"High Dive from Heaven"
a fanfic by Jacob "Robertoa" Corley
Chapter 5: Revelation
"We have to kill her before she can do any more harm." Lilo spoke with hatred in her voice.
"Evil." 627 muttered. By his tone, it was obvious that he agreed.
"No, no, little girl. Is not easy to eliminate 624 just like snapping of fingers." Jumba was serious. He had tried several times to destroy her and had failed with each. "She will only die if she does not want to be being alive."
Ughh, this is going to be tough. Lilo was skeptical, but tried not to let it show. "There's no choice. We have to go after her before she comes and gets us!"
Ever since he came to live in the Pelekai house, Jumba had promised to Nani that he would protect Lilo. He sighed. "You must not be leaving without proper equipment." Jumba opened his closet and revealed his large arsenal of weapons, shields, and the like. He explained each item's function as he handed it to Lilo.
"Tracker - this will be pointing you in the right direction giving you 624's coordinates and distance at given time."
"Check." Lilo felt some need to say "check" after each item he gave her.
"Lazer shield ring - remember, is not for snacking!"
Stitch turned his face away.
"Check."
"Blaster with impulse cartridge- upon impact, it is transferring 127.3 MN-s (megaNewton-seconds) of momentum to target, throwing them to a safe distance."
"Check."
"Electro-plasma cannon - will not hurt anyone, but will stun 624 for several seconds: long enough to get close to her."
"Che... but, why would I need to get close to her?"
Jumba laughed a cold laugh. He answered her question with his next device. "Last, but probably not of the last in ranking, the cerebral bore." Jumba held up in his hands a small metallic ball with three claws and a red button on the opposite side. He stared at it with an evil smile on his face, knowing it to be one of the most feared devices in the galaxy despite its small size. "Be careful with this one. If all else fails you, you must be placing this device on 624's head and standing back; it should finish the job for you."
Lilo took the small ball in her hand, looking it over, wondering how it worked. It looked different from Jumba's other weapons: for one, it was made almost completely of steel, unlike the lightweight alloy that Jumba usually used for weapons. "Did you make this thing?"
"No, actually." He laughed again. "This device was sto-... borrowed many years ago from the last remaining member of Fireseed family." ... upon his death.
Lilo was confused as to why Jumba took so much pride in a stolen weapon. "Umm... check."
Jumba looked over the supplies he had given Lilo. "I am thinking that this should suffice to keep you safe. Go now, there is little knowing when 624 will be ready to attack again."
"Aargh!! Why is this so tough?!" Angel crumpled up another sheet of paper and threw it in the trash can. The can was already overflowing with balls of paper, so this one fell onto the floor onto the pile where the majority lay.
Angel held her head in her hands. She had been working for hours trying to write something good, but had been having terrible writer's cramp. If Stitch was to stay, she would need to convince him to leave Lilo.
625 stumbled out of the elevator; he was becoming immune to the tranquilizer. His chest and face had many small cuts from the glass, but he was generally okay. Knowing nothing else to do with him, Angel asked for his help. "Hey, if you were trying to seduce someone into ditching their true love and coming to live with you for the remainder of eternity... what would you say?"
625 thought for a moment. "You could say you make really good sandwiches."
Angel frowned at his sarcasm. "I'm serious."
625 sat down in another chair. "Hmm... can't say I've ever seriously thought about it." He began preparing himself a sandwich, the whole time thinking hard about what she could say; he didn't have much choice but to help her. It was either that or to be ripped to shreds, which would kill him. He managed to come up with a few good ideas, and he shared them, along with the sandwich, with Angel.
For another half hour, Angel, with 625's help, wrote. Eventually, she came up with a good deal of things to say that she felt would work. Angel looked over her work proudly.
"Yeah!" She smiled. "This should do the trick." She turned to face 625, the smile becoming uneasy. "Uh... thanks... for the help. I really owe you one if this works."
"So," 625 was wary in asking for forgiveness, "does this mean you won't try to tranq me again?"
Angel thought for a moment. "I never said that."
Lilo, Stitch, and 627 had returned; the three friends approached the ship. Hopefully, this would be the last time they would ever need to come here. They found out from the Grand Councilwoman about the deaths of Gantu and Hämsterviel, so experiment hunting from now on would be much easier, to say the least.
627 walked up to the ship first, remembering what had happened the day before. Upon peering in, he saw that the plasma miniguns were gone. Searching deeper and finding no immediate threat, 627 motioned for the others to come in.
As they stepped in, they looked around confused. Lilo though to herself, Where is the security system? What's up with this? Stitch and 627 thought the same.
Stitch decided to go his own way, leaving 627 to protect Lilo. "Booji bu?" he called mockingly. He knew now that she was evil, and, not having seen her in a long time, his attraction to her had faded.
Stitch stepped on the one trap switch that Angel had placed, and the floor underneath him opened, sucked him down, and sealed back again silently. 627 and Lilo were facing the other direction and were not aware that he was gone.
The trap threw Stitch down into a tall glass tube. Angel stood before him, bathed in the dim green light of the storage room. Stitch growled at her.
