Song Listened To : We Found Love - Rihanna

*Chapter 124*

"We're talking like, actually LEAVING," Penny barked as the four finally scrambled down Vanellope's spiral staircase and into the Great Hall, which was still painfully pink. Penny scoffed a hard giggle as her and Tessa bumped into each other, amongst the chaos, "Like, lose your whole coding, your powers, your... your gamer card!"

"You'd be humans?" Oliver loudly wondered as the four quickly bumbled into the middle of the Great Hall; though Zed looked as if he had a destination, everyone else moseyed in confusion. Zed largely gestured towards their wing of the castle, which was surprisingly still standing, though the walls around it looked crackled, as if the game was just about ready to get rid of it, on it's slowly downgrading venture.

"Wait a minute!" Penny barked as Zed largely gestured his arms in hard annoyance, as Penny stopped her footwork, "You'd be USERS?!"

"Hell yeah, is that true?" Tessa beamed, though Zed groaned with a wide smile.

"Yes, we'd be humans, no pixels or anything, we lose our powers, you die outside the game and you fall to the floor and someone has to clean up your body off the ground," Zed rushed as he continued to step closer to their wing of the castle, "Being an Earthling is fun...! Now, c'mon. Tess, you've gotta pack a change of clothes."

"We can still bring our stuff, though?" Tessa wondered.

"Well yeah, we're not going to come out, on the other side, totally naked," Zed argued as everyone pushed into Tessa's, Oliver's and Penny's wing of the castle, once and for all.

"Wouldn't that just make your day," Penny muttered as Tessa finally found purpose in their destination, and she pushed closer to her room.

"This is suicidal," Tessa argued as she budged into her room, it was a slight mess, though Sugar Rush's cheery sunlight illuminated her warm room. Tessa furrowed her eyebrows and dared to let her heart sink, the fact that she wouldn't be back for quite some time, made her head swim. She shook her thoughts and rushed her dresser.

"Are you guys bringing Lickity?" Oliver rushed as Zed hovered near Tessa and slid his backpack off of his back. He opened it and let Tessa put a few things inside.

"No," Zed chuckled, "Pretty sure planet Earth doesn't have dragons. It would create world-wide panic."

"What wusses," Penny muttered as she crossed her arms.

"Where IS Lickity?" Oliver wondered loudly.

"With Ralph," Zed rushed, though he noticed Tessa's stare on him hold in pure sadness.

"We can't bring Lickity?" Tessa complained sorrowfully, though Zed gave her an apologetic smile.

"No, not at all," Zed eased with furrowed eyebrows, though he shook his head and began to rummage through his bag, "Though, she actually... Plucked out one of her feathers, for me. You can have it while we're away... So it's like you'll always have a piece of her."

"Not like you won't see her, again," Penny eased softly as Zed pulled out Lickity's long, glorious feather. Tessa took it from him and peered down at it in growing anguish. She shook her head and quickly looked around for something, atop her dresser.

"How long are we going to be gone?" Tessa wondered in a stern tone, as if she was now on an auto-pilot mode, as if she had to keep reminding herself that her selfish emotions must be put on the back burner, for the good of the game. She eagerly peered to Zed as she finally began to fashion Lickity's feather into her hair, with a rubber band. She finally settled, and the feather beautifully peeked from her hair and over the back of her shoulder.

"We'll be back tomorrow," Zed urged as he zipped up his backpack and lugged it tight to his spine, though Tessa grabbed another shirt of hers and pushed towards her bathroom to change. Everyone watched her cross her room as Zed continued, "We can't risk being in the human world for too long."

"Will you still keep your hair color?" Oliver beamed in wonder.

"Will Tessa keep her wrecking hands?" Penny giggled, though Tessa scoffed a hard, annoyed notion from her bathroom.

"I-I have no idea, I've never left before," Zed urged as Tessa rummaged around her bathroom; it was clear her pace was quick and clumsy, "The good thing is, I can bring some of the technology we have, to the real world... So, we can fix Sugar Rush without needing their world's technology... Which is sort of a few leaps behind ours."

