Chapter 52
"How cute." T.K. sneered. "But I beg to differ, especially when I've absorbed that expiring Surge Protector."
"What did you just say?" Vanellope jumped back, frozen.
"I did not stutter, cavity. I've absorbed Surge," Takeru repeated. "Now I'm more powerful than before."
"Then we'll kill you and get him out of your slutty body!" Takuya threatened.
"I'm afraid you can't," said the succubus. "Not without killing Surge. You see, if you kill, Sureg will die, and the arcade will go out for good. And guess who will be out of a job?"
Both women's eyes widened. "You can't be joking..." Vanellope trailed off.
"I wish I was, saccharine wench." Takeru walked up to Vanellope, gripping her chin and forcing eye contact. "Litwak won't have a job if you kill your guardian – the one who provides power to the whole arcade. Kind of a tough decision, really. And either way, the result isn't good."
Vanellope trembled under Takeru's grip, knowing the succubus was right. If she killed T.K., that would kill Surge, and the arcade would black out permanently, and if she kept Takeru alive, everyone would submit to the succubus' rule. Neither would benefit the arcade. She would never race again, and worse she'd never tell Ralph how she felt. And she hadn't been ruling Sugar Rush that long. She hazarded a look at Takuya in the corner of her eye to find that the siren was just as at a loss about how they were going to stop T.K.
The princess's thoughts were halted by Takeru wrapping her whip around Vanellope's neck. The succubus pulled Vanellope toward her, slowly tightening the spiked weapon.
Takeru, put her down! Takuya thrust a burst of mental energy into Takeru's mind.
But the succubus didn't flinch. "Sorry, Takuya, but you'll have to have some more mind over matter than that this time. I wish I could thank Surge for this, but I'm afraid I can't. Instead, I can show you how powerful I've grown." She glitched in a bolt of purple energy, releasing Vanellope, who recovered and massaged her neck.
"Where'd she go?" the princess wondered, looking around the void. She then felt a sudden whip smack across her face, Vanellope turned around, but nothing was there. Then she heard Takuya's cry from her left. The president turned to see Takeru holding Takuya by the neck in her whip. The succubus raised the siren up, sneering at Vanellope.
"Another of Surge's abilities." T.K. held Takuya to Vanellope. "I thought about killing you first, but I'll start with my disrespectful pupil." The succubus tightened the whip around Takuya's neck, emitting a scream from the siren.
"Put her down!" Vanellope fists crackled with angry blue sparks.
"Have you forgotten who's inside me so soon?" Takeru asked. "And you might even hurt or even kill sweet little Takuya." She rubbed her chin against the siren's.
Vanellope remembered Surge was inside T.K., and the succubus was holding Takuya hostage. The princess lowered her fists and her attack. She didn't want to kill Surge or Takuya. She would black out the arcade, according to T.K., but if T.K. wasn't stopped, all of Game Central Station would continue to bend under the succubus' will. The princess didn't know what to do at this point.
"Don't worry about me, Vanellope!" Takuya insisted. "Just fry this bitch and save everyone!" The siren let out another shriek as the spiked whip dug into her skin.
"There's got to be another way!" said Vanellope. "I can't kill Surge!"
President von Schweetz, don't worry about me! Surge's voice was heard.
"Surge?" Vanellope looked around the void in search of the arcade guardian, but couldn't find him.
I'm inside Ms. Nightrose, came the hologram's voice again.
"Oh." Vanellope turned back to Takeru.
Ms. von Schweetz... Surge called. Don't worry about me. Just kill Ms. Nightrose. The arcade will black out, yes, but everyone will be safe.
"But Litwak won't have a job!" Vanellope said, knowing that on top of that, she'd never race or see Ralph wreck anything. She couldn't let that happen; she'd been waiting so long to be a real racer. But she couldn't let herself and the arcade continue to suffer under T.K.'s control.
I'm willing to give up my life to make sure Ms. Nightrose is stopped. She can't continue her tyrannical ways!
"But what about the arcade? We'll be out of a job and so will Litwak. And the players who come in..."Vanellope remembered the players who swarmed her game nearly on a daily basis since she'd regained her throne. If they entered a blacked-out arcade, she couldn't imagine the result. "There's got to be another way without the arcade blacking out. There has to be."
"Be quiet, Surge!" Takeru growled. "You shouldn't even be able to talk!" She maintained her hold on Takuya.
"Vanellope..." the siren managed.
"Wait a minute." The princess's face brightened, an idea generating. "Sora said my power could purify any virus. Isn't T.F. a virus now?"
"What are you talking about now, cavity?" T.K. demanded.
"She's...talking about...how fucked you are..." Takuya interjected, which caused the spiked whip to constrict around her neck.
"She's right, you know?" Vanellope smiled, her fists crackling with blue bolts. "An old hag like you shouldn't have such an unrealistic body." The princess scanned Takeru's exaggerated features. "To be honest, you look hideous! Even Sergeant Smiles is more realistic than you!"
"You bitch!" Takeru shrieked. "Now Takuya's dead!" But when she started to pull hard on her whip, it was empty. "What the fuck?" She suddenly felt an ear-splitting song pierce through her mind, causing her to fall to her knees. The succubus looked to her side to see an angry, weakened Takuya. The siren massaged her neck as she walked over to her, continuing her song. Takeru tried to raise her whip, but she was immobilized. Takuya was pouring on every bit of her magic and energy into her song.
