Next chapter as promised. All credit goes to the wonderful YellowAngela. I'll post another chapter today or tomorrow.
Do Not Own.
The pale green one with tentacles sprayed some dark smoke from his mouth. Eww, gross. It made it hard to see. The bandaged EVO attacked Six. His hands flew out and tried to smack him down but Six moved to the side. He grabbed one of his arms and swung him against the wall. I formed my smack hands and got ready to fight. As the insect girl came closer she suddenly stopped.
"Rex?" She asked hesitantly.
"Who wants to know?" I asked.
"It's me Cricket." she said.
"Doesn't ring a bell." I said swinging at her. She jumped, really high actually, and came crashing down on my chest. I felt like I was hit by a ton of bricks. The air was knocked out of my lungs.
"Ohh, sorry, Rex." Cricket apologized. "I think you're having a memory lapse. You use to have that when you were with us."
"What?" I looked at her incredulously. "What are you talking about?"
Then something whacked me on the back of my head. Really? Again with the head! Everything went black.
0o0
When I cam too, I was staring at Cricket.
"You ok?" Cricket asked.
I rubbed my head. "What's going on?"
"You don't remember do you?" The bandaged EVO asked.
"Well, obviously not, genius." The pale green one said sarcastically. He turned to me.
"I'm Skwydd, that's Tuck, and this is Cricket. You were a part of our gang until you disappeared one day. You probably had a memory lapse. It happened to you a lot back in the day."
This was way too much. "Okay, I give. Where are the hidden cameras?" I looked around.
"No serious." Tuck insisted. "Here look. We had a problem with a shape-shifter one time and you suggested that we get nanite activated tattoos." He grabbed my arm and pulled my sleeve back.
"Ink check." He said and to my shock a tattoo appeared.
"Woah," was all I could say. I looked at each of them but nothing in my memory stirred.
"Come on, Quarry would want to see you." Tuck said.
"Wait, we work for Quarry?" I felt slightly sick.
"Yeah, you were his captain." Cricket said shyly.
Oh boy, this was not good.
"But Quarry's just a common thug." I said remembering the few things I actually read in the files.
"He controls all of Hong Kong and he gave us a home when no one else would." Skwydd replied.
"Do you like doing the things he tells you?" I asked wondering what kind of person I was in the past.
The three of them looked at each other uncomfortably.
"Well, he is in control." Cricket said lamely. She was tugging at her hair. I wondered why she was acting so strange.
"No, you have to think for yourself." I said indignantly.
"He's powerful. No one gets away with disobeying him." Tuck said nervously.
"Well, I think it's time someone does. " I got up from the cot. "Take me to him." They looked at each other.
All of a sudden it hit me. "Wait, where's Six?" I looked around.
"That guy with you?" Skwydd asked. "I blew an ink cloud so we can take you away from him."
"No, Six is cool." I said wondering where he and Bobo are right now.
"He was trying to break into the vault." Tuck said.
"What's in the vault?" I asked remembering the huge safe.
"We don't know. Quarry keeps all his valuables in there and he found something a few days ago. I think Van Kleiss is looking for it and Quarry is negotiating with him." Skwydd answered.
Quarry's playing a dangerous game if he's talking with Van Kleiss. He can't be trusted. But neither could Quarry. I tried to think of something that would free these EVOs from Quarry and somehow get that meta-nantite before Van Kleiss did. I wished Six was here. He's good with the coming-up-with-a-plan-at-the-spur-of-the-moment thing.
"What if you just stop working for Quarry?" I asked.
The three of them looked nervously at each other.
"You can come back with me." I wasn't sure Knight would like another 3 EVOs at the base but I couldn't leave them with Quarry.
"That sounds nice, Rex." Cricket started, "But Quarry would hunt us down. No one's ever deserted him before and lived."
"We'll protect you. " I said confidently without feeling it.
Before they could answer another voice chimed in.
"Well, well, Rex. I wouldn't trust anything you have to say."
My blood ran cold. I spun around and there stood Quarry with three burly EVOs.
One of them charged. I formed my smack hands and bashed it away.
The other two made like it was about to charge me too but Quarry raised his hand.
"Now, now Rex is that any way to treat your old friend?" He asked sarcastically.
"I don't remember you and I certainly would never be your friend.
"Need to jog a few memories do we?" He sneered pulling out a recording device.
"Rex," gasped Tuck. "It's your journal."