"Don't get too comfortable there," Oliver chuckled.

"There's no place like home," Tessa urged through a small, annoyed laugh as she pushed out of her bathroom and signified to Zed that she was ready. She wore a comfortable dark grey shirt and her black, skinny jeans. She knew, going to a dark game like Tron, that sticking out would likely be suicidal. Zed dared to look her over, though he was aware their spark was probably set back to square one, because of this mess.

"Okay, we've gotta go," Zed rushed as everyone began to push out of Tessa's room and down the hall, "We've already lost a lot of valuable time."

"You guys are going to fix Sugar Rush tomorrow?" Penny worried as everyone finally shuffled out of their wing of the castle, and into the Great Hall.

"Yeah," Zed nodded as he finally scrunched his eyes shut and shook his head, as if he now had to think through his plan with more careful thinking, "The arcade is closed tomorrow, for Sunday... We can't tamper with the cabinets today, while there are children and other customers hanging around."

"Not to mention, you look just like the guy on the side of the Dead Zed cabinet," Penny giggled as everyone fast-walked down the large hall, which was painfully still, though everyone was still tense with the fact that anything could change at any second.

"We're going to have to break into Litwak's?" Tessa urged in hard annoyance, "Can't we get, I don't know... Arrested or something? Don't they have really strict authorities?"

"Yep," Zed chirped with a sarcastic smile in Tessa's direction, "Should be a lot of fun."

"You guys are going to get yourselves killed," Oliver grumbled, "So if you're not fixing Sugar Rush today, what are you going to do in the meantime?"

"We're leaving for Tron now, so to leave Litwak's without looking suspicious," Zed urged as everyone finally began to approach the front doors, "We'll, uh... We'll keep ourselves entertained. Don't know how, but I'm sure there's lots of stuff to do."

"Where will you be staying?" Penny worried as everyone finally gathered at the front door, Penny looked exhausted and scared, though in an excited way. She gestured her arms as everyone began to feel heightened, "H-How can we get ahold of you guys?"

"You won't be able to," Zed frowned as he glanced at Tessa, "We'll probably find a hotel to stay at, for the night."

"You won't be able to lose any interior coding, there," Oliver muttered, though Zed largely furrowed his eyebrows and felt a wave of weirdness fall over him.

"We won't HAVE coding," Zed blurted, though he flinched as the realization finally hit him. He largely looked to Tessa and, as if he so badly wanted to overflow her with his growing findings, he suddenly felt alien, as if he didn't have this privilege anymore. He snapped his mouth shut, gave Oliver an annoyed glare and shoved his hands into his pockets, as if to be embarrassed.

"That's the whole point!" Oliver laughed, though he shook his head.

"Doesn't matter, you already beat Zed to it," Tessa grumbled in dark annoyance, as she crossed her arms, though Zed gave Oliver a wildly incredulous look.

"You..." Zed pointed clumsily and peered to Penny, as if to ask a billion questions. Penny burst out in laughter and crossed her arms.

"Tessa's purple coding is now considered a complete rarity," Penny chimed with the ultimate amount of sass, "Because she's the only one, in this entire game, with it! Olly, here, gave his away."

Zed peered to Oliver in hard surprise, though Oliver looked down sheepishly and wrinkled his nose. Zed finally scoffed an annoyed exhale and dug the long baton out of his jean's back pocket. As softly as he could, he peered down at it in growing confusion, as if he was absolutely certain he would win the bet between him and Oliver. The fact that Oliver lost his original coding, before Zed; he knew he had to follow through with their bet. He sorrowfully gazed down at the light-cycle baton, in his hand and, before he could begin to hand it over, Oliver's larger hand rested atop it, as well as Zed's trembling hand. He flinched and peered up at Oliver in growing confusion.

"Don't," Oliver chuckled as he shook his head, "You need the light-cycle... You keep it. It's yours. It was just a silly bet."

"What's going on?" Tessa uttered in dull annoyance.

