Reviews :

chuckiboo : Thank you so much! I go into a little bit of detail into just what Vye's wanting, but you're absolutely right - she's not a bluffer. You'll see more of this, from her, in the 5th story.

Lyssdoodle : Ooooooo about... That... Whole dying thing. ' - Also, Lash didn't learn it, the Teltokuan knowledge was given to him, if you know what I mean. When Ace was learning, in RO, it took him literally months to get anything remotely right. Lash couldn't come all that way in a few nights :D


A/N : Hey guys! Real quick - since this story is so massive, and getting new readers is near impossible, I've been considering making this saga in podcast form, but I'm not sure really which sight or program would be best to do that under... If any of you have any ideas, feel free to let me know. I want this beast to be more accessible to everyone :)


Song Listened To :

Before Nightfall by Christoffer Moe Ditlevsen


*Chapter 243*

A frozen, dim blue ladened across frozen tiles, Vanellope's hazel eyes assessed the dark stillness that was the Sky Room. Cast in nothing but the morning's gentle reveal of sunlight, a hint of proving the day would eventually make way, the sky almost seemed frozen with its' display of fluffy clouds, like ornaments hung in patient wait, the golden sheen on their undersides could easily be imagined, a promise for what's to come. Although a beautiful, familiar sight, Vanellope's tired, puffy eyes, sore and red from an endless night of crying, aimlessly scanned the Sky Room couches in a show of hopelessness. Seen cast across the massive swoop of familiar couches was none-other than her husband. What usually would be an adorable sight, something of which she used to catch after long Arcade days, a splay of exhaustion coupled with a full belly of dinner, this show only resulted in an endless night of fighting, a single last thread of nearly snipping the final give-in notions. No longer able to feel anger over her's and Ralph's crumpling relationship, she further assessed the Sky Room and looked for signs of life.

Knowing that Zed and or Tessa were usually up very early to get a jump on kingdom routines, Vanellope's eyes hit the corridor of their bedroom, nestled between her's and Ralph's old room, alongside Rancis's and Taffyta's old room. Much to Vanellope's delight, Zed's and Tessa's large, round bedroom door hung ajar with the gentle cast of a dim bedroom light, cueing to her that they were both awake. Eager to find Zed in a desperate last-ditch attempt at holding together her family, her husband, and the colossal task of keeping Sugar Rush intact, she silently pushed towards a place she knew either Tessa and or Zed would be. In a hasty attempt at building a proper work area, one that was more accessible than the hidden, buried hull of Dead Zed's little code room, Zed had fashioned the Sky Room a little sneak-way of a second story loft right off the corridor that lead to and from the Sky Room to the main area of Kalivar Castle. Tucked in a small little opened gape of an arch-way, a single flight of stairs lead up to said open-aired loft, one of which that had its own dome of glass, a miniature version of the Sky Room nestled cutely in the backside of it.

With continued silent footwork, Vanellope pushed her way across the Sky Room, gave Ralph's sleeping position one last glower and vanished into the corridor that lead to Zed's new little work loft. Happy that there were really no doors or anything to knock on, in said little work loft, she cautiously peeked her head into the cozy room upon hitting the final landing, and much to her whole delight, Zed sat in a larger work chair, sagged as if he had already been here for an hour or two, his hefty mug of coffee no longer rose steam from the gape, assuring Vanellope that he was more than awake and likely able-minded for discussions. Vanellope's gentle eyes scanned the mess of very dim holograms before him in the bend of the round work desk Zed was stationed at. Although Dead Zed's code room, menus and intricacies alike, was much smaller, it was always obvious that the game packed so much more of a punch, a streamline easiness that Sugar Rush's code room could only dream of, due to the sheer amount of years between each cabinets. Zed's fingers tapped away at his keyboard, his electric blue hair, although clean and combed through, rested flattened to his head, an unusual sight from his usual choppy-faux hawk like style. He wore a grey sweater and lazy black jeans, his attentive eyes worked at the mess of the absolute unit of Sugar Rush's mega-city he had to suddenly cater to down in the valley of Dead Zed's wilderness.

"Early bird gets the worm," Vanellope's soft voice filled the space, to which Zed raised his eyebrows and softly turned so to peer to Vanellope a few feet across the stretch of the small work space; Zed huffed a small, tired chuckle, lulled his eyes closed and shook his head as Vanellope bravely stepped in, she gestured her hand towards the mess of work Zed had in store for him, "You doing okay, up here?"

