"Why? I don't even know the answer anymore."
Coming Undone
"Talking"
'Thinking'
Stressed
Memories/ Voices
Red sighed as he lay on the couch. One arm hung off the cushions and his other covered his eyes. He wondered how much more of these "dreams" he could take. They weren't really dreams since he never slept. He wondered if they were visions, he knew that they were visions. Vey looked over at him and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. She picked up another drawing and brought it over to him. Red slightly moved his arm and looked at her creation. It was a messy drawing of her and him standing next together.
"That's…nice," Red mumbled as he closed his eye.
"Look," Vey firmly said.
"Goop…I'm tired," Red grumbled.
"Vey, my name is Vey," she firmly said.
Red sat up and stared down at the child. She had spoke and used more than one word. It shocked and amazed him. The child shied away from his gaze and he reached out to her. He picked her up and sat her on the couch next to him. She remained quiet and he frowned.
"I know you can talk," Red firmly said.
She remained silent and Red scowled at this. He couldn't stand it when people kept secrets from him. That seemed to be happening all to often recently.
"Goop…Vey…talk to me," Red softly said as he wiped the glare from his face.
"I'm sorry," Vey whispered to him.
"What? Why?" Red questioned.
"I lied to you," she whispered as her eyes filled with tears.
"Huh? How?"
She shook her head and the tears began to pour down her face. Vey lunged at Red and wrapped her arms around him. She continued to sob into his chest as she mumbled. He couldn't understand the words, but he wrapped his arms around her and patted her back in comfort.
"I can't understand you Go-Vey," Red corrected.
Vey looked up at him with teary eyes and sobbed, "They sent me to hurt you."
Red's eyes widened at this and his antennae stood up in confusion. The little girl continued to sob into his shirt despite how Red tensed.
'Sent…to hurt me,' Red thought as he tensed. 'Who would send a child?'
Red gazed down at her with unease. He couldn't attack her; she was only a child still. Confusion raced through him and wondered why she was sent to specifically hurt him.
"Why me?" Red questioned.
Vey looked up at him in confusion and shook her head. Her mouth tightened and she refused to speak to him. Red grasped her chin and forced their gazes to meet.
"Why me?" Red growled. He was angered at the secrets, not her.
The tears restarted and she softly said, "You killed my father."
Red froze and his hand fell away from her. He jumped off the couch and backed away into a wall. Red leaned against the wall in confusion as his mind raced. He ran his hands over his face as he though over her words. That blank spot in his memories convinced him that he had done something horrible. He didn't understand what he had done, but he understood it had to do with Earth…humans…and now Vey. Lips turned down at the corners in a frown and he slid down the wall into a crouch.
"Mother said you were a monster," Vey softly began. Red wrapped his arms around his legs. "She said that you killed so many of us…she said you were cruel…that you cared for nothing."
Red's claws dug into his legs as he listened and he shut his eyes.
"She left me in the Irken area to find you and hurt you. Mother believed that I could get close enough to you because she had taught me a few tricks…but those other Irkens grabbed me…and then you came."
Red kept his eyes shut, but he could hear Vey crawling closer to him. Her small hands reached out and stopped his claws from digging into his legs.
"You saved me…you weren't cruel…you care for me. I kept quiet because I was scared of the Irkens and scared of my intentions. I didn't want to hurt you because I knew…that you weren't a monster."
Red dropped his head onto his knees, as he remained silent. Vey reached out and stroked an antenna as she sighed.
"Mother remembers what you did on Earth, all the humans do and they think you still need to pay," Vey whispered as she dropped her hands into her lap.
"What did I do?" Red whispered as his crimson eyes opened to gaze at her.
Vey softly smiled and her innocent blue eyes were filled with sadness he didn't think possible as she whispered, "You forgot…you're a new person and shouldn't have to pay for the past crimes."
"Tell me what I did," Red whispered a bit more firmly.
Vey looked at him and replied, "You almost killed an entire species…you committed xenocide."
Red tensed at her words. It couldn't be true; he didn't have enough power to commit such an act.
Klavier sighed as he took Zootch's hand and led her through the halls. Her features were stoic as she continued to walk beside him. He stopped at a door and walked ahead to a touch pad where he entered a combo. The door hissed opened and Zootch quickly walked ahead and into the room. Her green eyes gazed at the Irkens that were dressed in an old Irken Military uniform. Her antennae twitched a bit and she knew that most of these Irkens didn't remember what the uniform stood for.
Tak cleared her throat and caught Zootch's attention. She waved the leader over to the table and her eyes wandered to Dib. Dib was sleeping on the table with a troubled look upon his face.
