Chapter 20: The Traitor
It was just one quick swipe and it was over. Doctor Friedrich, the being who had kidnapped Billy and Gerald genetically transformed them into mogmen and subjected both to humiliation and discomfort and violated their bodies was now dead on the ground, bleeding onto the tiles. The monster was dead. The human monster was dead. The human…was…dead.
What have I done? The thought had echoed around in Billy's head. He had taken a life, a human life. He glanced at his blood stained talons and the chunks of flesh that were embedded in them and then down at the corpse and the gouges in its neck. He did that. He killed a man. He was a murderer; well he would be considered one if he was still human, but now he was a true monster.
"King Billy, King Billy, King Billy," the crowd of gremlins cheered his name. They were proud of him. Was he proud? No he was ashamed of what he had done. He had taken a life and sure he wasn't innocent but that gave him no right.
"Blood Brother You sad," Razor spoke to him in the language of both mogwai and gremlins. It wasn't a question but a statement and there were a few words he wasn't sure of but what of them might have been look.
"I killed man, I killed a man," Billy answered and frowned. He felt his stomach twist into a knot.
"Yes it is good," Razor said and placed a hand on his arm. "Feel good. You like."
"It feel great," Billy answered as he remembered what that human had put him through. The queasy sensation was gone. "I like it."
"Want to kill more? Feel good again?"
"Yes."Did he though? Did he want to actually take innocent lives or lives of humans whether they were awful people or not, or was he just saying it to appease the other Hei'an Lingxiu? He stared at his claws again and well his manicure was ruined. He wiped it on the clothing of the corpse before he climbed back onto the hood of the car. "My brothers you have seen what I have done? That is what will happen to all of our enemies. We will all get to kill soon once are armies have grown and we will be able to leave this place, sure it was fun and there is more fun out there, so much to destroy to smash to maim and so much pain. It will be nothing but pure fun for us."
"That does sound like a rather good time," a refined voice spoke up. "But I was hoping we could do it in a more civilized manner."
"Who the egghead?" Razor asked and blinked. "He back?" His lips pulled back into snarl. "Try and challenge?"
"Challenge?" Billy repeated and looked out to the sea of gremlins as one brown one who was wearing plum colored turtleneck a dark gray vest and a white lab coat approached. He was also carrying a small briefcase and wore a pair of glasses. "You look familiar."
"You might have been more familiar with my previous form," the gremlin answered. "I was simply called Brain back then and now I have been given the moniker of Helix by the lovely and intelligent Doctor Valerie Cordova." It only took Billy a few seconds to recognize this gremlin as the leader of the batch they killed in the lobby of Clamp Center Tower. He could understand why Razor was being defensive.
Razor grumbled her name and rolled his eyes.
"My liege does not have a fond opinion of the female?" Helix asked.
"She with Gene," Razor spat.
"She did have a soft spot for the little clone," Helix answered. "I do hate deceiving her but I have to stand with my own kind and I sought out and found you." He gave a little bow. "My king." He stood back up and looked Billy up and down. "Correction my kings. You must be one of the new species of human and gremlin hybrids."
"Formerly William Peltzer now I am King Billy." As soon as he had spouted his title the other gremlins shouted his name along with King Razor.
"There is something familiar with you." Helix brought his hand to his chin as he studied Billy. "I believe I saw you when you up on top of the stairs in the lobby while I started to lead my big number." His eyes widened and he snapped his fingers. "Ah that is correct you were one of those humans who first drenched us and then electrocuted us."
"My idea," Billy said with a grin.
"How long did that take you to come up with that? All day?" Now he was insulting him.
"Spur of the moment actually. First idea was to trick you into thinking the sun had set and then drop a big cloth."
"And let in the sun," the corners of his mouth turned up. "Also clever and you had to think of a new idea when you heard thunder, both would have been painful and yes being fried by electricity and then melting was excruciating pain." His voice dropped to a low growl.
"And now you want to kill me out of revenge," Billy said and rolled his eyes.
"A part of me does, but my developed cerebral cortex doesn't," Helix said. "Yes I am angry for how you killed me and the rest of us in the past, but I can't fault you since you were trying to protect your species and you are quite adept at conceiving clever ideas."
"I still want to protect my species," Billy said. "I want to protect the goblin race and my brother's species." He held out his hand and Razor took it.