"Please be calm, Stitch. I just want to talk with you." Angel spoke softly, trying to appease his rage. "You still remember me, don't you?"
"Ih." Stitch was still angry. He wanted to break the tube and kill her, but he felt he could, at the very least, hear her out.
"I've been trapped here for weeks, Stitch. It's been terrible without you."
"Angel evil!" Stitch barked.
Angel was taken aback. "Evil?! Is that what you think of me?! I've been trying ever since I escaped to be with you, Stitch. I want to stay with you forever...I love you... and you think I'm evil?"
"Killed Gantu, Hämst-"
"They were keeping us apart, Stitch. I couldn't let them do that." Angel tried to remain calm, although it was difficult.
"... and Lilo."
"Lilo... yes, Lilo. That little-"
"Meega Lilo." Stitch became very defensive when Lilo was involved.
Angel sighed, knowing she was treading in dangerous territory. "You love her, I know. It's a shame she doesn't love you back, though." Angel shook her head and smiled a sad smile.
Stitch was taken aback. "Naga! Lilo love meega."
Angel reminded Stitch of how Lilo rushed in to see 627 after both of them had been blasted, completely ignoring Stitch. She also told him about how the two of them were together at present. "If anyone, she loves him, you know. She does seem to be spending a lot of time with him, for a 'new friend', anyway."
"Naga," Stitch replied. He knew that 627 and Lilo shared nothing like what he and Lilo did.
"Then, why didn't she send him after me? Why did she choose to stay with him and send you away?"
Stitch gave that serious thought. He didn't want to think about Lilo liking 627, but, with the situations as they were, he had little choice. "N-naga." He was unsure as he spoke. His mind began to fill with images.
"You know, you're right." Angel spoke with a much lighter, less believable tone. "I doubt 627 and Lilo would ever have affection for each other. Not like you and her, anyway."
Stitch pretended to be relieved, but the thought of 627 and Lilo still lurked in his mind, right where Angel had planted it.
Angel spoke again. "The two of them are nothing like Lilo and Keoni." Angel snickered evilly.
Stitch's ears perked up at the thought of surf hut boy. His mind immediately filled with thoughts of grabbing Keoni and tearing him limb from limb. Without thinking, he pulled out his spines, extra arms, and antennae.
Angel calmed him down. "Well, Lilo likes him; the least you could do is try to tolerate him."
Stitch's mind again filled with thoughts of Lilo and Keoni. Despite his desire to kill him, Stitch knew how much Lilo liked him. Stitch did a double-take on what he had just thought: Lilo likes him! Stitch's mind again began to fill with voices and images.
"Plus," Angel added, knowing it would spark greater flame in Stitch's mind, "he's human."
Stitch's pulse quickened. He grabbed his head and fell to his knees as a flow of images overwhelmed him. He could see Lilo with Keoni, going out, getting married, having children. Stitch's voiced was choked, "N-naga!! Nag-".
Angel spoke, but not to Stitch. "Go easy on him." The demons stopped taunting him. The images faded, and Stitch began panting heavily. Angel stood and grinned evilly.
"There she is!!" Lilo cried out. She and 627 had found their way down to the lower level and now stood before Angel. As was typical of Lilo, she had forgotten that she had the tracker, which would have led them directly to Angel sooner.
"Lilo!" Stitch cried out, although seeing her with 627, made him feel even more uneasy.
Angel turned. Oh, great, she thought, they really weren't supposed to show up this soon!
627 jumped in front of Lilo and snarled at Angel. He pulled out his extra arms and spines. "Evil! Evil!!" he barked. Immediately, he tackled her and tried to claw her apart. After several slashes, he realized that, even with his razor sharp claws tearing through her soft flesh, she appeared to show no sign of pain. She grabbed his chest and flipped him backwards over her head, sending him flying into a pile of crates stacked along the wall opposite the elevator.
Angel got up, snickered, and dusted herself off. The wounds on her chest healed immediately. As she looked towards Lilo, ready to attack, she felt a jolt from behind. She looked down to see a large metal spike emerging from her chest.
627 had landed inside a crate of scrap metal, and, finding a large metal spike that he thought would make a nice weapon, had jabbed it through Angel's back, through her heart. Swampy green blood began to flow from Angel's chest, and 627 was shocked to see it.
Expecting to see Angel fall on her face dead, 627 was even more surprised to see Angel turn around unfazed, snarling back at him. Quietly, she whispered to him. "Extermination doesn't always go so well, does it..." She flashed her fierce toothy grin and pulled out her gun. Aimed at 627's eye, she took a single shot.
627 screamed and fell on his back. Even with both hands clasped over his eye, it still bled freely. Before long, he was squirming in a pool of metallic blue blood. Angel reached behind her back, pulled the spike out, and held it high above her head.
She flashed another evil grin and forced the spike down through 627's heart. He coughed loudly, spitting up more blue blood. After a second, his eyes rolled back into his head and he lay dead, by the means intended for Angel. Angel again turned to face Lilo, not expecting her to fight back.