Vanellope took that as an opportunity as she charged at Takeru, who tried to move once again but couldn't. The princess tackled T.K., then grabbed the succubus' neck.
"What are you doing?" Takeru screamed. "Let go of me!" The succubus tried to struggle again, but Takuya's song continued to weaken her.
Vanellope squeezed harder, and after a few moments sapphire bolts started to travel from the princess to Takeru, who shrieked in pain as the bolts fried her. T.K. struggled violently but she was beginning to lose all of her strength and her body was starting to feel heavy.
When Takeru went limp, her proportions slowly returning to their original sizes, Vanellope released her hold on her. Takuya stopped her song, slumping in the black space and taking deep breaths.
"Are you okay?" The princess hurried to the siren's aid, but Takuya swatted her away.
"I just need to get my breath back," Takuya said.
Vanellope smiled, nodding, then noticed her entire body glowing with blue energy. The princess looked down at her hands, followed by the rest of her body.
"Sweet mother of monkey milk! What the heck's going on?" Then Vanellope felt several glitches run through her body, speeding up and causing her to slump in the void. She felt her entire being split in two.
Princess von Schweetz... Surge called.
Vanellope looked at the unconscious Takeru. "Surge?"
I'm inside you now, the arcade guardian said.
"What? How?" Vanellope gritted her teeth against the erratic glitches.
My hunch is that it must have happened when you grabbed Ms. Nightrose.
"But my powers are only able to purify viruses. T.J.'s purified.
"It probably removed all of the positive stuff from her, too," Takuya interjected. "Including Surge. Or you probably accidentally absorbed the key and Surge yourself while you did the business and didn't even know it."
Ms. Takuya may be right, said Surge. To be honest, this is my first time hearing about these powers of yours, Ms. Von Schweetz. Is it from the upgrade?
"Yeah," replied Vanellope. "But that's not important right now. I just want this pain to go away! Glitching never hurt this much before!"
I'm trying to get out of you, Surge said. All you have to do is stop fighting and calm down. Otherwise, struggling will keep me inside.
"Okay..." Vanellope closed her eyes and stopped struggling. She took deep breaths, the painful glitches just another activity as she felt Surge break away from her body like a muscle that was not supposed to be there. The princess tried not to wince or scream as the arcade guardian pulled away from her. When Vanellope opened her eyes and rose to her feet, she saw Surge standing next to her in all of his professional glory. He adjusted his glasses.
But Vanellope was still glowing, presumably coming from the key still inside her...if it was the key.
"What now?" The princess's nerves began to rise. "Is the key doing this?"
"I am guessing yes," replied Surge.
"So if that's true, then I can save all these folks who have been infected," said Vanellope.
Surge raised an eyebrow.
"White Hair told me that the key could make my antivirus ability stronger when I was purifying Snow," the princess explained. "She said I could treat everyone without burning out."
"Sora, of course." Takuya rolled her eyes.
"Interesting..." Surge nodded and rubbed his chin. "Let's see, then."
Vanellope swam over to a red Koopa panel in the Super Mario Bros. cluster, and opened it. The princess thrust her fist inside. She released her power the same way she would unleash her electrical attack. Vanellope watched as blue energy transferred from her body to the Koopa's code, gradually changing all of the mini patches from red to blue. Unlike the time with Snow, fatigue did not take over Vanellope; she wasn't feeling faint, lightheaded, sweating, or any other ailments.
When the Koopa's panel was devoid of any traces of Takeru's virus, Vanellope pulled away and regarded Surge and Takuya, with the siren staring in awe.
"Impressive." Surge nodded in approval.
"So it's okay if I borrow the key to cure everyone?" asked Vanellope like a child who had just pleased her parents.
The hologram thought about it for a moment, then responded. "Yes, Ms. von Schweetz, you may use the key since you made your point, but be sure to return it to me as soon as you're finished."
"Yes, sir." Vanellope saluted, then continued her task. She surveyed the void of panel clusters to find over a dozen corrupt characters in each one. The president was definitely going to have her work cut out for her for at least a full day if not two days.
Leaving Vanellope to that chore, Surge swam to Takuya, who had scooped up a still-unconscious Takeru.
"What do you want me to do with her?" the siren asked.
"I will take care of that, Ms. Takuya." Surge took the succubus from her. "I will make sure she never threatens this arcade again. Prison will not be enough for the crimes Ms. Nightrose has committed, I will tell you that much. There is still a lot about us Surge Protectors that is unknown to an arcade's inhabitants, and the sentencing I have planned for Ms. Nightrose is one of them. Of course, I will need someone to carry it out, presumably one of her victims." Surge regarded Takuya. "That is, if you are willing."
Takuya stared at the hologram in confusion, but she slowly understood what Surge was implying.
"I would be honored, Surge," the siren decided. "I've been waiting for this day for a while and would like to finally seize that opportunity."
"Then it's settled," said Surge. "However, this sentencing will be kept private with no witnesses. That being said, what we do does not leave the two of us. Understood?"
"Yes, Surge. I understand."
