-Jitos Syndicate Base, Saiccano, 8:50 Turo Standard Time-
Obrea's tail felt like it was on fire, but he ignored it. Time for this to come to an end. Things had quieted down above, meaning that the battle between the experiments had either come to an end or was about to, and Obrea didn't want to drag things out and risk Leroy appearing from the elevator door.
But how to get to Jumba? That needed to be his primary goal – otherwise they'd just keep launching plasma at each other until they were both out and would have to resort to an old-fashioned brawl, which was, to put it bluntly, a profoundly stupid idea.
Or was it?
Obrea mulled it over. Hmm. It just might work, especially if I…
Resolved to see his plan through, Obrea cautiously stuck his head out just far enough for Jumba to see him, drawing a hail of plasmafire down on top of him. He returned the favor in kind, alternatively blasting and ducking Jumba's shots, and as he did he noticed that Jumba wasn't making any sort of move either. Like as not he's come to the same conclusion. In spite of the active firefight and the pain in his tail, Obrea grinned tightly. Excellent.
The two kept firing until their blasters went silent. Obrea took a deep breath and, in a move that was contrary to almost all his training barreled out from behind his cover and tackled Jumba.
It was as the Kweltikwan had expected, and so when Obrea charged Jumba simply lifted him up and slammed him to the floor before throwing in a couple of punches for good measure, cracking the screen on Obrea's visor and forcing the Raptrian to open it up.
The two glared at each other before Jumba smiled and raised his weapon. It had one more blast in it, Obrea realized.
"Well fought, Colonel!" Jumba unclicked the safety. "But still, I am thinking fight is over. Any last words?"
Obrea, rather than responding, reached up and grabbed Jumba's arm, pulling it in front of his. Then, before Jumba could react, he bit down.
It was a cheap and rather common trick, so Jumba had made sure to train himself not to react to his opponent desperately trying to clamp down on his arm.
Unfortunately, such preparations were useless when one's opponent had a mouth full of teeth evolved to tear through flesh and bone. Obrea's teeth ripped through all of Jumba's skin and fat like it was nothing before clamping around his wrist, and a quick twist of Obrea's neck snapped the bone and rendering Jumba's hand completely limp.
Jumba yelled in pain and made to grab his weapon with his other hand, but Obrea beat him to it. Without hesitating, without offering a chance for last words, without gloating, Obrea raised the gun to Jumba's chest and fired.
The Kweltikwan's entire body shook. Jumba stumbled back a step, then another, and finally collapsed onto his back.
Stave in hand, Leroy turned towards the interloper and growled. "Gaba Gee Yuuga?" Who are you?
Lilo blinked and frowned. "What?" She looked over at 626 for a translation. Upon hearing it she smiled at Leroy. "Lilo. My name's Lilo Pelekai. You're Leroy, right? That's such a cool name!"
Evidently Leroy wasn't used to being complemented, because Lilo praising its name caught the experiment completely flat-footed. "Do gaba?" Thank you?
"He says thank you."
"You're welcome." Lilo walked up to Leroy before 626 could warn her off and extended a hand. "Nice to meet ya!"
626 forced himself up, taking a step forwards to try and separate the two, but before he could make it he felt a hand on his shoulder. He whirled around and saw Spon, who shook his head. "Leave them be."
Leroy, who had dropped into a combative stance upon seeing Lilo approach, immediately softened. Cautiously, as if expecting a trap, it took a Lilo's hand in its paw. The two shook, gently.
"Is your eye okay?" Lilo asked. "That looks like it hurts. Here: let me cover it." Dropping Leroy's paw she reached down and grabbed the bottom of her mu'umu'u, and with a great rip (626 and Spon both looked away, blushing) began tearing off all the fabric up to her knees. Then, once she was done, she gently wrapped the fabric around Leroy's head until its wounded eye was completely covered before tying a knot in the back. "There. It won't stop it hurting, but at least you won't be bleeding anymore."