"Hand it over." I glared at the creep. Then I added. "Let Cricket, Tuck, and Skwydd go. They don't owe you anything."
"But Rex you gave them to me. After all you were my top lieutenant. " He said in a mockingly friendly way. He pressed play on the device.
To my horror, I saw my picture appear on the screen and heard my voice come out.
"Adios, freeloaders. Finally convinced Quarry to take these leeches off my hands. He gets some new lap dogs and I get to walk away."
I stood gaping at him. It couldn't be yet there it was. Irrefutable evidence of what a jerk I was… am?
Suddenly, Tuck punched me. I fell on the floor.
"We trusted you! Why?" Cricket asked tears in her eyes and voice.
The three of them started to walk to Quarry's side.
"No wait!" I cried. My head was still reeling. "Even if that was me it doesn't matter."
Tuck looked back at me disdainfully. "At least we know who Quarry is."
I looked in shock. I can't believe this is happening especially since I can't remember any of it.
"Now what brings you to our neck of the woods? Hmm, Rex? Van Kleiss has put a big reward on your head." Quarry said in his smooth oily voice. "I think I might be able to get some leverage with you as my prisoner."
I glared at Quarry.
"You're going to open a world of sorry if you try." I countered.
"I think I have the home advantage here. Boys and girl." He lifted his head. The burly EVO's charged. I easily batted them away with my smack hands. I was a little more hesitant to use too much force against my friends. I was trying hard not to think about what a terrible thing I had done to them. I couldn't believe that I could ever do something like that but what if that was me. Was I still the same? Self-doubt started to creep in. That's when my builds started going.
Tuck elongated his hands but I dodged them. When I tried to bring my BFS, it fell apart immediately after I sliced the bandages that came towards me. I formed my punk busters and aimed a kick at him. But before I could reach him, my punk busters fell apart in mid kick. Luckily, I still had enough momentum to knock him down. Then I saw Cricket leaping at me. I grabbed her leg and swung her. She flew and hit Skwydd who was coming at me from the other side. I felt bad hurting them but I knew what would make me feel better.
"Quarry! It's just you and me." I stepped toward him forming my smack hands.
"You think you can take me on?" He snickered.
"And then some." I answered as I swung. I guess being made of rock made him slow. I caught the side of his head. He didn't even flinch. He grabbed my hands and swung me but I formed my punk busters and bounced off the wall. Pushing off the wall I formed my smack hands again and aimed them at Quarry. I hit him so hard that I actually cracked his face. He held his head in shock as I landed a few feet from him. I guess he wasn't expecting me to be so strong. I guess I can thank Six for that.
"Had enough?" I asked.
His answer was to try to knock me into next Tuesday. I dodged his fists again and again and again. I weaved my head back and forth leading him closer to something I had seen earlier. At his last swing I ducked and his hand collided with an electrical outlet.
Now I don't know how inorganic material would do with electricity but still, having high voltage coursing through your body can't be fun. He staggered back and glared at me, his clothes smoking. He was breathing heavily. He ran trying to ram me but I grabbed his shirt, pulled him down on me, formed my punk busters and shot him into a wall. The wall crumbled. He got up.
I formed my slam cannon and blasted him with concrete from the floor. As he groggily pulled himself up, I ran at him with my smack hands.
"Now, Rex, let's not be hasty." He held up my journal. "You forgot your past? I can give it all back to you. Leave and we'll pretend this never happened. Come on, Rex. We both know this is what you really want. So go ahead take it. Walk away. Show them who you really are. You were always very good a taking care of yourself. Why should now be any different?"
Without hesitation I formed my BFS and sliced the journal in his hand.
"That's not who I am anymore." I said. "I'm leaving here with my friends and you as rubble." I swung my smack hands. He grabbed them and threw me behind him. I crashed into the streets. I lost my build as I slid through the ground and finally came to a stop when I hit some trash.
"No Rex, we never change! You are nothing less than the same gutter trash as they are when I found you and you always will be!" He picked up a car and threw it at me. I built my smack hands but when the car hit me it shattered. Uh-oh. As Holiday would say my biometrics were dropping. What Quarry was saying was starting to get to me. I kept playing the recording I heard of my voice so easily giving up so that I could survive. While I was distracted another car flew at me and this time I wasn't fast enough. I was pinned against the wall. I struggled to get free. I saw Quarry walking toward me with an evil smirk.