Apologies for a slow update you guys. I had some exams to do recently that i needed to revise for so I had to take a break from this. I want to get this done before season 4 returns so updates should be quicker from now on :)
And a thank you to the people who reviewed :)
Claudia opened her eyes to a bright white light that shocked her receptors. Holy crap, I'm dead!
"Claudia" She heard a muffled voice, a man's voice, a voice she recognised. Dad? She questioned.
"Claudia" There it was again...that voice. I need to reply. She tried to speak but merely a small croak was made. She tried again.
"Dad?" Her vision was starting to make more sense. She blinked a lot to help speed it up, which worked. She could see a ceiling. So heaven has houses? Cool. The light was now less bright and as she looked around, she could see the walls of a room, a bedside table and a man sat on a chair close to a bed she was lying on. Finally she could see normally. Huh, heaven looks sort of like a hospital.
"Claudia?" The voice again. She looked around at the man who spoke her name. It was Artie. Artie?
"I'm not dead?" She said rather stupidly. She felt a bit stupid to be honest. Thinking she was in heaven, worse still thinking Artie was her Dad.
"No, kiddo, you're not dead, it was a close call though" Artie replied, looking relieved that she was finally conscious.
Claudia sat up quickly and said "Please tell me I didn't actually call you 'Dad'?"
"I didn't hear anything if you didn't want me to" He replied, with a small and slightly hidden smile on his face. Claudia exhaled and flopped back down onto the bed. They both paused as they looked at each other, a calming moment in which they both acknowledged that everything was alright. Artie broke the silence.
"So how are you feeling?"
"mmm" She thought on it. "Not that bad actually, a little tired, I guess..." She peeked under the covers at her leg. It was heavily bandaged, her curiosity got the better of her and she gave it a good poke – nothing. No pain whatsoever. She smiled with satisfaction then looked up at Artie "Where's Jinksy? Is he ok?"
"Oh Steve? Yeah, he's fine. He's just in the cafeteria with Pete and Myka." He paused "You know you scared me, right?" an almost shy look on his face.
"Artie..." Claudia wasn't entirely sure what to say "Look at me; I'm fine now, okay? The worst is over" She tried to smile at him but there was something in his eyes that gave her an uneasy feeling. It was a look she's never seen before. "Artie?"
He leaned in "Listen to me Claudia. When I find the piece of scum that did this to you I swear I will repay him the favour of what he did to you-"
"Artie!" Claudia cut him off. She was shocked at what he was saying. "Artie, what are you talking about? You're talking about intentionally seriously injuring or possibly killing someone? That's not you, Artie. You don't go after people for vengeance!"
"I do if they hurt the people I love" He replied quickly. Silence. They both stared at each other. It had never been said before. Yeah, they were like family and love was there but never had it been spoken out loud. Claudia didn't know what to say for the second time.
"Artie..." She broke the silence but wasn't sure how to fill it.
"Claudia, you mean so much to me. You're the daughter I never had and I can't-" his voice wavered and he swallowed hard and paused. He was practically braking down in front of her. Claudia leaned forward and took his hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. He looked her in the eye "I can't see you like this without doing something about it"
"Well I'm not going to try and stop you. There's no point. I know you and you'll do it anyway" Claudia replied gently. "But I can tell you that you're an old idiot, if you hurt yourself"
1 Week later.
Artie was sat at his desk chair in the office at the Warehouse. He'd been running a scan for a good two hours now. Relentlessly searching and searching for some sign of that bastard to pop up somewhere on the grid. He'd been at his desk for days, he'd only left the warehouse four times in the last six days and that was only to check up on Claudia at the B&B, making sure she was resting. She had recovered well so far, just yesterday she managed to walk (albeit at a snail's pace) from her room, down the stairs, without assistance from anyone or her crutches, to the kitchen to smuggle some ice cream out of the fridge.
He smiled to himself as he thought of her getting bored and restless at the B&B. She's got Myka and Leena right now he thought to himself. He had Pete and Steve doing inventory as it had piled up massively recently. He stood to check on their progress and was on his way onto the balcony when his computer started bleeping away at him. A ping. Artie ran back to the desk and began typing away so fast he could have given Claudia a run for her money. The location and several words came up onto the screen. He froze.
"I'll be damned" he muttered. He ran to balcony this time and shouted at the top of his voice "PETE! I FOUND HIM!" he didn't wait for a reply but ran back to his desk and continued typing. Pete came running into the office a minute later, closely followed by Steve.
"You got him?" Pete asked, slightly breathless as he and Steve had run all the way from aisle 51. He walked up to the desk and looked at the screen. "No freaking way. That asshole has another artefact?"