"Tell me, what have you prepared?" Zootch softly asked.
Tak reached onto the table and carefully picked up a small earring. It was no wider than a small pill. She than picked up a dish with a microchip within it. She handed the two to Zootch.
"Using old Irken training and a bit of human technology, we have created a militarychip," Tak explained.
"This isn't a new PAK…is it?" Zootch warily questioned.
"No," Tak quickly assured. "The earring holds that chip and within the chip is all the basic Irken Military training…mostly combat. The earring is to be attached to the antenna. From there, a small wire connects to the brain and downloads the information, when the earring is removed all knowledge is lost."
"This sounds risky," Zootch said as she gazed at the earring.
"This is our only hope of preventing war," Klavier spoke as he swiftly picked up the earring.
"I don't want to endanger any lives!" Zootch shouted. She was close to tears. The stress of preventing death and being counted on wanted to make her break.
Klavier and Tak shared a look before turning back to Zootch. They both knew that lives were going to be lost one way or another. It was just a matter of time.
Purple sat in his room staring at the wall. There was nothing to do anymore. Zeta was slowly becoming as dead as Irk. He jumped to his feet when he heard a scream. His antennae perked up and he waited in the deathly silence. The scream repeated and he ran for the door. His hand hesitated upon the doorknob wondering if he should really go check. The scream echoed as it began.
"Goop," Purple whispered as his hand checked for the gun he carried.
Purple threw open the door and ran down the halls. His violet eyes widened at the seen he was witnessing. The metal that the door was once made of was scattered in pieces upon the floor. He heard a whimper and that's when he saw her. Two Irkens were holding Goop against the wall. Her face was turning red from tears and lack of air. Red was pinned to the floor by another set of Irkens. Purple quickly took aim at the Irkens holding Goop.
The gun was kicked from his hands and he was thrown into the wall. The four Irkens holding the others chuckled at this. The Irken that had done this now held his gun aimed Purple. Purple sighed and thought back to what Red had told him. Military was not his forte. The Irken's crimson eyes glared at Purple before he shook his head.
"What are you doing?" Purple questioned as he sat up.
"Shut up you human lover," the Irken hissed at Purple.
Purple snorted at this and grimaced when he heard Goop sob.
"This is low…hurting a child," Purple grumbled as he glared at them.
"We'll do what we have to in order to take back what is ours," the Irken replied.
"Attacking the defenseless really is weak," Purple pointed out.
"Those words mean nothing considering you were the Tallest that helped destroy countless planets…species. I know that you were Tallest Purple and he," the Irken motioned to Red, "Tallest Red."
"How?" Purple questioned in surprise.
"Any fool who could count would know!" The Irken snapped. "Two fingers…hover belts…I saw the royal armor!"
"And who are you?" Purple questioned as he looked over to Red.
"I am Ven, but you won't live long enough to remember," Ven replied as charged the gun.
Red's eyes moved to Goop and he shouted as the Irkens holding her smacked her. Red struggled against their grip and growled. Purple frowned and figured that he wouldn't die without a fight. He lunged at Ven and the gun went off. Purple slammed against the wall, his blood coated the floor. He groaned as he grasped his arm and screamed. Ven smirked and turned to Red who was watching the scene in shock.
"You were the one that almost destroyed the humans," Ven mused as he gazed down at Red.
"Let her go," Red growled.
""Why? She's just a pathetic human…one of thousands that must be destroyed," Ven taunted.
Red tensed at the question. It was simple and easy to answer and yet he couldn't decide what to say. He had heard his life story and now realized why most thought he was a monster. He closed his eyes and sighed. Red kept his eyes shut and that's when he saw the door in his mind, the chains were still upon it.
Goop groaned in pain as she struggled to keep her gaze on Red. Purple was leaning against the wall holding his injured arm and sitting in a puddle of his own blood. Red was on the ground with his eyes shut. They all kept their eyes trained on the ex-Tallest.
"Are you ready to see…to feel the horrors you committed?"
Red walked closer to the door. He reached out and brushed his claws along the chains. They quickly rusted and fell to the floor in a pile of dust. Red glanced around the darkness wondering where the shadow was. It always seemed like an evil version of him. He could hear it whispering to him, but he couldn't see it. Red reached out and his fingers gripped the handle. He didn't pull away this time. The knob was still coated in blood, and it warmed under his touch.
"Don't remember yet? What a shame…"
Red twisted the knob and heard a soft hiss. He didn't have to pull open the door; it slowly creaked open. Screams filled the darkness and he could hear the shadow him laughing along with the screams.