"Better than I expected, actually," Zed's deep voice crackled, he cleared his throat through a cough of a chuckle and readjusted his sitting position a little, "A move like that... I never really anticipated, but I mean, hey... It went better than anything I ever thought."

"It helps that Sugar Rush natives are cooperative and helpful," Vanellope's gentle voice cooed, the knowledge of her people and of her home game held reign over Zed, no matter what, and although said wealth of knowledge was all hers, she gave Zed a humbled look, a lovely smile that so scarily masked her current pain, as if she was willing to make sure Sugar Rush's current heads were well in the know, "We had a minor scare when Tessa was just a baby. No one asked questions... It helps to have citizens who are trusting."

"Makes being a good leader all the more desirable," Zed acknowledged with a tender nod, he inhaled a deep breath and casually sifted through a new little menu option, and with a flicker of his silver coding, a sitting stool materialized to his left, in the small nook of a work station he was at. Although Vanellope raised her eyebrows and figured said seat was for her, she flinched as Zed grunted to a stand, swirled his cozy, massive work chair about and gestured for Vanellope to sit where he had been sitting. He gave Vanellope a knowing look and dared to give her a cheeky smile, "Come sit. I saw Ralph in the Sky Room. I'm positive you have a lot on your mind."

"I'm sure you don't want me to bore you with my marital issues," Vanellope's voice wavered in a smiling mumble as she cutely thanked Zed for giving up his seat; he grunted and sat to the harder stool, though he slouched with his arms folded and gave Vanellope his whole attention, he shrugged and blurt a gentle chuckle.

"You entrusted Tessa and I with the very code room you were created with... That includes all the beings under its rule," Zed cued with great warmth, a lovely smile that looked up to the much littler glass dome they were calmly seated under, and before Vanellope could even think of it herself, Zed flared his silver coding and allowed a protective, sound-sealed bubble to come about the whole of their private dome, simply so no one downstairs could hear their conversation. Zed smiled into her eyes as she got comfortable, he sagged once more and shrugged, "I know word's gotten around that King Zed keeps all the men, on palace grounds, in check. I'm flattered, really."

"It's... Not my style to go outside of my own marriage and spill my problems to someone that isn't Ralph, but..." Vanellope narrowed her eyes and shook her head, she could already feel herself becoming emotional as she opened her mouth to carry on, though Zed picked up the pieces.

"How can you when your problems are centered around Ralph?" Zed shrugged, he gave Vanellope a cute, knowing smile and bobbed his head, "There's a difference between telling the world tiny, intimate details, and going to a single trusted source for guidance. If I'm being honest with you, Tessa and I were in a similar spot not way too long ago."

"Not the King and Queen," Vanellope sneered under her breath, a small side-eye and a knowing grin was what caused Zed to heave a cute chuckle out to their warm bubble; he bobbed a nod and looked down to his masculine hands, the gorgeous, glistening wedding ring on his finger.

"Yes, unfortunately... I sought Penny's advice," Zed mumbled with an easy little smile, simply as if his and Tessa's problems were long-resolved, a silly memory to look back on, something Vanellope was jealous over.

"Penny," Vanellope repeated, though she knew she shouldn't be surprised.

"Penny knows Tessa nearly better than I do," Zed stated with a sarcastic chuckle, his glorious blue eyes scanned the dim sky above, the only thing illuminating the undersides of their faces was the silver holograms Zed had left on pause, "Those two are as thick as thieves."

"What happened, if you don't mind me asking?" Vanellope cautioned, she knew asking was risky, though she also wagered that he was the one to mention it; with ease, Zed looked down and shook his head, to silently assure to Vanellope that he didn't mind the question.

"Tessa... She's a fire breather," Zed stated in all seriousness, his aimless gaze locked with the multitudinous displays of patiently waiting menus and emails, "Although it wasn't you and Ralph that had kicked her out of Sugar Rush, that whole entire scenario has likely scarred her for life. She has instances where she goes into fight-or-flight modes. One wrong thing said, one little trigger, and it's like... A switch goes off in her brain, and she'll say and do whatever she has to in order to protect herself."

"... Trauma," Vanellope grimaced, Zed nodded and inhaled a deep breath.

"That poor girl went through hell and back, she was rejected from her home, forced to give life to a User without any help from her family, she had to live in a palace full of men sans Lickity, she had to do motherhood without sisterhood," Zed listed diligently, and though him and Vanellope shared a laugh, the air was held in seriousness, "Excluding the amount of hell we went through to SAVE Sugar Rush... That girl came out of that mess with a brand new shiny kingdom, a new husband and a new baby, sure, but... Even the tiniest things, the simplest most innocent of words, and she'd turn. It's sometimes like living with a wild animal."

