don't have to explain that." Lazy, I know xD.