"And I want to help you create more hybrids or goblins as you prefer to go by," Helix said as he lifted the suit case. "I have recreated the formula that was used on you except instead of using mogwai DNA I will use our own gremlin blood and I also used some human blood that was in storage."
"Turn others into goblins?" Razor asked and pointed at himself. "Turn us into goblins?"
"Only those who wish to be turned," Helix answered. "Like myself for instance. I already have human intelligence. I would like to require some of their physical features as well. I know it sounds shallow but it would be nice to be a bit taller, maybe some hair as well and four digits per hand are better than three and once I have been turned then I will use the other on Valerie. We would be the same and I could properly woo her."
"Awww," Butterball said.
"Transform your lady friend," Billy repeated as he thought about Kate. Damn he hadn't seen her since he was taken. Was she looking for him? Could she be here at the mall? Knowing her she is somewhere inside. She with her beautiful brown eyes and soft lips, the scent of her hair and the sound of her voice and her gentle curves of her body and…now he had an erection. "Transform my wife?"
"By all means my liege I will transform all that you want to be turned," Helix said.
"The first thing I'll do once she is a beautiful goblin is to bang her. I want to spread her out on our throne all nice and naked and make her moan and then after we will find her a crown because she will be your queen."
"Queen?" Razor asked.
"Don't worry, brother, we will find you girl if you want one and she will be your queen," Billy assured him. "Helix here has quite the skills to be our royal advisor."
"He talks no show," Razor growled.
"I can understand why you have reservations, my liege," Helix said as he removed a syringe from his suitcase. "So I shall perform." He closed his eyes as he injected the contents of the vial into himself.
"That was fun," Gerald said as he pulled up the zipper to his jeans. "And I'm sorry it was just a quickie, but we have work to do."
"After we save the world?" Penny asked in a pleading tone. "It could be victory sex."
"Victory sex is always great," Gerald agreed as he tried to smooth his hair back into place before he put the cap back on. "But it will have to wait."
"I understand," she said as she stared down. "Do you think they will fix this place?"
"This mall?" He blinked. "Yeah it is pretty popular and it will take a while. All those groundhog like tunnels will have to be filled in and the tiles replaced and they are going to have to clean everything up but they will fix it." He opened the dressing room stall and came face to face with Murray Futterman who looked away and up at the ceiling. "Um."
"Yeah, um," Murray said. "Kate told me she first lost sight of Penny and then you and now the three of us are looking for you two and where do I find you? Hiding in here doing…well making certain sounds that can only relate to one kind of activity."
"Uh well," Gerald gulped as he placed his fingers under his collar. He could feel his whole face burning up. "Sorry."
"You don't need to apologize," Murray said as he held up his hands. "I can understand and what you kids do on your own time is no one's business but your own, but we are on a time crunch.. Now come on we need everyone to haul this stuff."
"You are not going to tell the others?" Gerald asked.
"Like I said what you two do along is your own business, but we'll tell them that Penny here was feeling sad about something and hid and you went to comfort her."
"Isn't that lying?" Penny asked as she tried to keep up with the human. Her legs stretched and she was almost jogging.
"Gerald was comforting you." He did finger quotations at the word 'comforting'. "Trust me I don't think the ladies want to know that you were performing the horizontal tango in a dressing room."
"We are not supposed to talk about it in front of friends and family," Penny repeated what Gerald had told her earlier.
"Exactly so we stretch the truth a little."
Kate and Lynn were nearly running towards them when they had seen each other, both had scared and frustrated expressions on their faces that were instantly replaced with joy and relief.
"Where were they?" Kate had asked once they were reunited.
"I was scared," Penny answered in a small voice as she stared at the grown. "I was worried about what if it doesn't work what if we lose and even if we did win what's going to happen after? What if Daddy and Gerald don't get to be human again." She reached up to wipe away a tear. "What if I can't help."
"I had to sit with her and encourage her that it was going to be okay," Gerald explained as he placed an arm around her. "That everything will be okay. She was just scared."
"Don't worry," Lynn said as she smiled down at her. "We are all in on this together. We are going to be together and it is going to be all right."
"Sorry, it won't happen again," Penny told her before she was swept into an embrace.
"Thank you, Gerald," Kate said before she kissed his forehead.