"Tiniest of things?" Vanellope expanded on, Zed huffed a knowing chuckle, as if to state that his words were exact.

"I accidentally asked her what she had been doing all day, in a wrong tone, with the wrong collective of words, in a way that probably came across as snide or jabbing," Zed mumbled, he bugged his eyes and blurt a chuckle, "Lemme tell you something. You, my lady, raised a fighter. That girl has CLAWS."

"Reminds me of someone," Vanellope muttered as she looked down at her fingers; she thought back on all of her's and Ralph's fights, knowing, full well, her banishment to diet cola mountain had left some nasty scars on her heart, some nasty habits she easily carried over to her's and Ralph's relationship. She heaved a shaky sigh and pleadingly looked into Zed's eyes, as if to beg that he had answers, "I just want to know what went wrong? This downward slope has just... Turned into an avalanche I now have no control over. Is it noticeable, as an outside perspective?"

"...If I'm being honest with you, Vanellope, I know everything that's going on," Zed concluded with a cute, sheepish little smirk, "I doubt Ralph has alluded to it, but I've been mentoring him for the past few months."

"Y-You have?" Vanellope asked in full shock, to which Zed nodded and gave her an apologetic look.

"I have... I've been cued in. I'm glad you came up here, because I had been meaning to sit the both of you down and play marital counselor on you two," Zed blurt a laugh, to which Vanellope shyly smiled and looked off in an embarrassed way. Zed shrugged and shook his head, "It's nothing to be ashamed of. We all go through rough patches. Even the most compatible people are at each other's throats, from time to time."

"Ralph won't tell me anything, he just says he's tired, Felix was too cheery during game day, Gene gave him too tiny of a piece of pie," Vanellope listed, she rolled her eyes, "I KNOW those tiny, little things are NOT enough to drive this huge of a wedge between us. H-he sleeps on the couch, he's a huger slob than what he even used to be, w-we... We haven't swapped in a month."

"That's unfortunately problem number one, but... I can understand how it'd be hard to actually get there, due to the other issues in between," Zed stated strategically, he readjusted his sitting position on the stool he was sat at and crossed his arms over his broad chest, "He's fessed up to everything you listed, and then some. He's told me he's ashamed for becoming unhealthy, he's aware he's letting all of this slip through the cracks... I've offered to start working out with him."

"And?" Vanellope lit up, knowing, full well, this is exactly what she wanted, though she deflated once Zed gave her a sag of an apologetic smile.

"I can lead a horse to water but I can't make it drink," Zed's deep voice cooed, Vanellope looked down in defeat as Zed blurt a chuckle, "Sure, Tessa and I were able to wrangle Ace in and help him achieve his workout goal, the body he wanted, but that's only because he WANTED it. He wanted it for himself, he wanted Libby's full attention, there was a lot of drive and desire there, and he got what he worked for."

"I'm doomed," Vanellope mumbled, though she narrowed her teary gaze and firmly shook her head, "I-I don't care if Ralph is in or out of shape... He's never been muscly or anything like that, but I didn't care about that... It didn't matter to me because he was happy, he up-kept every other aspect of his life, our relationship thrived, he DID things for me, he reminded me how much he loved me, our... Our love was so beautiful and fun."

"... It's morphed into something dark and deflated, it's easy to see," Zed nodded as he looked off, though he lulled his eyes closed and knew he needed to help Vanellope get to the bottom of this, the information he had been harboring between him and Ralph, "Vanellope, I've had the past few months to really get inside Ralph's head, man-to-man, to dig and help HIM figure out just what's going on. There was a season where he, himself, didn't even know. So, how were you supposed to?"

"I've asked until I was blue in the face, I've begged him to just sit with me and unload," Vanellope pleaded, her teary eyes finally welled with enough water to allow the cascade of trickling tears slip down her cheeks, to which Zed's frown broadened, "I've tried everything... I-I can't even wear something racey and get his attention any longer. The sex appeal, the fun, the, the... Fire, everything is gone. And I have no idea how to get it back."

"... Remember what I told you about Tessa, just now?" Zed's hushed voice soothed her soul, she inhaled a shaky breath and nodded as she wiped her face, "Every single last one of us went through VERY different kinds of emotional trauma, when Sugar Rush was turned upside down. Ralph lost the ENTIRETY of his family. The entirety of it. Vanellope... Much like Tessa, he had absolutely NO ONE."