"I know where he is" Artie said in a quiet yet vicious tone. He turned and grabbed his black bag and walked purposefully towards the door.
"Artie?"
"You're just going? Artie!" Steve stepped forward in front of him, blocking him from leaving.
"Out of my way, Steve"
"You're being reckless, you don't even have a plan!"
"Oh I have a plan alright. I'm gonna teach that rat a lesson. Now you can both come with me to get the artefact – you know – do our job and at the same time teach him a lesson or you can stay here and continue with inventory. Your choice" A pause.
"Where's my jacket?" Steve said strongly; ready to punish this guy for what he did to Claudia.
"I'll call Myka, tell her we got a ping" Pete said as he picked up his car keys.
They left the warehouse and piled into the black SUV. Pete put his foot down and drove across the badlands. Artie was in the passenger seat, Steve in the back, placing his Tesla into his back pocket. Pete propped his Farnsworth against the dashboard and pushed the familiar button to call Myka who was at the B&B. She answered quickly.
"Hey Pete, you ready to swap? Leena's making cookies, you wanna come down here and lick the bowl?" She said with a smile on her face.
"We got him" Pete said quite bluntly. Myka stared at his face, her smile gone and a look of hard understanding replaced it. "We're coming to pick you up now, should be there in five. Kirk out" He shut the Farnsworth. "Artie it'll take us around two hours to get to that part of Iowa mentioned on the computer" Pete said to Artie.
"You can make it in an hour and a half if you put your foot down" Artie replied.
"Do you know what artefact he has?" Steve asked from the back seat.
"I'm not sure, all I got from the ping was the location of the shoe factory in Spencer city and that none of the workers have left in a few days. No one can get in to find out why either. Killner popped up on the grid as an employee there. My guess is it's some kind of controlling artefact, it wouldn't surprise me if he's taken over the place. Either that or the artefact is from another source although I doubt it, if he could get his hands on one artefact then he could just as easily get another"
They reached the B&B and all three got out of the car. Myka was already in the hallway, putting on her boots when they all stepped onto the premises.
"Mykes we found him, he's in Spencer city. We think he has another artefact" Pete said.
"No way" She replied, pulling on her jacket.
"Where's Claudia?" Artie asked
"She's in her room" replied Leena, who had just entered the hallway from the kitchen. Artie went upstairs.
"Claudia?" he poked his head around the door. She was sat up in bed tuning her guitar.
"Oh hey eyebrows, what's up?" She said looking up briefly before going back to her tuning. Artie walked into her room and sat on the end of her bed.
"I found him" He said. Claudia looked up. Looked into his eyes.
"...And you're gonna-"
"I'm gonna go after him"
"Artie...I know I told you I didn't want you to go and that I wasn't going to try and stop you but...I really don't want you to, you could get hurt or I don't know-"
"Claudia, he has an artefact-"
"What? Another one?"
"And I'm going after it as well. I'm doing my job remember that. Pete, Myka and Steve are coming with me, I'll have backup. I don't want you to worry"
Claudia pushed back the covers and heaved herself forward and began slowly pulling her leg over the side of the bed.
"Whoa, whoa whoa, what do you think you're doing?"
"I'm coming with" she said, as though it was blatantly obvious.
"I don't think so. Look at you, you can hardly stand let alone chase after an artefact!"
"I don't care and I can walk now...sort of" She said, eyeing the floor slightly.
"Sort of? OK, come on then, come with us"
"Huh?"
"You say you can walk, you think you can keep up? Show me" Artie said.
"Fine. I will" She stood and hopped on the spot a little before taking a tiny step forward, then another. She had a small grimace on her face and her teeth were slightly gritted. She continued to her door. Her lips pursed together in mild discomfort. Artie walked along side her and she stopped at the door.
"Oh, is something wrong? Are you unable to continue?" Artie slightly mocked her.
"Okay okay, you're right. I'm a sack of flour, I can hardly move, happy?"
"I'm happy that you made it this far" Artie finished.
"Can I at least go to the warehouse and help you guys out? You might need info while you're in the field" Claudia gave him the puppy eyes. "Please?" She added. Artie frowned at her. He didn't like the idea but he may need someone who had access to information, just in case.
"Fine"
"Hell yeh!"
"But Leena is to drive you and stay with you. I don't want you 'walking' around the warehouse either. Stay in the office with the computer"
"Thanks Artie!" She smiled.
Artie helped her downstairs and he, Pete, Steve and Myka got into the SUV and Leena helped Claudia slowly towards the El Camino. It was time to catch an artefact and punish this bad guy.
TBC
Tell me what you think... reviews give me motivation :)