Leroy clamped a paw up to the impromptu bandage. She was right: it still hurt where the other one had stabbed him, but somehow, it felt a little better too. "Th-th-thanks." It stuttered out in basic. Speaking to her in a language she understood seemed like the right thing to do.
Lilo smiled again. "You'll have to see a doctor, of course, but at least it'll help a bit. Now, can I ask a question?"
"Ih."
"Yes." 626 supplied. "It says you can ask it."
"It? Isn't he a boy like you?"
"Well, technically, but…" 626 frowned. Why was Leroy an it? Suddenly, calling Leroy that seemed wrong and hypocritical.
Lilo just shrugged and turned back to Leroy. "Why are you two fighting? Isn't he family?"
Leroy growled. "Naga! Naga family!"
626 tensed up and readied himself to intercept the other experiment. "He says we're not family."
Lilo held up her hands. "Sorry. You two do look alike, though. You don't seem to like 626 very much – why not?"
Leroy threw a look at the other experiment. "Huaa Allah naga chifa. Master…not like. Says is…quala chifa." Suddenly Leroy looked apologetic and winced. "Meega, not know word."
"Failure." 626 supplied.
"Do gaba." Leroy flinched upon finishing, as if it had committed a massive wrong of some sort, and began hitting itself and muttering in Tantalog.
"What's he doing?" Lilo asked, horrified.
"It – he – must have done something that Dr. Hämsterviel wouldn't have approved of." The sight of Leroy hitting himself over and over made 626 sick to the stomach. "He's punishing himself."
Lilo ran over to him and grabbed his paw, whispering that everything was okay in an attempt to calm Leroy down, but the experiment just shouted "NAGA!" at the top of his lungs and threw her off.
"Lilo!" 626 ran over to where she landed and helped her up. She touched her cheek and winced: Leroy had accidentally scratched it. Lilo glanced at the bits of blood on her fingertips, clenched her fist, and walked back over to Leroy. This time, she simply embraced him in a hug and, as Spon and 626 looked on, began to sing.
Aloha 'oe, aloha 'oe,
E ke onaona noho i ka lipo
One fond embrace,
A ho'i a'e au,
Until we meet again.
As she sung, amazingly, Leroy began to calm down. Eventually the frantic mutterings began ceased, replaced by sobs.
Lilo sang the little song twice more before gently breaking off the embrace. "It's alright. You didn't do anything wrong. You did good."
Leroy stared at her. She said I did good. She said I did good!
No, the other voice growled, don't be weak. Master would want her dead, so kill her! Do it!
But she praised me. She praised me!
Master praises you.
She praised me more!
LIES! Do what master wants! Kill her! Kill her!
No! I won't!
Kill her!
Shutupshutupshutupshutupshutup
KILL HER KILL HER KILL –
"AKA CHATA!" The words burst out of Leroy. Chest heaving, he looked around at all those gathered. "Meega…meega…mega naga queesta! Leroy…Leroy want be good!"
I do. I don't want to destroy, I don't I don't I don't!
But master said –
Master is gone! Master was evil! I don't care anymore what master wanted!
Leroy grabbed the stave and with all his strength tossed it down to the floor below. Then, crying once more, he ran to Lilo and hugged her.
Spon and 626 looked at each other. Both were thinking the same thing: What in SPACE is going on? Everything they'd heard and seen of Leroy so far painted a picture of a violent monster; someone who would rip anyone apart who tried to get close to him, not give them hugs. Yet here Leroy was, acting completely tamed.
The hug seemed to stretch on forever. Then, once Leroy had calmed down, he stepped away from Lilo and looked over at 626. "Enjibada?" What happens now? He asked. "Meega kapa?" Am I a prisoner?
626 realized his ears were drooping. "You…might have to be one."
"Pano meega bachoota!" But I'm good now!
"I know that. I do. But that doesn't change that what Jumba and Hämsterviel made you do was a crime. And, I can tell you first-hand that a lot of people out there are going to hold everything about you against you, forced behavior or not. You're an illegal genetic experiment, and for a lot of people that's all they'll see."