Vanellope sagged her shoulders and peered hard into Zed's eyes, realizing just the weight of this. She exhaled a nasally sigh through her nose and looked down in mild guilt as Zed's voice continued to gloss her soul in whole authority.

"Having finally found his people, found someone to share his life with, he FINALLY feels like he belongs, he has a wife and two beautiful children, with the prospect of a third on the way? And it's just... Ripped from him," Zed clutched the chest of his sweater, over his heart, and narrowed his gaze for emphasis, "I put myself in that position and... I could weep just thinking about that being me. I'd weep for years. I don't think I'd be able to come back from that."

Vanellope continued to remain silent as the guilt continued to wash over her, and although she had had her own huge struggles through said time, she was well aware there were others that went through worse. She looked off and shook her head.

"A few months ago, Ralph and I were toying with the idea of having a fourth child, but..." Vanellope hiccuped a silent cry and desperately tried to keep her tears under control, "Ever since that conversation, everything's gone south."

"Ralph told me everything," Zed stated gently, "He wasn't around for Koko's childhood, something he can never get back... And although it wasn't his fault, I'm absolutely certain throwing a fourth child into the mix is something he's scared to do, due to the unresolved loss he hasn't dealt with yet. Although Koko is very much a prominent being in his life, his own daughter, he never got to experience her childhood. You did... He's envious of you."

"I couldn't help any of that," Vanellope begged quietly, to which Zed nodded in understanding.

"He doesn't blame you, I just think giving the two of you ANOTHER child, whilst he hasn't even resolved his own grief yet, is something he can't afford," Zed rested his hand to his chest and shook his head, "He wants to give you the world, he just... Doesn't want to do so in such a way that hurts him, as well."

"So, his way of DEALING with this is allowing his health, as a whole, to just... Dip to something so outside of his behavior? I can hardly get him to look at me," Vanellope urgently gestured to herself.

"He already feels as if he's disappointed you, and now that this new spark of a chapter has come up, he hasn't been able to close the LAST chapter," Zed stated gently, "The chapter he seemingly can't move past. There's really only so much I can do or say for him, though, I will tell you one thing..."

"What?" Vanellope mumbled through her tears, to which Zed curled a small smile.

"He approached me first," Zed stated with great warmth, "He asked me for help. He said he owed it to you... He told me he would do anything to make you happy. The hardest thing to do, in these instances, is admit you have a problem and seek help. Vanellope, he already took those steps. The hardest part is over."

"If he was wanting to do anything to make me happy, why has this whole month been absolute hell?" Vanellope begged quietly, to which Zed heaved a long sigh and nodded.

"He's aware of that, too, and... As ironic and contradictory as it all may seem, he tells me, every single day, how he feels as if everything is slipping and he has no clue how to bounce back," Zed mumbled, though he gave Vanellope a cute side eye and grinned, "And, although it may seem like you two are teetering on the edge of separation, I'm here to tell you that I would never allow that. I see how much you two mean to each other. There would come a point where I would, likely messily, intervene... Due to how willing you two are to seek help, I now know it'd never come to that."

"What should I be doing? I just feel like, at this point, I'm nagging the shit out of him to DO something," Vanellope worried, to which Zed looked off in contemplation.

"Welp... The thing that motivates me, between Tess and I, is words of encouragement," Zed shrugged, "Sure, maybe there's a day I sleep in, or I can CLEARLY see the trash can is overflowing and I blatantly don't take it out cause I'm lazy. Tessa has learned to give me grace, she knows that's not who I am. Instead of getting mad, she reminds me why I am so great, in the ways that I am. She reminds me that I'm a wonderful leader, an attentive father. Words that motivate me... And then the trash gets taken out, by no one but myself, and I mutter under my breath that she's the scariest person alive."

"That's all it takes," Vanellope blurt a laugh, to which Zed grinned and bobbed a nod.

"She doesn't have to ask me to do shit, she doesn't have to nag me... She inspires me and reminds me of the great things about me, and it lights a fire under my ass," Zed shrugged, "Not everyone is wired that way, but... I can tell you right here, right now, negative nagging and hurried reminders about Ralph's shortcomings is going to make him sink further into that recliner. I'm not saying this is all your fault, but... I don't think you've fully put yourself in his position."

"The position of loss?" Vanellope innocently wondered, to which Zed nodded.