"We don't have time to dawdle," Murray said. "We have to contact the others and tell them we are ready."
"Clamp already called us," Kate said and held up the two-way. "He wants us to meet in front of the Macy's in five minutes."
"Then what are we doing just hanging around?" Murray asked. "Let's grab the stuff and go."
Gerald didn't have to be told twice. He grabbed two of the bags and tried to pick them up, but they were too heavy. He handed one to Penny before they followed the humans down the mall. In addition to the electronics they also had to carry their weapons of frying pan, swords and a golf club. They had to be fully prepared.
Billy watched as Helix had finished the injection before he stretched and closed his eyes and…nothing. There was no instant mutation. There were no changes whatsoever. He kept watching the intelligent gremlin until he heard a light tapping.
Razor had his arms crossed and was tapping his foot, impatiently.
"What am I looking at?" Billy growled. "You said you can change both gremlins and humans, but clearly that was a lie."
"Perhaps I just need a little time," Helix sputtered. "My calculations can't be wrong and I followed the notes to an exact."
"I became spider fast," Razor said and held up his hand before he pointed his thumb down at the ground. "Kill him."
"No I feel a tingling in my body," Helix protested. "And now it's itching…no burning. It's starting to work!" He was twitching in several places before he fell over.
"This sucks," Billy said. "I was hoping we can change my Kate and change others, but we are going to have to make more goblins the old fashion way, and more gremlins. We need more to take over the town and take revenge on those who wronged us."
"Gizmo caca," Razor snarled and was drooling.
"Gizmo does stand in our way and I'll let you have your fun and play with him, but don't kill him." He jumped back when Razor growled and nearly lashed at him. "We want him to suffer right? How about an eternal suffering by forcing him to eat after midnight, make him become what he hates and you can play around with him even more." The idea of his best friend becoming a gremlin had crossed his mind and had even worried him in the past but now it seems like a great idea.
"Yes one of us, one of us," Butterball sang out as he danced. Garrison had grinned at the idea and Chuckles laughed even more.
"Gizmo eats," Razor said with a nod. "Razor has fun."
"But first to increase our numbers," Billy said as he held up a talon. "There is a hotel attached to this mall and I have been informed there is a pool below the ground level. Who wants to go for a dip?" He was answered by his minions cheering.
"Lets go swim," Razor ordered.
"Bring everyone, except for the failure." He pointed at the convulsing form of Helix on the ground. He watched as everyone ran off, following after Razor, even the keyboard was wheeled off with the masked gremlin sitting on it.
"The plan is set," he said softly. He just hoped the others will follow his clues and kill the—his army? No he had to make sure they all got wet and then got out…no he had to make sure they died, did he? As a goblin he was king and he didn't have to bend to the rules of society. He could do what he wanted whenever he wanted and what he wanted was…he wanted his wife…he wanted his wife as a goblin, his queen, no he wanted to be a human again, did he?
"King Billy?" The only gremlin that had remained was Veggie and he had a tray with both guacamole and salsa. "Where everyone go?"
"To multiply," Billy answered. "Let's go and join them."
His whole body was wracked with pain. His muscular structured felt like it was being torn apart, his blood felt like it was on fire and his bones felt like they were going to break apart and tear out of his system and Helix wished death would come fast, but it didn't. He twitched and shuddered for a few seconds more before the pain had left.
"It's done?" He asked as he started at his unchanged hand. "No. I'm still the same. It's back to the drawing board then." He stood back up and still felt warmer than usual, as if the temperature had increased even more. "I thought I had it."
He picked up his briefcase and brought it over to the car and placed it on the hood while trying to ignore how tight his clothes felt. They didn't just feel tight they were constricting.
A button flew off his vest followed by the other two and soon that was followed by the stretching and ripping off fabric. His head also became itchy and the car did seem lower than before.
"Could it be?" He stared at his hand and noticed the more human like shape and the fact there were four fingers. He reached up and ran his fingers through his new hair. "Yes." He climbed inside the car and placed himself in the middle of the front seat before he studied his reflection in the rear view mirror. He had grown more attractive in appearance, at least he thought so. He had a human shaped nose and jawline and cheekbones as well and he also had eyebrows. He looked down at his four toed feet and down at his…oh dear. He not only was half human now, but also very naked. He had to rectify that before he could rejoin the others.