"Music! Isn't it wonderful?"
The door fully opened and Red's eyes widened. He was standing on the other side fully dressed in his Tallest attire. His mouth dropped into a frown and he watched the other him cruelly smile.
"You looked surprised," Tallest Red chuckled.
Red went to take a step back and the Tallest reached out and grasped him by the arm. He pulled him close and softly growled with a scowl.
"You can't escape from what we are," Tallest Red assured with another smirk. "The voice you heard was your own mind telling you what you knew."
Red shook his head and watched the images play behind his eyes. He felt his squeedly spooch churn at some of his crimes. Struggling, he tried to move away as the memories forced their way into him. Tallest Red laughed and soon the laughter couldn't have been told apart. He could feel it now, his passion for conquest, his love for death, he could feel it, and it scared and excited him.
His PAK flashed and the sound of charging echoed through the air. Purple's antennae flattened in confusion as the others watched. He couldn't understand why Red's PAK would function like that. His eyes bulged as he realized what had happened, what was happening.
Red's crimson eyes slowly opened, the color was darker than normal. His fingers curled in and cracked as he his eyes landed on Ven. Ven held his breath as those eyes searched him. There was something dangerous behind that gaze; it had shifted. They watched as two spider legs emerged from the PAK. The tips aimed at the Irkens holding Red down before they charged and fired. Purple grimaced as the two fell down dead. The two holding Goop dropped her and ran from the house. She fell to the floor with a thump and groan.
Red's eyes stared at the bleeding corpses on his floor and he sighed. He dusted his outfit off before he stood up.
"Such a shame…my carpet's ruined," Red grumbled with a smirk.
He heard the gun charge and rolled his eyes up to stare at Ven. The gun was pointed at Goop who sat on the floor. Red's eyes dangerously narrowed before he softly chuckled.
"His memories are back," Purple mumbled as he felt the loss of blood taking a toll.
"Do you still care for that human?" Ven questioned.
Red raised an eyebrow in question before he said, "Put the gun down."
"No wonder you failed at being Tallest…you really are stupid," Ven laughed as he aimed the gun at Red.
"I didn't fail at anything," Red stressed. "I have no need to explain anything to you, so just drop the gun before I kill you painfully."
"Why are you fighting for that human?" Ven questioned.
Red tilted his head to the side and replied, "If you've done your research…than do you really think I'm fighting for a human?"
"Red," Goop whispered.
His eyes glanced at her before he quickly turned back and scowled at Ven. Purple watched the interaction and an antenna rose in interest.
"Why indeed?" Ven questioned.
"Why? I don't even know the answer anymore," Red replied with a shrug as his PAK silently opened.
"You almost got rid of the humans once, don't you want to finish that?" Ven questioned as he carefully watched Red.
"I guess this is where you offer to help me," Red mocked.
"This is where I kill you all if you don't agree," Ven growled.
A spider leg crept out of the PAK and pushed something into Red's hand. He grinned, he was happy that his PAK hadn't been completely robbed of all his toys. He tinkered with the small metal ball within his palm before he yawned.
"Kill them…I don't care," Red replied.
Ven's eyes widened in shock, he didn't think that Red would easily agree to this. Ven turned the gun away and aimed it at Goop. Her ice blue eyes widened fear and Red chuckled. He pinched the ball and tossed it Ven. The ball bounced along the floor and hit Ven's foot. He looked down and it exploded. Purple closed his eyes and everything scattered. Red ran over to Goop and kneeled in front of her to hide her form from the explosion. When it ended Red looked over his shoulder. The house was on fire.
"Let's go," Red grumbled as he picked Goop up.
His eyes strayed along the flames and he noticed Purple struggling to get up. Goop looked to Red and he frowned. Red glanced at Purple and their eyes briefly meet. He turned and left through the door with Goop in his arms. Purple sat there stunned before realizing this wasn't the Red he had grown to know again. He slid back down the wall and coughed. He blinked and his eyes began to close. A firm hand gripped his shoulders and his violet eyes snapped open.
"Red?" Purple questioned.
Red remained silent as he lifted Purple over his shoulders and dragged him out of the burning house.
Author's Note:
The next chapter will reveal what happens to Skoodge! A major thing will happen in the next chapter and really set the ending for everything. I finally found a way to end it and I'm upsettingly happy about it!
Concerning Sideos, from Ayra:
The Fifth Kind regrets to inform that your membership has been declined, but thanks you for your interest. You will recieve a free Fifth Kind hat for your time.