"The only reason I'm able to put myself in Tessa's shoes, in that same aspect, is because I lived it out, right by her side, day by day. I was WITH her during her grief. I saw how raw and scary it all was... I remind myself, every single day, that she has conquered so much... It's more than I can imagine tackling," Zed stated diligently, Vanellope eagerly hooked her eyes to Zed's and sagged in further defeat, "Although you had your fair share of trauma, giving life to Koko outside of a code room and having to literally live off the grid... You had your two children, your sister, your niece... You had family to do it with. Ralph had next to no one."

Vanellope looked down to her hands and allowed the guilt to soak her, though she knew she had to just let herself sit in it. She narrowed her teary eyes in further guilt and breathed a shaky sigh, she was well aware she had a lot of work to do, here.

"I... I never even considered all of this because Ralph never even mentioned it," Vanellope frowned, "The day we were reunited, he held me and we just wept, but... I spilled all my sorrows and tribulations, and he didn't do the same."

"Well, your sorrows and tribulations had eons of back story, it had new scenery and hard tasks to tackle," Zed nodded, "Ralph's, well... Included game day. The some old boring shit he's DONE for the last thirty or so years... There was nothing to expand on. You already KNEW how miserable he was before you showed up. I don't think he knew how to articulate all of that, I think he just assumed you KNEW, but... That resulted in him stuffing his feelings, and, well, here we are."

"Here I am, trying to move forward, have a fourth child and attempt normalcy outside of the craziness of being King and Queen," Vanellope rushed through her tears, she kept her composure nicely though still staggered on uneven breathing, "We had Tessa and Oliver during our reign, which, as you know, isn't easy, and then... Koko was a whole 'nother story."

"A feat in of itself," Zed ushered warmly, Vanellope looked down and grimaced.

"Now that we have more time, are able to really lay back and cater to the idea of having another baby with no distractions, Ralph basically dips," Vanellope shook her head and narrowed her gaze in a far-off look of whole confusion, "It makes no sense..."

"I think it makes perfect sense," Zed shrugged, he blurt a chuckle and was glad Vanellope was eagerly receptive, "THIS time around is now required full attention, undivided care. Although Tessa and Oliver came out to be outstanding individuals, I'm positive the distractions of being in charge helped fuel you guys to be your best and give your all. Sometimes, stakes are higher when there's less routine and less rigidity when it comes to something so important. He's aware that now all eyes are on him. He couldn't properly father his third child, the fourth one now takes the cake and will get his WHOLE world. Something all three children prior didn't have, due to running a kingdom and then unfortunately being out of the picture."

"This all boils down to fear," Vanellope squinted in frustration, to which Zed heaved a raspy sigh and shrugged.

"More or less... Coupled with unresolved trauma, the millions of rugs he's swept it all under," Zed muttered, to which Vanellope blinked more tears down her cheeks.

"Where do I even begin?" Vanellope asked in a whisper of sorrow, Zed remained still and allowed her to carry on, "How do we reverse this?"

"... Start with a compliment," The twinkle in Zed's eye proved to Vanellope that he was right, he eased a soft, deep chuckle and bobbed her a nod, "Pay him one single compliment."

"A compliment," Vanellope volleyed in mild annoyance, to which Zed nodded and looked off.

"Look, it may be hard in his current state, but... For better or for worse," Zed cued with a warm smile, "Just try it. Your homework is ONE compliment."

"What's Ralph's homework?" Vanellope sneered in annoyance, Zed rubbed his forehead and blurt a chuckle.

"I've given Ralph homework over the course of the last month or so and he hasn't done it," Zed muttered through an annoyed smile, and though Vanellope lightly gaped and gave Zed a floored look of injustice, Zed shook his head and flagged his hand, "Hey, hey, I GET it. It's not fair, I know! Trust me. Sometimes I give myself homework when I know Tessa isn't doing the same, and it seems like I'm in a season of doing all the heavy lifting, but... It's a balance. Sometimes that looks like one person pulling the weight for a minute. The key is to get the ball rolling, no matter what."

"What have you told Ralph to do?" Vanellope softened.

"I've told him the same thing, pay a compliment, take out the trash one night, welcome you home with a big hug..." Zed listed, though he cut it at the quick once he saw Vanellope sag even more, "His retort is always that he would, had you not nagged him all day, or focused on his shortcomings."

"So it's all MY fault?" Vanellope stressed, to which Zed rubbed his eyes and groaned.

"You BOTH are at fault... And since YOU seem to be more willing, YOU are the one that likely needs to be the one to get the ball rolling, this time," Zed instructed, "I'm absolutely positive there's been seasons of your's and Ralph's marriage where HE has to be the one to get the two of you out of a funk, am I wrong?"

