The thief fled on foot from Team Darkmatter taking twist and turns, leaping through windows into homes, then continuing the flee from there. The thief exited one of the buildings to the bustling crowd of people then smirked, a clean get away, across from a bar. The thief needed to have a drink after running from Space Rangers. The thief started to walk but was stopped by the distinct feeling that someone was tapping her shoulder.
"Nah uh uh." Booster said, causing the thief to become chilled and XR cuffed him from behind. "You stole antique nintendos during Black Friday." the giant shook his finger. "No drinks for you."
"Good work, Booster!" The thief heard the voice of Warp from across.
"Warp, how about we have a drink?" Mira suggested.
"We don't drink on the job." Warp folded his arms.
"We're not on the job," Mira reminded the captain. "Because it is over. The suspect has been arrested."
"I suppose a drink is in order." Warp said with a sigh then exchange a grin with Mira.
"Last one there is a chicken liver!" Mira announced, gleefully.
"Not on my watch!"
The Space Rangers raced to the bar with Warp the first one to reach and enter the doorway with a smirk. Eventually, Booster and XR joined them at the counter at their bar stools. Warp ordered a drink as did Booster and Mira.
"Milk, Mira?" Booster asked, incredulously.
"Lightest thing there is." Mira replied
"This is a bar," Booster stared in disbelief.
"No, you don't understand," Mira giggled as she replied. "this isn't just milk, it's eggnog."
"That's still light." Booster said as the bartender handed them their drinks and gave XR a empty cup to feel included. "I had that after harvesting a few months ago." then booster smacked his chest with his hand with a grin. "Really hits the hay."
"Are you implying there is harder liquor out there that tastes sweet and not bitter?" Mira asked.
"Yes? How is this a question?" Booster asked, startled. "There is Gagolie, Mevolia, Dakunken, Jack Daniels, etc."
"Uh huh." was Mira's response taking a drink as did Warp with bemusement.
"It's been two years and nine months since Buzz Lightyear's death," Came a comment from the bartender. "Space Ranger Warp Darkmatter."
"Hasn't been that hard since then." Warp said as he took another sip.
"Is it true?" The bartender asked
"About what?" Warp looked up toward the bartender.
"That Zurg hasn't been. . ." The Bartender rubbed a glass with a wet cloth. "being evil as often?"
"Well, he can't say that for certain," Booster spoke up for the captain who drank another sip instead of replying. "He faces him so often as it is."
"It hits different." Warp chimed, placing the cup on the table. "Fighting Zurg." He closed his eyes. "Without good old Buzz there." the captain took another ship. "His epic battles were a fight between good and evil except this time around..." The Space Ranger took a long gulp of his drink then smacked it on the table. "It's personal."
Warp sighed.
"One more."
"You're lucky," Booster told the older man then took a sip of his beverage. "Getting to be there for most of them."
"I am, and maybe I am not," the bartender handed another glass to the Space Ranger. "People do iffy things before tragedy knocks them upside the head." he looked toward Booster with a smile. "Not all of them, though."
"But you know him well enough to be asked to his biography about his first encounter with Zurg." Booster said, with a grin, seeing the bright side of their partnership. Mira turned away from the group spotting a moving Holo-photograph of Buzz and Warp, during their academy days, during a drunken night; kissing. Apparently during new years. "You must have been there."
Warp looked toward Booster for a moment then turned his head away and lowered his head.
"I was there." Warp said.
Warp took another sip of the cup.
"I was there in his greatest moments and his final greatest moment. I wasn't there in his last moments." he took another long drink then set it on the table. "I wasn't intending to be there for him for a brief moment of time, ignored him, largely."
Mira raised her head up, with shock.
"He's obviously joking," XR assumed.
"Lightyear sent him out," Mira said.
"You're intoxicated and feeling survivors guilt." Booster added.
"Not joking." Warp said, dead serious, somberly.
"Intending?" Mira had a sick feeling in her stomach.
"I was supposed to remain still in one place and get pinned under some debris, trapped, nearby one of Zurg's fire work units." he wiped off a fine long stretch of a alcohol mustache above his hairy chin. "But, instead, I got carried away posing as a Space Ranger, showing off, making it look real, and I paid no attention to how Buzz Lightyear was doing or where he were going."
Warp took another sip from his glass as Booster, Mira, and XR stared at him in horror listening to him spill his guts out.
"It was supposed to be my last mission as Space Ranger Warp Darkmatter and hello to mercenary Warp Darkmatter with plenty of personal days, hot chicks, a entire moon to myself, being bathed in money, and relaxing. It was my dream job." his shoulders relaxed beneath the suit. "He wasn't supposed to die."
Darkmatter lowered his head.
"I had it down to a tea, like orchestrating a play, what I would be doing, what Buzz would be doing, what Zurg would be doing, and the hornets, god, just shooting practice compared to prior battles. Was it worth it becoming a mole before attending academy that lead to his death? No, not really. I lost a friend who I could grow old with and have my back when really needed during mercenary business that somehow got into his business."
"And I killed him, I killed him the day that Zurg's grub came to me, offering me money for stolen goods, I killed him the day I became on Zurg's payroll after graduating the academy, I killed Lightyear the day that he became my partner, I killed him the day that we became friends. I killed him the day that we embarked on our first mission, I killed him by not having his back."
"Hell, I didn't deserve him having my back all those years, I killed him the day that Ty left and I was compatible with him. I killed him the day that I first met him. I killed him the day I stood by his side, sat by his side, etc, point is; that LGM mission only happened because of me."
The bartender took the cup.
"Okay sob story 746567574, that's enough for you."
"So that's what you meant by done enough damage." Mira said, softly.
Booster had a complete 360 perspective change on Warp. He remembered the older man exiting the Star Cruiser bay with Buzz in his arms, his features panged by guilt. It made sense why he had decided to do more personal logs than necessary about certain high stakes missions and non-high stakes, leaving no stone unturned, why he was always on the look out like a security professional. Why he always had Booster's back during missions keeping him not long out of sight.
He remembered that distinctive moment Warp returned as there was a honor guard lining the halls for Buzz Lightyear. This was the same moment that he discovered as a janitor that Buzz had died during the line of duty. Now, he truly knew how the tragedy unfolded, how it probably went, why the guilt lingered, why he were still grieving for his former partner, why he had changed. Why he hated Zurg that made his heart burn.
Warp fell sideways, drunk, slumping from the chair caught by Mira.
"Do we report this?" Booster questioned, confused, earning a pained look from Mira.
"No." XR said.
"Why?" Mira asked.
"We currently have no hard evidence from Space Rangers Internal Affairs," XR proceeded to explain with a finger held up. "They investigated Warp Darkmatter, there was no evidence discovered, if he had been a mole then the funds could have been legal for cadets to receive funds for specific extracurricular activity."
"Could have..." Booster said.
"Come on, lets get him back to Star command and let him get sobered up." Mira said then looked toward the photograph. "We'll figure out how to proceed with that information once he does."
Warp was guided out of the building except XR left another photograph of them as adults with the captain posing and Buzz's attention focused on him.