To Angel's surprise, Lilo pulled out the plasma cannon and shot Angel with it. The electric jolt was enough to stun Angel. She stood in place, shaking unnaturally as high electrical currents ran throughout her body.
"Angel!!" Stitch cried out, appalled to see Lilo fire upon his booji bu. All thoughts of Angel being evil had left his mind.
Lilo stepped close to Angel and, knowing it would finish the job, stuck the cerebral bore onto Angel's head and pressed the red button.
The claws on the ball latched on to Angel's head and the ball began humming as the drill began to spin. The iris between the claws opened and the drill began to dig into Angel's head, spitting out swampy green blood along with thick black globs resembling mud. Lilo stepped back, careful to not let Angel's brains stain her dress.
After a few seconds, the drill stopped. Angel, completely stunned, stared into the distance with her mouth hanging open. The part of the bore that Jumba forgot to mention was the explosive charge.
The bore exploded and sent Lilo back several feet. Angel was shot straight downwards, and her blood flew in every direction. Stitch watched with horror from inside the glass tube as a mist of dark green fluid was sprayed onto the outside of the tube.
When the smoke cleared, Stitch could see little beyond Angel lying on the floor.
"Ughhh..." Angel stood up slowly, her head aching from the explosion. The hole left by the bore had healed completely, and Angel appeared unhurt. As soon as Angel straightened herself back up, she was attacked again.
Lilo shot Angel with the momentum blaster. Angel was thrown backwards and dropped her gun.
Lilo saw the gun lying on the ground, and ran after and tackled Angel, trying to prevent her from getting it back. Angel, desperately trying to regain control of the situation, clawed Lilo back. They were both rolling over each other, clawing each other back as they reached for the gun, but neither got it.
They both froze when they saw a blue foot standing next to the gun. Stitch, who had broken out of the glass tube, picked up the gun. He glared at Angel. "Aggaba."
Angel's eyes paled. Both Lilo and Angel stopped pulling each other back and stood up next to each other. Lilo was angry that Angel would try to manipulate Stitch, but she didn't make any sudden movements, knowing Stitch to be trigger-happy.
Stitch knew Lilo was Angel's target, and he was ready to protect Lilo at any cost, though Angel's words still burned inside him.
Angel had no choice but to try to convince Stitch to spare her. This was not part of the original plan, obviously. Angel was careful in her choice of words; she had to make sure that she did not throw Stitch into further rage. Doing so would ensure permanent separation from him. She tried to continue where she had left off, when she was so rudely interrupted. "She's a child, Stitch; she can love anyone. Eventually, though, she'll grow older, just like all humans. The idea of loving a pet as anything more than a pet is... ludicrous to any adult."
Images of Lilo as a tween, teenager, and adult appeared in Stitch's mind. He held his eyes closed and shook his head, trying to shake the thought of Lilo ever growing older, though he knew it was inevitable. Lilo simply watched, not believing it was possible for Stitch to break down. She knew the truth as well, although she had never given it serious thought. She assumed her feelings for Stitch would never change.
"In time, she'll die. What then? Will you just mourn for her, the old woman who once loved you? The ephemeral friend who neglected you once she lost interest? The master who gave you asylum out of obligation to the Galactic Alliance?!"
Stitch whispered to himself "naga... naga!!"
"Then you'll be alone again, the only one of your kind in all of existence. Alone for the remainder of eternity."
Stitch began to cry out "Naga!! Naga!!"
"Forever trapped in the pitiful fate you have made for yourself choosing to try to exist within a mortal o'hana!" She used the term "o'hana" mockingly.
Stitch fell to his knees and began to scream in Kweltikan.
"But," Angel was careful to make sure she heard him. He immediately stopped crying and fixed his gaze onto her eyes. "You can always choose me." Stitch's face turned again to anger. "I'm not like her. I'll never leave you. I'll never grow old. I'll never die."
Stitch growled. He was appalled that Angel would bring to light awful truths involving Lilo to make herself look better.
Angel was careful to remain gentle with him. "I love you, Stitch. I will always love you, I will always be here, and, if you wish, we can always be together." The anger faded from Stitch's face as he remembered being with Angel.
He saw her standing there, looking as beautiful as she ever had. He remembered when they were together, how he felt, how he felt that he could love her in a way he could never love Lilo. "Stay with me, and you'll never be alone again."
Lilo spoke up, finally. "Don't listen to her, Stitch! Shoot her! Shoot her!!"
Angel hung her head and spoke in a sincere tone. "Please don't hurt me, Stitch. I love you." Angel's only reason to stay alive was Stitch. Without him, the gunshot would be enough to kill her. She would be simply another mortal experiment, like all of the others before her. "I know you'll make the right decision, Stitch."
Stitch's pulse quickened. He had to make quite possibly the hardest decision of his life. The gun had a laser guide and could easily be set upon Angel's forehead; one shot would end this nightmare once and for all. Tears welled up in his eyes. "Soka... goodbye." He pulled the trigger, and a single shot rang out.