"... No," Vanellope mumbled sheepishly as she crossed her arms and looked off.

"Pay one single compliment," Zed eased with great warmth, a cheeky side eye of certainty, something Vanellope nervously cued to, "Report back your findings."


LashedOut : This mess is my fault. You and I both know Vye isn't bluffing. I've taken Berri and Wren and we're headed for Tron, hopefully we can get to Litwak's before it opens and unplug the router to at least buy us some time. I know this is sudden, I know this is scary, and I don't want you to think I've just... Up and left with your coding, that's not the case. I'm grateful for what we have. You've given me further reason to fight for what's right, and I hope you'll forgive me for running off, like such. We'll be back within the day, I'm sure, but...

LashedOut : On the off-chance something goes wrong, just know that sharing myself with you was the best decision of my entire life.

LashedOut : I was wrong. I was wrong about everything.

LashedOut : I love you.

Mara held her breath, she felt every single last pixel inside of her run cold, the rush of her's and Lash's swirling, glorious coding underneath her skin was enough to assure her that Lash's motives, here, were both incredibly selfless and incredibly stupid. She lulled her eyes closed in a sag of dread, the kiss of warm, early morning air rushed her lovely, choppy pastel blue hair, and as her eyes reopened to the gorgeous field of fire flowers her mother and father had so diligently tended to as children, on the Kalivar lot, she felt tears sting her eyes. Thankful the sun hadn't come up just yet, she sagged her phone into the front pouch of the big, billowy hoodie Lash had given her, and hugged herself in a fit of true, concealed terror. Terror for just what would be to come of her new love, the scary thought of Lash, Berri and Wren not returning, the prospect of revealing to everyone just what had become of her and Lash, someone who was considered a hop topic and the culprit of Sugar Rush's previous demise, her glassy eyes pleadingly peered up to the sky for answers. Before she could turn heel and sink away to her temporary bedroom for the whole of this day, a deep, tender voice broke her fragile bubble.

"Mar," Beaux's raspy, sleepy voice mumbled; she whirled around in surprise and furiously caught eyes with his. He jolted in surprise, held up his larger hands and gave her a soft, unassuming look of warm innocence, mannerisms that were nearly identical to Ace's. His lovely, choppy white hair, atop his head, was messy and frayed in all sorts of funny directions, making clear to Mara that he had just stumbled out of bed, though his alert eye contact assured Mara that he was fully concerned, "I... I was headed to the restroom and saw you pass my front door. Is everything okay?"

"I'm fine," Mara snapped, a cold front she was good at, though now that her coding was so easily meshed with the overflow of love Lash had been previously marinating in, due to reuniting with his brothers and growing close to Berri, she felt said cold front to be harder and harder to keep. Mara glanced her eyes up her mother's and father's previous abode, their own tower they had previously shared with Nox, though she landed her eyes back to Beaux's and apprehensively softened, "I-I'm... Fine, I just needed some fresh air."

"Y'could've opened a window for that, y'know," Beaux prod, knowing that doing digging wasn't wise, though he narrowed his gaze and side-eyed his sister. Although the two now ran in different social circles, he was well aware their twin nature wouldn't waver, their combined love was unmatched. He hovered in their silence, the look of dread and terrified vulnerability on Mara's face proved to him that there was definitely something wrong. He narrowed his gaze even tighter and eased his sister a warm whisper, "Mar, talk to me."

"I-I... I can't, Beaux," Mara whispered, pleaded, she looked about as if she was previously in the act of committing a crime, though Beaux shook his head and gently grappled her hand in his.

"C'mon," Beaux gently demanded in a grunt, and with ease, he was successful in pulling Mara back to the staircase that hugged Ace's and Libby's lovely jungle tower, properly displayed with fire flowers out in front. Once the two approached Beaux's room, which was previously Nox's abode, he pushed the two inside, closed and locked the door and unhanded his sister. She crossed her arms and aimlessly wandered into Beaux's temporary home, and although it was warm and inviting, her icy eyes nervously peered to her exit and wondered if bolting was an option, though Beaux put his hands on his hips and guarded the door, "Mara. I know you. I know you better than anyone... And I know something is wrong. What is it?"

"I-It's... It's nothing to worry about, it'll get solved quickly, so it doesn't even matter," Mara mumbled, she desperately tried to keep her cold front, though Lash's sticky, exciting, lovely personality, underneath her skin, urgently begged for her to ease up and be flippant in these instances, moments where she'd typically wall off and meanly tell everyone to piss off.