"The boys bet who could lose their coding first and, since Zed was confident he'd be first to it, he was stupid enough to bet his light-cycle," Penny rushed in an equally dull tone, though Zed bulged his eyes and peered hard into Penny's soul, as if to ask if she had it out for him. He nervously glanced to Tessa and gave her a sheepish look out of the corner of his eye.

"Really, now," Tessa urged in growing agitation as she tightly crossed her arms and gave Zed a hard glare.

"Y'minus well just castrate me, Penny, and save Tessa the trouble," Zed barked, Penny largely stifled a laugh.

"Just, promise me, when you get back," Oliver chuckled as he pushed the baton to Zed's chest, "You'll program me a light-cycle, or something similar... We'll be even, then."

"Deal," Zed chuckled as both boys shook hands, though Oliver largely tugged him into a brotherly hug. Zed choked a startled noise, though they largely pat each other's backs, a firm, notion of brotherly love only they understood.

"Please come back safely," Penny worried as she eased closer to Zed, for a goodbye hug as well.

"I promise," Zed urged quietly as he squeezed Penny to him, though as they pulled apart, everyone slowly peered to Tessa, who kept a disgruntled air about herself, though she knew she should soften for this tender moment.

Tessa's agitated frown only broadened. She glanced between Oliver and Penny in a quizzical, disheartened kind of way. She knew saying goodbye meant handing the kingdom over and purely just hoping for the best. The fact that she now has to dive in head first, blindly into an unknown situation, with someone she didn't totally trust at the moment, made her want to hull herself away and never come into the daylight ever again. She finally relaxed her annoyed, crossed arms positioning and slumped her hands to her sides. She gave Oliver a defeated frown and shook her head.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't terrified, right now," Tessa urged quietly as she finally looked down to everyone's feet. She, Oliver and Penny were all barefoot, though Zed wore shoes that were appropriate for their light-cycle ride to the unknown.

"All of us are feeling it," Zed eased as he ran his hand through his now messy blue hair. The short, buzzed hairs, that made his mo-hawk prominent, were beginning to grow back.

"Whose... Whose gunna watch over the kingdom while you're gone?" Penny worried as she glanced at Oliver, though he, too, gave her a curious stare, "No one, but you, has the power to get in and out of the code room, and the hull. You're the only one with the coding, for it."

"Essentially, mom is 'in charge'," Tessa lazily used air quotes as she filled the gap between the four. She smiled to Oliver and gave him a haggard nod, "Though you're second in line, for the throne, Olly... It only seems appropriate that you're left in charge. You and Penny need to work together, with mom, dad, Aunt Taffyta and uncle Rancis. Just... Keep everyone calm until tomorrow."

"But, what about the and cabinet? The arcade opens in about an hour... All those children will be playing Sugar Rush, and they'll see that everyone has downgraded," Oliver stated deeply as him and Zed stole glances, "What if we get unplugged?"

"You won't be unplugged," Zed's voice was confident as he idly gazed at the ground, "I'll make sure of it."

"I'm sure Mr. Litwak will keep the game plugged in, so long as it's functioning properly," Tessa confirmed, though she was stunned at just how easily she was able to force confidence, "Downgrade or not... Everyone still loves Sugar Rush."

"And, I don't get quarter alerts, so," Zed lazily shrugged and began to look almost too mentally and physically exhausted to function, though he carried on, "What's being absent for another day."

Tessa opened her mouth to continue reassuring Penny and Oliver, though she jolted once Penny suddenly lunged herself into Tessa's arms and slapped her arms around her neck. Tessa's eyes bulged in surprise, though she lovingly held her cousin close. She nervously peered to Oliver and, as if reality had finally hit her, she squeezed Penny, as hard as she could, to her existence.

"Be safe, Tess," Penny's voice croaked in a dainty softness, though she pulled away and gripped her hands to Tessa's shoulders, "Bring me back a souvenir."

"Me too," Oliver grumbled as he nudged Tessa's arm, though Penny stepped aside, which cued Oliver to step closer to his older sister. Oliver shook his head and peered deep into his sister's eyes, as if unraveling all of Sugar Rush's fears could take just a few seconds of determined eye contact. Oliver's nervous, deep voice continued on, "Please hurry back... I-I've never run the game, all by myself."