"But you can't let them hurt him!" Lilo protested. "He didn't have a choice in any of that! You can't just lock him up! Even if some bad people think he's nothing but an abomination, you know he's more than that!"
"Lilo, give it up." Spon sighed and gave his friend a quick glare. "626 isn't exactly the best when it comes to defying the bigoted idiots."
The words stung, but they were true, 626 knew full well – it was why he'd been so adamant in chasing down Leroy in the first place.
No longer. "Not this time." He answered the glare with a grin. "What was that you said about not bothering with those assholes?" Then, after seeing Spon's face thrown into a bit of confusion that rapidly melded into satisfaction, 626 turned back to Lilo and Leroy. "I promise you I'll put in a good word with the Councilwoman. And so will Obrea, if I can make him."
"Meega…chuchotoo." I'm…glad. Leroy swayed in place, the world suddenly growing blurry around him as though he was falling asleep. Only then did he realize how light-headed he was, how much his injury was beginning to throb. Maybe I should rest a bit…
Leroy began to pitch forwards, unconscious, before Lilo was able to catch him and lower his body gently to the ground.
Spon ran over and gently placed a hand on Leroy's throat, measuring a pulse. "He's alright. His injury and all the excitement must have finally gotten to him."
Lilo sighed in relief while 626 shook his head. "Seriously?"
"Seriously. You took his eye out, remember? I'm amazed you didn't kill him."
"I'm glad you didn't."
626 gazed down at Lilo and smiled. "Believe it or not, I'm actually glad too." It was a surprise even to him, but it was the truth. "Now come on – let's get you to safety."
"What about your dinosaur friend?"
"My…dinosaur friend?"
"I think she means Obrea?" Spon suggested. "He'll be along soon, and he wouldn't want us to wait for him in somewhere this dangerous." Or he's dead, and we need to get ahead of Jumba. But prooooobably shouldn't say that.
The four of them started off, 626 and Lilo helping each other along while Spon hoisted Leroy onto his back, heading towards the elevator at the end of the catwalk. 626 and Lilo got on first, while Spon was left below with an inert Leroy.
"Would it kill them to have installed another one of these?" He grumbled. Eventually, the little chime indicating that the elevator was on the way down started, so Spon reached out his hand to key in the floor he wanted to go to –
And withdrew his hand as a bolt of plasma sizzled past and blew up the control panel. The Amuan swore and whirled around, groping for a weapon, until he came face to face with the shooter.
It was Dixon, holding his plasma cannon at the ready and glaring at Spon and Leroy, entire body quivering with rage. "You…you…you have that beast! I was watching the entire time – you and 626…you're traitors, aren't you?"
What in kriffing space is he doing? Cradling Leroy in his second pair of hands, Spon raised his primary ones outwards in a calming gesture. "Put the gun down, Dixon. It's over. Leroy surrendered."
"NO!" Dixon shouted. "Not happening! That abomination's killed too many of us for that. It needs to die!"
"Dixon, he was tortured. You said you were watching the entire time just now, so didn't you see how he was acting? He didn't really want to do any of it"
"SHUT UP! Jofford, you've always been soft on these…things, haven't you? I let it slide with 626, but not. this. time." The gun clicked, ready to fire. "Put that monster down, or I'll hold you complicit in its crimes. I don't want to, but if I have to kill you both, I will."
Spon glanced at the gun, then down at Leroy. I'm sorry about this. But at least you're still out. He looked back at Dixon and grinned. "Alright, alright. You want him so badly, well, you can have him!"
Taking care to make sure Leroy's injured side was as far away from Dixon as possible, Spon tossed the inert experiment at Dixon. Leroy collided with him with the force of a bowling ball, sending the Raptrian plummeting to the floor of the catwalk, and Spon took the opportunity to tackle him to the ground.
Dixon growled and threw to Amuan off his body before picking himself up off the floor. "I knew it. You are a traitor." He wiped a trickle of blood off his mouth. "Well, traitor, I didn't want to, but it seems like I'm going to kill both of you after all."
Spon just shrugged as he raised his arms. "Fine, if you insist on doing this."