"I won't tell anyone, Mar, you know you can trust me," Beaux begged gently. He dared to take a few steps closer to Mara, though much to Mara's whole terror, Beaux cued his lovely, original golden coding and began to close in for the prospects of an exterior swap, something the lot's glitchers cutely relied on in the form of physical comfort and tender loving care. Mara could feel her pupils shrink with the raw idea of Beaux finding out that she no longer had her original coding, though somehow, she was frozen, as if the adrenaline in her coding conflicted with rationale, and every single muscle in her body had no clue how to respond. Beaux continued to approach her with confidence over the sheer fact that she wasn't shying away from his silent plea for an exterior swap, "You don't even have to physically talk, you know we always kept each other's secrets..."

Mara held her breath and urgently shut her eyes, though the second that Beaux's lovely golden coding, on his palm, came in to contact with the skin on Mara's lower arm, her's and Lash's lovely, coral-colored coding blobbed about in the show of feisty honeycombs and circuit lines, something that had Beaux's hand now grappled to. With a flicker of confusion, between the mix of two suddenly different codings, something Beaux wasn't anticipating, he huffed a shaky breath and firmly peered his now stunned eyes tight to Mara's. As their coding finally agreed and swirled about, Beaux was hit head-on with the world of information Lash's coding had to offer, and with a rollercoaster of emotion, Beaux's realization quickly shot to that of full-blown protectiveness.

"...Where is he," Beaux stabbed in brotherly dominance, to which Mara furrowed her eyebrows in whole confusion.

"He took Wren and-"

"That bastard STOLE your coding," Beaux huffed in a shaky breath of further, riled dominance, as if he was now entirely ready to go to war, though Mara flinched in raw surprise and suddenly blurt a shaky laugh.

"Stole? N-no, no Beaux, it's not like that," Mara explained, though Beaux was quick to interrupt in riled anger.

"You mean you WILLINGLY gave your coding to that... That...!" Beaux staggered to find the right degrading word, to which Mara upped their feverous exterior swap.

"That WHAT, Beaux, that incredibly misunderstood soul? One of which is now a part of me? One of which you have FULL access to RIGHT now?" Mara firmly defended, her heart raced at the sheer thought of sticking up for Lash's character in his absence, something she was well aware she'd have to very quickly get used to; the fire in her heart only raged as she was quick to reign dominance over Beaux, his figuratively shrinking demeanor hooked tight to hers in a spike of uncertain terror, "You can access the fact that he's NOT a monster... He's an amazing person and I'm honored to have his coding."

"Mara..." Beaux hissed in whole disbelief, to which Mara firmly peered hard into Beaux's eyes and stood her ground.

"I love him, Beaux, I love him," Mara huffed, she desperately tried to stamp out his fire, "I don't care what the lot of you thinks about him, he's out there, on the front lines, doing whatever he can to reverse this mess."

"What are you saying?" Beaux staggered in disbelief, though in a jarring swipe, Mara ripped herself from their exterior swap and grappled the sides of her head; in an aimless mosey, she wandered away and paced in a slow, haphazard show of nervous agitation.

"... Beaux, you can't tell ANYONE... ANY of this," Mara begged, she faced him, from across the stretch and gestured to herself, "Lash and I swapped codes on the last night of our vacation to Sugar Sun Island... It was strictly out of love, and I know it may look like it wasn't, but I promise... This is NOT what it looks like."

"You REALLY think that guy waltzed you into bed and just wanted the personality under your skin, Mara?" Beaux firmly defended, he pointed his finger to the ground and shook his head, "The guy that made our elders MISERABLE, for YEARS... Suddenly has a beautiful USER right in the palm of his hand!"

"Beaux!" Mara shouted, she was grateful their rooms were respectively sound-proofed.

"Isn't it suspicious that this ALL has to happen the second he has your coding?" Beaux flagged his arm, "You CAN'T tell me you're really that blind to this, Marathelke?"

"Listen to me... Lash messaged Vye to turn himself in," Mara demanded firmly, she pressed closer to Beaux and was glad his tirade of brotherly defensiveness was easy to stamp out, here and there, "He offered a truce. The reason we're in this pickle is because Vye Ketton has Aroq wrapped around her little finger. Those deleters are coming from the dark web, where Vye and her little gang of misfits hang out."

"He was REALLY going to just... TURN himself in," Beaux demanded in a hurry, to which Mara shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut.