"You won't be alone," Tessa kindly urged as she gripped Oliver's hands in hers and squeezed, "We won't be gone for long. Keep each other safe... You won't have to worry about vanishing, now."

"I don't know if I could ever repay you, for fixing that," Oliver chuckled, though before the two could carry on, he lovingly tugged his sister into a bear hug.

Tessa was quick to hug her brother around his center. She buried her face into the warmth of his broad chest and, for a split second, she shut her eyes tight and let her mind fade to when they were little. The warm memories of playing outside the castle, Sugar Rush's majestic, minty sky that held all of the warmth in the universe. Big Green's leaves that made sweet music for the very core of the game. Tessa could swear that, for just that one second, she could see it all again. Every sense of hers made her believe that Sugar Rush was in it's peak of stable, beautiful condition. Though, like falling from one of the heavenly, pink clouds, she resurfaced to the hell she had brought upon herself and opened her eyes to Oliver's wrinkled, red shirt. She slumped her shoulders, and as if she could hardly even form the energy, tears welled in her eyes; though she could bet that it took every single last byte of mental capacity left in her body.

"I love you," Oliver's voice crackled, which cued Tessa to grit her teeth in growing anguish. She shook her head, covered her face, and begged Oliver to keep his composure; without it, she'd lose practically everything. Oliver cleared his throat, let out a hard chuckle and swiped his face with the back of his hand, "C'mon, we're... We're the kin of the greatest. We'll get through this mess. We may not be with each other, but... We will always have the strongest bond, here."

"I love you, Olly," Tessa said through a hard whimper as, she too, tried to hold back nearly sobbing to the world.

"We'll see you guys tomorrow," Oliver demanded with a growing smile into Tessa's warm eyes. He gripped both Tessa's and Zed's shoulders and lightly shook them.

"Promise," Tessa uttered softly with a gentle wave as her and Zed pushed out of the castle doors and onto the massive, outdoor foyer. Tessa looked over her shoulder and gave the two yet another wave, "Tell everyone we say bye and that we love them."

"We will," Both Oliver and Penny called, though no sooner did the four split from each other, Zed opened his light-cycle and made sure him and Tessa were properly mounted.

Tessa hugged her arms around Zed's center and squeezed, though not in your conventional, romantic kind of way. She furrowed her eyebrows in growing frustration, and although she didn't want to be apart of this massive mess, anymore, she knew she had to help Zed right their wrongs. She knew she owed it to her kingdom, for the mistakes they selfishly let run wild in Sugar Rush's coding. She let her eyes lull closed, as if to anticipate mental pain, as Zed's light-cycle rocketed away from the castle. She almost couldn't bear opening her eyes and looking at her unfamiliar land. The fact that everything had become so painfully cheery, it was almost disgusting. The upgraded Sugar Rush, she was used to, was a stoic land, riddled with the sweetest, most majestic landscapes, all ranging in different kinds of terrains and wonders. Her enchanting land was downgraded to everything it used to be, though in doing so, she had single-handedly destroyed everything her elders had worked so hard to achieve.

She finally peeked her eyes out to Sugar Rush's approaching entrance and furrowed her eyebrows in impending anguish. As if the small voices, inside her head, continued to chant to not look back, she held true to it and remained solid. She felt Sugar Rush's very presence practically tap on her spine, as if to ask if she will remember it; to ask if she will take care of it, in this venture of hers. She finally felt enough guilt plague her system, and knew that not turning around wasn't an option. As easily as the whipping wind would allow, she finally peered over her shoulder through teary eyes. The last image she could see in the distance, as they rocketed towards Sugar Rush's wires, which led to Game Central Station, was Sugar Rush's massive, yet downgraded castle. It still hung on the horizon with every last inch of majestic beauty it held, though Tessa knew she had done the game a massive disservice. Her stomach dropped as Sugar Rush, once and for all, slipped out of her line of sight. She felt her heart harden, in that very moment, as if she was somehow, sickeningly positive that her kingdom was kindly saying a solid farewell to it's first heir.