"He was going to go to the internet and cut Litwak's ties to their connection... They have easy access to our Arcade, and the only reason they're so invested is because of the insane amount of self-programmed gamers being made," Mara rushed haphazardly, information she has never had to say out loud, though now that it was all rushing her, she worried none of it was making sense due to the look of stun Beaux was sporting, "Vye and Aroq are accomplices... Aroq and grandpa Zed used to be friends... Word got back of their escape to the real world, thus... Bringing back dad, a User."

"Vye wants us," Beaux narrowed his gaze and shook his head, "Why... Why was Lash going to give himself up?"

"Vye doesn't know Lash is now a User, Lash was going to go and delete their access to Litwak's, their shared connection from the internet," Mara hurried, she shook her head and pressed closer to Beaux and was grateful she had his full, terrified attention, "He didn't realize it'd backfire... He messaged Vye stating a truce, he pretended that he had access to us and that he could bring her the Users if she was willing to first meet up. I was with him when he was composing the message to her."

"He was going to go and meet up with her... Cut everything at the quick?" Beaux softened, though their bubble still was tangible with worry.

"It backfired... The only shred of truce she was willing to give is if he blatantly handed us Users over, no questions asked," Mara hurried, "Her reply was to just... Hand us over, or else Sugar Rush is doomed."

"How... How did she even know we were in Sugar Rush?" Beaux suddenly barked, now getting angry for different reasons, "How does this bitch even know ANYTHING about us? She's on the internet of all places. WHY us? WHY Litwak's? We're a tiny little Arcade in the middle of California, she has the whole internet!"

"Litwak's has access to Tron's laser," Mara stabbed, thwarting all of Beaux's words, he snapped his mouth shut and looked down in whole disheveled irritation. Mara lulled her eyes closed and hurried to carry on, "We are the only last known Arcade with an out... That's where Lash is headed, right now."

"Why doesn't Vye just come to us? Why does she want us Users to come to HER?" Beaux wondered, Mara shrugged and shook her head through a hard sigh.

"Mine and Lash's guess is to brainwash us, make it easier to get to Tron, as well as whatever else is lurking on the dark web," Mara huffed, she slumped her hands to her sides and sagged in whole defeat, "Beaux, she and the other four winners of Game Over have the dark web mapped. Who KNOWS what they're up to, down there. It's stuff beyond our wildest imagination. Viruses, red rooms, brainwashing, trafficking, the list goes on and on and on... They want to bring that to Litwak's, to get to Tron. To override the threat of much stronger self-programmed gamers wising up to their bullshit. That threat wasn't just a bluff."

"Lash made a mistake by reaching out," Beaux stated in a lilt of mild questioning, as if to wonder if he was right, by which Mara lulled her eyes closed in defeat and heaved a shaky sigh through her nose, thus answering Beaux's wonderings, "Had Lash not reached out, Vye wouldn't have pin-pointed us directly..."

"He accidentally put us on her radar. She's probably readying whoever it is, whatever crew of an army she has, right for us," Mara's voice shook, to which Beaux shook his head and gestured his arms.

"So, wh-why are we just sitting here, then?" Beaux urged, though Mara grit her teeth and shook her head.

"Beaux... You have to promise me you won't breathe a single word of this to ANYONE," Mara started, though Beaux stiffened like he wanted to argue her, "Lash is on his way to Tron right now. He's going to get to Litwak's before Quarter Alerts and unplug the internet router... That'll buy us time."

"What are we going to do with that time?" Beaux worried, to which Mara held her forehead and shook her head.

"I don't know what Lash has up his sleeve... All I know is... I'm glad he has our User powers," Mara begged, to which Beaux softened and peered into his sister's lovely, scared eyes, "That guy has the Arcade's knowledge right at his fingertips. He now has skill to pair with all of the years of information inside of him. Skill that will help us, the entire Arcade. He knows the stakes, here... He's on our side."

"... I can't believe you," Beaux stated, though this time his tone was softer and held a twinge of pride Mara could just barely taste. Beaux shook his head, and although he seemed disapproving of her decisions, he peaked a shy smile and narrowed his gaze, "This swap was calculated, on your end."

"Beaux... I promise you, the only thing on our minds that night was EACH OTHER," Mara urgently flagged her hands, "NO WHERE in our swap were there intentions of... Of... Such delusions of grandeur, such a terrifying situation. We swapped, and the next morning were like, 'oh shit... how do we keep this a secret?'"

"You know mom and dad are going to... MURDER you," Beaux bugged his eyes for exaggeration, to which Mara huffed a hearty sigh and shook her head in challenge.

"It's either them or Vye," Mara muttered, "I took my chances."